****** Chapter 1: The Young Captain ******
Book 2: Redemption of Righteousness
An alchemical ship swiftly sped across the depths of the ocean floor like a
shot arrow.
It was the Deep Sea Montser Fish.
“Faster, faster, faster!” The goblin, Triple Blade, shouted from the cabin.
“Can this thing go any faster?” Bai Ya fretfully worried.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was being driven jointly by Cang Xu and Zi Di.
Zi Di’s body had already been frozen, now she was a ghostly spirit that floated
in the ship.
The necromancer, Cang Xu, clutched his aged hands around a crystal ball, using
his entire spirit to control the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
They had just escaped Mystifying Monster Island, an island on the verge of
exploding!
No one knew how strong the explosion would be, and every survivor that had
crowded into the cabin was fraught with anxiety, all of them wanted to put as
much distance between them and the island.
In this moment between life and death, Cang Xu still remained tranquil. Even
his voice retained his usual calmness. When confronted by everyone behind him,
he slowly shook his head, “The Deep Sea Monster Fish is already as fast as it
can.”
The ghostly Zi Di suddenly spoke up, “Found it.”
Her voice sounded somewhat strange.
This was because she no longer had vocal cords. Ghostly voices were raspy and
torturously ear-piercing to those who heard them, it was quite unpleasant to
listen to.
Zi Di had been a magician when she was alive, and thus could use a magic spell
to alter her ghostly tones to sound more like how she did in life.
An image appeared before everyone present as she spoke.
The image displayed an undisturbed Mystifying Monster Island.
The lush jungles that covered Mystifying Monster Island were slowly getting
smaller in the image, illustrating how quickly the Deep Sea Monster Fish was
getting from it.
To its credit, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was far faster than most ships on the
sea. The previous ship they rode on, the Hog’s Kiss, could not even compare to
it.
In the steering cabin, everyone was entranced by the image.
Regardless of whether it was the powerful monstrous youth or the unyielding
half beastman Zong Ge, all of them watched on with wrinkled brows.
The others were even more terrified, and some like Bai Ya, turned even paler.
Due to how many people there were, the big guy with the giant bloodline had to
stand in the hallway outside, gazing inward as he held the door open.
——
However, his gaze did not focus on the magic projection on the wall, instead he
was constantly flickering back to look at his “father”, the monstrous
youngster.
Many people were already dripping with cold sweat.
The pressure in everyone’s heart was greatly increasing by the second. All knew
the grim reaper’s sickle was hanging above their heads, and that when it fell,
the fate of their lives would be decided.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was roughly 5000 meters from Mystifying Monster
Island when the time of judgement finally arrived.
Boom!!
With a world-shaking and deafening rumble, a terrible explosion suddenly
occurred.
At the same time, the magic image on the wall abruptly went white, its intense
light dazzled the eyes with its radiance. 
A moment before, Mystifying Monster Island had been perfectly fine, the next,
it completely vanished.
Everyone couldn’t help but narrow their eyes.
Then, the force of the explosion hit them.
On the seafloor, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s hull found it hard to withstand
the battering of the blast wave, and was carried along with it.
The fish-like hull also began to turn and roll violently.
Everyone in the steering cabin was caught off guard and they were thrown
against the walls, ceiling, and floor, one after the other, as the hull rolled
about. Even the monstrous youngster, Zong Ge, and Triple Blade could barely
keep themselves steady as they were bounced about.
The giant was a bit lucky, because of his large stature, he didn’t move too
much in the hallway.
The one who had it the easiest was Zi Di.
The girl ghost was barely affected, and still remained floating where she was
as the Deep Sea Monster Fish was tossed about.
While everyone had their hands full with everything going on, the girl remained
gazing at the magic image.
She saw a faint smear of red and brown in the vast whiteness.
Soon after, the white light from the explosion quickly dissipated , allowing
her to clearly see the red magma and brown rocks splattering into the sky.
There was still thick smoke billowing to the sky, and above the shattered
Mystifying Monster Island, a large mushroom shaped cloud rose.
Around the mushroom cloud, a gape in the ocean was formed by the blast.
In the wake of the shockwave, the ocean rebounded against it, creating immense
waves in nearly an instant.
However, a moment later, a frightening magical aura appeared.
War Merchant’s dead man switch activated, the legend level spell – Spatial
Banishment!
The magic radiated like a small sun, and covered a radius of several hundred
meters, nearly suffocating those watching.
In the twinkle of an eye, the magic was completed, creating a black hole above
the sinking Mystifying Monster Island.
The black hole began to grow, and after a few short breaths, expanded to a
diameter of nine meters.
The black hole exuded a strong gravitational force.
First was the smoke in the sky, then the splashing magma, then the rocks.
Even the rushing sea waves were sucked in.
A tsunami had no time to form, as the black hole sucked in everything around
it.
Countless oceanic creatures along with the seawater were crushed into the black
hole.
This horrific scene caused every survivor’s expression to change.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had steadied itself finally, and fled with all haste
once again.
The spatial banishment spell’s terrifying gravitational force was also
affecting the alchemical ship.
It suddenly dropped their speed by two thirds!
If they were sucked in, they would most certainly die.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish and everyone inside seemed tiny in comparison to the
vastness of the spell’s power.
The alchemy ship’s magic power reservoir was being violently consumed and many
minute cracks started to form in the hull.
In the end, the Deep Sea Monster Fish performed outstandingly.
After a minute of suffering, the black hole’s beastly appetite seemed to be
satisfied and began to gradually shrink. The diameter shrunk from nine meters
to eight, six, and four, until it finally disappeared.
The spatial banishment spell’s gravity also gradually weakened.
Until that too finally diminished into nothing.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had escaped, more scared than hurt.
In the tranquil seabed, it gradually began to slow. Cang Xu had done so to save
on magic power.
But the ocean behind them was not so calm.
The spatial banishment spell had swallowed vast amounts of seawater, causing
the water around the hole to surge into replenish it.
Likewise, the survivors were also extremely tense.
The grim reaper’s sickle had fallen, but everyone had escaped it. After
realizing that, everyone in the steering cabin erupted with joy.
“We’re alive?”
“Yes, we’re alive!”
“We did it, we finally did it.”
Many people hugged each other with tears of joy.
It had been an unprecedented trial. So many things had happened since the
shipwreck. 
To survive, everyone had to brave Mystifying Monster Island’s frightful
environment, they had to skirt the edge of death to withstand the artificial
magic beasts, and had agonized over food, water, and exhaustion. Finally, they
suffered unending hardships in Mystifying Monster Island’s underground alchemy
factory.
The greatest internal threat was Father Jia Sha. In his pursuit of personal
gain, he chose to teleport the divine artifacts and abandon everyone else.
It hadn’t been easy.
It was simply a miracle anyone was still alive!
In between the cheers and sobbing, Zi Di and the monstrous youngster looked at
each other with mixed feelings.
There was happiness, tranquility, intimacy, and there was also forgiveness and
understanding.
To reach this place, they had to cross innumerable challenges and pay too high
a price many times.
One could say the two had changed beyond recognition.
Although their relationship began to deceit, after surviving Mystifying Monster
Island they had grown to have true affection for each other.
The harsh challenges and tests made the emotions they felt now even more
precious.
“……”
“Zi Di…” The monstrous youth was about to speak when he suddenly heard the
sound of weeping.
He turned his head and saw the big guy clinging to the cabin door, tears
streaming in his eyes as he looked at the magic image.
The Mystifying Monster Island in the magic image had already vanished
completely, as if had never existed.
“……”
“Father…” The big guy wept as snot streamed from his nose. It was obvious that
he was thinking of the old boatwright.
The old boatwright had raised the big guy, despite not having any blood
relation with each other. The old boatwright had died protecting the big guy.
When faced with death, the big guy had been entrusted to the monstrous
youngster.
When the monstrous young man saw the big guy like this, his heart immediately
softened, and he came to the door to gently stroke the big guy’s head and
softly comfort him.
With high spirits, everyone began to converse with each other,
“I can’t believe it, I’m actually still alive.”
“Hahaha, to be honest, I wanted to give up many times on that island, and
during many critical moments, I wanted to just die."
“The dragon hasn’t appeared, it must have been sucked into that dreadful black
hole,”
The discussion reached the topic of the Flame Dragon King.
It happened while the monstrous youth was comforting the big guy, his face
didn’t change, however his heart tensed slightly.
He had used the new Bloodcore to kill the Flame Dragon King.
But it was a secret, one he could never admit.
Because it was related to the Bloodcore.
The Bloodcore was too important, and currently, only the young man knew about
it. If knowledge of it was spread, there would be inconceivable consequences. 
The young man sighed when he thought of the Flame Dragon King.
If he had succeeded in his negotiation, the youngster’s and everybody else’s
situation would have been leagues better.
Unfortunately, the Flame Dragon King with its legend level strength did not
consider the youngster and the survivors as equals. It had been overbearing and
wanted to swallow all of the merits and divine artifacts for itself.
Without any other choice, the young man could only use the Bloodcore, and by a
fluke, it eradicated the weakened Flame Dragon King and absorbed the dragon
into itself.
He had been compelled by circumstance.
At this time, the youngster began to hear everyone’s discussions again.
“Did the Flame Dragon King survive?
“Ah, He was a legend level dragon, could he still be alive even after being
banished to a different space?”
“I don’t think so, the Flame Dragon King had been in a terrible state, beaten
and sealed by War Merchant. War Merchant was a legend level magician, and that
spatial banishment was a most meticulously created defensive spell. That
magic’s might had been terrifying! I feel the Flame Dragon King has met his
end.”
“That’s right, if he was able too, he’d have already escaped.  He must surely
be dead after being banished by the black hole.
“It would be for the best if he died. He vanished along with Mystifying Monster
Island, we had nothing to do with it!
“Do you really think so? Actually, couldn’t we have freed him? But we didn’t,
as such, we are still somewhat responsible for his fate.”
“Hmph, he despised us and wanted to take everything for himself. Without those
things, how could we atone for our crimes against the empire?  He didn’t have a
drop of sincerity and had no intentions of signing a contract with us.”
“But if that is the case, we not only murdered Father Jia Sha, but also the
Flame Dragon King.
When that was said, everyone began to sink into silence.
The joy of successfully escaping gradually dripped from everyone’s face, now
replaced by concern for their current situation and the immutable future that
was approaching.
Upon seeing the ship quieting, Cang Xu suddenly spoke up, “Everyone, we still
need to leave this place first.”
“Although Mystifying Monster Island was in a remote place rarely tread by
others, if the immense fluctuation of magic power draws the attention of who
knows who, it’ll be bad.”
“As for where we should go, I ask that you, Lord Captain, decide that.”
Cang Xu eyed the monstrous youngster, it was obviously who he was referring to
as Lord “Captain”.
The young man was stunned, then humbly shook his head, and forced out a smile,
“I am no captain, in fact, you all know I am also no templar knight.”
But Cang Xu had foreseen the monstrous youngster’s reaction and immediately
retorted, “The only person I can acknowledge as captain of this alchemy ship is
you, your Lordship.”
“That’s right.” Said Lan Zao.
“No, to be more precise, everyone acknowledges you as our Lord.” Bai Ya
followed up.
Everyone looked at each other, none had any objections.
They looked at the young man, and their eyes revealed their approval, respect,
and adoration.
“……”
“But am only a beast…” The monstrous youngster bowed his head.
No, no one believes that. You lead us, we know you as our leader. You are a
true knight!” The ghostly Zi Di floated to the young man’s side, her voice
soft.
“You must concede that you are our most important person. Without you, we
wouldn’t have escaped Mystifying Monster Island.” Zong Ge calmly stated with
folded arms.
The half beastman had once challenged the young man for the position of leader,
but now, he also approved of the young man.
He then said, “Of course, if you don’t want to be our leader or mess up later,
I won’t be so aloof.”
Zong Ge was an unyielding man, he liked to direct everything.
The youngster nodded, and gave no further excuses, instead, he gazed at
everyone with eyes filled with hope and encouragement.
Only ten of them had survived.
“To escape that place, everyone was needed, not a single one of you are
indispensable.”
“Without Zi Di, we would have been poisoned to death by the mutton.”
“Without the big guy, we couldn’t have sailed our ship to the heart of
Mystifying monster Island.”
“Without Zong Ge or Cang Xu, we wouldn’t have defeated Jia Sha.”
“Everyone else, your cumulative contributions during our arduous struggles have
built the foundation we will forge ahead on.”
“Now then, we have escaped, the greatest challenge is already behind us.”
Our next step is to sincerely work together to communicate with the empire’s
higher ups and pay for the atonement of our sins.  
“We cannot make any mistakes.”
“Jia Sha abandoned us for his own personal gain.”
“To survive, we were forced to strike back.”
“I believe we can communicate with the empire’s higher ups.”
“We indirectly destroyed Mystifying Monster Island, a meritorious service to
the empire. We acted righteously.
“I believe in the allure of divine artifacts.”
“With them, I believe our righteous redemption will surely succeed!”
Like before, his speech touched the people’s hearts.
“Huzzah!” At that moment, everyone cheered.
The young man’s unwavering conviction and hope placated the survivor’s anxiety
and bewilderment.
He was their fluttering flag that showed everyone the way forward.



****** Chapter 2: Future Plans ******
The newly elevated young captain succeeded in stabilizing the mood.      
The survivors assembled around him.
The young captain then discussed their future plans.
As an outstanding leader, he knew his own limits and what each survivor
specialized in.
Everyone around the young captain gave their own views.
They were able to sincerely relay their opinion without fear of criticism. The
hardships of Mystifying Monster Island led to them contributing wholeheartedly
and had also cultivated a mutual underrating of collaboration between each
other.
After some discussion, everyone rapidly reached a consensus.
They would contact the empire’s higher ups and use the divine artifacts as
indulgences, and to obtain glory and wealth. 
The struggle between the barbarians and dragons had bled both dry. The dwarfs
lived in the mountains while the elves cowered in their forests. As for the
demons and devils that had been extending their talons towards the main world,
they had been taught a bitter lesson almost a century ago and were still
healing their wounds.
Humanity was unquestionably the current era’s leading race.
Humanity occupied the Sheng Ming Continent, and the Sheng Ming Empire held the
most territory in the world, it was the strongest and most influential nation.
No one thought of opposing them.
Of course, during their discussion, new ideas were put forth.
“Besides the divine artifacts, there is also War Merchant’s alchemical
technology and other valuables…”
“How much would have left after we atone for our crimes?”
“Everyone understands how risky and hard it was to obtain these things.”
“Maybe we can scurry away a part, so as to tactfully avoid the empire’s
voracious greed.”
“Even better, we can study War Merchant’s knowledge and use these divine
artifacts covertly for ourselves. We can get rich off of War Merchant’s alchemy
skills!”
This was simply human nature.
Wealth moved the mind.
They were like Jia Sha, who had chose to teleport the divine artifacts when
tensions had eased and there wasn’t the pressure to survive.
The survivors were of similar mind to him.
Speaking of which, if Jia Sha had utterly defeated the tower spirit, obtained
complete authority, and learned of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the perhaps
things might have turned out differently.
Cang Xu shook his head and brushed away everyone’s fantasies. The divine
artifacts are special tools created by the gods for the gods.” 
“Anyone who is not a god will find it very difficult to use a divine artifact.”
“To us, those who cannot utilize their abilities, these divine artifacts are of
dubious worth. Currently, the best thing we can do with them was what was
mentioned before, giving it to the empire for a reward.”
Tripleblade frowned, “Wasn’t War Merchant able to use them?”
Cang Xu continued to explain, “War Merchant was a legend level magician, and a
great grandmaster alchemist, he could stand with the gods, of course he could
use these divine artifacts. Do not at all compare us to him.
Even if he could, he wouldn’t be able to use them to their full effect.
Tripleblade then asked, “Didn’t we bring the tower spirit with us? It should
know War Merchant’s alchemy formations. As long as we build the alchemy
formation and successfully activate it, can we not use the divine artifacts
like War Merchant could?”
Triple Blade was once a mercenary commander, he knew well that these divine
artifacts were a unique treasure that could alter his destiny. In his previous
life, he struggled with his mercenary group through the dregs of society. The
empire, merchant alliances, and other entities pushed them around. Perhaps it
was because of that that he was against handing these divine artifacts over to
the empire.
Zong Ge spoke up in favor of Triple Blade’s suggestion, “The divine artifacts
notwithstanding, we also need to talk about the alchemy factory If we built
one, we could manufacture alchemical weapons. If we supply the empire with
them, it also should be enough to wash away our sins.
“I don’t believe anyone needs me to elaborate on how this will benefit us?”
Zong Ge looked around, and saw the flames igniting in the survivors’ eyes.
Bai Ya was both happy and concerned, “If we could do that, then that would be
great. But didn’t we destroy the tower spirit? Although we rescued it, its
memory had been greatly damaged already. If information pertaining to the
alchemy factory has been destroyed, then what should we do then?”
Worry spread through everyone.
Many of them looked at the spectral Zi Di.
After all, Zi Di was the one among them with the highest authority. After Jia
Sha had died, Zi Di was the one who controlled the alchemy factory.
Zi Di replied, “Don’t worry. Although the tower spirit was destroyed and at
least a third of its stored information destroyed, there is a sequence to the
damage. The most important and secretive information was likely at the tail end
of that sequence.”
The young captain was flabbergasted, “That’s a little strange, shouldn’t the
most important information be destroyed first if one were to self-destruct?”
Zi Di nodded with a smile, “Typically, my Lord.”
“You aren’t familiar with how magicians act, however.”
“The most important and precious knowledge is usually kept the most clandestine
and is the hardest to destroy. There are even many backups made of it
elsewhere.”
“When a magician sets up self-destruct spells, they need to prevent enemies
from exploiting them or guard against accidentally destroying it because the
tower spirit or themselves made a mistake.”
:“?“
Triple Blade’s eyes shined, “So, it’s very possible we can rebuild the alchemy
factory?”
“Correct.” Zi Di nodded, but then shook her head, “Rebuilding the alchemy
factory will be extraordinarily costly, we’d need to build on the scale of the
one on Mystifying Monster Island, and spend an astronomical amount of supplies.
It’ll also take a lot of time, and I doubt we’ll even be capable of it in the
first place. We’ll also require a few decent alchemists too.”
“Time is precisely our limiting factor.”
“Everyone, War Merchant was killed by the Blood Light Punishment Courtyard.”
“If the Flame Dragon King was killed by the banishment spell, then the entire
Blood Light Punishment Courtyard squad will be considered as wiped out.”
“Would the empire not retaliate against such an immense loss?”
“They were the ones who sent the squad to attack Mystifying Monster Island,
they will start an inquiry immediately!”
We don’t have time digest these gains, and even more incapable of building an
alchemy factory peacefully for profit.”
Almost everyone’s face changed.
Zi Di’s words hit the nail on the head.
Rather than being rooted out by an imperial investigation and brought to
justice, it would better to use their freedom now to cleanse their sins as soon
as possible.
Triple Blade was stubborn, “Don’t forget that we still have the Mermaid Fairy
Tale. That divine artifact produces pearl bubbles, they were able to conceal
Mystifying Monster Island superbly. We can use them to also hide ourselves.”
“It’ll be difficult.” Cang Xu sighed, “Don’t forget, the Blood Light Punishment
Courtyard managed to find Mystifying Monster Island. This indicates that the
empire already knows how to break this deception spell. War Merchant might have
relied on this deception effect too much and became negligent, leading to his
death in his own home.”
“In addition to that, I refer you to my previous point, it is hard for mortals
to use divine artifacts!”
“But the pearl bubbles are easy to use, all we need to do is crush them in our
hands.”
“But using them in such a crude manner is bound to be inadequate in many
areas.”
“The true effects of the camouflage magic still need to be tested.”
Triple Blade no longer argued after this, Zong Ge too was silent.
Despite everyone not wanting to give up, they didn’t know what to do.
The situation was out of their hands.
The escape from Mystifying Monster Island had taught the survivors how to
distinguish between dreams and reality. If one wanted to keep surviving, they
usually had to yield to reality.
Everyone unanimously agreed that they would use the gains from Mystifying
Monster Island to atone for their crimes against the empire.
To accomplish this step, they first needed to contact the holy empire’s
leaders.
They were currently looking at using Zi Di’s Wisteria Chamber of Commerce, but
most expected they would actually use the Bai Zhen Clan.
Don’t be fooled by the Bai Zhen Clan’s destitution state these days, they were
once great southern nobles. As the saying goes, a rotting boat still has three
pounds of nails in it.
More importantly, they had the Bai Zhen Clan’s sole heir, the templar knight
Zhen Jin, in the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
With him in their hands, they wouldn’t need to worry about the Bai Zhen Clan
not cooperating!
Of course, the survivors were not limited to these two options. If a more
suitable development and relationship is opened, they would gladly choose the
better option.
“According to the ocean chart, the closest Wisteria Chamber of Commerce
location is on an island, Ebony Island to be precise.”
“Don’t forget, the Green Jade Gold Coffin was teleported, we must find it
first!”
“Of course, but the tower spirit is the only one that knows where it was
teleported to.”
“Then we must rouse it as soon as possible!”
“Will the tower spirit cooperate with us after it awakes?”
The young captain gave the task of waking up the tower spirit to Cang Xu and Zi
Di.
Both were magicians, the only two magicians among the survivors.
Well, at least while they still lived.



****** Chapter 3: The Short Spears and the Broken Arm ******
Zong Ge was slowly walking through his clan’s armory.
The radiance of the enchanted torches shined brightly against every corner
here.
There were many types of weapons and armor here.
Golden light sparkled, killing aura emitted from a large axe, there a
malevolent looking dagger here, a ginormous wolf tooth club, exquisite armor…
Zong Ge ran his attentive eyes over every piece of martial equipment. 
He knew being here was an exceedingly rare opportunity.
This was fine equipment, it would have taken several, even up to ten years of
savings to buy any one piece here.
“Quickly now, don’t tell me you want to sit down here all day?” A knight pushed
Zong Ge from behind impatiently.
Zong Ge staggered forward, then after steading himself, he continued to walk
with a slight frown.
He was his father’s son, but he had beastman blood in him.
A half beastman.
He was a bastard, the only reason he could enter the armory was because he had
obtained his father’s approval.
However, the knight behind him was also a clan elder, and a zealous supporter
of one of his younger brother at that.
Knowing that time was short, Zong Ge had to pick up the pace.
However, when he saw how much martial equipment there was, he became
increasingly bewildered.
The dazzling lineup of equipment blinded him, when there were so many choices,
he couldn’t decide what to choose.
“I’ll give you five more minutes, past that, even if you haven’t picked
anything by then, I shall drag out myself!” The knight behind him grumbled.
Zong Ge sensed his malice, and understood the latter’s words clearly.
Although this was the first time he had entered and with his father’s approval
too, Zong Ge wouldn’t be reporting anything back to his father.
After all, he and his father only met two or three times a year. 
If he complained to his father that he’d been bullied, he would likely be
berated by his father – I gave you a chance, yet you weren’t able to seize it?
Did an underling actually bully my son? Incompetent!
As time grew shorter, Zong Ge could only take a deep breath and focus his
complete attention on finding a weapon that suited him.
He already had a choice pictured in his mind. 
After hurrying back, he came back to a black steel lance.
Just as he was about grab it, he was suddenly distracted by something in the
corner of his eye, two short spears leaning in the corner.
Compared to the black steel lance, the two short spears were smaller. Although
they were made of quality materials, they did not conform with Zong Ge’s
fighting style.
Even though he was proficient in all kinds of weapons, he preferred certain
ones.
Yet, those two short spears impressed an interesting feeling in him. 
It was a sense of familiarity, like a distant relative calling out to him.
“Have you made your choice yet? Time’s up!”
“I did!”
Due to a curious coincidence, Zong Ge gave up the rational option that was the
black steel lance, and instead walked over and picked up the two short spears.
The moment he touched them with his hands, he immediately felt an indescribable
emotion.
After leaving the armory, Zong Ge didn’t have time to think, he still had to
meet his father. 
“You chose those?” His father asked when he saw the spears in Zong Ge’s hands,
his eyes flashing with astonishment.
“Father, these two short spears are…” Zong Ge respectfully asked after
saluting.
“They belong to you.” His father did not explain anything, instead he waved his
hand, “Go to the Wilderness Continent, establish your own achievements. You
shall not use neither the clan’s resources nor our name, let me see what you
can do on your own.”
“Yes, father. I will not disappoint your expectations!” Zong Ge repressed his
rage, and firmly grasped his short spears.
He then opened his eyes to see the Deep Sea Monster Fish, half remembering his
dream as he awoke.
He couldn’t help but notice that he was gripping those very spears in his
hands.
He was no longer sleepy.
Zong Ge got up, took out a tarpaulin, then sat on his bed and cleaned his
spears.
Weapons needed to be maintained.
This habit was engrained in Zong Ge’s bones, as if it were instinct.
Mystifying Monster Island hadn’t allowed him to do so, but now that he could,
he wouldn’t forget.
War Merchant’s stores had had top-notch maintenance oil.
Soon after, the maintenance was finished, exhibiting the quality of the spears
even more.
Buit Zong Ge still frowned, exposing his vexation.
Although these spears looked impressive, they were hard to use. 
It would be easier to imbue a stubborn stone with battle qi than it. What’s
worse, wielding them would also lower the concentration of Zong Ge’s bloodline.
After using it several times, Zong Ge had made the shocking discovery that if
he held them for too long, his bloodline would thin!
Bloodline concentration determined his cultivation aptitude.
As soon as he noticed this drawback, Zong Ge had shelved these spears away.
“To have such a great flaw, yet still be stored in the clan’s armory, these
surely must be extraordinary.”
“I just haven’t found the correct way to use them!”
It wasn’t because Zong Ge hadn’t tried, but his father hadn’t given him
anything and nothing was recorded in the clan’s library on what these two short
spears were. 
Zong Ge surmised: perhaps this was a test from his father!
“If I cannot even use the weapon I chose and fumble about, am I even qualified
to be his son?”
Zong Ge’s thoughts shifted from his father to his current situation.
He had teamed up with the monstrous youth, Zi Di, and Cang Xu. Their shared
experience through life and death together had caused him to have a deep
connection to this group.
“If I contacted my father and gave him some of the merits, would he help us
shed our sin?”
Zong Ge shook his head.
It was an uncertain hope.
He understood his father well.
Iron-willed and haughty.
“The most likely outcome would be that my father would slaughter everyone but
me.”
“The divine artifacts and War Merchant’s alchemy will net me many merits.”
“But I do not want that.”
This was not the way he wanted to achieve glory.
He didn’t need to wonder how his siblings would be evaluating him.
He stepped on dog shit luck.
It was too convenient.
He was a treacherous snake who murdered a Sheng Ming priest and his own
comrades!
Zong Ge wanted to succeed, but not like this.
He wanted an outstanding military career, he wanted to shut everyone up, he
wanted to bravely display that he could accomplish his goals, and he wanted all
doubts and slander incapable of staining his honor.
From beginning to end, the half beastman’s lofty aspirations had never been
cowed.
During the prior meeting, everyone had been divided into their respective
duties.
Zong Ge had to follow, for the youngster’s prestige and leadership was
insurmountable and immovable.
“After solving our current predicament, I’ll be able to leave this group and
move freely again.” 
“After reaching the Wilderness Continent, I shall fight bravely and establish
myself.
“I still need my own team.”
“Anyways, if they also go to the Wilderness Continent, they’ll be dependable
allies.”
Zong Ge’s great ambitions were unwilling to be subservient to others. His
career of leadership had also made him used to having supportive subordinates
around him.
But because of their shared trials and tribulations, he trusted his companions
completely.
The more he thought of the future, the less drowsy he became.
He got up and practiced his sword in a small cabin.
The precise sword motions calmed and brightened Zong Ge’s heart.
A faint pain pricked from his arm.
It was where his arm had been broken.
It had been a lingering injury from the control tower.
At the time, half his arm had been severed from his body. 
Although he had used a treatment scroll after the situation had been stabilized
to repair the cut, the wound still hadn’t fully headed even after all this
time, there was still lingering damage.
“To have such a distinct feeling with mere practice strokes.” 
Zong Ge’s heart sank, he sensed things were far from good.
He began to use his battle qi.
Th half beastman’s iron-will battle qi was a common type among imperial
military commanders, it brimmed with the characteristics of strength, firmness,
and impassioned bravery.
Zong Ge’s internal battle qi seemed to assemble like troops as it washed
through every pore in his body.
His other limbs were normal, however, his broken arm reacted with acute pain!
Soon after, the iron-will battle qi began to seep from his broken arm and out
of Zong Ge’s body.
Zong Ge stopped his battle qi at once, then looked at the scar circling his
arm.
The scar coiling his arm was beginning to slowly leak blood.
“My broken arm hasn’t been fully healed, the iron-will battle qi cannot flow
through it.”
“If I fight a powerful enemy in the future, this wound will become my mortal
flaw!”
“I must resolve this.”
He could not solve this problem by himself.
Zong Ge’s battle qi couldn’t heal, so he decided to ask for help.
Screee.
The metal cabin door opened, and Zong Ge left to find Zi Di and Cang Xu.
The half beastman acted swiftly and decisively.
The alchemy testing chamber cabin.
This place in the Deep Sea Monster Fish was the most spacious place and had the
most luxurious facilities on the ship.
When Zong Ge arrived, Cang Xu was in the middle of running an alchemy test on
the Mermaid Fairy Tale.
After escaping the countless perils, they had joyously welcomed their
exhaustion, and nearly all of them were sleeping right now.
But Cang Xu was a necromancer, his body had been transformed into a state
between life and death, half dead and half alive. This gave him stamina and
energy far greater than normal people. It was because of this constitution that
this old and withered man could have survived the tribulations of Mystifying
Monster Island.
Rays produced by the alchemical installation were shining on the divine shell,
one red and one blue.
Cang Xu was holding a pearl bubble and carefully observing it.
The red and blue lights were reflecting on his face as the necromancer was
immersed in his pondering.
Screee.
The metal cabin door opened, interrupting Cang Xu’s thoughts.
It was Zong Ge.
Cang Xu pursed his brows, the interruption completely obliterated the
inspiration his mind was on the verge of seizing.
Zong Ge pressed down his complex observations, his face expressionless.  
On the one hand, Cang Xu was his comrade through life and death. On the other
hand, Cang Xu was a necromancer!
This necromancer was an enemy of all living beings and every god.
Although Zong Ge was a bastard, his father was a famous imperial noble and he
had been taught the empire’s universal values since childhood, and had been
molded by them especially during his military career.  
Zong Ge looked around, he didn’t see Zi Di, only the scowling Cang Xu He
immediately explained his purpose in coming,
Cang Xu sighed, “It seems we didn’t treat it on time, there are still sequalae
remaining.”
“Although I sympathize, I cannot help you with it.”
“I am a necromancer, good at harming life, but terrible at healing it…”
He shook his head when he said that.
“In that case, where is Miss Zi Di” Zong Ge asked.
“She is in the captain’s room right now.” Cang Xu replied.



****** Chapter 4: New Form – Dragonman! ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The captain’s room.
The ghostly Zi Di was floating in the air, a piece of parchment clutched in her
hand  as she reported to the young captain  the results of her accounting.
“Currently on board, there are 480 kilograms of bread, 30 kilograms of ordinary
meat, 600 kilograms of magic beast meat, and 3 tons of potable water.”
“We have inventoried 5 boxes of magic scrolls. Among them are 138 treatment
scrolls, the fireball scrolls are the most numerous at 250, 3 raging flame
storm scrolls, a flying spell scroll, 10 feather fall spell scrolls, a dark
sight scroll, 30 water breathing scrolls…”
“There are 12 boxes of explosive flasks, with an estimated 720 flasks inside.”
“There are a total of 380 alchemy crossbows, and over 5000 alchemy arrows,
including frost, water, shrapnel, smoke, slow, and flash arrows.
“There are 270 alchemy rifles, 7 types of ammo, and a total of about 6000
bullets. The type we have the least of is soul bullets, there is only 200 of
them.”
“We still have the gold level cannon, accompanied with 80 silver level shells
and 12 gold level shells.”
“We retrieved 79 types of alchemical materials from War Merchant’s storehouse,
like metals and plants. I have detailed list on them here.”   
Zi Di gave the parchment to the young captain when she mentioned the list.
The youngster carefully looked at it, then muttered to himself, “At the
present, we have abundant supplies, we don’t need to worry about them in the
short term.”
The survivors faced many food shortages on Mysterious Monster Island.
Therefore, the first thing they considered after escaping was the bare
necessities.
“We have an abundance of arms. War Merchant deserved his title.” The youngster
sighed.
Zi Di concentrated on her beloved, then grit her teeth, “We also have a memory
refinement and duplication device. It is the same one I once used. I’m sorry,
excuse me.”
The young man stared blankly, then raised his head from the parchment and to Zi
Di’s face.
“Darling Zi Di, this has been arranged by destiny. Without it, I wouldn’t have
run into you, right?”
Zi Di was moved, but her voice still stuttered, “But…”
The youngster stood up and wanted to lead Zi Di away by the hand, but when his
fingers grabbed at Zi Di’s palm, he only felt a gloomy vapor.
Zi Di was a ghost.
The youngster sorrowfully said, “Who doesn’t have secrets or sorrows?”
Mystifying Monster Island proved everything.”
“I am more worried about you than that little thing.”
The world remains the same, but the people have changed.
The handsome templar knight and sole heir to the Bai Zhen Clan turned out to be
a young monster.
The enchanting Zi Di became a ghost.
Zi Di was in a troubling situation.
She needed to be resurrected.
But resurrection was a divine spell, they needed a priest, or even a bishop to
use it.
Who would want to do that?
Necromancers were disdained and hunted, all living beings and gods were their
enemies.
Zi Di was currently not a necromancer, but she was an undead being.
“Does Cang Xu have a way?” The young man asked.
Zi Di shook her head, “I consulted him, he could only provide limited help. He
promised to give me all of the necromancy he has learned, but he cannot truly
resurrect me.”
The youngster’s expression sank.
Zi Di continued, “I can tell that Cang Xu has done all that he could already.”
“His necromancy inheritance was shallow, and he is a mere iron level magician.”
“I believe that one day, I shall truly resurrect you.”
“Let’s take it one step at a time.”
Sensing the youngster’s continued gloominess, Zi Di replied, “Besides, if
nothing else, changing from a living person into a ghost was quite the unique
and intriguing sensation.”
The girl comforted her sweetheart.
She had a praiseworthy tenacity, she never gave up while on Mystifying Monster
Island and always persisted, and when the monstrous youth supposedly died, she
tried to devise a way to bring him back to life.
“Perhaps War Merchant has an alchemical method that can assist you.” The young
captain suddenly thought of something, “We have already transferred the tower
spirit.”
Mystifying Monster Island’s factory tower spirit had been made to be
intelligent by War Merchant.
Although it had been damaged, the survivors had saved it. Currently, it was
existing in a large white crystal spheroid. 
The ghostly Zi Di nodded, “That’s right, although only 30% of the data remains,
all of it is War Merchant’s most precious secrets.” 
“This is our greatest treasure!”
“After all, when the imperial nobility forgives us, we won’t have retain any
divine artifacts.”
“But we will have mastered this information.”
Zi Di continued to explain, “Presently, the tower spirit is seriously damaged,
and has sunk into hibernation.”
“There are risks in waking it. When we plundered War Merchant’s treasury, I
suppressed the tower spirit and pillaged its authority. We currently have a
hostile relationship with the tower spirit.
“Me and Cang Xu have talked it over. Right now, our current plan is to
circumvent the tower spirit to unearth the data inside it.”
“There should be many alchemy blueprints and alchemical processes within it.” 
“In the future, we can use these to open an alchemy factor and traffic
munitions. It is a large industry.
When profits came to mind, Zi Di’s tone inevitably rose. 
“Yes, there might even me something pertaining to your identity.” Said Zi Di.
The young captain was not Zhen Jin, he had no idea who he truly was.
The youngster muttered to himself, “I have white river battle qi, a very common
type. It is very likely that I am an ordinary imperial knight. There are too
wide a category.
“There is always a way.” Zi Di consoled.
“Oh, there is something I need you to see.” The young captain took in a deep
breath, “Don’t be too amazed.”
“What is it?” the ghostly Zi Di’s interest was successfully piqued.
Then, a moment later, her eyes widened.
She saw that the young captain was taking off his clothes. 
First was his coat, then his jacket, and then his shoes.
The ghostly Zi Di couldn’t help but float backwards, her gaze wavering with
astonishment, shyness, and excitement.
The only clothing the young captain had on was a pair of loose flax trousers.
Then, red light bubbled forth, and covered his entire body.
The red light quickly disappeared.
The youngster had changed greatly.
His blond hair, blue eyes, tall nose, white human face had transformed into the
large head of a dragon with sharp fangs. 
His skin had been replaced by a layer of meticulously tight red dragon scales.
His hands and legs had swelled to twice the size, and became sharp dragon claws
and thick dragon feet.
Finally, a red dragon tall extended from his buttocks, covered densely with the
same dragon scales.
The baggy flax trousers had become skintight after the transformation. 
The dragon tail poked out of the flax trousers.
The youngster’s crotch swelled into a large and obvious lump, it wanted to
burst out of the flax trousers.
“That is?!” Zi Di was shocked.
She unconsciously floated back a small step.
After reacting, she floated back to the youngster, spinning around him as she
sized him up. Her eyes moved across the young man’s large upper body, sneaking
in a few glances at certain areas. 
“How are you able to transform into a dragonman?”
Zi Di thought the young man was a beastman fighter War Merchant had
transformed.
But shortly after, Zi Di’s brows pursed, she realized something immensely fishy
was going on.
If the young man could change into a dragonman, a form stronger than any other,
why didn’t he use it in the alchemy factory control tower?
Furthermore, Zi Di felt an intense familiarity with the dragonman form.
What was the source of this familiarity…
“The Flame Dragon King?” Zi Di blurted as she seized the flashing thought. 
“Correct. I killed the Flame Dragon King.” The young man confessed.
Zi Di: ?!
Her eyes couldn’t help but widen again, and she nearly stopped in the air from
shock.
“How did you kill…hold on, don’t tell me it was the Bloodcore?” Zi Di asked.
The Bloodcore was the treasure on the control tower’s third floor, its status
exceeded that of the Greed Jade Golden Coffin and the Mermaid Fairy Tale.
After the young man asked for the Bloodcore, he returned to the lava
battlefield and tried to negotiate with the Flame Dragon King, this was what
happened in the eyes and minds of everyone else.
Despite becoming a ghost, Zi Di was still worthy of being the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance’s president, and with her high intelligence, immediately guessed what
had occurred.
The youngster nodded again, “After you woke me up on Mystifying Monster Island,
I gradually noticed the Bloodcore in my heart, and step by step, fumbled about
on how to use it. It is precisely because of the Bloodcore that I was able to
transform into many kinds of magic beasts.”
“When I entered the first floor of the control tower, I felt a strong yearning.
When I reached the third floor, I saw the second bloodcore and had an intense
urge to absorb it.”
“Currently, the second Bloodcore has already merged with my first Bloodcore and
become stronger than ever.”
“With it, I annihilated the exhausted Flame Dragon King.”
“Our talks collapsed, the Flame Dragon King would never see eye to eye with us.
And so, worried the banishment and explosion wouldn’t kill him, I took a gamble
and used the Bloodcore.
The young man sighed after saying that.
He had just revealed the greatest secret hidden in his heart, a wave of
relaxation, mixed with joy and worry flowed from his mind.
“Wait, wait, let me process this.” The ghostly Zi Di put her hands on her head
as the information pounded against her mind.
She sank into pondering, floating to the left and right walls, until finally
floating back in front of the young man.
Although the ghost girl’s face still had some astonishment on it, it had mostly
been supplanted by a soft understanding, “I never expected this. It was only
now did I realize that you bore far more pain and suffering on Mystifying
Monster Island that I could have possibly imagined.”
Zi Di slowly floated to the young man’s side, placed her palm lightly on his
chest, then slowly leaned her body against his.
She didn’t have substance, thus she had to actively prevent her ghostly body
from intersecting with the dragonman’s.
The two carefully embraced each other.
Zi Di sensed the youngster’s scorching breath, it had the scent of sulfur,
while the young man experienced the coldness of Zi Di’s body.
A monster and a ghost immersed themselves in their warm love, neither spoke for
a very long time.



****** Chapter 5: A Romantic Life ******
It took a good while for the two to separate.
Zi Di calmly analyzed, “My Lord, you were right.”
“It would’ve been dangerous to let the Flame Dragon King go, we can’t have our
lives partial to the whims of others.”
“Although the Flame Dragon King is dead, it is unlikely this secret will be
exposed, after all, the explosion combined with the banishment spell happened
right after.”
“If the empire does discover it, we can still use the divine artifacts to shed
our sins, can we not?”  
Zi Di first affirmed, then endorsed the young man’s actions to console him.
The youngster replied, “I’m still hesitant on whether I should tell the others
about this.”
Zi Di shook her head, “I suggest that you don’t.”
“Although your Lordship killed the Flame Dragon King for the sake of everyone’s
lives, we are no longer on Mystifying Monster Island.”
“The nature of beasts is hard to surmise, but human nature is much more
complex.”
Zi Di had long accustomed herself to the deceit and treachery of the business
world, and when she had lived alone, she had an insightful gaze into human
nature and its relationship to benefits, her words hit the nail on the head.
This time, that time.
On Mystifying Monster Island, everyone had to cooperate closely together in
order to confront the dangers around them as well as their unpredictable
enemies while seeking every chance to keep surviving.
After escaping, the pressure around them had abruptly reduced, the only thing
left was their goal of freeing themselves of their sins against the empire.
The forced unity between the people was finished, now they would begin to
reflect on what benefited them.
Using the divine artifacts to redeem themselves was almost certainly going to
work, because even if everyone joined hands to kill Jia Sha, the latter was
only a priest.
But if they were to compute the Flame Dragon King in too, then the price of
redemption would be considerably different.
Everyone knew how Jia Sha died, but only the young man knew what happened to
the Flame Dragon King.
Priest Jia Sha had abandoned his comrades for his own personal benefit. What
about the rest?
It was normal for others to think like Jia Sha.
It was only human nature!
Zi Di continued, “In our group, we have a half beastman, a goblin, a
necromancer, a small giant, and a ghost.”
“As our environment grows, the vast discrepancies between our members will
inevitably lead to suspicions and cracks.
Racial discrimination, bloodline disparities, strong versus the weak, these
were the factors that formed the social classes of society.
It would be difficult to turn the survivors into an inseparably close group.
“Only your Lordship are capable of being our leader.”  Zi Di carried on
speaking, “No one else is more suited, thus you enjoy the support of all.”
“The Bloodcore is our greatest secret, it overturns all conventions about
bloodlines, the foundation of the nobility!”
“If we declare the Flame Dragon King’s death, it will implicate the Bloodcore.
The Bloodcore is in your Lordship’s heart, it cannot be separated from you.”
“We must be even more cautious in the future!”
Zi Di’s tone had a trace of enticement in it.
If their redemption was successful, this group would likely break up. No one
needed to tell them that Zong Ge was one unwilling to be subordinate to anyone
else. Meanwhile, Cang Xu was a necromancer, it was extremely risky even knowing
him.
Zi Di was an expert in fighting for her own benefits, and now she was already
beginning to scheme.
“The Bloodcore must be preserved! It is our most valuable treasure, for it can
change our destiny beyond our imagination.”
“There must be information pertaining to the Bloodcore within War Merchant’s
database.”
“We cannot let Cang Xu see it.”
“But they already know about the Bloodcore. Although Cang Xu and Zong Ge seem
indifferent, they understand how your Lordship acts, and will mull over why
your Lordship kept the Bloodcore for yourself.”
Zi Di couldn’t help but purse her brows as she spoke.
The young captain shook his head.
“Zi Di, I don’t think our companions are plotting against us.”
“Even though I know I am not Zhen Jin or a templar knight.”
The young man bitterly laughed, “But I am still a knight. If I do this, I will
go against righteousness! I will violate the spirit of chivalry!”
“I intend to share with everyone.”
“The Bloodcore was created by Mar Merchant, and we have seen two of them.
Therefore, it is theoretically possible that we can make more of them. The
Bloodcore can absorb the essences of living beings, allowing its host to
transform into the corresponding bloodline, obtaining greater skills and
aptitudes, the future of this is immense!”
“They deserve to use a Bloodcore.”
“We all obtained it together.”
“We crossed through these trials and tribulations together.”
“We helped each other until we finally escaped. Without Cang Xu’s knowledge, we
couldn’t have crossed the desert. Without his necromancy, we wouldn’t have
turned the tables. Next, Zong Ge fought by my side in the final battle, and he
had his left arm cut off. Without the big guy, we couldn’t have built the ship
and sailed to the heart of Mystifying Monster Island. In addition, without your
medicine, we would’ve have survived the poison, and would’ve died in our sleep
in that place.”
“Not only that, but they also all have a noble character.”
“Some are optimistic, some are strong, some are bold, some are calm, all of
them have their points of excellence.
“They are merely limited by their aptitude, if that was circumvented, then they
could accomplish even greater feats. When we can rely on our friendship, they
will be natural and powerful allies.”
The young captain cordially gazed at Zi Di, “In my opinion, the wealth of
Mystifying Monster Island was not only War Merchant’s database or those divine
artifacts, it is our common experience and our strong relationship with each
other.”
“Furthermore, I have a premonition that the Bloodcore will be exposed one day.”
“Since War Merchant is dead, has there been any news spread about him yet?”
“Did the empire dispatch the Blood Light Punishment Institution because of the
Bloodcore?”
“Was the Bloodcore created solely by War Merchant, or did he have others
researching it with him?”
“He is dead, but his influence on our future is still unknown.”
Zi Di approved, “My Lord, you are right. Based on what I know, War Merchant had
a pupil called Jian Zuan, he is a gold level goblin magician. I never found his
corpse, and although Mystifying Monster Island has disappeared, we don’t know
how many people War Merchant associated with or knew about the island.”
“Therefore.” The young man continued, “Rather than only us two benefiting from
the Bloodcore, earning the suspicion and jealously of everyone and breaking our
group apart, leaving only us to face the grand Sheng Ming Empire, we should try
and share with them, molding them into common allies.”
Zi Di did not speak for a long time.
During that time, she was contemplating her thoughts.
She then looked at the young man with admiration, “You truly deserved to be
called our Lord.”
“This is exactly why we acknowledged you as our leader.”
“You have convinced me.”
“However, doing it overtly won’t do. We should plan every detail and implement
it slowly. There are too many benefits involved, we shouldn’t use it to test
the nature of everyone.”  
“For not everyone can withstand that test.”
“Cang Xu has exposed himself as a necromancer, but it was because he had no
choice. Zong Ge once challenged you for leadership, the big guy was so dumb
that he risked his life protecting the ship we built for the sake of the old
boatwright. There is also Lan Zao, who had killed his younger brother to
survive in the desert.”
Zi Di had always been biased against Lan Zao.  
The youngster found her words hard to refute, and considered them quite
reasonable.
He nodded, “I understand.”
“I will keep this a secret for now, then when the time comes, I shall inform
the others.”
“Before then, we will need to deepen our understanding of them, study their
character, and confirm that they are reliable allies.”
“Yes, that will do.” Zi Di smiled.
No one needed to state how intimate the relationship between her and the young
captain was. 
Although they had hid secrets from each other on Mystifying Monster Island,
they had been courageous for each other, treated each other sincerely, and had
given the other their utmost trust.
It had been risky, it had been a gamble.
But because of that, romance had bloomed in this life filled with helplessness
and suffering.  



****** Chapter 6: The Tower Spirit’s Counterattack ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Inside an alchemy cabin.
Zi Di was directing alchemy puppets, while Cang Xu was controlling an alchemy
formation.
There were two alchemy puppets, they looked like a giant crab with its many
limbs extending from it. Altogether, there were 10 limbs connected to a crystal
ball.
The white crystal ball was as tall as a person, it was the carrier medium the
tower spirit had been transferred into.
The crystal ball was very heavy, the two crab alchemy puppets were barely able
to lift it.
At this moment, the tip of the crab puppets’ limbs formed a palm size alchemy
formation, colored either silver, gold, or bronze, as they pressed into the
crystal ball.
These delicate alchemy formations were filled with magic script, some of which
seemed to be divine symbols. Some were surrounded by circles, others by
triangles and even squares.  
The crystal ball in the middle, combined with the crab puppets, created an
alchemy formation that was 3 meters in diameter.
The formation engraved itself onto the ship floor, outside of it, Cang Xu stood
in a golden circle, it was the alchemy formation control module.
There were two other control modules, and the three linked together as an
equilateral triangle, each taking an equal part of the circular formation.
The crab legs touching the formation around the crystal ball suddenly began to
dazzle with radiance.
Every small alchemy formation began to rotate and emit circles of light of all
colors that permeated into the white crystal ball.  
At the same time, Cang Xu was controlling the alchemy formation to form a
perfectly straight ray.
The deep blue ray of light was heatless, and after hitting the crystal ball, it
scattered like lighting shaped like tree roots into the depths of the ball, and
began to spread.
A minute later, the crystal ball began to shake.
As the shaking grew, the crab legs began to creak under the strain of the
vibrations.
“Not good!” The ghostly Zi Di’s expression swiftly changed.
The necromancer’s face did not change, however his eyes did narrow.
Zi Di felt her control over her crab puppets suddenly decrease.
Something was fighting her!
It was the tower spirit.
The white crystal ball began to glow, its white light followed the tree root
shaped lightning, and began to assault back against the alchemy formation.
At the same time, the white also seeped out of the crystal ball, and into the
alchemy puppets around it.
“Its getting out of control!” The ghostly Zi Di and the tower spirit were
fighting over authority, she was being defeated little by little.
Zi Di’s anxiety grew.
If she was still alive, she could stall the tower spirit for a time.
But she wasn’t.
In the strictest terms, she wasn’t a magician, rather she was a spirit.
Most obvious of all was that she needed to restart her cultivation anew.
Currently, she could not use any magic, and she needed to open her mana pool
again.
But because she was a ghost, she had a few innate magic spells, such as the
soul devour spell, cold touch, and soul walk.
By contrast, although the tower spirit was damaged, it had been recovering in
the crystal ball.
This time, it did not restrain itself as it paralyzed Cang Xu and Zi Di, then
quickly counterattacked the enemies it had caught unprepared.
During the control tower battle, Zi Di and the others had been considered utter
enemies to the tower spirit.
In but a moment, the alchemy puppets would be under the tower spirit’s control.
Cang Xu grinded his teeth and left the control module to directly attack the
core of the alchemy formation.
He stretched out both hands towards the crystal ball.
Pop! Pop!
Two tiny crystal balls suddenly burst from his palms and flew towards the
crystal ball, forcefully separating the two alchemy puppets from the formation.
With the connection, the tower spirit’s offensive came to spontaneous end.
The large crystal ball clanged to the metal floor, then rolled to a nearby
wall, colliding with it before slowly coming to a stop.
The white light around the crystal ball shone everywhere, as if the tower
spirit was shouting its unwillingness to submit.  
Soon after, the white light withdrew, and the crystal ball regained its
original appearance.
The alchemy cabin became quiet again.
Zi Di and Cang Xu looked at each other in dismay, the two were both frightened
and doubtful.
“A close call! I didn’t expect the tower spirit was capable of striking back,
moreover, it also has a deep connection with the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
Zi Di had a trace of lingering fear.
If they were even a little bit slower, the tower spirit might have taken
control of the ship. If that happened, the survivors would have met a mournful
end.
Fortunately, Cang Xu acted decisively and stopped the tower spirit’s swift
counterattack.
“How badly are you injured?” Zi Di Gazed at Cang Xu’s palms.
Cang Xu’s palms each had a large hole in them, exposing the bones in his hands.
The back of his hands had a patch of skin left, thus preventing the awkward
sight being able to see through them.
It wasn’t a light wound, but there was barely any blood and the bleeding
stopped by itself rather quickly.
“It isn’t urgent.” Cang Xu looked down at his hands, his face still as calm as
ever, as if these were not his own hands.
Zi Di floated near him, “Do we have a suitable treatment scroll for you?”
Cang Xu shook his head.
Although they had obtained many treatment scrolls from War Merchant’s
storehouse, none of them suited Cang Xu.
Treatment scrolls used positive energy to heal life. To Cang Xu, a necromancer,
this would be like poison to him.
It was the same for other undead races, negative energy was what helped them.
Cang Xu was actually in a comparatively complex situation.
He was not completely undead, but he wasn’t completely alive either.
“Don’t worry, my body has been transformed by necromancy, I won’t be dying any
time soon. This injury is but a small inconvenience.”
As Cang Xu said this, he used his wounded palms to “pierce” his solar plexus.
It was a truly horrific scene.
Zi Di slightly trembled. Soon after, she noticed that Cang Xu was not actually
trying to commit suicide, there was something strange about the skin around his
chest.
“As you can see President Zi Di.” Cang Xu showed a smile, “I sewed a self-made
pouch into my heart cavity.”
On Mystifying Monster Island, Cang Xu had his magic sealed, and thus never used
this storage pouch.
Things were different now.
Zi Di frowned, “Is that… storage pouch made of human skin?”
Cang Xu’s necromancy inheritance had been given to Zi Di, thus she knew what it
was.
“Correct. A magician with a spatial bloodline once pursued me. They were the
distinguished contributor that created this storage pouch.”
Cang Xu took out his palms as he said this, his fingers held a rolled up cloth.
The strip of cloth was a dusty white, it had many dark blotches on it, and it
exuded a strong aura of energy.
“This is a bronze level corpse wrapping cloth.” Cang Xu used the wrapping
corpse cloth like a bandage, twisting it around his palm.
He continued to speak as he worked, “This is quite simple to make, all one
needs is the cloth wrapped around a long dead corpse combined with some
uncomplicated necromancy magic to process it.”
“All of that is included in the inheritance I have given to you.”
“Included in it are the notes I took while practicing them, you can also look
at those too.”
Zi Di nodded, her face showed her complex mood.
Despite becoming an undead, that had only happened two days ago.
The human skin and corpse cloth let her adapt a bit more to her situation.
She was beginning to realize why necromancers were attacked and discriminated
against.
Normal people revered the dead. When confronted with death, people usually
believed that they would be delivered to the gods. But necromancers played with
death, manipulated souls, and profaned the divine.
See Zi Di’s expression, Cang Xu sighed, “President Zi Di, your problem cannot
be solved quickly. To come back to life without the support of divine spells is
a difficult challenge.”
“We’ll also need to waste a lot of time shedding our sins.”
“In this time, you should get used to your new identity and add necromancy
spells to your magic repertoire.”
“That is the only way we can assist the Lord Captain, is it not?”
Zi Di nodded, expressing her approval. The young lady knew her current
situation, perhaps this one of the silver linings to her tragic fate.”
“Many thanks, necromancer.”
“Oh, that’s right, didn’t you just use the corpse explosion spell?” Zi Di
asked.
“Correct.” Cang Xu nodded, “I changed my body, though not a complete corpse, it
can still be used by my corpse explosion spell.”  
“This spell is detailed in the inheritance I have provided to you.”
“Anyways, I don’t suggest you go through such a transformation.”
That kind of transformation does not allow my soul to separate itself from my
body, it is bound up inside and can’t escape, in the future, I can only become
a corpse mage.”
Cang Xu’s words and hidden thoughts praised Zi Di’s acute observations. She
obviously hadn’t looked through the necromancy inheritance thoroughly, yet she
was still able to perceive which spell had been used. This proved that Zi Di’s
thinking was nimble and was good at making connections and conjectures.
This kind of intrinsic quality was outstanding for a magician, and was
indispensable.
“It’s only a pity that because of her bloodline, Miss Zi Di’s limit while alive
was only the iron level.” Cang Xu secretly sighed.
Magic was controlled by the mind.  
Zi Di was also evaluating Cang Xu.
“Cang Xu was able to use the corpse explosion spell so meticulously, so
perfectly. His spell casting is quite amazing.”
“It must have been the result of diligent cultivation and countless hours of
practice.”
“Unfortunately, his bloodline limited his efforts.”
“But if the Bloodcore was used, he could draw on greater undead bloodlines…”
Cang Xu treated his injuries and began to tidy up the room with Zi Di.
This time, they were even more prudent and careful.
The tower spirit knew it was exposed, and was doing its best to resist.
Cang Xu and Zi Di had been trying for a long time without any gains, leading to
a heavy mood.
The tower spirit is already awake, we cannot break through its defenses.”
“Our alchemy attainment is too low. We don’t even fully understand the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, we only know the basic fundamentals of how to sail it.”
“We can only use the alchemical installations here superficially, nothing
more.”
Cang Xu was a necromancer, he had very little experience with alchemy. His
greatest accomplishment in that field was the bronze level corpse wrapping
cloth.
As for Zi Di, although she had dug into the field of alchemy and worked very
hard at it, her studies had been limited to medicine.”
In fact, the field of medicine was also vast, and most of Zi Di’s research had
been focused on perfume.
“We must bring the tower spirit under control as soon as possible. We
forcefully transferred it into this carrier, and we cannot delete the data
inside it. But that is merely temporary, as time passes, it will gain complete
control over the crystal ball carrier!” Zi Di had a grim expression.
This was a big problem.



****** Chapter 7: Deep Sea Hunt ******
The information in the crystal ball was extremely important.
On the one hand, it was a war merchant’s alchemy knowledge, an immense
treasure.
On the other hand, there might be information pertaining to who the young
captain was, how Bloodcores were made, and how the pearl bubbles were supposed
to be used.
These were all important things to the survivors.
Thirdly, Jia Sha had encrypted the teleportation coordinates of the Green Jade
Gold Coffin several times over.
Zi Di didn’t have time to decrypt it on Mystifying Monster Island, thus she
took it with her to break it later to ascertain the Gold Green Jade Coffin’s
trail.
They could only rely on themselves.
But even after racking their brains for a long while, they couldn’t come up
with anything.
Too difficult.
It was as difficult as a man trying to climb a mountain with broken legs and
feet.
For the next two days, Cang Xu and Zi Di made no progress.
The tower spirit’s control over the crystal ball grew, thus everyone was
mobilized to brainstorm a solution to this problem, but no one had one.
Only Cang Xu and Zi Di were magicians, the others’ input wasn’t even worth
mentioning.
War Merchant was on a completely different level, and the tower spirit was a
great mountain that obstructed the survivors’ futures.
The plan hadn’t even been carried out yet, and if it suffered this devastating
setback, if the tower spirit deleted all of its data, it would deal a serious
blow to the young captain’s prestige and everyone’s morale would crumble.
Bai Ya had just finished mopping up a deck, he sighed as he leaned against his
mop.
He was in a very bad mood.
In fact, he had not slept well for the past two or three days.
He was haunted by nightmares, often of the dying Jia Sha.
He was the son of a hunter, an ordinary person, yet he had killed a member of
the clergy. Although he did it out of necessity, every time he thought back to
it, the guilt of it always pressed on him.
At that moment, Bai Ya saw something outside as he passed by a porthole. The
Deep Sea Monster Fish was sailing through the serene ocean depths, it was as
dark as the survivor’s futures.
"What was that?" Bai Ya squinted his eyes.
In the depths of the dark sea, a faint light appeared.
The light began to grow stronger and larger in the dark seawater.
"How can there be light in the depths?” Bai Ya thought to himself just as he
heard an alarm go off.
Everyone on board was alerted at that moment.
"What’s going on?” The young captain immediately paused his cultivation and
hurried over to the navigation cabin.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had arrived first.
Zong Ge also came a moment before him.
"An enemy is attacking.” Cang Xu was driving the alchemy ship.
Zi Di, who was helping on the side, explained the situation, “It is a sunfish,
it considers us its prey and is rapidly approaching.”
"What is a sunfish?" Lan Zao and Mu Ban asked with bewilderment after rushing
in.
"It's, it’s an ocean magic beast." Fei She replied with panting breathes, he
had arrived last. “Although it lives in the water, it has an abundance of light
and fire magic power, every fully grown sun fish is at the gold level. Its
scales, eyes and meat are all highly sought after products.”
"This fish lives around volcanic sea floor, we may be near one.”
"Gold level?!" Everyone turned pale.
The strongest among them, Zong Ge, only had peak silver level battle qi.
The gold level artificial magic beasts on Mystifying Monster Island were to
powerful to face and caused the survivors much suffering. They were still
flawed however, unable to use magic.
Unlike them, the sunfish was a genuine gold level magic beast, and could use
its magic-like abilities.
"Can we fight it?” Zong Ge steeled himself, “Does this ship have any weapons?”
The half beastman was unyielding, and his first thought was to confront the
beast head on.
The ghostly Zi Di shook her head, "We’ve only obtained this alchemical ship a
few days ago, we aren’t familiar with its workings yet. We are barely able to
drive it as is.”
"We can withdraw, it isn’t necessary to fight in the depths." Lan Zao's
suggestion was met with approval from everyone else.
But Cang Xu refuted his proposal, "At our current speed, we won’t be able to
break away from this sunfish.”
“Don’t tell me War Merchant designed this ship to only be this fast?”
"Oh please, this is a gold level magic ship."
“Can’t this thing go any quicker?”
"Sigh." Cang Xu sighed, “It’s very possible that this alchemy hasn’t hit its
top speed, he problem is we have no idea how to do so.”
This ship was a deep sea submarine. 
If it were a normal vessel, with sails, a rudder, oars, and the like, Cang Xu
and the others would have known how to sail it.
But this vessel adhered to the War Merchant’s design concepts, it was too
complex, and surpassed the knowledge of anyone present. 
The alchemy ship’s alarm continued to blare with ear-piercing shrieks.
The hold’s illumination turned red, indicating the situation was becoming more
urgent.
The red light reflected on the survivors’ grim or nervous faces.
The magic image appeared on the wall again, this time showing the sunfish with
its enormous physique and awe-inspiring presence.
Zi Di and Cang Xu looked up at each other from their efforts to operate the
complex machinery.
“That wasn’t me.”
“Like the alarm, this should be the alchemy ship trigger a defensive mechanism
to protect itself.
The survivors’ eyes concentrated on the magical projection.
In the pitch-black water, the sunfish was quickly swimming towards them, its
immense eyes emitting a resplendent yellow radiance. The smallest of its thick
and tightly packed scales were the size of washbowls and glistening with golden
light.
The sunfish was bigger than the Deep Sea Monster Fish by a large margin.
It shot out of the dark like a shooting star.
Then suddenly, it began to slow, and aimed itself at the Deep Sea Monster
Fish’s open fish mouth.
A moment later, the aura of magic power surged from its body.
A yellow burning beam of light spurted from its mouth.
“Get out of the way!” Many people fearfully shouted at once.
The ghostly Zi Di promptly drove the alchemy ship out of the way, it as a
suspenseful situation.
The sunfish missed, causing it to speed up again and close the distance between
it and the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
It began to shoot the yellow light again.
This time, because of the shorter distance between them, despite Zi Di reacting
without delay, she couldn’t move the ship fast enough.
The alchemy ship brushed by the light beam, it was very difficult to evade.
The attack caused the Deep Sea Monster Fish to shudder violently, making
everyone inside it shake, and caused a few of them to fall to the ground.
The incessant alarm and red light began to sputter and flicker.
Zi Di anxiously shouted, “The front starboard side hull is damaged, there is a
hole, one meter in radius, in the outer shell, dented against the inner layer,
if it is hit again, it’ll leak!”
What could they do?
As everyone was panicking, the alchemy ship’s hull suddenly let out an ear-
piercing screech.
The sound surged through the seawater, forming a spherical ripple that quickly
spread out from the ship.
The sunfish was confused and disoriented by the sound wave, causing it to slow
down.
Zi Di and Cang Xu looked at each other again.
“What was that?”
“It was another of the ship’s defensive abilities.”
The two tried several times in a flurry, but didn’t accomplish anything.
But the alchemy ship’s defensive mechanism was automated. 
Cang Xu analyzed, “The Deep Sea Monster Fish was designed to slink through the
deep sea, it was almost certain War Merchant considered what would happen if it
encountered wild magic beasts.”
“This sound wave was one of those responses, it is capable of repelling magic
beasts.”
However, despite being effected, the sunfish didn’t give up and still tailed
behind them.
As time passed, it seemed to grow better, as if it was adapting to the sound
waves.
In the cockpit, many people began to panic again.
“Think of another way, and fast!”
“It’s still hunting us.”
“Don’t worry, perhaps there are stronger automated defenses within the alchemy
ship.
Everyone discussed amongst themselves.
Zong Ge coldly snorted, “We can’t place our hopes completely into external
factors, we must float upwards and reach the ocean surface.”
“The water pressure is normal there, allowing us to leave the ship and fight!”
“Everyone, grab an alchemy crossbow and a musket, those can impede it
temporarily.”
“We also have the gold level cannon, it’ll be a blessed sight if it can shoot
the fish!” 
The half beastman proposed his combat strategy.
The young captain nodded.
The plan was sound, it was worth implementing.
“We will move here in accordance with the plan.” The young captain decided.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish ascended straight up.
The sunfish chased after them.
Water leaked into the ship. Then, as the alchemy ship was resurfacing, it
encountered a large shoal of fish.
It was a school of sailfish.
The small ones were a meter long, the medium ones were 2-5 meters long, and the
large ones were close to 10 meters long. They had long and narrow bodies, fine
scales, and had prominent maxillae that looked like sharp swords.
The second most distinct characteristic was the sailfish’s towering backfin. It
was taller than the fish’s body and at once looked like a flag and like a sail.
Although they didn’t have a gold level sailfish king, there were 20 silver
level magic sailfish.
If they went around the school of sail fish, there wouldn’t be enough time to
surface and fight.
The young captain made a snap decision, “Charge into the school, perhaps they
can help free us from his sunfish.”
There was nothing else he could do.
Cang Xu nodded, “There is no other option.”
Everyone clenched their teeth as they rushed through.
At first, the sailfish were frightened off by the sonar, and large amounts of
them scattered and fled.
However, the silver level magic sail fish quickly organized a counteroffensive,
and soon after, they spurred on the entire sailfish school to attack the
alchemy ship.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was like a horse nudging a beehive, and was swarmed
on all sides by the school of sailfish.
Its sturdy hull dealt with most of the sailfish easily, however, the silver
level sailfish leaders were somewhat troublesome.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish weathered their attacks and continued to float up.
The colliding sailfish caused dings to echo across the alchemy ship’s surface.
The survivors were worried the stab their way into the ship and rush in. Under
the young captain’s leadership, everyone in the cockpit used a communal
underwater breathing spell scroll.
Soon after, everyone scattered to their porthole, with crossbow or musket in
hand, and readied themselves for battle.



****** Chapter 8: Human Soul Required ******
The sounds of the sailfish’s bumping lingered on, there were now several
scratches on every porthole’s glass.
Not long after the attack began, the many silver level sailfish began to use
their innate magic.   
The water began to cool quickly, and in a flash, ice began to form around the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, decreasing its speed greatly.
The survivors’ situation was going from bad to worse.
“The artificial magic beasts really were broken things. As long as they have
their racial magic, the silver level school of fish is a threat the gold magic
ship cannot trifle with.”
The young captain observed the battle progress with wrinkled brows.
“Ah!” Someone suddenly cried out fearfully.
Others also jumped back in fright.
The person had watched a sailfish maxilla suddenly pierce the hull like a sharp
sword, the tip of which was but a finger’s length from them.
“The hull is reaching its limit, we need to break through now!” The young
captain’s heart tightened.
“It’s too difficult, I fear this battle will have disastrous casualties.” Zong
Ge looked grave.
A moment later, the young captain and the half beastman shouted at nearly the
same time, “Prepare for battle!”
“Hold on. Let me come!” Cang Xu suddenly ran over to join them.
The alchemy ship was difficult to control, thus Cang Xu deduced that rather
than trapping himself in the cockpit, he would rather turn the situation in
their favor on the battlefield.
“I need at least 5 meters to preform my spells!”
Cang Xu placed his hands on the cracked porthole, and concentrated on moving
his magic power.
He softly chanted as his eyes suddenly became blue.
The corresponding magic materials in his human skin storage bag in his chest
merged with the magic.
A few seconds later, the necromancy death magic, Wave of Death, was cast.
It had a radius of at least 20 meters.
Everywhere the wave spread, sailfish died, instantly becoming corpses.
Only the magic beasts of the sailfish survived.
The farther the ripple spread, the weaker it became. Therefore, the silver
sailfish close, iron level sailfish mid distance, and bronze level sailfish far
from to the origin point were still alive.  
Everyone was amazed.
Cang Xu was only at the iron level, yet with one attack, he killed at least a
tenth of the sailfish!
At least 6 iron level sailfish of equal level, along with countless bronze
level and ordinary sailfish were dead. Although the silver level sailfish
weathered the spell, it was clear they were seriously injured, and that the
ferocity of the offensive had slowed and subdued.
However, a moment later, the school of fish rushed forth once again, all of
them enraged.
Cang Xu took out a blue bottle of medicine from his chest cavity storage pouch
and drank it.
A moment later, he began to chant again.
A few breathes later, Wave of Death was cast again.
It still had a strong impact, inflicting even more major casualties on the
sailfish.
But the shoal of fish didn’t retreat, on the contrary, the spell aroused even
stronger feelings of fierceness and brutality.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish struggled to float up.
Cang Xu weakly took a step back, his eyes were dark, and his ears were
drumming.
Using that powerful magic consecutively had consumed not only a great amount of
his magic power, but also a lot of his spirit.
Cang Xu knew his situation inside and out.
“The medicine has expediated the regeneration of my magic power.”
“But it isn’t fast enough, I cannot used a third Wave of Death for a short
time.”
“Even if I could, the likelihood of a miscast is high, and it will put my
spirit in a terrible condition.”
If a spell was miscast or failed, the magic would backfire on the magician. The
stronger the magic, the more disastrous the backlash.
Cang Xu gasped for breath, and decided to use another necromancy spell.
Junior Soul Summoning.
He chanted loudly, this time a few steps away from the porthole.
Quickly after, a layer of gray light began to emit from all over his body.
The Junior Soul Summoning spell was very successful.  
In the battlefield, the souls of many sailfish ghosts began to emerge from
their carcasses.
The school of ghostly sailfish swayed their fishtails, and with astonishing
speed, began to savage their former comrades.
Every living sailfish the sailfish ghosts threw themselves at immediately froze
in place, then died.
After a murderous ghost sailfish created a corpse, it would look for another
target.
Even worse for the fish, Cang Xu continued to use the Soul Summoning spell.
Consequently, when the ghost sailfish had killed enough, a second group of
ghost sailfish was created.
The school of ghost sailfish was quickly expanding.
Due to the chaos, the sailfish school no longer attacked the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
The sounds of sailfish banging against the hull gradually faded away.  
The ship eventually grew quiet.
Most watched the ghost sailfish wanton slaughter with calm faces, none felt joy
in their victory, rather they felt fear and nervousness.
If the young man had been the one doing the killing, the survivors would have
shaken the heavens with their cheers and applauds.
But the necromancy spells were both strange and horrifying, they desecrated the
dead, and when they saw how the fish souls wreaked havoc, everyone felt their
hearts tremble.
Zong Ge’s brows tensed tightly.
“I didn’t expect necromancy to be so powerful!”
“These fish souls can only be withstood and be destroyed by the sailfish’s
racial magic.
“Cang Xu is only at the iron level, yet with only his power, he destroyed this
sailfish school.”
Zong Ge couldn’t help but think about the empire’s military orders.
Among them was this: If you encounter a necromancer or an undead, no matter the
circumstances, destroy them without mercy!
Zong Ge had left the army long ago.
But if Mystifying Monster Island hadn’t brought them together, he would have
killed any necromancer he found.
“Great work, Cang Xu!” At that moment, an abrupt voice smashed the silence.
The speaker was the young captain.
“That is the power of a magician.”
“Indeed, with just your strength, you changed the entire battle.”
The young captain was not miserly with his admiration.
The praise caused the grim expressions on the others to dwindle away.
With the sailfish school problem alleviated, the Deep Sea Monster Fish quickly
floated towards the surface.
However, not long after, the sunfish also untangled itself from the sailfish
and quickly charged at the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Cang Xu promptly had the fish souls attack the sunfish.
The sunfish was greatly impeded as a dozen fish souls charged at it. However,
it soon used its racial magic, causing it to shine all over.
The shining radiance seemed to melt the fish souls like snow, clearing them
away and allowing the sunfish to continue with its hunt.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish and the sunfish passed through the scattered sailfish
school.
The distance between both began to close.
No longer able to stand, Cang Xu sat down on the ground, his body shuddering,
his complexion deathly pale, and his aura falling to its limits.
He had used up all his battle strength.
Everyone suddenly panicked.
“There isn’t enough time!”
“We still haven’t surfaced yet.”
Zong Ge sighed, and shouted once again, “Prepare the ship for battle!”
“Lord Captain!” Cang Xu focused his eyes, enduring an intense vertigo and
headache to beckon the young captain over.
“Quickly, return me to the alchemy cabin, I’ve thought of a way that might
resolve our problems with the tower spirit!” Cang Xu weakly gasped.
The young captain trusted Cang Xu and immediately took him to the alchemy
cabin.
“I’ll leave this place to you.” The young captain hurriedly explained the
situation to the others before leaving.
Despite not being mentioned by name, Zong Ge knew he was the one being spoken
to, and he nodded his head without turning to look back, “Don’t worry, I am
here!”
A moment later, the half beastman pursed his brows.
He saw ten fish souls penetrating the hull one after the other, all headed
towards Cang Xu.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was a gold level alchemy ship created by War
Merchant, it had both formidable physical and magical defenses.  
But necromancy was a new school of magic, and currently, there were few methods
that could restrain it.
Therefore, Cang Xu’s necromancy magic could easily penetrate the hull, of which
the ghost fish school was gently doing.
After receiving these fish souls, Cang Xu’s aura became gloomier, as if he
lacked humanity.
The young captain felt like he was carrying a block of ice. No, to be more
precise, this was colder than ice, it was so cold that it stung the soul.
“Lord, please call President Zi Di over too,” Cang Xu said en route.
He was in bad shape, and his face was no longer pale, rather it was a placid
blue purple.
His body was beginning to stink like a corpse.
The young captain quickly reached the alchemy cabin, with Zi Di following in
soon after.
“Please control the alchemy puppets, President Zi Di. I will control the
alchemy formation.” Cang Xu barely muttered.
Zi Di’s eyes flashed, “Have you figured out a way overcome the tower spirit?”
Cang Xu nodded, “Perhaps. It is also something that suddenly came to mind.”  
After saying that, he turned to speak to the young captain, “If this attempt
fails, I ask your Lordship to immediately smash the crystal ball away,
disconnect it from the alchemy formation and alchemy puppets. The tower spirit
is very cunning!”
The young captain immediately nodded.
He was a knight, not a magician.
This kind of specialized matter was handed over to the professionals.
The prior scene reappeared once again, and the crystal ball inside the alchemy
formation began to bubble out with white light. It was the tower spirit
violently resisting and doing its utmost to connect with the alchemy ship and
seize control of it.
But this time things were different as Cang Xu raised a finger.
A fish soul flew into the crystal ball.
The light coming out of the crystal ball was instantly diminished by half after
the fish soul charged in.
“It works!” Zi Di was ecstatic.
Seeing his attempt yield results, Cang Xu continued to work.
One by one, fish souls entered the crystal ball, wreaked havoc, then exited.
The crystal ball shuddered as the fish souls swam about to and fro as they
wished.
The tower spirit was no longer its rambunctious self as the fish souls pushed
it about, causing it to retreat little by little.
Taking advantage of that, Zi Di controlled the alchemy crab puppets and their
small rotating alchemy formations and began to control the crystal ball.
“No good, this isn’t enough. The tower spirit has a tenacious guard, despite
hits weakening power, it isn’t defeated just yet.” Zi Di sensed the true
progress of the battle going on within the crystal ball and immediately
reported it back.
The fish souls were being depleted.
Cang Xu’s aura was so feeble, it was nearly imperceivable.   
His body rocked and his eyes were black, if he died moments later, it wouldn’t
be surprising.
He struggled to speak, “My previous conjecture was right.”
“The tower spirit is an intelligent being, made from magic. But it is very
expensive to create, the magician who created it would have surely lost a
portion of their spirit’s upper potential.”
“Why?”
“I guessed that it was very likely that true magic principle behind this
creation is that a magician would expropriate a fragment of their soul and use
it to create a tower spirit.”
“Since it involves the soul, the tower spirit can be eroded by the fish souls.”
But the fish souls are not enough.”
“I surmise that the fish souls are not intelligent enough. Right now, the
quantity makes up for that disparity. After all, the crystal ball is the tower
spirit’s headquarters!”
“The most intelligent souls are the souls of people.”
“This is our sole hope, Lord Captain!”
After explaining this to the young captain, Cang Xu suddenly gazed at him, his
eyes cold and resolute.
The young man’s heart quaked!
The sunfish was nearing, to deal with it, they had to rely on the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
From the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s automated defenses, one could see glimpses of
the alchemy ship’s true might.
In addition to this, if the survivors fought in the water, even if they won,
they’d suffer disastrous casualties.
To activate the entirety of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s power, they needed a
way to control it.
The tower spirit likely had it within the data it guarded!
To defeat the tower spirit and obtain that data, they needed human souls.
This also meant one of the survivors needed to sacrifice themselves.  
It would either be done of their own accord or not.
“Lord Captain, don’t hesitate, this is the best way currently.” Cang Xu had
long foreseen the young man’s misgivings and immediately urged him forth.
The young man clenched his teeth and stood motionless for a moment.
He knew Cang Xu was right.
This really was the best way.
But…
“Would I sacrifice one for the sake of the many?”
“Is this the right thing to do?”
“Who would want to sacrifice themselves? After finally escaping Mystifying
Monster Island, who among them is willing to sacrifice themselves for other?’
Suddenly, the young captain thought of the big guy.
Based on the big guy’s affection for him, he would sacrifice himself.
Furthermore, the big guy was dumb and could be deceived.
But the young man would do no such thing!
The big guy trusted him, and treated him as his true father. On Mystifying
Monster Island, the young man promised the dying boat craftsman to take care of
the big guy.
“I don’t want to sacrifice the big guy, but what right do I have to sacrifice
any of them?”
“Everyone believes in me, and acknowledges me as their leader. Was it so, in
this critical time, that I could choose who to sacrifice for them?”
“Doing this will end in strained morals.”
“But!”
“If this cannot be done, what else can be?”
In just a few short breaths, the young captain was drippling with cold sweat.



****** Chapter 9: Cang Xu’s Pain ******
“Let me!” As the young captain was pondering rapidly, Zi Di stepped forward
bravely, “Don’t forget that I am a ghost!”
But Cang Xu shook his head, “President Zi Di, please don’t put yourself in
danger.”
“You’ve seen how the fish souls were depleted to deal with the tower spirit.
Without my meticulous hand, many of the fish souls would have dissipated
already.
“You’ve just become a ghost, it is not wise to risk you.
“When a ghost is damaged, the damage is not only to the body, but also to the
memory, the nature, and more.”
“Among us all, we are the only two magicians, and can contribute more.”
“Furthermore, this is only my hypothesis.”
“Don’t forget, the tower spirit is very craft, maybe this is a ploy of theirs.”
“Therefore, sacrificing an insignificant member is the most dependable option.”
Cang Xu looked tranquil and unconcerned, his reasons touched the heart.
The young captain grinded his teeth.
He didn’t want to send Zi Di into danger nor did he want to sacrifice one of
his comrades.
“Hold on, maybe I can do it?” The young captain decided to volunteer himself,
He had the dragonman form.
He also had similar racial magic!
“Do you want to turn into a ghost?”  Zi Di shook her head.
She knew the youngster’s new form was not suited to be a magician.
“Be at ease, I only wanted to try, I wouldn’t make a fool out myself. I am not
so abundantly generous to sacrifice myself as an insignificant person.”
Defending the young captain’s position as leader corresponded with her
interests.
There was a more important factor, she didn’t want to make things difficult for
the young man!
Zi Di spoke as she floated over, taking advantage of the two people’s
astonishment to stretch out her hand towards the crystal ball.
“Ah!”
The ghostly Zi Di couldn’t help but shriek in pain.
She directly confronted the tower spirit.
Seeing the situation was anything but good, the young captain immediately
rushed over.
But Zi Di had already drawn back her hand, then floated away as if she was
running from a snake.
Her entire ghostly form was much darker, but she was spirited.
“Quickly, I have beaten back the tower spirit for the time being, its control
over the crystal ball is gone for now!”
Cang Xu left the alchemy formation and went to control the two alchemy crab
puppets, using them to quickly absorb information from the crystal ball.
“Extracting it!” Cang Xu exclaimed with excitement.
Then because of his excessive emotions, his eyes rolled back, and he fell
unconscious on the spot.
The crystal ball began to emit white light again, causing the young captain to
kick it out of the alchemy formation.
The crystal ball rolled into the wall, then stopped.
The white light blinked several times with blinding rays, as if the tower
spirit was roaring its anger. The light quickly dissipated, and the crystal
ball became calm once again.
“Cang Xu over casted his magic.” The ghostly Zi Di floated above Cang Xu’s head
and examined him.
“Let him rest.”
“Unconsciousness is the body protecting itself.”
“We must return to the cockpit now!”
With great difficulty, Zi Di excavated the precious information as she and the
young captain rushed to the cockpit.
She floated to the controls.
The control panel was a long metal board, with many engravings on it, runes
that dazzled the eyes, lines, and diagrams.
Zi Di connected her spirit to it, then spoke out the code word she just
extracted, causing the entire control panel to light up. One by one, the runes,
lines, diagrams broke away from the rectangle metal panel and flew into the air
to revolve around Zi Di.
Zi Di looked left and right, after surveying it all, she immediately drew her
spirit into a part of it.
The runes responded and the lines joined together, with a diagram in the
center.
They quickly formed a small three-dimensional formation.
Zi Di spoke another code word, causing the interlinked lines in the formation
to shine with white light.
A moment later, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s fishtail suddenly morphed. Its
whale like tail turned into fan blades.
The fan blades rotated rapidly, creating a spiral stream behind it.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s speed shot up and fled in a diagonal angle, and in
a short while, it completely broke away from the sailfish school while
increasing the distance between it and the sunfish.
“We’ll carry on like this.” The ghostly Zi Di’s spirit then concentrated on a
second floating formation.
This small formation was the most complex, to the young captain, it looked like
a small castle.
As a matter of fact, this was the foundation of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
control formation.
The ghostly Zi Di made it shine, and soon after, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
lingering alarm finally ceased, ending the torment on everyone’s ears. At the
same time, the flickering red lights also changed back to being blue.
The dispersing sonar wave also ceased.
The survivors were caught off guard due to the sudden increase in speed,
causing many of them to fall to the ground.
“What’s going on?”
“It seems the captain and the others figured out how to control the ship!”
“We’ve freed ourselves from the fish school, we’re approaching the ocean
surface.”
Everyone cheered at this pleasant surprise.
The situation was getting better.
Using the portholes, they watched the seawater become light blue and the
sunlight permeate the water, the sight made everyone’s heart quicken.
Zong Ge’s brows were still tight and didn’t relax, but his gaze contained his
expectations.
“Hold on, why are we changing direction?”
Everyone quickly sensed that the ship was turning around.
180
The fish head bow quickly turned 180 degrees to face the pursuing school of
sailfish and the sunfish.
A moment later, the fish mouth on the bow slowly opened, and from within
extended a cannon.
The cannon was thick, blue, and emitted a golden luster. There were many
alchemy formation lines engraved into the cannon, and when they were imbued
with magic power, the lines began to quickly glow brightly.
A gold level cannon!
After mulling for a few seconds, the entirety of the Deep Sea Monster Fish
slightly shook as a gold level artillery shell was fired.
A Python Bullet!
After the shell was fired, it exploded into lightning that flashed through the
entire fish school, the sunfish, and all the way down into the seabed.
The sailfish school was swept away, and after a struggle a little, the sunfish
too began to slowly sink downwards.
The single shot killed everything.
“We won?!”
“What kind of artillery shell could do that?”
Ah, this ship really is War Merchant’s, War Merchant!”
Everyone was jubilant, the victory made them forgetful.
Zong Ge’s brows relaxed, he had been observing how the hull had changed. In his
heart, he sincerely exclaimed in admiration, “Such capable companions!”
Soon after, Zong Ge passed by a porthole and saw four alchemy puppets that
looked like naga hurrying over to the fish corpses with large nets to
industriously clean up the battlefield and rake in the spoils of war.
Everyone discussed what had happened with keen interest and enthusiasm.
“This is a bountiful harvest!”
“This much magic beast meat will be worth a lot.”
“I didn’t expect that these fish would be our food instead. Ah haha!”
Tripleblade walked over to Zong Ge and whispered to him, “My Lord, it seems the
captain and the others have made headway, they must have found out how to
thoroughly control the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
“We also should have a share in the authority over this vessel.”
Zong Ge glanced at Tripleblade and slightly frowned, however when he thought of
Cang Xu, he couldn’t help but nod, “We will go to the cockpit.”
He trusted the young captain.
But Cang Xu…
Zong Ge was vigilant against him.
En route, Zong Ge secretly decided: if the authority was in Cang Xu’s hands, he
would wrest control from him! Perhaps he’d give it to the captain.
Even Zi Di was someone Zong Ge was wary of.
Zong Ge firmly remembered one fact, Zi Di was a ghost, and had been roused by
Cang Xu’s magic.
……
The scorching sun hung high in the empty sky.
In a far off place, there was an unbroken range of sand dunes. The air was
scorching and twisted one’s vision.
Crowds were congesting in an execution ground, all excitedly awaiting the
beheading of a criminal.
The executioner unrolled a sheepskin scroll and shouted the criminal’s crime.
There was only one line.
The criminal was a confirmed necromancer!
In a distant castle, Cang Xu stood by a Sha Ta Clan elder and gazed at the far
off execution ground.
“But your Lordship, there is no actual evidence that proves he is truly a
necromancer.” Cang Xu couldn’t hold back himself.
“Based on the information I have collected, I have reasons to believe that they
are being framed.”
“The priest who denounced him was the Sheng Ming Sect’s newly promoted bishop,
Mu Bian. When he was a lowly man, he had many conflicts with and been bullied
by many criminals.”
The Sha Ta elder nodded, “You said as much to me.”
“But Bishop Mu Bian has already been appointed to be the leader of my domain’s
parish.”
“Since he believes this criminal is a necromancer, then it is so.”
“This is our Sha Ta Clan expressing their benevolence to Bishop Mu Bian.”
Cang Xu hesitantly responded, “But if a necromancer appeared in our territory,
would that not negatively impact the clan’s reputation?”
“No.” The Sha Ta elder laughed, “The necromancer was captured without incident,
furthermore this public execution will increase our clan’s prestige instead!”
“Necromancers…hmph, I’d rather kill an innocent man than let one slip away.”
“Hehe, I actually hope there are more necromancers like this.”
As they spoke, the executioner raised his axe high and took the criminal’s
head.
The crowd cried in surprise, then cheered. 
Cang Xu did not speak.
The Sha Ta elder had left, leaving him to stand by the castle window as he
gazed out at the execution ground for quite some time.
Bishop Mu Bian’s vengeance was successful, the local lord could annex the
criminal’s family’s riches and wealth, and the commoners had a great show that
could be discussed for many years to come.
Everything was to everyone’s delight and satisfaction.
Only Cang Xu’s heart was trembling.
He stared at the head as it tumbled into the audience, he watched its blood dye
the surrounding sand.
The head’s eyes were wide open, full of the fear and anger one had at death’s
door.
Cang Xu gazed at it, and began to feel that that head looked like his own.
The wind blew across the sand.
Cang Xu seemed to feel the pain the scraping sand inflicted on the head.
Pain…pain…pain…
The pain tormented him, and it caused him to finally wake up and struggle from
the nightmare his memories created.
He was in a sailor cabin.
Cang Xu opened his eyes and found himself on a single bed.
“Eh…where am I?”
As his field of view became clear, Cang Xu recalled something: he had lost
consciousness due to excessive spell casting.
His head was still very sore.
But it had diminished a lot compared to the last time he was awake.
The walls around him had densely packed magic runes and lines.
Cang Xu ran his eyes over them, making out at least five spell formations, they
seemed to be connected to form a singular complex system.
“Zi Di must have succeeded.”
This must be the alchemy ship’s medical functions being used.”
“Every sailor room must have one of these spell formations.”
“How long has it been since I lost consciousness?”
Cang Xu did not know the answer to this question.
From the cabin door, he did not hear any sounds of fighting.
 



****** Chapter 10: Of Course! ******
“The entire ship should be safe.
Cang Xu coughed as he leaned against a wall.
He was still in poor health.
Going into battle like this would only cause trouble for the others.
Thus, he wasn’t in a hurry to leave the room.
A moment later, he began to inspect his body.
His body had been transformed by necromancy, and once laid between life and
death. But now, the balance had been broken and his body was on the edge of
crumbling altogether.
Death was ascendant while life was firmly suppressed.
Due to that fact, Cang Xu’s body smelled more like a corpse.
Of course, Cang Xu was not about to sit and allow this to continue, thus he
immediately started to deal with it.
The edge of life and death transformation was something he slowly created with
his limited necromancy inheritance. Since it was his own personal achievement,
he was very familiar with it and had a deep understanding of the process.
In only a short period of time, Cang Xu completely recuperated and once again
established an equilibrium between life and death.
His body’s deathly foul odor quickly diminished.
After stabilizing his situation, Cang Xu examined his magic power reservoir.
All magicians had their own magic power reservoir.
In the prior battle, Cang Xu had emptied his magic power reservoir, yet now he
had restored most of it.
“The magic power recovery drug I used was of inferior quality, at most it only
restored 30% of my magic power.”
“The room’s alchemy formation should have been the thing to regenerate it to
this degree.”
He then inspected his human skin storage bag.
The storage bag looked like skin sewed to his chest, both hiding it and making
spells convenient to cast.
In the storage bag, there were 3 blue inferior magic power restoration potions
left.
Ever since he had been a fugitive on the run, Cang Xu had only ever had these
bottles.
Apart from those, there was also some food, water, clothes, and other
miscellaneous items.
Cang Xu’s most important items were spell materials.
Dead Sea shell fragments, grimacing lonely wood, ghost spire legs…
The first two were the main materials used to cast Wave of Death, while the
last one was the main catalyst to cast the Junior Soul Summoning Spell.
Originally, there weren’t many of them, but after the battle, they were in
seriously short supply.
Cang Xu’s brows wrinkled.
These spell materials were rarely replenished.
“Regardless of whether it is Wave of Death or the Soul Summoning Spell, I only
have enough materials to cast one of each.”
Spells needed sorcery materials.
Of course, they weren’t completely necessary.
The principle of magic was very simple, it needed a spell model plus magic
power.
If both requirements were met, then one didn’t need magic materials to
successfully cast spells.
But during actual combat, almost all magicians used magic materials to cast
spells.
Spell materials were very practical.
On the one hand, they could help a magician construct a magic model, on the
other hand, it could also help one supplement much of their magic power.
Wave of Death was such a spell.
The main components were the Dead Sea shell fragments and the grimacing lonely
wood.
In the Dead Sea, every once in a while, naturally occurring waves of death left
vestiges on the shellfish living there.
Grimacing lonely wood is a type of magic plant, in times of peril, the human
face on the surface of its crest will screech, creating a spell-like Wave of
Death.
Without these two materials, Cang Xu would have needed ten times the magic
power and eight times the time to create the model to cast the spell.
If Cang Xu had the above spell efficiency, he couldn’t have aided Deep Sea
Monster Fish in time when they were besieged by the school of fish.
By the time he was only half way done, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would have
been skewered and schools of fish would have flooded in.
“I must replenish my materials as soon as possible.”
Cang Xu sighed to himself, and felt awkward.
Necromancy had both its advantages and disadvantages as the newest school of
magic.
The greatest advantage was the other schools of magic were ill suited to and
hadn’t yet developed ways to counteract necromancy.  For example, take the
previous battle. Cang Xu was an iron level magician, yet he could easily
penetrate the hull of a gold level enchanted ship. If it were fire or lightning
magic, the spells would be intercepted by the hull.
But likewise, there were many problems too.
One of them was spell materials.
More developed schools of magic could easily replenish their casting materials.
The world markets for them were immense.
But spell materials for necromancy were difficult to find.
Necromancers often needed to gather them themselves.
Besides spell materials, there was also magical equipment.
Necromancy magician staves, gowns, and more usually needed to be self-made, and
were extremely difficult to purchase in the marketplace.
Cang Xu was like this, he had neither staff nor gown.
He didn’t know how to make them, nor did he have the alchemy attainment to
design one.
“If I had a staff or a grimoire, I wouldn’t have over casted and fallen
unconscious.” Cang Xu sighed, he had always longed for such magical equipment.
After replenishing his magic power and making sure his body was normal, Cang Xu
opened the cabin door and left the sailor room.
As soon as he looked out of his room, he saw that two alchemy puppets had been
standing by the door for quite a while.
These two alchemy puppets were humanoid shaped, they wore a shield and a sword
at the waist, and the armor they wore was stylized with clouds of eastern
design. After sensing the quiet movement behind them, the two puppets turned
around as one and looked at Cang Xu, saying at the same time, “Lord Cang Xu, I
am Sword Guard 5(6). The captain left a message for you. After you have
awakened, he asks that you proceed towards the dining hall, he is holding a
victory feast there.”
“It seems Zi Di had a bountiful harvest, these two puppets must be from the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, she must’ve enabled them.” 
Cang Xu understood everything clearly.
He was not surprised.
Magic ships usually had internal security to respond against enemy boarders.
These two sword guards were clearly of War Merchant’s design.
Cang Xu left for the dining hall.
As he gradually approached, he began to hear bouts of cheers and laughter.
His heart couldn’t help but feel pangs of nervousness.
As a living corpse, his mood never wavered from its impartial calm, any swings
in mood from was a rare occurrence.
The spurt of nervousness caused Cang Xu to clutch his clothes.
His plain clothes consisted of scholarly garb and a pair of spectacles on his
nose that had been repaired a while ago.
This was a small magician’s ploy.
His beard was snow-white, no longer grey and knotted as it was on Mystifying
Monster Island.
He had a thin and tall stature, and his wrinkled face did not make him feel
decrepit, but rather it seemed to contain his knowledge and wisdom.
His gaze was very tranquil, his appearance aloof, and his face expressionless.
The dining hall door suddenly opened, the laughter inside suddenly magnified as
someone walked out with a very red face and a body that stank of wine.
He was about to urinate when he suddenly saw Cang Xu and immediately stared at
the latter.
His smile rapidly dwindled, replaced by amazement, reverence, and suspicion.
But that lasted but a moment, and he quickly covered it up as he bowed to Cang
Xu and frantically said, “My Lord, you’re awake? Everyone will be overjoyed to
see you.”
Cang Xu nodded to him, but didn’t say anything.
The thread of nervousness was suddenly obliterated as Cang Xu walked past the
person with a blank face, opened the cabin door, and strode inside.
The survivors shifted their eyes toward the opening door and when they saw Cang
Xu, their laughter trailed off.
When Cang Xu looked at one of them, they would unconsciously avert their eyes.
The ghostly Zi Di smiled and nodded to him.
Zong Ge looked into the wine cup he was holding.
“Everyone, our hero has arrived.”  The young captain laughed loudly as he
traversed the crowd.
He came to Cang Xu and excitedly clapped both hands on Cang Xu’s biceps. 
Then, standing side by side with Cang Xu, he faced everyone else.
With a powerful grip, he raised the necromancer’s frail hand up and loudly
declared, “This is the star of our feast, tonight we shan’t be sleeping sober!”
Lan Zao was the first to respond. The sailor gave out a burp, revealing his
brashness.  
Soon after, sounds of praise and laughter rose once again and filled the narrow
dining hall.
A long forgotten sense of warmth and emotion as hot as the young captain’s hand
on Cang Xu’s shoulder shot through Cang Xu’s heart.
But on the surface, he still remained calm.
Zi Di floated over to commend him, “Lord Cang Xu, thanks to you, we have a
bountiful harvest.”
Zong Ge remained silent, but nodded to Cang Xu.
Although the half beastman was wary of the necromancer, he did not have a
narrow heart and Cang Xu’s merits could not be denied. 
“I wouldn’t dare claim credit, everything happened because of the Lord
Captain’s leadership.” Cang Xu showed the smile typical of a noble’s steward.
“Hehehe!” The young captain laughed loudly.
The feat had very fine food, this was because after the ghostly Zi Di took
control of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, she noticed there were additional stores
of food and wine onboard.
Typical provisions for War Merchant were extraordinary to normal folk.
Then, just as the young captain had said, tonight no one was sleeping sober.
But no matter how delicious the delicacies were, all of it was tasteless to
Cang Xu. His calm attitude found it difficult to find purchase in the others
nearby. As a scholar and a necromancer, Cang Xu began to retreat to a corner of
the room.
He had performed a great deed in the battle, but he was not the leading figure
of it.
That would be the young captain, he was the one socializing with the people, he
was the one chatting with them, drinking with them, and singing shoulder to
shoulder with them.
Cang Xu quietly watched with a calm heart and a gaze filled with admiration.
“He is an outstanding leader. Our greatest fortune!” Cang Xu stated to the
floating Zi Di.
“Of course!” Zi Di agreed without the slightest hesitation.
Many people in the world would have found the following scene fictitious.
In the small dining hall, there were ten people. Among them were a half
beastman and a goblin conversing as equals, and a necromancer and a ghost being
treated as normal fellows. In a nearby door, there was a large man was curled
up, a human and a giant hybrid. He was giggling, yet was not discriminated
against.
This celebratory feast was not much different from the one on Mystifying
Monster Island, but Cang Xu understood that the young captain had only achieved
this through relentless work!
After leaving behind the unusual environment of Mystifying Monster Island,
everyone had regained their battle qi, magic power, rank, and lineage. The
things all races valued.
These differences were cracks that threatened to shatter this group apart.
But fortunately, these companions followed the same leader.
A transforming monstrous young knight.
He had strove to unite them all.
There was no doubt that it hadn’t been without its incomparably arduous
challenges.
It had been far more difficult than what Cang Xu had faced when dealing with
the sailfish school.
Because the problem was the vast chasms between the hearts of men.
Only an excellent leader with discernment, bravery, and resolve like the young
knight could cross it.
“You know what? Compared to what he looks like now, I actually preferred it
when he was donning the forms of beasts.” Zi Di exposed her inner desires to
probe Cang Xu.
Cang Xu smiled, and without the slightest hesitation, echoed her words, “Of
course!”
 



****** Chapter 11: The Deep Sea Monster Fish ******
The young captain traveled through the crow, stopping from time to time to
mingle with some of the survivors.
The dining hall was not wide, allowing the ten or so survivors to make it seem
crowded.
The joy of victory and the hope for the future were both in everyone’s hearts.
The fine food and drink created an even warmer ambience in the background.
Zi Di was from a merchant family, and was very familiar with social gatherings,
and because of her beautiful face, she was always the focus of everyone’s
attention.
But this time it was different.
Everyone’s attention was concentrated on the young captain.
Zi Di was no exception.
She tenderly and sweetly gazed at her partner, she couldn’t get enough of him.
To her side, Cang Xu spoke, “Tell me what you have gained.”
Zi Di immediately smiled, “Thanks to you, our gains were extraordinarily great!
Just speaking about it won’t give you the full picture, let’s go the cockpit
and have you familiarize yourself with the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“Now?” Cang Xu shook his head.
Despite his curiosity, he restrained his urges.
“I don’t want our captain working alone here, now is the time to be by his side
together.” Said Cang Xu.
Zi Di stared at him, but soon got what Cang Xu was getting at.
Their group was in its earliest and weakest stage, its myriad races and social
classes made it hard for its members to harmonize with each other.
The young captain was doing his best to mollify this friction.
Zi Di was a ghost, while Cang Xu was a necromancer, both of whom frightened the
people by simply existing.
At this time, if they separated themselves from the public and acted alone, it
would negatively impact the group by a massive degree. 
“Although Cang Xu is a necromancer, he is still much more of a noble steward.
He has a deep understanding of our group and of politics.” Zi Di continually
evaluated Cang Xu’s most important traits to herself.
“You are correct.”  She listened to Cang Xu’s advice and left the corner.
After the feast ended, she and Cang Xu left the dining hall. During it, only a
few came over to toast with or greet them, spurred on when the young captain
visited them three times to socialize with the two.
After the celebration, the survivors were in high spirits and returned to their
respective rooms to sleep, contented.
Zi Di and Cang Xu went to the cockpit.
Inside, Zi Di did not hold back as she showed Cang Xu how to control the Deep
Sea Monster Fish.
Thus, Cang Xu observed the rectangular metal panels and magic runes float into
the air and form formations.
Zi Di imbued them with her spirit and manipulated the formations, adjusting
some images and lighting. Then finally, she revealed all kinds of information
about the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was gold level ship.
It was 60 meters long, up to 16 meters wide, and 30 meters tall. It was shaped
like a fish, could travel 32 knots underwater and 25 knots when surfaced. 
“Why is the underwater speed faster than the above water speed?” Cang Xu was
puzzled when he saw this.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had a lightning element circumfluence magic power
reservoir, one of the greatest of its kind in the world.
Similarly, its magic furnace was also the apex in its class, and was known as
the Golden Coral Energy Furnace.
The magic furnace was the ship’s main power source, quite different from other
ships which used sails, oars, or other sailing methods. 
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had a unique control method, as it used miniature
alchemy formations. These alchemy formations were many runes linked together.
The runes were connected to the entire ship, and as such, the control
formations could control all of its functions.
“War Merchant was worthy of his reputation. Does one need to be a magician in
order to control this vessel?” Cang Xu exclaimed.
The ghost girl shook her head, “To be more accurate, one simply needs their
spirit to exceed the minimal threshold. Of course, this minimum threshold
basically means one has the qualifications to become a magician.”
This kind of operating system was extremely high-end, and likely was invented
by War Merchant himself.
Such a system could topple entire schools of thought.
Previously, Zi Di and Cang Xu were like that, when they couldn’t control the
entirety of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s functions.
Cang Xu continued to read.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s hull was special, it was a mimicry hull.
It could counter magnetic attraction, electrical currents, fire attacks, and
more while also being specially made to conceal its own aura. 
These strengths also had their weaknesses.
The Deep Sea Monster fish was weak against physical attacks.
Due to that flaw, the Deep Sea Monter Fish’s hull seemed frail when up against
the charging sailfish.
The mimicry hull’s greatest capability was that it could morph.
Both the hull and some of the internal machinery would morph, like when the
ship’s aft morphed into a spiral oar.
Another feature of the hull was that it could transform through alchemical
reactions. 
This combined with the aforementioned morphing allowed the Deep Sea Monster
Fish to have three forms in total.
The first form was what it currently looked like now, a giant magic fish.
The second form was a sailfish form, the entire ship would lengthen, allowing
its underwater speed to shoot up to 35 knots.
The third form looked like a fishman, with the hull growing hands and feet, and
the keel dismantled and reformed into a harpoon to be used as a weapon.
When Cang Xu saw that information, he once again praised the alchemical genius
of War Merchant.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was equipped with top of the line detection
capabilities, with three alchemy devices designed to detect sound waves, light,
as well as life auras.
The sound detection equipment could also emit soundwaves itself, and could
drive away most beasts with it. Of course, it could also provoke the beasts, as
was such the case with the sunfish.
With the three detection devices, the Deep Sea Monster Fish could create a
coherent magic image that a user could watch and tell everything that was
happening at a glance.
As Cang Xun continued to examine these features, he was astonished to learn the
sonar wasn’t actually a true defensive mechanism.
With the runes on the control panels, one could create an alchemy formation to
trap enemies.
With the diagrams, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s two eyes could emit two blue
beams of light that could illuminate and bind the target.
There was also a Hedgehog Retaliation Firepower formation.
After it was activated, the entirety of the Deep Sea Monster Fish would sprout
with holes. From these holes, three alchemy crossbow bolts would fire every
second.
The vessel had 5000 holes in total, and based on the firing speed, it would
shoot 15,000 alchemy crossbow bolts a second.
When Cang Xu imagined that he felt his head go somewhat numb.
What stunned him even more was that these were still not the ship’s strongest
weapons.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s strongest firepower was its two gold level cannons,
one pressurized hydro cannon and one electrical arc cannon.
The survivors captured a gold level cannon, one similar to the ship’s gold
level ones. Yet when compared to the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s own cannons, it
paled in every respect, and was considered ordinary in comparison.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s gold level cannons were obviously custom made.
Furthermore, War Merchant had paired them up with specialized artillery shells.
These artillery shells were also gold level, and composed of two types. The
first was maelstrom shells, they could create a gigantic whirlpool that could
trap and even shred enemies. The second was the python shells.
The python shells gave the electrical arc cannon formidable power.
The gold level sunfish as well as the sailfish were all slaughtered by a single
shell, giving the survivors a shocking sight to experience.
Besides the ship’s weapons, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was also outfitted with
many alchemy puppets.
These alchemy puppets were not too big, with almost all of them being the sizes
of people.
The most numerous were the sword guards at 10, Cang Xu had seen them after
awakening in his room.
Next were the basic maintenance ones at 8, they repaired any damage and kept
the ship working.
The damage the Deep Sea Monster Fish received during the last battle had
already been repaired by these maintenance puppets.
There were also 3 fat blue puppets. These maintenance puppets were an enhanced
version of the other ones, and could do more meticulous repairs, including
being able to mend some of the alchemy runes, formations, and lines.
Finally, there were the 2 yellow crab alchemy puppets. Cang Xu and Zi Di had
used them against the tower spirit. However, their true function hadn’t been
utilized.
Next was the layout of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s interior.
The magic ship had a cockpit, a kinetic energy cabin, a magic power reservoir,
a landing cabin, a dining hall, sailor cabins, a captain’s room, an alchemy
cabin, an ammunition store, 1-3 storage rooms, and a meditation chamber.
Cang Xu was dazzled by it all.
After he was done reading, he looked to the side and clicked his tongue in
praise, “Although I don’t fully understand this magic ship, I am certain that
the Deep Sea Monster Fish is one of the greatest gold level ships ever, its
value is astonishing!”
Zi Di nodded in agreement, “Gold level ships are already comparatively rare.”
“It usually takes at least a saint level pirate captain or a navy commander to
have a gold level magic ship.”
It is a rare sight for even a gold level genius to have a magic ship at the
same level as them.
This was because it was more economical and beneficial to invest in other
aspects that could increase their personal strength.
Gold level magic ships to a gold level person was considered a luxury good with
a considerably low price-value ratio.
Therefore, only saint level people usually had the spare funds to have one.
The survivors’ circumstances were even more unusual. Zong Ge was their
strongest, yet he was only a peak silver level, and not even a gold level
person.
Zi Di continued, “The Deep Sea Monster Fish has so many advantages, it was also
War Merchant’s. Thus, its value far exceeds other ships of the same level.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had a top speed of 30 knots, and if it morphed into a
sailfish form, it could even sail at speeds of 35 knots.
This information was extraordinary.
At first Zi Di didn’t understand the significance, but after presenting it to
Lan Zao, she realized what it had meant. 
The fastest ordinary ship did not exceed 13 knots.
A bronze level magic ship could sail a little under 15 knots.
An iron level ship’s maximum speed was roughly 20 knots.
A silver level ship’s was 25 knots.
A gold level ship was 28 or 29 knots, it couldn’t exceed 30.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish out sped them all, giving it a distinct advantage.



****** Chapter 12: The Deceptive Disguise Spell ******
“There is one more thing.” Cang Xu added, “Although the Deep Sea Monster Fish
is quite big, it is very easy to control.”
“Normally on ships, the cannons need gunners, the rudder needs a helmsman, the
sails need sailors, the deck needs seaman to protect it, and so on.”
“But this ship only needs a single person to control it. The many alchemy
puppets are responsible for its defense, maintenance, and operation.”
“This has bout its advantages and disadvantages….” Cang Xu looked somewhat
hesitate as he spoke of this.
Zi Di laughed, “I understand what you’re getting at.”
“You don’t need to be worried.”
“Based on our attempts, one needs the requisite spirit to control this ship.
Besides you and I, only the captain and Zong Ge qualify.” 
“The greatest authority is already in the captain’s hands. The captain room has
similar panels, and during times of need, he can directly control the Deep Sea
Monster Fish from the captain’s room. The cockpit is actually to assist him.”
“That is good.” Cang Xu nodded and relaxed.
“However, it seems Zong Ge surprisingly has enough spiritual power too.”
“That half beastman is no simpleton.”
“He has had rigorous military training, has a full suit of steel armor, and has
that pair of master crafted short spears.”
“Beastman bloodlines rarely produce magician level spirit abilities, this shows
the human part of his bloodline is also excellent.”
“It’s very likely that he was born into a higher class than the rest of us!”
Zi Di nodded, “You’re right.”
The girl couldn’t help but think of the time when Cang Xu was unconscious, when
she had shown off the Deep Sea Monster Fish to the captain, Zong Ge, and the
others.
During which, Zong Ge had also explicitly expressed thus: since the Deep Sea
Monster Fish was so easy to control, the people who would be rigorously
screened. He would be uneasy if the Deep Sea Monster Fish was in Cang Xu’s
hands. 
Since then, the young captain publicly received the primary authority,
alleviating most of Zong Ge’s worries.
Doubtlessly, the girl wouldn’t be speaking of this, she understood that Zong Ge
and Cang Xu were wary of each other and was a little pleased such was the case.
Currently, both Zong Ge, a peak silver level, and Cang Xu, a necromancer, were
powerful people.
Since the artificial magic beast forms could not be used in the outside world,
the young captain’s was inhibited somewhat.
In these circumstances, friction between Zong Ge and Cang Xu was actually
beneficial to the young captain.
“We didn’t expect the Lord Captain to also have sufficient spiritual power too.
This was the best outcome.” Cang Xu then asked, “Oh that’s right, was there
anything in the crystal ball’s records pertaining to his Lordship’s true
identity?”
Zi Di sighed, “Maybe, but I didn’t find anything.”
After temporarily defeating the tower spirit, Zi Di unearthed a large quantity
of precious data. But the data did not contain any information related to the
young captain’s original identity.
“Has the Lord Captain remembered anything about who he used to be?” Cang Xu
frowned.
“No. His memory should have been modified by War Merchant personally, quite
thoroughly.” Zi Di sighed, “Don’t we also have a memory extraction device?
Perhaps we can find a gap in it.”
Although she said that, Zi Di was not confident in herself.
Neither her nor Cang Xu were alchemy experts.
Cang Xu analyzed. “The Lord Captain has White River battle qi. According to
this point, one can speculate that he is likely a common knight.
Bai He was the creator of White River battle qi.
He was born a commoner. After becoming a silver level knight in his later years
and suffering the pains of cultivation, he specially founded this battle qi
type.
Although it was a silver level battle qi method, he did not only give it to his
heir, instead he decided to disseminate it widely.
The White River battle qi was not outstanding when compared to other silver
level methods, it was actually quite mediocre.
Its greatest advantage was its broad application and generous creator, allowing
it to spread all across the world and become one of the most common types of
battle qi.
If the young captain had an extraordinary background, he wouldn’t have
cultivated this type of battle qi.
As for the youngster’s comparable high spiritual abilities, so high that they
met the criteria to control the Deep Sea Monster Fish, such a thing could not
be used to determine anything.
In reality, there are many people with sufficient spiritual power, yet chose
not to walk the magician’s path.
Becoming a magician required an economic foundation.
One needed money!
Only with enough wealth can one form their foundation as a magician.
The more one cultivated, the more money one required.
“Speaking of White River battle qi…” Cang Xu continued, “I have some
misgivings, War Merchant actually retained the captain’s White River battle qi,
an unavoidably large flaw.”
At this time, Cang Xu also understood that War Merchant had planned to use the
body double to suppress and conspire against Zhen Jin.
Although one was a templar knight, the order did not all have the same battle
qi, in fact, most templar knights retained their original battle qi type.
However, there were obvious differences between Hundred Needles battle qi and
White River battle qi.
If War Merchant ‘s plot had continued, the young captain would have replaced
Zhen Jin, but he wouldn’t have had Hundred Needle battle qi, but White River
battle qi instead.
If that happened, to say nothing of other people, even the young captain would
begin to doubt himself, that he really was “Zhen Jin”.
The flaw was too great!
Zi Di laughed, “I have found an answer for that.”
“Here is all the information on that that we have extracted from the tower
spirit.”
“Eh?” Cang Xu began to skim it over.
Firstly, a huge volume of alchemical data hit his face, hundreds of alchemical
test results, classified alchemy workshop constructions, and administrative
records.
Secondly, there were many battle qi methods as well as magic and divine
techniques.
To research the perfect artificial magic beast, War Merchant had gathered many
battle methods, magic and divine techniques to find his breakthrough.  
Unfortunately, he hadn’t succeeded.
Then there was the Green Jade Golden Coffin teleportation coordinates.
Cang Xu saw that Zi Di had successfully decrypted it.
“So, as it turns out, Jia Sha had teleported the Green Jade Golden Coffin to
Snake Rat Island.
“Anti-Investigation and Prophecy spell formation, Deceptive Disguise spell…”
When he saw that, Cang Xu’s face showed his pleasant surprise.
This data pertained to the divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale.
This data section focused on the many alchemy spell formations that used the
Mermaid Fairy Tale as their core or used the pearl bubbles’ considerable power.
 
The Mermaid Fairy Tale was the Charming Blue God’s divine artifact.
The Charming Blue God’s greatest expertise was in deception and camouflage.
War Merchant developed alchemy spell formations that could utilize the pearl
bubbles with the goal of creating a near perfect disguise.
“So that’s how it is.”
“War Merchant wanted to use this camouflage skill to solve the battle qi flaw.”
“How smart!”
“With this alchemy formation, we could disguise ourselves and freely move
about.”
At first, Cang Xu thought their greatest gain was gaining complete control of
the Deep Sea Monster Fish, however, now his opinion had changed, and he firmly
believed that these two alchemy spell formations were that now!
Zi Di smiled, “Correct.”
“Breaking a pearl bubble to resist external divinations and prophecies is its
most superficial use.”
“War Merchant is one of the world’s greatest alchemist grand grandmasters, he
developed these alchemy formations to more efficiently and effectively use
these pearl bubbles.”
“Anyways, if this happens, our consumption of the pearl bubbles will greatly
increase.”
“According to this data, the Mermaid Fairy tale can produce pearl bubbles, but
not an infinite amount. In fact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale needs the Charming Blue
God’s divine power to produce pearl bubbles.”
“We don’t have the Charming Blue God’s divine power, and so, the amount of
pearl bubbles produced will grow smaller.” 
After saying that, Zi Di’s voice suddenly stopped, and her ghostly body began
to violently sway and turn more transparent.
“You’re wounded.” Cang Xu’s brows furled, and his voice lowered as he showed a
grave expression, “Figures, President, you haven’t eaten anything after
becoming a ghost. Normal ghosts use the Soul Devourer spell to consume other
souls to maintain their existence. Just like a normal person needs to eat,
drink, and exercise to maintain their body.”
After Zi Di had become a ghost, she temporarily lost her identity as a
magician, and was incapable of using normal magic, however she still had a few
innate magics.
Among them was the Soul Devourer spell, an innate skill of any ghost.
“But…please use this first.” Cang Xu shook his head and immediately untied his
hand “bandages”.
It was the bronze level magic tool, wrapping corpse cloth. Its negative energy
helped undead beings.
“This item will be useful to you, and can stabilize your injuries.” Said Cang
Xu.
At this moment, his hand injuries hadn’t improved much, and these were still
holes in his palms.
Zi Di silently took them.
She immediately put the wrapping corpse cloths into her ghost body.
“The negative energy can help you maintain your form for a time.” Cang Xu spoke
solemnly, “Please be careful, President, and use the Soul Devourer spell
sparingly henceforth.”
“The Soul Devourer spell has a big problem.” 
“Devoured souls cannot be perfectly absorbed, and over a long period of time,
it will cause your soul to become impure. So much so that it can even add many
memories that don’t belong to you.”
“After there are too many memories, it will greatly interfere with your sense
of self. If severe enough, you will even forget who you are.”
“Another thing. When people die, they often have many negative emotions. Hate,
fear, anger, and more. These negative emotions are usually very intense.”
“The Soul Devourer spell will also take in these feelings.”
“Over time, you, President Zi Di, will lose your sense of self and become a
resentful spirit that will vengefully kill endless ordinary people.”
Zi Di nodded, “I know.”
“Your necromancy inheritance addressed this subject.” Zi Di recalled.
Cang Xu nodded, then said, “In fact, we need to be wary against negative
energy. We cultivate necromancy, and in the long term, the negative energy will
gradually erode our will. It will instill in us a loathing of life, hatred, and
other negative emotions.”
“Therefore, many senior necromancers have a natural hostility towards life.”
Cang Xu stroked hie chest and continued, “Although I used necromancy magic to
transform myself, I still retained a part of my living self. It was to preserve
my humanity and to resist the negative energy that pollutes my wisdom.”
“As the school of necromancy improves, I believe that these systemic problems
will be improved and even solved.”
“President Zi Di, I will take over, please recover well.”
Zi Di shook her head, “The tower spirit still has lots of data in it, I must
recuperate as soon as possible so I can quickly act against the tower spirit
before it regains its strength and destroys the remaining data.”
“With regards to that.” Cang Xu smiled, “I have a better idea.”



****** Chapter 13: Dragon Whisker Electric Eel and Soft Heart Stone ******
In the pitch-black ocean depths, the Deep Sea Monster Fish began to accelerate.
Its fishtail morphed into a spiral turbine. The turbine quickly rotated, and
screws of erupting water jetted from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, propelling it
forward.
A deep sea electric eel was currently fleeing from it.
The electric eel was 15 meters long, had sleek and fine green-blue fish scales,
and from both edges of its mouth, a long whisker protruded out
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s cockpit.
Zong Ge was at the control panel while the ghost Girl, Zi Di, was watching the
electric eel in the magic projection.
This was a Dragon Whisker Electric Eel, a gold level magic beast that knew
racial magics, Electrical Discharge, Striking Thunder, and Swift Thunder
Travel.
After detecting it, the survivors decided to hunt it down.
This time, Zong Ge was in charge of driving while Zi Di was responsible for
monitoring the situation.
After truly grasping how to pilot the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the survivors’
relationship with the seafloor’s gold level magic beasts had completely
shifted.
From prey to hunters.
Gold level magic beasts that moved alone were prime quarry for the survivors.
The Dragon Whisker Electric Eel began to slow, it was wounded.
They had been inflicted by the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Perhaps realizing it didn’t want to go down like this, the desperate Dragon
Whisker Electric Eel suddenly turned around and attacked.
In an instant, its aura exploded. Lightning crackled across its entire body and
after it had converged into a single point, the eel shot it at the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
It was the electric eel’s racial magic, Striking Thunder
With a bang, the electric current struck the Deep Sea Monster fish.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish faintly shuddered as it kept going.
The electrical bombardment had already blackened the hull. In the center of the
bombardment, fish scales were falling off of the hull. Around it, although some
fish scales still clung on, the majority of them had been destroyed.
However, when compared to the entire ship, this section of damage was quite
minimal.
In the cockpit, Zong Ge was as straight as a pillar, his face expressionless
and his eyes filled with killing intent.
His hand tapped a metal panel, causing many runes to float up and revolve
around the half beastman.
One gold rune, three green jade runes, and two black-grey runes combined
together to assemble an alchemy formation.
The alchemy formation flew around Zong Ge’s head, causing the half beastman to
stiffen.
A moment later, the half beastman had the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s fish head bow
pop with many minute holes.
The hundred small holes sprayed many alchemy arrows out.
The rain of arrows covered everything around it, including the Dragon Whisker
Electric Eel.
The Dragon Whisker Electric Eel fled.
Its speed was astonishing, especially when it cast its racial magic, Swift
Thunder Travel, causing it to grow even faster.
But Zong Ge was prepared.
Two beams of blue light spurted from the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s eyes.
When the blue light covered the electric eel, it caused it to freeze in place!
A moment later, several hundred alchemy shot into the electric eel.
The electric eel was shot dead, but before it died, it devastated its
surroundings with intense electrical currents.
But there was only seawater around it.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had always maintained a safe distance from it.
Ten seconds later, the electric eel’s life aura vanished, and magic power began
to dissipate from its broken body and slowly bled into the sea water.
The hunt concluded with the Deep Sea Monster Fish obtaining a great harvest in
its total victory.
“This alchemy ship is amazing!” Zong Ge clutched the control panel with both
hands, his face pale and his breathing quickening.
He had received outstanding military training and had led troops for many
years.
Soldiers naturally loved weapons.
These days, Zong Ge had killed many gold level deep sea magic beasts.
Currently, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had already become his favorite weapon.
“It’s just a bit too mentally taxing.” Zong Ge felt dizzy, and knew int was
unbeneficial to cling onwards, thus he handed the controls over to Zi Di.
After the survivors understood how to control the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they
took turns on who was controlling it.
They were Zi Di, Cang Xu, Zong Ge, and the young captain.
Three small alchemy formations floated from the half beastman’s head and
quickly disassembled into runes before settling back into the metal panel.
Zi Di took over, causing the runes to once again shine, however they did not
form alchemy formations this time.
Because the next task was far simpler than combat.
After going through many working shifts, Zi Di had grown familiar with how the
Deep Sea Monster Fish handled. By inputting the correct sequence of runes, one
could control the ship like the small alchemy formations.
Under her control, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s belly began to open.
This was the alchemy ship’s entry hatch.  
Four alchemy puppets swam towards the tattered electric eel to retrieve its
corpse.
While operating the alchemy puppets, Zi Di was also telling Zong Ge about her
experiences, “War Merchant had a formidable spirit, it was rather easy for him
to drive this alchemy ship.”
“We are not the same, he was far beyond any of us.”
“Our spirit power is limited, if we control it for too long, we’ll at minimum
grow dizzy, and at worst, we’ll fall unconscious and lose our wisdom.”
“Controlling these runes one at a time consumes far less spirit.”
“When combined into alchemy formations, they will burden the spirit greatly.” 
Zong Ge nodded, “Cang Xu has already told me of this.”
“But in an actual battle, time is scarce, and opportunities are fleeting.”
“Only with the runes combined can one control the vessel directly and have the
ability to seize upon these opportunities.”
“You two are magicians, and it seems this alchemy ship is better suited for
your kind.” 
Zi Di didn’t say anything.
She thought of the young captain.
The young captain was not a magician, however his dragonman transformation
caused his spiritual strength to rapidly rise, outstripping both the ghost girl
and necromancer in power.
He could control the Deep Sea Monster Fish the longest.
However, the young captain’s dragonman form was being kept secret for the time
being.
Zi Di did not divulge this to Zong Ge.
The Dragon Whisker Electric Eel’s body was dragged into the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
It was quickly dismembered into useful parts. Its fish scales were good alchemy
materials, and its flesh could make excellent battle qi food. Its fish eyes and
bones were also processed soon after.
Zi Di then received first-hand information on what their earnings were.
“The Dragon Whisker Electric Eel corpse was too damaged, both the dragon
whiskers and fish scales are completely worthless. The meat has many other
elemental attributes mixed into it, it’ll be extremely costly to purify.”
“It only had a single magic crystal.”
“An intact Dragon Whisker Electric Eel magic crystal is currently worth around
800 gold coins.”
Zi Di continued to relay information, “This fight expended more than 200
alchemy arrows, most of which were silver level.”
“We also used the binding alchemy module and consumed the magic power of the
deployed alchemy puppets. 18% of the magic power reservoir has been used,
converting it to the corresponding elemental crystal prices, about 500 gold was
used.”
“The hull was damaged, it will need repairs. Based on current estimates, it
will cost around 30 gold.”
Zi Di then concluded, “Therefore, we have an approximate deficit of 200 gold.”
Zong Ge nodded, he understood what Zi Di was saying.
Although he was not a merchant, he was once an army officer and knew the
importance of logistics.
“I will pay more attention to this aspect in the future.”
“These battles also test how the Deep Sea Monster Fish performs.”
“Of course, the Dragon Whisker Electric Eel’s attacks were too fast, there was
not enough time to avoid them.”
“But it also tested the hull’s defensive capabilities. Against physical
penetration it is comparably weak, but against electric, fire, and other
elemental spells or racial magics, it has considerably resistance.”
Just as he said that an alarm suddenly blared.
A large school of sharks were swimming in.
The shark school was of an immense size, and in such a strong school, there
were at least twenty gold levels in it!
The shark school had immense speed, it was very likely it had smelled the
reeking blood the Dragon Whisker Electric Eel had left behind.
Zi Di did not reply to Zong Ge as she began to control the Deep Sea Monster
Fish. But instead of having it flee, she activated an alchemy component,
causing the Deep Sea Monster Fish to float completely still.
The shark school brushed past the alchemy ship, and missed it completely.
They swashed through the battlefield, the eel’s blood provoking and agitating
them indefinitely. They circled about constantly, with some sharks even bumping
into the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Strangely, the sharks did not react to the alchemy vessel, none even tried to
probe it out.
Zong Ge and Zi Di were well accustomed to this scene.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was equipped with its own Deceptive Disguise and
Anti-Investigation and Prophecy formations. 
The core of these alchemy formations were the pearl bubbles.
After the Deceptive Disguise alchemy formation was activated, the Deep Sea
Monster Fish could deceive any lifeforms around it.
Don’t mention these gold level sharks, the formation could easily deceive saint
level magic beasts.
The powerful effect of these formations caused the survivors’ hearts to burn
passionately.
But these two magic formations were bound to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The survivors wanted to use these formations on themselves, so they could build
themselves up again.
The alchemy cabin.
Cang Xu was in charge of this matter.
Zi Di was a ghost, because of this, she could not open her own magic power
reservoir.
In the strictest terms, Cang Xu was the only magician that could undertake this
heavy responsibility.
“I must construct the Deceptive Disguise alchemy formation as soon as
possible.”
“The tower spirit is recovering quickly.”
“But it is also an intelligent lifeform, it can also be deceived by the pearl
bubbles.”
“As long as I succeed in building this alchemy formation…”
Bang.
A puff of smoke rose.
Cang Xu frustratedly looked at the diagram of the alchemy formation on the
tabletop.
Because his finger hand slightly trembled and his spirit hadn’t harmonized good
enough, a third of the alchemy formation before him had been completely
destroyed.
“Failed again.”
This was the 46th attempt.
The consecutive failures caused Cang Xu to face the fact that he was a complete
idiot in the field of alchemy.
The two alchemy puppets next to Cang Xu comforted him, he was not struggling
alone, at least he had these assistants.
The necromancer was not discouraged in the slightest, he still kept his
rationality and calmness.
He continued to try to create the alchemy formation.
Time quickly passed as he selflessly worked.
“Attempt 139 failed.”
But Cang Xu knew victory was within sight.
His construction of the formation was nearing 100%
“Just a single step left.”
“I need Soft Heart Stone. It is the most suitable alchemy material, I am
currently using a substitute for it.”
Cang Xu needed to tell everyone this.
After everyone discussed it, they decided to change their route a little.
Originally, they were headed straight towards Snake Rat Island.
But now, they could spare a little time for a detour.
According to the ocean map, Stone Egg Island had Soft Heart Stone.



****** Chapter 14: The Young Captain’s Future Path ******
The young captain was in the middle of cultivation.
The young captain greatly treasured the moments when he could freely and calmly
cultivate.
Mystifying Monster Island had been an exceptional whetstone that had sharpened
his resolve and assiduousness.
He did not cultivate in the captain’s room, for it was too small and hard to
practice in.
This was the meditation chamber. 
Although the meditation chamber was built for magicians, the Deep Sea Monster
Fish didn’t have one for battle qi cultivation.
The young captain only used it because it was spaciously empty and was shielded
from external disturbances.
White River battle qi.
This kind of battle qi was famous for being straightforward, mild, and for
having universal compatibility, thus it was used extensively throughout the
empire.
The youngster’s battle qi had a glistening silver luster as it raged throughout
his body.
With every punch the youngster swung, the battle qi within him increased a bit.
His efficiency was not too high nor too low as it flowed like a stream through
his body.
A magician replenished their magic power by meditating, while battle qi
cultivators typically recovered their battle qi through exercise.
Battle qi came from the cultivator’s physical strength and body. The more one
exercised, the more internal energy was used, and the more heat was created.
Battle qi cultivators used exercise to produce battle qi, and the principle
behind both agreed.
“Every type of battle qi has their own tempering method, none are alike.”
“White River battle qi’s most suitable method is swimming. In a large river,
when the battle qi cultivator moves against the waves, they will have produce
their battle qi the most efficiently.” 
“Currently, I don’t have such an environment for the time being.”
The young man both cultivated and reflected.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was traveling through the ocean depths, there were no
moving currents, and the water pressure was immense, the environment was quite
different from a river.
These days, the young captain had grown quite familiar with White River battle
qi.
As for why he chose to cultivate this battle qi, or anything else pertaining to
his battle qi, his memory was completely blank.
The young captain was soon dripping with sweat.
Feeling his exhaustion, he decided to rest and balance himself out.
After a short time, the young captain began to cultivate again.
This time, he practiced battle skills.
Hundred Needle Wind!
The rapier in his hand thrusted forth like a hurricane.
Silver battle qi was sprinkled within it, creating dazzling silver white light.
Swish, swish, swish, swish…
The point impaled the air, creating a phenomenon.
The noise grew louder as White River battle qi was swiftly expended.
Not long after, the youngster stopped.
He gasped for breath as his azure eyes revealed his unwavering determination.
His golden hair was sticky from sweat.
The arduous work out was both exhausting and satisfying, and had alleviated
much of his stress.
Although he was getting ever farther from the perilous Mystifying Monster
Island, the youngster was still under immense pressure.
On the one hand, his future was hard to foreseen, to achieve redemption was a
difficult challenge.
On the other hand, there was also internal pressure coming from amongst the
survivors. The youngster wanted to unite and support these people, and to lead
them, power was the best option.
Simply showing kindness to others seldom begot respect.
The martial spirit existed deep in everyone’s heart.
Zong Ge’s cultivation had surpassed the young captain’s.
Of course, one’s cultivation was a single factor in determining true combat
strength.
“My only battle skill is Hundred Need Wind, I have no others. In this aspect,
because of my memory loss, I need new ones.”
“The White River battle qi is no match for Zong Ge’s Iron Blood battle qi.”
“The artificial magic beast transformations also cannot be used.”
After leaving Mystifying Monster Island, the young captain tried many times.
To sum it all up, transforming into those artificial magic beasts under a
normal environment would only bring trouble to him. The artificial magic beasts
had an immense flaw, and without the protection of the magic prohibition, they
could crumble apart.
Every time he transformed into them, the youngster would injure himself.
Seeing it was a dead end, he could only stop after taking a dip.
If it went on long enough, the components of life would collapse, and he
would’ve died on the spot.
“Fortunately, I still have my dragonman form.”
The Flame Dragon King bloodline had created a new powerful card in his hands.
The dragonman form was extremely formidable!
The dragon head increased his perception of sight, sound, and smell immensely.
A body of dragon scales was an outstanding shield.
Dragon claws were natural weapons.
Dragon muscles had tremendous strength and endurance.
Besides the physical, there was also the racial magics.
Dragon Roar, Dragon Might, and Blazing Dragon Breath.
After turning into a dragonman, the bloodline also provided knowledge of these
three racial magics, allowing for the young captain to learn of them.
The youngster simply didn’t have an appropriate location to try out these
techniques.
Of course, the dragonman form also had its limits and restrictions.
Firstly, it did not have the complete Flame Dragon King bloodline. In the
future, the youngster needed to hunt all kinds of flame dragons if he wanted to
supplement and complete the true bloodline.
Before then, although it was a legend level bloodline, it could not display
legend level strength.
Secondly, the dargonman youngster was still at the silver level.
As for why, the youngster was puzzled for a time.,
He had absorbed many artificial magics beast bloodlines on Mystifying Monster
Island. Then when he had transformed, he could immediately change into a bronze
level, iron level, and silver level being.
According to that, after he had absorbed the Flame Dragon King, he should’ve
become a legend level being.
However, after Zi Di had beaten the tower spirit and successfully extracted
some of War Merchant’s data, the young man’s query had been solved.
Zi Di was the first to obtain the data, and had hidden about 3% of it from the
others, only revealing it all to the youngster.
The concealed content had to do with the Bloodcore.
The data told them that the Bloodcore could transform one’s bloodline, that is,
altering the framework of life. 
The final result of the transformation was doubly restricted by the subject’s
original bloodline and life level.
That was the truth.
For example.
Take the artificial magic beast, the monkey tail brown bear, it is an iron
level magic beast. The monkey tail brown bear was unlikely to break through
into the silver level, thus that was the monkey tail brown bear’s bloodline
limit.
When the young captain, a silver level lifeform, transformed into the monkey
tail brown bear, his life level would exceed the monkey tail brown bear’s
bloodline limit. Thus, he would be restricted by the bloodline, and the
youngster would transform into an iron level monkey tail brown bear.
When the young captain used the Flame Dragon King bloodline to transform, his
life level (silver) was lesser than the bloodline’s level (legend). Thus, he
was restricted by his own life level, and would transform into a silver level
dragonman.
To put it briefly, it was like how it was determined how much water a cask
could hold, by measuring the shortest plank.
“As a result, I need to improve my strength, both through absorbing powerful
bloodlines and by raising my life level.”
In terms of bloodlines, the Flame Dragon King bloodline was legend level.
Despite its incompleteness, it had about the same bloodline concentration as a
flame dragon prince.
But the young captain was still a silver level, and for him, this bloodline was
more than enough.
To increase one’s life level, there are three methods.
They were the three orthodox gates.
Battle qi, magic, and divine spells.
Divine spells required belief, as belief produced the divine power needed to
improve one’s life level.
Magic used magic power and external energy to shape the body.
Battle qi cultivators nurtured their bodies to unearth the potential within.
No matter which one was used, all of them needed lots of time. It was long
process to trigger a qualitative change and allow one to jump up a life level.
“I should choose a battle qi type that is better than White River battle qi.” 
The young captain planned.
White River battle qi was a silver level battle qi type, it was too limiting.
It was incompatible with the Flame Dragon King bloodline, and even subtly
conflicted with it.
White River battle qi was close to the water and light attributes, while the
Flame Dragon King bloodline was purely of the fire attribute.
“In addition to this, I also need many battle skills.”
“I shouldn’t transform into those magic beasts, rather I should retain my human
shape as much as possible.”
“Beast forms need lots of practice to grasp.”
“Beast forms have few battle skills, they are very rare.”
“Humanoid forms have an abundance of battle skills and well developed
refinement systems.”
Regardless of whether it was humans, elves, beastmen, dwarfs, goblins, or
others, these races were all humanoid shaped.
The young man understood how the road to the future should be walked.
It was also worth mentioning that after Zi Di defeated the tower spirit, she
also obtained many battle qi techniques and battle skills.
As a magician, War Merchant had gathered this knowledge on instinct.
At the same time, he was also seeking inspiration from this knowledge so he
could break his artificial magic beasts from their shackles.
Afte resting enough, the youngster was about to continue his cultivation when
Cang Xu’s voice came from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, “Lord Captain, a situation
has appeared.”
Several days ago, Cang Xu had discovered this new feature while controlling the
magic ship.
The alchemy ship had convenient speaker installations, allowing one to transmit
their voice and quickly communicate.
The young captain halted his cultivation.
Cang Xu knew he was cultivating and was unlikely to rashly trouble him.
Using his captain’s authority, he immediately understood what was going on.
He quickly summoned Zi Di and Zong Ge.
Including Cang Xu, these four were the survivor’s leaders.
The four quickly assembled in the cockpit.
On the wall, a magic image showed a mournful battlefield.
Blood dyed a wide expanse of seawater.
Human corpses sank into the ocean, along with the sporadic splinters of ships.
A battle had just concluded here, or to be more precise, a massacre had.
Everyone quickly made out that most of the dead were ordinary people.
“The murderers should be a pirate group.” Cang Xu surmised.
This speculation had clear evidence, for among the dead, there were also the
corpse of pirates.
The corpses had kerchiefs that displayed a skull, dirty black fingernails,
flimsy sackcloth clothing, long tubular leather boots, muskets, machetes, and
other things that were the typical hallmarks of pirates.
“These were not passenger ships, only some fishing boats.” Said Cang Xu. 
The young captain went cold, and his voice was gloomy, “No prisoners, these
dregs!”
Zong Ge was ashen.
He had served in the army and his hatred for all bandits went bone deep. 
“We should go.” Zi Di warned.
Fierce shoals of fish were rushing over because of the reeking scent of blood.
It was a feast for them.
After confirming there were no survivors, the young captain issued the order to
sail onwards.
“This isn’t good.” Cang Xu said after examining the ocean map, “The closest
habitable island is Stone Egg Island.”
“The dead are likely to be from Stone Egg Island.”
The young captain’s heart sank, and gave the order without the slightest
hesitation, “Full speed ahead, we are going towards Stone Egg Island.”



****** Chapter 15: Righteous Crusade. ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish morphed to become longer and narrower.
It had turned into a sailfish form.
Magic power was consumed without hesitation, causing the alchemy ship to speed
through the water at 35 knots.
The survivors quickly arrived at Stone Egg Island.
In the magic image, there were three columns of smoke rising from Stone Egg
Island.
In the cockpit, the four people saw this with sunken hearts.
Stone Egg Island was not a large island, it only had three fisherman villages,
located in the northwest, northeast, and south.
Among them, the southern fishing village was the largest, and had grown from a
village to a town.
The burning flames and thick smoke were coming from those three villages.
After increasing its magic power usage, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection
ability was amplified greatly to cover the entirety of Stone Egg Island.  
In the cockpit, the magic image extended to every wall.
The young captain and the other looked around, they weren’t focused on the
toppled houses, but corpses in the pools of blood.
Some were beheaded, their eyes wide open in the mud.
Some women did not have a thread on them, it was clear that before death they
were miserably humiliated.  
There were children bound to trees, their holes filled with bullets and their
blood flowing down the bark.
The atmosphere in the cockpit had become heavy.
Zi Di was emotionally hurt.
The young captain’s hands were clenched as fists as he suppressed his heart’s
erupting rage.
Zong Ge was sullen.
Cang Xu was still expressionless.
Suddenly, the image changed, the Deep Sea Monster fish had detected survivors.
“Waa waa waa…”
An infant was wailing in a pit.
He was a few months old, and was the island’s sole survivor.
The young captain’s fearful look faintly changed, revealing a smudge of soft
sorrow. He immediately whispered a command, “To the island, we’ll save them.”
No one refused this order.
The young captain’s benevolent integrity was a reason why he was their trusted
leader.
Cang Xu then said as the temporary leader, “We must act quickly, the island
does not have the Deceptive Disguise magic formation to shield us. Therefore,
those in this operation must take along a pearl bubble.”
This suggestion was immediately accepted.
Then, after many days, the survivors planted their feet once again on solid
ground.
But this was not Mystifying Monster Island, it was Stone Egg Island.
Despite the fact that the Deep Sea Monster Fish was a gold level magic ship
without equal under the heavens, its large hold seemed rather cramped.
After the survivors came ashore, they couldn’t help but cheer in joy.
Some of them even shouted in high spirits.
The big guy was also among them, he rolled about with bouts of giggling. In the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, he was often squatting and had to shorten himself, it
was very difficult to bear.
The survivors distributed alchemy crossbows and other equipment of excellent
quality, then divided themselves into three groups to go to the three fisherman
villages.
Their mission was to gather supplies and information.
After three hours, the Deep Sea Monster Fish circled back to the island to pick
them up.
The survivors were no longer in fine moods, every one of them had hardened
expressions.
“This pirate group has no humanity!”
“The fishermen of Stone Egg Island are to be pitied, not a single one remains.”
“No, I heard there was a male baby that survived. Our captain personally
carried it out of the hole in the wall. Alas, I don’t know if he was lucky or
unfortunate.”
Just leaving Mystifying Monster Island behind did not mean one was safe.
In the vast ocean, there were many vile places to survive.
The sense of security the gold level Deep Sea Monster Fish gave the survivors
had weakened somewhat.
The ocean had many strong beings.
Gods and legends held the apex, saints were the strength, and golds were the
backbone.
The survivors didn’t even have a single gold level.
The young captain quietly listened to everyone’s discussion, and he observed
his comrade’s expressions with satisfaction.
He deliberately let everyone to come ashore onto the island.
His objective had already been achieved.
External pressure contributed to deepening the unity between them.
Zong Ge shared his investigation results, “From the three ruined fishing
villages there were traces of roughly 300 pirates. Most of them are ordinary. I
cannot discern how many bronze levels there are, but there are at least two
iron levels. One uses a lash, and the other is skilled at kicking.”  
“Their leader is a silver level battle qi user, an expert at claw attacks.”
The half beastman’s rich combat experience allowed him to acquire this
information from these traces.
“Strange.” Lan Zao was doubtful, “A silver level, two iron levels, and 300
ordinary people is not a large pirate group. Yet they actually dared to
slaughter a village, no the entire island.”
“This kind of action is too arrogant and savage, it will most likely provoke an
imperial navy pursuit.”
“What is this pirate group thinking? Perhaps there is a larger backer behind
them.”
The survivors were puzzled.
As a veteran sailor, Lan Zao had given voice to everyone’s doubts.
“The three strongest pirate groups in the ocean are the Fire Beard pirate
group, the Coloratura Pirate Group, and the Black Devil Pirate Group.”
“These three pirate groups’ leaders are legend level.”
“But the strongest and most influential force is still our imperial navy. The
navy marshals as well as the three admirals are also legend level. Our
battleship artillery, ammunition, and equipment also outstrip the three pirate
groups’.”
“The pirates plunder often, but don’t normally take lives.”
“As long as one surrenders, they will usually only snatch away riches.”
“Only when the blood flag is hoisted will the pirates kill without mercy.”
“The reason is simple, pirates also don’t like risking too much. As far as they
are concerned, it would be better if the target surrendered willingly, allowed
them to effortlessly loot them without a fight.”
“Too many slaughters will attract the imperial navy’s attention and make them
dispatch specialized troops to annihilate the offenders.”
“The three largest legendary pirate groups are all afraid of the imperial navy,
let alone any other pirate group.”
“What were the pirates who slaughtered this island up to?”
“To do this will most certainly provoke the imperial navy’s retaliation.”
“Although Stone Egg Island has a rather special resource, it is obviously very
poor. They would commit this massacre and make an enemy of the imperial navy
for such meager wealth.”
Everyone looked at each other in dismay.
Someone guessed, “Don’t tell me that this island produced some significant
natural treasure?”
“No, if it if was only a jewel to be seized, why would they kill everyone
living on the island?”
Another provided their own conjecture, “Perhaps it was a personal grudge. The
silver level pirate commander was a vindictive and vengeful character.”
“That’s possible, but if I were a pirate commander, I wouldn’t be so irrational
to sacrifice both myself and the pirate group I built up for revenge.”
Pirates were experts in taking stock, they were like crafty oceanic jackals
instead of reckless and brutal bison.
“No, not all of the inhabitants were killed.” Zong Ge interrupted, “According
to the traces left on the battlefield, many were captured alive.”
“According to the timeline, the pirates looted Stone Egg Island. Then some of
the fishermen managed to break out during the slaughter. But after the pirates
looted the villages, they took to their ships and pursued them to either kill
or capture them.”
Zi Di nodded, “Capturing the fisherman alive is understandable and normal.”
“The slave trade has always been a thriving business.”
“Quality captives usually can sell for a high price.”
The young captain’s heart stirred, “Perhaps among the captives are the
relatives of this infant.”
The baby in his embrace was already sleeping.
Despite not having breast milk, they could still easily feed the baby with the
alchemy ship’s capable dining hall equipment.
After eating its fill, the baby was sleeping soundly.
The big guy was curled up, his face grinning.
He also was once an infant, one the old boatwright had adopted.
Therefore, he felt a deep sense of familiarity and cherishment with this baby.
“Everyone.” The young captain withdrew his gaze from the baby and to his
surroundings, “Rather than guessing at the intent of these pirates, it would be
better to pursue them.”
“Our ship is faster, the pirates can’t have gone far, giving us a good chance.”
Everyone went quiet.
None of them thought about doing that.
Zong Ge was the first to object, “It is injudicious to fight just so you can
uphold your justice and release your anger.”
“I refuse!”
Despite the half beastman also detesting these pirates, he was also an
excellent officer and knew when to give something up.
“Correct. I believe it is more important that we go to Snake Rat Island now.”
The goblin, Tripleblade, immediately supported Zong Ge.
Zi Di did not say anything.
Cang Xu muttered to himself, “The leader should not mobilize in anger.”
“However, I support a crusade against these pirates.”
Cang Xu took out a stone from his human leather storage bag.
The stone was palm sized, almost completely round, and looked like a stone egg.
It was Stone Egg Island’s special resource, Soft Heart Stone.
“We need it.”
“This alchemy material is our key to act against the tower spirit.”
“The tower spirit has almost recovered, while President Zi Di is still injured,
she cannot face it again.”
“Therefore, we require Soft Heart Stone urgently, our time set aside for it
grows ever smaller.”
Cang Xu then said, “We only collected a few from the island, but the pirates
stole away all of what was inside the villages’ Soft Heart Stone storehouses.”
Everyone was stunned.
After reacting, they all began to support Cang Xu one after the other.
Zong Ge’s attitude also changed.
Since there was a reason to fight, the half beastman immediately gave several
excellent suggestions.
He even speculated what battle skills the pirate commander’s and his two iron
level subordinates had based on the marks left behind.
Still in its sailfish shape, the Deep Sea Monster Fish launched its pursuit.
Everyone dispersed based on the young captain’s and Zong Ge’s deployment.
The alchemy cabin.
Cang Xu tapped the egg.
The Soft Heart Stone’s exterior shell was very weak, and was easy to break
open. After breaking off a layer of eggshell, the exposed stone heart looked
like soft mud.
As time passed, the stone heart would gradually stiffen, but if one continued
to break off the rocky shell, the inside of the stone would still be soft.
After removing the eggshell, Cang Xu immediately started to create the alchemy
formation while the stone heart was still soft.
He quickly sensed the advantages of the Soft Heart Stone.
It was a sense of many obstructions clearing.
Many hurdles and troubles became flat land to stroll through.
Pop.
A puff of smoke rose, the alchemy formation had reached 76% completion when it
was ruined and completely destroyed.
Cang Xu was expressionless, he was just about to try again when Zi Di floated
through a wall and entered the room.
“You didn’t suggest suppressing the pirates simply because you wanted the Soft
Heart Stone?” Zi Di bluntly asked.
Cang Xu raised an eyebrow as he calmly gazed at the ghost girl.
Zi Di continued, “After we went ashore, I happened to see you attempting to
gather the souls of those dead fishermen.”
Cang Xu nodded, “It was only natural.”
“I am a necromancer. After successfully casting the Soul Summoning spell, every
ghost it brings is useful to me.”
“You have my entire necromancy inheritance, you also know obtaining souls is
not an easy affair.”
“Soon after people die, the soul will be received by the god they believe in.”
“Occasionally they won’t be collected and will dissipate soon after.”
“I only gathered three human souls on Stone Egg Island. The best time to gather
human souls is the moment they die.”
Zi Di’s tone was downcast, “Do you know the consequences of doing this?”
If this was revealed, it would cause an uproar in the harmony of the group.
At the time, during the sunfish’s attack on the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the
situation had been very urgent. Yet when Cang Xu had suggested that he gather a
human soul, the young captain had sank into a predicament and didn’t
immediately accept his proposal.
A necromancer putting their hands on human souls was like a cannibal putting
their hands on a human’s body.
Who wouldn’t be frightened, who wouldn’t target and discriminate against such a
person?
When confronted with Zi Di’s question, Cang Xu nodded and responded sincerely,
“Naturally.”  
“I have to do this, Miss Zi Di.”
“Even if I had abundant Soft Heart Stone, I still might not succeed in building
this alchemy formation.”
Cang Xu’s gaze swept over the failed alchemy formation and forced a smile, “I
have no expectations in my innate alchemy skill.”
“However, without the alchemy formation, we cannot deceive the tower spirit,
and will be forced to attack it again.”
“You cannot fight it again.”
“Up to now, only 30% of your injuries have healed.
“When the time comes, the more intelligent human souls will be the best weapons
against the tower spirit.”
“Otherwise, the tower spirit will destroy War Merchant’s data, an unimaginable
loss!”
Zi Di clenched her teeth, “I understand. However, if you do it like this, I
fear the captain will find it hard to forgive you.”
“If the others find out, who will trust you?”
“That is the reason why you must help me, President Zi Di.” Cang Xu directly
requested, “After we suppress the pirates, I will collect their souls, and I
will need you to cover for me.”
“Do you want to drag me down with you?” Zi Di scowled.
“No.” Cang Xu sighed, “President Zi Di, don’t tell you don’t realize your own
situation?”
“You’re already down under.”
“You are already dead, a ghost. As time passes, you will be more seriously
eroded by negative energy.”
“You should already be experiencing the ‘hunger’, the ghostly instinct to
consume.”
“On Stone Egg Island, you smelled delicious food, and so looked for any human
souls still around.”
“That is why you happened to see me collecting souls.”  
“Isn’t that right?”
Zi Di’s expression changed, “You!”
Cang Xu remained expressionless as he gazed deep into her, “This is not a
threat, President Zi Di. I only want to say that we are on the same side.”
“Especially on the topic of human souls, we are of a different opinion than the
captain.”
“But on some matters, if we don’t do anything, who will?”  
“The captain is our leader, we cannot pollute him with our shadows and sins.”
“We must not make thinks difficult for him.”
“By harvesting human souls, we can deal with the tower spirit with sufficient
certainty.”
“Thus, we can preserve War Merchant’s data, preserve our wealth.”
“Perhaps there is a revival method inside?”
Zi Di was silent.
It was only after a long time that she responded, “Fine, I…will help you.”



****** Chapter 16: Overwhelming Victory ******
The scorching sun hung high in the sky.
On the azure sea, six ships sailed as a fleet.
The pirate flag flew in the wind.
The flagship’s captain’s room.
The pirate leader, Da Zhao was slouching back, their legs on a desk as they
contently looked at the scenery passing by his window.
His right hand men had a young woman serving to their needs.
“Wine.” Said Da Zhao.
A maid immediately prepared a cup and put it next to Da Zhao
Da Zhao opened his mouth, and glugged it down in two to three chugs.
“Meat.” Said Da Zhao.
Another maid immediately grabbed some roasted meat and put it into Da Zhao’s
mouth.
Da Zhao took a firm bite, causing grease to drip down his full mouth.
He laughed heartily and firmly slapped the maid’s buttocks with his claw.
The maid trembled, but didn’t dare to yelp as she bit her pale lip in a
desperate bid to clamp down her fear and continue to attend to Da Zhao’s needs.
Another maid shivered with trepidation.
These two mildly good looking women were from Stone Egg Island, and had been
forced by Da Zhao to serve him.
It was enjoyable, while simultaneously frustrating.
Da Zhao had the Devil Claw bloodline, this bloodline caused both his hands to
change into a pair of fan like claws.
Although the claws were strong in battle, they were far inferior to ten fingers
in daily life.
Da Zhao even needed someone to help him uncork wine bottles.
“This time, I pillaged three months’ worth of Soft Heart Stone from Stone Egg
Island.”
“If I also sell off my captives, I’ll have a handsome sum.”
“I also killed everyone else on Stone Egg Island. This kind of contribution
must be reported.”
Da Zhao plotted internally.
Even he had his own superiors.
Thinking of that gigantic, mountainous figure, Da Zhao couldn’t help but feel
his fierce heart chill.
Bang, thump!
Suddenly, a series of noises caused the flagship to violently shudder.
Da Zhao stared blankly.
Soon after, due to his past battle experience, he immediately jumped up from
his seat.
“Begone!” He battered the maids aside, then kicked open the captain room’s door
to go to the deck.
The deck was fine. Da Zhao gazed at all four corners, but noticed no enemies.
The pirates on deck were also surveying the environment, all of them tense.
“An enemy attack!” A pirate faintly shouted.
“Where is the enemy?” Da Zhao angrily shouted.
“In the ship, the enemy is on the ship!”
“They bombed the boats and attacked from the water.”
“Ah!”
More voices mixed with screams could be heard.
“The water?”
Da Zhao’s heart sank as he guessed, “Naga or fishmen?”
These two were aquatic species. The ocean was their domain, and when they
attacked, the pirates were at the disadvantage.
However, just as Da Zhao was about to charge into the ship, he noticed the
enemy was not naga nor fishmen.
It was an alchemy puppet.
It was humanoid, about 1.8 meters tall.
It held a sword and shiled, had an unusual cloud engraved into its armor of
eastern imperial design.
Its eyes gleamed with red light, the tip of its sharp sword flickered with
lightning, and its entire body emitted a silver level aura.
“A silver level alchemy puppet? There are two of them!” Da Zhao’s eye twitched,
he sensed things were about to go terribly wrong.
“What are you people?” Da Zhao bellowed at the alchemy puppet.
The alchemy puppet did not respond as it rampaged about the ship’s hold.
The pirates charged, but their cutlasses, iron hooks, and other weapons
clattered against the puppet’s body, leaving naught but white scratches. 
The alchemy puppet’s strong defense caused the pirates to despair.
Not only that, but the puppet’s sword was also incomparably sharp, and
paralyzed completely whoever its crackling tip hit.
The pirates were helpless against the puppet, while the alchemy puppet slew all
those around it, each swing taking a life.
Da Zhao’s eyes burned with anger when he saw this.
“You lot of rubbish, get out of my way!”
“Fix the hold.”
“Send for help, find the others!”
The reason the alchemy puppet could get onto the ship was because an explosion
had blown a hole in the hull, causing a massive amount of seawater to rush in.
Ordinary people were but fodder to the alchemy puppet. Bronze level pirates
were also not its match, only iron levels could contend with it even a little.
Da Zhao had three iron levels in his crew.
He planned to call them all over.
“Yes, captain!” When the pirates heard the command, they hastily stepped aside.
Da Zhao activated his battle qi, stirring up a devilish wind as he threw
himself at the alchemy puppet.
His devil claws grabbed the alchemy puppet, causing lots of sparks to flash
across the alchemy puppet’s body.
The alchemy puppet first swung its sword, causing Da Zhao to dodge back, then
lifted its shield and pushed it forward.
Da Zhao was forced back temporarily as he took three big steps back.
The alchemy puppet only took a small step back.
“Hard casing!” Da Zhao glared, though inwardly he was speechless, “This is no
ordinary silver level puppet. Damm it!”
“One is already so troublesome, let alone two?”
“More crucially, where are their hidden puppeteers?
The puppeteers were in the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
It was the survivors of Mystifying Monster Island.
They had spent half a day pursuing Da Zhao and his men.
According to Zong Ge’s tactics, they would first deploy the swordsman guard
puppets. Then they would use the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s Alchemy Arrow Spray to
breach the ship hulls, allowing the swordsman guard puppets to charge in.
The swordsman guards were designed by War Merchant to protect the interior of
the Deep Sea Monster Fish. Their performance was amazing, defying the
conventions that bound any other silver level puppets.  
The survivors had deployed most of the swordsman guards.
The pirate’s flagship was the main focus, thus two were deployed there.
While the swordsman guards continued their assault, the Deep Sea Monster Fish
was not floating idlily. It continued to shoot alchemy arrows at the pirate
ships.
Of course, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was not using its full firepower.
Only about a hundred muzzle holes were open, slowly firing at the six pirate
ships equally.
Inside the cockpit, the magic image displaying the scene of pirate ships being
shot by alchemy arrows shone. On the deck, pirates were seen fleeing, their
casualties disastrous.
In the ship holds, the swordsman guards killed everyone around them while
pursuing Da Zhao’s two iron level subordinates.
The only one that could fight back was the pirate leader, Da Zhao.
Even so, Da Zhao was still at a disadvantage.
“These puppets are so strong!”
“Ah, they were create by War Merchant after all.”
Lan Zao, Bai Ya, and the others exclaimed incessantly in surprise.
For this joint operation, the young captain had called everyone to the cockpit.
After watching for a spell, Zong Ge analyzed, “During this live combat test, it
seems the strongest aspect of these swordsman guards is actually their defense.
This is in line with their purpose: to deal with powerful enemies suddenly
assaulting the ship’s interior and to give the crew time to respond.”
“On the other hand.” Bai Ya suddenly said, “War Merchant is a legend level
character, why would he install a few silver level alchemy puppets in the ship?
These are so weak compared to him.”
“Perhaps this alchemy ship wasn’t his main means of transportation?”
“It’s likely he gave it to his subordinate to use.”
“As a legend level magician, he has many means of teleportation.”
“Even if he is at the legend level, War Merchant was still one person.  The
Deep Sea Monster Fish is quite big, it needs others supporting it.”
Everyone provided their own conjecture.
Zi Di began to speak, “Almost done. The pirates have calamitous casualties,
their morale is rock bottom, and there aren’t any more on deck.”
“I shall recall the swordsman guards.”
“We cannot currently fix any damage these alchemy puppets sustained.”
Cang Xu also spoke, “That’s right, most of their magic power is spent, their
motions are beginning to slow.”
All of these alchemy puppet consumed magic power to move.
Said magic power came from the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power reservoir.
Every so often, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would replenish their magic power.
But when deployed, they had no such thing.
In fact, one of the shortcomings of the swordsman guards was its high
consumption rate in exchange for stronger performance.
“They’ve grown slow.”
“An opportunity!”
Da Zhao pounced on the weakness he saw.
He bit down on a pill hidden in his broken dentures.
After swallowing down the pill, his pair of devil claws were enveloped with a
steel luster.
Battle skill – Riot Claw Dance!
Dao Zhao charged, his offensive growing stronger and faster. His two claws
formed a shadow that covered the swordsman guard.
Tink, tinkle, ding…
A succession of metal chimes rung out along with splattering sparks.
This time, it was the alchemy puppet that was being beat back.
Another silver level puppet attacked.
Da Zhao ruthlessly grabbed a swordsman guard’s exposed thoracic cavity, and
immediately destroyed its core.
The swordsman guard’s glowing eyes were immediately extinguished, and one of
the magic images in the cockpit faded away.
The other swordsman guard seized the moment to backstab Dao Zhao.
Da Zhao screamed in pain as he rolled forward, but his injury was light.
As it turns out, his vest was silver level equipment.
Da Zhao returned to the fight and now held the advantage.
In the cockpit, the survivors were watching the course of events play out.
“Did he eat a magic drug?”
“They are pirates in the end, extremely vicious under pressure!”
“In the end, the alchemy puppet died, it was not as nimble as a person.”
“Yes, once one understands the pattern of its attacks and defense, they can
quickly exploit it.”
“The strongest alchemy puppets have spiritual wisdom, with some as intelligent
as humans.”
Cang Xu explained, “Those need magic for such things like waking constructs and
installing systems. The price is very high, and will forever damage the
magician’s spiritual limits.”
“Right, we’ve understood the situation. Regardless of whether it is the Soft
Heart Stone stores or the captives, now is the time we should take to the
field.” Said Zong Ge.
Zong Ge, the young captain, Tripleblade, and Cang Xu set out.
The rest stayed behind for the time being inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The pirate flagship’s deck had no pirates on it, allowing Zong Ge and the young
captain to easily board it.
Tripleblade and Cang Xu were dispatched to two other ships, one to rescue the
captives, the other to protect the Soft Heart Stone.
When Da Zhao saw two silver level enemies appear, his heart iced over
completely.
“I surrender, spare my life!” He shouted as he abandoned all resistance
willingly.
The young captain and Zong Ge glanced at each other, then ordered, “Tie them
up.”
Da Zhao stared blankly.
The swordsman guard stopped attack and stopped in place. It was unable to
perform the meticulous movement of tying someone up.
“What are you staring at, you are to do it yourselves.” The young captain
urged.
Thus, under Da Zhao’s guidance, the remaining pirates disarmed and surrendered,
then helped bind themselves up.
The survivors had claimed total victory.
Not only had they obtained six pirate ships, but they also obtained a stock of
Soft Heart Stone and rescued the captive fishermen.
“Escort them to Snake Rat Island, I believe the imperial law will give them a
just punishment.” The young captain’s voice flowed with loathing.
“Are you bounty hunters?” Da Zhao guessed when he saw the youngster and Zong Ge
were not wearing navy uniforms.
Zong Ge snorted coldly, he kicked Da Zhao to the ground, causing the latter’s
cheek to flush. “Why did you massacre the fisher folk of Stone Egg Island?”
Da Zhao let out a cold breath, then to survive, he promptly shouted, “This was
the order my superiors gave.”
“Rou Zang!”
“My leader is Rou Zang.”
“I was forced to, I had no choice.”
Zong Ge frowned, “Why would Rou Zang kill these people?”
“You don’t know? The Pirate Throne has manifested.” Said Da Zhao.
“What?” The young captain and Zong Ge went pale from shock.



****** Chapter 17: Rampant Pirates ******
The noon sun seemed to shoot a million arrows down that painfully broiled the
skin.
It was a windless day.
The scorching air warped one’s vision as numerous hoisted imperial flags draped
around their poles.
Despite the torrid heat, many navy marines were training together. Every one of
them sweating profusely in this hell.
Several hundred imperial warships were docked in the harbor, but under the
sweltering heat, they had none of their majesty and instead looked like beached
animals enduring the sun.
This was a naval base, the Sheng Ming Empire’s navy’s headquarters. 
Bong, bong bong.
The navy commander office’s doorbell rang.
“Come in.” A young voice came from inside.
The door opened, and in stepped a trim old knight.
After coming in, the old knight saluted, “Young Master.”
The young master was in the middle of handling a small mountain of official
documents as he gravely spoke, “Here, I am an imperial Vice Admiral.”
He was young, and had short golden hair that spiked straight up from his head.
His eyebrows were also golden and thick. They were long enough to connect with
each other and spread out from his face like an ‘J’.
His face was solemn and there were dark bags under his eyes, exposing his tired
state.
When the old knight heard him say that he immediately saluted again, “Hou Men
pays his respects to the acting commander and naval vice admiral, Lord Wei
Sheng!”
The young Wei Sheng sighed and waved his hand, “Don’t refer to me as acting
commander, that was not what I was appointed…forget it, tell me what is going
on in the clan?”
The old knight, Hou Men, was Wei Sheng’s clan knight. If his clan had
personally tasked the grizzled servant to come here, it had to be important.
Otherwise, they could had used magic equipment or carrier pigeons to carry
their message.
Hou Men knew how his young master felt. He liked direct frankness and loathed
dawdling and delaying, thus he began to recount his purpose in coming.
“The Bai Zhen Clan has asked my help in searching for Zhen Jin?” Wei Sheng’s
brows immediately pursed.
His finger rapped against his desk, showing his obvious displeasure, “I will
need to allocate public resources for private goals, isn’t this abusing my
position for personal gain?”
The old knight, Hou Men, sputtered out, “Zhen Jin is the Bai Zhen Clan’s sole
heir, he is the Bai Zhen Clan’s only hope.”
“He is also templar knight of the Fifth Order.”
“He disappeared while sailing, searching for and rescuing him is precisely one
of the imperial navy’s duties, how could anyone say you are abusing your
position for personal gain?”
Wei Sheng coldly snorted, “The Bai Zhen Clan is worthy of being a once great
noble clan of the south, even though it is in decline, it still has some
influence. What treasure has his father offered in exchange for my strength?”
Hou Men was just about to speak when Wei Sheng raised his hand.
The latter cut off Hou Men’s reply and impatiently said, “Forget it, you don’t
need to say anything, I am not interested.”
He sighed again, “I shall take on this task, but only this once. Return with my
answer.”
Hou Men gritted his teeth, and said before he left, “The clan elder
specifically instructed me to also ask that you, young master, should do this
as soon as possible. Or at least, come up with some reliable clues.”
Wei Sheng’s brows furled, and the annoyance in his tone increased, “As soon as
possible?”
He glared at Hou Men, “You should also be aware of the current situation.”
“This generation’s Pirate Throne has appeared, and the entire sea is boiling!”
“One week ago, a marquis’ daughter was abducted and extorted by pirates. Said
pirate’s whereabouts are indeterminable, and is very sly. The negotiation is
still deadlocked.”
“Three days ago, a large Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance fleet was pillaged, a
joint operation of three pirate groups.”
“Then this morning, White Skin Island was raided, all of its inhabitants were
massacred. It was the Death Pirate Group’s captain, Han Lian, openly
sacrificing to the God of Death!”
“In these circumstances, I have to use my large navy to search for a single
knight?”
“Its already great that I agreed to look into this affair.”
“Withdraw!”
The old knight could only leave when faced with Wei Sheng’s beratement.
After closing the door, the old knight sighed to himself, “Ah, young master.”
“This is no simple matter.”
“My subordinate’s subordinate is not my subordinate. The clan’s interests and
the empire’s interests have differences between them.”
“You have been in the military academy for too long, you must understand that
your clan is your roots!”
“You see, when Zhen Jin met with a mishap, the templar knight order only did a
cursory search. The ones who truly searched without abandon was his clan.”
“The Clan Elder agreed to help the Bai Zhen Clan. While the Bai Zhen Clan did
provide a handsome reward, they also wanted this opportunity to probe your
attitude towards your clan and to the empire.”
“Alas, I hope you can attach genuine importance to this matter, it will clarify
your position.”
The old knight was loyal to Wei Sheng’s clan, but there were many matters he
could not solve by himself.
The old knight walked away, while Wei Sheng threw the matter of finding Zhen
Jin to the back of his mind.
His bright eyes instead focusing on the intelligence in his hands.
Just as the old knight closed the door, more intelligence was conveyed through
imperial magic systems.
Wei Sheng mumbled to himself, “The battlefield has been well prepared.”
“The three fleets have already been encircled in Fish Island.”
The Death pirate group had been boxed into the island, but they had managed to
set up fortifications. 
“We must attack as soon as possible, otherwise more fortifications will inflict
more casualties!” 
The Death pirate group’s commander, Han Lian, was not only a priest of the
Death God, but he was also a warlock. If he deployed a strong spell formation,
his threat level was sure to greatly rise.
Wei Sheng unfurled a map across his desk.
This was an alchemy product, a magic military map that displayed minute arrows
around Fish Island, along with the surrounding terrain.
Not only that, but it also showed the position of the navy, as well as the
latest information on the pirate group’s defenses.
“I need someone strong to storm the front and attract firepower.” Wei Sheng
used his index finger to plot out the attack route on the map.
“Soon, the other two fleets will come ashore to attack from the east and
southwest.”
“The key to this is the front man.”
To this, Wei Sheng had already found a suitable candidate.
Kan Quao!
He was renowned among the rear admirals for his bravery.
He was the first choice to lead the front.
As far as the battle was concerned, Wei Sheng was very certain of the outcome.
Every commander of the three fleets was gold level. While the Death pirate
group only had one, their commander, Han Lian.
Not only did they have stronger characters with greater strength, but they also
had better equipment and troops.
“The Pirate Throne manifesting has caused the pirates to run rampant more than
ever.”
“I must constrain this situation and ensure stability in imperial waters!”
Wei Sheng was always an outstanding officer, he understood how important morale
and popular sentiment was.
He had planned out the battle from beginning to end, and already felt he held
victory within his grasp before the confrontation truly began.
“It’s a pity that I can only accomplish this step.”
“Command of the battle will be passed onto Kan Qiao.”
“I would have been wonderful if I could’ve gone to fight and command in this
battle personally!”
Wei Sheng’s eyes twinkled, and his lust for battle was strong.
“Alas!” 
“Commanding on the battlefield should be my job.” 
“But the commander has gone missing!”
“Despite the situation, he is still in dereliction of his duty!
“Dammit!”
“Why do I always lose to him in chess?”
A large naval ambush had concluded.
Six pirate ships were faintly undulating with the waves.
The surrounding seawater had a layer of watery blood adorning it, splattered
with a complement of pirate corpses and hull splinters.
The alchemy puppet models, “basic maintenance worker”, were fixing holes on the
sides of back of ships.
Inside a ship hold, the defeated pirates were tied together tightly and watched
over by swordsman guards.
Victory belonged to the Mystifying Monster Island survivors.
Currently, they were gathered in the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s cockpit to
deliberate the postwar situation.
The ghostly girl, Zi Di gave her report, “This fight, we altogether expended
186 alchemy arrows, of which 66 were armor piercing, 45 were frost arrows, 21
were paralysis arrows, and 18 were flash arrows.”
The swordsman guards consumed 11% of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power
reservoir. Converted to money, it would be about 305 gold coins.”
“No casualties taken by those who fought.”
“The greatest loss was a swordsman guard, it was completely destroyed. Da Zhao
destroyed its core, and we currently cannot repair it.”
After pausing for a moment, Zi Di continued, “Our biggest gain of the battle
was the Soft Heart Stone.”
“The stock exceeded expectations, it should be a few months of stock and
according to current market prices, it is roughly worth 120 gold coins.”
“Next are the six pirate ships, although ordinary vessels, they are in total
worth 300 gold coins.”
“There are some food, water, and everyday supplies.”
“There are 220 captive pirates. Combined with the pirate’s former captives,
there are a total of 449 people.”
“We also captured some equipment, the most valuable of which was a silver level
corset, a pair of iron level hide boots, and an iron level thorny spear.”
“By present estimates, our net profit for this battle is about 370 gold coins.”
After hearing the port, most of the survivors beamed with joy.
Cang Xu lamented, “I am beginning to understand why pirates grow rampant. 370
gold coins…you know, a territory chancellor’s annual salary is only 180 gold
coins. A baron’s domain’s annual income is about 4800 gold coins. We managed to
get this much in one ambush.”
But Fei She shook his head, “This, this is not normal. Da Zhao’s pirate group
just, just ransacked an island. The moment, the moment we ambushed them was
when they were at their richest. Under normal circumstances, how could such
pirates have this kind of wealth?”
Zong Ge pondered the battle from a tactics point of view, “Beforehand, every
time we dealt seabed magic beasts, every fight would put us at a deficit. But
when attacking pirates, we have great profits, perhaps we can use war to fund
war!”
Zi Di muttered to herself, “The two situations are different. For example, when
we were hunting the Dragon Whisker Electric Eel, we bombed it indiscriminately,
tattering its flesh and plunging the value of it. The only thing left of actual
value was its gold level magic crystal. Regular hunting groups have better and
more focused hunting methods that will conserve more of the prey’s worth. Also,
because Da Zhao’s pirate group is composed of humans, we can easily make use of
their ships and equipment.”
After pausing again for a moment, Zi Di continued, “370 gold coins in profit is
actually only a preliminary estimation.”
“Perhaps there are some fugitives in the pirate captives that have a bounty on
them. We can use their heads to obtain that bounty.”
“They ransacked and slaughtered an island, it is likely we will be rewarded by
the empire for eradicating them.”
“There are also those fisher folk captured by the pirates, they are still
unconscious. If we sell these people to a slave market, we will earn even
more.”
When that sentence was spoken, everyone had different expressions, but the
young captain resolutely overruled it, “Absolutely not! They are all sinless,
if we sell them into slavery, are we any different than those pirates?”
Zi Di smiled, “I was just assuming, that’s all. Anyways, we should be rewarded
for saving these fishermen.”
As a former mercenary commander, the goblin, Tripleblade nodded, “We deserve
it.”
The young captain exposed a threat of pity, “Their home has already been
destroyed, their situation miserable, they cannot reward us.”
Zi Di had foreseen the young captain’s reply and used it to concede, “In the
absence of a material reward, they should work for us. Our unusual
circumstances mean we cannot set them free. The more people spread news of us,
the more clues we leave, the greater probability of a divination or prophecy on
us.”
The young captain was silent, Zi Di’s words were reasonable.
Lan Zao glanced at the young captain, although he was extremely loyal to him,
he was not blinded by it.
He gave his own opinion, “If we want to sell these pirate ships, we need to at
least bring them to a port. But there are only ten of us, we cannot sail all of
these pirate ships.”
Sailboats used the wind, and were far more difficult to control than the Deep
Sea Monster Fish.
Sailboats needed sailor hands, a helmsman, lookouts, a captain, and a crew
working together.
If it were a magic ship, they would also need people to protect the magic power
reservoir magic engine, furnace, and other components.
Zong Ge added his own input, “Besides the fisher folk, we can also incorporate
some pirates too, giving them some ability to fight.”
“We want redemption, this cannot be accomplished in a short period of time.”
“During this time, we need to conceal our identities.”
“By incorporating outside people to control these ships, it will give us a
layer of protection.”
“Do you think we can dock at Snake Rat Island with the Deep Sea Monster Fish?”
The young captain did not speak.
Cang Xu coughed, “Right now, we have obtained a lot of Soft Heart Stone. I want
to immediately try to construct the Deceptive Disguise formation.”
“With it, we can definitely conceal our identities.”
“If that happens, we can use it to conveniently recruit some pirates and wake
up the fisher folk.”
“If we use these pirate ships to make landfall, it is unlikely to attract
attention.”
“As for those pirates who saw our true identities, I say we immediately kill
them.” Zong Ge’s killing intent was unwavering.
Cang Xu shook his head, “Too wasteful.”
“We have a memory extractor and duplicator device. We can try to alter the
memories of these pirates.”
“Perhaps, we can use it to make them swear loyalty to us.”
The survivors blankly stared, their eyes lighting up one after the other.
The discussion had come to an end, and everyone was gazing at the young
captain.
He was their leader.
Sensing everyone’s eyes, the young captain was solemn, and with a heavy tone,
he said, “Then we’ll do that.”



****** Chapter 18: It Seems My Aptitude is Extraordinary ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s alchemy cabin.
The Deceptive Disguise formation was close to completion.
The spell formation’s outermost ring was two meters in diameter.
Inside the circle was square. Each of the square’s four points had a line that
extended inwards.
The lines intersected with two other lines, crisscrossing until finally forming
a small trapezoid in the center.
At this moment, the yellow crab alchemy puppets were humming at the outermost
circle, expending magic power to maintain the entirety of the formation.
The most crucial person, Cang Xu, was kneeling on the metal floor, hand holding
an alchemy pen as he did his utmost to trace the lines.
Grey-black liquid flowed from the alchemy pen, a refined version of the Soft
Heart Stone.
This was the last step.
The only thing left was to write out the spell formation’s core.
If this was completed, the entire spell formation would be completed.
The veins in Cang Xu’s arm and palms were visible as he bit his teeth tightly
with a hard expression.
Suddenly, his body shook, and his writing came to a spontaneous stop.
The spell formation crumbled soon after.
The yellow crab alchemy puppets responsible for supporting the formation were
immediately affected, causing them to fall to the ground upon receiving the
backlash jointly.
Cang Xu was also unwell, blood spilling from his nose and the corner of his
mouth.
The old scholar sat on his buttocks as he felt the world around him sway, as if
the Deep Sea Monster Fish was being swept up in a torrential whirlpool.
It took a good while for him to catch his breath.
“Oh dear, although the Soft Heart Stone problem has been solved, I didn’t
expect that the difficulty of building this spell formation would rise so
sharply on the last step.”
“I still underestimated too much.”
“War Merchant…was truly worth of being called the greatest alchemist of our
age.”
Cang Xu’s head throbbed, he saw black spots in his vision, and he could only
think of sleep.
He had expended too much spirit power.
He actually still had plenty of magic power.
Spell formation construction only consumed Cang Xu’s spirit power as the Deep
Sea Monster Fish supplemented the necessary magic power.
This was one of the convenient formations built into the alchemy ship.
Cang Xu was only an iron level magician, he could not rely on his insufficient
magic power.
Furthermore, his was ill suited.
Necromancer magic power was inclined towards negative energy, while most spell
formations were partial towards positive energy.
“Every failure comes at a steep price.”
“Both alchemy materials and magic power are useless.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power reservoir is always being depleted.”
“In the future, we will need many elemental crystals to replenish it.”
“These will need money.”
“The six pirate ships are currently drifting in the sea, everyone is waiting
for this formation to be built.”
“I must do this now!”
Cang Xu knew the heavy responsibility he was shouldering.
Zi Di was not a living creature, and was not a magician.
He was the survivors’ sole magician.  
Only him, they could only rely on him!
After taking a deep breath, Cang Xu stood up and abandoned the dilapidated
formation dejected and impatient as he raced to build a new one.
The glowing red sunset filled the sky.
The six pirate ships slowly rose and fell with the waves.
In the flagship, the young captain watched his companions with hands clenched
behind his back.
Bai Ya, Lan Zao, and the big guy were there.
They were jumping, boxing, and sitting cross-legged on the deck, all exercising
their battle qi.
The pirate captives and unconscious fisher folk were in the ship hold.
These people could not be released, and for the survivor’s unanimous goal of
redemption, they needed a layer of disguise to facilitate their actions.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was too unique, it was their hidden trump card in the
ocean.
They needed to establish a fleet that could be their outward identity to the
world.
However, such an organization not only had higher ups and the lower class, but
also the middle class too.  
The middle class was the backbone, the foundation the survivors would use to
control the fleet.
Everyone’s interest was aligned, their experience on Mystifying Monster Island
had fostered friendship and mutual understanding between them all, allowing
them all to know each other well.
There is just one problem.
Individual strength.
Extraordinary strength led the world, with individual strength being the most
important indicator of that.
Take a city lord, one needed to be at least silver level, with most normally
being gold level.
In pirate groups, the captain is usually the strongest among them.
Mercenary groups were also like that.
Individual strength and the ability to suppress situations were widely
worshiped across all of the races of the entire world
Without sufficient personal strength, one’s underlings that were the backbone
would despise them. Even if a leader was charismatic, they would be considered
lesser.
Without sufficient personal strength, assassins could slay them easily, causing
the organization to dissolve and be swept away by those greater.
Even with a massive force or strong bodyguards, such a person could not be
protected from traitors forever.
Much of War Merchant’s valuable data had been obtained from the tower spirit.
Among them were many battle qi techniques and meditation methods.
While Cang Xu was building the spell formation, the young captain gathered his
comrades to share these cultivation methods and promote everyone’s personal
strength as much as possible.
“Can’t use it.” Mu Ban suddenly spoke, he was covered in sweat as he sat
dejected on the deck with a raised hand, “I give up.”
The young captain nodded to him.
The world had many commonly spread battle qi techniques.
Mu Ban had tried many of them, but none of them worked.
This time, he had tried many of War Merchant’s battle qi techniques, but these
too did nothing.
“I, I also give up.” Fei She also said.
He also took a seat, exhausted, his clothes sticking to his fat body due to
sweat.
As a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder, he had access to more battle qi
techniques than Mu Ban.
But his many attempts also met in failure too.
The young captain was not surprised.
He shifted his gaze towards Qiao Shan.
Unlike Mu Ban and Fei She, when Qiao Shan tried the Fragrant Dance battle qi
technique, it had results.
Qiao Shan was spinning in place, battle qi emitting from her legs and hand.
This was the main cultivation method for the Fragrant Dance battle qi
technique.
Qiao Shan was a beauty. Her dark green eyes, delicate features, perfectly round
chest, and lively stature were traits of one with mixed heritage from the
imperial east and imperial west.
Presently, she was permeating with battle qi, her black hair and dark green
skirt were waying accordingly, becoming a beautiful sight on the deck.
The Fragrant Dance battle qi technique was not a widely spread battle qi. It
was gold level and an ordinary person like Qiao Shan would’ve never known about
it.  
This try produced results.
“I got it, I also got it!” Bai Ya suddenly yelled.
At that moment, he attracted everyone’s gaze.
The young captain stepped over to examine him.
Bai Ya was trying to cultivate the Water Grass battle qi, and there were silk
strands of battle qi coming from his body.
Bai Ya’s face was covered with sweat and had gone red from excitement.
He had tried many battle qi techniques, all of which produced results. He felt
that he had an impressive aptitude, as if he were a genius!
His future was bright.
He seemed to see himself becoming a knight one day.
The young captain was just about to check on Bai Ya’s situation when the big
guy in the corner suddenly shook violently and dropped to the deck with a plop,
his mouth foaming and his eyes rolling to white, it looked like he was having a
break out of epilepsy.
The young captain jumped over to the big guy and immediately imbued him with
battle qi to suppress the Riot battle qi in the big guy’s body.
“Again?”
“How many times has it been?”
“At least seven or eight.”
The others were accustomed to this occurrence.
After the battle qi was suppressed, the big guy immediately woke up.
When he saw the young captain, he whimpered, “Father, I failed again.”
The young captain consoled him at once, “It doesn’t matter, I am here. You’re
already doing better, you’re very strong.”
“Father, I shall try even harder next time!” The big guy said as he coughed up
blood.
He only sensed that he was after throwing up several mouthfuls, causing him to
wipe his mouth with the back of his hand. “Eh? I’m bleeding, I thought that was
saliva.”  
“My, my belly hurts a little bit.”
The young captain consoled him again, then suspended the big guy’s battle qi
cultivation.
He sighed to himself.
Mu Ban and Fei She had zero cultivation aptitude, while Qiao Shan found a
battle qi technique that suited her, but her aptitude was very low.
Bai Ya had cultivated many battle qi techniques successfully, but the battle qi
produced was very small, his aptitude was the same as Qiao Shan, the bottom of
the barrel.
On the contrary, the big guy had a decent aptitude.
Even though battle qi was not successfully circulated in his body, when he was
cultivating, battle qi was being produced at the rate of a small, surging
waterfall.
With this kind of result, the big guy could hope to cultivate to the gold
level!
But he had an enormous problem.
He was too stupid!
The youngster had spent a lot of time and effort teaching him about the basics
of cultivation.
What normal people needed to hear only twice to learn, the big guy still mixed
up.
Every time he produced battle qi, he would make a mistake, causing the prior
scene to occur time and again.
“The big guy has a hard time understanding the most fundamental details of
battle qi techniques. It is almost impossible for him to grasp how battle qi
works. “Tripleblade said, “Another thing too, Lord Captain, the big guy can
also go crazy.”
“When he goes mad, he will lose all reason. When we were building the ship, he
nearly destroyed it.”
“If he cultivates successfully, and becomes a cultivator, he will do even more
damage when he goes mad.”
The big guy lowered his head when he heard those words, “Father, I shouldn’t
practice.”
“Sooner or later, we’ll find a solution.” The young captain patted the small
giant’s head as he sighed.
All of the battle qi techniques and meditation methods were made public, but
there were no pleasant surprises.
In this world, there are many battle qi techniques and meditation methods that
are propagated.
The main constraint to everyone’s development was bloodline.
Ah bloodlines, bloodlines!
Without this problem, the survivors wouldn’t have a problem reaching middle
class.
The only one qualified to hold a middle-ranked position was the goblin,
Tripleblade.
He was iron level, shaped his battle strength, and now had the battle qi
technique that most suited him.
Next was Lan Zao.
Lan Zao was bronze level.
His situation was similar to Bai Ya, he had produced results with many battle
qi techniques, but the results were low.
Therefore, he didn’t replace his battle qi, he was already used to using Watter
Grass battle qi. His battle skills also matched his Water Grass battle qi.
Changing it now was both troublesome and unprofitable.
“It’s getting late. If there aren’t any questions, then we should disperse.”
The young captain took a final look around.
“I, I have a question.” Bai Ya said, his emotional voice trembling in the
evening wind, “Should I pick a comparatively good battle qi technique? I tried
many battle qi techniques, all of them worked!”
Everyone was silent.
Upon seeing Ba Ya’s excitement and brave eyes, the young captain couldn’t bear
to strike his hopes down, “I give you the right to choose, no one knows better
than you which one suits you the best.”
“Very well.” Bai Ya was somewhat hesitant.
Lan Zao sighed as he clapped the young hunter’s shoulder, “You’ll be like me,
and cultivate the Water Grass battle qi technique.”
Bai Ya stared blankly, then shook his head, “No thanks. The Water Grass battle
qi technique is only bronze level, I can cultivate a gold level battle qi
technique.”
Lan Zao “…..”



****** Chapter 19: This Group has No Future ******
Nightfall
Bai Ya dragged his exhausted body back to his sailor cabin.
The cabin had a hinged window.
The gigantic circular window made of a glass-like substance a meter thick.
Outside the window was dark seawater.
However, Bai Ya saw his own bright future in that dark seawater.
He took out a pen, ink, and paper, knelt to the ground, and with the bed as his
table, he began to write.
Dear Miss Xi Qui:
At this moment, I am excited to write you this letter, I have happy news to
give you.
Today, I and my companions tried many battle qi techniques.
I didn’t think that so many battle qi techniques suited me!
This gave me hope.
In the future, I hope to become a knight!
However, the situation is not all good.
From the captive pirates, we learned the pirate throne has reappeared.
When I consulted my companions, I understood how significant that was.
It actually means a new Pirate God is to be born!
A new god.
Heavens!
Can you imagine that? As long as one sits the throne, they will become a god!
I am not exaggerating, there have already been six pirate gods in history. The
first Pirate God created the throne, and when she fell, the throne was
destroyed with her.
A few centuries later, the throne manifested again, and when a pirate finally
defeated all of their competitors and sat the throne, they became the second
Pirate King and became a god.
Currently, all pirates in the world have gone wild.
They are looting everywhere, slaughtering everywhere, all for the purpose of
obtaining the Pirate God’s divine favor. 
Da Zhao’s pirate group was a subordinate to Rou Zang’s pirate group. Rou Zang
ordered him to brutally massacre Stone Egg Island and take the rest into
slavery.
The more pirate activity one does, the more the pirate throne will acknowledge
them.
Ultimately. The one with the strongest favor will be the only one qualified to
sit that throne.
This process is filled with carnage, I cannot imagine how many lives will be
lost, it makes my head feel numb.
But regardless of how many challenges the road ahead brings, I will not give
up.
Thank you, Miss Xi Qui. Every time I confide in you, the pressure around me
lightens and I am filled once again with the determination to go onwards.
I ask that you forgive me, because I cannot send you this letter too.
I pray for your health and happiness.
Accepting he could send out this letter, Bai Ya raised his mattress.
The letter went under it.
He placed it on top of a pile of other letters.
He then sat down on his mattress, cleaned up his pen and ink, but didn’t go to
sleep just yet.
With knees and elbows pressed against the mattress, his hands fists and his
eyes closed, Bai Ya began to pray. 
“Great Hunting God, my master, I faithfully pray to you my wish that we achieve
our goals…”
Praying before sleeping was one of the habits of a believer.
Fei She was also praying.
“I, I love the Wealth Goddess, I face you, I appeal to you, I pray that after
we redeem ourselves, we can keep as much of our riches as possible, our
riches…”
In another sailor room, Mu Ban was bowing to a pocket sized idol, “Smithing
God, I ask that you bless and protect the Deep Sea Monster Fish, under your
blessing it will exhibit even greater might and grant your devoted believer
protection…”
The cockpit.
It was currently Zong Ge’s turn to control the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Tripleblade was reporting to the half beastman on everyone’s attempts at
cultivating battle qi techniques and his dark opinion on the situation,
Zong Ge laughed, “So the big guy actually has the highest aptitude.”
“A likely gold level potential? That is quite unexpected.”
“His body already exceeds that of others, if he is allowed to become a
cultivator, he will accomplish much on the battlefield.”
Zong Ge looked at it from the angle of a high-ranking military officer, giving
an amusing impression.
Tripleblade did not have such high hopes for the big guy, “His intellect is too
limited, he studied the most basic of battle qi techniques, but hadn’t
succeeded even once the entire afternoon. I think that even if he succeeded
once by a fluke, he would still fail the next attempt. Allowing him to
cultivate battle qi will only injure him constantly and ask for trouble.”
Zong Ge shook his head, “It is still possible. There are many exquisite eastern
imperial battle qi techniques. Some monks can imbue their own battle qi into
their disciples and guide their battle qi circulation.”
If a battle qi cultivator helps guide him, there will inevitably be a day when
the big guy is able to cultivate battle qi alone.”
Tripleblade replied, “The Captain wants to improve individual strength through
battle qi techniques, I believe he is setting about it wrong. How many are
talented enough to become a magician? Battle qi techniques are also no good.
The people who boarded ships towards the Wilderness Continent were the at the
lowest rungs of the Sheng Ming Empire. If they had the bloodline and the
aptitude, they would’ve already had a life of abundance. Why would they brave
the dangers of the Wilderness Continent?”
“It would be better to just issue them some equipment, that will boost their
individual battle strength far more.”
Zong Ge muttered to himself, “War Merchant’s entire stock consists of
munitions, there are barely any weapons and armor.” 
“Actually, it isn’t required to impose on them.”
“If it was me, I would arrange for them to mix in with the fleet’s lowest
levels. That can also reinforce our control over the fleet and allow us to
receive first-hand intelligence. If we force them to serve as middle-ranking
leaders, after a while, the others will not accept them and give rise to
discord in the fleet.”
Tripleblade responded “If they serve on the bottom, they are liable to be
slaughtered during a battle. I don’t think our Captain wants to see any of his
comrades die.”
Zong Ge coldly snorted, “That is exactly the biggest gripe I have about him. He
is a little too charitable and benevolent. This time, he has gone so far as to
want to release those fisher folk right away.”
Zong Ge was an imperial general.
Many times, people were only numbers in his mind.
In his eyes, cannon fodder tactics were a typical strategy.
As long as he seized victory, sacrificing some cannon fodder was completely
worth it.
Tripleblade sensed Zong Ge was somewhat dissatisfied with the young captain and
couldn’t help but laugh, “Lord Zong Ge, I have always believed that you are the
most suitable person to lead us.”
“On the island, we lost because there were more of them and because the island
had a special magic prohibition environment. But now things are different.”
“Of everyone here, your cultivation is the highest, peak silver, while I am a
iron level fighter.”
“President Zi Di is already a ghost, and although Cang Xu is at the iron level,
he is a necromancer, and can never enjoy popular support.”
“The most crucial point is that our Captain cannot use those strange beast
forms. Those artificial magic beasts can only exist properly in a magic
prohibition environment.”
“Unable to transform, he only has Zhen Jin’s appearance and physique. He has
the White River battle qi and grasps only a few battle skills. This I observed
in the magic image while you and him captured Da Zhao.”
Zong Ge waved his hand, cutting off Tripleblade’s words, “I know what you are
saying.”
“But I am uninterested in becoming leader.”
Tripleblade stared at him.
Zong Ge continued, “This is not Mystifying Monster Island. Among this group of
people, most of them are of the lowest level, their potential limited. Today’s
battle qi techniques experimentations have already given an answer, most of
these people cannot become cultivators.”
“What would my leadership do for them?”
“DO I want to use these people?”
“This is not a good group.” Zong Ge assessed.
“It has a giant hybrid, a ghost, a necromancer, a goblin, and me, a half
beastman.”
“Mu Ban believes in the Smithing God, Fei She believes in the Wealth Goddess,
Cang Xu believes in the Great Lord Spectral Soul, while we are nonbelievers.”
“Race, belief, social class, these things separate us. From the beginning, this
group had a thousand cuts, a thousand holes, cracks growing out like a
thicket.”
“Currently, because we find ourselves in the same plight, we need to solve the
same problem together, nothing more.”
“If we successfully redeem ourselves in the future, why would we continue to be
united? What would the captain use to continue to unite and lead us?”
“That our captain could become our leader was actually the result of many
coincidences, it would be hard to reproduce.”
“He is a transforming monster, but he contains the spirit of a knight, this is
why everyone is at ease with him.”
“However, that is also precisely his weak point.”
Zong Ge laughed heedlessly, “During our prior discuss on what to do with these
fisher folk, we all had our own proposal.”
“If it were possible, the captain would have freely released these fisher
folk.”
“But you, Zi Di, and Lan Zao had your respective opinion.”
“Even his woman and his most devoted subordinate are like this. What about the
others? What about in the future?”
“The people support him because of his moral character. But his noble morality
is also his weakness.” Zong Ge hit the nail on the head.
“Everyone seeks to benefit themselves, forever and always.”
“His moral character will inevitably conflict with everyone’s interests. The
more times it conflicts, the more grievances everyone will have.”
“When that happens, what will he use to lead them?”
“This group has no future.”
“After we redeem ourselves, we shall head towards the Wilderness Continent and
organize our own group.”
“Only with a common goal, with similar beliefs, identities, and social classes
can an inseparably close organization be formed.”
“From beginning to end, this organization must have one voice.”
“If that happens, its every order will be executed without fail, everyone will
be united, and its formidable power shall burst forth!
Zong Ge expressed his understanding of what he wanted for his own group.
Tripleblade listened with excitement, “I understand your goal, Lord Zong Ge. I
am truly honored to be able to follow you.”



****** Chapter 20: Please Call me Long Fu ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish, the meditation room.
The young captain had finished transforming into a dragonman, his head high and
his chest out.
“Come, attack here!” He ordered the alchemy puppet facing him.
The alchemy puppet was humanoid, 1.8 meters tall, wielded a sword and shield,
and emitted a silver level aura.
It was a swordsman guard.
The young captain was first in authority, thus the swordsman guard immediately
obeyed and thrusted its sword.
The sharp sword came to a sudden stop with a grunting noise.  
The youngster’s upper body faintly rocked, the durable dragon flesh countered
the power of the impact.
The thick dragon scales also withstood the sharp sword point.
Soon after, the sharp sword flashed with electricity, this too only caused the
dragonman mild numbness, nothing more.
“My dragon scales are very defensive, Da Zhao’s silver level coreset cannot
compare to it!”
When he fought Da Zhao, he hadn’t transformed.
This practice session had given him real knowledge.
“Focus everything on defense.” The dragonman youngster gave the swordsman guard
another order. 
The swordsman guard took a few steps back, then knelt to the ground, lifted its
shield up, and did its best to curl up its body behind it.
Then after a moment of silence, the dragonman youngster suddenly opened his
mouth.
Roar!
The fierce dragon roar formed a soundwave that could be seen by the naked eye.
The soundwave squarely hit the swordsman guard.
The latter’s defensive stance was instantly broken, causing the heavy alchemy
puppet to be blown back a meter.
Then, after crashing into a wall, it fell to the ground.
The dragon roar was still reverberating in the narrow meditation room.
The walls all around were glittering with many spell formation lines as they
did their best to absorb the dragon roar’s soundwaves.
The dragonman youngster’s ears were also ringing for a while.
“Eh?” Seeing himself create such an exceptional attack, the dragonman
youngster’s curiosity began to bubble out.
He let the swordsman guard stand up, then began to carefully observe it.
The sharp dragon eyes helped him quickly notice many things, such as the slight
damage to the formation lines that resided inside the swordsman guard. 
The swordsman guard’s defensive stance was very strong because it had this
specialized defensive spell formation. After it was activated, it could
frustrate even gold levels.
The reason why Da Zhao could destroy one of the swordsman guards was because of
an unexpected attack. If the swordsman guard had used a defensive stance, he
couldn’t have broken through its defense.
“In my previous attempt, I used dragon claws to attack, yet I was unable to
break the swordsman guard’s defense.”
“But when I used Dragon Roar, I could do it effortlessly.”
“The reason why is that Dragon Roar interferes with spell formations.”
“Amazing! War Merchant’s data states that Dragon Roar can temporarily interfere
with the usage of battle qi, magic power, and even divine power.”
The dragonman youngster was inwardly joyful.
With the dragonman form, he had three racial magics.
First was Dragon Roar, second was Dragon Prestige, and third was Blazing Dragon
Breath.
Following this, he then tried Dragon Prestige again.
But although Dragon Prestige was successfully used, the swordsman guard
remained unaffected.
“Dragon Prestige should be used on living beings, the swordsman guard is just
an alchemy puppet.”
Due to circumstances limiting him, he could not properly test how Dragon
Prestige really worked.
Only Blazing Dragon Breath was left.
“Should I unleash this racial magic here?” The youngster’s heart was hesitant.
Although his bloodline was badly damaged, he could still faintly feel how
immense the might of Dragon Breath was.
“I should try it at least once.”
“My battle qi is average, my battle skills are few, and the dragonman form is
my strongest combat stance.”
“I must familiarize myself and master it as soon as possible.”
With his mind made up, the young man opened his mouth and uttered words in the
draconic tongue.
Unlike Dragon Roar and Dragon Prestige, Blazing Dragon Breath needed draconic
words to be used.
A few seconds later, an excessive amount of magic in the Bloodcore was
expended, the youngster had succeeded.
Racial magic – Blazing Dragon Breath!
Magic flowed from the youngster’s mouth.
Hoo!
A tempestuous stream of orange and red flames violently shot into the swordsman
guard in defensive stance.
In but an instant, the swordsman guard’s shield seemed to melt away like snow!
The youngster was startled, and he stopped his dragon breath.
Less than a second had passed, yet not only had the swordsman guard’s shield
burned away, but half of its body had also fused together from the heat, it now
looked like a melted candle.
“So strong?!”
Such might frightened the youngster.
He knew Dragon Breath was formidable, but he didn’t expect it to exceed even
his wildest expectations.
“That silver level swordsman guard could hinder gold levels. Based on that, my
Blazing Dragon Breath can also inhibit gold levels!”
Blazing Dragon Breath was no ordinary dragon breath, this racial magic
originated from the legend level bloodline – Flame Dragon King.
Despite being limited by the young man’s life level to the silver level,
Blazing Dragon Breath’s formidable power still revealed how extraordinary the
legend level bloodline was!
The young man ordered the swordsman guard to stand up.
But despite the swordsman guard struggling to, it could not. Melted metal
flowing from its body had firmly glued it to the ground. 
Blazing Dragon Breath’s heat would flabbergast anyone!
“How terrible, I crippled a swordsman guard.” The dragonman youngster was very
regretful.
These alchemy puppets were sparse, and they could not maintain them, thus one
damaged was the same as losing one.
“What should I tell the others?”
The young man was feeling embarrassed when he received a message.
The message came from Cang Xu
With incomparable excitement, the necromancer made his announcement, “I did it,
I built the Deceitful Disguise formation!”
It was late into the night as the survivors were woken up one after the other.
This news raised everyone’s spirits.
Everyone quickly assembled in the alchemy cabin.
“That is the Deceptive Disguise formation?” The survivors’ eyes were twinkling
as they curiously sized up the spell formation before them.
The spell formation was made of interlinked circles in a tight and solemn
pattern, it emitted the aura of mystery and dream as it glistened with newborn
splendor.
“Cang Xu, we thank you for accomplishing this!” The young captain clapped the
old scholar’s shoulder.
Cang Xu sincerely sighed, “I am only a construction worker, the real person to
thank is War Merchant!”
He was also very excited, despite his deathly pale complexion indicating his
body was in a sorry state.
“We had better test it as soon as possible.” Cang Xu urged.
Until he saw it work, he would not be at ease. 
“I will go first.” Bai Ya volunteered.
“Ok.” Cang Xu nodded to him, then said, “Stand in the middle of the spell
formation, don’t be nervous. Wait until the spell formation is activated before
you reveal the other you to the others.”
“Your appearance will alter based on your thoughts.”
“What you want to change into is what you will end up looking like.”
“Don’t make yourself too different. On the one hand, if it is too different, it
will consume more pearl bubbles, on the other hand, it won’t be easy to act out
your disguise.”
Bai Ya nodded, “I understand.”
With everyone watching, he entered the spell formation.
The spell formation was activated shortly after, causing it to surge with spots
of dazzling blue green light.
The scattered light quickly condensed into a ball that covered Bai Ya,
shielding him from everyone’s sight.
Not long after, the blue green light slowly dissipated.
When Bai Ya reappeared, his appearance had already been changed.
He had grown taller, his skin had darkened, and his hair was now fluffy,
colored like a disheveled clump of yellow rice straw. 
Even his voice had changed, becoming heavier.
Everyone gasped in surprise as they surrounded Bai Ya.
Eight hands stretched out to poke at Bai Ya’s body.
Qiao Shan pinched Bai Ya’s hair, “It really changed!”
Lan Zhao compared heights, “You’ve grown taller, taller than even me.”
The ghostly Zi Di floated above the group, “Even the most remarkable
transformation medicine can only equal this.”
Cang Xu shook his head, “No, this is better than transformation drugs. The
pearl bubble can alter the perception of any living being. This is the power of
the divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, unobtainable without War
Merchant’s spell formation. One can say this is a collaboration between a
legend level and a god!”
“Bai Ya, how do you feel?” Cang Xu asked, “You’ve grown taller, has your field
of view increased according to your height?”
Bai Ya shook his head, “I still feel like myself, my height hasn’t actually
changed.”
Cang Xu nodded, “That is the expected outcome. The Deceptive Disguise formation
can only deceive other living beings, it cannot deceive oneself.”
“At the same time, if a lifeform knows the truth in advance, the disguise will
not be perfect.”
“Let use continue on with the experiment.”
Second was Mu Ban.
Cang Xu requested that he make himself extremely tall.
Cang Xu lifted a ruler above Mu Ban and said, “Walk under this.”
Mu Ban walked towards the ruler, his changed appearance now being both taller
and thinner. It was obvious that the top of his head was taller than where the
ruler was.
Everyone watched, they saw Mu Ban’s tall and thin figure automatically stoop
and lower his head to cross the ruler blocking him.
Cang Xu explained, “This is the Deceptive Disguise formation most exquisite
detail. It deceives the senses of others, and if reality conflicts with it, it
will continue to deceive other living beings and give them an explanation to
visualize.”
“But not the ruler.”
“It is a material object, and is not affected.”
Cang Xu gave a rarely seen smile, “I really succeeded…hic.”
A moment later, his eyes rolled over and fell unconscious.”
The adroit young captain promptly supported him, averting the latter’s fall to
the floor.
After inspecting him, Zi Di said, “He is too tired, almost all of his spirit
has been used up, he needs to recuperate.”
Everyone let out a breath.
A few survivors had complex expressions.
Cang Xu was a necromancer, but his contribution to the group spoke for
themselves, no one could erase it.
After Cang Xu was placed in his bed, the young captain said, “We shall
continue.”
Zong Ge entered next, coming out as normal human.
His body was still tall and sturdy, with a twisting beard and thick hair.
He gave himself a new name, Shi Qi.
The ghostly girl became a middle aged woman, her appearance now average and
without oddities.
Tripleblade was still a goblin, but his turban had become black, and his face
more arrogant and obstinate.
The small giant shrank his body and was barely able to enter the formation.
Then with Zi Di’s help, he altered his appearance a little, his hair changed
color and a copper horn now grew from his head.
Finally, it was the young captain’s turn.
When he came out, one after the other, everyone grew astounded.
The youngster had turned into a dragonman.
He had a scarlet dragon head filled with sharp teeth and fangs.
His skin had been replaced by dragon scales, complete with fierce dragon claws
and thick dragon feet.
A dragon tail now grew from his buttocks.
Besides Zi Di, the youngster’s form had changed the most dramatically, no one
anticipated that the young captain would do something like this.
The young man did not explain himself, he simply stated, “Henceforth, please
call me Long Fu.”
 



****** Chapter 21: The Tower Spirit Recognizes its Master ******
After the survivors all changed their appearances with the magic formation,
they dispersed.
It was already midnight, thus the survivors’ excitement was mixed with
exhaustion.
During the day they had fought Da Zhao’s pirate ground, during the evening they
had cleaned up the battlefield, and during the night they had disguised
themselves.
“What an amazingly wonderous day!”
“Quite wonderful, with this disguise, who could see who we truly were?”
“It’s nearly dawn, you had better rest.”
The survivors’ voices echoed for a bit before slowly disappearing.
They returned to their respective bedrooms.
The Deep Sea Fish regained its tranquility.
Zong Ge returned to the captain’s room and continued to pilot the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
“The experience of surviving on Mystifying Monster Island has given these
people the good habit of snatching every second available to recover their
energy.”
“This is one of the qualities of elites.”
Such things being displayed in the survivors was a pleasant sight to the half
beastman’s eyes.
Meanwhile, without his knowledge, the dragonman youngster used his authority as
captain to quietly go to the alchemy cabin.
He was joined by Zi Di, who was drifting in the air.
It was only the two of them in the cabin currently.
Zi Di looked at the Deceptive Disguise formation and sighed, “This magic
formation is remarkable, but by using it, our consumption of the pearl bubbles
has more than doubled.”
The dragonman youngster replied, “Even if it doubles, we need this formation.”
“With it, our outside actions can be protected.”
Zi Di shifted the subject, “Just now, Tripleblade was asking me why your
Lordship decided to become a dragonman, I didn’t elaborate.”
The dragonman youngster nodded.
Tripleblade was once a mercenary commander with rich experience. It was
certainly odd the young man had changed his form so.
Not only him, Cang Xu and Zong Ger were also puzzled.
But no explanation was required.
Preserving the air of mystery was something a leader needed to do.
Especially now, for the young captain’s cultivation was not the highest around.
Zong Ge felt this group of survivors had no future, likewise the dragonman
youngster undoubtably knew the systemic problems this group had.
He looked at the Deceptive Disguise formation before him and said with
anticipation, “IF we can use this to deceive the tower spirit and grasp the
secrets of the Bloodcore, we can change the bloodlines of others!”
“Such an immense benefit will cause our comrades to rush like ducks. Add that
on top of a common enemy, our misunderstandings and gaps will be quickly
eliminated.”
After the brutal culling of Mystifying Monster Island, the remaining survivors
had many remarkable qualities. Such as decisiveness, bravery, resolve,
tenacity, and other such things.
Their greatest problem was their bloodlines.
They lacked opportunities.
Throughout their life, they never had any.
But what if the Bloodcore could give them one?
If these people were given a chance, what kind of capabilities would burst
forth from them?
The dragonman youngster’s heart was filled with hope and expectations as he
once more entered the Deceptive Disguise formation.
The magic formation activated, then slowly ceased.
There were no traces of the dragonman youngster that walked in, he had changed
into a completely different person.
More accurately, he was a goblin, War Merchant!
After Zi Di verified there were no mistakes, the young man quietly walked to
another room, his head held high with honor and glory.
This cabin only had one thing, a giant white crystal ball.
It was the tower spirit’s medium.
“Tower Spirit, come out.” The goblin youngster quietly called out upon coming
to the crystal sphere.
The crystal ball did not move.
Time seemed to slow for a moment as the ship hold fell silent, the goblin
youngster could hear his own heartbeat.
Suddenly, the crystal ball glowed faintly.  
The tower spirit’s voice transmitted out, “Welcome back, great Master!”
“Success!” The goblin youngster’s heart was pleasantly surprised.
This had been Cang Xu’s solution.
Since the tower spirit was an intelligent being, it could be attacked by
ghosts, such as the time Zi Di had overpowered it, thus it was very likely that
the Deceptive Disguise formation could trick it.
The result perfectly confirmed the validity of this hypothesis.
However, the tower spirit was intelligent. Previously, it had used underhanded
tactics to hold off Zi Di and Cang Xu.
Right now, no one could be certain the tower spirit was actually being duped.
After quickly glancing at Zi Di and calming down, the goblin youngster probed
with his words, “Tower spirit, report on the situation.”
“Unable to detect the alchemy factory…unable to contact Mystifying Monster
Island…73%, of mainframe damaged, by 41% of data destroyed…”
“According to the newest records, self-destruction had been enabled. Without
follow-up records from Mystifying Monster Island, the probability of it being
destroyed is 98%.”
“I have already examined the surrounding environment, we are currently inside
the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
“One week ago, I suffered a necromantic attack. Enemy detected, enemy marked,
Zi Di detected!”
“I suggest you recapture the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s control authority and
eradicate the enemy…”
The white light inside the crystal ball became vigorous and magnificent.
“Unnecessary.” The goblin youngster cut it off, “The situation is already under
my control, they are all now my subordinates.”
The tower spirit paused for a moment, then replied, “Understood, great Master.”
The goblin youngster continued, “Raise Zi Di’s authority to the highest level.”
Zi Di blankly stared, the young man was acting beyond the scope of their plan.
The young man’s open-hearted and sincere decision caused the girl’s heart to
overflow with warm ripples.
The tower spirit responded, “Great Master, please forgive me, I cannot
accomplish this task. The greatest authority can only belong to one, only you
can hold it. Others at most can hold a level one authority. Do you want to give
the target level one authority? Please take note that the target person has
betrayed you before. Please take note that excessive sharing of authority will
likely cause unseen security threats.”
The goblin youngster nodded without hesitating, “I am certain!”
Tower spirit, “As you command, great Master, your order shall be implemented
immediately.”
“Miss Zi Di, you now have level one authority.”
Next, were a series of orders designed to probe how the tower spirit would
respond, it did not disobey any.
“We actually swindled it, we can actually use it!” The goblin youngster and the
ghost girl gradually relaxed.
The goblin youngster then requested, “Tower spirit, modify the authority
requirement to access all data to level one authority.”
Tower spirit, “As you bid, great Master.”
After accomplishing this, the young man and lady immediately joined their
spirits with the tower spirt, itching to look through all of the data inside
it.
They saw many battle qi techniques, battle skills, meditation methods, spells,
and more.
These were the things they hadn’t excavated earlier.
After that there were all kinds of alchemy formations and alchemy blueprints.
Here, there was not only how to build an alchemy factory, but there were also
many manufacturing processes of all sorts of alchemy goods.
For example, War Merchant’s factory was most well-known for explosive flasks,
commonly referred to as shakers.
“The wealth here is beyond reckoning!” Zi Di’s spirit couldn’t help but quake
with endless excitement.
“War Merchant was the world’s greatest arms dealer.”
“With these, we can rebuild War Merchant’s munitions factory in its entirety.”
“We could become one of the wealthiest people in the world!”
Zi Di had been born into a merchant family, the great pursuit of riches was in
her bones.
The young man was also joyous, but was far calmer than Zi Di, “Our strength is
insufficient, even if the underground alchemy factory is rebuilt, we cannot
protect it.”
“Wasn’t War Merchant killed in his own home?”
When Zi Di thought of her own miserable past, and how the expansion of the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance had killed her father, her complexion slightly
darkened.
The two people closely paid attention to the tower spirit.
They were speaking right in front of the tower spirit, yet the tower spirit did
not react at all.
The Deceptive Disguise formation was truly exquisite!
The information the tower spirit was listening to had already been tampered
with, and did not conflict with its understanding.
The young man and lady continued to investigate further.
They noticed many incomplete blueprints.
Most of them were newly developed alchemy products from War Merchant and his
apprentice, with a few due to the data being damaged.
There was some other information.
Most of it pertained to knowledge related to the Charming Blue God and the
Feather Snake God.
It seemed that because War Merchant had the Mermaid Fairy Tale and the Green
Jade Golden Coffin, he had spent a lot of time scouting out and researching
these two gods.
“Bloodcore!” The young man’s heart jumped ferociously when he saw this most
significant detail.



****** Chapter 22: War Merchant’s Research Data ******
All of the relevant data the tower spirit retained was revealed.
The Bloodcore’s function was to absorb external bloodlines, then perfectly
transform the host’s living form with it.
But the Bloodcore could only work on its host.
War Merchant had greater ambitions, he wanted to develop the Bloodcore further
and create a unified army of magic beasts.
War Merchant created the Bloodline Integration formation to extract bloodlines
from the Bloodcore and forcibly insert it into magic beast test subjects. 
The experimental magic beasts could retain their living form while under the
magic prohibition formation. Without it or the Bloodcore maintaining stability,
they would immediately die.
Even if a magic beast was strong enough to survive, they would be struggling a
step from death’s door.
This plan was just beginning when it encountered an enormous challenge.
War Merchant noticed in his analysis that the magic beasts were dying from
bloodline conflicts. The magic beasts were very difficult to keep alive due to
these bloodline conflicts.
War Merchant was undaunted by this challenge.
Through exhaustive pondering, he created the Green Life Liquid formation, using
it to extract as much power from the Green Jade Golden Coffin to create a
strong healing effect, the extremely ephemeral Life Green Liquid
With a steady flow of Green Life Liquid to heal and sustain, the test subjects
were barely kept alive after the Bloodline Cultivation formation was used on
them.
Even with War Merchant’s treatment, 78% of the experimental magic beasts died
out.
The 22% of the experimental magic beasts that survived the Green Life Liquid
got to leave the underground factory,
War Merchant hadn’t succeeded yet.
He quickly noticed that these experimental magic beasts had extremely short
life spans.
The reason was easily discerned, despite maintaining the conflicting
bloodlines, the mixed bloodlines would absorb external elements from nature and
cause their magic power to become chaotic.
Upon magic power destabilization, every single modified magic beast would die.
War Merchant had spent a very long time researching a solution to this problem.
He had done constant improvements and used all kinds of methods.
The Bone Horn Goats, Strong White Rhinoceros, Bat Monkeys, the Blue God Fox
Wolves…from their design concepts to their development process, there were
detailed notes and data recordings pertaining to the changes to them.
Only scant results were yielded.
Until War Merchant’s finally found the most likely way to surmount this
obstacle, a cultivation spell.
People often had mixed bloodlines.
Usually, the main bloodline overpowered the weaker ones, thus the weaker
bloodlines’ influence on their living form was minimal.
In addition, during cultivation, a cultivator would purify any extremities from
lesser bloodlines, strengthening their main bloodline and culling the lesser
ones until finally dispelling the weaker ones completely from themselves.
There are also some cultivators that intentionally preserve their bloodlines
and cultivate specific battle qi techniques, carefully monitoring the balance
between two bloodlines, giving them two types of aptitude.
Thus, War Merchant used his might to gather as many battle qi techniques,
meditation methods, and other such things as he could.
A new problem arose.
Magic beasts were universally dumb, even if they had a cultivation method, they
could not cultivate by themselves.
Exceptions like dragons, whose intellect matched people, often did not
cultivate, but instead depended on their bloodlines to grow their strength
steadily as time passed.
War Merchant’s first method was to improve the modified magic beasts’
intellect.
He quickly reached the limit.
The Blue Dog Fox Wolf was the best he could accomplish, but even with their
intelligence, it was still very difficult for them to cultivate independently.
Most of all, these modified magic beasts had mixed bloodlines and radically
changed life structures, no battle qi technique or meditation method was
suitable for them.
As for the path of divine power, War Merchant was not a god, and lacked
attainment in soul path, thus this way was obstructed.
In the end, War Merchant decided to abandon the modified magic beast project
and instead shifted his gaze to intelligent lifeforms.
However, he hadn’t given up on it completely.
He changed the landscape of Mystifying Monster Island, created the magic
prohibition environment, and raised many modified magic beasts.
On the one hand, he hoped that in the future, there might be a skill or an
insight that could help him break through this difficulty. On the other hand,
he also hoped that natural selection and evolution through allowing these
remodeled magic beasts to reproduce and live over time would create a more
stable life template.
Most of War Merchant’s energy was thrown into a new project, the aforementioned
Transformed Beastman project.
The advantage of this project was that people had wisdom. People could
cultivate battle qi techniques and meditation methods, balance their bloodlines
on their own, and produce battle qi or magic power.
The disadvantage was that the physical bodies of people could not compare to
that of magic beasts.
Although the previous project failed overall, it had yield plentiful gains.
With the help of the Green Life Liquid, War Merchant solved the problem of the
weak humanoid body.
By using the memory changing device, War Merchant also successfully got his
test subjects to cultivate on their own.
Failure, failure, still failure.
War Merchant discovered that the external bloodlines strongly conflicted with
the test subjects.
As one’s cultivation deepened into either battle qi or magic power, the
incompatibility would grow fiercer until it was eventually fatal!
Everything seemed to be back at square one.
Despite trying many paths, they all ended in a dead end.
This fact even dismayed War Merchant for a time.
But he never gave up.
He never let his dismay and other negative emotions influence his actions.
Sometimes taking a step back was not giving up, but rather another way of going
forward.
War Merchant changed his line of thinking and settled for the next best thing.
He no longer forcefully imparted external bloodlines into people, rather he
excavated the test subjects’ bloodlines as much as possible.
Even ordinary people might contain extraordinary bloodlines, however such a
bloodline was too small and had an extremely low concentration.
War Merchant developed the Bloodline Purification formation.
With this formation, he could increase an extraordinary bloodline’s
concentration, then dispel the other bloodlines, giving the subject a pure
bloodline.
He succeeded!
Finally, after expending countless amounts of energy, time, and capital, along
with being forced to change his method to solve the many unimaginable
difficulties that popped up halfway
He had done it.
Although his achievement was quite different than what he had envisioned.
“I must be a test subject transformed by the Bloodline Purification formation.”
The goblin youngster’s breathing unconsciously grew heavier.
To replace Zhen Jin, War Merchant had purchased the blood of a Gold Needle Bee
at a high price.
He used the Bloodcore to absorb it, then used the Bloodline Purification
formation to give the test subject the corresponding Bloodline.
As for the test subject, it needed an important prerequisite.
They needed to have the Gold Needle Bee bloodline, even if the concentration
was low!
“The Bai Zhen Clan’s bloodline can be traced back to the Gold Needle Bee.
Therefore, by improving this bloodline, one could disguise it as the Bai Zhen
bloodline.”
The goblin youngster carefully examined the test record, “There were 83 test
subjects altogether, I was the one who rose above the rest.”
“Then who was I originally? Where did I come from?”
The young man’s questions remained unanswered throughout.
War Merchant did not record the young knight’s identity.
Perhaps he only thought of the youngster as only a qualified test subject.
“Or perhaps my information was lost. After all, War Merchant’s data library is
not complete.”
The youngster was silent for a moment, then coughed.
Zi Di’s spirit power was smaller than his, thus she finished first.
The ghost girl looked at the young man, her voice troubled, “My Lord, according
to the written accounts, all of the test subjects were collected by Jian Zuan.
He should know your origins.”
The young man nodded, of course he had seen that already, “But his whereabouts
are unknown, it is indeterminate if he’s alive or dead.”
“There will be something eventually.” Zi Di consoled, “Even of the clues are
really gone, we can still use divination or prophecies.”
“Mystifying Monster Island was protected by the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
formation, but your Lordship is the biggest clue!”
“According to the currently available clues, your Lordship is very likely to be
a common knight, with your extraordinary bloodline possibly being the Bai Zhen
bloodline.”
If it was the Bai Zhen bloodline, the youngster might be related by blood to
Zhen Jin.
Nobles had chaotic private lives, and it was normal for them to abandon
bastards.
However, that was only one possibility.
Because the source of the Bai Zhen bloodline was the Gold Needle bee.
Therefore, the young man also might belong to one of countless bloodlines that
branched from it, unassociated with the largest branch that was the Bai Zhen
clan.
The youngster bowed his head to gaze at his palm and bitterly laughed, “You
know? Many times, when I used the Bloodcore to transform into beasts or a
dragonman, I felt more comfortable in them than in my human body.”
When he was human, the youngster looked like Zhen Jin.
The pity in Zi Di’s heart increased, and she decided to float over to snuggle
into the youngster’s chest, “I believe you will learn your true identity one
day.”
“Everything will get better!”
“We tempered ourselves in Mystifying Monster Island, did we not?”
“We have divine artifacts and this alchemy data. We will redeem ourselves, use
the Bloodcore to become great people, establish our own alchemy factory, and
rise into the ranks of the imperial upper class.”
Zi Di gazed at the young man, “We will be together.”
“I will be resurrected, and you will regain your original appearance.”
“I will have my Merchant Alliance, and you will have your manor, or even your
own fief.”
“We…will also have a child.”
Zi Di’s face flashed with embarrassment.
The young man laughed and responded, “Yes. In the spring, we will walk our
children through the greenery. During the summer, we will watch the rainstorms
through our castle’s windows. In the autumn, we will take the children hunting.
Then in the winter, we will huddle by the stove and tell them old stories and
fairy tales.”
The ship hold was warm.
The crystal ball slowly flickered with white light.
The young man wanted to take the girl’s hand, so the girl slowly placed her own
onto the youngster’s palms.
In the end, neither let go.
The two were so close, but were separated by life and death.



****** Chapter 23: Everyone’s Turning Point ******
Cang Xu walked through the darkness.
The only light was suspended ahead, attracting Cang Xu forward.
It was a hanging lamp, and its dusky yellow light shone like a cone onto a
small patch of space.
Cang Xu entered the light, exposing his young face.
Within the light, there was a large desk. A person sat behind the desk.
This person’s face was obscured by the darkness and their tall obese was
squeezed into the seat that stretched to the edge of the yellow light. On the
desk, his fat hand had large rings of gold and gemstones around all five
fingers, giving an aura of wealth. 
Cang Xu was uncomfortable as nervousness mixed with excitement, “Esteemed Lord
Knight Tang De, greetings.”
The sitting man opened his mouth, “Cang Xu, although 20 gold coins is not much
to me, to you it is a huge investment. What is your intention in spending so
much to meet me late at night?”
Cang Xu took in a breath, “My Lord, you are a little incorrect. 20 gold coins
is still useful to you. After all, you still need to cover your debt, no?”
“Eh?” The sitting Tang De was instantly enraged, his scarlet gaze could be seen
in the darkness, it was filled with brutality and killing intent. “Do you want
to court death?”
“My Lord!” Cang Xu immediately bowed his head, “I am only a mortal. Like the
imperial east says, my hand cannot even hold a chicken. If you wanted to, you
could kill me at any time. Furthermore, in this hidden place, no one will know.
Therefore, you could easily hide my corpse and any traces remaining.”
“My Lord, I have obviously not come with ill intent. Who alive wants to die? I
want to live, I want a better life!”
“Oh?” The scarlet gaze in the darkness dwindled somewhat.  “I understand. The
third steward position is vacant, do you want to take it?”
Before the young Cang Xu could reply, Tang De sneered, “Hehe, based on what?”
“The lowest cultivation a steward can have is the bronze level. You are an
ordinary man, you have no qualifications.”
Cang Xu raised his head, his eyes showing his perseverance and thirst for
glory, “It is precisely because I am unqualified that I sought you. You are in
a predicament, not because of uncovered corruption, but instead because the
Third Lady, the Second Lady, as well as Baron Jin Dou have joined together
politically. I can give you something that can break this quagmire.”
Tang De sneered again, “Eh? You are a minor bookkeeper, yet you dare speak of
politics?”
Cang Xu replied, “I have also lived here for five years. My Lord, I have braved
the risk of death to find you, what harm is there in listening to me?”
Tang De was silent for a moment, then said, “Speak then.”
Cang Xu let his mouth go, he had thought of what to say countless times.
However, unlike what he had envisioned, Knight Tang De was noncommittal, and
was muttering to himself.
As time passed, Cang Xu’s complexion gradually waned, and his mood grew more
restless and tense.
But he felt no remorse.
Those five years had given him an inside understanding of how the Sha Ta clan’s
political situation was.
He saw an opportunity.
And he was willing to brave the dangers to seize this opportunity.
“Interesting.”  Tang De said after muttering to himself for a good while.
Instead of accepting or denying Cang Xu’s proposal, he instead changed the
subject.
“Over by Setting Sun Cliff there is a village in rebellion, they have killed
the tax collector.”
“I am responsible for that region.”
“As you said, I am short on money!”
“I I don’t want to make a big deal of this affair, thus you shall levy the
taxes.”
“If you succeed and bring back the taxes, I will nominate you to the position
of third steward.”
Cang Xu was ecstatic, “I shall…”
As he replied, he suddenly felt a trying headache.
The muddled yellow light was quickly washed away, and blurred darkness was
agitated like a sheet of ink.
Cang Xu felt he was being sucked into a whirlpool, always trapped in a dizzying
spell.
Head heavy, he opened his eyes and noticed he was lying in his bed.
He looked around, and saw the lines of the treatment magic formations.
He slowly thought back, “That’s right, this is the Deep Sea Monster Fish. I
used up my spirit power to construct the Deceptive Disguise formation.”
“How is the situation currently?”
“How long was I out?”
Cang Xu struggled to rise, but a moment later, he had an intense bout of
dizziness.
He promptly inspected himself, finding his body was in good condition, however
his spirit power was dry, only scants of it remained.
“I still need to rest.”
“It’s a pity I don’t have spirit healing medicine…”
After understanding this, Cang Xu did not insist on getting up and instead
closed his eyes gain.
In the heaviness of sleep, the sense of pain followed like a shadow.
A dusky jail cell.
A young Cang Xu was bound to a cross, his body filled with the signs of
torture, blood was dripping, and wounds covered his body.
“Will…this be where I die?” Fear occupied Cang Xu’s heart.
Several blue-faced villagers were facing him, conversing with malicious intent.
“What did you interrogate from him?”
“He is an ordinary man, a noble’s dog!”
“We should just kill him, we’re wasting time.”
“No! I am a necromancer, I won’t die!” Cang Xu thought as he gritted his teeth.
The villagers reached a consensus, as one approached Cang Xu with a dagger.
The dagger was pointed at Cang Xu’s chest.
Fear and panic engulfed Cang Xu’s heart like the tide.
“My body was changed by necromancy, it is between life and death. It can
pretend to be fully alive, but this too comes with its own problems.”
“If my heart is destroyed, I will still die!”
“I cannot die here.”
I braved dangers to have an audience with Knight Tang De so I could become the
third steward.
“I had a friend in the village near Setting Sun Cliff.
“But I haven’t seen them at all. Just as I entered the village, I was bound,
beaten and interrogated.”
“I spoke my friend’s name, tried to befriend them, but these villagers are
stubborn. This is ridiculous!”
“They killed the tax collector, because the taxes were too high. Are they not
worried that the army will annihilate them if they kill me too? Does the entire
village not want to live?” 
Suddenly in that moment, a flash of inspiration hit Cang Xu.
A possible guess now floated in his mind.
He thought of the long time when Knight Tang De was muttering to himself,
something quite suspicious.
“That knight had a queer mood.”
“I, I understand. He was worried that I was a spy from one of his political
opponents. This test, this test was aimed at me!”
“These villagers are all ordinary people, but there might be others hiding
here.”
“If I kill them, and expose that I am a necromancer, I cannot escape.”
“But If I don’t kill them, they’ll kill me!”
“Damm it.”
“This is all just my speculations.”
“What is the truth actually?”
“Perhaps I am overthinking things?”
The dagger drawing near his heart caused Cang Xu’s face to twist as cold sweat
dripped from it.
“You’re going to die, do you have any last words?” The villager holder the
dagger sneered.
“Hehehe!” Cang Xu suddenly laughed.
The laughter caused the villagers to stare, they were perplexed.
Cang Xu said, “If I die, you all will too.  If you kill two tax collectors,
your entire village will be done for.”
“Hmph!” The villager roared, “We aren’t rebelling, and these dammed taxes are
hounding us to death! At worst, we will die together!”
“You don’t need to die, Knight Tang Ge has sent me. Although taxes are levied,
it has already been reduced by a lot. After you pay the tax, you will still
have enough food to keep on living!” Said Cang Xu.
The villagers stared blankly.
“Why didn’t you say that earlier?”
“I don’t believe him, he’s obviously lying. Tang De is a fat greedy swine, why
would he lower taxes?”
“He’s afraid of dying, therefore he wants to deceive us!”
Cang Xu coldly snorted and attacked back with visible hatred, “Then raise your
hand, come, kill me, stab my heart.”
“We will go into the underworld together!”
The villagers hesitated again.
Who wanted to die?
The villagers were naturally also scared of being annihilated by the army.
Cang Xu’s words gave the villagers hope.
Thus, the turning point arrived.
The villagers of Stone Egg Island were like this too.
They were slaughtered by the pirate, Da Zhao, captured, imprisoned, and were
treated as slaves to be sold.
But now, they were being roused from their slumber on a ship deck.
“I am called Long Fu, a bounty hunter. I and my comrade have eliminated Da
Zhao’s pirate group and saved you.” The dragonman youngster stood on the
highest point of the ship deck, overlooking the villagers below him.
“We have killed most of the pirates. Of course, we also took some of them
captive.”
The villagers were stupefied.
“Bring them up.” The dragonman youngster ordered.
Tripleblade and Lan Zao approached with a group of rope bound pirates.
The villagers’ expressions changed, fury flooded their faces as the sight
completely woke them up. They began to accost them roundly, with some even
wanting to beat them. 
But a moment later, Zong Ge cut a captive pirate in two with his blade.
Blood splattered out as the cleaved corpse collapsed to the ground, their
viscera and intestines flowing outwards.
The captive pirates began to weep for forgiveness, while the indignant
villagers watched in awe.
Zong Ge coldly snorted, “You will call me Lord Shi Qi. What were you lot
thinking of doing? We are bounty hunters, these captives are our property. Do
you think you can tell us what to do with our property?”
Despite being disguised, Zong Ge was still tall and sturdy, with tiger eyes
that made the villagers go white when they swept over them.
Zong Ge continued to yell, “Not only them, you all were also saved by us. How
should the grace of your saviors be repaid?”
The villagers grew terrified upon thoroughly understanding their new situation.
At this time, the dragonman youngster opened his mouth, using a soothing tone
instead, “Don’t be nervous everyone, we are not pirates.”
“We are stronger than them and have no enmity with you.”
“We only want some remuneration, I think everyone understands.”
Some women began to sob spasmodically, “Kind Lords, we are already destitute
and homeless, they stole everything. What money is there to redeem ourselves?”
“Don’t worry.” The dragonman youngster laughed, “I will allow you to work to
redeem your freedom.”
“You all cam see that we have just snatched six pirate ships.”
“We are few, and cannot sail so many.”
“From now on, you shall join us and become these ships’ sailors. When your
contribute to our satisfaction, I promise you that you will be free to leave or
stay!”
The villagers looked at each other in dismay as they began to discuss with each
other.
The chatter between them grew more and more.
Soon after, a youngling had the courage to ask, “Lord Long Fu, are we going to
be pirates?”
“Of course not.” The dragonman youngster stated without the slightest
hesitation, “With these ships, we can trade, serve as imperial transports, and
even attack other pirates.”
“Oh right.”
The dragonman youngster paused, then beckoned with a wave.
Shan Que came out from the boathouse, a baby in her arms.
The infant was the one the dragonman youngster rescued from Stone Egg Island.
“We went to Stone Egg Island, and found this child in a hole in a well wall.
Does anyone know…”
Before the youngster could finish speaking, a mournful exclamation interrupted
him.
“My child, my child!” A woman rushed out from the crowd.
After verifying her, mother and child were reunited. The woman happily sobbed
and embraced her child, then kowtowed to the dragonman youngster in thanks.
The young man gently helped her stand.
This event caused the villagers to regard the youngster differently.
The first traces of trust were formed.
“My Lord.” A villager came up to ask, “How much do we need to contribute in
order to leave?”
Soon after, other such questions arose.
The dragonman youngster smiled and answered them one after the other.



****** Chapter 24: The Bath Tub Attacks ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish, a sailor cabin.
Cang Xu awakened once again.
“Hic…that feels better.” Cang Xu sensed his mind was clear, no longer was his
head heavy and aching.
The cabin’s magic formation was still shining.
“How long was I asleep?”
With this question in mind, Cang Xu left his cabin.
In the cockpit, he saw Zi Di, who answered his question.
“You were out for three days.” Zi Di replied.
“Only three days?” It was shorter than Cang Xu expected.
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish was designed by War Merchant, built for magicians.
It is not strange is has such a healing effect on you.” Said Zi Di.
“In that case, how is the situation?” Cang Xu asked.
“It’s going smoothly. Come see.” Zi Di indicated to him.
The wall had many magic images on it, showing the scene of the six pirate ships
on the sea.
On the flagship, the dragonman youngster was making a tour of it.
Zong Ge was conducting training on another pirate vessel.
One of the sails had been damaged by attacking magic beast seabirds, so
Tripleblade nimbly climbed the mast and cut down the rope holding the tattered
sail.
Lan Zao was elsewhere, teaching the fisherfolk how to swab the deck.
Cleaning the deck seemed like a minor job, but it was actually very important.
If there was a storm and the deck hadn’t been cleaned enough, the sailors would
slip easily and fall into the ocean, consigning them to death.
Zi Di presented the screens, “We have awoken all of the villagers and allowed
them to use their physical labor to earn their freedom.”
“We also incorporated the pirates after confirming that these ones have not
seen our true identities, they were all beaten by the swordsman guards. Many
people were frightened by our alchemy arrows.”
The pirates could be said to be disloyal.
Or perhaps, it could be said that these pirates were usually only loyal to
their own benefits.
Between surrender and death, there was no choice for them.  
Cang Xu nodded, some of his worries were alleviated.  
The structure of the group was good.
The survivors’ ranks had swelled by almost twenty times, very few of the
newcomers were worth trusting.
Therefore, they could not wholly rely on either the fisherfolk or the pirates.
These two groups of people viewed the other as enemies, making it easier for
the survivors to control them.
“As for Da Zhao and his men, they have been put to sleep. We used their own
medicine.” Said Zi Di.
Cang Xu coughed, “These people are all top-notch test subjects. What about the
tower spirit?”
Thos who saw the survivors’ true identities would doubtless die.
The ghost girl’s face blossomed with a smile, “Thanks to your method, the
captain disguised himself as War Merchant and succeeded in deceiving the tower
spirit.”
“We not only obtained all of its information, we also subdued the tower
spirit.”
“The tower spirit is in the alchemy cabin, directing the yellow crab alchemy
puppets to refine things for us.”
Cang Xu flashed a smile, and he impatiently asked, “How wonderful. Can I take a
look at the data?”
Curiosity was one of the traits of an outstanding magician. 
In addition, Cang Xu was also a scholar with his own academic aspirations.
“3”
“Of course.” Said Zi Di. “However I am currently driving the alchemy ship,
you’ll have to go to the alchemy cabin on your own. Your authority has already
been elevated by the captain to level 3, you can interface directly with the
tower spirit.”
Cang Xu then took his leave.
Upon seeing the tower spirit, he smoothly looked through the data in the
crystal ball.
But not long after, he grew hesitant and returned to the cockpit.
“2”
Just as he was about to ask, Zi Di had already spoken, “You want to ask whether
this is all of the data? Of course not. It is a portion of it, only a level 2
authority can read it all.”
Cang Xu frowned and began to mutter to himself.
Zi Di watched the necromancer, noticing that his face did not have even a hint
of grievance or indignation.
After all, War Merchant’s data was something the survivors had gained together,
yet the captain and Zi Di had restricted Cang Xu from reading it in its
entirety.
“So, does the restricted content concern the Bloodcore?” Cang Xu asked,
although he was using an inquisitive tone, he seemed very certain.
“Correct.” Zi Di nodded, then asked, “Why do you believe that?”
Cang Xu laughed silently, “There were many obvious clues.”
“In the tower spirit’s database, there was not a single detail related to the
Bloodcore.”
“The Bloodcore was on the third floor of the control tower, while the divine
artifacts were on the first and second, this signifies the Bloodcore is more
important than them.”
“In addition, our Lord Captain personally took away the Bloodcore from
Mystifying Monster Island for himself.”
After pausing for a moment, Cang Xu continued, “The Bloodcore should be the key
to War Merchant’s artificial magic beasts.”
“No, not just the magic beasts, but also the mutating beast people.”
“The Lord Captain was transformed into a mutated beast person, therefore he has
an inseparably close connection to the Bloodcore outsiders like ourselves
cannot even imagine.”
“If my guess is correct, the Bloodcore’s function should be related to
bloodlines?”
Zi Di nodded again, “Indeed.”
The artificial magic beasts ha many kinds of mixed bloodlines, something the
mutated beast person, the young knight, had demonstrated many times publicly
when he “mutated”, these were all clues.
After obtaining the ghost girl’s affirmation, Cang Xu’s conjectures seemed to
be validated, causing his expression to grow faintly excited, “After living and
dying on Mystifying Monster Island, we agreed that we would use the divine
artifacts to redeem ourselves.”
“But now, you two have decided to hide any information related to the
Bloodcore.”
“This proves that this information is more important than the divine artifacts,
the benefits involved are too great, thus you cannot easily trust others with
it.”
“So much so that the empire would pay any price to seize it, and kill anyone
who could speak of it!”
“Don’t tell me, don’t tell me that it…”
“The Bloodcore can alter a person’s bloodline?!”
Cang Xu was rarely emotional, but now he was expressing his openly.
His eyes gazed at Zi Di, his eyes exposing his strong eagerness and
nervousness.
Zi Di gradually grew grave, she was about to speak when the Deep Sea Monster
Fish’s alarms suddenly rang.
The two were forced to cease their conversation, their gaze now fixed on the
magic images.
A pirate ship suddenly appeared in a magic image.
Zi Di and Cang Xu turned glum.  
“Rou Zang!”
“Why is he here?”
“How did he follow us?”
The six pirate ships were sailing past a barren island, when suddenly, a magic
ship suddenly ambushed them from behind the island.
This was a multi-deck ship, it had no masts and now sails.
The bow was smooth and round, like the head of a gigantic whale surfacing from
the ocean.
The hull was immense, and three times the size of any of the pirate ships.
The ship’s main building was a five story tower. The sea breeze was strong, but
the top of the tower was lost in haze and water vapor, none could see it
clearly.
——
These distinct characteristics, along with the ship proportions and the floor
sized pirate flag proclaimed its identity – Rou Zang!
“It’s, it’s Rou Zang!”
“It’s the Bath Tub, Rou Zang has come to kill us!”
“Retreat, retreat!”
The survivors were in commotion, most of them were panic-stricken and unable to
do anything.
Zong Ge grasped his hands together and looked with tiger eyes, “Is it using
concealment mist?”
Rou Zang had been famous for many years for his vicious power, information
about him was spread widely.
The information said that the Bath Tubhad a gigantic bath tub on top of it. The
bat tub was a gold level alchemy tool, if enough invisible medicine poured from
it, the bath tub could produce an enormous amount of invisible mist.
A steady stream of invisible mist could hide the Bath Tuband turn it invisible.
Besides hiding the Bath Tub from eyesight, it could also hide the ship’s aura
and other qualities.
Of course, the Bath Tub was still physically there when invisible. Therefore,
when the Bath Tub sailed through the ocean and stirred up the waves, it would
create a phenomenon people could observe.  
But this time, the Bath Tub had ambushed them after motionlessly hiding behind
a barren island.
The invisible medicine Rou Zang must have been of high quality, it actually
concealed the ship from the Deep Sea Monster’s scanners.  
The Bath Tub stormed at them with astonishing speed.
The dragonman youngster’s troops were very passive, the situation was far from
good.
The distance between each was too close, they could not bombard them.
“Should we retreat?” Zong Ge’s eyes narrowed, he was actually hesitant.
The half beastman did not fancy his chances against Rou Zang and the Bath Tub.
When a battle qi cultivator became a gold level, their battle strength would
soar.
Rou Zang was no recently promoted gold level, he was a renowned and
longstanding peak gold level!
The most sensible tactic was to retreat, abandoning the pirates and fisherfolk
they just recruited to stall the Bath Tuband give the survivors time.
Zong Ge was an expert in military strategy, iron and blood were in his nature,
thus he would not miss these troops.
What made him hesitant was this: if they dove into the sea and escaped into the
Deep Sea Monster Fish in front of Rou Zang, they wouldn’t be able to conceal
their movements from him.
The Bath Tub was obviously also equipped with detection methods.
If they were noticed, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would suffer considerable
damage dealing with Rou Zang.
Extraordinary people lead the world, not extraordinary things.  
Although the Deep Sea Monster Fish was also gold level, and had two gold level
cannons, it was just an object in the end.
Rou Zang was nimble, he could use tactics to break through.
If the alchemy ship was breached, even with the combined efforts of the
swordsman guards, Zong Ge, and the young captain, it would be hard to withstand
Rou Zang.
Besides, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had many riches that could not be lost.
Even if they repelled Rou Zang, the divine artifacts and other things would be
exposed, and the survivors would inevitably be hunted. If the incident on
Mystifying Monster Island was exposed, the pursuers would not only be pirates,
it would also be the far more formidable imperial navy.
“Calm down!” The dragonman youngster quickly left the captain’s room to
stabilize the situation and morale.
“Sail at top speed, we aren’t far from Snake Rat Island.” The Dragonman
youngster roared.
But before he could finish, something strange suddenly happened.
A pirate ship mutinied, it was one the former pirates ad seized control of.  
The survivors didn’t have anyone on that ship, and although the fisherfolk on
it wanted to resist, the pirates on board were screaming, “Do you want to die?
Surrender or die!”
The fisherfolk of Stone Egg Island wavered, then surrendered as their will to
fight crumbled.
The pirate ship quickly changed directions, and sailed towed the Bath Tub.
For a moment, the others were stunned.



****** Chapter 25: The Savage Rou Zang ******
The defectors were an immense blow to the survivors’ group morale
The pirates were growing restless, causing Zong Ge to kill a pirate glancing at
him and howl, “Anyone wanting to defect will need to kill me first!”
The situation was barely under control.
Before the real battle began, this newly established group was already facing
collapse.
The remaining 5 pirate ships went silent, their gazes increasingly evasive,
their thoughts dark.
The Stone Egg Island villagers looked panicked and worried.
The life aura was easy to perceive.
“Boss!”
“Lord Rou Zang, we’ve returned.”
“How wonderful you’ve come to save us!”
The pirates on the ship exclaimed, some were even sobbing.
The two boats were sailing towards each other, and the distance between them
closed quickly.
From the top of the Bath Tub’smisty tower, a sneer was disseminated, “Sail
through them.”
Rou Zang had given the order.
His tone was very calm, yet his order was extremely cruel.
His subordinates complied fearfully.
Thus, the defecting pirates grew alarmed when they saw the Bath Tub looming
before them.
“Bo, boss?!”
“Lord Rou Zang, don’t do this!”
“Turn around, turn around! Turn around now!” 
The Bath Tub was too fast, the defecting pirates had no time to get out of the
way.
A moment before, they were infinitely delighted, now they gazed onwards with
dread.
Bang!
With a loud crunch, the two ships collided.
Step by step, the pirate ship was being turned into tofu dregs by the ramming
Bath Tub.
Countless splinters splashed into the water from two rapidly sinking halves of
a ship.
The fisherfolk and pirates on board were killed upon impact, with the rest
tossed overboard.
They cried out in fear, begged for forgiveness, and pleaded for help.
The Bath Tub crushed them with its hull, bursting brains, splattering blood,
and filling the seawater with a red hue.
Such savage behavior caused the survivors to watch onwards, stupefied.
The Bath Tubrang with Rou Zang’s hearty laugh, the great pleasure he took when
tyrannizing of those people made him feel very cozy.
His subordinates, those grand bare-chested pirates, also savagely laughed.
The pirates on the other five ships, those who hadn’t defected yet, all turned
pale, there was still a tinge of joy in their disbelief.
The fisherfolk were enveloped by fear, causing many to shake from head to toe.
Rumors from the sea had spoken of Rou Zang’s cruelness, and now seeing it with
their own eyes, they now knew such rumors were not baseless!
Zong Ge shouted just in time, “You all saw it, he won’t let any of us go. If we
don’t resist, he will kill everyone!”
Everyone was startled back, each of the snarling and cursing.
“We can’t escape!”
“I’ll fight to the death!
“If the worst is death, what is there to fear?”
The pirates hooted.
The fisherfolk cowered, while the pirates’ vicious nature was aroused.
In this moment of life and death, the more reliable of the two were the
pirates.
Boom.
A gigantic shadow of a man, wrapped up in gold battle qi, suddenly flew out
from the top of the Bath Tub.
The giant looked like a meteor, and smashed into the pirate ship at the
furthest edge of the fleet.
Two legs landed on the deck, the impact creating a wave around him that tossed
ten pirates into the air.
It was Rou Zang!
Everyone was alarmed and furious.
The Bath Tubwas still trailing behind a distance, but Rou Zang was impatient
and decided to leap over instead.
“He knows a flying battle qi skill!” Zong Ge’s rectum clenched.
The biggest qualitative change to a gold level cultivator’s battle strength was
that their battle qi could take form outside their body.
External battle qi was also the basis for flight.
But flying battle qi skills were actually very rare, expensive, and usually not
sold on the market.
But Rou Zang had mastered one, such information had not been known to others.
Since the famously vicious Rou Zang decided to show himself, everyone could now
see his face clearly.
He seemed to have a giant’s bloodline, for his body was over three meters tall.
He was very fat, and really resembled a mountain of meat.
He only wore a white thong, leaving his immense belly and piles and folds of
skin and flesh open to see to all.
In normal circumstances, Rou Zang would at most wear a pirate robe.
He did not need equipment.
Because he cultivated a special battle qi, clothes covering him would be a
hinderance, more so equipment.
“Rou, Rou Zang…”
Rou Zang’s surprise attack filled the pirates with incomparable horror, those
who had been hooting were now hesitating, completely awed when confronted by
Rou Zang in the flesh.
Rou Zang stood above them, looked around, then the corner of his mouth rose
with a cruel grin, “A group of ants, come, take me on.”
Spurned into action by his words, the pirates and some fisherfolk charged at
him. 
Swords, bullets, and crossbow arrows struck Rou Zang.
Rou Zang did not dodge, he did not move, as every attack was swept away by his
rippling fat.  
After weathering all kinds of attacks, he gradually grew annoyed, “You ants
aren’t itching me enough.”
“You’ve disappointed me too much!”
A moment later, his fat began to rumble.
Like waves, his flesh undulated all over his body.
Three seconds later, his entire body suddenly vibrated.
With formless strength, the powerful oscillation from inside and out, surged
out of him.
Battle skill – Meat Ocean Sweeping Wave!
Whoosh…
The shockwave crushed all resistance on the deck.
The masts and cabins seemed to be struck by a hurricane, and were smashed to
countless splinters.
The fisherfolk and pirates surrounding Rou Zang were all dismembered by the
wave, dying on the spot. There were no survivors.
The deck was tossed into the air and the sides of the ship were smashed open.
Cracks rapidly spread across the hull.
The entire ship began to emit a horrifying groan.
A gold level battle skill!
Just using it once had immediately destroyed an entire ship.
Such terrifying might made the dragonman youngster’s group gasp, all turned
pale.
Rou Zang ran his eyes over the devastation, and exposed a satisfied smile.
He slowly turned around, and looked for his next target. 
Boing.
He jumped again, and with his whole body bubbling with gold battle qi, he once
again flew through the air.
Due to the inverse applied force, the pirate ship he wreaked sank into the sea,
until buoyancy brought it back up. The ship hull began to leak, and the
survivors within the hold began to cry for help.
They were doing their best to plug in the leaks, but there were too many.
The ship was slowly breaking apart, its sinking was already ensured.
The next target Rou Zang picked was the pirate ship Zong Ge was on.
With a bang, he smashed into its deck.
“Run, run away!” The fisherfolk and pirates onboard were routed like the tide.
Only Zong Ge was sailing against the current.
It was already too late to retreat.
With Rou Zang in front of him, fleeing to the Deep Sea Monster Fish would only
expose a trump card needlessly.
First let’s fight!
Zong Ge steeled himself, as he took up his broadsword, held up his head high,
and fearlessly walked towards Rou Zang.
Rou Zang gazed at him, showing interest in his bloodthirsty smile, “Human
swordsman, you seem a little fun, come, hit me, don’t disappoint me!” 
Zong Ge was silent as he slowly accelerated into a charge towards Rou Zang.
As he charged, he adjusted his sword grip stance.
With both hands on the hilt, he placed the hilt to the right of his waist,
making the sword blade perpendicular to his body, and the tip pointing straight
ahead.
Silver battle qi flowed quickly through his body in a unique way.
A few breaths later, his battle skill was activated.
Battle skill – Sword Point Assault.
Zong Ge’s silver battle qi exploded, causing his speed to rise dramatically.
Man and sword became one, and like a charging knight, he bravely attacked Rou
Cang.
Ten steps quickly dwindled to zero, and with all of his strength in it, the
point of Zong Ge’s broadsword even glowed with a trace of gold luster.
The broadsword pierced deep into Rou Zang’s body! 
The survivors felt a hint of delight, but Zong Ge’s heart sank.
He did not feel he had impaled the other, rather he felt he had charged through
a swamp that absorbed the strength of his attack. 
After Zong Ge charged in, he immediately sensed the strong elastic force of Rou
Zang’s body.
Soon after, the elasticity bounced back, causing Zong Ge to fly away with his
sword.
Rou Zang smirked malevolently, and aimed his palm at the tossed Zong Ge.
Battle skill – Small Flesh Reverse Palm!
A washbowl sized golden palm shot out towards Zong Ge.
Zong Ge had no time to dodge it, and instantly began to cough out blood.
His entire body flew like an artillery shell. He flew through the side of the
ship, and without stopping, he was flung through it, and with a plop, landed
into the water.
Zong Ge was a peak silver level, but against Rou Zang alone, he couldn’t even
last a single round!
Rou Zang’s battle strength horrified everyone,
“My Lord!” Tripleblade rushed over to dive into the sea and fish out Zong Ge. 
“I can still fight!” Zong Ge inspected his injury as he struggled in the sea.
His injury was not as serious as he thought.
The corset had protected him from most of the Small Flesh Reverse Palm’s power.
The armor was silver level, and had been take from Da Zhao. The dragonman
youngster had given it to Zong Ge earlier.
But now, the corset had been clearly dented by the golden palm, was very
damaged.
“I fear the silver level corset can only stand two or three more of those
attacks!”
Rou Zang had just walked to the edge of the ship’s side, and was just about to
continue attacking Zong Ge when he suddenly paused.
A fire ball shot at him.
Rou Zang extended his finger, using his gold battle qi to detonate the fire
ball.
“Magic?”
“We actually have a magician!”
Many of the fisherfolk joyously shouted.
It was Cang Xu.
Upon waking up, most of his spirit power had recovered, and he still had all of
his magic power.
In order to not expose the Deep Sea Monster Fish while also making it easier
for him to act, he did not hide in the magic ship, but instead quietly swam up
into the second pirate ship Rou Zang was destroying.
After Rou Zang had wreaked this ship, it began to spin in the ocean and slowly
sink.
Upon using his magic, his aura greatly rose, allowing people to easily sense he
was an iron level magician!
“Watch me tear you into two.” Rou Zang cackled, he was just about to turn
around and attack Cang Xu.
But then he saw fireballs shooting like a hail of bullets towards him.
Rou Zang did not have enough time to negate these fireballs, allowing most of
them to hit his body.
The fireballs exploded, causing raging flames to start searing Rou Zang.



****** Chapter 26: He is the Strongest! ******
Battle qi surged throughout Rou Zang’s entire body and wrapped around it,
protecting him from the continuous bombardment.
“He isn’t taking time to cast, is he using scrolls?” Rou Zang’s eyes narrowed,
his killing intent shot up.
Cang Xu was a necromancer, he couldn’t actually use the fireball spell himself.
He couldn’t use necromancy publicly either.
If he cast spells, he would expose his identity.
If they knew a necromancer had come to reinforce them, the morale of the
fisherfolk and pirates would likely crumble instantly!
Cang Xu was using magic scrolls.
The survivors had many magic scrolls in reserve, plundered from War Merchant’
stock.
Compared to casting magic, discharging a magic scroll was quite simple, and
could be cast instantly.
During the fireball barrage, the dragonman youngster rushed over to assist,
while Lan Zao, and Tripleblade, and others continuously fired their alchemy
crossbows.
The fireballs weren’t weak, but Rou Zang had peak gold level battle qi
defending him.
The alchemy arrows from the crossbows had all kinds of effects, such as slowing
Rou Zang’s movements, clouding his vision, and making him feel dizzy.
Rou Zang was severely hindered by the amount of firepower.
“Captain!” A purple gown sorcerer shouted to Rou Zang from the nearing Bath
Tub.
When Rou Zang heard the yell, he furiously bellowed, “Get lost! Don’t do
anything, their resistance is making things more interesting. Hehehe, I will
tear apart anyone who interferes and damages my mood!
The purple gown sorcerer went silent at once,
His aura was very strong, and surpassed Cang Xu’s, for he was a silver level
sorcerer.
Despite not doing anything, the survivors felt a growing pressure.
“Come, lets wound each other!” Rou Zang roared as the battle qi around him
condensed into needles that shot out.
Battle skill – Thorn in the Flesh!
The thin battle qi condensed around Rou Zang, then shot out in all directions.
The dragonman youngster and the others took cover at once.
The battle qi needles were very sharp, and could easily pierce the deck and
masts.
At first, many of the pirates and fisherfolk hiding in the hold felt nothing,
but after a few breaths, they began to scream.
Soon after, these screeching wails changed to dying moans.
As it turns out, as long as these battle qi needles hit flesh, they would
rapidly crystalize into fleshly thorns.
These fleshy thorns would grow inside their bodies, skewing their insides,
killing them gruesomely.
Both Lan Zao and Zong Ge both groaned due to these needles inside them.
Luckily the battle qi within them protected them.
Tripleblade and the dragonman youngster were also hit, causing them to use a
lot of battle qi to protect themselves.
The result of the shootout was obvious at a glance.
Although Rou Zang had lost the initiative, he remained stalworth and with one
attack, now held the advantage.
The dragonman youngster and the others couldn’t rely on their equipment to
salvage the situation.
The survivors’ firepower rapidly diminished in order to suppress their
injuries.
Rou Zang laughed malevolently, and broke away from the suppression to kill Cang
Xu.
But before he jumped back to the other pirate ship, he noticed Cang Xu was
already gone.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di was solemnly and gravely following the
confrontation above.
An opportunity hadn’t appeared all battle, she had no chance to act.
If the Deep Sea Monster Fish was exposed, it would be very troublesome.
If people managed to follow that trial, they might be able to divine the fate
of Mystifying Monster Island and War Merchant.
Zi Di took stook and felt that with Rou Zang’s viciousness and the fact that
his troops were standing by, the hope that the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge,
and the others could defeat him was minute.
The survivors’ key to victory lay with the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
As long as the gold level artillery hit, Rou Zang would not have an easy time.
“It would the best if we could eradicate Rou Zang, clamp down on all
information, and clean away all traces.”
Zi Di could not act rashly, and if she did, it needed to impact the battle
greatly, otherwise it would lead to a bleak conclusion. 
“Found you!” Rou Zang hit the water with a loud splash using his flying battle
skill and attacked Cang Xu.
Cang Xu looked panicked, and did his best to stay hidden.
“He is using himself as bait, tempting Rou Cang near the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.” Zi Di’s eyes flashed, their mutual understanding fostered on Mystifying
Monster Island allowed her to understand what Cang Xu was intending.
However, a moment later, something strange happened again.
Impatient, Rou Zang suddenly sped up and rapidly closed the distance between
him and Cang Xu.
Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster were also in the water, and upon seeing
that, did their best to block Rou Zang.
Despite the obstruction, Rou Zang did not slow down.
Zong Ge used his battle skill, Powerful Assault, but Rou Cang ignored it!
He was naturally both savage and brutal, he wanted to see these people doing
their best to save their comrade, but in the end, be unable to do anything as
he killed their companion.
He was enjoying this. 
“Damm it!” Zong Ge stopped his attack as he looked at his arm.
His full usage of his battle qi and the fierce battle had caused his injury to
relapse. The cut in his arm had split open, causing blood to spray from it in
all directions.
“Rou Zang is too powerful!”
“We have to create an opportunity for the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
Just as Zong Ge was thinking to himself, Rou Zang suddenly clapped his palm.
Battle skill - Small Flesh Reverse Palm!
A golden palm shot out towards the back of Cang Xu.
Seeing Cang Xu could not avoid it and was about to be struck, Zong Ge clenched
his teeth and rushed forth to attack the flying palm.
Ding.
He coughed out another mouthful of blood, the broadsword in his hand snapped
into two, and the silver corset grew deteriorated further. 
When Rou Zang saw Zong Ge’s miserable state, he couldn’t help but expose a
delighted smile.
He looked like a cat playing with a mouse, he deliberately raised an eyebrow at
Zong Ge, then shot out another palm towards Cang Xu.
Cang Xu tore a magic scroll, and fired back with several fireballs to
counteract the battle qi flying palm.
But a moment later, Rou Zang used the battle skill again. 
The flying palm neared again, and with Cang Xu’s internal magic power dying up,
he couldn’t help but despair.
This time, the dragonman youngster interfered, using his body as shelter from
the flying palm.
“No, get out of the way!” Zong Ge was startled, “The flying palm is powerful,
without silver level armor, you will die. Do you really think you really turned
yourself into a dragonman…”
Ding.
Seconds later, the dragonman youngster took the flying palm.
He grunted, and blood flowed from his nose, but compared to Zong Ge, he was in
a much better state.
“Eh?” Both Zong Ge and Cang Xu were stupefied.
Rou Zang was also somewhat surprised, then lost interest.
It was normal for dragonmen to have such defenses.
This was an advantage of the dragon race’s bloodline. Dragon scales could not
completely protect against gold level battle skills, but it was still the best
armor.
The silver level corset could not be placed on the same level as them.
The dragonman youngster was launched back as Rou Zang attacked Cang Xu once
again.
He deliberately slowed his movement to provoke the gaze of both Zong Ge and the
dragonman youngster, savoring their anger and despairing faces. 
Then at that moment, the draconic tongue sounded.
Under the sea, the dragonman youngster closed his mouth, and with a rumbling
throat, began to chant the magic incantation.
His aura began to rapidly increase,
“Oh? Using a racial magic.” Rou Zang cackled, still paying no heed.
He charged at Cang Xu and grabbed him.
He was on the verge of tearing Cang Xu into two.
“I have to use necromancy!” Cang Xu’s hand was forced.
But a moment later, a terrifying blaze of flame sprayed out, the dragon breath
melted flesh away like insignificant snow…
Rou Zang nastily laughed to himself, but then he sensed acute pain, “No, what
is this?!”
Rou Zang had no armor, nor did he decide to evade, thus the dragon breath
covered his entire upper body.
This was no ordinary dragon breath, it came from the legendary bloodline of the
Flame Dragon King.
Rou Zang’s body had always been covered by gold battle qi, but the formidable
defensive layer was almost instantly destroyed by the terrifying flame.
The flame cooked Rou Zang’s body, creating an intense pain that signaled death!
“Ah!” Rou Zang couldn’t help but scream into the ocean.
Seawater did not pour into his mouth.
On the one hand, the flame evaporated the water around him, on the other hand,
Rou Zang’s mouth was also covered by gold battle qi.
He used all of his battle qi to withstand the dragon breath.
Just as the gold battle qi bubbled out, it was scorched away in a flash. 
“Was that really dragon breath?!” Zong Ge was dumbstruck, “What kind of dragon
breath could force Rou Zang into desperate straits?”
Cang Xu was saved, and when he came to, he was also shocked.
At that moment, he completely understood why the dragonman youngster chose to
look that way.
He wasn’t pretending to be a dragoman, he really was a dragonman.
“Boss!” The purple gown sorcerer voice and the sound of his support rang out.
Magic spell – Fear Spell!
A frighted howl reverberated through the battlefield, causing the dragonman
youngster, Zong Ge, and the others to feel their hearts numb with dread, they
were unable to think about anything but fleeing!
Rou Zang took that opportunity to leap out of the sea, and with a meteoric arc,
he returned to the deck of the Bath Tub.
He staggered forward, and almost sank to his knees.
“Little worms, I will return to kill you all. Go!” Rou Zang roared with
unwillingness and fury.
He was a sorry figure as flames still on him had already turned half his body
into charcoal.
Even worse, the flames could not be extinguished and was using his own
lifeforce as fuel to continue to burn terribly.
The Bath Tub fled like a scoundrel.
On the surviving pirate ships, everyone watched in awe.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di let out a breath as her heart finally
relaxed.
Her eyes revealed her pleasant surprise.
Although they hadn’t slain Rou Zang, they also hadn’t exposed the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
How wonderful!
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge got out of the water and returned to their
respective pirate ship.
“We’re still alive, we’re victorious!”
“We actually won?”
“Lord Long Fu and Lord Shi Qi are mighty!”
The pirate ships responded by raising a feverish shout of joy. Countless looks
of astonishment and adoration were thrown at the two people.
Since the fight happened in the ocean, most of them hadn’t seen what the final
comeback looked like.
But the outcome had explained everything.
Regardless of how they did it, they were victorious.
“My Lord.” Tripleblade excitedly ran to Zong Ge’s side.
Zong Ge faintly nodded, then gazed at the dragonman youngster with mixed
feelings.
The dragonman youngster had displayed astonishing battle strength beyond his
expectations, “So, it turns out he is the strongest of us all!”
Cang Xu returned to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
After seeing Zi Di, he immediately asked, “Was the Lord Captain able to
transform into a dragonman because of the Bloodcore?”
“The Bloodcore gave him the dragon race’s bloodline?”
Zi Di did not speak, instead she gave a smile filled with deep expectations.
After staring at her for a moment, Cang Xu decided, “I am ready to acknowledge
his Lordship and offer my loyalty to him!”
Zi Di laughed gently, “Lord Scholar, you’ve made a wise decision.”



****** Chapter 27: Postwar Discussion ******
On a sailing ship, the dragonman youngster held his head high
Traces of blood seeped from his dragon scales, and his chest faintly ached.
Although not broken, he at least suffered a bone fracture.
This had been caused by Rou Zang’s flying palm battle skill.
However, the pain as diminishing.
The dragonman youngster knew this wasn’t a bad feeling, as it was a sign of him
recovering.
The dragon race’s bloodline had a prominent recovery ability, and the Flame
Dragon King bloodline surpassed even that.
Countless gazes focused in on the young man.
His scares did not diminish his grandeur, instead it made others perceive him
as more heroic and braver.
Admiration and veneration filled nearly everyone’s heart.
Rou Zang was an ominous name that propagated deeply into the hearts of men, and
these pirates and fisherfolk had seen with their own eyes the vicious might of
Rou Zang and had despaired before it.
They never expected that the silver levels, Long Fu and Shi Qi, along with the
others working together actually managed to beat Rou Zang! 
Silvers prevailed over a gold level.
This was a rarely seen event.
Fighters had a qualitative change to their battle strength upon reaching the
gold level. Rou Zang was also a veteran cultivator who had defeated at least
ten other gold level fighters. 
But he had lost to the dragonman youngster.
From this, it could be seen how special the young man was!
There was prolonged clamor. 
A pirate excitedly ran to the young man, stooped his head, and asked, “Lord
Captain, what shall we do next?”
The respectful bearing was very different from before.
The dragonman did not speak as he swept his eyes across the battlefield.
Blood dyed the ocean surface red, the ship Rou Zang had already sank was
nothing but hull splinters floating in the waves as many people were struggling
in the water. Some clung to casks, while even more were clutching to planks.
On the remaining five ships, crowds filled the decks. The survivors of this
calamity were celebrating, shaking their arms, shouting loudly, and adoring the
dragonman youngster with pleasant surprise.
On the horizon, the sorry figure of the Bath Tub was disappearing from the
dragonman’s field of view, it had already shrunk to the size of a palm.
“We will berth on that barren island for the time being, clean up the
battlefield, and rescue the survivors.” The dragonman youngster said, then
sighed and added, “After all, I am not Rou Zang.”
The young man’s command was carried out quickly.
Compared to before the battle, his prestige had exploded in growth.
The people began to fish out those overboard, tried to save the shipwreck, and
counted up the damages.
Zong Ge returned to the ship he was responsible for, and with Tripleblade’s
help, they completed their assigned tasks.
Tripleblade and Zong Ge were the only ones in the captain’s room.
“My Lord, the captain can actually transform into a dragonman. I think this
definitely has something to do with the Bloodcore!” Tripleblade guessed.
After the culling of Mystifying Monster Island, the survivors were not dim
lamps.
Tripleblade more so.
Before pledging to Zong Ge, he had been a mercenary group commander, he had
attained the iron level, and had lived a rich life.
Zong Ge nodded, and provided his own analysis, “If he could have used it on
Mystifying Monster Island, he would have done so. This is obviously a new form
of his.”
“He was a transformed beast person made by War Merchant, and on Mystifying
Monster Island, he kept the Bloodcore for himself.”
“The Bloodcore should be the key to making transformed beast people, and after
he mastered it, he grew.” 
Tripleblade replied, “My Lord, the Bloodcore, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, these
were all spoils we captured together.”
Zong Ge nodded, then shook his head, “The Bloodcore is an advantage to him in
his hands. However, it is also advantage to others, for without it, we couldn’t
have forced Rou Zang to withdraw.”
“It would be for the best if it was left with him.”
“Don’t forget, we are comrade-in-arms, and if we hadn’t fought side by side and
trusted each other, we wouldn’t have escaped Mystifying Monster Island.”
“Even if we verified that the Bloodcore is also useful to us…now is not the
time to discuss such things.”
Everyone had consented to atoning for their crimes against the empire. 
Furthermore, the Blood Light Punishment Institution had raided Mystifying
Monster Island, which made the survivors realize how urgent things were.
They had to unite together, collaborate sincerely, and do everything possible
for more time to ensure a greater chance of success.
The goblin nodded, “I understand, my Lord.”
The two did not converse for long, as Zong Ge was summoned by the young
captain.
Tripleblade stayed behind to continue running the ship and preside over the
situation there.
After Zong Ge arrived on the young captain’s ship and entered the captain’s
room, he noticed Cang Xu had arrived there earlier.
The dragonman youngster, the half beastman, and the necromancer were assembled
in this room.
Nevertheless, Zi Di was the first to speak.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish transmitted her voice into the room.
“Due to Rou Zang, we lost one pirate ship.”
“38 people are dead, and 11 are crippled.”
“170 kilograms of food and 22 barrels of potable water have been lost.”
“In total, these cost roughly 58 gold coins.”
“The young captain was calm as he faintly nodded.
Not much had been lost.
On the one hand, Rou Zang’s main goal was not the pirates and fisherfolk,
rather it had been their leaders, Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster.
On the other hand, due to their timely salvaging, much of the food and water
were recovered. After the dragonman youngster’s command, most of the water had
been returned to the ships.
“There are bound to be traitors mixed with the castaways. Pick them out and
execute them publicly.” Said the dragonman youngster. He was charitable, but
not stupid.  
Zi Di immediately responded, “No problem. The entire battle has been recorded
by the Deep Sea Monster Fish, as long as we check the magic images, we can know
who rebelled.”
Zong Ge raised his own suggestion, “Although we forced Rou Zang to withdraw,
his troops are completely intact, and the Bath Tubnever entered the fray. Based
on Rou Zang’s temperament, after he stabilizes his injuries, he is bound to
attack us again.”
“We need to leave this place as soon as possible and go to Snake Rat Island’s
port.”
Snake Rat was the closed island that belonged to the empire. The island port
there had a garrison, a Shen Ming Sect church, and although it didn’t have a
gold level, it had many silver levels and defenses that allowed it to remain
fast in the ocean.
As long as the survivors got to Snake Rat Island, it would be hard for Rou Zang
to touch them.
Furthermore, the Green Jade Gold Coffin had been teleported to Snake Rat Island
by Jia Sha. Recovering the divine artifact was another important goal for the
survivors.
“We are still 750 nautical miles from Snake Rat Island.” Zong Ge’s finger moved
across the sea map on the table, “In other words, we still need three days.”
Da Zhao’s pirate group’s ships were ordinary, and had a speed of roughly 10
knots, nothing special.
If they abandoned these ships and only used the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they
would travel faster and only need two days.
However, the survivors needed a layer of camouflage, and the Deep Sea Monster
Fish was better as a hidden trump card.
It would also be a pity to renounce these ships and people.
Cang Xu nodded and said, “It seems these three days will be quite dangerous. IF
I were Rou Zang, I would attack within these three days!”
Zong Ge replied, “It would be good if we don’t need to expose the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.”
“I suggest we remodel the remaining five ships to deal with a possible
counterattack from the Bath Tub.”
The young captain looked at Zong Ge, “Do you have any specifics to this plan?”
Zong Ge already had a mental outline and let it slip, “We have alchemy puppets,
we can quickly remodel ships.”
“My plan will have most of the people on the flagship, and that we refit the
flagship with oars. In crucial times, we can order everyone to row and
accelerate our speed.”
 
The other four boats can have a skeleton crew, and during that critical moment,
they can abandon ship and use them to hinder the Bath Tub.”
“Although the Bath Tub can turn invisible, seeing how it ambushed us the first
time, its invisibility has a systemic problem.”
“We can use mass long range firepower to block the Bath Tub’s pursuit.”
The early stages of naval battles all started with long range barrages.
But Rou Zang decided to hide behind a barren island and wait until the
survivors’ ships got close before ambushing them.
Zong Ge continued, “We have a gold level cannon, a ship cannon that can be
placed on the flagship.”
We also have alchemy crossbows and firearms, all of these can be given out.”
“If Rou Zang pursues us, we can give him a big surprise with our long range
weaponry!”
“Of course.” After pausing, Zong Ge elaborated, “Those we give crossbows and
firearms must be carefully selected. We have those magic images, we can
investigate that. Whoever did well in the last battle will be issued one.”
“We still need to set up a military equipment storehouse to deposit these arms.
The military equipment storehouse should be guarded by our own people or the
swordsman guards, and only when the enemy appears should its doors be opened.”
The reason why they didn’t give out these weapons was because it was recklessly
dangerous.
The survivors’ fleet was a temporary organization, the will of its people was
still in doubt. If someone betrayed them, they would have used these issued
alchemy weapons against the survivors.
But now, things were different.
Rou Zang’s cruel tyranny and his utter disregard for life was displayed when he
crushed the defecting pirates.
This caused the remaining pirates to become disillusioned, and, after the
previous battle, abandoned such notions.
The fisherfolk also weren’t so lucky. 
Though there was another reason why they weren’t given these arms.
The survivors were worried it would expose their identities as a result.
After all, these things were taken from War Merchant’s stock.
This concealed danger also faded away.
The Deceptive Disguise magic formation had been built to outstanding effect and
the tower spirit had been deceived. It was now personally building an Anti-
investigation and Prophecy magic formation.
The Deep Sea Magic Fish had these two formations, unfortunately they only
affected the alchemy ship itself. 
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation being built could affect
lifeforms.
Zong Ge’s military proposal was very normal, causing the young man to mutter to
himself, “Cannon fodder tactics are not necessary.”
“Even if they abandon these ships, they won’t hold for long.”
“Right now, we seem to only be looking at the damage, when much has been
gained. We have gained the allegiance of these pirates and fisherfolk, their
confidence in us has multiplied.”
“Where does loyalty come from? It is nurtured step by step.”
“If we offhandedly abandon some, it will cause friction between us and those
remaining.”
“Then if Rou Zang pursues us, they will scatter and flee.”



****** Chapter 28: Resting and Reorganizing – Part One ******
Zong Ge coldly snorted and frowned, “There is nothing special about these
people. If we were at a port or a tavern, we could recruit the strong there.
What value is their loyalty?”
The young man shook his head, “There are too few of us. We need more people we
can trust. Although these people are ordinary, they are also easy to recruit.
Even if we recruited more people, we’d need to foster trust between them and us
again.”
“Having expectations for others not only gives those people an opportunity, but
it also gives us an opportunity too. Just as we need to redeem ourselves and
long for the empire to give us a chance, is that not so?”
Zong Ge shook his head but didn’t argue back.
He knew the young man had his own outlook on things. Since the latter’s plan
was already determined, he would not try to persuade him, as it wasn’t
necessary.
To the side, Cang Xu looked pensive.
He was thinking of the Bloodcore.
He had learned of the Bloodcore, Bloodline Purification formation, and other
secrets from Zi Di already.
“Zong Ge believes ordinary people are unworthy to cultivate, because does not
know about the Bloodcore.”
“With this mystical alchemy technology, we can obtain outstanding cultivation
aptitudes.”
“From this starting point, what we need more is trust and loyalty. Only those
who prove they have that will be cultivated.”
Cang Xu soon realized the young captain’s words had an implied meaning too.
People worthy of trust…
Giving others a chance is giving yourself a chance…
Was he not speaking of him, a necromancer?
Cang Xu served as a noble steward for many years, and had seen much deceit,
treachery, and conspiracy, yet now, he sensed the young captain’s words gave
from genuine friendship.
“He believes I am deserving of trust, and is willing to give me, a necromancer,
a chance.”
Cang Xu had already seen the truth.
He could guess what the Bloodcore was and what it could do because Zi Di had
not purposely hidden it. 
If Zi Di had intentionally hidden it, she would have taken advantage of his
comatose state to muddy data on the Bloodcore or perhaps asked the tower spirit
to destroy all data on the Bloodcore.
Zi Di did not do this, instead she acknowledged Cang Xu’s every conjecture.
“Zi Di must have only did this after discussing it with the captain…”
The Bloodcore’s value and importance exceeded even that of the divine
artifacts.
But the young captain and Zi Di wanted to share it. It was evident that of the
two, the young captain was the dominant one.
Cang Xu had to admit, the young man was the first he had ever seen with such
ambitious magnanimity!
Cang Xu’s heart billowed, but his face remained still, and indifferent.
He followed up the young captain’s words with, “I approve of the captain’s
suggestion.” 
The necromancer looked straight at Zong Ge, “Furthermore, I wish to supplement
his point. We need to treat the wounded, I propose that we have the tower
spirit refine some basic medicine.”
They had some treatment scrolls.
The survivors had seized 130 of them from War Merchant’s stock.
But it would be too wasteful to use these scrolls on ordinary people, scrolls
were expensive and could only be used once.
Necromancers could not heal, in fact, not many mages had healing spells.
The survivors controlled the tower spirit, elevating their alchemy capabilities
substantially, and actually could copy magic and manufacture magic scrolls.  
But once again, it was too costly to make.
Not only did making scrolls take materials, but also time.
Furthermore, these magic scrolls had to be used on cultivators. 
In comparison, making medical drugs was the more cost efficient option.
Zong Ge looked at his left arm, the wound on it had already been wrapped up
tightly.
He asked, “Can we now refine silver level magic medicine?”
He had used a treatment scroll, but it had little effect.
Although the treatment scroll was also silver level, it purely used positive
energy and could not permanently mend his injury.
The treatment scroll had too wide an application, its advantage in this meant
its precision was comparatively weak.
Zi Di’s voice came through, “To treat your injury, we need materials, we
actually have some recipes for magic medicine.”
The magic medicine recipes included in War Merchant’s database were, of course.
quality goods.
The young captain replied, “We can buy the materials we need at Snake Rat
Island.”
Zong Ge nodded, then sighed, “I hope they have what we need.”
After all, Snake Rat Island was not big.
“Besides magic medicine, we also have some herbal treatments to allocate.”
Transmitted Zi Di.
She knew many barbarian race medicinal recipes.
These were even cheaper than magic medicine.
It was too much of an extravagance to give magic medicine to ordinary people.
The barbarian race’s herbal cures were more suitable.
After everything was discussed properly, the five pirate ships docked at the
barren island.
Besides the sleeping Da Zhao and his people, everyone gathered together on the
beach.
The dragonman youngster looked down at everyone, and after waiting for everyone
to settle, he brightly said, “We defeated Rou Zang, but as you can see,
shameful traitors have appeared among us.”
“Traitors should not meet an honorable end.”
“Point to the traitors at your side, we shall execute them on the spot!” 
Everyone looked at each other in dismay.
Suddenly, one person yelled, “Him, he is a traitor. He attacked us when he
betrayed us! He killed my fellow villagers.”
In an instant, the people gazed at them.
The shouting person was a fisherfolk. The middle aged man, red with
indignation, was emotionally pointing a finger at a pirate.
The highlighted pirate shamefully took a step back, but a moment later, Zong
Ge, playing the role of Shi Qi, barged in like a tiger charging into a flock of
sheep, and kicked the pirate into the sand. Soon after, he grabbed the pirate’s
neck, and as if pulling a small goat, he dragged the pirate out of the crowd.
The pirate struggled, and despite the hand around his neck, he desperately
shouted, “Spare my life, spare me! I will serve you!”
Shing.
Zong Ge suddenly took out his broadsword and ferociously swung it.
The pirate was decapitated, and a fountain of blood sputtered out.
“The death of traitors…should not be pitied.” Zong Ge had an iron complexion,
his callous method silenced the crowd with fear.
After a few seconds of silence, a series of voices emerged from the crowd.
One after the other, people offered evidence of betrayers.
A pirate suddenly jumped from the crowd, wanting to escape.
Whoosh.
A crossbow arrow flew out, shooting him dead on the spot.
Everyone was startled, then gazed at where the crossbow arrow had come from.
Lan Zao was standing on a boat, overlooking the scene with both hands on an
alchemy crossbow arrow. 
“Running away, running away to where? This is a barren island, there are no
trees here.” Soon after, playing the role of Old Zhong, Cang Xu emerged from
behind Lan Zao and showed his face for the first time.
His body was steeped in a magical aura, making his identity self-evident.
“That’s the Lord Magician from the battle!”
Everyone was intimidated by Lan Zao and Cang Xu.
A few pirates suddenly kneeled to the ground, some wailing in grief, others
begging for forgiveness.
But all were cruelly dragged away by Zong Ge and met their end by the blade.
Seeing that neither flight nor begging for forgiveness worked, the remaining
pirates began to disavow, falsely accuse, and slander each other.
“Eh? This will be hard to handle.” Cang xu feigned embarrassment.
Seeing this, the disavowing of the pirates grew louder.
“Who is right and who is wrong? Who can prove it?” Cang Xu raised his voice
inquisitively.
More fisherfolk stood up.
The situation grew worse for the accused pirates.
“You there, help me, testify for me, I saved your life.” A pirate appealed to
his former comrade.
Reluctantly, the pirate stood up to support his accused brethren.
Some pirates were also speaking up, worried that the fisherfolk were growing
too powerful and would put them at a disadvantage.
Gradually, the fisherfolk and the pirates began to form two opposing sides, and
with their own version of events, quarreled with angrily flushed faces.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge remained silent, and calmly watched this
happen.
The quarrel was growing more vicious, and soon after, the situation went from
cursing to a brawl.
Whoosh.
Another arrow shot out.
A pirate was shot dead where he stood.
Everyone was horrified, and the clamor immediately vanished.
“Don’t be nervous, he was a traitor.” The dragonman youngster said while
looking at Cang Xu.
Cang Xu took out an alchemy device and threw it on the beach.
The alchemy device was a rectangular case. 
The top of the case opened up, and a magic image shined in the air, displaying
a scene of the previous battle to the people.
The scene was detailed and reliable.
Sure enough, the people saw which pirates mutinied and shot the others dead. 
They were shocked when they realized everything was under control by Long Fu,
Old Zhong, and the others. The previous incident was merely some deliberate
indulgence, nothing more.
“Traitors will not be tolerated!” Zong Ge crossed his arms and sneered. He
gazed at the deathly pale and despairing pirate traitors.
Zong Ge looked at the pirates who were supporting them, “Thos who harbor
traitors are also guilty.”
Those pirates began to drip with cold sweat.
Soon after, Zong Ge beheaded every traitor, then punished the pirates who had
blindly supported them.
Some were caned, some were fined, and some were sentenced to do the most
exhausting sailor jobs for a time.
Regardless of whether it was fisherfolk or pirates, all were thoroughly
intimidated.
They noticed that not only had the survivors managed to repel Rou Zang, but
they also had unknowable and mysterious abilities. 
This scene was deeply imprinted on everyone’s hearts.
In the future, anyone who wanted to turncoat would weigh these things.
However, the survivors were not done shocking these people just yet. 
On the beach, Zong Ge organized them, then started initial training.  
Five ships were berthed on the island.
At this time, alchemy puppets appeared.
They were basic maintenance puppets.
There were 8 in total, and Zi Di had deployed 4 of them here.
These alchemy puppets could carry out basic maintenance on the Deep Sea Monster
Fish, as well as conduct emergency maintenance and reinforcement tasks.
The basic maintenance puppets were all battery types that consumed magic power.
Every so often, they needed the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power reservoir
to replenish their energy.
They had a full set of tools, and when carrying out a different maintenance
task, they could switch to another alchemy maintenance tool module.
Now some of their arms had disk hacksaws, some had rivet guns, while others had
humanoid-like fingers that could grasp planks and rope with extraordinary
nimbleness.
The pirates and fisherfolk watched on with wonder.
So, as it turns out, they also had alchemy puppets!”
“They didn’t use their full strength to beat us.”
“When Rou Zang came, they also didn’t dispatch these alchemy puppets.”
The survivors became imperceptibly incomprehensible in their hearts.



****** Chapter 29: Resting and Reorganizing – Part Two ******
The basic maintenance puppets boldly and decisively remolded the ships.
They drilled holes into the hulls, rounded them into circles, and inlayed a
framework for them.  
The interior installations and rooms were demolished, and replaced with long
wooded oars.
The buzzing hacksaws tossed sawdust everywhere.
Rivets were nailed into the hulls.
Seating for the rowers was quickly installed.
Finally, the oars were even wiped with grease, waterproofing and rotproofing
the wood.
The fisherfolk and pirates gradually grew dumbstruck.
Because the construction was going too fast!
The layman’s eye could tell how fast the flagship was retrofitted with oars and
the other four ships were repaired. The hulls and sails were completely mended,
and looked brand new.
“Heavens, those alchemy puppets could open their own ship repair business.”
“Where did they come from?”
“Don’t you know about the alchemy good, called the space bag?”
“I think these alchemy puppets came from the Lord Magician’s space bag.”
The people chittered speculations among themselves.
Afternoon.
“You, also you, come here.” Lan Zao and Tripleblade selected some people.
“Lords, what is your will?”  The chosen people fearfully asked.
“Something good.” Zong Ge kicked open a wooden trunk, causing a large amount of
alchemy weapons to spill out onto the beach.
Alchemy crossbows and firearms!
Everyone was in an uproar.
The pirates eyes glinted, “These are top-notch goods!”
The fisherfolk also sighed, “Heavens, how much are these worth?”
The chosen people each stepped forward to get a weapon.
They were mostly fisherfolk with a few pirates.
“In the previous battle, you killed a defecting pirate.”
“You proved a traitor.”
“You saved three overboard people.”
“In the prior battle, although you didn’t have any military successes, you
listened to every command and did your best.”
As every person stepped forward, Lan Zao or Tripleblade declared their reason.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s strong investigation abilities covered sound waves,
light, and life aura.
The recorded magic images provided detailed evidence.
“We don’t let off any traitors, similarly, we also don’t neglect any merits.”
Said the dragonman youngster.
“These weapons will be temporarily granted to you, and will normally be in
stored in the armory. They shall be given to you during training and battle,
they shall help you all gain even greater merits.”
“When you achieve enough merits, these weapons will be rewarded to you, and
become your own property!”
The dragonman youngster spoke calmly, but it ignited everyone present.
The crowd exploded.
Those not selected threw envious, jealous, and vexed looks.
Those selected seemed to be in a dream, they couldn’t believe such a good thing
had just happened to them.
“You who were not selected, don’t worry.” The dragonman youngster continued,
“In the future, this group will grow.”
A good number of the unselected became eager to prove themselves.
“Good, now lets begin training.” Said Zong Ge.
Everyone was dividend into two groups.
Most of the people were on the beach, continuing to integrate with each other.
A small number of gunners and crossbowmen mingled around Lan Zao as he imparted
his shooting experience on them.
The people were very excited, even those not allocated a weapon, it was obvious
their vigor was raised.
This was impartial reward and punishment, the result of transparent justice.
The survivors had 270 alchemy firearms and 380 alchemy crossbows.
But survivors only distributed 140 of them, and organized a group of a hundred.
This group needed to be broken up into smaller parts, 60 of them would be on
the flagship, with the other ships having 20, 10 firearms and 10 crossbows.
The fisherfolk and pirates combined were around 600 strong, if their entire
stock was distributed, everyone could have a weapon.
But the survivors didn’t do this.
There were three reasons.
First, during battle, the deck and shooting holes in the ship were finite, and
limited the amount of long range firepower.
Second, managing a large amount of people with firearms had a large potential
risk, if they rebelled, the survivors would find it hard to suppress them.
Although they were intimidated now, they were in a tight spot with Rou Zang
pursuing them, and the will of the people could change easily and kill with the
weapon in their hands.
Third, these alchemy weapons were quality goods, some of them were even silver
level. Such high level alchemy weapons could not be used by ordinary people.
Zong Ge, Tripleblade, and Lan Zao worked together to train the pirates and
fisherfolk.
Everyone’s situation was different.
Some people had shooting experience, and mastered them quickly. Others without
any had to start from the beginning, learn step by step, and needed more
practice.
Zong Ge could only concentrate the elite on the flagship.
Besides shooting firearms and crossbows, Zong Ge also trained them in artillery
shelling.
Da Zhao’s pirate group had many ordinary cannonballs, and for training’s sake,
it was necessary to waste some of them.
In training performance, the pirates all greatly surpassed the fisherfolk. But
there were some individual fisherfolk who stood out, after all to live in this
world, everyone needed a military.  
Zong Ge drilled everyone until nightfall.
Everyone returned to the ships, and received the command. They would set out
that very night and leave this uninhabited island.
Because of Rou Zang’s looming pursuit, everyone paid attention to how hard they
trained so that the pirates and fisherfolk had stamina to spare.
Sailor work was often exhausting.
No matter if it was pirates, navy, or merchants, the sailors would work in
shifts.
Because ships needed to be controlled at all times.
The division of labor was explicit, and the one responsible for this was Lan
Zao.
He had lived many years on the sea, not only has a sailor, but also as a former
foreman, he was familiar with this work.
The first shift of sailors set the ships in motion, and under the shroud of
night, sailed away.
The remaining sailors would return to the hold and rest as much as they could.
The ship holds had been remolded by the alchemy puppets, and all illogical
structures were removed, making the sailors more comfortable than previously.
In the large hold, most of the sailors put their beaten bodies into their
hammock and fell asleep.
At this time, alchemy puppets suddenly appeared and gave them ten jars of
barbarian herbal medicine.
“What are these?”
“Can we eat them?”
“Its medicine!”
The alchemy puppets responded, they then instructed the sailors on how to apply
the herbal medicine to wounds.
The sailors took the big pots and looked at the herbal medicine inside, it
looked like dark green mud.
It not only did not smell of the sea, but it also had a foul stench.  
Someone twirled the medicine in their fingers and noticed there were bits of
pounded seaweed in it.
“This is not medicine.”
“Hehe, you wish, can we even use magic medicine?”  
“This looks like a shaman salve, like those used by island tribes.”
The wounded, anxious and frightened, decided to use the herbal medicine, and
immediately felt refreshed and invigorated as the pain of their wounds quickly
dulled. Many of them groaned with relief.
Soon after, the grasp of sleepiness came, and they fell asleep in their
hammocks.
Late into the night, the sea looked like ink, its blackness was incomparable.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish sailed through the depths of that darkness.
A metal door clicked open, and the young captain entered the alchemy cabin.  
The first thing he saw was Zi Di drinking some medicine.
Her body was frozen, and was currently a ghost, therefore it was odd for her to
be drinking medicine.
At that very moment, she was floating above a cup of liquid medicine.
The liquid medicine had many ice cubes in it, and emitted a black vapor.
The black vapor issued a strong negative energy aura, and as it floated up, it
seeped into Zi Di’s ghostly body.
“Lord Captain.” Cang Xu said his greetings first.
Zi Di’s eyes were shut, and she didn’t react.  
“Hello, Mr. Scholar.” The young captain glanced at Zi Di, then at the smiling
Cang Xu.
Attracting this necromancer and giving him the secrets of the Bloodcore had an
element of risk.
But the young captain and Zi Di realized after rationally analyzing it was that
it wasn’t that risky at all.
Cang Xu had always been an asset. On Mystifying Monster Island, without Cang
Xu, no one would have escaped the desert. Cang Xu had analyzed the artificial
magic beasts, and provided many precious and useful knowledge. Without Cang
Xu’s necromancy, Zi Di would be completely dead, and wouldn’t be here as a
ghost.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Cang Xu’s performance also spoke for itself.
First, when they battled the school of fish, without his necromancy, the
survivors would have taken disastrous casualties.
Second, he had succeeded in building the Deceptive Disguise formation, this
immense contribution played a crucial purpose!
It could be said that without Cang Xu, the survivors would have met a bleak end
and wouldn’t be in their current state now.
Of course, Cang Xu did not work hard for others, but for himself.
By protecting the group, he protected himself.
Cang Xu was very calm, and understood the situation that he and the survivors
were in.
Besides Cang Xu’s immense contributions, there was another reason that prompted
the young man and girl to risk danger to recruit him.  
The reason was Cang Xu’s identity, he was a necromancer.
If it were another, they’d be worried about betrayal, being sold out to the
empire, or more.
But everyone cursed and attacked necromancers, how could he rely on the empire?
In other words, Cang Xu’s choices were far more limited compared to normal
people.
This gigantic disadvantage instead became Cang Xu’ hidden advantage.
The young man’s heart had many feelings.
He recalled when they had met on Mystifying Monster Island, at that time, he
was stunned by Cang Xu’s political finesse.
He once felt regret that Cang Xu was only a scholar, not a cultivator,
otherwise he’d be the best candidate for a noble steward.
His solicitation of Cang Xu was rejected, causing him to feel regret.
In the volcano cave, when they were in desperate straits, he finally learned
some of Cang Xu’s past, their first heart to heart conversation.
Then, they fought in the control tower. He didn’t expect that Cang Xu was
actually a necromancer, and with his help in tandem with the others, they had
defeated Jia Sha. Finally, he saved Zi Di and kept hope alive.
Now, after sharing the secrets of the Bloodcore, the enormous benefit moved
Cang Xu, and caused Cang Xu to see the young man’s and girl’s sincerity.
Finally, at last, he became one of the young man’s closest partners!  
“My Lord.” At that moment, Zi Di opened her eyes to see the young captain and
quietly called out to him.
“How are you doing?” The young man stepped forward and asked with concern.
Zi Di slightly nodded, “With the tower spirit, we have an alchemy master. It
refined this magic medicine, it suits me well. After drinking down this cup of
medicine and absorbing its negative energy, my injuries will completely heal by
tomorrow night.”
“However, we had to use all of the corresponding materials in our stock to
refine this medicine.”
“Necromantic alchemy materials are rare on the market, and are difficult to
publicly sell. It will be far harder to gather to materials I need compared to
what Zong Ge does.”
“There will eventually be a way. To this, what do you suggest?” The young man
looked at Cang Xu.
Cang Xu shook his head with a bitter smile, “On the whole, I have to gather all
my necromantic materials myself.”
“Although the comparatively large black market sells some, I am worried it is
the empire baiting me and never touched it.”
“I heard necromancers will trade with each other.”
“Unfortunately, I never met another one.”
Cang Xu was only an iron level magician, and had always done his utmost to
conceal himself.
His caution allowed him to live until now.
The young man faintly frowned.
This problem needed to be solved.
The two people he could truly trust were both intwined with necromancy.
Necromantic sorcery materials, alchemy materials, and other such things were
required cultivation resources.
“Time is limited, we still need to test the Bloodcore first.” Zi Di reminded.  
The reason being, the dragonman youngster had snuck away from the captain room
very late at night and secretly returned to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The young man’s study of the mysteries of the Bloodcore had reached a
bottleneck.
Now that there were two magicians, perhaps they could discover something new.



****** Chapter 30: Exploring the Bloodcore Again ******
Dawn.
The five ships calmly sailed across the ocean.
Far in the distance, where water intersected with the sky, the sun was slowly
rising.
The young captain pushed open his captain room’s door, walked down the stairs,
then stopped to sweep his eyes across the deck.
When the sailors on watch saw him, they immediately greeted him loudly.
The young captain nodded in response, then gazed into the distance at the
morning sun leaping from the sea.
The sunrise reflecting across the world was beautiful beyond imagination.
The fresh and cool nip of sea breeze brushed across his face.
The dragonman’s figure gradually reflected in the crystalline sunlit waves.
He recalled last night’s discussion on the Deep Sea Monster Fish between he,
Cang Xu, and Zi Di, it filled him with greater expectations.
He was only a knight, Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s knowledge in this field was greater
than his.
Although nothing was gained last night, it was only the beginning.
After they learned many things from the young man’s mouth, Cang Xu and Zi Di
had already begun to rework the alchemy cabin’s magic formation to utilize its
abilities to probe the Bloodcore’s deep secrets.
Right now, the young captain had to show himself publicly during the day, both
to rest and guard against Rou Zang attacking them again.
Because of Rou Zang, everyone on the five ships were wary and worked
vigorously, they did not need supervision.
The lookouts did not dare to goof off, they attentively watched the ocean, and
if they noticed any abnormalities, they would immediately signal the alarm.
Rou Zang hadn’t been spotted the entire day, however, everyone had urgently
gathered several times due to the lookouts signaling the alarm.
The young man and Zong Ge let it go, after all these emergency assemblies could
temper the group’s coordination.
The survivors all knew about the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The gold level alchemy ship provided a wide detection range. If Rou Zang’s Bath
Tub pursued them, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would detect it in advance.
This was the advantage of a hidden trump card.
Very quickly, the first day passed without Rou Zang appearing.
At night, the young man once again quickly absconded to the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had been prepared in advance, and showed the youngster to the
center of the alchemy formation.
The alchemy formation was called the Object Differentiation formation.
The most common usage of this formation was to analyze the nature and
components of things.
The alchemy cabin had a basic version. After the tower spirit received Zi Di’s
command, the drafted it anew, adding a small auxiliary formation to it.
Although the power of it didn’t go up, it was easier to control, and the
threshold of usage had been reduced by a large amount.
With a rumble, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power surged into the magic
formation.  
The formation immediately blossomed with a dazzling golden radiance.
Zi Di’s and Cang Xu’s spirits firmly connected to the formation, and an image
formed in their minds.
The image was the interior of the youngster’s heart, and the Bloodcore’s
flickering scarlet blood light.
Despite this not being the first time he had seen it, Cang Xu still clicked his
tongue in surprise.
He manipulated the formation and he and Zi Di began to probe the Bloodcore.
Not long after, sweat dripped down Cang Xu’s forehead, his body slightly
trembled, and his complexion went pale.
He was only at the iron level, and was barely able to manipulate this gold
level formation.
The magic power was supplemented externally, thus only his spirit power was
burdened. Some of the spirit power was also being provided by Zi Di.
After a short period of observation, Cang Xu stopped the magic formation, then
spoke with affirmation, “The Bloodcore and the Lord Captain are intrinsically
linked, it would be almost impossible to separate them from each other.”
“It is the source of his Lordship’s bloodline.”
“If it was forcibly extracted, it would cause irreversible harm.”
When the young man heard that conclusion, he couldn’t help but frown.
The core of the Bloodline Purification formation as the Bloodcore, it could not
be substituted, if it could not be taken out, the Bloodline Purification
formation could not be built.
Without this alchemy formation, the survivors’ aptitude could not be improved.
“Rest first, then we’ll conduct a second test.” Said Cang Xu.
The dragonman youngster did not feel tired, but Cang Xu an Zi Di needed to
rest.
After resting for an hour, the three people carried out a second experiment.
With Cang Xu’s guidance, the dragonman youngster activated the Bloodcore and
emitted the blood light magic.
The blood light magic was quickly absorbed by the magic formation.  
The blue-white formation was quickly dyed red.
“Not bad!” Cang Xu exposed a cheerful look.
Zi Di also relaxed, “Since the Bloodcore magic can do this, it won’t be
necessary to extract it. We only need to build a supplementary magic formation
that can store the magic temporarily. The magic can then be imbued into the
Bloodline Purification formation, and allow it to function as designed.”
Cang Xu nodded, he approved of that method.
“For the next test, I ask your Lordship to use the Bloodcore.”
The test target was an ocean fish, a bronze level magic beast.
During the day, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had used alchemy puppets to catch it.
The young captain first used the Bloodcore to absorb the magic beast fish, then
he used the absorbed bloodline to transform himself.
The result of the transformation was that three long fish scales formed on his
upper arm.
“Wonderful, how wonderful!” Cang Xu not only witnessed the whole process with
his own eyes, he had also been observing it with alchemy equipment.
His voice shuddered with a rarely seen tremble, making his shock and excitement
clear.
Following this, Cang Xu provided a second experimental material.
It was the same type of fish.
It was nearly identical to the fist, and belonged to the same species, however
it emitted a golden luster.
Cang Xu specially ordered the tower spirit to use alchemy to raise this ocean
fish’s level.
After the dragonman youngster absorbed it, Cang Xu asked, “How much of the
bloodline did you absorb?”
Although Cang Xu had the alchemy formation, and could see the Bloodcore, the
one that could control and examine the Bloodcore the most thoroughly was still
the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster replied with, “Less than half compared to before.”
“Excellent.” Cang Xu looked at Zi Di.
Zi Di gazed back at Cang Xu, “This is consistent with our prior hypothesis.
Continue the experiment.”
The third test was like the second, it was still a comparison test.
The dragonman youngster tried to use the Bloodcore to absorb two lumps of
stone.
The Bloodcore could not absorb the first piece of stone.
While the latter could be.
The dragonman youngster understood why, “The latter stone piece was from a
rockman torso?”
“Correct.” Zi Di nodded.
Rockmen were a type of mutated elemental lifeform
Their bodies were made up of stone, and they had humanoid physiques.
The result of this test couldn’t help but make the youngster pensive.
Next was the fourth test.
Cang Xu called out a fish soul, and had the young man try to absorb it.
The dragonman youngster used the Bloodcore again.
After a moment, the scarlet light consumed the fish soul utterly.
After absorbing it, the young man immediate examined the Bloodcore, then said,
“There really is a bit of bloodline, almost all of it belonged to the magic
fish?”
Cang Xu nodded, “I intentionally prepared this experimental material for today.
It is indeed a sea fish I possessed and transformed into a fish ghost.”
The young man nodded and showed a trace of happiness and ease, “The Bloodcore
is effective against ghosts, I never tried it before.”
Necromancy after all was a new school of magic, it was on the forefront of this
era and many streams of necromancy hadn’t been developed into effective
methods.  For example, take the Deep Sea Monster Fish, it had no way of
stopping ghosts, and its tenacious hull could be penetrated by them.
But the Bloodcore was still effective.
This was good news.
Especially for Cang Xu.
But Cang Xu did not seem surprised.
He analyzed, “Today’s experiments validated your Lordship’s previous
conclusions, as well as War Merchant’s research data. The Bloodcore really is
effective against any targeted lifeform. Therefore, it cannot absorb normal
stones, but since elemental lifeforms are also living beings, it could absorb
the stone torso.”
“As for ghosts, they are certainly also a lifeform, it isn’t strange that the
Bloodcore can absorb them too.”
The dragonman youngster was still puzzled, thus Cang Xu continued his
explanation, “There are many kinds of diverse lifeforms, although the most
common is flesh, there are also elemental bodies. Before necromancy appeared,
there were already undead lifeforms. Ghosts were one kind of undead, but unlike
most lifeforms, it is made of negative energy.”   
“The Bloodcore can absorb bloodlines, and essence of bloodlines are that they
are the information of life.”
“For example, people need to mate male and female to reproduce. At the
beginning it is a mere embryo. In a mother, the embryo gradually grows a head,
legs, and other body parts until finally, the mother gives birth, and the
umbilical cord is cut.”
The appearance and figure of people always look similar. Why does an embryo
always grow up to look like a person? Why don’t they grow horns, a tail, or
other things? (Not including hybrid children)”
It is because all embryos contain the same life information.”  
“Human souls are a portion of life. Human souls bear a striking resemblance to
their living appearance, the same physique, without horns, tails, carapace, or
other body parts. This is also because of life information.”
Finally, Cang Xu summed it all up, “In other words, if the target has life
information, the Bloodcore can affect it. Its purpose is actually to absorb
external life information and give it to its host.”
Cang Xu was worthy of being a magician and an old scholar. With only a few
tests, he had deepened the youngster’s understanding of the Bloodcore again.
Zi Di contemplated on the side, “In that case, according to this outcome, the
Bloodcore actually has a wide range of targets. Not only lifeforms, but also
materials from living beings. There are many weapons and alchemy goods that are
built from biomaterials.”
“Fore example, the Solemn Autumn God Bow.”
“It is an elf race divine artifact, the bulk of it is made up of the World
Tree’s branches. Through a series of methods, along with fortune and chance,
this god bow was progressively created.”
“If we used the Bloodcore to absorb the god bow, we would obtain the World
Tree’s life information!”
“Could I transform into a world tree?” The dragonman youngster’s heart shook.
The World Tree was a god level lifeform.
After maturing it automatically was promoted to the gold level.
The World Tree’s fruit was called Planar Fruit. Every fruit contained a plane
within them.
Reportedly, it is said that a long lived World Tree could merge all Planar
fruits together and form a brand new main world!
In the main world, the World Tree no longer existed.
During the elven golden age, the main world had 3 World Trees.
That time was known as the age of the Elven Empire.
The elves were that era’s darling, and lorded over heaven and earth.
The three great elven empires each had a World Tree and fought each other. The
bitter struggle led to the decline of the elven clans, allowing the other races
to spring up. The main world no longer had any World Trees, not even a sapling.
The Solemn Autumn God Bow was made of the few remaining branches of the World
Trees.
The dragonman youngster quickly calmed down, “No, even if I absorbed the Solemn
Autumn God Bow, I would obtain an incomplete World Tree’s bloodline.”
“The ocean fish I just absorbed was transformed through alchemy, causing me to
absorb less of its bloodline.”
“The Solemn Autumn God Bow is main material is World Tree branches, it too has
been transformed a lot and its life information has been damaged greatly.”
“Correct.” Cang Xu nodded, “Alchemical transformation will destroy life
information.”
“However, there is still hope for you to collect a complete World Tree
bloodline, Captain.”
“There are many subspecies of the World Tree that exist in the world. For
instance, there is the Gold Apple Tree, the Living Tree, the War Tree, and so
on.”
Lord Captain, when you eliminated the Flame Dragon King, you absorbed the Flame
Dragon King bloodline. This is a legend level bloodline, however, to complete
it, attacking other Flame Dragon Kings is only possible way.  Another way is to
attack the bloodlines descended from the Flame Dragon King. For example, there
is the Magma Triceratops, the scarlet scaled dragonmen, the Champion Pterosaur,
etc.”
After that was said, the three people grew silent.
Such wide future prospects made the three’s hearts race, they couldn’t help but
imagine the infinite possibilities that such a bright future would bring.



****** Chapter 31: The Bloodcore’s Magic ******
The night dissipated as the sun ascended once again.
The second day of sailing went smoothly, with neither Rou Zang nor the Bath Tub
being sighted.
After waiting till nightfall, the young captain boarded the Deep Sea Monster
Fish again.
Yesterday’s magic tests were mainly about verifying War Merchant’s research
data.
The tests Cang Xu and Zi Di prepared tonight were more focused on determining
the young man’s state.
The youngster considered the first test extremely important. 
Under Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s attentive gazes, the dragonman youngster chanted,
then exhaled dragon breath.
The dragon breath’s intense torrid heat quickly melted a piece of metal.
The temperature in the alchemy cabin rapidly rose, and despite the shining
magic defenses, Cang Xu and Zi Di couldn’t help but jump back when they felt
the blaze.
Upon seeing the metal melt into a pool, Cang Xu’s eyes couldn’t help but
contract.
“This magic has proved to be able to beat back Rou Zang, its powerful might can
match gold levels.” Said Zi Di.
Cang Xu shook his head, “Strictly speaking, this is just a racial spell.”
“The Lord Captain’s Flame Dragon King bloodline is not complete, therefore he
needs to chant first. If he didn’t, would no fire be expelled?”
The young man slightly stared, then thought to himself, “I actually haven’t
tried that.”
“After I transformed into this form, I automatically gained these racial magic
abilities, and knew how I should activate them.”
“As if that was how it was always done, like how people knew how to breathe and
run.”
Cang Xu then said, “It isn’t too late to try now.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Then I shall try.”
He went silent, then stood there awkwardly, “I…don’t know what to do.”
Without the chanting, he had no idea how to activate the Life Scorching Dragon
Breath.
Cang Xu and Zi Di glanced at each other, then the former analyzed, “It seems
the Flame Dragon King bloodline is very damaged.”
Zi Di looked at the youngster and said, “If you were a magician, perhaps you
could have done something.”
“What does that mean?” The dragonman felt how shallow his scholarly knowledge
was compared to the two before him.
Zi Di explained, “Racial magics are similar to normal magical abilities. Magic
beasts can all use racial magics, these are innate abilities of theirs. 
“It is commonly said that magicians research racial magics to ascertain and
create theories and find spells.”
“Magic beasts absorb external elements, harmonize and balance their own magic
power, then over time, they will form a magic crystal within themselves.”
“When magic beasts discharge racial magics, the magic power accumulated in
their magic crystal will act as their power source. If the magic crystal runs
out of magic power, the magic beast’s racial spell will extract magic power
from all over its body. If the magic required is too high, the magic beast will
grow weak, and its bloodline will degenerate.”
Zi Di continued, “For a magician to use magic, two things are necessary. First,
the magician needs to either gather the required magic power, use sorcery
material, influence the world with their spirit, draw support from a magic
formation, or use other such methods to utilize the capabilities of external
elements.”  
“Second, they need to use their spirit to construct a magic model.”
“Only when these two requirements are met can magic be cast.”
“The Flame Dragon King’s Life Scorching Dragon Breath is a racial magic, but
since dragons are an intelligent race, with the Flame Dragon King Clan thorough
research, it has been improved into actual magic.”
“Chanting is a way to cast spells. The variations in tone assist the magic
model’s construction, as well as helping magic power both inside and outside of
the body.”
Hearing this, the dragonman youngster understood it a little more, “I am not a
magician, I don’t know how to construct a Life Scorching Dragon Breath magic
model.”
“But I have the Flame Dragon King bloodline, thus I can activate the magic,
Life Scorching Dragon Breath.”
“However, the bloodline is badly damaged, and I cannot use the racial magic,
Life Scorching Dragon Breath. However, the corresponding bloodline has come
with innate knowledge and with the chant aiding me, I can still use it barely.”
“Correct, it is exactly so.” Zi Di nodded.
After the dragonman youngster understood the process, his heart felt rejoiced
many times over.
He was lucky.
It was only luck that after absorbing the Flame Dragon King bloodline that he
obtained the racial magic, Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
The Flame Dragon King clan’s development was successful, and the relevant
memories were passed on through the bloodline for its descendants. After this
unexpected turn of events, the dragonman youngster benefited from this
research. The young man pondered deeper, “To use Life Scorching Dragon Breath,
I need to chant for at least 3.5 seconds.”

“Currently, it seems I need to improve this ability. I can either absorb dragon
race bloodlines to mend the Dragon King race bloodline to make this innate
ability stronger and easier to use, or I can study sorcery techniques. With the
help of magical means, I can cast use Life Scorching Dragon Breath faster.”
“That’s correct,” Zi Di approved, “IF you become a magician and understand how
to use spirit power to construct magic models, you can dispense with the
chanting process.”
Then Cang Xu said, “Regardless of whether it is racial magic or real magic,
both need energy. I observed in the experiment that, sure enough, the
Bloodcore’s magic reserves have been depleted.”
Cang Xu sighed, “This magic truly is marvelous. It can transform and maintain
the shape of a lifeform, while also being able to consume living beings for
energy.”
“What magic or divine spells can do this?” Cang Xu asked.
The young captain stared blankly, then awkwardly rubbed his nose and replied,
“I am not a templar knight.”
Cang Xu shook his head, “I have another question, can the Bloodcore absorb
battle qi?”
The young captain brow’s furled, “The Bloodcore is only effective on lifeforms,
battle qi and magic power are types of energy.”
But Cang Xu replied with, “The Bloodcore can act as a substitute for magic
power, and active racial magics. Why can’t magic power be used instead of the
Bloodcore’s magic?”
Zi Di also muttered to herself, “Currently, we know that the Bloodcore’s magic
grows by absorbing lifeforms. For now, we still don’t know the limits of how
much magic the Bloodcore can store.”
“The Bloodcore was developed by War Merchant, we can regard it as a successful
piece of alchemy magic.”
“It absorbs bloodlines while simultaneously drawing the internal energy from
its target. This hypothesis is based on the fact that all who had their
bloodlines absorbed always turn into a pile of ash.”
“If the Bloodcore does not absorb the target’s internal energy, their flesh
wouldn’t turn to ash and instead have some energy left over, causing the
remains to look differently.”
“Based on this, the Bloodcore can absorb battle qi, magic power, and so on.”
The young man was dumbfounded for a time.
He looked at the ghost girl and necromancer, and began to share the joyous news
of the Bloodcore.
“Our harvest was great from War Merchant’s data. Although many of the
Bloodcore’s secrets were considered by War Merchant to be ordinary and basic,
there were priceless to me.”
“Why didn’t I think of this myself?”
The young man soon sank into another period of reflection.
Why didn’t he think of the possibility that the Bloodcore was effective against
battle qi?
He seemed to always unconsciously neglect this.
Why?
Firstly, I was always trying to survive and mentally exhausted on Mystifying
Monster Island. Secondly, the Bloodcore’s magic was always enough, I didn’t
need an additional source. Thirdly, my body never reacted to the Bloodcore’s
magic. Fourthly, I was always worried the Bloodcore had some mysterious danger
and never thought to use the Bloodcore to absorb myself or even my own battle
qi!”
In fact, due to Mystifying Monster Island magic prohibition, even if the young
man thought about testing it, he had no means of using his own battle qi.
When all said and done, could the Bloodcore affect battle qi?
Cang Xu and Zi Di soon thought of a way to test this.
They found two dead fish, silver level magic beasts. The fish were frozen lumps
when they were placed into the center of the alchemy formation.
Cang Xu then gutted the magic crystals out of the fish while using the alchemy
formation to dispel their remaining internal magic power.
Zi Di was on the side aiding him.
A moment later, the two obtained two cleaned fish corpses.
“Please imbues this fish with battle qi, my Lord.” Cang Xu instructed. 
The young man did so.
Upon receiving the White River battle qi, the dead fish immediately rejected
it, causing the battle qi to wreak havoc on the bodies while dissipating
outwards from them.
“Now, please use the Bloodcore to absorb it.”
Seeing the Bloodcore successfully absorb it, Cang Xu then said, “My Lord,
please absorb the other fish. Pay attention and compare the amounts of magic
energy you receive from either fish.”
After the young man did so, his face twitched, “Although I cannot accurate
assess the amount of magic, I did get more from the first fish.”
Zi Di looked at the two tiny piles of gray dust and said, “We don’t detect any
energy dissipations, this proves battle qi can really be absorbed by the
Bloodcore.”
The young captain exposed a smile. “It seems battle qi can replenish the
Bloodcore and be converted into its magic.”



****** Chapter 32: Life Scorching Dragon Breath ******
“We still need to experiment.” Zi Di thought for a bit, then soon after planned
out the next test.
She found an alchemical material, it did not come from a lifeform.
The young man imbued it with battle qi, damaging it to a degree.
Soon after, he targeted the alchemy material and used the Bloodcore to try to
absorb it.
Failure.
“Can it not just absorb the battle qi?” Zi Di quietly asked herself.
Cang Xu slightly nodded, and continued to infer according to Zi Di’s notion,
“Then we need to design an alchemy object that can temporarily store battle
qi.”
Zi Di then said, “We can find a magic power crystal. If a magic crystal can be
absorbed by the Bloodcore, then that will be proof that battle qi can be
converted into Bloodcore magic.”
Magic power crystals are things made of condensed magic power.
Magicians will frequently create crystals of their own magic.
Normally, they will carry a stockpile of these crystals. During emergencies,
when they need to replenish magic power, these crystals can easily be absorbed
back into themselves.
Apart from this, magicians will fill the bodies of lower-end magic puppets with
these crystals as a power source for the puppets.
Cang Xu nodded, “That is a way. But the best proof is still testing for the
seizing of battle qi.”
“Actually, the situation is very clear.”
“The Bloodcore’s magic is a super standard energy, far more advanced than most
magic power and battle qi.”
“The former can take the place of the latter two, while the latter two can be
converted into Bloodcore magic.” 
“By understanding this mystery, we can take a step closer to refining our own
Bloodcores.”
Cang Xu’s ambitions were quite great.
Although they had the bloodline purification formation, he understood that the
brightest future lay with him refining his own Bloodcore!
Cang Xu looked at the young captain, and reminded him, “Although currently the
Bloodcore does not seem to harm the host, we have seen that after War Merchant
made it, he did not have it on his person, instead he placed in an external
place.” 
“He should’ve had some apprehensions.”
“My Lord, please don’t use the Bloodcore recklessly. You are our leader and
banner, you cannot dive into danger brashly.”
“I understand,” The young man nodded, he too knew how important he was to the
entire team.
“Good, the let’s proceed to the next experiment.” Cang Xu faintly smiled.
The night quickly passed.
The young captain reluctantly left the Deep Sea Monster Fish and quietly
returned to the captain’s room to rest.
If it was possible, he wanted to spend the entire night researching the
Bloodcore with Cang Xu and Zi Di.
One person lacked wisdom, while three people combined managed to make clear
progress far faster.
“Tonight’s research not only established the relationship between the
Bloodcore’s magic and battle qi, I also tested out the Life Scorching Dragon
Breath’s true might.” The young captain was filled with the joy of gains.
The Life Scorching Dragon Breath was an ability of the Flame Dragon King clan,
not only was it extremely hot, it could also easily melt steel, consume the
air, and even had special effects on living beings.
It used living beings as fuel, and the more vigorous the target’s vitality was,
the stronger and longer its flames burned.
Cang Xu assessed, “It is the distinctive finishing move of the Flame Dragon
King clan.”
“If Rou Zang is unable to extinguish it completely, he will have a terrible
time.”
According to the necromancer’s analysis, Rou Zang was a monk who cultivated
battle qi, he had an especially formidable physical body. His rather unusual
cultivation method seemed to focus on his physical strength, so much so that he
never wore anything or used any weapons.
Such vitality in a cultivator obviously exceeded other gold levels, however as
it turns out, it was restrained by the Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
“I hope the Life Scorching Dragon Breath troubles Rou Zang enough for him to
abandon his pursuit of us.” The young captain thought to himself as he fell
asleep.
He longed for a safe and tranquil world around him.
As long as time allowed, he and the other survivors could ingest and consume
the gains from Mystifying Monster Island, allowing their strength to increase
by leaps and bounds.
When that time came, Rou Zang would be nothing, for they wouldn’t even fear
saint levels.
Under the cover of night, the winds and waves grew stronger.
In conjunction with the whistling wind, the waves slapped and rocked the ships.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was quiet, after all it had magic formations to help
isolate its interior for sounds.
But on the contrary, such a noisy environment let the young man sleep easy.
Silence meant nothing could be heard.
In the noisy rough waters, although the youngster was asleep, he remained
vigilant. If there were any abnormalities, he would awaken quickly.
Meanwhile, as the waters turned more turbulent, so too did Rou Zang’s
irritation.
Ding.
With a dull echo, he slapped the pirate who was showing him into the air.
The pirate landed onto the deck, clutching his chest and coughing blood, then
his eyes rolled over and he died. 
“Ah…despicable!” Rou Zang gnashed his teeth as he roared.
He lashed at the water with his arms, creating loud splashes.
He was standing in the bath tub.
The gold level alchemy tool was known as a magical medicine bath tub
Magic medicine poured into it had their potency increased by ten times.
The bath tub was enormous, and had to be exposed to absorb external elements,
thus it had to be on the ship deck on the top of one.
To activate this gold level tool, most of the Bath Tub’smagic power reservoir
was required. 
Despite its great expenditure, the magic medicine bath tub was very practical.
Regardless of whether it was for cultivation or healing, Rou Zang benefited
much from it.
However, this time, the magic medicine bath tub’s healing efficacy was not up
to his wishes.
At this moment, Rou Zang was in its basin, his upper body exposed while his
lower half was soaking in ice blue liquid medicine.
“Spare me captain!” The other pirates attending his healing bath fell to the
ground in fear.
Upon hearing the commotion on the deck, the purple robed warlock floated to the
top.
“My Lord.” When the warlock saw Rou Zang’s enormous body in the white medicinal
mist, he quickly bowed his head while simultaneously looking around to see the
dead pirate.
He was not surprised, for he was well acquainted with Rou Zang’s brutal
temperament.
Rou Zang narrowed his eyes, and his mood became fouler.
It was because when he barely took a step out of the liquid medicine, his upper
body began to grow hot and small flames started to bloom on his body.
“Mo Kong, you said it was called Life Scorching Dragon Flame?”
Warlock Mo Kong fearfully lowered his head further, he could sense the rage and
hate in Rou Zang as he promptly replied, “Yes, captain. This dragon breath is a
finisher of the Flame Dragon King clan, that dragonman is no simpleton if he
possessed such a bloodline.”
“Humph, that hybrid…I will personally tear him to shreds so I can dispel my
furious hate.” Rou Zang’s face twisted, “Tell me, how long must I soak for, why
haven’t these flames dissipated yet?”
Faced with this solemn duty, Mo Kong’s prudence increased as he cordially
explained, “Captain, we have already used the best core cooling medicine, along
with the slow release Eastern Frost Melon pain pills. These are silver level
medicines.”
“As it seems they have not completely dispelled the flames, there can only be
one reason.”
“Hehe, you had best explain it thoroughly then.” Rou Zang grew ashen.
“Your strength is too great, captain!” Mo Kong shouted at once.
“Eh?” Rou Zang’s face muscles trembled, “What are you saying?”
Mo Kong continued to explain, “The Life Scorching Dragon Breath is mighty, and
has a special effect on lifeforms, for it uses living beings to fuel its
terrifying flames.”
“If almost any other gold level used this medicinal bath, they would definitely
cleanse it away.”
“But you are different, my Lord.”
“First, you are a fighter that cultivates battle qi through the life force of
the physical body beyond any sorcerer. Second, your cultivation method is from
the Eastern Imperial Great Pain Temple, experts at cultivating physical
strength through pain, and even disdain armor to do so.”
“Now, these flames hide inside your body, it is very difficult to deal with
them.”
“But as long as you continue to bathe, you can suppress these flames.”
“As long as we make landfall and find a gold level ice treatment medicine, we
can completely cleanse the flames from you!”
“Find an antidote?” Rou Zang’s eyes instantly glared like that of a starving
tiger choosing a person to devour.
He slammed his fist down, causing water to splatter everywhere.
“Leave that for later!” Rou Zang growled, “Don’t tell me that I’ll be letting
that wretched dragonman go?!”
“Chase, give me chase!”
“I will dismember those people into ten thousand pieces with my own hands.
Especially that dragonman, I will break every bone in his body, and peel off
each of his dragon scales!”
“Call hands together.” Rou Zang slowly squatted, then sat in the basin, his
back against the bathtub, “This time, I will use everything!”
“Understood, captain.” The warlock, Mo Kong, responded at once as he withdrew
covered in cold sweat.



****** Chapter 33: Fighting Rou Zang Again ******
The sky was cloudless.
The azure sky and dark blue ocean looked at each other, the former bright and
empty, while the latter affectionately lapped the sky with its great waves like
it was whispering words of love to it.  
In the captain’s room, the cool sea breeze opened a window and lightly caressed
the young man’s solid and tenacious red dragon scales.
At that moment, the young captain was moving an ink quill and a surveyor’s rod
across the ocean chart on the desk before him,
He was trying to calculate the position of the five ships.
This was maritime navigation work, but the youngster never let any chance to
learn slip by.
“Our current position should be here?” The young man had his answer, but he
didn’t dare to affirm it.
He softly sighed to himself, “Reportedly, the imperial navy already provides a
complete map of all oceanic activity. This alchemy tool can automatically
calculate the position of a ship on its ocean map. High ranking naval officers
and general headquarters have an active ocean map that can tag the positions of
navy vessels.”
“It seems I had better obtain this kind of map.”
“Tower spirit, please inform me where we are now.”
Using an alchemy device, he secretly called the tower spirit.
The tower spirit responded a second later.
After obtaining the correct answer, the youngster slightly frowned, “My
calculation was wrong.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s surveying abilities were better than the active
ocean maps, and could provide objective answers. 
The dragonman youngster pondered, then not long after, his brows relaxed as he
roughly realized where he had gone wrong. 
“Let’s compute it again.” Just as he was about to, he heard the tower spirit
secretly transmit something.
Enemy detected, Bath Tub detected!
The dragonman youngster’s heart skipped a beat, as his eyes burst with
determination, “They have finally come.”
A moment later, he ordered the tower spirit to notify everyone of the coming
battle.
The young captain was the only one with captain level authority, and was the
first to learn of any new information.
Soon after, Zong Ge, Cang Xu, Zi Di, and the others also received this urgent
news.
Through alchemy devices, Zong Ge’s voice was transmitted to the others’ ears,
“I really want to know how Rou Zang tracked us down this time.”  
“Last time, it can be said that he predicted our sailing route in advance. This
time? We deliberately deviated our route a few times.”
Cang Xu replied, “It is possible Rou Zang hid a mole in our people. The pirates
are experts at developing informants, because they need to inquire accurate
information on merchant ships.”
Zi Di sighed, “It seems we need to strengthen our surveillance of our crew. It
has already been three days, how far are we from Snake Rat Island? Can we stall
for time and throw off the Bath Tub?”
If it was possible, war was to be avoided.
This was a consensus the survivors had reached earlier.
It had always been Zong Ge’s opinion.
After all, when they fought Rou Zang last time, besides the young captain’s
Life Scorching Dragon Breath, the other reason they had won was because Rou
Zang greatly underestimated them!
As for the survivors, the more time passed, the more they could absorb the
spoils of Mystifying Monster Island. Furthermore, the more prepared they were,
the stronger their battle strength would be.  
The dragonman youngster carefully glanced at the ocean chart, then shook his
head as he regretfully replied to Zi Di, “Rou Zang is an extraordinary
character, and the distance between us and Snake Rat Island is not close
enough. Snake Rat Island’s defensive patrol fleet might not cover a large area,
and before we enter Snake Rat Island’s warning range, the Bath Tub will catch
up to us.”
“Prepare for battle!”
The gigantic Bath Tub pulverized all sea waves that had the guts to intercept
it, and as its invisibility fog gradually dissipated, it began to look like a
hunting lion that was beginning its final fatal sprint towards its prey.
The distance between both parties quickly diminished.
Rou Zang sat inside the bathtub on top of his ship, and gazed at the survivors’
five ships with a malevolent gaze, “Wanting to escape? Attack for me!” 
The silver level warlock, Mo Kong, stood on the forefront of the deck, a row of
robust men behind him.
These robust men had a faintly interconnected aura, each of them holding a
cutlass and a circular shield with unassailable vigor.
People moved across the survivors’ five ships, with sailors climbing masts and
pulling back sails to prevent artillery shells from damaging them. If the sails
caught fire during the battle, it would greatly threaten the ship. Others were
rushing to the armory to take out their weapons, then make their ways through
the narrow passageways. Some were rushing across the deck, while others manned
the cannons. 
Thanks to Zong Ge’s training, despite their hurry, these people still remained
orderly.
“Too slow, they need more training!” Zong Ge looked on gravely, he was not
pleased with the sailors’ performance.
Luckily there was sufficient time for the survivors.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had warned them on time, while the lookouts on the
five ships hadn’t seen anything strange yet.
Upon dropping the sails, the five ships’ speed abruptly slowed.
They were continuing on the same route, towards Sanke Rat Island, however, the
five ships slightly adjusted their trajectory.
They began to zig zag, doing their best to keep a lateral side towards the
pursuing Bath Tub.
This was the most common tactic in naval battles, zig zagging.
By adjusting the direction of the ship, they would point their lateral side
towards the enemy as much as possible, because the lateral side had the most
cannons and allowed the ship to display the most firepower possible.
Bang bang bang…
The five ships fired in succession.
Smoke rose as ten shells streaked across the air towards the Bath Tub.
Rou Zang sneered, unconcerned.
The pirates on the Bath Tub also exposed relaxed looks.
Zong Ge’s gaze sank, the artillery shells were infrequently and unevenly fired,
with some being deviating wildly off target, it was obvious how this fight
would turn out.
As expected, most of the shells hit empty water, causing ripples in the ocean
far from the Bath Tub.
A few shells were lucky enough to sporadically hit the Bath Tub.
The warlock, Mo Kong, leisurely extended a finger, and in an instant, his aura
rose dramatically as purple light burst from his fingertip.
Purple light fired out again and again, accurately shooting down all of the
artillery shells.
“Their training is insufficient, we cannot make a cannon barrage!” Zong Ge
couldn’t help but clench his fists.
In naval battles, artillery bombardments were very crucial.
Sometimes, if an artillery bombardment was strong enough, it would prevent the
enemy from doing anything and even sink them.
The survivors’ subordinates lacked too much training.
Most were fisherfolk while a few were pirates, and although the pirates were
better, they hadn’t used cannons for long. There were only a few with actual
bombardment experience.
However, due to the accuracy and range limitations of ordinary cannons, even if
they were manned by trained hands, in most cases, they wouldn’t have hit their
mark either.
Therefore, a volley of fire was very important. It could form a comparatively
tight barrage that made up for the deficiency in accuracy.
Round one, round two, round three…
The cannons constantly fired, but the battle result was pathetic.
Mo Kong was personally on the defense, and his light rays never missed. Even if
one did slip through his net and smashed into the Bath Tub, the silver level
magic ship was a bulwark, causing any cannon ball to bounce off.
Zong Ge received a score of terrible news.
Cannons were blowing up, careless gunners were getting bruised by rebounding
cannons butts.  
Zong Ge could not make up for these battle losses.
Because he didn’t have a group ready.
The only thing positive news was that the Bath Tub’s own bombardment was not
that strong.
“A fleet ahead to the left!” The tower spirit warned during the chase.
“Is it Rou Zang’s men?” Zong Ge’s eyes flashed.
Rou Zang did not only have the Bath Tub. He was a pirate commander and had many
smaller pirate groups under him.
His group had ten other pirate ships working together.
Earlier however, because the Pirate Throne had appeared, to contest for pirate
divinity Rou Zang had dispatched them all to murder and plunder.
After that, the survivors defeated Da Zhao’s pirate group annexed them, and
since Rou Zang’s Bath Tub was faster, it went by itself to stop the survivors.
The survivors were very vigilant, and after temporarily repelling Rou Zang,
they didn’t make excessive stops and instead rushed directly towards Snake Rat
Island.
Due to myriad reasons, the Bath Tub was now briefly alone.
Therefore, Zong Ge guessing these were Rou Zang’s people was normal.
If his guess was correct, then the survivors’ situation would come worse.  
It does not bear Rou Zang’s pirate group’s flag.” Replied the tower spirit.
“Don’t tell me its Snake Rat Island’s patrol fleet?” Zi Di chimed in.
“They also do not bear the imperial flag either.” The tower spirit then began
to describe the mysterious fleet’s flag.
The main feature of the flag was a gigantic clam with its mouth open, and
inside the clam’s mouth was a bolt of cloth. The bolt of cloth was smoothly
curved and looked like it was made of silk that flowed like a stream.
Zi Di immediately realized what it was, “That fleet should belong to the Clam
Cloth Merchant Alliance.”
“The flag depicts a spitting cloth clam, a magic beast the Clam Cloth Merchant
Alliance meticulous breeds. Its clam meat is a special alchemy material that is
used in the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s exclusive alchemy industry to make
fine cloth.”
“The quality of the magic cloth can go up to the legend level, and is the best
raw material for magic robes on the market currently.”
“The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance used it to become rich.”  
“Of the six imperial merchant alliances, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance has
the most ships.”
“After the empire started their expedition to the Wilderness Continent, all of
the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance entered the maritime trade there. They had the
biggest advantage, and at present time, are the liveliest Merchant Alliance on
the sea.”
Zi Di’s father founded the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, an organization that
once could have dared challenge the six great merchant alliances of the empire.
 
Zi Di came from a merchant family, and was now the president of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance, thus she knew of the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance.
“Since this is one of the six great merchant alliances, their strength must be
considerable. We are people of the empire, we can seek aid from them!” Zi Di
proposed.
The survivors immediately changed their flags, and made their identity plan as
they transmitted flag signals beseeching help.
“Lord He Fu, that party is asking for help.” A lookout on the Clam Cloth
merchant ship immediately reported.
As leader of this fleet, He Fu was also a gold level cultivator.
At that moment, he was standing on the side of the ship, looking out with a
telescope at the pursuit in the distance.
“That’s the Bath Tub and Rou Zang.” Said He Fu as he handed the telescope to
his first mate.
The first mate took a look, “I only see the Bath Tub, where are Rou Zang’s
other subordinates? I only see the silver warlock, Mo Kong, currently.”
“Its no wonder Snake Rat Island’s lord, Tan Qiu, issued a bounty on Rou Zang.
Truly rampant, this is Snake Rat Island waters, yet he is openly pursuing an
imperial ship, and with just the Bath Tub besides. He does not put the empire
at all in his eyes.” The first mate said indignantly.
He Fu gravely replied, “The Pirate Throne has appeared, thus every pirate in
the world has gone wild. Recently, one of our fleets was plundered, while there
have been many islands that have been coldly slaughtered.”
“Adding on that this is within Rou Zang’s operational zone, him showing up here
is not strange.”
“Rou Zang really has the capacity to be this arrogant. He is from the Great
Pain Temple, and is a veteran gold level cultivator. His physical strength has
tyrannical might. If I fought him alone, I would not be his opponent.”
“As for why there is only the Bath Tub, it might be due to speed.”
“The Bath Tub is a magic ship, it is faster. If Snake Rat Island dispatches
ships, Rou Zang can still escape easily.”
When the first mate heard He Fu’s explanation, he suddenly realized that He Fu
had no intention of helping.
To him, these five imperial ships were ordinary, their speed was bad, and their
bombardment battle quality was even worse.
If they didn’t help, the conclusion was self-evident.
He sighed and did his best to win the other over, “Lord He Fu, if we sit and
watch unconcerned, would that not make Rou Zang think we are afraid of him? In
the future, won’t he attack our Merchant Alliance fleets?”
He Fu shook his head, “We just resupplied at Snake Rat Island, and still
haven’t reached Eruption Island. Our ships have tons of goods. If they are
damaged, how will we compensate for them according to our merchant alliance
rules?”
“Don’t think these people can be saved.”  
“That’s because the Bath Tubdoes not have powerful long range firepower. When
in pursuit stance, only the ship’s bow cannons can be fired.”
“TheBathtub is focused on hand to hand combat and broadside tactics. Their
sword and shield grapplers are infamous.
“Look, that battle group is coming over.”
“Those five ships are finished!”



****** Chapter 34: This Goes Against Common Sense! ******
Three catapults were rolled out onto the deck of the Bath Tub,
The sword and shield crew behind Mo Kong climbed into the catapult buckets of
their own accord.
Thump, thump, thump.
The catapults fired, quickly shooting each sword and shield fighter across the
sky and onto the decks of the five ships.
These sword and shield fighters were at least bronze level, while their leaders
were iron levels.
More crucially, they cultivated the same battle qi, if they used their battle
skills together, their might would combine to become more powerful than if done
separately.
Rou Zang had been committing rampant piracy on the waters for many years, he
naturally had good underlings.
Seeing that the swordsmen had landed successfully, Rou Zang exposed a pleased
smile.
On the Clam Cloth Merchant group, the first mate turned pale, he couldn’t bear
to watch the calamity unfold.
“Formation!”
The sword and shield lead fighter growled, causing seven to eight people to
assemble by his side.
They activated their battle qi, and used a defensive battle skill.
The battle skills condensed into a united whole, forming a more formidable
defense.
“It’s never been this easy.” 
“Not a drop of resistance!”
“We need to be careful, the stronger people haven’t appeared yet.”
The swordsmen softly exchanged with each other as they killed everyone around
them. Then suddenly, the sailors took out crossbows and firearms.
The swordsmen who were cackling suddenly stiffened.
They sensed things had gone terribly wrong.
These crossbows and firearms had a strong aura!
A moment later.
Swish, swish, swish.
Bang, bang, bang.
A succession of alchemy arrows and bullets shot out.
“Erk!”
“Ah!”
“……”
“I…”
The sharp arrows and bullets penetrated their defensive battle skill, riddling
them with innumerable holes. The shields they carried could only last a few
seconds as, one after the other, they were beaten apart.
The swordsmen were turned into corpses that fell onto the deck, their
malevolence, wrath, and fear, but above all, shock and astonishment, visible on
their faces.
Who could have thought the other party had so many alchemy weapons?
It was against common sense!
On the Clam Cloth fleet, He Fu and the first mate blankly stared at this.
“Is that no ordinary imperial ship?”
“Where did they get so many alchemy crossbows and firearms?”
After assessing the value of these firearms somewhat, He Fu was even more
perplexed.
These weapons were sufficient to give to imperial elite units, yet they
appeared on these five rotten ships, and in the hands of ordinary sailors no
less.
Who were these people?
“What’s going on with these people? We need to investigate them.” He Fu said to
the first mate as his brows creased.
The first mate also frowned, “They don’t have a flag that makes it obvious.”
“Should we assist them?”
He Fu’s rejection this time was firmer, “No! The swordsman battle squad
suffering disastrous damage will surely offend Rou Zang. We should leave
without delay. Although these people have alchemy weapons, they don’t have
strong cultivators, thus when faced with the brutal Rou Zang, they will meet a
miserable end.” 
“Alright.” Although the first mate was unwilling, he could only obey the order.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance altered their course substantially, quickly
and deliberately putting distance from this battle.
Seeing their flag signals and movement, the survivors all knew the other party
did not plan to help them.
“Those wretched dregs!”, Rou Zang bellowed as he dented the medical bathtub
with a thump.
He had painstakingly grown this swordsman squad, they had many merits and were
considered the most competent group of Rou Zang’s subordinates. But after
losing most of them, he became distressed.
Boom.
Rou Zang jumped from the top of the ship and leapt into the air towards the
survivors, ready to kill them.
Thus, at the same time, the warlock Mo Kong also flew up and began to cast.
“As expected, Rou Zang went out!”  He Fu’s eyelids trembled as he watched.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge appeared, along with
Cang Xu who began to tear apart scrolls and launch fireball spells.
“Eh? There are two silver level experts?”
“An iron level magician too?”
He Fu’s heart trembled slightly, but he still stuck with his decision, “Rou
Zang actually has a flying battle skill! This group has the devil’s luck to not
have a gold level, they have no way of stopping him, no way of surviving this.”
Just as the thought crossed his mind, he heard a loud noise.
Bang!
An artillery shell ferociously struck Rou Zang in the air.
Am immense sound wave, flaming explosion, and suffocating heat wave violently
surged out in all directions.
“Gold, gold level ship cannon?!” He Fu’s face lost all color.
The first mate’s mouth fell wide open.
“Boss!” The warlock, Mo Kong, couldn’t help but cry out in alarm.
In the smoke and flames, a figure was flung back into the Bath Tub.
It was Rou Zang.
His body was burnt black, and his nose was covered in blood, he was a sorry
figure.
Who would have anticipated t hat the other party had a gold level cannon hidden
away?!
This was too unexpected.
It could be said that this was more unexpected than for a gold level fighter
suddenly emerging from the survivors’ ranks 
Generally speaking, if one had such resources, they would usually be invested
in a cultivator first.
Gold level ship cannons were put on magic ships of the same level, and even
saint level magic ships.
“These, these people…dammit it, gods dammit…” Rou Zang stood up again, fury
causing the corner of his mouth to shiver faintly, this was truly unexpected.
“Boss, are you okay?” Mo Kong flew back at once, “These treacherous people
actually have a gold level cannon in their hold, and had a magic formation to
mask its aura.”
The aura masking magic formation had been controlled by the tower spirit’s
alchemy puppets, allowing the cannon to be concealed.
There were a lot of magic formations in War Merchant’s database with this
function.
It was because of the diminished aura that until the gold level cannon fired,
the other cultivators could not sense it.
But by then, it was too late!
The gold level artillery shell had astonishing speed, Rou Zang had no time to
react, and thus was struck.
In that moment of life and death, he used all of his strength to preserve his
life.
A serious injury!
It was a truly grievous wound.
The injury immediately triggered the Life Scorching Flame within him, causing
Rou Zang’s body to once again catch fire with these flowery flames.
Rou Zang tenaciously clenched his teeth as his entire body shuddered.
With extreme enmity, he gazed at the survivors’ five ships, terrifying
brutality flickering in his eyes.
“Boss, retreat first. They have a gold level cannon, and their firearms are
excellent. We don’t know what other things they still have. The Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance fleet is nearby, the fleet boss is surely a gold level!” Mo
Kong advised after summoning all of his courage.
“Snake Rat Island is close by, they will surely come here.”
“They won’t run away!”
“Our people still need to regroup.”
“Snake Rate Island…” Rou Zang was moved as he looked deeply at Mo Kong.
Mo Kong bowed his head at once and kneeled onto the deck, his body slightly
trembling.
At that very moment, the air seemed to become as thick as a mountain, leaving
Mo Kong breathless.
Every fraction of a second became this painful.
In the end, Rou Zang coughed, and although he was very unwilling, he returned
to his bathtub and slumped into it.
“Away.” He gasped, then pointed at Mo Kong, “You, go ashore and investigate the
ins and outs of these little rats.”
“Yes, boss.” Mo Kong promptly responded.
Very quickly, the Bath Tubslowed down and changed directions as fury and
unwillingness leaked from it, akin to a hunting vicious beast being defeated
and choosing to rest for the time being.
“They actually won!” He Fu’s entire clam caravan was shocked.
“Contact these people, express the benevolence of our merchant alliance.” He Fu
muttered to himself and immediately gave the order.
“Hip hip hooray!  We won again.” On the five pirate ships, a cheerful shout was
raised.
Zong Ge spat out some air, “A close call.”
At the most critical point, their meticulous preparations had succeeded.
This time, they intended to mainly rely on the gold level cannon and artillery
shells to repel Rou Zang.
Although Rou Zang was hit by the cannon, he did not die.
They knew he did not have armor.
Yet his physical strength was still so formidable!
Cang Xu and Zi Di relaxed.
They had beaten back Rou Zang again, and while not exposing the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, this was for the best.
After all, the Clam Cloth fleet was to the side, exposing an alchemy ship to
them would be too inconvenient for them.
The Clam fleet transmitted their goodwill, followed by the first mate
personally appearing with many boxes of supplies who asked if the survivors had
any surplus munitions on hand.
After having a few words with the others, the dragonman youngster stated that
they did not have any surplus munitions. But at the same time, he accepted the
Clam Merchant Alliance’s gift of supplies.
The dragonman youngster expressed his gratitude, and both sides left behind a
way to contact the other.
Although the Clam fleet sat on the sidelines and watched, Rou Zang ultimately
retreated, and they had played a role in that happening.
Not long after the two fleets parted, the survivors met Snake Rat Island’s
patrol feel enroute.
“I am Snake Rat Island’s Lord, Tan Qiu, when I received new of this battle, I
rushed over to provide assistance!” Tan Qiu was a silver level fighter, he was
a middle aged man with a short stature and ordinary appearance.
Compared to the Clam Cloth fleet, the dragonman youngster had a better opinion
of Tan Qiu.
Tan Qiu expressed a strong welcome to the arriving survivors, “Repelling Rou
Zang isn’t easy, you are all warriors of the empire! Let us land on the island
together.”



****** Chapter 35: Welcoming Banquet ******
Snake Rat Island, the island lord’s castle.
A banquet was being held, and the dining hall was lit up brightly.
Under a star anise shaped redwood and crystal hanging lamp, a long rectangular
table had a circle of people sitting around it.
On top of the rectangular dining table, there were many delicious delicacies,
golden cups filled with scarlet wine.
The dining hall’s decorations showed off a noble aura, the wall all around had
paintings hanging from them depicting landscapes, things, and all kinds of
people. In the four corners, there were also four suits of armor standing like
statues. 
“Let us once again toast our heroes of this naval battle!” As Snake Rat
Island’s lord, Tan Qiu lifted his wine cup.
This was the third time he had toasted Long Fu and Shi Qi, exposing how
abundantly cordial this lord was.
Long Fu (the young captain) and Shi Fu (Zong Ge) echoed his toast.
Previously, they had anticipated Rou Zang’s pursuit in advance, and used the
gold level cannon to ambush him. Taking advantage of Rou Zang’s eagerness to
exact vengeance and unawareness of their trump card, they luckily managed to
beat back Rou Zang once again,
Not long after, Tan Qi led the Snake Rat Island patrol fleet out to provide
urgent aid to them.
After learning Rou Zang had withdrawn, their assistance turned into welcomes.
With Tan Qiu’s guidance, the Mystifying Monster Island survivors’ five ships
entered Snake Rat Harbor and berthed at the island’s sole port.
As the captain and first mate, the young man and Zong Ge were invited by Tan
Qiu to a banquet held that same day. 
Of course, Tan Qiu did not only invite the young captain and the half beastman.
Besides them and Tan Qiu, there was also a large and grizzled haired clergyman.
He was a Sheng Ming Sect priest who presided over Snake Rat Island’s church.
There was also a fighter with a threatening aura, he was the commander of the
Night Devil Group.
Representing the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance was someone that looked like a
young woman that was steeped in a magical aura.
A reputable bounty hunter, Ba Hu, was also invited.
Although it was the first time the young man and Zong Ge had met these people,
they got acquainted with them through Tan Qiu’s introduction.
All of these people were silver level.
Most of them were fighters, only the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance
representative was a silver level magician.
Besides those, there was also the city guard commander, who was also silver
level.
It could be said that besides the young man and half beastman, these were the
strongest on Snake Rat Island.
These cultivators toasted Tan Qiu on after the other. They also treated the
young man and half beastman very cordially.
“Rou Zang has always been very cruel and arrogant, many fear him. This time,
two heroes defeated Rou Zang, to the satisfaction of all.”
“I heard that this was not the first time these two have defeated Rou Zang’s
pirate group. In the first fight, they annihilated Da Zhao’s pirate group, and
in the second fight their full might managed to force Rou Zang to withdraw.
Silver levels defeating a gold level is an astonishing accomplishment!”
“Captain Long Fu is no ordinary silver level. Life Scorching Dragon Breath
ah…that is an innate skill of the Flame Dragon King bloodline. I believe that
soon, the captain’s fighting prowess will be widely spread throughout the
seas.”
“Rest well, although Snake Rat Island is small, Rou Zang’s pirate group will
never make landfall!”
The cultivators conversed and laughed, each of them expressing their admiration
and benevolence in their own way.
Information on the Life Scorching Dragon Breath could not be hidden. Thus, the
dragonman youngster exposed it instead to display his strength.
As expected, the island’s higher ups valued it greatly.
The current political situation was being eroded, as when the pirate throne
appeared, the pirates had become extremely rampant.
Snake Rat Island did not have a gold level to oversee it, thus with Rou Zang’s
pirate group roving the seas around it, the pressure on it would naturally be
quite heavy.
Now that they learned Rou Zang’s pirate group had been repelled, they were of
course in a cheerful mood.
Naturally, there was also suspicion and jealousy in that merriment.
After all, he was someone capable of directly beating back a gold level
powerhouse!
Therefore, within the flattery and praise, there were all kinds of probing
questions.
The survivors had prepared for this, and decided to call themselves a mercenary
group.
It had been established recently and was not well known.
They had come to the seas only to earn a living.
“What a big appetite, he can eat a lot.” The priest pointed out.
“Correct, your group got rid of Dao Zhao’s pirate group, and can use their
heads to obtain the bounty.” Tan Qiu remined with a smile.
The young man and half beastman quickly looked at each other, then Zong Ge
asked, “How much is the bounty exactly?”
Tan Qiu shook his head, “I don’t know. There are too many. Recently, bounties
on pirates have been popping up more often.”
As a famous bounty hunter Ba Hu presented the information, “In the southeast
village, there is a hunter guild office, inside there are details on all kinds
of bounties.”
The merchant alliance magician looked like a young lady also smiled, “Our Clam
Cloth Merchant Alliance also has an office parallel to the guild, you can take
a look at both. The members of your group is welcome to trade with me there at
any time.” 
The dragonman youngster nodded, “We will need to trade. Especially Soft Heart
Stone, we have a lot on hand.”
At the time, Da Zhao’s pirate group had ransacked Stone Egg Island, and
obtained a great amount of these stones.
These alchemy materials played a crucial function in allowing Cang Xu to
successfully build a magic formation.
Even after setting a portion in reserve, there was still a massive surplus of
Soft Heart Stone. Rather than letting it rot in their hands, it would be better
to trade with them in exchange for goods the survivors needed.
This, of course, was said by the young captain deliberately.
As he said this, his gaze went from the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance magician
to Tan Qiu.
According to the imperial territorial division, Stone Egg Island was within
Snake Rat Island’s jurisdiction. Stone Egg Island produced Soft Heart Stone
that was also transferred to Snake Rat Island to be traded. 
Therefore, the original owner of the Soft Heart Stone was probably not Stone
Egg Island, but instead Tan Qiu.
Sensing the young captain’s and Zong Ge’s gazes, Tan Qiu smiled and nodded to
the two and directly expressed, “Without your group’s actions, these Soft Heart
Stone would have helped the pirates grow in power.”
“You two have helped Snake Rat Island a lot, therefore your group is free to
use these spoils of war as you wish!”
Tan Qiu’s definitive position let the dining hall’s ambience grow more relaxed
and warmer.
Truth be told, the young captain had a good opinion of Tan Qiu,
Not only because he said, “therefore your group is free to use these spoils of
war as you wish”, but also because of his prior assistance.
After the survivors repelled Rou Zang, Tan Qiu’s help arrived,
According to how much time had passed, it was clear that as soon as Tan Qiu
received the news, he had acted immediately.
The support fleet Tan Qiu rushed over with was not strong. He knew how powerful
Rou Zang was, yet he still personally led forces over to confront the latter.
This was a considerably risky act.
“Perhaps he is a true imperial knight. He is brave, does not fear danger,
shoulders responsibility, and does not cower easily.” The young captain looked
at Tain Qiu as he internally evaluated him.
As a knight too, the young man had a sense of familiarity with Tan Qiu.
Tan Qiu seemed to also have a good opinion of the survivors as he looked at the
dragonman youngster and joyfully said, “If your group needs more supplies, I
can offer more aid to you.”
As an imperial noble, Tan Qiu naturally had different channels.
Tan Qiu slowly stood up and ran his eyes over everyone, “In fact, not only can
I help our two visitors’ mercenary group, if anyone here needs it, I can seek
help on their behalf.”
“We are all on the same side.”
Even if you don’t have enough money to pay, I can you everyone’s contribution
to Snake Rat Island to nimbly deal with it and fight for the most aid grants to
everyone.”
Tan Qiu deeply sighed, then continued, “Rou Zang is a cruel tyrant who spreads
terror throughout the sea. Recently, he has plundered more wildly, ordered
massacre, and his hand created the tragedy on Stone Egg Island, he has
constantly provoked the empire.”
“Fortunately, we have Long Fu’s and Shi Qi’s heroic contribution. They have
brought to justice Da Zhao’s pirate group and made Rou Zang and his people pay
a heavy price.”
“However, this is far from enough!”
“Snake Rat Island is imperial territory, and Rou Zang’s Bath Tubappearing so
close to it is a grave provocation to the empire, he does not put us in his
eyes at all. To sit as this tyrant flaunts his viciousness insults
righteousness and strikes at noble glory, it shames our honor.”
“Right now, Rou Zang is severely injured, while his pirate group is scattered.
I propose that everyone here joins hands and attacks together to deal with Rou
Zang’s pirate group, and finally eliminate all of these malicious and brutal
pirates!”
Tan Qiu’s tone was high-pitched, his eyes gleaming brightly.
The guests around the dining table looked at each other, none of them said
anything.
After a brief silence, the priest spoke, “An absolutely sensible and courageous
decision. However, at present time, don’t we still lack the ships and sailors
necessary?”
The Merchant Alliance magician nodded in agreement, “Our island has industry
that needs to be protected. If our entire army sallies out, what will Snake Rat
Island do if Rou Zang’s pirate group attacks?”
The Night Devil Hunting Group’s commander then said, “My people are good at
land battles and dealing with magic beasts. If our opponents are intelligent
races and will be fought on the sea…”
When the Night Devil Hunting commander said that he shook his head with a
worried face.
Ba Hu also chimed in, “Rou Zang’s pirate group does not only have Rou Zang, he
also has others, like Mo Kong for example.”
“I heard that you, Lord Tan Qiu, has been trying to hire experts?”
“If you can hire a strong gold level to deal with Rou Zang, then you will have
assurance.”
Tan Qiu nodded and slowly sat down, “I have always been trying, and thankfully,
I have made some headway.”
“Everyone, it is because of everyone’s on Snake Rat Island that we must
eradicate Rou Zang’s pirate group!”
“Passively defending this island will lead to a bleak future.”
“Rou Zang is extraordinarily brutal, and for his ranking on the sacred
monument, he openly slaughtered islands. If he ransacks all of the islands near
Snake Rat Island, his next target will surely be us.”
“If we don’t take measures, we will bear significant damage while letting the
pirates mistakenly think we are weak and pitiful.”
“Nowadays, with the Pirate Throne appearing, the pirates are fanatical and
rampant. If the other pirates consider this a good hunting ground, we won’t
just be dealing with Rou Zang. Our troubles will grow greater!”
Tan Qiu’s words were reasonable, and none weren’t moved.
The dining hall once again sank into silence.
After quite a while, the merchant alliance magician muttered to herself, “Rou
Zang has extraordinary strength, he is no ordinary gold level, but a rather
strong one.”
“His first mate, Mo Kong, is a silver level warlock who believes in the Great
Devil Lord, and an expert in the Fear spell.” 
“One of his subordinate groups is the Grass Head Pirates, that group’s
commander, Swordsman Xi Cao, is quite strong.”
“The Flower Wall Pirates are also attached to Rou Zang, that group’s commander,
Hua Dun, has both attack and defense. They have a silver level suit of armor
and is a hard nut to crack.”
Rou Zang’s pirate group has been a huge threat to merchant alliance trade
ships.
As the representative of the merchant alliance, the magician naturally also
wanted to root out Rou Zang.
Tan Qiu smiled, “On the one hand, I will hire strong people and strive to ask
for a powerful gold level to fight with us. On the other hand, we have the
heroes that tangled with Rou Zang on our side.”
When this was said, everyone looked at the dragonman youngster and the half
beastman again.
True military success was standing in front of them.
Despite only being silver levels, Long Fu and Shi Qi had repelled Rou Zang
twice and had severely injured him in the process.
Upon being confronted with everyone’s expectations, the young man and half
beastman glanced at each other, then the former bitterly laughed, “To be frank,
we only beat back Rou Zang through sheer luck, the specific details have
already been told to everyone.”
After saying that, the young man respectfully looked at Tan Qiu and spoke with
a more earnest tone, “With regards to this plan, we will need to think it over
a lot!”
Tan Qiu smiled, “But of course.”
The subject was paused from that point, and the banquet continued.
Quickly after, the most important delicacy was presented on the dining table.
“Come taste this island’s signature culinary delicacy. This is smelt rat meat,
this is tide snake meat.” Tan Qiu served these to the dragonman youngster and
Zong Ge.
The two people ate the magic beast meat, it was indeed delicious.
Not only that, but the magic beast meat contained magic power that over the
digestion process, gradually saturated the two’s bodies.
Snake Rat Island’s most distinguishing feature was the island’s underground
caverns, where inside there were large quantities of smelt rats and tide
snakes.
Smelt rate meat corresponded to fire attribute battle qi while tide snake meat
could help with water attribute battle qi cultivators.
The dragonman youngster cultivated the White River battle qi technique, and was
obviously partial towards the water attribute. But the young man didn’t eat too
much tide snake meat, for he was a dragonman with Flame Dragon King bloodline,
as it would be somewhat odd for him to do so.
More importantly, he planned to change his battle qi.
White River battle qi was incompatible with his dragonman form, and even
conflicted with it somewhat.



****** Chapter 36: Not Clearly Stated ******
The banquet ended, and everyone dispersed. 
After Tan Qiu personally saw his visitors out, he returned to his study.
There was someone already waiting inside.
Upon seeing Tan Qiu, the person half knelt with a respectful manner, “Lord.”
The study was illuminated by the moonlight passing through the window.
Even though this persona was naturally disposed towards hiding in shadows, a
trace of aura leaked from his body.
He was an impressive silver level fighter.
“Ni, how is the investigation going?” Said Tan Qiu.
Nim who had received his orders to investigate immediately gave her report,
“The traces of battle on those five ships are real and have been verified, they
are really do belong to Da Zhao’s pirate group.”
“Currently, the five ships have sailors stationed on it to guard it.”
“However. These people are universally lowly. Most of them are fisherfolk from
Stone Egg Island, while the rest are pirates, they should be from Da Zhao’s
pirate group.”
Ni was someone Tan Qiu had deliberately hidden, an expert spy. 
While Tan Qiu was entertaining the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, he had
dispatched Ni to learn the survivors’ actual state. 
Tan Qiu continued to ask, “Anyone on board that is worthy of attention?”
Ni immediately responded, “There was an iron level magician who was meditating.
An iron level fighter of short stature, similar to a dwarf, who wields knives.
“Apart from that, there is a senior sailor that is only of the bronze level.”
Tan Qiu assessed to himself, “Two silvers, two irons, and one bronze…”
He asked, “What about those alchemy crossbows and firearms?”
Ni hung her head, “Those alchemy weapons are not on anyone, they are all held
within the ships’ armories.”
The armories not only have magic alarms, but they also have alchemy puppets
guarding them.”
“Stealing them by force will likely trigger the alarm. Your Lordship warned
repeatedly that stealth was everything, thus this subordinate didn’t act
blindly without thinking.”
“Hm, your actions were correct.” Tan Qiu encouraged Ni, then had her withdraw.
He once again sank into deep thought.
“These people are very strong.”
“The silver levels working together are capable of repelling Rou Zang.”
“There are also those alchemy weapons, it’s quite strange…”
“Mercenaries?”
Tan Qiu sneered, of course he didn’t believe this pretense. 
He already had a better idea of what the survivors true status was.
The five pirate ships were quietly anchored at port.
The night was heavy.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge returned to their ships.
After the sailors on watch who were dozing off were roused, they immediately
shouted, “Lord Long Fu, Lord Shi Qi!”
The dragonman youngster nodded, however Zong Ge coldly snorted with annoyance,
he was not pleased with these people.
When they entered the captain’s room, Cang Xu was already inside.
An alchemy device was activated, and the captain’s cabin immediately entered
into a shrouded state, neither sound nor light could get out.  
Of course, the thing that put them most at east was still the Deceptive
Disguise on the three from the divine artifact.
“Recently, someone came, it was a silver level female thief.” Cang Xu was the
first to speak.
The young captain and half beastman were not surprised.
Their true identities could not be known, and their public identities also
could not be proven.
They said they had just established this mercenary group, and hadn’t even
registered with the mercenary guild.
Long Fu, Shi Qi…these were pseudonyms, no such people existed in the world.  
But the survivors, and especially these two, had repelled Rou Zang, and even
seriously injured him. This kind of strength was a great threat as far as Snake
Rat was concerned.
Zong Ge said, “If I was Snake Rat Island’s lord, I’d also would investigate us,
both to prevent Rou Zang from capturing this island and to check if this was
all a ruse.”
The dragonman youngster mentioned what had happened at the banquet, and
mentioned how Tan Qiu looked at things.
“He is a capable and opinionated person.”
“According to him, he took the initiative to request that he come here and
become lord of Snake Rat Island.”
The Sheng Ming Empire was attacking the Wilderness Continent, not only did they
need to wantonly construct forts on the Wilderness Continent, but they also
needed many arrangements in the ocean too.
The empire dispatched many lords to hold both large and small islands that
served as strongholds.
Tan Qiu was not a templar knight, thus he didn’t have the qualifications to
become a master of a Wilderness Continent castle. But he had a diligent and
brave spirit, thus he chose to establish his foundation here.
Bringing up Tan Qiu’s timely aid once again, as well as his attitude towards
the survivors at the banquet, the young captain did not conceal his favorable
impression of Tan Qiu.
Zong Ge faintly shook his head, “Tan Qiu wants to destroy Rou Zang, this is a
sound strategy.”
“But his strength is insufficient, thus he wants to call together many more
allies.”
“But based on what I saw, even if they unite, their strength is bleak.”
“Tan Qiu represents the nobility, while other forces come from all sorts of
places, such as the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, the Night Devil Hunting
Group, the Sheng Ming Sect, as well as bounty hunters, each with different
demands.”
“Regardless of victory or defeat, it will be hard to distribute the benefits.”
“Tan Qiu does not have enough strength to control the overall situation, and
when it is time to fight, it will be very difficult for the entire army to move
together.”
“To say nothing of the fact that Snake Rat Island mostly has ground forces,
while their naval battle strength is lacking.”
After saying that Zong Ge looked at the young captain, “To be frank, I cannot
see their plan to deal with Rou Zang going well.”
Although they had beaten back Rou Zang twice, Zong Ge understood what they had
relied on.
One was that Rou Zang was careless, another was that they had to expose one of
their trump cards, the gold level cannon. Besides that, there was also the
undeniable factor of luck.
Zong Ge continued, “We don’t need to fight Rou Zang, it is quite dangerous and
will likely expose the Deep Sea Monster Fish, and even our identities.”
“We have more important objectives!”
The young captain muttered unintelligibly to himself.
Zong Ge shifted his gaze towards Cang Xu, he hoped that this cold-blooded
necromancer would support his view.
Cang Xu did not respond, instead looking at the young captain.
If it was before, the necromancy would have sided with the half beastman, and
declared that he did not wish to fight Rou Zang. But now he was really relying
on the young captain and knew of the immense benefits the Bloodcore would
provide for his future.
He was already the young captain’s man.
The young captain sighed, “You’re not wrong, Shi Qi. We have important
objectives, and need to reset and retrieve things from this place.”  
“Your arm injury needs to be treated.”
“If we can build an Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation, it would be for
the best.”
The young captain liked Tan Qiu and loathed pirates, if he were by himself,
perhaps he would have joined the allied armies. But now he was a leader, he
needed to shoulder the responsibility and consider the needs of the group.
Zong Ge nodded with satisfaction.
Then Cang Xu spoke, “Then what should we do with Da Zhao and the other
captives? Tan Qiu mentioned these captives during the banquet, he distinctly
hinted that he wants us to turn over these people and prove which side we stand
on.”
The young captain muttered to himself, “We want to stay on this island for some
time, we need their trust. We will hand over Da Zhao and the other leaders, but
keep the rest imprisoned.”
“Of course, hand over their heads.”
Live captives cannot be turned over, they could spill information to outsiders.
Cang Xu was pleased by this course of action, and added on, “I will use some
methods to clear away their memories and even their souls.”
When Zong Ge heard Cang Xu was going to use necromancy skills, he unconsciously
pursed his brows, “Is that fine? This island has a Sheng Ming church.”
Cang Xu nodded, “Be at ease, once the physical body stops breathing, the soul
will leave the body. It will either dissipate or be received by the gods. I
only want to use a few small abilities to speed up this process, it is unlikely
to have even the tiniest weak point.”
After a short discussion, Zong Ge was to stay behind and watch over these five
ships, tonight he was personally responsible for keeping watch.
The young captain and the necromancer dived into the sea and quietly left.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish did not dock at the pier, rather it was hidden on the
seafloor three nautical miles away.
Upon welcoming the survivors, Tan Qiu had taken precautions by dispatching a
silver level thief to spy on them, while the survivors maintained their
vigilance.
After all, they had killed a Sheng Ming Sect priest and held War Merchant’s
immense assets. Upon contacting imperial powers again, the survivors’ hearts
were all tense bow strings.
Fortunately, the survivors were very restrained when they fought Rou Zang. Up
until now, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had never been exposed. As a trump card
that had been preserved, if the situation turned sour, it was their best way
out.
On the dark seabed, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was motionless, it looked like a
gigantic reef.
Its mimicry hull hand transformed.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had three shapes, a magic beast ocean fish, a sail
fish, and a fishman. These three shapes all depended on the mimicry hull’s
ability to morph.
But the mimicry hull could also change into other appearances.
These were simple variations however, and could not perform the different
functions of the other three forms.
Although the Deep Sea Monster Fish way staying very close to Snake Rat Island
and could contact ships on the surface, the survivors weren’t worried.
On the one hand, the reef appearance transformation looked very realistic, it
was difficult to mark it as bogus. On the other hand, the Deep Sea Monster Fish
had its own preinstalled Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
formation (that only affected its hull) that used pearl bubbles with the help
of the divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale.
The dragonman youngster and Cang Xu approached the reef.
A large mouth suddenly opened up in the reef, sucking in the two people and the
surrounding seawater.  
The reef then closed, isolating it from the outside world.
The dragonman youngster and Cang Xu entered the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
boarding cabin.
The cabin was empty and wide, nothing was inside. The walls, ceiling, and floor
were all made from quality metal that was unlikely to corrode from seawater.
The water level inside the boarding room quickly dropped, then the inner cabin
door hissed open.
Behind the door was curled up giant, who upon seeing the dragonman youngster,
immediately exclaimed, “Father, you’ve returned, hooray!”
It was the big guy, and the dragonman youngster trusted him completely.
The dragonman youngster smiled at him and patted the big guy who was squatting
in the narrow corridor, “In a few days, you will be able to go up to Snake Rat
Island. You will use a disguised identity and mix in with us. That way, you can
stay on the ship deck.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was for War Merchant’s use.
War Merchant was a goblin, and had a short stature.
Although Deep Sea Monster Fish’s internal facilities had been enlarged a lot
and were suitable for human use, it was too narrow for giants.
It was not good for the growing big guy.
Since the young captain had promised the old boatwright to look after the big
guy, he strove to accomplish just that.
Honesty was one of the knightly traits.
“When the time comes, remember your fake identity, don’t expose yourself.” The
young captain reminded.
“Father, I am scared…” The big guy was extremely worried.
“Be at ease, I am here. I will spend more time on the ship.” The young man
placated.
The big guy’s worried face dispelled by a lot, “Where dad is, this young child
will be too.”
“Lord Captain, please allow me to take my leave.” Cang Xu could not bear
wasting time with the big guy.
He had to do many things and burdensome tasks. The main focus of this return
was to deal with the important captives of Da Zhao’s pirate group.
“Ok.” The young man nodded and gave his consent, “Do it cleanly.”
“Understood.” Cang Xu replied.
Upon seeing Cang Xu leave, the big guy said, “Cleaning, I…can do that!”
He mistakenly thought Cang Xu would be cleaning something up.
Tidying up decks and cleaning living spaces, the big guy had done these things
often.
“You need to be a valued person, otherwise you cannot stay on the ship.” The
old boatwright’s teachings were deeply engraved into the big guy’s body, and
had molded him.
These days, the big guy hadn’t been working, this made him restless.
The young captain was about to explain it to him, however when he saw the big
guy’s ignorant expression, he suddenly hesitated.
The important captives of Dao Zhao’s pirate group were still alive.
Cang Xu not only wanted to kill them, but he also wanted to destroy their
memories and obliterate their souls.
Did he really want to explain these things to the big guy?”
The young captain’s heart was tangled.
“That is Cang Xu’s business, you have a more important work to do.”
“Do you still remember your battle qi technique?”
“The most important thing for you is cultivating battle qi.”  
“That way, your future work will be even better!”
In the end, the young captain did not explain it clearly.



****** Chapter 37: Changing Battle Qi ******
The alchemy cabin was the most luxurious place on the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The tower spirit was floating in the air, and controlling an alchemy formation.
The alchemy formation emitted a bright white radiance, and there were two crab
alchemy puppets around it.
These were the yellow crab puppets, and were serving as alchemy assistants.
The ghostly Zi Di was watching every movement and change of the formation
closely. 
At the opportune moment, she immediately threw in a piece of alchemical
material.
This was Flowing Gold and Silver, a type of alchemical material that only
lasted a few minutes. Using a unique alchemy technique, gold and silver were
mixed together to form this liquid alloy.
When the alloy was placed into the formation, it immediately split into ten
parts as it was drawn into the white radiance and covered the framework of one
of the alchemy puppets.
The puppet quickly fined tuned the Flowing Gold and Silver after it was covered
by it.
Soon after, a flock of bird alchemy puppet appeared before Zi Di, they gleamed
with the luster of silver and gold.
The cabin doorbell suddenly rang, causing a lapse in Zi Di’s focus.
The ghost girl with a lot of authority faintly stared, then after finding out
who it was, she opened the cabin door.
The door softly swung open.
“Lord Captain.” The ghost girl floated towards the door and bowed to the
dragonman youngster at the door.
“Zi Di.” The young man entered and forced a smile, “Before I change my battle
qi, I need to trouble you with something first.”
Before he could say what, a large face appeared behind him.
It was the big guy.
The big guy grinned and giggled at Zi Di.
The big guy’s chin was stained thick with blood, causing Zi Di to immediately
understand, “You tried to teach him how to cultivate battle qi again?”
This was not the first time the big guy got injured cultivating battle qi.
The big guy had low intelligence, it was very difficult for him to comprehend
the mechanisms of battle qi techniques, and would get injured every time. To
date, he still hadn’t succeeded in completing a single cycle of battle qi yet.
“Mhmm.” The implication of the dragonman youngster’s bitter smile grew deeper.
After he glanced at the alchemy formation, he said, “If you can, please examine
him first.”
The big guy found it difficult to enter the alchemy cabin, and as the alchemy
formation was activated, Zi Di might as well examine him at the door.
“He really is wounded, but it isn’t serious. His body and organs are very
strong, either medicine or treatment scrolls can heal him instantly. However, I
suggest that you let him heal himself.” Said Zi Di after carefully inspecting
him.
The big guy’s injured body had a giant bloodline, his bodily recovery was very
strong, far greater than any normal man. 
“What self…heal?” The big guy was confused.
“It’s when you go to sleep.” The young man smiled as his mind relaxed.
The giant immediately understood, causing him to giggle, “Sleep, this big guy
is the best at sleeping.”
“Go back, and sleep well. When I’m not there, do not cultivate battle qi.” The
young captain reminded him.
The big guy wanted to stay with his father, but he was very sensible and
reluctantly left.
The young man and lady stood at the cabin door and watched the big guy’s
enormous body rub across the walls and ceiling of the passageway, until it
finally disappeared behind a corner,
The youngster sighed, “I gave the big guy a battle qi technique called
Unintentional Sleeping Posture, the main way to cultivate it is cycling and
purifying the battle qi within one’s body while they sleep. The difficulty of
this battle qi technique is very low, as long as he succeeds in cycling it
within his body a few times, his body will record it to memory, and do it while
he sleeps, using his own heartbeat to purify and cycle the battle qi.”
“But the big guy is stuck at the beginning, his body is unable to record the
structure and method. No matter how much I teach him, he either forgets or
makes a mistake.”
“If we can find an eastern imperial battle fighter that can help the big guy
complete his battle qi circulation, it will allow the big guy to cross the
biggest hurdle.”
Zi Di replied, “My Lord, the big guy’s battle qi cultivation greatest
obstruction is actually his intelligence.”
“Perhaps, we can think of a way to improve his intellect.”
The young captain was instantly interested, “Eh? What kind of methods?” 
Zi Di shook her head, “Currently, there are only a few ways.”
Intellect, the body, and the soul are all strongly connected.”
“If a person does not develop their brain fully, they will become weak-minded
and demented. The healthier and active a brain is, the shrewder their thoughts
will be.”
“On the one hand, the stronger a person’s soul, the smarter they will be.
Necromancy has a spell called Soul Send that allows a magician’s soul to
possess other lifeforms or objects. If a soul is strong enough, even if they
are inside a corpse or a pale skeleton, they can become a zombie or a skeleton
soldier with exceptional intellect.”
The young captain realized what he was hearing.
The survivors had obtained War Merchant’s inheritance, including many things
that dealt with the secrets of life alchemy.
War Merchant also wanted to improve the intelligence of artificial magic
beasts, and through experimentation, had transformed their brains with alchemy.
Modifying one’s physical body is one way to improve intelligence.
After Zi Di had been reduced to a ghost, she had received Cang Xu’s necromancy
inheritance.
Thus, Zi Di had absorbed this inheritance and knew how to improve soul
strength, another way of improving intelligence.
“But how specifically? What are the risks?” The young captain asked.
Zi Di shook her head, and candidly admitted that the risks could not be
controlled, for at present, she had barely learned how to.
There was still a long while till it was of practical use. 
But no matter what, it was still a hope.
After the two people discussed this, they returned to the alchemy cabin.
The radiance of the formation inside gradually dissipated, the tower spirit was
in the middle of conducting the final step, coloring it with top-grade lacquer.
One after the other, the metal birds inside the alchemy formation changed
color, and looked nearly identical to actual birds.
“These are scout birds.” Zi Di presented, “Small alchemy puppets. I can only
play a supporting role and make some alchemy materials. Only with the tower
spirit can such puppets be made.”
“Esteemed master, good evening.” After the tower spirit finished, its white
crystal ball shined as it transmitted its voice.
Zi Di replied, “Tower spirit, please introduce these scout birds.”
With a flat tone, it immediately issued the corresponding presentation.
The young captain frowned as he listened, the presentation had too many
alchemical terms, things he found difficult to understand, Throughout the
entire thing, the only thing he knew was that these alchemy puppets also used
the mimicry alchemy technique.
Luckily, Zi Di supplemented the explanation, “These bird types are all made in
the form of common sea birds native to this area, the can serve as routine
scouting tools.”
“Although the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection capabilities are very strong,
it has a big systemic problem.”
It is too broad, if we need to get more detailed information from areas, we
need to rely on these birds to probe and reconnoiter them on-site.”
“At dawn tomorrow, we will release them, clearly survey Snake Rat Island, and
find the Green Jade Gold Coffin we fought for.”
After the survivors arrived at the island, their principal objective was
finding the misplaced divine artifact.
On Mystifying Monster Island, the Green Jade Gold Coffin was teleported by Jia
Sha first. Currently, the survivors do not know where the divine artifact was.
Zi Di then said, “The scouts can be made in other shapes, and have a wide range
of applications.”
“I plan to make a rat shape that will be placed in the five pirate ships, to
strengthen our supervision over the sailors.”
The young captain nodded, “Very good. Previously, Rou Zang was able to pursue
us accurately, it is likely that he has an inside man within our sailors.”
“Now, help me change my battle qi.”
The young man wanted to change his battle qi, and had discussed it earlier with
the others, it was part of their plan.
The alchemy formation quickly changed to a completely new one,
In accordance with Zi Di’s guidance, the young man entered the center of the
formation and sat cross-legged.
The two yellow crab alchemy puppets sat to the youngster’s right and left, and
extended their crab limbs.
Ding, ding ding…
A series of crisp noises rang as the tips of the limbs extended with slender
needles.
The slender needles poked towed the youngster, but were immediately blocked by
the dragon scales.
The young man’s dragon scales could ward off Rou Zang’s gold level battle
skills, of course it could stop these thin needles easily.
But soon after, the youngster’s mind sank into the Bloodcore, and he controlled
his transformation.
His external dragon scales rapidly softened, as the transformation was drawn
back into Bloodcore.
The thin needles, now without obstructions, smoothly pierced into the young
man’s body.
“I will begin.” Said Zi Di.
The young man nodded.
A moment later, the magic formation was activated.
The young captain immediately sensed a powerful suction coming from the twenty
needles, battle qi was being sucked out.
The youngster’s body had great amounts of White River battle qi, if he wanted
to change his battle qi, he first needed to cleanse away all of the old within
him.
Therefore, the young man did not stop the needles, instead he helped them as he
consciously moved his battle qi towards the needles so they could suck it out
easier. 
The White River battle qi quickly vanished.
In but a short while, it was sucked clean away.
The thin needles withdrew, and the young man covered himself in dragon scales
again so he could rely on his excellent recovery ability.
This was just the beginning.
Now that the young man was temporarily empty of internal battle qi, it was time
to start refining a new one.
The man way to cultivate White River battle qi was swimming, while the Bursting
Explosion battle qi cultivation method was boxing.
Standing in the middle of the alchemy formation, the youngster began to punch
his fist through the air while his mind focused on certain parts of his body.
Battle qi was quickly produced.
Unfortunately, it was not Bursting Explosion battle qi like the young man
wanted, but White River battle qi still.
Fighters cultivated battle qi by refining their internal energy.
The youngster’s body was adapted to and was accustomed to cultivating the White
River battle qi technique, therefore even if the young man wasn’t cultivating
actively, his body would still constantly produce White River battle qi.
As a result, the longer one cultivated a battle qi technique and the stronger
the fighter was, the harder it was for them to change their battle qi
technique.
The young captain had anticipated this situation and continued to cultivate
without pause.
Not long after, they young captain sat cross-legged again.
The amount of White River battle qi within him was a grave disturbance to the
new battle qi he was producing.
Thus, Zi Di activated the alchemy formation again and controlled the two yellow
crab puppets to draw out the young captain’s battle qi once again.
After being cleansed, the youngster continued to cultivate as he constantly
boxed the air.
After three rounds of this, he still couldn’t sense the new battle qi.
The youngster was not discouraged and continued to persevere.
It took eight rounds in the end, his fist slowing as he smiled happily,
“Success, I generate d a new battle qi!”
He was completely drenched in sweat.
His body was finally beginning to change, as it accepted this new thing.
Deciding to strike while the iron was hot, the youngster continued to convert
his battle qi.
Constant refinement, constant sitting and having his mixed internal battle qi
drawn out.
Several rounds later, it was midnight.
The young man was covered in sweat, as blood flowed from his mouth, nose, and
the needle holes on his body.
More and more of the new Bursting Explosion battle qi was being produced,
however there was still White River battle qi mixed in with it, the friction
between them encroached on the youngster’s internals.
His dragonman body’s healing capabilities couldn’t keep up with the rate of his
injuries were worsening.
“You need to rest first.” Said Zi Di.
“Ok.” The youngster followed good advice.
Besides the mixed battle qi damaging his body, his cultivation was also
depleting his stamina greatly.
Therefore, fighters can only cultivate for a finite amount of time.
Battle qi comes from a fighter’s refined internal energy, and consumes one’s
bodily essence. If it was excessively squeezed, not only will depleted stamina
be a problem, it will also cause injuries, permanently reduce one’s essence,
lower lifespan, and cause other terrible consequences.
The young captain first consumed some medicine, then ate some food to replenish
his stamina.
The food was not magic beast meat, during this phase of change, adding external
energy would make the mixed battle qi far more detrimental.
Using the interval while the youngster rested, Zi Di answered Cang Xu’s request
and departed the alchemy cabin for the storage room.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had three storerooms, there were not many and were of
small size.
Zi Di entered the storeroom that served as the survivors’ prison, the place
where they locked up their important captives.
Not long ago, they had added many important members of Da Zhao’s pirate group
to this place.
They were all drugged, to keep them alive, but comatose.
As Zi Di hurried over, Cang Xu was fiddling with an alchemy device.
It was the Memory Extraction and Maker device.
Although War Merchant had records and insights of its usage, this was the first
time Cang Xu had used it. In addition, this was the only one the survivors had,
if they made a mistake when operating it that damaged it, the survivors could
not repair it.
Since this was such an important matter, Cang Xu asked Zi Di to come over, for
with her experience, the risks would be minimized as much as possible.
The two people first woke up an iron level fighter of Dao Zhao’s pirate group.
This person was an expert at martial kicks, a competent subordinate of Da Zhao,
and former captain of one of the pirate ships.
The fighter woke up slowly, he was weak and could barely budge.
Even while they slept, their bodies would automatically produce battle qi, thus
the yellow crab alchemy puppets had to keep them drained.
Mo Hu’s vision gradually unblurred, and the iron level fighter saw who was
standing in front of him. In an instant, his eyes contracted as he shouted in
alarm, “Ah, Lord Rou Zang!”
The strong fear stimulated his strength, causing him to struggle up and kneel
onto the ground, paralyzed.
In order to deceive the captive, Cang Xu used the Deceptive Disguise formation
to turn into Rou Zang, while Zi Di was playing the role of the silver level
warlock, Mo Kong.
“Spare me your Lordship, spare me your Lordship!” Cang Xu and Zi Di remained
silent as this unlucky fellow unceasingly kowtowed with overflowing tears of
fear.



****** Chapter 38: Ghostly Hunger ******
With the help of the divine artifact, Cang Xu and Zi Di showed no flaws.
Thanks to Rou Zang’s vicious infamy, the two intimidated the higher-ups of Da
Zhao’s pirate group.
Soon after, they deceived them into thinking they had repelled the survivors,
however their boss escaped.
“Rou Zang” expressed that they needed to kill these dregs, therefore they
needed Da Zhao’s people to provide clues
How could they have any clues?
When the survivors ambushed Dao Zhao’s pirate group, the entire battle was
baffling.
It was quite difficult for them to describe what the survivors looked like.
Thus, “Warlock Mo Kong”, expressed: they needed to use the memory extraction
device on them, they had to cooperate with them.
Dao Zhao and the others submitted to Rou Zang’s terrible might.
The entire process went exceptionally smoothly!
Not long after.
“How wonderful, this magic device is quite marvelous.” Cang Xu help a memory
crystal in his hand, his mouth constantly gasping in surprise.
The memory crystal was long and milky white, it bore a striking resemblance to
the high level treatment artifact, Angel Tears.
“Unfortunately, the tower spirit’s database does not contain the blueprint for
this magic device.” Cang Xu said ruefully.
If they had the blueprint, Cang Xu wouldn’t have needed to be so cautious.
Zi Di muttered to herself, “The tower spirit’s data was not complete. However,
there is no reason why such an important thing shouldn’t have been kept in its
deepest recesses.”
“I believe this was something War Merchant merely purchased.” 
“Memory modification comes from You Shen, then the founder of necromancy
imparted it to his apprentices. Some necromancers are able to make this magic
device.”
“Sometimes, necromancers in need of capital will sell these magic devices.”
“Whenever they are auctioned on the black market, they will, without exception,
be sold for a high price.”
Zi Di analyzed.
She once controlled the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, and knew much about the
markets and trade.
Cang Xu contemplated for a bit, then nodded, “Currently, it seems this is quite
likely. Although War Merchant was a great grandmaster alchemist, he hadn’t
researched necromancy much.”
“This can be seen through the Deep Sea Monster Fish, it has no defenses against
ghosts. How we got this data from the tower spirit also proves this point
Cang Xu looked at the memory crystal in his hand again, “The memories in these
crystals provide detailed information, we now understand Rou Zang’s pirate
group far more.”
“Not only that. But Da Zhao’s and the other’s cultivation experience is also a
treasure. Perhaps we can use it to cultivate our own people.”
Zi Di cautiously replied, “Are you saying you want to impart these memories to
others?”
She shook her head, “I do not recommend that, it is very dangerous and
uncertain.
“Regardless of whether it is our alchemy or necromancy attainment, both are far
from sufficient to do this.” 
Using a unconcerned tone, Cang Xu answered back, “Of course our current
attainment is insufficient, however we can still try. Magic cultivation does
not only need meditation to improve magic power. Knowledge is the wellspring of
a magician’s power, and research and experimentation is an effective way of
gaining new knowledge.”
Zi Di instantly knew what Cang Xu was implying, “You want to conduct
experiments? I support that, however I must also warn you to be balanced.”
“After all, we are a team. Us survivors only have we necromancers.”
“Of course I won’t make things difficult for the Lord Captain.” Cang Xu
immediately declared.
Zi Di nodded, but the worry in her heart did not dissipate.
She looked at the corpses on the floor, Cang Xu had killed them all.
Zi Di had witnessed Cang Xu taking the lives of Da Zhao and the others with her
own eyes,
She understood that Da Zhao and the other captives had to die, and was also
used to death. However, the nonchalant way Cang Xu had gone about doing it had
made her wary.
After interacting with Cang Xu for a long time, the ghost girl had a deeper
understanding of the necromancer’s gloomy and cold temperament.
Cang Xu did not treat Da Zhao and the others as living beings, rather he
treated them testing materials.
After sensing the final traces of souls dissipate from the corpses, Zi Di said,
“I still think you will call them back and make them into ghosts.”
Zi Di had received Cang Xu’s necromancy inheritance.
This inheritance mostly contained information about ghosts.
The primary magic in it was the Soul Summoning spell, High Grade Soul Summoning
spell, Ghostly Possession, Soul Control spell, Soul Devourer spell, and Soul
Treatment spell.
From this, one could see that those who mastered this necromancy inheritance
could summon souls and make ghosts. The quality of the ghosts and how many
could be summoned depended on how strong a necromancer was.
Souls had always been something Cang Xu had sought after, thus in Zi Di’s mind,
if there was an opportunity to get more, Cang Xu wouldn’t let it by and would
do everything to obtain more.
Cang Xu shook his head, “This lot of souls are pretty good. I also believe that
if I summon them back, it is unlikely to be noticed. But I cannot brave this
danger!”
“Many forces and strong people have been studying how to restrain necromancy.”
There is a Sheng Ming Sect priest on Snake Rat Island, the Heavenly Emperor is
an expert of seeing these things.”
Cang Xu was not worried about the silver level church priest, he was afraid of
their god, Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming!
Therefore, he would rather let these souls dissipate into nothingness than use
the Soul Summoning spell and leave behind a potential flaw.
Zi Di silently stared at the corpses on the ground with an indescribable
expression.
Cang Xu’s eyes flashed faintly, “Necromancers study the power of death. The
death power When death power remains in a body, it is a zombie. When it remains
in a skeleton, it can make it into a skeleton soldier. A condensed soul can
form ghosts, resentful spirits, evil spirits, and so on.”
“Zombies, skeletons, and ghosts are condensed negative energy, they are
lifeforms of innate hatred and disgust.”
“If we want to master the power of death, we need to withstand the erosion of
negative energy. Normal magicians utilize neutral the attributes of fire, wind,
water, thunder, etc., their burden of usage isn’t as heavy as ours.”
Zi Di sighed, then frankly acknowledged, “That’s right, I just felt hungry.”
“In fact, I have grown more and more ‘hungry’.”
Cang Xu was solemn, “I understand. You are a ghost, wanting to devour souls is
an instinctual desire of all ghosts. Despite the fact that you can rely on
medication to maintain your existence, your hunger cannot so easily be
eliminated, it will continue to accumulate more and more.”
“With respects to this, I am faced with lesser difficulties than you.”
“After all, my soul is still in my body.”
“For this, I have two suggestions.”
“Please advise me.” Said Zi Di immediately.
Cang Xu raised a finger, “First, you can enter your body once again, and stay
there for a bit. This will alleviate your ‘hunger’, however you will harm your
body, after all, right now you are brimming with negative energy.”
“Second, you can become a magician. Having your own magic power can help you
withstand the erosion of negative energy.”
Zi Di still wasn’t a magician yet.
Despite the fact that she was one in life.
Ghosts were magic beings of negative energy, and had racial magics.
After Cang Xu said that he hesitated for a bit, then raised a third finger,
“Mayber there is a third way, finding soul crystals.”
“Soul crystals?” Zi Di’s eyes suddenly lit up, “That is a mysterious magic
material, I’ve heard of it.”
Cang Xu continued, “Soul crystals are a soul fusion and purification technique.
Regardless of the person, those who absorb soul crystals can increase their own
soul foundation, without side effects.”
“But the creator of soul crystals is You Shen. Only a few people know how to,
because You Shen only gave this knowledge to his apprentices.”
“If we want to obtain that, I fear we’ll need more good luck.”
Zi Di sighed, “I understand. Soul crystals cannot be requested, necromancers
are already rare, and there are few among them who even have this technique.
All who can make soul crystals will use them themselves, very few will be sold
to outsiders. Because if it was exposed, it will cause the empire, and even
other necromancers, to conduct slaughters and pillages!”
The necromancers’ enemies were not only the empire or other forces, but also
each other.
It was early morning when a small fleet sailed into Snake Rat Island’s harbor.
“Please pay the anchoring fee, Captain Hei Fei.” A barefooted clerk immediately
came up.  
From the ship, a group of people walked down, all of them looked haggard. They
were headed by a wizened man smoking a pipe who asked, “How much?”
The clerk smiled, “As per the rules, it will be 10 silver per ship.”
Captain Hei Fei’s eyes suddenly opened wide, “Heavens, its gone up in price
again!”
The clerk replied, “So sorry, the pirates have become too rampant recently.
Uh…you have 3 ships, altogether it will be 35 silver. Medium sized ships cost
an additional 15 silver, and large ships cost an additional 30.”
The clerk sized up the ship, then gave another smile, “Captain Hei Fei, it is
only 35 silver. If you sell off ten or so of your slaves, you can earn it back.
It seems you’ve encountered a storm, your ships need repairs. You know, the
next supply point is quite far from here.”
This small fleet specialized in the slave trade.
The clerk and Captain Hei Fei were already acquainted with each other.
Captain Hei Fei’s eyes flashed ominously, however he managed to furl a frown
and nodded, “Give it to him!”
“Dammed nobles, you think that by just by breathing on this island gives you
the right to walk away with this man’s hard earned coin.” Captain Hei Fei’s
complaint dripped out.
His first mate stepped forward, untied a purse, and paid the toll.
Captain Hei Fei remined him, “Repair my ships, I will pay the fee later.”
The clerk shook his head, “You have to get in line, currently the boatwrights
are repairing those five vessels.”
When Captain Hei Fei sailed in, he had seen those other ships. 
“What for?” Captain Hei Fei lifted his chin, and indicated, “Our time is
precious, we can pay to have our repairs done first! The Wilderness Continent
will soon erupt into a wider war, who knows what the future will look like.”
“Out of the question.” The clerk shook his head again, “Those are my Lord’s
personal guests. They are also quite strong, although they are only silver
levels, they have a gold level cannon. They destroyed Da Zhao’s pirate group,
and repelled Rou Zang not once, but twice.”
When Captain Hei Fei heard the survivors had eliminated Da Zhao’s pirate group,
his expression slightly changed. When he heard Rou Zang had been repelled, his
face lit up with fear and amazement.
To conduct slave trade between the Sheng Ming Continent and the Wilderness
Continent, one naturally had to be strong.
“Did they really repel Rou Zang?” The first mate found it hard to believe.
“This was what my Lordship said himself, you think it false?” The clerk shook
his head.
Captain Hei Fei indignantly spat out a glob of black tobacco, if the survivors
were this powerful, they were people he could not provoke. He could only reply
back depressed, “Then we’ll line up behind them.”
“Of course.” Said the clerk.
Captain Hei Fei looked at the sky, “Damm it, it seems we’ll be here for several
days.”
The first mate softly suggested, “There is a batch of goods onboard that we can
process here.” 
Captain Hei Fei nodded, “Then we’ll sell it on Snake Rat Island. Arrange it.”
After saying that, he left his first mate and called out to his other
subordinates. “Move, we’ll find some fun in the taverns first!”
His subordinates cheered and swaggered off.
They also knew Snake Rat Island well and scattered, with almost all of them
headed towards taverns or inns, only one of them quietly snuck into a side
street.
When he exited it a while later, he had changed into another appearance, now
his clothes looked very similar to that of a resident of Snake Rate Island.
He gazed at the port with rapt attention and thought to himself, “There is no
rush to destroy their ships, I first need to learn who they are.” 
It was Mo Kong, the silver level warlock and Rou Zang’s first mate.
He had snuck onto this island with orders to act against the survivors.



****** Chapter 39: The Hidden Hand in the Dark ******
Compared to fighters, magicians were undoubtably more grandiose.
There were three main reasons.
First, there were far fewer people with the talent for magic, compared to those
for fighting,
Second, magicians had more skills and more ways to apply them compared to
fighters. 
Third, even if they didn’t have extraordinary personal strength, their
knowledge was still enough for them to do many things.
Mo Kong was not a magician, he was only a warlock. However, when he was
concealing his identity, even he had a way of restraining his aura,
When he was acting alone, he was very prudent. He didn’t infiltrate Snake Rat
Island by swimming in or flying in. Instead, he snuck aboard a ship traveling
by, replaced someone he murdered, and used that identity to successfully come
ashore.
Now, he was mixing in with the crowd, with his eyes gazing at the doors of the
Hunting Guild.
A tall and sturdy human fellow was walking through the doors, it was Shi Qi
(Zong Ge).
Zong Ge calmly held a bloodstained sack in his hand.
Fellows of the Hunting Guild passed by him, most of them were ordinary hunters,
while a few were cultivators.
They gathered by the side of the front desk, and raised their head to look at
the missions posted on the magic noticeboard on the ceiling.
Zong Ge’s arrival attracted the attention of many.
His body brimmed with the aura of a silver level fighter, no one could devalue
him.
Upon seeing Zong Ge, the receptionist at the front desk blankly stared at him
for a moment, then jogged from behind the desk and grinned widely, “Lord Shi
Qi, good morning.”
Long Fu and Shi Qi’s arrival had attracted the attention of the island’s upper
class.
The evening that they had landed, Tan Qiu had invited them to dinner, causing
information of what Long Fu, Shi Qi, and others looked like to quickly
circulate.
Zong Ge nodded, then threw the sack onto the ground, causing one of the heads
to roll out like a ball.
In the guild, someone immediately cried out.
“Ah, that looks like Da Zhao.”
“I heard a group got rid of Dao Zhao’s pirate group, took all of their ships,
and used them to beat back Rou Zang. Don’t tell me that really happened?”
Zong Ge opened his mouth, his voice was low and deep, “Check them, these are
the leaders of Da Zhao’s pirate group.”
The receptionist stiffened for a moment, then resumed his prior composure,
“Understood. We will do that now, please wait for us for a moment.”
Upon saying that, he put Da Zhao’s head back into the sack, then carried the
sack into the back of the guild.
Zong Ge took this opportunity to move towards the front desk and raise his head
to look over the information on the magic board.
Wherever he went, other hunters would automatically step aside.
“That wretched guy!” When Warlock Mu Ban witnessed the scene hidden in the
crowd, he couldn’t help but grind his teeth.
The magic panel had many writings and images on it, and every few minutes, it
would change.
Zong Ge first saw many bounty postings for pirates.
The Pirate Throne had appeared, causing these pirates to rise up like mad.
He wanted to check how much the bounty for Da Zhao’s pirates was when his gaze
suddenly paused, he noticed there was a reward for finding Zhen Jin.
Zhen Jin pretended to be Hei Juan, and after being shipwrecked, became the
survivors’ captive on Mystifying Monster Island. Nowadays, he was in a coma and
held on the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
He was a formidable negotiation chip, and survivors planned to use him to
negotiate with the Bai Zhen clan.
Because of special circumstances, Zhen Jin was the Bai Zhen clan’s only heir,
and could not be replaced. 
Therefore, after Zhen Jin and Zi Di went missing, the Bai Zhen clan mobilized
their entire strength to search for him. Since a missing poster of Zhen Jin
appeared on Snake Rat Island, Zong Ge undoubtably knew that it was also posted
at other islands and other imperial coastal cities.
Besides pirate bounties and finding Zhen Jin, there were many missions of the
same type.
Hunting missions.
Most of the hunts assignments were for tide snakes and smelt rats.
There were Snake Rat Island’s signature magic beasts that lived in its
underground caverns, there were many communities of them that lived and had
multiplied there for many years. There was no lack of silver level magic beast
leaders among them. In the subterranean abyss, someone even noticed traces of
gold level magic beasts.
In fact, these missions were the Hunting Guild’s main business venue.
Criminal bunties, finding people, and other tasks were considered affiliated
tasks.
Identical bounty orders, search and rescue orders, and other missions could be
seen in the Thief Guild, the Mercenary Guild, the Alchemy Guild, and so on.
Snake Rat Island was not big, it only had a Hunting Guild office. If one wanted
to see these bounties and other missions, this was the only place they could.
Of course, Snake Rat Island hadn’t been build up and developed for long.
As time passed, this place would grow more prosperous.
The Sheng Ming Empire had invaded the Wilderness Continent, and it begun to
clearly drive the development and trade of some regions.
Zong Ge waited for a while for the receptionist to come back to him.
“Lord Shi Qi, the head has been verified.”
“This is your bounty.”
Zong Ge took a full punch of money.
“Are you interested in joining the Hunting Guild? After completing some
missions, the guild will give you some special rewards. In light of your
strength, what magic beast can be your opponent?”
The receptionist used praise to attract Zong Ge.
Gold level existences usually were stationed in a region and had authority.
Silver levels were the main target for guild recruitment. Especially someone
like Zong Ge, someone who could vie with an expert like Rou Zang, he was an
extremely valuable person to attract.
But Zong Ge shook his head and expressed his disinterest, then left the Hunting
Guild.
Warlock Mo Kong watched him leave and didn’t shadow him.
He twitched his nose, breathing in the stink of blood in the air as he slowly
walked to the back of the Hunting Guild office.
In the pile of trash in the corner, he found the sack.
The bloodstained sack no longer had the heads in it.
Wherever Mo Kong touched the sack, bloodstains would melt away and coagulate
into blood that flowed into his garments, across his body, and into his nose.
“The victims’ blood, the murderer’s aura, very good, this is a good start.” Mo
Kong complacently sneered and left.
Above his head, a group of birds flapped their wings as they streaked across
the air.
No one detected anything peculiar about this group of birds, it was the scout
bird models.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di was controlling these birds.
On the walls, a light projection was created from screens showing the point of
view of every bird. 
Mo Kong did not notice these strange birds while Zi Di hadn’t seen through Mo
Kong’s disguise. 
There were too many screens, too many images flashing past. Mo Kong ‘s disguise
method was outstanding, it far exceeded these scout birds’ detection
capabilities. 
The entire bird’s-eye-view of Snake Rate Island was gradually being filled in.
As time passed, both the buildings Tan Qiu had on Snake Rat Island and the
military layout present could be seen from a panoramic view.
The island was quite round, however on the northeast corner, a piece of it
seemed to have been bitten out.
The nick was a wide crescent moon shaped shoal, both ends of which abruptly
rose up. There were obvious traces of manmade explosives visible.
This shoal was Snake Rat Island’s only harbor.
Apart from this, although the island was round, it was all sheer cliffs and
precipitous rock faces.
On the surrounding cliffs, large flocks of seabirds danced in the breeze. They
nested in the cliffs and caught fish in the sea.
The sea wind was strong, creating waves that constantly struck the cliffs in a
spray of seawater.
There wasn’t much vegetation on the island, most places were bare and covered
in odd stone crags.
From time to time, natural tunnel entrances will appear on the surface. These
cave mouths are all dark green, and are very conspicuous from the air. The big
ones are nearly fifty meters in diameter, while the smaller ones are at least
ten.
These caves all connect to the underground.
Snake Rat Island has a massive subterranean area under it. The most abundant
natural resource in it are the two magic beast groups, the smelt rats and tide
serpents.
“But the Green Jade Gold Coffin was not teleported there.”
When Zi Di saw that, she quietly sighed to herself.
If it had been teleported there, the survivors would find it considerably
troublesome to search for it.
The island inhabitants mostly gathered in three areas. The biggest congregation
was the port. Streams of people shuttled through the town, it was bustling. The
other two were villages that had people coming and going. One of the village’s
industry was lumbering yards, while the other was open air mining.
After conducting a basic scan of Snake Rat Island, Zi Di had the scouts fly
back t o town to continue investigating.
The town’s most conspicuous building was undoubtably Tan Qiu’s castle.
Although the castle wasn’t big, it was very new. Even though Zi Di hadn’t
studied architecture much, she could tell with a glance that it was a
fortification that met military standards, easy to defend and difficult to
attack.
The castle occupied a high slope. Beneath the slope, the terrain gradually
leveled, it was the upper class district.
In the upper district, the streets were wide and there were several important
buildings there.
Outside of the wealthy district, there were the slums. Large and small shacks
were packed tightly along with many people, it was squalid.
As the slums spread towards the port, it became prosperous again.
The port had a market, their main product was fresh fish.
Breakfast had already passed, and people continually streamed through the
town. 
Zi Di gradually grew absent-minded, when she saw these sights, she sensed a
thriving vitality.
An urge to throw herself into this place arose in her heart.
People were social beings.
Mystifying Monster Island was a place of imminent crisis and lurking danger,
the Deep Sea Monster Fish was cramped and terribly busy, the boundless ocean
made the survivors feel insignificant, and Rou Zang pursuing them put them on
edge.
Now, Zi Di finally saw civilization, and saw the society she was oh so familiar
with. Even if she was merely a spectator, happiness and tranquility still
sprung up in her heart.
A few scout birds landed on the ships.
Some on the sides, others on the window sills.
“As expected, this is a slave ship.” After Zi Di saw the images, she understood
what it was depicting. 
This small fleet had made port next to the survivors’ five ships, of course
they wanted to probe them.
“Slave ships mostly transport ox-men, this kind of beastman make for good
plowing slaves.”  
“Hm, I’ve detected a cemetery. In addition to the slaughterhouse, perhaps Cang
Xu can gather some resources here too.”
The scout birds displayed their extraordinary practicality as they gained more
and more information.
Through the birds’ perspective, Zi Di saw Cang Xu and Zong Ge.
The two were walking out of a store,
It was Snake Rat Island’s biggest store, it belonged to the Clam Cloth Merchant
Alliance.
The merchant alliance magician stationed there personally said farewell to Zong
Ge and Cang Xu.
On the one hand, it was to give face to Long Fu and Shi Qi, on the other hand,
Cang Xu had given the store its biggest transaction yet.
Cang Xu sold most of the Soft Heart Stone and purchased many goods in exchange.
“I will reserve the goods you need for the time being, however, I also ask for
your understanding. We cannot keep goods we cannot sell.” The merchant alliance
magician reminded as they parted.
Zong Ge nodded, his tone tranquil, “I understand.”
The merchant alliance magician smiled back, “Then I look forward to attending
you two again!”
Enroute on the return trip, Cang Xu couldn’t help but frown.  
Many resources were out of stock, even worse, the survivors didn’t have much
money on hand, and could not even buy all of things that were available.
The survivors hadn’t gotten a lot of money from Mystifying Monster Island.
Zong Ge was also somewhat disappointed.
He didn’t find anything that could help his arm injury.
“Perhaps Tan Qiu has the thing I want.”
But if that is so, Tan Qiu will undoubtedly use it to get us to collaborate
with him to deal with Rou Zang.
That did not conform with the survivors’ plan.
“It seems healing it can only be put aside for the time being. I’ll wait for
another opportunity on another island.”
Zong Ge and Cang Xu sank into deep thought.
For a short time, when Zi Di’s gaze lingered on these two, she too began to
mutter to herself.
Of the survivors, these two were the strongest and only second to the dragonman
youngster. Although Cang Xu was only at the iron level, he had necromancy and
had many ghosts that could menace Zong Ge greatly.
Zong Ge hated necromancy, while Cang Xu was vigilant against Zong Ge. This was
what the experience on Mystifying Monster Island had produced.
Anyways, during the prior battle with Rou Zang, Zong Ge had willingly taken
blows for Cang Xu when the latter was in danger.
Currently, the two’s relationship had eased up greatly.
This time, because they needed to trade and were facing a silver level
magician, Zong Ge and Cang Xu decided to partner up together.
After the trade was completed, the two had a lot of supplies on them, thus they
also needed Zong Ge’s strength to safeguard the goods.
The survivors did not know that not long after Cang Xu and Zong Ge departed,
the warlock, Mo Kong, also entered the store.
Using his successful disguise, he deliberately expressed pleasant surprise,
“Did you say you had a large amount of Soft Heart Stone?”
“How wonderful!”
“Quick, let me examine the goods.”
A moment later, with a Soft Heart Stone in hand, Mo Kong left the store.
“Very good, this time, I have gathered the aura of that old magician.” He
sneered in his heart.



****** Chapter 40: Helping Each Other ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish, the alchemy cabin.
In a radiant alchemy formation, the young captain bathing in the light opened
his mouth wide and gasped for breath.
He was drenched in sweat, his body already exhausted to its limits due to him
continuously squeezing his stamina,
At that very moment, his heart was thumping like a large drum, seemingly
causing all of his flesh to throb.
However, success brought him happiness.
“Finally…the change is done.”
With the help of the alchemy formation and yellow crab puppets, he constantly
discharged his old battle qi, then cultivated a new battle qi. Besides what was
absolutely necessary, he did not rest nor relax during the entire process.
He couldn’t afford to lose a moment, and made every second count in order to
switch his battle qi.
The obsolete habits were purged away, now even if he wasn’t cultivating, his
body would now produce the new battle qi.
Bursting Explosion battle qi!
A radiance reflected against alchemy cabin’s golden walls as it spread out
across the young man’s red dragon scales, he attentively sensed how different
this new battle qi felt.
He bowed his head, reflecting as he looked down on his hands.
Or to be more precise, a pair of sturdy and powerful dragon claws.
Despite being tired and aching from head to toe, the dragonman youngster still
sensed the new battle qi hidden within his body, it had changed him somewhat.
The new battle qi produced a sensation, as if his back was bent and his elbows
were curved, ready to strike with his fists.
He grew restless.
The new Bursting Explosion battle qi erupted with power the White Ri could
never compare to.
Whoosh.
The dragonman youngster punched again.
The simple and straight punch caused a rush of wind.
The new battle qi was refined by this movement.
The fist, forearm, and upper arm all produced Bursting Explosion battle qi. The
closer one boxed to the center, the more battle qi was produced.
The young man then tried to use a bit of battle qi.
Ding!
The fist rapidly accelerated, as if it was being boosted by gunpowder.
The air in front of it was blown apart.
“Excellent, now that I have this battle qi, the next step is to store up on it
and constantly train. My actual combat abilities are bound to jump leaps and
bounds.” The youngster said to himself.
Although the Life Scorching Dragon Breath was powerful, it took too long to
cast. The young man understood that this was a great weakness. It would be
difficult to replicate his prior victory over Rou Zang.
“White River battle qi is cultivated through swimming, thus Bursting Explosion
battle qi is more convenient to cultivate.”
“It really suits the dragonman form, and when I break through to the gold level
in the future, it will be boosted greatly too.”
After sensing how different the new battle qi was from the old, the young man
was deeply moved by the Bloodcore once again.
“The Bloodcore is just so practical!”
Generally, fighters selected their battle qi technique based on their
bloodlines.
As far as everyone was concerned, bloodlines were innate and could not be
altered, therefore they had no choice but to pick a battle qi based on them.
Only battle qi that suited the bloodline could display their full benefits. 
Normally, after fighters selected their battle qi, they would never change it.
Even if there were many other battle qi that suited them, they wouldn’t ever
change theirs.
Take Lan Zao for example, there were many battle qi techniques that were
compatible with him, however, he persevered in cultivating the Water Grass
battle qi. Because changing one’s battle qi technique was very costly, and
after changing it, the battle qi would usually give a similar amount of benefit
to the bloodline, it was completely unnecessary to squander resources doing
this.
Because of this, battle qi techniques weren’t rigorously kept secret.
Even if a battle qi technique was spread, if one didn’t have a compatible
bloodline, they could not cultivate it, or perhaps, expend twice the effort for
half the result.
Many people even circulated parts of their battle qi techniques themselves.
Because they could be used to detect others with the same bloodline, or perhaps
allow other fighters to reveal their talents and be convinced into joining the
circulator.
People gathered these battle qi techniques, battle skills, meditation methods,
and other such things quite easily.
Of course, secret parts that involved the highest levels of the technique were
still kept confidential. For example, some hidden skills like the Bai Zhen
Clan’s Piercing Needle Explosion was kept under tight wraps. Another example
was that a profound part of a battle qi technique was controlled and treated as
a benefit to be distributed to strengthen an organization’s rule.
“Eat something.” Zi Di smiled, a pot of meat in her hands.
Smelt rat meat.
The dragonman youngster was hungry, thus he expressed his thanks, sat down, and
began to eat.
He opened his mouth, and with sharp teeth, easily chewed the smelt rat meat.
The smelt rate meat was rare, and as the dragonman youngster chewed, blood
dribbled from his mouth.
The dragonman youngster swallowed, and his face lit up happily.
Compared to normal humans, dragonmen had better digestive capabilities. Their
sense of taste was also different, they found raw meat tastier.
Quickly, fire attribute magic power appeared in the young man’s body. As he
digested, more and more magic power spread throughout his body.
The ghost girl calmly watched the dragonman youngster eat, her warm gaze
revealing her love.
For a time, the alchemy cabin filled with a warm aura.
“Perhaps I should learn how to roast magic beast meat.” The girl suddenly said
as she looked at her beloved.
The dragonman youngster was surprised, “I think you had better become a
magician as soon as possible.”
“I know.” The girl rolled her eyes, “Anyway, you know processing magic beast
meat also belongs in the domain of alchemy.”
“A wise chef made meal will have harmonious magic power that is easy to absorb.
Even more, they can magnify the consumption value of the food.”
“You can look at these dishes as eatable magic medicine with peculiar shapes.”
The dragonman youngster contemplated, “Indeed, we are not on Mystifying Monster
Island. Next, we will all need three meals of magic beast meat a day. If we had
a magic chef helping us make dishes, we could reduce magic beast meat
consumption and increase the value of our food. Over a long period, our
fighters will benefit considerably.”
“However, the most important thing now is that you become a magician, then we
can use the magic formation to improve your bloodline.”
“Yep. I understand.” The ghost girl sweetly smiled.
The dragonman youngster’s battle qi had successfully changed, next was to make
Zi Di a magician again.
This was also part of the plan they had discussed.
The two did not want to sink into a sorry state at the same time, after all,
the value of War Merchant’s inheritance was too astonishing.
Wealth moved the mind, like what happened to Jia Sha.
The young man and lady trusted their companions, however they also did not
think it was necessary to risk testing their humanity.
Like on Mystifying Monster Island when they helped each other, they helped each
other now too.
After Zi Di adjusted her condition, she entered the meditation room.
The dragonman youngster personally guarded the cabin door.
Time passed, and the sun rose from the sea.
The bustling market pier soon became sparse once again.
On the deck of a ship, Zong Ge and Tripleblade were focused on training
sailors.
They divided into pairs and fought each other in close combat with swords
blunted by thick cotton cloth.
“Ah!” A sailor fell to the ground, causing him to let out a mournful yelp.
Although the sword was wrapped, getting hit by it still hurt. The fallen
sailor’s face quickly turned dark purple.
This was a common occurrence.
Zong Ge snorted coldly with annoyance, “Stand up, continue fighting.”
“If you fear pain, when death approaches, what can you take out to resist its
coming?”
“Don’t stop!”
“Continue! Continue!
Intimidated by Zong Ge’s might, the sailors could only lower their heads with
trembling bodies, clench their teeth, and continue training.
The training persisted for a time longer until Zong Ge’s expression changed.
“Rest!”
A moment later, the training sailors seemed to lose their bones as they slammed
limply onto the deck.
Tripleblade, who had been drilling during this time, walked over to Zong Ge,
“My Lord, these are the elites we have filtered out from the rest. However, now
it seems their physical strength has become a problem. Before, when we were
dealing with Rou Zang, we did not conduct a wide scale war. If our entire troop
goes into battle, these people…”
When he said that, Tripleblade shook his head.
He was once a mercenary group commander, therefore, he also had the ability to
conduct drills and see the problems in these sailors.
Zong Ge shook his head, his voice low, “Stamina can be nurtured, however they
lack killing intent. They have not endured pain and pressure, all of these
people will flee in terror on their first battlefield.” 
Tripleblade sighed, “Those pirates aren’t bad, however, the fisherfolk are all
incompetent.”
Currently, the survivors’ troops mainly consist of two groups.
One was recruited from Da Zhao’s pirate group.
The other was the Stone Egg Island fisherfolk they had saved.
Tripleblade’s tone changed, “Anyways, with enough time, we can improve their
situation with constant training.”
“All of these people are good at swimming, with enough drills. They will be
qualified naval mariners.
But Zong Ge replied, “Time is exactly what we lack the most.”
“Good luck has never been on our side.”
“If Rou Zang pursues us, he won’t give us a third chance.”
Zong Ge understood that opportunities on the battlefield were fleeting. He had
to value time, grab ahold of every chance, and expend the greatest effort to
use them to strengthen himself as best as he could.
“We need people of a certain quality.”
“These people need more talent and abilities, at least enough to be worth the
energy it takes to train them.”
“They will be our common members.”
Tripleblade’s eyes shined upon hearing what Zong Ge was implying.
Zong Ge always regarded the survivors’ team as a doomed prospect, and
determined that the layers of contradictions in it made harmony hard, and no
matter if their redemption was successful or not, this team would inevitably
collapse.
Zong Ge originally wanted to go to the Wilderness Continent to accomplish his
goals. 
Now, he was beginning to prepare for that future.
He planned to build his own army.
Besides his individual strength, he was also a skilled battle commander. 
When he reached the Wilderness Continent, what else could help him better
accomplish his goals than an army?
Tripleblade was also somewhat excited.
Zong Ge was his lifesaving benefactor, however he did not follow him solely
because of that.
Zong Ge was a half beastman, and suffered discrimination on Mystifying Monster
Island. As a goblin, Tripleblade resonated with Zong Ge’s awkward situation.
To some degree, Tripleblade had entrusted his own aspirations to Zong Ge.
He immediately began to calculate what Zong Ge was planning.
“My Lord.” Tripleblade suddenly said, “I have thought of a way.”
He pointed at a few ships nearby.
“Those are slave transport ships.”
“They sailed in yesterday, there are many imprisoned beastmen on board.”
“It is a small transport fleet.”
“Intelligence shows that these ships have a large amount of beastmen. Most of
them are cowmen, the rest are dogmen. To be more accurate, they are shiba inu-
men.”
“We can purchase some slaves to cultivate and train.”
Zong Ge gazed at the slave transport ships with rapt attention, “I also intend
to do this. After today’s training is finished, you will ask what the price of
them is.”



****** Chapter 41: Driving the Price Down ******
Zong Ge continued to preside over training till night fell.
The trainees were frothing at the mouth, and most of them did not even have the
strength to eat their dinner.
The rest weren’t having a great time either. 
Zong Ge also trained them during his spare time.
One day later, the sailors were all exhausted.
The scout birds perched on the sides and portholes of the ships recorded the
sailors’ private complaints and bewilderments about Zong Ge. Some even called
Zong Ge a madman.
The pirates who had been on battlefields and felt the pressure of death, began
to have their impression of Zong Ge change dramatically.
They would rather fight on the battlefield than endure this oppressive training
torture.
“A group of bandits, all completely useless.” Zong Ge coldly snorted when he
found out.
He could now only entrust his hopes more into those beastman slaves.
For that mission, Tripleblade had gone to a village pub.
The pub was indeed bustling at night!
Stone fireplaces were raging hot, and there were candles hanging from ceiling
lamps and every corner, lighting the entire place up.
In the bright place, a barman at the counter was busily pouring wine.
On a small stage, a blond and freckled female dancer was flicking her red and
white dancing skirt and thumping the floor along with the music.
There were some sitting in dark nooks. Some were whispering to each other, ass
if they were conspiring something. Others were drinking quietly and watching
the stairs that led to the second floor, or perhaps leaning on the dagger in
their hands.
Hei Fei was in the upstairs room seeking pleasure, as a captain, he naturally
had his subordinates guarding him.
Down on the first floor, his first mate was making the loudest noises at his
drinking table. His face had an ugly scar from a knife wound, back in the day,
a knife nearly cut his face into two.
He drained his cup, rolling his Adam’s apples several times, then suddenly
threw the oaken wine cup away.
“You’re so ugly, begone from me!” The first mate bellowed.
The female dancer jumped back in fright, she had just narrowly avoided the wine
cup. She was an ordinary person, if the thick wine cup had smashed into her, it
would have left her badly bruised.
The band also stopped fearfully.
Everyone else began to look at the first mate.
The first mate emitted an iron level aura, and with disheveled hair and red
eyes, he looked back at them.
Customers who weren’t strong enough turned away, none dared to look him in the
face.
The barman at the counter did not speak, they were somewhat pale. The tavern
owner didn’t show his face. Although some of the strong customers indignantly
snorted, they didn’t do anything.
Hei Fei had many people here.
“Hehehe!” The first mate heartily laughed as he emitted his tyrannical aura. He
turned to his side and yelled, “Boys, let’s gives this group of country
bumpkins some real entertainment.”
The sailors around him knew what the first mate’s disposition was like and
immediately jogged out.
Very quickly, sailors from the back of the pub crowded together, their hands
tugging iron chains.
The iron chains clacked together against the bonds of the living creatures held
by them.
They were short, green skinned, had large eyes, sharp noes, and pointed ears.
“Are those goblins?” The first mate frowned, displeased.
A sailor rushed to explain, “My Lord, the captain told us that you cannot kill
the beastman, we need to sell them tomorrow.”
The first mate coldly snorted, “Then give me a proper show!”
The sailors promptly hurried to the tavern’s small stage, raised their whips,
and flogged the goblins.
The goblins were chained to the stage, but not completely immobile. To dodge
the whips, they scattered across the stage, and from time to time, the iron
chains yanked them to the floor, accompanied by loud shrieks.
The whips were barbed, and when they touched flesh, it would leave it
lacerated, splattering the walls and floor with scarlet blood.
Seeing this, the first mate howled with laughter and glee. 
“Ah, now this is a dance. Where is the music? Don’t stop!” He growled.
The musicians began to play at once.
As the music and screams of the goblins intermingled, the first mate laughed.
Some people could not bear to watch as they either looked up or at their wine
cups. Others were interested and admired the sight, they too laughed from time
to time.
Tripleblade pushed open the tavern door and walked in.
He knew He Fei and his men were here.
A few scouting birds were on the town’s bell tower or roofs and continued to
monitor this place.
Almost all of the Captain’s Hei Fei’s chief subordinates were here pleasure
seeking.
The night tavern was a good place to relax.
Snake Rat Island hadn’t had much construction on it, besides this tavern, there
really wasn’t anywhere else to go.
Tripleblade stared blankly, the first thing he saw was his fellow kin being
flogged on a stage.
He was also a goblin.
In an instant, his eyes narrowed, and he unconsciously gripped the scimitar at
his waist.
Many people looked at Tripleblade, their gazes wary.
He had used the Deceptive Disguise formation to pretend to be human, however
his height could not be disguised. Therefore, in the onlookers’ eyes, he looked
like a dwarf.
But Tripleblade was iron level!
The long cultivated temperament of a mercenary commander as well as the
scimitar at his waist also told the others that he was not someone to trifle
with.
Tripleblade’s complexion sank, then after quickly running his eyes around, he
directly walked towards the first mate.
The first mate stopped laughing and stared at Tripleblade.
The people around them slowly stood up from their drinking tables.
After waiting until Tripleblade had walked to him, the first mate said,
“Friend, what is it?”
Expressionless, Tripleblade replied, “I am looking for your captain, I want to
do business.”
At that moment, the screeching and sobbing of women came from the second floor.
The first mate smiled, “No matter what business it is, we cannot disturb the
captain’s spirits. I am the first mate, you can speak to me.”
Tripleblade responded, “I am very interested in your beastmen.”
The first mate nodded, “If you want to buy them, you can go to the market.”
“Tomorrow, we will sell a batch of slaves.”
“Eh?” During Tripleblade’s detailed inquiry, he discovered the slaves the other
party wanted to sell were defective goods.
These slaves either had physical discrepancies or injuries. The slave ships
were worried these slaves would die enroute, therefore they wanted to sell them
first. 
These were not people Zong Ge and Tripleblade wanted.
Tripleblade shook his head, “We want robust beastmen.”
“Those aren’t for sale. This place cannot offer a good price.” The first mate
also shook his head.
Tripleblade, “What’s the price?”
The first mate informed him of it.
Tripleblade couldn’t help but purse his brows.
“A high price.” He gazed into the first mate’s eyes.
The first mate laughed, “Friend, that is the price!”
“The current market price has changed.”
“A large scale war is about to break out on the Wilderness Continent.”
“In recent times, we are finding it hard to capture beastmen slaves.”
“This price is very reasonable!”
Tripleblade sank into silence.
He knew beastmen slaves had always been in high demand.
Because beastmen had stronger bodies than humans, they were always better
miners and farmers.
The beastmen the empire wantonly seized from the Wilderness Continent were not
only sold in the empire but also to other continents.
Many imperial citizens who had immigrated to other continents to expand the
empire’s territory required cheap laborers.
Tripleblade tried to lower the price.
The first mate shook his head, his refusal was very obvious.
He continued to lower prices.
As a former mercenary commander, he also could negotiate and was used to
careful accounting.
But this only resulted in mocking and ridicule.
“Forget it, you can’t afford it.”
“We can sell it for higher elsewhere, why must we sell it to you?”
The sailors around the first mate gazed at him with contempt, and even the
first mate exposed an impatient expression.
At that moment, a green figure suddenly jumped off the small stage and ran
upstairs to the second floor.
A startled shout rand out, “Oh no!”
“A goblin is escaping!”
“Capture him now!”
One of the whipped goblins somehow managed to struggle free of their chains.
At that moment of life and death, the goblin stimulated all of their strength,
catching everyone by surprise, and choosing not running into the street, but
instead up to the second floor.
“Damm it!” The first mate was greatly alarmed, his battle qi broke out as he
jumped up the stairs and into the second floor.
Ding.
A moment later, there was a dull echo.
The door to the second floor was kicked open.
The goblin was killed by the kick, and its broken body splattered with the
splinters of the wooden door onto the stairs and floor.
Captain Hei Fei only had a bedsheet wrapped around him as he wrathfully walked
down.
“Why weren’t you watching for this wretched thing?!” Hei Fei verbally abused.
“Captain.”
“Boss.”
The first mate and the others straightened their bodies, like cicadas in cold
weather. 
Hei Fei’s entire body was steeped in a silver level aura, as he looked around,
his gaze paused on Tripleblade and then the small stage.
The small stage was covered in bloodstains and had a group of scared goblins
huddling together on it.
Hei Fei gloomily looked down at the first mate, and from the gaps between his
teeth, a voice squeezed through, “Clean up all of your toys, if something
disturbs me again, you will feel my fury well.”
“Understood, boss!” The first mate responded at once.
Hei Fei coldly snorted with satisfaction and slowly returned to the room.
“Hey, stop.” Tripleblade’s voice suddenly cut through the deathly stillness of
the tavern.
The people around him slowly widened their eyes and their faces twisted into
disbelief.
Hei Fei’s footsteps ceased, and he looked at Tripleblade, his mood vile, “Did
you just speak?”
Upon saying that, he glanced at the first mate.
The first mate’s heart jumped as he pounced Tripleblade, “Outrageous!”
Shing.
The sound of a blade drawn was sharp and clear.
Everyone’s eyes seemed to blur as they watched Tripleblade suddenly disappear.
When he reappeared, he was in front of the first mate.
He lifted his scimitar, the blade point touching the first mate’s chin.
The first mate locked in place, he was in the middle of an attacking motion,
the dagger in his hand still raised high.
He looked especially embarrassed.
He felt bewildered and fearful, as well as angry and spiteful, for there wasn’t
enough time for those feelings to fully dissipate.
Everyone’s mouths dropped, cried of alarm still in their throats when
Tripleblade suppressed the first mate.
“Good speed!” On the second floor, Hei Fei’s eyes contracted.
The first made fumed with rage, but didn’t dare to rashly act.
“Friend, where are you from?” Hei Fei said, “You best understand the
consequences.”
Tripleblade smiled, “We are from the sea.”
“Our ships are next to your ships.”
“Consequences?”
“I understand those!”
“Damm it!” Upon hearing Tripleblade’s origins, the corners of Hei Fei’s eyes
couldn’t help but tremble.
“It’s that group of people!” The first mate’s and others’ hearts sank. 
Information about the survivors independently streaked across all of their
minds.
Two silver levels, one iron level magician, a gold level cannon, they annexed
Dao Zhao’s pirate group, and forced Rou Zang to withdraw…twice!
“So, it turns out to be a neighbor, hehehe.” The silent Hei Fei suddenly
laughed, “It seems we have been acquainted through fighting.”
He changed his attitude and walked down the stairs.
Upon seeing this, Tripleblade drew back his scimitar, but did not sheath it.
The first mate gagged and immediately took a few steps back, fear restraining
him.
“He came to purchase slaves.” The first mate faced Captain Hei Fei.
Hei Fei raised an eyebrow, “We can sell.”
“But the price needs to be appropriate.” He added on.
To be able to obtain slaves and transport them between continents, Hei Fei had
to be a highly capable person.
He did not want to offend the survivors, but he also wanted to protect his own
benefits.
Tripleblade watched Hei Fei attentively, the other party was a genuine silver
level, while he was only an iron level, in addition to the other’s many men, he
was not their opponent.
But his manner was more unyielding than before, “Currently, this isn’t a
business problem. He just stabbed me.”
Hei Fei’s brows wrinkled further, “But you aren’t injured, instead it’s my
man…”
The first mate touched his throat, and felt a trace of blood, causing him to
raise his hand at once and indicate to everyone, “See! You all see!”
Tripleblade coldly snorted and stared back at Captain Hei Fei, “And you.”
As a silver level, Hei Fei felt offended, and barely restrained his anger,
“Friend, don’t push your luck.”
Tripleblade was calm and fearless, he first looked at the dead goblin on the
floor.
The unlucky goblin had their entire chest caved in, and its fresh blood was
flowing onto the ground. Their eyes were open wide, they had died with
unresolved grievances.
Tripleblade’s gaze changed to look at his own chest.
He reached out and wiped his hand across his bloodstained chest.
It did not come back clean, but with a handful of blood.
Tripleblade looked back at Hei Fei, “You see, you splashed blood on me.”
Captain Hei Fei coldly snorted, “What do you want to do about it?”
His kin’s corpse reflecting in his eyes, Tripleblade used a heavy tone of voice
as he slowly replied, “Therefore, the price has to be cut.”
Everyone: …...



****** Chapter 42: Beastmen Rebellion ******
Tripleblade had left the tavern.
Hei Fei and the others gathered together with ugly expressions.
The first mate indignantly whispered, “Captain, why didn’t we seize that
arrogant guy?”
“From start to finish, he never even told us his name! He clearly looks down on
us.”
“Not only does he look down on me, he, an insignificant iron level, doesn’t
even put you in his eyes!”
“We could have seized him and used him to threaten those guys. Even if we can’t
beat them, at worst we could walk away.”
“Da Zhao’s pirate ships cannot compare to the speed of ours!”
“Our ships can still sail!”
“An urgent maintenance from the boatwrights can last us until the next island.”
Hei Fei instantly became gloomy, and he grabbed the first mate’s checks, veins
popping from the back of his hands as he twisted the first mate’s face.
Hei Fei coldly said, “Do you have a brain?”
“The one who lost face was not me, but you!”
“You were subdued in a single move, you are an iron level!”
“Also, what was that stupidity you just said?”
“Why did we come here to rest and reorganize? Because pirates are too rampant
nowadays, if we run into pirates with our ships in this state, what do we do?”
“When that moment comes, if you die in battle and have our goods robbed, what’s
the use if we aren’t alive?” 
“Bo, boss, my mistake, my mistake.” The first mate begged for mercy.
“Humph!” Hei Fei released his wrathful hands.
The first mate stroked his cheek with his own hand, frightened and doubtful.
His check had gone completely numb, and he could no longer feel it.
He even felt that his gums had gone slack.
Captain Hei Fei looked at the tavern door, his eyes narrowed and his voice low,
“Who do you think they are?”
“They are arms smuggling criminals!”
The first mate’s and the others’ eyes opened wide, this was hard to believe.
Hei Fei sneered, “Use your pitiful brains to think about it.”
“How can a group of people that appeared from nowhere be able to beat back Rou
Zang?” 
“They have many alchemy crossbows and firearms on hand, these things, they are
rechargeable and can be used by ordinary people. One or two is fine, but they
have hundreds on hand!”
“They even have a gold level cannon! Gold level. Their strongest cultivator is
only silver level, how can they use this battlefield treasure?”
“It’s very clear that they want to clandestinely transport these arms to the
Wilderness Continent. As a result, their secret base on Stone Egg Island was
raided by Da Zhao’s pirate group.”
“Ah, they were exposed, thus they had to act!”
“There is no recently organized mercenary group, it’s hogwash!”
Selling armaments was a serious crime.
Alchemy crossbows and firearms, especially rechargeable types, were all
controlled by the empire.
Let alone the gold level cannon that could collapse city walls.
Hei Fei was a slave trafficker, at most he plundered small beastman villages,
stole away the populace, and sold them into slavery.
The slave trade was allowed and considered an honorable business. 
But arms smuggling was different.
It was a crime!
Arms smugglers were groups of fugitives with a backer.
Without a backer, how could they obtain such arms, how could they sell them?
The water was very deep here, and Hei Fei was unsure of it.
He glanced at the tavern, then sighed, “Move, we’ll sleep on the ship tonight.”
After a pause, he then added, “All of you be on guard.” 
After this group of people left, the tavern became lively once again.
The goblins were taken away, the small stage was quickly wiped clean, then the
band and female dancer took center stage once again.
The customers watching this production started to converse more energetically.
Disguised as a normal person, the silver level warlock, Mo Kong, had arrived in
this place at some unknown time and took the spot where the first mate had been
sitting.
“That iron level is also somewhat interesting.”
Outwardly, he was drinking, while in reality, he was converging Tripleblade’s
life aura. 
Not long after, he left.
“Aura, still need a bit more…”
Night enveloped the town as Mo Kong walked towards the port. 
The ships berthed at the port were the survivors’ five and Hei Fei’s three.
Mo Kong gazed at the survivors’ distant ships and noticed the weak precautions
onboard. Despite having many sailors keeping watch, due to the painful training
during the day, they were dispirited and looked like they wanted to sleep.
Mo Kong hid in a corner and wanted to infiltrate the place when suddenly, he
stopped.
He looked at the seabirds perched on top of a ship, then gradually became
bewildered.
“Alchemy puppets?”
“Hmph, these people have many types of weapons.”
Mo Kong did not give up, as his gaze shifted towards Hei Fei’s ships.
Hei Fei’s ships also had sailors visible in the wind, they were on deck, the
bow, the aft, and on the mast keeping watch.
They were heavily guarded.
Mo Kong carefully observed for a moment, sneered, then began to quietly sneak
in.
On the ship, he smoothly found the first mate.
Because of his close quarters fight with Tripleblade, he still had some
residual life aura from the latter.
“Too hard to act on…”
Mo Kong felt somewhat awkward.
Because Tripleblade easily defeated the first mate and lost face, Hei Fei
punished him by putting him in charge of tonight’s watch.
He was an iron level, and his heart was full of indignance, his bright eyes
were completely wary, and he frequently moved.
Although Mo Kong was a silver level warlock, many of his methods were useless.
After all, most magics needed motions that would leak his aura.
“I need to keep an eye on time, if this takes too long, that iron level
swordsman’s aura will scatter.”
Mo Kong thought for a bit, and a stratagem appeared in his mind.
He quietly left the first mate, and went down some stairs, into the ship.
Regardless of whether it was the first mate or the patrolling sailors, none of
them noticed a trace of him.
He entered the hold and saw many unconscious beastmen.
These beastmen were in a drugged sleep. Only a part of them were awoken, they
were wrapped in iron chains and tightly watched.
When dawn came, these people would be escorted to the market and sold.
Mo Kong glanced at these people, then gave up.
These people were old, weak, or disabled. Some were even close to death,
otherwise Hei Fei wouldn’t have been pressed to dump them here.
Mo Kong went further into the depths of the hold and chose his target.
He took out a bottle of perfume and popped the cork.
A gentle puff of smoke quickly dissipated into the hold. 
The beastmen captives’ eyes slackened and they quickly became conscious.
Mo Kong quietly faded away and headed towards the other ship olds to spread the
fragrance.
These people had been unconscious, but because of the fragrance, their
consciousness had been restored.
Hei Fei and the others were very confident in their incapacitating agents, and
due to them taking precautions against the survivors, most of the sailors were
on the deck.
Like Mo Kong wanted, the beastmen awoke and began to secretly assemble
together.
“Our village is already destroyed!”
“Boohoo…father, he’s dead, those devils killed him.”
“Vengeance, we will kill them!”
The beastmen united against a common enemy.
But their leaders were not blinded by hatred.
“We only awoke because of their carelessness. We must grab hold of this golden
opportunity, we won’t have a second!”
“We aren’t those demons’ match! I still feel drugged, and only have half my
strength.”
“We are unarmed and defenseless!”
“Even if we die, we won’t make it easy!”
A beastman elder looked at the younger one, “Young patriarch, although our clan
has been ruined, it hasn’t been destroyed.”
“We will stir up a rebellion and give you a chance to escape.”
The young patriarch shook his head with a resolute bearing, “I won’t abandon
you, we will die together!”
“No. You cannot die, you must live.” The elder put their hands on the you
patriarch.
Even if we rebel, they won’t kill us.”
“Because we are their merchandise, they will capture us alive and treat us as
slaves to sell off.”
“As long as you survive young patriarch and gather strength outside, you can
return, save us, and allow our clan to emerge once again!”
But the young patriarch did not heed their advice, “I won’t desert you all!”
Just as the elder was about to speak, the sailors above started to yell.
They noticed that people in the holds weren’t responding and began to muster
together to rush down.
“Come quickly, the beastmen are waking up!”
The beastman elder sighed, “It’s too late.”
“Charge!”
“We will kill them together.” The young patriarch took the lead and charged
first.
The hold immediately exploded with noise.
The beastmen gathered together and grappled with the human sailors
The beastmen were united, and hatred caused their moral to skyrocket in spite
of life or death.
Although there were many sailors, in the narrow confines of the ship, they
could not display their full forces. Their equipment was also of subpar
quality, at best they had leather armor and cutlasses. 
During this time, when everyone thronged together and rubbed shoulders to do
battle, the situation sank into chaos and deadlock.
“What’s going on?” The first mate arrived at the mouth of the stairs, but was
in no rush to go down.
A subordinate reported that the beastmen were rebelling.
The first mate stood there in indefinite bewilderment.
“We drugged them all, how did they awaken?”
Slave traffickers were very confident in their drugs, otherwise they wouldn’t
have sent out this ship with people on it. 
“There is something strange inside!”
The first mate thought of the survivors first.
“Don’t tell me they really want to attack us?”
“Previously, it was obvious they were dissatisfied with our quoted price. If
they could snatch our slaves, why should they buy them?”
That group of wretched fugitives!”
Thus, the first mate stood above deck and didn’t dare to go down.
He was scared that the survivors had caused this, if this was the case, then
there would be an expert hidden down there, setting up a trap specially built
for him to fall into.
“Ask the captain to help!” The first mate instructed an underling.
The underling went and came back with news, the captain had insulted the first
mate, and asked why he, a cultivator and his first mate, hadn’t acted yet to
suppress the rebellion.
The first mate looked at the flagship and found Hei Fei standing there, coldly
watching him, his admonishment very strong.
“Damm it!” The first mate immediately realized that Hei Fei had the same
worries as him.
Hei Fei wanted his first made to charge in first and let him trigger whatever
traps and schemes there were first.
The first mate could only stiffen his scalp and charge in.
He was an iron level, and immediately suppressed the situation.
Mo Kong quietly withdrew from the chaos, and moved with the stream of people to
approach the first mate and gently draw Tripleblade’s aura from him.
Despite achieving his original aim, he was hesitant to leave.  
Because he noticed the first mate and the young beastman patriarch were
deadlocked with each other.
The young beastman patriarch was also iron level, but because of the drugs, he
could only display a third of his strength.
However, the first mate was warry of potential traps, most of his mind wasn’t
focused on the young patriarch, thus creating this kind of battlefield
situation.
“Perhaps, I can accomplish more.” After noticing this spectacle, Mo Kong chose
to stay and help the beastmen.
With his hidden magic, the beastman elder suddenly noticed a swelling power
emitting from his body.
At that moment, he seemed to have regained the pinnacle of his youthful
stamina.
The beastman elder did not help the young patriarch, instead he used all of his
strength to activate his diminished battle qi and smash through the hull.
“Young patriarch, this way!” He roared, then charged forth to replace the young
patriarch in his duel with the first mate.
“Elder?!” The young patriarch wanted to keep fighting on zealously.
“Go now!” The beastman elder anxiously cried.
“Go, go!” Many of the beast men grabbed the young patriarch and pulled him
away.
The young patriarch was already seriously injured, and didn’t have much
strength left. Despite struggling with all of his might, the other beastmen
dragged him away. 
“Go, this way!” As a silver level warlock, Mo Kong was an expert at confusing
the mind. 
Presently, he was hidden in the darkness and was quietly influencing the
beastmen’s decisions.
The beastmen, in a panic, chose not to go further inland, but instead rushed
towards the survivors’ ships.
Mo Kong wanted to use them to attack the survivors’ defensive perimeter and
expose the many cards in their hands.
If it also triggered a conflict between Hei Fei’s group and the survivors, then
it would be even better for him!



****** Chapter 43: Return My Slaves ******
On one of the survivors’ ship, Zong Ge carefully listened to Tripleblade’s
report.
“Hei Fei mainly has oxmen and dogmen on hand, as well as a few goblins.”
“An ordinary adult male ox-man is priced at 8 gold. An ordinary adult male
dogman is priced at 7 gold.”
“They have twelve bronze level oxmen, all fighters and priced from 60-90 gold.
The bronze level dogmen are also fighters and have similar prices on them.”
“They also have three iron level fighters. One female oxmen, who is disabled
and old, and priced at 580 gold. Two dogmen elders priced at 730 gold, while
the young dogman patriarch is the most expensive, they want 940 gold.”
Zong Ge was somewhat pleased with what he heard. 
Because he wanted the dogmen, as they were cheaper than the oxmen.
But he was still very vexed.
“Ordinary adult male dogmen were still 7 gold each!
He had never had more than 5 gold on his person ever.
Zong Ge also didn’t understand the market pricing of slaves, so he asked
Tripleblade, “Can it be cheaper?”
Tripleblade did not tell him about the minor conflict inside the tavern,
instead he shook his head, “I already pushed down the price to its absolute
lowest.”
Zong Ge’s face flashed with agony, “Even if that’s the lowest price, we do not
have that much money.”
In fact, he used to have some savings too.
However, during the shipwreck of the Hog’s Kiss, he had lost it.
The survivors’ were nearly in the same situation as Zong Ge.
There had been almost no gold coins in the spoils they had seized from War
Merchant.
“My Lord.” Tripleblade deliberated for a bit, then suggested, “We can make a
request to the captain and the others.”
“If we all raise money, we will surely have enough.”
“When that happens, we can look to buy them.”
Zong Ge shook his head, “Were we not clear about their situation? Even if they
managed to keep some money through the shipwreck, who would hold onto such
superfluous and heavy things when fleeing for their lives?”
Tripleblade continued, “In fact, we have money!”
“We have many alchemy crossbows and firearms, along with countless alchemy
recipes. Take one out at random, and exchange it for a large amount of money.”
“But now, all of those things are in the captain’s and his people’s hands, we
can request a part of it, this is a reasonable request.”
“We have contributed a lot to reach today.”
Zong Ge nodded, “It is only fair!”
“But.” He shook his head again, “You should know that our outward identity is a
just established mercenary group, while in reality hinting to others that we
are actually arms smuggling criminals.”
“This identity is very useful, and has already dispelled the doubts of
outsiders and also makes them afraid of our backer, they won’t dare to offend
us.”
“As arms smugglers, we cannot sell our weapons as we please, we have a specific
purchaser in the Wilderness Continent.” 
“If we sell, it will be a flaw.”
“Those recipes are also the same, we cannot wantonly sell them and provoke
suspicion.”
“So, it’s that difficult…” Tripleblade frowned and bowed his head in
perplexion.
Zong Ge nodded and looked at the ship where Cang Xu was at, “We are not the
only ones that are perplexed.”
At that moment, a loud noise suddenly came from outside.
There was a problem. 
Zong Ge and Tripleblade glanced at each other, then immediately left the bow
house and arrived on the deck.
A sailor on duty ran over to report.
“A suspected slave rebellion?” Zong Ge and Tripleblade gazed at Hei Fe’s ships.
The commotion was getting bigger.
“What in the devil are Hei Fei and his men doing?” Zong Ge and Tripleblade were
somewhat puzzled.
According to the gathered intelligence, Hei Fei and his men were veteran slave
traffickers, such a mistake shouldn’t happened.
Especially now, Hei Fei and his officers hadn’t acted immediately, rather they
waited to see what the situation was like.
Were these not qualified slave traffickers?
Zong Ge did not know that Hei Fei and his men were actually guarding against
the survivors.
Tripleblade thoughtfully said, “It might have something to do with us.”
He briefly described what had transpired.
Zong Ge clapped Tripleblade’s shoulder, “You did well.”
Tripleblade’s anger when he saw his fellow goblins killed was understandable.
What pleased Zong Ge even more was that Tripleblade didn’t allow it to
influence his emotions, instead he took advantage of it to beat down the price.
Tripleblade’s tough negotiation also made Zong Ge satisfied, it agreed with his
temperament.
Tripleblade’s heart was moved when he sensed Zong Ge’s support, and he
suggested, “My Lord, it would be for the best if we took advantage of this
opportunity…”
Zong Ge firmly shook his head, and he murmured, “We are not thieves.”
While the two were discussing, the hull of a ship suddenly split open, and soon
after, the rebelling beastmen poured out.
Zong Ge and Tripleblade did not notice warlock Mo Kong, they only saw a group
of frantic beastmen charging at them.
Tripleblade instantly grew nervous, “My Lord, should we chase them away?”
But Zong Ge replied, “Not necessary yet. If we refuse this gift, we won’t give
Hei Fei any face. Make the arrangements.
Tripleblade exposed a smile and accepted the order.
The sailors acted at once, and shouted loudly at each other. Then they split,
with some chasing down the escaping beastmen and the others gathering together
to welcome Hei Fei and his men who were in hot pursuit.
“Stand back! Come any closer and we will open fire!” Tripleblade was the first
to act.
The first mate stopped at once, he had eaten a loss from Tripleblade already.
Behind Tripleblade was a row of sailors, each of them holding an alchemy
crossbow or gun.
The first mate knew Rou Zang’s swordsmen force had been slain by these
alchemical arms.
How could they even compare to Rou Zang’s battle squads?”
In the darkness, Mo Kong laughed and quietly changed the effect of his spell.
The young patriarch and his clansmen were bewildered, their wisdom constantly
affected by the magic.
The magic influenced them to unconsciously flee towards the survivors’ group.
Now the magic confused them further, causing them to pace back and forth and
lose the courage to break out further.
Thus, Captain Hei Fei had no choice but to step forward.
These beastmen were very valuable, especially the young patriarch. Him alone
was worth almost a thousand coins, and if they were fortunate, they could sell
him for even more!
Hei Fei, with a calm face, interrogated Tripleblade, “Friend, what is the
meaning of this?”
“Those are our slaves.”
“Wealth, we took great trouble in getting.”
“Return it to us, and you will receive our friendship. The price we discussed
previously, we can lower it a bit more.”
Tripleblade coldly snorted, and put up his hand to stop the approaching Hei
Fei, “Stop first, Captain Hei Fei.”
“Don’t provoke a misunderstanding.”
“A group of beastmen rushed into our resting area, of course we want to get the
situation under control. Don’t tell me you wanted these beastmen to attack our
ships?”
Hei Fei took a deep breath, then did his best to ease the tension, “You’ve done
me a favor, I want to thank you for helping us in intercepting those slaves.”
“The thanks you give will be to your satisfaction.”
“Before that, however, let me first lock up those lowly and irascible slaves
again.”
After saying that, Captain Hei Fei waved his hand, indicating to his
subordinates to follow.
The first mate was hesitant against so many alchemy crossbows and firearms.
But at that moment, Mo Kong used another magic spell.
He had recently collected a sufficient amount of both Tripleblade’s and the
first mate’s auras.
Using these life auras, he successfully applied a curse on the first mate.
The fist mate’s mind was affected, causing him to suddenly grow furious and
hateful. He glared at Tripleblade and walked forward, “Follow me!”
With him in the lead, and compelled by Captain Hei Fei’s authority, their men
struck towards the beastmen.
The beastmen immediately grew restless, and circled tightly around the young
patriarch.
The young patriarch was both annoyed and furious, he wanted to stand, however
his heavy injuries left him struggling and dependent on the support of others.
The first mate’s action pleased Captain Hei Fei.
The disregard for danger these people showed as they dashed in also made the
survivors hesitant. 
After all, this was not the countryside or the sea, this was a port.
The firearms and crossbows were more deterrents, none of them really wanted to
fire them.
If shots were fired, then the conflict that followed would be bloody.
Even though Hei Fei’s fleet was weaker than the survivors’, why would they want
to make war? The survivors had more urgent matters.
This hesitation immediately caused a surge in courage in Hei Fei and his men,
and their footsteps became swifter.
“That’s it! Hehehe.” The warlock Mo Kong cackled, then cast another spell.
This time, his target was Tripleblade.
He had enough of Tripleblade’s life aura to curse him.
After a few breaths, Tripleblade’s heart welled with rage.
The previous scene of the goblin being killed at the tavern floated in his mind
again.
The first mate, a defeated opponent acting so arrogant, was drawing near, he
was provoking Tripleblade!
“Stop!”
“First and final warning.”
“Stop now, otherwise we will fire!”
Tripleblade drew out his cutlass and shouted in a stern voice.
The first mate coldly snorted, straightened his chest, and shouted, “Shoot me
if you dare!”
Tripleblade’s anger reached its apex, and he was about to give the order to
fire.
Ha!
At that moment, a wild sound was heard.
A two handed sword was hurled through the air, it passed over Tripleblade, over
the first mate and his men, and was going straight towards Captain Hei Fei.
Hei Fei’s eyes flashed angrily, and in a panic, he took out his cutlass to
counter it.
Ding.
With a crisp clang, the cutlass in Hei Fei’s hands ferociously clashed against
the two handed sword, creating an eruption of dazzling sparks.
The two handed sword fluttered into the air, then fell, pointed down, and
inserted itself into the floor tiles. The silver battle qi emitting around the
sword blade gradually extinguished.
Hei Fei had been forced back a few steps, the hand that held the cutlass was
slightly trembling.
He was both startled and furious as he looked up at a ship, there stood a tall
and sturdy figure.
“Shi Qi!” Hei Fei growled, revealing the identity of the one who threw the
sword.
“Hei Fei.” Shi Qi (Zong Ge) standing on the ship was overlooking the scene
below, “If you want to make war, I will fight you to the end.”
Hei Fei took a deep breath, “My slaves…”
Zong Ge quickly interrupted him, “All I know is that we are detaining these
beastmen. No matter where they are from, even Rou Zang’s sailors are now my
captives.”
Hei Fei’s eyes flared open angrily, “You aren’t following the rules. You must
know that this is not the sea, this is imperial territory, this is Lord Tan
Qiu’s territory!”
Just as his voice came out, the city guard rushed forth from a street corner.
The elite soldiers quickly spread out in an encirclement, their leader was a
male silver level fighter.
It was the city guard commander that had been absent from the banquet.
“What is going on here?” The high-ranking officer was solemn.
Zong Ge was somewhat surprised, the city guard had appeared rather quickly.
Originally, after the beastmen had rebelled, Hei Fei was worried this was a
plot by the survivors and had asked Tan Qiu for help.
They were staying at the port and had paid the anchorage fee, thus they should
receive Tan Qiu’s protection.
“They are stealing my slaves. Those villains!” Captain Hei Fei directly
lamented.
“A group of people attacked my ship, I knocked them down, they are now my
captives.” Zong Ge calmly replied.
After the city guard commander realized what the situation was, he pursed his
brows.
If the survivors had directly attacked Hei Fei’s ships and stole the slaves,
the city guards would naturally want to defend justice and help Hei Fei’s
people deal with the survivors.
But, as it turned out, the beastmen had rebelled, fled here, and became the
survivors’ captives.
From the survivors’ point of view, this was entirely self-defense.
He Fei believed that everything was a trick by the survivors. Why did the
beastmen run towards the survivors’ ships?”
The words of both sides were reasonable.
Wholly incapable of dealing with this and having an incessant headache, the
city guard commander said, “Since neither of you will concede, I ask that when
dawn comes, you two will go to his Lordship’s castle and make your case.”
The commander was self-aware and knew that this kind of affair was difficult to
deal with, something he was no expert in dealing with.
Since it didn’t concern him, it would be for the best if he handed it over to
his immediate superior.



****** Chapter 44: President Zi Di ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Negative energy filled the meditation room.
A ghost girl was floating in the strongest concentration of negative energy,
She had exceptional human beauty, and her spectral appearance also gave off a
cold captivation.
The ghostly Zi Di’s eyes were shut tight, and her face exposed her suffering.
It was not easy for an ordinary person to cross the crucial step that elevated
them into a magician.
This was ascending one’s life level.
Zi Di had experience. She had become a bronze level magician in life.
But that process was quite natural.
She had the aptitude, and her bloodline assisted her. She had also taken magic
potions, and within a few months, she naturally broke through.
This was different, she had compressed months of accumulation into a single
night.
To accomplish this step, one first needed to be able perceive external energy,
then be capable of absorbing it and converting it.
The perception of external elements was the most important talent of magicians.
The more talented a magician was, the stronger, wider, and more precise their
perception was.
Compared to the first two, the last one was the most crucial.
Magicians converted external energy using meditation.
Even if a normal person successfully meditated, it was very difficult to attain
this standard.
But Zi Di was different.
She had abundant experience in meditating. She had been an iron level magician
when she was alive, and her meditation method primarily absorbed the fire
element.
The fire element was classified as a neutral energy type.
Compared to fire, negative energy was colder and more inharmonious with life. 
Zi Di was now a ghost, and negative energy enveloped her entire being.
As she meditated, the negative energy filled her body and gradually changed.
The chilliness grew deeper, as if Zi Di had fallen into a cave of ice.
In her perception, at first, she saw the abundant negative energy as an ashen
mist, now it had accumulated into a shroud of darkness that wrapped around her
closely.
This was the right place.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s meditation room could break down necromantic
materials, collect the negative energy, and construct a meditative environment
suitable for necromancers.
Meditation rooms were very important to magicians, it could improve their
efficiency greatly.
Zi Di gradually felt like she was sinking into the depths of an ocean, she was
constantly sinking, constantly falling as everything around her was deathly
still.
She seemed to be dissolving into the piercing icy coldness.
As she endured, Zi Di recalled her past.
As an apprentice magician, she studied at the College of Magic.
It had been a difficult time.
She began to truly become independent, however she also realized the limits of
her potential.
Her bloodline was only at the iron level.
However, her boyfriend suddenly awakened his bloodline and transformed into a
dragonman, he had exceptional talent as a fire magician!
His progress grew wider, his achievements greater, and more attention was piled
onto him.
He grew more dazzling, and the number of female apprentices by his side began
to increase.
Those female suitors publicly and privately pressured Zi Di.
“You don’t deserve him!”
“What have you accomplished in your cultivation? Your bloodline has already
decided that you’ll only ever be an iron level. However, he, he can become a
silver level, a gold level, and even a legend level!”
“Don’t continue to be a burden on him. The sparrow and the goshawk cannot fly
together.”
“There is a kind of love called letting go!”
Zi Di persevered, she vowed to never give up, and she believed her boyfriend
loved her.
However, sad news arrived.
The boyfriend’s parents forced him to wed another female apprentice that had
outstanding talent.
The dragonman boyfriend comforted Zi Di, “I won’t leave you, I don’t have any
feelings for her. You must believe me, I love you.”
“I trust you!” Zi Di never doubted her boyfriend’s heart.
But it was because of this belief that she felt even more pained.
“I don’t deserve to be with him, I am a burden on him!”
“What, what can I do to deserve him?”
“No matter what, as long as I can stand side by side with it, it doesn’t matter
what I do!”
Zi Di yelled at the sky.
In the shadowy swamp, the image of her father’s corpse came to mind.
“My princess, my love.” Her dead father handed her a piece of parchment.
The parchment unfolded, and its contents alarmed Zi Di.
Soul Devour spell?
Necromancy?!
She hesitated, she struggled.
But in the end, she reached out her deathly pale hands.
The moment those ten trembling fingers touched the parchment, they shrank back,
as if touching a red iron.
“Kill them all, kill them all!” Her father urged, then shouted, “Vengeance,
retribution!”
Darkness burst from Zi Di’s eyes, and her face warped as she reached out and
viciously grabbed the parchment.
She was just about to assimilate the parchment into herself, when suddenly, she
paused.
“Hold on.”
“Wait a minute.”
“This, this is…an illusion!”
An instant later, she opened her eyes to see the meditation room.
The dense negative energy was like a layer of green mist so dark that it was
black, it enveloped her, and clinging to her with unseen fingers.
Zi Di’s mind quickly sobered up.
She sensed a magic power pool within her.
She was now a magician.
Meditation was not without its risks.
It needed a serene and clear mind.
Often times, this process would make bare and be overflowed by one’s personal
thoughts, desires, and feelings that have been unconsciously accumulated during
daily life.
Sometimes, this would create hallucinations.
If Zi Di was still deceived and assimilated with the parchment scroll, it
would’ve indicated that she decided to indulge in her desires and allowed her
emotions to subsume her reason.
Her mind would grow muddled, she would become a bloodthirsty murderer, and she
would become an undead monster that relied on her instincts to act.
Luckily, she was experienced, and in that critical moment, she struggled free
from it.
She examined her magic power pool.
It had shrank into a dot and was hidden in the depths of her head, as if it was
resting in a void.
You could say that both existed and didn’t exist.
This was the foundation of a magician.
From now on, Zi Di could absorb external energy through meditation and convert
it into her won necromantic magic power.
“Finally, I’ve become a necromancer.”
Zi Di’s mood was somewhat complex.
She continued to meditate, absorbing and converting the energy within her.
With every part that was converted, she felt lighter.
The negative energy eroded her mind, erased her humanity, and tormented her
with the ghostly hunger.
After changing it into magic power, this erosion was greatly lessened.
Zi Di truly grasped this power!
After a unknown amount of time, she once more slowly opened her eyes.
This time, she had converted all of the negative energy into necromancy magic
power.
The magic power in her pool would spring forth when needed.
The erosion of negative energy still existed.
“Ghosts themselves are based in negative energy.”
“If I completely absorb this negative energy, my life shape will be destroyed!”
Zi Di understood this principal.
Thus, she pursued resurrection.
She opened the meditation room door and saw the dragonman youngster standing
guard.
“I succeeded.” The girl smiled calmly.
The dragonman youngster nodded, “I knew you could do it.”
The girl sensed the young man’s trust in her, and couldn’t help but recall the
hallucination she saw earlier.
Love, selfishness, hatred, and vengeance… 
It seemed their love had already covered her father’s animosity.
After confirming Zi Di was well, the dragonman youngster said, “I need to leave
the Deep Sea Monster Fish first, there’s been a little trouble.”
“Eh? What happened?”
A short while later.
The port, the flagship’s captain’s room.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Cang Xu, and Tripleblade gathered together.
The young beastman patriarch faced them, and through clenched teeth, swore, “I
request that you rescue my people!”
“I will appreciate your benevolence for my entire life.”
“I will command my clansmen to swear loyalty to you, and to never betray you!”
He was called Kuai Tui, he was the young patriarch of the shiba inu beastman.
After Zong Ge exposed his intent to recruit him, he quickly decided to implore
the survivors’ leaders to save his clansmen.
The dragonman youngster sent him away, then looked at the others.
Zi Di’s figure also appeared.
“Tell me what you think.” The dragonman said as he looked around.
Zong Ge was the first to speak, he pointed out that the sailors were
inadequate, it would be very difficult to raise and change their combat power.
“Recruiting these dogmen is necessary.”
“The loyalty of dogmen is well known, the most loyal of all include earth
dogmen, shiba inu dogmen, sled dogmen, sheep dogmen, and pine lion dogmen.” 
“Slave and servant armies can also become strong forces.”
“If we help Kuai Tui, and save his clansmen, we will have truly reliable
subordinates.”
“Correct.” Tripleblade echoed in agreement, “The Deep Sea Monster Fish should
not be exposed, and we need surface identities to conceal ourselves.”
“The pirates are rampant right now, and we cannot avoid naval battles.”
“In the worst case scenario, if we cannot obtain the empire’s understanding, we
need expand our power and be able to rely on it.”
Cang Xu replied, “Indeed, when we crossed blades with Rou Zang, the sailor’s
bombardment fell short, their firepower was incapable of threatening the Bath
Tub at all.”
“However.” Cang Xu changed the subject, “I believe now is not the time to
replenish our troops.”
“We have many sailors, if we also bring on these beastmen, it will overload the
ships.”
“Furthermore, our funds right now are in short supply.
“Our top priority is still the construction of an Anti-investigation and
Prophecy formation.”
“In fact, purchasing the materials needed is very difficult. The main challenge
is capital, in fact, I was in the middle of worrying about this matter.”
After pausing for a moment, Cang Xu finally said, “The most crucial thing is
still Tan Qiu’s attitude.”
“This morning, when Zong Ge and Hei Fei made their case, Tan Qiu’s attitude was
quite ambiguous.”  
“On the one hand, he wants to hire us to deal with Rou Zang. On the other hand,
he also covets those beastmen slaves.”
“If Hei Fei reaches a compromise with Tan Qiu, he will sell the beastmen slaves
for a low price. This benefit will perhaps make Tan Qiu take Hei Fei’s side,
and if that happens, I fear we will have to give Kuai Tui back to them.”
For a time, everyone was silent.
Neither Zong Ge nor Tripleblade refuted those points.
Cang Xu’s words also made sense, and the facts were just as stated.
The survivors had already reached a consensus that they wouldn’t deal with Rou
Zang.
The survivors had more important matters to do, and dealing with Rou Zang was
very risky.
Using force against Tan Qiu and Hei Fei was an even worse strategy.
Tan Qiu had five or six silver levels, while the survivors only had two. Not
even Rou Zang would choose to storm this island. If they did that, Hei Fei
would probably wake up with a smile every morning.
The final thing they could do was to leave immediately, take Kuai Tui and his
people away from Snake Rat Island, preventing anyone from taking the beastmen
back.
This was also inappropriate.
Don’t even mention Rou Zang pursuing them, the survivors haven’t even achieved
their main goal yet.
They needed to retrieve the Green Jade Gold Coffin!
This divine artifact had incalculable worth, and the survivors would not let it
go.
But currently, there haven’t been any clues leading towards it.
Silence enveloped the captain’s room for a time.
The dragonman youngster racked his brains, and felt the perplexity of the
current situation.
Kui Tui could increase their strength, of course he wanted him. 
However, currently, the beastmen aren’t that important.
They were merely a fuse, nothing more.
Hei Fei wanted them returned, they were his money!
The survivors didn’t want to deal with Rou Zang, they wanted to find the Green
Jade Gold Coffin and leave. Kui Tui and his clansmen were dispensable,
additional benefits they could do without.
Tan Qiu wanted to gather as many forces as possible together to deal with Rou
Zang.
Rou Zang was Snake Rat Island’s greatest threat, and was chocking it. 
To Tan Qiu, Hei Fei and Zong Ge’s conflict was not troublesome to deal with,
unlike what the city guard commander believed.
Tan Qiu should’ve been very happy, because he had both Hei Fei and the
survivors in his hand.
This matter caused these two parties to beseech him.
Hei Fei, the survivors, Tan Qiu, as well as Rou Zang outside had their
strengths, weaknesses, and goals. The contests between them formed a maelstrom.
The young captain already sensed that the maelstrom they were in was beginning
to grow deeper.
“87”
Zi Di gazed at the price list in her hands and quietly said, “An ordinary adult
male oxmen is sold for 8 gold. An ordinary adult dogmen is sold for 7 gold.
“This price is very reasonable, and is even a bit lower than the market price.”
Everyone stared blankly.
Zi Di smiled and explained, “A Slave price has many factors influencing it. For
example, their health, their strength, their abilities, and so on.”
“For instances, in some areas, the price of female slaves exceeds that of male
slaves. Because owners believe female slaves are more obedient.”
“If a slave has skills like knowing multiple languages, is an architect, is a
songstress, a musician, or a dancer, their price will also be higher.”
“Generally, an adult human laborer slave costs about 3 gold. Heavy laborers are
priced at 6 gold. Those that can do some management or scholarly tasks will be
priced at around 9 gold.”
“If it is a beastman, because beastmen are far stronger than humans, their
market value is likewise higher too. An adult male can do three times the labor
of a human, however, they are only priced at 8 gold, and thus, obviously
cheaper.”
“Ordinary beastmen slaves are normally used as famers, miners, builders,
shepherds, and other manual labor jobs. Because male oxmen are stronger than
dogmen, their selling price is generally greater than dogmen.”
“This kind of pattern is not applicable to cultivators. Because on the whole,
cultivator slaves are not used for basic labor.”
“Bronze level fighters are sold at ten times the amount of normal slaves. Iron
levels are sold at ten times the amount of bronze level, and silver levels sold
at ten times that.”
“Silver level slaves are already rare. They are sold anywhere from 1,000 to
10,000 gold each. A price comparable to gold level weapons or armor.”
“Magicians are more expensive than fighters.”
“Gold level slaves are seldom seen.”
“When slaves are traded, both the seller and the buyer need to pay the empire
taxes. The tax varies in every noble’s domain, and had been high. Recently,
these last few years, because the empire invaded the Wilderness Continent, the
empire reduced the slave transaction tax and a great amount of beastmen slaves
flooded the market. During peacetime, an ordinary adult male oxmen cost at
least 10 gold.”
Zi Di raised the price list in her hands, “On here, the dogmen young patriarch,
Kuai Tui, is being sold for 940 gold. He is only an iron level, yet he is
priced at almost 1,000 gold. It is evident that his potential is great, and is
likely to become a silver level in the future.”
Zong Ge was silent for a moment, then said, “Miss Zi Di, thank you for your
explanation. But it wasn’t what we wanted to hear.”
But Zi Di laughed, “No, I’m not finished yet.”
“If it we only saved Kui Tui’s clansmen, wouldn’t that only have a finite
improvement to our military power?”
“Of course, the more dogmen, the better.” Said Zong Ge.
Cang Xu interjected, “Our funds have a large shortfall, we cannot purchase all
of the magic materials.”
“Actually, we have money.” Said Zi Di.
Everyone stared at her.
Zi Di then said, “Hei Fei sells slaves, we too have people we can resell.”
“Nowadays, we have too many human sailors, no?”
“You just said that if we add in these dogmen, our ships will be overloaded.
That won’t be conductive to a long voyage.”
Everyone had different expressions.
Tripleblade mulled it over, “Strictly speaking, those fishermen were saved by
us. The pirates from Da Zhao’s pirate group are our captives. We are entirely
within our rights to resell them.”
“No!” The dragonman youngster resolutely refused, his expression was very
solemn, “Don’t tell me you want to treat those fisherfolk and pirates as slaves
to traffic?”
“Of course not.” Zi Di definitively vetoed.
Tripleblade and others were growing increasingly puzzled, confused at what Zi
Di was peddling to them.
“Sometimes, the demands of the market can change, and even be created out of
nothing.” Zi Di declared her plan.
After everyone heard it, their faces lit up with marvel.
Zong Ge nodded.
The dragonman youngster helplessly smiled. 
Cang Xu exclaimed in admiration, “You are worthy of being a merchant alliance
master! Based on what you said, this plan is perhaps the perfect solution to
this matter.”



****** Chapter 45: Subterranean Hunting ******
Early morning, the hunting guild branch was bustling with people.
Zong Ge entered, attracting everyone’s gaze.
“Lord Shi Fu.” The receptionist immediately jogged over to personally receive
him.
“Hm.” Zong Ge nodded calmly, then walked to the front desk to look up at the
magic panel above it.
Very quickly, he said, “I want that mission.”
The receptionist suddenly exposed their pleasant surprise, then promptly
replied, “Quick, process that for Lord Shi Qi!”
Snake Rat Island’s most plentiful resource was its magic beasts.
The island had an abundance of smelt rats and tide snakes, thus the Hunting
Guild established a branch here.
However, Snake Rat Island hadn’t been developed for very long, thus most of its
residents were ordinary people, there were few cultivators. The island lord was
only a silver level, not a gold.
Ordinary people were unqualified to deal with magic beasts. Cultivators were
sparse, thus the Hunting Guild branch had many missions piled up that were hard
to complete.
Zong Ge was a silver level expert that was interested in completing these
missions, this was great news for them.
Zong Ge swiftly used the name Shi Qi to register as an apprentice hunter.
“My Lord, this is the mission map, and on the back is detailed information on
the mission.” The receptionist respectfully escorted Shi Qi out the door. “I
wish your Lordship immediate success, that mission is very easy!”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance store was conveniently located next to the
Hunting Guild branch.
When Zong Ge left the Hunting Guild, he saw Cang Xu walking out of the merchant
alliance store.
Cang Xu’s social skills clearly surpassed Zong Ge’s, and it was the same silver
level magician that sent him off.
“I’m very sorry, we cannot cooperate with your group in this respect.” The
merchant alliance looked cordial, but her tone was firm.
It was evident that talks between Cang Xu and the merchant alliance fell
through.
Zong Ge and Cang Xu left the town together.
After they left, many others also left quickly too to pass on information to
various parties.
Shi Qi received a hunting mission, the old magician, Zhong Ze, and the Clam
Cloth Merchant alliance discussed the sale of magic beast parts.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s refusal was explicit.
In a church.
A priest glanced at this information, causing him to mutter to himself.
He already learned about the conflict between Hei Fei’s group and the survivors
last night.
The survivors contacted the Hunting Guild and the merchant alliance, but was
their acceptance of a hunting mission a pretense? Or did they want to borrow
power to deal with Hei Fei, or even Tan Qiu?
Everything still needed to be watched.
The purist put aside the intelligence, and opened a door to a hallway.
It was time for morning prayer.
The Night Devil Hunting Group’s countryside encampment.
The hunting group’s commander was resting after tempering his battle skills
when he obtained a report.
Long Fu and Shi Qi dipped their fingers into hunting missions?
“Interesting.” The hunting commander smiled, “Arms smuggling criminals also
need to hold concurrent jobs? Hunting magic beasts is not something one can do
with merely high combat power.”
The hunting commander was not at all nervous.
There were many hunting missions, for there were plentiful magic beasts.
it didn’t matter if some of it was given to outsiders.
Like Hei Fei and the others, he also saw through the survivors’ mercenary
identity and maintained that were secretly arms smugglers.
He did not think Shi Fu and the others would do well at hunting.
He waited for them to make fools out of themselves.
The castle.
Tan Qiu was enjoying breakfast.
He put down his black tea and glanced at the trees and fountain outside his
ceiling high window. In his lef hand was the latest intel.
At the top was the latest recorded actions of Zong Ge, Cang Xu, and the others.
“Before the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance opened its shop, it had reached an
agreement with the Hunting Guild.”
“The Hunting Guild branch harvests the magic beasts here, and will sell most of
them to the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, making use of the latter’s mature
transportation channels to trade.”
“It’s a little strange.”
“Why did Long Fu and Shi Qi’s group suddenly start hunting magic beasts?”
“Hunting is not a simple nor shallow business.”
“Will their simple attempts be amusing? Are they probing the relationships
between powers on Snake Rat Island?”
On a slave ship.
Hei Fei coldly snorted, “Shi Qi suddenly went hunting?”
“What is he doing?”
“Does he want to draw me out?”
“Long Fu hasn’t appeared…where is he? Are they doing a feint and conspiring to
attack my ships?”
“Impossible.”
“This is imperial territory, this is Tan Qiu’s port.”
Hei Fei’s train of thought diverged, and he became a bit hot-tempered.
How last night’s slave rebellion occurred and the baffling reason they were
able to rush out of the ship hold were still a mystery to him.
He shook a bell to call a subordinate, who in sternly warned, “Reinforce the
defenses!”
Ba Hu was the last one to receive the intelligence.
As a renowned bounty hunter, he also valued gathered intel.
However, because he was singular person, and wasn’t in a force or a group, his
information gathering efficiency couldn’t compare to Tan Qui, Hei Fei, or the
others.
“Regardless of their aim, their conflict with Hei Fei’s group has nothing to do
with me.”
Ba Hu was currently interested in working with Tan Qiu.
Since that banquet, Tan Qiu and he had privately conversed several times.
Tan Qiu promised: if Rou Zang was defeated, he would give a portion of the
pirates, highly wanted criminals, to Ba Hu.
This aroused Ba Hu’s interest.
Ba Hu was a bounty hunter, and developed at the Bounty Hunter Guild. Pursuing
fugitives and completing bounties was how he lived.
He was a lone man, and found it difficult to deal with Rou Zang’s large pirate
group. But with the help of Tan Qiu’s strength, perhaps his guild rank could
ascend substantially.
Snake Rat Island had massive subterranean caverns.
It was very easy to enter these subterranean areas, for there were many natural
passages scattered across its surface.
There were both small and large caverns and tunnel entrances.
Thanks to the Hunting Guild branch’s operations, most of these caves had been
scouted out.
The circumstances of these caves varied, those with abundant resources had many
people entering them, while those that were dangerous and infertile had fewer
hunters visiting them.
The Night Devil Hunting Group was Snake Rat Island’s largest hunting group, and
occupied the best cave, enjoying all of its resources.
The mission Zong Ge chose was not in one of the popular caves, but in a remote
area.  
The further they went into the countryside, the harder it was to track Zong Ge
and Cang Xu.
“This is the place.” Zong Ge compared it to the map.
This cave mouth was three meters wide. Half of it was open wide, allowing sun
to shine through, illuminating it and allowing one to see the dense cyan vines
growing inside.
Zong Ge and Cang Xu quickly vanished into the cave.
The scouts following them hesitated one after the other, none of them entered
the cave.
“A smart calculation.” Cang Xu smiled.
After Zong Ge and Cang Xu entered the cave, they didn’t enter deeper, rather
they waited for a spell, and didn’t notice anyone following them.
If one did, they would’ve disposed of them.
These were humble scouts, and were not their opponents.
The tunnel was sealed, and was an ideal place to bury a murdered corpse.
Even if it was exposed, the survivors would make their stand. They were
hunting, and these people were tracking them, they must have harbored dark
thoughts, and were so evil that even death would be an insufficient punishment.
The two then officially explored the cave.
The terrain slowly sloped downward, and the deeper they went, the darker and
damper it was.
Since Cang Xu was a magician, light was not a problem.
Zong Ge took out a cutlass and lifted a small wooden shield.
These were both common equipment. In this narrow cave, they were more
convenient to use than his broadsword.
For this first mission, hunting was side objective, their main job was to
explore nearby caves. For example, bringing back intel on the topography, the
distribution of magic beast groups, and other such things.  
If those scouts had kept following them, they would have discovered something
strange.
Because according to common sense, Zong Ge and Cang Xu should’ve encountered
magic beasts already.
This was the exploration period, the nearby caves hadn’t been exploited yet,
and there should’ve been many tide snakes living here.
But it took Cang Xu and Zong Ge 15 minutes to see a living animal.
It was not a snake, nor a rat.
Instead, it was a bird.
A scouting bird puppet.
When the bird saw Cang Xu and Zong Ge, it didn’t react, rather it continued to
move its head to look all over the place.
When Cang Xu and Zong Ge saw the bird, they knew their exploration route was
correct.
This time, they were merely follow-up troops.
The dragonman youngster had secretly set out a long while earlier.
With the Deceptive Disguise formation and the Bloodcore transformations, he
could easily sneak into any location on Snake Rat Island. Let alone a place
where people rarely tread.
Continuing forward, Cang Xu and Zong Ge successively noticed smashed rocks,
splattered blood, and other traces of fighting.
It was very clear that many traces and clues had been intentionally cleaned up.
 
Then in one location, Zong Ge suddenly stopped and stooped down to pick up a
scale.
This snake scale was as big as a hand palm. It had been roasted, its edges were
uneven, and it looked like it had been torn apart in an explosion.
The half beastman gaze focused, “It seems our captain has already switched his
battle qi. This battle qi is filled with the fire attribute, and seems to have
powerful explosions.”
This scale evidently hadn’t been cleaned up by the dragonman youngster.
Cleaning up a battlefield required perfection, which was unrealistic.  
But Zong Ge, with a single snake scale, was able to infer many things that
allowed his keen eyes to see the battlefield clearly.
The necromancer wasn’t surprised, Zong Ge was talented in this area, and had
done this both on Mystifying Monster Island and Stone Egg Island.  
Cang Xu nodded, “That’s right, in fact, it wasn’t only the Lord Captain. Our
Miss Zi Di also broke through.”
Along the way, he sensed some residues of necromantic magic power.
The residues’ aura was very faint, and it wouldn’t be long before they
completely dissipated. If Cang Xu wasn’t a necromancer, he wouldn’t have had
the keen perception needed to sense them.
The dragonman youngster successfully switched his battle qi, while Zi Di once
again became a magician, the survivors knew this was going to happen.
Zong Ge and Cang Xu were happy that their comrades had improved their strength.
The underground tunnel was growing more spacious.
At the beginning, the passage was at most three people wide, now it could fit
two carriages side by side in it.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di intentionally left behind secret marks, so
Zong Ge and Cang Xu weren’t misled by the wayside, allowing the exploration
team to follow.
By the time they caught up, they were just in time to see the dragonman
youngster and Zi Di devastate a snake group.



****** Chapter 46: The Half Beastman is the Most Normal ******
The moist stone floor was littered with snake corpses.
The snake group leader’s corpse was the most striking, it had an iron level
life aura that was quickly dissipating. It was 3 meters long, was as thick as
an adult’s lower arm, and was missing its head, leaving only blood gurgling out
its decapitated body.
Around it, there were some corpses that were badly mangled, and some that were
strangely intact.
“You’re here.” The dragonman youngster turned around and smiled at Zong Ge and
Cang Xu.
He wasn’t in combat, instead he was standing by Zi Di. 
Zi Di had disguised herself as a young woman with average looks.
She didn’t greet her companions, as her attention was focused on commanding her
ghosts engaged in combat.  
The ghosts she controlled were not humanoid, but rather serpentine.
Cang Xu counted attentively, “12.”
Most of the snake ghosts were ordinary, and the two that had a bronze level
aura stood out in comparison.
Zi Di treated the two bronze level snake ghosts as her main force, while the
other snake ghosts were auxiliary.
The snake ghosts roamed through the air and traveled through the snake group.
The tide snake group wasn’t smart, and was completely focused on battling these
spirits.
Their tearing at and twisting around the snake ghosts were utterly useless.
Only magic had the power to kill or injure the spirits.
The tide snakes had at least two types of racial magics. One was Freezing Ice
Ray, the other was Flying Venomous Fang.
The situation was already under the dragonman youngster’s and Zi Di’s control.
Not only was the young man guarding her, but there were also three swordsmen
guard puppets scattered across this small cave, both to prevent snakes from
escaping and to obstruct any unexpected reinforcements.
Apart from this, there were also three scouting birds circling in the air.
Zong Ge and Cang Xu didn’t act, Zi Di obviously was tempering her spell casting
ability.
Cang Xu carefully observed the tide snakes.
Suddenly, the eyes of one tide snake shined, and burst with two beams of blue-
white light.
The light shot towards a spirit, quickly dying it the same color as it.
The snake ghost stopped in the air, and like a weight, it smashed into ground
and shattered.
The bronze level tide snake destroyed an ordinary snake ghost, causing its
condition to immediately fall and become dispirited.
Taking advantage of this chance, a bronze level snake ghost pounced and bit the
tide snake’s neck.
The bronze tide snake trembled all over, then fell to the ground, its life aura
quickly dissipating.
Upon seeing this, Cang Xu couldn’t help but size Zi Di up.
The young magician seemed to have a gift for using these snake ghosts.  Cang Xu
knew she recently became a necromancer, and that this was her first time seeing
actual combat as one.
But her progress was rapid, and she already understood how to attack with the
ghosts and other practical skills.
“Her talent isn’t bad. Only her bloodline shackled her to only the iron level
while she was alive.”
“Her road as a necromancer will be longer than the one she walked when she
lived.” Cang Xu said to himself.
Many magicians had mediocre talent, but after they became a necromancer, their
limits would be increased further.
This was because the foundation of necromancy lay in spirituality and negative
energy.
After becoming a necromancer, one’s aptitude is retained, while their body is
changed. 
Back then, Cang Xu was less talented than even Zi Di. By cultivating necromancy
and becoming a corpse wizard, he was able to attain the iron level.
“But we now have a more perfect choice.” Cang Xu again looked at the dragonman
youngster, his heart warmed.
Zong Ge’s brows wrinkled.
He was once an imperial officer, and had a poor opinion of necromancers.
But destiny could not be predicted, for he and a necromancer were comrades that
relied on each other for survival on Mystifying Monster Island, and now, here
on Snake Rat Island, he had to collaborate even closer.
The half beastmen was disgusted by these snake ghosts, but he also had to
recognize the power of necromancy.
“These snake ghosts are fewer than the snake group, and have fewer with
cultivation, yet they are suppressing the living snakes.”
“The Flying Venomous Fang is ineffective against the snake ghosts, only the
Freezing Ice Ray works. But every time the racial magic is used, it instead
gives Zi Di an opportunity to kill a bronze level tide snake leader.”
Like Cang Xu, Zong Ge’s gaze also quickly shifted towards the dragonman
youngster.
“He is the one who truly decides the outcome of this battle.”
“If there was an iron level tide snake, Zi Di wouldn’t be its opponent.”
Zi Di was an iron level when alive, and after death, was an iron level ghost
girl. But she just became a magician, and her magic power pool was small, thus
she was only a bronze level necromancer.
Based on the traces left on the battlefield, Zong Ge could determine that they
first used had the swordsman guards charge in to attract the snake group’s
attention, then the young man advanced on the snake group and killed their
chieftain, throwing the snake group into disarray, and achieving victory in one
move.
The snake group’s chieftain was weak, thus the dragonman youngster exploded its
heat with a strike. 
The half beastman can’t help but feel curious of how strong the young man was
now.
When the snake group completely collapsed at last, the survivors began to clean
up the battlefield.
Zong Ge noticed there were a few alchemy puppets in the corners of the
battlefield.
He immediately recognized that they were from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they
were called deep sea salvagers and looked like nagas.
As the name implied, they were good at salvaging and cleaning battlefields.
The deep sea salvagers were weak, thus when Zi Di battled, they concealed
themselves.
Sleek snake tails slid across the stone floor as the naga deep sea salvagers’
six arms began to sweep the battlefield and clean up all kinds of traces.
The dragonman youngster, Zi Di, and the others also weren’t loafing about.
After all, the deep sea salvagers were only alchemy puppets, they needed their
help to make up for deficiencies.
The survivors cleaned up the battlefield while chatting to each other.
Cang Xu told the captain and Zi Di that his business request was not approved
by the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance.
“Apparently, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance store and the Hunting Guild
branch already have an agreement.”
“Hunting is the Hunting Guild’s core interest, and since the Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance store was just built, they don’t want to cause any
misunderstandings with the Hunting Guild.”
Zi Di was not surprised.
In fact, she expected that was the case.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance store was located on the opposite side of the
street to the Hunting Guild.
This minor act already hinted that the two powers had a close partnership.
“Our main goal has already been achieved. Whether we can collaborate with the
Merchant Alliance is insignificant.” Said the dragonman youngster.
Their actions here were just the first step in Zi Di’s plan.
Attracting the gazes of other forces was a proactive stance. Actions were also
far more powerful explanation than words.
When the battlefield was nearly cleaned up, Zi Di and Cang Xu began to exchange
their insights on using necromancy. 
Zi Di’s necromancy inheritance was given to her by Cang Xu, thus the two could
easily exchange their experiences.
Zi Di believed that although the necromancy inheritance had many necromancy
spells, the essence of it was the Soul Control Spell!
The degree one grasped the Soul Control Spell decided how much power one could
display from this necromancy inheritance. 
“Ghosts are the foundation of this necromancy inheritance. Said Cang Xu, “We
use the Soul Summoning Spell and High Level Soul Summoning Spell to make
ghosts.”
“Use the Ghostly Possession Spell to store ghosts.”
“Use the Soul Control Spell to control ghosts.”
“The Soul Devourer Spell and Soul Healing Spell can make ghosts our casting
materials.”
“Our primary objective is to gather enough ghosts to form a ghost army!”
After glancing at Zi Di controlling the tide snake ghosts, Cang Xu continued,
“Bloodlines are different, life shapes are different, and thus, different
ghosts can be created.”
“We can gather all kinds of ghosts and establish a troop.”
“Beastmen, elves, and humans are hard to bring together and form an army when
alive.” 
“But after they die and become ghosts, they can peacefully coexist. Under our
control, they can work together sincerely. From that point of view, death is
the greatest equalizer and can eliminate most of the differences in this
world.”
Upon hearing this, Zong Ge couldn’t help and coldly snort out a retort,
“Playing with souls will inevitably backfire. We should respect life!”
Zi Di nodded, “Therefore, I still think we shouldn’t make ghosts out of
civilized races.”
Cang Xu explained, “I have never killed innocents to make ghosts. But human
ghosts, elf ghosts, and beastman ghosts are important.”
“They have intelligence.”
“Miss Zi Di, your snake spirits lack intelligence, and can only act on
instinct. But if they have enough spirituality, you only need to give a single
order for them to attack autonomously. That will greatly lessen the burden on
your spirit.”
“During that fight, you had to focus your entire spirit to control every ghost,
that is because you were a magician while alive and have both a mature spirit
and meticulous controlling experience.”
“But that is not a long term solution.”
“Even You Shen, the founder of necromancy had limits to his spirit.”
“We need to look for and make intelligent ghosts, then emphasis their
cultivation. This has the greatest prospects and profits.”
“So that’s how it is.” Zi Di had some misgivings in controlling ghosts of
intelligent races, but upon hearing Cang Xu’s words, she immediate changed her
attitude.
“We don’t need to commit murder, nowadays with the rampant pirates, we can run
across some, and kill them. That is the righteous way.”
Zong Ge sighed, “You two don’t need to explain that to me.”
Cang Xu and Zi Di deliberately did this in front of Zong Ge to probe him, using
it to dispel any misunderstandings and biases, along with strengthening their
understanding of each other.
Of course, Zong Ge understood.
He was a mature military officer, understood how to weight the pros and cons,
knew all’s fair in war, and was completely unscrupulous. 
He also knew that the stronger Zi Di and Cang Xu were, the more helpful they
would be towards their redemption.
But just because he understood did not mean he endorsed it. 
He never thought that he would be mingling together with two necromancers.
Despite Cang Xu and Zi Di having the Deceptive Disguise, and from the outside
looking like normal magicians, Zong Ge’s beating heart felt thick conflict and
disgust towards the two. 
He wanted to talk to the young man instead of them.
After all, they were both battle qi cultivators, fought side by side on
Mystifying Monster Island, and through the same life or death experiences, had
formed a deep battlefield camaraderie.
Zong Ge decided to disregard the two necromancers and turn around to look at
the dragonman youngster, intending to ask him about his battle qi.
As a result, he saw the dragonman youngster opening his mouth.
Hiss hiss…
The dragonman youngster forked out a dark blue snake tongue, his mouthful of
dragon teeth had vanished, replaced with the venomous fangs of a tide snake.
The venomous fangs projected out, then glinted with a blue-white light.
Zing.
The venomous fangs popped out, then launched into the air like a throwing
knife, and in the blink of an eye, inserted themselves into a stone wall. 
Click, click, click.
The venomous fangs successively rose up and ejected.
A row of venomous fang throwing knives lined the rock wall.
Zong Ge was silent.
He couldn’t help but begin to reflect on a question: what kind of people do I
have by my side?
Compared to these people, he, a half beastman, was actually the most normal of
them all.



****** Chapter 47: Four Man Exploration Team ******
Evey tide snake the dragonman youngster and ghost girl encountered while
exploring had been absorbed by the Bloodcore.
Thus, the young man had collected a great amount of the tide snake bloodline,
and now, the bronze level bloodline was complete, while the iron level was over
half towards completion.
Some secrets of Bloodcore had been shared, and since Cang Xu was united at
their side, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di didn’t need to be secretive in
front of them.
Thus, it was far more convenient to do such things.
As for Zong Ge, although he currently did not know about the Bloodcore’s
existence, he surmised that the youngster’s transformation abilities were
related to the Bloodcore.
Cang Xu and Zi Di were of the same mind. The young man had intentionally
displayed his abilities in front of Zong Ge to make it easier in the future to
indulge the latter in the secret of the Bloodcore.
Apart from this, the young man also needed to practice the tide snake’s racial
magics.
This let him understand the tide snakes much more.
This kind of understanding was very profound, for could anyone else turn into a
tide snake like the young man could and experience how it felt?
After ejecting about ten Venomous fang Knives, the young man now only needed to
see a few movements to discern whether a tide snake wanted to shoot a venomous
fang. 
“Anyways, this transformed part, even if it perfectly coexists, does not
improve my battle strength by much.”
The young man now had much more applicable experience.
Although these racial magics were beyond the capabilities of his body, they
actually complemented it.
For example, take the Freeze Ray racial magic.
The power the magic displayed when he was a tide snake could not compare to
when he used it as a dragonman.
The Venomous Fang Throwing Knives were more obvious.
This racial magic was fairly special, it needed casting materials – tide snake
venomous fangs.
If the young man had a full mouth of dragon teeth, he could not use this racial
magic.
“If I sought its might, I would need to be more tide snake.”
“If it was a hybrid transformation, although it wouldn’t be as powerful in a
pure form, it would be an additional method of attack for me.”
In practical applications, the young man had become very prudent in using
hybrid transformations.
If an enemy fled or left behind information, the young man’s transformations
would provoke the attention of auspicious people.
After all, this kind of transformation was unusual!
Only if he was certain nothing would be left behind or if he was compelled by
desperate circumstances would he do so.
Therefore, the young man still directed his development towards improving his
battle qi and battle skills.
The young man’s face flashed with red light, and he became a dragonman again,
the venomous fangs and snake tongue from before seeming to be nothing but a
fleeting hallucination.
He looked at the silent Zong Ge and smiled, “After I obtained the Bloodcore, my
beast transformation abilities were greatly strengthened.”
Zong Ge gazed deeply back, “That treasure was placed on the third level by War
Merchant, it was more important to him than the two other divine artifacts. You
were remolded by War Merchant, and have the beast transformation ability, thus,
it should’ve originated from it?”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Your guess is correct.”
Zong Ge sighed, then replied with a complex tone, “You must be careful, this
ability is both weird and mysterious, perhaps every usage of it costs a hidden
and heavy price. We can always depend on battle qi.” 
The dragonman youngster expressed his acknowledgment.
He still had some reservations about Zong Ge.
Although Zong Ge had fought by his side, his situation was different from Zi
Di’s and Cang Xu’s, Zong Ge had once fought him for the position of leadership.
Not only was it because of this experience, but also because the young man
understood Zong Ge, he was an ambitious man.
This kind of person was difficult to keep satisfied and any benefits offered as
a lure would likely have the opposite effect.
Zong Ge was a peak silver, and had a deeper battle qi cultivation than the
young man, the iron level Cang Xu could not compare to him.
The dragonman youngster was able to suppress mainly with the Bloodcore’s help.
Zong Ge also had reservations with the young man and the others.
He came from an extraordinary family, and he exposed many clues through how he
lived. These clues were all seen by the survivors to some extent.
After the battlefield was cleaned up, the four people continued to explore.
Cang Xu and Zong Ge joined in, increasing the survivors’ exploration efficiency
by a large amount.
The dragonman youngster acted less often.
Zi Di often practiced necromancy, exhibiting her diligent side.
Zong Ge’s cutlass and shield were ordinary, however with peak silver level
battle qi infused into them, they became vicious tools that reaped lives.  
Cang Xu occasionally imparted Zi Di with guidance or experiences, he once
served as a college professor and was very good at teaching. From time to time,
he too acted personally to gather snake souls.
The necromancer displayed their formidable might in front of the young man and
the half beastman.
Cang Xu and Zi Di gathered many more snake souls, then after the fighting died
down, they could get even more snake souls from the corpses of fallen tide
snakes.
These snake souls were mostly ordinary, but the tide snakes had a hard time
dealing with them.
“As far as necromancers are concerned, as long as they enough magic power, they
can immediately raise an army from a battlefield.”
“Ordinary souls are the best cannon fodder, while cultivator souls can become
an army’s backbone.”
“Fortunately, their spirit power has limits, and controlling ghosts will
constantly consume that.” 
“At the same time, the Soul Summoning Spell is not always successful, and
failure is always a possibility. Every failed casting will always backfire and
injure the magician. The only difference is how big it is.”
Zong Ge carefully watched, and couldn’t help but fear the necromancy.
Their journey went smoothly.
Despite the tide snakes getting stronger, and the snake groups getting larger,
none were the for man exploration team’s match.
It was mainly because Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s strength was growing rapidly!
Anyways, the survivors did suffer losses.
The wear and tear on their scouting birds was growing more apparent.
These alchemy puppets were inharmonious with the caves, and would easily
trigger the aggression of snake groups and be hunted.
They assumed the arduous task of investigating and were the first to explore
unfamiliar territory. Regardless of whether it was snake or rat groups, both
had strong territorial instincts.
“After this, we need to make some serpentine or mouse shaped scouting puppets.”
Said Zi Di.
The alchemy bird puppets had suffered great attrition, making her somewhat
regretful.
She retrieved as many damaged alchemy birds as possible. After all, the birds’
alchemical materials could be reused.
Under current circumstances, the survivors’ resources were finite, and they had
to haggle over every bit.
The more resources that were saved in the early periods of development, the
more efficient and higher they could grow and strengthen.
The four cultivator team, with the help of the alchemy birds, quickly attained
the objective of the Hunting Guild’s exploration mission.
The four did not care about that.
They left to explore another subterranean space.
Because they hadn’t found the Green Jade Gold Coffin yet.
The scouting birds had explored the entire island, including its towns and
villages, and found nothing.
The survivors analyzed that it was very possible that these subterranean spaces
might conceal the divine artifact.
At the time, the Green Jade Gold Coffin’s teleportation coordinates had been
transmitted.
The transmitted coordinates were here, on Snake Rat Island.
Through a secret investigation, the survivors discovered that the island
residents did not feel any fluctuations of teleportation on that day.
If instead, the Green Jade Gold Coffin was teleported into the depths of the
underground, then the teleportation fluctuations would have been masked. 
It was also possible that War Merchant had built a teleportation formation
here.
From War Merchant’s point of view, he was on the imperial most wanted list,
thus having a few escape routes was very rational.
Mystifying Monster Island was his headquarters, and Snake Rat Island was
comparatively close to it.
It was possible that he left an escape route here. 
This guess had a strong basis, and in the tower spirit’s data, the survivors
discovered a few hidden teleportation points. Other places you could teleport
to from Mystifying Monster Island.
“The air temperature has risen.” After going deeper for some time, the young
man was the first to notice this.
“It seems we are lucky. There is an underground heat source here.” Zi Di
smiled.
As they went deeper underground, the magic beasts they mainly encountered were
tide snakes.
But Snake Rat Island had two magic beast species on it, tide snakes were only
one of them. The smelt rats had always been in a deadlocked confrontation with
the tide snakes.
These rats were heat resistant magic beasts, and smelt rats with cultivation
could bathe in magma.
Ordinary smelt rats all lived near heat sources, none of them liked moist
environments.
The young captain glanced at a map.
This map had a wide scope and was very detailed and reliable.
The main path the four walked was the widest part of the cave. There were many
scouting birds exploring other paths.
Therefore, the map displayed a main path, separated by subterranean spaces of
various sizes and many other paths bifurcating from above ground.  
The geothermal source was not in the direction of the main path.
“Let’s survey there.” The dragonman youngster decided.
The four left the main path and entered another that branched off. 
After a short time, they saw their first live smelt rat.
It was as big as an adult bear, and had brown-red fur.
Its fur was very thick, and was decorated with flame like patterns.
The smelt rat’s head had a distinct layer of bone that looked like a black
helmet.
The smelt rat’s eyes were an orange-yellow and emitted light, against its bone
black helmet, it looked like two drops of magma floating in the darkness.
Silver level!
The smelt rat had an extraordinary life level.
The four people were not surprised.
Smelt rats with cultivation had a far larger movement range than ordinary ones.
Ordinary smelt rats did not like damp and cold environments, therefore they
holed up near underground heat sources.
As a result, smelt rats had different territory structures than tide snakes.
Tide snakes with cultivation acted as their core, while ordinary tide snakes
moved all over the place and acted in the group’s periphery. 
Smelt rats with cultivation frequently roamed the fringes of their territory,
while common ones gathered in the heart of it. 
Smelt rats did not possess any abilities to conceal themselves, thus the four
had discovered their existence earlier.
“I’ll go first.” Zong Ge took the lead and charged ahead.
With sword and shield in hand, he confronted the smelt rat.
The two slammed into each other, and sank into a deadlock in the underground
tunnel. 
Although they were the same level, the half beastman’s strength could not
compare to the smelt rat’s.
However, his whole body instigated his battle qi, causing his strength, speed,
and defense to soar, allowing him to directly face off against the smelt rat.
At the same time, he also poured battle qi into his equipment.
Although the smelt rat’s sharp claws and teeth clashed against the ordinary
sword and shield, the ordinary equipment did not break, and the blows only
caused silver battle qi to splatter off of them.
As it turns out, he is also an expert at using a sword and shield like this.”
The dragonman youngster evaluated internally.
In the prior fight with the tide snakes, Zong Ge’s did not display his skill. 
But now when confronted with a silver level smelt rat, Zong Ge’s martial skill
was truly exposed.
In the survivors’ mind, the weapon Zong Ge was most skilled at was the
broadsword. Zong Ge had swung that broadsword powerfully and violently, and
now, he used a shield to defend himself thoroughly and wait for an opportunity
to stab decisively with his sharp cutlass.
His stature paled in comparison to the smelt rat, but the three people behind
him felt a sense of security.
The smelt rat had finite intellect, and Zong Ge quickly understood how it
worked. The latter relied on his adept martial skill to gradually gain the
advantage.
The smelt rat’s flesh was lacerated by the cutlass, causing blood to flow from
all over.
The pain intensified its vicious nature.
Suddenly, it screeched, and suddenly, flames bellowed from all over its body.
The flames looked like a layer of clothes covering its body.
Racial magic – Flame Battle Garb!
The smelt rat’s life aura increased sharply, and it charged into Zong Ge once
again.
Zong Ge remained calm and fearless. But just as he was about to use his battle
skill, he heard the dragonman youngster say, “Let me give it a go.”
The silver level smelt rat was worthy of acting upon. 
Zong Ge retreated and allowed the dragonman youngster to take the field.
Ding.
With a reverberating echo of an explosion, the dragonman youngster’s speed rose
dramatically and he slammed into the smelt rat’s bosom. 
The smelt rat was caught off guard, the blow knocked to the ground and caused
to cough blood.
Zong Ge’s eyes contracted, the dragonman youngster’s attacks were far braver
and more fearless than his. 
The half beastman’s sword and shield style had both offense and defense, like a
barbed city wall. While the dragonman youngster was completely filled with
offense, like an artillery shell!
“I have to consume more battle qi to withstand the Flame Battle Garb.”
“While he can rely on his dragon scales to easily resist it.”
The smelt rat was bullied further underground by the young man.
The young man didn’t have to use any battle skills, and just relied on his new
Bursting Explosion battle qi that filled his ordinary punches with power.
The smelt rat only had one racial magic, but it did not affect the dragonman
youngster.
Under the young man’s rain of fists, the smelt rat’s condition continuously
dropped.
The young man gradually pulled back, giving Zi Di the opportunity to attack
too.
But this time, she didn’t achieve much.
When ordinary souls approached the Flame Battle Garb, they would be scorched
away.
Bronze level snake souls could tangle with and impede it, however, the longer
they were near the Flame Battle Garb, the weaker they would become.
Iron level snake souls could threaten the silver level smelt rat, but only a
little.
“These snake souls are of low quality, we’ll need much more to deal with this
silver level smelt rat.” Zi Di concluded.
Cang Xu had experienced this, but he didn’t block Zi Di’s attempt.
This kind of actual combat experience was very precious. Teachings were
comparatively shallow to deeper personal experiences.
Under the survivors’ maltreatment, the smelt rat’s viciousness was suppressed
and it tried to flee.
The dragonman youngster caught up to it.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The velocity of his fist soared, and in everyone’s view, a scarlet red shadow
bled from his fist.
When his fist hit the sturdy smelt rat, an explosion rang out.
It sounded like a bomb going off.
The explosive force was so strong that the smelt rat’s thoracic cavity was
penetrated, causing most of its internal organs to turn into a swirl of fleshly
fragments and tempestuous blood that exploded outwards, covering large swaths
of the tunnel walls with the slurry.
The smelt rat fell to the ground, as dead as it was possible.
Upon seeing the young man use the battle skill, Zong Ge immediately recalled
the tide snake corpse from earlier.
“Its snake head must’ve been burst apart by a Demolition Fist.”
“Its might truly is extraordinary!”
Zi Di hurried over to pick up the corpse.
“Lord Captain, please use that battle skill less often.”
“A silver level smelt rat corpse is worth more, and has many alchemy materials,
they aren’t cheap. Even if we don’t sell it, we can still make use of it.”
“We can use them to make scouts in the form of smelt rats.”
“You know our financial situation is very tight right now.”
“Oh, of course, of course.” The dragonman youngster apologized at once.
If he used the Bloodcore, he could have absorbed it all, and squandered
nothing.
However, Zong Ge was here.
It was too inconvenient to absorb external bloodlines in front of him.
Cang Xu was exhilarated as he said, “President Zi Di, don’t worry about
gathering these materials.”
“A silver level smelt rat soul is the best material to make a ghost out of.”
Zi Di immediately stopped messing with the corpse and doubtfully asked, “I can
do that? I am still only a bronze level necromancer.”
“This is an outstanding feature of necromancy, we can call back souls whose
life levels exceed ours.” Cang Xu explained, “In addition, if you don’t give it
a try, how will you know what the result will be?”
Zi Di’s attempt failed.
The silver level smelt rat soul dissipated, and she had to bear the backlash of
the magic.
“That’s fine.” Cang Xu maintained his optimism.
“I noticed.” He looked at the ghost girl, “That this necromancy inheritance
suits you more than me!”
“I am a semi-dead person, a corpse wizard, thus pure ghosts have a negative
effect on my body.”
“But you are different, Miss Zi Di.”
“You are a pure ghost, and your life essence is more intimate with these
ghosts. Therefore, under the same conditions, you can recruit more ghosts than
me, control them for longer at a lower spirit consumption, and have a higher
success rate with the Soul Summoning Spell. Even if you fail, the backlash will
harm you less.”
“Perhaps in the future, you can establish an enormous ghost army, and as the
leader of an army of ten thousand, be a ghost queen.”
But Zi Di shook her head, she was uninterested in the future Cang Xu described,
“Compared to that, I’d much rather be resurrected.”
She unconsciously looked at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was smiling back at her.



****** Chapter 48: Proceeding with the Plan ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The alchemy cabin.
The alchemy formation’s light stabilized, and under Zi Di’s control, it quickly
formed into the framework of a rat.
The final step: top quality lacquering.
The magic lacquer was a temporary mixture and had an extremely short shelf
life. In essence, it was a coating of magic camouflage, part of a branch of
alchemy skills that pertained to camouflage. 
After a moment, the alchemy formation stopped for a break.
The lacquer’s strange odor was sucked out and fresh air was pumped in. 
As this phase of alchemy came to an end, Zi Di was pleased to see a hundred
scouting puppets.
These freshly made alchemy puppets were no longer shaped like bird, but instead
like rats.
I already mastered this step of making alchemy puppets.” Zi Di said to herself.
The craving for knowledge was an intrinsic part of all magicians.
Zi Di had been rather busy.
Mainly doing meditation, as through frequent accumulation she could raise her
magician level.
After that, she practiced necromancy until her spirit and energy were squeezed
to their limits.
Every day she would integrate the exploration maps and use them to calculate
the possible teleportation points, thus be able to discover where the Green
Jade Gold Coffin might be.
After that, she also made time to study how to control the alchemy formations
and make these alchemy puppets.
She let no chance to grow slip by. 
“To be able to operate this alchemy formation could be considered a form of
improvement.”
“But I still cannot create these alchemy puppets by myself.”
“As far as those alchemy blueprints are concerned, I lack too much alchemy
knowledge and cannot comprehend most of them.”
“If I had more time…”
Zi Di sighed to herself.
She conducted a final inspection of the scout puppets.
She noticed a defective one, while the rest met standard.
The girl stored most of them, then took about 30 of them and gave them to Cang
Xu.
Cang Xu had a space pouch, thus it was easy for him to secretly transport them.
“Tower spirit, how is the plan progressing?” Zi Di asked.
The white crystal ball flickered, then the tower spirit’s voice transmitted,
“Currently, the scouting smelt rat alchemy puppet blueprint modification is 58%
done. Estimated time to completion is 17 hours and 36 seconds. Repairing the
tower spirit, constructing the corresponding alchemy formations, and using time
magic can improve designing efficiency.”
Zi Di shook her head and said, “Continue to modify”, then left it to its
devices.
The tower spirit was not in perfect condition, and had been badly damaged, at
best it could only display 30% of its capabilities.
Repairing the tower spirit was very difficult, and while building supplementary
calculation alchemy formations was feasible, they lacked the relevant alchemy
materials. As for time magic, such a thing was rarely seen, and the tower
spirit’s database contained nothing on it.
Even if there was, Zi Di probably wouldn’t even be able to cast it
successfully.
Zi Di took out some blood and began to study it.
When she lived, she cultivated fire magic and researched medicine.
She quickly became engrossed, and in her concentration, completely forgot about
the passage of time.
Only when an alarm rang did she snap out of it.
The test tube in her hand was filled with a blue medicinal liquid. If one shook
it, they could still smell the scent of blood.
“Still a work in progress.”
“But I already seen hope of success!”
Zi Di was very confident in her research into this medicine.
She took time to rest, she had to improve her condition so her meditation would
be more profitable.
In a lively port market, vendors were selling all kinds of ocean fish.
The streams of people seemed to weave.
Most of them were gathered in one place, a temporary slave shop, where they
loudly haggled with each other,
Hei Fei’s group was selling some beastmen slaves there.
In a dark street corner, a scouting rat was watching this unfold.
In the castle sewer, a few rats quickly crept through, and every time there was
a fork in the path, one would branch off.
On a moored ship, there was a scouting rat quietly sneaking in.
These alchemy puppets were also crawling into caves.
The scouting bird models flew through the air, and monitored from above, while
the scouting rat models hid in the darkness and spied from the shadows.
The survivors’ adoption of this scouting plan was very wise.
The scouts in the castle, church, merchant alliance shop, and Hunting Guild
branch were all very cautious, and only skittered on the outside, and did not
brave danger to go deeper in.
Those in the tunnels were far more reckless, and sometimes for the sake of
intelligence, they would not hesitate to sacrifice themselves and even incited
attacks.
The survivors had limited funds, and with the alchemy materials they purchased,
they only had enough to make 500 rat model puppets and replace 60 of the bird
models.
Their funds were nearly depleted.
But soon, they would obtain benefits from the Hunting Guild.
Completing missions for them had profit.
The survivors completed these missions well, not just to criterion, but
exceeded the standards by a lot.
However, in reality, they were scouting even deeper. Delivering just a small
piece of the scouting map was enough to complete a mission. 
Thus, the survivors obtained some more funds.
Frequent completion of these missions also caused Zong Ge’s rank in the Hunting
Guild to rise quickly.
Of course, this lead to more scrutiny.
The scouting smelt rat was refined.
This special alchemy puppet model had stronger materials and was bronze level,
surpassing ordinary ones.
A bronze level investigating puppet!
Because its construction cost was far greater than ordinary puppets, after
careful accounting, Zi Di only made 5 of them.
The 5 were dispatched to the tunnels to search for the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
Getting what they paid for, the survivors’ exploration rate of the subterranean
depths skyrocketed.
In the wake of this, something even more valuable was discovered.
“A smelt rat puppet was destroyed here.”
“A subterranean magma river.”
“Please let me see.”
Zi Di presented the magic image to the dragonman youngster.
When the dragonman youngster saw the small cluster of sparkling orange
crystals, he asked, “Some kind of crystals? Are they valuable?”
Zi Di replied, “Of course. The scientific name of this is the flame crystal
cluster. It forms in harsh conditions and is very expensive and rare, the
Hunting Guild and Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance shop will purchase it at a high
price.”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance wouldn’t buy magic beasts, but in this aspect,
they hadn’t disagreed yet.  
“If we sell it, how much money would we get?” The young man asked.
Zi Di shook her head, “We need that alchemy material, and don’t intend to sell
them, at least on Snake Rat Island.”
“This will let others know that we have already been to the depths of the cave
systems.”
These flame crystal clusters aren’t easy to obtain.”
“It has magic beasts guarding it, many of whom are silver level, along with
large numbers of iron level and other lesser beasts.”
“It is also difficult to harvest, even the slightest collision will cause them
to explode into fragments.”
Please reclaim the smelt rat puppet and do your best to gather that crystal
cluster.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “I understand. It just so happened that I have
a battle skill I need to practice in real combat!”
He moved at once, and snuck into the subterranean space.
His arrival immediately provoked a rat group.
A fierce battle of one against many broke out on the bank of a magma river.
Battle skill – Surge!  
During this fight, the young man frequently used this new battle skill.
This battle skill matched the Bursting Explosion battle qi, but it wasn’t an
attack skill, rather it helped the young man move.
Every time he used it, the young man’s battle qi would suddenly rush forth,
pushing his body where it surged from.
For example, when he used it on his fist, his fist’s strike would become
faster.
When it was applied to the bottom of his feet, an explosion would detonate
under his soles, allowing the young man to jump higher and run faster.
The Surge battle skill enormously increased the young man’s movement ability,
however it to use it well, he needed a lot of practice.
The young man was doing his utmost to adapt his body to this battle skill.
Only through constant combat would his body be able to use the Surge battle
skill on instinct.  
As he fought, the young man gained a lot of experience using the Surge battle
skill.  
However, he wasn’t able to obtain the crystal clusters.  
During the fight, the smelt rats accidentally destroyed the crystal clusters.
The crystals exploded, and the leftover pile of fragments scattered across the
battlefield.
The port, on a ship deck.
Zong Ge presided over military training.
“Continue striking, don’t stop!”
“Begin training one on one, the loser will jump off the ship and swim three
laps!”
Zong Ge roared from time to time.
He drilled the sailors to their limits.
Not only in weapons training, but also in boarding actions, hook throwing, and
other routine maritime combat drills.
Bang bang bang.
Sometimes, Zong Ge would order a ship or two to go sail out into the sea and
practice shooting cannons, creating a lot of noise,
After proceeding like this for several days, the survivors’ leadership gathered
together again to discuss.
“I have bad news.” Zi Di murmured, “The Two Head pirate group has appeared in
nearby waters.”
“The Two Head pirate group’s commander is Lan Lu, a two headed man-eating
magician. He has dual silver level cultivation in battle qi and magic!”
“Their presence here is unusual.”
“According to pirate customs, these waters are Rou Zang’s hunting ground.”
“Lan Lu shouldn’t be here.”
“Perhaps, after Rou Zang was seriously injured, Lan Lui believed that he is
weak and wants to annex Rou Zang’s pirate group. Or perhaps Rou Zang invited
Lan Lu over to deal with Snake Rat Island. Like how Tan Qiu wants to ally with
others, Rou Zang is doing the same.”
Zi Di analyzed.
Cang Xu followed up, “I have turned over the town’s cemetery, but didn’t find
any necromantic materials.”
“The Sheng Ming Sect priest here had cleaned and purified them too much.”
“Our necromancy resources are already bottomed out.”
Currently, these necromancy resources are mainly consumed by meditation.
With the help of the meditation room, Zi Di and Cang Xu built a negative energy
environment. By doing this, although it could improve their meditation gains,
it also depleted much of the necromancy resources.
Zong Ge also brought bad news, “After these days of training, our sailors have
been voicing their discontent openly. The only change is that the formerly
disobedient pirates now follow orders. Although the fisherfolk are more
obedient, they lack killing intent, so don’t expect too much of them.”
“With Kuai Tu’s leadership, the shiba inu beastmen have distinguished
themselves, unfortunately there are too few of them to assume the duty of being
our backbone. Furthermore, everyday Cang Xu draws their blood and even peels
their flesh off, now they all fear and are suspicious of him.”
Cang Xu took the blame for Zi Di’s actions.
Zong Ge continued, “The cannon training uses up our ordinary shells, which are
currently still abundant. But the sailors’ shelling abilities have only shown
small improvements.”
“I plan to lead a small team into the underground and conduct live combat
drills.”
“Truth be told, don’t count on them becoming elites.”
“Alas, we need better soldiers.”
However, the survivors’ funds were once again hollowed out. The money they made
these days was converted into materials that were used to make alchemy puppets.
 
The dragonman youngster laughed, “Those are unimportant matters.”
“Our plan has smoothly made progress.”
“Zi Di, you have already developed the medicine, right?”
Zi Di nodded, “I have already had the scouting rat models sneak the medicine
into Hei Fei’s ships.”
“However, those ships are heavily guarded, if we want the medicine to take
effect, we can’t be too hasty.”
“Apart from that, the rumors we slyly spread are also gradually taking hold.”
“Very good, then our plan will proceed.” The dragonman concluded.



****** Chapter 49: Three Party Transaction ******
The Hunting Guild.
Once again, Zong Ge brought back a lot of dead magic beasts.
“Lord Shi Qi, please sit down for a moment, we shall immediately settle your
bill!” The receptionist was both cordial and respectful.
By this time, Zong Ge had become the their most radiant hunter.
He not only cleaned out most of the exploration missions, but he also brought
back large amounts of dead magic beasts.
There were many tide snakes and smelt rats.
Not only ordinary ones, but also bronze levels, iron levels, and even silver
levels.
If this trend continued, the Hunting Guild’s mission pile would be gone soon.
Zong Ge withdrew to a small booth, and after taking a seat, the receptionist
served him black tea and dessert.
“Your group’s strength surprised people.”
“My Lord, are you interested in this mission?”
“Recently, the reward for this kind of mission has been increased by 20%, a
generous kickback.” 
The receptionist seized the opportunity to market the Hunting Guild’s mission.
Zong Ge glanced at it, and noticed it was a resource gathering mission.
It wanted two types of resources.
One was flame crystal clusters, which often grew near magma river banks.
The second was tide snake eggs, the bigger the tide snake egg, the higher the
price.
Zong Ge shook his head, “We are resting, reorganizing, and drilling. We only do
these missions in passing. This mission is too troublesome, and I don’t want to
waste our time.”
Until the moment Zong Ge left through the Hunting Guild’s door, the
receptionist did not give up trying to persuade him, “My Lord, won’t you
reconsider?”
Not long after Zong Ge left, a docked ship welcomed a visitor.
The Night Devil Hunting Group commander.
He wanted to collaborate with the survivors to encircle and hunt a tide snake
group.
“This snake group has many female snakes that recently laid many snake eggs.”
“Smelt rats give birth to live young, and their newborns only acknowledge other
smelt rats. When tide snake eggs hatch and break out of their shell with secret
breeding methods, the newborn small snakes will imprint on their breeder,
making them an excellent source of magical pets.”
“Snake Rat Island’s largest resource is magic beasts, and its most profitable
are flame crystal clusters and tide snake eggs.”
“But flame crystal clusters are very hard to gather, there are always smelt
rats living nearby. And during the ensuing fight, the crystals are likely to be
destroyed.”
“But snake eggs are different, they will be protected by the snake group to
their deaths.”
The Night Devil commander earnestly persuaded.
Unliked before, the strength the survivors displayed caused him to sit up and
take notice, leading him to think about cooperation.
But the dragonman youngster tactfully refused him.
300
The Night Devil commander did not know that in the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the
survivors already had 1000 flame crystal clusters and 300 snake eggs, many of
which were of higher levels.
If a human wanted to take these flame crystal clusters or snake eggs, they
would need to fight, and hunt the snake or rat groups, difficult things to do.
But the dragonman youngster was different.
He had the Bloodcore!
By beheading many tide snakes and smelt rats, the young man could transform
into a complete silver level of those magic beasts! 
Now, he only lacked gold level ones.
It was because of this that the survivors delivered so many magic beasts to the
Hunting Guild.
The dragonman youngster no longer needed to absorb them.
Meanwhile, because the night Devil commander paid a visit to the survivors, Hei
Fei’s group went on high alert.
“Lord Captain, the Night Devil commander just left. This subordinate made some
inquiries, and it seems Long Fu won’t be collaborating with the Night Devil
Hunting Group.” The first mate reported.
Hei Fei immediately let out a breath.
These days, his days were anything but relaxing.
With great fanfare, the survivors had been exploring the underground, causing
him to be suspicious and vigilant.
The survivors’ great headway and good momentum made him even more wary.
Every time Zong Ge conducted military training, his prestige was apparent.
Whenever Hei Fei heard the sailors’ battle cries, clanging blades, and most of
all, the booming cannons, he felt contempt and provoked.
Whenever the survivors displayed themselves like this, Hei Fei would remember
the time where he barely blocked the sword Zong Ge threw at him, and knew that
he had no choice but to swallow his anger.
He wanted to leave this place, but his ships needed to be repaired.
He was behind the survivors.
But the survivors’ ships hadn’t been repaired yet.
They always had new damage.
Hei Fei began to think of every possible method, including bribing personnel,
to secretly repair his ships.
All failed.
He faintly realized that he might be stuck in some whirlpool and couldn’t get
himself free.
He began to feel regretful.
If he had known earlier, he might have listened to his first mate: immediately
leaving Snake Rat Island!
But he couldn’t now.
Hei Fei was very worried that if he fled to another island, the survivors would
attack him. In the port, they wouldn’t dare to touch him.
But staying here was also terrible.
Tan Qiu had invited him to dinner many times, every time under the pretense of
purchasing beastmen slaves.
But Hei Fei knew this wasn’t so!
Don’t be fooled by the size of Snake Rat Island, it did not require many
beastmen slaves.
Because Snake Rat Island hadn’t been developed for every long, the island did
not have many inhabitants, and under normal circumstances, the ruling lord
wouldn’t let his native race be outnumbered by foreign ones.
If the beastmen slaves rebelled, one of them could take on three humans.
Therefore, there needed to be three humans for every beastman to ensure the
territory’s population was healthy and stable.
Tan Qiu took a fancy to them, and fancied Hei Fei!
Tan Qiu wanted to unite everyone to deal with Rou Zang, and as a silver level,
Hei Fei was an external force he could draw support from.
The conflict between him and the survivors caused Tan Qiu to see an opportunity
and hope.
Like Hei Fei wanted to deal with Rou Zang.
Besides that, recent gossip that had sprung up also made him fidgety.
The gossip involved the dawning war in the Wilderness Continent, the rampaging
pirates, and that the selling price of slaves were constantly sliding downwards
in other islands.
Hei Fei was worried incessantly about this.
There were many factors that affected slave prices.
Nowadays, slave merchants were slashing prices to sell beastmen slaves.
Hei Fei knew the reason why!
The empire’s development in the Wilderness Continent was going well, and they
held the advantage in the war. If allied beastmen armies were defeated, not
only would they lose their territory, many of them would also be enslaved.
Beastmen soldiers taken prisoner were snapped up by slave traders, and then the
defenseless beastmen villages were also raided, causing all of its commoners to
forfeit their freedoms and suffer enslavement.
No one believed the empire’s armies could lose!
Therefore, the general market was welcoming large quantities of beastmen
slaves.
As time passed, the newer beastmen slaves would be of better quality and more
numerous, if one still had a pile of old slaves, how would they be able to sell
them?
Nowadays, selling them would make less money.
Furthermore, after making back their capital, the slave traders would invest
more into capturing slaves that would sell for more in the future.
Hei Fei also planned to do this too.
But now he was trapped!
Trapped on Snake Rat Island.
As Hei Fei was thinking of a good idea, aa flustered subordinate came over to
report, “Captain, something doesn’t seem right.”
“What isn’t right? Are the smugglers coming to kill us?” Hei Fei immediately
asked.
“No, it’s the beastmen slaves, they all look…sick.”
“Sick?” Hei Fei got up to check it out right away, they were his money, and he
couldn’t be even a bit negligent.
The beastmen slaves were gravely ill.
Their skin was purple, and was beginning to fester and sink.
Hei Fei’s group had some treatment methods, but none of them worked.
Hei Fei immediately asked a priest to come over.
But when the Sheng Ming priest personally cast Purify, it didn’t do anything.
“There are no traces of magic, nor magic medicine. This is some kind of germ
that is flourishing in these beastmen, it is exuberant and lively.” The priest
used a divine spell to find out the truth.
He was unable to cure it, however he could use a divine spell to suppress it.
Hei Fei firmly declined.
Priestly divine spells were not free, they were actually very expensive!
Hei Fei then asked the merchant alliance magician to come over.
The merchant alliance magician also was helpless, “Treatment scrolls cannot
cure them, on the contrary, it will stimulate the germs and make them multiply
more within the beastmen.”
“Magic medicine can be used, but it needs to be specially mixed to target them
specifically.”
“According to my understanding, there are no magic pharmacists on Snake Rat
Island at this time.”
“Good news however, this sickness is specific to beastmen only, it will not
spread to us humans.”
“Look, the shiba inu beastmen are sicker, while the oxmen aren’t as ill.
Perhaps the shiba inu beastmen are the carriers and infected the other
beastmen. 
“Your ship holds aren’t the best living quarters, it is crammed with beastmen
slaves and lacks ventilation, sunlight, and cleaning. These are prime
conditions for germs to flourish.” 
Hei Fei despaired!
This was a day of alarming and sad news.
He confined himself in the captain’s room, and didn’t sleep the entire night.
By morning, his eyes were very red as he walked out and shouted for the first
mate to come over and receive orders.
He wanted to dump these beastmen slaves now, to stop any further losses.
“If we dress them up good and put them below market price, we can sell them!”
“I need to meet with Tan Qiu, did he not want my beastmen slaves?”
At this point, Hei Fei would say anything.
Tan Qiu greeted him with a smile, “You came just in time, I was in the middle
of entertaining Long Fu.”
Hei Fei thought to himself, the survivors had already absconded with his
beastman slaves. They now included these beastmen in their forces, then perhaps
the survivors were interested in his remaining beastmen?
Thus, in the dining room, Hei Fei offered the beastmen slaves to the two.
The dragonman youngster expressed on the spot, “I am not interested.”
Tan Qiu smiled, “Captain Hei Fei, your beastmen slaves have all contracted a
strange disease, I understand your desire to cut your losses. If you want me to
take these rotten goods, it won’t just be a monetary affair.” 
Tan Qiu brought up the same topic, and hoped Hei Fei would be willing to help
him deal with Rou Zang.
He also requested the same thing of the dragonman youngster.
Hei Fei looked agonized, and he considered what he wanted to say.
The dragonman youngster also looked grave.
The situation on the seas had gotten worse.
There was much evidence that the Two Head Pirate Group wasn’t attacking Rou
Zang’s pirates, the two sides seemed to be cooperating.
Rou Zang and the survivors hated each other to the bone, and if the two pirate
groups were cooperating, the survivors would be in grave danger when on the
seas.
More crucially, the survivors hadn’t found the Green Jade Gold Coffin in the
underground at all.
Before the dragonman youngster left, Tan Qiu spoke with him and promised a
heavy reward. 
The survivors were many times stronger than Hei Fei, and Tan Qiu likewise
valued them more, thus was willing to spend more to attract them over.
However, at noon, a major event occurred on Snake Rat Island.
A gold level tide snake chief rushed out of a cave and attacked the Night
Devil’s encampment, throwing everything into disarray.
As it turns out, the Night Devil Hunting Group was probing a tide snake
community and eyeing the snake eggs covetously, causing the community to grow
restless. 
During this, friction between tide snakes sparked, and many tide snakes were
killed. 
The tide snake chief was so furious that it killed its way to the surface,
causing the entire island to shack.
Faced with a gold level magic beast, Tan Qiu immediately invited the silver
level cultivators, including the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, over to fight
it. It took half a day to behead the gold level tide snake.
During the celebratory feast, Lao Zhong (Cang Xu) personally paid a visit to
Tan Qiu to express that because of recent military training, they required more
beastmen, however they were worried about Hei Fei, therefore they asked Tan Qiu
to propose three party transactions.
The three parties of this transaction would be Tan Qiu, the survivors, and Hei
Fei’s group.
Hei Fei would dump these beastmen slaves on Tan Qiu.
The survivors would exchange a lot of human fisherfolk and some other resources
for the beastmen slaves.
Tan Qiu was very interested in this deal.
He asked Hei Fei to come to his study to talk things over.
When the two spoke in private, Tan Qiu explicitly stated to Hei Fei, “Sell all
of the beastmen to me at this price. Otherwise, tomorrow the entirety of Snake
Rat Island will know that your beastmen slaves are sick with a contagious
illness!”
The deal was immediately reached that very evening.
With great pains, Hei Fei unloaded his heavy burden, at least he didn’t make a
loss.
He was even somewhat happy about it.
He didn’t expect that he’d be able to cheat the survivors in this three party
deal.
Rejuvenated!
Tan Qiu felt very satisfied, with the beastmen slaves in his hands now, he
could now obtain a large number of humans. These Stone Egg Island fisherfolk
were all ordinary people.
As for these sick beastmen slaves, all of them could be given to those arms
smugglers.
What, all sick?
That had nothing to do with I, Tan Qiu.
Everything had been covered up you and yours Hei Fei, go find him to balance
the books!
Tan Qiu wholeheartedly awaited the conflict between the two parties, it would
allow him to grab ahold of the wheel, and thereby attract more people to deal
with Rou Zang.
As for the survivors…
It was late into the night when the beastmen slaves were handed over, their
germs had been secretly contained for the time being.
They also received a large sum of money.
It was almost ten times the amount of the sum of their previous mission
rewards!
There were some treasured natural resources that could not be purchased on the
market, as a noble, Tan Qiu controlled such channels for these.
The shiba inu young clan patriarch once again kneeled to express his
gratefulness and loyalty.
Privately below, Zi Di and Zong Ge were talking, “I suggest that we go trouble
Hei Fei and his men at dawn. He actually dared to sell use these sick and dying
trash!”
The half beastman remained silent.
The dragonman bitterly laughed. This merchant daughter would not let any chance
to obtain riches off.
What he was most satisfied with this plan was where the fisherfolk ended up at.
The fisherfolk did not belong on the battlefield, and forcing them to do so
would only waste their lives.
Now, they would live on Snake Rat Island, this was what the fisherfolk wanted.
At the same time, they also contributed to the survivors’ cause.
Cang Xu inspected two to three times, then nodded to himself, “With this money,
we can buy the alchemy materials we lack tomorrow. The Anti-investigation and
Prophecy Formation can be built.



****** Chapter 50: Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The boarding cabin.
A developing alchemy formation had reached the final step of construction.
“Final inspection.” Cang Xu stood up from lying on the floor with his belly,
whacked his old waist, then continued to kneel and carefully examine the
formation.
The newly advanced bronze magician, Zi Di, was also inspecting to the side.
After a short time, the two raised their heads.
“No mistakes detected.”
Connect the magic power reservoir. Deep Sea Monster Fish, transmit the magic
power!”
Turbulent magic power was instilled into many formation nodes. 
A hundred candles seem to ignite in the boarding cabin.
Soon after, these nodes began to shine and connect with each other, starting
from the floor, and spreading to the walls and even the ceiling. 
Finally, the hundred silver-gray lights converged in the center of the room,
transforming into a solid magic alchemy formation.
“Success.” Cang Xu and Zi Di were just about to celebrate when suddenly, their
complexions changed.
The final few nodes were not lit, the flowing magic power seemed to have met
with a dam, the obstructed power would soon overflow and damage other nodes.
“Not good!”
“What happened?”
Cang Xu and Zi Di were helpless to do anything.
They only had a superficial attainment in alchemy and couldn’t discern what the
problem was, let alone know how to fix it.
“Tower spirit, take action!” Zi Di called for help.
The white crystal ball half a human tall had been on standby in the corner of
the boarding cabin, upon hearing the command, it immediately floated up and
glistened with white light.
The white light quickly grew bright, indicating that the tower spirit was using
all of its strength.
In tandem with the tower spirit, the two yellow crab alchemy puppets suddenly
seemed to be infused with souls as their crab claws became very nimble.
The yellow crab puppets rushed into the formation and launched out their crab
claws into the key nodes.
The tower spirit seized that opportunity to take control of the nearly finished
alchemy formation.
The magic power fluctuations were gradually alleviated. 
The tower spirit’s voice transmitted, “The formation will collapse in an
estimated 30 second. Please decide on a course of action immediately. Proposal
one, disassembling the formation. A third of the formation can be saved and the
boarding cabin will be seriously damaged, the success rate is 75%. Proposal
two, destroy the formation entirely, the boarding cabin will be mildly damaged,
the success rate is 88%. Proposal three…”
“Tower spirit, we must repair this magic formation!” Zi Di shouted, cutting off
the tower spirit.
The tower spirit paused, then gave three repair plans.
Zi Di and Cang Xu looked at each other, then chose the same option
independently.
After receiving their orders, the yellow crabs morphed their limbs
simultaneously to become hollow and lankier.
Magic power flowed through the crab leg tubes and into a yellow crab alchemy
puppet.
After being harmonized by the alchemy puppets, the magic power stabilized.
At the same time, the tower spirit and the other yellow crab alchemy puppet
worked together to repair the nodes.
After stabilizing the flow, the magic power finally lit up the remaining nodes.
The nodes conformed with each other, and linked completely to form a refined
whole.
At last, the formation took shape.
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation!
The magnificent formation looked like the stary night sky interconnecting with
each other. To Cang Xu, it looked like the Aquarius constellation. From Zi Di’s
point of view, it looked like a six-armed crossbow.
As the flow of magic power ceased, the formation gradually faded away until it
finally vanished.
The light turned back to normal, and the boarding cabin revered back to its
original appearance.
“A close call, the magic formation nearly collapsed.” Zi Di coughed, the danger
still palpable.
Cang Xu nodded, his face still startled from the unforeseen event, “If this
failed, we wouldn’t have enough resources to construct a second formation.”
Building the Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation was very expensive.
Most of the alchemy materials came from War Merchant’s treasury.
At the time, when the survivors took these resources, they planned to build the
formation. However, upon searching War Merchant’s storehouse, they only found
most of them.
Fortunately, the few materials they were missing were relatively common, and
the survivors were able to gather them all on Snake Rat Island.
Ding.
A yellow crab alchemy puppet collapsed to the ground, motionless.
It was wrecked.
Because during the rushed repairs, it had used its own alchemy core to store
the torrential magic power.
Cang Xu and Zi Di were unsurprised.
The tower spirit’s repair plan indicated that if they used this plan, a yellow
crab alchemy puppet would be sacrificed.
“We cannot repair it at this time.” Zi Di sighed softly as she looked at the
collapsed alchemy puppet.
“This was the best outcome.” Cang Xu consoled.
The other repair plans either had a low success rate, wound the soul of either
Cang Xu or Zi Di, or damage the tower spirit.
These costs were unacceptable.
Without a yellow crab alchemy puppet, the survivors’ alchemy strength dropped
by a third!
But compared to the gains, this loss was acceptable.
The survivors entered the formation in groups.
The last two were the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge. It was because they had
to stay behind to take care of the ships and also because there were many eyes
on them, it was hard for them to slip away.
After the formation’s radiance dissipated, Zong Ge walked out.
“Did you feel anything?” The dragonman youngster asked.
Zong Ge shook his head, “I don’t feel any different.”
“So, this Anti-investigation and Prophecy magic is outstanding.” Cang Xu
praised, “It affects my body and protects us, yet we don’t sense any
different.”
“This point proves that the alchemy great grandmaster, War Merchant, also has
remarkable accomplishments in the domain of magic too. He is worthy of being
called a legend level magician!”
Zi Di agreed, “The most wonder point is that the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell can be combined with the Deceptive Disguise Spell, each
increasing the other’s power.”
“If we only had the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell on us, others diving
and predicting us would be greatly obstructed and eventually fail.”
“But now, when others try to divine and predict us, they won’t feel hindered,
rather they will be misled. The outcome of the divination will appear as what
the Deceptive Disguise spell shows them!”
“If we only had the Deceptive Disguise spell, any detection or divination magic
aimed at us will rapidly consume the power of the magic.
“With just the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell’s protection, external
divination and detection will instead consume that spell’s power.”
“Thus, the cost of casting these spells is greatly reduced!”
The Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy formations could be
regarded as a specially made combined magic spell.
The survivors had spent a huge price to build them, and would pay a costly fee
every time they activated them.
Especially the Deceptive Disguise formation, for the main casting material it
consumed was the Pearl Bubbles.
The only source of this divine artifact came from the master of the Mermaid
Fairy Tale– the Charming Blue God’s divine power!
Therefore, the cost to cast Deceptive Disguise was extremely high.
It expended god level materials.
Despite the survivors having the divine artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale, there was
surely a limit to the amount of Charming Blue divine power it could store, thus
the number of Pearl Bubbles it could produce was finite. Because they couldn’t
replenish Charming Blue’s divine power, the amount they used was the amount
they depleted.
When compared to each other, the cost of using the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy formation was far smaller.
After it was build, the highest level sorcery material it used was gold level
along with a large amount of magic power.
Zi Di carefully calculated, “According to the market exchange rate of crystals
to gold, at present time, for every person that enters the formation, on
average it will cost 6 gold.”
There were only ten of them, and in just this first round, they spent a hundred
gold coins.
This was already very high.
Take Cang Xu, as a noble steward, he managed a noble’s territory and was only
paid about 36 gold coins a year. 
When Hei Fei invited over the priest to use a silver level divine spell to
attempt to treat the beastmen slaves’ sickness, he was told it cost 12 silver
coins.
Hei Fei couldn’t bear this price repeatedly.
If it was only him, he could have, but there were too many slaves that needed
to be treated.
Zi Di’s words had two key points.
One was “at present time” and the other was “on average”.
The higher the life level the magic formation was casting on, the more it cost.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge used the most magic power. It cost 25 gold
to cast the spell on the dragonman youngster and 22 gold to cast on Zong Ge. In
other words, every time they took a trip in, they paid the cost of an average
silver level weapon.
As an iron level, the cost to cast on Cang Xu tumbled to 9 gold, while
Tripleblade was 8 gold, and Zi Di was 7 gold. 
Meanwhile, Lan Zao, a bronze level, only cost 70 silver to cast the spell on
him.
Zi Di’s tone sank, “So, currently our biggest expense is the formations.”
“First was the production cost, it was equal to the cost of two and a half
ordinary ships.”
“It will be difficult to do a second round for a short while.”
“We don’t have a steady income yet, but because of you Captain, we harvested a
large amount of flame crystal clusters and tide snake eggs. Computing in these
funds, if we use this formation three times within half a year, we will go
bankrupt. At that time, we will be forced to sell off our industry, such as
alchemy installations and even the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
“Therefore, I suggest that we do our best to keep a low profile and solve our
redemption as soon as possible!”
“The more people investigating us, the more money we will spend.”
When it concerned money, the ghost girl was very serious and earnest.
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell will be expended. The more
investigation and prophecy spells that were used, the faster it would be
expended.
Therefore, it was unknown how long this magic would last for.
These words rang in the heart of the young captain, Zong Ge, and Cang Xu.
They now thought of Zi Di differently.
Before, they were helpless against their lack of funds, however Zi Di had
managed to solve this difficult problem.
Zong Ge had beastmen slaves to serve as fine soldiers and Cang Xu built the
Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation, the entire group benefited because
of her actions.
Zi Di displayed her talent in business!
She clearly saw what all parties really needed. For instance, Tan Qiu wanted
humans more than beastmen.
If there wasn’t a demand, she would create a demand. Like how she tricked Hei
Fei into dumping the beastmen slaves at his own accord.
She could also move her resources efficiently. Such as when she helped the
young captain absorb the magic beast bloodlines with the Bloodcore, allowing
him to easily gather large a mounts of flame crystal clusters and tide snake
eggs.
In the original plan, the young captain would use his transformations to lure
out a gold level magic beast to create a magic beast calamity in the town
outskirts.
But due to the Night Devil Hunting Group’s actions, a gold level tide snake
leader was attracted to the surface, an unexpected delight.
After Zi Di’s plan had been implemented, the survivors would be the ones who
benefited the most.
More wonderfully, their relationship with the other powers would not worsen as
a result.
When one lacked the strength to tackle a problem head on, one needed Zi Di’s
finesse.  



****** Chapter 51: Weapon Master? ******
Snake Rat Island, the port.
“Shi Qi! What are you doing!?” Hei Fei yelled.
Since the three party transaction when Hei Fei dumped those beastmen slaves and
broke even, he had paid close attention to how the survivors moved. 
If the survivors shifted even a little, he would get information.
This time, the survivors tried to find trouble with him without the slightest
concealment, they even did it with great fanfare and with deliberately slowly.
The survivors gave Hei Fei enough time to react.
Therefore, when Zong Ge led Tripleblade, Kuai Tui, and the others to arrogantly
came calling, Hei Fei’s group had already assembled on the port in tight
formation to protect the slave ships behind them. 
The two groups confronted each other on the port.
Seeing the situation was looking bad, the surrounding people fled in a flurry.
There were also busybodies and bold ones that stood a distance away to watch.
“What’s going on?”
“A good show!”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Group has made a move. Recently, they confiscated
the rebellious beastmen slaves that escaped from Hei Fei. I don’t know why they
have come to find trouble with Hei Fei again.”
“That group is quite overbearing! I heard that when they wanted to buy Hei
Fei’s slaves previously, they thought the price was too high. The price was
actually quite fair, they then used some means to trigger a beastmen revolt
that allowed them to take some beastmen slaves. The city guard couldn’t do
anything. Recently, they forced Hei Fei’s group to give them their remaining
beastmen slaves. Hei Fei submitted. But I didn’t think they want to find
trouble with Hei Fei still.”
The third party deal was ordinally a secret.
But Hei Fei used a sly trick to let slip rumors about it the evening it took
place.
The rumor was of course partial toward Hei Fei’s group.
“Hmph, Hei Fei isn’t a good person either. Slave merchants have no conscience.
The beastmen slave I just purchased fell ill when it came home. To treat him, I
spent a lot of money.”
“Hehe, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group is very strong, Rou Zang was seriously
injured by their hands. I look forward to Hei Fei hanging.
“They also have big guts. They unexpectedly caused trouble on the port, they
don’t even put themselves in his Lordship’s eyes. The city guard should be
receiving news of this soon, right?”
“Hurry up and fight, or there won’t be one when the city guard comes over.”
The spectators’ tongues wagged, many of them both fearful and excited at the
chaos.
Hei Fei was gloomy, as he tenaciously looked at Zong Ge and coldly snorted,
“Shi Qi, don’t be too excessive. If you really want to fight, we won’t be easy
to bully around!”
In fact, if he could fight back, Hei Fei would have done so already.
His first mate involuntarily swallowed his saliva.
As an iron level fighter, Shi Qi was not someone he could handle, his gaze was
more focused on other iron levels.
Zong Ge had two iron levels behind him.
A human as short as a dwarf, the altered appearance of Tripleblade.
The other one was a dogman, he was slender, capable, shorter than Zong Ge, and
his face barred his hatred. It was the dogman clan’s young patriarch, Kuai Tui.
Behind those two were a small group of sailors.
These sailors wielded alchemy crossbows and firearms.
One glance was all it took to know these firearms and crossbows were of
excellent quality.
The sailors behind Hei Fei’s first mate stared at those firearms and crossbows,
cowardice filled their hears.
If they opened fire, those vicious weapons would riddle them like sieves,
electrocute them, freeze them into mincemeat, or cook them to ash in an
instant.
The one that attracted the most attention was always Zong Ge.
He disguised himself as a human, but his body still remained frighteningly tall
and sturdy, and as he stood at the forefront, he looked like a wall.
He had a broadsword on his back, and was armor less. As the wind blew, pressing
his clothes to his body, it made more visible his rocky hard muscles.
Although his broadsword was ordinary, upon seeing it, Hei Fei and his men
couldn’t help but recall their confrontation that night.
Zong Ge hurled that broadsword and forced Hei Fei back.
The first mate and many sailors behind Hei Fei could clearly see that after
their captain blocked that sword, his arms were incessantly trembling!
“Terrible, truly terrible.” The first mate’s heart trembled.
The situation was very clear, the survivors’ formation completely suppressed
their opposition.
If fighting broke out between them, Hei Fei’s group had no hope for victory.
“Why isn’t’ the city guard here yet?!” The first mate thought to himself.
The survivors were looking to find trouble, thus Hei Fei’s group had already
sent someone to notify the guard. 
During the three party deal, Tan Qiu used the secret that the beastmen were
sick to depress the price. Hei Fei and Tan Qiu at the time had an oral
agreement: if the survivors made a ruckus, he needed Tan Qiu protection! 
As both sides faced each other, the mood grew tenser by the moment.
Zong Ge was expressionless, and maintained his silence.
To tell the truth, he didn’t want to do this.
He liked outright attacks and wasn’t fond of resorting to crafty plots and
machinations.
That was his nature.
But Zi Di persuaded him, “We need to coerce Hei Fei’s group. If we don’t ‘fly
into a humiliated rage’ and seek trouble with them, it will instead become our
flaw. Perhaps…we can also gain some riches. This money can be used to enlarge
our forces in the future.”
Zong Ge found those words reasonable.
He was an outstanding officer who was well versed in The Art of War.
The Art of War has a saying: appear weak when you are strong, and strong when
you are weak. Both were common tactics.
But besides Zi Di’s justifications, he also had other considerations.
He needed to unite his troops!
Tripleblade hated Hei Fei’s group. Hei Fei’s first mate had killed several
goblins in front of him.
Kuai Tui also hated Hei Fei’s group, this went without saying.
Therefore, he came.
Kuai Tui gnashed his teeth, he hated he couldn’t attack and tear Hei Fei and
the others to bits yet
Tripleblade and Zong Ge had been together for a long time, thus the goblin
somewhat understood what the half beastman was doing.
Upon seeing Zong Ge’s silence, Tripleblade immediately took a step forward and
loudly cursed.
Through that scolding, the spectators gradually understood what was going on.
As it turned out, the beastmen slaves Hei Fei had sold the survivors were all
dying from disease.
“Hear, see, as expected, Hei Fei’s group are not good people.”
“They are not the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group’s match. Not even Rou Zang was!”
“How do they have such large guts?”
“I heard there was a three party deal. Our Lord was one of them. Perhaps…”
“Look, the city guard is coming!”
The spectators opened a path through.
The silver level city guard commander, along with a troop of men, separated the
two groups from each other.
The commander coldly snorted, “What are you doing here? Calm down for me!”
The commander was unsurprised.
Previously, Tan Qiu specifically summoned him to give him sincere advice and
instructed him clearly on the matter. On the one hand, he asked that he protect
law, order, and stabilize. Stop the two sides from clashing and beating each
other bloody. On the other hand, he also wanted him to act according to
circumstances, after all, Tan Qiu hoped that he could use these two groups to
join hands with him to deal with Rou Zang.
Upon seeing the city guard arrive, Hei Fei relaxed at once and promptly said,
“My Lord, we aren’t looking for trouble.”
The silver level commander swept his eyes around, then fixed his gaze on Zong
Ge and strictly shouted, “What do you think this place is? This is Snake Rat
Island’s port, this is Lord Tan Qiu’ territory, conflict is strictly prohibited
here. If there are criminals here, all of them will be hauled back to prison!”
But Zong Ge coldly snorted, and for the first time since this confrontation
started, he spoke, “You and I are both silver levels, talking won’t do.”
He slowly took out his broadsword and looked at both the commander and Hei Fei,
“Don’t say I have you both time to react, receive my move and use your strength
to speak!”
The commander’s eyes glared at first in disbelief, then boiled up with anger.
He Fei was both scared and pleased, he stepped next to the commander and took
out his cutlass, “Shi Qi, you are too arrogant. Today, I and the Lord Commander
will give you a profound lesson!”
The spectators were dumbstruck, none of them expected Zong Ge to be so
unyielding.
The busybodies had been disappointed to see the city guard intervening, they
didn’t expected the sudden turn of events. Zong Ge was so incomparably stubborn
that he did not put Hei Fei and the city guard commander in his eyes. 
Silver level battle qi bubbled from Zong Ge’s body, then poured into the weapon
he held.
As a result, the broadsword began to glisten with a silver luster.
The formidable life aura pressured the others.
“Come, let me see your hues.” Zong Ge’s voice was steady, his face still
expressionless.
“You are too arrogant!” Hei Fei took the lead, he was impatient to create the
reality that he and the city guard commander would fight Shi Qi together.
A cutlass chopped down, the slash creating a fierce gust of wind.
Hei Fei’s cutlass was of silver level quality, and its dark blade was as black
as ink.
The cutlass cut down towards Zong Ge.
Zong Ge lifted his hands, and used the heavy broadsword to effortlessly block
the cutlass.
As the weapons clashed, the exploding silver battle qi looked like splashing
molten silver.
“You want to fight me with an ordinary weapon, switch to a better blade!” Hei
Fei complacently roared.
In this fight, he had the advantage!
The weaponry advantage was vast.
The broadsword in Zong Ge’s hand did not snap, because it had been instilled
with silver battle qi.
But as a result, his silver battle qi consumption was very high. After all, he
needed to offset the immense disparity between an ordinary weapon and a silver
one.
By contrast, Hei Fei’s battle qi consumption was far lower.
But just as Hei Fei smiled, Zong Ge stepped forward and swung his arms.
The copious amount of force in the sword was transmitted to Hei Fei. 
“Such strength!” Hei Fei’s expression changed as Zong Ge knocked him back.
He was human, while Zong Ge was a half beastman. Although both were silver
level, Zong Ge’s strength surpassed his by a large measure.
Zong Ge did not press the attack, instead he charged the city guard commander.
The city guard commander hesitated, he didn’t want to attack, nor did he
believe Zong Ge would actually attack him!
When he saw Zong Ge charging at him, he had no choice but to angrily take out
his sword. 
This sword was inlayed with a blue gem, and was also a silver level weapon.
With a thought, the blue gem on the sword hilt burst open with radiance, and in
an instant, the light covered his body and formed a translucent blue armor
around the city guard commander.
Astonishingly it was a magic weapon, enchanted with the Blue Gem Light Armor
spell.
The city guard commander raised his left arm.
The armor on his left arm suddenly expanded into a thick shield half a man
tall.
This was the well-known alchemy defense armament, it was known as the portable
arm shield.
The city guard commander was skilled at using the sword and shield, and
instantly became a fort. His equipment was better than Hei Fei’s, while the
only thing Zong Ge had was the ordinary level broadsword.
“I order you to desist now, Shi Qi!” The commander shouted.
But Zong Ge seemed to neither see his armor nor hear the latter’s voice as he
continued to charge forth.
The broadsword’s point first hit the shield, then rose up.
Ding.
Zong Ge struck, aiming the blade at the top of the shield.
He looked like a barbarian bull as he pushed the commander back, the latter’s
legs plowing marks into the tiles on the floor.
“You cannot break through my defense!” The commander peaked out from the side
of the shield to look Zong Ge square in the face.
But Zong Ge had no visible signs of panic or impatience.
At that moment, with a yell, Hei Fei attacked Zong Ge’s flank. 
Zong Ge took a deep breath, and with all of his strength, raised his left foot.
The experienced commander immediately made out that Zong Ge wanted to kick the
lower edge of his shield, so he could smack it away.
He grunted, and swelled his strength as he firmly planted his shield.
The shield inserted itself into the floor tiles.
But Zong Ge immediately changed his movement slightly, and used his knee to
strike the pommel of his broadsword.
The broadsword had been slanted against the shield, but now that the shield had
dropped to the ground, there was nothing blocking it from hitting the
commander’s face.
The broadsword had more room to move.
Zong Ge’s hands controlled the sword hilt as he stood off against the shield.
At that moment, due to the immense attack power the sword pommel received, in
conjunction with Zong Ge, the slanted broadsword thrusted at the commander’s
face.
When the commander saw how close the broadsword’s point was, his head
unconsciously flinched back.
The broadsword cut across his cheek, causing silver sparks to shower off the
Blue Gem Light Armor, then shot into a wall ten steps away, vanishing into the
wall without a trace.
When Hei Fei saw that Zong Ge lost his only weapon, his heart was exuberant,
and he exerted himself further.
The speed of cutlass’ swing grew faster.
But he didn’t expect that a moment later, Zong Ge lightly moved aside and
avoided the cutlass’ blade. He then reached out and grabbed the blade’s hilt.
Hei Fei’s physical strength could not compare to Zong Ge’s, allowing Zong Ge to
exploit the momentum of his swing,
The cutlass’s trajectory jerked forward towards the commander.
The commander’s shield was in the ground, and there was no time to evade, thus
he lifted his one handed sword to block the cutlass.
A clang echoed.
When the cutlass and one handed sword crossed, the sound of it nearly punctured
the eardrums of the spectators.
When Hei Fei saw his attacking being exploited by Zong Ge, he pulled back his
blade with both anger and worry.
But the commander didn’t think of drawing back, and he seized the opportunity
to take the advantage. In his eyes, Zong Ge had lost his weapon and had no
armor, thus he was vulnerable.
Zong Ge seemed to guess their trains of thought. 
This time, he was the one who took advantage of the new situation, he grabbed
the one handed sword’s hilt and gave it a boost.
The commander was now in the same situation as Hei Fei was, and as his sword
was thrusting towards Hei Fei, he pulled back his thrust. 
But Zong Ge immediately exploited that instant of restraint to attack again,
this time he targeted his shield.
The three tangled together in close quarters combat.
The commander and Hei Fei felt out of sorts, they were unable to use their full
strength, and every attack was wary of being neutralized or exploited by Zong
Ge. 
What made them cough up blood even more was that their swords or shield didn’t
seem to be theirs, rather they were Zong Ge’s weapons!
The fight dazzled the people, and made Hei Fei dizzy.
Suddenly, Zong Ge’s elbow loomed in his field of view!
Silver battle qi nearly burst from the tip of his elbow.
What shocked Hei Fei even more was that in the silver, he saw a trace of gold.
Peak silver level!
“Shi Qi is on the very of becoming a gold level!”
Thump.
Zong Ge’s elbow smashed into Hei Fei’s face, flinging the latter into the air
as scarlet blood sprayed from his nose.
With mingled fear and fury, Hei Fei stood up, then stared blankly.
He saw that the city guard commander had also fallen on the ground.
The commander’s shield had fallen nearby, while his sword was now in Zong Ge’s
hand.
Zong Ge lifted the point up to the commander’s chin, while in his left hand, he
also held the black cutlass. 
“My blade!” Hei Fei now realized that Zong Ge had also snatched away his sword
too.
“Absurd!” Hei Fei’s eyes widened, even though he had sampled defeat, he still
found it hard to believe.
How did he lose?
They were fully armed, how were they defeated by someone with almost no
equipment?
The spectators were also in an uproar.
This outcome seemed too dramatic, if it were not for how Hei Fei and the
commander looked, they would have thought this was all a performance.
Hei Fei’s first mate and other people, as well ass Kuai Tui, Tripleblade, and
more watched on dumbstruck.
The city guard commander’s face was red from shame and anger, but then it
changed slightly as he thought of something. He looked at Zong Ge and asked
with indeterminate bewilderment, “You are a weapon master?”
Although it was phrased as a question, his tone was very certain.
Hei Fei was flabbergasted.
He thought of the fight, and noticed that Zong Ge had utilized his cutlass many
times, it had been Zong Ge’s weapon, it was just in his hands, nothing more.
Not only was that the case with the cutlass, but also with the commander’s
sword and shield.
Weapon master was a title.
To reach this state, a fighter needed to be proficient in all kinds of weapons.
Regardless of what weapon it was, he could quickly master them all. After
reaching a level of training, weapon and fighter would seem to fuse and become
an extension of the fighter’s body, it moved where the heart wished, as the arm
moved the finger.
Hei Fei and the commander were proficient with their own weapon. But their
familiarity with them was unquestionably crushed into dregs compared to Zong
Ge.
Zong Ge did not respond to this guess, and he tossed the swords back to their
respective masters. “You lost.”
The commander and Hei Fei turned white and their hung their heads low.
Under the multitude of staring eyes, they had no face, no fighting spirit left.
Tripleblade seized the opportunity to step forward and demand compensation.
The specific price was carefully calculated by Zi Di, and hit Hei Fei’s bottom
line.
Hei Fei had no choice but to swallow the bitter fruit of a lost battle.
Instead of continuing to tangle, Zong Ge instead stopped while he was ahead and
swaggered off with his people.
Despite not killing his foe, Kuai Tui was gladdened to see Hei Fei looking so
down. He walked behind Zong Ge and stared at the latter’s sturdy shoulders,
inevitably exposing the adoration in his eyes.
With the conflict ceasing and the city guard demoralized, the commander quickly
departed the pier with them.
The unsatisfied spectators gradually dispersed.
The port quickly resumed its former orderliness and liveliness.
As time passed, everything to do with this conflict was disseminated like the
wind to every corner of the town.
The survivors’ group’s reputation once again rose greatly!



****** Chapter 52: Recruitment ******
In a faintly lit tavern, there was a boiling cauldron of voices.
A customer put their oaken wine cup down onto the thick table, cleaned the wine
suds from his bead, and bellowed, “Two people lost against one, they truly lost
face!”
Everyone knew what he was talking about.
These last several days, the entirety of Snake Rat Island had been discussing
Zong Ge.
“I heard you were at the pier, tell us what you saw in detail.” A companion
curious requested. 
The drinker exposed an awkward look, “I don’t know, either. In short, there was
a spate of fighting, then both the commander and Hei Fei collapsed. More
embarrassing, their weapons were snatched away by that mercenary, Shi Qi.”
Ordinary people could not discern the moves.
His companion couldn’t help but purse his brows, “Are you certain you saw that
with your own eyes?”
These last few days, he also heard many rumors pertaining to this fight.
After all, on Snake Rat Island, silver level cultivators fighting was rarely
seen, and would attract the enthusiastic discussion of ordinary people.
The drinker quickly refuted his fellow customer, “I saw it with my own eyes!”
The drunk customer was red across his entire face, “Shi Qi suddenly roared,
pushed with both hands, and then there was a terrifying explosion of red light
that looked like a fierce dragon breath!”
“Hei Fei and the commander also used the strongest battle skills of their
lives, and the three’s attacks collided in the sky.”
“The ground was blown away and the sea waves reached a hundred meters!”
“The light was too harsh, and by the time we could open our eyes, Hei Fei and
the commander had already fallen, their bodies all bloody.”
The retorting customer scowled greatly and berated, “Nonsense!”
But most of the tavern patrons were fixed on the customer that was loudly
bragging.
Even the customer’s companion also listened attentively with zeal.
As far as these ordinary people were concerned, they wanted to hear the more
exaggerated descriptions more.
Rou Zang’s capable man, the silver warlock, Mo Kong, was also mingling with
these customers disguised as an ordinary person.
These days, he was secretly using collected life aura to arrange magic
formations while also not forgetting to investigate and deepen his
understanding of the survivors’ group.
From these false exaggerations, Mo Kong still parsed some useful information.
“The one known as mercenary Shi Qi, seemed to be close to the gold level.”
“A weapon master?”
“The city guard commander and Hei Fei had their weapons taken away. But that
alone is not enough to deduce him as a weapon master.”
“Anyways, at minimum his close quarters fighting skills are very good.”
The tavern door was pushed open and Tripleblade walked in.
Upon seeing his familiar features, the tavern quickly went quiet.
A similar scene had happened before. 
At the time, Hei Fei’s group was pleasure seeking in the tavern.
Now, Hei Fei’s group was the target of ridicule. The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Group suppressed them, and Tripleblade was one of its members.
Numerous eyes focused on Tripleblade.
Tripleblade walked to the counter and said to the barkeeper, “Let me announce
that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group is recruiting! As long as you are
proficient in a particular field, and are willing to work, you can become a
member.”
“Of course, you must pass through our filter.” 
He was purposely loud.
Therefore, all of the customers drinking there could hear him clearly.
They stared at each other, and all of their faces fluctuated.
Tripleblade then turned around and looked at the customers, “Drink to your
heart’s content, I will be entertaining you tonight!”
Thus, joyous shouts suddenly rang out as an immense clamor nearly blew off the
tavern’s roof.
The wine customers offered their thanks to Tripleblade’s generosity, and the
noise attracted nearby pedestrians outside the tavern.
As people came and went, the news that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group was
recruiting spread like wildfire.
Tripleblade did not sojourn around, and left the tavern soon after.
The warlock, Mo Kong, was mingling with the crowd and watched Tripleblade’s
back vanish as the door closed shut.
“Should I seize the opportunity mix in with them?” The thought popped into Mo
Kong’s mind, but he dispelled it. 
Why should he take the risk himself?
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Group had an impressive background, who knew what
kind of detection method they had?
The scouting birds from before already alarmed Mo Kong.
“I’ve gathered a lot of information already, including their aura, I don’t need
to collect more.”
During the gold level magic beast ruckus, Mo Kong had gathered the dragonman
youngster’s life aura in passing.
“As long as the magic formation is arranged well, after it is activated, they
will know how terrible we are!”
“Hehe.”
“With this merit, I have enough to report back to the captain.”
At dawn, new announcements were posted on bulletin boards on the main road that
attracted the attention of many people.
Ordinary people were uneducated, and few of them could read.
Most peasants couldn’t even write their own names before they died.
But around every posting, there was a speaker preaching.
This hadn’t been invented by Tan Qiu, and was done by every feudal lord.
The preachers loudly and quickly read through the bulletins to the assembled
people.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenaries are recruiting?”
“That mercenary group is very strong, not long ago, Shi Qi beat down Hei Fei
and the Lord Commander and publicly humiliated them!”
“I heard that even Rou Zang ate a great loss at their hands.”
“If I could join them…”
Many people couldn’t help but be tantalized.
Snake Rat Island hadn’t been developed for long, and all of the island’s
inhabitants were immigrants to this place.
Many of these people were very adventurous.
But someone expressed their misgivings, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Group
treated their sailors as slaves to sell off, if we become members, will we not
sell ourselves into slavery? Being sold off in the future will be certain
misery!”
“You’re wrong.” Another voice from the crowd immediately said, “Those sailors
were all Stone Egg Island fisherfolk, they were saved by the Dragon Lion
Mercenaries. They weren’t strong enough and could not fight, thus the Dragon
Lion Mercenaries, our Lord, and Hei Fei made a deal together. Now the
fisherfolk have become our fellow islanders, and some are even my neighbors.”
The bulletin board was lively, and attracted the attention of even more
pedestrians.
The people gathered in three groups and their discussions grew more ardent.
One of them mentioned the material benefits of the Dragon Lion Mercenaries.
If one was selected for the marksman squad, they could receive an alchemy
crossbow or firearm. In the future, if they had enough merit, the sailor could
be given that weapon!
The Dragon Lion Mercenaries also had beastmen slaves, these were top-notch
cannon fodder, and the humans that joined would be above them.
After the survivors cleaned out their previous people, they needed to replenish
their manpower.
Although they had many dogmen and oxmen, they couldn’t have only beastmen, they
needed the bulk of their forces to be human to maintain stability. It was the
same principle Tan Qiu had when structuring the population demographics of
Snake Rat Island. 
Of course, Zong Ge’s previous bitter and heavy military training also allowed
some people to distinguish themselves, those people are all currently part of
the marksmen squad.
Zi Di was standing in a far off location, watching the people discussing around
the bulletin board, she nodded slightly.
This was the third place she had inspected.
In the crowds, she had arranged people to refute rumors, answer questions,
advertise the benefits of the Dragon Lion Mercenaries, and attract more people
to come to the assessment.
The opportune moment was nigh.
Zi Di, the big guy, Mu Ban, and the others would use this cover to show their
face and officially become members of the mercenary group.
Snake Rat Island, the Sheng Ming church.
As the morning sunshine passed through the multicolored glass window and
illuminated the chest of the god’s likeness, morning prayer came to an end.
Almost every prayer was overseen personally by the priest.
He treated his congregation of mostly ordinary fishermen and peasants amiably
and gently, and he attentively listened to their petitions.
As a result, after morning prayer finished, some of the participating residents
stayed behind and sought the priest for aid.
Under normal circumstances, the church would solve some of the residents’
troubles. Such as supplying food and clothing, and treating sicknesses.
But today, after the priest gave a brief explanation to the residents, he
withdrew from the holy prayer hall.
He came to the building wing behind the church and went to the third floor.
In his study, he saw a guest secretly paying him a visit.
It was because these days, Zong Ge was rather famous.
Zong Ge had come seeking treatment.
His arm was injured, and hadn’t yet been cured.
Whenever he used his battle qi, the power of it would erode the fractures
around his arm wound, causing great harm.
His arm injury was Zong Ge’s greatest hinderance that prevented him from
displaying his full strength.
Unfortunately, he still hadn’t obtained a suitable treatment yet.
In his previous fight with Hei Fei and the city guard commander, don’t be
fooled by the fact that Zong Ge didn’t use any battle skills, he had actually
moved all of the silver battle qi within him.
After he returned to his ship after the battle, his arm injury could no longer
be suppressed, and once again, a bloody circular scar appeared.
This time, because of the Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation was built,
and paired up with the Deceptive Disguise spell, after Zong Ge discussed it
with the others, he took a risk and came to the Sheng Ming church in search of
treatment.
He previously dispatched someone to make an appointment with the priest, and
requested that this treatment session be private.
The priest understood why Zong Ge had asked this, and agreed to it.
But after examining Zong Ge’s injury, the priest’s brows pursed.
“A truly dreadful wound.” 
“Your arm was completely severed!”
“Regretfully, since you didn’t receive effective treatment at the time, serious
repercussions remain.”
“So sorry.” The priest shook his head, “My divine spells are only silver level,
insufficient to cure you.”
“A gold level divine healing spell should work.”
“A gold level healing medicine or scroll can also be tried.”
Gods bestowed believers with divine spells, and every god gave their clergy
different divine power, thus each church had their own strengths. 
The Sheng Ming Church was not good at healing.
Zong Ge had no choice but to regretfully leave the church.
That night, he received a letter from Tan Qiu.
The contents of the letter, as well as the humble passion of the courier,
conveyed the message – Tan Qiu invited Zong Ge to dinner.
Since Tan Qiu only invited Zong Ge, it subtly wished that Zong Ge would keep
this a secret.
Before leaving, Zong Ge informed the other survivors of this news. 
He came to the castle alone, and joined the private banquet Tan Qiu specially
prepared for him.   
As the moonlight spilled across the water and delicacies, Tan Qiu made his
intentions bare to Zong Ge, “Your distinguished self is close to the gold
level.”
“In light of your sire’s strength, why should you be working under a semi-
dragonman?”
“It would be better if you joined our side, and become a member of Snake Rat
Island!”
“If you have any conditions, do not hesitate to raise them. I will do my best
to meet them.”
“For example…”
When he mentioned that, Tan Qiu paused and apologized, “I don’t intend to pry
on your secrets, Sir Shi Qi.”
“But I can’t bear to see a warrior like yourself be encumbered by injury.”
“I won’t hide it, I have a bottle of healing medicine on me.”
“Gold level.”



****** Chapter 53: Boarding the Ship ******
For the last several days, the pier had grown even more lively.
People were lining up.
At the end of this line, a long table and stools had been set up. Tripleblade
kept watch and was responsible for checking in the attracted fresh talent. Lan
Zao also led a team of sailors to maintain order there.
“Next in line.” Tripleblade called out.
“What is your name?”
“A Wei” Lord, I am called A Wei.”
This person was as thin as a match and his face was emaciated, but in front of
Tripleblade, he straightened his chest and did his utmost to look his best.
“What skills do you have?”
“I. I am a farmer.”
Tripleblade shook his head, “Next in line.”
Wei immediately became dismayed. He opened his mouth and wanted to say
something and fight for his case. But the person behind him pushed him away.
“My turn, my turn.”
Tripleblade asked again. “What is your name?”
The same process, the same questions culled one person after the other.
Ever since the survivors posted their announcement and disseminated it through
the tavern, there was an endless stream of people wanting to join the Dragon
Lion Mercenaries.
Most of these people were ordinary, none met the recruitment standard.
It didn’t matter.
The survivors had anticipated that this would happen.
By proportion, as long as there were enough people, they could find the best
within them.
After the survivors discussed, they decided to put Tripleblade in charge of
checking them.
Tripleblade had once been a mercenary commander, and his shrewd and ruthless
sight could make out the ins and outs of many people.
Next in line, next in line, next in line….
Tripleblade quickly weeded out many people, however, the line didn’t seem to
shorten, as there were inevitably newcomers who wanted to try their luck.
Three fisherman came together.
“What are your names?” Tripleblade asked.
“Da Tou.”
“Xian Yu.”
“Ji Mao.”
“What do you do?”
“We are fishermen.” The eldest of the three, Da Tou, grinned.
The other two lowered their eyes submissively.
Tripleblade ran his eyes over the three, then lingered his gaze on Da Tou’s
thumb and forefinger.
“Hmph.” Tripleblade coldly snorted.
Da Tou’s heart suddenly shivered, he knew his pirate identity had been
discovered.
“Your past identity is unimportant, what is important is how you do in the
future. Understood?” Said Tripleblade.
“Understood, understood.” Da Tou nodded at once.
“Up you go, comply with their arrangements.” Said Tripleblade, he then took
three wooden identification plates from the table and gave it to the three
people.
To lessen the workload and increase efficiency, the survivors employed distinct
wooden plates to differentiate the level of newcomers. 
After seeing the Dragon Lion Mercenaries recruit those three, the people behind
them grew restless, many of them threw envious gazes at them.
Not long after.
“Hello, my Lord.” A long bearded and candle yellow faced imperial eastern
person nodded his head and bowed to Tripleblade.
Before Tripleblade could give his questions, he immediately gave his answers.
“This humble one is known as Xu Ma, hehe.”
He was thin and tall, and was actually taller than Zong Ge, but gave people the
impression that he was too weak to stand up to the wind.
Tripleblade’s gaze focused, and he sensed Xu Ma’s bronze level aura.
As long as they were a cultivator, they were worth recruiting.
Tripleblade examined Xu Ma thoroughly, then pursed his brows, “You are a
thief?”
Xu Ma’s heart trembled with fear, and he promptly waved his hand, “A small time
pickpocket, a small time pickpocket…that is all in the past, I no longer do
that kind of work.”
“You can do that work, but you must listen to orders.” Tripleblade took out a
bronze token and threw it to him, “Go ahead.”
“As you bid!” Xu Ma happily caught the token and walked up onto the ship.
When he boarded the ship, he waited to be sorted further.
He had been the second bronze level fighter.
As for iron levels, they still hadn’t recruited any yet.
The queue was beginning to shorten.
Next was Mu Ban’s turn.
He carried some simple and crude carpentry tools on his back. 
Tripleblade treated him as if this was the first time he had seen Mu Ban, he
glanced at the carpentry tools on Mu ban’s back. “You can do carpentry?”
Naturally, Mu Ban also had the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation
and Prophecy spell on him, and his looks had changed drastically from his prior
appearance.
Mu Ban promptly replied, “I can do a bit.”
“What is your name?”
“Your Lordship can call me Lao Mu Tou.” Mu Ban looked like a yes man.
“Good, our ships need a carpenter, then you can wait in the carpentry
maintenance room.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
During lunch time, recruitment was suspended for a break. 
It continued in the afternoon.
The line wave even longer than it was in the morning.
One turn, one weeded out, causing many of the rejected to complain that the
Dragon Lion Mercenaries’ standards were too high.
But at the same time, it also caused many others to look up to the survivors’
group.
Suddenly, the ground began to lightly rumble.
A disturbance broke out in the crowd.
A small giant took a big step forward and quickly approached.
He was gigantic, and his ugly looks caused many people to become agitated,
restless, and look fearful/
“Beat it, let me through!” The small giant had a malicious aura, and wanted to
sweep away the people in front of him.
“What are you doing?!” Tripleblade stood up at once, and shouted.
The small giant was not a cultivator, and upon feeling the iron level life
aura, he huddled his head and stopped moving.
Order had been maintained.
The small giant shamefully growled, and glared at Tripleblade, “You won’t
accept me?”
Tripleblade looked at him and hesitated, “I need to ask for instructions from
the higher ups.”
He put on an act and went onto the ship, then quickly came back out.  
Zong Ge also came out with him.
“Wow, its Lord Shi Qi!”
“He is Shi Qi?”
Countless people looked up at Zong Ge, their eyes filled with adoration and
curiosity.
“Lord Shi Qi, that’s him.” Tripleblade pointed at the small giant.
Zong Ge stood on the side of the ship and overlooked the scene below, then he
beckoned to the small giant, “Come up.”
The small giant ecstatically howled with laughter, “Hehehe!”
Under the vigilant gazes of the fearful sailors, he took only three steps up
the wooden stairs to ascend to the deck.
“Go away!” He bellowed as he chased away sailors until he had a section of deck
to himself. Afterwards, he sat down, leaned against the side of the ship, and
closed his eyes.
“A good performance.” In the aft room, the young captain had a panoramic view
of this scene.
The small giant was the big guy.
His appearance was likewise changed. Although his height was the same, his
features had been altered drastically and now had a copper horn protruding from
his head. 
In order to distinguish himself from his previous rank on the Hog’s Kiss, Fei
She had personally instructed him in how he should act.
After no less than a hundred training sessions, the result was worth the
investment.
The deck was gradually filled with many more newcomers.
Bai Ya mixed into the line, and also climbed onto the deck. He was ordinary and
didn’t garner anyone’s attention.
Soon after, Fei She also became a member, with his fat body, he claimed to be a
cook.
The deck was now jam-packed with people.
Sailors were whispering in each other’s ear, the most lively of them was Xu Ma.
He was chatting to everyone and everywhere.
He noticed that Bai Ya looked uncomfortable, and decided to come by his side,
“Young man, is this your first time on a boat?”
Bai Ya couldn’t help but be flabbergasted by Xu Ma, “Ah? Yes, yes, it is.”
“Hehe. Follow me, I will protect you.” Xu Ma’s eyes glittered as he roped him
in.
“Ah?”
“Ah, what, ah, I can see this is the first time you’ve gotten on a ship, you
don’t know the rules.” Xu Ma raised his head, “Young me who leave home to make
their way in the world have to mingle to be able to eat well, find your place,
and find good relationships. Those alone and excluded are very easy to bully.
Look at those people over there.”
Bai Ya shifted his line of sight as Xu Ma whispered into his head, “Their
leader is called Da Tou, that one with the waned face is called Xian Yu, and
that one with the lush chicken nest shaped hair is Ji Mao. Those three are
standing together, they are a group. They have a close relationship, and so
aren’t easy to bully, and will even bully others around.”
“Pay attention to Da Tou, his hand has calluses there, that is a sign that of
blade usage. His face is calm, and doesn’t sway as much as the other two either
as he sizes up the masts and cannon ports. He might be a former pirate.”
“Is that so?” Bai Ya was somewhat skeptical.
Xu Ma glared back at Bai Ya, “If you don’t believe me, you can ask them
yourself.”
Bai Ya was curious, and went up to quietly ask. Da Tuo coldly snorted, and
didn’t deny it, nor did the other two by his side.
Bai Ya returned to his original spot, and respectfully sad to Xu Ma, “Senior,
your eyes are very accurate. I didn’t expect the mercenary group to recruit
such people.”
Xu Ma smiled, “Such pirates are very common. Plenty of pirates who are either
injured, weary of fighting, or have enough money live on the islands for a
time.” 
“After a long time, or their injures are healed, these pirates begin to loathe
ordinary life or flush all of their coin away, they will go out to sea again.”
“If you board a pirate ship, you are a pirate. If you board a merchant ship,
you are a sailor. If you board a mercenary ship, you are a member of a
mercenary group.”
Xu Ma then asked, “Can you fight those three by yourself?”
Bai Ya shook his head again.”
“That is correct.” Xu Ma clapped Bai Ya’s shoulder and sighed, “With just a
look, I knew you were an outsider, I am one as well. We should be in
solidarity, so we aren’t bullied on this ship in the future and strive for more
spoils of war, right?”
Bai Ya could only nod.
Xu Ma felt satisfied, he had been a thief for many years and his sharp vision
had detected Bai Ya, a “good seedling” in the crowd at once. No matter how one
saw it, he was a newcomer, and such a person was very obedient.
Xu Ma consoled, “Your lucky is pretty good.”
“Good?” Bai Ya didn’t understand what he was hearing.
“It’s your first ship, and turned out to be a great ship. You chanced upon two
silver level fighters setting up a team, this kind of opportunity might not
appear again in your life!” Xu Ma lamented, he was really emotional.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary group is not ordinary, they were able to inflict
heavy losses on Rou Zang! Recently, Shi Qi fought both the city guard commander
and Hei Fei and dealt a great blow to their character. If the first mate is
already that strong, then the leader is bound to be even stronger.”
“During the gold level magic beast kerfuffle, I saw Lord Long Fu fighting. Such
a dashing figure! I can only say this, he is worthy of being the man above Lord
Shi Qi!”
Xu Ma gave a thumbs up. 
Bai Ya adored the dragonman youngster.
His life had been saved by the young man.
When the youngster exposed the truth of being a beast knight, led them to
eradicate Jia Sha, and fled Mystifying Monster Island Together, the admiration
and love Bai Ya had for him grew.
“Don’t have the mentality of making quick coin, just follow them and work
well.” Xu Ma clapped Bai Ya’s shoulder again.
Bai Ya was in a weird mood, he didn’t expect that a senior like him would
actually be taught by a newcomer.
Bai Ya would not expose the truth.
Using new appearances, the old members snuck in and pretended to not know each
other, they would slowly be promoted in the future.
Bai Yai remained unmoved, and caused Xu Man to misunderstand him somewhat, he
sighed, and his tone became a little melancholy, “Smelly youngster, you really
are too young, you don’t know how treasured this opportunity should be! Alas…”
The middled aged man with a yellow face had a complex expression, as if
recalling his own early life, “We are people without good parents, bloodlines,
aptitude, or property, this is how our lives will be.”
“Therefore, when such an opportunity appears, we must grab hold of it tightly!
Otherwise, how will you stick out?”
“You are fortunate to be on this ship, and even luckier to meet me.” After
rambling for a bit, he finally got to the main point. 
“Ah?” Bai Ya was confused again.
“I came to teach you, youngster, and to keep an eye on you.” In order to sooth
this little brother, he began to demonstrate.
He approached Mu Ban and greeted him warmly.
Mu Ban used a ambiguous gaze to look at Bai Ya that seemed to say, “What’s up
with this guy?” 
Bai Ya winked, indicating that “I also just met him”.
For Bai Ya’s face, Mu Ban said a few perfunctory things to Xu Ma.
Xu Ma returned, pleased with himself, “I have already wangled with the ship’s
carpenter.”
“Did, wangled?”
“Of course.” Xu Ma clapped Bai Ya’s shoulder, “We want to build good
relationships with some people, that way our lives on board will be better than
the others. Don’t be fooled that I am a bronze level, while he is an ordinary
person. He is actually very valuable, because he is a carpenter! Even a new
ship can break. A carpenter can repair ships, he is an indispensable person. He
can sleep in his own workroom, while you have to sleep in a hammock. Do you
understand?”
“Oh.” Bai Ya could only nod.
“We also need a good relationship with the cook. I remember he is called Da
Fei.” Xu Ma whispered.
He was very diligent.
He attentively listened to Tripleblade asking the other people questions and
made some inquiries for information.
“Look at this.” Xu Ma set out again.
“Hey, Senior Brother, Da Fei.”
“Hm.”
“I am called Xu Ma, hehe.”
“Hm.”
“Hic…in the future, please take care of us.”
“Hm.”
Xu Ma returned, and grumbled to Bai Ya, “He is only an ordinary person, yet he
is so arrogant.”
Bai Ya’s heart wanted to explain why Fei She was like that, he was not
arrogant, he had a stutter. But to not expose this distinct trait, he had no
choice but to remain silent on it.
Xu Ma continued, “Therefore, you can see that I, a bronze level expert, am
humble and makes friends with ordinary people. In the future, all of them on
this ship will give me face.”
“Face will not be me giving it to myself, it will be others giving it to me.
This is why some people are good at mingling, and some people are bad at
mingling, this is the reason.”
“Boy, if you mingle with me, you won’t be at a disadvantage.”
Bai Ya: “…...”
As Xu Ma chattered on, a commotion suddenly occurred on the ship.
A magician flew in at low altitude over the line of people, and landed directly
in front of Tripleblade.
He had a bronze level life aura.
A bronze level magician!
Tripleblade stood up, and with rapt attention, sized up the cultivator
cautiously.
The magician lived their hood, exposing an average looking woman.
She was Zi Di.
Through the Deceptive Disguise spell, her iron level aura had been disguised as
a bronze level one.
Zi Di quickly and easily became a member.
Her arrival caused the people on board who had been reviewed to grow even more
excited.
“A magician!”
“A magician actually joined us, how truly wonderful.”
Magicians were more uncommon than fighters.
If they had the same life level, magicians were more popular than fighters.
This was not because magicians were stronger than fighters, but rather because
magicians had more abundant methods.
When Zi Di joined, the newcomers sensed that their futures were getting
brighter.
She didn’t stay to socialize on deck, instead she was called to the captain’s
room to be interviewed by Captain Long Fu personally.
When she became a member, her status would not be ordinary.



****** Chapter 54: All of My Talents Have All Been Recruited ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenaries continued to recruit.
However, as the crew was gradually filled, so too did the standards rise.
The pier no longer had a line of people, and now one needed to be at least a
bronze level to have any hope of joining the mercenary group.
Besides the Deep Sea Monster Fish hiding on the nearby seafloor, the survivors
also had increased their ships from five to six.
Before, when Zong Ge found trouble with Hei Fei, Hei Fei had no choice but to
give up his profits to quell the conflict.
In the end, he would rather give up one of his ships to save some of his gold
coins.
After inspecting it, the survivors confirmed that the ordinary ship had been
used to transport slave, and thus, its hold needed to be remolded somewhat.
The survivors’ recruitment plan was very successful, and the six ships were
nearing full capacity.
Every day, Zong Ge would call the sailors together to be personally trained by
him.
His arm was injured, which greatly reduced the amount of time he could
cultivate battle qi. Since he had surplus time and energy, he decided to use it
to train these people.
An open area of the pier was packed with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group’s
people.
Bai Ya, Mu Ban, Fei She, and the other survivors also mixed in with them.
Zong Ge stood in front of everyone, “Today, we will begin training with
weapons.”
In front of him was a pile of weapons, including axes and cutlasses.
All of them were made out of wood.
Not only that, but the wooden weapons were also wrapped with cloth, they were
all equipment specialized for training. 
“There are many kinds of weapons.” Zong Ge extended his leg and lightly kicked
up a wooden dagger from the weapon pile.
He grabbed the wooden dagger, and did a thrusting motion, “Dagger are most
suitable for surprise attacks, and are the best weapon to use in the narrow
confines of ship holds.”
He tossed the dagger, then picked up a simple axe, “A boarding axe. We often
use it to cut rigging and rope netting, of course, it can also cut the flying
hooks of enemies. Many times, this weapon can also help us board and pry open
cabin doors.”
He cast away the wooden axe and seized a wooden cutlass, “A sailor cutlass!
This is our main weapon, this kind of blade is shorter than normal swords.
Thus, it is more suited for close quarter fights on ships. We use it to slash
and chop, sometimes to cut down the enemy, and sometimes as table knives to cut
food with.
“In addition to those, there are also short swords, flying hooks, firearms,
cannons…”
Zong Ge presented them all.
Short swords were used for stabbing and blocking, needed technique, and their
slashing was weaker than sailor cutlasses.
Flying hooks were simple to use. They were thrown and hooked into the sides of
enemy warships.
Firearms were very expensive, and not everyone was outfitted with one. Since
they were also simple to use, Zong Ge did not plan to conduct training for
them.
As for cannons, that was another matter entirely.
If one wanted to be a famous and excellent pirate, they actually needed to
master many things.
Not only did they need to work the sails, almost all pirate needed to
simultaneously know how to use both cold and hot weapons.
“Next, I will teach you the most basic movements.” Zong Ge began to
demonstrate.
Daggers, boarding axes, sailor cutlasses, short swords, flying hooks, and other
weapons were all used by him once through. As a military instructor, Zong Ge
was very familiar with doing this.
“You are free to practice now.” Zong Ge ordered.
Some sailors clumsily brandished them, while others were experienced with them,
the level of skill varied.
Zong Ge pointed out mistakes in movements and observed combat experts.
Some people distinguished themselves, and were remembered by Zong Ge.
“So boring.” Xu Ma was playing with a wooden dagger. As a thief, his best
weapons were small arms. Of course, he was still better at using axes, daggers,
and other weapons than ordinary people.
“Hey, that young man is making an effort.” When Xu Ma saw the earnestly
training Bai Ya sweating profusely, he commended him.
Under the scorching sun, Bai Ya’s bright eyes and sparkling sweat refracted the
sun light and his youthful energy.
He put a hundred percent into his practice.
On the one hand, it was because he was inspired by the noble Miss Xi Qiu’s love
to become a knight. On the other hand, the danger of Mystifying Monster Island
made him crave for great strength.
However, when Zong Ge’s gaze swept past Bai Ya, it did not stop on him.
Bai Ya did not lack courage, and on Mystifying Monster Island, he confronted
the terrifying and twisted magic beasts on the front lines. He also did not
lack practice.
On Mystifying Monster Island, he began to practice with weapons.
He lacked a bloodline.
When free practice ended, Zong Ge divided up everyone into groups based on what
he observed.
He did his best to put sailors of same level together in the same group.
This would make future training easier and improve training efficacy.
This training was seen by Tan Qiu.
Right now, he was standing on a ship and watching, completely entranced.
The dragonman youngster was accompanying him.
Although the survivors had already been on Snake Rat Island for some time, as
the local lord, this was the first time. Tan Qiu had personally paid a visit to
them.
The reason was because the Dragon Lion Mercenaries recruitment move was too big
and noisy, the entire town was abuzz with it.
If there was a lot of thunder, but little rain, it would have been fine.
But the Dragon Lion Mercenaries had gained a lot from their recruitment!
Tan Qiu gazed from afar with rapt attention, and with a sour tone, he said,
“Your group’s strength had grown rapidly. These people are of decent quality,
no wonder your group has been selecting carefully these days.”
Tan Qiu also saw things, even if his eyes weren’t as shrew as Tripleblade’s, he
still noticed many things the longer he watched.
The sailors that were training had physiques and stamina that exceeded that of
ordinary people. Some were adept with weapons, and one could make out that they
were experienced at fighting on land and at sea.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “There was no other way, our financial
resources are limited, and our ships are small. If we wanted to grow our
strength, we had to select the most elite sailors.”
“Not like you, Lord Tan Qiu. On this abundant island, not only do you have
elite troops and generals, but you also have many other soldiers.”
The young man sung praises of Tan Qiu.
But Tan Qiu shook his head, “I have no general. Last time, didn’t my city guard
commander get publicly defeated by Shi Qi? What a disastrous loss!”
Soon after, his gaze focused on a beastmen sailor, his tone casual as he said,
“Did you actually bring those slaves back from the brink?”
The dragonman youngster smiled as he explained, “Our group’s magician, Hong
Teng did that.”
“Although she is only a bronze level magician, she has studied medicine
deeply.”
“Not only has she dipped into standard magic medicine, but she also learned
about the barbarian race’s herbal medicines.”
“It was she who brought those beastmen back to life.”
When tan Qiu heard that, he turned to look at the dragonman youngster, his eyes
containing deep meaning.
He had heard that earlier.
But he found it difficult to believe.
The lord of Snake Rat Island recalled the three party deal from beginning to
end, then suddenly realized that the survivors were its biggest beneficiary!
“It was said that they were the ones who manipulated those beastmen slaves. If
that is the case, then they exploited both Hei Fei and I.”
As far as that was concerned, Tan Qiu had no evidence of it.
But it did not prevent him from valuing the Dragon Lion Mercenaries more and
even fearing them.
“Let’s talk about that magician, Hong Ten. I am quite curious about them.” Tan
Qiu continued to pry, “Why don’t we meet her?”
“She is making medicine in the medicinal cabin, I dare not disturb her.” The
dragonman youngster tactfully declined.
Tan Qiu nodded, “I understand, after all, they are a talented person, even
though they lack cultivation.”
“I heard there is also a small giant on your ship?”
The big guy didn’t participate in training.
His intellect was too low, and couldn’t even cultivate a battle qi technique,
let alone martial skills.
To prevent him from exposing inside information, the dragonman youngster did
not arrange anything for him.
“I had him set up in a room at the bow by himself. The entire bow room had been
remodeled to fit his large body size.” The dragonman youngster gave a brief
introduction of the big guy’s circumstances.
“If your group did not recruit him, I wouldn’t have expected that my Snake Rat
Island had so many hidden dragon and talents on it.” Tan Qiu’s entire face
filled with regret.
If the magician, Hong Teng, had actually solved the beastmen’s disease, then
her value was quite high.
Then there was the small giant, even if he wasn’t a cultivator, with just his
body, he could become the tip on the battlefield. If he became a cultivator in
the future, then that would be even more wonderful.
Even if he couldn’t fight, he could labor at astonishing efficiency.
Tan Qiu recalled the time when his castle was being built, it had been
difficult. If he had the small giant helping during that time, it would have
saved so much trouble.
He inwardly calculated how strong the Dragon Lion Mercenaries were.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenaries were mostly composed of humans, these
people were filtered by levels and were of high quality.
Second were the beastmen slaves, composed of dogmen and oxmen. These beastmen
were tall and sturdy, and after going through the chaos of war, were selected
to be sold as slaves. Their vitality was exuberant and many of them had
potential that could be excavated.
What made Tan Qiu’s heart beat faster was that dogmen and oxmen were the most
loyal of beastmen and the easiest to manage.
The Dragon Lion Mercenaries also had many cultivators.
They had 12 bronze levels, including one magician.
There were 3 iron levels. They were Tripleblade, Cang Xu, and Kuai Tui, all of
them were worth having.
Then there were the 2 silver levels. Zong Ge was a peak silver level and
suspected weapon master. The dragonman youngster’s bravery during the gold
level magic beast incident had left a extremely deep impression on Tan Qiu.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Group had been on Snake Rat Island for a long time,
and the speed at which their strength swelled could be seen with the naked eye.
“Perhaps, I also should have a large scale recruitment of fresh outside
talent?” The thought inevitably stirred in Tan Qiu’s mind. 
Even though Tan Qiu had Snake Rat Island as his foundation, he couldn’t help
but be envious.
In some respect, when the survivors recruited so many people from Snake Rat
Island, it also weakened the strength of Snake Rat Island.
“Anyways, if I can get Shi Qi, losing these talents won’t matter.”
Tan Qiu once again recalled his sly poaching of him.
Zong Ge responded that he needed time to think it over.
But consideration was not enough to satisfy Tan Qiu.
He wanted the entirety of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group to help him deal with
Rou Zang!
“With your group’s pool of talent, your prospects look bright. However,
according to what I see, you still lack some people. Has Commander Long Fu
looked into battle teams?” Tan Qiu asked.
“Battle teams?” The dragonman youngster thought of Rou Zang’s hurtling sword
and shield force.
Tan Qiu said, “Battle teams are quite the important force on a battlefield.
Battle teams are slowly shaped, and aren’t easy to foster, however any
organization that has them will substantially increase their battle power.”
“It is different from battle qi techniques, and related to how the battle team
is established, every organization keeps that information secret, and it is
very difficult to purchase.”
“I want to give your group a battle team organization method. It is called the
Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army!”
“They cultivate the same battle qi technique, the Peasant Technique, and use
the same weapon, the shrimp spear. This spear force can quickly march through
mud, and even slink through marshes. They can also be adapted to the sea, and
can fight in water.” 
Tan Qiu’ presentation inevitably aroused the attention of the dragonman
youngster.
Battle teams were something the survivors really wanted, and the earlier they
developed them, the better.
The dragonman youngster had no battle team organization plans on him.
War Merchant’s database had nothing related to this topic in it.
Now, there was a battle team organization plan directly in front of the young
man.
“But…it won’t be easy to take.” The dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
This was clearly bait Tan Qiu was tossing to him.
He wanted to recruit the Dragon Lion Mercenaries over to deal with Rou Zang.
This thought, along with the survivors’ swelling strength, had increased his
determination.
As expected, Tan Qiu followed up with his want to unite everyone and eradicate
Rou Zang.
“Lord Tan Qiu is sincere, I can sense it. But this is a significant matter, I
still need to think it over.” The dragonman youngster looked embarrassed, and
dodged the question for the time being.



****** Chapter 55: Zong Ge Stands Alone ******
After Tan Qiu left, the survivors’ leadership met again.
“Snake Rat Island’s ruling lord’s determination to eradicate Rou Zang is quite
resolute.
“This time, he used the battle squad organization plan to obtain our strength.”
The dragonman briefed them on the situation.
“Battle squad?” Cang Xu stared, “The Sha Ta Clan I served had two battle squad
types. One is the Violent Sand Wind Archers and the other is the Tower Shield
Guards. The specific organization of them is one of the secrets of the Sha Ta
Clan, and is one of their pillars that supports them.”
“Battle squad plans are indeed rarely seen on the market, and whenever one is
auctioned off, it triggers a mad scramble for them.” Said Zi Di.
“The Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army…” Zong Ge pondered, “I know of this battle
squad. Its greatest strength is stealth, because it can travel underground for
some distance. During the Green Acid Swamp Unification Campaign, the battle for
Golden Steel Cliff, and the Star Prairie Joint Operation, this battle squad
performed brilliantly.”
“In the Green Acid Swamp Unification Campaign, there were at least three
contingents of the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army. The commander hid these
spearmen in the swamps and waited until the lizardmen tribesmen passed by to
ambush them, regularly causing disastrous losses to the lizardmen’s archers.
Without long range firepower, the lizardmen sank into a large disadvantage.
During battles, the imperial army easily exploited this disadvantage and used
it to achieve victory.”
“During the battle for Gold Steel Cliff, the empire had been beaten back by the
dwarfs. After the imperial generals talked it over, they launched their
combined arms attack. In the sky there were griffin and eagle knights, while on
the mountain the main force’s catapults and other units stormed it head on.
After magicians used the Change Stone to Mud spell to soften the insides of the
cliff, a unit of Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army seized that opportunity to
attack the underground. However, their main mission was to protect the legend
level druid, Lu Pan. Lu Pan transformed into a magic beast pangolin and dug
into the foundations of Gold Steel Cliff’s fortress, creating an opening in the
enemy’s defensive line. The Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army was nearly wiped out
in this engagement,
“During the Star Prairie Joint Operation, the horsemen’s khan was poisoned. The
imperial commanders had a small unit of 16 Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army go
underground to sneak in and directly raid the khan’s tent. Their main purpose
was to be bait, and they successfully distracted the cultivators in the army.
Due to this, the horsemen’s army lacked its cultivators’ oversight, allowing
the imperial forces to rout it outright.”
Zong Ge proved he was worthy of being an outstanding officer when he
immediately recounted the military campaigns the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army
were involved in.
This battle squad had undertaken many major missions and contributed much to
achieving victorious wars. However, after the young captain had heard it all,
his brows pursed.
He reckoned in his heart, “During the Green Acid Swamp Campaign, the Drunken
Shrimp Mud Spear Army were used for ambushes. During the fight for Gold Steel
Cliff, they were the army that protected the legendary druid, Lu Pan, and were
effectively depleted for that purpose. Then in the Star Prairie Joint
Operation, they were candidly assigned as bait.”
When Zong Ge saw the young man frown, he understood what the latter was
expressing.
He immediately illuminated him, “I don’t endorse the establishment of a battle
squad like the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army.”
“How the imperial commanders used this battle squad reveals how much they think
it is worth.”
“Besides in the swamps, other battle squads will perform better. In other
places, they need to cooperate with others to be a threat. But even then, they
are more often than not bait or cannon fodder.”
Zong Ge continued, “
“The primary aim of developing this battle squad was to fill in the shortage of
cultivators and to check and balance out the enemy’s cultivators. They tried to
use quantity to compete with quality.”
“But the results were not good.”
“This battle squad could indeed inconvenience cultivators, but can only
inconvenience them.”
“The reason why battle squads have been circulated in present day, have many
varied types, and are very popular on all continents, is because people noticed
that although battle squads are not good at dealing with the strong, when
dealing with enemies of the same level, the one with the battle squad will
often crush them in battle.”
“Take our current situation.”
“Even if we establish a Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army, we cannot use it to deal
with Rou Zang, on the contrary, Rou Zang will inflict heavy losses on it and
even destroy it to a man.”
“And to deal with those pirates, we don’t require a battle squad. Because ships
have limited space and our men are finite, while the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear
Army requires large quantities of them.”
“The threshold to establish a Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army is low, and is
comparatively easy to form the broad scale needed for stable battle strength.
“We need a higher threshold, and to pursue quality over quantity for our battle
squad. This smaller squad also needs to be capable of making an impact.”
“Secondly, the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army is unsuitable for naval battles.
Although they can go into the water, going underwater is different from going
underground, and water is easier to examine than mud. They will find it
difficult to sneak about and conduct ambushes.”
Zi Di nodded, “If that is so, then even if we set up this type of battle squad,
won’t the earnings of it be low?”
“No.” Zong Ge nevertheless shook his head, “If we don’t have any other
organization methods, I still suggest that we think about obtaining this battle
squad organization method.”
“Anything is better than nothing.”
“And right now, I have a battle squad organization method.”
At that moment, Zong Ge got the attention of everyone.
Everyone was slightly surprised, but soon accepted it.
After all, Zong Ge had shown many hints of his extraordinary background.
“Describe it in detail.” Said Cang Xu.
Zong Ge nodded, “I believe the most suitable battle squad is an archer squad.”
“We have many alchemy firearms and crossbows on us. With those are our base, we
can create Arrow Rain Archers and Arrow Storm Archers.”
“Kuai Tui and his dogmen are fit for establishing a Quick Knife Hand battle
squad.”
“There are too few oxmen. We can provide them with heavy armor and turn them
into the core power of small scale battlefields - Healing Tower Guards.” 
Despite somewhat anticipating it, when he heard Zong Ge’s explanation, the
young man and the others still felt amazed.
It was very clear that these were not the only battle squads Zong Ge could
make, they were the ones he picked as they were the most appropriate for their
situation.
Compared to gathering battle qi techniques, collecting battle squad
organization methods was far harder.
Because battle squad organization methods contained one or more battle qi
techniques, the equipment used to fight, special training regimens, and other
such things. 
Many organization or powers even deliberately disseminated battle qi
techniques. But no power would circulate how they created their own battle
squads.
The reason for both was actually the same – for the sake of organization.
Keeping battle squad formation methods secret was protecting the foundation of
an organization. Spreading battle qi techniques filtered for suitable newcomers
and allowed the continuous absorption of new blood that strengthened the
organization.
It was rare that someone like Zong Ge could provide three battle squad
formation methods in short succession.
Even Tan Qiu would be hard pressed to accomplish this.
“So, what family did Zong Ge come from?”
“He actually knows this many battle squad organization methods?”
Everyone was amazed and curious.
Anyways, the sudden fact that they had so many battle squad organization
methods was a boon to the survivors.
Previously, the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Amry was alluring.
“In that case, do we have the resources to set up battle squads?” The dragonman
looked at Zi Di with some concern.
Zi Di controlled the survivors’ money, and knew it like the back of her hand.
But when it came to how battle squads were formed, she was uninformed.
The ghost girl looked at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge calmly ran his eyes across the room, they looked straight into the
dragonman youngster’s eyes, “If I am to contribute these battle squad
organization methods, I will need to be compensated.”
Everyone was immediately silent.
The dragonman youngster nodded, then sincerely replied, “Indeed, they belong to
you Zong Ge, your requirement is reasonable and fair.”
“I was just negligent.”
“May I ask what you require?”
Zong Ge bluntly replied, “I need a ship, my own ship. I also need manpower,
Kuai Tui and the dogmen can serve as my private guard.”
The other three were once again silent.
Zi Di’s face sank.
Cang Xu’s gaze also hardened.
Everyone felt that Zong Ge was crossing the line. He was openly making his own
small group, it was very evident that he planned to part ways in the future.
Despite the competition earlier on Mystifying Monster Island, everyone was
accustomed to cooperating with each other fully in solidarity.
Zong Ge’s request faintly betrayed everyone’s feelings.
The young man’s face did not change, and he sighed to himself.
However, upon careful thought, Zong Ge’s request was actually quite
reasonable. 
Before on Mystifying Monster Island, when he first met Zong Ge. He had been a
man of unfathomable ambition and a grand person unwilling to being under
someone else.
During the later stages of Mystifying Monster Island as well as dealing with
Rou Zang, in order to survive and compete with powerful enemies, the survivors
had to join forces and unite tightly.
Upon reaching Snake Rat Island, and resting and reorganizing for so many days,
the external circumstances had become far more relaxed, thus the unity that
bound everyone naturally began to show cracks.
“Zi Di and I are very close, while Cang Xu is a necromancer, and because of
that, he finds it very difficult to integrate with normal society or
organization, in addition to the immense benefits of the Bloodcore. But Zong
Ge…”
“Up until now, I still don’t know his background.”
“Anyways, I understand his nature. He really is that type of person.”
“Upon thinking that, the young captain nodded to Zong Ge, “You request is not
excessive, and even quite low.
“I hereto accept your request Zong Ge, my comrade in arms. I shall give you a
ship and the dogmen.”
“Not only that, but in accordance with the concrete market value of battle
squad organization methods, in the future, I will give you more manpower and
ships.”
Zong Ge was pleased with the young captain’s response.
The young captain’s reaction was within his expectations.
Like how the young man understood Zong Ge, Zong Ge too understood the young
man’s character.
The speech the beast knight had given still left a deep impression on him to
this day.
He knew the young captain always had the nature of a knight, Zong Ge even liked
him more than templar knights. As for his magic beast transformations, it was
just a way to elevate his battle strength, nothing more.
Zong Ge obtained what he wanted, thus he answered the query Zi Di had earlier,
“After this, I will give you a list of items and the specific details on how to
organize those three battle squads.”
“Although there are many things on the list, don’t be nervous.”
“In short, Tan Qiu was right.”
“Battle squads need time.”
“Because we need to use a specific battle qi technique, equipment, and drilling
regimens, as well as selecting suitable members for the squad.”
“There are countless bloodlines, each unlike the other, thus selecting members
is quite the long process.”
“We can form the three squads at the same time with very low investments in the
early stages. You may even find that no one can be used, because there are no
suitable candidates. During the later stages of formation, the cost to maintain
the battle squads will gradually increase and we will need to pay attention to
the upkeep cost.”
“Normally, the more difficult the member selection is, the stronger the battle
squad will perform in combat.”
“The three battle squads we have selected all have a much higher selection
criteria than the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army.”
Zong Ge’s standards for troops were very high, and he believed the sailors he
had previously were of too low quality, they could not meet his eye, and he
immediately gave them up.
The sailors now could barely reach his minimum standards.
Among them all, he valued the dogmen the most.
Thanks to his many years of leadership experience, he felt that after he
trained these dogmen, they would become one of his cornerstones in the future.
After the brief discussion finished, everyone received an alchemy device.
Zong Ge left the captain’s room, he called over Tripleblade and Kuai Tui, began
packing up his things, started mustering a group of people, and began the
relocation to his own ship.
It was very noisy.
Tripleblade was very excited, while Kuai Tui already began to adore Zong Ge,
thus he animatedly lead his clansmen to accompany Zong Ge’s relocation.
“What’s going on?”
“Is there a conflict going on?”
“I heard Lord Shi Qi’s cultivation has reached the peak of the silver level, he
is only a step away from the gold level. It is normal that Captain Long Fu can
no longer keep him under him.”
The other sailors were privately discussing.
Zong Ge was expressionless.
When he arrived at his own ship, he put his hand onto its side and sighed to
himself, “This is my starting point.”
He knew what kind of vile effects his action would bring.
But he had to do this!
He was ambitious, and wanted to start an undertaking. He had to have a clear
idea of who his troops would be.
Not only him, but also Tripleblade, Kuai Tui, as well as the dragonman
youngster, Zi Di, Cang Xu, and the others.
“This group does not have a future, and sooner or later it will break apart.”
“Growing it now is indeed a bad influence. However, if I blindly compromise and
mix up my benefits with them, when I separate in the future, it will be harder
to explain, and I might have a falling out with them.”
“Me doing this is absolutely the correct decision!”
“He does not know what his is missing. Alas…” Cang Xu shook his head and
sighed.
The qualitative changes the Bloodcore provided could turn heaven and earth
upside down for anyone and any organization.
The Bloodcore also helped immensely in the formation of battle squads.
The main difficulty in forming battle squads was finding the people.
If one had a Bloodcore, would they still need to find people?
The greatest obstruction no longer existed for the young captain, for he had
the Bloodcore!
“He won’t miss it.” The dragonman youngster shook his head, “It was a spoil of
war that belonged to everyone, Zong Ge also has the right to have a part of
it.”
“It was only because of how important it is that we concealed from him.”
“This is only temporary.”
“We will wait for an opportune moment to mature in the future to tell him about
it.”
But it was undeniable that because of Zong Ge’s act today, such an opportunity
would be further delayed.
Zi Di began to calculate the finances, “The battle squads need people and
equipment.”
“We can do alchemy, but to create war gear, we need a blacksmith.”
“We don’t have the ability to create the needed equipment, but the price of
then is comparatively low. Our alchemy capabilities can be used in other
aspects to be more productive.”
“Furthermore, we lost a yellow crab alchemy puppet when building that
formation.”
Altogether, they only had two yellow crab alchemy puppets, they were the main
ones doing the physical labor of alchemy.
The tower spirit only directed them, and although the Deep Sea Monster Fish had
alchemy formations that were very strong, they only had singular functions. 
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had very limited space, and there was no way to lay
out even more alchemy formations.
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation the survivors built took up an
entire cabin. To say nothing of the packed alchemy cabin, the other holds
wouldn’t do either. The boarding cabin had the most space, and they were barely
able to meet the space required for the alchemy formation.
“We lack a steady income, and currently our finances are always unhealthy.”
“Even if I get in contact with my merchant alliance, it will still be hard to
solve this predicament.”
Zi Di was the president of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance.
But the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had already broken up and did not have much
sway in the seas.
In addition, before they successfully redeemed themselves to the empire, she
could not overly associate with the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, lest she
trigger suspicious.
Zi Di put forth a proposal, “Perhaps, we can place an alchemy factory on Snake
Rat Island.”
“I have looked through all of the blueprints pertaining to one.” 
“A part of the alchemy factory can produce automations.”
Snake Rat Island has vast underground spaces, and with our great achievements,
we have mapped out far more parts of the underground than Tan Qiu or the
Hunting Guild.”
“We can pick an area in some remote corner, secretly construct a small alchemy
factory and have it operate autonomously. We will dispatch a few alchemy
puppets to garrison it and obtain raw materials from hunting magic beasts in
the underground. These raw materials will be sent to the alchemy factory and be
processed into products.”
“Every so often, we will come to reap the harvest here.”
“If we sell them without issue, it will greatly alleviate our financial
predicament.”
Zi Di’s suggestion aroused everyone’s interest.
But after Cang Xu carefully thought about it, he shook his head, “How will we
get the resources to build an alchemy factory? It is impossible currently! Such
a thing needs far more than setting up battle squads.”
“It is also not safe to put it on Snake Rat Island. The ample magic beasts here
is bound to be exploited much more in the future.”
Zi Di nodded, “That is indeed a hidden danger.”
The dragonman youngster followed up, “But it is still a good idea. There are
many small uninhabited islands in the ocean, we can pick those that meet our
standards and covertly build some alchemy factories on them.”
“As for right now, I must go and stabilize morale.”
When the young man said that he forced a smile.
Zong Ge’ independent attitude had caused the recently recruited people to
become restless.
The young captain disseminated the following to everyone: the reason why
personnel was being moved was mainly to prepare for the future development of
branch groups.
After Zong Ge heard that, he also affirmed the sentiment, turning the worry the
sailors felt into happiness.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corp had already drawn up a long term plan, it seemed
that this organization had a bright future.
After hearing this, the most excited was Tan Qiu.
“Eh?”
“Such a thing really happened!”
“Hehe, my prior attraction is taking effect.”
“Of course it should be like this.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ leader is not only a dragonman hybrid, but he
also has a lower cultivation than his subordinate, how can he sway the others?”
“Hehe, come everyone, I want to invite Shi Qi to dinner.”
“Keep it secret!”
“This is a private invitation, I don’t want others knowing about it.”
Tan Qiu exuberantly rubbed his hands as he left.
Previously, when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wantonly recruited many of
Snake Rat Island’s future talents, Tan Qiu felt sick.
This gave him more motivation to recruit Zong Ge.
“If I can swipe their second in command, what does it matter if they leave with
those talents?”
“Hehehe.”
Upon thinking of the advantages, Tan Qiu’s face couldn’t help but smile.



****** Chapter 56: Setting Up Battle Squads ******
“Hm! Ho! Ha!”
Under the sunlight, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ sailors dripped sweat.
They were doing stamina training, and distance running through the town while
carrying a heavy load. They practiced with weapons, using them to beat wooden
humanoid targets into unsightly things. They practiced sailor jobs, like
climbing masts, quickly hanging the sails, throwing hooks, cleaning the deck,
and other tasks.
Zong Ge used army drills to train them.
This was rarely seen.
It was already beyond their scope, yet Zong Ge was not satisfied with them. His
goal was very ambitious, and neither the ships nor the mercenary corps he had
now could meet it.
He had an entire set to mature training regimens.
Every stage, he had a clear training goal.
“This is only the first stage, the main goal of this is that they comply with
orders and foster a mutual understanding with their fellows.” 
“They are still of inadequate quality.”
Soldiers not only needed physical strength, talent, battle abilities, but also
the right temperament.
Many senior sailors were wily old foxes, been on the battlefield, been army
deserters, and been cheating cowards, it was easy for them to comply with
orders given by their superior.
Zong Ge hoped his troops would be able to reach the stage where they would
execute every order without fail.
Unfortunately, he knew it would be difficult for these people to attain such a
training target.
Only the dogmen could possibly meet that expectation.
Although the oxmen were genuine, they lacked the desire.  
Therefore, he requested that the dogmen be transferred to him so that they may
serve as his private guard.
Zong Ge was injured, and could only cultivate battle qi for a short time. But
that had its own advantages, now he could spend more time and energy drilling
his troops.
As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ mercenaries endured the arduous training,
they gradually showed a fierce aura.
Their group training also grew more momentous, and attracted the gaze of
innumerable eyes.
“If I had a barracks, my training would be even more efficient!” Zong Ge could
only lament to himself and pick out the qualified ones.
Unless he relied on Tan Qiu for help.
Since he had decided to assert his independence, Tan Qiu constantly dispatched
people with secret dinner invitations.
But why would Zong Ge shackle himself to Snake Rat Island?
If it were Zi Di, perhaps she would be a false serpent and deliberately be
ambiguous to obtain benefits, but Zong Ge had a firm character and never
thought of doing that.
Despite repeated refusals, Tan Qiu did not give up and still tried to talk to
Zong Ge and persuade him.
As the sun set in the west, the ocean horizon lit the clouds a burning color. 
“Today’s training ends here.” Zong Ge declared what the mercenaries most wanted
to hear.
“Ah!” Finally finished.”
“I endured today too.”
“Too difficult, truly too difficult. I only wanted to go out to sea, but I
ended up suffering through training here.”
Many of the mercenaries collapsed onto the ground, some grimaced in pain and
rubbed their bloody and swollen palms, others rubbed their hungry bellies with
great appetite.
The meals the survivors gave the mercenaries were always sumptuous.
Heavy training without rich and nourishing food would instead injure these
mercenaries.
Thanks to the three party deal, the survivors were able to provide these
training supplies.
On Mystifying Monster Island, when the dragonman youngster was training
archers, he had barely any resources and staked everything in one throw, but
now, the situation was far better.
The mercenaries boarded the six ships and lined up to eat their meals.
This was also part of the training.
It ingrained the habit of dining on the ships into them. The meal venue was
also specifically arranged.
Zong Ge had his own captain room.
The dinner in his room was naturally finer than the mercenaries’, especially
the expensive magic beast meat in it.
Zong Ge quickly ate his meal, then began to study his drilling manual.
The manual listed the training events that would occur every day for the
following week. It comprised of weapon dules, conducting shooting drills in the
deep underground, setting sail to undertake shelling training, and more.
Zong Ge was a notetaker and every day he recorded the results of training.
Afterwards, he immersed himself in the contents of the training manual.
He did his best to conceal the key parts of the training so outsiders watching
wouldn’t grow suspicious.
If he began to train the dogmen in knives and shooting, or give the oxmen
weights that simulated heavy combat armor, it would have made things rather
obvious.
Tan Qiu could organize battle squads. It was likely that when he came by, he
would see that the Dragon Lion Mercenaries Corps was establishing their own
battle squads.
Not just one, but three or four.
It would have been too astonishing!
Even if the backer of arms smugglers had such power, this backer would not have
given this transportation team these things.
“If I had a barracks that I could manage and isolate from the world, I wouldn’t
have such misgivings, and could proceed to conducting the pertinent drills for
battle squads.”
“Furthermore, a relatively sealed environment would foster even more of a tacit
understanding as well as compliance towards an officer.”
“At the present stage, a barracks is unnecessary. Let them use weapons familiar
to them, it will help them increase their battle power. But at this stage, the
true training projects need to be mixed with other events, decreasing their
efficiency greatly.”
Zong Ge’s mind tossed and turned as his hand gradually flipped to the final
page of the manual.
This page had a detailed list of the mercenary corps’ members, what battle qi
they cultivated, how they usually fight, as well as how much fighting
experience they had and other related information.
Zong Ge had an overall understating of every member of the mercenary corps.
Of course, there were bound to be some that had undisclosed strength or
abilities.
It was unnecessary to have such a deep examination oft them all, this level was
sufficient.
With this information, Zong Ge understood his mercenaries.
“It’s nearly time. Tonight, I will give them battle qi techniques.” After
calculating and thinking about it, Zong Ge issued his decision.
The meal cabin onboard was packed with people.
In a corner, Bai Ya was squatting on the ground and wolfing down the meal in
his hand.
The heavy training made him very hungry.
The others were just like him, gulping and devouring.
One of them chocked, causing them to cough a bunch.
Some of the mercenaries who finished eating began to grumble.
“Training, nothing but training all day! How long are we going to stay here?” 
“I want to go out to sea, I want to go out to sea!”
“If this continues, staying in this mercenary group is meaningless, I might as
well…”
As a matter of fact, it wasn’t that none of them left, only a few of them did.
Some of them couldn’t stand the tedious day long training and left. 
But the great majority of them chose to remain.
The people who had been recruited all had passed Tripleblade’s strict filter.
The majority of them weren’t stupid, and knew the harsh training of this
mercenary corps had benefits. The stronger the mercenary corps, the better
their future lives would be.
Those that left did not have the determination, resolve, were blindly stubborn,
irritated, and more.
Their departure also benefited the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, as it sharpened
its essence.
“I’ve been hearing more and more grumbling.” Bai Ya sighed to himself.
After the previous sailors were traded out, these newcomers had begun to call
Zong Ge things like “strict”. “terrifying”, “abnormal”, “devilish instructor”,
and other such things.
They scarcely realized how far they were from meeting Zong Ge’s standards.
“Ah, there you are, boy.” At that moment, Xu Ma walked over.
These days, he and Bai Ya walked together.
When Bai Ya saw him, he immediate got up to say hello, then shortly after, was
fascinated by Xu Ma’s meal.
Xu Ma’s food was different from most others. It was small spiders stewed in
mushrooms, one big spider as big as a hen that was roasted black and had a
wafting aroma. The spider head had six bright red eyes that looked like cute
strawberries.
It was magic beast meat.
A bronze level one.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ benefits included suppling their cultivators
with magic beast meat at 50% of market price.
This policy was mainly to win over the people’s hearts.
Compared to ordinary people, cultivators were more important.
Currently, if the survivors included themselves, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had 12 bronze levels, this was their foundation.
Above them were the iron levels as their core, and the silver levels as their
higher ups.
Despite Zong Ge’s bitter training these days, the 12 bronze levels did not
leave. Benefits such as this were a big factor.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in its infancy, any bronze level that left
was a loss.
Think about Tan Qiu, he held Snake Rat Island and had a great foundation, yet
when he saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps successfully recruit his people, he
too felt faintly sore.
The world belonged to the strong.
Sensing Bai Ya’s gaze, Xu Ma smiled.
If it weren’t for the purpose of showing off, he wouldn’t be swaggering
everywhere.
Bai Ya’s admiring and curious gaze satisfied his spirit immensely.
He said, “I cultivate the Spider Walk battle qi technique, this magic beast
meat is good for me. Other types will barely do anything for me.”
Bai Ya did not understand, “Can you explain why you are eating that magic beast
meat?”
“Of course. Previously, the magic beast meat I was eating had two types of
magic power, and I was only able to absorb one of them, thus wasting part of
it. Now, this type of magic beast meat only has the dark element, and I am able
to absorb it all.”
“Yesterday, I heard that the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance took in some goods.
Our mercenary corps should have purchased this magic beast meat from them.”
The small spiders were not produced on Snake Rat Island.
Currently, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance was the only large merchant
alliance on Snake Rat Island. Snake Rat Island’s people had a large dependence
on the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance.
Bai Ya grew more inquisitive, “Magic beast meat can really increase a fighter’s
cultivation speed? How much effect can one meal do?”
“Of course it helps.” Said Xu Ma, “Whether or not we fighters can eat magic
beast meat makes a big difference. Undoubtedly, the most important thing is
long term consumption, eating it once or twice doesn’t do much.”
“As for you, it is too early. You just started, and an ordinary person like you
eating magic beast meat would be disastrous.”
Xu Ma then changed the subject sharply, “Of course, if your aptitude is
outstanding, you can still eat it. A little bit will be enough.”
Compared to Bai Ya, Xu Ma was much more experienced at cultivating.
Bai Yai’s curiosity was piqued even more, “I can also eat some? What kind can I
eat?”
Xu Ma replied, “No poison can be without its dosage. Magic beast meat is also
like that. If you absorb and convert the bit you eat, why not?”
“Many nobles will hire high level magic chefs, these magic chefs are experts at
rigorously controlling the dosage of magic power in meals. Many noble children
start off as ordinary people, yet they can enjoy those culinary delicacies.”
When Xu Ma said that he curiously mused, “Our mercenary corps does not have a
magic chef. Then look at your talent. If you have great aptitude, you can
digest a small bite.”
Bai Ya thought about it, “I feel that I can.”
The young hunter couldn’t conceal his mood, and a prick of pride peeped through
his forehead.
This made Xu Ma even more curious, and he couldn’t help but think, “Don’t tell
me you are a small genius?”
“Wrong.” Xu Ma shook his head, “If your aptitude was extraordinary, why aren’t
you a cultivator yet?”
Bai Ya answered as expected, “Because I just started cultivating battle qi.”
Cu ha sighed, and was just about to ask something when Lan Zao came in and
announced something.
It caused a commotion amongst everyone.
“We can cultivate any of these battle qi techniques as we please?” Many
mercenaries found it hard to believe.
To evaluate the newcomers’ aptitude and bloodline, the survivors began to
provide many battle qi techniques. Of course, some of the battle qi techniques
the battle squads used were hidden among them.
Lan Zao nodded, “The first stage of testing is finished, those that remain will
naturally enjoy our mercenary corps’ benefits in kind.”
Many mercenaries’ ears twitched when they heard the words “first stage” and
“testing”. They immediately recalled the small number of people who had left,
and each of them felt infinite joy welling from their hearts.
Lan Zao raised his voice, “Everyone, what do you think the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is? It is no ordinary mercenary group, and henceforth you will
feel that too.” 
There was no need for the future, they could feel it now. 
To be given so many battle qi techniques was rarely seen.
In general, mercenary groups recruited talents based on the foundation of their
strength, and attracted those that matched their mold.
Providing these battle qi techniques was the fostering policy of a large power.
Only a great power or large organization could have collected this many battle
qi techniques.
Many ordinary people were excited.
They rarely touched this many battle qi techniques, and even if they could
choose some, their selections were very slim. 
But now, with so many battle qi techniques, they could try one after the other
to test which suited them the most.
However, Xu Ma and the other cultivators were not excited by this.
To become cultivators, they had to cultivate battle qi for quite some time.
They had ample cultivation experience, and knew how inconvenient changing their
battle qi was.
How much of them truly suited them?
Changing battle qi was too costly.
The profit of changing it was also usually unclear.
But rather quickly, the bronze level fighters also began to clamor.
Because Lan Zao announced the benefits in more detail.
“What, cultivators that switch their battle qi technique can get the
corresponding magic beast meat free of charge?”
“For free?”
“Can I enjoy this benefit until I leave the mercenary corps?”
Xu Ma’s and the other bronze level fighters’ eyes popped/
Before, the magic beast meat they ate was purchased at 50% of market value. In
other words, they paid half, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps provided the
other half.
But now, as long as they switch their battle qi, they can eat free of charge?
Even if it was one or two meals, the crucial point was that they could eat like
this until they left the mercenary group!
“That is a lot of money!
“We earn what we eat.”
“The longer I stay in this mercenary corps, the more money I save!”
The bronze fighters’ were interested.
Lan Zao fished out a contract and continued, “The specific details are on this
contract, you all can examine it thoroughly.”
“Give it to me.”
“I want to take a good look at it.”
“So do I!”
Xu Ma and the other bronze fighters became very eager.



****** Chapter 57: Cultivation ******
Although Bai Ya had already chosen one, to maintain his disguise, he still
chose a few other battle qi techniques.
After dinner finished, it was cultivation time.
Basic battle qi cultivation was through exercising one’s body.
Bai Ya ran above deck, grabbed a wooden cutlass and a circular shield, then
began to practice chopping motions, blocking motions, and other movements. 
This was different from the simple exercise during the day, Bai Ya had to focus
his mind, with his attention mainly focused on following the tenants of the
battle qi technique.
“There it is, I produced it again!”
Very quickly, he sensed that his body had quietly produced a thread of faint
battle qi.
It looked like a whisp of smoke in a spacious ship hold.
The battle qi slowly being produced once again dissipated quickly.
“So tired!”
After practicing for a short while, Bai Yai could no longer go on, he was
utterly exhausted and dripped with sweat.
He reached the limits of his body.
As the ship’s carpenter, Mu Ban had his own work cabin onboard.
The other sailors were crammed into the bottom hold, and slept in hammocks, but
Mu Ban could sleep in his work room.
The trace of battle qi his body produced quickly faded away.
His heart exasperatedly sighed, but to fool others, Mu Ban still showed “high
spirits”.
Lan Zao swung his arms in a sailor room.
Every time he swung his arms, the new battle qi looked like a thick fog around
his arms.
He cultivated the Seagrass battle qi technique, it was ordinary, but it suited
him well.
Lan Zao too could only cultivate a short while before stopping.
He was still a distance from the limit he could temper his body.
He could still continue to cultivate a bit more.
But it was unnecessary.
Lan Zao ate some magic beast meat, completely absorbed all of the magic power
in it, replenishing the battle qi he had used during the day.
Dong, dong, dong.
Lan Zao shad just stopped cultivating when suddenly, there was a knock at his
door.
“Who is it?”
“Lord, it is I, Xu Ma.”
Lan Zao’s brows raised, and the image of a thin and tall man came to mind.
Xu Ma had a distinctive slim look. More crucially, he took the initiative to
protect Bai Ya, thus gaining more of the survivors’ attention.
Lan Zao opened the door, and saw Xu Ma bowing and nodding his head, a bottle of
wine in the latter’s hand.
“Lord Lan Zao, a small token of my appreciation.” Xu Ma flattered with a smile.
“Do not address me as lord, you and I are the same, just bronze levels.” Lan
Zao did not take it, his tone placid.
“We are not the same!” Xu Ma immediately shouted, “My Lord, you are an old
guard of the Dragon Lion Mercenaries, one of the commander’s trusted men, and
the sailor’s senior. The reason I came was to consult your Lordship about
changing my battle qi technique.”
Lan Zao glanced at him, then opened the door fully and let him inside, “Come in
then, let’s talk about it.”
Under the darkness of night, Tripleblade was patrolling the ship.
His cultivation had already finished earlier.
Tripleblade had an iron level bloodline.
Every time he cultivated battle qi, the battle qi that was produced looked like
thick fog that congealed into water, its efficiency far outstripped the bronze
level Lan Zao and took less time.
Bloodlines decided one’s limits.
Tripleblade knew he had reached his limits, and that he would be at the iron
level for the rest of his life.
He spent much more energy helping Zong Ge.
Tripleblade backed Zong Ge’s decision to go independent and have a ship to
himself.
“This is his Lordship’s foundation, and in the future, it will certainly
expand!”
Tripleblade had great confidence in Zong Ge’s future.
He entered the ship hold and examined the cultivating dogmen.
The majority of the dogmen had already changed their battle qi technique.
“Lord Zong Ge values these dogmen.”
“I hope that some among them can cultivate the Quick Knife battle qi technique,
the more of them the better.”
Zong Ge really valued how changing battle qi techniques would result in.
Anyways, as he waved his broadsword, such diverse thoughts were tossed to the
back of his mind.
Whish, whish, whish.
Every sword swing created a rush of wind.
Accompanying every sword swing, the newly produced battle qi was like a vast
ocean that flooded every corner of his body.
Afterwards, the battle qi was constantly condensed and compressed.
In the clear silver battle qi, there was a faint smudge of gold luster!
“Not far from the gold level.” Zong Ge vaguely sensed, “After I enter the gold
level, my situation will be vastly improved.”
“I may even be capable of wresting back the position of leader.”
“But that is unnecessary.”
“These people are very good.”
Zong Ge loathed Cang Xu, knew Zi Di and the dragonman youngster had a firm
relationship, and looked down on Lan Zao, Bai Ya, and the others.
Battle qi cultivation could raise one’s life level.
This was a slow process of accumulation.
Zong Ge had great confidence he could break into the gold level, and never
thought he would fail to do so.
Because he had an unsurpassed bloodline.
“My future will not just be the gold level, it will only be a part of my life.”
“Like Mystifying Monster Island and my association with these people, these are
just things I experience in my life.”
“Right now, my main trouble is still this injury…”
The half beastman gazed at where battle qi was condensing around his broken
arm, once again, a scarlet ring formed around it.
After several days, the results of the mercenaries’ battle qi technique
cultivation attempts were in.
There were 3 people that suited the Bullet Hail battle qi technique, 5 people
that suited the Arrow Storm battle qi technique, 2 people that suited the
Healing Light battle qi technique, and 11 people that suited the Quick Knife
battle qi technique.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had several hundred people, but very few of
them were suited for their battle squads.
The greatest perquisite for setting up battle squads was the battle qi
techniques.
Only by cultivating a battle qi technique and battle skills together could
quantity trigger a qualitative change.
The results were terrible.
With only two or three suitable candidates, wanting to set up battle squads was
unspeakable.
But the survivors were unsurprised.
They had anticipated this outcome earlier.
Any power that established battle squads had met similar circumstances.
Therefore, battle squads needed time to be built.
Only the number of people suited to cultivate the Quick Knife battle qi
technique reached the double digits.
Zong Ge issued an explanation, “The Quick Knife battle qi technique has its
origins in beastmen communities. In history, all renowned Quick Knife battle
squads mainly relied on dogmen.”
It’s no wonder the half beastmen decided to demand these beastmen.
11 people could form the initial form of the battle squad, and could train some
of the daily training fundamentals.
The battle squad’s main training was combined assaults as a team.
Lacking this, even if they cultivated the same battle qi techniques, they would
be like a sheet of loose sand and a disorderly band.
The lofty sun hung in the cloudless sky.
It was bombardment training time.
Zong Ge lead three ships through the waves that chopped through the azure
ocean.
“Prepare, fire!” With oral command and flag signals, the order for bombardment
was quite practiced.
Boom boom boom…...
With an orderly series of booms, ten artillery shells flew through the air and
formed a barrage.
The artillery shells hit the seawater in succession, causing ten jets of water
to rise up.
As the jets of water faded, the target buoys fiercely swayed in the waves.
None of them hit the target, causing the sailors who had fired to wring their
hands and sigh.
According to the rules Zong Ge laid down, those that hit the target would
receive a reward – usually a monetary bonus.
If the shot artillery shell did not hit in the bombardment target zone, there
was also a corresponding punishment.
“Not bad.” Upon seeing the results of the bombardment, Tripleblade smiled,
“We’ve made big progress!”
Hitting the buoys was considerably difficult, especially for ordinary cannons.
Compared to when Rou Zang had attacked them, the survivors’ bombardment had
made visible improvement.
Previously, it was horrendous, the shelling was disjointed and completely
inaccurate.
But now, it could hit a bombardment area, it undoubtably met standards.
Zong Ge was calm, “On the one hand, we have been constantly training. On the
other hand, we have also increased the quality of our troops by a lot.”
After all, Tripleblade had stringently filtered the recruits, and now there
were many experienced people within the sailors’ ranks.
Unlike before when they were mostly composed of fishermen.
Zong Ge faintly sighed, then said, “We still need a real gunner!”
He thought of the gold level ship cannon.
It was one of the survivors’ advantages, but without a gunner, it could not
display its true might.
Previously, it was mainly able to inflict serious damage on Rou Zang because it
had been a surprise and caught the other party off guard.
Now that the gold level cannon had been exposed, it was impossible to recreate
the prior battle result, and would even be responded against.
Not far from where Zong Ge was conducting bombardment training, on some
nameless isle, the dragonman youngster was training too.
He was standing in sea water that reached up to his shoulder, only his dragon
head was above water.
The young man was boxing in the water.
Thump, thump, thump!
Every time a fist rushed forth, it would cause a small explosion.
He was refining Bursting Explosion battle qi.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline gave him a legend level aptitude, giving him
astonishing battle qi refinement efficiency.
Very quickly, he had abundant battle qi within him.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist
Boom.
With a loud sound, the seawater in front of him immediately exploded, creating
a half sphere gap in it 2 meters in diameter. 
A moment later, the surrounding sea water rushed in to fill it in, forming a
chaotic shockwave.
The shockwave hit the dragonman youngster’s red dragon scales, but the young
man remained sturdy and unmoved.
He continued to use this battle skill, creating gaps in the water from small to
large, then from large to small.
He was controlling the might of Demolition Fist!
This showed that his mastery over this battle skill had gone from basic to
proficient.
Through practicing this battle skill in the water and seeing the gaps in the
seawater, one could more objectively evaluate the form of this fist’s power.
This was also a small trick the young man thought of for his training.
After swinging his fits ten times, the dragonman youngster’s internal Bursting
Explosion battle qi bottomed out.
“Although this battle skill is very powerful, it consumes a lot of Bursting
Explosion battle qi.”
“Furthermore, controlling the might of the explosion isn’t easy either.”
“This is related to the characteristics of the Bursting Explosion battle qi. If
it was the White River battle qi, it would have been easier to refine, while
the Bursting Explosion battle qi is much harder.”
The experience of practice was constantly accumulating in the young man’s
heart.
After taking a few breaths, the dragonman youngster stopped using Demolition
Fish and began to follow his battle qi technique to refine more battle qi.
He was a half dragonman, and his body far outstripped humans of the same life
level, thus he could cultivate longer. And because of his bloodline giving him
astronomical efficiency, he quickly had abundant battle qi once again.



****** Chapter 58: As It Turns Out, I am Only an Ordinary Person ******
After practicing the Demolition Fist, the dragonman youngster began to
cultivate the battle skill - Surge.
This battle skill was quite compatible with the Bursting Explosion battle qi,
and could help him increase his speed greatly.
Like Demolition Fist, when the dragonman youngster also practiced Surge, he
began to control its power.
Battle qi consumption rate, directional tuning, and what kind of drive is
formed, all of these needed lots of practice for one to engrain it into their
body’s muscle memory.
Only when he had muscle memory could he use Surge instinctually in actual
combat.
The dragonman youngster submerged himself into the seawater and floated in it
to practice Surge.
As he floated in the current, firecrackers crackled from all sorts of places on
his body from time to time, producing force that pushed him in any direction.
The persistent practice made the young man gradually feel hungry.
He swam out and trudged onto the beach, took out some magic beast meat stashed
in the rocks, and devoured it.
The beach also had someone else on it.
It was a giant and human hybrid – the big guy.
The big guy was huffing, he had been practicing the basic fighting steps.
He occasionally moved horizontally, jumped about, kneeled, and rolled, strictly
following the training the dragonman youngster had drilled into him through
repeated lectures.
The dragonman youngster took good care of the big guy, and had carefully
selected his battle qi technique.
But the big guy was dumb, and never succeeded in refinement, thus he was still
like this.
On the ship, the big guy pretended to be vicious, however, the survivors knew
what he was really like.
Therefore, while the mercenaries were doing bombardment training, he and the
big guy came to this island so that he could cultivate battle skills, and the
big guy could train.
Since he couldn’t breakthrough with battle qi techniques for the time being,
the young captain decided to teach the big guy wrestling techniques.
The most basic of these skills was steps.
The big guy was very obedient, and after the dragonman youngster told him how
to train repeatedly, he had been doing so without the thought of resting
crossing his mind.
But upon seeing the big guy training hard, the dragonman youngster nevertheless
shook his head.
Due to the big guy’s subpar intellect, he had already forgotten the stepping
technique the young man had painstakingly taught him, and now was moving
clumsily, covered in flaws.
“Oh dear, practicing like this is out of the question.”
The young man recalled how the big guy performed on Mystifying Monster Island.
In the barracks defense battle, the big guy had fought with a wooden club. As a
result, when he met face to face with a Strong Life White rhinoceros, he was
pierced in the belly by its horn, the heavy injury taking him out of the
fight.  
Due to the magic prohibition environment, the big guy’s superior body actually
made him perform better there.
However earlier, he was easily overpowered by Zong Ge. Later on, he became a
laborer for the ship building effort, and could only devote his body to that.
The big guy’s vicious tendencies were not what he was inherently, rather it was
for the sake of the old boatwright’s safety and was provoked when something
threated the latter.
He was naturally cowardly, fearful, and had low self-esteem.
In his gigantic body, there was a weak and pitiful soul.
The dragonman youngster sighed to himself, pity welling from his heart.
“Stop for now, let me teach you again.” Said the dragonman youngster.
“Father.” The big guy immediately lowered his head, and prudently walked over
to face the young man, he also realized he was doing it all wrong.
“It doesn’t matter, we’ll do it together again. Watch carefully.” The dragonman
youngster smiled patiently.
The big guy’s eyes opened wide, and he did his best to watch and follow.
The dragonman youngster taught him how to move his hands, and the big guy
copied it decently.
The dragonman youngster treated this as a break.
After a short time, he allowed the big guy to practice alone and dove back into
the sea.
He continued to practice Demolition Fish and Surge, and when he ran out of
battle qi, he followed his battle qi technique to refine more battle qi.
By the time he returned to the beach, he once again saw the big guy’s movement
had been completely deformed.
“Stop, practicing like this won’t result in anything, on the contrary, this
kind of practice will injure yourself.” The young man stopped the big guy.
The big guy trembled all over, huddled his body, carefully waddled back to the
young man, and softly whispered, “Father, don’t be angry at this small, foolish
child.” 
When he saw the big guy dripping with sweat and holding his breath, despite
wanting to plainly pant, the young man’s heart softened, “I was worried that
you would harm yourself. Your practice movements need to meet standards.”
“But it’s fine, it’s fine.”
“You will get better and better.”
The dragonman youngster patted the big guy’s knee and warmly consoled him.
The big guy’s mood gradually steadied, and he gazed down at his new father, the
corners of his mouth gradually rising to expose an innocent smile.
He noticed that no matter how terrible he did, the dragonman youngster would
always show concern and not harshly criticize him, and was very patient in
instructing him.
“Father, likes, small child.” When the big guy realized this, happiness flooded
both his body and mind.
As Zong Ge was leading the three ships back, Mu Ban was hammering away.
The survivors had six ships, and while three were out training in naval
warfare, the remaining three were being retrofitted and remodeled.
Clang, clang, clang.
Mu Ban struck iron nails firmly into a plank, then he tugged at it with all his
strength.
The plank did not move a single jot.
“Your craftmanship is quite good.” A boat repair master on the dock praised
from the bottom of their heart.
“Are you interested in staying and working here?” A foreman asked, trying to
recruit Mu Ban.
Mu Ban smiled and shook his head.
He wasn’t a genuine expert at this kind of carpentry work.
Of course, he still liked it.
“Following with the ships is very risky, pirates are too rampant nowadays, they
kill, loot, and commit any crime imaginable.” The foreman did not want to give
up.
But Mu Ban had already withdrawn himself into his work and continued to hammer
away.
The clamor stilled his mind.
“Ah, they’ve returned.” Fei She saw the group of training mercenaries through a
porthole, and immediately became anxious.
He was responsible for the food, but this work was quite heavy.
“I have to pay close attention.” Fei She sliced an onion, then tossed it into a
pot.
The iron cooking pot was half as tall as a person, and inside it had potatoes,
legumes, tomatoes, and other ingredients.
After adding in the onions, Fei She covered the pot and increased the heat.
A rich aroma began to waft into the air.
Fei She coughed, and began to observe the yellow crab alchemy puppet.
The latter was cooking magic beast meat in the kitchen.
Fei She was only an ordinary person, he could not do such a thing.
Using the yellow crab alchemy puppet to cook was like using a sledgehammer to
crack a nut, but they had no choice, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lacked a
magic chef. Zi Di could actually do it, however, she was busy elsewhere and
could not spend valuable time and energy doing that.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet was their temporary magic chef, and they had
installed kitchen utensils onto its crab claws.
Magic beast meat went into a cooking pot, with one crab claw providing heat and
the other stirring the spoon.
Still, let it be said that it was quite decent at it. 
After watching it for a spell, Fei She lost interest. 
He looked at his own firewood, then carefully took out a list and studied it.
The list was densely packed with the price of goods.
By studying regional prices, one could analyze therefrom the circumstances of
the market, as well as how to make money. This was the type of work that Fei
She felt the greatest sense of achievement in.
Very quickly, he immersed himself in it and forgot about everything nearby.
Fei He was only snapped out of it when hot water splattered from the pot,
scalding him.
After dinner, it was time for cultivation again.
Bai Ya was tired and sweaty.
“I can sense that I am improving every day.”
“It feels truly wonderful!”
Bai Ya clenched his fists, and despite his exhaustion, he was still excited.
He felt that every day had a purpose.
Xu Ma had been somewhat skeptical the first time he saw him cultivate.
“Hold on a second, Hei Ya (Bai Ya’s alias), my junior brother, why do you spend
so long cultivating battle qi every day?” Xu Man asked.
Normally, the greater one’s aptitude, the longer they would cultivate.
Bai Ya hadn’t cultivated for long, but he told Xu Ma previously that his talent
was pretty good!
This made Xu Ma confused.
Bai Ya shook his head.
Xu Ma interjected, “It seems you are quite beaten right now.”
Bai Ya shook his head again, “Of course not, I’m doing quite well right now.
After all, bombardment training uses up less stamina compared to weapons
practice.”
“Today, I will cultivate a bit longer.”
Xu Ma: ?!
He blankly stared back, “What is your aptitude actually like?”
Bai Ya was full of confidence, “I feel it’s pretty good. Many battle qi
techniques suit me, I just picked one amongst them.”
“That’s…all?”
Bai Ya grunted.
Xu Ma covered his eyes with his hand, sighed, then put his hand down, “Are you
misunderstanding what determines cultivation aptitude?”
“Listen to me well, youngster.”
“Cultivation aptitude is not determined by how many battle qi techniques suit
you.”
“Many powerful bloodlines can only one or two battle qi techniques.”
“Battle qi aptitude is determined through how efficient one can refine battle
qi.”
“For example, when a bronze level bloodline cultivates, their battle qi looks
like a murky mist. An iron level one looks like raindrops from congealed fog, a
silver level looks like a gurgling stream, and a gold level one looks like a
torrential waterfall.”
Bai Ya was struck dumb by those words.
Xu Ma then asked, “What are you?”
Bai Ya: …...
He finally gave his answer to Xu Ma.
Xu Ma sighed again, “Smelly youngster, stop training, there is no future for
you there.”
“Don’t worry, I will still protect you.” 
“Just sincerely follow me.”
“What do you mean by no future?” Bai Ya nervously stoop up, “Are you telling me
I can never become a cultivator?”
“Basically.” Xu Ma said as he threw up his hands
Bai Ya turned pale, he was unwilling to abandon his last bit of hope.
“Basically? Is there still a way?”
“Sure, maybe your bloodline will be awakened one day.” Said Xu Ma.
“What is a bloodline awakening?”
Xu Ma explained, “Sometimes, in the beginning, a bloodline hidden within a body
does not appear. As one continues to grow, the bloodline might appear. Perhaps
due to some enormous event, the bloodline is stimulated and appears
prominently, that is a bloodline awakening.”
“Maybe you have a bloodline that might be awakened in the future?”
Bai Ya’s face became flushed, and he anxiously asked, “When will such a
possibility happen?”
Xu Ma gazed at Bai Ya, he wanted to shake his head, however, he decided to
shrug his shoulders, “I don’t know, I am only a bronze level fighter.”
“So, it is.” Bai Ya was at a loss.
Xu Ma extended his hand and took the other’s hand, “Don’t think about it,
bloodline awakening is not something you can decide. Since your cultivation
today is finished, why don’t you go with me on a trip.”
“To where?”
Xu Ma put on a mysterious tone, “We shall visit a crucial person!”
A short time later, Lan Zao opened his door to see Xu Ma and Bai Ya.
Xu Ma stooped down and cajoled with a smile, “Ah, Lord Lan Zao, a token of my
consideration to thank you for your help last time.”
After saying that, he pulled out some rum.
Lan Zao looked at both of them, he showed no trace that he recognized Bai Ya.
He didn’t take the wine. “I didn’t help you with anything.”
“Aiya.” Xu Ma stuffed the bottle into Lan Zao’s hand, “My Lord, I just wanted
to get closer to you!”
Lan Zao coldly glared, “You and I are both bronze fighters, as long as you work
diligently, the mercenary corps will not treat you unfairly.”
Lan Zao saw that Xu Ma intended to use him to climb the ranks, and he despised
such people from the bottom of his heart.
Xu Ma smiled and flattered him even more, his fawning remarks seeming to slip
out of him.
Lan Zao’s expression grew even colder.
When Xu Ma gradually ran out of ideas, he suddenly pulled Bai Ya towards Lan
Zao, “Look, I brought my little brother with me. Ever since he heard about you,
he has admired you in particular. He is the reason why we came to pay you a
visit.”
Bai Ya: …...
Lan Zao: …...
Xu Ma nudged Bai Ya’s back, “Hei Ya, didn’t you have some difficult trouble?”
Lan Zao keenly noticed that Bai Ya looked somewhat amiss.
Bai Ya struggled to open his mouth, “Lord Boatswain, my aptitude isn’t good.
When I heard Senior Xu Ma explain it, uh…do you know about bloodline
awakening?”
Bai Ya’s drooped down.
Bai Ya misunderstood his own aptitude, but the other survivors understood it
clearly. It wasn’t that they wanted to play a joke on this young man, rather,
after going through trials and tribulations together, the survivors didn’t want
to tell him the truth and were afraid of dealing a shock to the youngster.
After all, Bai Ya wanted to become a knight and marry his sweetheart. Everyone
knew of his affair with the noble lady.
Based on Bai Ya’s aptitude, this was impossible.
Knights were not cavalry, they had to be cultivators!
If the truth was spoken, Bai Ya was bound to die of heartbreak.
But even if it wasn’t said, Bai Ya would notice it sooner or later.
And now, he knew about it.
Bai Ya had saved Lan Zao’s life, thus Lan Zao pulled the door open, “Fine then,
come in.”
Bai Ya walked in.
Xu Ma giggled, and wanted to follow.
Ding.
A moment later, Lan Zao closed the cabin door and nearly hit his nose.



****** Chapter 59: New Formation Construction Plan ******
Beloved Miss Xi Qiu:
I am Bai Ya.
Since I escaped Mystifying Monster Island, I have written 17 letters to you.
I am very sorry, like the others, I have no way of sending this to you either.
Every time I write you a letter, I can feel my spirit calm.
Thank you!
During this time, as one of Priest Jia Sha’s murderers, I have always felt
apprehensive. Sometimes, I even will have nightmares at night, where I dream
about Priest Jai Sha demanding my life, or because of my crimes, I have sunken
into hell to be subjected to torment.
You have always helped me.
Today, the pitiful and lamentable me has no choice but to seek your assistance.
I heard sad news today.
Heavens!
I don’t even know how I returned here.
My aptitude was not as good as I envisioned, in fact, it is very…terrible!
Every time I cultivate, my battle qi refinement efficiency is always very low,
it doesn’t even look like mist, and can only be considered strands of smoke.
This is the aptitude of an ordinary person.
Many people can never become cultivators, because they are like this. Their
battle qi production efficiency is too low, and unable to be stored, thus they
cannot reach a qualitative change.
Mu Ban, Fei She, and others are like that.
So…am I.
My hope is nearly gone.
I feel my world has gone dark
But Senior Xu Ma gave me some light.
There is still the bloodline awakening.
I don’t know how much of this you will understand.
I shall tell you all that I know right now.
Thanks to the survivors keeping an eye on Bai Ya on the sly, he slept in a
remote corner of the cabin.
The people around him were snoring, but through the starlight peering through
the porthole, he was quietly writing on some paper.
The faint light was not bright enough to make his handwriting visible.
Bai Ya also wasn’t using a pencil, rather he was rubbing his finger on the
paper.
His face was immersed in black shadows, the light glimmering off the tears on
his eyes.
The Bloodline Purification Formation!
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Cang Xu and Zi Di were researching this
incomparably miraculous alchemy formation together.
This magic formation had been developed by War Merchant.
At the time, his artificial magic beast project reached an impasse, thus he
decided to no longer forcefully implant external bloodlines, instead he tested
as much as possible on how much he could unearth the bloodlines accumulated
within bodies.
The Bloodline Purification Formation used the Bloodcore as its center, and its
objective was to raise the concentration of bloodlines.
Both Cang Xu and Zi Di had dimmed eyes, they were confused and disoriented.
This alchemy formation was too profound, and neither of the magicians’ had the
minimal alchemy attainment required to decipher it.
“We need a true alchemy master.” Cang Xu sighed.
“Don’t worry, it’s difficult for outsiders to trust us.” Replied Zi Di, “We
have a complete blueprint, and there is still a lot of data on how to use this
alchemy formation. Just like how we built the Deceptive Disguise Formation and
Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation, we can also construct this formation
too!”
After Cang Xu nodded his approval, he said, “It will still be difficult.”
“We lack the resources. The precious materials we took from the island were all
used to build the Deceptive Disguise Formation and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy Formation. In fact, we needed to get some of the basic materials from
Snake Rat Island.”
“Therefore, we have to collect these materials. To account for construction
failures, we need to collect at least twice the materials.”
They had nearly failed when building the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
Formation.
Fortunately, the tower spirit came to their aid, if not for it, they would have
had disastrous losses.
“If the tower spirit could be restored, even if we only had one set of
formation materials, it should be able to do it?” Zi Di speculated.
Cang Xu shook his head, “Restoring the tower spirit is unlike building
formations.”
“In fact, even if we had the Bloodline Purification Formation, it still won’t
be enough.”
“That’s right.” Replied Zi Di, “we also need to collect bloodline with the
Bloodcore.”
“Before we collect bloodlines, we have to know the specifics of our objective.”
“Therefore, we have to analyze our bodies, and determine what bloodlines we
have.”
A person might have many bloodlines within them.
But because of concentration, some bloodlines that appear, and others are
hidden.
Could those like Mu Ban and Fei She have extraordinary bloodlines in them?
There was a high probability.
Their concentration was just too low, thus they could not become cultivators.
Zi Di was similar, she had a iron level bloodline, was it possible she had
other extraordinary bloodlines too?
That was also possible.
Their concentrations were just low, and her iron level bloodline was dominate.
“Detecting bloodlines…” When that was mentioned, Cang Xu couldn’t help but show
hesitation.
There were few ways of detecting bloodlines.
The most accurate methods were known by the Life God Church.
This church had special divine spells, like the Bloodline Level Detection Spell
and the Bloodline Breed Detection Spell, among others.
By using this divine spell, one could detect the circumstances of the target’s
bloodline.
It was obvious that the survivors did not enjoy such a pleasure. 
Their identities could not be exposed, and they had the Deceptive Disguise
spell and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell still on them.
The most widespread ways were battle qi techniques and meditation methods.
If a lifeform cultivated a battle qi technique or meditation method and had a
special result, he, she, or it could usually determine their bloodline.
Of course, this way was not accurate.
This was because there were usually not just one or two battle qi techniques or
meditation methods
Sometimes, because of opportunity, limited choices, or a variety of outside
reasons, cultivators are unable to examine what cultivation method was most
suitable for them.
Because of cultivation requirements, this kind of verification method was both
costly and took a long time.
This was also why every organization and power realized that they should spread
their battle qi techniques and meditation methods.
Many nobles also used this method to find their bastards.
Magicians of certain paths also used this to find apprentices that matched
their own.
“Neither methods are suitable for us.” Said Zi Di, “I have already decided to
use medicine to conduct testing.”
Cang Xu nodded, “This is indeed the best method for us. However, if we do this,
we will need to refine a lot of medicine, and we lack the resources to do so.”
Zi Di helplessly laughed, “There are some remedial measures. For example, by
combining ancestry data, along with the results of battle qi or meditation
method cultivation results, we can filter out the possible options and mix the
right testing medicine.”
“But there is still a problem.”
“My medicinal knowledge is insufficient for the task.”
“There are many bloodline detection medicines, and the workmanship of them is
high, they exceed the limits of my abilities.”
Therefore, we can either find a wise pharmacist, purchase as many as we can
from the market, or find another way of refinement.”
After the Deceptive Disguise Formation and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
Formation were built, the Bloodline Purification Formation was the survivors’
next project.
However, along with the precious materials from Mystifying Monster Island being
used up, the Bloodline Purification Formation needed many other materials they
lacked.
Furthermore, the Bloodline Purification Formation was more complex.
Simply just building this magic formation was not enough to complete their
goal.
The survivors also needed many magic potions to accurately detect their
bloodline types. After obtaining this information, they also needed to collect
the corresponding bloodlines with the Bloodcore.
But regardless of the challenges, this project was imperative.
After the two people discussed the project with the other survivors, they
quickly gained their approval.
Zi Di began to personally contact the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance to try and
gather bloodline detection magic medicine.
After she had “officially” become a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
it had freed up Cang Xu to a degree.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance had the greatest maritime transportation
abilities in all of the Sheng Ming Empire, and despite Snake Rat Island’s
remote location, every so often, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance storefront
would have their merchandise restocked. 
“Delighted to trade. I look forward to that intelligence potion.” Zi Di left
the hall of the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance store.
The merchant alliance’s silver magician sent her off.
Originally, she did not value the bronze level magician, Hong Teng, and was
even somewhat resentful.
Previously, she had barely tolerated Cang Xu, the iron level that had been
dispatched. But this time, a bronze level magician had been sent, were they
looking down upon her? She was a silver level!
But after interacting with her several times, the magician adequately sensed
how good Zi Di was at haggling, and how she never failed to get her way.
The magician began to understand the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ plan: it’s no
wonder they had Zi Di as their delegate, to some degree, it was putting a
person to good use.
Her negotiation abilities were so strong that the magician’s heart beat
incessantly at it, and she had wanted to recruit Zi Di on the sly to make her
the store’s manager.
Zi Di tactfully refused, and exploited her mentality to ruthlessly cut prices
several times.
“My Lord, please look at this.” When no one was around, Zi Di took the
dragonman youngster to the fighting cabin.
This was the room the dragonman youngster cultivated in.
The dragonman youngster immediately noticed that there was something new in the
cultivate room.
“That is an iron level sandbag, it is filled with sand made from processed iron
level materials. It is capable of absorbing external force and is able to
rapidly disperse it through its every grain.” Zi Di presented.
“It suits my battle qi cultivation, thank you.” The dragonman youngster was
pleasantly surprised.
Zi Di then said, “There is also the intelligence potion business, It is
beginning to take shape.
The dragonman youngster looked forward to that even more.
“With the intelligence potion, perhaps the big guy will be able to cultivate
battle qi.”
“You have my thanks for figuring out this method.”
Zi Di shook her head and denied the credit, “It is only a possible solution.
This is a specially made potion, it is tailored for half giants. IF we hadn’t
recently increased our trade with the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, they
wouldn’t have agreed to trade us this custom-made potion.”
“What is the rate of progress with the Green Jade Gold Coffin search?”
“It has always been smooth, we have examined an estimated 80% of Snake Rat
Island’s underground, many fringe regions have already been searched.”
“There hasn’t been a single hint of the Green Jade Gold Coffin.”
“If it is in a gold level magic beast’s territory, it will be quite
troublesome.”
“A mere inconvenience.” The dragonman youngster was confident in his statement.
He had been living a fulfilling life these days.
Every day, he was tempering his battle qi, the growth of his strength could
been seen by the naked eye.
He was increasingly sensing how amazing his legend level bloodline was.
Bursting Explosion battle qi was also very agreeable with the dragonman form,
they complemented each other exquisitely.
The entire mercenary corps’ strength was also constantly increasing.
Through Snake Rat Island’s markets and blacksmiths, the mercenary corps’
equipment was replenished.
Zong Ge’s training was very efficient.
Not only did he do bombardment training, but he also led mercenaries into the
underground to conduct live combat training. Although he hadn’t organized long
range battle squads, the marksmen team’s performance was growing more
satisfactory.
11 people made up the initial form of the Quick Knife squad, and was highly
anticipated.
If the Green Jade Gold Coffin was hidden in some gold level magic beast’s
territory, the young man was confident they could obtain it.
His confidence not only originated in his own Dragon Lion Mercenary group, but
in others too.
“If we can’t take it on, they with the help of the Bloodcore transformations, I
can lure the gold level magic beast up to the surface.”
“Lord Tan Qiu is a good lord!”



****** Chapter 60: The Two Headed Ogre Lan Lu ******
A Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance fleet was sailing through the seas.
The brown-red hulls, pure white sails, and azure ocean surface created a
beautiful scene.
The navigator had a ruler, compass, and other tools laid out on a large ocean
map, using them to accurately gauge their exact position on it.
On this ocean map, there were symbols that marked Snake Rat Island, Stone Egg
Island, and other such places.
After the navigator finished their measurements, he happily said, “Lord
Captain, we are only two days from Snake Rat Island.”
The captain nodded, “That is good. Speaking of which, our luck has been pretty
good, we haven’t even seen the shadow of a pirate.”
“Within a day, we’ll enter Snake Rat Island’s protection.”
“When that happens, we can relax a bit…”
Just as the captain said that the lookout suddenly shouted, “Enemy attack,
pirates found to the right side!”
The captain’s brows immediately pursued, and all of the sailors in the fleet
grew tense.
The lookout then shouted in panic, “That flag! Oh no, it’s the Two Headed
Pirate Group!”
The sailors immediately grew tumultuous.
The captain’s face also changed.
The Two Headed Pirate Group were notorious, their commander, Lan Lu, was a two
headed ogre who cultivated both battle qi and magic. His troops were also all
ogres.
Ogres had thick skin and astonishing strength.
At the same time, they were omnivorous, and liked to eat elves, dwarfs, and
humans.
Those unlucky enough to be attacked by the Two Headed Pirate Group would not
only have their property snatched, but they would also be treated as food and
end up in an ogre’s belly.
“Flee now!” The captain ordered, “Issue a distress message to Snake Rat
Island.”
With a head filled with cold sweat, the navigator made to do so at once.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance fleet had excellent and comprehensive
equipment, including magic communication devices that could send messages over
long distances.
However, even if Snake Rat Island received this distress message, they were too
far to be able to assist them now.
The merchant alliance fleet activated their alchemy devices, and their sails
fell, and an artificial sea wind blew from motors at top speed.
The fleet’s speed increased by 30%
“Hehehe, you think you can escape?” The Two Headed Pirate Group’s captain, Lan
Lu, was sneering on the ship’s bow.
He was 3.2 meters in height, had two heads, and had a very plump belly. The
hair that covered his body was thick and his skin was blue suffused with
purple. A stench emitted from his body that only had simple yellow leather
clothes around it.
He only had a wolf teeth club in his right hand, and a crooked willow wood
casting staff in his left.
“Give me chase!” Lan Lu shouted, exposing his mouth full of yellow-black teeth.
The pirates joyfully cried out, and steered their sole ship, rapidly closing
the distance.
“Not good, they have a magic ship!” The sailors grew more frightened.
“The Sapphire…” The merchant alliance captain gnashed his teeth.
Heh knew much more information.
The Sapphirewas a bronze level magic ship, it once belonged to the Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance, but when it was in a repair dock, a novice Lan Lu had stolen
it away.
With this magic ship, Lan Lu led his clan to have a foothold in the ocean, he
looted to survive, continuously grow, and gradually expand.
“Captain, toss the goods, the other side will chase after it!” The navigator
shouted.
The captain’s face was filled with hesitation and struggle.
These goods were very valuable, if they were lost, he would no longer be a
captain.
His future in the merchant alliance was bound to grow dark and lightless.
But if he didn’t toss them, and the pirates caught up, they would lose all of
their lives.
“Toss them, toss the goods, save only the valuable ones. Toss anything heavy
off all of the ships!” The captain finally issued the order.
As merchandise was thrown into the seawater, the ships buoyed higher in the
water, and the merchant alliance fleet grew faster.
But due to the captain’s hesitation, it was too little too late.
The magic ship had gotten close enough, and now they were within Lan Lu’s spell
casting range.
Lan Lu raised his casting staff high.
Quick cast!
Cast successful!
Bang, boom.
A series of ten lightning bolts appeared in the clear sky.
The lightning cracked into the decks, causing wood splinters to fly and sparks
to shower. It cracked into the sails, tearing and igniting them.
Some unlucky sailors were struck by the lightning, turning into ash, deader
than dead.
“Halt! I pledge that I will not eat anyone that can work.” Lan Lu’s left head
roared, “If you try to escape again, I will eat everyone.”
The merchant alliance sailors were very frightened, and when they heard those
words, they all hesitated.
Everyone looked at the merchant alliance captain.
The captain hesitated again.
During this time, Lan Lu’s right head chortled, “That’s right, just like that.
They hesitated!”
“First, we deceive them, then we take them all prisoner. Eat any disobedient
ones on the spot. The obedient ones will be imprisoned, and become our food
stores.”
“Ah, I’ve proven myself so when I came up with this brilliant scheme.” 
I have been starving for many days, I want to eat people, I want to eat
people!”
As he said that, Lan Lu’s right hand raised his wolf teeth club as saliva
flowed from the side of his mouth.
“Idiot!” Lan Lu’s left head exploded in anger.
His troops, the other ogres, covered their heads. “The captain said his true
feelings again!”
After hearing this conversation, the merchant alliance fleet’s last hope had
vanished.
“Flee!” They cried out in heart and soul.
Unfortunately, however, because of the lightning, their ships had been greatly
slowed.
The Sapphire had caught up.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance had to retaliate with artillery.
Artillery shells struck the Sapphire, but they only created sparks against its
hull.
The Sapphire had a formidable defense, although it was only a bronze level
magic ship, it had a layer of hard shell that could resist silver level cannon
fire.
Like a fierce wolf pouncing on a flock of sheep, the Sapphire tore into the
merchant alliance ships. Although they were more numerous, they were in
disarray. Their counterattack could not harm the Sapphiresufficiently.
After two hours, the ocean pursuit and ensuing battle had finally come to an
end.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance had suffered a total defeat, some ships were
taken captive, while the other part was either sinking or had sunken into the
water already.
Lan Lu sat cross-legged on the Sapphire’s deck and gnawed on the captain’s
thigh.
The blood filled mouth still had scarlet leg tendons handing between its
teeth. 
“The flavor is pretty good, it is a silver level human. Hehehe.” Lan Lu enjoyed
it.
The ogres around him watched their captain enjoy the delicacy, all of them
secretly swallowing their saliva.
Strangely, Lan Lu had a human standing next to him, one who did not belong to
the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance.
This human was trembling with fear and covered in cold sweat, yet still tried
to remain calm.
“Boss, the enemy ships have been plundered, most of the goods they tossed into
the ocean have been picked up, while the rest have sunk into the water, they
cannot be salvaged.” The ogre’s first mate reported.
“All of what?” Lan Lu asked offhand while continuing to chew on the human
thigh. 
The ogre first mate read off a list of goods.
During this plunder, the Two Headed Pirate Group had a great harvest.
When the human saw that Lan Lu looked pleased, it strengthened his nerves
enough for him to ask with a trembling voice, “Lord Lan Lu, the information I
gave to you wasn’t wrong? This is a gesture of Rou Zang’s good faith, and also
a commission. Was it to your satisfaction?”
“Satisfied, of course I am satisfied.” Lan Lu’s left head beamed, “I have heard
that Rou Zang is a hero. It seems that cooperating with Rou Zang’s pirate group
is always a good choice. I look forward to working together to attack Snake Rat
Island.”
The human pirate from Rou Zang’s pirate group coughed, then smiled, “It is for
the best…”
But before he could finish, Lan Lu’s right head spoke, “Rou Zang is a fart!”
“He couldn’t take care of two silver levels and was seriously hurt by a single
cannon shot.”
“Yet now he still wants to use me to vainly attack Snake Rat Island?”
“What kind of qualifications does this weak person have to collaborate with
me?”
“Is he still a gold level?”
“Hehe, I have never eaten a gold level human fighter before!”
“First we will feign agreement, and attack Snake Rat Island together.”
“Then when I see a chance, if Rou Zang is weak, don’t blame us for attacking
him. Ahahaha, I look forward to how he tastes!”
“Moron.” Lan Lu’s left head angrily rebuked himself.
“Boss!” An ogre exclaimed at the same time, “You spoke your true feelings
again!”
The human pirate’s eyes widened, and his mouth fell open, he was scared
speechless.  
Splat.
Lan Lu’s club crushed the human.
“You can eat now.” Said his left head forthright.
His left head then spoke, “Summon Rou Zang’s pirate group, say that he died
during the battle. Let them send another one.”
“But boss, that was the 7th one.”
“Be at ease, they will agree.” The left head sneered, his tone certain.
By the time Tan Qiu led his fleet to the battlefield, the Two Headed Pirate
Group had swaggered off long ago, leaving only mostly fish eaten corpse behind.
When Tan Qiu’s ship returned, the news rapidly disseminated throughout Snake
Rat Island.
The survivors thereby found out about this misfortune through that.
“The intelligence potion we ordered was on those ships, Lan Lu stole it.” Zi Di
shook her head, “Our deposit is nonrefundable. Furthermore, Snake Rat Island’s
market has suffered, prices will go up.”
The dragonman youngster helplessly sighed, without this potion, the big guy
could only continue to temper his basic steps.
Cang Xu analyzed, “It seems that the Two Headed Pirate Group and Rou Zang are
collaborating. As to what degree, it is currently unknown.”
“The waters surrounding Snake Rat Island is getting worse.”
“The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance is bound to react to their losses to some
extent. It is very possible that the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s magician
will back Lord Tan Qiu’s crusade against Rou Zang’s allied forces.”
“We have to find the Green Jade Gold Coffin as soon as possible, then separate
ourselves from this den of trouble.”
“Any further delays, and I fear we won’t be able to leave.”
As a former noble steward of the Sha Ta Clan, he had considerable insight into
the current political situation.
Tan Qiu had always planned to create an alliance to suppress Rou Zang’s pirate
group.
To him, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance losing a fleet was not a bad thing.
The Two headed Pirate Group’s arrival put immense external pressure on Snake
Rat Island. It was possible that it would prompt an alliance even faster.
If such a great power formed, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group temporarily
berthed on Snake Rat Island would be in an awkward situation.
Tan Qiu might unite other aspects and put pressure onto the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, forcing the survivors into joining his alliance.
Zong Ge spoke, “Our current difficulties lay with the Green Jade Gold Coffin.”
“We have been searching for it for many days, yet we have never found it.”
“The entire underground has been scouted out by us, the only remaining blank
spots left are the domain of gold level magic beasts, places that are difficult
to approach.”
“It is very possible that War Merchant has a teleportation formation in their
territory.”



****** Chapter 61: Space Lock ******
Did they have to deal with these gold magic beasts?
This was the greatest challenge ticking before the survivors’ eyes.
They could not storm in, the recently established Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
could not stand against such powerful foes.
Even with the young man and Zong Ge working together, it would be a great
challenge to deal with a gold level magic beast. 
The gold level tide snake that attacked previously required Tan Qiu, ten silver
level cultivators, and almost all of the other high level figures on Snake Rat
Island to face and kill it.
Luring a gold level magic beast from the underground and onto the surface so
that Tan Qiu and the others could deal with this beast calamity was also risky.
If they were exposed, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group would be besieged on all
sides.
Even if the others were kept in the dark, the dragonman youngster couldn’t keep
luring magic beasts out into the open.
The more magic beasts that appeared, the more suspicious others would become,
thus instigating investigations.
Furthermore, with two pirate groups on the seas working together, if a gold
magic beast attacked. Tan Qiu might take a gentler approach like diverting the
magic beast elsewhere or placating its anger.
After all, battles were risky.
After Zi Di and Cang Xu looked at each other, she said, “It seems there is only
one way.”
“In War Merchant’s database, there is an alchemy device called a Space Lock.
Its effect was to null spatial changes within a specific area. For example,
spatial passages, spatial cuts, teleportation spells, dimensional gates, and
other such magics would fail or be suppressed.”
Zong Ge marveled, “I know of this alchemy device, it has played a crucial
effect in many military campaigns. But normally, space locks are at minimum,
gold level items. Are you saying we have the ability to make a gold level
item?”
Cang Xu shook his head, “We do not.”
But we don’t need to make a complete space lock, we only need to refine a part
of one.”
“The principle behind a space lock is this, a spatial node is manufactured,
then the node is used to form a magic barrier that stabilizes space. To make a
spatial node, one of the prerequisites is the node has the ability to determine
the current situation of space within its range. If space is not stable, or if
there are other spatial nodes, the spatial node will sound the alarm.”
When Zong Ge heard that, he immediately realized what Zi Di and Cang Xu were
intending, “Are you saying that we only need to refine the most basic part of a
space lock, then use it to examine the condition of nearby space, allowing us
to discover the teleportation formation?”
“Correct.” Zi Di nodded, “We have already mapped out almost all of the
underground, only the gold magic beast territories are left.”
“By using an incomplete space lock, we can stay on the outskirts and determine
the spatial condition of those territories.”
“If War Merchant put a teleportation anywhere there, he would have surely
distorted nearby space, and formed a stabilization spatial node. We can find
that.”
Zong Ge pursed his brows, “Since we have such a device, why haven’t we been
using it?”
Zi Di shook her head, “First, it is very expensive to refine this device.
Before the three party deal, we didn’t have the funds. But now, after putting
our full effort into it, we were barely able to collect enough materials.”
“Second, our current alchemy capabilities might not be enough to succeed. It is
possibly that we will fail and cause an immense deficit. After all, it is part
of a gold level alchemy device.”
“Finally, it takes a lot of magic power to both start and keep this device
running. The magic power requirement is very high, and so are the manufacturing
costs. We are unable to have a large survey range. If we hadn’t mapped out
almost all of the underground, except for those remaining territories, using
such a thing was unfeasible.”
“Our finances are quite bad, and we have no steady income streams. After the
three party deal, we finally had capital. But since then, we have had constant
expenses. Recruiting manpower, organizing battle squads, building and using the
Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation, purchasing equipment, purchasing
magic beast meat, and buying daily necessities, along with ship maintenance,
maintaining defense and scouting puppets…...”
“Currently, our main source of revenue is from hunting subterranean magic
beasts. It is not enough to offset our expenses.”
“If we want to risk refining a space lock, we’d need to sell some flame crystal
clusters and tide snake eggs.” 
Those two resources had been obtained though the dragonman youngster’s
Bloodcore transformations, allowing him to swipe them from underground areas.
Originally, they didn’t plan on selling them on Snake Rat Island.
It attracted too much attention.
If they were to be shown, it was bound to attract the envy of others – it’s so
difficult for us to gather these resources, how did your mercenary corps obtain
so many, you must have some special trick to do so!
The Night Devil Hunting Group had provoked a gold level tide snake when they
tried to obtain tide snake eggs, causing disastrous casualties. If they saw the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Crops wantonly take out many more tide snake eggs, what
would they think?
Lord Tan Qiu would especially have misgivings.
When the survivors did mass recruitment, Tan Qiu felt incessantly distressed.
If he suddenly saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps display so many uncommon
resources, Tan Qiu might suffer a stroke.
They had all been produced by his territory.
Yet outsiders secretly absconded with them, leaving Tan Qiu with nothing.
More crucially, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also had an extraordinarily
deep understanding of the underground. Although they had explored it all, the
lord of the territory, Tan Qiu, did not have such knowledge.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has done something to my territory, they must
have left some passages behind.”
“My territory is not safe!”
Tan Qiu thinking this way was not odd.
What would he do then?
Would he attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
He would muster the Hunting Guild and the local Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance,
along with military force to threaten the survivors.
As the overlord, he also had many other methods. Such as levying heavy taxes!
Most of the survivors’ harvest was bound to be taken back, at minimum, their
comprehensive map of the underground would be obtained by Tan Qiu.
Survival was not easy, it needed strategy.
On Mystifying Monster Island, everyone utilized all kinds of tactics to
survive. On Snake Rat Island, it was the same.
The opponents the survivors faced now were stronger and more intelligent.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that Snake Rat Island sheltered them, they still
needed to be vigilant against Tan Qiu and the others. As long as the benefits
were big enough, Tan Qiu would act against the survivors.
To refine the foundational part of a space lock, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps began to outwardly sell flame crystal clusters and tide snake eggs.
These were some of Snake Rat Island’s rarest resources.
The main partners were the Hunting Guild and the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance
storefront.
They sold them a bit at a time, prudently probing the attitude of the island’s
big powers.
Snake Rat Island, the town castle.
Tan Qiu was standing in front of a window, his eyes following the Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance magician leaving, climbing onto her carriage, then departing
the castle in it.
Tan Qiu was gloomy, “Merchants are self-interested and never take
responsibility!”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance transport fleet had been completely wrecked by
Lan Lu, Tan Qiu did not have enough time to save it.
With the help of this incident, he opened discussions with the Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance, and hoped they would join his alliance to deal with Rou
Zang’s pirate group.
No, more to be more accurate, the combined pirates forces of Rou Zang and Lan
Lu.
At first, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance expressed the desire to cooperate,
however, during the discussion, they asked for much more benefits if they were
to go to war.
Their proposed price was very high, and to Tan Qiu, it was no different than
seeing a lion opening its gaping maw.
“Those people suffered at the hands of pirates, now they want to bite me and
obtain compensation!” Tan Qiu huffed, he couldn’t have a falling out with them.
Because he knew the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance was too big.
Although they may have lost a small transportation fleet, they still have
several hundred others!
They could bear this small loss.
They considered the costs, risks, and profits.
When Lan Lu stole one of their ships, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance only
issued a bunty, they didn’t personally chase him down.
Did they lack the strength?
Of course not.
They just calculated the costs. Chasing Lan Lu through the boundless ocean was
very expensive and unprofitable.
 The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance was a colossus, they had many enemies that
made things difficult, Lan Lu was unremarkable among them.
Contrary to that, the magician of the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance storefront
wanted to eradicate the combined forces of Rou Zang and Lan Lu.
Because the short period without a transportation fleet would greatly influence
her performance.
But this was just her personal opinion, and she yielded to the Merchant
Alliance’s higher up’s commands.
After sitting back down at his desk, Tan Qiu internally examined the powers on
the island.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance storefront, the Sheng Ming Church, the Hunting
Guild, the Night Devil Hunting Group, the bounty hunter Ba Hu, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps…
“Mye negotiations with the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance has hit an immense
obstruction.” 
“The church’s small Templar Knight squad is a powerful battle squad, however,
the priest won’t yield them to me.”
“The Hunting Guild has no experts, and scrupulously abides by neutrality, I
cannot count on them.”
“The Night Devil Hunting Group bore the brunt of damage from the gold magic
beast incident, they suffered disastrous damage.”
“Ba Hu is interested in joining, however, he is only one man.”
“Hei Fei’s ships are behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’, they have never
gotten repaired. After the three party deal, their desire to leave the island
has gotten fiercer, I cannot rely on them.”
“As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps…this group of people not only recruited
my talents, they also have been peddling flame crystal clusters and tide snake
eggs! I have always considered them in my plans. That Shi Qiu, he unexpectedly
rejected my offer! Simply preposterous.”
Tan Qiu’s troops not only had the silver level city guard commander, but also
the silver level female thief, the latter was very good at making discreet
inquiries. 
Every day, Tan Qiu would receive a lot of intelligence, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps was the chief subject among it.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ expansion could be seen by the naked eye.
The survivors’ strength had become an irksome presence to Tan Qiu.
Previously, when Tan Qiu tried to recruit the survivors, it had been very
cordial, because they had exploitable worth. But Tan Qiu was never able to make
use of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and as the highest authority, he would
naturally be secretly irate.
These days, Tan Qiu wasn’t doing well.
To be more accurate, since the Pirate Throne had appeared, Tan Qiu’s days had
been getting consistently worse.
The pressure on him was immense.
Rou Zang had been seriously injured, yet after so many days, his injury would
have been healed.
Obviously, this had been an excellent opportunity, yet this group of damnable
people relinquished it.
All of them were scheming, regardless of the big picture!
Now, there was not only Rou Zang, but there was also the Two Headed Pirate
Group.
Tan Qiu’s head swelled.
He had always strived to be a mediator, a constant negotiator, and had wanted
to establish an alliance, however, he never made any notable headway.
A few days later, Tan Qiu received even worse news.
His tax collection ship had been captured by the Two Headed Pirate Group, all
of his taxes had fallen totally into the pirates’ hand.
Tan Qiu flew into a rage.
Those taxes were his territory’s main income.
Without those taxes, don’t mention developing Snake Rat Island, he would find
it difficult to pay for salaries and provide for his people.
Tan Qiu was forced into a dead end, thus at last, he made a firm resolution,
“Kill, I must kill those repulsive pirates.”
“Even if it means losing my family fortune, I will spare no expense!”



****** Chapter 62: A Knight Who isn’t a Knight! ******
The Snake Rat Island tavern. 
Customers were discussing amongst themselves.
“Did you hear? Tan Qiu’s tax collector ship was plundered.”
“The Two Headed Pirate Group was also the culprit!”
At this time, Lan Lu was very lively. On the contrary, Rou Zang’s pirates were
nonexistent.
“How much of the taxes did they loot?”
“A lot!”
“Tan Qiu’s fleet didn’t protect it?”
“That I don’t know.”
“Our overlord’s taxes weren’t being protected? Oh dear…”
News of the stolen taxes quickly set the entire island abuzz.
The survivors also learned of this information.
As this was within Cang Xu’s purview, he knew what was going on, “There are
many islands under Snake Rat Island’s jurisdiction, not just Stone Egg Island.
If every island’s tax collector ship had a fleet protecting it, Tan Qiu’s fleet
would be at least ten times its current size.”
Zong Ge analyzed, “Tax collector ships move on the same route, said routes are
rigorously kept confidential. In the boundless ocean, it is difficult to catch
swift ships. The Two Headed Pirate Group being able to accurately capture one
indicates that Tan Qiu likely has a pirate spy in his inner circle!”
“That isn’t difficult to analyze.”
“Right now, Tan Qiu’s wish to establish an alliance has become more difficult.
Unless he is able to uncover this traitor.
The dragonman youngster expressed his doubts, “Is there not a safer way to
collect taxes? With the Pirate Throne appearing, the pirates have been moving
more rampantly. Tax collector ships are optimal plundering targets for pirates.
While having a fleet to escort them is too costly.”
“There is.” Said Cang Xu, “Generally, major imperial cities or territories that
contribute a lot of taxes will build a fixed teleportation formation. These
teleportation formations are either quite hidden or have a massive military
presence guarding it.”
“Snake Rat Island has only been briefly developed, Tan Qiu also doesn’t have
enough funds to support a mass construction of teleportation formations.”
“However, the Sheng Ming Church over there has a teleportation formation.”
“That is a Sheng Ming Church parish, they also collect taxes. Of course, it
isn’t called taxes, rather it is monetary church donations.”
Compared to small noble like Tan Qiu, the Sheng Ming Church’s patron is far
larger, they were easily able to install that teleportation formation and now
have a stable channel of collecting taxes.
“If this matter continues to expand, Tan Qiu might have to rely on the church
to collect taxes.” Cang Xu speculation was quickly validated.
After the tax collector ship was plundered, Tan Qiu found the church priest to
discuss a matter they could collaborate on.
Both parties quickly reached an agreement.
During that process, the survivors also obtained something they wanted.
The space lock!
Well only the foundation of one.
If the space lock was complete, it would have been a gold level item.
The space lock (base) currently only had a pedestal, this pedestal looked
circular, and if one looked down at it, it would resemble a gigantic magnifying
glass that was 2 meters in diameter.
The inside of the circular pedestal was made out of a crystalline slab, while
the exterior was wrapped by around by a metal structure. The alternating white
and gold gave it a classical arrangement.
“We were very lucky, we only had one chance, yet we managed to refine it.” Cang
Xu rejoiced.
In order to create this thing, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ external
procurement strength had been reduced by 80%. Equipment purchases had stopped
completely, and they took a risk to sell many flame crystal clusters and tide
snake eggs.
Thanks to the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge’s prior success in wounding Rou
Zang, as well as the rampant pirates creating a dangerous environment, Tan Qiu
and the other powers restrained themselves, none of them acted against the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Activation testing.
Paired up with the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection equipment, the space lock
first scanned the entire town.
They noticed many spatial nodes.
The Sheng Ming Church had the most spatial nodes and the most stable ones.
The survivors were surprised, the Sheng Ming Church used them to collect
monetary donations.
The Hunting Guild and the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance storefront also had a
few spatial nodes.
Zi Di surmised, “Those should be communication devices. Those few spatial nodes
cannot form a teleportation formation, they can only deliver information.”
Everyone also noticed that in the depths of Tan Qiu’s castle, there was a pile
of spatial nodes.
“It seems that Snake Rat Island’s overlord maintains an escape route for
himself.” Cang Xu smiled.
That was normal.
If Snake Rat Island was besieged, the boundless ocean would make it difficult
for a trapped overlord to escape.
Traditional secret passages were ineffective, therefore a teleportation
formation was the best choice.
“Tonight, we will move this pedestal to the underground area. We will scan
those gold magic beast territories.” The dragonman youngster issued his order.
Because of the addition of the space lock (base), headway had been made in
their search for the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
Like Zi Di and Cang Xu had anticipated, the survivors only needed to walk
around the edges of the gold magic beast territories to scan the condition of
nearby space.
Every gold magic beast territory was eliminated.
The survivors had agreed that as long as they reclaimed the Green Jade Gold
Coffin, they would depart this sketch area!
At the same time, the maritime situation also continued to get worse.
The Two Head Pirate Group was beginning to attack islands.
There was still no trace of Rou Zang, but his subordinate groups, the Straw
Head Pirate Group and the Flower Wall Pirate Group had appeared, joining hands
wit the Two Headed Pirate Group to successfully pillage three islands in a row.
More and more refuges were pouring into Snake Rat Island.
Snake Rat Island was gradually growing anxious.
“The pirates are too rampant. With two pirate groups working together, only
Snake Rat Island is strong enough to defend itself.”
“What will our feudal report to his superiors? Could it be that his fleet is
merely for show?”
“It isn’t like that, Tan Qiu has dispatched his fleet, but every time, they
miss their target.”
“Snake Rat Island must have a traitor in it! A great traitor!”
“I think that our fleet shouldn’t go out so recklessly. Snake Rat Island only
has one fleet, if it is ambushed, our Snake Rat Island will also be in danger.
The people began to lose faith in Tan Qiu.
The survivors’ mood was also growing heavier.
Besides the maritime situation growing worse, they had now scanned every gold
magic beast territory, yet they didn’t discover any spatial nodes!
“The situation is terrible. It’s possible that War Merchant used a unique
method to conceal spatial nodes. The space lock (base) we have cannot detect
it.”
“Perhaps it was a single use teleportation formation. After the teleportation
was completed, it was destroyed. After so many days, the space has also
recovered its stability, and subsequently wiping any previous traces away.”
The survivors felt awkward.
They had spent a large sum to refine the space lock (base) so they could find
the Green Jade Gold Coffin, yet in the end, they hadn’t.
“Perhaps, the Green Jade Gold Coffin was discovered. Maybe one of the island’s
powers secretly collected it and even sent it way?” Zong Ge proposed a notion.
“Unlikely. If a divine artifact suddenly appeared, it would have incited a
commotion. Even if it was covered up, Snake Rat Island would at least have a
strong cultivator hidden behind the scenes and conducting a clandestine
investigation.” Cang Xu analyzed.
What to do next?
Perhaps they should give up on the Green Jade Gold Coffin?
Everyone looked at the dragonman youngster.
At this crucial juncture, only their leader could make the decision.
The dragonman youngster was also hesitant, “Let me think it over.”
That night, more sad news arrived.
The Thousand Bird Island was invaded by pirates, most of the islanders were
murdered and the pirates swaggered off before Tan Qiu’s fleet could reach them.
The Sheng Ming Church’s priest flew into a rage, he publicly expressed on the
spot that these blasphemers would pay with their lives.
The priest’s change in attitude was obvious, because this time, the pirates had
crossed the line. 
Perhaps because of their repeated successes, the pirates had become savage and
as they devasted the island, they unscrupulously overturned the Sheng Ming
Church’s sacred altar.
Thousand Bird Island didn’t have a religious altar, only a simple one.
Sacred altars were very important, and anyone who destroyed them was
blasphemers.
The gods could not be disgraced!
The priest got in touch with Tan Qiu, and changed his prior conditions, he now
stated that he could distich the church’s small templar knight squad. Not only
that, but he also wanted to personally go to war to crusade against the enemies
of his god.
Tan Qiu was both angry and delighted.
He was angry that Thousand Bird Island was ransacked, and that a tax generating
place had been severely damaged, this was all losses he suffered.
He was delighted that the Sheng Ming Church’s attitude had greatly changed, and
was now the most powerful advocate of the alliance.
Tan Qiu represented royal power, the priest represented divine right, and when
divine right and royal power united, a great power began to form. Tan Qiu and
the priest pushed with all their might, and the other powers were bound to join
the alliance, one after the other.
In order to spur on the newly forming alliance, Tan Qiu and the priest endured
all night to plan out a scheme. They mainly discussed how they would coerce and
tempt all of the island’s powers to unite together. Their discussion focused on
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
At dawn, a magic ship floated into the port.
It was the Sapphire!
Tan Qiu mustered a large force and stood on the port in formation.
A tall human fighter stood on the ship and looked down at the troops, his tone
tranquil, “Excuse me, are you the overlord here, Tan Qiu?”
Tan Qiu tightly gazed at the human fighter, the latter looked ordinary and
normal, he was an exhausted middle aged man.
The silver level thief quietly whispered into his ear, and informed him of what
she had learned.
Tan Qiu’s doubts quickly dissipated into pleasant surprise and respect. He
saluted the middle aged man, “Lord Guang Ke, I am Tan Qiu, we are honored to
see that you could make it here!”
But the human fighter sighed, “I am just a commoner, not a lord.”
“Lan Lu is my captive, this ship no longer has the power to resist. Overlord
tan Qiu, you can take this person, and deal with the other ogre captives on
board.”
Tan Qiu waved his hand, and the city guard commander immediately led his troops
onto the ship and poured into the Sapphire.
Tan Qiu personally escorted Guang Ke off the ship cordially.
The Two Headed Pirate Group had been annihilated!
This was explosive news, and as soon as it was propagated, it immediately
triggered a sensation.
The fighter who had destroyed the Two Headed Pirate Group was a man called
Guang Ke.
A gold level!
Lan Lu was an ogre with both silver level battle qi and magic, and was capable
of fighting against gold levels. 
But Guang Ke was no ordinary gold level fighter.
He was a legendary character, and his story had been spread widely among the
commonfolk.
He was born a commoner, but after cultivating the battle qi technique the Yao
Wang Clan had disseminated, he became a remarkable fighter.
He then discovered his past, he was a bastard abandoned by some member of the
Yao Wang Clan. His father had played with his mother, then dispassionately
discarded the woman he once loved dearly.
The Yao Wang Clan wanted to recruit Guang Ke, and was willing to punish his
father severely and give his mother preferential treatment.
His mother refused, but wanted Guang Ke to return to the Yao Wang Clan, so he
could develop better.
But Guang Ke refused to join, he renounced readily available wealth and rank,
and instead held fast at his mother’s side.
Not only that, but he also used his strength to freely assist the commoner
friends at his side.
After his mother passed away, Guang Ke began to live like a knight-errant, he
traveled the world, experienced heaven and earth, and intervened when he saw
injustice.
He upheld justice for commoners many times, even if it angered local officials
as a result.
He was the target of many assassinations, and even people he had aided betrayed
him.
But when he noticed injustice and met feeble people who appealed to him, he
still did his best to defend righteousness and to help the weak.
He would never become a night, for a knight was part of the nobility.
Therefore, he had a nickname – the Knight Who Isn’t a Knight.
Guang Ke didn’t accept Tan Qiu’s kindness or entertainment, and didn’t join the
banquet.
He instead came to the home of someone asking for help.
This was the house of a commoner, the only residents in it were an old
grandmother and her grandson. 
“Your son asked me for help while he was dying. I am very sorry, I was unable
to bring him back alive.” Guang Ke sorrowfully recounted.
The grandmother cried, but she wiped the tears away.
She expressed her most sincere thanks to Guang Ke, she had been prepared to
hear news of her son’s death.
She wanted Guang Ke to stay so that she could make him dinner.
Guang Ke refused her too.
Because he knew that this dinner would probably use up the family’s most
valuable supplies.
Guang Ke stayed at the tavern.
The tavern was surrounded and packed with people.
But regardless of whether it was the customers or those who had come he
specifically for him, all were silent.
“Hush.”
“Don’t disturb Lord Guang Ke.”
“He is very tired, and needs to have a good rest.”
No one in the thronging crowd uttered a word.



****** Chapter 63: Finding the Divine Artifact ******
The dragonman youngster also came to the tavern.
The wordless crowd shocked him!
“He is a true knight!” The young man’s heart was dashed.
Zong Ge, “Ah Guang Ke, I heard of this man many times.”
Cang Xu sighed ruefully, “He is worthy of being a gold level. If he acts, he
can alter the entire situation.”
The Sapphire’sentrance into the harbor had been witnessed by many of the Dragon
Lion Mercenaries personally. When the Sapphire was cleaned up, the watery blood
and corpses that were swept off were the best proof of Guang Ke’s strength.
Originally, the Two Headed Pirate Group and Rou Zang’s pirate group were a
black cloud that suffocated Snake Rat Island and making its future dark.
But now, Guang Ke suddenly appeared and wiped out the Two Headed Pirate Group.
 
By the time the Sapphire sailed into the harbor, almost all of the ogres on
board were slain in battle. Among the lucky survivors was the two headed ogre,
Lan Lu.
Guang Ke had captured Lan Lu.
The pressure on Snake Rat Island plummeted.
The island residents’ morale suddenly rose from the depths to the highest
peaks.
“This is the world of the strong! Strong individuals can solve most problems.”
Zi Di sighed.
Snake Rat Island had many silver levels, however, they found it difficult to
unite together.
Guang Ke’s battle strength was greater than all of those combined, and only he
dictated what he determined. Alone he eliminated the incomparably rampant Two
Headed Pirate Group.
I have the Bloodcore, and with enough time, we too can be just as strong!” Cang
Xu looked at the dragonman youngster, the necromancer’s heart was ardent.
For Tan Qiu, this was simply joy from the heavens!
He had wanted to hire a gold level cultivator to help him eradicate Rou Zang’s
pirate group, yet never found one that would agree to it.
How could one just request the help of a gold level expert?
Tan Qiu was just a silver level, and lacked the prestige. The things he could
offer were also limited.
Those who reached the gold level were usually the ruler of a region, and didn’t
lack individual strength, power, or wealth.
Gold levels like Guang Ke were seldom seen.
Influence and wealth were within his grasp, yet he renounced them and instead
traveled the world to help the weak and defend righteousness.
It was because of this that his deeds were widely spread.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance magician found Tan Qiu immediately, she wanted
the Sapphire.
That magic ship used to belong to the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, it was a
transportation ship, and its main purpose was to transport sapphires from the
Gem Sea.
Lan Lu just stole it away, and the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance didn’t spend
much energy trying to take it back.
Of course, the Sapphirewas not Tan Qiu’s.
But as the feudal lord, Tan Qiu had received Guang Ke, thus he was
automatically responsibly for helping Guang Ke deal with his spoils of war.
This time, it was quite convenient to deal with,
The magician had many plans for the Sapphire.
If she recaptured this ship, her evaluation with the merchant alliance this
year was bound to be excellent!
Tan Qiu and the magician negotiated.
This negotiation was entirely different from before.
Tan Qiu firmly held the initiative.
But Tan Qiu didn’t worry about facilitation a cooperation, he still had more
important things to do.
He secretly gave orders to a group of commoners organize.
When Guang Ke woke up on the second day and walked into the tavern’s dining
room, he saw some kneeling petitioners.
These petitioners lamented to him of how savage Rou Zang’s pirate group was, of
how they had suffered under his hand, and that they hoped Guang Ke would rescue
them from his grasp.
If Tan Qiu had asked for help himself, Guang Ke would disdain his plea.
But these commoners were different, they moved Guang Ke and filled his heart
with pity.
That afternoon, Tan Qiu showed up to show Guang Ke that he was preparing to
build an alliance that would crusade against Rou Zang’s pirate group. If Guang
Ke joined, then he would treat the island residents well and invest a large sum
into the people’s welfare. He recounted how important the future was, if Rou
Zang was destroyed, then the people of all islands here would live in harmony
and happiness.
Despite getting sleep, Guang Ke looked disheveled.
He looked deeply into the tense Tan Qiu, “Were those people this morning sent
by you?”
Tan Qiu stared at him, then nodded with a forced smile.
Just as he was about to explain, Guang Ke raised a hand to stop him, “No need,
they rushed to me because their words are without falsehood. Rou Zang’s pirate
group is indeed a malignant tumor to this place!”
“My Lord, it is great you have come here to uphold justice!” Tan Qiu was
ecstatic, “Please come to the castle, let me offer you hospitality.”
This time, Guang Ke accepted Tan Qiu’s invitation.
“I really do need to rest well.”
“My equipment also needs some repairs.”
“Establishing an alliance these days has troubled you.”
“As for rewarding me for my help, that cannot be avoided.”
Guang Ke would freely help commoners, but he was not as polite with nobles.
“Absolutely not a problem!” Tan Qiu clapped his chest and pledged.
As everyone cheered around, Guang Ke left the tavern with Tan Qiu.
The news he had joined the Rou Zang Suppression Alliance propagated rapidly.
When the church priest, heard this news, he immediately left for the castle to
meet Tan Qiu.
Tan Qiu was just about to see him.
Tan Qiu spoke forthright, “I want to ask the legendary gold level, Guang Ke, to
help us, however I don’t have enough to compensate him.”
That he even had a gold level here to help was already very lucky indeed.
Guang Ke’s reward would be very high, but he wouldn’t demand more.
“Of course.” The priest considered it, then agreed on the spot, “The church has
a few months of monetary contributions saved.”  
“I can take it all out.”
“Anyways, I hope this alliance can promote the name of my religion.”
Tan Qiu hesitated.
In his plan, the alliance should be headed by him, and answer to his name and
actions.
Now however, the priest demanded that he publicize the Sheng Ming Church’s
name.  
How could his name compare to the Sheng Ming Church?
If he agreed, after the alliance was triumphant, the Sheng Ming Church’s
prestige would receive an enormous boost. Meanwhile his efforts as Snake Rat
Island’s feudal lord, the one who had been working to build this alliance,
would instead be believed to have depend on the Sheng Ming Church’s
condemnation to accomplish that feat.  
On Snake Rat Island, the longer time went on, the prestige of the Sheng Ming
Church would exceed Tan Qiu’s.
“I accept your condition.” After considering it, Tan Qiu finally agreed through
clenched teeth.
He had already decided to lose a family fortune to build this alliance and deal
with the combined forces of Rou Zang and Two Head pirate group.
The current situation was already far better.  
This problem was something to deal with in the future.
After obtaining the priest’s full cooperation, Tan Qiu immediate invited all
powers to dinner. The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge naturally accepted this
invitation.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I have already requested the help of Lord Guang Ke. Lord
Guang Ke has agreed that we join together and crusade against Rou Zang’s pirate
group!” Tan Qiu declared at once.
The others were unsurprised.
Tan Qiu’s visit to the tavern was public, and everyone knew of it.
Since Guang Ke had accepted Tan Qiu’s invitation and entered the castle, it had
confirmed that the two had reached an agreement.
“Rou Zang’s pirate group is both savage and tyrannical, they have committed
crimes against these waters time and again, now they will taste retribution.”
The priest then spoke, and stated that he himself would lead the templar
knights in the upcoming naval battle.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance magician then indicated her attitude, “Because
of Rou Zang’s pirate group, many people have lost their lives, their property,
and many other things. We cannot ignore him again, this is our best chance!”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s transport fleet was ambushed, causing
immense damage. Although it wasn’t Rou Zang’s pirate group who had done it,
that did not hinder the erupting enmity the magician felt towards Rou Zang.
The bounty hunter, Ba Hu, candidly stood up, “I want to follow Senior Guang Ke,
to uphold virtue and condemn evil. I believe firmly that this experience will
be one I shall cherish for the rest of my life. Even if it will be the last
thing I experience in my life.”
Ba Hu addressed Guang Ke as “senior”, because Guang Ke was also a bounty
hunter.
He had traveled everywhere, and through the Bounty Hunter Guild’s bounties and
information, had confirmed criminals, attacked criminals, and obtained the
rewards to maintain his livelihood.
The Night Hunting Group Commander burst into laughter, “Ba Hu, you are too
anxious. With Lord Guang Ke, Rou Zang is nothing to worry about. They also only
have three silver levels, while we have least double that amount!”
Tan Qiu excitedly watched everyone discussing, his heart incessantly moved.
Guang Ke’s influence was immense, and when he joined the alliance, the other
powers now aspired to participate too. It formed a wonderful and distinct
contrast from before.
But Tan Qiu also understood that these people were still a smidge from really
joining.
If he wanted them to display their genuine strength, they needed to be heavily
compensated!
If not, even if these people go to war, they won’t exert themselves too hard.
He had bring all of these powers to the battlefield. If he lost too many
troops, he wouldn’t have easy days on Snake Rat Island in the future, and it
was likely that other powers would encroach on it.  
Thus, Tan Qiu fished out a scroll. “We welcome everyone participating in this
righteous battle to look at this.”
“Recorded in here are the rules of war.”
“In summary, the stronger everyone fights in this battle, the greater military
service given, and the more losses suffered, the greater spoils of war
obtained.”
“We don’t know what we will obtain from Rou Zang’s pirate group.”
“Fortunately, our priest was willing to sacrifice anything to offer us a
sufficient reward.”
“The rewards are also detailed in that scroll.”
The priest glanced at Tan Qiu, somewhat discontented.
Tan Qiu was still attaching the most importance to himself.
However, the priest still smiled. It was nothing to let Tan Qiu take this petty
advantage. He valued what reputation was given publicity, and it was bound to
be the Sheng Ming Sect on the forefront.
The leaders who believed in Sheng Ming already believed that to be the case,
and it would be difficult to change the minds of those who didn’t.
The priest’s true goal was the numerous residents of Snake Rat Island, as well
as the inhabitants of other islands.  
By making those people deeply grateful to the Sheng Ming Church, he would
extend the Sheng Ming Church’s influence greatly in this area.
The more followers, the more donations.
The priest had invested funds today so that in the future, it would increase
ten or even a hundred fold.
The scroll began to be passed through everyone’s hands.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance magician was the first to beam, she looked at
the priest with heartfelt admiration.
Soon after, the Night Hunting Group Commander, Ba Hu, and the others were also
moved when they parsed through the detailed scroll.
Because of that scroll, Captain Hei Fei decided to join the alliance on the
spot.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge quietly glanced at each other.
Both had heavy moods.
The survivors had already decided that they wouldn’t be wading into these muddy
waters. Although Guang Ke could deal with Rou Zang and the alliance’s chance of
winning was high, the survivors had limited time and didn’t want to be pushed
into the limelight.
Keeping a low profile was more advantageous to them.
But now, the dining hall’s ambience was just right.
This time, if the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge refused to go to war, they
feared that the other powers would targe them.
Because previously the survivors had sold flame crystal clusters, tide snake
eggs, and other resources, Tan Qiu was quite resentful of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Hei Fe had even enmity towards the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, if he saw that
they were unwilling to go to war, he would likely jump out and incite others by
calling the survivors secret pirate traitors, and with everyone’s help he would
avenge his personal grudge.
The scroll finally reached the dragonman youngster’s hand.
He examined its superficially, his heart thinking how he should tactfully
refuse and deal with the resulting situation.  
This scroll was a alchemy item, it was called endless paper.
The scroll was only 30 centimeters wide. However, when a fighter imbued it with
battle qi, a magician with magic power, or a priest with divine power, the
contents on the paper would change.
It was like a book compressed into a single sheet of paper.
The paper changed based on the user’s spirit, and if the user wanted to flip
either back or forward, it would change based on that desire. If a user wanted
to go back to a specific item, it could even change to the corresponding
section.
The scroll was half composed of alliance duties and half composed of
entitlements.
After agreeing to join the alliance, they had to follow the priest’s commands
as much as possible. Of course, unreasonable military commands could be
refused.
In the latter half, were the generous rewards for going to war.
The rewards were mainly funded by the priest, and the rest by Tan Qiu.
These rewards not only consisted of gold and silver coins, but also many types
of goods.
There were things the dragonman youngster was familiar with, like flame cluster
crystals, tide snake eggs, soft heart stone, along with other oceanic goods
with cultivation levels, like kelp, fish, and more.
The most appealing thing to him was equipment.
There was Sheng Ming Church armor, knight swords, among others. These could not
be bought on the market. Although it was standard Sheng Ming Church equipment,
it was made out of sturdy materials and excellent workmanship, thus it had
great practical value.   
The dragonman youngster also saw some art pieces.
The price of these art pieces could not be evaluated.
Apart from this, there were title deeds, house deeds, and even slave deeds.
The dragonman youngster was unsurprised by this.
Church contributions did not consist of just gold. Many followers offer up
ancestral art, valuable deeds, and even family fishing boats to the church.
Items all had a distinct picture representing them, the art pieces likewise.  
On the contrary, money was just listed as words and numbers.  
The dragonman youngster was nonchalantly looking at it until all of a sudden,
his heart sped up.
“What is that?” His heart shouted.  
At that moment, he simply could not believe his eyes.
He found the Green Jade Gold Coffin!
“How is it here?”
“Is it a trap?”
The dragonman youngster pushed down his astonishment, and with all of his
strength, attempted to control his expression.
He was not an actor.
He failed.
His change of color made Tan Qiu increasingly pleased, causing him to think to
himself: the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also wants to join.
When Zong Ge sensed the dragonman youngster’s change, he thought to himself:
our captain is still feigning, that expression of his really looks like he is
moved by the generous rewards.
“Take a good look at this.” The dragonman youngster recovered his calmness, and
he handed Zong Ge the scroll, his words indicating to him to keep his mouth
shut.
Zong Ge took the scroll, and when he saw the top half, his complimented Tan Qiu
internally: these rules are quite fair.
But when he saw the latter half, his eyeballs too couldn’t contain themselves
from popping.
“The Green Jade Gold Coffin?!”



****** Chapter 64: Limited Participation ******
The Green Jade Gold Coffin had been teleported from Mystifying Monster Island.
The survivors had spent all of their efforts to retrieve this divine artifact.
They first constructed the Deceptive Disguise Formation, and used it to wake,
then deceive the tower spirit so they could find the teleportation record,
leading them to Snake Rat Island.
Afterwards, with Rou Zang bearing down on them, the survivors had entered Snake
Rat Island. 
On Snake Rat Island, they discovered a gigantic underground space and surmised
that it was likely that War Merchant stashed a teleportation formation down
there.
To disguise their true search target, they went to war and hunted the magic
beasts in the underground. During this process, the survivors raised an army,
socialized with other powers, and were very prudent throughout it.
Although they had made great progress in all other aspects, they never found
the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
As time dragged on, the survivors were compelled by circumstance to risk the
refinement of a space lock (base).
With it, they examined every gold magic beast territory in the underground, but
they still came back empty handed.
Everyone felt quite awkward, the divine artifact was extraordinarily valuable,
but if War Merchant’s concealments could not be found by currently available
methods, the survivors would never find it.
On the other hand, their time was also getting scarcer.
The flaw of Mystifying Monster Island was that as time passed, sooner or later,
they would be exposed.
They had to redeem themselves as soon as possible.
No one could decide, thus the dragonman youngster had to shoulder the duty of
leadership and make it.
He was also hesitant.
Then by chance, Tan Qiu sent out a dinner invitation.
When he and Zong Ge attended, they unexpectedly discovered the Green Jade Gold
Coffin.
He never would have thought that the Green Jade Gold Coffin would appear before
him in such a way! 
He carefully examined the endless paper, the Green Jade Gold Coffin’s picture
was very distinct.
A gold coffin, 3 meters long and 1.8 meters wide. The surface inlaid with green
jade and the coffin’s interior portraying a fresco of the gods. After his shock
dissipated, the dragonman youngster’s first thought was, “Is this a trap?”
He then shook his head internally.
He was not a greenhorn, and had been resting and reorganizing on Snake Rat
Island for a while. All indicators stated that this wasn’t a trap.
At the same time, the dragoman youngster trusted the Deceptive Disguise
Formation and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation. “The Green Jade
Gold Coffin was dedicated to the church, the priest doesn’t know what it
actually is.”
The divine artifact concealed its true self.
If one looked at the Green Jade Gold Coffin on a surface level, there was
nothing to distinguish it from any other ordinary thing, it did not distribute
any divine aura of any level.
Although it was made of gold and inlaid with jade in a gorgeous manner, it was
not eye catching. 
Gold was valuable, but there were many other more expensive metals like secret
silver, spirit gold, and more. 
Even compared to the Sheng Ming Church equipment the priest offered, this Green
Jade Gold Coffin was more unremarkable.
The young man pondered: if I did not know the truth, and also believed that
this was just some art piece, my gaze would be drawn to more valuable things I
can use.
The more the dragonman youngster thought about it, the greater understanding he
gained. “Previously, we thought that War Merchant constructed a teleportation
formation in the underground.” But after searching this place, War Merchant
wouldn’t have treated this place as a escape route. At least, we didn’t
discover any teleportation formations on Snake Rat Island that belong to him.”
“Therefore, at the time, Jia Sha used the alchemy tower’s teleportation
formation to connect to the closest Sheng Ming Church teleportation formation
coordinate to Mystifying Monster Island, that is how it ended up in the Sheng
Ming Church on Snake Rat Island.”
Snake Rat Island’s Sheng Ming Church’s teleportation formation is primarily
used for transportation church contributions. Sheng Ming Church infrastructure
is generally robust. Not only is gold and money contributed, but also all kinds
of things. 
Although the Green Jade Gold Coffin had been teleported and was a divine
artifact, all of the energy the teleportation consumed came from the central
alchemy tower, thus, in short, none of the clergy noticed. 
Why didn’t they notice?
The dragonman youngster guessed there might be two reasons.
First, it was nigh impossible that someone would dedicate a divine artifact.
It was like picking up a treasure while collecting trash, not just an ordinary
treasure, but an exceptional one!
Who would think this would happen?
Compared to the other donations, the Green Jade Gold Coffin was just a
beautiful and expensive looking thing. Such a type of coffin was commonly seen,
and lavish burials were a popular social custom.
Maybe the clergy also thought that this coffin was unlucky, after all, it was
adorned with the things of the dead.
No one knew which believer’s tomb this had been excavated from.
Second, Jia Sha was selfish.
Jia Sha likely used some method to hide the Green Jade Gold Coffin’s existence.
After all, on Mystifying Monster Island, he sent off the divine artifact first.
If this divine artifact was noticed by others, they could falsely claim the
credit, an incomparably gigantic loss for Jia Sha. “What do the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Commanders think about the crusade against Rou Zang’s pirate group?”
When Tan Qiu saw that Long Fu and Shi Qiu hadn’t declared their positions yet
after a while, he couldn’t help but urge them.
Zong Ge’s eyes tightened as he looked at the dragonman youngster. After the
dragonman youngster and Zong Ge glanced at each other, he suddenly opened his
mouth, “Our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Rou Zang’s pirate group already
have enmity.” “Since then, all of us have always wanted to crusade against this
pirate group. Unfortunately, we lacked strength and support.”
“Now with everyone as our comrades, we are very happy and also willing to join
this alliance.”
“But…” “We have more important business.”
“Our time is in short supply, and there isn’t much time before we leave Snake
Rat Island.” “Seven days. Within those seven days, our Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps can contribute our strength and participate against the naval battle
against Rou Zang’s pirate group.”
Tan Qiu suddenly looked discolored.
The looks of the others also sank.
How could seven days be enough?
My power enemy is weak now, and although Rou Zang was savage and brutal, he was
not stupid. Since Guang Ke’s appearance, coinciding with his obvious intention
to join hands with the local feudal lord, he was most assuredly not going to be
as rampant as before.
Finding a trace of him in the boundless ocean would always be a challenge. 
They needed to gather lot of information, and even deploy bait to facilitate an
open naval battle between the alliance and Rou Zang’s pirate group.
However, the dragonman youngster’s excuse left everyone speechless. Because
they knew the survivors’ “true identity”, they were not a mercenary corps, but
arms smugglers.
Since they were arms smugglers, they must have a delivery destination and date.
To their ears, the dragonman youngster’s excuse indicated to them that the
delivery date was quickly approaching! “That is very unlucky.” “From the bottom
of my heart, I had been looking forward to your two dashing figures.” “If your
group leaves this island alone at this time, will you be safe? If I was Rou
Zang, I wouldn’t let part of the enemy forces get away.”
Tan Qiu, the merchant alliance magician, and the Night Devil Hunting Commander
spoke in succession.
All of them did not wish to see a powerful ally like the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps leave.
The dragonman youngster stated that the timeline could not be altered, but
under the persuasion of everyone, he softened his attitude. He stated, “The
Dragon Lion Mercenary will join the alliance on the frontlines for the next
seven days.” “During that time, we are also willing to dispatch troops to
search for Rou Zang’s pirate group.” “If we find them, we will hinder them as
best we can so that our other allies have time to rush over and join the
battle.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps intended to carry out the responsibility of
being the vanguard, if they were the first to confront Rou Zang, they would be
sure to bear the enemy’s strongest counterattacks.
Since the dragonman youngster had stated all of that, although the others were
unreconciled internally, none of them retorted back.  The dragonman youngster
took advantage of this to propose, “If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
shoulders this great responsibility, I hope the daily reward will settle the
bill.”
Tan Qiu and the priest negotiated with each other for a while, then agreed to
this request.
Zong Ge sat on the side, his face expressionless from beginning to end.
Concerning this “delivery time limit” excuse, the survivors had already agreed
upon it beforehand.
But now, the dragonman youngster nimble statement was far different from what
was agreed upon.
All of this was due to the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
Since the Green Jade Gold Coffin was in the Sheng Ming Church’s hands, they
could not pillage or steal it.
There were many reasons for this.
First, they didn’t want to provoke the Sheng Ming Church. It was the church of
the Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, and had immense power in the Sheng Ming
Empire.
Second, Guang Ke had already agreed to join Tan Qiu’s alliance. If the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Group wanted to swipe the Green Jade Gold Coffin, it was almost
certain they would have to do battle with Guang Ke.
Third, there was the Pirate Throne!
The sacred monument in the Pirate City ranked all of the powerful pirates.
If the survivors pillaged the Green Jade Gold Coffin, pirate behavior, it was
very possible they would be ranked on the sacred monument.
If that happened, would the Deceptive Disguise Spell be able to conceal them
from the pirate’s sacred monument? Even if it did deceive it, it would suffer
enormous damage.
If they had to replenish the Deceptive Disguise Spell constantly, the survivors
would go bankrupt.
They could not attack directly, thus all that remained was cooperation.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ advantage was that the other parties didn’t
know the true worth of the Green Jade Gold Coffin. The other groups valued the
Green Jade Gold Coffin based on its materials – gold and green jade.
This gave the survivors a large gap to sneak into.  
When the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge returned to their ships, they informed
the other survivors of the significant discovery they made at the banquet.
Cang Xu and Zi Di approved of the young man’s conduct.
The survivors did not want to fight Rou Zang’s pirate group, they just wanted
to fight for seven days and take the Green Jade Gold Coffin as their reward.
Tan Qiu had accomplished his goal, he finally established an alliance of
armies.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were leaving after seven days, he did
not mind it.
With a gold level cultivator like Guang Ke, who would care about two silvers?
He came to Guang Ke’s door, “Lord Guang Ke.”
He had arranged Guang Ke to stay in the most luxurious room in the castle, the
latter was cultivating at the moment.
He sat cross legged in the air, and calmly floated. His entire body emitted an
intense white light that illuminated the entire room like the daylight. He
slowly opened his eyes, his tone tranquil, “Feudal Lord Tan Qiu, what is it?”
“The alliance has been established. Tomorrow, we will publicly sentence Lan Lu
and use his head to make our vow to our troops! Of course, your Lordship’s
bounty has been reported to the Hunting Guild by me. The execution is scheduled
to be in the morning, I invite your Lordship to come…” Tan Qiu respectfully
stated. When Guang Ke heard that, he interrupted, “I am not interested, you can
do it.”
Tan Qiu left delighted. Guang Ke letting him carry out the sentence and not
participating in it meant the prestige was given to him. “At last, this matter
will be dealt with. Rou Zang, our grudges will be settled!” Tan Qiu’s eyes
flashed with ire.
Tan Qiu did not know that his every movement had been detected by Mo Kong.
In the depths of the castle, in a secret underground pocket, Mo Kong was
drawing a magic formation.
Purple and red magic formation lines lined the ground and walls.
The flickering magic crystal lamp on the wall cast Mo Kong’s face in shadow and
uncertainty.
His hand held a recently received command.
The command had come from Rou Zang. “The boss wants me to crash the execution
and do my best to save Lan Lu?” A mountain of pressure pressed on Mo Kong’s
heart.



****** Chapter 65: Execution Day ******
Tan Qiu arranged for the execution to take place in the town square.
In the square, there was a specialized execution platform set up. 
This place had put to death other criminals previously.
But this was the first time it had met someone like the two headed ogre Lan Lu.
To execute him, Tan Qiu had specially ordered that the execution platform be
reinforced temporarily.
Execution day.
The execution platform was surrounded by the masses.
The windows and balconies on the surrounding houses were also jam-packed with
people.
As the main official on stage, Tan Qiu sat in the seat of honor, with the
church priest right by his side.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance magician, the Night Devil Hunting Group
Commander, and the bounty hunter Ba Hu were also present. 
As representatives of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Commander Long Fu and
Deputy Commander Shi Qi also took their seats. “Guang Ke, Lord Guang Ke?” “He
isn’t participating, he appointed this honor to our feudal lord.” “A true pity,
he is the one my son adores the most!” 
The vast majority of the masses were very disappointed when Guang Ke didn’t
appear.
However, everyone quickly focused on the arrival of Lan Lu.
Personally escorted by the city guard commander and his squad, the Two Headed
Pirate Group Commander, Lan Lu, staggered into everyone’s view.
The ogre magician no longer had any of his prior svelte.
His hands were clasped with enormous steel shackles and his feet dragged an
iron ball half the size of a man.
He was wounded all over, and one could make out the marks of cruel punishment
and torture.
His largest injury was around his neck – it was as big as a grindstone and had
only lightly scarred. 
One of his heads was missing.
When he fought Guang Ke, the latter had removed that head.
The two headed ogre no longer lived up to the name, for he only had one head
now. “Kill it!” “It’s really him, he killed my aunt on Thousand Bird Island.
Boohoo…...” “Put him to death, put that wretched pirate to death!”
The incessantly indignant crowd threw vegetables, stones, and other unclean
things at him.
Tripleblade, Lan Zao, and the others were not important enough to sit on the
main stage, thus they were dispersed throughout the crowd. “Heavens, is he
really an ogre boss? He is so much stronger than an ordinary ogre! Bai Ya
exclaimed.
The big guy silently leaned against a wall.
He had Tripleblade, Mu Ban, and others by him.
Zi Di and Cang Xu took refuge in a faraway tower, and used it to survey the
scene from a distance. “Ogres…I haven’t had the chance to truly study that
race.” Cang Xu sighed, his gaze exposing his thirst for research.
Zi Di sighed too, “Ogres normally only have one head, and have low
intelligence. As an ogre’s life level increases, it is certain chance that they
will grow a second head. The second head has very high intelligence, thus the
ogre is usually able to gain the ability to cast magic.”
When Guang Ke removed his most crucial body part, his second head, Lan Lu
instantly lost his ability to cast magic, causing his battle strength to slump,
it’s no wonder that ogre was able to be taken prisoner.”
After saying that, Zi Di looked at Cang Xu, “Without the second head, Lan Lu is
nearly the same as an ordinary ogre, it isn’t worth studying him.”
Nevertheless, Cang Xu smiled and shook his head, “No, his value is still high,
especially to you and I.”
“Are you talking about…his soul?” Zi Di instantly got his intention.
“Correct.” Cang Xu nodded, his eyes flashing faintly, “Although Lan Lu lost his
second head, that part of his soul still exists. Fighters have few methods that
can destroy souls, Guang Ke shouldn’t be an exception.”
“If we can obtain Lan Lu’s soul, it would be very good.”
“An ogre capable of growing a second head will have a dense spirit. If we can
successfully manipulate that soul, then it won’t be a simple silver level
ghost. Its spirituality will allow it to act independently, and will be the
commander of our ghost army!”
After hearing Cang Xu’s explanation, Zi Di was moved.
During this time, when they were resting and reorganizing on Snake Rat Island,
they had been frequently hunting in the underground.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had stocked up on ghosts, mainly comprised of tide snake and
smelt rats.
Unlike prior ghost summoning, their ghosts had both quality and quantity,
consisting of bronze levels, iron levels, and even one or two silver levels.
Through the Ghostly Possession spell, they had temporarily housed these ghosts
in their bodies.
One could say their individual battle strength had reached an unprecedented
peak.
“When a ghost has a powerful spirituality, I will use less spirit when I
control it.” If Lan Lu’s soul is successfully converted, its battle strength is
bound to surpass a silver level tide snake’s. “Regretfully, we cannot do that.”
Zi Di sighed when she thought that.
Their necromancer identities could not be exposed wantonly, if they were, their
situation would be even worse than that of pirates.
Most crucially, Guang Ke was resting in Tan Qiu’s castle.
As for collecting Lan Lu’s soul after the execution, that was also out of the
question.
Leaving aside that as time goes on, the soul will dissipate or be received by
the gods, there was a Sheng Ming Church priest here who would use a divine
spell to purify the scene after the execution.
Lan Lu’s soul could not be taken by Zi Di and Cang Xu.
The city guard commander who was escorting Lan Lu onto the execution platform
suddenly lifted his foot and kicked Lan Lu’s bent leg.
Caught off guard, Lan Lu kneeled down.
The city guard commander used that opportunity to push his head down.
Lan Lu, realizing that his time of death was just around the corner, struggled
with all of his might.
But he didn’t have a shred of strength to struggle, and even his mournful roar
was tired and feeble.
He was seriously injured and had been tortured and punished by Tan Qiu’s
subordinates. To prepare for this execution, he had also been drugged, sapping
both his bodily strength and battle qi.
“A futile struggle.” Tan Qiu sneered as he stood up from his seat. With a grave
face, he shouted, “Lan Lu!” “You assaulted my waters, looted my tax collector
ships, and slaughtered innocent islanders. Your crimes are unforgiveable.”
“Now, in the name of the great Emperor, the unifier of the Sheng Ming
Continent, and the supreme God, Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, I, Feudal Lord of
Snake Rat Island, Tan Qiu of the Tan Tu Clan, hereto sentence you to death!”
“Execute him!”
“Tan Qiu’s speech was direct and efficient, and after he was finished, the
entire audience cheered. “Put him to death!” “His punishment fits his crimes,
this is how all pirate should end.” Long live Tan Qiu, long live the feudal
lord!”
Tan Qiu, still solemn, slowly sat down.
But his heart bitterly laughed.
He wanted to give a lengthy speech to increase his renown, however, the leading
role did not belong to him today, rather it belonged to the priest.
The execution only whetted the appetite, while the proclamation of the
established alliance that would crusade against Rou Zang’s pirate group was the
main course.
Impossible, for the priest was the greatest investor into this.
The one to carry out the sentence was the city guard commander.
As the people cheered, he took out his sword.
This silver level magic weapon had the magical sapphire light armor spell
attached to it, and was also very sharp.
Lan Lu was a silver level, and an ogre’s body far outstripped a human one, thus
ordinary headsmen axes would find it difficult to behead him. Therefore, the
appropriate executioner was t he city guard commander.
Without any hesitation, the city guard commander aimed at Lan Lu’s neck and
swung his sharp sword down. “Oh dear!” Mo Kong had been surveilling everything,
and when he saw this, he had no choice but to act.
A moment later, a long prepared spell accurately struck the city guard
commander.
A red light flashed.
A split second later, the scene before the commander changed drastically.
Lan Lu and the execution platform disappeared, replaced by a gigantic dragon
head that opened its bloody mouth wide towards him.
The commander was alarmed, and promptly took a large step back, taking out his
shield to protect himself as best as possible.
Mo Kong’s magic was effective, and to the others, it seemed the city guard
commander suddenly stopped his blade, jumped back, then braced with his shield,
like a tortoise withdrawing his head, it was both abrupt and comical. 
Tan Qiu immediately stood up.
The others sitting also got up, all of them on guard. “Magic!” “Not only is
there a fear spell, but there is also an illusion spell…composite magic!”
“Enemies!”
“Track down the caster! They have meticulously restrained their aura.”
The priest and the others rapidly communicated.
Bang bang bang…
Another change occurred.
Many explosions occurred throughout the town simultaneously, warehouses and
houses were set aflame, causing thick smoke to billow out.
Space violently fluctuated, and imps chittered and shouted as they suddenly
appeared everywhere in town. They attacked in all directions and wantonly
destroyed everything.
Many imps threw themselves into the square, quickly killing many commoners.
The crow sank into chaos. “A devil attack?”
“Someone used summoning magic?” “Don’t panic, stay calm everyone!” Tan Qiu
shouted, “What are you waiting for, city guard attack!”
But a moment later, the feudal lord hesitated, he didn’t get the customary
response.
He stared out again, and noticed that the city guard commander was still
trapped in the illusion, he was bracing his shield and huddling his body as if
he was withstanding a strong attack. “Lord priest, lend me your help!” Tan Qiu
looked at the priest.
The priest had been praying, and when it finished at that moment, he
immediately used a divine spell.
The divine spell’s radiance illuminated the city guard commander’s body,
dispelling the magic on him.
The city guard commander shook his head, he had completely sobered up. “Ah,
what?!” He realized the truth, and was red with shame and anger.
“You wretch!” The city guard commander lifted his sword again, and to vent his
feelings, he cut down at Lan Lu.
But Lan Lu’s eyes were red, and his muscles bulged, he had actually struggled
free of his chains.
He raised his head and roared and lost all reason as he brandished his fists
and smashed everything around him.
The city guard commander summoned his battle qi and raised his shield as he was
knocked away by Lan Lu’s fist. “He has buffing magic on him!”
“Who cast the spell?”
“Find the caster!”
Snake Rat Island’s higher ups were incessantly enraged.
Generally, a magician will leak their aura when casting, however, Mo Kong’s
three actions had been superbly restrained.
Aura only leaked the moment the magic was cast. This made it difficult for
others to discover Mo Kong’s true position.
Lan Lu had received buffing magic, and his physical strength had greatly
increased, his previous powerlessness swept away.
The ogre race had very strong bodies that greatly surpassed humans of the same
level. He pulverized the execution platform and stormed into the crowd.



****** Chapter 66: Devil Ambush ******
Like a reckless ox, Lan Lu charged into the crowd.
He crashed into many people, tossing them into the air, the horrifying crunch
of breaking bones and dying screams lingering afterwards. “Run away.” “Don’t
step, don’t step on me!” “Save me, save me!”
The frenzied crowd scuttled and fled, and in the chaos, trampled each other.
Space fluctuated again.
This time, it wasn’t an imp, but rather a needle demon!
The needle demons were red or dark green. They were humanoid shaped, tall, had
a pair of malevolently sharp claws, and slender and nimble tails. The most
dreadful thing about them were the sharp thorns growing all over their bodies,
these thorns served as both their offense and defense.
The needle demons caused an even greater massacre.
These demons moved swiftly and agilely, jumping onto roofs and across walls.
When they leapt into the crowd, they were bound to set off a reign of carnage.
Tan Qiu and the priest went white. 
The imps were bad, but the needle demons had instantly worsened the situation
further.
For a moment, the entire town sank into an abyss of suffering. Tan Qiu
immediately gave an order to the city guard commander, “Don’t tangle with Lan
Lu, command the city guard and kill all of those demons!”
It was only natural that the town and its people were more important than Lan
Lu.
They were Tan Qiu’s riches!
The city guard commander also knew the situation was anything but reassuring,
thus he promptly abandoned Lan Lu and instead led the city guard into where the
most demons had gathered. “Everyone, the situation is urgent, act with haste! I
will reward you.” Tan Qiu said to the dragonman youngster, Hei Fei, and the
rest.
Everyone nodded, and entered the fray.
Zong Ge rushed through the crowd in a straight line, and whatever was in his
way, regardless of whether it was imp or human, was left a bloody pulp.
A dark green needle demon suddenly jumped from above, and aimed its sharp claws
at Zong Ge’s eyes.
Zong Ge unsheathed his broadsword.
The broadsword slashed the air with a silver flash, bisecting the needle demon
into two.
Not far off, Hei Fei climbed onto a balcony.
The balcony had a few murdered ladies on it, with imps gnawing on their flesh. 
Hei Fei swung his cutlass and beheaded many of the imps. “Night Devil Hunting
Group, assemble with me!” The Night Devil Hunting Commander prioritized
rallying his subordinates.
They were well coordinated as they directly crossed blades with a group of
imps.
The imps quickly found they were no match and scattered away.
The Night Devil Commander sneered, although a gold tide snake had caused his
hunting group disastrous casualties, the ones that remained were more elite as
a result.
A needle demon trampled onto a wall, then swooped down at Ba Hu.
Ba Hu, with war hammer in both hands, stood ready.
He heaved his war hammer, and blocked the needle demon’s claw.
The needle demon’s attack was obstructed, but that only caused it to laugh
sinisterly.
A moment later, another needle demon emerged from under him, its sharp needles
flying directly at Ba Hu’s back.
Ba Hu was startled and mad as he urged his battle qi.
A battle skill was used, and in a split second, his defense had been greatly
augmented, allowing him to firmly withstand the needle demons’ pincer attack.
“If I kill you, who knows how many bounties I’ll get?” Ba Hu sneered, his
battle fervor unafraid.
Tan Qiu stood on the high platform, and didn’t act. Instead, he ran his eyes
across the battlefield, battle-ready.
By his side stood the Sheng Ming Church priest, as well as the Clam Cloth
Merchant Alliance magician.
Around them was a small squad of orderly templar knights.
The magician had just used a detection type magic, her eyes were tightly
closed, and her magical aura seeped all over the place.
The priest was waiting for an opportunity, and didn’t act.
The magician suddenly spoke, “Currently, I have detected 33 iron level needle
demons, 124 bronze level needle demons, 47 bronze level imps, and a combined
total of 368 ordinary needle and imps.”
Imps were the lowest rank of devil. Needle demons were also low ranked, but a
step above the imps.
Even so, the sudden appearance of these demons had brought about the perfect
ambush that ravaged Snake Rat Island.
Tan Qiu’s complexion grew more unsightly.
The longer the situation went on, the greater the damage he would suffer.
Snake Rat Island had been painstakingly build by him, a place he had spent his
heart’s blood and energy to realize.
Now, he was witnessing his work being destroyed, and his heart burned with both
anxiety and anger.
But he still retained his rationality: calm down! Calm down! “What is the other
party’s aim?” “The execution ground? Saving Lan Lu?” “Is this the vanguard
assault of Rou Zang pirate group?”
Tan Qiu did not understand!
If he were Rou Zang, there was no way he would rescue someone he barely had a
connection with like Lan Lu.
It also was unlikely he had decided to assault Snake Rat Island.
Snake Rat Island had both an army and a strong navy. There were many defensive
methods here, and if Rou Zang wanted to attack this place, it was tantamount to
abandoning his greatest advantage while attacking the enemy’s greatest
strength. One had to suffer brain damage to do this.
“If he wanted to attack this place, wouldn’t have done so while I was building
the island up? There was no reason he needed to wait until now?”
Regardless of how he thought about it, if the enemy’s intentions were unknown,
Tan Qiu wouldn’t engage in the battle. This included his most secret underling,
the silver female thief, he wouldn’t order her to move either.
It was a hidden trump card, one he still wanted to preserve for later.
Space once again fluctuated.
This time, three devils appeared.
These devils were sinister and fiendish, their two eyes were scarlet, their two
long horns extended from their foreheads, and they had scarlet long tongues and
jagged sharp teeth. From their chins grew thorny whiskers that hooked into
beards.
They had purple, red, or even green skin, large tails, and had long, sawtooth
machetes in their hands. Each of them was at least 1.8 meters tall, and were
each a ferocious figure.
Hook devils!
There were only a few hook devils, only 5 in total, but all of them were silver
level.
Tan Qiu’s and the priest’s expressions couldn’t help but change dramatically.
The was the world of the strong.
When the silver level devils appeared, their battle strength fundamentally
changed everything! 
The hook devils immediately attacked Hei Fei, Ba Hu, and the others, while
simultaneously mustering a large amount of imps and needle demons to their side
to form small battle groups.
Devils were different from demons, devils were more orderly and understood how
to work as a team. “Have you still not found the caster?” Tan Qiu couldn’t help
but raise his tone as he urged the merchant alliance magician. The merchant
alliance magician’s forehead was covered with cold sweat, and her eyes were
gloomy, “I can’t find them!” “But if I were to guess who it is, this should be
Mo Kong’s work.” “He is Rou Zang’s most useful underling, and is Rou Zang’s
first mate, second to on him.” “According to intel, he has a devil bloodline. I
didn’t expect that he would be this powerful!” “But he is only a silver level,
moreover, he is just a warlock. The devils present are likely the limits of his
abilities.”
Tan Qiu couldn’t help but shake his head.
He had already arrived at the magician’s conjecture.
But what use was there in saying that now?
Finding Mo Kong was crucial. “Until now, I still haven’t found a trace of Rou
Zang’s pirate group.” “We cannot find Mo Kong, who knows if there are other
people we haven’t found either?”
When Tan Qiu thought that the pressure on his mind increased greatly.
His hands and feet were tied by fear that Rou Zang would suddenly appear and
ambush him.
The enemy is in the dark, while I am in the light. Thus, he had to protect the
priest and magician well.
He was a battle qi cultivator and was the final line of defense for the priest
and magician. “Now, I can only hope that they are able to handle those devils.”
“I hope that the postwar damage will be less.”
Tan Qiu could only pray from the bottom of his heart.
Hei Fei, the Night Devil Commander, and the city guard commander…Tan Qiu ran
his eyes over them when he involuntarily stopped to gaze at Shi Qi.
As a silver peak that was approaching gold, he naturally was expected to do
more.
But as he watched from the sidelines for a moment, he noticed that the one who
did the most damage was not Shi Qi, but…Long Fu! “You won’t escape!”
The dragonman youngster pursued a needle demon.
The needle demon was coughing up blood incessantly, but it was still moving
nimbly. His legs and claws were quickly ascending a wall.
The dragonman youngster pursued closely behind, he was burning with battle
fervor.
A moment later, he jumped onto the wall.
Ding.
With a light echo, an explosion detonated under the soles of his feet,
corresponding with his bent knees jumping, giving his body more speed as he
jumped the wall blocking him.
Ding.
With another small explosion under the soles of his feet, he was able to return
back over the wall he had jumped over.
After jumping between two walls several times, he leaped onto a roof.
Battle skill – Surge!
In this sudden battlefield, the dragonman youngster’s arduous training of this
battle skill had produced a joyous result.
The dragonman youngster had mastered this battle skill thoroughly, and its
intensity always followed his intentions, thus he was capable of accurately
controlling its might every time.
Before this, he could ascend up walls and jump onto roofs, but without precise
control, if it was too powerful, he would have damaged walls, and more
importantly, used excessive amounts of battle qi. 
The dragonman youngster used the battle skill, Surge, easily and precisely to
his satisfaction.
He jumped into the air, then an explosion detonated behind him, accelerating
his speed.
The needle demon couldn’t evade the pouncing dragonman from above.
The thorns the needle demon was covered in were crushed by the red dragon
scales, it didn’t harm the dragonman youngster even a little.
The young man grabbed the needle demon’s head with his dragon claws.
A moment later, a large explosion banged from his palms.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The needle demon’s head burst, leaving it a headless corpse.
Before, the dragonman youngster could only use this battle skill when his hands
were clenched into a fist.
Now, his degree of control allowed him to use it with hands in any gesture.
After killing the needle demon, the dragonman youngster straightened his back
on the roof, then swept his eyes across the battlefield.
The battlefield was in chaos, although he had eliminated all of the demons
around him, in other areas, there were still many others.
Especially in the southeast, that was where two hook devils were leading a
group of needle demons and imps to encircle the Night Devil Hunting Group.
This was the biggest battlefield.
The Night Devil Hunting Group was losing ground!
“Abominable, if it weren’t for the gold tide snake, we wouldn’t have so few
people, and be surrounded by these demons!” The hunting group commander gnashed
his teeth.
He was holding back a hook devil, however, the other silver level hook devil
was attacking the front of the hunting group’s defensive line.
Hook devil machetes fluttered everywhere.
The saw teeth could easily pierce leather armor, and whenever the blades
flashed by, they usually left severed limbs and splattered blood.
Several iron shield guards were already soaked in blood.
The wounds the serrated blades left caused them to bleed profusely, treatment
scrolls and medicine only brought a slight relief, they couldn’t patch them
permanently. “What do we do?” The hunting group commander felt helpless and
directionless when he suddenly heard an explosion. “Who fired that?” Was the
hunting group commander’s first reaction.



****** Chapter 67: Gold Level Devil ******
“Did the Overlord do a shelling over yonder? That is where the commonfolk are!”
The remaining hunters were bewildered.
But a moment later, they saw a red silhouette dropping from the sky, and like
an artillery shell, ferociously blasted into the heart of the group of demons. 
Boom!!
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!!
The dragonman youngster’s total Bursting Explosion battle qi instantly
diminished by a tenth.
The needle demon that directly met the fist exploded into dregs of flesh.
Soon after, the shockwave of the attack threw the surrounding imps into the
air.
The attack cratered the ground, causing earth, gravel, and demon bits to
splatter all over the place.
The demon formation was shattered, and the front was abruptly cleared.
Among the severed limbs and broken bodies, the dragonman youngster slowly stood
up from his kneeling position, unclenched his fist, and turned to regard the
battlefield, his dragon tail vigorously swinging to and fro.
The demons were horrified, and for a moment, none dared to encircle him as
their morale plummeted.
“Commander Long Fu!” The Night Devil Commander cheered, then promptly tangled
again with the enemy before them.
Upon seeing the dragonman youngster, a silver level hook devil who had
originally planned to burst through the Night Devil Hunting Group’s defensive
line, turned around and charged at him.
The dragonman youngster coldly snorted, and did not evade nor flee, instead he
charged too.
The two collided midair.
The hook devil struck dragon scales with its serrated blade, creating a showing
of sparks.
The dragonman youngster’s dragon claws tore the hook devil’s skin, then in his
palm, a silver radiance erupted once more.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
A chariot seemed to strike the hook devil, causing it to fly through a
collapsed wall and sink into a building.
The building then collapsed, causing a large amount of smoke and dust to poof
out.
The smoke and dust obstructed the eyes.
The dragonman youngster was just about to press the attack, when suddenly, he
sensed a magic fluctuation emanating from the ruined building.
Racial magic – High-level Teleportation!
“Where did it teleport to?!” The dragonman youngster stared, then turned his
head around towards the execution platform.
“Defend!” Tan Qiu screamed as he moved forward.
A moment ago, 3 hook devils had suddenly teleported around them.
Mo Kong had been secretly following the entire battlefield.
When he saw the dragonman youngster weaving his way all over the place and
putting down the largest group of demons, he had no choice but to respond.
Following his orders, the hook devils quickly teleported to the most important
place, the rear lines where Tan Qiu was.
If either the priest or any magician died, it would be an immense blow.
If all of them died, the pressure on Rou Zang’s pirate group would greatly
dimmish.
“Protect the magician!”
“Return to defend.”
“Protect the priest!”
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Hei Fei, Ba Hu, and the other silver levels
understood that this was the tipping point of the battle, and immediately
withdrew back.
The Night Devil Commander and a hook devil were still tangling with each other.
The city guard commander wanted to return to help, but he was engaged with Lan
Lu.
Fortunately, the priest who had been staying his hand, immediately used a
divine spell.
Pure white radiance illuminated the small templar knight squad, increasing
their offense and defense sharply.
The small team was in itself a battle squad, and worked together very closely,
allowing them to barely hold back the three hook devils’ surprise attack.
But it wouldn’t last.
After all, the hook devils were silver levels.
In their first clash, a templar knight was sawed by a serrated blade, causing
him to bleed profusely.
Racial magic – Summon Demons!
The three hook devils had noticed Long Fu, Shi Qi, and the others coming back
to help, thus they used this racial magic at the same time.
Space violently fluctuated, and imps and needle demons appeared from nowhere.
The hook devils howled, and the newly summoned imps and needle demons charged
at the silver warrior who had come to help.
Divine spell – Radiant Chains!
The priest coldly snorted, and raised his hands towards the sky.
Brilliant light fell from the sky, and irradiated the three hook devils, then
rapidly condensed into light chains that locked around the hook devils’ hands
and feet.
The hook devils did their best to struggle free, however, this resulted in
delaying the tempo of their offensive.
The dragonman youngster took the lead to breakthrough the tangle, and like an
artillery shell being fired, slammed into a hook devil.
Shi Qi, Hei Fei, and the others followed right behind him.
Tan Qiu let out a deep sigh of relief.
The devil’s surprise attack had mostly crumbled, and the two remaining hook
devils would find it difficult to menace them.
In the depths of the castle, when Mo Kong saw this, he couldn’t help but sigh,
“I should withdraw.”
He looked at the magic formation beneath his feet, his eyes flashing with pain.
Arranged in the center of the magic formation was a dark red devil heart, a
pair of steel goat horns, and a lotus flower shaped pile of sulfur, these were
all gold level casting materials!
Mo Kong took in a light breath, then began to activate the magic formation.
Suddenly above the town, a purple and red pentagram formation appeared.
The formation was rotating, and black smoke curled around it.
The black smoke was devoured by the formation soon after, and red light began
to bubble forth from its depths.
A formidable life aura began to emanate. 
The black smoke dissipated, and a tall devil appeared from nowhere.
He was 2.7 meters tall, almost as high as a three story building, and had a
sturdy body.
His skin was dark red, he had pitch black demon horns towering from his head, a
pair of wide bad wings grew from his back, and he had a tail that hung to the
ground.
In his hand, he held a long spiked chain, and when his thick legs hit the
ground, it created a soft echo, revealing how heavy his body was.
“Awoo!” He raised his head and howled as his life aura erupted like a gigantic
wave.
Horn devil, gold level!
“How can this be?” The priest was shocked, “Is this really Mo Kong’s doing? He
actually summoned a gold level horn devil?”
“Where is the caster?” The priest urged the female magician.
The female magician’s eyes were still closed, she had been constantly
investigating, however, from beginning to end, she couldn’t make any progress.
“Damm it!” Tan Qiu went white, the gold level devil had put great pressure on
him.
“Where is Lord Guang Ke?” He unconsciously turned around to look at the castle.
But there was no sign of Guang Ke.
“It won’t be that easy to struggle free from my nightmare spell.” Mo Kong
sneered, how could he leave out his most powerful opponent, Guang Ke?
“A gold level horn devil…” Cang Xu’s eyes glistened with awe.
Neither he nor Zi Di had acted.
They had the same misgivings as Tan Qiu, they also couldn’t grasp what Rou Zang
was planning.
With the enemy in the dark and I in the light, if they act recklessly, they
would definitely be targeted.
Magicians had a large impact, and often during war, could overturn entire
battles.
Despite the heavy defenses around them, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance
magician and the priest were still raided by devils.
Many devils could teleport, thus Zi Di and Cang Xu didn’t act blindly without
thinking.
“Look there, Lan Lu has nearly escaped from the public square.” Zi Di suddenly
said.
In the chaotic battlefield, the commoners were in disarray while the higherups
had their hands full.
Zi Di was very interested in Lan Lu’s soul, and had kept a close eye on him.
Cang Xi and Zi Di quickly glanced at each other, then quietly descended the
tower.
The gold level horn devil attacked Tan Qiu, the priest, and the others.
Among them were a priest and a magician, the biggest targets!
The horn devil lowered its head like a reckless ox and charged. It charged
straight ahead with the attitude of trampling underfoot everything that
hindered it.
He stomped through a series of depressions in the public square.
“Entrench yourselves, don’t withdraw, give me time!” The priest shouted, then
prayed with all his might.
This was the correct strategy.
The horn devil had the same teleportation spell, but hadn’t used it yet.
If they scatted to take shelter, it would give the enemy a generous opportunity
to act.
“Stop him!” Tan Qiu clenched his teeth.
The city guard commander spitefully glanced at Lan Lu’s back before returning
with the city guard to assist. 
The templar knights assembled and tightened together to form a human barricade
to block the charging horn devil’s path.
The Night Devil Commander didn’t dare to fight the horn devil in close combat,
and instead peppered it with crossbow arrows from a distance.
The alchemy crossbow arrows hit the horn devil, but they couldn’t pierce his
armor-like skin,
Midway through his charge, Zong Ge suddenly attacked from the side.
He used a battle skill, and his entire body was draped with a silver luster, it
was obvious he was using his battle qi to its fullest.
The moment he intercepted the horn demon, the latter suddenly flung his spiked
chain.
When it was compressed, the spiked chain looked like a serrated machete. But
upon extending the spiked chain now looked like a steel barbed whip.
When the spiked chain lashed at Zong Ge, Zong Ge was forced to raise his
broadsword to ward it off.
The immense power of it instantly restrained Zong Ge’s charge, and repelled him
back.
At the same life level, half beastmen were weaker than horn devils. What’s
more, this horn devil was a gold level, and was in all aspects, above the half
beastmen.
The horn devil continued his charge, until suddenly, a red humanoid shadow
appeared above to his right.
Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster had cultivated a tacit understanding on
Mystifying Monster Island.
When Zong Ge charged in, so too did the dragonman youngster.
The horn devil was mainly focused on Zong Ge, giving the dragonman youngster an
opportunity he seized.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
As both fists swung, the dragonman youngster’s internal battle qi plummeted by
two thirds.
Bang!
Two explosions echoed simultaneously to form a singular sound.
By the time the fists made impact, the horn devil had already raised his arm to
protect himself.
The explosion formed a shockwave, causing the dragonman youngster to fly
through the air and land in a distance away.
The horn devil was unmoved.
But his charge had finally been held back!
When the priest saw that, he immediately casted a divine spell. Layers of
radiant pressure to pressed on the horn devil, impairing his speed and
strength.
“Well done, Commander Long Fu!” Tan Qiu cheered, in this crucial moment, he
unexpectedly found that the dragonman youngster had been the most reliable.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Hei Fei, and the city guard
commander leading the city guard, surrounded the horn devil from all sides.  
The horn devil huffed, a red scorching breath belched from his nose.
“Fear me, humans!” He straightened his chest, raised his arms, and used a
racial magic.
Fear spell!
In a shockwave, an incorporeal spiritual attack battered everyone engaged.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Tan Qiu, the priest, and all the rest felt
their hearts jumping about, a strong feeling of dread attacked their innermost
being.
Hei Fei and the city guard commander screamed in fright, then turned around and
fled.
The others were struggling, their fighting spirit had been greatly diminished,
and the fear urged them to flee, however, their remaining rationality told them
that they had to remain calm!
A moment later, the fear seemed to be flooding them like a tsunami, and
everyone fell over each other in their eagerness to escape. 
The horn devil burst into laughter, and jumped into the sky, then dove at the
priest.
The priest, female magician, and Tan Qiu were running like headless chickens
because of the fear’s influence.
The horn devil hated the priest the most.
He lifted his spiked chain, and aimed it at the priest’s head to split it
twain.
Ding!
A clump of white light glittered like starlight.
The horn devil’s eyes widened in alarm and fury.
The one who blocked his focused attack was a man that sparkled with dazzling
white light.
Guang Ke!



****** Chapter 68: Guang Ke! ******
“Tut!” In the depths of the castle, Mo Kong couldn’t help but mumble.
Guang Ke had hindered the horn devil’s attack, allowing the priest to escape
with his life.
The horn devil exploded in anger and swung his left claw.
Guang Ku suddenly disappeared, then a moment later, reappeared above the horn
devil’s head.
He raised his left leg up, then struck it down.
Battle Skill – War Axe!
Gold battle qi bubbled out, and in tandem with the downward chopping leg, they
together formed a golden shadow of a battle-axe.
The horn devil felt dread, and did his best to evade, thus the shadow didn’t
split his head, however, the it did cut his horn.
The tremendous blow forced his head downwards, and snapped the horn further.
The horn devil fell to the ground, and responded by throwing his spiked chain.
The spiked chain extended into the air, but hit emptiness.
Guang Ke, who had been floating in the air, had disappeared again.
A moment later, Guang Ke’s legs suddenly appeared in the horn devil’s vision.
Dark red eyes turned, then abruptly contracted.
The horn devil saw that Guang Ke was in front of him, his arms outstretched,
his hands open, and his palms pointed at him.
Battle skill – Castle Breaking Hammer!
Gold battle qi wildly flowed to form a gigantic light hammer that ruthlessly
smashed down.
Dink.
The horn devil shrieked as he was crushed by the two meter across light hammer.
Innumerous bones broke and organs were seriously wounded, causing him to scream
and bleed.
“Is that Guang Ke’s battle strength? He has proven himself.”
“So strong, the horn devil is unable to fight back.”
“It is obviously a most ordinary battle skill, yet it has such might!”
Zi Di and Cang Xu’s hearts shook.
They had wanted to secretly attack Lan Lu when they saw the horn devil appear,
causing them to abandon this plan and instead rush to the plaza to reinforce
the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge.
En route, they saw Guang Ke make his appearance.
Guang Ke was powerful, with two battle skills, he had taken control of the
situation, and beaten the horn devil into submission.
The horn devil struggled to get up and raise his head to howl.
He rallied all of the demons and devils to him, and one after the other, they
came.
Hook devils, needle demons, and imps converged in a wave to form a tide to roll
through.
Right now, the higher-ups of Snake Rat Island were still under the affect of
the Fear spell, and were unable to defend themselves.
Guang Ku quickly rose into the sky and let the horn demon off for the time
being. He bowed his head, closed his eyes, and placed his palms to his chest as
his entire body began to shoot rays of light.
Divine spell – Domain of the Light of Contrition!
In a split second, the public square was bathed in white light.
Regardless of whether it was humans or devils, the only thing they could see
was a vast expanse of whiteness.
The divine contrition light quickly spread, and within a few short breaths, it
covered the entire town.
The white light caused the devils within it to wail in anguish.
Black smoke radiated from their bodies, their movements became incomparably
slow, and it looked like they were being pressed by an unbearable weight.
“Such beautiful light!”
“Why don’t I feel anything?”
“Ah. I am in pain, I was wrong, I was mistaken…”
The humans reacted in a variety of ways. Some felt nothing, some felt the white
light was harsh on the eyes, and others began to cry tears of remorse.
“This divine spell is one of the Justice God’s!”  
“Living beings within the Domain of the Light of Contrition suffer the
punishments of their sins.”
“The heavier the sin, the greater their pain, and the deeper the sense of
repentance they feel.”
The priest quickly identified the origin of this divine spell.
He was the first under the radiant light to struggle free from the Fear spell
and recover himself.
The priest ran his eyes around, and noticed that the divine spell had made many
of the powerful members of Snake Rat Island emit black smoke, with Tan Qiu and
the dragonman youngster emitting a lot of it!
The other survivors didn’t fair much better.
Cang Xu and Zi Di were in a difficult situation, they were forced to hide in an
empty street corner, their sins forming a black cloud that shrouded their
entire bodies.
Battle skill – Attuned Divine Arrow of Light!
Guang Ke used another battle skill.
He lifted both hands, and gold battle qi gushed out to form an immense ball of
light.
The ball of light jetted into the air, then transformed into myriad arrows of
golden light that shot everywhere in all directions.
The arrows of light avoided all of the humans, and only pierced the demons, not
even Lan Lu in the distance was let off.
A few seconds later, these myriad arrows of light quickly dissipated, and not a
single demon was standing.
The Domain of the Light of Contrition slowly dissipated.
“What was that battle skill?”
“It looked like the Wang Clan’s signature skill, the Attuned Divine Arrow of
Light! The condensed light arrows were able to follow where the fighter’s
spirit wanted them to go, and were able to directly lock onto enemies.”
“Lan Lu…is dead.”
Cang Xu and Zi Di quickly exchanged in the corner.
The divine spell, Domain of the Light of Contrition, completely dissipated, and
they went back to normal.
The previous battle skills, War Axe and Castle Breaking Hammer, were but normal
things that were circulated everywhere, while the Attuned Divine Arrow of Light
was the Wang Clan’s unique battle skill. Compared to War Axe and Castle
Breaking Hammer, it was far grander and outstanding.
Guang Ke first relied on the Domain of the Light of Contrition to control these
devils, preventing them from escaping and sapping their spirits so they
couldn’t use racial magics.
Afterwards, he used the battle skill, Attuned Divine Arrow of Light, to
completely claim victory.
The gold level horn devil was riddled by hundreds of light arrows that left
countless holes all over his body, he was left so horrible that none bared to
look at him.
He cried out a final time, then with a final grunt, his life aura was gone.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others regained their minds.
“Lord Guang Ke, thank you…” Tan Qiu was just about to express his gratitude.
“Don’t finish that.” Guang Ke gazed at the castle grounds.
“So, you were hiding there,” His tone was flat.
“Oh no!” Mo Kong suddenly felt he was locked onto, and his mind trembled, and
without hesitating, he immediately activated the magic formation.
The magic formation’s glow quickly increased.
Guang Ke had already moved, a gold level battle skill bombarded the ground, the
attack causing the entire castle to shudder. 
The soil was penetrated, and an underground passage quickly formed.
Guang Ke went first, with the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Tan Qiu, and the
rest following closely after.
“Faster, go faster!” Mo Kong turned pale from panic.
His battle strength was already at rock bottom.
Even with the help of this magic formation, this was the first time he had
summoned many demons.
“Faster, just a bit faster!” In another place, Cang Xu and Zi Di were casting
magic on Lan Lu’s corpse.
Guang Ke and the other powerful forces were in the underground passage, leaving
no one around Lan Lu.
With such an opportunity before them, the two necromancers decided to clench
their teeth and take a risk.
“It’s too late.” Mo Kong’s heart slammed against his chest, he grinded his
teeth and cut out his left eye.
In spite of the bleeding eye socket and sharp pain, he treated his own left eye
as a casting material.
High-level Fear spell!
Sensing the aura of magic, the vigilant priest shouted and lifted a sacred
crest.
“My God, protect us!” He softly cried.
A moment later, the magic hit everyone.
The sacred crest’s light only lasted two seconds, before it suddenly became
dark.
With the protection lost, everyone once again sank into endless panic and
fearfully ran all over the place in an attempt to retreat.
Guang Ke was also affected, and it caused him to stand in place, deadlocked for
a second.
After making every second count, Mo Kong finally activated the magic formation
safely and formed a bright gateway. 
On impulse, he leaped into the bright gateway and was teleported away.
The bright gateway vanished shortly after.
“Let him escape.” Guang Ke sensed what had happened a moment later.
Tan Qiu and the others arrived in the underground space soon after, and saw the
magic formation, confirming that the originator of all the evil had been Mo
Kong.
“This should be the place where we determined spatial nodes were. I didn’t
expect that it wasn’t Tan Qiu’s escape route, but rather a secret arrangement
of Rou Zang’s pirate group!” The dragonman youngster instantly made the
connection to what they had scouted out earlier.
“How could there be an underground space here?”
“I didn’t expect that Rou Zang had such a trick lying in wait!”
“How awful. How did they achieve this, how did they successfully construct such
a large magic formation under the feudal lord’s castle?”
“It seems that Mo Kong is no simpleton. Previous intelligence is wrong, he is
not only a warlock, but rather a genuine magician!”
The higher-ups discussed with each other. 
Tan Qiu was the most distressed.
The underground space and magic formation had been below his castle.
This lost him face.
The priest glanced at him, then brokered a compromise, “Comrades-in-arms, an
investigation can wait until later, our top priority is to first pacify the
masses, clean up the battlefield and prevent any stragglers from slipping
away!”
“That’s right.” Guang Ke nodded, despite being confident that he killed all of
the demons, to guard against the unexpected, he still erred on the side of
caution.
Everyone returned above ground to clean up the battlefield, account the
damages, and assist in mollifying the citizens.
There were many casualties, and the sounds of wailful grieving propagated from
innumerable collapsed buildings.
Tan Qiu’s brows wrinkled as he inspected: it would be expensive to rebuild
these homes.
Meanwhile, he quietly assigned people to disseminate news that the murderer
behind this attack was Mo Kong, the first mate of Rou Zang. 
Very quickly, this news had spread widely.
Grief and indignation mingled in the populace, and the shouts for vengeance
rose dramatically.
Tan Qiu succeeded in controlling public opinion, and once again assembled the
inhabitants in the public square.
But this time, he was no longer in the leading role.
The priest stood up and with the posture of a leader, established the alliance.
“Under the endless divine light of my God, Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, our
victory is inevitable, and we will render divine judgment onto Rou Zang and his
men!” The priest ended his lengthy speech with this statement. 
The crowd shouted their intense thirst for vengeance, the casualties had made
them both sorrowful and wrathful, thus many people were shouting at the top of
their lungs.
The survivors were mixed in with the crowd, each of them bearing a somewhat
complex expression.
Not long after, everyone returned to their own ship.
Zong Ge had a heavy expression, “There is a big problem. As far as I know,
constructing such a large magic formation would be very noisy, yet the Rou
Zang’s pirate group was able to conceal it from the islanders. How did he
accomplish this? Tan Qiu’s castle was above it, how didn’t he detect even a
hint of it?”
Cang Xu narrowed his eyes, “Do you think Rou Zang has a traitor in Tan Qiu’s
ranks? That with the assistance of this undiscovered traitor, he was able to
conceal the construction of this formation?”
Zong Ge nodded, and brought up a prior affair, “Previously, a tax collector
ship’s route was leaked, and many people speculated that there might be an
enemy within their ranks. If there was, who were they? If we aren’t able to
find this traitor, how can we battle against Rou Zang’s pirate group? We’d be
too passive!”
Zi Di shook her head, “This is something we no longer need to concern ourselves
with.”
“Our contribution during this fight isn’t small, we can use this contribution
to obtain the Green Jade Gold Coffin.”
“We can already withdraw.””
Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster all stared at her, then reacted shortly
after.
This seemed to make sense!



****** Chapter 69: Sinful Nightmare ******
They didn’t need to fight Rou Zang’s pirate group to the death, the survivors
had more important matters to go do.
After this battle, they had gained a new understanding of how strong Rou Zang’s
pirate group was.
Mo Kong was just Rou Zang’s first mate.
However, just by himself, he wreaked devastation on Snake Rat Island.
During the battle, the priest even had a brush with death.
Of course, the greatest factor was still the magic formation in the depths of
the underground.
The magic formation was excellent, it was made of strong materials, was very
complex, and was almost gold level.
It could amplify spell casting, and with it, Mo Kong could summon many demons.
During the subsequent investigation, Tan Qiu and the others would discover that
Mo Kong did not stint on the cost during his casting, and had used many gold
level casting materials.
Without this formation, Mo Kong couldn’t have done such a summoning. He didn’t
have enough magic power, so this advanced magic formation had a subsidiary
magic power reservoir.
Besides magnifying casting efficacy, this magic formation also suppressed aura
and hid the user from detection.  
The latter was very crucial.
During the demonic raid, the merchant alliance magician had been looking for
the caster, yet never found him.
Mo Kong hid himself well, thus Tan Qiu and the others had to passively and
awkwardly take a thrashing.
Finally, it was Guang Ke who discovered Mo Kong’s whereabouts.
He was worthy of his far flung reputation as a legendary gold fighter.
He had both many battle skills and divine spells!
The latter proved that Guang Ke was at least a pious level believer of the
Justice God.
During the battle, Mo Kong’s true strength was revealed. Prior intelligence
said he was a mere warlock, but now one could see that he was a fairly
outstanding magician!
Not only that, but he could also summon many demons, and even a gold level horn
devil. This proved that his bloodline also couldn’t be underestimated.
“This battle has exposed our failings again.” The dragonman youngster’s brows
tightened, “We don’t have a way of withstanding fear spells.”
Zi Di pondered, “Speaking of which, War Merchant’s alchemy database actually
has a blueprint of a magic device that can protect us from the Fear spell.”
Cang Xu shook his head, “Not only will that be difficult, when Mo Kong uses the
Fear spell, although he is just a silver level, even Guang Ke is affected by
it. To withstand this magic, only a gold level magic item will be the greatest
insurance. Even if we had the materials, we don’t have the ability to refine
one successfully.”
“The tower spirit needs to be repaired enough so that it can preside over
alchemy procedures, then we’ll be able to have a chance of refining gold level
magic items.”
“Otherwise, we have to ask an alchemy master to join us.”
Everyone was silent.
An alchemy master that can refine gold level items would be well received
anywhere, why would they join a minor mercenary group?
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was valued by Tan Qiu and the others,
it was only because Snake Rat Island was being pressured by Rou Zang’s pirate
group and other external threats.
Snake Rat Island was a remote place, and was in its early stages of
development, when it was truly developed, not only would there be taxation
teleportation formations, but there would also be a magician tower.
With a magician tower, Mo Kong would find it ten times as difficult to sneak
in.
In fact, all organizations without a gold level leader were middle or lower
leveled groups.
As everyone discussed, they noticed that within this short time, they had no
way of solving this weakness.
If they were caught in the Fear spell. They would sink into disadvantageous
circumstances.
When experts dueled each other, a lapse of a second or two was unbelievable.
What was worth celebrating was that the Fear spell was not a precise type of
magic, rather it was a area of effect, and that after it was cast, it would
affect both friend and foe.
The enemy would also suffer.
If they were rendered helpless, they could only depended on their comrades’
help.
If the first mate, Mo Kong, was already such a vexation, what was the one above
him, Rou Zang, like?
Carefully thinking back, it was only luck that the survivors had managed to
deal with Rou Zang twice.
The first time, Rou Zang had carelessly underestimated them and the Life
Scorching Dragon Breath.
The second time, they had caught him unprepared with the gold level cannon.
Rou Zang couldn’t be that weak, and during those two confrontations, he just
hadn’t displayed his true power.
Therefore, even though the alliance had Guang Ke, there were still great risks
in dealing with Rou Zang’s pirate group.
“We have already joined the alliance.”
“Tomorrow at dawn, we will go exchange for the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
Afterwards, we will look at the situation, perhaps we can find a chance to
leave both the island and the alliance.”
“Don’t forget, we agreed to a magic contract, what can we do?”
“The Deceptive Disguise spell only helps camouflage our identities. The magic
contract was signed with blood, it will still restrict us.”
The contract’s clauses are comparatively loose, perhaps we can find a way to
overcome them.”
“Even if we cannot, during battle, we can also actively restrain our strength.
In fact, during the demon raid, no one used their full strength, right?”
Mo Kong certainly went all out, but by contrast, the higher ups of Snake Rat
Island were holding back.
Firstly, they didn’t all come from one force, rather they came from all over
the place.
Secondly, Tan Qiu and the others were guarding against hidden enemies.
At the time, it was very likely Rou Zang’s pirate group would appear.
But in the end, when the battle concluded, Mo Kong had fled and not a shadow of
Rou Zang and his men were seen.
“Speaking of which.” The dragonman youngster had a weird expression, “What was
the goal of Rou Zang and his people?”
“During the demon fight, I was always worried that Rou Zang would appear in the
public square and join in the raid.” Cang Xu sighed.
“I was anxious that he would take that opportunity to bombard the port. As long
as the port was destroyed, boatswains were killed or injured, and the port’s
fleet was eradicated, we would be trapped on the island like a turtle in a jar
and be forced to wait for an outside fleet’s support.” Said Zong Ge, causing
everyone’s heart to shiver.
But from start to finish, Rou Zang didn’t show up.
No matter how much the survivors talked it through, they didn’t understand.
“Don’t tell me they only wanted to probe Guang Ke’s skills?”
“Indeed, a part of it was probed out. I didn’t expect that Guang Ke had such an
amazing divine spell.”
“But to probe that out, they had to expose the magic formation, an unworthy
trade.”
“If I was Rou Zang, this magic formation would be of enormous value when it
came to assaulting Snake Rat Island, it would a element for victory!” Zong Ge
shook his head.
“It is indeed so. This is a loss.” Zi Di agreed.
In short, no one could guess what Rou Zang intended.
Mo Kong didn’t know either.
Under the curtain of night, with a wobbling heart filled with worry, finally
flew onto the deck of the Bath Tub.
“The first mate has returned!”
“Lord Mo Kong, what happened to your eye?”
“What happened?”
The sailors immediately greeted him.
Mo Kong didn’t heal himself, not because he couldn’t, rather he wanted to show
off a miserable state because he was worried that the savage Rou Zang would
seek to settle accounts with and attack.
“I need to see the captain.” Mo Kong was uninterested in explaining to these
sailors.
“The captain…” The sailors stammered.
“What happened?” Mo Kong immediately realized things were bad.
“I have already locked him up.” A voice transmitted from the Bath Tub’s upper
level.
Stunned, Mo Kong looked up.
He saw a shaved martial monk looking down from the ship’s top at him.
“What are you?” Mo Kong’s eye narrowed.
The shaven martial monk was a middle aged man, emaciated, and had yellowish
black skin.
He smiled, then exposed his gold level life aura, “I come from the Great Pain
Monastery, you can call me Gu Qiao.”
“The Great Pain Monastery?” Mo Kong blankly stared, then recalled that his
captain, Rou Zang, had defected from that very monastery.
“Run away!” Without hesitating, he immediately flew into the air and away from
the Bath Tub.
Upon seeing Mo Kong quickly flying away, the middle aged monk known as Gu Qiao
didn’t seem worried.
He calmly watched and waited until Mo Kong was several hundred meters from him
before acting.
Gold light streaked across the sky.
Mo Kong was struck dead on and fell into the ocean.
“Fish him out.” Gu Qiao ordered.
The sailors didn’t dare disobey and immediately did so.
They personally witnessed Gu Qiao defeat Rou Zang with his own hands.
At the time, Rou Zang had intended to use the Bath Tub to attack Snake Rat
Island’s port.
However, Gu Qiao had completely wrecked this plan of attack.
Snake Rat Island, the port.
Bai Ya was lying in his hammock, his eyes were closed as a nightmare permeated
him, causing his head to constantly shake and his face to grimace if fear.
In the nightmare, Lan Zao was giving him the dagger.
Bai Ya took the dagger, bit his teeth, and stood before Jia Sha.
He looked down at Jia Sha, and a scene nigh impossible to envision was
happening: a aloof lord, a priest of the Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, Jia Sha,
was kneeling before a commoner!
Jia Sha had been riddled with scars, he was soaked head to toe in blood, and
his flesh had been peeled away to expose deathly pale bone, yet he hadn’t
dropped dead yet!
The pain that tormented Jia Sha caused his mouth to froth and his expression to
twist.
“Don’t hesitate, youngster, hit him.” Lan Zao urged Bai Ya to the side, he
hadn’t walked far.
Bai Ya clenched his teeth and raised the dagger.
But he froze there, he hesitated, his arms shivered, causing the dagger in his
hands to shudder more so.
When Jia Sha saw this, he suddenly laughed.
With a weak voice, he hoarsely said, “Hehehe, you are scared! You should be
scared, because you knowingly killed me, you have committed a capital offense!
You will be fugitives of the empire, the Sheng Ming Church’s enemy. Your
serious crime will not be repaid by your death, and in accordance to imperial
law, your relatives will pay with their lives too!”
“Come, hit me, killing me will consign you to eternal damnation!” Hehehehe!”
Bai Ya grew more hesitant, and he nearly fell down.
“Shut up! You lunatic.” Lan Zao shouted, “It is because of you that we are
trapped in desperate straits. Bai Ya, hit him!”
Bai Ya was deathly pale, he really couldn’t bring his hands down.
For the last twenty years of his life, everyone had taught him that he couldn’t
offend the nobility, otherwise the consequences would be extremely grave. But
now, he had to kill Jia Sha!
He didn’t hesitate to risk his life to save Cang Xu from the lizard group, but
he couldn’t kill Jia Sha.
“I can’t do it…” Bai Ya trembled with a weak voice, he wanted to cry.
Everyone else had dealt a blow to Jia Sha, and now countless gazes were focused
on Bai Ya.
Lan Zao was somewhat anxious, he wanted to step forth and lend a hand, but Zong
Ge stopped him, “Let him do it himself, for only if he does it voluntarily, can
he be considered one of us.”
“Hit him!” Lan Zao suddenly bellowed.
As if being electrocuted, Bai Ya’s body shook as his arms subconsciously forced
the stab down.
The dagger dug deep into Jia Sha’s neck, and into the latter’s trachea.
As blood slowly gushed out, and bloody foam poured out from Jia Sha’s mouth, he
laughed, “You’re done for. Your entire family is done for. All of you sinners
will die! I am only the first to leave, I will wait for you, I will wait for
all of you, hehehe…”
Bai Ya was dazed, he unconsciously let go of the dagger, and constantly rocked
his head as he stepped back, causing him to land of his buttocks and tumble
onto the ground.
Jia Sha’s breath gradually faded away, however, his laughter constantly grew.
The scarlet blood bubbling out began to pour in and gradually change color from
red to a deep blue.
The blue blood flooded the entire fourth level as the sound of the tide
whistled, and in an instant, Bai Ya found himself swept into the deepest abyss
of the seafloor.  
A moment later, Bai Ya suddenly awoke.
“What happened to me…” Bai Ya struggled to get up, but he felt incomparably
weak and didn’t have an smidge of strength.
His heart was beating wildly from the terror he still felt there.
“Did I fall ill?” On Mystifying Monster Island, he had fallen seriously ill.
A familiar feeling had attacked again.
But it was a little specious.
What he didn’t know, because of the night covering it up, was that black smoke
as emerging from his body.



****** Chapter 70: Repercussions ******
Snake Rat Island.
The deep curtain of night was falling upon the castle, the light coming from
the windows were as orange red as roasted meat finally taken from the flame, an
indescribable exhaustion seeping from it. 
In the castle study, Tan Qiu was still handling official business.
He gazed at the report, it was obviously just a thin piece of paper, however,
it weighed heavily in his hands.
Although they had repelled the demons, it had cost Snake Rat Island a lot.
It had all been at the cost of the expenditures Tan Qiu had painstakingly
developed.
Immense damage had been done.
“I have to bring people in. The current slave market price though…”
The demons had attacked the heartland of Snake Rat Island, Tan Qiu’s sole
economic center in his territory.
There were two thousand casualties, a hundred buildings ruined, but
fortunately, no major facilities were destroyed.
“Should I be glad that Snake Rat Island’s development has been stagnant? If
not, the damages would be even more painful!” Tan Qiu bitterly laughed.
“If it wasn’t for the three party deal giving me some people, the circumstances
now would be even worse.”
Snake Rat Island’s greatest resource was its underground magic beasts.
Likewise, their biggest industry was magic beast hunting. Apart from this, two
important pieces of infrastructure that were spared were the lumber yard and
mine, because they were in two other villages.
The most important facility in the coastal town. Excluding the castle, was the
port.
The port hadn’t been the focus of the demon’s offensive.
“If the port as attacked, the consequences would have been unthinkable.” When
Tan Qiu thought of that, he had a little lingering fear.
He continued to carefully think back, and his brows creased when he sensed that
Mo Kong’s attack was a little too much of a tiger’s head, but a snake’s tail.
Lan Lu was dead, the demons were routed, and Rou Zang and his crew hadn’t
appeared.
“What did the other party do?”
“What was their intentions?”
“Don’t tell me this was only a smokescreen to attract our attention, while in
reality, they have secretly arranged something?”
When Tan Qiu thought that his complexion grew uglier. 
Underneath his own castle, there had been a nearly gold level magic formation
hidden there.  
A bomb had been buried under his bedroom.
How awful!
“I have to investigate this thoroughly, the entire castle must be examined!”
Tan Qiu secretly resolved himself.
“Rou Zang, you have wounded me, I will return that to you a hundredfold!” Tan
Qiu’s heart was anguished, depressed, and doubtful mixed with a strong
indignation and abhorrence towards Rou Zang.
“My Lord, there is a situation.” At that moment, a steward rang the study’s
door bell.
“Come in, what’s the matter?” Tan Qiu raised his head.
He looked unperturbed.
If it had been an urgent matter, he wouldn’t be reporting like this.
During the day, there had been a serious demon attack, thus everything that
happened after that related to Rou Zang felt like mere trifles.
But the steward looked a little panicked.
“The townspeople have all been roused by nightmares. Many people noticed that
they were emitted black smoke, similar to what happened during the battle.”
“The town is already starting a disturbance. Many people have assembled by the
castle to appeal to you, my Feudal Lord.”
“Eh?” Tan Qiu went to the window at once and looked down.
Sure enough, he saw a group of people gathering in front of the castle’s gate,
and the amount was increasing.
Tan Qiu gazed into the distance, and because of the castle’s high elevation, he
saw that many parts of the town were lit up. From time to time, howls of fright
could be heard.
The town hadn’t been peaceful and stable after the battle, anxiety had spread.
Tan Qiu’s face grew even uglier.
The port.
The forecastle was shrouded in darkness, only a few strands of starlight peeped
from a window.
The big guy curled up his body to hide himself and shrink into a corner.
A faint black smoke emitted from his body.
He was having a nightmare.
In the execution square, Jia Sha, wearing the lordly clothes of Tan Qiu, was
proclaiming, “This little guy is guilty, this little guy’s father is guilty,
you are all guilty! Beheading, they shall be beheaded!”
The executioner raised his axe high.
Clack.
The axe went down, cutting off Cang Xu’s head.
Clack.
The axe descended again, removing Zi Di’s head.
Zong Ge wanted to resist, but with a clack, his head too was removed.
It was the dragonman youngster’s turn.
“Don’t, don’t behead my father!” The big guy howled, then rushed from the house
he was hiding in to attack the punishment platform.
He was quickly stopped by the city guard commander, and couldn’t advance.
The executioner raised their axe up, the ruthlessly swung down.
“No!” The big guy yelled.
Cang Xu was meditating.
Before he knew it, black smoke was wafting from his body.
His tranquil mind was suddenly filled with distracting thoughts.
A luxuriously decorated room.
The Bai Zhen clan elder, “These are two divine artifacts?”
“Correct.” Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster, and the others nodded.
The Bai Zhen clan elder caressed the Green Jade Gold Coffin and the Mermaid
Fairy Tale, then looked at a scroll.
It was an endless paper, and inside was listed all of War Merchant’s various
alchemy materials.  
The Bai Zhen clan elder was enthralled as he read, and clicked his tongue
incessantly in approval.
“Can our problem be solved?” Cang Xu asked.
“Not a problem at all!” The Bai Zhen clan elder interrupted, he lifted his head
and smiled, “I will immediately recommend you all to a noble, he can perfectly
solve your problem and redeem you.”
A bookcase slid open.
It turned out to be a secret door.
A Sheng Ming Church archbishop walked through.
He was accompanied by a group of templar knights,
Templar knights also broke through the window, and surrounded the survivors.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others grew furious.
Zi Di grew icy and questioned, “Bai Zhen clan elder, what is the meaning of
this?”
“You think that abducting my son and contributing these divine artifacts can
redeem you?”
“Hehehe, you are too naïve.”
“With these divine artifacts, my own contribution will go up, why should I
divide this merit with you?”
“They are indeed divine artifacts!”
“I believe that Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming will surely give me leniency and
allow my clan to have more heirs!”
After saying that, needles flew into the Bai Zhen clan elder’s chest.
The Bai Zhen clan elder coughed blood, and incredulously turned around to see
his assassin.
It was the Sheng Ming archbishop.
The archbishop smiled, “These are all my merits, Bai Zhen clan elder, why
should I divide it with you?”
“Furthermore…” The archbishop looked at the survivors, he brimmed with a legend
level aura, “According to the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s information,
there is another treasure more valuable than these two divine artifacts. It is
called the Bloodcore, hand it over!”
The fantasy seemed to shove Cang Xu into an icy hole, and for a moment, he
couldn’t free himself from it.
“Ah!!” The big guy, with eyes closed tight, bellowed and broke through the
forecastle.
The collapse of the forecastle roused Cang Xu.
Cang Xu felt lingering grievance, “How did I get caught in a hallucination?”
“That is?” He saw a strand of black smoke on him.
He promptly ran out and climbed on deck just in time to see the big guy wildly
smashing the deck with his limbs and head.
Many roused mercenaries were fearfully watching the big guy’s rampage, none
dared to stop him.
“Heavens!”
“How awful!”
“He is destroying the ship, who can stop him?”
A red figure flashed by.
The big guy toppled over with a loud bang, and lost consciousness.
“Captain Long Fu!” The mercenaries shouted with pleasant surprise.
“So direct and efficient.”
“That big guy fell over just like that?”
“Worthy of being our commander!”
The mercenaries exclaimed in admiration when they saw how easily the big guy
was subdued.
They scarcely realized that knocking the big guy unconscious was something the
dragonman youngster was intimately familiar with.
Zong Ge appeared soon after to placate the other mercenaries.
After stabilizing the situation, the survivors held a meeting.
“The situation is untenable.”
“We all had nightmares!”
“Not only us, but it also seems the same is happening in the town.”
After everyone communicated with each other, they noticed that this was the
repercussions of their battle during the day.
They had endured the horn devil’s and Mo Kong’s Fear spells, then afterwards,
Guang Ke had used the divine spell - Domain of the Light of Contrition
The survivors had burdened hearts, they had killed Jia Sha on Mystifying
Monster Island and now bore the sin of it.
The Domain of the Light of Contrition, in addition to the two Fear spells, had
left behind deep psychological trauma.
During the day, their minds were clear, thus they could suppress it. But at
night, while they were asleep or meditating, their moods could easily be
inundated with many thoughts, thus the repercussions revealed themselves.



****** Chapter 71: The Undiscovered Traitor ******
“What can be done?”
“In this situation, we generally need the priest to use a purification spell on
us.”
“I fear the priest will be very busy, he won’t be attending to us.” Cang Xu
gazed towards the castle.
Zi Di replied, “I can mix some soothing medication, but I cannot guarantee it
will work.”
It was a sleepless night.
When daylight came, the entirety of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was very
dispirited.
Almost everyone had been tormented.
Zong Ge grumbled, it was impossible for him to conduct training, and his
training program was forced to be suspended.
Zi Di was still mixing medicine, and needed more time.
“It is unimportant, the first thing to do is to get ahold of the Green Jade
Gold Coffin.” Zi Di emphasized repeatedly.
With this goal in mind, the dragonman youngster paid Tan Qiu a visit.
But Tan Qiu shook his head and stated that his hands were tied, “Nowadays,
matters related to the alliance are all handled by the priest.”
The dragonman youngster found the priest.
The priest first expressed his gratitude: the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
been outstanding during the battle against the demons. But soon after, he
tactfully declined the young man’s request to acquire a reward.
“Can you tell me the reason why?” The dragonman youngster solemnly turned, “In
the last battle, my Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps sustained great damage. If I
could have some resources, we could recuperate better and regain our battle
strength.”
With a complex tone, the priest replied, “How should I put it?”
“What does Lord Long Fu think the biggest problem with the alliance is?”
The dragonman youngster’s expression stirred slightly, “Could it be…”
When the priest saw how tongue tied the young man was, he knew the other had
understood his apprehension.
He said candidly, “Correct, it’s the undiscovered traitor!”
“Previously, Tan Qiu’s tax collector ship was attacked. Their secret shipping
route had been leaked, indicating that the feudal lord has a traitor hidden at
his side.”
“If that unfound traitor could learn that secret, they must hold a high
position.”
“This time, the demon raid caused immense harm to the town. Just by himself, Mo
Kong left us covered in dirt. Why?”
“The main reason is that he had the help of the magic formation, and that magic
formation was located right underneath the castle.”
“Think about that carefully, is it not ridiculous?”
“His territory has already been infiltrated to this extent!”
“To covertly build that magic formation in such a place would be impossible
without the traitor’s assistance.”
“Therefore, we have decided to not grant rewards for the time being.”
“Wait until after Rou Zang’s pirates have been annihilated, then we shall
evaluate your merits and reward you for them.”
“This is to avoid the traitor haunting us from stealing our resources and
attacking the alliance’s morale!”
The dragonman youngster’s look sank slightly, “Don’t tell me you suspect we are
the traitors? You must know that after we only came to Snake Rat Island after
being attacked by Rou Zang’s pirates, nor are we one of the feudal lord’s
people.”
The father chuckled, “Lord Long Fu, if my next words offend you, please forgive
me.”
“Mystery follows in your group’s footsteps, one can say your history is
unknown.”
Although you say you are a mercenary corps, based on our investigation, your
group isn’t registered in the Mercenary Guild’s database.”
“Your group defeated Rou Zang twice, an impressive military record.
“However, silver levels defeating a gold level is an exceedingly rare thing.”
“If it wasn’t seen personally, ordinary people would fine it hard to believe.”
“As the alliance commander, even if I trust your group, I also need to bear
responsibility for the others, no?”
The priest still spoke relatively tactfully.
The dragonman youngster could only regretfully leave for the time being.
After returning, he discussed it with the others.
Cang Xu coldly snorted, “He simply doesn’t trust us!”
Zong Ge shook his head, “If I were Rou Zang, I would also likely arrange a
specific troop to infiltrate the enemy during a prior attack on Snake Rat
Island.”
“Our origins are certainly suspicious, it is unclear, and it is normal to be
suspicious of it.”
The dragonman youngster muttered to himself, “If we are suspected, the other
groups don’t have grounds to run away either. Such as the Night Devil Hunting
Group and Hei Fei’s fleet.”
Zi Di frowned, “If that happens, how can the alliance deal with Rou Zang’s
pirate group if they suspect each other?”
Although Guang Ke had accepted the request and joined the alliance, after the
demon raid, the entire alliance had sank to misgivings and had a crisis of
confidence.
They weren’t a singular group, rather Tan Qiu had cajoled them together by
every possible mean. 
Even worse, because of the lack of funds, Tan Qiu wasn’t the commander, rather
he had abdicated it to the priest.
As the undiscovered traitor hadn’t been rooted out, the priest delaying
remuneration was the correct choice.
The situation was not something the Dragon Lion Mercenary Crops could direct,
thus the survivors decided to continue recuperating and wait for the situation
to develop further.
After fighting the demons, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had to treat their
wounded properly.
Zi Di did her best to mix medicine, but it didn’t do much.
She sought the tower spirit’s help to try and improve the medicine.
The arduous research took all of her energy, and she valued every second of it.
When not researching, she was meditating and practicing magic.
While meditating, she, like Cang Xu, also had overwhelming thoughts that
dragged her into deranged hallucinations.
“Waa…” A baby wailed.
Zi Di immediately stopped mixing medicine and ran to the infant’s bed.
“Oh, my small darling” She carried up the baby and warmly consoled.
The child she held belonged to her and the dragonman youngster.
It was a boy.
He had a dragon head and a human body.
As the boy cried, from time to time, he would belch out one or two small
flames.
The baby’s bed was set ablaze and was instantly cremated.
Zi Di did not mind.
She was now very wealthy.
After redeeming themselves, she and the dragonman youngster married and had a
child. With War Merchant’s inheritance, she made a fortune every day and
revitalized the Wisteria Merchant Alliance.
“So, you were hungry.”
“Come, drink this.”
“I developed this milk medication specifically for you.”
Zi Di brought the baby to a cistern.
The cistern was filled with milky white milk medication.
Holding the baby’s legs, Zi Di dunked his dragon head into the milky white
medication.
The baby drank the mixture.
The liquid level of the medication quickly dropped, until it was completely
gone.
The baby began to grow. After drinking the medicine, he grew from the size of a
one year old to the size of a four or five year old. 
“Stop growing, if you grow anymore, your father won’t recognize you when he
returns.” Zi Di was both delighted and worried.
At that moment, Fei She burst through the door, panic filled his face, “Its
horrible, Lord President. You husband drowned while swimming!”
“Impossible! He is a legend level person, how can he drown while swimming?” Zi
Di didn’t dare to believe this disheartening news.
“Hehehe, of course, I assassinated him.” An assassin then appeared, they had a
demigod level aura. “It’s time for you to join him!”
“No, why are you doing this to me? We already gave up the divine artifacts and
received our pardons!” Zi Di’s eyes went red.
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance is too large! No one allowed your merchant
alliance to invade and occupy the benefits of many nobles. You three will all
die!” After the assassin finished speaking, he immediately attacked.
Zi Di fell in a pool of blood, and as she lay dying, she saw the assassin
murder her child, destroying her family root and branch.
She shrieked, then suddenly woke up.
Her weak ghostly body looked like a clump of smoke.
A strand of black smoke emitted from her body.
She had sustained a grave injury.
The repercussions of the Fear spells and the Domain of the Light of Contrition
had exceeded the survivors’ expectations.
It wasn’t just Zi Di, the others were also suffering these disturbances.
“Perhaps, we should seek the priest’s aid, he knows the Purification divine
spell.” The dragonman youngster suggested.
The priest is busy calming down the people, and is very busy, in addition, his
medical treatment is very expensive.” Zi Di overruled, “Don’t forget, we have
the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and the Deceptive Disguise spell on
us. The purification divine spell will weaken the effects of those magics.”
Although it is unlikely our true identities will be revealed, after those two
magics are impaired, we have to replenish them.”
“The replenishment cost is immense, we don’t have the finances to support it.”
Cang Xu followed up, “Time will solve this problem. This is not a curse, and as
time passes, the repercussions will grow weaker.”
Tan Qiu was caught in his own nightmare.
He took on a younger appearance.
He was on a ship that was drifting through the sea, its sails burning.
There were pirate ships all around.
The young Tan Qiu was taken by pirates and brought to Rou Zang.
“Kneel!” Tan Qiu was forced to his knees.
Rou Zang narrowed his eyes and looked down at Tan Qiu, “Hehe, a noble! Very
good, I look forward to ransoming you.”
But Tan Qiu shook his head, his face dark, “I am from an unremarkable branch
clan, to obtain the rights to Snake Rat Island, I had to sell off all my family
assets and used up all my contacts. If you want to ransom me, you will be quite
disappointed.”
“Then what use are you? Die!” Rou Zang had no patience for this, and
immediately got up to tear Tan Qiu to shreds.
But Tan Qiu immediately shouted, “Don’t kill me!”
“Although I can’t be ransomed, I have the right to run Snake Rat Island!”
“Release me, I can secretly deliver you benefits and give you information on
merchant alliance ships.”
“Snake Rat Island has abundant magic beast resources, as long as you give me
time and let me run it, I can have profits.”
“The Hunting Guild will certainly be interested.”
“Merchant alliances will follow, I will get in touch with merchant alliances.
You’ve heard of the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, right? It is a world famous
merchant alliance!”
“Let me go, and your earnings will increase immensely.”
Rou Zang hesitated, he looked at Mo Kong.
Mo Kong pondered for a while, then said to Rou Zang, “Boss, he speaks the
truth.”
“These seas belong to us.”
“But it hasn’t been prosperous. There are many islands, but all of them are
quite impoverished and dilapidated.
“If he can develop Snake Rat Island, this place will be prosperous and have
many more merchant ships passing through.”
“Who would think that the feudal lord here is our inside line?”
“Is that not quite interesting?”
Rou Zang thought on it, then burst into laughter, “Good words.”
“Henceforth, you are now one of ours.”
“If you betray me in the future, you will die!”
Mo Kong sneered, “You will first sign this magic contract.”
Tan Qiu went white, and he tenaciously clenched his teeth, “Before I sign the
contract, I have one condition.”
“You dare to put in a condition?” Rou Zang raised his brows, and his killing
intent flared.
Tan Qiu weathered the immense pressure and looked Rou Zang face to face, “Kill
all of the other pirates around! I don’t wish to have this many knowing this
secret. Otherwise, any leak will cause me to lose my standing and you won’t be
able to fish up any benefits!”
Rou Zang and Mo Kong sank into silence.
The pirates around them stood up anxiously, each of them begging for
forgiveness and swearing their vows.
“That damnable noise, I’ll kill you all!” Rou Zang grinned evilly as he went
about murdering his underlings.



****** Chapter 72: The Justice God’s Teachings ******
“Hu! Ha! Hu!” Tan Qiu gasped for air as he awoke from his nightmare.
He got out of his large and soft bed.
He topped a cup with wine and drank it down.
The nightmare hovered around him like a ghost entwined with him.
He drank another cup before his mood gradually leveled out.
He unconsciously walked to a mirror, causing him to see the lingering black
smoke around his body and the face that was relatively older than the one in
the dream.
“It has already been five years…” Tan Qiu’s eyes revealed his complex mood.
To survive, he secretly relied on Rou Zang. He had abandoned his noble dignity
and honor and had given himself wholly to a pirate.
Through great efforts, he had developed Snake Rat Island and didn’t dare to
relax even a little as he ran it in a dazzling manner.
He had sold information and let Rou Zang plunder while feigning innocence. On
the other hand, he had been secretly gathering strength so that he could one
day destroy Rou Zang.
Rou Zang must die!
This had always been Tan Qiu’s obsession.
“But who was the undiscovered traitor now?”
“Who leaked the tax collector ship’s route?”
“Who covered for Mo Kong and allowed him to establish the magic formation in
the depths of the castle?”
This information naturally hadn’t been given by Tan Qiu.
“In addition, this repercussion must be cleansed as soon as possible!”
The morning sun gradually rose, and warm sunlight temporarily dispersed the
gloom hanging over Snake Rat Island.
“Lord Guang Ke.” Tan Qiu found Guang Ke and mentioned the repercussions to him.
Tan Qiu requested, “You are a believer of the Justice God, shouldn’t you have a
method of alleviating the effects of the Domain of the Light of Contrition?
Currently, our entire town has been suffering disturbances, many commoners
cannot sleep peacefully, and they hope that you can help them.”
If it had been just one Fear spell or just Domain of the Light of Contrition,
the repercussions wouldn’t have been this severe.
Crucially, they had been used back to back, causing the effects to exceed
everyone’s expectations.
But this time, Guang Ke shook his head and declined.
He sternly replied, “Feudal Lord Tan Qiu, what do you believe is justice?”
Tan Qiu stared blankly.
Guang Ke then said, “Should we not seek after justice?”
Tan Qiu nodded and without the slightest hesitation, answered, “Of course!
Justice is sought by every lord, and even every imperial citizen.”
“Not only in the empire, but also by the other races of the other continents.”
Guang Ke stretched out his arms, as if he wanted to hug the world, “Justice
should be pursued by every intelligent being.”
“If everyone felt they had a sufficient sense of justice, why is there still
bullying and humiliation? Why is there still corruption? Why are there still
plots and tyranny?”
“If all pirates had a sense of justice, they would mend their ways or cease
their wrongdoings. Thus, the problems your Lordship is experiencing wouldn’t
have happened.”
Guang Ke had an air of holiness as he said that.
When Tan Qiu saw Guang Ke like that, he suddenly realized what was happening,
and his complexion twisted, “Lord Guang Ke, I know the necessity of justice, I
also revere the Justice God. But currently, it is impossible for all
intelligent life in the world to follow just principles.”
“In my opinion, if one wants to uphold justice, one must render punishment onto
sins!”
Guang Ke smiled, “I already do that.”
“Feudal Lord, why do you think the Domain of the Light of Contrition divine
spell exists?”
Tan Qiu was dumbstruck.
Guang Ke explained, “It seems you understand.”
“Correct, the Domain of the Light of Contrition divine spell does not attack or
control enemies. Its primary effect it to make living beings sense their own
sins, thereby repenting and comprehending the meaning of righteousness!”
“I personally checked out the situation in town.”
“Those commoners feel their sins, and even more so have come to realize how
important justice is, thus henceforth, they shall follow the law and uphold
justice. Is that not a good thing?”
“As far as they are concerned, they shall live honorable lives. And you, feudal
lord, shall take pleasure in having a crimeless territory.”
Upon hearing Guang Ke speaking so plainly, Tan Qiu’s face grew even worse, and
he curtly replied, “Are you saying that you, Lord Guang Ke, are preaching in my
territory?”
“Of course.” Guang Ke admitted without the slightest hesitation.
He proceeded to show an expression that bemoaned the state of the world and
pitied the fate of men, “You know? During the first half of my life, I traveled
everywhere and was chivalrous, yet I felt more and more perplexed.”
“I doubted myself, was what I was doing really helping?”
“Despite justice being put on a pedestal by me, I am only one man, how much
could I really change this world?”
“Until I met my God.” Guang Ke bowed his head like he was giving a prayer,
“Only then did I understand that if I wanted to truly change the world, I could
not rely on myself alone. I had to make the people change themselves from deep
within their hearts. I had to engrave my God’s teachings deeply into their
hearts and fill each of them with a sense of justice.”
“By accomplishing this, the entire world will be filled with righteousness.
When that time comes, chivalrous individuals will be unnecessary.”
“Ah, how beautiful the world would be!”
Tan Qiu was silent.
He had a headache. 
Guang Ke’s desire to evangelize would cause conflict with other powers and the
Sheng Ming Church’s priest.
The well-organized alliance had an unexpected problem.
How troublesome!
Guang Ke clearly wanted to use this opportunity to disseminate the Justice
God’s teachings and grow his church.
He wouldn’t resolve the repercussions.
On the contrary, he was pleased to let it take its course,
“Although the priest can purify the repercussions, his abilities are limited,
he’s only a silver level.”
“Guang Ke is a gold level.”
“The two oppose each other, and it seems Guang Ke bite off a piece of this
place and develop many Justice God believers here!”
Monarchical power, divine right.
On Snake Rat Island, Tan Qiu represented monarchial power while the church
priest represented divine right.
The divine right of Guang Ke and the priest conflicted, and from the surfaces,
it seemed that monarchical power was unconnected. 
But in reality, it wasn’t so.
The two powers were always independent, yet unified.
The empire’s supreme master, Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, was the best
representative of the unity between monarchical power and divine right.
The priest held the home ground advantage, but for the time being, he was no
match for Guang Ke.
“If he wanted to ask for help, then his best option is me.” Tan Qiu foresaw the
situation.
From the bottom of his heart, Tan Qiu preferred the priest.
Because the Justice God was no match for Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming.
Furthermore, Guang Ke was just one man.
The priest had the entire Sheng Ming Church behind him.
The Justice God Church could not match the scale of the Sheng Ming Church, it
was like comparing an ant to a giant.
Guang Ke could not stay on Snake Rat Island for long and would leave
eventually.
The Justice Church that relied on him would no longer be able to resist the
Sheng Ming Church and be subdued by the latter and lose territory.
However, at present time, Tan Qiu depended on Guang Ke to deal with Rou Zang.
He couldn’t offend either side.
Therefore, after bidding farewell to Guang Ke, Tan Qiu returned to the castle
and claimed that he was ill.
He was actively recuperating and wouldn’t be able to see any visitors
temporarily.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ situation hadn’t improved much.
The repercussions caused by the Fear spells and the Domain of the Light of
Contrition were very obstinate.
Although their effects lessened as time passed, it didn’t lessen by much.
The dragonman youngster was deeply worried and heartsick at this.
He sought Tan Qiu for help, but Tan Qiu had fallen ill.
Guang Ke and the priest were scrapping over believers, making the situation
subdued, yet complex.
After survivors discussed, they chose to sit by as spectators.
“Father, you can’t die!” The big guy lamented to the young man, his tears
dripping after enduring another nightmare.
The young captain consoled him warmly.
“Father, I’m sorry, I can’t save you!” The big guy wept, “I, I am so useless!”
The dragonman youngster quickly replied, “Therefore, you should intensify your
training and become stronger!”
The big guy nodded firmly.
However, he still hadn’t created a basic battle qi circulation yet. 
The big guy was reflection of the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corp’s
situation.
Because of the repercussions, Cang Xu and Zi Di’s meditations had become high
risk and low reward activities.
The entire mercenary corps’ morale had slumped.
Only Zong Ge behaved most like his usual self.
The dragonman youngster asked what the reason was, and Zong Ge didn’t hide it
when he answered, “I prayed to my God!”
When people felt weak, they prayed more piously.
The god Zong Ge believed in was the imperial War God.
Cang Xu believed in the Great Lord Spectral Soul. 
Lan Zao carried around the figure of the Fishnet Goddess.
Zi Di and Fei She believed in the same god, the Wealth Goddess.
Bai Ya was a devoted believer in the Hunting God.
While Mu Ban’s god was the Smithing God.
During this time, it was clear that the survivors were praying towards the gods
even more.
“What do I believe in?” The dragonman examined himself and sank into
bewilderment.
On Mystifying Monster Island, he believed he had been a templar knight and only
believed in Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming.
However, after the truth was revealed, the dragonman youngster was an
unbeliever.
He was also suffering the torturous repercussions.
The sin of murdering Jia Sha was a deep shadow lurking deep in his heart.
He was completely worried about the future of him, Zi Di, Cang Xu, and the
others.
“I am guilty!”
“I violated imperial law when I murdered a priest of the Sheng Ming Church.”
“Murder, murder of an imperial citizen is a crime.”
“But what could I do? The circumstances at the time meant that if I wasn’t
seeking to survive, I would have died.”
The young man constantly told himself, but it was hard to break away from the
heaviness of his heart.
It was impossible for him to pray to Emperor Sheng Ming every again.
He felt more reverence towards Emperor Sheng Ming than admiration and love.
“Which god should I believe in?”
The perplexed young man automatically looked towards Guang Ke.
These days, Guang Ke was mingling with the commoners and was using divine
spells to heal then while publicly lecturing about the Justice God’s creed. 
So, the young man had gained a good understanding of the Justice God’s
teachings from him.
“As a knight, even if I am not a templar knight, I should be pursuing justice.”
The dragonman youngster found Guang Ke.
After finding out about the young man’s circumstances, Guang Ke’s eyes shined.
He valued the young man greatly!
This was a silver level believer.
Guang Ke immediately preached to the young man and introduced him to the
beliefs of the Justice God.
“You have an upright heart.”
“My God will show you the way as you walk the path of righteousness.”
“First, you should be sincere and humble, and strive to study my teachings.”
Thus, the young man became a believer of the Justice God.
Guang Ke turned his gaze to Zong Ge and the others, “Your mercenary corps is
quite good, however, your members have heterogeneous believers, that is a large
lurking danger.”
Since the young man was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ head, he wanted to use
this road to expand the amount of believers.
The young man’s heart acknowledged this viewpoint, “We are of different races
and beliefs. It isn’t conductive to unity, and it is easy for these varied
teachings to conflict with each other.”
“If our beliefs were either consistent or at least similar, then it would make
the mercenary corps more united.”
With this opinion in mind, the young man allowed Guang Ke to preach.
The preaching didn’t amount to much.
Zong Ge snorted disdainfully at the Justice God: could the Justice God beat the
War God?
Zi Di chuckled: compared to earning money, what was justice?
Cang Xu disguised himself, no normal person believed in the Great Lord Spectral
Soul.
Lan Zao, Bai Ya, and Mu Ban were also firm believers. Because their convictions
had been established in their formative years, those convictions had a
significant influence on their lives.
Changing the faith of these people was like changing their system of values,
such a thing was not easy to do.



****** Chapter 73: Retrieving the Divine Artifact! ******
A new church to the Justice God was built in town.
The church’s prayer room had an idol of the Justice God.
He was a middle aged man adorned in armor, had thick eyebrows, big eyes, a
square face, and a solemn expression. He stood straight and in one hand held a
javelin and in the other a square shield.
Guang Ke kneeled before the idol and bowed his head sincerely in prayer, “My
God, grand Justice God, you are the light of redemption, the hope of this
world. Under your guidance, I am no longer weak, no longer frightened. Let me
bravely keep to your guided path and glorify your name.” 
Guang Ke had another kneeling by him.
It was the dragonman youngster.
He followed Guang Ke in prayer,
This was not his first time doing so.
After the prayer finished, Guang Ke and the dragonman youngster respectfully
and quietly left.
They closed the door and walked side by side.
Because the young man had changed his faith, Guang Ke’s attitude towards him
had also changed, and had gotten more intimate with the former.
“Have circumstances improved a lot?” Guang Ke asked.
The dragonman youngster knew Guang Ke was inquiring about the repercussions and
told it as it was, “It’s gotten a lot better.”
As time passed, the repercussions gradually diminished, and the nightmares no
longer appeared as often, Thus the morale of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had picked up again.
The dragonman youngster continued, “Despite still waking up in the middle of
the night, after I believed in my God, I instead think that this is an
opportunity. The sins I shoulder bring me suffering. Through confession and
prayer, I obtain a tranquil spirit from the suffering and cement myself further
on the path of righteousness.”
Guang Ge smiled and praised, “It is very good you have such an understanding.
Confessing and recognizing your mistakes is just the beginning of your
transformation.”
“It was precisely when I understood this point that I was able to comprehend
the divine spell, the Domain of the Light of Contrition.”
“As you uphold justice with a firm heart, continuously walk down its path, and
constantly deepen your belief in our God, you too will receive divine spells.”
“Regardless of what divine spell they are, they shall improve your strength.”
“After all, silver levels are still lowly in the sea.”
Guang Ke expressed concern for the dragonman youngster.
“In my God’s creed, there is a saying.”
“Justice without strength is useless, and strength without justice is tyranny.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes shined, he first muttered those words to
himself, then frankly replied, “I will engrave that teaching into my memory. By
the way, isn’t it true that Rou Zang represents tyranny?”
“Bringing Rou Zang to justice is upholding justice.:
“Does Lord Guang Ke know of the intelligence that came this morning?”
Guang Ke nodded.
Stone Forest Island was an island affiliated with Snake Rat Island, and was
part of Tan Qiu’s territory.
Stone Forest Island was also an important source of tax revenue, but this
morning, sad news came from it,
The island had been attacked by Rou Zang, all of the taxes on it had been
snatched by him, but fortunately, because the inhabitants had scattered in
time, the casualties were limited.
The dragonman youngster sternly declared, “Lord Guang Ke, I want to lead my
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps for Stone Forest Island to see what happened!”
“Eh?”
The dragonman youngster continued, “Rou Zang’s pirate group rarely appears,
this is a good chance to catch the trail. If they persistently avoid battle
with our alliance, then we’ll always be at a disadvantage.”
As time dragged on, the alliance would automatically collapse, after all, it
had been assembled temporarily from many pieces.
Guang Ke frowned, “But don’t you understand? Rou Zang suddenly attacking Stone
Forest Island after the demon raid is very suspicious. This is likely a trap he
has arranged.”
“I understand.” The dragonman youngster candidly replied, “We have become the
vanguard, an important duty. If it is a trap, then perhaps we will receive the
first strike from Rou Zang’s pirate group and bear the most harm.”
“But this has to be done by someone, no?”
“As a believer in the Justice God, how can I cower?”
“Excellent.” Guang Ke couldn’t help but have a new respect for the dragonman
youngster, “You possess great courage. I support your course of action, my only
regret is that I cannot join you.”
Guang Ke was the alliance’s strongest person and could not act blindly without
thought.
Under normal circumstances, he would be overseeing everything.
If he followed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in their investigation if Stone
Forest Island, he could easily throw himself at shadows, allowing Rou Zang’s
pirate group to easily mobilize and catch him in a passive situation.
If this was a trap Rou Zang’s pirate group had arranged, where they wanted to
encircle or ambush the other party, it would be preferred if Guang Ke entered
the battlefield as backup.
Under these circumstances, the vanguard, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had to
do their duty to expend as much of Rou Zang’s battle strength as possible.
“I understand.” The dragonman youngster understood Guang Ke’s choice.
Soon after, he raised a minor request.
Before moving out, he hoped that he first be able to exchange for equipment and
resources to strengthen the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
He was very interested in the Sheng Ming Church’s standardized equipment.
Guang Ke nodded, “This is a reasonable request, I will stand by it.”
Upon convincing Guang Ke, the dragonman youngster returned satisfied.
He then paid a visit to Tan Qiu,
At first, Tan Qiu wasn’t willing to see him, for the last several days, he had
used an illness as a buttress to politely refuse visitors and succeeded in
preventing himself from getting caught up in the whirling struggle between the
two religions. 
But when the dragonman youngster explained his purpose in coming, Tan Qiu
personally invited him to dinner.
When the terrible news from Stone Forest Island arrived, as feudal Lord, it was
impossible for Tan Qiu to remain indifferent.
The demon raid and the mysterious unfound traitor withered the feudal lord’s
mind and made him overly suspicious.
After analyzing the intelligence, he privately believed that it was extremely
probable that this was a trap Rou Zang had set up.
He didn’t want to rashly dispatch his fleet.
Snake Rat Island only had one main fleet, if it was lost, Tan Qiu would be in a
terrible situation.
But wouldn’t let other powers scout it out?
Ample rewards would induce bravery, but Tan Qiu didn’t have the resources to
provide that.
The priest over yonder was hard pressed by Guang Ke.
But now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had assumed the heavy burden of being
the vanguard, and was tantamount to being the solution to Tan Qiu’s problem.
As expected, Tan Qiu rejoiced, and during their dinner together, he praised the
dragonman youngster’s conduct greatly.
The dragonman youngster raised his request again, and informed him that he had
Guang Ke’s support for it.
Tan Qiu patted his chest and said, “That is a must!  Unfortunately, I am not
the alliance’s leader, otherwise if I knew which reward it was in advance, it
would be fine.”
“However…when does your group plan to depart?”
The dragonman youngster directly replied, “The military situation is extremely
urgent, the sooner the better! As long as we finish arming, my group can depart
immediately.”
“Good!” Tan Qiu praised, and he gave a thumbs up.
When the dragonman youngster departed, he brought a letter written by Tan Qiu
with him.
The latter couldn’t leave the castle yet as he was still quite “ill”.
The dragonman youngster went to the Sheng Ming Church and made his purpose in
coming known to the priest.
The priest hesitated.
As of now, the undiscovered traitor hadn’t been found yet, and if the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps were the spies, by giving them Sheng Ming templar knight
equipment to them, he would be aiding his enemies.
The priest’s prestige in the church would be greatly wounded.
It was risky.
The dragonman youngster took out Tan Qiu’s letter while stating that he also
had Guang Ke’s support.
When the priest heard that, his previous misgivings had mostly subsided. Even
if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were revealed to be traitors in the future,
this decision hadn’t been made by just him.
Furthermore, the current situation demanded that someone go to Stone Forest
Island.
The alliance could not delay.
From another point of view, the faster the bothersome Rou Zang was eliminated,
the sooner Guang Ke would leave Snake Rat Island.
The priest needed a swift victory.
Catching the trail of Rou Zang’s pirate group was a prerequisite to defeat
them.
“Fine, what does your group want to exchange for exactly?” The priest finally
relented.
The dragonman youngster looked at the scroll. He first got some standard
templar knight equipment, got some medicine, then finally used the last merits
to exchange for some property.
Within the property was a gold and jade wrought coffin.
It was the divine artifact, the Green Jade Gold Coffin!
When the dragonman youngster returned from his rewarding journey, the survivors
were ecstatic.
“We finally got it.”
“It wasn’t easy.”
“We can depart Snake Rat Island at once!”
Just as the young man had promised Tan Qiu, after they quickly assembled, they
departed.
During the departure, the priest, Guang Ke, along with a sickly looking Tan Qiu
came to see them off.
“Finally, we depart this place.” The survivors had conflicting feelings as they
slowly watched the port and the people on it slowly vanish.
On that island, they had recuperated well.
Their troops had gotten a new look.
They had built the Anti-investigation and Prophecy Formation, obtained a lot of
resources, and most importantly, retrieved the Green Jade Gold Coffin!
They didn’t steal the divine artifact, and avoided ranking themselves on the
pirate’s Sacred Monument.
However.
Not long after the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group left the island, the port’s
lighthouse transmitted an ear-piercing alarm.
A pirate vessel was bearing directly at the port.
The pirate flag made know its identity, it was the Grass Head Pirate Group.
Tan Qiu and the others were startled.
The Grass Head Pirate Group’s boss, the Swordsman Xi Cao, stood on the deck
with his empty hands raised up. He was shouting that he was surrendering.
Bewildered, Tan Qiu and the others detained him.
There were other sailors on the pirate ship.
There were only ten of them, and they were barely able to sail the ship.
Interrogation was unnecessary as Swordsman Xi Cao declared why he had come.
Tan Qiu’s and the other’s bewilderment grew.
“Are you saying, the person from the Great Pain Temple that defeated Rou Zang
publicly, is Rou Zang’s senior brother, Gu Qiao?”
“Now, Rou Zang and Mo Kong are imprisoned. The Bath Tubis under Gu Qiao’s
control and is leaving these waters?”
Swordsman Xi Cao nodded, “Didn’t you want to deal with Rou Zang? This is your
best chance. If you don’t capture him, these seas will no longer hold the Bath
Tub.”
The alliance leaders looked at each other in dismay.
“Why are you disclosing this to us? You attached yourself to Rou Zang, you are
a commander in his pirate group, why would we trust your lies?” Captain Hei Fei
expressed his doubts.
Swordsman Xi Cao bitterly laughed, “I was controlled by Mo Kong, under a
devil’s curse. Although Mo Kong was captured, he used magic to contact me and
forced me to come, otherwise he would kill me.”
“I didn’t want to come here.”
“If I came, I might not die. If I didn’t come, the curse would flare up and
kill me!”
“As for why I came, according to what that wretched jerk Mo Kong said, I am
important enough to be believed.”
The alliance heads sank into silence.
Tan Qiu suddenly said, “No wonder the demon raid was a little baffling. It
turns out that Rou Zang’s pirate group was being impeded hand and foot, and
were unable to coordinate with the attack.”
“Hold on.” Guang Ke gazed at Swordsman Xi Cao, “Since the Bath Tubis under Gu
Qiao’s control, who attacked Stone Forest Island? According to our information,
Rou Zang personally came ashore and led his troops to pillage the entire
island.”
“Stone Forest Island?” Swordsman Xi Cao raised his brows, his face was covered
in suspicion, “It is impossible for Rou Zang to attack there.”
“It is even more impossible for my Grass Head Pirate Group to do so either.”
The Flower Wall Pirate Group is still pursuing the Bath Tub and waiting for an
opportune moment. According to Mo Kong’s plan, If I fail here, the Flower Wall
Pirate Group will attack and fight to give Mo Kong a chance to escape.”
Swordsman Xi Cao spoke with conviction, which made the alliance leaders
incessantly puzzled.
If it wasn’t Rou Zang’s pirate group, then who attacked Stone Forest Island?
“Don’t tell me there is a third party?”
“I think that Swordsman Xi Cao is relatively trustworthy. If it was a trap, why
would a commander be sacrificed?”
“Quick, send a message to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, tell them what the
situation is here!”
“According to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship speed and time passed, I’m
afraid that will be difficult. They are already out of magic communication
device range.”



****** Chapter 74: Making War ******
A blue sky with white clouds.
Blue ocean waves.
Six ships sailed with the wind.
It was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet.
Five ships were from Da Zhao’s pirate group, while the other was one of Hei
Fei’s slave ships.
These ships had all been remodeled, and because of the bitter training, the
sailors on board had a dauntless spirit.
In the captain’s room, the dragonman youngster was comparing ocean maps.
Right now, they were headed towards Stone Forest Island.
After retrieving the Green Jade Gold Cofin, the survivors’ next destination was
Two Eyes Island.
Two Eyes Island was bigger than Snake Rat Island, and had more robust
infrastructure. More crucially, the island had a Wisteria Merchant Alliance
shop.
Zi Di needed to use this store and the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s power to
get in contact with the Bai Zhen clan elder.
Other channels were very risky.
Stone Forest Island was on the way.
The survivors could conveniently pass by.
After the Green Jade Gold Coffin left the island, they smuggled it into the
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Everyone had decided that they would explore Stone Forest Island and discern
the truth there.
They wouldn’t make landfall, only get close to it.
The survivors were relying on the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
This alchemy ship hadn’t been exposed yet, and it had three incredibly strong
detection methods.
Not only that, but they also had many scouting birds.
With these two acting together, they could detect most ships.
After getting the information, they would use a magic communication device as
well as bird scouts to inform Snake Rat Island of the situation.
Thus, they wouldn’t be in violation of the magic contract.
After achieving this, they would be free to move as they wished.
The alliance contract was very loose.
Unreasonable military orders could be ignored.
Both sides had the right of pertinent interpretation.
If the situation permitted it, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also wanted to
deal with Rou Zang’s pirate group.
After all, the alliance had many hands and the legendary Guang Ke.
As long as Rou Zang’s pirate group and the alliance met in open battle, those
of Snake Rat Island were favored to win.
If there weren’t more important things to do, the dragonman youngster was
willing to stay behind and fight Rou Zang with Guang Ke.
It was just as he had said: this was the path of justice!
Stone Forest Island gradually came into view.
The island was bigger than Snake Rat Island, but it was barren, covered in
rocks and sparse vegetation.
In the center of the island, there were hundreds of stone pillars.  
These stone pillars were of varying thicknesses, but all of them were wider at
the bottom and thinner at the top, like gigantic bamboo shoots.
The stone pillars made up a stone forest, thus this was where Stone Forest
Island got its name from.
“That is the island’s most important resource, those stone pillars contain
Brain Pebbles.
“If those white pebbles are of high quality, they will contain red veiny lines,
and look like a person’s brain.”
“Brain Pebbles are an alchemy material with many uses. The material can range
from bronze level to silver level quality.” Zi Di introduced. 
Before the lookouts, the survivors had used the Deep Sea Monster Fish to scout
out Stone Forest Island.
A group of birds flew out, some of them were holding a rat in their feet.
It was the scout birds and scout rats.
These alchemy puppets dispersed into Stone Forest Island’s skies, those with
rats first dropped them off, before then dancing in the breeze in all
directions.
Many sights were subsequently transmitted to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The survivors saw a desolated village.
Fires were still burning.
The village was already in ruins.
There were traces of the pirate’s attack everywhere.
There was not a trace of anyone.
“There must be survivors on the island. They were the ones who informed Snake
Rat Island of this.” Zong Ge’s brows pursed, “We must be careful, these
battlefield traces are somewhat odd.”
Zong Ge couldn’t say why it felt so odd.
It was only a feeling.
The dragonman youngster ordered the ships to slow.
The six ships circled around Stone Forest Island and cautiously observed it
from a distance.
After a half hour, the Deep Sea Monster Fish finally detected human life.
The surviving villagers were hiding in a cave.
The cave was in a remote location, it was under a cliff that hung over the
ocean.
The scouts couldn’t communicate and were unable to speak with the villagers.
“We need to make contact with them.” Said Cang Xu, “Merely observing won’t be
enough for Tan Qiu and the others.”
Zong Ge added on, “Currently, we don’t detect any signs of Rou Zang’s pirate
group, but that does not exclude a potential ambush on the island. We only need
to dispatch a single person to acquire information from the villagers.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Which person do you recommend?”
A short while later.
Upon receiving the order, Xu Ma confronted Lan Zao and pointed a finger at him
with glaring eyes, “I’m going ashore alone?!”
“Correct.” Said Lan Zao, “You will need to get more information from those
villagers. Based on current observations, Rou Zang’s pirate group is not here.”
Xu Ma went white, and he anxiously replied, “But I heard that the Bath Tub can
turn invisible. If by any chance they are lying in ambush, and we didn’t notice
it…”
Lan Zao was solemn, “It is because of this that we dispatch you alone.”
“You cultivate the Spider Walking battle qi technique, you are agile and
nimble, thus you are the most appropriate choice for this.”
Xu Ma was dumbstruck.
Lan Zao encouraged, “This is a good chance to distinguish yourself. According
to our mercenary corps’ rules, after this mission is completed, you will
receive a considerable contribution for it.”
To the side, Bai Ya casted an admiring gaze, “Prove yourself Senior Xu Ma, the
commanders have already taken note of your abilities, this will add onto that!”
Xu Ma wanted to weep dry tears as he had no choice but to bitterly sail a boat
to the island.
Using the map Lan Zao had given him, he smoothly entered the cave and went to
meet with the villagers.
“Someone came!” The villagers shouted, they had already noticed the birds
circling in the air and the fleeting moving around the island.
Xu Ma promptly shouted, “Don’t shoot, I am from Snake Rat Island, and under
Lord Tan Qiu’s orders, have come to investigate this place!”
The villagers looked at each other, and hesitated.
As he was an iron level fighter, the village chief stood out, he gave an order
to let him pass.
Xu Ma was received by the villagers.
Although it was ordinary dishes, there was wine too.
The village chief and villagers accompanying him spoke of the attack. They
bitterly grumbled how brutal Rou Zang’s pirate group was and how joyful and
fearful they were to escape.
Xu ma gradually relaxed.
He figured it out.
Currently it seems that everything was normal, and that the likelihood of Rou
Zang laying an ambush was very small.
Even if there was an ambush, the main force hadn’t come ashore yet, and he
alone was too small of a target, unworthy of being attacked by Rou Zang’s
pirate group.
The bird scouts were circling around the cave’s roof, and one was sitting on Xu
Ma’s shoulder.
Some rat scouts had overtly sat down, while others scurried into the villagers’
refuge and provided the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with first-hand
intelligence.
The dragonman youngster and the others compared the information with the ocean
map.
“Based on what the villagers said, after Rou Zang’s pirate group raided the
island, they snatched all of the Brain Pebbles. When the Bath Tub left Stone
Forest Island, it was headed north.”
“If it is in that direction, then the islands it will pass will be…” The
dragonman youngster’s finger crossed the map.
Just as he said that a magic communication device suddenly flashed with purple
light.
——
An urgent military intelligence transmission can come through.
The alliance had already been dispatched, they were pursuing the Bath Tuband
requested that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps do their hardest to intercept
and stop it!
The information was detailed and explained everything.
Rou Zang and Mo Kong were imprisoned, the Bath Tubhad fallen into Gu Qiao’s
control. Swordsman Xi Cao had been forced by Mo Kong to risk his life to ask
Snake Rat Island for help.
Who would have thought that a part of Rou Zang’s pirate group would ask their
enemies for help?
But in these waters, only the alliance had the ability and motivation to deal
with the Bath Tub.
Of course, Mo Kong did not hope the alliance would rescue him, he hoped to
create chaos! After all, not long ago, he had caused havoc on Snake Rat Island.
The Flower Wall and Grass Head Pirates could not threaten the gold martial
monk, Gu Qiao.
After the alliance leaders discussed, they chose to believe Swordsman Xi Cao
and dispatched all of their troops.
With Swordsman Xi Cao’s information, they easily found the Bath Tub.
A chase hereby unfolded.
Gu Qiao planned to escort Rou Zang back to the Great Pain Temple.
He was headed towards Stone Forest Island.
Knowing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ position, the alliance deliberately
chased the Bath Tub towards Stone Forest Island.
Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had arrived at Stone Forest Island
beforehand, due to unexpected events and deliberate action, they had become an
ingenious ambush.
“If that is how things are, they who attacked Stone Forest Island?”
“Now is not the time to think about that, should we take action or not?”
“If we cower at this time, it will be too obvious, we might even be treated as
spies for Rou Zang’s pirate group?”
“We can attack!” Zong Ge’s battle intent rose, “We are already prepared for
war, and in peak condition.”
“Rou Zang and Gu Qiao have already clashed, both sides will be worn down.”
Mo Kong is imprisoned.”
“On our side, we have Guang Ke, Tan Qiu, the priest, the magician, and many
other strong people.”
“Our chance of winning this battle is quite high.” Zong Ge suggested that they
make war.
We will be rewarded handsomely for eradicating Rou Zang’s pirate group. I can
greatly alleviate our financial woes, and most of all, it isn’t that risky.” Zi
Di mulled.
Cang Xu expressed his opinion, “If we get cold feet, I fear our newly
established Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will become useless. Tan Qiu and the
others won’t let us off and our mercenary croup won’t be able to get a foothold
in the empire. We will need to change our appearance to continue operating.”
“If we act without endangering ourselves, even if we don’t stop the Bath Tub,
it will be approved. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ spotty history can
perhaps be solved by Tan Qiu.”
“Then we make war.” The dragonman youngster’s gaze was as sharp as a blade,
“This is a righteous battle to root out the malignant tumor that is Rou Zang
and shall benefit these waters. Ah, Justice God, please look after me.”
The six ships turned around and sailed away.
When the villagers saw this, they immediately reported it.
The still drinking Xu Ma was flabbergasted: what was going on? Why were they
sailing away? I’m still on the island!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps quickly blockaded the Bath Tub’s path.
Behind the Bath Tubwas the alliance’s main force.
When the martial monk, Gu Qiao, who standing on the ship’s highest floor, saw
that he had no way to escape, his face was as gloomy as water, “Feudal Lord tan
Qiu, do you really want to be my enemy? Rou Zang will be escorted away by me,
and be imprisoned in the temple for the rest of his life. War is dangerous, why
should you risk it?”
Tan Qiu sneered wordlessly, hatred colored his entire face.
If Rou Zang didn’t die, how could he be at ease? How could he wipe away his
disgrace?
Guang Ke coldly shouted, “Punishment is upholding justice. Wickedness must be
thoroughly rooted out! The only punishment for Rou Zang’s sins is death.”
The enemy is weak, while I am strong. At this point, the alliance was like an
arrow leaving its bow, how could words stop them?
Gu Qiao sighed deeply, then malevolence spread across his face, “If you won’t
listen to advice and seek death at your own accord, then I shall help you all!”



****** Chapter 75: Snake Rat Naval Battle (1) ******
The sea breeze was slowly brushing past, the sky was azure, however, the ocean
surface had an austere ambience.
A confrontation between ships was imminent.
If one was watching from above, they would see the alliance was divided into
two parts.
The 38 ships led by Guang Ke, Tan Qiu, and the priest were in the southwest.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 6 ships and the Deep Sea Monster Fish hidden
on the seafloor were in the northeast.
On the other side was Rou Zang’s Bath Tub. Aside from the flagship, there were
also groups belonging to Rou Zang that had a 21 pirate ships in total. This
fleet was being trailed by the Flower Wall Pirates. This pirate group had
merged with Xi Cao’s men and ships, and had 19 ships in total.
These two pirate groups were in the middle.
Rou Zang had been captured by Gu Qiao, the rest of Rou Zang’s pirate group
lacked the will to fight, and Gu Qiao just wanted to return to the Sheng Ming
Continent.
The Flower Wall Pirates were controlled by Mo Kong, he wanted them to attack
the Bath Tuband rescue Mo Kong, Rou Zang, and the others.
Meanwhile, Tan Qiu and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to encircle and
annihilate Rou Zang’s pirate group.
Gu Qiao wanted to avoid conflict and was forced to negotiate.
But as a believer in the Justice God, Guang Ke couldn’t pardon Rou Zang.
Guang Ke flew into the air.
His body emitted a white radiance, and as he flew, a two meter long tail of
light trailed behind him.
“That’s right, that’s Lord Guang Ke’s battle skill – Light Tail.”
“It is a flight battle skill!”
Tan Qiu and the others were inspired.
Flying battle skills were relatively rare, and were at least gold level.
A bronze level magician could fly or float, while a fighter, without equipment,
needed to be gold level to be able to fly.
This was because gold level battle qi could form outside the body.
Having a flying battle skill often gave fighters the initiative.
Guang Ge flew directly above the Bath Tub.
Gu Qiao coldly snorted and gave the order to fire.
The Bath Tubwas an unusual magic ship, it had devastating close quarters
firepower while its long ranged battle capabilities were quite weak.
To make up for this flaw, the ship was outfitted with gunmen and archers.
Although these people complied with Gu Qiao’s command, and fired upon Guang Ke,
their morale was low and some even deliberately slowed their movements.
In the air, Guang Ke aimed a long distance battle skill at the Bath Tub.
A ball of light shot into the Bath Tub, causing its hull to shake and creating
a hole in a ship deck.
The Bath Tub could only take this thrashing passively.
Without options, Gu Qiao was forced to fly into the air too.
“He has a flying battle skill too!” Zi Di’s gaze tightened.
Cang Xu followed up, “The Great Pain Temple is one of the ten greatest temples
on the Sheng Ming Continent, it isn’t strange that Gu Qiao has a flying battle
skill.”
The two looked at each other, then decided to withdraw.
They were magicians of lowly rank, one was bronze, the other iron.
IF their presence on the battlefield was too strong, it would cause Gu Qiao to
kill them, a terrible fate.
A magician’s greatest fear was being ambushed by powerful fighters. 
Of course, they had ways of preserving their lives. Regardless of whether it
was the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge being a match for gold levels when
acting together, the necromancy they controlled, or the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
But using these should be avoided if possible.
After all, they were not the protagonists of this naval battle, rather they
were the higher ups of Snake Rat Island.
Tan Qiu and the priest were the ones who wanted to eradicate Rou Zang and his
men the most.
No, to be more accurate, the protagonists of this naval battle were Gu Qiao and
Guang Ke.
The outcome of their duel would decide the outcome of this naval battle.
This was the world of the strong.
In the air, Gu Qiao charged at Guang Ke, Guang Ke didn’t dodge away.
The two intertwined in the air, loud explosions echoed outwards from them.
Soon after, both sides turned around and charged at each other.
Gold battle qi surged through the air, but battle skills haven’t been used yet
as both sides were probing each other.
Guang Ke didn’t want his fight with Gu Qiao to endanger Tan Qiu and the others,
thus he decided to charge higher into the air,
Gu Qiao coldly snorted and pursed him unwaveringly.
“They’ve left.” Tan Qiu was watching from a telescope. When he saw the gold
level fighters leave the battlefield, he immediately ordered, “Attack!”
The grand and mighty alliance charged at the pirate ships.
Rou Zang’s pirate ships lacked a leader, and their opinions differed.
“Should we make war?”
“The bald head said that as long as we reach the Sheng Ming Continent, he’d
left us go.”
“If Tan Qiu and those guys capture us, we’ll be punished severely. We must
flee!”
The pirates lacked the will to fight and sailed their ships towards the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Open fire!” Tan Qiu commanded.
The sailors had been prepared for a long while, and upon hearing that command,
they immediately opened fire.
Bang, boom, bang…
White smoke wafted from the ships’ sides and bow.
Like a swarm of bees, several hundred artillery shells flew into the air, then
descended, smashing into and around the Bath Tub.
Rou Zang’s pirate group was blown to bits.
However, these pirates were long familiar with naval battles and bombardment.
After the first round of shelling, the surviving pirates emerged from their
shelters. Some were hanging sails, some were cleaning up the deck, and others
were observing the situation.
Bang, boom, bang…
The pirates’ cannons were also firing.
But their primary target was not Tan Qiu and the others, rather it was the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Get down!!” The Dragon Lion mercenaries had trained for this, and one after
the other, hunkered down in bunkers or pressed up against the deck, both hands
protecting their heads. 
Hundreds of artillery shells hit the hulls, and many more pounded the ocean
around, lifting white plumes of waves.
In the captain’s room, the dragonman youngster didn’t bat an eye as he observed
the battlefield.
His detection equipment was not only a telescope, but also the Deep Sea Monster
Fish’s reliably powerful means.
Not only that, but there were also alchemy puppet scouting birds flying and
hovering in the air.
All kinds of information were constantly being compiled by him.
Reports on how damaging the bombardment was had been quickly delivered.
The first round of shelling had equally damaged the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ six ships, but the damage was minor. The most serious one was that a
shell had broken through a hull, causing three casualties.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been on their guard.
They knew they had been tasked with barring the way, and since they had fewer
ships, it had been almost certain that Rou Zang’s pirate group would charge
towards them.
Thus, the six ships were comparatively scattered.
The dragonman youngster didn’t act blindly or thoughtlessly, he was waiting for
Zong Ge’s orders.
The dragonman youngster was unfamiliar with naval combat, but the half beastman
was a versatile military man.
This was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ first fight, so the dragonman
youngster oversaw the general situation while Zong Ge was responsible for
conducting the battle on the front lines.
Zong Ge’s eyes flashed fiercely, “The pirates are already panicking.”
If it was him, at that distance, he wouldn’t have given the order to open fire.
Too far a distance meant that accuracy was low.
Only when Rou Zang’s pirate group had gotten closer did Zong Ge unhurriedly
give the order, “Return fire.”
The ensign waved the flag, and alchemy devices communicated it.
Flags and other signals were sent out simultaneously.
Bang, boom, bang…
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps counterattacked.
The bombardment was far more effective than the one Rou Zang’s pirate group
did.
Some pirates were blown to bits, and even a pirate ship’s mast was splintered
to pieces.
Zong Ge did not show delight, his expression was unperturbed as he assessed, “A
passable shelling. We don’t have enough cannons, we need to get more. More
crucially, we lack true gunners. The gold level cannon cannot display its real
impact.”
This was all the result of bitter training.
If it had been the people from before, then perhaps the bombardment would
instead make the enemy laugh heartily and grow relaxed.
“Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!” A pirate gnashed their teeth.
“They were the ones who wounded Captain Rou Zang. Otherwise, how could the
captain have lost to that bald head?”
“They have a gold level cannon. Where have they hidden it this time?” Many of
the pirates worried.
Last time, Rou Zang had been struck by the gold level cannon.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had treacherously hidden the cannon inside a
ship and caught Rou Zang off guard.
Currently, the gold level cannon hadn’t been spotted on any of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ six ships.
During the return cannon fire, it hadn’t been exposed.
“Don’t worry about that. Our pursuers are catching up!” 
“Rush through, there are only six ships.”
“Even if there is a gold level cannon, there is only one!”
“Whoever gets hit by it is the unlucky one, hehehe.”
“Charge!”
The pirates laughed, and stuck out their chests as they charged into the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps without a second thought.
“These guys…” Zong Ge clenched his teeth, he despised pirates but also
recognized reality clearly.
“Although we can fight them directly, that is unnecessary.”
If we press our luck and intercept them, our side will take disastrous
casualties.
“Let’s proceed according to what we decided previously.”
Zong Ge transmitted his order shortly after.
The six ships slowly moved, sailing while bombarding Rou Zang’s pirate group,
yet still blocking their path ahead.
“What is going on with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?!” When Tan Qiu saw
this, his immediately became gloomy.
He whispered to the city guard commander at his side, “We took the pains to
chase the pirates here. But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is letting this
opportunity slip by for no reason. If this continues, how can we catch up to
the pirate ships?”
The ocean was very empty and wide.
The alliance couldn’t surround them from all directions.
Nor could they hem them in.
After all, there were only so many ships. If they dispersed in a large area,
their formation would be flimsy, and it would be easy for an enemy to
counterattack or break through.
The pirates could sail in every direction,
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed to cut off these people as much as
possible, and tangle them up in battle.
Otherwise, if they maintained their distance, the pirates would have the space
to maneuver. 
It can be said that there was only one chance to entangle them.
Their ambush had already failed.
The pirates seized that opportunity to adjust their course, and they skillfully
manipulated their ships to pierce their way through.
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also adjusted their course, and blocked
their path ahead.
The pirates adjusted again, yet still remained blocked.
“What’s going on?”
The pirates refused to believe this abnormality, yet every time they adjusted
course, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was still intercepting their path
forward.
“I didn’t expect that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was so skilled at
sailing!” Even though the church priest couldn’t comprehend sailing, even he
could see how good they were. 
Tan Qiu’s face immediately turned from gloom to happiness, “Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps! Great job, transmit the order now, it’s time we chase down
this pack of bilge rats!”



****** Chapter 76: Snake Rat Naval Battle (2) ******
The group commander, Zong Ge, was still expressionless.
He had painstakingly trained these sailors, and the thing he drilled them on
the most was not in shelling or weaponry, but rather sailing.
Because he knew that it would be the most important fundamentals for naval
combat.
Only when their movement was entirely within their element, could they hold the
initiative, and go onto expand their fleet battle formations.
However, what was being accomplished today was not just the result of bitter
training.
The greatest thing assisting Zong Ge was information.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish and the scouting birds allowed Zong Ge to receive
intel on every directional adjustment the pirates as they did them.
Otherwise, if they were just relying on human eyes, they would easily overlook
the initial adjustments, and thus waste time and be unable to respond in time.
The second reason was the shelling.
The closer both sides got, the more accurate the shelling was.
After Zong Ge’s training, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ bombardment level
had reached standards, and put sufficiently heavy pressure on the pirate ships.
During every round of bombardment, the pirates had to lie down or hide in
shelters.
The third reason was the gold level cannon.
It was precisely because this cannon was concealed that Rou Zang’s flagship,
the Bath Tub, could not charge in wantonly, instead it was heavily protected by
layers of pirate ships.
If it abandoned its protection, and rampaged about, it would be menaced by the
gold level cannon.
The Bath Tubwas only a silver level magic ship, it could not withstand a gold
level bombardment.
Even if they lacked a gunner, Zong Ge could still use the gold level cannon to
inhibit the Bath Tub.
Under normal circumstances, the magic ship would have already charged at the
forefront, and did its best to make visible its master’s brutality. 
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ constant obstruction pressured it too.
Through overt and covert pressure, the momentum of Rou Zang’s pirate group’s
breakout was suppressed.
Soon after, the alliance, due to Tan Qiu’s repeated orders, did their best to
catch up and reduce the distance between them.
The Flower Wall Pirates somewhat separated themselves from the fray and were
now at the eastern fringes. They wanted to find an opportunity to save Rou
Zang, but they unexpectedly turned into the alliance’s first target.
As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps neared Stone Forest Island again, the
alliance finally caught up to Rou Zang’s pirate group and the naval battle
unfolded.
“The ships are back, they’ve come back!!” Xu ma happily jumped in the sand.
Previously, when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps received the urgent
transmission, there hadn’t been enough time to pick him up, and they sailed
away in an effort to intercept the pirates.
Xu Ma had lost his head in fear, and nearly wanted to die.
The scouts couldn’t communicate, therefore, Xu ma didn’t know the truth.
To him it seemed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had doubtlessly
discovered that the Bath Tub was lying in ambush and decided to retreat,
marooning him here.
Being marooned on this island was disastrous!
There might be other pirates here too.
But if he fell into the brutal hands of Rou Zang…
“I’m putting my small life in danger!” Xu Ma was in such a frenzy that he
nearly acted.
When the iron level village chief of Stone Forest Island saw how queer Xu Ma
was looking, he promptly advised him.
After some handwrought persuasion, Xu Ma calmed down.
“Hold on, they are in battle! Is there another ship?” Soon after, Xu Ma saw Rou
Zang’s pirate group being chased by the alliance.
The two fleets were fighting in close combat on the sea, and the ships were
losing speed as they maneuvered within a small area.
“Now then, you believe what this old man has said, Lord Xu Ma?” When the
village chief saw this, he found it difficult to conceal his alarm, but he also
didn’t forget to continue placating Xu Ma. “This place has not been trapped by
Rou Zang. Rou Zang and his men are over there.”
“Whew.” When Xu Ma recalled how he had just behaved, he felt someone
embarrassed.
“We’ll go back.” The village chief was deeply worried as he urged, “If by
chance they land or a stray projectile hits this place, wouldn’t it be bad
luck?”
“Correct, let’s go back first!” Xu Ma repeatedly nodded, and was willing to
follow good advice.
An alliance ship’s hard bow bore down at a pirate ship.
The pirate ship’s helmsman shouted out from the confusion, “Rudder fully to the
left!”
The pirate ship swerved out of danger, and the hull and the bow brushed past
each other.
The two ships; huss rubbed against each other in wheezing scrapes, and the
forces in play pushed the pirate ship back out.
But the pirates remained standing on the tilted deck like sturdy lumber.
The level of incline, compared to how it got during rough waters, was child’s
play.
The alliance’s ships were generally larger than the pirate ships, but they were
slower.
The pirate ships all focused on agility and speed.
This was mainly to make maritime plundering more convenient.
How could one speak of robbery if they couldn’t catch up?
The alliance ships were mainly used for patrolling, and since the two ship
types had different functions, they performed differently.
Taking advantage of the near proximity of the ships, the alliance sailors
tossed their throwing hooks onto the pirate ship and affixed them.
Some brave sailors raised cutlasses and swords, then jumped across the sea to
fight the pirates in close quarters.
Pirate ship decks were generally lower to the sea than the alliance ship decks,
thus it was easy for the alliance sailors to land on it.
However, the pirates responded likewise.
Many pirates grabbed ropes, swung through the air with howls, then landed onto
the alliance ship’s deck.
The two sides grappled bitterly with each other,
For a moment, blood flowed everywhere, and limbs flew.
Casualties began to mount quickly and violently.
The alliance sailors had better equipment that conformed to them.
The pirates were more vicious and were experts at chaotic battles. The more
chaotic a situation got, the more advantageous it was for them. They often
cleverly used anything on a deck, like buckets, ropes, and the masts to help
them fight.
On some ships the alliance was winning steadily and surely. On other ships, the
pirates strutted about the beaten and broken alliance members.
The situation was deadlocked, and for a moment, neither side could secure the
advantage.
“They really are Rou Zang’s pirates, ordinary pirates wouldn’t have such a
vicious nature.” Captain Hei Fei lamented. He had seen many pirates that even
upon facing death’s door, continued to insolently wave their weapons and never
showed a trace of fear or timidness.
“The pirates that marshalled by Rou Zang’s side are just as savage.” The
merchant alliance magician’s heart shivered.
The priest was concerned, “The other side’s formation is strong, and we cannot
charge through.”
The city guard commander looked at Tan Qiu, “Feudal Lord, let us go out
together.”
This was the world of the strong.
The gold levels were fighting high in the sky, and couldn’t attend to matters
on the ocean.
The silver levels were the key to victory or defeat.
Now was certainly an opportune moment to enter the battle.
Especially when it came to silver levels, the pirates lacked them, while the
alliance had many here.
But Tan Qiu hesitated, and after thinking about it, he shook his head and
refused, “Let’s wait some more.”
Although Gu Qiao had been drawn away by Guang Ke, there was still Rou Zang.
Although he had been captured, wouldn’t the pirates on board go save him.
What condition was Rou Zang in?
Has he already been rescued and is now sheltering inside the Bath Tub?
If the alliance was dispatched out, would Rou Zang rush their magician and
priest?
Even if he didn’t attack the magician and priest, he could be lying in wait
within the ship hold.
Could the silver levels withstand the full strength of a gold level?
Tan Qiu didn’t want to take the risk.
Regardless of whether it was him or his subordinates.
The city guard commander was from his clan, and was a trusted aide.
It would be inconvenient for the silver level thief to leave her hiding place.
Regardless of which was lost, it would greatly damage his future administration
of Snake Rat Island.
“If I was a gold level, I would charge straight in.” Tan Qiu sighed to himself.
When the city guard commander saw that Tan Qiu rejected his proposal, he
couldn’t help but look anxious and disappointed.
Under the current circumstances, if the feudal lord did not take the lead in
this assault, others wouldn’t charge in either.
After all, the one who benefited the most from this battle was the feudal lord,
followed up by the priest.
The priest had already dedicated his resources as military capital.
Furthermore, he was a caster, and couldn’t charge in first, there wasn’t enough
protection on the battlefield.
“What’s going on?” Meanwhile in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Tripleblade
pursed his brows, “Tan Qiu still hasn’t attacked yet?”
On another ship, Cang Xiu was covertly watching, and upon analyzing Tan Qiu’s
misgivings, laughed grimly, “Ah, the hearts of men.”
“Although the alliance is numerous, it has many problems.” Zong Ge sighed to
himself, “The number of people is secondary, only with unity can elite troops
be trained. Even if there are only a few people, they can achieve an
astonishing battle result.”
This was also the reason why he didn’t think the survivors had good prospects.
The survivors had natural divisions, they had too many races among them, varied
origins, complicated social statuses, different religions, and substantially
different live experiences.
Thanks to Zong Ge’s leadership and prior training, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
was able to watch from the sidelines.
If they got close to Rou Zang’s pirate group, they could entangle themselves
with the latter. If that happened, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be
bearing the greatest attacks and be the ones facing the greatest risks. 
Who knew what condition Rou Zang was really in?
If he had already been freed, it would be quite terrible.
There was no other way to say it, Zong Ge’s great contribution was quite
magnificent!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps waited for the main battlefield to be decided.
If victory was in sight, they would advance.
If the battlefield was turning sour, they could also retreat easily.
They could advance or retreat, and firmly held the initiative.
At the moment, there was another group in the same situation as the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
It was the Flower Wall Pirates.
They had been trailing behind Rou Zang’s pirate group and were waiting for an
opportune moment to stage a rescue.
Swordsman Xi Cao’s operation had succeeded, and the Flower Wall Pirate
commander, Hua Dun, had wily slipped away, he knew he wasn’t the first target
and had evaded the alliance’s spear tip force.
Naturally, Tan Qiu didn’t want to get entangled with them. 
If they let Rou Zang’s pirate group get away, and let the main target break out
in a clean getaway, they would be imbeciles.
Therefore, the alliance immediately ensnared Rou Zang’s pirate group.
They didn’t attack the Flower Wall Pirates off to the side.
Right now, 38 of the alliance ships were fighting 21 of Rou Zang’s pirate
ships, forming the main battlefield. 
In the main battlefield, murderous shouts shook the heavens, and casualties on
both sides were constantly mounting.
On the outskirts of this, two fleets were sailing about.
One was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they were located in the north. They
only had six ships, but harbored a gold level cannon. It was precisely because
of that that they were able to faintly threaten the Bath Tub, denying it from
charging forth.
On the other side was the Flower Wall Pirates, they had 19 ships, a far greater
number. This was because this pirate group had merged with the ships and men of
Xi Cao’s pirate group.



****** Chapter 77: Snake Rat Naval Battle (3) ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps chose to keep watching on the sidelines.
They had a good excuse, they were hiding a gold level cannon that threated the
Bath Tuband suppressed from escaping by its lonesome.
Tan Qiu couldn’t refute it.
As time passed, the engagement between the alliance forces and Rou Zang’s
pirate group grew more intense.
It was like two strongmen fighting hand to hand.
Ships were constantly piling up, and the moveable space grew smaller.
In the beginning, there was still some coordination between ships, some were
charging, some were covering, others were supporting, and some tried to
outflank.
Gradually, both sides could only see the enemy before them, and were locked in
a bitter struggle.
As the Flower Wall Pirate boss, Hua Dun had been watching without relaxing even
the slightest.
When he saw the two fleets merging with each other, he also saw that the Bath
Tub’s eastern flank had thinned out, the majority of the ships that were there
had been attracted to the battle to the south.
“An opportunity! Brothers, set sail, our target is the Bath Tub, let us rescue
our commander!!” Hua Dun shouted.
“Ha hu!” The pirates yelled.
The Flower Wall Pirates were already restless, and like a pack of wolves
emerging from the woods, they scurried towards the Bath Tub.
Rou Zang’s pirate group was already fighting the alliance forces with all of
their strength, it was difficult for them to organize a force to deal with the
Flower Wall Pirates.
In fact, they didn’t want to block them.
After all, they were on the same side.
Rescuing Rou Zang was also a good choice for them.
Although Rou Zang was brutal, he had led the pirates to victory and let them
eat and drink big.
Therefore, when the Wall Flower Pirates rushed in, they met little resistance
along the way.
Many ships even withdrew at their own accord to form a defensive line around
them.
The Wall Flower Pirates quickly approached the Bath Tub.
When Tan Qiu detected this, he anxiously transmitted an order to the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, “Long Fu, Shi Qi! Intercept them now.”
Zong Ge snorted and immediately passed his refusal through the alchemy device,
“We are currently concerned with stopping the Bath Tub.”
Tan Qiu worriedly replied, “The Wall Flower Pirates are Rou Zang’s
subordinates. If we allow these two groups to converge, they will bring about
the alliance’s downfall. You’ll spoil the ship for a penny of tar if you let
the worst outcome happen, Rou Zang escaping!”
The priest interjected, “Whatever your corps wants, I promise to double it!”
Zi Di was indifferent.
The main reason they had wanted to exchange for resources previously was to
retrieve the Green Jade Gold Coffin.
With their main goal accomplished, if they allowed themselves to be dispatched,
the risks were utterly not worth the profit.
Doing business at a loss won’t do!!
The dragonman youngster’s eyes were tranquil, and simply didn’t reply.
Although he wanted to carry out justice, and arrest Rou Zang, as commander, he
needed to put his fellows first and didn’t want to send them into excessive
danger.
Finally, Cang Xu sinisterly said, “Actually, if they rescue Rou Zang, that
would be a good thing. At least that way we can sound out Rou Zang’s actual
condition. If you are so worried about this, why haven’t you acted yourself
yet?”
Tan Qiu and the priest looked embarrassed.
They wanted to conserve their strength and make the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
go first.
But the latter didn’t submit, and thrusted back a retort.
Tan Qiu and the priest were forced to drop it.
Guang Ke flew high in the air.
The gale assaulted his senses.
Faster and fiercer than the wind was Gu Qiao’s attack.
Battle skill – Iron Finger First Stage!
Gu Qiao ferociously shot out finger bones from his flesh.
Pew, pew, pew.
Like bullets, the finger bones wreathed in gold battle qi shot towards Guang
Ke.
Guang Ke was quick and nimble, but the finger bones were faster.
He had already probed out this attack, and when facing it, the best choice was
to block it directly.
Most of the Iron Fingers hit Guang Ke, some were stopped by the light armor
covering Guang Ke’s body, and some pierced the light armor, embedding
themselves in Guang Ke’s skin.
Gu Qiao had lost finger bones, but he quickly regrew them.
His bloodline and the Great Pain Temple’s bone path battle qi technique had
formed an ingenious pair.
If any other temples used the battle skill, Iron Finger, it would be at most a
close combat finger method.
Even if it was shot out, it would simply be formed from condensed gold battle
qi.
Gu Qiao was actually using his own finger bones, greatly elevating his
firepower.
“A worthy member of the Great Pain Temple.” Guang Ke had experienced how
troublesome Gu Qiao was.
Guang Ke found it hard to protect himself from this move.
Gu Qiao’s flying battle skill was no weaker than his, and Gu Qiao could fly
just as high as Guang Ke could.
Gu Qiao deeply gazed at Guang Ke.
“Guang Ke, this guy is very good at fighting.” His iron face was grave and
stern, yet his heart exclaimed in admiration.
Guang Ge’s light armor battle skill was very practical, and could thickened and
thin.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that his finger bone penetrated the light armor and
caused Guang Ke to bleed, they were minor injuries.
It was Guang Ke deliberately restraining the light armor’s thickness.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t protected himself from all of them, rather it was
that it was disadvantageous to do so.
His manifested battle qi wasn’t attached to him, and would be worn down by the
finger bones’ gold battle qi.
Therefore, he would rather receive some minor injuries instead.
In any case, when it came to gold level fighters, such small wounds were
nothing, and wouldn’t affect their battle strength in the slightest.
“Something is wrong with Rou Zang…” Gu Qiao turned around to look at the naval
battle.
He had maintained a watchful eye on the main battlefield.
Upon seeing the Flower Wall Pirates charging towards the Bath Tub, he
immediately wanted to fly back.
Guang Ke’s eyes were already locked onto Gu Qiao, and when he saw the latter’s
inclination, he immediately flew at him.
Battle skill – War Axe!
Guang Ke waved his leg, and the image of a battle-axe chopped down.
In the previous battle, it had been used at range, and even when it touched
others, it merely bushed against them.
This was the first time he had actively used it at close range.
Gu Qiao was forced to use his full strength to block and inhibit it.
Battle skill – Castle Breaking Hammer!
Guang Ge’s battle qi condensed into a gigantic hammer that ruthlessly slammed
down.
Gu Qiao couldn’t maintain his guard, and when the gigantic hammer struck him,
he crashed into the sea like a cannonball.
Battle skill – Attuned Divine Arrow of Light.
Guang Ke raised his hands over his head.
An enormous white ball of light condensed in his palms.
The ball of light exploded with a bang, and split into myriad arrows of white
light that burned with a harsh glint as they were all fired into the seawater.
The sea was instantly penetrated, causing it to spray and splash.
The light arrows struck the sinking Gu Qiao, and for a moment, he could only
take the beating, powerless to retaliate.
The ocean surface gradually churned with scarlet blood.
The battle between the gold fighters was constantly affecting the mood of many.
Upon seeing this, the pirates’ morale took a substantial drop, while the
alliance forces were roused greatly.
“Good, Guang Ke has firmly suppressed Gu Qiao. We can attack!” Tan Qiu shouted,
finally making a firm resolution.
Hua Dun was approaching the Bath Tub, putting a strain on Tan Qiu’s nerves.
If Hua Dun succeeded in rescuing Rou Zang, the alliance would have to face a
gold level alone, a terrible situation.
Tan Qiu ordered the city guard commander to attack, while he remained on the
lead ship, saying that it was to protect their casters.
A moment later, the city guard commander, the Night Devil Commander, Ba Hu, and
Hei Fei acted in succession, they all jumped out of their ships and boarded the
pirate ones.
They were considerably strong.
Ordinary pirates could not stop them, and they easily killed them all.
The four silver fighters did not zealously continue fighting, their target was
the Bath Tub.
They jumped from ship to ship and quickly climbed onto the Bath Tub’s deck.
But they had arrived a step to late.
The Flower Wall Pirates had already rushed in and were assisting in dealing
with the alliance forces.
Hua Dun was already inside the hull.
The pirates had shown him the way and easily found Rou Zang and Mo Kong.
To his surprise, Mo Kong was locked up in a prison cell, his entire body was
bound, his mouth was also gagged, his forehead had a mind restraining ring on
it, and his waist had a magic prohibition ring around it.
On the contrary, Rou Zang hadn’t been treated this way, he had been placed
under house arrest, and was even free to walk around the ship hold.
Hua Dun first freed Ko Kong, he untied the rope, took out the gag, but was
unable to do anything about the mind retraining or magic prohibition rings.
“Boss!” Hua Dun went to Rou Zang.
Rou Zang didn’t respond, his eyes were closed, his face was very red, and all
of his fat was shivering.
“Don’t touch him. Gu Qiao sealed the boss, it seems to be one of the Great Pain
Temple’s secret skills! After their fight, the boss has always been trying to
break the seal.” Mo Kong said promptly.
A subordinate dashed in to report.
“What can be done?” After obtaining the latest intelligence, Hua Dun wax
worried, “Gu Qiao is being suppressed by Guang Ke, and the boss needs
protection, four of the alliance’s silvers are coming!”
Mo Kong coldly snorted, “Give me a minute, I can struggle free from these two
alchemy items. They can’t get in for a short time.”
“You know the architecture of the Bath Tub, to enter the hold, one must enter
from the top, then descend floor by floor.”
“On each floor there are mechanisms and traps, along with guards.”
“Even if the silvers charge in, they will be covered in grime and even
wounded.”
Hua Dun was not convinced and was still concerned, “If someone breaches the
hull and comes in, what can we do?”
Mo Kong sneered, “Impossible. The Bath Tubis a silver level ship, it can resist
the attacks of silver level fighters. Unless…”
As Mo Kong spoke, he suddenly changed color, and he gazed at a rat in a corner,
his voice somewhat sharp, “Is that? Damm it, that is an investigation alchemy
puppet.”
“What?” Hua Dun didn’t react immediately.
“Move now!!” Mo Kong was panic-stricken, and he nearly stumbled and crawled in
his haste to escape.
Hua Dun sensed the horror from Mo Kong’s actions.
“Wait for me!” He caught up at once.
“Don’t follow me, scatter…” Mo Kong screeched.
Boom!
A moment later, an explosion as loud as thunder erupted.
The massive shockwave threw Mo Kong and Hua Dun into the air.
The artillery shell seemed to pierce the Bath Tub’s hull, tore the ship’s
planks to shreds, then broke into the hold.
A terrible blaze seared the impact site, and quickly spread.
The Bath Tub was massive, but upon being hit with this shell, it tilted greatly
and nearly turned over.
The tilted hull gradually reasserted itself on the sea, and the resulting
splash created a gigantic wave six meters tall.
Many pirates on deck howled in alarm as they fell into the water. 
The city guard commander, Night Hunting Commander, and the other four that had
been fighting felt their ears ringing and their legs trembling.
“What’s going on?” Ba Hu still looked a little sluggish.
“Who fired that cannon?!” Don’t they know we are on board?!” The city guard
commander abruptly became irate, his voice furious cursing.
Hei Fei was pale as he pointed at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, “That’s who!
Who else has a gold level cannon besides them?”



****** Chapter 78: Snake Rat Naval Battle (4) ******
Early on in the battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps dispatched scouting
birds.
While all attention on both sides was focused on the main battlefield, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had quietly released scouting tide snakes and
scouting rats.
The tide snakes and rats squeezed into the pirate ships and provided the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps with even more information.
They paid the most attention to the Bath Tub.
The scouting tide snakes would have done fine, but the scouting rats looked
unremarkable and easily infiltrated the ship’s top floor.
Afterwards, they journeyed down and progressively penetrated the hold.
The pirates were all busy fighting, and were very tense. Even if they glimpsed
the scurrying rats, they were in no mood to pay them any heed.
If Mo Kong was in good condition, then perhaps he would have immediately
noticed them. But he had been heavily locked up and by the time he noticed
them, the scouting rat had already sent reliable information back to the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
After obtaining Rou Zang’s true situation, why would Zong Ge hesitate?
Without the slightest hesitation, he left and entered the gunnery position.
This time, the gold level cannon was hidden in his ship hold.
Zong Ge had been trained in weapons, and was experienced in many types.
Cannons were not an exception.
Although he wasn’t a master at it, compared to others, he was far better.
He transferred his battle qi into it and imbued it with all of his strength.
The cannon slowly ignited, the formation around it restraining its aura. 
If the Bath Tub had been sailing, perhaps it might have had the chance to
evade.
But the main battlefield had been scorched, and the Bath Tub was surrounded by
an influx of Flower Wall Pirate ships, it was very crowded.
It was almost a stationary target.
With the addition of the scouting rat’s intelligence that indicated the target,
Zong Ge decisively fired the cannon.
Gold level cannon, gold level artillery shell.
The shell pierced the Bath Tub and made its way into the hold, and with a
terrible explosion, the Bath Tub was seriously damaged in an instant. 
“Leaks, the hold is leaking!”
Pirates hurried over to see the enormous hole, all of them looking on
foolishly.
“The ship is sinking!” They let out a despairing wail of anguish.
“Cough, cough!” Within the raging flames and black smoke, Hua Dun struggled to
stand.
He spat out bloody suds, and his perplexed expression gradually faded.
“What just happened?”
“I’m still alive.”
“Damm it, that was the gold cannon!!”
“Mo Kong you…”
Not far from him, Hua Dun saw a corpse lying on the floor.
Mo Kong was mutilated, half of his body had been blown up, blood filled the
floor, and he weas on his last gasps from his grave injuries.
“Undo my curse now!” Hua Dun was very anxious as he ran to Mo Kong’s side.
Mo Kong cracked open his remaining eye, and he laughed mischievously, “I’m
dead, your curse will forever remain undone.”
“Wretched guy!” Speak now, how can I bring you back to life?”
Mo Kong coughed up blood, then slurred his words, “No use…my death is certain.”
“Anyways, it doesn’t matter.”
“I have already signed an agreement with a devil, my soul belongs to hell,
there I shall be reborn.”
“I will become a true devil, have a higher bloodline, and have greater gifts!”
Hua Dun picked Mo Kong up by the neck, unable to restrain his anger, “Then what
is to be done about the curse on us?”
“It…is not a curse.”
“It is a contract.”
“Hehe, after you die, your soul too will belong to hell.”
“This is the capital I used to rely on hell, even the boss, cough cough, is not
an exception…”
Hua Dun’s eyes couldn’t help but stare at his hands and feet.
Mo Kong suddenly grabbed Hua Dun’s arm tenaciously, his voice suddenly became
loud, “Remember!”
“Don’t die easily.”
“Souls can grow.”
“The stronger the soul, the greater chance one can become a powerful devil when
they reach hell!”
“You have to protect Rou Zang well, he cannot die. His soul is far more
precious than yours!”
“When he dies, you all die.”
“Hehe, he…”
“To protect him, I will give you all a final inheritance.” 
After saying that, Mo Kong’s aura vanished.
Hua Dun’s eyes were still glaring, his eyes rigidly gazing at Mo Kong’s corpse.
This was his nightmare.
It always controlled his shadow.
But now, he was dead.
Before dying, he had told him the truth of the curse, it was an immense
inconvenience!
“Find Rou Zang.”
“He is inside the hold somewhere!”
“The gold level artillery shell explosion didn’t kill him?!”
The city guard commander, Night Devil Hunting Commander, and the other four
silver fighters came in through the hole.
Startled, Hua Dun came to.
Enemies had invaded, and in his moment of desperation, he unconsciously chose
to believe Mo Kong.
“The boss isn’t dead yet!”
“If he dies, I will die too.”
“But I am still alive…”
“Boss!” Hua Dun urged his battle qi as he ran headlong into the raging flames
and thick smoke.
The alliance’s four silvers had found Rou Zang first.
Rou Zang’s entire body was pitch-black, flames had scorched it.
His huge body was very conspicuous.
His eyes were shut tight, yet pain and anger mingled in his face.
“He isn’t dead?”
The four sensed Rou Zang’s life aura, causing them to be alarmed and furious.
“Then die!”
The four brandished their weapons, aimed them at his vitals, then ruthlessly
swung.
“No!” Hua Dun rushed and bawled them to stop, but it was already too late.
But just as the weapons cut down, Rou Zang suddenly opened his eyes.
Battle skill - Meat Ocean Sweeping Wave!
Rou Zang vibrated, and a fervent spherical impact wave, with him as its center,
surged out in all directions.
The four silvers were launched into the air, followed by Hua Dun soon after.
The gold level battle skill had extraordinary might, and even expanded the
bombardment hole by a lot.
In the ruins, Rou Zang slowly strolled to the hole.
Surging seawater flowed past his ankles and into the hold.
The water level quickly rose to his knees.
Rou Zang didn’t care about this, he was malevolently staring at Zong Ge’s
warship.
The gold level cannon’s firing had damaged the ship’s hull considerably.
“Since you sent your greeting, I’ll kill you first!” Rou Zang growled, and with
fury and hate wreathed about him, he rushed out of the Bath Tub and made a
beeline for Zong Ge’s warship.
“It’s Rou Zang!”
“Captain Rou Zang is freed!!”
Much of the alliance was frightened, while even more pirates cried out in joy.
Battle skill – Corporeal Raft!
Gold battle qi wrapped around Roun Zang, and although it was only a superficial
layer, it was constantly circulating.
Rou Zang stepped into the water, but it didn’t reach above his ankles, instead
it seemed like he was walking across a marsh as he charged.
“Open fire now!” Tan Qiu looked ashen, the worst situation had happened, Rou
Zang not only freed himself, but he also had the ability to fight too!
In hole in his ship, Zong Ge stroked the gold level cannon, imbuing it with the
luster of silver battle qi, preparing it to be fired.
The gold level cannon’s mouth flashed once more, like the hope shining in Tan
Qiu’s and the others’ hearts.
No one wished to deal with a gold level cultivator themselves.
Rou Zang accelerated, he was already half way there.
Suddenly, he grinned malevolently, and sped up again.
Tan Qiu and the others watched on hopefully, however, they only saw the cannon
gradually getting brighter, but not enough for it to be fired.
Rou Zang suddenly jumped up, and landed on the ship.
“We’re done for!” Tan Qiu’s face withered.
The priest deeply sighed, “It seemed the gold level cannon need a lot of battle
qi, Shi Qi has insufficient battle qi. He is in grave danger!”
The merchant alliance magician’s eyes narrowed even more, she couldn’t bear to
see the tragedy unfolding.
It was difficult for silver levels to deal with gold levels. What’s more, Zong
Ge had just fired the cannon, and depleted much of his battle qi reserves, he
wasn’t in good condition.
“I shall blow you to bits!” Rou Zang’s plump and enormous body cast a deep
shadow below.
He raised his palm high, then aimed it to slam it down on Zong Ge’s head.
Zong Ge put up his defenses.
A moment later, his head was severely struck by Rou Zang!
“Eh?!” Rou Zang’s sinister expression stiffened as his palm quickly passed
through Zong Ge.
This was not Zong Ge, rather it was an alchemy projection.
“How did this deceive my senses?” Rou Zang found the projection device.
It was obviously quite ordinary!
Not only was Zong Ge a projection, but the gold level cannon was also one too.
“Fake? This…is a trap!!” Rou Zang realized things weren’t good, and wanted to
withdraw, but it was already too late.
Boom!!
Moments later, the entire ship exploded.
The entire ship was blown to smithereens in an instant.
Countless splinters flew out in all directions.
The searing light caused those that saw it to squint.
A mushroom cloud rose from the ocean surface.
In a flash, the terrible heat vaporized the seawater into a large cloud of
white steam.
Soon after, the explosion created a gigantic wave that spread from it. The
seawater it composed of slowly began to slope upwards.
The sluggish wave looked like a bulge as it cleansed the main battlefield,
swayed the entangled ships. And affected the results of many close quarter
fights.
“That was no less than ten boxes of dumbbell explosives, its might is
astonishing when concentrated!” The dragonman youngster exclaimed in admiration
on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship,
The mysteriously vanishing Zong Ge was already standing by his side.
This trap had been schemed with the utmost care, and was specially made for Rou
Zang.
The main plotter was Cang Xu.
The primary explosive used was the exploding dumbbells.
The survivors had seized 12 boxes from Mystifying Monster Island, and most of
them had been used for this.
The exploding dumbbells were commonly known as shakers, it was a type of
grenade that was quickly thrown after shaking them.
Due to the space lock (base), the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have the
resources to refine another alchemy bombs.
To detonate these exploding dumbbells, the tower spirit had personally drafted
an alchemy formation for that purpose.
“Did that kill Rou Zang?” The dragonman youngster was uncertain.
Zong Ge replied, “If it were me, it would be certain death. However, this is
Rou Zang, it is unconfirmed.”
After all, even if Rou Zang hadn’t been shot by the gold level artillery shell,
he was definitely still within its blast zone.
But he not only got free, but he also could still fight!
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had only five ships left, they were
quickly drawing close to the main battlefield.
If Rou Zang was dead, they would reinforce the alliance and destroy the
remaining pirates.
If Rou Zang wasn’t dead, then…they needed to converge with the alliance forces.
This had also been suggested by Cang Xu.
In the center of the explosion, white steam suddenly dispersed.
Rou Zang was burnt black, but still standing.
“Rats!”
“I will tear you all to pieces!!”
Rou Zang’s roar suppressed the entire battlefield, both enemy and allies were
silent.
Zong Ge’s eyes contracted, “Sure enough, he isn’t dead.”
“That explosion still wasn’t enough to kill him?” The merchant alliance
magician was speechless.
“That monster simply won’t die!” Xu Ma let out a cold breath.
He hid on Stone Forest Island and gazed at the battlefield in the distance,
witnessing all that had transpired.
Upon seeing Rou Zang’s extreme hate for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and
once more charging, Xu Ma couldn’t help but be gripped by worry.
“Captain Rou Zang!”
“Amazing, with the boss, our victory is certain!”
When the pirate saw Rou Zang was like a martial god, their morale skyrocketed.
The alliance forces were wavering.
Especially when Tan Qiu saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was drawing Rou
Zang towards his flagship. His face was ashen and wished that he could shout,
“Don’t come here!”
But he didn’t shout that.
He had always advocated for the establishment of this alliance.
He was Snake Rat Island’s feudal lord, and politics demanded that he couldn’t
shout that/
On the contrary, the priest wasn’t shackled by this. He immediately rushed over
to the magic communication device and quickly reproached, “Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, lure Rou Zang away, don’t let him draw near the main
battlefield.”
“As long as you stall him, we can win!”
“After the victory, we shall compensate your damages fivefold!”
The dragonman youngster turned a deaf ear.
Zong Ge sneered, and didn’t speak.
Cang Xu replied back, "Don’t be afraid, we will defeat that insignificant Rou
Zang together. Allies, we have come to support you!”
“What kind of support is this?! I…” The priest nearly exploded into obscene
sears.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps obviously didn’t think they could fight Rou
Zang alone, and the priest had to endure their refusal.
The big picture was more important.
He immediately issued the order, and dispatched the four silver fighters to
return to provide urgent assistance.



****** Chapter 79: Snake Rat Naval Battle (5) ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ five ships plunged straight into the central
fighting group and rapidly drew near Tan Qiu’s flagship.
Rou Zang was following close behind, charging at the dragonman youngster’s
flagship.
“He’s coming!”
“To battle!”
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge took a deep breath, stepped onto the deck,
then from the left and right, started to attack Rou Zang.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Battle skill – Sword Point Assault.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were ready when Rou Zang landed onto the
deck.
The two battle skills struck Rou Zang.
But Rou Zang cackled and heeded them no mind.
The formidable attacks caused waves to tremble across his body fat.
Rou Zang actually absorbed the power of both battle skills!
Gold battle qi began to spring from him.
Fleshly waves began to roll, the force of dragonman youngster’s and Zong Ge’s
attacks rolled into Rou Zang’s upper arm, then into his lower arm.
Battle skill – Small Flesh Reverse Palm
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge sensed that things were bad and had already
made a hurried withdrawal.
But the bowl sized palm made from gold battle qi still flew from Rou Zang’s
palm.
Battle skill – Surge.
The dragoman youngster twisted his tail and ankles, turning his body sideways.
Then in that instant, explosions detonated under his feet, pushing him suddenly
to the left, dodging the Small Flesh Reverse Palm.
Zong Ge rolled repeatedly, causing the Small Flesh Reverse Palm to hit the deck
around him.
Boom.
With two consecutive explosions, the Small Flesh Palms smashed the deck to
pieces, forming holes 2 meters in diameter in it.
Zong Ge fell down a level, while the dragonman youngster was still above deck,
constantly moving and not counterattacking.
The city guard commander, Captain Hei Fei, and the four other silver levels had
just returned to reinforce them.
In their eyes: Rou Zang was 3 meters tall, Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster
only reached up to his chest. In their first confrontation against each other,
Rou Zang had struck Zong Ge hard while the dragonman youngster was in a bad
state.
Hei Fei unconsciously slowed his footsteps.
He had once had a feud with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and felt enmity
towards them. Thus, he didn’t want to help them, and also knew the disparity
between him and a gold level fighter.
The city guard commander was the same, Zong Ge had defeated him publicly and
there was friction between the two.
The other two’s movements also slowed.
Previously, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had perfectly intercepted Rou
Zang’s pirate group, but they had done it too well.
They not only entangled Rou Zang’s main force, but they also got to sit on the
side lines and watch the alliance and Rou Zang’s main force tear each other
apart, a tremendous bargain on their end.
Upon seeing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ back luck, Ba Hu and the Night
Hunting Commander felt some schadenfreude. In any case, Long Fu and Shi Qi were
thick skinned and tough, it was a good thing if they got beat up and consumed
Rou Zang’s battle qi.
But at this time, Zi Di’s shout transmitted, “Stop Rou Zang now, protect the
gold cannon!”
“What?” The cannon is on the dragon lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship?” The
alliance’s cultivators’ faces changed.
Beforehand, they had seen personally how the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps laid
their trap.
They had seen much more than Rou Zang had.
They knew before the cannon fired that many sailors had dived into the water
and been collected by other ships.
Contrariwise, they hadn’t seen either Shi Qi or the gold cannon being moved.
But Rou Zang had failed to hit Shi Qi, and now Shi Qi was suddenly at Long Fu’s
side, thus the alliance knew that Shi Qi had also escaped too. They only didn’t
see it occurring.
Now that they heard Zi Di’s call for help, they unconsciously chose to believe
it.
“We have to protect the cannon; it is the best weapon to deal with Rou Zang!
Support them now!!” Tan Qiu cried out.
The four silver fighters, along with Tan Qiu, and even the priest and the
female magician all rushed to provide support to the best of their abilities.
Compared to them, Rou Zang was the one who moved the fastest.
After hearing Zi Di’s words, he slapped his palms to the deck suddenly.  
The deck shattered with a loud bang, and he went down a level.
Rou Zang barged into the hold like a gigantic elephant, and upon penetrating
every room inside, he stamped on every cannon in there.
Some mercenaries were unable to evade and were crushed to death on the spot.
Rou Zang made his way through the entire second level and didn’t find the gold
cannon.
He smashed through the damaged deck and went into the hold on the third level.
As he searched half of the hold, the silver fighters surrounded him again.
This time, it wasn’t just the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, there were now
four other silver fighters too. Outside the encirclement were Tan Qiu, the
priest, and the female magician already in position.
“Attack together! His defensive battle skill must have a limit.” The city guard
commander shouted.
The alliance had shared all information on Rou Zang with each other.
The city guard commander took out his sword and activated its enchantment. Amor
of blue light covered his body as he swung at Rou Zang.
Zong Ge waved his broadsword and attacked from another direction.
The dragonman youngster climbed onto the cabin wall, and with an explosion,
jumped into the air, then attacked Rou Zang’s head from above.
The Night devil Hunting Commander, Hei Fei, and Ba Hu also launched their
respective offensives simultaneously.
Rou Zang had a massive and plumpy body, he was slow and was forced to defend
himself.
The attacks from all over caused his body fat to tremble and once again form a
wave of flesh.
Battle skill – Small Flesh Reverse Palm
Through this battle skill, his body absorbed incoming firepower and redirected
it at his attackers.
Gold battle qi condensed in his palms, and four shot out.
The bold battle skill’s might was astonishing, and the silver levels all took
evasive action.
Captain Hei Fei rolled away from direct danger but was still blown away.
The Night Hunting Commander, in his moment of desperation, threw a bottle of
medicine. The medicine smashed into the hold, causing a black fog to burst out,
and with it concealing him, managed to dodge the Small Flesh Reverse Palm.
The city guard commander took the blow head on, causing the sapphire light
armor to shatter and him to cough blood.
As he crawled back up, he saw that the dragonman youngster had been smashed
into the hull by an exploding palm, embedding the latter into it.
But the dragonman shouted, cracked his back and waist, and pulled himself out.
Then as if that didn’t happen, he charged at Rou Zang again while ordering,
“Continue the assault, don’t give him a chance to catch his breath!”
“He is a dragonman after all.” The city guard commander was envious of the
dragonman youngster’s defense.
Speed was not his strong suit.
He didn’t dare to advance and instead shot his crossbow from a distance.
The other silver fighters for a moment also chose to attack from afar.
Although silver battle qi couldn’t form outside the body, the silver fighters
could make up for this immense disadvantage through all kinds of equipment.
For a moment, the dragonman youngster was the main one in the fight, while the
others played it by ear, primarily attacking with ranged weapons and only
getting in close when the opportunity seldom came.
For every second Rou Zang was being attacked, his body’s fleshy waves were
ceaselessly rolling, with no end to them in sight.
Outside of the encirclement, the merchant alliance magician finally cast
blindness magic.
Rou Zang was a gold level, and wasn’t completely blinded, rather his vision
become muddled as if he was seeing the world through a cloud.
The priest frequently used healing divine spells. Divine light dropped from the
sky onto the silver fighters, quickly healing their injuries.
Rou Zang growled as his internal battle qi wildly circulated, he wasn’t evading
or fleeing.
“He wants to use a battle skill, stop him!!” Tan Qiu shouted from behind.
For a moment, everyone attacked more often.
Rou Zang was still standing proudly after fifteen seconds.
He took a cold breath, then his internal battle qi suddenly exploded.
His body quickly swelled, especially his belly, which seemed to inflate like a
balloon, and became massive.
He had already been a tall person that reached 3 meters in height. Now with the
battle skill empowering him, he grew to a giant of 6 meters.
Thus, his legs were thicker than a mammoth, his shoulders busted out into the
deck, and his head towered above the sides of the ship, allowing him to see the
ocean and the sky.
The ship seemed to grow crowded and to Rou Zang, it suddenly became a canoe.
Battle skill – Flesh Mountain Gigantification!
The alliance’s cultivators rained down their offensive, but the fleshly waves
they caused to Rou Zang were small.
After giantizing himself, Rou Zang’s defensive became stronger.
But Rou Zang was not in a rush to deal with the alliance’s cultivators, instead
his arms and legs exerted themselves and destroyed the ship around them.
He snapped a mast like a piece of bamboo, his shoulder smashed a boat house,
then he ran through the ship, completely destroying two decks.
Finally, Rou Zang arrived at the aft and pushed with both arms.
The miserable hull could not withstand the force, it snapped into two and sank
into the sea.
The silver levels were in a tight situation, and one after the other, they
fled, with some jumping onto nearby ships, and others using pieces of the hull
to remain above water.
The merchant alliance magician unleashed a magic offensive, but Rou Zang’s gold
battle qi protected him.
Rou Zang didn’t press the attack, rather he rushed towards another of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
“Everyone retreat, abandon ship!” Zong Ge yelled.
The mercenaries promptly jumped off and abandoned the defense entirely.
Rou Zang had a battle skill that allowed him to walk on water, and he rammed
into the hull.
Soon after, he wantonly destroyed the ship, gold battle qi bubbled out, and in
less than 30 seconds, the ship was sinking.
The alliance’s silver level cultivators wildly attacked Rou Zang.
But Rou Zang paid them scant regard and hit another of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ships.
“He wants to find the gold cannon!” Tan Qiu was anxious, “We must stop him!”
Indeed, the gold cannon was the greatest threat to Rou Zang.
The alliance’s cultivators did their utmost to intercept him but were never
able to hinder him.
Rou Zang was no simple gold level cultivator, for now he could not be stopped!
All kinds of attacks fell onto him, yet he did not seem to feel anything, the
fleshy waves across his skin on the contrary, fostered his offensive.
However, despite tearing apart all of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships,
he never found the gold level cannon.
“Where is the cannon?” Tan Qiu and the others were flabbergasted.
“Don’t tell me they have a gold level storage device?”
“It’s possible, after all they are arms smugglers.”
The priest and the merchant alliance magician secretly communicated to each
other.
Rou Zang bellowed angrily. He noticed he had been played with, and despite
destroying all these ships and suffering so many attacks, he didn’t even find a
silver cannon, let alone a gold cannon.



****** Chapter 80: Snake Rat Naval Battle (6) ******
Rou Zang resentfully roared.
When the merchant alliance magician saw that, she couldn’t help but praise the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ stratagem.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had expanded greatly, they hadn’t been
established for long, and just like Snake Rat Island, they too had low numbers.
Normally, regardless of whether it is pirate groups, navies, and so on,
equipment was upgraded linearly. Take cannons for example. There were ordinary
cannons, bronze level cannons, iron level cannons, and silver level ones. 
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was special.
Their arsenal was composed almost entirely of ordinary cannons, they had
neither bronze, iron, or silver level cannons, and yet they had a gold level
cannon!
During this battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps utilized this cannon to its
peak potential.
Crippling the Bath Tub was already a great merit.
Soon after, they had used false information about it to lure Rou Zang into a
detonating ship.
Even if that ship and its ordinary cannons were lost, they didn’t cost much.
By contrast, Rou Zang had endured innumerable attacks, wasted a lot of battle
qi, and greatly diminished his combat abilities in exchange.
For a business point of view, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had earned a
bloody profit!
Rou Zang’s face was covered in anger, and after he looked around at the
battlefield, he didn’t care about the sinking Bath Tub, rather he threw himself
at Tan Qiu’s flagship.
“He is heading towards us!” Tan Qiu grinded his jaw, his eyes embittered, yet
timid. A moment later, his courage roused, and he straightened his back as he
stepped forth to do battle.
Rou Zang’s target this time was the merchant alliance magician and the templar
priest.
Both were silver level casters.
The merchant alliance magician immediately cast magic and left the flagship.
Only the priest was left on the flagship, with Tan Qiu protecting him.
Rou Zang charged onto the flagship’s deck, rather than striking its hull.
Although Tan Qiu’s flagship was not a magic ship, it was made of materials far
better than ordinary ones. Rou Zang had used up too much battle qi already;
thus he was beginning to cut down on his usage.
In fact, if his flagship sank, what would he use instead?
There were many alliance ships, thus the priest could jump onto another when
the time came.
Only by killing the silver level cultivators could the outcome of this naval
battle be changed.
Centered around the flagship, everyone once again encircled Rou Zang, yet still
couldn’t stop Rou Zang’s violent advance.
The priest was forced to use a divine spell to flee to another ship.
Magic and divine spells really were far more convenient to use than battle qi.
Rou Zang kept the pursuit up, and the silver level fighters did their utmost to
intercept him, forming a moving carnage that brought calamity wherever it
landed.
Ships capsized, and if the pirates or sailors were caught in the moving
carnage, they would almost all die, leaving few survivors.
For more than a dozen minutes, the priest had several near-death experiences.
The city guard commander was seriously injured and couldn’t keep fighting.
The merchant alliance magician, Zi Di, and Cang Xu drained their magic power,
with the latter two’s nearly dry.
Their magic was ineffective against the gold level target, but it slowed Rou
Zang’s steps, a necessary contribution.
“Hu hu…” Rou Zang gasped for air; he was gradually looking fatigued.
He still looked vicious, but his body had a slight shudder that was visible to
others.
Rou Zang was beating back Zong Ge when Captain Hei Fei flew at him from behind.
The silver level cutlass swung down, this time cutting skin!
Hei Fei was pleasantly surprised that his hit had landed and immediately
retreated to avoid Rou Zang’s fist.
“The monster is finally bleeding…”
When everyone saw the wound on Rou Zang’s back spilling blood, they were both
startled and delighted.
But a moment later, the wound was covered by flesh and the cut immediately
stopped bleeding.
The alliance’s cultivators were still in high spirits though.
Since the fight had begun, Rou Zang had been an unstoppable force that
dominated the battlefield. Although this scrap was small, it gave everyone hope
that they’d be victorious.
The dragonman youngster shot in like an artillery shell, then after punching
Rou Zang, he shot back out.
Following his lead, everyone began to attack from all sides again.
Hei Fei’s cutlass waited for its chance to slash, and the Night Hunting Group
commander whistled, dispatching a dozen iron level bats to fly around Rou Zang.
The iron level bats’ magic beast claws were poisonous, and the constantly
accumulating poison taxed Rou Zang further.
Rou Zang’s injury let the Night Hunting Group commander to see an opportunity.
Zong Ge was peppering arrows from far off with two crossbows.
At this stage in the fight, his old arm wound had flared up again, and due to
the incessant bleeding, he was forced to forestall his assault and accept a
divine treatment spell.
The merchant alliance magician drank some medicine, racing against time to
restore her magic power.
The dragonman youngster’s Demolition Fist was beginning to scorch Rou Zang’s
flesh black.
Hei Fei’s cutlass was often cutting once or twice.
The iron level bats were gradually slain by Rou Zang, however they had
scratched and bit him many times, the wounds left behind were a distinct dark
purple.
In a short time, Zong Ge had fired 80 alchemy arrows at Rou Zang, causing
burns, frost damage, acid burns, and all other sorts of injuries.
With the medicine, the merchant alliance magician had recovered half her magic
power, then after using two attack spells, it was exhausted once again.
Tan Qiu’s chest was covered in blood.
It was his blood.
During a critical moment, he had to be the obstruction that gave the priest
time.
The priest was panting, and his head was soaked in sweat. Not only was he
tired, but he was also scared.
During this fight against Rou Zang, he was the alliance’s most important
figure.
As long as the other silver kept fighting Rou Zang, they would be seriously
hurt. Not everyone had the dragonman youngster’s dragon scales.
It was precisely because the priest had used several treatment spells in
succession that maintained everyone’s battle strength that they were able to
ensure they had the superiority in numbers.
Without the priest, the alliance’s silver fighters would have been dragged down
by their injuries and would in no way be as vigorous and lively as they were
now.
“Cough, cough.”
As Rou Zang repelled the dragonman youngster, he suddenly coughed out blood,
then began to kneel to the ground, exhausted.
Rou Zang’s visible gold battle qi also looked like a sputtering candle,
appearing and disappearing.
“He’s about to die!” Tan Qiu shouted spiritedly.
“Just a bit more!” Hei Fei laughed nastily.
“Rou Zang, time for you to lose your head!” the priest solemnly looked onwards.
Everyone beleaguered him again.
The dragonman youngster charged his front, Hei Fei attacked his back, Ba Hu
struck his left, and Zong Ge shot arrows at Zong Ge’s right arm.
“You want to kill me? All of you will go to hell!!” Rou Zang exploded in anger,
he suddenly stood up and straightened his belly.
He waved his two palms, then beat his belly like an army drum.
Ding!
The belly vibrated greatly, and with a terrible echo, it seemed to smash into
everyone’s heart.
The dragonman youngster and the others suddenly grew sluggish, and soon after,
were pushed back by the clamorous soundwaves.  
Battle skill – Chaotic Skin Drum!
Ding, ding, ding…
The giant Rou Zang pounded his belly several times.
The wild drumbeat created translucent soundwaves.
With a violent and ferocious attitude, the soundwaves swept across the
battlefield!
Chucks flew away from the deck under Rou Zang, and as the sound ripped across
the hull, it began to crack.
The soundwave caused Zong Ge to stagger, and he retreated, deathly pale.
Hei Fei knelt to the ground, covering his eardrums and dropping his cutlass in
pain.
The dragonman youngster’s face went red, all of his muscles were affected by
the drumbeat, the constant pulsing and trembling causing him to lose control
over his muscles.
As the clamor spread, pirates and sailors fighting each other rolled their eyes
and sprayed blood from their mouths, dying on the spot.
Ba Hu also fell to the ground.
He tenaciously grabbed his chest clothes, a pained expression on his face and
veins popping on his forehead as he struggled on the edge of death.
The widespread sound attack even disturbed the priest and merchant alliance
magician.
A figure appeared.
It was a girl.
The silver level thief, the trump card Tan Qiu had strenuously concealed, had
her cover blown by the soundwaves.
Rou Zang howled in laughter, then suddenly jumped at the priest.
The priest was stooped over, unable to move.
Tan Qiu hesitated, then summoned all of his courage and attacked Rou Zang.
But Rou Zang ignored him, and with two palms, crushed the priest into a pool of
blood.
The priest died!
“No!” Tan Qiu bellowed, his sword was buried deep in Rou Zang’s flesh, nearly
up to the hilt.
Rou Zang kicked Tan Qiu away, then due to a lack of strength, kneeled again.
A moment later, Tan Qiu, the girl, the Night Devil Hunting Commander, and the
others surrounded him and attacked together.
Rou Zang found it difficult to turn about, his back them all.
Battle skill – Thorn in the Flesh!
In his moment of crisis, gold battle qi was stimulated once again, and formed
into fine needles that suddenly ejected from his back.
Like a downpour, the attack covered his enemies.
The gold battle qi needles pierced the skin, and immediately dug into the
silver fighters’ flesh. 
The fighters’ flesh suddenly changed into crystals that formed a fleshly thorn.
As long as it moved a little, the fleshly thorns would cause immense pain. More
crucially, the fleshly thorns were constantly growing, and if ignored, would
pierce a body’s internal organs. If it reached this step, light injuries would
become serious, and even be fatal.
Zong Ge, Hei Fei, and the Night Devil Hunting Group commander groaned dimly,
then urged their internal silver battle qi to suppress the fleshy thorns.
The dragonman youngster was also hit by this battle skill, and although his
body was covered in dragon scales, even he couldn’t completely block the gold
battle qi.
“Ah…” Ba Hu screamed before he died.
Chaotic Skin Drum had already brought him to death’s door, and he was unable to
protect himself from Thorn in the Flesh that followed shortly after.
At first, Thron in the Flesh didn’t feel like anything, but after several
breaths, he started to scream.
Then a few seconds later, Ba Hu’s mournful scream quieted to a final wail.
The wail quickly diminished to nothing.
He too was dead.
“Finally, an opportunity!” The dragonman youngster’s killing intent did not
drop but rose instead.
Finally, he had found an opportunity to use Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
“Protect me!” The dragonman youngster stood still.
With a draconic chant, the aura of a racial magic quickly emitted.
Zong Ge hurried to the young man’s side immediately after, shooting a crossbow
while roaring at the other fighters, “Entangle Rou Zang!”
The silver fighters all knew of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ military
accomplishments and knew that the Life Scorching Dragon Breath had once forced
Rou Zang to retreat.



****** Chapter 81: Snake Rat Naval Battle (7) ******
If Rou Zang broke out, the others silver fighters wouldn’t be able to keep
obstructing him.
But he was naturally disposed to cruelty, and in this perilous situation, his
only thought was to kill the dragonman youngster!
He beat everyone back and charged at the dragonman youngster.
“Hmph! I have enough time.” As the dragonman youngster faced down the powerful
pressure of Rou Zang’s charge, he did not bat even an eyelid, and his eyes
glistened with a fierce light.
He had been cultivating the Life Scorching Dragon Breath racial magic too.
Compared to before, he could now cast it half a second faster.
That half second was enough to decide the outcome of this battle!
The Life Scorching Dragon Breath retrained Rou Zang immensely, and as long as
he sprayed it at him, victory was likely.
But just as he was on the verge of success, something struck the dragonman
youngster out of the blue.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t move while casting, so Zong Ge threw away his
hand crossbow, heaved his broadsword, and raised it up, undaunted by the
danger.
Bang!
The deck the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were standing on shattered into
smithereens, casting both into the sea.
A giant jet of water rose from a hole in the ship.
The ship first floated with the stream of water, then because of the water
rushing into the hold, quickly began to sink.
On the sinking deck and water pouring through a hole, a person stood behind Rou
Zang.
Shockingly, it was Gu Qiao!
Gu Qiao was as withered as firewood, his face was ashen, and his left arm
snapped at the root, he was seriously wounded.
Everyone turned pale with fright, and for a split second, morale plummeted.
But a moment later, Guang Ke followed right behind him.
“Sorry!” His face looked regretful.
He always had the upper hand against Gu Qiao.
But despite risking his arm, Gu Qiao had swooped down and saved Rou Zang’s
life. 
“Ever since you betrayed the temple, I vowed that I would bring you back to it
in chains and make up for my criminal mistakes then.” Gu Qiao faced the entire
allied forces, and said behind Ruo Zang, “Therefore, you cannot die! Rou Zang,
stand up.”
Rou Zang coldly snorted, and got up with a sway, “Even if I die, I won’t go
back.”
He glanced at Gu Qiao’s broken arm, then fiercely gazed at his powerful enemy,
“In this situation, isn’t there only one move we can do?”
Gu Qiao, “Did you unravel the seals I engraved into your bones? Right. Your
battle skill is the best at transferring injuries elsewhere, did you use that
shell to open the seal?” 
“Senior brother, you speak too much. Kill them!” Rou Zang growled, then
suddenly as if all of his bones were removed, his six-meter-tall body turned
into a pure wave of flesh that instantly buried Gu Qiao.
Gu Qiao’s and Rou Zang’s shouts disseminated from the fat.
Gold battle qi surged tempestuously, and the fat quickly morphed into a an
approximately for meter tall giant.
The giant’s face looked like a mix of Gu Qiao’s and Rou Zang’s features.
Although the giant was tall, it also had a thick stature. Besides being covered
in fat, the most eye-catching thing about it was that pitch-black bones covered
his body’s vitals. 
The Great Pain Temple secret skill – Bone and Flesh Unification!
“Guang Ke, embrace death!” The giant’s voice sounded like both Rou Zang and Gu
Qiao were speaking together.
Bang!
The giant rushed towards Guang Ke; he was much faster than Rou Zang had been.
Both arms were intact, making up for Gu Qiao’s grievous injuries.
Rou Zan had nearly exhausted his gold battle qi, but Gu Qiao’s battle qi
reserves were still plentiful.
Guang Ke flew into the empty sky once again.
The giant laughed maliciously, but didn’t follow.
He turned around to kill Tan Qiu, the dragonman youngster, and the others.
The imposing enemy was quite fearsome, thus the silver fighters dispersed and
fled.
Guang Ke dived back down.
The two fought fiercely.
The giant stood in place, and although the sea water below him depressed
greatly, it quickly smoothed back.
Guang Ke was flung back into the air.
“Kill Guang!”
“Kill Guang and the rest!”
“Ah Guang Ke, if you have the skills, come stop me, hahaha.”
The giant crazily howled, then with inexhaustible killing intent, he pursued
the silver cultivators.
The alliance’s silver cultivators continued to flee and jumped into ships.
Although the giant was powerful, his immense build and heavy body meant that
speed and mobility was his weak point.
For a moment, the bone and flesh giant couldn’t reach the silver fighters and
could only vent his anger on other enemies.
The alliance’s sailors were ants he crushed into rivers of blood.
“Boss, we are on your side!” Pirates were also enveloped by his attack, and
turned to heaps of bone and flesh too.
A ship the giant devastated sank.
Guang Ke was furious; he used all of his might in an attempt to stop and
entangle the giant.
But the giant used his iron bone armor to defend himself and used battle skills
to heal himself.
Battle skill – Fleshy Sprout!
Healing battle skills were even rarer than flying battle skills.
Were it not for that, the clergy wouldn’t have been so welcomed in present
times.
Compared to fighters, magicians and clergy using divine spells had the best
results when healing.
But now, the alliance’s priest was dead, while Rou Zang had revealed a
restorative skill.
“The bone and flesh giant is far stronger than Rou Zang. Regardless of whether
it is speed, strength, or defense…”
“Retreat now!”
The entire battle group was thrown into chaos by the bone and flesh giant.
Both the alliance and the pirates strived to be the first to withdraw.
The bone and flesh giant was mad, he killed even his own men!
Tan Qiu was deathly pale.
His flagship had already sunk.
The bone and flesh giant had caused disastrous damage to the alliance!
“How awful.” Xu Ma had been a spectator on Stone Forest Island.
He was now very glad that he had been left behind here.
Otherwise, he might have died in this naval battle.
To Xu Ma’s side, the Stone Forest Island villagers were also very tense.
The outcome of this naval battle would determine their fate.
Xu Ma noticed that the village chief was more nervous than he. He clapped the
latter’s shoulder and comforted him like how he was, “We must have faith in the
feudal lord! The alliance is certain to prevail!”
The village chief blurted out, “Of, of course, the alliance shall prevail!”
Xu Ma grinded his teeth, “Rou Zang will be annihilated!”
“Right! Right! Rou Zang will die!” The village chief clenched his jaw with a
fierce expression.
Most of the Bath Tub was already underwater.
“Go now!”
“The Bath Tub is hopeless.”
“Hold on, these things are valuable.”
The pirates were escaping and swimming onto the surrounding pirate ships. There
were also some pirate ships plundering the Bath Tub’s ship house.
Some pirates were obsessed with Mo Kong’s inheritance, and dove into the
submerged hold to see Mo Kong’s remains.
A pirate was incessantly excited, “The first mate was silver level, his
inheritance will surely be bountiful and help me prosper!”
In the dusky seawater, as he gradually approached Mo Kong, he suddenly spurted
out blood.
In a few seconds, all of the pirate’s blood was extracted and converged around
Mo Kong’s remains.
Before the pirate died, he had made a horrifying discovery, there had been
desiccated corpses floating around Mo Kong. 
They too had been drained of their blood.
Now he looked just like them.
The desiccated corpses around Mo Kong’s remains weren’t worth mentioning, the
truly strange thing was the blood.
Most of the blood had been forcefully extracted from pirates. The large ball
revolved around Mo Kong’s remains, it was depicting the center of a magic
formation.
If one had a wider field of view, they would see that in the depths of the
seawater under the battlefield, there was blood wriggling through it, it was
forming a gigantic magic formation.
“Desist!” Guang Ke attached with all of strength and used one battle skill
after the other.
Nevertheless, the bone and flesh giant’s rough skin and thick flesh resisted
Guang Ke’s battle skills and continued to surround everyone around it.
In this duel between the two gold levels, the dragonman youngster and the other
silver fighters had to helplessly sit on the sidelines and do their best to
save their crews.
Guang Ke really was a powerful warrior, and even the bone and flesh giant was
not his match.
But Guang Ke couldn’t stop the bone and flesh giant from continuing his
slaughter.
Guang Ke felt sincere sorrow and fury, he was a special person, one who had
come from the lowest levels of society and had extensive love for them, as well
as not having much charitability for many nobles.
“Guang Ke! You can’t stop us.”
“Stop, let us go. Otherwise, I will kill everyone, hehehe.”
The bone and flesh giant’s threat was very childish, but it was very effective.
If it were someone else, they’d have brushed it aside.
But Guang Ke…
“Lord Guang Ke, we can’t let them go! IF you let them go, they will continue to
do evil.” Tan Qiu worriedly exclaimed.
Guang Ke sank into silence; he had already stopped attacking.
The bone and flesh giant chuckled and sneered, “Rou Zang will be returned to
the Great Pain Temple as my prisoner and will accept the punishment he
deserves. He won’t return the seas ever again.”
Guang Ke lifted his head, his face solemn and stirring, “Retribution is
upholding justice!”
“If I cower now, would I not let down those that sacrificed themselves in this
naval battle?”
“Oh Justice God, my God! Please let me borrow your strength again.”
Divine spell - Domain of the Light of Contrition.
The divine spell’s radiance suppressed everyone present, whether it was enemy
or ally, thick pitch-black fog emerged from them all, hindering their actions
greatly.
The bone and flesh giant was in the worst state.
His entire body emitted strong black smoke, and an incorporeal mountain seemed
to slow his movements.
Tan Qiu, the dragonman youngster, and the others weren’t spared either.
The Domain of the Light of Contrition did not distinguish between friend and
foe.
Rou Zang, Gu Qiao, because you massacred the small and weak, and committed
innumerable sins, the Domain of the Light of Contrition strikes you the worst.”
“You shan’t think of murdering ever again.”
“Justice has arrived, and injustices must be redressed!”
Guang Ke strictly shouted as his entire body radiated light.
“Abominable!” The bone and flesh giant fumed with rage and was just about to
keep fighting.
But moments later, something strange happened.
From bottom to top, the ocean under the battlefield suddenly began to glow a
blackish red.
A devilish aura violently rose.
Soon after, an enormous pentagram shaped magic formation slowly opened in the
seawater.
Guang Ge immediately turned pale.
“The magic formation’s center is in the Bath Tub!” The merchant alliance
magician exclaimed. Without the magic formation masking its aura, she detected
it far quicker than the one on Snake Rat Island.
Guang Ke instantly flew towards the Bath Tub.
When the bone and flesh giant saw this, he urged his gold battle qi, and he too
flew into the sky in an attempt to stop Guang Ke.
The two’s flying battle skills were nearly equal, but Guang Ke was far smaller
than the bone and flesh giant, which meant he was far nimbler.
Guang Ke didn’t zealously fight on, and after he shook off the bone and flesh
giant, he crashed into the Bath Tub.
At this time, only the tip of the Bath Tubwas still above water.
“A step too slow!” Guang Ke broke through the magic formation’s energy barrier,
and in the center of the formation, he saw Mo Kong’s corpse finish melting,
treated as casting material.



****** Chapter 82: Snake Rat Naval Battle (8) ******
The gigantic magic formation successfully activated.
The dark red light in the seawater formed into a pillar of light that pointed
towards the sky.
The tremendous magical might radiated in an area over four thousand meters in
diameter.
Fear spell!
The magic Mo Kong was best at when he lived.
He sacrificed himself, including his bloodline, his skin, his flesh, his magic
power, and everything else as casting materials for a single spell!
“What this the gift you were talking about before you died!? Damm it!” The
Flower Wall Pirate commander, Hua Dun, had a flash of remembrance a moment
before being affected by the Fear spell.
If living beings were struck by a simple fear spell, for a short time, they
would lose all calmness, reason, and reflection, and run around howling in
fright.
But beforehand, Guang Ke had used his divine spell - Domain of the Light of
Contrition.
The combination of the divine spell and magic caused everyone on the
battlefield to immediately be affected even worse. 
For a moment, fights between the alliance’s soldiers and the pirates nearly
ceased.
Everywhere, people were falling to the deck.
Gunfire went silent, and shouts of fighting stopped too.
Clang, clang…
Many people no longer had the strength to move, and their weapons fell to the
deck.
Soldiers and pirates could no longer fight, pain and remorse filled their
faces.
Some were kneeling, some crying with covered faces, and some put their hands
together in prayer, their hearts praying to the gods.
“I am guilty, I am truly guilty!”
“I want to repent, my God, this lowly believer prays for your understanding!”
“How am I still alive, I harmed others as I live, why don’t I just die?”
Unexpectedly, someone who couldn’t endure the condemnation of their innermost
being committed suicide on the spot!
Compared to what happened on Snake Rat Island, this time, the combination of
the Domain of the Light of Contrition and the Fear spell produced a far more
frightening result.
Firstly, Guang Ke’s divine spell was far stronger than last time.
Secondly, the Fear spell was also far more powerful than the one cast on Snake
Rat Island. Because this time, Mo Kong sacrificed himself as the main casting
material. Last time, he only used his eyeball as a casting material.
“I am a disgrace to my clan, I am only interested in saving myself, and once,
in order to survive, I swore allegiance to pirates…” Tan Qiu couldn’t move his
sword as tears streamed down both cheeks.
Hei Fei was deathly pale, he held his head and shouted, “Should die, I should
die!”
He was thinking of all the homes he had destroyed, all the beastmen slaves he
had captured.
“I knew you had families and friends, lives that were ruined because of me.” 
“Yet I sold you all off for money to provide for my life of pleasure.”
“I am no human; I am a devil!”
The survivors weren’t in good condition either.
Bai Ya slammed his head into a ship plank, weeping bitter tears, “It was I who
killed Jia Sha, boohoo, I killed him.”
“I am a commoner, yet I offended my elders and killed a priest.”
“I am guilty, I should die!”
Lan Zao’s heart and soul were filled with regret and self-blame, he even lifted
his cutlass to his own neck.
He raised his head to the sky, “Little brother, I harmed you.”
“It was I who killed you.”
“I am your older brother, but as your older brother, I killed you to survive!”
“I shamed my mother and shamed you more.”
“Everything was my mistake, all of it was my wrongs!!”
Gradually, his arm pressed the blade into his skin, and a bloody trace began to
faintly appear around his neck.
Zi Di was gasping for breath.
Her body was filled with thick black smoke.
“I am a guilty woman.”
“I conspired to murder my fiancé and had an affair with another man!”
“In my search for power, I secretly cultivated necromancy!”
“For money, I manufactured a shipwreck.”
“How can I still have the face to remain alive?”
Zong Ge grinded his teeth, weakness and anxiety manifesting in his usually firm
features.
“Father.”
“I failed to live up to your expectations.”
“Right now, I am in endless straits and keep company with necromancers.”
“I did not get to the Wilderness Continent in a timely manner, I am still
rushing across the seas for the sake of redemption.”
Cang Xu held a bottle of medicine unsteadily.
His other hand covered his heart, and his face was in knots, full of self-
blame.
“I became a necromancer!”
“After it all, I became a living dead man, all for the purpose of my selfish
desires.”
“Now, even my closest flesh and blood, my son, has reported me to the
authorities.”
“I became a fugitive and can only float about in exile.
“Perhaps, I should end this senseless life. I should go back and turn myself
in.”
The Domain of the Light of Contrition and the Fear spell not only enveloped the
battlefield but continued to radiate outwards.
Everyone on Stone Forest Island was also affected.
Black smoke also rose from Xu Ma.
He lowered his head, tears of remorse dripping, “I am guilty.”
“I stole many times, too many to count.”
“I am timid, of small guts, I don’t dare to steal from the rich and strong. I
stole from the poor many times and added insult to the injury that was their
lives.”
“I once had companions but got cold feet when met with a wolf group and
betrayed them. I lived, but they didn’t!
“I am also guilty!!” Suddenly, the village chief to Xu Ma could be heard.
Xu Ma turned to look at him, his tearful eyes suddenly wide open.
He was shocked to discover that the black smoke around the old village chief
was denser than his.
The village chief proclaimed through tears and snot, “It was I who encouraged
the villagers.”
“Rou Zang’s pirate group never attacked Stone Forest Island; everyone was done
by our hands.”
“It was all to hide that chunk of blood brain pebble.”
“Ordinarily, the highest quality brain pebbles get is the silver level. Blood
brain pebbles are very rare, it is the brain pebble inside the brain pebble, an
uncommon gold level material.”
“If the feudal lord discovered it, he would surely have confiscated the blood
brain pebble.
“We wanted to secretly keep it and sell it behind the feudal lord’s back, then
use the money to migrate the entire village away from Stone Forest Island!”
“The taxes here are too heavy.”
Upon hearing the village chief’s confession, Xu Ma was stunned, “So that’s what
happened!”
Hua Dun felt his armor grow exponentially heavier.
He also was in the Fear spell and the Domain of the Light of Contrition, all of
his killing intent was gone.
He too emitted black smoke, for as a pirate, he naturally had committed many
crimes.
“I am bad!”
I was insatiably greedy, I became a pirate of my own accord, I killed, looted,
and committed all imaginable crimes.”
“To satisfy my incomparably ugly cravings, I defiled many pure young men.”
“I am scared of dying, and due to Mo Kong’s curse, I have to slave away for
him.”
When he thought of Mo Kong, Hua Dun was unable to understand something.
He knew that the Fear spell should be the ‘gift’ Mo Kong mentioned before he
died.
But didn’t Mo Kong know that this magic couldn’t distinguish between friend and
foe?
The alliance was thrown into chaos, but the pirates were in the same boat!
Boom!
The bone and flesh giant punched Guang Ke into the air.
Guang Ke crashed through three ships before steadying himself and flying back
into the air.
The bone and flesh giant was already chasing after him.
The two dueled with each other through the air, through ships, and even in the
ocean.
Unlike before, Guang Ke was now actually losing.
“What is going on?” Hua Dun, along with the other silver level cultivators able
to withstand the divine spell and magic, were observing the battlefield, noting
this fact with indefinite bewilderment.
Hua Dun and the others felt very puzzled.
Guang Ke was unconstrained by the Domain of the Light of Contrition, only the
Fear spell was affecting him.
While the bone and flesh giant wasn’t affected by the Fear spell, only by the
surging black smoke from the Domain of the Light of Contrition
“Rou Zang, you have an excellent underling.” The voice from the bone and flesh
giant was Gu Qiao this time.
Rou Zang coldly snorted, “Mo Kong was a crafty guy, I made a deal with him,
therefore his magic doesn’t affect me.”
Rou Zang wasn’t affected by the Fear spell, thus the bone and flesh giant he
had combined with Gu Qiao to make wasn’t affected either.
The bone and flesh giant spoke with Gu Qiao’s voice again, “Rou Zang, what do
you believe justice is?”
“Eh?” Rou Zang was puzzled.
“This is the Justice Church’s divine spell, the Domain of the Light of
Contrition, it is very renowned. Through my temple’s research, it was
discovered that its true effect is that it stimulates a target’s feelings of
repentance and guides their religious conversion.”
“However, it is standardized in how it stimulates the target’s feelings of
repentance.”
“This standard is how the target understands justice in their heart.”
“Which things are just, and which things are wicked. If they have done more
wicked things, then the target will feel more repentant.”
“Are you saying…” Rou Zang trailed off, then suddenly realized what Gu Qiao was
proposing.
Guang Ke’s face slightly changed, and he intensified his attacks.
As the bone and flesh giant fought Guang Ke, Gu Qiao instructed Rou Zang,
“Therefore, you understand what justice is.”
Rou Zang realized it, and told himself, “The most just thing in this world is
power! The small and weak are sinful, and whatever the truly strong do is
right, that is the meaning of justice!!”
He said this many times over.
Every time he said that some of the black smoke on the bone and flesh giant
dispelled, allowing the bone and flesh giant to become nimbler.
Rou Zang and Gu Qiao were both from the Great Pain Temple, and combined, they
were stronger than the sum of their parts.
Guang Ke was affected by the Fear spell, while the Bone and Flesh giant was
still in the Domain of the Light of Contrition.
As Rou Zang altered his definition of justice, the Domain of the Light of
Contrition’s effect on the bone and flesh giant waned.
The bone and flesh giant’s battle strength continued to rise and was beginning
to firmly suppress Guang Ke.
Guang Ke was gradually wounded.
The situation was getting worse for the alliance.
“What’s going on?” Xu Ma gazed from Stone Forest Island, he couldn’t hear the
conversation between Gu Qiao and Rou Zang, but he could still see how the war
situation was changing.
“Even someone like Guang Ke isn’t Rou Zang’s opponent!”
“Not good…”
“It’s mainly because Rou Zang is too shameless, he was actually able to combine
with another gold level with that strange battle skill!”
“Should I withdraw or not?”
Xu Ma’s eyes twinkled.
He had just joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and his sense of belonging
to them was quite weak.
Upon seeing the situation was sloping downwards, he didn’t want to fall into
the hands of pirates and already wanted to flee.
“Village chief, surely you have a boat on hand?” Xu Ma grabbed the village
chief of Stone Forest Island.
The village chief replied while weeping bitter tears, “Yes, I have a boat.”
“That’s good. What are we waiting for, prepare it!” Xu Ma exclaimed.



****** Chapter 83: Snake Rat Naval Battle (9) ******
The main battlefield.
The dragonman youngster clenched his teeth, struggling until his shaky body
finally stood up.
At this very moment, he was affected by both the Fear spell and the Domain of
the Light of Contrition.
“Under my leadership, we killed Jia Sha.”
“I also imprisoned Zhen Jin, a noble!”
“I am guilty, guilty…”
The dragonman youngster’s heart was heavy, and he found it difficult to look
around.
He saw the paralyzed Tan Qiu, the listless Cang Xu, the struggling Zong Ge, and
many others besides themselves because of the guilt.
“This can’t continue.”
“If it does, we will lose!”
“I must do something!” The responsibility of leadership urged the dragonman
youngster onwards.
Right now, Gu Qiao’s teachings to Rou Zang were ringing in his mind.
“Justice…”
“What is justice?”
Then a lightning bolt seemed to streak across his heart. 
The dragonman youngster was on the Sapphire, and he immediately turned around
and entered the captain’s room.
The Sapphire had an alchemy device capable of amplifying one’s voice.
The dragonman youngster’s voice was quickly transmitted from the captain’s
room. “We all have a heart that seeks justice!”
The dragonman youngster’s voice spread throughout the entire battlefield.
“It is because of this that we feel remorse and are repenting right now.”
“We are all guilty!”
But it is precisely because of our sins that we repent and weep sorrowful
tears. We can then understand more the importance of pursuing justice, no?
“We should be guilty!”
“Who hasn’t done wrong? Who can guarantee that throughout their life, they
never made erred?”
“Furthermore, there are many times that things were beyond our control, or we
were compelled by circumstance.”
“We have committed crimes for the sake of survival.” 
“And this isn’t wrong!”
“Survival, survival!”
“Only by continuing to live can we have the chance to admit our mistakes, to
redeem ourselves, to feel remorse, and to set back onto the path of
righteousness.”
“Without life, how can we defend justice?”
These words caused Tan Qiu to stop weeping, and his eyes were once again
bright.
He looked towards the dragonman youngster, “You’re right, you’re really right!
If I didn’t give myself to Rou Zang, how could today have even happened?”
Most of the smoke around Bai Ya faded away, and he once again had the strength
to stop his head from mutilating itself against the plank, “His Lordship is
right, we were forced to kill Jia Sha.”
In the tears, Lan Zao saw the young captain smiling and reaching out a hand.
“My Lord!”
Lan Zao reached for the hand, and it that moment, it seemed he had obtained
redemption.
Not only them, but much of the black smoke also faded away from Zi Di, Cang Xu,
Hei Fei, and the others, and they recovered much of their battle strength.
Only Guang Ke pursed his brows.
He felt the dragonman youngster’s words were very problematic, but they also
seemed to make sense.
As for what the problem was or why they were reasonable, Guang Ke did not have
the time to think about such things during a pitched battle.
Then, the dragonman youngster’s voice could be heard again.
“Everyone please believe my words!”
“I am a believer of the great Justice God!”
“I understand justice more than an ordinary man!”
“In the Justice God’s creed, there is a saying - “Justice without strength is
useless, and strength without justice is tyranny!”
“Rou Zang doesn’t have justice!”
“Fellow companions, comrades-in-arms, defeating the wicked Rou Zang is the
righteous choice, and the best way for us to repent.”
“Stand up and let us join hands together to eradicate a treacherous villain and
carry out justice!”
“You speak true! Rou Zang must pay with his life!” Tan Qiu straightened himself
for battle, most of the black smoke around him had thinned out.
Rou Zang and Gu Qiao had morphed into a bone and flesh giant of massive build.
Tan Qiu barely needed to aim to hit it with a crossbow.
Tan Qiu was a lord, a feudal lord even, so of course the arrows he fired were
alchemical ones.
The bone and flesh giant paid scant regard to the alchemy arrows; his target
was still Guang Ke. As long as he killed the alliance’s sole gold fighter, the
others were nothing to worry about.
But soon after, more alchemy arrows hit him.
Zong Ge, Zi Di, and Cang Xu were encircling him.
The dragonman youngster used Surge, and like an artillery shell, his two fists
hit the bone and flesh giant’s back.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The bone and flesh giant was staggered by his blow, and the gold battle qi
protecting him violently shuddered.
The bone and flesh giant was forced to punch from the side.
The arm swept across.
The dragonman youngster was unable to avoid it completely, and the edge of the
fist scratched him, smashing him into a ship aft house.
The dragonman youngster had dragon scales protecting him, but he had still been
beaten bloody. 
At that moment, the bone and flesh giant used the battle skill, Thorn in the
Flesh, and like a tempest, condensed gold battle qi needles fired out in all
directions.
The cultivators around him scattered and took cover.
The dragonman youngster shook his head and stood up in the ruins of the ship
aft house, he then noticed someone in front of him, the Night Devil Hunting
Group commander.
The hunting commander had protected him from Thorn in the Flesh.
“Commander Long Fu, your speech was excellent! Let’s fight side by side!” The
Night Devil Hunting commander shouted.
“That’s right.” Captain Hei Fei rushed over, two blades in hand.
Once, he and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had feuded.
However, with a powerful enemy in front of them, and also receiving the
dragonman youngster’s grace, he had abandoned this prejudice and now fought
with all of his strength.
Everyone besieged the bone and flesh giant, their offensive continuous, all of
them attacking again and again.
Guang Ke took on the greatest pressure at the front.
For a moment, the situation was deadlocked, both sides equally matched.
On a ship to the side of Stone Forest Island.
The village chief sighed ruefully, “Who was the one on the speaker? Their words
really reached the bottom of our hearts!”
Xu Ma immediately replied, “That was our commander, Lord Long Fu.”
The village chief looked faintly queer, “Survival comes first, we don’t have a
choice for survival’s sake.”
“Tan Qiu’s taxes are too heavy, far too heavy!”
“Living in his territory is too painful, too hard.”
“Therefore, we will hide the blood brain pebble so we can survive.”
Xu Ma promptly replied, “I can understand, I can understand that everyone’s
lives are not easy.”
“Therefore, I’m sorry!” The old village chief began to emit a dangerous aura.
Xu Ma stepped back and waved his hands, “Villagers, don’t be impulsive, I am
not your enemy!”
The Village chief, along with many villagers were surrounding him, “But you
know our secret. We are evading taxes, a serious offense. As long as e kill
you, we can flee to some faraway place.”
“Tan Qiu is too busy managing his own affairs, regardless of how this battle
ends, he won’t be able to pursue us.”
“By eliminating you, no one else will know about the blood brain pebble.”
“By selling it, our entire village will have a better future!”
“Kill!”
After the village chief said that he ordered the villagers to kill Xu Ma.
Xu Ma was only a bronze level, how could he dare to fight these people in
combat, instead he crashed through a widow and rolled onto the deck.
“What bad luck, what truly terrible luck.”
“Commander Long Fu, you brought calamity upon me!”
Xu Ma was quite nimble, and with hands and feet, he climbed the mast in a
flurry.
The villagers on the deck did not give up the pursuit.
Cang Xu tore open a healing scroll.
A milky white wave of healing soon flowed out of it, and like a chain, it
wrapped around the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Tan Qiu, and the others.
Their injuries soon faded away or lessened somewhat.
Zi Di was responsible for using fireball spell scrolls to help Gunag Ke impede
the bone and flesh giant.
These magic scrolls were from War Merchant’s storehouse.
Right now, Cang Xu’ and Zi Di’s magic power were nearly dry, but their spirits
were still good, and using these scrolls were their best option.
The bone and flesh giant was scarred again and again, and it was gasping for
breath.
He was already on a downward turn.
“Those damm guys…” Rou Zang gnashed his teeth.
He couldn’t escape anymore.
The ocean was boundless, and he no longer had a ship to cross it.
The Bath Tub had already sunk.
And his gold battle qi was also about to run out.
Originally, he had the advantage, but because of one person’s speech, the
scales of victory were slowly slanting to another.
If this trend continued, the bone and flesh giant would no longer be able to
fight.
“It is time.” The dragonman youngster detected an opportunity, and once again,
stood in place and chanted draconic words.
Racial magic – Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
“I’ll kill you!” The bone and flesh giant yelled, it was Rou Zang’s voice this
time.
He loathed the dragonman youngster much more than Guang Ke.
When the dragonman youngster saw the bone and flesh giant pouncing at him, he
ceased the racial magic.
He coughed out blood, resisting the failed casting backfire as he extricated
himself from the flesh and bone giant.
Guang Ke followed close behind.
Battle skill – Sacred Light Sword.
Divine spell – Just Punishment.
Gold battle qi bubbled out and condensed into a three meter long sword.
The battle skill and divine spell combined, coating the giant sword in a
silver-gold radiance.
The silver-gold sword swung down, cutting through the bone and flesh giant’s
back, and cleaving it in half.
The bone and flesh giant miserably howled, and gold battle qi scattered,
separating Gu Qiao and Rou Zang back into two people.
Gu Qiao looked like a worn out sack, and by the time he hit the deck, he was
already unconscious and delirious. 
It’s no wonder that in the latter stages of the fight that the bone and flesh
giant only spoke with Rou Zang’s voice.
Guang Ke had severed Gu Qiao’s arm, the latter losing consciousness was not odd
at all.
As for Rou Zang, he was still awake.
After falling into the sea, he immediately climbed onto a skiff drifting in the
sea.
With the silver-gold sword of light in hand, Guang Ke floated above Rou Zang.
Rou Zang glowered at him, but didn’t attack.
His battle qi was spent and was at the mercy of his foes.
“Lord Guang Ke, spare his life!” At this time, Tan Qiu unexpectedly exclaimed
for leniency.
“Capture him alive, make Rou Zang tell us where his treasure is.” The merchant
alliance magician added on, “There is also the bounty, Rou Zang will be worth
more alive than dead!”
Right now, Rou Zang was Guang Ke’s prisoner.
Soon after, the alliance forces also imprisoned the still unconscious Gu Qiao.
The strongest forces on the pirate’s side were defeated, removing all suspense
from this conflict.
The alliance was victorious, and the vast majority of the pirates had
completely lost their will to fight, laying down their weapons and
surrendering, Hua Dun among them. 
A minority of the pirates stubbornly refused to admit defeat or were
slaughtered by infuriated alliance forces as they asserted their victory.
“We are victorious!” Joyous shouts rose across the battlefield.
The entirety of the alliance looked adoringly at Guang Ke.
Guang Ke was the alliance’s strongest power, and the greatest hero during this
battle.
Without him, the alliance would have been routed and be forced to nurse their
grievances, there was no other possibility.
Guang Ke looked towards the dragonman youngster.
He had complex feelings about the youngster he had recently converted.
If he was the battle’s greatest hero, then the most pivotal person was
doubtlessly the dragonman youngster.
It was the dragonman youngster’s speech that had roused the silver level
cultivators’ battle strength. Without the silver levels helping Guang Ke, he
wouldn’t have defeated the bone and flesh giant.
Guang Ke now recalled the dragonman youngster’s pivotal declaration, and the
more he pondered it, the more he felt there was something amiss about it. 
But he couldn’t vocalize what was amiss about it.
“Ah save me, save me!” Beyond the celebratory ambience, Xu Ma was still wildly
jumping around the ship, using all of his strength to run away.
“The villagers were crowded into a large group, and whichever mast Xu Ma jumped
to, they would rush over to surround it from below. They used every kind of
farm tools or slipshod bows and arrows to jab and shoot at Xu Ma.
“Save me, save me!” Xu Ma begged for help with a husky voice.



****** Chapter 84: Standing Tall ******
Several days later.
White seabirds flew over Snake Rat Island’s port.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flag fluttered above twelve ships.
Sailors and porters were buzzing with activity.
Water was filled, rum was barreled, vegetables were bundled, fresh meat, bread,
cheese, and other supplies were packed and transported onto these ships.
The hulls of these ships were filled with innumerable and distinct scars from
blades and cannon fire.
Speaking of which, all of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ six ships were sunk
during the battle.
Upon discussing after the victory, Tan Qi and the dragonman youngster decided
to not salvage those ships.
Because those ships had all been destroyed by Rou Zang, even if they were
salvaged, they’d need to be overhauled too.
After calculating the salvage and repair cost, it was determined to not be cost
effective and that it was better to just buy new ships.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had done exceptional, and had an outstanding
battle record, thus Tan Qiu gave them 12 captured ships that were in relatively
good condition.
Of course, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ gains from this conflict were far
more than just these 12 ships.
In the flagship’s captain room, Guang Ke and the dragonman youngster were
discussing the Justice God’s doctrine.
The dragonman youngster said, “Defending and carrying out justice should be the
pursuit of every living being.”
“Isn’t that right?”
Guang Ke nodded, “That’s right.”
The dragonman youngster then said, “Then, how can we pursue justice? We need to
have a usable body. Or in other words, we need to preserve life.”
“Is that not also right?”
Guang Ke hesitated, and didn’t reply.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “Is it also impossible for the undead to pursue
justice?”
As he said this, the young man was gazing out a window and saw the ghost girl,
Zi Di, on the ship, carefully checking the goods being transported on board.
When undead were mentioned, Guang Ge solemnly replied, “The undead are all
wicked, and the opposite of righteous.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Therefore, the prerequisite is survival.
Without life, there is nothing, then how will one be able to uphold justice?”
Guang Ke slowly shook his head, “Those words are a little biased. In fact, to
defend and carry out justice, we have to have a sacrificial mindset.”
“Many times, justice is carried out even at the cost of one’s life!”
Guang Ke’s eyes looked both divine and very sincere.
This was the philosophy he wholeheartedly approved of. 
The dragonman youngster smiled, “Right.”
“Lord Guang Ke speaks true.”
“It is because we weren’t afraid to sacrifice our lives that we were able to
defeat Rou Zang and Gu Qiao together.”
“Therefore, the prerequisite of sacrifice is that we still need to be alive.
Only by retaining our life can we be able to sacrifice ourselves, no?” 
Guang Ke was dumbstruck.
The dragonman youngster had circled back to his own point.
“That is also correct.” Guang Ke wrinkled his brows and carefully pondered, but
didn’t find any point he could refute.
Then at that moment, there was a voice at the door.
It was a sailor bringing a report, he said that Feudal Lord tan Qiu was coming
to the port to send off the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Good, let Zong Ge hold a reception, I will join them in a little bit.” The
dragonman youngster ordered.
Guang Ke’s brows creased deeply, “Your philosophy puts life ahead of justice,
and makes it a prerequisite for justice.”
“If that is the case, then survival is more important that pursuing justice.”
“Does that mean that for the sake of survival, one can abandon all morality and
principles, and commit crimes?”
“Won’t your philosophy cause evil to flourish?”
The dragonman youngster shook his head respectfully, “Lord Guang Ke.”
“There are people who have done wrong.”
“We are all sinful!”
“It is because we bear sins that we repent and pursue righteousness.” 
“Is it not precisely our church’s duty to lead all living beings onto this
path?”
“Everyone should pursue righteousness and have the power to pursue it! This
includes both ordinary people and criminals.”
“Righteousness and sin are like light and dark; it is because light is
beautiful that darkness can express its repulsiveness. Conversely, it is
because of the darkness that light can show its value.”
“Allow believers to cleanse themselves of their sins, and become emissaries of
justice, is that not what we pursue?”
Guang Ke was dumbstruck.
He sensed that the dragonman youngster’s philosophy had already formed a closed
loop.
It could be explained circularly.
It had an impeccable feeling.
Guang Ke sighed, “With regards to my God’s doctrine, I am not an expert.”
“I am very sorry that I have other urgent affairs.”
“Otherwise, I would travel and sail with you so we could discuss our doctrine.”
The dragonman youngster also expressed his disappointment.
In actuality, his heart had greatly relaxed.
Much of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ affairs could not be exposed to the
light. After leaving Snake Rat Island, they needed to go to Two Eyes Island and
use Wisteria Merchant Alliance channels to contact the Bai Zhen clan elder.
This matter was very important, and if Guang Ke was by their side, it would be
very inconvenient for the survivors.
“It is getting late; it is time to see you off.” Guang Ke stood up to leave,
“If there is an opportunity, I hope you can travel to my God’s cathedral, the
archbishop there is well versed in the field of theology.”
“If I get the chance, I will go there.” The dragonman youngster nodded his
agreement.
The speech he gave on the battlefield not only changed others, but it also
changed him too.
Before, he too felt the weight of his sins.
Now, through his own enlightenment, he had swept away the haze in his heart and
had now had an entirely different spirit and mindset.
Guang Ke and the dragonman youngster left the captain’s room and went to the
port to meet with Tan Qiu.
Tan Qiu was beaming.
He had finally eliminated his greatest heart demon, and after defeating Rou
Zang, the greatest shadow over his life had crumbled.
Rou Zang and Gu Qiao were captured alive, layered heavily with seals, and
stringently watched.
Rou Zang’s mouth was very stiff, even after cruel torture, he wouldn’t reveal
where he had hidden his treasure.
Rou Zang’s pirate group had rampaged in these seas for many years, there was no
way the wealth he stashed was small.
Tan Qiu looked forward to what happened next greatly.
He hung Rou Zang on the punishment scaffold for all to see.
This would strengthen his prestige and renown to the maximum.
Originally, the church priest who had funded it was the leader.
But the priest died in battle.
Tan Qiu replaced him as the biggest winner.
As for Gu Qiao, Tan Qiu imprisoned him and didn’t treat him like Rou Zang.
After all, Gu Qiao was not a pirate and was from the Great Pain Temple.
The latter power was very robust. Tan Qiu was in the middle of finding someone
to connect him with them, and he planned to exchange Gu Qiao for sufficient
construction supplies for the island.
Gu Qiao was a gold level fighter, a valuable person the Great Pain Temple
wouldn’t abandon.
“The ocean is vast; I do not know when we will see each other again.” At the
time before parting, Tan Qiu expressed his desire for them to meet again. 
“The memory of when we fought side by side and defeated Rou Zang’s pirate group
proves the glory of our fellowship.”
“Snake Rat Island will forever welcome your corps!”
The dragonman youngster expressed that if given the chance, he would continue
their collaboration together.
A short while later, the twelve ships sailed off and left the port.
After he saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gradually disappear over the
horizon, Tan Qiu let out a breath.
During the naval battle against Rou Zang, everyone had seen the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ substantial strength.
To be honest, when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps berthed at Snake Rat Island,
they had been a weight on Tan Qiu’s heart.
The captain’s room.
Zi Di reported the outcome of the conflict to the dragonman youngster.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had lost six ships and had gained twelve ships
of better quality postwar.
80 people were killed, 137 were crippled, and to compensated them, 49 gold, 82
silver, and 63 copper was spent.
But after the war, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps recruited a thousand people!
Without enough people, they wouldn’t be able to operate 12 ships.
It didn’t cost a penny to recruit this many people.
Many of them were pirates that had surrendered.
Tan Qiu wasn’t comfortable with releasing these war criminals into his
territory, but the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was leaving that, their
situation was different.
On the seas, there wasn’t many differences between mercenary groups and pirate
groups.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps hadn’t lost any members of its backbone or
core.
This is because during the naval battle, the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and
the others issued proper commands and didn’t carry out cannon fodder tactics.
Especially when facing Rou Zang, they had given the order to abandon ship and
withdrew willingly.
The distinguished gold level cannon remained intact and wasn’t damaged.
We have spent 9 fireball scrolls, 27 healing scrolls, 344 alchemy arrows, 241
artillery shells, and damaged 25 alchemy crossbows.
“We used 10 boxes of shakers.”
“One pearl bubble.”
Both had been used to make the trap; by using an illusion of Zong Ge and the
gold level cannon, they had successfully lured Rou Zang into it.
“Before the fight, we obtained a set of standard templar knight equipment.”
“We also obtained a gold level material – the blood brain pebble.”
“We also obtained the Bath Tub’s gold level alchemy device – the Magic Medicine
Bathtub.”
“Apart from this, there is also a batch of magic medicine recipes.”
“We obtained the organization method for the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army from
Tan Qiu.”
After the naval battle ended, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps returned for the
dead tired Xu Ma.
They also arrested the Stone Forest Islanders along the way.
The blood brain pebble was given over by Tan Qiu.
In order to obtain the right to deal with Rou Zang and Gu Qiao with his own
hands, Tan Qiu had given up many riches.  
The blood brain pebble was the first, the magic medicine bathtub was the
second, and the Drunken Shrimp Mud Spear Army organization method was the
third.
When the medicine bath was brought up, Zi Di inevitably elaborated on it more,
“This gold level item is very useful, it can refine large batches of magic
medicine and will be of great help to the entire group!”
As Zi Di was giving her report to the young captain, Zong Ge was busy writing
in his training manual.
He was no longer limited to one ship, now he had expanded to three.
“Kuai Tui’s battle squad is the key.”
“There are too many new mercenaries, they need much more training.”
“As we sail, they can practice steering the ships, controlling the sails, and
other such activities.”
“Military discipline is important! It must be reshaped and emphasized.”
“When we reach Two Eyes Island, I should be able to cure my arm injury.”
In the latter stages of the naval battle, Zong Ge’s arm injury was a burden
that forced him to rely mainly on shooting from afar, which made him feel
terrible.
Bai Ya’s head was bandaged.
In his free time, he sat above deck and admired the vast seascape.
He reminisced to himself the letter he wrote to his sweetheart.
Dear Miss Xi Qiu:
Although the naval battle is done, I still see it replaying before me.
My ears still ring with the echoes of gunfire.
I still have nightmares.
I dreamed that I died in battle, and still dream about Priest Jia Sha.
But I no longer panic like before.
Whenever I recall the captain’s words, I can sense a warm feeling rising from
my heart.
I am very glad that I could meet our captain!
I think that in some ways, he is greater than even Lord Guang Ke.
It was he who lifted me up, allowed me to confront my sins, then go and seek
and more radiant and beautiful tomorrow.
It was he who let me know that I am walking on the correct path!
Therefore, I stand tall.
Not after we redeem ourselves, but as we redeem ourselves.



****** Chapter 85: Two Eyes Island ******
The sunset glow looked like glittering fireworks that filled the meeting
between sky and sea.
The tranquil ocean surface reflected the multicolored sunset that seemed to
burn as gorgeously as fire.
Despite several days of sailing, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 12 ships
still held their sails high, with both shouts and horns booming from their
vessels.
Zong Ge stood on the foremost mast, and with rapt attention, he sized up how
training was going on every ship.
“Yesterday two pirates were executed, it had a good effect.”
After leaving Snake Rat Island, Zong Ge conducted training.
The Dragon Man Youngster took in many pirates from Rou Zang’s pirate group,
including from the Thin Grass Pirates and the Flower Wall Pirates.
These pirates were of decent quality, and in Zong Ge’s assessment, they weren’t
too bad.
After all, they were either part of Rou Zang’s main group or his auxiliary
groups.
Those that could dominate a small stretch of sea had to be capable. These
pirates were those people, the victors of battle and competitions of cruelty.
They could be said to be the elite.
Their battle quality was good, but their obedience was lacking.
It was considerably challenging to force these unyielding pirates to follow the
rules to the letter.
Zong Ge had served in the imperial military for many years and loathed these
kinds of people the most. Yesterday, he had beheaded two slacking
troublemakers, slightly shocking the newly recruited pirates.
“There is still too few of our own people.”
“Most of this group are new recruits.”
Zong Ge was an outstanding military officer, and he clearly understood the
systemic problems present in the group.
The main reason was that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had expanded too
quickly. Creating an unstable foundation.
Having a high level of battle strength was not a problem.
With the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge surpassing normal silver level
cultivators, they could intimidate others.
But on the lower levels, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was quite weak.
The only iron level cultivators they could currently trust were Cang Xu,
Tripleblade, and Kuai Tui.
They had managed to recruit 7 iron level pirates.
There were even more bronze level pirates, 22 currently.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Group only had 12 bronze levels originally, including
Lan Zao and Zi Di (iron level life level and bronze level magician).
There were basically twice as many bronze levels as iron levels.
Currently, the survivors had inadequate control over the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ lower ranks.
Before expanding their forces, Zong Ge had foreseen the consequences of doing
so, yet he was still the greatest advocate form expanding the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ranks.
“There are unquestionably more advantages than detriments for expanding our
forces.”
“We only need time and training, as well as battlefield screening to be able to
inspect and promote the exceptional, allowing our entire troop to become more
elite and battle worthy.
To Zong Ge, it seemed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had many
deficiencies.
For example, their ships were ordinary and had low ceilings, they had a serious
lack of cannons, and their ratio of sailors was irrational.
“A fleet has appeared ahead!”
“It is Two Eyes Island’s flag.”
The lookout on the main mast suddenly warned.
Zong Ge was unsurprised.
Before the lookout had noticed, he had already been informed of it through the
Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection equipment.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection range was far greater than a lookout’s.
“We aren’t far from Two Eyes Island.”
“That should be Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet!”
“Hahaha, we are finally reaching land.”
A surge of joyous laughter rolled from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 12
ships.
But Zong Ge’s expression nevertheless sank.
He knew the other party was certainly Two Eyes island’s patrol fleet, but
before their identity had been thoroughly verified, the reaction of these
people was too undisciplined.
“All personnel, be on your guard. Gunners and marksmen squads to your
positions…” Zong Ge quickly transmitted a series of orders to the lower ranks.
The ships’ sailors were startled, and one by one, they got up and moved.
Thus, when the Two Eys Island patrol fleet contacted the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, they saw the 12 ships on their guard, with guns exposed.
The patrol fleet’s captain promptly transmitted his identity clearly, “Don’t be
nervous, I am the Two Eyes Island’s patrol commander, ‘One Eye’. You are the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? During the naval battle of Snake Rat Island, when
Rou Zang’s pirate group was utterly exterminated, you performed outstanding
military service. I know you!”
“We are already within Two Eyes Island’s waters, it is very safe, don’t be so
tense!”
As One Eye advised the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to relax, he was in fact,
very nervous.
He only had 8 ships in his fleet, regardless of whether it was numbers or
cultivators, both were lacking compared to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“One Eye, a silver level fighter.”
“Only 8 ships…it should only be a portion of the defense fleet.”
“One bronze level magic ship.”
“I gauge about 200 cannons.”
Zong Ge quickly swept his eyes over them, and with the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
gathered intelligence, he assessed the other party’s battle strength.
In terms of island size, Two Eyes Island and Snake Rat Island were both
considered medium sized islands.
But in terms of development, Two Eyes Island far surpassed Snake Rat Island.
It had a good location, sandwiched between the Magic Power Shipping Route and
the Masked Shipping Route, thus trade here was flourishing.
On the sea, after both fleets communicated their respective identities, Zong Ge
ordered, “Lift defensive measures.”
One Eye let out a breath in relief, and let his subordinates proceed with their
patrol while his bronze level magic ship lead the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
to the harbor.
By the time the fleet arrived there, the sun had completely set.
In the dusky light, Two Eyes was illuminated brightly.
Under the curtain of night, Two Eyes Island was one half tall and one half low.
The shorter island was dark, with only sporadic lights on it. While the
towering island was lit up splendidly and filled with the clamor of people.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 12 ships officially berthed at port.
One Eye departed to continue his duty of patrolling.
Ship planks were put down.
A port official smiled and walked onto the flagship.
“Commander Long Fu, honored to meet you. Your military glory and outstanding
service preceded you by several days and has already disseminated throughout
Two Eyes Island. Two Eyes Island welcomes your group’s arrival.” The official’s
attitude was very cordial.
The destruction of Rou Zang’s pirate group was great news to the surrounding
imperial islands.
With the Pirate Throne’s appearance and increasing rampancy of pirates, hearing
about the infamous Rou Zang’s pirate group being wiped out at this turbulent
time was like sweet rain after a long drought.
“We mainly relied on Lord Guang Ke’s strength. My group was just lucky to fish
up some merits.” Long Fu laughed, “Thanks to Lord Guang Ke’s leadership, I have
become a believer in the Justice Church, and henceforth, bathe in my God’s
radiance.”
Upon hearing that the Long Fu and Guang Ke had a close relationship, the
official become more fervent.
After a quick chat, the official collected the anchorage fee.
For a week, it would cost 15 silvers for small sized ships, 30 silver for
medium sized ships, and 50 silver for large sized ships.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had 12 ships. The flagship and Zong Ge’s
warship were medium sized vessels, while the rest were small sized vessels.
Thus, the anchorage expense was 210 silver, or 2 gold and 10 silver.
It was a little more expensive than Snake Rat Island.
The official explained, “Lord Long Fu, I will explain the anchorage fee.”
“Normally, the anchorage fee would be 10 silvers for small ships, 25 silver for
medium ships, and 45 silver for large ships. The price is basically the same in
all imperial ports.”
“But because the island is rising and falling, trade is frequent, and there are
many people visiting, supply is scarce at port, thus we are forced to charge
additional fees.”
Long Fu nodded, indicating his understanding.
The official smiled, “Then, how long will your group be stopping here?”
The dragonman youngster had been prepared for this, and didn’t answer, instead
he first asked, “When is the large auction being held?”
The official reacted instantly, “According to customary practice, it will be in
roughly 8 days. My Lord, besides the ascending island’s auction, the descending
island’s clearance sale usually continues for half a month.”
The dragonman youngster took the middle road, “Then we’ll stay for 10 days for
now.”
“Does the island have a good tavern?”
The official recommended 5 taverns, 8 inns, and provided a detailed
presentation on where there were nice girls and where there were mermaid
maids. 
The dragonman youngster knew the official had misunderstood him, but didn’t
interrupt him.
The official finally said, “After finding out your group was coming, the Feudal
Lord was very happy, and invites you, Commander Long Fu, to have an audience
with him tomorrow morning.”
“I am honored to pay my respects to Lord Hun Tong.” The dragonman youngster
said as a result.
The official left satisfied, he was not returning empty-handed.
Before leaving, Zi Di stepped forth and secretly gave him a pouch of silver
coins.
Zi Di came back, her face like a smile yet not, “My Lord, are you not going to
gather information at those taverns? The official detailed where there were
many beautiful girls.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “Today, I and the sailors will rest on
the ships.”
“Do you need to go now?”
Zi Di nodded, “The earlier I get news and contact the Bai Zhen clan elder, the
better right?”
“Please be safe!” The dragonman youngster reminded.
This was also part of their formulated plan.
Speaking of which, it had been a long time since they left Mystifying Monster
Island.
They were delayed a lot due to their search for the Green Jade Gold Coffin on
Snake Rat Island.
The longer time passed, the worse things got for the survivors.
Despite the fact they hadn’t been exposed yet, the empire had dispatched a
legend level strength squad to assault Mystifying Monster Island.
There was an additional factor, War Merchant was a massive arms dealer.
Although he had concealed and cut off Mystifying Monster Island from the rest
of the world, his trade with the outside world had always been immense.
Trafficking munitions was incredibly profitable, and the sales of which
constantly supported War Merchant’s alchemy research.
Now that War Merchant was dead, the arms market would certainly have a large
shortfall of goods. All powers that purchased War Merchant’s munitions would
definitely be looking for War Merchant.
Therefore, as more time passed, the greater the survivors’ weak points.
They had to prepare well as soon as possible.
If they waited until they became wanted criminals to redeem themselves, the
leeway to do so would be too small.
Zi Di left the ship and made landfall with Cang Xu.
Some sailors on board began to cause trouble.
“Why aren’t we allowed to disembark?”
“Yea, we’ve already arrived at Two Eyes Island!”
“Let us go, I want to drink, I want some girls!!”
The sailors were very discontented.
If they were still sailing, it would have been alright, but now that they were
at port, they still weren’t allowed off the ship.
Wasn’t this the same as placing fine delicacies in front of a starving person?
Lan Zao was expressionless, “This is both the commander’s and the first mate’s
order. None of us are leaving the ship.”
“Then why was Xu Ma allowed to get off?” Someone exclaimed.
Lan Zao coldly snorted, “He is a thief, and responsible for making discreet
inquiries for information. Are you one?”
“That’s an excuse.”
“A lie!”
“Don’t think we don’t know that Xu Ma has given you many gifts. You guys are
simply in this together.”
A group of sailors were stirred up and surrounded Lan Zao.
Lan Zao bleakly stroked his blade’s handle.
Of the people around him, there were three bronze levels, all of them from Rou
Zang’s pirate group.
If a fight broke out, Lan Zao would be in a worrying situation against the
three of them.



****** Chapter 86: Magic Messaging Unit ******
The sailors looked malevolent, and their faces were ominously glinting as they
grew closer to Lan Zao on all sides, squeezing him in.
In that desperate moment, a short figure burst into the hold.
“What are you guys up to, surrounding him?”
“Do you want to court death?!”
Upon sensing the iron level aura, cold water seemed to splash into everyone’s
hearts.
“Ah, its Lord Di Bi.”
Everyone was startled.
“We weren’t doing anything.”
“This is a misunderstanding, my Lord. We just wanted an explanation.”
“The ships have entered port, why aren’t we allowed to disembark?”
The dangerous ambience vanished like smoke.
Di Bi was Tripleblade’s pseudonym.
Tripleblade was an iron level and Zong Ge’s trusted aide, thus his intimidation
ability was greater than Lan Zao’s.
Tripleblade’s keen gaze swept across everyone.
Wherever his gaze went, the eyes of pirates looked away, none dared to look at
him face to face.
Tripleblade was once a mercenary commander, and had much prestige, things Lan
Zao lacked. Although Lan Zao had worked on the Hog’s Kiss for a long time, his
highest position was being an assault captain, that’s all.
He had been the survivors’ boatswain for a time.
Tripleblade coldly snorted, “You aren’t aware of why you aren’t allowed off the
ship?”
“You are pirates, prisoners of war!”
“You are my group’s spoils of war; it was because Lord Shi Qi advocated for
expanding our forces that we took you in.”
“You think that by joining our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps that you can
wantonly act like you use to?”
“It is because you are undisciplined and impulsive that Lord Shi Qi has taken
the trouble to train you. For now, you will remain on this ship to recuperate.”
“You will be clear on your status and situation!”
The hold was in absolute silence.
Tripleblade finally looked at Lan Zao.
Lan Zao sternly said, “Yesterday, Lord Shi Qi beheaded two people, this what
happens to hose that don’t comply with orders.”
“If you don’t believe me, then don’t hesitate to try me!”
The sailors reluctantly smiled, “How would we dare?”
“Lord Di Bi has provided us guidance.”
“We will leave at once, at once.”
One still unreconciled asked, “Then when can we disembark?”
Tripleblade glared at the person who asked.
The sailors dispersed in confusion.
Now only Lan Zao and Tripleblade were left in the hold.
“Many thanks.” Lan Zao sincerely expressed.
Tripleblade shook his head, “You don’t need to be courteous with me.”
There was no need for such politeness between those that had survived
Mystifying Monster Island together.
Lan Zao shook his head too, “If you didn’t arrive at the right time, such a
wonderful outcome wouldn’t have happened.
“Although they wouldn’t kill you, they’d still teach you a lesson and likely
injure you.” Tripleblade sighed when he said that, “I heard that Two Eyes
Island’s market is well developed, there are many things we can buy. You must
improve your strength as much as possible.”
“As you say!” Lan Zao was in favor of that.
His bronze level strength couldn’t suppress the situation.
To deal with these arrogant and obstinate pirates directly, one had to have
greater strength.
However, Lan Zao’s bloodline and aptitude shackled him.
If nothing unexpected happened, his current strength would be his limit for the
rest of his life.
Under these circumstances, he could only use external power like excellent
equipment to increase his strength.
Lan Zao’s status was higher than most bronze levels.
But without the strength to defend his position, sooner or later, the other
bronze fighters would dig at him.
This was the world of the strong.
After making his rounds, Tripleblade reported the situation to Zong Ge.
Zong Ge was the one who ordered Tripleblade to do this.
Tripleblade had outstanding strength among the iron levels. Were it not so, it
was impossible for him to be a mercenary commander for so many years.
Before a riot could form, Tripleblade had successfully pacified things.
Zong Ge didn’t punish the troublesome sailors severely.
Although the pirate captives could fight, they were not excellent troops.
Their obedience was lacking, and they were hard to train.
“During naval battles, because space between ships is narrow, they often fight
by themselves or in small groups.
“Therefore, individual bravery is very important.”
“If a large scale land battle happens, where particular formations and
coordination is needed, these pirates will be a pile of rabble.”
Zong Ge was constantly thinking about the Wilderness Continent.
That was his stage.
On that stage, a well-trained and obedient army was strength that could be
relied on.
“At present, I have to use these reluctant pirates.”
“If Kuai Tui and the others can be trained into a battle squad, when I arrive
on the Wilderness Continent, they can be used to establish an army and rapidly
open up things.”
Zong Ge calculated.
After leaving Snake Rat Island, he now had his own ship.
Zong Ge pondered: whether he could secretly train Kuai Tui and the others on
his ship?
If he did that, how much would be exposed?
If things were exposed, how would he and the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
be jeopardized?
Zi Di was traveling through a corridor.
She wasn’t along, as Cang Xu was by her side.
The two magicians were together to guarantee their safety.
Although their highest cultivation was the iron level, their necromancy spells
could affect gold levels.
This was the advantage of a new path.
If they had used necromancy during the naval battle, the difficulty of victory
would have been halved at the least.
What made them more at east was the defensive magic on them.
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy Spell and Deceptive Disguise Spell combined
could counter legend level detection!
This was the power of a divine artifact.
Therefore, as they walked through Two Eyes Island, they didn’t provoke any
suspicious attention.
“This is the place.” After a short while, Zi Di and Cang Xu came to a halt.
They were in front of a store open for business.
The signboard had the words – Wisteria store.
But Zi Di’s brows knitted.
For the most part, the stores she had walked past were bustling. There were
streams of people in them and deals galore, however, the Wisteria store before
them was barren, barely a person was at the door.
Not only that, but the store was also located in a remote area.
Zi Di and Cang Xu entered the store.
The girl president discovered that the store had barely any merchandise, and
that there was only one product there.
On the contrary, the sales clerk was very enthused to see two people and
promptly welcomed them in.
Before he could ask who they were, Zi Di took out a magic decree.
When the sales clerk saw that decree, his eyes immediately widened and he
stammered, “Wisteria secret order?”
The sales clerk immediately took in the two people before him.
Zi Di and Cang Xu both wore hooded cloaks.
To the sales clerk, they both seemed to be ordinary looking middle aged men.
The sales clerk became deferential, “Two Lords, please come this way.”
After he walked behind the sales counter, he took out a palm sized alchemy
device.
Zi Di put the wisteria secret order into the alchemy device’s slot.
The secret order fit snugly into the slot.
After a few seconds, the secret order glowed with purple light.
The purple light condensed into a vine.
This was how the Wisteria Merchant Alliance validated one’s identity.
The purple vine of light climbed into the air and formed seven vines.
“Level seven elders!” Upon seeing this, the sales clerk couldn’t help but rub
his eyes, his face filling with shock.
Zi Di replied, “Who is the manager here? Call them in.”
The sales clerk gasped, then bowed and fawned, “Yes, yes!”
A jiffy later.
The store’s backyard.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance manager bowed to Zi Di and Cang Xu, “Lord
Elders, this humble one is Yan Yi, the manager stationed here.”
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance was once enormous, second only to humanity’s six
great merchant alliances, naturally it had a complete organizational structure.
The merchant alliance had 10 levels of authority.
Level 10 was the president, level 9 was the vice president, level 8 senior
elder, level 7 elder…level 3 store manager.
The two middle aged men who had suddenly arrived were of a much higher level
compared to the store manager.
The wisteria secret order Zi Di and Cang Xu had taken out was the newest one.
Secret orders were a type of alchemy device, its core was a sequence of magic
words. By knowing the written content and sequence, one could make a secret
order.
Zi Di could make level 10 decrees as president, but that wasn’t necessary.
Level 7 was sufficient to spur on the store manager here.
“Where is the magic messaging unit? I need to pass on a message.” Zi Di asked
bluntly.
“This way please.” The store manager, Yan Yi, led the way at once.
Magic messaging units were standard equipment for every Wisteria Merchant
Alliance store.
It was a pillar-shaped alchemy device that could transmit messages over long
distances.
Of course, the distance that it could was finite.
But through many magic messaging units, one could spread a message over a long
range.
The message Zi Di transmitted from this magic messaging unit would be passed
onto the nearest magic messaging unit, then to the next magic messaging unit,
and then to the next.
By being passed through many magic messaging units, the message would
eventually reach the Sheng Ming Continent and be delivered to the Bai Zhen clan
elder.
Upon reaching the magic messaging unit, Zi Di took out a slate, the slate had a
long paragraph of writing engraved into it. The words were densely packed, and
all mixed up, it was clear that it needed a special cipher to deconstruct it
for one to gain the true message hidden in it.
Zi Di inspected it three times, then after verifying it, she solemnly put the
slate into the device’s recess.
“I won’t be able to reverse this once it’s done.” Zi Di said to herself,
“Perhaps with the pearl bubbles, we can live incognito?”
The hesitation only lasted for a split second.
The pearl bubbles would be exhausted one day.
In fact, the amount of divine force inside the Mermaid Fairy Tale was always
decreasing.
Zi Di used her spirit to control the pillar and began to imbue it with magic
power.
The magic device activated and emitted a yellow light.
The light condensed on the slate, and the slate’s words began to move up and
turn into blue light that flowed into the pillar.
The pillar’s yellow light soon turned blue, then the blue light suddenly
ejected out and disappeared without a trace.
“Message transmission…successful! Now then, time to wait for a reply.” Zi Di
coughed, then pushed open the secret room’s door.
A few minutes later.
Zi Di and Cang Xu returned to the back of the shop.
The store manager Yan Yin was standing to the side, he looked somewhat tense.
Cang Xu was drinking water.
Zi Di browsed the ledger, her complexion aloof.
There were many incorrect entries.
Zi Di coughed, her finger pointing at something, “Tell me, what happened to
this account?”
Yan Yi stammered out an explanation.
After a few sentences, Cang Xu knew he was hearing lies.
Zi Di asked a few questions, and Yan Yi answered with a brow beaded with sweat.
“How much does the store still have in reserve?” Zi Di finally asked.
Not long after, Zi Di and Cang Xu left the store.
They had a small leather suitcase in their hands, inside there was 300 gold
coins.
As a level 7 elder, Zi Di had the right to utilize any store reserves.
After leaving a tenth, Zi Di withdrew the rest of the reserve.
As for the store manager, Yan Yi, Zi Di did not fire him.
From an examination of the accounts, Yan Yi had obviously been embezzling store
sales.
He also lacked business acumen.
But according to merchant alliance records, at the time, the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance had carefully considered who to assign as store manager here.
Yan Yi and the feudal lord here, Hun Tong, were both members of the Duo Mu
Clan.
They had a faint bloodline relationship with each other.
Now was the time to hire more staff, and Zi Di did not plan for Yan Yi to be
doing the interviews.



****** Chapter 87: Coral Cage Tree ******
Xu Ma arrived at a tavern bar counter.
He was following orders to gather intelligence on Two Eyes Island discreetly.
“Give me a cup of pine wind beer!” Xu Ma took out a few silver coins and set
them on the counter.
Liquor was served after the coin was received, and very soon, a large cup of
beer was put int front of him.
Xu Ma immersed himself in his drink.
Glug, glug, glug.
After a few sips, the cup was empty.
Pine wind beer had a cold and fresh texture, and Xu Ma sighed contently after
burping.
He was very poor.
But this time, he had gotten funds from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps for his
mission.
With the coin, he first chose to reward himself with drink.
He hadn’t had this type of beer for a very long time.
“Another cup!” Xu Ma took out some more mission funds.
This time, after the liquor cup was served to him, Xu Ma called to him, “I
heard you have the latest news here.”
The waiter glanced at him, “We do some information peddling.”
Xu Ma smiled, “I want information on Two Eyes Island. As much as possible, and
as detailed as possible.”
The waiter was expressionless, “Customer, this depends on how much you want to
pay. With enough money, I can tell you what color the feudal lord is wearing
tonight.”
“I am not interested in what old men like to wear!” Xu ma waved his hand, his
face disdainful.
The waiter took out a list of items, “This is the pricing list, you can look at
it in the corner. The same information can have different prices depending on
how specific and detailed you want it.”
The bar counter was crowded and had the best lighting.
Xu Ma took the list and liquor to the corner, then looked through the pricing
list.
“This is how much?” Xu Ma was somewhat begrudging, “I might as well buy some
popular news, the leftover coin is enough for me to have two more cups.”
Xu ma had received a huge scare during the battle against Rou Zang’s pirate
group.
He decided that he would relax and appreciate himself here nicely.
After purchasing the information, Xu Ma drank his beer while gazing at the
tavern’s female dancers and pretty waitresses.
A thin person decided to sit in front of him.
“I heard you wanted information?”
“We can exchange some.”
For a moment, Xu Ma didn’t react, he was very red, and his eyes were drifting,
“What do you mean?”
“You wanted information on Two Eyes Island, I am well acquainted with it.” The
thin person thumbed towards themselves, “In exchange, I want information on the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Xu Ma immediately sobered up a bit, and his face sank, “You’ve got the wrong
person!”
“That’s right. Our younger brother saw you disembarking from their ship.” The
thin person said.
“I’m no traitor!” Xu Ma’s attitude was very firm.
“The price can be discussed.” The thin person laughed.
Xu Ma coldly snorted.
The thin person began to raise the price.
Truth be told, Xu Ma was gradually being enticed.
But when he thought of offending the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, his heart
trembled in fear.
“Stop talking!” Xu Ma was cold, “I am not interested at all!”
When the thin person saw Xu Ma’s apprehension, he urged one last time, “Our
trade will be kept strictly confidential, no third party will know you sold
information to us.”
Xu Ma didn’t reply, he just waved his hand in disagreement.
The thin person’s smile vanished, and after looking deeply at Xu Ma, they
walked away without another word.
After a half hour, Xu Ma, smelling like alcohol, left the tavern.
In a sparse road, where the light was dim on the footpath, he was blocked on
all sides.
“What are you doing?!” Xu Ma was irritated.
Three people were blocking him, all of them bronze level.
Xu Ma was no match for them.
A dagger was ruthlessly jabbed into his belly.
The brazen attacker pulled off their mask and laughed.
It was the thin person from the tavern!
“We meet again, friend.”
The thin person grabbed Xu Ma’s hand and placed it on the dagger, then told
him, “Hold onto this dagger, don’t pull it out. If you do, you will surely
hemorrhage blood. Without healing methods, it’ll only take a few minutes for
you to bleed to death.”
Xu Ma painfully grasped the dagger.
“Now, tell me everything you know about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.” Said
the thin person, “If you won’t talk, then you’ll die.”
Xu Ma shuddered from head to toe, fear and hate flooded body and mind.
With the threat of death looming, he was forced to expose what he knew about
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“That’s all?” The thin person was dissatisfied.
“I only have a small role; I haven’t been a member for long!” Xu Ma said at
once, “Don’t kill me, in the future when I go up in the ranks, I can tell you
much more.”
But the thin person lost interest in Xu Ma, and he clapped the latter’s
shoulder, “Don’t worry, we won’t kill you.”
“As long as we get information, we won’t commit murder.”
This would have gone better if we did this earlier.”
“Let’s go.”
The thin person got up and called out to the others, and the rest followed them
through a corridor.
In the darkness, the thin person gave one final message, “The dagger is yours,
treat it as a greeting gift. Mercenary, welcome to Two Eyes Island, hehehe.”
The early morning shined on the tranquil ocean surface.
The morning sun gradually rose, sprinkling the delightful colors of sunrise on
the ocean.
The dragonman youngster left the captain’s room, and stood on the side of the
ship, appreciating the beautiful scenery, feeling the serene seas, and the
thriving opportunities of Two Eyes Island.
Two Eyes Island was no ordinary island, it was a living being.
According to War Merchnat’s database, Two Eyes Island was a coral cage tree.
During the tree’ infancy, it took root on the seabed, and absorbed seawater as
it grew.
During puberty, the sprouting ball’s treetop would be formed of coral.
By maturity, the tree roots would retreat into the tree tops and separate
themselves from the soil, causing it to rise to the ocean surface.
On the ocean surface, the coral ball cage tree would absorb more sunlight,
water, air, attract fish, shrimp, and other visitors, thereby forming a
comprehensive small scale ecosystem within it.
The ball tree was not always floating on the surface, and every so often, it
would sink back down to the seafloor again. On the seabed, it would take root
again to absorb nutrients and essence for its next surfacing.
Many of the shallow water fish, shrimp, and other creatures would flee due to
the unbearable deep sea environment, while many others would die in it. The
corpses of the dead fish and shrimp would also be absorbed by the ball cage
tree, nourishing its growth.
Two Eyes Island was a special type of coral ball cage tree.
It was a ball tree that had developed two branches.
Normally, ball trees only had one ball treetop. Two Eys Island had two ball
treetops, due to fishmen intentionally breeding it that way.
A fishman tribe used to own this place.
Large fishmen tribes all had shamanic traditions. It took several generations
of expenditure and energy to breed Two Eyes Island.
The fishmen were amphibious, thus the ball trees suited their livelihood and
reproduction. Because it could be moved when it was floating, therefore the
ball tree was conventionally thought of by the fishmen tribes as the best home.
When the empire came, they routed and banished the fishman tribe. Finally, the
Duo Mu clan became the feudal lord there and obtained the authority to rule it.
As the feudal lord, Hun Tong named the island according to the Duo Mu clan’s
naming conventions, thus the ball tree was named Two Eyes Island.
The survivors’ ships had arrived in the harbor last night.
Today’s morning sunlight allowed the dragonman youngster to truly see the ethos
of Two Eys Island.
The island was not small, it looked like a high mountain, with the middle being
the tallest, with the elevation gradually declining on all sides. If one viewed
from above, they could distinctly make out that it was an irregular sphere.
Because of the coral formations, the island’s surface looked like tree roots
and vines wrapped together that extended outward, thus there was no beaches.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was berthed at a pruned piece of coral that
formed a platform.
In the island’s interior, the coral ball cage treetop had small cracks and big
gaps that could easily be remolded into streets, layers upon layers of living
areas, business districts, and more.
Most buildings were inside the treetop, and not on the surface.
Last night, Zi Di had entered the interior to find the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance store.
In the dragonman youngster’s field of view, in the distance, he could see a
small isle a few kilometers away.
It was Two Eyes Island’s other treetop.
The coral ball cage the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was berthing at was mainly
a brownish yellow, while the one floating up was mainly a bluish green.
The two treetops frequently floated up and sank down.
This unusual behavior was also cultivated by the fishman tribe.
Fishmen skin needed moisture from seawater, and if they stayed on dry land or
in the air for too long, they would feel very unwell. Severe skin shedding
would also ail them.



****** Chapter 88: Turning a Blind Eye ******
It wasn’t a big deal for fishmen to live in the sea.
They also needed to breathe, change their mindsets, adapt to the shallow seas,
and temper their battle strength.
More importantly, there was much more food in the shallows.
Hunting in the deeps was more challenging, the quarry was stronger and could
threaten the fishmen more.
After humanity became this place’s owner, they caused some trouble here.
Because humans couldn’t breathe underwater, every time Two Eyes Island sank and
rose, the island’s residents needed to be relocated.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had arrived precisely during the sinking and
floating swap.
The palm yellow part was slowly sinking, and the blue-green part was slowly
rising.
The first to be relocated was Hun Tong’s subordinates.
The dragonman youngster already saw that a tower had been constructed on the
blue-green island.
The tall tower was slender and silver white. It was almost finished, and there
were a few ant-sized people constructing the tower’s roof.
At this time, Cang Xu happened to walk by.
“Is that a mage tower?” The dragonman youngster asked him.
“Not at all.” Replied Cang Xu, “That is a light cannon turret. A new type of
armament invented by the empire a year ago, it is used to detect and defend.”
“The light cannon turret was intentionally developed by the empire for the
Wilderness Continent.”
“Castles under construction have weak defenses, thus building a few light
cannon turrets takes precedence so one can detect roving beastmen and beat them
back.”
Cang Xu paused, then said, “My Lord, preliminary analysis of the information is
done.”
“I’ll hear it.” The dragonman youngster said as he gazed at the light cannon
turret with narrowed eyes.
Cang Xu complied, “Two Eyes Island’s strongest power is undoubtably the feudal
lord’s faction.”
“Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord, Hun Tong, is a gold level fighter, yes. But he
is quite old and rarely takes action himself in recent years.”
“Two Eyes Island hadn’t been occupied by the empire until recently. Ten years
earlier, the Duo Mu Clan had already taken it over.” 
“Therefore, Two Eyes Island has been developed far more than Snake Rat Island.”
“Besides Hun Dun, the feudal lord’s faction has 4 silver levels. One silver
alchemy level master, one silver level pharmacist, and two silver level
fighters. One Eye, who we saw yesterday, belongs to that faction.”
“Under the feudal lord’s faction is the five great merchant alliance powers,
the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, the Treasure Gold Merchant Alliance, the
Flint Merchant Alliance, the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance, and the Scale
Merchant Alliance
The dragonman youngster was somewhat moved.
This was five of the six great merchant alliances of humanity. Besides the
Great Myriad Merchant Alliance, all other merchant alliances had a store on Two
Eyes Island.
Humanity’s six merchant alliances all engaged in different businesses.
For example, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance mainly dealt in clothing and
foodstuffs.
Once the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had hoped that it could rise to the ranks
of the six other merchant alliances. But because of their grassroots origins,
they didn’t have cultivators strong enough and the imperial lords joined hands
to divide it up.
Cang Xu continued, “Under the merchant alliance powers, there is the Wealth
Goddess Church, the Thief Guild, and the Mercenary Guild.”
“Finally, there is the Iron Club Mercenary Corps and the Bandage Mercenary
Corps. Of course, now we have added our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to the mix.
After listing every force, Cang Xu ran through the island’s cultivators.
The one above them all was naturally Hun Tong. He was Two Eyes Island’s sole
gold level fighter and its strongest person.
It wasn’t publicly known who the strongest silver level was, but there were a
lot of them.
The five merchant alliances’ store managers were all silver levels. The Wealth
Church’s cathedral priest was a silver level, and the Iron Club and Bandage
Mercenary Corps’ commander were both silver levels. The Thief and Mercenary
Guild leader was likewise the same.
Cang Xu then said, “According to our initial analysis, Two Eyes Island has 27
silver levels, and a few powers have many silver levels.”
“There are also some well-known free spirits.”
“Such as the wandering samurai Ku Feng, the treasure hunter Hong Zhu, the card
magician Shi Fa, and so on.”
The dragonman youngster attentively listened.
The features of Two Eyes Island grew more distinct to him.
“Two Eyes Island is the heart of trade for several waters; thus, it is the most
important island for commerce.”
“That is the reason why this island has the most merchant alliances on it, five
of the six great merchant alliances have a store here.”
“Due to the flourishing business, there is also a Wealth Goddess church here
too. The presiding cathedral priest is also notary to businesses large and
small. The Wealth Church’s divine spells are best used for signing and
maintaining business contracts.”
“The island lord, Hun Tong, is the only gold level, while the church priest is
just a silver level.  Therefore, the entire island is all controlled by the Duo
Mu Clan, and with a gold level protecting Two Eyes Island, it is far safer than
Snake Rat Island. Security is also the foundation for developing businesses.”
“Although there are many silver levels, most of them are from merchant
alliances. Fighting is not their style; they’d much rather talk things over and
compromise. Due to disputed benefits, they won’t cooperate with each other. In
addition, with Hun Tong suppressing them, the silver levels can’t cause too
much noise.”
“We have a rough understanding of the island’s powers and cultivators. What
about outside of the island? Pirates are running rampant nowadays, Two Eyes
Island often has merchant ships traveling through. How many pirate powers are
around?”
The dragonman youngster had thought about that too and was just about to ask
the same thing.
At that moment, the distant blue-green coral island suddenly shined brightly.
It was the light cannon turret being built.
The light cannon tower was quite slender, and the top of it was a cube 3 meters
high and across.
The cube had a closed eye engraved on its east, south, west, and north sides.
Above the cube was a crystal the size of a human adult.
The crystal was absorbing light and converging the surrounding light element.
Because the concentration of light element around the crystal was rising, it
was growing brighter.
The denser the light was, the brighter it shined, attracting more and more
gazes.
After a dozen seconds, it seemed enough light element was absorbed, and it
stopped doing so.
The eyes on the sides suddenly began to glisten with light.
Then the closed eyes suddenly opened.
A light ray suddenly emitted from the depths of the eyes.
The pure white light ray was very dazzling as it streaked past everyone’s field
of view.
In almost an instant, it struck the sea five nautical miles away.
A pillar exploded from the ocean surface.
What an extraordinary might!
Upon seeing this, the masses were first stunned, but then cheered. For a
moment, everyone was clamoring about the light cannon turret with each other.
The dragonman youngster’s eyes contracted, and his heart was quickly assessing
it.
“The light cannon has silver level might.”
“But the light ray’s flight speed is too fast, almost all gold artillery shells
cannot compete with it.”
“I can’t tell how fast its firing rate is…but based on how long it took to
absorb light, it shouldn’t be low.”
“But its range isn’t that big, after all a light ray is not a physical
artillery shell.”
“There is also another crucial thing.”
“How much does it cost to fire a light ray?”
When he thought that, the dragonman youngster couldn’t help but laugh.
He cared about costs, but Hun Tong didn’t need to.
He owned Two Eyes Island and had astonishing wealth. He probably didn’t care
about how much it cost.
The dragonman’s heart quivered, “The light cannon turret is newly built, do we
know how many more will be constructed? Was it the rampant pirates that
pressured Hun Tong into building it?”
The light cannon turret was considered to be a brief interlude.
Cang Xu followed up, “In the waters near Two Eyes Island, the strongest pirate
group is called the Ten Touch Pirates. Their commander is Qi You, a gold level
fighter and an expert at night naval battles.”
“There are three silver level pirate groups: the Stench Pirates, the Clapping
Pirates, and the Lightning Pirates. Their leaders are the depraved druid ‘Yang
Cong Tou’, the frogmen “Da Zhang Hu Li’, and the lighting fist, ‘Shou Dian
Wan’. Without exception, they are all silver levels.”
Two Eyes Island was far more prosperous than Snake Rat Island.
Therefore, not only was there a gold level pirate group lurking about, but
there were also three silver level pirate groups too.
Apart from those, there were also many small bronze and iron level pirate
ships.
In this environment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group with their two silver
levels didn’t stand out at all.
“The night inquiry got decent results.” The dragonman youngster nodded.
“We still need to keep on gathering intelligence.”
“Additionally, have we found the one who stabbed Xu Ma?”
Cang Xu shook his head, “Not yet.”
Last night, Xu Ma returned with a dagger embedded in his body and immediately
reported what had happened to him.
Naturally, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps searched for the assailant.
That same night, the dragonman youngster had dispatched a squad. Unfortunately,
by the time they reached the scene of the crime, they found that all traces had
been cleaned up.
They searched the tavern and asked many people, but didn’t find any trails.
Cang Xu then said, “We are gathering information, of course others are
gathering information on us too.”
“Xu Ma hasn’t been a member for long, he doesn’t know much.”
“The information he knew isn’t very valuable, all of it was exposed on Snake
Rat Island or during the naval battle.”
Cang Xu sighed, “Although Two Eyes Island is bustling and flourishing, it has a
far more complex environment than Snake Rat Island."
“Each merchant alliance power fights and schemes against each other.”
“Outside pirates are sneaking in to dispose of stolen goods.”
“As for Hun Tong…”
Cang Xu smiled and changed the conversation, “My Lord, do you know the Duo Mu
Clan’s motto?”
The dragonman youngster shook his head ignorantly.
His understanding of imperial nobles was inferior to Cang Xu’s.
Cang Xu then said, “This is the Duo Mu Clan’s motto – Turn a blind eye.”
“It is because of Hun Tong intentional indulgence that Two Eyes Island has
developed this way. As this is the place pirates dispose of their stolen goods,
Hun Tong profits greatly from them.”
“Based in Hun Tong’s financial resources, he could establish a mage tower. Yet
he chose to build a light cannon turret instead.”
A mage tower was a very comprehensive and capable building.
Not only could it detect, and counter detect, it could also be treated as a
center to control magic formations from. If an enemy attacked it, it could
combine both attack and defense. At the same time, it could also be a
production factory. Apprentices and magicians could make medicine and alchemy
goods in the tower. It was also a place of learning where magicians could pass
on the secrets of magic.
Cang Xu’s gaze remained sharp, and his words could even be said to hit the nail
on the head.
“I understand.” When the dragonman youngster heard Cang Xu’s words, he
immediately had a deeper understanding of the situation on Two Eyes Island.
Cang Xu continued, “Now that Two Eyes Island is changing which is sinking and
floating, the old industry on the island will migrate. The old island will hold
a discount market, and the new island will have an auction.”
“This time every year, all sorts of pirates will come to dump their stolen
wares and will be purchased by all sorts of powers.”
“Two Eyes Island already has fish and dragons mixed in together, there is a
turbulent undercurrent to it. We are foreigners, newcomers, and I fear that a
hasty inquiry will cause unnecessary trouble.”
“To be frank, I don’t suggest we do this.”
“The other party could have killed Xu Ma, but didn’t, they simply requested
some information.”
“The information also wasn’t significant.”
The dragonman youngster immediately shook his head, his bearing resolute, “No,
we must investigate.”
“Xu Ma is one of us, no matter how long he has been a member.”
“If we don’t protect our people, then how can we expect them to be loyal and
united?”
Cang Xu didn’t refute him, rather he yielded, “We go where you determine, your
Lordship.”



****** Chapter 89: It Will Certainly Sell Out ******
Although told it would occur in the morning, it in fact was almost noon when a
territory official lead the dragonman youngster to the city government palace.
The city government palace was inside the old island.
Because of how life worked on Two Eyes Island, it was very difficult to
construct large installations.
If a castle was built, it would be too heavy on the ball cage treetop and would
be in danger of sinking.
“Commander Long Fu, your good reputation precedes you.” Hun Tong sat on a thick
sofa, his eyes half open and half closed. When he saw the dragonman youngster
walk in, the corner of his mouth rose into a smile.
He had a dark yellow complexion, and when he smiled, wrinkles covered his face.
Adding on his white hair and dispirited nature, he looked somewhat senile.
“Lord Hun Tong, I am honored to see you!” The dragonman youngster put his hand
to his chest and bowed in courtesy.
While he had been led in, he noticed that although the city government palace
was inside the old island, he was very spacious, exquisite, and luxuriously
decorated.
As the information said, Hun Tong was a hedonist, and he lived life
extravagantly.
“This is a letter of introduction from Lord Tan Qiu.” The dragonman youngster
took out a letter.
This was also one of Tan Qiu’s reimbursements to him.
With Tan Qiu’s endorsement, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could obtain the
trust of other nobles and feudal lords.
Hun Tong glanced at the letter of introduction, then cracked another smile,
“Sit. Take a drink of my special product – Fragrant Fish Gill Tea.”
The dragonman youngster sat upright and took a sip. The tea was potently
fragrant, and after swallowing it, its fragrance lingered on endlessly in his
belly.
“I heard someone report that your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only plans to
stay for 10 days?” Hun Tong asked.
The dragonman youngster replied, “We sought out the famous Two Eyes Island to
participate in its auction.”
Hun Tong laughed, he was no longer faking a smile and decided to expose his
true feelings.
He had built up Two Eyes Island, and the reason Two Eyes Island could have
developed to its current state was by following his governing philosophy and
realizing his concept of governance.
The dragonman youngster seeking to join the auction proved that Hun Tong was
successful.
Hun Tong replied, “I look forward to the unique commodities you provide.”
“Perhaps, this place can become a long term venue for you.”
“If you want, I can provide you a store free of charge and allow you to sell
some weapons and equipment.”
It was very clear that he didn’t believe the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
surface identity.
Like how Tan Qiu and the other higher ups in Snake Rat Island surmised, Hun
Tong thought that the survivors were arms smugglers that Rou Zang’s pirate
group had harmed.
The dragonman youngster’s eyes shined and he briefly sank into pondering.
He was thinking of a future where their redemption was successful, even if he
no longer had the divine artifacts, he still had many blueprints. He would be
able to build a weapons factory and an alchemy factory.
Manufactured munitions must be sold.
If he and Hun Tong opened a collaboration, Two Eyes Island’s lively marketplace
would undoubtedly be a good place to have a store long term.
“I will remember Lord Hun Tong’s benevolence. If it is possible in the future,
I will set up a store here.” The dragonman youngster sighed, “But I am weak,
and my mercenary corps is new, with circumstances beyond my control for a
while, I cannot even think of doing that right now.”
Hun Tong nodded, showing his understanding.
The waters of arms smugglers was very deep, even though he was a gold level
fighter, not even Hun Tong wanted to get too involved with them.
To him it seemed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were arms smugglers that
had a big patron. The power behind this mercenary group was enormous, otherwise
they wouldn’t be qualified to make arms smugglers. Due to working under such a
formidable force, it was both normal and reasonable that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps weren’t in control if their situation.
“Are you selling your gold cannon?” Hun Tong then asked.
If the cannon appeared in the auction, it would certainly give the new island
auction positive buzz.
The dragonman youngster apologized, the cannon already had an owner. They were
just forced by circumstances to borrow it for their own use, nothing more.
Hun Tong showed his disappointment, and his interest in the conversation was
dismissed greatly.
“Every time the old island sinks, it will draw in sharks and other predators.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps can receive many missions related to this from
the Mercenary Guild, the rewards are good.”
“This year’s new island auction will have higher standards than previous ones
and will have great things there!”
Hun Tong reminded the dragonman youngster before he left.
The young captain left the city government palace and returned to the ship at
port.
The meeting didn’t leave him with a good impression of Hun Tong.
Hun Tong was a haughty gold level fighter; he looked down at the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Group and didn’t show any courtesy to them.
He only invited the dragonman youngster to see if the latter could increase Two
Eyes Island’s weapons business. After learning that the gold level cannon
couldn’t be sold, he lost interest.
Finally, his reminder to the dragonman youngster seemed to be done with mostly
good intentions.
In fact, Hun Tong was still looking at the issues from his point of view.
Two Eyes Island would be the one to benefit the most if the predatory magic
beast groups were eliminated.
“Anyways, it is normal for a gold level to look at the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps in that way.”
“On Snake Rat Island, due to Tan Qiu’s pressing need to deal with Rou Zang, he
had vigorously beguiled all powers.”
“While on Two Eyes Island, all powers survive and compete in Hun Tong’s domain.
The dragonman youngster could sense Hun Tong’s contempt for him and the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
This was not to say that Hun Tong’s individual battle strength was greater than
Rou Zang’s. Rather he was not like Rou Zang who fought alone, he had the Dou Mu
Clan backing him. On Two Eyes Island, he could rely on a feudal lord’s prestige
and mobilize the strength of five great merchant alliance among others.
He was the leader of Two Eyes Island; a place Tan Qiu’s Snake Rat Island
couldn’t be compared to.
“Contempt towards us is a good thing.”
The dragonman youngster also wanted to keep a low profile.
At this time, they were waiting for the Bai Zhen Clan and participating in the
auction here so they could improve their strength.
On a ship.
Zi Di and Fei She were immersed in reading and comparing all kinds of price
lists.
The lists had the prices of Two Eyes Island goods, where they came from, how
prices fluctuated in the past, and other such details.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had gotten war spoils, but they didn’t have
much cash on hand.
Tan Qiu wanted to develop Snake Rat Island and needed capital; therefore, he
tended to give the spoils of war as remuneration and rewards.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had scored their most money ever last night,
when Zi Di returned with 300 gold coins from the Wisteria store.
“Soon, the auction will be held.”
“We have too little cash on hand, and even if we see something we want, we
don’t have the ability to buy it.”
“We must make money as soon as possible, the more the better.”
“I have the capability…business opportunity, where is the business
opportunity?”
Zi Di turned a price list in her hands.
Fei She did the same.
The two people researched until noon before they gained something.
Fei She said, “Lord, Lord President, we can make the Sweet Blood Potion. As the
old island sinks, it will attract predatory magic beast groups that will devour
the remnants left on the old island. During this cycle, the new island will
also be affected and will often have small beasts and tide beasts.”
“Two Eyes Island’s market lacks effective magic beast lures,”
“The Sweet Blood Potion just so happens to make up for the deficiency in the
market, it will certainly be well received and popular.”
“Right.” Zi Di nodded, “Apart from this, we can also refine healing medicine.”
“Two Eyes Island has a Wealth Goddess parish, and the Wealth Church’s clergymen
are not good at healing.”
“Our medicinal recipes come from War Merchant and will be on par with similar
goods.”
“Furthermore, I’ve seen it.”
“In the bargain market, there were large quantities of green hair turtle shells
being dumped on the cheap.”
“This is the main ingredient for Green Hat Potions.”
“Although this potion has a side effect, drinking it will turn your hair green.
But its healing effect is decent and is fast acting.”
Sweet Blood Potions and Green Hat Potions.
After a formal determination, Zi Di immediately notified the tower spirit on
the Deep Sea Monster Fish with an alchemy device.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was disguised as a reef on the sea floor 5 nautical
miles from Two Eyes Island.
In the alchemy cabin, after the tower spirit received the command, it
immediately began to refine potions.
The relevant alchemy formation were already set up, and the remaining yellow
crab puppet was standing next to a giant basin.
The giant basin was emitting a gold level aura.
It was Rou Zang’s magic medicine bathtub.
If medicine was used in it, then the medicine poured in would be ten times as
potent.
And if it was used to make medicine, then the ingredients could make ten times
the medicine!
Rou Zang lacked any way of making medicine, because he didn’t have a qualified
alchemy master.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have one either.
But the alchemy ship had alchemy facilities War Merchant used and the tower
spirit could also be regarded as half an alchemy master.
With the gold level alchemy artifact, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could
refine large quantities of potions.
They had War Merchant’s recipes and Rou Zang’s medicinal recipes, and Zi Di’s
barbarian race herbal medicine recipes…
If Zi Di wanted, within a short amount of time, she could refine lots of
commonplace potions and ruthlessly attack Two Eyes Island’s medicinal market
and become a hegemon among it.
But that was unnecessary.
It would offend too many people.
The five great merchant alliances wouldn’t sit still, and Hun Tong wouldn’t
tolerate such a disturbance to the order of things.
Therefore, Zi Di and Fei She decided to search for a blank space in the market.
Zi Di had confidence in herself.
If the Sweet Blood Potions hit shelves, they would certainly sell out!



****** Chapter 90: Refining Medicine ******
Zi Di snuck back into the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
In the alchemy cabin, she closely inspected everything before her.
The main thing in her view was a large bathtub.
The bathtub was round and 3 meters in diameter. The bathtub seemed to be made
of innumerable multicolored stones fused together and looked utterly gorgeous.
Neither the outside nor the inside were smooth, instead it had countless bumps
and holes in it.
It was the Magic Medicine Bathtub.
It once belonged to Rou Zang.
But its true designer was an ingenious alchemist.
They meticulously designed the bathtub’s surface with a creative bumpiness.
After magic potions and water is mixed, they flow inside these bumps.
The bumps increased the contact area, inducing an enhancement of medicinal
effects severalfold.
The Magic Medicine Bathtub was part of the magic ship, the Bath Tub, and
consumed a large amount of magic power.
The alliance was victorious in the Snake Rat naval battle. After the war, Tan
Qiu dredged up the Bath Tuband in order to reward merits with his tight
financial situation, he was forced to reluctantly give the Magic Medicine
Bathtub to the survivors.
After the survivors got it, the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others
began to make use of it.
Bathing in it felt quite wonderful.
By sleeping in its warm water, one could enjoy the medicinal soak while also
enjoying the natural massage the concave surface provided.
This was the Magic Medicine Bath’s most base function.
In the survivors’ hands, the Magic Medicine Bathtub combined with alchemy
formations could give the former a new use, turning the former into an
effective manufacturing tool.
This was beyond Rou Zang’s abilities to accomplish.
It was also impossible for the survivors too.
The one who really accomplished this was the tower spirit.
The tower spirit cleverly reformed currently available alchemy formations in
War Merchant’s database and had the gold level Magic Medicine Bathtub serve as
the core of an alchemy formation.
“The Magic Medicine Bathtub’s most core alchemy technology is coordinated magic
time extension. Manufactured potions or magic equipment is essentially about
setting up a new magic equilibrium. Through the consumption of a large quantity
of magic power to maintain a potion’s magic equilibrium even longer, it will
increase its medicinal effect.”
“The formation we built just utilizes this technology.”
“By logical extension, any alchemy item is the same, if one fully grasps its
alchemical secrets, they can use them in a broader fashion.”
“Rou Zang was only a fighter, a superficial person. Magicians are the
controllers and beneficiaries of knowledge.”
Zi Di sighed to herself.
She was a magician.
Regardless of whether she was alive or dead, she was still one.
She had ample inquisitiveness and cravings for any knowledge.
Therefore, even though the tower spirit was the overseer, and the yellow crab
alchemy puppet was the controller of the Magic Medicine Bathtub alchemy
formation, and didn’t need Zi Di to participate in the medicinal refinement, Zi
Di would still come and watch.
She wouldn’t give up any chance to learn.
And this was a great opportunity, one she treasured.
Because she too had experienced the hardships of trying to make a living.
During her studies at the College of Magic, she had a deep understanding of the
value of knowledge.
The potion refinement had begun.
The remaining yellow crab alchemy puppet was facing the Magic Medicine Bathtub.
Its two crab legs had turned into drums.
From the drum shaped crab legs, a palm yellow translucent oil constantly poured
out of them.
The oil had a rich sesame fragrance.
After the oil was poured in, it immediately layered into the bathtub.
When the layer became 10 centimeters thick, the crab legs morphed, stopping the
flow.
Green copper lumps were taken out.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet processed it on the spot, using its crab leg,
now morphed into a saw, to cut the copper lumps into smaller pieces.
The copper pieces were dumped into the bathtub.
Not long after, the alchemy formation activated. The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
magic power reservoir constantly imbued it with magic power, increasing the
temperature.
In the center of the alchemy formation, the Magic Medicine Bathtub was baking
red hot, the oil was boiling, and the copper was melting inside it.
The heat persisted throughout the alchemy refinement.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet took out a bamboo tube.
Inside the bamboo tube was a processed alchemy material with a very short shelf
life.
The alchemy material looked like scarlet pollen.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet dumped all the “pollen” into the bathtub,
instantly causing a waft of gray smoke.
The smoke was very irritating to people.
But Zi Di was indifferent to it,
She was already dead and a ghost girl.
80%
After the smoke dispersed, the bathtub’s water level rose, almost 80% of it was
filled.
Refinement successful!
Zi Di walked into the alchemy formation, carefully observing the Magic Medicine
Bathtub from the side.
The Sweet Blood Potion was somewhat thick, and looked a dark red.
But when poured, the viscous potion would turn from a dark red to a bright
scarlet.
If Zi Di could still smell, she would smell a rich and sweet fishy odor.
It was precisely this characteristic that the pharmacist who invented this
recipe named it the Swet Blood Potion.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet’s crab legs changed again.
The crab legs became ladles.
It used the ladles to rapidly and precisely scoop out the potion into medicinal
jars.
These medicinal jars were not conventional thin, slender glass bottles.
Because the Sweet Blood Potion was not to be taken, it was to be thrown.
It was to disperse rapidly in water, create the smell of food, and attract
groups of magic beasts, animals, and scavengers.
At first, the Sweet Blood Potion that the yellow crab alchemy puppet was
scooping out was of ordinary quality.
Gradually though, when it reached the layer below, the Sweet Blood Potion rose
to a bronze level quality.
In the most center layer, the Sweet Blood Potion became iron level.
Then in the layer below that, it reverted to a bronze level quality.
Finally, on the lowest layer, the potion was ordinary again.
“Its clear that this resembles an egg. During the manufacturing process, the
center of the potion is where the magic harmonizes the most, therefore it has
the highest quality.”
“The Magic Medicine Bathtub is no regular brewing tool; it is just being
commandeered as one for the time being. Its real application is still how Rou
Zang used it.”
Zi Di continued to analyze.
“The Sweet Blood Potion’s quality limit is the iron level. If it was the silver
level, then this temporarily assembled medicine making formation could have
refined up to that quality.”
“Reaching the gold level needs both luck and an alchemy master refining it.”
“The tower spirit and the yellow crab puppet can refine iron level things,
barely refine silver level things, and are incapable of refining anything of
the gold level, that exceeds the limits of their abilities.”
For now, the Sweet Blood Potion refinement had come to an end.
This was because before Zi Di had come, the tower spirit had already refined
many batches already.
Having a tower spirit was quite convenient.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet began to tidy up the medicine refinement tools.
It was mainly cleaning the bath tub.
Its crab legs morphed into nozzles that sprayed yellow water from them.
The water washing across the bath tub quickly vaporized, sizzling across it and
causing mist to rise.
Two crab legs then turned into large scrubbers, and as water flowed across, it
was diligently brushing the bath tub down.
After cleaning it, a crab leg fired an electric current.
The electric current split into tiny currents that interweaved into a net that
covered the bathtub both inside and out.
For a moment, the crackling of the tiny currents lingered on.
Magically, where the electric current lashed out, long purple and red hairs
grew from the bath tub’s surface.
The long hairs emitted an ominous aura.
This was the accumulated residue from prior medicine refinement, now condensed
into visibility by magic power.
If one had hair, one needed to trim it.
The crab legs turned into scissors.
Eight pairs of scissors clipped the hairs.
After being sheared, they were shaved again by the blades.
White form spurted, and the hair strands completely melted at last.
Afterwards, the crab continued to spray water.
Then scrubbed it again.
Then it used the electric current to stimulate the hair growth again.
By the second time, the hairs were five times as sparse and were much shorter.
After five rounds of washing, shearing, and removal, no more hairs grew, and
the bath tub was finally considered clean. 
This was also because the Magic Medicine Bathtub was not a true medicine
refinement tool, otherwise cleaning it wouldn’t have been so troublesome.
After this, it was time to refine the Green Hat Healing Potion.
This time, Zi Di participated too.
She first took out a green hair turtle shell and began to process the alchemy
material.
The outer layer of the green hair turtle shell looked like any ordinary turtle
shell. But on the inside, “moss” was growing all over it.
If one touched it with their hands, they would find that the “moss” was
actually small clumps of fine fur.
The green hair turtle shell most quintessential spot was that fur.
Zi Di took out needle tubes and injected them into the turtle shells.
Inside the needle tubes was prepared medicine, and due to their sharpness, they
easily inserted themselves into the turtle shells.
After each turtle shell was injected with the medicine, they quickly softened
into a pool of mud.
Zi Di started the alchemy formation, and it cleaned away the mud, leaving just
the fur behind.
By the time she finished preparing this material, the yellow crab alchemy
puppet on the other side of the bathtub had finished processing the other
materials required.
The medicine bath tub was already heated up, and it was filled with a pink
mixture.
Zi Di threw the green fur into the bath tub, then threw in the other dozen or
so materials in too.
After these materials were added in, she controlled the magic formation so that
the liquid in the Magic Medicine Bathtub began to automatically squirl into a
whirlpool.
The liquid wildly spun, and the various alchemy materials mixed together in a
wonderous harmonization of magic power.
When the liquid finally slowed down, it was a gelatinous thing.
It gave off the impression of elasticity.
This process lasted 30 minutes. Zi Di expended her spiritual power as she stood
in front of the medicine bathtub.
She now began the final step.
The yellow crab alchemy puppet handed her a medical bottle.
She removed the stopper, which was also the dropper, and dripped the liquid
into the bathtub.
The medicinal liquid was purple red, and when it hit the gelatinous mass, it
looked like ink flowing across clear water.
The gelatinous mass changed color at the same time its nature changed too.
This was because Zi Di’s spirit had directed the magic power towards
equilibrium. 
Following the drops of liquid, the glue first became viscous, then began to
clear. Finally, the milky white substance turned completely colorless, as if it
were clean water.
“Drip, drip drip.”
“Forecasting attainment of final stage.”
The tower spirit aptly warned.
Upon receiving the reminder, Zi Di dripped the other half down.
The clear and pure water reached the final step, and the new magic power
equilibrium had been completely established, its quality jumping from the
bronze level to the iron level!
The bath tub’s refinement of healing potions was done.



****** Chapter 91: Money Shortage ******
Zi Di coughed, most of her spirit was expended and she was quite exhausted.
She had a sincere feeling of satisfaction.
To refine so many iron level potions was once unprecedented for her.
“The final step’s mixture is very difficult; it’ll be ruined if even a little
is off. Although I didn’t fail, the quality is only bronze level.”
“This set of alchemy equipment makes things much more convenient. It can remind
me of crucial moments at the right time.
“Although the Magic Medicine Bathtub is not a normal medicine refinement tool,
it is still a gold level tool. One refinement can produce ten finished goods.”
“Not only is the output improved, the spirit consumption, time, and other
inputs by the refining pharmacist are also cut down. It saves on a great deal
of labor and production costs.”
“As for material costs, it doesn’t seem that big on the surface.”
“Because during this process, the magic power consumed is 15 times higher than
conventional refinements.
One of the rules of alchemy was equivalent exchange.
It was impossible for there to be a tenfold output to happen for no reason.
“Even so, refining medicine like this is more cost effective.”
“Because the Green Hat Potion doesn’t have many materials.”
“Materials cannot be reduced, but elemental crystals can be bought at bulk
prices.”
“It’s all thanks to the Deep Sea Magic Fish’s magic power furnace. The magic
power furnace is also a gold level component, and its performance surpasses the
bathtub greatly.”
Having the tower spirit, the yellow crab alchemy puppet, the Magic Medicine
Bathtub, the Deep Sea Monster Fish, and the alchemy formation was an
extraordinary luxury indeed, amplifying Zi Di’s medicine refinement level by
many times.
Zi Di finished ruminating, and began to rest, honing her strength for the
second medicine refinement.
As Zi Di was refining medicine, Zong Ge was entering a church.
It was the Wealth Goddess’ church.
If one were to say the Sheng Ming Church radiated a light of reverence, then
the Wealth Church had a style of extreme lavishness.
There were all kinds of golden decorations, expensive furniture, silver
candlesticks, detailed ceiling frescos, and hanging crystal lamps.
Zong Ge emitted a silver level aura, and when he entered the church, he drew
attention.
The clergy in the church respectfully lead him into the discussion room.
Zong Ge lifted his arm and immediately stated his reason for coming, “I need
healing.”
“This arm was once severed.”
“Ordinary treatment methods can’t cure it.”
“It needs at least gold level healing.”
Tan Qiu had a gold level healing potion, but after the Snake Rat naval battle,
Tan Qiu didn’t want to give his only bottle of it to an outsider.
He wanted to save it for himself.
Therefore, Zong Ge couldn’t exchange merits for it.
The clergy first examined Zong Ge’s injury, then said, “This kind of injury
really is hard to deal with, even the priest present cannot fix it.”
“After all, the priest is only a silver level.”
“Lord Shi Qi, you have come at an inopportune time. The priest just left, for
today he is going to the cemetery to preside over funeral ceremonies.
Zong Ge pursed his brows.
But at that moment, the clergy perked up with a smile, “But Lord Shi Qi, our
Wealth Church stands out from the masses.”
“Even though the priest cannot do it, we can ask a bishop over to heal you.”
Zong Ge’s brows wrinkled tighter.
He knew a lot about the Wealth Church.
The pursuit of riches was the core doctrine of this church.
Thus, if one had the coin, they could have a gold level bishop travel across
land and sea to Two Eyes Island to heal Zong Ge.
But that required enough money!
Firstly, gold level healing divine spells were very expensive. In addition,
having a bishop rushing over here themselves was even more troublesome.
It wasn’t easy requesting the aid of a gold level character.
It took a long time for Tan Qiu to request Guang Ke’s aid.
If Zong Ge wanted to ask a bishop to heal his injury, he would have to spend
much more than Tan Qiu did!
And the most conflicting thing was this; he was very poor.
Zong Ge left the church as Cang Xu visited the cemetery.
The guard at the gate let him through, thinking that Cang Xu was one of the
guests participating in the funeral.
Cang Xu watched the burial rites being held from a distance.
The Wealth Church priest wore gold and silver, adorning himself in rich attire.
A coffin had just been lowered into a deep hole.
The priest prayed, “My dear friends, please don’t be sad.”
“My lord summons her believers away so that they can continue to strive for the
accomplishment and enjoyment of acquiring riches.”
“My God, your grace will soon free the parted from the fetters of death and
allow them to join you in your peaceful and radiance heaven, for because of
your love, we can enjoy the happiness wealth brings.”
“A rich smell of money is assailing my face.” Cang Xu sighed to himself.
Then, he saw the priest use a divine spell.
The golden rays of light covered the coffin, then spread out to engulf that
part of the cemetery.
Upon seeing that, Cang Xu’s expectations were reduced by a lot.
He had come here to gather necromancy materials.
But the cemetery was obviously purified everywhere, the Wealth Goddess’ divine
power had washed through here time and again.
After the priest’s prayer ended, the people attending the internment began to
get up.
They lined up, and slowly walked around the edge of the pit, forcing a circle.
As they circled, they took out prepared gifts from their pockets. Most of it
was coins, but there were also some gold bracelets, pearl necklaces, gemstone
rings, and other adornments.
These were funerary objects, one of the Wealth Church’s teachings.
The believers believed that the dead would take these funerary objects with
them, and when they started working in the Wealth Goddess’ divine domain, they
would use these things as capital to make more profits.
“It seems the deceased’s status was not low.” Cang Xu thought to himself when
he saw the rich funerary objects.
He continued to look around the cemetery, his heart now creating a new
expectation.
“Perhaps, there are no necromancy materials in this cemetery.”
Two Eyes Island has been developed for many years, and the Wealth Church has
established a parish here for a long time too, thus basically everyone here is
a believer in the Wealth Goddess.”
“Therefore, the cemetery funerary objects excite the people a little.”
What was grave robbing to a necromancer?
It was a routine scenario of their cultivation.
But Cang Xu wasn’t urgently going about it.
He had come this time to mainly scout out the spot.
Since there was priest present, it was also inconvenient for him to do such a
thing.
“This is the island’s biggest graveyard; it must have sufficient guards.”
“Everyone knows that Wealth Church believers value the doctrine of funerary
objects.”
“I must plan it slowly.”
Zong Ge needed money.
Cang Xu also needed money.
Which magician didn’t need money?
Necromancers were no exception.
By the time Zong Ge had returned to the ship as night fell, he had already seen
the first batch of medicine.
Altogether there were 600 jars of Sweet Blood Potion, as well as 50 cases of
Green Hat Healing Potion.
Each jar wasn’t that big, they could be held in an adult human’s palm.
Each case of Green Hat Healing Potion had 80 glass bottles inside it.
Cang Xu carefully examined them.
He found that the Sweet Blood Potions were mostly bronze level while the
healing potions were a step higher in quality, most of them were iron level.
Cang Xu wasn’t an expert in making medicine, thus when the team divided up
work, he was in charge of looking for necromancy materials.
Upon seeing Zi Di’s triumphant success heaped before him, he felt very
gratified. Besides some information, his trip to the cemetery was fruitless.
Zi Di had returned to the ship. Although he wanted to keep on refining
medicine, other work preoccupied her. Next up, she had to return to the
Wisteria store herself.
“We will keep the iron level Sweet Blood Potions and the silver level healing
potions.” Zi Di presented, “Thus first batch will be put onto the market, then
refinement will continue.”
Of course, the best things would be kept for themselves.
The survivors’ struggle on Snake Rat Island helped them gain their footing. In
the early stages of establishing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they most
definitely had ordinary members and assets. Naturally, their financial
situation was strained, but they had space to move about.
Cang Xu didn’t understand market analysis, but he believed Zi Di’s plan was
dependable, “We should probe the market’s reaction, then amend the medicine
refinement plan accordingly.”
Zi Di asked, “What have you gained on your side?”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s medication room was quite good, however, the
survivors only had two magicians, both of which were necromancers.
During meditation, they needed to expend necromancy materials to build a
meditation environment.
But they had already exhausted their supply of necromancy materials.
This caused Zi Di’s and Cang Xu’s meditations to be very inefficient.
They couldn’t cultivate in the cemetery. For during meditation, they would have
intense magic power fluctuations. This was because magicians absorbed external
elements and transformed them into their own magic power.
Cang Xu shook his head regretfully, “The cemetery’s defenses are very tight,
because most of Two Eyes Island’s inhabitants are Wealth Goddess believers.”
Zi Di understood.
She was a merchant; it was impossible for her to not know of the Wealth
Church’s teachings.
Cang Xun continued, “The priest here is very diligent, and with divine force
washing off the cemetery innumerable times, it is very difficult for necromancy
materials to form.”
“I’ve already placed my hopes on the bargain sale.”
“Moreover, the cemetery here actually has a distinguishing quality.
“You know? Because Two Eyes Island is a coral ball cage tree, it is constantly
growing.
“Although Hun Tong seized Two Eyes Island, he is not a fishman and can’t
controlling the growing method.”
“There are many graves that were gradually buried in the depths as the coral
ball cage tree grew.”
“If it was a normal burial, it would be easy to discern the location. But the
coral ball cage grows in all directions, it is spherical. This causes the
coffins buried inside it to be caught amongst the growing branches, making it
difficult to pinpoint.”
“Because of this, perhaps you can still excavate some fishman graves in the
branches near the cemetery.”
Cang Xu said some interesting things.
At evening, the two left for the Wisteria store together.
The Wisteria store’s business was still cold.
But there was a carriage parked outside it, and the carriage was unexpectedly
an iron level vehicle.
Zi Di and Cang Xu entered the store.
They didn’t need to flash the wisteria secret order, and the salesclerk
respectfully received them.
“Lord elders, please come this way.”
“The store manager stopping by is from the Flint Merchant Alliance, they are
here to discuss some business matters.” The salesclerk took Zi Di and Cang Xu
to another room in the back.
“The Flint Merchant Alliance?” Zi Di was slightly astounded.



****** Chapter 92: Registration ******
The Flint Merchant Alliance is one of the great merchant alliances, they mainly
engage in the mining and sale of natural materials.
What business dealings did they have with the Wisteria store?
Zi Di and Cang Xu sat down to have tea.
A conversation was taking place in a nearby room.
The Flint Merchant Alliance’s representative was threatening, “Yan Yi, this
price is already appropriate. I advise that you stop while you’re ahead.”
Yan Yi bitterly laughed, then said, “My Lord, you are forcing me to accept it.
I really don’t want to sell this store location. Store location is very
important to all that do business.” 
“The Wisteria store location on the island is already terrible and has greatly
impacted my results.”
“I am hoping that on the new island, with the help of a better location, I can
increase business and do better.”
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative sneered, “Our Flint Merchant
Alliance is one of the great six; what kind of trash is your Wisteria Merchant
Alliance?”
“It has already been broken up, only the name remains. Isn’t the current
merchant alliance president is some yellow haired girl? She is a bit stronger
than her father, an iron level magician apprentice. Reportedly, she got
shipwrecked and has been missing for a few months,. What are you hoping the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance can do for you?”
“Even if your shop has a prime location on the new island, what can you do? How
much business can you give it? It is a good spot yes, but can you defend it?”
“Your store turnover is too low. By next year, you won’t be able to keep it.
According to island law, this location will be given to a more prosperous
store.”
“We just want to purchase it ahead of time, that’s all.”
“Recognize reality, old chum!”
Yan Yi was silent for a good while, before replying with a gloomy and husky
voice, “I must admit that you are speaking facts.”
“But why must I sell it to you?”
“I can sell this good location to other merchant alliances.”
The Flint Merchant Alliance had considered this issue earlier, and without
hesitation, he answered, “Two Eyes Island has many merchant alliance stores.”
“Our Flint Merchant Alliance has only been here in recent times.”
“Our location compared to the other four great merchant alliances is inferior.
Therefore, we’d like to purchase your store location.”
“We all do business. If you sell it to the other merchant alliances, can they
beat my higher bid?”
“Would they buy your location a year earlier?”
“No?”
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative should have made an inquiry; thus,
he spoke confidently and calmly.
Yan Yi deeply sighed, and he could only say, “Let me think it over again.”
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative was displeased, “Hmph, more thinking
it over? I have come to negotiate sincerely with you over and over again, yet
you act so perfunctory with me?”
“Three days.”
“At most I will give you three days to think things through.”
“I hope you have good news. Otherwise, don’t blame me doing some small tricks.”
The conversation ended, and soon after, the sound of a door being slammed shut
rang out.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had been silently listening throughout this.
Zi Di looked somewhat embarrassed.
Cang Xu was concerned, “It seems there is trouble?”
Zi Di faintly nodded, “The Wisteria Merchant Alliance established itself early
on Two Eyes Island, thus, it has a good store location. Perhaps in recent
years, due to Two Eyes Island growing even more, Hun Tong established this new
rule, an understandable action.”
Cang Xu asked, “I’m a bit curious, what tricks will the Fling Merchant Alliance
use?”
Zi Di muttered, “They won’t attack, everyone is a merchant alliance, thus, it
will be lawful. After all, it only involves a store location, that’s all. The
feudal lord’s system is the strongest on Two Eyes Island. The tricks on the
surface won’t be too vile.”
“However, the Flint Merchant Alliance is one of the six great merchant
alliances of humanity, they are extremely powerful. The Wisteria store on its
own is not their opponent. He only needs some sales promotion tricks to seize
the store’s customer flow. By wasting some funds, they can sell the same goods
as the store but at a discounted price, thereby forcing Yan Yi into a tight
spot.”
Business competition was cruel.
The Wisteria store’s vulnerable position was obvious.
Cang Xu’s interest was piqued, “If discounts promote sales, can’t we also do
that? Since Yan Yi is a local bully and a member of the Duo Mu Clan, I don’t
believe he doesn’t have some capital of his own.
“That is the problem.” Zi Di said, “Our Wisteria Merchant Alliance is a
business coalition made up of countless small and medium sized merchant
alliances, banding together for warmth. Therefore, don’t hope their loyalty and
unity can even equal that of the six great merchant alliances.”
“Yan Yi is no die-hard member of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance; he won’t
compromise his benefits and making unprofitable deals to boost his own
performance. If the Wisteria Merchant Alliance wasn’t smashed, then perhaps it
would have been possible.”
“I now suspect that he isn’t so unwilling to sell this store location.”
“He most likely sold it when his location on the old island changed. But the
funds obtained from this transaction is definitely not on the store ledger. His
dilemma is perhaps a way of raising the price.”
Zi Di calmly analyzed.
Cang Xu sighed, “What concerns me more is this, will this hinder out plan?”
Zi Di sighed to herself.
They wanted to unload the potions they made onto the market.
With the Wisteria store as a readily available channel, it not only was
convenient, but it also helped the Wisteria Merchant Alliance too.
After all, Zi Di was the merchant alliance’s master, a merchant alliance that
had been meticulously cared for by her father.
But Zi Di hesitated a bit.
The conversation moments ago had made worsened her impression of Yan Yi.
Should they really help the manager here?
On the one hand, Zi Di felt resentful and grieved.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance had been targeted and divided by the six great
merchant alliances. They could all be said to be her foes.
Zi Di too wanted this foe to taste defeat!
Soon after, Yan Yi came from next door to them.
“Two elders, you should’ve heard that. My life is hard.”
Yan Yi’s eyes watered, he wanted to get the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s
higherups’ support.
But Zi Di was in an unusual situation, it was fine if she was mistakenly
believed to have been shipwrecked, but it would be disastrous if her time on
Mystifying Monster Island was exposed.
Therefore, when she entered her own merchant alliance, she pretended to be an
elder, and couldn’t expose her true identity.
For this reason, too, she also couldn’t transfer more merchant alliance
strength to help Yan Yi.
Zi Di gently smiled, “Yan Yi, you are the merchant alliance representative
here. The store location is not a big problem and doesn’t need me to get
involved in it.”
“You bear full authority in dealing with this problem.”
“Moving on, you have another assignment.”
“There are two potions here, the Sweet Blood Potion and the Green Hat Healing
Potion.”
“You will get me good sales. The price cannot be altered, and you will put
forth your full effort in accomplishing this assignment.”
Zi Di handed over the potions while informing Yan Yi of how they were used.
“Starting tomorrow, you will prioritize advertising this at the Mercenary
Guild.” Cang Xu suddenly reminded him before they left.
Yan Yi revealed his gratefulness, “Two elders thank you for acting. These
potions will have great sales, and we can save this store!”
But Zi Di waved her hand, “This is a minor attempt. Don’t hold your hopes too
high. The store location business is still yours.”
Upon seeing the two elders’ casual attitude, Yan Yi showed hesitation, and his
medicinal market prospects dampened somewhat.
The next morning, the dragonman youngster entered the Mercenary Guild with his
head and chest held high.
He immediately attracted the eyes of almost everyone.
He was a dragonman, scarlet red dragon scales, deep dragon eyes, and a silver
level aura made it abundantly clear that he had powerful battle strength.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps commander was also at the guild.
“It’s Long Fu…” He instantly recognized the dragonman youngster.
Despite being the first time meeting each other, the Bandage Mercenary Corps
commander had already obtained pertinent information on the former.
As a fellow mercenary, he had followed the news of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps more than most.
Due to how large the Snake Rat naval battle was, along with Tan Qiu being
unable to lock down news, information on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
spread profusely.
Therefore, Commander Beng Dai had a deeper understanding of the dragonman
youngster.
He knew that the alliance had paid a disastrous cost during the Snake Rat naval
battle. Silver level cultivators had died, most unfortunate of which was the
Sheng Ming priest. During the battle, the only silver level that could face Rou
Zang directly was the dragonman youngster.
“Long Fu’s bloodline must be impressive.”
“His dragon scales can compete with gold level armor and can resist gold level
battle skills.”
“What a striking figure!”
When the Commander Beng Dai saw the dragonman youngster with his own eyes, he
felt the latter’s ferocious and dauntless aura, while also sensing his
staunchly determined and calm demeanor, causing his assessment of the dragonman
youngster to skyrocket in his heart.
He decided to step forth and greet him, “Commander Long Fu, it’s great to see
you here! I am the Bandage Mercenary Corps commander.”
The dragonman youngster grinned, “I am Long Fu, I know you, your group is one
of the two great mercenary corps on Two Eyes Island, please look after me.”
“Now that you’re here, there are three great mercenary corps.” Commander Beng
Dai laughed heartily, he seemed very forthright, but his words held a deep
meaning to them.
The dragonman youngster shook his head and immediately said, “We are only
staying here for a short time until the auction, then we’ll be leaving.”
Commander Beng Dai earnestly gazed into the dragonman youngster’s eyes, and he
sensed the young man’s candidness. Upon realizing the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps wasn’t staying to compete in Two Eyes Island’s mercenary market, his
smile grew more cordial.
He didn’t leave, rather he accompanied the dragonman youngster to the front
desk.
“Hello, Lord Long Fu.” The staff member bowed respectfully, “What types of
missions do you request, I can filter them for you.”
The dragonman youngster coughed, “Register me first.”
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was only founded on words, they
hadn’t registered with the Mercenary Guild yet. Only after registering it could
they use the Mercenary Guild to accept normal missions and receive rewards upon
competition.
It was like Snake Rat Island, where Zong Ge had to first register with the
Hunting Guild to be able to receive missions and rewards.



****** Chapter 93: Army Training ******
The staff member softly gasped, he didn’t expect that the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps wasn’t registered yet.
But after reacting, he immediately helped the dragonman youngster fill in and
submit the needed information.
A moment later, the staff member looked embarrassed, “Lord Long Fu, you didn’t
fill out everything, even if your registration goes through, your group’s
reputation won’t be high. Perhaps you are unaware that many missions not only
require a certain mercenary corps level, but also look for reputation too. When
the level is the same, mission providers value the reputation of mercenary
corps more.”
“If it is convenient, please provide more information. So that during the
verification process, your group will have a better reputation.” The staff
member suggested.
The dragonman youngster shook his head with a smile, “Unnecessary, this will
do.”
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was registered.
It was ranked one star, and its trust level was also one star, but the lowest
level.
“Ridiculous.” The dragonman youngster stated to the Commander Beng Dai.
Commander Beng Dai smiled understandingly, he was more in the know than the
staff member and was convinced more so that the dragonman youngster and his
people were arms smugglers.
“Your group’s strength’s is here. Rank matters not. As long as you know
success, all will realize that your group is at least four star level
strength!” Commander Beng Dai said pleasantries while telling himself to be
vigilant.
Mercenary work was an honest business.
But arms smugglers were different.
“These people are obviously criminals; we shouldn’t provoke them at all.”
After finishing registering, the dragonman youngster looked up at the magic
panel above the front desk.
Like the Hunting Guild, the magic panel had rolling words that indicated all
kinds of missions.
The dragonman youngster said to the staff, “When we paid a visit to the feudal
lord, he let us know that in recent times, there have been some predator beast
group cleansing missions.”
The clerk hurriedly replied, “That’s right, every year during the rising and
falling of the islands, many predators are drawn in. If we don’t clean up these
predators on time, if things go critical, a beast tide might be formed.
Currently, there are quite a lot of these missions and the rewards for them are
considerable.”
“I will let you take a look.”
The clerk manipulated the magic panel.
The panel’s script suddenly changed.
All the related missions appeared.
The service here was punctual.
Due to the dragonman youngster’s current strength and merits, such special
treatment received no objections.
The dragonman youngster observed with rapt attention.
Commander Beng Dai smiled at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster quickly decided to take a shark group elimination
mission.
The rewards for this mission was the most generous of its type.
The clerk did the paperwork at once.
After seeing this, Commander Beng Dai felt more relieved.
The truly profitable mercenary missions on Two Eyes Island were all from the
five great merchant alliances. Such as merchandise escorting, bodyguard duty,
looking for stolen property, and so on.
“When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps arrived at Two Eyes Island, Hun Tong
summoned them first while none of the five great merchant alliances have
contacted them at all. They don’t have contacts here.” Commander Beng Dai
considered to himself.
Outwardly however, he said to the dragonman youngster, “According to your
group’s strength, this will be an easy mission.”
“It’s only an elimination mission and the reward is quite ample. That’s the new
island.” Commander Beng Dai tossed out his experience in an expression of
goodwill.
Before the new island rose, it had been submerged on the seafloor, and as it
rose, there was many fish, magic beasts, and other animals still alive in it.
Generally, it was the feudal lord’s faction that would dispatch the army first
to cull the remnants of these things on the new island. At the same time, it
was an immense fish catch.
But if information on the new island was comparatively thorny, there was too
much to do, or the feudal lord’s government was strained, it would issue
pertinent missions to the Mercenary Guild.
The dragonman youngster chatted with the Commander Beng Dai for a bit before
leaving. 
He treasured time.
Thus, he didn’t want to waste it chatting.
As he walked towards the door, Yan Yi approached him.
“Two commanders, do you wish to know what the two potions in my hands are?” Yan
Yi took out a sample of both as he gave a cajoling smile.
Zi Di, as a level seven elder, had given him an order.
Yan Yi was forced to comply and came to the Mercenary Guld to peddle the
potions.
But he hadn’t done well.
No one wanted to buy them.
Beng Dai indifferently and skeptically gazed at Yan Yi.
Yan Yi was just a bronze level, and immediately felt the formidable pressure.
The dragonman youngster also waved his hand, gesturing to Yan Yi that he was
leaving, then exited through the Hunting Guild’s door.
But Yan Yi didn’t give up, he clenched his teeth and ran after them, “Two
commanders, these are no ordinary potions.”
“In my right hand is the Green Hat Healing Potion, it had a great medicinal
effect while being quite cheap, a bottle of iron level potion is only 12 silver
coins.”
“The Sweet Blood Potion here is even more useful. It can attract sea creatures
and cause them to gather up, making it easy to catch them all at once. One jar
only cost 20 copper coins, but it can save a lot on manpower.”
“Eh? That sounds a bit interesting.” The dragonman youngster stopped, “Give me
two samples.”
“Here you go!” Yan Yi passed two corked samples to the dragonman youngster
while also not forgetting about Commander Beng Dai too.
He took out another two samples and gave them to Commander Beng Dai.
But Commander Beng Dai refused them, “This is the Mercenary Guild, when was a
peddler allowed in?”
His deliberately raised voice immediately attracted a staff member.
Yan Yi was rushed out past the dragonman youngster.
Commander Beng Dai kindly advised the young man, “Such a peddler won’t have
good potions.”
“Don’t try potions wantonly.”
“Because of magic power harmonization, if you consume a potion that conflicts
with your battle qi, you might jeopardize your life!”
“During the sale and the auction, all kinds of people will be on the island, a
mingling of dragons and snakes.”
“If you want to buy potions, you’d better go to the Secret Medicine Merchant
Alliance store. There you can feel more confident in their goods and the
quality is better there too.”
“As you say.” The dragonman youngster sighed to himself, but on the outside, he
humbly accepted the suggestion. “I will go take a look through the Secret
Medicine Merchant Alliance store.”
Medicine needed to be verified by the market, after all, they went into one’s
stomach, and it was normal for the user to be prudent about them.
Six of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships left port.
This act instantly attracted many information gatherers.
Some fishing boats seized the opportunity to covertly watch them from a
distance.
Zong Ge was leading the six ships.
This time, the goal was the elimination of a shark group. It was the mission
the dragonman youngster took from the Mercenary Guild.
In Zong Ge’s training plan, it was also a good chance to train these
mercenaries in dealing with submerged enemies.
“These guys…” Zong Ge successively received news from his subordinates.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish, the bird scouts, and the snake scouts were also
supplying Zong Ge with information too. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ coming to Two Eyes Island had caused many
powers to pay attention to them.
Despite them getting a lot of information from Snake Rat Island, personally
gathering first hand information was still very important.
“Then take a good look.” Zong Ge smiled.
These intelligence gatherers were also one of his targets.
“They are nearby.” Zong Ge checked an ocean map after transmitting an order.
The six ships slowed and began to look for the shark group.
“I found a shark group!” A lookout reported not long after.
“Encirclement formation.” Zong Ge began to train the ships in formations.
“Throw Sweet Blood Potions.” He then ordered soon after.
Medicinal jars were opened.
The mercenaries stood on the side of the ship, each of them dropping a
medicinal jar down.
The potions dropped into the seater and quickly dissolved.
A wide expanse of blood red began to spread.
Sharks smelled the potion’s sweet fishy odor, and one after the other, they
swarmed.
They swam through the bloody seawater, gradually growing frenzied, causing the
surface of the sea to splash and spray, churning endlessly like boiling water.
Aim at the potion water, and open fire!”
Following Zong Ge’s order, the already aimed cannons boomed.
Artillery shells poured down in torrents like a scattering flock of birds and
smashed into the sea.
The sharks were exploded into two or lacerated by the bombardment.
The blood and severed flesh made the sharks more frenzied, and they started to
tear each other apart.
The cannons were unending and deafening for fifteen minutes.
“Cease firing.” Using information transmitted by the Deep Sea Monster Fish Zong
Ge had precisely determined when the shark group was nearing total defeat.
This time, the mercenaries’ sailing training had been accomplished to Zong Ge’s
satisfaction.
Previously, on Snake Rat Island, he had bitterly drilled this aspect.
Later during the Snake Rat naval battle, their exceptional display had
successfully intercepted Rou Zang’s fleeing fleet.
Although after the war the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had taken in many
people, these people are all excellent pirates and had sailing skills engraved
in their skulls.
At the same time, Zong Ge still make out deficiencies.
“Not enough cannons.”
“Furthermore, these cannons are ordinary. We only have a gold level cannon, and
lack bronze level, iron level, and silver level cannons. 
“Bombardment battles are the foundation of conventional naval battles.
“Close quarters combat occurs far less than bombardment battles.”
“If the bombardment battle goes well, there will be no need for hand to hand
combat, it can determine the war situation and beat the opponent into raising
the white flag in surrender.”
Zong Ge was an outstanding officer that always wanted to get a good battle to
damage ratio.
He continued to issue orders, and the ships headed to the bloody area the
cannons had devastated.
“Deputy commander, there are still magic sharks wreaking havoc in it!” A
lookout reported.
“That is what I want to use.” Zong Ge laughed, “Is Kuai Tui and the others
ready?”
A subordinate promptly reported, “They are prepared!”
“Then have them deploy.” Said Zong Ge.
Kuai Tui was an iron level dogman.
A long rope connected to the mast was tied around his waist, and behind him,
other mercenaries were tied with ropes too.
By Kuai Tui were other dogmen fighters like him.
After receiving Zong Ge’s order, they jumped from the ship and dove into the
seawater.
In the bloody red water, line of sight was obstructed greatly.
Kuai Tui and the others dropped into the seawater and received the charging
shark group.
Wielding cutlasses, they tussled with the sharks.
When they needed to take a breath or were in a dangerous situation, they would
be yanked up by mercenaries onboard the ships.



****** Chapter 94: Necromancy Materials ******
The training continued for thirty minutes.
When Kuai Tui and the dogmen returned to the ships, none were unscathed.
Many were seriously injured; some even had their arms or thighs torn off and
swallowed by sharks.
Kuai Tui’s arm was bitten, a bloody chuck missing.
A box of medicine was given to them.
Kuai Tui didn’t prioritize taking medicine, instead he first inspected how his
fellows were doing.
The seriously wounded dogmen were either missing an arm or a leg.
Upon seeing Kuai Tui coming to console them, they endured their pain, “Clan
elder, don’t worry!”
“Don’t worry, we’ll find your arms and legs.”
“You will also be sent to the church to be healed.”
“The healing divine spell will weaken your bodies for a time, but it will
preserve your limbs intact.”
Kuai Tui comforted the severely injured dogmen before then inspecting the ones
with minor injuries.
The lightly wounded dogmen took healing potions.
The potions alleviated their injuries and restored them to health.
Kuai Tui also took some medicine, and the bloody hole in him faded away. The
wound was patched by a lump of pink skin, the hair once there needed time to
regrow.
“This iron level healing potion is quite strong!”
“The residual effects are small too.”
Kuai Tui looked at his clansmen, each of their heads’ hair turned green, some
were light green, some were straw green, and others had a dark green.
The intensity of green was based on how many potions one took.
“Most crucial is our battle qi…” Kuai gazed into the distance where Zong Ge
was.
“Quick Knife battle qi…don’t tell me you want to establish a battle squad?”
Kuai Tui felt that was the case somewhat but couldn’t verify it as so.
“Today’s training was very difficult, and different from before.”
“Was it his intention to use a blurry field of view to help train our quick
knives?”
“This seems to be battle skill training?”
“We use the same battle qi, and if we use the same battle skills, we should be
a battle squad. Could it be that Lord Shi Qi has a battle squad training
method?”
Kuai Tui constantly guessed to himself.
Zong Ge closely followed how the dogmen were doing, both physically and
mentally.
An outstanding officer not only trained soldiers’ bodies, but also their minds.
The half beastman placed great expectations on these dogmen.
They were one of his future chips.
If a Quick Knives battle squad was formed, not only could they fight in narrow
ship holds and crowded decks during naval combat, but they could also fight on
large battles on dry land displaying battle strength in all terrains.
The cannon problem could not be solved by Zong Ge, but in this training
exercise, he could exhaust the limits of his capabilities.
“Kuai Tui and the rest should faintly sense it.”
“But it’s a pity, battle squad training needs a more secret environment.”
“Furthermore, we lack the relevant supplies.”
“If I had a barracks, abundant supplies, and a month of training, I could form
the initial form of a battle squad.”
When Zong Ge thought of that, he looked towards the aft.
“The shark group mission has ended; they have seen what they should see.”
In fact, before Zong Ge’s six ships returned to port, information on them had
already been delivered to the heads of every power.
After Commander Beng Dai looked at it, he sighed, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps is newly established, but, they have recruited many pirate elites. Most
of their members are Rou Zang’s people.”
“Why can’t I have their kind of luck?”
Commander Beng Dai envied the quality of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
members.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps was currently one of the three big mercenary
corps on Two Eyes Island.
Commander Tie Bang was a middle aged man, with a tall and sturdy figure, and a
solemn face.
He had been eating.
Even as he ate, he didn’t put down his weapon.
He always carried a two meter long iron club on his back, its tip covered with
sharp spikes. The iron club emitted a silver level aura and was high quality.
After Commander Tie Bang looked at the information, the things he paid
attention to were different than Commander Beng Dai.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps have beastmen?”
“It seems they are valued by Deputy Commander Shi Qi; he is attempting to train
them hard.”
“They used potions?”
“One can gather fish schools; the other is a healing potion.”
“A good idea.”
“Investigate those two potions. Also investigate their food.”
“I heard dogmen have a unique flat bread that is cooked on stones.”
“I want to know whether they produce that food or not.”
Commander Tie Bang continued to issue scouting orders.
Hun Tong’s desk also had information related to the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ actions.
“Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps control a gold level cannon, they
lack basic cannons.”
“Their ranks have beastmen, and although not many, they are a hidden danger.”
Hun Tong glanced at it, then put it to the side.
He continued to deal with other things.
“This year, the beast group situation seemed to be much bigger than previous
years.
“The auction cannot be compromised.”
“Have the patrols also cull some scavenger groups.”
Two Eyes Island was far bigger than Snake Rat Island, and a gold level like Hun
Tong did not follow the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps too closely.
Wisteria store.
Bit by bit, people came to make discreet inquiries with the salesclerk about
the Sweet Blood Potion and the Green hat Healing Potion.
The salesclerk threw up his hands and helplessly told the prospective buyers,
“All of our stock was purchased by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. But are
still some samples left, honored customer, you can try them out first and come
back later.”
The salesclerk found Yan Yi and informed him of this rarely seen market
situation.
Yan Yi had already inquired the reason, “It is because the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps used those two potions during their mission today. Since every
power is watching them intently, they have become interested in those two
potions.”
The salesclerk cheerfully replied, “Lord Yan Yi, in light of this, we should
replenish our stock. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ representative has
already come over to preorder much more. It seems other powers also desire to
purchase them too.”
Yan Yi nodded, “I will go do that.”
But he was unsure.
Because he didn’t know where to find Zi Di and Cang Xu.
The two Wisteria elders were truly elusive, and not a tail of them had been
seen, their whereabouts were a real mystery.
The impact the survivors had on Two Eyes Island was expanding.
The old island.
The magic light here didn’t illuminate the vendor stall very much.
Fei She was standing in front of the stall, and with two fat fingers, he
twirled some fine powder in them. He felt it, then raised his fingers up to
smell and taste it.
A strong stench of feces assaulted his nose, and it tasted somewhat rancid, as
if it came from the rectum of a sick person that ate onions and then was left
out overnight.
“Customer, what I have here is traditional fish excrement coral powder.” The
stall owner said.
Fish excrement coral was fish manure that covered the surface of coral all year
round, and in special environments, this process would gradually grow a type of
coral.
After this coral was grinded to dust, it became a base alchemy material.
Two Eyes Island was a coral ball cage tree and had many unique types of coral
growing on it.
Fei She was an ordinary person, and didn’t have an alchemy device that could
determine whether it was a genuine or fake good, thus, he looked at Cang Xu
next to him.
The stall owner also gazed reverently at Cang Xu.
Cang Xu emitted an iron level magician aura, and with both hands behind his
back, he looked down at the fish excrement coral powder in the stall. Then, he
slightly nodded.
Upon getting Cang Xu’s approval, Fei She said to the vendor owner, “Then, then
how much, how much is it?”
The stall owner was mildly startled, he didn’t take Fei She as a stutterer.
He announced the price, but Fei She shook his head, “Expensive, too expensive.
I believe the price is fair, fairer.”
He raised four fingers.
The vendor owner declined, “This is the freshest goods.”
Both sides wrangled and haggled.
The vendor owner didn’t think that Fei She had such an understanding of the
market price of fish excrement coral powder and had no choice but to cut the
price down.
“Do you have any other goods? Such as seafloor magic beast corpses and the
like.” Stated Cang Xu.
The vendor owner stated that he himself didn’t but could show where such things
were.
He knew some stores with the goods.
The vendor owner was right when he said these goods were the freshest.
Two Eyes Island’s new island hadn’t been rising for long, and inside it there
were still magic beasts and fish schools that needed to be purged.
To refine magic potions, Zi Di needed raw materials. At the same time, from the
team’s point of view, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Group also needed to stock up
on materials for normal consumption.
The market price familiar Fei She and the magician Cang Xu joined together to
form a two man procurement team.
It wasn’t unusual that they were a team.
Many shoppers were moving between stores and stalls.
These people not only came from Two Eyes Island, but also from surrounding
waters.
The bargain sale covered the entire island’s market, and during this time, all
kinds of goods were discounted.
It had been Hun Tong’s idea.
It was said that in the beginning, some merchants were very resentful.
But as the island expanded, and attracted more buyers every year, the merchants
gradually tasted sweet benefits. In current times, all of them leap to join in
and even shout their praise for it.
Cang Xu and Fei She followed the vendor owner to a family store.
After understating what was going on, the salesclerk there said, “Yes, we have
the goods in storehouse 3.
The three people went to go find the merchandise.
A gigantic fish skeleton soon appeared before Cang Xu and Fei She.
The light inside the storehouse wasn’t good, however, the fish skeleton emitted
a bright white light and was very conspicuous, for its iron level aura mixed
with a strange gloominess and coldness.
When Cang Xu saw it, his eyes couldn’t help but contract somewhat.
It was necromancy materials!
His heart rejoiced.
Cang Xu craved necromancy materials.
But previously, he had gained nothing from the cemetery.
On the one hand, the cemetery was subjected to the Wealth Church’s divine
spells, and on the other hand, even if there were old graves, due to the coral
ball cage tree’s growth, the gravesites would shift and be very hard to locate.
Thirdly, the cemetery was tightly guarded. Wealth Church believers had a social
custom of reburying their dead, which attracted grave robbers; naturally after
many hard lessons, their graveyards were rigorously guarded.
After Cang Xu reflected, he decided to try his luck on this sale.



****** Chapter 95: Ashen Death Mask ******
Cang Xu didn’t believe in the Luck Goddess, and as a magician, he always
planned before moving, therefore despite this being a lucky stroke, he acted as
he usually did.
He believed that every time Two Eyes Island sank and rose, the local ecology
would be overturned and cause many underwater creatures to fight each other. It
was only after the turmoil had long past did a new ecosystem establish itself.
The corpses of the turmoil’s dead would accumulate, and their souls would
tangle together, likely forming into necromancy materials. 
Therefore, Cang Xu had come with Fei She, firstly so that he could identify the
materials and prevent the ordinary Fei She from being swindled, and because
Cang Xu was searching for necromancy materials.
Sure enough, he ran into one.
“These are the bones of an ice blade fish. Look at its top fin, it is just like
a knife, and its ice element is very dense. The problem is that the fish bones
have a death aura winding around them and must be processed further.” The
salesclerk presented.
The winding death aura was a characteristic of necromancy materials, and if
processed, it would instead be destroyed.
As far as Cang Xu was concerned, that would cause its value to plummet.
Normally, these fish bones would have been sold as ice path alchemy materials.
“How much?” Cang Xu asked.
The salesclerk stated the price.
Cang Xu didn’t reply, instead he looked at Fei She.
The necromancer didn’t know the market price and wasn’t good at haggling.
Fei She opened his stammering mouth and began to bargain.
The salesclerk quickly began to sweat from the ensuing word duel.
At first because of Fei She’s stutter, he was somewhat frivolous, but he soon
began to feel how shrewd Fei She was.
Although Fei She was an ordinary person, he was a Wisteria Merchant Alliance
elder!
His business ability trounced the salesclerk by miles.
To him, haggling with the salesclerk was like using an ox knife to kill a
chicken.
After a few minutes, the visibly pale salesclerk and Fei She had come to an
agreement, the fish would cost 62 silver coins.
But just as it was about to be passed over, another salesclerk brought a new
buyer in.
This purchaser was dressed from head to toe in a black gown and they wore a
black mask that emitted a gold luster.
When the buyer saw the fish bones, they expressed their interest at once.
“This is ours, we already purchased it.” Fei She replied with displeasure.
The salesclerk that received them vigilantly agreed, “Correct.”
When the other salesclerk realized competition was afoot, they immediately
said, “You haven’t received payment for the goods yet,, it doesn’t count as a
finished transaction. How much are you selling it for?”
The first salesclerk was distressed but was forced to say it.
Just as he stated the price, the black gowned buyer laughed, “I offer 80 silver
coins!”
The salesclerk who received Fei She and Cang Xu grew unsightly, then he glanced
at Cang Xu, showing their faint anticipation.
Fei She got the cue, “85 silver, silver coins.”
The black gowned buyer immediately replied, “90 silver.”
This price exceeded the market price, causing Fei She to look at Cang Xu.
The old magician was the decider.
Cang Xu muttered, “95 silver.”
The black gowned buyer sneered, “1 gold.”
Cang Xu watched the black gowned figure with interest as he increased the price
by 10 silver coins.
The black gowned buyer raised his voice and shouted, “1 gold, 50 silver!”
As he spoke, an iron level aura emitted from him.
Shockingly, they were also a magician!
Cang Xu took a step back and held out a hand, “It’s yours.”
He conceded.
Soon after the black gowned buyer provided payment and put the fish bones into
their storage bag.
He didn’t stay any further and left the shop.
Cang Xu told Fei She, “Continue to browse for products, I’ll be back.”
He left the store and quietly caught up with the black gowned buyer.
The two winded around vendor booths and passed through a narrow path.
The people around them gradually thinned out.
Suddenly, the black gowned buyer turned a street corner and disappeared into a
dusky alley.
Cang Xu narrowed his eyes and stopped walking; he was at the port.
His cautious nature caused him to hesitate.
“It is unsuitable to act on Two Eyes Island.”
“Although I can use magic scrolls, using them will be unprofitable.”
“I don’t know anything about that person.”
“I don’t have any equipment on hand!”
Magicians needed time. If one had qualified magician equipment, they could cast
faster and more easily handle suddenly occurring situations.
The more Cang Xu pondered, the less his impulses were.
Finally, he sighed and turned around to leave.
Not long after he left, the figure of the black gowned buyer emerged from the
alley.
As the black gowned buyer watched Cang Xu leave, they coldly snorted, their
ice-cold and hoarse voice echoing from their mask, “Smart guy.”
Cang Xu returned to the market and continued to buy needed supplies.
After spending half the day, he and Fei She returned to the ships with lots of
materials.
Upon seeing Zi Di, Fei She spiritedly expressed that the discount sale was a
great chance to stock up on materials.
Zi Di inventoried the materials and looked at the purchase prices, she too
admired Hun Tong’s business strategy.
Cang Xu spoke, “I noticed that the most purchased material is green hair turtle
shells. How much Green Hat Healing Potion do you plan to refine?”
Cang Xu was somewhat worried.
“I have faith.” Zi Di smiled, “The marketplace will have a favorable reaction.”
Fei She also comforted Cang Xu’s shoulder, “No, no mistake!”
The two were both brimming with self-confidence.
This kind of confidence occurred together with their continually deepening
understanding of the market here.
Knowing who the two were, Cang Xu nodded and chose to trust them.
After inventorying the supplies, Cang Xu whispered to Zi Di, “I found
something.”
He spoke of the black gowned buyer as well as his brief episode with them.
“I feel he is a necromancer!” Declared Cang Xu.
Zi Di was flabbergasted, “Based on what?”
She knew Cang Xu, he wouldn’t speak such things thoughtlessly.
Cang Xu changed the topic, “Did you know the Great Pain Temple’s battle qi
cultivation has four aspects? Rou Zang had cultivated the flesh aspect;
therefore, his physical nature was particularly developed. Gu Qiao was a monk
of the bone aspect. Apart from those, there are also the blood aspect and the
rarest, the heart aspect.”
“I only heard about that after the Snake Rat naval battle.” Zi Di did not
understand why Cang Xu was bringing this up.
Cang Xu continued, “The Great Pain Temple is like that, and our necromancy
school is the same, there are now three aspects that have been developed. They
are the bone aspect, the corpse aspect, and the soul aspect. We are of the soul
aspect, experts at making, storing, and controlling ghosts. The bone aspect
gets their strength from undead skeletons.”
“That black gowned person’s mask seemed to be made of metal, but it shouldn’t
be. I heard that it is a bone aspect necromancy equipment, called the ashen
death mask. That mask can conceal one’s aura and can let a magician pretend to
be an ordinary person. Furthermore, it also has a texture similar to metal.”
Zi Di sank into deep thought, and she muttered, “As Two Eyes Island grew to the
present day, the sale and the auction have had a real impact on the people.
Every time it happens, not only are people on Two Eyes Island interested but
also those of nearby islands and surrounding seas. It isn’t strange a
necromancy snuck in with them.”
Cang Xu replied, “I cannot be certain. It is just one possibility.”
“Even if it is just a possibility…” Zi Di’s eyes gradually shined, “We must
grab hold of this thread, we cannot abandon it so easily!”
“The black gowned buyer purchased the ice blade fish bones at a premium, it is
possible that they considered its worth as necromancy material. If they really
are a necromancer, if we could capture him…”
Zi Di couldn’t help but be excited.
She lacked necromancy resources.
Cang Xu was fine, for he had already reached the limits of his gifts and
unearthed all his potential.
While Zi Di hadn’t opened her magic power pool for long, and was still only a
bronze level magician, she desperately wished that she could be promoted to the
iron level.
But she lacked the resources.
Due to that shortfall of necromancy materials, they couldn’t build a suitable
meditation environment.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s meditation room was high-level, but Zi Di couldn’t
utilize it.
Meditating by herself was not very efficient.
Especially because her workload was heavy and her time scarce, thus Zi Di
desperately needed necromancy path resources.
She and Cang Xu conversed, and the two decided that they would follow this
trail and do a deep investigation,
Cang Xu was happy he and Zi Di could reach a consensus.
“But the problem is we don’t have time.” Cang Xu threw up his hands, “I plan to
continue my deep research into the Bloodline Purification Formation as well as
the memory modification device.”
Zi Di also shook her head.
Cang Xu was not good at refining medicine, thus while managing the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ financial affairs, she also had to refine medicine, causing
her to be very industrious for the last several days.
When Zi Di thought of that, she sighed and expressed her awkwardness.
“Investigation is not our field of expertise.”
“We had better entrust this to another.”
“Unfortunately, our group doesn’t have a person talented at that.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish and the scouting puppets are not appropriate to
gather this kind of information.
“Speaking of which, we have recently lost several scouts we deployed into Two
Eyes Island.”
Cang Xu muttered, “With the auction approaching, there are all kinds of people
on the island, the situation has become complex, and the undercurrent is
turbulent. I suggest we withdraw the scouts so as to avoid provoking
unnecessary trouble.”
Zi Di thought about it and agreed.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could hold off a gold level enemy,
they were currently waiting for a reply and fighting to redeem themselves,
thus, the less complications now, the better.
“Even though Two Eyes Island has a Thief Guild branch, since the matter
concerns a necromancer, we cannot entrust it to others.”
“Then we better have Xu Ma do it.”
After thinking it through, they realized they had no one else.
Xu Ma was the most suitable person.
Even though he had just been stabbed.
After discussing that matter thoroughly, that afternoon, Zi Di and Cang Xu once
again came to the Wisteria store.
When Yan Yi saw them, he excitedly gave them a thumbs-up and excessively
fawned, “Lord Elders, your potions area quite outstanding.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps bought almost all of them.”
“Later on, there were many customers who wanted to buy them too.”
“But we don’t have any to sell.”
“It has genuinely made me anxious!”
Zi Di waved her wands to and fro, and took out a pile of medicine, “Take it and
sell it. But don’t just sell it to a single party. At the same time, the price
will also be adjusted as follows.”
After carefully giving instructions, she and Cang Xu left.



****** Chapter 96: Booming Sales ******
The Wisteria store quickly displayed a large shop sign and used scarlet words
to indicate that the medicine shipment had arrived.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had tried it out in front of everyone, and soon
after, the store provided samples. After all sorts of powers or individuals
used the samples, they sensed their medicinal effects.
Therefore, when the Wisteria store displayed the sign, customers immediately
rushed over to buy the potions.
Yan Yi rigorously followed Zi Di’s commands, and did not exclusively trade to
one power, but did his best to expand the marketplace splash.
Very quickly, the two potions had lifted a minor craze in Two Eyes Island’s
medicinal market.
“Your Lordship, these are the two potions.”  In the Secret medicine Merchant
Alliance shop, a clerk returned with the Sweet Blood Potion and the Green Hat
Healing Potion.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance was one of the six great merchant
alliances, and mainly engaged in the drug trade.
They were also Zi Di’s greatest opponent in terms of medicine sales.
As the front-runner in this sphere, the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance had
keenly sensed the moment this craze had occurred.
The store manager immediately assigned someone to purchase some for study.
“Current testing has determined that the Sweet Blood Potion’s ingredients are
bat wings, snake teeth, and snow sugar. The quality ranges from bronze to iron
level.
“The Green Hat Potion’s main ingredient is the green hair turtle shell; the
other materials are unknown. The quality ranges from iron to silver level.
The Secret Medicine store’s people quickly got some results.
The merchant alliance’s manager’s brows were tightly wrinkled.
“How terrible.”
He was no alchemy mater, but he had a deep understanding of the Secret
Medicine’s marketplace.
By looking at the material analysis, they determined the production costs for
these two potions weren’t high.
From the observed medicinal effects, both were stronger than and far surpassed
similar potions.
“From the price, the advantage of these two potions is very clear.”
“It seems to justify their low cost.”
“Of course, we cannot eliminate the possibility of a deliberate discount to
attack the market.
“The Sweet Blood potion appeared when the market demanded a way to handle
oceanic beast groups, thus, it filled a small gap in the market. The Green Hat
Healing Potion is a greater threat. The Wealth Church is not good at healing
divine spells and are the only source of healing on Two Eyes Island. Who
wouldn’t stock up on healing potions before sailing out?”
The more the store manager mulled it over, the deeper their brows tightened.
He gradually took a seat.
They looked at the reporting subordinate, their tone somewhat fidgety, “Is this
all you could find?”
“My Lord, I am only an alchemy apprentice.” The subordinate also looked
anxious, “Perhaps we can ask Lord Hun Tong for help. He has a silver level
alchemy master subordinate.”
The store manager thought about it, and shook their head, “Unnecessary. We will
go to the Wisteria store and buy the potion recipe from them!”
The store manager and the alchemy apprentice quickly went to the Wisteria
store.
He didn’t enter in, rather he stood next to the store doorway.
He had forgotten all about this remote shop and tossed it into some corner of
his mind.
To the six great merchant alliances, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was just a
name now. The ungraduated magician apprentice that was their merchant alliance
president getting lost at sea was further proof of the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance’s miserable situation.
But things had changed.
The Wisteria store’s most obvious change was the sign standing at its doorway.
The gigantic sign used the brightest paint to declare – Sweet Blood Potions and
Green Hat Healing Potions being sold while supply lasts!
“Excellent.”
“Simple and crude, but straight to the heart.”
The store manager evaluated the line and surmised soon after that it was
possible that the Wisteria store might have a custom-made alchemy device. A
magic panel type signboard that could replace the current sign. 
The signboard’s function seemed to be very clear.
As the store manager stood in the doorway, several customers pushed by them as
they went into the store. 
The store manager also went in.
The apprentice alchemist subordinate blindly followed suit.
When the two entered the store, they saw the potions spread across the shelves.
The variety was limited to two other potions besides the Sweet Blood Potion and
the Green Hat Potion, nothing else was present.
Three clerks were busy.
One was presenting to customers, one was processing transactions, and another
was moving merchandise.
Shelves emptied by sold goods were quickly filled.
The scene caused the store manager’s heart to thump, “It seems there are plenty
of these potions.”
The store manager could already see that soon, Two Eyes Island’s medicinal
market would be battered by the storm they could see before him.
His subordinate was more interested in the placards around the store.
Above the Sweet Blood Potion shelf, there was a sign that said: Sweet Blood
Potion – driving both hunters and prey crazy.
The sign above the Green Hat Healing Potion over yonder said: As long as you
can survive, there’s no harm having green hair!
“A pretty good saying.” The subordinate felt those two slogans were quite
fitting.
The fretful store manager found a clerk and flashed his identity.
He was quickly led to the backroom and met with Yan Yi.
The store manager didn’t bother with pleasantries and instead elucidated his
purpose in coming.
“You want to purchase the recipe for those two potions?” Yan Yi was stunned.
Soon after, his eyes flashed sharply.
In the wake of constant growth, Yan Yi gradually realized the value of those
two potions. Now, he had suddenly discovered that he had still managed to
greatly underestimate the true worth of these potions!
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance store manager went as far as to state his
desire to purchase the recipes!!
He knew the other party was the largest front-runner in the drug market, a
leviathan existence!
“So then, how much? I can pay twice, no three times the market value!” The
store manager’s rich and overbearing display showed his sincerity and great
power.
Yan Yi bitterly laughed and shook his head, “So sorry, I am not the architect
of this. These potions were all provided by the two elders.”
“Elders?” The store manager was stunned.
Yan Yi told the truth, “Several days ago, two elders came to the store with a
level seven wisteria secret order. These two potions, along with the sales
tactics were provided by the elders, I am only the executor of them.”
The store manager asked him to elaborate.
After a long time, his brows furrowed further.
“Wister Merchant Alliance elders? Where did they suddenly pop up from? What are
they up to?” The store manager realized this was no simple affair, causing his
heart to constantly sink.
“There are so many goods, they must have stockpiled a large quantity; it is
impossible for so many to be manufactured in so short a time.”
“Do the ashes of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance burn once more?”
“Wasn’t their president lost at sea?’
“If they wanted to rise again, then Two Eyes Island…is indeed a good starting
point.”
It was very difficult for the Wisteria Merchant Alliance to survive on the
Sheng Ming Continent. If a merchant alliance wanted to revive itself, it was
far more challenging to do than their initial rise. Because the vested
interests in the shattered Wisteria Merchant Alliance all remembered how
wonderful it was to glut themselves, and that the bigger the merchant alliance
was, the more they salivated.
They would unwaveringly gaze at the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s every move.
Although greedy, they would also be scared that the Wisteria Merchant Alliance
would seek vengeance as it expanded.
Two Eyes Island was different.
It was isolated in the sea, and the six great merchant alliances weren’t as
strong here as they were on the Sheng Ming Continent.
At the same time, Two Eyes Island was the economic core of neighboring waters,
it was the most developed commerce island, and its long disseminated reputation
had a strong effect.
If the Wisteria Merchant Alliance could succeed on this island, then they would
take a step towards revival!
“Since this is the case, then please pass on our purchase request. I want to
invite the two elders to a comprehensive discussion.” The store manager
replied.
Yan Yi promptly expressed that he would!
The store manager and his subordinate left the Wisteria store.
“Your Lordship, are you going to pay a visit to the feudal lord and ask if his
silver level alchemy master can help us analyze the potions?” The subordinate
suggested.
The store manager shook his head.
Leaving aside how complicated and expensive reverse engineering a recipe was,
even if their research derived the correct recipe, it would already be too
late.
The Wisteria store would use that time to successfully gain a foothold in the
market.
“The trouble isn’t the potions or the recipes, they are just weapons. The
trouble are the people behind t this.”
The store manager sighed.
Staying here longer was useless, and he had no choice but to return and scheme.
Like a seed beginning to sprout in the soil, the craze over the two potions
grew bigger.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance’ store manager was a person of foresight.
While the other islanders gradually detected that these two potions seemed to
be trending in popularity.
Even if they did not know about the two potions, whenever they saw someone in
the crowd with green hair they would think: what was going on?
The Green Hat Healing Potion had a systemic problem, it dyed people’s hair
green.
As a result, that very thing was a striking way to promote it!
Those who used the potion, regardless of what they were doing, would provoke
the attention of others.
Curious people would ask, “Brothers, what happened to your hair?”
Those asked would often explain the facts.
Upon hearing about the healing potion, the curious people would then ask, “Eh?
How good is the healing effect?”
It was then said to be quite great.
Regardless of the recipe or tools used to refine them, the potions were first
class quality goods.
Thus, through this dissemination, the Green Hat Potion’s reputation quickly
circulated.
The Wisteria store’s sales figures were constantly rising.
In three short days, the second shipment was completely sold out.
But this time, the Wisteria store wasn’t worried. Because Zi Di had been
following the market, and before the second shipment was gone, she had already
delivered a third shipment to Yan Yi.
With the withdrawn capital, the ghost girl quickly had an abundance of money on
hand.
She continue to buy large amounts of medicinal materials.
Turning them around into refining ever more potions.
Then they would sell, sell, sell!
Sales were booming.
“You’ve proven yourself, Zi Di.” When the dragonman youngster learned this, he
was very happy.
Every profession had its merits, if it were him, he could only rely on honest
mercenary work and make his living off the mission rewards.
Zi Di said to him, “We stand on War Merchant’s shoulders. All the medicine
recipes in War Merchant’s database are outstanding, we just chose two of the
most suitable from it. The magic medicine refinement tool is also high quality.
The alchemy cabin and the Magic Medicine Bathtub cost ten thousand gold coins
to build. This doesn’t include the yellow crab alchemy puppet or even the more
valuable tower spirit.”
“The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance proposed purchasing the recipes, we
refused. Will trouble follow?” The dragonman youngster asked.
When Yan Yi received the third shipment, he passed on the Secret Medicine
Merchant Alliance’s purchase request.
Zi Di refused without the slightest hesitation.



****** Chapter 97: Dividing the Money ******
Zi Di nodded to the dragonman youngster, “There will be some trouble.”
“But it won’t be a big issue.”
“The reputation of our two potions is already widespread.”
“This is Two Eyes Island; Hun Tong is watching. Besides, the auction is coming,
and even if the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance wanted to cause trouble,
their hands are tied.
When Zi Di said that she then suggested, “Perhaps, we should leave some people
here so the Sweet Blood Potion and the Green Hat Healing Potion can provide a
stable income.”
“When we redeem ourselves in the future, we still need to continue living.”
“By grabbing hold of this business opportunity, our future lives will be more
comfortable.”
When she saw her sweetheart, the ghost girl couldn’t help but think freely of
how beautiful their future would be.
The dragonman youngster also nodded, “Indeed, we must consider our future.”
“We need solidarity in power, not just wealth, but we also need comrades.”
“But at present, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has expanded too much, the
silver level is fine, however, our control over the iron levels and the bronze
levels is quite frail.”
“We need Lan Zao, Bai Ya, and the rest to stand up and help.”
“We live and die together, and by the tribulation of Mystifying Monster Island,
we trust each other.”
As commander, the dragonman youngster had a clear understanding of what state
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in.
“At the moment, we need money to buy equipment for them. In the future when we
have the Bloodline Purification Formation, we can change their aptitude and
gifts. From that base, we can widen their limits. I believe that as long as the
Bloodcore is preserved, along with ample time to grow and conduct business, our
future will be unimaginable.” The dragoman youngster’s ambitions were
bottomless.
Zi Di had convinced him.
“Then lend it to them.”
“In the future, we can also build a capital treasury for the mercenary corps
and design a way to select the best talents. Through appropriated funds from
the treasury, we can subsidize teams filled with loyal members.”
Zi Di’s line of thought gradually diverged.
If the Bloodline Purification Formation was built, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would complete a qualitative change.
They didn’t need to gather the exceptionally gifted, only those that were
loyal. With bloodline alteration, they could manufacture talents by the batch
and create a formidable force!
Through the captain room’s window, they could see the port.
The early morning port was tranquil.
The sun had just risen; its yellow light mixed with the ocean’s still coldness
as it illuminated the side of the dragonman youngster’s face. Ot others, it
seemed to look like the dragonman youngster was bathing in a layer of heart
gladdening radiance.
Lan Zao walked in, “Your Lordship. You summoned me?”
He knelt to the floor and looked up at the dragonman youngster behind his desk,
his gaze showing respect, love, adoration, as well as a trace of devotion.
Lan Zao’s experience on Mystifying Monster Island had always tormented him.
The dragonman youngster had saved his life.
He had not only saved Lan Zao in body, but also in spirit.
Especially during the Snake Rat naval battle, when the dragonman youngster had
dragged him out of his ocean of regretful sorrow.
To Lan Zao who had nearly drowned spiritually, it had been no less than
salvation for him.
Fron now on, he could face his sins.
So long as he followed the young man, Lan Zao believed firmly that he too could
walk the path of righteousness.
Therefore, in Lan Zao’s eyes, no matter how much the dragonman youngster’s
appearance changed, the latter’s nature was always the same.
The young man was brilliant flag that guided him forward.
“Please give me your commands. No matter the mission, I will do anything to
complete it!” Lan Zao’s sonorous voice and expression revealed his inhuman
determination.
Upon seeing Lan Zao like this, the dragonman youngster couldn’t help but think,
“If this comrade is unworthy of our help, who would be worthy then?”
A moment later, the dragonman youngster smiled, “Stand up, Lan Zao. No need to
be so zealous.”
Lan Zao stood up perfectly straight, like a knight always waiting for their
sovereign king’s command.
He would not hesitate to brave any danger if commanded!
“Recently, the situation hasn’t been well?” The dragonman’s eyes penetrated Lan
Zao, keenly observing the purple bruises on the latter’s arm and chest.
For the last few days, Lan Zao and the pirates had fought on multiple
occasions.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ immense expansion was overall stable due to
the silver level leadership, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, suppressing
those beneath.
But hidden in the lower levels, there was nevertheless chaos.
This was the world of the strong, and people worshiped the strong.
Lan Zao’s identity as a survivor was strictly kept secret, and the recently
joined pirates only knew him as a mercenary that had joined the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps on Snake Rat Island.
As time went on, if they just joined later, why should he be valued more? Why
was he placed as one of the bronze level leaders?
Lan Zao didn’t seem that strong!
“Don’t tell me I have to be under a weaker person?”
“Can’t I climb up?”
These kinds of thoughts lingered in the minds of the former pirates, spurring
them on to find trouble with Lan Zao.
Lan Zao had encountered many confrontations and challenges.
Although drawn swords were unlikely, occasional fist fights were still painful.
Crucially, Lan Zao’s displayed battle strength wasn’t convincing enough.
When faced with the dragonman youngster’s question, Lan Zao tightened his lips
and looked ashamed, “I am very sorry to have disappointed your Lordship.”
He thought that the dragonman youngster would excoriate him, but a moment
later, he heard the young man laughing, “Hehehe. Relax, no need to be so
anxious. I have always believed that you would assume personal responsibility.
Lan Zao, we have fought side by side many times. I know that you have
potential, that there is much you can improve on.”
But Lan Zao was dour, he treated those words as mere consoling, “My Lord, my
bloodline is no good, I have already unearthed all of my potential and reached
the peak of my life already.”
“No, you have not. You haven’t used the Bloodline Purification Formation yet.”
The dragonman youngster said to himself. 
Lan Zao was still a cultivator, even though his limit was the bronze level.
But as long as they found a better bloodline in Lan Zao, utilized the Bloodcore
to absorb lifeforms that had it, then used the Bloodline Purification Formation
on him, then they could improve Lan Zao’s bloodline concentration.
This was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ main goal.
Since the Deceptive Disguise Formation and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
Formation were already built, medicinal testing of bloodlines with and building
the Bloodline Purification Formation were now the most important development
goal.
Lan Zao didn’t have hope in himself, but the dragoman youngster had great
expectations for him s till.
Of course, since this plan concerned the Bloodcore, he couldn’t speak about it
right now.
The dragonman youngster took out a bag of money, got up, and placed it in Lan
Zao’s hands.
“Go to the island and buy some equipment.”
“Your Lordship!” Lan Zao’s heart shook.
He unconsciously wanted to refuse.
“I won’t permit your refusal!” The dragonman youngster solemnly displayed his
might.
Lan Zao instantly stopped moving.
“Consider it a loan.” The dragonman youngster clapped Lan Zao’s shoulder and
continued to console him, “You don’t need any burdens. After you become
stronger, you will stabilize your position as the bronze level leader. This
will be helpful for our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“This subordinate understands!” Lan Zao took a deep breath; his eyes were red
with dripping tears.
He really needed this money!
By the time he left the captain’s room, he had already wiped away his hot tears
and cleaned up his face.
He clutched the pouch to his chest.
He didn’t want to show weakness, he would answer the young captain’s
expectations and become the strongest bronze level!
The afternoon ocean surface reflected the sun’s sharp arrows.
The dry heat caused mercenaries to hide in the ship holds.
Anyways, on the port.
The morning training had exhausted many mercenaries, and after eating their
lunch, all of them were sleeping heavily.
Zong Ge was studying his training manual in his captain’s room.
Tripleblade had come to visit, he didn’t look well, “My Lord, there is a matter
I must inform you of at once. This morning, the commander over that distributed
a lot of money.”
“Lan Zao, Fei She, Mu Ban, Qiao Shan, and even Bai Ya were given some.”
Zong Ge had been amending the training manual. When he heard this information,
he didn’t raise his head and his pen didn’t stop, he continue to write as he
said, “For the last few days, the potion sales have been prosperous, it seems
they have obtained a lot of capital.”
“Previously, the mercenary corps’ funds were in short supply, now this problem
has been greatly alleviated, this is a good thing.”
Tripleblade’s brows tightly wrinkled, “But we haven’t gotten any money.”
“The potion recipes come from War Merchant’s database and the Magic Medicine
Bathtub is our shared spoil of war. We deserve a portion of the profits from
the produced potions.”
“Furthermore, all the others got some, why not us?”
Zong Ge shook his head, “There is an issue with your words. Indeed, the recipes
and the Magic Medicine Bathtub belong to everyone.”
“But the raw materials for the potions were purchased with the 300 gold coins
that came from Zi Di’s Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
“She only used the recipes, the Magic Medicine Bathtub, and the alchemy cabin,
that’s it.”
“It was her medicinal abilities and business methods that allowed her to be
profitable.”
Although Zong Ge didn’t understand business, he had a broad scope on things. On
Snake Rat Island, he experienced how amazing Zi Di’s business finesse was.
“Besides Zi Di, no other person could accomplish this.”
Tripleblade grinded his teeth, unreconciled, “But when she refined potions, she
depleted much of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic power.”
Zong Ge chuckled, still immersed in revising his training book, his brief words
had silenced Tripleblade, “Do you really think that someone as shrewd as Zi Di
would leave behind such obvious leverage? I believe that she has already
replenished the magic power. After all, elemental crystals are very common,
especially on Two Eyes Island, where they can be effortlessly purchased.”
Tripleblade did not reply.
Zong Ge then asked, “How was the money specifically given out?”
“Everyone has differing amounts. It is entirely divided up according to status.
According to them, these are all loans that will be repaid in the future.
Besides, if one wanted more, they could make a request.” Answered Tripleblade.
“Good.” When Zong Ge heard that, he sincerely exclaimed in admiration.
On the surface, it seemed that directly giving people money won over the
people’s hearts.
But the detriments outweighed the benefits.
If an organization wanted to expand, their foundation was their laws and
standards.
Relying on the kindness of charity to win over the people would inevitably make
things murky. Humans had different emotions; how could one calculate how one
would react to that?
It would end up with benefits and emotions entangled together. Envy, suspicion,
unwillingness, jealousy, grievances, and all other sorts of feelings would form
internal friction, and no organization could walk far with that present.
It was an incorporeal pitfall, but the young man and woman had stepped across
it.
After crossing it, they could suddenly see far more.



****** Chapter 98: Pirate Booty ******
Tripleblade didn’t give up, “My Lord, perhaps we too can apply for some
capital.”
“We are short on money!”
“Most crucially, with that money, your Lordship can heal your arm injury.”
“That injury has greatly encumbered you.”
“That wound prevents your Lordship from cultivating, stagnating your battle
strength.  
“You are but a step away from the gold level.”
“IF you cross that step, your world will completely change.”
“Then, you shall be the mercenary corps’ sole gold level!”
Zong Ge stopped writing, he earnestly looked at Tripleblade, and solemnly
asked, “Tripleblade, do you consider me a shameless person?”
“Your Lordship, I had no intention of offending you!” Tripleblade immediately
knelt.
He wholeheartedly followed the half beastman.
Zong Ge sighed, “When I asked for a ship, Kuai Tui, and his people, I made my
determination clear. In the future, we will seek our success in the Wilderness
Continent and won’t be with these people any longer.”
“Since we are separate, I will maintain my independent nature.”
“This is the cost of that.”
“If we snuggle up when there are benefits and hold our independence when there
are not, I will despise myself.”
When Zong Ge said that his ears seemed to ring with grumbles and complaints.
Back in the day, he had been a general.
He frequently had subordinates complaining and grumbling.
“My Lord, why are our supplies being replenished slower than other units?”
“It infuriates me! Today when army provisions were provided, not only were we
last, but we were given less supplies than the others!”
“We are obviously the same rank and file, why do we get less?”
“This is unacceptable! Our merits have helped the most people, yet we lose the
most!”
Zong Ge could only bitterly placate his subordinates.
What could he do?
He was a bastard, a half beastman.
He was General Da Shu, and sometimes his military successes had been claimed by
others falsely.
He had been discriminated against and treated differently.
His heart concealed indignance and fury, yet his face was filled with apathy.
Back to reality.
To Zong Ge, who had been treated quite unfairly in the past, what was this to
him?
Zong Ge was as indifferent as the clouds and wind.
But at that moment, Cang Xu came to his ship.
“Before you go out to morning training, the commander told me to bring you
these.”
Cang Xu dropped two bags of money and left after saying his piece.
He was bogged down in work and valued his time; thus, he was direct and
efficient.
The two looked at the money bags on the table.
Tripleblade reacted first, after he stepped forth to examine them, his
expression became more complicated, “This money…we got the most.”
Zong Ge smiled, he put down his pen and took out some gold coins from the bags.
He sincerely exclaimed in admiration, “Our commander truly is magnanimous.”
He thought to himself, “If I was a ordinary half beastman, I would feel proud
to be under his command.”
“Unfortunately, I am not.”
“More regretfully, this troop has no future.”
Zong Ge’s opinion on the survivor team never changed.
Even though the shell of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps covered them, the true
core of it was the survivors.
The survivors had too many types of backgrounds, races, and beliefs mingling
together.
“This can buy how many cannons? After you purchase the cannons, equip them
first.” Zong Ge tossed his bag to Tripleblade.
Tripleblade caught it, “My Lord, healing your injury should take precedence.
You recovering your full battle strength is more important than buying
cannons.”
Zong Ge shook his head, “Even if you add your bag, there still isn’t enough
money for that.”
“It is too expensive to ask a gold level bishop over here to heal my wound.”
“Even Feudal Lord Hun Tong would feel distressed at doing that.”
“I think that even if we pooled all of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ cash
together, it still won’t be enough to ask for a gold level bishop’s help.”
“Give up on that unfeasible notion. I expect that a gold level healing potion
will appear in the auction.”
Tripleblade had no choice but to concede to Zong Ge’s rationale.
Afterwards, he looked embarrassed, “But it is very difficult to buy cannons
from the market.”
The old island’s sale was mostly peddling materials.
The five great merchant alliances were mainly selling cloth, foodstuff, magic
potions, ore, and the like.
Not only were weapons and armor in short supply, but also military equipment
too.
The new island’s auction would have large deals, but those were mostly in
materials too. Cannons sales were very rare.
Two Eyes Island was a developed trading island; however, its manufacturing was
not developed at all.
Therefore, Zong Ge and Tripleblade were confronted with an awkward situation.
They had some money.
Not enough to ask the Wealth Church for healing.
Based on market price, they could afford cannons, but they weren’t able buy
any.
Munition sales were mainly traded on the black market.
Large scale external sales of munitions was very taboo.
The empire did not allow this kind of business. Therefore, the six great
merchant alliances did not involve themselves in that business.
Otherwise, how could there be arms smugglers?
When he heard Tripleblade’s explanation, Zong Ge exasperatedly thought to
himself, “Then you had better buy bronze level blades first.”
His heart was still focused on the Quick Knife Battle Squad.
The old island.
Bai Ya looked at a store sign.
The store sign said: Dark Rainbow Store.
“This is the place.” Bai Ya muttered.
Don’t be fooled by the small shop front and how unremarkable it seemed; it was
the old island’s biggest booty market.
Most pirates chose this place to dispose of their stolen goods.
Many people believed that this store was backed by Two Eyes Island’s feudal
lord, Hun Tong.
Of course, more people believed that if a genuine investigation was conducted,
the Feudal Lord would be completely clean and wouldn’t be implicated by this
place one bit.
Bai Ya had heard that Tripleblade had purchased a dozen bronze level war blades
from this place.
Afterwards, he heard Lan Zao say that he purchased bronze level equipment from
this place.
Bai Ya clucked the coin purse Zi Di had lent to him and entered the small
store.
Following the code taught to him, after he and the salesclerk exchanged a code
word, he got to see all kinds of equipment.
Cutlasses, pirate hats, peglegs, fishing nets, and even a parrot shaped alchemy
puppet…
Most of the equipment was ordinary level, were some bronze level ones.
There were few iron level ones.
Bai Ya picked up a crossbow and a firearm and examined them.
He came from a family of hunters and was opinioned towards such long range
weapons.
Bai Ya soon felt disappointed.
These weapons were far inferior to the ones the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
in their armory. The alchemy firearms and crossbows they distributed were
produced by War Merchant’s arms factory and were a step above all others on the
market in quality.
What’s more, Bai Ya now saw that these were defective goods pirates had dumped
from their loot.
The real good stuff were kept by the pirates.
Who would sell the things that earn their keep? Unless it was under
extraordinary circumstances or as a last resort, this wouldn’t happen.
“Most of the equipment needs battle qi. I am not even a bronze level.”
“My talent is too inferior.”
Bai Ya was depressed.
After escaping Mystifying Monster Island, the dragonman youngster gave the
survivors battle qi techniques,
Bai Ya began to cultivate battle qi.
At first, he thought his talent was pretty good.
But later on, after talking to Xu Ma, he had learned the cruel truth.
Bai Ya’s talent was terrible and his hope of ever becoming a cultivator was
uncertain.
If nothing unexpected happened, he would be just like most people, an ordinary
person for the rest of his life.
Bai Ya endured the blow, and didn’t give up, instead cultivating even harder.
After a careful selection, he chose from the piled booty a wrist crossbow and a
set of leather armor.
Just as he was about to pay, he felt nothing in his chest.
“The money is gone?!” Bai Ya was startled, and he turned around to look all
over for it.
He saw a familiar person leaning against the corner of the store, smiling back
at him as he held his purse.
“Senior Xu Ma!” Bai Ya was stunned.
He didn’t even realize that another person came into the store.
Xu Ma threw the purse at Bai Ya, “Boy, your vigilance is terrible, you didn’t
even know your money was stolen.”
“Anyways, how did you get so much money?”
“I never saw you as a rich guy.”
Of course, this money had been loaned by Zi Di, but Bai Ya couldn’t say that.
Luckily, Xu Ma didn’t dig any deeper, instead he wobbled over to Bai Ya and
pointed out, “This wrist crossbow has a problem, it is a machine construct.
Don’t be fooled by its bright appearance, it’s obvious it has been tampered
with. It might malfunction after a night.”
“The leather armor is actually good, but it doesn’t fit you. You are only an
ordinary person, so you should choose this leather armor.”
Xu Ma presented.
He was far more experienced than Bai Ya.
The salesclerk hadn’t ever said a word.
Buying booty depended on having a discerning eye.
Bai Ya heeded Xu Ma’s words and bought another set of leather armor based on
his suggestion.
When the two were about to leave the store, Bai Ya curiously asked, “Senior Xu
Ma, why are you here? Did you also want to buy equipment?”
“Of course not, I don’t have as much money as you.” Xu Ma sighed.
He had received an order to investigate the black gowned magician.
But he hadn’t made any headway in this matter.
On the one hand, the suspected necromancer was very mysterious, they left
behind few traces, and those limited clues were cut short.
On the other hand, Xu Ma didn’t want to do this. He had just been stabbed! Now
he was to investigate a magician, an iron level one!
“I am just a small bronze.” Xu Ma shouted to himself, but he couldn’t disobey
the order.
He chose to passively slack off. Then, while he was strolling in the discount
market, he saw Bai Ya.
He then followed Bai Ya and played a small joke on him.
Xu Ma was a thief with long hands and legs, a natural advantage when it came to
stealing
His battle qi was the Spider Walk technique. Those who cultivated that battle
qi had a distinct trait, they could move soundlessly, faster, and more nimbly.
Xu Ma had walked behind Bai Ya, and the instant the salesclerk looked away, he
gently lifted the purse from Bai Ya’s chest.
“Since you have money, you might as well drink at the bar with me.” Xu Ma shook
Bai Ya’s shoulders.
Bai Ya hesitated, thinking to himself: he still had most of the money, he
should return it.
But after thinking again, he realized Xu Ma indeed had been looking after him a
lot, and he nodded his agreement.



****** Chapter 99: Pharmacy Troubles ******
The two arrived at a pub.
Bai Ya expressed that he wasn’t drinking.
“Then your senior will be impolite, bring over five cups of beer!”
Xu Ma didn’t order the expensive Pine Wind beer, instead he made up for it in
quantity.
After drinking the five cups, he drummed his belly with contentment.
After chatting for a bit, Bai Yai stated that he wanted to return to the ship.
But Xu Ma pulled his hand, “Where are we now?”
“Boy, haven’t you come to buy equipment? Then follow me.”
“First, you need a good pair of boots.”
Xu Ma dragged Bai Ya to a small roadside stall.
Bai Ya saw Xu Ma’s “good boots”.
The boots were in terrible condition, the left boot’s front was open, exposing
the wearer’s toes. Both boots were so worn down the leather was peeling, and
they emitted a foul foot order. 
It assaulted the nose.
Bai Ya couldn’t help but guess: how long had these boots been left unwashed?
“Not bad. This is an alchemy item, with magic script on it. Look here, it can
steady your gait.” Xu Ma understood a bit about magic script.
It wasn’t strange upon thinking about it, given that he was a thief.
After all, if one didn’t have discerning eyes, one couldn’t determine the true
value of good things.
Upon seeing Bai Ya’s weird expression, Xu Ma explained, “You are a hunter, who
spent all of their time on dry land, your time at sea has been too brief. With
them on, you can maintain your balance during surging gales or during naval
battles. It’ll be unlikely you’ll fall into the ocean.”
“Every year, large amounts of sailors and pirates die by falling overboard.”
“Although they are ugly and smell, they are good to wear. It is also cheap, if
you find a cobbler in the future, perhaps they can sew up the seams for you.”
Xu Ma’s recommended it enthusiastically.
Bai Ya couldn’t endure his persuasion and bought the boots, and so Xu Ma
brought him to another residential area.
This was a cave for ordinary people and was very squalid. Despite Two Eyes
Island having flourishing trade, it had no shortage of poor people and beggars.
“Boy, you still got the stuff?” Xu Ma hit a door.
It was a small shack.
Soon after, a dirty head popped out from inside it.
It was a small boy.
The boy’s wary gaze looked at Xu Ma, then replied, “Of course I still have the
goods, have you returned to actually buy them?”
Xu Ma shook his head, “To be precise, I am not buying it.”
He pointed his thumb at Bai Ya behind him, “He is the actual buyer.”
The small boy looked at Bai Ya, his expression skeptical, “Can you spare 5
silver coins?”
Bai Ya was startled, and he thought to himself: what thing was so expensive?
Bai Ya unconsciously looked at Xu Ma.
Xu Ma nodded to him, then said impatiently to the small boy, “Bring it over so
we can take a look at it now. With great difficulty, I brought over a customer.
We don’t have much patience.”
The small boy groaned, “I won’t sell it for anything less than 5 silver coins!”
After saying that, he squeezed back into the shack, and when he reemerged, he
had a small flower pot in his hand.
The flower pot had a green branch in it, and when Bai Ya peered into it, he
thought it was a thick grass.
“This is it.” Xu Ma’s eyes glinted.
After confirming it, he pulled Bai Ya in and urged him, “Take out the money.”
“Oh ho.” Xu Ma naturally reacted when Bai Ya unconsciously took out his purse
and fished out 4 silver coins and 100 copper coins.
Both sides transferred money and goods.
“There is only 4 silvers here, 1 silver is missing.” The small boy shouted.
Xu Ma squeezed out a silver coin into his hand and coldly snorted, “Give me a
break! I went through trials and tribulations to get you a customer, the
transaction is completed, I have succeeded!”
“Also, I advise you to not kick up a racket.” Xu Ma lowered his voice and
looked down at the small boy, doing his best to oppress the latter.
“You don’t want others knowing you suddenly have money do you?”
The small boy was suppressed, and couldn’t help but take a step back, his red
eyes rigidly staring at Xu Ma.
But he didn’t make a sound.
Bai Ya sympathized somewhat with the small boy.
Xu Ma and Bai Ya departed the slums.
“Don’t sympathize with him, young man.”
“How could that stinky little demon have such a good thing?”
“He didn’t gather it, he stole it. Or perhaps he swindled it or snatched it.”
“Don’t underestimate poor people. They have no bottom line as they struggle to
survive.
“Furthermore, we already paid enough!”
Bai Ya was inevitably curious, “What is this, why is it so expensive?”
“It was bought at market price; we didn’t pay a premium.” Xu Ma corrected, “It
is known as Snake Grass. It can move, you see.”
As he said that, he pulled out the grass.
After being separated from the flower pot’s soil, the snake grass instantly
changed; both ends stretched out and it became slender.
Then, the grass’ end tapered into a snake head and its roots turned into a
snake tail.
The snake head opened its mouth, it wanted to bite, however, Xu Ma’s two
fingers rigidly held it shut.
The snake grass could only whine and wind its snake body around its arm,
squeezing it and wanting to snape Xu Ma’s bones.
Bai Ya jumped back in fear at this change.
“Snake grass is a plant, however, when it comes time to attack, it can briefly
turn into a grass vine that strikingly resembles a snake. It can move and is
aggressive.”
“This grass is cyan, a cyan snake grass. Apart from this, there is also white
snake grass, gold snake grass, red snake grass, and so on.”
“It isn’t poisonous; however, its bite hurts dearly. Its strongest point is
that it can take root. If it is thrown at someone, it can dig into the skin and
flesh, and if not handled promptly, it can damage one’s heart, lungs, and other
internal organs.”
Bai Ya turned pale when he heard this.
Then he saw that Xu Ma was emitting qi, it was obvious he had activated his
battle qi.
The green snake grass was ordinary level, and when it was oppressed by a bronze
life level’s might, it was subdued and no longer whined. 
Xu Ma stuck it back into the flower pot, and it gradually turned back into the
grass it once looked like.
But unlike before, the grass looked wilted and withered, it looked dehydrated
and frozen, causing it to look quite pitiful to Bai Ya.
Xu Ma continued, “You are not a cultivator, and cannot rely on your life aura
to intimidate it. But that doesn’t matter, you can use your blood to feed it.”
“You will need to mix your blood into the soil. The snake grass will absorb the
nutrients from the bloody soil. In a day, it and your bloodline will be
connected. With this level of deep control, when you are in danger, it will
feel your pain and snake away at its own accord to help you strike back.” 
“Also, with this level of control, even when in snake form, it won’t bite you
and will regard you as a close friend.”
“If you can do that, during battle, you can toss it out.”
“It can threaten bronze levels!”
Xu Ma’s frank words caused Bai Ya to understand gradually.
“Senior Xu Ma, many things.” Bai Ya was moved upon realizing how sincerely Xu
Ma had thought about him.
Xu Ma laughed loudly, “You were lucky to run into me!”
He was passively slacking and wasn’t willing to risk investigating the
mysterious black gowned magician.
Cang Xu hadn’t explained to him that the magician was a suspected necromancer.
But Xu Ma had to provide some information to report back about the situation. 
Therefore, he strolled through the marketplace and constantly made discreet
inquiries.
Information on the Dark Rainbow store had been brought back by him. Tripleblade
and Lan Zao benefited as a result.
As a result, he could be considered the person most familiar with the old
island’s marketplace in all of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Someone died!”
“A dead person!”
“Where is your store manager? Come out for me!  Your healing option killed my
man!”
“Get out here, you must give us an explanation!!”
Noisy insults circulated around.
Bai Ya and Xu Ma were attracted by them and rushed over.
“That’s Miss Zi Di’s store!” Bai Ya’s heart thudded when he saw the store’s
doorway was surrounded by people.
A group of people was causing trouble, their leader was a bronze level
cultivator who was angrily shouting.
Along with Bai Ya and Xu Ma, other bystanders had come over to see what was
going on.
Yan Yi came out and attempted to appeal to them, “It’s a misunderstanding, it
must be a misunderstanding!”
“Consumption of our potions didn’t cause their deaths.”
Yan Yi constantly defended himself.
But the troublemakers didn’t relent, and instead grew haughtier and more
aggressive.
“Your potions must have an issue!”
“You must compensate us!”
“Yea, in order to sell at so cheaply, you must have done a sloppy job?”
“This isn’t the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance; their potions are safe.”
“To consume this small store’s potions is simply playing with your life!”
Not only were the troublemakers suspicious, but the bystanders were also
beginning to grow skeptical too.
When Bai Ya heard this, he secretly grew anxious. 
He knew the mercenary corps only had money because of those two potions. Bai Ya
sensed the strong odor of conspiracy when he saw what was happening.
“There must be a villain that wants to cut off our livelihood!” Bai Ya shouted
to himself, “I have to think of something I can do.”
While he was restless with anxiety, Xu Ma was a crossed arm spectator, he was a
lively viewer of this.
He didn’t know the Wisteria store and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were
connected.
Yan Yi humbled himself and wanted to discuss things with the troublemakers
alone, however, the troublemakers didn’t not agree, instead they cried out, “Do
you want to bribe me? No way! You must pay what we deserve, everyone is
watching.”
Yan Yi’s head filled with sweat.
“I must do something!” Bai Ya was anxious too.
He was outside the encirclement, and at that moment, he noticed some onlookers
leaving the crowd and exchanging glances with each other frequently.
Bai Ya clearly remembered that those same bystanders had been the ones who had
been belittling and doubting the potions.
“They are all shills!”
“Truly despicable!”
“Someone wants to make trouble for us.”
When Bai Ya discovered this, he was unable to hold back.
He whispered to Xu Ma, “Those people are all together!”
Xu Ma shrugged his shoulders, “It appears so. This group of people is
particularly attentive, they even change the faces of the bystanders
frequently.”
The longer one stayed in the crowd and shouted negative things, the bigger
one’s flaws would be.
“We have to stop them, expose this conspiracy!” Bai Ya pinched his hands into
fists.
“Why?” Xu Ma was flabbergasted, “You want to get benefits from the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance? But if you do that, you will offend the troublemakers.”
“Don’t do that, we don’t need to meddle with this maelstrom. Alas, hold on!”
Bai Ya had already left the crowd and squeezed into an alley.
The spectators had been entering and exiting through that very alley.
There was no one in the alley.
As Bai Ya walked into it, Xu Ma grabbed him.
“Hey, justice boy, don’t be a meddler…” Suddenly, Xu Ma flexed his strength and
yanked Bai Ya into a shadowy corner.
A group of people walked through the alley, and after passing where they were
hiding, stood at the mouth of the alley.
A portion of them infiltrated the crowd and played the role of shill.
The remaining three people stood in place and gazed from afar.
“Leader, we haven’t drawn out the target person.”
The one called “leader” was a man with a lean stature.
He gazed for a moment, then commanded, “Continue creating a disturbance, then
withdraw when the target person appears. I have a noble guest here.”
After giving his instructions, he turned around and left through the alley.
Not long after, the other left too.
The alley was once again devoid of people.
“Senior Xu Ma, I…” In the dark corner, Bai Ya opened his mouth and racked his
brains in how to convince Xu Ma to get involved with this affair.
He heard Xu Ma fume with rage, “Investigate, I must investigate you!”
“Finally, I found you. The guy who took advantage of me!”
Xu Ma’s eyes sprayed the flames of hatred.
It was because the male leader had been the thin person who had stabbed him.
“You are an ordinary person, stay nearby and be my lookout. I’ll be back!” Xu
Ma told Bai Ya before running down the alley.



****** Chapter 100: Xu Ma Attacks ******
Xu Ma left Bai Ya elsewhere and had him keep watch while he rushed into the
depths of the alley.
A strong wind assaulted his face, causing Xu Ma to narrow his eyes, his slits
flickering with cold light.
Previously, he had been stabbed and forced to part with information on the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Fortunately, he had just joined and didn’t know
anything tantalizing about them.
The thin person who stabbed him knew this too, and didn’t kill Xu Ma, opting to
release him instead.
But Xu Ma wasn’t happy, because he knew the other party had let him go to
squeeze the last bit of value out of him. They had used him to give the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps a show of strength. It told the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps that it wasn’t easy to mingle into Two Eyes Island!
Xu Ma, with a dagger stuck inside him, had staggered back to the ship and
immediately reported what had happened.
The news was unavoidably spread, and as Xu Ma recuperated, many mercenaries
jeered him.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was newly formed, and everyone was fresh faces.
If they weren’t recruited on Snake Rat Island, they would have been captives
from the Snake Rat naval battle.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ higher ups were suppressed by the dragonman
captain and the half beastman.
However, the lower ranks didn’t have a clear leader, and so was in a chaotic
state.
This world worshiped the strong.
Without a clear strongman, the bronze and iron level mercenaries were secretly
competing with each other to decide who ranked where and who was more or less
important from now on.
Why should I listen to you?
Why should you get those resources first before me?
Prove your strength!
These secret competitions were not started by the survivors, but rather an
automatic refinement of a new organization.
As a bronze level, Lan Zao valued, causing many other bronze levels to be
frustrated and challenge him.
Xu Ma was a special case, he was injured.
The injury was his protective shell, yet at the same time, his weakness.
Xu Ma had been growing more and more worried these days.
After being stabbed and forced to sell information on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, he had been put at a clear disadvantage in this secret competition.
That disadvantaged state was far worse than the one Lan Zao was in.
How did bronze level cultivators look at Xu Ma?
Someone unimportant, they would ridicule Xu Ma for being weak and incompetent.
Even if they were to swap positions, they would perform worse.
They wanted to force Xu Ma underneath them and make the latter uncompetitive.
When this chaotic period ended, Xu Ma’s decidedly evaluated position would be a
great vexation.
Not only would he be disparaged and teased, more importantly, was how much
benefits was allocated to him.
No one would give more to the weak, it is always the strong that benefits!
Xu Ma valued his face.
And this face also concerned his future earnings in the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
Xu Ma valued those earnings, because he viewed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
as having a good future.
A cultivator, even as the lowest bronze, was often welcomed into mercenary
corps, pirate groups, and other such organizations.
However, not all powers or organizations resembled the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. They had two silver leaders that could vie with gold level cultivators!
Especially since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was new, and Xu Ma had joined
not too long ago either. He wanted to grab hold of this good opportunity,
become a direct subordinate, and in the future, rely on the higher-ups’
approval to gain profits beyond his own strength.
Not only was Xu Ma had gotten stabbed and was forced to sell information on the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but he was also severely punished.
However, the exact way and level the punishment was carried out had caused Xu
Ma to regard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as having more prospects.
Because regardless of whether it was treatment or punishment, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ higher-ups had done both according to the group’s internal
regulation system. Both existing laws and sufficient consideration were applied
to Xu Ma’s difficult situation.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had given Xu Ma an order to investigate a
mysterious magician.
Xu Ma passively slacked off on that task.
He joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to get a better life and more
resources, not slave away.
This time, Xu Ma was doing his utmost to pursue and attack.
Actually, it was for the same reason.
He wanted a better life and resources, then he had to turn a new leaf and
counterattack, forcing others to sit up and take notice of him.
What target was more suitable than the thin person who had stabbed him?
Climb back up where you fell.
Most crucially, although the thin person was a cultivator, he was the same as
Xu Ma, a mere bronze level.
Battle skill – Slink
Xu Ma sped up by 30% and his figure hugged closer into the darkness of the
alley, masking him.
Most crucially, his life aura dwindled and was close to nonexistent.
Slink was a popular battle skill, but if Lan Zao used it, it wouldn’t be as
good as Xu Ma’s.
Because Lan Zao cultivated the Water Grass battle qi while Xu Ma cultivated the
Spider Walk battle qi. His Spider Walk battle qi was more compatible with the
Slink battle skill.
“Amazing!” Bai Ya exclaimed in admiration from behind. In his view, Xu ma’s
figure suddenly became fuzzy as it sped up efficiently, vanishing after turning
an alley corner.
The thin person was already missing after turning the corner.
Xu Ma had anticipated this and used another battle skill – Tracking.
Xu Ma gazed at the ground and found a series of jumbled and disorderly
footprints.
Among these footprints, one group stood out the most.
It was the footprints the thin person had left behind.
Because they were from the person with the strongest life level that had passed
through here recently.
Xu Ma duel used the Slink and Tracking battle skills to investigate and
determine the thin person’s precise route along with reducing the distance
between them.
After passing through two alleys and turning five or six times, Xu Ma slowed
down as he arrived in front of a building.
“This is the place.” He was careful and didn’t advance prematurely.
Battle skill – Walk Climbing.
He stretched out his limbs and stepped onto the wall.
The battle skill allowed him to walk as if he was on level ground.
To not reveal himself, Xu Ma pressed his chest against the wall, with both
hands and feet crawling up like a spider.
The Tracking battle skill had ceased already and couldn’t be used.
This was Xu Ma’s limit.
He could at most use two skills at a time, previously it was Slink and
Tracking, now he had changed Tracking out for Walk Climbing.
Reling on his battle skills and experience, he cleverly avoided two sentries
out in the open and passed through a gap in the line of sight of a hidden
sentry post.
After circling about, he came to the back side of the building, then pressed
his ear onto the wall.
Battle skill – Eavesdrop.
Very quickly, the rustling conversation transmitted into his ear.
Xu Ma frowned and changed his position until he found the correct room.
This time when he eavesdropped, the voices were much clearer.
“Lord Xi Dai Zi, I didn’t just mishear you?” The thin person’s stunned voice
could be heard, “You’re making us your pirate group’s insiders that will help
you attack Two Eyes Island? This is impossible, I am a human, I cannot betray
the interests of humanity!”
A finely sharp voice rang out, “Hee hee, betraying the interest of humanity is
something you’ve done before. Don’t play tricks with me. Just state your
price.”
The thin person grumbled, “This is too great of a responsibility. Not only was
this different from what we discussed previously, we only planned to sell
information on Two Eys Island’s defenses.”
“Hee hee.” Said Xi Dai Zi, “We want both information on defenses and insider
knowledge!”
The thin person replied, “This…I can’t decide that.”
“Then let me speak to who can.” Xi Dai Zi expressed obvious displeasure, “How
long will it take?”
“Now, at once.” Said the thin person.
Xi Dai Zi then asked, “Oh, that’s interesting, is that a gold level
communications device?”
Xu Ma listened even more attentively and heard the clunk of an alchemy device
being moved.
Soon after, a third voice was heard, “What?”
The thin person replied, “Lord Shadow, the situation has changed. The other
party wants use to be insiders, they don’t just want to purchase defense
charts.”
Xi Dai Zi followed up, “Our sincerity is sufficient, and we are always
resolute. We have cooperated many times before, and don’t speak of betraying
the interests of humanity. I haven’t struggled my way here to listen to such a
corny joke.”
The third voice pondered for a bit, then laughed, “You group wants to seize
control of Two Eyes Island, hehe, interesting. I accept. My force can serve as
your insiders, but we will need 100,000 gold! No matter the outcome of this,
you will need to pay it all first, no down payments accepted!”
Xi Dai Zi screeched, “Bah! That is unacceptable, at most this is worth 80,000
gold, furthermore, I can only provide a downpayment of 40,000 gold. When we
seize control of Two Eyes Island, we shall deliver you the other part.”
What proceeded was a spell of bargaining.
Finally, both sides agreed on a price of 94,000 gold coins. Xi Dai Zi would
first pay a down payment of 50,000 gold coins.
Xu Ma didn’t dare move from his corner.
He had already canceled the Slink battle skill, and was currently using
Eavesdrop and Concealment.
The Concealment battle skill greatly diminished his life aura, even more so
than Slink.
“This is a big play!” Xu Ma’s head filled with cold sweat.
He was a thief and attentively gathered information.
Many times, it was hard to imagine how valuable the information was.
Therefore, he knew more than an ordinary person, such as the person in this
private discussion, Xi Dai Zi.
Xu ma knew that Xi Dai Zi was a fishman shaman, a silver level, and the first
mate of the Vinegar Jar Pirates.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates were a pirate group made up of fishmen, their
commander, Er Gua Zi, was a gold level cultivator. Unlike Rou Zang’s pirate
group, the Vinegar Jar Pirates roamed around and weren’t fixated in some sea
area, they treated all waters as their domain.
Therefore, the Vinegar Jar Pirates weren’t overestimating themselves, rather it
was very possible that they could take Two Eys Island.
The actual situation was far more complex.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates had unexpectedly found a human insider!
“There was someone backing that dimmable thin person!”
“For what reason did this group of people dare become traitors?”
“Thery are bound to be a powerful force; otherwise, why would the Vinger Jar
Pirates seek collaboration with them?”
“Damm it!”
“My situation is very dangerous; I cannot let them find me. If they notice me,
I will meet a terrible end here…”



****** Chapter 101: The Mysterious Magician Appears Again ******
Xu Ma shrank into the corner, motionless as the dead.
Everything had greatly surpassed his expectations.
In his mind, he only had to deal with the thin bronze level person, the others
were ordinary people. An ambush had a high chance of success.
But he no longer thought of doing that, now that he had run across Xi Dai Zi.
He was a fishman shaman, a silver level caster!
Xu Ma was dispatched to investigate a iron level masked magician, he had been
skimping on that task greatly because he was worried that it would be killed
for doing that. Now, he had encountered a far more formidable caster.
“What terrible luck, I have the worst luck!”
“Can’t let them find me, I mustn’t let them find me.”
“Great Shadow God, Thief God, bless and protect me from detection…”
Xu Ma was fully aware of how much danger he was in, and like walking across a
tightrope between precipices, perhaps he would die at any moment.
He used his battle qi to diminish his aura as much as possible.
At the same time, he began to ponder how he was to retreat.
But fate didn’t give him time.
As Xu Ma decided his retreat route and was about to move, the conversation
between the two had concluded.
Xi Dai Zi got up, “It’s time, I’ll go first.”
The alchemy device transmitted the backer’s voice, “Xi Dai Zi, why are you
worried? Leave tonight, let me entertain you.”
Xi Dai Zi sneered, “I’d rather entertain you after Two Eyes Island is under my
group’s control.”
The backer was unconcerned by that and continued on, “Seizing Two Eyes Island
is a big matter, how can this short conversation clear everything up about it?
We’ll have a proper discussion, trust is the foundation, no?”
“Trust…we really do need more trust.” Xi Dai Zi muttered, “The best way your
group can earn our trust is by doing your best to destroy Two Eyes Island’s
defenses. The easier we can seize it, the more we will trust you.”
“Rather…” When Xi Dai Zi said that, he sneered, “There are two hidden stakeouts
present at our meeting. They are two mere bronze levels. I wanted to kill my
way out of here, Hun Tong couldn’t stop me. That wasn’t necessary. Are you
looking down on me?”
The backer burst into laughter to dull the awkwardness.
But the thin person had a smile on his face.
During the conversation, Xi Dai Zi and the noble backer had reduced him to a
tool.
But as he smiled, his eyes contracted to the size of needles.
The higher up backer was still laughing, but Xi Dai Zi, inside the room, was
looking at the thin person’s changing face. That caused him to immediately
purse his brows and felt a tinge of wrongness.
Xi Dai Zi glared at the thin person and asked, “What’s wrong?”
The thin person stammered, “Lord Xi Dai Zi, you. You are sure there are two
bronze stakeouts? I only, I only had one set up.”
Xi Dai Zi was startled, then a moment later, his eyes flashed and without
thinking, he smashed the wall next to him with his fist!
Ding!
The wall crumbled before his fist.
Xu Ma dodged in a panicked flurry.
The moment the two people’s conversation reached that point, Xu Ma realized
things were bad and had accelerated his withdrawal ahead of schedule.
If he hesitated any more, he would have been hit by Xi Dai Zi’s fist that if it
didn’t kill him, would have left him crippled!
“Run! Run! Run!” Xu Ma’s brain was filled by that one thought.
He rolled to discharge the shockwave of the blow and desperately ran away.
“Stop him!” The thin person glimpsed the back of Xu Ma, loudly screeching upon
instantly realized he wasn’t one of them.
When the bronze stakeout that was lying in ambush and the gate guards heard
that, they attacked Xu Ma.
Xu Ma dodged left and right, and at that moment, all of his strength burst out.
Although his potential was nearly depleted, his long legs and feet combined
well with the Spider Walk battle qi technique and various battle skills. For a
moment, he dodged across walls, frantically ran away, and actually wriggled his
way out of the encirclement.
The thin person was both anxious and furious.
“Useless people!” Xi Dai Zi coldly snorted as he acted again.
He took off his belt, and in a flash, turned it into a whip.
The whip had an unusual shape, it was thin, long, had a sleek appearance, and
looked like a lengthened snake tail.
Crack.
Xi Dai Zi flung the long whip, and its tip snapped into the air.
Right away, a bolt of lightning burst out and shot at Xu Ma’s head. Before
colliding with him, it turned into a net woven from small electric currents.
The large net was very wide, and Xu Ma had no time to evade it as it covered
him.
The electric current ran through his body, throwing his battle qi into chaos,
causing him to tremble all over, and then fall to the ground. Due to his
inertia from running, he rolled across the ground/
Xu Ma stopped at the courtyard’s large gate.
“Kill him, leave no witnesses!” The thin person screeched again.
Soon after, guards rushed over, lifted their weapons, and aimed them at Xu Ma’s
forehead, neck, heart, spleen, anus, and other places that would be harmed by
stabs.
Xu Ma was fully paralyzed, including his tongue, and his mind was even more
dizzy.
But as death approached, he was greatly stimulated!
His body contained the Dark Walking Spider bloodline, and although his
concentration wasn’t high, he still had a fantastic ability. Whenever death
approached, he would feel a chill.
And now, Xu Ma felt that chill, but not just one, but rather five or six.
It chilled especially violently in his buttocks.
“I’m going to die!”
Xu Ma’s heard thudded, and before death came, his eyes opened wide as he did
his utmost to struggle free, however, this only resulted in his body shuddering
more.
His muscles were still being shocked, and they couldn’t hear the commands of
his brain.
Xu Ma’s eyes closed, showing his heavy hopelessness.
He lay on the ground and looked up at the courtyard gate. It was obviously only
a few steps away, nevertheless it was the chasm between life and death.
Bang!
A fire ball suddenly flew out and crashed next to Xu Ma.  The shockwave of the
rolling flames launched both Xu Ma and the others into the air.
The unlucky people that were the closest screamed as they died.
Xu Ma was also injured, for after being thrown into the air, he crashed into
the ground hard.
The pain caused him to grimace in pain, but his heart was nevertheless
ecstatic, “I’m still alive, I’m actually still alive!”
Cough cough.
He spat out some blood. His body was lacerated and heavily burned, there was
still flames burning on his left leg.
He turned over into a kneel, then extinguished the flames with a pat.
Acute pain in his back began to emerge and was growing more intense.
Xu Ma tenaciously grinded his teeth and glanced around him, discovering that
the guards pursuing him were in a more miserable state than he, and for the
moment, weren’t bothering him.
Xu Ma shifted his gaze towards beyond the courtyard.
From where the fireball had come from, stood a single person.
The person was dressed in all black and wore a mask that seemed to be made of
black iron. The flickering flames reflected against the glossy metal.
Xu Ma blankly stared at them, and thought to himself, “Don’t tell me that’s the
mysterious magician I was supposed to investigate?”
“Who came to the rescue?” Xi Dai Zi was rigidly fixed on the black gowned
magician, then looked at the thin person.
The thin person wildly shook his head, “I don’t recognize him, hold on, don’t
be mistaken. We are also victims here!”
The tin person gave an order to the surviving guards, “What are you doing, kill
them both for me.”
But the guards groaned.
They had been too crowded together and were more severely injured than Xu Ma
was.
Because Xu Ma had been lying down while they were standing up.
Despite hearing the order, none of the guards budged.
Xu Ma let out a breath and retreated back a few steps without a trace left
behind.
The mysterious magician attracted the majority of attention, allowing Xu Ma to
easily put distance between them all.
But he was also very perceptive and didn’t leave the scene.
If he did this, he was bound to provoke the others greatly and be the center of
attention once more.
“Fight, stand and fight now.” Xu Ma shouted to himself. Only by fighting and
muddying the situation could he fish himself out of troubled waters and have a
hope of fleeing this place alive.
“What kind of person are you?” Xi Dai Zi growled out a question.
The mysterious black gowned magician coldly snorted and had no intention of
replying. He bent down his arm and took out a scroll from their spacious cuff.
As the scroll fell, the skilled magician pinched it and utilized gravity to
unroll it.
A moment later, the magician’s spiritual power activated the scroll.
The scroll’s engraved magic script suddenly flashed, and soon after, the
scroll’s pentagram formation leapt out and appeared in front of the magician.
Within a second, the formation and magic script lit up with eye dazzling light.
Magic power converged extremely quickly, like a gust of wind.
A fist sized fireball coagulated into being, and with a shout, launched towards
Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi was on guard, and when he saw the magic scroll being unrolled, he
reached for his belt.
His belt was no ordinary thing, it was a silver level magic item.
The instant he took off his belt, it transformed back into the long whip.
The long whip cracked through the air, stretching 5 meters and accurately
hitting the fireball.
The fireball had enormous explosive might, but after being struck by the whip,
its magical might was instantly cut in half.
Although it still exploded, it didn’t achieve the ideal result.
“An insignificant iron magician…” Xi Dai Zi was resentfully offended.
He was a majestic silver level!
“What made you think I was so weak?” Xi Dai Zi turned his wrist, and like a
snake, the long whip lashed out through the air, flying quickly towards the
black gowned magician.
The black gowned magician stood in place and did not move nor dodge.
He suddenly took out three scrolls from his spacious cuff.
The scrolls all opened at the same time, all of them Fireball spell scrolls.
Three formations condensed, and from magic script, three fireballs fired at Xi
Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi’s face changed; he was both startled and furious.
The other party didn’t protect themselves, rather they attacked. It was
extremely likely they had defensive equipment they were confident in.
Not only that, but the other party also wasn’t using their own spells, instead
they were using magic scrolls.
Thus, they could cast far quicker than he.
Most of all, the other party was using offense in place of defense, prickling
Xi Dai Zi!
If this was a naval battle, and Xi Dai Zi had pirate accomplices, he would have
adopted an attacking formation. But he was on humanity’s Two Eyes Island, and
if his identity was exposed, the consequence would be difficult to anticipate.



****** Chapter 102: Water Path vs Necromancy ******
Xi Dai Zi didn’t dare take risks and was forced to withdraw his long whip.
Controlled by his spirit power, the long while circled around Xi Dai Zi like a
spiraling pillar to obstruct the three fireballs.
Bang, boom, bang.
The three fireballs struck the circling whip, and all exploded at nearly the
same time.
For a moment, flames radiated all around, causing smoke and dust to billow up.
The thin person and the others dodged in a panic.
“Run away!”
Xu Ma had been looking for this chance, and immediately turned to jump over a
wall and run.
The thin person and the others had their hands full already, and as the
building was teetering from more fireballs, Xi Dai Zi’s full attention was on
the mysterious magician who had thrown them, no one cared about a nobody like
Xu Ma.
Smoke and fire scattered to reveal Xi Dai Zi still standing there tall.
He had a layer of water covering his body. The light blue water protection
reflected the light and was clear and crystalline. Its spherical shape was
dented by the explosions.
Xi Dai Zi’s glamour was also damaged, his human appearance was flickering
between that of a human and his true fishman features.
The black gowned magician responded with another quick and fierce fireball
spell.
Xi Dai Zi had either used disguise magic or an alchemy device, either of which
was now broken.
It was unlike the Deceptive Disguise spell the survivors used. That magic used
pearl bubbles, a gold level casting material, and was the world’s greatest
disguise magic. Even if one died, as long as the magic was still in effect,
they would still be disguised.
Xi Dai Zi rigidly stared at the black gowned magician and began to chant.
For a moment, water in the water ball defense surged forth as Xi Dai Zi’s life
aura constantly rose.
It was clear a powerful move was being prepared.
But at that moment, the black gowned magician used three more scrolls.
Bang, boom, bang!
An additional three Fireball spells.
The thin person and the others trembled: where in the world did this ferocious
person come from? They were smashing them with spell scrolls!
Already, they had used 7 scrolls.
Although they were just iron level, they had already spent more than 10 gold.
This amount of money was sufficient to buy a silver level weapon.
Blood leaked from the corner of Xi Dai Zi’s mouth.
During his casting process, a fireball explosion had interfered and almost
caused his cast to fail.
The black gowned magician suddenly retreated!
Xi Dai Zi howled internally, “Don’t you run away!”
It wasn’t that he couldn’t cast while moving, it was just that he couldn’t
right now.
Because he still needed to maintain his water defense.
This caused him to look on helplessly as the black gowned magician disappeared
from his field of view.
“You guys aren’t pursuing?” Xi Dai Zi bellowing in his heart as he glared at
the thin person and the others.
He was unable to voice that thought.
Because he still needed to chant.
The thin person and the others were very hesitant.
The strongest among them was only a bronze level, how could they stop the
indiscriminate barrage of fireballs?
Magic spell – Three Headed Water Snake!
Xi Dai Zi’s cast finally finished, and a large stream of water rushed from his
water sphere defense and turned into a three headed water snake that
impatiently pounced onto the exit gate.
“Give chase!” Xi Dai Zi ordered the thin person and the others, then stepped
onto the three headed water snake’s tail, and being the first to give chase.
At this time, the black gowned magician wasn’t that far away.
Xi Dai Zi madly followed the trail in pursuit.
The three headed water snake was huge, and like a mammoth sized elephant,
toppled all buildings and vendor booths that stood in its path, causing the
streets to be filled with cries of fear as everyone fled in all directions.
“Where are you thinking of escaping to?” Xi Dai Zi sneered; he had finally
blocked the black gowned magician in a dead end.
The black gowned magician unexpectedly pulled out 6 scrolls.
Bang, boom…
Six fireballs volleyed at Xi Dai Zi.
But this time, Xi Dia Zi was in a far better situation.
He didn’t use his water ball defense, instead he moved into the three headed
water snake.
Unlike humans, he was a fishman who could breathe in water.
The fireballs all detonated upon impacting the three headed water snake.
With a deafening explosion, large portions of water turned to steam and caused
both water and fire to splatter and splash all over. 
The impact waves formed also collied with each other in the alley.
Xi Dao Zo lost eyes on the black gowned magician; however, he was still
grinning with killing intent.
“Today, I will kill you!” Xi Dai Zi’s spirit had already locked onto the black
gowned magician.
He could instantly detect whenever the black gowned magician acted.
However, a moment later, something strange occurred.
An immense ghost passed through a wall and ambushed Xi Dai Zi from behind.
Xi Dai Zi sensed the ghost’s aura, but it was already too late to protect
himself.
The ghost had obviously been lying in wait and had attacked suddenly and
violently.
It stretched out its hand and plunged it into the water snake.
Although its speed had been reduced, it still easily stuck its hand into Xi Dai
Zi.
The translucent ghost hand penetrated Xi Dai Zi’s chest, grabbed it, then
pulled its hand back.
Xi Dai Zi’s neck had a pendant around it.
At that moment, it exploded and emitted a divine light hued deep blue.
The divine light protected Xi Dai Zi and thrusted the ghost ruthlessly back.
The ghost withdrew.
Xi Dai Zi staggered to a kneel.
He unconsciously turned around, and the only thing he could see in the steam
was the waning silhouette of the enormous ghost.
For a moment, Xi Dai Zi’s heart filled with fear.
“I fell into a trap!”
“I couldn’t see my mistake, that was a ghost, a silver level ghost!”
“The other person is actually a necromancer!!”
“No wonder they always used magic scrolls…”
“It’s only thanks to my sacred emblem that I remain alive. That ghost must also
be heavily injured too.
“Firstly, I must retreat first!”
Xi Dai Zi’s fighting spirit dropped completely.
His soul was wounded, his spirit was disorganized, his brain was in great pain,
and he had already lost his lock on the black gowned magician.
In fact, even if his spirit was still locked on, Xi Dai Zi didn’t want to
continue the pursuit.
Although the other person was an iron level, they were nevertheless a
necromancer.
This magic school had just sprung up, and Xi Dai Zi lacked the skills to
respond to it.
He had been taking refuge in the three headed water snake, whose defensive
power far surpassed the water ball defense, however, the ghost ambush had
slowed it, and it wasn’t able to defend him any longer.
Xi Dai Zi controlled the water snake, and he retreated.
“Ah…” As he retreated, he heard a few miserable shrieks.
The thin person and his people had suffered a vicious attack.
Xi Dai Zi once again sensed the fluctuation of necromancy and his heart
couldn’t help but sink, “The other party still has energy to spare!”
At that moment, a fighter shouted, “The city guard is arresting thieves, all
outsiders retreat!”
“They came so quickly?” Xi Dai Zi was actually faintly happy.
He took out a fish scale and used magic to cloud the scene.
Then, he revoked the water snake and used the fog to quickly evacuate.
When the fog dissipated, the city guard commander and their men were standing
in front of the ruins with ugly looks.
The commander waved their hand, and their subordinates charged into the ruins
and searched them.
There were no corpses.
Only the traces of a magical struggle.
“Fire path…this should be from a Fireball spell explosion.”
“Water path traces, it looks like a water snake, at least a two headed one. The
water fog from before must have been casted by a silver level water path
caster.”
“Hold on, this is necromantic aura?!”
When the scouts found that, one by one, their faces changed.
“Could it be that a necromancer participated in this fight?” The city guard
commander’s look grew even uglier.
A necromancer appearing and another faction’s magician appearing were two
completely different things!
The city guard commander didn’t dare tarry, and hastily dispatched a messenger
to report to Feudal Lord Hun Tong.
Bai Ya was looking around a street corner.
Xu Ma quietly jumped over a wall.
He clapped Bai Ya’s shoulder.
Bai Ya jumped in fear, but when he saw Xu Ma, he shouted in pleasant surprise,
“Senior, you’re back!”
“When I saw you had been gone a while, I called the city guard over.”
“Of course, I employed a beggar and had him notify them on my behalf.”
“Senior, you’re wounded?!” When Bai Ya examined him, he noticed that Xu Ma’s
injuries weren’t light.
“Great job!” Xu Ma praised, then grunted through the pain, “But we need to
leave now. Quickly, the city guard is likely to set up blockades nearby, we
can’t stay here for long.”
Xu Ma was still in shock by the time they returned to the ships at port.
He really had walked the edge of death.
After recalling the pursuit, Xu Ma was filled with bewilderment.
Especially on one question.
“Why did that black gowned magician suddenly burst in?”
“What conflict did he have with the thin person and Xi Dai Zi?”
Xu Ma thought it through and felt that wasn’t right.
Whether it was the thin person, or Xi Dai Zi, both were unfamiliar with the
mysterious black gowned magician.
An idea suddenly flashed through Xu Ma’s mind, “Don’t tell me the black gowned
magician was following me?”
“Did he sense that I was investigating him?”
Although Xu Ma had made up his mind to skimp on this mission, on the surface,
it seemed he had labored to get into position, and as a result, had a string of
investigative inquiries into this.
At least, he had investigated the black gowned magician who had appeared in the
store.
“If that is the case, wouldn’t I have the black gowned magician’s eyes on me?”
“It is precisely because I was being watched by him that he was attracted
over.”
“Then why did he instead save my life?”
“No, all of this is merely guesswork, there is no evidence of anything.”
The more Xu Ma thought, the more chaotic his emotions became and the more his
mind filled with cold sweat.
“No matter what, we can’t stay on Two Eyes Island any longer.”
“From now on, I will stay on the ship and won’t get off even if I die!”
Xu Ma made up his mind.”
“That’s right.”
“My wounds are so severe; I must recuperate for a while.”
“This information should be enough to report this mission completed!”
The city palace.
The city guard commander, head covered in cold sweat, knelt towards Feudal Lord
Hun Tong and reported the conclusion of the investigation,
“A necromancer?!” Hun Tong eyes widened, and he pressed his palms into his
desk, the startling news almost caused him to stand up.
“Arte you certain?” Hun Tong asked.
The city guard commander took a deep breath, summoning the courage to reply,
“It has been confirmed. The scene has a strong necromantic aura in it.”
Hun Tong sat back down and leaned back on the chair, revealing a powerless
look, “A strong necromantic aura, it might not necessarily be a necromancer,
perhaps it is an undead life form.”
The city guard commander shook his head, “But Feudal Lord, you also know that
area. How could an undead life form suddenly appear from nowhere?”
“According to imperial law, if a necromancer is discovered, we must report it
immediately.”
“Report it?!” Hun Tong glowered at the city guard commander, the pitch of his
voice rising, “And let those madmen from the Blood Light Punishment Institution
in? What’s going to happen to my auction? My Two Eyes Island will be overturned
to the heavens by them, who would dare trade here from then on?!”
The city guard silently bowed his head.
Hun Tong gasped from breath a few times, then asked, “Who knows about this
too?”
The city guard commander whispered out, “All of those that followed me in my
investigation know.”
Hun Tong couldn’t help but clench his fist.
“Get lost!”
“Get out of my sight!!”
He threw an ink bottle at the city guard commander’s head.
The ink bottle smashed into the city guard commander’s face, dying him with
black ink.
The city guard commander seemed to have been excused, and he hastily departed
the study to get as far away as he could from his raging feudal lord.
Hun Tong was the only one in the study.
He let out a long sigh and took out an alchemy device from his drawer.
This was a communication device.
Hun Tong activated and said, “Report, what is going on?”
The alchemy device glimmered brightly, and slightly vibrated as a voice was
transmitted, “You know, I wasn’t there. I don’t know much. I had finished
negotiating with Xi Dai Zi and he was just about to leave. The final thing of
the discussion was when he declared that there were two stakeouts.”
“One of the stakeouts wasn’t one of us. After noticing this, Xi Dai Zi and my
men immediately pursued them.”
“Soon after, I heard an explosion.”
“Someone came to the rescue of the other person.”
“The one who came should be a necromancer. According to what we can infer from
the marks at the scene, in the beginning of the fight, the necromancer used
some magic scrolls. He and Xi Dai Zi confronted each other, then he feigned
retreat.”
“Afterwards, in the second battlefield when they confronted each other again,
Xi Dai Zi was ambushed, and it is unknown whether he is alive or dead.”
“All of my people are missing, everything about this bodes ill.”
The person reporting to Hun Tong was shocking the thin person’s superior!



****** Chapter 103: Imperial Secret Spy ******
Who was the person, the high level backer who was negotiating with Xi Dai Zi
and cooperated with the Vinegar Jar Pirates on many occasions?
Regardless of whether it was Xi Dai Zi or Hun Tong, the voice from the alchemy
device had been altered and couldn’t be determined to be either male or female.
Hun Tong rubbed his brows, and sighed again, “It seems a third power is
meddling. Our plan has been greatly disturbed.”
“The current trouble is quite big. We must find this power as soon as possible;
it’s up to you to do this.”
The voice from the alchemy device retorted, “You are the feudal lord here.”
“But you are a member of the imperial secret spies.” Hun Ton replied back,
“This is your specialty, no?”
The alchemy device was silent.
Why was an imperial secret spy repeatedly collaborating with a fishman pirate
group, and why were they discussing how to seize control of Two Eyes Island?
Let’s bring it back to the beginning.
The Sheng Ming Empire attacking beastmen tribes in the Wilderness Continent was
the present age’s main event.
So far, the imperial vanguard army that had landed on the Wilderness Continent
had caught the beastmen off guard.
A portion of the Wilderness Continent’s coastline had been seized, and the
local beastmen tribes were not expelled, but annihilated.
The humans wanted to gain a foothold, but was being raided by small groups of
beastmen, a bothersome vexation.
Due to humanity being universally inferior to beastmen on the battlefield, the
imperial higher ups decided to construct forts on a wide scale.
The empire’s bridgehead grew larger, and their situation grew better.
The Pirate Throne’s appearance was a major variable and cast a true shadow over
the future of the empire’s storming of the Wilderness Continent.
At present, the empire hadn’t yet thrown in its main armies.
The beastmen also knew this and were currently organizing an alliance and
preparing to breach these bridgeheads to either crush or expel the human
vanguard.
A war was about to erupt and supporting roles such as slave traders were
withdrawing and leaving the stage for the true protagonist.
The brewing war attracted the close attention of every large power in the
world.
Because this war between the empire and the beastmen was the first real
showdown between the two giants.
However, this battle did not only take place out in the open.
There were also many secret battles and strategies.
The Sheng Ming Empire’s Secret Spy Agency assumed this heavy responsibility.
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency not only collected information, but they also
instigated things, infiltrated places, conducted guerrilla warfare, and other
such destructive missions.
Their goal was to use every trick to clear away any obstructions and prepare
well for the main imperial army’s future advance.
Although Two Eyes Island was not on the Wilderness Continent, its position was
still quite crucial.
When the imperial army departed in the future, this place would become a
transportation line.
Two years earlier, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency began to place agents here,
their main mission was to purge the surrounding threats and guarantee that this
transportation line was safe and unimpeded.
This was undoubtedly against Hun Tong’s operational policy.
The Duo Mu Clan’s family motto was turn a blind eye. Hun Tong was a direct
descendant, and he had purposely cultivated the situation to make Two Eyes
Island the most bustling trading island in its waters, even becoming the
biggest place for pirates to dispose of their booty.
Due to Hun Tong’s control being lax, Two Eyes Island’s black market was very
well known.
The pirates that disposed of their booty here were also its most magnanimous
customers.
Merchants liked this place, and of the six great merchant alliances, five were
already set up here.
Streams of people converged here, along with distribution of goods.
When the secret spy agents contacted Hun Tong and requested his cooperation,
Hun Tong was quite unwilling to do so.
But what could he do if he was unwilling?
Against the Sheng Ming Empire, what could a gold level like Hun Tong do?
Not to mention that even the entirety of his Duo Mu Clan was nothing but an ant
to the empire.
Hun Tong had to cooperate, for there was no other option.
Afterwards, Hun Tong also understood that within the basis of cooperation, he
still had room to maneuver and be able to lessen the damage as much as
possible.
It had to be said that the imperial secret spies didn’t deploy too many people
here.
The empire’s target this time was too big, it was an entire continent. It goes
without saying, the empire’s secret spy’s scale of operations was massive.
That they did transfer some personnel to Two Eyes Island meant they put stock
in this place.
In order to truly purge the hidden threats to Two Eyes Island and beautifully
accomplish their mission, when the imperial secret spies arrived at Two Eyes
Island and recognized the circumstances, they didn’t take direct action.
They believed that it was already known far and wide for years how Hun Tong ran
Two Eyes Island. Such an environment had to be eliminated, and that was his job
too.
But that wasn’t a priority.
By exploiting this environment, they could construct a trap. If nothing else,
every year during the rising of the island, the black market, discount market,
and auction would attract many pirates. By taking advantage of this moment,
they could cleanly capture many pirates.
Anyways, compared to pirates, the still hidden power nearby was more deserving
of the secret spies’ attention.
It was the fishmen.
The fishmen’s racial potential and gifts couldn’t compare to humanity.
But there were a lot of them and had a different life structure than humanity –
fish gills.
They could breathe underwater and swim through the sea unimpeded.
No one knew how many fishmen lived on the seabed, this was a tremendous hidden
power!
For the empire to storm the Wilderness Continent, they had to establish a
transportation route.
If the fishmen attacked this transportation route, the empire was bound to be
hard-pressed. The tempo on the open battlefield would also be severely
encumbered.
The empire had already taken note of these fishmen.
Instead of enticing them, the empire was trending towards attacking and
annihilating the fishmen power.
If it was possible, the empire considered roping them in.
But the empire’s human gods and the fishmen’s gods had crossed blades many
times before, and many fishmen gods saw their end due to that. The conflict
between both sides had long been irreconcilable.
In contrast to the humans, the fishmen and the beastmen had always maintained
good relationships.
It goes without saying that when humanity build the transportation route, the
fishmen were sure to make a move.
And so, near Two Eyes Island, there was a hidden fishman clan.
Furthermore, this fishman clan was always waiting for an opportunity to seize
Two Eyes Island.
Actually, seize is not the right word, to be more precise, the correct word is
“reclaim”.
Because the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan was Two Eyes Island’s former master.
In the past, Hun Tong had led an army to claim Two Eys Island but wasn’t
powerful enough to exterminate the Blue Green Coral Fishmen Clan in one stroke.
The fishmen who escaped submerged to the seafloor to recover, and after
regaining their strength these few years, had gradually become Two Eyes
Island’s greatest danger.
After analyzing the situation, the imperial secret spies had decided to
prioritize dealing with this fishman clan.
With regards to this decision, Hun Tong lifted his hands in approval!
He was also very happy to do so.
The Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan was originally his quarry.
Hun Tong tried to do more for this.
He knew the fishmen clan knew the secret spell that could control the coral
ball cage tree.
In fact, Two Eyes Island had been cultivated by the fishman tribe for many
generations.
Hun Tong really wanted this secret spell.
With this secret spell, he could remodel Two Eyes Island and construct a large
harbor!
Hun Tong had a new development plan for Two Eyes Island: since Two Eyes Island
had to become a transportation throughline, they its surroundings had to be
secure.
Without pirates visiting, Two Eyes Island could only conduct regulated
business.
Hun Tong made up his mind. Before Two Eyes Island was attacked, and while
business was the most prosperous, he wanted to build a large harbor and create
a distribution center.
If that comes to be, when the army was dispatched and this transportation hub
went into operation, then he would make far more profits than he was doing now!
But to do that, he had to have a large harbor.
This was the necessary prerequisite and foundation.
Without that, Hun Tong’s plan was a fantasy.
The essence of Two Eyes Island was the coral ball cage tree. It was a living
being, constantly growing and recovering.
Therefore, it was very challenging to build a large harbor.
Normal development methods would destroy the coral ball cage tree, causing it
to die. If the construction method was too gentle, the harbor would be consumed
by coral growth and restored vegetation, washing away the investment.
The secret spies and Hun Tong reached an agreement, they would deal with the
Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan first.
The plan was good, but actually carrying it out was nevertheless quite
difficult.
Firstly, Hun Tong’s troops found it difficult to fight in water for long
periods of time.
That’s not to say he didn’t have methods of going underwater.
There were many methods actually.
For example, underwater breathing scrolls, underwater magic battleships, or
perhaps requesting the help of a gold level cultivator, among other ways.
The problem was cost.
The costs were too high, and Hun Tong could barely afford them.
Even if an invited gold level cultivator could fight underwater, when the
fishmen clan saw things were going bad, they would retreat and hide.
In fact, their living area frequently moved.
A gold level cultivator could only be hired for a time, and the fishman clan
could use delaying tactics to great effect.
Hun Tong himself was a gold level and could act alone. But according to inside
information on the fishman clan, they also had a gold level cultivator too.
Fighting on the seafloor was very unfavorable to Hun Tong, and he would
narrowly eat a big loss.
Luckily, on the water’s surface, the fishmen’s combat power declined in turn.
Due to how Hun Tong oversaw the island, it wasn’t difficult for them to get a
foothold.
Underwater combat was out of the question, so the secret spies and Hun Tong
plotted another method.
It was simple, induce the fishmen to launch a land attack.
“The Vinegar Jar Pirates have countless connections with the Blue Green Coral
Fishman Clan. This situation should be real.”
“Our people also infiltrated the Vinegar Jar Pirates and confirmed this
intelligence.”
“This pirate group can be exploited!”
With help from their information superiority, the imperial secret spies
proposed a plan to Hun Tong.
Hun Tong reflected for two days before agreeing to this plan.
This was the plan more or less: the imperial secret spies would pretend to be a
third party force, and for their own benefit, would collaborate with the
Vinegar Jar Pirates.
The imperial secret spies would give the pirates many true pieces of intel that
would allow the Vinegar Jar Pirates to attack and rob some merchant ships.
From that, they could gain the Vinegar Jar Pirate’s trust.
While gaining a deeper cooperation between each other, the imperial secret
spies would also penetrate deeper into the Vinegar Jar Pirates.
In due time, when they found an opportunity, Hun Tong would lead an army to
besiege the Vinegar Jar Pirates and force the fishman clan to save them. Then
with the help of a hired gold level cultivator, they would wipe out both groups
in one go!



****** Chapter 104: Pale Wing Bone ******
Hun Tong and the imperial secret spies had a good plan, but in fact, before the
plan bore fruit, a new change had arisen.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates suddenly asked the imperial secret spires to obtain a
map of Two Eyes Island’s defenses.
Why would a pirate group want a map of the island’s defenses?
They wanted to attack Two Eyes Island!
Hun Tong and the secret spies were both angry and secretly happy.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates alone did not have the force to take Two Eyes Island.
When the moment came, the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan was bound to act too.
This was a golden opportunity that appeared only once in a blue moon!
The secret spies’ plan had made a breakthrough.
This time, when Xi Dai Zi went incognito onto the island, besides trading for
the map of the defenses, he also forced the imperial secret spies to serve as
their inside man.
This made the imperial secret spies very happy.
He insincerely negotiated with Xi Dai Zi, and after some bargaining, determined
their cooperation in this.
He also planned to entertain Xi Dai Zi to listen to the other’s plans, most
crucially when it was happening.
But Xi Dai Zi was still suspicious of them and wanted to leave the island.
The secret spies knew hast3e was irrational here and decided to let him go. As
a result, strange things occurred, not only was someone eavesdropping, but a
necromancer also appeared too!
All kinds of indications indicated that a third party power existed.
The secret spies and Hun Tong were very disturbed!
News of the necromancer couldn’t be suppressed.
According to imperial law, those that knew must immediately notify the higher
ups, and the Blood Light Punishment Institution would immediately dispatch a
team to hunt down and kill the necromancer.
But Hun Tong didn’t want this to happen!
The necromancer’s residual life aura was only iron level, they didn’t have
anything that could threaten him.
Even if he was attacked by the necromancer, couldn’t he just run away?
If the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s people came, the auction would be
canceled.
The Blood Light Punishment Institution was a group of lunatics that wanted to
use bombardment spells to flatten the area. If they didn’t dig up any clues,
they might even destroy Two Eyes Island.
Hun Toing didn’t doubt they’d do this.
Because there were many proven accounts of this happening.
If the Blood Light Punishment Institution dispatched people here, Two Eyes
Island’s future would be bleak!
Although the imperial secret spy also wanted to purge Two Eyes Island of
threats, Hun Tong could discuss things with him and had a large amount of space
to operate.
Unlike with the Blood Light Punishment Institution who would demand Hun Tong’s
unconditional cooperation and give him no say in the matter.
Two Eyes Island was Hun Tong’s sole territory, the place he had settled down
on.
The imperial secret spy didn’t want the Blood Light Punishment Institution to
come here either.
His painstakingly arranged plan to bait in a larger fish had just made headway.
If a Blood Light Punishment Institution expert came, would the fishmen dare to
attack the island?
His efforts would be wiped away, and his dream of merits and promotion would
all be in vain.
Another thing, the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s cultivator was bound to
conduct a comprehensive investigation. If the imperial secret spy’s plan was
implicated and revealed that the secret spy was leaking merchant alliance
shipping routes, the secret spy would be in big trouble!
However, just like before, Hun Tong was confronted with the imperial secret
spy’s request. This was not a problem of willingness, but rather it was
compulsory.
Imperial law regulated that if a necromancy was discovered, even if it was a
small sign, it had to be reported immediately.
If information was concealed, when those who were responsible were
investigated, they would be judged accomplices or a harborer of sinners and be
consigned to eternal damnation.
Necromancers were enemies of the gods!
Those people played with life and death, controlled souls, and touched the
gods’ forbidden domain.
As long as there were gods, there would be no tolerance for these magicians.
Regardless of whether it was the Sheng Ming Empire or the other continents,
whether it was human, elf, beastman, or dwarf, all were like this.
The study fell into a deathly stillness.
Both Hun Tong and the imperial secret spy were pondering.
It went on for a long time.
A deep sigh transmitted from the secret spy through the alchemy communication
device, “Since the information has already been leaked, we must report this.”
“But reporting it now won’t do, lest we squander our prior efforts!”
Hun Tong clenched his teeth, “If we delay our report, we will be held
accountable, I don’t want to spent my remaining years in prison.”
“No one saw the necromancer; it is just suspicion.” The secret spy stressed,
“We have reasonable justification. The Blood Light Punishment Institution is
busy working, and giving thought to that, we wanted to first determine the
actual situation. Therefore, we decided to do an investigation, then after
clearing things up, we would then report it!”
Hun Tong coldly snorted, “That is a justification. But the Blood light
Punishment Institution is insane, if they believe we were procrastinating, they
wouldn’t listen to that justification.”
The imperial secret spy continued, “That is why we not only do an
investigation, but we also find the necromancer!”
“That wretched guy!”
“By finding him and executing him, we won’t need the Blood Light Punishment
Institution to come here, and we’ll be heroes.”
“There is also that third party power that suddenly popped up, we also need to
investigate them thoroughly. The power that has the guts to dare ruin our plan
must bleed for it!”
Hun Tong’s eyes narrowed, and he sank into pondering once again.
If he chose to report to his superiors now, his prospects would be ruined. Not
only would Two Eyes Island be done for, his arduous and conscientious
collaboration with the imperial secret spy would all be wasted efforts.
Choosing to delay would have two outcomes.
One was that they found the necromancer, eliminated him, and distinguished
himself, thus, everything was all cheers and happiness.
The second outcome is that they couldn’t find the necromancer, but they were
able to resolve the fishman problem, however, this outcome was unacceptable.
Because when the Blood Light Punishment Institution intervened, the
investigation would determine that they had procrastinated and covered up
suspicion, and thus, they would be punished for that. When that happened, the
Blood Light Punishment Institution would still purge Two Eyes Island.
Two Eyes Island’s population would be decimated, and it would take more than
ten years to recover.
Fighting meant an unclear future and great risks.
But if he didn’t fight, Hun Tong’s foundation would cease to exist.
This was unquestionably a difficult choice.
For a moment, Hun Tong strolled around his study.
He bowed his head in pondering, grinding his teeth from time to time,
occasionally snarled, and sometimes looked onwards bewildered.
Finally, he swept away his hesitation and through gritted teeth, grumbled out,
“Go investigate, go find them! We must do everything we can to find him, even
if we have to dig ourselves under!”
“Grind that damned necromancer to boney ash!”
“I want my Two Eyes Island to continue to prosper. It is my foundation!”
The sunk costs were too high, and so Hun Tong decided to take the risk.
If he didn’t fight, he would regret it for the rest of his years.
At the deepest level, Hun Tong had an adventurous spirit.
Otherwise at the time, he wouldn’t’ have given up his previous foundation,
sailed into the boundless ocean, and commanded his troops to storm Two Eyes
Island.
As a necromancer, Chi Yu was always careful.
He quickly sensed something was amiss.
The atmosphere changed.
Originally, it was a relaxed atmosphere that was now becoming faintly tense.
“What’s going on?”
“The information inquiry went very smoothly.”
First off, the act had been very big. The city guards who had done the
investigation were many and news concerning the necromancer had already spread
like the wind.
Two Eyes Island’s inhabitants were panicking for this very reason.
Necromancers were undoubtably an extremely sinister existence.
Chi Yu felt bewildered, “There is another necromancer on Two Eyes Island
besides me?”
“What did he do?”
“He unexpectedly started a fight here!”
“The timing is terrible.”
Like Cang Xu, Chi Yu was also stressed about his lack of necromancy materials.
He had infiltrated Two Eyes Island to replenish his materials.
Magician cultivation need a lot of resources.
Sufficient materials could not only be used for casting, but they could also be
used to make necromancy type magic items. If they were of no other use, the
materials could still be dissolved to construct a meditation space suitable for
necromancers.
This was not the first time Chi Yu had come here.
Because of his previous experience, his harvest was far greater than Cang Xu’s.
Cang Xu was a novice and still at the exploration stage, while he was on an
easy drive across a familiar path.
Chi Yu had been preparing for this shopping for a while, and still had abundant
funds on hand.
“Should I stay to continue buying or should I leave the island?” Chi Yu
hesitated.
He didn’t want to let this rare opportunity slip by, but since a necromancer’s
trail had been exposed, Two Eyes Island was bound to conduct a large scale
search. It was even quite possible that the Blood Light Punishment Institution
would be drawn here.
When he thought of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, Chi Yu immediately
sobered up and cleaned away any thoughts of luck, “Leave, I have to leave as
soon as possible.”
He put on an ashen death mask and skulked away.
He had refined this magic item with great difficulty, it could restrain his
necromancy aura and suppress his iron level aura to the level of an ordinary
person.
Along the way, he saw many patrols and a distinct increase in guards.
When he arrived at the port, he saw a congested crowd, then heard the bad news.
The port was sealed!
No one could go in now.
The reason the official gave caused Chi Yu’s heart to jump – they were checking
for necromancers!
“Who is responsible for this?”
“If I run into them, I will make him pay!”
The implicated Chi Yu had no choice but to turn around and give up his plan of
evacuating via ship.
Although he was an iron level magician, he didn’t have the means to travel
across the sea and needed to ride on a ship.
Furthermore, in the current circumstances, Two Eyes Island’s coastline was
surely being monitored too. Him diving into the ocean by himself was too
conspicuous and was liable to be noticed by others.
Chi Yu was forced to return to where he had been hiding.
“If I cannot leave by ship, I have no choice but to depart by air.”
He took out a big piece of necromancy material from his storage bag.
It was the ice blade fish bones. He had gotten it after outbidding Cang Xu in
the store warehouse.
He had purchased it at a premium because this material because it was very
helpful for his plans.
“After processing these fish bones, I can obtain enough materials.”
“As long as I refine a pale wing bone, I will have the ability to fly.”
“If I succeed, I can fly far away from this troublesome spot.”
“No, if that wretched necromancer is caught, perhaps I can still continue
shopping here.”
Chi Yu formulated a plan, dissipating the franticness in his heart.
He buried himself in work and began the initial processing of the ice blade
fish bones.



****** Chapter 105: Fire Ring ******
Two Eyes Island’s port was locked down, however, on the seafloor under Two Eyes
Island, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s reef disguise was not compromised.
Eight consecutive refinements had been done in its alchemy cabin.
Zi Di was located on one side of the formation while the tower spirit was on
the other.
The humming alchemy formation emitted a warm radiance and bathed the entire
cabin in a resplendent red light.
The light dissipated, revealing a ring floating above the center of the alchemy
formation; it had an iron level aura.
It was a fire ball ring, the joint work of the tower spirit and Zi Di.
Of course, the tower spirit was the main refiner while Zi Di was the assistant.
Even though it was seriously damaged, the tower spirit’s alchemy capabilities
still greatly surpassed Zi Di’s, and obviously Cang Xu’s too.
It proved itself as one of War Merchant’s creations.
Zi Di waved, and she used her spiritual control to have the floating fireball
ring fly to her hand.
Upon careful examination, the quality was determined to be excellent.
The fireball ring’s refinement method was very simple to understand, however,
it was still an iron level magic item and beyond Zi Di’s abilities to refine.
The domain of alchemy was gigantic, and Zi Di had only dipped her toes into the
field of medicinal refinement.
The fireball ring had only one function; after being activated, it would shoot
a fireball. The ring could shoot three fireballs and is able to shoot a
fireball every 30 seconds. After being depleted, it would need to be recharged
before further use.
Zi Di tried the ring on her finger.
The size fits.
Naturally, the purpose of using this ring during normal combat was to disguise
one’s identity.
Besides this fireball ring, Zi Di also refined a ring of fire ring, a flame jet
ring, and a fire wall ring. The first ring discharged a defensive ring of fire,
the second could cast the flame jet spell, and the third could cast the fire
wall spell.
Along with Fireball spell, these were all standard fire magic.
“It’s a pity that all these fire spells cannot be centralized in one ring.
Wearing all four rings at once makes me feel like old money.” Zi Di was
somewhat regretful.
It was feasible for four fire magics to be burned into one piece of magic
equipment. But that needed alchemy skill, a skill requirement that greatly
exceeded the survivors’ current capabilities.
After the refinement was finished, the tower spirit began to clean up the work
area and shut down the alchemy formation.
By the time Zi Di finished her study, the tower spirit had already activated
the Deceptive Disguise Formation.
The Deceptive Disguise Formation looked a bit different than it did previously.
The formation outermost circle was two meters in diameter. Inside the circle
was a square. A line stretched inwards from the square’s four points. Each line
intersected with two other lines, flowing together until they formed a slanted
small square inside the square.
This was no different from before.
The difference was that there was now a circle inside the small square.
This small addition reformed the Deceptive Disguise Formation.
Before, the Deceptive Disguise Formation could only be used on lifeforms, but
after this remodeling, it could not work on things.
Zi Di placed all of the rings she had refined into the center of the formation.
There were eight rings altogether. Four for Zi Di and the other four for Cang
Xu.
A moment later, the Deceptive Disguise Formation activated.
The eight rings were all covered by the Deceptive Disguise spell.
Zi Di was tranquil.
This had not been the first time she had succeeded.
Deceptive Disguise was always able to affect objects. The Deep Sea Monster
Fish’s preinstalled set of formations had used it to disguise its hull.
Behind these eight rings was Cang Xu’s mask.
He customized this mask to give the pretense of being made of black iron, and
it had a striking resemblance to what the black gowned magician wore.
Originally, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a serious lack of alchemy
materials.
These alchemy materials all naturally came from Two Eyes Island’s market.
One had to say that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps coming to Two Eyes Island
was the correct decision. Zi Di and Cang Xu were able to replenish a lot of
materials.
Of course, the cost was considerable.
With the money earned from the drug business, that wasn’t a problem.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had made a massive windfall, thus they had the funds to
purchase enough alchemy materials.
Zi Di left the alchemy cabin with the eight rings.
Before leaving, she ordered the tower spirit t o keep on refining medicine.
It was to still mainly refine Sweet Blood Potions and Green Hat Potions;
however, the scale of refinement was decreased greatly.
The trouble at the pharmacy and numerous rising rumors had cast serious doubts
on the Green Hat Healing Potion, causing the sales volume of the potions to
greatly drop.
Without a way to solve this problem, Zi Di decided to lower the amount refined.
After Zi Di left the alchemy cabin, she first went to the meditation room.
When she opened the meditation room’s door, she felt a strong energy hitting
her.
The ghost girl immediately felt coziness emerging from her innermost self.
In this meditation environment, her cultivation efficiency had greatly
improved.
But she didn’t do that.
Although Cang Xu had gathered some necromancy materials, they still had a
shortfall, thus, they had to stringently calculate their usage.
A massive ghost floated in the meditation room.
He was fat, dark blue, and most attention grabbing of all, he had two heads.
It was the two headed ogre Lan Lu.
One of Lan Lu’s heads had been removed by Guang Ke, but his soul still had them
both.
On Snake Rat Island, when Mo Kong caused havoc on the execution ground, Cang Xu
and Zi Di had a chance to call back the soul of the dead Lan Lu.
By some fluke, Zi Di had succeeded, and since then, her battle formation’s
strength had risen dramatically with the silver level ghost!
The ghost Lan Lu did not react when he saw Zi Di and floated motionless in the
air.
His body appeared translucent, and although his aura was silver level, it was
very weak.
He was gravely wounded.
He had been wounded by divine power.
The Running Water God’s sacred emblem that Xi Dai Zi wore was the main culprit.
Currently, necromancy had the advantage of being a new path over other magic
schools and alchemy.
The most effective way to deal with necromancy was divine spells.
There was only one reason – divine power was omnipotent.
Gods were omnipotent, so too was divine power.
But each god’s strong points were different, and there were distinct
differences between every large religion.
After inspecting him, Zi Di lightly sighed.
The ghost Lan Lu had been recovering here at a slow rate, his injuries had not
shown any clear improvements.
“If only I had a soul crystal.”
“That custom-made soul crystal is very pure. It would greatly help Lan Lu’s
injuries.”
“It would also be effective in my cultivation.”
The ghost Lan Lu could eat souls.
This was the instinct of all ghosts and could maintain their existence.
However, devouring souls brought evil consequences. It would pollute a ghost
with foreign memories and feelings. If too much of t hose accumulated, the
ghost would likely dissolve into nothingness by itself.
As far as Zi Di was concerned, Lan Lu devouring souls would increase her burden
of control.
She already found it difficult to control a silver level ghost.
After all, she was only a bronze level necromancer.
What truly was helping her was her iron level spiritual power.
Zi Di closed the meditation room’s door tightly, then went to another cabin to
find Cang Xu.
Cang Xu was currently using the memory transformation device.
Zi Di had used this alchemy device to extract Zhen Jin’s memories, make a
memory crystal, and used it to make the dragonman youngster think he was a
templar knight for a time.
“Spare me, please spare my life. I am willing to defect!” A thin person
struggled in a daze.
But he had already been drugged and lacked the energy to move.
Cang Xu used the most lukewarm tone he could, “Don’t be tense, if I wanted to
kill you, I would have done so on Two Eyes Island.”
“As we agreed, you will relax as much as possible.”
“If you cooperate properly, there is hope of being returned alive.”
“I understand, I understand…” The thin person’s tears splattered, hope and
pleading filled his face.
Upon seeing Zi Di arrive, Cang Xu nodded to her, then formally activated the
alchemy device.
The thin person immediately screamed, “Hurts, it hurts!”
“My head hurts!”
“Relax, don’t resist. The more you resist, the worse you’ll feel!” Cang Xu
grumbled, he looked serious.
The thin person’s eyes widened, and his limbs twitched like he was being
electrocuted, “Let me go, let me go…”
Ding.
A moment later, his head seemed to explode like a watermelon smashing into the
ground from a tall building.
The red blood and white brain matter splashed everywhere.
Zi Di dodged it and wasn’t touched. Cang Xu was standing too close and was
covered in blood and brains.
Cang Xu was unconcerned and apathetic.
He took off his glasses, wiped it clean, then put it back on.
“Like I said, as long as the target doesn’t want it, you cannot use this
alchemy device to extract their memories.” Said Zi Di.
Cang Xu faintly nodded, “To gain a deeper understanding, one must test it and
see it with their own eyes.”
“I won’t elaborate. Since the body is still warm, I will recall their soul.”
Cang Xu then used the Soul Summoning spell.
The thin person’s soul was successfully summoned and became a bronze level
ghost in Cang Xu’s troops.
“Although its intelligence is pretty good, its potential is lacking. It is
possible to cultivate it to the iron level, but that would waste too many
resources and not be worth the price.”  Cang Xu examined it, then issued his
verdict.
He continued to interrogate the ghostly thing person.
Because he had just died and was successfully summoned back, the ghostly thin
person retained many of his memories and his mood as he died.
He was very scared of Cang Xu, and as long as he knew, he would tell it to Cang
Xu.
However, he didn’t know much.
He wasn’t part of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, rather he had been personally
developed by the imperial secret spies after they arrived at Two Eyes Island.
To maintain secrecy, the imperial secret spies didn’t tell the thin person the
truth.
The thin person was completely in the dark, and really thought that they were
selling out the interest of humanity and selling information to pirate groups.
“This loathsome power has been hiding in secret for many years, yet Feudal Lord
Hun Tong hasn’t noticed them, they really cannot be looked down on.” Cang Xu
sighed.
Zi Di followed up, “I’m more curious as to why this group of people caused an
artificial commotion in front of the store and smeared our healing potions.”
While she said that, Zi Di gave the four fire path rings to Cang Xu.
As Cang Xu put on the rings, he said, “Hun Tong will help us investigate who
these people are and what their goals are.”
Zi Di chucked, “I have to say, your improvised stratagem of acting as the black
gowned magician really was a wonderful idea.”



****** Chapter 106: How Things Went ******
This is how things went.
Ever since Cang Xu encountered the black gowned magician and lost the ice blade
fish bone material to him, he had surmised that the black gowned and masked
magician as a necromancer.
He ordered Xu Ma to investigate.
Xu Ma was worried for his safety, and did it half-heartedly, but Cang Xu didn’t
notice.
Xu Ma was savvy at stealth and evasion.
Cang Xu just believed Xu Ma’s abilities were limited and understood that he
wasn’t making any headway.
Thus, Cang Xu changed his way of thinking. Since the search wasn’t working,
then he would play the role of them, stalking the streets and using necromancy
of his own accord to beat the grass and scare the snake!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wasn’t a regional power, but as long as Feudal
Lord Hun Tong was forced to react, they could use his strength to conduct a
large scale search and investigate the black gowned magician.
Cang Xu was relying on the Deceptive Disguise spell.
They used the pearl bubble, a god level casting material, making the magic the
apex of its type.
If the black gowned magician was a necromancer, he probably wouldn’t be able to
escape the search and investigation. But Cang Xu was very sure that his
disguise could be maintained.
Cang Xu informed the dragonman youngster of this plan.
After pondering the cause and effect, the young man approved this plan.
Although using a necromancy method was risky, he too believed in the Deceptive
Disguise spell and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
“If Two Eyes Island has a necromancer nestled in it, it would be an immense
danger to the masses.”
“Not all necromancers are like Cang Xu.”
“We must seize him; this is righteous thing!”
The young commander approved this plan.
Thus, Cang Xu began to refine his mask.
He wasn’t able to make an actual ashen death mask, and the one he did refine
was a commonly seen magician mask. The magician mask could slightly accelerate
magic power recovery speed and was known as a curved magic mask.
After the curved magic mask was refined, Cang Xu inserted it into the Deceptive
Disguise formation.
After taking on the mask, it now looked exactly like the one the black gowned
magician was wearing.
Not long after obtaining the mask, Cang Xu heard that someone was making false
charges against and blockading the Wisteria store’s gateway, defaming the Green
Hat Potion’s healing potency.
He and Zi Di left together to check up on the particulars.
On the way, Bai Ya found them.
Naturally, Bai Ya knew who they were and informed them that he had noticed a
group of people secretly playing dirty tricks and that Xu Ma was already
chasing them down.
Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s hearts shivered with joy, the trail was already there,
and there was no need to investigate.
The troublemakers at the scene were mere shilling underlings, not worth to
capture. Furthermore, they also weren’t able to act out in the open, they
couldn’t let more people say and think the Wisteria store was acting
tyrannically and having a guilty conscience, could they?
Therefore, Cang Xu made arrangements, it was likely that a battle might occur
and since the enemy power’s situation was unknown, Bai Ya would continue to
stay behind to take care of things in the alley mouth, Zi Di provided support
midway, and he, the strongest, would approach the target. If something
occurred, there would be a specific response based on the specific situation.
Such as what they would do if the enemy was weak, if the enemy was stronger
than those deployed, and if the enemy was stronger than the entire Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
This arrangement was quite rational and strict.
Zi Di was just a bronze level, and based on currently available information,
the thin person was a bronze level fighter, a threat to Zi Di. But to the iron
level Cang xu, such a person was a far lesser threat.
In addition, if the enemy power was large and Cang Xu was in an unfavorable
situation, Zi Di would retreat without delay, and transmit a request for aid.
After the three acted according to the arrangement, Cang Xu quickly reached the
destination.
It wasn’t hard to find.
Xu Ma had left behind secret marks along the way.
This was standard for all veteran mercenary corps. As a mercenary commander,
Tripleblade had helped Zong Ge and played an important role in plugging such
deficiencies.
Cang Xu saw the guards out in the open, and also knew the place likely
concealed stakeouts.
Since he didn’t see Xu Ma or any traces of battle, Cang Xu determined that Xu
Ma was still safe and was currently hidden somewhere inside.
The necromancer was in no rush to act. He thought that if Xu Ma snuck back out
and provided more accurate information, it would undoubtedly be more
appropriate to act after he verified the risks.
Of course, the necromancer didn’t place all of his hopes on Xu Ma, as he stood
on the street, he began to mobilize scouting puppets.
The survivors had made large quantities of these alchemy puppets on Snake Rat
Island.
After coming to Two Eyes Island, they released a batch into it.
Although some were recalled, many were still placed in crucial locations.
The Wisteria shop, of course, was a key place. Therefore, there were a few
alchemy puppets nearby.
Cang Xu had the authority to control these scouting puppets.
Under his spiritual control, three puppets snuck towards the building.
But before the puppets could enter, something strange happened.
The sound of fighting could be heard from the courtyard, and someone shrieked,
“Capture him!”
Soon after, Cang Xu saw Xu Ma’s sorry figure running away, while at the same
time, sensing the intense aura of a silver level caster!
Cang Xu hesitated for a moment, then deciding to act!
He put on his curved magic mask; he had been wearing a black armored gown. In
order to conceal his necromancer identity, he chose to use Fireball scrolls.
The scroll was activated, causing it to shoot a fireball.
As Xu Ma rushed towards the courtyard gate, he tumbled to the ground and was
hanging by a thread between life and death.
Cang Xu didn’t save him directly, rather he detonated the fireball next to the
latter.
The faceplanted Xu Ma was the least harmed, while his pursuers were blown up by
the fireball, leaving them in a pitiful state.
Xu Ma was able to escape with his life.
At the same time, Zi Di in the middle section, responsible for providing
support and detection, immediately sensed Xi Dai Zi’s life aura.
“A silver level caster!?” Zi Di knew the situation had suddenly changed, the
enemy’s strength surpassed their own, thus, they immediately carried out their
corresponding response plan.
She instantly summoned Bai Ya, then had Bai Ya find someone to indirectly
inform the city guard.
She then hurried elsewhere so she could take out the ghost Lan Lu and set up
the ambush.
Cang Xu and Xi Dai Zi fought.
The entire fight was filled with danger.
At first, Cang Xu used several magic scrolls in a row, one fire ball after the
other to suppress Xi Dai Zi in the early stage.
But Xi Dai Zi was a silver level, and his strength exceeded Cang Xu’s greatly,
while also having powerful magic equipment too.
Through his magic item and higher strength, he was able to resist the fireball
bombardment and turn the tables.
Cang Xu didn’t dare to zealously fight further. In addition, Zi Di told him
that the ambush was set.
Cang Xu chose to retreat.
Xi Dai Zi drove the three headed water snake and pursued relentlessly. 
Cang Xu arrived at the ambush site, and with a storm of fire ball scrolls,
attracted Xi Dai Zi’s attention.
Zi Di immediately had the ghost Lan Lu launch a surprise attack.
The silver level ghost’s sneak attack was successful and achieved a crucial
battle result.
Xi Dai Zi was heavily wounded, causing him to change his plan to retreat.
The ghost Lan Lu was battered by divine power, causing him to become unstable
and unable to fight further.
Zi Di was even more on the verge of collapse, barely able to control Lan Lu.
Cang Xu joined back with Zi Di, and decided not to pursue Xi Dai Zi, but
instead to dispose of the thin person and his people.
Xi Dai Zi was barely able to withstand the necromancy, while the thin person
and others were unable to resist them at all. Most of them were killed on the
spot, while those who didn’t sank into a dying unconsciousness.
By the time the city guard commander and his subordinates arrived on the scene,
Cang Xu, Zi Di, Xi Dai Zi, and the others had already vanished without a trace.
Only a messy battle aftermath remained.
After Xu Ma returned to the ship, he reported everything he had heard.
The survivors rewarded him to a certain extent and gave him a chance to heal
and rest.
The survivors soon after held a meeting to discuss this matter.
What was the origin of the thin person and his group? They worked without a
bottom line or principles, they were actually colluding with a fishman pirate
group and agreed to pave the way for the fishman pirate group’s invasion of Two
Eyes Island!
That was something the dragonman youngster did not want to see.
Zong Ge abhorred these traitorous people even more!
The survivors made a unanimous decision, they would dig out these people and
eradicate them.
Not only were they retaliating against a different race and protecting the
righteous humanity, but these people had also wickedly discredited their Green
Hat Healing Potion and severely hindered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ plan
to acquire capital.
Cang Xu proposed, “I have already disguised myself as another, and exposed
myself as an exiled necromancer. After the city guard investigates, they will
surely discover some things.”
“In order to prevent the other party from covering this information up and for
insurance, we should disguise our features and distribute some rumors.”
“Since this matter involves a necromancer, Hun Tong will be unable to cover it
up, there is bound to be an all-out investigation and a speedy report to the
Blood Light Punishment Institution.”
“The Blood Light Punishment Institution’s dispatched personnel will tidy up Two
Eyes Island. The mysterious black gowned magician will have nowhere to hide and
will have to prove their identity. Even if they aren’t a necromancer, that
group of people will also be exposed and the fishman pirate group’s place to
attack the island will be completely destroyed.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a newcomer, and it was difficult for them
to sniff out the culprit. But Cang Xu’s scheme allowed them to draw support
from the natives’ and the empire’s strength.
Wisdom was a type of power.
Cang Xu’s necromancer identity was originally his weak point. But it could
ingeniously be put to use and be treated as a type of weapon that could solve
the difficult problem before them.
After understanding the particulars of the battle, Zong Ge secretly had a new
level of respect towards the necromancer, “That old codger knows the hearts of
men and is an expert of crafty plots and machinations.”
“He obviously didn’t have armor, but during the fight, through his flurry of
attacks and fearless attitude, he was able to force Xi Da Zi onto the
defensive.”
In order to find the third party and find that damned necromancer, Feudal Lord
Hun Tong and the imperial secret spy genuinely cooperated fully for the first
time.
One was the feudal lord of Two Eyes Island, the other was a master intelligence
officer, an imperial secret spy, and there were almost no hindrances to their
investigation.
The imperial secret spy lead the investigation.
This was his specialty.
Most people would be baffled and at a loss at where to start, because those
well acquainted with what happened, namely the thin person and the others, were
all missing. But in the imperial secret spy’s eyes, there were many clues in
his hands.



****** Chapter 107: We are Innocent ******
Firstly, even though the necromancer that came to Two Eyes Island was well
hidden, they would eventually leave behind some traces.
As long as a large scale investigation is launched, new clues will always be
found.
Before their deal, the imperial secret spy couldn’t search the entire island
with their strength on hand. But in coordination with Hun Tong’s full strength,
he now had the ability to do so.
But the imperial secret spy didn’t decide to do an extensive search.
To him, this was the option of last resort.
A large scale search would cause pirates to be deterred and the auction to lose
a great number of customers. The secret spy didn’t care about the damage it
would cause Hun Tong, but he did care that it might cause the fishmen to dispel
their plan to storm Two Eyes Island.
“With my talent, can I really not find an iron level necromancer? Hehehe.”
The imperial secret spy was confident in himself.
He precisely grasped the other party’s identity.
“A necromancer!”
“Why did he come to Two Eyes Island?’
“Even if he came for some secret mission, doesn’t he desire those necromantic
materials?”
Necromancy path was a new school of magic.
New paths had some advantages and some disadvantages.
Among the greatest disadvantages was that due to not being widespread, related
resources were difficult to develop and hard to acquire.
The imperial secret spy audaciously surmised that the mysterious necromancer
was likely searching the marketplace for necromancy materials!
Following this point, he mobilized his personnel to inquire about that.
Very quickly he obtained a trail.
The Dark Rainbow Store!
Like the rumors said, it was the pirate’s largest booty disposal site and its
backer behind the scenes was Hun Tong.
By Hun Tong’s command, the Dark Rainbow Store cooperated fully with the
imperial secret spy’s investigation.
“Ice blade fish bones contain a death qi magic material.
“This caused two magicians to bid for it.”
“One is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Lao Zhong, the other was a masked
black gowned magician.”
“In the end, the black gowned magician bough the ice blade fish bones at a
premium.”
“Isn’t the ice blade fish bones that contained death qi a necromantic
material?”
“Both of them are suspicious!”
The imperial secret spy quickly made a portrait that depicted the mysterious
black gowned magician’s appearance.
He gave the inquiry into the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to Hun Tong.
As a gold level cultivator and Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord, Hun Tong wouldn’t
get up and conduct the search personally. He instead dispatched the city guard
commander with a temporary search team.
The search time immediately searched for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps at
port and came clean in their purpose of coming.
As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ representative, Cang Xu welcomed them, “We
are willing to cooperate actively, necromancers are public enemies of everyone.
The sooner we find and eliminate that hidden danger, the better it will be for
everyone on Two Eyes Island.”
The city guard commander asked about what happened at the Dark Rainbow Store.
Cang Xu revealed a look of astonishment, “Are you saying that the mysterious
magician I was competing against for the ice blade fish bones was actually a
necromancer?”
Soon after, he analyzed to himself, “If that is so, that might be possible.”
“At the time, I did feel somewhat strange.”
“The other party was very determined to buy the ice blade fish bones. But that
material in my opinion had an immense blemish.”
“Now that you reminded me, upon careful reflection, that material was filled
with death qi, and to a necromancer, that was where its value lay.”
The city guard commander couldn’t help but give a weird look.
“Cough, cough.” The city guard commander was somewhat embarrassed, “If you can,
please display your magic. As far as I know, you are a fire magician, right?”
Cang Xu was startled, then pursed his brows in displeasure, “Are you suspecting
me?”
The city guard commander shook his head, he then solemnly stated, “We suspect
anyone, even the Feudal Lord’s personal maid. The sooner we wash you clean of
suspicion, the better for both you and us, no?”
Cang Xu coldly snorted.
Although he was an iron level, when confronted with the silver level city guard
commander, he still displayed a magician’s haughtiness. 
“Then you better keep your eyes open and observe.”
After saying that, Cang Xu began to chant in front of everyone.”
After the chant completed, a magical light glistened.
Everyone saw a fireball condensing above Cang Xu’s palm.
Cang Xu threw the fireball, and it streaked in an arc across the air before
hitting the seawater and exploding loudly, lifting a jet of water from the
ocean.
“Any other questions?” Cang Xu asked.
“Not for the time being.” The city guard commander nodded, “As far I know, you
aren’t the corps’ only magician, there is also a female bronze level magician
called Hong Teng.”
Hong Teng was Zi Di’s pseudonym.
Cang Xu nodded, “Hong Tengi is my corps’ pharmacist. Although she is a bit
weaker, I greatly admire her medical skills.”
“She has been inside the ship researching medicinal recipes.”
“I will call her over at once.”
Soon after, Zi Di also came to see the investigation team.
Like before, she too used fire magic.
“If there isn’t anything else, I’ll take my leave first.” Zi Di showed a
disagreeable attitude, “Don’t interrupt me so trivially again, my research is
in the middle of a critical phase.”
“Hold on.” Another important person of the investigation team walked over.
It was the Wealth Church’s priest, a silver level clergyman.
The priest smiled to Zi Di, “In order to not waste your time, let me
investigate you now. Please understand this slight offense.”
Zi Di sighed with frustration, “If you have a divine spell, then just use it.
Make it quick, my time is precious.”
The priest thereupon used the divine spell – Detect Necromancer.
Nothing happened to the two magicians.
They had both the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell
on them. With both combined, an insignificant silver level divine spell was not
enough to see through them.
Of course, Cang xu and Zi Di couldn’t use fire magic, however, they were
wearing the fire path rings they had refined.
This equipment was also covered with Deceptive Disguise.
In front of ten investigation team members, the two had pretended to chant
magic, while in reality they were activating their rings’ magic, yet no one
noticed anything amiss.
The two necromancers had all suspicions of them cleared.
Soon after, the investigation team cast the detection divine spell on all
members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
They most certainly did not find any marks of a necromancer.
Before leaving, the city guard commander apologized to the survivors and stated
that he was just doing his duty.
The priest reminded them, “IF you find anything, please let us know. We will
reword you generously based on how valuable the information is.”
This caused Zi Di’s heart to move, and after quietly asking, he discovered that
both the government as well as the Wealth Church had issued a bounty.
The bounty was the same, if any island resident found anything on the
necromancer, they could report it to authorities.
A reward would be given based on how valuable the information was in
retrospect.
The reward was quite ample.
After sending off the investigation team, the survivors once again held a
private discussion.
“Like we anticipated, the necromancer’s appearance has touched everyone’s
sensitive nerves. Now, Hun Tong and the Wealth Church have joined hands to
carry out a full investigation. Even if Two Eyes Island needs to be flipped
upside down, they will find the necromancer’s trail.” Said Cang Xu.
Zong Ge suddenly stated, “The auction will be held earlier.”
The dragonman youngster faintly smiled, “Sinc Hun Tong is doing this, perhaps
he is now worried that a large search will severely damage the flow of
customers. He is probably afraid that the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s
dispatched person that will completely blockade Two Eyes Island and prevent the
auction from taking place.”
Zong Ge replied, “This plan has a systemic problem. We came here to participate
in this auction.”
He wanted to restore his arm and needed a gold level healing potion.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had the recipe, the tower spirit was
damaged and didn’t have the ability to refine that level of potion.
“Not a big problem.” Said Zi Di, “In fact, the benefits are greater than the
harm.”
“New of the necromancer have caused everyone to become tense, both inside and
out, of Two Eyes Island. Prices on the black market and the discount market
will tumble greatly.”
“According to imperial law, Hun Tong must report this to the higher ups.”
“If the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s people come to Two Eyes Island,
they are bound to do a big clean up and search, many deals will no longer be
conducted.”
“Therefore, many people chose to cut their prices instead. They will rush to
sell their goods before the Blood Light Punishment Institution comes and
withdraw their funds.”
“We now have a lot of money; this is a good opportunity for us to go on a
shopping spree and stock up on our alchemy materials!”
“I am only worried about the auction.”
“Getting back to that now, Hun Tong is very thoughtful to have moved up the
auction date.”
The survivors didn’t think that Hun Tong would delay his report. Because they
didn’t know about the imperial secret spy and didn’t anticipate that the
imperial secret spy’s people and Hun Tong were conspiring together.
Cang Xu then said, “If Hun Tong finds the necromancer before the Blood Light
Punishment Institution comes, he will either capture or kill them, causing the
Blood Light Punishment Institution to likely let Two Eyes Island off.”
“If I was Hun Tong, I would surely strive for this to happen.”
Because Two Eyes Island’s commerce won’t be able to withstand the Blood Light
Punishment Institution’s wanton shakeup.
“In fact, the current search has already harmed Two Eyes Island’s business
ambience.”
“That is not only Hun Tong’s interest, but also the Wealth Church’s interest
too.”
Two Eyes Island was a Wealth God parish.
If business was cracked down here and the income of believers were greatly
diminished, then the offerings to the church would also likewise decrease.
Seeking wealth in of itself was also one of the Wealth God’s major teachings.
“We also have a weak point.” Said Cang Xu, “That is Xu Ma.”
“Both Zi Di and I were disguised, even if we were seen, nothing will come of
it. But if Xu Ma is discovered, it will be easy to find that he is from our
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Hung Tong’s searching capabilities is formidable, especially with the Wealth
Church releasing the same bounty.”
“Almost all of Two Eyes Island believe in the Wealth God, with the twin power
of belief and benefits, they will be reporting vigorously.”
“Xu Ma is only a bronze level thief, he was stabbed the first night on the
island, and he was caught eavesdropping. It will be difficult to guarantee that
his enter and exit from the courtyard will go undiscovered.”
“Especially after I injured him before he could escape.”



****** Chapter 108: I Figured It Out! ******
Zong Ge pursed his brows, “Don’t tell me we need to hand over Xu Ma? That can
actually be explained. According to Xu Ma, the thin person was the one who
stabbed him, no?”
Cang Xu chuckled, “I have a better way, that can both prove ourselves while at
the same time also earning us some money.”
Zi Di’s eyes flashed, and she smiled, “I know, you are thinking of
communicating with Hun Tong and telling him about the fishman attack?”
“Yes.” Cang Xu nodded.
After the dragonman youngster realized that he clapped his hands, “That is a
good method. Before Hun Tong finds the necromancer, they won’t be able to learn
of the fishman’s planned attack of the island. Xi Dai Zi escaped.”
“But the feudal lord and the Wealth Church aren’t aware of his existence.”
“Everyone’s attention is on the necromancer that appeared.”
“This would be a terrible time for the fishmen to assault Two Eyes Island.”
“For humanity’s sake, we should warn Hun Tong.”
“The only worry is being implicated with the necromancer. But since the
investigation team had just stopped by, this is the most opportune moment to
send Hun Tong a message.”
Cang Xu profoundly added, “Hun Tong is an intelligent person, and we have
cleaned ourselves of suspicion. We need to give some clues so that they
hypothesize and authenticate.”
City government building.
The study.
Hun Tong was having a discussion with the imperial secret spy through an
alchemy device.
Hun Tong said, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has been investigated, nothing
was found.”
At first, the imperial secret spy was silent, but shortly after said, “Even so,
the suspicion on them cannot be completely eliminated. This world holds many
concealment and disguise methods. The investigation team’s main detection
method was the silver level divine spell, and if their disguise method
surpassed the silver level, they could remain hidden.”
“According to current intelligence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has a gold
level cannon. During the Snake Rat naval battle, that cannon mysteriously
vanished. Therefore, they it is possible they have a gold level storage
device.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is newly established and is likely a front for
a group of arms smugglers. According to this layered conjecture, them having a
disguise method is quite rational. It being gold level isn’t strange either.”
Hun Tong nodded, “Makes sense. But what other clues have you seen? The black
gowned magician who bought the ice blade fish bones at a premium is far more
suspicious!”
“Apart from that, there is another trail you should be clear about. Two level
seven elders suddenly came to Wisteria Store. The two popular potions came from
them. Those two are elusive and very dubious.”
Hun Tong continued to analyze, “The Wisteria Merchant Alliance was a grass
roots organization, born from the lower class. After being annexed and broken
up, the survivors of that crave power and influence even more. Under those
circumstances, it is normal for them to renounce their bottom line and be
infiltrated by the corruption of necromancers.”
The secret spy replied, “I have some inside information on those two. In fact,
I have already investigated those two. Besides discussing the matter with Xi
Dai Zi, I also assigned some people to slander the Green Hat Healing Potion’s
healing effects. If there was a problem with the potion, I believed that the
two elders would show themselves.”
“Interesting.” Hun Tong smiled.
But soon after, his smile dwindled and his brows creased, “After carefully
pondering all of the clues, I have a strange feeling about this. Furthermore,
this feeling is getting stronger.”
“What is the origin of this third party power? How did they suddenly emerge
without any prior indications?”
“Why were they eavesdropping on the negotiation? Were they shadowing Xi Dai Zi?
Were they hired investigators from the merchant alliances who were robbed? What
other goals do they have?”
“The eavesdropping was also odd.”
“Since there was a powerful magician capable of doing battle with Xi Dai Zi,
why wasn’t the magician eavesdropping? Wouldn’t that be more dependable?”
“Why would they first dispatch an inferior eavesdropper that people would
notice?”
When the secret spy heard this, he immediately expressed that he had the same
feeling, “There is another strange area, Feudal Lord, do you remember? Someone
notified the city guard. When the necromancer and Xi Dai Zi fought, there
indeed were constant explosions. But the notifier did it really fast. The
timing is amiss. Another irregularity, the notifier did not do it in person,
instead they used a beggar to convey it. Why did that person want to hide
themselves?”
The study sank into silence.
Hun Tong and the secret spy on the other side of the line were both
contemplating.
The more the two pondered, the more questions they found.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was looking for the third party, they were also
looking for the third party.
“Hold on, I have some new information!” The imperial secret spy suddenly
interjected; it was very difficult for him to conceal the joy in his voice upon
receiving the latest information.
“While the two magicians were fighting, someone saw a wounded person running
from them in a panic.”
“According to what the information describes, this man is known as Xu Ma, a
member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Is that so?” Hun Tong immediately flipped to the information on his desk and
found Xu Ma’s record, “There is indeed such a person, moreover, he is
recuperating.”
“The specific reason of his injures?” The secret spy instantly questioned him.
“Didn’t ask. Who would think he got it from something related to the
necromancer?” The feudal lord coldly snorted.
The study quickly lingered with killing intent.
The feudal lord growled, “Based on this, the third party is the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. The investigation team didn’t notice anything, your conjecture
might really be true. They have an advanced disguise technique.”
“How should we deal with them?”
Hun Tong’s first notion was that he acted personally and annihilate everyone in
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
But after reflecting on it, he, with some astonishment, noticed that this
matter was comparably thorny, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would not be easy
to deal with.
This new mercenary corps had formidable military successes.
They had been a major force in the defeat of Rou Zang’s pirate group.
Their commander, Long Fu, directly vied with gold levels, something many people
witnessed during the Snake Rat naval battle.
Hun Tong had met Long Fu once. Upon recalling that meeting, from the onset, he
could confirm that Long Fu had abundant battle talent.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also had a gold level cannon, and it would be
unpleasant if Hun Tong was hit by it.
What restrained Hun Tong more was that if he made a move and didn’t immediately
control the situation, the cannon would bombard Two Eyes Island, a terrible
consequence. 
Especially during the preceding period of the auction, when the necromancer was
making everyone anxious, and the large search was harming the commerce
ambience. If he started a battle recklessly and caused a bombardment, that
would be even worse.
Hun Tong didn’t want his foundation to be damaged.
The communication device transmitted the imperial secret spy’s voice. While the
feudal lord was fixated on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he was not and
maintained his cool, “That might not be so. There is no evidence that proves
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the third party power. Currently, we haven’t
even confirmed the information on Xu Ma.”
“Then let’s verify it. This time I will go myself!” Hun Tong impatiently said.
This time, he would find them himself.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the one, conflict would likely break
out.
At this moment, a subordinate came to the study door to report.
The subordinate brought considerably urgent and important information.
A warning letter.
The letter stated that the writer of it learned of something endangering Two
Eyes Island and Hun Tong’s rule. Furthermore, this information had to do with
the necromancer!
“Who sent this letter?” Hun Tong was intrigued.
After receiving the answer, his brows wrinkled deeply. “A beggar?”
“This trick again?” Hun Tong couldn’t help but associate this to the city guard
incident when a beggar had warned them too.
The warning letter didn’t detail the contents of this information; however, it
indicated the place and time to negotiate the transaction of this information.
The other party made it known that in order to ensure the reliability of this
information, Hun Tong’s side could use divine spells, magic, and other methods
to verify it.
Through the communication device, the imperial secret spy also found out what
had happened on Hun Tong’s side.
“Wait a moment.” The secret spy suddenly said, “I figured it out! Could this be
the truth of this matter?”
“If the wounded man was really Xu Ma…”
“Perhaps our initial guess was wrong, the eavesdropper and the necromancer are
unrelated.”
“What do you mean?” Hun Tong was puzzled.
“Feudal Lord, who do you think this letter is from?”
“Of course it is from that damned third party power.” But as Hun Tong said that
he paused.
He sensed that his logic had a grave error.
The secret spy laughed, “Correct, it seems you too, Feudal Lord, realize it. If
it was the third party power who sent this letter, they wouldn’t have disclosed
their identity in front of us for such a small reward. Conversely, I surmise
that those who want to claim the reward should be innocent and know the inside
information on this matter.”
“Xu Ma…the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?” Hun Tong soliloquized.
“You are wise, Feudal Lord! I have always felt that the truth of this matter
was never that simple. But this time, I really do need you to go out yourself.”
Said the secret spy.
Two Eyes Island, the old island.
A hidden chamber.
The necromancer Chi Yu sighed to himself, “The outside investigation is getting
more and more rigorous.”
“The mask will instead make me more suspicious.”
“That necromancer who made a move was truly a fool. Why don’t they just drop
dead? They left me so much trouble.”
Since Cang Xu and Xi Dai Zi fought, Chi Yu had been sheltering here to
painstakingly refine his magic item.
He didn’t have much talent in alchemy, and even though the refinement threshold
for necromancy magic items was lower than other magic sects’, Chi Yu had
suffered unspeakable misery during it.
“Perhaps I should rest and not be so tense.”
“It wasn’t me who did it!”
“This place has been very safe.”
Chi Yu fretfully comforted himself.
This hidden chamber was deeply concealed in the underground abyss, in a small
space between the branches of the coral ball cage tree, it was concealed well.
Chi Yu had discovered it by accident and treated it as his base of operations.
For the last several years, he had been sneaking into Two Eyes Island and
living here.
With his arrangements, this hidden chamber became even more covert.



****** Chapter 109: Paying to Listen to a Murderer’s Explanation ******
After meditating for a while, Chi Yu recovered somewhat.
“Alas, I truly have bad luck to come across such shit.”
“I planned on selling soul crystals on the black market, now that is
impossible.”
“That necromancer, don’t let me find you. If I do, I will give you a stern
lesson!”
Chi Yu had sold soul crystals on the black market several times and had earned
a huge profit.
“I don’t know why, but things feel a little off.”
“My own safety comes first!”
“Think prudently, first I must refine the pale bone wings.”
After cursing Cang Xu, Chi Yu once again immersed himself in the painstaking
refinement of the flying magic item.
The fishman Xi Dai Zi was groping his way forward.
He was well acquainted with the coral ball cage tree’s topography, including
most of the secret paths and hidden chambers.
This was what he relied on to sneak into Two Eyes Island.
The coral ball cage tree had been grown by the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan.
Humanity was the invader who had expelled the fishman clan. Although Hun Tong
and humanity occupied the surface of the coral ball cage tree and renamed it
Two Eyes Island, none of them had a deep understanding of its internal
structure.
Because Two Eyes Island was a living being.
Inside the coral ball cage tree, there were secret paths and hidden chambers
among the small cracks in its branches.
The growing vines and branches meant that these secret paths and hidden
chambers were constantly disappearing, appearing, or relocating.
The coral ball cage tree’s life level was also high and could resist many
detection methods.
Of course, the longer Hun Tong reigned here, the greater humanity’s control of
Two Eyes Island became.
The secret path was dark, for Xi Dai Zi didn’t create a light.
He was a deep sea fishman, and his big fish eyes could catch deep sea prey,
thus, he had dark vision.
He wasn’t in a good state.
After being ambushed by the ghost Lan Lu, his soul had been injured. This
injury was very troublesome to deal with, far more difficult to heal than flesh
wounds.
“If I could get a soul crystal, I would have the right medicine for this.”
“Otherwise, the standard method of healing is simply waiting for my soul to
restore itself.”
“That takes too long. The clan will soon launch its counteroffensive, and I
will be in a terrible state when it happens.”
“What should I do.” Xi Dai Zi bitterly laughed, “The entire island is searching
for the necromancer, and the Blood Light Punishment Institution will also
dispatch a cultivator here. The clan’s plan to recapture our home will be run
aground!”
“I must find a chance to leave this place and tell the captain and clan what
happened here.”
Xi Dai Zi grew ever more impatient.
Suddenly, he stopped walking.
He faintly sensed an abnormality ahead.
Thus, Xi Dai Zi reached out to touch the secret path and joined his spirit with
the coral ball cage tree.
He closed his eyes, and an image of the scene ahead gradually appeared in his
mind.
Ahead of this secret path, there was a relatively hidden chamber.
Upon leaving the hidden chamber, one could go to the old island’s slums on the
surface.
But now, this hidden chamber concealed a single person.
Xi Dai Zi detected this person, causing both alarm and anger to suddenly flare
as his eyes unconsciously flew open.
My God!
It’s that damned necromancer!!
He had been hidden here and was doing alchemy!
“Good, very good.” Xi Dai Zi tenaciously bit his jaw, blood filling his eyes.
“So, you were hiding here!”
“Let me run across you.”
“Hehe.”
“Hehehe.”
The alchemy engrossed Chi Yu sensed an inexplicable nip of chillness.
“That feeling again.”
“It’s been having a lot recently.”
“Am I fussing about nothing?”
Under a bridge, a masked Cang Xu was hiding in the darkness.
Footsteps could be heard.
The city guard commander and the Wealth God priest were walking together.
“Stop, don’t go any further.” Cang Xu’s voice came from the darkness.
He had deliberately lowered the tone of his voice.
The city guard commander’s eyes flashed, “We have come to trade in information.
Come then, won’t you tell us what you know?”
“Did the Feudal Lord come?” Cang Xu asked.
The city guard commander coldly snorted, “Did the Feudal Lord say he would
come? He is a gold level cultivator and has many affairs to attend to every
day. This type of thing falls to me to authenticate first.”
Cang Xu was silent for a bit, then suddenly threw a scroll, “This is a contract
scroll, please look at the clauses, and if there aren’t any problems, please
sign the contract first, then we’ll talk.”
The city guard commander caught the scroll and after carefully unrolling it, he
and the priest attentively studied its clauses.
The clauses were very open and transparent. It mainly guaranteed that both
parties would deal in good faith and prevent either side from acting against
each other.
“Fine, I will sign this contract.” Said the city guard commander.
But Cang Xu stressed, “Lord Priest, please sign the contract too. After all,
you are a silver level caster.”
The priest nodded, “I can.”
“No need!” AT that moment, Hun Tong’s voice came from behind Cang Xu.
Cang Xu turned pale with fright, he didn’t sense Hun Tong approaching at all.
By the time he turned around, it was already too late.
Hun Tong seized him by the neck.
“Don’t do it!” Cang Xu said at once, “I sincerely want to work with you. I have
real information. I guarantee it!”
“Lord Hun Tong, Lord Priest.”
“You were the ones who issued the bounty, I also considered the needs of all
the humans on Two Eyes Island, I am on your side.”
Hun Tong dragged Cang Xu by the scruff out of the shadow of the bridge.
Before Hun Tong tore off Cang Xu’s mask, he coldly snorted, “You think I don’t
know anything? You are the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ magician, Lao Zhong!”
Cang Xu went stiff, “You, what do you know? No, how much do you know?”
Hun Tong sneered, and upon believing that he had intimidated Cang Xu, let him
go.
Cang Xu regained his freedom but seemed dazed.
He bowed his head in a moment of pondering, then took off his mask to reveal
his agonized “true face”, “Lord Hun Tong, Lord Priest, and Lord City Guard
Commander, good afternoon to you all.”
“Please forgive me, three Lords. We really offended you inadvertently, there
have been many misunderstandings. Lord Hun Tong, you are a gold level
cultivator, this place is your domain. We were really worried about our safety,
but this information is really important and hiding it will have grave
consequences.”
“Therefore, after we negotiated, we decided to do this. Please believe us, we
have no relation with that necromancer!”
“Whether or not you have our trust depends on your explanation. Old magician,
you will value this chance to explain yourself properly. “Hun Tong pressured.
But Cang Xu shook his head slowly, “I have come on a mission. I can guarantee
to your Lordships that this information is extremely valuable. If you overlook
it, Two Eyes Island might suffer catastrophic damage. This is no alarmist talk.
Before I saw this information, can we discuss the matter of remuneration?”
Hun Tong wanted to slap Cang Xu down.
What information?
He didn’t know.
Isn’t this about the fishman pirate group attacking Two Eyes Island?
Hun Tong looked forward to the fishman pirate group and fishman clan attacking
the island.
But this enticement plan had been conspired by him and the imperial secret spy,
neither’s underlings knew about it.
The city guard commander was the same. The Wealth Church’s priest even more so.
Hun Tong endured the indisposed feeling, “You won’t lack the pertinent reward.”
Cang Xu replied, “No, your esteemed Lordship. Compared to the generous monetary
reward, we would rather purchase some rare materials. We are also very
interested in what will be on offer at the auction. Is it possible to purchase
some surreptitiously ahead of time?”
Hun Tong’s eyes narrowed as he suppressed his rage, “It seems your Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps has some ideas. As for you, Lao Zhong, you are very loyal to
your mercenary corps. You do know that your life lies in my hands. You came
alone this time, where are Long Fu and Shi Qi?”
Cang Xu shook his head and forced a smile, “It is precisely because I just
joined that I need to work even harder.”
“As for the commander and auxiliary commander, they trust your Lordship’s
reputation and stayed behind on the ship, waiting for news of me.”
Hun Tong coldly snorted.
Long Fu and Shi Qi staying behind on the ship was a secondary preparation.
If they noticed the situation went amiss, they might force their way through
the custom ships and out to sea. 
Hun Tong didn’t despite the other party’s determination.
To him it seemed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were arms smugglers,
dangerous people who took risks out of desperation. If they were forced to,
they would fire their gold level cannon and shell Two Eyes Island!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only dispatching Cang Xu did seem
irresponsible, but in actuality it was the greatest deterrent to Hun Tong and
the others.
Two Eyes Island was Hun Tong’s foundation. It was also his weak spot.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strategy had come from Cang Xu.
Hun Tong gradually curbed his grandeur and waved to Cang Xu, “Follow me, this
is not the place to speak in detail.”
Cang Xu relaxed, most of his plan had already succeeded.
He followed Hun Tong and returned to the city government building.
The feudal lord sent back the city guard commander and had the priest use the
Detect Lie divine spell before letting Cang Xu into his study for a private
discussion,
Hun Tong did not want information on the fishman’s attack on the island to get
out to the priest and the others.
He and Cang Xu carried out a negotiation in the study.
Even faced with a gold level cultivator, Cang Xu still strived for the most
benefits.
After a spell of wrangling, the two had come to a final proposal.
Hun Tong would give some rare resources and permit the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to purchase some things from the auction early. But the selection was
restricted, and they were to be sold at 30% above market price.
Hun Tong found it hard to breathe.
He obviously knew the fishmen were going to attack the island, but he had to
purchase the information.
He just had to.
Because he pretended not to know about it and through this transaction, he
sealed the lips of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and prevented them from
divulging this information.
Of course, Xu Ma knew the facts and had personally witnessed what the
necromancer looked like. This important clue was also an important bargaining
chip to Hun Tong.
Hun Tong did not know that the one before him, Cang Xu, was the real murderer,
the necromancer he should hack into pieces.
This necromancer was not standing in front of him, explaining himself.
Hun Tong, nevertheless, focused and earnestly listened.
Because he had bought this opportunity with money.



****** Chapter 110 “The Truth” ******
Inside the city government building study, Cang Xu began to give “the truth” to
Hun Tong.
“One of our corps’ members, Hei Ya, was procuring some equipment at the Dark
Rainbow Store when he ran into another member, Xu Ma.”
“Xu Ma and Hei Ya went together to continue purchasing things, and while doing
that, they saw the disturbance at the Wisteria Store.”
“They wanted to simply watch the excitement, but as a result, Xu Ma
accidentally discovered that the disturbance was organized, and that the
ringleader of it was his personal enemy – the guy who had stabbed him.”
Cang Xu then briefly recounted that Xu Ma had a grudge against the thin person,
and what had happened to Xu Ma when he first entered the island.
Hun Tong frowned, he wasn’t interested in this and impatiently urged, “Get to
the important stuff.”
Cang Xu faintly smiled, “Xu Ma followed his trail and wanted to ambush the thin
person. This ended up with him sneaking into the courtyard and accidently
hearing an important secret!”
“This secret is precisely what my corps must tell you, Feudal Lord. It is very
significant and concerned the safety of all of Two Eyes Island!”
Cang Xu deliberately flaunted the climax.
The corner of Hun Tong’s eye invisibly twitched.
Of course, he knew what this secret was – the Vinegar Jar Pirates wanted to buy
defensive charts and an insider so that they could invade Two Eyes Island!
He not only knew this secret, but he also knew even more. For example, the
Vinger Jar Pirates’ backer, the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan.
But to not divulge this weak point, Hun Tong still decided to cooperate with
Cang Xu, “Oh? What is this secret?”
Cang Xu became very solemn, “Feudal Lord, there is a third party power on your
Two Eyes Island. This power is very mysterious and has deeply infiltrated it.
Xi Dai Zi disguised himself and came to the old island to hold a discussion for
their help.”
“They not only traded away Two Eyes Island’s defensive layout, but he also
agreed to help the fishman pirate group, the Vinger Jar Pirates, attack Two
Eyes Island, the mysterious power has become their insider.”
“If we don’t take preventive measures, when both sides join hands and
coordinate inside and out, Two Eyes Island will be in danger!”
“That’s right…” Hun Tong sighed to himself. But outwardly, he went faintly
agape, his eyes glared wide open, and he used a stupefied tone, “Oh? Is that
so? They have the guts to dare attack my Two Eyes Island?!”
“It is indeed so!” Cang Xu affirmatively nodded.
Hun Tong said to himself, “I still hope that they will attack me.”
But outwardly, he was stewing with alarm and fury, “This mysterious third
party, who are they? Do you know anything about them? Out with it now!”
Cang Xu deeply sighed, “My corps just ran across them. We don’t know much at
all about them.”
It would never have occurred to the necromancer that the feudal lord before him
knew far more of what was going on behind the scenes than he did.
Hun Tong’s acting was exceptional, and Cang Xu didn’t notice any flaws in it.
Hun Tong’s tone sank, “I will investigate this power with all my might. What
other information do you have, continue on.”
Cang Xu continued, “After Xu Ma eavesdropped on some information, Xi Dai Zi
noticed him. Luckily, he was quick-witted and escaped Xi Dai Zi’s attack.”
“While he was about to be gutted by an encirclement, a masked, black gowned
magician suddenly appeared.” 
“He used many fireball scrolls and fought Xi Dai Zi, causing immense chaos.”
“Xu Ma took advantage of the chaos to escape the scene.”
“Not long after, Hei Ya used a beggar to inform the city guard, and they
hurried to the scene of the battle.”
“As for the situation there, I believe the Lord city guard commander knows more
than I do.”
Hun Tong nodded his head inquisitively, “That black gowned magician…”
Cang Xu took out a parchment from his clothes.
He handed the parchment to Hun Tong and said, “Feudal Lord, I had Xu Ma
describe them and drew a likeness of the black gowned magician for you. It
should show an approximation of his figure and appearance. Please take a look.”
Hun Tong took the parchment and the moment he opened it, his eyes instantly
contracted.
He had a similar sketch of this person too.
It was another clue.
He had obtained it from the Dark Rainbow Store.
The black gowned magician had purchased the ice blade fish bones at a premium.
“The necromancer…should be him!” Hun Tong’s heart was growing more certain of
this conjecture.
Anyways, he quickly restored his calm demeanor and gazed at Cang Xu, “I will
still need to validate your information.”
“Of course.” Cang Xu promptly nodded, “It is how things should be done!”
Later, Hun Tong and the priest personally came to the port to see Xu Ma.
Xu Ma was lying in a bed, recuperating.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Hun Tong, and the priest intruded into his
cabin, causing him to jump up in fright and scramble away.
As Xu Ma got up, the others saw something green.
Xu Ma’s hair had turned completely green. Due to his bloodline giving him thick
hair, its green strands were more conspicuous.
As for why it was green, of course it was because he had used the Green Hat
Healing Potions the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had issued him to heal his
injuries.
“Don’t be nervous, sit back down on your bed. Your merits aren’t small, and you
are still injured.” The dragonman youngster smiled at Xu Ma.
Xu Ma, green of hair, stammered in terror, “Your Lordships, I…”
Zong Ge interrupted him, “Tell us again what happened to you. Don’t hide
anything and don’t lie. Understood?”
“Under, understood!” Xu Ma replied at once.
Hun Tong didn’t speak, instead he looked at the priest.
The priest cast the divine spell – Detect Lies.
As the light of the divine spell enveloped him, Xu Ma narrated his experiences.
His tale was no different from the one Cang Xu had told to Hun Tong in the
study, aside from odd embellishments of particulars.
Afte Xu Ma told his story, Hun Tong immediately asked, “So, you didn’t see the
black gowned magician truly act.”
“You only saw him using fireball scrolls, is that right?”
Xu Ma pondered it, then nodded, “Correct.”
After telling his tale, his anxious heart had relaxed a lot.
Then Hun Tong asked a few more questions.
Xu Ma replied honestly to what he knew and what he didn’t know.
When everything was finished, Hun Tong nodded to the dragonman youngster with a
satisfied look, “Not bad.”
The priest coughed, and the divine spell, Detect Lies, was dispelled.
Everyone filed back out.
The dragonman youngster was the last out and consoled Xu Ma, “Rest well.”
“You gave us information on the necromancer and the pirates.”
“That is no small merit.”
“Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord and the church have given a bounty, they are
yours.”
“Furthermore, the mercenary corps will reward you too.”
“But the information on the Vinegar Jar Pirates, in accordance with Lord Hun
Tong’s wishes, must be kept strictly secret. It cannot affect the auction.”
“Oh, I understand, I understand Lord Commander!” Xu Ma hastily nodded.
After everyone left, Xu Ma sat in his bedside for a good while before reacting.
“Hehehe…” He began to giggle, “I’ve made a great profit!”
Although he was wounded again, his reputation had been completely redeemed.
When news of this merit began to propagate, he would be able to hold his head
high in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Not only would he be famous, but there was also a considerable monetary reward
too.
“I didn’t expect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to not take a share of the
reward for the information.”
“This mercenary corps really is quite different; they are so just and fair!”
“Commander Long Fu was also concerned about me, which was quite different from
what I remember about him. Compared to him, Auxiliary Commander Shi Qi acts so
coldly. It’s no wonder Long Fu is the commander.”
Xu Ma had rich experience of society.
Despite that, because of the dragonman youngster’s concern for him, he felt a
trace of warmness.
“Ah…” Xu Ma let out an exceedingly deep sigh of satisfaction. He put both hands
on the back of his head and slowly stretched out on his bed and looked at the
ceiling, “These wounds were worth it. Next time, if there is such an
opportunity, ugh…”
As he thought freely of the future, he carelessly pulled his wounds, causing
him to instantly let out a cold gasp of pain.
“Next time…hiss, forget about it.”
“My small arms and legs can’t take such risks again.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had benefited beyond Xu Ma’s imagination. 
After Hun Tong and the priest left the port, Zi Di and Cang Xu studied the list
of items Hun Tong left behind.
The survivors’ next plan was to set up a bloodline detection drug database.
Only by testing their members’ bloodlines could they take the appropriate steps
so that after they built the Bloodline Purification Formation, they could
evaluate their members’ talents and limits.
Therefore, although there were many things on the list, Zi Di and Cang Xu were
most interested in medicine and drugs.
“They have a snowflake catalyst; this is an outstanding catalyst rarely seen on
the market. Take them all first.”
“There is 30kg of raw nut copper, so much? It is very difficult to produce and
is often a byproduct of large scale magic tests. Generally, a large quantity of
high level life material and metal material is used to make it. Although it is
expensive, it’s absolutely worth it.”
“This is delaying time grease; we also need to buy that. Look. This is the
product of the Dimond Box alchemy group. That’s right, that’s the one. It is
said that this alchemy group’s product, the delaying time grease, is so gentle
in its medicinal effect that it can even be applied to human skin and apply its
delaying effect to it. Many nobles privately have a strong demand for it.”
“Look at this. Bird’s nest mercury, this is the main alchemy material for
sharpening potions. The empire has long restricted this material, I didn’t
expect this auction would be selling 500kg of it. We need it all! Many
bloodline drugs can be made from it.”
Zi Di and Cang Xu grew more excited as they studied the item list.
Two Eyes Island’s auction listings was far richer than the two had anticipated.
Hun Tong had once said to the dragonman youngster that every auction on Two
Eyes Island exceeded the previous one. 
It was very possible that after Hun Tong and the imperial secret spy
collaborated together, they wanted to profit as much as possible with the old
business model before the situation on Two Eyes Island changed



****** Chapter 111: You’ve Found the Wrong Person! ******
Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Hun Tong had traded information, the
survivors had a chance to buy some things ahead of time.
These things rarely appeared in the marketplace, either because the output was
low, the empire regulated them, or perhaps because the source of them was rare.
Zi Di and Cang Xu soon saw a tree mushroom.
This tree mushroom never grew on the Sheng Ming or Wilderness Continent, but an
entirely different one far away,
One item after another was annotated.
The survivors wanted to buy many things.
Establishing a bloodline detection database was an enormous undertaking,
because innumerable bloodlines existed in this world.
However, the survivors could only buy 30 items ahead of schedule.
Hun Tong couldn’t allow them to run away with everything ahead of time, if he
did that, he couldn’t hold the auction at all.
It is worth mentioning that there weren’t that many things on the list.
Such as a gold level healing potion.
To a gold level cultivator, this kind of potion was likely a second life.
Therefore, it was very precious/
Hun Tong wanted to save it for the auction and increase Two Eyes Island’s
business effect and wouldn’t sell it to a mercenary corps ahead of time.
The city government building.
A gold level communication device was on the desk, its surface was glowing
brightly.
Hun Tong was asking about Xu Ma’s story through the device.
The device transmitted the response of the imperial secret spy, “Shadow”. “That
is correct, the black gowned magician only used magic scrolls when they
attacked the courtyard.”
“The scene there only had water path and fire path traces and aura present.”
“Only on the second battlefield was there a large amount of necromancy residue
aura.”
Shadow continued, “Like we expected, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was just
dragged into this. Does this Xu Ma believe in the God of Misfortune?”
“He was stabbed by my subordinate’s blade, leading him to notice the latter,
following his trail, and getting caught up in a greater crisis and risked life
and death in doing so.”
Hun Tong replied, “He should consider this a blessing in disguise.”
“I heard that the information reward wasn’t confiscated by the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ leadership, instead they gave it to him. Furthermore, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will also reward him for his merit.”
“Oh?” The imperial secret spy was somewhat surprised, “It seems this group of
arms smugglers are quite interesting.”
Hun Tong approved of it, “Although this group has an unclear origin, for the
sake of money, they were willing take the risk to inform me of this
information. They sit straight with me.”
After their meeting, the Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord now had a favorable
impression of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
If only he knew the truth. Who knows what he would think if he knew Cang Xu was
the necromancer.
Hun Tong continued, “Next matter, we will search for that black gowned magician
with all haste.”
“Good.” The imperial secret spy didn’t object, “Currently, we have determined
for sure that he is the necromancer!”
Just as he said that the imperial secret spy’s voice came to a spontaneous
stop.
Then, Hun Tong heard a burst of peculiar static coming from the communication
device.
The sound quickly ceased when the imperial secret spy relayed the latest urgent
information.
His voice was both surprised and joyous, “Good news, my side has found where
the necromancer is.”
“Eh?” Hun Tong was surprised.
The imperial secret spy laughed, “Take a guess, who gave us this significant
information?”
Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s mind flashed, “Was it Xi Dai Zi?”
“That’s right, it was Xi Dai Zi.” The imperial secret spy confirmed.
As it turns out, after Xi Dai Zi was ambushed by the ghostly two headed ogre,
he retreated from the battle.
While sneaking through the secret paths, he happened upon the necromancer, Chi
Yu.
Because of Cang Xu’s performance, Xi Dai Zi thought that Chi Yu was the
necromancer he fought and to him, he was the enemy he had snuck up on.
Although Xi Dai Zi had wrathful and killing intent towards Chi Yu, he endured
them and didn’t attack.
He was still wounded, and the other person was immersed in painstaking alchemy
refinement and was also in excellent condition. In addition, Xi Dai Zi had some
misgivings.
It was the environment here.
Two Eyes Island was not the boundless ocean.
If battle broke out, it would attract the attention of Hun Tong and the priest.
After Xi Dai Zi carefully assessed things, he found that attacking was too
risky.
He planned to use another’s blade to do the dirty work.
Although the thin person and his people were all dead, he still had a way of
communicating with the spy.
Thanks to that, Xi Dai Zi could secretly contact the imperial secret spy’s
subordinate and indicate where the necromancer, Chi Yu, was hiding.
Feudal Lord Hun Tong sneered, “We don’t want the necromancer to draw in the
Blood Light Punishment Institution, the fishmen are the same. If the Blood
Light Punishment Institution comes, there will bound to be a strong cultivator
that will seriously hinder their plan of seizing Two Eyes Island.”
“We couldn’t find the necromancer, but Xi Dai Zi did it with ease.”
“He must know how to control Two Eyes Island, along with where many hidden
rooms and secret paths are.”
The imperial secret spy replied, “To ensure absolute security, you should do it
yourself, your Lordship. Although Xi Dai Zi requested that we act, I told him
this: it is necessary to do something so troublesome, we can let a borrowed
knife do the dirty work. We believe that the Feudal Lord is more worried about
this than us.”
Hun Tong chuckled, “So, you are biding your time while I, the grand feudal lord
will personally settle this.”
The imperial secret spy chortled back, “My Lord, you also know my strength is
incomparable to yours.”
Hun Tong shook his head, “If you want me to act, my fee won’t be small.”
The imperial secret spy was silent for a bit, then said, “You can take half of
the 50,000 coins, worthy Lord!”
The imperial secret spy was talking about the 50,000 gold coins he had gotten
from Xi Dai Zi.
At the time, he and Xi Dai Zi’s insincere negotiation was fruitful, and he
agreed to become the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ insider. Therefore, Xi Dai Zi gave
him 50,000 gold coins as an advance payment.
Afterwards, the black gowned magician appeared and battled Xi Dai Zi.
The imperial secret spy’s subordinates then vanished without a trace.
Hun Tong and the imperial secret spy believed that the black gowned magician
killed the thin person and the others.  Naturally, the 50,000 gold coins the
thin person had on him was now in the black gowned magician’s hands.
50,000 gold coins was no small amount.
Even Hun Tong was thinking about it, the imperial secret spy more so.
But to work together, the imperial secret spy wanted to divide the spoils
equally with Hun Tong.
Hun Tong secretly considered this and felt that an equal division was good
enough and decided to follow this distribution plan.
Neither knew that this large sum of gold coins was not with Chi Yu, instead it
was with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ leaders Cang Xu and Zi Di were
deciding what to buy with this sum of money.
“Finally, my refinement is done!” In the hidden chamber, the necromancer Chi Yu
focused his eyes on a finished alchemy product, his eyes couldn’t contain his
excitement.
The pale bone wings were floating in the air.
It was a pair of bone wings, symmetrical on both sides, and its fine joins
looked like delicate bamboo. Between the bones, the badly damaged light purple
skin looked like a crude cleaning rag.
Chi Yu took a deep breath, and took off his upper garments, exposing his
emaciated body.
He took a step forward, towards the pale bone wings, then poured his spirit
into the magic item.
The pale bone wings moved by themselves and like a sharp awl, the pale bone
wings dug into Chi Yu’s back.
Chi Yu gasped miserably.
The severe pain caused his face to warp.
His eyes flashed with a determined light, and he tenaciously clenched his jaw
in perseverance.
After the pale bone wings inserted themselves into his body, green-black veins
traced across Chi Yu’s back like wrinkles and emitted a straggly sinister aura.
“Hu hu…” Chi Yu panted, “I didn’t expect that even after being remade by
necromancy that accepting this item would still be so difficult.”
“No, it should be because I’m in a terrible state.”
“To refine it, I spent so much energy.”
“I should rest well. After I recover, I use the curtain of night to fly away
from Two Eyes Island.”
Bang!
Suddenly, there was a loud sound.
A gold battle qi wreathed Hun Tong smashed into the hidden chamber.
Chi Yu: ??!!
Hun Tong growled, “Necromancer, I finally found you.”
At that moment, Chi Yu wanted to roar, “I was minding my own goddamm business!
You found the wrong person!”
But he had been prepared for this mentally and knew that refuting would do
nothing.
In this moment of crisis, he activated his arrangement in the hidden chamber.
Boom!!
With a detonation, dust covered the area and pieces of wood flew everywhere.
Within the smoke and dust, Chi Yu spread his wings, and like a swallow, flew
into the skies.
He was running like his life depended on it!
“You’re not going anywhere.” The priest gently called out.
A moment later, the light of a divine spell appeared above Chi Yu.
Chi Yu miserably bawled, and his wings broke, causing him to fall.
On the ground, Hun Tong calmly extended his hand.
Gold battle qi bubbled out and turned into a rope that wrapped itself around
Chi Yu.
“If you want to capture me, you shall pay the price!!” Chi Yu knew he was a
spent force and, with no hope at all in his heart, brazenly self-detonated.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
His bones all became spurs and shot down in all directions.
The city guards surrounding him that were hit lost their lives.
Hun Tong, the priest, the city guard commander, and the other cultivators were
unmoved by it.
“Is he dead?” The city guard commander was somewhat incredulous.
The priest smiled, “What else could he do? He was a mere iron level.”
Xi Dai Zi was hiding in the shadows. When he saw Chi Yu die, his heart was both
delighted and somewhat unsatisfied, “To refine that magic item, he spent too
much time and energy, straining his condition.”
“When Hun Tong attacked, he was caught unprepared.”
“He could stand against me, but against a gold level, it was not enough.”
“What a pity, he didn’t damage Two Eyes Island’s defenses significantly.”
Also watching in secret, Cang Xu and Zi Di were also feeling sorry.
“That necromancy bone sect magic has astonishing might!”
“Truly regretfully, those spurs are casting materials.”
We cannot get them. Even if there is some left, the priest will cleanse them
with divine spells.”
“Alas, I still hoped that the necromancer could have escaped and given us a
chance to attack him.”
“Hun Tong is the feudal lord here, and his control of this place is very deep.
It hadn’t been long since we located the target in hiding.”
“But when I think about it, the mysterious third party power can actually hide
under Hun Tong’s nose, it can be seen from this that they are quite strong. I
hope that after we warned Hun Tong, he will be able to dig out this power too.”
Chi Yu’s death to Cang Xu and Zi Di was a minor regret.
As the instigators, they weren’t worried about Chi Yu being taken captive.
Even if torture revealed that Chi Yu wasn’t the necromancer who had attacked,
would it matter?
Would Hun Tong believe a necromancer’s words?
Even if he did believe them, would he search for the second necromancer with
great fanfare?
Positively not!
This was his Two Eyes Island.
This was his foundation.
Especially with the auction about to start.



****** Chapter 112: Where is My Money? ******
To everyone’s delight and satisfaction, Chi Yu was dead.
Xi Dai Zi needn’t worry any longer and could proceed with the fishman clan’s
planned attack of Two Eyes Island.
The imperial secret spy Shadow also needn’t worry about the Blood Light
Punishment Institution sending a cultivator over for an inquiry.
Hun Tong could finally let out a breath. Without the Blood Light Punishment
Institution, his transition of Two Eyes Island now had abundant time and space
to be conducted.
The port blockade ceased.
When the inhabitants of Two Eyes Island heard the necromancer was executed, one
after the other, all of them cheered for Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s abilities.
This included merchants, pirates, and more, all were overjoyed.
The only fly in the ointment was that the 50,000 gold coins were missing.
The necromancer Chi Yu was dead and had exploded into bony dregs, leaving not
even a corpse behind.
When the battle began, the arrangement in his hiding place triggered a large
explosion.
Hun Tong didn’t give up hope, and he surmised, “The money shouldn’t have been
on the necromancer himself, if it was, there would be a trace or two of those
50,000 gold coins. Therefore, this money was likely hidden elsewhere.”
Since the necromancer could find one hidden chamber, then it was reasonable to
think that he knew of other ones too.
The imperial secret spy also agreed, “We can continue investigating and follow
the necromancer’s trajectory of action, perhaps there will be a valuable trail
that will allow us to find where the money is hidden.”
He didn’t want to give it up, it was a lot of money!
Meanwhile, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Cang Xu and Zi Di finally ended
their discussion.
They had issued their final decision and chose 30 items.
These things were almost all related to medicine, not finished products, but
instead precious alchemy materials. The only comparatively unusual thing was a
intact spurting smoke dragon corpse.
After this, Cang Xu came to Feudal Lord Hun Tong again and reached a deal.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would pay 3000 gold coins to purchase 30 items
ahead of time.
“At present, we have a lot of capital.” Zi Di thought to herself.
The 50,000 gold coins Hun Tong and the imperial spy were persistently searching
for was in their hands. This purchase didn’t even use a tenth of the gold
coins.
“The auction remains the focus.”
“We must compete to buy many things.”
Zi Di had already taken aim at the auction, ready to launch a heavy attack.
As for her potion sales, the sales volume had steadily deteriorated, and she no
longer paid it any heed.
Of course, this was the primary way the group had gained capital. None of them
thought they’d capture such a find!
“These arms smugglers have money.” Hun Tong’s impression of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps improved somewhat.
Remember, these items were 30% higher than the market price.
Hun Tong didn’t make a loss, he had earned quite the profit,
The banker usually never loses.
What he didn’t know was that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was using the
money he had been desperately searching for.
Xi Dai Zi wanted to leave.
He was standing at the exit of a secret path.
This secret path was located on the bottom of the old island and only opened up
for a dozen minutes in the wee hours.
Saltwater intruded into the secret path, and it was pitch dark.
But to Xi Dai Zi, the environment wasn’t terrible to him. He was a deep sea
fishman, he could breathe underwater from childhood and his big fish eyes could
glean the barest light to see in the darkness.
But he was still injured and couldn’t change his appearance.
Before leaving, he took out a simple communication device and poured magic
power into it.
It was a single-use type.
After the imperial secret spy obtained the communication request, he
immediately responded.
This communication device was one that he had his subordinate give Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi contacted the imperial secret spy of his own volition, “I’m about to
leave the island.”
The imperial secret spy stared blankly, “No need to worry, I just got the
latest information on soul crystals being sold on the black market.”
He wanted to strive to gain more trust and learn the exact time Xi Dai Zi
planned to attack. 
But Xi Dai Zi had already decided, “Although there was an accident, that
wretched necromancer has gotten his deserved end.”
The imperial secret spy laughed, “That was the result of our joint
collaboration. We’ve always worked well together, no?”
Xi Dai Zi couldn’t refute that.
The fishman was silent for a bit, then said, “It is precisely because of that
that my group sought your cooperation. The next step is planning, I hope there
won’t be any mishaps.”
“The imperial secret spy replied, “I’ll do my best, but I can’t make guarantees
my fishman friend. Be aware, the world does not revolve around you. Two Eyes
Island’s defenses are still very strong, not only is there Hun Tong’s faction,
but there are also the five great merchant alliances. If you want to attack the
island, you’d better come with sufficient strength.”
“And money too of course.”
“As for us, making money is the most important thing there is.”
When money was mentioned, Xi Dai Zi laughed, “Was the 50,000 gold coins
returned?”
Cough.
That sentence was like a formless dagger piercing the imperial secret spy’s
heart.
The imperial secret spy felt his heart aching again.
Hun Tong still had his foundation and industry, while he had neither.
Due to the death of the thin person and the others, not only had he lost
manpower, but he also had to pay compensation and other expenses.
The imperial secret spy was looking forward to this money more than Hun Tong,
he needed it to recruit a new staff!
He couldn’t tell Xi Dai Zi the truth.
He still had to win the trust of the fishman shaman.
The imperial secret spy could only laugh and resolutely answer, “Of course! The
money is bac kin my hands.”
“That’s good.” When he heard that, Xi Dai Zi showed a profound smile.
He crushed the communication device, then with a running start, dove into the
water.
He swam the rest of the way through the dark and lightless seawater.
After swimming 2 nautical miles alone, a fishman knight riding a 6 meter long
ribbonfish came to his aid.
There was a line of seats on the ribbonfish’s back.
The fishman knight sat at the front and with both hands, grabbed the “reins”.
Upon careful inspection, the “reins” were the ribbonfish’s fish whiskers.
A long lance lay next to the fishman’s foot.
Xi Dai Zi sat in the seat behind him.
The long whiskered ribbonfish roamed through the sea, its speed growing as the
two fishmen gradually distanced themselves from Two Eyes Island.
After roughly 3 hours, they arrived at a coral reef on the seabed.
The coral reef on the onset looked nothing special, but inside it, it had been
remodeled into a simple and crude camp.
This was one of the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan’s vanguard camps.
The fishman shaman Xi Dai Zi entered the camp to rest.
The person in charge of the camp was an iron level fishman warrior.
“How is the situation? Are you wounded your Lordship?” The fishman warrior
expressed their concerns.
“Something unexpected happened.” Xi Dai Zi nodded, then detailed what had
happened.
The fishman warrior took note of it, he needed to report this to the clan.
“So that’s what happened!”
“A necromancer? It’s good he’s dead. It’s also convenient that he didn’t die by
ours too.”
The fishman didn’t have a good opinion of necromancers.
In fact, all races and lifeforms loathed necromancers with disgust and
hostility.
“How are you doing with things here?” Xi Dai Zi was concerned about the fishman
warrior’s tasks.
The fishman warrior lifted the bone flute in his hand, “I can now play ‘Fish
Hometown’ proficiently, every day I can attract a gigantic school of fish
together.”
“The Holy City is worthy of being the Holy City, everything from it is good.”
“I now know why Two Eyes Island was locked down. They were searching for a
necromancer, so we seized the opportunity to gather many schools of fish
without any disturbances!” 
“But these schools of fish cannot stay in one place forever, our control of
them is breaking.”
Xi Dai Zi nodded, “Then don’t control them, release them and let them form a
beast tide!”
“We need them to attack Two Eyes Island, deplete their defenses and supplies
ahead of time, and probe their defensive methods.”
“Understood, Lord Shaman!” The fishman warrior immediately accepted the order.
After Xi Dai Zi rested for a short bit, he departed.
Before leaving, the fishman warrior hesitantly asked, “My Lord, is it really
feasible to have a human power serve as our insider? After all, they are
humans.”
“Don’t worry.” Xi Dai Zi revealed abundant confidence, “As long as they take
the coins, it will work.”
“That money is not so easily taken.”
“They are the Devil Gold Coins!”
Upon hearing that secret, the fishman warrior’s eyes suddenly went round with
pleasant surprise and cleared misgivings.



****** Chapter 113: Spurting Smoke Dragon Transformation ******
Wisteria Store.
Yan Yi was lying on the sales counter, his lightless eyes gazing at the store’s
door.
There was barely anyone there.
Inside the store, the salesclerks were also idle and the stocked medicine
shelves were of no interest to anyone.
Due to the Green Hat Healing Potion and Sweet Blood Potion, the shore had a
great resurgence, but now, things have grown dark again.
The biggest cause was the ruckus that slandered the Green Hat Healing Potion,
saying it had serious side effects.
Reputation was always important, especially for new medicine.
Regardless of whose idea this was, it was a sinister trick equivalent of a
serpent striking a vulnerability with a fatal blow.
The salesclerks were depressed and grieved.
They knew there were no issues with the Green Hat Potion.
All of them were speculating whether a great merchant alliance was behind this.
Against such excessive methods, one didn’t have any chance to rise.
A salesclerk was unable to hold themselves back and he went to Yan Yi, “Store
manager, I heard those two potions were given to you by the elders. Can you not
contact them and have them think of something to do?”
“The potions have an expiration date; things can’t continue like this.”
“Right, if we don’t act, the outside will really think our Green Hat Healing
Potion has a problem!”
The salesclerk echoed one after the other.
Yan Yi coldly snorted, “Do it yourself!”
He chased away the salesclerks.
Wouldn’t he have contacted them due to such a big matter?
But he got nothing back.
Besides the genuine potions before him, Yan Yi was in a state of misconception,
was everything a dream?
The two level seven elders appeared mysteriously and disappeared suddenly.
Originally, he thought they wanted to seize market share; these two potions
were part of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s leadership’s strategy to use Two
Eyes Island as the first step towards their reemergence. 
But in the end….was everything ruined?
You won’t budge even after being defamed?
This is but a minor setback!
In Yan Yi’s eyes, there was a way to solve this completely.
Wasn’t it just reputation?
Two Eyes Island had a silver level alchemist, they should seek his endorsement.
If he didn’t want to, they would beseech the feudal lord and work with Hun
Tong!
If neither was possible, then there was still one big option left. Cutting the
price.
These two potions had a profit margin to spare.
Plenty of space to discount the price.
If the price was cut, a low cost and quality product, despite rumors of side
effects, will generally be used by people taking a risk out of desperation.
As time went on, everyone would find no problems with it.
The rumors about side effects would be discredited.
However, the level seven elders didn’t do anything and took no action.
They just vanished!
Hey, we were just playing around.
Yan Yi had a profound feeling that he had been toyed with.
What happened beforehand?
Why did you toss me these two potions?
The two potions sold so remarkably at the beginning!
It gave people hope, then made them despair.
Yan Yi had a question for the Wisteria Merchant Alliance elders: what are you
up to? What do you really want?
Isn’t this conduct a bit crass?
Yan Yi did not know that as a matter of fact, Cang Xu and Zi Di had gone to the
shop personally, and wanted to resolve this problem.
But something unexpected happened during it, leading to a series of events
beyond their expectations.
Nowadays, Zi Di and Cang Xu had temporarily abandoned the medicine business to
the back of their minds.
The reason why the two potions were given was to make a profit.
It incidentally helped the Wisteria store too.
50,000 gold coins was a huge sum. With that money, the medicine business
problem appeared insignificant.
Cang Xu and Zi Di now had more important things to do.
That was the medicine database!
As long as the medicine database was constructed, they would be able to test
their members’ bloodlines.
After bloodline testing, they could use the Bloodcore to absorb the
corresponding lifeforms then make use of them with the Bloodline Purification
Formation…
When that happens, the survivors will begin to develop rapidly!
Those whose potential and talent are raised will improve and turn the heavens
and earth upside down.
With potential and talent, those stagnant will be able to continue cultivating
and the shackles that bound the survivors’ limits will completely disappear.
With time, the survivors would become gold levels, saints, and legends!
When that happens, who would dare slander the survivors’ potions?
In the end, this was the world of the strong.
The strong were respected, this was the world’s greatest rule.
Before that was impossible, but with the Bloodcore, with the Bloodline
Purification Formation, the survivors had hope.
The dragonman youngster possessed admirable tolerance. He candidly gave the
secret of the Bloodcore out, and those that knew about it worked to their
limits with the greatest energy and passion they could muster towards the
completion of this plan.
Medicine and formations was set aside for magicians to work on.
The dragonman youngster now found himself alone in a ship cabin sizing up a
dragon corpse before him.
The dragon corpse was 5 meters long, 4.2 meters wide, and 3 meters tall. The
dragon’s feet were shaped similarly to a pterosaur, its dragon skin was red, it
didn’t have dragon scales, and its dragon eyes were orange yellow.
This was one of the items Zi Di and Cang Xu had bought ahead of time – a
spurting smoke dragon corpse.
The spurting smoke dragon lived near volcanic craters and often lived in large
groups. Their life level went from bronze to gold level.
This spurting smoke dragon was silver level.
The spurting smoke dragon’s most prominent exterior feature was the ring mounds
across its body. These mounds slightly bulged above the skin and were of
unequal height.
Whenever a spurting smoke dragon accelerated in flight or did battle with a
powerful enemy, these ring mounds would spurt out dense black smoke with an
explosion of splattering flames.
It was precisely because of this trait that scholars named it the spurting
smoke dragon.
Why did they purchase this dragon corpse?
The reason was very simple.
According to bloodline relationships, the spurting smoke dragon’s bloodline was
descended from the Flame Dragon King.
In other words, the spurting smoke dragon’s ancestor was the Flame Dragon King.
Therefore, by absorbing the spurting smoke dragon, the dragonman youngster
could acquire the Flame Dragon King’s bloodline.
Of course, this was just a theory.
Specifically, how much could be absorbed depended on many practical factors.
After determining for sure that he was alone and that his surroundings were
secure, the dragonman youngster activated the Bloodcore in his heart.
The Bloodcore emitted a red light.
The red light bubbled out and covered the dragonman youngster’s entire body.
Soon after, the red light launched into the dragon corpse.
A moment later, the dragon corpse faded into a pile of fine ash.
The red light swelled into a ball, then went back into the dragonman
youngster’s body.
The red light increased the bloodlines in the Bloodcore.
Spurting Smoke Dragon bloodline concentration – 35%
Flame Dragon King Bloodline concentration…1.03%!
After the dragonman youngster detected this, he quickly flashed a smile.
Before, his Flame Dragon King bloodline concentration was almost 30%, but now
it is above 30%.
1.03% seemed like a low number, but it had actually exceeded the dragonman
youngster’s estimations.
He knew that when he absorbed the legend level Flame Dragon King, he only got
around 30%, that’s all.
The spurting smoke dragon was a only silver level lifeform. Of course, in light
of this, the dragonman youngster now calculated, “Since it had this kind of
Flame Dragon King bloodline concentration, that indicates that its potential
was very high, it still had room to grow and might have grown into a gold level
spurting smoke dragon in the future.”
The increased bloodline concentration cause the dragonman youngster’s height to
grow by 5 centimeters and his body to bulk a bit too.
Although his appearance didn’t change too much, the Life Scorching Dragon
Breath’s cast time had been reduced by 0.5 seconds.
Before, when the dragonman youngster had trained this racial magic, he had
shortened its cast time to 3 seconds.
Now that another 0.5 seconds was gone, the racial magic’s casting time was now
2.5 seconds, and its actual combat value had dramatically risen.
“Hold on, I can also do a hybrid transformation.”
The dragonman youngster’s spirit stirred and the Bloodcore activated again.
Red light flashed across his body, then faded away.
The dragonman youngster’s elbow had a pair of bulging ring mounds.
These two circular mounds were analogous to the ones on spurting smoke dragon.
The dragonman youngster tried to use these brand new organs.
Very quickly, the temperature inside the ring mounds soared and they began to
emit orange red flames. Then, with a crack, a strand of black smoke spurted
from them.
The dragonman youngster sensed that hidden within his elbow, there was the
power of a restless warhorse ready to stride forth with its great legs and
hooves!
The powerful strength in the backside of his elbow was brewing.
The dragonman youngster carefully released this strength, and a moment later,
his elbow suddenly swung upwards.
His fist nearly hit his face.
At the same time, his upper arm ferociously smacked his cheek, bruising the
flesh slightly.
The ring mounds exploded with such strength that the dragonman youngster
couldn’t control it with his first attempt.
The dragonman youngster staggered back, slowly relaxed, lowered his arm, and
loosened his muscles and bones.
“Every time the ring mounds are used, they erupt with motive power.”
But this kind of organ structure fits a spurting smoke dragon very well. To use
this in human form I need constant trial and error, along with a lot of
training to make use of it properly.”
“Wait a minute, can I use the Surge battle skill with the ring mounds as my
base?”
The principle behind the Surge battle skill was that by using Bursting
Explosion battle qi to produce micro explosion to produce thrust, a fighter
could push their body forward.
Nowadays, the dragonman youngster had trained the Surge battle skill to the
point where he had perfect command of it, like it was a fundamental instinct to
him, and he could direct the intensity of its power as he pleased.
What would happen if the Surge battle skill’s thrust was added to the spurting
smoke dragon’s round ring mound organ?
The dragonman youngster’s expectations increased the more he thought about it.
He decided to try it.
A few minutes later.
Bang.
With a loud noise, ship planks were blown up.
The dragonman youngster’s figure crashed outwards and landed into the seawater
around the port.
The commotion immediately attracted a circle of onlookers.
“What just happened?”
“Did someone attack us?”
“No, it’s the commander. The Lord Commander fell into the water!”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was shaken.
The dragonman youngster awkwardly swam back up to the surface and climbed back
on deck, “No need to panic, I was just trying a new battle skill.”
“Get someone over here.”
“I need to mend a hole in my ship.”
“Understood, Lord Commander!!” Mu Ban loudly responded as he lifted a set of
carpenter tools and ran over.
The dragonman youngster returned to the captain room and was about to continue
his research when he received urgent news from the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
In the seafloor depths, a massive school of fish was headed towards Two Eyes
Island!
An oceanic beast tide was about to roll up on Two Eyes Island.



****** Chapter 114: Oceanic Beast Tide ******
“A beast tide?” The dragonman youngster was stupefied.
Every time the rising and falling of Two Eyes Island happened, the surrounding
ecosystem would change and be displaced, attracting many predators to a
gluttonous feast.
“But to say it is a forming beast tide somewhat ridiculous. The dragonman
youngster scanned the information, inwardly speechless at the scale of this
beast tide.
He was not unfamiliar with beast tides.
On Mystifying Monster Island. He had experienced many.
This was the first one he had experienced after leaving Mystifying Monster
Island.
Electric sharks, ghost face fish, noble flying snappers, seafloor mountain
snails, narwhales, venomous jellyfish…it really looked like a large exhibition
of seabed creatures.
The scale of the school of fish far exceeded any beast tide on Mystifying
Monster Island, and although the majority of it was composed of ordinary ocean
fish, there were still many magic beasts in it.
There was no magic prohibition domain here, thus the magic beasts could use
racial magic.
Therefore, the beast tide was far mightier.
Even the dragonman youngster felt anxious about this information.
“Fortunately, although the beast tide has formed, the schools of fish are
scattered and aren’t under a unified command.”
It would have been even worse if a beast king appeared.
“According to the information, this beast tide doesn’t have a gold level magic
beast in it yet.”
“Two Eyes Island’s defenses shouldn’t be bad either.”
The dragonman youngster assessed it to himself.
Two Eyes Island’s commerce was flourishing and Hun Tong definitely had money,
Everyone looked up at Two Eyes Island’s defenses. Even during normal times, Two
Eyes Island did not have many externally visible defenses. 
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection abilities still exceeded Two Eyes
Island’s. After all, it was War Merchant’s gold level magic ship.
A dozen minutes later, an alarm suddenly rang through Two Eyes Island’s port.
Not long after, a port official ran over to notify, “This is the order directly
from Feudal Lord Hun Tong. A beast tide has appeared, he hopes your corps can
immediately depart and cull it down!”
This was the mercenary mission given by the feudal lord himself, and the
rewards were generous.
The dragonman youngster had no reason to refuse.
Besides the mission, he also wanted to provide support to Zong Ge and the
others.
Half the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships had gone out before this. These
troops were being led by Zong Ge and were doing training,
Due to the port blockade because of the necromancer search, Zong Ge’s training
plan had been delayed by a lot.
At once, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ remaining ships all swung into action
and left the harbor at the same time under the dragonman youngster’s
leadership.
As they traveled across the ocean, the dragonman youngster noticed that other
ships were leaving port too.
Most were large fishing boats, and some were merchant alliance transportation
ships.
Leaving aside the fishing boats, merchant alliance transportation ships had
decent combat capabilities. After all, voyages were very dangerous these days,
with pirates running amuck, one needed battle strength to guarantee the safety
of the merchandise.
What most attracted the dragonman youngster’s attention was the two other
mercenary corps’ fleet.
On Two Eyes Island, there were two mercenary corps stationed at all times.
One was the Iron Club Mercenary Corps, and the other was the Bandage Mercenary
Corps.
To live as a mercenary corps on the ocean, they naturally had their own fleet.
The mercenary corps clearly received the mission and were departing at similar
times.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps was a bit bigger at 14 ships, and their flagship
was a dark iron ship. The iron ship’s planks had a half sphere sticking out of
every one of them.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps had 12 ships, its flagship was made out of wood,
but regardless of whether it was the hull, deck, or mast, all of them had a
white bandage tied to it, a very visible characteristic.
Each fleet’s flagship was a bronze level magic ship.
In comparison, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet was a bit smaller, and
their flagship was of ordinary level.
Anyways, if one wanted to calculate everything in the comparison, the two
mercenary corps fleets combined would not even be worth half the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
After the dragonman youngster sized them up for a bit, he returned to his
captain’s room.
Amongst the ear-piercing alarms, numerous ships left port and scattered from
each other.
The beast tide was coming from all directions, and each ship was headed towards
a different front.
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps advanced for 20 minutes, they came to
their first destination. 
The dragonman youngster received Zong Ge’s transmission.
When Zong Ge heard about the beast tide, he decided to fight where he was, and
did not plan to return back to converge with the other group. He believed that
this was a rare and beneficial opportunity to drill his troops.
“This guy…” The dragonman youngster was a little exasperated.
He trusted the half beastman.
Since Zong Ge acted like this, he must be sure of it.
But as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ foremost leader, he wanted to think
things through more.
At once, the dragonman youngster immersed himself in the ocean map on his
desk,, his finger slowly moving across it.
“The route has to be altered.”
“Deal with this side, then hurry over here, then we will break towards where
Zong Ge is.”
“When we reach the third location, we will be close enough. Even if something
unexpected happens, we will be able to support Zong Ge’s squad on time.”
Although the Deep Sea Monster Fish had scouted out a lot of intelligence, the
beast tide was not completely transparent.
No one could say precisely what was hiding in it.
“A large school of fish ahead, prepare for battle!” The dragonman youngster
ordered.
On the deck, mercenaries proficiently pulled sails and restrained rope.
Some mercenaries were on the sides of the ships, preparing fishing nets.
In the hull’s midsection, cannon holes were being opened up.
Three to five mercenaries worked together to push cannons forward so their
mouths were sticking out of the hull.
Bai Ya was one of the gunners.
“This is the first time I’ve seen a beast tide in the ocean.” He swallowed his
saliva nervously.
Bang, thump, boom.
While smoke puffed from cannon mouths.
After a burst of bombardment, the ocean surface in front of the fleet was
mixing with blood.
Countless ocean fish turned on their bellies and floated to the surface. Many
severed limbs jumbled in the waves, sinking or floating in the seawater.
The first round of bombardment had scattered the school of fish.
The remaining quarter of the ocean fish were horrified and fled in all
directions.
The mercenaries began to throw nets and fish out the spoils of war.
“We will sail in fifteen minutes.” The dragonman youngster commanded.
“But Lord Commander, that isn’t enough time to gather the spoils.” A sailor
raised an objection.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “Throw away these fish, there are better things
waiting for us.”
He had first-hand intelligence on hand.
He knew there were more valuable schools of fish waiting for him to harvest.
In the early stages of the beast tide, many schools of fish were dispersed
about, thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps sallied out and routed one after
the other.
To the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, this was a profitable hunting opportunity.
Not long after, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps hurried to their second
destination.
This school of fish was unlike the previous one.
The water under them was as dark as the night.
Normal cannon shells couldn’t hit them.
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had many kinds of alchemy shells in their
armory.
The dragonman youngster chose to use sonic shells.
This kind of artillery shell was specialized for shooting into underwater
depths. Their original purpose was to target nagas or fishmen. After the shell
detonates, a strong sound wave will be produced, capable of destroying the
hearing of seafloor lifeforms, vibrating them to death or unconsciousness.
Using the sonic wave shells on deep sea fish felt like using a sledgehammer to
crack a nut, the effects were really outstanding.
Countless ocean fish floated up, and for a moment, they filled the ocean
surface for several hundred meters in a spectacular sight.
The mercenaries were constantly throwing nets and catching them as best they
could.
Large quantities of fish filled their holds.
“We don’t have enough fishing nets.”
“We need more fishing nets.”
“This is only the second location, and our hold is already a third full.”
The mercenaries were happily worried.
“Perhaps we can use alchemy puppets to remodel the ships to have more storage
space.” Cang Xu proposed.
“Unnecessary.” Zi Di calculated, “We can return to port early and sell off
these fish to clear out the holds before setting out again.”
“When the beast tide strikes, there will be numerous catches.”
“The price of this in the market for these fish will be constantly falling. We
want to dump them as soon as possible so we can make the most money.”
“As for afterwards, when the beast tide becomes more compressed and schools of
fish crowd around each other and attack Two Eyes Island together, if we set out
again, it will be too dangerous.”
Zi Di’s business abilities had long been approved of.
When the dragonman youngster heard this, he immediately adopted her proposal.
Something unexpected happened in the third location.
The school of fish in the information was annihilated by a group of electric
sharks.
The original target was gone, replaced by the group of electric sharks.
The beast tide had gone through a violent change.
The electric sharks were undoubtably a bigger challenge.
But at the same time, the spoils of war were more valuable.
Zi Di said, “We need the electric sharks’ electrode vertebrae. We can refine
them into scout shark models. To build the medicine database, we also need some
electric shark fat and oil.”
“Understood. I will act myself.” The dragonman prepared to fight in light of
that.
The electric sharks were in the depths and couldn’t be threatened by ordinary
cannons. Even if sonic shells were used, the magic beast sharks would only be
tickled by them.
Zi Di tore an underwater breathing scroll and casted it on the dragonman
youngster.
Plop.
The dragonman youngster jumped into the water and dived down to face the shark
group.
With magic boosting him, he could freely breathe in the water.
“It just so happens I can use actual combat to familiarize myself with my new
body structure.” The dragonman youngster thought as he transformed his body.
All around his body, ring mounds appeared.
The spurting smoke dragon transformation was added to the dragonman youngster’s
body.
Suddenly, a burst of icy coldness wrapped around him entirely.
The spurting smoke dragon didn’t like water as much as the Flame Dragon King
did.
It didn’t have gills and couldn’t breathe underwater. However, if it lacked
food, it could act like a seabird and dip into the sea to catch fish in the
shallows.
Battle skill – Surge!
With the spurting smoke dragon transformation, the Surge battle skill
activated, instantly accelerating the dragonman youngster.
After two seconds, he exploded into the shark group like an artillery shell.
An unlucky electric shark was smashed by him.
All things considered, electric sharks were magic beasts with rough skin and
thick flesh, unfortunately, they ran into the dragonman youngster, an
inexplicable monster beyond common sense.
The dragonman youngster also felt dizzy when he collided with and killed the
iron level electric shark.
The other electric sharks were alarmed and angry, and other after the other,
they encircled and attacked the dragonman youngster.



****** Chapter 115: Electric Sharks and Gun Lobsters ******
The dragonman youngster was surrounded by at least twenty electric sharks.
As long as an electric shark grew to adulthood, they would become a magic
beast.
The strongest electric shark leader was a silver level, the youngster’s equal.
Strands of lightning appeared across the electric sharks’ bodies, and quickly,
electric currents condensed into sharp fishbones similar to javelins.
The dragonman youngster found himself in the firing zone but showed no sign of
dodging them.
Racial magic – Dragon Prestige.
Dragon Prestige only had a cast time of one second, allowing the racial magic
to show its true worth in real combat!
A moment later, a formless undulation engulfed everything, and the electric
sharks that bore the brunt of it were broken and scattered by the shockwave.
Of the formerly coherent electric sharks, the vast majority of them became
slack, with only a few barely able to shoot.
The electric spears shot out were also very inaccurate, and the dragonman
youngster didn’t need to move at all to perfectly avoid them all.
The dragon roar continued to spread through the seawater and even reached the
ships.
The mercenaries on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships all felt panic from
the bottom of their hearts, and their legs went soft, causing them to kneel on
the spot.
The dragonman youngster had dove to the seafloor and was some distance below
the ships.
Within the dragon roar’s attack range, it did not distinguish between friend or
foe, this was why the dragonman youngster seldom used this battle skill when
teams were in combat.
Taking advantage of the swaying electric sharks, the dragonman youngster swung
his dragon tail and straightened his back.
With four spurting smoke ring mounds transformed into his back, he used the
Surge battle skill to push himself.
The spurting smoke ring mounds produced dense smoke, and within the thick
smoke, silver battle qi created micro explosions that formed a brilliant sliver
blaze.
Every explosion could produce a strong driving force that sharply accelerated
the dragonman youngster little by little.
The dragonman youngster rushed out of the electric shark encirclement, smashing
through another electric shark in the process.
He barely managed to turn around and sprint back.
In the seawater, he looked like a young knight urging an exceptional warhorse
into a charge towards a large group of enemies. 
With every charge, he took away the life of another enemy.
But his charge speed was too fast, causing him to appear somewhat clumsy.
Although the electric sharks were ocean magic beasts, they were unexpectedly
far slower than the dragonman youngster. 
But they had found a way to respond, using their other innate racial magic –
Electric Net Shell.
An electric current constantly flowed across their bodies, forming meshes of
varying size of blue electric webs on them.
This electric netting combined attack and defense, it could affect the
surrounding seawater and paralyze enemies. At the same time, it could also
raise their defenses.
The dragonman youngster was pleasantly surprised again and again.
The electric nets restricting his speed, on the contrary, allowed him to more
easily familiarize himself with his charge speed.
Using the electric sharks to temper himself was a great gain from actual
combat.
He quickly decreased the amount of spurting smoke ring mounds from 4 to 2.
Although his speed dropped by half, his control went from barely to his
pinnacle.
At the same time, he combined the Demolition Fist battle skill and a spurting
smoke ring mound on his elbow together to an astonishing effect!
Every time a fist hit something, it would strike with the sound of thunder and
pulverize the unlucky electric shark.
Every fist could explode an electric shark to bits.
This pinnacle feeling of violence caused the dragonman youngster’s smile to
appear malevolent, and his heart felt quite refreshed at the sight.
The silver level electric shark leaders were also smashed to death by the
dragonman youngster’s fist.
When the leader died, the shark group crumbled, and the few sharks left fled in
all directions.
The dragonman youngster chased after them relentlessly.
With his astonishing speed, he caught up and killed one shark after the other.
Even though he endured many Lightning Spears, it didn’t matter.
He had dragon scales and dragon flesh; offense and defense were an integrated
whole. They had already been tested in the Snake Rat naval battle, they could
withstand Rou Zang’s gold level battle skills, these racial magics were
nothing.
Cleaning up the battlefield was a bit troublesome.
Hitting with Demolition Fist was quite satisfying, but the shark corpses were
blown to bits and were difficult to gather.
Fortunately, the Deep Sea Monster Fish came to the rescue, and under Zi Di’s
control, it quietly let out alchemy puppets.
As the dragonman youngster returned to the ship deck, he took back a gigantic
fishing net, inside it were the relatively intact shark corpses.
“The Commander if formidable!”
“All of the silver level electric sharks are dead!”
“The Commander isn’t missing a scale.”
The mercenaries cheered.
This was a good opportunity for the dragonman youngster to raise his prestige
and Zi Di didn’t let it slip by.
Sure enough, he gained much adoration, respect, and admiring gazes. 
The strength of a person plays an influential role in any organization.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that he is a single person, he could accomplish
things impossible for many others.
For example, if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ordinary members had to deal
with the shark group, they would be sending them to their deaths.
It would result in total defeat and wouldn’t injure the electric sharks in the
slightest.
But when the dragonman youngster deployed alone, he conversely wiped out the
entire shark group while he came back unharmed.
This world belonged to the strong.
Through battle strength, one could easily obtain prestige. Even if one’s
subordinates died, one could easily get another troop together.
To become a strong cultivator, there was one prerequisite, one’s bloodline.
“He has grown stronger!” Cang Xu was both gratified and delighted.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had clearly shown him how the dragonman youngster had
performed this battle.
Cang Xu was happy from the bottom of his heart.
The dragonman youngster trusted him fully, and likewise, he trusted the
dragoman youngster fully.
The experience on Mystifying Monster Island had been their chance to get to
know each other and recognize each other’s innate character.
Cang Xu was special to the dragonman youngster. There were many necromancers in
the world, and the dragonman youngster was vigilant and fearful of all of them
except Cang Xu.
With regards to Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster was the most extraordinary
person ever. The world despised necromancers, and only here, at the dragonman
youngster’s side, could Cang Xu gain trust and kindness. It was a praiseworthy
treasure!
Not only that, but Cang Xu also endlessly admired the dragonman youngster’s
frighteningly noble tolerance.
The dragonman youngster took a risk to share the secret of the Bloodcore, which
formed an even more tremendous chain of benefits that bound him and Zi Di in
inseparable solidarity.
Therefore, every time the dragonman youngster got stronger, Cang Xu would be
delighted.
If he was like this, Zi Di would be even more so.
The ghost girl’s heart belonged to the dragonman youngster.
She gazed from afar at the dragonman youngster, her eyes warm and supple as
water.
At the same time, she also transmitted to Cang Xu, “It seems that buying the
spurting smoke dragon corpse was the right thing to do.”
“He is not like us.”
“He has the Bloodcore.”
“We need to find the corresponding bloodline and build the Bloodline
Purification formation, while he can absorb any lifeform.”
“As long as we can buy more in the future, we shall.”
Cang Xu expressed his complete approval, “Zong Ge is unreliable.”
“The Commander is our leader, and our most reliable comrade. The stronger he
gets, the better it will be for everyone.”
“Anyways, excessively seeking other lifeform bloodlines is not worth it.”
“First, we need more money to buy them, and even if we use military force to
capture and kill them, we engage in the risks of battle.”
“Second, if we excessively pursue that, it will provoke external attention and
suspicions, making it harder to hide out identities.”
“Third, the Commander needs to digest and assimilate too. He requires a lot of
practice to turn his new abilities into true battle strength.”
“This time, he used real combat to temper himself, and his progress through the
fight was very clear.”
The necromancer analyzed with continued calmness.
In this regard, Zi Di was still a distance from him.
The young lady treated the youngster with ardent love. During that, rationality
often conceded to emotion.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps set sail once again, and not long after, they
successfully converged with Zong Ge’s squad.
Zong Ge was at a sandbar. It was a barren island with no vegetation, it was
just a long curved strip of sand and soil.
During high tide, this sandbar would sink.
When the tide receded, this sandbar would peep out of the ocean again.
Zong Ge’s ships were revolving around the beach.
Kuai Tui and the others formed a small formation and had already come ashore to
deal with the ocean beasts on the sandbar.
They already formulated a method of advancing or retreating and had cultivated
good cooperation and tacit understanding with each other.
Their first opponents were gun lobsters.
These lobsters at the ordinary level could grow up the height of a person’s
knee, while at the bronze level, they could grow up to the height of a person’s
waist.
They could grow past that.
The Gun Lobster bloodline foreordained their growth limit to the bronze level.
Their weapon was their biggest claw. 
The claw couldn’t open and close on things, instead they blended together.
There was a round hole at the foremost point of the claw, which was the gun
lobster’s shooting hole.
When gun lobsters were confronted, they would shoot pellets from these claws. A
bronze level lobster leader with a pair of claws was a natural bronze level
alchemy firearm.
Anyways, the lobster leader had no way of dealing with Kuai Tui and the others.
Instead, after evading the gunfire, the dogmen would whistle and advance to
swing for a few seconds, landing more than a dozen cuts in that time, hacking
the lobster leader to death.
After being provided sufficiently good equipment, Kui Yui now headed the young
form of a battle squad!
The dragonman youngster observed for a while, exclaiming in admiration for what
Zong Ge’s training could do.
“Throw Sweet Blood Potions.” Zong Ge ordered.
Thereupon, Sweet Blood Potion jars were thrown out and crashed into the
seawater, attracting even more gun lobsters to shore, creating constant
pressure on Kui Tui and his squad.
“That group of beastmen might be a battle squad!”
Because Zong Ge had deliberately tempered them, along with Kuai Tui and the
others fighting like this, most of the mercenaries saw some clues of that.
“Our corps actually has a way to organize battle squads?”
“Should be.”
“With a battle squad, our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is a match for many
famous pirate groups and mercenary corps! Neither the Iron Club Mercenary Corps
nor the Bandage Mercenary Corps have a battle squad, yet we do.”
For a moment, the mercenaries had more faith in the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ future prospects.



****** Chapter 116: Helping the Iron Club Mercenary Corps ******
“Be careful!”
“Turn the rudder left, rudder fully to the left now!!”
“It’s too late, prepare to meet the enemy! Boys, stand by my side and defend
the deck.”
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ fleet was sinking into a panic.
They had just cleaned up three schools of fish, but halfway en route, they met
something unexpected.
A school of ghost face fish broke from hiding and ambushed them.
Ghost face fish looked like flatfish, their bodies were very flat, and when
fully grown, their bodies were asymmetrical, their eyes were both on one side,
and their mouths were bent. Like flatfish, ghost face fish also were naturally
disposed to sitting on the seafloor in perpetuity.
They had a concealment racial magic.
When they were hunting, they would frequently use this innate skill en masse.
After “disappearing” from the seafloor, they would flow with the ocean currents
to shallow waters and go hunt the more abundant food there.
When prey got close, they would unleash their other racial magic – Soul
Absorption.
The prey’s soul would usually be frozen by this racial magic for a short time,
allowing the school of ghost face fish to easily nibble them clean.
The ghost face fish school that ambushed the Iron Club Mercenary Corps was
silver level. Their leader was a silver level ghost face fish.
When the mercenary corps was enveloped by the soul type magic, the ordinary
members fell to the ground rigid, the bronze levels were barely able to stand,
and the iron levels were still able to fight.
Even worse, ghost face fish schools usually had ghosts accompanying it.
This involved the ghost face fish’s third racial magic – Soul Summoning.
These ghosts came from the ghost face fish’s prey.
When a soul summoning was successful, the ghosts produced would follow the
school of fish.
When the school of fish attacked, the ghosts too would appear to attack
simultaneously.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ flagship was a magic ship, its hull was nearly
all made of iron, its ship hull was thick and had many semicircle lumps in it.
The magic ship’s name represented this trait and was called the Iron Lump.
In the past, the Iron Lumpwas known for its defense.
But now, against the ghostly assault, this defense was an empty shell.
Three iron level ghosts and twenty four bronze level ghosts penetrated the hull
and stormed the hold.
Commander Tie Bang was a silver level fighter and instantly had to deal with
three iron level ghosts.
For a moment, he was surrounded and unable to escape.
The other mercenaries mostly concentrated on the deck in a defensive battle.
Because fighting inside the hold was disadvantageous for the sailors.
Humans would be yoked by the narrow space.
The stairs, ship doorways, as well as other installations were not conventional
bunkers because the ghosts could penetrate them at will.
Therefore, after the ambush occurred, almost all of the Iron Club Mercenaries
ran to the deck.
But the situation on the deck was also far from good.
Not only did they have to face ghosts penetrating from below, but they also had
to deal with ghost face fish flying at them.
Ordinary ghost face fish were the size of a carriage. When one leaped, they
looked like they were floating and could swoop over the sides of the ship and
dive down onto the deck.
Usually when a ghost face fish landed onto the deck, they would open their
sinister fish mouth, bite a hapless person, then taking advantage of the deck’s
friction, jerk and flop away.
If there weren’t that many people on deck, the mercenaries could dodge this.
But now, because the ghosts made the ship hold too detrimental, all of them
were concentrated above deck. As long as ghost face fish were diving down, the
large swath of mercenaries would be hit, and the unluckiest guy would be
dragged into the ocean.
Commander Tie Bang brandished his fists, blocking left and right.
Although the three ghosts he was fighting were only iron level, they could
penetrate through obstacles, making the Commander Tie Bang very annoyed.
The Iron Lump’s interior was also mostly made of iron and had a thick and
strong defense.
But now, they greatly interfered with Commander Tie Bang, he couldn’t even use
his iron club.
As a silver level, his battle qi couldn’t leave his body, he lacked that
qualitative change.
“I can’t go to the deck.”
These three iron level ghosts will cause an immense slaughter.”
“I have to entangle them here!”
For a long time, Commander Tie Bang could only fend off the ghosts tearing at
him.
The negative energy consequently assailed his body, however, compared to his
body, his heart was growing even colder.
Commander Tie Bang fought more recklessly.
“The mercenary corps is in a terrible situation!”
“If my flagship is in a bitter struggle because of the ghost face fish ambush,
then the situation on the other ships must be worse.”
“Damn it, even if we drive back these ghost face fish, the mercenary corps will
suffer disastrous damage!”
Then at that moment, Commander Tie Bang suddenly heard a subordinate foraying
over to report, “Commander, ships are approaching, it is the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps!”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?” Commander Tie Bang’s eyes lit up, and he
blurted out, “Send a distress signal now!”
The mercenaries on deck also saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
They shouted loudly, while still being on edge.
“Are they here to save us?”
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were
unrelated, they were merely strangers coming together by chance.
In all fairness, if it was within one’s abilities, they would act.
But this was a group of ghost face fish!
Although it wasn’t big, its combination of water path and necromancy was very
troublesome.
If they fought, they would likely suffer serious damage.
Unless they had a cleric that could use divine spells on the ghost face fish.
But casters were always precious, clerics even more who usually waited upon the
gods inside their churches, who among them would sail with them?
Normal mercenary corps and caravans didn’t have such people.
Without divine spells, it was very difficult to deal with necromancy.
When it came to battle qi, only gold level battle qi and above could leave the
body and attack.
Using magic against ghosts wasn’t particularly effective either.
Commander Tie Bang was fighting inside the hold and couldn’t see the situation
outside, causing him to worry about personal gains and losses.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps set out earlier.”
“Why are they returning from the front line so soon? Don’t tell me they
encountered a formidable fish school, and the damage forced them back to the
port to rest and reorganize?”
“I cannot overestimate them too much. After all, they are a newly established
mercenary corp.”
“It seems that the key to this bitter struggle is still me!”
Commander Tie Bang tried to steady his mind and did his best to fight on
bravely.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship.
“Commander, a battle has been detected ahead, one of the combatants is the Iron
Club Mercenary Corps.
“They have sunk into a hard battle against a group of ghost face fish.”
“Their luck is quite terrible.” The subordinate reported.
The dragonman youngster was standing on the side of the ship. He nodded. He had
already received the pertinent information from the Deep Sea Monster Fish
protecting them from the abyss.
The young man took out a telescope and gazed into the distance.
He first observed where the battlefield was the fiercest.
He didn’t see Commander Tie Bang.
However, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection method included sound, light,
and life aura.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster knew that Commander Tie Bang was fighting
inside the ship hold. The ghost face fish leader was also concealed near the
Iron Lump.
The young man then observed the deck.
A glance could make out that the Iron Club Mercenary Corps had suffered high
casualties.
Every time a ghost face fish leaped and dived onto the deck, they frequently
crashed into a mercenary. They were quivering, their flat fish bodies were very
vigorous, their fish scales were also very tough and ordinary weapons found it
difficult to cut into.
“The main thing severely restricting the mercenaries is still the racial magic,
Soul Absorption.” 
The dragonman youngster changed his attention to the hull.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ ships were scarred greatly, many of the ordinary
ships’ hulls were damaged and had been temporarily repaired with planks.
It was very clear that these holes hadn’t been created by this battle.
Before encountering the ghost face fish school, the Iron Club Mercenary Corps
had gone through other fierce battles.
On the flagship, Iron Lump, the dragonman youngster found the terrible tool
that made those holes.
There were several “cavalier pikes”. These were in fact the spiral horns of
narwhals. By its length, it was estimated that the horn belonged to an iron
level narwhal.
Narwhal groups weren’t often big, and they usually roamed from place to place
with only a few individuals in a group.
The narwhal’s bloodline was a bit more superior.
The highest life level they could reach was the gold level.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps indeed had gained much.
They had annihilated a narwhal group and captured the narwhal’s most valuable
part – their spiral horns.
But that harvest absolutely couldn’t compare to the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’!
After the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge converged back together, they
eliminated several fish schools.
Their holds were crammed with fish. So much so that many sailor quarters had
been cleared out to make more storage space. 
There weren’t enough fishing nets, and because there was so many fish that
weighed so much, many broke as a result.
Contrary to Commander Tie Bang’s imagination, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
was returning from a rewarding journey and had to empty their holds, because
they couldn’t hold any more spoils of war.
This included the Deep Sea Monster Fish on the seafloor, which had stealthily
stored a portion of the spoils earlier.
“We have the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s intelligence; it is far more exhaustive
than what others have. Not only can it determine the scale and location, and
weak points of the beast tide, it can also monitor the real time trend of
nearby fish schools, effortlessly seize the occasion in battle, and avoid the
strong while attacking the weak.” Zi Di sighed ruefully.
Cang Xu looked at the ghost face fish group, “It seems that the Iron Club
Mercenary Corps was ambushed by the ghost face fish school. We won’t. We have
detection methods that can find them ahead of time. Right now, I am more
concerned about those fish. You know, ghost face fish skin is a top-notch
necromancy material.
The ghost face fish’s name came from its alternating black and gray fish scales
that when put together, produced a twisted ghost face.
Although the risks in this ocean beast tide were immense, the gains were
likewise immense too.
The dragonman youngster put away his telescope, the distance between the two
parties had closed enough.
He firmly transmitted his order, “The other party has already given a distress
signal, we will act immediately, no hesitation.”
“Throw the Sweet Blood Potions.”
Complying with the order, the mercenaries took action and began to hurl the
potions.
Among the most that performed this task outstandingly was the big guy. He was
tall, strong, and was simply a humanoid catapult. Normal people could only
throw one jar, while he could throw a bundle of 10.



****** Chapter 117: Gains ******
The Sweet Blood Potions washed the seas red when they hit the water.
The potions caused more and more ghost face fish to turn around and abandon the
difficult-to-bite Iron Club Mercenary Corps and instead pour into the blood red
sea.
The ocean surface was ceaselessly boiling, the ghost face fish school was
strongly stimulated and were crazily tearing and splashing the water.
Most of the ghost face fish withdrew.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ members resolutely took a breather as the
pressure on them plummeted.
“Open fire!” The dragonman youngster had been calmly watching, and when he saw
that the ghost face fish school was gathered in one place, he shouted the
order.
For a moment, the rumbles of explosions didn’t seem to stop.
The ghost face fish were scattered by the artillery shells and blown apart,
causing them to screech miserably again and again.
Commander Tie Bang eliminated two ghosts and repelled the third. He didn’t dare
to rest for even a moment as he rushed to the deck, stopping on the side of the
ship.
He saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps slaughtering the ghost face fish school.
“Isn’t that the Sweet Blood Potion?” Commander Tie Bang’s eyes narrowed.
The first time the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps left port, this potion was
subsequently exposed.
Therefore, Commander Tie Bang knew about this potion, but didn’t care about it
too much.
Before the Wisteria Shop was slandered, they too had purchased some Green Hat
Healing Potions and Sweet Blood Potions, a small contribution to the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ collected funds.
Since they were ambushed, they didn’t have a chance to use the Sweet Blood
Potion.
Even if they did use them, they didn’t have many potions on hand and wouldn’t
be able to replicate what the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was doing.
“A concentrated usage of Sweet Blood Potion has such a strong medicinal effect!
When I return to Two Eyes Island, I must buy much more!” Commander Tie Bang
made up his mind on the spot.
The war situation when one was active on the battlefield, compared to when one
was passive, was entirely different.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had inferred from behind them, exploited the
fish school’s lower intelligence, and after a violent bombardment, had secured
a narrow victory.
Anyways, the remaining ghost face fish still had their vicious nature
stimulated, and one by one, they rushed out of the bloody seawater and charged
at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Cang Xu and Zi Di had been prepared for this.
They superficially chanted when in reality, they were using the magic rings on
their fingers.
Despite the public eye on them, no one noticed any flaws and they really
through these two were fire path magicians.
Fireball spells shot out and blew up flying ghost face fish.
Fire Walls surrounding the hull, and when the ghost face fish took in the
flames’ might, they charged at other ships and didn’t dare to jump over the
blaze.
Finally, the few remaining ghost face fish chose to flee.
Among them was the only silver level ghost face fish leader.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was already stealthily moving.
Commander Tie Bang couldn’t help but reveal his envy.
“Oh, that’s right, they have magicians.”
“One iron level, one bronze level.”
“They were just established on Snake Rat Island; they have such great luck for
magicians to join them willingly!”
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps didn’t have a single caster.
That was their shortcoming.
As for the Bandage Mercenary Corps, they had one, a mere bronze level. They
paled in comparison to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ lineup.
Recruiting magicians was hard.
Because magicians not only had battle strength, but they could produce things
too. The latter point was more crucial and important than the former. 
Magicians could make potions, magic items, magic scrolls, etc., they could
easily provide for themselves. Even if that weren’t their strong suit, a
magician’s foundation of scholarly knowledge could allow them to serve as an
aide or an adviser to a feudal lord or other nobles. Alternatively, they could
also go into management and serve in administrative roles.
Why should one of them join a mercenary corps and experience a drifting
existence?
Of course, the Iron Club Mercenary Corps did have some casting capabilities.  
They had some alchemy equipment and magic scrolls.
They also had an external magic adviser.
It was a magician, but they were only moonlighting.
“After I return to Two Eyes Island, I’ll make our magic adviser join us.”
“Even if his price is high.”
“Due to the beast tide, my corps urgently needs casters!”
The battlefield was already tranquil when Commander Tie Bang began to ponder.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ people tossed out fishing nets and lowered
landing boats to gather the scattered spoils of war.
“That iron level ghost I repelled didn’t trouble the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.”
Commander Tie Bang felt someone disgusted.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps had contributed a lot to this battle, and their
corps, including the commander, had taken quite the beating, yet in the end,
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had easily taken the peach.
But Commander Tie Bang didn’t say anything.
Without their timely assistance, their losses would’ve been greater.
Furthermore, they set up a distress signal and according to the rules, they had
to render the other party a reward.
“Assign people to clean up the battlefield. Pay attention to not clash with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Commander Tie Bang issued the order, then asked the helmsman to sail the Iron
Lump near the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship.
Upon being welcomed by the dragonman youngster, he climbed onto the other
person’s ship.
The two commanders carried out a simple discussion.
“All these fish belong to you.” Commander Tie Bang treated the ghost face fish
as the reward.
The dragonman youngster glanced at Zi Di, and with it, he knew what Zi Di
wanted.
Mystifying Monster Island had given the two an unusually close tacit
understanding.
Of course, Zi D was the best haggler, but since Commander Tie Bang had come to
converse himself, the one who had to act on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
side was the dragonman youngster.
Anyone else doing it would show contempt for Commander Tie Bang.
In terms of apparent strength, even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
stronger, they were at the same level, after all neither were gold level.
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “The ghost face fish are necromantic
and water path fish, undead path is troublesome, therefore, these fish corpses
aren’t worth much.
Zong Ge couldn’t restrain himself and said to the dragonman youngster, “We need
cannons.”
Commander Tie Bang glanced at the half beastman, then nodded to the tall and
sturdy human sitting opposite him.
Zong Ge was a silver level like them and was entirely entitled to join the
conversation.
The issue Zong Ge brought up was one the dragonman youngster was very familiar
with.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a gold level cannon, they had no
iron level or bronze level ones. Those levels of alchemy cannons were not
actually particularly needed.
Because without a cultivator level gunner, a compatible magic power reservoir,
and other installations, higher level cannons couldn’t be used.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ greatest deficiency was ordinary level
cannons.
The dragonman youngster proposed that the Iron Club Mercenary Corps transfer
them some cannons, provided they were ordinary level. The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would even buy them.
But Commander Tie Bang refused without the slightest hesitation.
With the beast tide imminent, they both needed cannons to handle the beast
tide.
The ghost face fish school’s ambush damaged the Iron Club Mercenary Corps
greatly. If they traded away their cannons, then their battle strength would
plummet.  Commander Tie Bang would be braindead to agree to such a suggestion.
After some deliberation, the two corps reached an agreement.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ freshly hunted narwhals would be the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ reward for aiding them.
The most important part of them was their spiral horns, they were very
beautiful and looked like cavalier lances.
Commander Tie Bang repeatedly sighed, forced to give them away before he could
warm up to them.
After going through an ambush, he still had to take out most of his capital as
compensation. When he thought about that, he couldn’t help but have a
headache. 
Finally, the dragonman youngster and Commander Tie Bang exchanged some
information with each other.
The dragonman youngster didn’t divulge his methods too much, because if he did
so, then their powerful information scouting ability would be revealed,
subsequently increasing the likelihood the Deep Sea Monster Fish would be
exposed.
He could only express his worry about the beast tide as much as possible, guess
how big the beast tide would be, and his anxiety about the future.
“No need to be so worried.” Commander Tie Bang didn’t heed the dragonman
youngster’s ambiguous warning, and instead comforted the latter, “There have
been beast tides in the past, it is very normal.”
“If there wasn’t a necromancer around this year, and if the port wasn’t locked
down, we would have noticed this beast tide earlier and have been able to
respond better.”
“We have never been the main force that resists the beast tide.”
“The main force is Two Eyes Island’s master and his city guard.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, hiding another misgiving within him.
He thought about Xi Dai Zi and the Vinegar Jar Pirates, suspecting whether this
beast tide had fishmen playing tricks behind the scenes. 
It was only a possibility, and he couldn’t warn an outsider like Commander Tie
Bang of it.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already informed Hun Tong of the Vinegar
Jar Pirates’ attempted invasion of Two Eyes Island. After Hun Tong learned of
it, he and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps signed a magic confidentiality
agreement, which stated that both sides would guard this secret tightly and not
allow any leaks of it whatsoever.
To the dragonman youngster, it seemed that this was done because Hun Tong chose
to temporarily maintain secrecy so that the auction wouldn’t be negatively
affected. 
Both parties left, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps returned from their
rewarding journey.
They were the first fleet to return to port.
When they entered the harbor, an official came over to ask about their
situation. Soon after, Thief Guild and other information merchants came to
purchase first-hand information from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps began to unload cargo.
Temporary workers were convened from large groups of fishermen and laborers.
Everyone that saw the massive harvest of fish were stupefied.
What happened to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
Was there really a beast tide?
Don’t tell me they ransacked a fish den?
The dragonman youngster left some people behind at the port, and with Fei She
in charge, they were responsible for linking up with the marketplace and
selling off these fish. 
After doing some ship repairs at port, he and his ships all left the harbor
once again.
If they hurried up, they could catch some more.
Good chances like this came seldom.
With the Deep Sea Monster Fish providing information, they could stay clear of
the main force and strike at weak points, collecting the fruits of victory.
After several days, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the harbor’s star.
Every haul they brought back was their maximum capacity.
The profits were gigantic and made many people jealous.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ information gathering abilities were
unavoidably revealed.
To deal with this matter, after the dragonman youngster and the others
discussed, they deliberately tossed out some alchemy scouting puppets to
resolve the suspicions the other powers had of them.
The same day that was revealed, Hun Tong dispatched a trusted aide to board the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship and discuss arrangements for purchasing the
alchemy puppets.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps selectively sold a few to Hun Tong alone.
These alchemy puppets had been modified somewhat and there are already similar
types to them in the marketplace. The risk of selling them was minimal to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
As for why the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had these alchemy puppets?
Everyone independently recalled their background.
Arms smugglers.
Thus, this was all reasonable.



****** Chapter 118: Handling the Sweet Bood Potions ******
Inside the Wisteria Shop, the salesclerks were awfully busy.
There were many customers coming through.
After a long time, a salesclerk excitedly raised the account book and showed it
off to Yan Yi, “For the last several days, our potion sales have been very
good, the estimated market demand still remains high. How much is still in
stock, if there is not much, shouldn’t we raise the price?”
Yain Yi looked at the account book.
The listed data had already made it plain the immense change that occurred
several days ago.
It was all because of the beast tide.
Yan Yi clearly remembered the first evening when the alarm was raised. Iron
Club Mercenaries had run into the store and purchased a lot of Sweet Blood
Potions.
It was like a watershed moment, and from that purchase, more and more people
came to buy the Sweet Blood Potions. Even now, customers were still streaming
in endlessly.
No one knew that the Sweet Blood Potion would be so useful.
If one encountered a powerful fish school, as long as they weren’t like the
ghost face fish school, as long as people tossed out some Sweet Blood Potion,
they could attract the fish school elsewhere in the sea and allow their ships
to easily escape.
When they encountered other fish schools, they could pour out Sweet Blood
Potions and gather the fish school at the surface. Then, they could bombard
them continuously with cannons. Although the cost of shells wasn’t low, when
the mercenary corps put it into practice, they found that their hunting
efficiency had enormously improved, and although their usage of gunpower and
artillery shells increased, at the same time, they saved a lot on manpower,
physical resources, and time, as well as reducing the battle risks. The harm to
squads was lowered, battle strength was preserved, and additional compensation
payment didn’t need to be paid out.
The Sweet Blood Potion really was sweet!
In the account book in Yan Yi’s hand, the Sweet Blood Potions’ sales had
already exceeded its section and became the Wisteria Store’s new hot item.
The other section was the Green Hat Healing Potion, still affected by the prior
disturbance.
“Don’t worry about stock, our warehouse has ample reserves.” Yan Yi’s eyes tore
from the account book and back towards the salesclerk.
The day the beast tide alarm rang, Zi Di and Cang Xu had mysteriously appeared
again and privately met with Yan Yi to replenish his merchandise.
In the days after, they would appear nearly every day to replenish the potion
stock.
The Sweet Blood Potion was 90% of the replenishment, while the Green Hat Potion
was the remaining percentage.
Yan Yi continued to speak, “The Sweet Blood Potion sells great because a
relatively rare beast tide has broken out and because there is a gap in the
market. The market here lacks something like the Sweet Blood Potion.”
“Therefore, we cannot raise the price. Next year, no, as long as some time
passes, a competing product with the same effect as the Sweet Blood Potion will
appear in Two Eyes Island’s market. Don’t underestimate our rivals, the Secret
Medicine Merchant Alliance is a colossus, they are one of humanity’s six great
merchant alliances!”
“If we raise the price, we will only profit and benefit in the short term but
create a negative effect on our buyers. If we were the only ones with the Sweet
Blood Potion, then this wouldn’t be a problem. But in the future, when rival
products hit the market, our current market share will be attacked, rapidly
reduced, and pushed aside by the rival products.”
“Sweet Blood Potion…this will be our main product from now on. You know we have
to take the long view, right?”
“Understood, my Lord.” After the salesclerk received instruction, he altered
his opinion and went back to work with satisfaction and hope.
These last few days, the salesclerks worked with surging enthusiasm.
The Wisteria Shop’s business was flourishing, their income improved, and their
future looked more beautiful and hopeful.
Yan Yi thought of Zi Di and Cang Xu, the two level seven elders.
What he just said was not what his idea, rather it was Zi Di’s urging that made
him rigorously work without the slightest slip-up.
Yan Yi expressed his opinion of the Green Hat Healing Potion to the two elders.
He wanted to contact Hun Tong’s subordinate, the silver level alchemy master
and have him analyze the potion so that he could inform everyone the healing
potion had no major side effects. Then the prior disturbance would be slandered
back.
But Zi Di refused.
This confused Yan Yi.
“We have been framed; the Green Hat Healing Potion is an excellent potion.
Since we can reduce the negative effects of the disturbance, why don’t we do
so?”
Zi Di saw Yan Yi’s misgivings but didn’t explain them away.
To Yan Yi it seemed that the two level seven elders seemed to be scared of
contacting Hun Tong and other people, and it also seemed that they never took
the trivial matter of the potion slandering to heart at all.
“Anyways, if this continues, as long as the Sweet Blood Potion sales continue,
our new island store position can be saved.”
The Wisteria Shop’s new island position was impressive, and the Flint Merchant
Alliance once dispatched their manager to buy it in advance.
At the time, the manager was very haughty.
But now, with the Wisteria Store’s sales figures becoming considerable and
greatly making up for their prior gaps, he now had hope he could save his store
location.
The Sweet Blood Potion was a hot item and had already caught the Secret
Medicine Merchant Alliance’s attention.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance’s manager had valued the two potions and
had once asked the merchant alliance’s pharmacist to determine a part of the
potions’ recipes.
“The Wisteria Store hasn’t raised the Sweet Blood Potion’s price; it seems
their supply of goods is both stable and sufficient.”
“Strange, they don’t have a medicine workshop.”
“That would be terrible.”
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance manager was gloomy.
According to the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance’s rules, every marketplace
situation must be reported to the higher ups at the end of the month.
When the higherups saw the situation here, they would think the manager was
neglecting their duty for not noticing the gap in the market there and allowing
a competitor’s hand to fill the gap.
Therefore, on the third day the Sweet Blood Potion wantonly sold, the Secret
Medicine Merchant Alliance manager appealed to the higherups: he hoped that he
could acquire stock of a magic potion similar to the Sweet Blood Potion so he
could fill in the gap in Two Eyes Island’s medicine marketplace.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance had a huge volume of medicinal products
and recipes. Picking one out from within that and producing more of them was
not challenging.
Therefore, in the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance manager’s opinion, he had
long prepared to utilize this potion to attack the Sweet Blood Potion’s market
share it had for the last few days.
But looking at it currently, the Wisteria Store acted steadily, it didn’t raise
the price, and it didn’t have any flaws.
If this continued, when he attacked the market in the future, it would be
relatively difficult.
If the rival product didn’t suppress the Sweet Blood Potion, then when his
merit was evaluated, it would decline again.
The Secret Medicine branch manager didn’t want to see this happen.
“I must think of something else I can do.”
Naturally, the Secret Medicine branch manager thought of the Flint Merchant
Alliance.
“The Flint branch wanted to buy the Wisteria Store’s new island store location,
but now that purchase plan has perhaps come to a premature end. The Wisteria
Store can rely on the Sweet Blood Potion to save their store location and won’t
offer it for sale again.”
“Previously someone caused trouble, leading to the Green Hat Healing Potion’s
sales plummeting.:”
“If the Sweet Blood Potion has a mishap, then there is hope for the Flint
branch’s purchase to go through. In that aspect, my and their benefits are in
alignment.”
The Secret Medicine branch manager went to the Flint branch, and during their
discussion, the two managers discovered that both intended on collaborating
together.
They clicked together on the spot.
The Flint branch manager vocalized his thoughts, “Perhaps we can find people to
continue causing trouble. Didn’t you guys do a good job with the Green Hat
Healing Potion previously?”
The Secret Medicine branch manager shook his head and denied, “That wasn’t my
doing.”
The Flint branch manager laughed mischievously, and didn’t believe the Secret
Medicine branch manager’s words. Swapping places, if he had done that, of
course he wouldn’t say he did, such clear proof would increase the information
that could be used against him.
The Flint branch manager continued on, “We can continue doing that. The last
disturbance’s outcome was very ideal, and to date, the Green Hat Healing
Potion’s sales volume hasn’t improved.”
When the Secret Medicine branch manager heard the other person faintly praising
him, he couldn’t help but force a smile, “I really didn’t do it. The method was
really effective, but also not impossible to resist. It’s very odd that the
Wisteria Shop didn’t counterattack in any way.”
“It is a little odd.” The Flint branch manager nodded, “Anyways think about Yan
Yi, he is too young and is abilities aren’t too high, perhaps he didn’t think
of any.”
The Secret Medicine branch manager shook his head, “Even if he didn’t think of
anything, the two mysterious level seven elders most certainly would have.”
“Perhaps this time when we act, the two level seven elders will respond.”
The Flint branch manager’s brows pursed, they had obtained information the two
level seven elders, but they didn’t understand much about what they were up to.
Ever since they appeared, the two level seven Wisteria Merchant Alliance elders
had been a mystery, they came and went without a trace, and they couldn’t make
sense of what they wanted to accomplish, it just so happened that the two
potions they tossed onto the market had a big impact.
“If we want to bring false charges against the Sweet Blood Potion, it will be
far more difficult than the Green Hat Healing Potion.” The Flint branch manager
sighed. The two level seven elders were a psychological pressure on him.
The Flint branch manager’s words made sense. 
The Green Hat Healing Potion was consumed by people, while the Sweet Blood
Potion was not.
Buyers would undoubtably be more relaxed when using the latter than the former.
At the same time, the Sweet Blood Potion’s effect was obvious to all, and was
very difficult to discredit.
Anyways, concerning this point, the Secret Medicine branch manager already had
a plan.
He stated, “Our merchant alliance’s magic potion is coming soon.”
“I don’t believe my merchandise stock is smaller than the Wisteria Store’s!”
“Let me display my strength and discipline in competition.”
“You want to undercut them?” The Flint branch manager suspiciously asked.
“No.” The Secret Medicine manager shook his head.
He had already asked someone to calculate the Sweet Blood Potion’s recipe.
Although only some medicinal ingredients were identified, it was sufficient
enough for him to budget its manufacturing cost.
The Sweet Blood Potion’s recipe was utterly superior, and its production cost
wasn’t high.
As expected of one of War Merchant’s products, and the Secret Medicine Merchant
Alliance couldn’t pull out a better magic potion recipe to it. Of course, the
required production cost was similar.
If the Secret Medicine branch manager chose to cut the price to attack the
marketplace, it would indeed rock the Sweet Blood Potion’s position. But if
that happen, he would undoubtedly make a loss, and in the long term, it would
greatly damage the merchant alliance’s higherups’ evaluation of the manager.



****** Chapter 119: Four Kinds of Wine ******
“I will adopt the same price. But unlike the Wisteria Store, their connections
cannot compare to ours. Who are we? We are of the six great merchant alliances,
what is his Wisteria Merchant Alliance to us?” The Secret Medicine branch
manager stated.
“I understand what you mean.” The Flint Branch manager immediately understood
and expressed his active cooperation.
Since the six great merchant alliances were all the top dogs in the Sheng Ming
Empire, and also because their business areas did not conflict, this was not
the first or second time these two had worked together.
“Do we need to unite the other merchant alliances?” The Flint branch manager
asked.
“No need. With our combined efforts, why are we afraid of dealing with a minor
Wisteria Store?” The Secret Medicine branch manager declined.
The Flint branch manager loftily shrugged his shoulders and approved of the
other’s decision.
The Secret Branch manager’s plan was very simple, there were other ways of
attacking the market besides slandering the other party’s potion or cutting the
price. 
Wouldn’t a more direct method be to stop buyers from using the Sweet Blood
Potion?
In light of the six great merchant alliances’ influence and strength, achieving
this on Two Eyes Island was not difficult.
The most important target was the city guard.
Currently, the Sweet Blood Potion’s biggest consumer was Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s
troops. With One Eye heading the patrol fleet, they were the ones who fought
the hardest to hold back the beast tide. 
The Secret Medicine branch manager found the military supply official himself.
He proceeded to bribe them with a large sum.
The military supply official also saw the Secret Medicine branch’s magic potion
sample and found that it indeed had a nearly identical effect.
The Secret Medicine branch manager quickly accomplished his first objective.
He and the Flint branch manager then acted together.
The second objective had three targets, Two Eyes Island’s three mercenary
corps.
Besides the city guard, these three were the biggest users of the Sweet Blood
Potion.
Compared to the city guard, dealing with the mercenary corps was even easier.
First the easy, then the hard.
The Secret Medicine and Flint branch managers found Commander Tie Bang and Beng
Dai and discussed the matter of the magic potion with them.
Beng Dai and Tei Bang of course had collaborated with the island’s merchant
alliances many times.
In fact, of the missions in the island’s Mercenary Guild branch, the five great
merchant alliances’ mission rewards were the most generous.
In normal times, the two mercenary corps also emphasized protecting their
relationship with the merchant alliances. The five great merchant alliances had
an intense employment demand, and the mercenary corps were their big long term
clients.
The negotiations went very smoothly.
The Bandage and Iron Club Mercenary Corps quickly agreed to change their
potions and no longer use the Sweet Blood Potion.
The two managers also asked if the two commanders could join them to discuss
this with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Commander Beng Dai’s tone was somewhat complex, “The one most in the limelight
on Two Eyes Island is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Speaking of which, when
I conversed with Commander Long Fu for the first time, I knew that dragonman
was quite remarkable!”
Commander Tie Bang also agreed, “That mercenary corps’ intelligence gathering
abilities is very strong, that is why during the beast tide’s early stage, they
were like a fish in water. It seems they were also the first to use large
quantities of Sweet Blood Potion. I fear that their usage amount of the Sweet
Blood Potion exceeds both of ours combined.”
The two managers got the hidden meaning in the two commanders’ words.
It wouldn’t be simple to reach a deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a newcomer.
The two branch managers knew the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps inside
and out, however, they didn’t have such a clear understanding of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
Although they knew a lot about them, such as the fact that Long Fu and Shi Qi
were the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strongest people, the corps had two fire
path magicians, one iron and one bronze, this information was just about
surface level things.
The two branch managers especially cared about one thing, that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ original identity should be arms smugglers.
Concerning this public image, the survivors had begun to craft it on Snake Rat
Island.
When they arrived at Two Eyes Island, they were no longer groundless
accusations, instead they became the tacit consensus others had of them.
As far as that kind of identity was concerned, Hun Tong had some misgivings
about it, while the two branch managers were even more fearful of it.
When dealing with arms smugglers, the two branch managers had to be gentler,
they couldn’t be too tough.
Anyways, from the beginning, they never planned on being tough.
Merchants tastefully believed that amiability made one rich. If one could solve
things peacefully, why use violence?
Taking advantage of the time of rest at night, the managers and commanders went
together.
They were the local bullies here and effortlessly scouted out that the
dragonman youngster was drinking in a tavern right now.
When they arrived at the tavern’s doorway, the four heard the clamor inside,
there was music, clinking wine cups, and hearty laughter.
There were two Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps members outside the door on guard
duty.
“Did your commander reserve all the seats today?” Commander Beng Dai asked.
When the mercenaries saw the four silver level lords, they promptly replied,
“Yes, your Lordship. Today, everyone inside drinks for free, our commander will
foot the bill.”
Commander Beng Dai and Tei Bang were both envious.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were the biggest beneficiary of the beast tide.
This was something the entire port, no, all of Two Eyes Island knew.
“We want to see Commander Long Fu, please announce us.” Said the Secret
Medicine branch manager.
A guard immediately went in to report.
The other guard remained at his post at the tavern door, and he didn’t relax
whatsoever. Even though he was only an ordinary person and couldn’t stop the
four people in front of him whatsoever.
The guard who went to report soon returned, “The commander invites your
Lordships inside to have a detailed talk.”
The tavern door opened, and when the four people entered, the passionate
celebratory atmosphere immediately hit them.
The tavern was the biggest one on the port, but because of how many people were
inside, it seemed crowded. 
But no matter how many people there were, none could match the dragonman
youngster’s elegant bearing. 
His physique and appearance attracted many gazes.
The first thing the four noticed was that the dragonman youngster was at the
front of the stage, with a magician by his side.
The latter had thick long black hair, and seemed fresh out of the shower, for
their hair was still moist. He had heavily puffy eyes and his pupils were
purple.
“That is the card magician, Shi Fa.” The four immediately recognized who the
magician was.
Shi Fa was a silver level magician and well known across Two Eyes Island.
His bloodline was quite rare and peculiar, every day, moisture would secrete
out of him and flow onto his hair.
Therefore, his hair had always been damp year in, and year out.
Shi Fa was a magician but was also fond of wine.
This interest seemed incompatible with being a magician, but Shi Fa held
himself together well.
Shi Fa made magic scrolls and possessed unusual mastery at doing it. He
mastered an ancient scroll manufacturing technique and could concentrate magic
scrolls into the shape and side of a playing card.
Every playing card could be considered to be a small magic scroll, and although
the might was smaller than normal magic scrolls, the casting speed was faster.
When Shi Fa fought,,, besides routine chant casting, he also used his stashed
playing cards to unleash high frequency and speed attacks., creating a wave of
magic attacks in a short time.
Shi Fa’s battle strength was quite powerful, especially in terms of bursting
ability.
The four headed towards the counter, the mercenaries along the way
automatically letting them pass.
When the dragonman youngster saw them, he nodded to them, then turned around to
look back at the magician Shi Fa to continue his discussion with the latter.
Commander Tie Bang had keen hearing, and what he heard caused his heart to
skip.
Shi Fa was a silver level magician, if he joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, then the latter would have three silver levels. More crucially, one of
them was a caster.
If that happened, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strength would undoubtedly
be greatly increased and surpass both the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps
by a distinct margin.
Shi Fa slowly shook his head, “Compared to joining you guys, I much rather be a
free man by myself.”
Shi Fa was a hedge magician, a loner.
Hun Tong once actually tried to recruit him, but he was rejected.
When Commander Tie Bang heard this, he relaxed, somewhat happy to see the
dragoman youngster kitting a wall.
Commander Beng Dai by him was the same.
Contrary to them, the two branch managers didn’t have strong feelings for the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
When the dragonman younger was refused publicly, he laughed out, “Then we shall
continue drinking wine.”
Shi Fa laughed too, “Commander Long Fu, you are different. Although I’ve only
interacted with you for a few days, you have a commendable demeanor. Actually,
it isn’t impossible for me to join your corps, as long as I get enough wine to
drink.”
The dragonman youngster blankly stared.
Tie Bang and Beng Dai both slowed their steps somewhat, their hearts somewhat
bewildered.
“What’s going on?”
“Did that come out of Shi Fa’s mouth?”
“Why were you so firm and candid when you refused me?”
“Where is your personal integrity?”
“What’s so good about Long Fu? He isn’t even a human!”
Shi Fa continued, “You know I love to drink, Commander Long Fu.”
“If you can find Spear Wine, Artemisia Wine, Spider Red, and Spring Wine, those
four types, I will join you, how about it?” Shi Fa laughed.
Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai glanced at each other and let out a breath.
Although Shi Fa’s demand seemed very simple, it was anything but.
Of the four wines that were raised, the two commanders only knew of Artemisia
Wine and Spring Wine.
Artemisia Wine sounded like a commoner drink (cider), but in actuality, it was
a famous elven wine that was brewed with the fruits of magic plants.
Spring Wine was a legend.
Legend said that in some corner of the ocean, there was a spring on an
uninhabited island. The spring dried up, and only when the sun and the moon
appeared in the sky at the same time did the spring flow with water. The water
for Spring Wine was the world’s rarest liquor, and after drinking it, one would
forget all of their worries.
Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai knew Shi Fa was joking with Long Fu, however,
the dragonman youngster nevertheless earnestly listened and replied, “I have
never heard of those four wines. But I will be mindful, and if I gather them in
the future, I will give them to you.”
It was Shi Fa’s turn to stare blankly, but soon after he burst into laughter,
“Then it’s a deal, Commander Long Fu!”



****** Chapter 120: Cannon Transaction Part 1 ******
Two Eyes Island’s scale was incomparable to Snake Rat Island. Before the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps arrived, there were 27 silver levels on the island. Of
these silver levels, there was no shortage of strong ones. Such as the city
guard commander, some merchant alliance managers, and don’t even mention the
Wealth God priest.
These people could not be recruited.
Of the silver level cultivators, there were a few free agents, and of them,
three were the most renowned.
They were the wandering ronin Ku Feng, the treasure hunter Hong Zhu, and the
card magician Shi Fa.
The dragonman youngster had spent the last few days contacting these three.
When the beast tide appeared, the Mercenary Guild branch immediately issued
missions. These beast tide confrontation missions had considerable rewards,
because the feudal lord and priest were both backing and pushing for them.
The rewards moved everyone, and the silver level cultivators were no exception.
For one, eliminating the beast tide would protect their safety and benefits.
If the beast tide was allowed to spread, and wasn’t stopped, Two Eyes Island’s
auction was assured to fall through.
It wasn’t known how many tons of people were awaiting this auction.
Almost everyone was acting around the beast tide.
Ku Feng, Hong Zhu, and Shi Fa didn’t have ships, and to eradicate the ocean
beast tide, they had to join a ship.
Since that is so, their options for that were few.
The first option was that these free cultivators join up with each other and
charter a ship for sailing. This option had many systemic problems, such as if
they had a lack of qualified and well-coordinated sailors, they would find it
difficult to control the ship and even be each other’s enemy during the voyage.
The second option was to join the city guard and patrol fleet. But these
organizations were not easy to join, and they wouldn’t rashly admit outsiders
into their ranks.
Two Eyes Island was a commerce island, not a fishery island and didn’t have
large ocean fishing fleets.
The third option was choosing a merchant alliance fleet.
The final option was choosing a mercenary corps.
Unlike mercenary corps, merchant alliance fleets emphasized the transportation
and protection of merchandise.
Therefore, Shi Fa and the others trended more towards joining a mercenary
corps.
Mercenary corps were also not the city guard and were more open to outsiders.
Even in normal times, many silver level cultivators were external members of
mercenary corps.
Since mercenary corps were the choice, then the three most precedented options
were Two Eyes Island’s three biggest mercenary corps. 
The Bandage and Iron Club Mercenary Corps were deeply ingrained in the hearts
of the people.
But after the beast tide came, the most in the limelight was nevertheless the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Every time the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps returned to port; they returned with
full holds. Perceptive people could see that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
was powerful, especially their information gathering abilities. They could
determine where the beast tide’s weak points were and powerfully struck there.
Which mercenary corps would be more appropriate to join?
Therefore, as if by prior agreement, Ku Feng, Shi Fa, Hong Zhu, and others
chose to depart on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
During the fights against the beast tide, they would contribute their power in
exchange for a profitable mission commission.
The dragonman youngster enthusiastically welcomed these people.
For the last few days, he tried his best to rope them in and enhance his
relationship with them.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was always expanding.
Regardless of whether it was the dragonman youngster or Zong Ge, both were
recruiting new manpower and strengthening themselves.
However, with respect for ordinary personnel, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had reached its limit, and it was inappropriate to expand that aspect.
Because expanding that aspect wasn’t profitable enough.
Besides increasing supply consumption, it wouldn’t improve the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ strength by much.
Before on Snake Rat Island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had press-ganged
many pirate captives. Not enough time had passed, and these people hadn’t been
completely converted to their side yet, while at the same time, they had a
large equipment deficiency.
The most serious one was cannons.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lacked ordinary level cannons.
There were many deficiencies.
Many ships’ cannon holes were empty, and if they encountered a normal fleet, in
respect to their long range firepower, they would be found lacking.
There were also deficiencies with their ships.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships (not including the Deep Sea Monster
Fish, because it couldn’t be treated as a conventional weapon) were all
ordinary ships, they needed a magic ship.
Only with a magic ship could hold their position in fierce naval battles.
But although Two Eyes Island’s trade was booming, it didn’t have a shipyard, a
large harbor, or sell cannons.
Of the bronze level and iron level cultivators, Lan Zao, Tripleblade, and
others received equipment, became well-known figures among them, stabilized
their positions, and helped the survivors control the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
But in truth, it was still tenuous at best.
Before the lower level cultivators truly acknowledged the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, the dragonman youngster didn’t dare recruit more lower level cultivators
to the corps. For it would destabilize the survivors’ control of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ lower ranks.
Expanding in those two aspects was out of the question, but they could still
attract silver levels.
This was the world of the strong.
One bronze was better than 10 ordinary people. An iron level was usually as
strong as a hundred people, and a silver level’s battle strength could shake
off several iron levels. So long as one had abundant battle qi, a thousand
people couldn’t stop a silver level.
As far as the survivors were concerned, the requirements for recruiting a
strong silver level were relatively ripe.
First of all, they had an honest identity – The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Secondly, they had abundant capital for the time being. For example, to solicit
Shi Fa, a magician, the team had to be able to satisfy his many resource
requirements. Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ material storehouse
is very full.
Once again, the survivors had strong people. Although the dragonman youngster
and Zong Ge were fighters, they were powerful silvers, especially the dragonman
youngster who had firmly fought Rou Zang during the Snake Rat naval battle.
With this kind of military success, in all honesty, one could completely
command other silver levels.
Cang Xu too was in favor of recruiting other silver level cultivators. He
believed that it could hedge the risks in response to Zong Ge going semi-
independent.
Finally, there was one other condition, a well-hidden one, it concerned the
Bloodcore.
Conventional organizations would find it difficult to admit outsiders.
Especially cultivators.
Why? Because it involved power, position, and the distribution of benefits.
To bring in a strong person, one had to give them resources and a place.
The internal organizational framework was already fixed.
Under normal circumstances, if a corps like the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
who had an iron level magician, went out to attract a silver level magician,
the iron level magician would most positively be dissatisfied. Unless there was
immense external pressure demanding the urgent need to improve team battle
strength.
But Cang Xu was quite happy to welcome them in.
It wasn’t because he was selfless. In fact, the necromancer is well acquainted
with the path of power. Even when he faced the gold level Hun Tong, he still
argued for what was his and gained a great profit from it.
The reason he was welcoming rested with the fact that it wouldn’t jeopardize
his most central benefit.
The Bloodcore.
Or in other words, the method of bloodline alteration.
If he could improve his bloodline, he would completely change his future.
Any outsider joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would never touch this
core benefit.
Perhaps in the future they would, but only after their loyalty was validated.
By the time that happened, Cang Xu and Zi Di would have already altered the
bloodlines, raised their strength substantially, and not fear that this core
power was being spread.
With all of this combined, the dragonman youngster decided to brazenly solicit
silver level cultivators.
Not just Shi Fa, but also Ku Feng, Hong Zhu, and others.
However, none of these people accepted the dragonman youngster’s offer.
They had always been free agents, accustomed to their liberty and liked it that
way, or perhaps for another reason.
The dragonman youngster’s offering did not move them.
The one hardest to attract would undoubtably be Shi Fa.
He was a magician!
But of all that were given an invitation, he was nevertheless the only one who
didn’t refuse on the spot.
The failed solicitations were something the dragonman youngster had prepared
for. He wasn’t frustrated at all as he secretly memorized the four wines then
turned to look at the four people coming towards him.
Commander Beng Dai and Tie Bang, as well as the Secret Medicine and Flint
Merchant Alliance managers.
The dragonman youngster was somewhat surprised to see them here. He guessed as
to why.
“Hello, Commander Long Fu, can we speak with you alone?”
“We can go upstairs.” The dragonman youngster nodded and led the four to the
upper floor.
The first floor of the tavern had many eyes mixed in and wasn’t a good place
for talks.
When they reached the room on the second floor, the four exposed their purpose
in coming.
That also validated the dragonman youngster’s conjecture.
But outwardly, he revealed his astonishment and frowned with a sigh, “You don’t
want my corps to continue using the Sweet Blood Potion?”
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance manager nodded, “Our merchant alliance
can supply a perfect alternative.”
The Flint branch manager then took over, “It’ll be offered free of charge, it
won’t cost your corps a cent.”
“Free?” The dragonman youngster mulled it over for a bit with a weird
expression, “Will it always be free?”
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance manager awkwardly laughed, “Only for a
time.”
“So, you’ve come to ask for my help?  Am I understanding that right?” The
dragonman youngster leaned back on his chair in a calm manner.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance manager deliberated for a bit, then said,
“Indeed. We have come in good faith and hope we can work together. If we can
reach a collaboration, then we will owe your corps a favor. You know, we are
two of the six great merchant alliances.”
“That’s not quite accurate.” The dragonman youngster shook his head, “If I help
you, you guys will owe me a favor, not the Great Flint or Secret Medicine
Merchant Alliance. The difference between the two is quite vast.”
The two merchant alliances managers glanced at each other, both equally
perceiving the dragonman youngster’s unreasonableness.
They simply didn’t know of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ intrinsic
connection with the Wisteria Store.
To find trouble with the Wisteria Store, they had to ask the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps for a favor.
Wasn’t this like seeking the help of the victim’s family to deal with the
victim?
If they knew the truth, they would have considered themselves thoroughly
stupid.
When they saw the discussion was becoming difficult, Commander Tie Bang and
Beng Dai tried to offer their assistance. They used their own experience to
tell the dragonman youngster that cooperating with the two great merchant
alliances and maintaining a good relationship with them would always benefit
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Of course, if the Wisteria Store works with your corps, then pretend we were
never here.” Finally, Commander Beng Dai seemed to somewhat probe what was
really going on with the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster shook his head and denied it, “My corps just came to
Two Eyes Island, how can I have a relationship with them? Commander Beng Dai,
you should know when I began to use these two potions. It was at the Mercenary
Guild branch; you saw it with your own eyes.”
Commander Beng Dai nodded.
With him bearing witness, the two managers’ already sparse suspicions lessened
to nothing.



****** Chapter 121: Cannon Transaction Part 2 ******
The dragonman youngster denied they had a relationship with the Wisteria Store.
It was undoubtably wise.
Before they redeemed themselves, they had to reduce the connection between them
and their past relations to prevent exposing flaws and causing people to
investigate them.
This clever arrangement was already working.
The two merchant alliances managers didn’t detect the truth and had
unexpectedly sought the dragonman youngster to deal with the Wisteria Store.
This had allowed the dragonman youngster to firmly hold the initiative from the
beginning of these talks.
The dragonman youngster said, “The Wisteria Merchant Alliance cannot compare to
the six great merchant alliances, let alone two managers joining hands.”
“Since you’ve found me and have also convinced the other two commanders, you
must be determined to win.”
“But as far as I know, the city guard is the biggest consumer of the Sweet
Blood Potion. But I believe that since you are speaking to me right now, you
have already resolved that problem.”
“Therefore, I am the last one left.”
“Am I to believe that if you don’t reach an agreement with me, your strenuous
efforts will be in vain? Won’t that mean you’re running the enterprise for the
sake of one basketful?”
The two managers glanced at each other, their features very grave.
They felt somewhat regretful and blunderful. By bringing Commander Beng Dai and
Tie Bang with them, instead of looking strong, they divulged their weakness.
But if they didn’t do that, they were worried that during talks, they would be
suppressed by the dragonman youngster’s grandeur. After all, Commander Long
Fu’s martial fame had already spread throughout Two Eyes Island. These last few
days, more people have seen the dragonman youngster dive into the sea and wipe
out entire schools of magic fish alone with their own eyes. 
In the end, even with two commanders on their side, the dragonman youngster
still held the advantage.
Unlike what they feared, the dragonman youngster didn’t flaunt any martial
skills, instead he used words to hold the initiative.
The hearts of the two merchant alliance managers was heavy, and they began to
raise their offer.
The dragonman youngster smiled and was noncommittal toward the new offer,
expressing that he needed to discuss it with the other members of his corps. 
He got up to leave the room, telling them to wait for him to return.
The four people left in the room, Commander Beng Dai and Tei Bang, along with
the two managers, didn’t look too well.
The Secret Merchant Alliance manager coldly snorted, “What is there still to
discuss?”
“This is obviously an excuse.” The Flint Merchant Alliance manager pursed his
brows in vexation, “It seems we need to raise the offer a bit more.”
The dragonman youngster went to a lonely corner, and with an alchemy
communication device, contacted Cang Xu and Zi who were on the ship at port and
informed them of the situation. 
Cang Xu sighed, sensing this would be challenging, “The Wisteria Store on Two
Eyes Island is obviously being suppressed, the other powerful party has already
succeeded, and it will be difficult for us to stop it.”
Zi Di deeply sighed, “So money is just secondary, and without power to protect
it, there will be no impartial transactions.”
Power came from strength, and strength was intimately related to bloodlines.
At that moment, Cang Xu and Zi Di were further motivated to build the Bloodline
Purification formation.
The dragonman youngster replied, “I’ll listen to your ideas, are you trending
towards agreeing with cooperating with them?”
Cang Xu nodded, “Noncooperation will worsen the relationship between the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps and two great merchant alliances. The Wisteria Store’s
future is still dark, and our main focus has never been the Wisteria Store. But
if we work with them, we can purchase a large amount of alchemy materials from
the Flint Merchant Alliance and medicine from the Secret Medicine Merchant
Alliance.”
Zi Di frowned, “I agree to working with them. But I believe that trading with
two great merchant alliances is risky. I would rather buy from the black market
and the discount sale to decrease exposure risk. Don’t underestimated the two
great merchant alliances, they can make out much non-public information from
the transaction list.”
The dragonman youngster suddenly interjected, “I have a better idea.”
“We need cannons, remember?”
“For the last several days, the massive beast tide has been pressing towards
Two Eyes Island. It will be difficult for us to continue leaving the harbor,
because the surroundings won’t have enough space to sail our fleet while we
fight.”
“Next, we need to defend the island.”
“We experienced that type of battle on Mystifying Monster Island.”
“We need to meet force with force, unlike before, where we could move around
enemy and calmly put distance from them.”
“Under those circumstances, cannons are undoubtably more important.”
Since the establishment of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they had a
deficiency of ordinary cannons.
Although Two Eyes Island’s business was bustling, it wasn’t an arms
manufacturing location. In fact, in the conventional market, weapons were very
difficult to buy.
Although the marketplace didn’t have any, the two big mercenary corps, along
with the city guard and patrol fleet had them.
When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to buy cannons from Commander Tie
Bang, the latter rejected them.
What about this time?
The dragonman youngster’s analysis and suggestion caused Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s
eyes to light up.
Cang Xu voiced his thoughts, “I support the Lord Commander’s idea. Replenishing
our cannons will boost the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps substantially. If we
fight the beast tide in close combat, our ordinary members will incur high
casualties. We will have to make numerous compensation payments. By replacing
them with artillery shells, we will greatly reduce casualties. Currently, we
have enough financial resources, and enough artillery shells.
Zi Dia also agreed, “This is indeed a good opportunity. I have a premonition,
although I can’t be sure about the city guard, the two commanders will agree.”
After a proper discussion, the dragonman youngster returned to the room and
told the four his demand.
Of course, this caused the two merchant alliances to look heavy, and the two
commanders to turn pale.
The two commanders rejected it on the spot.
“Soon, we will need to withstand the beast tide coming to Two Eyes Island.”
“Cannons are always important.”
“We cannot sell off our weapons at this juncture!”
The dragonman youngster smiled and stated, “When it comes to defending the
island, we aren’t the leads. Could it be that you commanders haven’t figured
out how the wind is blowing?  This responsibility should be the city guard’s
and the patrol group’s to assume, no?”
The two commanders’ brows wrinkled, and one shook his head.
It’s a bit ridiculous.
They came here to just help the two managers in their negotiation, yet it
resulted in them not getting what they wanted and instead becoming the target
themselves.
Especially when they saw the two merchant alliance managers, the two
commanders’ hearts sank.
Although their refusal was very firm, with the current situation, they were no
longer confident.
Because the situation was out of their control.
The dragonman youngster’s mouth twitched into a smile, gazing at the two
commanders, then at the two managers.
The two merchant alliance managers looked at each other, then both bitterly
laughed.
The Secret Medicine manager looked at the two commanders, wanting to say
something, but hesitated.
The dragonman youngster understood tact, and withdrew again at his own accord,
“I will go first, you guys can chat privately.”
He left the room, went to the end of the second floor’s corridor, and through a
window, appreciated the evening streets.
Before waiting too long, the door opened and the four walked over to tell the
dragonman youngster the outcome, “Commander Long Fu, we agree to your
conditions!”
Just as Zi Di had calculated, the mercenary corps and merchant alliances were
inseparably close, leading to the latter finding it hard to refuse.
Because it concerned the two mercenary corps’ future livelihood.
Weapons are very important for the beast tide right now.
But now that the deal was struck, it only felt a bit bad presently.
The two merchant alliance managers gave their guarantee and set the pact that
they would definitely work more with the two mercenary corps in the future.
The two commanders understood that they were using this moment in exchange for
the future, thus, they reluctantly agreed.
The two managers were in a similar situation, their sunk costs were quite high.
The two commanders had already agreed to stop using the Sweet Blood Potion and
helped the two managers in the deliberation with the dragonman youngster. After
investing so much, and traveling to this degree, if something was rejected, the
consequences would be unacceptable for them. The past investments and upheld
relationships would be gone.
The next dawn, both sides completed their deal.
Through this, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps finally got a lot of cannons and
finally filled in this deficiency.
Although their cannon holes weren’t completely full, there was still some
empty, but 80% of them were filled.
The dragonman youngster took charge and mainly equipped Zong Ge’s troops first.
The reason was his troops were more elite and would benefit the most from them!
“We unexpectedly got a hold of these?” Zong Ge was surprised but pleasantly
surprised at that.
After asking about the whole story. The half beastman felt admiration.
Cang Xu and Zi Di were able to handle it on their own because they could see
the situation clearly, understand the structure of the strong and the weak, and
acted rationally and calmly. 
And how the dragonman youngster handled things made Zong Ge even more certain
that he hadn’t misjudged the young man.
“He puts the big picture first, such an outstanding leader.”



****** Chapter 122: The Defense of Two Eyes Island (1) ******
Black clouds covered the sky, it was obviously the afternoon, but it was dark,
and the seas were rough.
As waves slapped the shore, they too slapped everyone’s hearts.
Two Eyes Island was already on high alert.
The beast tide had persisted for many days, and despite the efforts of the city
guard, mercenary corps, and other organizations to stop it, it still rolled up
to Two Eyes Island.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ defensive position was on the northeast of the
old island.
The port was empty, and immense iron panels, stakes, and coral pillars lined
the coastline as temporary fortifications.
All ships had sailed into the island.
To accomplish this, Hun Tong had displayed boldness – he had ordered many
places on the old island to be blown up to crudely make internal docks for
ships to take refuge in.
There was no other option.
If the ships were still berthed at the port, the ships would bear the brunt
when the beast tide approached.
Of course, Two Eyes Island was not an ordinary island, it was a coral ball cage
tree.
It was a living being that could restore itself and grow back.
Therefore, for the next year, when the old island gradually sank to the
seafloor and slowly grew back, these temporary cavities from explosives would
slowly be filled in.
By the time the old island floated back up the next year, these cavities would
all be gone.
The constant alarm reminded everyone that the beast tide was about to hit.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others on the fortified coast saw
many vertical fins suddenly emerging from the white waves.
“They’re coming!” Bai Ya’s heart sank, his lips were dry, and he was tense.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others nevertheless remained
motionless. Their ever movement influenced the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
morale.
“It’s like the intelligence said, it is a sailfish school.” After Zong Ge
realized that he relaxed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had the Deep Sea Monster Fish supplying them
with information, and their control over the battle far exceeded that of
others.
The sailfish were fast swimmers; therefore, they were the first of the beast
tide to attack the defensive line.
“Fire!” The dragonman youngster ordered.
Bang, bang, bang.
A line of alchemy firearms fired into the waves.
Whoosh, swish, whoosh.
A line of alchemy crossbows also fired arrows soon after.
The sailfish were hit, but even though they died in an instant, because of
their high inertia, they still ferociously slammed into the embankments.
Bang, bang, bang.
The sailfish school was very wild, and when they struck the embankments, the
wall of coral pillars set up violently shook.
They also dented the iron panels upon impact.
The sailfish also paid the price for this in blood, and numerous ordinary level
sailfish were struck down dead, only the sailfish with cultivation survived.
But soon after, before the surviving sailfish had time to move, the sailfish
behind them rammed into them, seriously injuring or even killing them.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suffered no casualties, but none of them
relaxed.
This was only the first wave, and everyone could sense how frenzied the school
of fish was.
This was only the first course.
The dragonman youngster not only paid attention to his defensive line, but he
was also receiving news of other places. The alchemy puppets constantly
monitoring the other defensive lines, passing on the situations there to the
survivors. 
If one of Two Eyes Island’s defensive lines collapsed, the beast tide would
attack from the flank, putting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in a dangerous
situation.
If that happened, they would have to risk death to break out of the
encirclement.
Since this concerned their life or death, the dragonman youngster was forced to
be prudent.
Through this information, he found that he was the first line, while the Iron
Club Mercenary Corps was the second.
A group of ghost face fish attacked the defensive line.
The racial magic – Soul Absorption, attacked.
But this time it was different.
They had Wealth Church priests protecting them.
The priests had prepared divine spells, and when those activated, gold light
glittered, a characteristic of the Wealth Church.
Divine spells dispelled the racial magic, Soul Absorption, and it didn’t
suppress them into stillness like it did the Iron Club Mercenary Corps
previously.
They were all inspired and with the ghost face fish before them as regarded as
their target of vengeance, they fought with high morale.
The dragonman youngster quickly withdrew his attention.
Their defensive line was welcoming the second wave of beasts.
It was their old friend, the lightning sharks.
The lightning sharks charged, and also suffered disastrous losses, however, the
remaining lightning sharks didn’t repeat their disastrous mistake and instead
withdrew back into the seawater and shot the embankment with racial magics.
For a moment, condensed electric spears and Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps arrows
and bullets crisscrossed through the air as they fired at each other.
The mutual firing didn’t continue for long.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps obviously had superior firepower, and quickly
shot the sharks dead, leaving only shark bodies bobbing in the waves until they
eventually sank to the seafloor.
“The embankment’s defenses are about to collapse!”
“This is only the second wave, should we start using alchemy puppet?”
The dragonman youngster directly ordered, “Deploy all basic maintenance
puppets!”
They had 8 basic maintenance puppets; they were from the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
They could carry out basic maintenance and emergency repairs for ship damage.
This was maintenance puppets’ first public appearance.
Their operational tools had been replaced with hammers, rivet guns, glue tubes,
and other such tools.
The depressed and deformed iron panes were struck flat with their hammers,
causing the cracks in the coral pillars in the wall to spread, some pillars
even crumbled and formed gaps in the wall.
Three other maintenance puppets worked together. One was transporting new coral
pillars, and another was cleaning out the debris. The pillars were put in, and
upon filling the gaps in the wall, rivet guns and glue tubes activated
simultaneously to blend the city wall back together. 
The third wave of the beast tide quickly arrived, but the network of basic
maintenance puppets worked even faster than them, they had accomplished their
maintenance task a step ahead and had withdrawn already.
With the city defense and occupying the commanding position, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps had a thick bunker to secure the advantage with.
But the other defensive line were doing far worse in comparison.
After the fourth wave of the beast tide, the vast majority of defensive lines
had already collapsed, forcing the defenders to retreat to the second defensive
line.
“Only the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is still at the first defensive line?”
Commander Tie Bang was also gathering all of the information on the island, and
after he noticed this, he was flabbergasted.
“Is that so? They surprisingly have such convenient alchemy puppets?” One Eye
was envious, and he muttered to himself, “Those arms smugglers truly have many
good things.”
One Eye was the leader of the patrol defense fleet and was a silver level
fighter. When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps first arrived, he welcomed the
mercenary corps to the island.
Currently, One Eye was the overall commander of the old island’s defense.
Hun Tong and the Wealth Church’s head priest, along with the main force of the
city guard were defending the new island.
The new island was the beast tide’s actual target, while the old island was
merely collateral damage to the disaster.
Therefore, Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord’s faction concentrated most of its
forces on the new island. Most of the old island’s industry had already been
relocated, thus, the merchant alliances and the other powers were protecting it
too.
It wouldn’t do to not garrison it.
If the damage was severe, and the old island was destroyed, unable to grow back
and recover, then Two Eyes Island would only be a single entity.
As time passed, the beast tide’s main force would eventually batter against the
old island.
At that time, everyone on the island wouldn’t be confronted by single beast
groups, but rather a integrated mix of lightning sharks, ghost face fish,
sailfish, and other aquatic lifeforms frothing to attack them.
Defensive lines everywhere were destroyed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps too was forced to withdraw to the second line,
for the first defensive line was thoroughly battered, and no longer worth
maintaining.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps was in the worst shape.
They had already retreated to the third defensive line.
When they were at the second defensive line, they were ambushed by a group of
ocean frogs.
These frogs were excellent jumpers and all of the ordinary level ones could
jump over the ad hoc walls and into the mercenary corps to wreak havoc.
It was because of these ocean frogs that the Bandage Mercenary Corps’ front
line sank into chaos, causing their fighting spirit to violently drop until
finally causing the defensive line to collapse.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps was forced to defend the third defensive line to
the death.
The third defensive line was located where Hun Tong demolished the island to
create the temporary dock.
The dock had 12 of the Bandage Mercenary Corps’ ships.
If these ships were destroyed, the losses would be disastrous.
When the Bandage Mercenary Corps arrived at ships, they displayed a stronger
fighting spirit and battle intent, because this was their corps’ property!
The 12 ships were crowded together in a line.. The flagship White Bandagewas at
the front, with the other ships bound together with iron chains, forming a
stable high platform. 
Some of the ocean frogs jumped onto the ships but were quickly wrapped up by an
immense white budge and rendered immobile.
The other mercenaries swarmed over and beheaded the ocean frogs as fast as they
could.
These white bandages were an alchemy treasure that not only strangled enemies
but could also act as temporary ship hole pluggers and be woven into a net that
could bind artillery shells, they were very flexible.
With the White Bandagekeeping watch, the Bandage Mercenary Corps finally
stabilized themselves.
“Rib, ribbet, ribbet!” The frogs’ croaks echoed like gigantic drums.
A dozen ocean frogs launched into the sky like cannonballs, then in a parabola,
smashed into the rear of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ second defensive
line.
“Ocean frogs!”
“Don’t panic, stabilize your position.”
“Follow the plan!!”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps reacted with lightning speed. The cultivators
quickly mobilized and charged at the ocean frogs.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others had collected all kinds of
information on the other defensive lines, and after they learned of what the
Bandage Mercenary Corps had encountered, Cang Xu and Zong Ge quickly discussed,
then issued the emergency response measure.
Lan Zao charged at an ordinary level ocean frog.
The ocean frog lowered its head and charged at him.
Lan Zao shouted, and urged his body’s battle qi, suddenly changing the
direction of his charge and brushed past the ocean frog.
The ocean frog howled, a massive blade cut across its body, and blood ejected
from it like a fountain,
Lan Zao immediately turned around to slash the ocean frog’s back.
His battle strength had increased greatly!
He had an entire set of bronze level equipment.
The blade wound had been caused by the cutlass in his hand.
He had used almost all of the money the dragonman youngster had given him to
buy this equipment.
He was thankful for the dragonman youngster from the bottom of his heart.



****** Chapter 123: The Defense of Two Eyes Island (2) ******
“If it was a bronze level ocean frog, I would need a helper to surround it.”
“But ordinary ocean frogs are not my match!”
“I must kill it as soon as possible, the faster the better.”
With strong battle intent, Lan Zao quickly finished off the ocean frog.”
He looked around, then rushed to another place.
“Kill!”
He fought bravely and purposely looked for ordinary ocean frogs to attack.
Ocean frog skin was tough, and those of similar level would usually get in a
deadlock with them.
But the battlefield was a race against time.
“Good, I killed another!”
“That’s the second one.”
“But it isn’t enough.”
I need to do better, get more battle merits, and stabilize my position.”
“Then I’ll be able to help the commander and not disappoint his expectations of
me!”
Lan Zao’s battle intent stood tall and unafraid.
Situations similar to his was taking place everywhere.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had formulated the best strategy. They dealt
with the ocean frog attack by having their bronze levels deal with ordinary
ones, their iron levels deal with bronze level ones, and their silver levels
deal with the iron level ones. 
Thus, in every contest level suppressed all and allowed them to quickly clean
up the ocean frogs and stabilize the rear.
As time dragged on, the greater the damage the ocean frogs would cause.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps’ second line of defense had collapsed because their
higher-ups had failed to respond adequately and hesitated.
Soon after, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge returned to their command post.
The highest level in this ocean frog group was only iron level. This allowed
them to swiftly eliminated the ocean frog group.
Such good luck won’t persist for long.
Before long, they suffered a second ocean frog group jumping in.
This time, the frog leader was a silver level.
But Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster fought together and swiftly beheaded
the silver level leader.
“Say, these ocean frogs could become one’s mounts. They can be domesticated.”
Said the dragonman youngster.
He had always been interested in establishing cavalry.
Mystifying Monster Island was like so.
But Zong Ge shook his head, as a general, he knew more, “Ocean frogs are
unsuitable for humans. Frogmen have a more mature taming method. Frogmen can
breathe underwater, steer ocean frogs across the seafloor, then jump ashore.
That is one of the frogemen’s most common tactics.”
The two took a moment of leisure to chat a few words, then once again sallied
out to attack.
The beast tide brought increasingly more pressure, and eventually, one of the
walls collapsed, throwing a dozen people from it, followed by them being
submerged by the beast tide. This was the first time the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps took major casualties.
Due to the dragonman youngster blocking the gap, that section of wall was
swiftly repaired.
The basic maintenance puppets displayed ither immense impact.
They soon withdrew, and under Zi Di’s control, they entered an alchemy
formation built beforehand and filled up on their respective magic power.
“Moo!” With a prolonged growl, a turtle slowly climbed onto the old island.
“What is that?” Someone cried out in alarm.
“Gasp…” Someone drew in a cold breath.
When a merchant alliance store manager in charge of the defensive line, a
silver level fighter, saw the turtle, his face greatly changed, “That’s a
bramble turtle group. Quickly, send a distress signal, we can’t stop them!!”
Bramble turtles were slow moving, however they were massive, like gigantic
elephants.
Every time they took a step, they would leave behind deep footprints in the
ground.
The surrounding beast tide surged around them, but it couldn’t stop the
turtles’ advance. Regardless of whether it was ghost face fish or lightning
sharks, the turtles could easily crush one with its foot.
Walls and iron panels collapsed with a loud rumble.
All were toppled by the turtles.
As a silver level fighter, the merchant alliance manager stayed on the front
lines and tussled with the turtle leader.
After a few rounds, the silver fighter felt powerless.
He was the same level as his opponent, but the latter’s defense,, regeneration,
and bodily essence far surpassed a human’s, he couldn’t even bite at them.
The others besieging it also suffered grave complications.
The bramble turtle had sharp brambles growing all over their back.
The brambles whipped or tied up the people attacking it from the front,
allowing the turtle to continuously move forward at a smooth pace.
Every bramble turtle was like a moving fort.
With them taking the lead, the defensive line was completely broken through. A
gap in the old island’s defense appeared, and the beast tide surged into that
gap.
One Eye immediately transferred manpower to help the defense.
Three clergymen and six silver levels rushed to provide aid.
Two Eyes Island had at least 27 silver levels, not counting the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
These fresh troops rapidly displayed their impact and for the first time, the
bramble turtles stopped moving.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have bramble turtles, but they did
welcome a large amount of narwhale.
The narwhals outnumbered the turtles by several-fold, and their charge was like
a battering ram at a city gate.
The spiral horns on their heads extended out a few meters, and with
incomparable sharpness, they penetrated the iron panels and walls. Some unlucky
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps mercenaries were skewered by the horns and died on
the spot.
“It no longer essential to continue defending the second defensive line.” Said
Zong Ge. 
“Retreat!” The Dragonman youngster ordered, and the mercenaries began to
conduct an orderly retreat.
The cultivators brought up the rear, while the ordinary members withdrew first.
When two fighters responsible for gathering information witnessed this, they
couldn’t help but sigh.
“This is the most combat coordinated mercenary corps I’ve ever seen.”
“Not just mercenary corps, I believe the city guard is unimpressive in
comparison.”
One Eye and the others didn’t have detection type alchemy puppets, they had to
dispatch scouts to gather information on the defensive lines in a timely
matter.
Therefore, the two fighters saw a lot.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gave them an amazing feeling.
Not only did their teams coordinate, but their leaders also assumed their
duties.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ powerful members fought with all of their
strength and at the head of their troops. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
not hasty or disorderly, their various dispatchments were tight and smooth.
This information was handed over to One Eye.
After One Eye looked at it, his gaze tightened, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps really is the strongest of them.”
“Excluding the city guard, they are second. They are even stronger than my
patrol fleet!”
“Their defensive position was historically the most heavily attacked part of
the island.”
But now, they only just abandoned their second defensive line.”
“Until now, they have never displayed their full strength. They haven’t used
the gold level cannon yet either.”
“Once you reach the third defensive line, I don’t believe you can still endure
that temptation!”
One Eye looked forward to seeing the gold level cannon being used.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a true newcomer and had no foundation on
Two Eyes Island.
Although Hun Tong thought favorably of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, under
the pressure of the beast tide, Hun Tong’s defense plan still struck a nerve oh
how he used the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps reached the temporary dock.
Their 12 ships were stored here. All of them were ordinary ships. The dragonman
youngster’s and Zong Ge’s flagships were medium sized ships, while the rest
were small sized ships.
After the main force arrived on deck, the beast tide followed at their heels.
Silver level narwhals crashed into the enormous clearing, followed by lightning
sharks, ghost face fish, and other beasts swarming in.
For a moment, pressure on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps increased
dramatically.
Ocean frogs jumped on deck, breaking a mast after continuous strikes.
Mercenaries used alchemy crossbows and firearms to return fire.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge had been prepared, but they were unable to
rout the beast tide’s offensive.
The beast tide suffered disastrous casualties, but due to their enormous scale,
they could suffer even more.
“Should we use the cannon?” Cang Xu asked, “We cannot protect our ships.”
Zi Di shook her head, “No need!”
“Using the gold level cannon will consume too much magic power.”
“We need to use at minimum, a silver level artillery shell, an expensive
proposition.”
“Before the battle, Hun Tong did not pledge to compensate these expenditures.”
“What does it matter if a few ships are lost? These are ordinary ships and are
cheaper than artillery shells.”
“This is Hun Tong’s domain, not ours.”
Zi Di understood this cost calculation clearly.
Actually, on this battlefield, if the two magicians displayed their genuine
abilities, that is necromancy, would yield a strong battle result, and would
get even stronger as the battle went on.
But it couldn’t be used!
Ordinary mercenaries would panic and flee.
News would leak, and the survivors’ outward identity would be ripped to pieces.
The Sheng Ming Empire cracked down on and hunted necromancers with constant
vigilance.
“We need a magic ship! If we had one now, even a lowly bronze level one, it
would be much better.” Zong Ge sighed.
When they arrived at the third line of defense, the pressure on the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps was greater than the other two mercenary corps.
The main reason was that besides sustaining heavier beast tide attacks, they
didn’t have a magic ship.
Both the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps had a bronze level magic ship
that served as their flagship.
In this forceful defensive battle, having a magic ship was the backbone of the
battlefield.
“If things don’t work out, then we’ll have to retreat first.” Said the
dragonman youngster.
Zong Ge replied, “Perhaps we can continue blowing up passages to allow the
ships to follow our retreat.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “That will damage the old island even
more, and that will influence our relationship with Hun Tong. Don’t forget, we
still need to rest and reorganize on this island, along with participating in
the auction.”
As the dragonman youngster was planning their retreat, reinforcements arrived.
“Commander Long Fu, I have come to lend you a hand!” The wandering ronin Ku
Feng brandished his long sword, shouting as he killed his way into the
battlefield.  
On the other side, treasure hunter Hong Zhu swam through the sea water,
occasionally jumping out, and occasionally diving back in, leaving fish corpses
behind.
Not long after, the card magician Shi Fa also rushed over.
His hand was constantly moving.
The cards he threw out turned into flames, ice, thunder balls, and so on.
The dazzling magic bombardment greatly restrained the beast tide’s offensive.



****** Chapter 124: The Defense of Two Eyes Island (3) ******
The dragonman youngster smiled.
He didn’t officially ask for help, yet these three aided him of their own
accord. As free people,, they weren’t bound by One Eye’s orders and were free
to act as they pleased.
For the past few days, the dragonman youngster accepted them onto his ships,
helped them deal with the beast tide, and allowed them to profit from mission
rewards.
Although his recruitment of them failed, what was happening now was undoubtably
proof that the dragoman youngster’s investment had paid off.
One Eye had veiled criticism of this.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps still hadn’t used the gold level cannon, and
they still had strength in reserve, yet these three decided to assist them.
This formidable strength should be provided elsewhere to benefit the overall
situation more.
But One Eye couldn’t voice his critiques.
That Ku Feng and the others even stayed on the island to defend it already made
him glad. Besides his troops, he had no right to truly command such people.
Even if One Eye was deployed, everything depended on whether Ku Feng and the
others were willing to join.
Ku Feng’s and the others’ help allowed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to pass
through their most difficult juncture.
After Shi Fa’s ice magic cards froze the venomous jellyfish surging poison
waves, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps launched a comprehensive counterattack.
The beast tide was already thinly spread.
They sailed their ships and nearly made it through the thick layers of fish
corpses.
There were still sporadic combat across the old island, and the battles on the
other defensive lines had ended earlier.
Shi Fa went to the dragonman youngster and whispered to him, “The outsiders
might not know, but as a magician, I have read Two Eyes Island’s records. In
the records, your position was where the beast tide most heavily attacked in
the past.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes shrank, and he nodded to Shi Fa.
As a matter of fact, he didn’t need that warning, as Zi Di and Cang Xu had
already informed him of this contrast.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had faced the strongest part of the beast tide.
Now, they had 7 ships remaining.
5 were completely lost, almost half their number.
But due to the silver levels exerting themselves, personnel loss was actually
quite small, and far less than what the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps
suffered.
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish cannot be exposed.”
“If we had a magic ship to serve as our flagship and assume the most pressure,
we wouldn’t have lost so many ships.
The dragonman youngster had high hopes for a magic ship.
However, Two Eyes Island didn’t have a shipyard, and all of their docks were
temporarily formed through explosives.
As the beast tide attacked, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was hiding on the
seafloor disguised as a reef, completely still as it did its best to supply
information to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Commander Long Fu, please marshal your force and follow me to support the
Feudal Lord.” One Eye requested this time.
The old island’s beast tide was at an end, but the new island was still being
vigorously flooded by it.
“I will.” The dragonman youngster nodded his agreement. 
They stayed to defend this place partially because of the generous reward.
In fact, besides the mission monetary reward, the mountainous heaps of fish
corpses left behind on the battlefield were also worth a lot.
Since they had already accomplished this much, the dragoman youngster naturally
wouldn’t decline to continue exerting themselves.
Of course, before leaving, he left behind some people.
5
It just so happened that 5 of his ships were destroyed, and many mercenaries
needed to tend to the wounded and clean up the battlefield.
After thinking on it, the dragoman youngster left Cang Xu and Tripleblade
behind to preside over the old island’s situation.
Both were iron levels, Tripleblade was a fighter, but very reliable and worth
trusting. Cang Xu was better, a magician and an expert schemer.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ defensive line had the most fish corpses on
it, including many magic ocean beasts.
To ensure their benefits, leaving Cang Xu and Tripleblade was appropriate.
The dragonman youngster left behind a ship for them to return with, then soon
after, he, Zong Ge, and the others steered the 6 ships away from the old island
and towards the new island to support it.
Together with them was the Bandage and Iron Club Mercenary Corps, as well as
merchant alliance ships and One Eye’s patrol fleet.
The new island was not far from the old island.
But the support fleet found it difficult to advance.
They were obstructed by bramble turtles.
“A gold level!” One Eye took in a cold breath.
The bramble turtle leader was a gold level.
Its brambles were especially lush, like a jungle. The brambles were spread wide
across the ocean surface and became a stumbling block.
The support fleet wanted to go around, but the bramble turtles were not slow in
the water.
If they really wanted to get around, it would waste too much time.
“Commander Long Fu, please use your gold cannon to kill that bramble turtle!”
One Eye asked through an alchemy communication device.
The dragoman youngster’s voice sank, “What will be the price for doing so?
Captain One Eye, you must understand that to kil this gold level turtle leader
swiftly, we not only need to use the gold level cannon, but also gold level
artillery shells!
“One shell won’t even resolve the problem. The bramble turtle’s defense is
thick, it will take at least two.”
One Eye took a deep breath, “Don’t worry, Commander Long Fu. Before the battle
started, the Feudal Lord instructed me that I could decide. Your corps’ wear
and tear will be compensated by Two Eyes Island according to the market value!
Your contribution for blowing up the gold level magic beast will also be
computed in and be remunerated as charged.”
But the dragonman youngster was not satisfied.
Due to how the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was set up on the old island’s
defensive line, if Hun Tong had been candid about it before hand, things would
have been fine, but now, the dragoman youngster realized they had been used
somewhat.
Since this was the case, why would the dragonman youngster be courteous?
He barked back, “I am not satisfied with that price.”
He thought back to when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps made a private deal
with Hun Tong. There were able to buy items from the auction ahead of time, but
they had to pay 30% above the market value,
Thus, the dragoman youngster followed up with, “Our artillery costs need to be
compensated at 30% above market value.”
One Eye greatly frowned with annoyance, he wanted to haggle, but the silence
indicated the dragonman youngster’s firm position.
Soon after, One Eye couldn’t persevere.
He was assigned to defend the old island, then to organize a fleet to reinforce
the new island.
Every second delayed meant a second that he was procrastinating his heavy
military duties.
When he thought of the dragoman youngster’s request, he realized it hadn’t
exceeded Hun Tong’s bottom line, thus One Eye bit his jaw, “Fine, I agree to
your terms.”
Boom!!
The gold cannon was personally fired by Zong Ge once again.
The gold level artillery shell smashed into the brambly turtle shell and
erupted with a massive explosion and triggered the appearance of a small
mushroom fire cloud.
The bramble turtle leader was heavily damaged, and after it miserably howled,
it sank into the ocean..
It didn’t choose to counterattack, instead it sank deeper into the ocean, it
was fleeing!
“That really is a gold level cannon.”
“Its power is indeed formidable!”
“With the corresponding gold artillery shells, it can directly take care of a
gold level bramble turtle.”
“No, it isn’t dead. It fled!”
“It’s halfway dead, if it didn’t run away, it would have really died.”
Everyone was stunned, and their tongues wagged.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ members were all proud. Look, this is our
mercenary corps!
One Eye asked, “Why don’t you press the attack and fire a second shell to kill
that gold level bramble turtle?
“Our gold cannon isn’t attached to a ship, and without a magic power furnace
supplying it, we have to do it ourselves. It is difficult to fire a second shot
in succession.” The dragoman youngster explained.
Meanwhile, hidden on the seafloor, the Deep Sea Monster Fish began to quietly
move.
One Eye repeatedly sighed, “What a pity, a true pity.”
Then, using this opportunity, he led the fleet towards the new island.
The new island was not a good situation.
Two gold level beasts were already ashore.
There was a noble flying porgy circling in the skies. The other gold level
magic beast was a seafloor mountain snail that was slowly moving across the new
island.
The noble flying porgy had its community around it; these fish had flying
racial magic empowering them and could fly as long as a flock of birds through
the sky.
All seafloor mountain snails were massive. They always dwelled on the seabed,
and even ordinary level mountain snails were the size of mounds. This gold
level seafloor mountain snail truly looked like a small mountain.
Because it came ashore, the entire new island had a distinct tint to it and was
trending towards sinking.
Hun Tong was already active.
His main target was not the noble flying porgy, but rather the seafloor
mountain snail.
He had to kill the mountain snail as soon as possible, otherwise the entire new
island would suffer a calamity.
However, when Hun Tong’s gold battle skills smashed into the seafloor mountain
snail, it didn’t yield any clear battle results; they only slowed the snail’s
pace somewhat, nothing more.
The seafloor mountain snail had extraordinary resistance, its snail shell was
incomparably thick, its soft body was considerably firm, and its restoration
ability was outstanding.
The mountain snail secreted a slippery corrosive liquid wherever it went.
The new island was a coral ball cage tree, and its branches were being
increasingly corroded, the surface layer of the island was already rotted
away. 
Upon seeing this, Zi Di smiled and summoned One Eye, “We can shoot the cannon
at the seafloor mountain snail.”
But One Eye hesitated, “What if you miss and hit the new island?”
Zong Ge gave his assurance, after all the mountain snail was gigantic.
But Zi Di didn’t want to shoulder that risk and said to One Eye, “We cannot
guarantee absolute safety, however, if we let the seafloor mountain snail
continue to wreak havoc, the damage will be hard to estimate.”
One Eye too didn’t want to carry this risk, thus, he contacted the new island
and hoped that Hun Tong would give him directives. 
When Hun Tong heard the quoted price, he coldly snorted to himself.
His battle skills were oriented towards condensed and focused battle qi and his
fighjt9ing style was not suited for open warfare, instead he was an expert at
stealth, ambush, and assassination.
Therefore, the seafloor mountain snail was an opponent that restrained him.
“Don’t let them fire, even if they hit the mountain snail, the resulting
explosion will impact the new island.” Hun Tong declined the suggestion of
using the cannon.



****** Chapter 125: The Defense of Two Eyes Island (4) ******
It wasn’t that Hun Tong couldn’t afford the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ quoted
price.
Money was not the issue.
Similarly, he also wasn’t worried the new island would be affected by the
residual impact of the shell.
Rather it was reputation!
If he let an outside mercenary corps help him out of trouble, then his
reputation as feudal lord would greatly suffer.
That was out of the question.
Regardless of whether it was the impending auction, future consolidation of the
island, or developing a transportation lane, all of those required reputation
above all else.
High reputation could not only make his administration of his domain easier and
make his control over it deeper, but it could also deter foreign enemies.
Such as pirates and those fishmen.
Hun Tong understood he had to use all of his strength here.
He took a deep breath, and his murky eyes flashed sharply.
A moment later, his life aurar suddenly erupted, forming a qi wave that swept
in all directions.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…
A golden flame surged from his body, a raging inferno. 
This was what it looked like when a gold level fighter’s entire battle qi burst
out from themselves.
At that moment, Hun Tong’s aura was incomparably tempestuous and easily
surpassed Rou Zang’s.
A split second later, he took another deep breath.
Like a bird returning to its nest, all of the gold battle qi around him faded
back into his body, causing the elated gold level aura to also vanish, as if
the prior scene had been an illusion.
When the dragonman youngster saw this from afar, his eyes inevitably contracted
slightly.
Right now, Hun Tong seemed even more formidable!
Because all of his power had been condensed together and restrained.
Not every gold level fighter could do this.
This was Hun Tong’s special battle strength. He was an expert at condensing his
power to deliver a fatal blow.
Battle skill – Silence.
Battle skill – Extreme Speed Stage Four.
Hun Tong moved with such speed that it looked like he had vanished.
Even the dragonman youngster only saw a perfectly straight golden ray of light
cutting across their field of view.
When Hun Tong attacked, he would inevitably leak some battle qi. He wasn’t able
to achieve complete restraint and condensation.
The golden ray of light thrusted towards the seafloor mountain snail.
Battle skill – Bone Penetration!
The seafloor mountain snail was enormous and its movements sluggish. It didn’t
even have time to react before the golden light penetrated its snail shell.
The snail shell was a deep cyan, it was thick, heavy, and very firm, and these
all combined surely gave it magic resistance.
But the golden light directly penetrated it as easily as a needle through tofu.
The seafloor mountain snail was as large as a hill, and when Hun Tong cut his
way into it, his field of view was dark.
But a moment later, he used another battle skill.
Battle skill – Mortal Blow!
This battle skill altered and increased his perception substantially.
For a split second, Hun Tong sensed where the seafloor mountain snail’s 7 fatal
points were.
His spirit firmly locked onto the nearest one.
A large amount of gold battle qi condensed into his dagger.
This fine dagger was a gold level weapon!
The dagger shot out of his hand.
Less than a half second later, the dagger struck the fatal point Hun Tong’s
spirit had locked onto.
The gold level dagger pierced the seafloor mountain snail’s heart, and because
it was too sharp, it continued to travel through the snail, until it flew out
of its shell and inserted itself deeply into the ground.
The seafloor mountain snail’s heart ruptured and was soon torn to pieces by the
gold battle qi.
The gigantic seafloor mountain snail trembled, and it raised its head high in
what seemed to be a silent howl.
Thump.
Soon after, the mountain snail’s head smashed into the ground and no longer
moved.
Deep blue blood quickly flowed from the hole Hun Tong made, spraying out like a
fountain and pooling underneath the dead mountain snail.
Hun Tong drilled his way out of the mountain snail and stood on top of the
snail shell like a spear.
Regardless of whether it was the defending city guard or the reinforcing
mercenaries and patrol fleet members, when all of them saw this, they cheered
and praised Hun Tong’s might!
“Good show!”
“He killed that gigantic magic beast so quickly.”
“Lord Hun Tong truly is worthy of his reputation.”
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge both looked surprised.
The battle strength Hun Tong displayed from a certain point of view was more
threatening than Rou Zang’s.
He was an expert assassin, and his battle skills were all single targeted ones.
Perhaps the dragonman youngster’s dragon scales could withstand it. But without
gold level armor, Zong Ge would find it hard to withstand such an attack.
Hun Tong heard joyous shouts and couldn’t help but smile. But then his gleaming
eyes darkened further than what they were before.
Aa strong feeling of exhaustion attacked him.
“I used up 70% of my battle qi.” Hun Tong evaluated.
The eruption of energy not only expended a frightful amount of battle qi, but
also his stamina and spirit too.
Because his full strength had burst out, much of his muscles were injured, his
body felt sticky and in pain, he was covered in the seafloor mountain snail’s
bodily fluids.
“There is still another gold level magic beast.”
Hun Tong raised his head towards the sky.
In the sky, a large group of noble flying porgies were soaring through the air
like a murder of crows and a swarm of bats.
Although these fish lived on the seabed, they had flying racial magic.
The noble flying porgy leader was an impressive gold level magic beast.
Hun Tong hesitated and didn’t attack the gold level noble flyting porgy,
instead he gave the order to have the light cannon tower shoot it.
The new island had two light cannon towers.
One was complete, it had begun construction when the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps arrived at the island.
The second was quite short and small in comparison, but it still had a firing
platform. It was half as tall as the first tower and was the result of hasty
work after the beast tide was detected.
Anyways, the component at the top of the two light cannon towers was the same.
The 3 meter long silver-white cubes had no sign of sloppy work on them.
When the beast tide attacked the new island, the two light cannon towers had
started firing.
Under Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s commander, the light cannon towers’ cubes
immediately turned around and aimed towards the sky.
The cubes swiftly absorbed the surrounding light elements, and after a dozen
seconds, one of the eye runes suddenly opened, and from the depths of its
pupil, a light ray fired outwards.
The pure white dazzling ray of light shot into the sky with rapid speed.
The gold level noble flying porgy leader didn’t have time to react and was hit
by both light rays at nearly the same time.
The noble flying porgy shrieked, and in a flash, its floating body began to
fall.
But after falling 4 meters, it stabilized itself and once again rocketed
upwards into the sky.
When many people saw this, they felt grieved.
But the dragonman youngster was not surprised, “The light cannon tower’s
strength lies with the speed of its light ray projectile, it is almost
impossible to evade. It can only be predicted and be evaded or defended against
ahead of time.”
“Its might is only silver level, yet its penetration performance is quite
outstanding.”
“It being unable to shoot down a gold level magic beast is not strange.”
Hun Tong’s complexion was grave, on the one hand, he wanted to hurry up and
rest and restore his battle qi, while on the other hand, he had to give orders,
“Begin a strafing firing pattern!” 
The two light cannon towers began to emit a more tempestuous white light ray.
The white light concentrated, causing the cubes to glisten ever brighter.
All four of the cube’s eyes opened at the same time.
The cube began to slowly rotate.
White light shot out from the eyes.
Unlike before, the four beams of light persisted, and the cubes did not stop
shooting.
In the wake of the rotating cubes, the two cannon towers’ eight beams of light
swept across the sky.
When it swept across the noble flying porgies, the flying porgies were easily
pierced or cut open. Only the silver level ones and the gold level flying porgy
were able to remain alive through this.
The eight light rays looked like sharp long blades that wreaked havoc across
the sky.
In but a moment, the noble flying porgy group suffered disastrous casualties.
The sky began to rain with dismembered bodies and blood.
“They actually had such an attack stance?!”
Everyone was pleasantly surprised, and morale was greatly raised.
More than half of the massive flying porgy group had died by the strafing light
cannons.
The surviving flying porgies sank into a rage, and one after the other, they
threw themselves at the light cannon towers.
But this was precisely what Hun Tong wanted to see happen.
Around the light cannon towers were strong and prepared defenses.
Not only was Hun Tong there, the priest and others were personally keeping
watch over them.
When the flying porgies pounced, the light cannon cubes turned even faster, and
the constantly strafing light rays caused many flying porgies to fall from the
sky midway to them.
There were only three truly able to approach the light cannons.
Those would be taken care of by the defense’s cultivators.
When Hun Tong saw an impending opportunity, he suddenly jumped at the flying
porgy leader.
As the flying porgy leader rose into the air, Hun Tong followed firmly behind
and fiercely attacked it.
The flying porgy shot its racial magics at Hun Tong.
Gold battle qi emerged from Hun Tong’s body, stiffly resisting the close ranged
attacks and doing its best to close in on the flying porgy.
Both sides grappled with each other for a good while, the flying porgy’s rough
skin couldn’t compare to Hun Tong’s comprehensive equipment set.
The flying porgy leader finally fell into the sea with a tremendous splash.
Hun Tong jumped up onto a nearby ship.
He was also a sorry figure, but his leather armor and inner armor were both
glisteningly brightly with a gold level aura.
This made the observers on the sidelines all envious.
From a surface glance, one could see Hun Tong had at least two gold level
protection equipment and a gold level dagger.
He really was wealthy!
“Dredge it up for me.” Hun Tong ordered.
The subordinates all cheered, and morale once again rose dramatically.
To have a feudal lord this formidably greatly stimulated their battle intent.
In contrast, the beast tide had lost their two gold level magic beasts. Despite
there still being a lot of beasts in the new island’s waters, the outcome of
this battle had already been determined.
The reinforcements, including the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, first cleaned up
the beast tide in the nearby waters, then calmly made landfall.
The new island’s devastating beast tide had nearly been whittled away
completely.
Finally, the two forces coordinated both inside and out to surround the
remnants of the beast tide and eliminated them speedily.
“The beast tide has ended.”
“Lord Hun Tong is divinely powerful!!”
“We are victorious!”
“Speaking of which, this beast tide was the most intense ever recorded.”
Everyone sighed sorrowfully ad nauseum as they cleaned up the battlefield.
Zong Ge came to the dragonman youngster and whispered to him, “Did you notice
that this beast tide was not chaotic, the many beast groups were distinctly
divided up and there was even obvious levels to the beast tide’s attacks.”
The dragoman youngster muttered to himself, “It was indeed strange.”
This strangeness was not something most people could detect, but due to
experiencing Mystifying Monster Island’s beast tides, all of the survivors more
or less could feel that peculiarity. 
In the ocean depths.
Fishmen were gathering together.
“The beast tide is finished, and our task has been accomplished.”
“The new island’s defenses have been exposed, especially those two cannon
towers.”
“Hun Tong’s strength hasn’t visibly increased, however, he has much gold level
armor on him.”
“Hm, go on then.”
The fishmen left the secret camp together to prevent Two Eyes Island from
following their races and to not expose themselves.
“Soon…”
“Soon, we will return!”



****** Chapter 126: The Defense of Two Eyes Island (5) ******
Six ships formed a fleet that sailed across the dark blue sea.
The dragonman youngster stood at the side of the ship and felt the sea wind on
his face.
The red dragon scales reflected the sunlight and emitted a copper luster.
“A school of fish detected ahead!”
“A school of ghost face fish!”
“No, it is a school of ghost face fish and noble flying porgies fighting each
other.”
The lookout pointed and shouted to pass on the information.
After the mercenaries heard this, they expressed a trace of excitement.
“What great luck!”
“When coming across fish schools fighting, we only need to pick up the ones
left behind.”
“A pity, I wanted to enjoy a fight.”
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ mercenaries got through the beast tide
defense battle, the mentality of a number of them more or less changed.
The entire mercenary corps’ internal atmosphere suddenly changed for the
better.
It was precisely because of their mutual cooperation and dependence on each
other during battle that some comrades-in-arms were formed.
The secret competition and internal instability between members during the
early stage of establishment had come and gone.
The mercenaries had managed to institute a hierarchical relationship.
After this battle, the entire mercenary corps seemed to have been cleansed
inside and out.
The dragonman youngster felt that commanding the mercenary corps was now much
smoother than before.
“Reduce speed, approach slowly.”
“All personnel be on your guard.”
“Be alert for fish school attacks.”
The dragonman youngster issued a series of orders.
The mercenaries began to push up cannons, rope in some sails, inspect hulls,
and wait in certain places.
The ships gradually approached the fish school battlefield.
The dragonman youngster calmly gazed into the distance.
The fighting between the schools of fish was very fierce.
This was normal.
The beast tide had reached and attacked Two Eyes Island, but because of Hun
Tong’s performance, it was utterly routed.
After the beast tide collapsed, many remnants of it sojourned in the waters
around Two Eyes Island.
Because Two Eyes Island’s rising and falling attracted many ocean predators,
all of the fish schools in the beast tide were essentially carnivores.
When the beast tide passed, these different types of predators began to match
their strength against and battle each other.
The young man’s face was tranquil, his heart too.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish gave him information far soon and with more detail
than any lookout could.
It was precisely because of this scouting that the dragonman youngster had
intentionally adjusted his course to guide the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
towards discovering these fish schools.
The dragonman youngster patiently waited for a bit until the outcome of the
battle between fish schools was decided.
The winner was the ghost face fish school.
Their ghosts troubled the noble flying porgies greatly.
The flying porgy school didn’t have clerics to solve this problem.
Therefore, despite the ghost face fish school being smaller than the flying
porgy school, they were ultimately the winner.
“Attack!”
Seeing the opportunity mature, the dragonman youngster led his troops into the
battlefield.
The ghost face fish were almost depleted, and the victorious survivors were
wounded and dispirited.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were a tiger setting upon sheep, and after a
slaughter, the battlefield became calm.
They immediately began to clean up the battlefield.
A large number of harvested fish was crammed into the holds.
The mercenaries were quite practiced at doing this.
During the day of the beast tide invasion, they had captured a large quantity
of resources.
It could even be said they filled their coffers.
If this harvest continued for one or two months, the mercenary corps could
purchase a manor in an important imperial city.
The survivors not only gained money but also advanced their main project – the
bloodline medicine database had consequently made a lot of progress.
Zi Di was in charge of establishing the bloodline medicine testing database.
She and Cang Xu had already begun to prepare the materials needed for the
Bloodline Purification Formation.
Anyways, the most valuable alchemy materials from the beast tide was in Hun
Tong’s hands.
Two gold level magic beasts were slain by his hands.
Whether it was the seafloor mountain snail or the noble flying porgy, both gold
level leaders were full of gold level alchemy materials.
The Bloodline Purification Formation just happened to need some choice morsels
of mountain snail flesh.
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps asked Hun Tong for a deal.
But Hun Tong’s reply was that he would sell these spoils at the auction. 
By doing this, he would undoubtably be the one who benefited the most.
After all, he had sold some items ahead of time to the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. But now, after the beast tide, he now has even more materials of even
higher quality.
It is always said that when there are risks, there were usually profits.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was left helpless and could only wait for the
auction.
Fortunately, it was a few days away.
During that time, besides needing to repair their ships and treat their
wounded, they also took Mercenary Guild missions related to cleaning up the
beast tide.
After spending half an hour, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps finished cleaning
up the battlefield. Then, following the dragonman youngster’s lead, they rushed
to the next location.
Night was falling.
The mercenaries were both exhausted and content.
Today’s fish catch was abundant, and although it couldn’t compare to when the
beast tide was most turbulent, the combat pressure and risks were far fewer.
It was a wonderful experience that many mercenaries were reluctant to part
with.
Many people ruefully sighed: if such fish harvests continued, they wouldn’t
need to live dangerously as mercenaries and instead take money and become
wealthy.
Some people even proclaimed: since the mercenary corps had such good detection
puppets, it would be better to become a hunting group and specialize in ocean
fishing.
Such an opinion indicated that the vast majority of those who lived as
mercenaries were only in it for their livelihood.
Of course, such calls for this were merely superficial.
Most of their mercenaries were pirates or lived on islands year round, thus
they knew that beast tides were rare.
“Report!”
“A small ordinary ship had appeared ahead.”
A lookout on the mast suddenly shouted and pointed.
“What are we afraid of?”
“We are the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Go on and kill them, that fish school belongs to us.”
“They were currently pursuing a fish school; it was their last hunt of the day.
Because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps possessed a formidable information
advantage, within a day, they had fished up almost all of the most valuable
fish schools from the waters around Two Eyes Island.
The leftovers had low value, low enough that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
wouldn’t be going out tomorrow.
The mercenaries all knew this, and despite being beaten, the harvest allowed
them to maintain their vigorous spirit.
They had experienced the Two Eyes Island’s beast tide defense battle and also
knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps position in Two Eyes Island’s hierarchy,
therefore, they were unconcerned about a small ordinary ship.
But the dragoman youngster’s eyes flashed gravely.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish transmitted information, illustrating that this small
ordinary ship was not so ordinary after all. Or more accurately, the sailors
were not ordinary.
“Pursue them.”
“Hold the sails at full.”
“All personnel on guard!”
The dragonman youngster ordered.
He didn’t choose to disclose this information.
Scout type alchemy puppets couldn’t investigate to this degree.
“A group of ice blade fish is charging towards us?” On the small ship, a young
fighter’s brows were raised when he heard this news.
“Captain.” His first mate analyzed, “It should be a remnant of the beast tide.”
“Ice blade fish have considerable value, many of their parts can be used in
alchemy.”
“Correct.” The youthful captain nodded repeatedly. Every strand of his blue
hair was vertically sticking up from his scalp and formed the shape of an
explosion. 
“Hehe.” The youthful captain laughed heartily, “Pretty good luck to have a fish
school approaching us as we are coming to Two Eyes Island’s auction.”
“This is our money!”
“The ship won’t do; I shall take action personally.”



****** Chapter 127: The Lightning Pirates ******
The youthful captain’s motivation was very strong, and after he said this, he
left his ship cabin and arrived on deck.
Plop.
He jumped into the ocean and swam towards the ice blade fish school.
At this time, the s mall ship’s lookout issued a warning: a small fleet was
bearing towards them at great speed!
When the first mate heard that, his expression slightly changed, he wanted to
inform the captain but couldn’t find them.
“Oh dear, the captain went out to fight again.”
“He is too impulsive, there wasn’t enough time to tell him.”
The first mate lamented to himself and promptly ordered that all crew was to
take precautions, pull the sails to half, and that all sailors sit at their
oars.
The small ship didn’t just have sails, but also 6 oars on each side of the
ship, it was a ship with a combination of sails and oars. 
He led the leaders and experts onto the foremost part of the deck and emitted
their life aura in a display of military force.
The incoming fleet was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
When the mercenaries closed the distance, they saw the small ship and also
noticed the people aboard.
Something isn’t right.”
“That is no ordinary ship.”
“That ship has many cultivators on it, the other sailors are fierce looking
too.”
“I get it, they are pirates!”
Some had suddenly thought of the answer.
Two Eyes Island’s auction was about to be held, and during this time every
year, not only would merchants, mercenaries, and individual free cultivators
participate in it, but also pirates big and small.
Two Eyes Island was a convenient place to dispose of booty and was also an
important resupply point for pirates.
However, Hun Tong was still an imperial feudal lord and couldn’t allow pirates
ships to overtly dock at his port.
Therefore, when pirates came to Two Eyes Island, they would change their ships.
Their flagships were magic ships and had distinct characteristics. If they rode
them over here, it would provoke Feudal Lord Hun Tong. The other pirates
traveling there would also think that they were breaking the rules.
In quite the irony, pirates had considerably strict internal discipline.
From this angle, they were always emphasizing rules.
Therefore, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had actually encountered a pirate
group.
They were just about to come ashore to Two Eyes Island and participate in the
auction.
“Anyways, which pirate group is it?”
“There is an iron level standing at the head. It might be a small sized pirate
group that isn’t well known.”
“No, I feel these people are not so simple.”
As the mercenaries were guessing with each other, the seawater ahead of them
suddenly exploded with sparkling and dazzling lightning.
After the lightning dissipated, a fish corpse floated to the surface.
The shadow of a human jumped from the seawater and onto the deck of the small
ship.
He was soaking wet, fresh from the water, yet his blue hair was still straight
and upright like a hedgehog’s spines.
“Captain!”
“Boss!!”
The pirates called out on the deck.
Due to the youthful captain’s excessively notable feature, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ mercenaries had to stifle their cries of alarm.
“That’s Dian Wan, a silver level pugilist!”
“They are the Lightning Pirates!”
“A silver level pirate group that is very active in Two Eyes Island’s waters.”
But that doesn’t matter, we are the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“That’s right, our commander can fight against gold levels, and our auxiliary
commander Shi Qi is a silver level too. We have two silver cultivators, while
they only have one.”
The mercenaries quickly compared the strength between them, ensuring their
confidence and morale. 
In contrast, the Lightning Pirates were somewhat grave and depressed at this.
“It’s the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Those guys have recently been in Two Eyes Island’s limelight for being strong,
don’t look down at them.”
“The other side’s strength is greater than ours, don’t act without permission.
Hun Tong’s auction has been held many times before. We go to participate in it
to not only shop, but to also sell things. Which shop on Two Eyes Island is not
welcoming? As long as we don’t unconsciously provoke the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, they are unlikely to attack us.” The first mate softly and rapidly spoke
his clear and logical analysis.
But a moment later, their captain Dian Wan reproached, “Hey, what do you think
you’re doing? I killed all of those fish!”
As it turns out, the mercenaries were already beginning to net the dead fish.
They were quite familiar with this type of work.
The dragonman youngster appeared before the pirates, “We were pursuing this
fish school…”
Before he could finish speaking, the pirates suddenly changed color as the
Lightning Pirates’ first mate shouted, “Stop the captain now!”
But it was too late.
Dian Wan thundered, “Long Fu, I know you! Take this!”
He suddenly jumped, and with thunder and lightning twisting around him, he shot
at the dragonman youngster like an artillery shell accelerated by electricity.
After a moment of astonishment, the dragonman youngster bent his right arm and
tightened his fist.
Dian Wan dove down, fist brandished.
The dragonman youngster steadied himself on the deck and straightened his body
like a spear.
Battle skill – Electric Fist.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Bang!
With an explosion, both unyielding right fists clashed against each other.
The dragonman youngster fell back three steps while Dian Wan flew back. As he
was falling towards the sea, the soles of his leather boots suddenly flashed,
allowing him to stand firmly on the ocean surface like he was standing on level
ground.
This was his alchemy equipment, bronze level water walking boots.
As Dian Wan walked on the water, his body staggered fiercely, and he almost
fell.
But in the end, he was barely able to steady himself and stand up straight to
look up at the dragonman youngster on the ship above, his gaze filled with
battle intent.
“Pirate…” The dragonman youngster didn’t cover the disgust filling his face,
“But this guy…isn’t weak.”
The dragonman youngster had experienced many other silver levels.
During the beast tide defense, there was 27 silver levels on Two Eyes Island. 
Based on their contest just then, the dragonman youngster secretly evaluated
that Dian Wan would easily be in the top 5 strongest silver levels on Two Eyes
Island.
After all, if a pirate didn’t have enough strength, how could they control the
will of the people and plunder fruitfully?
The Lightning Pirates’ first mate shouted, “Captain, don’t forget that we have
come here to join the auction!”
Then the first mate yelled to the dragonman youngster, “Commander Long Fu, this
is all a misunderstanding. That fish school has always belonged to you.”
“Why?!” Dian Wan turned his head, his eyes ferociously glaring at the first
mate.
The first mate did not fear him, and instead resentfully reprimanded, “Captain,
save me the trouble. Why do you do this every time? Before I finished
analyzing, you were already attacking!”
“Sorry, so sorry!” Dian Wan promptly apologized.
But a second later, he then yelled, “But why are we just giving them these
fish? I killed them all.”
“What are you arguing so nosily about pirates?” Zong Ge was on another ship’s
bow with his broadsword on his back, his arms crossed across his chest, and a
complexion of iron. This isn’t something fish or an apology can solve. You just
attacked us! A battle! Only a battle can resolve the problem between us.”
A second silver level appearing caused the pirates to gnash their teeth.
Everyone had seen the recent confrontation; Dian Wan was somewhat inferior to
the dragonman youngster and had eaten a bigger loss than the latter. 
In a one on one, they were already at a disadvantage, and if a real fight broke
out, it’d be a two against one!
Dian Wan most certainly wouldn’t do well in that scenario.
Pirates were like oceanic wolves; they always knew how to judge the time and
size up the situation.
Especially since they changed to a small ordinary ship and were at an immense
disadvantage in terms of ships.
The dragonman youngster didn’t say anything and instead used dragon eyes filled
with battle intent to lock onto Dian Wan, forcing the latter to focus his
attention back and not dare expose the slightest flaw.
Zong Ge then said, “Despite being pirates, we won’t take advantage of your
difficulties.”
“After all, this is Two Eyes Island.”
“We are newcomers who also want to follow the local customs.”
“Choose ten people that will fight on my ship. Whoever wins will have this
harvest of fish. The losers will leave immediately.”
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fought Dian Wan’s pirate group with their
full strength, they would break the unspoken rules here which would inevitably
damage and strain their relationship with Hun Tong.
If Dian Wan’s pirate group was eliminated, who would dare come to join Two Eyes
Island’s auction?
Even if it was a large scale pirate group, they had to consider and weigh
things.
When the first mate heard this, he immediately let out a breath.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was very powerful and still wanted to attack,
however, they had retreated a step, kept some leeway, and didn’t have their
leader cross blades with theirs.
“I don’t agree…” Dian Wan shouted loudly.
“We agree!” The first mate promptly interrupted Dian Wan.
The pirates around the first mate also cried out, “Captain, calm down a little,
give us some peace of mind.”
“Ugh, you guys.” Dian Wan clenched his teeth indignantly, his tone exposing his
frustration and dismay.
“You, you, and also you.” The first mate began to choose people.
“Come out everyone.” Zong Ge smiled as he called Kui Tui.
The Quick Knife Battle Squad led by Kuai Tui had more than ten members, and
although their equipment wasn’t standardized, their capabilities were unified.
Especially through this time of arduous training, a tacit understanding had
been fostered among them.
Their appearance caused the first mate to tightly frown, he had a premonition
had his opponent was not simple.
As it turns out, Zong Ge’s purpose was that he wanted Lightning Pirates to
temper his small Quick Knife battle squad.
During training and even in live combat, the Quick Knife Battle Squad had only
fought against the beasts.
They lacked experience in fighting people.
Zong Ge understood thoroughly that this flaw needed to be made up for.
But truly throwing them into actual combat was very risky. The small Quick
Knife battle squad had too few people, even small losses would make Zon Ge’s
heart bleed a drop.
If a bit too many members of this recently established battle squad die, it
would collapse.
Therefore, Zong Ge used the opportunity to cleverly obtain the perfect training
environment.
Even if a mistake appeared midway, he could interfere and save this newly
created battle squad.
Anyways, although the half beastman’s plan was very good, it couldn’t withstand
change.
As ten people on each side stood on the deck, about to battle, a fleet was
spotted in the distance. 
It was the Two Eyes Island’s patrol group.
As its leader, when One Eye clearly saw what the situation was here, he
repeatedly shouted, “Desist. Let’s talk things over properly.”



****** Chapter 128: Admission ******
One Eye was very nervous, “Lord Hun Ton has already said that after the beast
tide, Two Eyes Island needs to recover. Fights between humanity is strictly
prohibited.
Zong Ge coldly snorted.
The pirates’ eyes shined, each of them pleasantly surprised. 
The first mate turned to shout at once, “We are all good people that solemnly
follow Lord Hun Tong’s orders!”
“We don’t want this catch of fish; they will be set aside for you.” 
“Return now!”
Although the ten chosen pirates had courage enough to not fear battling on an
enemy ship, if they didn’t need to fight, why would they fight?
In the pirates’ plan, Two Eyes Island was a leisurely trip, they weren’t here
to make war, but rather to conduct business matters. 
The pirates all took a big step back.
This time, it would be harder to start fights.
When One Eye saw this in the distance, he immediately let out a breath and
brightly laughed, “Impulse is the devil! Two Eyes Island welcomes every friend
that participates in the auction.”
“This really isn’t righteous conduct.” The dragonman youngster sighed softly
and gave the order to drop this fight.
According to his temper, he would attack these pirates will all of his
strength.
As a believer of the Justice God, pirates who killed and plundered were the
dragonman youngster’s natural enemy.
Dealing with them was keeping to the path of righteousness.
But as leader, the dragonman youngster also had to consider the others and the
overall situation.
Zong Ge was unable to implement his training plan and coldly snorted with
displeasure.
Before leaving, the youthful Dian Wan left behind some ruthless words, “I will
remember what happened today. Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, pray you won’t run
into me on the seas in the future!”
The first mate yelled at once, “Captain, can’t you talk a bit less?!”
“Don’t provoke trouble, especially on the island.” One Eye warned as he gazed
at the departing pirates’ backs.
Dian Wan coldly snorted, “We are leaving!”
The small ship overtly sailed towards Two Eyes Island.
As the countdown to the auction ticked down, more and more people arrived at
Two Eyes Island.
They assembled on the old island.
Because Hun Tong had regulated that the new island wouldn’t admit outsiders
until the auction day.
Compared to when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps arrived, the old island had
sunken much more. The port was completely packed, and the ships were lined
closer together, this was the time of year when there were the most ships
berthed.
If it were not because of the beast tide damaging many places, Hun Tong would
have ordered people to widen areas to serve as temporary ports. The port
typically couldn’t handle this many ships.
Two days after the Lightning Pirates arrived, the equally famous Stench Pirates
arrived too.
Before too long, someone at the old island sale saw the frogman “Da Zhang Hu
Li”. This silver level pirate was the leader of the Applause Pirates.
The five great merchant alliance ships were also entering port.
If it weren’t for the beast tide, they, like in previous years, would have come
here before the pirates.
As if by prior agreement, they all brought their respective merchandise.
According to their discussed business agreement with Hun Tong, this merchandise
would be sold during the auction.
The merchant alliance members escorting the goods were at least iron level,
with some silver levels too.
Each of humanity’s six great merchant alliances were a colossus, and deploying
silver levels was not the least bit difficult. Every essential stationed
manager needed to have at least a silver level cultivation.
During this time, solitary heroes similar to Shi Fa and Hong Zhu also appeared
in succession.
The gunman Mei Ban, a female dancer from the owlman clan Yue Ban, the dwarf Men
Shi, and so on.
Following Song Shou paying a visit, the auction floor was in turmoil. 
Song Shou was a gold level fighter and a newly promoted imperial noble.
Information stated that he planned to copy Hun Tong and choose an ocean island
to serve as his domain.
After Song Shou arrived, people began to guess whether the Ten Touch Pirates
would come too, and if they did, when they would come.
The Ten Touch Pirates were the only large scale pirate group around Two Eyes
Island that had a gold level fighter, their commander Qi You.
In previous years, Qi You had always shown up. But because of Song Shou, would
he cancel his trip?
As the old island sank, Hun Tong had no choice but to relocate from his city
government building.
People were flowing all over the old island, but since all of the industry had
already been located, it looked both prosperous and desolate.
Since the people present was growing increasingly complicated, the problem of
law and order on the old island was magnified.
The dragonman youngster constrained his subordinates to the ships as much as
possible.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ discipline surpassed the other two mercenary
corps, and more so the other pirate groups.
In this respect, Zong Ge’s contributions couldn’t go unnoticed.
In this environment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, who had once dominated
public opinion, gradually faded into the background.  
The survivors were all waiting surreptitiously.
They were waiting for the Bai Zhen Clan’s reply.
On the first night, Zi Di had gone to the Wisteria Store’s magic messaging unit
to deliver a letter.
Based on the timeframe, if there was a reply back, it would arrive in the next
few days.
In addition, they were also waiting for the auction to come.
There were many goods they needed.
They would be used to construct the Bloodline Purification formation in the
future.
Some wouldn’t be used for that, but Zi Di and Fei She upon analysis, due to
their familiarity with the market, suggested to the dragonman youngster to also
seize those goods too.
These goods could be first stocked up on, awaiting an appropriate opportunity
for them to be used. Not only could they be used to make money, but many times,
such valuable and rare alchemy materials could be used to exchange for other
such things.
Upon reaching the gold level, this kind of phenomenon began to appear.
The higher one’s level, the more widespread this phenomenon was.
With everyone looking forward to it, the Coral Auction finally arrived.
The new island opened.
The dragoman youngster, the half beastman Zong Ge, Tripleblade, Lan Zao, and
Fei She arrived together at the auction meeting place.
The auction venue was guarded by a massive military force.
At the entrance, the five people showed their admission tickets.
After the entrance guards carefully inspected their authenticity, they let them
through.
After passing through the hallway, the five people arrived at the main auction
venue. 
The auction venue was very big and expansively vacant.
The auction stage looked like an arena, and high above, several lights shined
downwards, one would believe that any product would be seen clearly in this
radiance. 
There were many seats for the audience.
There were also a second floor with many private rooms. The private rooms
circled around the auction stage in a gigantic annulus.
Upon seeing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ five people walk in, an attendant
immediately came up to greet them cordially, “Lord Long Fu, Lord Shi Qi!”
On Two Eyes Island, the dragonman youngster’s and the half beastman’s
reputation had already been spread far and wide.
After seeing the admission ticket in the dragonman youngster’s hand, the
attendant grew more respectful and he deeply stooped in salute, “My Lords, you
will be sitting in room 14, please follow me upstairs.”
There were a finite number of private rooms, and such seating was a scare
resource, thus not everyone could get one.
With the help of prior relationships, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had made
a deal with Hun Tong.
The five people arrived at room 14.
Lan Zao and Tripleblade stayed outside and didn’t enter the room to instead
serve as bodyguards.
On the contrary, the ordinary Fei She accompanied the dragonman youngster and
Zong Ge to keep watch inside the private room.
With the auction about to begin, they needed Fei She’s business acumen to
fiercely compete against others. 
The private room faced the auction stage through an immense floor-to-ceiling
window.
“That, that is a unidirectional lens, an alchemy item. We can, can clearly see
through it, but outsiders cannot see us inside the private room.” Fei She
presented.
The dragonman youngster directed his gaze and immediately noticed the
advantages of the private room. It had a high location with a broad field of
view.
When they came in, admissions had been taken care of and the audience was
taking their seats.
Some people were masked, others weren’t.
The masks disguised their identities, for not only were there pirates, but
there were also some who were worried that after they bought something,
flaunting that they had would provoke trouble.
The dragonman youngster and the others weren’t wearing masks.
Mainly because his body features were too distinct.
Furthermore, they had the Deceptive Disguise spell on them, and it wasn’t
necessary to disguise themselves further, besides such a disguise would never
fool Feudal Lord Hun Tong.
Since it was so, it wasn’t necessary to be superfluous.
On the contrary, exposing his identity in this situation would benefit him in
this auction.
Just as the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge sat down, the attendant gave them
prepared tea and pastries.
At this time, a group of dauntless pirates entered the auction venue.
At their forefront was their leader, a man with a head of conspicuous blue
hedgehog hair, it was Dian Wan.
Dian Wan hurriedly and excitedly walked towards the second floor.
The attendant receiving him rushed to overtake him, “Your Lordship, your
private room is not in that direction, take the stairs closest to us.”
The first mate shrugged and stated that this was how Dian Wan usually behaved. 
His impulses were too strong.
Dian Wan’s yelled in displeasure, his voice quite loud. 
Many people recognized who he was but pretended not to know him.



****** Chapter 129: A Death Puppet! ******
Dian Wan reproached, “Last year, I was in room 17, why am I going to room 19
today?”
The attendant promptly explained, “My Lord, the room number doesn’t mean
anything, don’t be so worried about it.”
Dian Wan raised his head in further annoyance, “Give me a break from your
prattle, isn’t Hun Tong in room 1?”
He wanted to speak further, but as soon as the first mate saw he wanted to
provoke the feudal lord, he immediately interjected, “Captain, can’t you hold
your tongue even a little?”
Dian Wan grumbled as he entered his private room, and the attendant wiped the
sweat from their brow in relief.
Like Dian Wan’s, all of the private rooms were arranged by level and status.
This was not only because of their strength, but also because Hun Tong had
intentionally arranged the seating based on their identities.
After all, pirates should be out of the public eye as much as possible. 
If the auction had a bunch of strong pirates gathered together, an imperial
investigation would cause Hun Tong to suffer immense political pressure.
Not long after Dian Wan entered the private room, another group of pirates
arrived at the auction.
They were led by someone known as Hu Li, he wore simple and crude captain
clothes and most of his body was bare.
He was a frogman.
Not only did he have a frog head, his yellow-green frog skin was both damp and
a bit sticky.
Hu Li was a silver level fighter, and his hands were his weapons. A frogman’s
palms were webbed and bigger than a human’s. In addition, his palms were wider
than a normal frogman’s. 
This was because of his bloodline, at the same time, he cultivated the
appropriate battle qi and pertinent palm battle skills. These three things
combined made him famous for his outstanding fighting prowess.
Hu Li led the Applause Pirates, a pirate group of equal criminality to the
Lightning Pirates.
The Wealth Church’s priest appeared soon after.
He also had a private room.
The church was something that needed arrangements. 
Not only was the priest a silver level clergyman, but Hun Tong also cared about
the church behind him. Even a bronze level, as long as they were the parish
leader on Two Eyes Island, would be arranged to have their own private room
alone.
This time, the Wealth Church priest was not alone, he had someone accompanying
him.
It was an old farming looking priest that came from the Fertile Land Goddess
Church. Although his face was wrinkled and his back stooped, their physique was
still vigorous. On his waist hung a small hoe. It was a sacred tool, one of the
Fertile Land Goddess’ distinctive tools.
The two priests entered into room 4.
Right now, the largest stream of people was coming in, and increasingly more
people were entering the square.
The dragonman youngster looked down from his private room and saw the treasure
hunter Hong Zhu coming in with a fellow silver level.
He saw the card magician Shi Fa was sitting in a corner yet was still
attracting the attention of many people. He was a silver level magician after
all.
He also saw the female owlman dancer Yue Ban. My goodness, that fat beastman
bought three seats, yet after sitting down, she still resented how narrow and
crowded the seating was. 
The auction stage gradually grew clamorous.
“Did you hear? Ya Ma was attacked and had her private room admission ticket
snatched away.”
“No one knows who did it. Ya Ma is a silver level yet was unable to retaliate
at all. Hehe, I don’t know if she’ll be able to participate in the auction.”
“Hong Zhu, I finally found you. You wretched woman, return my treasure at
once.”
“Why? When that adventure concluded, everyone divided up the treasure. You
lacked discerning judgement and gave me that treasure. It is mine, and if you
want it, you can buy it from me!”
Even more people came in. Some conversed with each other, and others glared at
each other due to both new and old grievances.
The attendants were busily serving or perhaps soothing clients, the pressure
growing ever larger on them.
After the auction stage’s seats were nearly full, a ferocious criminal strid
into the square with head held high, attracting everyone’s gaze. 
“It’s the Ten Touch Pirates!” Someone called out.
Their leader was a middle aged man with curly hair and his melancholy gave him
the image of a poet. His gold level aura was undeniable, it really was the Ten
Touch Pirate Commander Qi You.
For a moment, the noisy square went quiet and everyone conversing unconsciously
lowered their voices.
“He still came.” 
“Hun Tong was quite outstanding when he beheaded two gold level magic beasts in
a row. But in in a true battle, which of the two would win?”
“This time Song Shou is visiting, but even if Hun Tong and Song Shou join hands
to deal with Qi You, the latter might not necessarily lose.”
Someone thought very highly of Qi You’s battle strength.
“Even if one is attacked, can’t they still escape?” Another one muttered.
This gold level was pure strength, and without a word, Qi You ascended the
stairs.
Everyone turned their heads and watched his figure disappear behind a stair
corner.
As the auction audience packed the seats, the auction master took the stage and
Hun Tong and Song Shou showed themselves.
They didn’t go on stage, rather they were softly chatting with each other as
they strode towards the second floor.
Someone said hello to Hun Tong, causing Hun Tong to shift his eyes and nod with
a smile, expressing his benevolence.
Today, Hun Tong’s power and influence was overflowing.
Recently, his military successes during the beast tide had been propagated,
increasing his prestige greatly.
Furthermore, he had a person of equal level, Song Shou, accompanying him.
The two gold levels were working together, and no one was stupid enough to
cause trouble.
Hun Tong and Song Shou entered their private room.
“Wait a moment, Qi You is in room three.”
“Hun Tong and Song Shou are in room one, then who is in room two?”
Someone couldn’t help but question.
According to the current arrangement, the church priests were in room four. The
five great merchant alliance representatives were in the five rooms after that.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in room 14.
Dian Wan’s pirate group was in room 19.
The rooms in the twenties did not have island groups in them, but famous lone
heroes. 
The most discussed room was room 21.
This room used to belong to Ya Ma, a well-known silver level cultivator. But on
the old island, she was ambushed, and her entry ticket was stolen.
The conflict between both sides was brief, and by the time the city guard
rushed over, it was a foregone conclusion.
Ya Ma hadn’t shown back up, obviously too embarrassed to show her face. 
Then the people inside room 21 were robbers.
No one looked into it.
This was the world of the strong.
Pirates robbed to make a living, and Hun Tong wasn’t going to make a fuss about
it. He was most concerned about the auction right now, anything else was pushed
to the side! In previous years, such a situation had happened many times. Hun
Tong’s resolution doctrine was so long as things didn’t escalate, he would let
the two sides resolve it among themselves! 
Rooms 30 and up were sold like merchandise by Hun Tong.
So long as someone bids high enough and is number one, they would have the
chance to obtain admission to a private room.
It had to be said that Hun Tong had plentiful business acumen. By just selling
entry tickets to outsiders, he made a big profit.
Like what Dian Wan was complaining about, the numbers of these private rooms,
to some degree, represented the strength and status of these visitors on Two
Eyes Island.
Qi You was in room three, Hun Tong and Song Shou were in room one, then the
guest in room two was undoubtably a gold level too.
But who were they?
No one saw this mysterious guest’s true colors.
This mystery continued to remain unsolved as the auction master began to speak.
Three magic light beams focused on the first item.
Everyone’s eyes was attracted to it.
It was a toy figurine, made from gloomy green lumber, had withered yellow straw
serving as hair, and its eyes and nose were severely askew, giving it a strange
and sinister sense of beauty.
Everyone’s enthusiasm was invigorated by this toy figurine.
“That is a live saving treasure that can be used during crucial times!”
“No one would suspect anything.”
Even the dragonman youngster ‘s heart sped up, despite him having dragon scales
that could resist gold level battle qi.
It was a death puppet.
It was made by Voodoo Sect shamans.
Thus, manufacturing techniques for substitute death puppets needed both magic
mastery and the power of divine spells.
That determined that such a treasure was rare.
With regards to puppet efficacy, the auction master presentation was very
detailed: it was a silver level treasure, thus it most suited silver level
users. But even if one was gold level, a portion of mortal harm could be
transferred to it.
“A pity it isn’t gold level.” In room 3, Qi You’s gaze flickered, even though
it wasn’t too applicable to him, he still felt how precious it was.
He decided to act.
In room 1, Song Shou also regretfully said, “If that was a gold level artifact,
it would have been much better. As the first item, it would have added such a
bright luster to the auction.”
Hun Tong nodded and smiled with approval, but his heart objected, “Fortunately,
it is not gold level, this is the most suitable item to start off with.”
If it was a gold level substitute death puppet, then the great majority of
cultivators couldn’t afford it, for the price would be too high.
Silver levels were the best user.
Since even bronze level cultivators could also use it, despite it being
excessive, compared to life, what was more important?
Silver levels were the most fitting.
Gold levels would also be aroused. It could transfer a portion of harm, and
sometimes on the battlefield the slightest difference could be everything that
decided the disparity between life and death.
When Hun Tong saw this substitute death puppet, he determined that it would be
an excellent item to being the event with.
As expected, reality matched his expectations.
The substitute death puppet evoked the interested of almost everyone.
Everyone began to quote prices one after the other.
Regardless of whether it was the auction audience seating or the private rooms,
everyone was bidding.
For a moment, quotes were up here, down there.
The price started at 100 gold and climbed higher and higher.
It swiftly reached 800 gold, then the price competition began to distinctly
slow down.
When it reached 1200 gold, only a few people were left in the competition.
“1500 gold!” Suddenly, someone from room 21 increased the price by 300 gold,
the biggest price increase.
That price was like a basin of pouring iced water that woke up many people.
“Someone went so far as to bid such a price!”
“Ah 1500 gold, that is the price of a gold level weapon, an absolutely top
quality one at that.”
“I remember Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s gold dagger, back then its auction price was
just 900 gold.”
The auction master began to confirm, “1500 gold going once, 1500 gold going
twice, 1500 gold going thrice.”
“Good, then congratulations to room 21 for getting the first item.”
“Because this is the first deal, the buyer will also receive a personal gift
from Feudal Lord Hun Tong, an iron level fragrant check tea plant.”
“Once again, congratulations to the friend in room 21!”
For a moment, everyone was looking at room 21.
There were two people sitting in room 21.
One male and one female, one old and one young.
It was Cang Xu and Zi Di.



****** Chapter 130: Auction Strategy ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ main purpose in coming to Two Eyes Island was
to deliver a letter, they had done that the first night they had come to the
island.
Currently, they were waiting for a reply back.
Apart from this, they hoped to obtain supplies from Two Eyes Island.
Two Eyes Island was a trade island, it was prosperous and had abundant goods,
Snake Rat Island could not compare to it.
On this island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps indeed obtained many benefits.
Gold coins, equipment, and even cannons were finally filled up on.
As far as this auction was concerned, the survivors were looking forward to it
considerably.
The auction would have gold level medicine, which was currently the best way to
treat Zon Ge’s arm injury.
But that was only a small part.
The survivors had learned of many items from Hun Tong earlier. During the
information deal, Hun Tong had restricted the amount and kind of goods they
could buy in advance.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to buy many things, but couldn’t, thus
they had no choice but to make difficult choices on what to take and what to
give up.
They didn’t lack coins, but at the time, they couldn’t use them recklessly.
They had a lot of gold coins, but their origin was dubious. Moreover, flaunting
too much wealth might provoke the covetousness and greed of Hun Tong and
others, possibly leaving behind a flaw that future investigations could find.
The final reason was that unknown items could appear. After the beast tide and
pirates appearing in turn, pirate commanders like Dian Wan would usually escort
some major treasures themselves to the auction to be sold. These treasures were
usually quite valuable or rare, and had to be personally escorted, lest one not
feel at ease.
Sometimes, during the auction, when a buyer needed to raise enough money, they
would decide to sell one of their own things at the last moment.
For the purpose of this auction, the survivors had crafted a strategy ahead of
time.
Combining the ideas of both Zi Di and Cang Xu, the survivors decided to display
their superiority.
Their greatest advantage currently was not their two silver levels, the Deep
Sea Monter fish, or their medicine manufacturing ability, rather it was the
Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spells.
With the help of the divine artifact, they had the present age’s best disguise
and deception ability.
They could disguise their identities, enter with many people, exert pressure at
many points of the auction, and coordinate with each other.
After careful deliberations, the survivors decided to form two groups.
One was composed of the dragonman youngster, half beastman Zong Ge, and most
importantly, Fei She. Tripleblade and Lan Zao were supplementary, used to
strengthen their prestige and be the main attraction.
The other group was composed of Zi Di and Cang Xu. Their public identity would
be the Wisteria Store’s level seven elders.
Why not do anything else?
First, the auction floor was limited, and it was a cultivator auction, thus
entry tickets were hard to get.
Second, Deceptive Disguise was only camouflage and could not increase battle
strength. Therefore, when dividing one’s forces, one needed to value one’s
battle strength. After all, there were numerous pirates at the auction, and
once upon a time, even a murder occurred at an auction.
Third, every group had an accomplished merchant that could make decisions. The
survivors had Zi Di and Fei She, both of whom had strong business abilities,
thus each was in their own group that conformed with each other.
Finally, because the Deceptive Disguise spell was an important secret, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only used it on their core members, the survivors.
The dragonman youngster’s entry ticket and private room were from Hun Tong.
Zi Di and Cang Xu had no such thing.
At first, Zi Di and Cang Xu went to the Wisteria Shop to check on whether the
Bai Zhen Clan replied, while trying to help Yan Yi in passing.
Yan Yi was in the same clan as Hun Tong and had lived for a long time on Two
Eyes Island. But regrettably, he expressed his powerlessness. He did have
contacts, but he couldn’t do anything.
He told Zi Di and Cang Xu that entry tickets were rare, because the auction was
geared towards cultivators. According to usual practice, Hun Tong would first
issue a batch of tickets in advance, then leave the final tickets in his hands.
First was to deal with emergencies, and second was that if there was a lack of
buyers, to prevent a desolate spectacle, Hun Tong could sell them to ordinary
people to earn a profit.
Zi DI and Cang Xu bid farewell to Yan Yi and left the Wisteria Store, then
tried to find Hun Tong’s merchant to buy an admission ticket.
As a result, they had a conflict with a cultivator on the way back.
Cang Xu decisively used the fire path rings with Zi Di to push Ya Ma into a
disadvantageous position.
Ya Ma wanted to escape but was blocked.
Cang Xu and Zi Di didn’t want to kill anyone, and so after Ya Ma paid with her
auction ticket, they let her go.
Who would have imagined that not long after, the news that was spread said that
Cang Xu and Zi Di had deliberately attacked Ya Ma for her entry ticket.
Cang Xu analyzed that this was done deliberately by Ya Ma. But with the entry
ticket, Cang Xu and Zi Di didn’t need to find Hun Tong.
In light of their identities, going to find Hun Tong had hidden risks.
After changing their identities and returning to the ships at port, during
their discission, the survivors surmised that Ya Ma was unresigned and wanted
to get back into the venue, and so, she distributed this rumor so she could
stand in the right.
The disgusting and vile thing about rumors was that they were hard to deal
with.
The more one denied, the more the rumor would spread unchecked.
If it was Hun Tong, he could rely on his rule to strangle the rumors by force,
however, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were clearly unable to do that.
Everyone decided to first see what would happen.
In the end, when the auction started, Ya Ma hadn’t reappeared.
The Dragon Ion Mercenary Corps’ two groups entered the auction venue at nearly
the same time.
The dragonman youngster’s group entered through the main entrance, while Cang
Xu and Zi Di came in from the back door and immediately went up to the second
floor without appearing in the first floor’s large reception hall.
After all, how they got their admission ticket was somewhat unclear.
Luckily for the two man group, they smoothly entered the venue. Ya Ma’s ticket
also unexpectedly included a private room, which was a pleasant surprise.
When the first item appeared, Zi Di and Cang Xu were both tempted.
Cang Xu immediately said to Zi Di, “Live preserving things are unusually
valuable, we have to fight for it. If we miss this chance, it might be a long
time before we see another. We fundamentally don’t have any normal channels
with the Voodoo Sect.”
“I suggest we seize it and give it to our captain. The captain is our most
important person, undoubtedly. We have to prioritize his safety, no matter how
far we go, it won’t be enough!”
The dragonman youngster controlled the Bloodcore, and if he had an accident,
the Bloodcore would be lost or destroyed. Thus, even if the Bloodline
Purification formation was built, without the Bloodcore, it would be a pile of
rubbish.
Zi Di nodded vigorously.
When she saw the small puppet, she too immediately thought of buying it for her
sweetheart.
Rational analysis was only a small part of Zi Di’s decision, it was mostly
driven by emotion.
With the final price raise, where Zi Di suddenly raised the price
substantially, she directly and efficiently won the puppet doll.
“Once again, congratulations to the friend in room 21!” The auction master
brought the hammer down.
After the auction was decided, an attendant climbed onto the auction stage, and
under the public eye, took the puppet doll.
The attendant carried the puppet doll off the auction stage, through the
corridor, climbed up some stairs, and vanished through a staircase corner from
everyone’s field of view.
The auction was paused.
Regardless of whether it was the buyers or auction master, both needed to
patiently wait.
The attendant with the puppet doll rang the doorbell to room 21.
After the door opened and Cang Xu inspected its authenticity, both sides did
the transaction.
One hand paid the price, the other delivered the goods.
The attendant brought the gold coins down from the second floor and returned to
the auction stage, and under everyone’s gaze, squeezed behind a curtain.
“Good, now we can proceed to the auction of the second treasure.” The auction
master laughed, “Ladies and gentlemen, please see our second item…”
This was a necessary process for Two Eyes Island’s auction.
At any auction, transactions would be completed on the spot.
This was something Hun Tong specially formulated.
The main consideration was that the buyers here had complex identities, with
many of them being pirates. One had to know that they were unlikely to
obediently settle accounts, for they were the best at killing and plundering,
thus one naturally had to be on guard against them.
If someone didn’t pay, they would be driven away from the auction. If there was
a pillaging thief, the auction would stop and the criminal would not only
commit an offense against Hun Tong, but also against everyone at the auction.
The auction continued.
Everyone stared at the second item.
It was a infusion bottle. The infusion bottle looked to be made of refined
brass, with the bottom of the bottle on top, while the mouth of the bottle was
on the bottom. Something was dripping constantly from its mouth.
The auction master presented, “This is a fresh water infusion bottle, of silver
level workmanship. When installed, it can absorb water elements from the air
and condense it into fresh water. If we imbue it with magic power or fill the
bottle with water element crystals, it can produce a large amount of fresh
water. With enough magic power, this small hanging bag can meet the daily water
needs of 200 people. The starting price is 100 gold coins. Every bid must not
be any lower than 10 gold coins, now let the next auction begin!”



****** Chapter 131: Feather Snake Sail ******
Just as the auction master finished speaking, someone inside the large hall
shouted their quote, “100 gold.”
When Zi Di raised the price to 150 gold, the room went silent.
“Congratulations to room 21.” The auction master clacked his hammer, ending
this auction.
Both sides did the transaction on the spot once again.
The fresh water infusion bottle was a survival type treasure.
After experiencing Mystifying Monster Island, the survivors had a strong demand
for this kind of treasure.
They could make use of it during voyages.
After all, seawater was undrinkable.
Normally, ships store fresh water in bulk.
Of course, to get more fresh water, there were many good ways of doing so. Such
as using a magic formation to make water.
The fresh water infusion bottle was silver level, and for many people, it was
too extravagant and an unnecessary and pointless expense.
Silver level lone figures such as treasure hunter Hong Zhu needed such a
treasure too. But she hoped to spend her money on defensive tools and storage
equipment.
She didn’t prioritize the fresh water hanging back that much. 
As Zi Di took the fresh water infusion bottle, an exquisitely small compass was
placed onto the auction stage.
“This item is a palm compass, silver level…” The auction master enunciated
clearly at a medium pace.
It was a maritime navigation device that could indicate a ship’s orientation.
The dragonman youngster decided to quote his price first.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lacked a true navigator, and currently the
dragonman youngster was substituting for that role. Luckily they had the Deep
Sea Monster Fish; the alchemy ship had abundant ocean maps and could precisely
orientate its position.
Therefore, that compass was a treasure that would greatly help the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster’s bid swiftly suppressed the audience.
The selling price ended up being 130 gold.
The dragonman youngster slightly frowned, he intended on continuing to increase
the price.
Such a treasure was not currently necessary, but the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps was doing well as of late.
It’s better to have something than nothing.
Naturally, the dragonman youngster was not wholly determined to win this item.
“If it went over 160 gold without a winner, I would have stopped bidding.” The
dragonman youngster thought to himself.
“140 gold.” When Cang Xu saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps hadn’t acted, he
called out a price.
After knowing who had bid, no one was interested in the item anymore.
When the auction master saw that there were a few in the audience with ideas,
he said a few sentences to instigate them, but it didn’t do anything.
“140 gold going once.”
“140 gold going twice.”
“140 gold going three times.”
“Congratulations to room 21 for getting this compass!
The situation surprised the dragonman youngster somewhat.
140 gold was still a bit above the bottom line, he didn’t expect things would
go so smoothly.
This was a happy occasion.
But Fei She frowned somewhat, “Not good.”
The other buyers also felt surprised too.
Many were gazing directly at or implicitly at where room 21 was on the second
floor.
The auction had just begun, yet the first three items had all been obtained by
room 21.
“Such a ferocious position.”
“Who are they actually?”
The buyers mentally associated them with Ya Ma, and a layer of faint
restraining fear covered room 21.
In room one, Hun Tong, who was smiling as he chatted with Song Shou about some
things, wrinkled an eyebrow at this.
The auction played a critical role in Two Eyes Island’s commerce.
First, it was an extensive business event that could bring a great amount of
tax money to Two Eyes Island. Second, it could spread Two Eyes Island’s fame
and attract more customers to Two Eyes Island for the higher level the auction
was, the higher level the outsiders coming to Two Eyes Island were.
Hun Tong had organized many auctions and was very experienced at it.
He knew and researched the item types, the presentation sequence, and so on.
The first item had to warm and energize the audience, while simultaneously
being somewhat rare and not being of low level.
The second and third items had a similar function too.
The third item was to set the ambience of the auction and was to motivate the
buyers to raise the prices.
Although three items had been sold off, the ambience hadn’t reached Hun Tong’s
ideal level.
The entire auction stage was still trending towards silence.
The reason was that all three items were bought by a single group.
That was bad!
The depressing atmosphere was not conducive to competitive sales.
Hun Tong didn’t want to see a monodrama; he wanted a hundred flowers to bloom.
But unfortunately, room 21 had shown off their seemingly substantial financial
resources.
Hun Tong knew the business with Ya Ma, but he didn’t know who the buyers in
room 21 were.
On the one hand, after the beast tide, many people came to Two Eyes Island and
mingled together. On the other hand, Hun Tong wanted to restrain himself and
didn’t honestly want to investigate these buyers. Investigations needed money
and manpower. He was not an imperial secret spy and was no expert in this kind
of thing, and after the investigation was complete, it would spoil Two Eyes
Island’s image.
If these pirates heard about it, although Two Eyes Island could still be used
to dispose of booty, who would want to suffer the feudal lord’s investigation?
Hun Tong thought quickly, then waved his hand.
An attendant immediately walked to his side and leaned over to hear his order,
“Feudal Lord, what is your command.”
Hun Tong whispered to the attendant, “Adjust the order of the fourth item and
the eight item for me.”
“Ok.” The attendant left the private room.
After the auction backstage received the order soon after, they quickly did the
adjustment.
As the auction master was waiting for the third item’s transaction to be
completed, he received a slip of paper from backstage.
When the auction master saw the order on the slip, he couldn’t help but think,
“The fourth item and eighth item have been swapped with each other? A silver
level item has been replaced with a gold level one.”
Such a sequence was uncommon.
Because gold level items surpassed silver ones in workmanship, the target
audience was small.
The most fitting was naturally gold level cultivators, and although rare silver
levels could barely make use of them, iron levels could only look at them and
sigh.
In fact, although the auction was for cultivators, silver levels were a
minority, the most common were iron levels.
In addition, the price of gold level items was also far higher than silver
level ones.
There really weren’t many cultivators with such financial resources.
Generally speaking, gold level items were all towards the tail end. This was
the most advantageous order for the entire auction.
But now, Hun Tong has issued such an adjustment.
“Why did the Feudal Lord do this?” The auction mater thought for a bit, then
suddenly realized, “I understand. He is worthy of being Lord Hun Tong. Since
the three items were all bought by a single party, this adjustment is in
response to these circumstances.”
At that moment, two iron level fighters carried a large wooden chest together
to the stage.
The wooden chest was obviously heavy; the two iron level fighters were puffing
hard as they strained to carry it.
They opened the wooden chest, showing that it was packed tightly with a neatly
and tidily folded sail.
The auction master raised his voice high, “Ladies and gentlemen, pay attention.
This magic sail here is gold level. Please let me solemnly introduce the
Feather Snake Sail!”
The two iron level fighters held the sail, then pulled, unfolding a portion of
the sail.
The magic light beams aptly shined upon it, allowing the sail’s weaving lines
to be clearly visible.
The sail appeared to be a mild cyan and it was obviously mainly made out of
feathers.
The auction master then detailed the sail’s area, length, width, and other such
data about it.
Everyone calmly listened.
The auction became so quiet that the buyers could hear each other’s breathing.
The breathing became heavier.
Feather snakes.
They were a snake type magic beast that was covered in feathers, had wings, and
could fly.
Their feathers were mostly green, but it is said that rare ones had rainbow
feathers.
This magic life form’s bloodline was high-end, and when young feather snakes
broke out of their shells, they were bronze level. Adult feather snakes had
slender physiques and traveled the vast sky with vigorous grace.
The feather snake race has even birthed a god!
That was always a remarkable achievement.
This meant that within the feather snake bloodline, there was a god level
bloodline.
Speaking of which, the survivors had a relationship with the Feather Snake God.
They had lost then regained the Green Jade Gold Coffin, the Feather Snake God’s
divine artifact!
The Feather Snake Sail’s main material was feather snake feathers.
It was a well-known magic sail whose main function was acceleration and flight.
If it fitted into a light enough ship, the Feather Snake Sail could even allow
a ship to lift off from the ocean surface and fly for a short distance!
For most people, such a momentary flight was an extravagant hope and didn’t
consider it too much. But the Feather Snake Sail’s acceleration effect caused
them to feel a rush of excitement.



****** Chapter 132: Expensive Purchase ******
Because of the Feather Snake Sail’s acceleration effect, straightforward
control, and outstanding stability, its magic power consumption compared to
similar alchemy items was far less.
The only flaw was that maintaining it later was quite troublesome, for it
needed an alchemy master skilled in tailoring.
Mercenary Commander Tie Bang’s heart thudded, Commander Beng Dai was the same,
while the dragonman youngster’s eyes slightly lit up when he heard Zong Ge
shout, “I want that!”
Maritime mercenary corps all had their own fleet, and this gold level sail
suited them well.
In the private rooms, the five great merchant alliances’ representatives also
looked interested.
If a merchant alliance fleet had it, transporting merchandise would be far more
guaranteed.
“Ohoho, now that’s a great thing!” Dian Wan yelled.
The pirates all felt a rush of excitement.
With this sail expediating them, they could greatly increase their pursuit
success rate.
Among the many elements that affected naval battles, ship speed was always a
crucial one.
The sea was flat all around, and quite different to dry land. Land battles paid
particular attention to the terrain, while the seas rarely cared about such
things.
The auction master cried out, “The starting price is 200 gold, every bid must
raise it by 30 gold! Let the auction begin!”
“250 gold.” Hun Tong’s voice transmitted from room one.
His voice was calm, but that stimulated the desires of many buyers.
“Look, Feudal Lord Hun Tong was the first one to bid.”
“He too is undoubtedly interested in the Feather Snake Sail.
The people were thinking this way.
In room 14, Fei She suddenly had a realization, causing him to hum and haw, “It
seems, seems things are a bit discouraging.”
“What do you mean?” Zong Ge didn’t understand.
In room 21, Zi Di faintly narrowed her eyes.
“I fear this change is in response to me.”
“The original auction order wasn’t like this.”
“The price Hun Tong stated seems to say: do you want to follow up on me?”
This behavior was a little strong.
Zi Di understood Hun Tong’s methods, and if she was the auction host, she would
want better sales too.
Hun Tong had adjusted the item order, a clever move done by using Zi Di and
Cang Xu to probe what the auction would be like. 
On the one hand he felt out their financial resources.
The gold level Feather Snake Sail would not be easy to win.
On the other hand, he was probing who they were.
If Zi Di and Cang Xu were lone figures, similar to Hong Zhu and Shi Fa, they
generally wouldn’t try to buy the Feather Snake Sail. But if there was a power
behind them, such as a feudal lord, mercenary corps, they would have a huge
demand for the Feather Snake Sail!
Finally, even if Zi Di came out on top and won the Feather Snake Sail, Hun Tong
was willing to see it. 
Because Zi Di and Cang Xu would spend a lot of money on it, which would
decrease their joint impact on the auction at an earlier time.
So, should one follow up?
Yes!
Zi Di hesitated a little, then quoted, “280 gold!”
In room one, Hun Tong faintly raised an eyebrow, his expression subtle.
Just as Zi Di spoke, another bid, “310 gold.”
The bidder was Mercenary Commander Tie Bang.
He planned to find a place for the Feather Snake Sail on the Iron Lump after
buying it.
Although they weren’t a perfect match, they were a usable pair. The Feather
Snake Sail could thoroughly make up for the Iron Lump’s weakness of slow speed.
No, to be more precise, it turned a shortcoming into a strength.
After all, the Iron Lump was only a bronze level magic ship, while the Feather
Snake Sail was gold level.
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative raised the price, “400 gold.”
He raised the price by 90 gold, appearing rich and imposing.
But this price was still below the market price for a gold level treasure.
Consequently, soon after, another followed up, “450 gold.”
The bidder this time was the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance. 
Although these two merchant alliances cooperated to deal with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and the Wisteria Store, for the sake of winning the Feather
Snake Sail, they openly competed with each other.
The relationship between merchant alliances was like that, occasional
cooperation, occasional opposition.
The dragonman youngster increased the price, “480 gold.”
As the leader of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he was also interested in
this sail.
He didn’t disguise or conceal his voice, and when some of his competitors heard
it, their hearts sank.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been shining in the limelight recently.
Everyone knew they had ample financial resources!
The beast tide contained great wealth!
The gigantic volume of fish harvested made many envious. Along with the
plentiful mission rewards.
Mercenary Commander Beng Dai grinded his teeth, “510 gold.”
He similarly coveted the Feather Snake Sail. Despite knowing he wasn’t as
wealthy as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he still wanted to make an effort.
One wouldn’t be resigned until they tried.
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative continued to bid, “560 gold.”
Not knowing his disposition or his bidding strategy, the two bids both raised
the price substantially.
The Treasure Merchant Alliance representative spoke, “600 gold.”
As one of the five great merchant alliances, the Treasure Merchant Alliance was
well known for making and selling alchemy devices.
The Scale Merchant Alliance soon followed up with, “630 gold.”
However, inside their room, that merchant alliance representative was
disinterested.
The reason why he had bid was merely to exploit the excitement.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance representative calmly shouted, “670
gold.”
Just as they spoke, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance also spoke, “700 gold.”
The five great merchant alliances had astonishing financial resources, and for
a moment, they were all competing with each other.
Dian Wan impetuously interjected, “750 gold!”
For the first time, a pirate group had joined the competition.
For a moment, the pressure on many buyers’ hearts increased greatly.
No one knew that the Lightning Pirates’ first mate felt even more pressure than
them. He glared at Dian Wan, softly growling, “Captain, we cannot use this
sail.”
“You forgot that our flagship has an electrical discharge ability.”
If we discharge the electricity, the electric current will burn the sail.”
“Eh?” Dian Wan rubbed his head, “That makes sense!”
The first mate’s eye twitched, “So, before you bid, why don’t you discuss it
with me first, captain? Don’t shout prices so wantonly.” 
“In addition, we came here to mainly buy healing potions, don’t you forget
that!”
“Oh, I know, I know.” Dian Wan waved his hand frivolously.
Dian Wan’s bid was quickly pushed down by another.
“800 gold.” Said a voice from room 3.
He was one of the Ten Touch Pirates, Qi You’s representative.
As a gold level pirate, the first thing he bid on was the Feather Snake Sail.
Hun Tong laughed in his heart.
Qi You’s response was within his expectations.
When a large pirate group placed their bid, that caused the other buyers to
sense an incorporeal pressure.
Especially the merchant alliance representatives.
They even thought: If I purchase this sail, will it provoke the Ten Touch
Pirates into robbing me?
The gold level pirate group was like a fierce tiger in the jungle that put the
fear of death into the other lifeforms there.
In the wake of rising bids, more and more people gave up.
The most frequent bidder was the Ten Touch Pirates.
The Ten Touch Pirates hadn’t joined the initial bidding, but when they made
their move, they pressed hard continuously, revealing their ambitious
determination.
Ther bids rose to 920 gold.
The auction master yelled, “Room 3, 920 gold. Going once.”
“Room 3, 920 gold. Going twice.”
“950 gold, no 980 gold!” Zi Di cried out.
For a moment, everyone’s gazes once again focused on room 21.
Many people showed their amazement and admiration.
Soon after, everyone looked back at room 3.
In room 3, the pirate underling gave an inquiring look at Qi You.
During the auction, Qi You had told him the reserve price was 900 gold.
The underling slightly exceeded that as he shouted a bid of 920 gold.
Qi You didn’t react.
But if he bid now, it didn’t exceed their bottom line by 20 gold, but by 110
gold.
The disparity was too great.
The underling didn’t dare to act on his own.
The one in charge was Qi You, and only Qi You could make the decision.
Qi You closed his eyes, reclined back, and didn’t respond.
The underling didn’t dare to make a sound.
It was naturally the attitude of one who renounced the bidding competition.
The Ten Touch Pirates withdrawal disappointed many buyers who wanted to watch a
good show.
As for the previous bidders, all of them sank into hesitation.
The pressure Zi Di and Cang Xu exuded on them was incomparable to the one Qi
You gave off.
This psychological pressure greatly influenced the bidding war between them.
Now that Qi You went quiet, some of these buyers thought to themselves this,
should they follow up?
Upon considering it, all of them, as if by prior agreement, gave up. 
Each bid needed to raise the price by at least 30 gold.
Now that it was at 980 gold, adding another 30 gold would bring it up to 1010
gold.
Don’t be fooled by the difference of 30 gold, one was a four figure number, and
the other was a three figure number, the latter of which gave them a wholly
different feeling.
If there still was a bidding war, it might be possible that one of them would
be too excited to act rationally and bid.
The crucial thing was that Qi You exerted formless pressure, and even if
someone bid, their heart would be on the tenterhooks.
Finally, room 21’s unexpected interference, along with the uncultivated bidding
war ambience, caused the unmotivated competitors to all give up together. 
Therefore, in the end, the sail was delivered to the second floor.



****** Chapter 133: Homeward Dolphin ******
Both sides quickly completed the transaction.
The hammer clacked three times, and the auction master offered his
congratulations.
“Investigate who is in room 21.” Hun Tong revealed a curious look, “In this
round of the auction, room 21 exploited Qi You. Combined with their prior
showings, it is clear they are very skilled at auctions. More crucially, they
don’t fear provoking Qi You’s hatred. You know, the Feather Snake Sail is meant
to be raised.”
“Now that they bought it, it is likely that in the future, they will be
plundered by the Ten Touch Pirates.”
At the same time, in room 3, Qi You faintly opened his eyes a crack and gave
the same order to his underling, “I want information on room 21.”
“Understood, boss!” The pirate underling accepted the order at once, exposing
an evil grin as he excitedly stood up, “These guys are extremely daring! They
even dared to provoke us! Instead of buying the Feather Snake Sail, we can
steal it instead!”
In room 21, Cang Xu was examining the Feather Snake Sail’s quality.
The more he scanned, the more satisfied he was, and he couldn’t help but
exclaim in admiration, “This workmanship, it really is a work of art! I heard
that the famous general, Yi Qing, of the Elf Kingdom’s air force likes
collecting all kinds of sails and hanging them up like rugs on his palace
walls. Now I understand why Yi Qing does that.”
Why did the survivors want to buy this sail?
Because currently, they aren’t able to refine gold level items.
In fact, having such a capability was both too costly and unnecessary.
Their primary plan right now was to build the Bloodline Inspection Database and
the Bloodline Purification Formation.
If they were distracted by other matters, the gains would never make up for the
losses.
As Cang Xu examined the Feather Snake Sail, Zi Di was analyzing the auction
sale.
“980 gold for the Feather Snake Sail is a reasonable price.” 
“Gold level equipment on the market can cost anywhere from 100 to 3,200 gold,
for all gold level equipment is different, thus, there is the large price
discrepancy. Overall, armor is twice the price of weapons. This Feather Snake
Sial belongs to sailing equipment; it needs a ship to be used, or for best
usage, a magic ship.”
“But generally speaking, gold level magic ships are usually owned by saint
level beings.”
“As far as gold level cultivators are concerned, they mainly spend their money
on their own cultivation and gold level weapons and armor, among other things.
The demand for sailing equipment like the Feather Snake Sail is always lower in
demand compared to other things.”
“From this point, one can comprehend why Qi You gave up on this Feather Snake
Sail.”
“Anyways, he is a pirate and is perhaps making discreet inquiries on us,
probably looking for a chance to rob us.”
Despite the inquiries, only the outer shell identities of Zi Di and Cang Xu
would be discovered.
Level seven elders of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance didn’t have a trade fleet on the ocean, and if
Qi You wanted to rob them, he wouldn’t know where to start.
The Feather Snake Sail would naturally be given to the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
Don’t hesitate to use it!
The survivors had the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell, they could disguise the Feather Snake Sail, and no one would notice what
it really was.
Therefore, no matter if someone wanted to examine who Zi Di and Cang Xu were,
those with ulterior motives using the Feather Snake Sail as a clue would fail
utterly.
Zi Di thought back to the prior auction sales.
Although the price was above market price, they were still reasonable and not
too outrageous.
The purchasing power of gold coins remained formidable!
In fact, within the Sheng Ming Empire, the cost of living for an ordinary
person was anywhere from 5000 to 30,0000 copper coins, or in other words, 0.5
to 3 gold coins The housing price in major cities was about 10,000 copper coins
for every square meter, or 1 gold coin per meter2. A baron’s annual income was
about 4,800 gold coins.
It goes without saying that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ intercepted booty
of 50,000 gold coins was a truly tremendous sum!
Although they had used some of it, they still had about 40,000 of it left, a
substantial sum.
“The discussed price for deal they made with the hidden power was 80,000 gold,
the 40,000 was but a deposit.”
“I also don’t know where the fishmen came up with this much money.”
Zi Di had doubts.
But when thinking about shipwrecks and unusually abundant seafloor resources,
the fishmen being able to put forth this sum was not unreasonable.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, this next item is a batch of medicine.”
“Underwater Breathing Potions!”
“It can allow people to breathe underwater for a short amount of time.”
“During my voyages, they have been very helpful. No matter if it is ocean
battles, treasure hunting, or other applications, it is always practical to
use.
“This batch of potions contains 50 bronze level, 30 iron level, and 10 silver
level underwater breathing potions…”
After the auction master gave a detailed introduction, the auction began.
The first price shouted out was from One Eye.
He was the leader of Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet and had some credit in
hand. Hun Tong allowed him to attend the auction so he could buy some resources
for his subordinates. As for the cost, it would be reimbursed in full;.
Zi Di didn’t bid.
They had the Magic Medicine Bathtub as the core of their medicine refinement
system and could manufacture large quantities of this type of potion with
little production force.
They also had underwater breathing scrolls too.
They were seized from War Merchant’s storerooms and hadn’t been used up yet.
Zi Di was silent, but the dragonman youngster bid twice.
It came down to two competitors.
One was One Eye; the other was Hong Zhu.
Hong Zhu was a treasure hunter; she spent her years hunting for treasure on the
sea floor and needed to breathe underwater.
These potions were what she needed.
After two rounds of bidding, Hong Zhu stepped back. One Eye had Hun Tong behind
him, and the money he spent was not his own, thus he was far more confident.
This batch of underwater breathing potions was delivered to One Eye.
One Eye was sitting in the audience and handed over the gold coins in front of
everyone.
Two iron level fighters approached the auction master once again.
They were moving a large tank filled with water. The water tank was made of
transparent crystal; thus, the buyers could see inside and out, allowing them
to notice that the jar only had water in it, nothing else.
But soon after, an attendant brought up a necklace.
The auction master himself was an iron level magician, and when he lifted the
necklace up high, he successfully attracted the attention of the buyers.
“Everyone, come see. This is silver level beast enslaving equipment; sealed
inside is a sea mount. After one instills their authority and sufficient
energy, it will be activated.”
“Regardless of whether it is battle qi, magic power, or divine power, all of
them can be used with the necklace. Please see.”
Upon saying that, the auction master used the necklace.
The necklace cast a light blue beam of light.
The light beam illuminated the water tank, and within the light and shadow,
something formless appeared. Two seconds later, the emptiness turned solid.
A dolphin appeared in the water tank.
The dolphin was very big, and within the water tank, it barely had any space to
turn.
The dolphin’s most distinctive characteristic was the blue gem growing from its
forehead, it looked like it was inlaid there.
After it was summoned, it immediately wailed and cried, then gazed at its
temporary owner, the auction master, and cleverly awaited his commands.
The auction master leaned his body towards the audience in front of him and
yelled, “As everyone can see, this is a homeward dolphin.”
“It can penetrate dense fog.”
“Even if the environment is complex, that won’t stop it from finding your way
home.”
“With it, we will never worry of losing our way.”
“At the same time, it is also an outstanding ocean mount. Regardless of whether
it is speeding across the ocean surface or through the hidden depths of the
sea, it will perform well.”
“As a silver level mount, it will often be a great help in allowing us to flee
for our lives.” The auction master’s words were full of deep intent.
Many buyers perceived the unspoken implication, and their hearts were stirred.
The homeward dolphin is very fast, far faster than most iron level magic ships.
For a short time, its dash speed is quicker than many silver level magic ships.
This implied that if a naval battle was lost, one could use it to escape said
battle alive.
Naval battles were cruel.
Because naval battles happened on ships, and even if they were found around
islands, the losing party would rarely be able to retreat.
This was unlike dry land.
People could rely on their own two feet to flee.
The ocean was boundless; ships and isolated islands often gave the losers
nowhere to escape to.
But with the homeward dolphin, it wouldn’t be like that.
The homeward dolphin bestowed some hope of escape to the losers.
Even though it was just one hope, it was still crucial and precious.
Regardless of whether it was merchant alliances, pirates, or mercenary corps,
all of them desired this. 
An intense tussle began.
The price clambered up bid by bid.
This included Shi Fa, Hong Zhu, Mei Ban, and other lone figures who were also
interested, each of them bidding one after the other.
“A pity that there is only one homeward dolphin,” The dragonman youngster said
to Zong Ge, “If there was a pod, perhaps we could acquire them. No need for a
silver level one, that is too high a life level, we only need bronze level
ones. We could have established ocean cavalry.”
The dragonman youngster perhaps couldn’t sense that he had deep feelings for
cavalry.
Zong Ge faintly nodded, and freely stated his thoughts, “I heard there is a
type of battle squad known as the Dolphin First Aid Squad. The core mount of it
is the homeward dolphin. It needs cavalry that can breathe underwater and an
alchemy master to remodel the dolphin’s forehead sapphire. When the Dolphin
First Aid Team is established successfully, it will both have battle qi healing
abilities and be able to teleport over long distances.”
“The seriously hurt on the frontline can have their injuries stabilized by the
First Aid Squad, allowing them to retain their lives, then be immediately
teleported back to the rear so they can receive more comprehensive treatment.”
“Anyways, I don’t have the organization method for that battle squad.”
The half beastman too was always interested in strengthening their troops.
The two had great resonance in this aspect.
When he heard that, he suddenly had a thought, “Since it can teleport, can the
Dolphin First Aid Squad serve as auxiliary forces and help teleport some of
their allies’ heavy armor directly into the enemy or at their rear?”
Zong Ge shook his head slightly, “The alchemy master that remodeled the dolphin
gem has to simultaneously build a teleportation formation too. Only the
homeward dolphins can teleport to the destination with this formation.”
“So that’s how it is.” The dragonman youngster sighed.
As they were talking about this, the auction had ended. 
The final winner was Hong Zhu.
She was a lone figure but was still a silver level and had family assets. 
After completing the transaction, she had obtained the homeward dolphin,
however, she had paid a lot of gold coins and even one of her pieces of
equipment for it.
It was clear the price was not small.



****** Chapter 134: Shadow Walker Outfit ******
“This next item is called the Arrow Avoidance Headband.”
“It is a silver level defensive tool!”
“When wearing it and imbuing it with energy, one can generate a forcefield.”
“Physical shells and arrows will be forced to the side by its power, thereby
allowing people to evade barrages of long range fire.”
“Without a doubt, the one wearing it won’t need to worry about being shot at.
On the stage, the auction master raised the headband as he passionately spoke.
Shi Fa was the first to bid. He was a magician and needed all kinds of
protective equipment.
Soon after, Ku Feng also joined the competition.
He used a katana, and relied on close quarters combat, thus he wanted that
headband.
Because the headband did not interfere with his normal protection equipment, he
just needed to wear it around his head.
Soon after, Mei Ban, Yue Ban, and others were bidding one after the other.
The Lightning Pirates’ first mate suddenly said, “Captain, that protection
equipment suit you well. The price is suitable, we can seize it.”
“Every fight, you are always the first one shooting from the flagship, charging
at the enemy ship alone.”
“With that, we can be a little more relaxed about that.” 
Dian Wan was enthused, he had been bored senseless, and he promptly shouted his
bid.
The price rose step by step.
Shi Fa had already shut up and withdrawn from the competition.
Dian Wan, Ku Feng, and a latecomer, the gunman Mei Ban, were the three parties
in contention.
All of a sudden, Cang Xu’s voice was heard saying, “240 gold!”
Everyone went silent.
Room 21 acted again and had increased the current bid by 50 gold.
This rich and imposing style made everyone shiver slightly.
Ku Feng clenched his teeth, “240 gold…forget about it. I don’t need that
equipment that much.”
Mei Ban rubbed his forehead, “Where did they come from. 240 gold! Who will
accompany you into madness?”
He also withdrew from the competition.
Just as Dian Wan was about to speak, his first mate reached out and covered his
mouth.
“Mumble, grumble…” Dian Wan struggled.
But the first mate did his best to wrestle with him as he growled. “Captain
don’t bid again. Buying at that price will cause us to suffer great losses,
don’t forget, we came here to buy medicine! Save enough money, don’t deplete
our strength.”
Dian Wan’s struggle slowly ceased, and his face became depressed, “I’m truly
bored.”
“If I had known about this earlier, I would have done more, robbed more ships,
made more money.”
“I wouldn’t be as fearful as I am now.”
The first mate consoled him at once.
Dian Wan was still unresigned, “Those guys in room 21 are too vile. Out of the
question, only I can be so arrogant, I won’t allow others to be like that!”
The desire for vengeance rose in Dian Wan’s heart/
A short time later, the Arrow Avoidance Headband was delivered to room 21.
Cang Xu put it on to test it. Using his magic power, he activated the alchemy
treasure.
Immediately, he sensed an incorporeal force field wrapping around his body.
“That thing’s pretty good.” Zi Di nodded with satisfaction.
In the market, unless it was under unusual circumstances, protection tools were
more in demand than weapons.
The Arrow Avoidance Headband was a protection tool, although not a traditional
one.
In naval battles, perhaps there will be many situations where it will see
usage, after all, long ranged firepower was an integral part of naval battles.
Of course, the headband still had a flaw.
For instance, it is unsuitable for squad based combat.
Because its barrier was only around the user and didn’t cover an area.
Therefore, even though the forcefield was active and redirected arrows and
bullets, it would only protect its user, while everyone around them would
suffer a calamity.
If a teammate on the forefront was wearing the headband, no one could say for
sure if the teammates at the back would be hit by those shots.
“This is something everyone should be familiar with.”
“That’s right, a moving map!”
“This is very convenient and fast maritime navigational equipment. It can
automatically record a user’s position and route, then plot it precisely on
itself.”
“The imperial navy already has it on every ship. It is clear that it has a
significant impact on navigation.”
“One silver level moving map starts at the low price of 50 gold. Every bid must
be at least 10 gold. Now let the auction begin!”
One Eye was uninterested in this thing, he already had one of them.
Shi Fa, Ku Feng, and others were indifferent, as far as these lone figures were
concerned, spending dozens of gold coins to buy a rarely used treasure wasn’t
cost effective.
The merchant alliance representatives in the private rooms ate fruit, while
others were dozing off.
The merchant alliances had already provided them with moving maps. Despite not
being silver level, they were adequate enough for them.
“60 gold.” Hong Zhu bid again.
She was a treasure hunter, and a moving map would be of great help when she
went exploring.
It would be of considerable assistance especially when encountering labyrinths
and other twisted topography,
After a moment of hesitation, a bronze level cultivator shouted out a bid of 70
gold.
Hong Zhu turned around to look at him, causing the latter’s eyes to shrink
under the pressure.
Hong Zhu was pondering on whether to increase the price.
From room 14, the dragonman youngster said, “80 gold.”
That caused Hong Zhu to bow out.
If she wanted to bid again, it would be almost 100 gold.
“I have always had a strong sense of direction, spending almost 100 gold coins
for a moving map isn’t worth it!”
Hong Zhu gave up, and so did the bronze level.
In the end, the dragoman youngster obtained the moving map.
Not bad for the price of 80 gold.
The main reason was that there were few bidders.
The dragonman youngster felt happy.
He had wanted a moving map. He also learned how to be a navigator, such as
calculating speed, ship distance, position, and other such things.
Having a moving map makes things so much more convenient.
Next up, a dummy was moved onto the auction stage.
The dummy was the same size as a real person and was dressed in a dark leather
outfit. Its gear comprised of leather armor around the upper body, leather
pants around its lower body, leather boots, leather gloves, and a mask.
The auction master introduced it, “This is an outfit.”
“Three years ago, it was refined in some no named alchemy workshop.”
This alchemy workshop was called the Smell Cobbler Workshop. It has now become
one of the empire’s esteemed alchemy workshops and has expanded a hundredfold.”
“Because when this outfit hit the market, it received widespread favorability,
and in its second year of sales, became the most popular outfit in the imperial
market!”
“I believe that after that introduction, everyone has already guessed what the
name of this outfit is.”
“That’s right. It is the Shadow Walker Outfit
“The entire outfit has five parts and covers most of the body. The leather
armor and leather pants can provide fairly exceptional defense. The leather
boots can eliminate excessive sound, the leather gloves make one’s fingers
nimbler, and the shadow monk mast can give one dark sight.”
“The entire outfit can dwindle one’s aura and amplifies all dark aligned battle
qi to an outstanding degree!”
“The next auction shall begin.”
The auction master declared the price, followed up immediately by someone
bidding.
This was the first outfit that had appeared in the auction, drawing the
attention of many.
The number of cultivators bidding was at a record high!
The biggest reason was that this was a bronze level outfit.
Such outfits were not commonly seen.
Because it involved comparatively abstruse alchemy skill – part magic spell
connection, short distance magic power conformation, among other things.
Through different components integrating with each other, one could form an
outfit. The result was usually quite powerful and very practical.
The bronze level result of it greatly surpassed normal iron level goods and
could even match silver level gear. It was tantamount to stepping over a level!
Therefore, from this respect, the bronze level outfit could enter a silver
level cultivator’s eye.
Consequently, the bidders were not just bronze levels and iron levels, but also
a few silver levels.
In previous auctions, the treasures were either silver or gold level. But the
audience was mostly made up of iron levels.
Most of the iron levels joined the bidding.
Adding on the low base price and low price increases, for a moment, a boiling
cauldron of voices formed in the auction, a bustling spectacle.
When Hun Tong in room one saw this, he couldn’t help but smile.
He deliberately planned for this to happen; he wanted to make this kind of
auction ambience.
He had some people bidding on the auction stage.
At some crucial auctions, they would affect the atmosphere.
Xu Ma gazed at the bronze level outfit on stage, his saliva nearly dripping.
Oh, how it suited him!
“I must have it!” In the audience, Xu Ma was constantly bidding. 
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps also acted.
Their corps had an iron level thief, and if they put that outfit on, they could
even fight silver levels.
“That outfit is very practical. We cannot do without information from spying.
Buy it for me.” Qi You ordered.
But the Ten Touch Pirates were no match for everyone’s enthusiasm.
After the first round of bidding, people withdrew while others joined in.
The Stench Pirates also joined the competition.
Xu Ma was deathly pale as he gazed at the outfit on stage, his heart filled
with laments and regret.
Despite making money from the necromancy information bounty, that money
couldn’t compare to the funds the mercenary corps and pirates had.
More and more lone figures were also joining in.
The frequency of bids sharply declined, and every price increase was done with
hesitation.
The outfit’s price had already exceeded market value.
“I want that outfit.” Said room 21.
All of the bidders’ hearts jumped, and they felt things were going to get bad.
Just as expected, Zi Di brought it up to 80 gold!
They were simply spilling money.
In room 3, the underling once again gazed at Qi You, asking for instructions.
Qi You coldly snorted, “Let them have it for the time being.”
As far as the Ten Touch Pirates were concerned, they had a second option.
The gold level pirates withdrew from the competition, to say nothing of the
others.
The Shadow Monk Outfit fell into Zi Di’s hands.
Xu Ma gazed at room 21; he deeply sighed with a desolate expression.
Before room 21 joined the competition, he had been excited. He had hoped the
dragonman youngster would be able to claim that outfit and fill up the team’s
arsenal. In the future, perhaps he’ll have an opportunity to take possession of
it.
But in the end, room 21 got it, shattering his hopes!
“Room 21, for what reason did you do this?” Xu Ma was both envious and
spiteful.



****** Chapter 135: Mushroom Dancing Shoes ******
Not only was Xu Ma looking at room 21, so too were others gazing at it with
some thoughts.
“Room 21 is too much in the limelight.”
“They have a lot of money. They even forced merchant alliance representatives
to withdraw.”
“How many times has this happened?”
The people whispered to each other.
“Don’t worry, today’s auction has just begun. There are numerous things, and
based on the itinerary, we aren’t even 10% done.” The auction master was
experienced, and could sense the mood of the audience, thus he decided to
console them.
Everyone’s mood gradually stabilized.
This auction was organized by Hun Tong, and its scale and item selection had
always been bigger than the last.
Two Eyes Island’s transformation was imminent, and Hun Tong believed that this
would be the final time an auction would ever be held here.
Naturally, he did his utmost and had numerous expectations for it.
It was precisely because this auction was so valued that Hun Tong was not very
satisfied with the result of the outfit auction.
“Room 21 were the buyers once again.”
“Although at prices far above market value, it is harming the overall auction
ambience.”
“They are a little vigorous.”
Hun Tong adjusted the item order again.
This time, he planned to have three gold level items in a row!
The auction master threw himself into the task as he yelled, “This is a magic
book, a water path book. Although the magic book doesn’t have many pages left
in it, only having the Water Arrow spell, Water Snake spell, and Thick Fog
spell, these three spells are all unquestionably gold level!”
Someone unconsciously looked at room 3, and spoke some gossip, “Qi You night
raided an Elf Kingdom naval fleet, killed one of their gold level water
magicians, and captured a lot of equipment. That magic book should be from Qi
You.”
Magic books were a type of casting equipment.
It could be regarded as a set of magic scrolls.
However, magic scrolls were often a single-use consumable, while magic books
used more sophisticated magic arts that allowed them to be used repeatedly.
If they were replenished in a timely manner, they could be used for one’s
entire life.
The gold level magic book was very valuable, but that item was a spoil of war,
it was dilapidated and only had three water magic spells left in it.
This treasure was most suited to magicians.
There weren’t many magicians at the auction, most present here were fighters.
In room 21, Zi Di won the magic book in the end.
With it, they could now easily pretend to be water magicians in the future. 
The magic book on stage was then replaced with a pair of shoes.
Gold level shoes.
The shoes had a peculiar shape, they were chubby and looked like spongy bread.
The auction master introduced it, “This gold level equipment is the Mushroom
Dancing Shoes.”
“This is dancer equipment.”
“It uses alchemy materials from the elven homeland – Erotic Dance Mushrooms.”
“It is said that whoever eats this highly toxic mushroom will become aroused,
then as they approach death, they will do an erotic dance for half an hour,
then welcome their end during that dance.”
“Brave elven alchemy masters refine the Erotic Dance Mushroom with alchemy
techniques unlike our Sheng Ming Empire ones. From the outward appearance of
this pair of dance shoes, one can see that it possess a distinctly foreign
bearing.”
To be more accurate, this pair of shoes looked very ugly.
Elven products were always gorgeous and elegant.
If it wasn’t for professional judgement provided by the seller, Hong Zhu, no
one would have thought this was the work of an elven alchemy master. 
Hong Zhu was a treasure hunter, and she had discovered many things hidden in
shipwrecks on the seafloor.
When it came time for the team to divide the treasure, she chose these dancing
shoes. At the time, these dancing shoes were sealed, leaving only its peculiar
shape without a trace of gold level aura.
When they returned to Two Eyes Island and the treasure hunting group appraised
the treasures, everyone discovered that Hong Zhu had earned the most.
The main reason was because she had gained those dancing shoes.
Many members were envious, and Hong Zhu sagaciously left quietly that same
evening, separating herself from this temporary team. 
The auction began.
For a moment, there was unexpectedly an awkward silence.
No one bid.
“Please, please!” Hong Zhu couldn’t help but pray to herself; she was inwardly
anxious.
If these shoes were sold off, she would have enough funds for her next
expedition. She had been preparing for this expedition for a very long time.
“520 gold.” The first bidder appeared.
Hoing Zhu promptly turned to look at them and saw the beastman female occupying
three seats.
It was Yue Ban.
She was an owlman dancer.
These dancing shoes fitted her well.
Yue Ban’s downy and circular face was expressionless.
“520 gold going once.:
“520 gold going twice.”
The auction master heaved his small hammer.
Hong Zhu was in a complex mood.
Gold level equipment selling for 520 gold was not too high, just a fair price
for it. It was not the ideal sale for Hong Zhu.
One must know that she had also paid a commission to the auction.
The remaining coin was not enough to prepare her next treasure hunt. A massive
shortfall in funds!
“600 gold.” Zi Di’s voice suddenly transmitted from Room 21.
Hong Zhu’s eyes dilated in both alarm and happiness.
She gazed at room 21, and for the first time, felt that this rich and
overbearing bidder still had an adorable side to them.
Hong Zhu looked back at Yue Ban.
Yue Ban had been robbed, yet she still remained expressionless, and even
somewhat aloof.
“Although she is a famous dancer, those dancing shoes really do look ugly…”
Hong Zhu sighed to herself.
“600 gold going once.”
“600 gold going twice.”
The auction master slowly lifted his small hammer.
“620 gold.” Yue Ban suddenly said.
Hong Zhu felt both alarm and happiness once again, she thought that Yue Ban had
given up, and hadn’t expected that at the last moment, she would raise the
price.
Hong Zhu looked at Yue Ban.
“640 gold.” Zi Di followed up.
“640 gold!” Hong Zhu couldn’t help but be moved. The increase of 40 gold would
allow her to prepare far more treasure hunting supplies.
“Will it go up a bit more?” Hong Zhu unconsciously glanced at Yue Ban.
Yue Ban still remained expressionless and indifferent.
Hong Zhu coldly snorted to herself, “She should be giving up.”
“640 gold going once.”
“640 gold going twice.”
The auction master slowly lifted his small hammer.
660 gold.” Yue Ban opened her mouth again.
Hong Zhu, for the third time, felt startled and delighted, “Did I mishear?”
She looked at Yue Ban and although the latter was still expressionless, they
were now sitting upright.
This time not only was Hong Zhu looking at her, but so too were others.
Hong Zhu’s heart was disarray, and many people realized that Yue Ban desired
these dancing shoes greatly.
From room 21, Zi Di smiled and continued to probe their disposition with bids,
“700 gold.”
“700 gold going once.”
“700 gold going twice.”
The auction master unhurriedly raised his small hammer.
As expected, a moment later, Yue Ban, expressionless, said with a flat voice,
“720 gold.”
The auction master sighed to himself, feeling tired, “The same pattern every
time, waiting until the last moment to bid, you’re kidding me!”
But this time, Zi Did stopped delaying.
She had been leaning back on her chair, but now, she straightened her back and
sat completely up.
Her eyes flashed with exuberant interest, like a hunter discovering their prey.
Her voice candidly and nimbly stated, “780 gold!”
Yue Ban’s complexion changed abruptly.
Her carefully managed face finally fell apart.
780 gold, every bid must increase the price by 20 gold.
That meant that her bid would have to be 800 gold.
“800 gold…” Yue Ban lowered her voice, as if biting her teeth when she
announced her price.
The auction master’s eyes shined, thinking to himself that the two sides were
finally beginning to grapple with each other directly.
The prior probing had a very slow tempo.
But now it was an open battle, and both sides’ bids were unwilling to fall
behind. After one bid, the other side would immediately increase the price,
giving the people the feeling that a windy rainstorm suddenly appeared.
The price rose to 1200 gold.
Yue Ban was unable to keep going.
With face filled with emotion, she twisted around to glare at room 21 and spat
out, “1,300 gold!”
The abrupt price rise by 100 gold was her attempting to scare her competition
into withdrawing.
But nevertheless, Zi Di laughed back, “1,400 gold.”
Yue Ban seemed to have been struck, and her face turned gloomy.
Her main goal of coming here was to acquire these shoes.
Some information on the goods here had been disseminated by Hun Tong ahead of
time in preparation for the auction.
1,300 gold was Yue Ban’s limit.
She couldn’t come up with any more money.
“Don’t tell me I’m about to miss this golden opportunity?”
“My strength is inferior to that snake, and without those dancing shoes I have
no hopes of winning the Dance Festival.”
For a moment, You Ban looked both hopeless and defeated.
The auction master eventually clacked the small hammer, making Zi Di the
ultimate winner.
In the audience, Hong Zhu covered her mouth in disbelief.
Tremendous joy flooded her heart, a distinct contrast to Yue Ban.
From this, one can see that the sadness and happiness of people are not
interlinked.
As far as Hong Zhu is concerned, despite the commission, what was left of the
1,400 gold was still a huge sum!
Not only was capital shortfall filled in, but there was also a large surplus.
“Today is my lucky day!
Hong Zhu looked at Yue Ban, the latter appeared dejected and defeated, everyone
knew how important these dancing shoes were to her.
“Her expression was like that because she wanted to keep a low profile, but
room 21 saw right through it.” Hong Zhu thought to herself.
As she mulled that, she glanced at room 21 on the second floor.
She had a somewhat complex expression.
The people inside room 21 were truly heroic and rich!
So far, they have already confidently spilled thousands of gold coins.
“Perhaps I can try to contact them, and in the future, I can sell my found
treasures directly to a big client.” Hong Zhu reckoned slyly.
A gigantic platinum colored circle was carried onto the auction stage.
The circle was as thick as a palm, and when it stood upright, the auction
master was less than half its height.
The two iron level fighters, one left, one right, held it up.
The auction master gently caressed the platinum circle, “Friends, allow me to
introduce this alchemy item, the Sun Halo”
As the auction master introduced it, in a private room on room two, Yang Cong
Tou laughed heartily, “Wait! That’s it.”
He was the commander of the Stench Pirates and a depraved druid
He had joined this auction to get the Sun Halo.
The Sun Halo could consume energy and create sunlight of varied intensity.
Normally, it was used in high end plantations. Some valuable and rare magic
plants needed a particular growing environment.
Yang Cong Tou wanted it not to build a plantation on his ship, but rather his
meditation method needed intense light.



****** Chapter 136: The Grand Arena Medal ******
“I originally wanted to eat up the Treasure Gold Merchant Alliance fleet.
“But in the end, the Lightning Pirates robbed it first!”
“Hmph, if Dian Wan didn’t put the Sun Halo up for auction, I would have
attacked him.”
“With that halo, my cultivation efficiency will be improved by 20%.”
“I must have it!!”
Yang Cong Tou was determined to win.
A short time later.
Bang.
The auction master’s hammer clacked once, and he loudly proclaimed,
“Congratulations to room 21 for obtaining the Sun Halo.”
Yang Cong Tou was ashen, and with a sneer, he growled, “Investigate them for me
who is in room 21! I want them to know that my things are not so easily
taken!!”
A small box was then delivered to the auction stage.
Ladies and gentlemen. So sorry, a small incident suddenly occurred. Another
item has taken its place at the last moment.”
“Let me first see what’s inside.”
The auction master’s words successfully stirred the interest of many buyers.
Under the stares of many people, he opened the small box.
Instantly, everyone sensed a silver level aura emitting from the box.
“What is it?”
“It is a last minute item. Since it passed inspection and was let onto the
auction stage, its bound to be valuable.”
“Will it be sold to room 21? They have won so many items; shouldn’t they be
running out of money?”
Whispers rippled through the audience.
“Oh!” The auction master exclaimed in surprise with a somewhat exaggerated
expression, “What am I looking at?”
“Honored guests, this is actually a medal.”
“A Grand Arena Medal!” He reached into the box, took out the treasure, and
raised it high, allowing all of the magic beams of light to focus on what was
in his hand.
Everyone was in an uproar.
A Grand Arena Medal was a significant thing!
The Grand Arena was not a building of the main world.
Its master was the Abyss Demon Clan’s Demon God – Serene Fury.
Serene Fury was an ancient war god, far older than many of the elven gods. He
established the Grand Arena in the Abyss, then forced or invited all sorts of
powers and cultivators from all regions to enter the Grand Arena to impartially
test their skills.
The victor would obtain Serene Fury’s medal as a reward and the loser often
lost their life.
The ancient war god’s rewards were naturally extraordinary!
The Grand Arena Medal had two main functions.
The first function was to absorb a defeated opponent’s battle experience,
skills, and so on, then imbue them into the medal’s wearer.
The second function was that it amplified the owner’s overall growth rate,
including strength, speed, defense, attack, recovery, and so on. There was one
more characteristic: the more people were watching the medal’s owner fight, the
stronger the growth rate amplification was. 
“I didn’t expect that Grand Arena Medal would actually appear.” Qi You’s eyes
opened, revealing an excited glint, “It’s also a silver level Thousand Victory
Medal.”
In room 1, Song Shou also sighed, “Such a good thing is indeed rare.”
Hun Tong chuckled.
This so called last minute placement was just a deliberate trick of his.
This had been a treasure he had collected intentionally and kept secret for
several years.
Any information that he’d be selling it this auction was kept tightly sealed.
If it was leaked, it might provoke thieves and other unsavory types to visit
the city government building.
“A Thousand Victory Level Grand Arena Medal, even in the Sheng Ming Continent’s
Grand Auction, it is seldom seen.” Zi Di exclaimed in admiration.
Cang Xu was eager to give it a go.
The Grand Arena Medal not only suited fighters, but its growth rate
amplification had a wide application that included a magician’s spiritual
toughness, magic power restoration rate, casting range, casting speed, and even
casting success rate, among other attributes.
Therefore, it was a marvelous jack of all trades that suited all cultivators.
In room 14, because of the medal, Zong Ge too stated his interest in it, “A
thousand years ago, the demons attacked the main world, bleeding the earth for
a thousand kilometers and savaging its people.”
“While the alliance of races fought back, the Demon God Serene Fury often chose
or invited the strong that sprung up during the war and had them compete
fiercely in his Grand Arena.”
“The victorious had a chance to leave the Grand Arena.”
“If they only had one victory, the Grand Rena Medal they would get would an
ordinary level item and had no extraordinary effects.”
“If one stayed to continue the challenge, and accumulated ten victories, they
would leave with a Ten Victory Grand Arena Medal. It would be bronze level.”
“Going to a hundred victories, it would then be iron level.”
“A thousand victories, silver level.”
“Ten thousand victories, gold level.”
“Regardless of whether it was demons, us humans, elves, or dwarfs, all
cultivators would enter the Grand Arena. Some successfully escaped and obtained
a Grand Arena Medal.
“Some warriors wanting to fight to the death even prayed to the demon god
Serene Fury at their own volition in hopes that they’d be able to fight in the
Grand Arena.
“However, later on, the demon army was routed, and the allied forces sealed the
planar passages and many weak regions of space. This has led to few people
entering the Grand Arena.”
“In one millennium, the Grand Arena Medal was a common thing, but now it has
become rare, especially a Thousand Victory Level like that one.”
The dragonman youngster understood, “Will a silver level Grand Arena help a
gold level? If that is the case, its selling price most certainly won’t be
small!”
As expected.
The auction master opened the price at 200 gold, and every increase had to be
at least 30 gold.
As a silver level item, 200 gold was already a high price for it.
Even so, many people were rushing like ducks at it.
The main reason was that this medal had an immense range of applications. It
was also difficult to find, and was equipment that suited everyone, fighters,
casters, and clergy.
Therefore, even if one’s life level rose in the future and its practical nature
declined, if one considered getting rid of it or needed emergency cash, selling
it would be very easy.
The bids had raised the medal’s price to 360 gold, and it was still going up.
Song Shou also joined the bidding.
After he announced his price, he said to Hun Tong, “The demon war a thousand
years ago has made the Gran Arena know to everyone in the world.”
“To obtain that silver level medal, it is rare for someone to rely on duels to
accumulate a thousand victories, the optimal way would be participating in
large scale melees. Becoming the final survivor of close quarters battle with
several hundred people in it.”
“I also heard that there is a faster way to obtain medals in duels. Through
winning streaks!”
“Three victories in a row will net a bronze level medal. Five wins in a row can
obtain an iron level, ten for a silver, twenty four for a gold.
At this time, the medal had reached a price of 460 gold.
Song Shou stated, “600 gold.”
Everyone went silent.
Song Shou smiled as he explained to Hun Tong, “This equipment suits the younger
generation of my family. The silver level medal won’t help me that much. The
medal can gather a defeated opponent’s experience and skills, nourishing the
growth of the younger generation.”
Hun Tong nodded, “That’s right. Alas, if it weren’t for the fact that this was
a last minute replacement, I would have traded to you ahead of time.”
“Hehehe, perhaps in the future there will be an opportunity to do that.” Song
Shou was laughing when he heard a voice.
“1000 gold!”
Song Shou’s smiling expression immediately stiffened.
“It’s that guy in room 21.” Song Shou’s tone was cold.
“1000 gold going once.” The auction master yelled.
Everyone was silent.
“1000 gold going twice.”
Everyone was still silent.
“1000 gold going thrice. Good, let me congratulate the customers in room 21.”
The auction master’s small hammer fell.
At that time, all of the buyers seemed to sigh in relief, then began to whisper
to each other.
“1000 gold to buy a silver level equipment, that’s simply insane!”
“Even though it’s a Grand Arena Medal, that’s too outrageous.”
It had far surpassed the market value of silver level things.
1000 gold could unquestionably buy a gold level weapon.
The gold dagger Hun Tong assassinated the seafloor mountain snail with was only
900 gold.
Who would spend 1000 gold to buy a silver level medal?
Room 21 gave everyone an answer.
They didn’t lack money!
A trench!
Before the auction started, some guessed that perhaps room 21 had been the
seller, so that they could make up for the cash they spent, but everyone knew
those guesses were superficial.
“How much cash do those people have on them?”
“They aren’t emptying their accounts for this auction?”
“Even if it is a power, is it really worth it to spend so much om a single
piece of equipment?”
Even the great merchant alliance representatives were also analyzing Cang Xu’s
Zi Di’s financial resources and intentions.
Zi Di’s and Cang Xu’s hearts were awash with joy.
The two had made up their mind, they would not hesitate to purchase the Grand
Arena Medal at a premium for the dragonman youngster.
“The captain has the Bloodcore and can theoretically transform into any
lifeform. However, in practical use, many systemic problems are discovered in
doing so.”
“The amount of energy, time, and labor spent to be able to use each life shape
skillfully is always massive.”
“Under these circumstances, the captain limiting himself to humanoid shapes is
very sensible.”
“However, with the Grand Arena Medal, things will be different!”
Cang Xu smiled as he said that.
“That’s right.” Zi Di nodded, the girl’s eyes were twinkling with a warm and
soft light, “This arena medal can absorb the loser’s experience and skills.
That is very crucial.”
“In the future, even if it isn’t a humanoid, the commander can still absorb as
much as he likes. He only needs to defeat said type of lifeform as much as
possible so the Grand Arena Medal can acquire sufficient experience and
skills.”
“With that experience and skills, the commander can save large amounts of time
and energy and swiftly master the strengths of every life shape.”
Cang Xu pushed up the spectacles on his nose, “In theory, everything is
feasible. I hope that it really works, that the results can satisfy us.”
The world had unnumerable alchemy treasures.
Even the same treasure has a different worth to different users.
If the Grand Arena Medal had a great practical result, then the assistance it
would bring to the dragonman youngster would be no less than a quasi-divine
artifact!



****** Chapter 137: Balloon Knapsack ******
The auction had reached the middle section.
The gathering square’s ambience was growing warmer and warmer.
Under three magic light beams, the auction master took out the next item from a
flat box.
When the box was opened, the item’s workmanship aura leaked out.
Everyone’s mind was shaken upon suddenly realizing that this was a gold level
treasure.
“How many gold level alchemy items are there?”
“I have participated in five of Two Eyes Island’s auctions; this is absolutely
the biggest one I’ve ever attended!”
“Even in imperial metropolis, such an auction is not commonly seen.”
“Hun Tong has truly proved his skill. The influence of this auction will
inevitably raise Two Eyes Island’s business status once again!”
Many people present gradually realized that after this auction finished, Two
Eyes Island’s fame would be elevated substantially.
The auction master began his presentation, “Noble customers, this is a classic
treasure.”
“It comes from the Piggy Bank Alchemy Workshop.”
“Eight centuries ago, an alchemy item was produced, and through minute
improvements, it reached its final form a century ago.”
“That’s right, it is the Balloon Knapsack!”
Everyone gazed at it with rapt attention and saw that in the auction master’s
fingers, there was a thin cloth bag.
The cloth bag was shaped like something between a balloon and a shoulder
knapsack.
Its materials seemed to be frail and crude, however, the surface was very
brightly colored and looked like multicolored weaved squares and triangles.
“Honored customers, perhaps you are unconvinced, don’t worry, this treasure is
at its smallest when it is empty.” The auction master continued his
presentation, “The more stuff we store inside it, the bigger its bulk. Everyone
please watch the demonstration patiently.”
As the auction master said this, a few fighters were moving twenty casks.
“These are empty casks.” The auction master opened the first ten casks.
Each cask was half a person’s height. 
Everyone saw that the casks were indeed empty, nothing was inside them.
The auction master walked to the side of a cask, then pulled the knapsack’s
zipper before everyone.
After the knapsack was unzipped, a light leaked from within it.
The white light looked like fog, and within the fog, specks of crystal light
glittered like shiny diamonds.
The white diamond lights cascaded down and covered the entire cask.
When the fog light pulled back into the knapsack, the entire cask subsequently
disappeared from where it stood.
It was evident that the cask had been stored away.
But the knapsack’s size only minutely changed, almost indistinguishable to the
naked eye.
Then after the auction master stored all ten casks, the knapsack got a bit
bigger.
“Next will be casks full of fresh water.” As the auction master said this, some
people carried over ten water casks.
The auction master stored all ten water casks into the knapsack.
The knapsack grew bigger, becoming a bit bulgier. The dragonman youngster
couldn’t help but associate it with Zi Di’s small waist handbag filled with
medicinal bottles. 
“These ten casks are filled with large amounts of Brain Pebbles.”
Another ten casks.
They were opened, allowing the audience to peer in and see that they were
indeed filled with Brain Pebbles.
These white pebbles had strands of bloody wisps, like a person’s brain. They
were a type of alchemy material with many uses.
The ten casks were filled with Brain Pebbles, five of them were filled with
bronze level ones and the other five were filled with silver level ones.
The auction master first stuffed the five casks of bronze level Brain Pebbles
into the knapsack.
The Balloon Knapsack swelled even larger and seemed to be the size of a normal
inflated balloon.
The auction master then put the other five casks of Brain Pebbles into the
knapsack, causing the Balloon Knapsack to inflate to the size of a normal
knapsack. After being packed with silver level alchemy materials, it had
swelled to its biggest size yet.
From this, it could be seen that an item’s workmanship had an immense effect on
its deformation!
The auction master put the knapsack on his back and raised his voice, “Please
witness everyone the Balloon Knapsack’s greatest merit: it can store a large
number of things while still being relatively light.”
“Right now, I feel it is effortless to carry.”
“Of course, I am a iron level cultivator. Therefore, we specially arranged to
have an ordinary person for this.”
A common youngster came on stage, and with all of the cultivators watching him,
he appeared somewhat nervous.
He placed the Balloon Knapsack onto his own back.
His shoulders consequently sank slightly, but the burden was not strenuous.
Next, he slowly paced around, then walked quickly, then ran and jumped, all of
which appeared fast and nimble. The knapsack on his back influenced his
movement negligibly.
“Honored guests, your eyes see the truth – an ordinary person can carry this
Balloon Knapsack!”
“Of course, this is not without cost. The knapsack must be imbued with battle
qi beforehand, and only by expending battle qi can its weight be lowered.”
“Battle qi can be used; magic power will work too. Even some stored magic power
crystals or elemental crystal stones in the knapsack can imbue it with
energy.” 
“At present, this mystical storage equipment is far from reaching its limits.” 
“We can still put more things into it!”
Following that, the auction master placed even more things into the Balloon
Knapsack, their quality ranging from ordinary to silver level.
The total amount of items in it was now ten times more than previously. 
The Balloon Knapsack grew even more in volume.
The balloon gradually grew from the size of a human child to the size of a
human adult, then to the size of the horse, until finally, it had the bulk of
an adult elephant.
The elephant sized balloon floated on the auction stage. The bag strap had also
become taut, like a strand of hemp rope. One end of the “hemp rope” was
connected to the multicolored Balloon Knapsack and the other was held gently by
the auction master.
The auction master tugged on it from time to time, causing the Balloon Knapsack
to softly sway accordingly.
The auction master then said, “Those familiar with this alchemy treasure should
know that it can become even bigger. It can grow to the size of a carriage, and
even a house with no issues.”
“As you can see, even though there is so many things loaded into it, it is
still very light and portable. I can pull it with one hand.”
“Everyone, this gold level Balloon Knapsack has outstanding storage
capabilities!”
“With it, we can store ever more things and pull it ever longer distances.”
“We can store food and water, the most basic insurance of survival while
sailing the seas.”
“Think about it everyone, it isn’t easy to run shipping routes, there are many
risks! There are pirates, ocean monsters, nasty tempests, and many other
innumerable troubles. Our ships are finite, our hold space is finite, and we
can only load so much merchandise. With this treasure, we can load so much
more! What two voyages could transport can now be completed in one! That is an
immense improvement!”
“You won’t regret purchasing this Balloon Knapsack, a gold level Balloon
Knapsack.”
“Right, now the auction will begin. The starting price is 1000 gold, and every
price increase must be no less than 80 gold.”
“Let the auction begin!” The auction master’s small hammer fell with a crack.
“1,200 gold!” The Flint Merchant Alliance representative bid soon after.
The auction master’s words simply drove themselves into his heart. In this
respect, he wanted it quite exuberantly.
“1,400 gold.”
“1,500 gold.”
Quite quickly, the five great merchant alliance representatives acted in
succession.
As a pirate commander, Dian Wan was unwilling to be left out, “1,600 gold.”
This time, his first mate didn’t object.
They were pirates, they needed such storage devices. Pirate ships emphasized
pursuit speed and agility compared to trade ships, ensuring military strength
by sacrificing storage space.
Often when the Lightning Pirates were looting, merchant ships sank, and they
didn’t have surplus space to stow the spoils of war. They had no choice but to
resign themselves to what treasures they could take and abandon most of the
merchant goods, taking only the most valuable things.
With the gold level Balloon Knapsack, they could maximize the profits of each
piracy.
Therefore, this time, the first mate supported Dian Wan.
Dian Wan’s bid was the prologue of pirates joining the “war” in increasing
numbers.
Very quickly, Stench, Applause, and other pirate commanders all joined the
price competition.
Not long after, Qi You’s voice transmitted from room 3, “2,500 gold!” 
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative who had always been in contention
didn’t back down as he yelled, “2,600 gold.”
Currently, the auction price was still below his bottom line.
The Flint Merchant Alliance primarily excavated and mined ore, along with
transporting ore and metal, all of which were both numerous and heavy. The
Balloon Knapsack storage device agreed well with the Flint Merchant Alliance.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance representative followed up serenely, “2,800
gold.”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s main business was food and cloth, both of
which were rigidly in demand. None could run away from these two requirements,
therefore of humanity’s six great merchant alliances, the Clam Cloth was the
biggest and had very substantial financial resources.
As for the Treasure and Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance representatives both
had withdrawn from the competition.
They were both refiners, one refined alchemy treasures while the other made and
sold magic potions. Both these types of products had small quantities and high
quality. Therefore, their requirements were far less intense than the Flint and
Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s.
The playing card magician Shi Fa, the treasure hunter Hong Zhu, the dwarf Men
Shi, the gunman Mei Ban, and the other lone figures watched the competition
play out from the side lines.
The Balloon Knapsack’s price constantly rose. When it surpassed 3,000 gold, the
bids began to become sparse and less frequent.
There were ten competitors left, the most powerful of which were the Flint
Merchant Alliance representative, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance
representative, as well as the Ten Touch Pirates.
After a violent battle, the Ten Touch Pirates were the last one standing.
“Room 3, 3,200 gold, going once.”
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative hesitated.
“Room 3, 3,200 gold, going twice.”
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s representative’s forehead was already
layered with beads of sweat, he sighed and chose to give up.
Just as the auction master was about to pound his hammer, Hun Tong’s voice
transmitted from room 1, “3,280 gold.”



****** Chapter 138: Zi Di’s Appetite ******
He hadn’t joined the price competition from the start, and no one expected that
he’d stick himself in at the last moment.
Room 3 didn’t react, while the Flint Merchant Alliance representative was
provoked and blurted out, “3,360 gold!”
Qi You coldly snorted and opened his own mouth this time, “3,500 gold.”
The voice was steady, but it was like a boulder smashing into the Flint
Merchant Alliance representative’s heart.
The Flint Merchant Alliance representative turned red,, anger and unwillingness
filled his face. His mouth was open, yet he was silent.
The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance representative’s room didn’t respond either.
The others awaited Hun Tong’s bid.
But Hun Tong in room 1 went silent. His raising of the price was merely a ploy.
Hun Tong accurately gauged Qi You’s ambition for the Balloon Knapsack, along
with the Flint Merchant Alliance representative’s innermost struggle.
From the observable result, his price raising ploy was very fruitful.
The Flint Merchant Alliance was provoked and couldn’t restrain himself, while
Qi You was forced to one up the former.
The auction price rose from 3,200 gold to 3,500 gold, a difference of 300 gold.
If neither Qi You nor the Flint Merchant Alliance representative bid, the
Ballon Knapsack would fall into Hun Tong’s hands, an acceptable result to him.
Because when Two Eyes Island transitioned into a transportation hub, this
storage alchemy treasure would be very useful.
“Balloon Knapsacks are not uncommon, but gold level ones are. The price has
reached its peak.” Hun Tong said to himself.
“Room 3, 3,500 gold, going once.”
“Room 3, 3,500 gold, going twice.”
“Room 3, 3,500 gold, going three times...”
The moment the auction master’s wooden hammer fell, Zi Di suddenly said, “3,800
gold.”
Everyone’s eyes focused on room 21.
Like Hun Tong, this was the first time Zi Di had placed a bid.
But that sentence stunned everyone else.
She took the peak price of 3,500 gold and increased it by 300 gold, the
audacity of it awed the whole audience.
Hun Tong raised his eyebrow in surprise.
Room 21 was currently his main target of interest. But in this auction, Zi Di
hadn’t acted and Hun Ton still thought the other party was uninterested in it
and hadn’t expected them to wait until now.
“Are they insane? 3,800 gold?!”
“It’s room 21 again.”
“For what reason did they do that, this is the second time they verbally
attacked Qi You.”
“So rich and imposing, truly rich and overbearing!”
In room 3, Qi You narrowed his eyes; they were glistening with dreadful cold
light.
Just as success was within sight, misfortune appeared, disturbing his mood.
Competing against such a wealthy competitor made Qi You jittery.
If he wasn’t at an auction, it was likely he would have murdered them on the
spot.
The was the second time room 21 stopped him, which meant they didn’t care about
the Ten Touch Pirates, this made Qi You even more enraged and felt he lost
face.
“Have you still not investigated their origins?” Qi You coldly questioned.
“This subordinate is incapable of doing so.” The underling responsible
immediately knelt, his complexion pale and his voice fearful, “After this one
received your order, I have been investigating. However, Two Eyes Island is not
our domain, and the people who snatched Ya Ma’s admission tick are very
mysterious, it’s like they suddenly appeared out of nowhere!”
“Regardless of where they appeared from, keep an eye on them for me. Soon, I
shall let them know the consequences of opposing me.” Qi You touched his chin,
his voice calm as his heart boiled with murderous intent.
He decided not to bid.
The auction had exhausted him mentally and physically, but more crucially,
despite how formidable he was, he wasn’t confident that he could compete with
room 21.
Up till now, room 21 had left an exceedingly deep impression on everyone.
Everyone knew these mysterious buyers had astonishing financial resources!
Zi Di’s sudden increase of 300 gold awed many people.
That hadn’t been at the beginning of the auction, but rather the end.
An auction price of 3,800 gold, truth be told, spilled far over the normal
price.
In room 21, Cang Xu was silent for a bit, then deliberated, “Does this Balloon
Knapsack really suit us?”
“Our true core ship is the Deep Sea Monster Fish; when it sails through the
depths, it has limited internal space.”
“The Balloon Knapsack’s volume and will grow bigger the more things are stored
inside it, it will be rather difficult to store it inside the Deep Sea Monster
Fish’s holds.”
“The Balloon Knapsack only suits maritime sailing ships. But if one wanted to
sufficiently display this alchemy treasure’s functions, one had to have a ship
pulling it through the air.”
“The Balloon Knapsack floats in the air, it has no defense, that flaw is too
great!”
“It is also too bombastic.”
It will clearly tell pirates this: come rob us, we are transporting a lot of
goods,”
Since the auction began, this was the first time Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s opinions
differed.
Zi Di nodded, first acknowledging Cang Xu’s analysis, then instead of answering
it directly, she instead addressed another subject.
“On our first night on Two Eyes Island, we sent our message, however, the Bai
Zhen Clan has not responded.”
“We don’t know what might have happened, we must plan for the worst.”
The experience of surviving on Mystifying Monster Island had burnished the
survivors into habitually acting cautiously. Without this habit, they would
have died on that island.
Zi Di continued, “Therefore, we must do our best to improve our strength, so
that we can deal with the worst circumstances. When we have enough money, we
should do our best to purchase equipment, that way we can raise our strength
immensely within a short amount of time.”
“The stronger we are, the more able we are to deal with the worst
possibilities.”
Cang Xu nodded, “We have already reached a consensus on this.”
Therefore, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ main goal in this auction was to
buy, buy, buy!
Gold level medicine was only one of the objectives.
This was a rare opportunity.
Especially in the vast ocean.
Two Eyes Island had been developed for many years, while most islands were like
Snake Rat Island, barely developed at all. In the past, imperial power had been
centralized on dry land, it was because they wanted to invade the Wilderness
Continent and needed supply lines did they make arrangements on many islands.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps missed this chance, it would be a long time
until they could attend such an auction again.
Zi DI explained, “In my opinion, we can purchase this Balloon Knapsack and then
remodel it.”
“Remodel it into what?” Cang Xu asked.
Zi Di replied, “The Balloon Knapsack is a classic alchemy treasure, it contains
many high level alchemy techniques, not just space storage technology, but also
weight reduction ones too. To attain the goal of weight reduction, its core
alchemy technique is a floating force field.”
“This alchemy technology is the core technology in magic airships, we can
remodel it to make ourselves a second magic vessel.”
Two Eyes Island’s defensive battle had made the survivors realize how much they
needed a magic ship.
This was one of the reasons Zi Di decided to bid.
When Cang Xu heard this, his mind seemed to be struck by lightning, “Are you
talking about the airship schematic?”
War Merchant’s database had many alchemy blueprints.
Cang Xu and Zi Di had skimmed over many of them.
Among them were several airship schematics, including one that used the
floating force field alchemy technology.
Airships were a type of aircraft, similar to hot air balloons.
The biggest difference was that airships possessed propulsion and aerial
control equipment. They were mainly gigantic sleek vessels, and under the
vessel, there was a suspended cabin that had a propeller in the rear, which
controlled stability and propulsion.
The vessel’s air sac was filled with gas, giving it immense buoyancy.
The suspended cabin could load people and things.
The rear propeller could speed up the airship, alter its direction, shift its
pitch, and so on.
The airship had first been invented and manufactured by the goblins.
Nowadays, the most universally common designs are almost all goblin airships.
Zi Di wanted to transform something into an airship, naturally she didn’t want
common trash, she wanted an alchemy airship.
Zi Di continued, “We need more magic vessels. The Deep Sea Monster Fish cannot
be rashly exposed, it must be our hidden trump card.”
“We also have a severe lack of storage space.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish has one big flaw; its interior is narrow.”
“Imperial redemption is merely one stop on our journey. We need to develop,
expand our power, and acquire more resources and riches.”
“Based on the auction item list, during the late stage, there will be a lot of
things related to metal, ores, and raw materials, we have planned to purchase a
batch of those.”
“But in that plan, we were mainly buying materials for the construction of the
Bloodline Purification formation.”
“Now that a gold level Balloon Knapsack has appeared, I thought, why not go a
step further?”
“With this knapsack, we can try to purchase even more raw materials. On the
sea, collecting these materials ourselves will be rather challenging and time
consuming.”
“We have the tower spirit; we can make a second magic vessel.”
“If that happens, we’ll have a flying stronghold.”
“Not only that, but we will also have stores of alchemy materials. In the
future, these materials can not only be used to make magic formations but also
can be used to make an alchemy factory.”
“War Merchant’s database has many alchemy factory designs, as long as we can
build one, we can have automated manufacturing. With sufficient raw materials,
we will have an unending stream of munitions.”
“We can build the alchemy factory on some uninhabited island. We have the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy and Deceptive Disguise formation, who would notice?”
Cang Xu couldn’t help but widen his eyes, “You are thinking about supplanting
War Merchant’s position and becoming the new tycoon in arms dealing?”
For the first time, the necromancer sensed the ghost girl’s appetite.
Despite being dead, her appetite truly was great!
Zi Di seemed to know what Cang Xu was thinking, and so she pensively sighed,
“If a business model has a profit margin of 10%, that guarantees that it will
be used everywhere. If it has a profit margin of 20%, it is a hot market. If it
has a profit margin of 50%, it will take risks out of desperation. As for a
profit margin of 100%, that will trample the laws of the world. For a profit
margin of 300%, it will dare to commit any crime, even if it risks the danger
of hanging. If turmoil and dispute can bring profits, the business shall
encourage turmoil and dispute, smugglers and slave traders is proof of that.”
“That is business, my friend.”



****** Chapter 139: Venomous Dentures ******
The necromancer took in a cold breath, calmed down, and cautiously pondered.
He had no choice but to admit that although Zi Di’s plan was sloppy, it was
still feasible. Or in other words, it was quite doable.
But it also had shortcomings.
Cang Xu muttered, “War Merchant’s tower spirit is damaged, and we only have one
yellow crab alchemy puppet left, do we really possess the ability to modify a
gold level treasure?” 
“Even if we can modify it, don’t we at least need a shipyard?’
“If we succeed, we will have an alchemy airship. But from the schematics, we
can see that this type of airship is mainly used for transportation, it needs
armed escort airships or flying cavalry like griffins guarding it.”
“If we have only one airship, it will undoubtably be frail.”
Zi Di nodded and didn’t deny it, “That’s right, these are challenges we need to
overcome.”
“Then we’ll give it a try.” Replied Cang Xu.
He didn’t hesitate anymore, because he felt Z Di’s determination.
It was something seldom felt.
Zi Di was taking a big risk, and her desire was very strong.
But perhaps it was because of that risk that Cang Xu felt stimulation and
passion he hadn’t felt in a long time.
Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster, and Zi Di were already a tight knit team.
If Zi Di’s plan was put into practice, then this small team’s future would be
even brighter, and even more hopeful
In room 21, the two reached a consensus.
The other bidders had laid down the flag already, and Zi Di smoothly won the
Ballon Knapsack.
Everyone in the auction hall slowly subsided their shock.
3,800 gold was quite the premium price.
Room 21 raising it to this price made it clear they had substantial finances.
No one would have thought that these gold coins in Zi Di’s plan were merely an
insignificant investment in the interim. The expenditure needed to remodel it
into an alchemy airship would be far more astronomical.
After the Ballon Knapsack was a pair of bracelets.
Magic Conduction Bracelets.
As a silver level magic item, it was very practical. When a magician wore them,
they would improve their meditation efficiency and accelerate their natural
magic power restoration rate.
The wearer could also engrave different magic formation runes on each bracelet.
These runes could speed up a magician’s mind construction of magic models and
expediate casting.
This thing seemed to only be appealing towards magicians.
But as a matter of fact, all three of the large mercenary corps, including the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and pirate groups were interested, with no
exceptions. 
Large organizations all liked stocking up on magician equipment.
Because magicians were far rarer than warriors, and more difficult to recruit.
Such magician equipment were one way organizations, large and small, used to
attract magicians.
A single bracelet had a market price of 180 gold, and a pair had a price of 360
gold.
When the price reached 340 gold, there were only two competitors. The Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps om room 14 and the mysterious people in room 21.
Both sides placed bids in turn.
The dragonman youngster shouted, “380 gold!”
Zi Di from room 21 transmitted, “400 gold.”
The dragonman youngster was silent for a moment, then bid, “420 gold.”
Zi DI followed up soon after with oppressive power, “450 gold.”
The dragonman youngster went silent.
Everyone sighed to themselves, these Magic Conduction Bracelets would be
delivered to room 21.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has two fire path magicians, one bronze level,
one iron level. It seems that dragonman commander wanted to purchase this
equipment for them.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were also defeated. Room 21 truly is rampant.
Is there really no one who can reign them in?”
The auction had already reached its midpoint, and gradually, Zi Di and Cang Xu
in room 21 turned into a great devil king in everyone’s hearts.
Even the Ten Touch Pirate’s Qi You suffered defeat at their hands.
In this unusual arena, everyone felt the formidable pressure from room 21.
Many people hoped that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would defeat them; they
were all disappointed.
Some people sighed: “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are rich too; they earned
so much during the beast tide.”
“But I can understand that they don’t find it necessary to spend money on
pointless expenses. 450 gold is a serious premium.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps too has contributed towards depleting the
other party’s financial resources. Many drops make an ocean; I don’t believe
they have infinite gold coins on hand!”
During these veiled interactions, Zi Di and Cang Xu gradually became the public
enemy these buyers unconsciously began to target.
Zi Di’s sense in this aspect was very keen.
During the next auction, she immediately sensed the undercurrent aimed at her.
It did nothing.
The survivors’ plan was to buy, buy, buy.
The implementation of this plan would cause many buyers to despair. If they
couldn’t pay the price, how could they accomplish this goal?
This kind of situation would happen sooner or later, it was unavoidable.
Luckily, they had planned a response in advance and had divided into two
groups. Furthermore, in the previous auction, they had competed against each
other so no one would suspect that these two groups were actually one.
A witch broom was moved onto the auction stage.
The auction master cleared his throat, then presented it, “This is a witch
broom, a silver level alchemy product. It comes from the Broom Star Workshop,
an alchemy workshop in the Sheng Ming Empire one of the most renowned producers
of flying brooms. Not only are they well regarded in the imperial market, but
they also sell them in other faraway continents and their alchemy works were
well received by the elves.”
After saying this, the auction began.
Zi Di’s first bid expressed to outside powers her determination and impatience.
Many buyers kept pace with her.
The broom’s price continuously rose, then after it surpassed the market price,
Zi Di suddenly pulled back.
“Why did they stop?” A silver level alchemist master was somewhat stupefied.
He was Hun Tong’s subordinate and a resident of Two Eyes Island.
Zi Di had changed her style, and her withdrawing at the last moment caught many
people off guard.
The alchemy master was forced to carry out the deal with a pained face and
accept a witch broom designed for women.
The next item was quite unusual, it was called Venomous Dentures.
This was alchemy technology that dealt with the human body.
The silver level dentures were in a drinking glass that was filled with a
water-like health solvent.
The dentures only had two teeth, they looked like a mantis’ front claws, bent
in the middle, folded, and their tips as sharp as needles.
The auction master introduced it, “In past auctions, we have sold false legs,
hook hands, glass eyes, and other wonderful alchemy things. These dentures are
one of those.”
“To use these venomous fangs, one needs to have space to put them in.
Therefore, we have to pull out one’s teeth and expose their empty gums.”
“Usually, these dentures are folded up so we can eat and drink normally.”
“When it comes time to make use of them, these dentures will straighten, their
tips will pop up, and one can effortlessly puncture an iron level’s defense
with them. If facing a silver level, one will need to use a compatible battle
qi to get a better combat result.”
“It is worth mentioning that these dentures can not only tear, but they can
also spray venom up to a distance of 10 meters.”
“In my opinion, the following is the denture’s primary function.”
“It can absorb poison!”
“When we have the misfortune of being poisoned, these dentures can absorb the
toxins in our bodies and concentrate them into its teeth. Then when it comes to
attack, these toxins can be used by us.”
“Alright then, these silver level venomous dentures start at a price of 120
gold. Let the next auction begin!”
These venomous dentures were more well received than the witch broom.
Naval battles had ship boarding battles.
Because there was a finite amount of space on ships, this caused both sides to
fight at close quarters, hand to hand. During that, the sudden use of these
venomous dentures could catch the enemy unprepared.
Many treacherous pirates often coated their daggers with poison.
The venomous dentures could not only attack, but they could also respond to the
user being poisoned, they were very practical.
The bidding was already very fierce, and when Zi Di joined in, it became
fiercer.
The price clambered up to its peak when Zi Di suddenly raised the price
substantially.
Everyone fell silent, except for Dian Wan who was impatiently keeping pace and
pushed down Zi Di’s bid.
Zi Di laughed and chose to withdraw.
The venomous dentures were won by a dumbfounded Dian Wan.
“Captain, you can’t do that.” His first mate lamented, “We still need to buy
medicine; however, you have already wasted almost half our money.”
Dian Wan gnashed his teeth, “Those people in room 21 are too crafty!”
After seeing two people eat losses in a row, the other buyers gradually
returned to their senses.
Room 21 was not so easy to target.
They wanted to raise the price, deplete room 21’s finances, yet instead, they
were beaten at their own game.
“A bit of a miscalculation.”
“If we want to deal with them, we have to be more careful!”
“Have you still not investigated who the people in room 21 are?” Hun Tong asked
in room 1. He was growing even more interested in Zi Di and Cang Xu.
As an observer, he saw things clearly.
It wasn’t simple to achieve to the level of what Zi Di had done.
Not only did one need to understand and perceive the mood of their competitors,
but they also had to have a clear awareness of the specific market price of
every item.
“The first time, room 21 decisively pulled back when it exceeded market price.
The second time with Dian Wan, they saw through Dian Wan’s temperament,
substantially increased the price to provoke Dian Wan, and then pulled back
suddenly at the last moment to deplete the Lightning Pirates’ finances.” Hun
Tong concluded to himself.
“This subordinate is incompetent.” The subordinate at Hun Tong’s side bowed his
head in shame, “This one still doesn’t know who they are.”
Many others were investigating them too.
Pirates being unable to do so was actually pardonable, but Hun Tong was feudal
lord here, yet his investigation had failed, thus it was hard to forgive this
subordinate.
However, Hun Tong faintly smiled and didn’t criticize his subordinate too much.
This was actually a secret indulgence of his. 
At the time, to build a relaxed ambience, he allowed pirates to come to Two
Eyes Island to dispose of their stolen goods and had deliberately slackened his
control.
It wasn’t strange that his subordinates were cultivated to think like that too.
To some degree, it was Hun Tong’s fault.
“Anyways, Two Eyes Island is confronted with a transition. As a naval
transportation hub, I will have to ruthlessly administrate, and such a
subordinate is unqualified for that.” Hun Tong admonished himself inwardly.
He muttered a command to the subordinate, “Your inability to investigate them
is a dereliction of duty, you need a proper review. But for now, I will give
you a way to complete this.”
“Go and knock on room 2’s door, tell the people inside that I, Hun Tong, need
to know all pertinent information on those in room 21.”



****** Chapter 140: Twisted Thorn Cluster Shells ******
The subordinate blankly stared, while Song Shou too revealed his astonishment.
All of Two Eyes Island was Hun Tong’s domain, yet it seemed there was someone
who had a deeper control over it than he?
The subordinate was even more curious: from the beginning, no one had entered
room 2. How could there be anyone in there?
But since Hun Tong had commanded it, the subordinate immediately complied.
When room 2’s door opened up, the subordinate was more surprised, “This room
had always been closed, how could the attendants inside get in and out?”
“Don’t tell me there is a secret door?” The subordinate recalled some rumors.
It was hard to see into room 2, for it was filled with smoke.
After coming in, the subordinate felt unwell and coughed many times, for the
smoke was dense and burned his eyes.
He was barely able to discern that there were two people sitting inside the
room.
Their life auras were very distinct.
One was bronze level; the other was an awe inspiring gold.
The subordinate instantly saluted respectfully towards the mysterious gold
level.
The mysterious gold fighter’s mouth had a thick cigar in it, he was resolutely
breathing it out.
There was a small flame burning at the cigar’s tip and mitting rolling thick
smoke, it was the reason why the room was curling with smoke.
After the gold fighter heard his purpose in coming, he smiled and pointed
towards the bronze level fighter next to him, saying nothing at all.
The bronze level fighter seemed to be his subordinate and replied, “There are
two people in room 21, they are the Wisteria Shop’s level seven elders.”
“Please pass this on to the Feudal Lord, don’t touch those two, they are my
quarry.”
The subordinate was greatly surprised, firmly remembered their answer, and
immediately withdrew.
As he left, he cautiously closed the door to room 2, still inwardly guessing
who that gold level fighter might be.
They not only knew who the buyers in room 21 were, but they also treated them
as their quarry.
Who were those two?
What was their relationship with Feudal Lord Hun Tong?
The bronze level was haughty, a fox exploiting a tiger’s might, if he told Hun
Tong about it, would he get in trouble for it?
No matter what, he still had to pass on their message.
The subordinate anxiously returned to room 1 and told Hun Tong their answer and
warning.
When Hun Tong heard that the two were the Wisteria Shop’s level seven elders,
he showed no hint of surprise. 
He had actually anticipated that somewhat.
By the time the auction reached its midpoint, each purchase would leak
information about them.
They had such financial resources, did not fear Qi You, and had profound
auction skills. In an overall survey of Two Eyes Island, it seemed that these
two elders had only been heard about, none had ever met these Wisteria Merchant
Alliance elders.
“Since they are his quarry, then I’ll have him deal with them. You may leave.”
Hun Tong waved his hand. Room 2’s warning words showed they didn’t respect him
as feudal lord, but he wasn’t offended or angry.
“It seems the Feudal Lord knows who the gold fighter in room 2 is and seems to
have a deep relationship with them.” The subordinate harbored questions as he
withdrew from the room and continued to guard its door.
The auction was still going.
The auction master spoke brightly, “Respected guests, next we shall have
consecutive auctions of 12 artillery shell boxes. These artillery shells are
all iron level, there are 22 shells in each box, and are of the twisted thorn
cluster type.
“When these shells hit a ship, they will cause countless vines to franticly
grow, and can, within a few seconds, cover a small ship’s entire deck with
them.”
“The vines are filled with thorns that can pierce nearby sailors. The vines
also have a formidable entanglement ability that can twist around and snap
masts. Together with the thorns, they can cut open sails, penetrate hulls, and
trap ships in their entanglement. A fairly outstanding combat result!”
This artillery shell couldn’t be demonstrated here.
But the auction stage had prepared a magic image.
In the magic image, a cannon shot a twisted thorn cluster shell into an empty
wooden ship wreckage.
Within a few seconds green vines seemed to slither like countless pythons that
strangled the wooden wreckage. Sharp thorns even impaled the surrounding vines,
with exceptional malevolence.
In the second magic image, they were facing a pod of narwhals.
The twisted thorn cluster shell was shot into the sea, causing a large amount
of vines to burst forth and wrap around two narwhales.
The narwhals mournfully cried out.
After a struggle, the two bronze level narwhals wrenched themselves free with
heavy injuries. But not long after swimming away, they died and their blood
dyed the surrounding seawater red.
This kind of actual combat result enticed the interest of many.
“I didn’t expect to see artillery shells being auctioned, aren’t they
munitions?”
“In past auctions some were sold, but only at limited quantities. This time
there a lot, perhaps some pirates captured them, keeping part of it for
themselves, and coming here to dispose of the rest of them.”
“It’s no wonder they weren’t on the auction list!”
The auction audience discussed among themselves while beginning to bid.
This time, the first to act were the pirates.
The Lightning Pirates, the Stench Pirates, the Applause Pirates, the Ten Touch
Pirates, and others competed to be the winner.
The pirates had a strong desire for firepower.
The twisted thorn cluster shells especially suited the pirates!
Because when pirates were looting, shooting too many cannons could easily blow
up a ship’s merchandise and even sink merchant ships.
The twisted thorn cluster shells solved that necessary sore point.
Although it still harmed ships, they wouldn’t go so far as to sink them, rather
the snapped masts or punctured hulls leaking water would greatly hinder a
merchant ship’s movement.
The pirates would first use these shells to alter a merchant ship’s motive
force, then calmly sail to them, launch a sword fight, settle things, and
complete their looting.
The pirates competed with each other, and even One Eye, Two Eyes Island’s
patrol fleet leader, joined in too.
He wanted to find out how strong these artillery shells really were.
Relying on the two magic images would only give a superficial understanding of
them.
Merchant alliance representatives too piled in to bid.
To them, this type of artillery shell could be used to deal with pirate ships
and give their transportation fleet time to escape.
The price of iron level artillery shells was about 3 gold coins. 22 iron level
shells was then 66 gold coins.
This was the normal price, but twisted thorn cluster shells were rare.
Finally, at 80 gold coins, the Ten Touch Pirates became the ultimate winner.
But that was only the first box.
The others needn’t be anxious.
For the next twisted thorn shells, all parties acted in succession.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was one of them and managed to win one box.
Zi Di also made a move, suffering obstruction and price increases, until
finally, she won the survivors another box at 88 gold coins.
The twisted thorn shells were very popular and after the auction finished,
there was still people reluctant to move on.
All parties that obtained these artillery shells were delighted, especially
when they thought they pulled a little something over room 21.
After the twisted thorn cluster shells was a set of axes.
They were extraordinary weapons made mainly out of star iron – star iron hand
axes.  
There were 30 altogether.
The hand axes were different from lumber axes, these were clearly made for
battle. They were smaller than normal axes and appeared sharper and savage.
The pirates’ eyes shined.
They battled often and could see these axes suited naval battles at a glance.
Especially during ship hold fights where these axes could be easily used in
those narrow spaces!
There was only one box of hand axes, and as expected, they drew many panicked
buyers.
Zi Di robbed them of what they cherished, displaying her substantial wealth as
she won the box of hand axes.
After the iron level hand axes was a batch of bronze level swords. 
The auction master presented it, “There are a total of 50 bronze level ring
swords. When they are thrown, they can whirl around in a loop, and after
beheading the enemy, they can automatically fly back to their user’s hand.”
A magic image appeared to display how the ring sword functioned.
In room 14, Zong Ge’s eyes shined at this, and he said to the dragonman
youngster, “If I had those ring swords and paired them up with a new battle
skill, it would add a hidden trump card to the newly built Quick Knife Battle
Squad.”
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps joined the bidding war and persevered
until the end.
When it was only the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the Bandage Mercenary Corps,
and room 21, the Bandage Mercenary Corps’ doorbell rang.
Tripleblade acted as an envoy at the dragonman youngster’s behest and had come
to discuss things with the Bandage Mercenary Corps, “Room 21 has robust
finances, we should ally against them.”
“What does your corps mean by that?” Commander Beng Dai was somewhat
suspicious.
Tripleblade explained in detail, “Our two corps can join hands to deal with
room 21. We must win these ring swords and cannot let them revel in their might
again!”
“No matter which party is victorious, we will divide these ring swords evenly
and give the winner half the price they paid.”
After hesitating for a moment, Commander Beng Dai replied, “Alright!”
He agreed.
The ring swords’ auction price slowly rose.
Because they needed to communicate with each other, the Dragon Lion and Bandage
Mercenary Corps both bid at a slow rate, often bidding at the third cry of the
auction master. 
Meanwhile in room 21, Zi Di was bidding the opposite manner – instant bids.
She raised the price several times in a row, in an attempt to scare off her
competitors.
But every time, either the Dragon Lion or Bandage Mercenary Corps followed up
slowly afterwards.
After a few confrontations, everyone in the auction hall gradually noticed that
something was fishy.
The ring swords’ price had already greatly surpassed the market value, yet none
of the three had given up the contest.
“The situation is a bit queer.”
“Don’t tell me those ring swords are worth that much?”
“I actually know that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is raising a suspected
battle squad of cultivators, they all use curved blades.”
“The Bandage Mercenary Corps also mostly use cutlasses; their auxiliary
commander is a decommissioned officer that teaches the mercenary corps’ younger
generation and newcomers.”
“Even if that is so, they would be unlikely to pay such a premium for that.”
“It’s still rising…”
The auction continued.
Commander Beng Dai’s forehead was already covered in sweat.
For the first time, Zi Di’s bid revealed some hesitation.
Finally, after the auction master called out three times, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps became the final winner.
After the dragonman youngster completed the auction delivery, he immediately
got up and brought half the bronze level blades to the Bandage Mercenary Corps’
room.



****** Chapter 141: How Could Others Take It? ******
The dragonman youngster received a warm welcome when he came into the Bandage
Mercenary Corps’ room.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps had naturally come to the auction with ample cash,
and both sides exchanged money for goods.
“These blades are adequate.”
“Fortunately, we joined hands and were able to win these.”
“This was a good plan, and if there are more chances, I’d want to collaborate
more!” Commander Beng Dai was very happy and felt that getting to know the
dragonman youngster was the correct decision.
Zong Ge too was satisfied.
He had 25 blades, more than enough for the Quick Knife Battle Squad.
News that the Dragon Lion and Bandage Mercenary Corps had worked together
swiftly spread from those who were smart enough to realize to the rest of the
audience.
They expressed their admiration.
“Both the Dragon Lion and Bandage Mercenary Corps did well.”
“That’s right, they suppressed that arrogant room 21!”
“That room really has been too arrogant for too long.”
“That is an interesting collaboration, two corps wanted those things for
themselves, and even though it was at a large premium, by sharing the cost the
price isn’t too high.”
The guests’ eyes shined, and they seemed to discover a new method.
In room 21, Zi Di and Cang Xu smiled.
They worked together again.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps not only obtained the ring swords, but they
also obtained the good will of the other buyers and opened a cooperation with
the Bandage Mercenary Corps. Although it was at a high premium, the Bandage
Mercenary Corps also paid a portion of the bill.
The survivors had two groups, one positive, one negative. One in the light, one
in the dark. They managed to purchase the things they wanted, being bombastic
in a low key manner and were able to expand the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
contacts.
It could be predicted that after this auction, the layered identity of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would become even more useful!
When Hun Tong heard about this, he expressed his admiration for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, “There are capable people in that corps.”
He was pleased to see this happen.
Room 21 was too oppressive, and he looked forward to these two mercenary corps
working together more.
As far as he was concerned, the higher the auction price, the better!
Hun Tong then began muttering to himself.
The next item was a piece of gold level equipment.
It was a defensive tool, one that could trigger another upsurge of bidding.
“But now…it would be better to make some adjustments to encourage the trend of
cooperation against room 21.”
Thus, the item up next was swapped for a pile of belts.
The auction master presented them, “Honored guests, these are famous seaweed
survival belts. Although they are just bronze level, they are very practical.”
“As long as they are imbued with energy, they can inflate with air in seawater
and form a life buoy, allowing those tossed overboard to float in the ocean.”
“We can also use this belt if we are stranded on a barren island without food;
the inflated kelp buoy can be eaten.”
“As of this time, it has already become standard imperial naval equipment.”
According to naval battle data, those allocated with this equipment would
usually be able to save many more wounded that were cast into the sea after the
battle. If a fleet lacks supplies, a large amount of these seaweed survival
belts can provide crucial emergency provisions!”
Everyone listened carefully, and many eyes began to brighten.
Regardless of whether it was pirate groups, patrol fleet, mercenary corps, or
merchant alliance fleets, all of them were very interested in these belts.
Voyages were full of hazards, no one knew what tomorrow would bring.
Having these belts would undoubtably improve their safety floor.
They seemed unremarkable, but every old sailor understood how precious they
were. 
Even lone figures like Hong Zhu and Shi Fa also thought that wearing this belt
would be the dependable choice.
The seaweed survival belt was not expensive.
All parties acted one after the other.
“Honored guests, if an accident happens in the future, and you need food
urgent, will you regret it if you don’t have a belt?”
“I stake my reputation on this my friends, this is the only auction of seaweed
survival belts here.”
The auction master continued to liven the mood. 
In the wake of an intensifying bidding war, the lone figures had no choice but
to withdraw from it.
They only wanted one belt, while a batch of them were undoubtedly catered more
towards mercenary corps and private groups.
When the bids for the belts rose above market price, the auction had come to an
end.
There were still five parties bidding for it.
Among them was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and room 21: Zi Di and Cang Xu.
The dragonman youngster was about to repeated the same trick and contact other
bidders when there was a knock at his room’s door. 
The door was opened, and the dragonman youngster received One Eye’s envoy.
One Eye was Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet leader and was responsible for
buying equipment for his fleet at the auction.
Especially after Hun Tong explicitly told him this post beast tide defense
battle: Soon, Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet will be expanded and the waters it
protected would also increase several folds.
The envoy gave One Eye’s request for cooperation.
One Eye’s intent was very clear cut, he wanted to copy how the Dragon Lion and
Bandage Mercenary Corps worked together.
“They learn quickly!” The dragonman youngster sighed to himself as he agreed to
this request.
One Eye was not the only one who contacted the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
there was also a merchant alliance representative.
The three parties worked together to compete against the other two.
The fourth party sensed something was amiss and immediately withdrew from the
bidding.
After bidding three times, the fifth party, Zi Di, was “forced” to retreat in
defeat.
“Room 21 was beaten again.”
“If they didn’t work together, how would they be able to win those belts?”
The delivery to the three parties was swiftly completed. 
This news spread, encouraging morale.
Everyone at the auction had finally found a way to deal with room 21.
In room 21, after Zi Di learned of the aftermath, she faintly narrowed her eyes
and surmised, “One Eye must have obtained Hun Tong’s directions, and taken the
initiative to contact the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“If I am not mistaken, this will happen in the following auctions too.”
“One Eye represents Hun Tong, bringing us closer to all organizations here.
Even pirates are no exception.”
He was the tyrant here, and his relationship with merchant alliances and pirate
groups is very deep. He also knows far more about them too, advantages we don’t
have.”
Sure enough, just as Zi Di had guessed, the next few auctions were all batches
of alchemy items that were convenient for parties working together to divide up
afterwards.
Zi Di willingly conformed and in each bidding war, was “defeated”.
In every auction, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gained something, sometimes
small, sometimes big.
Hun Tong intentionally showed consideration for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, roping in the dragonman youngster every time. His intent was very clear,
he wanted to build a closer relationship between them so that in the future,
these arms smugglers would choose to sell their munitions on Two Eyes Island.
After several auctions of this type, room 21 had been subdued by a lot.
“They have received sufficient guidance.”
“There is still strength in numbers!”
“But is that really good? Isn’t it unfair for buyers to team up with each
other, doesn’t that run counter to the principle of fairness?” 
Some were delighted while others questioned the practice.
Some buyers or organizations with bad interpersonal relationships were
disgusted at how people were bidding together.
Hun Tong understood the problems with this better than most.
He had been prepared for this.
The next item was a set of Golden Silk Chainmail.  
When the buyers saw this chain armor, their minds shook.
“Gold level armor!”
Many low level cultivators began to drool when they saw it, understanding it
would never be theirs. 
Faces changed in every room on floor two, including Song Shou, Hun Tong, Qi
You, as well as the smoker in room 2, anticipation stirred.
It had to be said that Hun Tong was a business genius. He had planned the
auction order, and the appearance of this gold level armor not only pleasantly
surprised the audience, but it also constrained the general mood of cooperation
in the auction and would undoubtedly trigger a surge of bidding.
For a moment, the price bids rose and fell in succession, never ceasing.
Armor was usually more expensive than weapons.
Life was treasured above all else, and no one would shun one’s own protection. 
Assuming enough money and battle qi, fighters would usually wear as much armor
and protective gear as possible to secure their safety.
This practice was customarily known as “armor layering”.
In this unusual path, there were many famous figures.
For example, one the navy’s three admirals, Yi Gui, liked to collect all kinds
of extraordinary apparel. Every time he went out into the field, he would cover
himself in them to improve his defenses.
The fierce competition soon reached its end.
“Room 21, 3,800 gold going once.”
“Room 21, 3,800 gold going twice.”
“Room 21, 3,800 gold going three times.”
Bang.
The auction master’s small hammer fell, “Congratulations to room 21 on winning
this gold level armor!”
The auction welcomed its victor.
The buyers were forced to.
Gold level armor could not be partitioned up.
It would be very difficult to join hands in this instance.
Room 21 had revitalized its dynamism in the auction when they succeeded in
winning the Golden Silk Chainmail.
“After this armor is disguised, we’ll give it to the commander.” Zi Di happily
planned.
“That’s right.” Cang Xu nodded his clear endorsement.
Obviously giving it to Zong Ge would raise their group’s strength more, but to
these two, the dragonman youngster was the most important person.
How could the half beastman compare?
After the Golden Silk Chainmail there was 12 sets of external glass armor.
This type of armor was very peculiar. Normally they would shrink into the form
of a bracelet and be worn around a person’s wrist.
When a battle broke out, the spirit would activate it, instantly adorning them
with a set of weak glass armor.
This thin layer of weak armor couldn’t stop sword attacks.
But it was good at withstanding energy type attacks and conventional types of
magic and divine spells to a remarkable effect.
According to some gossip, this external armor was the Ten Touch Pirates’ spoils
of war, looted from an imperial supply ship.
Because the external armor was too singular and its niche too extreme, it was
only given to imperial special forces.
Therefore, the final price of this external armor was not that high.
It was still won by Zi Di though.
After that, the next item was a set of mushroom tights, silver level
undergarments that combined both healing and defense and was suited for both
genders. This garnered the interest of the lone figures and was wrested away by
Zi Di at a high price.
After those tights there was three sets of sacred plate armor, all iron level
and auctioned in succession.
This sacred plate armor was classified as heavy armor and quite special, for it
had been excavated from some seafloor ruins.
According to research, they should have been the equipment of some dead god’s
templar knights.
The plate armor had remnants of divine spells and divine power on them, giving
the sacred plate armor some unusual abilities.
Under the irate gaze of everyone, the three sacred plate armor sets were taken
by room 21.
The armor auctions are hereunto concluded.
The auction had entered its late stage.
A small item appeared on stage, causing many buyers to toss the whole armor
affair to the back of their mind.
The auction master lifted a small glass bottle with both hands.
The potion inside the bottle was a light yellow, like urine.
Countless scorching eyes locked into the potion.
The auction master’s presentation was unprecedently simple, “This is a gold
level healing potion, the price starts at 380 gold.”
Everyone took a long breath, waiting for the auction master to proclaim the
beginning of the auction.
“1000 gold!” Zi Di transmitted from room 21.
“?!”
“I…”
Innumerable derisions cried out from every buyer’s heart.
They suddenly noticed that the price was just at the cusp of spilling over!
How could they take it?



****** Chapter 142: Cooperation ******
“1,000 gold.” Zi Di shouted out the price.
In his room, Dian Wan’s eyes widened.
He felt his life flash before him.
The Lightning Pirates’ main goal this auction was that gold level healing
potion.
For this reason, the pirates had prepared for two months and had accumulated
the most gold coins Dian Wan ever had in his entire life.
He had been confident and ready to make a big showing here.
But before the bidding began, Zi Di’s high price of 100 gold seemed to
instantly crushed him like a mountain.
Dian Wan clenched his fists, he turned red, and his heart welled with
resentment and anger.
That price, how could he compete?
It was more than all of the cash he had on hand!
His preparations for this gold level healing potion were useless and even
seemed somewhat ridiculous.
Dian Wan felt quite sullen.
Seeing his captain’s distressed expression, the first mate felt things were
going bad and promptly held Dian Wan, “Captain, calm down, just calm down a
little!”
“I…that dammed…room 21…I will…” Dian Wan fumed with rage, gnashing out curses
intermittently through his teeth.
The first mate’s heart jumped, and he loudly warned him, “Calm down captain,
this is not the sea. This is Two Eyes Island, and there are many gold level
fighters here.”
“Ahh!” Dian Wan was hopping mad, he pushed away the first mate with shaking
arms and clutched his head as hard as he could.
Despite his best efforts, his hedgehog like hair still remained tenacious and
resumed their straightness soon after.
“1,100 gold” Bid Qi You.
Dian Wan was forced to give up, but Qi You wasn’t.
As a gold level pirate leader, he had started his career far earlier than Dian
Wan and had far more money than the latter.
Zi Di immediately followed up with a fierce offensive, “1,200 gold.”
Qi You coldly snorted and wouldn’t be outdone, “1,300 gold.”
Zi Di continued to raise the price without hesitation, “1,400 gold.”
Qi You’s eyelids throbbed, and he hesitated, Zi Di always raised the price by
100 gold, and her voice was very steady. It gave people a feeling that it was
neither too fast nor slow, causing Qi You to feel like he was confronting an
imperial army. They were calm, steady, and had the style of a regent.
But the hesitation was temporary and Qi You still planned to continue bidding.
The price still hadn’t reached his bottom line yet.
One of his main golds this auction too was that gold level healing potion.
It was something crucial to ensuring his survival as well as recovering the
initiative in a deadlocked battle that could tip the scales towards victory, it
was invaluable!
Anyways as Qi You wanted to speak, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ room 14
suddenly bid, “1,450 gold.”
Qi You blankly stared.
In the great hall, many other guests were the same too.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is joining this auction too?”
“Do they not have a gold level? Why are they interested in this level of
potion?”
“During the beast tide, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps earned too much. They
have so much money!”
In room 1, Song Shou asked, “I heard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the
most popular mercenary corps here? But aren’t they actually arms smugglers?” 
Hun Tong smiled, and he answered, “This mercenary corps is quite good, they
have many talents, and as for them being arms smugglers, those are merely
rumors and there is no evidence proving it.”
Overall, Hun Tong had a good opinion of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The reason was not only because of their information on the necromancer, but
also during the beast tide, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had the most
pressure on their defensive line yet had done outstanding despite so.
Hun Tong continued, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ second in command has
almost reached the gold level but is injured. That injury is very troublesome
and needs a gold level healing potion to cure it.”
“For their second in command, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is bound to vie
for this potion with all of their strength.”
Hun Tong’s words were skillful.
He leaked some secrets at his own accord to bring he and Song Shou closer.
Song Shou couldn’t help but be curious, “You’re saying their second in command
is stronger than their leader. What does their leader think about that? They
seem to be very tolerant. Aren’t they worried their second in command will
usurp them?”
This was the world of the strong.
The strong were always respected across the world.
A leader had the be the strongest in their organization, otherwise they
wouldn’t be able to control the situation, and morale was liable to be
unstable. 
Hun Tong shook his head, “I’m not sure what they are thinking.”
He didn’t want to continue speaking about this, thus he put his attention to
the potion auction proceeding before him.
Hun Tong harbored anticipation for this potion auction, “Today’s gold level
healing potion will surely sell higher than before.”
“Because on the Wilderness Continent, the empire’s and the beastman tribe
alliance’s great war is close at hand.”
“The empire is preparing war supplies, causing the potions circulating in the
market, regardless of quality or quantity, to sharply decline.”
“Especially in the vast ocean, gold level healing potions are always rare.”
“My conservative estimate says that this potion can sell for 1,800 gold!”
Just as he thought that Zi Di in room 21 bid, “1.700 gold.”
Hun Tong couldn’t help but narrow his eyes, secretly applauding Zi DI’s skill
at bidding.
Zi Di’s price increase was more immense than before, displaying to the other
powers her determination to have it, which must have pressured the other
competitors greatly.
Furthermore, the specific amount bid also had subtly. 1,700 gold, quite close
to 1,800 gold, it was within one or two bids, that’s all.
If the other competitors lacked money, they might withdraw at their own accord.
“1,700 gold…”
“Right now, I only have 1,850 gold on me. Can I defeat room 21 in the next bid
or two?”
“Forget about it, this price is too excessive for a consumable.”
For a moment, many hidden competitors were forced to retreat by this price.
Seeing that there weren’t any bids for a moment, Hun Tong shook his head and
bid, “1.750 gold.”
He took the initiative to raise the price himself.
As he expected, Zi Di immediately followed up, “1,800 gold.”
The price had reached Hun Tong’s expected price level, he hesitated, then chose
to withdraw.
“Room 21, 1,800 gold, going once.” The auction began to count down.
“Room 21, 1,800 gold, going twice.”
“1,850 gold.” An unfamiliar voice suddenly interjected.
Everyone present couldn’t help but be disturbed.
“It’s room 2!”
“There is actually someone in that room?”
“This is the first time room 2 has ever made a sound.”
“It seems their main goal is that healing potion.”
The people whispered to each other, all of them were very curious at who the
mysterious buyer in room 2 was.
In room 21, Zi DI’s eyes flashed brightly.
“Regardless of who the person in room 2 is, they must have a deep relationship
with Hun Tong, otherwise it would be impossible for them to hide who they are
up until now.”
“Are they bidding in response to me? I might be overthinking it; the other
party might not understand the current market situation or has an immense
demand for gold level healing potions…”
Zi Di also knew about the current market situation, 1,850 gold to her had
already surpassed the ideal price level.
Zi Di felt a bit intractable.
So far, she had been very familiar with the other bidders, as this waws the
first time room 2 had bid, Zi DI knew little about them. 
Zi Di didn’t know who was in room 2 or how they thought.
After thinking about it, Zi Di place her bid, “1,900 gold.”
This was the first time she had raised the price by 50 gold, she raised it by
the minimum required. Zi Di chose to be cautious.
Just as Zi Di had spoken, in room 14, Fei She immediately sensed something and
said to the dragonman youngster, “Cap, captain, please bid immediately, do it
now.”
The dragonman youngster didn’t hesitate and instantly shouted, “1,950 gold!”
In room 2, the cigar smoking gold fighter wanted to raise the price, but when
he saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps bid, he felt somewhat surprised.
“Since it isn’t room 21, that’s fine by me.”
Room 2 didn’t respond.
The auction master was already counting down.
In room 1, Hun Tong’s eyes narrowed, and he had the urge to raise the price
again.
But at the same time, he was hesitant too. 
He was worried that if he bought the potion at a high price, it would be wasted
in his hands.
“The crux is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ bid.”
“These arms smugglers are pressed to heal Shi Qi’s injury; I don’t need to
damage our relationship.”
Hun Tong still wanted to draw support from this channel and make Two Eyes
Island a covert point of sale for mutations.
“1,950 gold, room 14, going twice.” The auction master continued the countdown.
The audience was extremely quiet.
The price had surpassed auction records, and everyone silently awaited the
outcome.
“If nothing unexpected happens, this gold level healing potion will fall into
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ hands.”  Most of the people had come to the
same consensus.
Only Zi DI was rapidly pondering: should I continue bidding?”
The dragonman youngster had shouted a bid of 1,950 gold, and Zi Di understood
that must have been Fei She giving him timely advice.
Since both sides were acting in concert, Zi Di wanted to do more.
“Room 2’s intention is unclear.”
“The large amounts of raw material transactions is still coming up.”  
“Even if I have to pay two or three hundred more coins, it’ll be worth it if I
can probe some information on them.”
When she thought of that, Zi DI resolutely cried out, “2,000 gold!”
Everyone’s hearts trembled.
“It actually reached 2,000 gold?”
“It’s to imagine that its worth 2,000 gold, even if it’s a gold level healing
potion!”
“I feel that room 21 was very hesitant to increase the price and did the
minimal increase, are their financial resources reaching their limits?”
“We cannot infer that, several times before, room 21 had done that in other
auctions that gave people the misconception and cause other bidders to buy
items at a premium, depleting their money.”
The dragonman youngster was somewhat surprised too, “This was obviously going
smoothly, why did Zi Di still want to increase the price? Could it be that she
wants to continue the play to cover the true relationship between us?”
Fei She’s eyes gleamed; he knew from experience what Zi Di intended and hastily
extended his hand to block the dragonman youngster, “Cap, captain, don’t,,
don’t follow up. Wait a moment, wait, wait just a moment.”
The dragonman youngster blankly stared, he saw Fei She was nervous, but didn’t
understand what he was nervous about. If Zi Di won, the gold level potion would
still be theirs.
But the dragonman youngster readily followed good advice and instantly shut up
and didn’t make a sound.



****** Chapter 143: Fragrant Gill Tea ******
Hun Tong pouted; the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ cowardice disappointed him,
but he understood it.
After all, it would cost so many gold coins to buy a single potion, this price
was too immense.
A few seconds later, room 2 transmitted, “I offer 2,050 gold.”
Zi Di’s and Fei She’s expression shifted at the same time.
Zi Di’s brows furrowed, and she didn’t say anything.
Hun Tong couldn’t help but gaze at his neighbor in room 2 and think, “As it
turns out, this was a probe…I’m afraid your intentions have already been felt
out.”
Fei She at this time said, “Cap, captain, bid, this, that person won’t bid
against us.”
Thus, the dragonman youngster yelled as if he was burning his own ships, “2,100
gold!”
Zi Di didn’t say a word, and room 2 was quiet too. Contrariwise, Qi You sneered
and soliloquized, “It seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has money too.”
Like Fei She presumed, no other competitors appeared, and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps became the ultimate victor and obtained the gold level potion.
Many people sighed, “It seems this was another one of room 21’s schemes.”
“Alas, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fell into the trap, they were forced to
purchase the gold healing potion at such a high price.”
“I heard their second in command Shi Qi is injured and needs to use a gold
level potion to cure it.”
“Oh? It seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ internal treatment is really
good!”
The gold healing potion was the opening curtain to the medicine auction.
Next, all sorts of medicine wheeled out onto the stage.
There were oceanic magic beast transformation potions, blood weakness
improvement medicine, sets of strength medicine, intelligence potions, and
spirit stabilization inhalers.
Zi Di didn’t bid.
The survivors had the Magic Medicine Bathtub and could cheaply refine magic
potions by themselves.
Contrary to this, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps acted and bought a batch of
crystal glue.
Strictly speaking, crystal glue was classified as magic medicine.
But it wasn’t for human consumption.
They covered ship hulls and could help a ship resist water pressure.
Once it was very popular, but in recent years, the empire’s metal coating
alchemy technology had surmounted it.
This alchemy product was being phased out.
But the metal coating market share wasn’t high and hadn’t gone into wide scale
production yet.
Because metal coating belonged to alchemy processing technology, it needed a
skilled alchemy master to make it.
Unlike crystal glue, it could be made through the magic medicine refinement
process. Indeed, covering a ship hull did not need complex industrial arts.
Therefore, there was still lots of crystal glue circulating in the marketplace.
This commodity’s price had already tumbled quite a bit and was continuing to do
so.
As a result, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps won the batch of crystal glue at a
low price.
The auction master then said, “The next several auctions will be for a
particular type of magic medicine.”
“Please let me solemnly introduce Two Eyes Island’s latest specialty – the
Fragrant Gill Tea!”
The auction master’s tone became different from before, and the magic light
beams on stage switched over to being multicolored, constantly changing to
build the atmosphere.
Offstage, an alchemist unconsciously sat up straight.
He was Hun Tong’s subordinate and under Hun Tong’s directive, had developed the
Fragrant Gill Tea.
He had made progress for years until finally, this year, he had improved the
magic medicine’s prescription to the point where he could mass produce it.
“Perhaps some guests have heard of the Fragrant Gill Tea, the cup of Fragrant
Gill Tea in my hands is a bronze level magic potion. After taking it, it can
allow people to breathe underwater. How long it lasts depends mainly on the
user’s life level. It will last 30 minutes for bronze cultivators, about 8
minutes for iron levels, and under a minute for silver levels.”
The magic medicine was all focused on cultivators, ordinary people would find
it difficult to use them. That’s not to say the magic medicine won’t affect
them, rather ordinary bodies couldn’t stop the magic power from ravaging them.
Continuing on, the auction stage broadcasted a magic image.
A bronze level fighter first took out some Fragrant Gill Tea Leaves.
The tea leaves were as long as a finger, the dark green tea leaves appeared
slightly spiraled and were very soft. The user held three tea leaves like he
was holding three noodles.  
He put the tea leaves into a cup, then soaked them with seawater.
The auction master aptly explained, “Esteemed guests, the Fragrant Gill Tea
needs to use seawater. If seawater isn’t available, brine can be used too, but
it will affect the medicinal effects a bit. As for the tea preparation
temperature, that’s different for every individual, regardless of whether it is
boiling or ice cold, it won’t affect the medicinal effects.”
After the bronze fighter drank the Fragrant Gill Tea, three horizontal lines
appeared on both his cheeks.
There were six lines altogether, they were all dark green and emitted a faint
fluorescence.
The bronze fighter sank into the water, still breathing normally.
The six lines on his cheeks moved in tandem with each breath. 
When the auction guests saw this, they grew somewhat interested.
As the auction master declared the starting price, this interest grew stronger.
Under normal circumstances, people couldn’t breathe underwater.
With the help of magic potions, magic, and so on, a person could break the
limits of their physiology and be able to breathe underwater.
The Fragrant Gill Tea’s emergence was not at all sensational.
But the auction price for this was rather cheap, and compared to the most
ordinary underwater breathing scrolls, it had the advantage of a lower price.
Especially because this was an ocean island, and citizens that made their way
on the seas never lacked situations where they needed to breathe underwater.
The auction price rose amongst constant bids.
Every increase wasn’t that big.
Everyone wasn’t that passionate about bidding for the Fragrant Gill Tea.
They were all reasonable, because they were comparing it internally.
There were many things that could allow one to breathe underwater, and from a
practical point of view, the Fragrant Gill Tea wasn’t something in short
supply.
The auction finished.
Altogether, 3 bronze level Fragrant Gill Tea Plants were auctioned off in
succession. One went to the Lightning Pirates, another to the Applause Pirates,
and the last to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The magic beams twinkled again, and the auction master yelled, “Next is another
Fragrant Gill Tea Plant, an iron level one with a stronger potency!”
When the workmanship rose by a level, the Fragrant Gill Tea Plant not only gave
underwater breathing but also dusky sight.
The so called dusky sight could allow someone to distinguish objects in low
light environments, it was a type of vision strengthening magic.
This improved its allure by a lot.
If drinking bronze level Fragrant Gill Tea allowed a cultivator to survive
underwater, then the iron level one allowed a cultivator to have the
fundamental ability to fight underwater.
Dusky sight suited underwater battles.
The deeper into the water one went, the dimmer the light, until it was pitch-
black in the deep sea, where light was rarely seen.
Because of water pressure, even if human cultivators went into the water, they
mostly limited themselves to fighting in the shallow layers, where the iron
level Fragrant Gill Tea Plant was very practical to use.
Even Hong Zhu was interested. She was a treasure hunter and sometimes plundered
seafloor shipwrecks.
Although it was in the deep sea, she had her own light source and could give
herself a dusky field of view. If she drank the Fragrant Gill Tea, it would be
better.
Although the Fragrant Gill Tea was iron level while Hong Zhu was a silver level
fighter, the tea would still affect her for a few minutes.
What also made Hong Zhu quite interested was that making the tea was easy.
The Fragrant Gill Tea didn’t need boiling water, only seawater. Such a thing
made things convenient when she went adventuring for treasure. 
As long as she had a few tea leaves in her mouth, at a critical time, she could
open her mouth and suck in some seawater, allowing her to drink the tea.
Of course, this tea making conduct was very boorish and treated her own mouth
as a cup. During the tea making process, magic power would mix into it and harm
the oral cavity.
But Hong Zhu understood that at many dangerous junctures, who cared about a
minor throat injury? You might lose your life! Under these circumstances,
abrasing one’s throat to give them some survival advantages was worthwhile.
There were 3 batches of iron level Fragrant Gill Tea too.
The auctions of these was much better than the bronze level ones.
Many silver levels, including Hong Zhu, joined the bidding.
The dragonman youngster joined in but wasn’t successful.
Zi Di didn’t say anything.
In a previous auction, she had received an iron level Fragrant Gill Tea plant.
Magic potions didn’t appeal to the survivors since they had the Magic Medicine
Bathtub.
“I’ve heard of the Fragrant Gill Tea before. Feudal Lord Hun Tong had always
been trying to popularize it, but this is the first time he’s used something as
powerful as the auction to do so.”
“To the market, this is a relatively unfamiliar medicine. But Hun Tong used his
own reputation to endorse it and got the people to acknowledge it.”
This was one of his gains after years of painstaking enterprise construction.
Then again, the iron level Fragrant Gill Tea already had two magic effects. If
this was its market price, it’d be pretty good. It all depends on how the
feedback from practical usage is.”
Everyone whispered to each other as the auction master took out another
Fragrant Gill Tea plant and began to present it. 
“Ladies and gentlemen, next is this Fragrant Gill Tea plant, it has attained
the silver level!”
“It can give the user three effects and is stronger than the iron level.”
“The fundamental effect of underwater breathing has been substantially
improved, dusky sigh has been elevated into dark sight, and it also bestows the
user with the ability to sense the flow of water.”
“Everyone, you didn’t mishear, its water flow perception!”
“This ability can allow you to sense every change in the water and augments
your swimming ability greatly. Even if you are a non-swimmer, you can self-
teach yourself and master the ability to swim.” 
Next, a magic image appeared, showing a silver level fighter taking the
Fragrant Gill Tea and diving into the water.
He swam like a fish, and in pitch darkness, he accurately found something
concealed in the river. Finally, he freely tossed and turned in a rapidly
changing whirlpool.
Everyone had all different expressions.
The bronze level Fragrant Gill Tea plant had similar competing products and
only had the price advantage. The iron level Fragrant Gill Tea plant had two
magic effects and in an ocean environment, had high practical qualities.
 While the silver level Fragrant Gill Tea plant was actually a hundred percent
quality good.
In particular, it had three magic effects, fundamentally changing the value of
the entire magic medicine!



****** Chapter 144: Miracle Flower Pot ******
The silver level Fragrant Gill Tea plants caused another upsurge in bidding.
Regardless of whether it was lone figures, pirates, mercenary corps, and even
the Wealth Church and Fertile Land Church priests, all of them joined in.
In the end, room 3’s Qi You, room 21’s Zi Di, and the Wealth Church’s priest
each got one batch.
“Congratulations.”
“You deserve it.”
“This founding set of Fragrant Gill Tea will be certain to elevate your alchemy
mastery level.”
In the auction hall, some people were whispering about the alchemy master.
The alchemy master was Hun Tong’s subordinate and had been the one responsible
for the development of the Fragrant Gill Tea.
The Fragrant Gill Tea auction went great, it not only was revealed
successfully, but it had also obtained a great beginning. All of this made the
alchemy master the target of everyone’s eyes and praise.
The alchemy master was bright red; after so many years of hard work, he finally
had gotten results.
But he had a regret in his heart, “A pity my talent has reached its limits, I
can’t develop a gold level Fragrant Gill Tea. Otherwise, my title would have
been higher.”
He looked at room 1.
Only he knew the inside story.
The Fragrant Gill Tea’s base materials was provided by Hun Tong. Its production
needed fishmen, the higher the life level of a fishman, the better Fragrant
Gill Tea could be made.
He only improved on this basis.
The Fragrant Gill Tea’s secret and benefits bound Hun Tong and the alchemy
master tightly.
“It seems from now on, I can only live and study on his ship.” The alchemy
master’s heart welled with comprehension.
In room 1, Song Shou congratulated Hun Tong, “With that unique product, Two
Eyes Island will grow more prosperous.”
Hun Tong smiled so much that his eyes narrowed, it was his heart-felt joy.
Two Eyes Island was a commerce island, and what truly made it prosperous was
pirate booty.
But soon, because of the imperial’s overall strategy, Two Eyes Island would
turn Two Eyes Island into a transportation hub with strict defenses, and
pirates would no longer be able to come.
Under those circumstances, Two Eyes Island having its own unique product could
still attract many people to trade on the island.
Hun Tong’s investment in the development of the Fragrant Gill Tea and fully
backing his alchemist had finally paid off.
Two Eyes Island’s development was central to who he was. 
“There are bronze level, iron level, and even silver level Fragrant Gill Tea,
shouldn’t there be a gold level one too?” The people who didn’t buy it hoped.
But afterwards, the auction master didn’t take out another Fragrant Gill Tea. 
In fact, the magic medicine auction ended on this.
According to the auction list, the auction had entered the later stage.
A series of antiques and calligraphies were brought on stage.
Their biggest collective feature was that they all had high collectible worth.
The great merchant alliance dealers were the most active purchasers.
Even though these things were ordinary goods, they could be resold and snapped
up on Sheng Ming Continent by great nobles, scholars, and collectors
brandishing large amounts of gold coins.
These last few years, Two Eyes Island gathered many such goods.
Part of it was from treasure hunters like Hong Zhu who plundered shipwrecks and
discovered pirate treasures.
Another part of it was from pirates who had plundered it.
Although Cang Xu was a scholar, and these antique calligraphies could be
studied, he wasn’t interested in them and didn’t act.
Zi Di didn’t either.
She was very interested and knew there was great profit in reselling them,
however, she didn’t have time for that. She needed to contact the Bai Zhen
Clan, redeem herself, make the medicine database, and build up the Bloodline
Purification formation. In the coming days, she wouldn’t have the energy or
time to return to the Sheng Ming Continent to resell these antique
calligraphies.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were not interested at all in these things.
Then the extraordinary level goods appeared.
The auction master held a earthen yellow flower pot, and described it in
detail, “Distinguished guests, I must properly introduce what this valuable
thing in my hands is.”
“It seems ordinary and unremarkable; however, it is actually THE Miracle Flower
Pot.”
“You didn’t mishear; it is THAT Miracle Flower Pot from the histories.”
“Before the Sheng Ming Continent was unified, there were 17 kingdoms seizing
each other’s territory and embroiling themselves in war. The largest among them
had a crafty and unruly princess. To save her meticulously bred magic plant,
the Beast Rose Flower, she didn’t hesitate to give the order to attack Vitality
Forest to capture the forest’s most central flowing spring.”
“The kingdom’s troops were powerful, and Vitality Forest’s tribal alliance was
not their opponent; they were routed step by step.”
“In their moment of life and death, the great druid Lu Yi couldn’t bear to see
the forest destroyed and personally came to mediate between the parties. He
told the princess that even if she eradicated Vitality Forest and excavated the
flowing spring, it wouldn’t revive her dying Beast Rose Flower, but he had
something that would.”
“The princess and he made an agreement, as long as he could save her most
beloved Beast Rose Flower, she would let Vitality Forest live.”
“Druid Lu Yi prepared for three days and nights, then gave the princess a
flower pot.
“This is that most famous Mircale Flower Pot from the histories!”
“When the princess’ withered Beast Rose Flower was planted into it, it
miraculously came back to life and regained its vigor.”
A long section of past events spilled from the auction master’s mouth.
Many people listened to this with shining eyes, the Miracle Flower Pot became
even more valuable to them.
The auction master then said, “Of course, the Miracle Flower Pot’s magical
power is constantly consumed when it is used. It was once a legend level item,
but after endless days of it being in continuous use, its workmanship fell from
the legend level to just the silver level.”
“The starting price is 100 gold; every price increase must be at least 20 gold.
Now let the auction begin!”
The dragonman youngster was the first bidder, “120 gold.”
Shi Fa acted too, “140 gold.”
The alchemy master that had just been pushed into the limelight bid, “180
gold.”
When the price rose to 260 gold, the Fertile Land Church priest on the second
floor said, “300 gold!”
“Old friend?” The Wealth Church priest accompanying him threw a puzzled
expression.
The Fertile Land priest smiled, “You know too that when people grow old, they
hope to grow some flowers and plants.”
The Wealth Church priest, naturally, wasn’t deceived, he profoundly laughed,
“With 300 gold, you can buy silver level armor. Old friend, you spend a lot on
growing this, your hobby isn’t cheap.”
The Fertile Land priest chuckled and continued to elaborate, “I am also
interested. I have to return with something from this auction, otherwise
wouldn’t it be a waste to attend it? Of what I’ve seen, that flower pot is the
only one to catch my eye.”
The Wealth Church Priest’s eyes shined, and was outwardly silent, only guessing
to himself, “That flower part was on the auction list. Although you bid several
times in other auctions, you weren’t sincere in them, you just wanted to join
in the fun. Nevertheless, this time you wants to win in a single move. It seems
that you value this flower pot greatly.” 
The auction master began to count down, “300 gold, going once…going twice…”
“320 gold.” A competitor appeared.
The Fertile Land priest’s face slightly changed; a steep pressure formed in his
heart.
Because the competitor was from room 21.
During this auction, the most in the limelight was room 21, and was accepted to
have the most wealth here.
However, after the other people coordinated to block them, room 21’s momentum
was greatly restrained and wasn’t as rampant as it was before.
The Fertile Land priest was silent for a moment, then calmly bid, “340 gold.”
Everyone in the auction hall began to whisper to each other.
340 gold to buy a flower pot, that was too extravagant.
Some of the people recognized that the Fertile Land priest was bidding based on
his voice and seating.
Zi Di was the same.
She leaned over to mull to Cang Xu, “This priest hasn’t acted that much this
auction. This time, to bid on a flower pot, he entered in the final phase and
is still competing, that’s somewhat odd…”
Cang Xu had seen many auctions and had gradually grasped some knacks at it.
Zi Di smiled and nodded, “The other party seemed to have come here for it.”
“It is indeed odd. Even if it is the true Miracle Flower Pot, it’s only silver
level and not worth 340 gold.”
In that case, this is only one possibility. That flower pot is actually
concealing its worth, or to the Fertile Land Father, that treasure can provide
him many things.”
When thinking of that, Zi Di bid, “360 gold.”
The Fertile Land priest’s heart immediately thumped.
Room 21 had placed another bid, this caused discouragement to well up inside
him.
He had deliberately remained silent to express hesitation and feign weakness to
his opponent: I might pull out at any time, if you want to maliciously raise
the price to deplete my money, then be careful.
But Zi Di’s next bid didn’t give others a sense of hesitation.
The Fertile Land priest opened his mouth, naturally he wanted to bid again, but
the price had risen to 380 gold.
This price was a little over his limits.
If he raised the price further, others would realize how valuable this Miracle
Flower Pot really was!
Subconsciously, the Fertile Land priest didn’t want to expose this secret, nor
did he want to provoke more covetous competitors as a result of the former.
“If I let room 21 purchase it, can I privately buy it from them?”
“That won’t do.”
“The people in room 21 are so mysterious that not even the Wealth Church priest
knows who they are.”
“The other side has robust finances; what price will it take to buy it from
them?”
“What if they have no intention of reselling it?”
“After a quick pondering, the Fertile Land priest still felt that now was the
best chance to obtain the Miracle Flower Pot.
He was forced to clench his teeth and bid higher, “380 gold.”
“Huh, it increased to 380 gold.”
“It was the Fertile Land priest, that old man sure has money.”
“380 gold for a silver level flower pot? There must be a big secret inside it!”
The auction hall grew restless because of this bid.
The Wealth priest glanced at the Fertile Land priest, and saw the latter
sitting upright and still, his face grave.
The former’s heart was trembling, but he didn’t ask any questions.
In room 21.
Zi DI’s eyes flashed, “Fascinating.”
She then bid, “400 gold.”
Room 21 following up was expected.
Since the auction had begun, room 21’s conduct and wealth had engraved
themselves into the people’s hearts.
Seeing a flower pot priced at 400 gold gave others a strange feeling, however,
it was easy to accept that room 21 was butting themselves in.
Who would blame them for being rich!



****** Chapter 145: Ruined Ambition ******
Upon hearing Zi Di bid 400 gold, the Fertile Land priest appeared unmoved, yet
his heart was shaking.
“How terrible.” Sensing things were getting worse, the Fertile Land priest
noticed that room 21 was like a predator smelling blood, picking up the first
signs of prey and starting to pursue him closely.
“What to do?”
“Giving up is impossible.”
“Then I can only do my best to move forward.”
The Fertile Land priest grinded his teeth and yelled, “460 gold.”
He suddenly increased the price 60 gold and was now offering 460 gold for a
flower pot. Even though this flower pot was a silver level historical antique,
that price was too abnormal.
The Wealth Church priest next to him was startled and puzzled, “What are you
doing, old friend?”
The Fertile Land priest squeezed out a smile, “I can’t help myself; I fancy
it.”
The Wealth Church priest’s heart questioned, “Still not telling the truth?”
Upon seeing the Fertile Land priest’s competitor was room 21, he was interested
in seeing a good show.
“Interesting.” Zi DI smiled as she raised her voice, “480 gold.”
The Fertile Land priest’s face sank like water. There was no need for masks now
as he resolutely followed up, “500 gold.”
Zi Di was fearlessly bid, each time only raising the price by 20 gold. 
The Fertile Land priest unwilling followed up each one.
The dumbfounded audience witnessed the flower pot’s price actually ascend to
680 gold!
“Insane, both of them are insane.”
“Room 21 is rich and overbearing, but the Fertile Land priest is acting like
them too?”
“For a trifling silver level flower pot? No, this flower put must conceal
immense value!”
The buyers found it hard to hide their shock.
The three gold levels were also watching pensively.
The Fertile Land priest suddenly bid, “780 gold!”
All of a sudden, he added 100 gold to the price.
The auction master’s hand trembled, even though he had presided many auctions,
even this sum astonished him.
“He took the initiative to go on the offensive!” The Wealth priest understood
clearly, he attentively looked at the Fertile Land priest next to him, noticing
that the latter’s lips were tight, and his eyes were filled with determination.
The Wealth priest couldn’t help but feel extremely curious: what was the flower
pot really worth that his old friend would spare no cost to get it?
“Hehe.” Zi Di laughed, since the auction had begun, this was the first time she
had encountered this kind of situation.
She had expected it would come to pass, but it wasn’t from the Ten Touch
Pirates or any of the gold levels, but rather the Fertile Land priest.
The Fertile Land priest had gone on the attack, it was clear he had ample
money.
“Perhaps he joined this auction to acquire this flower pot. Unfortunately, I
saw through it and interfered. “Comprehension formed in ZI DI’s heart.
“800 gold.” Zi Di continued to raise the price.
The Fertile Land priest bit his teeth, “900 gold!”
He raised the price again by an astonishing 100 gold.
Everyone was in a small uproar.
The priest’s strength in this amazed them.
Many people sighed to themselves: they really didn’t think room 21’s most
ferocious competitor was a silver level priest.
Who would be so aggressive in bidding against room 21?
The Fertile Land priest was the first to do that.
Zi Di continued, “920 gold.”
The Fertile Land priest was receiving widespread praise and expectations, most
of the buyers hoped he was victorious and would ruthlessly stomp down on room
21’s limelight.
But the aforementioned priest was now looking worse for wear, a trace of
paleness spreading across him.
Zi DI’s bidding strategy made him feel jittery.
Every time she calmly raised it by 20 gold, leisurely even.
The Fertile Land priest’s price raising tactics didn’t intimidate the other
party, on the contrary, Zi Di’s strategy of raising the price by the minimum of
20 gold caused the priest to feel how powerful his opponent was. 
The priest’s third price raise was: “1,000 gold!”
With zero hesitation, Zi DI followed up with, “1,020 gold.”
Sweat soaked the priest’s head.
He couldn’t go on any longer.
He had brought along his life savings to this auction, 1,200 gold.
But he didn’t think he would have to use everything he brought on this flower
pot. In his presumptions, other buyers wouldn’t notice this flower pot’s
secrets, and even if they did, they couldn’t utilize it, only he could.
But reality was very cruel, and when the auction came, the flower pot’s price
was now over a thousand, and he began to feel his hope of success becoming more
and more remote.
“What should I do?”
“Substantial price increases don’t intimidate the other party.”
“Damn that room 21, they are so troublesome…”
As the auction master began to count down, the Fertile Land priest was forced
to franticly bid, “1,080 gold.”
“A weakness!” Zi Di’s mouth twitched up.
If the Fertile Land priest continued to raise the price by 100 gold or the
minimum of 20 gold, then there would be no issues.
But in his haste, he raised it by 60 gold, not high or low, which allowed
people to see what was really going on. 
“I am closing in on his bottom line. So, how about this?” Zi Di thought on it,
then said, “1,180 gold.”
This was a mortal blow.
For a split second, the Fertile Land priest’s face turned white.
His brows winkled tightly, he turned deathly pale, and his forehead’s sweat
grew more detailed.
“1,200 gold.” His voice was hoarse.
“I win.” When Zi Di heard his voice, she reveled in her victory.
“Old friend, it seems that this flower pot is quite important to you. I can
help you!” The Wealth Church priest suddenly interjected.
“This…” The Fertile Land priest stared blankly.
To be forthcoming, he and the latter were just acquaintances, not close enough
to lend money to each other. Even if he would loan money, it wouldn’t be much.
But this time, the Wealth Church priest volunteered at his own accord.
He then said to the Fertile Land priest, “I can lend you 500 gold.”
“You don’t need to worry about malicious intentions.”
“For one, I cannot bear to see room 21 so rampant. Second, I feel curious at
what this flower pot’s secret is. Third, I believe in the Wealth Goddess, and
know well how important investments are.”
The Wealth Priest’s words couldn’t help but move the Fertile Land priest.
The Fertile Land priest had been forced to the very edge of the precipice by Zi
Di, and at the end of his rope, a bridge suddenly appeared in front of him.
He deeply sighed with a thankful heart. Then with a hapless mood, he disclosed
his secret to the Wealth Church priest.
“I came to attend this auction for that Miracle Flower Pot.”
“I have no other goals.”
“It is indeed the true Miracle Flower Pot, and the materials it is made from is
my religion’s Abundant Earth.”
The Wealth Church priest’s eyes widened, and he went hoarse, “Your church’s
holy soil – Abundant Earth?”
The Fertile Land Church believed in the Fertile Land Goddess.
After every large celebration, the goddess might bestow the earth of her holy
kingdom.
This earth was very fertile, could grow any crop, and provided an abundant
harvest.
The Fertile Land priest continued, “By coincidence, I found out many secrets
about the tale of the Miracle Flower Pot.”
“In those days, in order to protect Vitality Forest, the great druid Lu Yi
contacted his two friends.”
“One was one of our bishops and the other was a great alchemy master.”
“With the three’s combined efforts, they refined the Miracle Flower Pot.”
“The flower pot’s main material was Abundant Earth, not only that, but also its
seals were both my god’s divine spells and Druid Lu Yin’s nature divine spells.
“Because of that, the Beast Rose Flower survived.”
“I originally planned to purchase it and restore its Abundant Soil. It is my
God’s holy soil, and even if it has gone through wear and tear, it is still my
God’s holy soil!”
“With this holy soil, so long as I dedicate it, it might elevate my position.”
The Wealth priest suddenly saw the light, “So that’s how it is old friend, that
is why you keep on bidding. I shall lend you a hand!”
After receiving the Wealth priest’s help, the Fertile Land priest had regained
his confidence. He tidied up his mood and calmly bid, “1,220 gold.”
His bid went a little beyond Zi Di’s expectations.
Especially the Fertile Land priest’s voice, it no longer had the franticness
from before.
“Did he get someone to subsidize for him? Or was he merely pretending?” Zi Di
thought that the former was more likely.
She had no fear.
The Fertile Land priest’s dogmatic perseverance made her even more interested
in this flower pot.
In any case, she had money!
Zi Di bid, “1,300 gold.”
This time she went on the offensive and raised the price by 100 gold.
The Fertile Land priest took a deep breath, “1,320 gold.”
“1,400 gold.” Zi Di continued to attack.
The Fertile Land priest glanced at the Wealth Church priest and noticed the
other party had grown unsightly, yet he was forced to follow up, “1,420 gold.”
Zi Di was calm, “1,500 gold.”
The Fertile Land priest, “…..”
The Wealth Church priest was somewhat baffled, he couldn’t help but urge, “Old
friend, why aren’t you bidding?”
The Fertile Land priest looked agonized, at this moment he looked like an old
farmer who had spent half a year of hard farming, only to see his crops fail.
He shook his head and forced a smile, “I cannot, room 21 is determined to win
this flower pot. Even if I offer the maximum price I can, it will be surpassed
by them.”
“But this is a rare opportunity. If you restore the Abundant Earth, it will
allow you go a step further beyond.” The Wealth priest encouraged, “If it was
me, I wouldn’t give up now. Even if it is only a sliver of hope.”
“You’re right, old friend.” The fertile Land priest then impassionedly kept on
bidding.
But just as he expected, the final price he bid of 1,700 gold was surpassed by
Zi Di’s price of 1,720 gold.
The Fertile Land priest powerlessly sighed.
The Wealth Father nevertheless still had some resolve and said, “I can
subsidize you another 300 gold!”
The Fertile Land priest was flabbergasted.
The Wealth priest smiled, “I believe that investing in a bishop is worth the
money!”
But this time, the Fertile Land priest shook his head, “Many thanks for your
kindness old friend, but forget it this time. With that money, even if I offer
2,000 gold, the other side will still be the winner.”
“Even if I succeed, the price is too high.”
“I don’t have the ability to restore the materials, and as far as I know, the
cost of asking a great alchemy master to do so doesn’t come cheap. Even if I
restore it, how much Abundant Earth is actually left? The true Miracle Flower
Pot was a legend level treasure, while in current times, it has degenerated to
a silver level one.”
The Wealth Church priest’s gaze flashed.
He saw it.
This price competition with room 21 had been beaten to death the Fertile Land
priest’s will and battle intent.
When faced with the high price needed to exchange for a possible future, the
Fertile Land priest cowered away.



****** Chapter 146: Life Saving Pad ******
“Truly a pity.” The Wealth priest sighed, then consoled, “However we aren’t
without our gains, us raising the price to this degree must have greatly
depleted room 21’s finances. The entire auction hall should thank us for this!”
The Fertile Land bitterly smiled and nodded silently.
He had come to this auction to buy the Mircale Flower Pot, but he ended up
suffering a crushing defeat and returning with nothing.
He was uninterested in the upcoming auctions, and if it wasn’t for how damaging
it would be for the Wealth priest’s face, he would have left the venue already.
“Let’s congratulate room 21.”
“This was indeed a peerlessly marvelous bidding war.”
“Congratulations to our honored winner of the Mircale Flower Pot.”
“This antique is truly worth collecting!”
The auction master was very red with excitement.
This flower pot’s estimated auction price was 320 gold, but it ultimately
reached a sales price of 1,720 gold, a full 1,400 gold above that.
This was a rare sight indeed!
That auction might be a new record. It will surely be an experience the auction
master could brag about for a good while.
In room 1, Hun Tong was smiling too.
The sales price was beyond his expectations too.
He thought about it, then called a subordinate over to instruct them to send
room 21 some iron level Fragrant Gill Tea and to tactfully put forth a small
request.
During the transaction, as the subordinate checked Cang Xu’s gold coins and
handed over the Miracle Flower Pot, he said, “Two Lords, the Feudal Lord is
very curious about this treasure. If you two Lords don’t mind, the Feudal Lord
is willing to pay for this treasure’s secret.”
“What secrets could it have?”  Zi Di raised her eyebrows, “I want to know too.
Wouldn’t be better if we cooperate and have the Feudal Lord step forth to ask
the Fertile Land priest together? Don’t worry, I know information is valuable
and am willing to assume the cost of it.”
The subordinate was gob smacked, and he returned to Hun Tong to report the
truth.
Hun Tong laughed.
If Zi Di rebuffed them, he might have guessed the other party was intentionally
hiding something. But since the other party suggested this kind of demand, Hun
Tong felt that they might not know anything about it.
“Then do that, go ask the Fertile Land priest about it.” Hun Tong was willing
to cooperate.
“What, they actually don’t know the flower pot’s secret?” When the Fertile Land
priest heard the subordinate’s question, he nearly coughed blood.
If they didn’t know, then why did they compete with me for so long?
They really are so rich and imposing!
They simply were intolerable bullies!!
“I won’t say, let them guess themselves.” The Fertile Land priest darkly spat
out his refusal.
Naturally, the subordinate didn’t dare to offend a silver level cultivator,
especially a member of the clergy.
“What a pity, if they agreed perhaps I could get in contact with room 21.
Perhaps it would be possible to retrieve the flower pot from them.” The Wealth
priest disapproved of the Fertile Land priest’s decision, but he didn’t say
anything.
Right now, the Fertile Land priest was in a terrible mood, and the Wealth
priest was unlikely to say anything that brought misfortune on his head.
The Miracle Flower Pot’s unexpected bidding surge and out of place sales price
had left a deep impression on all of the spectators.
This also caused the following items to be unable to arouse any interest, they
only felt a spell of boredom.
On the whole, antique items essentially had a higher collection value than
practical value.
These things appealed to collectors and old school nobles, however, those
attending this auction were looking for more useful things.
It wasn’t worth buying some antique pieces, even if they were extraordinary,
they weren’t worth it. 
Wouldn’t it be more appealing to buy some real equipment, medicine, and
scrolls?
Thus, few people participated in these auctions compared to the previous parts.
The auction mood began to gradually grow muffled.
At this time, the auction master took out a long case and took out a fishing
rod.
The fishing rod was blue, seemed to be made from bamboo, and was seeped in a
gentle jade-like luster.
The fishing rod made many eyes shine.
The fishing rod could at least be used on the seas, unlike the calligraphy,
paintings, and other antiques previously.
But the fishing rod was an antique too.
“Respected guests, this is the Ocean King’s Fishing Rod.”
The auction master presented, “Its owner was a prestigious legend level magic
chef – Lan Bao Yi!”
“This auxiliary fishing rod was made by his close friend as a birthday gift.”
“Lan Bao Yi used this auxiliary fishing rod to personally hook many valuable
fish for ingredients.”
“That’s right, the Ocean King Fishing Rod’s main purpose is to increase the
chance of catching rare fish. It not only an alchemy creation, but it has also
been blessed by the gods.”
“There is clear evidence that indicates its prior owner used it to catch a Time
Fish!”
“Of course, using it also has its risks.”
“The previous owner used it to catch a Savage Shark, and the hunter instead
became the prey.”
Time Fish were a rare and highly difficult magic fish to catch. 
It is said that they not only taste delicious, but that they also immensely
benefited one’s cultivation.
As for the Savage Shark, that was a type of ferocious predator.
Every Savage Shark was at least a saint level.
It wasn’t a normal shark, instead through constant slaughter and possible
bloodline change, a shark could become one. 
Hun Tong was quite particular and didn’t deliberately hide its side effects.
After hearing that the fishing result could not be controlled, the dragonman
youngster’s interest waned.
He was someone who acted in an orderly manner.
Although sea angling felt fascinating, if one drew in a Savage Shark, it would
bring disaster not only to him, but also the other survivors too, something he
didn’t wish to see.
As for Zong Ge, he was utterly disinterested in this leisure type item.
Finally, the Ocean God Fishing Rod was accepted by the Iron Club Mercenary
Corps.
Their commander paid a considerable price for it.
The auction master introduced the next item.
This is the famous Flesh Changing Clothes.”
The auction master raised a flesh colored bra.
“The romantic tale between the female Marquis Rou Mei and the poor youngster
Gang Bian is widely known.”
“When they first met each other, the Marquis Rou Mei had been observing how
people lived, and went incognito, and to conceal her city devastating beauty,
she wore this alchemy undergarment.”
“After wearing it, the Marquis transformed from a graceful and refined lady
into a fat woman. With additional disguises on top of it, she turned into a
mediocre female cook.”
“The unaware Gang Bian never judged by appearances, and through a string of
encounters where he repeatedly helped Rou Mei, he displayed his manly stature
and kindheartedness, gradually gaining the Marquis’ affection.”
“This is the Marquis’ very Flesh Changing Clothes she wore in those days.”
“A silver level alchemy treasure.”
“When a hand touches it, it feels as warm as a beautiful woman. Smell it
carefully, it seems to have some fragrance on it.”
The auction master looked infatuated, then declared the starting price and the
beginning of the auction.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was even less interested in this item. 
The next item appeared.
It was a completely rectangular white cloth; it looked like cotton. Cloth
protruded from each side and looked like wings spreading out.
The white cloth emitted a silver level aura.
“Look carefully, everyone.” The auction master raised the white cloth and
poured battle qi into it.
Concurrent with energy imbuing into it, the white cloth emitted a pure light
that flowed in an exquisite pattern.
This item wasn’t on the list, and many people were looking at it inquisitively.
“The Life Saving Pad?” Someone in the audience identified it.
“That’s right, it’s the Life Saving Pad.” The auction master excitedly stated,
“It is not a human thing, it comes from the elves.”
“In elven history, there was a demigoddess called Guang Hua Lan.”
“The Elven Kingdom was in a crisis, so Guang Hua Lan enlisted to spare her
father. She always triumphed and victory was her constant companion.”
“When she had an audience with the king, she revealed herself willingly and
made known she was a woman.”
“Early on in her enlistment, the Life Saving Pad helped her greatly.”
“It helped her disguise her gender and in crucial moments, helped staunch her
bleeding.”
“When we imbue it with battle qi or magic power, the alchemy treasure’s main
function will activate, which is healing.”
“The more of the user’s blood it absorbs, the stronger the healing effect.”
“The Life Saving Pad is worth of the name!”
“It can staunch many injuries in a convenient fashion!” 
“Let the next auction begin.”
The Life Saving Pad’s auction was far livelier than the last two.
Because it could heal, its functionality increased several fold.
A few pirate groups were among the fiercest fighters.
Pirates didn’t have a clergyman. They had a serious lack of instantaneous
healing methods.
In the vanguard, whether there was a clergyman or priest that could heal in a
timely fashion made a difference.
On when the Pirate Throne had a new master were pirates able to have their own
clergy. 
The Life Saving Pad’s healing was instantaneous. Although it only affected one
person, who would dislike having more things that preserved one’s life?
Although Zi Di was a ghost girl, she absolutely did not disparage it.
“I can’t use it, but I can give it to the commander.” With this notion in mind,
Zi Di once again displayed her terrifying financial resources, and with a
bullish attitude, intimidated the bidders into withdrawing and claimed the
antique.
The Life Saving Pad’s auction was the climax of the antiques auction.
The auction order had been intentionally arranged by Hun Tong.
He had predicted that the Life Saving Pad would be welcomed.
However, the Life Saving Pad’s final sales price was still far lower than the
Miracle Flower Pot’s.
After the Life Saving Pad was some extraordinary antiques.
This is the classical oil painting “The Dazzling Star Studded Heavens”. This
the famous statue “Sufferer”. And this is a cookbook.
This cookbook aroused the interest of the dragonman youngster, Zi Di, and Cang
Xu.
Because this cookbook’s author was a vampire duke. He was a historically
renowned gourmet, warrior, and arsonist. He liked culinary delicacies and in
his later years, he compiled this cookbook to be given to future generations.



****** Chapter 147: A Vampire’s Cookbook ******
The food recorded in the vampire’s cookbook was naturally not conventional
food, but rather blood.
The Vampire Duke recorded how every species’ blood tasted, when to drink them,
what the optimal way to drink them was, and other such things.
To help his offspring and their descendants, he sealed the blood of many
species in this alchemy book.
“Of course, the legend level dragon and nine headed serpent blood is no longer
sealed in it.”
“This cookbook has changed hands too many times, and many collectors extracted
its blood samples for alchemy materials and so on.”
After the auction master gave a detailed explanation, the auction began.
The highest level blood sample still in the Vampire Duke’s cookbook was merely
silver level.
All of the gold level blood samples had been extracted already.
In fact, the existent blood samples were also incomplete, only parts of them
were preserved.  
Even so, this was something Zi Di and Cang Xu had to have!
Because with this cookbook, the survivors could save lots of time and energy.
In order to purify bloodlines, they were undertaking a major engineering
project.
The blood samples inside the cookbook would reduce the construction period!
Not many people were bidding.
Besides magicians, there were a few merchants bidding too. The latter wanted to
speculate while the former wanted to use the blood samples as alchemy or
casting materials.
It had to be said that the guests at Two Eyes Island’s auction were pragmatic
folk.
Zi Di didn’t act.
Her acting might trigger a malignant price competition.
The dragonman youngster didn’t disappoint expectations and beat the last
competitor, Commander Tie Bang, to become the ultimate winner.
Commander Tie Bang spent too much money buying the Ocean Kingn Fishing Rod
earlier.
Overall, this was a relaxed auction.
What no one knew was that this even more important to the survivors than the
Miracle Flower Pot was to the Fertile Land priest!
14
Upon seeing the auction master’s hammer drop and room 14 becoming the victor,
Cang Xu and Zi Di nearly cheered.
But it was only after the delivery was completed and the dragonman youngster
clutched the Vampire Duke’s cookbook in his hands did Cang Xu and Zi Di
completely relax.
The two people conversed; their hearts deeply moved.
“I didn’t expect to have such a thing at this auction.”
“Yes, I’d almost venture to affirm that this is our greatest gain from this
auction.”
The Vampire Duke’s cookbook surpassed all previous items.
It was extremely significant to the survivors!
Especially since the dragonman youngster purchased it at a low price for such
time saving thing.
It had to be said that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strategy of dividing
into two teams was both proper and sagacious, and this result verified that it
lived up to expectations. 
The entire auction had been meticulously planned by Hun Tong, and the antiques
section’s sales prices was inferior to the other sections. However, the various
strange and bewildering goods was a feast for the eyes that increased
everyone’s interest, opened their horizons, and left them wanting more.
When the first bulk sale appeared, signifying that the antique segment had
finished, the people couldn’t help but sigh in relief.
The bulk sales was the auction’s second to last section; it was nearing its
end.
Similarly, loners like Hong Zhu and Shi Fa lost interest. 
But the Clam Cloth and Flint Merchant Alliance representatives and those like
them were very spirited. They were the main supplier of this segment. 
If the auction price was high, these branch managers would always benefit and
allow them to improve their respective accomplishments and evaluations with
their respective merchant alliance.
The first auction was food.
A large number of various types of magic beast meat appeared before everyone’s
eyes.
This auction’s clientele was cultivators, and 80% of cultivators were fighters.
Magicians and clergy made up the remining 20%.
Fighters had a high demand for magic beast meat, it was their daily food.
Magic beast meat could help a fighter’s cultivation.
This was one of the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance’s main operations.
Because of the rigid demand of the six great human merchant alliances, the Clam
Cloth Merchant Alliance was the strongest.
Upon seeing all kinds of magic beast meat on stage, everything from the bronze
level to the silver level, the dragonman youngster couldn’t help but recall the
mutton they had eaten on Mystifying Monster Island.
For this reason, they were poisoned.
After ascertaining the truth afterwards, they found out the true culprit was
the Frost Poison Grass.
The grass’ life aura was very ordinary, however it actually contained abundant
ice path magic power. After the artificial goats ate this grass, the magic
power within the goats caused those who ate them to be poisoned.
“If we had a fixed base, we could farm this grass at scale.”
“Have some magic beasts eat them, then sell their magic beast meat.”
“If it worked, it would, it would be a big business.”
Despite the dragonman youngster not understanding business that well, he
understood that this industry had maximum profits.
But all of this needed stability.
Currently, although the survivors had established the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, their external environment was not good, and from beginning to end,
immense pressure was on them. They were seeking a noble contact that could help
them towards imperial redemption, which would transform their circumstances and
win them an opportunity to grow. After all, the empire was too powerful.
The auction began.
Pirates, mercenary corps, and even One Eye representing the patrol fleet along
with great merchant alliances participated.
Essentially, every power required magic beast meat.
This kind of bulk sale was not commonly seen, and if one finely calculated the
price, they would find that the cost per kilogram of meat was actually lower
than market price, which immediately enticed many powers.
Of the 10 batches of magic beast meat, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps got 1
and Zi Di got another.
That was enough.
Magic beast meat had a shelf life and preserving it was quite troublesome.
The other 8 was partitioned up by the other powers.
This hearty feast was aptly named a bulk sale, nothing stood out, and nothing
was scarce.
Many people were satisfied.
The auction hall grew more harmonious, with everyone enjoying themselves.
Of course, this ambience would not lead to high prices, therefore Hun Tong
arranged to have this happen at the tail end of the auction.
Even if there was some bidding, all parties only fought a little, with one
party conceding willingly and not deliberately hindering the other.
There were many things, and fighting was not necessary.
You have, I have, everyone has.
It was only when Zi Di bid were things different. When room 21 entered, they
would immediately suffer blockades and all parties would maliciously raise the
price, for the unity of will was an impregnable stronghold. They wouldn’t give
up even when the auction price rose about market price.  
Zi Di tried several times before simply laying down the flag.
In any case, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had repeated success, and she
didn’t need to waste money on this.
Seeing room 21 shrink back, many buyers were in a cheerful mood.
“We finally defeated them.”
“Everyone’s financial resources are limited, and at the end of the auction,
they no longer have as much power.”
“This is the consequence of pushing into the limelight too much.”
The loners for the most part watched with folded arms, watching passively the
mood of the auction’s participants.
They didn’t need such bulk sales.
After the foodstuff bulk sale was the alchemy material auctions.
Two fighters carried a large box onto the stage.
A single light beam shined on the wooden box, while the other lights went dark.
The wooden box slowly opened, exposing a small pile of metal ingots inside.
Under the stage light, the metal ingots dazzled with a silver-white radiance.
Everyone’s eyes condensed onto these metal ingots.
Many hearts warmed and eyes lit up. 
“As expected, it is Secret Silver ingots.” In room 21, Zi Di exposed a
determined look.
Because the Bloodline Purification formation needed a large quantity of Secret
Silver ingots.
Secret Silver was a type of rare metal, far more precious than gold. It was
very light, it had a ductility comparable to bronze, yet it was harder than
steel. In poetry, this metal was acclaimed to be “light as goose feathers,
strong as dragon scales.” Although that was exaggerated rhetoric, it still
illustrated a portion of truth.
Most crucial was that the Secret Silver possessed a formidable magical nature.
It was very conductive of magic power.
Therefore, Secret Silver was almost always used to build magic items or was the
main drawing material for formations. 
There were so many places to use it.
That being said, even if the Bloodline Purification formation didn’t need it,
Zi Di would still snap it up, for it was certain it would be used in the
future.
The auction officially began. 
The first box of silver ingots drew in panicked buyers.
The bids quickly rose, leading to a fierce contest between all parties.
As the price increases gradually stagnated towards the latter stages, Zi Di
suddenly interjected with a high price.
“Hmph, it’s room 21 again?” Someone followed up fearlessly.
But Zi Di’s repeatedly large price rises revealed a determination to have it.
Superior financial resources defeated every competitor, even Hun Tong shook his
head and gave up.
He held Two Eyes Island, if he lost this opportunity, he still had other stable
channels to obtain Secret Silver ingots, he didn’t’ need to scramble for them.
“3, 2 ,1, bang.” The auction master finished counting down, “Congratulations to
room 21 for purchasing this box of Secret Silver ingots.
Afterwards.
“Congratulations to room 21 for winning the Under Mountain Copper ingots.
“Congratulations to room 21 for obtaining three tons of Ocean Blue ore.”
“Let’s congratulate room 21 once again for becoming the new owner of this pile
of obsidian!”
Zi Di acted again and again, buying large quantities of alchemy supplies.
During the food auction, Zi Di was subdued.  But this time, she displayed her
grand and graceful bearing, and her wantonly purchasing loftily forced its way
through others.
Besides the things she disliked, the vast majority of alchemy materials were
claimed by her.
The other buyers who got nothing hatefully gnashed their teeth.
Many people began to establish ties and privately joined hands, yet even so,
they were still no match for Zi Di’s resolve.
Another item was shown off in the great hall.
It was a small wooden box.
When the wooden box was opened, everyone saw that there was a pile of silver-
blue metal ingots inside that had a particular luster.
“Essence Gold!” Zi Di’s eyes seemed to burn slightly.
Essence Gold was seldom produced and was rarer than Secret Silver. It possessed
the same formidable magic affinity and was used more to forge weapons and
armor.
Essence gold was heavier, and its greatest strength was its hardness!
Currently, it is popularly known as the hardest metal to exist. It was far
harder than steel.



****** Chapter 148: Bulk Sales ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was short on Essence Gold.
They had gotten some from Mystifying Monster Island. But they had used it up
already, and to link together the Bloodline Purification formation, they needed
a lot of Essence Gold!
“One small box of Essence Gold starts at a price of 1,500 gold. Every price
raise must be at least 100 gold, now let the auction begin.” The auction master
yelled with a heart filled with expectations.
Everyone was ready, this was bound to be a lively auction.
But before anyone could respond, Zi Di immediately bid, “2,000 gold!”
The large hall was silent for a moment, everyone was awed by Zi DI’s bid.
A 500 gold increase in a split second.
But room 1 followed up, “2,100 gold.”
Zi Di sneered, “3,000 gold!”
Instantly raising the price by 900 gold was simply deranged!
Every interested buyers’ eyes shrank.
“Who is in room 21? How are they so vicious?!”
“Are we going to stake it all? After all, it is room 21.”
“To speak plainly, 3000 gold to buy this box of Essence Gold is not a losing
transaction. When the market price is bad, it will be profitable.” 
A few buyers weren’t intimidated and still wanted to compete.
In the prior section, Zi Di had snapped up many of their targets, thus they
still had a lot of money on hand.
However just as they wanted to bid, they heard Zi Di’s voice again, “3,500
gold!!”
They actually raised the price on themselves?
The buyers went rigid, and those with ample sense realized room 21 was
determined to have this box, as well as their frightening strength.
Under such a high price, they were forced to give up.
The Essence Gold was efficiently won by Zi Di.
“Who can suppress room 21?” The buyers whispered to each other.
Zi Di’s ferocious performance shattered many hopes.
The hall was filled with pessimism. 
Many people began to genuinely think no one could withstand room 21. 
Soon after, the Essence Gold was delivered to room 21.
After paying the gold coins, Zi Di stuffed the small wooden box into the Ballon
Knapsack.
The latter was already bouncing and floating in the air, and thanks to this
treasure, the things they purchased could be conveniently transported.
The bulk sales’ climax didn’t stop at this.
Not long after, a small sensation once again broke out in the auction hall. 
“Profound Gold!”
“Are my eyes deceiving me?”
“I didn’t expect to see Profound Gold in this auction!”
“Why wasn’t it on the item list?”
“It’s obvious that this was a special item inserted during the auction!”
Everyone conversed as their fervent eyes sized up the small pile of Profound
Gold on stage.
Profound Gold was a type of metal alloy, while Essence Gold came from a natural
vein of ore. This was the biggest difference between them. 
In terms of price, Profound Gold was more expensive than Essence Gold, it was
classified as a high level alchemy material.
This was mainly because the main way to refine Profound Gold was to combine
Essence Gold, profound spell crystals, and other materials together instead of
just smelting it.
Zi Di’s eyes were instantly attracted to it.
“I want that.” She vocalized. 
Upon hearing her voice, every buyer grew discolored.
Many people were indignant, but even more were ashen with defeat.
“What terrible luck to come across such an opponent.” They sighed to
themselves.
“Room 21 has their eyes on that Profound Gold, it’s theirs.” Many people chose
to immediately give up.
Finally, the auction outcome came to pass.
Zi Di once again use her strong wealth to seize the box of Profound Gold.
Hun Tong looked a bit off. 
He projected that this Profound Gold would have sold at a higher price. But in
reality, since no one was confident they could contest room 21, many people
opted out of the rat race to instead watch passively from the sidelines.
Hun Tong was somewhat remorseful that he didn’t suppress room 21 and allowed
them to dictate the climate. The other’s existence had influenced the auction’s
income.
However, he was also somewhat glad.
This was the last part of the auction, and the other party’s influence did not
affect the big picture.
In addition, the two people inside room 21 were room 2’s prey, their conclusion
would be ruinous.
Hun Tong didn’t need act himself.
“Although this somewhat effects profits, they have bid many times, wantonly
spilled coin, and gave me more revenue than losses.”
When thinking of that, Hun Tong’s heart felt relieved.
He could scarcely realize that the money Zi Di and Cang Xu were spending at
this auction had been stolen from Two Eyes Island.
Zi Di continued to act, purchasing large amounts of alchemy materials. Such as
Granite Extract, Obsidian Extract, and all kinds of coral.
Two Eyes Island was a Coral Ball Cage Tree, and its coral was also considered
to be a unique local product.  
The fly in the ointment was that this auction was mainly of metal and ore,
while flesh type alchemy materials were sparse, and wood type alchemy materials
were just as rare. 
This shortfall needed to be patched up in the future.
Zi Di didn’t have extravagant demands.
In fact, she was very grateful that Hun Tong had held this auction. Although
she lost some gold coins, the survivors had saved incalculable time and energy.
If they missed this opportunity, they might spend even longer and even more
money searching for these materials in the vast ocean, and likely not even
collect enough.
The ocean had abundant resources in fact, but humans couldn’t extract them
easily.
After all, humans could not breath underwater.
On top of that, the Sheng Ming Empire was invading the Beast Race Continent,
and the main part of the empire’s forces was not on the ocean, but rather in
the Wilderness Continent.
Therefore, something like Two Eyes Island’s auction was hard to come by.
The flaunting auction master took in a breath, “Honorable friends, time passed
at lightning speed, and in but a flash, this auction has reached its final
segment.”
“I believe that this segment is also one of the most awaited, it is the slave
auction!”
“Please meticulously prepare for our first item.”
After saying this, a fighter pulled a rope tied to a female elf.
She was an adult woman and had the delicate and beautiful complexion
distinctive to elves. She had few clothes on, it was obvious she had been
intentionally dressed to expose all of the right parts of her that exhibited
and protruded her graceful beauty as much as possible.
Despite being tied up and forced to stagged forwards, the elf held her head
high and looked down at the audience, her eyes transmitting her intense hatred.
The buyers were all looking at her and whispering to each other.
“It really is an elf, and those features, she’s truly beautiful.”
“It is said that when she was captured, many experts were lost.”
“Although she is iron level, her archery is very good. If she hadn’t been
stupid enough to come back to rescue her clanmates, she wouldn’t have fallen
into a trap.”
Hearsay on this elf was already known by everyone.
Hun Tong had deliberately disseminated it, another way he was preparing for the
auction.
When some buyers saw the elf proudly looking hateful, they frowned and
muttered, “It seems she hasn’t been trained well.”
“But if that is so, won’t that bring a greater sense of achievement when I
train and conquer her with my own hands?” Some buyers grew more interested.
The auction master continued to present her.
The buyers weren’t worried the elf couldn’t be controlled, she had been bound
with a slave contract and any buyer could control her life or death.
But if one wanted her to be obedient, that would depend on how a buyer trained
her.
“I have to say, this training will be a pleasure, am I right?” The auction
master aroused the cravings of many buyers.
Some people couldn’t help but giggle with dark intentions.
When the elf heard this laughter and felt innumerable hungry eyes looking at
her, she panicked a little, however she covered it up with more hatred.
The auction began. 
The bids rose and fell ceaselessly in the ears.
Hun Tong watched this with satisfaction.
This elf had been specially chosen by him and was the most enticing thing in
this final part of the auction.
His diligent arrangements had received a fine result, the auction price quickly
exceeded 1,000 gold and was still trending upwards.
The only thing that worried Hun Tong was that room 21 would intervene and
suppress this wave of enthusiastic bids.
But all the way until the winner was decided, room 21 never acted.
The elf was only iron level, and to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they did
not lack this kind of military strength.
She wasn’t easy to train, and elven arrogance caused her to look down on the
dragonman youngster’s race, and becoming a captive caused her to be even more
resentful to humans.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps did not need this kind of internal instability,
while simultaneously not having the energy to harmonize the hatred and vengeful
feelings in the elf’s heart.
As for Cang Xu and Zi Di, as believers in life and advocates of nature, elves
were more so the mortal enemies of necromancers. It was utterly unnecessary to
spend lots of money to recruit an enemy into their ranks.
In the end, the elf was sold for 1,450 gold.
This price was above the market price for iron level slaves, but the victor
felt high and mighty, they felt wonderful and devoid of worry.
The losers sighed regretfully.
But soon after, their regret once again turned into hope. 
Because the second item was an equal match to that elf. 
She was a female beastman that had a petite stature, an adorable appearance,
long cat ears, and a cat tail.
The auction hall thoughtfully dressed her with a customized maid outfit of
coordinated monochrome, while also fastening a small copper bell to her nape.
The female beastman wasn’t shackled, and she was cutely standing motionlessly,
it was obviously she had been trained well.
The cat girl maid let to a surge of panicked bids. 
Once again, it triggered an upsurge of competition.
Zi Di still hadn’t acted.
Although this maid was iron level, she hand no battle skill. She was
merchandise specially trained by some big slave merchants for great lords and
imperial higherups.
As for why she was reduced to being here?
It was very simple.
An imperial higherup had the misfortune of being robbed, and this maid had
become a pirate’s spoil of war.  
The plunderers were none other than the Ten Touch Pirates.
The maid was finally sold for 1,300 gold, a bit lower than the elf, but it
still surpassed the market price for iron level slaves. 
It had to be said that there were a lot of rich people.
Sexual interest was one of the driving forces of the market. 
Almost everyone on Two Eyes Island were pragmatic people, and regardless of
whether it was a female elf or a cat girl maid, both were “practical”.
“The third slave is the only silver level at this auction!” The auction master
introduced them, “He is a steady man, a heavy gunner, Chi Lai!”



****** Chapter 149: Heavy Gunner Chi Lai ******
The magic light beams swept in a circle until finally concentrating on Chi Lai.
He was a middle aged man with black hair and a square face. His face was
expressionless, but his ramrod straight body and unswerving eyes of
determination divulged many traits of a soldier. 
“Finally, he’s here.” The dragonman youngster’s mind perked up.
He had been interested in Chi Lai ever since he saw him on the item list. 
Zong Ge was more intrigued, and immediately stated his opinion, “We should
recruit him, our mercenary corps lacks a true gunner.”
“He is from the imperial navy; we don’t need to train him, and his military
strength is worth the money.”
“As for why he was expelled from the navy and been reduced to a slave, I
understand that this was due to a miscarriage of justice. This imperial soldier
from a poor background was harmed by a higherup framing him.
Zong Ge had a good opinion of Chi Lai’s soldier background
Zong Ge’s analysis made sense, and the dragonman youngster agreed, “He and I
are the same, believers in the Justice God. Based on this, we can trust him
even more.”
On the stage, the auction master continued the introduction, “Many people have
heard his tale.”
“A young person from the slums was very gifted. His gunnery skills were noticed
by the navy, and he was recruited by them.”
“He believes in the Justice God and held fast to the light in his heart, as a
result, he violated navy disciple and offended an imperial bigwig.”
“Now he has become a slave and is under a slave contract.”
“However, it will only cause him pain, the contract won’t impair his wisdom at
all. Therefore, I ask all respected friends to take not of this bit.”
The buyers discussed this in whispers.
As the only silver slave, he had already been discussed a lot already.
“Chi Lai was once a navy elite, but even more so, he is a Justice God believer.
Although hie is a slave, the contract is quite relaxed, and he can disobey
orders he thinks are unreasonable.”
“Therefore, he’ll be hard for pirates to make use of. Besides mercenary corps,
the ones truly able to recruit him are the great merchant alliance fleets, oh I
almost forgot, Hun Tong too.”
“Hehe, I think that it’s unlikely Hun Tong will recruit him. Two Eyes Island is
the holy land for pirates disposing of their booty, and when Chi Lai finds out,
he won’t comply with Hun Tong’s orders. If Hun Tong could recruit him, why
would he have put Chi Lai up for auction?”
“Hm, that’s reasonable! In fact, Chi Lai has been resold many times, many slave
owners that bought him couldn’t stand his disposition. Some owners were so
distraught by his good deeds that they even wanted to kill him, but in the end,
they decided against doing that.”
Chi Lai had offended an imperial bigwig with a powerful backer.
The reason why he had been placed under such a spacious slave contract was that
he wanted to torment Chi Lai and humiliate him as much as he liked!
Therefore, Chi Lai was comparatively special.
If his master wanted to kill him, they had to consider the opinions of that
imperial bigwig. If he was killed, that would violate the original intention
that that imperial bigwig wanted him tormented. Although that lord perhaps
already tossed Chi Lai to the back of his mind, what reason was there to risk
their wrath? It wasn’t worth it.
Therefore, Chi Lai had been resold many times, and now, he was stranded at Two
Eyes Island’s auction.
The magic images were constantly broadcasting many scenes of Chi Lai fighting.
Especially how svelte he controlled cannons, that left a deep impression on
people.
He really was an outstanding gunner.
Only a small section of the presentation at the beginning showed him serving
and training in the navy, the rest was when he had been sold as a slave where
he had followed his owner’s commands and participated in battles big and small.
There were plenty of scenes of single combat, a few team battles, and many
naval battles.
Upon seeing these images, everyone’s heartrate, including pirate bosses,
increased.
Chi Lai’s battle strength was outstanding; he was neither weak at close range
nor at long range. However, if he was allowed to operate cannons, his threat
level would sharply rise!
“A true regret, why is he a Justice God believer?”
“If he could join us, I could make him my number two! What a pity that he will
never become a pirate.”
Chi Lai had already been a slave for many years, and during those years, his
belief in the Justice God never wavered, in fact it grew even deeper.
These magic images also illustrated a problem.
Some astute merchants made out that many images were purposely staged.
They easily could think why: they were obviously crafted by Chi La’s masters.
Their purpose was to magnify Chi Lai’s strength so he could be sold at a good
price and mend the blood they spent on him.
“Chi Lai, the earnest, man, the outstanding heavy gunner absolutely deserves
more trust and expectations! The starting price is 5,000 gold, and every price
raise must be no less than 200 gold.” The auction master declared the start of
the auction.
But awkwardly, both the audience and the second floor were silent.
Silver level slaves were rarely seen on the market.
5,000 gold was not a high price.
Chi Lai was very strong, and should have been a widely regarded product, but
information and stories on him had been widely circulated for many years,
causing few people to be interested in purchasing him.
“Don’t tell me this will fail to sell?” The auction master’s heart sank,
feeling things weren’t looking good.
Chi Lai had failed to be sold at many auctions.
Therefore, Hun Tong had arranged him to be put in third. This sort of
arrangement meant he didn’t have good prospects for his market price, but since
the latter was still a silver level, he was placed in this position.
After a small stillness, Commander Beng Dai bid, “5,200 gold.”
It was the lowest price increase, but that alone allowed the auction master to
let out a breath, “At least he won’t fail to sell.”
Failing to sell things at auctions would influence his performance.
Furthermore, this auction was estimated to be the pinnacle of his life, and if
a failed auction blemished it, it would cause unavoidable regret.
5,200 gold to the Bandage Mercenary Corps was a huge sum, and it would be a
huge loss for them.
Commander Beng Dai did not fight by himself.
Before Chi Lai ascended the auction stage, he had contacted a few merchant
alliance branch managers and agreed to bid for Chi Lai together.
Each would share a part of the price and observe Chi Lai on his duties to watch
how he really was.
If he was suitable, each of them would bid for him. The final winner would pay
the missing gold coins to compensate the others and be the ultimate owner of
Chi Lai.
This was inspired by when they had joined hands with the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to face off against room 21.
Commander Beng Dai was merely the public face of it, that’s all.
In fact, the Iron Club Mercenary Corps was among them too. 
The two mercenary corps were according to standard, and based on common sense,
they could have Chi Lai serve them.
After the bid of 5,200 gold, there was no respond from any other party.
This was estimated to be the most desolate auction ever here.
Then as the auction master began to count down, the dragonman youngster in room
14 transmitted, “5,400 gold.”
Commander Beng Dai sightly stared, he didn’t expect competition.
But when he thought of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Commander Beng Dai
didn’t feel surprised, in fact it was quite reasonable.
Commander Beng Dai continued to raise the price, “5,600 gold.”
If he was competing with his mercenary corps alone, he would be greatly
pressured. But now that he had other merchant alliances working with him, he
had ample confidence.
In comparison, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps couldn’t collaborate with other
merchant alliances.
Because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was going to leave Two Eyes Island,
unlike the Bandage Mercenary Corps who was a permanent resident of Two Eyes
Island and had become one of the native powers here.
It was because of this that the Bandage Mercenary Corps and other merchant
alliances had a foundation for collaboration.
“5,800 gold.” Said the dragonman youngster.
“6,000 gold.” Commander Beng Dai continued to follow up.
There were only two sides to this content.
When the price rose to 6,600 gold, the dragonman youngster sank into silence.
After a moment, he followed Fei She’s suggestion and suddenly raised the price
increase, “7,800 gold!”
In addition, the dragonman youngster specially added, “This is my final offer.”
Commander Beng Dai suddenly stared blankly, how could he say that in an
auction?
But he quickly understood that this was the dragonman youngster’s auction
stratagem.
“I didn’t expect you to play this thick browed and big eyed trick?” When this
thought appeared in Commander Beng Dai’s mind, he felt somewhat embarrassed.
If he wanted to press down on the dragonman youngster, he’d need to bid at
least 8,000 gold. The allocated expenses of thousands of gold coins across his
Bandage Mercenary Corps was already something he couldn’t bear.
But that’s not how the merchant alliance representatives felt.
While Commander Beng Dai was hesitating, the merchant alliance branch managers
dispatched subordinates to urgently contact him and request that he continue to
increase the price.
Commander Beng Dai sighed; he sensed the systemic problem with collaborative
auctions. But it was too late to withdraw, and he was also worried about
damaging his relationship with the other merchant alliances, thus he had no
choice but to bid, “8,000 gold!”
As expected, the dragonman youngster didn’t bid again.
Commander Beig Dai suddenly felt somewhat remorseful, “It seems Commander Long
Fu spoke sincerely, I misunderstood him. That really was his bottom line. Damm
it, I’m actually spending so much money to purchase Chi Lai. Even if Chi Lai
serves me in the future, will I have enough money to pay the other merchant
alliances? Can he stay in a mercenary corps?”
The auction master began to count down, and as everyone thought that the
Bandage Mercenary Corps was to be the final victor, Zi Di’s voice transmitted
from room 21 once again, “8,200 gold.”
Everyone looked at each other in dismay.
They didn’t expect that a ferocious beast would be provoked at the end of the
auction. 
It was unquestionable that room 2 1 was the richest buyer at this auction!
Compete against them?
Commander Beng Dai’s fighting spirit suddenly slumped, and the other merchant
alliance representatives were also clearly affected. Some expressed that they
wanted to follow up, there was still a small bit before they hit their bottom
line. Some stated that they didn’t need to waste energy, others still stated
that this could deplete the other party’s money, but there were more that were
worried about what they would do if they bought Chi Lai at this high price and
fell into room 21’s stratagem?
After all, Zi Di only raised the price by 200 gold.
Her fuzzy attitude made these people hesitate.
Another systemic problem of collaborative auctions appeared, when ideas varied,
it was difficult to adapt to the rapid tempo of an auction.
Just as the auction master’s count down reached its end, Commander Beng Dai and
the others were still arguing and weren’t able to agree on anything.
“8,400 gold!” Just as everyone thought the winner was decided, the dragonman
youngster spoke again.
“7,800 gold really was my bottom line, but against room 21, this bottom line
has no weight!” The dragonman youngster added on.
In a split second, everyone’s goodwill of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps shot
up!



****** Chapter 150: Chi Lai Joins ******
In this auction, Zi Di and Cang Xu in room 21 had indeed been the center of
attention.
Many buyers wanted them beaten.
They had helplessly watched the treasures they admired fall into their hands,
this sensation was very unpleasant.
Take Yue Band for example, she hoped she could by the Mushroom Dancing Shoes.
Those dancing shoes were very important to her life, but in the end, Zi DI
walked away with them.
The Stench Pirates’ commander Yang Cong Tou had the Sun Halo on his mind
constantly. To him, it was a great thing that could increase his meditation
efficiency, yet Zi Di snatched that away too.
The Fertile Land priest had joined this auction to purchase the Miracle Flower
Pot. After fixing the flower pot’s decomposed Abundant Earth, he could improve
his position in the Fertile Land Church, which brought considerable benefits. 
Apart from this, there was also the Star Iron Axe, the Shadow Walker Outfit,
and the Grand Arena Medal.
With regards to the gold level healing potion, something Song Shou and Qi You
were very interested in, Zi Di had used gold coins to defeat them.
Defensive tools like the Glass External Armor, the Sacred Plate Armor, the
mushroom tights had greater attractiveness than weapons of the same rank, yet
in the end, Zi Di had taken them all away!
Especially the Gold Chainmail, that was the auction’s sole gold level armor,
and Zi DI hat won that too.
The hatred these buyers had for room 21 itched their teeth.
Zi Di’s existence caused the gains of those who joined this auction to sharply
decline.
Pirates had tried every possible means to scout out who Zi Di and Cang Xu were;
room 21 had been engraved deeply in their hearts. If Hun Tong and Song Shou
weren’t suppressing the situation, perhaps they’d have robbed them on the spot.
Zi Di had snapped up too many treasures, causing the vast majority of buyers to
resent her.
But there was no avoiding that.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ expansion strategy required them to increase
their strength in this short window of time to prevent all possible mishaps.
Oneself was the most reliable.
They could not abandon a golden opportunity to grow themselves because they
were afraid of offending others.
As for competing with room 21, the other buyers had struck back at room 21 many
times. Such as when they joined hands for an auction and reaching a tacit
understanding that everyone would maliciously raise prices on Zi Di.
But Zi Di had too much money, and even after purchasing so many things, she
still had battle strength at the end of the auction!
It seems that Chi Lai’s auction had caused room 21’s might to reappear once
again.
This time, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps stood up to them.
Even though many were uninterested in buying Chi lai, they grew to have a
better impression of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Room 21 had unwittingly become the target of anger against a common enemy.
The dragonman youngster’s bid suppressed Zi Di’s.
Zi Di was silent.
The auction master yelled, “Room 14, going once.”
Commander Beng Dai was still urgently communicating over yonder.
They had joined hands for this auction.
Some people wanted to continue bidding, but some were like Commander Beng Dai,
they didn’t want to.
“The price is already very high, why don’t we let the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps and room 21 fight over it?”
The auction master cried out, “Room 14, going twice.”
Still, no one replied.
The dragonman youngster looked slightly nervous.
Fei She suddenly said, “Al, almost there.”
Sure enough, even as the auction master purposely slowed his voice when he
reached the third count, still no one bid.
When the small hammer smacked down, the dragonman youngster unconsciously
coughed. This victory had been unexpectedly uncomplicated. 
The outcome had also corroborated Fei She’s words.
The young man glanced at Fei She and couldn’t help but admire his competence.
Although he was an ordinary person, his auction skill was far greater than the
young man and the half beastman.
That bid was at Fei She’ suggestion.
He was worthy of being an elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance!
Zong Ge then reviewed this auction.
He had participated in only a few auctions, and this experience had given him a
whole new understanding of the art of war.
“Dividing our forces at an auction has been exceedingly useful!”
“We need Chi Lai, but if we were bidding as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
against the Bandage Mercenary Corps, the price wouldn’t have ended here.”
“But Zi Di’s screen attracted all of their attention. Zi Di’s constant pressure
bore an extraordinarily good result.”
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps bid, Zi Di of course kept silent.
Beng Dai sighed, he was both surprised and not at this outcome.
“In the end, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps succeeded. The price isn’t low, it
seems they are willing to take this risk.”
Thinking about their loss, Commander Beng Dai grew happier.
Some merchant alliance representatives expressed their remorse, they could have
increased the price further.
Some merchant alliance representatives began to analyze, “Look, room 21 is very
treacherous, they maliciously raised the price.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps might have been the last to bid, therefore
room 21 didn’t act again. If we acted, perhaps the other side would have
maliciously raised the price again, putting Chi Lai in our hands was
undoubtably room 21’s scheme.”
“Commander Long Fu is pretty good! Over and over again, he withstood room 21
with heroism. Chi Lai being in his care is a far better result than him ending
up in room 21’s.
“Actually, we should find the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to continue our
discussion.”
Some merchant alliance representatives didn’t give up, they thought about
continuing their cooperation.
The auction hall was constantly abuzz with the result of this auction.
“Finally, room 21 has been defeated!”
“8,400 gold… the price of this victory was rather high.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has money! Besides, a silver level slave is
worth that price.”
“I hope that Chi Lai serves the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps well, otherwise
they will suffer a great loss.”
“It isn’t easy to sell a sliver level slave like Chi Lai, one can only do so at
auctions of this scale.”
“It’s difficult, I heard that they are a group of arms smugglers. Will Chi Lai
serve them? He is a Justice God believer. I don’t know what Long Fu was
thinking, I feel that he was impulsive in doing this.”
“After all, he is a dragonman.”
Everyone exchanged their opinion.
Chi Lai could not be purchased by Cang Xu and Zi Di, because the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps needed him out in the open exerting himself, especially during
naval battles.
Although the Deceptive Disguise spell was a formidable trump card, it couldn’t
be used on Chi Lai.
Chi Lai was not a survivor, not one of them, and it was inconvenient to let him
learn the survivors’ core secrets.
8,400 gold for silver level strength like Chi Lai wasn’t that high actually.
But the prerequisite was his true effectiveness.
Pertaining to this, Zong Ge and the dragonman youngster were confident in that.
After all, arms smugglers were merely a fake identity of theirs.
Zi Di’s opinion was even simpler: even if he wouldn’t cooperate, at worse, they
could resell Chi Lai in the future.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had overflowing coffers, they
weren’t worried about their financial situation and could accept this risk.
Chi Lai was taken to the second floor and entered room 14.
“This is your new master.” The escorting fighter saluted the dragonman
youngster then offered the contract scroll to him with both hands.
Accompanying them was also a bronze level magician, they were here to amend the
contract scroll.
The dragonman youngster carefully read the scroll.
This was a blood contract.
It had Chi Lai’s name written in blood.
The dragonman youngster took note that the specific enslavement rules were
comparatively roomy, allowing Chi Lai to retain some freedom. He couldn’t be
forced to comply, and he couldn’t be killed. 
Many slave contracts were not like this.
Chi Lai’s agreement was very spacious, and much of it was bound to the master’s
life. If the master died, the slave would too.
There were also many preinstalled punishment measures.
With the power of a contract, a master could easily torment a slave so
painfully that it’d be an existence worse than death.
There were also incantations that could kill the slave with the contract.
With the bronze magician’s aid, the dragonman youngster wrote his name in
blood.
The bronze magician eliminated their own name.
Chi Lai was a silver level fighter, and only by doing this could his slavery to
a master be maintained without possible slip ups.
The slave contract glinted with a light, and at the same time, the dragonman
youngster’s and Chi Lai’s bodies glistened too.
The dragonman youngster sensed a spiritual connection.
This connection had been established between him and Chi Lai; it was very
obvious he was in the dominant position.
The bronze magician inspected the contract again, verifying it had been
reestablished, then withdrew and closed the door.
The dragonman youngster said to Chi Lai, “Pleased that you have joined us, we
are the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. I am Commander Long Fu; this is Auxiliary
Commander Shi Qi.”
Chi Lai nodded to the dragonman youngster and didn’t reply.
He had been resold many times, and this scene was customary to him.
Chi Lai sized up the dragonman before him.
“Red Dragon bloodline?” Chi Lai guessed, based on the dragonman youngster’s red
scales.
Chi Lai could also faintly feel the vigorous and abundant power inside the
young man’s body.
Chi La then looked at Shi Qi.
Zong Ge’s strong and large physique was something he paid attention to.
“These physiques are not commonly seen in humanity. What bloodlines do they
have?”
Both the commander and auxiliary commander were burly chaps, this was the first
impression Chi Lai had gotten of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ style.
Chi Lai slowly spoke, “Commanders, you should understand my situation. I am Chi
Lai, a believer in the Justice God. I will comply with rational orders, but so
long as you violate righteousness, I won’t bow to your will.”
His tone was quite tranquil, but others could make out his determination and
willpower from his voice.
“Understood.” The dragonman youngster smiled, “Luckily, I am just like you. I
also believe in my God and keep to the path of righteousness.”
“?” Chi Lai stared slightly; his apathetic expression experienced a rare
change.
The Justice God’s strength was not outstanding amongst the empire’s gods,
consequently, the scope of their churches was very small and couldn’t compare
to the Sheng Ming Church or the Wealth Church.
He wouldn’t have thought that in the boundless ocean, he would have met another
Justice believer.
In a split second, Chi Lai’s opinion of the dragonman youngster short up
rapidly and his eyes grew softer.



****** Chapter 151: Magic Rune Swordsman Ye Zhou ******
Chi Lai didn’t doubt the dragonman youngster’s words, because it wasn’t
worthwhile to deceive him. Beliefs were very difficult to disguise long term,
and genuine believers wouldn’t lie about them, such conduct disrespected their
own beliefs.
Furthermore, both sides have already signed the contract. The dragonman
youngster was the master, deceit was unnecessary now.
“Please take a seat here.” The dragonman youngster pointed at the seat he had
prepared.
Chi Lai was silver level after all.
Chi La nodded and took his seat.
He had encountered many masters, some were courteous to him, some were not.
After experiencing so many people, he didn’t value these surface level things.
Zong Ge observed Chi Lai for a moment, then shifted his gaze back to the
auction stage.
The half beastman had a good opinion of Chi Lai, but when they met each other
for the first time, he said nothing.
The dragonman youngster was very delighted.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only had two silver levels, and if Chi Lai
could serve, he would be their third.
This was an immense addition in terms of high level military strength.
This was their first meeting. If they wanted to gain each other’s trust, they
needed experience and time with each other.
After Chi Lai left the auction stage, the auctions continued.
“Once again, congratulations to room 14, with Chi Lai joining them, their
strength is bound to skyrocket. Chi Lai is indeed this auction’s sole silver
level.”
The auction master changed the tone of the conversation, “Anyways, although the
next slave is only iron level, they were once a silver.”
“His life experience is very abundant, and from a certain angle, he isn’t
outdone by Chi Lai.”
Soon after, a person was taken onto the stage.
It was an elf with a tall stature, two pointed ears, and nearly black skin.
Through careful observation, one could see that it was not his skin that was
black, but rather the many magic runes engraved into his body.
These magic runes were brimming with dark energy.
His skin consequently was influenced by it and was nearly black.
“A magic rune swordsman?” Zong Ge raised his eyebrow.
Magic rune swordsmen possessed both battle qi and magic, however their magic
power was external and not from their own cultivation.
Magic rune swordsmen have been around for a long time.
Magic rune swordsmen would carve magic runes and even magic formations into
their bodies.
Magic rune swordsmen did not have or had poor aptitude for magic cultivation,
but they had comparably strong spirits. 
They used their spirits to connect to their body’s runes to maneuver the runes’
power, increasing their battle strength.
Magic rune swordsmen exist everywhere in every race.
Their advantage was obvious – cost effectiveness.
Magicians would engrave magic runes into them at a high success rate, and with
a little training, magic rune soldiers could master these magic runes and
utilize their magical power to multiply their battle strength.
The cultivation cost for this was far less than what it took to cultivate a
magician.
Crucially, magic bloodlines were rarer than fighter bloodlines.
Very few people had the cultivation gift to become a magician, while there were
many people that could cultivate battle qi.
Thus, magic rune soldiers were easier to select, cultivate, and replenish than
magicians. 
Of course, they also had shortcomings.
The runes engraved on their bodies were stuck there permanently and were very
hard to modify.
Not only was the modification hard, but after the modification, the soldier’s
body would be harmed and cause every aspect of themselves to decline.
The slave after Chi Lai was an elven magic rune swordsman. 
Before the auction master could introduce him, he decided to open his mouth
first.
“My name is Ye Zhuo.”
“I was once a Royal Court swordsman.”
“For more strength, I defected.”
“The Royal Court dispatched people to capture me, and although I am still
alive, I paid that price with my left arm and silver level cultivation.”
“I can help you train soldiers; I was an assistant military instructor of the
Royal Court’s swordsmanship!”
“As long as you give me a sword, I can still fight too.”
“I also know many things. This information cannot be gained through normal
means, and much of it concerns the shipping routes of elven merchant ships.”
Ye Zhou did his best to market himself.
The dragonman youngster looked at the item list.
Ye Zhuo’s name had been on the list.
Some information on him was also presented there too.
He was a traitor of some elven royal court, and once one of their royal
swordsmen.
He had dark magic runes, the outcome of his pursuit for power. 
He had absconded to the ocean but was still apprehended by elven troops.
When the elf royal court squad captured him, they didn’t execute him on the
spot, instead they wanted to escort him back to the Elf Kingdom for a public
trial.
But en route, their ship was attacked by pirates.
It was the Three Ring Pirates.
This powerful group of robbers had a gold level magician as their commander!
The elven royal court’s ship was attacked and sunk, many people died, and those
left became the pirates’ captives.
Ye Zhuo was among them.
The Three Ring Pirates dealt with these captives in turn, some were killed,
some were experimented on, and some were sold off for money.
Ye Zhou was relatively lucky, he was dropped into the slave market and was
being auctioned off at Two Eyes Island.
The auction began.
Thie first to bid was Dian Wan.
He had an irascible temperament.
Since he wasn’t able to buy the gold level healing potion, he still had money
on him.
The first mate didn’t stop him.
If Ye Zhuo joined the Lightning Pirates, their entire group would be
strengthened.
Although Ye Zhuo was just one person, he didn’t just bring his individual
military force, he could also train soldiers and had precious intel.
After Dian Wan bid, other competitors immediately leaped in in quick
succession.
The price quickly rose beyond the amount of money Dian Wan had.
“These wretched people…” Dian Wan grinded his teeth, unwilling but powerless to
do anything about it.
Almost all of the bidders were pirates.
Apart from the Lighting Pirates, there was also the Stench and Applause
Pirates, among others.
The Ten Touch Pirates also joined in during the later stages and was the most
powerful competitor.
The mercenary corps didn’t join the bidding, and the merchant alliance
representatives were silent.
The dragonman youngster was a cross-armed spectator.
They weren’t joining the auction for a simple reason, purchasing Ye Zhuo would
offend the Elven Royal Court.
The Royal Court had dispatched special troops to arrest Ye Zhuo, and although
they failed this time, it was clear the Royal Court wouldn’t take this lying
down.
The survivors’ main goal was redemption, and new problems arising unexpectedly
was not needed.
Of course, they could buy him and gift him to the Elven Royal Court.
But this was very risky.
Escorting Ye Zhuo back would use up a large amount of time, energy, and
manpower.
What would be the Elf Kingdom reward?
It’s hard to say.
Because Ye Zhuo was just a minor iron level.
Furthermore, Ye Zhuo had already been exposed.
If they bought him, it would likely attract the attacks of every pirate on the
seas.
Another key reason is Ye Zhuo himself.
Ye Zhuo was also very worried that his slave owner would treat him as a git and
turn him over to the Elf Kingdom.
Therefore, when he introduced himself, he displayed he was partial towards
joining a pirate group. 
What Ye Zhuo said was very appealing to pirates.
Pirates wouldn’t be worried about making trouble with the Royal Court and were
looking for elf merchant ships to inconvenience.
The pirates were especially interested in information on the elf merchant ship
routes.
Finally, after a fierce bidding war, Qi You was the final winner.
He purchased Ye Zhuo at a high price.
Ye Zhuo had also adapted to circumstances well.
Upon coming to room 3 and amending the slave contract, he knelt down and vowed
loyalty to Qi You.
Qi You was satisfied by his display.
After Ye Zhuo, a few fighters escorted a dozen people onto the auction stage.
These people were short and stout, had flesh as rugged as stone, and regardless
of gender, all had a long and thick beard.
They were dwarfs.
The auction master said, “The next option is this group of dwarfs, 80 in total.
Those on stage are only some of them.”
The magic image appeared, revealing the remining dwarfs behind the scenes.
These dwarfs were locked up in a gigantic iron cage, all of them looked
apathetic.
Regardless of whether it was the dwarfs in the iron cage or the ones on stage,
they were all shackled and chained. They were forced to shuffle their feet to
move.
When the dwarf Men Shi saw these dwarfs, his expression immediately stirred.
These dwarfs were his clansmen, his relatives.
He had come to this auction for the sole purpose of rescuing these dwarfs.
When Men Shi’s clan was migrating, they suffered the perils of the sea. 
Their ship ran aground, and they were stranded on an uninhabited island,
After a few months of being stuck on that uninhabited island, their distress
fire caused a passing human merchant ship to rescue them.
The dwarfs expressed their gratitude to the merchant ship’s captain, they would
pay gold coins and serve as sailors to help the merchant ship fend off ocean
beasts.
But in the end, when the merchant ship reached port, they suddenly had a
falling out with the captain.
Men Shi’s people ate food tampered by humans, and they all sank into a coma.
By the time they woke up, the humans had stolen their belongings and sold them
into slavery.
“These are dwarfs, as everyone knows.” The auction master brightly said.
“Whether it is mining, metallurgy, or forging equipment, and even brewing beer,
they are experts at all of those.”
“Their skin is coarse and their flesh thick, nature fighters.”
“If you purchase them, you’ll find a use for them, regardless of whether it is
as a soldier or a miner.”
“As for their cultivation, the highest is iron level, of which there are 3,
along with 12 bronze levels…”
When she heard this introduction, Zi D grew excited, “In the future, if we
build an alchemy factory, we can find a place for these dwarfs as workers
there.”
In room 1, Hun Tong smiled at Song Shou and said, “These dwarfs, are you
interested in them?”
“If the island you choose has mineral resources, these dwarfs will be a money
making machine.”
“Especially during the beginning period of development, through selling the ore
these dwarfs excavate, you can obtain profits that can bring you great
progress.”
Hun Tong didn’t need these dwarfs.
The reason was obvious at a glance.
Two Eyes Island was a coral ball cage tree, it had no minerals at all.
As for buying these dwarfs for soldiers, Hun Tong didn’t them in that capacity
either.
He would rather build some light cannon turrets and didn’t want to train
troops, because the latter had a higher military expenditure while the light
cannon turrets had a lower maintenance cost.
Song Shou’s heart rate inevitably quickened.
He thought of the choices the empire had given him.
Among them were two islands where ore veins had been discovered.
These dwarfs really did suit him.



****** Chapter 152: Water Pigmen ******
The dwarf auction began.
Room 1 and room 21 bid one after the other.
Both were wake up calls.
“One is the gold level fighter Song Shou, and the other is the richest and most
mysterious buyer.” Men Shi’s heart seemed to sink into the ocean, pressure was
piling onto him.
He bit his jaw and was the third to bid, making a firm resolution to himself:
Even if he has to sell himself oof, he will redeem his people!
The price competition continued, with some new competitors entering the fray as
the price rapidly soared.
When the dwarfs on stage saw Men Shi, they were emotionally moved. Some did
their utmost to struggle until the watching fighters drew whips to get them to
behave. Others wanted to shout, but they had been silenced with magic and
looked like mimes. Many more dwarfs were weak and without strength, for before
they went on stage, they had been drugged.
The pirates were uninterested in these dwarfs.
Because 80 dwarfs packaged in a single auction, thus the powers that could
absorb this amount had to be quite large.
Of the pirate groups at the auction, Qi You’s Ten Touch Pirates was the
biggest. Second to him was Dian Wan’s Lightning Pirates, Yang Cong Tou’s Stench
Pirates, and Hu Li’s Applause Pirates.
These for pirate groups were mainly composed of humans, with the outlier, the
Applause Pirates, being composed of mostly frogmen.
Regardless of which group it was, recruiting so many dwarfs at once would have
a strong impact on the original members.
Because their races, habits, and properties were different.
Especially since there were many dwarfs, no matter which power they join, they
will band together to keep themselves warm, a challenge to the leader and the
organization overall.
In this respect, entities like the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was rare.
Because this mercenary corps not only had humans, but also a dragonman, dogmen,
and a small giant.
To outsiders, it seemed this was perhaps because Commander Long Fu was a
dragoman himself.
However, the real reason was that the survivors were a complicated bunch. They
not only had a half beastman, but also a necromancer, a ghost girl, and a
dragonman youngster that could change his race at will.
Because of the survivors’ foundation when they established the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, they involuntarily reflected their common origin leading to
the peculiar phenomenon of having many kinds of races.
As the price rose, so too did the bids slow.
“This price is out of bounds.” Song Shou shook his head and helplessly sighed.
He withdrew from the competition first.
Although he was very interested in these dwarfs, he hadn’t selected an island
yet and he didn’t have enough money. 
Surprisingly, the second to withdraw was actually room 21.
Zi DI indeed wanted these dwarfs.
The reason she withdrew was because the price was too unreasonable. This price
could purchase better and more dwarf slaves.
“Not many gold coins left.” Zi Di carefully calculated the money on hand.
The chance fortune of 50,000 gold coins was almost gone.
Buying Chi Lai cost 8,000 gold.
The gold level healing potion, gold level Gold Silk Chainmail, the Mircale
Flower Pot, and so on were all gained by the survivors through fierce price
wars. That depleted much of their financial resources.
“I have to save some money for daily expenditures.”
“Next, I also need to buy the water pigmen.”
In the Wilderness Continent, there was the Three Color River, it was extremely
long and ran through two thirds of the continent.
Ther Three Color River was white upstream, and had ice floating in it, yellow
midstream due to mixing silt, and red downstream for scarlet red vegetations
grew all over it down there.
The water pigmen always lived in the upstream part of the Three Color River.
The auction list stated that these water pigmen all came from a single village.
The village located upstream of the Three Color River had been raided by human
slavers.
Aside from the casualties incurred from resistance and during transit, all of
the remaining water pigmen captives were being auctioned here. 
Zong Ge valued this group of beastmen.
Zong Ge said to the dragonman youngster and others, “We need these water
pigmen, their bloodline is very compatible with the Backwater Battle Qi
technique. Not only do I know the cultivation method of the Backwater Battle Qi
technique, but I also understand how to establish a Backwater Battle Squad.” 
“With these water pigmen, we will have top quality sailors.”
“Water pigmen are easy to provide for and aren’t picky eaters. They can fish
for themselves and normally, every adult water pigman is an expert fisher.
During famine, they can even use river sand to allay their hunger, their
powerful stomachs can let them digest it barely.”
“During naval battles, we will have an all new route of attack – we can attack
enemy ships with the water pigmen.”
“Backwater Battle Qi can let someone operate in water for a long time, and
after it is given to the water pigmen, they will redouble its power.”
Zong Ge successfully convinced the dragonman youngster.
Cang Xu was somewhat worried.
He privately found the dragonman youngster and generally said this. If these
water pigmen are purchased, they will be trained by Zong Ge. He already has the
Quick Knife Battle Squad, if he increases his strength again, won’t that
increase the hidden dangers?
The dragonman youngster didn’t mind and instead advised Cang Xu, “We are an
integrated whole, with the same goal. We need to try any way that’ll increase
our strength.”
“I trust Zong Ge, he is very ambitious and wants to be leader. But he has never
been a vile character.”
“Without Zong Ge, we won’t be able to form a Backwater Battle Squad, correct?”
The Backwater Battle Squad had a high performance to cost ratio.
Zong Ge was a crucial person.
The water pigmen would be controlled by the slave contracts they signed.
With this goal in mind, the dwarfs on stage could not compare to it.
Zi Di wisely gave up.
In the end, through his own power, Men Shi bought back all of his clansmen.
“I actually won!” Men Shi found it somewhat hard to believe he was victorious.
He wiped his forehead with his hand and noticed it was utterly sweaty.
Before this auction, he had never spoken. All of his money and energy was for
the purpose of redeeming his people.
To him, this auction was heart stopping.
At a completely unreasonable price, these dwarfs were sold to Men Shi.
The market price couldn’t be used as a reference for this.
These were Men Shi’s people.
“We’re saved.” A dwarf gleefully sobbed.
Men Shi then left.
He strode towards backstage, prepared to depart with all of his people. He
wasn’t interested in any upcoming auctions.
The originally full auction audience suddenly had a gap in it, in a somewhat
abrupt manner.
The rest quietly waited for the next auction.
According to the auction list, the auction had reached its finale.
“Do we know what treasures will be on stage?”
Many people curiously guessed.
Hun Tong’s measures to maintain secrecy had succeeded.
Generally speaking, the final item was bound to be exceedingly precious. Even
if this auction ended here, such an auction was bound to leave a deep
impression on people and increase the influence of it further.
“There should only be two or three things before the final item.” Zi Di
determined to herself.
The next slaves weren’t the water pigmen Zon Ge was looking forward to, but
rather a mother and child.
The mother had wavy blond hair and looked delicately beautiful. The son only
looked like he was six or seven and closely gripped his mother’s leg.
As the two were escorted up, they looked panicked and hopeless.
“Baron Zai Xiang’s territory was attacked by pirates. He was the feudal lord,
however, he fearfully slinked off and fled before the battle, causing his
troops to be routed and his entire territory to be looted by the pirates and
many thousands were massacred.”
“The empire dispatched troops to quickly subdue the lost territory, expel the
pirates, and to imprison the baron’s entire family for his crime.”
“As of now, Baron Zai Xiang and his heir have been beheaded by the empire. The
rest of the clan was sold into slavery.”
“What you see before you now is not the baron’s wife, but rather the baron’s
lover as well as his bastard.”
“In addition to them, there are also some retainers and subordinates, please
see the magic images.”
Everyone gazed up and carefully observed them.
The woman had a bronze level life aura, don’t expect that she’d be able to
fight or kill.
It was obvious that she was the baron’s canary, her cultivation was just a part
of her status as a canary, that’s all.
As for their bastard, although he had a noble’s extraordinary bloodline, it was
hard to tell how much talent he really had.
Besides, few people here had the patience to train this child.
The reciprocation cycle was rather long.
Unless the bastard showed extraordinary talent.
Therefore, the quality of the retainers and subordinates in the magic images
greatly influenced how the buyers judged the worth of these slaves.
Zong Ge sized them up too.
He rapidly lost interest.
These retainers and subordinates had mediocre strength, the strongest of them
was a mere bronze level.
Baron Zai Xiang’s clan didn’t lack talents but it was clear that those had been
divided up already.
It was like when a prairie bison toppled over. First the lions would eat most
of the flesh, followed by the hyenas, and then the vultures.
The baron’s lover and bastard had ended up here due to their slave merchant
having a flash of sudden inspiration: if they were sold in an uncivilized
place, perhaps their noble identity could fetch a higher price here?
Chi Lai was also watching.
He was not focused on the mother and child on stage, but rather on Long Fu and
Shi Qi.
When he noticed the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were not interested, his
understanding of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps deepened a layer.
Suddenly, Fei She broke the room’s quietness.
He couldn’t help but wipe his eyes and cry out in alarm, “That’s, that’s Qing
Xin?! Are, are my eyes deceiving me?” 
For a moment, the three silvers all looked at him funny.
Fei She’s look changed, and his heart shouted, “Oh no”.
In a moment of desperation, he forgot there was an outsider inside the room
with them – Chi Lai.
In room 21, Zi Di leaped from her seat, “Elder Qing Xin! She isn’t dead?”
In the magic images, she noticed there was a curled up figure in the corner of
the iron cage.
Although she looked middle aged, and her skin, hands, feet, and other features
showed he had been engaged in constant physical labor, Zi Di saw many things
she was familiar with.
As the bewilderment faded, certainty grew ever more.
That should be Elder Qing Xin!
She was disguised.



****** Chapter 153: Qing Xin ******
Qing Xin and Fei She were both elders of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, but
she was many years younger and had been highly regarded by Zi Di’s father.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance was made up of smaller merchant alliances as
well as individual stores and trading coalitions.
Qing Xin was once a shop owner, who engaged in low end alchemy materials.
The shop was crowded out and went nearly bankrupt.
After joining the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, she saved her store and displayed
her unusual talents.
She was not only talented in business but also magic cultivation.
After obtaining Zi Di’s father’s appreciation, Qing Xin had enough resources to
quickly become a bronze level magician.
Zi Di’s father wanted to keep cultivating her.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s background was too superficial, it needed
cultivators, especially cultivators on their side.
“I remember my father said that Qing Xin’s bloodline was neither high nor low,
and according to his assessment, the silver level was her limit.”
“She should be an iron level magician, but from the outside, she looks like a
normal person.”
“Before my father died, she was declared dead. Her caravan had been looted and
slaughtered by bandits.”
“Did she feign death?”
“Actually, did she escape and conceal her identity?”
“Perhaps I am just guessing at things. The person in the image just bears a
resemblance to her.” 
“No, even if there is a chance, I cannot give up!”
The auction began.
A strong impulse rose in Zi Di’s heart.
She felt just like Men Shi.
Qing Xin had been a tender and close older sister to her. There was an
unforgettable experience from Zi Di’s childhood that influenced her positively.
Only a few people could enter Zi Di’s heart.
With her mother and father dead, Qing Xin and Fei Ji were perhaps the only two
people she considered relatives.
“However.”
“I don’t have that many gold coins left.”
“IF I acquire these slaves, buying the water pigmen will be very dangerous.”
“Don’t tell me we have to drain our liquid capital? No, that isn’t reliable.”
“Most crucially, I still can’t be certain she is Qing Xin!”
“Dang it…”
At that moment, the dragonman youngster’s voice came from room 14.
He placed a bid. 
Zi Di blankly stared, then immediately understood that her beloved had passed
on information.
Her eyes twinkled and her heart welled up with a warm feeling.
“Elder Fei She is by his side, he must have recognized Qing Xin too.”
“He wants to tell me that he knows the situation and won’t hesitate to purchase
these slaves for the chance of saving a surviving relative!”
“That must be it.”
Zi Dis entire being seemed to glow with light.
Her bid immediately provoked many more to take notice.
“I didn’t expect room 21 to be interested in these slaves.”
“Who are these people, they have so much money!”
“Maybe they are just pretending?”
Upon seeing Zi Di enter the contest, the dragonman youngster remained calm and
collected.
He said to Fei She, “Are you sure she is Qing Xin?”
Fei She blinked, “No, no I cannot. I know the Wisteria Merchant; Merchant
Alliance had a young elder that was responsible for many secret businesses. She
was an iron level, but according to relayed rumors, she was dead.”
Zong Ge looked at the magic image and interjected, “Perhaps she is still alive,
maybe hiding herself because the Wisteria Merchant Alliance fell to ruins. Due
to unexpected events, she was reduced to a slave. She concealed her strength
and waited for an opportunity to escape and recover her freedom.”
The dragonman youngster pretended to mutter to himself, “If we took a chance
and bought her, we might be able to recruit an iron level magician. But how
great is that chance cannot be ascertained.”
After saying that, the dragonman youngster glanced at Zong Ge.
As Zong Ge and he locked eyes, Zong Ge replied, “I believe this is a rare
opportunity. We originally wanted to buy the pig watermen, but if it is a
magician, an iron level magician, then her worth will utterly exceed that of
the water pigmen.”
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but nod and continue bidding.
After three bids, the dragonman youngster withdrew from the competition.
He shook his head, “At this price, forget about it. The risks aren’t worth the
money.”
Fei She also nodded, “The, the price indeed is high.  Furthermore, I am not
that familiar with Qing Xin.”
After the dragonman youngster withdrew, there was still three parties left.
Zi Di was one of them.
Not long after, she became the winner.
If the dragonman youngster purchased these slaves, it wouldn’t conform with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps standards. 
Zi Di purchasing them was far less risky.
Zong Ge sighed to himself.
He also believed that by purchasing these slaves, he would let the water pigmen
he admired slip away. Because the team had to save some gold coins as movable
capital.
Room 21’s door quickly rang.
The auction’s fighter and magician brought the slave contracts and imperial
documents.
The documents were law binding and stated clearly that this slave trade was
legitimate and was protected under imperial law.
After the slave agreement was amended, Zi Di and Cang Xu left the room.
She decided to act like Men Shi, prioritizing the acceptance of the slaves and
renouncing joining in the following auction.
Although the ultimate treasure hadn’t appeared yet and there was still hope the
water pigmen could be auctioned.
Zi Di had given that duty to the dragonman youngster, she couldn’t hold herself
back from verifying if it was Qing Xin or not.
“The next auction is a group of water pigmen slaves.” The auction master
presented.
A bronze level fighter dragged up a water pigmen.
The auction master walked to the water pigmen slave and shouted, “Everyone, as
you can see, this is quite the unusual pigman – a water pigman.”
“Every adult water pigman is taller and fatter than a normal pigman.”
“Gaze at its stature and you will know they are an excellent source of troops.”
The water pigman slave on stage glowered at everyone.
His arms were tied behind his back, and he had been drugged. His entire body
was limp and only his eyes could express his ire and hostility.
He was 2 meters tall, had very white skin, a pig head on a human body, his ears
looked like two fans, and had a potbelly and was very rotund.
The auction master clapped the water pigman’s belly, causing a visible wave of
flesh to break across it.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but associate it with Rou Zang.
Of course, the water pigman could never compare to Rou Zang.
After the auction master emphasized the water pigman’s outstanding swimming
ability, the auction began.
Zi DI had left, so the dragonman youngster was the one to bid.
 
Fei She checked for him and informed him of the maximum amount he could spend.
Zong Ge paid close attention to this.
In room 1, Song Shou bid first.
A few merchant alliance representatives bid one after the other.
Zong Ge was somewhat nervous.
The bidders were all single powers, and one of them was even Song Shou, who was
about to select his island to develop his territory.
The auction mood was not intense, and all who bid weren’t doing so fiercely.
The merchant alliance representatives were biding especially cautiously.
After all the water pigmen were beastmen, and there was a barrier between them
and humanity.
The Ten Touch Pirates, Lightning Pirates, and other pirate groups remained
silent.
The dragonman youngster persevered until the end.
“There is still hope.” Zong Ge’s mood was somewhat stirred.
But a moment later, Hun Tong spoke.
He raised the price ferociously as he announced a high price.
The dragonman youngster sighed, the price had exceeded the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ limit.
He was forced to give up.
Zong Ge also hung his eyes down, his heart regretful.
Hun Tong bid only once, acting at the last phase.
He succeeded.
These water pigmen slaves were now his.
“This price is affordable.” Hun Tong was mildly pleased, feeling it had been
worth it.
The slave merchant who brought these water pigmen slaves to Two Eyes Island
indicated that they would be joining this auction.
Hun Tong had been thinking about it and wanted to buy them.
Because the water pigmen could survive in water, and due to their unique body
structure, they could breathe underwater.
Two Eyes Island was a special island, and the water pigmen were well suited to
the bobbing island environment.
Just as he was envisioning his future on how he would employ these water
pigmen, a rumble was heard.
Then, Hun Tong’s body began to shake.
Not only he, but everyone in the auction was also shaking about.
The auction master nearly fell off the stage.
“What’s going on?”
“What just happened?!”
“The entire ground shook, was it an earthquake?”
“Two Eyes Island can’t have earthquakes!”
Everyone was bewildered, and everyone sitting stood up and exhibited a cautious
posture.
Hun Tong promptly ordered his subordinates to investigate.
At the same time, he smashed through the one way mirror and flew onto the
auction stage, “Calm down!”
“An accident has occurred.”
“Don’t be impatient, don’t recklessly cause misunderstandings.”
“I am the feudal lord here; I will use my noble reputation to guarantee that
this auction is safe and fair!”
Hun Tong handled it appropriately and exhibited his outstanding feudal lord
knowledge.
But the situation couldn’t be controlled.
Because the auction’s floor tiling, walls, and even ceiling was being jabbed
with thorns.
Ther entire auction hall became a trap that would kill everyone inside!
In room 3.
“Captain, what should we do?” A subordinate urgently asked.
Qi You coldly snorted, “Regardless of whether this is a scheme of Hun Tong or
not, we need to break out first and discuss that later.”
Boom!
A loud sound caused Qi You to look to the side.
In another room, Dian Wan had already used a battle skill.
“How can this be?” Dian Wan’s battle skill left a hole in the wall.
Then that caused the entire wall to push towards him while simultaneously
lining itself with spikes.
Dian Wan was forced to retreat, crashing through the one way mirror and falling
into the first floor.
“Two Eyes Island is rebelling!”
“It is not an island; it’s a coral ball cage tree.”
“Lord Hun Tong, what’s going on?”
The buyers weren’t blind and quickly discerned the truth.
“What is happening…” Hun Tong’s eyes flashed, he unconsciously looked at room
2, a conjecture growing increasingly certain.
“It’s the fishmen!”
“They’ve made their move.”
“They decide to attack Two Eyes Island today.”
“It was actually today!”



****** Chapter 154: A Trap ******
Hun Tong and the imperial secret spy Shadow had conspired against the Blue
Green Coral Fishmen Clan.
Two Eyes Island was once that fishmen clan’s home.
The fishmen had always wanted to take back their coral ball cage tree.
Previously, Xi Dai Zi had infiltrated Two Eyes Island to negotiate with Shadow,
and Xu Ma had accidentally run into them. Afterward, there was the whole
troublesome necromancer affair.
Shadow insincerely agreed to work with the fishmen and wanted to pry in when
the other party would be precisely attacking the island but failed.
But privately, Hun Tong and Shadow discussed the hypothetical timeline of the
fishmen clan’s attack.
They both believed that it was very probable they would do so during the
auction.
Because during this period, Hun Tong and the others’ attention would be focused
on the auction and the island’s defenses would be relatively weak.
Furthermore, with the pirates, merchant alliances, mercenary corps, and other
visitors on the island, Two Eyes Island wasn’t under the feudal lord’s sole
control.
The two people continued to analyze and felt that the likelihood of this was
small. 
Because during the auction, Two Eyes Island would have the maximum amount of
cultivators gathered on it.
Although Hun Tong’s and the others’ attention was on the auction, Two Eyes
Island had many cultivators and was mainly composed of humans.
If the fishmen attacked, they’d not only have to confront Hun Tong and the
people here, but also many other human cultivators.
From the fishman’s point of view, the disadvantages outweighed the advantages
if they attacked the island during the auction.
Besides, when an army moves, there will be noise. 
Hun Tong didn’t receive any relevant information.
“I didn’t expect these fishmen would really attack the auction today.”
“Hmph, truly stupid!”
Hun Tong coldly snorted to himself.
He wasn’t caught unprepared.
It’s been three years since I’ve smashed the obstructions here, I really want
to fight that old fishman.”
Hun Tong sized up the rebellious coral walls and floor around him as well as
the constantly growing thorns, his eyes leaking a trace of various and
ferventness.
“I didn’t expect these fishman are able to control the coral ball cage tree to
this degree!”
Hun Tong had always wanted this pertinent control method.
Upon seeing what was happening, his desire for this control spell grew even
stronger.
“This isn’t the ocean.”
“Old fish head, when you attacked this island, you have fallen into my trap.”
“No one can hinder me after I kill you.”
“The control method will be mine, and after this battle, Two Eyes Island will
be under my complete control!”
Hun Tong had schemed for a long time, all for the purpose of luring the fishmen
clan into attacking Two Eyes Island.
Now, his hopes had become reality.
The dragonman youngster also rushed out of his room but couldn’t find Zi Di and
Cang Xu.
Beforehand, Zi Di and Cang Xu had left their room and gone backstage to accept
the slaves.
The auction stage rebelled and formed a cage that was constantly growing and
squeezing everything in, but it didn’t include the backstage.
“Two Eyes Island is a coral ball cage tree; I fear its rebellion has the
fishmen’s hands all over it.” Zong Ge analyzed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps knew about this secret.
But they made an agreement with Hun Tong to not publicize it.
Now that the auction stage was rebelling, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps knew
more information than the others and was able to surmise the facts within the
first moments.
“Since the fishmen want to take back their home, there is bound to be a large
assault. If we remain trapped here, Two Eyes Island’s defensive line will lack
a leader.” Zong continued, “No matter what Hun Tong did, we must return to the
port first to defend our ships and crew.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “No matter what, we must converge with them
first!”
With concerns of Zi Di and Cang Xu in mind, he activated his battle qi and
raised his right fist.
In a split second, he emitted a fierce silver level life aura.
Bursting Explosion battle qi surged in his body, then concentrated in his right
fist.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The first ruthlessly smashed into the coral wall, creating a gigantic
explosion.
The wall was blown to bits and a huge hole split open, but it wasn’t connected
to the outside. The coral wall had grown much more coral.
“Again.” The dragonman youngster’s eyes narrowed and he continued punching.
Bang, bang, bang…
With the sound of explosions, coral splattered everywhere and the one way
mirror was pulverized, allowing people to see what was happening in room 14.
Everyone saw the dragonman youngster had acted and were watching closely to see
the outcome.
But after breaking through the coral wall, there was still more coral wall.
“How thick is this?” The dragonman youngster stopped attacking, his brows
creased.
But he didn’t gain nothing.
The coral had split open, creating not only countless fragments, but also
flowing sap.
It was a blue-green liquid.
It was quite viscous and was something between water and oil.
As it slowly flowed out, the coral ball cage tree’s gold level life aura leaked
from it.
When someone saw this, they suddenly yelled, “The coral ball cage tree is an
extraordinary lifeform that has attained the gold level, we need a gold level
cultivator to act!”
Hun Tong sank into hesitation.
He was somewhat worried that after he acted and broke out of here too early, it
would cause the fishmen to promptly retreat.
But Qi You had already moved.
His five fingers stabbed the coral wall as effortlessly as poking tofu.
A burst of whirlwind like battle qi dispersed, splitting a hole into the wall.
The hole looked like a funnel, growing narrower the further in it went, however
it hadn’t gotten through.
Hun Tong’s brows pursed suddenly.
Qi You’s pirates by his side glared, they hadn’t foreseen that their boss was
unable to get through.
The Fertile Land priest extended a wrinkled palm and softly stroked the coral
wall.
Wherever it went, the thorns on the coral wall naturally fell off.
The Fertile Land priest’s eyes slightly opened, and he shouted his discovery,
“This is a god’s power…it is the Suffering Endurance Barrier!”
“Suffering Endurance God…” For a moment, many people’s mind flashed with the
same god’s name.
The Suffering Endurance God was a small god.
They were a sharkman but left the ocean to travel the lands.
He joined the Great Pain Temple, shaving his hair as a monk (even though he
didn’t have hair), and constantly increased his life level.
Afterwards, he lived in seclusion for a long time in the Three Color River’s
midstream.
It wasn’t until he became a god that he became widely known.
The Suffering Endurance God was deeply influenced by the Great Pain Temple.
After becoming a god, he founded the Suffering Endurance Church and advocated
for endurance, suffering hardship, and to derive life’s vigor from within those
things.
The Suffering Endurance Barrier amply displayed the Suffering Endurance
Church’s creed. It could allow a spell caster to bear more attacks and pain.
This was why when even Qi You acted, he didn’t succeed either.
“You’re joking, even Qi You can’t break through?”
“The coral ball cage tree combined with the Endurance Barrier is actually so
powerful!”
“Don’t tell me we are trapped here? The longer time goes on, the worse I fear
the situation outside is!”
Everyone was somewhat frantic.
“Let me try.” Shi Fa came over.
Hope welled up in everyone’s heart again.
If battle qi doesn’t work, then let’s give magic a try!
Shi Fa instantly moved.
His characteristic playing cards revolved around him, floating in the air.
These were his custom-made magic scrolls.
A card flew out from the group and turned into a strong flame that pounced onto
the coral wall.
The flame was very hot and concentrated.
The coral thorns were burned away, and the coral wall began to fuse.
But soon after, the blaze was weirdly extinguished.
“What’s going on?”
“It seems the magic has been suppressed.”
It’s obvious that Shi Fa wasn’t attacked, why? Is magic ineffective?” 
Everyone was clamorous.
Shi Fa shook his head, “I stopped my magic myself.”
He continued, “Not good, perhaps there is a nearby magic formation
counteracting magic power. When I maintained my spell, I could feel my magic
power dwindling.”
A Magic Power Counteraction formation!
This magic formation was often used by hunting groups against powerful magic
beasts.
Magic beasts contained magic power and could use racial magics.
Racial magics were the greatest threat.
Hunting groups would use this formation to deplete a magic beast’s magic power,
until it was reduced to only being able to use its physical body.
Many terrible magic beasts were captured alive that way.
Now that formation is being used here.
“No matter who it is, they are harboring unfathomable motivations!”
“Do they want to capture us alive like magic beasts?”
“Let’s attack together, I don’t believe this auction hall can hold us all!”
People were constantly shouting.
But although much was said, for a moment, no one did anything.
Regardless of whether it was the dragoman youngster, Qi You, or Shi Fa, al of
them were waiting and watching.
Hun Tong was no longer calm; he was growing distinctly gloomy.
He noticed that it would be difficult to escape from the auction hall in a
short period.
Whether it was the Suffering Endurance Barrier or the Magic Power Counteraction
formation, both of them would deplete a large amount of battle qi, magic or
divine power.
If everyone was united, trusted each other, and exerted themselves at the same
time, breaking out of here was not difficult.
But the problem was that the cultivators here were a extremely mixed bunch.
There were imperial nobles, profit seeking merchants, mercenary corps, and
pirates.
These people were wary of each other.
The situation outside was unknown, and no one dared to excessively expended
their own strength.
If one was weak, then perhaps one by them would decide to take their life.
Some pirates viciously glared at Hun Tong.
Qi You spoke directly, “Feudal Lord Hun Tong, is this a scheme of yours? Do you
want to catch all of us in a single net?”
Hun Tong coldly snorted, “By my clan’s honor, I swear that I had no hand in
this.”
Qi You shook his head, “Don’t play tricks. This place is your territory, yet
this happened. We trusted you and came here to participate in your auction.”
“Now then, you are in charge of obtaining the power that will let us leave!”
Many pirates echoed Qi You’s sentiment.
“That’s right, that’s how it should be!”
“Lord Hun Tong, we are now counting on you.”
“Please let your actions speak for yourself. That is the best way to prove your
innocence.”
Hun Tong’s face was as dark as water, somewhat embarrassed he was being
squeezed by the crowd.
“A group of morons.” Song Shou came to his aid.
He decided to jump out of the room and stood by Hun Tong’s side, “Who do you
think loses the most if this place is attacked?”
“The spoiling of this auction will vilely impact Two Eyes Island.”
The two gold levels united and immediately suppressed the malicious hoots and
crowd jeers.
Everyone was silent, and only the creaking from the growing coral thorns could
be heard.



****** Chapter 155: Feudal Lord Hun Tong ******
Hun Tong threw a look of thanks to Song Shou.
Song Shou nodded to Hun Tong, and he stood shoulder to shoulder in firm support
of him.
To Song Shou, there were many benefits for backing Hun Tong.
In the future, the island he would choose for his territory might be close to
Two Eyes Island. Having a good relationship with Hun Tong ahead of time would
be beneficial to his territory’s development.
If nothing else, just opening a trade route between the two islands would be an
immense help to the newly established territory.
Operating an island had many trials.
Because an island’s resources were limited and might lack necessary
construction materials.
For example, Two Eyes Island lacked metal and ore.
Unlike territory on the continent, where there were roads in all directions and
vast tracts of land, even if one’s territory didn’t have something, one could
look for it in the surrounding areas.
Although the auction hall had changed, Song Shou did not believe Hun Tong was
defeated and routed.
“Hun Tong has run Two Eyes Island for many years and knows a great deal of
inside information.”
“Two Eyes Island is imperial territory; I want to see what things are so brazen
as to encroach upon this place!”
Song Shou and Hun Tong were both imperial feudal lords, the same type of
people, and when confronted with a mutual external enemy, it was natural they’d
help each other.
“One of the reasons I got close to Song Shou was to conspire against the Blue
Green Coral Fishmen clan.”
“I didn’t expect this day would come so suddenly.”
“Song Shou has stated his support of me, that saves me the cost of forming an
alliance with him.”
Hun Tong regained his clarity of vision and glanced at room 2.
He had a deep relationship with the one in room 2.
The one in room 2 was the imperial secret spy – Shadow!
“Shadow’s troops have snuck into the Vinegar Jar Pirates and have become
enemies hidden within their ranks.”
“Prior intelligence came through, yet we haven’t heard anything about the
fishmen clan making such a big move.”
“It seems these undiscovered traitors are inauspicious.”
“Not just that.”
“We might have spies hiding among us.”
“Even now in the auction hall!”
Hun Tong’s mind flashed and he quickly analyzed the situation before him.
The auction hall’s transformation was the greatest proof in favor of Hun Tong’s
hypothesis.
The Suffering Endurance barrier, Magic Power Counteraction formation, and coral
ball cage tree through the fishmen clan’s secret control spell caused the
auction hall to rebel and become a cage.
These were certainly deployed to waste time.
It was inexcusable that this could happen right under the noses of Hun Tong and
the others without an inside man.
“Previously, the fishman Xi Dai Zi disguised himself when he went to Two Eyes
Island.”
“Afterwards was the beast tide.”
“Preceding the auction, there were all kinds of ships landing with unusually
complex crew.”
“They took advantage of this opportunity to mix in how many fishmen?”
“The most important thing now is to break out of here first!”
Hun Tong’s eyes flashed, and in an instant, his thoughts were restrained.
Although much was thought about, only a few brief seconds had passed.  
Because the auction hall was closing in as countless thorns were frantically
growing, the second floor was nearly crushed, and many people had jumped down
to the first floor.
Hun Tong stood on the auction stage and ran his eyes over the first and second
floor cultivators.
When he saw the Applause Pirates’ frogmen, his eyes couldn’t help but stop
faintly.
If the undiscovered traitor that snuck into the auction hall wasn’t one of the
frogmen’s humans, that would be very suspicious!
However, Hun Tong didn’t wan to question them directly.
Right now, they had to trust each other because of the imminent danger, and if
he gave off misgivings, that was bound to cause everyone to take precautions
against each other and lead to fights.
The fishmen had turned the auction hall into a net that caught nearly all of
Two Eyes Island’s cultivators. Hun Tong now assumed that doing this was both
bold and ingenious.
Time and tide waited for no man, so Hun Tong said, “Everyone, I am Hun Tong,
the Feudal Lord here.”
“Like you, I am a victim.”
“Furthermore, I am the biggest victim.”
“For the empire, for the Duo Mu Clan’s reputation, and as Feudal Lord, I must
act.”
“But I cannot do it alone!”
After pausing, Hun Tong continued, “I know you are apprehensive, I am the
same.”
“To change the auction hall this much means we likely have an enemy in our
midst.”
“If I go about it alone, I am bound to fall into our enemy’s schemes.”
“We must work together!”
“Whoever refuses will be Hun Tong’s enemy, the enemy of everyone!” 
“Whoever sneaks away is a traitor!”
At this critical juncture, Hun Tong’s usual warm tone had become sharp.
Gold aura broke out, exposing Hun Tong’s fierce determination as well as his
increasingly strong killing intent.
Upon seeing Hun Tong like this, no one doubted he would follow through with his
words!
“Hun Tong…is very skilled.” Some pirates’ eyes flashed with fear.
This was the first time many people had genuinely recognized what Two Eyes
Island’s Feudal Lord was like.
Hun Tong’s candidness had its pros and cons.
He was a skilled linguist, first he put himself in the shoes of everyone here,
then molded the undiscovered as the external pressure. Using threats or other
means wouldn’t unite the cultivators here.
In this crucial moment, Hun Tong had displayed his leadership talent.
A voice soon responded in agreement.
It was One Eye.
One Eye was Hun Tong’s subordinate.
Soon after, the other subordinates reached the same, echoing the former’s
agreement.
Hun Tong spoke again, “The enemy has trapped us here, they want to capture us
all!”
“We will break out of here, and whoever extends Two Eyes Island a helping hand
will receive my friendship and ample rewards after we win.”
“You know my reputation.”
“You also know my wealth.”
Benefits for motivation, sentiment for understanding.
Hun Tong had run Two Eyes Island for a long time and his past qualifications
increased his persuasiveness.
Thus, the mercenary corps, merchant alliance representatives, lone wolves, and
others agreed, each of them vocalizing their answer to Hun Tong’s appeal.
Hun Tong temporarily organized the auction hall’s cultivators together.
He also understood proper decorum and allowed every power to band together
separately, then with this foundation deployed them according to his plan.
The auction hall’s coral thorns were constantly spreading and were being driven
back by the cultivators.
The ceiling was pressing down, the floor was slowly bulging, and walls all
around were shrinking, continuously reducing the space everyone could move in. 
Luckily this shrinkage was slow, and it gave everyone plenty of time to marshal
themselves.
The second floor had been compressed into nonexistence.
Everyone in the private rooms came out.
The representatives of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the dragonman
youngster, Zong Ge, and Chi Lai converged with Xu Ma. 
The dragonman youngster didn’t find Zi Di, which proved that the auction hall’s
backstage was not part of the trap.
This discovery brought both worry and delight in equal measure.
“Where were the people in room 21?” Many people had taken note of this.
Zi Di and Cang Xu were the most imposing figures in the auction and had
provoked many people. They were the two most memorable people here.
“Dang it, they aren’t here.”
“They escaped earlier, that’s very suspicious!”
“If there is an insider, then they are the biggest suspect.”
Many people exchanged, they had a deep resentment of Zi Di and Cang Xu.
The wise dragonman youngster didn’t say anything.
Fei She actually echoed their condemnation, drawing many friendly eyes. 
After all, during the auction, the Drago Lion Mercenary Corps repeatedly
“confronted” room 21.
Under Hun Tong’s organization, despite the chaotic situation, order was in the
process of being reinforced.
Hun Tong divided everyone into three groups, one group to attack, one group to
rest, and one group to supervise. 
The dragonman youngster mixed into them, his heart worried about Zi Di and Cang
Xu, for he didn’t know how they were doing right now.
A group of dwarfs were walking through Two Eyes Island’s streets.
Men Shi walked in front, walking while reminding his clansmen, “There is a
hotel ahead, I reserved ten rooms.”
“We’ll stay there first for the time being.”
“In the room, I have prepared good food and clothing.”
“We don’t have…much money. You must be frugal and cut down on food and drink.”
Men Shi had nearly exhausted all of the money on him to purchase his people.
His people were sobbing emotionally, thanking Men Shi.
Some were embittered and indignant, “After crossing this pit, we still need to
take revenge!”
“That’s right, we’ll find that wretched captain that bit the hand that fed
him!”
“It’s like I said, all humans are wretched.”
Men Shi’s people had lived in the mountains and had mined for a living. After
suffering this catastrophe, many of them had a negative opinion of humans and
were seriously wary towards them.
“I want to leave this place now and return home.”
“Even though our home is already gone, at least I can fall asleep in those
ruins without worry!”
Men Shi’s clan’s former home had been destroyed by a fire.
The dwarfs had dug into the mountains and multiplied there.
But an earthquake triggered the mountain’s collapse, and they were forced to
migrate.
Men Shi sighed, constantly consoling his people, “Everything is in the past, we
will find a new home. The ore there will surely be more beautiful and
evocative!”
As they were talking, a rumble was heard.
At the same time, the ground violently shook.
Behind the dwarfs, a dazzling yellow light erupted like a volcano into the air.
“What’s going on?”
“What just happened?!”
The dwarfs cried out in alarm, they all turned around to look up to see that
the auction hall was wrapped in that yellow light.
Large amounts of branches and vines extended from underneath and layered
themselves around the auction hall.
The guards outside the auction hall noticed things were going south and
immediately attacked, however the yellow light blocked them.
The dwarfs foolishly watched this.
They had walked far from the auction hall, however, from the dozen meter high
yellow light, they could sense a strong divine spell, magic, and the life aura
of a gold level magic plant.
“The auction hall had an accident!”
“Is…that the auction’s special item?” A dwarf foolishly asked.
Bang, bang, bang.
A series of fireworks flew in the skies about Two Eyes Island.
“Ggglmra!”
“Mmar!”
“Glmmwza……”
Fishmen appeared from manholes that led underground, others rushed and attacked
from shadowy alleys, and some kicked down the doors of buildings they were
hiding in, their murderous spirit abound.
The dwarfs realized what was happening.
“It’s the fishmen!”
“Two Eyes Island is being attacked by fishmen.”
“Where did these fishmen come from?”



****** Chapter 156: Fishmen Ambush ******
The dwarfs were stupefied.
It took a few seconds for them to react.
“Hehe, how interesting, those damned humans suffered damage.”
“Be careful, we are in danger too!”
A group of fishmen rushing past noticed the dwarfs.
Men Shi bravely stepped forward and took out his stem war hammer, gripping it
tightly with both hands, centering it in his chest.
“Fishmen, we are not your enemy.” Men Shi growled, his thick eyebrows and big
eyes tenaciously watching the fishmen’s leader.
The fishmen’s leader was steeped in a silver level aura, riding a four legged
ocean lizard, and had many bones covering his body.
The ash gray skeleton covering him looked like armor.
It was the Steel Bone Knight bloodline.
The fishman had an extraordinary bloodline!
The blue skinned lizard growled threateningly at Men Shi and was becoming
agitated. 
The fishman leader looked deeply at Men Shi, then across Men Shi’s dwarven
people. Then with shivering killing intent, he clapped his lizard’s head.
“gklllrma”
He said something, and the subordinates he commanded charged from behind him
and brushed past the dwarfs.
The dwarfs walked pass the precipice of death.
Upon seeing the fishmen leave, the dwarfs whose hearts were in their throats
groaned, all of them wanted to collapse from that.
“We were nearly finished.”
“What can we do? We can’t die on Two Eyes Island after getting free.”  
“We don’t need to help those humans!”
Men Shi said, “We should still return to the hotel, I have food and clothing
there, and I have some simple weapons for you too.”
The allocation of weapons was not odd.
This world had cultivators and numerous magic beasts. Even something as
powerful as the Sheng Ming Empire had bandits in its hinterlands and was never
able to achieve a completely safe society.
Adding on the rampant pirates, Men Shi would have prepared more weapons if he
hadn’t been saving money to purchase his clansmen.
The dwarfs didn’t dare to stay in place, and they sped up their pace towards
the hotel.
Boom, bang, rumble.
Three fireballs continuously bombarded the auction hall’s wall.
It was Zi Di and Cang Xu using fire path rings.
The auction hall’s external wall was thicker and was constantly wrapped up with
the coral ball cage tree’s branches and vines.
“Even if we use all of our magic power to bomb indiscriminately, we won’t gain
anything.” Cang Xu shook his head.
Zi Di looked grave and carefully surveyed the yellow light in front of her,
“The auction hall is part of the coral ball cage tree. Its growth has gone
wild. Furthermore, it seems there is also a divine spell’s power here.”
At the same time, detection alchemy puppets were constantly feeding information
on the surroundings.
Zi Di and Cang Xu knew the fishmen had surged up and attacked every strategic
location on the island.
Cang Xu replied, “The culprit behind this is the fishmen! Xi Dai Zi is a
fishman, the Vinegar jar Pirates are all fishmen, and although we haven’t seen
them yet, this should be related to them!”
The necromancer’s brows creased tightly, and he gazed at the well-fortified
auction hall as he calmly analyzed, “The Commander’s defense is outstanding,
and he has Zong Ge at his side, he won’t be in danger for now.”
It wasn’t easy for the Vinger Jar Pirates to pull off such a big move.”
“However, this should be their limit.”
“If they were stronger, wouldn’t it be better to eliminate Hun Tong and the
rest right away? The auction hall is just a cage that has trapped them
temporarily, so they can’t take charge of the situation.”
“We are not the fishmen’s main target!”
When Zi Di heard Cang Xu’s words, she reluctantly restrained her fretfulness.
Cang Xu’s words indeed made sense.
Even if the auction hall was a fishman’s killing move, the most important
target was not the dragonman youngster, but rather Hun Tong.
Of course, more crucially was that it was very hard for them to break into the
auction hall.
Cang Xu sighed, “The Vinegar Jar Pirates’ move was so big that it caught nearly
all of Two Eyes Islands’ cultivators in it.
“But the fact they aren’t defending this place indicates what?”
“It indicates they aren’t worried about people breaking into the auction hall.
Our attempts just now also prove that we don’t have the internal energy to
smash this obstruction in a short amount of time.”
After hearing what was said, Zi Di turned around to look at something close by.
It was a group of people.
They had been the slaves they had just purchased.
They were headed by a mother and child. The mother was blond and beautiful and
was holding her son tight.
Just as they left the auction hall, the fishmen attacked Two Eyes Island,
causing both of them to panic and at a loss.
Zi Di’s eyes stayed on the mother and son for only an instant before sliding
past to look at a middle aged woman in the crowd.
“Is she older sister Qing Xin? If we have her, we’d have three magicians, will
that be enough to break into the auction hall?” Zi Di wondered.
Although she believed it was a high possibility that they were Qing Xin, before
confirming it, everything was only just a possibility.
Zi Di couldn’t expose her identity right now.
Therefore, the situation was actually even more complicated.
Suppose the other person was Qing Xin…
Zi Di couldn’t say who she really was, and if that was the case, she wouldn’t
be able to swiftly gain Qing Xin’s trust and count on her help.
There was another crucial thing, how strong was Qing Xin?
Prior rum0ors said she died in a bandit raid, and that she got away through
playing dead, was that really the case?
She concealed her identity, does that mean she had a hidden trouble that was
hard talk about?
When Cang Xu saw Zi Di looking, he immediately understood what Zi Di was
thinking.
His voice became somewhat cold, “I advise you not do that.”
Zi Di sighed and nodded.
It was too risky to expose her true identity!
Furthermore, Qing Xin was a silver level magician, and even with her power
combined with Cang Xu’s and Zi Di’s, the likelihood of breaking into the
auction hall was very small. 
Didn’t you see that Hun Tong and the other gold levels are trapped inside and
unable to escape momentarily?
After thoroughly dispelling thoughts of attacking the auction hall, Zi Di
recovered her former shrewdness, “We have more important work now, protecting
the ships at port.”
“The fishmen are attacking Two Eyes Island, the port is one of their main
targets.”
“We have to ensure our ships are still there.”
“By the time the commander and the rest break out, there won’t be any ships
left to sail, they’ll be trapped on Two Eyes Island and the desperate struggle
with the fishmen.”
Cang Xu’s expression eased somewhat, “Then we should do that! However, what do
you intend to do with these slaves?”
Zi Di whispered back, “We will put these people near the port, but we cannot
put them on the ships. I need a chance to talk privately, and when that time
comes, we’ll play it by ear.”
This was a sensible plan, and it immediately won Cang Xu’s endorsement.
Zi Di looked deeply back at the auction hall, then bit her teeth as she turned
to leave.
She and Cang Xu helped the slaves run towards the port.
“Nmlgmlalgsmlgn”
“Gnmnnla”
“Gmlamgngnmal”
The fishmen roared from under the light cannon turrets.
Their leader was the Steel Bone Knight who left Men Shi, and the dwarfs go –
Fishman Gang Kui.
The reason why they let the dwarfs go was because they had more important
military targets.
The light cannon turrets!
They had been recently built by Hun Tong and had been a very prominent
defensive weapon during the beast tide.
But as Fishman Gang Kui and his troops charged towards the light cannon
turrets, they remained still.
Ding.
Gang Kui controlled his mount, raised his 2 meter long lance, and crashed into
a light cannon turret’s door, the first to charge up.
The light cannon turret’s guards were all on the ground. 
None had any breath, their eyes were rolled back to their whites, and purple
poisonous blood was flowing from their mouths.
In the shadows, the silhouette of a purple scaled fishman shaman appeared.
Guang Kui promptly saluted her.
The fishman shaman nodded back to him, and like bubbles, the silhouette
dissipated.
Guang Kui quickly ascended to the top, stuck his tribe’s totem pillar at the
top, and lit the firework signal.
The light cannon turret had been captured!
Two Eyes Island’s barracks.
Large quantities of fishmen crazily attacked from all sides.
The barrack’s soldiers were fighting for their lives.
The situation for the humans was very unfavorable.
The biggest factor was the storm fishman leader, a silver level redeye fishman
– Hong Bo.
The Red Eye bloodline came with its own Blood Fury spell.
The red eyed fishman leader was a silver level, and after activating his Blood
Fury spell, his military power would increase sharply, each attack shaking the
barrack’s gates.
“We must persevere!”
“The auction hall also had a mishap, I don’t see the Feudal Lord.”
“Then where is the Lord Commander? He didn’t participate in the auction.”
With their leader absent, the human soldiers’ morale was beginning to waver.
In a street.
Shops along the border had become ruins.
A fierce struggle had already unfolded.
There were only two people fighting, and both of them were gasping for air.
The silver level human city guard commander spat out some watery blood and a
broken tooth.
Opposing him a dozen paces away was a silver scaled fishman.
This fishman was slender and was two heads taller than a normal fishman.
The outside of his forearms, back of his forelegs, as well as his entire fish
head and back were covered in vertical fins. The fins were dark silver, and
their points were very sharp.
His weapons were his pair of forearm knife fins.
The silver level blade fin fishman – Dao Hen!
As Hun Tong presided over the auction, the heavy burden of Two Eyes Island’s
defenses was given to his city guard commander.
As the commander hurried towards the barracks, Dao Hen had ambushed him and
caught him off guard, suffering minor injuries from it.
Fishmen had reduced military strength on dry land, and these minor injuries
also decreased the city guard commander’s strength. 
As time went on, the commander’s mind grew more irascible.
He wanted to break through this place and return to the barracks, but Dao Hen
tenaciously blocked him.
“Damm fishman, after I kill you, I will chop you into pieces and turn you into
salted fish!” The commander cursed, and with a vengeful glare, charged at Dao
Hen.
Ding!
The commander’s blade crashed into Dao Hen’s forearm fin, creating a crisp
noise and sparks.
The fierce battle began once more.
The port.
It was a sight of chaotic warfare.
A silver level spiky stinger fishman lead their subordinates into the toppled
hastily created defensive line.
But the humans held fast.
Because the port had their ships berthed here, all of which were natural forts.
Especially the many magic ships which were easy to defend and hard to attack.
Even though this place had the largest number of fishmen attacking this place,
it was difficult to defeat their enemy quickly.



****** Chapter 157: Sisters Recognize Each Other ******
“Boss, open the door now!” The dwarf Men Shi banged on the hotel door, behind
him a raggedly dressed group of dwarfs looked flurried and dispirited.
A window on the second floor opened and the hotel manager showed his face,
“Stop knocking, this is an emergency, the door has already been barred, we’re
closed. Get out of here!”
The fishmen attack had worried the island inhabitants very much, and one after
the other, they took defensive measures.
Men Shi exploded in anger, “I already reserved the rooms, I paid the fee!”
The hotel manager answered back, “I’ll refund you, how much?”
The dwarfs’ expressions changed.
Men Shi coldly snorted, he needed to give his people time and space to breathe
and rest.
“My stuff is still in the rooms, this is an emergency, now is not the time to
abide by the rules!”
With this in mind, Men Shi decided to threaten the hotel manager.
“If you won’t open the door, we’ll break it down instead!”
“Or we’ll just lure some fishmen over to demolish your inn!”
The hotel manager stiffened. 
The moment Men Shi raised his war hammer to smash down the door, he held out
his hand, “Stay your hand, I’ll let you in. Just be quick!”
The moment the door cracked opened; the dwarfs flooded into the hotel.
“If the fishman attack this place, I ask you to help us protect this place
dwarven friends.” The hotel manager squeezed out a smile, “The price can be
discussed.”
“We’ll discuss it later.” Some dwarfs replied.
After being trafficked by a human captain, they questioned the honesty of
humans.
After assigning rooms, Men Shi prioritized arming them.
“What are these things?” The dwarfs weren’t pleased with these weapons.
“My grandmother’s braids are sturdier that these!” The dwarfs’ blunt nature
caused them to grumble at once.
Men Shi shook his head and sighed, “Just made do, it’s better to have them.”
These weapons were very crude.
The hammers were obviously tools, not weapons.
Apart from them, there were bent one hand swords, chipped cutlasses, shabby
daggers, and even a prosthetic iron arm hook. These were obviously equipment
pirates had thrown out.
The dwarfs stopped talking, they firmly remembered their appreciation to Men
Shi.
Although these weapons were rubbish, in the current situation, they still gave
them some sense of security.
“Lord Men Shi, what are we going to do?” A dwarf asked.
Men Shi muttered to himself, “We will hide in this hotel. We won’t go outside
unless it is absolutely essential. Let the humans and the fishmen duke it out,
this does not concern us dwarfs.”
The dwarfs nodded.
Although they had a bit of weaponry, they didn’t have any armor.
Armor was far more expense than weapons, therefore Men Shi couldn’t afford
them.
As the dwarfs gained a stable environment for the time being, Zi Di, Cang Xu,
and a group of people entered a big house.
Although the house was spacious and luxuriously decorated, no one was inside.
The house had the Flint Merchant Alliance’s symbol inside it.
Zi Di guessed that this might be the Flint Merchant Alliance branch manager’s
house.
The branch manager was trapped inside the auction hall, and the house’s
servants and attendants had fled without a trace.
After all, this place was quite close to the port.
The port was one of the fishman’s main targets.
Even inside, Zi Di could still hear the sounds of fighting from the port.
Ordinary servants and attendants naturally wouldn’t dare to stay in such a
dangerous place.
Through scouting puppets, Cang Xu discovered this place and through a broken
door, came in and made this their temporary base.
Cang Xu was responsible for standing guard.
A few scouting puppets under his control was quietly approaching the port.
Cang Xu quickly obtained first hand intel.
The port was in a bad state; however, it wasn’t that terrible. Especially
compared to the already captured light cannon turrets. 
The fishmen already forced their way into the port.
It seemed this was no surprise to Cang Xu.
Even though he wasn’t a military officer, he had reckoned this would happen.
Because the port was accessible from all sides and had no terrain to defend it.
If the port had numerous obstacles, it greatly inconvenience the daily shipping
of goods and movement of people.
The humans left on the port had retreated into their ships or took the high
ground on the deck in defensive positions.
Like ants, the fishmen climbed the ships like city walls in a surging and
unending offensive.
They were headed by a silver level spiky fishman.
He had a plump physique, white gray fish scales where many black spikes
naturally grew from.
This gave him an innate secondary armor that could painfully stab any enemies
fighting near him.
The fishman was extremely angry and was shouting constantly. As a number of
fishmen were climbing, they were struck down and lost their lives. But as one
fell, another replaced them, stepping over the corpses of their dead comrades
to battle.
As their leader, the spiky fishman fought at the head of his troops and was the
first to charge ahead.
“Defend, we must defend!”
“We must persevere until the captain and the others return!!”
“If you don’t want to die, then fight like you don’t want to!!”
The sailors inside the ships were also red with killing intent.
The ones most heavily under attack were the magic ships.
There were many magic ships anchored at Two Eyes Island’s port.
Most of them belonged to the five great merchant alliances, each merchant
alliance representative had been provided with a bronze level magic ship.
However, these magic ships were mainly used for commercial trade and were
focused on loading capacity and speed.
The truly strong bronze level magic ships were the White Bandage and the Iron
Lump. These two ships belonged to mercenary corps who depended on their
military power to make a living, thus, their combat display far exceeded that
of the merchant alliance ships.
The fishmen obviously knew a lot of information.
They focused their offensive the most on the White Bandage and the Iron Lump,
with the spiky fishman launching several attacks on the White Bandage.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were also under attack; however, they
weren’t the fishmen’s main target.
Perhaps because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only had ordinary ships.
The mercenaries defended the ships, holding a big advantage due to their
commanding position.
Because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ armory had large amounts of alchemy
crossbows and firearms, they had set up a sharpshooter team a long time ago.
Zong Ge’s desire for a sharpshooter team was so strong that he even took out
the Arrow Storm Battle Qi technique and Bullet Hail Battle Qi technique for
that purpose.
But unfortunately, talents were difficult to find.
Due to a lack of suitable people, the two shooter battle squads were just plans
and imagination. There were so few people that daily training requirements
couldn’t be fulfilled.
Under these circumstances, the dragonman youngster was forced to make up the
numbers with “inferior people”. They weren’t able to form a sharpshooter battle
squad, but they were able to have ordinary archery teams.
Of course, Zong Ge didn’t forget to help these people during training.
Now, these people were displaying their formidable battle strength.
Even though they used ordinary arrows and ammunition, many slain fishmen laid
sprawled out on their backs.
Often mid-charge, fishmen were shot dead.
While the magic ships had sides filled with climbing fishmen, and occasional
fishmen charging onto the deck, the top half of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ hulls were all clean. At most, the fishmen were able to climb halfway
before being shot dead.
Upon surveying all of the ships at port, one would find the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps was in the best shape.
This information from the scouting puppets let Cang Xu relax for the time
being.
“The situation is still alright.”
“But I must preside over the situation as soon as possible.”
“The Commander, Zong Ge, Tripleblade, Lan Zao, Zi Di, and I are not with them.”
“The only ones there, such as Mu Ban, Bai Ya, and the others only have meager
strength.”
“Without a true leader to preside over the war situation, if the situation goes
south, morale will easily collapse, leading to flight and surrender.”
“I wonder how Zi Di doing over there?”
“If it really is Qing Xin, it would be better if our side had a silver level
magician.”
“No, even an iron level is a rare strength that can help.”
Cang Xu’s eyes flashed with expectation.
Inside the master bedroom, there was only Zi Di, and the middle aged women
suspected to be Qing Xin.
“Master.” The middle aged woman dutifully came to the room, “You summoned me,
where do you want tidied up?”
This was only an excuse.
Zi Di had been looking for a chance to privately speak with “Qing Xin”.
As she gazed at the woman, Zi Di couldn’t help but be somewhat nervous.
For one, she was worried that her hopes would be for naught, that the other
person was just a stranger that looked like sister Qing Xin, nothing more.
Second, she was also worried at the state of Two Eyes Island.
“The present situation is unknown, and time is short. I must decisively act,
the more time I fight for, the more opportunities I will have.”
Zi Di decided to cut through the tangled hemp.
She gazed at the woman before her and directly asked, “Are you Elder Qing Xin?
The woman was flabbergasted and puzzled, but there was no shock to it, it all
looked natural.
She cautiously replied, “Mas, master, what are you saying?”
“You must be mistaken.”
“I am called…”
Zi Di interrupted her, “I am not interested in hearing your lies.”
She took out a wisteria secret order.
The wisteria secret order represented her current identity – a level seven
elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, a remarkable identity.
When the woman saw this secret order, her expression fluctuated slightly.
Zi Di also knew what she looked like right now.
In their eyes, she was hooded and masked, a mysterious figure that was hard to
trust.
She put the secret order into the woman’s hand.
“Elder Qing Xin, you are a magician. I know that even if you don’t have the
relevant alchemy device, you can discern the authenticity of this secret order.
I purchased them all because of you.”
“If you are Qing Xin, I am your friend, not your enemy.”
The woman forced to take the wisteria secret order was at her wits’ end and
frantically shook her head, “Master, I’m really not…”
Zi Di interrupted her again, “You don’t need to say so much.”
“I have more important matters to attend to.”
“You can privately inspect if this secret order is real.”
“I long for your trust, but I cannot tell you my true name right now.”
Zi Di couldn’t expose herself, despite her understanding that identifying
herself as Zi Di would surely gain Qing Xin’s trust. 
But that was too risky to do.
Things concerning Mystifying Monster Island could not be revealed.



****** Chapter 158: Don’t Pretend, I am the Strongest Firepower ******
Zi Di took out some equipment from the Balloon Knapsack.
Among them were the star iron hatchets.
She had acquired them from the auction.
She had a full box of them.
Giving these iron level weapons to these ordinary slaves was extravagant.
But due to time constraints, Zi Di had to do it.
“Next, you need to protect yourself.”
“This place is still safe for the time being.”
“Stay here as long as possible, our slave agreement has already gone into
effect. You know how chaotic it is outside, if you don’t want to be killed by
fishmen, hide here.”
“Although it is close to the port, if anything happens, I’ll do my best to save
you.”
“Upon seeing “Qing Xin” wasn’t admitting who she was, Zi Di could only sigh to
herself.
The other person might be her sole “relative”, therefore, Zi Di didn’t take any
drastic measures.
Although they didn’t recognize each other, this outcome was within Zi DI’s
expectations.
Soon after, Zi Di and Cang Xu left the small villa together.
Zi Di and “Qing Xin” didn’t acknowledge each other, but Cang Xu approved of Zi
Di’s caution.
Under the current circumstances, the survivors didn’t need to risk identifying
themselves to obtain new cultivators.
Seeing Zi Di and Cang Xu leave, “Qing Xin” couldn’t help but reveal a complex
look.
Soon after, the other slaves walked in and asked what her master had summoned
her for.
“Qing Xin’s” peculiar look suddenly vanished and she became ordinary again,
“The master called me to tidy up the room, he has an urgent matter to attend
to.”
The bronze level mother, the mistress of Baron Zai Xiang, asked other questions
out of concern.
“Qing Xin” respectfully answered, “Although master and I only exchanged a few
words, I can feel that he…is a good natured person.”
Upon obtaining this answer, the blond mistress was soothed and relaxed her
tone.
She was outwardly the strongest slave of them all.
But her bronze level strength only affected her sex appeal, she had no battle
strength at all.
She moreso lacked any battle courage at all.
As one accustomed to being a canary, she never thought about running away or
staring her own family, she only hoped that her new master could be someone she
could live under.
Before Zi Di and Cang Xu left, they stealthily crushed a pearl bubble that
affected the small villa.
For their auction attendance plan, they had prepared pearl bubbles in advance.
This facilitated their retreat.
Crushing the pearl bubbles was the shallowest was to use them.
But the divine artifact’s power was worth relying on!
With the pearl bubbles masking it, outsiders wouldn’t see anything wrong with
the small villa.
For her own safety, Zi Di also crushed a second pearl bubble for herself.
She was carrying the Balloon Knapsack, and because it was loaded with the
survivors’ auction spoils, it had inflated tremendously and was very
conspicuous.
With the pearl bubble screening it, the Balloon Knapsack was thoroughly
concealed from living beings and rendered “invisible”.
Driven by caution, Zi Di and Cang Xu didn’t rush to the port.
They first went to the edge of the seacoast far from the port.
There, Zi Di and Cang Xu separated.
Cang Xu circled back and snuck into the port.
Zi Di with the Balloon Knapsack entered the water and dove towards the
seafloor.
The underwater was as tranquil as always.
“It seeming the raiding fishmen were hiding the depths of Two Eyes Island.”
“Could it be that they snuck in during the beast tide?”
“How did they do it? Neither the Deep Sea Monster Fish or Hun Tong detected
them.”
Zi Di harbored suspicions as she continued to dive alone, her silhouette
gradually covered up by the dark seawater.
The port battlefield.
The spiky fishman leader was beaten back again.
He withdrew from the frontline as he tenaciously glared at the White Bandage,
unwilling to give up.
That nut was too hard to crack!
The spiky fishman’s anxious heart reflected outwardly, causing him to become
more irritable.
The White Bandage had never fallen despite the chaotic battlefield.
The ship’s bandages danced in the breeze like big white pythons.
Some bandages attacked, twisting around fishmen and strangling them. Other
bandages softly wrapped around mercenaries and glowed, healing them.
The spiky fishman suffered defeat after defeat on the front line, and soon
after, there was not a single living fishman on board the White Bandage.
Upon seeing this, the spiky fishman growled and charged again.
At this moment, two iron level fishmen held him up.
“Ngamlgmnmalmlanm”
“Lnagnlagnlganlanlg”
The two iron level fishmen pointed at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships,
quickly speaking with anxious looks.
The spiky fishman was red with killing intent, yet he sobered up now.
When he heard their proposal, he stared at them, then held his head high and
ran his eyes across the battlefield.
Then he noticed that the greatest number of fishmen casualties was not the
White Bandage, where the battle was the fiercest, rather it was where the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was.
There, the dead fishmen had piled up into a small hill.
The spiky fishman immediately roared in anger.
Compared to the defensive Iron Lump and White Bandage, all of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ships were ordinary
But they had the most crossbows and firearms.
They didn’t have many ordinary cannons.
Previously, the dragonman youngster made a deal with the Flint and Secret
Medicine branch managers, along with the two mercenary commanders to obtain
many cannons, but that just made up deficiencies, that’s all.
In the port, the ships were crowded together, and if these cannons were fired,
they could easily injure allies and damage the port.
Therefore, firearms and crossbows were the long range weapons of choice.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as a result have killed the most fishmen.
If they were left alone to keeping shooting, the fishmen would suffer more
disastrous casualties.
The spiky fishman was an accomplished military man and instantly realized the
situation.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a great threat, in addition their ships
were ordinary, and their defenses were far weaker than magic ships.
This also caused the spiky fishman leader to change their target.
At once, he flicked his arm and shouted loudly, leading his subordinates
towards the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Be careful, they are coming towards us!”
“Fire arrows, fire arrows now.”
“Use the alchemy arrows and ammunition, target that spiky fishman!”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ members immediately grew tense.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were missing. Without a silver level
fighter, they couldn’t stop the spiky fishman leader.
They could still rely on their long ranged weaponry though.
For a moment, all kinds of alchemy arrows and bullets appeared.
Watter arrows, wind needle arrows, smoke arrows, flash arrows, explosion
bullets, blood poisoning bullets, and freeze bullets…
A multicolored wave of dazzling firepower interweaved in the air.
The firepower ferociously covered the charging fishmen.
The spiky fishman leader felt fear and trepidation in the face of disaster!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ sudden eruption of firepower really was too
fierce.
In just a few short breaths, the fishmen beside him knelt to the ground.
Fishmen corpses were in all kinds of states, some were frozen, some were
charred, some had blood necrosis, some were blown to bits, and some were turned
to pools of mincemeat.
Even though the spiky fishman leader was silver level, he couldn’t endure it
and was forced to cease his charge and pull back to a nearby bunker to take a
breather.
He originally believed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a big threat, he
didn’t expect that when he actually fought them that’d he greatly underestimate
the other side’s battle strength!
His troops only made it halfway there before all of them were slaughtered,
their corpses strewing the ground.
He barely resisted the firepower, his battle qi greatly expended, and his body
dotted with many new wounds.
Rou Zang had once suffered losses against such firepower.
Let alone a silver level fishman leader.
In the prior battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had actually been
restraining themselves, worried that if they showed off too much, they’d
provoke the main fishman force.
They didn’t expect that despite doing that, they’d still be noticed.
Their outstanding firepower was to blame, and no matter how much they
restrained themselves, their military strength would still be conspicuous.
Since the main fishman force was targeting them, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps might as well lay their cards onto the table.
Fine, I won’t pretend.
I am the one with the strongest firepower on this port.
The spiky fishman didn’t think the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would hide
themselves so deeply, and for a moment, he had to bunker down and not dare show
his head.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ members cheered, their morale surging.
For a moment, many people thought the silver level fishman wasn’t that
dreadful.
Of course, their firepower didn’t come without its costs.
Both alchemy arrows and ammunition were consumable goods.
Money was shot out.
When Zi Di saw this, she felt a heartache.
Was it worth using so many munitions here?
The spiky fishman leader wasn’t dead.
Most crucially, they didn’t need to fight the fishmen to the death, that should
be Hun Tong’s people’s job.
Even if they annihilate these fishmen, how much would Two Eyes Island reward
them?
Taking advantage of this labor, Cang Xu quietly boarded.
When he saw it, he also sighed.
These arms were from War Merchant’s munitions stock.
After the Snake Rat naval battle and Two Eyes Island’s defensive battle, the
survivors’ inventory was getting smaller.
This can’t continue, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps shouldn’t resist a
calamity in place of another.
The fishmen were attacking this place to attack Two Eyes Island and Hun Tong.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps being attacked from all sides was not in the
survivors’ interest.
The relationship between the survivors and Hun Tong was far from being that
close.
But it had to be said that mass usage of munitions got instant results on the
battlefield.
For the first time, the fishmen’s offensive was seriously bogged down. 
Many fishmen were at a loss.
The spiky fishman leader was trapped in an impossible situation.
If he ignored the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the fishmen would suffer
terrible losses, but if he went to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
how could he charge them? Even if he could kill off the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, the fishmen would also be wiped out too!
At this moment, fishmen reinforcements arrived.
They were led by the Steel Bone Knight fishman, and with lizard steed mounted,
he galloped forth boldly.
“Hgmaamnanaggmang”
The Steel Bone Knight fishman howled at the spiky fishman leader.
He was the one who let Men Shi and his dwarfs go, and with the mysterious
purple scaled fishman’s aid had smoothly attacked the light cannon turret.
Afterwards, he noticed from his vantage point that the port battlefield
situation was becoming deeply worrying.
After destroying the light cannon turret, he let his team over to reinforce.



****** Chapter 159: The Quick Knife Battle Squad Joins In! ******
“nmlagmlgalmnal”
The spiky fishman leader hiding in the bunker replied back, he looked resentful
and unreconciled.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman laughed uncannily, as if he were happy to see the
spiky fishman leader being humiliated.
He first ordered his men to assist other regions, then with a growl, drove his
four legged lizard directly at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Because the others feared the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ firepower, he
decided to charge in alone!
“Oh no.”  The Dragon Lion mercenaries felt things were about to go horrible.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman was very fast, and the arrows and bullets
peppering him at most rocked his body.
His defenses far exceeded those of the spiky fishman leader!
When the spiky fishman leader saw the Steel Bone Knight fishman was attracting
firepower, he too jumped out of his bunker.
The two silver level fishmen converged and charged the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ ships together.
“Sho, shoot!”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ firepower increased further.
Large amounts of arrows and bullets interweaved in a multicolored curtain that
covered a large area.
The spiky fishman was shot all over, his injuries mounting rapidly.
He charged further in, but couldn’t endure for long, and was forced to hunker
down to the side again.
But this time, the bunker he chose was unreliable, and the indiscriminate
bombardment was quickly whittling it down.
The spiky fishman still had a chance to breathe.
He took out a potion and poured it into his big mouth. 
The potion took effect instantly, and his wounds swiftly recovered.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman had superior defense and was speeding up.
He withstood the firepower and simply rushed to just beneath the ships.
Even though the four legged lizard had tough skin and thick flesh, it was
covered in blood, for there were many bullets and arrows lodged in it.
Its ferocious nature was stimulated, and with talons on each foot, it launched
itself onto the ship and grabbed hold to the hull. As it rapidly ascended, each
talon would pierce the hull, allowing it to firmly affix itself to the hull and
wasn’t repelled by the casks and other heavy objects the mercenaries were
hurling at it.
After a few short seconds, the lizard carrying the Steel Bone Knight fishman
busted onto the deck.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman gave an odd laugh, then rampaged on the deck.
The mercenaries on deck were not his match, and they were impaled by his lance
or swept away, the sounds of horrifying fractures and falling bodies echoed
around.
The mercenaries on deck quickly suffered serious casualties and their formation
was thrown into disorder.
When the fishmen saw this, their vigor grew, and their offensive grew stronger.
“Are we not going to support the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?” A mercenary on
the White Bandage asked.
The first mate hesitated, then shook his head fiercely.
“We have to wait for the commander, we must believe in the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, they are very strong!” The first mate superficially replied.
Helping recklessly was very risky.
It meant that support troops had to leave the White Bandage, fight through the
fishmen on the port, climb onto the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship, and then
once they were there, they had to face a silver level fishman knight. 
If they helped, they would definitely incur big casualties.
If they caused a desperate situation because they divided their forces, White
Bandage could be captured. The first mate didn’t want to undertake that
responsibility.
More crucially, they weren’t sure how profitable helping was.
The Bandage Mercenary Corps and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have a
deep relationship.
It was like how Cang Xu didn’t want the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps too much in
the limelight, and for them to assume the pressure and losses Hun Tong was
supposed to take.
The fishmen were a united people, and despite everyone being in danger, the
humans naturally divided themselves into groups by battle strength. 
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps was thinking the same way as the Bandage
Mercenary Corps.
Since the two strongest groups decided not to, the other merchant alliance
groups didn’t plan to provide support either.
For a moment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ situation was becoming
increasingly treacherous.
On another ship.
“Young clan elder, what should we do?” A dogman asked as he tugged Kuai Tui’s
arm.
“They are a silver level, and our two leaders were at the auction!”
“They haven’t appeared yet; they just have had an accident.”
The dogmen gathered around Kuai Tui, without a leader, they couldn’t help but
think of retreating. 
They could only rely on Kuai Tui to come up with a strategy.
Kuai Tui was their young clan elder, their original leader.
The iron level dogman youth’s brows were tightly creased as he gazed at the
fishman knight wreaking havoc on the other ship deck.
His expression flashed with hesitation, but it quickly faded out of existence.
“Without Commander Long Fu taking us in, we would still be slaves.”
“Our pestilence was also cured by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“Here, Lord Shi Qi did his best to cultivated us. We established a battle
squad; we were treated better than the humans!”
“If we cower now, I will despise myself.”
“We dogmen will not treat our benefactors this way, right?”
As he said that, he turned to look at his clansmen.
Some dogmen lowered their heads in shame, others raised their heads to look at
Kuai Tui with admiration.
The dogmen’s morale was boosted by Kuai Tui, and one after the other, they
expressed their support.
“Young elder Kuai Tui, you’re right.”
“We can still fight!”
“Commander Long Fu and Auxiliary Commander Shi Qi are strong, they killed Rou
Zang, they must be rushing back.”
Kuai Tui laughed, “Just understand that there is only us right now.”
“The other side is a silver level, leave the ordinary people behind.”
“Bronze levels with me!”
He took the lead, and with rope in tow, dashed across the side of the ship.
He leapt between the ships, his hands on the long rope.
The rope swung, carrying Kuai Tui into the air and over to the other ship.
Behind Kuai Tui, dogmen imitated him and used the rope to swing through the
air.
This was a boarding tactic of naval combat.
This was one of the things Zong Ge had trained them on.
With the help of the rope, Kuai Tui and a group of his clansmen swung across a
few ships and quickly arrived at the one where the fishman knight was wreaking
havoc.
While in the air, Kuai Tui decisively relinquished his grip, and from the air,
he dove at the Steel Bone Knight fishman.
Behind him, the dogmen also followed closely behind.
At the moment, there weren’t many mercenaries left. 
Kuai Tui and the others weren’t moving quietly and the Steel Bone Knight
fishman had noticed them.
He tilted his head up and coldly laughed.
Battle skill – Forest of Lances.
A moment later, the fishman knight brandished his 2 meter long lance.
Silver battle qi quickly worked inside him and a large amount of it
simultaneously imbued the lance.
The lance thrusted so quickly and violently that it formed afterimages.
Countless afterimages filled everyone’s eyes, forming a forest of lances.
Every lance afterimage accurately targeted every dogmen in the air.
This was the fishman knight’s trump card, his strongest battle skill.
He wanted to stab each of these daring dogmen to death and make these weak
beastmen have a taste of the bitter result of overestimating one’s capabilities
against the strong.
Kuai Tui growled and took out his knife midair to face the lance images.
The other dogmen fearlessly drew their knives too.
A moment later, they used the same battle skill.
It had been verified through training diligently in past battlefields.
Every battle knife and lance image collied head on with the crisp tinkle of
blades.
The dogmen fighters held back the lance images and tumbled to the deck, quickly
getting back to their feet.
Kuai Tui was in good condition, but the other dogmen were spitting out a little
blood.
After all they were just bronze levels, barely able to withstand a silver
level.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman and his mount were forced back a step by the
force of the clash. 
The Steel Bone Knight fishman was greatly affected, he tenaciously glared at
the dogmen fighters with astonishment.
He didn’t kill a single one of them!
He was a grand silver level, him using his strongest battle skill and not
killing the iron level was already a defeat. Yet now, not a single bronze level
was dead either.
“A battle squad!” The thought suddenly appeared in his mind.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman found it hard to believe, “They are actually a
battle squad!”
Battle squads were established through ingenious methods that combined many low
level cultivators so they could deal with cultivators of a higher level.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ long range firepower was fierce,
there were many factors that influenced the power and expenditure of arrows and
bullets.
If it was an Arrow Storm or a Bullet Hail battle squad, only 30% of the arrows,
bullets, and battle qi would be used to achieve an even better battle result.
A moment before, the Quick Knife battle squad had withstood a silver level
battle skill, none of them died because they shared the brunt together as an
integrated whole.
Now on the deck, the Quick Knife battle squad immediately surrounded the
fishman knight to do battle.
It was like a pack of wolves fighting a fierce tiger.
The fishman knight charged to the left, still bold and powerful.
Kuai Tui led his battle squad like a formless net that entangled the tiger.
Kuai Tui was the main attacker, he was the only iron level, the others were
assisting him.
The fishman knight attacked Kuai Tui but couldn’t catch him for the time being.
If he attacked another dogman fighter, the latter would avoid his tip, while
the rest attacked in every direction.
They attacked intelligently and were very tough.
The fishman knight felt he was being ambushed from all sides and attacked from
all directions. At first, he couldn’t adapt, losing sight of one thing when he
had to attend to another, and was struck by Kuai Tui several times.
Luckily, he had the Steel Bone Knight bloodline and had a solid natural
exoskeleton.
Kuai Tui seized several good opportunities, but his bronze level battle knife
only left scratches on his opponent, no wounds.
Kuai Tui noticed that it was hard to break through the enemy’s defenses, his
heart shouting, “Cut down his mount!”
The Quick Knife battle squad shifted their target of attack.
Henceforth, the fishman knight’s mount immediately suffered a calamity.
It had been wounded heavily when it charged onto the deck, and its ferocity had
been stimulated already, thus its condition had been constantly tumbling.
After several attacks and blocks, the lizard had many new cuts on it, and its
blood covered a wide swath of the deck. 
The lizard was not an ordinary beast, it was an iron level magic beast,
however, it instantly collapsed under the Quick Knife battle squad’s onslaught.
If this continued, the lizard would die in battle!
The knight wasn’t injured much, but he loved his mount dearly and was thinking
of retreating.
I’m not incompetent, it is just that the other side played dirty and attacked
the one I’m riding!



****** Chapter 160: The Quick Knife Squad vs a Silver ******
The Steel Bone Knight fishman thought of retreating, but that wouldn’t be easy.
He was already surrounded by the Quick Knife battle squad.
Whenever he tried to charge out, the battle squad leader Kuai Tui would bar his
path.
Although Kuai Tui was an iron level, with the aid of his comrades in arms, he
could break any attempt of breaking out the Steel Bone Knight fishman did.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman had a strong exoskeleton, natural heavy armor.
It was always advantageous in ocean combat.
Because the ocean didn’t have fire and an environment capable of forging metal.
Of course, the fishmen clan had their own forging techniques. They used them to
create obsidian weapons.
Obsidian was a type of ore that was easy to break and process, often used to
make sharp blades or spear tips.
Of course, it was easy to break.
In the ocean, the Steel Bone Knight fishman mainly dealt with enemies armed
with obsidian weapons and could maintain an invincible position.
At the same time, seawater was buoyant while alleviated his weight.
But on dry land, the Steel Bone Knight fishman felt different.
He felt how heavy he was.
When one had abundant stamina, such a feeling was indistinct. But now, as his
condition was declining, every time he brandished his lance, he felt how sore
and swollen his arm was.
The mount beneath him felt tighter.
The lizard, who had spent its life in the sea, not only had to adapt to the
gravity of dry land on itself, but also the gravity on its master too.
The lizard’s injuries were more severe than the fishman knight.
The Quick Knife battle squad was targeting it!
The iron level magic beast really was bearing too much.
Its condition fell to an all-time low, and it was only hanging in by a breath.
When it charged, it had no strength and naturally had no speed either.
Another crucial thing.
The state of the battlefield.
They were battling on a ship deck; how much space was there to move on a ship
deck?
There was the masts and the ship cabins, the fishman knight didn’t have enough
room to accelerate.
As a heavy armor knight, if the Steel Bone Knight fishman didn’t have speed, he
would be in an awkward situation.
The Quick Knife battle squad grew braver! 
They had never battled a silver level enemy before.
Ordinarily, even if Zong Ge did battle with them personally, such training
wasn’t as good as actual combat. 
Real combat concerned victory and defeat, life and death, its stimulation was
absolutely real.
“We can resist a silver level cultivator!”
“The other party isn’t just a silver level; they also have an iron level
mount.”
“We actually have the strength; we can fight a silver!”
The more the dogmen fighters attacked, the higher their morale rose.
It was just so; they could really impede the Steel Bone Knight fishman.
The fishman wanted to escape, but he couldn’t.
Upon seeing this, the onlookers were all stupefied.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps actually has a battle squad!”
“So strong, wit just an iron level and some bronze levels, they are able to
sequester a silver level heavy armor knight.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ commanders are powerful, they once faced Rou
Zang directly! Calculating in this battle squad, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps can be considered a quasi-gold group.”
The onlookers felt astonishment, admiration, and even jealousy.
Ordinary powers didn’t have a battle squad.
The White Bandage and Iron Club Mercenary Corps were veteran mercenary corps,
and they didn’t have a battle squad between them.
Rou Zang had plundered the seas for ten years and had assembled the Sword and
Shield Thrower Soldiers through arduous effort. When he fought the survivors,
this battles squad was slaughtered, naturally making Rou Zang extremely angry.
It wasn’t easy for him to see ten years of accumulation go up in smoke!
Battle qi techniques were easy to gather, but battle squad organization methods
were all kept confidential.
Even when they were circulated in the marketplace, they were almost all badly
damaged and incomplete.
The main problem with battle squad formation was that it was hard to find
talents for it.
Bloodline tightly restrained those that could cultivate the same battle qi
technique. 
“Did the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps just establish it? How do they have a
battle squad?”
“Those are dogmen, beastmen. I heard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps recruited
them on Snake Rat Island.”
“What is this luck!”
Many mercenaries lamented from the bottom of their heart.
It had to be said that Zong Ge running into and recruiting these dogmen was
lucky.
From a different point of view, the survivors having Zong Ge was also lucky.
Neither could do without the other.
“Zong Ge is absolutely an army training master!” Cang Xu also lamented.
Upon seeing the Quick Knife battle squad’s excellent display, he had no choice
but to exclaim in admiration.
Despite Cang Xu complaining about and being wary of Zong Ge, those facts didn’t
influence his praise and judgement of the latter’s talents.
Even if the Dragon Lion mercenary Corps had battle squad organization methods
and the dogmen, without Zong Ge’s training, the Quick Knife battle squad
wouldn’t have been like this in so short a time.
Thinking about this carefully, how long had this battle squad existed?
With such battle strength!
It really was surprising.
Cang Xu was once a noble steward and had some scope of vision. Thus, despite
not being an army officer, he knew what Zong Ge had achieved was of astounding
quality.
More praiseworthy to him was how loyal the Quick Knife battle squad was!
At this crucial time, they welcomed difficulty and didn’t fear their powerful
enemy to defend the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, this embodied the dogmen’s
loyalty to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This made the necromancer Cang Xu feel warm inside.
“amngalmglmagnmllngm”
The spiky fishman furiously roared as he charged at the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps once more.
He felt anxious again.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman’s reinforcements made him think that’d he’d be
able to capture the port.
But good things didn’t last forever, and now the Steel Bone Knight fishman was
surrounded.
Perspicacious people could see him failing to break out of the encirclement!
The Quick Knife battle squad’s appearance and battlefield performance caused
the spiky fishman’s heart to shake greatly.
The high spirited Steel Bone Knight fishman who had ridiculed him was now in a
worse state that he!
One could see that every leg of the lizard had been crippled.
This Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps simply was poisonous!
Kuai Tui’s tactics were wise.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman could no longer go on the offensive and was
wearily defending himself.
He didn’t want his beloved mount to die in battle.
But he was unable to break out and his mount was growing increasingly worse,
the anxiety of it caused his entire body to sweat.
He was an expert at charging through the battlefield, hit and run attacks. But
now, he was fighting a dozen enemies alone, and because he wanted to save his
mount’s life, he was using his weaknesses to attack the enemy’s strengths.
He felt strength within him, but the fact that it couldn’t be used against
enemy made him very sullen.
The deck had been cleared already, this was their battlefield alone.
Not only had the mercenaries retreated, but the deck’s masts and forecastle had
been reduced to ruins.
The Quick Knife battle squad hadn’t lost a single man!
The more they fought, the smoother they became.
It had to be said that actual combat was the best thing to temper people with.
Past arduous training had established a strong foundation and cultivated a
tacit understanding.
Now this tacit understanding had become deeper.
Under the spark of real combat, this strong foundation was faintly trending
towards a qualitative change.
This change increased the confidence of many of the battle squad!
Through the baptism of combat, they had stimulated the precious temperament of
being elite troops.
“Be careful, the spiky fishman is charging over again.”
“Block them, don’t let him get close!”
Upon seeing the spiky fishman attempting a rescue, the other members of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps immediately acted to bar his path.
The Quick Knife battle squad’s fantastic performance boosted the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ morale greatly.
But the discerning people knew that surrounding one silver level was their
limit.
If another one got in, they were sure to collapse.
Alchemy arrows and bullets interweaved through the air in a tempestuous show of
firepower.
The spiky fishman didn’t hide in a bunker this time.
He had to save the Steel Bone Knight fishman.
Without this powerful battle companion, he would definitely be defeated!
It could be said that the fight between the Quick Knife battle squad and the
Steel Bone Knight fishman would decide the result of the port battle.
The spiky fishman chose to fight on with gritted teeth!
The layers of firepower caused onlookers to watch on fearfully in the face of
disaster.
The spiky fishman was soaked in blood head to foot yet stubbornly rushed out of
the net of firepower.
The potion he took before was still in effect, causing his injuries to quickly
heal.
This time, he had to charge!
Retreat was not an option.
The spiky fishman thoroughly displayed his dauntlessness.
In fact, his heart was filled with remorse.
If he had known earlier, he wouldn’t have turned his spearhead towards the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This mercenary corps was poisonous, too poisonous.
He seemed to have weak defense, but as a matter of fact, he was a hedgehog. If
one recklessly bit him, heedless of the consequences, those that attacked would
surely be pierced by his spikes and choke on their blood.
It was too late for remorse, and with his vicious nature stimulated, the spiky
fishman’s charge speed increased somewhat.
“galma!”
He shouted, finally approaching the battlefield where the fishman knight was.
The spiky fishmen suddenly felt the pressure on him suddenly lighten.
At last, the Dragon Lion mercenaries were unable to fire at will.
They were liable to affect allies.
The Quick Knife battle squad were many, compared to the two fishmen, and
regardless of whether it was the Steel Bone Knight fishman or the spiky
fishman, both had tough skin and thick flesh.
If firepower covered them, the Quick Knife battle squad would be worse off by
far.
Only those rare sharp shooters confident in their accuracy could continue to
give the Quick Knife battle squad some sporadic assistance.
This couldn’t compare to the flood of firepower earlier.
The spiky fishman laughed out blood as he readied to climb onto the ship.
Just as the Quick Knife battle squad was about to sink into peril, a wall of
fire suddenly rose from the ground, blocking the spiky fishman resolutely.
Cang Xu’s figure now appeared on another ship.
“It’s Lao Zhong.”
“Lao Zhong finally acted!”
“If you’re here Lao Zhong, where is Hong Teng (Zi Di)?”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had two magicians; this information had long
been known to everyone.
Under the pseudonym Lao Zhong, Cang Xu used a voice amplification spell to
shout, “Persevere, the auction hall has had an unforeseen incident, Feudal Lord
Hun Tong and the commanders are trapped inside.” 
“But only temporarily.”
“These insignificant fishmen can’t hold some gold levels and won’t hold Lord
Long Fu and Shi Qi.”
“Without a gold level cultivator, these fishmen will all die!”
Cang Xu’s words were like a cardiac stimulant, and all of the human fighters’
morale on the port rose.



****** Chapter 161: Cigar ******
The spiky fishman was forced to retreat.
The fire wall was surging violently with tempestuous heat.
He tried to go around so he could reinforce the Steel Bone Kight fishman.
But a moment later, a fireball shot at him, forcing him back again.
Cang Xu used his spirit power to lock onto his enemy, the fireball would almost
certainly hit.
Unless the spiky fishman took out some counter equipment or special ability,
based on his speed and agility, it would be difficult for him to dodge the
fireball.
Although the spiky fishman was silver level, he wasn’t at peak condition.
After battling for so long, his condition had fallen gravely.
This was thanks to the White Bandage and the Iron Lump. Both had greatly
depleted the spiky fishman’s battle strength.
Actually, even if he was in peak condition, the spiky fishman would have to
strain himself to deal with just Cang Xu.
Based on life level, there was only one level between them, nothing more.
Especially at the lower levels, the disparity between them wasn’t that obvious.
Besides life level, equipment also influenced battle strength,
Fire path rings were on five of Cang Xu’s fingers. 
He also had a curved magic mask, and a human leather chest storage bag filled
with many magic scrolls and readily available magic potions.
With the Magic Medicine Bathtub as its core, the survivors controlled an entire
set of magic potion refinement equipment. 
On Two Eyes Island, the survivors had gained many alchemy materials and first
satisfied the magic potion needs of Cang Xu and Zi Di.
By contrast, the spiky fishman had simpler and cruder equipment.
Besides his passable weapon, he had no decent armor, relying on his hard scales
to endure as he charged the ships.
If he were as big as the transformed Rou Zang, and had been covered with more
firepower, he might have collapsed in minutes.
“mnfaglamngn”
The fishman knight noticed the spiky fishman and roared at him in between
blows.
He wanted him to not run over and instead kill the magician who had appeared!
When the spiky fishman heard this, he resolutely grinded his teeth and shifted
his target, instead charging at the ship where Cang Xu was.
Magicians had too many abilities.
Eliminating the magicians on the battlefield first was common sense tactics.
Since the fishman knight said that it proved he didn’t have problems defending
himself for the time being.
The spiky fishman locked his eyes onto Cang Xu.
Sensing a silver level’s confrontation from afar naturally put pressure on Cang
Xu.
But on the contrary, it relieved him much more.
If the spiky fishman stubbornly assisted the fishman knight, Cang Xu would have
a thorny problem on his hands.
Because he couldn’t protect the Quick Knife battle squad.
He was only pretending to be a fire path magician.
His real strength lay with necromancy.
He couldn’t use necromancy, so Cang Xu had to use other types of magic, ones he
didn’t have a perfect command of.
If the spiky fishman and the fishman knight converged, he wouldn’t be able to
help the Quick Knife battle squad and would be forced to attack another target
and wipe out the other fishmen.
By doing this, he would force the silver level fishman fighter to come to him.
If that happened, the Quick Knife battle squad would suffer an unknown number
of casualties.
Perceptive people can make out that the Quick Knife battle squad pinning down
the fishman knight was already at their limits.
One couldn’t demand too much of them; they were already doing good enough!
He couldn’t be exposed as a necromancer.
If he used necromancy, even if he repelled the silver level fishman fighter and
protected the Quick Knife battle squad, the gains wouldn’t make up for the
losses.
Because it would provoke far more trouble.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would discover that Lao Zhong was a
necromancer, which would cause morale to slump, wisdom to dissolve, and battle
intent to wither away.
The fishmen would more firmly believe they were the righteous side.
As feudal lord, Hun Tong would absolutely attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps when he broke out of the auction hall.
Even if these were resolved, the empire would dispatch a continuous stream of
cultivators to kill this exposed necromancer.
The spiky fishman quickly approached Cang Xu’s ship.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were anchored together and weren’t far
from each other, it was hard for firepower to provide cover,
Cang Xu used magic scrolls to fly into the air, then landed on an adjacent
ship’s mast
During this, he didn’t forget to attack the spiky fishman with fireballs.
The spiky fishman pursued closely behind.
Cang Xu constantly moved, maintaining distance to stall for time as much as
possible. 
He was an iron level magician; it was quite hard for him to kill a silver
level. Now that the spiky fishman was watching him as the primary target, he
didn’t have enough time to prepare more powerful magic spells.
And so, the spiky fishman pursued Cang Xu while the Quick Knife battle squad
encircled the Stee Bone Knight fishman.
The port battlefield was deadlocked in these two critical war situations.
“Next, we need to wait for the commanders to return to help in time.” Cang Xu
sighed to himself.
He also had some trump cards.
Such as the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
But such a trump card could not easily be revealed.
In the best case scenario, the auction hall trap would be destroyed, allowing
the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge to aid in time.
Luckily, the port, the light cannon turrets, and other such places were
strategic locations on Two Eyes Island that had to be defended. If Hun Tong and
the others regained their freedom and joined the battlefield, they would
prioritize helping this place.
Meanwhile.
Two Eyes Island’s auction hall.
Hun Tong didn’t know what was going on outside, and as time dragged on, his
mood got more irritable.
But outwardly, he still remained calm.
“Group three rest.”
“Group one, prepare to act, group two supervise.”
Hun Tong had divided everyone into three groups, one would attack, one would
rest, and one would inspect.
Although this measure was very crude, it was effective.
The cultivators trapped in the auction hall weren’t disorderly as a result and
instead were trying to break out in an orderly fashion.
Such a spectacle was rarely seen.
Pirates, mercenaries, merchants, feudal lord forces, along with other powers
had gathered to fight together.
Of course, there might be a traitor among them!
As a frogman and the Applause Pirates’ commander, Hu li suffered the most
suspicions.
Most people were glancing at him and his underlings.
“If I had known about this earlier, I wouldn’t have participated in this
auction!” Hu Li felt very regretful.
He wasn’t able to buy anything he wanted; it had all been taken by room 21.
Now, he was trapped in this auction, the myriad suspicious made him feel like
he was sitting on pins and needles, he was very worried that he would be
executed for being the traitor. 
The auction hall was small, and most present were humans, so he couldn’t even
run away even if wanted to.
“Those abominable people in room 21!” Hu Li clicked his teeth.
Those in room 21 were not present in the auction hall!
They went backstage ahead of time to collect their slaves, and as a result, had
avoided the coming trap.
That was too much of a coincidence!
“They are the traitors. If they aren’t, then who else could it be?” Hu Li felt
very remorseful, “If they were here, things would be so much better!”
His opinion was quite universal.
Most people here suspected Zi Di and Cang Xu, the people in room 21.
Of course, the dwarf Men Shi had also left early.
But he was far less suspect than Zi Di and Cang Xu.
Room 21 had been too much in the public eye and had incited much jealousy.
Hun Tong’ was in the first group.
As feudal lord, he had to set an example.
With hand holding a gold level dagger, he used a battle skill in passing.
With gold light shooting out, he instantly dug a hole into the depts of the
wall.
The gold light had extraordinary penetration, but it didn’t make it through the
auction hall wall.
From the moment the trap was sprung, the auction hall was constantly getting
thicker.
The coral ball cage tree was a gold level magic plant, its vines and branches,
along with the Suffering Endurance Barrier made it hard for even Hun Tong to
pierce.
Soon after, the first team withdrew, and the second team acted.
This wave of people had two gold level fighters.
One was Song Shou, who had supported Hun Tong, while the other was the Ten
Touch Pirates’ commander Qi You.
Both used their respective battle skills.
Song Shou smacked the wall with both palms.
With a fierce rumble, cracks formed across the wall, as if it had been covered
in spider wells in an instant.
Soon after, a chuck of wall fell off, exposing a brand new layer.
Qi You then extended his fingers and pointed at the wall from a distance.
The gold level battle skill condensed a helix slipstream.
The slipstream looked like a drill bit that dug into the wall, small at the
front, and large at the back.
A large hole was dug out of the wall, but after a few seconds, the hole was
grown over and filled in by about half.
Qi You stopped there. 
He obviously retained energy to maintain his guard against the people around
him.
Hun Ton was expressionless.
Despite saying whoever held back would be a suspected traitor, since it was Qi
You, he would handle it prudently.
Qi You was a gold level.
He was a pirate commander, and an opposing faction.
If both sides had a fallout out at this crucial time, Hun Tong wouldn’t gain
any benefits.
Hun Tong chose to restrain himself.
Thinking about it positively, Qi You acting was already good enough.
The second group withdrew, and the third group went on stage.
This group also had a gold level fighter.
He had been the middle aged smoker in room 2.
Even in the hall, he still had a cigar in his mouth.
This cigar was unusually thick, and the point of the cigar still maintained a
small flame.
The man was at the forefront and took a deep breath.
Following his breath, the cigar’s small flame expanded several folds and burned
intensely.
The cigar’s length was rapidly shortened by the flame.
The man subsequently straightened his chest.
Battle skill – Tobacco Ash!
A moment later, two puffs of smoke jetted from the man’s nostrils.
The smoke appeared ashen black and contained some gold within.
Like two pythons, the smoke puffs pounded at the walls, one to the left and the
other on the right.
The smoke permeated the walls in a quiet manner.
The man quickly finished smoking.
The walls looked like burnt charcoal and had turned completely black.
Soon after, the black walls looked like ash and dust, then a large area of it
crumbled to the ground in a cloud of black ash.
Those that saw this were no longer surprised.
The mad had done this attack many times previously.
His identity had also been revealed during communications and discussions with
everyone.
The man was called Yan Ding, a well-known mercenary.
He had the Black Tobacco bloodline, and in conjunction with the Fireworks
battle qi technique and matching battle skills, he was a very strong combatant.
His battle style was quite remarkable, and his battle skills were often large
scale and imposingly huge.



****** Chapter 162: Vinegar Jar Pirates ******
“That Yang Ding was in room 2, he should have a deep relationship with Hun
Tong.”
“The auction hall has four golds, is one of them the traitor?”
The dragonman youngster pondered while working. 
He used Demolition Fist to smash shallow holes into the wall.
His battle result naturally couldn’t compare to the four golds but was one of
the very best among the silvers.
Zong Ge’s wall breaking was also within the top ten.
Most of all, his wisp of gold tint within his silver battle qi attracted much
attention.
This was indeed a sign of his near promotion to the gold level.
Although it was faint, it indicated that it was possible!
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will be a gold level power in the future.”
“It’s no wonder they were able to defeat Rou Zang!”
“If Shi Qi becomes a gold level. While Commander Long Fu is still stuck at the
silver level, hehe, that will be interesting.”
The cultivators had their own thoughts.
Team three rested, and it was team one’s turn.
Hun Tong didn’t forget to inspire morale. “Continue!”
“Attack like this.”
“We are about to break through and regain our freedom!”
He was absolutely right.
Previously, the auction hall’s walls, floor, and ceiling had been growing wild,
and constantly compressing space.
But when the cultivators struck back, the space was no longer decreasing and
was now expanding instead. 
The coral ball cage tree’s growth rate couldn’t compare to how fast it was
being destroyed.
Not only that, but everyone could also distinctly sense that the Suffering
Endurance Barrier was weakening.
It was because of this that the cultivators didn’t object to Hun Tong’s
leadership.
All of them wanted to regain their freedom.
In the deepest depths of the auction hall, there was an immense cavity.
A dozen fishman casters were sitting cross legged, casting in unison.
They had blue scales.
The Blue Scale Fishman bloodline.
The blued scaled fishmen had a chance of becoming casters.
There were commonly referred to as blue scaled fishman sages.
Their limits of their gifts were quite low, the strongest of them would only be
at the bronze level.
However, these fishmen were always treasured.
The aptitude of fishmen could not compare to that of humans, dwarfs, elves, or
other races.
The Blue Green Coral Clan had two big bloodlines. One was the Blue Scale
Fishman bloodline and the other was the Green Gill bloodline.
It could even be said that for the sake of retaking their homeland, the Blue
Scale Coral Fishman clan had hollowed out their foundation to attack Two Eyes
Island.
The group of blue scaled fishmen in this underground cavity consisted of nearly
all the clan possessed.
The blue scaled fishmen sitting down were using all of their strength to
support the auction hall trap.
Their chests or backs were all inserted into a coral ball cage tree branch.
Their magic power imbued the branches and with every breath, the branches
glistened with a faint radiance.
It was precisely through doing this that their auras could be linked together
and mixed into the coral ball cage tree, which concealed them somewhat.
A purple scaled fishman came in through a secret passage.
She had been at the light cannon turret earlier, and had slain the guards
there, allowing the Steel Bone Knight fishman to easily conquer it.
Now, she was here.
When the blue scaled fishmen saw the purple scaled fishman, they stirred.
The purple scaled fishman’s identity and bloodline was far higher than theirs.
She was not from the Blue Green Coral clan, rather she had come from the
fishmen’s Holy City.
The purple scaled fishman asked about the auction hall.
The blue scaled fishman leader answered her regretfully, “Hun Tong stepped in,
and with Song Shou working with him, they controlled the situation without
delay. The auction hall didn’t turn to chaos, and our people inside have no way
to act.”
As expected, the fishmen hid spies in the auction hall.
The purple scaled fishman nodded and asked the most crucial question, “How long
will it last?”
The blue scaled fishman blurted out, “Looking at it currently, it can last 15
minutes.”
“15 minutes..” The purple scaled fishman whispered to herself.
This wasn’t long enough for her to attain her goal.
However, computing in the time they had already stalled, the blue scaled
fishmen sages had done their best.
The purple scaled fishman couldn’t ask them to do more.
Because that would require the blue scaled fishmen sages to forfeit their
lives.
They were using the Endurance spell.
The coral branches were inserted into their hearts, drawing not only their
magic power, but also their vitality.
It was precisely because of this great price paid and wit the help of the
Suffering Endurance Barrier that the coral ball cage tree could trap Hun Tong
and the others.
“My Lord, how are things outside?” The blue scaled fishman leader hesitated a
bit before asking the deepest question in his heart. 
The purple scaled fishman replied, “The light cannon turret and the grain depot
have been captured, the city defense barracks is on the verge of collapse, and
the port is in a deadlock.”
“The situation…isn’t good, isn’t bad.” The blue scaled fishman sage sighed.
“Our home has been occupied by human bandits for too long.”
“To be able to accomplish this, we had to take advantage of the new island’s
ascent, the period of rebuilding where the city defenses were the weakest.”
“Before, it was thanks to your Lordship’s subordinate’s guiding that the beast
tide attacked the island.”
“Otherwise, things would be more challenging.”
The purple scaled fishman looked at the destined brave sacrifices and
inevitably revealed a merciful glint, “No need to thank me. We are all fishmen,
we are all believers in our God.”
Sensing this pity, the blue scaled fishman sage laughed, “My Lord, please don’t
be sad.”
“We are just a dozen bronzes.”
“To trap Hun Tong and his gang was worth more than the cost.”
“Maybe that is the charm of magic, it is like a crowbar, and as long as
conditions are met, it can leverage even stronger power.”
“This is our home, since the day were driven out, our entire clan has awaited
the time we could win it back!”
The blue scaled leader growled, “Everything is for the clan!”
“Everyone is for my God!”
The blue scaled fishman sage resonated with the other fishmen.
They shouted together, “Everything is for the clan!”
“Everyone is for my God!”
The port.
The spiky fishman bellowed, causing his spikes to suddenly jet out.
Mercenaries all around him suddenly toppled over.
Hulls and ship cabins were peppered with holes.
When the spiky fishman finished shooting his spikes, his aura clearly became
dispirited.
He complacently looked into the air.
Cang Xu was tottering.
That attack had injured him.
His body had at least three wounds, causing blood to flow incessantly.
“mlgnalgnlag”
The spiky fishman laughed nastily.
His tactics had prevailed.
His pursuit of Cang Xu had seemed he was winning, but in actuality, Cang Xu had
been leading him by the nose. 
The spiky fishman knew this couldn’t go on, thus undaunted by the dangers, he
took the spell attack to pull himself closer to Cang Xu, then sprayed his
body’s spikes at him. 
Silver level battle qi couldn’t leave a fighter’s body.
But with the Spiky Fishman bloodline, he had a racial magic which was Spike
Spray. 
Cang Xu became distinctly pale.
Although he couldn’t comprehend what the fishman was saying, he could roughly
guess what their intention was.
“I’ll let you be proud of yourself for a bit.” Cang Xu said to himself.
He had wounded himself on purpose.
He had given the spiky fishman some hope. During the previous fight, the latter
had shown he was intent on assisting the Steel Bone Knight fishman.
Thus, Cang Xu had to make himself a more “attractive target” to the spiky
fishman.
As a matter of fact, his body had been transformed into a living dead person.
This sort of injury was harmless to him.
As for the flowing blood, that was of course from Deceptive Disguise.
The spiky fishman strode forward, slammed onto a deck, and charged at Cang Xu
once again.
Cang Xu “strained” to raise a finger to use his magic.
Ring of Fire defense spell.
A ring of flames instantly condensed around him, then spread outwards.
The flames not only produced heat, but also a tremendous incorporeal force.
The force smashed into the spiky fishman, throwing them back from whence they
came.
The spiky fishman wailed in anger.
Cang Xu seized the opportunity to fly to another ship.
Watching from a tall mast, he immediately took out a magic potion from his
chest storage pouch and drank it down.
This was not fake.
Since he was fighting a silver level fighter and because he was casting
frequently, his magic power consumption was massive, and his spirit was also
constantly decreasing. 
The magic power potion could speed up his magic power recovery.
This was not the first time he had taken a potion during this fight.
Because he had consumed many consecutively in a short period, the medicinal
effect had weakened.
There were many ways of quickly replenishing magic power.
At present, the best way was using magic power crystals.
Magic power crystals were made from a caster’s own magic power and refined
through some alchemy technology.
Thus, it was the same as extracting one’s own internal magic power and sealing
it in the outside world.
If one wanted to use it, they would crush it.
Because it was their own magic power, and so long as during the storage period
they hadn’t changed their magic power that much, it wouldn’t be dangerous to
mix this magic power into them.
Both were from the same source, and both could harmonize in a flash.
It was both quick and good for the casters to use.
Cang Xu naturally knew how to do this, and his storage pouch also had magic
power crystals stocked up.
But he couldn’t take them out.
Necromantic magic power had distinct qualities, and if he took one out in
public, it would provoke suspicion and expose that he was secretly a
necromancer.
If pearl bubbles were used on the magic power crystals, then of course they
could fool people.
But doing this was too extravagant.
The pearl bubbles were very precious and had to be used wisely!
Cang Xu drank the potion, causing his magic power to slowly rise.
The spiky fishman charged over again.
The fierce fight between them continued.
“Look there, there is ships on the sea!”
A group of people suddenly appeared, instantly attracting the attention of both
sides fighting on the port.
The fleet was obviously heading straight towards the port, and in the wake of
them getting closer, the fleet’s pirate flag and flagship reflected in the
people’s eyes.
The fishmen immediately cheered.
While the humans sank into depression due to the increased pressure.
The pirate ships cut through the waves.
The pirate flag fluttering in the wind portrayed a single black jar, the jar
was filled with black water, and inside the water was a rippling white inverted
skull.
It was the Vinegar Jar Pirates!



****** Chapter 163: Whirlpool Trap ******
The Vinegar jar Pirates.
A gold level power and formed almost entirely of fishmen pirates.
The imperial spy’s investigation had determined countless links between it and
the Blue Green Coral Fishman clan.
The imperial secret spy Shadow and Hun Tong had worked together to plant secret
agents into this pirate group to acquire a lot of precious intelligence.
Earlier, Xi Dai Zi had snuck into Two Eyes Island to plant an insider for when
they attacked Two Eyes Island. This resulted in Xu Ma accidentally exposing him
and triggering a series of events.
When the fishmen attacked Two Eyes Island, the Vinegar Jar Pirate would
undoubtably be one of the main forces present.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates had 24 ships in total.
The other ships looked normal, only the flagship looked quite peculiar.
It didn’t have a bow or an aft, the entire ship was shaped like a large water
jar.
The hull looked black, and it didn’t have any sails.
Its motive force came from a small hole in the bottom of the water jar, it was
constantly sucking in seawater and spraying it out.
The force of this stream of water drove the Vinegar Jar forward.
The Vinegar Jar had three decks in total.
The top deck was steeped in water, and if an adult human stood on it, the water
would reach to their knees.
The middle and bottom deck were completely submerged, and no normal human,
dwarf, or even elf would be able to freely move there.
The Vinegar Jarwas a magic ship specially built for aquatic races.
Fishmen could freely breathe underwater and could soak themselves in the water,
maintaining their skin’s moisture.
Its hold was always suitable for fishmen.
Not only that, but each deck had a different liquid, quite a mystery how.
Although it didn’t have sails, it still had a mast.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say it was a long pillar.
The pillar was not wood, but coral.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates’ commander Er Gua Zi was standing on top of the pillar,
holding a telescope as he gazed at the port battlefield in the distance.
There was a fishman shaman standing next to him, it was the Vinegar Jar
Pirates’ first mate – the fishman shaman Xi Dai Zi.
The Quick Knife battle squad appearing surprised Er Gua Zi.
But soon after, he coldly snorted and used the fishman language to evaluate,
“Truly two pieces of rubbish. Their opponents are an iron level magician and a
small battle squad.”
“They are taking so long to win.”
“Especially that idiot Peng Ding Zi, he can’t discern through the magician’s
pretense that he’s playing with him.”
“How can that idiot still believe he can join my pirate group?”
The one he called Peng Ding Zi was the spiky fishman leader that was fighting
Cang Xu.
First mate Xi Dai Zi laughed, “Peng Ding Zi has always admired you captain.”
“This blockhead really needs instruction.”
“But the most important thing now is capturing the port.”
Er Gua Zi nodded.
The port was very important.
It had to be captured!
As the attacker, if they seized the port, the fishmen would be able to hold the
initiative entirely. No matter how many humans there were on the island, they
would become turtles in a jar that could be slowly processed.
Even if Hun Tong and the others broke out of the auction hall, as long as the
fishman had ships, they could easily retreat. They would leave any human ships
behind. When that happened, even if the humans wanted to pursue, they could
only gaze at the ocean and lament their inadequacies.
“Charge!” Er Gua Zi ordered.
All of the pirates went full speed ahead.
The Vinegar Jar took the lead
Upon seeing this, countless humans on the port battlefield grew uneasy and
fretful.
“The enemy’s reinforcements have arrived, where are our commanders?”
“The Vinegar Jar Pirates! Their commander is a gold level fishman warrior.”
“We’re done for, we need to retreat inland.”
“Out of the question, it’ll be worse if we lose our ships, we won’t be able to
leave Two Eyes Island!”
Cang Xu’s heart sank, he had to deal with Peng Ding Zi while quickly thinking
of a countermeasure.
He didn’t think that the first gold level reinforcements would not be from
their side, but from the enemy.
The situation had become untenable.
It would take less than ten minutes for the Vinegar Jar Pirates to reach the
port.
What should he do?
“If there is nothing we can do, then we must retreat.”
“Safeguard the lives of Bai Ya, Mu Ban, and the rest.”
“The others can be abandoned.”
Cang Xu swiftly made his choice, his eyes filled with cold indifference. 
He was not Zong Ge, he didn’t feel anything for those trained troops. He didn’t
have the young commander’s righteous duty either.
He was a necromancer; he treated lifeforms as research materials and the other
mercenaries as mere numbers.
“We established the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps because we needed a public
identity.” 
“If we lose our current outer members, we can still raise a new army later.”
“This outer identity won’t be lost!”
The seafloor.
Zi Di was in the cockpit, controlling the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The latter was indeed a gold level magic ship, and if it needed to fight, it
could deploy gold level cannons, the Electric Lock alchemy formation, or the
Hedgehog Firepower Countermeasures, all of these could fix the tone with a
single blow, they could decimate all of the fishmen on the port or sink the
Vinegar Jar Pirates together.
“But that isn’t required.”
“This is Two Eyes Island; it is not our base.”
“Using it to help Hun Tong will only gain his appreciation for a time, but in
the long run, it will lead to fear and spying.”
“The risk of exposure will greatly increase.”
The auction gains all being stored in the hold put Zi Di much more at ease.
“All of the ships are ordinary vessels, and even if they all sink, we can bear
this loss.”
“But those ships have many materials, and if they are lost, it would be quite a
pity.”
“The most important thing now is helping the commander and Zong Ge break out,
then safely bringing back Mu Ban and the others.”
“Perhaps I can use one of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s forms.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had a mimicry hull and could transform into three
forms.
Its usual shape looked like a giant magic beast fish.
The sail fish form: where the hull lengthened and the fishtail turned into a
propellor. The propellor would rotate rapidly and form a spiral stream behind
it. The form increased its underwater speed to 35 knots.
The third form was a fishman form.
The hull would lengthen into feet, and a section of the keel would be
dismantled and turn into a harpoon, its main weapon.
After the survivors took control of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they had tested
each of the three forms.
The sailfish form was specialized in pursuit speed, the normal form was
balanced in all functions, and the fishman form was the combat oriented form.
After Zi Di pondered for a bit, and if things didn’t work out, she planned on
coming ashore in the third form to fight.
Doring this allowed the Deep Sea Monster Fish to disguise itself better than
just using it as it was now.
Just as Zi Di was staying vigilant, the Vinegar Jar’s speed abruptly dropped.
“What’s going on?”
“A whirlpool!”
“A whirlpool suddenly appeared under the ship; it is sucking us in.”
The fishmen used their native language to loudly communicate with each other.
The Vinegar Jarwas sinking into a whirlpool.
The fishmen quickly responded.
The Vinegar Jar sprayed a large stream of water, causing its motive force to
rise dramatically, barely pushing the Vinegar Jar out of the whirlpool.
“This is no normal water flow; I sense the aura of magic!” Xi Dai Zi wrinkled
his brows.
“Have the ships behind stay back, we’ll blow it up.” Er Gua Zi ordered.
The Vinegar Jar’scannon muzzle was where the water had been spraying out of, it
was a hole at the lowest part of the ship’s hull. 
The artillery shells used also had some distinguishing features.
They were not normal alchemy artillery shells, rather they were compressed
liquid, temporarily made liquid artillery shells.
Bang, thump, bang.
Three dim yellow balls of liquid hit the whirlpool with an explosion.
Space violently oscillated.
The whirlpool was completely destroyed.
The fishman pirates dove down the check it and gained nothing.
“No alchemy equipment detected. A bit troublesome, this should be called the
Tugboat Whirlpool magic trap.” Xi Dai Zi analyzed.
He looked at the ocean surface ahead of him, “Hun Tong unexpectedly deployed
these magic traps near Two Eyes Island.”
“We weren’t able to detect any of them.”
“These magic traps can be artificially controlled, able to both be activated
and shut down.”
“During the auction, these traps were shut down, therefore allowing ships to
sail in normally.”
Xi Dai Zi’s complexion became unsightly.
The ocean surface before him looked like a wide expanse, but in reality, it
concealed many traps.
Besides the Tugboat Whirlpool trap, what other magic traps were there?
If there were explosion traps or naval mines, what would they do?
Er Gua Zi coldly snorted and resolutely ordered, “Continue charging!”
“The Vinegar Jar will clear the way.”
“All other ships line up behind and follow in our wake!”
Er Gua Zi’s boldness steadied Xi Dai Zi’s mind. 
Battlefield opportunities were transient.
At this time, they had to charge Two Eyes Island and capture the port,
regardless of the consequences.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates changed formation and charged again.
Their journey was not serene.
Not only did they encounter whirlpool traps, but they also ran into water
columns, freezing traps, and more.
At this time, the Vinegar Jar embodied its function. 
It challenged the law, and was the first to trigger the traps, then rigidly
charged through.
Thanks to the Vinegar Jar’s protection, the other ships weren’t harmed in the
slightest.
But because of the traps, the Vinegar Jar Pirates had to slow their advance.
Seeing that the gold level pirate group was getting closer, the humans on the
port had no choice but to respond.
“Withdraw now!”
“We cannot let the Vinegar Jar Pirates lock down the port.”
“As long as we leave the port, we can still run and fight on the wide sea!”
The first to leave were the magic ships belonging to the five merchant
alliances.
Next was the Iron Lump and the White Bandage.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to set sail and leave port, however, due
to the fishmen obstructing them with all of their strength, they weren’t able
to.
They had become the fishmen’s chief target.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman and the spiky fishman wouldn’t let them evacuate
easily.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were all trapped on the port.
The ships that left port also suffered heavy losses.
The first unlucky spirit was the Flint Merchant Alliance’s magic ship, it had
trigged a water column trap.
A column of water slammed into the ship from beneath it with great force.
The Flint Merchant Alliance magic ship was nearly capsized by the water column.
Following it, other ships in turn fell into traps.
Magic ships could withstand them, but ordinary ships met a miserable end.
Several ships lost speed, some were mired by whirlpools, spinning in place.
Others had holes blown into them and slowly sank.



****** Chapter 164: Er Gua Zi ******
“What happened?”
“Those must be magic traps Hun Trong had deployed.”
“I know. But why is he blowing us up?”
“Damm you Hun Tong!”
Some on the ships encountering these beatings reprimanded severely, while far
more were hard pressed.
On the seafloor, Zi Di was watching and thought, “These are just magic traps,
only able to activate and shut down, there is no foundation to them.”
“If they could be freely turned on and off, there would a central hub. The
construction cost of one is quite high and the large scale of it would cause it
to be more easily exposed.”
“After all this is the ocean, not an underground city.”
Zi Di was a magician and a merchant. She had cultivated both paths at the same
time and could determine some things.
Therefore, she understood Hun Tong’s arrangements.
The ships charging out were trapped and in an awkward situation.
Ahead of them were numerous hidden magic traps.
Behind them was the bitter port battlefield.
Continuing to forge ahead would trigger the magic traps.
If they returned, they would need to keep fighting. The crux was that if the
port was blocked, the consequences would be disastrous.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates didn’t need to storm the port, they only needed to open
fire to cause terrible losses to the humans.
Because these ships were anchored, they were all sitting targets and due to
their close proximity to each other, none of them could move out of the way.
As the humans were hesitating, the Vinegar Jar Pirates attacked.
Both sides entered shelling range.
Compressed water shells shot out in succession.
They shot straight through the seawater.
The water around them swelled into knolls as they quickly approached the human
ships.
The human ships were unable to intercept such artillery shells.
One after the other, the knolls struck the ships, meaning the shells underwater
had hit their target dead center.
For a moment, explosions rang out continuously.
The humans sank into chaos.
Large holes split open the bottoms of their ships, and as seawater bubbled in,
there weas nothing they could do to stem the flow.
Not only were shells hitting from underwater, but there were also things
hitting from the air.
Xi Dai Zi controlled an alchemy device, and the water that soaked the decks
converged into two streams that flew into the air like large pythons.
The water pythons exploded in the air, changing into a shower of acid rain.
The acid rain covered the human ships completely.
In a split second, a strong vinegar smell assailed the nostrils and formed a
strong acidic mist.
Som of the human sailors inside the acidic mist were stricken with malaria, and
others spat out teeth, the teeth had been corroded by the acid.
The weaker sailors collapsed to the deck, and after violently cramping for a
spell, they went limp.
Death by acid.
If it was the port, the Vinegar Jar Pirates would have some misgivings, after
all there were many fishmen compatriots still on it.
But on the sea, there was only human ships, and so they could release all of
their tricks to bombard a large area.
The Vinegar Jar displayed its ferocious firepower!
The human ships suffered heavy losses and were stunned for a short while.
Although they had many ships and people, they had no leader, they were a
rabble.
Under this bombardment, some ships chose to fire back, some chose to flee in
another direction, and others simply returned to where they’d come from,
rejoining the port battle.
These many choices made the situation chaotic.
Some ships turned around, some ships put away their sails and prepared to
shell, this led to interference with each other and even collisions.
Er Gua Zi’s eyes flashed with a biting cold.
He was commanding the flagship and took the lead to charge into the human
ships.
The long serpentine line of Vinegar Jar Pirates, with the Vinegar Jar at the
forefront, destroyed all in their way.
Its hull was like a sharp knife that easily cut through the human ships like
“cake”.
“Open fire!”
After cutting through the enemy fleet, the Vinegar Jar Pirates did broadsides,
none lacking the booming of artillery.
The human ships struck burst into flames, wood shavings and blocks flew, and
humans screamed, with some of them being blown into the air, arms or thighs
snapped off and fell into the deck or sea.
Some had even worse luck.
Ammunition stores were detonated, creating an even bigger explosion that
instantly destroyed a ship’s movement and battle strength leaving only scant
survivors to abandon ship as the ship swiftly and violently sunk, their bow or
aft still raging with flames.
The Iron Lump and the White Bandage chose to keep evacuating.
The various hidden magic traps were a huge threat to ordinary ships, but these
magic ships were sturdier.
They imitated their enemy.
The Vinegar jar could wade into the traps, so the Iron Lump and White Bandage
decided to try too.
They wanted to escape, but Er Gua Zi would never let them go.
Whether it was the Iron Lump or the White Bandage, both were key targets in the
fishmen’s intelligence.
To the fishmen, leaving these two magic ships to their own devices would make
them a considerable menace to them.
“If we let them go now, it’ll be ten times more troublesome to deal with them
in the future!” Er Gua Zi understood things clearly.
Plop.
He jumped into the sea.
He didn’t have any flying battle skills, but he was a fishman and could swim.
Not only that, but he was a stronger combatant in the water.
Er Gua Zi swam at lightning speed and slammed into the bottom of the White
Bandage.
The White Bandage shook tremendously, and everyone on board turned pale.
A wave of water rolled up like a countercurrent waterfall and washed down onto
the deck, clearing a large area of it.
The wave waned, leaving the gold level fishman fighter Er Gua Zi standing
proudly on the deck.
The human fighters trembled in fear as they surrounded him, but no one dared to
attack him.
Er Gua Zi coldly snorted, killing intent boiled up in his heart, and he
launched his massacre.
None was his match!
White bandages wrapped around him like pythons.
Er Gua Zi slapped many bandages back with his palm his gold level battle qi
oscillating through the air.
A moment later, many more bandages attacked from all directions.
Er Gua Zi didn’t dodge or duck, he let the bandages wrap around his legs, arms,
waist, and back.
In an instant, he was trussed up.
Battle skill – Scale Severing Blades!
All of his fish scales glistened with gold luster.
Soon after, battle qi formed into fish scales large and small that fluttered
around him in untold numbers.
The white bandages were cut clean by the small blades.
Without the binds, Er Gua Zi continued his slaughter.
The strongest mercenary left on the White Bandage was at best iron level, they
were never Er Gua Zi’s match.
Very quickly, all of the Bandage Mercenary Corps’ experts were slain by Er Gua
Zi’s hand.
More fishmen swam over and helped Er Gua Zi take over the White Bandage.
Er Gua Zi, covered in watery blood, jumped back into the sea to pursue the Iron
Lump.
When the Iron Club mercenaries saw this, all of them opened fire with numb
scalps to stop Er Gua Zi’s approach.
Artillery shells smashed into the ocean, creating layers of waves and jets of
water.
This caused Er Gua Zi to dive a bit deeper.
He quickly climbed onto the Iron Lump and was just about to carry out another
massacre when he heard a gigantic rumble from the island.
Er Gua Zi changed color.
He knew the auction hall trap had been broken, Hun Tong and the others had
regained their freedom!
And the port battle hadn’t subsided yet.
Er Gua Zi’s goal of controlling the port hadn’t been attained yet.
It had to be said that the magic traps delaying them granted this opportunity.
The Iron Lump, White Bandage, and the other ships had used their lives to slow
down the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ assault.
Now, Er Gua Zi’s best choice was to accelerate his slaughter efficiency and
after dealing with the Iron Lump, continue charging the port, rushing to
establish the local war situation before Hun Tong and the others could.
What made him grateful was that although he was on the Iron Lump, his first
mate Xi Dai Zi was still leading the fleet towards the port.
Based on distance, they would be the first to arrive.
“Finally escaped.”
“Something has happened, it’s the fishmen!
“Those wretched people, they dare to attack imperial territory.”
The liberated cultivators were swearing in high spirits. 
Hun Tong immediately flew high into the air.
The others soon gazed into the distance.
As Hun Tong looked down on the island, his complexion sank.
Numerous cultivators all looked towards the port as if by prior agreement.
“The light cannon turret and many other places have fallen into enemy hands.”
“The port is a strategic location; it cannot be lost too.”
“My fleet!”
Some cultivators were shouting, others were howling in grief, and one by one,
all of them murderously gazed towards the port.
The Vinegar Jar looked like a rude and unreasonable magic beast, not decreasing
its speed as it crashed into the port.
The anchored ships near it were smashed.
After crashing through five ships, the Vinegar Jarhit dry land and grinded many
costal buildings to slag.
Magic had finished brewing already.
Standing on the coral pillar, Xi Dai Zi aimed a finger at Cang Xu in the
distance.
An icy ray shot out at razor sharp speed.
Cang Xu spun in the air and attempted to evade.
But the icy ray was under Xi Dai Zi’s control; he quickly changed its
trajectory and easily hit Cang Xu.
Cang Xu was slowly greatly by this magic.
The spiky fishman howled with laughter, approached Cang Xu, and smashed Cang
Xu’s hand with his wolf teeth club. 
At this critical moment, Cang Xu still kept his calm.
He was just about to grit his teeth and use necromancy when he suddenly
stopped.
Boom!
A fiery figure fell from the sky.
An iron fist smashed down, pounding the spiky fishman back.
Layer upon layer of deck was shattered, the exploding fist punching the spiky
fishman into the water.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
The spiky fishman coughed out blood, and his two perfectly round fish eyes
revealed his unconcealed shock.
“What did you want to do to my magician?” The dragonman youngster shook his
dragon trail, restrained his fist, and looked down at the spiky fishman from
the hole in the decks.
“Commandeer!” Cang Xu finally had strong reinforcements, and despite being a
necromancer, he couldn’t help but be moved.



****** Chapter 165: The Powerful Dragonman ******
The port battlefield.
Sonorous fishmen war cries, the curses of human defenders, and the sounds of
battle mixed together.
Blades glistened, the shadows of swords flew, and many arrows and bullets spat
through the air.
Some fought selflessly, others struggled for their lives, and some upon seeing
their comrades in arms fall, took revenge to wipe out their grudges with wild
scarlet eyes!
It was a chaotic battlefield.
There were no battle lines.
Because when the Vinegar Jar Pirates approached, many ships sailed out and the
originally crowded port became much more spacious.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships couldn’t leave the harbor, and they were
the fishmen’s main target. 
Therefore, they now had the most fishmen surrounding them.
It was the center of the battlefield.
“gram”
A fishman exclaimed as it climbed up the side of a ship and onto the deck, then
threw themselves at the nearest Dragon Lion mercenary.
The mercenary was currently holding back another offensive.
He was in imminent danger, and didn’t notice the fishman charging in from his
left.
Ding.
A gunshot echoed.
The fishmen toppled over, completely dead.
The mercenary was still gritting his teeth, and didn’t notice how close death
had brushed past him.
The one who saved his life was a gunman.
He didn’t have any notion of taking credit, because this had happened many
times already.
The line of battle across the ship sides had already been shattered, and
increasing amounts of fishmen were rushing onto the deck. The mercenaries
retreated around the ship’s bow and aft houses, as well as the mast in the
middle and the doorway to the lower deck, barely able to defend themselves.
The gunman’s only hope was that they could repel these fishmen as soon as
possible, then reorganize the defensive line around the ship, otherwise they’d
all be in danger.
Ammunition ran out.
“I need to reload, cover me!” The gunman shouted, he took a big step back and
lowered his head to reload his gun.
His battle companion behind him straightened his back and stepped forward to
protect him.
But a moment later, a hurled harpoon skewered him.
His corpse fell onto the gunman.
The ammo the gunman had taken out toppled out of his palm and fell onto the
stairs that linked the aft house and the deck.
“Damm it!” The gunman cursed, he was about to pick it up when suddenly, a
shadow covered him.
The gunman’s hair suddenly rose, and without thinking, he raised his firearm.
A moment later.
A fishman cutlass ferociously hacked into the gun’s barrel.
The alchemy firearm came from War Merchant’s warehouse, and its quality was
guaranteed. Thus it wasn’t cut through and had saved the gunman’s life.
But only for the time being.
Seeing he missed, the fishmen pulled out his blade and swung again.
“Duck!”
The gunman heard someone yell behind him during this critical moment.
He promptly ducked.
A second later, a broadsword whooshed above the gunman’s head.
The fishman raised his blade to protect himself, but the broadsword sliced
through his body, causing his blood to splash everywhere.
The gunman seized that opportunity to roll behind his battle companion to give
the latter space.
As he got up, another gunman handed him some ammo.
This time, he smoothly reloaded.
The gunmen fired in quick succession, each bullet taking away a fishman’s life.
But the situation hadn’t improved.
There were so many fishmen, and at this moment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
needed stronger firepower.
The situation was deeply worrying.
On some ships, the fishmen held the advantage, while on others the humans
firmly held their ground.
Both sides lost people during these shootouts and close quarters fights.
The dragonman youngster had such things as he rushed to the port.
When he saw his subordinates fall one after the other, despite them slaying
more fishmen in return, the dragonman youngster’s heart still filled with fury.
The dragonman youngster had always held himself responsible as leader.
But now, it wasn’t the time to resolve these issues.
Anger did not tamper the dragonman youngster’s reason, he quickly
differentiated and analyzed the battlefield.
Although the battlefield was disorderly, there were only two key fights. One
was the Quick Knife battle squad and the Steel Bone Knight fishman, and the
other was the spiky fishman pursuing Cang Xu.
Without hesitation, the dragonman youngster made a beeline for Cang Xu.
Cang Xu was in a more urgent situation, he was already wounded (the dragonman
youngster didn’t know Cang Xu’s injuries were an element of his plan to
paralysis his opponent).
Zong Ge, behind him rushed over to assist the Quick Knife battle squad.
At the same time, the Vinegar Jar was approaching the port after sustaining
innumerable magic traps.
Finally, within casting range, Xi Dai Zi immediately let out prepared magic.
Cang Xu couldn’t evade, and his speed slumped when he waws struck by the ice
magic.
The spiky fishman howled with laughter and seized the opportunity to get near
Cang Xu and smash Cang Xu’s head in with his wolf teeth club.
He had finally found a chance since they started fighting, and for a moment was
too excited to notice a blazing figure towering above him.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Bang!
A moment later, the dragonman youngster’s fist ruggedly pounded into the spiky
fishman’s back and smashed him downwards.
Crack, thump, bump!
Three crunches in a row.
The spiky fishman crashed through the first deck, then the second deck, until
finally crashing through the bottom of the ship.
Plop.
He fell into the sea, reaching a depth of four meters within seconds, causing
seawater to surge upwards all around him.
The sharp pain from his back caused the spiky fishman to gasp and belch out
lots of blood.
His perfectly round fishmen eyes glared angrily through the turbulent waters
and holes in the ship and saw the murderer who attacked him.
A tall silhouette looked down at him through those three holes.
The sunlight shined on the murderer’s head, and a strong sense of oppression
suddenly hit his face.
It was obviously silver level, but he felt like he was facing a gold level.
Vertical red eyes and sharp fangs and teeth.
His body of dragon scales was just like battle armor.
Dragon claws balled into a fist had steam rising from it.
Information given prebattle streaked across the fishman’s brains.
In an instant, he figured out who had attacked him, “Long Fu!”
According to what the information said:
He was a silver level dragonman.
He once faced Rou Zang openly.
This alone caused people to look at him in high regard.
But the strike and his serious injury from it allowed the spiky fishman to
completely understand how strong Long was!
This was a monstrous silver level!
He had only felt this kind of oppressive power from Dao Hen.
But Dao Hen bore the strong Knife Fin bloodline and was an old fishman that had
been renowned for a long time.
How hold was Long Fu?
The spiky fishman spat out a bit more blood.
But this time, he finally recovered his strength.
The fist had left crushed scales and shattered bones in his back.
Every time he moved, he would feel intense pain.
However, this pain instead aroused the spiky fishman’s ferocity even more!
He howled and with all of his might, climbed back up.
“gram”
The spiky fishman rushed out of the seawater, and rushed up the holes in the
ship, both fists raised as he advanced towards the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster remained calm as he suddenly extended his left palm to
the left of his body.
Ding.
The left palm detonated.
The battle skill Surge activated, pushing him out of the way.
He timed it just right, and the spiky fishman breaking through the decks
attacked with all of his might yet hit nothing.
Using the explosion’s force, the dragonman youngster rushed to the side of the
ship.
He had been practicing this battle skill diligently.
Now, he had a skillful mastery of the battle skill Surge.
It was an easy drive on a familiar path for him now, to the extent that he
actually expressed a hint of gracefulness when his strong body experienced
sudden shifts in location.
The dragonman youngster softly jumped, his two feet landing on the inner side
of the ship.
His knees bent in passing, and like a compressing spring saving kinetic energy,
his entire body was nearly parallel with the deck.
Battle skill – Surge.
The center of both his soles exploded at the same time.
The explosions blew holes in the ship side.
This strong driving force bubbling out boosted his charge at the spiky fishman.
The spiky fishman cried out as he lifted his arm to block it.
This time it was different, he finally had time to withstand the dragonman
youngster directly.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Bang!
A similar explosion boomed.
Similar firepower.
A similar scene played out again.
The spiky fishman was blown away, his arm bones completely disintegrated, and
his chest cratered by the powerful strike.
At least four of his ribs were broken.
The spiky fishman was valiant, and before the explosion launched him, he used
racial magic with all of his strength.
His frontal spikes aimed and fired at the dragonman youngster!
Ding, ding, ting…
A succession of metal clangs accompanied splattering sparks.
The dragonman youngster stood firm, for his unyielding dragon scales perfectly
shielded him from harm.
Some spikes bounced back and hit some unlucky people.
A hole appeared in an iron level fishman’s head, they stiffened, then fell to
the deck. Their brains and blood were pooling from the hole in their forehead.
The spiky fishman flew through the air for a moment before smashing into the
middle of another ship hull.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were all ordinary vessels, so he broke
through the hull.
The spiky fishman crashed into the ship hold, then broke a ship ladder and
three ship pillars before stopping.
Lying in the wooden ruins, the spiky fishman madly coughed out blood once
again.
The acute pain caused him to involuntarily howl out miserably.
Taking the dragonman youngster’s fist was simply like being hit by a battering
ram!
He couldn’t raise his arms.
His breathing was also hindered, and his chest was congested.
The spiky fishman wanted to crawl up and continue the fight when suddenly, his
vision went dark and he fell back down, nearly fainting on the spot.
Upon seeing this, the human fighters all cheered, and their morale greatly
rose.
“That’s our commander!”
“Commander Long Fu has returned!”
“Woohoo, it’s time to kill these wretched fishmen bastards!!”
At that moment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was greatly influenced.
The fishmen swallowed their saliva, and they no longer charged wildly with no
thought for personal safety, now many fishmen looked worried and their
movements slowed somewhat.
The Dragon Lion mercenaries felt a great weight lift from them.
Both sides had limited training and weren’t standing armies. Although the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had Zong Ge, a drilling master, their training
hadn’t been that long.
Thus, morale greatly affected them.



****** Chapter 166: Human Reinforcements ******
“lamgrr”
The Steel Bone Knight fishman shouted, he was very concerned about the spiky
fishman.
After the spiky fishman took Long Fu’s bombardment and crashed into a ship
hold, he had gone quiet.
The dragonman youngster’s battle strength far exceeded the fishman knight’s
estimates!
Of course, if the spiky fishman was in peak condition, the dragonman youngster
wouldn’t have beaten him in two blows.
The spiky fishman had madly rushed the White Bandage and the Iron Lump, greatly
consuming his battle qi. Soon after, he attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ ships and endured an unknown amount of arrows and bullets before finally
being struck from behind by the dragonman youngster.
His condition had declined too severely.
This was also one of the main factors that let the dragoman youngster exhibit
his supernatural might.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman couldn’t bear watching on helplessly as the spiky
fishman was killed.
He regretfully looked down below him and finally made a decision.
A moment later, he clapped his lizard and used the fishman tongue to order his
mount to flee.
Then he dismounted willingly and turned tail, charging towards the ship where
the spiky fishmen had fallen.
“Don’t let him escape!”
Kuai Tui growled as he swung his curved blade at the fishman knight.
The others immediately followed Kuai Tui’s lead and surrounded the Steel Bone
Knight fishman.
The lizard had managed to break out, and for a moment it slowed, as if it
couldn’t believe what was happening.
The Quick Knife battle squad’s actual target had been the Steel Bone Knight
fishman, so they let it get away.
Although it was an iron level magic beast, it was near death and had no battle
prowess left.
Due to this unexpected turn of events, the lizard sized that opportunity to
save itself.
Kuai Tui’s decision was very reasonable.
Beheading the lizard would waste time.
They had to stall the Steel Bone Knight fishman to give Commander Long Fu
crucial time. Killing the spiky fishman as soon as possible would tremendously
affect this battlefield.
However, this time when the Quick Knife battle squad did battle with the
fishman knight, they did far worse.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman had strong defense, and bronze level knives would
at beast leave a scratch.
Without a mount encumbering him, he could use all of his energy to go on the
offensive.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman raised his lance and swept it in all directions.
Most of the Quick Knife battle squad were forced to get out of the way.
They were only bronze levels and were far beneath a silver level.
Kuai Tui was the only iron level, and he braced himself to block the fishman
knight.
Lance and blade collided.
Metal shrieked and sparks flew.
The bronze knife flew away, along with Kuai Tui. His forearm was bent back, and
his hand was stained with blood.
He was the core, and now that he had been thrown out of position and wounded,
the entire battle squad was affected and became disorderly.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman saw this weakness, and his massive eyes glinted
ominously.
He immediately changed his plans, now deciding to annihilate the battle squad
before him.
The Quick Knife battle squad had entangled him for a long time, causing him to
hate them greatly.
Now that he had a good chance to do so, of course he wanted to take revenge.
If he let this golden opportunity slip away, the Quick Knife battle squad would
regroup and become a problem again.
Then, they would interfere with his fighting once again.
The lance ferociously thrusted towards Kuai Tui.
Kuai Tui had fallen onto the deck and was unable to evade.
Pop.
Blood splashed.
A dogman placed his own body in front of Kuai Tui.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman was very strong.
Compared to the lance, the dogman looked very frail, and he wasn’t able to stop
the lance completely.
The lance impaled through the brave dogman warrior and into Kuai Tui’s lower
back.
Kuai Tui roared in pain.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman was about to continue piercing Kuai Tui when
suddenly, his ear felt a biting cold wind.
At that moment, he felt panic spread through his body, bursting through his
fish scales.
The fishman unconsciously relinquished his grip and jumped to the right to
avoid a blinding sword.
He quickly turned around to see a burly chap standing behind him.
The burly human turned his wrist, swinging the broadsword in a horizontal cut.
The fishman knight was confident in his defense, but still didn’t want to
endure this strike.
The other person was a silver level like him, so of course he dodged.
The fishman knight rolled, dodging the broad sword’s cut and pulled distance
from the burly human.
The burly human didn’t pursue, his swing before was intended to force the
fishman knight back.
Holding his sword in one hand, he grabbed the shaft of the lance and yanked it
out, saving Kuai Tui.
“Lord Shi Qi!” Kuai Tui and the others shouted.
Zong Ge nodded to them, “You have done good enough, it is my turn now. Kuai
Tui, lead the others away.”
“Understood, Lord Shi Qi!” Kuai Tui followed the order.
He mournfully carried his dead comrade away.
The Quick Knife battle squad retreated in full.
This ship had become the battlefield for Zong Ge and the fishman knight.
The knight had lost his lance, so with a grave look, he took out an ornamental
blade from his waist.
He couldn’t assist the spiky fishman now.
The powerful Zong Ge required his wholehearted efforts to deal with!
He also didn’t need to worry about the spiky fishman for the time being.
Because Xi Dai Zi had already acted, temporarily intercepting the dragonman
youngster.
Xi Dai Zi was a fishman shaman and was adept at unleashing magic. He could make
time to throw out a totem in front of the spiky fishman while being busy
hindering the dragonman youngster.
The totem released emerald-green rays of light in a circle.
Within this green light, the spiky fishman’s injuries quickly recovered.
It was a healing totem!
“Follow me!” A silver level fighter led a group of bodyguards into the port
battlefield.
“My flagship, where is my flagship?”  Soon after, more cultivators came.
A wave of people anxiously stormed the port.
They were the merchant alliance representatives.
The ships were very important to the merchants.
If lost or damaged, transportation would become a big problem, greatly
influencing their business.
More vital was the imminent danger before them – without ships, if Two Eyes
Island was seized by the fishmen, they would be unable to escape!
Magic ships especially couldn’t be lost.
Their construction cost was too high!
Therefore, after breaking out of the auction hall trap, the merchant alliance
cultivators urgently rushed towards the port.
They were nowhere as strong as the dragonman youngster or Zong Ge, and despite
having movement enhancement battle skills, they were a step slower than those
two.
The awkward thing was that the merchant ships they wanted to save first had
basically all left port already.
But the merchant alliance cultivators didn’t despair.
Because the merchant ships weren’t that far from shore.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates assaulting the port scared many ships into leaving
port.
This resulted in them trigging the many magic traps Hun Tong had secretly
deployed.
As the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ flagship had come in, it had done close range
bombardments and thrown the departing ships into confusion.
These ships clashed with each other, and many could only spin in place as they
were slaughtered like leaderless beasts ambushed by wolves for a moment.
Ding.
A loud sound rang out.
The Vinegar Jar hadn’t slowed at all and smashed directly into the port.
An unlucky ship in its way was reduced to splinters within three seconds.
The silver level Vinegar Jar crashed into the shoreline!
The merchant alliance cultivators all got out of the way, their hearts
trembling in uniform.
The Vinegar Jar’sattack stance simply was crazy, and no normal person dared to
stop it.
Charging ashore with a ship was tantamount t o running it aground.
“The fishmen are too reckless!”
“If they can’t defeat Hun Tong, how will they retreat?”
“Surely they still have strength to reveal.”
The merchant alliance cultivators looked at each other in dismay, every single
one utterly bewildered.
The Vinegar Jar displayed that it would succeed or die trying, something that
indeed captured the people’s souls.
Such a strong showing caused the fishmen’s morale to rise, which had just been
struck down by the dragonman youngster.
The merchant alliance representatives were somewhat hesitant.
There were still only two crucial fights on the port battlefield.
One was Shi Qi against the fishman knight, the other was Long Fu fighting Xi
Dai Zi and the spiky fishman.
Shi Qi held a broadsword steadily, pressuring the fishman knight with strikes.
Long Fu was in a more awkward situation, he clearly held the advantage but
wasn’t able to translate it into a victory.
Casters had too many tricks, they could slow, heal, and more, all of which
prevented Long Fu from employing his power. The spiky fishman was constantly
healing, and after eating a big loss, he had learned to not content with the
dragonman youngster directly but just contend with him.
The spiky fishman had changed his combat style.
It was indeed somewhat troublesome to contend with his plump body.
However, compared to when he was coughing up blood injured, for the first time
in his life, the spiky fishman sensed the benefits of this kind of tactic.
“We must first save our people!” The Flint Merchant Alliance representative
took the initiative to decide and jumped out.
“The magic ships cannot be stolen.” The Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance
representative followed close behind.
The group of merchant alliance cultivators acted one after the other.
They jumped across ships and swiftly approached the maritime battlefield, each
of them assisting their own fleet.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance representative was left behind.
He didn’t know a jumping battle skill and could only impatiently take aim at
the Treasure Merchant Alliance representative.
Although the Treasure Merchant Alliance representative was a silver level
fighter, he had an alchemy item that allowed him to glide.
Just as he flew up two meters, his thigh was grabbed by the Secret Medicine
Merchant Alliance representative.
“Help me, take me along!” The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance shouted.
“Get off.” The Treasure Merchant Alliance representative exploded in anger,
“This item can only bear one person!”
“Money, I’ll give you money!”
“Everyone is a victim, everyone is a businessman, help me.” The Secret Medicine
Merchant Alliance representative yelled repeatedly.
The Treasure Merchant Alliance Representative wouldn’t stand for it and was
about to raise his other foot to kick the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance
representative off.
“Don’t be so pedantic!”  The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance representative
shouted, “100 gold coins, I’ll give you 100 gold!”
The Treasure Merchant Alliance representative immediately changed, “200 gold.”
“Deal, now fly with me!” The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance representative
agreed immediately.
But a moment later, a few spears and flying arrows shot towards the two.
It was quite dangerous to fly over the battlefield so recklessly.
It was easy to become a target.
Luckily both merchant alliance representatives were silver level and had
impressive defensive power.
They fell down, but in spite of their dirty trajectory, they continued to rise
into the sky and towards their ships to bring aid.



****** Chapter 167: Hun Tong’s Maneuver ******
Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai stormed the port side by side.
They were a step slower than the merchant alliance representatives.
That was because Hun Tong had them stay behind to give them a mission.
The mercenary corps also had their respective encampments on the new island.
They had also spent time converging with their people.
One knew that mercenary corps were not regular armies.
Take the soldiers in the city guard barracks, they were rarely able to freely
leave the barracks.
But mercenaries were different.
Under normal circumstances, these mercenaries had their respective lives and
could freely travel between the various regions of Two Eyes Island. Some
trained, some indulged in wine, woman, or maybe gambling.
Only when the mercenary commander convened them would they assemble together
and operate together to complete a mission.
The city wall guard barracks always had soldiers garrisoning and training in
them, while mercenary corps encampments only had a few people left behind in
them. Besides the mercenary corps members, there were also some old or disabled
mercenaries or family members there too.
The two commanders did their best to marshal their people, then hurried to the
port after the merchant alliance representatives arrived there.
“Damm it!” Commander Tie Bang grimaced.
“My White Bandage…” Commander Beng Dai gnashed his teeth.
The two were in a more awkward situation than the merchant alliance
representatives.
The merchant alliance cultivators were able to barely jump over and fly the
short distance to their fleets to provide aid.
While the two mercenary corps’ ships were farther from the port,
Because the Iron Lump and the White Bandage were both magic ships, they were
able to forge ahead and resist many magic traps, thus they were able to free
themselves from the harbor.
But the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ commander didn’t let them slip away.
He personally acted and slaughtered the crew of the White Bandage first, then
annihilated all of the humans on the Iron Lump next.
If the two mercenary corps’ ships didn’t leave port, the two commanders would
have been able to help their people.
But their decision to head towards the ocean actually caused them to cut the
distance between them and their enemies, thus saving their enemies’ time.
“What should we do now?” The two commanders stood together and were at a loss
for a moment.
Er Gua Zi had displayed his gold level strength, and with just his power, he
had effortlessly taken both of their flagships.
Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai were only silver levels, and didn’t want to
fight Er Gua Zi.
“Those wretched fishmen pirates. Since they stole our ships, we will steal
theirs!” Commander Tie Bang was steaming with anger as he gazed at the Vinegar
Jar stranded aground in the port.
“Possible! Er Gua Zi will be Lord Hun Tong’s to handle.” Commander Beng Dai
nodded, he shook his arm and shouted as he and Commander Tie Bang charged the
Vinegar Jar together.
Hun Tong had come to the port; however, he didn’t join the battlefield.
He looked towards the ocean, sharply gazing at Er Gua Zi.
Hun Tong was a gold level cultivator, and based on his strength, if he wanted
to, he could rush the port and sweep away the Steel Bone Knight fishman, the
spiky fishman, and the others there.
But he didn’t do that.
“If I save those mercenary and merchant alliance ships, they will want to leave
port.”
When that happens, the enemy’s pressure will focus on me.”
“Even if I hire them to do battle, that will waste resources.”
“Instead of that, it would be better to slow the pace and allow the port battle
to persist.”
Hun Tong naturally schemed for his own benefits.
He wasn’t worried about the port.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were sufficient enough for the fishmen to
chew on.
There were many merchant alliance cultivators that were also aiding.
As feudal lord, Hun Tong naturally had a higher vision than others.
He had to keep the overall situation in mind.
This was his responsibility as leader!
The Vinegar Jar Pirates have appeared.”
“What about the Blue Green Coral fishman clan?”
“Their old clan elder is also a gold level!”
Hun Tong didn’t plan to act immediately.
The enemy hadn’t gone all out yet, and so he kept watch from the rear.
The current situation was somewhat subtle.
The auction hall trap had been shattered, and the humans who had broken out
were not just merchant alliance people and mercenaries, but also pirates.
Ordinarily, these pirates would abide by Two Eyes Island’s laws.
But now that the auction was finished, and Two Eyes Island was inn turmoil,
would these pirates behave themselves?
If these pirates attacked Two Eyes Island, then they would be an enormous
problem!
Therefore, after breaking out of the auction hall, Hun Tong negotiated with the
others.
The focus of these negotiations was the pirates.
Hun Tong’s words of profound meaning used both soft and hard tactics.
Dian Wan, Hu Li, and Yang Cong Tou sank into silence.
But when met with Hun Tong’s proposal, Qi You burst into laughter, pointed at
Hun Tong, and shook his head, “No, no, no, Feudal Lord Hun Tong, you can’t
control us.”
“Who are we?” Qi You looked behind him, at the pirate commanders next to him.
His voice roused them, “We are pirates!”
“We are not some merchants bent solely on profit.”
“Nor are we those willingly mercenary dogs!”
“Hehehe.”
“We are pirates.”
“We are free.”
“Did you really think you could restrain a pirate’s freedom? Have them obey
your orders?”
“Even a king wouldn’t daydream of such a thing!”
“Wrong, Qi You.” Hun Tong deeply sighed, “This is merely an invitation from a
friend.”
“I am inviting you to be my guests.”
“Just like the innumerable times you have come ashore here.”
“As everyone can see, I have come across some small inconveniences…”
“Small inconveniences?!” Qi You interrupted Hun Tong.
The gold level pirate boss stared at Hun Tong with deep blue eyes, his gaze
exposing his ridicule and sarcasm.
“I don’t believe this is a small inconvenience.”
“If I were you, I’d act personally, instead of talking big here.”
“Speaking with us will do nothing.”
“Your enemy is before you, my adorable feudal lord.”
Hun Tong and Qi You looked at each other, their gazes crashing with imperviable
sparks.
Hun Tong could see Qi You’s greed and restlessness.
He could restrain Dian Wan and the other silver level pirates, but his power
was not enough to deter Qi You.
These pirates were like a time bomb.
Hun Tong didn’t want these pirates to be a knife in his back while he dealt
with the fishmen.
Thus, Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord raised his head and laughed.
He appeared to look down at Qi You, and replied with deep intent, “It seems we
have differing opinions of our situation.”
“Although I am disappointed, I am not surprised.”
“Do you know why?”
“Because you are not me.”
“Now, as Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord, I shall let you see what the situation
truly is!”
After saying that, he softly floated into the air.
He had a gold level flying skill, so doing this was quite easy.
As he floated in the air, he took out a portable flare gun.
It was a silver level weapon.
Inside it was a signal flare.
Hun Tong raised the gun and shot it into the sky.
Whoosh.
After sharply screaming through the air, the signal flare exploded in the sky
into a bright yellow firework that was exceptionally striking.
“The signal!”
“Open the magic power reservoir.”
“Raise the turrets!”
After receiving this signal, some surfaces of the new island opened wide and
pure white towers slowly rose from underground.
Light cannon turrets appeared in the highlands, the port, and in the middle of
the barracks!
The pirates changed color.
As it turns out, Hun Tong hadn’t just built a single light cannon turret.
It was just a pretense.
It was a trap that befuddled the enemy.
The fishmen had attacked it, but they didn’t know that there were other light
cannon turrets hidden underground elsewhere.
The towers were slender, and at their peak was 3 meter long cubes.
There was an eye on every single one of its sides.
On top of the cubes was a prismatic lens the height of an adult man.
When the light cannon turrets finished rising, the prismatic lens began to
absorb light, and when the light elements concentrated, the prismatic lenses
began to glisten with light.
“Lgmanan”
“Mglgml”
“Galmnnnalmgamllnga”
The fishmen detected the turrets, causing them to shout one after the other,
some were angry, but many more were panicking.
After a dozen seconds, the prismatic lenses stopped absorption. 
The light elements imbued the cubes.
The cubes’ closed eye patterns suddenly glistened with light.
The closed eyes then suddenly opened, and from the depths of their pupils,
light rays shot out!
The incandescent light rays were blinding.
A light ray targeted the ground in front of the barrack’s gate, cutting a
scorching black line through it that extended a dozen meters.
All fishmen in the line were vaporized, not even their skeletons remained.
Light rays weaved through the port, causing devastating casualties to the
fishmen.
Light rays also hit the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ ships, blowing up parts of three
ships and sinking three in an astonishing military success.
The many chaotic battlefields sank into stillness at the same time.
Both friend and foe were somewhat stupefied.
Hun Tong’s display of his defenses amazed most people.
The feudal lord had hidden himself too deeply.
“Two Eyes Island will prevail!” One Eye gazed at the light cannon turrets’
great might from a distance, his eyes were bright with the firm belief of
victory.
He had just been on the new island, but through a short distance teleportation
formation, now found himself on the old island.
Two Eyes Island had a new and an old island.
The new island had just finished rising, and the old island had sunken by two
thirds.
Hun Tong’s patrol feel wasn’t on the new island, rather it was on the old
island.
Hun Tong hadn’t done this intentionally.
Instead, it was convention.
This happened because the new island’s port was used to welcome everyone that
joined the auction.
The patrol fleet was stationed at the old island to also guard against upheaval
that occurred in the new island.
Deploying troops like this was undoubtably wise.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates had to choose between the new and the old island.
When they chose to assault the new island, the patrol fleet at the old island
was safe.
When upheaval occurred on the new island, the patrol fleet immediately detected
it.
By the time One Eye arrived at his flagship, the entire fleet was ready and
waiting!
“The enemy ships are all caught up in the fighting.”
“Attack!”
“We shall utterly defeat them!!”
One eye bellowed.
With vigorous morale, the patrol fleet gallantly sailed from port and charged
towards the new island.
When this power joined the battlefield, it was bound to tip the scales of
victory fiercely towards them.



****** Chapter 168: The Fishman’s Main Force ******
Dao Hen arrived at the army barracks.
He was wounded and holding a man’s head in his hand.
It was the city guard commander’s head.
The ultimate winner of the two silvers’ duel was Dao Hen.
Among the invading silver level fishmen, Dao Hen was publicly known to be the
strongest!
Gong Bo was leading his subordinates in the bitter siege of the guard barracks,
and when he saw Dao Hen rushing over to provide support, he was naturally
ecstatic.
After the two used the fishmen tongue to communicate, the city guard
commander’s head was thrown into the barracks.
The soldiers were immediately disturbed, and their morale took a hit.
“Don’t lose your heads!”
“Even though the Lord Commander is dead, we still have the Feudal Lord!”
“The Feudal Lord has already escaped, these fishmen will surely be defeated.”
“We can defend this place; we have the light cannon tower behind us!!”
Very quickly, the soldiers were no longer wavering and their morale stabilized.
Hong Bo sighed.
Dao Hen clapped his shoulder. After some observation, he decided to camouflage
himself, stealthily approach the barracks from the southeast corner, then
launch a surprise attack.
His plan succeeded.
He plunged into the people through a gap.
As silver level battle skills were used, he quickly looked like a silvery light
that chopped human soldiers to bits wherever it went.
When it came to assaulting a fortified position, cultivators always had a
powerful impact.
The barracks were barely able to hold off the silver level Hong Bo.
Dao Hen increased the pressure on them, and in the end, their defenses broke. 
A rout in one area would spur a rout in the entire front line.
The fishmen took advantage of this to wildly attack, bursting through a wall in
the barracks.
The light cannon turret in the barracks shot white light, each one able to kill
a hundred fishmen.
But the dauntless fishmen were unafraid of death, and they advanced wave up
wave.
“Be careful, he’s charging in!”
“Block them.”
“Ah…”
Dao Hen had killed his way into the center of the b arracks, withstanding every
human soldier, for none was his match.
Hong Bo led the wild attack from the backline, admiring Dao Hen’s lone figure
as he dove into the enemy troops.
“His target is the turret.”
“Protect the turret!”
The city guard’s few iron level leaders braced themselves and advanced to stop
Dao Hen.
Dao Hen sneered, and in spite of his body, he exchanged injuries for lives.
With one hand, he killed two iron levels.
The other leaders wavered, and for a moment their morale shook, almost ready to
run away.
At that critical moment, a divine spell soared through the air and fell onto
the iron level leaders.
The iron level leaders’ injuries quickly healed.
Then, many more divine spells fell.
When the pleasantly surprised human soldiers looked to who it was, they saw the
Wealth church priest leading a dozen clergymen along with thirty holy
bodyguards rushing over to provide support.
The divine spells didn’t just apply their effects, they also greatly increased
morale. 
Although the human soldiers were wounded, with divine spells taking care of
them, their injuries were quickly recovering. That made them fight more
courageously.
By contrast, when the fishmen saw the wounds their comrades had inflicted at
the cost of their lives melt away, their hearts inevitably felt setback and
despondence.
Dao Hen sighed to himself again.
He had definitely sensed that the humans were about to fall, but the clergy had
saved them all.
Hong Bo had already yelled himself hoarse during this fierce battle.
When the Wealth priest and the others appeared, he had immediately responded by
ordering his people to kill them.
But the other side had holy bodyguards, while at the same time, other human
soldiers quickly came to the rescue, reducing Hong Bo’s attempt on their lives
to nothing.
Thus, things for the fishmen were getting worse.
Although they currently held the advantage, it was only because they had
numbers.
With the clergy healing and assisting, the human soldiers would lose minimal
battle strength.
The two races had different strengths and weaknesses, and at this moment, the
cruel battlefield showed them in great detail.
The fishmen had far inferior talent to the humans.
They had a far lower percentage of casters in their race compared to the
humans.
In this part of the barracks battlefield, the humans had clergy helping, while
they didn’t.
The Blue Green Coral clan had many casters.
But they were precious, and had been placed in the underground, used to
construct the auction hall trap.
The auction hall had been broken, and in the subterranean depths, the fishmen
there had been turned to shriveled corpses.
There was a coral ball cage tree branch in each of the corpses’ hearts.
Their magic power and vitality had been dedicated to the cause.
They had been sacrificed.
While the mysterious purple scaled fishman disappeared with a trace.
The port nearby.
Qi You and the other pirates showed mixed feelings.
Hun Tong was still floating in the air.
The light cannon towers had been raised, and One Eye was leading the patrol
fleet over, the scales were tilting towards the humans.
The pirates were intimidated and didn’t dare to act blindly without thinking.
Hun Tong wasn’t the slightest complacent.
He knew the enemy’s full strength hadn’t appeared yet.
He was waiting.
But Er Gua Zi wasn’t. 
He broke a human sailor’s neck while surveying in the direction of the old
island.
Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet looked like a fierce tiger pouncing into the
chaotic maritime battlefield.
Er Guia Zi was a veteran island commander, and had abundant experience in naval
battles, he knew that although the patrol fleet wasn’t that big, in the chaotic
battlefield, these fresh troops would have an astonishing effect on the battle.
He wasn’t able to reorganize his ships any more.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates’ ships were all entangled with other ships, you and I,
I and you.
The flagship Vinegar Jar had even charged onto shore!
There were benefits to this too.
The light cannon turret that rose in the port was only able to shoot Vinegar
Jar Pirate ships on the periphery during its first wave of firing.
If the light cannon turret opened fire at will, it was liable to injury allies
on accident.
Er Gua Zi pondered and decided not to swim towards the fresh patrol fleet to
stop it, but rather towards Two Eyes Island.
As a gold level, his every move garnered much attention.
“He’s charging in!” Hun Tong’s gaze focused.
Hun Tong soon called to mind, “It seems the patrol fleet won’t arrive for a
bit.”
As expected, a moment later, an alchemy device transmitted, “Feudal Lord, we
have detected that there is a fishman army and magic beasts in the ocean, a
gold level aura has also been detected!”
“The fishmen’s main force.” When Hun Tong heard this bad news, his worry
instead decreased by a lot.
The time before arrows were fired was when they were the most threatening.
Hidden cards had been revealed, and so Hun Tong immediately replied.
He sincerely stated, “Distinguished Song Shou, please deal with the Vinegar Jar
Pirate commander.”
Song Shou didn’t hesitate and instantly nodded his agreement, “We human feudal
lords naturally must keep watch and defend each other, let me judge how fine
this fishman fighter is.”
Since the auction hall, Song Shou supported Hun Tong.
If he wavered now, it would reduce the friendship between them.
Song Shou naturally wasn’t stupid.
He didn’t have a flying battle skill, so he jumped his way over and entered the
port in a dozen seconds.
When the humans and fishmen nearby saw the gold level fighter arriving, they
all withdrew independently.
This battlefield was set aside for the showdown between gold level cultivators.
Song Shou stood on the shore, no longer advancing.
He didn’t want to fight the gold level fishman in the water. On land, he had
the advantage.
When Hun Tong saw Song Shou sternly standing, he turned to say to Yan Ding,
“Distinguished Yan Ding, I need your strength now to deal with the Blue Green
Fishman clan elder. I shall reward you handsomely afterwards!”
Yang Ding was outwardly a mercenary, but in reality he was an imperial secret
spy.
He and Hun Tong were working together.
Yang Ding nodded and jumped away.
He spouted smoke from his nostrils.
Black ashen smoke supported his tall and sturdy body, carrying him forward.
From the skies, Yang Ding quickly discovered that a gigantic oceanic beast was
floating up.
In the water, a black shadow was constantly getting bigger.
After a few seconds, there was a rumble.
A huge animal broke through the ocean surface, causing heavy ocean spray with
ample might.
It was a gigantic whale.
Its body appeared flat, it emitted strong chilliness, and it had a silver level
life aura.
The ocean magic beast – Freeze Army Whale!
On the Freeze Army Whale’s flat back was the fishman’s main force.
There was densely packed fishmen as far as the eye could see, at least two
thousand of them.
At the forefront of the fishman army was a two meter tall old fishman.
He was covered in green scales, leaning on a walking stick, and stooped over.
From his fishman gills there were many dark green kelps that dragged down to
his feet, they looked like a beard and long hair.
His gold level aura was unmistakable.
It was the one Hun Tong always had on his mind, the Blue Green Coral fishman
clan’s old elder!
The old clan elder gazed towards the new island, towards Hun Tong, then moved
his crutch.
The Frozen Land Whale beneath him gave a long wail, and with a tremendous wave,
charged directly towards the old island.
How strange, instead of helping on the new island, he instead chose to charge
towards the nearly sunk old island.
Hun Tong’s brows greatly furled at this moment.
This action didn’t make sense.
For a moment, Hun Tong couldn’t make out what the old fishman elder was
intending.
However, even though he couldn’t make out the enemy’s intentions, devising
every way and mean to destroy it would be fine.
Hun Tong instantly ordered One Eye to not come to the new island for the time
being, but instead to stop the main fishman army as much as possible.
One Eye received the order and altered the patrol fleet’s course at once.
Ships turned sideways, exposing rows of firing slits.
Boom, bang boom…
A moment later the cannons exploded and rumbled.
Artillery shells soared through the air in a parabola, heading straight towards
the fishman’s main army.
The fishmen had been prepared for this.
The Frozen Land Whale cried, and from its air hole sprayed a large stream of
sea water.
The sweater was like a gigantic umbrella that covered the skies above the
Freeze Army Whale.
Some of the artillery shells that struck the gigantic umbrella exploded on
impact, while others managed to get through, however, their momentum was
greatly decreased and were easily hit out of the sky by the fishmen.
The gigantic umbrella gradually expanded and stretched downwards.
A half spherical water bubble protected the fishmen completely.
This was the Freeze Army Whale’s racial magic – Large Bowl Water Cover.
As a silver level magic beast, humans of the same level couldn’t compare to
their magic power.
It was a difference between races.



****** Chapter 169: Mysterious Intent ******
The Frozen Land Whale could withstand the entire patrol fleet’s bombardment by
itself, and its charge didn’t slow at all.
While One Eye was powerless to do anything, Yan Ding rushed over.
He suddenly inhaled, causing the cigar in his mouth to violently burn down a
small chunk.
Yan Ding puffed up his chest, and from his nostrils, a large cloud of smoke
sprayed out.
The smoke looked like a black cloud, its darkness covered an entire area and
was descending towards the water.
The water bubble held back the black cloud, but it quickly eroded into black
ash.
The Frozen Land Whale wailed mournfully, finally feeling pain.
It slowed down too.
Despite it having coarse skin, thick flesh, and massive magic power, it
couldn’t compare to a gold battle skill.
Yan Ding used another gold level battle skill.
The Frozen Land Whale quickly fell into a disadvantageous position.
The old fishman elder naturally couldn’t let this continue.
He immediately threw himself into the fountain of water.
He jetted through the water all the way to the top of the water bubble.
The old clan elder used a battle skill to attack the distant Yan Ding.
Black smoke floated around Yan Ding.
This smoke condensed into a wall that blocked the fishman clan elder’s attack.
The old clan elder didn’t have a flying battle skill, and Yan Ding didn’t want
to fight in close quarters.
He was an expert at long range warfare, with massive area of effect, almost all
of his battle skills were large scale.
The two became deadlocked.
With the fishman clan elder’s protection, the Frozen Land Whale quickly bumped
into the old island.
The entire old island faintly rocked.
“Ogngrnmorn”
“gonmgoanga”
“gmnogognl”
The fishmen army had landed successfully, and one by one, they surged off the
whale’s back like a beast tide and swarmed onto the island.
Yan Ding coldly snorted and used a battle skill with all of their strength.
The black smoke under him quickly swelled to an area of a thousand square
meters.
Several holes appeared in the thick smoke.
The holes glistened bright red, like there were flames burning in them.
“Not good!” The fishman elder promptly strengthened his attacks, but he wasn’t
good at long ranged attacks.
Yan Ding activated his battle skill without a hitch.
Battle skill – Cigar Butt Fire!
The holes in the thick smoke expanded, and like an anus defecating, large
chunks of solid ash fired from them.
The solid ash was not heavy, and as they floated in the air, they suddenly
exploded, distributing huge volumes of red cigar ash.
These cigar ashes looked like the flames that floated through the air after
burning paper.
When they landed on fishmen, they immediately melted their fish scales and
burned them, causing the fishmen to miserably shriek. 
The cigar ash continued to fall.
Fishmen fell one after the other.
Yan Ding’s strength was quite outstanding, he really looked like a magician,
instead of a battle qi cultivation expert.
When the fishman elder saw his people suffer sever casualties, he lamented.
But he couldn’t do anything.
He didn’t have a flying battle skill, nor could he trouble Yan Ding enough.
He used a communications battle skill, “Lord Priest, please act. Your divine
spell can trouble Yan Ding immensely, we are all believers of our God.”
Inside the Frozen Land Whale, a priest was curled up, their eyes closed in
meditation.
Her upper body was human, while from the waist down, her body was a snake.
She had a slim build, and most of her body was covered in a layer of green
scales.
Unlike ordinary people, she had four arms, evenly distributed on both sides of
her body. Her forehead also had green fin-like antennas.
She was not a fishman, but a naga.
She was also a caster, but didn’t have the aura of magic power, instead she was
awash with the feeling of divine power.
Her aura was deeply restrained, and not a trace of it leaked out.
Upon hearing the old fishman elder’s plea, the worshiping naga opened her eyes
and rejected it, “Old clan elder, I cannot act so rashly.”
“I bear a heavy mission this trip. This mission comes before everything else.”
The old clan elder anxious insisted, “Lord Priest, to attack Two Eyes Island,
our entire clan has gone to war. If this continues, even if we recapture our
homeland, my clan will be wiped out.”
The naga priestess placated him, “Old clan elder, a turning point is coming.”
“Although I cannot act, there is one person who won’t be able to restrain
themselves.”
The old clan elder faintly stared, “Who?”
“Qi You.” The naga priestess silently laughed.
The old clan elder hesitated, “He’s a human. Furthermore, when the Vinegar Jar
Pirates contacted him and asked him to help attack Two Eyes Island, he refused
to.”
“Don’t tell me the Holy City has secretly instigated him?”
The naga priestess denied it, “We didn’t We have never contacted him.”
“But I can be certain that Qi You is bound to act.”
“You don’t understand this man.”
“At that time…how could the one who stole Xiao Shi away from me be content to
live in obscurity?”
Whoosh!
As if responding to the naga priestess’s words, a sharp steam whistle shrieked
from the new island.
Following the steam whistle, a silver level pirate ship appeared in the
distance.
It had a pirate flag that flew high above it, a long and narrow hull, its sails
looked like a black dragon’s wings, and it had a demonic charm that made it
stand out from the masses.
Behind this pirate ship, there were many more ordinary ships.
“That is Qi You’s ship – the Black Whimper!
“The Ten Touch Pirates are charging in !!”
“Qi You!!” Hun Tong suddenly glared at Qi You.
At that moment, he realized he’d been tricked by Qi You. 
Qi You appeared to be doing nothing while secretly contacting his fleet in
actuality.
Now, the Ten Touch Pirates were joining the fray.
They wouldn’t be dealing with the laughably poor fishmen, because they were
pirates, and would be targeting the populous and affluent human lands.
“Qi You, do you want to be my enemy?” Hun Tong growled, “Think it over
carefully. If you really attack, Two Eyes Island will forever be barred to the
Ten Touch Pirates!”
“You, a human, will be helping the fishmen, you will be a traitor to humanity!”
Qi You burst into laughter, “Don’t try to bluff me, Hun Tong.”
“Your Two Eyes Island is about to become an imperial logistics base.”
“No more shall pirates dispose of their booty here. Even if there are auctions
here, it’ll have nothing to do with us!”
Hun Tong’s heart shook, he narrowed his eyes, and his desire to commit murder
boiled over in a flash.
“What?” Dian Wan and the others looked at each other in dismay, they were a
level lower than Qi You and hadn’t received anything about that whatsoever.
“Don’t label me a traitor to humanity. I just want to grab a profit today.”
“Hehehe.”
“You’ve earned too much these last few years Hun Tong.”
“You’ve actually been fleecing us pirates.”
“Did you really think you’d always be able to take advantage of us? Today, I
will teach you a lesson.”
After saying that, Qi You leapt at Hun Tong.
Gold battle qi bubbled out from his back and condensed into a pair of demonic
bat wings.
He also had a flying battle skill!
The naga priestess never spoke with Qi You at all.
Qi You had refused the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ invitation.
He was wholly acting as a pirate that saw a chance for plunder, and moved in
less than a heartbeat.
Hun Tong had written off how prosperous the pirates had made Two Eyes Island
and was now eating a bitter fruit.
This bitter fruit had been grown by him,
He had no choice but to fight Qi You.
If he allowed this gold level to wreak havoc on the new island, they would reap
a great toll!
“What should we do?”
“This guy Qi You, I have a whole new respect for him.”
“Hehehe, Qi You is right. This is a wonderful opportunity; we must grab a huge
sum.”
“Looting a gold level’s foundation under their eyes is too stimulating, I like
it!!”
Dian Wan, Hu Li, Yang Cong Tou, and the others excitedly stood up, each of them
contacting their pirate groups.
Although they had participated in the auction, they were only able to bring
some trusted men onto the island.
This was a rule drawn up by Hun Tong.
Of course, Hun Tong wasn’t that stupidly arrogant to allow a pirate group’s
main force to tread on his island.
When they wanted to trade, they would comply with his rules.
Therefore, their respective pirate groups were roaming in nearby waters.
Generally speaking, after the auction finished, the main fleets would pick up
their respective commanders and sail away.
But now, after receiving their commanders’ hails, they bulged their sails,
shouted out, and rushed towards the new island.
Two Eyes Island’s war situation had once more sunken into chaotic unrest.
On the new island’s seafloor, the Deep Sea Monster Fish camouflaged as a reef
was of no interest to anyone and had been left in peace.
This gold level magic ship’s camouflage ability was too powerful, and no one
noticed it.
Zi Di was keeping watch, controlling the magic ship and examining the entire
battlefield.
“I have discovered something significant!”
She transmitted the information.
“There are many life auras hidden inside the Frozen Land Whale.”
“A conservative estimate of at least a thousand fishmen.”
“Not only that but I have also sniffed out a gold level aura, initial analysis
determines it’s a cleric!”
Hun Tong didn’t notice the naga priestess, however, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
detection methods laid the naga priestess bare.
“The fishmen actually have another hidden gold level?” The dragonman youngster
was astonished.
Ding.
An explosion rang out and his body soared to avoid Xi Dai Zi’s magic.
Taking advantage of this chance, he swept his eyes over the battlefield.
Hun Tong and Qi You were chasing each other in the sky, Yan Ding and the
fishman elder were doing battle, and Song Shou was following Er Gua Zi across
the shoreline.
The humans’ gold levels were pinned down, while the fishmen had one other gold
level power.
“Now it’s time to see if Hun Tong has any other tricks.” The dragonman
youngster thought.
The chance of this was very high.
The light cannon turrets rising had increased the dragonman youngster’s faith
in this conjecture. 
“I’ll need to be patient; the current situation isn’t clear yet.” The dragonman
youngster decided to restraint his strength as he tangled with Xi Dai Zi and
Peng Ding Zi.
The situation was deadlocked, and he secretly preserved himself to guard
against not having the energy to deal with the gold level.
Zong Ge did the same.
“The fishmen have more gold levels than the humans.”
“A rare situation.”
“I have always felt that the fishmen’s intentions for attacking the island
aren’t so simple!
At the same time.
In the depths of the auction hall.
Two silver level magicians cup open a passage and stepped into the space where
the blue scaled fishmen were assembled.
They were Hun Tong’s subordinates.
One was an alchemist with weak alchemist abilities, he normally presided over
appraisals mostly.
The other was a pharmacist, the one who had developed the Fragrant Gill Tea.
Although the auction hall trap was broken, all kinds of signs indicated that
there should be a control center hidden nearby.
Even if the Suffering Endurance Barrier didn’t have one, the Magic Power
Counteraction formation must have a control formation.
Naturally, Hun Tong wouldn’t allow the continued existence of this formation,
so he ordered these two to investigate and destroy it.
“Found it, it’s here!” The alchemist raised his voice.
The pharmacist swept his eyes over the blue scaled fishmen corpses, “These
fishmen are all dead. No, there is still the aura of magic power in the
distance.”
“A silver level life aura…”
“That side!”
The pharmacist threw a medicinal powder that melted the wall, revealing a new
tunnel.
The tunnel led to an even deeper abyss.
The alchemist hesitated, “Strange, the island is an abyss of suffering right
now, yet the silver level caster is incessantly drilling deeper.”
“What are they up to?”



****** Chapter 170: The Enduring Dragonman ******
The port battlefield.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
A dragon fist smashed into the spiky fishman.
The spiky fishman used his arm like a shield, but when Demolition Fist hit it,
it folded instantly and his defense crumbled.
An explosion banged, and the spiky fishman was thrown into the air by the
dragonman youngster.
Winning this opportunity, the dragonman youngster didn’t relentlessly pursue
the spiky fishman, instead he shifted directions, and charged at Xi Dai Zi.
His feet trampled across planks, the battle skill Surge exploding with
formidable power!
The dragonman youngster traveled through the battlefield, jumping across ships
and occasionally running across the sides of them and leaping from masts,
making his trajectory hard to make sense of.
“Peng Ding Zi is useless!” Xi Dai Zi could only bite his teeth and use his
magic to stop the dragonman youngster while retreating.
The two silver levels, Xi Dai Zi and the spiky fishmen, worked together to
withstand the dragonman youngster, however, they were still suppressed and were
unable to get the advantage.
Although Peng Din Zi was healed by Xi Dai Zi, his battle strength hadn’t
recovered, and he couldn’t regain his peak within a timely window.
The dragonman youngster was too bold and powerful and was also an expert
tactician.
He never let Xi Dai Zi cast with a peaceful mind.
The spiky fishman couldn’t stop him alone.
Xi Dai Zi interfered with the dragonman youngster, and after the dragonman
youngster beat back the spiky fishman, he did the same, pursuing Xi Dai Zi to
greatly disturb his actions.
The distance between the dragonman youngster and Xi Dai Zi swiftly shortened.
Seeing the tall and ferocious dragonman coming at him, Xi Dai Zi could sense a
strong oppression!
He took out a totem from his storage belt and threw it behind him.
The dragonman youngster instantly sidestepped it.
The totem didn’t hit him, but after it landed onto the deck, it immediately
erupted with magic power.
Magic covered the area.
Even though the dragonman youngster dodged it, he was still covered by the
magic.
His speed suddenly dropped by more than two thirds.
The dragonman youngster was not amazed.
This was a speed reduction totem.
Xi Dai Zi used this item to fight for time earlier.
This time was no exception.
Xi Dai Zi once again put distance between him and the dragonman youngster.
“This can’t continue!”
Xi Dai Zi was coldly sweating, and his heart contained no joy.
He only had two speed reduction totems left.
If this situation continued, he would run out of options.
“Peng Din Zi, if you want to join the Vinegar Jar Pirates, you need to go all
out and stop him for me!” Xi Dai Zi shouted in the fishman language.
When the spiky fishman heard this, he suddenly quivered and intense battle
determination burst out of him.
He madly roared and threw himself at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster got out of the speed reduction magic’s range and had
regained his normal agility.
But the spiky fishman was barring his way again.
Xi Dai Zi nevertheless kept moving.
He clenched his teeth as he threw out his remaining two totems from afar.
The two speed reduction totems overlapped with each other, covering both the
dragonman youngster and the spiky fishman.
Soon after, Xi Dai Zi stopped and began to loudly chant.
Unlike before, he now had distance and decided to take a chance to stop and
strive for more time to cast.
The spiky fishman risked his life to intercept the dragonman youngster, and he
too was slowed down.
More crucially, the latter didn’t want to use all of his strength to deal with
Xi Dai Zi.
Zi Di’s survey of the fishmen revealed another gold level that was hiding and
hadn’t acted yet.
Xi Dai Zi’s heart slammed, he was afraid that the dragonman youngster would
surmount the obstructions and leap at him, he didn’t know the dragonman
youngster had actually been throwing the fight.
If his cast was disturbed, it was likely to fail. If it failed, he would suffer
a backlash while dealing with the dragonman youngster coming right at him!
After a dozen seconds, Xi Dai Zi’s cast succeeded.
Only then did he breathe and relax his mind.
Magic power surged violently, causing moisture to curl around Xi Dai Zi,
condensing into a many headed water snake.
Water path magic – Three Headed Water Snake!
The water snake was mammoth sized, light blue, and translucent. Within the
snake, one could faintly see Xi Dai Zi.
With the water snake protection magic, Xi Dai Zi’s defense received a
considerable boost.
If the dragonman youngster wanted to attack him again, he’d have to destroy the
three headed water snake.
It was not Xi Dai Zi’s most powerful spell, but it was his best for both attack
and defense.
In this kind of battle, this magic most suited him.
Xi Dai Zi’s choice was quite sensible.
“I did it!” Hehehe…”
Complacency welled up as Xi Dai Zi sneered, his eyes pouring with killing
intent as he gazed at the dragonman youngster.
“Next shall be your moment of defeat!” Xi Dai Zi bellowed to himself, using his
spirit to move the three headed water snake into a charge.
The water snake shouted and quickly surged towards the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was in the middle of fighting Peng Ding Zi, but his
attention had always been focused on Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi using the three headed water snake had been expected by the dragonman
youngster.
Because beforehand, he had obtained information on it.
When Xi Dai Zi snuck onto Two Eyes Island, a fight had taken place that had
exposed this battle skill.
When he heard the same chant, the dragonman youngster determined that they were
going to use this spell, he audaciously relaxed and decided to stay his hand.
If it was an unknown magic, the dragonman youngster wouldn’t have let it slide.
The three headed snake charged in, and due to Peng Ding Zi and the speed
reduction totems, he couldn’t retreat.
Now, it was time to see the dragonman youngster’s battle abilities.
He stamped his feet onto the deck, detonating an explosion under his dragon
feet, causing his entire person to drop down through the broken deck.
Peng Ding Zi cried out, and not wanting to let the dragonman youngster escape,
followed after.
He was a head shorter than the dragonman youngster, but now that the dragonman
youngster had lowered himself, Peng Din Zi now had the height advantage as he
raised his weapon above his head, then ferociously swung down.
The dragonman youngster wasn’t alarmed but delighted instead as he raised his
palms upwards.
When they were about to touch the enemy’s weapon, battle qi bubbled out from
the hollows of his palms and suddenly exploded.
The force of the explosion greatly boosted the dragonman youngster’s downward
trajectory.
Two of the three headed snake’s heads tore from the left and right,, but they
hit nothing.
The two heads nearly collided with each other.
The dragonman youngster had dodged his strike, leaving Xi Dai Zi exceptionally
out of sorts.
He laughed nastily and used the fishman tongue to hoot, “Scuttle away, I’ll
find where you’re hiding!”
The three headed water snake under his control crashed into the level below the
deck.
Xi Dai Zi was a deep sea fishman and had dark eyesight; the suddenly change
from light to darkness below deck did not disturb him at all.
But as soon as he charged down, he saw the dragonman youngster preparing an
attack!
Battle skill – Surge!
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The dragonman youngster launched like a whirlwind!
Xi Dai Zi panicked, and due to their closeness, he couldn’t dodge.
However, he soon realized that he was within the three headed water snake had
had layers of defense.
Xi Dai Zi was not a close ranged combatant, and his caster habits had caused
him to slow a beat as he moved the three headed water snake’s nape to defend
himself.
Boom!
A great clamor.
When both sides met with force, it generated a strong shockwave.
So strong that even the silver fighter Peng Ding Zi was forced back by the
shockwave.
The tempestuous shockwave burst apart the ship.
For a split second, the second level deck became the first level deck, the bow
house and the aft house both rocked, and the mast lifted up a bit, then fell
into the sea.
The entire ship split in half, opening it wide open.
The shockwave dissipated the moisture.
The dragonman youngster jumped back, his gait relaxed.
Xi Dai Zi was pale, and his face was smeared with fear.
His three headed water snake only had one head left, the other two were severed
necks and there was also a distinct crater in the snake’s belly.  The crater’s
bottom was less than a meter from Xi Dai Zi.
“He has the power to blow up the three headed water snake!” After realizing
this, Xi Dai Zi suddenly felt that he had advanced too prematurely.
He immediately retreated and hoped that Peng Ding Zi would come to help him out
of this trouble.
But when he turned around to look, he saw that Peng Ding Zi was in the process
of stuffing seaweed into his mouth.
Xi Dai Zi: …..
He felt both indignant and powerless.
Because he could make out the seaweed Peng Ding Zi was eating grew on the
seafloor and was a commonly used alchemy material that could be used to make
most healing potions on the market.
The fishman clan had limited resources and didn’t have a pharmacist. 
Therefore, fishmen often gathered these aquatic plants and ate them raw to
recover their strength.
Peng Ding Zi was eating these aquatic plants because he was out of battle qi
and needed to replenish it now.
He weas not like the dragonman youngster.
He had been fighting for a long time, while the dragonman youngster had fought
for half as long as he.
The Spike Fishman bloodline also couldn’t compare the dragonman youngster’s
legendary bloodline, therefore him running out of battle qi first was normal.
Perhaps due to this warning, Xi Dai Zi’s eyes flashed as he looked at the
dragonman youngster again.
He knew the dragonman youngster cultivated the Bursting Explosion battle qi
technique.
This information had been known by many people for a long time.
The Bursting Explosion battle qi technique was widely known for its powerful
might and severe expenditure.
“Wait a moment, why isn’t he showing signs of battle qi exhaustion?”
“Even if he joined the battle late, this last fight was extremely intense, how
could he still have abundant battle qi?”
“Impossible!”
“Even if he isn’t a spent force, his battle qi reserves are very dangerous.”
When Xi Dai Zi thought of this, his battle intent was invigorated and most of
his fear dissipated.
But the dragonman youngster was not as inundated with feeling as he, and after
a bit of adjustments, he charged at the three headed water snake again.
Bang, boom, ding!
Explosions rang in succession.
Xi Dai Zi fought back with all of his strength, but the three headed water
snake’s enormous body manifested a systemic problem.
Due to its slow movements, it had nearly become the dragonman youngster’s
punching bag.
“How can this be?”
Xi Dai Zi was beaten up, and although his body wasn’t harmed, his magic power
was being fiercely depleted and his spirit power was drying up too, bringing
pain to his entire head.
“How much battle qi does he have?”
The dragonman youngster was as vigorous as a dragon and as fierce as a tiger!
The dragonman youngster’s legend level bloodline gave him a battle qi reserve
and recovery rate far beyond that of any normal person.
If Xi Dai Zi knew that the dragonman youngster wasn’t going all out, who knows
what he would think?



****** Chapter 171: Yao Guan Zi ******
In another place.
Zong Ge and the knight fishman were fighting.
Without a mount, the fishman was slow, but his exoskeleton was still
unyieldingly thick, and his defense was unsurpassed.
This let him make bolder and more unrestrained moves.
Zong Ge couldn’t compare.
His armor was not silver level.
Therefore, many times, he had to dodge or block, and due to that, his attack
frequency naturally decreased.
Although Zi Di had obtained many treasures from the auction, they couldn’t be
used immediately.
If they were, the relationship between the two would be exposed and the risk of
their true identities being exposed would greatly increase.
After all, “having literally the same treasure” would foment suspicion.
Battle skill – Forest of Spears!
The 2 meter long lance thrusted ten times in mere seconds.
The speed of which left behind many illusory lance images in one’s retina.
The lance images were a wall that pressed towards Zong Ge.
Faced with this powerful offensive, Zong Ge didn’t bat an eyelid and harbored
no ideas of retreat.
It couldn’t be intercepted with normal speeds.
Then, he would use Fast Fight!
Battle skill – Fast Fight
Silver level battle qi quickly circulated through his body, speeding up Zong
Ge’s movement and attacks.
Ting, ding, ting…
A series of metal clangs pattered like rain.
Relying on his left handed shield and right handed sword, Zong Ge blocked all
of the lance images.
The Steel Bone Knight fishman suddenly became discouraged.
Especially when he saw Zong Ge’s expressionless manner, causing his
discouragement and powerlessness to aggravate further.
No matter how he attacked, Zong Ge could block them all.
He gave the impression of being as steady as a mountain peak.
Especially when Zong Ge changed his weapon, the feeling got stronger after he
swapped to a sword and shield.
“Is he throwing?”
“Is he using all of his strength?”
The Steel Bone Knight fishman often thought that, impairing his fighting spirit
by a level.
But soon after, his gaze paused.
He had noticed something entirely new.
This new discovery caused his eyes to suddenly flash and his battle intent
ignited once again.
“He’s wounded!”
The fishman knight was pleasantly surprised to find that Zong Ge’s arm was
seeping with blood.
“Did I do that?” The Steel Bone Knight fishman couldn’t help but wonder, “It
seems my opponent isn’t invincible! I still have hope!!”
It was actually Zong Ge’s old injury.
Back from Mystifying Monster Island’s underground control center.
Since then, Zong Ge had tried to heal his arm injury.
During the auction, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had obtained a healing
potion.
The gold level healing potion was enough to completely cure his broken arm!
This healing potion was on Zong Ge right now.
But he didn’t use it.
For one, his old injury relapsing could give the enemy hope and drag the fight
on longer.
Zong Ge was an outstanding general, and knew the fishmen were still hiding a
gold level cultivator.
He wanted to do his best to improve his control over the battlefield.
If he drew a gold level cultivator’s attack, then he would be in a passive
situation and wouldn’t be able to do much at all.
On the other hand, the gold level potion was very precious.
If Zong Ge was wounded further, he could use the gold potion to heal his entire
body.
Using it now was rather wasteful. 
Leaving it unused could prevent some accidents.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge held the advantage, however, the port
battlefield situation was changing.
There were no longer two crucial fights, now there were three.
The outcome of the third fight would decide who won this battlefield.
The third fight was not against a person, but the Vinegar Jar.
The gold level pirate group’s flagship was very dauntless, it had charged into
all kinds of magic traps and slew many ships leaving port until finally
crashing through ships and coming ashore.
The Vinegar Jar had run aground.
But its constant firepower made it a gigantic turret that reinforced the
fishmen’s firepower.
Not only that, but there were still many murderous fishmen pirates disembarking
from it.
With these fresh troops, the fishmen’s offensive did not dimmish, but expanded
further.
If one were to say it in terms of battle progress, the humans had the advantage
at the higher echelons due to the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, while on the
lower echelons, the fishmen were suppressing the humans due to the spirited
reinforcements from the Vinegar Jar.
“Follow me, kill these wretched fishmen!!” Commander Tie Bang roared.
“Seize the Vinegar Jar!” Shouted Commander Beng Dai.
The two people together were the spear tip that cleared the way for the troops
behind them.
Ahead of them were layers of fishmen defensive lines, but against the two
silver fighters’ all out assault, they were parted like the water underneath
ship, and even if there was a continuous stream of fishmen trying to stop them,
they were torn to shreds and turned into mere ocean spray.
Countless hopeful human eyes gazed at the two commanders.
Their charge had encouraged and inspired the human fighters.
To protect the Vinegar Jar, more than half the fishmen returned to it to attack
the two commanders and their troops.
The two commanders and their mercenaries were united as one.
Their comrades and relatives were slaughtered.
The two mercenary corps’ flagships had been attacked and their crew massacred
by Er Gua Zi.
Vengeance was what motivated the charging mercenaries the most.
Many fishmen toppled over.
The two commanders slaughtered countless and grew somewhat lenient.
No new silver level fighter appeared on the fishmen’s side.
The two commanders had no opponents on their level and advanced.
Soon after, their blood drenched bodies successfully climbed aboard, and they
began to attack the Vinegar Jar’s first deck.
“I want the Vinegar Jar!”
“By seizing this ship, we’ll settle the score!!”
The two commanders glanced at each other, quickly reaching an accord.
They were very excited.
One was the thrill of revenge; the other was that the Vinegar Jar was worth far
more than the Iron Lump and the White Bandage combined.
The Vinegar Jar was a silver level magic ship, while the other two were mere
bronze levels.
The mercenaries behind t hem also boarded and killed their way to their
commanders’ side.
The two commanders went to the left and right, destroying and killing
everything in front of them, annihilating all of the fishmen on the first
floor.
They joined back together at the ship’s stairs, ready to storm into the Vinegar
Jar.
One of the commanders took out a potion and drank it down.
The other took out an alchemy item.
The potion was a water breathing potion.
The alchemy item was a Air Mask. It could generate air within the mask,
allowing the user to freely breathe.
The two mercenary corps had made a living on this island, such equipment were
standard.
It wasn’t just the commanders; the other mercenaries had been allocated with
similar things too.
The only difference was the level used; they were inferior to the two
commanders’ superior quality goods.
The two commanders used their items as they followed the stairs down to the
deck below.
Behind them, many mercenaries were following.
The Vinegar Jar was a magic ship built specifically for fishmen; its first deck
was covered in water that went up to an adult human’s knees.
The lower decks were completely submerged.
This was undoubtably the fishmen’s turf, that gave the attackers many
disadvantages.
However, the two commanders’ joint attack was still successful in every
endeavor.
There were many fishmen fighting in the dark water, but without a silver, they
couldn’t hold back the two commanders’ advance.
Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai were so engrossed in their slaughter that they
unwittingly separated from their troops behind them.
As for the other mercenaries, fighting underwater greatly affected them.
The fishmen were routed by the commanders, but they were able to kill the other
human mercenaries.
The two commanders did notice this, but they had no good answer for it. 
How could they advance if they were defending their troops?
If that happened, they would be pinned down by the fishmen.
Compassion could not lead an army.
The two commanders had led their corps for many years and understood that if
the enemy led them by the nose, their entire team would sink into desperate
straits.
They chose to charge in an attempt to seize the Vinegar Jar’s control hub.
Every magic ship had a control hub.
Similar to the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s cockpit.
Finally, the two killed their way to the bottom hold of the Vinegar Jar.
The water here was dark, dense, and even viscous.
The two commanders had illumination skills and after identifying where the
central cabin was, they immediately cut their way there.
A skinny fishmen was in a dark corner.
The two commanders instantly slowed down.
Despite the fishman not directly intercepting them, his silver level aura gave
them qualms.
“As expected, the Vinegar Jar has a silver level hidden in it.”
“It’s just one silver; can they stop the both of us?”
“He looks sickly, let’s take care of him first, then set sail!”
“Be careful. Er Gau Zi lets that guy keep watch here, he isn’t simple.”
“I don’t think so! If he was strong enough, he would have stepped in already.
Why should he still be sitting as we came in?”
The two commanders had the methods needed to communicate unrestricted
underwater.
After discussing it somewhat, they attacked the silver level fishmen together.
The silver level fishman was as thin as a match and too weak to stand up to the
wind. When he saw the two truculent commanders attacking him, he needed to be
oppressed by them and began to weakly cough.
But this cough cause the two commanders to change their expressions.
“Eh, how bizarre!”
“I’m poisoned!!”
Ten minutes later.
Pop.
A wave of water suddenly bubbled onto the first deck of the Vinegar Jar, from
which Commander Beng Dai emerged.
Commander Beng Dai’s entire body twisted with bandages, his vigor taking a
devastating decline and panic streaking across his face.
“Get away!” He yelled at the humans on deck.
“Commander!”
“Where is my commander?”
The human mercenaries turned pale with fright.
The contract between before and after was too great.
“Commander Tie Bang is dead already, this water is poisonous, don’t go in!”
After leaving these words behind, Commander Beng Dai was the first to leap off
and escape down the road.
Quick witted mercenaries followed closely behind.
The rest of the humans were killed fishmen who emerged soon after.
The silver level overseeing the Vinegar Jar was a skillful commander, he had
adopted a defensive counterattack stratagem that first lured in a human
assault, then exploited the favorable terrain to kill one silver and wound the
other.
Afterwards, they smoothly laughed their massive counterattack, and with the
smallest price possible, completely routed the human troops.



****** Chapter 172: Pirate Chaos ******
“Yao Guan Zi didn’t disappoint me! Well done!” Despite controlling the three
headed water snake, Xi Dai Zi never stopped paying attention to the Vinegar
Jar.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates’ commander Er Gua Zi was a gold level, and he had three
silver level commanders. 
One was Xi Dai Zi, his first mate, a fishman shaman.
The second was Yao Guan Zi, his second mate, a silver level fighter, however he
had many illnesses since childhood and relied on large amounts of medication to
stay alive.
His third mate was Man Xing Zi, but because he was too slow, he wasn’t able to
join the fishman’s attack. 
“But if that happened, the Vinegar Jar’s water supply is completely poisoned,
the other fishmen cannot remain inside.” Xi Dai ZI knew what Yao Guan Zi had
done.
Although Yao Guan Zi was a silver level, his direct combat ability was very
weak.
If it were in a straight up fight, he wouldn’t be the two commanders’ rival.
The only thing he had was his bloodline’s racial magic that made poisonous
water.
This poisonous water was very devastating that even a gold level like Er Gua Zi
found touching it unbearable.
Therefore, all of the Vinegar Jar’s fishmen came out, none dared to stay in the
poisonous water.
“Oh dear, there is nothing to be done…”
Bang.
The dragonman youngster’s fist burst apart the water snake’s head, interrupting
Xi Dai Zi’s train of thought.
“He seized upon the moment my mind wandered. This dragonman…” Xi Dai Zi grit
his teeth and retreated.
Fortunately, the spiky fishman attacked in time to help him out of this
predicament.
Xi Dai Zi promptly released his magic power and regrew the three headed water
snake’s missing heads.
Xi Dai Zi turned pale.
He sorrowfully noticed that his magic power reserves were running out. More
than half of his magic power had been used to maintain the three headed water
snake magic.
The dragonman youngster was still moving like the wind, and his offensive
didn’t slow in the slightest.
This enduring battle capabilities was beyond Xi Dai Zi’s, and he sensed how
powerful his enemy is.
The Vinegar Jar’s bottom cabin.
In the dark cockpit.
“Cough, cough, cough.” Yao Guan Zi was constantly coughing, and with every
cough, he coughed out blood.
Commander Tie Bang’s and Beng Dai’s attacks had seriously injured him.
But now was not the time to rest and reorganize.
Yao Guan Zi was not healthy, and healing was more troublesome for him, thus, he
wouldn’t be able to be healed in a short time span.
Yao Guan Zi also knew his situation.
He had already realized that even though it might cost him his life, he would
use everything he had to help his clan take back their homeland!
After seeing the other fishmen all advance out of the ship, he began to control
the Vinegar Jar.
The Vinegar Jar’s bottom suddenly deformed, exposing countless jet holes.
From these jet holes sprayed several streams of water.
The powerful streams scoured the ground, while simultaneously the reaction
force converged on the Vinegar Jar, causing it to slowly rotate.
The Vinegar Jar’s spin accelerated, and it began to move.
It was like a black steel hurricane, effortlessly cleaning its path through the
crowded port battlefield. 
The end of this path was the light cannon turret.
Ding.
The Vinegar Jar smashed into the light cannon turret.
The light cannon turret had been firing everything it had at the Vinegar Jar,
but it couldn’t stop it.
The light cannon tower’s advantages and disadvantages were obvious.
The advantages was its relatively cheap cost and offensive abilities.
The corresponding weaknesses were that it was rather frail.
This was why when Hun Tong had secretly built more, he kept them hidden
underground.
The light cannon tower could not withstand the careening silver level magic
ship.
The collision instantly smashed the light cannon tower into smithereens.
Then the crumbling light cannon tower was crushed by the Vinegar Jarinto a pile
of slag.
The Vinegar Jar slowed as it pulverized the light cannon turret.
But it quickly sped back up and rampaged through the port battlefield in an
arc, crushing everything in its path.
It cut a blood path through the battlefield towards the other light cannon
turret.
The light cannon turret personnel were frightened and ashen.
But even if they wanted to flee, there was not enough time to do so.
They did their best to wildly fire the light cannon turret into the Vinegar
Jar.
Ding.
They failed to save themselves.
A second light cannon turret was crushed by the Vinegar Jar.
The fishmen’s morale soared!
The human fighters were stunned.
As it turns out, the Vinegar Jar didn’t strand itself, for it had a special
ability that allowed it to jet water from its bottom.
Thus, even though it was on dry land, the Vinegar Jar temporarily could create
a thin wave of water that allowed it to move freely anywhere!
Because of Yao Guan Zi, the port battlefield swung back into the fishmen’s
favor.
Seeing the Vinegar Jar wreaking havoc through the battlefield like a monster,
even someone as staid as Zong Ge changed color.
Luckily the Vinegar Jar didn’t attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
It wasn’t because the enemy was merciful or stupid.
Rather the light cannon towers far surpassed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
ordinary ships in perceived threat level.
At the same time, there were many humans and fishmen grappling with each other
around the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
In these circumstances, the Vinegar Jar running through here would definitely
crush its fellow fishmen, causing not only immense casualties, but also gravely
strike at their morale.
“Hahaha, another one torn down, keep demolishing them!” Dian Wan shouted with
great excitement.
He was the Lightning Pirates’ commander, and when he saw Qi You attack, along
with Two Eyes Island’s other gold powers unable to stop him, his banditry
tendencies flared up.
The light cannon turrets were a immense threat to the pirates’ ships.
After all, besides their flagships, most of the pirates’ ships were ordinary
vessels.
Therefore, despite being a human, Dian Wan took pleasure in seeing the light
cannon turrets topple.
“Qi You’s ships will attack the island.” Yang Cong Tou anxiously said.
He was the Stench Pirates’ leader, and although he had sent the signal, his
fleet still needed time to arrive.
The Ten Touch Pirates were the first to act, therefore they arrived first.
The Ten Touch Pirates’ commander Qi You was in the middle of fighting Hun Tong,
fighting for his fleet’s arrival.
To the side, Hu Li was gazing more at the Vinegar Jar.
“That silver level magic ship has such might!”
“Truly outstanding.”
“If I could have such a ship, robbing islands would be so much easier!”
“I say, the Vinegar Jar’s watery interior also suits frogmen.”
Hu Li was a frogman, and the Applaud Pirates he led was made entirely of
frogmen.
Concomitant with the three pirate commanders’ expectations, on the horizon,
three fleets sailed into view.
Pirate flags were fluttering high, and the pirates aboard were abnormally
excited.
Soon after, many more pirate ships appeared.
These were smaller pirate groups.
Every year during the auction, there were always pirate fleets traveling
nearby.
Pirates adventured to join the auction, and to develop his island, Hun Tong did
not dispatch his fleet to chase away or destroy these fleets.
The fishmen assaulting Two Eyes Island took note of these fleets.
As soon as they obtained their captain’s signal, they immediately took action.
From above, Two Eyes Island’s new island looked like a gigantic whale, while
the innumerable pirate ships were like sharks that were encircling it from all
directions.
They actively avoided the port battlefield and tried to land on the island in
other places.
The pirates would undoubtably make the war situation on Two Eyes Island more
complicated.
“Those damned pirates!”
“You are humans, yet you don’t unite, instead you want to loot a burning
house!!”
The merchant alliance representatives cursed one after the other.
They anxiously burned with rage.
Benefits deeply bound them and Hun Tong, and the new island not only had their
shops, but also a lot of inventory, liquid capital, and much more.
But now, they couldn’t get back to save their stores.
Because their entire fleets were caught in the battlefield and doing battle
with the Vinegar Jar Pirates, the battlefield situation was very gridlocked.
By helping the fleet, they would abandon their stores.
Returning to save the stores would mean they would abandon their fleets.
To every merchant alliance large and small, this was undoubtably a choice full
of pain and challenges.
“None of those three mercenary corps are useful!”
“Where is the patrol fleet? Where did they run off to?”
The merchant alliance representatives knew they were powerless to do anything
and were anxiously searching for external aid.
Hun Tong, Song Shou, and Yan Ding had their opponents.
Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet wanted to charge the new island, but when the
fishmen’s main force appeared, One Eye chose to return to do his best to stop
the fishman army.
Currently, the fishmen’s overall offensive situation was very explicit.
They were divided into two parts, one on the old island, the other on the new
island.
But what was quite strange was that the fishmen’s main force was headed towards
the old island, while the main force attacking the new island was the Vinegar
Jar Pirates, a group with fewer people.
“The new island is floating up, while the old island will soon sink to the
seabed. What are these fishmen doing?” Cang Xu communicated with Zi Di through
an alchemy device.
He had already evacuated from the battlefield and hid in a secret place to rest
and reorganize.
He had been wounded in his fight against the spiky fishman, such was obvious to
all, and it undoubtably made for a good excuse for Cang Xu to pull back.
Zi Di replied, “Almost all of the old island’s facilities and personnel have
been moved already. If the fishman want to take back their homeland, they must
first destroy the human installations and armies on the new island.”
“The fishmen came prepared, and there is another gold level hiding in the main
army. Their true purpose is an open question.”
“Furthermore, I feel that Hun Tong’s side still has strength, he hasn’t used
everything yet.”
Zi Di was constantly observing the fights between the gold levels through the
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The fights the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the others battled concerned
the outcome of the port battlefield.
While the outcome of the gold level battles would affect the entire conclusion
of the battle for Two Eyes Island.
This was the world of the strong.
If one gold level fight was determined, it would cause a chain reaction and
influence other gold level fights.
When all of these outcomes were decided, the remaining gold levels would sweep
across the battlefield and overturn the war situation.
It was like when Er Gua Zi singlehandedly slaughtered everyone on the Iron Lump
and White Bandage effortlessly.
Another communication device chimed next to Cang Xu.
It was a merchant alliance representative.
The other side offered a high price to hire the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to
protect their new island store.
Cang Xu muttered to himself, first saying that at present, they couldn’t do
anything. But if the war situation changed and circumstances allowed, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would take on this mission and protect their store.
The merchant alliance was unresigned and raised the price, attempting to entice
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps into abandoning their ships, breaking out of
the siege, and going to protect their merchant alliance store.
The other party really was thinking too much!
Cang Xu sneered to himself, for even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
able to do so, he would still refuse.



****** Chapter 173: Plundering and Defending ******
Iron anchors entered the water.
Sails were put away.
Pirate fleets slowly stopped.
Landing skiffs were released, each one packed with pirates.
Because this wasn’t the port, there were few places to dock ships.
The pirates were familiar with such circumstances.
Because they often stopped by uninhabited islands to rest, and scrounge up as
much potable water, food, and other supplies as possible.
The animated pirates came ashore.
They met barely any obstructions along the way.
Two Eyes Island’s defenses were almost all entangled with the fishmen.
This was indeed a rare golden opportunity to plunder!
“You’re finally here. Follow me! Now!” Dian Wan was impatient.
On the other coast.
Yang Cong Tou also linked up with his underlings.
“Boss, which store will we loot?” An underling asked.
Yang Cong Tou shook his head, “We are not robbing a store. You have no
ambition! We will rob the richest place!”
“The city government palace?” The underling inevitably hesitated, “If we
besiege the government palace, what will we do if Hun Tong comes? Qi You won’t
stop him for us.”
Yang Cong Tou shook his head, “The city government palace doesn’t have as much
money as the Wealth Church.”
“The church priest has led his underlings to help the defense of the city guard
barracks.”
“Now, that place is empty.”
“Robbing that place won’t provoke Hun Tong.”
The underlings’ eyes gleamed, and they roared, “You’re brilliant boss!”
The Stench Pirates aggressively rushed towards the Wealth Church.
“Defend, defend!”
“Defend the store, I’ll give everyone that does three month’s pay.”
The Secret Medicine store manager shouted as he attempted to organize a
defensive line.
But pirates with swords held high were streaming in.
To engage in oceanic trade and transportation, the merchant alliance servants
and salespeople of course had battle strength. 
But they weren’t the main fighting force and were in charge of daily
operations.
They were also far fewer in number compared to the pirates.
The Secret Medicine Store beat back three waves of pirates, but it came at a
high price. Not only were their personnel gravely depleted, but their morale
was quickly falling.
They were not an army and hadn’t trained that much. The bitter battle and
casualties inflicted on their fellows brought anxiety and panic to the
survivors.
Eventually, the fourth wave of pirates was the far more reputable Applaud
Pirates.
Faced with the frogman Hu Li leading the charge, the Secret Medicine Store’s
defensive line voluntarily crumbled.
The assistants inside the shop fled in the face of battle, actually giving the
pirates a better opportunity. Before long, they were chased down and killed.
“Crew, grab it all for me!”
“Open your big eyes, search well.”
“Don’t let a single potion slip by.”
“This is all money.”
Hu Li burst into laughter.
The Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance was one of the six great merchant
alliances of the empire; they mainly engaged in magic medicine.
Every bottle of medicine was of guaranteed quality.
These were always fitting things to steal.
Because medicine was small and light, yet very valuable.
After the pirates stole them, they could either use them or sell them.
The marketplace always had a high demand for magic potions.
The Secret Medicine Store had fallen into enemy hands!
This information was transmitted to the other stores, causing the remaining
four big stores, especially, to panic.
The Flint Store had comparatively fewer pirates attacking it.
For one, as one of the six great merchant alliances, they had top of the line
defenses.
It was a difficult and big bone for the pirates to gnaw on.
On the other hand, they should be grateful for what they sell.
The Flint Merchant Alliance mainly engaged in the mining, transportation, and
sale of ores.
These things were heavy and difficult to transport.
If the pirates stole them, these ores would be a burden that required people to
keep watch over them.
Finally, their merchant alliance representative had gotten a cultivator’s aid.
The gunman Mei Ban!
A large group of pirates charged the entrance of the Flint Store.
The leading pirate was iron level.
“Boss, you have something on you.” An underling stated.
“What thing?” The pirate boss wiped his face, there was nothing on it.
“A bit of ash, it looks like a spot,” Replied the underling.
After the pirate boss heard this, he immediately changed color, “Oh no!”
Ding.
A moment later, his head exploded like a falling watermelon.
Red and white splashed everywhere, including onto the stupefied pirates around
him.
The gunman Mei Ban had killed the pirate boss from the top of the building,
where he did his utmost to conceal himself.
His weapon was a long rifle.
The rifle had an excellent targeting device.
When he killed the pirate boss, the other pirates reacted by immediately
fleeing in disarray.
Mei Ban didn’t chase after them.
He was saving his bullets as much as possible.
“Under the circumstances, I shouldn’t show off.”
“As long as the Fint Store is well protected.”
Common rewards wouldn’t move the silver level loner.
But the Flint Shop representative was willing to pay a rare ore.
Mei Ban needed that ore to refine a special bullet.
Mei Ban reloaded on ammunition and surveyed the perimeter.
He quickly noticed something abnormal at the Wealth Church.
Dian Wan was charging into the Wealth Church with his pirates.
“Alas.” The Fertile Land priest sighed as he stood in the church gate, “Trouble
still came, if I had known earlier, I would have gone with the Wealth priest to
help the barracks.”
After the auction hall trap was broken, the Fertile Land priest didn’t join the
battle.
He decided to stay at the Wealth Church to recuperate.
The Wealth church priest needed to protect his parish and had to go to war, but
the Fertile Land priest had no such responsibility.
The Wealth priest tried to persuade him to join the battle, but the Fertile
Land priest refused.
He stated that he could help the Wealth priest take care of the church.
He didn’t anticipate what was happening now.
He had just fought alongside these pirates to break out of the auction hall
trap, but now they were on opposite sides.
“Old Fertile Land chap, I don’t want you to die, move aside. This is not your
church!” Dian Wan threatened him.
The Fertile Land priest took out his sacred hoe and held it in his hand, “Young
man, don’t be so brash. You got quite the guts to ransack a church, to be an
enemy of the Gods!”
Dian Wan cackled, “The Gods are indeed great, but the great Gods’ gaze won’t
linger on this small church located on this remote island.”
“If you don’t run, I’ll attack!”
The Fertile Land priest sighed and strictly replied, “Then come. No matter what
you want to do, you’ll need to get past me first.”
Dian Wan chuckled, raised his fists, and rushed forth.
His two fists crackled with lightning as he engaged the Fertile Land priest in
close quarters combat.
Although the Fertile Land priest was a cleric, he wasn’t skilled in close
quarters combat.
He relied on divine spells to increase his bodily essence and used the sacred
hoe to withstand Dian Wan’s fists.
For a moment, both sides were equally matched as they fought each other.
Dian Wan hurriedly cried out.
The first mate behind him led the pirates around the two fighting to storm the
church.
The Fertile Land priest could only watch on helplessly.
Dian Wan stopped him, and his hands were tied.
The wandering ronin Ku feng was walking an empty street.
In days past, this street weaved and streamed with people. But now, only Ku
Feng and a store assistant were traveling through it.
The store worker was persistently beseeching Ku Feng for his help, “My Lord,
please help, save our store.”
“Your strength can stave off most of the pirates.”
“The boss said to name your price!”
“We have no other options…”
But Ku Feng shook his head, “You saw the corpse.”
“That was the city guard commander.”
“The fishman who beheaded him is an expert, one who uses a rare and peculiar
blade skill.”
“I must find him!”
To Ku Feng, mercenary mission rewards were just how he earned a living.
His true pursuit was improving his skill with a blade.
“If I fight this strong fishman, my blade skill can improve.” Said Ku Feng.
When the store employee saw his determination, he had no choice but to say, “I
know where the fishman is.”
“Oh?”
 
“But Lord Ku Feng!” The store employee gazed at Ku Feng, “You have to promise
that after you beat the fishman that you’ll accept our offer and protect our
store.”
Ku Feng sneered and refused, “They are a silver level, a very conspicuous
expert.”
“With a small inquiry, I can find out where he is.”
“I don’t need to agree to defend your store.”
The store employee turned white and was forced to say, “Lord Ku Feng, my
mistake.”
“I will tell you that the fishman is at the city guard barracks.”
This response actually caused Ku Feng to respect the former somewhat more.
Ku Feng left this behind, “I will go to him at once. If I have time, I will
hurry back to you.”
As he watched Ku Feng leave, the store employee shouted, “Lord Ku Feng, please
return soon.”
“The barracks is over there, they have the Lord Priest and his people providing
assistance, along with the light cannon tower, they are winning!”
When Ku Feng heard this, his footsteps accelerated.
He was a bit worried about the fishmen.
He didn’t want the fishman blade expert to already be dead by the time he got
there.
The barracks battlefield.
Hong Bo gasped for air; his body cut all over.
He looked around, fishmen growing increasingly sparse.
Ever since the Wealth Church priest intervened, the fishmen were losing.
The battle damage between the two sides changed severely, and the fishmen were
suffering disastrous damage.
This was the value of clerics!
On the battlefield, healing divine spells could fix many injuries on the spot.
In addition to this, there were also many buffing divine spells.
Furthermore, clerics didn’t just bring divine spells to the front lines.
There was also morale!
One healing while their enemies weren’t created an immense psychological
advantage.
By contrast, the fishmen were watching human fighters they had maimed through
untold hardships return, vigorous and ready to kill. Even though their will was
steady, they were discouraged and wavering.



****** Chapter 174: The Barracks Battlefield ******
When the priest first lead his team to war, there were fewer humans than
fishmen.
But now, the fishmen numbers had been cut down to equal the humans, and were
continuing to be substantially weakened.
As the fishmen leaders, Dao Hen and Hong Bo naturally knew they had to
eliminate the priest and the others.
But they also knew that actually doing so was very difficult.
The humans knew the importance of these reinforcements and guarded them with
their lives.
Dao Hen and Hong Bo attacked, and although they could cause the human defensive
line to waver, this wasn’t an ideal result.
The priest and the other clergy were standing on top of the light cannon
turret.
The turret was surrounded by city guards.
There were also Wealth Church temple guards inside the lower strata of the
light cannon turret.
Bang.
A fireball exploded into the fishmen’s ranks.
Ten fishmen died in the explosion.
The attack came from the side of the barracks.
“It’s Shi Fa!” Soon after, a human soldier identified the help.
Shi Fa hurried to the barracks battlefield.
“I have received my Mercenary Guild mission and have come to help defend!” Said
Shi Fa.
Merchants weren’t the only ones issuing missions to hire help at huge sums, Hun
Tong had done so too.
Two Eyes Island had many loners, and there was no lack of silver level experts
among them. If this power was not exploited, it would be rather wasteful.
Unlike Mei Ban, Shi Fa didn’t choose to be employed by a merchant alliance,
instead he chose to help Two Eyes Island’s feudal lord.
“Let him come in!” The human fighters cheered.
Shi Fa was a silver level magician, undoubtedly strong aid.
At once, human soldiers gushed out to welcome and brought Shi Fa into their
position.
Once that happened, Shi Fa would be defended by layers of human fighters.
He constantly cast all kinds of magic that pounded into the fishmen like rain.
Shi Fa’s signature feature was his magic playing cards.
These playing cards were small sized magic scrolls.
Shi Fa was fluent in this rarely seen alchemy skill.
Whenever he used his spirit to trigger a playing card, he could instantly use
the magic inside the playing card.
Various magic spells fell like a torrential rainstorm.
Fishmen died a terrible rate.
This was the straw that broke the fishmen’s back.
“Retreat!” Although he was extremely unwilling, Hong Bo still grinded his teeth
and sounded the withdrawal.
If this continued, the fishmen would all die.
Even if all of the fishmen sacrificed themselves, they couldn’t capture the
human barracks.
The fishmen could only retreat.
Hong Bo and Dao Hen brought up the rear.
Naturally, the human soldiers wouldn’t sit by and watch the enemy withdraw, and
they immediately advanced towards them.
Hong Bo and Dao He did their utmost to stop them.
They were silver levels and stiffly relied on their personal strength to
obstruct the pursuing human army.
Dao Hen was especially dangerous, and despite not using battle skills, his own
battle techniques made him a constant threat.
As long as he hit a solider, they would fall miserably and lose their life.
Essentially, no one could match three moves with Dao Hen.
Magic – Spider Web.
Magic – Electric Shock.
When Shi Fa saw the situation, his finger flicked two magic cards, casting two
magic spells at nearly the same time.
A spider web fell from the sky and covered Dao Hen.
Lightning accurately struck Hong Bo.
Hong Bo trembled all over, he took a step back, and his weapon nearly fell from
his hand.
Dao Hen was clearly stronger.
He used a battle skill, and his forearm blade fins glinted with silvery light.
Dao Hen brandished his forearm knife fins, cutting the spider web apart and
easily escaped from it.
“grann”
Dao Hen grabbed Hong Bo’s arm and ran off, leaving the battlefield.
“After them! Don’t let them escape.” The human soldiers angrily pursued
relentlessly.
The troops were motivated, but the city guard auxiliary leader was hesitant.
He deeply understood that based on how strong he was, if he brazenly pursued,
he might be the one who would be slain.
The auxiliary leader asked for Shi Fa’s and the priest’s opinion.
Shi Fa spoke candidly, “My mission is to help protect the barracks. However, I
can pursue the fishman too. But I need another reward for that.”
The priest spoke from his knowledge and experience, “We must get in touch with
the Feudal Lord and wait for his orders.”
Two Eyes Island was in chaos.
The barracks battlefield had just calmed down, while the port battlefield was
still raging.
Large amounts of pirates had already come ashore and were looting everywhere.
Hun Tong and the other gold levels were busy fighting their opponents and
weren’t able to attend to other things.
The city guard auxiliary commander promptly contacted Hun Tong.
Hun Tong fought Qi You while leaning of this news from an alchemy device.
This was good news.
Hun Tong thought on it, glanced at the battlefield, and firmly ordered, “Defend
the barracks!”
The barracks’ human troops were greater than Hong Bo’s and Dao Hen’s troops.
But their military power was heavily dependent on the priest, Shi Fa, and the
light cannon tower in the middle of the barracks.
If they pursued, the city guard would lose their locational advantage, and even
if they eradicated Hong Bo and Dao Hen, they would pay a heavy price for it.
In fact, pursuing had other risks.
Such as those plundering pirates everywhere.
The city guard was likely to clash with pirates, and would suffer losses from
them, and could even be surrounded and annihilated by them.
The port battlefield situation was another essential factor.
From Hun Tong’s point of view, he saw the vast might of the Vinegar Jar. And
that the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge “powerless” to beat their respective
opponents.
Hun Tong had to consider the overall situation.
If they lost the port battlefield, he needed a new place to make a stand on the
island.
That would be the barracks.
Hearing Hun Tong give the order to defend, the city guard auxiliary commander
promptly complied and secretly relaxed.
He was only iron level.
After the city guard commander was slain, he assumed leadership during this
crisis, summoning up the courage to shoulder the responsibility of command, the
pressure was exceedingly massive on him.
He didn’t want to risk pursuing. Iron level strength on this battlefield did
not give him a sense of security.
Shi Fa shrugged his shoulders high, “Since that’s the case, then my mission to
protect the barracks is complete. I’ll take my leave first.”
The Mercenary Guild still have plenty of defense missions.
To a silver level loner, this was a golden opportunity to make money.
Shi Fa left the barracks at once.
As he saw Shi Fa depart, the Wealth Church priest also let out a breath.
The haze of an undiscovered traitor lingered in the priest’s heart.
Two Eyes Island was the Wealth Goddess’ parish, which meant this was the
priest’s domain somewhat.
When Shi Fa rushed to provide assistance, the priest remained vigilant.
Therefore, the priest and the other clergy remained inside the light cannon
turret, while the closest Shi Fa got was at the base of the turret, he never
entered it.
“We’ll also be leaving.” The priest said his goodbye to the auxiliary leader.
The looting pirates had given him a new worry.
He had to return to protect his church.
However, just as the priest and other clergy were about to depart, fishmen
sprung up again.
“Enemy attack, enemy attack!”
“Those fishmen came back. They dared to return?!”
“Lord Priest, don’t leave!”
The human soldiers were alarmed and prepared for battle at once.
The priest and other clergy rushed back upstairs.
“Were the fishmen reinforced?”
The priest looked down from the light cannon turret and noticed something odd.
The fishmen’s ranks hadn’t expanded on the contrary, there were fewer of them
now.
Furthermore, they lacked fighting spirit and instead looked nervous and
fearful.
What was going on?
The silhouettes of three silver level fighters appeared around a street corner.
Beside Hong Bo and Dao Hen, there was also a human fighter.
It was the wandering ronin Ku Feng!
As it turns out, the retreating fishmen had run into Ku Feng by accident, who
had been searching for them.
Ku Feng wholeheartedly wanted to challenge Dao Hen and attacked.
The fishmen were not his opponent and some were killed by him.
Dao Hen and Hong Bo furiously fought back.
Ku Feng quickly secured the upper hand.
The main reason was because he was in peak condition while the two fishmen
fighters were bruised and cut all over, moreover, their battle qi reserves had
dropped to dangerous levels.
The fishmen fighters had to save battle qi and had their actions limited, while
Ku Feng recklessly squandered his.
He used battle skills again and again, causing Dao Hen and Hong Bo to retreat
again and again.
The two retreated, forcing the fishmen behind them to retreat too.
After constantly retreating, they had returned to the outskirts of the
barracks.
After discovering the truth, the humans celebrated.
The auxiliary commander even hastily dispatched a soldier to inform the
recently departed Shi Fa.
The light cannon turret took the lead to unleash its power.
The light bombardment burst into the fishmen crowd, melting the center of it
and leaving only a big hole behind.
During the previous battle, the fishmen were fighting in close quarters and the
light cannon turret was unable to bombard as it wished.
The circumstances are different now.
The fishmen failed to retread and were being attacked from both sides, causing
their morale to slump to record lows.
When Hong Bo saw this, he hastily used the fishman language to shout, “Scatter,
flee!”
They would undoubtedly die if they stayed here.
There was nothing else they could do but to disperse.
The fishmen dispersed in confusion.
Dao Hen and Hong Bo glanced at each other, and a moment later, they ran in
different directions.
Ku Feng’s target was Dao Hen, and he chased after him.
Not long after Hong Bo fled, Shi Fa intercepted him.
The two silver level fights sank into a deadlock.
“Who should I help first?” The Wealth priest pondered upstairs.
A church aid scrambled over and panicky told the priest the bad news.
Pirates had broken into the church!
The priest’s eyes darkened, the church contained much of his property!
“The Fertile Land priest didn’t defend it?”
“He did, but the pirates were stronger.  Lord Priest, return now so we can take
back our church!” The aid wept.
But the priest shook his head.
It is too late to go back.”
“The best way to handle the big picture is to help the fights before us.”
“A destroyed church can be rebuilt.”
“Property can be stolen, but there is hope we can take it back. Pirates are
greedy by nature, and the new island has many places they can loot. Their ships
won’t be leaving Two Eyes Island soon.”
The priest calmly analyzed and commanded his subordinates to attack.
He decided to aid Shi Fa first!
Shi Fa had proven himself to him already.
Ku Feng appearing at an opportune moment was somewhat of a coincidence.
The priest was worried that Ku Feng was the undiscovered traitor, staging a
bloodening of the fishmen to gain his confidence.



****** Chapter 175: Underground Magician Battle ******
Two Eyes Island’s new island.
The subterranean abyss.
A purple scaled fishman was ambling along.
The dark environment didn’t prevent her from seeing the world.
After departing the underground space for some time, she had been searching the
new island’s underground.
Magic power was continuously being expended.
The purple scaled fishman maintained a mysterious magic.
This spell had been taught to her by the Blue Green clan elder, it could
influence and control the coral ball cage tree to some degree.
Two Eyes Island was a coral ball cage tree.
But this coral ball cage tree was too big and had a gold life level.
The purple scaled fishman couldn’t control it completely by herself, only a
part of it.
It was only a minute part of the coral ball cage tree.
Whever the purple scaled fishman went, branches automatically separated and
formed a passage.
Behind her, countless branches closed again and formed an inseparably tight
wall.
The purple scaled fishman stopped walking.
Her chanting grew faintly louder, and although it was in the fishman language,
her voice was different from other fishmen, her’s was melodious and beautiful.
Through her magic, branches withdrew and formed a cavity in front of her.
The cavity expanded, and after a dozen seconds, it formed an underground cave
ten square meters big.
The purple scaled fishman entered the cave.
In the cave, among congested branches that looked like countless hands, there
was a coffin being pushed up.
After the coffin was brought up, the branches bound together again and formed a
strong and tenacious floor. 
The purple scaled fishman opened the coffin expectantly. 
Inside was a fishman corpse.
Because it had been there for a long time, the corpse was nothing but bones and
some badly damaged fish scales.
The purple scaled fishman glanced at it, realizing this wasn’t what she was
looking for.
She sighed, ready to continue forward when she suddenly heard voices behind
her.
After a few seconds, the wall behind her violently corroded.
The purple scaled fishman instantly realized things were going south and threw
up a sapphire.
It was a specialized magic gem.
After the gem was spat out, it suddenly erupted with blue radiance.
The blue light condensed into a round shield that protected the purple scaled
fishman.
A moment later, an explosion, together with a sharp iron spear from what seemed
to be a javelin shot at the blue round shield.
The blue light round shield was very strong and tough, and it blocked the
javelin.
The javelin lost force and before it fell to the ground, two bottles of magic
potion were thrown in.
The potion knocked into the wall, instantly erupting with large quantities of
poisonous mist.
The purple scaled fishman promptly took out a bag.
The bag opened and exploded with a powerful suction force that absorbed all of
the poisonous fog.
“A Swallowing Space Absorption Bag?” That alchemy treasure is mainly made of a
gluttonous seafloor monster’s stomach pouch, it is rare!” The pharmacist sighed
regretfully, “If she didn’t have that, my potions would have worked.”
The alchemist next to him controlled the iron spear while saying, “Your attack
failed, I’m not finished yet.”
Magic spell – Turn Iron into Mud.
Magic spell – Temporary Transformation!
The iron spear that fell onto the ground suddenly turned into a pool of iron
mud.
The transformation turned the iron mud into an iron snake.
The purple scaled fishman’s blue light shield was floating in front of her,
unable to protect her feet.
The iron snake scuttled towards her ankles and like iron shackles, bound itself
around them,
The purple scaled fishman was immediately constrained and her mobility suddenly
dropped.
“Got her!” Hehe.” The alchemist laughed.
The purple scaled fishman’s expression changed, and in spite of the iron snake
twisting around her feet, she used her magic at once.
But a moment later, her cast failed, the resulting backlash depleted her spirit
power by a chunk.  
“You think that was just poison? That potion had magic disturbance dust mixed
into it.” The pharmacist proudly stated.
“I see.” The alchemy generously praised, “Well done.”
When magic disturbance dust stuck to one’s body, it would greatly perturb the
use of magic, and the cast failure rate would rise by at least 30%.
To a magician, this was a vile effect.
“You’re not too bad either.” The pharmacist smiled, “Why don’t we consider this
a tie then?”
Both were Hun Tong’s subordinates and had worked only many important things
together on a daily basis, thus, they didn’t conflict much with each other.
Having a friendly competition was within the norms.
The two people had stealthily found the purple scaled fishman’s trail and had
made a wager on who would contribute more to this fight, on who achieve
victory.
The trapped purple scaled fishman coldly snorted and coughed out a ruby.
The ruby was imbued with a fireball spell.
As soon as it trigged, it changed into a fireball that shot at the alchemist
and pharmacist.
Bang.
The fireball exploded.
The alchemist and pharmacist walked through the raging flames and towards the
purple scaled fishman.
Their camouflage gradually dissipated, exposing their true features.
They were alchemy puppets!
The purple scaled fishman knew she had been hoodwinked and began to search for
the enemy at once.
At this time, the concealed alchemist and pharmacist acted simultaneously.
Two magic spells pincered the purple scaled fishman.
The first spell diminished the blue light round shield while the second spell
targeted the fishman directly, freezing them in place.
After confirming the purple scaled fishman stopped, the two silver magicians
stepped out.
“Not bad.”
“I thought of this tactic.”
“Humph, without my alchemy puppets how would it have succeeded?”
“Tut, without my potions, our aura would have leaked already. It would have
been impossible to ambush her!”
The two people argued for a few sentences, then inspected their surroundings.
When they saw the fishman corpse in the coffin, their curiosity was couldn’t
help but be piqued.
“That should be a buried fishman corpse. Two Eyes Island was once fishman
territory, and they had buried many of their ancestors here. Most of the
fishman coffins had been excavated, but because of the shifting branches and
leaves of the coral ball cage tree, some of these coffins have been buried
deeply within the island and moved about.”
The two were magicians, and after they saw the coffin, they called part of the
truth to mind.
“But what is the fishman covertly searching for in these corpses?”
“They are a valuable silver level strength, yet they haven’t joined the
battle.”
“No need to think about it too much. Interrogating our captive should yield
many answers.”
The two stared at the purple scaled fishman, wearing smiles.
Torture was not their business.
They had actually captured a silver level magician alive, an impressive
military success.
As long as the purple scaled fishman was delivered to Hun Tong, they were sure
to receive ample rewards.
The two were thinking freely of their future when the purple scaled fishman
suddenly said, “Are you so certain that you’ve captured me?”
The two magicians’ hearts quickened, and they thought the same thing.
“How can she still speak?”
“Why is she speaking the human language?”
Then a moment later, the purple scaled fishman’s body quickly darkened, turned
into bubbles, and vanished from the two’s eyes.
“A divine spell!!” 
“Strange, she was definitely struck by my Hold Body spell.”
“It is inadvisable to stay here for long, withdraw immediately!”
The two magicians glanced at each other, instantly communicating this
sentiment.
They didn’t expect the purple scaled fishman to beat them at their own game!
This magician battle was brimming with ingenuity, far more complex than battles
between fighters.
But there wasn’t enough time for the magicians to withdraw.
The surrounding branches seemed to come alive and extended towards the
magicians from all sides.
At the same time, the purple scaled fishman’s magic pounded into them.
Gravity spell!
The two magicians suddenly felt something weighing 100kg suddenly attach to
themselves, slowing their movement to a crawl.
Ding.
The pharmacist took out a bottle of potion and smashed it into the ground,
raising a squall.
The alchemist formed a sphere of light that covered both he and the pharmacist.
The purple scaled fishman continued to cast, attacking like the tide.
The human magicians could only defend momentarily, unable to return fire.
“I fear the other party is a combat type magician!”
“How terrible, I am just a pharmacist.”
The two silver magicians were not expert combatants, the alchemist mostly
attended to his duties while under Hun Tong’s orders, the pharmacist researched
and improved medicinal recipes.
When they sank into this plight, one of them did his best to defend while the
other utilized a communications device to seek outside help.
Hun Tong quickly received this distress signal.
“A silver level fishman magician?”
“Penetrating deep into the island to excavate fishmen corpses?”
“Purple scales…unlikely to be a member of the Blue Green Coral clan.
Hun Tong pursed his brows and sank into deep thought.
Qi You seized that chance to attack.
His gold battle qi was constantly bubbling out.
The battle qi lingering on his body condensed into five gigantic squid
tentacles.
A tentacle ferociously smashed towards Hun Tong.
Hun Tong was thrown back by it.
“To be able to get distracted during out fight. You don’t care that much about
me, Feudal Lord Hun Tong.” Qi You brightly stated.
Hun Tong coldly snorted and took out a gold level dagger.
“Arrogant pirate boss, I should give you a lesson.”
Battle skill – Extreme Speed Stage Three.
Hun Tong’s speed sharply increased, and he rapidly closed the distance between
him and Qi You.
Battle skill – Backstab.
His figure suddenly disappeared, then reappeared behind Qi You.
The gold dagger ruthlessly stabbed down.
Qi You’s eyes fiercely flashed.
Battle skill – Spiral Shield!
One of his battle qi tentacles turned into a constantly rotating shield.
The dagger penetrated the shield, but because the shield was spinning, it ended
up hitting Qi You’s shoulder.
A bloody light shot out.
A three inch long wound suddenly appeared on Qi You’s back, but it wasn’t that
deep.
The wound had Hun Tong’s residual battle qi in it that was constantly corroding
Qi You’s muscle and bone.
It was the battle skill Hun Tong was maintaining – Decaying Blade.
Qi You increased his speed and pulled distance from Hun Tong.
Facing Hun Tong once more, the pirate boss’ complexion went solemn.
“Impossible!” 
Hun Tong stayed his hand.”
“Even though we are plundering his territory, he isn’t in a great rush.”
“Don’t tell me he has bigger trump cards in his hand?”
Although Hun Tong had been fighting Qi You, he had just been putting on a show.
But when Qi You’s words had incited him, Hun Tong had displayed his true
strength, which immediately wounded Qi You and increased the pressure on the
latter greatly.
This made Qi You more suspicious.
According to common sense, when the new island was being lotted by pirates and
the old island being invaded by fishmen, Hun Tong should be the most anxious
person.
But in fact, Hun Tong had been restraining himself in his fight with Qi You.
“A purpled scaled fishman magician had just appeared…”
“Keep waiting.”
“I want to see what other evil monster pop up.”
Hun Tong sneered to himself.



****** Chapter 176: Hong Zhu Goes Grave Robbing ******
Two Eyes Island.
The new island.
The barracks battlefield.
“A truly peculiar blade skill!” Ku Feng’s battle skill was blocked by Dao Hen
again, but the former wasn’t discouraged in the slightest, on the contrary his
battle intent flourished, and his eyes grew brighter.
After fighting Dao Hen, Ku Feng immediately realized that the origin of Dao
Hen’s unusual bladework lay with Dao Hen’s pair of forearm blade fins.
This special body structure and Dao Hen’s handed down battle skills had united
blades and being together from the beginning.
“You are a good opponent.”
“Unfortunately, you are a fishman.”
“It’s now my turn to use my full strength.”
Ku Feng had been holding his katana with two hands, but now he wielded it in
one while taking out a dagger with the other.
The dagger emitted an iron level aura, it was an alchemy weapon.
Ku Feng imbued the dagger with battle qi.
He was silver level.
Silver battle qi could imbue things, a qualitative change that distinguished it
from iron levels. But there was a restriction, the imbued thing had to be held
by the fighter at all times. If it separated from them, silver battle qi
couldn’t imbue it from a distance.
When the dagger was imbued with silver battle qi, it instantly grew bigger and
longer.
The dagger quickly became a second katana.
This katana was a bit shorter than Ku Feng’s main weapon.
Ku Feng held this katana in one hand.
He held the katanas in front of him in the shape of an X.
Battle skill – Cross Chop!
The two katanas glistening with silver battle qi formed an integrated whole.
Dao Hen took a deep breath, restrained his vertigo, and used a battle skill
too.
His blade fins shined with silver light too.
Ding!
The two launched at each other at the same time.
In the middle, they brushed past each other.
The moment the blades crossed formed a soundwave that nearly blew out eardrums.
The two figures swiftly landed a dozen paces from each other, neither moving.
A few seconds later, Ku Feng let out a breath and collapsed into a kneeling
position.
He covered his chest, for near his heart there was a shallow blade cut.
“I lost!” Ku Feng was shocked.
During the blade clash, he had received outside help.
Shi Fa!
If he hadn’t, Dao Hen would have impaled Ku Feng’s heart.
Dao Hen remained motionless.
He had Shi Fa’s magic on him – Fishman Immobilization Spell.
Not only that, but his arms and chest fish scales were sliced up. Ku Feng had
dealt this injury when his two blades intersected to form an X.
“rlngmmalrnganl”
The fishman Hong Bo charged over to attempt to save Dao Hen.
But the Wealth Church priest intercepted him.
Shi Fa sneered and took out a card.
A card whirling in the air suddenly activated and shot out a gloomy green ray
of light.
The ray of light pierced Hong Bo.
A terrifying wound the size of a head was made in his chest.
One could see through Hong Bo’s body.
Magic spell – Sunder!
Hong Bo froze and stared like a statue.
A gust of wind blew, and he fell to the ground with a loud bang.
He was dead!
When Dao Hen saw this, he was furious; unfortunately, he couldn’t move.
“Shi Fa, well done.” The Wealth priest exclaimed in admiration.
He didn’t expect that it would be Shi Fa who would be the final contributor.
Dao Hen and Hong Bo were silver level fishmen fighters, and Shi Fa was the
biggest figure that led t o one being injured and the other dying.
Shi Fa shook his head, “He didn’t have enough battle qi, he was already a spent
force.”
“My Sunder spell wasn’t offset silver battle qi; thus, it was one shot, one
kill!”
“Of course, the most important people are you two, without you both impeding
them, how could I so calmly cast my magic?”
Shi had good eyes, and although he was a loner, his communication skills
weren’t lacking.
Upon seeing he was willing to divide the merit, regardless of whether it was
with the priest or Ku Feng, people eased up on him.
“Put him down and have him wait for torture and interrogation!” After seeing
the fighting finish, the auxiliary city guard commander promptly brought people
over to clean up the battlefield.
Shi Fa nodded, “Look after him well.”
“What a pity.” When Ku Feng saw Da Hen being captured, he felt regret. 
If they weren’t an enemy, perhaps they might have been friends.
“Lord Hun Tong, we’ve won! Thanks to Shi Fa, Ku Feng, and the priest, we routed
the fishmen attacking the barracks and killed one silver level and captured the
other.” The auxiliary city guard commander reported to Hun Tong through an
alchemy device.
Hun Tong was whirling in the air, dodging Qi You’s attacks.
This was the only good news he’d heard since the battle began.
“Nicely done.”
“When merits are evaluated after the battle, you all will be heavily rewarded!”
When the auxiliary commander heard this, his eyes brightened and he excitedly
replied, “Feudal Lord, what will we do next?”
Hun Tong gazed at the port battlefield and the chaotic streets full of pirates,
yet he still retained his prior order, “Defend and wait for aid!”
“Understood!” The auxiliary commander complied.
He secretly let out a breath and relaxed.
After crushing Hong Bo, Dao Hen, and their troops, he was worried that he would
be dispatched to fight in other areas.
The new island was in a terrible situation.
There were pirates everywhere, the port battlefield was a desperate close
quarters clash, the sea was filled with entangled ships, and the battle was
spreading like wildfire.
One needed to be at least a silver level to feel somewhat safe.
The order to defend was what the auxiliary commander wanted to hear most.
“What do you two plan to do next?” The Wealth Church priest asked Shi Fa and Ku
Feng.
“The barracks defense mission is complete. I want to go to the Mercenary Guild
first to look at the missions there. No matter if it is attacking the fishmen
or dealing with those pirates, I and ready to devote my strength to it. Of
course, remuneration is necessary.” Shi Fa said candidly.
Ku Feng replied, “I need to help protect the Flint Store.”
After saying that, he passed like thunder and moved like the wind.
The priest looked at Shi Fa, “Then please move with me. A mission from the
Wealth Church will have a greater reward.”
Shi Fa nodded, “Priest, do you want to take back your church?”
Shi Fa knew the Wealth Church had fallen into enemy hands,
But the priest shook his head, “We will go near the church first, link up with
the Fertile Land Church priest, and amass more strength.”
“As for the church…”
“It is already too late, taking it back is insignificant, instead we need to
divide our force to guard the area.
“At present, Lord Hun Tong, Song Shou, and Yan Ding are busy, and as silver
levels, our presence on the battlefield can change the entire outcome.”
“I plan to help the port first.”
“After eliminating the silver level fishmen and taking back control of the
port, we can then help the maritime battlefield.”
At this crucial moment, the Wealth priest displayed his responsibility and
understanding of the situation.
Shi Fa nodded, “We’ll go then!”
The auxiliary commander bid them farewell and immediately gave the order to
reorganize the barracks, secure the doors, and rely on the light cannon turret
to defend this place to the death!
“Save me, save me!” Residents fled as they cried out for help.
Poof.
A pirate thrusted their blade into the back of a fleeing resident.
The white knife came out red.
After killing the resident, the pirate raised his foot and stepped on the
corpse, using his foot to crush the corpse’s head, “Run away! Run away!”
He grinned maliciously, bent down, turned the corpse around, and searched them.
When he pulled his arm back out, he had wrested out a gold sculpture.
“If you gave it to me earlier, you might have lived.” The pirate complacently
put the sculpture into his own pocket and ran his eyes around.
The chase had separated himself from the main force.
But the pirate was daring and impulsive, he wasn’t worried and instead
excitedly stood back up.
With no accomplices, everything he found belonged to him alone.
“If I run across an expert that kills me, then that will be my own back luck!”
Ding.
The pirate ruthlessly kicked open a door and charged into a family courtyard.
The courtyard was decorated sparsely, but exquisitely.
The pirate plundered it, overturning trunks and boxes, but found nothing
valuable.
He swore as he strode around, not knowing that a silver level fighter hiding in
a corner had observed everything he had been doing.
It was Hong Zhu.
This was Hong Zhu’s small courtyard. When the new island floated up, she rented
it and made it one of her bases.
After the auction, such radical changes occurred that pirates were even
ransacking her residence.
Of course, it was no issue for Hong Zhu to kill the pirate.
“There is no need to do that.”
“Everything valuable is in my storage belt.”
Unlike other loners, Hong Zhu was not interested in taking on missions to deal
with the fishmen or pirates for monetary gain.
“This is a chance that comes only once in a blue moon.”
“It’s time to move!”
Hong Zhu restrained her aura, masked her tracks, and quickly left the small
courtyard.
She was a veteran treasure hunter and was good at invisibility and stealth.
During treasure hunts, she often needed to conceal herself and slink about,
this was her trade and living.
Therefore, neither pirates, nor fishmen nor other loners noticed Hong Zhu.
She easily arrived at the cemetery.
It was her destination.
It was where the Wealth Parish buried their believers with as generous funerary
objects as possible.
Two Eyes Island was a big commerce island, one run well by Hun Tong, and so it
was filled with many rich inhabitants.
Therefore, the quantity and quality of the funerary objects were quite
considerable.
Hong Zhu was a treasure hunter and had been planning to target these graves.
If the auction hadn’t gone to her satisfaction, she might have robbed these
tombs to collect money for her next adventure.
The cemetery’s defenses couldn’t be looked down on.
Hong Zhu had probed into them several times before, but didn’t take genuine
action, because it was too risky.
But right now, Hong Zhu instantly noticed that the defenses had vanished, now
the main defenses here were magic traps and monitoring alchemy constructs.
Hong Zhu was certain she could deal with such things.
“As expected, the pirates didn’t think of coming to the cemetery, they have
their hands full robbing living people and won’t be interested in this place.”
Hong Zhu grew increasingly excited.
She acted at once, bypassing the magic traps and avoiding the alchemy
constructs to gradually get deeper into the cemetery.



****** Chapter 177: True Wealth ******
Hong Zhu took out a crystal ball.
The crystal ball was filled with an unknown transparent liquid.
In the middle of the crystal ball was a suspended rhombus pointer.
The pointer was small and delicate.
It was a treasure hunting pointer!
The crystal ball was only iron level, but the pointer was a silver level
alchemy treasure.
It was Hong Zhu’s most reliable detection method when she went exploring.
Hong Zhu immediately transferred battle qi to the treasure hunting pointer.
The treasure hunting pointer began to sway, then quickly fixed itself towards
the southeast.
Hong Zhu closed in to where it was pointing.
As she got closer, the pointer’s tip slowly moved downwards.
Finally, Hong Zhu was standing somewhere in the cemetery where the crystal ball
pointer was completely vertical, pointing at the ground beneath her feet.
There was nothing left to say.
Time to dig!
Hong Zhu took out a shovel.
Her shovel was also an alchemy item too, it was of decent quality and was of
iron level.
With the iron level magic shovel’s help, Hong Zhu quickly excavated a coffin.
She opened the coffin and saw a human skeleton inside.
Around the skeleton were large amounts of jewels and jewelry. They were mostly
maid of gold, adorned with silver, gems, agate, and other things that made them
a feast for the eyes.
Hong Zhu’s eyes also glistened with golden light.
Without hesitation, Hong Zhu shoved the money and valuables into her storage
belt.
After taking all of the funerary objects, she reburied the coffin and did her
best to restore the ground above it.
Afterwards, she used the treasure hunting pointer to animatedly excavate the
next coffin.
As a treasure hunter, Hong Zhu wouldn’t imitate the pirates in their plundering
and killing. As for tomb robbing, she was fully on board with that.
When others were fighting and killing, she was relieving the dead of their
money.
Yue Ban jumped on a roof.
She was an owlman with outstanding vision. Not only could she see far, but she
could also see clearly in the dark.
She was very fat, but when she moved, her feet made no sound when she landed on
the roof.
Her movements were nimble and had a distinctive sense of beauty to them.
She was a silver level dancer.
Yue Ban wasn’t like Mei Ban or Shi Fa who were busy defending places, nor was
she like Hong Zhu who was making a profit, instead she was preoccupied with Zi
Di and Cang Xu.
Or more accurately, she was obsessed with the Mushroom Dancing Shoes Zi Di had
bought.
That pair of dancing shoes was very important to her.
Losing the auction hadn’t completely obliterated Yue Ban’s hopes.
“It’s a pity they left the auction early, otherwise I might have been able to
negotiate with them.”
Zi Di and Cang Xu left early to receive slaves.
Yue Ban had missed them as a result.
“Where are you?”
“Where are you, come out now!”
Yue Ban constantly repeated that thought.
She traveled all over and scaled to high places to see father to find Zi Di and
Cang Xu.
This search was quite troublesome for her.
Because she didn’t know what Zi Di and Cang Xu looked like.
She was mainly focusing on cultivators.
Especially the strange cultivators that appeared in the turmoil, they might be
the ones she was looking for.
“Captain, the Wealth Church has already been looted!” A pirate fretfully
returned to inform his captain.
“What?” When Yang Cong Tou hear this bad news, he instantly grimaced.
His amazing plan to rob the Wealth Church that had been full of joy and
expectations had been overturned by this discovery that someone had beaten him
to the punch.
“Move!” Yang Cong Tou was naturally unreconciled and led his underlings to the
church gateway.
If these pirates weren’t strong enough, Yang Cong Tou planned to victimize the
villainous!
They saw many pirates entering and exiting the church, each one moving a large
box.
Some had gold and silver coins, many had gold and silver plates, and some had
renowned paintings, sculptures, and other works of art.
Even the window curtains were torn down and taken by the pirates.
Upon careful examination, the window curtains had gold and silver thread, were
made of the finest silk, and would definitely fetch a good price.
The Wealth Church was affluent, and its place of worship was bound to be
adorned extravagantly and grandly.
Of course, any sculpture, portrait, or sacred icon depicting the Wealth Goddess
were not touched by the looting pirates.
This was as world of faith and gods.
There were many problems when looting a church, but if one touched anything
related to the gods and disrespected them, it might provoke divine retribution.
When that came, even a saint level pirate would fall dead in the streets.
The ones robbing the Wealth Church was the Lightning Pirates.
They were familiar with what to and what not to take.
“Dian Wan!” When Yang Cong Tou saw the Lightning Pirates’ commander, he
couldn’t help but fume with rage with an indignant heart.
Previously, it was Dian Wan who had been a step faster and had robbed the fleet
with the Sun Halo.
It had been for this Sun Halo that Yang Cong Tou was forced to participate in
Two Eyes Island’s auction.
During the auction, he had lost to Zi Di and Cang Xu, causing the Sun Halo to
slip through his fingers.
Now, Dian Wan had once again been a step ahead of him in robbing the Wealth
Church.
When Dian Wan saw Yang Cong Tou and his people, he proudly said, “Ah, I thought
it was you. Fellow Stench Pirates, you’ve come a bit late, everything here is
ours!”
“Boss, please stop talking.” The Lightning Pirates’ first mate advised. 
But Dian Wan didn’t listen, he never thought well of the Stench Pirates, and
wouldn’t let this chance slip by.
Dian Wan put his hands on his hips and burst into laughter, “Oh? I remember, it
was us who robbed that fleet. Yang Cong You, you’re always eating my butt’s
dust. Does it taste good?”
“Young man, you are too arrogant!” Captain Yang Cong Tou became enraged that a
sore spot had been exposed.
As soon as he said that he cast a spell.
Dian Wan felt the threat and jumped back at once.
A clump of brambles suddenly scuttled across the ground where he had been
standing, it seemed to snap at the air like a monster and its densely packed
sawtooth thorns frightened people.
Dian Wan avoided the spell and grew very angry.
“You’re looking for a fight!” Dian Wan launched at Yang Cong Tou through the
air, his fists crackling with lightning.
“I ought to give you a lesson!” Yang Cong You suddenly transformed into
treeman.
Druids were experts at wood path magic, and some also knew how to use nature
divine spells and spells that could turn them into a bear, wolf, eagle, and
other animals.
Yang Cong Tou was a depraved druid, and the treeman transformation turned him
into a depraved treeman.
The treeman was sinister and terrifying, and its long tree trunk had a person’s
face that looked like Yang Cong Tou.
Vines on the sides of the tree trunk formed a pair of arms that were wildly
scratching at Dian Wan.
“Are we attacking?” The Lightning Pirates asked their first mate.
“No, keep calm.” The first mate shook his aching head, “Let them fight, you
guys get out of here now!”
Meanwhile, the Stench Pirates hadn’t been given the order to attack yet either.
Both groups did their own thing, only their captains were fighting each other.
Several rounds later.
The depraved treeman Yang Cong Tou had been scorched black by lightning, smoke
curling from his tree trunk.
Dian Wan was also a sorry figure, his clothes had been shredded and the front
of his body dripping with wounds.
Suddenly, both stopped at the same time.
They sensed life auras on the same level as theirs.
Pirates on both sides reported simultaneously that it was the Wealth Church
priest and the playing card magician Shi Fa!
Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou glanced at each other and stopped fighting.
After the barracks were stabilized, the Wealth Priest led his subordinates and
Shi Fa back to the church.
Near the church, they had converged with the Fertile Land priest.
When they met, the Fertile Land priest shamefully apologized.
He was responsible for looking after the Wealth Church, and when the Lightning
Pirates attacked, he bravely stepped forward to fight Dian Wan.
He blocked Dian Wan but couldn’t protect anyone.
The Lighting Pirates’ first mate headed the violent attack, and because the
Wealth priest had taken all of the church’s elites with him, the church’s
defenses collapsed in a dozen seconds.
The pirates rushed into the church and when the Fertile Land priest saw that
the situation was unsalvageable, he was forced to helplessly retreat.
He didn’t retreat far, just near the church.
Because when the battle began, he had sent someone to inform the Wealth priest.
Now that the church had been stormed, the Fertile Land priest had assembled the
remaining people and waited for the Wealth priest to return.
When he finally saw the Wealth priest return, he was pleasantly surprised to
see Shi Fa with them.
“What are we waiting for, let’s take back the church together!” The Fertile
Land priest suggested.
Yang Cong Tou and Dian Wan had stopped fighting.
Yang Coing Tou gazed at the two priests’ forces in the distance and laughed,
“Trouble has come for you.”
Dian Wan frowned, but his words were vigorous, “There is no such trouble. If
you can’t take it away, then you might as well burn it!”
Yang Cong Tou couldn’t help but chuckle, “Perhaps we can work together.”
Dian Wan muttered wordlessly to himself for a moment.
When faced with the Fertile Land priest’s proposal, the Wealth priest shook his
head and tactfully refused.
“It’s just some property.”
“Let them fight over it.”
“This is my God’s parish; the most precious wealth is my God’s believers!”
“Protecting Thy believers’ lives and beating back the fishmen and pirates as
soon as possible will again bring stability to the new island.”
“We have come here to link up with you, that’s all.”
“We need your strength to assist the port battlefield over yonder.”
“Now, all of the gold levels are busy with each other. Our performance will
shake up the war situation and thereby influence the result of the entire
battle!”
The Wealth priest’s words moved the Fertile Land priest!
Shi Fa gazed towards the church, his eyes fixing on Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou,
“It won’t be easy to attack the church.”
“Just now, the two pirate leaders had been fighting each other.”
“If we attack, I fear both their groups will unite to deal with us.”
In terms of silver level experts, the priest’s side had a slight advantage, but
in terms of subordinate numbers and quality, the pirates undoubtedly dominated
in that aspect.
3 silvers against 2 wasn’t a big advantage, and if they were deadlocked, the
pirates would slay the priest’s subordinates, and the outcome would be
unpleasant to speculate on.
The priest and the others slowly retreated.
This surprised the two pirate bosses.
Dian Wan let out a breath.
“Humph, a group of cowards.” Yang Cou Tou was the most frustrated.
If the priest and the others attacked, he could join with Dian Wan and have
reasonable grounds to divide the spoils.
If the enemy was formidable, he could retreat from the attack.
In any case, he hadn’t snatched any property, and when the two sides began to
fight, he could run away, while the Lighting Pirates who had the goods would be
watched closely by the priest and others, not so easily able to escape.
If that happened, he could hoodwink the Lightning Pirates.
But that evil scheme didn’t go his way.
The priest and the others voluntarily retreated.



****** Chapter 178: The Dwarfs Run Away ******
“Open the door!” A group of pirates came to the hotel entrance.
They had pockets of silver and gold, some had fine ceramic vases, and others
were carrying enormous bundles.
These were the things they had stolen.
“Open the door now, offer up your money and valuables!”
“Open the door now, and you’ll live. I’ll give you 10 seconds, and when its up,
we’ll kill you!!”
The pirates’ knocks and constant threats echoed through the hotel.
These threats were actually very useful.
Ordinary residents were scared witless and would open their doors to offer
their belongings.
Pirates usually followed this agreement, and after milking the people dry of
their property, they usually wouldn’t kill them.
This was in fact the standard for pirates.
Normally, when they were plundering the seas, they usually wouldn’t commit
wanton massacres as ransoming was an important revenue stream.
More crucially, this kind of standard could usually reduce the risks of looting
and reduce their prey’s resistance.
After this standard and common understanding formed, pirates could pay a
smaller price to obtain loot.
To pirates, there was more benefits than losses to doing this.
Of course, this was only during normal situations.
If a pirate was desperate or had a murderous nature, pirates could choose to
slaughter everyone and leave no survivors. When that happened, they would
usually raise the blood flag.
Currently, the pirates were robbing Two Eyes Island, their main goal was
looking for riches and it wasn’t worthwhile to kill indiscriminately. 
Murder also wastes time.
With that time, couldn’t more things be stolen?
Furthermore, this was Two Eyes Island, and the gold level cultivators were
merely impeded. If one massacred too excessively, they might provoke Hun Tong
or Song Shou into disregarding all negative considerations for the sake of
revenge, people almost every pirate here couldn’t withstand.
“I beseech you.”
“Lord Men Shi, I took you in.”
The hotel owner implored the dwarfs, kneeling towards them.
The hotel was surrounded by layers of pirates, and the doors were on the verge
of being smashed open by their blows.
Men Shi was very vexed.
He had returned from buying his people from the auction and came to this hotel
to rest.
He didn’t want to get involved in the chaos outside.
“Wait until things calm down, then I and my people will depart to continue our
search for a new home.” This was what Men Shi, and the dwarfs had planned to
do.
“Don’t listen to the human!”
“Why should we help these humans? We can stay here because we reserved a room
in advance.”
“That’s right. When we came here, the boss wanted to lock his doors and ignore
us.”
“But what are we going to do about the pirates outside? They have surrounded
this place already.”
“WE will charge out!”
“We have nothing to steal, we are all destitute.”
“Those wretched humans are to blame. They swindled the clan’s savings!”
The dwarfs’ blunt disposition caused them to not mince words and to tell it as
it was.
Men Shi looked around.
The dwarfs all looked determined.
Men Shi knew breaking out was risky. Although he had done his best to arm them,
they only had some inferior weapons and no armor.
But Men Shi could feel his people’s resolve.
“We’re leaving!” Men Shi ordered.
“No don’t go. Help me, please, I can pay you, I can pay you a huge sum!” The
hotel boss anxiously wept.
The dwarfs displayed an unfeeling demeanor.
Under Men Shi’s leadership, they walked down the stairs and turned a deaf ear
to the hotel owner’s pleas.
In desperation, the hotel owner suddenly changed his attitude and began to
loudly curse the departing dwarfs.
The dwarfs loathed humans, but none of them attacked the hotel boss.
Just as they reached the first floor, they saw a window break, with three iron
balls rolling onto the floor.
Men Shi blankly stared, then his face radically changed as he roared, “Get
back!”
Boom!
The iron balls exploded a second later.
The force of the explosion and sharp iron shrapnel inflicted a terrible price
on the dwarfs.
Three were killed and 8 were injured.
It was obvious the pirates’ countdown hadn’t finished yet.
As it turns out, the situation outside the door had changed.
A stronger group of pirates had rushed in, pushing aside the previous pirates.
“Hahaha, get lost you cowards.”
“Charge in, this hotel belongs to the Applaud Pirates!”
The newly arrived pirates spoke more arrogantly.
They belonged to the Applaud Pirates.
This pirate group’s commander was the frogman Hu Li, a silver cultivator almost
as strong as Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou.
Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou had landed on different sides of the island, then
both rushed towards the Wealth Church, leading to some friction between them
there.
The Applaud Pirates landed closer to the port.
Unlike Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou, Hu Li was deeply fascinated with the Vinegar
Jar.
In the port battlefield, the mighty Vinegar Jar, driven by Yao Guan Zi, had
smashed into many light cannon towers, something that had stimulated Hu Li’s
greed.
Hu Li was waiting for a chance to seize the Vinegar Jar.
Therefore, he had his men move near the port.
The hotel the dwarfs checked into was near the port.
The reason why Men Shi had selected this place was because he wanted to be near
the port after he redeemed his clansmen.
First, it was easy for them to board a ship bound for other islands.
Second, if there wasn’t an appropriate outbound ship, they could work at the
port as porters, selling their toil to provide for themselves for a time.
Men Shi’s choice seemed to be the right one, but now it had let to a terrible
outcome.
The house was inundated with dust.
The dwarfs’ ears were ringing.
From the dim ringing, wailing gradually rose.
Men Shi was a silver level and stood at the forefront, tall and unmoving.
But he was only one person, and silver battle qi couldn’t form outside the
body, thus he couldn’t hold back the explosion.
He looked at his clansmen behind him.
The dwarfs had fallen to the ground, some were crawling back up, and others
clutched heir dead relatives, crying bitterly.
Men Shi’s heart welled with tides of fury and hate.
“Hehehe!”
“Charge in!!”
“Take all they have!!”
The pirates kicked the door down and flooded in.
“You will die!!” Men Shi angrily narrowed his bloodshot eyes.
He roared, raised his long war hammer, and like a mad bull, brazenly crashed
into the pirates.
The pirates were caught off guard, how could they have foreseen this hotel had
a silver level fighter hidden in it?
Men Shi’s hammer smashed down, and like a falling watermelon, a pirate’s heard
burst open.
Men Shi’s charge broke bones and bruised flesh as he launched them out of the
hotel.
Five or six landed as corpses, while many more were badly bruised.
Men Shi rushed out of the inn and began to slay pirates.
By the time he came to his senses, almost all of the pirates around him were
slain by his hand, with only one or two able to escape alive.
“Just wait! Men Shi, we recognize you.”
“You killed our Applaud Pirates’ people, damn you dwarf!”
“Boss Hu Li will avenge us!!”
The pirates ran for their lives as they shouted threats.
Men Shi’s face changed.
His people came out of the hotel with anxious hearts: “Hu Li is a silver level
frogman; he should be close by.”
“We need go now.”
“We cannot stay here for long!”
The dwarfs knew the severity of the situation, and a number of them lent arms
or carried their dead relatives on their backs before proceeding to leave the
hotel.
“What? Our people were killed by Men Shi. He’s got guts!” Hu Li quickly
obtained this information.
He gazed at the port battlefield.
The port battlefield was still deadlocked.
The Vinegar Jar was still mighty and had smashed into the final light cannon
turret.
“It still isn’t time to snatch the ship.”
Let’s deal with Men Shi first!”
This guy, leading his burdens, still dares to provoke us!”
Hu Li sneered incessantly.
Although he never interacted with Men Shi, it was clear the dwarfs as a whole
were far weaker than Hu Li’s pirates.
Hu Li was not just one solitary person; he had troops ready to fight.
Although the dwarfs could fight, they were not soldiers and their battle
experience was inferior to a full time pirate group.
More importantly, the disparity of equipment was stark between both sides.
“Little ones, follow me!”
“Avenge our dead brothers, kill those wretched dwarfs!!”
Hu Li issued a call to action and led away a large group.
Of course, he left behind a few people to shadow the Vinegar Jar.
“Where is my first mate?” Hu Li ordered, “Call them back!”
The Applaud Pirates had been plundering near the port; Hu Li now gave the order
to assemble back together.
Like a magnet, he gathered pirates around him as he moved.
The Applaud Pirates’ first mate was in the middle of attacking a villa.
The humans inside the villa were doing their best to fight back.
“Try harder!”
“Little ones, this is the Flint Merchant Alliance representatives’ residence,
there must be good things inside!!”
The first mate shouted encouragement from the back.
The pirates tried to get through windows and force their ways through doors,
however, the defenders stood firm.
The first mate narrowed his eyes, following the progress of the battle.
He had led his pirates all over in plundering; this was the only place that met
unexpected resistance.
To him it seemed that although the defenders weren’t outstanding, they were
luxuriously equipped. All of them had a star iron hatchet in hand.
They were iron level weapons!
Unfortunately, these people didn’t have much armor.
The first mate wasn’t sure who these people were, therefore, he didn’t attack
himself, instead he urged his underlings to attack in his stead.
Although the pirates were fully equipped, their armor couldn’t withstand even
bronze level weapons.
In addition, the other side had location on their side, and for the moment, the
attackers could only search for gaps in their defense.
“First mate, the captain wants us to return.”
“We need to hunt down Men Shi and his dwarfs.”
“They killed our people!”
Hu Li had dispatched a pirate to inform the first mate.
The first mate’s complexion changed, and he hesitated.
He didn’t want to let the cash cow before him go.
One couldn’t be a good pirate without greed.
As the first mate hesitated, he saw an iron level pirate kill a defender at a
window, finally able to charge into the villa.
The first mate suddenly burst into laughter, he took out his cutlass and said
to the messenger pirate, “Wait, let me attack this villa.”



****** Chapter 179: Magician Qing Xin ******
“Little ones, follow me!” He roared as he guided the remaining pirates into the
broken window.
“They are coming in!”
“My Lord, break the siege quickly.”
“We can’t wait for support.”
The villa was in chaos.
These were not some nobodies; they were the people Zi Di had purchased from the
auction.
At the time, Zi Di and Cang Xu had led the blond mother and child’s people to a
place near the port, found this villa, and used it to temporarily house them.
Their leader was Baron Zai Xiang’s mistress, a pretty blond woman.
She had bronze level cultivation, but no battle experience at all.
Everything was in a panic.
Upon hearing her subordinate’s proposal, she promptly nodded and grabbed her
child, “We must escape now!”
But escape to where?
The pirates had surrounded the villa utterly, and at this very moment, a number
of iron levels had stormed in, their defensive line had collapsed.
The blond mother and child wanted to escape, but it was too late.
They were entangled with the pirates.
“Wow, there is a belle here!”
“Too ugly, much too ugly!”
“Don’t hurt her, let her be, we’ll give her to the boss!”
“We don’t want the old, you can dishonor them.”
“Idiot, that human belle can be captured alive and be sold for a high price!!”
The Applaud Pirates were almost all frogmen.”
Different races naturally had different tastes.
But pirates knew what things were.
The Applaud Pirates had plundered for years and knew what was valuable.
The blond mistress’ beauty in some sense had saved her life.
The pirates slowed their attack.
The first mate leading the charge had killed his way to the blond mother and
child.
“Well done!” The first mate laughed heartily and complacently. 
Seeing the first mate was attacking personally, the blond mother and child,
along with the rest all sank into despair.
“Oh dear.” At this moment, someone helplessly sighed.
A moment later, several cyan wind blades flew out.
The frogmen who didn’t dodge them were cut apart by the wind blades, with
several of them being cleaved into two in a shower of blood.
“A magician!” The frogmen took cover at once and withdrew.
The blond mother and child, along with the rest looked behind them in shock.
In their memory, she had been a common cook.
The one who had cast the wind blades was Qing Xin.
Zi Di’s eyes didn’t deceive her.
Forced by circumstances, Qing Xi had no choice but to attack and kill the
pirates to defend herself.
At best, the first mate and his people were iron level.
While Qing Xin was a silver level magician!
Wind blades appeared again, reaving frogmen lives away, none were strong enough
to withstand them.
The first mate wasn’t brave, otherwise he wouldn’t have been in the rear
previously.
“Run away!”
The first mate was the first to flee.
The frogmen’s morale was broken, and they lost their heads and fled in
disarray.
Qing Xin coldly snorted, murderous intent flashing through her.
Wind blades flew out and a thunderbolt fell into the center of the first mate’s
back.
The first mate ferociously vibrated and fell to the ground.
The wind blades severed his heart.
He struggled to get back up as his head raised and coughed out blood.
After several bloody coughs, his physical strength vanished, and he stopped
crawling.
“First mate!” One of Hu Li’s people rushing over witnessed it all.
As it turns out, Hu Li’s people had come here looking for trouble with Men Shi
and his people.
“Boss, avenge me!” The first mate’s eyes flashed open, leaving behind his dying
words a moment before death.
Hu Li shouted furiously.
The first mate was not just his underling, he was also a close blood relative
of his.
It was because of this relationship that the first mate was faithful and true
to him. Although the first mate wasn’t strong, Hu Li trusted him and made him
his first mate. While looting, he also kept an eye on him.
He didn’t expect to lose him on Two Eyes Island today!
Hu Li’s bloodshot eyes glared towards the villa.
Because Qing Xin had acted, her silver level magician aura was no longer masked
and was exposed in its entirety.
“Kill!”
Hu Li growled as he pounded towards the villa.
“Leave now, his target is me!” Qing Xin had no choice but to fly out of the
villa and head in another direction alone.
As expected, Hu Li pursued her.
His pirate troops marched towards the villa.
“Kill them all!”
“Avenge the first mate.”
“Leave no one alive!!”
Pirates were hooting.
“My Lord, what should we do?” The people inside the villa were panicking.
“Flee, flee now!” The blond mistress clutched her bosom with a pale look.
Fortunately, the villa wasn’t surrounded by pirates currently so they could
easily escape it.
“Men Shi, look there!” A dwarf shouted as they ran.
After they had beaten back the Applaud Pirates, they left the hotel right
after.
Men Shi looked up and saw Xing Xin flying through the air.
As for Hu Li, he didn’t have any flying battle skills, and even if he did, he
was only a silver level and couldn’t use them.
But Hu Li had a battle skill that allowed him to jump high and far.
Every time he jumped, he could charge into Qing Xin and threaten the latter.
Qing Xi didn’t have any armor, but instead of flying high, she decided to lure
Hu Li over and did her best to curb the pirate’s strongest cultivator to give
the blond mistress and the others a chance to flee for their lives.
Men Shi gazed at it with rapt attention, somewhat hesitantly.
They had provoked the Applaud Pirates, and now there was someone drawing fire
away from them, this was a good deed to the dwarfs.
But Men Shi knew Hu Li’s reputation.
The frogman was vindictive and was driven by vengeance.
Men Shi had killed many Applaud Pirates and Hu Li wouldn’t take that lying
down.
“From a reasonable point of view, I should attack immediately and with that
unfamiliar magician, we can deal with Hu Li together!”
“But…”
When Men Shi thought of that, he looked at his people behind him, hesitating
once again.
Protecting his clansmen was his most important duty.
Pirates were running amuck right now, and he was very worried that if he left
to fight, his people would suffer immeasurably.
But a moment later, the dwarfs were in an uproar.
They saw the blond mother and child, and their retinue running away.
“It’s them!”
The dwarfs were friends with these people.
They had all met misfortune, been reduced to slaves, and been auctioned off.
Because misery loved company, although they had interacted with each other
briefly, they had a decent relationship.
“Lord Men Shi, we must save those people.”
“Although they are humans, they were slaves just like us.”
“Without our help, they will die!”
“Everyone’s enemy is the Applaud Pirates; we must fight alongside them.”
“That’s right, by killing these pirates, we will avenge our relatives!!”
Men Shi was instantly moved somewhat.
Although humans had entrapped them and they hated humans, their nature hadn’t
changed, and they were still frank and kindhearted.
When they came across their friends, their reaction was to save them, not
delight in their disaster!
Of course, there was another reason to join in opposition to a shared
adversary.
“Then let it be so, follow me!” Men Shi made a firm resolution.
The dwarfs turned around and with loud shouts, quickly attacked the pirate’s
rear.
Men Shi took the lead and was the first to charge into the heap of pirates and
reduced them to a pitiful puddle.
Hu Li exploded in anger; he stopped chasing Qing Xin to attack Men Shi.
When Qing Xin saw this, she used magic, using all of her strength to impede Hu
Li.
The dwarfs converged with the humans.
The blond beauty promptly decided, “Quick, give our axes to our dwarven
friends!”
At this crucial moment, she actually made a very wise decision.
The dwarfs were poorly equipped, and now that they had iron level alchemy
weapons, they were like a fierce tiger that regained its claws and teeth, a
massive boost in attack!
Both sides grappled with each other, and for a moment, the situation was
deadlocked.
This new fight attracted many resolute people.
“A strange silver level magician?” Yue Ban’s gaze was attracted.
She was looking for Zi Di and Cang Xu.
As a result, she noticed Qing Xin.
“Is she the person I am looking for?”
“Doesn’t look like them.”
Yue Ban harbored doubts.
Because although Qing Xin was a silver magician, she looked impoverished and
lacked equipment.
Yue Ban didn’t know what Zi Di and Cang Xu looked like, but she knew those two
were rich and had to have treasures on them.
Even if they didn’t have any prior to the auction, they had bought many during
it.
“Wait a moment, weren’t those the slaves they purchased?”
After Yue Ban saw the blond mother and child, her mind shook with alarm and
joy.
Since these were the slaves they had bought, Zi Di and Cang Xu might be close
by.
Yue Ban harbored this conjecture and with a excited heart, quickly drew closer.
Her conjecture wasn’t wrong.
Cang Xu and Zi Di were nearby.
However, the former was hiding in his ship on the port battlefield, while the
latter was overseeing the battle in the Deep Sea Monster Fish, at the bottom of
the seafloor.
The cockpit.
The magic images on the wall were constantly fluctuating, displaying the fight
between Qing Xin, Hu Li, and Men Shi.
“It really is Sister Qing Xin.” Zi Di’s eyes shined, and her heart stirred.
She hadn’t identified the former successfully, but the pirates and the chaotic
situation had forced Qing Xin to act and expose herself.
As she looked at the magic images, Zi Di muttered to herself, “Think of a way
to save them.”
Two Eyes Island was in chaos, but it wasn’t a good opportunity to come to the
rescue.
After all, the battle between Qing Xin and Hu Li was a focus of many eyes.
“Furthermore…”
Zi Di pursed her brows as she gazed at the magic images with rapt attention.
Qing Xin’s display had all been seen by Zi Di.
“Sister Qing Xi is a wind path magician, she’s obviously able to fly beyond Hu
Li’s reach.
“But she isn’t doing that.”
“Previously, she had exposed her identity to protect the blond mother and
child, and her companions.”
“She wants to protect these people. It’s likely that while living incognito,
she formed friendships with them.”
Zi Di only wanted to help Qing Xin.
But she had to consider Qing Xin’s feelings too.
If Qing Xin was recruited, perhaps in the future she would be let into the core
secret that was the Bloodcore.
In that case, the wisest course of action was to show consideration for both
Qing Xin and her companions like the blond mother and child, doing their best
to keep them alive.
“Should I come to the rescue or not?”
Identity was not a problem.
Zi Di and Cang Xu could use their prior features and appear as Wister Merchant
Alliance elders.
Qing Xin had a background, and her identity couldn’t be concealed. Even if no
one knew who she was now, it would be very easy to figure out who she was upon
future examination.
Therefore, Zi Di using her identity from the auction to save Qing Xin was very
reasonable!
“The current problem is insufficient strength.”
“Furthermore, even if I provide support, I still need a ship.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships couldn’t be used.
Don’t even think about using the Deep Sea Monster Fish!



****** Chapter 180: Puppet Clone ******
“Perhaps we should steal some ships.”
“If we do that, then our strength will be stretched thinner.”
Zi Di and Cang Xu could move as Wisteria Merchant Alliance elders.
But they were only bronze and iron level magicians.
Their true strength (necromancy) could not be used.
“Out of the question, the only thing we can use is alchemy puppets.”
Currently, most of the survivors’ puppets come from the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
There were basic maintenance types, swordsman guard types, deep sea salvaging
types, and scouting types that were mass manufactured.
Most of these alchemy puppets had been exposed already.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps having some alchemy puppets was not valuable
information.
Fortunately, alchemy puppets were not enough to become a distinctive feature,
every organization large and small had some alchemy puppets.
Zi Di pondered carefully and patiently.
As the battle stood, Qing Xin and Men Shi naturally held the advantage against
Hu Li.
After the dwarfs and the blond mistress’ group converged, they were dealing
with the pirates in a sound manner.
“Preparations must be done in advance. You are in charge of taking care of
things on the Deep Sea Monster Fish, let me go to them.” After Cang Xu and Zi
Di spoke, he decide to slip away from the port battlefield.
In a ransacked and empty house, Cang Xu changed his identity, once again
looking like a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder and waited for the right
opportunity.
The port battlefield didn’t need Cang Xu.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were still flubbing their battles. 
“Open fire! Open fire!” One eye’s hoarse voice fumed with rage.
He commanded the patrol fleet to fire constantly.
Large amounts of shells poured down on the main fishman army, but it didn’t do
much.
The racial magic of the Frozen Land Whale the fishman army was riding on was
protecting them as they made a successful landing.
Large swaths of fishmen were wreaking havoc on the old island.
Shells from One Eye’s fleet that were able to smash into the fishmen caused
considerable casualties.
But the greatest threat was not the patrol fleet, but Yan Ding.
As he rode on a cloud through the air, the gold level cultivator’s massive
battle skill really looked like magic!
Roughly five to six hundred fishmen were already slain by his hands.
The Blue Green Coral Clan’s elder was incessantly distressed.
He was going all out, but without a flying battle skill, he could only perturb
Yan Ding, he couldn’t stop him from his merciless slaughter.
Yan Ding was about to use a stronger battle skill when suddenly, a divine spell
fell from the sky and hit him right on the head.
The divine spell had been used at a good opening, revealing that the caster had
a deep battle mastery.
Yang Ding’s battle skill failed, and for a moment, the backlash caused a large
amount of his internal battle qi to scatter within him.
“There is another gold level hiding!” With anger and alarm, Yang Ding promptly
retreated.
But the naga priestess inside the Frozen Land Whale had been plotting for a
long while, how could this be her only move?
At once, three divine spells shot out in a row, their tempo and speed making
them impossible to dodge.
Yan Ding had defenses prepared, but the enemy was faster, he was only able to
avoid the first one and was struck by the other two.
Yan Ding violently coughed out blood, most of the smoke under him dissipated,
his eyes were black, and he was tottering.
“Lord Priestess, thank you for acting!” The old clan elder was endlessly
grateful.
The Frozen Land Whale’s massive mouth opened up and the naga priestess slowly
swam out.
Behind her there were more hidden fishmen warriors that howled and charged past
the priestess to attack the old island.
With these reserves joining in, the fishmen on the frontline received a morale
boost, they regrouped after their setback and charged constantly, ready to
sweep everything before them away.
Of course, the biggest reason for this is that Yan Ding was in a bad state and
was retreating after being struck by the naga priestess’ prepared divine
spells.
This alarming change naturally attracted many eyes.
Gold levels were the apex on this battlefield, and every gold level fight
enormously influenced the entire war situation.
Qi You burst into laughter, “Hun Tong, there is no need to chase me around. I
only want money, while those fishmen want your land.”
Hun Tong coldly snorted, his expression grave.
He wasn’t surprised the fishmen had a hidden trump card but was that was this
big!
A gold level cleric!
To some degree, this naga priestess was a bigger menace than fighters and
magicians.
Because clergy could heal.
“Too rarely seen!”
Fishmen in general had less talent than humans.
Fishmen who had the talent to become magicians and clergy was always rare.
But now, not only was there a purple scaled fishman magician, but there was
also a gold level clergy.
Of course, she was not a fishman, but a naga.
This point only warned Hun Tong further.
“Not only is there the Blue Green Coral fishman clan, but there is another
power too.”
“The old clan elder has asked for a powerhouse’s help!”
The fishmen’s spirits roused greatly, while Hun Tong’s party wavered.
The humans weren’t united and there were pirates looting everywhere.
The merchant alliance representatives were stuck in the ocean battlefield, like
feet stuck in the mud, and they were unable to protect their stores.
Two Eyes Island’s port battlefield was still deadlocked.
This place had the most corpses on both sides.
Two Eyes Island’s old island had been captured by the main fishman army.
The defenses there had mainly been the patrol fleet, and it falling into enemy
hands was inevitable.
The fishmen wailed as they rescued many fishmen captives from the old island’s
government building.
These fishmen were all emaciated and had magic runes engraved into their
bodies.
Their gill flaps had been cruelly torn off, exposing their internal gills, and
within their gill lines, there were many lush tea plants growing from them.
These tea plants were the source of the Fragrant Gill Tea.
Hun Tong had been developing a unique product for Two Eyes Island built on the
suffering of fishmen.
The fishmen were the soil the tea plants grew in.
The Blue Green fishmen clansmen had the Green Tail Bloodline and the Bule Scale
Bloodline, the former was excellent “soil” for the Fragrant Gill Tea.
“Daughter!” The old clan elder went to one of the captives, half-knelt down,
and hugged the fishman, sobbing inconsolably for a moment.
His daughter had been Hun Tong’s captive.
At the time, Hun Tong had dove to the seafloor in an attempt to annihilate the
fishman clan, and although he had failed in doing so, he didn’t return empty
handed.
He had captured many fishmen alive.
The clan elder’s daughter was one of them.
But Hun Tong didn’t know that.
The naga priestess came to the old elder’s side, her face frosty and her gaze
ice cold, “I didn’t find what I was looking for. However, you have returned to
save your clansmen, including your daughter.”
“This is inconsistent to what you’ve said before.”
“I need an explanation, Blue Green Clan Elder.”
The old elder released his doting hug and let go of his daughter.
His daughter was already delirious and wasn’t aware that she’d been saved.
The old elder looked at the naga priestess, he had been in a half-kneel, which
turned into a full kneel before the naga priestess a moment later.
He confessed, “Everything is my mistake. Back then, I lost my home. Now, I have
deceived you, Lord Priestess.”
“Your objective is not on this island; it is on the new island.”
The naga’s face grew colder, her killing intent leaked out profusely, “You
really are audacious! Do you want to renounce your faith?”
“Of course not!” The old elder raised his voice, “At most, I was just deceiving
you, that’s all.”
“After this, I shall stake my entire life to help you accomplish your mission!”
The naga priestess sensed that the elder was dying, and her expression
softened.  She coldly snorted, “Then I will watch your performance.”
They had attacked the old island for the sake of this mission.
In the end, the naga priestess noticed she had been swindled.
The old elder was selfish.
The real target was on the new island.
There was nothing she could do, despite the fact that she wanted to butcher the
fishman elder on the spot, the naga needed his help still to accomplish her
mission.
Time to attack the new island!
The fishmen climbed onto the Frozen Land Whale and vigorously charged towards
the new island.
The patrol fleet shelled them with all they had, but it didn’t do much.
Upon seeing this, all parties battling on the new island grew tense.
The situation was already chaotic enough, it would be difficult to imagine how
much trouble these fishmen would bring to the new island when they arrived.
“Abominable, don’t tell me Two Eyes Island is finished?” A merchant alliance
representative was very anxious.
Their ships were stuck in battle, and when the fishmen’s main army charged in,
the aftermath would be inconceivable.
Er Gua Zi maliciously cackled, and his offensive grew wilder and more
ferocious.
By contrast, his opponent Song Shou gave ground repeatedly.
The fishman’s main army would have a huge impact on the gold level fights.
“Hehehe,” Qi You felt schadenfreude as he jeered Hun Tong, “Feudal Lord Hun
Tong, you’d better go all out, or you won’t be able to defend your territory.”
Hun Tong coldly snorted with an iron complexion as he slowly flew back.
Qi You didn’t stop him.
He wasn’t a fishman ally, it wasn’t worth it to fight to the death.
“Since you have come to court death, then I shall help you do so.” Hun Tong
took out a statue.
This statue was only the size of his palm, it was a vivid depiction of Hun Tong
himself.
As soon as it was taken out, it moved Qi You emotionally.
Because he sensed the statue’s gold level aura!
A Puppet Clone.
Hun Tong imbued it with his battle qi, and in an instant, the Puppet Clone
burst with gold light.
The gold light soared up, then like a meteor, it flew through the air in an arc
as it shot towards the Frozen Land Whale.
The Frozen Land Whale’s water bubble was up, protecting itself.
The old elder was standing in the water bubble, ready to block the golden
meteor.
Bang.
Both sides met with force, and as flowing water dissipated the gold light, it
revealed a second Hun Tong.
This Hun Tong, regardless of stature or appearance, was a mirror copy of him.
The only difference was that his skin emitted a faint golden light that looked
like a layer of golden leaves.
The clan elder used a battle skill and fought Hun Tong’s clone, and for a
moment they were evenly matched.
Hun Tong’s clone was very smart; not only could it use all of Hun Tong’s battle
skills, but it knew how to recreate the true body’s battle awareness.
Smoke rolled in.
When Yan Ding received powerful aid, he immediately counterattacked.
Hun Tong’s clone was a gold level power.
Thus, both sides had two gold levels, sinking the situation back into a
deadlock.
In terms of means, the fishmen had more available to them. The fishman elder
was a fighter and the naga priestess was a clergy, while Hun Tong’s clone and
Yan Ding were both fighters.
But Hun Tong’s clone and Yan Ding were unrestrained, and many more of their
attacks were aimed at the Frozen Land Whale and the main fishman army.
The old elder didn’t have a flying battle skill, and more times than not, had
to protect his clansmen.
Thus, the fishmen sank into a passive situation.
“The longer time drags on, the worst our situation gets!”
The naga priestess’s chilliness grew denser.
But she was pinned down and unable to get onto the new island for the time
being.
Now out in the open, her every movement was closely watched.
After pondering it, the naga priestess immediately used a divine spell to
contact the purple scaled fishman magician on the new island, “Wei Er, I have
confirmed the target is on the new island.”
“I cannot disengage for the time being, you must find him!”
“Use that scroll, we don’t have much time.”
The subterrane depths of the new island.
The purple scaled fishman magician was constantly coughing up blood.
The alchemist was lying before her, while the pharmacist had escaped with heavy
injuries.
Although the purple scaled fishman magician was alone, she was the ultimate
victor of the underground magician battle.
The purple scaled fishman used a divine spell to respond, “I am in bad shape,
it’ll be difficult to continue the search.”
The naga priestess was silent for a moment.
She could sense the purple scaled fishman’s condition through the divine spell.
The purple scaled fishman was gravely wounded, her request really was forcing
upon the former.
The naga priestess gave a deep look, then communicated, “Heal first.”
“I will active the secret spy.”
“Let him come help you!”
The imperial secret spy could place undiscovered traitors into the Vinegar Jar
Pirates, the fishmen could do the same too.
The secret spy had been hidden deeply.
Using one means one less available.
The naga priestess was compelled by circumstances and had no choice but to use
a divine spell to transmit her order.



****** Chapter 181: The Priest Provides Aid ******
Two Eyes Island.
The fires of war was everywhere.
Shouts of murder echoed through the heavens.
On a desolate beach, Song Shou was standing ready for battle.
The seawater suddenly surged, and Er Gua Zi’s silhouette flashed in the waves.
Fishman battle skill – Wave Blade!
From the three meter high wave shot out five or six gigantic water blades. The
water blades were perpendicular to the sea, and with sharp edges, they plowed
into the beach and towards Song Shou.
Song Shou suddenly reached out and stomped his feet onto the beach.
Tree like cracks suddenly spread through the beach, the cracks emitted gold
battle qi.
When the tree pattern and water blades collided with each other, both burst and
destroyed the other.
Subsequent waves whistled as they came in, covering the aftermath of these two
battle skills.
Er Gua Zi’s figure revealed itself in the waves, and with bubbling battle qi,
he condensed the sea waves next to him into two enormous fists.
·
Fishman battle skill – Water Fist – Battering Ram!
Song Shou coldly snorted, he didn’t move to avoid it, instead he met it face to
face.
His palms clapped his chest, and half his body armor suddenly emitted a
dazzling light that instantly formed a tower that protected Song Shou within
it.
The two water fists swung from the left and right, smashing into the tower at
the same time.
The tower shook, and distinct cracks formed on its surface.
Er Gua Zi sneered, his battle intent increasing sharply.
His attack wasn’t that fast, and Song Shou was completely able to avoid it.
But the latter didn’t do that and instead chose to block it.
After blocking it, although his defensive battle skill didn’t collapse, it
would only last temporarily.
As long as the attacks continued, it would be dispersed.
Song Shou had sunken into a passive state.
Er Gua Zi had abundant fighting experience, and he immediately mobilized his
battle qi to condense two more water fists to continue his high tempo
offensive.
Thus, Song Shou wasn’t able to catch his breath or adjust himself, he was
forced to maintain his Tower Defense battle skill and wearily take the tide of
attacks.
Song Shou was giving ground.
But although Er Gua Zi took the initiative, he wasn’t able to break his
opponent’s defensive battle skill for some time.
In the other gold level battle, the naga priestess began to pray.
It was obvious she was trying to use some powerful divine spell.
“Can’t let her let her do that!”
Like a sharp arrow, Hun Tong’s clone shot straight towards the naga priestess
with ice cold killing intent.
The old elder roared, and with a walking stick in hand, intercepted Hun Tong’s
clone.
Yan Ding instigated his smoke and used a large scale battle skill that wildly
covered the area with pitch-black smoke.
The old elder and Hun Tong’s clone were within the battle skill’s area of
effect.
Since they were both gold levels with outstanding defense, they easily
withstood it.
This was Yan Ding’s weak point.
Since his battle skills sought to affect a large area, when dealing with
cultivators of the same level, they didn’t do that much to them.
But Yan Ding’s target was not the old clan elder or Hun Tong’s clone, instead
it was the fishman army on the Frozen Land Whale.
The Frozen Land Whale’s water bubble defense had massive holes eroded into it
by the black smoke through which clouds of it squeezed through like loathsome
pythons that pounced at the fishman army.
The fishman main army didn’t have a silver level, a gold level battle skill was
slaughtering them like sheep!
In that crucial moment, the old elder attacked back and used a gold battle
skill that curtailed and dissipated every wisp of smoke.
Hun Tong’s clone didn’t stop him, as he was going through the smoke to kill the
naga priestess.
The naga priestess was forced to deal with the alchemy puppet and had to stop
her prayer halfway through.
On the fishman’s side, they had a fighter and a caster.
According to common sense, they had better and more rational troop
arrangements.
But in actual combat, the fishmen were instead at a disadvantage.
The biggest reason was the alchemy puppet.
The clone puppet was an exact duplicate of Hun Tong’s battle power and
possessed his fighting experience, yet it fought more fiercely than the actual
Hun Tong.
Because it was an artificial clone puppet – it wasn’t scared of dying!
The clone puppet’s defenses were also astonishing.
Hun Tong’s specialty as an assassin meant his attack was strong while his
defense was weak. But this clone puppet had his attack and displayed a
comprehensive strength that was somewhat stronger than the actual Hun Tong.
Yan Ding’s attacks against cultivators of the same level was lacking, but
nevertheless he still provided excellent help.
Because he was culling the main fishman army.
If the old elder didn’t pay attention, his people would succumb to Yan Ding and
suffer disastrous losses.
Because Yan Ding was always attacking the main fishman army, the old elder was
quite sullen that he had to save them every single time.
Not saving them was beyond question.
The old elder and his entire clan had attacked to retake their home.
But if almost all of his clansmen were dead, even if Two Eyes Island was taken
back, who would live on it?
Losing one’s home, yet the clan surviving meant there was still hope.
Losing one’s clansmen and retaining one’s home meant the enemy could come back
again, no one was there to defend it.
The old elder knew this, thus, he had to protect the fishman army.
For these reasons, the fishman’s gold levels were on the downturn, and for a
moment, they couldn’t break through Hun Tong’s clone and Yang Ding’s defensive
line.
Qi You and Hun Tong were fighting and observing the battlefield.
He evaluated the two other gold fights.
These were the biggest elements that impacted the battle for Two Eyes Island.
“Song Shou is losing but isn’t in danger for now.”
“The alchemy clone is actually stronger than the main body, how outrageous!”
“But that’s fine.”
Of all the gold levels present, Qi You was probably the least worried.
The pirate boss’s biggest hope for the situation was that it continued to
remain deadlocked.
The fishmen and feudal lord forces pinning each other down meant this was the
best opportunity for pirates to plunder.
Although Qi You wasn’t doing the looting himself, his underlings were sure to
be reaping an immense harvest.
Of all the pirates on the new island, Qi You’s were the most impressive.
No other pirate groups clashed with them.
It was because of Qi You.
As he dodged Hun Tong’s attack, Qi You ridiculed, “Hun Tong, this can’t
continue.”
“One clone puppet can only hold back the offensive; it cannot reverse the
situation for you.”
“Well then, let me give you an idea.”
“Hire me for ten thousand gold, oh and the secret recipe for Fragrant Gill Tea,
and I will help you deal with these fishmen. How about it?”
At this moment, Qi You expressed his pirate shamelessness.
Hun Tong coldly snorted and responded by attacking Qi You more intensely.
Hun Tong couldn’t agree to Qi You’s demand.
Even if Qi You was acting in good faith, as a human feudal lord, if Hun Tong
agreed to cooperate with pirates, what would be his noble honor, how could he
continue to mingle among other imperial lords?
Qi You’s eyes slightly narrowed.
After Hun Tong had used the alchemy clone, he began to attack more fiercely.
All of this was rational.
But Qi You constantly felt something was fishy.
This feeling couldn’t be vocalized properly, but Qi You trusted it.
Because he was an old pirate that had sailed the sea for many years, previous
fights proved the veracity of this feeling.
Many times, this feeling had come true.
“What are you waiting for? Feudal Lord Hun Tong!” Qi You taunted again.
But Hun Tong was silent, he just attacked.
“Huh?” Qi You blankly stared, upon noticing something new, he couldn’t help but
thing, “Don’t tell me he is waiting for the outcome of the battle between these
silvers?”
New developments in the port battlefield were being keenly observed by Qi You.
Naturally other gold levels were paying attention too.
There was just a difference in timing between them.
What produced a radical change in the port battlefield was not bystanders, it
was the Wealth priest, the Fertile Land priest, Shi Fa, and the temple guards
and clergymen under their command.
Two silver level clerics as well as a silver level magician were a formidable
force!
The moment they entered the battlefield they would instantly affect it.
Divine spells fell onto humans, healing many wounded to a battle ready state,
greatly increasing their morale.
Magic smashed into fishmen, instantly changing the situation and causing
disastrous fishmen casualties.
When the fishmen that were entangled with these humans suffered this backstab,
they were suddenly thrown into disorder.
Because their leaders were fighting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
cultivators, there was no one to lead the troops.
The only one that could interfere was Yao Guan Zi.
Bang.
The port’s final light cannon tower also collapsed.
The Vinegar Jar under Yao Guan Zi’s control had destroyed all of the light
cannon towers in a swift manner, an outstanding military merit!
But the Vinegar Jar had paid a heavy price in exchange.
The magic power reservoir had fallen to 32%.
The Vinegar Jar was bruised and dented, and its own mast had snapped off.
Not only that, but the Vinegar Jar’s bottom cannon mouth had been half
destroyed.
It was this cannon mouth discharging water that allowed the Vinegar Jar to move
across dry land.
The human soldiers manning the light cannon turrets weren’t idiots either;
after seeing this, they focused fire on the cannon mouth.
The light cannon turrets had strong firepower, and even rarer, had high
accuracy.
The latter bit wasn’t a strong point of alchemy cannons.
The swiftly rotating Vinegar Jar couldn’t avoid this bombardment.
Fortunately, the Vinegar Jar was close to the light cannon turrets, allowing it
to smash into them in short order.
Without the light cannon turrets threating it, Yao Guan Zi’s next target were
the two priests.
The Wealth priest was forced to order, “Scatter!”
The Vinegar Jar’s charge didn’t achieve an ideal result.
The priests’ troops loudly dispersed, and the huge Vinegar Jar could only catch
all of its enemies when they were concentrated in one area.
Yao Guan Zi had no choice but to target the Wealth priest.
But the priest had divine spells that allowed him to move quickly.
The Vinegar Jar was a silver level magic ship, and driving the ship to deal
with a single enemy was not something it could do.
It was like using a cannon to hit a mosquito, the costs were high, and
efficiency was extremely low.
In fact, the Vinegar Jar was actually restrained by a single silver level.
Because a person was far more flexible than a magic ship.
But the priest didn’t choose to bravely charge the Vinegar Jar.
Previously, Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai had been defeated by it, and
Commander Tie Bang even lost his life.
Xi Dai Zi knew the Vinegar Jar only had Yao Guan Zi, a single silver level, in
it, but the humans didn’t.
Since the enemy’s power was unknown, the Wealth priest decided not to take a
risk.
This was his parish.
His mentality was the closest to Hun Tong’s, he hoped to stabilize the war
situation and protect this territory as soon as possible.



****** Chapter 182: Chi Lai Fires! ******
The priest evaded the pursuing Vinegar Jar while doing his best to reinforce
the other human fighters.
Divine spell – Weaken Armor.
Divine Spell – High Speed.
The Wealth Priest’s main target was the closest to him, Zong Ge.
The High Speed divine spell doubled Zong Ge’s speed.
While the Weaken Armor divine spell affected the Steel Bone Knight fishman,
decreasing his defenses.
With that aid, Zong Ge didn’t need to fully use speed increasing battle skills
to ward off the Steel Bone Knight fishman’s lance image battle skill.
While his sword blade immediately gouged incisions into the fishman’s body.
The fishman’s steel bones no longer gave him a strong defense.
The pressure on the fishman knight multiplied, and for a moment, he suffered
defeat after defeat.
When Yao Guan Zi saw this, he was hit with inspiration.
A moment later, he changed his attack target and no longer chased after the
nimble Wealth priest, instead he headed for the fight between Zong Ge and the
Steel Bone Knight fishman.
His choice was very rational.
It was hard to have an impact chasing the Wealth priest around.
Zong Ge was a silver level fighter, and compared to the priest, he seemed to be
far slower.
More crucially, the fishmen’s silver level knight was already surrounded by
perils, if he wasn’t reinforced, he might be slain in battle.
In the port battlefield, the fishmen’s side was already in a vulnerable state,
their silver levels couldn’t be lost.
If one died in battle, it would set off a chain reaction that would lead to the
other silver level fishmen being beheaded sooner, then the port battlefield
would be won by the humans.
If the humans won, they would immediately clear up the new island and
reorganize their defensive line.
Following this, if the fishman main force tried to land on the island, they
would need to pay a more disastrous price to do so.
That wasn’t the main point, however.
If the human silver levels got their hands free, they could interfere with the
gold level duels.
As for the others, Yao Guan Zi wasn’t that worried.
He was most worried about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
Not long ago, they had taken on the gold level Rou Zang.
Seeing the Vinegar Jar heading towards Zong Ge, the dragonman youngster
decisively ordered, “Fire!”
Chi Lai had been waiting for this order for a long time!
Right now, he was hidden in one of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships, in
control of their gold level cannon.
After escaping the auction hall trap, he had followed the dragonman youngster
and Zong Ge to the port battlefield.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge went into battle while he snuck into a ship
to gain control over the gold level cannon.
The survivors had one gold level cannon.
This cannon had played a significant role when they faced off against Rou Zang.
Of course, successes should be recreated.
Therefore, early on, the cannon had been smuggled onto a ship. Its specific
position was kept strictly secret, and only the survivors knew where it was.
When a battle appeared in the future, the formation shielding the cannon would
restrain its aura to near nothing, allowing it to catch an enemy unprepared
when it opened fire!
When Chi Lai came face to face with the gold level cannon, he found it utterly
irresistible. 
He was a gunner, a heavy gunner at that. Instead of high fire rate cannons, he
liked cannons with a lower fire rate and stronger shelling power.
Chi Lai imbued his silver battle qi into the cannon, gradually bringing it
under his control.
He didn’t rashly open fire.
The dragonman youngster had emphasized that he wasn’t authorized to start
shooting yet.
He had to restrain himself.
Chi Lai had good military attainment and had been observing the port
battlefield.
Even if the dragonman youngster hadn’t ordered him to do so, he, himself,
wouldn’t have decided to recklessly attack.
The reason was simple.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were frail.
When he opened fire, he was sure to be attacked on all sides.
Enemies would crazily attack, and they wouldn’t hesitate to pay silver level
fishmen lives to destroy the gold level cannon.
This wasn’t the worst thing though.
The scary thing was that a gold level cultivator was bound to bring their
ruthless hand down.
Because the gold level cannon was a powerful threat to them too!
When the Vinegar Jar had come ashore and displayed its terrible might, Chi Lai
was more unwilling to open fire.
Compared to the light cannon turrets, ordinary ships were as weak as paper.
Two Eyes Island’s war situation was constantly changing.
The gold level battles were deadlocked, and when the priests came in to provide
support, they had broken the port battlefield’s impasse, causing the Vinegar
Jar to crush the ship Zong Ge was on.
“A chance!” Chi Lai keenly sensed his opportunity in battle.
If he attacked now, it would be hard for the gold level cultivators to respond
to him.
The Vinegar Jar was getting closer at its own volition, and hitting it was a
near certainty.
Furthermore, with the priests and other cultivators’ help, they could work
together to wipe out the fishmen and secure victory on this battlefield!
But Chi Lai was constrained by the dragonman youngster.
Just as he was worried that the dragonman youngster was going to let this
opportunity slip away, he received the order through an alchemy device.
“Fire!” The dragonman youngster’s order at that moment was the sweetest thing
Chi Lai could hear!
After receiving his commander’s order, he immediately acted.
“Great Justice God, my Lord!”
“The sinister enemy is close at hand; I need thy prestige and strength to beat
back evil and danger.”
“We must let the people know that justice will always defeat evil!”
Divine spell – Mark Evil.
Divine spell – Justice Cannon!
The glory of the first divine spell fell from the sky and onto the Vinegar Jar,
denoting it as an evil enemy.
The second divine spell’s power was imbued into the gold level cannon, then
condensed into the artillery shell loaded in it.
The divine spell violently fluctuating instantly attracted the attention of the
fishmen.
“Not good!” Yao Guan Zi realized things were getting bad and immediately opened
fire.
The Vinegar Jar’s bottom cannon mouth immediately jetted out a water shell
towards the ship.
The dragonman youngster wanted to help, but it was beyond his reach.
If Chi Lai hadn’t used a divine spell, the ship’s concealment formation
wouldn’t have leaked any aura. But after he had done so, he instantly revealed
himself and the alchemy cannon, drawing the enemy’s timely attacks.
Several spherical water shells fired, each the size of an elephant.
They whistled through the air, and when the smashed into ships, they would tear
their hulls into splinters in a flash.
Chi Lai faced this fatal crisis with a confident smile.
His square face illuminated with the light of the Justice God, giving him an
increasingly resolute appearance.
Bang!
A moment later, the cannon fired.
A gold level cannon.
A gold level artillery shell!
The entire cannon mouth seemed to eject a gigantic pillar of light.
At the very front of the light pillar was the gold artillery shell.
The artillery shell pierced hulls without any hindrance.
The white pillar of light stung eyes; none could look straight at it.
The formidable artillery shell squeezed air into a spatial ripple.
Several water shells were in front of the gold artillery shell.
Bang, thump, slam…
The gold artillery shell smashed through the water shells, its speed only
decreasing a mere 20%.
Yet, under everyone’s shocked eyes, the artillery shell drilled into the
Vinegar Jar’s hull.
The hull had remained invincible against all other artillery shells.
Bang.
The sound was deafening.
The rapidly spinning and momentous silver level magic ship was suddenly damaged
heavily.
It suddenly came to a standstill, its forward momentum completely offset.
After rotating half a circle, it began to fall.
The Vinegar Jarwas shaped like a water jar, and now, the water jar’s
circumference touched the ground, while the bottom was perpendicular with it,
totally exposed to everyone before it.
“The Vinegar Jar!!!”
“Only one shot…incredible.”
“What was that?”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps…gold cannon! How could I forget about it!”
The entire port went silent for a second because of this cannon, then soon
after, shouts of alarm continuously arose and resonated to the skies.
Huff, huff, huff…
Chi Lai gasped for air; his arms propped up his body on the fiery rear section
of the cannon.
He had been building up his power for that one attack.
He had depleted much of his battle qi, carried out prayer, and had used a
divine spell.
After attacking, too much of his strength had drained away; he felt like
collapsing.
But at the same time, he also felt an intense invigoration.
“How long has it been since I fired such a cannon?”
“Perhaps joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the right choice.”
In that moment, Chi Lai had greater and more beautiful hopes for his future in
this mercenary corps.
“Outstanding!” Zong Ge sincerely exclaimed in admiration to himself, “If it
were me, it would have produced an immense explosion, brining smoke, dust, and
disaster to the surroundings.”
“But Chi Lai didn’t.”
“His artillery shell’s power was concentrated in once place, allowing him to
penetrate the Vinegar Jar entirely.”
The gold level artillery shell had gone through the front of the Vinegar Jar,
then out the back, creating a convex protrusion as it exited.
Large amounts of poisonous water leaked from this hole.
The humans and fishmen who weren’t able to get out of the way and were soaked
by the water softly groaned, and fell to the ground, poisoned to death.
Chaos reigned around the Vinegar Jar.
The fishmen cried out in panic, their morale dipping.
The humans got out the way, their battle intent growing more vigorous.
Cough, cough, cough.
Yao Guan Zi violently coughed in the control cabin.
He looked on the verge of vomiting out all of his blood.
Although the cannon merely brought misfortune to him, he had sensed the strong
aura of death at that moment.
He had used all of his strength to beat Commander Tie Bang and Beng Dai.
That his ill, barely clinging on body had driven the Vinegar Jar into many
light cannon turrets could be said to be a small miracle.
His body was already at the edge of collapse.
That it hadn’t yet was entirely due to his own willpower.
When the Vinegar Jar was shot, Yao Guan Zi’s life aura also fell too, and in a
flash, it had reached rock bottom.
Sensing his life aura change, the humans hesitated, worried that this was an
enemy trap.
Xi Dai Zi’s heart grieved, he knew Yao Guan Zi would die where he lay.
He called to Peng Din Zi to disengage with the dragonman youngster and to go to
the Vinegar Jar.
The dragonman youngster growled and pursued close behind.
The spiky fishman was forced to stay behind and stop the dragonman youngster
for the time being.
On the other side, the Steel Bone Knight fishman acted according to
circumstances, attacking while retreating in an attempt to converge with Xi Dai
Zi.
“Stop him!” The Fertile Land priest shouted.
“Stop right there.” The Wealth priest promptly interfered, barring Xi Dai Zi’s
way.
“Shi Fa!” The Wealth priest called his helper.
Shi Fa, with playing cards whirling around him flew into the air and waved them
into the hole in the Vinegar Jar.
In an instant, a dozen playing cards traveled through the hole and flew into
the Vinegar Jar.
Bang, thump, boom.
The playing cards’ magic triggered.
The Vinegar Jar was bombarded by multiple magics.
“rlnagrlanlrm”
Xi Dai Zi wailed, calling Yao Guan Zi’s full name.
Yao Guan Zi’s life aura completely faded.
“Well done!” The Wealth priest exclaimed.
Shi Fa had killed Hong Bo, eliminated Yao Guan Zi, and proved that the Vinegar
Jar was empty.
“Seize the ship!” The first to respond was Zi Di.
She expressed her opinion to the dragonman youngster via alchemy device.



****** Chapter 183: Seizing the Ship ******
The Vinegar Jar, a silver level magic ship!
Although it suited fishmen the most, humans could operate it too.
Besides, the survivors could remodel it in the future.
“Good idea!” The dragonman youngster was adept at accepting good suggestions
and changed his offensive towards the Vinegar Jar.
Over yonder, Zong Ge also received this information and moved likewise.
Battle skill – Rapid Advance.
With the divine spell and his battle skill Rapid Advance combined, he was able
to instantly shake off the Steel Bone Knight fishman.
The fishman knight had been attacking and retreating, intending to group back
up with Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi was heading for the Vinegar Jar, and the fishman knight was the same,
Zong Ge was right behind him.
As a result of Zong Ge’s sudden increase in speed, he quickly passed his
opponent in their race towards the Vinegar Jar.
The key was that Zong Ge ran faster than him!
For a split second, the fishman knight was stupefied.
A moment later, he reacted as panic rushed into his mind.
“Yao Guan Zi is dead, and the Vinegar Jar cannot be stolen away!”
“Although it was struck by a cannon and is capsized, because its main operator
Yao Guan Zi is dead, it is possible another can operate it.”
Even though the Vinegar Jar was immobilized and capsized on its side, its
numerous bottom cannons could still be used.
At minimum, it could be treated as a fort and cannon turret.
It would give the fishmen a large terrain advantage.
In the port battlefield, the fishmen were already at a disadvantage, and if
they lost the Vinegar Jar, it was bound to cause a rout.
“Defend the Vinegar Jar!”
“First, it is still formidable, and second it is a symbol. If it falls into
enemy hands, our morale will take a big hit.”
“We won’t be able to support the main force’s arrival.”
A sacrificial mentality emerged in the Steel Bone Knight fishman’s heart.
With red eyes, he ran as fast as he could and began to desperately chase Zong
Ge down.
Bang.
The dragonman youngster’s fist smashed the spiky fishman into the air.
The dragonman youngster’s Bursting Explosion battle qi and the legendary Flame
Dragon King bloodline meant that every time he used Demolition Fist or Surge,
it would trigger explosions big and small that echoed with ferocious prestige.
The spiky fishman was beneath mention, and even if there was another of him, it
would still be hard to bar the dragonman youngster’s way.
The young man easily punched the spiky fishman away and was about to swagger
off and march towards the Vinegar Jar.
At this moment, the spiky fishman behind him coughed out blood, then suddenly
roared wildly.
Racial magic – Swelling Balloon.
This was Peng Ding Zi’s trump card, it couldn’t be rashly used, and the
consequences of using it was very severe.
He had no choice but to use it now.
This was an ability that came with his bloodline.
After the spiky fishman used it, his body began to rapidly inflate like a puffy
balloon, his limbs, chest, and buttocks all swelled to twice their size.
His weight substantially decreased, to the extent that when he wasn’t moving,
he would slowly float into the sky.
Silver battle qi suddenly flashed across Peng Ding Zi’s body.
When Peng Ding Zi used this battle skill, his speed dramatically increased, and
within two seconds, he was able to attack the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster narrowed his eyes, looked at the strange, swelling
enemy, and tried to attack them.
But when Demolition Fist hit Peng Ding Zi, it seemed to sink into the latter
like he was hitting cotton.
The dragonman youngster’s expression changed.
Demolition Fist had obviously worked, but it didn’t do anything and not even
the most trivial explosion could be heard!
“What’s going on?”
The dragonman youngster was forced to focus all of his energy on dealing with
Peng Ding Zi.
The spiky fishman became very troublesome.
After his weight had lightened, his movement and attack speed had also
increased several fold. Before this, he had to cope with the dragonman
youngster’s many attacks, but now he could easily evade them.
After a few attacks and blocks, the dragonman youngster began to understand
what was going on with his opponent.
Demolition had been properly used, but when it hit the spiky fishman’s body,
its might was instantly absorbed by them.
Every time it was absorbed, Peng Ding Zi’s body swelled some more.
At the beginning, Peng Ding Zi had only swollen two fold. But after several
rounds with the dragonman youngster, he had swelled to double that!
“There should be a limit to this ability.”
“His absorption cannot be limitless.”
“Furthermore, he cannot absorb sword attacks and other direct attacks.”
Although the dragonman youngster wasn’t using a sword, his dragon claws were
natural weapons.
Instead of using battle skills, he decided to attack with his dragon claws.
Peng Ding Zi’s wounds quickly piled up and his blood was shed, yet he was
fighting to the death and didn’t retreat.
“This guy doesn’t want to live.” The dragonman youngster quickly realized this
fact.
The spiky fishman would rather be wounded and risk dying in battle to ensnare
him here.
As for Zong Ge, he was still further from the Vinegar Jar than the dragonman
youngster.
In another battlefield.
Hu Li jumped high into the air.
“The Vinegar Jar is mine!” His heart cried out as he grew impatient.
The Vinegar Jar’s powerful display of strength had deeply engraved itself into
Hu Li’s mind.
The Applaud Pirates’ boss had wanted to steal this ship for a long time.
But since then, his crew had been slain by Men Shi, Qing Xin, and the others.
As the leader, he was forced to leave the port to take back his territory.
Hu Li was fighting Qing Xin and Men Shi alone!
From the beginning of the fight, he had been winning.
Despite the fact that his opponents were a silver level magician and a silver
level fighter.
Hu Li was a renowned silver level, and his fighting style also helped him too.
Hu Li had a jumping battle skill, and he was very nimble. Men Shi was a dwarf,
he had outstanding defense but hie was too slow, only able to eat the dust left
behind by Hu Li.
Although Qing Xin was a silver level, she had nothing on her and no equipment
on hand.
She was flying in the air, but that didn’t give her safety.
For one, she had to evade arrows and bullets, and second, every time Hu Li got
near, he was a massive threat.
Hu Li’s suddenly screamed powerfully.
Although he was winning, he wasn’t able to beat his opponents.
Chi Lai’s shell had made a giant impact, causing everyone nearby to pay
attention to the port battlefield.
Hu Li constantly had the Vinegar Jar in his mind, and now that it was about to
fall into another’s hand, how could he not be anxious?
He suddenly shouted something in the frogman language.
His underlings were currently fighting the combined force of the blond mother’s
group and the dwarfs.
After hearing this order, a group of frogmen separated from this.
There were sixteen of them in total, and although they had varied builds, with
some old and some young, all of them were wearing the same gloves.
The gloves on their hands made their already gigantic frogman palms even
bigger.
The frogmen urged their battle qi and used the same battle skill – Palm Sound
Force!
Clap, clap, clap.
They clapped their palms together in an orderly fashion.
The applause quickly expanded to cover an area of several hundred meters.
Qing Xin and Men Shi were enveloped by this sound force and were immediately
perturbed.
By contrast, Hu Li was like a fish back in water, drawing power from it that
increased his military power slightly.
Battle skill – Musical Palm Scale.
He waved his palm, influencing the sound force around him, instantly condensing
it into a translucent flight of stairs.
When Hu Li was jumping, he had to land back on the ground. But now on this
flight of stairs. He had a new foothold to step on, greatly changing the
situation.
Like a bouncing ball, he was constantly bouncing around on the musical scale,
the ground, and roofs.
His patterns varied and weren’t as easy to predict as before.
“This is the Applaud battle squad, the namesake of the Applaud Pirates.”
“It isn’t just those frogmen, Hu Li is also a part of the battle squad, that is
why he’s able to use the sound force too!”
The enemy was competently working together, while Qing Xin and Men Shi had no
such coordination.
Qing Xin was constantly being forced into danger by Hu Li.
Men Shi wasn’t able to hit the enemy high in the air, he had no other option
but to turn around and attack the Applaud frogmen.
There was a cheer on the White Bandage.
“We won!”
“We finally took back our flagship.”
The blood soaked Bandage mercenaries had fought bravely to finally retake the
White Bandage from the fishmen, the magic ship was now back under their
control.
The mercenaries crowded around their commander, their expressions inspiring and
their eyes filled with adoration.
During this retaking of the ship, Commander Beng Dai was the most crucial
person. It was he who had led the charge, he who fought with all he hand, and
he who had destroyed the defenses here.
The mercenaries followed their commander in and won the battle.
But at this moment, Commander Beng Dai wasn’t looking good.
He was standing on the side of the ship and looking at the Vinegar Jar sitting
on the port.
Chi Lai’s shot also attracted his gaze.
Commander Beng Dai and Tie Bang had forced their way into the Vinegar Jar
together, resulting in the former fleeing in defeat and the latter losing his
life.
After Commander Beng Dai got out o danger, he spent a short time resting.
Afterwards, he adjusted his target and led a squad in an attempt to retake the
White Bandage.
The Iron Lumpand the White Bandage were magic ships, they had been the furthest
from the port and had been swiped by the Vinegar Jar Pirates.
Er Gua Zi and Song Shou were doing battle.
His subordinates were steering the two magic ships to join the ocean
battlefield.
Merchant, transport, and Vinegar Jar Pirate ships large and small were locked
in battle with each other.
Commander Beng Dai jumped from ship to ship and killed their way across them
until they were finally able to charge onto the White Bandage.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates’ experts weren’t present on the ship, those on board
weren’t able to hold off Commander Beng Dai’s wild attack.
After all, Commander Beng Dai was a veteran silver level fighter.
“The Vinegar Jar…is going to be taken by someone else!” Commander Beng Dai
sighed to himself.
The joy of taking back his flagship was lost amidst the bubbling
disappointment, envy, and regret that filled his heart.
The White Bandage could not compare to the Vinegar Jar.
The former was a mere bronze level, a far cry from the silver level Vinegar
Jar, a whole level above iron.
He thought about the danger he had faced and the blood he had paid yet ended up
empty-handed.
“If it really falls into another’s hand, then I would have contributed greatly
to it!”
Commander Beng Dai’s whole heart was agonized and he also felt wronged.
So much so that a dark thought remained in his mind, he hoped the humans would
fail.
“Commander, we can’t take the Vinegar Jar, but we can attack the Iron Lump!”
Someone next to him suggested.
When Commander Beng Dai heard that, his eyes suddenly flashed.
He looked at who suggested it, it was the person who understood him the most,
his auxiliary commander.



****** Chapter 184: The Undiscovered Traitor Exposed ******
“You still understand me.” Commander Beng Dai secretly praised, but on the
surface he hesitantly replied, “Is that a good idea? If we seize the Iron Lump,
how could we face the Iron Club Mercenary Corps?”
The auxiliary commander resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he responded,
“Commander, you worry too much about old friendships. Right now, taking the
Iron Lump is how we help our friend.”
“Commander Tie Bang is dead.”
“We must help them.”
“Of course, when we return the Iron Lump to them in the future, they’ll need to
reward us somewhat for that.”
Those words interpreted from another point of view implied that “if the reward
wasn’t to their satisfaction, then the Iron Lump wouldn’t be returned”.
“Your words have merit.” Commander Beng Dai immediately smiled when he heard
the auxiliary commander’s veiled intent and was eager to adopt this idea.
He raised his voice as he looked to his other subordinates, “Did you hear
that?”
“Let’s help our friends take back the Iron Lump!”
The mercenaries cheered together, vigorously responding to Commander Beng Dai’s
call to battle.
But a moment later, someone reported something.
“The Iron Lump is being attacked!”
“Not by people, but by many alchemy puppets.”
“What?” Commander Beng Dai and the others turned pale, and they all leaned
forward to gaze into the distance.
Commander Beng Dai took out a telescope and saw the swordsmen guard puppets
killing their way across the Iron Lump.
He was utterly bewildered, “What’s going on?”
“That can’t be the Iron Club Mercenary Groups’ trump card.”
“Whose troops are those?”
The Bandage Mercenary Corps was normally the Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ rival,
and sometimes partners.
Two Eyes Island is only so big, and after interacting with each other for so
long, they knew each other’s foundation.
Therefore, Commander Beng Dai knew for certain that this wasn’t how the Iron
Club Mercenary Corps operated.
Was it the feudal lord’s forces? Some merchant alliance force? Or perhaps…the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
Commander Beng Dai was suspicious of everyone.
“Commander, what should we do?” An obtuse mercenary asked.
Commander Beng Dai ruthlessly glared at the asker, “The enemy is powerful and
unknown, we are spectators for the time being and don’t need to take the risk!”
“The commander is wise!” The auxiliary commander immediately approved.
The person that mobilized the alchemy puppets to attack the Iron Lump was Zi Di
of course.
When she suggested to the dragonman youngster that it was time to seize the
ship, she had secretly dispatched alchemy puppets from the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
Although the Iron Lump had fallen into the Vinegar Jar Pirates’ hands, there
was no experts on board it.
The Vinegar jar Pirates’ experts were involved in their respective fights and
weren’t able to reinforce.
Their main force were still fighting merchant alliance ships.  
After Er Gua Zi had personally slaughtered the humans of the White Bandage and
Iron Lump, the people transferred onto them were universally weak.
This gave The Bandage Mercenary Corps a golden opportunity to retake their
flagship.
Likewise, it was an opportunity for Zi Di too.
Through the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection methods, she could see the entire
battlefield clearly and knew where the enemy’s weak links were.
The alchemy puppets were quickly slew all of the fishmen around them.
But now there was a difficult problem before Zi Di.
Such as how to operate this bronze level magic ship.
She didn’t have authority over it and had to try to figure it out.
Another thing was that alchemy puppets weren’t flexible enough to control the
Iron Lump.
“Cang Xu please come over and take charge of the Iron Lump.” Zi Di contacted
Cang Xu.
Cang Xu had quietly left the port battlefield and was prepared to help Qing Xin
and the others. But something unexpected happened, Qing Xin and Men Shi had
joined forces to fight a fierce battle against Hu Li.
Cang Xu was only an iron level, and recklessly interfering in a fight between
three silver levels was obviously unwise.
He continued to hide, waiting for the right opportunity.
As a result, before his chance arrived, Zi Di had contacted him.
“Qing Xin’s situation is getting worse, but she should last for a time.” Cang
Xu didn’t leave immediately; he made his own judgements.
Zi Di didn’t command him, only the dragonman youngster could do so.
Cang Xu swept his eyes across the port battlefield.
He saw the humans were gaining the upper hand, and after weighing things
swiftly, he decided to heed Zi Di’s proposal.
Cang Xu moved again, leaving his hiding spot and diving into the ocean.
He wanted to swim through the ocean and around the maritime battlefield to get
onto the Iron Lump.
Magic spell – Sudden Spring!
Just as Cang Xu was leaving, Xi Dai Zi was obstructed.
The magic he used split open the ground around him, the resulting shockwaves
devastated everything around him.
Wherever they went, human fighters were flung into the air.
Sudden Spring was about as powerful as Battering Hammer, and when many people
were struck by it and thrown into the air, their falling corpses left sights so
horrible, no one could bear to look at them.
Sudden Spring was very powerful and well hidden; thus, the Wealth priest was
forced to get out of its way.
But a moment later, the Fertile Land priest behind Xi Dai Zi took out his
sacred hoe.
He dug the hoe into the ground and used a divine spell.
Divine Spell – Soil Crusting.
The ground was suddenly reinforced and became very hard.
Even though Sudden Spring could still break out of the ground, its might had
fallen was no longer a threat.
Xi Dai Zi became furious and took out his belt whip.
It was his magic weapon.
At the same time, he took out a totem from his storage bag.
A Rage Totem!
A bloody phantom suddenly rose from Xi Dai Zi.
The phantom looked like him, and after appearing, it quickly dissipated.
In a split second, Xi Dai Zi’s attack and speed dramatically increased.
The Wealth priest was no longer able to intercept him.
Xi Dai Zi charged towards the Vinegar Jar.
They couldn’t allow Xi Dai Zi into the Vinegar Jar.
He knew this magic ship well, and if he got in, he was sure to regain control
of it quickly.
“Shi Fa!” The Wealth priest shouted.
The playing card magician was the final line of defense.
After he had killed Yao Guan Zi, he began to drain the poison water and used
detection magic on the ship’s interior.
Before he could examine it properly, Xi Dai Zi had charged in.
Shi Fa waved his cuff, and three playing cards flew out, turning into three
fire balls shaped like a  to stop Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi snapped his magic whip, scattering the three fireballs.
But his speed had slowed by 30%.
As it turns out, Shi Fa had used another playing card with the Slow spell.
“Well done!” The Wealth priest saw his chance to catch up.
He cast a divine spell onto Xi Dai Zi, instantly causing the latter to shake
with heavy injuries.
When Shi Fa saw this, he took out three blue playing cards.
Every playing card was Lightning Spear.
The three playing cards discharged together, and the lightning spears combined
into one three meter long spear.
The crackling spear emitted an extraordinary biting cold aura.
“Oh no!” When Xi Dai Zi sensed the danger of death from this spear, he promptly
dodged.
But in response to that, the Wealth priest combined his efforts.
Another divine spell fell onto Xi Dai Zi, locking him in place, making him an
immobilized target.
“I’m dead!” A moment later, Xi Dai Zi saw the lighting spear shooting towards
him.
It brushed past his eyebrow and shot straight into the Wealth priest’s heart!
!!!
This startling development shocked everyone.
Not just the humans, but also Xi Dai Zi and the other fishmen.
“What just happened?”
“Did his shot stray off target?”
“No, the Lightning Spear spell is a directed magic, it is controlled by a
magician’s spirit, then why did the shot deviate?”
A number of thoughts churned in people’s minds.
The fact was present before them.
In that case, there was only one thing Shi Fa could be.
“You are a fishman plant?!” The Fertile Land priest furiously asked.
His heart filled with ire and lingering fear.
Shi Fa had hidden well.
He had killed Yao Guan Zi and Hong Bo with his own hands, and had taken Dao Hen
captive, yet the one who had eliminated all of these fishmen was the traitor!
The Wealth priest had fallen into his trap when he had done his best to pin
down Xi Dai Zi and wasn’t moving.
Shi Fa had killed him in a single blow!
“I didn’t expect that after hiding for ten years, this would be the moment I
revealed myself.” Shi Fa sighed, “In that case everyone, I shall take my leave
first.”
Shi Fa gracefully bowed humbly to everyone.
A playing card flew out and stopped above his head, then exploded in sparkling
light.
The light moved across Shi Fa, then faded away.
Magic spell - Short Distance Teleportation!
He actually ran away.
According to common sense, after killing the Wealth priest, he should have
helped in Xi Dai Zi and the others in their counteroffensive against the
humans.
But he didn’t do so and instead left.
The people left behind were utterly bewildered.
What was Shi Fa doing?
What was his purpose?
His conduct didn’t make any sense!
The light of a teleportation spell suddenly appeared in front of the purple
scaled fishman.
The light withered away, revealing Shi Fa to the purple scaled fishman.
“You are?” When the purple scaled fishman saw Shi Fa, she exposed her amazement
and wariness.
She had contacted the naga priestess, who told her that someone was coming to
help her.
The one who came was Shi Fa.
Shi Fa nodded to the purple scaled fishman, he rolled his Adam’s apple and
extended his tongue, in his tongue was a pearl.
When the pearl was taken out, Shi Fa’s form also changed; it began to overlap
and grow fuzzy.
It was obvious that he had been disguised, he had another true appearance.
When she saw the pearl, the purple scaled fishman’s vigilance was dispelled
instantly.
She knew that was a gold level alchemy treasure – Disguise Pearl.
This main refinement material of this pearl was god level, it came from the
extraordinary Pearl Bubbles.
The Pearl Bubbles came from her Goddess’ divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy
Tale.
There are none left nowadays.
Shi Fa swallowed the Disguise Pearl again, “Twenty years ago, my God’s oracle
created Disguise Pearls and arranged spies to infiltrate every continent. I am
one of them.”
“But today has made the identity I painstakingly built utterly useless.”
“Alas, I hope exposing it will be worth it.”
As it turns out, Shi Fa had also received a secret order from the naga
priestess, leading to his sudden attack.
Before that, he had killed fishmen to continue hiding, establish merits, and
win the trust of the humans, succeeding greatly in all counts.
The purple fishman nodded to Shi Fa and used a respectful and affirmative to
reply, “Your sacrifice will be worth it!”
“My Goddess’ oracle told us to come here.”
“We are looking for a fishman corpse, in life he was called Hai Ping.”
“Hai Ping?” Shi Fa sensed this name was somewhat familiar.
He soon reacted, “I remember, Hai Ping is a fishman powerhouse who reached the
saint level.”
The purple scaled fishman nodded, “He lived incognito in his later years and
was buried in this coral ball cage tree.”
“Through dreams, my Goddess told our oracle of his whereabouts.”
Shi Fa frowned, “He has been dead for a long time, don’t tell me we can still
resurrect him?”
The purple scaled fishman shook her head, “We don’t need to resurrect him, we
just need to bring back his corpse because…he has the Surging Wave fishman
bloodline!”



****** Chapter 185: God Level Bloodline ******
“What?!” Shi Fa’s body shook, despite hiding for many years, he couldn’t
conceal his amazement.
The Surging Wave fishman bloodline was a god level bloodline!
Fishmen had less potential than humans and only had three great god level
bloodlines.
The Surging Wave fishman bloodline was one of them.
In other words, fishmen that possessed that bloodline had the possibility of
becoming a god!
God level!
This was above the saint and legend level; it was the strongest level.
Every god level bloodline that appeared greatly impacted the power balance of
the entire world.
Shi Fa was grave, “But Hai Ping was only able to be a saint level his entire
life, this proves that even if he has the Surging Wave fishman bloodline, his
bloodline concentration is small and not complete.”
“He has been dead for many years too.”
“We have paid an immense price to just get his corpse, what use is it?”
The purple scaled fishman slyly smiled, “This is a secret that cannot be easily
divulged. Shi Fa, you just need to know that this action concerned my Goddess’
recovery, the fishmen, and even the future world order!”
“We must succeed!”
Shi Fa’s mind shook, he soon took a breath, and heavily nodded.
“I will do my best to help you!” Shi Fa was solemn and resolute, “What can I
do?”
The purple scaled fishman stroked her chest and coughed, “We have already
confirmed that Hai Ping’s corpse is on this island, but where it is exactly is
something that needs special magic to locate.”
“However, I was seriously injured in battle.”
“I can no longer use the magic.”
“This magic has to be used by you.”
Shi Fa suddenly looked distressed.
The purple scaled fishman consoled, “I know what you’re worried about, I will
help you through it.”
“This will indeed be the first time you will use this magic. But that doesn’t
matter, I have an item that can link our spirits together.”
“Therefore, when we use this magic, the success rate will greatly increase.”
“The real problem is…”
“The magic undulation is hard to conceal, it will inevitably expose our
location. During the cast time, enemies might search for, attack, and obstruct
us.”
“I understand!” Shi Fa nodded confidently with playing cards circling around
him, “My cards can deploy magic traps, that will offer us brief protection.”
The purple scaled fishman nodded, “I have a defensive skill too.”
The two fishmen casters began to prepare their casting in the depths.
Meanwhile.
The sky above some streets on the new island.
The frogman Hu Li was chasing the magician Qing Xin.
“Chirp.”
He closed his lips tightly, and his belly suddenly bulged like he was nine
months pregnant, and from the belly came a muffled sound.
His bulging belly suddenly discharged, regaining its flatness as a force flowed
from his belly, up his esophagus, and poured into his nape.
His nape instantly swelled, becoming thicker than his thighs.
“Urp.” 
Hu Li barely rolled his Adam’s apple, letting out a sound.
His nape instantly reduced in size as his two cheeks swelled like two bass
drums.
“Ha.”
Hu Li opened his mouth, spitting out the thing inside it.
His cheeks immediately turned back to normal.
After arduously brewing this for a long while, what he spat out was of course
not normal.
It appeared to be a translucent insipid red and looked like a giant ball whose
surface was constantly undulating.
Hu Li stretched out his palm, turning the translucent ball into a tuning fork.
·
Battle skill – Musical Instrument Three Tone Tuning Fork!
The tuning fork was two meters long, its shaft was slender, and it had three
prongs at its front end.
Hu Li grabbed the three pronged tuning fork, aimed, then threw it ferociously
at Qing Xin.
The tuning fork swiftly cut through the air without a sound, a biting cold
killing intent forming in the stillness!
Qing Xin turned grave, ready for it.
She shot out wind blades in an attempt to intercept them.
The light cyan wind blades accurately hit the three pronged tuning fork and
were smashed apart like jade.
Qing Xin flew away while launching a ball of wind.
The ball of wind collided with the three pronged tuning fork yet failed to
sweep it away and was instead split apart by the tuning fork.
The tuning fork was headed right for Qing Xin.
Qing Xin hastily cast a spell, and didn’t fail to cast Wind Wall.
The tuning fork pierced through the wind wall and stabbed Qing Xin’s
underbelly.
Qing Xin covered her underbelly and flew away in a sorry state.
Blood seeped from the gap under her fingers.
Luckily, Hu Li didn’t press the attack.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to, however, his battle squad had landed in a
crisis.
The dwarf Men Shi couldn’t coordinate with Qing Xin, so he chose to help by
attacking the other members of the Applaud battle squad.
The highest of these was only iron level and weren’t Men Shi’s match.
Hu Li threw a cutlass from a distance.
The cutlass contained the battle skill he had hastily used.
Battle skill – Sound Wall!
The cutlass landed on the ground just in front of Men Shi.
From the cutlass, a powerful force erupted that instantly created a surging
soundwave that formed a translucent wall.
The wall stopped Men Shi’s charge.
But only for a split second.
Men Shi broke through a moment later and kicked the cutlass away in passing.
He continued to attack the Applaud battle squad, hammering a head open.
Hu Li flew into a rage; he had grown this battle squad with great difficulty,
repairing it would be quite hard.
However, that thrown cutlass and one death had given Hu Li the time to rush
over to confront Men Shi.
The two fought a fierce battle.
Xi Dai Zi was stuck in the Vinegar Jar.
The Wealth priest who had impeded him was slain by Shi Fa.
Shi Fa teleported away a moment later, vanishing from where he stood.
Everyone else was too far to interfere, and so Xi Dai Zi was easily able to
retreat to his flagship.
He followed the ladders to the bottom floor.
“Yao Guan Zi!” At the bottom of the ship, Xi Dai Zi saw Yao Guan Zi’s corpse,
his heard suddenly welling with powerful grief.
Yao Guan Zi was changed beyond recognition, his entire body had been torn apart
by magic, as if he had been cruelly tortured by magic pages.
He didn’t move and had no aura of life.
“He wasn’t in the cockpit.”
“It should have been Shi Fa’s magic, he realized that death was certain,
therefore he left the cockpit and drew the magic elsewhere to protect it.”
It had to be said that Shi Fa had been ruthless.
Xi Dai Zi didn’t have the time to take care of Yao Guan Zi’s corpse, he sat
before the control station and filled in Yao Guan Zi’s seat.
“Vinegar Jar, rise for me!” Xi Dai Zi shouted.
When the dragonman youngster saw Xi Dai Zi entering the Vinegar Jar, he
immediately transmitted via alchemy device, “Chi Lai, open fire there now!”
Chi Lai hesitated, but a trace of resolve and battle intent appeared, “I can
still fight!”
This time, he was a bit slower.
Long term imprisonment and life as a slave had impacted his state.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been drained by just one shot.
Well… he could do at least two shots!
From the communication device, the dragonman youngster could also sense Chi
Lai’s fighting spirit.
During a brief gap between his fight with Peng Din Zi, he asked, “Are you
confident you can sink the Vinegar Jar in one shot?”
Chi La was sluggish as he told the truth, “No.”
One cannon shot wouldn’t sink the Vinegar Jar.
Even if it was a gold level artillery shell.
The Vinegar Jar was a silver level magic ship, only a level below. The Vinegar
Jarhad strong defenses, were that not the case, Yao Guan Zi wouldn’t have dared
to charge the Vinegar Jar through the port.
The fact that all of the port’s light cannon turrets had been pulverized was
testament to its defenses.
The Vinegar Jar wasn’t able to block Chi Lai’s shell, but it was massive, and
unless it was a fatal blow, it could still fight.
This was like when a dagger stabbed someone’s arm or thigh, the person could
still fight despite that. But if one was stabbed in the heart, head, or other
vital points, then they would be dead in the streets.
Therefore, it was possible that Chi Lai could destroy the Vinegar Jar in a
single shot.  
The prerequisite was knowing where the Vinegar Jar’s mortal weak points were.
However, he was unfamiliar with the Vinegar Jar’s layout.
This magic ship was built by fishmen, and was poles apart from normal ship
architecture. For example, its cannon mouths were on the bottom and not high up
on the ship.
“Then retreat.” The dragonman youngster ordered.
Chi Lai replied, “What about the gold level cannon?”
Without the slightest hesitation, the dragonman youngster said, “It just a
cannon, how can it compare to your life?”
“Chi Lai, trust me.”
“Even if the gold cannon is destroyed, we can get another in the future.”
“Compared to that cannon, I need you more.”
Chi Lai’s heart jumped, he sensed the dragonman youngster’s sincerity.
Both were Justice God believers, and Chi Lai had rarely received such warmness
from the secular world.
“I understand.” Chi Lai replied and immediately evacuated.
“Vinegar Jar, rise for me!” As Xi Dai Zi shouted that, the Vinegar Jar
immediately responded.
Its cannon mouths once more burst with jets of water.
The water surged violently and smashed into the ground, its reaction force
pushing the Vinegar Jar back up to an upright position.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge had just reached the ship.
Bang, thump, bang.
Xi Dai Zi opened a number of cannons.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge sidestepped and weren’t hit by the
recklessly fired water shells.
The close range bombardment of water shells formed powerful waves.
The waves swept away the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, the Fertile Land priest,
and even Peng Ding Zi, the fishman knight, and many others too.
In order to protect the Vinegar Jar, Xi Dai Zi was forced to fire, despite
causing collateral damage to his comrades in arms.
However, a moment later.
When the turbulent waves swept int the spiky fishman and fishman knight, it
actually washed their enemies away and helped their allies save them.
The two silver level fighters quickly swam into the Vinegar Jar.
Compared to Yao Guan Zi, Xi Dai Zi was a better controller of the water
cannons.
Because he was a fishman shaman, a caster, and under spiritual control, these
cannons could be operated more finely.
With two silver level fighters inside it, the Vinegar Jar became harder to
capture.



****** Chapter 186: No Subordinates ******
Xi Dai Zi’s nostrils ran with two streams of blood.
A strong vertigo also assailed him.
Xi Dai Zi tenaciously pushed on.
Before the battle, he had been wounded.
It was an old injury inflicted when the ghost Lan Lu had ambushed him.
Soul injuries were difficult to recover from completely.
Then the fierce battles ashore had taxed Xi Dai’s abilities to their limits.
“I must push onwards!”
“Everything for the clan, everything for the homeland!!”
Xi Dai Zi’s body was in a bad state, but his fighting spirit remained high.
He firmly took a few breaths, slowly regaining his strength.
After getting the two silver levels back, his position was finally stable, and
his next action needed no consideration, the first target of attack was the
gold cannon.
A survey of the entire battlefield determined the gold cannon was the biggest
threat.
Bang, bang, bang.
The water cannons opened fire without the slightest hesitation.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship had been berthed at port and had been
used as a fort.
The water shells hit the hull in quick succession, turning the ship into
unrecognizable wreckage, sinking it.
Luckily because the dragonman youngster had given the order to retreat ahead of
time, the mercenaries had evacuated and few were lost.
“The gold cannon…” Chi Lai lamented as he dove deep into the sea, dodging the
bombardment.
Gold level equipment was very valuable, and weapons like this cannon was
strictly controlled and very difficult to buy on the market.
To Chi Lai, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was not the imperial navy, it would
be difficult for them to replace this cannon in the future.
“I can still repair it!” Zi Di judged from the Deep Sea Monster Fish from the
ocean floor.
Before the bombardment, she had dispatched two deep sea salvage alchemy puppets
to infiltrate the seafloor under the port, prepared to retrieve the cannon.
Through the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection methods, she saw the moment the
gold cannon was about to sink down.
The cannon had been struck, bending its barrel distinctly.
As for repairing it to working condition and how much that would cost, a
verdict could only be determined after recovering it.
Losing the gold cannon was the biggest damage the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had suffered yet during the Two Eyes Island battle.
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the dragonman youngster were prepared for this loss.
Because the gold cannon was a one shot weapon.
If the gold cannon fired and the enemy still remained, they wouldn’t be so
stupid as to allow the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to fire it a second time.
Rou Zang was like that, and so too was Xi Dai Zi.
Although the gold cannon was good, it needed a ship of the same level, or a
minimum, a silver level magic ship.
That would protect the cannon, giving it a chance to fire two or even three
times.
This deficiency was something the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had.
Xi Dai Zi’s cannon barrage solved the threat the gold cannon posed.
The Fertile Land priest appeared hesitant.
The Wealth priest was dead, sapping most of his battle intent.
This was not his parish, he still wanted to help, but didn’t want to take
risks.
When the Fertile Land priest didn’t step up, the human fighters’ morale
slumped.
A priest was dead, and the magician Shi Fa had changed sides, causing an
enormous impact.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were determined to fight their way onto the
deck.
They couldn’t allow the Vinegar Jar to show off its might again!
Otherwise, the port battlefield situation would go completely south.
Now, the main human force on the port was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have the motivation to fight to the
death, this wasn’t their territory.
But the dragonman youngster never gave the order to retreat.
Because if he retreated, morale might crumble, exposing their backs to a
fishman slaughter.
Continuing to fight meant there was still a chance of victory.
Turning heal to retreat meant disastrous casualties!
The brutal close quarters fighting meant the dragonman youngster couldn’t stop
halfway.
The Wealth priest’s people wanted to help pacify the fishmen, but the
unexpected had happened, spurring on the ultimate climax of the battle, thus
the dragonman youngster and the others had no choice but to start using their
full strength.
It was an utter mess.
Fishmen, pirates, Hun Tong, mercenary corps, merchant alliances, loners, and
more were all entangled with each other.
They had all sunk into an immensely chaotic maelstrom that gradually spun
beyond anyone’s control.
Every group had their own determination, everyone had their own opinion. These
determinations and opinions were transmitted through sturdy bodies, ice-cold
weapons, resplendent magic, ferocious battle skills, and collided with each
other.
What the final outcome was, who the final winner would be, no one could say at
this moment.
The aura of magic began to come from the depths of the underground, then
quickly permeated in all directions, forming a vast undulation.
As it turns out, in the underground depths, the purple scaled fishman and Shi
Fa had finished preparing for the spell and were not beginning to cast it
together.
Just as the purple scaled fishman said, when the cast began, it was quite loud.
This magic undulation was instantly detected by all parties.
“The magic fluctuation came from the island’s underground!” Song Shou thought
as he was busying defending himself from Er Gua Zi’s attacks.
“What are the fishmen up to?” Yang Ding slowed his offensive as he looked
towards Hun Tong.
Hun Tong couldn’t pull away.
He was still entangled with the gold level pirate Qi You.
Hun Tong was also reflecting over the fishmen’s true goal.
The fishmen’s main army had already been exposed and had been intercepted by
Hun Tong’s Puppet Clone and Yan Ding.
But Hun Tong didn’t know what his enemy’s goal was.
He though the fishmen wanted to take back their homeland.
But the fishmen army’s deployment and attacks all illustrated that they had
another goal, taking back their homeland was at best a secondary objective.
“It isn’t just the Blue Green Coral clan, there is also a third party.”
“The third power is above the Blue Green Coral clan; they are the leader of
this offensive.”
“What in the devil are they doing?”
Hun Tong immediately contacted the pharmacist to ask about the situation.
The pharmacist and alchemist were silver level casters that served Hun Tong.
Their battle with the purple scaled fishman had left one dead and one injured.
The pharmacist that survived immediately reported the situation to him.
He was in the milled of emergency healing and responded to Hun Tong with agony,
“Their true objective?”
“Unclear.”
“But I can sense that it seems she is looking for something in the underground.
The pharmacist stated his guess but had no proof.
“Useless!” Hun Tong angrily scolded him internally.
He was never satisfied with the two casters under him.
But there was nothing he could do.
Casters were rare, and those that would live on his island, far from the
bustling imperial mainland, were even rarer.
Hun Tong could only follow up on the pharmacist’s guess, “Don’t tell me that
there is a treasure on Two Eyes Island?”
Although Hun Tong had captured Two Eyes Island, he needed the fishmen’s secret
spell to truly control it. 
“If there really is a treasure, then the fishman elder might be using it to pay
the third power.”
“That gave the fishman clan powerful help, creating an alliance to launch this
attack.”
“There is another possibility. They are unleashing a most powerful secret spell
that would turn Two Eyes Island into a living weapon!”
The more Hun Tong reflected, the darker his expression grew.
He quickly reacted, shaking his head internally.
“There is a seriously lack of information currently, it’s unnecessary to think
this much.
“It isn’t wrong to block whatever the enemy wants to do.”
“The magic undulation has leaked, indicating that they don’t have the energy to
mask it and that they are very pressed for their goal.
When Hun Tong thought of that, he immediately gave the order.
He first ordered the pharmacist that after he was done recuperating, that he
would attack the magician with all of his might.
The pharmacist lacked battle intent, but when he candidly agreed, he
demonstrated his determined battle intent.
Hun Tong understood him and gave more precise orders. The pharmacist would
hurry to the barracks, converge with the city guard, and after that, not delay
in healing themselves.
The pharmacist had no choice but to do that.
Hun Tong then firmly ordered the city guard’s auxiliary commander, “When you
converge with the pharmacist, monitor him secretly, coerce them if need be, and
immediately lead the army into the underground depths and destroy the enemy
magician’s cast!”
The city guard auxiliary commander looked agonized, but he could only summon
his courage and agree to do so.
After transmitting these orders down the command chain, Hun Tong still didn’t
feel at ease.
“I have no subordinates.”
At that moment, he fully felt how scarce his talents were, and that he didn’t
have reliable subordinates.
His troops had many silver levels, and normally this was fine. Word went out
saying that these numerous silver levels made Two Eyes Island seem strong.
But this war had become a quality touchstone test.
In the end, these silver levels had a unbearable performance and were all
repulsive with no exceptions.
Of the two casters, one was dead, and one was wounded. The city guard commander
was ambushed and beheaded by Dao Hen, utterly unable to do anything leadership
wise, and One Eye’s patrol fleet had minute battle results.
“If these guys could perform like Long Fu and Shi Qi, then Two Eyes Island
wouldn’t have gotten to this state!”
Although Hun Tong had been fighting, he had been paying attention to the
overall situation than the battle.
His information system had been working normally, giving him first hand news.
From the defender’s side, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were the absolute
best.  
Hun Tong’s subordinates had universally dragged their groins, and although the
merchant alliance representatives had many silvers, they had been trapped on
the ocean battlefield to protect their fleets. Commander Tie Bang was dead, and
after Commander Beng Dai took back his flagship, he was unable to get involved
with the port battlefield and couldn’t fulfill anyone’s expectations. 
By contrast, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the port battlefield’s main
force, they had slaughtered the most fishmen and entangled the fishmen’s silver
levels. The gold level shell had even inflicted serious damage on the Vinegar
Jar. If they had a little more luck, the blow would have been fatal to the
Vinegar Jar, which would have determined the outcome of the battle then and
there.
Hun Tong didn’t think the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were just treading
water.
Prior intelligence stated that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could face Rou
Zang openly, this proved the dragonman youngster’s impressive defense.
Thinking about it, it wasn’t strange.
He was a dragonman, it was likely that through his impressive bloodline, his
dragon scales were comparable to gold level armor.
“This mercenary corps’ strength is perhaps worthy of expectations!”
Upon thinking of that, Hun Tong personally contacted Long Fu.
He offered a high price to hire the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to abandon the
port battlefield and to instead rush into the depths of the new island to
prevent the enemy magician from using their large scale magic.



****** Chapter 187: Final Form ******
The dragonman youngster’s face flashed with a queer expression.
When Hun Tong personally contacted him, the price he offered truly moved the
heart. 
It was evident that this time, Hun Tong was hiring the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps in good faith.
Not long after Hun Tong contacted him, Zi Di also used a communication device
to get in touch with the dragonman youngster.
“My Lord, Qing Xin’s situation is getting worse.”
“We might need to come to the rescue!”
Cang Xu had already snuck onto the Iron Lump and was attempting to control the
magic ship.
He was the only person on the ship, everything else was alchemy puppets.
But he completely understood that this ship was not like the Vinegar Jar, it
couldn’t go on dry land.
Zi Di needed to keep watch on the Deep Sea Monster Fish, and if just Cang Xu
and the alchemy puppets came ashore to help Qing Xin and the others, they
wouldn’t be a considerable force.
Because Cang Xu couldn’t publicly use necromancy.
Without that, he and the alchemy puppets couldn’t change the situation there.
Zi Di considered past causes and future effects; only the dragonman youngster
would have the most certainty of success.
“Just now, Hun Tong decided to contact me to hire us to destroy the fishman
magician’s casting. Of Hun Tong’s two magicians, the alchemy is lost and the
pharmacist returned alive but is seriously injured.” The dragonman youngster
explained the situation to Zi Di.
Since Hun Tong wanted to hire the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he naturally
informed the dragonman youngster of the pertinent information.
After Zi Di obtained this information, she muttered to herself, “Shi Fa should
have been teleported to the underground depths. The caster is likely him!”
“No matter what the enemy wants to do, breaking the cast is absolutely the
right decision.”
“But I fear the underground is very dangerous.”
“The magic fluctuation was very strong, the fishman caster’s location is easily
determinable. This also means that they foresee our obstruction and should have
deployed defensive measures.”
“We don’t have anyone good at detecting magic traps, a deficiency of ours.”
“If we really want to go, we can utilize scouting puppets to go ahead and
sacrifice themselves to trigger the magic traps.
The dragonman youngster knew he was faced with another choice.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been involved in the battle for Two Eyes
Island since the beginning.
Although the dragonman youngster didn’t want to fight, as the situation
developed, he and the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps became stuck in the
battlefield, unable to free themselves from it.
Agreeing to Hun Tong’s offer would be profitable. When Zi Di heard his opening
offer, Zi Di unconsciously took in a breath in excitement.
But the risks were also massive.
Qing Xin over there also needed help.
Zi Di was good at understanding others, and didn’t advise the dragonman
youngster to help Qing Xin, instead she gave him options.
But how could the dragonman youngster not know how important Qing Xin was to Zi
Di?
Therefore, the dragonman youngster was more inclined to help Qing Xin.
Furthermore, dealing with Hu Li was far easier than dealing with the caster
underground.
“It would be strange to recklessly provide assistance.”
“As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps does not have sufficient motive to help
Qing Xin.”
“Furthermore, regardless of either choice, breaking out of the port battlefield
will be costly.”
The dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
The port battlefield had already reached its climax.
Regardless of human or fishman, the fierce fighting had sunken into a
malevolent frenzy.
Retreating now would put a red eye on their backs for their enemies,
undoubtably courting death.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had just been established, and its members were
in a killing frenzy, not all of them would heed the dragonman youngster’s
order.
If the dragonman youngster gave the order to retreat, some would comply, and
some wouldn’t.
Differing ideas creates different actions. Some wanting to retreat while others
wanting to fight would crumble the front line and give the enemy a golden
opportunity to storm through.
“Therefore, there is really only one choice before me.”
“That is to kill them!”
The dragonman youngster’s amber vertical pupils glistened with sharp radiance.
Tempestuous battle intent churned constantly from his heart.
The spiky fishman on board the Vinegar Jar firmly gazed at the dragonman
youngster in the distance.
He saw the dragonman youngster suddenly stop moving, then heard the dragonman
youngster’s loud declaration.
“Enough.”
“I am already fed up!”
“Fishmen, open your big eyes and watch well.”
“Witness my final form!”
A moment later, the spiky fishman’s eyes widened.
He saw the dragonman youngster’s body transform.
His originally smooth and sleek arms, back, legs, and other body parts formed
ring mounds on them.
It was the spurting smoke ring mounds.
Click, click.
The sound came from these ring mounds as saffron flames constantly flashed out.
The Spurting Smoke Dragon bloodline!
Silver battle qi looked like a flame that burned across the youngster’s red
dragon scales. 
His silver life aura was displayed ostentatiously all around.
No matter who saw it, everyone knew Long Fu was using a trump card!
Under the stares of many people, the dragonman youngster slowly crouched to a
half kneel.
He adopted a running start position.
His thick and broad back and vigorous muscle were magnified, along with his
fervent masculine aura.
Ding!
Two gigantic spurting smoke ring mounds on his back jetted out fire at the same
time.
A strong driving force suddenly erupted!
In the same moment, the dragonman youngster sprinting at maximum speed.
Whoosh!
In an instant, he turned into a walking red artillery shell that plunged into
the Vinegar Jar.
Wherever he went, regardless of fishmen defensive positions or port buildings,
all were knocked to the wayside and into the air.
Devastated and destroyed!
“He’s coming, he’s coming!” Peng Ding Zi’s heart jumped as he shouted in a
flurry.
The dragonman youngster’s burst of unprecedented speed, his sturdy body and
defense similar to gold armor combined to create a projectile that was a fatal
threat to the enemy.
“Is this Long Fu’s true strength? No wonder he can restrain the nascent gold
level Shi Qi,”
“Don’t panic!” 
“That kind of straight running makes him a target.”
Xi Dai Zi forced himself to calm down and fired the cannons at once.
The water cannons fired at the dragonman youngster.
Because both people were facing each other, barely a half second later, the
shells were shooting towards dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was prepared for this, and when he saw the cannons
firing, he had already begun to sidestep them.
His sidestep was different from normal ones.
He simply stretched both hands to his left.
His right arm straightened and extended its palm, pointing the spurting smoke
ring mound to the space on his left.
He bent his left arm’s elbow and also opened his palm, pointing both the left
too.
Ding.
Three ring mounds sparked with yellow light.
The strong motive power instantly produced firmly pushed the dragonman
youngster to the right.
In everyone’s field of view, this is what they saw: 
As the water cannon shells came, the dragonman youngster suddenly changed the
direction of his charge, turning his perfectly straight movement to the right.
The water cannon shells brushed past the dragonman youngster.
This was the result of the dragonman youngster’s arduous practice!
Without that hard training, he would have been hit by the water cannons,
undoubtably wounding him and delaying his battle opportunity.
The dragonman youngster had dodged the water cannons, and in the blink of an
eye, arrived at the bottom of the Vinegar Jar.
He hadn’t been far from the magic ship to start with.
With a bang, the dragonman youngster crashed into the Vinegar Jar, leaving a
dragonman shaped crater in the steel hull.
The dragonman youngster’s speed vanished as a result.
He shook his head, slightly throwing off the dizziness he felt.
His strong defense here seemed very reliable.
The dragonman youngster bent his body, and like an ambushing tiger ready to
pounce for the kill.
His four limbs acted together as he ran up the perpendicular Vinegar Jar’s
side.
His harp dragon claws let marks in his path.
His body was nearly level with the side of the ship, still quite fast as his
dragon tail was held up high.
Peng Ding Zi, stationed on the side of the ship, locked onto the youngster,
ready on the deck.
But then the dragonman youngster suddenly changed direction, instead running
towards a hole in the hull.
It had been the hole Chi Lai had created with his shell.
Peng Ding Zi turned pale with fright; he immediately pulled back and rushed to
the ship’s ladder.
The dragonman youngster drilled his way into the big hole and happened to run
into the knight fishman.
Xi Dai Zi had deployed him there.
He had Peng Ding Zi outside on the deck and the knight fishman stationed at
this hole.
Seeing the far stronger dragonman youngster charging in, the knight fishman
yelled and braced himself for the approach.
Bang.
The dragonman youngster’s fist smashed into his belly.
The knight fishman’s exoskeleton shattered, a fist sized hole forming in it.
He flew into the air and smashed into a wall, leaving him stuck in it and
hanging in an awkward position.
The dragonman youngster didn’t move to finish him off, instead he ran to the
ship’s ladder, wanting to reach the bottom floor.
At that crucial moment, Peng Ding Zi met him, dancing with death to do so.
Bang, bang, boom.
The dragonman youngster beat up the knight fishman and Peng Ding Zi, putting
them in a losing position.
The two silver level fishmen were unable to retaliate.
Yet their fighting spirit was strong, and they wouldn’t retreat at the risk of
their lives.
Xi Dai Zi in the cockpit beneath used the ship’s monitoring installations to
watch the fight play out, his heart couldn’t help but fear trepidation in the
face of disaster.
“The Bursting Explosion battle qi technique, Demolition Fist, and the Surge
battle skill, along with those round mounds.
“They are all a perfect match!”
“Not just two silvers, if there was a third, I fear his path still wouldn’t be
blocked.”
Xi Dai Zi’s scalp went numb.
The dragonman youngster’s trump card made him feel incomparably thorny.
“I can’t stay in the cockpit anymore.”
“It’s too dangerous here.”
Xi Dai Zi opened a secret box and took out a crystal ball.
The crystal ball was a movement control device, it could control the Vinegar
Jar to an extent.
Of course, its functions were basic and didn’t match the cockpit’s features.
Xi Dai Zi began to slip away.
Not long after, the dragonman youngster smashed into the bottom floor, but upon
breaking down the door, he couldn’t find Xi Dai Zi.
Peng Ding Zi and the fishman knight were injured all over yet were fearlessly
throwing themselves from behind.
The dragonman youngster was uninterested in them.
He attacked while moving, actively searching for Xi Dai Zi.
Xi Dai Zi was hiding everywhere, playing a fatal game of hide and seek with the
dragonman youngster.
“Long Fu really is a humanoid cannon.”
“Wherever he goes, things explode.”
“How is he this strong?!”
“This can’t continue. Not only will those two be blown to bits by Long Fu, but
the Vinegar Jar will also be gravely wounded and unable to set sail again.”
Xi Dai Zi knew things were going south.
While hiding, he used the water crystal ball to command the Vinegar Jar to keep
firing, slaughtering humans while sending a distress call to Er Gua Zi.
Er Gua Zi was busy fighting Song Shou on a beach.
He was on the offensive while Song Shou was forced to passively defend.
Er Gua Zi firmly held the advantage, but when he heard Xi Dai Zi’s call for
help, he turned around to head to the port after a moment’s hesitation.
“Long Fu has spoiled my good fun.”
“I will kill you!”



****** Chapter 188: Fighting a Gold Level ******
“Take care, the Vinegar Jar Pirate Commander is coming towards you.” Zi Di
transmitted to the dragonman youngster.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection methods were numerous and outstanding.
Zi Di’s flow of information was faster and more accurate than even Hun Tong’s.
Er Gua Zi’s move was an abnormal trend that Zi Di noticed.
The latter immediately sent the warning call to both the dragonman youngster
and Zong Ge.
Chi Lai had just joined and didn’t receive such treatment.
“Understood.” The dragonman youngster was calm within the Vinegar Jar.
Er Gua Zi doing this was within his expectations.
The dragonman youngster had surmised that this would be the outcome of using
the Spurting Smoke Dragon bloodline and using his full strength.
“At this point in the fight, the fishmen don’t have many hidden cards left.”
“Thus, when I kill them, they will begin to collapse.”
“The Vinegar Jar is their flagship, and if the fishmen crumble here, we humans
will be the winner of the port battlefield.”
“The fishmen’s gold levels won’t stand idly by.”
“The one most likely to rush over will be Er Gua Zi!”
When Sheng Ming imperial lords made war, there was a mutual understanding that
battle would normally happen between those of the same level.
Gold levels would fight gold levels, and silver levels would fight silver
levels.
This was an unspoken rule.
If the strong preyed on the weak, and bullied the lower levels, it would cause
people to hold them in contempt.
But now, there were no countries here, and both sides were different races,
thus, this battlefield understanding was unheard of.
In this tight battlefield, anyone would fight anyone.
In fact, during this battle, the humans had the most battle results when the
strong bullied the weak.
The biggest contributor in this aspect was Yan Ding.
Many fishmen had died by his hands, and the old clan elder loathed that he
could only wearily defend.
Consequently, Yan Ding took the initiative to attack.
Now, the dragonman youngster was wantonly wrecking the Vinegar Jar and the
silver level fishmen were a precarious pile of eggs. If Xi Dai Zi was killed,
the fishmen would likely flee in defeat.
In these circumstances, it wasn’t strange that a gold level fishman was
provoked over.
The dragonman youngster returned to the hole in the ship.
Er Gua Zi was very fast and had already arrived at the port.
Behind him, Song Shou was in close pursuit.
Seeing Er Gau Zi’s target was the Vinegar Jar, and the conspicuous dragoman
youngster in it, Song Shou shouted, “Get out of the way!”
“You can’t escape! Long Fu!”
“It’s my fault that I allowed you to rampage for so long.”
Er Gua Zi malevolently used the human language to express his cold killing
intent.
The dragonman youngster in the hole extended a finger, attracting Er Gua Zi’s
attention.
He had no intention of evading or fleeing.
This arrogant attitude caused Er Gua Zi to blankly stare for a moment.
After reacting, Er Gua Zi flew into a rage.
He roared, and his speed increased sharply as he used a battle skill in that
instant.
Five water blades of incomparable sharpness condensed on the spot and were
launched at the dragonman youngster with lightning speed.
The dragonman youngster was calm and fearless.
This was not the first time he had encountered a gold level enemy.
“Let me see what makes you different from Rou Zang!” He shouted as he jumped
from the hole.
Battle skill – Surge!
Bloodcore transformation – Spurting Smoke Ring Mounds!
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
These three combined made him a ferocious predator who smashed through the
water blades and charged at Er Gua Zi.
Bang!
The two people met each other and exchanged furious blows.
The dragonman youngster was thrown back.
Er Gua Zi took several steps back.
The difference in strength was obvious at a glance.
However, the dragonman youngster did not fall to the ground, his feet’s nails
scrapped into the ground, plowing two long scars into it as he used the
friction to counteract the force of the impact.
His dragon tail swung as the dragonman youngster once again held up his head
high.
He spat out blood, as readily and unperturbed as if it were just spittle.
Upon seeing this, Er Gua Zi’s eyes couldn’t help but contract, revealing a
trace of bewilderment.
“This guy has really hard scales.”
“He isn’t even a peak silver, yet he has such battle power…”
“He is totally able to cross blades with gold levels.”
“To surmount a level difference in battle, what is his bloodline?”
An iron smell permeated his oral cavity.
The dragonman youngster knew this was the taste of blood.
“Not bad.”
“How interesting!”
The mutual clash, slight disadvantage, and bodily wounds instead served to
stimulate his battle intent further.
If this was a one on one duel, he would have desired to continue fighting
feverishly.
However, he was a leader, the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The young man never forgot that he shouldered the mantle of leadership.
“I should retreat!” The dragonman youngster deeply glanced at Er Gua Zi before
jumping away and swiftly withdrawing.
Er Gua Zi stared blankly again and immediately pursued.
“No need to run, Long Fu!” Song Shou yelled.
He had warned the dragonman youngster to prevent Er Gua Zi’s blades from
slaying one of the human’s silver levels and causing morale to tumble.
His shout now contained his astonishment he felt upon witnessing the ground
shaking result of the clash between the dragonman youngster and Er Gua Zi.
“If he cooperates and serves as the meat shield to deal with Er Gua Zi, I’ll
hold the advantage!”
But the dragonman youngster replied candidly as he retreated, “Lord Song Shou,
Feudal Lord Hun Tong has ordained us with a more important mission!”
After Er Gua Zi pursued him for a bit, he gave up chasing the dragonman
youngster.
Because Song Shou was nearby.
If he kept pursuing, getting farther from the Vinegar Jar, what would Song Shou
do?
Er Gua Zi was forced to defend his flagship.
He had to protect his underlings and give the three silvers a chance to take a
breath.
If the silvers were slain by the enemy, then that would greatly affect the
battle between the gold levels.
By the Vinegar Jar, Er Gua Zi and Song Shou fought a fierce battle.
“Move now!”
“Two gold levels have altered the battlefield.”
The surrounding fishmen and humans all got out of the way.
Gold level fighters had vast repercussions and brought disaster, losing one’s
life as collateral damage was a true injustice.
At this moment, both sides were thrown into chaos at the same time.
Both sides began to evacuate the battlefield as if by prior agreement.
The dragonman youngster seized the opportunity to order the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to assemble and start breaking out of the battlefield.
The conditions were all right.
They easily broke away from the battle’s front line, only paying a small price
to do so.
When the fishmen retreating to the rear saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
acting abnormal, they immediately charged them again.
This time, they were stopped by three silver levels, the dragonman youngster,
Zong Ge, as well as Chi Lai.
Xi Dai Zi, Peng Ding Zi, and the fishman knight had been beaten senseless by
the dragonman youngster. They had withdrawn to the Vinegar Jar to heal and were
unable to fight.
After a hundred of the remaining fishmen vainly tossed their lives away, they
no longer dared to pursue the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Damn it.” When Er Gua Zi sensed this, he suddenly realized he had been
exploited.
He couldn’t extradite himself now.
His hands and feet were more tied up now too.
Because the Vinegar Jar was nearby.
Every time he attacked, he was more worried that he’d cause friendly fire.
“Finally got out of the port.” The dragoman youngster sighed, he decided to
reverse the Spurting Smoke Dragon transformation, and the ring mounds all faded
away into nothing.
“This is the right decision. We don’t need to shed blood for Hun Tong.” Said
Zong Ge.
“That was a gigantic meat grinder, no amount of lives will satisfy it.” Chi Lai
agreed.
“Continue moving and follow me.” The dragonman youngster waved his arm at the
front of the troops.
He lamented greatly, and although he didn’t have time to count the corps’
losses, a rough sweep found that a good number of them died at the port.
Zong Ge walm, and he was actually somewhat happy.
To him, these losses were acceptable.
“Hard training is no substitute for true combat.”
“This was a rare baptism.”
“After this battle, the entire mercenary corps will look completely different.
“Through many fights like this, large quantities of elite troops will
distinguish themselves.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had broken out, causing Hun Tong to slyly
applaud them.
“These people really are worth putting expectations in!”
“That youngster Long Fu had a hidden skill, what is that final form?”
“He quickly turned back to his usual appearance; it seems that form cannot last
for long. Perhaps the repercussions of doing so aren’t small, how much military
power does he have left, is he able to destroy the fishman magician’s casting?”
Besides misgivings, Hun Tong’s opinion of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps shot
up.
In fact, when he contacted Long Fu, he had been prepared to be rejected.
But now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps decided to break out of the port and
abandoned their ships. This kind of conduct undoubtably put all of the pressure
on Hun Tong; they would live or die on the new island.
How could Hun Tong not have a good opinion of them?
He didn’t know what the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps knew, they had the Deep Sea
Monster Fish hiding on the seafloor, monitoring the battlefield. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had also stolen a magic ship.
The Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ flagship, the Iron Lump!
After a few tries, Cang Xu had a tentative grasp of how to operate it.
The Iron Lump circumvented the ocean battlefield and was about to land on the
new island. 
Qing Xin fell onto a roof after being hit by Hu Li’s hurled tuning fork.
She was scared white, her spirit power was nearly depleted, and she only had
some of her magic power left.
Hu Li ribbited at this loudly but continued to attack Men Shi.
Under Hu Li’s protection, the Applaud battle squad did an emergency retreat.
Men Shi had every dwarf’s failing, he couldn’t move as fast as Hu Li, and was
forced to watch on helplessly as the battle squad left as he fought Hu Li.
“This can’t continue.”
“That magician is nearing collapse!”
Men Shi was fretful.
Despite it being a two against one, how things ended up made him resentful.
But nothing could be done.
The female magician had no equipment, and wasn’t in good condition, barely able
to fight to begin with.
There wasn’t room for him to play to his strengths either.
Although he adopted a strategy of attacking what the enemy had to protect, Hu
Li was able to deal with both people through ridiculous jumps and perfectly
expressed his battle strength.
Men Shi knew things were anything but reassuring, yet he couldn’t find what to
do.
“Have o beat them back.”
“Recklessly retreating is bound to cause the pirates to run us down.”
“The damage won’t be small.”
“Damn it! That slippery frog is jumping all over the place!”
“Where is Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s troops? Why hasn’t anyone helped us yet?”
As Men Shi incessantly fumed, the dragonman youngster led his troops in a
grandiose attack.
“Humph, pirates!” The dragonman youngster found it difficult to quell his fury
as he jumped right into the frogmen pirates.
Bang, bang, bang.
With a few fists, the frogmen were decimated.
Hu Li protected the battle squad, but not the ordinary pirates. Upon seeing
this, he angrily ribbited, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? Why are you
meddling in another’s business?”
“This isn’t another’s business. Murderous and looting pirates are the enemy of
justice!” The dragonman youngster was solemn, “The only thing you can blame is
that you’re in the way of our advance.”
“That’s right! Killing these pirate dregs is the correct course of action.” Chi
Lai praised loudly, and for a moment, he felt that the dragonman youngster was
to his liking.



****** Chapter 189: Provisional Recognition ******
“These guys…” Hu Li rigidly glared the dragonman youngster’s group, hatefully
gnashing his teeth.
In this two versus one, he had been firmly winning, and was about to turn that
advantage into victory in but a moment.
In the future, it would have been a dazzling military success that could have
been flaunted to all.
But a disruptor appeared.
Not one, but three silvers!
Hu Li had to use his full strength to take on two. Now there were five against
him…
This was not things becoming difficult for him, rather he was courting death.  
“What’s more, there is a quasi-gold level among them.” Hu Li’s primary
attention was focused on Zong Ge; he was more afraid of him.
After all, before all this, he, Zong Ge, and the rest had been trapped in the
auction hall.
He saw with his own eyes that Zong Ge’s silver battle qi contained a trace of
gold light within it.
“Boss, we shouldn’t attack! They just broke out of the port battlefield, and
that guy, Long Fu, is too ferocious! He fought Er Gua Zi in an all-out clash,
yet that only weakened him a little.” At this time, an underling delivered this
firsthand information.
Hu Li’s heart and head jolted.
“Right, Shi Qi is quite strong, if Long Fu isn’t stronger than him, how could
he be the commander?”
“Retreat!”
Hu Li loudly ordered.
“The boss is wise!” The frogmen all let out a breath.
Pirates fought to get richer.
The frogmen were already very discontented.
When they came ashore to Two Eyes Island, they first planned to set
arrangements near the port, waiting for the chance to steal the Vinegar Jar.
Although squads were arranged, they had only stolen a few things before meeting
Qing Xin and Men Shi.
Hu Li had led his people against these people for revenge’s sake.
Their vengeance hadn’t been achieved when the dragonman youngster and his
troops barged in.
The enemy was too strong.
The frogmen had to bury the hatred in their hearts.
The Applaud Pirates retreated.
The dragonman youngster’s group didn’t pursue either.
It wasn’t worth fighting these pirates to the death.
“The Applaud battle squad…when will my Quick Knife battle squad reach that
scale?” Zong Ge sighed.
“The Applaud Pirates, the Stench Pirates, and the Lightning Pirates are equally
famous, each capable of moving unhindered through the seas, all have strength.”
Chi Lai also sighed ruefully.
Qing Xin and Men Shi gave their thanks.
“Thank you for getting us out of that, Commander Long Fu.” Men Shi walked to
the dragonman youngster, knowing who the leader was.
Before the auction, he had come to Two Eyes Island to gather a lot of
information.
“I and my clan owe you a favor, no matter when it is, I and my clan will
welcome you as guests.” Men Shi looked sincere.
The dwarfs rushed forth, exclaiming admiration for the dragonman youngster’s
group.
When the latter arrived, they had pressured the frogmen pirates into
retreating.
Although the dragonman youngster only attacked a few times, his imposing
fierceness overturned the will of the people.
This world belonged to the strong.
Worshiping the strong was universal and prevalent.
Although these dwarfs had been cheated by humans, the dragonman wasn’t
considered a human.
Therefore, the dwarfs’ favorable impression of the dragonman youngster wasn’t
diminished.
The dragonman youngster looked at the two with a smile.
He had specifically come to help Qing Xin.
But outwardly, he was merely marching and happened to come this way.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had no close connections with Qing Xin, Men
Shi, or anyone else here.
“I saw you guys fighting.”
“This time, I come bearing a heavy responsibility from Hun Tong.”
“We have to go to the underground depths and destroy the enemy’s casting.”
“You two are silver levels, come fight with us.”
The dragonman youngster deliberately gave an invitation mainly so his
assistance had an excuse.
Qing Xin and Men Shi suddenly looked confused.
They were actually quite baffled.
They didn’t have good relations with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, why would
they help them?
So, this was the reason why!
Upon facing the dragonman youngster’s direct invitation, the two silvers both
looked distressed.
Qing Xin slowly shook her head, “I am in a bad state, it’ll be difficult to
continue fighting. Many apologies!”
Men Shi pondered, the replied, “If you meet danger, I and my clan will brave it
no matter what it is. But since this is for Hun Tong, we won’t do so, for we
dwarfs pay particular attention to clear grudges!”
“Yeah.”
“That’s right!”
The other dwarfs loudly echoed.
Although they hadn’t been abducted here, they had been sold as slaves here.
It would be strange if these dwarfs towards had a good opinion of these bandits
of Two Eyes Island.
These responses were unexpected.
The dragonman youngster nodded, “I will respect your decision, and won’t
insist.”
“I regret that I cannot fight alongside you both.”
Seeing the dragonman youngster’s lenient attitude, Qing Xin, Men Shi, and the
others relaxed.
After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ robust strength was before them.
At this time, Cang Xu said nearby, “Commander Long Fu, thanks for saving our
people. Surely Commander Long Fu saw that we purchased these humans at the
auction.”
He had changed clothes and was disguised as he looked during the auction.
When Qing Xin saw Cang Xu, her eyes suddenly contracted.
Men Shi coldly snorted, his expression wary and his heart fearful.
At the auction, Zi Di and Cang Xu worked together to hold the most limelight.
They had substantial wealth, and their strength was also considerable.
Because without that strength, how could they hold such astonishing wealth?
The dragonman youngster was unpleased and immediately questioned Cang Xu, “They
were fighting Hu Li for a long time, why did you not act? But now that it’s
safe, you’ve come to take things over?”
The dragonman youngster displayed malice for Cang Xu.
Men Shi couldn’t help but feel closer to the dragonman youngster.
At the auction, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had stood off against Zi Di and
Cang Xu.
Men Shi couldn’t help but feel anger towards a common enemy.
He looked at Qing Xin, deciding to say, “My people are all free, yet my
comrades in arms are still slaves, this won’t do!”
When the dwarfs thought of that, they decided to get Qing Xin and the rest out
of their predicament.
The dragonman youngster shook his head and said to Cang Xu, “I look down on
those who tell half-truths and take advantage of others.”
“What happened to all of your prestige during the auction?”
“We’re both humans, yet when Two Eyes Island was attacked by fishmen, I didn’t
see you fighting anywhere.”
“Do you not have a gram of righteousness within you?”
Chi La nodded heavily.
The dragonman youngster’s demand for an explanation was what he wanted to
express.
The dragonman youngster moved to look at Qing Xin, “Magician Qing Xin, what is
your decision?”
“If you want to cast aside slavery, I Long Fu wish to help you do so.”
“Hehehe.” Men Shi laughed heartily, if he wasn’t so short, he would have wanted
to clap the dragonman youngster’s shoulder, “Commander Long Fu said what I
wanted to say. Count me in!”
Qing Xin’s gaze tightened, “Thank you both.”
“Indeed, nothing is more important than freedom.”
“Wati a moment.” Cang Xu raised both hands above his shoulders, “I think there
is a misunderstanding between us.”
“Miss Qing Xin, we purchased you because we noticed you and did so in order to
save you.”
“This is the same motive Lord Men Shi had when he rescued his clansmen.”
“We are level seven elders of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, and Miss Qing Xin
is a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder too.”
“Most importantly of all.” 
“Miss Qing Xin, perhaps you might have guessed who we truly are.”
“We are on your side; you are one of us.”
“I believe I can proof this.”
After saying this, Cang Xu took out an alchemy device.
“My companion is a bit tied up for the time being, but she wants to contact you
urgently.”
“She also asks that you talk to her alone.”
“Qing Xin skeptically took the communication device and walked to a corner.
She turned on the communications device and heard Zi Di’s eager voice, “Sister
Qing Xin, it’s me!”
Qing Xin’s eyes suddenly widened, “Zi…”
A moment later, she realized that wasn’t appropriate and instantly covered her
mouth.
“The person in the room, was it really…you?” She looked pleasantly surprised
but still had a trace of doubt in her.
“It was me, sister Qing Xin. Due to things beyond my control, I cannot expose
my identity. But I had to save you. I never thought I’d see you at the auction.
I thought you died.” Said Zi Di.
She had a bellyful of words to say.
Qing Xin sighed, “If I hadn’t played dead, how could I escape?”
“Becoming a slave was also unexpected.”
“I really didn’t expect that I’d run into you here.”
Zi DI interrupted Qing Xin’s lament, “Don’t elaborate things right now, first
you need to board a ship and leave.”
“We have stolen a magic ship. It is called the Iron Lump, and it has already
reached shore.”
“My companion will lead you there.”
Qing Xin was stunned for a moment, then replied, “Wait a moment, can we not
take the others with us? To some degree, they met disaster because of me. They
are kindhearted people, especially the mother and child, who normally looked
after me.”
“Understood.” Said Zi Di, “Then please take them with you, older sister, board
the ship together.”
Zi Di had seen this coming.
If Qing Xin wasn’t worried about these people’s safety, she would have used her
superior mobility to escape already.
It was because she had seen it that Zi Di had intentionally stolen the Iron
Lump.
This magic ship was more than enough to accommodate Qing Xin and her people.
“Wait a moment, before I board the ship, I still need to see you once again.”
Replied Qing Xin.
Zi Di expressed her awkwardness, “Older sister Qing Xin, I can’t come right
now, but I understand your misgivings.”
“As such, ask some questions about us, older sister.”
“I will immediately answer you, to make clear that I am me.”
Qing Xin nodded, then asked a few questions.
Zi Di’s answers were not only snappy, but they also pointed out the falsehoods
Qing Xin deliberately manufactured.
Qing Xin finally believed that it was Zi Di, “Little Zi Di, I’ll bring my
people to you now!”
Qing Xin returned to the dragonman youngster, Men Shi, and the others.
Cang Xu smiled, then faced the dragonman youngster and dwarfs, “See, were my
words not correct?”
Qing Xin now had a vastly different expression.  
Qing Xin nodded to Men Shi and Long Fu, “Thank you both for upholding justice,
they really are close friends of mine!”



****** Chapter 190: Shipwrecked Barracks ******
“Since that is so, we will go our separate ways! I still have my mission.” The
dragonman youngster immediately took his leave.
“Commander Long Fu, please allow me to express my thanks in the future.” Qing
Xin stated her gratitude to the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster didn’t turn around, he simply waved his hand, “Don’t
take it so seriously, I was merely passing by.”
Such forthright presence increased the Men Shi’s opinion of the young man.
A dwarf asked Men Shi, “What will we do next?”
Qing Xin gave an invitation to Men Shi, “Perhaps we can board the ship
together.”
“It has already come ashore for us.”
The dwarfs were very interested.
Both had become slaves, then fought alongside each other, thus they believed
Qing Xin.
Qing Xin looked at Cang Xu, “Excuse me, is there enough space for them on the
ship?”
Cang Xu’s eyes narrowed.
He immediately sensed that this was Qing Xin probing into him.
If they really wanted to cause Qing Xin harm, they would likely refuse the
dwarfs onto the ship.
After all, Men Shi and the other dwarfs had some strength.
“I didn’t expect that after while saving Qing Xin, I also gained some dwarfs
too?” Cagn Xu was secretly happy.
This clan of dwarfs had lived alone deep in the mountains, they were innately
simple and honest, their awareness was finite, and their grievances were
obvious.
“Perhaps they will be the workers of Zi Di’s envisioned alchemy factory?”
The necromancer nodded on the spot, “The ship has plenty of space! Dwarven
friends, we welcome you warmly!”
And so, the two groups parted ways.
The dragonman youngster continued to forge ahead.
Qing Xin, Men Shi, and the other people followed Cang Xu, seeing the Iron Lump
when they arrived at the shore.
“Isn’t that the Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ flagship?” Men Shi was bewildered.
Cang Xu replied, “Commander Tie Bang lost his life and Commander Beng Dai was
injured when they forced their way into the Vinegar Jar.  
“Before that, the Iron Lump had fallen into fishman hands.”
“I commanded alchemy puppets to kill the fishmen and take it back.”
Men Shi’s look eased a bit.
Not everyone was Zi Di or Hun Tong who both knew the ins and outs of the entire
battle.
While Men Shi had been fighting Hu Li’s pirate group, he had been ignorant of
the state of the other battlefields.
He led the dwarfs, Qing Xin, and the other humans onto the Iron Lump.
The Iron Lump was dripping with blood, corpses were lying about, and there were
sword traces everywhere, it was clear there had been a desperate battle here.
“Sorry, there wasn’t enough time to clean up these fishmen corpses.” Said Cang
Xu.
The swordsmen guard puppets weren’t good at cleaning up battlefields.
They were good at fighting, and of they were forced to clean up this magic
ship, they would damage it greatly.
Specialization.
Therefore, alchemy puppets were organized by categories and many types of
models.
The basic maintenance puppets the survivors had were barely suited to clean up
battlefields.
As for the deep sea salvaging puppets, they were made to bring back dead ocean
beasts or gather seafloor coral and plants in the ocean.
But the basic maintenance puppets had been exposed and had since been used to
maintain the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ordinary ships.
Zi Di was cautious and didn’t reuse those puppets here.
To avoid people associating them with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Men Shi carefully observed the dead fishmen and quickly found that they were
mainly slain by the swordsmen guard puppets.
The other surrounding battlefield traces also proved Cang Xu’s words – he had
retaken the magic ship from the fishmen and not from the Iron Club Mercenary
Corps.
The difference between these two things to Men Shi was like night and day.
Men Shi relaxed his mind and began to trust Cang Xu.
He said to a subordinate, “You guys go with Qing Xin first.”
“I am a little worried about Commander Long Fu.”
Destroying the fishman’s casting will be very dangerous.”
“I can’t help them, but I can guard places near them.”
“If Long Fu and the rest encounter danger, I can support them. If that happens,
then I can repay their kindness while not helping Hun Tong at the same time.
When the dwarfs heard this, they all shouted that they wanted to go, so they
could personally repay that kindness too.
But Men Shi refused them, “You are too weak, don’t be a burden!”
The dwarfs were aggrieved, but they were forced to concede to the facts.
Cang Xu didn’t anticipate Men Shi’s choice.
Men Shi’s wholeheartedness to repaid the debt of gratitude cause the
necromancer to have a whole new level of respect for him.
“I don’t have any reason to dissuade you, Lord Men Shi.” Cang Xu said, “Please
be at ease, your people will be safe on this ship.”
“We won’t be leaving Two Eyes Island completely either.”
“After all, the fishman main army and pirates are in the seas, it isn’t safe at
all!”
“We will continue to observe and await the conclusion of this battle.”
“Truth be told, we think Hun Tong has a better chance, it seems he hasn’t used
his full strength yet.”
Men Shi jumped off the Iron Lump and followed the road he had taken.
The Iron Lump slowly went offshore.
Meanwhile, another magic ship was also moving calmly. 
It was the Vinegar Jar.
Xi Dai Zi had replaced Yao Guan Zi as the controller of this magic ship.
Er Gua Zi was fighting Song Shou nearby in a mighty battle.
Xi Dai Zi decided to move the Vinegar Jar from where it was and broke away from
the port.
The Vinegar Jar staying here would only encumber Er Gua Zi and cause the latter
to worry more as he fought.
Xi Dai Zi smoothly left the port.
Song Shou did try to stop it, but Er Gua Zi was stronger than him and entangled
him.
Xi Dai Zi not only sailed off, but he also took the remaining fishmen at the
port with him too.
Thus, the Vinegar Jar had three silver levels and about 250 troops in it.
The fishmen had lost far more troops at the port than the humans did.
The Vinegar Jar took these troops with it, then charged the city guard
barracks.
The dragonman youngster clearly wanted to destroy the casting underground, but
Xi Dai Zi didn’t choose to pursue them.
The dragonman youngster’s ferociously powerful “final form” had driven Xi Dai
Zi into hiding and inflicted great wounds and terror onto Peng Din Zi and the
fishman knight.
If he decided to pursue, wouldn’t he be throwing his life away when he fought
the dragonman youngster?
Xi Dai Zi naturally didn’t want to commit this folly.
Concerning the underground casting matter, he knew some inside information
about it.
“This isn’t our business.”
“The most important thing to us is retaking our homeland!”
“By eliminating the city guard barracks, we can wipe out a barrier to the main
force.”
“In fact, this is the best way we can contribute at this time.”
Xi Dai Zi sighed to himself.
He never felt this powerless.
This kind of powerless frustration not only came from his prebattle wounds that
made him incapable of displaying his entire strength but more came from the
fact that the enemy was too fierce. 
The dragonman youngster’s ring mounds had left a deep imprint on his mind.
“Even if I was at peak condition, I wouldn’t be able to defeat him.”
The Vinegar Jar’s movement was followed by many eyes.
The Applaud Pirates.
“Boss, the ship is escaping!” An underling shouted loudly.
Hu Li grumpily slapped their head, “Idiot, are you blind? It’s a big ship; you
think I can’t see it?”
His good thing had been wrecked by the dragonman youngster, and now he was
still feeling embittered and wronged.
“Boss, what are we doing next?” The second mate Bei Xiang asked, “I fear we
have stolen the least amount of stuff.”
Hu Li didn’t treat his second mate as impulsively as the rest.
He restrained his bad temper, looked at the Vinegar Jar’s “beautiful” figure,
and after pondering for a moment, still decided, “Catch up with the ship!”
“If I can steal that ship, will there be no island we cannot ransack?”
“You guys need to look at things in the long term!”
Hu Li didn’t give up hope on seizing the Vinegar Jar.
Meanwhile, Zi Di was using an alchemy device to inform the dragonman youngster.
“The Vinegar Jar has broken away from the port and is now charging at the
barracks?” The young man’s gaze tightened, “A little strange, according to
common sense, they should be coming to stop us.”
Zong Ge analyzed, “There are two possibilities.”
“First is that the fishman caster is self-assured, they aren’t worried at all
that we can stop them.
“The second possibility is that it isn’t them.”
“If they were from the Blue Green Coral clan, then this branch clan would be
extremely powerful.”
“With this kind of power, they wouldn’t have been slaughtered and expelled by
Hun Tong.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “So, they are actually different, causing their
tactics to not agree.”
Upon saying that, the dragonman youngster looked at Chi Lai, “What do you
think?”
Chi Lai pondered on it, then said, “I don’t suggest we help the barracks,
despite our strength surpassing the fishmen in the Vinegar Jar.
“Regardless of whether our enemy’s goals are the same, preventing the magician
from using their magic is absolutely more important right now.”
Chi Lai had just joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and still didn’t
consider himself a part of them.
At the same time, he was a believer in the Justice God and felt strongly in
walking the path of righteousness and was willing to sacrifice himself to do
so.
However, in this first round of talks, the dragonman youngster had gained a
deeper understanding of Chi Lai.
The dragonman youngster didn’t say much more, instead he waved his hand and
shouted, “Speed up! Advance!”
Soon after, the barracks came into Xi Dai Zi’s view.
“There is only 27% left in the magic power reservoir.”
“More critically is that seawater needs to be replenished greatly, every water
shell needs to consume a lot of it.”
“I have to reduce the bombardment frequency.”
“Let’s first try smashing in, use the Vinegar Jar’s defense to try breaking
into the barracks.”
Xi Dai Zi looked boorish but was quite refined. After a spot of reflection, he
drove the Vinegar Jarinto the barracks’ gate.
Rumble.
The gate collapsed.
A light cannon beam came directly at it.
It was the barracks’ sole light cannon turret.
As for the barracks, it was nearly devoid of people.
Because Hun Tong had ordered that the entire garrison be dispatched with the
pharmacist to disrupt the underground casting.
Only the light cannon tower was manned with a few people. With them controlling
it, normal enemies couldn’t approach.
The light cannon hit the Vinegar Jar, but it only shook the hull and didn’t
prevent it from moving forward.
Although the light cannon was penetrating and very accurate, it lacked kinetic
energy.
Unlike artillery shells that had substance and impact force.
Xi Dai Zi was pleasantly surprised.
He didn’t expect the barracks to be so empty.
He continued to drive the Vinegar Jar in, and with a bump, knocked down the
light cannon turret and all of the people inside to the ground, then proceeded
to grind them underneath it. 
“The barracks have been taken!” The fishmen’s morale went up.
Xi Dai Zi also took in a breath of joy, “Our flagship doesn’t have a
traditional bow or aft, it looks like a water jar, thus, with the hole angled
to be in the back, the light cannon can’t shoot into it.”
“If that wasn’t so, it would have been far more dangerous.”



****** Chapter 191: Sewer March ******
The dragonman youngster’s group reached their destination.
It was a tower.
The tower had a door plate, station 3 was written on it.
The tower’s door was completely wide open, with a city guard soldier standing
on either side of it.
Seeing the dragonman youngster’s group approaching, they promptly ran to greet
them.
The city guard was being led by the auxiliary commander and pharmacist, and
because of the close distance, they had entered the underground before the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps got there.
After the dragonman youngster agreed to be hired by Hun Tong, the latter
immediately notified the city guard.
“The Lord Officer has intentionally waited for everyone to catch up.” The city
guard soldier lead the way ahead.
The tower interior was simple and had a round pillar standing in its center.
Around the pillar was a revolving staircase.
Everyone followed the stairs down to enter the new island’s sewers.
The sewers were three meters tall and five meters wide, thus, the tall and
sturdy dragonman youngster felt cramped when he entered it.
Every so often, there were fluorescent kelp growing on the sewer walls.
The kelp emitted a light blue light that offered a faint brightness.
The dragonman youngster observed and noticed that the sewer was filled with
traces of recent construction, it was evident it had just been completed.
The city guard soldier presented it at his own accord, “Two Eyes Island is a
coral cage ball tree, and it is always growing slowly.”
“When it sinks into the sea, it will grow very quickly.”
“When it is floating on the surface and absorbing sunlight, it will grow far
slower.”
“Therefore, when the new island’s sewer is excavated, they dig as much as
possible, so as to not be forced to dig more because of the growing coral in
the future.”
Everyone followed the sewer.
Hun Tong had labored to build up the new island, the sewers extended in all
directions and didn’t only have a single level to the system.
There were three sewer levels in all.
Regardless of which sewer level it was, all were very expansive.
The dragonman youngster’s group noticed that the further they descended, the
tighter the defenses.
At the third level, not only were there alchemy monitoring devices, but there
were also long tracks of many traps.
The city guard explained, “After Hun Tong captured this place, fishmen often
snuck onto the island to cause havoc.”
“They know a secret spell that can influence Two Eyes Island to make temporary
underground passages in it.”
“To guard against these enemies, we built these sewers to defend against
raiding fishmen.”
“This time, the fishmen that snuck in must be at a depth deeper than the
sewer’s third level.”
“Alas, if only we were able to detect them in advance.”
The group of people turned a few times through the watercourse before finally
arriving an underground cavity.
This was the base station.
The base station had a small magic power reservoir and ten alchemy puppets.
These puppets were primarily maintenance types, used for daily sewer cleaning.
There were also two battle puppets.
The main model was the Sliding Track Honeycomb Crossbow type.
This crossbow arrow was as big as a horse cart and could quickly slide across a
track. The honeycomb looking object could shoot out several hundred arrows
within a brief window, instantly exploding with formidable firepower.
When the auxiliary city guard commander saw the dragonman youngster, he
promptly walked over and smiled, “Glad you all came.”
“We are sure to engrave everyone’s help in our memories!”
“You’ve really helped us out of a bind.”
The auxiliary commander was a mere iron level, and he was very self-aware of
that.
The silver level pharmacist and alchemist had suffered a crushing defeat
against the purple scaled fishman.
The pharmacist alone attempting to find trouble with her now would bring about
his own destruction.
Furthermore, the traitorous Shi Fa who had teleported away had likely converged
with the purple scaled fishman already.
The auxiliary commander could be said to be anxiously awaiting the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
At long last, their hope had arrived.
The dragonman youngster smiled back, “We are humans and people of the empire,
dealing with the fishmen is the righteous way! Of course, the other important
reason is that Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s high price truly touched us.”
The city guard burst into laughter.
The dragonman youngster’s frank manner immediately won over the auxiliary
commander and the pharmacist.
In fact, the pharmacist already had a good opinion of the dragonman youngster.
Because during the auction, the dragonman youngster bravely stepped forward
many times to publicly stand off against Zi Di and Cang Xu.
Now that the dragonman youngster had led his troops here to block the casting,
the pharmacist’s good impression had deepened further from the former’s
honesty, duty, and accepting of responsibility.
A harmonious relationship and mood was naturally good for this recently
established alliance.
At that moment, a rumble came from both sides of the passage simultaneously.
Something was quickly approaching!
Seeing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on guard, the pharmacist explained at
once, “Don’t be tense, that was from us.”
“While we were waiting, we were transferring all the troops we could to us.”
Just as he said that several alchemy puppets walked in, now visible to everyone
there.
These alchemy puppets were shaped like spiders. They had long slender legs that
were tipped with spiral drill bits and sawtooth wheels lining their joints.
“They are subterranean patrol puppets.”
“The Feudal Lord purchased them from Crown City for a large sum.
“In fact, the sewer blueprints and alchemist came here by Crown City’s
invitation.”
“These subterranean patrol puppets are responsible for defending the levels
below the sewers.
“These are the Feudal Lord’s treasures, every one of them has a considerable
construction cost, and aren’t deployed often ordinarily, and if they get
damaged, they can’t be repaired.”
“In other words, the current situation is very urgent, the Feudal Lord is
willing to use anything now.”
The pharmacist sighed.
He was a silver level and knew more secretive information than the auxiliary
commander.
The dragonman youngster nodded.
He knew of Crown City.
It was known as Machine Crown City, a place where alchemist masters gathered in
the present age. It had many alchemy workshops, alchemy schools, and was best
at building machines.
Hun Tong had traveled far to Crown City so he could invite alchemy masters and
others, along with spending large sums building the sewer system, it could be
clearly seen that he invested his heart’s blood into Two Eyes Island yet was
willing to part with that investment.
Zong Ge also seemed to ponder.
The port and city guard barracks battlefields were in a state of emergency, the
fishmen were rushing in like the tide, Two Eyes Island’s future appeared dark.
Yet these alchemy puppets hadn’t been dispatched.
“Hun Tong is still holding back!”
This was evidence of that conjecture.
This was the city guard.
“It is unreasonable for these people to be waiting here for us.”
“Even though they are two cowardly to advance, Hun Tong is paying close
attention and can order them to suicide charge.”
“But Hun Tong didn’t do that.”
“However, according to common sense, the enemy’s large scale magic must be
prevented at all costs.”
“That said, Hun Tong has formidable methods too that haven’t been used yet.”
“Furthermore, he is very confident that when these trump cards appear, they
will secure his victory!”
The subterranean patrol puppets were under the pharmacist’s control.
The pharmacist directed them to dig down.
When the subterranean patrol puppets dug, their limbs withdrew into their
bodies, then they morphed into the shape of a textile shuttle.
All of their limb tips are set at their foremost point, allowing them to easily
drill through the ground.
The sawtooth disks along their edges rotated rapidly, they could not only cut
obstacles around them, but they could also eject out the earth and rock
fragments created during the digging behind the puppets.
“Let them take the lead.” The pharmacist laughed.
“We also have some detection type alchemy puppets; they will go second.” Said
the dragonman youngster.
“That’s wonderful.” The pharmacist smiled cheerfully.
The dragonman youngster then said, “Next, we will walk in, you behind us.”
The pharmacist and the auxiliary commander both grinned widely.
This was their greatest wish.
It just wasn’t good to bring up directly.
He didn’t expect the dragonman youngster to make arrangements this way.
“Commander Long Fu really dares to take it upon himself!”
“Running into someone like him is truly lucky.”
The two people sighed to themselves, and their opinion of the dragonman
youngster increased further.
Because of the casting, the purple scaled fishman’s location was very visible,
like a firefly at night.
The subterranean patrol puppets digging constantly in a straight line, charged
in first.
Slam.
Not long after, the encountered a magic trap.
The magic trap triggered an explosion.
The subterranean patrol puppets were expensive, and the explosion merely
blackened their surface.
The pharmacist appeared grave, “Encountering a magic trap here. I fear there
are many more!”
Zong Ge suggested, “We should slow down.”
“Some magic traps can be triggered with direct collision, but there are many
more types of trigger mechanisms.”
“Although the situation is urgent, we should go steady and strike hard.”
“I believe that of the magic traps the enemy has deployed, there are sure to be
those that activate upon sensing life aura.”
Zong Ge’s words had to be pompous, while in reality he wasn’t thinking that.
Zong Ge’s true opinion was that since Hun Tong had been holding back and wasn’t
worried, while the city guard was cowering and unwilling to take the lead, then
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as an outsider and hired help, shouldn’t be
rushing.
Zong Ge used a look to communicate with the dragonman youngster.
The two had a mutual understanding, thus the dragonman youngster nodded at once
and asked the pharmacist if he had any method of detecting magic traps?
The pharmacist looked distressed and claimed he was a magician that only made
medicine.
The dragonman youngster frowned, “You are our only caster, only you can sense
these magic traps.”
“Being a magician doesn’t mean you can detect magic traps. In fact, many battle
skills are enough to target these magic traps.” The pharmacist grimaced.
“Cough, cough, cough.”
He suddenly coughed, and clutched his chest, “I was gravely wounded in the last
battle, it’d be difficult to offer assistance in this respect.”
The pharmacist’s heart was filled with cowardice and guilt, he didn’t dare to
face up to the dragonman youngster.
He had outnumbered the purple scaled fishman in the last fight yet still lost.
To save his tiny life now, he no longer wanted to fight.
The dragonman youngster sighed, “Since that is so, then we will have to use
alchemy puppets to find them as best as possible, but if that happens, then our
marching speed will be too…”
The pharmacist and auxiliary commander nodded repeatedly, the latter even said,
“We cannot fall into the enemy’s evil schemes! If the magic traps kill or
injure too many, even if we get to them, we will lack the power to fight.”
Their reactions were actually within the dragonman youngster’s expectations.
He deliberately asked because he wanted to obtain that answer.
Although Hun Tong had offered a high price, the dragonman youngster didn’t want
to exchange his troops’ lives for these riches.



****** Chapter 192: Shi Fa’s Sacrifice ******
The subterranean depths.
An expansive underground space.
The cave’s four walls, ceiling, and floor had all kinds of magic runes drawn
into them.
These magic runes made up a temporary magic formation.
Some runes were bright and some were extinguished, the magic formation’s
radiance moved like the ocean tide, traveling up and down, appearing and
disappearing.
The one presiding over this magic formation was the purple scaled fishman.
While the actual caster was Shi Fa.
He still looked human, and at this moment, his brows were tightly wrinkled, his
eyes were tightly shut and sweat from dripping from the tip of his nose.
He was using everything he had to maintain the magic; it was very difficult.
While the purple scaled fishman controlled the magic formation, her spirit
connecting with Shi Fa to assist him as best he could.
The was the first time Shi Fa had used this magic and was depending on the
purple scaled fishman’s spirit connection to construct the magic model and
maintain its continued operation.
“A few magic traps have been activated.” The purple scaled fishman quickly
communicated to Shi Fa through their spirit connection.
Shi Fa was alarmed, “The enemy has emerged so fast?”
The purple scaled fishman consoled him, “Not as close as you envision. I have
many magic traps augmented by the Drifting Bottle spell. 
“These magic traps are like a message in a bottle, they are unlikely to stay in
place, and will instead move slowly about, spreading around in a disorderly
fashion.”
“This will hide the magic traps better and will also guard against enemies
sneaking in from any direction while covertly approaching them.”
When Shi Fa heard that, half his concerns were relinquished, then he asked,
“Who is coming?”
He knew the magic traps and this magic formation were connected, and when one
of them were triggered, they would bring back information.
These included the enemy’s appearance, and lots of their life aura and sounds.
Putting these pieces of information together, one could construe intelligence
on the enemy.
“Take a look.” The purple scaled fishman shared the information through the
spirit connection.
Shi Fai’s glabella knotted, “Shit.”
His heard gushed with strong fear, “Its actually the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps!”
“Ignoring the gold levels, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the worst foe.”
“Our arrangements cannot stop him.”
The purple scaled fishman nodded, expressing acknowledgement, “I also think
that too.”
They were the most crucial fishmen right now.
Naturally, they were given precious information too.
The dragonman youngster’s performance at the port battlefield, the devastation
of the Vinegar Jar, and his cowering of the three silver level fishmen were
known to them.
The dragonman youngster was a most thorny existence to the two magicians.
Because his red dragon scales not only protected him from physical attack but
also magic too. It was an exceedingly outstanding composite defense.
Ordinary magic merely tickled the dragonman youngster.
What also truly threated the magicians was the dragonman youngster’s speed.
“His final form gives him too much strength and speed.”
“This is also the underground.”
“In terms of moment, we are no match for him.”
“If he discovers us, fleeing is nearly hopeless.”
The purple scaled fishman sighed her analysis. 
Shi Fa nodded, “I have spoken to Long Fu, he is an outstanding leader and has a
tenacious determination.”
“Hun Tong hiring them to stop us is indeed a wise decision.”
The dragonman youngster hadn’t even arrived, yet he had brought immense
pressure on them.
The purple scaled fishman exposed her helplessness. At that moment, she had a
premonition of defeat, “What to do? Our magic just activated.”
“Then speed it up!” Shi Fa glared.
The purple scaled fishman shook her head, “This is as fast as it can go.”
“No, it can still go faster!” As Shi Fa said that his nostrils began to leak
blood.
The purple scaled fishman’s heart shook, “If you do that, you will destroy your
foundation, after this casting, you will become a cripple!”
Shi Fa’s face blossomed a smile, “So what?”
“Since the moment I became a spy, I have been prepared to make sacrifices.”
“I have also thought about how I would sacrifice myself.”
“My identity was discovered, I was surrounded, I failed to break out, and then
I died.”
“Perhaps it would be during war, I would sacrifice myself to establish an
advantage on the front lines, or to destroy the enemy’s provisions.”
“It was also possible that I would never be used my entire life, I would die of
old age as a nobody, my true self buried in the earth and covered by dust.”  
“This is amazing, my battle companion!”
“I was most afraid of dying of old age, because that would the most worthless
sacrifice.”
“At this important moment, I was used, it is my good fortune.”
“Under such urgency, I have to sacrifice myself! Doing so will increase the
success rate of the operation. If sacrificing a minor silver level like me can
accomplish our goal, then it would be worth it!”
The purple scaled fishman looked at Shi Fa, somewhat flabbergasted.
To be honest, although she knew spies needed to do all kinds of tricks, Shi
Fa’s act of massacring fellow fishmen to obtain humanity’s trust was something
she was wary of and despised.
But at this moment, those feelings and attitude was swept away.
It was superseded by admiration and emotion!
“My friend!” The purple scaled fishmen choked out, “First look for the
cemetery.”
“Hai Ping was once buried there. At the time, he concealed his identity, and no
one knew who he really was.”
“It has been too long, and with the coral cage ball tree’s constant growth, his
grave vanished without a trace.”
“But the cemetery is a starting point, there should still be a bit of a trail
left behind.”
“Even if it is the most minute trace, with this magic, it can reveal clues.”
“As long as we find a trail, we can trace it through and determine his exact
position.”
Shi Fa nodded heavily, “Understood!”
Magic power surged continuously like an incorporeal tide that rolled through
the entire cemetery.
There was a silver level hiding in the graveyard.
It was the grave robbing and funerary object stealing Hong Zhu.
The magic power horrified Hong Zhu.
“Why is the fishmen’s large scale magic targeting the cemetery?”
“It seems it is some kind of position searching magic?”
“I can’t stay here any longer.”
Hong Zhu didn’t know what the fishmen were really planning, but since they were
searching the cemetery, this place was likely to become a new battlefield.
After Hong Zhu said that she left.
Despite knowing there were still lots of funerary objects left buried in the
ground.
But she knew when to stop and could restrain her avarice.
Hong Zhu was a senior adventurer.
She had experienced many traps.
Although many traps were very rudimentary, they could trick people because they
exploited human greed.
Hong Zhu’s sneaking ability was very high, and she left the cemetery without
incident.
She gazed into the distance and saw the Vinegar Jar wreaking havoc in the city
guard barracks.
“The city guard barracks has been destroyed?”
“The situation outside has gotten this bad?!”
Hong Zhu’s heart suddenly sank.
She had been in the cemetery by her lonesome, wantonly plundering the cemetery,
unaware of the battle’s progress.
She also thought that the city guard had been wiped out and wasn’t aware that
the auxiliary commander and pharmacist had left with most of the soldiers
beforehand.
“The port battlefield only has two gold levels fighting in it!”
“The fishmen hold a huge advantage.”
“It’s no wonder their large scale magic went without a hitch, no one came to
stop them.”
“Two Eyes Island is in danger!”
“But how should I leave?”
Hong Zhu judged that Two Eyes Island’s future was bleak.
She was a loner and immediately thought of running off.
But how to escape?
She didn’t have a ship.
Even if she did, the port had been destroyed already.
Even if she was fortunate enough to still have said ship, Song Shou and Er Gua
Zi were fighting fiercely at the port, and Hong Zhu didn’t dare get near them.
Hong Zhu couldn’t think of a good way to get out for the time being, and was
forced to sneak to the coastline first, then play it by ear.
Hu Li deeply sighed.
“These humans cannot be counted on!”
“The grand Two Eys Island’s barracks has surprisingly been wiped out.”
“Where are the barrack’s defenders? Instead of fighting, they retreated, they
really lost face for the Sheng Ming Empire.”
Hu Li cursed loudly.
Naturally he didn’t consider it from the human’s point of view, rather it was
because the hollow barracks was unable to weaken the Vinegar Jar.
This caused the Vinegar Jar to maintain its prior condition, giving him no gaps
he could get into.
He had been tailing the Vinegar Jar, and when he saw it charging the barracks,
he was inwardly happy.
As a result, mutual losses didn’t occur, and his plan to seize the Vinegar Jar
was once again postponed.
“Boss, our plan to steal the Vinegar Jar a bit unreasonable.”
“Yea, boss. That ship has three silver level fishmen inside, and the amount of
fishmen in there outnumber us greatly too!”
“We can still rob other places!”
His pirate underlings were grumbling.
Since coming ashore, although the Applaud Pirates had plundered some things,
their earnings couldn’t compare to the other pirate groups.
Their commander was dedicated to stealing the Vinegar Jar yet never found a
chance to.
This in the eyes of the other pirates was him wasting a big opportunity to get
rich!
Hu Li looked about, “You guys are short-sighted!”
“Just do what I tell you to do.”
“Otherwise, I will kill you!”
Hu Li suddenly erupted with vicious power, shutting up the other pirates
immediately, none daring to speak any longer.
“Hahaha, too fine, I have never done such robbery.”
“Two Eyes Island is so rich; this has been a wonderful experience. It would be
amazing if every island looting was like this.”
There were pirates roaming everywhere through Two Eyes Island, some were in
groups, some were alone, and all were in ecstasy.
They had a truly ample harvest.
Of them, the Lightning Pirates and the Stench Pirates were among the strongest.
 
After the two pirate groups left the church, they met at the city government
building gate.
“You again!” Yang Cong Tou glared.
“Hey old Yang Cong Tou, you aren’t late this time.” Dian Wan made fun of him.
Yang Cong Tou coldly snorted.
The pirates had nearly plundered everything on the new island.
Some places they decided to avoid.
For example, the Flint Store had the silver Ku Feng and Mei Ban working
together to protect it, a truly hard nut to crack.
After calculations, the most enticing place left was the city government
building.
Dian Wan sternly said, “Since I robbed the last two places first, as my senior
Yang Cong Tou, I’ll allow you to enter this one first.”
The city government building was right in front of them, but Dian Wan suddenly
declined to go in modestly.
Yang Cong Tou gave a dirty look, “That’s enough! Hun Tong is a sinister person;
I don’t believe his city government palace doesn’t have defenses. You want us
to attack first, allow you to pick up the pieces after us?”
“Time is limited, in short, we either cooperate or I’ll throw you in first!”
Dian Wan laughed, “I have long wanted to work and fight with you together!”



****** Chapter 193: Hun Tong’s Hidden Trump Card ******
The Lightning Pirates and Stench Pirates had fought at the Wealth Church, but
now in the city government building, they began to cooperate.
Pirates were like this.
Profit seekers!
But as they planned their attack, they suddenly heard fishmen shouting.
“Agm”
“Rarlgrglnanlgm”
“Anlgarlnarlnglnmarg”
“lnaglnr”
The shouts were coming like the tide, they layered upon each other in unending
prestige that was growing ever vaster.
Dian Wan, Yang Cong Tou, and the rest were experienced fighters and immediately
changed color when they heard it.
“How can there be so many fishmen here?”
“Those sounds, the fishmen have come ashore.”
“What is Hun Tong doing? Is the frontline dying?”
“Hahaha, if Two Eyes Island is taken back by the fishmen, the Duo Mu Clan’s
face will be darkened.
Some pirates were bewildered, others rejoicing in Hun Tong’s misfortune.
Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou glanced at each other, both saw the other’s grave
expression.
The military situation had changed dramatically.
They no longer dared to attack the city government building.
The city government building had defenses, and if it depleted them too much,
even if they stole the valuables, they would soon drown in a tide of murderous
fishmen.
“Go, scout out what the situation is.” Dian Wan ordered.
Yang Cong Tou also looked at his first mate, the latter immediately went to
investigate.
Zi Di keeping watch in the Deep Sea Monster Fish was the first to discover the
dramatic change.
She was amazed when she saw the fishman army through the projection, “What
happened? How did those fishmen get ashore?”
Nothing obviously peculiar had happened.
Zi Di flipped back to a past magic image, but didn’t find anything.
These fishmen suddenly appeared on the coastline, then began charging ashore.
Now, there were large amounts of fishmen constantly appearing on beaches,
following the fishmen that were shaking the skies with their rallying cries as
they charged with all of their strength.
Zi Di watched closely, her expression gradually changing.
“That is an exceptionally good camouflage magic, no, it is a divine spell. “She
looked at the clues, “This divine spell’s power is similar to the Pearl
Bubbles?!”
Zi Di promptly informed the dragonman youngster via alchemy device about the
latest battle progress.
Divine spell – Pearl Illusion.
The one using this divine spell was the naga priestess.
To do so, she didn’t hesitate to use a Pearl Bubble that had been in her
collection for many years.
The one she believed in was the Charming Blue Goddess.
But the Charming Blue Goddess’ divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, had
been lost for many years, and the sect could no longer produce them, thus they
were extremely precious.
If the naga priestess wasn’t trying to protect the purple scaled fishman and
Shi Fa, she wouldn’t have gritted her teeth and used it.
The divine spell “Pearl Illusion” was an excellent camouflage and deception.
The naga priestess used the divine spell on the fishman main army on the frozen
land whale.
The fishman main army then quietly entered the sea and stealthily swan to Two
Eyes Island.
Even though Hun Tong, Yan Ding, and the others were constantly watching, even
Zi Di on the Deep Sea Monster Fish had been duped, causing them to be
astonished when the fishman main army began to attack.
“I know, you believe in the Charming Blue Goddess!” Yang Ding’s eyes flashed as
he blurted that out.
“Impudent, you dared my Goddess’ name like that!” The naga priestess exploded
in anger, and she used a divine spell to attack Yan Ding violently.
Yan Ding urged his black cloud back quickly as Hun Tong’s clone thrusted his
blade towards the naga priestess like lightning.
“I don’t think so!” The old fishman elder shouted.
The frozen land whale sprayed a stream of water.
The fishman elder rode the jet of water to Hun Tong’s clone.
Both sides ruthlessly clashed, and the clan elder succeeded in blocking the
alchemy clone’s thrust.
“Let’s have a good battle this time!” The old clan elder spat out, most of the
pressure on him had alleviated.
Before, his hands had been tied defending the fishman main army and he was
forced to take a beating.
Now that the fishman army had gotten onto the island and launched their
offensive, he was no longer worried.
The naga priestess used a divine spell to turn from defense to offense, allowed
the fishman main force to use their military might, and also freed up the clan
elder, doing two things at once.
This was why casters needed to be eliminated first during battles.
Compared to fighters, casters had many more tricks and after they were used,
they were harder to counteract, usually costing several folds the casting cost.
Like now, when the naga priestess used a divine spell to break the impasse and
reestablishing the fishmen’s dominance.
The fishman main army intentionally went around the port and landed on another
seacoast.
When the war began, the human troops were mainly concentrated in three places. 
The auction hall, the port, and the city guard barracks.
Now, the cultivators in the auction hall had dispersed and were falling apart.
Some sacrificed themselves, and others were conversely looting Two Eyes Island.
At the port battlefield, in the wake of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
breaking out, and the Vinegar Jar relocating, it had been reduced to the place
where Song Shou and Er Gua Zi were fighting. 
After the city guard barracks relocated almost all personnel, Xi Dai Zi and his
people reduced it to rubble.
Thus, the fishman main army didn’t have any obstructions and marched straight
in unchallenged.
Fragmentary resistance was instantly drowned in the surging fishman assault.
Although many of the fishmen had been slain by Yan Ding, after merging with the
reserves, there were still a considerable amount of them.
In terms of quantity, they had the most troops on Two Eyes Island.
These fishmen also had exuberant morale.
They were retaking their homeland for their clan.
Every fishman fighter that fell would be remembered by kith and kin for a
lifetime.
Every fishman that died in battle would cause much grief and hatred.
That hatred encouraged the fishman main army morale!
“The fishmen are ferocious!”
“We can’t defend.”
Mei Ban shot several times, and after he saw the dauntless fishmen didn’t fear
death, he judged that he should quietly retreat.
He had protected the Flint Store for long enough.
Inside the store, when the wandering ronin Ku Feng received Mei Ban’s message,
he immediately urged, “Quickly, organize the people, it is time to leave.”
Many salesclerks still believed for the best, and one amongst them yelled,
“We’ve won!”
“Neither Dian Wan nor Yang Cong Tou dared to offend us.”
“Perhaps we can stop defending!”
Ku Feng glanced at them and coldly replied, “Then you can stay behind, I will
go first.”
The salesclerks’ hearts jumped, and they changed color one after the other.
None dared to stay, and all of them followed Ku Feng as he evacuated.
The fishmen had safety in numbers, and they rapidly flooded the streets around
the Flint Store.
“Hahaha, our main force has come!” In the Vinegar Jar, Peng Ding Zi and the
others cheered.
“Abominable!” Hu Li gnashed his teeth.
The fishman main force’s arrival had reduced his chances of seizing the Vinegar
Jar to near zero.
“We must go!” Hu Li waved his hand, swiftly departing with the resentful
frogmen.
In front of the city government building, Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou knew
things were far from good, and they both retreated with their groups.
Pirates were slippery.
They only thought of getting rich, and stopping the fishman main force was in
no way their business.
They moved as quickly as the wind.
In addition, the fishman main force’s goal was capturing Two Eyes Island, and
the hastily retreating pirates were no concern to them.
Soon after, the pirates reached the water and climbed onto their boats.
These were landing skiffs and all of them sunk deeply into the water.
They were weighed down by the riches they had plundered from Two Eyes Island!
At the subterranean abyss magic formation.
“I found it!” Shi Fa suddenly opened his eyes; they were full of pleasant
surprise.
The purple scaled fishman’s method was very sensible.
By searching the cemetery, they found traces.
The sum of these clues led many ways.  
After eliminating most of those paths, and through trial and error, Shi Fa
found their true objective.
“Well done!” The purple scaled fishman cheered.
“So, it was actually there. Without this special search magic, how could we
ever find it?”
The purple scaled fishman sighed, then said, “The Blue Green Coral Clan’s
fishman army has already attacked the island, let’s take advantage of this
golden opportunity to retrieve Hai Ping’s corpse.”
The real reason the naga priestess decided to use a divine spell to protect the
fishman main army was to protect their transportation of that corpse.
Battle skill – Large Tentacles, stage five!
Qi You flew through the air, gold battle qi gushing all over him.
Battle qi condensed into octopus tentacles, and with gold brilliance, swept
towards Hun Tong.
Hun Tong moved nimbly, leaving an afterimage as he dodged it.
Qi You used the battle skill again, and his large tentacles returned to protect
him from all sides.
“Qi You, got any more tricks? If you don’t use them now, your Two Eyes Island
will really come to an end!” Qi You cackled, complacent on the outside, but
vigilant within.
The more he fought Hun Tong, the more he felt the latter was putting on a show,
and that he was calm and collected beneath the surface.
Hun Tong suddenly stopped high in the air.
He indifferently glanced at the new island, at the fishmen army fighting all
over, and also saw all of the ships sailing away with their valuables.
“It is time to attack.” Hun Tong said to himself.
The fishman main army wasn’t the main target.
Hun Tong focused more on those pirates.
He wouldn’t look on passively as these pirates ran off with all of the island’s
riches.
If he missed this opportunity, hunting down these pirate groups large and small
in the boundless ocean would waste an immense amount of time, energy, and so
on, along with possible losses inflicted during the recapturing.
Hun Tong put away his dagger and smiled at Qi You, “You feel don’t you.”
“I have to thank you, Qi You.”
“Thank you for putting on this show with me.”
“Now, as thanks, as a token of my thanks, how about I give you the gift of
death?”
Qi You was completely focused, his entire body tense.
A moment later, all of his hair prickled, and an alarm bell rang in his heart!
Whoosh!
A pillar of light fell from the sky.
Before Qi You could react, the pillar of light shot him head on.
With a loud bang, he was launched into the ocean, creaking a gigantic wave.
Such a startling change attracted the gazes of every party.
Hun Tong floated in the air, raised his arms, and shouted, “It is time for you
to come onto the stage.”
“My flagship, I summon you!”
“Defend our riches, slaughter these bandits.”
“Glorify the Duo Mu clan!”
The light beam that shot Qi You thinned, weakened, and quickly dissipated.
From the light beam that shot through the clouds, a magic ship slowly fell.
“That’s?”
“A flying airship!”
“A gold level magic ship!”



****** Chapter 194: The Golden Flash! ******
A magic ship was hanging high in the air!
It was shaped weirdly; it looked like an enormous disk.
All around the disk’s chassis were “scales” that glittered gold.
The disk had five light cannon turrets on it, evenly distributed across its
surface.
In the middle of the disk, there was its main cabin that was a prism crystal
that was far more towering and gigantic than any of the light cannon turrets.
The magic ship emitted a strong gold level aura.
This was what Hun Tong had kept waiting until the right moment, the Golden
Flash!
Before this, it had been hiding high in the clouds, and its first attack had
shot Qi You down, stunning the entire battlefield.
At this moment, Song Shou and Er Gua Zi stopped fighting as they marveled at
it.
The former was pleasantly surprised while the latter was solemn.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di gazed at the magic image, her eyes
glinting.
While buying treasures from the auction, she had been planning to build a
flying magic ship, she didn’t expect to see one now, especially one more
advanced than the one she wanted to create!
Hun Tong’s clone intensified its attacks.
The old clan elder and the naga priestess had to hold it back while paying more
attention to the Golden Flash.
The card Hun Tong had been hiding was grander than anyone expected.
“A gold level magic ship are usually owned by saint level figures. Yet Hun Tong
has one?”
“Abominable, he’s earned so much from Two Eyes Island these last years!”
“Hun Tong’s bloodline has reached its limit, rather than increasing his
equipment or his personal strength, perhaps he thought to pool everything he
had into something big.”
Everyone rolled with thoughts and constant estimations.
A gold level magic ship coming down was like a king descending to snatch away
the svelte all other magic ships here.
Not just that.
It could also fly!
A flying magic ship was quite rare.
Controlling air superiority was an immense advantage.
Normal ship cannons on the sides of ships found it difficult to aim high into
the sky.
Although deck cannons could shoot into the sky, there were too few of them.
Only magic could strike the Golden Flash.
But which magicians could?
Surveying the battlefield, there were no more than 10 silver level casters, two
of which were dead already.
Of the gold level fighters, not all of them could fly.
Neither Er Gua Zi nor the old clan elder had flying battle skills.
Therefore, they could only look on helplessly and impotently.
It could be said that the mere fact the Golden Flash was floating at a high
altitude gave it a seemingly invincible position.
Song Shou burst into laughter, “Er Gua Zi, I concede you are stronger than me,
but so what? We will still be the true winners!
Human morale soared.
Yan Ding grumbled, “Hey, if you had this kind of ship, why didn’t you deploy it
earlier? Why did you trouble me so greatly until now?
Hun Tong’s alchemy clone glanced at him as it continued to attack violently.
Xi Dai Zi unconsciously held his breath.
Compared to the Golden Flash, the Vinegar Jar he controlled paled by
comparison.
Xi Dai Zi had a stronger premonition – the Vinegar Jar couldn’t withstand the
gold magic ship’s bombardment!
“What should I do?”
“How can I compete with that ship?”
All kinds of thoughts flashed in Xi Dai Zi’s mind.
“Damn it!”
“There’s nothing.”
“If we found out about it beforehand, we wouldn’t be so helpless now.”
Xi Dai Zi felt how sinister Hun Tong was.
He actually had his biggest card hidden in the clouds.
When the fishmen were scouting out Two Eyes Island, how could they check the
sky?
They couldn’t probe that part of the new island.
This arrangement demonstrated how wise Hun Tong was.
He had chosen the time and place the auction was held very carefully.
Every time one island floated up, everything on it melting away, it was white
paper he could paint with his massive construction projects.
Spies like Shi Fa couldn’t get into the new island ahead of time to investigate
it.
“Cough, cough, cough.”
Qi You coughed up blood into the sea.
“A gold level turret!”
The blast he took had seriously injured him.
“The main turret has the might of at least 5 light cannon turrets!”
“Crucially, the light beam is very accurate and fast.”
“I had been entirely on guard, yet I wasn’t able to evade it.”
“This was also while I was on the defensive.”
“With a turret like that, recklessly flying into the air will turn one into an
easy target.”
Qi You’s fighting spirit plummeted to the depths.
He didn’t fly back up, rather he swam through the sea towards his flagship.
Qi You was a gold level pirate boss, if he chose this, the other pirates did
too.
After the pirates broke from their stupefaction, they reacted one after the
other.
“Row! Row has hard as you can.”
“Go faster, faster.”
“My god, Qi You was struck down in a single shot, that ship is too formidable.”
Hun Tong smiled as his half closed eyes revealed a cold glint.
“Where do you think you are going?”
“I kindly persuaded all of you to be treated as guests.” 
“But you obstinately clung to your habits and looted by domain!”
“Since you’re so undiscriminating, then you’ll leave your lives here.”
A moment later, the Golden Flash’s hull’s innumerable “scales” automatically
separated themselves from the ship and flew down in a whirl.
Hundreds of these “scales” quickly hovered over every place, each of them
rotating ceaselessly.
The main light cannon turret’s tip began to pour out five thick beams of light.
These beams of light imbued the 5 light cannon turrets around it.
A moment later, all of the light cannon turrets fired a light beam
simultaneously.
The perfectly straight light beams first hit the nearby circular “scales”,
scattering the beams into three parts.
The three light beams were far thinner and were cast at more “scales” in the
distance.
By means of the “scales”, the light beams were constantly refracted and
scattered to form an immense light beam network across the skies above
battlefield.
The tips of this light beam network precisely hit enemies.
Pirate landing skiffs, fishmen troops, the Vinegar Jar, and other foes all
received “consideration”.
In just a spilt second, a thousand pirates died violently!
Many landing skiffs sank.
Cultivators ran away in a sorry state, few them survived this danger.
The Vinegar Jar’s hold rumbled from the ruthless light beams.
The refracting light beams precisely seared holes into the Vinegar Jar.
A second later, the treasure laden pirates that were proudly departing and the
tumultuous fishman army were swept away in a mighty fashion.
After another second, pirate blood sprayed into the ocean, ships sank, and t he
fishman army’s offensive was stopped due to massive casualties, their howls of
grief ever present now.
After shooting Qi You, the Golden Flash’s second attack had instantly
overturned the entire war situation!
“No wonder Hun Tong was so calm!” Zi Di looked at the magic image, turning
pale, “With that magic ship, he was always in control of the entire
battlefield.”
She compared the Deep Sea Monster Fish to the magic ship before her.
Both were gold level.
But utterly different.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was a stealthy deep water submarine, while the other
was an airship.
One was in the sea; one was in the sky.
In terms of applications, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had more.
Because this was the ocean.
Most natural resources were in the ocean.
Airships had to land to resupply.
“In terms of speed, the other ship hasn’t displayed anything yet, so no
comparison can be made.”
“In terms of military power, the Deep Sea Monster Fish has two gold cannons and
two types of special gold level artillery shells.”
“The other ship has 5 silver level light cannon turrets. The main turret is
definitely gold level and serves as its main firepower.”
Zi Di calculated the firepower.
The light beam that had shot Qi You should have come from the main turret, its
power was somewhat less, but its accuracy and speed were extremely high.
If the Deep Sea Monster Fish fired a gold artillery shell from one of its
cannons, its power might be greater, but hitting a gold level person was quite
difficult.
In terms of offense, the Golden Flash was very impressive.
With one attack, it had toppled the war situation, caused mass casualties,
scored many military victories, and had done more in that single attack than
Yan Ding had done the entire battle.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had ways of wounding groups too.
It was called the Hedgehog Firepower Counterattack.
After being activated, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s entire hull would create jet
holes that could shoot out three alchemy arrows every second from each one.
500015000
With 5000 jet holes and this rapid firing rate, it could shoot 15,000 alchemy
arrows per second!
“The group culling abilities of both are about equal.”
“But they have different inclinations.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish emphasizes defense, and through comprehensive
firepower cover, it can counteract an enemy’s offensive.”
“While the other ship is all about precise attacks that focuses on every light
beam hitting its target. This is impossible for the Deep Sea Monster Fish to
do.”
“What exactly allows the light beams to lock onto their targets?”
“Don’t tell me that ship has been outfitted with a powerful ship spirit?”
Zi Di guessed to herself.
“Its concealment ability allows it to hide in the clouds, and even the Deep Sea
Monster Fish’s detection methods didn’t notice anything.”
“It is very good at it.”
“But it cannot compare to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
In this point, Zi DI was very confident.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had formidable camouflage capabilities. It was
outfitted with the Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
formations, both the best of their type in the world. 
In this respect, even if the flying magic ship was overestimated, it still
couldn’t compare with the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s greatest advantage stills rests with the fact that
it can do alchemy.”
“It’s alchemy cabin has exceptional alchemy installations; it is a mobile
first-rate alchemy workshop.”
“This cannot be achieved by the other ship.”
“The two ships have very different categorizations.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish is a submarine used to conceal and camouflage War
Merchant as he collected resources and moved around.”
“While this magic airship must have cost Hun Tong most of his wealth, he spent
that humongous sum to build a warship to be used to patrol the seas and deal
with enemies.”
“According to this categorization, that magic ship’s flight speed should be
decent, it should also have long distance and scale detection capabilities.”
Zi Di immediately transmitted this crucial information as well as her
conjectures to the dragonman youngster.
The underground depths.
“The aura over there, two hundred meters straight ahead.” The dragonman
youngster was solemn.
Zong Ge, Chi Lai, and the rest were the same.
As they were planning to storm in boldly, they got Zi Di’s information.
The dragonman youngster and the others looked at each other for a moment.
Soon after, they changed their tactics.
Since they now had the advantage, they no longer needed to risk charging
recklessly.



****** Chapter 195: Controlling the Battlefield ******
Hun Tong flew to the ship and entered the main turret.
Without Qi You bothering him, he was a free man, and this process went
abnormally smoothly.
In the fourth floor of the main turret, there was a control panel.
Hun Tong personally took control.
All around the control panel were crystal walls that depicted all sorts of
changing magic runes,
Combined with the Golden Flash’s powerful detection methods, the walls could
promptly display everything in a radius of a thousand miles.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di had hypothesized close to the truth – the
Golden Flash really had wide scale and long distance detection methods.
Hun Tong stood perfectly straight, his hands on the control helm, and scenes
all across the battlefield depicted on the walls around him.
Countless landing skiffs were pierced by light beams, destroying a number of
their hulls, causing them to quickly sink into the ocean.
The bleeding corpses of pirates followed them down.
Along with great amounts of money and valuables.
These invaluable things quickly sank to the seafloor.
However, Hun Tong wasn’t worried about that.
Those valuables in the sea could be salvaged after the battle.
“You want to plunder me, to steal my money, hehe, how could you?” Hun Tong
sneered proudly.
“My detection component is the Gold Eye!”
“A gold level alchemy creation with the Wealth Church’s divine spell –
Appraisal!”
It can detect every object within its range and appraise it.”
“These greedy pirates, as long as they are laden with treasures, they will be
high value targes and will be firmly locked onto!”
“Thinking about it, it really is a little ironic.”
“None would expect these pirates to do everything possible, through their
devastating looting, to leave a trail that attracted the Grim Reaper’s sickle
towards them.”
The surviving pirates swam back towards their fleets, their lives depending on
it.
The fishmen would saw this were utterly stunned.
They heard the human fighters cheering as they counterattacked in waves. 
Hun Tong took a deep breath; he couldn’t help but grip the red wheel tighter.
A tight squeeze.
The ship wheel’s wooden felt even better.
By being in control of this wheel, he was in control of the entire battlefield.
“Everything is under my control.”
“The fishmen who decided to come court death and the lethally greedy pirates.
Hehe, along with those incompetent mercenary corps and those selfish merchant
alliances.
“This time, I won’t just finish off the troublesome Blue Green coral fishman
clan, I will also eradicate all of the pirates around the island.”
“Thanks to you all coming here to attack, I can catch you all in the same net.”
“You will all become my merits!”
Hun Tong’s eyes flashed brightly.
The most the Golden Flash could do was land on the ocean for a short resupply,
but it couldn’t dive into it and fight.
The Blue Green Coral fishman clan deciding to attack the island was building
towards the circumstances Hun Tong wanted.
While the looting pirates would let him free his reputation from all that
tainted it and preserve his trustworthy image with the merchants and nobles.
Persuading the pirates to restrain themselves was actually him putting on a
performance.
By showing weakness, he aroused the pirates’ greed.
The very first to fall into the trap was the strongest gold level pirate boss,
Qi You!
“The pirates looked the entire island.”
“According to imperial law, when I kill them and fish out those valuables, they
will all belong to me as spoils of war.”
“Many thanks to you for letting me seize the Wealth Church’s and every large
store’s wealth, hahaha.”
“After a large fire, a prairie the next year will be verdant and shine with new
vitality. My Two Eyes Island will be like that too.”
“After this violent upheaval, the prior agreements with the merchant alliances
will be resigned, and even the five great merchant alliances will pay me a sum
in exchange.”
“After all, the contract at the time said we were to resist external enemies
together.”
“But in the end, when that time came, they sailed their ships away, waded
through my magic traps, and damaged our defensive line at their own accord!”
Hun Tong was not just scheming against the fishmen and the pirates, but also
the Wealth Church and every merchant alliance.
His gaze deepened, as if recalling something, “The empire’s order must be
carried out.”
“In the future Two Eyes Island will become a supply line hub, therefore it has
to be transformed!”
“From a commerce island into a transportation base.”
The empire’s order was not within Hun Tong’s plan.
For these last years, Hun Tong had been constantly thinking to how to
transition himself.
Previous business contracts shackled him, and he also couldn’t unilaterally
alter those contracts. As an island feudal lord, his background was far lesser
than the six great merchant alliances.
In the future, he also had to ensure the transportation base’s security!
However, the merchant alliance ships were sure to be traveling to and fro, and
according to the trade agreements, he couldn’t constrain them, this was a
conflict with his administration.
If there was a breach of contract, he had to compensate with large amounts of
money and even lose parts of his territory.
But by doing this, the merchant alliance will pay him money!
“In the following negotiations, I will seize the opportunity to shred those
business contracts and free myself.”
“I didn’t expect the Wealth priest to die in battle.”
That had been his partner in the establishment of Two Eyes Island.
His sacrifice made Hun Tongn sigh incessantly.
“Thinking about it carefully, that’s fine.”
“When a new priest is dispatched, there will be a vacuum period.”
“That will be the optimal moment to strengthen my control.”
“I will seize the opportunity to introduce other churches and divide the
religious aspects here into two, allowing them to check and balance each
other.”
Hun Tong was not a cleric, he was a noble, a representative of monarchical
power.
Monarchial power and divine power were unified but were also opposed to each
other!
“Wonderful, the future really is too wonderful!”
When Hun Tong thought of these merits, he couldn’t help but chuckle.
In his calculations, the future would be bright, the previous haze all cleaned
away.
The round “scales” flying in the air evaded attacks as they changed their
angles.
These were parts of the gold module – Flying Whiriling Compact Discs.
The main turret poured light into the five light cannon turrets again.
The light network was formed once more.
The Golden Flash’s third bombardment!
For a moment, fishmen and pirates howled and screamed.
The casualties were innumerable.
The gold level magic ship could slaughter as many enemies as it liked.
The two bombardments had inflicted casualties on most of it already.
It was difficult to imagine that this was once a tremendous military that could
sweep across the entire island.
“Retreat, retreat!!” the old clan elder yelled, his eyes flowing with tears of
blood.
He wanted to retake their homeland, for this he had used his full strength.
But now, the clan was nearly extinct, and taking back their homeland had become
a dream.
The Golden Flash fired a fourth time!
This time, Hun Tong mainly targeted the ocean battlefield.
Many Flying Whirling Discs flew above the ships there.
A hundred thousand light beams fired out perfectly straight, instantly forming
a forest of lights.
If the Deep Sea Monster Fish fired its cannons, it would be constrained by
worries of friendly fire. 
But these light cannon turrets were extremely accurate.
Especially with the Flying Whiriling Discs’ help, it simply was like sticking a
muzzle to an enemy’s forehead, how could it miss? 
“No!!” It was Er Gua Zi’s turn to have his heart pierced with sorrow.
The Vinegar Jar Pirates were already having a hard time staying strong, as the
enemy merchant ships outnumbered them and there were more silver level merchant
alliance representatives than pirates of the same level.
The reason why they could last this long was mainly because the merchant
alliance representatives cherished their property and were more focused on
worrying about and saving their fleets.
At the same time, they also cherished themselves and weren’t willing to take
risks, afraid of a gold level retaliation.
With this bombardment, the Vinegar Jar Pirates suffered a mortal blow.
Although the fishmen pirates didn’t suffer many losses.
Their ships began to slowly sink.
In a blink, this large gold level pirate group only had one seaworthy ship
left.
It was their flagship, the Vinegar Jar.
In the Vinegar Jar, Xi Dai Zi’s head was filled with cold sweat.
“If the next bombardment targets the flagship…we won’t be able to hold on!”
Ku Feng and Mei Ban were dumbfounded.
Hong Zhu slowed down.
She had originally judged that the fishmen held an immense advantage, therefore
she decided to go to the water and think of a means of taking a boat from the
island.
But in the end, after Hun Tong unleased his trump card, the treasure hunter
discovered how wrong she was!
The ocean battlefield went silent.
The merchant alliance representatives watched the fishmen doing their best to
mend their vessels and saw the fishmen corpses strewn across their decks.
Even friendly forces were astonished by the bombardment’s might.
“Hun Tong, this guy. If he had called this magic ship out earlier, we wouldn’t
have suffered such immense damage!”
“He is too treacherous; this is a scheme against us.”
“Repulsive, hateful!”
At this moment, Hun Tong’s voice rang throughout the battlefield, “Everyone, if
you don’t press the attack now, when will you?”
The merchant alliance representatives were startled.
Hun Tong’s tone contained a menacing implication.
With that gold level magic ship, he was the strongest force on the field.
Not a single merchant alliance representative could compete openly with the
high spirited Hun Tong.
“Kill!”
“Kill those fishmen.”
“Steal their ships to make up for our losses.”
As if waking from a dream, the merchant alliance representatives rushed out of
their flagships.
The Golden Flash’s bombardment had inflicted heavy losses on the Vinegar Jar
Pirates, and the latter could no longer do anything to the merchant alliance
ships, liberating the merchant alliance representatives.
“The Vinegar Jar Pirates are finished!” Cang Xu saw this from a distance, even
though he wasn’t an accomplished military man, he immediately judged the
situation correctly.
He then glanced at the orbiting “scales” in the air, causing Cang Xu to cough.
During the prior bombardments, he was very nervous and afraid that he’d become
a target of them.
But Hun Tong didn’t target the Iron Lump.
Probably because Cang Xu was on the bow, looking like how he did during the
auction, along with the fishmen corpses left strewn across the deck, Qing Xin,
Men Shi, and the other humans making it clear where they stood.
At this moment, Zi Di transmitted, “With that gold level magic ship, Hun Tong
has established victory, our prior conjecture was correct, he was holding back
and still had this trump card.”
“But you should still leave first, keep distance from Two Eyes Island.”
“The Iron Lump is the Iron Club Mercenary Corps’ flagship, I am worried that
after the battle, that mercenary corps will leverage its connections to
pressure us into giving it back.”
“We must sail away first, it would be best if they never got the chance to do
this.”
“After so many days, there hasn’t been any response to our ransom letter. This
makes me very worried, and I have a bad premonition about it.”



****** Chapter 196 Cang Xu’s Troubles ******
Zi Di’s cautious proposal was deeply approved by Cang Xu.
Mystifying Monster Island had cultivated the survivors into treating everything
prudently, and keeping space to retreat was a good habit.
However, when he tried to pull the Iron Lumpaway from the new island, two
silver levels appeared unexpectedly to bar Cang Xu’s way.
“Finally, I’ve been waiting for this! Where do you think you’re going?” One of
them was a female silver level with a gloomy face and emitted a strong
hostility.
Seeing this suddenly emerging enemy, Cang Xu’s complexion changed slightly, “Ya
Ma?”
Ya Ma once had friction with Cang Xu and Zi Di, and after the two had defeated
her, they forced her to give her auction ticket to them in exchange for her
freedom.
“Because of you, I missed the auction.”
“Now, you’ve stolen the Iron Lump, you think you can just walk away from it
all?”
“Hehe, in your dreams!”
“I only lose to you guys because I didn’t have enough time to cast, giving you
a cheap shot.”
“This time, we’ll settle our old debt.” Ya Ma spat out.
She was a summoner.
When Cang Xu and Zi Di faced her last time, they had used fire path rings to
launch an undefendable magic barrage to win.
This time, he saw that she was riding a giant flying ant she had summoned and
knew she had come prepared.
The Iron Lump was already some distance from shore, and it was through riding
on this giant ant that Ya Ma was able to bar Cang Xu’s way.
Cang Xu’s head wrinkled as he looked at Ya Ma, then gazed at her companion.
It was someone familiar to Cang Xu.
She was broad and fat, had an owl like face, and was the beastman dancer Yue
Ban.
Ya Ma had come for vengeance, Cang Xu could connect the dots.
But why was Yue Ban here?
Just as Cang Xu was about to speak, ready to negotiate, Yue Ban spoke first,
“Magician, I have also been looking for you.”
“While doing so, I received Magician Ya Ma’s invitation to meet with you.”
“During the auction, you purchased a pair of dancing shoes, you should remember
them.”
“Those Mushroom Dancing Shoes are very important to me.”
“Can you sell them to me please?”
“I need them!”
Cang Xu faintly nodded, “Mushroom Dancing Shoes…gold level equipment. Lord Yue
Ban, how much do you plan to offer for them?”
“You lost to us during the auction, and those Mushroom Dancing Shoes now belong
to us.”
“Now you want to buy it, don’t tell me you’ll force us to sell it at a loss?”
“What can you offer for it?”
Yue Ban was silent for a moment, “That’s right, I don’t have enough money.”
“That doesn’t matter.” Cang Xu shook his head, “This world does not value just
money. In fact, there are many things money is unable to weigh in on.”
“If you can help me deal with the trouble before me, we are willing to discuss
things based on your contribution and give you a discount on the Mushroom
Dancing Shoes.” Cang Xu said after mulling on it.
He wanted to negotiate, turn an enemy into a friend, and bring Yue Ban onto his
side.
But this move of his drew a sneer from Ya Ma.
Since Ya Ma had invited Yue Ban over, she naturally understood what was
happening. If she let Cang Xu so easily convert her ally over, then she’d be
quite the dullard.
As expected, Yue Ban shook her head, “Sorry, I can’t do that.”
“If I didn’t get Magician Ya Ma’s help, I wouldn’t have been able to find you.”
Yue Ban was also flying on a giant ant.
She continued, “Order cannot be overturned, I won’t bite the hand that feeds
me.”
“Furthermore, my clan has a close connection with Ya Ma.”
Ya Ma smiled, “My summoned Yellow Wasp lives in Yue Ban’s hometown and has
signed a summoning contract.”
“Therefore, sire don’t waste your saliva, obediently surrender without a fight
and you can avoid bodily suffering.”
Yue Ban agreed, “Hand over the Mushroom Dancing Shoes and I will plea for
leniency.”
Cang Xu laughed back, “Since that is so, then let us settle this, I hope you
can treasure your time. If you wait for my companion to come and help, then you
won’t have another opportunity.”
Qing Xin had already flown into the air.
Since a powerful enemy had suddenly arrived, she had no choice but to keep
fighting.
Cang Xu was at a severe disadvantage.
He looked like a silver level, but that was merely a disguise, his real life
level was only at the iron level.
Furthermore, he was relying on fire path rings.
His true skills couldn’t be used publicly.
“A pity Men Shi left the ship to look for a chance to repay the commander’s
kindness. Otherwise, the situation wouldn’t be this bad.” Cang Xu regretfully
thought.
He didn’t use a communications device to call for help in front of his two
enemies.
Because he knew Zi Di would notice the emergency here.
An unexpected fight unfolded on the Iron Lump.
The summoner Ya Ma and the beastman dancer Yue Ban versus Cang Xu and Qing Xin!
In the subterranean depths.
Bang.
An explosion caused smoke and dust to scatter about.
The dragonman youngster stormed into the center of the formation.
“This is the place the fishman caster is!”
“But where are they?”
Soon after, the pharmacist hurried in, then after using magic to examine the
area, he said, “They used camouflage magic, they actually relocated before we
got here.”
Zong Ge frowned, “The fishman magician using the large scale magic cannot just
be bait. They must have left because they attained their objective. This facade
they induced just delayed our battle with them.”
“There is nothing we can do about it.” The dragonman youngster shook his head
slightly.
If the enemy wasn’t stopped, the rewards afterwards wouldn’t be much.
But for the sake of his and his subordinates’ lives, the dragonman youngster
didn’t regret adopting a steady and slow strategy.
At this moment, Zi Di transmitted the latest information.
The dragonman youngster’s heart quaked, “What? Cang Xu ran into trouble?”
The young man was serene outwardly but inwardly be frowned and felt prickled.
Cang Xu was using the face of a Wisteria elder, thus, it was very inconvenient
for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to help him.
“But no matter what, it is better to leave this place first and get closer to
Cang Xu.”
Thinking of that, the dragonman youngster immediately ordered, “The enemy
magician has left already, our operation has failed. We should immediately
return topside to deal with the enemy’s defenses.:
The auxiliary commander and the pharmacist both laughed, completely at ease.
The latter believed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t know the latest
intelligence and proudly stated, “Don’t be so tense, Commander Long Fu. The
Feudal Lord has truly acted, and now the situation is utterly titled towards
us, we have already secured victory!”
“Oh? Really?” The dragonman youngster was startled, “Tell me now, what’s going
on,”
The pharmacist joyfully recounted the tale as the group quickly made their way
back.
The purple scaled fishman and Shi Fa struggled to drag a fishman corpse through
a dark path.
To conceal their auras, they didn’t choose to use magic.
The fishman corpse was the long dead Hai Ping.
Despite the years, his corpse hadn’t decayed, it was still full of flesh,
seemed true to life, and he looked like he was in a deep sleep, that if he
opened his eyes, he would awaken.
At first glance, the purple scaled fishman lamented, it really was the Swelling
Wave bloodline.
The purple scaled fishman suddenly stopped, “I smell the ocean. We are nearly
off of Two Eyes Island. How are you doing?”
The purple scaled fishman threw a worried glance at Shi Fa.
Shi Fa was in a bad state.
He was deathly pale, his skin was colorless, his body was verged on collapse,
he was weak all over, and his spirit was nearly spent.
Shi Fa smiled, “I’ll do my best to keep up.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He instead consoled the purple scaled fishman, “I have
already performed my function.”
“This matter is finished.”
“Originally, I thought about staying behind, fighting to give you time.”
“But you were right, with my state right now, it would only give the enemy a
victory and wouldn’t stall for any time at all.”
“When we enter the sea, I can use the last of my magic power to disguise myself
with your aura and go another direction.”
“Good luck!”
The purple scaled fishman opened her mouth, but didn’t say anything, instead
merely nodding.
They had found Hai Ping’s corpse far quicker than they had expected.
Thus, Shi Fa hadn’t sacrificed his life.
The purple scaled fishman respected Shi Fa, and when she heard Shi Fa wanted to
stay behind, her advising him to come with her was due to her wanting to save
his life.
Now that they were about to dive into the ocean, Shi Fa still chose to
sacrifice himself in another way.
And this time, the purple scaled fishman didn’t stop him.
Because the two had received the naga priestess’ message and knew the
battlefield on the island had dramatically shifted.
The fishmen were routed.
There wasn’t much time for the two to retreat!
When the two reached the end of the secret path, the purple scaled fishman
quickly cast a spell that caused the vines and branches before them to slowly
separate, allowing seawater to bubbling through small cracks.
As the passage expanded, so too did the flow of seawater.
The purple scaled fishman and Shi Fa were fish back in water and dove down into
it.
The two looked at each other, silently nodded, and separated.
The purple scaled fishman tugged Hai Ping’s corpse deeper and spared no effort
to haul it away from the island.
After a moment, Shi Fa cast a spell to disguise himself with the purple scaled
fishman’s aura and swan in another direction.
“They’re out, I need to support them!” The naga priestess’ eyes flashed
briefly.
But she was still entangled with Hun Tong’s clone and couldn’t free herself.
Hun Tong’s alchemy clone was unafraid of death and was very troublesome.
The naga priestess knew she wasn’t very mobile, and if she acted abnormally, it
was bound to provoke the gold level magic ship’s indiscriminate bombing. 
The situation was utterly in tatters, but there was one thing the naga
priestess was happy about: to protect his benefits, Hun Tong hadn’t shot these
gold levels yet. The bombardments were motivated by him wanting to “stop
valuables from leaving and to protect his territory”,
Thus, the naga priestess looked at the old fishman elder.
The fishman elder suddenly felt his heart move, realizing it was time for him
to sacrifice himself.
He deeply sighed and entrusted his walking stick to a fishman next to him.
The walking stick wasn’t just gold level equipment, it also had significant
meaning.
It was the symbol of the clan elder’s authority!



****** Chapter 197: Yellow Nest Wasps ******
When the old fishman elder gave his walking stick to another, the meaning was
self-evident.
“Lord Clan Elder!” The fishman confidant shouted.
The old clan elder bitterly laughed back, and Cang Sang apologized, “So sorry
everyone, I really was an incompetence elder.”
“Our homeland was lost by my hands.”
“I knew my own daughter had been kidnapped and was being tortured by the enemy,
but I couldn’t act.”
“To save her, I didn’t hesitate to deceive our allies and violate my
convictions and principles.”
“To have this chance to redeem myself in self-sacrifice really makes me
fortunate.” 
“Before this battle, I lay down my will.”
“Everything in this will shall be done.” 
“Lord Clan Elder…boohoo.” The people choked with sobs and wept.
The old clan elder gazed hopefully at the naga priestess, “Lord Priestess, I
leave my clansmen and daughter in your care!”
The naga priestess was solemn, although they had cheated her slightly, his
willingness to sacrifice himself was a righteous achievement and more than made
up for it.
The naga priestess nodded faintly, “With that ship present, I can only do by
best.”
“Be at ease. That ship will find it difficult to attend to you soon.” After the
old clan elder said this, he firmly stamped his feet and shouted the Frozen
Land Whale’s childhood name.
The Frozen Land Whale was a magic beast the clan had raised.
Since the year they had been banished, the clan began to raise it, and didn’t
hesitate to ration their own food, all to retake their homeland.
But Hun Tong was an excellent businessman, and he had enough money to build a
gold level magic ship, which far outstripped the bred Frozen Land Whale.
The Frozen Land Whale had been trained to have a tacit understanding, and
without the old clan elder saying anything, merely just stamping his foot, it
knew what to do.
Racial magic – Ascending Spring!
Seawater flowed from its breathing hole and sprayed out, shooting the old clan
elder into the sky.
The fishman elder flew at lightning speed as he gained altitude.
The old clan elder had kept this trick hidden, originally he had intended to
find an opportunity to rise suddenly into the sky to ruthlessly attack Yan Ding
or Hun Tong’s clone.
But he never found that chance.
Due to the crucial military situation, he had to use it now.
The old clan elder’s skill really went against Hun Tong’s expectations.
He hastily manipulated three of the five light cannons.
The light beams hit the old clan elder, however, he stiffly went against the
bombardment and rose to the altitude of the Golden Flash, then wounded and
bloody, he landed on the Golden Flash’s deck
“There is still 75% of the magic power reservoir, that’s enough.”
“But I won’t be able to personally control it anymore.”
Hun Tong’s eyes shrank.
He couldn’t ignore the old fishman elder and let him devastate his flagship.
The Golden Flash didn’t have good defenses.
Especially when the old clan elder was staking his life on this, Hun Tong
wouldn’t dare let a gold level do what he wanted!
Hun Tong prodded the magic runes, giving theGolden Flashhurried orders to
continue bombarding, then immediately flew below to fight the fishman elder.
The fishman elder was unarmed, but his long green seaweed like hair and his
bubbling golden battle qi danced as he caused chaos everywhere.
“Come, let us fight to the death!” The old clan elder was filled with
determination, ready to die.
Hun Tong’s eyes shrank again.
The enemy before him was most troublesome.
He was a gold level too, and did not care about living.
More crucially, he was on the Golden Flash.
If anything was broken, he wouldn’t be able to repair it for the time being!
He couldn’t repair the underground patrollers, let alone the Golden Flash.
Previously, the old clan elder had to protect the fishman army from Yan Ding.
Now, it was Hun Tong’s turn to be sullen.
Bang, thump, boom.
A fierce fight on the Golden Flash unfolded.
Two old enemies pitted themselves against each other once more.
This time, it was both victory and defeat, life and death!
“Shoot them down!”
The pirates and the fishmen yelled.
For a moment, all kinds of arrows and bullets soared through the air, along
with even cannons in a constant rumble.
Magic spell – Water Arrow!
Xi Dai Zi was barely able to cast.
He was in a terrible state, but the Vinegar Jar still had magic power reserves.
Battle skill – Musical Scale.
Hu Li jumped onto his musical scale, leaped into the air, and used his palm to
slap down a Flying Whirling Disc.
These discs were crucial, it was through them that the light cannon towers
could split their attacks in countless directions.
The discs suffered all kinds of attacks, but few of them broke.
They were gold level components.
Since they had to take the light cannon towers’ gigantic light beams, then
scatter and refract them, they had to have considerable defenses.
These attacks were fruitless, but the pirates and the fishmen didn’t give up.
On the contrary, they began to attack more frantically.
Because they knew full well that if they didn’t smash these Flying Whirling
Discs, they would die!
Although the Golden Flash was a better target, they couldn’t reach it.
The targets they could attack were the Flying Whirling Discs.
Only if they smashed these discs to pieces did they have a hope of surviving.
But although the discs seemed frail, few were shot down.
The main light cannon diffused light once again, and another light net
bombardment fired.
But this time, the fishmen and pirates suffered fewer casualties than before.
The survivors were both startled and delighted as they reacted one after the
other.
“Even if we can’t smash those disks, we can still interfere with them!”
“That’s right, continue attacking, don’t stop.”
So long as the Flying Whirling Discs were off tilt, when they refracted the
light beams, its attacks would veer massively.
The discs resisted these interferences by rotating in the air.
The level of interference wasn’t that big actually.
In fact, many light beams brushed right past their targets. 
However, because the light beams were very precise, and their might was
concentrated, too excessively so, if it brushed past an enemy, it was enough
for them to survive.
“We can live; we can survive!” A pirate roared.
The fishmen were also clamoring.
There were many unafraid of death as they gathered the scattered valuable
around them. 
“Mine, all mine!”
“Even if I die, I will die on a pile of gold coins.”
A pirate’s greed could be seen from this.
“Hold on, what is that?”
Many diving pirates seeking valuables were shocked when they discovered the
shadows of beings in the depths of the seafloor.
These shadows looked like people with snake tails.
They were also gathering valuables!
“Naga!”
“Not only are there fishmen, but there are also nagas on the seabed.”
“They are taking our sunken treasures. Damn them, we went through great trouble
to steal them!”
The pirates felt aggrieved, but they couldn’t do anything.
It was difficult for them to dive to the bottom of the seabed. 
Even if they could, their strength would tumble, could they fight the naga down
there?
Of course, those weren’t really naga.
They were deep sea salvagers.
When Zi Di saw valuables tumbling down into the sea, she had dispatched these
salvaging alchemy puppets.
These valuables on the seafloor came from the big stores, houses, and churches
the pirates had robbed.
Two Eyes Island was a bustling commerce island, and its development had led to
both its officials and citizens all having great wealth.
The generous funerary objects they were buried with was an indication of that.
“I didn’t expect that there’d be easy money!” Zi Di’s mouth twitched. 
This pleasant surprise was brief, as her heart was filled more with concern.
Qing Xin and Cang Xu were in a bad situation.
Ya Ma and Yue Ban were in peak condition, and genuine silver levels.
Cang Xu was an iron level pretending to be a silver level.
Although Qing Xin was a silver level magician, the long fight with Hu Li had
depleted her strength, in addition, her lack of equipment left her in a sorry
state.
With summons surrounding her, Ya Ma grew more confident, “It was a true
disgrace I actually lost to you.”
“Are you really a silver level?”
“Are those the only fire spells you can use?”
Before, when there was friction between Ya Ma, Zi Di, and Cang Xu, she didn’t
have enough time to summon anything, and had been suppressed by fire magic,
unable to catch a breath.
Under that pressure, she was forced to admit defeat.
Now that she had space, she was full of mettle.
Qing Xin could only fly into the air, and repeat the tactics she used against
Hu Li, constantly moving and relying mostly on evasion.
Cang Xu also used a flying scroll, and adopted evasion tactics, doing as much
as he could to stall for time.
He consciously drew closer to the dragonman youngster.
When the battle began, he decided to stay far from the Iron Lump.
As for the dragonman youngster, it was troublesome for him to help out Cang Xu
and Qing Xin.
After all, during the auction, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps constantly
antagonized Cang Xu and Zi Di, winning the good graces of the masses and
building a hostile relationship with them.
Now, if the dragonman youngster interfered, and helped Cang Xu, then that
behavior would be inconsistent with his previous actions.
It would surely provoke suspicion!
“Oh dear, this really won’t do, I have no choice but to act.” The dragonman
youngster sighed to himself as he hastened his pace.
Compared to external suspicion, Cang Xu’s life was of course more important!
“Where do you think you are going?” Ya Ma laughed.
She had grown impatient with this chase and decided to cast.
A magic formation formed in the sky.
The disk shaped formation rotated once and turned into a bright circular gate.
From the round light gate flew out an elephant sized wasp.
The wasp was covered in tiger like skin, black and yellow alternated across its
body, its compound eyes were pitch black and covered in dark luster, it looked
very strong.
Most unusual was its rear section.
Its rear was enormous and looked someone deformed.
Its rear was five long pillars, and at their ends were many small holes.
The wasp emitted a silver level aura.
The small holes also emitted many strange auras too.
When Ya Ma summoned the silver level magic beast, she immediately pointed her
finger at Cang Xu and ordered, “Blow him up.”
Buzz, buzz, buzz…
A moment later, many alchemy wasps flew from those holes.
The wasps looked like a black cloud covering Cang Xu.
Cang Xu immediately felt his head go numb, and as he cursed to himself, he tore
open a scroll.
The scroll’s magic took effect, creating ten phantoms of himself that flew in
all directions.
The wasp cloud was forced to divide itself into eleven, each part pursuing a
phantom of Cang Xu.
Bang, slam, thump.
After chasing down their target, the small wasps exploded one after the other.
The phantoms instantly blew up, turning the surrounding houses and streets into
ruins in a surge of smoke and dust.
Cang Xu’s real body was quickly found.
The remaining wasps buzzed over, surrounding him.
“Not good!” Zi Di turned pale when she saw this.
At this moment, a fatal crisis was looming over Cang Xu!



****** Chapter 198: Saint Corpse Exposed ******
The yellow nest wasps were magic beasts from the Wilderness Continent.
Wasps built nests in the ground.
These yellow mud nests were usually two to three meters tall.
When the hive is in danger of being destroyed, the wasps would fuse with the
hive to form one gigantic wasp.
From this giant wasp’s tail, one could still make out the form of that hive.
According to the wasp colony’s scope, the hive’s quality, the state of the
wasps at time of fusion, and so on, the life level of the giant wasp could
range from bronze, iron, and silver, it was inconsistent.
The highest it could attain was the gold level.
The Yellow Nest Wasp Ya Ma was ordering around was not gold level, just a
silver level one.
To capture such a magic beast was quite troublesome.
Ya Ma had relied on the local beastman clan’s help and was fortunate enough to
capture one alive.
Through meticulous training, this silver level Yellow Nest Wasp was the
strongest of its level.
Because Ya Ma had spent a hefty sum on giving it surgery, remolding the Yellow
Nest Wasp through alchemy. 
It wasn’t uncommon for alchemy to be used to magic a magic beast stronger. 
Ya Ma not only transformed the Yellow Nest Wasp’s body, but also made it
produce large amounts of special small wasps.
These wasps were alchemy things and ranged from the size of a pinkie to an
adult human’s fist. Their quality included those of ordinary, bronze, iron, and
silver level.
Now, many of these alchemy wasps were surrounding Cang Xu, blocking any way out
for him.
Most of them were ordinary level, but there were over a hundred bronze and iron
level ones, along with a dozen silver level ones.
Ring of Fire.
Cang Xu used his fire path rings to conjure a ring of fire that expanded around
him.
Some of the alchemy wasps were burnt away, while many of them were pushed away.
But the Ring of Fire’s power quickly diminished, and most of the wasps grew
near Cang Xu.
At that moment, Zi Di nervously wished she was by Cang Xu’s side.
Despite knowing that even with her strength, the two couldn’t deal with the
massive yellow wasp swarm, but her desire to share her comrade’s burdens and
urge to defy a powerful enemy was growing from her heart.
The dragonman youngster was quickly rushing over.
But there was still some distance from them.
He couldn’t blink over in an instant.
“Is there no other way?” In this crisis, Cang Xu immediately prepared to cast
necromancy. 
Although normally he kept himself hidden as much as possible, but in this life
and death crisis, he wasn’t able to do anything else.
Without life, any possible future was beyond reach.
“If I use necromancy I still have hope!”
Cang Xu planned to brave death and risk it all. 
His body hid many ghosts in it, and when they were unleashed to deal with these
alchemy wasps, it might give him a chance to escape.
However, it was only a chance.
These alchemy wasps from a certain point of view greatly restrained ghosts.
Because these wasps weren’t alive and didn’t have souls.
Ghosts targeted normal living beings and held an advantage over them. But
against these alchemy wasps, that advantage didn’t exist.
But when Cang Xu was about to stake it all and expose himself, an unexpected
figure joined the battle.
A person took out a small ball and smashed it into the ground.
Ding.
The small ball exploded with lightning.
The lightning looked like an inflating ballon as it quickly expanded and swept
across the alchemy wasps all around them.
The wasps struck by the lightning were gravely perturbed.
The silver level ones recklessly soared about, their bodies swaying. The iron
level wasps vibrated and were barely able to stay airborne. The bronze and
ordinary level ones felt to the ground with a light clang.
“Move!” The person shouted, “My Electric Interference Sphere won’t last.”
Cang Xu hadn’t foreseen this happening, and he blankly stared back.
“Hong Zhu?” After he recognized them, he responded by quickly flying to them.
His savior really was Hong Zhu.
The fishman’s casting had alarmed her.
She didn’t dare dig for more treasure in the cemetery and snuck away.
After judging the situation, she immediately went to the coastline, looking for
a chance to escape the island.
She first noticed Ya Ma.
Ya Ma was flying a giant ant, a chance for her to escape the island.
However, just as she wanted to strike up a conversation with Ya Ma, Ya Ma
decided to find Yue Ban and invited her to deal with Cang Xu together.
Hong Zhu was excellent at stealth, and she quietly made inquiries, hearing that
Cang Xu now had the Iron Lump.
Hoing Zhu had a new idea.
“Rather than dealing with Ya Ma and pay a hefty price to made her summon a
flying ant, it would be better to leave the island on board the Iron Lump!”
The flying ant couldn’t content with maritime wind and waves, it could only fly
for a limited time, and her safety would be in Ya Ma’s hands.
The Iron Lump could vie with rough waters and was naturally far stronger than a
flying ant.
Furthermore, if Hong Zhu helped Cang Xu, taking the initiative to sell her
services, then she might ride on the Iron Lump for free and even gain Cang Xu’s
gratitude.
During the auction, not everyone felt malice for Cang Xu and Zi Di.
At least, not Hong Zhu.
Because Cang Xu and Zi Di had paid a hefty sum for her goods, gaining her many
gold coins.
During the auction, Hong Zhu wanted to contact Cang Xu and Zi Di.
When Ya Ma saw her good time had been wrecked, she instantly turned gloomy and
shouted at Hong Zhu, “Hong Zhu, what is the meaning of this?”
Yue Ban was also chasing Cang Xu.
Hong Zhu laughed as she jumped up and used a battle skill to stop Yue Ban.
“Hong Zhu, are you helping this person? Speak! What is your relationship with
them?” Ya Ma
Most of the wasps that had been disabled had recovered and were coming back
over.
In fact, Zi Di and Cang Xu also found it strange that this famous treasure
hunter was helping them.
You know, there had been dealings between them in the past, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps had worked with Hong Zhu to hunt fish.
Zi Di and Cang Xu were currently appearing as Wisteria Merchant Alliance elders
and had no such connection with Hong Zhu.
Hong Zhu laughed, “Two Eyes Island is in a desperate situation, yet you only
care about your personal grudge. Say, could you be part of the fishmen or
pirates?”
Hong Zhu was very forceful and threw a basin of sewage at them. 
Ya Ma turned pale.
Yue Ban shrugged her shoulders and indifferently replied, “I am a beastman,
what business do I have with the humans?”
She attacked again. 
Hong Zhu blocked her.
The two were evenly matched, and for a moment, it was hard to tell who was
better.
While on the other side, Cang Xu and Qing Xin teamed up to deal with Ya Ma.
Cang Xu let out a breath, feeling the pressure on him diminish.
Before this, Yue Ban charged ahead as a fighter and made it difficult for the
two of them to cast spells. 
But now, with Hong Zhu pinning down Yue Ban, and Ya Ma’s summoned beast not
being that wise, Cang Xu and Qing Xin were in a much better state.
Zi Di also guessed at what motivated Hong Zhu, “As a treasure hunter, Hong Zhu
is perhaps thinking of using this chance to build a relationship with us.”
“We were quite prominent during the auction; everyone considered us rich and
imposing.”
“When Hong Zhu goes looking for treasure in the future, she will definitely
make a move.”
“But Two Eyes Island is already dying, and after this battle, no pirate will
dare to sell things here.”
“This will be detrimental to Hong Zhu.
“Therefore, she decided to find an inroad in us, something that will benefit
her greatly.
Zi Di communicated her guess to Cang Xu.
Cang Xu agreed with it.
But he also kept his vigilance against Hong Zhu, to prevent Hong Zhu from
pulling a fast one over him.
After all, both sides didn’t understand each other.
Regardless of why Hong Zhu had decided to interfere and disrupt things, Cang Xu
finally felt the crisis of exposing himself as a necromancer pass.
The Golden Flash fired another massive light beam bombardment.
The pirates loaded with valuables were specifically targeted.
The two pirate commanders, Dian Wan and Yang Cong Tou, were struck with many
light beams, causing them to cough up blood.
“Quick, return to the flagship!”
“Throw most of them away, damm that Hun Tong, I must save the rest.”
When it came to their own earnings, the two silver level pirates showed
complete toughness.
The equally famous Hu Li was in a much better situation than them.
Because the Applaud Pirates had stolen less, for they had wasted time. 
Zi Di also looked somewhat unsightly.
This new volley of light beams had directly penetrated the seawater, destroying
many deep sea salvaging alchemy puppets.
“Wait a moment, I’ve found something.”
Zi Di surveyed the overall situation, and through the many magic images, she
made out a pattern.
Her eyes flashed and a divine light seemed to appear from her, “Hun Tong is
fighting the old clan elder, no one is controlling his flagship.”
“It seems the flagship is bombarding whoever it finds has the most wealth?”
“Therefore, my deep sea salvagers attracted its gaze.”
Zi Di’s discovery needed to be validated.
Meanwhile, the purple scaled fishman dragging Hai Ping’s corpse was swimming
above the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
To protect Hai Ping’s corpse as much as possible, the purple scaled fishman had
crushed a Pearl Bubble!
The Golden Flash didn’t detect her.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was the same.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s camouflage ability was top notch and was pretending
to be a piece of seafloor reef, therefore the purple scaled fishman didn’t
detect anything peculiar.
“The mission will be completed.”
“When I return with Hai Ping’s corpse, the reward for this merit might cause my
clerical status to rise a level!”
“This group of idiotic humans…”
The purple scaled fishman was already envisioning her beautiful future.
Then at that moment!
The Deep Sea Monster Fish’s divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, slightly
vibrated.
The camouflage around the purple scaled fishman and Hai Ping’s corpse vanished
in a flash, absorbed completely by the divine artifact.
The purple scaled fishman: “!?”
Zi Di: “?!”
The Golden Flash’s Gold Eye component seemed to break for a bit, then soon
exploded in a magnificent flash.
It detected Hai Ping’s corpse.
The latter’s worth exceeded all other targets!
Hai Ping had been a saint level when alive, naturally his corpse was regarded
as a saint level material.
More crucially, he also contained a badly damaged god level bloodline, the
Swelling Wave Fishman bloodline!
The Golden Flash’s bombardment followed its doctrine of targeting the most
valuable thing, but it also discerned between friend and foe.
Merchant Alliances, mercenary corps, along with people like Cang Xu and Ya Ma
weren’t targeted.
The Golden Flash mainly looked for fishmen and pirates.
Now, the most valuable target suddenly appeared.
Furthermore, the target was also being dragged by a silver level magician.
Was this tolerable?
It absolutely was not!
Thus, a moment later, the main light cannon immediately gushed with white light
and a large amount of Flying Whirling Discs dove into the sea to target the
purple scaled fishman.
The purple scaled fishman turned pale with fright.
Zi Di was also tense.
Because the Deep Sea Monster Fish was underneath the purple scaled fishman.



****** Chapter 199: The Agreement Fulfilled! ******
To retrieve Hai Ping’s corpse, the fishmen had set up a detailed plan.
Among them included how they would safely transport the corpse back after it
had been found.
After much debate between their higher-ups, they vetoed using storage
equipment.
The benefits of doing that was that it was quick and kept things hidden.
But there were many problems with it.
There were two main problems.
First was that there was no storage equipment that could carry Hai Ping’s body.
Hai Ping was saint level, and was essentially saint level material, thus one
needed at least a gold level storage device to put him in.
Second, it wasn’t safe.
If the storage device was damaged, it would cause the space inside to
fluctuate, creating a spatial shattering phenomenon that would consequently
damage the goods inside it.
Hai Ping’s corpse was just a pile of materials and wasn’t able to resist the
spatial shattering.
If a spatial hole formed, Hai Ping’s body might be sucked through it and be
banished to another place, at best to somewhere in the main world, for if it
was banished to another plane, it would be difficult to relocate it.
After the fishmen higherups investigated for a good while, they decided to use
the Pearl Bubble.
To them, it seemed this was the safest measure!
The God they believed in was very powerful in the domain of deception.
Many skills, even if they were legend level, found it difficult to see through
the Pearl Bubble’s disguise.
The flaw to this plan was its high price.
The divine artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, had been lost, and one Pearl
Bubble used meant one fewer left.
But considering how important this operation was, the sect’s higherups could
only bear the pain and use one.
Regardless of whether it was them or the purple scaled fishman, neither of them
ever considered that the Pearl Bubble’s power would suddenly vanish!
Even though it happened before. 
But in the records, this was when it faced a god’s power.
In this situation, where not even a saint level was present, the Pearl Bubble’s
power vanishing instantly caught the purple scaled fishman unprepared and gob
smacked.
She was exposed, and the Golden Flash immediately reacted to an extent.
Bang!
A light beam suddenly fired from the sky, locked onto the purple scaled
fishman.
The prior bombardments were light net ones, this was massive and focused.
This light beam was fired by the main light cannon alone.
This had gold level might.
This was what had struck Qi You and seriously injured him.
Hai Ping’s corpse was exposed, causing the Golden Flash to burst forth with all
of its power.
The instant it fired, the purple scaled fishman felt her heart go crazy with
warnings. But the mortal aura of death bound her tight!
She wanted to flee, but it was too late!
The light beam was too fast.
Although the purple scaled fishman was strong, she was merely silver level and
was buried into obscurity by the light beam.
The light beam’s power did not decrease as it exploded into the seafloor.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was disguised as a reef, and was also underneath the
purple scaled fishman, thus it was what the light beam had exploded.
The magic alchemy ship shook violently, ear piercing alarms rang out, and
flashing wild red lights filled the hold of the ship.
Zi Di clenched her teeth and persevered inside the cockpit.
She didn’t move the Deep Sea Monster Fish out of hiding, a wise decision.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was fast, but not faster than the light beams.
Even if it could hide, it couldn’t escape.
If it decided to reveal itself, then the consequences would be massive. No
matter which power it was, all of them would burst if they suddenly discovered
another gold level magic ship.
At that time, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would probably be targeted by all.
“Endure it for now!”
Zi Di was resilient.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish stiffly resisted the blow and succeeded in
maintaining its reef camouflage.
But to an outsider’s eyes, the reef was broken in half, as to not expose the
illusion.
The greater half that remained was scorched black and appeared hot enough to
churn the nearby seawater and produce massive amounts of bubbles.
This was the ingenious effect of the Deceptive Disguise spell.
It wasn’t stuck in stone and was malleable to change.
If it was immutable, a common reef withstanding a gold level light beam cannon
would provoke suspicion from anyone observing.
With the Deceptive Disguise spell, the Deep Sea Monster Fish could match
changes in the outside world and produce a corresponding shift with it.
Of course, this had a weakness.
The part of the reef exploded by the light beam had sunken completely into
oblivion.
But in reality, this part of the hull was still there.
Therefore, if a lifeform touched this piece of “blank space”. They would be
stopped, unable to move through it.
Of course, touch was one of life’s senses.
This could also be affected by the Deceptive Disguise spell.
Lifeforms wouldn’t likely see through this flaw.
But if an alchemy puppet carried out an investigation, then it would fail.
“Was that a silver level fishman magician?”
“Her camouflage magic suddenly failed, drawing the light cannon turret’s fire.”
“Who is that dead fishman? It’s actually a saint level!”
Zi Di was filled with doubt.
The light beam soon dissipated, leaving a deep hole in the seafloor. 
Hai Ping’s corpse slowly sank down, like the valuables before it, gradually
reaching the bottom of the hole.
At the edge of the hole sat the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Without the Pearl Bubble’s deceptive power, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
detection abilities immediately functioned.
Zi Di also noticed how impressive the corpse was.
“Why didn’t that fishman magician ever show themselves in battle, but instead
tried to abscond with a saint level corpse?”
Zi Di couldn’t be certain who the dead purple scaled fishman was.
The latter had leaked no life aura.
After the Pearl Bubble was absorbed by the divine artifact, she didn’t have
enough time to cast anything before the light beam blew her up.
“Don’t tell me the fishmen’s true goal was this saint level fishman corpse?”
“Who is he really?”
“Even death, what could compel these fishmen to sacrifice themselves?”
Zi Di was skeptical.
At the same time, she felt a rush of excitement.
No matter who this fishman was in life, he was extremely valuable.
No matter what, he could be regarded as a pile of saint level alchemy
materials!
“Perhaps it was precisely because of its high worth, it provoked the main light
cannon’s fire.”
“What just happened validates my guess.”
“That flying magic ship can differentiate between friend and foe, then it will
target its light beams based on who is worth more.”
“This style…is it worthy of being Hun Tong’s flagship?”
Zi Di looked at Hai Ping’s corpse on a magic image, her heart itched, but she
didn’t act.
She had already guessed at the Golden Flash’s bombardment pattern and knew if
she grabbed the saint level fishman corpse, it would provoke the light cannon’s
bombardment.
The purple scaled fishman was the best warning to heed.
“Wait for an opportunity.”
“There should be an opportunity.”
Zi Di watched the old clan elder, the naga priestess, and the others with more
expectations.
The naga priestess was ashen.
She presided over this operation and was the highest authority for it.
The Blue Green Coral fishman clan’s attempt to retake their homeland was not a
high priority to her.
Both sides only had a mutually beneficial cooperation with each other.
The naga priestess only had one objective.
To retrieve Hai Ping’s corpse as intact as possible!
Now, the purple scaled fishman was slain and Hai Ping’s corpse was exposed.
The entire operation was only one step from success!
But with Hun Tong’s clone and Yan Ding working together to obstruct her, there
was nothing she could do.
“No, even if I break out, I will still face a gold level magic ship’s fire!”
“It’s time.”
The naga priestess deeply sighed, revealing her frustration and determination.
Hun Tong had his trump cards, and so too did she.
The trump card was the Devil Gold Coins!
The naga priestess produced a mirage, temporarily attracting the enemy’s
firepower as her true form began to pray.
“Great Devil Lord, one of the masters of the abyss, God of Sincerity, God of
Trustworthiness.”
“Ally of my Goddess!”
“A priestess of the Charming Blue Goddess prays to you.”
“I beseech thee to display your power, to fulfill your agreement, to display
your trustworthiness.”
“Bend the enemy’s insincerity, made them more noble beings!”
A priestess praying to a God was almost identical to a templar knight, there
wasn’t a 100% success rate.
Because the Gods were not focused on every believer at all times.
But this time, the naga priestess was very confident.
Because the Charming Blue Goddess and the Sincerity God had a contract of
alliance, and also because they had gathered many Devil Gold Coins.
These gold coins came from the Sincerity God.
It was the Sincerity God’s sacred tools!
The naga priestess finished her prayer and immediately looked at Yan Ding.
But the outcome disappointed her completely.
Yan Ding’s offensive was uninterrupted and didn’t suffer any disturbances.
According to the priestess’ deduction, Yang Ding should be the leader of the
imperial secret spies dispatched to Two Eyes Island, Shadow.
At the time, the imperial secret spies had placed agents inside the Vinegar Jar
Pirates.
The spies were discovered, and the naga priestess beat them at their own game,
allowing the Vinegar Jar Pirates to dispatch Xi Dai Zi to Two Eyes Island to
make an insincere deal, for their true goal was to give them the Devil Gold
Coins.
The Devil Gold Coins were the Sincerity God’s sacred tools and were a most
formidable contract.
The contract was as stated: “help the Vinegar Jar Pirates attack Two Eyes
Island”.
When the contract took effect, the coins’ master would use divine power to make
them wholeheartedly fulfill the contents of that contract.
This was one of the naga priestess’ hidden trump cards.
According to her understanding of the imperial secret spy organization, these
gold coins were liable to end up in the leader’s bag.
When the agreement took effect, it could convert an enemy into a friend and
turn a strong human against their fellows on the eve of battle!
When that happened, it would likely catch the enemy off guard and cost them
dearly, with one side losing while the other gained, tipping the scales of
victory severely in the other direction.
However, Yan Ding was completely unchanged.
“What’s going on?”
“Did the humans see through my stratagem and deal with those gold coins?”
“Perhaps Yan Ding isn’t an imperial secret spy?”
“Or perhaps the Great Devil Lord didn’t respond to my prayer?”
The naga priestess’ lips were dry with constant misgivings.
According to her assumption, when the agreement took effect, Yan Ding would not
only let them pass, but he would also help protect them.
When that happened, she would have a great opportunity to retrieve Hai Ping’s
corpse.
But it wasn’t so.
Yan Ding was unaffected.
The naga priestess was pained, “What can be done?”
The naga priestess thought she was wrong about who Yan Ding was, but he really
was an imperial secret spy.
However, the Devil Gold Coins had never fallen into the imperial secret spy’s
hands.
When Xi Dai Zi contacted Shadow to verify it, he had insincerely said that he
had taken possession of the gold coins due to face.
While in reality, these gold coins had fallen into the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ hands.
1



****** Chapter 200: Zi and Cang in Opposition ******
The entire 50,000 Devil Gold Coins had astonishing power.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps still held these coins, it would have been
terrible.
But afterwards was the auction.
At the auction, Zi Di and Cang Xu had showered others with these gold coins to
increase their strength and didn’t stint at spending.
Therefore, most of these Devil Gold Coins have been spent by them. 
Because of the auction hall’s dramatic change, Cang Xu and Zi Di hadn’t spent
the last of the gold coins and returned them to the mercenary corps’ storage.
The two of them had some gold coins on them.
But where did the vast majority of the gold coins end up?
On…Hun Tong’s person!
Two Eyes Island’s auction was carried out differently than other auctions. 
Because the buyers were special, therefore, transactions were carried out on
the spot.
The buyers paid gold coins to the auction hall to obtain their goods.
The sellers received gold coins from the auction hall.
But the gold coins they received were not the same ones.
The specific situation pertaining to the Devil Gold Coins was this: Cang Xu and
Zi Di received goods and gave a portion of the Devil Gold Coins to the auction.
The auction took out prepared god coins and gave it to the seller.
This wasn’t exclusive behavior to Two Eyes Island’s auction; other auctions did
the same.
The main reason was to prevent buyers from tampering with said gold coins and
using fake money to buy real goods.
The seller who received the fake money would naturally be unresigned, leading
to a noisy dispute that would harm the auction hall’s reputation.
As far as the auction hall was concerned, since it was the host of this trade
event, they would naturally play their part and bear the risks of doing so.
Therefore, the auction hall was both responsible for the buyers and had to look
after the sellers.
To an auction hall, reputation was far more important.
Without reputation, without buyers and sellers participating, an unattended
auction would be the worst thing ever.
As a result, an auction hall had liquid funds stored, verified as genuine gold
coins that were handed to the sellers.
As for the buyer’s gold coins, the auction hall would certainly appraise them.
Under normal circumstances, the appraisal wouldn’t make any mistakes.
Even if there was a mistake, and the auction hall received fake money, they
would only lose a portion of the auction’s turnover, and most importantly,
their reputation would be preserved, and so that kind of loss could be endured.
The money Two Eyes Island’s auction received were strictly guarded. After the
auction finished, it would be escorted by a massive force of city guards to the
treasury.
But this auction was very unusual.
The entire auction hall became a cage to imprison cultivators.
How could Hun Tong feel at ease at leaving these gold coins somewhere outside?
Therefore, while he was leading everyone in their breakout, he also put all of
the gold coins from the auction into his storage device.
When the naga priestess failed to see her prayer do anything, she couldn’t help
but suspect whether it had worked.
While as a matter of fact, she succeeded.
But the agreement’s power was wordless and uncommunicative.
For it didn’t give off an imposing light nor trigger any shaking sounds, only
the devilish whispering coming from the affected targets’ heart.
Consequently, Zi Di’s eyes suddenly went red.
Her mind was still very clear, but her motivation completely changed.
“Attack the island!”
“Help the fishmen attack Two Eyes Island!!”
A moment before, she had wanted to be patient and wait for a good chance to
steal Hai Ping’s corpse away.
But now, her mind was filled with thoughts on how to effectively fulfill the
agreement.
She immediately took control of the Deep Sea Monster Fish and turned it into
its fishman form.
Two holes appeared on both sides of its hull, where from within extended a
framework.
Vehicle armor quickly fitted across the framework, forming the shape of a
fishman.
The entire hull began to bend, and the tip of the keel automatically separated
from the hull and morphed into a gigantic harpoon.
A dozen seconds later, the Deep Sea Monster Fish completely changed into a
giant fishman holding a harpoon.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had three forms, the fishman form was the strongest
combat form!
To fulfill the agreement, Zi Di displayed the most sincerity she could.
Her reason was intact, and knew she couldn’t rely on her own power, for she was
but a mere bronze level necromancer.
Only with the help of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s might could she be the
greatest help towards the fishmen in their capture of Two Eyes Island.
Changing into the giant fishman was only the beginning.
A moment later, the fishman stood on the seafloor and looked up into the sky.
It opened its large mouth, exposing the gold cannon, the Electric Arc Cannon.
A gold level Python Stray Bullet shell was conveyed through the fishman’s
throat, slid into the cannon’s rear, and entered the cannon’s firing chamber.
Magic power from the reservoir ferociously poured in.
The Electric Arc Cannon’s mouth crackled with lightning.
A vast gold level aura seeped everywhere!
Alarms resonated throughout the Golden Flash’s main cabin.
It detected that there was a giant fishman on the seafloor, and that the
fishman was in the process of gathering strength for a powerful gold level
attack!
Zi Di did not know Hun Tong had also suffered the same influence.
Her reason told her this: to help the fishmen to the best of her ability, she
had to prioritize eradicating the strongest enemy.
An overall survey of the entire battlefield determined who else but the gold
level magic ship in the sky was the strongest foe?
Battle skill – Raging Flame Dancing Skirt.
Silver battle qi cured around Yue Ban’s body, acting in concert with her body
hair as it ignited.
The meticulous flames formed the shape of a dancing skirt.
The raging hot flames twisted the air around her.
“This dancer is so strong!” Hong Zhu’s hands that withstood the fire were
quickly burnt black as she found Yue Ban.
She retreated back, and with the time gained, she promptly drank a potion.
A fire resistance potion!
Hong Zhu and Yue Ban continued to fight, but Hong Zhu was gradually losing.
However, it wasn’t easy for Yue Ban to win either.
Hong Zhu’s artifacts appeared like flies.
She constantly adventured outside, sometimes by herself, therefore, she had a
habit of equipping herself fully.
Therefore, she usually had abundant supplies.
Several hundred meters above them, Qing Xin and Cang Xu were fighting Ya Ma.
Qing Xin and Cang Xu were working together, but they too were losing.
Thanks to her flying ant, Ya Ma had outstanding flying capabilities.
She not only had the flying ant, but also the Yellow Nest Wasp at her side.
The latter was a mobile fort that was a huge threat to the enemy!
In this fight, the advantages of a summoner had been adequately displayed by Ya
Ma.
It would be for the best if those opposing Ya Ma had a plan that could deal
with the summoner instead of being bogged down by the summons.
Ya Ma was very strong and could be said to be quite a thorny problem.
Even if the dragonman youngster was present, it wasn’t enough to deal with her.
The dragonman youngster had both attack and defense, completely able to break
through to get at the summoner, but he had one massive problem. 
He couldn’t fly.
At best, the dragonman youngster could use Surge to jump long distances.
As a matter of fact, this kind of jumping capability in terms of attacking
flying opponents couldn’t compare to Hu Li’s Musical Scale battle skill in
terms of practicality.
“How can you be this weak, are you really this weak?”
“That I lost to you is simply a great embarrassment!”
Ya Ma constantly hooted, enraged over a perceived humiliation.
Cang Xu on the surface looked like a silver level, his disguise couldn’t be
seen through, however, Deceptive Disguise could not improve his battle
strength.
Therefore, his displayed military power was actually at the iron level.
Even with the help of the fire path rings, they were only at the iron level,
that’s all.
“Where is your fellow?”
“We have been fighting for a while, yet she hasn’t appeared yet.”
“Did they run away?”
Ya Ma used words to attack Cang Xu’s morale and manipulate him mentally.
At the same time, she commanded her golden swarm to chase Cang Xu and Qing Xin
around, forcing them into a difficult situation.
Qing Xin was barely able to cast a wind blade spell.
The wind blade flew out.
Ya Ma’s flying ant straightened its back and stiffly resisted the blade.
The summoner’s defensive line was quite stable, and so far, none of her
defensive magical artifacts had been used.
“Not even a magic staff.”
“You really humiliate magicians.”
Ya Ma sneered at Qing Xin, then took out a snake shaped staff.
She first imbued it with magic power, then threw the snake shaped magic staff.
With magic power bubbling out, wings grew from the magic staff. 
The snake shaped magic staff instantly activated, and conforming to the magical
wings, it became a silver level feather snake than started to chase after Qing
Xin.
Qing Xin was in grave danger.
For a moment, she could only retreat, unable to look after Cang Xu.
“Even if someone helps you, you will still fall by my hands.”
“Ultimately, you are beyond hope.”
“Even if I give you a chance, you are still beyond hope!”
Ya Ma burst out laughing like an arrogant bully.
However, a moment later, Cang Xu suddenly raised his head, his eyes red.
He also had a few Devil Gold Coins on his person.
He was influenced by the agreement.
Cang Xu raised his head and roared.
Countless ghosts flew out from his body, and for a split second, an evil wind
blew into the battlefield, the chillness wilding nipping the air.
“Huh?!” Ya Ma’s smile froze completely, her eyes widened, and her pupils
violently contracted at this startling development she hadn’t foreseen.
“Necro, necromancer?!” Hong Zhu and Yue Ban both sucked in a cold gasp and
slowed their attacks.
Qing Xin also looked bewildered.
To fulfill the agreement, Cang Xu decided to act in utter sincerity, and would
naturally use his full strength to make it so.
Thus, his necromancer identity was subsequently exposed.
As the dragonman youngster was rushing over, he spotted this happening, his
heart utterly agonized.
He had nearly gotten to Cang Xu.
But he failed at the last hurdle!
How could he help him?
Before Cang Xu revealed his necromancer background, the dragonman youngster
could explain helping him.
But now, if he helped, he couldn’t explain it away. 
He had run over with great difficulty but could no longer help.
This outcome left the dragonman youngster helpless.
Zong Ge tightly scowled, his heart filling with puzzlement, “Why? Cang Xu
definitely could have continued to stall, although he was in a pinch, it didn’t
warrant using necromancy!”
The dragonman youngster also saw Cang Xu’s deep red eyes, and his thoughts
stirred, “Something is wrong with Cang Xu!”
Cang Xu’s eyes were scarlet red, he was howling constantly, and his bursting
killing intent terrified everyone.
His reason hadn’t lessened one bit.
The agreement’s power only twisted his will.



****** Chapter 201: The Greatest Undiscovered Traitor Appears ******
Cang Xu pondered with all his mind how he could help the fishmen take back Two
Eyes Island as best as possible.
“The greatest obstruction to the fishmen is that flying magic ship!”
“With my strength alone, it is impossible to take that ship.”
“What about destroying it?”
“Unless I am in control of the Deep Sea Monster Fish can I bombard it.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish is also a gold level magic ship, capable of
threatening Hun Tong’s flagship.
“However, the flagship’s full functions haven’t been displayed yet.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish might not necessarily be capable of shooting it
down.”
“Furthermore, it is under Zi Di’s control, while the commander, Zong Ge, and
the others won’t stand by and watch.”
Cang Xu decided to forgo returning to take control of the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
He continued to deeply ponder, “I am only an iron level, I can’t do anything
about Hun Tong’s flagship, but I can menace a gold level like Hun Tong.”
“However, my ghosts and necromancy cannot inflict serious damage to gold
levels.”
“Gold levels are not suitable targets, but silver levels can be dealt with!”
Cang Xu knew that as an iron level, he wasn’t strong enough to go against Hun
Tong and the other gold levels.
But with necromancy path’s properties, it was feasible for Cang Xu to kill the
silver levels that were the backbone of Two Eyes Island.
At this point in the battle, Hun Tong didn’t have many silver levels left.
The city guard commander had died first.
Not long after, the purple scaled fishman killed the alchemist.
This left the pharmacist and One Eye still in play.
“Kill those two first!”
“Ku Feng, Bei Ban, and the other silver levels can be considered loners.”
“As long as the human silver levels crumble, that will undoubtedly effect the
gold level clashes, allowing the fishmen to gain the advantage.”
Cang Xu’s line of thought was very clear, and in nearly a second, had draw up
an opposition plan.
He was once a noble steward and knew the hearts of men.
The humans indeed had the momentum while the fishmen were completely on the
downturn, but the fishmen weren’t completely hopeless yet.
If the situation went sour, loners like Ku Feng and Mei Ban would waver.
When they fled, that would cause others to flee too, ultimately creating a
rout.
Morale was always a crucial element.
In the history books, there were many battles were the few defeated the many,
and the weak were victorious over the strong.
If Hun Tong had half the training skill Zong Ge had, it wouldn’t be like this.
But he didn’t.
He was a talented businessman, and had sufficiently visible military power, and
with his greatest trump card that was his gold level magic ship, he really was
powerful.
But he also had flaws and failings.
He had run Two Eyes Island for many years, yet didn’t have a single battle
squad.
His troops were small.
His silver level subordinates were not reliable, none of them could take charge
and share the burden with him.
“Hun Tong emphasized commerce development too much.”
“The scale of his troops is like this because long term, the military is an
immense expenditure.”
“Establishing a battle squad is also very costly.”
“He didn’t spend money hiring formidable silver levels, the few under his
command were enough during peacetime.”
“Because he wanted to attract pirates to rinse their money at Two Eyes Island,
he didn’t increase his military and troops, at least not enough to make the
pirates feel threatened.”
Cang Xu was constantly analyzing.
Hun Tong’s weak points lie with his troops and his backbone.
By attacking these weak points, perhaps the situation could be redeemed.
A large quantity of ghosts circled around Cang Xu, increasing his ice-cold
terror.
Ya Ma retreated!
To her, it seemed that Cang Xu was still a silver level.
“No wonder during the last fight, he only used fire path magic and magic
scrolls.”
“It seems he never used his true skills!”
“Abominable.”
“He is actually a silver level necromancer!”
“Does he have a connection with the that necromancer who died here on Two Eyes
Island?”
Ya Ma’s intent to flee was very obvious.
Cang Xu could now freely move.
He gazed towards the ocean, in the direction of the patrol fleet.
One Eye was the fleet’s leader.
If he died, then the patrol fleet would be tremendously crippled.
“Too far.”
“If I fly towards them, I will be shot down by the flying magic ship.”
“It would be better to…”
Cang Xu turned to look elsewhere.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Chi Lai, as well as the pharmacist and the
auxiliary city guard commander were rushing over towards him in group.
The idea obviously moved Cang Xu.
“That silver level pharmacist has low military power, weakened by his prior
fight with the fishman magician.”
“With necromancy, it is likely I can kill him.”
“There is also the auxiliary city guard commander, he is only an iron level
fighter, and by killing him, the city guard will have their head removed.”
“The commander and Zong Ge is one of my people. When I attack the pharmacist
and auxiliary commander, they will feign their attacks and won’t be genuine
threats to me.”
“The real trouble is Chi Lai.”
“That person has just been recruited, and doesn’t know who I am. He is also a
Justice Church believer and will treat me ruthlessly.”
“However, he doesn’t have equipment, and has fired the gold cannon, he isn’t at
peak condition.”
The more Cang Xu thought, the greater his killing intent rose.
“He’s actually a necromancer!” The pharmacist was shocked.
“Was he that other necromancer’s partner?” The auxiliary commander was utterly
bewildered.
The two didn’t know they had become Cang Xu’s target yet.
They were following behind the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, and although
they were surprised by Cang Xu’s identity being revealed, they still felt safe.
A moment later, they saw Cang Xu’s ghost army in the distance headed right
towards them.
“He’s charging over!”
“Don’t worry, with Commander Long Fu here, that necromancer is coming to throw
his life away!”
The auxiliary commander and the pharmacist shouted loudly, doing their best to
stabilize the city guard’s morale.
The dragonman youngster glanced at them, then looked at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge furled his brows, feeling quite annoyed.
Chi Lai fumed with rage and rolled up his sleeves for battle, “Necromancer,
wait until righteous punishment smites you disciple of evil!”
On the Golden Flash’sdeck.
The old fishman elder and Hun Tong were fighting fiercely.
The old clan elder was bursting with signs of death, vigorously attacking while
defending less, it was epic in scope.
Hun Tong’s figure was frequently dodging, with his extraordinary nimbleness, he
moved around the old fishman elder and got several sneaky jabs in.
The old clan elder was gasping for breath.
He braved death to attack the enemy flagship, he wanted to damage it, but Hun
Tong’s concentrated offensive forced him into defensive and counterattack
tactics.
Hun Tong was also tired.
He was good at ambushes, and had strong offense, but likewise, he had weak
defense.
He had to attack with everything he had to restrict the old fishman elder’s
assault to protect his flagship as best he could.
Despite that, the fight between them had resulted in much of the deck being
wrecked.
Hun Tong was incessantly distressed and attacked all the more violently.
He surged with an intensive offensive while the fishman defended himself as
much as he could to stall for time and give his clan as much time as possible
to retreat.
The old fishman elder was in grave danger, because if he as a little careless,
any blow from Hun Tong would critically injury him.
Both used their full strength.
Therefore, not long into the fight, both of their battle qi reserves had
severely declined, along with their stamina and energy.
Suddenly, Hun Tong jumped, then pounced from the old fishman elder’s left.
The old fishman elder was just about to turn around to face Hun Tong when he
heard a gale whistling from the back of his head.
The clan elder growled, gold battle qi exploded, and during that perilous
moment, it congealed into a specially made helmet to cover the back of his
head.
Ding.
Hun Tong’s alchemy clone struck the battle qi helmet, blowing it to bits.
But its attack was also offset.
The fishman elder used this opportunity to counterattack, striking Hun Tong’s
clone back.
But a moment later, the real Hun Tong instantly stooped down to a meter in
height, then drilled towards the clan elder’s lower back.
The gold level dagger stabbed the clan elder’s kidney.
The clan elder felt his body go cold, cursing to himself, he wanted to turn
around, but it was too late.
Just as his heart sank into the abyss, clenching his teeth for the severe
wound, Hun Tong’s main body unexpectedly turned to the side, pulled back
himself, and rushed backwards, putting distance between him and the clan elder.
“Huh?” The clan elder stared, completely bewildered.
What just happened?
He found it hard to believe.
His life was in his old enemy’s hand, yet his enemy let a golden opportunity to
cripple him slip by and instead decided to pull back?
“Are my eyes deceiving me?” The clan elder was somewhat skeptical of his eyes.
But a more magical scene happened a moment later.
After Hun Tong pulled back, he stood in place, and when he opened his eyes,
they were red, and he said to the clan elder, “Truce! I can help you retake
your home!”
The clan elder was completely dumbstruck, seriously suspecting whether this was
a auditory hallucinations.
But it wasn’t just Hun Tong’s main body, his alchemy clone stopped attacking
too.
“You can kill me, if you attack now, I won’t resist.” Hun Tong sincerely
declared.
After he said that, he tossed his gold dagger to the deck.
The clan elder blinked repeatedly, he was about to attack, but he restrained
himself, doubtful of whether this was a human machination.
Hun Tong continued, “But if you kill me, I won’t be able to help you in the
best way possible.”
“The biggest threat is my flagship, the Golden Flash!”
“The second biggest threat is me, as well as the gold level Song Shou and Yan
Ding.”
“Below that are all the silver levels.”
“If you kill me, you’ll be unable to seize this ship, and will be
counterattacked by Song Shou and Yan Ding.”
“Even if you can beat back those gold levels, expel the numerous silvers, and
annihilate the city guard, patrol fleet, and other forces, how many clansmen
will you have left in the end?”
The clan elder stroked his forehead, “Hold on, you are…”
“Could this be the Devil Gold Coins?”
Hun Tong stared blankly, “I see, so it is the Devil Gold Coins.”
“Such a wonderful trick!”
He stuck out his thumb in sincere admiration.
Seeing his opponent exclaiming in admiration, the clan elder made a weird face,
both pleasant surprise and a trace of terror.
The Devil Gold Coins’ power was astonishing, it could actually change his old
enemy so thoroughly!
This was the power of the gods.
The clan elder also knew about the secret Devil Gold Coins.
Beforehand, the naga priestess and he communicated.
Moreover, the Devil Gold Coins the Vinegar Jar Pirates came from the Blue Green
fishman clan, both groups had an inseparably close relationship.
“How many Devil Gold Coins do you have on you? No forget about it, that isn’t
important.” The clan elder shook his head, “How can you help us?”
Hun Tong replied, “I can feel that although the power altering my will is
formidable, it is quickly waning.”
“Therefore, we must make every second count!”
“First I will use the Golden Flash to deal with the gold level Song Shou and
Yan Ding, then I will massacre my subordinates as best as possible, along with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and every merchant alliance person large and
small to clear all obstacles for you.”
“Then I will give you command of the Golden Flash.”
“Finally, I will kill myself. You will use my corpse to crush the human’s
morale.”



****** Chapter 202: Bombardment of the Golden Flash (Part 1) ******
As he looked at Hun Tong, the fishman elder was momentarily speechless.
The agreement’s power had been unleashed, causing Hun Tong to put his enemy’s
needs before all else.
The agreement’s effects on more neutral parties like Zi Di and Cang Xu was not
as bad. But when it was applied to an enemy, it was catastrophic for the person
affected!
“If after the war, Hun Tong is still alive, and the agreement’s power
dissipates, he will consider himself the greatest undiscovered traitor in his
recollections, he would be the main culprit of losing the war, would he die of
shame then?” The old fishman elder couldn’t help but think.
Ignoring that they were old enemies, the fishman elder actually admired Hun
Tong.
The fishman elder could also feel Hun Tong’s business acumen.
When Two Eyes Island fell into Hun Tong’s hands, it had actually burst with
enormous business potential, thereby building a bustling and magnificent
landscape.
The fishman elder could never have accomplished that.
“You stole away our home, treated this as your family territory, depleted your
heart’s blood to develop it, and in the end, it was you who destroyed it.”
The fishman elder at that moment felt how fickle and callous fate was.
He actually felt a bit of sympathy and pity for Hun Tong. 
“Alas, I didn’t expect that this was how things would turn out in the end.”
When the fishman elder charged onto the Golden Flash, he assumed he would die
in battle, and although he would be slain by Hun Tong’s hands, he would render
a heavy toll in response and win precious time for his people to retreat.
Before the battle started, the old clan elder envisioned that he would kill Hun
Tong, retake his homeland, wipe away his humiliation, and be please for the
rest of his life.
He didn’t expect that in the end, it would be Hun Tong himself who took his
life.
The cause of death was a pile of gold coins.
The Devil Gold Coins.
“The Sincerity God, one of the great lords of the Abyss, how formidable!”
At that moment, the old clan elder revered the master of those gold coins far
more.
To be honest, before this, he didn’t have high hopes for these gold coins.
Because they were unreliable.
The gold coins had to be in the target’s hands, only then could they work.
They also couldn’t be covertly planted on the target; they had to be passed
through transactions.
Through the transaction, the contract had to be made explicit.
Regardless of whether it was the old fishman elder or the naga priestess, none
of them though the gold coins would affect Hun Tong.
They didn’t know that the imperial secret spy had been working with the local
Feudal Lord Hun Tong for a long time.
Imperial secret spies often worked alone.
One of their duties was to supervise nobles of all types for the imperial
household. 
The fishmen only found traitors within the Vinegar Jar Pirates. After cruel
punishment and torture, they found out they were working for an imperial secret
spy.
Hit by inspiration, the naga priestess decided to use the Devil Gold Coins she
had gathered.
Because this would let them beat the spy at their own game, they would pretend
to not have noticed, and during the deal, they could specify the agreement
details.
The naga priestess believed that the imperial secret spy organization was no
exception to human corruption. Most of those gold coins would be embezzled and
fall into the leader of the secret spies.
The code name for the imperial secret spy leader responsible for the waters
around Two Eyes Island was “Shadow”.
She had been conspiring against “Shadow”.
Through a series of unexpected occurrences, the gold coins were misplaced.
“So, Shadow actually deceived Xi Dai Zi and never got the gold coins, rather
they ended up with Feudal Lord Hun Tong?”
“It is also possible that they did a secret deal, leading to some of the gold
coins to fall into Hun Tong’s hands.”
“But why does he have so many of the gold coins on him?”
The fishman elder was guessing.
He surmised a portion of the facts but couldn’t be certain.
The complete and complex truth exceeded his imagination.
Hun Tong lead the fishman elder to the main light cannon turret.
“Enemy detected entering the main light cannon.”
“Warning, warning!”
“An enemy has infiltrated the main light cannon turret, life level surveyed to
be gold level!”
The alarm rang to no effect. 
The fishman elder overtly walked in, for before him Captain Hun Tong was
leaving the door open for the thief and showing the wolf into his home.
If there was a ship spirit, perhaps it would be crying already.
Hun Tong quickly took control of the Golden Flash.
Outside, numerous Flying Whirling Discs moved on a broad scale.
In the Vinegar Jar, Xi Dai Zi, Peng Ding Zi, and the rest were tense.
But a moment later, they were baffled to see the discs flying away from them.
Hun Tong moved the Flying Whirling Discs to the most important targets, the
gold levels.
The naga priestess and Yan Ding were doing battle.
Er Gua Zi and Song Shou were still fighting, the port was a scattered mess
around them.
“The first bombardment will be the most unexpected, and also the easiest to get
a battle result.”
“Can you contact the naga priestess and Er Gua Zi? If they can coordinate with
the bombardment, the battle result might be astonishing!”
“The main light cannon turret has been fired…twice, you could see its might
from when it struck Qi You.”
Speaking of which, Hun Tong was looking at the firing records.
The first time it had locked onto Qi You.
But the second time, he was busying fighting the fishman elder.
“The second cannon alignment was aimed at the deep sea.”
“Strange…it just annihilated a silver level fishman magician?”
“Huh, so as it turns out, there was a saint level fishman corpse, its extreme
value along with the light network shelling being underway was why the main
light cannon turret was fired.”
“That fishman magician was covertly transporting a saint level fishman corpse,
but her camouflage magic suddenly failed midway.”
“Shouldn’t this be one of your true objectives? Was that large scale magic
being used to look for that saint level corpse? What makes him so important?”
Hun Tong asked.
The fishman elder was callous, “That doesn’t concern you, hurry up and open
fire.”
“I can’t contact them.”
“You broke the communication device on me.”
The clan elder warily looked at Hun Tong.
He maintained his vigilance.
When he noticed the agreement was about to fail, he would step forward and
finish off Hun Tong.
The Devil Gold Coins was divine power, Hun Tong couldn’t counter it, but that
didn’t mean he couldn’t guard against it.
Because the Sincerity God was not the only god in the world.
He was just one of many gods.
The fishmen could use divine power, so too could Hun Tong.
Many godly blessings and constant divine spells could interfere and break the
agreement’s power.
Hun Tong sighed, “Please believe me, I am earnestly and sincerely helping you
deal with me.”
“I just want to understand all of the reasons, so I can utilize all factors to
remove any potential impediments.” 
Hun Tong said this while inputting the commands.
He was multitasking, and from the fishman’s point of view, really was doing
everything he could.
However, just as he prepared to open fire, another alarm rang.
The content of this warning had changed, different from the one before.
“High energy reaction detected on the seafloor.”
“The vessel has been targeted.”
“Warning, the Golden Flashhas been targeted.”
“Energy level detected is gold level, probability of 98% that it is a gold
level cannon.”
“Current hull defense is weak, estimated probability of severe damage from this
cannon is 47%, minor damage is 50%, and crashing is 3%.
“Recommend full speed evasion, recommend full speed evasion!”
Hun Tong suddenly turned pale, his heart jumping.



****** Chapter 203: Bombardment of the Golden Flash (Part 2) ******
The Golden Flash was categorized as a bombardment warship.
In fact, it was also an experimental magic ship.
It used light cannon turrets and a main light concentration turret; this has
never been seen on any magic ship before.
The Sheng Ming Empire had been developing the light cannons. Their attack style
was very unique, and was poles apart from conventional alchemy artillery. 
Compared to substantive alchemy shells, light cannons had a distinct advantage.
They were faster and more concentrated.
Therefore, the light beams were an immense threat to high level lifeforms.
Take Qi You.
The light beam was too fast for him to react to.
With its force restrained and concentrated within it, Qi You couldn’t defend
himself against it. One must know that he had been using a defensive battle
skill before it hit.
But a single light beam wounded him grievously!
The goal of testing the experimental Golden Flash was to see if its unique
design was effective at restraining high level lifeforms. If it could target
them, threaten them, harm them, and even kill them.
If it worked in practice, then the Sheng Ming Empire would mass manufacture
this type of magic ship.
From this position, one could see why the Golden Flash emphasized offense
first.
Second, to be able to probe the enemy and accurately lock onto them, its
detection performance had to be outstanding too.
Offense was the top priority, then detection, and third was speed.
The Golden Flash was brazenly designed to be a flying magic ship!
There were few flying magic ships!
Magic ships were normally outfitted with large amounts of cannons, after all,
long range bombardments were a main part of maritime combat.
A ship without hundreds of cannons would feel embarrassed to leave the
shipyard.
But these cannons were usually very heavy, and some alchemy cannons with
massive power were also extremely heavy.
If the cannon material was made of bad materials, it was liable to explode and
will instead menace the ship it was on.
In addition, solid shells also had noticeable weight.
Ammunition dumps of solid artillery shells had to number in the thousands, and
if it was less than a thousand, then one would be low on ammunition.
The combined weight of cannons and shells was an immense figure. 
This weight made it hard to design flying magic ships around.
But the light cannon turrets didn’t have this problem.
Their light beams had no substance, and the light cannon turrets were far
lighter than a bunch of cannons.
Since it had this giant advantage, wouldn’t it be silly to not design a flying
magic ship like the Golden Flash?
Flight was always a great attribute to have.
Many troops couldn’t fly.
After the Golden Flash entered the scene, the fishmen and pirates got thrashed,
and the cannons on both sides found it difficult to aim up enough to target the
Golden Flash.
One had to be at minimum a gold level fighter to fly.
In fact, only a minority of gold levels had flying battle skills.
Casters could fly.
Fighters with special items could also fly.
However, as they flew towards the Golden Flash, they would be bombarded with
light beam cannons.
Flight still retained its superiority.
It would also be helpful to increase one’s speed.
The reason was very simple – air resistance was far smaller than water
resistance.
It is because it could fly that the Golden Flash’s speed exceeded magic ships
of the same level.
Its speed would become its defense.
The Golden Flash had comparatively weak defenses.
Since it emphasized attack, detection, and speed, its defense and other
attributes unavoidably because its weak links.
On the other hand, being designed around flight also restricted how much its
defenses could be improved.
Because solid vehicle armor was too heavy, and installing it would greatly
reduce speed and flight altitude.
There were excellent materials that could make both light weight and formidably
solid hulls.
But doing so was not cost effective.
The Golden Flash had another big advantage.
Cost!
The Sheng Ming Empire had developed this magic ship to serve the Wilderness
Continent expedition and to protect the long maritime supply lines.
The Sheng Ming Empire was powerful and wasn’t worried about extensive military
battles.
In open combat, they were very confident.
What worried them was that guerrilla raids would destroy their ocean supply
lines.
If an enemy adopted this kind of doctrine, the Sheng Ming Empire would find it
difficult to protect themselves and the cost of it would be extremely high.
They had to dispatch many cultivators to man every node in order to ensure a
degree of safety.
Therefore, if they could develop ships like the Golden Flash, and use them to
protect their fleets, investigate the seas, and respond to guerrilla ambushes,
then it would always be worthwhile to try.
If this project succeeds, then the empire would mass produce the Golden Flash.
And if one wanted to mass produce, then the biggest consideration was cost!
The light cannon turrets were cheap and were already mass produced.
By using these turrets, the Golden Flash had managed to control a key component
of the cost.
Therefore, materials both lightweight and solid were not considered, they were
too expensive.
It is also worth mentioning that the Golden Flash was designed well, and its
gold treasures made up for its defensive weaknesses.
It was the Flying Whirling Discs!
The designer intentionally included these components.
In peacetime, these discs would be attached to the hull, and like a layer of
dragon scales, they offered considerable defense.
Not only in physical attacks, but it could also reflect and scatter energy type
attacks too.
The Flying Whirling Discs could be used for attack and defense.
When attacking, these discs would fly out, spin in the air, and were capable of
shooting down and scattering the light cannon shots, forming a precise large
scale strike.
Overall, the Golden Flash was a high offense and low defense flying magic ship.
This was the reason why Hun Tong had kept it out of sight until the later
stages of the battle.
To accurately hit the pirate boats and stop Two Eyes Island’s wealth from
leaving, Hun Tong had unleashed the flying discs.
The light net bombardment shocked enemy and ally, a gigantic battle result.
But now a problem had arisen!
Suddenly faced with a gold level cannon bombardment, Hun Tong didn’t have time
to recall the Flying Whirling Discs.
Upon hearing the alarm, the old fishman elder was more worried, “Evade, evade
now!”
Hun Tong had said that he wanted to give this magic ship over to the old
fishman elder.
How could the old fishman elder not be worried?
But despite hurrying, it was too late.
A moment later, the giant fishman’s cannon fired from the ocean depths.
Gold level Electric Arc Cannon!
Gold level Python Bullet!
A thick and solid electric current charged into the sky.
In an instant, the world lost color.
The terrifying electric pillar left scorching flashes in everyone’s retinas.
Boom!
Even though the Golden Flash did its best to evade, it was still struck.
A piece of hull as large as a building broke from the main body.
A light cannon turret completely crumbled.
Flames were ignited.
As everyone watched on flabbergasted, the Golden Flash tilted in the air, and
with a trail of dark smoke rising, it began to fall towards the ocean.



****** Chapter 204: The Cloud Ball Rises Again ******
“Warning, naval vessel 1,200 meters from the ocean surface.”
“Warning, naval vessel 1,000 meters from the ocean surface.”
“Warning, naval vessel 800 meters from the ocean surface.”
…..
Warnings sounded out urgently throughout the Golden Flash.
The old fishman elder grabbed at the operating controls to stabilize himself in
the shaking main cabin, and said to Hun Tong, “Do something!”
“Never mind that, the ship has emergency measures!” Hun Tong yelled back.
He had a far better balance than the fishman elder. 
No matter how violently the hull swayed and slanted, Hun Tong’s feet at the
helm seemed to be nailed to the floor. 
He had already used his spirit to mobilize one of the Golden Flash’s abilities.
A moment later, two parts of the Golden Flash bent to form cavities.
Two balloons jetted out from those cavities.
The two balloons were made out a special material and there seemed to be a
layer of white paint across their surfaces.
When they were rolled up, balloons were small in volume.
But after being ejected and inflated ferociously, the two balloons swiftly
looked like two white clouds that completely covered the skies above the Golden
Flash.
The two “white clouds” were connected to the hull with many chains.
The “white clouds” produced immense buoyancy.
The Golden Flash’sfalling speed plummeted.
Soon after, it floated in the air once more.
“500 meters from the ocean surface,” The warnings ceased.
“These are Cloud Balls, silver level components, but very practical.” Hun Tong
explained to the old fishman elder.
After the hull stabilized, he enabled the Golden Flash’s thrust module.
Everyone watched as the Golden Flash slowly rose back into the sky after
dropping some distance. 
In the main light cannon turret, Hun Tong apologized to the old fishman elder,
“My ship driving skill is quite low, I can only operate it at a base level. I
can’t push the hull back into flight while the hull is tilted and shaking, it
would be more liable to go out of control.”
“Hull damage evaluated as minor.”
“But mending is very troublesome. It can’t be done on Two Eyes Island.”
“In fact, it can’t be done at most shipyards and alchemy workshops.”
“This is an experimental imperial magic ship.”
Hun Tong wiped his sweat away as he said this.
The old fishman elder urged him, “Don’t explain such nonsense, who and where is
the enemy? If another attack like that comes again, can you maneuver the
flagship from of it?”
“I can only do my best!” Hun Tong frowned.
Before the old fishman elder had urged it, he had begun do investigate already.
Through his spirit control, the wall projected a magic image.
The image transmitted was one of the Deep Sea Monster Fish hidden on the
seafloor raising its head to shell the Golden Flash.
Upon seeing the culprit, Hun Tong and the clan elder pursed their brows.
“A gold level magic beast?”
“No, it is a giant fishman. A fishman and giant hybrid is normally retarded.”
“His mouth just sprayed out an electric current, what kind of skill was that?”
“Perhaps it is the Thunder Titan bloodline?”
The two gold levels constantly guessed.
They didn’t recognize that the Deep Sea Monster Fish was really an alchemy
magic ship.
The Deceptive Disguise formation fooled them.
The Golden Flash had outstanding detection capabilities, but it too identified
the Deep Sea Monster Fish as a giant fishman-like gold level life form.
This appearance was exactly what War Merchant wanted to show to the outside
world.
After checking who the culprit was, Hun Tong hesitated, “It’s also on the
seafloor.”
“Now the question is, is it one of your trump cards?”
Hun Tong looked at the fishman elder and asked a crucial question.
The clan elder hesitated for a bit, then shook his head as he told the truth,
“I’m not sure.”
The naga priestess and the Blue Green Coral fishman clan were just working
together, not knowing the other’s foundation was very normal. 
The naga priestess’ group was higher in status to the fishman clan.
The clan elder had hidden one of his true intentions from the naga priestess,
fundamentally deceiving her to smoothly rescue his daughter.
He could assume that the naga priestess hiding a trump card from the fishman
clan was completely understandable.
“If my communication device wasn’t broken, I could directly contact the Lord
Priestess.” The fishman elder sighed.
Without that, he couldn’t verify it instantly.
Lacking a communication device really was inconvenient.
Hun Tong looked vexed and ashamed, “Blame me, when I saw the communication
device in your bosom, I intentionally broke it first.”
“Actually, we don’t need to contact her, we can guess that this giant fishman
is very likely to be part of the naga priestess’ force.”
The old fishman elder nodded, approving this conjecture.
Just from the giant fishman’s shape, one would notice that it was bound to have
an inseparably close connection with the fishmen race.
It obviously attacked the Golden Flash because it was supporting the fishman
and Hun Tong was the enemy.
Actions declared one’s position stronger than words!
Hun Tong thought even more, “Since I kept the Golden Flash out of sight until
the right moment, why can’t the naga priestess to the same too?”
“In this respect, she is even more patient than I.”
The Golden Flash sustaining this attack is also my blunder.”
After the two people judged it as so, they decided not to retaliate against the
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The old fishman elder certainly wouldn’t fire upon his own people.
Because of the agreement’s influence, Hun Tong was more sincere than him.
Since the giant fishman was determined to be “one of them”. Hun Tong wouldn’t
incite internal friction.
He was indeed doing his best to help the fishmen take back Two Eyes Island!
“I have some bad news to tell you, my body has a constant divine spell on it.”
“As the flagship was falling, the divine spell was triggered, and the
agreement’s influence is currently weakening rapidly.”
“We have no time to waste!” Hun Tong heavily confessed to the old fishman
elder.
All kinds of magic exist in the world.
There were no shortages of skills that affected will.
People of high position often wore defensive equipment or maybe constant magic
and divine spells to protect themselves.
Hun Tong was no exception.
However, the Devil Gold Coins’s power was somewhat unique.
Before now, the divine spell’s power hadn’t reacted.
But as Hun Tong was continued to be under the coins’ influence, the divine
spell was consequently stimulated.
The old fishman elder’s face changed and he instantly asked, “How much time is
left, can you accomplish your proposed plan?”
Hun Tong shook his head bitterly, “I don’t know, I am not a divine official, I
am not even a caster! I have no experience with the confrontation and depletion
of divine spells.”
“It is possible that this speed will persist until the end.”
“It is also possible that when the agreement’s power is depleted to a certain
degree, it will collapse and dissipate faster.”
“It is also possible that my divine spell’s power will be exhausted, and the
depletion of the agreement’s power will decrease.”
The old fishman elder was immediately troubled by what he heard.
Both he and Hun Tong were fighters.
Hun Tong didn’t know, and neither did the old fishman elder.
The old fishman elder though on it, then shouted, “Attack the gold levels
first!”
He also thought of other plans.
Such as leaving the Golden Flash and converging with the naga priestess to
inform of the situation.
This would also get her to order the giant fishman to stop attacking the Golden
Flash and instead fight together with it to inflict heavy casualties on the
human powers.
The old fishman elder wasn’t worried of winning the naga priestess’ trust.
The pile of Devil Gold Coins had come from the naga priestess.
But if he did this, then it would take too much time. So long that the giant
fishman on the seafloor would attack a second time.
More crucially, the old fishman elder was nervous of Hun Tong’s condition.
If he was entangled not long after departing, and wasn’t able to make a swift
return, would the agreement’s influence over Hun Tong end during that time?
The old fishman elder had many misgivings.
He thought of something else, “When we begin bombarding the gold levels,
whether or not we kill the targets, it is sure to trigger severe
repercussions.”
He had done this before.
With the help of the Frozen Land Whale’s racial magic, he had stormed onto the
Golden Flash’s deck.
“In the event that a gold level attacks this ship, if I am still on it, I can
aid Hun Tong’s alchemy clone in ambushing them.”
“Maybe I can severely wound and even kill them!”
“At minimum it will guarantee that Hun Tong isn’t disturbed, allowing him to
fully display this flying magic ship’s destructive power!”
The old fishman elder was of high status, old and wise, and after carefully
pondering, he chose a dependable plan.
His gaze always stayed on Hun Tong.
“If Hun Tong reacts fishy, I will kill him thoroughly!”
“I cannot allow him to recover and wield the Golden Flash in a wanton slaughter
of my people.”
“However, I also need to act cautiously, and not too hastily.” 
“The agreement specifically states this: aid the fishmen in retaking Two Eyes
Island.”
“He is under the Devil Gold Coins’ influence, and the content of this agreement
is his true doctrine of conduct.”
“If I act against him too early and he judges that his survival will be more
beneficial for the fishman’s recapture of the island, then he will still
retaliate and fight me.” 
“Because he can control the Golden Flash, this magic ship affect the entire war
situation, far more than a gold level fighter like me!”
The clan elder didn’t have a young fishman’s impulses, he was very old, had led
his clan for many years, and his rough life experience had given him much.
Despite the developments and changes being so sudden and strange, he had
adapted to the situation in a short amount of time and after sufficient
pondering, he carried out the tactics most beneficial for his side.
“After the bombardment, I hope the Lord Priestess realizes Hun Tong’s change.
“Thereby preventing the giant fishman from attacking the Golden Flash!”
The clan elder was unable to attend to other things right now and had no choice
but to hope that his ally’s mutual understanding was compatible with his
actions.
“Rise up, rise up!”
“Our ship hasn’t crashed!”
“Victory belongs to us.”
When the human fighters saw the Golden Flash soaring back up, they cheered one
after the other.
The prior scene had scared them so much that many of their hearts jumped a
beat.
Now they were overjoyed, and morale stabilized, maintaining their high
condition.
By contrast, most of the fishmen had become ashen with defeat.
The Golden Flash’s silhouette high in the sky put enormous psychological
pressure on them.
None of them expected the prior bombardment.
Almost none of them had any way of attacking the Golden Flash, and they could
only passively take a beating from the light beam bombardments.
Of the enemy and ally, those that should be happy aren’t, and those that
shouldn’t be celebrating were very excited.
As this ironic and ridiculous situation played out, the main light cannon
opened fire once again!



****** Chapter 205: The Optimal Bombardment ******
The main light cannon turret fired!
Boom!
A thick light beam shot straight at the pier.
In the port battlefield, the gold level Song Shou and Er Gua Zi were fighting
each other.
The light beam was extremely fast, and even if they were on guard, they
wouldn’t be able to react.
Er Gua Zi had been maintaining a defensive battle skill, and when he realized
the light beam was shot towards them, it was already too late.
He could only clench his teeth, prepared to get through the pain.
But the white hot light beam brushed past him and struck Song Shou.
Song Shou also couldn’t react in time, but he too was maintaining a defensive
battle skill and also had a special movement battle skill.
Battle skill – Grass Movement!
When the wind blew, the grass moved.
The fighter who created this battle skill was ingenious.
The principle behind the Grass Movement battle skill was this: when an immense
attack was drawing near, the user could take advantage of the new situation and
in passing, immediately relocate and avoid the attack. If it couldn’t be
avoided, then when the attack hit the fighter, part of its power would be
drained away.
This kind of evasion movement was not subject to the fighter’s control, like
the wind blowing small grass, it was triggered by and responded to external
pressure.
The main light cannon’s explosive attack had immense might.
To Song Shou, the moment before the bombardment hit set off a squall.
The light beam had taken aim at him, and before his mind could react, the Grass
Movement battle skill had flung his body backwards.
A moment later, the place where he had been standing had a deep hole blown into
it by the light beam bombardment.
“The incandescent light beam hit nothing!” The hearts of Hun Tong and the old
fishman elder shook.
The first two times, the main light cannon had hit its target, but on the third
time, it had achieved nothing.
“What happened?” The cannon shot caused Er Gua Zi’s heart to shiver in fear and
bewilderment, “Did the shot deviate?”
“He thought he was going to be hit and suffer serious damage.
In the end, he noticed the light beam cannon had shot at Song Shou.
But Song Shou didn’t get hit.
Er Gua Zi looked at Song Shou, clearly afraid of him.
“The light beam shot towards him.”
“But even at so short a distance, he actually wasn’t hit.”
“Song Shou reacted too quickly!”
“He was actually able to dodge it?!”
Er Gua Zi couldn’t help but narrow his eyes; at that moment, he suddenly
realized the truth.
That was despite him being on the up, suppressing Song Shou, Song Shou wasn’t
using his full strength.
“This guy still has hidden skills!”
Song Shou had been conserving his strength.
He had used eight to nine parts of his strength, always holding back one or two
parts.
After all, this wasn’t his territory.
However, Song Shou’s face was gloomy.
“Just now, it seems the cannon was aimed at me?”
“What’s going on?!”
“What is Hun Tong up to? What has happened to him up there?”
In the main light cannon turret.
Hun Tong sighed, “I didn’t hit Song Shou.!”
“Before, I was able to hit Qi You because the Golden Flash surprised him and
also because I diverted most of Qi You’s attention.
“If we had a gold level coordinating with our fire, then the hit rate would be
substantially improved.”
The clan elder’s heart was also filled with regret, “His battle skill isn’t
ordinary, it doesn’t seem to be consciously controlled.”
“At such close range, I wouldn’t be able to evade it.”
On the other side, Yan Ding and the naga priestess also took note of this
strange scene.
“Why did the magic ship bombard its own people?” The naga priestess felt
baffled.
“Was it because the hull was unstable, causing the attack to deviate? Or was it
due to prior attack damaging the light cannons?” Yan Ding also looked
skeptical.
“Which to shoot next? Continue to target Song Shou or switch to Yan Ding?” The
fishman elder restrained his disappointment but was growing more nervous.
Because he knew this opportunity was too rare!
He rapidly pondered.
“Qi You was heavily injured, is hiding in his flagship, and hasn’t showed his
head again, he is a pirate and isn’t a prime target.”
“Song Shou got a fright, that battle skill of his seemed to allow him to dodge
the light beam cannon and shooting him now will be at a lower accuracy than
before.”
“Yan Ding…he hasn’t revealed any explosive movement skills so far, but he also
uses defensive battle skills, and most crucially, he can fly!” 
“He is a bigger threat to the Golden Flash.”
“He should be ‘Shadow’, a leader of the secret spy organization, if he is shot
dead, the vile effects won’t just be limited to just a gold level dying.”
“Then let him taste this power.”
“Even if he isn’t killed, as long as he is bombarded, it will allow the Lord
Priestess to understand that something unexpected has occurred on the Golden
Flash. She should be able to make the connection that the Devil Gold Coins are
affecting Hun Tong!”
Thinking of that, the old fishman elder said to Hun Tong, “Shoot Yan Ding!”
Hun Tong nodded, but then shook his head, “I still need more time until the
light cannon turret is able to fire again.”
“The alchemy components need to cool and aren’t able to take consecutive
discharges.”
The old fishman elder stared blankly.
He recalled something.
Indeed, there was a gap between every time the main light cannon turret shot.
It never did consecutive shots.
Hun Tong then said, “We can now use a light net bombardment.”
“The light net bombardment, as a matter of fact, are shot by the side light
cannon turrets, their alchemy components have already cooled off.” Hun Tong
asked the old fishman elder for instructions.
Regardless of which bombardment was sent, all of them were risky, and Hun Tong
couldn’t judge which option was more advantageous.
The old fishman elder’s heart slammed and jumped.
Faced with this problem, he was more nervous than he had been while fighting
Hun Tong.
From somewhere mysterious and inexorable, he had a strong premonition.
This bombardment would likely decide the outcome of this war!
“Shooting a gold level is liable to hit nothing.”
“The target might not necessarily even die from it!” 
“Not only that, but it cannot be fired right now.”
The light net bombardment can cover a large area but is even less of a threat
to the gold levels.”
“No matter which is picked, after this bombardment, everyone will realize the
Golden Flash has had an unforeseen event on it.”
“When the humans counterattack, the gold levels will be the greatest threat to
us.”
The old fishman elder’s head with burning with thoughts.
The more he thought, the more his mind was in chaos.
All kinds of feelings were entangled with each other in an increasingly jumbled
mess.
Overall, shooting a gold level needed time and had a low accuracy. If an enemy
gold was heavily damaged, the advantage established would be massive.
Firing a light net bombardment didn’t require waiting, and the hit rate was
high, however even if it hit a gold level, it wouldn’t hurt them much.
“Decide, decide now!”
“The longer time drags on, the fewer chances there will be.”
The old fishman elder understood that the situation was urgent and needed to
make every second count.
When met with a hard choice, one’s temperament plays an immense role.
The old fishman elder finally growled, “Use the net attack, Hun Tong.”
According to his nature, he decided not to take a gamble, and instead chose the
most dependable bombardment pattern.
The discs spiraled in the air.
Bang.
The main light cannon turret shuddered and erupted with vast flowing light.
The flowing light dispersed to the remaining four light cannons, there had been
five, but the Deep Sea Monster Fish had destroyed one of them.
Four light beams shot at the closest Flying Whirling Discs and immediately
scattered, once, twice, thrice.
A light net quickly formed in the air.
There were thousands of light beams at every tip of the light net.
The light beams shot into human fighters, causing innumerable slaughter!
Hun Tong didn’t forget to “show consideration” for Song Shou and Yan Ding.
The two gold levels couldn’t keep evading and seemed to be in a difficult
situation.
But Hun Tong’s bombardment was focused on the silver levels.
Commander Beng Dai couldn’t protect himself and was struck by two at the same
time, killing him on the spot!
“The commander, the commander has been killed!” The Bandage mercenaries howled
in grief, and their morale was at the edge of collapse.
Commander Beng Dai never anticipated that the light beams would target him.
He was careless.
Now he was dead.
There was also anguished waling from the merchant alliance flagships.
The merchant alliance representatives were killed and wounded.
By initial estimates, at least three silver level merchant alliance
representatives were dead!
On the island battlefield, the pharmacist was struck by a light beam in the
thigh, causing it to vanish and leave his lower leg still standing on the
ground.
The pharmacist felt to the ground, clutching his thigh and howling in anguish.
The human soldiers had suffered a calamity, while the patrol fleet was even
more of a mess.
The Golden Flash’s bombardment really had a deceitful nature this time.
The humans would have never expected that their trump card had suddenly become
the enemy’s firepower!
When many of them saw the Flying Whirling Discs above their heads, none paid
them any heed.
As a result, they became targets one after the other.
Hun Tong had an astonishing battle result with this bombardment!
An unprecedented military success.
From a bird’s eye view of the battlefield, one could notice that there were
hundreds of empty holes where the human lines had been bombed.
What an irony, Hun Tong’s optimal bombardment success was not against his
enemy, but against his own soldiers. 
This backstab really was too ruthless!
“Why?” Many people were deathly pale.
“No, this can’t be!” Another person held their head, unable to accept the
facts.
“What just happened, is someone controlling the Feudal Lord?” After getting
past their shock, the cultivators frowned as they looked up.
They sensed something fishing going on up there.
The fighting between the clan elder and Hun Tong had already ceased.
Everyone had forgotten about that due to the Golden Flash being stuck and its
descent to the ocean surface.
The naga priestess’ eyes flashed radiantly, and she immediately guessed the
truth, “Perhaps it is the Devil Gold Coins. I didn’t expect this large sum to
actually end up in Hun Tong’s hands.”
“This…is truly wonderful!”
This was the best surprise the fishmen had got since the battle commenced. 
The situation from this changed dramatically.
The scales of victory violently swung towards the fishmen!
Song Shou decided to retreat and quickly reached the edge of the port
battlefield.
Yang Ding also stopped attacking the naga priestess.
A dense black cloud eagerly lifted him up towards the Golden Flash.
The old fishman elder’s judgement was sound.
The naga priestess recovered her freedom.
She didn’t fly up to the Golden Flash to help defend the old fishman elder.
She instead looked towards the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The expedition to Two Eyes Island was her heavy responsibility.
From start to finish, she didn’t forget what her greatest objective was.
The Golden Flash’s bombardment also caused Zi Di to blankly stare.
She also thought she would suffer the Golden Flash’s counterattack.
She had already made preparations.
But they weren’t needed.
“If that is so, do I keep shooting it?”
“But why did it help the fishmen?”



****** Chapter 206: Lord Divine Envoy! ******
Zi Di was different from the old fishman elder.
The old fishman elder knew about the Devil Gold Coins, therefore he easily
guessed the truth.
But Zi Di didn’t know.
“Why did Hun Tong’s flagship suddenly turn its guns around and shoot those on
our side?” For a moment, Zi Di was unable to understand.
“Wait a minute!”
“My will was tampered with. Don’t tell me Hun Tong is also the same?”
Although Zi Di was putting the fishmen first with all sincerity and
wholeheartedly wanted to help the fishmen retake Two Eyes Island, she hadn’t
lost any reason.
She also understood her condition and hadn’t been deceived.
“Hun Tong might be in the same situation as I. Not only him, but also Cang Xu!”
Zi Di looked at a magic image.
This magic image showed Cang Xu fighting the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and
the others.
When the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge saw Cang Xu was acting amiss, they
naturally wouldn’t try to kill Cang Xu and were merely superficially flexing
their prestige.
The real threat to Cang Xu was Chi Lai.
However, Chi Lai wasn’t in good condition. He didn’t have any equipment and
much of his battle qi reserves had been depleted by his cannon fire and
previous fighting. 
More crucially, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were “fumbling their
coordination” to slow down and hinder Chi Lai’s offensive.
Chi Lai was being dragged down, but he didn’t suspect anything. 
After all, this was the first time he, Long Fu, and Shi Qi had fought together,
not having a mutual understanding with them was normal.
Their display was no surprise to Cang Xu.
It was because of this “consideration” that Cang Xu was able to have the
strength to deal with the pharmacist and the auxiliary city guard commander.
The pharmacist had been distracted by the ghosts filling the sky, leading to a
light beam taking his leg.
Zi Di withdrew her sight from Cang Xu and quickly scanned the other magic
images.
“If Hun Tong has changed to the fishman’s side, then the fishmen hold the
obvious advantage in terms of gold levels.”
“That bombardment annihilated many human silver levels. More than half of the
core force has perished!”
“Cang Xu is similarly affected, so the remaining obstacles are the commander,
Zong Ge, and the rest.”
“I just bombed the flying magic ship, and Cang Xu’s state will surely cause
them to have suspicions.”
“Next, they will probably capture Cang Xu, try to return to the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, and check on me.”
“That is out of the question.”
Zi Di was bent on helping the fishmen, and if the dragonman youngster and the
others did this, then it was bound to interfere with that greatly.
“The old fishman elder and Hun Tong had been fighting fiercely, but now the
flying magic ship is calm.”
“The old fishman elder is a gold level, and it is slim that he was beheaded in
such a short time.”
“Therefore, my condition is probably due to the fishmen.”
“The old fishman elder and Hun Tong are working together!”
When Zi Di’s analysis reached that point, she realized what she had to do next.
“Although I don’t know how I got tricked, if I join with the fishmen’s
higherups, it is very possible that I gain their trust.”
Since the flying magic ship was a turncoat, Zi Di wouldn’t shoot it again.
“First I need to converge with the naga priestess.”
“The fishmen’s influence on me is rapidly weakening.”
“After finding the naga priestess, I must give her authority as soon as
possible!”
“By giving the fishmen the Deep Sea Monster Fish, I can help them take back Two
Eyes Island even more.”
“At the same time, with a gold level at my side, I can deal accordingly with
the commander, Zong Ge, and the other silver levels, along with myself when I
recover!”
“I can tell the secrets of Mystifying Monster Island to the naga priestess.”
“If that happens, she can use those secrets to blackmail me and the other
survivors.”
“Under those circumstances, the survivors can aid the fishmen!”
Thinking of that, Zi Di knew what she had to do.
She was a magician and had gathered much information with the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
Through intelligent analysis, she had many new judgements.
With this new basis, she changed her prior plan and decided to try converging
with the naga priestess.
Of course, before departing, she had the Deep Sea Monster Fish recover Hai
Ping’s corpse.
The “giant fishman” opened its mouth and temporarily placed Hai Ping’s corpse
in it, then began to swim quickly towards the naga priestess.
On the other side, after the naga priestess saw Hun Tong bombard the humans,
she immediately guessed why.
Yan Ding had disengaged with the naga priestess and was rushing towards the
Golden Flash.
The naga priestess’ heart was tied to Hai Ping’s saint level corpse, and didn’t
stop Yan Ding. Instead like an arrow loosened into the ocean, she swiftly swam
towards where the purple scaled fishman had died.
She used both a detection and an acceleration divine spell.
Then she saw the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s fishman shape.
At that moment, the naga priestess’ heart shook, and her voice faltered, “Lord
Divine Envoy?!”
The naga priestess’ bearing changed distinctly in the magic image.
“What’s going on? Her expression is a little strange.” Zi Di was puzzled.
She didn’t stop moving and drove the Deep Sea Monster Fish to face the naga
priestess.
“Priestess.” Said Zi Di.
“I pay my respects to the Lord Divine Envoy!” The naga priestess looked up at
the giant fishman with a pious greeting.
“???” Zi Di was incessantly confused, it seemed the naga priestess had mistaken
her for another.
She wanted to keep talking when suddenly, her expression changed dramatically.
Because at that moment, the agreement suddenly collapsed and rapidly
dissipated!
Zi Di had returned back to normal.



****** Chapter 207: Deceiving the Priest ******
Although the survivors had stolen all of the Devil Gold Coins, most of them had
been spent at the auction.
The scant few were in Zi Di’s and Cang Xu’s hands.
Of those, Zi Di had less than Cang Xu.
Therefore, Zi Di recovered first.
She also understood how the agreement’s power worked: when the agreement was
active, its power was constantly decreasing, but as it weakened, it maintained
a constant level of influence. Until it reached its time limit, when it would
suddenly collapse and quickly dwindle to nothing.
This also caused Zi Di’s misjudgment.
If she had known about it earlier, she would have adopted a different strategy.
Zi Di had returned to normal.
For a split second, she blankly stared in place.
When her will reinstated itself from before, an intensely complex mood swept
over her heart like a huge wave.
Dread.
“I actually did that, unimaginable, how did I fall into this trap?”
Joy.
“Heavens, fortunately the agreement has dissipated before I transferred the
Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
Self-blame.
“My conducts and deeds put everyone into danger. I was just a step from
revealing all our secrets.”
Vigilance and nervousness.
“The naga priestess is right before my eyes, what should I do?”
She was a gold level caster.
While the Deep Sea Monster Fish was just a gold level magic ship.
If there were some distance between them, then there’d be some leeway to
contend with. But now, they were nearly face to face, the distance was too
close.
The naga priestess was completely able to break through and kill her way into
the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The ship didn’t have a gold level defending it, or even a silver level.
No, to be more precise, there is a silver level.
The ghost Lan Lu.
In life, he was a silver level two headed ogre magician.
In death, he was a silver level magician ghost.
But Lan Lu had been wounded when it ambushed Xi Dai Zi, it was in poor
condition and without soul crystals, it would be difficult for it to recover
completely.
A peak condition ghost Lan Lu couldn’t be the naga priestess’ match either.
Zi Di had no confidence he could deal with a gold level.
“I can’t let her see any flaws! Otherwise, the Deep Sea Monster Fish might
change hands.”
“It is very lucky indeed that she mistook who I was.”
“No, that shouldn’t be so!”
“The Deceptive Disguise spell, she hasn’t seen through it and falsely thinks
the Deep Sea Monster Fish is a lifeform. A giant fishman.”
“At the same time, its characteristics are obvious, almost impossible for the
naga priestess to be wrong.”
“In other words, does such a divine envoy fishman exist?”
Zi Di racked her grains, guessing a portion of the truth.
Her eyes glistened, “It’s likely that when War Merchant built the Deep Sea
Monser Fish, he deliberately designed its form this way.”
“War Merchant is a goblin, not a human, and an enemy to the empire. He is an
arms manufacturer and a massive smuggler, so why did he design this form like
this?”
“Don’t tell me he has contacts with the fishmen and sells weapon to them?”
“Or does he have some crafty plot, desiring to masquerade as a fishman divine
envoy to attain some secret goal?”
Zi Di’s train of thought diverged the more she pondered.
Seeing the fishman divine envoy had sunk into silence, the naga priestess
questioned, “Lord Divine Envoy, do you have Hai Ping’s saint corpse?”
Zi Di was startled out of her thoughts.
However, that question did give Zi Di some hints.
She had some guesses when the purple scaled fishman suddenly appeared with Hai
Ping’s corpse.
Now that the naga priestess asked about it, Zi Di increasingly felt that it was
one of the fishmen’s main goals.
Zi Di was just about to admit that Hai Ping was in her hands.
But after thinking about it, she felt that wasn’t appropriate.
If by any chance they demanded it, she didn’t want to hand the saint level
corpse over to them.
It was an extremely valuable thing.
Not something that was easy to buy on the market.
For example, Two Eyes Island’s auction was of unprecedented scale, but not a
single piece of saint level material was there.
The saint level was above the gold level, and even if was decayed, it wasn’t
something the survivors could obtain.
“Furthermore, spitting it out might become a flaw.”
Zi Di took a deep breath and deliberately used a serene tone, “Don’t be nervous
priestess, everything has gone to my God’s plan.”
She didn’t say she had Hai Ping’s corpse, nor did she deny it, it was all
ambiguous.
But the priestess quickly imagined what she wanted, and she smiled cheerfully,
“Praise our God!”
She knew she had been assigned this heavy burden, but after doing everything
she could, the purple scaled fishman had died, a blow that chilled the naga
priestess’ heart.
She wasn’t able to understand why the purple scaled fishman was detected,
causing her to be shot by the light cannon, and was exceedingly worried that
this operation would fail at the last step.
Filled with wishful thinking, she dove towards the scene and discovered a giant
fishman.
From her point of view, she immediately imagined that her God predicted this
outcome. Therefore, not only was I dispatched, but also a fishman divine envoy.
The divine envoy was hiding on the seafloor, and when the light beam cannon was
about to damage the saint corpse, they acted promptly and saved the plan!
“If it weren’t for the Divine Envoy, and just me, this operation would have
been a complete failure already!” The naga priestess rejoiced to herself.
She guessed that Hun Tong was being affected by the Devil Gold Coins, but
didn’t suspect it had been caused by the fishman divine envoy before her.
Zi Di continued to use a serene tone, “Next, priestess, you will command the
fishmen to retreat. If they don’t listen to your orders, then you will leave
immediately; no need to look after their fates.”
“This?” The naga priestess had misgivings.
She guessed that Hun Tong “defected”, the current situation was very good.
But the divine envoy was making her retreat?
After a moment’s hesitation, the naga priestess immediately bowed in salute, “I
understand, Lord Divine Envoy!”
Despite having misgivings, she chose to comply.
She was a priestess.
Although she was unable to make sense of the divine envoy’s order, the matter
of Hai Ping’s corpse had already proved that the divine envoy was correct.
“My God predicted this.”
“The good situation before us is nothing but a facade.”
“That’s right.”
“The Devil Gold Coins can work for a time, but there are many things that can
counteract its power.”
“Which pantheon of gods is the strongest? It is without question the Sheng Ming
Empire’s!
“I can’t rely too much on the Devil Gold Coins, after all they are tools of an
external god.”
The naga priestess asked, “I will move at once, what about you Lord Divine
Envoy?”
Zi Di answered, “You don’t need to get involved. Your mission has already been
accomplished, priestess. Go now, this is all part of our God’s plan.”
Zi Di placed everything on the gods.
The naga priestess was not a fighter, nor a magician, she was a clergy.
As expected it worked great!
By touching upon the god she believed in, the naga priestess unconsciously
stopped pondering and only wanted to obey.
Even if there were some doubts, the depths of her heart would persuade her.
The naga priestess left and began to contact the other fishmen.
Zi Di drove the Deep Sea Monster Fish somewhere else.
Both sides gradually grew far apart, and Zi Di had successfully deceived a gold
level enemy.
She finally let out a breath, and exhaustion filled her thoughts.
But a moment later, she immediately used an alchemy communication device to
inform the dragonman youngster and the others of everything that had happened
to her.
Zi then proposed, “I hope you can converge with me to protect the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.”
“I don’t know how I fell into that state.”
“But just in case it happens again, those affected can be stopped by our
comrades.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish cannot be lost!”
“The secrets of Mystifying Monster Island cannot be exposed!!”
Zi Di didn’t know about the Devil Gold Coins.
As a matter of fact, the agreement only took affect once.
But she was really scared, and her proposal was very sensible.
“That actually happened!” The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were mentally and
physically shaken.
Their exchange with Zi Di had confirmed their prior conjecture – Cang Xu really
was acting wrong!
“But how were they affected?”
“No matter what, we have to join Zi Di as soon as possible.”
“How do we deal with Cang Xu?”
“He knows too much, and if he is forced, what will we do if he starts shouting
out our secrets?”
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were equally perturbed.
At this time, Cang Xu’s eyes suddenly cleared.
He had also gone back to normal.
“I, this…damn it!”
Strong feelings battered his mind, causing him to freeze in place.
Chi Lai’s eyes suddenly flashed, and seizing upon the enemy’s weakness, he
hurled the stone pillar he had been using as a weapon at Cang Xu.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster jumped at Cang Xu, and as chance
would have it, was hit by the stone pillar.
Chi Lai was alarmed, and he soon apologized, “Sorry, commander, that wasn’t my
intention.”
The dragonman youngster dropped to the floor, his head and face covered in
grim. He nodded to Chi Lai, “Never mind that, after this, we really should
train our coordination together.”
When Chi Lai saw the dragonman youngster wasn’t blaming him, he couldn’t help
but be moved.
He noticed that Long Fu was a tolerant leader.
This kind of situation had appeared many times already, but he was never
blamed.
On the other side, Cang Xu had received “cover” and reacted by immediately
withdrawing.
Countless ghosts screamed, lifting a bone chilling wind as they shielding him
in all directions with terrible and astonishing grandeur.
“Exposing myself as a necromancer really is troublesome.” Cang Xu sighed to
himself.
He knew he couldn’t stay here long and decided to leave the island and
battlefield on the spot.
“But what to do about Qing Xin?”
Cang Xu slowed his flying sped and looked at Qing Xin not too far in the
distance, not knowing what to say to win the trust of them.
However, Qing Xin unexpectedly approached, flew to Cang Xu’s side and yelled,
“We are leaving, why are you still dawdling?!”
Cang Xu was stunned.
Qing Xin’s reaction was quite bizarre!
She knew he was a necromancer.
But immediately afterwards, Qing Xin added, “You will explain things later, but
we will be departing first and use the chaos while it lasts to get out of Two
Eyes Island.”
“Ok!” Cang Xu and Qing Xin flew towards the Iron Lump together.
Ya Ma tenaciously gazed at the two’s backs, but didn’t pursue.
After Cang Xu used necromancy, her summons suffered great losses.
Ya Ma wasn’t confident she could face a necromancer on the same level as she.



****** Chapter 208: Give Long Fu Your All ******
Hong Zhu wanted to cry but had no tears.
She had helped Cang Xu fight Ya Ma and Yue Ban because she thought him a big
customer.
She never expected that he was actually a necromancer!
The moment Cang Xu revealed who he really was, Hong Zhu went completely numb.
“I’m in trouble.”
“So much trouble!”
“No matter if they live or die, I will be investigated.”
“Collaborating with a necromancer?”
“Gods above, I am wrongly accused!!”
“That won’t do, I have to hide!”
Hong Zhu was very remorseful.
If she had known this was how things ended, she wouldn’t have helped Cang Xu
even if she was beaten to death.
This auction had given her more than enough funds to prepare for her next
adventure.
But now, that adventure had to be shelved, for she had to first flee the
limelight.
“Don’t leave!”
“Stop!!”
Men Shi shouted.
He ran with his short legs rapidly across the ground, attempting to chase after
Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
The silver level dwarf had been on the ship but left to look for a chance to
repay the dragonman youngster’s kindness.
As a result, not only did he not find a chance to repay his debt of gratitude,
he also saw who Cang Xu really was.
He had been stupefied.
Now seeing Cang Xu flying towards the Iron Lump, he seemed to be struck my
electricity.
Because his clansmen were still on that ship!
Men Shi was very anxious and wanted to save his clansmen from the necromancer.
But he wasn’t that fast, and when his pursuit reached the coast, he could only
look onwards helplessly as Cang Xu and Qing Xin landed on the Iron Lump.
The alchemy puppets on the Iron Lumpwere under Cang Xu’s control.
The people all knew what Cang Xu really was.
But Qing Xin immediately placated the blond mother and child and told that that
although Cang Xu was a necromancer, he was still deserving of trust.
The dwarfs were restless.
Cang Xu promptly stated that he wouldn’t harm them.
This statement didn’t do much.
The dwarfs began to become threatening.
Cang Xu immediately turned hostile and coldly snorted, “Dwarfs, look at your
relatives next to you, your old parents, your young children.”
“I hope you aren’t impulsive.”
“It would be an easy thing for me to kill you all!”
Cang Xu’s “true” silver level aura and the many ghosts emerging throughout the
ship added to his might.
The dwarfs felt threatened, and a number of them indignantly and furiously
glared at Cang Xu, their necks flushed red with anger.
But in the end, they didn’t do anything drastic.
Cang Xu let out a breath, and had an alchemy puppet escort these dwarfs into
the hold of the ship.
After finishing this, he immediately drove the magic ship away from Two Eyes
Island.
“What? We’re retreating?” Xi Dai Zi and the others had received the naga
priestess’ order.
Xi Dai Zi had been involved with the Devil Gold Coin affair.
The upending of the Golden Flash had caused Xi Dai Zi to guess that Hun Tong
was affected by the coins.
The situation was great, why were they retreating?
Xi Dai Zi was very puzzled.
“Boss, you have to decide!” Xi Dai Zi communicated with Er Gua Zi.
Er Gua Zi was fighting Song Shou.
He had been “shown consideration” by the Golden Flash’s last bombardment.
Song Shou had been fired at a few times, but it didn’t harm him in the
slightest.
Compared to the main light cannon, the light net bombardment didn’t threaten
gold levels.
But with their side’s trump card being reduced to an enemy thug, Song Shou’s
fighting spirit had slumped, thus, he stopped blocking and was mainly evading.
Er Gua Zi glanced up at the Golden Flash.
High in the air, Yan Ding was riding a black cloud and besieging the Golden
Flash. 
On the Golden Flash, the old clan elder and Hun Tong’s alchemy clone were
vigorously defending.
Both sides were deadlocked.
Suddenly, Yan Ding was struck by the old fishman elder’s battle skill, and he
seemed to crumble like smoke.
“A fake!”
“Where is the real one?”
Yan Ding feinted, and a moment later, smoke condensed into a human form on the
port battlefield
It was Yan Ding’s real body.
“Song Shou!” Yan Ding shouted, “We fight together.”
“The Golden Flash cannot fall into enemy hands.”
“Otherwise, not even I can escape into the vast ocean.”
“If Hun Tong dies in battle, we’ll split the Golden Flash equally!”
Song Shou sighed, and immediately responded, “Carry me up!”
Black smoke curled up and lifted Song Shou into the sky.
Er Gua Zi attacked, but Yan Ding stopped him.
He didn’t have a flying battle skill.
After a few rounds against each other, Song Shou had reached an altitude where
Er Gua Zi could only look onwards helplessly.
“Xi Dai Zi, send me up!” Er Gua Zi yelled, “Take the others away!”
At this crucial juncture, Er Gua Zi decided to help the old fishman elder
alone, and had the others evacuate the island.
Because the naga priestess’ order caused him to misjudge the situation.
They were winning, yet the naga priestess had commanded a withdrawal.
She must have realized the enemy had another trump card!
Er Gua Zi didn’t want his clansmen and subordinates to sacrifice themselves in
vain.
Too many fishmen had sacrificed themselves in the battle already.
The fishmen corpses left on the port battlefield could be piled into a small
mountain.
But Er Gua Zi was unreconciled and wouldn’t give up this amazing opportunity.
He would rather take a risk and wanted to see what the enemy’s trump card was!
Xi Dai Zi expressed his difficulties, “Boss, I don’t have magic that can send
you up there.”
“Then use the water cannon!” Er Gua Zi was very resolute.
Since Song Shou had left already, Er Gua Zi quickly converged with Xi Dai Zi
and the others.
Bang.
The Vinegar Jar opened fire once again.
A pillar of water rammed into Er Gua Zi, forcing him high into the air.
After Cang Xu withdrew, the dragonman youngster and the others immediately
rushed to the port.
Upon hearing the cannon fire, they all raised their heads at the sky and saw Er
Gua Zi flying out of the water cannon, coughing up blood throughout the trip as
he dashed up bravely with no thoughts to his safety.
He was a fishman, not a dragonman, and his fish scales were far less defensive
than dragon scales.
However, setting aside that they were enemies, the fishmen didn’t lack firm
determination.
“The flying magic ship has become the gold levels’ final battlefield!” The
dragonman youngster sighed.
“We cannot interfere there.” Zong Ge coldly replied.
Chi Lai then said, “As long as we find the gold cannon, perhaps I can still
shoot it, and injure the flagship.”
The gold level cannon needed a massive amount of energy. 
Last time, a magic formation had stored up a lot of energy.
But if it was just Chi Lai shooting by his lonesome, he needed to imbue it with
all of his battle qi, a terrible consumption.
After all, Chi Lai was just a silver level fighter.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship also had been sunk by the Vinegar Jar,
and the gold cannon had subsequently fallen to the seafloor.
Chi Lai had been involved and knew what had happened.
The gold cannon really had been damaged somewhat.
But how specifically was unknown, if they found it and got an artillery shell,
perhaps they could still fire it!
It wasn’t an ordinary cannon, and gunpowder wasn’t used to give it motive
power. Therefore, dampness wouldn’t impede it at all.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge had returned to the port to salvage the
cannon.
However, this was merely a pretense.
Their true goal was to dive into the water, get into the Deep Sea Monster Fish,
and converge with Zi Di to protect their rear!
The dragonman youngster ordered, “Chi Lai, do your best to rest. Don’t enter
the water, recover as much battle qi as possible, we’ll dredge up the cannon
for you.”
“Di Bi, inspect the ships at port now, we need sea worthy ships.”
“We need to prepare for two things. One is a continued battle with the enemy
and the other is looking for a way to retreat.”
The Dragon Lion mercenaries loudly complied.
“Wait for me.” Just as the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge wanted to dive in,
Men Shi ran over.
“Commander Long Fu!” Men Shi panted as he pleaded, “Help me!”
“My clansmen are being held captive by that wretched necromancer.”
“Help me, I….I don’t have any other options!”
Men Shi was self-aware.
He knew that he couldn’t overtake the Iron Lump by swimming. It was also likely
that while in the ocean, he would be sniped by magic.
There also wasn’t just a silver level necromancer, there was also Qing Xin.
He had paced back and forth on the coast, fretfully indignant, exasperated, and
powerless.
He could do nothing but watch on helplessly as the Iron Lump grew farther away.
Then he quickly noticed the dragonman youngster was leading the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps back to the port.
Song Shou and Er Gua Zi were charging towards the Golden Flash, leaving the
port deserted.
It was just as Men Shi had said – he was out of options.
Therefore, he could only ask the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps for help.
With the latter’s help, he could have a little faith.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge glanced at each other.
The dragonman youngster raised his head and sincerely sighed, “Everything is a
mess.”
Immediately after, he clapped Men Shi’s shoulder, “Men Shi, don’t worry too
much. Since that necromancer hasn’t slaughtered your clansmen, perhaps he is
treating them as his hostages. For now, at least, they are still safe.”
“We will help you, let us fight alongside each other once again!”
Men Shi was very moved, he wanted to say something in thanks, but the words
couldn’t leave his mouth.
He was an honest man, and emotionally reserved, usually not expressing them.
He could only choke out sobs as his mind surged.
True sentiments are seen in hard times!
The dragonman youngster agreeing to help was him providing help in Men Shi’s
hour of need.
“Your kindness has become even greater. How can I recompense such kindness?”
Men Shi’s heart was filled with vexation.
“Now is not the time to address that, the most important thing is saving your
clansmen.”
“At worst, from now on, I will join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and give my
all to Long Fu to repay his grace.” Men Shi said to himself.
The dragonman youngster adjusted his plan.
He had Men Shi guard Chi Lai.
While he and Zong Ge prioritized retrieving the gold cannon.
After returning, they would embark together on a ship to pursue the Iron Lump
and wait for an opportunity to attack the flying magic ship.
A dispute broke out on the Vinegar Jar.
Peng Ding Zi roared, “The situation is in our favor, why are we withdrawing?!”
“It was the Lord Priestess’ direct order, don’t be deceived by the facade
before you.” Xi Dai Zi was cold.
“The commander has also ordered us to withdraw immediately.”
As a matter of fact, Xi Dai Zi was also doubtful of the naga priestess’ order
for a time.
If he still had battle strength, Xi Dai Zi might have disobeyed and firmly
remain on the battlefield, waiting for an opportunity to aid his clan elder and
commander.
The fishmen had paid too high a price.
No fishman was willing to retreat now!
But Xi Dai Zi was in a terrible state.
His ears were buzzing, he was dizzy, and he was barely able to control the
Vinegar Jar.
Under these conditions, Xi Dai Zi knew the heavy responsibility on him, and
also knew he had no choice but to obey and lead the fishmen’s retreat.



****** Chapter 209: Wealth Security Spell ******
Xi Dai Zi and the others didn’t encounter any meaningful resistance as they
retreated.
The reason was simple.
The gold levels were focused on the Golden Flash.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was at the port, preparing a path of retreat.
The pirates were all fluttering on the sea, carrying their reduced valuables
back to their respective pirate ships.
With a big hole in it, the Vinegar Jar entered the sea.
It killed its way through the ocean battlefield.
In the ocean battlefield, there were vessels large and small intertwined with
each other.
The humans were on the down low.
Because the bombardment had killed and injured too much of their high level
strength.
The Golden Flash’s revolt had made human morale crumble further.
The Vinegar Jar’s retreat was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, easily
picking up their people.
Not only that, but they also stole several human ships.
Soon after, they reformed a small fleet and broke out of the siege.
Human ships were also freed as a result, and they routed and dispersed in all
directions.
At this time, the Iron Lump was on the ocean.
Bloody corpses and burning sinking ships floated around it.
The Iron Lump was sailing in a circle and didn’t sail straight out of Two Eyes
Island.
The reason was that Cang Xu had received the dragonman youngster’s message.
The dragonman youngster had him release the dwarfs and return them to Men Shi.
Cang Xu thought that since he had already been exposed a necromancer, he might
as well go whole hog and collect souls. It just so happened that it gave his
commander and the others a chance to save these troublesome dwarfs.
Necromancy spell – Soul Summoning!
That was how the Iron Lump was roaming the ocean.
Cang Xu was standing on the ship’s bow, constantly using Soul Summoning.
This environment really suits a necromancer!
He summoned many ghosts forth and gathered them at his side.
“A silver level ghost!” Cang Xu’s mind shook as he dredged up a giant fish!
“There should be more.”
“Not just one silver level.”
Cang Xu’s expectations grew, such a good opportunity was rare.
Bang, bang, bang…
Gold level battle skills created shockwaves and fierce explosions detonated
everywhere.
The Golden Flash violently shook, it had become the final battlefield.
The gold levels understood that this was the final juncture of the battle, thus
they went all out and the contest was extremely fierce.
Yan Ding and Song Shou battled the old fishman elder, Hun Tong, and his alchemy
clone.
As for Er Gua Zi, he wasn’t able to get abord, for he had been slapped down by
Yan Ding on the way up.
The water cannon’s firing arc was too predictable.
Er Gua Zi didn’t have a flying battle skill and got the worst of it.
Yan Ding and Song Shou were on the offense, holding the initiative, but they
hadn’t been able to break through for a long time.
The old fishman elder, Hun Tong, as well as his alchemy clone were defending
the Golden Flash with all they had.
The Golden Flash was frail, and it couldn’t bear the gold level ruination upon
it.
To save this ship, the three gold levels were in a passive state.
The old fishman elder never thought he would protect his enemy’s flagship, but
thinking that this would become his clan’s, he exerted himself to the utmost.
However, Hun Tong’s alchemy clone in the end brought Er Gua Zi onto the ship.
Yan Ding tried to stop them but failed.
Hun Tong’s clone put Er Gua Zi onto to the deck to stand guard, then
immediately shouted to the fishman elder, “Follow me upstairs!”
The fishman elder’s heart shivered as he followed close behind.
The two advanced into the main light cannon.
Hun Tong came to the control room, looking anxious, “I can sense the
agreement’s power weakening greatly.”
“To prevent accidents, I will now pass authority over the Golden Flash to you
now!”
Hun Tong was in a different situation compared to Zi Di and Cang Xu.
He had a constant divine spell on his body.
While Zi Di and Cang Xu completely lacked defenses against the coins, Hun
Tong’d defensive divine spell was gravely eating away at the Devil Gold Coin’s
power.
Therefore, despite him having the most coins, and the agreement’s power being
the strongest on him, it was being depleted violently.
The old fishman elder was also worried about Hun Tong’s state
After a process, the authority transfer was at its last step.
“Do you confirm that you will transfer primary authority to another?” The
control room’s monotonous voice asked.
“Confirmed!” Hun Tong sincerely said without the slightest hesitation.
“Please confirm the transfer target.”
A bright pillar of light appeared in the control room
The old fishman elder got Hun Tong’s indication and immediately stood in the
light pillar.
The light pillar scanned the old fishman elder, gathering his information and
characteristics.
Soon after, a needle appeared.
The old fishman elder suspiciously looked at Hun Tong.
Hun Tong explained at once, “It is a necessary procedure.”
“It will collect your bloodline, so the Golden Flash can belong to you and your
entire clan.”
“In the future, even if you sacrifice your life, your bloodline descendants
will still possess the foremost authority!”
Hun Tong had purchased the Golden Flash not only for himself, but also for his
clan and his own bloodline.
But now, he surrendered this ship to the enemy without resistance.
The old fishman elder nodded and allowed the needle to stab into him and draw a
lot of his blood.
Swiftly after, the monotonous voice stated, “Transfer target confirmed.”
“Please input the unlock password.”
Hun Tong promptly used his spirit to silently deliver a series of numbers.
“Transfer target, please input the unlock password again.”
The old fishman elder looked at Hun Tong.
Hun Tong explained, “Connect your spirit to the ship, and in your thoughts, say
the following numbers: 3.14159265358979323846”
The old fishman elder was gradually dumbfounded, and couldn’t help but
interrupt Hun Tong, “How many?”
Hun Tong sighed, “Although the cipher has a hundred digits, it is actually easy
to remember, because it is π.”
“π…what is that?” The old fishman elder was stupefied, suffering from his great
lack of mathematical knowledge. 
Hun Tong was impatient, “Now is not the time to explain, I will say ten digits,
and you will repeat them, quickly!”
Although the password was a hundred digits long, with Hun Tong’s method, it was
quickly inputted.
“Unlock password confirmed.”
Upon hearing that, the old fishman elder let out a breath. When he was
inputting the password, he was very worried that he would misstate a digit.
However immediately afterwards, he heard the Golden Flash say, “Please input
the authority transfer password.”
“What is the meaning of this?” The old fishman elder scowled.
Hun Tong instantly replied, “That was the unlock password, this is the
authority transfer password.”
“Don’t worry, this password is much shorter.”
The old fishman elder inputted the password correctly.
“Correct password.”
“Authority transfer in process.”
“5, 4, 3, 2, 1…..authority transfer successful.”
“Please input the final confirmation password.”
“Another password?!” The old fishman elder’s emerging smile stiffened and
couldn’t help but glare.
Hun Tong said, “There are three passwords altogether.”
“This is the Wealth Church’s Wealth Security spell!”
“The Golden Flash is very valuable, and to be safe, this divine spell is always
active.”
“The final password is 729073781, input it quickly!”
The old fishman elder repeated it once through, then immersed his spirit to
input it.
Pop.
A moment later, a gold dagger pierced his heart.
Bubbling battle qi shattered his heart completely soon after.
A mortal blow!
The old fishman elder stared blankly for a moment before reacting.
He cracked his head around to see a malevolent looking Hun Tong.
“Stealing my ship, you go so far as to dare steal my ship!”
“Die, die for me!!”
Psh.
Sic.
Plop.
Three dagger stabs eviscerated the old fishman elder’s internal orans utterly.
The old fishman elder raised his head and roared.
His roar was filled with sorrow, anger, and remorse.
Hun Tong had changed too quickly.
The old fishman elder had actually been watching him the entire time, but
didn’t notice anything.
If he had known earlier, the old fishman elder would have definitely killed Hun
Tong first.
Of course, there as a possibility that Hun Tong would resist.
After all, the agreement made Hun Tong help the fishmen retake the island as
best he could, and if he believed his survival would be more beneficial to
complete the agreement, he would do so.
Now, the old fishman elder was dead, and Hun Tong had turned back to normal;
now on the Golden Flash, the only enemy gold level left was Er Gua Zi.
Hun Tong really was treacherous and cunning.
Er Gua Zi’s end goes without saying.
“No! Even if I die in battle, Er Gua Zi cannot, the clan cannot be without a
gold level.”
As he faced death’s door, the old fishman elder used all of his strength to
self-detonate!
Since they had been driven away from their home, the old fishman elder had
cultivated the Self-detonation battle skill, prepared that if he lost the war
in the future, he still had hope he could take down Hun Tong with him!
The main light cannon turret was blown into two by his Self-detonation battle
skill.
The top floor fell, leaving only a portion of it still standing.
From the explosion, Hun Tong flew out and held half the old fishman elder’s
head.
He flew high into the air and shouted, “The fishman chief is dead!”
For a moment, countless people changed color.



****** Chapter 210: The Chaotic Warfare Concludes ******
“In the end, Hun Tong still triumphed.” Qi You sighed as he looked into the
distance.
He had been heavily injured by the main light cannon turret, but after
recuperating, the injury was stabilized.
“Withdraw.” Qi You gazed at the Golden Flash, that magic ship was too big a
threat.
The Ten Touch Pirates withdrew first.
They were the only gold level pirates, and their every move affected the
actions of others.
“Withdraw!” Dian Wan howled, even though he was dispirited. The light cannon
beam had left him miserable.
Yang Cong Tou was wounded, sighing deeply as he gazed at the ocean surface,
“Most of the valuables fell into the sea, what a true pity.”
The Applaud Pirates were all bitter.
From beginning to end, they had stolen the least.
“Blame this on the captain!” Many people thought this of Hu Li.
They didn’t know that because Hu Li hadn’t stolen as much, they weren’t
bombarded as much either, leading to their pirate group to suffer the least
casualties.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Leave my money behind!”
When Hun Tong saw what the pirates were doing, he flew into a rage and
immediately dispatched his alchemy clone to pursue them.
On the Golden Flash, there were only three light cannon turrets remaining out
of the five, and the main light cannon turret was destroyed.
Hun Tong flew back and began to control the cannons to conduct a light beam
bombardment.
High in the sky, the Golden Flash’s three light cannon turrets fired in
succession, smashing some pirate ships.
Cang Xu was scared witless by this.
He was very worried that the Iron Lump would become a cannon target and
immediately evacuated.
Originally, he still wanted to stay for a while, so the dragonman youngster and
the others could carry out their hostage rescue show.
But he couldn’t wait any longer.
The Iron Lump quickly sailed away from Two Eyes Island.
“You can’t escape!” Men Shi stood on the port, gazing at the fading Iron Lump,
his hands and fingers outstretched as pain and remorse racked his face.
Chi Lai was in the middle of adjusting the gold cannon’s components.
Zong Ge had fished it back up, but noticed that the cannon barrel was bent, and
needed to be repaired before it could shoot.
As for the dragonman youngster, he was inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish,
guarding against anything influencing Zi Di.
Zi Di was in the process of controlling the deep seas salvagers.
These alchemy puppets were great at cleaning the battlefield, especially on the
sea floor.
The pirates’ painstakingly stolen treasure had all fallen to the seabed and
were harvested by the alchemy puppets.
“A little strange.” Zi Di was tense.
“What’s going on?” The dragonman youngster was puzzled.
Zi Di spoke her mind, “According to the prior battlefield performance, I
surmised the flying magic ship shouldn’t have a ship spirit. It was locking
onto targets based on their worth, thereby accomplishing precise large scale
bombardment.”
“In light of this basis, the light beam cannons will prioritize attacking the
deep sea salvagers.
The dragonman youngster guessed, “Its main light cannon turret has collapsed in
half, perhaps in the aftermath of the gold level battle, the ship’s components
have been impaired and are unable to carry out detections.”
Zi Di nodded, and her eyes gradually lit up, “I also think that is the most
probably reason.”
“There is another possibility, perhaps Hun Tong is personally controlling it,
leading to the difference.
“No matter the reason, our harvest will be immense this time!”
The dragonman youngster maintained his rationality, “It is more appropriate to
have these alchemy puppets dump these treasures into a few places, don’t bring
them back to the Deep Sea Monster Fish directly.”
“Understood!” Zi Di complied.
The light cannons fired consecutively.
After losing more than a dozen ships, the pirates finally reached a relatively
safe distance.
Hun Tong had vented his fury and fear, gradually becoming clear-headed, then
aimed at the fishman army.
The Vinegar Jar immediately suffered a calamity, bearing the biggest brunt of
its firepower.
Er Gua Zi used a rope to climb onto the deck.
When the fishman elder died, he had immediately jumped into the ocean.
Although he didn’t have a flying battle skill, he had a swimming battle skill
and was far faster in the ocean than Yan Ding.
“Reduce our speed, we need to attract fire to give our clansmen time!” Er Gua
Zi ordered.
With the Vinegar Jar covering them, the remaining fishmen jumped into the sea
and made their way into the Frozen Land Whale and made their getaway.
Finally, the fishmen abandoned their other ships, with only the Vinegar Jar
Pirates’ flagship leaving alive, their entire strength had decreased massively.
“Should I chase them down?” Yan Ding returned to ask Hun Tong.
Hun Tong was gloomy, “No. This damned fishmen will be thornier in the sea.
Don’t forget, there is also that giant fishman.”
To him it seemed that although the old fishman elder was dead, there was still
Er Gua Zi, the naga priestess, and then that giant fishman emerged.
The fishmen had three gold levels, the same amount as the humans.
Although Hun Tong had a clone with gold level military strength, Song Shou
wouldn’t fight to the death in the ocean.
He was also in a terrible state and needed to recuperate.
“After this battle, the Blue Green Coral fishman clan will be greatly wounded.”
“Although trouble will be left behind, in the future, Two Eyes Island will
become an imperial maritime transportation hub.”
“With the imperial navy protecting it, there is no need to fear such a minor
fishman clan.”
“Now the most important thing is to salvage the treasures.”
“With money, I can put things into order and rebuild Two Eyes Island’s
foundation firmly.”
Thinking of that, Hun Tong made plans. He glanced at Yan Ding and said,
“Actually, aren’t you going to hunt down that necromancer?”
“didn’t you say at the auction that he was your prey?”
Yan Ding shook his head, calmly watching the Iron Lump gradually disappear into
the horizon, “Don’t worry, by placing a long line, you can catch a big fish.”
Finally, a heavy curtain dropped and the battle for Two Eyes Island ended.
The deep sea.
“It should be safe here. The clansmen left behind didn’t find any pursuers.” Er
Gua Zi said to the naga priestess. 
The naga priestess nodded, “Then count the people.”
The Frozen Land Whale slowly stopped, then issued a low wail.
Its body had an immense wound, it had been hastily treated and was still oozing
blood.
Fishmen were dead and wounded.
The old fishman elder was dead; now Er Gua Zi was the clan’s sole gold level,
and he was unwilling to become the new clan elder.
The fishmen put the gravely injured together.
After the naga priestess finished praying, she used a large scale healing
divine spell.
She believed in the Charming Blue Goddess and wasn’t good at healing. However,
gods were omnipotent and possessed healing divine spells.
After healing, the fishmen’s injuries were greatly alleviated.
Although they were universally injured, the condition of those injuries had
improved a lot.
“Praise be to my God!”
“Thank you Lord Priestess.”
“Thank you for saving my father’s life!”
The fishmen used the fishman language to express their gratitude.
Clerics possessed the strongest healing skills and could easily obtain
prestige.
Like now, it was just one healing spell, yet it gave the naga priestess
widespread love and respect.
The naga priestess couldn’t hide her exhaustion as she deeply sighed, “This is
all I can do.”
During the retreat, she was worried that there were pursuers and had been
saving divine power.
Now that they were relatively safe, she used a divine spell to heal the
fishmen.
Although these fishmen were not her clansmen, and she wasn’t a fishman, but a
naga, they shared the same religion.
Many times, religion could step over racial barriers and believers could have a
family-like relationship/
The initial tally quickly got results.
At least 70% of the Blue Green Coral fishman clan was dead. Almost all of those
left were old, weak, and sick.
The losses were disastrous.
The old fishman clan elder had died in battle.
The fishman clan’s plan of retaking their homeland had failed and they were
faced with viler environment to survive in.
The seafloor was no utopia, prey and hunters frequently changed places.
“According to the clan’s current strength, our originally seafloor habitat
cannot be defended. We plan to migrate to the Holy City, what do you think of
this plan Lord Priestess?” Er Gua Zi asked the naga priestess for guidance.
His Vinegar Jar Pirates only had their flagship left and had been devastated
more completely.
The naga priestess nodded, “Your clan can live outside it, I will make
arrangements.”
Although there was an element of exploitation, the naga priestess’ sympathy
wasn’t fake.
Er Gua Zi coughed, to receive the naga priestess’ aid was good new for the
clan.
He gave his thanks, “Hun Tong changed too quickly. Thanks to your Lordship
Priestess’ retreat order, we were able to evacuate on time and preserve the
sparks of the clan. Otherwise, we might have been wiped out utterly.”
The naga priestess squeezed out a smile, “That wasn’t me.”
“Rather that was the command the Lord Divine Envoy personally issued to me!”
“Fortunately, with him, my mission hadn’t failed.”
“In the future, if you have the chance, you should express your gratitude to
him.”
Er Gua Zi’s mind shook, “Are you talking about that giant fishman?”
“Yes.” The naga priestess confirmed.
To the side, Peng Ding Zi couldn’t restrain himself and bellowed his
grievances, “Since the Divine Envoy was hiding on the seabed, why didn’t he act
earlier? Perhaps if he entered the battle earlier, we might have retaken our
homeland.”
The naga priestess coldly snorted and her complexion instantly sank, “Fishman,
pay attention to your wording.”
“Everything is within my God’s plans!
“With our superficial vision, how can we see through the chaos clearly?”
“This is the outcome my God has bestowed.”
“You have the impertinence to call it into question?!”
By the time the naga priestess said the second sentence, Peng Din Zi was
kneeling on the ground.
The naga priestess’ ruthless rebuke caused the surrounding fishmen to change
their looks.
One after the other, the fishmen denounced Peng Ding Zi.
Peng Din Zi knew things were bad, and he kowtowed in a flurry, showing his
repentance.
Finally, Er Gua Zi stepped forward and heavily punished Peng Ding Zi,
alleviating the naga priestess’ expression and mood.
The Iron Lump floated in the ocean.
“No pursuers.” Cang Xu let out a breath, bringing the investigating ghosts back
into his body.
This was the effect of the necromancy spell – Ghostly Possession.
“Tell me about yourself, Miss Qing Xin.” Cang Xu looked at Qing Xin next to
him.
They were the only two on the side of the ship.
Whether it was the dwarfs or the humans, all of them were detained inside the
hold.
The alchemy puppets were patrolling everywhere.
Cang Xu was barely able to control the Iron Lump. 
Qing Xin didn’t answer, instead she unconsciously lowered her voice as she
asked, “Zi Di?”
To gain Qing Xin’s trust, Cang Xu had shown up to help her while Zi Di had used
a communication device to talk to Qing Xin.
Cang Xu replied, “She is in a safe place. Two Eyes Island is too chaotic, we
cannot have her take risks.”
At this time, Cang Xu’s communication device transmitted Zi Di’s voice, “Older
sister Qing Xin, I am listening.”
Qing Xin nodded, and warmth filled her face, “Surely you must be curious why I
am not afraid of necromancers and instead decided to board the same ship as
you.”
“Zi Di, how much do you know of your father?”



****** Chapter 211: Wisteria Cache ******
Qing Xin’s words held deep meaning, causing Cang Xu’s eyes to contract
slightly.
At the other end of the communication device, Zi Di was silent for a bit, then
asked, “Are you saying father had connections to necromancers?”
Qing Xin smiled slightly, gazing at Cang Xu as she replied to Zi Di, “You have
assumed control over your father’s cache, don’t tell me you need me to prove
this?”
Zi Di: ???
She couldn’t help but fall into another silence as she rapidly pondered.
“Cache? What cache?”
“Why did older sister Qing Xin link Cang Xu to a cache after she saw Cang Xu
reveal himself as a necromancer?”
“What sort of cache?”
“Based on what older sister Qing Xin is getting at, it seems its not merely
riches, did my father secretly cultivate some power?”
“Furthermore, this power involves necromancers?”
“Qing Xin knows the inside story; therefore, she wasn’t shocked when she saw
Cang Xu reveal himself, on the contrary, she considered it proper and matter of
course and ended up following Cang Xu onto the Iron Lump.”
“This misunderstanding existing instead made older sister Qing Xin trust me
more.”
Zi Di hesitated.
Should she resolve this misunderstanding?
The present situation seemed to be more beneficial for her.
But as she thought on it, from the bottom of her heart, Zi Di didn’t want to
deceive Qing Xin, but was trending towards confessing the truth.
Thus, she replied, “Cache? Older sister Qing Xin, I don’t know what you are
talking about.”
Qing Xin pursed her brows, “You don’t know about the Wisteria Cache?”
“That can’t be.”
“Then how did you obtain this…necromancer’s help?”
Zi Di answered, “It is a complicated matter, I can’t explain it right now.”
“This magician hasn’t told you the pertinent information?” Qing Xin looked at
Cang Xu.
Cang Xu shook his head, “As a matter of fact, I don’t know what the Wisteria
Cache is.”
Qing Xin nevertheless said, “No, perhaps you just don’t know.”
“Although I don’t know the whole inside story, I do know there really is a
Wisteria Cache.”
“The president, your father Zi Di, has kept it a clandestine matter.” 
“When the Wisteria Merchant Alliance sank into desperate straits, the president
established this cache to equip one to revitalize the merchant alliance in the
future.”
Zi Di replied, “Older sister Qing Xin, please continue.”
Qing Xin seemed to recall some memories, “Zi Di, your father was an outstanding
businessman, his insight was singular, and his thinking was ahead of his time.”
“Almost by himself, he built the Wisteria Merchant Alliance. At its height, the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance was second only to the six great merchant
alliances.”
“Unfortunately, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had emerged from the lowest rung
and had a massive innate failing. Military forces!”
“Early on, your father sensed this systemic problem and began to plan how he
would cultivate his merchant alliance’s strength.”
“The merchant alliance carried out your father’s determination and immediately
acted.”
“You know, after my aptitude and loyalty were proven, I was cultivated by your
father and became a magician step by step. I was one of those that benefited
from this project.”
“It’s a true pity that this project didn’t succeed.”
“There were many that were cultivated, but only a few gained anything. I am one
of them.”
“There were many reasons. Chief among them was that we all came from the lowest
levels of society, our bloodlines are thin, and we lacked both extraordinary
talent and potential.”
“But the biggest reason was that imperial nobles were secretly destroying it!”
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s sudden rise was beyond the imperial nobles’
foresight.”
“But don’t underestimate those upper class people!”
“Even before the Wisteria Merchant Alliance truly became large, many nobles had
been following it secretly already.”
“When the merchant alliance wanted to train its own cultivators, although these
nobles didn’t openly act, their suppression in the dark was constant.”
“Of those being cultivated, some lacked potential and didn’t grow. Another part
were crowded out, suppressed, and even assassinated. The last part went through
tribulations and by a fluke still remained, I am one of those people.”
Zi Di understood this clearly, “As it turns out, father had thought of a
method.”
Qing Xin nodded, and continued, “This project failed, but it also caused the
merchant alliance higherups to finally sense the nobles’ malice.”
“The president didn’t give up, and while he was actively contacting imperial
higherups to try to gain protection, he never gave up cultivating his own
force.”
“Since the best selected from the merchant alliance were hindered severely and
it took too long, the president threw his gaze to foreign races.”
This world didn’t just have humans, it also had elves, dragons, dwarfs,
barbarians, goblins, and more.
“As the Wisteria Merchant Alliance grew bigger, through its transaction
channels, it contacted many foreign races.”
“However, the president wasn’t able to draw anything notable from these
outsider races.”
“On the one hand, the Sheng Ming Empire is the strongest power, and these
foreign races had to be very cautious when standing off against imperial
higherups if they were to help the merchant alliance.”
“On the other hand, the imperial nobles also seized the opportunity to plant
many of their cultivators into the merchant alliance.”
“The final result that was brought about was this. Although the merchant
alliance had a huge cultivator force, these cultivators had questionable
loyalty, many of them harbored unfathomable motives, and they all came from all
sorts of powers.”
“These cultivators superficially became the merchant alliance’s external aid,
but in practice, they were the tentacles of imperial lords and foreign races
permeating into the merchant alliance.”
Qing Xin deeply sighed, “The merchant alliance’s situation was growing worse,
thus, the president had to take a risk out of desperation and begin to contact
some unusual cultivators.”
“That included necromancers.”
“Zi Di, you should know that necromancers are always out of sorts. They are
enemies of the gods, wanted by basically every power, and everyone despises
them.”
“With the help of the merchant alliance’s channels, the president simply ran a
few trade fairs and easily obtained a few necromancers’ acknowledgement.”
“Necromancers greatly lack changes to trade and communicate with each other.”
“At the same time, they have a hostile relationship with almost all powers,
allowing both the merchant alliance and them to be more reassured when they use
each other.”
“So that’s how it is.” Zi Di was silent for a bit, then asked, “Working with
necromancers is rather dangerous, weren’t there any other ideas in the merchant
alliance?” 
Qing Xin faintly smiled, “Little Zi Di, you are still too young.”
“First of all, although everyone despises necromancers, do you really think
others don’t work with them on the sly?”
“As a matter of fact, some imperial higherups have even actively cultivated
necromancers.”
“Second, you underestimate your father. He founded the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance, and it was he who expanded it. Although he was an ordinary person,
his merchant alliance’s influence was always immense.”
“Finally, the necromancer cooperation affair occurred at the tail end of the
merchant alliance. The situation then was already very nasty, noble powers were
constantly meddling with, overtly recruiting, kidnapping, and threatening
merchant alliance elders. The merchant alliance leadership all explicitly
recognized that the imperial higherups wouldn’t let them off, therefore, we
were forced into a tight spot and had to use this strategy.”
“It was during this time that I learned of the Wisteria Cache’s existence.”
“Actually, your father had prepared this plan early on.”
“It was because of the Wisteria Cache that we had hope. Even if the merchant
alliance collapsed in the future, we still had capital to restart it.”
“But I don’t know what specifically is in the Wisteria Cache.”
“In fact, only a few of the elders really knew about the cooperation with
necromancers.”
“After all, the fewer that knew about these matters, the better.”
“But I hypothesis that since it was established in the event the merchant
alliance was destroyed and rebuilt; the cache must have a way to contact
necromancers.”
“I believe that the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s secret partnership with
necromancers gained the friendship of many necromancers that derived benefits
from it.”
“This piece of transcendent power can be utilized, of course, one must be
prudent!”
Qing Xin’s explained it all in detail. 
On the other end of the alchemy communication device, Zi Di went silent.
Qing Xin warmly said, “Little Zi Di, please don’t blame our incompetence.”
“We really tried our hardest.”
“But the empire is too powerful, much too powerful, a kind of power that throws
people into despair.”
“Your father really was outstanding, despite not being a cultivator.”
“That he persevered in leading the Wisteria Merchant Alliance to this step
exceeded the expectations of many, me included.”
“The enemy was just too powerful.”
Qing Xin’s words showed her esteem of Zi Di’s father.
Cang Xu muttered silently to himself.
From this conversation, he had heard about all kinds of battles that revolved
around the Wisteria Merchant Alliance these last few years, there were plenty
of bright edges and plenty of sinister and furtive dark sword shadows.
In this challenging contest that lasted at least ten years, countless people
exhausted their wise actions and choices.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
In the cockpit, Zi Di sat motionless for a moment.
Many feelings emerged in her thoughts.
She recalled her father, now that she heard from another close to him how down
on its luck the merchant alliance was, she felt how difficult it had been for
her father.
However, her father had never placed this pressure on her.
Once upon a time, her father wanted her to marry.
But after she refused, her father never asked that of her ever again.
“If I agreed to the marriage connection then, would it have saved the merchant
alliance, would my father have died?” This question lingered in her heart,
chilling her body and mind.
At that moment, Qing Xin spoke again, “Zi Di, regardless of whether you have
the cache or not, be careful.”
“This time, although you haven’t been exposed, your companion has been revealed
to be a necromancer.”
“You can’t stop.”
“Because the cache hasn’t been found yet.”
“This was the reason why I hid my identity.”
“We cannot remain here; we have to leave as soon as possible.”
“I worry that pursuers will appear soon.”



****** Chapter 212: Because of You, I Have No Regrets ******
The Wisteria Cache!
Zi Di couldn’t help but sink into silence.
This important information surprised her greatly.
Before now, she never knew about it.
“I took over as president, and sorted out my father’s things, but didn’t find
anything about it.”
“Perhaps because father’s death was too sudden, he was unable to leave a trail
to the cache behind.”
“His things and home were definitely searched many times, and perhaps during
the course of this, the trail was destroyed.”
“Father…”
When Zi Di thought that, she recalled her father’s voice and face, his tight
brows, and felt his haggard heart and body.
Too many things have happened in these last few days.
First was the battle of wits at the auction.
Soon after, a chaotic battle involving Hun Tong, the fishmen, pirates,
mercenary corps, merchant alliances, and other parties unfolded.  The Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps couldn’t stay out of it and were unable to stop themselves
from being completely drawn into the melee.
After Zi Di had left the auction hall, she kept watch from the Deep Sea Monster
Fish. While doing so, in the final phase of the fighting, she suffered the
agreement’s influence and narrowly avoided a serious mistake. She still didn’t
know about the Devil Gold Coins’ existence and was still on edge.
Just now, she had heard about the Wisteria Cache from Qing Xin’s mouth.
In her jumbled train of thought, an idea suddenly appeared in Zi Di’s mind.
“Does Fei She know about the Wisteria Cache?”
Fei She was Zi Di’s father’s confidant and an elder who had helped found the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance. He helped Zi Di’s father through their tough
journey together, watching as the Wisteria Merchant Alliance sprung up,
expanded, was divided up, and also saw Zi Di grow up.
Thinking of this, Zi Di was unable to hold herself back and contacted Fei She
with the alchemy communication device.
Each of the survivors had one of these communication devices.
As an ordinary person, Fei She was looked after greatly. After escaping the
auction hall, he had been hiding in a corner and never joined the melee.
With the Deceptive Disguise spell and a few self-defense tricks, he was able to
get through the chaotic warfare unscathed.
The communication device quickly connected.
Zi Di’s voice transmitted, directly asking, “Elder Fei She, did you know about
the Wisteria Cache?”
Fei She was at first silent, then he replied, “Did Qing, Qing Xin tell you?”
Fei She was a spectator and knew many things that happened on the battlefield.
Zi Di responded, “The nobles have always been searching for the Wisteria Cache,
consequently forcing older sister Qing Xin to live incognito and disguise
herself as a slave. Elder, please tell me all that you know.”
Fei She deeply sighed, “President, my, my answer might dis, disappoint you.”
“I know about the Wis, Wisteria Cache, but I don’t know the true inside story.”
“The old president was constantly scurrying away and transferring resources to
accumulate a extremely value, valuable resource. It was to be used for a
resurge, resurgence.”
“Once upon a time, The Wisteria Ca, Cache was also our final ho, hope against
our challenges. Because it was too import, important.”
“As a matter of fact, this was done deliberate, deliberately. It was because I
wasn’t involved in it that I was able to survive the pur, purge.”
Zi Di’s lips tightened.
Elder Fei She’s response was actually within her expectations.
Suppose Elder Fei She knew about the cache, wouldn’t he have informed her of it
already?
Even if he wanted to keep everything for himself, he wouldn’t have gone to the
Wilderness Continent with her, experiencing life and death along the way.
Zi Di was silent for a moment before finally vocalizing her most deeply thought
question.
“Elder Fei She…please, you must answer it. If I agreed to the marriage
connection…”
But Fei She immediately interrupter her, “President Zi Di!”
On Two Eyes Island, Fei She clutched the alchemy communication device and gazed
at the scarlet sunset glow, his face solemn, “I have some, something I must
tell you.”
“Your fat, father has always been proud of you!”
“What?” Zi Di was puzzled.
Fei She coughed, then continued, “To be more precise, he, he was happy that you
refused the marriage connection. He was pro, proud that you decided to separate
yourself from the fam, family and live independently.”
“When you were living alone, and would, wouldn’t use another’s money, your
father was worry, worried from beginning to end.”
“On more than one occasion, he commended you in front of me, said that you
real, really grew up, and that you were worthy of being hi, his daughter.”
When Zi Di heard this, her pupils momentarily dilated, and she blankly sat
there.
Fei She added, “At the same time, he also felt ashamed, remorseful, and blamed
himself.
“He said his tal, talent was too low, and that if he were a pow, powerful
cultivator, he could pro, protect you, and wouldn’t let y, you receive such
grievances.”
“But unfortunately, he, he wasn’t one.”
“He intentionally told, told me this so I could tell it to, to you.”
“President Zi Di, if you believe that it was your refusal of the marriage
connection that led to the Wisteria Merchant Alliance being div, divided up,
and your fat, father’s death, then you are gravely mistaken.”
“Don’t be naïve!”
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance could, couldn’t be allowed to keep existing,
because it didn’t belong to any nobles or clan. The benefits were too astonish,
astonishing, and couldn’t be annexed by a single great lord or clan.”
“Consider this, of the empire six great merchant, merchant alliances, which
doesn’t have an astonishing backer?”
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance has none. It rose from not, nothing, spring
from the commoners. It’s like when a farmer finds an unexpectedly lar, large ox
on their farm. It had to be div, divided up!”
“If you agree, agreed to the marriage connection, at most it would give one
farm, farmer a better justification and excuse to annex mor, more of the beef.”
“In fa, fact, your father appreciated you President Zi Di.”
“It was because of your re, resistance that his courage was stimulated. Who
would wan, want to see their hard earned we, wealth be partitioned up by
others? We and your father were extreme, extremely unreconciled!” 
“In fact, we were all prep, prepared for that d, day. But from beginning to
end, we never regretted anything.”
Your father had the le, least regrets!”
“In short, I, I want to say this to you President Zi Di. Don’t look down on
your fat, father.”
Zi Di was silent.
Her eyes gradually glistened with teardrops.
Endless memories engulfed her.
At that moment, she felt paternal love again.
Paternal love was deep and worthy of the greatest admiration.
The old Wisteria president wasn’t powerful, but he still used his own shoulders
to tenaciously hold up the heavens.
During those difficult years, he shouldered the rising pressure alone, racking
his brains and exhausting every method to content with those lofty jackals and
wolves.
With regards to his daughter, he silenced his heart and deliberately maintained
distance.
His love, his true feelings couldn’t be conveyed directly, because he didn’t
want outsiders to know that his daughter was his weakness, he didn’t want to
drag his daughter into a gigantic whirlpool.
Perhaps because of this reason, those nobles finally let Zi Di go.
After all, she was a small iron level cultivating at college, her potential and
gifts were known to all.
“No, there is a bigger possibility. Those nobles purposely let me live, perhaps
thinking they could find the Wisteria Cache through me?” Zi Di coldly flashed.
She suddenly comprehended that she was a nigh identical situation to Qing Xin,
she must have been monitored.
At this moment, she thought of her assassination attempt.
Not long after taking office, an assassin came for her.
Was someone really resentful that she’d become president?
Or was it really a spy?
“Perhaps they wanted to probe into what power I kept concealed, or force me to
use the Wisteria Cache? If I had the cache at that time.”
However, fate was mysterious and unable to be predicted.
The assassin was defeated, Jian Zuan was drawn out, and War Merchant got
involved.
The string of incidents that happened on Mystifying Monster Island really were
hard to explain succinctly.
Finally, now, outside of Two Eyes Island’s waters, Zi Di had at last met with
Qing Xin and understood what had happened behind the scenes.
A portion of the inside story.
Zi Di had a greater understanding of her father and his paternal love for her.
It was because of this love that another strong emotion flourished in her
heart.
Hatred!
The more she understood her father and felt his paternal love, the more she
hated!
“Who are they, those people who annexed the merchant alliance?” She asked both
Fei She and Qing Xin.
Elder Fei She stated, “Too many to count.”
None of the six great merchant alliances were innocent, and the great nobles
backing them had been the executioners.
Qing Xin replied, “There is a leader. It is said to be a member of the imperial
family, but who they have never been divulged.”
“What? A bloodline descendant of Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming?” Zi Di’s heart
shook.
Like a bucket of freezing water, her body and mind were soaked ice cold.
Not all of Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming’s descendants were elite.
But since this bloodline descendant was capable of serving as leader and could
coordinate each large noble well to successfully partition the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance…that kind of strength and influence was sure to belong to an
important member of the imperial household.
If Zi Di wanted vengeance, wouldn’t she need to set herself against the
imperial household, against the entire Sheng Ming Empire?
The enemy was too powerful.
Vengeance…was hopeless.
However, as Zi Di’s heart gradually sank, the dragonman youngster extended his
dragon claw and turned the communication device off.
He consoled her warmly, “Don’t worry, Zi Di, I am still here.”
Zi Di stared blankly, then raised her head slightly to look back at the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster had returned to the Deep Sea Monster Fish to guard
against the agreement from taking hold once again.
While Zi Di, Qing Xin, and Fei She had been conversing, he had been listening. 
The dragonman youngster hid the pity in his heart and smiled to Zi Di, “Zi Di,
I will help you.”
He extended his dragon claw to Zi Di’s face.
Zi Di unconsciously stretched out her hand and put it into the dragon claw’s
palm, feeling the dragonman youngster’s generosity, power, and stability.
The dragonman youngster’s tone was resolute, “No matter how lofty a noble is,
when they rob another of their wealth to satisfy their own greed, they
abandoned their honor and nobility, each and every one of them is a disciple of
evil and sin, none of them are a righteous person!”
“They must receive a just punishment!”
“I firmly believe that taking revenge against them is the righteous path.”
The dragonman youngster leading the survivors in their redemption with the
empire was not them bowing their heads to power, just a survival strategy.
As a believer in the Justice God, the dragonman youngster never feared power.
In this aspect, he and Chi Lai were alike. The latter had offended a bigwig to
carry out justice and had been framed and reduced to slave for doing so.
“No, this is my personal grudge…” Zi Di shook her head.
The enemy was too powerful, she didn’t want to implicate her beloved.
But the young man’s answer had ruthlessly hit the softest depths of the young
lady’s heart.
“Idiot.”
“Are you forgetting? I am your knight.”
The dragonman youngster slowly leaned over and carefully embraced Zi Di into
his chest.
Since Zi Di had been forced to become a ghost, the two touched each other
carefully.
The Deceptive Disguise spell was just a disguise, it couldn’t alter one’s
essence.
The ghost girl didn’t have substance, and those that weren’t familiar with her
situation would be affected by the Deceptive Disguise spell, and even if they
poked through the ghost girl, they would be deceived and be unable to sense it.
But the dragonman youngster knew the truth, and Deceptive Disguise affected him
much less.
Therefore, when the two touched, they were very careful. If they moved too
much, they would pass through each other’s body.
During this prudent embrace, Zi Di’s heart came under a wonderful serenity, as
if she was immersed in an ocean of happiness at this moment.
She had a completely new answer to that wretched and tortuous question
pertaining to the marriage connection.
No regrets!
If she agreed then, how could she have met the dragonman youngster now?
Even if fate gives me more torment and suffering, because of you, I have no
regrets.
The dragonman youngster then said, “Don’t worry.”
“Even if it is a member of the imperial household, we aren’t hopeless.”
“Right?”
Zi Di’s heart shook, she instantly knew what the dragonman youngster was
implying.
“Yes.”
“We have the Bloodcore!”
“We have infinite growth potential!”
“The enemy is indeed formidable, but only for now.”
“In the future…”
“So long as we are given enough time to grow, the hope for vengeance will grow
too!”



****** Chapter 213: Hun Tong’s Recruitment ******
Night.
Sprinkling moonlight illuminated Two Eyes Island.
The tide lapped the shore.
Last night’s magnificent landscape had been reduced to ruins.
The weeping mourning of the deceased, desperate whimpers, and resentful curses
rang out from time to time through the night, mixing with and shrouding the
residents of Two Eyes Island.
Tonight, Two Eyes Island was full of gloom and sorrow.
The chaotic warfare had concluded, and in the stillness, bloody wounds seemed
to ache deeper.
Not only did Hun Tong’s troops suffer disastrous losses, the poor people,
freemen, and other citizens had everything stolen from them.
Don’t ever underestimate a pirate’s plundering, for they were professionals at
it.
Many families had been reduced.
In the fighting, not only were pirates swinging blades at you, but also the
fishmen and even other humans.
To the inhabitants here, the loss of their wealth brought about pain, even more
than the ones they had lost.
Because this was a Wealth Church parish.
People generally believed in the Wealth Goddess.
In the Wealth Church’s doctrine, wealth was above all. One could look at their
burial customs to know this. Even if they died, as long as their wealth
accompanied them, they would be happy.
Death wasn’t scary, being poor was.
Unfortunately, most of the people were still alive, but their money was gone!
Even though it was late into the night, the city government building’s gate was
still congested with people.
At the front were representatives of the five great merchant alliances, behind
them were the people of the smaller merchant alliances.
They were looking for City Lord Hun Tong.
But the gate remained locked.
“I have said many times already, Lord Hun Tong is wounded, he is in the
middling of recuperating and won’t see any guests tonight.” One Eye guarded the
city government building’s gate.
Hun Tong used to have four silver levels under his command, but two had died in
the battle.
The pharmacist had lost his thigh and was sleeping inside Hun Tong’s city
government building.
One Eye was the only one left that could keep up appearances.
The merchants were furious!
“What? No guests? Are we guests? We are victims!” 
“My representative was shot by a light beam, Lord Hun Tong, will you not
explain that?”
“Do you think you can avoid us by not meeting us?”
“Our stores were pillaged by pirates and fishmen, nothing of them remains. Hun
Tong is the feudal lord, he is responsible for our protection, and so, we want
compensation!”
Some merchants were questioning, some were cursing, and some were beating their
chests and stamping their feet.
One Eye had a massive headache.
He wasn’t experienced in dealing with this kind of situation.
As far as the five great merchant alliances were concerned, he couldn’t dare to
manhandle them, their background was too deep!
One Eye also didn’t want to offend the other smaller merchants either.
Two Eyes Island was a commerce island, and when the will of the people
collapsed, most of Hun Tong’s foundation was done for.
Today’s battle had just concluded, and after the pirates had ransacked Two Eyes
Island, its reputation had fallen greatly, its customers felt danger, and fewer
of them would ever come back.
Pirates had come here to dispose of booty, producing much economic vigor, but
following this, they would forever desert this place.
Under these circumstances, if merchants left in droves too, how would Two Eyes
Island recover?
One Eye had no way out of the situation before him, the merchants were growing
more agitated and would soon attack the city government building’s gate.
At that moment, the city government building’s gate suddenly opened.
From the gate walked out a silver level.
It was the pharmacist.
The pharmacist looked gloomy, and was leaning on a crutch, “Are you done making
a noise?”
Just as his words left him, he pulled a trigger.
An alchemy firearm.
Ding.
He shot a merchant at the edge of the crowd dead!
For a split second, everything was quiet as a cold cicada.
The merchants were stunned.
The pharmacist’s killing intent boiled over as his cold gleaming eyes swept
across the crowd.
He was in a terrible mood.
He had been seriously wounded, and the light beam had severed his thigh,
leaving his lower leg on the ground.
After the fighting finished, he was recuperating in the safest place, the city
government building.
As a result, he had been woken up by the noisy merchants.
The pharmacist’s vented anger had intimidated the troublesome crowd.
In fact, even One Ee was subdued by him.
The latter used an incredulous look to take the measure of the pharmacist.
Sometimes, pain and tribulation really tempered a person.
Before the battle, the pharmacist had immersed himself in research, complied
with Hun Tong’s orders, was a yes-man, and was a coward scared of dying.
After the battle, he had survived a serious wound, toughening his guts enough
that he could kill, he was far more courageous than before.
The merchants were subdued, but none of them retreated.
The shock and fear subsided somewhat, and many of the merchants looked at the
pharmacist coldly. 
Some of the merchant alliance representatives had died in battle, but there
were still three silver levels present here.
Sensing that the situation might get out of control any moment, One Eye’s heart
was in his throat.
But at that moment, he heard the pharmacist say, “Do you see my injury? I am
not in a good mood.”
“Because I was shot by a light beam!”
“Of course, I know how badly you feel.”
“Therefore, I’ll give you all a chance.”
“Come, rush in.”
The pharmacist actually stepped aside, opening the gates to the city government
building wipe open to the crowd.
“Don’t blame me for not warning you. Breaking into the city government building
breaks the law! If you are killed by the garrison, it will be in vain.” The
pharmacist sneered incessantly.
Merchants look at me, I look at you.
All of them remained where they were, none of them went in.
The pharmacist sneered, not bothering to cover up his scornful look.
“Don’t say I didn’t give you a chance.”
“I will give you half an hour, you lot can discuss whether you should attack
the city government building!”
“We’ll be going.”
The pharmacist indicated to One Eye.
The two wanted into the city government building, leaving behind the wide open
gate.
The merchants weren’t obstructed, but all of them were at a loss on what to do.
“What should be said?” One of the five great merchant alliance silver levels
deeply frowned, they felt that the situation before them was impossible to stop
halfway.
“We can’t break into the city government building, isn’t it handing someone the
sword hilt?” Another silver level asked.
“Then should we stay here?”
“Alas, then let’s disperse, I still need return to my shop over there to deal
with the terrible mess. I believe Hun Tong will give us an explanation on the
matter of compensation.”
“Then we’ll come tomorrow!”
“If no one gave them a way out, the troublesome crowd could only give
themselves a way out.
After everyone had a lively discussion, they sighed one by one and walked away
with raised brows.
Not long after, the pharmacist and One Eye came out to the gate.
“You really dared to take a gamble?” One Eye asked.
“Merchants, humph, a group of cowardly profit seekers, how could they have the
guts to attack the city government building?” The battle had given the
pharmacist a thorough look into the natural disposition of merchants.
One Eye shook his head, still feeling it was an immense risk, “What if you lose
your gamble?”
The pharmacist sneered, “They didn’t attack the city government building
immediately, what makes you suppose that they will have the courage to do so
later?”
“Besides, what is there to be afraid of?!” The city government building is
tightly guarded and filled with magic and mechanical traps. If that group
charged in, most of them would lose their lives, and the few silver levels
would be a dirty mess!”
Upon mentioning that, the pharmacist regretfully exclaimed, “Those gangs of
pirates were indeed crafty, they surprisingly never attacked the city
government building!”
“By the way, where is Lord Hun Tong?”
One Eye whispered, “His Lordship has already left clandestinely for the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ interim encampment.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were still berthed at the port.
The captain’s room at the aft house.
An open window let moonlight in.
The seawater’s moisture brought in the lingering scent of blood into the
captain’s room.
Inside the captain’s room, there was just Zong Ge and Hun Tong.
Zong Ge led Hun Tong to his seat, then asked his purpose in coming, “Feudal
Lord, paying a visit so late into the night, do you need us for an urgent
mission?”
Hun Tong smiled and shook his head, “No I don’t. I have come to express my
thanks to your corps for their outstanding contribution to the battle.”
“Commander Long Fu?” Hun Tong asked.
The dragonman youngster was still on the Deep Sea Monster Fish and wasn’t
present.
Zong He was prepared for this, “So sorry, Feudal Lord. During the battle, the
commander used his final form and is currently recovering.”
Hun Tong immediately understood, “Commander Long Fu was a flourishing dashing
figure, and with his final form’s military might, he was capable of fighting Er
Gua Zi head on and was only a bit weaker than him.”
“To tell the truth, I obtained information about your corps, learning of how
exceptional you performed during the naval battle where Rou Zang was captured.”
“But during today’s battle, I finally realized that I greatly underestimated
you all.”
“Commander Long Fu isn’t a peak silver level, yet he was able to accomplish
such things. Adding on you, Shi Qi, a peak silver…the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps is a quasi-gold level mercenary corps.”
Hun Tong was misled by Zong Ge into thinking that the dragonman youngster’s
final form had a strong repercussion and was thinking that he was in the middle
of urgent recuperation.
Zong Ge slightly frowned, he wasn’t good at dealing with this situation and
didn’t like it either.
After thinking about it, he dryly replied, “Your Lordship is too kind.”
Hun Tong laughed, proceeding to sign praises of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
He recounted the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ feats. He exclaimed in admiration
of how on the port battlefield, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a tower of
strength. Without the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ distinguished display, the
fishmen would have taken the port.
He also spoke of how the dragonman youngster accepted his mission, and in spite
of the huge risks, he left the destroy the enemy’s subterranean spell casting.
Regardless of how it ended, their choices and actions were in stark contrast to
those of those merchants, and the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps. They
were the entirety of the human’s core!
After that, Hun Tong took out a large amount of gold coins and supplies from a
storge device.
Zong Ge’s brows wrinkled deeply, “Feudal Lord, your reward is too much. We
weren’t able to complete the mission of destroying the subterranean casting.”
“Even if we did, we shouldn’t be receiving this many rewards!”
“It isn’t much, I don’t think it’s enough.” Hun Tong then explained his true
purpose in coming, “I want to use this remuneration to hire your corps, to
officially join Two Eyes Island!”
Zong He couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows and head.
Hun Tong continued, “If you are not satisfied with this price, then we can
continue discussing it.”
“I want to say that this time, I have come in immensely good faith!”
Zong Ge nodded and thought, “Looking at this sum of money, I can sense Hun Tong
is recruiting in good faith. He really is rich and imposing! I didn’t think
that even after this battle, he was still so wealthy!”
Zong Ge looked at Hun Tong.
As a matter of fact, this was Hun Tong’s old foundation.
“But it doesn’t matter. The seafloor has massive riches! The underground patrol
puppets have already dredged them out of the sea, at dawn tomorrow, I will have
all of the island’s riches! Compensating those merchants will be a trivial
matter.” Hun Tong felt that everything was under control.



****** Chapter 214: Hun Tong Doesn’t Panic ******
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, Hun Tong felt he had no subordinates!
He had four silver level subordinates, but on the battlefield, they out debased
each other.
Under the silvers, there were no battle squads.
This led to all of the war pressure being resisted by Hun Tong alone.
His subordinates were more used as bait to lure out the enemy’s military and
objectives.
After the melee finished, Hun Tong felt this deeply.
Because he really didn’t have anyone.
Of the four silver level subordinates, two were dead, one was seriously
injured, and one was whole.
Most of the city guards were lost and the barracks was in ruins.
The patrol fleet was also decimated.
All of the light cannon turrets Hun Tong had secretly built all over the new
island were destroyed.
Not only were the alchemy cannon turrets gone, so too were the gunners inside
them.
Hun Tong had defended his territory, but too much of the island’s strength had
been depleted, and it urgently needed replenishment.
Since distant water couldn’t quench one now, Hun Tong planned on taking the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Truth be told, during the battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ performance
left a profound impression on Hun Tong!
Therefore, the night the battle finished; he was unable to keep himself from
sneaking here to extend an olive branch to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zong Ge shook his head, “Lord Hun Tong, you seem to forget that we aren’t just
a mercenary corp.”
The implication pointed to their underlying identity – arms smugglers.
Hun Tong nodded, “I understand what you mean, Shi Qi.”
To be able to smuggle weapons, one needed to have a deep background.
The survivors upheld this sham identity to bluff, imperceptibly resolve many
troubles, and make things more convenient.
Hun Tong coughed, “To tell the truth, it that layer of yourself that I consider
you even more suitable to join my Two Eyes Island.”
“If you want to sell something, is this not the best place to do so?”
“Of course, I know that you have your own channels and buyers that you need to
transport goods for.”
“Two Eyes Island can still help you, In the future, I will turn it into a
regional transportation hub.”
“Furthermore, I believe that Commander Long Fu is strong enough to guarantee
your actions.”
“Shi Qi, the person I really want to recruit is you!”
Hun Tong was a clever person.
If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to build Two Eyes Island up from
nothing into a great commerce island.
Like the pharmacist, this battle had given him intangible wealth.
For example, he recognized where the weakest parts of his territory was.
He didn’t have a subordinate capable of taking charge!
He couldn’t do everything by himself, he needed more people to defend this
foundation.
This subordinate needed to be at least silver level.
But just having a life level was not enough.
They also needed to be very elite!
Hun Tong thought previously that his four silver levels were a well-trained and
powerful force.
Now, Hun Tong has a completely new realization, having a high quality silver
level subordinate was far more important than having a lot of them!
When a crisis approached, many silver levels were useless. Sometimes they would
ignorantly cause negative effects.
Such as his former city guard commander.
That guy took advantage of Hun Tong standing guard at the auction hall to leave
the barracks and run around outside to have fun.
This resulted in the silver level powerhouse Dao Hen cutting him down by
himself.
With him dead, the city guard didn’t have a commander. Their military power
declined severely, and during the entire battle, they city guard got thrashed
far more than it went on the offensive.
Apart from this, the alchemist and the pharmacist were beaten by the fishman
caster in a two versus one. This really lost too much face for humanity.
Hearing Hun Tong’s main purpose in coming, Zong Ge merely raised his eyebrows
and waited silently.
Hun Tong commended, “Shi Qi, you have a peak silver life level, your battle qi
already has a golden luster, and you’ll become a gold level sooner or later.”
“You are a human, your bloodline is exceptional, at least capable of bringing
you to the gold level, are you really willing to serve a silver level
dragonman?”
“I have seen your battle talent with my own eyes both against Rou Zang and this
last battle.
“You can also drill troops.”
When he mentioned this, Hun Tong paused, then laughed, “That Quick Knife battle
squad you established, you were also the one training it too.”
“It really was capable!”
“At the port, they were able to fight a silver level fishman for a time.”
“When I heard how long that battle squad had been established for, I didn’t
dare believe it.”
“In so short a time, you were able to train them to this degree, your talent
really has impressed me.”
“Shi Qi, ah Shi Qi.”
“You have such skill. But you’ve become an arms smuggler, don’t you think
that’s too regretful?”
“Even an outsider like me feels a deep pity for you.”
Hun Tong’s expression and voice were very sincere.
But Zong Ge remained just as calm as he had been.
Hun Tong smiled and tossed out his true bargaining chip, “Are you really happy
in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? You had been persistently looking for a
healing potion and purchased a gold level one at the auction.”
“You see, that is all the support the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps can give to
you.”
“But if you join my territory, and need a gold level healing potion again, I
will give it to you immediately!”
“Your will be paid 50,000 gold coins in your first year! It will increase every
year, and when you become a gold level, it will be at least 200,000 gold.”
Whether it was 50,000 or 200,000 gold, both exceeded standards.
“As long as you hold the position of Two Eyes Island’s city guard commander for
three years, I will work with you to have the empire award you the title of
baron.” Hun Tong continued to say.
Zong Ge couldn’t help but be moved.
Nobility!
Hun Tong had unexpectedly tossed out a major bargaining chip, his sincerity
really was great.
Nobility in the Sheng Ming Empire was not easily conferred, many knights that
strived for their entire lives would never be made nobles.
The Sheng Ming Empire really treasured nobility.
But Zong Ge shook his head, his tone steady as he replied, “Frankly, I don’t
think Two Eyes Island has a future.”
“First, the fishmen haven’t been thoroughly purged. Given enough time, this
fishman clan will surely multiply and strengthen. I saw their determination;
they won’t abandon their former homeland. In other words’ today’s conflict will
repeat in the future.”
“Second, Lord Hun Tong, in this battle, you suddenly betrayed us and had the
magic ship open fire on friendly forces. That caused immense casualties and
damage, and although the other powers won’t be too bad to deal with, what will
you do about the five great merchant alliances?”
“Third, another necromancer appeared during the battle. That combined with the
prior necromancer incident might trigger an imperial follow-up investigation.
You better kill that necromancer before then.”
If it were Cang Xu or Zi Di, perhaps these things would have been said more
tactfully.
But Zong Ge was straightforward and when he ran into a feudal lord of bad
character, he might get angry on the spot.
But Hun Tong burst into laughter, “None of your concerns are enough to trouble
me.”
“First point, the fishmen are nothing to worry about. Because Two Eyes Island
will be appropriated by the empire as a future transportation hub. It will be
an important part of the maritime transportation lines. At that time, the
imperial navy will be garrisoned here, and even if the fishman clan grows in
strength, the war they raise won’t endanger my territory.”
“Second point, my performance on the battlefield…cough, I can’t help but say
that the fishmen are really crafty. They actually used Devil Gold Coins. I had
the misfortune of falling to them.”
Hun Tong had learned about the Devil Gold Coins from the old fishman elder.
At the time, he had expressed his approval and offered genuine praise.
Upon mentioning it, Hun Tong’s teeth hatefully itched.
Zong Ge’s eyes flashed, “What gold coins?”
Hun Tong gave a detailed explanation of everything he knew about the gold
coins.
Zong Ge had a realization.
At that moment, he finally understood why Hun Tong, Zi Di, and Cang Xu changed
sides.
“So, the problem was those 50,000 gold coins.”
“Through us, most of those gold coins ended up in Hun Tong’s hands, causing him
to be entrapped by them.”
“If he knew the truth, who knows what he would feel about it?”
Hun Tong continued, “Although it was indeed me who caused casualties to
friendly forces, it was not my real intention, I was influenced by an external
power. Everyone knows this.”
“Of course, the five great merchant alliances won’t be easy to deal with.”
“They are troublesome.”
“Therefore, I have made sufficient preparations. Regarding these merchants, I
will give them satisfactory compensation.”
“Don’t worry about coin.” Hun Tong smiled, looking calm and complacent, “On the
seafloor around the new island are the treasures the pirates left behind.”
“My subterranean patrol puppets have already submerged to the seafloor and are
searching all over for them.”
“Of course, others are thinking of fishing up this money, but my Golden Flash
has been monitoring all of the coastlines.”
“This money is all spoils of war, and according to imperial law, are mine!”
“A small part of this sum is enough to satisfy the five great merchant
alliances.”
Zong Ge: …..
He knew the treasures on the seafloor had already been absconded by Zi Di.
In terms of plundering seafloor resources, the deep sea salvagers were far
better than the subterranean patrollers!
Hun Tong’s beautiful dream was destined to be shattered.
As Zong Ge watched the feudal lord of Two Eyes Island frankly giving
assurances, he couldn’t help but feel a smidge of pity for him.
Hung Ton wasn’t aware of this as he kept going, “As for the third point, that
necromancer…it is very clear that he was one of the fishmen’s hidden forces.
That group of wretched dregs actually ganged up with a necromancer. Therefore,
the necromancer that appeared on the island must surely be one of theirs too,
wanting to destroy Two Eyes Island ahead of time for them.”
“I am completely innocent; I am not worried about any investigation.”
“It won’t be anything major.”
Hun Tong had an important reason for this, one he didn’t tell Zong Ge.
Cang Xu, that fish, was the imperial secret spy’s target, they wanted to put
him on a long line to hook a bigger fish.
Therefore, during the battle, Hun Tong didn’t clamp down on Cang Xu ruthlessly.
After all, he and the imperial secret spy worked a lot together.
In fact, when confronted with a possible imperial investigation, the imperial
secret spy could help him explain things.
Therefore, he didn’t panic.



****** Chapter 215: Destination – Ice Sculpture Island ******
With profound regret, Hun Tong clandestinely left the port.
He wanted to convince Zong Ge but wasn’t able to.
Zong Ge didn’t think Two Eyes Island had a good future and listed three
problems.
Hun Tong felt that his answers were watertight and could be rated as perfect.
But Zong Ge still turned him down.
“A pity, truly a pity!” Hun Tong sighed incessantly.
He also knew that poaching was risky, and would likely offend the arms merchant
behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
But Hun Tong really did lack capable people.
Especially after the battle concluded, the feudal lord suffered disastrous
losses to his power.
Crucially, Zong Ge’s display of talent and abilities really made people drool.
Hun Tong’s main recruitment target tonight was always Zong Ge, the dragonman
youngster was secondary.
To Hun Tong, it seemed that Shi Qi was more outstanding than Long Fu.
First, Shi Qi was a human, Long Fu was a dragonman. Different races had natural
barriers, and recruiting a human elite would more consolidate the stability of
Two Eyes Island.
Second, Shi Qi had a more guaranteed future than Long Fu. Shi Qi’s battle q I
already had a gold luster, and given enough time, he was sure to become a gold
level.
Third, the risks of offending an arms merchant could be mitigated. Two Eyes
Island could become an arms provider location, and with a beneficial alliance,
Shi Qi could be gotten and perhaps could be the connecting bridge between both
sides.
Fourth, Long Fu was already the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
from this position, one knew that he had a higher status in the arms merchant’s
heart. Of course, it was far harder for Hun Tong to poach the big boss than the
second in command. The price would also be greater.
“A pity he didn’t accept.”
“I shouldn’t give up on this.”
“Like Long Fu, Shi Qi is a silver level rarely seen.”
“I have to win him over with all I got.”
“As long as they haven’t left Two Eyes Island, I still have a chance.”
“Wait until tomorrow, when I receive the plundered seafloor treasure. I will
come and negotiate again, even if I have to double the price, recruiting Shi Qi
will be to my advantage!”
Hun Tong secretly resolved himself.
This battle had made him fed up with his incompetent subordinates.
Zong Ge returned to the captain’s room, and after inspecting the area around
him, activated a communication device.
“Hun Tong just came by. He wants to recruit our corps and really wants to hire
me at a high price.” From him, I learned about the Devil Gold Coins. It was
those that caused your temporary betrayal!” 
Hun Tong deciding to drop by had given them important information. 
Zi Di and Cang Xu learned of this crucial factor.
Zi Di and the dragonman youngster were in the Deep Sea Monster Fish, while Cang
Xu was alone in the captain’s room of the Iron Lump.
Through three alchemy communication devices, and through their discussion,
learned of the causes and effects of the Devil Gold Coins.
“It’s no wonder the fishmen were so magnanimous and took out 50,000 gold
coins.”
“The Sincerity God…their sacred tools are indeed impossible to block.”
“No.” The dragonman youngster shook his head, his heart deeply worried and
sick, “We must meet our failings head on. Against these types of skills, we
have no defensive measures.”
“Cang Xu immediately approved, “This is indeed a large weakness of ours. In
fact, the top brass of powers large and small have such preventative measures.”
“Hun Tong had a massive amount of Devil Gold Coins, but he able to swiftly
recover in that crucial moment, that was the efficacy of his defensive
measure.”
Zi Di spoke, “We indeed need to cover for this weakness; however, it is very
difficult.”
“Generally speaking, preventative measures are all constant divine spells on
the body.”
“In our current situation, going to any temple, church, or other religious
institution is fairly risky.”
The gods were aloof and remote.
As long as one built a temple or a church, they would have a likeness of them,
have abundant divine power, and have the god’s eyes and ears there.
The survivors entering these places was them placing themselves rich in front
of the gods’ eyes.
Despite having the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spells, it was still rather risky.
Basically, before they redeemed themselves and washed themselves clean, these
churches and temples were dangerous places for the survivors. Avoided if
possible.
Cang Xu voiced, “It is not just divine spells that can protect us, there are
other ways.”
“In fact, I don’t believe that is the most concerning problem.”
“Don’t forget that our primary goal was the pass on a message to leverage the
Bai Zhen Clan’s connections with imperial higherups.”
“Therefore, we came to Two Eyes Island.”
“But now, we haven’t received a response yet.”
“After so many days, this is not normal. What actually happened? Did the Bai
Zhen Clan receive the message, did they reply back? Did anyone discover and
obstruct the letter?”
Cang Xu’s words immediately got the others’ approval.
Zong Ge said, “Currently, the Wisteria Store on the new island is closed.”
“Cang Xu has been exposed as a necromancer, and this entails that the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance channel has also suffered a calamity.”
Zi Di added, “To be honest, losing one store isn’t that big of a deal. What’s
key is that the Sheng Ming Empire will likely carry out a follow up
investigation. If this trail is investigated deeply enough, will it implicate
us?”
“Will the blackmail letter be investigated?”
“Although the letter’s content is blackmail in name, it doesn’t indicate who we
are, but it is still an important clue.”
“If nothing else, using these clues to divine us will deplete much of our
power. After all, every time the Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation is
activated, it comes at a steep price.”
In the spell of silence, everyone’s thoughts were springing with urgency.
Their main purpose in coming to Two Eyes Island was to send that message.
But it failed.
Not only did they not receive a reply, but it also involved more problems.
The dragonman youngster then said, “We have to hurry up and send a second
message, we will find the issue.”
Cang Xu replied, “It won’t be easy to find. In fact, the message might have
been misplaced. These alchemy devices are not 100% reliable. Therefore,
important information is sent in at least three different ways and transmitted
repeatedly.”
“We might have made a mistake with the encryption, and the receiving alchemy
device got nothing but gibberish.”
“We are very far from the Sheng Ming Continent and need many communication
devices to relay the transmission. There could be a problem at any point, we
would be hard pressed to find where the issue is.”
Zi Di added on, “Regardless of what it is, I believe that we can still try the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance channels again.”
“Of course, it will be impossible to use the Two Eye Island’s communication
device again.”
“The next closest is located at Ice Sculpture Island.”
“We can go there.”
“Ice Sculpture Island? I know of it.” Even Zong Ge, one unfamiliar with the
seas, knew of Ice Sculpture Island’s reputation.
Ice Sculpture Island was an ultra-large island, its development far surpassed
Two Eyes Island!
Even before the battle, Two Eyes Island couldn’t compare to Ice Sculpture
Island.
After all, Two Eyes Island was a coral ball cage tree, it was constantly
moving, which hindered much of its development.
Because the coral ball cage tree itself was growing, and no matter how good the
infrastructure, it would collapse after a time.
Ice Sculpture Island was a normal island and had a vast population, given
enough reproduction and business, it had surpassed Two Eyes Island by many
times. 
Two Eyes Island had only been under Hun Tong’s control for ten years.
Ice Sculpture Island had been settled for over a thousand years.
In the beginning, the settling races were divided by categories and races mixed
together. Ice Sculpture Island had abundant resources and was treasured greatly
in the boundless ocean.
In the following decades, snow elf communities continued to migrate there.
At the time, the barbarian clan started a war on the Ice Continent. The snow
elf clan was no match for this army, and one after the other, they were routed
and dispersed, those that could flee chose to settle on Ice Sculpture Island.
After a few centuries, a snow elf nation had been established on Ice Sculpture
Island
In the beginning, the snow elf nation only held a small part of the island.
In current times, the entirety of Ice Sculpture Island belonged to the snow elf
nation, they had become quite the powerful maritime kingdom!
Zi Di knew the dragonman youngster had lost his memory and decided to give him
an introduction, “Snow elves are a type of elf, they are most suited to an
environment of ice and snow.”
“Elves are different from us humans, they have a long life span, and are
experts at magic, music, and more.”
“Ice Sculpture Island has snow elves that are good at magic, and even better at
alchemy.”
“The alchemy puppets they make employe ice sculpture technology, cheap and
satisfactory, a famous specialty.”
“Not just alchemy puppets, they also make ice breakers, cold ice forts, and
more, they are especially suitable for fighting in frigid environments.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes shined, “Perhaps we can purchase some magic
ships there.”
“We lack magic ships we can overtly use.”
“If we have a silver level magic ship, we can safeguard the gold cannon and
supply it sufficiently for it to display its true firepower.”
“Unlike the last two times, the enemy destroyed it after its first shot.”
Zi Di nodded, “We are very wealthy now!”
“Buying some magic ships is completely feasible.”
“In fact, we really need a true alchemist!”
When Zi Di said this, the dragonman youngster blinked.
Zong Ge didn’t know about the Bloodcore and their plans; he was completely in
the dark and felt somewhat baffled.
Cang Xu said, “That’s right.”
“Although we have basic maintenance puppets, they can only maintain ordinary
ships.”
“It is difficult to maintain alchemy formations with just alchemy puppets.”
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish was hit by the main light cannon, and needs to be
repaired, and after going through the battle, the Iron Lump needs to be
repaired too.”
“We have lost many alchemy puppets already.”
“The scouting puppets are not a problem and aren’t worth maintaining. But the
deep sea salvagers, the swordsmen guard puppets, and the broken yellow crab
alchemy puppet all need to be repaired by an alchemy master.”
“Some important alchemy formations need to be constructed by an alchemy
master.”
This sentence contained the main point.
Cang Xu and Zi Di would struggle to construct the Bloodline Purification
formation.
Zi Di and Cang Xu weren’t gifted in this aspect.
Zi Di was good at medicine and Cang Xu was an experienced administrator from
his many years as a noble steward.
If one wanted to cultivate an alchemy master, it would be very costly.
In Crown City’s alchemy college, one needed to read at least a hundred
introductory alchemy books to have an inkling of an alchemy foundation.



****** Chapter 216: Willpower Protection Spell ******
When the survivors spoke about needing an alchemy master, Zong Ge felt curious,
“Is Magician Qing Xin not good at alchemy?”
Zi Di shook her head, “She is best at the wind path magic called Wind Booster,
it can allow a caravan to travel quicker.”
Zong Ge immediately understood.
Zi Di sighed, “Even though she is a talented magician our merchant alliance
cultivated, her talent isn’t that high. How many at the lowest rungs of society
have powerful bloodlines?”
Cang Xu consoled, “If Magician Qing Xin was really gifted, she might not have
remained alive till today.”
Then the necromancer changed the topic, “Speaking of Qing Xin, I learned
something important from her.”
“There is a secret gathering of necromancers being held on Weeping Pine
Island.”
“It is a very rare gathering. They not only exchange information, but also
necromancy spells and necromancy cultivation resources.”
“I strongly propose I participate in it.”
“We need many necromancy path cultivation resources; it will be difficult to
replenish in other places. Especially soul crystals, they play an irreplaceable
role for my and Zi Di’s cultivation, as well as healing our ghosts.”
The dragonman youngster was silent for a bit, then asked, “Where is Weeping
Pine Island?”
Zi Di opened an ocean chart and cast it onto the wall, “Weeping Pine Island is
located…in that direction, in the complete opposite direction from Ice
Sculpture Island.”
Cang Xu nodded, “But it isn’t far, right?”
He had readied his wording for a long time.
The necromancer continued, “My proposal is this, let me leave for Weeping Pine
Island alone, so I can join the necromancer meeting and exchange some
resources.”
“When the gathering finishes and the necromancers dispel, we can still stage a
battle there.”
After the fight finishes, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will have
successfully beheaded necromancers and seize the Iron Lump, rescuing the many
human and dwarf hostages.”
“Won’t this be to everyone’s delight and satisfaction?”
The dragonman youngster’s heart was immediately moved, “If that happens, we can
actually use the Iron Lump, and perhaps on the basis of this, we can recruit
Men Shi?”
Zong Ge’s voice transmitted, “I approve of leaving for Weeping Pine Island.”
“It’s because its location is completely opposite to Ice Sculpture Island.”
“We can fool people with this and make a feint.”
“Additionally, being able to use the Iron Lump normally will also be helpful.
We really lack magic ships.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was a trump card and couldn’t be easily exposed.
“But if Qing Xin is on our ship, then the implication would expose our
identities!”
“She knows about Zi Di and the necromancers. Even if she doesn’t know about Zi
Di and Zhen Jin being shipwrecked, it will be easy for her to make discreet
inquiries into it in the future.”
“If she joins the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and learns of the truth of it,
then she won’t be far from accessing our core secrets.”
Zong Ge continued to speak bluntly, “Therefore, I oppose doing this!”
“Regardless of how much you trust this woman, mine doesn’t come so easily.”
“This is too risky for us!”
Zi Di’s brows wrinkled, and she retorted, “I can vouch for her. Older sister
Qing Xin has been trained by my father, and when the Wisteria Merchant Alliance
was divided up, she was living incognito and used all of her strength to
resist. This proves her loyalty.”
“To take care of the blond mother and child, and the others, she would rather
fight and do her best to save these weak people, this sufficiently illustrates
her kindheartedness.”
Zong Ge coldly snorted, “Zi Di, your trust cannot supersede my opinion.”
“How can you know her innermost and truest sentiments?” 
“Even if she is loyal, can she be controlled?”
“Think about your betrayal during the battle. You cannot even guarantee
yourself; how can you guarantee others?”
“You!” Zi Di angrily glared.
She unconsciously looked at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster smiled back and softly patted her shoulder, silently
comforting her.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t instantly declare his position, rather he
asked Cang Xu, “What is your opinion?”
The old necromancer had prudently kept silent, but now that his commander
called him out, he was forced to say, “I agree with Zong Ge.”
This answer made Zi Di’s brows crease deeper.
However, the dragonman youngster was actually serene from beginning to end, as
if he had anticipated it.
Although he had a closer relationship with Cang Xu and Zi Di compared to Zong
Ge, at every strategic decision, Cang Xu maintained his reason and
consideration, he would independently reflect on it, unlikely to be hindered by
external factors like emotions and status.
Cang Xun continued, “Qing Xin is indeed someone we cannot entrust ourselves
to.”
“As the situation stands now, that’s how it is.”
“We trust each other, because Mystifying Monster Island is our solid
foundation. With regards to Qing Xin, only Miss Zi Di stands by her.”
“This matter cannot be rushed.”
“We can freely probe and confirm her true intentions and detect if she has
suffered any control methods.”
“We can also have her sign a contract.”
“There are many magics and divine spells that can help us, right?”
“In fact, I really hope that we can sign a contract and utilize the contract’s
power to protect ourselves from something like the Devil Gold Coins from
happening again!”
Cang Xu had been a noble steward for many years and his words were very fluent.
First, he maintained his opinion.
Second, he endorsed Zong Ge, but didn’t completely endorse him. He opposed Zi
Di, but didn’t fully do so. He didn’t offend either person.
Once again, his words were very sensible and gave a resolution.
Finally, he also had a very reasonable proposal, he proposed that everyone sign
a contract to guard against things like the Devil Gold Coins. This proposal
really went deep into the dragonman youngster’s heart!
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but lightly nod.
He looked at Zi DI, silently asking his beloved’s opinion.
Zi Di’s brows relaxed somewhat, and she muttered to herself, “We really need to
guard against things like the Devil Gold Coins, we need to protect our will!”
“In this aspect, divine spells are the popular first choice.”
“In practicality, defensive divine spells are divided into two groups. The
first is temporary protection, it only protects for a time and needs to be
replenished afterwards. The second is constant divine spells, similar to
constant magic spells, a defensive divine spell will be added perpetually to
one’s body.”
“The first type needs us to frequently be in contact with a priest or higher
level clergy, increasing our exposure risk.”
“The second is less suitable, constant divine spells need high level clergymen
and casting facilities, they are often done inside temples. Because the
bestowed divine spell’s power is everlasting, the church will strictly audit
the receivers to prevent aiding the enemy. During the casting of the divine
spell, it is a extremely likely that the gods will be looking down at it.”
“In fact, when any high level or large scale divine spell is used, the higher
the chance it will provoke a god’s attention.”
A fighter’s power comes from themselves, a magician draws from external
elements, and the source of a clergy’s power come from the god they believe in.
Therefore, if a powerful divine spell is used, the gods will naturally sense it
somewhat.
The dragonman youngster nodded, “If divine spells aren’t suitable and too
risky, is there another way?”
Zi Di nodded, “There is. Besides divine spells, there are spells, magic
formations, medicine, alchemy formations, alchemy items, and so on that can be
used.”
“For example, there is the Anti-magic Barrier can increase magic resistance.
When willpower is distorted, it will reduce the control time.”
“There is also the classic secret magic, Counterspell. It can counter the vast
majority of spells.”
“However, it isn’t good as a preventative measure.”
There are both divine spells and magic spells that can influence willpower, but
there are many more of the former than the latter. Counterspell and the Anti-
magic Barrier are magic focused.”
“Don’t tell me there isn’t one that can respond to divine spells, like a
Counter Divine Spell?” The dragonman youngster curiously asked.
Zi Di forced a smile, “The gods are special, each god’s power belongs to them
alone. In other words, the essence of each god’s divine spells are different,
even if the results are the same.”
“Therefore, if we wanted to develop a Counter Divine Spell, it would be both
extremely hard and costly. Even if developed, it would only be useful against a
god and won’t be broadly applicable. Thus, the earnings from it are too low.”
“Even worse, modifying a divine spell is far cheaper than developing a Counter
Divine Spell. If it is discovered that a divine spell has a counter, as long as
the gods modify it a bit, the corresponding Counter Divine Spell will lose its
effectiveness. The main god doesn’t even need to act themselves; holy spirits,
angels, red clothed archbishops, and others can also modify them too.”
“I see.” Zong Ge sighed.
The dragonman youngster had lost his memory and Zong Ge had been living in the
army and cultivating his battle qi for years on end, thus neither had a deep
knowledge of these things.
The two had their horizons broadened greatly by Zi Di’s words.
As Zi Di spoke, Cang Xu remained quiet.
He understood propriety and didn’t pointlessly steal the show.
Zi Di continued, “Magic is in this situation, and there also some magic
formations that can protect the user’s original will.”
“In essence, it is actually an enchantment technique.”
“Through a formation, a body can be enchanted, and the magic runes attached
will protect them.
“To go a step further, it is human alchemy.”
“Everyone knows about the beastman boxing champion Yi Chao. He decided to use
alchemy on his right arm, making it into the Black Gold Rocket Fist, thereby
augmenting his strength.” 
“When the right arm was being created, five exceedingly precious gems were
used, one of which could protect willpower greatly.”
“Therefore, the Black Gold Rocket Fist could safeguard his independent will.”
“To us, the most suitable method is medicine.”
“We have great medicinal manufacturing, thanks to the Magic Medicine Bathtub.”
“Of course, we aren’t able to make any high level medicine, but we don’t lack
in production capacity for low level medicine, we just lack some of the
corresponding materials, that’s all.”
“In future critical moments, we can drink this medicine to temporarily protect
our willpower.”
Cang Xu followed with, “I approve of this plan.”
Zong Ge questioned, “This plan cannot guard against sneak attacks, magic,
formations, potions…what about an alchemy item?”
Zi Di replied, “The Black Gold Rocket Fist can actually be regarded as an
alchemy item.”
“Items that can protect will are rare and the vast majority of them are high
level artifacts.”
“The reason is similar to magic.”
“It is difficult to guard against divine spells that can tamper with and
distort will.”
“One can say there is a price but no market, one can encounter it, but can’t
look for it.”
“Anyways…” Zi Di hesitated for a bit, “I heard that one of Ice Sculpture’s
specialties, the Ice Heart, can be used.”
“Ice Hearts have many uses.”
“It can be ingested by someone. After taking it, a person will become extremely
rational, and all of their emotions will be frozen, and their spirit power and
willpower will be greatly improved.”
“Of course it can be made into medicine. Ice Sculpture City has at least nine
types of medicine that uses it as material, the most well-known of them is the
Ice Head Flower medicine.”
“It is a medicine for snow elves. After a snow elf takes it, it will increase
their ice magic’s effects by at most 30%!”
“The side effect of taking this medicine is that the snow elf will have a lot
of dandruff, like a lot of it.”
“Ice Hearts can also be used to make alchemy items.”
“The most successful product is the Ice Heart Headband. When worn, it can keep
a magician calm, amplify their spirit power, and increase their casting speed.
Of course, it also protects willpower.”
The dragonman youngster laughed, “It seems that we have another objective on
Ice Sculpture Island.”
But Zi Di shook her head, “It will be hard to acquire a Ice Heart, its output
is very small, don’t expect getting any.”
The four continued to discuss other matters.
Such as providing compensation payments, rewarding and promoting those that
performed well, and so on, along with how to negotiate with Hun Tong.
Finally, the four decided to first proceed towards Weeping Pine Island, then
travel to Ice Sculpture Island.
As for what to do with Qing Xin, that hinged on whether they could confirm her
true condition and whether the survivors could trust her.
To ensure operational security, Zi Di suggested that they equip Cang Xu as much
as they could with the things they got from the auction.
This suggestion was approved by the other three.
As dawn approached, the dragonman youngster snuck back onto the port.
When the sun ascended from the flat ocean horizon, Hun Tong opened his eyes.
Much of his pain had been alleviated, thanks to the healing potions he took.
The Wealth Church priest had died in battle, and the clergy on the new island
weren’t capable of healing Hun Tong.
Hun Tong felt very cozy.
Although it had only been a few hours of sleep, his energy and stamina had been
greatly restored.
He slowly sat up then shook the bell at his bedside.
Soon after, a servant knocked on the door, and after being permitted in, a few
of them entered to wait upon Hun Tong, dressing him and washing him up.
The lead servant was Hun Tong’s personal manservant.
The manservant was somewhat stiff, his voice hoarse, “Master, last night you
reminded me that I would immediately report everything concerning the salvaged
treasures. Is now fine?”
But after a few hours of sleep, Hun Tong was no longer as fretful.
He regained his noble bearing.
Right now, he was looking at a mirror and adjusting his collar, “It isn’t
urgent, those spoils of war won’t be running away.”
“Unfortunately…”  His personal servant was just about to speak when Hun Tong
interrupted.
Hun Tong pointed at the window and ordered, “Open it.”
The personal servant promptly obeyed and opened the window.
The scenery outside the window was very beautiful.
The morning sun sprinkled across the ocean surface, glittering as resplendently
as fish scales.
The sea breeze slowly blew in, causing Hun Tong’s mood to become splendid.
The only ugliness was the buildings ruined by war.
It was somewhat dazzling to Hun Tong’s eyes.
He encouraged himself, “It doesn’t matter, I have money!”
“I have a lot of money.”
“Give me time, and I will make this island better and more beautiful.”



****** Chapter 217: My Money?! ******
Hun Tong came to the dining table.
The dining table had gold plates laid out on them, containing sliced bread, cow
milk, salmon, chicken eggs, bacon, fusilli, and more.
To Hun Tong’s left, there was also a small cup that contained gold level sea
salt. Each grain of sea salt was worth twice its weight in gold.
Hun Tong sighed, “The war just finished, I can be simple.”
He sat down and began to enjoy breakfast.
Not long after, noise could be heard from the city government building’s gate.
It was those merchants.
They were led by the five great merchant alliances, once again assembling in
front of the city government building’s gate, demanding an explanation from Hun
Tong.
Hun Tong turned a deaf ear and calmly ate.
His personal manservant was restless and impatient, “My Lord, the seafloor
treasure salvaging matter, can I report it to you?”
Hun Tong shook his head, drank some milk, and smiled, “No need, my loyal
servant. Forget that order, don’t be worried, you need to learn patience right
now. Whether it is bitterness or happiness, all of life is beautiful.”
“Therefore, don’t tell me how much we got out, why don’t you give me something
to look forward to?” When he said that, Hun Tong couldn’t help but laugh.
As a matter of fact, he had made a prediction.
It would absolutely be a tremendous sum that would far exceed everything he had
earned in his life!
The main contributor of them was the Wealth Church.
During daily operations of Two Eyes Island, the church was also a gigantic gold
eating beast. When Hun Tong made money, he often donated a portion of the
profits to the church.
Because the Wealth Church monopolized Two Eyes Island.
Asking a clergyman to use a divine spell required payment.
Every time the Wealth Church presided over a large prayer, a priest did a
burial, or other such things, the church would charge a big expense.
The masses always gave aid and support to the church.
The divine spells the Wealth Church were best at were contract spells. These
divine spells can restrict cooperating parties and establish a base of trust.
Therefore, every merchant alliance big and small were also a source of Wealth
Church funds.
“The Lightning Pirates stole almost everything from the Wealth Church.”
“A good robbery.”
“Without them, how could this sum of riches fall into my hands?”
“Apart from this, every store large and small has been pillaged, the two
mercenary corps’ encampments also have many ill-gotten gains.”
“Many of the island’s inhabitants were rich, and although not worth attention
individually, the pirates robbed the entire island. After adding up these
little things, the total must be considerable.”
Hun Tong couldn’t help but sink into a wonderful daydream, overlooking his
manservant’s increasingly difficult to mask fretfulness.
After finishing breakfast, Hun Tong spryly walked to the storehouse. 
When he pushed the door open, he came to an empty room.
“Eh?” Hun Tong stared blankly at it.
In his imagination, this storehouse should have piles of gold, silver, and
jewels. But the sight before him was completely different from his
expectations.
Hun Tong couldn’t help but blink.
“Did I go the wrong way?”
He took a few steps back out of the room and looked at the room sign. 
“Room 3, that’s right.”
Hun Toing blinked again, then glanced at his manservant behind him, “I should
have given the order.”
“Yes, master/ Last night, you ordered that all of the treasures fished out of
the sea were to be delivered to storehouse 3.
“Furthermore, you also specially reminded your subordinates that if room 3 was
not enough, we could use storehouse 5 next door.”
Hun Tong frowned as he questioned, “Then, where’s the money?”
“Where is the seafloor treasures?”
“Where are my valuables?!”
The manservant turned pale, and overflowing with cold sweat, he swallowed his
salvia and croaked out, “Feudal Lord, my master, this is precisely what I
wanted to report to you! I don’t know why, but after the alchemy puppets
searched everywhere several times, uh, they only found a few copper coins on
the seafloor.”
“Those few copper coins were put in that corner of the storehouse.”
Hun Tong: …..
The news startled him.
His eyes went wide.
He felt incredulous!
“How is this possible? He turned around, looking at a corner in the room. 
Suire enough, there were three copper coins there.
Copper coins were circulated in ordinary marketplaces.
The deep sea salvagers weren’t perfect and had left behind three coins.
Hun Tong rigidly gazed at these three copper coins; he stared at them!
Storeroom 3 was deathly still.
His manservant didn’t dare breathe, for fear a violent rage would descend upon
him.
Hun Tong’s eyes coldly flashed.
These three copper coins were so unsightly.
They seemed to be ridiculing him, telling him that his beautiful dream was
shattered!
Nothing would have been preferable!
“Impossible!” Hun Tong suddenly shrieked, causing thee manservant to almost
faint from fear.
Hun Tong raised his arms and shouted like an enraged lion as he rapidly ran two
loops around the empty storehouse 3.

This is impossible!!” He shouted again; his yells already filled with killing
intent.
He strode over to his manservant.
The manservant groveled at the spot, imploring, “Master…”
But a moment later, Hun Tong passed by him and quickly left the storeroom.
He flew into the air without a moment’s break, rushing out of the city
government building, out of the new island, and into the skies.
Hun Tong had a flying battle skill.
Like a beam of light, he shot through the clouds and entered the Golden Flash.
“It’s Hun Tong.”
“He flew away!”
“Don’t tell me he wants to run away? How long will he keep hiding?”
The merchants around the city government building exploded like a pot, as one
after the other, they verbally attacked Hun Tong.
Hun Tong had flown into the Golden Flash for the sole purpose of inquiring into
the war detection images.
His eyes were very bloodshot and wide open as he attentively examined these
images.
He had definitely used the light beam cannons to attack the pirates and
fishmen, causing them to cry for their parents, and caused those treasures to
fall into the seawater.
Why weren’t they there?
How could there only be three copper coins left?
“Who?!”
“Who was it?!”
“I must see who dares take my money!”
But the images contained no valuable clues.
The Golden Flash had strong detection capabilities, but not underwater, it was
more partial towards range.
It could at most observe three meters under the water.
However, it was an experimental magic ship from the Sheng Ming Empire, and
since it was planned to be mass produced, it definitely had all kinds of
alchemy components paired up with a standard hull that could adapt to different
battlefields.
However, at present time, a suitable underwater detection module hasn’t been
developed yet.
Naturally, Hun Tong knew of this shortcoming, that was why he spent a lot of
money to get a Gold Eye.
With that gold level component, even if the Golden Flash couldn’t detect what
exactly was underwater, it could lock onto high value targets and guide the
light beam cannons in accurate bombardments.
This was also the reason why Hun Tong didn’t detect the deep sea salvagers
being active on the sea floor.
War Merchant had outfitted the Deep Sea Monster with deep sea salvagers, and no
other puppets of a similar type, illustrated the capabilities of these deep sea
salvagers.
These alchemy puppets were amazing at fishing out resources from the ocean. 
During the battle, many of them had been destroyed by the light beam
bombardments, but they had been retrieved by Zi Di.
And this bit gave Hun Tong a clue.
After examining the images fruitlessly, he then accessed the bombardment
records from the battle!
All at once, his eyes went red.
He found the culprit!
“It sems you are the thieves!!”
“Naga! A group of naga shaped alchemy puppets!!”
“It was you who stole my treasures, hateful, abominable!” 
Hun Tong roared.
It would take a good while for him to slowly calm down.
His face twisted with malevolence and his eyes emitted a threatening cold
light, “Damn it, Were those alchemy puppets from the naga priestess?”
He first suspected the naga priestess.
“No, that mysterious necromancer is also a suspect.” Hun Tong recalled.
The Iron Lump had been seized by mysterious alchemy puppets, and those alchemy
puppets obviously belonged to that necromancer.
Since he had one group of alchemy puppets, they having another group of them
was very normal.
“But I didn’t notice any of these treasures being sent to the Iron Lump?”
Hun Tong guessed for a long time, unable to determine an exact culprit.
“Damn it, damn it!”
He clenched his fists and ferociously smashed the helm.
With a definitive culprit, how could he get back this immense sum?
If he had a target, perhaps he could pursue them with the Golden Flash.
Too sullen.
His painstaking plot had was now another’s belonging.
Hun Tong gloomily wanted to cough up blood.
His scheme was very good. During the battle, he had once controlled the overall
situation, and according to that development, he would become the biggest
winner and absorb everything.
But the Devil Gold Coins, the sudden emergence of that giant fishman, and so on
had caused his grand plan to go up into smoke.
When the battle ended, Hun Tong wasn’t frantic.
Because in his plan, the immense wealth on the seafloor would help him rapidly
rise once again, and his future accomplishments would be far greater than the
ones he had before the battle!
This sum of money to him, to Two Eyes Island, was very important!
Essential!
But it was gone.
It was all in vain.
Another had fished it up.
Unfortunately, Hun Tong still didn’t know who!
Hun Tong couldn’t help but clutch his stomach and close his eyes.
Sorrow.
Sorrow pervaded his soul.
As a pious Wealth Church believer, the pain of losing a fortune was a hundred
times more painful than bodily injuries.
The loss was disastrous, too disastrous.
Hun Tong couldn’t breathe for a moment.
“What can I do?”
He slowly opened his eyes, blankly looking at the magic images.
The images were a panoramic view of the new island.
The pirates’ pillaging and fishman army’s attack had left a ruin so horrible
one couldn’t bear to look at it.
Hun Tong’s mind cooled.
In his original plan, he would use a small part of the seafloor riches to
wantonly rebuild the new island.
But now he couldn’t.
No money.
“What can I use to rebuild?”
“Do I have to use my old capital?”
He had a bit of savings, but it was a cup of water on a burning cart.
“Damn it, under these circumstances, how can I face those troublesome merchant
alliances?”
Before he didn’t think they would be a problem, now his brows were wrinkled
deeply.
In the magic images, groups of merchants assembled at the city government
building’s gate, point at theGolden Flashhidden in the clouds, shouting and
screaming at him.
“If I had known this earlier, I wouldn’t have given the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps such a big reward!”
Hun Tong felt great regret.
Without money, everything was different for him.
“Eh?”
At that moment, Hun Tong saw a group of people disembarking off a ship and
headed towards the city government building.
The leader was Long Fu, joined by Shi Qi.
Apart from this, there were also some people carrying some chests.
Hun Tong saw familiar chests. 
Last night, he had filled up these chests with silver coins, using them to
reward Shi Qi in an attempt to snatch him away.
“They are looking to give me money, for what reason?”
“Do they think the reward is too much and want to return some of it to me?”



****** Chapter 218: A Heart Aching Discount Sale ******
Hun Tong pondered on it, first activating the Gold Eye to investigate who the
most valuable bombardment target on and around the new island was.
The result was that the most important target was the dragonman youngster’s
delegation!
The second target was his city government building.
“My government treasury has a gold level treasure to cover and protect my
property.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps bringing so much money must mean they want to
trade with me!”
Hun Tong guessed the dragonman youngster’s group’s objective.
He immediately flew down.
If the Golden Flash was in better condition, perhaps he could bring the magic
ship down, inviting the dragonman youngster and the others to watch, a silent
deterrence and flaunting.
But after the battle, the Golden Flash’sdeck was covered in holes, only half of
the main light cannon was left, and there was only one of the five light cannon
turrets remaining.
With it in this state, wanting to ostentatiously fly down with it would
undoubtably embarrass him.
Hun Tong also didn’t want to entertain the dragonman youngster and the others
at the city government building.
Because the city government building’s gate was blocked with a group of
troublesome merchants.
Letting them see this would be too awkward and really harm his majestic
presence.
Since this group wants to trade with me, I cannot let those merchants see the
coin I receive.” Hun Tong still had a layer of apprehension.
Due to the aforementioned things, he had to go to them and meet the group
halfway.
Thus, just as the dragonman youngster and his companions left the port, they
saw Hun Tong flying down to them.
“Feudal Lord.” The dragonman youngster and the rest bowed.
Hun Tong held both hands behind his back, he slightly raised his head and
adopted a prestigious noble bearing.
But in the eyes of the dragonman youngster and the others, his eyes were very
red and dejected, his complexion was pale, and his forehead was soaked in a
fine layer of sweat.
“He knows the seafloor treasures have disappeared without a trace.” The
dragonman youngster thought.
Hun Tong’s movement had been detected by the Deep Sea Monster Fish, and Zi Di
had informed them in real time.
Seeing Hun Tong, the dragonman youngster couldn’t help but think of the first
time they saw each other.
Then, Hun Tong had been easy going and looked down with noble grace. Now that
he was strong in appearance but weak in reality, it formed a stark contrast.
Zong Ge’s eyes concealed vigilance.
If Hun Tong knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been the ones that took
away the seafloor treasures, then he would tear himself apart.
Hun Tong ran his eyes across the group of people, did his best to maintain his
noble air, and asked the dragonman youngster, “I saw that you are going to the
city government building, are you looking for me?”
“Correct.” The dragonman youngster seized the opportunity to candidly state
that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to leave Two Eyes Island, they had
come to pay their respects to the feudal lord to both say goodbye and to make a
transaction.
“You will be departing Two Eyes Island?” Hun Tong sighed quite reluctantly.
He still wanted to recruit these people, especially Shi Qi.
His gaze stopped at Shi Qi, but the latter didn’t show a trace of being
reluctant to part.
Hun Tong’s heart chilled.
He felt short of breath.
If he had gained the seafloor treasures, he would have thrown a large sum out
and do his best to hire Shi Qi, and even the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
But now…he was poor.
No confidence.
The group of talents before him were something he couldn’t reach for.
He was even somewhat vexed, why had he been so extravagant yesterday with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps rewards?
“Honestly, the battle just ended. Your corps has taken massive losses, it would
be better to rest and reorganize on the new island for a few days. Before
setting out to sea, it would better to be a bit more stable.” Stated Hun Tong.
But the dragonman youngster had a perfect excuse ready.
He slightly stood aside, suddenly revealing the dwarf Men Shi behind him.
He explained to Hun Tong, “Feudal Lord, during the battle, we got to know a
group of true comrades.”
“Now, Men Shi has joined my corps. But his clansmen were kidnapped by that
mysterious necromancer.”
“Therefore, we must leave the island as soon as possible and use all of our
strength to save his clansmen, our comrades-in-arms.
Hun Tong was amazed for a bit, then slightly perked up his brows.
To him it seemed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were a mixed group, now
they were bringing in dwarfs. For one silver level military power, this
transaction had unknown risks, and the merits and drawbacks were still yet to
be seen.
Men Shi looked at the dragonman youngster from behind, his heart brimming with
appreciation. 
He was very worried about his clansmen, incessantly anxious, but he also knew
of the severity of the situation and never spoke up to urge the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to save his people.
Because he knew that it was very rare that onlookers would risk fighting a
necromancer to save his clansmen. 
Was he, Men Shi, unable to recognize another’s good intentions and not
satisfied with small gains?
Of course not!
Men Shi knew he needed propriety.
But he didn’t expect that the dragonman youngster would inform him that the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ simple discussion last night was about saving his
clansmen, they would leave the island today and start the pursuit!
The tide of thankfulness drowned Men Shi in an instant.
He decided on the spot to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, despite the
dragonman youngster’s protests.
Now, when he saw Hun Tong looking at him, Men Shi coldly snorted to himself,
“Surely he believes that to save my clansmen, I sold myself into service to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“Humph, even if this human is a gold level, he cannot compare to Commander Long
Fu!”
Men Shi didn’t have a good opinion of Hun Tong.
His people had been auctioned off at Two Eyes Island, treated as slaves to
sell.
As Hun Tong scanned Men Shi over, he saw Chi Lai in the crowd.
At the auction, he wasn’t that interested in Chi Lai.
Things are different now.
He only had two silver level subordinates left, unreliable ones at that.
He now thought that although Chi Lai wasn’t a perfect silver level subordinate
that didn’t get along with Two Eyes Island and him, if he had become his
subordinate, it would greatly help Two Eyes Island over this time of empty!
Unfortunately, he had lost his chance.
Chi Lai now belonged to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Hun Tong felt increasing regret when a thought suddenly jumped into his mind,
“The battle had caused immense damage to all sides. Yet the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ lineup has instead gotten more powerful. These people…they
really are lucky.”
Hun Tong didn’t know that Magician Qing Xin was also on the Iron Lump.
When that came to mind, he felt the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had grown more
captivating.
If these people could stay on Two Eyes Island, it would be amazing!
Even if they left one or two silvers, that would be very advantageous.
Despite not having much hope, Hun Tong forced out a laugh and tried one final
time, “Last night, I gave my proposal to Shi Qi, have you considered it
Commander Long Fu?”
The dragonman youngster deeply sighed, “So sorry, Feudal Lord.”
“Two Eyes Island is certainly a blessed place, and under your governance, it is
bound to flourish beyond its past glories.”
“Your Lordship’s sincerity really moved us; it is our regret that circumstances
are beyond our control.”
The dragonman youngster tactfully declined.
Hun Tong nodded; this response was expected.
His face was heavy, especially when he saw the treasure chests behind the
dragonman youngster, thinking of his “sincerity” last night made his heart ache
even more.
The dragonman youngster took out a list of items and handed it to Hun Tong,
“These are the goods my corps wishes to purchase from the Feudal Lord.”
Hun Tong scanned it, he saw on the list that there were many coral materials,
the Fragrant Gill Tea, ships, and more.
One of Two Eyes Island’s specialties was its various types of coral, because
Two Eyes Island was a gigantic coral ball cage tree.
The Fragrant Gill Tea was something Hun Ton had intentionally invested in, and
after countless failures, he had made it. 
“Your corps has excellent taste.” Hun Tong praised the dragonman youngster,
which was actually praising himself.
“Eh, water pigmen?” When Hun Tong saw this towards the end of the list, he
paused slightly.
He soon recalled that he had purchased a group of these beastmen slaves at the
auction.
Those slaves were water pigmen.
They had come from the upper reaches of Three Color River, a human slave team
had captured them and reduced them to slaves.
In the survivors’ original purchase plan, Zong Ge wanted to buy these water
pigmen a lot.
At the time, he had listed the many merits of the water pigmen.
“We need these water pigmen, their bloodline is very compatible with the
Backwater Battle Qi technique. Not only do I know the cultivation method of the
Backwater Battle Qi technique, but I also understand how to establish a
Backwater Battle Squad.” 
“With these water pigmen, we will have top quality sailors.”
“Water pigmen are easy to provide for and aren’t picky eaters. They can fish
for themselves and normally, every adult water pigman is an expert fisher.
During famine, they can even use river sand to allay their hunger, their
powerful stomachs can let them digest it barely.”
“During naval battles, we will have an all new route of attack – we can attack
enemy ships with the water pigmen.”
“Backwater Battle Qi can let someone operate in water for a long time, and
after it is given to the water pigmen, they will redouble its power.”
But because of Qing Xin’s sudden appearance, the survivors had spent a large
sum purchasing the blond mother and child, along with the other human slaves,
causing them to lose the water pigmen to Hun Tong.
Now, the survivors were swimming in cash, making impressive money from the
battle.
Therefore, they wanted to purchase them from Hun Tong.
Hun Tong thought deeply.
He originally bought these water pigmen slaves because the price was decent,
for at the end of the auction, everyone had spent most of their money.
In addition, the water pigmen were well suited for the constantly sinking and
rising island environment.
But circumstances are different now. 
Two Eyes Island had suffered disastrous damage.
Half the silver levels were dead, the city guard had been decimated, and
everything needed to be rebuilt.
Under these circumstances, having many of these water pigmen slaves here would
instead be a hidden danger.
To Hun Tong, these beastmen needed to be strictly disciplined.
As Two Eyes Island was now, there wasn’t the energy to spare to discipline
these beastmen.
Thinking of that, Hun Tong said, “This makes me embarrassed, at the time, when
I purchased those water pigmen, I naturally didn’t plan on selling them.”
“Truth be told, if another person asked for them, I would have immediately
refused them.”
But…if it your corps, I will sell them as a favor, so long as the price is
appropriate.”
This was the patter of a businessman.
Since he didn’t have the seafloor valuables, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
deciding to drop by was a good opportunity that Hun Tong wouldn’t let slip by.
He wanted to negotiate this transaction as best he could, so he could obtain
more valuable capital.
Following their plan, the dragonman youngster didn’t reply, instead Zong Ge
stepped forth, “Feudal Lord, this transaction is with me.”
“I am somewhat interested in the water pigmen, just a personal interest.”
“The corps put up with it and added it to the transaction list.”
“I can only afford this amount. I won’t be able to buy I can’t buy it at any
price above it” Zong Ge raised four fingers.
In a split second, Hun Tong became furious.
“I bought it at a price many times the one you’re offering!”
Zong Ge retracked his fingers, shook his head, and went back into the crowd,
“Since I can’t afford it, I won’t buy them.”
“Huh?” Hun Tong stared blankly.
Zong Ge’s unconventional move made him feel at a loss.
Normally, you should push a bit to raise the price.
Why don’t you want to buy it?
The dragonman youngster stepped forward and broker a compromise, “Feudal Lord,
please don’t blame Shi Qi. This is his nature, straightforward. That price
really is all of his personal savings, it is the limit of his financial
resources”
“I understand.” Hun Tong nodded, his gaze back at Zong Ge nevertheless filling
with more admiration.
He seized the opportunity to say, “Shi Qi, if you join Two Eyes Island, I will
gift these water pigmen to you as a present!”
Zong Ge forced a smile and shook his head.
When the dragonman youngster saw Hun Tong staring at Zong Ge, he took a step
forward to obstruct his gaze with his body.
“How about this.” The dragonman youngster said, “I will pay too, and increase
Shi Qi’s price.”
Hun Tong’s face sank, “Even if you add to it, it won’t match my purchase price.
Commander Long Fu, if you want to keep the hearts of men, a bit of money is not
enough to keep them.”
He used Zong Ge to pressure the dragonman youngster into increasing the price. 
The dragonman youngster clenched his teeth and increased the price.
As Hun Tong said that Zong Ge interjected, “Commander, forget about it, I have
a passing interest in these water pigmen, that’s all.”
“Is that so…” The dragonman youngster sighed.
Seeing that the two people seemed to be giving up, Hun Tong’s eyelids suddenly
jumped open.
How is this possible?
This group of water pigmen can be sold for capital.
Hun Tong also deeply sighed, “Enough.”
“We are all friends.”
“Let’s go with the final price! To tell the truth, I have never sold something
at such a loss. But you are different Shi Qi, selling it to you will make me
happy too.”
As he said that, Hun Tong’s heart ached faintly again.
This was a bargain price. 
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge glanced at each other, thinking the same
thing: Zi D’s plan really was effective!



****** Chapter 219: Buying a Magic Ship ******
The water pigmen slaves were the most important item in the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ transaction list.
Reaching an agreement on this caused both the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge
to let out a breath.
Next, they returned to look at their ships at port.
The port had been one of the main battlefields and was left an atrocious ruin.
The port had many ships berthed there.
The source of these ships was complicated.
Some were from mercenary corps, some from merchant alliances, and plenty were
pirate ships.
During the final phase of the melee, Hun Tong had used the light beam cannons
to deal immense casualties to the enemy, many pirates perished, leaving many
ships behind.
Some ships sank, but most were saved and towed to shore.
The ships had varying degrees of damage, some were still seaworthy, and others
needed overhauling. Some keels were broken apart, requiring testing and
calculation and if the repair costs were too high, they would be abandoned to
be rebuilt or purchased by another.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps required many ships.
During the fighting, all of their ships remained at port, unlike the other
mercenary corps and merchant alliance ships that had sailed out.
Of course, the latter’s fate wasn’t good.
They were first intercepted by magic traps, then engaged in fierce fighting
with the Vinger Jar Pirates. They were also ruthlessly backstabbed by Hun Tong
during this time, leading to a mournful end.
In any case, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships also suffered calamities.
When they came to Two Eyes Island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had 12
ships. Of them, 2 were medium sized, and the rest were small sized ships.
During the beast tide, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had lost 5 ships.
After the battle for Two Eyes Island, only two small sized ships still remained
in working order.
Luckily there were many ownerless ships at the port.
Before making the trade with Hun Tong, the survivors spotted their targets.
On average, ordinary ships cost 50 gold. Ship volume influenced price, and
small sized ships usually cost less than medium sized ones. But different sea
environments can have different ship prices. At the same time, ship composition
is also an important factor. For example, how many masts and sails there are,
how big the cargo hold is, how many cannons it has, and more.
Hun Tong didn’t need these ships, not only were they not useful to him, but he
also needed to spend a considerable amount on maintenance and repair for them.
The patrol fleet hadn’t suffered much damage during the battle.
One Eye used bombardment tactics.
This had its benefits, that is it conserved the strength of one’s fleet.
The downside was that One Eye barely stood out on the battlefield. 
Hun Tong didn’t lack ships, but money, thus he needed to sell these ships for
as much as possible.
He wore a smile, spoke frankly with assurance, and with constant business
tricks that never repeated, he displayed his true “bargaining strength”.
But the dragonman youngster and his entourage held him off.
Hun Tong had fallen into Zi Di’s scheme and sold off the water pig slaves on
the cheap.
If Zi Di was currently present, she could vie with Hun Tong, so too could Fei
She.
But the people here right now were not Hun Tong’s match.
Zong Ge didn’t speak, he understood this was a battlefield he wasn’t an expert
in.
Men Shi was glaring, amazed that a human lord as cunning and sinister as Hun
Tong could speak so benevolently.
Chi Lai was quiet.
The dragonman youngster was the only one that could tackle this difficult job
himself, and as expected, started to concede.
“Can I say a few words?” During this challenging situation, Mu Ban suddenly
interjected.
Seeing an ordinary person butt in, Hun Tong was puzzled and his brows slightly
wrinkled.
Who was he?
He was a gold level, an imperial noble.
To be honest, him discussing business with a silver level mercenary like Long
Fu was demeaning him, now an ordinary person dared to cut into the
conversation.
This was an offence.
But Hun Tong restrained himself.
If it was one of his people, he would punish them severely on the spot.
He looked at Long Fu.
The dragonman youngster’s eyes flashed.
He trusted Mu Ban.
On Mystifying Monster Island, they had experienced tribulations and fought
power enemies together, he was a comrade he could entrust his back to!
“Go on, you have something to say?” The dragonman youngster supported Mu Ban.
Mu Ban took a deep breath, and with a touch of nervousness, began to recount a
ship’s defects.
He was a veteran carpenter, good at making crossbow arrows. Though not familiar
with ships, since escaping Mystifying Monster Island, he had been attentively
studying many books on ships.
This information had come from War Merchant’s database, very detailed,
reliable, and valuable.
Mu Ban not only acquired this knowledge, but he also put it to practical use.
As the ships set sail, he served as a repairman that maintained the ships.
Therefore, Mu Ban was very familiar with the structure of ships.
“That is a paddle sailboat, a Tardia model ship. It requires more sailors to
paddle it, putting more pressure on the trip and supplies, its range also
cannot compare to a true sailboat.”
“Don’t be fooled by the fact that that ship has a stern, it is actually an
improved model Nef ship. Originally used as small costal fishing operations and
trade vessels. Although this ship is an improvement, with a bigger volume and
has 3 more masts, because of its hull design flaws, it is very heavy.”
“That Cog ship seems to be pretty good. Upon careful examination, it is built
from oak wood and uses shiplap joints, but it is too old. You can see moss and
shellfish attached to the bottom of the ship. Despite not suffering too much
damage during the battle, it can only sail for a few more years, and any large
gale will decrease its already limited life span.”
Hun Tong was dumbstruck.
The more Mu Ban spoke, the more confident and achieved he felt, “A day really
came when I could refute a gold level imperial noble, a feudal lord at that?” 
With Mu Ban’s help, the dragonman youngster finally stabilized his feet in the
negotiation.
“Your corps really is a galaxy of talent.” Hun Tong wore a smile as he spoke
with deep meaning, “At the same time, he’s got big guts too!”
He had no choice but to concede that this ordinary person was talented.
But there were many talented ordinary people, and they all lived at the lowest
rungs of society!
In this world of the strong, what truly decided one’s status was how powerful
they were individually.
As an ordinary person, Mu Ban being able to interfere in this conversation
could be said to be the greatest highlight of his life.
Most of all, it was the dragonman youngster who gave him the chance and space
to display his talents.
Finally, the dragonman youngster purchased 7 ships.
Two medium sized ships, one to the dragonman youngster, the other to Zong Ge.
The other 5 were small sized ships. 
Blindly purchasing one type of ship model was not proper.
One needed to have ship models matched up with each other.
Like how troops were partitioned up into groups such as long ranged and close
range, each had their duty and worked with each other, fleets were the same.
Small sized ships were often fast and agile, large ships had much more
firepower and defenses, and medium sized ships were the backbone, more
balanced.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet wasn’t that big, and buying big ships
would encumber their speed, so medium sized ships would do.
There was another reason too, there weren’t many large sized ships for sale on
the port, and those available were of poor quality.
After selling the seven ships, Hun Tong received several hundred gold coins
He was still doing his best to sell more, “There are still many ships I don’t
need. How about this, Commander Long Fu, the more ships you buy, the bigger
discount I’ll offer. The 8th ship will only cost 45 gold, the 9th will only be
40 gold, and so on.
The dragonman youngster forced a smile and shook his head, “The remaining ships
are too damaged, and them, we will need to repair them.”
“What’s the difference between the repair cost and the normal market value?”
Hun Tong laughed, “Doesn’t your corps have alchemy puppets? They can repair
these ships.”
The survivors had used basic maintenance puppets to repair their ships.
This information had been leaked and collected by Hun Tong.
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “Those alchemy puppets expend magic
power and repair materials.”
Hun Tong muttered to himself, then replied, “How about this, I will drop my
price by another 5 gold coins.”
The dragonman youngster stared blankly for a moment and couldn’t help but be
moved.
Finally, he bought 3 more ships, all of which were small sized ships that were
relatively undamaged.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had lost many members and needed to recruit
more in the future.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t intend on replenishing on Two Eyes Island.
Since they were going to Ice Sculpture Island, the personnel on that large
island would undoubtedly be more outstanding and have a wider selection of
choices.
After considering it for a bit, he decided to buy a few ships ahead of time to
fit more future mercenaries in them.
Hun Tong had given him a rare chance – the more he bought, the lower the price,
and in accordance with Hun Tong’s discount plan, the price would eventually hit
0!
But that was actually a pitfall.
On the one hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had finite members and
couldn’t operate so many ships.
On the other hand, after several rounds of actual combat, the dragonman
youngster understood that during naval warfare, ordinary ships were at best
expendable, the most reliable ships were magic ships!
“Don’t you want to buy supply ships?”
“Look at this, this large ship is much more suitable!”
“When you leave the island, many accidents can happen on the seas, and one more
supply ship can store more food and water, guaranteeing your voyage more.”
Hun Tong was still not satisfied; he did his very best to sell the best looking
large sized ship.
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “We aren’t planning to have a long
voyage, too many supplies will go unused.”
Hun Tong suddenly smiled, “There is one ship I believe you’ll find interesting.
But perhaps it will be somewhat troublesome, who knows if you’ll dare buy it.”
Hun Tong’s indirect statement grabbed the dragonman youngster’s and the others’
interest.
They didn’t know. Which ship would cause Hun Tong to say this?
The deal with Hun Tong had already been completed.
Actually, after obtaining the rights to those ships, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had used a number of basic maintenance puppets to rapidly repair them.
Hun Tong personally witnessed these alchemy puppets in action and was somewhat
moved by them.
He noticed that these basic maintenance puppets had 30% greater work efficiency
than normal models.
He asked if he could purchase one or two from the dragonman youngster.
But the dragonman youngster tactfully declined.
The basic maintenance puppets had come from War Merchant, and the survivors
didn’t want these puppets wandering outside to avoid becoming a flaw that would
provoke suspicion.
By noon, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet set sail and slowly began to
leave Two Eyes Island.
They had 11 ships altogether.
A few maintenance puppets were still banging about, conducting their repair
tasks.
The dragonman youngster stood on the port, saying his final farewells to Hun
Tong.
“Feudal Lord, thank you for dispatching your subordinates to transport the
supplies to our ship holds, they saved us a lot of time.” The dragonman
youngster thanked.
Hun Tong reached out his hand and wanted to clap the young man’s shoulder, but
because of their height differences, he could barely touch his upper arm, “We
fought side by side, you are a comrade in arms. Remember that Two Eyes Island
will forever welcome you all. I also look forward to having a deeper
collaboration together.”
At that moment, a group of people rushed into the port, indignant at injustice
and streaming out with torrents of insults.
“Our flagship is sailing off!”
“That’s our ship!”
“Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps! Do you want to make war against our Bandage
Mercenary Corps?”
“Lord Hun Tong, how could you secretly sell off another’s ship?”
The dragonman youngster was stunned, and his brows immediately wringed up,
“Lord Hun Tong, didn’t you say the White Bandage was yours? This is an entirely
different kind of trouble that I thought.”
Hun Tong laughed, unconcerned, “I defeated the enemies, drove back the pirates
and fishmen, otherwise the Bandage Mercenary Corps would have been wiped out.”
“Therefore, the White Bandage is naturally my spoils of war!”
“Naturally, I admit, these mercenaries are somewhat obstinate.”
“That doesn’t matter, this transaction has no problems. I will handle these
matters well enough.”
“Go on then, that ship has sailed.”
The dragonman youngster looked at the furious and wronged Bandage mercenaries,
and couldn’t help but feel remorseful, but like Hun Tong said, the ship had
sailed already.
He had no choice but to bite his teeth, jump up with great strength, and land
onto the last ship.
Standing on the aft, he gazed at Hun Tong’s figure on the port, his impression
of the latter becoming worse.
“The Commander Beng Dai died by Hun Tong’s hands.”
“Without its sole silver level. the Bandage Mercenary Corps probably won’t
survive.”
“For his own benefits, Hun Tong began to act against this power.”
“This absolutely isn’t a righteous action; such table manners are too
unsightly.”



****** Chapter 220: Pirate Trial ******
Hun Tong watched the dragonman youngster and the others leave, then his smile
gradually dwindled into nothing as his gaze became darker.
Next to him, One Eye’s voice contained an implicit hidden bitterness, “My Lord,
why not keep the White Bandage? That magic ship could serve as the patrol
fleet’s flagship. Although we have a bronze level magic ship, it can’t compare
to the White Bandage.”
“That said, we collected the treasures from the sea, we don’t lack money.”
“But it isn’t easy to place an order for a magic ship from Gear Island’s
dockyard.”
“Too many people place orders; it will take at least half a year to reach
ours.”
When the seafloor treasures were mentioned, Hun Tong’s heart seemed to be
stabbed.
He sucked in some cold air and unhurriedly replied, “Although the seafloor had
money, too many places need coin.”
“The entire new island needs to be rebuilt.”
“Compensation needs to be provided.”
“Those merchants are troublesome.”
“Another necromancer appeared; the empire will likely dispatch an envoy to
begin an investigation. At that time, I will need bribes.”
Most crucially are the light cannon towers and the Golden Flash, we need to
spend a large sum to hire an alchemy master to come repair them!”
“Money needs to be spent on those things.”
“The White Bandage is only bronze level, adding a ship like that won’t improve
our strength by much.”
“Repairing the Golden Flash is more important.”
“Having a gold level magic ship is incomparable to having more ships like the
White Bandage.”
“The White Bandage Mercenary Corps’ performance really disappointed me.”
“That mercenary corps and the Iron Club Mercenary Corps are too close to those
merchant alliances. Don’t tell me you still want then to keep it and allow
those annoying merchants to add to our troubles?”
“Of course, I also didn’t casually sell it. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are
not normal, didn’t you see their performance during the battle?
One Eye nodded, stating his acknowledgement.
To him, of the humans besides the gold levels, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had performed the brightest.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had stabilized the port battlefield, then
agreed to Hun Tong’s mission, taking the risk to leave for the subterranean
depths to try to destroy the fishmen’s large scale casting. They had acted far
more reliably than the Iron Club and Bandage Mercenary Corps! 
Both of them had only acted for their own benefits.
By this contrast, Hun Tong as feudal lord, had a very good opinion of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Hun Tong’s view of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet gradually shrank as
he assessed, “Although they recruited Chi Lai and Men Shi, Chi Lai’s bloodline
concentration isn’t high, silver level is his limit. Men Shi has stagnated for
ten years; his potential is reaching zero.”
“But Long Fu and Shi Qi are different.”
Shi Qi’s battle qi already has a gold luster, and given enough time, he will
become a gold level.”
“Their backer has good prospects for Long Fu and appointed him leader, pushing
down Shi Qi. His bloodline must be more outstanding. During the battle, he even
fought Er Gua Zi directly, only a bit weaker than him.
“In a few years, both of them might become gold levels.”
“Selling them some good things will benefit us.”
One Eye nodded repeatedly, “My Lord, your consideration is correct!”
Hun Tong’s eyes coldly flashed, he looked tranquil, but his heart was fretful.
When One Eye brought up the seafloor treasure matter, although it stung him, it
also warned him.
Only a select few knew about the seafloor salvaging matter.
Even One Eye, who knew about it, didn’t know how much Hun Tong had fished up.
“I cannot let anyone else know that the seafloor only had three copper coins!”
Hun Tong made a firm resolution to conceal the truth.
The business world was like a battlefield.
On the battlefield, if morale slumped, no matter how big the force, they would
crumble, scatter, and flee.
The business world was the same.
If one’s deficit was too high, others would become bearish, popular sentiment
would collapse, inevitably triggering a bank run and other nasty events.
“I must guard this secret and let other mistakenly think that I dredged out
much wealth, this will be advantageous for me.”
“If that happens, at least to others, I will still be the winner.”
Hun Tong was filled with vigilance.
After the battle, his situation became very vile. 
He didn’t have much capital, even when combining his own capital and gains from
the auction.
This included the Devil Gold Coins; he had to keep those to deal with imperial
investigation. 
After all, he had ruthlessly backstabbed friends during the battle with his
optimal bombardment.
Just as he explained to One Eye, he had to spend money on too many places.
“If my weakness is revealed, I fear I will meet a similar end to the Bandage
Mercenary Corps.”
Thinking of this, Hun Tong looked at the Bandage mercenaries at the edge of the
port, the cold light in his eyes growing stronger.
He then then faintly ordered One Eye, “They don’t understand the situation, how
stupid. One Eye, arrest those people.”
One Eye hesitated somewhat, “My Lord, that isn’t a good idea.”
One Eye was feeling a little guilty and diffident.
They not only sold off their flagship, but they also wanted to arrest them,
what difference was there between them and pirates?
But a moment later, One Eye saw Hun Tong’s ice cold gaze, and his heart
shivered, causing him rush to comply.
One Eye with the help of the city guard dealt with the Bandage mercenaries will
little difficulty.
Because Commander Beng Dai was dead.
Hun Tong soared into the sky and flew to the Golden Flash.
He used the Gold Eye to investigate the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet that
was still in its range for one final investigation.
The result didn’t go against his expectations.
“The seafloor treasures…are not on them.”
Hun Tong, to probe into what was really going on with the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, had intentionally helped them and deployed many people to go into their
holds with supplies.
Now with the Gold Eye’s probing result, Hun Tong’s few suspicions were
completely dissipated.
“Therefore, the most likely culprits are the naga priestess and that
necromancer disguised as a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder.
The naga priestess and the remnants of the Blue Green Coral Clan were far from
Two Eyes Island, deep in the ocean.
Even if it was them, Hun Tong had no way of finding them.
As for the necromancer, Hun Tong still had hope.
Thinking of that, Hun Tong immediately used an alchemy device to contact the
imperial secret spy Shadow.
“When will you head out?”
“How far has the necromance run?”
“Two Eyes Island has had two necromancers appear on it, and the proof is
definite, likely prompting the empire to send a person to investigate.”
“When will you attack him? I can personally lend a hand.”
“If the empire investigates Two Eyes Island, me having that necromancer’s head
in hand will benefit us both, right?”
Shadow’s voice came through shortly after, “Hehe, Feudal Lord, don’t be so
worried.”
“An insignificant silver level necromancer is nothing.”
“Believe me, his backer is more valuable!”
“Truth be told, I have already made arrangements. Since he has been exposed, he
can forget about stability.”
“Right, those seabed treasures…strictly speaking, doesn’t that also belong to
us secret spies?”
Hun Tong coldly snorted, interrupting Shadow, “Don’t think so! Those treasures
are Two Eyes Island’s.”
He couldn’t speak the bitterness in his heart.
Despite only fishing up three copper coins, everyone around him though he made
a fortune.
Now he has to pretend he really was rich!
The port was in chaos.
One Eye had charged into the scattering Bandage Mercenary Corps; behind him the
city guard was arresting people all over the place.
The mercenaries didn’t have good morale to start with, and when confronted with
the city guard arresting them, they didn’t have the courage to resist.
Many people were taken prisoner.
Some of the higher ups escaped.
“Damn Hun Tong, he really is acting against our corps!”
“Don’t be impulsive, hurry and leave.”
“We will seek the Mercenary Guild to redress this injustice!”
“Ask the five great merchant representatives for help!”
“There is also the Iron Club Mercenary Corps, their commander also dead. If
they don’t act, their end with definitely be the same as ours!”
The Applaud Pirates.
Hu Li weakly opened his eyes.
“What happened to me?” He was perplexed and knew something was wrong with his
body.
As his field of view gradually cleared, he was shocked to discover that he was
tied tightly to a wooden chair.
A group of frogmen surrounded him.
The lead frogman spoke, “You finally woke up.”
Hu Li looked at the frogman speaking and immediately exploded in anger, “Bei
Xiang, what do you think you’re doing?”
Seeing Hu Li struggle, the second mate Bei Xiang sneered, “Give up, I gave you
the famous drug Sighing Water. I gave you quite a lot, I believe even a gold
level will feel powerless for a time and will be unable to use any battle qi
during that time. To say nothing of you, my captain.”
Hu Li narrowed his eyes, “You want to kill me for my position? Bei Xiang, you
are only an iron level!”
“A peak iron level.” Bei Xiang laughed grimly, thumbing his finger at his back,
“Look at my back, that is the trait of the Grand Elephant bloodline! I will
become a silver level sooner or later.”
Hu Li retorted, “Humph, that is a future matter. If you kill me now, how will
you convince the masses?”
The second mate Bei Xiang smiled, “I can’t do it by myself. What awaits you is
a pirate trial! The outcome of the trial will be determined by all of the
pirates!”
Hu Li stared blankly, soon after, the hope for survival welled up.
His chair was lifted up and carried out of the ship cabin and onto the deck.
It was late into the night, the moon was perfectly round, and its light was
bright.
All of the frogmen were concentrated on the flagship’s deck, gazing at Hu Li
with complex expressions.
Bei Xiang presided, “Begin the trial.”
Hi Li burst into laughter, “What is my crime?”
“I built this pirate group, I stole the flagship, I led you all in plunders
again and again.”
“Xue Dao, if I hadn’t saved you, you would have died three years ago.”
“Liang Pi, back Then I was I who used my body to block that ice breath,
otherwise you would have become a frozen frog.”
“You too, Che Li, it was I who freed you from your iron cage. Otherwise, you
would have become some magician’s experiment subject and might have died
without even a bone remaining.”
Hu Li produced a torrent of words, speaking faster and faster.
Many of the frogmen he named lowered their heads in shame.
As he said his final words, Hu Li passionately gazed up at the moon, “Because
of me, there is the Applaud Pirates, because of me, you gave come together.”
“What qualifications do you have to put me on trial?”
“Who can judge my crimes?!”
The frogmen lowered their heads silently.
Only Bei Xiang narrowed his eyes and measured, “The rules of a pirate trial has
been set by successive generations of Pirate Gods, you are being judged in
God’s name, why do you refuse to accept it?”
“I admit, you have toiled and accomplished much, it was your hands that founded
this pirate group, and you have shown many people kindness.”
“But have you done nothing wrong? Have you not treated us unfairly? During each
looting, you were always the biggest beneficiary, and we only got the
leftovers!”
“You are guilty, your biggest crime is that you haven’t made us rich!”
“Two Eyes Island was a good opportunity, but because of your stupidity, always
wanting to steal the Vinegar Jar, we ended up empty handed!!”
“Utter rubbish!” Hu Li coldly snorted, “Short-sighted people, with the Vinegar
Jar, we could have robbed more, your vision is too narrow.”
Bei Xiang shook his head, “I haven’t come to dispute you.”
He turned away, ran his eyes across the deck, and raised his arms, “Let
everyone be a jury.”
“Starting with you.” He pointed at a frogman next to him.
The frogman shamefully hummed and hawed, “Gul, guilty.”
“Eh?” Hu Li glared.
“Gul, guilty.”
“Guilty.”
“I believe he is guilty.”
As the frogmen spoke, Hu Li’s mentality collapsed.
At first, the frogmen hesitated, but gradually, their judgments grew more
powerful and more candid!
Finally, they even became one.
Bei Xiang was the final vote, he looked at Hu Li and exposing a winning smile
as he shrugged, “You see, you are quite unpopular! You ignored everyone’s
heartfelt wish; you are not fit to be our leader!!”
Ding.
A moment later, Hu Li suddenly struggled out of his ropes.
He summoned his battle qi, catching Bei Xiang off guard and blasting him into
the air.
Bei Xiang coughed out a lot of blood as he smashed into a mast and fell to the
floor, not rising afterwards.
The frogmen were in an uproar.
Hu Li stood proudly.
Bei Xiang, his stomach on the deck, looked up at Hu Li, “Impossible, I put so
much Sighing Water in your soup, you are just a silver level, it is impossible
for you to recover so quickly!”
Hu Li sneered, “I should probably tell you I also have the Poison Heart
Bloodline.”
“I know you are strong enough to become first mate. You always resented
nepotism, that I placed my relative in the position of first mate, a head above
you.”
“I originally wanted to help you to the spot of first mate, unfortunately…”
“Traitors will die!”
Hu Li walked to Bei Xiang and was just about to kill him.
But a moment later, his movements stiffened like a stone statue.
A human female garbed in leather and holding a long whip appeared.
“You, you are…Lady Sea Snake?!” Hu Li croaked out with shock, “Because of you…”
Crack.
A moment later, his neck was broken with incorporeal force.
Lady Sea Snake stepped onto the deck with a thud, stood in front of Bei Xiang,
and looked down at him, “Didn’t you say you could handle it?”
“There was…an accident.” Bei Xiang looked up to see Lady Sea Snake’s brown
leather clothing illuminated by the moonlight, along with her perfectly round
thighs and mountain range like chest curves.
“No need to remind you what happens next?” Lady Sea Snake smiled.
“Of course. First contact the Lightning Pirates and the Stench Pirates. Then go
kill that necromancer!” Frogman Bei Xiang spat out.



****** Chapter 221: Pirate Alliance ******
Lightning Pirates.
In the captain’s room.
Pant, pant.
Dian Wan’s chest moved up and down, gasping for air. He wasn’t in a good state,
as his face was pale and he was profusely sweating all over.
The first mate was next to him, holding a kitchen knife and rubbing it against
Dian Wan’s left arm bone.
Dian Wan’s left arm was missing a lot of flesh, even a small pierce of arm bone
was missing.
It was a grave wound created by a light beam cannon.
As an old pirate group with stores, they naturally had healing methods.
Flesh Cutting Knife!
The kitchen knife in the first mate’s hand was an impressive gold level item.
It came from the great saint level chef – Blood Sacrifice Butcher.
This butcher was a demon that was once active in the main world.
This gold level flesh knife was merely one of his cooking implements, its
function was as it cut flesh, it stimulated the target’s vitality and made them
quickly self-regenerate.
It was the cooking tool Blood Sacrifice Butcher acquired ingredients with.
The Lightning Pirates accidently obtained this cooking tool and used it for
healing.
Like now, the first mate was cutting the edges of Dian Wan’s burnt flesh.
Dian was injured while simultaneously having his vitality stimulated to rapidly
heal himself.
Seeing the fringes of the black necrotic wound turning back to scarlet flesh,
the first mate pressed the knife into Dian Wan’s arm bone again.
“Captain, endure this!” 
After the first mate said that he began to saw Dian Wan’s arm bone with the
knife.
Dian Wan gritted his teeth tightly and resisted the pain of this healing.
A spell of labor later, he pushed the first mate away, “Slow down, let me slow
down!”
The first mate had a complex expression as he took out an anesthetic, “How
about you smear some on, captain?”
Dian Wan stared blankly or a moment, then let out a torrent of abuse, “You had
anesthetic, why didn’t you say so earlier?”
The first made disdainfully looked back, “I wanted to say so, but captain you
just shouted to stop talking and start healing!”
“Oh.” Dian Wan glared and went silent.
The awkward mood spread out.
Dian Wan coughed, and decided to shift the topic, “Oh dear, this looting really
was sullen!”
“Many people lost their lives, but little of the treasure was recovered.”
“A big loss!”
“Hun Tong is too sinister; he concealed a gold level magic ship. IF there is a
chance in the future, I must take vengeance for this enmity.”
Dian Wan had a strong hatred for Hun Tong.
The first mate nodded repeatedly.
The most painful thing about looting Two Eyes Island was that things had gone
smoothy and they had plundered much.
But in the end, things went cold, Hun Tong had cut them off, most of the
treasures fell to the seafloor, and the pirates didn’t have a chance to
retrieve them.
The Lightning Pirates had suffered lots of damage, including Dian Wan who was
heavily injured by a light beam cannon.
“Captain, there has been a communication. It is the Applaud Pirates!” At this
time, a pirate from the doorway exclaimed.
“Hu Li?” The first mate was puzzled, “What does that old frog want to talk to
us about? Oh dear, captain, you can’t leave, you aren’t done healing yet. Wait
a minute, let me at least wrap up your wound for the time being!”
Dian Wan had already left the captain’s room.
The first mate rushed out after him.
On the aft house stairs, Dian Wan took an alchemy communication device from one
of his underlings, “Hu Li, why are you calling me?”
Dian Wan wasn’t surprised he could be contacted.
Although the pirates had left Two Eyes Island, they were still within its
vicinity.
As long as they weren’t out of range, alchemy communication devices could get
in touch with each other.
Bei Xiang’s voice came through, “Big shot Dian Wan, I have business I want to
discuss with you.”
Dian Wan immediately pursed his brows, “Who are you? Have Hu Li come speak with
me.”
Bei Xiang coldly snorted, “Hu Li is already dead, I am the new captain of the
Applaud Pirates.”
Dian Wan was flabbergasted, “You killed him?”
“Of course not!” Bei Xiang resolutely denied it and stressed, “He received a
fair pirate trial. He was unpopular; therefore, I assumed his place to make
everyone rich together.”
“Just you? Bei Xiang…I remember, you are the second mate, hehe, you aren’t even
the first mate, what qualifications do you have to discuss business with me?”
Dian Wan ridiculed.
Bei Xiang coldly snorted, “Don’t mention that rubbish first mate. I am already
a peak iron level, and with my bloodline, sooner or later, I will become a
silver level. Speaking of that business, I found where that necromancer is, are
you interested in getting rich together?”
Don’t be so quick to decline.”
He was the person in room 21.”
“How about that, are you interested now?”
Dian Wan suddenly took in a deep breath, “Oh? Those two annoying chaps?”
“They purchased many good things!”
Dian Wan recalled the time he bought those useless toxic dentures and
immediately grew angry.
Of course, he felt more avarice.
The first mate saw things were not looking good, and hurriedly advised,
“Captain, they are a silver level necromancer, and there were two people inside
that private room, in other words, one of his accomplices is hiding. There is
also that win path magician…”
Before the first mate could finish, Dian Wan laughed, “Haha, deal!”
First mate: …..
Bei Xiang: …..
The frogman had a pile of stuff to say, but didn’t say any of it.
In the end, Dian Wan agreed.
Bei Xiang, “Cough, since that is so, then I will go contact the Stench
Pirates.”
Those words had an element of probing to them.
After all, the Lightning Pirates and the Stench Pirates had a tense
relationship.
Dian Wan paused, then nodded, “Go contact them, let’s rob together!”
Bei Xiang was just about to turn off the communication device when he heard the
Lightning Pirates’ first mate unbearably grumble out, “Captain, you agreed to
this too quickly!”
“Don’t forget, you are still wounded.
“This injury doesn’t mean anything!” Dian Wan casually replied, “The main thing
is that necromancer is too loathsome!”
“His combat strength isn’t that great either.”
“During the battle, Ya Ma could suppress him.”
“Most crucially, he doesn’t have suitable sailors, or even presentable sailors.
Naval battles are different from ground warfare.”
“He has a few alchemy puppets barely able to operate the Iron Lump, and when
the naval battle beings, the Iron Lump will become a living target! Hehehe.”
Dian Wan had a loose tongue, but he wasn’t just blindly impulsive, he still had
brains.
But he was often impulsive, and when he had the urge, he wouldn’t use his
brain.
The first mate nodded, and he approved of Dian Wan’s analysis.
The first mate replied, “During the battle, we can immediately sink the Iron
Lump. They only have one ship, we have many.”
We don’t need to fight with swords, let him sink directly into the sea!”
“He has used flying scrolls, but any magic will consume magic power.”
“If we can deplete their magic power like that, then even if there are more
magicians, it will be nothing to worry about.”
“Right, right, we’ll attack like that!” Dian Wan belly laughed, “Don’t forget
about Yang Cong Tou and the rest.”
“They might also join in.”
“After all, Two Eyes Island has made many depressed!”
Elsewhere, the frogman Bei Xiang also smoothly contacted Yang Cong Tou.
But this talk was far more challenging than the one with Dian Wan.
Even though Bei Xiang had informed Yang Cong Tou that the necromancer was in
room 21, it was hard to persuade them.
“The other side has at least two magicians, and another accomplice who hasn’t
appeared yet, we don’t know anything about her.”
“There is also that wind path magician, she seems to be a slave.”
“It is very likely that those two had joined the auction to rescue her.”
Yang Cong Tou had layers of apprehensions.
Qing Xin had boarded the same ship as Cang Xu; this strange action had caused
others to think that the two of them were part of the same group.
As Bei Xiang’s persuasions were going nowhere, Lady Sea Snake was forced to
intervene again, “What if I was included? Yang Cong Tou, you haven’t forgotten
my voice have you?”
Yang Cong Tou’s eyes suddenly widened, Lady Sea Snake’s voice was very
enticing, but Yang Cong Tou looked like he had seen a snake or a scorpion.
He coldly replied, “It’s you, Lady Sea Snake!”
Why are you interfering?
Did this necromancer offend you?
Did the battle of Two Eyes Island also attract the gaze of the Fire Beard
Pirates?
Lady Sea Snake had a complicated history; she was a member of the Fire Beard
Pirates.
Compared with her silver level magician strength, people valued her layered
identity more.
Lady Sea Snake tenderly laughed, “You think too much, Yang Cong Tou, this is a
personal operation, nothing more.”
“Of course, if the war becomes unfavorable, I can naturally invite some
comrades to come cheer for us.”
Yang Cong Tou sank into silence, then quickly pondered.
During that battle, he had also been shot by a light beam cannon, injuring him.
At first, he didn’t want to risk going to deal with Cang Xu.
He was a caster and had a different attitude from fighters like Dian Wan.
But now that Lady Sea Snake had appeared, he now realized that this matter had
a high chance of success!
Yang Cong Tou muttered to himself, then replied, “Since you are joining us,
then we can try too.”
“Who else are you inviting?”
“Qi You’s people?”
Lady Sea Snake sneered, “Ask the Ten Touch Pirates, even if we steal the
treasures, how much will our share be?”
Those words caused Yang Cong Tou to laugh, “Right, as long as we can do it.
Those people are chicks of the sea! There is only the Iron Lump, something easy
to deal with.”
And so, a small pirate alliance was formed.
Still in the dark about this, the survivors were currently sailing.
Cang Xu in control of the Iron Lump sailed the furthest ahead, while below in
the ocean depths, the Deep Sea Monster Fish quietly followed, and further in
the distance, was the main force of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The Iron Lump, the captain’s room.
Cang Xu looked at three ghosts before him with a pained expression.
These three human ghosts were all an impressive silver level!
This was the biggest spoil of war Cang Xu had harvested from the battlefield.
Theres are all top notch ghosts.” Cang Xu sighed.
The ghosts were not just silver level, but there were also all human. Human
ghosts had ample intelligence and could understand some relatively complex
orders.
Gathering ghosts really wasn’t easy.
Because this was a world of many gods and widespread belief.
Many times, when intelligent lifeforms died, their souls would be received by
the god they believed in.
Nonbelievers were rare.
Therefore, when necromancers wanted to gather souls, they had to fight the gods
for them and needed to start in advance.
“I am only an iron level, I can’t control three silver level ghosts, I have to
abandon one of them.” Cang Xu’s soul strength was finite, and controlling too
many ghosts would be an immense burden that he would find hard to bear.
But Cang Xu hesitated.
Dispelling a ghost was rather wasteful.
“I should join the undead gathering as soon as possible.”
“There, I can sell the surplus silver level ghost.”
Such a good must be in great demand.”
“Alas, a pity Zi Di isn’t iron level yet, controlling the ghost Lan Lu is
already her limit, and she is unable to accommodate a second one.”
If it were possible, Cang Xu wanted to keep all three silver level ghosts.



****** Chapter 222: Cang Xu’s Equipment ******
Although the necromancy path was an emerging school of magic, it had developed
three aspects.
They were bone aspect, corpse aspect, and soul aspect.
Cang Xu was a soul aspect necromancer, this aspect’s trait was making, housing,
and controlling ghosts.
Ghosts were controlled similarly to how an alchemy component controls a magic
ship.
The more components there were, the more functions a magic ship had and the
stronger it was.
But this amount had a limit, magic ship designs had so many prefabricated
locations and the magic power reservoir could supply so much magic, these both
determined what type and how many alchemy components could be loaded.
Cang Xu had his soul quality and spirit strength.
A small flower pot couldn’t grow a big tree.
Cang Xu’s gifts were worse than Zi Di’s, and he was once a mere bronze level.
After becoming a necromancer, his talent’s limit broke through into the iron
level.
“Soul crystals can increase soul capacity, thereby automatically improving
spirit strength.”
“My soul needs to be constantly strengthened before I can control three silver
level ghosts.”
By strengthening one’s soul continuously, a soul aspect necromancer can
eventually become a one man army that can control countless ghosts in battle.
“Furthermore, according to the necromancer inheritance I have, there are still
higher level soul aspect spells. Among them are ghost transformation spells
that can modify the foundation of a ghost to increase their military power and
mobility and is perhaps able to reduce the soul burden on the necromancer and
so on.”
“Most importantly, there is a method that can decrease the erosion that
negative energy has on the body.”
When Cang Xu thought of that, he couldn’t help but look down at his palm.
A magician’s power originated from external energies, for example fire path
elements and with path elements.
By using these energies, a magician’s body will inevitably be eroded by these
elements.
Over a long time, the vast majority of magicians will have weak bodies.
This systemic problem was worse with necromancers.
They suffered negative energy corrosion, not only will their bodies
deteriorate, so too will their temperament. 
As time passes, necromancers will develop a loathing for living beings and even
have a strong longing to destroy them.
The bad name of the necromancy school came in part from this.
Of course, the main thing was that they touched the taboo of souls and offended
the core interest of the gods.
In order to vie with negative energy corrosion, Cang Xu had transformed his
body into a living dead body.
He used all of his efforts to barely maintain his humanity.
But this condition also had imminent dangers.
Especially during the last battle, when he used many necromancy spells, causing
his body to abruptly suffer heavier corrosion.
“The method I used to transform my body merely came from my own research.”
“The undead gathering will have magicians exchanging with each other, I should
be able to gain something than can vie with negative energy corrosion better.”
Cang Xu looked forward to the undead gathering.
Because he had so many things he needed to acquire.
These things barely appeared in normal exchanges.
This was the first undead gathering Cang Xu would participate in, he lacked any
experience in it.
It wasn’t that he hadn’t had the chance, he even obtained a few contact methods
from the soul aspect necromancer’s inheritance that could let him join local
undead gatherings.
But Cangn Xu didn’t go.
He was very cautious, and to him, if he exposed himself, he would be ruined. He
wouldn’t be able to continue serving as steward and his family would be
destroyed as a result.
Cang Xu’s choice had cause him to miss virtually all opportunities. But thanks
to that, he had survived until now.
Many powers disseminated fake information and arranged traps to lure
necromancers into gathering so they could hunt them down!
Now, Cang Xu has decided to join a undead gathering.
His conduct style had undoubtedly radicalized by a lot.
On the one hand, he had true comrades and external help.
On the other hand, the boundless ocean was far from the Sheng Ming Continent,
and there was more space for him to use his fists and feet.
Finally, the current situation was forcing him to do so.
During the battle, Cang Xu had been affected by the Devil Gold Coins and
exposed himself.
Thinking of that now, his heart felt a chill.
Too dangerous.
Luckily, he had the layer of disguise as a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder,
otherwise it would be massive trouble!
There was also the blackmail message, but no reply came back, making Cang Xu
very vigilant.
“According to common sense, the Bai Zhen Clan should have written back.”
“It seems a problem has appeared during it!”
“I must become stronger, to deal with possible unexpected events and crises in
the future.”
The undead gathering also contained danger.
He needed to arm himself as best as possible.
Speaking of which, the survivors had purchased many good things from the
auction.
The melee was not a good time to use them, to guard against making flaws that
would expose themselves.
But now, the Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spells
had been cast on some important equipment, allowing them to be openly used.
Cang Xu inspected the equipment he was wearing.
One brass infusion bottle – the fresh water infusion bottle
A delicate compass apparatus – the palm compass
A badly damaged water path magic book – inside it had three gold level water
path spells, the water arrow spell, the water snake book and thick fog spell.
There was also the voodoo substitute death puppet.
Beside the magic book, the other three items were silver level items.
The fresh water infusion bottle could meet the daily water needs of 200 people,
and after the survivors talked it over, they temporarily put it on the Iron
Lump.
The Iron Lump didn’t have many supplies, and after it sailed from the battle,
the ship had even less supplies.
The compass was a maritime navigation instrument, and it was given to Cang Xu
to prevent him from getting lost and be able to determine his own course.
The survivors only had two magicians that could use the water path magic book,
and now that Cang Xu was adventuring to the undead gathering, it was only
natural he got equipment first.
Finally, was the death substitute puppet…
Looking at this item, Cang Xu’s heart couldn’t help but warm.
Originally, Cang Xu and Zi Di had purchased this from the auction for the
dragonman youngster.
But the dragonman youngster decided to give this item to Cang Xu to prevent any
accidents from happening.
Besides these 4 items, Cang Xu had some other things.
For example, in his sewn human leather storage pouch, he had a shroud, 5 fire
path rings, a curved magic mask, and a magic conduction bracelet.
The human leather storage pouch also had many casting materials, such as dead
sea shell fragments, grimace mushrooms, ghost spider legs, and so on.
Some magic scrolls that mainly came from Mystifying Monster Island.
Many magic potions. The survivors had a comparatively strong medicine
production capability, and after a few days, they were able to replenish their
medicine somewhat and filled Cang Xu completely on medical stores.
There were other things that had been purchased from the auction.
But they didn’t suit Cang Xu.
For example, the arrowhead headband was not magician equipment, its service
target was fighters.
For the same reason, the Mushroom Dancing Shoes and the mushroom tights didn’t
suit Cang Xu either.
The Sunlight Disc was a gold level component used to build an artificial garden
and other such projects. 
The glass external armor and sacred plate armor didn’t suit magicians either.
“Finally, there is also the Feather Snake Sail.”
The Feather Snake Sail was in a wooden chest, folded neat and tidy, nearly
filling said chest.
Cang Xu took the wooden chest, then left the captain’s room to come onto the
deck.
Besides him, there was not a single other person on deck, magician Qing Xin was
on the main mast’s lookout tower, responsible for keeping watch.
Upon seeing Cang Xu, she slowly flew down.
As a wind path magician, she was better at flying than magicians of other
schools.
When she left the island, she had no equipment.
But now, her left wrist was wearing a magic conduction bracelet.
There was also the silver level treasure, the life protection cushion that had
been temporarily allocated to Qing Xin.
The magic conduction bracelets had originally been a pair. One for Zi Di and
Cang Xu. The one Qing Xin was wearing was the one Zi Di had loaned to her.
She also wore the life protection cushion; it was a good life saving treasure
that could heal through absorbing blood.
Cang Xu and Zi Di couldn’t use it.
Because they were necromancers, and the life protection cushion’s healing
energy violently conflicted with negative energy.
A normal person would be healed, while Zi Di would be harmed. If it was used on
Cang Xu, it would break his body’s life and death equilibrium, causing him to
suffer a backlash.
Seeing Qing Xin, a loathing immediately appeared in Cang Xu’s heart.
This was the aftermath of his usage of so much necromancy spells.
“Come, help me hand this sail up.” Cang Xu enduring the hate as he opened the
wooden chest’s lid, exposing the sail inside.
Qing Xin was amazed, “A Gold level sail?”
When Cang Xu and Zi Di had purchased this sail, she was still a slave
imprisoned and didn’t know anything about it.
Magic spell – mage hand.
This was a very basic spell that could let a magician’s spirit meddle with
matter and remotely control objects, it looked like a formless hand.
Because the magic model was very simple, it could be cast extremely quickly and
consume a tidbit of magic power.
This also determined its upper limits, it was only suitable to use in daily
life, such as writing remotely and for grabbing some materials when a magician
was busy experimenting.
With Cang Xu’s mage hand, the Feather Snake Sail inside the wooden chest was
hoisted, then unfurled it in the air.
“I can help you.” Qing X I also used mage hand.
She tore the old sail off the main mast.
Cang Xu seized the opportunity to change sails.
The Feather Snake Sail was very gorgeous, and after the change, it made Qing
Xin disoriented.
But they weren’t finished at this step.
Because the Iron Lump was a magic ship, next Cang Xu still needed to connect
the Feather Snake Sail to the magic power reservoir.
This was somewhat troublesome.
Because the Iron Lump was a mere bronze level magic ship, and when it was
designed, it didn’t have any alchemy modules for sails.
Therefore, Cang Xu and Qing Xi had to construct their own channel.
With magic power pouring in, it was difficult to activate the Feather Snake
Sail.
It was gold level equipment, and the magic power it consumed was hard for Cang
Xu and Qing Xin to supply, thus, they had to rely on the magic power reservoir.
In fact, even with the Iron Lump’s magic power reservoir, it was a little hard
to meet the Feather Snake Sail’s demand.
The Feather Snake Sail and the Iron Lump were clearly incompatible.
But this was temporary.
“When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps beats us, this ship and sail will become
legitimate spoils of war.” Cang Xu thought.



****** Chapter 223: Treasure List ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Fei She was walking through a metal passage.
The passage was lined with bright lights.
“Were all of the treasures piled up here?” Fei She was inwardly amazed.
He could barely squeeze through the once spacious passage.
Because there were all kinds of valuables piled up on either side!
It was devoid of people.
Besides Fei She’s footsteps, there was only the sound of his breathing in the
passage.
When the survivors escaped Mystifying Monster Island, they lived in this ship,
giving it character and even making it noisy.
Now, most of the survivors were on the ocean surface, this vessel only had Zi
Di and Fei She who just clandestinely entered.
“Pres, president. I’m he, here.” Fei She saluted to Zi Di as he opened the
cabin door.
An alchemy formation was glowing, and in the middle of it was the Magic
Medicine Bathtub boiling a cauldron of palm black medicine.
The black medicine plopped as it boiled, emitting a strange odor.
Seeing Zi Di was in the process of refining magic medicine, Fei She hurriedly
lowered his voice and didn’t dare disturb her.
Zi Di drew her attention from the Medicine Bathtub and turned to Fei She,
“Elder, don’t be nervous.”
This alchemy formation is mainly managed by the tower spirit.”
“I am just observing.”
“45%”
“Alas, we only have one yellow crab alchemy puppet, if the other one wasn’t
damaged, our medicine refinement speed would have been at least 45% faster!”
Zi Di was refining medicine for Cang Xu.
The latter was joining the undead gathering.
Cang Xu needed all kinds of medicine to use and trade with at the gathering.
Quite the regret that Cang Xu was a living dead person.
Many medicines had a lower effect on him and even harmed him.
Zi Di then said to Fei She, “I’m too short on time. If Cang Xu was here, it
would be fine, but he is doing more important things right now.”
“Therefore, I summoned you here to make inventory of our spoils of war.”
“We took many treasures from the seafloor.”
“While transporting them into the cabins, I roughly partitioned them up into
categories.”
“But that is far from enough.”
“We now need you to attentively divide them up and calculate their value.”
“Among them are some antiques, calligraphies, and other art pieces, we’ll need
you to give them a market estimation,”
“This is a rough list of items, take a look.”
Zi Di handed Fei She a list.
The list was very thin, only three pages thick.
Fei She looked at it, and when he saw the initial valuation, he couldn’t help
but stare, “63,000 gold?”
Fei She knew that an imperial viscount’s yearly income was roughly 15,000 gold.
An imperial silver level cultivator (without lands) had an average yearly
salary of 100 gold, and gold levels got 300 gold.
Therefore, the 50,000 gold coins the survivors at the auction was imposing and
suppressed everyone there.
It seemed that Hun Tong earned a big profit from one of Two Eyes Island’s
auctions, but that wasn’t actually true.
This last auction was unprecedented.
Hun Tong had lots of production costs.
Zi Di replied, “Upon cursory glance, I noticed that many antiques seem
valuable.”
“Although Two Eyes Island has only belonged to Hun Tong for ten years, he
really was a talented businessman and made its people very prosperous.”
Almost everyone there was a Wealth believer.”
“Simultaneously, pirates disposed of stolen goods and often brought high value
commodities.”
“I suspect that in Hun Tong’s city government treasury there are many kinds of
good things that aren’t convenient to sell in normal times.”
“Count them up, perhaps the total can break through 70,000 gold.”
“7, 70,000 gold…” Fei She wisped out a breath, his face rueful, “I have seen
this amount of coin on paper before, but this is the first time I have seen so
many treasures arrayed before me.”
“If that is the case, then in the near, near future, we won’t have to worry
about the Anti-investigation and Prophecy formation’s con, consumption.”
Currently, every time the survivors collectively used the Anti-investigation
and Prophecy formation, it would cost over 100 gold, a steep price.
This kind of magical power would be depleted over time and needed to be
replenished every so often.
As time went on and the survivors got stronger, this price would grow bigger.
The team’s finances were for a time consequently strapped for cash and at the
edge of bankruptcy.
With these seafloor valuables, the survivors not just quenched themselves, they
had been bestowed a lake of fresh water.
Zi Di’s tone was clear and cold, “Although there are many treasures, they are
dead things.”
“We still lack a steady income; this financial situation is not healthy.”
“Good opportunities similar to Two Eyes Island are very hard to duplicate.”
“We still need to create steady profits.”
“At the same time, some of these valuables are very hard to price.”
“The blackmail letter didn’t get a response, and it could expose us. Using
Wisteria Merchant Alliance channels have huge implicit risks, and I hesitate to
use them.”
Fei She nodded, his eyes flashing with gratification.
If Zi Di didn’t raise the issue, he would have tactfully reminded her.
Now, it seemed that the former girl had really grown up and became quite
reliable.
“Given enough time, she’ll surpass her father as president!” Fei She looked
forward to this.
“Among the valuables, there are many gems, enough to invest and open some
businesses.”
“However, it seem the Lord Com, Commander is dispirited.”  
“If it is because of this in, incident that a rif, rift forms between him and
you, it would be terrible.”
Fei She reminded her of another matter.
Zi Di’s hand stopped moving, then she faintly sighed, “I already forecasted
it.”
“I know why his mood is foul.”
“For one, he takes pity on the weak freemen that were robbed and the poor.”
“Second, he is very disappointed in Hun Tong. During the battle, Hun Tong
behaved quite treacherously and despicable, never revealing the Golden Flash
until the pirates were just about to leave the island. He wanted to take
everyone’s things and schemed against his own people’s riches.”
“Because according to imperial law, when he retakes them back from pirate
hands, they are all his spoils of war.”
During the battle, everyone was focused on what was before them.
Now that things had calmed down, everyone smart enough would analyze it a bit
to find out the motives and strengths of the various sides.
Zi Di continued, “Us salvaging the seafloor treasures was undoubtably the
correct move.”
“If we didn’t, then it would let that contemptible Feudal Lord Hun Tong off
easily.”
“Of course this was a contest between many parties.”
“We participated from beginning to end, and with a bit of luck, were able to
fish up the biggest benefits and become the biggest unseen winner, this is
inherently understood.”
“According to imperial law, these spoils of war are absolutely not ill gotten
gains.”
“If it was possible, I would have suggested to the commander to privately gift
some valuables to the plundered masses.”
“If that happened, his mood would be better.”
“But that couldn’t happen!”
“By doing that, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ characterization would be
inconsistent and provoke suspicion. If those valuables were recognized, then it
would make things worse.”
“In fact, Hun Tong would expose it. He must help his people, no matter his
business talent, he must know that those people are his wealth!”
Fei She nodded, “To the best of my knowledge, the Justice Church’s creed
advocates for only justice, not benevolence.”
“He is an outstanding lead, leader!”
“He fulfills his leadership du, duties, and obtaining these treasures will be
very helpful to our fu, future.”
“But he was trapped in his own guilty conscience, self-blame, and duty, bearing
it alone.”
Zi Di exposed a tender smile, “Sometimes, I think he is a little foolish.”
“But it is precisely because he pursues righteousness, is good and honest from
the bottom of his heart and often introspects himself that we all trust him.”
“You know? Sometimes I think back and feel that I am very lucky.”
“Our composition is too complex, too many races, too many different beliefs.”
“He is the only one everyone can believe in.”
“You would even believe that this includes a half beastman, a half giant, a
goblin, and even necromancers!”
“Even if Zong Ge promotes to the gold level, he wouldn’t be able to accomplish
this to this degree.”
“He is special!”
As she said that, Zi Di’s eyes filled with love.
Seeing Zi Di like this, Fei She’ face blossomed with a silent smile.
He was an elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, and watched Zi Di grow up.
He personally witnessed the falling out between Zi Di and the old president
over the unwilling marriage connection, and Zi Di leaving home.
He also saw that after Zi Di assumed the presidency, her eyes were filled with
unswerving determination when she announced the Bai Zhen clan marriage
relationship, she was prepared to sacrifice and utterly devoid of love.
Seeing Zi Di’s expression now, no matter who it was, everyone knew the girl
loved the young man wholeheartedly.



****** Chapter 224: Justice Matins ******
Early morning.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was sailing across the ocean.
The ship’s bow cut through the waves and pure white sails swelled out.
In the distance, the boundless dark blue ocean surface and insipid blue sky
reflected off each other, and under the caressing sea breeze, the sailors w ere
carefree and relaxed.
The good weather brought more than a good mood.
To sailing on the sea, this signified that most important thing – a safe sail.
Two mercenaries stood at the side of a ship, one of them threw a plank.
The plank was fastened to a rope, and after it dropped into the sea, it was
immediately swept towards the aft.
The rope was also tugged constantly by the plank.
This rope wasn’t ordinary, and there had been many knots tied into it at
equidistant lengths of 23 feet and 7.5 inches from each other.
The other mercenary was holding an hourglass.
The hourglass would completely fill in 14 seconds.
14 seconds quickly passed, and the turned hourglass filled.
The mercenary counting the rope knots found that a bit over 11 knots had
passed.
With this data, they immediately ran to the captain’s room and reported to the
dragonman youngster, “Lord Commander, current speed is 11 knots.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, allowing them to retire.
He continued to immerse himself with his table.
The table had an ordinary ocean chart, compass, star chart, and a number of
staff gauges and other maritime navigational equipment.
“A speed of 11 knots…” The dragonman youngster dipped a feather pen into some
ink, then wrote a calculation on some parchment, until finally marking the
fleet’s position on the ordinary ocean chart as well as its current course.
The dragonman youngster had been studying maritime navigation for some time
already, now he could proficiently use all kinds of testing methods and tools,
along with being able to do them faster and more accurately.
“Let’s check the correct answer.” The dragonman youngster took out another map.
It was a magic item – the moving ocean map
The dragonman youngster had purchased it from the Two Eyes Island Auction
The moving ocean map unfurled, and he saw where his fleet was, moving across
the ocean at a snail’s pace.
The course, speed, and position were all a little bit off from his
calculations.
“My maritime navigational skill should meet standards now?” The dragonman
youngster faintly smiled.
With this moving map, the fleet’s position, course, and other crucial data was
obvious at a glance, making things very convenient.
Cang Xu’s compass was also very reliable; it could instantaneously indicate
every direction and orientation.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was the most convenient, it came with its own
preinstalled moving map that could correspond with its three detection methods,
it was the strongest detection unit the survivors had at present.
Magic and alchemy were the world’s most sophisticated technologies.
But it didn’t mean the dragonman youngster’s study of basic maritime navigation
was worthless.
Because magic prohibition and other special environments would cause these
alchemy items to fail. Some enemy methods could also interfere and mislead,
effortlessly leading a fleet into ambush.
The Sheng Ming Empire navy provided moving ocean maps as standard equipment,
but every time they did calculations, they still used basic maritime
navigational skills simultaneously.
The dragonman youngster put away the moving ocean map and began to eat
breakfast.
Breakfast was very sumptuous.
Some bread, cow milk, green vegetables, and so on.
Because this was their second day since departing the island.
The ship still had very fresh food.
As time passed, this situation became very nasty.
Fesh vegetables were very hard to store.
Magic and alchemy offered many food storage methods, the most popular of which
was the Fertile Land Church’s specialty – the Fertile Flower Pot.
This flower pot’s soil was very fertile and could meet the nutrition
requirement of growing vegetables for a long time.
Therefore, due to the empire’s grand strategy of invading the Wilderness
Continent and vast maritime navigation development, the Fertile Land Church
expanded greatly.
The second most popular was making an ice-cold environment, to prolong a food’s
shelf life. Some cold air formations, ice formations, and some alchemy
refrigerators and freezers all belonged to this category.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps planned to go to Ice Sculpture Island, that
island had alchemy products like refrigerators and freezers, things positively
evaluated by the market and bestsellers, becoming one of the snow elves’ staple
exports.
But these two methods still couldn’t benefit the vast majority of sailors.
The sole reason was cost.
Ordinary ships spent money on cultivator sailors, navigational equipment, ship
maintenance, along with other things and enough food to eat.
In terms of invested costs, allocating fertile flower pots, refrigerators, and
so on meant that profits would be reduced.
Captains or fleet leaders wouldn’t choose to do this.
For this reason, the great majority of sailors were confronted with strange
smelling water filled with algae while sailing, dried peas that’d make you
vomit, and moist bread that would become moldy and maggoty. Sometimes, rats
caught in cabin floors would give the sailors a rare delicacy.
It was worth mentioning that the ships the survivors controlled both overtly
and covertly didn’t have these preservation methods.
Ordinary ships didn’t have such installations.
The Iron Lump and the White Bandage were mercenary corps ships that moved in
waters around Two Eyes Island, not in the open ocean.
Although the Deep Sea Monster Fis was a gold level ship, it didn’t have any
either.
The reason was very simple.
War Merchant used this ship to sail distant seas, and he brought his own fresh
ingredients. As a legend level magician, he could create water from nothing and
hunting locally to acquire the freshest ingredients, thus he needed no such
things.
The dragonman youngster finished eating breakfast and left the captain’s room,
traveling downstairs and to the prayer room on the deck’s second level.
This room hadn’t originally been for prayer, but since the dragonman youngster
and Chi Lai were both Justice believers, they converted it to do so in the
interim.
This was a blatant privilege. 
They were the only two Justice God disciples.
Most sailors believed in an Ocean God, the Luck Goddess, the Wealth Goddess,
and so on.
Because the Sheng Ming Empire lacked a traditional ocean god, many human
sailors believed in the ocean gods of foreign races.
In this extraordinary world, choosing the correct god to worship was an
important act that could increase the odds of survival, and shouldn’t be easily
ignored.
Besides this prayer room, the fleet had no others.
If the sailors wanted to pray, they had no choice but to do it where they
stood.
The sole prayer room was for the dragonman youngster’s and Chi Lai’s usage.
But no one grumbled against or opposed this situation.
This was the world of the strong.
The strong had privilege and was expected as a matter of course.
“Commander.” At the prayer room’s doorway stood Chi Lai; he had been waiting
for some time.
The dragonman youngster smiled at him, “Sorry, measuring and calculating our
course and position took a bit of time.”
Chi Lai stood perfectly straight and permeated with a soldier’s graceful
bearing, “It is the duty of a subordinate to wait for their superior.”
The two pushed open the door and entered the prayer room.
Set up in the middle of the prayer room was a likeness of the Justice God.
The likeness was half as tall as a person and hung in a large niche in the
wall.
The likeness portrayed the Justice God’s image, he was a square faced middle
aged man, with tightly closed lips, stalwart features, and looked ahead.
He wore armor, held a sword in one hand, and a shield in the other.
They were the Armor of Justice, the Justice Square Shield, and the Justice
Longsword, all divine artifacts of the Justice God.
In front of the wall niche was an offering table with candlesticks set up on
it.
On the wall, the Justice Church’s sacred emblem was depicted.
Sunlight radiated through a porthole, illuminating the Justice God’s likeness,
causing it to express a thread of formidable aura.
Regardless of whether it was the likeness or the sacred emblem, both were
ordinary goods and unblessed, they had been made in haste.
“The circumstances were limiting; everything has to be simple.” The dragonman
youngster sighed to Chi Lai, “We lack an outstanding alchemist.”
“We cannot truly convert a cabin on the magic ship into a prayer room and the
gold cannon is damaged beyond repair.”
But Chi Lai was very satisfied, “Lord Commander, to have a place like this to
come pray in is already a rare treatment in all my years. I am perfectly
content already!”
“Let us carry out our matins together.”
The dragonman youngster and Chi Lai slowly kneeled, both knees tapping onto the
cold hard planks.
If this was the Wealth Church, believers would be kneeling on soft cushions,
but the Justice Church advocated for a more arduous ambience.
The dragonman youngster hung his head and closed his eyes, mouthing in his
thoughts, “Justice God, my God, you are a grand God, a God worthy of praise.”
“You uphold justice, do not submit to force, and are the one to right wrongs.”
“This lowly believer prays to you to make things clear, to ask for your
direction, please tell me how the path of righteousness should be walked…”
The two both prayed silently.
When Chi Lai finished his own matins, he noticed that the dragonman youngster
was still praying.
From his point of view, he could see the side of the dragonman youngster’s
face, viewing his tightly locked brows and pious silently mouthing lips faintly
opening and closing.
At this moment, Chi Lai’s heart welled with good feelings for the dragonman
youngster.
Holding the same convictions caused Chi Lai to feel more intimate with the
dragonman youngster.
Although he had joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as a slave, his own
heart treated the dragonman youngster as the closest one to him.
He didn’t suspect the dragonman youngster was fraudulently pretending to gain
his loyalty.
Because that was unnecessary.
In this world of widespread beliefs, believing in other gods for this purpose
was very taboo.
The price was too high, unworthy of the act.
The dragonman youngster’s actions during the battle for Two Eyes Island was
also witnessed by Chi Lai. He saw the dragonman youngster fight with his all
against Er Gua Zi, stunning Chi Lai and causing him to concede from the bottom
of his heart that the dragonman youngster was formidable.
Although Zong Ge’s battle qi had a gold luster, and was considered a quai-gold
level, in Chi Lais’ eyes, his battle strength couldn’t compare to the dragonman
youngster’s.
The only thing that diminished the young man was that he was a dragonman.
The Sheng Ming Empire was the world’s greatest power, and the strongest,
causing the glorious humans to universally look down on the other races.
Therefore, Hun Tong and Tan Qiu were more inclined to recruit the human Shi Qi
and not Long Fu.
However, Chi Lai was born from the lowest rungs of society and had been framed
by imperial bigwigs. His many torments had broken many of his obstinate
prejudices.
This fact didn’t affect Chi Lai that much.
The dragonman youngster’s prayer finally finished.
The two slowly got up.
Chi Lai decided to ask, “Lord Commander, it seems your heart is at a loss. As a
fellow believer, I want to give you some help, even if it won’t solve your
problem or is insignificant.”
Chi Lai helping another at his own accord was very rare.
He had been sold into slavery and changed hands many times.
Although his time with the dragonman youngster was brief, Chi Lai had a sense
of belonging and really wanted to help this youngster.



****** Chapter 225: Justice God Revelation ******
Seeing Chi Lai wanted to offer aid at his own accord, the dragonman youngster’s
heart warmed.
His brows smoothed out as he sighed, “Truth be told, I am very disappointed.”
Chi Lai suddenly exposed a look of understanding, “Is it Hun Tong?”
It actually wasn’t just Hun Tong, the dragonman youngster was disappointed in
himself too.
But the dragonman youngster wouldn’t reveal anything about the seafloor
treasures, he nodded, “Indeed, part of it is about him.”
Hun Tong is an imperial noble, he was the feudal lord there, he agreed to
uphold justice and differentiate the boundaries of evil.”
“However, he decided to trade with pirates, offering them a convenient place to
dispose of their stolen goods. The pirates smoothly gained capital they could
use the arm themselves to carry out many more plunders.”
“Hun Tong is unquestionably their accomplice!”
Not only that, but during the battle, he kept the Golden Flash hidden until the
final moment, because the valuables were leaving the island.”
“When we were departing the island, he deceived us, selling the Bandage
Mercenary Corps’ flagship to us. Following that, he is certain to put his hands
on those victims.”
“Although the Bandage Mercenary Corps fought mainly to save themselves, they
were still our comrades in arms.”
“Hun Tong’s conduct really made me disappointed.”
As a matter of fact, the dragonman youngster also felt guilty.
One thought lingered in his heart – if we didn’t swipe the seafloor treasures,
Hun Tong would be wealthy, would he let off the Bandage Mercenary Corps? What
if Zi Di only took half the valuables? If half of it was left for Hun Tong,
would it indirectly benefit the common poor people?
Accompanying this thought was his conscience’s denouncement, and a voice in the
young man’s heart rang out, “Could leaving behind those valuables help the
people? Too naïve! Hun Tong is treacherous and deceitful; he wouldn’t make
concessions willingly. His battle strategy obviously wanted him to be the sole
winner that ate up all the other parties!”
“The survivors urgently needed these seafloor valuables, activating the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy formation not only took a lot of money, but the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in dire financial straits, the blackmail letter
didn’t get a reply, and the future is filled with unknowns and hardships, you
have to grab hold of every opportunity to expand your chances of survival!”
“It’s like Mystifying Monster Island, like Snake Rat Island, those that survive
can carry out righteousness. Each life has the basic right to keep on living,
what do you find wrong with fighting for the chance to survive? The first and
most righteous thing is wanting to live!”
During the Snake Rat naval battle, the dragonman youngster had come to this
understanding, and not only convinced himself of it, but also his other
companions, thereby crossing that crisis.
However, at this very moment, he used this theory again, but this time felt
uneasy.
Because he unavoidably would think, “If it is righteous for me to abscond with
the seafloor treasures for the sake of survival, what about Hun Tong?”
As a human knight looking in: Hun Tong had expelled the fishmen, expanded the
empire’s territory, and indirectly serviced the empire’s grand strategy of
attacking the beastmen’s continent.
In fact, the Sheng Ming Empire, these last few years, had issued many policies
to encourage nobles to expand, especially to the islands between the Sheng Ming
Empire and the Wilderness Continent. 
Hun Tong had been motivated by such policy and went to seize Two Eyes Island.
However, the policy couldn’t help Hun Tong much more besides giving him a tax
exemption.
When Hun Tong was in the opening stages of his conquest, he hadn’t developed
Two Eyes Island that much.
Putting oneself into Hun Tong’s shoes, one could realize Hun Tong didn’t have
an easy time!
Two Eyes Island was not a normal island, it didn’t have soil, couldn’t grow
plants, didn’t have minerals, and half of it was on the seafloor for a period.
Apart from this, Hun Tong was also being constantly harassed and attacked by
the fishman clan, along with being devastated by pirate gangs large and small
all around.
If Hun Tong ran Two Eyes Island like a conventional feudal lord, he would have
been destroyed. Not only would the fishmen retake their homeland, but pirates
would also ransack everything. Even if it that didn’t happen, under this double
besiegement, Two Eyes Island would have been cut off from the rest of the world
and gradually sink into oblivion.
“Under this environment, Hun Tong painstakingly built up his enterprise,
changed his tactics, created a business atmosphere, and allowed pirates to
peacefully dispose of their stolen goods, thereby reaching a tacit
understanding and giving space for domestic and foreign traffic.”
“With save shipping routes and pirate booty creating cheap merchant goods, Two
Eyes Island successfully attracted merchant alliances large and small to set up
there.”
“Hun Tong also withstood the fishman clan, forcibly revitalizing the backwater
Two Eyes Island.”
If Hun Tong didn’t execute this survival strategy, he might have ended defeated
and dispersed.”
“If calculated like this, would Hun Tong not be righteous too?”
“Then, is Hun Tong a righteous person?”
The dragonman youngster’s heart asked himself.
He shook his head to himself.
“Hun Tong and the pirates wallow in the mire of each other, he bullied our
former battle companions (the Bandage Mercenary Corps), and schemed against his
people’s property, clear injustices.”
“But isn’t it also possible that after Hun Tong carried out his plan, he would
defend justice and become the most esteemed of imperial nobles? As long as
circumstances allow, could he become a feudal lord brimming with honor and
virtue?”
“Were those past sufferings merely him enduring humiliation and a survival
strategy so he could dispense righteousness even further, abandoning the minute
justices in the present?”
The dragonman youngster felt he was standing at a fork in the road.
Next, he needed to pick which road to walk on.
One road among them was called “Hun Tong’s possible justice” – for the purpose
of greater justice, one could sacrifice the present justices and submit to
evil.
In a nutshell, to become a “better” person in the future, I can accept becoming
a “small” villain in for now.
“Can I?” The dragonman youngster asked himself.
“Will doing this soothe me more and increase the odds of everyone’s survival?”
The dragonman youngster thought of spies.
Some spies deep undercover, in order to attack an enemy’s leadership, would
choose to sell out their side’s benefits and even attack their own comrades.
“However, can righteousness do that?”
“Can righteousness be viewed in a transactional manner, can it be weighed and
calculated?”
“Can the undertaking of justice be so simply considered through merits and
demerits?”
“Could I have the shadow of Hun Tong on me?”
The dragonman youngster deeply examined himself, the interrogation flogging his
thoughts like a whip.
His heart was permeated with bewilderment.
He looked at Chi Lai, and asked his heart’s greatest doubt, “What is
righteousness? How should the path of righteousness be walked? Where does it
go?”
Upon hearing the young man’s question, Chi Lai couldn’t help but he dazzled.
“Similar, so similar!” He couldn’t help but sigh from the bottom of his heart.
It really resembled the past him!
Chi Lai deliberated for a bit, then instead of directly answering the dragonman
youngster, he said, “Lord Commander, I cannot give you a straightforward answer
to your question, because I am also a humble believer.”
“Here, I want to share with you the time I obtained God’s gaze and my
experience with a divine spell, perhaps it can help you somewhat.”
The dragonman youngster was immediately interested.
During the battle, Chi Lai had used a divine spell to increase the gold
cannon’s power.
The scene left a profound impression on everyone who had witnessed it on the
battlefield. 
Chi Lai slowly said, “I was born into a poor family, and because of my
outstanding gifts, I was chosen after consideration to join the imperial navy.”
“A noble young master intended to plunder another’s inheritance, deceive a
naïve girl, and planned to use a contemptible method to have that girl lose her
virginity to him.”
“When me and my comrades unwittingly overheard this plot, even though I was
entirely unacquainted with that girl, I decided to act.”
“Against my comrades’ advice, who warned me that noble young master had a big
background.”
“But I didn’t heed their advice, I destroyed the noble young master’s plot and
let the girl realize how dangerous and insidious he was.”
“The noble young master became enraged over this perceived humiliation and
exploited his clan’s influence to frame me.”
“When I went to prison, no one save me, my former friends all chose to abandon
me, they even engaged in perjury, hit me while I was down, and I too was at a
loss.”
“Where was justice? Where could I find righteousness? I protected and carried
out justice, why did I end up this way?”
“Was I abnormal, or was the world abnormal?”
“Was I wrong, or was justice wrong?”
“More ironic was when I heard the latest news on the girl. She decided to marry
that noble young master at her own volition, of course it was due to the noble
clan pressuring her, for the sake of completely wiping away any suspicions and
taint the young master had.”
“The girl testified that I coveted her beauty and wanted to use a crafty plot
to break the close relationship with her and her spouse.”
“I sank into despair, giving up on all hope on life and the world. I didn’t
plan to remain in this world, and I decided to commit suicide that same
evening, and decided to say one final prayer.”
“I thought it would be my last prayer in my life.”
“I thought it would be my most insincere prayer ever.”
“I asked my God a question, what really is justice? I asked why I had fallen to
this state? I asked why justice didn’t exist in this world!”
“However…”
“I heard a great voice, my God’s voice.”
“They said: Chi Lai, my child, I teach you this: justice exists at the point of
a sword, at the mouth of a cannon, and in the hearts of people.”
The dragonman youngster shook, and with a mix of envy and admiration, asked,
“God gave you a revelation?”
“That’s right, it was a divine revelation.” Chi Lai took in a deep breath,
“Despite only being a sentence, I comprehended three divine spells.”
“They are Justice Army Vanguard, Justice Cannon, and Mark Evil!”
“Justice Army Vanguard is a large scale buffing divine spell that can double a
friendly side’s battle capabilities.”
“Justice Cannon can amplify a cannon barrel, and with the Justice God, I can
cause its might to rise dramatically.”
“The most core divine spell is Mark Evil. Using it can mark a target as “evil
enemy” or “righteous ally”. After putting on this mark, our attacks will do
more damage to those marked enemies. If our attacks hit friendly troops, it
won’t affect them. Our healing magic will be greatly amplified and won’t affect
enemies.”
Although they had only been together for a short time, Chi Lai decided to
describe his three divine spells in detail to the dragonman youngster in their
entirety.
Many times, interactions between people can be wonderful.
Although Chi Lai was not familiar with the dragonman youngster at first sight,
in their brief few days, their relationship advanced by leaps and bounds.
“After receiving God’s revelation, I no longer wanted to commit suicide.
Because my God almost pitied me, and I had obtained my answer.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes were despondent, and his mouth murmured,
repeating the divine revelation, “Justice…exists at the point of a sword, at
the mouth of a cannon, and in the hearts of people.”
Then, the young man looked puzzled, “I cannot completely comprehend the meaning
of this phrase.”
Chi Lai smiled, “I didn’t either, I still don’t.”
“It is every normal.”
“Because we are not gods, but people. Understanding the complete meaning of a
divine revelation is not something we can achieve.”
“In front of gods, we should keep humble.”
“Therefore, despite the noble clan tormenting me, and selling me as a slave, I
serenely accept it as fact.”
“Besides, as a slave, I strived to comprehend the meaning the divine revelation
and gradually had many insights and understandings.”
“But I don’t want to impart these experiences to you, fellow believer.”
Because my life experience is not yours.”
“I believe us encountering each other was arranged by God. God has bestowed
upon me their revelation to not only me, but also to you.”
“From now on, go comprehend what that phrase means.”
“Use your own life experiences, as long as you scrupulously abide by the path
of righteousness, you are sure to solve the doubts in your heart and obtain
your answer!”



****** Chapter 226: Bloodline Investigation ******
The sun gradually rose.
The sea breeze slowly increased, the wind half bulging the sails.
Lan Zao was inspecting on deck.
His skin was tanned by the sun, his body was strong and muscular, and his eyes
were sharp. He was fully equipped with bronze level equipment, amplifying his
power and influence.
Lan Zao stopped walking, and shouted, “Who tied this knot?”
“It, it was me.” A mercenary stepped forth.
“The knot is wrong. Are you not a sailor?” Lan Zao asked.
The mercenary lowered his head, “Yes, that’s right, I haven’t gone out to see
much.”
“That won’t do. Come, I will demonstrate, watch, then follow my instructions!”
Lan Zao stooped down to untie the knot then demonstrated how to tie it in front
of everyone.
He first pulled the rope straight, setting it level on the deck.
Then he bent the middle of the rope, then loped it to form the figures of 8s.
After that, he took the head of the rope and pulled it through the loops in the
8s.
Finally, he pulled the rope taut, evenly distributing the 8 shaped knots across
the rope.
Lan Zao got up and gazed at the mercenary, “This is the consecutive figure
eight knot, look at it, its knots are very big, and when you need to save
yourself in emergencies, you can grasp it and not worry about slipping.”
“Do you understand?”
The mercenary nodded repeatedly.
Lan Zao threw the rope back to him, “Untie it, then retie it.”
“Yes, Lord.” The mercenary immediately began to do so.
Lan Zao was once a head sailor on the Hog’s Kiss, had come from a fishing
village, and lived on the seas for many years; he knew these things by heart.
He inspected the deck, the ship cabins, and other places assiduously,
meticulously, and wholeheartedly devoted his strength to this corps.
“Lord Lan Zao, I tied it, can you check if it’s right?” Soon after, the
mercenary finished tying the consecutive figure eight knot.
But at that moment, a mercenary carrying an over ran over, “Lord Lan Zao, the
Lord Commander has summoned you.”
“Oh, his Lordship is summoning me?” Lan Zao stepped over the rope, and in spite
of the mercenary’s impatient expression, quickly strode towards the captain’s
room.
The mercenaries behind him whispered apprehensively.
“I heard Boss Lan Zao is very appreciated by the Commander.”
“That’s just how it is.”
“Look at his animated attitude, who wouldn’t like such a subordinate?”
“Shut up, how can you evaluate Lord Lan Zao on a whim?”
Knock, knock, knock.
The captain’s door was tapped on.
“Come in.” The dragonman youngster permitted.
Lan Zao pushed the door open, came in, and respectfully saluted, “Commander,
you summoned me?”
The dragonman youngster smiled, “There is something I need to say to you, come
in.”
After saying that, he took out an acoustics box and put it on the desk.
It was a small alchemy device that could stop sound from spreading.
Not only that, but there were also many scouting puppets guarding inside and
outside of the captain’s room.
Seeing the dragonman youngster doing this, Lan Zao immediately realized that
this discussion would be quite secret, and he shut the door at once.
Lan Zao came in front of the desk.
The dragonman youngster indicated to him to sit down, then took out alchemy
item for one’s arm.
This was a tool Zi Di had built with the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s alchemy
formations to draw blood.
Lan Zao didn’t sit down, and he smiled, “My Lord, I am fine standing.”
The dragonman youngster looked serious, “I permit you to sit, do sit down.”
“I want to use this to draw a bit of your blood.” The dragonman youngster
presented the device, “Before the battle, our people were tricked, and their
willpower was temporarily distorted, it was very awful.”
“Therefore, we plan to make some medicine that can guard against such methods.”
“One of the main materials for this magic medicine is the user’s blood.”
Lan Zao nodded, and without hesitation, he took the armband.
The armband slightly contracted, fastening itself to his forearm, then it
pricked him with a syringe that precisely pricked Lan Zao’s vein to begin
drawing his blood.
While this was happening, the dragonman youngster asked, “Lan Zao, If I am
remembering correctly, you cultivate the Water Grass battle qi.”
Lan Zao’s body snapped up like a ramrod and he respectfully answered, “That’s
right, your Lordship!”
The dragonman youngster pointed at the chair, “Do sit back down.”
After Lan Zao sat back down, he continued, “Previously, you tried other battle
qi, and some of them worked to an extent.”
“Yes.” Lan Zao snapped back up again to a standing position, “After we just
left Mystifying Monster Island, you gave us many battle qi techniques that we
could try cultivating. After I tried them all, there indeed were a few battle
qi techniques that suited me.”
“But in the end, I didn’t change my battle qi technique, because their
cultivation efficacy was about the same as my Water Grass battle qi technique.”
Lan Zao was already used to using Water Grass battle qi. His battle skills also
paired with the Water Grass battle qi too.
More importantly, changing one’s battle qi was a very troublesome affair.
Since the earnings weren’t worth it, why would anyone invest the manpower,
physical resources, time, and other costs to do an unnecessary change?
The dragonman youngster put his pen to paper, “Tell me what battle qi
techniques work with you? In addition, please sit down, don’t be so tense.”
Lan Zao laughed, “My Lord, I am not tense.”
“I just like standing.”
“Just let me stand.”
“In front of you, I don’t have the qualifications to sit down. Standing will
put me more at ease.”
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but laugh, “Fine, then stand.”
Lan Zao listed off a few battle qi techniques, and seeing that the dragonman
youngster was writing them down, he curiously and cautiously asked, “My Lord,
do you want to set up a battle squad? I don’t know, do I have enough
qualifications to change to another battle qi cultivation technique?”
Lan Zao mistook the dragonman youngster’s intentions.
The dragonman youngster muttered to himself, “At present, it is indeed still in
consideration.”
Lan Zao instantly grew excited, “My Lord, we should really do that! The Quick
Knife battle squad was trained by Zong Ge, now it has become that guy’s force.
He is also starting to train those water pigmen. In the future, he will have
two battle squads, while we will have none.”
“My Lord, what battle squads do I have the qualifications for?”
Lan Zao’s loyalty to the dragonman youngster was nearly overflowing.
This kind of loyalty was not one a soldier had to their superior, but a mix of
zealotry and worship.
This was created by the special experiences on Mystifying Monster Island.
The dragonman youngster didn’t answer Lan Zao’s question, instead he inquired,
“Lan Zao, think carefully about your relatives or ancestors, were there any
cultivators among them? If there are, what battle qi technique did they
cultivate? What was their bloodline?”
Lan Zao stared blankly, then forced a smile, “My Lord, my ancestors were all
poor people. Only my generation had the qualifications to become a cultivator.”
When he said that, Lan Zao involuntarily thought of his youngster brother Huang
Zao, and his face went dark.
The dragonman youngster questioned closely, “How much do you know of your
bloodline, do you know what it specifically is?”
Lan Zao shook his head again, “My Lord, I don’t know, there are too many
bloodlines that can cultivate Water Grass battle qi, and I never used a divine
spell to measure it. Too expensive! To me, being able to become a cultivator
and knowing that the Water Grass battle qi is the most suitable for me is
enough.”
“My transcendent bloodline is very low, I can only be a bronze level, what use
is measuring it?”
The dragonman youngster nodded, then wrote a few words on the paper, “So in
that case, did any cultivators pop up in the coastal fishing village you came
from?”
Lan Zao recalled for a while, then replied with uncertainty, “There seemed to
be one, in my grandfather’s generation, there was a bronze level. He could hold
his breath underwater for a whole hour and he had a robust physique. When the
villagers spoke of him, they were all very envious.”
The dragonman youngster asked a few more questions, then after that was done,
retrieved the blood drawing device from Lan Zao’s arm.
“How is the mercenary corps doing?” The young man asked before Lan Zao left.
Lan Zao swiftly said, “It is much stronger than before.”
“Although we lost many people on Two Eyes Island’s port, our remaining comrades
are more unified and elite.”
The dragonman youngster encouraged, “I heard some people are supporting you,
you’re doing pretty good.”
Lan Zao replied, “Everything is thanks to your Lordship!”
“With the money you lent me, I was able to buy a set of bronze level equipment.
My strength increased and I was able to suppress them.”
The young man laughed and shook his head, “Not only that, during the battle,
your heroic performance saved many people and killed many fishmen, continue
working.”
“Yes, my Lord!” Lan Zao walked to the doorway, then hesitated before during
around and said shamefully, “My Lord, I know my strength is meager and my gifts
inadequate.”
“I am a mere bronze.”
“But please make use of me in spite of that!”
“Even if the battle squad’s battle qi doesn’t fit me and will reduce my
strength.”
“But I am loyal!”
“You can trust me one hundred percent!”
“I will use all of my strength to help you make a new battle squad.”
The dragonman youngster was very touched, he gazed into Lan Zao’s eyes and
nodded vigorously, “Don’t worry, I will use you in crucial moments, I am not at
all miserly!”
Then he thought an additional sentence, “You will have a greater purpose, and
you will have greater talent, you won’t remain a mere bronze.”
After obtaining the dragonman youngster’s promise, Lan Zao immediately perked
up with intense inspiration and joy.



****** Chapter 227: Zong Ge’s Military Training ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships traveled through the ocean.
On the flagship, the White Bandage, Men Shi stood on the bow, surveying the
scene before him.
His face was filled with worry, and he really hoped that the Iron Lump would
appear at any moment, despite knowing this was impossible.
Behind the White Bandage, there were pairs of mercenaries doing weapons
training on the second medium sized ship.
Of course, these weapons were covered with thick cloth, to prevent accidental
harm.
Bai Ya was one of them.
He wielded a cutlass and was battling an older mercenary.
The old mercenary’s martial moves were shrewd and ruthless, he was very
experienced in battle, and not long after fighting, couldn’t help but grow
angry and impatient.
But the old mercenary lacked stamina, and he could only risk showing an opening
to bait Bai Ya into attacking.
As expected, Bai Ya was duped and the old mercenary knocked his cutlass off
balance and attacked Bai Ya’s weak side.
But a moment later, Bai Ya, stimulated by this, forcefully twisted his waist,
and in that critical moment, blocked the old mercenary’s weapon.
As the old mercenary was startled, Bai Ya seized the opportunity to
counterattack.
Swords clashed with a dull echo.
After a few tough clashes, the old mercenary’s weapon was knocked away, forcing
him to concede, “The old can’t compare to you youngsters.”
Bai Ya was covered in profuse sweat, and he was gasping for air.
His stamina suddenly slid away, and he wanted to collapse to the deck in
fatigue.
But he still strived to persevere, and with the cutlass still in his hands, he
didn’t forget to console his opponent, “Uncle, you are not old, and there are
still many things I want to ask you about.”
The old mercenary heckled back, “Asking me for advice huh, you can’t do without
good wine and meat, smelly youngster!”
Zong Ge was presiding over the training, and after seeing all of the outcomes
of these spars, he had Bai Ya, and the others leave and swap places with
another group of mercenaries to train.
Bai Ya came to Xu Ma’s side.
Xu Ma considered Bai Ya his little brother and looked after him.
He clapped Bai Ya’s shoulder and encouraged him, “Your moves weren’t half bad,
but there is still room for improvement.”
“You fell into a trap, and you would have lost. However, your opponent suffered
from age, allowing you to win by a narrow margin.”
Bai Ya also thought back to his spar, and he swiftly asked for guidance,
“Leader, how should I discern my opponent’s moves?”
Xu Ma smiled, and indicated at once how Bai Should recognize them, imparting
his battle experience to him.
Bai Ya diligently listened, and after going through many battlefields, he
deeply realized that a single crucial moment could decide victory or defeat, it
could save his life.
Xu Ma summed up his words with this, “Actually, saying too much is useless. Let
your body remember, if it is just your brain that remembers, then during actual
combat, you won’t be able to react usually.”
Bai Ya immediately understood, “Therefore, I need more actual combat practice!”
His eyes lit up, and he stared at the mercenaries training, focusing his
attention on them.
His hands still imitated moves from time to time, not letting any chance to
derive from actual combat experience slip by.
Xu Ma was a spectator, and when he saw Bai Ya doing this, he sighed to himself,
as if feeling regret, “This youngster is very hard working, a pity he doesn’t
have a bloodline and will never become a cultivator. He will only ever be an
ordinary person.”
Zong Ge inwardly praised the mercenary corps’ performance but remained tranquil
on the surface.
“The Snake Rat Island naval battle, the Two Eyes Island beast tide defense, and
that chaotic warfare.”
“The baptism of these battles have morphed the remaining mercenaries greatly.”
The spiritual essence of the mercenary corps had made remarkable progress since
it had been established, and one could see a trace of elite troops in them.
“My Lord.” Tripleblade came to Zong Ge’s side, whispering, “Just now, the
commander found me to collect my blood, the reason was to make medicine that
would protect my willpower. But…this subordinate is somewhat worried.”
Zong Ge didn’t take his eyes off the mercenaries as he faintly mouthed back,
“What are you worried about?”
Tripleblade took a breath, then said, “The situation is quietly changing, your
Lordship.”
“The Quick Knife battle squad had an exceptional performance.”
“Now, you are beginning to train the water pigmen, they will certainly become a
battle squad in the future.”
“Chi Lai and Men Shi have joined the corps, and if we add in Qing Xin, their
ranks will have three additional silver levels.”
“There is also the most crucial bit, your Lordship has taken the healing
potion, your injury is fully recovered. Gold level is just around the corner
for you.”
Zong Ge shook his head, “I can feel that there is still a step between me and
the gold level.”
“Don’t be so recklessly suspicious, our commander…is not a vile character.”
Tripleblade quickly replied, “This subordinate is not worried about the
commander. But Lao Zhong (Cang Xu) and Hong Teng (Zi Di), they are unusual
(necromancers).”
“Even if they aren’t devious right now, what about in the future?”
“What if their willpower is again influenced by a divine spell?”
“The Devil Gold Coins incident was two days ago, your Lordship.”
“Most of all, the matter of their betrayal is not something the commander has
explained to us yet.”
Zong Ge faintly creased his eyebrow, then finally looked at Tripleblade, not
concealing his discontentment, “What do you want to tell me? They were under a
divine spell, if it was us, or any one of those people over there, they too
would turn traitor.”
“It was not their subjective intent, they simply had some bad luck, and during
the battle, they had always displayed their full abilities and fought
valiantly, there is no need to give an explanation.”
Sensing Zong Ge’s dissatisfaction, Tripleblade immediately kneeled on the deck
and earnestly growled out, “My Lord, you have to be wary. Didn’t they also put
the water pigmen on the White Bandage?”
Zong Ge was expressionless, “Indeed, because the White Bandage is a magic ship,
its giant bandages can not only heal, but they can also bind and control
enemies. It is the safest place to put the water pigmen.”
But Tripleblade implored once more, “My Lord, isn’t this action a deliberate
display to show how the water pigmen belong to? We painstakingly trained them
up until now, what should we do if the Backwater battle squad falls into their
hands?”
Zong Ge sank into silence.
He was once an imperial general, he loved soldiers.
After he successfully trained soldiers, they would fall into another’s hand,
and Zong Ge would naturally feel great pity and regret.
Zong Ge muttered to himself for a moment, and didn’t reply to Tripleblade
question, instead he ordered, “Time to train, bring all of the water pigmen
here.”
Tripleblade accepted the order and left.
Not a moment later, the flagship White Bandage in front began to slow down and
keep pace with Zong Ge’s medium sized ship.
Tripleblade quickly climbed up the mast, then leapt onto the White Bandage.
Soon after, he had the water pigmen slaves go to the side of the ship.
Under Tripleblade’s command, the water pigmen threw flying hook ropes from the
White Bandage, latching onto the other ship.
Then, they put down ten long planks, building ten small temporary bridges
between the two ships.
“Charge!” Tripleblade ordered, causing the water pigmen to step onto the planks
and run from the White Bandage.
Most of the water pigmen performed terribly, some would have even fallen into
the ocean if it weren’t for Tripleblade’s timely intervention.
Tripleblade brought up the rear as the last one, he stepped onto a plank, and
after a running jump, he returned back to Zong Ge’s side to report, “My Lord, I
have brought all of the water pigmen.”
Zong Ge nodded, then assessed, “The rope hooks and plank advance tactics are
still not very proficient. Details on training those will be given to you after
today’s drills.”
“Yes, your Lordship.” Tripleblade immediately answered.
Everyone was looking at the water pigmen.
The survivors had purchased these water pigmen from Hun Tong at a discount
after the battle. 
They all came from the same village, captured by human traffickers to be sold
as slaves.
The slave traffickers had trained the well, and no matter what the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps ordered them to do, they would obediently do it.
But in Zong Ge’s eyes, that was not enough.
His next focus was to train these water pigmen into a battle squad.
A Backwater battle squad!
Last night, Zong Ge ordered Tripleblade to give the Backwater battle qi
technique to these water pigmen.
The result delighted Zong Ge.
There were 16 water pigmen in all that were qualified to become a member of the
Backwater battle squad.
This was a bit more than the Quick Knife battle squad he had set up previously.
Soon after, under Zong Ge’s direction, the water pigmen became the last group
to train.
Halfway through the training, Zong Ge knew the score.
He inspected the people worth cultivating and also began to tentatively toughen
a little of the water pigmen’s courage. But they were still a long way off from
being allowed on the battlefield.
Many of them didn’t even have the most basic grasp of weaponry.
Thus, as they trained, the water pigmen behaved quite comically and moved very
clumsily, often hitting themselves or missing opportunities to attack. The
human mercenaries watching around gesticulated and wantonly jeered the oafish
water pigmen.
When Zong Ge heard these jeers, he suddenly declared that after this training
was finished, there would be solo training. 
The rules for solo training was that Zong Ge would pick whoever he wanted,
ordinary against ordinary, bronze versus bronze, iron fighting against iron, a
one on one battle.
“You, and you.” Zong Ge seemed to randomly pick Bai Ya, then picked a water
pigman.
When Bai Ya saw Zong Ge looking at him, he suddenly had a premonition.
As expected, he was chosen for solo training.
“This is the benefit of being ‘one of us’.” Bai Ya inspired himself, this was
more of actual combat experience he wanted to go through.
A large circular space on deck was cleared, and the water pigmen and
mercenaries circled around.
Someone shouted something, and soon after the crowd began to create a clamor.
The human mercenaries were naturally on Bai Ya’s side, while the water pigmen
of course supported their fellow.
In a split second, an antagonistic ambience settled in.
Bai Ya turned his wrist as he slowly approached his opponent.
He didn’t approach in a straight line, rather he moved from side to side.
The water pigmen was also holding a cutlass, constantly turning around to keep
Bai Ya in front of him.
When Bai Ya had been observing from the sidelines, he also felt that the water
pigmen were quite dull, however, when it came time to fight one alone, he felt
the pressure his opponent gave off.
An adult water pigman was generally 2 meters and was very burly.
There was an obvious disparity between Bai Ya’s and the water pigman’s
physique.
“Hit him now, stop wasting time.”
“Attack his leg.”
“Don’t be afraid, just do it!”
Bai Ya was in the end, young, and gradually grew impatient under the crowd’s
rowdy jeering.
He gradually couldn’t bear it and launched an exploratory attack.
His opponent had been prepared and used his cutlass to parry.
When the two cutlasses collided, Bai Ya immediately changed color.
His cutlass nearly slipped away, causing him to think in alarm, “What strange
strength is this?!”



****** Chapter 228: Gang Lie and Sweet Talk ******
Bai Ya’s probing attack was thwarted, and he quickly took a few steps back to
create distance.
The human mercenaries quieted down by half.
Although everyone knew the water pigman was physically strong, after they all
saw Bai Ya clash with the water pigman, they noticed what the disparity really
looked like.
“Hei Ya, don’t lose your head, that guy barely touched a blade, his technique
is far below yours.” Xu Ma suddenly shouted.
When that yell transmitted into Bai Ya’s ears, it calmed his fickle heart by a
lot.
His gaze became sharp as he attacked once again.
Like Xu Ma said, the water pigman’s weapon technique was much worse than Bai
Ya’s.
For a moment, the water pigman blocked left and right as Bai Ya did his best to
look for an opening.
The water pigman’s strength made it difficult for Bai Ya to contest, while Bai
Ya’s skill and agility left the water pigman at a loss.
The stamina of both quickly declined, and Bai Ya was the first to show signs,
forcing him to slow his attacks. 
The water pigman felt the pressure on him lessen, and he gradually adapted to
the fight.
The interest of the spectators around them gradually waned as time went on.
Both the water pigman and Bai Ya had firm fighting spirit, neither willing to
concede.
This fight went on for a surprising long time!
“Draw.” Finally, it was Zong Ge who stopped the fight.
The scene was too difficult to watch.
Both sides were so exhausted that they were half kneeling on the deck and had
to use their full strength to heave their cutlasses.
Bai Ya was carried off by the humans. 
“Youngster, you didn’t lose face for humanity.”
“Not too bad, at least you didn’t lose.”
“Why wasn’t I picked, I would have beaten up that pig head!”
The mercenaries had a good attitude towards Bai Ya.
Although Bai Ya didn’t beat his opponent, everyone saw his tenacity to never
admit defeat.
His stamina was gone, yet Bai Ya still persevered.
Of course, this was also because the water pigman was too unskilled and
couldn’t seize any openings.
“Repulsive!” Bai Ya clenched his fists, his mood terrible.
When he was carried to Xu Ma’s side, he asked, “Leader, is that a beastman?”
“They are stronger, have more endurance, and better defenses than us humans.”
“My cutlass hit his body, and would leave a scratch at most, they didn’t even
seem to feel pain from it.”
Xu Ma sneered, “Of course there are racial differences between humans and
beastmen. But don’t you think beastmen are too strong.”
“In this fight, you finally experience a beastman’s advantages.”
“But their weaknesses?”
“It is their intellect, they can’t compare to our learning capabilities, and
their magic talents are also quite weak.”
“Otherwise, how could our empire attack the beastmen’s Wilderness Continent?”
“Most crucially, your tactics were wrong, therefore your fight was very
challenging.”
“If I took the field and gave you a demonstration, then you would understand.”
When Zong Ge heard Xu Ma’s words, he pointed his finger at him, “Since you said
that, then you’ll be going up next.”
Xu Ma stared blankly, then cheered to raise his spirits, “Hehe, then observe!” 
Zong Ge looked back to the water pigmen, “Gang Lie, you are the strongest
bronze level, take the field!”
“Roar, roar.” The bronze level water pigman Gang Lie roared twice and glared at
Xu Ma, then strode forth to the middle of the deck.
The surrounding crowd exploded with excitement again.
Bai Ya sat on the deck, leaning against the side of the ship, and stared
without blinking for an instant.
Xu Ma had the Dark Earth Spider bloodline; thus, he had long legs and feet, his
figure was very tall, but he was always stooped and bowed and scraped to many
people, making people feel he wasn’t that tall.
But when confronting the even taller and sturdy water pigman, Xu Ma
straightened his back for the first time.
The mercenaries noticed this startling difference, as it turns out, Xu Ma was
really tall.
Xu Ma twitched his finger at the water pigman, his provocation very intense.
The water pigman Gang Lie had an obvious irascible temperament, and he
immediately charged.
He brandished two hammers and swung them ruthlessly towards Xu Ma.
Xu Ma stood in place, motionless, then when the hammers were about to hit him,
he suddenly vanished.
Battle skill – Backstab.
A moment later, Xu Ma appeared behind the water pigman, his dagger ferociously
stabbing Gang Lie’s back.
Because the dagger was wrapped in thick cloth, it only left a bruise on Gang
Lie’s naked back.
Gang Lie howled and turned around suddenly, sweeping his hammers around in an
arc towards Xu Ma.
Xu Ma shortened his height, abruptly going from 1.9 meters to 0.5 meters.
In Gang Lie’s field of view, Xu Ma seemed to disappear.
He unconsciously thought Xu Ma was repeating the same trick again, dodging
behind him, and simply increased his power to seize the opportunity to use his
own battle skill – Whirling Body Hammer.
Using his own body as an axle, both iron hammers in his hands whirled in a
circle.
The iron hammers whistled through the air, raising a gale, its might
frightening the people.
But it didn’t hit Xu Ma.
Xu Ma just squatted in place, easily dodging Gang Lie’s attack.
His line of sight concentrated on Gang Lie’s buttocks.
A moment later, his mouth curled up, exposing a sinister and ruthless smile.
Battle skill – Eye Jab!
Battle qi flowed, accelerating Xu Ma’s hand, speeding his cloth wrapped dagger
into an ‘eye hole’ on the lower part of the water pigman’s body.
“Oo…ah – oh!”
Within a few seconds, Gan Lie’s modulated roar actually went from anger to pain
and misery, in a string of rolling emotions.
He seemed to be electrocuted, causing him to run forward as his offensive
posture abruptly fell apart and his hammers fell away as both hands
subconsciously covered his buttocks.
Xu Ma took out the dagger and slowly stood up, his eyes following the water
pigman Gang Lie as they “madly and violently” ran until they crashed over the
side of the ship with a bang and fell into the ocean.
“I won.” Xu Ma raised his right arm, his right hand still holding that dagger.
The wrapped cloth dagger was bright red.
The humans didn’t cheer, for they all felt their hearts chill.
Bai Ya was dumbstruck as he thought, “Leader, I can’t copy your attack method!”
The water pigmen seemed to be in a nightmare that they were waking up from.
They wailed loudly, and two or three of the water pigmen rushed to jump into
the ocean to save Gang Lie, while the rest of them pointed at Xu Ma and loudly
cursed him, their angry eyes were bloodshot, their wrath demanded murder!
“Xu Ma is victorious!” Zong Ge loudly declared while simultaneously glaring at
the water pigmen for a moment, “On the battlefield, it goes without saying
anything can be used, life and death is nothing to being despicable and
shameless!”
“Anyone want to teach them a lesson?”
“This will be your final chance for today.”
An iron level pigman let out a torrent of abuse and walked onto the deck.
Xu Man rushed to withdraw.
The water pigman was so angry that it made Xu Ma feel that if he was a bit
slower, that iron level water pigman would beat him up.
Zong Ge looked at Tripleblade, “This time, you’re up.”
Tripleblade faintly stared at him, then understood somewhat, and he walked to
the middle of the deck.
The water pigman turned around to see Tripleblade, and after getting past his
astonishment, he turned serious.
He looked at Zong Ge.
It was very obvious that Tripleblade was Zong Ge’s competent assistant.
Zong Ge said to the water pigman, “If you can defeat him, you can supplant his
position!”
The water pigman’s eyes shined, and with a low growl, his battle intent rose
dramatically.
Tripleblade coldly snorted, took out a dagger, and held it in his hand.
Battle skill – Extreme Speed, stage three.
Battle skill – Lightning Attack!
Tripleblade charged forward, quickly resembling a line of shadow.
The shadow easily passed by the water pigman.
The water pigman rigidly and sluggishly stood in place, his eyes wide open,
then a second later, he fell to the ground with a loud bang, his big face
planting itself into the deck.
The shadow dissipated, and Tripleblade stood behind the water pigman.
As he lightly sheathed his dagger, the crowd finally reacted.
It was an uproar.
“So strong!”
“He felled them in just one attack.”
“It wasn’t just one move, moron, he used at least two battle skills
simultaneously.”
“His dagger isn’t ordinary either, it is an iron level weapon!”
Everyone discussed spiritedly.
Zong Ge nodded with satisfaction, and Tripleblade respectfully returned to Zong
Ge’s side.
Tripleblade was an iron level, and a former mercenary commander. He was
naturally proficient with his battle skills and using two of them
simultaneously was as effortless as moving his fingers.
More importantly was that he improved his dagger.
The survivors had granted capital to improve their comrades’ equipment.
Bai Ya and Lan Zao had benefited from his, and Tripleblade too had gotten an
iron level dagger – Sweet Talk.
The dagger’s attacks also caused paralysis.
It was worth mentioning that the paralysis did not take effect through cutting
or touching, but through sound.
As long as the sound hit the target, it could paralysis them.
So, despite the dagger being wrapped in cloth, after it hit the water pigman,
its friction left a deep mark on their body.
The iron level pigman was consequently struck by this, and was paralyzed all
over, causing him to fall and his face to smash into the deck, unable to stand
back up.
After seeing their strongest companion so effortlessly knocked down by the
short human, the water pigmen became grave and heavy, their gazes exposing ever
more dread.
Of course, there was still anger and indignation.
After all, Tripleblade held the superiority in equipment.
But the water pigmen didn’t dare to be angry or speak, they were mere slaves,
and in addition, according to Zong Ge’s words from before, everything can be
used on the battlefield, and using good equipment was a matter of course and
beyond criticism.
Zong Ge looked at the water pigmen, “Today’s solo training is merely the
beginning.”
“I treat all of my subordinates equally.”
“The Quick Knife battle squad is an example right before your eyes.”
“I will give you better equipment, teach you a more outstanding battle qi
technique, and train you to fight.”
“What I just said is similarly valid, whoever can publicly defeat another in a
one on one, they can supersede their position.”
Zong Ge put a finger on Tripleblade.
Tripleblade sighed to himself, but outwardly he raised his head, his face
callous and disdainful.
The water pigment couldn’t help but growl, their fighting spirit greatly
stimulated, and at the same time, they had been taught a bitter lesson that
destroyed the pride many of them held deep within their hearts.
Zong Ge’s hidden goal had been attained.
He continued to preside over military training, and Tripleblade was his
assistant.
Apart from his, Chi Lai also participated.
As a former navy gunner, Chi Lai was responsible for drilling and teaching
mercenaries how to use cannons.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 11 ships were all almost completely packed
with cannons.
After the battle for Two Eyes Island, there were too many dead, and there were
both ships and cannons in surplus.
But Chi Lai was not satisfied and told the dragonman youngster bluntly that
they needed to improve their cannons.
Because most of them were ordinary cannons.
Chi Lai also mentioned the gold level cannon, asking the dragonman youngster to
think of a way to repair it as soon as possible.
In the days following their departure from the island, he found the time every
day to examine the damaged gold cannon, like someone visiting their sick
sweetheart.



****** Chapter 229: Striving for Self-Improvement is the Righteous Path ******
Darkness.
A deep darkness.
The dragonman youngster’s consciousness lay between half conscious and awake. 
“Who am I?”
“What is this place?”
Soon after, a memory came to mind.
“I am an imperial knight, I pretended to be Zhen Jin…nowadays I am the
commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, under the alias Long Fu!”
“I…why am I in this kind of situation again?”
The dragonman youngster thought back.
Once, on Mystifying Monster Island, he had sunk into this darkness, this was
not the first time.
He didn’t expect that after he left the island, this dark dreamland would still
disturb him.
The boundless darkness enveloped him; it was deathly silent.
The young man tried to walk through the darkness.
He felt his body move, but no matter where he went, his surroundings were still
deeply dark, nothing changed whatsoever.
The now awake young man gradually couldn’t endure it, for the silent darkness
was like a gigantic cage that trapped him.
“I want to leave!”
“But how can I leave?”
The young man knelt and tried to pray to the Justice God.
“My God, grand Justice God.”
“You are my lighthouse, my bright star.”
“Please have mercy on me, help me throw off this dark nightmare, please show me
the road of righteousness, so I can carry out your path…”
God did not respond.
Regardless of what was prayed, only the deathly silent darkness greeted the
young man.
The young man grew increasingly impatient and frustrated, but at that moment,
an enormous sound came from the outside world.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster opened his eyes to reality.
He noticed he had fallen out of his bed, and as a matter of fact, the entire
White Bandage was violently swaying.
“Enemy attack, enemy attack!” Mercenaries ran across the deck as their shouts
reached the young man’s ears.
“What’s going on?” The dragonman youngster quickly ran out of the captain’s
room and saw there were five or six gigantic tentacles twisting around the
White Bandage.
“It is a silver level ocean beast – a luminous octopus.” The dragonman
youngster’s heart moved as he identified it.
During the voyage, besides fulfilling is duty as commander, he also read
things, including works on ocean magic beasts.
The dragonman youngster saw the tentacles were studded with yellow, fluorescent
dots. The large swath of dots were at times dark, and at other times bright, as
if they were breathing.
It was the notable trait of a luminous octopus.
“Was its attack the thing that roused me from my nightmare?” The dragonman
youngster’s eyes flashed with deep thought.
Soon after, he felt baffled, “Wy didn’t Zi Di warn us ahead of time?”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had strong detection capabilities, and based on
common sense, Zi Di should have noticed and should have had the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ fleet avoid the latter beforehand.
In fact, during the last two days, the survivors had smoothly evaded many magic
beasts because the Deep Sea Monster Fish had warned them.
At this time, Zong Ge’s medium sized ship was drawing close.
He was on the side of that ship, both commanding the fight and using an alchemy
device to whisper an explanation to the dragonman youngster, “We noticed this
magic beast was alone, I arranged for it to attack at night, using it as
training.”
“We know you fell asleep, and didn’t want to wake you up.”
“Everything is under our control.”
“So that’s how it is.” The dragonman youngster nodded his approval.
Normally, when a leader found their subordinate covering something up, they
were bound to be greatly vexed and deeply feel their power being threatened.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t, instead he felt this was normal.
Because their team was very special.
Their cultivated tacit understanding and organization’s founding crucially
happened on Mystifying Monster Island.
It was a place with magical prohibition.
Even if one was a cultivator, they could only rely on their bodies and couldn’t
use battle qi, magic, or other transcendent powers.
The survivors were extremely cautious, dealt with countless perils around them,
and struggled at the edge of life and death.
Under such imminent crisis, the people had to decisively act, fight for a
chance of survival, and if they had to get their leader’s permission to act,
then they would have died tragically then and there. 
In many desperate junctions, the survivors were forced to habitually trust
their comrades.
Many times, they fought until they were spent and had to depend on their
comrades’ protection while they took turns sleeping.
This mutual understanding and habits were retained by the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
The luminous octopus looked vicious and frightening, but actually, it was
rather stupid and lacked explosive racial magic.
Its skin was rough and flesh thick, it made an excellent fleshy target.
Zong Ge first dispatched the Quick Knife battle squad.
The Quick Knife battle squad’s leader was still Kuai Tui.
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, his kidney had been pierced, but he had
recovered completely for that now.
Whether it was Zi Di’s allocated healing medicine or the White Bandage’s
bandages, both could keep him healthy and active.
The dogmen had new equipment now – ring swords.
These were all bronze level equipment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps acquired
them from Two Eyes Island’s auction.
Some dogmen hacked up octopus tentacles with their ring swords, while others
were hurling and catching other tentacles.
They weren’t worried about missing, because the octopus tentacles were
enormous, and at such a close distance, they could hit them with their eyes
closed.
With the ring swords, the Quick Knife battle squad’s attack distinctly rose by
a lot.
However, the octopus tentacles were still very strong and powerful, and despite
the many blades creating many cuts, they were light injuries to the luminous
octopus.
The luminous octopus was a silver level, and because of racial discrepancies,
its vitality, stamina, recovery, and defense far exceeded a silver level human
fighter’s.
The luminous octopus didn’t pay attention to the Quick Knife squad, rather it
was incessantly entangled with the White Bandage.
Although the White Bandage was only a bronze level alchemy ship, it didn’t have
a problem vying with the luminous octopus for a short time.
Taking advantage of this golden opportunity, Zong Ge gave several orders and
had mercenaries take turns fighting it at close quarters.
Tripleblade, Bai Ya, Lan Zao, and so on all had a chance to experience real
combat and gain a profound understanding of how to fight a giant beast on the
ocean.
The luminous octopus being tormented so caused its vicious nature to erupt.
But at this time, Chi Lai and Men Shi attacked at the same time.
When the luminous octopus encountered opponents on the same level as it,
several of its tentacles were broken off and its blood flowed without end.
Due to these serious injuries, it wanted to flee, but then the White Bandage
ejected a great amount of bandages that wrapped themselves around the luminous
octopus’ tentacles, trapping it.
The luminous octopus mournfully cried, as if saying: let me go, release me,
please…
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps remained unmoved and were still quite
excited.
“It’s dying, it’ll die!”
“Quick, just a bit more, kill it!”
“I want to eat octopus meatballs!!”
“No, octopus sashimi is the most delicious.”
Tripleblade flew between the mast and octopus tentacles, the dagger in his hand
“Sweet Talk”, paralyzed every tentacle that it hit, causing the octopus to lose
feeling in them.
Bai Ya seized this chance to suddenly rush out and attack a bleeding wound with
his cutlass, it drove itself deeply into it, casing a large splurge of blood to
shoot into Bai Ya.
The big guy didn’t dare to get to close to the battle, that only happened when
he was deeply provoked into a dreadful berserk state. But after experiencing
the baptism of war, he also had remarkable progress. He summoned all of his
courage to grab a number of casks, each throw of one accompanied by a shout
that amplified his prestige. 
The two alchemy puppets disguised as Cang Xu and Zi Di extended their fingers
and activated their fire path rings, casting magic publicly.
The puppets used the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell along with the
Deceptive Disguise spell, not a single mercenary noticed any flaws.
Even Mu Ban joined in the fun, using his crossbow to riddle an octopus tenacle
with arrows.
“Whose arrow is this!”
“Aiya, don’t shoot, you nearly hit my arm.”
Mu Ban had poor accuracy, but he craved doing this, so he quickly changed
positions and fired another arrow. 
Another crossbow arrow flew through the air and stuck itself into the deck.
The water pigman Gang Lie was in the middle of wrestling a tentacle, venting
his anger accumulated during the day.
The tentacle quivered, knocking him back.
Gang Lie fell on his butt, and when he hit the deck, his eyes suddenly widened
big as he trembled from head to toe.
A kind fellow water pigman grabbed his arm.
“Don’t…” Gang Lie had a premonition of trouble.
But the fellow water pigman was paying more attention to the octopus tentacle
and they lifted him up!
“Ah ah ah ah!” As Gang Lie stood up, his hands balled into fists, his face
twisted, and his mouth roared.
For a moment, everyone around Gang Lie looked at his fearsome display.
Some pain had to be kept to oneself!
Due to the many stares, Gang Lie had to tenaciously bite his jaw and continue
attacking.
Luckily, the dimness of night masked the blood and wound on his buttocks.
The mercenaries’ morale grew more exuberant, until finally, the luminous
octopus floated dead on the ocean, leading the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
fleet to burst out in vigorous cheers.
The mercenaries high fived and hugged each other.
This even included the last to enter the fray, the water pigmen, they too
relinquished their hatred of that day, and for a brief moment, merged with the
entire group. They were soaked completely in blood, laughing and smirking,
living up the joy of victory.
Zong Ge nodded to himself when he saw this spectacle.
His good intentions had shown fruit.
Like on Mystifying Monster Island, where the survivors cultivated unity and
trust with each other, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could use external
pressure to get closer together.
It was not the best way to train an army.
But when used here, it was just right.
That day’s solo training had stimulated the water pigmen’s battle intent and
competitiveness but deepened the barriers between the human and the water
pigmen.
Zong Ge understood this deeply.
It just so happened that during the night, a dim-witted luminous octopus wanted
to hunt and Zong Ge forcefully grabbed hold of this golden opportunity.
From start to finish, he never acted.
It was just as he reported to the dragonman youngster – everything was under
control.
The dragonman youngster also soaked in the joy of victory.
“Unwittingly, our strength has expanded by a step.”
“I didn’t need to act personally at all; they were able to deal with this kind
of opponent.”
“Perhaps…this is my God’s revelation?”
The dragonman youngster’s gaze trembled.
He recalled the dark nightmare from before, then thought of the divine
revelation Chi Lai had told him: justice exists at the point of a sword, at the
mouth of a cannon, and in the hearts of people.
“Swords and cannons are symbols of strength.”
“Without strength, how can one ensure righteousness and carry out justice?”
“In short, striving to strengthen ourselves absolutely isn’t wrong!”
“That’s right, striving for self-improvement is the righteous path!”
For a split second, the young man felt he understood at last a piece of the
divine revelation’s hidden meaning.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Zi Di looked at everyone in a magic image, then finally focused her worried
gaze on her beloved.
Seeing the dragonman youngster had both gained something and gotten over
another thing, she was also happy for him.
The ghost girl could feel the young man was now motivated and had direction
again.
Most of her worry dispelled, and she closed the magic image and returned to the
alchemy cabin.
The alchemy cabin’s formation had been changed.
In the formation, there was a bright and dazzling silver colored mist.
In the bright mist, the survivors’ blood condensed into floating balls that
were a distance from each other.
“The preceding processing has been finished; next I will examine what
everyone’s bloodline is exactly.” Zi Di looked forward to this as she began to
operate the formation.



****** Chapter 230: Magic Medicine Blood Measurement - Part 1 ******
There has always been a lack of efficient and accurate bloodline testing
methods.
But there weren’t none.
The simplest method was visual assessment.
The principle wasn’t complicated, different bloodlines generally had different
external characteristics.
For example, an elf bloodline usually gives people long pointed ears and a
pretty appearance. 
A dwarf bloodline often made a person short, increased their muscles, and gave
them a preference for alcohol.
People with the Sacred Temple bloodline usually had a pair of beautiful silver
white eyes. Those with a high bloodline concentration even had a pair of snow
white wings sprouting from their backs.
Visual assessment was simple to understand but had too many flaws.
Many kinds of bloodlines didn’t have any visible external traits, or even any
external traits at all, making it easy to bring about misjudgments.
Bloodline concentration was also a factor that made the accuracy of visual
assessment shaky.
A high bloodline concentration had distinct external characteristics.
Furthermore, bloodline characteristics were liable to be concealed
deliberately.
Historically, there was an elven fourth prince who obviously had formidable
talent, however he pretended to be weak and concealed his bloodline traits.
While the enemy was slacking over, he covertly cultivated until he was able to
take the title of emperor in one stroke.
In addition, different bloodlines had similar traits, this was also liable to
cause misjudgments.
Visual assessment was not reliable, but with battle qi techniques, meditation
methods, and other bloodline measurement methods, the degree of accuracy could
become much higher.
If a lifeform cultivated some battle qi technique or meditation method to
special success, they usually could deduce their bloodline.
However, in practice, this method’s efficiency was just passable.
First, a lifeform usually didn’t have just one or two cultivation methods that
was suitable for them to cultivate.
Sometimes, because of circumstances, limited choices, or other external
reasons, a cultivator wouldn’t be able to test which cultivation method suits
them the best.
This verification method needed too much time dedicated to cultivation to get a
result.
Every organization and power consciously circulated their own battle techniques
and meditation methods. (This was also why War Merchant could so easily collect
so many battle qi techniques and meditation methods.)
The most accurate methods were controlled by the Life God Church.
This church had special divine spells such as Bloodline Quality Detection
spell, Boodline Type Detection spell, among others.
These detection results were very precise.
There will be errors only occasionally.
The shortcoming of this method was that it was too costly!
This level of divine spell could not be used by ordinary clergyman.
Divine spells consumed divine power, and whenever a church priest used a divine
spell, they needed to be compensated.
Sometimes, even with loads of money, one still can’t hire a cleric.
The most classical example was pirates.
The Pirate Throne had been vacant for a long time, and without a Pirate God,
pirates didn’t have ship priests following them, and without clergy support
during naval battles, they lacked timely healing.
A cleric’s power came from their beliefs, and at the same time, their beliefs
and doctrine was also the framework of their conduct.
Visual assessment, cultivation results, and divine spell testing, these were
the three mainstream detection methods of the present age.
Of them, the second was the most widely used.
Because its cost and accuracy rate was between the other two methods, and in
actual testing, they were the most cost efficient.
The method Zi Di was using now was medicine testing.
When different bloodlines met different medicine, they would react differently.
For example, when fire attributed inclined bloodlines encountered a water path
magic medicine, they would often react violently.
The detection principle was quite simple, but practical application was always
complex.
Take a fire attributed bloodline, some unconventional bloodlines would also
react when encountering water path magic medicine. If viewed on the basis of
this singular test result, one’s judgement would veer greatly in the wrong
direction.
Anyways, Zi Di was not only using medicine testing, but she had also done a
great deal of investigation in advance.
Such as what cultivation results the survivors had.
She also inquired into their families, ancestors, and if there were any
cultivators in them, if there were, the bloodline of later generations was
usually related to them.
She also investigated the survivors’ respective living environment. Bloodlines
also had a distribution area.
It seemed bloodline testing was an extremely challenging undertaking with a
tremendous workload, but in actuality its scope was small.
Zi Di officially began the medicine testing.
She operated the alchemy formation and produced prepared medicine.
The medicine quickly spread through the formation, turning the silver colored
mist green.
Ten seconds later, four balls of blood reacted.
Tripleblade’s blood became a frozen kernel that resembled a small grape.
Mu Ban’s blood was dyed green.
Zi Di’s blood emitted a red light.
Cangn Xu’s blood quickly evaporated, turning the surrounding light mist a dark
green and his blood became an ash gray liquid.
Zi Di didn’t need to take notes, the tower spirit was recording the scene. 
Zi Di’s eyes narrowed as she analyzed it to herself.
The testing medicine she just added was a wood attribute testing medicine, full
of life energy.
The four balls of blood that reacted had a bloodline partial towards the wood
attribute.
Of course, their respective blood changes also represented the enormous
difference between their inclinations.
“My blood was specially extracted from my corporeal body; it is my life
information while I was living. I indeed have talent in medicine refinement; I
simply found out when I tried during magic college.”  
“There are too many bloodlines good at refining medicine, but I am also
talented in the barbarian race’s herbal medicines too. Calculating this in, my
bloodline containing the wood attribute is very logical.” 
“As for the red light, could it be that it also contains a fire attribute?” Zi
Di speculated inwardly.
After she turned into a ghost, her corporeal body had been frozen and kept
safe.
Thus, extracting a blood sample for this test was quite easy.
“Cang Xu and I are in different situations; his body has undergone necromantic
transformation and become a living dead person. His blood was changed as a
result and has much more negative energy mixed into it.”
“The ball of ash gray liquid remaining is blood full of negative energy and the
portion that evaporated previously dissolved into the wood attribute medicine,
this is proof his transcendent bloodline is partial towards the wood
attribute.”
The part of Cang Xu’s blood brimming with negative energy still hung in the
air, but it repelled the green mist, creating a blank space where there was no
mist, they were incompatible and entirely different.
“Mu Ban having a wood attribute bloodline is also rational. He is a carpenter,
and is good at building wood products, this is one of the incarnations of his
talent. Hu Ban has a transcendent bloodline, but its concentration is too low
and cannot reach even the lowest criterion. Therefore, he has ever been an
ordinary person.”
“As for Tripleblade, I didn’t expect he would also have a wood attribute. Based
on his background investigation, he cannot trace his ancestry, for he has been
drifting around since childhood.”
Zi Di operated the alchemy formation.
Very quickly, the green mist was eliminated and replaced with the original
silver colored mist.
Zi Di moved to remove Cang Xu’s ash-colored blood and switched in new blood.
She waited for a few minutes until Mu Ban’s, Tripleblade’s, and her own blood
reverted to their original state, the continued to add in testing reagents.
This time, Zi Di used a water attribute testing dose.
Soon after, the silver mist turned light blue.
Zi Di’s, Cang Xu’s, and Zong Ge’s blood didn’t respond.
Tripleblade’s blood changed again, his liquid blood turned into a pile of dust,
white as flour.
Lan Zao’s blood looked like an inflated balloon; the volume inside it doubled
within a few seconds.
The big guy’s blood ball reacted the most severely, it emitted a strong yellow
light that repelled the blue mist greatly.
This was too much for Zi Di’s eyes to take in.
“My blood didn’t change; it seems that my prior speculation that it contains
the fire attribute is not correct.”
“Tripleblade’s blood changed again, this proves his bloodline contains the
water attribute, amongst others, the ice attribute cannot be ruled out either.”
“I didn’t expect Lan Zao’s bloodline to change so much, this indicates that his
bloodline contains a strong water attribute, at least of iron level quality.
But the concentration isn’t high, the bloodline is badly damaged, leading to
his strength to be limited to the bronze level.”
“Thie big guy, this person…”
Finally, Zi Di focused on the big guy’s blood ball.
The big guy’s blood emitted a strong yellow radiance that repelled the
surrounding light blue mist far away.
“This intense reaction indicates that his bloodline is at least gold level. The
bloodline rejecting the wat er attribute medicine, so it is very possible that
it has a strong earth attribute.”
Zi Di had predicted the quality of the big guy’s bloodline.
Not long after the survivors escaped Mystifying Monster Island, they had used
all sorts of battle qi techniques and meditation methods.
When the big guy was cultivating, he displayed an extraordinary cultivation
talent.
Based on his battle qi produce efficiency when using a battle qi technique, the
dragonman youngster deduced that his bloodline was at least gold level.
As for a more accurate quality assessment, it couldn’t be determined.
However, the big guy didn’t have a sudden rise.
His intelligence was very limited, and when he cultivated battle qi, he
couldn’t understand battle qi circulation and failed every time, injuring
himself.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di thought of many ways to address his
cultivation problems.
Before on Snake Rat Island, they had looked for an intelligence potion but
failed.
After obtaining the Magic Medicine Bathtub, t he survivors’ medicine refinement
capability greatly swelled, and Zi Di personally mixed some intelligence
potions.
But after they were given to the big guy, the results were very bad.
Although the intelligence potions were all low level, they illustrated how deep
the big guy’s gap in intelligence was.
After this method failed, Zi Di suggested that they use the Soul Send spell to
enter the big guy’s body and control him to help him complete one battle qi
circulation.
But later on, when Zi Di really cultivated the Soul Send spell, she noticed
that method wouldn’t work.
The user of the Soul Send spell, the ghostly Zi Di, would forcefully dominate
another lifeform’s body.
During that period, negative energy would erode the target, and they wouldn’t
be able to circulate battle qi.
The big guy’s battle qi cultivation originated from life energy, and like how
water couldn’t mix with fire, negative energy rejected life energy too strongly
and couldn’t coexist with each other.
Not only that, but negative energy would harm the big guy.
After failing time and again, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di could only let
it go for now and wait for a suitable chance in the future. Such as when the
survivors were able to produce higher level magic medicine.



****** Chapter 231: Magic Medicine Blood Measurement - Part 2 ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The alchemy cabin.
A test that could alter the survivors’ future was underway.
The alchemy formation’s bright mist became silver once more.
The blood samples that needed to be replaced were swapped out for new ones by
Zi Di.
“Next, I will use an earth attribute medicine, if my prior speculation is
correct, then the big guy’s blood will violently react to it.”
Zi Di ‘s main focus was the big guy’s blood.
Sure enough, when the bright mist turned a palm yellow, the big guy’s blood
began to tremble faintly.
Soon after, it looked like an exceedingly hungry beast awakening and began to
wildly absorb the surrounding glowing palm yellow mist.
The mist was absorbed into the blood ball, and after a few seconds, this
phenomenon spread through the entire alchemy formation!
The light mist was being absorbed ever faster and even formed a feeble rustle
of wind.
Zi Di was shocked!
She hurried to stop the test, for within a brief ten seconds, the earth
attribute testing medicine she had meticulously made was utterly consumed.
If one wanted to know, most of the two prior testing medicine still remained
after the tests.
Zi Di calmed down and first restored the bright mist to its original silver
color.
The big guy’s blood became completely serene.
“The blood’s volume didn’t swell that much, only by less than 5%.”
“Incredible!”
“According to War Merchant’s data records, this indicates that this blood’s
bloodline quality is extremely high, at least legend level!!”
The test had finally gotten a gigantic result.
It was unexpectedly the big guy!
Don’t be fooled by his bleak intelligence and dim wit, along with the times he
lost his mind and went berserk, his gifts were quite considerable. 
Generally, a gold level could be the master of land, such as Hun Tong and Tan
Qiu.
As for saint level, they could be a nation’s chancellor, an army commander in
chief, and so on.
A legend level was a pillar of power, the overall leader, and in Sheng Ming
Empire noble evaluations, being a legend level was one of the core indexes!
“The big guy can become a feudal lord? A nation’s chancellor? Or a King? A
pope?” Zi Di’s eyes filled with outlandish sights; she found it difficult to
imagine such a spectacle!
“Alas.”
“A true regret.”
“The big guy’s intelligence is too low and can be said to be stupid. He cannot
practice battle qi and is unable to establish the most basic battle qi
circulation.”
“Based on his originally fate’s trajectory, he was living for a long time on
the Hog’s Kiss, he was raised and protected by the old boatswain and toiled
bitterly. Because he often went crazy, no one gave him a chance to cultivate
battle qi?”
“In other words, our special group, our commander, gave him the chance to touch
battle qi.”
“But even so, his intelligence is a hard to cross moat, and he cannot
cultivate, he doesn’t have a chance of becoming transcendent.”
For a moment, Zi Di had all kinds of mixed feelings as she sighed incessantly.
The big guy’s situation should be fate favoring him, yet wasn’t fate still
playing with him?
It didn’t matter if the heavens gave him such gifts.
Despite giving them to him, he couldn’t benefit from them.
The big guy was an abandoned orphan, he endured disdainful looks while growing
up, bullying, humiliation, and was a pitiful child that was pushed away, he
only had one person that was warm, and that he could rely on – the old
boatswain, who had sacrificed himself on Mystifying Monster Island.
As the old boatswain approached his end, he had entrusted the dragonman
youngster to be the big guy’s sole family member.
“Therefore, his loyalty is the least doubtful!” Zi Di’s eyes shined.
“At least legend level…could it be a god level bloodline?”
“Heavens, if it is god level, then the big guy could become a god? That is
beyond imagination!”
“We must cultivate him properly; he is a good sapling!” Zi Di made up her mind
at that moment.
“Next, we need to vigorously support him, it doesn’t matter how many resources
we smash into him.”
“Legend level…tsk.”
“His intelligence issue is not a problem. No one with a legend level bloodline
will grow into an idiot!”
“There is no need to purify his bloodline, he already has a super bloodline!”
“As long as he starts cultivating and constantly accumulates cultivation…hmm.”
Zi Di stared blankly.
The problem had returned to square one.
How could the big guy cultivate? How could he establish his first battle qi
circulation?
“Buying intellect medicine!”
“Ice Sculpture Island must have high level intelligence potions.”
“Even if the price is high, even higher than a gold level healing potion, it
doesn’t matter.”
“WE must buy it for him.”
“We can’t let that child suffer any longer!”
When Zi Di thought of that, her expression had a trace of viciousness in it.
If it was on Mystifying Monster Island when she discovered the big guy’s
bloodline quality, she might have felt intense envy and even jealousy.
But now, she too had new possibilities.
“Our bloodline quality can be improved too.”
“In the future, when we discover how to make Bloodcores, each of us will have a
future of infinite possibilities!”
The ghost girl calmed down and regained her cool head.
Her heart was filled with future longings as she continued to test.
The third round of testing the earth attribute was still ongoing.
The reason was that the big guy’s blood ball reacted too strongly, severely
interfering with the others’ blood balls.
Therefore, this time, Zi Di removed the big guy’s blood sample from the testing
pool.
Without the big guy interfering, one blood sample changed in the palm yellow
light mist.
It was Fei She’s blood.
Elder Fei She’s bloodline was partial towards the earth attribute. But the
degree of change could never compare to the big guy’s.
After that, Zi DI began to try fire attribute medicine.
Lan Zao’s blood ball clearly shrank and withered.
Mu Ban’s blood ball looked like a wilted plant.
Zi Di’s blood subtly absorbed the red light mist and on its surface, a number
of very minute stripes formed.
Zi Di felt pleasantly surprised, these kinds of wrinkled lines were very
crucial, and were likely to be crucial clues that could precisely categorize
her bloodline.
The tower spirit comprehensively recorded everything on site.
What faintly surprised Zi Di was that Tripleblade’s blood also had a close
affinity to the fire attribute.
“A bit interesting.”
“Tripleblade’s bloodline simultaneously contains the water attribute, the wood
attribute, and the fire attribute?”
Zi Di continued to try.
Dark attribute, light attribute, wind attribute, ice attribute, lightning
attribute…
After more than a dozen rounds of testing, she obtained the details of many
test results.
Tripleblade’s bloodline characteristics were altered, with more accuracy, the
water attribute was swapped for the ice attribute, therefore, his bloodline had
an affinity towards the ice attribute, the wood attribute, and the fire
attribute.
Qiao Shan’s bloodline contained the dark attribute.
Lan Zao’s bloodline had the water attribute.
The big guy had the earth attribute, Mu Ban had the wood attribute, and Fei She
had a weak earth attribute.
Zi Di’s bloodline while alive had an affinity to the wood and fire attributes.
Of the other people, the youngster commander had the Bloodcore and testing him
was unnecessary.
Cang Xu’s living dead person blood still had vestiges of the wood attribute but
was more oriented towards negative energy.
The only two blood balls that didn’t react belonged to Zong Ge and Bai Ya.
But not having an affinity to any attribute did not mean their bloodlines were
useless. In fact, many high level bloodlines were harmonious and weren’t
polluted by any attribute.
Having an affinity with some attribute meant that their bloodline was better at
doing said thing.
But from another point of interpretation: being good at some area also meant
that they were weak in another, that could be regarded as a type of shackle.
The aforementioned medicine testing was merely the first phase.
But before the second phase began, Zi Di first used these testing results to
begin limited deductions and calculations.
Although bloodlines were as vast as the open sea, they were actually connected
with each other.
Thank War Merchant’s database.
When he researched the Bloodcore and extensively experimented on artificial
magic beasts, he naturally had many detailed and reliable experiment data in
this field as well as practicing tentative theories and hypotheses.
Among these, there was one crucial data chart that was extremely significant
for Zi Di’s current task – a bloodline archive map.
It had the Flame Dragon King bloodline recorded in it.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline held a relatively high node, and under it in a
branch line was a small node that represented the Spurting Smoke Dragon
bloodline.
In the past, after the dragonman youngster absorbed a spurting smoke dragon,
not only did he gain part of the spurting smoke dragon transformation, but he
also increased his Flame Dragon King bloodline’s concentration by a little bit.
Because the source of the Spurting Smoke Dragon bloodline was the Flame Dragon
King bloodline!
Therefore, if the young man wanted to raise his Flame Dragon King bloodline
concentration, he didn’t need to kill a Flame Dragon King, that was too
difficult and risky.
He only needed to follow the bloodline archive map and collect the Flame Dragon
King bloodline’s branch lines and rely on quantity, in time, he could improve
his Flame Dragon King bloodline.
It was worth mentioning that War Merchant’s bloodline archive map was not
complete.
It was not because the tower spirit and its database was damaged, the archive
data was quite intact and preserved.
The real reason was that bloodlines were not immutable, bloodline relationships
were also tangled and complicated, so it was difficult to research a complete
bloodline breakthrough. 
Even War Merchant was the same.
There were two main reasons.
The first was it was hard to efficiently test the true bloodline.
The second is that new bloodlines were born like flies.
Take the dragon race’s bloodlines.
Dragons were lascivious and could copulate with many species, creating many
subspecies.
As long as these subspecies multiplied and lived, they would become a community
and an entirely new bloodline.
If there was a bloodline archive map that could truly record all of the
bloodlines in the world, then we could see that archive map would be constantly
changing. Some bloodlines disappearing but adding many more bloodlines.
Overall, the bloodline archive map would be continuously expanding.
Whether it was the bloodline investigation or the magic medicine blood
measurements, both helped Zi Di reduce the bloodline scope of every survivor on
the bloodline archive map.
After a dozen minutes, Zi Di had calculated a more comprehensive testing plan.
“Next, time to s tart the second phase of medicine testing.”
“Let’s begin with the simplest…Lan Zao.”
Lan Zoa’s blood only had a water attribute affinity.
This time, Zi Di had his blood hovering in the silver light mist by itself.
Zi Di made medicine on the spot, mainly made of fishman blood.
After the battle of Two Eyes Island, Zi Di obtained a few fishmen corpses.
When Cang Xu was removing souls on the battlefield and she collecting treasures
on the seafloor, she had taken these corpses.
Cultivator corpses were all alchemy materials.
Even ordinary fishman scales and flesh had value. But due to space constraints
on the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di was forced to abandon the ordinary corpses.
Mainly because there were too many treasures that took up space; ordinary
corpses weren’t that valuable.
The fishman race testing medicine was deployed.
Zi Di activated the formation and Lan Zao’s blood immediately reacted.
Minute ripples spread across the blood’s surface.
“What great luck.”
“Lan Zao has a fishman bloodline!”



****** Chapter 232: Magic Medicine Blood Measurement - Part 3 ******
Zi Di tested again and got interim results.
Testing what transcendent bloodline Lan Zao’s body had.
So far, it has been determined that it is a fishman race bloodline.
But which specifically still needed further testing,
Zi Di continued to dredge in this direction.
“I need to refine a more focused fishman race testing magic medicine.”
She took out some fishman blood from storage.
The blood was in good condition and had a silver level aura.
It was Dao Hen’s blood.
Dao Hen was a silver level, and a powerhouse on the fishmen’s side during the
battle for Two Eyes Island, and despite Ku Feng being in a better state when
they did battle, he still lost to Dao Hen.
His blade skills were very unique and had greatly expanded Ku Feng’s horizons.
His individual strength within the silver level was also outstanding, and when
Xi Dai Zi tasted the dragonman youngster’s strength, he associated it with Dao
Hen’s.
When the Battle for Two Eyes Island ended, Dao Hen fought with everything he
had until he was taken prisoner by the humans.
He was currently imprisoned by Hun Tong.
The survivors acquired his blood because of the transaction they did before
leaving the island. The biggest gain of that transaction for the survivors was
the water pigmen slaves.
In the list of items, they also requested lots of alchemy materials, the more
the better.
During the transaction process, Hun Tong naturally thought of every possible
method to sweeten the deal, and thought of the fishman prisoner Dao Hen,
immediately ordering that he be bled.
He also asked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps if they wanted Dao Hen’s bone,
flesh, and scales, those too could be cut off and sold.
But Dao Hen himself couldn’t be sold.
Because Hun Tong needed to keep him still, he was to be treated as evidence to
exhibit, a response to a future imperial investigation.
Even if there wasn’t an investigation, he could also use them as a military
success, taking credit for the Duo Mu clan in the eyes of the empire.
In other words, Dao Hen was a relatively important political bargaining chip to
Hun Tong.
It was also worth mentioning that in the transaction, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps also wanted to acquire the old fishman elder’s flesh.
The old fishman elder had failed at the final hurdle and was beheaded by Hun
Tong.
Any part of his corpse could be regarded as a gold level material.
Zi Di used Dao Hehn’s bloodline to refine medicine.
The magic medicine was produced smoothly, and not long after, she obtained a
Knife Fin bloodline testing magic medicine.
To guarantee the success rate, Zi Di had intentionally lowered the magic
medicine’s level to the iron level.
Dao Hen’s blood was silver level, and it was completely possible to refine a
silver level magic medicine out of it,
But Zi Di, in combination with the Magic Medicine Bathtub and a series of
manufacturing tools could guarantee that bronze and iron level medicine were
refined successfully.
Zi Di put the magic medicine into the alchemy formation.
The silver light mist turned pale white, but Lan Zao’s hovering blood ball
didn’t react.
On the contrary, another blood reacted, although its volume and color didn’t
change, the blood ball quivered and made an unexpected sonorous sound.
“Zong Ge’s blood…the color and volume didn’t change, he doesn’t have Dao Hen’s
bloodline, but he does have a distant connection to it.”
“As expected, Zong Ge’s bloodline quality is very high, the white light mist
was forced back by the sound, and 80% of the light mist in the alchemy
formation has been emptied.”
Zi Di was both surprised and not.
Based on all kinds of indications, the survivors had long speculated that Zong
Ge came from a remarkable family background.
Since it was remarkable, then Zong Ge’s bloodline quality was very likely to be
great.
“Since the quality is higher than Dao Hen’s bloodline, then it can be
temporarily extrapolated that his bloodline has nothing to do with fishmen
bloodlines, in that case…” Zi Di examined the archive map.
With the Blade Fine bloodline was used as the starting point, and the fishman
race as the category to spread out from, along with using the nonattributable
property, the test result scope was reduced.
Zi Di counted roughly that there was still at least a hundred bloodline routes
left.
Every route had the possibility of containing Zong Ge’s bloodline.
Zong Ge’s bloodline discovery was merely a chance gain, and Zi Di returned to
testing Lan Zao’s blood.
This time, Zi Di took out the old fishman clan elder’s blood, and refined it
into magic medicine.
The old fishman elder possessed a most outstanding Green Cheek bloodline
characteristic, therefore, this magic medicine should detect the Green Cheek
Fishman bloodline.
After this medicine was thrown into the alchemy formation, only one blood
reacted somewhat.
But it wasn’t Lan Zao’s blood, but Mu Ban’s.
“This kind of reaction happening on the contrary, proves that Mu Ban’s
bloodline has nothing to do with the fishman race.”
“The reason why this change occurred is because the Green Cheek fishman
bloodline and Mu Ban’s human bloodline both have the wood attribute, this is
same attribute resonance.”
“But Tripleblade’s bloodline also has the wood attribute, yet it didn’t react,
this indicates that Tripleblade’s bloodline is very distant from the Green
Cheek fishman bloodline.”
This test also had gains.
Lan Zao’s bloodline and the Green Cheek bloodline were not closely related.
Mu Ban’s bloodline on the archive map wasn’t far from the Green Cheek
bloodline.
But Zi Di didn’t need to look, she knew the range was still massive and there
were too many available answers.
“Alas.” Zi Di couldn’t help but sigh.
A gold level material was used, but the gains were small.
Zi Di was faintly regretful.
But the testing needed to continue.
Zi Di took out a book.
The Vampire Cookbook.
This cookbook was written by a vampire duke.
He was a fighter whose biggest pleasure was enjoying fine food.
The cookbook recorded in detail every species’ blood flavor, when to drink it,
how to drink it in the most optimal way, and so on.
To help explain things to his descendants, he sealed blood samples of many
species into this book.
Once the cookbook was of high quality, but now it had fallen to the silver
level, and although most of the blood samples still remained, the best of them
were silver level.
Although there were many kinds of blood, there was only a small amount of each.
After using them, it would be hard to make a second testing medicine
afterwards.
Zi Di didn’t hesitate.
She had used the gold level old fishman clan elder’s blood, and of course she
would use this blood too.
In fact, when they purchased this cookbook from the auction, they had planned
to use it here.
Magic medicine blood measurement continued like before.
Red Eye fishman bloodline…nothing.
Butter Scale fishman bloodline…nothing.
Vagrant fishman bloodline. After many rounds of silence, Lan Zao’s bloodline
finally reacted.
According to this result, the archive map range shrank another step. 
“These bloodlines aren’t necessary to test.” Zi Di eliminated some fishman
bloodlines to avoid extra trouble, saving many blood samples.
Testing continued.
Fang fishman bloodline…no reaction.
Hot Blood fishman bloodline…nothing.
The Great Float bloodline triggered another reaction.
“The blood sample is insufficient.”
When Zi Di was forced to stop, Lan Zao’s fishman bloodline still hadn’t been
determined yet.
But the archive map range had been greatly reduced.
“His bloodline has three types of bloodline routes…but currently there is a
lack of samples, I cannot make the appropriate testing medicine, therefore I
cannot determine which of them it is.”
“Of course, there is another possibility, these three bloodline routes are all
wrong. If that is so, then it will be troublesome.”
If that happened, then it usually means that prior magic medicine testing
inferences were wrong at a crucial node.
The reason was simple.
The raw materials Zi Di used was various kinds of fishman blood. 
Did these fishman blood samples really only contain one bloodline?
That was difficult to ascertain.
For example, take Zi Di using the old fishman clan elder’s gold level blood to
make a Green Cheek fishman bloodline testing magic medicine.
If the fishman elder possessed other transcendent bloodlines, that would
influence the blood reaction, then that would mean the testing results might be
wrong.
In addition, did Lan Zao’s blood really only have one transcendent bloodline in
it?
If he had two or even multiple kinds, being a mixed blood, then it would affect
the magic medicine testing results, that was also possible.
The systemic problem of measuring blood with magic medicine has become
undoubtably visible now.
The testing target might contain many bloodlines that couldn’t be purified.
The raw materials used for testing medicine also couldn’t be purified.
As an analogy, Zi Di was using a rule whose dimensions and marks were changing
to measure the size of an object. Furthermore, she didn’t know if there was any
overstatements of the measurements taken.
However, this was not the biggest problem.
Zi Di was most worried that if Lan Zao had a whole new bloodline that wasn’t on
the archive map, what should she do?
Based on the theories, this possibility couldn’t be ruled out completely.
After working into the night, the materials, labor, and time Zi Di invested in
this was conservatively estimated to be worth around 300 gold.
Although there were many results, she still hadn’t determined the first testing
target’s bloodline yet.
This was based on War Merchant’s bloodline archive map.
There was no other choice.
The best chance the survivors had was using medicine to test bloodlines.
The tests on Lan Zao had temporarily come to an end.
In the future, they would need to gather more materials, refine the
corresponding magic medicines to reduce the range until they could ascertain
the true answer.
In the depths of the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s storage, there was another fishman
corpse.
Hai Ping’s saint corpse.
However, the survivors didn’t know what the bloodline of Hai Ping’s saint
corpse was.
They merely learned that when the fishmen had attacked Two Eyes Island, one of
the main goals was to retrieve the saint level corpse.
Putting aside Lan Zao’s blood for the time being, Zi Di continued to immerse
herself in testing.
Her chosen testing strategy was to do the easy ones first, then the difficult
ones.
After Lan Zao was Zi Di’s blood.
Her bloodline contained wood and fire attributes.
The most crucial clue was its decorative design.
Thanks to War Merchant once again, Zi Di ordered the tower spirit to search
through the vast database for all kinds of data on magic plants and compare
them to the decorative design from before.
The tower spirit helped Zi Di find several hundred similar magic plants.
“My bloodline is likely related to a magic plant, and not an intelligent
species.”
Zi Di brazenly speculated this because of the decorative design clue.
She immediately abandoned testing for intelligent life and decided to perform
an in-depth investigation into magic plan type bloodlines.
The survivors didn’t have much of the pertinent alchemy materials.
Most of the magic plants were coral.
“This is wrong.”
“This also didn’t react…”
It wasn’t until medicine made mainly from Fire Pith Coral was used did Zi Di’s
blood change into a sphere and glow bright red.
Zi Di was delighted.
This result seemed to prove that her hypothesis was correct, and the range
finally shrank by 67%.
After testing all of the materials on hand once through, Zi Di began to flip
through the Vampire Cookbook.
She had to lament her luck.
She had purchased this book on a whim.
The cookbook not only had intelligent lifeforms, but it also had the blood of
many magic beasts and magic plants.
After a half hour, there was groundbreaking progress.
Before Zi Di, there were only four remaining answers.
They were the Bitter Mouth bloodline, the Mix Up bloodline, the Gunpowder
Flower bloodline, and the King Sunflower bloodline.
This was already the limit.
Zi Di found it difficult to continue, because she lacked the corr3esponding
materials.
“The current results are pretty good.”
“The Gunpowder Flower bloodline is gold level.”
“The Mix Up and King Sunflower bloodline are saint level.”
“Only the Bitter Mouth bloodline is iron level.”
Of course, Zi Di hoped her transcendent bloodline would be of the highest
possible quality.
The Bloodline Purification formation could only improve bloodlines that were
within the target’s body.
After halting the testing of her bloodline for now, Zi Di rested for a moment,
then proceeded to work hard.
Based on the difficulty, she began to test Tripleblade’s bloodline next.
Tripleblade’s bloodline contained the most attributes of the survivors, it had
wood, fire, and ice attributes.
This seemed very good, but in actuality, the bloodline archive map range didn’t
shrink by much.
The reason was simple.
Tripleblade might not just have one transcendent bloodline, but many.
It was precisely due to multiple bloodlines mixing that caused him to have an
affinity for many attributes.
Furthermore, Tripleblade’s background investigation didn’t give Zi Di many more
useful cluses either.
“Let’s try all of the intelligent lifeform medicines first.” Without sufficient
clues, Zi Di was forced to do it step by step.
Fishman race magic medicine did not react with Tripleblade’s blood.
Elf type medicine didn’t react.
Elemental type medicine didn’t react.
Human race medicine didn’t react either.
Goblin type medicine reacted, but this was normal, Tripleblade was a goblin.
“Oh?” Zi Di revealed an astonished expression.
When she tried beastman type medicine, Tripleblade’s blood unexpectedly burst
open with three layers of light, the change was quite severe.
“Tripleblade has a beastman bloodline within him?”
“Could it be that this is one of the potential reasons he and Zong Ge are close
with each other?”
With bloodline secrets revealed step by step, Zi Di ‘s understanding of the
people around her increased accordingly.
“Wait a moment!”
“Beastman bloodline, three attributes, that makes me think of that famous
beastman knight-errant Guo Jin.”
“He has the Three Color Panda-man bloodline!”
When Zi Di thought of that, she rushed to find it in the Vampire Cookbook,
finding the Three Color panda-man blood sample in the upper section of a page.
“I’ve got a feeling…let’s have a try first!”
Zi Di made the corresponding medicine and smoothly threw it into the alchemy
formation.
Tripleblade’s blood changed dramatically in the light mist, the light mist was
seeping into the blood, constantly expanding it.
At the same time, the blood emitted a three color light that grew increasingly
intense and concentrated.
The other data in the alchemy formation subsequently shifted greatly.
“This kind of phenomenon, essentially clinches it.”
“Tripleblade’s transcendent bloodline is the Thee Color panda-man bloodline.
She didn’t expect that at this point in the testing that Tripleblade’s
bloodline would be concluded.
Zi Di coughed out some air, her complexion mixed.
“The Three Color panda-man bloodline, this is one of the most classical magic
chef bloodlines.”
“Back then, that knight-errant Guo Jin wasn’t a strong fighter, he was really
famous for developing a magic dish – the Three Color Ice-cream Brick.”
“Tripleblade, this guy has walked the wrong path.”
“If he becomes a cook, then his prospects and potential will be better than as
a mercenary.”
Inadvertently, fate’s cruelty and paradoxical nature unfolded themselves in a
small way before Zi Di.
Who would think this?
Tripleblade actually had a gold level magic chef bloodline!



****** Chapter 233: Magic Medicine Blood Measurement - Part 4 ******
Time quickly passed.
On the ocean surface, the curtain of night wan ed as the morning sun slowly
rose.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet brought through the morning mist,
following Cang Xu and Qing Xin sailing the Iron Lump in the distance.
The dragonman youngster’s first order of business after waking up was still
determining their route and speed.
After finishing his morning prayer and returned to the captain’s room, he
received the results of Zi Di’s medicine testing.
The young man understood that the bloodline testing results greatly influenced
the survivors.
He harbored a bit of nervousness and apprehension when he looked at them.
“Lan Zao has a fishman bloodline?” The dragonman youngster was astonished.
But what it was specifically still needed to be tested in the future.
“Wait a moment.” The dragonman youngster suddenly recalled a memory from
Mystifying Monster Island.
While they were struggling to survive on Mystifying Monster Island, they had
entered a desert oasis, there they were able to take a breather, but they also
encountered danger.
The oasis’ lake had many fat ball flying fish living in it.
These floating fishes could turn invisible and couldn’t be seen with the naked
eye.
The dragonman youngster at the time also relied on the Bloodcore to transform
his eyes to green lizard ones, giving him thermal vision.
Their old camp was also attacked by a small school of fish.
When the dragonman youngster ran back, he saw Lan Zao fighting bravely,
preserving the camp.
“At the time, he couldn’t see the fat ball flying fish either, he was also in
terrible condition, yet in spite of that, he could hit the flying fish and
drive them away until I was able to reinforce him.”
“It can be seen that under the immense pressure of death, Lan Zao’s whole
potential erupted out of him.”
“And potential is undoubtedly coupled with one’s bloodline.”
“Perhaps this is a crucial clue.”
The dragonman youngster continued reading.
A moment later, his eyes widened slightly, revealing pleasant surprise.
“My small child’s bloodline is at least legend level? Good, amazing!”
The young man was incomparably gratified.
According to Zi Di’s statement, the big guy’s intelligence problem will
probably change due to his bloodline.
“He doesn’t need to use the Bloodline Purification formation, so long as he
surmounts the first difficulty and matures steadily, he will have great
achievements.”
“If the old boatswain knew about this, he would have laughed to his heart’s
content.”
The dragonman youngster lamented in his heart.
Under the big guy was Tripleblade’s bloodline testing results.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but be surprised, and he gave a strange
look at it.
“Tripleblade’s bloodline is surprisingly the Three Color panda-man bloodline?”
“He is a goblin, but he has a beastman transcendent bloodline. Furthermore,
this bloodline is actually one of the classical magic chef bloodlines.
The dragonman youngster was also momentarily speechless.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed a qualified magic chef.
The dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and the rest ate magic beast meat every day,
but they were simply cooked.
If that had a magic chef, not only would fewer ingredients be used, but the
magic cuisine eaten would have more effects.
This kind of improvement won’t be discerned in a day, but over a long period of
accumulation, it would usually form a frightful disparity.
Every great power in the Sheng Ming Empire had a fixed magic chef working for
them.
In fact, not just the humans, but also the elves, dwarfs, dragons, and every
other race had magic chefs active among them.
Great kitchens made classic dishes and were always welcomed and even esteemed
by the upper class.
Simply put, magic cooking could be regarded as magic medicine with a very short
shelf life.
But taking too much magic medicine would cause drug resistance to them.
Magic cuisine was not like that.
“What a pity, although I know a portion of the truth on Tripleblade’s
bloodline, for now, I cannot tell him.” The dragonman youngster felt a faint
pity.
The only three people that knew of the Bloodcore was him, Zi Di, and Cang Xu.
The other survivors didn’t know yet, they only guessed that the Bloodcore was
extremely valuable!
If he immediately told Tripleblade the blood test results, it would instead
ruin things.
Tripleblade was close to Zong Ge and always kept a respectful distance from the
young man and the others, keeping a wary mentality against them.
Without mentioning the above, one could see Tripleblade’s attitude during the
bloodline background investigation.
Tripleblade didn’t expose many clues about himself, this made Zi Di’s blood
measurements much more difficult.
“Perhaps I can use an indirect approach and method to raise this point with
him.”
The dragonman youngster pondered for a spell, and felt he wasn’t sure of the
outcome.
Tripleblade too had the pride of a fighter, and if he was forced to do cooking,
he might overreach himself, leading himself to think that the dragonman
youngster was insulting him.
The dragonman youngster relinquished the thought and continued to browse the
report.
He saw Zi Di’s testing results.
“Four types of bloodlines…” The dragonman youngster sincerely hoped that Zi
DI’s bloodline potential was somewhat high.
After Zi Di was Cang Xu.
Cang Xu’ bloodline result was currently appraised as the iron level Farm Land
bloodline.
But Cang Xu’s body had a near nonexistent concentration of this transcendent
bloodline.
“Although there is an answer, as far as Cang Xu is concerned, he will have
better prospects walking the path of necromancy.” The dragonman youngster
sighed.
After Cang Xu was Zong Ge’s bloodline.
Currently Zi Di’s testing stated that Zong Ge’s bloodline quality was very
high.
His body had two transcendent bloodlines.
One was human, the other the lion race.
Both were non elemental. 
“The human bloodline is related to the sword, perhaps this is the reason Zong
Ge became a weapon master.”
“The Lion-man quality is very high, at least saint level.”
The dragonman youngster murmured, looking pensively.
Zi Di’s testing had ended here, limited by materials and couldn’t continue
testing. 
For now, testing wasn’t needed.
Because Zong Ge and the big guy were the same, neither needed bloodline
purification.
They still had a long way to go till they reached the limit of their talents.
Furthermore, the Bloodcore couldn’t be divulged to Zong Ge, this matter needed
to be handled cautiously.
After Zong Ge was Mu Ban.
Current tests said he had a tree type magic plant transcendent bloodline.
Fei She had a dwarf bloodline, but it was unknown which.
Although Qiao Shan’s bloodline didn’t have a precise answer, her range had been
reduced to a few routes. Currently, it could be determined that her body had a
Drow bloodline, a dark elf bloodline.
As for Bai Ya…
When the dragonman youngster saw it, his brows inevitably pursed.
Bai Ya’s blood never reacted during any of the testing!
Zi Di gave him a quite tragic testing result – Bai Ya didn’t have any
transcendent bloodline.
“Bai Ya…” The dragonman youngster deeply sighed.
From deep within his heart, he had a good opinion of this young hunter.
Bai Ya conducted himself cordially and dared to risk everything to help
another, in spite of his own safety.
On Mystifying Monster Island, he had saved Cang Xu and sucked poison out of Lan
Zao.
After getting battle qi techniques, he had practiced the most.
But he didn’t have a transcendent bloodline, thus he will never become a
cultivator.
After the dragonman youngster saw the testing results, he looked it through
once more, and after ensuring that he remembered them, he burned it.
Overall, Zi Di’s magic medicine blood measurement had a lot of results.
With these results, the survivors could have a clearer direction on how to
grow.
“Next will be the gather the pertinent materials and continue measuring blood.
More importantly, is the construction of the Bloodline Purification formation!”
The dragonman youngster planned.
Constructing the Bloodline Purification formation was rather difficulty, and
the survivors still lacked a crucial alchemy talent.
Zi Di and Cang Xu could do it, but the chance of success was too small.
If one was barely enough, it would consume too much time and supplies, and it
still might all be in vain in the end.



****** Chapter 234: Chi Lai and Men Shi vs Long Fu ******
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had sailed for three days and nights
since departing from Two Eyes Island, they stopped at some small isle at noon.
Soon after, a survey team returned to report that it was a safe and uninhabited
island.
The barren island had scarce resources, fortunately there was a smidgen of
fresh water.
The dragonman youngster had his subordinates draw water to replace and
replenish the ships’ fresh water stores.
After the dragonman youngster finished eating lunch, he came ashore to the
island.
He stood on top of a rock mound and looked around, seeing the overgrown gray
rocks filling the ground and scant shrubs in the gaps between the rocks,
tenaciously surviving.
Men Shi marched heavily over behind the dragonman youngster, his face filled
with anxiety and worry, “Lord Commander, did we lose track of the Iron Lump?”
The dragonman youngster’s sudden landfall was certainly abnormal.
According to common sense, they should be pursuing closely and not stop, like
they had been doing for the last three days.
The fleet had adequate supplies, and Men Shi couldn’t find why they suddenly
came ashore.
As a matter of fact, it wasn’t the dragonman youngster who was deliberately
procrastinating.
Rather they had already reached their destination.
Weeping Pine Island was quite close to his barren island. The fleet couldn’t
get any closer, otherwise they would reveal themselves.
In accordance with the dragonman youngster’s plan, they needed to stop here and
wait for an opportune moment. They would wait until the undead gathering had
concluded, Cang Xu finished his transactions, and for most of the people there
to leave, then they would deliberately carry out a good performance on the Iron
Lump at the last moment.
In the meantime, if Cang Xu had an accident over yonder and encountered danger,
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could also deploy ahead of time and provide
emergency support.
He couldn’t tell Men Shi the actual reason why.
The dragonman youngster could only say a half truth, “We have dispatched
scouting puppets to bring us important intelligence.”
“The Iron Lump has already made landfall on Weeping Pine Island.”
“Every month, that island erupts with a tide of negative energy, forming a wind
across the ocean around the pine island.”
“The Iron Lump is acting abnormally; we surmise that perhaps Weeping Pine
Island is that necromancer’s lair.”
“So that’s how it is!” Men Shi’s heart shook greatly, and wasn’t at all
suspicious, “On Two Eyes Island, I also heard about this Weeping Pine Island.
This island’s environment is unusual; it had a large quantity of negative
energy on it. For a necromancer, it is a natural blessed land.”
The honest middle aged dwarf soon wrinkled his brows. Because he thought of his
clansmen, worry prickling up in his thoughts, “If the island has a
necromancer’s lair on it, then would that necromancer experiment on my clansmen
and even turn them into undead beings?”
At that moment, Men Shi heard the dragonman youngster consoling him, “Don’t
worry too much, Men Shi.”
“Our best plan for now is to wait.”
“Wait until the Pine Island wind loosens up, then we’ll immediately attack the
island!”
Men Shi nodded, and sighed, “It should be done this way, the Pine Island Sea
Wind is a tide of negative energy, in this kind of environment, necromancy will
be greatly augmented, and we’ll be at too much of a disadvantage.”
“Lord Commander, thank you truly. Without you, I wouldn’t have a chance to go
rescue my clansmen.”
The dragonman burst with laughter and clapped Men Shi’s shoulder, “You are my
comrade, and even more so part of us, I will help you save your clansmen will
all my strength.”
“It just so happened that I was also looking for you.”
“Come, give me a good fight now.”
“To tell the truth, my bones have been itching due to being cooped up on my
ship for last few days!”
Men Shi stared at him, his understanding of the dragonman youngster increasing
a bit, “It seems our commander is also a battle junkie?”
This addiction was quite common.
But Men Shi didn’t immediately agree, rather he hesitated, “Lord Commander, you
have spirit, and of course I wish to keep you company, but battle is imminent…”
The dragonman youngster waved his hand, “We are merely comparing notes, this
isn’t a life and death battle.”
“Besides, I need to fight you myself, to verify your strength and skills. This
will be helpful for the upcoming joint battle, no?” 
The dragonman youngster’s words smoothly removed Men Shi’s hesitation.
“Then forgive this subordinate’s offense.” Men Shi was about to take out his
two handed war hammer.
The dragonman youngster was unarmed, he took a few steps back, the shouted,
“Right, then let’s go!”
After saying that, he charged.
Bang, thump, slam.
The two people attacked each other, the commotion immediately attracting the
attention of the surrounding mercenaries.
“Who is fighting?!” 
“What is happening?”
Lan Zao stood at the edge of the battlefield, “Why are you flustered? This is a
normal spar!”
After that explanation, the mercenaries became excited, and they gathered
together to watch the fight.
The mercenaries ashore all agilely climbed onto the stones and peeked their
heads out to look around.
The mercenaries on the ships in the distance were surveying it from a distance.
The probing was finished.
The dragonman youngster roared and used the Surge and Demolition Fist battle
skills.
Men Shis felt the pressure on his increase sharply and rushed to use a
defensive battle skill, watching for a chance to counterattack with his two-
handed war hammer.
Both sides came at each other, their blows growing more momentous than ever
before.
Xu Ma excitedly ran across the ship, shouting loudly, “Bets are open, bets are
open.”
He organized a betting pool, instantly attracting many mercenaries to
participate.
Many older members crossed their arms, sneering at it. 
When Zong Ge quickly got news someone opened a betting pool, he immediately
snorted coldly, “Gambling is strictly prohibited on the ship, every gambler
will receive severe punishment!”
As a general, he greatly disapproved of gambling. If this kind of conduct
inundated an army, it would greatly dig into the fighting spirit of the
officers and soldiers, needlessly increase hatred and vengeance for each other,
and gravely affect unity, reducing the unit’s fighting strength.
But just as Zong Ge was about to give the order, Zi Di decided to contact him.
Zi Di communicated through an alchemy device, “Don’t act now, wait until the
betting pool is set up and the participates all put in their stake, then we’ll
mop them up, that way they’ll feel real pain. In the future, the offenders
won’t make such a mistake.”
Zong Ge was silent for a bit, he instantly made out Zi Di’s other intention,
perhaps even the main one, confiscating the gambling money.
But Zong Ge still agreed to the proposal.
It was just as Zi Di had said, it would make those gamblers feel pain!
Zong Ge soon gazed back at the island.
Men Shi and the dragonman youngster were fighting near the coast.
Their fight attracted Zong Ge, one who had the same strength.
After a half minute, Zong Ge saw how the fight was progressing, “If nothing
unexpected happens, the victor will be Long Fu.”
Men Shi displayed his fighting style.
The majority of the dwarfs were the same, he was an expert at defense.
But defense found it very difficult to achieve victory.
Men Shi’s main offense came from his long war hammer.
This war hammer was of impressive quality; it was a silver level weapon.
But against the dragonman youngster, it wasn’t enough.
The dragonman youngster’s dragon scales could resist gold level battle skills.
Men Shi’s attacks couldn’t threaten the dragonman youngster, thus, he became a
boxing dummy.
The dragonman youngster naturally could see the outcome of the battle more
clearly than Zong Ge, so he suddenly took a step back, putting distance between
him and Men Shi.
The dragonman youngster yelled, “This fight isn’t enjoyable enough. Chi Lai!
Join in too.”
Chi Lai was still on a ship, and when he heard this order, he stared slightly
before responding by immediately jumping off the ship and running to shore to
join the battle.
Chi Lai and Men Shi worked together to do battle with the dragonman youngster.
The mercenaries were even more lively as they felt their commander’s heroic
fighting spirit inspiring them.
At the same time, everyone was also more curious at what the final outcome of
this spar would be.
Simultaneously faced with two silver levels, the dragonman youngster instantly
felt the pressure on him dramatically increase.
However, he quickly adapted.
Chi Lai and Men Shi were both undoubtably silver level elites.
They both had their respective nicknames, and had reached the limits of their
bloodlines, unable to go any steps further.
Regardless of whether it was battle skills or divine spells, they used them all
very proficiently, like they were instinct.
But the previous problem still existed.
They fell short of fire power.
Even though Chi Lai used the divine spell Justice Vanguard to increase his and
Men Shi’s attack capabilities by double, they still couldn’t pierce the
dragonman youngster’s tenacious dragon scales.
“That’s it, we lost!” After fighting for a while, Men Shi conceded.
Chi Lai also pulled back without delay, “Not wrong, continuing to fight will be
an empty waste of battle qi. If Long Fu was fighting like he did during the
battle for Two Eyes Island, he would have been defeated already.”
The dragonman youngster laughed, “I did say this was merely a spar.”
Following that, he curbed his rising laughter and looked next to him, seeing
the smashed and disorderly rock beach, “This is the inconvenience of ocean
sailing, there are too few places where people can freely learn from each
other.”
Although the White Bandage was a magic ship, it was a bronze level one and
couldn’t take silver levels crossing blades with each other.
Hearing the dragonman youngster say this, Chi Lai and Men Shi glanced at each
other, sensing the dragonman youngster’s excellent marital side.
This was the world of the strong.
Good martial skills was an excellent characteristic.
Seeing the fight finish, the mercenaries loudly cheered exclaiming their
admiration for their commander’s formidability one after the other.
During this celebratory ambience, Tripleblade led a group of people to sally
out to sweep up the gambling pool and grab the gambling mercenaries.
As the chief offender, Xu Ma’s tears regretfully dropped.
Seeing the betting money confiscated, sorrow flooded his miserable heart,
forming a distinct contrast to the people cheering around him.
“The commander is eager to be first!”
“Even Chi Lai and Men Shi combined are not his opponent.”
“The commander is the strongest!”
“No, it is still Lord Shi Qi.”
“Say, if Lords Shi Qi and Long Fu fought each other, who would be stronger?”
“Does this need to be said, don’t you know what their ranks are?”
“But Lord Shi Qi’s battle qi already has a gold luster. He also used a healing
potion to cure his injury; he can cultivate normally again.
The mercenaries’ discussions entered Zong Ge’s ears.
Zong Ge was unconcerned, he faintly moved his finger, feeling a bit itchy.
However, to his side, Tripleblade was a bit proud of himself; he looked at Zong
Ge, more certain that he was headed in the correct direction.
As for the dragonman youngster, he secretly activated the Grand Arena Medal.



****** Chapter 235: This Medal is Superb! ******
In tonight’s night sky, the moon was a dish.
As the watery moonlight passed through the window, it sprinkled into the
captain’s room.
The captain’s room had no lights on, though the dragonman youngster wasn’t
asleep.
He sat in front of a desk, listening to the sea waves slapping the hull, the
occasional mercenaries patrolling on deck giving orders to each other.
With Zong Ge presiding over them, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had far more
discipline than any normal mercenary corps.
The half beastman treated and educated them entirely as troops.
The desk had a teapot that was boiling tea.
The dragonman youngster was looking at the medal in his hand.
It was the Grand Arena Medal.
It seemed to be made of silver and from dense material, even the dragonman
youngster felt it was quite heavy.
It was silver level equipment, and its influence was quite large, for it
concerned the Abyss.
Its main function was twofold.
The first was to amplify the wearer’s growth, including strength, speed,
defense, attack, recovery, and more. It also had another property, the more
people that were watching the fight, the better the growth rate.
The second function was that absorbed a defeated opponent’s battle experience,
skills, and so on, pouring them all into the medal’s holder.
The dragonman youngster during the day personally experienced the benefits of
this equipment.
He had requested that he spar with Chi La and Men Shi.
With everyone watching, he vividly felt the Grand Arena Medal amplify him.
To the extent that he could more effortlessly defeat two silver levels fighting
together.
He was now using the second function after the sparring finished.
At that moment, a great realization flooded into his mind from the medal.
He obtained much usage experience in using two-handed war hammers, a few dwarf
battle skills, and the real combat experience concerning how to use those
battle skills in battle.
These experiences mainly came from the dwarf Men Shi; the rest came from the
human gunner Chi Lai.
The dragonman youngster’s eyes closed as he analyzed to himself, “This medal
can absorb a defeated opponent’s experience and instill it into the wearer.”
“Therefore, the source of these experiences are Men Shi and Chi Lai.”
“Furthermore, the pertinent substance relates to how many times Men Shi and Chi
Lai them.
“I obtained battle skill experience, all of them were the ones Men Shi and Chi
Lai frequently used during the fight.”
“If in the future I want to acquire Chi Lai’s shelling experience, he’ll need
to use a cannon during sparring.”
After the spar, the dragonman youngster spent time alone to covertly use a two-
handed war hammer.
After using it, he felt he was once an expert war hammer wielding soldier who
had taken a break from fighting for many years and stopped training, then
suddenly one day, he picked up a war hammer again.
He completely stepped over the blankness of a novice starting out.
But after some training, the dragonman youngster acutely felt something else:
despite the experience being real, during genuine practice, his personal
performance still had a bit of a disparity to his experience.
The dragonman youngster analyzed, “The experience in my mind came from Men Shi,
he is a dwarf, while I am in the body of a dragonman. His experience is too
incompatible with me; therefore, it caused this disparity.”
“If I want to solve this problem, I’ll have to absorb war hammer experience
from more people or transform into a dwarf.” 
No matter which was used, the dragonman youngster could attain both of them.
“Commander, a three ringed turtle has been lured over.” At that moment, the
dragonman youngster’s communication device transmitted Zi Di’s voice.
“Good, I’ll come at once.” The dragonman youngster’s eyes flashed as he stood
up to leave.
He picked up his prepared tea and drained it in a gulp.
This tea was not ordinary, the clear tea had kelp like tea leaves floating in
it that emitted a silver level aura.
It was silver level Fragrant Gil Tea!
The dragonman youngster activated the Bloodcore.
With a burst of red light, he transformed into a four meter long snake and
slithered out the window, quietly falling into the sea.
He transformed into a silver level tide snake.
On Snake Rat Island, he had gathered much of the tide snake’s bloodline.
100%
The Bloodcore already had 100% of the tide snake’s silver level bloodline.
If he was in the dragonman form, it wouldn’t be easy to enter the water
quietly, but it was effortless and natural in the tide snake form. 
The ship’s patrolling mercenaries didn’t notice anything.
The tide snake youngster entered the seawater, immediately triggering the
Fragrant Gil Tea’s effects.
Bronze level Fragrant Gil Tea could give a person the ability to breathe
underwater.
Iron level Fragrant Gil tea could not only give underwater breathing, but it
could also give one dark sight, very suitable for underwater combat.
While silver level Fragrant Gil Tea could not only give the user underwater
breathing and dark sight, but also water perception!
The tide snake youngster entering the water had an entirely different feeling.
He could sense and control the water next to him.
Not just that, every time he moved his snake body, his mind could foresee how
the surrounding water would subsequently change.
Thus, although this was the first time he used the tide snake form in water, he
was able to rapidly dive through the seawater.
However, his swaying body looked very strange and unnaturally uncoordinated.
After all, he was still inexperienced in using his snake body.
With Zi Di’s directions, after the tide snake youngster swam for a bit, he
smoothly found his target – a silver shell three ring turtle. 
This turtle appeared to be the size of a carriage, and its turtle shell looked
to be dark silver.
It was a silver level oceanic magic beast, and after seeing the tide snake
youngster, it instantly became vigilant, and its silver turtle shell produced a
faint light, a warning signal.
But the tide snake youngster had come to find trouble with it.
The youngster opened his mouth and shot out Ice Ray.
It was the tide snake’s racial magic.
Although the youngster didn’t have a magic crystal, the Bloodcore was the
perfect substitute.
By expending the Bloodcore’s magic, the youngster hit his target with Ice Ray.
The silver shell three ringed turtle was infuriated, and its turtle shell
unexpectedly broke apart into eight soaring long silver lumps. 
The silver lumps shot towards the tide snake youngster, causing the latter to
swiftly evade and continue attacking with Ice Ray.
After a dozen seconds, the tide snake youngster was in a difficult situation.
He was besieged by more silver lumps.
Compelled by circumstances, he was forced to turn back into a dragonman.
“A humanoid shape is still the most comfortable!” The dragonman youngster
sighed, he brandished his fist and tangled with the silver lumps flying at him.
He used Surge, traveling through the ocean like an artillery shell.
Along with Demolition Fist, he hit the silver lumps or the turtle, instantly
pushing the other party into a disadvantageous position.
The silver shell three ringed turtle used all of its strength, and silver lumps
came together to form three rings around it.
The rings rotated in the water, forming three tight defensive lines to
withstand the dragonman youngster’s offense.
The dragonman youngster added the spurting smoke dragon transformation,
utilizing the ring mounds to accelerate and increase his offensive.
The silver shell three ring turtle couldn’t withstand it, and with a whine, it
recalled the silver lumps and turned around to escape.
The dragonman youngster didn’t kill it yet, instead he hung back and activated
the Grand Arena Medal.
The experience from the loser poured from the medal into him, entering his
mind.
This experience was how to swim, how to separate one’s turtle shell, and how to
use one’s shell to confront one’s enemy.
After taking it in, the dragonman youngster caught up to the silver shell three
ring turtle and beat it up.
The three ring turtle was thrashed and unable to retaliate as it tried to
escape persistently.
After the dragonman youngster hit it for a spell, he stayed his hand and tried
to absorb experience from the medal again.
This experience only had the turtle striving to swim and doing its utmost to
escape.
The dragonman youngster repeated that process.
The pitiful turtle quickly shrank back into its shell, its head red and
swollen.
Realizing its desperate situation, the turtle began to counterattack wildly.
The dragonman youngster shouted and the blows to the turtle churned the
seawater with ceaseless booms.
After a few minutes, the turtle’s corpse slowly sank to the seafloor.
The dragonman youngster used the Bloodcore to completely absorb it.
Thus, the Bloodcore gained the Many Ringed Turtle bloodline, the silver level
one was only 15% complete.
The Many Ringed Turtle was a magic beast bloodline, it contained the water and
magnetism nature, and if medicine was used to measure it, it would react to
water and earth path magic medicine.
The highest the many ringed turtle could reach was the saint level.
Starting out with bronze level copper shell one ring turtle, then the iron
shell two ringed turtle, next was the silver shell three ringed turtle, then
the gold shell four ringed turtle, all the way to the saint shell five ringed
turtle.
Through this battle, the dragonman youngster gained a lot of experience with
how the Grand Arena Medal worked.
The less intense the battle is, the longer it goes, the less experience is
acquired.
Frequently doing battle with the same enemy will yield less experience every
time they are defeated.”
“Perhaps this is the Grand Arena Medal’s true usage.”
The dragonman youngster’s perspective seemed to suddenly widen.
Before, after escaping Mystifying Monster Island, he analyzed that the
Bloodcore’s best use was with humanoid forms.
But now, paired up with the Grand Arena Medal, he could absorb numerous magic
beasts and magic plants, then utilize the experience he absorbed, able to
rapidly form all new military power within a short timespan!
“This medal really is superb!” The dragonman youngster exclaimed in sincere
admiration.
Meanwhile.
The Iron Lump slowly stopped at a shore.
Cang Xu was standing on the ship’s bow, looking at Pine Wind Island in the
night.
Pine trees covered everything the eye could see, and they swayed gently in the
wind, integrating into a dark green wave of tress that was a magnificent sight.
What pleased Cang Xu the most was the squall that was everywhere on Pine
Island.
The squall was full of negative energy; this was an incomparable pleasure for
the necromancer.
By contrast, Qing Xin next to him had already formed a mild cyan defensive
cover.
“Where exactly is the undead gathering site?” Cang Xu wrinkled his eyebrows,
somewhat awkward. 
Qing Xin knew the undead gathering was here, but not where it took place
exactly.
Cang Xu still had to go find it himself.
“Do you really want to go with me?” Cang Xu looked at Qing Xin, “I believe
staying on the ship will be better for you.”
Qing Xin shook her head, “If something happens to you, as such a big target,
how can I avoid the attack and retreat in a timely fashion?”
“I am also a member of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, with that position,
there shouldn’t be any trouble.”
“We need to concentrate our strength, that will increase our success rate of
this operation…hold on, a person!”
Qing Xin suddenly warned.
Cang Xu quickly took precautions.
From the pine trees came a zombie.
The zombie was expressionless, “You two, I have come to lead you to the
gathering site.”
“You are?” Cang Xu looked surprised, he saw what the person looked like. They
were unexpectedly an acquaintance from Two Eyes Island!



****** Chapter 236: Undead Gathering ******
The zombie before Cang Xu was actually Ku Feng!
The silver level loner, the wandering ronin Ku Feng.
He once joined with Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps ships to hunt ocean beasts and
had had a prominent battle performance during the battle for Two Eyes Island.
Cang Xu’s gaze shrank, finding it hard to believe, “I didn’t expect that you
were an undead ronin?”
Ku Feng also sized up Cang Xu.
He didn’t recognize Cang Xu as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ magician Lao
Zhong, but he had been there when Cang Xu had revealed himself and fought Long
Fu and the others during the battle of Two Eyes Island.
Therefore, Cang Xu being a necromancer was expected.
At the time, when Qing Xin had followed Cang Xu in retreating, Ku Feng had been
observing it all.
Thus, Qing Xin and Cang Xu coming together onto the island was within Ku Feng’s
expectations.
Qing Xin observed Ku Feng as a stranger, she had been a slave on Two Eyes
Island and had no freedom.
At that moment, Qing Xin opened her mouth and made known their purpose in
coming, “We are both Wisteria Merchant Alliance elders, come to participate in
the undead gathering.”
Ku Feng nodded, “Follow me.”
It seemed the undead gathering didn’t investigate its participants stringently,
Cang Xu and Qing Xin glanced at each other, then followed Ku Feng onto the
island.
After the three followed a thin trail, they arrived at a cliff.
Ku Feng jumped off the cliff and dropped into the ocean.
Qing Xin used wind path magic to help her and Cang Xu slowly descend.
As it turns out, there was a cave under the cliff.
The cave was pitch black.
Ku Feng entered first, followed by Qing Xin and Cang Xu who were slowly going
in warily.  
The cave did not narrow, rather it widened up considerably.
It was half seawater, half damp rock.
The ocean rock naturally formed an exceptionally level reef that one or two
ships could berth easily at.
In the deepest part of the cave, pressed close to the rock wall, was an ash
gray tombstone.
The tombstone was made from countless bones, skulls, and joined limbs, it was
three meters tall and emitted a silver level aura.
Cang Xu slowed his steps, “Could that be a Eulogy Tombstone?”
Ku Feng nodded, “That’s right.”
The necromancy sect had three aspects, the bone, soul, and corpse aspects.
The Eulogy Tombstone was a bone magician artifact; its main purpose was
teleportation between tombstones.
Seeing this tombstone, Cang Xu knew that there had to be a bone aspect
cultivator in this undead gathering.
“Wait for a bit, you are the first to arrive.” Said Ku Feng.
Cang Xu’s thoughts moved as he pondered Ku Feng’s words.
Ku Feng saying they were the first to arrive was a bit strange.
Because it was very obvious that Ku Feng had arrived here earlier than them.
“Ku Feng’s tone, it seems he is the master of this place.”
“Ku Feng, Weeping Pine Island…the two seem to have a hidden connection.”
“How did he come to this place?”
“I steered the Iron Lump away just as the battle for Two Eyes Island finished.”
“Ku Feng was still on the island.”
“It is possible that there is a Eulogy Tombstone hidden either on Two Eyes
Island or a nearby uninhabited island.”
As Cang Xu was guessing, the tombstone suddenly burst open with a gray light.
Space fluctuated intensely.
After a few seconds, space abruptly became still.
A ghost appeared beneath the tombstone.
She was a fishman ghost, 1.5 meters tall, and had a 2 meter long bone magic
staff.
It was clear she was a necromancer who had used the tombstone to teleport here.
The fishman ghost first greeted Ku Feng, then looked at Cang Xu and Qing Xin,
she was just about to speak when the seawater suddenly churned.
A moment later, the seawater swelled into a billow.
In the wave came out an iron level three headed sea serpent.
The sea snake was not a normal living thing, rather it was undead, its body was
rotting flesh and in some places, dim white bones were exposed.
The three headed sea serpent had a seat on its back.
In the spacious seat was a small human skeleton.
One could tell at a glance at the small human skeleton was a child.
His head was very big, he had a deep blue brocade cloak draped over his
shoulders, and on his head he wore a diamond crown.
“I’m here.”
“Ah, newcomers!”
The small skeleton’s eye sockets ignited with hidden fire as he shouted with
excitement.
Ku Feng introduced them to Cang Xu and Qing Xin, “This is the ghost magician Qi
Ling, that is the skeleton magician Xiao Wang Zi, that is his mount Xiao San.”
Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi both showed magician etiquette.
The sinister and rotten three headed sea serpent slightly bowed its head,
politely expressing its greeting.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin glanced at each other, sending back their own greetings
according to their history and status.
Hearing that they were Wisteria Merchant Alliance people, Qi Ling and Xiao Wang
Zi grew warmer.
Xiao Wang Zi said, “When I made this tombstone, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance
subsidized much of its materials.”
As it turns out, he was the Eulogy Tombstone’s creator.
“We’ll wait for one more Lordship, then we can begin.” Said Ku Feng.
“Lord?” Upon hearing that honorific, Cang Xu’s eyes tightened.
Whether it was Ku Feng, Qi Ling, or the skeleton magician Xiao Wang Zi, they
were all silver levels.
Ku Feng stating someone was “Lord” meant they were at least gold level.
By contrast, Cang Xu was only disguised as a silver level, and although Qing
Xin was a real silver, she greatly lacked equipment and could only display a
finite amount of military power.
Everyone waited for some time but heard nothing.
Cang Xu probed with a question, “How long should we wait?”
“Based on the time, his Lordship will be here soon.” Qi Ling replied.
“Please pardon my rudeness, this is the first time I’ve attended this
gathering. I’m just asking that if his Lordship hasn’t arrived, will we be
waiting forever?” Cang Xu continued to ask.
“Not at all.” Ku Feng answered Cang Xu’s question this time, “If too much time
passes, then that will prove his Lordship won’t be coming. We won’t keep
waiting, and instead convene the gathering immediately, furthermore, the time
and place of following gatherings will be changed.”
Cang Xu couldn’t help but sink into silence, hearing the unspoken implications.
All necromancers were in dire circumstances.
If someone didn’t appear at the arranged time, then it was very likely
something unexpected appeared.
And this unexpected thing was liable to bring disaster to the gathering and
endanger the other necromancers.
Therefore, they had to instantly convene the gathering, finish it as soon as
possible, and then greatly alter the next gathering.
“Hey newcomer, be patient!” The skeleton magician yelled, “Just wait a bit
more, it is nothing, his Lordship is very strong.”
Qi Ling agreed, “If his Lordship doesn’t come, most of our earnings this
gathering will be gone. I would rather take some risks and keep waiting.”
Cang Xu nodded and didn’t say anything else.
Although he himself was weak, he still had comrades to support him outside the
island.
If there really was danger, then he’d only need to hold fast for a time before
help arrived.
The cave was still, as the group continued to wait in silence.
After another dozen minutes, the tombstone suddenly lit up.
After space subsided, a tall black gowned magician appeared before everyone.
“Lord Jian Gui!” Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, and Qi Ling all greeting him.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin also rushed to bow before him.
This black gowned magician wore a hood and had vague humanoid features. He
emitted a gold level magician aura, revealing that his strength conformed to
Cang Xu’s conjecture.
“Ah ha ha.” The sinister black gown magician let out a deep laughter.
He looked around, and nodded to Ku Feng and the others, “Long time no see,
little wind, little fish, little child, oh and also you Xiao San.  
He extended an inhumanly white palm and waved at the three headed sea serpent.
The three headed sea serpent had been lying on the reef. It lifted a head and
howled in anguish as a response.
“This time, there are two new faces.” The black gown magician Jian Gui gazed at
Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
Faced with a gold level, Cang Xu was under pressure, but he maintained his
serenity, “Although this is our first time attending the gathering, we are all
old friends.”
Xiao Wang Zi interjected, energetically introducing them to the black gown
necromancer Jian Gui, “They are from the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, both
elders.”
“Oh? Is that so, did you test their secret orders?” Jian Gui asked.
Ku Feng replied, “Not yet. I thought it would be better to wait so you could
bear witness to it. 
Jian Gui nodded.
Ku Feng walked to a rock wall and poured battle qi into it, causing a hidden
rock door to slowly open up, exposing a storehouse.
He took out a large alchemy device from it.
Qing Xin immediately recognized it, it was an old version of an authentication
device, the current Wisteria Merchant Alliance already had a new version in all
locations. The new version was smaller and more accurate than the old one.
Ku Feng moved the alchemy device to Cang Xu.
Cang Xu took out a Wisteria secret order.
He inserted it into the alchemy device, and it was verified as authentic.
Jian Gui looked at Qing Xin.
Qing Xin explained, “I am in an unusual circumstance, I don’t have a Wisteria
secret order on me. My companion can testify for me, and perhaps ronin Ku Feng
can too.”
Ku Feng nodded, “She was a slave at the auction, her companion rescued her.”
He had also been at the auction, and had personally seen room 21 buy the blood
mother and child, along with the other slaves at a high price, Qing Xin was
among them.
From his point of view, he naturally understood that this was a clandestine
rescue mission.
“Welcome you two.” He indicated to Cang Xu to take back his secret order.
He raised his head to look at the rock wall, and used a rueful tone, “Back when
I first contacted the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, I was still a mere silver
level.”
“We necromancy cultivators really are challenged.”
“It is a hundred times harder to acquire alchemy materials than other
magicians.”
“I have to say, when it comes to obtaining resources, the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance really helped me in that.”
“Regretfully, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance nowadays is no longer its former
self.”
“It has already been partitioned by every great Sheng Ming Empire power, and
barely one percent of what it once was remains.” 
“Not only that, but the empire’s Blood Light Punishment Institution also used
Wisteria Merchant Alliance channels to arrest and kill many necromancers.”
When he said that, Jian Gui looked deeply towards Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
The mood inside the cave couldn’t help but grow tense.



****** Chapter 237: Bloodline Ancestral River Painting ******
The cave was tense, and no one spoke, there was only the sound of the moving
tide.
Everyone looked at Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
Ku Feng crossed his arms, his face wooden.
Qi Ling gripped her magic staff, her gaze indistinct.
Xiao Wang Zi tilted his big skull, sizing up and examining them.
The undead magic beast, the three headed sea serpent on the reef also focused
its three heads on Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
The heaviest pressure came from Jian Gui, the gold level necromancer.
Qing Xin tightened her lips and Cang Xu had a heavy complexion.
Trouble and interrogation was inevitable.
Before coming here, Cang Xu and Qing Xin had been psychologically prepared for
this.
After a moment of silence, Cang Xu spoke, a trace of anger in his tone, “I and
my companion came here to participate in this gathering and to exchange for
cultivation resources we need. But after waiting here for a long time, what we
waited for was an interrogation.”
“If you want me to prove myself, truth be told, I don’t have powerful evidence
that can convince everyone here.”
“Because everyone has their own secrets.”
“Furthermore, without sufficient benefits, I am not in the habit of
compromising myself.”
“In that case everyone…please forgive me for asking to leave.”
Cang Xu’s words couldn’t help but astonish everyone.
Qing Xin’s expression changed, she wanted to say something but hesitated.
But Cang Xu’s acted candidly, and he turned around to leave.
Qing Xin was forced to follow him out.
The two were very cautious.
Suddenly, Jian Gui burst into laughter, and urged them to stay, “Friends,
please stay. I want to apologize to you and everyone else present for coming
late to this gathering. As for the specific reason, I will explain it to
everyone afterwards.”
After he looked around, he gazed back at Cang Xu, cordially saying, “I also ask
you to understand our troubles friends.”
“Surviving as a necromancer is very difficult, even we have shameful turncoats
among us who are willing to be imperial hounds.”
“We have no choice but to be somewhat vigilant.”
Cang Xu stopped walking and turned around, looking back at Jian Gui, “I
understand that, but as a matter of fact, I also took risks in joining this
gathering.”
“Who can guarantee that this gathering is safe? Will it put me in danger?”
Cang Xu wasn’t really thinking of leaving.
The strategy he chose was retreating in order to advance.
The reason he adopted this strategy was so he could present a meal tailored to
the situation.
Cang Xu had been a noble steward for many years and had dealt with all kinds of
people for a long time, he had deep insight into interpersonal relationships.
Although this was the first time he had met Jian Gui and the others, Cang Xu
felt that Jain Gui was brimming with humanity, he didn’t resemble the rumors of
cold and terrifying necromancers who loathed life and concealed the desire to
murder.
So much so that Cang Xu was aware that suffering inspection and interrogation
was actually a good thing.
This illustrated that the other party had normal interactions and thirsted for
transactions, therefore they would be probing constantly.
Cang Xu was actually scared that he would meet necromancers who wouldn’t pry
into him, that were uncommunicative and temperamental, that perhaps at any
moment, they would suddenly attack and slaughter every living creature.
Seeing Cang Xu stop, Jian Gui laughed and politely asked Cang Xu how he started
to walk t he road of necromancy cultivation.
Qing Xin also looked at Cang Xu; she was similarly curious.
Cang Xu knew this was another heavy probe, he couldn’t help but recall memories
and mull for a bit before saying, “At the time, I was still attending college.”
“I was not well off, and to pay my tuition and maintain my academic life, I had
to work part time while studying.”
“I frequently cleaned all sorts of places in the college as a janitor.”
“It was because of this job that I accidentally came across a painting.”
“I believe the painting is something everyone has seen.”
“It is the Bloodline Ancestral River Painting.”
“Of course it wasn’t the real one, it was merely a reproduction that was hung
in a hallway at the college, serving as an adornment.”
“When I saw this painting, my spirit was stirred when it received
enlightenment.”
“I didn’t follow the enlightenment, instead I restored the painting then
investigated a lot of information. Only then did I have the courage to drop my
blood onto the canvas.”
“The painting changed because of my blood, the bloodline river dried up,
exposing the riverbed and the bones of the dead cast into the river bank, along
with countless ghosts that looked like jellyfish wandering and hovering around
the riverbed.”
“At the same time, I received another enlightenment, a necromancer’s
inheritance poured into the depths of my thoughts.”
“Of course, I didn’t start cultivating immediately.”
“I felt terrified and restless, when I felt that the hidden treasure was
actually a necromancer’s inheritance, I felt very remorseful and didn’t dare to
bring this secret to light.”
“After many years, after suffering suppression and being pushed aside, I was
unresigned and chose this path to become a necromancer.”
“That is how I became a necromancer.”
When Cang Xu finished, the cave went into a brief silence again.
Jian Gui said, “You aren’t lying.”
As it turned out, while Cang Xu was recounting his tale, he had bee
surreptitiously using some method to test Cang Xu’s truthfulness.
Cang Xu didn’t look surprised.
He had the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spells on
him; lie detection magic wouldn’t work on him.
If by any chance it failed, Cang Xu was also telling the truth.
It was just the language that was exaggerated.
Although what was said was true, it was not representative of the unvarnished
truth, Cang Xu had been selectively in what he said and held back many secrets.
Jian Gui continued, “It seems the inheritance you came across came from the
Soul Painter. Perhaps in the future, you can rely on this relationship to
acquire more advance inheritances.”
Seeing Cang Xu was puzzled, Jian Gui explained, “The necromancy sect’s founder
is Lord You Shen, this is widely known. He personally taught 12 disciples, who
are saint level necromancers nowadays. Soul Painter is one of them.”
“Lord You Shen issued a long term mission that asked every disciple to
disseminate their respective teachings as much as possible.”
“Soul Painter’s propagation method was to duplicate all kinds of famous
paintings that hid necromancer inheritances in them.”
“These special paintings can detect part of the aptitudes of those that look at
them and give them enlightenment.”
Cang Xu mused, “So that’s how it is.”
Then he probed in passing, “Lord Jian Gui, I saw that you are also a soul
aspect necromancer, are you saying that you also came across such a painting
that started your necromancy cultivation?”
Jian Gui was just about to speak when the skeleton magician Xiao Wang Zi spoke
first, “Of course not, Lord Jian Gui’s teacher is Captain Gou Hun!”
Xiao Wang Zi spoke with pride.
As a result of seeing Cang Xu’s baffled expression, he couldn’t help but shout,
“I understand that you don’t know who Captain Gou Hun is.”
“He is the same as Soul Painter, he is one of Founder You Shen’s direct
disciple. Nowadays he is a saint level pirate!”
“Therefore, you now realize, newcomer, that our Lord Jian Gui is an orthodox
necromancer!”
Cang Xu and Qing Xin immediately had a whole new level of respect for Jian Gui.
In light of this relationship, Jian Gui could be considered You Shen’s grand
disciple.
Jian Gui waved his hand and bitterly laughed, “It is better to not bring up
this relationship, child.”
“Perhaps one day, I’ll die as a consequence of it.”
Xiao Wang Zi instantly bowed his head deeply, “I’m sorry, Lord Jian Gui.”
Perhaps because he cranked his head down too vigorously, the skull smashed into
the ground and rolled away to Cang Xu’s foot.
Cang Xu: …
Everyone: …
“Oh my!” Xiao Wang Zi’s chin opened up, producing an embarrassed cry of fear.
His body quickly waved and the big skull on the rock suddenly flew back and
returned to his body’s slim backbone.
“Oh ho ho!” Jian Gui cheerfully cackled.
The cave’s ambience dramatically shifted due to this.
“Don’t laugh again, Lord Jian Gui, there is nothing to laugh at!” Xiao Wang Zi
used a short and small palm to cover his face, shaking his head as he shouted.
Jian Gui stopped laughing, “Child, although you have become a silver level, you
are still as adorable as ever.”
He then pointed to Ku Feng, introducing him to Cang Xu, “This ronin should be
the most familiar person to you.”
“He died fighting on Weeping Pine Island; it was here where I found his
unreconciled soul.”
“When I wanted to call back his soul, he refused me.”
“He didn’t want to turn into a ghost; he still thirsted for a physical body
that was suitable for him to continue pursuing his blade skills.”
“He had pretty good luck, it just so happened that on that day, we came across
Doctor Sui Shi. Oh, he was also saint level and one of You Shen’s twelve direct
disciples.”
“After I requested it, Doctor Sui Shi personally acted to bring Ku Feng back to
life and turned him into his current undead form.”
“Not only that, but thanks to the Lord Doctor’s unique magic, Ku Feng can also
mask his undead nature and pretend to be a normal living person.
“As a result, this world now has the wandering ronin Ku Feng.”
Cang Xu looked at Ku Feng, the latter nodding back to him.
Jian Gui’s words had validated some of Cang Xu’s prior guesses.
Ku Feng had died on Weeping Pine Island and also had been revived on this
island. He treats this place as his home, therefore that is why he said to Cang
Xu and Qing Xin that they were the first visitors here.
It was understandable that Ku Feng and Weeping Pine Island had a connection
with their names.
Cang Xu also thought about Ku Feng’s loner nature.
“Doctor Sui Shi disguise skill should be saint level; therefore, it wouldn’t be
exposed in front of the gold level Hun Tong.”
“But there is surely a disparity between it and our Deceptive Disguise spell.”
“This disguise should have some kind of flaw, and in order to reduce the
possibility of exposure, Ku Feng chose to be solitary and consequently had the
title of being a wandering ronin.
“During the battle for Two Eyes Island, I was exposed, therefore I will likely
provoke an imperial investigation.”
“Ku Feng returning to Weeping Pine Island was because he wanted to take part in
this gathering, but it is also possible that he wants to evade the limelight by
hiding here.”



****** Chapter 238: Endless Bloodlines, All Races Die ******
Next, Jian Gui introduced Qi Ling to Cang Xu.
Qi Ling had been called back by Jian Gui, and after meticulous cultivation, Qi
Ling had recovered her mind.
“She helped me many times, she is my best testing assistant.” Jian Gui praised
Qi Ling, “It is a regretful that she is unable to let go of her clan and has
implored me many times that I free her and let her work for her clan.”
“I warned her that her identity is too unusual and won’t be tolerated by her
clan.”
“But she still insists on it, and I have no choice but to give her leeway.”
Jian Gui deeply sighed.
The reticent Qi Ling bowed deeply to Jian Gui, “My Lord, you giving me a new
lease on life is a kindness etched into my bones and heart. The days I served
as your assistant were the most fulfilling and relaxing days of my life.”
“But like you said, any lifeform pursues their own happiness and looks for
their meaning of life.”
“Therefore, I chose to return to my clan and silently guarded my people.
Although there are misunderstandings, I feel very happy.”
“Humph!” Xiao Wang Zi indignantly retorted on the spot, “You are a mere ghost,
you have no bones, how can you etch it into your bones and heart?”
“You are a dolt!”
“After returning to your clan, you were almost killed by your people. You
obviously had the strength, but didn’t retaliate.”
“Finally, it was Lord Jian Gui who intervened to save you.”
“Even so, you still covertly returned and secretly neutralized a formidable
ocean beast as dedication to your clan.”
Qi Ling sneered, “How can you be better than me? Every year, you impatiently
gaze at some ships passing through here.”
“Do you also not stealthily protect your country’s merchant ships? Even though
you suffer merchant ship bombardments, do you also not retaliate either?”
“You!” Xiao Wang Zi was unable to refute this.
Jian Gui aptly explained, “Him becoming an undead has nothing to do with me.”
“Our Xiao Wang Zi really was a prince, but although he had a noble birth, he
died young.”
“His parents were unresigned and secretly hired a necromancer to resurrect
him.”
“In his form, Xiao Wang Zi couldn’t keep living with his parents, as it would
give both sides immense trouble.”
“Therefore, after a time of wandering about, he decided to stay in these
waters.”
“Every year at a designated time, his parents will visit Ice Sculpture Island
on a ship, it is a rare opportunity o reunite with his parents.”
Qi Ling had a rare interjection, “Not only that, when Xiao Wang Zi just
arrived, he was rather restless.”
“If it weren’t for Lord Jian Gui taking responsibility for him, patiently
looking after him, and dealing with all kinds of troubles he provoked, he would
have been turned to bone slags already.”
With all of them pulling the rug out from each other, Cang Xu had a deeper
understanding of the necromancers before him.
He also figured out why Ku Feng and the others respected Jian Gui so much.
Jian Gui looked at Cang Xu and summed it up, “So as you can see, we are not
purely dangerous people.”
“We all have our own life pursuits and also want to grasp our own happiness.”
“Our life shape is somewhat unusual, that’s all.
“We too became undead because we had no other choice.”
But Cang Xu pursed his brows, “But I am different from you, I became a
necromancer at my own volition.”
“I came here to get more resources so I could cultivate better. I want to make
myself stronger, the more the better.”
“Compared to me, you guys are more innocent. But that is not my concern,
everyone.”
“I only want to ask this, when will this gathering officially begin?”
“Newcomer, pay attention to your tone. You must learn how to speak to Lord Jian
Gui.” Xiao Wang Zi indignantly criticized.
Qi Ling stayed her long magic staff, faintly reprimanding, “You need patience,
newcomer.”
Jian Gui waved his hand, “Oh ho ho.”
He smiled, “Don’t be nervous, you two. Please don’t misunderstand me.”
“You have told us how you became a necromancer, and so it is fair I have
presented how the others became undead too.”
“Next, I want to prove that despite us sinking to undead lifeforms, it does not
mean we have sunk into depravity.”
“I believe you have already felt negative energy eroding your nature.”
“I believe this is necromancy’s greatest systemic problem.
Cang Xu was silent, his brows were deeply wrinkled.
He thought for a bit, then said, “Countering erosion…this is precisely one of
my main purposes in coming here.”
Jian Gui nodded, “I can see that you possess excellent qualities of a
magician.”
“You transformed your body and become a living dead person; you have strived to
maintain your humanity to counter negative energy erosion.”
“Although your method is young and tender, your skills crude, but it can be
clearly seen you have unswerving determination.”
Cang Xu’s expression changed, his heart shaking.
Jian Gui’s vision was sharp, he actually saw through one of Cang Xu’s secrets.
Jian Gui continued, “I have many on the same path, they overly pursue strength
and are unaware of negative energy corrosion, or even actively indulge in it to
obtain greater strength. “
“Thus, they lose themselves and degenerate, which is where the bad name of
necromancers comes from as a result.”
“It is very wrong and bad.”
“One must control all of their power to be considered a qualified magician,
conversely, one whose power controls them is nothing but a pitiful creature.”
“Because of that, I had little wind pursue the blade, little fish guard her
clan, and this child look forward to reuniting with his parents.”
“It is precisely because of these factors serving as anchors that the power we
cultivate does not sweep us away.”
Jian Gui’s earnestness caused Qing Xin shake.
Cang Xu deeply bowed to him, “I am ashamed that this one is superficial, I
thank your Lordship for his advice!”
Jian Gui saw that Cang Xu maintained his humanity when he transformed his body,
and also from Cang Xu’ prior words and attitude deduced that this was his first
time participating in an undead gathering.
Jian Gui proactively imparted his cultivation experience to this newcomer.
Cang Xu’s response to Jian Gui’s lecture greatly satisfied the latter’s ego.
“Oh ho ho.” Jian Gui laughed heartily, “Old men love to prattle. Good, good. We
shall begin this gathering. Little wind, you are this place’s master, please
take charge.”
Ku Feng fashionable bowed and played the host, “First is the resource exchange
segment. Every member will speak in turn and raise their demands. Afterwards,
if another wants to transact with them, they can communicate on the spot.”
Ku Feng looked around until it stopped at Cang Xu.
Cang Xu immediately understood, and was the first to speak, “I have come to
this gathering to look for a method to counteract negative energy corrosion, at
the same time, I also want to buy some powerful magic and resources for
myself.” 
Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, and the others didn’t reply, all of them looked at Jian
Gui.
Jian Gui laughed, “Oh ho ho, I really have a necromancer inheritance that suits
you well.”
He took out a painting from his equipment storage.
It was an oil painting.
The pitch-black and perfectly straight square frame was not a conventional
decorative ornament; it was evident it had been designed very carefully to
match the mainly vermillion color the scene was composed of. 
The oil painting’s contents felt very familiar to Cang Xu.
This was a famous classical painting – the Bloodline Ancestor River Chart.
At the top of the painting was a tall and vague human shadow that was cutting
open their own heart.
From that heart flowed a river of blood.
The river was vast and mighty, and in the branches of the upper reaches there
were titans, dragons, elemental lifeforms, angels, devils, and demons.
The river became narrow, and in the middle stretches there were branches of
elves, dwarfs, beastmen, humans, and the barbarian race.
The river became a stream, reaching the lower echelons, here there were
goblins, gnomes, fishmen, naga, tree men, and more.
The Bloodline Ancestral River Painting depicted the creation myth.
According to the legend, the world was once desolate. 
God came to this place.
The world’s emptiness and bareness caused God to bellow, they cut open their
own body and their blood turned into a river.
The blood river flowed to every part of the world, and from the upper reaches
were born titans, dragons, elementals, devils, and demons. In the middle
stretches were born elves, dwarfs, beastmen, humans, barbarians, and in the
lower level goblins, gnomes, fishmen, naga, and tree men were born.
Thus, the world became prosperous, and all things coexisted.
God died.
The creation myth had been circulated by every race.
The Bloodline Ancestral River Painting’s artist was using this painting to
depict this old tale.
It was worth mentioning there were many details in it.
Among them were that those born in the upper reaches like the titans, dragons,
and more had massive bodies. Those born in the middle reaches had shrunk
considerably, not even half the size of the upper reaches’ races. Finally, in
the lower reaches, the races were even smaller.
The painter with this stated clearly the differences, and the good and bad of
all races.
People around the world were divided up into these three levels, upper level
races, middle level races, and lower level races.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had an accumulated bloodline archive map; this
Bloodline Ancestral River Painting could be considered the earliest form of the
bloodline archive map.
These days, bloodlines mixed with each other, and the theory of upper, middle,
and lower level races has already been phased out. But it couldn’t be denied
that its influence still existed. (Nowadays, the mainstream academia theory was
human supremacy, which naturally the other races did not approve of, leading to
vicious disputes over it.) 
Jian Gui handed the painting to Cang Xu, “The Bloodline Ancestral River
Painting has extraordinary meaning, perhaps due to its importance, Lord Soul
Painter has duplicated it many times and imbued them with his inheritance.”
“The inheritance you obtained is merely a basic inheritance. This here is an
advanced inheritance.”
“You can now examine it.”
Cang Xu understood clearly in his heart that he had to examine it, because
perhaps this was another of Jian Gui’s serious tests.
After the painting inspection didn’t find any problems, Cang Xu decided to risk
trying it.
He cut his wrist, and a drop of blood fell onto the head of the river, the
Creator God’s heart.
The blood emitted a light and gradually spread down, illuminating the river of
blood.
Soon after, the blood river dried up, exposing the riverbed.
All of the races seemed to be eroded by negative energy and turned into human
skeletons, zombies, as well as ghosts, among other undead lifeforms. The
painting style change from ancient and mysterious into eerie and terrifying.
At the same time, knowledge poured into Cang Xu’s mind.
“Endless bloodlines, all races die!” Jian Gui chanted with satisfaction.
His poetic intonation triggered a resonance.
A moment later, Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, Ku Feng as well as Cang Xu all echoed,
“Endless bloodlines, all races die.”
The inharmonious Qing Xin at this moment finally sensed the terrifying ambience
of the undead gathering.



****** Chapter 239: First Round of Transactions ******
Endless bloodlines, all races die!
This was You Shen’s, the founder of necromancy, catchphrase.
The meaning it in resembled the change that occurred in the painting Cang Xu
held – the undead did not belong to the creation myth. And the blood river was
endless, for after the bloodlines mixed with each other and mutated, further
and more complex bloodlines were formed. But regardless of how many bloodlines
there were or how many new races were created, they could all become undead
beings. Being undead was the final destination of all life!
By sampling this slogan somewhat, one could sense the necromancers’ arrogance
as well as the terrifying ambition of the one who created it, Founder You Shen.
It’s no wonder the undead sect suffered the entire world’s pursuit and attacks.
Although Cang Xu had heard this slogan before, with his field of vision and
lifetime knowledge, he wouldn’t be so easily agitated.
Right now, most of his attention was on the advanced inheritance.
This was a typical soul aspect necromancer inheritance.
It had many magic spells, most of which were used for transforming ghosts and
making them better in certain fields.
Cang Xu quickly grasped the main points – Burden Alleviation spell and Karma
Removal spell.
The Burden Alleviation spell could lighten the burden ghosts had on a
necromancer’s soul.
With this magic, a necromancer could control more ghost subordinates, it was
crucial for a necromancer to form an army!
As for the Karma Removal spell, one could see from its name that it was named
after the eastern monks.
The creation of this magic indeed involved a few monk theories.
A portion of the eastern monks believed that whenever a person sinned, they
would create karma, and this karma was a crucial element that would torment the
living being after death. The more karma, the more one suffered after dying.
The Karma Removal spell was literal; it could reduce karma and lessen the
torment after death. When used on a necromancer, it had greater importance – it
could help a necromancer reduce negative energy erosion!
This inheritance greatly pleased Cang Xu.
He nodded at once, gave thanks to Jian Gui, then asked how much he needed to
pay to acquire this inheritance.
“Oh ho ho.” Jian Gua once again magnanimously laughed, he acted very stylishly.
Not only did he let Cang Xu examine the inheritance ahead of time, but he also
answered with, “Undead lifeforms of outstanding quality, money, valuable magic
or information, and one’s own magic crystals can all be regarded as currency.”
He opened the transaction with a very relaxed manner.
Cang Xu had three silver level ghosts, this amount was a difficult burden on
him.
He originally planned to peddle the three silver level ghosts during the
gathering. But he didn’t expect that at the gathering, he would get an advanced
inheritance with out a hitch.
With the Burden Alleviation and Karma Removal spells, he was now confident he
could control three, no even more silver level ghosts.
Therefore, Cang Xu didn’t want to sell them.
He altered his plan at the last moment and stated, “Then I will use gold coins
to pay. Lord Jian Gui, name your price.”
Jian Gui deliberated for a bit, then declared a number.
Cang Xu was surprised.
The price was very cheap, about half what it was worth.
He once again sensed Jian Gui’s benevolence.
Cang Xu paid with gold coins then had another request, “I also need a large
quantity of undead materials, all kinds of alchemy materials, the most
important of which are soul crystals.”
This provoked Xiao Wang Zi’s resentment, “Oi, newcomer, we let you do one
transaction, you’re taken care of.”
“Your first round is finished, don’t win an inch and want a foot!”
Cang Xu paused, then hastily apologized.
Ku Feng then directed, “Please then, the second one is Xiao Wang Zi.
The skeleton child magician raised his skull, “I want soul crystals, the more
the better.”
He raised his voice, but he was mainly looking at Jian Gui.
Ku Feng and Qi Ling didn’t say anything.
Jian Gui nodded, “This time, I brought a lot of soul crystals.”
Xiao Wang Zi immediately cheered.
He rejoiced when he completed the transaction with an exquisite bone tool to
purchase sixty soul crystals.
Soul crystals were very important to necromancers.
Or to be more accurate, soul crystals were very beneficial to any undead life
form.
It could grow one’s soul and substantially improve their spirit.
The hearts of the undead had long become necrotic, and were nonexistent, let
along having any blood. 
The force moving them outside of negative energy was soul power.
Soul crystals were the most valuable food for undead lifeforms.
The third transaction was with Qi Ling; she had the same request as the
skeleton magician – soul crystals.
Jian Gui and she reached a deal.
The fourth was Ku Feng, he asked this: did anyone have any outstanding blade
skills?
War Merchant’s database had collected sword battle skills.
But Cang Xu kept silent.
It wasn’t convenient for him to take them out because those kinds of battle
skills were incongruous with his public persona.
Finally, it was Jian Gui and Ku Feng who came to a deal.
He traded Ku Feng a memory crystal.
Seeing this caused Cang Xu’s mind to shake, it proved that Jian Gui might have
a memory modification device on him.
Cang Xu gazed at the memory crystal, feigning hesitation while actually probing
information, “Could that be…”
Xiao Wang Zi proudly answered once again, “That’s right, that is the famous
memory crystal.”
Before Founder You Shen created necromancy, he profanely scarified to the gods,
and the memory crystal device was something he developed.”
Cang Xu nodded, “That I understand, but to see one with my own eyes, it is my
first time.”
This was another probe.
Cang Xu deliberately lied.
He was testing to see if Jian Gui and the others could really measure his lies,
whether the Deceptive Disguise spell was working.
Cang Xu was put at ease, the others didn’t notice anything peculiar.
Jian Gui explained further, “Memory crystals aren’t as useful as the rumors
say, there are many systemic problems with misusing them. It is liable to
create memory derangement, causing people to have errors in self-awareness. If
this derangement happens, returning them back is very difficult.”
“Under most circumstances when I use memory crystals, it is to cultivate a
particular ghost.”
“You also know that after we successfully call back a soul, the ghost will lack
memoires, unless they cultivated necromancy will they were still alive to a
certain degree.”
“A lack of memories will cause a ghost’s value to tumble greatly.”
“For example, a swordsman ghost lacking memories on how to use sword skills
will disappoint others with its combat strength.”
“With memory crystals filling in the blanks, the ghost can regain its military
power and even improve it.”
“But one cannot use too many, and if one misuses them, it will cause the ghost
to go mad, go out of control, and even crumble into nothing.”
Ku Feng issued a promise, “I will engrave Lord Jian Gui’s warning into my
heart, and will never directly use the memory crystal. I will just pour battle
qi into it and use my spirit to access the memory inside and treat it as a book
I read.”
“The path of the blade has no shortcuts to walk, each step needs practice.”
If one takes shortcuts, it will instead lead far away from the legendary peak!”
Ku Feng carefully accepted the memory crystal.
Jian Gui was the last person in the first round of transactions.
“Oh ho ho, this time I have many wants.”
“The first one is an old one, if anyone has a corpse or bone aspect necromancer
inheritance, I can trade for them.”
“Apart from that, any secret information on the Charming Blue Goddess is of
great value to me.”
“Finally, I want an effective way to contact the legend level magician War
Merchant.”
Cang Xu remained undisturbed, while his thoughts were being jolted.
“What is Jian Gui up to?”
“Why is he interested in Charming Blue Goddess and War Merchant?”
“He put forward that he wants an effective way to contact War Merchant, this
conversely indicates that he once maintained contact with War Merchant?”
The survivors had been on Mystifying Monster Island and discovered War
Merchant’s many identities. War Merchant used various identities to continue to
deliver large amounts of product for the munitions market.
War Merchant was dead, and Mystifying Monster Island had completely
disappeared, he had left a gigantic vacancy in the market.
Someone surely would have noticed and naturally looked into it.
This was what the survivors had surmised earlier.
Jian Gui seemed to be looking for War Merchant’s people.
But if it was just that, it wouldn’t make Cang Xu so nervous and bewildered.
Jian Gui also wanted information on Charming Blue Goddess.
Charming Blue Goddess’ divine artifact was the Mermaid Fairy Tale, which was
currently on the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“During the battle, the naga priestess treated the Deep Sea Monster Fish as a
divine envoy, Charming Blue Goddess’ divine artifact was also kept in War
Merchant’s central tower, perhaps the two of them really were collaborating in
secret?”
“Why is Jian Gui looking for them?”
“He is no ordinary necromancer, he is an orthodox necromancer, his teacher is
Captain Gou Hun, one of You Shen’s twelve disciples.”
“Maybe his request is not his own notion…”
“As a third party, he is simultaneously looking for War Merchant and Charming
Blue Goddess, what does he know? What does he desire?”
Cang Xu was very vigilant.
“Don’t tell me he found out about Mystifying Monster Island’s disappearance?”
“Do I have some clues on me?”
“No, calm down. Jian Gui is just a gold level; the possibility that he can see
through the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spells is
miniscule.
Cang Xu strived to calm his agitated mind while secretly growing more alert.
If Jian Gui knew Cang Xu had a close connection to what he requested, one would
fear he wouldn’t be so good-natured.
Although his mind had been moved very intensely, on the face of it, Cang Xu
remained calm and collected.
He didn’t feign questions; he merely kept silent.
Xiao Wang Zi hung his head, “Those are rare things Lord Jian Gui wants, but I
really can’t do anything about them, oh dear, I am too useless!”
Qi Ling shook her head, “I cannot betray my clan or my beliefs!”
Ku Feng shrugged his shoulders, “You know Lord Jian Gui, I have only been
moving around Two Eyes Island for the last few years.”
Cang Xu was the last to respond, “Perhaps I can use Wisteria Merchant Alliance
channels to make discreet inquiries for the pertinent information. But I cannot
guarantee it will succeed, just as Lord Jian Gui has said, the current Wisteria
Merchant Alliance has been broken utterly.”
Jian Gui nodded, expressing his thanks to Cang Xu, then consoled Xiao Wang Zi,
before finally saying to Qi Ling, “You don’t need to struggle so, small fish, I
understand you and respect your beliefs.”
The first round of transactions came to an end.
The strongest necromancer in the cave, Jian Gui, was actually the sole loser in
these transactions.



****** Chapter 240: A Big Purchase ******
The undead gathering’s first round of transactions had concluded.
Cang Xu also saw that the transactions with each other was not equal, simply
put, it was Jian Gui playing with the others.
Jian Gui controlled unrivalled resources. Regardless of whether it was soul or
memory crystals, the other necromancers rushed like ducks for them, they were
things they needed.
Jian Gui monopolized these resources; therefore, he naturally held the dominant
position.
In light of his power and resources, he could completely depress the prices and
cheaply acquire the others’ common resources.
But Jian Gui didn’t do this, he traded based on market value, and even a bit
cheaper than market value.
“It’s no wonder these people respect Jian Gui so much.” Cang Xu’s thoughts
flashed.
This kind of respect had a reason, every undead was shown consideration by Jian
Gui, Jian Gui was a gold level; he was the strongest and monopolized resources.
Ku Feng said, “The second round of transactions begins, following the
established order.” 
This time, Cang Xu immediately asked for soul crystals.
Both he and Zi Di urgently needed them.
Jian Gui was winning to supply them at the previous price.
Cang Xu bought two hundred soul crystals.
Jian Gui laughed, “Oh ho ho, I didn’t expect such a big customer, I only
brought so many, I don’t have any more now.”
It wasn’t that Cang Xu didn’t want to buy more, rather Jian Gui only had so
many on him.
Everyone was surprised.
“Newcomer, I have a whole new level of respect for you, you are wealthy!” Xiao
Wang Zi bluntly stated, to purchase ten soul crystals, he had painstakingly
saved or a year.
Qi Ling gave an indistinct look but remained silent.
Qing Xin looked pensive.
Ku Feng clicked his tongue and guessed, “It seems during the battle for Two
Eyes Island, you dredged out longs of treasures from the seafloor?”
Cang Xu humbly nodded and candidly admitted, “Indeed.”
Qing Xin’s eyes flashed and her heart shook, startled by Cang Xu’s plunder.
Because that was the wealth of an entire island, and she didn’t know how much
of it Cang Xu had fished up.
Cang Xu admitting this was intended.
The survivors considered Hun Tong’s reaction, and it was likely the latter
would launch an investigation and pursuit. Therefore, Cang Xu decided to admit
it here to leave behind a trail.
Because after this undead gathering ended, Weeping Pine Island would have a
naval battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be victorious, and the Iron
Lump would join their fleet. The necromancer Cang Xu would also “die in
battle”, while actually using the name of “Lao Zhong” to return to everyone
else.
Thus, the treasures the survivors secretly salvaged could be washed clean.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would get spoils of war that surpassed
imagination, and according to imperial law, Hun Tong couldn’t respond with
force to it.
The survivors could even give the antiques and other things to Hun Tong if Hun
Tong gave them a suitable bid.
The second round of transactions continued.
Xiao Wang Zi shouted and stood up, “Lord Jian Gui, did you make the thing I
ordered?”
Jian Gui nodded, “You pretty lucky, more than a month ago, I killed an
incautious water path magician and made a water casting memory crystal.”
Xiao Wang Zi jumped up happily, “That’s wonderful! If that happened, my
‘generalissimo’ will get much stronger.”
He wanted to give the memory crystal to his mount, the three headed sea
serpent.
After the three headed sea serpent had become undead, its memory had almost
completely dissipated, thus it couldn’t use its water path racial magics.
During battle, it could only serve as a meat shield and a mount.
Jian Gui reminded, “You will look at the memory crystal’s contents well. If it
is not to your satisfaction, I can adjust it a bit for you right now. But not
by much, only in a few subtle ways.”
When Cang Xu heard this, his heart had a thought, “It seems that Jian Gui
possesses a memory crystal making device and has some methods of altering
memories.”
The survivors also had a memory crystal making device in their inventory.
“If I could trade for those things, that would be splendid.” Cang Xu was merely
daydreaming, and didn’t have a practical plan to implement.
Transaction requests couldn’t be made wantonly, because it would subsequently
reveal many things.
If Cang Xu put forth such a request, perhaps everyone would be wondering if he
had a memory making device on him?
The second round of transactions quickly finished.
Cang Xu obtained many soul crystals.
Xiao Wang Zi obtained a memory crystal.
Qi Ling and Ku Feng did a trade, she obtained Weeping Pine Island’s special
wood, It was good material to make ships out of.
Ku Feng wanted to buy a weapon, and Jian Gui stated he didn’t have any. 
Xiao Wang Zi giggled and declared arrogantly, “I have one!”
Cang Xu easily guessed that Ku Feng would make such a request during this
gathering.
As a result, Xiao Wang Zi had intentionally made a white bone cutlass that
reached silver level quality.
This caused Cang Xu to secretly have more respect for Xiao Wang Zi, “He was the
one who made the Eulogy Tombstone, and he also has that silver level work,
don’t tell me it is because he is an alchemy master?” 
Necromancers were also magicians and weren’t prevented from doing alchemy.  
Finally, it was Jian Gui’s turn, his prior trade hadn’t been reached, and he
simply gave up on it.
The third round of transactions began.
Cang Xu mainly looked at Ku Feng, he asked to buy a corpse aspect necromancer
inheritance.
“Although I obtained an advanced soul aspect inheritance, my body has been
transformed through my research, and I don’t plan on abandoning that.”
Cang Xu gave a simple explanation to everyone.
But Ku Feng replied, “I am not a necromancer, I am a fighter. Although Lord
Doctor Sui Shi roused me, I didn’t get a corpse aspect necromancer inheritance
from him.”
“However, I can research for you. But you’ll need to pay for it to my
satisfaction, furthermore, that research cannot disturb my pursue of the blade
path.”
Ku Feng’s words surprised Cang Xu.
However, the others didn’t seem surprised.  
Seeing Cang Xu’s puzzled look, Ku Feng shrugged his shoulders, “Don’t be
baffled, I have done research for Lord Jian Gui.
Jian Gui laughed, “Oh ho ho, craving for knowledge is an outstanding
characteristic of a magician. I have a basic corpse aspect inheritance that I
can sell to you.”
Although Cang Xu was very interested in Ku Feng’s body, he knew he didn’t have
the opportunity to research it.
Ku Feng could not be brought back to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and
research would take a lot of time, he didn’t have such leisure.
Thus, Cang Xu looked at Jiang Gui, and after a period of silence, audaciously
said, “Lord Jian Gui, you can sell me your necromancer inheritances, I want to
buy them all, please name your price.”
As a result, Cang Xu obtained a basic inheritance for both the corpse and bone
aspects.
Cang Xu acutely took note that Jian Gui did not sell his research results on Ku
Feng’s body.
Even so, he had an ample harvest.
After a mere skim over, he obtained much assistance from the corpse aspect
necromancer inheritance that would allow him to continue transforming his own
body.
The third round concluded and the fourth began.
Cang Xu took a deep breath, then boldly requested a deal with Jian Gui, “Lord
Jian Gui, if I may be so bold, are you willing to sell the method of how to
make soul crystals?”
Jian Gui stared at him.
Xiao Wang Zi bellowed, “What? Newcomer, you’re dreaming.”
Cang Xu deeply bowed, “With money, anything can be discussed.”
Qing Xin looked at Cang Xu, covering her concern.
As the proverb says, don’t flaunt your wealth.
When Cang Xu showed off his money, was he not worried that these necromancers
would besiege and rob him?
This transaction gathering was unlike Two Eyes Island’s auction hall; it was
easy for dirty deeds to happen here.
Cang Xu also admitted to his own boldness.
However, he didn’t carelessly take risks.
First, he had his judgement. Although this was the first time he had met Jian
Gui and the others, with his life experience and communication skills, he could
determine the innate character of these people.
Second, Cang Xu believed that this audaciousness would instead be beneficial
for him, it was called bluffing.
As expected, outside of Xiao Wang Zi’s reprimand, the others kept silent.
Qi Ling looked at Cang Xu faintly.
Anyone with basic intelligence could guess, “This newcomer is so bold, he must
have something he is relying on, we have to be vigilant!”
Of course, Cang Xu was displaying a silver level life aura.
Even if silver levels were not the gold level Jian Gui’s match, they could
still escape.
Cang Xu also had another magician, Qing Xin, of the same level by his side.
They didn’t know that Cang Xu wasn’t relying on himself or Qing Xin, but the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in the distance. 
Finally, Cang Xu believed that taking this risk was worth it.
If Jian Gui agreed to this transaction, wouldn’t it be a bloody profit?
Even if the price paid was high, it was worth the money.
One egg and one egg laying hen, the latter was naturally worth far more in the
long term.
“Oh ho ho.” Jian Gui laughed and shook his head, “So sorry, the soul crystal
creation method cannot be sold.”
“Even though I lack money greatly.”
“You understand, all magicians lack money!”
After Jiang Gui’s small jest, he turned serious, “The soul crystal creation
method is a treasure of the soul aspect necromancer inheritance, its most
valuable part.”
“This cannot be taught to outsiders.”
Cang Xu’s expression changed, “What do you mean?”
“Very simple, become one of us.” Jian Gui solemnly said, “You need to pass an
audit and complete some missions, then you’ll be qualified to obtain the
pertinent inheritance.”
“This is also the rules set by Founder You Shen!”
Cang Xu bowed again, expressing his apology, then he continued to ask about the
audit and investigation, along with what kind of missions needed to be
completed.
“I became a necromancer to gain greater power.”
“Since I am already wanted and not tolerated by the world, then I only have one
road, isn’t that so?”
“Oh ho ho, you are very aware.” Jian Gui exclaimed in admiration, then he
changed his tone, “But unfortunately, you cannot pass the audit.”
“I can see that your potential is limited, the limits of your talent isn’t
high.”
“The first step of this audit is inspecting this.”
“So sorry.”
Cang Xu stared blankly in place.
For a split second, he was a bit absent minded.
It was like returning to the past, when the authorities condemned his
cultivation aptitudes to death.



****** Chapter 241: Ship Spirit Restoration Scroll ******
Qi Ling whispered, “You don’t think we too want to gain a deeper level
inheritance? We are not qualified.” 
Ku Feng murmured, “Being undead is just another life form. Thus, talent is
still an essential factor.
“Some people were never blessed by the heavens, but after becoming an undead
and having their life shape altered, their talents would rise. Others it will
go down."
Xiao Wang Zi looked at Cang Xu in a daze, sympathizing with Cang Xu, consoling
him with pity, “Newcomer, we are the same.”
“In fact, those soul crystals to us are the same too.”
“When our spirits and souls reach their limits, more soul crystals won’t be
useful.”
“Buying soul crystals is actually very cost effective to us.”
“No, we are not the same.” Cang Xu thought to himself, but outwardly, he still
seemed disappointed.
Several rounds of transactions followed.
After confirming that the soul crystal creation method couldn’t be bought, Cang
Xu naturally didn’t ask for the memory crystal magic.
He mainly bought a large quantity of necromancy materials.
These materials were generally controlled by every country and were very
difficult to buy in normal markets.
But at this undead gathering, Cang Xu’s difficulty in acquiring them tumbled
immensely.
The transactions continued until all of the participants no longer asked for
anything.
“Next is the information exchange. May I ask everyone to declare what they
think is valuable information and exchange it with us.” Ku Feng directed. 
“Oh ho ho, don’t be nervous, you can chat casually.” Jian Gui soothed Cang Xu,
then looked at Qing Xin, “You didn’t gain anything from our transactions, so
don’t bother.”
Qing Xin quickly expressed her thanks.
Ku Feng spoke first about the battle for Two Eyes Island, and informed Qi Ling
that Dao Hen had been taken prisoner and might be executed publicly.
Qi Ling sighed, “That silver level fishman fighter is very famous and also very
strong.”
“I was invited by the Blue Green Coral Clan to fight with them; I didn’t expect
that it would happen on Two Eyes Island.”
The Blue Green Coral Clan is pretty strong; a pity they wanted to retake the
coral ball cage tree. That as the wrong strategy.”
“The ocean surface will belong to the Sheng Ming Empire.”
“We will only have hope of counterattacking and retaking the ocean when the
humans and beastmen have been depleted gravely.”
When Cang Xu heard this, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow towards Qi Ling.
This fishman ghost magician had been quite uncommunicative, but her words now
had insight.
Qi Ling continued to state her information: large quantities of ocean beasts
migrated into White Hair Trench, forming a temporary seafloor hunting ground,
and currently, there were many fishmen clans hunting there.
Xiao Wang Zi said, “Ice Sculpture Island is preparing a celebration this year,
they have invited many powers. The celebration is very grand, a once in a
century occasion. It will be very bustling then, and it is even said that a
beastman clan emissary will show up.”
Xiao Wang Zi’s parents were also visiting Ice Sculpture Island at this time.
It was Cang Xu’s turn now, and after he deliberated for a bit, he declared some
inside information, “You know I was also at the battle for Two Eyes Island, and
I happened to learn some inside scoops.”
“I discovered a giant fishman on the seafloor attacking Hun Tong’s Golden
Flash, it almost caused it to fall to the seabed.”
“When the giant fishman on the seafloor and the naga priestess met up, the naga
priestess addressed it as ‘divine envoy’, the former might be a divine envoy
from the fishmen’s Holy City!”
“Furthermore, the fishmen’s goal was not just to take back Two Eyes Island, but
they also had a more hidden agenda.”
“They seemed to be searching for something on Two Eyes Island, then smuggled it
back to the naga priestess.”
“So that’s what happened.” Ku feng looked pensive, “The Blue Green Coral Clan
attacking Two Eyes Island was indeed only a part of the fishmen troops.”
“That was the innate reason why naga priestess retreated so candidly.”
Although Ku Feng had become an undead, he was only a fighter.
Even a necromancer might not have been paying attention to what was happening
on the seafloor.
The information Cang Xu stated also had to do with him.
First, although the information seemed valuable, it really wasn’t, and as time
passed, it might be discovered as so.
Second, by providing this information, Cang Xu could perfectly complete the
link.
Finally, the justification he gave were sufficient. Because beforehand, he had
exposed his wealth and admitted that he took much of the seafloor valuables
away. Since he moved through the seafloor, observing the fishman divine envoy
was very reasonable.
Xiao Wang Zi tapped his chin, then considered, “A divine envoy and a naga
priestess, don’t tell me they are both of the fishmen’s Holy City?”
“Holy City…I once made a pilgrimage there.” Qi Ling sighed regretfully,
revealing her deep yearning and longing, “A pity that I never got a chance to
go ever again.”
It was Jian Gui’s turn.
He took out a scroll.
“I have spent a lot of energy, time, and even fought a fierce battle to acquire
this scroll.”
“This is also why I was late today.”
“Don’t underestimate it, it is very important to our entire undead faction!”
“This is a ship spirit restoration scroll; its writer is Ta Ke.”
“He is a saint level alchemist, an important member of the Gang Bang Clan, 45
years old and already a great alchemist scholar.”
“According to my information, Ta Ke developed this scroll and has the ability
to manufacture batches of them.”
Jian Gui looked grave, his tone heavy.
Xiao Wang Zi shook his head, “Ta Ke?” I heard of him. He is the greatest
alchemist genius in the Sheng Ming Empire as of recent years.”
“A ship spirit restoration scroll?” Ku Feng was puzzled, “Are you saying it can
restore ship spirits? Why is it so important to the entire undead faction?”
Qi Ling was a magician, and she thought of the crucial point to this, and she
said with bewilderment, “Are you saying this scroll uses the undead faction’s
methods?”
“Correct.” Jian Gui nodded, “We all understand that ship spirits and tower
spirits exists, the essence of them are soul fragments of magicians, which
bestow them with artificial intelligence.”
“The ship spirit restoration scroll is named after its effect; it can heal a
ship spirit’s injuries. It is a healing scroll.”
“In other words, this scroll can be used on the soul and heal it.”
“This is one of our undead faction’s personal strengths.”
“This scroll contains knowledge, I have already made out some of it, it
contains our undead faction’s unique substance.”
Qi Ling whispered, “Since the undead faction was created, its new faction
superiority has been rapidly diminishing. Every great power is both publicly
hunting us down while also researching it secretly. The ship spirit restoration
scroll is evidence that proves the Sheng Ming Empire has acquired enough of our
undead faction’s research to have a fundamental breakthrough!”
Jian Gui nodded with Qi Ling’s analysis, throwing an encouraging and
appreciative gaze, “This is what I want to say to you all, in the future,
surviving will be harder, I hope everyone can vigorously prepare for this.”
Cang Xu stared at the scroll in Jian Gui’s hand, his mind suddenly flashing, “A
ship spirit restoration scroll? Can it be used to an extent on a tower spirit?”
In theory, this was possible.
Ship spirits and tower spirits had the same origin, they were made from a
severed part of a magician’s soul.
After some reflecting, Cang Xu decided to take another risk!
“Lord Jian Gui.” Cang Xu said directly, “This is the first time I’ve seen such
a scroll, is your Lordship willing to part with it?”
“We can discuss the price.”
“To tell the truth, I also want to research it.”
“Oh?” Jian Gui looked at Cang Xu with astonishment, then he laughed, “Oh ho ho
ho, I am not mistaken, you are an excellent magician who won’t let any chance
to acquire new knowledge slip by.”
“But I am very sorry, I just got ahold of this scroll, I haven’t had time to
genuinely study it yet.”
Cang Xu faintly nodded, and immediately settled for the next best thing, “When
your research finishes, is Lord Jian Gui willing to sell it to this one?”
But Jian Gui still shook his head, “So sorry, I can’t sell that either. This
thing is very significant, after I research it a little, I will have to
immediately hand it over to my teacher, and it even might be delivered to
Founder You Shen’s hands!”
“I understand, this one was rude.” Cang Xu sighed, looking very regretful.
If the ship spirit restoration scroll was effective on tower spirits, then that
new kind of magic scroll was very important to the survivors.
And so, the gathering continued.
The undead exchanged more information, then entered the third section.
It was exchanging cultivation insights and experiences.
Knowledge was priceless, and exchanging knowledge was mutually profitable. The
difference was that one side won more, and the other won less.
Cang Xu felt he had a great gain.
Until now, he had cultivated alone, and although he had the ghost girl Zi Di by
him now after escaping Mystifying Monster Island, the latter’s necromancer
inheritance had come from Cang Xu.
Zi Di had been learning from Cang Xu.
This time, Cang Xu was communicating with veteran necromancers. Even Ku Feng,
an undead fighter, talking about his cultivation experience and how he dealt
with negative energy had a big impact on Cang Xu’s knowledge.
To say nothing of the necromancers Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi.
As for Jian Gui, although he didn’t speak much, each comment was very
insightful and caused Cang Xu to ponder over them for a good while.
Finally, as the undead gathering concluded, and each of them was bidding
farewell, Cang Xu wasn’t yet satisfied and inquired about the time and location
of the next gathering.
Ku Feng looked at Jian Gui, and after the latter nodded, the former stated that
if nothing unexpected happened, a year later, it would be at the same time and
place.
Cang Xu then asked, “Is it possible to exchange contact details with each
other?”
If they were close enough, necromancers could use alchemy communication
devices.
At the same time, they could also have specific places and detailed
countersigns to leave behind messages for each other.
After Cang Xu exchanged those with the others, including Jian Gui’s, he
departed.



****** Chapter 242: Weeping Pine Naval Battle - Part 1 ******
The Iron Lump’s captain’s room.
After Cang Xu boarded the Iron Lump, the first thing he did was to contact the
dragonman youngster to alter the battle plan.
Cang Xu had an enormous gain from this undead gathering.
He didn’t want to execute the prior plan.
In the previous plan, the battlefield would be near Weeping Pine Island.
“If battle takes place here, the undead gathering will be held at the different
place and time, they might even exclude me, a significant loss.”
“In the short term, this kind of gathering is valuable, it cannot be replaced!”
With this opinion in mind, he activated the alchemy communication device.  
Upon activation, the dragonman youngster transmitted, “Cang Xu, you finally
appeared!”
“The situation has changed, we have discovered a large group of pirates. They
are headed straight for Weeping Pine Island, stall as long as possible, we are
rushing over at top speed to provide assistance!”
The transmission shocked Cang Xu.
A group of pirates suddenly appearing had upended his original plan and had
also prevented him from changing to a new one.
Cang Xu thought of Ku Feng’s words – “if nothing unexpected happened, a year
later, it would be at the same time and place.”
“As expected, the unexpected happens often.” Cang Xu bitterly laughed.
The dragonman youngster continued to give him information, “This group of
pirates are our old friends.”
“All of them were pirate groups involved in the battle for Two Eyes Island. The
Stench Pirates, the Applaud Pirates, and the Lighting Pirates.”
“All of their ships are covered in camouflage magic and were concealed from the
Deep Sea Monster Fish’s detection for some time.”
“If you were just relying on your own detection methods, you wouldn’t have
noticed the pirate ships.”
“Maybe we can make use of this.”
“In short, please procrastinate as much as possible until we arrive.”
“Zong Ge has suggested that you can abandon ship and go onto the island, flee
into the pine forest and fight for time.”
Cang Xu became heavy, and he took a deep breath, “All three pirate groups are
silver level, but I don’t want to abandon the Iron Lumpbefore the battle
starts!”
The dragonman youngster was silent for a moment, “Everything will stem from
your decision, Cang Xu. I trust you.”
“I understand, Lord Commander.” Cang xu severed the communication.
The dragonman youngster trusted Cang Xu and had given him full authority to
handle it.
Similarly, the necromancer also trusted the dragonman youngster completely, he
didn’t doubt the dragonman youngster would support him with all he had!
According to common sense, retreating to the island was the dependable option.
But because of this trust, Cang Xu decided to take a risk.
“Running away before battle and surrendering the Iron Lump without resistance
is inappropriate.”
“A large amount of people going into the pine forest will be very difficult to
conceal, I am not good at that kind of magic, nor is Qing Xin.”
“If we abandon these dwarfs, then the dwarfs will be massacred by pirates or
the undead, how will Men Shi react?”
“If I abandon those humans, what will Qing Xin think in the future?”
“Calm, keep calm, I can ponder over the best strategy.”
Cang Xu was inevitably nervous.
The enemy was too strong.
And their side was too weak.
Cang Xu was only an iron level, and with the fire path rings, he could only
pretend to be a silver level for a short time.
Deceptive Disguise and the other spells could not amplify his military might.
When he fought the summoner Ya Ma on Two Eyes Island, this became apparent.
Qing Xin was actually the strongest person on the Iron Lump.
But she had barely any equipment, despite the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps doing
their best to make up for that deficiency.
What made Cang Xu most worried was that they only had one ship.
The Iron Lump was a bronze level magic ship, but its maritime military strength
was very low.
Because they didn’t have suitable sailors, and after the battle for Two Eyes
Island, the Iron Lump had left the island without getting the chance to repair
the cannons and other parts.
The Iron Lump was essentially a cruise ship.
“In an open battle, the Iron Lump will be crushed!”
“The swordsmen guards on board can be relied on, but they can only be effective
when we are boarded.”
“If this kind of battle happens, the humans and dwarfs on board will suffer
disastrous casualties.”
Cang Xu really wanted to prevent this situation.
Cang Xu tightly scowled, and felt puzzled, “Why did these pirates group unite
and head towards Weeping Pine Island?”
“This island has pine trees everywhere but lacks common resources.”
“To cause pirates to band together, it must be a major interest. What can it
be?”
“If the empire had dispatched troops to encircle and annihilate the undead
gathering, then that would be expected. How come pirates came?” 
Cang Xu had limited information.
After thinking deeply, he had a feeling, “The pirates might be following me.”
“I exposed myself on Two Eyes Island, outsiders know I purchased many good
things from the auction.”
“Although I seized the Iron Lump, its naval battle capabilities is very
limited, and not worth it to these pirate groups.”
“Therefore, they might not know there was an undead gathering being held here!”
“Can I take advantage of this though?”
Cang Xu was not the dragonman youngster, he wasn’t strong enough to fight them
all alone.”
Cang Xu wasn’t Zong Ge either, he couldn’t lead troops and didn’t have an
uncompromising nature for battle.
Cang Xu was himself.
He had a magician’s calmness and had the vicissitudes and the experience of the
old, he had served as a noble steward for many years, and he had been very good
at it.
He had outstanding communication skills and political acumen.
Everyone handled the same problem differently.
Zong Ge proposed that he abandon the Iron Lump and travel further into Weeping
Pine Island, using space to obtain more time, it was a military strategy.
Cang Xu decided to use a political stratagem. 
He moved his brain, imagining, “Can I use the people from the undead
gathering?”
“How can I exploit them without making them disgusted with me and make it
possible for me to continuing participating in this undead gathering?”
After a few seconds of hurried pondering, Cang Xu immediately acted.
He first gave the order to set sail, then informed Qing Xin that his ghosts
detected a pirate attack.
After that, he used an alchemy communication device to connect to the other
necromancers.
Fortunately, the necromancers hadn’t teleported to other islands with the
Eulogy Tombstone yet.
But Cang Xu didn’t offer a high price, he was asking for help.
He informed them of the urgent military situation.
“These people might have followed the Iron Lump all the way here.”
“If this is true, I will find the opportunity to compensate everyone for this
in the future.”
“So sorry for bringing trouble to everyone.”
“I have already set sail and look forward to seeing you next time!”
Cang Xu didn’t provide any help, instead after giving a warning, he immediately
retreated.
The Iron Lump became chaotic.
After Qing Xin was informed by Cang Xu, she instantly unlocked the ship cabins,
allowing the humans and dwarfs to move freely.
Qing Xin spoke forthrightly about the situation and hoped that everyone would
work together to cross this crisis.
The humans and dwarfs didn’t want to fall into pirate hands either, and
although they didn’t trust the necromancer, in this cruel situation, they were
in this together, for better or worse.
Cang Xu promised to everyone that he and Qing Xin were friends. Although he was
a necromancer, he would never slaughter living beings, and after getting
through this crisis, he would set everyone free.
Despite encouraging everyone, unfortunately none of the humans on board were
able to steer the ship.
The dwarfs came from the same clan and had always lived on a mountain.
The humans were also from inland areas and had scant chances to sail ships.
The dwarfs still had the star iron hand axes, and if boarding actions took
place, they could fight.
The Iron Lump set out and left its berthing.
It moved to the western side of Weeping Pine Island.
The reason why they were moving this direction was because the dragonman
youngster had given Cang Xu information.
The three silver level pirate groups weren’t all coming in from the same
direction.
The Applaud Pirates were coming in from the north east, the Stench Pirate from
the east, and the Lighting Pirates were approaching from the south east.
This military deployment had an obvious opening to the west.
Therefore, from being berthed on Weeping Pine Island’s eastern shore, the Iron
Lump’s best route was winding around the island and going west of the island to
make it more likely to break out o the pirates’ encirclement.
The Applaud Pirates’ new commander Bei Xiang was on top of the ship’s bow,
holding a telescope and watching where the Iron Lump was moving towards.
He immediately said, “Not good, the target is escaping.”
“It seems our opponent is not simple; they can at least see through our
camouflage!”
“Damn it, you can’t just let me rob you.”
Bei Xiang scratched his back.
He knew this would be a crucial battle for him.
Because he had just ascended to leadership and needed this victory and its
generous spoils of war to stabilize his authority.
He quickly shouted, “Top speed, chase them down!”
The new first made hurried to ask for instructions, “Commander, do we need to
use the battle squad?”
Bei Xiang hesitated, then waved his hand in refusal, “It is too early to use it
now, don’t separate the flagship from the fleet rashly. The target is nothing
to worry about, but we need to be on guard against the other pirates.”
Although the pirate groups had reached a temporary alliance, they were vigilant
against each other.
Meanwhile, in the Lightning Pirates’ fleet, Dian Wan also discovered the Iron
Lump was moving abnormally.
He raised his head and laughed, appearing very confident, “Based on the Iron
Lump’s speed, how can you escape? Hehehe.”
To the east, in the Stench Pirates’ fleet, Yang Cong Tou narrowed his eyes, his
heart still worried, “It would be best to adopt a blitzkrieg strategy. If we
delay any further, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will notice, and they’ll
stir things up terribly!”
“Perhaps my worries are superfluous, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is a bit
tactful, they won’t oppose an alliance of three silver level pirate groups.”
When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps discovered the three pirate fleets, the
pirates had already found them first.
They had been in the battle for Two Eyes Island, and although they hadn’t
fought the dragonman youngster personally, they could see this mercenary corps
was very strong.
The pirates sought riches and wouldn’t fight the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to
the death.
Therefore, they took the long way to avoid the island the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps stopped at.



****** Chapter 243: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 2 ******
As the Iron Lump left the island, the pirates tore away their camouflage and
sailed at top speed, officially opening the prologue the Weeping Pine Island
naval battle.
Cang Xu did his best to sail the Iron Lump as he pondered their course.
“To the east is the Stench Pirates, with 13 ships in total. The flagship is the
Stinky Tofu and isn’t very fast, no need to consider it for the time being.”
“To the northeast is the Applaud Pirates. Their commander Hu Li and the Applaud
battle squad working in tandem have air warfare capabilities, a thorny problem.
At the same time, their flagship, the Love Triangle, is a long distance
voyaging ship. It possess a silver level triangle sail and can even maintain
its speed in a headwind.
“As for the southeast, the Lightning Pirates are there. They have a total of 7
ships, and they have excellent speed. Their flagship the Electric Fish Net is a
remolded fishing vessel; it can put down electric nets.”
The information on these three pirate groups was easy to gather.
In addition, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fought on Two Eyes Island and
naturally had full and accurate information on them.
After Cang Xu thought it through, he chose to head south of Weeping Pine
Island.
“Damn it!” Upon seeing the Iron Lump, Bei Xiang exploded in anger.
It was obvious that the Iron Lump had chosen to avoid the Applaud Pirates and
would rather face the Lightning Pirates.
This was the correct choice.
The Lightning Pirates’ ships were all fast, but they were ordinary ships. Their
only iron level magic ship, the Electric Fish Net, was not as speedy.
The Applaud Pirates had no choice but to go around the island to continue
pursuing. Furthermore, due to Weeping Pine Island blocking their line of sight,
they effectively lost vision of the Iron Lump.
Bei Xiang was very worried that if the other pirate groups captured the Iron
Lump, he would get less spoils of war.
Dian Wan was a sharp contrast to the indignant Bei Xiang.
The pirate commander burst into laughter, “The prey is delivering themselves to
us!”
His fleet attacking from the southeast was the closest to the Iron Lump’s
route. 
The Iron Lump didn’t have a qualified helmsman on board, only Cang Xu
reluctantly taking on the job.
This magic ship wasn’t confident in turning around the island, it could only
sail in a straight line and scrape past Weeping Pine Island on its way out.
“Chase it down!” Dian Wan excitedly shouted.
The Iron Lump wasn’t that fast and was like an old ox being hunted down by a
pack of wolves.
The distance between both sides quickly closed.
Qing Xin was nervous, “We must activate the sail now!”
The sail she was talking about was the Feather Snake Sail.
A gold level magic ship component.
Currently, Cang Xu and Qing Xin had to work together to form a magic power
reservoir that was channeled into the sail.
Not only that, but they had also wrapped the sail in a layer of plain white
cloth, a cursory disguise as an ordinary sail.
But when the gold sail was activated, its gold aura would be emitted, and its
disguise would vanish in an instant.
Cang Xu shook his head to Qing Xin’s suggestion, “No, wait a bit.”
Soon after, the distance between both sides had halved.
Qing Xin suggested again, “Activate the sail!”
“No, not yet!” Cang Xu was indifferent, his tone was tranquil, but he was
growing increasingly nervous.
Several minutes later.
The distance had nearly been closed, and both sides could see the people on
each other’s ships.
Qing Xi was anxious, “Activate it, or else this ship is finished!”
Cang Xu tightened his lips, and didn’t say anything as he looked towards
Weeping Pine Island.
Crack.
Suddenly, an echoing gunshot cause both sides to quiver.
Dian Wan flew into a rage, “Which idiot opened fire?!”
“What would you do if you shot my ship?”
“If you shot my things, what would you do to compensate for it?!”
When he said that, he had treated such a presumption as truth.
Not just Dian Wan, the others were also tenaciously looking for the shooter.
A pitiful pirate quickly threw down his firearm and raised both hands, “No, it
isn’t my fault. This wretched firearm accidently went off!”
Just as they said that a bone arrow whooshed through the air and shot the
pirate in the throat.
The pirate went stiff, then fell face first to the deck, dying tragically on
the spot.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…
A moment later, a large amount of wretched bone white arrows flew out, forming
a tight rain of arrows.
Many human skeleton archers came out of the pine trees.
Meanwhile, Cang Xu’s communication device transmitted Xiao Wang Zi’s voice,
“Newcomer, don’t be afraid, I’m here to help you.”
“Get out of here!” Said Ku Feng.
“We will cover for you.” Qi Ling echoed too.
Xiao Wang Zi ended with, “Don’t forget that Weeping Pine Island has my Eulogy
Tombstone, we can teleport out, don’t be so worried!”
“Success!” Cang Xu’s eyes flashed as he let out a big breath.
He successfully made use of the members of the undead gathering.
Furthermore, this method was very ingenious.
He didn’t ask them for help directly, because officially requesting it might
not really work. Because Cang Xu was very suspicious and needed both a long
time and due course of events to gradually earn their trust.  
Therefore, Cang Xu chose to issue a warning and that he didn’t wish to encumber
them, he didn’t want to look like he wanted to draw support from the others.
By doing this, it was instead easier to gain their trust.
These undead, would they really stay out of it and watch on unfeeling as Cang
Xu was captured?
Of course not.
If Cang Xu was captured, he might confess things about them.
Cang xu was a newcomer, and this was the first time they had met him. Even if
one knew each other for many years, they too would confess under torture and
the threat of death and betray their former friendship.
In Jian Gui’s point of view, he was extremely likely to help out.
The first reason was that he was a gold level and the pirates’ strongest member
was just silver.
The second reason was that Jian Gui was considering his prestige. He had helped
Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, and Qi Ling many times, regardless of how sincere he
really was, it was still within his benefits to set out and not watch on as
Cang Xu was arrested before his very eyes.
If Jian Gui was this “cold blooded”, how would Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, Qi Ling,
and others see him?
The three would have similar apprehensions, all of them were undead, all of
them were pushed aside by the world, every great power was hunting them, and if
Jian Gui didn’t save one of them when he could, was he really so magnanimous?
Absolutely not, these apprehensions were a blow to Jian Gui’s prestige.
Cang Xu knew the hearts of men, and with this foundation, he put his stratagem
into action.
First, he knew the other undead had a good opinion of him. Because during the
gathering, he had done the most transactions. Everyone had exchanged benefits.
Who didn’t like a scholar and trading partner with abundant capital?
If the gold sail had been activated earlier, the undead would have hesitated if
they saw what was going on the Iron Lump.
Cang Xu chose to take a risk as he watched the Lightning Pirates approach,
nearly risking a boarding action in order to put himself in danger.
When Jiang Gui and the others saw one of their own caught up in danger, how
could they not act?
The probability of them acting was quite high.
When one of them acted, it would undoubtedly spur on the others to do so too.
Not even Jian Gui would watch with folded arms as this happened.
He was a gold level necromancer!
Cang Xu’s gamble paid off, he had utilized his own intelligence to successfully
influence the other undead into attacking!
The skeleton archers must be Xiao Wang Zi’s troops.
Their volleys were pretty good, and they caught the Lightning Pirates off
guard, inflicting heavy casualties.
Dian Wan became furious, “What’s going on?”
His first mate had already taken command.
Bang, bang, bang.
The Lightning Pirates’ cannons fired, aiming at the skeleton arches in the
trees.
The artillery shells exploded into the pine trees, blowing branches and leaves
into the sky.
The skeleton arches were turned into bone fragments under the bombardment,
unable to withstand it.
However, Xiao Wang Zi, who was hidden in some secret place, was not fretful, on
the contrary, he was enjoying himself quietly and mumbled, “Kill them, kill
them, I want more of these small skeletons, I have many of them.”
After the Lightning Pirates did their bombardment, they found that although
many skeleton archers were slain, they were more coming from all directions and
filling in the gaps without delay.
The Lightning Pirates were constantly enveloped by arrows, and their casualties
were steadily mounting.
The first made shouted to Dian Wan, “Commander, the enemy’s military power is
unknown, this cost is too disadvantageous to us!”
Dian Wan clenched his fists and bit his teeth, “Necromancers are so annoying! I
didn’t expect that he’d leave arrangements here.”
Because of Xiao Wang Zi’s assistance, the Lightning Pirates were forced to
retreat from Weeping Pine Island.
Xiao Wang Zi’s skeleton archers couldn’t shoot as far as cannons, and very
quickly, they couldn’t threaten the Lightning Pirates anymore.
Anyways, due to this delay, the distance between the Lightning Pirates and the
Iron Lump had increased.
Dian Wan was incessantly furious as he watched the distance between them grow.
His impulses bubbled up and he decided to do something on the spot, “I will
charge them!”
“No, hold on!” The first mate rushed to stop him, “The enemy ‘s power is
unknown, don’t be reckless…”
The first mate stopped talking.
Because Dian Wan had already run out.
He had alchemy equipment, the water walking boots, and as a result, he could
treat the ocean surface as soft land that he could run across.
When the first mate saw Dian Wan running out, he deeply sighed and quickly
ordered, “Discharge the electric nets now!”
The Flagship Electric Fish Net immediately shot its bow cannon.
It shot a special type of artillery shell.
After the artillery shell flew into the sky, it instantly spread open and
formed a large iron net.
The large iron net fell onto the ocean surface and flattened itself across it,
then burst with dazzling blue lightning.
Dian Wan’s eyes shined, and he strode onto the momentarily floating electric
net.
The electric net expediated Dian Wan’s battle qi, causing it to suddenly
explode with all of its might.
Dian Wan focused the electric current, and his pointed blue hair became even
more straight as lightning twisted around his entire body.
Battle skill – Electric Current Overload.
“Ah ah ah, I feel power brimming from head to toe!”  Dian Wan’s muscles swelled
somewhat, and his spry body immediately became thick and strong.
Whoosh!
Dian Wan ferociously stomped on the iron net crackling with electricity,
causing it to sink into the seawater while he shot towards the Iron Lump with
speed comparable to that of an arrow.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin had been prepared for this, and both used their magic.
Dian Wan nimbly moved, dodging Qing Xin’s wind blades, but Cang Xu’s ghost
came, throwing itself into his body.
The large amount of negative energy instantly eroded at Dian Wan, while
simultaneously, the ghost’s memories also poured into Dian Wan’s sea of
consciousness, blurring his original memory!
Dian Wan’s fierce charge was immediately routed.
Plop.
He fell down, head first into the seawater.
But his water walking boot were still working, so he was floating upside down,
his feet on the surface, and his head underwater. 



****** Chapter 244: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 3 ******
Dian Wan’s head fell into the ocean, head over heels, his mind flickering
between a daze and soberness, his entire body was ice-cold.
In his fiery impatience, he raged and shouted, “Ah ah ha…grr grr…ah ah…grr…”
Ding.
With an explosion, blue lightning burst out, causing a gigantic jet of water to
rise.
The water scattered, and Dian Wan, his muscles flexing and lightning curing
around him, stood on the ocean once again.
Hie entire body’s battle qi was active, he didn’t stint to spend any of it as
the silver level ghost was squeezed out of it.
The silver level ghost became more transparent and was just about to throw
itself into at Dian Wan, however, the latter knew he had eaten a loss and
prioritized escape, instantly putting distance between the ghost.
The ghost chased right after Dian Wan.
Cang Xu controlled the ghost while feeling a trace of regret.
“If I had known a battle would occur, I would have sold off a silver level
ghost at the undead gathering.”
He had a very burden on him now, and if he couldn’t control the ghost how he
wished, it would be difficult to display its full combat potential.
In Cang Xu’s original plan, he really wanted to sell a silver level ghost
during the undead gathering.
But the plan couldn’t keep up with change, and Cang Xu had easily obtained the
Burden Alleviation and Karma Reduction spells.
With these two spells, he had changed his plan and kept a silver level ghost.
No one could have foreseen pirates attacking as he left the island.
Dian Wan had left his fleet in the dust as he charged at the Iron Lump.
Meanwhile, the Lightning Pirates’ fleet was speeding up because they had
extricated themselves from the skeleton archers.
“Overtake the captain!”
“He charged out by himself again.”
“Chase after him, he needs our assistance!!”
The pirates shouted, their morale high.
But a moment later, a large amount of ghosts came from the seafloor,
penetrating through the bottom, the hulls, and stormed inside the pirate
vessels.
The pirates were ambushed and sank into great chaos.
“Gho, ghosts!”
“Damn it, blades can’t cut them.”
“Eeeahh…”
For a moment, cries of alarm lingered on.
The one attacking was the ghost magician Qi Ling.
She had an army of water ghosts under her control.
Not limited to just that, she also began to use magic from her seafloor hiding
place.
Necromancy spell – Middle Level Soul Sending.
A silver level ghost quietly made its way into the body of a helmsman.
Even though the helmsman was an iron level, he was immediately eroded, his eyes
went wide, and his face was filled with fear, yet his mouth was silent, he
could only look on helplessly as his body was taken over by the ghost.
Qi Ling coldly smiled on the sea floor.
A moment later, the ghost under her remote control forced the helmsman to turn
the rudder fully to the left.
Another pirate ship shouted warnings while taking evasive action.
But it was no use.
The two had been rather close to each other, and every pirate ship had ghosts
ambushing and slaughtering those aboard. 
It was very difficult for the pirate ships to right their course in a timely
manner.
Ding!
The two pirate ships collided.
A moment later, wood shavings flew as many pirates were tossed from the decks
and masts.
The collision had left the two ships in a horrific state, their hulls had
massive holes in them and lots of seawater was pouring into them!
Zi Di on the Deep Sea Monster Fish had been watching these two ships crash into
each other.
“Amazing!” Zi Di couldn’t help but praise from the bottom of her heart.
Zi Di also knew the Soul Send spell.
She had once planned to use the Soul Send spell on the big guy’s body to help
him complete his first battle qi circulation.
But Zi Di’s Soul Send spell was only the basic version. The magic allowed the
caster to possess another lifeform or an object with their soul. The stronger
the soul, despite being used on a corpse or a white skeleton, the created
zombie or skeleton soldier would have exceptional intellect.
Qi Ling’s Soul Send spell was a level higher than that.
She could use Soul Send through her ghost troops, and by controlling the ghost,
and the ghost controlling the target, she formed a control chain.
Doing this has many benefits.
The caster putting their soul into the target had a large element of risk to
it. With a layer of separation, when the soul within one’s body was resolved,
the necromancer would remain safe, for losing one ghost was worth it to secure
their own safety.
In addition, the caster controlled many ghosts, and could take it a step
further, they could control many targets simultaneously, letting them control
the battlefield.
The magician Qi Ling only made one control chain, and that reduced two of the
Lightning Pirates’ ships to scrap wood and cause the pirates aboard to cry for
their parents as they jumped into the water to escape, one could see how
powerful this magic was from this.
This was also the power of a magician.
This group could leverage stronger military power and had abundant methods
available.
Therefore, in any battle, killing enemy magicians was a primary mission.
Qi Ling’s water ghost army’s attack had thrown the Lightning Pirates into
disarray.  
Luckily the first mate was still in command.
Their command structure hadn’t broken down yet and was still operating.
The Iron Lump was like an old ox as it puffed hard to sail ahead.
This was its highest speed.
Due to its strong defense and heavy hull materials, Iron Lump’sspeed compared
to its foes was no surprise.
On the Iron Lump’s aft, Cang Xu was watching the Lighting Pirates being
devastated and couldn’t help but hope, “This is the true strength of
necromancers!”
There were several hundred water ghosts, with at least two silver level ghosts
among them.
The necromancer Qi Ling had been summoned back by Jian Gui and had served as
his testing assistant for many years before being set free, yet she maintained
a very close relationship with Jian Gui.
Cang Xu was able to obtain an advanced soul aspect inheritance from Jian Gui
this day. It can be surmised that Qi Ling had gotten theirs far earlier
“The Burden Alleviation spell and Karma Reduction spell are so significant.”
“With these two supplementary spells a necromancer can be a one man army.”
Cang Xu had unending praise for them.
On the other side Qing Xin was using magic.
Wind path magic – Wind Signal spell.
Qing Xin transmitted to Dian Wan, “Dian Wan, your troops are being swiftly
decimated, are you not going to save them?”
Dian Wan knew full well the devastation laid upon his pirate group, and when he
heard Qing Xin’s words, he couldn’t help but glance behind him.
But a moment later, he still bit his teeth and continued to pursue the Iron
Lump!
Dian Wan’s choice made Qing Xin grow ever graver.
Cang Xu calmly ordered, “Activate the sail.”
Qing Xin’s look instantly changed.
“I’ll overtake you! I’ll repay the damage you’ve done to us tenfold!” Dian Wan
screamed in his thoughts.
The distance between both had closed to its maximum when Dian Wan jumped with
all he had!
Buzz, hmm, buzz…
A great amount of magic power flowed from the magic power reservoir into the
Feather Snake Sail.
The magic power passing through the temporary connecting channel produced a
resounding buzzing.
This made Qing Xin look onwards with worry, she was very anxious that the
temporary channel wouldn’t be able to bear the flow and would collapse at this
crucial moment.
Luckily, the materials Cang Xu had used were exceptionally sturdy and Qing
Xin’s worries weren’t realized for the time being.



****** Chapter 245: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 4 ******
When great amounts of magic power flowed into the Feather Snake Sail, it
resembled an out of practice expert encountering an army of tigers and wolves
that suddenly erupted with a dark green light.  
The light scattered, causing the while cloth over it to be torn to shreds,
completely exposing the gold level sail to full view.
“Ah, the Feather Snake Sail!” Dian Wan was startled.
It wasn’t that he didn’t know Cang Xu had the Feather Snake Sail, after all he
had been at the auction too.
But Cang Xu’s conduct was very treacherous.
He had camouflaged the Feather Snake Sail and didn’t rush to activate it; thus,
its gold level aura never appeared.
This caused Dian Wan to have an error of judgement.
Dain Wan had already jumped into the air and used a defensive battle skill, he
was about to crash into the Iron Lump’s deck.
But a moment later, the Iron Lump accelerated!
The old ox suddenly turned into a rabbit.
The Iron Lump abruptly sped forth.
Dian Wan couldn’t fly and wasn’t able to use his abilities in the air, he had
no choice but to drop back down as he looked onwards helplessly as his target
escaped.
“Damn it, don’t you escape!” He unconsciously extended an arm that wanted to
grab it.
Then, the waves stirred up by the Iron Lump submerged him.
The pitiful Dian Wan, he had been played by Cang Xu again.
The Iron Lump’s fleeing figure attracted the eyes of many.
“The newcomer is unexpectedly savvy!” Xiao Wang Zi laughed out his praise.
He had been worried a moment ago, after all, a silver level fighter closing the
distance with a magician was very dangerous.
But a moment later, the Iron Lump’s surprising burst of speed allowed Cang Xu
and the others to successfully avert disaster.
Ku Feng standing next to Xiao Wang Zi suddenly realized, “The Feather Snake
Sail, they actually managed to attach it to the Iron Lump.”
Neither of them suspected Cang Xu’s motives.
Because Cang Xu had warned them beforehand and didn’t request help actively.
If he had done so and deliberately placed himself in danger to compel the other
necromancers into helping him, then that would undoubtedly draw attention to
Cang Xu’s malice.
“No need to worry about the newcomer for now.”
“Hehehe, it is our turn to show off.”
“Generalissimo, we charge!”
On the skeleton magician Xiao Wang Zi’s order, his three headed undead sea
serpent mount obeyed and suddenly rushed out of the pine forest.
Many pine trees were crushed down, and countless broken branches flew into the
air, its impetus was astonishing.
But a moment later, a large hand picked up Xiao Wang Zi’s slim skull and easily
lifted up him.
Ku Feng picked up Xiao Wang Zi, then jumped up over the three headed undead sea
serpent, then landed back down. 
“Huh, hey?” Xiao Wang Zi looked up at Ku Feng, his feet not touching the
ground. His four limbs flailed about, “Let me go at once, I want to go fight
and kill those damned pirates!”
Xiao Wang Zi detested pirates greatly.
In the past, he had frequently attacked pirates to protect his kingdom’s
merchant ships.
Every time his parents went traveling, he had gone ahead of them to wantonly
mop up pirates to prevent them from damaging his meeting with his parents.
Ku Feng was indifferent, and his tone was calm, “Lord Jian Gui sent me here to
protect you.”
“Don’t forget, you are a magician.”
“Charging into enemy lines isn’t your role.”
“Were the many lessons you got about this not enough?”
Xiao Wang Zi’s big head immediately bobbed up and down, and his legs and feet
no longer waved around as he mocked, “Alas, isn’t Lord Jian Gui here? Normally,
I wouldn’t dare to do this.”
“Stop being pesky and hide with me.” Ku Feng carried Xiao Wang Zi into the
depths of the forest.
Xiao Wang Zi was forced to then order, “Generalissimo, you can charge by
yourself, make an extra effort!”
The undead three headed sea serpent continued to charge, it jumped into the
water and quickly swam towards the Lightning Pirates.
When the Lightning Pirates’ first mate saw this, he took in a cold breath, “Why
is there also a silver level undead magic pet?”
He sensed things were getting worse.
Because during the course of this battle, the other side had exposed strength
far beyond prior reports.
Their information had described in detail Cang Xu’s military strength on Two
Eyes Island.
But now, there were skeleton archers, water ghost troops, several silver level
ghosts, and also a silver level undead three headed serpent.
“We cannot let that serpent approach!” The first mate felt a trickle of cold
sweat as he rushed to give the order to open fire to stop Xiao Wang Zi’s
“generalissimo”.
There were difference between silver levels.
Such as this enormous undead magic beast, it was the greatest threat to the
pirates’ ships.
Soon after, the Lightning Pirates opened fire.
But the artillery was irregular, the reason was that most of the crew were
being entangled by water ghosts and already had their hands full.
The electric net artillery shells the first mate had placed his expectations
were never fired.
As it turned out, the gunners there were gravely impeded.
Magician Qi Ling had been watching for an opportunity and had focused on
controlling a silver level ghost to penetrate deeply into the Electric Net
Fisher to wreak havoc, coordinating with the three headed serpent’s advance. 
The first mate clenched his teeth as he brazenly ordered, “Smash into it!”
When the pirates around him heard this order, their eyes widened with
incredulousness.
But the first mate sternly roared, “You aren’t going!”
There was something that made the Lightning Pirates a bit different from other
pirate groups - the first mate’s reputation was greater than its commander.
The pirates’ vicious nature was also stimulated.
“Fuck his mother!”
“Crash into it, run it down.”
“That three headed serpent is already dead!”
“Then let’s run it down, smash it to bits!!”
The pirates yelled as the flagship Electric Net Fisher quickly broke away from
the fleet and took the lead in charging at the undead three headed serpent.
When Xiao Wang Zi saw this, he rushed to control the three headed serpent into
diving down.
The Electric Net Fisher hit nothing.
The first mate had foreseen this and had ordered in advance, “Fire the electric
net shells around us!”
Ding, ding.
Due to Qi Ling’s interference, only two shells were fired, forming two electric
nets.
Xiao Wang Zi giggled, “Having a teammate working with you feels wonderful!”
He ordered his generalissimo to float up and easily avoid the two electric
nets.
The generalissimo extended its three long serpent heads and easily pulled
itself onto the deck of the Electric Net Fisher, with its limbs and tail moving
to and fro.
Because of the three headed serpent’s weight, the entirety of the Electric Net
Fisher began to tilt.
The first mate had no choice but to take out his cutlass and charge first.
With Xiao Wang Zi and Qi Ling, two veteran silver level necromancers, working
together, the entirety of the Lightning Pirates was trending towards total
defeat.
Seeing the situation, Dian Wan finally turned around and gave up pursing the
fleeing Iron Lump, returning back to his fleet to assist it.
While Dian Wan rushed back to his flagship, another pirate group was heading
over to support them.
It was Yang Cong Tou’s Stench Pirates!
Dian Wan yelled at Yang Con Tou, who was standing on his ship’s bow, “Quickly,
let’s work together to get rid of that three headed undead serpent!”
On Two Eyes Island, these two groups had wanted to work together to capture Hun
Tong’s city government building.



****** Chapter 246: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 5 ******
On the ship’s bow, Yang Cong Tou tightened his brows and yelled at Dian Wan
with a gloomy face, “You still don’t know that we are not just facing a single
necromancer?”
The Lightning Pirates didn’t detect anything, but Yang Cong Tou was a magician
and had better investigative abilities than fighters like Dian Wan.
“I surmised that long ago!” The Lightning Pirates’ first mate nodded, “The
other side’s military power exceeds the reports by too much.”
“There should be a second necromancer attacking! When they attended the
auction, there were two of them.”
After hearing what Yang Cong Tou and his first mate said, Dian Wan impatiently
replied, “Then we have to work more together!”
Yang Cong Tou coldly snorted and didn’t refute the first mate’s conjecture.
He had checked the depths of the seafloor and found the aura of a necromancer
casting, but he hadn’t detected Xiao Wang Zi or Ku Feng.
Let along Jian Gui.
Therefore, despite being able to detect something more than Dian Wan, he was
still completely in the dark and didn’t know what the enemy’s actual military
power was.
This was the proper strategy for a magician.
As long as they remained hidden and didn’t reveal themselves, they could cause
the enemy to misjudge things and obtain a level of initiative.
If Xiao Wang Zi came over with the three headed undead sea serpent, then the
pirates could make out a portion of the truth and become more vigilant.
Despite not discovering the truth yet, Yang Cong Tou still felt under pressure.
Of the revealed military power, the pirates were still on top. 
Yang Cong Tou really valued his gut feelings.
Because this feeling had helped him get through many dangers.
As an experienced and knowledgeable magician, he knew this feeling was called
“spiritual awareness”.
Often those that steeled themselves at the edge of life and death would
gradually create spiritual awareness, it was a type of spiritual power!
“Things feel wrong.”
“Be more cautious, saving Dian Wan and his people is essential.” Yang Cong Tou
said to himself.
Truth be told, he didn’t have a good opinion of Dian Wan’s group.
Dian Wan had looted the Sun Halo before Yang Cong could, something Dian Wan
mocked Yang Cong Tou for.
Yang Cong Tou had joined the auction to purchase the Sun Halo, but Zi Di and
Cang Xu had bought him out.
He had agreed to join Lady Sea Snake’s alliance because he was both afraid of
her and that his main goal here was to seize the Sun Halo.
The Sun Halo was very significant to Yang Cong Tou’s cultivation!
“If it weren’t for Dian Wan being a step ahead of me, would it be necessary for
me to be dragged all the way here?”
Thinking of that, Yang Cong Tou became aggrieved.
He sneered to Dian Wan, “Hehe, work together? Don’t be so flowery.”
“Dian Wan, you need my help now!”
Dian Wan’s look immediately sank, and the pirates by him also began to swear.
“I can help you, but what will it cost?” Yang Cong Tou shamelessly seized the
opportunity to extort him.
The pirate alliance was not a united group, that it didn’t hit another while
they were down already gave Lady Sea Snake face.
Taking the chance to extort another was wholly within common procedure.
The Iron Lump.
Cang Xu looked at the Lighting Pirates and the Stench Pirates converging in the
distance, and when the latter was aiding the former, it immediately caused his
brows to purse.
He instantly acted, unexpectedly stopping the Feather Snake Sail.
The heavy Iron Lump’s speed turned from a fleeing hare back into an old ox’s
pace.
Qing Xin immediately turned around, giving Cang Xu an incredulous look, as if a
giant question mark was appearing above her head.
“We can leave this battlefield! This is no place to stay for long.”
“Are you thinking of going back to help?”
“That’s unnecessary. They just communicated that we should leave without delay.
With our strength, we’ll just be a burden.”
Cang xu shook his head, “No, wait a moment, take a look at how the situation is
developing.”
Qing Xin didn’t know the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was around.
Seeing Cang Xu do this, Qing Xin’s misunderstanding deepened, “Are you waiting
for Jian Gui to act?”
“Indeed, the strongest of these pirates are only silver level, the necromancers
have a clear advantage.”
“But have you considered that since the enemy’s strongest is a few silvers, why
hasn’t Jian Gui acted yet? This proves that he doesn’t want to act.”
“You are all necromancers, but you all have a different capacity. If a gold
level necromancer appears, that will provoke far more trouble that a silver
level, Jian Gui probably doesn’t want to stir up such trouble.”
But at that moment, a communication device transmitted Zi Di’s voice, “Older
sister Qing Xin, don’t worry, you still have my support.”
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was far faster than conventional ships, and had
arrived already, but didn’t enter battle.
At the necessary time, Zi Di would act.
Qing Xin’s eyes flashed, “Of course I trust you. So, you were actually nearby.”
“So that’s how it is.”
“You wanted to express your goodwill to these necromancers by helping?”
“You must be careful! Those pirates are not easy to push around. That Jiang Gui
seems to speak well, but since Jian Gui is a direct inheritor of the undead
faction, he won’t be easy to deceive.”
The Stinky Tofu.
The lookout on the mast shouted, “Commander, there is something!”
“The Iron Lump has slowed down to its prior speed.”
Yang Cong Tou was in the middle of extorting the Lighting Pirates when he heard
this and turned to look into the distance with shock.
“Huh?” He saw the situation, it was just as the lookout had said, the Iron Lump
had indeed slowed down to its previous speed.
Yang Cong Tou’s heart moved, “Could it be that they weren’t able to fully
install the gold level Feather Snake Sail, that they were able to only use it
once when forced by Dian Wan?”
“But on the other hand, the Feather Snake Sail and the Iron Lump are not
compatible, it will be very difficult to put them together.”
“One needed at least an outstanding alchemy designer to plan out a sensible
magic power circulation flow.”
On the other side, the Lightning Pirates’ first mate also felt this and quickly
shouted, “Commander Yang Cong Tou, we agree to your terms…”
Before he could finish, Yang Cong Tou interrupted him.
He burst into laughter, “I gave you a chance, but you thought it was too
expensive!”
“It is too late to agree now.”
“Set off! Seize the Iron Lump!!”
The Stench Pirates loudly answered Yang Cong Tou’s command with great joy.
The pirates were discontented with going to help another pirate group.
Now, with wealth right in front of their eyes, who would want to help the
Lightning Pirates? Would they really help them and divide up the treasure with
them?
Simply ridiculous!
The Stinky Tofu was the first to sail pas the Electric Net Fisher, aimed at the
Iron Lump in fierce pursuit.
Tightly following it were the ordinary pirate ships.
Before leaving, Yang Cong Tou taunted Dian Wan, “Dian Wan, have fun with your
new friends. We will go get rich!”
Dian Wan angrily rained curses back.
This made Yang Con Tou even happier, and he raised his head in raucous
laughter.
Yang Cong Tou led the Stench Pirates in a constant pursuit, quickly closing in
on the Iron Lump.
Seeing that they had reached a certain distance from them, Cang Xu once again
activated the Feather Snake Sail.
The Iron Lump churned water as it accelerated and began to put distance between
the two groups.
Yang Cong Tou’s eyes glared, and he realized things were far from good, “Not
good, it’s a trap!”
But what would happen if he turned around to help the Lightning Pirates?
Yang Cong Tou didn’t want to lose face too.
“Chase them, keep chasing them!” Yang Cong Tou sternly shouted.
The Stench Pirates were in hot pursuit, but speed wasn’t their strength, and
they could only look helplessly as the distance between them and their quarry
continuously grew.
However, just as Yang Cong Tou and his crew gradually despaired, Cang Xu
quietly acted again and turned off the Feather Snake Sail.
Seeing the Iron Lump slow down again, Yang Cong Tou stared blankly, “Eh?”
However, when he looked at the Iron Lump’s deck, he saw thick smoke rising.
Yang Cong Tou rejoiced as he surmised, “Sure enough! They were forced to do
that, the Feather Snake Sail is very difficult to link to the Iron Lump, their
connections have problems.”
On the Iron Lump’s deck, Qing Xin gazed at the thick smoke on the deck, quite
amazed, “I didn’t expect that this design included an automatic smoke discharge
function?”
Qing Xin looked at Cang Xu, “Is this your design?”
Cang Xu shook his head, “Of course not. However, it was my idea.”
The channel between the gold sail and the Iron Lump’s magic power reservoir
wasn’t damaged. Its design had come from the tower spirit.
This kind of design was made through the tower spirit looking through a large
amount of blueprints and amending one of them.
The thick smoke once again deceived Yang Cong Tou, and the entirety of the
Stench Pirates were once more inspired to pursue the Iron Lump.
When the distance closed between the two sides again, Cang Xu activated the
Feather Snake Sail once more..
The Iron Lump sped up again.
Yang Cong Tou, “Eh?”
The Iron Lumpslowed down.
The Stench Pirates stirred back up.
The Iron Lump sped up again.
Yang Cong Tou didn’t grunt again, instead he deeply pursed his brows, his face
filled with fury, “A trick! This necromancer is really treacherous!!”
But at this distance, he was already too far from the Lighting Pirates, and it
would be too difficult for him to turn around and help the latter.
Yang Cong Tou simply stopped paying attention to Dian Wan’s group and
maintained his prior pursuit order without alteration. 
The Iron Lump had successfully hung up a pirate group.
Cang Xu coughed, then he used an alchemy device to notify Zi Di, “Everything is
under control.”
“But Jian Gui still hasn’t acted yet.”
“This person is very important; he has many good things on him.”
“The dependable plan is to express goodwill to him.”
“But if circumstances allow, we will attack him, the spoils of war might be
massive!”
Whether it was the soul crystal creation method or how to use memory crystals,
both were very beneficial to the survivors.
When Qing Xin heard this dialogue, her eyes couldn’t help but widen with shock.
“You want to attack Jian Gui?! He is a gold level…”
Zi Di transmitted a laugh, “Older sister Qing Xin, don’t forget, the pirates
will serve as our cannon fodder.”
Telling Qing Xin this ahead of time was so she could accept it was happening.
Qing Xin’s brows creased greatly, “Little Zi Di, how much power is under your
control? You want to plot against a gold level necromancer, that is too risky!”
Zi Di didn’t directly reply, instead she said, “We are also acting according to
circumstances.”
Cang Xu added, “I will now send you the precise coordinate of the cave to you
now. If the necromancers show signs of teleporting, you can discern whether or
not to bombard the cave and destroy the Eulogy Tombstone!”
Qing Xin took a cold breath.
Upon hearing Zi Di’s and Cang Xu’s audacious scheme, she grew far more tense.
Cang Xu consoled her, “Relax a bit.”
“The current situation is more favorable for us.”
“Both sides are either criminals or disciples of evil, this is the right thing
to do, this is exercising justice.”
Qing Xin’s mouth twitched, she wanted to ridicule that with: did you forget
that you are also a necromancer?
While Cang Xu was plotting against both sides, the Applaud Pirates had finally
circled around the island and were now in the field of view of Cang Xu and the
others.
“The Iron Lump is still here!” Bei Xiang joyously shouted when he saw the Iron
Lump running away.
While sailing around the island, he had been very worried that the Lightning
Pirates had already captured the Iron Lump and now held all of its people and
treasures.
He didn’t expect that the Iron Lump would be in a very different situation to
the one he had envisioned.
The group he believed to be his biggest competitor, the Lightning Pirates, were
unexpectedly in a terrible situation, they were entangled in grave danger with
water ghosts and an undead three headed serpent.
The Stench Pirates were the closest to the Iron Lump.
“That is the gold level Feather Snake Sail!” After Bei Xiang saw the state of
the Iron Lump, he immediately realized the crucial factor that had brought
about the current situation.
“My flagship too will find it hard to overtake the Iron Lump’s speed.”
“It is worthy of being a gold level sail, it could actually elevate the Iron
Lump’s speed by so much!”:
Bei Xiang sighed to himself.
After a bit of reflection, he ordered, “After closing distance with the target,
shell it!”
The Applaud Pirates’ flagship was the Love Triangle.
It was an iron level magic ship and was a voyage type ship, its speed was
pretty good and exceeded that of the Iron Lump’s by a bit.
But Bei Xiang didn’t want to get close to the Iron Lump and do a boarding
action.
The reason was simple, he was only iron level, not silver.
If he was a silver level fighter, he would have done the same as Dian Wan,
charging at the Iron Lump directly was the best tactic!
Bang, bang, bang.
The Love Triangle came from the northeast, and after closing the distance,
began to bombard in succession.
Everyone on the Iron Lump found it difficult to bear.
To ensure safety, the Iron Lump was forced to take evasive maneuvers.
The ship didn’t have a qualified helmsman!
The Iron Lump had a bad showing against the bombardment, this made Yang Cong
Tong behind it both worried and delighted.
He was delighted that since the Iron Lump was weak to this, if the Stench
Pirates joined in, it would make the latter’s situation worse and cause their
speed to fall further.
He was worried that such a bombardment would damage many valuable things.
“If only the Sun Halo was in his storage device…” Yang Cong Tou sighed, then
followed that with an order.
The Stench Pirates would also start shelling.
The Iron Lump’s situation grew more difficult.
This ship’s entire gunnery was filled with last moment substitutes, dwarfs and
humans were passively standing around, studying how to operate the cannons.
While this situation was playing out, at the edge of the battlefield, a new
power appeared.
The White Bandage was in the lead, serving as the flagship.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ main force had entered the battlefield,
officially joining the Weeping Pine Naval Battle!



****** Chapter 247: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 6 ******
The White Bandage.
The dragonman youngster was standing on the pole inclining from the ship’s bow,
his strong and tenacious red dragon scales welcoming the sea breeze, revealing
his mass and vigor.
He raised a telescope and surveyed the Iron Lump.
Zong Ge was standing on top of the aft house.
Sailors were bustling across the ship, two battle squads were hidden on
standby, with no one knowing where they were.
Numerous cannons had already poked their barrels out; a number of dark green
cannon mouths looked like the sharp toothed maw of a gigantic beast. 
Unlike the two other sides, the last participant of this battlefield, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, had entered in peak condition.
But the dragonman youngster was solemn, because he knew that they only looked
the strongest, it wasn’t truly the case. 
The gold level necromancer Jian Gui hadn’t acted yet, and the coalition of
three pirate groups was also a formidable opponent.
“Move, it’s the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!” On Weeping Pine Island, Ku Feng
saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flag, and once again carried Xiao Wang Zi
by the nape and retreated deeper into the pine forest.
“I once associated with them for a time.”
“This mercenary corps’ backer is very strong; they are rumored to be arms
smugglers.”
“Their commander and auxiliary commander are not ordinary silver levels. The
auxiliary commander Shi Qi already has a gold luster to his silver battle qi
and Commander Long Fu is even stronger than him.”
“During the battle for Two Eyes Island, no one of the same level could
withstand him. He was even able to fight Er Gua Zi directly and was only a bit
weaker than him.”
Ku Feng explained this to Xiao Wang Zi while also transmitting it through a
communication device to inform the other necromancers, including the newcomer,
the one time participant of the undead gathering, Cang Xu.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps…they still came!” Yang Cong Tou’s brows deeply
wrinkled.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was undoubtably a powerful enemy.
Dian Wan was even more anxious.
Because according to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ course, they would be the
first to meet them.
It wasn’t that Dian Wan didn’t want to withdraw and get away from the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, rather it was because they were entangled with the undead
three headed sea serpent and the water ghost army and unable to free
themselves. 
“Fire the cannons at me, fire the cannons at me!” Dian Wan clenched his teeth,
roaring with firm resolve.
He jumped into the ocean and decided to face his own cannons.
The first mate followed up by yelling, “Do as the commander says!”
Bang, bang!
Two cannons fired, shooting two electric net shells that detonated above Dian
Wan, one on top of the other.
The two electric nets that exploded out directly fell on Dian Wan’s body.
Dian Wan summoned all of his battle qi to withstand the two layers of electric
nets.
Dian Wan’s skin quickly burned black and emitted the cooked smell of roasted
meat.
Dian Wan shuddered fiercely all over, his head fell to his waist, he kept
himself from dying and fainting.  
He managed to endure the most difficult phase.
After slowly breathing out, he immediately used his battle qi to absorb all of
the electrical currents into his body.
His cultivation was the Electrocution battle qi technique, and this battle qi
technique’s philosophy was cultivation through pain. During normal cultivation,
he would touch an electric current constantly and be shocked by it at his own
accord, using the electric current traveling through his muscles and internals
to stimulate his body and produce battle qi.
Normal cultivation was very painful, and at this time, Dian Wan used a secret
technique, but the theory came from the same place.
It was all based on electric current stimulation, through this massive
suffering, one could attain some cultivation goal.
Two electric nets was Dian Wan’s limit.
The pursuit of the Iron Lump, along with fighting the undead three headed sea
serpent and the water ghost army had depleted his battle qi reserves to less
than 30%.
But through this electric shock, his potential was stimulated to the utmost and
his battle qi quickly recovered to 85%. At the same time, his offense, defense,
and speed were also amplified immensely.
“It really hurts!” Dian Wan slowly raised his head and extended arms that were
now twice their size across his chest.
Then he looked up, and with a shake of his arms, tore the two electric nets
sparking weakly to shreds.
Dian Wan’s chest was exposed, his entire being had swelled, his muscles looked
like marble lumps, and his full head of sharp blue hair stood up perfectly
straight like steel needles, the space between each hair tip sparked with
electricity.
Dian Wan’s eyes were pitch black, with only his azure pupils shooting out
glaring electric light.
Dian Wan at this moment had reached the summit of his military power!
Bang.
He took a step on the ocean surface, then suddenly disappeared.
Dian Wan had become a bolt of lightning that ferociously slammed into the
undead three headed serpent’s abdomen.
The undead three headed serpent looked like a locomotive being knocked off its
tracks as its entire serpent body was thrown off the Electric Net Fisher.
The three snake heads then reacted, facing towards their own abdomen as they
opened their mouths to unleash their formidable racial magic.
Dian Wan roared and used a battle skill.
After both of them collided, a gigantic explosion occurred.
The undead three headed serpent was blown into the ocean, with a gigantic hole
in its abdomen.
Dian Wan panted from the top of his flagship’s aft house, watching as undead
three headed serpent fell into the water, his complexion pale and his swollen
body shrinking somewhat.
“Generalissimo!” Xiao Wang Zi lamented from his hiding place on the island.
He could sense the undead three headed serpent’s injury was big.
Of course, it could still fight.
But Xiao Wang Zi didn’t want risk his generalissimo anymore.
Xiao Wang Zi used his spirit connection to order the undead three headed
serpent to retreat immediately.
The later had no retorts, it didn’t have a living being’s battle intent, it was
an ice-cold machine that swam back to Weeping Pine Island after receiving the
order.
Dian Wan then fought the water ghost army, causing great damage to the latter.
His battle qi mixed with electricity, increasing its destructive power against
ghosts greatly.
In response to this, magician Qi Ling also commanded her water ghost army to
retreat.
The water ghosts were nimble and conventional physical barriers were nothing to
them, so they quickly vanished completely, as if they were never there.
But the Lightning Pirates’ sinking ships and dead pirates everywhere proved
their horror.
“We won?”
“Finally, we beat back those wretched undead!”
“Boo hoo hoo, I thought my death was for certain.”
“It was all thanks to our captain, Captain Dian Wan’s power!!”
Dian Wan strived to ease his aura, then he hastily ordered, “We are leaving
now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is coming!”
The pirates’ cheers came to a sudden stop.
They really were in a miserable situation.
After two veteran silver level necromancers had devastated and bullied them,
they would now be greeting the formidable Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The pirates were all nervous, they weren’t able to breath during these
successive operations.
The first mate stood next to Dian Wan’s side, looking at the latter with
concern.
The latter’s fist was faintly trembling, but he was still standing straight
like a rifle!
He gazed at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with rapt attention; his heart
filled with bitterness.
It was too late to do anything.
Dian Wan didn’t want to fight, the Lightning Pirates had already lost enough
people.
But setting sail now, their speed wouldn’t be faster than the mercenary corps’
fleet. 
“Prepare for battle!” Dian Wan then ordered, tenaciously looking at the
approaching enemy.
But the first mate’s opinion was different from his, “Commander, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps might not be coming for us.”
At almost the same time, the dragonman youngster ordered, “Go around, avoid the
Lightning Pirates.”
A moment later, the flagship, the White Bandage, slightly changed its route and
so did the ships following behind it.
They were like a sharp blade that that cut at an angle that was some distance
from the Lightning Pirates.
Next to Dian Wan, the first mate’s eyes flashed sharply, “Our prior
investigation said that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps have the dwarf Men Shi.
It seems they absorbed this silver level dwarf into their ranks.”
“The Iron Lump has many dwarf prisoners, all Men Shi’s clansmen.”
“Therefore, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ most important goal is not us
pirates, but the Iron Lump.”
“Commander Long Fu wants to rescue those dwarfs!”
Dian Wan had a realization, “So that’s how it is.”
But just as he let out a breath, he saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships
open up with sudden puffs of white smoke.
Both Dian Wan’s and the first mate’s eyes contracted fiercely, roaring one
after the other, “A bombardment, take evasion action now!”
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had intentionally gone around the
Lightning Pirates, they didn’t let them off completely.
The Lightning Pirates’ ships were all bunched up while the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ships formed a line, perfect for a broadside against the
Lightning Pirates.
Under normal circumstances, ships had most of their cannons arranged on the
sides of their hulls, thus these sides had the strongest firepower, while the
bow and the aft had the weakest.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t lack cannons.
They used to, but after the battle of Two Eyes Island, they had recuperated and
were able to make a deal with Hun Tong and were backed full with ordinary
cannons.
The densely packed cannons seemed to create a rain of cannonballs that
indifferently and mercilessly overshadowed the Lighting Pirates.
Bang, bang, bang…
The continuous explosions added insult to injury to the Lighting Pirates,
instantly increasing their casualties dramatically.
Dian Wan howled.
The first mate held his head, burying himself behind the cover in the back,
doing his best to curl up himself.
Suddenly, an artillery shell struck near them.
It was a silver level artillery shell!
The artillery shell exploded, knocking the first made unconscious, blowing a
massive hole into the Electric Net Fisher, and flinging Dian Wan three meters
away.
The shooter was Chi Lai.
Although he saw Dian Wan flying away, he quickly stood up and sighed
regretfully.
In front of him was an ordinary cannon, it had blown up and was utterly
destroyed, unable to stand another of his shots.
“If this was the gold level cannon, then the entire Electric Net Fisher would
be gone!” Chi Lai began to reminisce.
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, he fired the gold level cannon once.
That profound and invigorating feeling was something he found hard to forget.
“Captain Dian Wan, how are you?” The troubled pirates asked.
“It’s nothing!” Dian Wan stood back up, but his back was filled with blood.
“Cough, cough, cough.” He suddenly coughed intensely, his complexion growing
even whiter.
But he knew he couldn’t fall; he had to grind his teeth and persevere.
At that moment, Lady Sea Snake’s voice came from a communication device,
“Captain Dian Wan, please have your group impede the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps as much as possible!”
Dian Wan blankly stared, then cursed without restraint, “Fuck your mother with
your impediment!”
The Lighting Pirates had suffered disastrous damage, and Dian Wan soon ordered
them to all retreat.
The Lightning Pirates were the first to retreat from the battlefield.



****** Chapter 248: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 7 ******
The Lightning Pirates left.
Once Dian Wan made a decision, the entire pirate group would follow it
instantly and to the letter.
Dian Wan was a veteran pirate commander, and was swift and decisive, and the
entire pirate group was also made almost completely of veterans too.
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, they had lost many ships. In this
battle, they had seven ships, and they retreated with only three (including
this flagship), an absolute blow to their strength.
“The Lightning Pirates are in a dire state, and the Electric Net Fisher is an
iron level magic ship. A bit of a pity that we are letting them get away.” Zong
Ge secretly communicated to the dragonman youngster, “I can lead a few ships to
deal with them. Dian Wan looks powerful, but in actuality, he is at his tail
end, I determine that he is probably bluffing.”
The dragonman youngster muttered to himself for a bit, then refused, “Let them
go, the battlefield still has the Applaud Pirates and the Stench Pirates.”
“Now is not the time to divide our forces.”
“The most crucial person is Jian Gui!”
“You must know, with our current course, it is will likely induce him into
attacking the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
Zong Ge nodded, and didn’t say anything else.
The dragonman youngster’s misgivings were also his misgivings too.
That was the crisis.
In danger there was opportunity.
It all depended on what choices they made.
Sensing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was still firmly locked onto the Iron
Lump, Men Shi secretly let out a breath.
He also saw how weak the Lightning Pirates were.
He too was worried that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would make a detour to
deal with them, seeking their iron level magic ship.
“Commander Long Fu gave up that temptation.”
“He could have gone to attack it, after all, having an iron level flagship
would greatly improve the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps immensely.”
“But he didn’t do that, he is pursuing the Iron Lump wholeheartedly.”
“He is doing that to save my clansmen!”
Men Shi’s heart was incessantly moved.
The Iron Lump.
Qing Xin was nervous, “I can see Men Shi on the White Bandage. We are the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ target!”
Cang Xu nodded, feigning confusion, “So that’s how it is.”
Qing Xin’s brows wrinkled, and she softly said to Cang Xu, “If that is the
case, then perhaps we can make us of those dwarfs. Threatening the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps with them can perhaps be of some use to us.”
Cang Xu pretended to ponder, then refused, “Long Fu is not that kind of man.
Moreover, we have already set the dwarfs and humans free, and we made a promise
to them, holding them hostage now will likely trigger internal disorder! That
is very detrimental for us.”
Qing Xin sighed, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are too much of a threat!
During the battle for Two Eyes Island, we fought against them. They won’t let
us go. By using the dwarfs as hostages, we can restrict them and force them
into refraining from attacking in fear of harming the innocent.”
Cang Xu would never accept this suggestion, as he was part of the dragonman
youngster’s group, he was simply putting on a play right now.
Cang Xu shook his head, “I am not a disciple of evil, Magician Qing Xin. I
believe that it would be for the best if we didn’t provoke the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps too much. But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps can be exploited!
We can change our course, so the Applaud Pirates and the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps get close to each other!
Qing Xin raised a brow, “Good plan. Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wants
to help Men Shi save his fellow dwarfs, they won’t shell the Iron Lump while
also simultaneously abhorring those pirates.”
The Iron Lump immediately altered its course.
They didn’t have a qualified helmsman, and could only steer by leaning to the
side, altering its course bit by bit, swerving in the battlefield.
At this moment, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were coming in from the east,
they had already steered around the Lightning Pirates and were south of Weeping
Pine Island.
The Iron Lump and the Applaud Pirates were southwest of the island.
The Applaud Piarates were northeast of the Iron Lump. To the Iron Lump’s
southwest, there was nothing.
After Cang Xu gave the order, the Iron Lump easily sailed southwest. This
course also had a gigantic advantage, it would keep the Applaud Pirates points
ahead, preventing them from using their strongest firepower.
The Love Triangle.
The new pirate commander, frogman Bei Xiang, was beating the side of the ship
with his fist.
“Abominable!” He immediately saw how the Iron Lump was moving.
The Iron Lump wasn’t fleeing westward, rather it had changed course to the
southwest.
Bei Xiang was experienced in naval battles, and also knew Men Shi had joined
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he instantly recognized Cang Xu’s stratagem.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t overtake the Iron Lump with speed, he just didn’t do
so.
Because based on his information, Cang Xu and Qing Xin were silver level
magicians.
The Applaud Pirates lacked a silver level, and their only sole silver level,
their old commander Hu Li had been sentenced to death by a pirate trial.
The Applaud Pirates’ systemic problem had given them layers of heavy qualms;
they didn’t dare to launch an all-out attack and were forced to harass the
other side with cannons.
But the cannons on the bow were nothing to write home about.
This kind of bombardment against the Iron Lump was no significant threat, and
didn’t affect the latter’s speed.
As Bei Xiang was at his wits’ end, Lady Sea Snake’s voice came through from a
communication device.
Lady Sea Snake told Bei Xiang this: she was approaching the target; she needed
Bei Xiang to attract the target’s attention and wait for her to make her move!
Bei Xiang expressed that it would be difficult.
Lady Sea Snake coldly snorted, and didn’t mince words, “Use your battle squad,
accelerate the flagship. The other side only has one ship, and it is just a
bronze level one, what are you afraid of?”
Bei Xiang’s expression immediately went gloomy.
The means couldn’t be misused; it should be used last and be treated as an
emergency retreat method.
Many times, the Applaud Pirates had used this method to escape alive.
Bei Xiang was not at all surprised that Lady Sea Snake knew this information.
This method has been used many times and has been completely exposed.
After a moment’s hesitation, Bei Xiang resolutely transmitted the order.
He was only an iron level, and he being able to become the Applaud Pirates’
commander was because Lady Sea Snake was vigorously supporting him. To
stabilize his position, he had to win this first battle, otherwise he’d be in
big trouble.
The Applause battle squad quickly assembled on deck, under the main sail.
Battle skill – Applauding Love!
The frogmen all used the same battle skill, with one after the other lifting
their frog palms and clapping them together.
The battle skills smoothly combined with each other, forming sound waves –
clap, clap, clap.
The sound waves pounded against the main sail.
The main sail suddenly swelled, forming a full sail, accelerating the entire
Love Triangle!
The Love Triangle had been matching its fleet’s speed, but now with its speed
shooting up, it instantly broke from it like a launched arrow and charged
towards the Iron Lump.
Cang Xu knew about the Lovely Applause battle skill too and coldly snorted,
“The Applaud Pirates are using their best method and think that our destruction
is certain.”
The Iron Lump found it difficult to deal with the tumultuous Love Triangle by
itself.
Qing Xin said, “Hu Li hasn’t appeared, quite strange. According to
intelligence, he is not an assassin type fighter, it is possible that internal
problems have appeared in the Applaud Pirates.
If Hu Li was present, he would have stormed the ship by himself by now.
To some degree, Hu Li was a greater threat than Dian Wan.
Because Dian Wan could only walk across the water, and he had to run across the
ocean to get close to the Iron Lump. While Hu Li could use his battle squad and
special battle skills to jump through the air.
From this point of view, one could regard Hu Li as a silver level with a flying
skill!
In the battle for Two Eyes Island, Hu Li displayed his battle talent.
He was indeed powerful and had suppressed both Qing Xin and Men Shi for a long
time. If the dragonman youngster hadn’t helped them in time, Hu Li would have
been completely victorious.
However, from the beginning of the Weeping Pine Naval Battle till now, Hu Li
had never appeared.
Despite not knowing about the pirate trial, Cang Xu and Qing Xin could guess
that something happened to Hu Li.
Since Hu Li had an accident, Cang Xu and Qing Xin had methods to deal with the
Love Triangle.
After the two looked at each other, both flew into the air and decided to
attack the Love Triangle first!
Cang Xu and Qing Xin both appeared to be silver level.
Seeing two silver level magicians attacking, Bei Xiang’s heart suddenly popped
into his throat.
This was exactly what he had worried about.
But Bei Xiang didn’t retreat.
His situation compelled him; he had to gamble it all.
He was gambling on Lady Sea Snake, who had not appeared yet.
Lady Sea Snake didn’t disappoint Bei Xiang.
Somewhere in the ocean, she took out a scroll.
A moment later, she opened the scroll and poured magic power into it.
Wind path magic scroll – Windless Domain!
The magic took effect immediately, and from its center, its range stretched for
several hundred meters where there wasn’t a trace of wind.
The Iron Lump’s sails went limp, and its speed suddenly dropped to rock bottom.
The Love Triangle’s speed also decreased suddenly, but due to the Lovely
Applause battle skill, its main sail could still provide motive force.
After the magic scroll took effect, it turned to flowing ash that sprinkled
through Lady Sea Snake’s tender fingers and diffused into the seawater.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin were shocked.
When Lady Sea Snake used the scroll, her camouflage failed, and her magic aura
was very distinct.
Qing Xin cried out in alarm as she fell from the sky.
The Windless Domain had affected her magic and caused her flying skill to fail.
But Cang Xu didn’t save her, instead he was fully alert and allowed Qing Xin to
fall into the ocean.
Then a moment later, Lady Sea Snake took out another scroll.
The scroll was torn apart, shooting out a rapid succession of water arrows.
The water arrows were aimed at Qing Xin.
Cang Xu’s eyes flashed, he took out a scroll and used it to put defensive magic
onto Qing Xin.
Qing Xin had plentiful flying experience, and while falling, she immediately
adjusted her body posture to maintain her balance as much as possible.
Seeing that the ocean was growing bigger in her field of view, she took out a
flying scroll and tore it.
She stopped falling, regaining the ability to fly.
Then, Cang Xu’s defensive magic covered her.
At nearly the same time, three water arrows hit her in a row, flinging her into
the air.
The magic protecting Qing Xin endured the three water arrows, turning
transparent afterwards.



****** Chapter 249: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 8 ******
Qing Xin adjusted her posture, then immediately flew back up and zig zagged
through the air in evasive flight.
Cang Xu did the same, flying through the air in an irregular fashion.
Both were sweating with cold fear.
They had just been ambushed by Lady Sea Snake’s magic, fortunately they
responded correctly and had adequate magic scrolls, otherwise they would be far
greater trouble!
Lady Sea Snake saw that her ambush was ineffective and couldn’t help but sigh
to herself with deep regret.
She quickly adjusted her mentality and took out a piece of snake skin, then
took out a glass full of blue liquid.
She began to chant, because she could speak normally in seawater.
As she chanted, a tenth of the blue liquid bubbled out and flowed into the
snake skin.
The snake skin blossomed with a faint blue light.
Lady Sea Snake raised her left hand and threw the snake skin into the air.
The snake skin suddenly exploded to bits and turned into a serpentine stream of
water that shot towards Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
Water path magic – Serpentine Water Arrow!
The water arrow ripped through the sky with great speed, and in a few breaths,
it neared Qing Xin.
It was being controlled by Lady Sea Snake’s spirit and could lock onto things.
Despite Qing Xin dodging, she was still hit.
This time, the defensive magic collapsed and after slowing a bit, the
serpentine water arrow penetrated Qing Xin’s left shoulder blade.
Qing Xin grunted as her left shoulder turned scarlet.
When Lady Sea Snake saw the serpentine water arrow worked, she took out another
snake skin and began to chant again.
Cang Xu appeared callous as his unleashed his spirit and controlled ghosts to
find her.
But when the ghosts got near her, they instantly triggered many magic traps,
some that blew up, and others that hindered the ghosts.
Lady Sea Snake seemed to have built a tight perimeter around her.
Cang Xu’s heart sank, and he knew within a short period, he would find it
difficult to break through the perimeter and threaten Lady Sea Snake.
I don’t really know how this person managed to hide and covertly deploy so many
things!” So far, Cang Xu still didn’t know it was Lady Sea Snake, only that
there was some water path magician in the seawater somewhere.
It was this magician that was attacking them!
Since he couldn’t prevent the enemy from casting, Cang Xu and Qing Xin both
used scrolls as if by prior agreement to give themselves a layer of magical
protection.  
But choosing to go on the defensive meant they were going passive.
Lady Sea Snake was in a one versus two, but she held a large initial advantage,
allowing her to focus on attacking Cang Xu and Qing Xin, firmly pushing them
into a disadvantageous position.
The second serpentine water arrow was still aimed at Qing Xin.
Qing Xin couldn’t dodge it, so she didn’t try.
If she had wind path flying magic, she could fly much faster and possibly evade
it.
Although this ordinary flying spell worked in the Windless Domain spell, its
flying speed was nothing to write home about.
The serpentine water arrow had remarkable might, and after being reduced to a
tenth of its size upon drilling through and breaking the protection magic, it
still bit into Qing Xin’s abdomen like a poisonous viper.
Qing Xin deceivably took out an artifact.
It was a square piece of white cloth, and it looked like plain cotton. Two long
protrusions stuck out from both sides that looked like two unfurled wings.
The white cloth emitted a silver level aura.
Qing Xin put it on her left shoulder wound.
The strip of white cloth instantly took effect, producing a pure light that
flowed with an exquisite pattern.
It was the Life Saving Pad!
After three breaths of the Life Saving Pad taking effect, Qing Xin’s left
shoulder was restored as to how it was before.
She also tore it down to stick it on her abdomen.
Soon after, her flesh was completely healed.
Lady Sea Snake clicked her tongue, feeling regret again. She had the better
offence, and the other side had lacking defense. Her great results had been
undone by Qing Xin taking out the Life Saving Pad, its formidable healing
making up for her shortcomings in defense. 
Lady Sea Snake’s heart moved, she instantly changed her methods and cast an
acid spell.
Spell fusion!
Acid magic and the Serpentine Water Arrow spell fused together, forming a
serpentine acid arrow.
By doing this, the magic came with corrosion effects and would counteract Qing
Xin’s dominance in healing.
Lady Sea Snake had obviously come prepared and had deep casting abilities. 
Cang Xu and Qing Xin had been firmly suppressed by her, and their situation was
getting worse all the time.
They had planned to deal with Bei Xiang and stop the Love Triangle’s approach,
but now they had their hands full and weren’t able to look after the Iron Lump.
Cang Xu strived to persevere.
He was only an iron level and lacked military strength, and if Lady Sea Snake
attacked him, he would be in an even worse situation than Qing Xin.
However, Lady Sea Snake had been deceived by him.
To her, it seemed that it would be better to deal with the conventional wind
path magician before tackling a necromancer of the same level.
“I should have sold off a silver level ghost.” Cang Xu felt very remorseful,
his soul was heavily burdened, causing his spirit power to be at a low point,
causing his casting speed and success rate to be low.
But it was too late now.
Getting rid of a silver level ghost was not as simple as throwing it away. Cang
Xu needed to undo his spiritual connection and needed at least half an hour and
couldn’t be disturbed during the process.
Then at this moment, Cang Xu’s communication device rang.
After Cang Xu connected, Jian Gui transmitted, “Return to Weeping Pine Island.”
Cang Xu’s mind shook fiercely!
Cang Xu glanced at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet and noticed that they
were already here.
He used the communication device to respond to Jian Gui, “Understood, Lord Jian
Gui!”
Cang Xu called out to Qing Xin and the two quickly flew towards Weeping Pine
Island.
Lady Sea Snake’s eyebrows deeply creased.
Of course, she wouldn’t sit there and stare blankly as Cang Xu and Qing Xin
flew off, thus, she was forced to leave her tight defensive line and pursue
them.
However, she still hid in the seawater, so people could only sense her aura and
approximate position.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin originally thought of protecting the Iron Lump, but Lady
Sea Snake had forced them to flee to Weeping Pine Island.
Qing Xin was nervous and fretful, while Cang Xu was pleasantly surprised.
Jian Gui had decided to contact him and tell him to fly back to Weeping Pine
Island, his willingness to help him was clear.
Cang Xu had been anxious that perhaps Jian Gui wanted to attack the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ fleet.
“That water path magician is in pursuit, very good!”
“In light of the developing situation, I only need to serve as bait and lure
them to Weeping Pine Island, then have Jian Gui deal with them.”
“If neither side wins, then we’ll be the one who gets everything, that would be
the best outcome.
Cang Xu was only thinking about it.
The water path magician that ambushed them was only silver level, and to him,
it should be the pirate alliance’s secret weapon.
How could the silver level water path magician be the gold level Jian Gui’s
match?
Cang Xu fleeing took away Lady Sea Snake, but not the Love Triangle.
The Love Triangle didn’t lack motive power and easily approached, then anchored
next to the Iron Lump.
The humans and dwarfs aboard the Iron Lump were panic-stricken, they fired off
some cannons inaccurately, provoking laughter from the pirates on the Love
Triangle.
At this moment, Bei Xiang and the others heard the dragonman youngster shout,
“Applaud Pirates!”
“I’ll give you one chance to run away.”
“The one you want to loot has my comrades on it; I won’t allow you to touch
them!”
“If you run away now, then I Long Fu will use my reputation to guarantee that I
will let you leave this naval battle alive!”
The dragonman youngster had used a sound amplification device to warn the Love
Triangle.
Bei Xiang and the others all became discolored.
“Captain, what should we do?” The frogmen pirates were universally terrified.
Beig Xiang was both angry and hateful, “Rob them! Are you telling me you’re
afraid?”
He couldn’t cower now.
He had just become commander, and if he shrank back now, it would damage his
reputation too much. How could his underlings look at him as their new
commander?
Bei Xiang knew he had to stabilize his position as commander, he couldn’t look
cowardly, be timid of battle, or have other such things associated with his
reputation.
After all, the Love Triangle was much closer to the Iron Lump than the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet.
They could quickly come next to the Iron Lump, then with the frogmen’s strong
jumping ability, many frogmen didn’t need to set up embarkment planks and could
just jump onto the Iron Lump and start fighting.
The Iron Lump’s humans and dwarfs were already on full alert.
Both sides began to fight each other fiercely.
Because Cang Xu and Qing Xin had released them earlier, and had mobilized them,
the humans and dwarfs had high morale.
Also, the main force and defense on deck was not them, rather it was the
swordsmen guards Cang Xu had intentionally left behind.
These alchemy puppets were scattered across the deck and became the cornerstone
of the defensive lines.
With these alchemy puppets’ support, they locked the frogmen pirates in battle.
This battle continued for a few minutes.
The humans and dwarfs lost the first deck level, for in the end, they were no
match for the frogmen’s offensive and were forced to retreat to and defend the
middle deck level.
Bang.
With an explosion, the dragonman youngster jumped into the sky, then with a
brazen drop, directly landed on the Love Triangle!
While Zong Ge and Men Shi led the Quick Knife battle squad and the other
mercenaries onto the Iron Lump.
This was a wise plan.
Because the dragonman youngster used explosives in his attacks, and was liable
to easily cause accidental injuries to teammates. His most suitable move was to
be a one man army that could rampage through the enemy’s base.
Battle skill – Surge.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
The dragonman youngster looked like a crimson grim reaper that with every
explosion, caused frogmen flesh flew apart and the Love Triangle to groan.
Bei Xiang had no choice but to bite his teeth and stand against the dragonman
youngster.
The dragonman youngster threw him into the air with two consecutive fists.
“Where is Hu Li? Get him for me!” The dragonman youngster roared with
astonishing grandeur.
On the Iron Lump.
Zong Ge wielded his two handed broadsword, but he didn’t charge ahead, instead
he stood next to the Quick Knife battle squad to protect them.
“Throw!” Zong Ge loudly ordered.
Leader Kuai Tui and the dogmen all threw their swords.
The swords flew through the air in an arc, cutting a number of frogmen heads
off then flying back to their master’s hand.
The bronze level weapons – the ring swords.
Battle skill – Throwing Knife.
With the two of them paired together, they had remarkable power!
There used to be frogmen pirates across the Iron Lump.
With one volley of the Throwing Knife battle skill, a wide expanse had been
cleared, with only the frogmen in the corner barely able to avoid disaster.



****** Chapter 250: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 9 ******
The frogmen pirates were utterly shocked.
After reacting, they jumped off the Iron Lump, one after the other.
The dwarf Men Shi, holding his two-handed war hammer, moved with his short legs
along the ship’s ladder, killing his way in.
The ship’s ladder was jampacked with frogmen pirates and their heads exploded
upon being struck by Men Shi’s hammer, leaving a ghastly scene behind.
Men Shi was a silver level, and as he charged down, not a single frogman could
stop him.
When the dwarfs and humans inside the ship heard Men Shi roar, they were
overjoyed at this good news and counterattacked.
Under the pincer attack, the remaining frogmen pirates were a wrapped dumpling,
and with nowhere to run, they were all slain.
When the dwarfs saw Men Shi, they surrounded him and shouted, “You’ve finally
come to save us!”
Men Shi’s eyes were red, “So sorry that I gave you over to that necromancer.”
“Never mind that, you didn’t know the truth either.”
“You’ve already driven away the necromancer, right?”
“Speaking of which, that necromancer wasn’t that bad, we were treated better on
this ship than we were as slaves.”
The dwarfs consoled Men Shi one by one.
Men Shi took a deep breath, “Everyone, I have joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps! Listen to me, it wasn’t a transaction. I wanted to join them.”
The dwarfs’ voices suddenly cut off, then they began to clamor again.
“Men Shi, you didn’t need to do so much for us!”
“You sold yourself off to save us? That is out of the question, we are free,
you also need to be free!”
“That is to say, Commander Long Fu is pretty good, isn’t working for him pretty
good too?”
The humans stood in a corner, awkwardly watching the joyous hubbub of dwarfs.
Since Qing Xin had exposed her identity and her strength, she had become the
leader of these humans. But now that their leader had followed the fleeing
necromancer, how that affected them was somewhat unclear.
The dwarfs conversed for a bit, then escorted Men Shi back up to the top deck.
All of the alchemy puppets had fallen down. 
Some had been knocked down by frogmen pirates, others had been surreptitiously
controlled by Zi Di who caused them to fall into the water.
“Where is Commander Long Fu? We must talk to him!”
“That’s right, he must explain clearly what is going on with Men Shi.”
Men Shi shouted, “I speak to you my people, I really joined them honestly. You
must know when to stop, please don’t embarrass Lord Long Fu.”
The dragonman youngster was embroiled on combat right now, he was wreaking
havoc across the Love Triangle, leaving a complete mess wherever he went,
causing endless grievances for the frogmen pirates.
The dwarfs witnessed the dragonman youngster’s dashing figure in battle, and
some began to swallow their saliva.
“So bold and powerful!”
“So much stronger than Men Shi!”
“Be a bit polite during negotiations, he is indeed our life saving benefactor.”
“Ok, we are absolutely not scared, after all he saved our lives.”
The dwarfs softly said to each other.
After being tossed into the ocean by the dragonman youngster, Bei Xiang hadn’t
floated back up, let alone climb back onto the ship to keep on fighting.
“He is too strong, not even Hu Li is his opponent, do I want to throw away my
life?”
“Damn you Long Fu, damn you Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Damn you Lady Sea Snake, you are simply unreliable!!”
Bei Xiang’s deeply felt hatred and powerlessness as he dived deep and headed
towards the main fleet.
He had no choice but to abandon his flagship.
Meanwhile on the flagship, the frogmen no longer had a leader, nor any
transcendent on par with the dragonman youngster, their morale quickly fell to
rock bottom as they died and fled.
“Good, the Love Triangleis ours.” The dragonman youngster was covered in
frogman blood as he walked to the center of the first deck level.
The ship had already been purged.
The flagship had not a single living frogman on it.
The dragonman youngster could confirm this!
Because Zi Di on the Deep Sea Monster Fish helped the dragonman youngster
investigate this.
The Love Triangle was iron level, and with it, the White Bandage was reduced to
an auxiliary warship.
This was the impact of the strong.
The ability to defeat many with one when put to good use could provide much
more value on the battlefield.
In transcendent battles, the most important factor for victory was the strength
of individual transcendent!
The Applaud Pirates could be said to have destroyed their own walls; if Hu Li
was still alive, he could have obstructed the dragonman youngster for a time
and give the flagship time and space to escape, it wouldn’t have fallen into
enemy hand so suddenly.
When the dragonman youngster stepped on the Iron Lump’s deck, he was completely
soaked in blood and the aura of death was steaming off him, and his red dragon
scales still had some dregs of frogmen flesh and bones on it.
This had all been done by Demolition Fist, which had blown frogmen pirates to
bits.
The dwarfs took a cold breath; they forced out a smile and greeted the
dragonman youngster as he boarded the Iron Lump.
“My comrades, we meet each other again!” The dragonman youngster looked down at
the dwarfs, showing a giant smile that conveyed his clear goodwill.
A dwarf was suddenly pushed forward by his peers, and he staggered in front of
the dragonman youngster.
He looked up at the dragonman youngster.
The scorching sun was above the dragonman youngster, and his shadow covered the
dwarf.
The dwarf suddenly felt a mountain range worth of pressure.
The dragonman youngster was somewhat puzzled, “What did you want to say to me?”
The dwarf shook his head, stammering, “No no no, oh, right right right, it’s
about, it’s about Men Shi. We heard he joined your Lordship Long Fu’s mercenary
corps, I wanted to ask if he did so at his own volition?”
The dragonman youngster burst into laughter, “Of course, I never forced him to
do so.”
After saying that, the dragonman youngster looked at Men Shi in the crowd of
dwarfs, “Men Shi, what say you?”
Men Shi frustratedly threw up his hands, “I have already said that, Lord
Commander, but my clansmen didn’t want to believe it.”
The dragonman youngster raised his head and laughed again, “Your camaraderie
moves me. Friends, don’t be so ill at ease, don’t be so nervous, we once fought
together, we are comrades-in-arms!”
“I never forced restrictions on Men Shi’s freedom; it was he who wanted to join
my corps.”
“I saw his character and abilities, so of course I warmly welcomed him in.”
“But…” Upon saying that, the dragonman youngster looked at Men Shi, his smile
vanishing and his tone became serious, “I cannot rule out the possibility that
Men Shi joined my corps to save you all.”
“Oh, Men Shi, I can now give you a new choice.”
“I’ll let you choose again; you can either join or leave the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.”
“Be at ease, your clansmen and you are free, I can accept a reward for saving
you all.”
“Perhaps, you and your people living together will make you all happier.”
The dwarfs looked back at Men Shi one after the other.
Men Shi’s red eyes were now flowing with hot tears.
He suddenly kneeled on the deck, then growled to the dragonman youngster,
“Lord, Lord Long Fu!”
“Please let me join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, let me follow you closely,
let me pay reciprocate your kindness!!”
“If I cannot repay your kindness, the latter half of my life will sink into
pain and self-condemnation!”
“My clansmen, will you prevent me from paying my debt of gratitude?!”
The dwarfs went silent; they could all make out Men Shi’s true feelings.
But the dragonman youngster still shook his head, his expression becoming
graver, “Men Shi, I have taken your every word to heart, I acknowledge and
understand your intentions, and also wish to accept your reciprocation.”
“However, there are many ways of repaying a debt of gratitude, you don’t need
to lose your liberty and follow me. You must know that my life is accompanied
and followed by battle and blood, it is full of crisis.
Men Shi took a deep breath and hung his head towards the dragonman youngster,
“Lord Long Fu, I will follow you, not just to repay your kindness.”
“Rather it was your heroic sentiments that touched me.”
“It is my honor to follow a transcendent like yourself!”
“Please let me be by your side, let me dedicate my worth as a fighter.”
After that was said, the dragonman youngster no longer hesitated, and he smiled
once again.
He took a big step forward, splitting the crowd of dwarfs before him, and came
to Men Shi.
He stooped down and lent an arm to Men Shi.
He clapped Men Shi’s shoulder fully and shouted to him, “Excellent, Men Shi!
Since that is your way of thinking, then like before, I welcome you in!”
Then the dragonman youngster looked at the dwarfs around him, “So sorry, my
comrades that I snatched away your clanmate Men Shi, he is now one of my
people!”
The dwarfs laughed heartily, the atmosphere was no longer so tense.
They had seen that the dragonman youngster and Men Shi had a genuine friendship
together.
Some dwarfs congratulated Men Shi, while others decided to bellow that they
follow Men Shi’s decision and also join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps too.
To the dwarfs those that wanted to join, the dragonman youngster naturally
refused nobody, admitting them all.
Men Shi couldn’t help but sigh, he intended to stop them, not wishing to see
his people brave danger, but like how his clansmen couldn’t stop him, he could
only look on helplessly as he saw his clansmen join one after the other.
“These people are returned back to your care, Men Shi.” The dragonman youngster
clapped Men Shi’s shoulder.
“Understood, Lord Commander!” Men Shi nodded, accepting the order at once.
And so, the dragonman youngster had completely subdued Men Shi and also gained
a group of dwarfs too.
As this brief interlude was playing out, Cang Xu and Qing Xin arrived at
Weeping Pine Island.
“Newcomer, quickly fly towards me.” Cang Xu’s communication device transmitted
Xiao Wang Zi’s voice.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin glanced at each other, readily following good advice. 
Densely packed skeleton archers came from the pine forest and began shooting
their bone arrows.
Lady Sea Snake did not care about them at first, but soon after, she became
grave.
Because mixed in with the skeleton archers were also a few skeleton magicians.
These skeleton magicians could only use one spell, but those spells were still
magic and were more threatening than the bone arrows.
Lady Sea Snake was forced to activate a magic protection shield while
simultaneously using another spell to destroy the skeletons in the forest.
The skeleton archers suffered disastrous casualties.
The skeleton magicians were shown more of Lady Sea Snake’s consideration and
were priority targets for her Water Arrow spell.
Very quickly, the skeletons were nearly wiped out.
Xiao Wang Zi also felt a trace of distress.
All of his skeleton magicians were wiped out; they were so much rarer than
skeleton archers!



****** Chapter 251: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 10 ******
Lady Sea Snake wasn’t looking too good.
She knew this kind of damage was not worthwhile, because she had to use her
valuable magic power to destroy the many skeleton soldiers. 
Her magic power was finite, and it was very easy to get more skeleton archers.
To maintain magic power reserves, Lady Sea Snake had no choice but to drink a
magic power potion.
Lady Sea Snake continued to pursue.
This time, she was obstructed by magician Qi Ling.
The latter’s water ghost army appeared again and circled above Lady Sea Snake,
launching their attacks.
Lady Sea Snake was unwilling to engage with them, choosing to fly up higher
into the air while simultaneously using a spell to destroy many water ghosts.
The water ghosts were seriously reduced, and magician Qi Ling quickly had them
retreat.
Lady Sea Snake was hovering in the air, overlooking the big Weeping Pine
Island, and although she couldn’t see Cang Xu, her spirit had locked onto him.
Lady Sea Snake sneered and murmured, “You’re still thinking of hiding
somewhere? Today, you will fall into my hands, don’t hold any illusions about
it!”
After saying that, she first used an alchemy communication device to contact
Yang Cong Tou and Bei Xiang, then ordered that they all make landfall on
Weeping Pine Island to pursue and blockade Cang Xu and Qing Xin.
Soon after, she gently whistled and connected her spirit to her magic pet.
Whoosh.
With a gigantic wave, an enormous silhouette of a snake broke from the sea.
It was a monstrous snake that had a singular long swath of red hair from its
neck down, it had wide snake scales, and the scales had a eye like pattern on
them.
What amazed people the most was that its life aura was gold level!
It was a gold level sea snake.
Although Lady Sea Snake was only silver level, she had a gold level sea snake
familiar.
That was also where her pirate nickname had come from.
The gold level sea snake held up its head and threw itself onto Weeping Pine
Island.
It used its racial magic, and before Lady Sea Snake acted, it had completely
memorized Cang Xu’s aura and locked onto him with its spirit. Then Lady Sea
Snake helped conceal its aura from leaking as it used its racial magic.
After the gold sea snake cast successfully, its master, Lady Sea Snake, used
her spiritual connection to ascertain Cang Xu’s position.
The sea snake went ashore and scuttled into the lush pine forest.
The tallest pine trees were only a head taller than the sea snake.
The sea snake only came into full view when it came ashore. Xiao Wang Zi
couldn’t help but take in a cold breath, “What a long snake, it must be at
least 15 meters! So much stronger than my generalissimo.”
Xiao Wang Zi suddenly felt that his own three headed undead sea serpent was not
so appeasing.
“Move now!” Ku Feng grabbed his neck and quickly retreated again.
“Generalissimo, you’re too loud, go another way.” Xiao Wang Zi was cautious,
after all Lady Sea Snake’s magic pet was gold level.
Magician Qi Ling had withdrawn earlier and had been silent for a long while.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin rapidly traveled through the forest, pine tress swiftly
streaking across their vision.
The two magicians were flying close together.
But they were in different situations.
Qing Xin had abundant flying skills and experience, she didn’t touch the
ground, and her body nimbly passed through the tress like a bluebird.
Cang Xu’s flying skill was obviously inferior to Qing Xin’s. Therefore, his
flying skills couldn’t parse through the many obstacles precariously perched
throughout the forest.
As more time passed, he had to used his hands and feet to step across tree
trunks and break through branches to get through.
But his speed was about the same as Qing Xin’s.
Because he had transformed his body into a living dead person. Although Cang Xu
didn’t have much physical strength, he had great endurance; furthermore, he had
remained calm, and every bit of strength was used meticulously.
The two were already going at top speed, despite this, the powerful enemy
behind them was getting closer.
The gold level sea snake was enormous, and although it was on land, it was
still very fast.
“Come this way!” As the distance between the two grew ever closer, and with
Lady Sea Snake watching from above, Cang Xu’s communication device transmitted
Jian Gui’s voice again.
Jian Gui guided Cang Xu and Qing Xin towards a new escape route.
Soon after, the two arrived at a small, sloping hill. 
“You left, I right!” Cang Xu pushed against the gale to say to Qing Xin.
Qing Xin nodded.
Thus, Cang Xu went right, and Qing Xin went left, temporarily separating.
The gold level sea snake didn’t hesitate to follow Cang Xu tightly.
But as it wound around the hill, it was ambushed.
Two undead horsemen, saddled in skeleton warhorses and hands holding bone
lances had been waiting for a long time, their aura restrained.
Then, they suddenly galloped and crashed into the sea snake.
The two undead horsemen were immediately smashed off their mounts, but the sea
snake’s charge lost momentum as a result, and it watched helplessly as Cang
Xu’s back quickly faded into the distance.
Under Jian Gui’s guidance, the two undead horsemen swiftly climbed back onto
their warhorses and attacked again.
The sea snake was forced to deal with them, and filled with anger, it unleashed
a huge offensive and began to win heavily.
Although the two ambushing undead horsemen were silver level, they didn’t have
Ku Feng’s intelligence.
They moved stiffly and could only fight rigidly. This immediately gave the gold
sea snake the overwhelming advantage.
Soon after, the two undead horsemen, their steeds, and their lances all had
distinct cracks, they would soon fracture and break.
When Jian Gui saw this, he deployed three more undead horsemen as
reinforcements.
One silver level, two iron levels.
With these new reinforcements, the sea snake was once more besieged.
When Lady Sea Snake flying above saw this from her vantage point, she couldn’t
help but narrow her eyes.
Five undead horsemen strived to encircle the gold level sea snake, causing the
latter to throw its body about, throwing dirt and rocks into the air, and
swiftly devastating the nearby pine trees.
Within a half-minute, the iron level undead horsemen were all slain, turned to
two piles of crushed bone fragments.
The three remaining silver level horsemen were in imminent danger.
Jian Gui promptly withdrew them, these silver level horsemen were valuable
treasures he as a gold level necromancer was unwilling to easily lose.
Without these hindrances, the gold sea snake continued to chase down Cang Xu.
It firmly remembered Cang Xu’s aura, and as long as they were within a
kilometer of each other, the sea snake could easily find Cang Xu.
It was no simple sense of smell, rather it was a type of racial magic.
It was worth mentioning that Cang Xu had Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spells on him,
But at this time, one could see the systemic problem with external casting. If
one wasn’t the one to use a spell, the actual results would be of lesser value.
Only when Cang Xu used Deceptive Disguise again to change his current fake
aura, would the sea snake lose track of him.
As for the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, it was mainly used to
supplement the use of Deceptive Disguise.
The actual result of this was that when other people investigated the
survivors’ fake identities, they wouldn’t sense anything peculiar, even if they
took it a step further with prophecy, the would verify it as “true”.
If it was purely just the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, one would
sense their investigation and prophecies fail, which was bound to trigger
alerts and suspicion, and thus even more investigations.
Lady Sea Snake high in the air, followed Cang Xu through the spiritual
connection to her sea snake, never losing her target.
A moment later, ghostly figures suddenly appeared high in the air, quite close
to her!
Five silver level ghosts threw themselves at Lady Sea Snake.
Lady Sea Snake went stiff, then turned her body into a blue liquid that fell
and dispersed from the air.
Jian Gui couldn’t help but express his surprise.
The Lady Sea Snake in the air was actually a false water path mirage!
“When did she disguise herself?” Jian Gui’s brows lightly creased as he
pondered.
Jian Gui inspected his memory, not noticing any flaws.
“It is very possible that before she approached Weeping Pine Island that she
hid herself somewhere secretly.”
“Interesting.”
Jian Gui was somewhat flabbergasted for a moment, then calmed back down.
Lady Sea Snake was a magician, and this kind of tactic was very normal, or in
other words, this was the difference between a smart magician and an impulsive
fighter or a faith blinded priest!
Since Lady Sea Snake was hiding somewhere, Jian Gui didn’t look into it. It was
too troublesome, and not only would it cost time and magic power, when he was
using detection magic, he might expose himself first.
Therefore, that was why Jian Gui had hidden ghosts in the air and deployed
undead horsemen to besiege the gold sea snake.
Lady Sea Snake had already seen her mirage die tragically and would never show
her true self.
She also couldn’t ignore her magic pet’s predicament and immediately used a
communication device to give an order to the pirates, “Pursue the target, I
have already pinned down their main force.”
Lady Sea Snake had summoned three pirate groups, and currently, the Lightning
Pirates had withdrawn, leaving the Applaud Pirates and the Stench Pirates.
Bei Xiang received Lady Sea Snake’s message and was very hesitant, “I am only
an iron level, my pirate group doesn’t have a silver level, how can I hunt down
two silver level magicians?”
The Love Triangle had already been seized by the dragonman youngster, and after
facing the dragonman youngster, Bei Xiang was terrified.
He had converged back with the Applaud Pirates’ main force, and boarded an
auxiliary warship, an awkward situation.
Lady Sea Snake coldly snorted, shedding all pretenses of cordiality for tough
words, “Bei Xiang, you will obey! You will gather your entire force and storm
Weeping Pine Island! Otherwise, I will kill you.”
“In fact, even if I don’t kill you, do you really think you’ll have a good
ending to this?”
“If this battle is lost, how will your crew look upon you, will you too be
brought to a pirate trial?”
When Bei Xiang heard this, he was both scared and furious; his back also
chilled.
He relied on Lady Sea Snake’s help, plotted against Hu Li, conducted a pirate
trial, all to take the position of commander.
If he lost this battle, then it would likely be his last battle.
Never underestimate the savageness of pirates.
They not only treated their prey and enemies savagely, but also their own.
After waiting for Bei Xiang’s response for a long while, Lady Sea Snake added,
“Don’t have any fantasies.”
“Even if your crew is willing to let you off, and give you another chance, will
I?”
“If I can help you, then I can naturally help another.”
“Standing from your point of view, you might as well take advantage of your
remaining authority, your crew won’t dare to revolt against you on the
battlefield, and will be quite obedient for the time being, let them throw away
their lives!”
“If this battle is won, then everyone will be delighted, you will be regarded
by your underlings as one who dares to fight and dares to be unyielding to
risk. But if you lose, do you want more or less crew that’ll make things
deliberately difficult for you?”



****** Chapter 252: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 11 ******


****** Chapter 252: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 11 ******
“Poisonous woman…” Bei Xiang was dismal.
Lady Sea Snake had stated her plan; she wanted to use the Applaud Pirates’
frogmen as cannon fodder!
But Lady Sea Snake would destroy Bei Xiang, and after thinking on it, he had no
choice but to submit.
When meeting with Yang Cong Tou, Lady Sea Snake changed her tone to a more
moderate one, “Commander Yang Cong Tou, it is now the best opportunity to
attack!”
“You want the Sun Halo; it must be on the target.”
“Will you give up, are you willing to?”
“The other side’s main force has been probed by my magic pet, and the target
fleeing reveals they are weak.”
“With a bit more effort now, we can win!”
Yang Cong Tou hesitated.
On the one hand, he feared the undead troops that poured in like flies, on the
other hand he really was unwilling to give up on the Sun Halo.
He wanted to attack the Iron Lump.
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a step ahead and had done so already.
Yang Cong Tou had seen Long Fu and Shi Qi fight, and didn’t want to run into
such resolute individuals.
Lady Sea Snake acutely sensed Yang Cong Tou’s hesitation, she increased her
offer at once, promising that if they won this battle, she would pay Yang Cong
Tou a handsome reward and also give Yang Cong Tou a chance to join the Fire
Beard Pirates.
When Yang Cong Tou heard what Lady Sea Snake said, he led his underlings onto
shore behind the frogmen. 
Of course, he also left something behind.
He arranged for his flagship Stinky Tofu to lie at anchor and not come close to
shore, so that if something unexpected happened, he could quickly climb abord
and escape the battlefield.
The White Bandage.
“Commander, the Iron Lump can sail, what will we do next?” Men Shi followed
behind the dragonman youngster, his fighting spirit high.
His clansmen had been rescued, and his heart’s burdens had been relinquished,
now his heart was set on dedicating his strength to the dragonman youngster. 
The dragonman youngster saw Cang Xu go to the island, the gold sea snake
fighting fiercely, as well as the pirates moving in too, and muttered to
himself, “We will retreat first.”
Although he was very worried about Cang Xu, Lady Sea Snake was hiding
somewhere, and although Jian Gui had acted, her true body hadn’t been revealed.
Nothing had reached the final juncture just yet.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster ordered that they withdraw so both sides
could fight without worry.
But the survivors still had some control over the battlefield.
Because Zi Di was sailing the Deep Sesa Monster Fish, still hidden on the
seafloor and could act at any time.
Of course, if they could avoid using the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they would.
If it was exposed, the survivors would have to deal with many follow-up
troubles.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet slowly withdrew from the battlefield.
Almost all of the pirates had come onto Weeping Pine Island.
They moved around the gold sea snake and the undead and charged towards where
Cang Xu and Qing Xin were.
Qing Xin seemed to sink like water, “We must have a magic mark on us for them
to find where were are hiding.”
“Their target should be me.” Cang Xu thought about the time they had gone
around that hill, how the gold sea snake chased after him and not Qing Xin.
This action had revealed many things.
Qing Xin deeply sighed, “The Iron Lumphas fallen into the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ hands, some luck in misfortune.”
Just as she said that they heard a sharp warbling coming from above them.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin unconsciously looked up and followed the noise, seeing an
artillery shell shooting from some distant place.
The metal artillery shell had steel wings on both sides, and it was the steel
wings vibrating in the air that produced that warbling noise.
After it cut through the sky in a full parabola, it landed onto Weeping Pine
Island.
A second later.
Bang!
With a loud sound, the earth and mountains shook.
A six meter tall white mushroom cloud slowly rose.
Mountainous rocks splashed.
“Not good, that place is?!” Qing Xin and Cang Xu both changed color at the same
time; they no longer cared about escaping as they quickly rose into the air to
survey the impact zone.
What they saw made both of them ashen.
The artillery shell had bombarded the hidden cave where they had gathered.
“A gold level artillery shell! Why did it so precisely hit the meeting cave?”
Cang Xu’s eyes coldly flashed, he felt things were going south and that the
sudden and startling change to the war situation had broken it away from Cang
Xu’s control.
From where the artillery shell shot from, a fleet gradually appeared.
The lead flagship was a tower ship that was being pulled by two gigantic sea
snakes.
Around the three story high ship was a metal cannon that twisted like a python.
The metal cannon wound around the center of the ship at least three times, and
the cannon mouth at the peak created the bloody wide mouth of a python.
“That is Lady Sea Snake’s fleet!” Qing Xin’s voice was ice-cold.
Lady Sea Snake was one of the Fire Beard Pirates’ captains, thus, she naturally
had her own flagship and fleet.
“Our support is finally here! Accelerate the pace, overtake the enemy, advance
and attack!” Yang Cang Tou precisely grabbed hold of this chance to encourage
morale.
Bei Xiang also let out a breath, and the frogmen’s morale climbed back up.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di was closely following these pirate
reinforcements, and was feeding this information to the dragonman youngster and
the others, “Lady Sea Snake’s fleet has 9 ships, and the flagship is an iron
level flower snake tower ship. The ship has one modified curved anti-aerial
gun. The shell it just shot was a Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell; its explosion
power is extremely high!”
“What should we do now?” Qing Xin looked at Cang Xu, somewhat helplessly.
To her, the only chance to escape was the Eulogy Tombstone. But that
teleportation device couldn’t have survived that sort of explosion.
Cang Xu pondered, then picked up the communication device and was about to ask
the other necromancers for help.
At that time, Xiao Wang Zi transmitted, “Never mind that, newcomer. Weeping
Pine Island doesn’t just have one Eulogy Tombstone, there is another.”
“Hehe, I also built the second Eulogy Tombstone just for emergencies such as
this.”
“I will give you directions and join you at the tombstone.”
Qing Xin and Cang Xu were both shaken.
But at that time, another ear-piercing warble screeched through the sky.
The second Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell shot into the distance and hit a
small hill on the northwest corner of Weeping Pine Island.
Bang,
Another intense explosion occurred.
But because it was further from Cang Xu and Qing Xin, they didn’t feel the
ground vibrating.
The two saw another white mushroom cloud rising from the hill, then soon after,
the winds the explosion created swept across the pine forest.
Xiao Wang Zi’s voice in the communication device paused, then was suddenly
jammed in the wake of the shell. 
Cang Xu thought to himself, feeling things were anything but reassuring, then
asked, “I say, the second tombstone you mentioned, was it on that hill?”
Xiao Wang Zi was incredulous, “Yes…yes. But how is that possible?!”
Yes, both shells had hit the Eulogy Tombstones with unparalleled accuracy.
What did this mean?
Qing Xin’s scalp tingled, and she growled, “A traitor!”
Xiao Wang Zi’s yelling also came through, “Newcomer, you twisted our trust in
you! I didn’t expect you to be a traitor.”
Cang Xu shook his head, denying it, “It isn’t me, I didn’t know where the
second tombstone was, how could I be the traitor?”
Just as he said that Qing Xin loudly warned, “Be careful, the enemy is
attacking!”
A large group of water ghosts quietly appeared.
“Damn it!” Cang Xu rushed to battle while simultaneously saying to Xiao Wang
Zi, “Water ghosts! Magician Qi Ling is attacking us!”
Xiao Wang Zi was dumbfounded.
Behind him, Ku Feng was grave, “I am not the traitor, nor are you. Qi Ling is
the most suspicious!”
Xiao Wang Zi unconsciously refuted, “No, perhaps the newcomer is deceiving us.”
Compared to a newcomer like Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi naturally trusted Qi Ling
more.
But Ku Feng shook his head, “The newcomer is more trustworthy! Because his
situation is very easy to verify. If he needed to lie, he wouldn’t sprinkle
lies like this.”
Xiao Wang Zi was stunned, but soon after, he used his communication device to
contact Qi Ling and question her.
Magician Qi Ling was silent at first, then began to talk, “So sorry everyone. I
really couldn’t do anything. My people were taken hostage, if I didn’t obey,
they would have all been massacred by pirates.”
Magician Qi Ling’s tone was full of remorse, she actually admitted she was the
traitor on the spot.
Xiao Wang Zi angrily tore open with curses, and Qi Ling didn’t answer back,
keeping her silence after giving her words.
Ku Feng deeply sighed, “Don’t curse her, since she made her choice, we should
look after ourselves now.”
Xiao Wang Zi’s fury was difficult to quell, “Why did she do this? She knows
Lord Jian Gui summoned her soul back. It was Lord Jian Gui who gave her a
second life, who gave her freedom! How could she do this? She actually betrayed
Lord Jian Gui, betrayed us!” 
Upon saying that, Xiao Wang Zi recalled something, then rushed to contact Jian
Gui with the communication device.
Jian Gui’s voice soon came through, “I heard what Qi Ling said.”
“I understand her, this is something she can do.”
“Xiao Wang Zi, remember that from now on, Qi Ling is our enemy.”
“Furthermore, you guys take care and think of a way to get out.”
“Don’t look for me!”
“Where I am…is far more dangerous.”
Jian Gui was hiding in a cave.
After saying that, he turned off the communication device.
The cave was dark, and Jian Gui’s aura was also dwindled to nothing.
The surrounding detection methods around him hadn’t triggered, but Jian Gui was
feeling ever worse.
When his attack against Lady Sea Snake failed, attacking a mere water path
clone, he had a premonition.
Now with two gold level artillery shells precisely destroying Weeping Pine
Island’s Eulogy Tombstones and Magician Qi Ling simultaneously revealed to be a
traitor, it proved that the other side was far more prepared than previously
envisioned.
“Information leaking that undead gather here repeatedly is not at all strange.”
“Since the other side has forced Qi Ling to turn traitor, I will inevitably
become a target.”
“It just that for now, there isn’t a method able to find me yet.”
“Has it not been used yet, or has it already…been used?”
Then abruptly, Jian Gui’s eyes shot out an ominous glint.
Necromancy spell – Soul Scream!
His body floated up and he raised his head to screech.
A tempestuous soul fluctuation, with him as its center, quickly spread out in
all directions.
Shadows undulated, and someone was forced to reveal themselves, their brief
outline revealing a sorry figure.



****** Chapter 253: Weeping Pine Naval Battle – Part 12 ******
“Tsk, just a bit more.” The revealed person was not tall, their stature was
slim, they were wearing a night gown, and their face was also covered with a
layer of black cloth. 
When Jian Gui saw him, his heart suddenly trembled.
The mysterious enemy he had forced out, with some unknown method, had managed
to sneak so close to him without him noticing anything!
Perhaps due to his strong premonition or just being safe, he had
indiscriminately used an offensive spell to force the other person to appear.
The gold level fighter’s aura also caused Jian Gui great fear.
Without any hesitation, Jian Gui ran and jumped into the top of the cave.
Necromancy – Soul Flying spell!
With this magic, Jian Gui, along with his equipment, turned into ghosts and
drilled their way through the cave.
After leaving the cave, Jian Gui didn’t stop and directly flew into the air.
This was a good choice.
Although gold level fighters might have flying skills, it was comparatively
rare. Not every gold fighter had a flying skill.
Lady Sea Snake was one on the battlefield that could also threaten Jian Gui in
the air.
The magician was only silver level and wasn’t that threatening.
Jian Gui quickly soared to the sky and quickly climbed to 9 meters from the
ground.
There were no traces of the mysterious black gowned man he had forced out.
“What’s going on?” Jiang Gui was growing increasingly vigilant.
A moment later, the space behind Jian Gui fluctuated as the black clothed man
instantly appeared!
The black clothed man help a dagger that was ruthlessly jabbing towards Jian
Gui’s lower back.
Jian Gui was caught unprepared, and his ghostly transformed body was damaged by
the dagger.
He didn’t turn around, or even turn his head, instead he swung his arms
backwards and tore apart a necromancy scroll.
An ash-colored soul wave in the shape of a cone exploded from the scroll.
But the mysterious black clothed man vanished again.
Jian Gui flew to where he had come from, healing while using defensive magic.
The black clothed man appeared again, once again behind him. His dagger was
gold level and immediately shredded Jian Gui’s defensive magic and wounded him
once more.
Jian Gui was attacked two more times, completely losing, and had no power to
retaliate for a moment.
“The Shadow Plane!” Zi Di on the Deep Sea Monster Fish was watching the two
gold levels fight.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had a special module, the Space Lock (Base).
Once, the survivors in Snake Rat Island’s underground caves, had used it to
look for a teleportation formation and had spent a vast sum building it.
With its help, Zi Di could see clearly.
Every time the mysterious black clothed man appeared, it would trigger a
spatial fluctuation. Evey time his silhouette appeared, the spatial fluctuation
would expose the vague image and aura of the Shadow Plane.
Zi Di immediately contacted Cang Xu, “Jian Gui is battling a gold level
fighter, he is in grave danger.”
“I can see clearly that this gold level fighter is capable of traveling through
the Shadow Plane, able to blink shift.”
“It’s up to you on what you’re going to do.”
When Cang Xu got this information, he and Qing Xin were watching the water
ghosts besieging them slowly retreat.
“Qi Ling decided to withdraw?” Qing Xin was flabbergasted.
Soon after, Cang Xu and Qing Xin were safe again.
Cang Xu sighed, “Qi Ling didn’t have killing intent. Her attacking us and then
conceding that she was the traitor could actually be regarded as a warning.”
“In fact, if she waited a bit longer, we and Xiao Wang Zi could have reached
the second tombstone. Then, when the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell was fired,
we would have likely died from it.”
“The pirates threatened her with her clansmen, this ghost magician clearly
knows who the real enemy is.”
Qing Xin’s eyebrow deeply wrinkled, “Even if Qi Ling didn’t deal with us, we
are still in a terrible situation.”
“The pirates are already on the island; their target is us.”
“Jian Gui over there cannot be counted on, what should we do?”
Cang Xu took a deep breath and tried to calm down.
He tried to identify his current location and found he wasn’t that far from
Jian Gui.
Cang Xu thought deeply for a bit, then decided to assist Jian Gui.
He wanted both sides to suffer; that would be the most advantageous outcome for
the survivors.
But now, Jian Gui was absolutely losing, and if it continued, the black clothed
fighter might kill him.
The survivors didn’t want this.
Of course, Cang Xu gave another pretext to Qing Xin, “The key person in this
battle is Jian Gui. We must help him as much as possible; only with his
strength can we repel the pirates. Otherwise, we won’t be able to escape this
place by ourselves.”
“Follow me!” Cang Xu led Qing Xin, and after flying for a bit, they reached the
top of the tallest pine tree.
Standing there, he could see Jian Gui in the air.
Jian Gui was flying erratically while the black clothed fighter’s figure was
flashing constantly around Jian Gui.
Every time he appeared, he would injure Jian Gui.
Jian Gui had turned into a ghost, he hadn’t been fatally wounded and had
plentiful reserves, and was able to heal in a timely fashion, allowing him to
persist until now.
“Can we really help?” Qing Xin shook her head, looking pale, “That is too
risky.”
Cang Xu replied, “We don’t need to forge ahead, we can stay here and give Jian
Gui space, so if Lady Sea Snake or Qi Ling appear, we can stop them.”
“In addition…” As Cang Xu said that he used a communication device to contact
Jian Gui, “Lord Jian Gui! Then other person is using the Shadow Plane to be
elusive. Do you have a Dimensional Anchor magic scroll?”
“So that’s what’s happening!” After Jian Gui was told, his eyes flashed.
However, he didn’t have a Dimensional Anchor magic scroll and was unable to
seal off local space.
“That doesn’t matter, I have another way!” Jian Gui flew towards the coastline.
The mysterious black clothed person chased after him, and although they didn’t
know what Jian Gui was doing, they still used everything they had to stop him.
By the time Jian Gui reached the sea surface, his injuries had at least
doubled.
He reached a hand under the water and called, “Come, my warship!”
A moment later, the ocean surface bubbled up and waves rapidly broke into a
whirlpool.
A dozen seconds later, the whirlpool expanded to a radius of a hundred meters.
From the whirlpool came a derelict ship.
This ship emitted strong negative energy, its verdigris hull was utterly
decayed, and its sails were ragged.
A great number of undead lifeforms were dithering across the ship.
It was an astonishing silver level ghost ship!
Jian Gui landed on the ghost ship, with the mysterious black clothed person
right behind him.
A moment later, Jian Gui’s entire being merged into the ghost ship and
completely vanished.
The mysterious black clothed man blankly stared, he sensed that Jian Gui had
become the ghost ship under his feet!
Necromancy spell – Ghost World Transversal.
A moment later, a large quantity of strange fog appeared around the ghost ship.
The black clothed person’s face changed, because from the fog, he sensed the
aura of the Ghost World!
The fog quickly concentrated into a pitch-dark color.
The ghost ship under the black clothed person seemed to gradually merge with
the fog as it faded from reality into nothing, vanishing from where it stood.
“Xu Jia* many thanks for your warning.” Jian Gui suddenly transmitted.
But this time, he wasn’t using a communication device.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin quickly turned around to look at the source of the voice,
then saw the ghost ship sailing across a river through the baseless and thick
fog.
The ghost ship continued to transmit Jian Gui’s voice, “Don’t resist, I will
pull you onto the ship. The other side has come prepared; you cannot stay
here.”
After that was said, Cang Xu and Qing Xin felt a powerful force sucking them
in.
After a moment’s hesitation, Cang Xu didn’t resist it and allowed Jian Gui to
pull him onto the ghost ship’s deck.
Qing Xin immediately did the same.
After the two boarded, Jian Gui pulled in Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng too.
Jian Gui had clearly informed them ahead of time and they were more prepared
than Cang Xu and Qing Xin for this.
Xiao Wang Zi once again sat on the back of his “generalissimo”.
Most of the skeletons he had recovered also stood back up too.
After picking them up, Jian Gui didn’t stay any longer and sailed the ghost
ship away from Weeping Pine Island.
The heavy curtain of ending fell over the Weeping Pine Naval Battle, which
involved the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the pirate alliance, and the
necromancers, when Jian Gui decided to retreat.
“Lord Wei Ying, the target?” Lady Sea Snake used a communication device to
contact the mysterious black clothed person.
The black clothed person, Wei Ying, was indifferent, “Nothing could be done,
the other side used the Ghost World Transversal spell, using the Ghost World to
escape. If I used the Shadow Plane to break into the Ghost World, I would be
entering Jian Gui’s trap.”
“The ghost ship can drift through the Underworld River, but I am a living
person, if I go into the Underworld River, I will die!”
Lady Sea Snake looked embarrassed, “But if that happened, then we lost our
target, and this operation has failed!”
Wei Ying slowly shook his head, “Letting them escape really is a failure. But
not a complete one, my battle skill will continue for at least a week. I don’t
believe Jian Gui can maintain Ghost World Transversal forever, as long as he
anchors to the Main World, he will leave behind traces that we can track down.”
Elsewhere, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“What? You lost contact with Cang Xu?” The dragonman youngster was stunned.
Zi Di helplessly replied, “He was saved by Jian Gui, and entire ghost ship
entered the Ghost World and has completely vanished.”
The dragonman youngster’s heart filled with worry.
Zi Di then said, “Cang Xu left behind some stuff on the Iron Lump, Lord
Commander, did you find them?”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “His gains from the undead gathering, some of
it was stored in a ship cabin, along with his secret letter.”
“I have already read the letter.”
“In the letter, Cang Xu listed a few possible situations. The current one is
accounted for.”
“According to the letter, if mutual destruction is not achieved, Cang Xu will
help Jian Gui. In that case, he will hide by Jian Gui’s side for a time, strive
to gain his trust, and seek to obtain more information.”
“Afterwards, he will look for a chance to move alone, separate himself from
Jian Gui, and rejoin us once again.”
Cang Xu proved himself a valued confidant of the dragonman youngster. He had
planned many things in advance.
After all, many plans were things he couldn’t communicate to another in front
of Qing Xin.



****** Chapter 254: Harlot ******
Weeping Pine Island.
“A ghost ship!” Fear coldly gripped Bei Xiang’s heart.
He had led the frogmen pirates into the pine forest to pursue Cang Xu and Qing
Xin.
The dozen frogmen by his side also witnessed how the ghost ship appeared, and
how Cang Xu and Qing Xin boarded it.
“Captain Bei Xiang, what do we do now?” An underling asked.
After completely losing their target, the frogmen pirates were somewhat at a
loss.
“What more can we do? Return to the ships!” Bei Xiang unconsciously answered,
he didn’t want to stay on this ghostly island for a moment longer.
Another underling yelled, “Right, return to the ships. We lost our flagship; we
have to take it back!”
“Yes, yes, the Love Triangle cannot be lost!”
“It is our only magic ship.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is too strong; we will just be throwing away
our lives.”
“The Applaud battle squad has also been annihilated, that Long Fu is too
vicious!”
The pirates began to argue and quarrel with each other.
Some wanted to take back their flagship, while others were cowering, but they
didn’t say that, only stating how powerful the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was.
“You’re all thinking nonsense!” Bei Xiang couldn’t help but roll his eyes back.
He was terrified of the dragonman youngster, and when recalling his fight with
the latter, he lost all will to fight.
Furthermore, the frogmen on the Love Triangle had been the most elite in the
Applaud Pirates.
They were already dead!
The Applaud Pirates had already been crippled.
Wanting to take back one’s flagship like this was no difference from tossing
their lives away.
“Stop quarreling and listen to our new captain.”
“Boss, what did you say to do?”
“Right, the flagship was stolen from your hands, you are responsible for taking
it back!”
A portion of the frogmen pirates began to deride Bei Xiang.
Bei Xiang was tense, and sensed the undercurrents, these frogmen were
discontented and began to use this method to rise in revolt against him.
On face of it, Bei Xiang remained calm and collected, “Wait until I promote to
the silver level, I will bring you along to retake our flagship and wipe away
the humiliation of today!”
“Right now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has already run away, and our
ordinary ships cannot chase them down.”
The frogmen’s expressions changed.
Bei Xiang reminded them that he was a peak iron level, and with his excellent
bloodline, he would definitely become a silver level in the future.
Some of the frogmen pirates secretly revolting against Bei Xiang realized this,
and they began to waver.
But other frogmen didn’t give up, “We aren’t alone, we still have our allies.”
“As long as Boss Bei Xiang asks, Lady Sea Snake will surely help us again!”
Bei Xiang’s speech was deeply noted in the frogmen pirates’ hearts, he didn’t
refute them, rather he insincerely promised, “Wait a minute, I will speak with
Noble Lady Sea Snake and see what she thinks of that.”
“But before that, everyone, we cannot let by this good chance for loot.”
The frogmen stared at him.
Bei Xiang raised his voice and lifted his arms, “We are victorious!”
“Our enemy has fled.”
“All of Weeping Pine Island is ours.”
“I feel the necromancer stayed here for a while, there must be arrangements
here, perhaps we can find a magician’s treasures.
The frogmen looked at each other in dismay.
Some frogmen disdained him on the sly, Bei Xiang’s face was too thick, he
Applaud Pirates had suffered disastrous damage, yet he declared himself the
winner.
However, Bei Xiang’s point really did make sense.
After all, Jian Gui, Cang Xu,, Xiao Wang Zi, and the others did indeed flee.
“Right, Boss is right, why didn’t I think of that?”
“Those necromancers have run off, why were they gathered here at this place?”
“That’s right, this must be their stronghold!”
“Can’t say for sure, but there might be a magician tower.”
“Move, gather now, we must snatch these things before the Stench pirates!!”
The frogmen grew excited, and they shouted one after another restlessly.
Bei Xiang let out a big gulp of air.
He had no evidence of magician treasures, it was pure speculation, but it was
fine as long as it shifted the frogmen pirates’ attention, even if only
temporarily, he could consider it a great success!
Of course, he didn’t forget to contact Lady Sea Snake and ask her to help the
Applaud Pirates take back their flagship.
As Bei Xiang predicted, Lady Sea Snake refused.
Lady Sea Snake just hung up on Bei Xiang when Yang Ccong Tou contacted her.
“Lady Commander Sea Snake, our target has escaped. You will give me an
explanation!” Yang Cong Tou was in a bad mood.
His main purpose in coming was to seize the Sun Halo.
This alchemy component was very important to him.
But Cang Xu had escaped, and his purpose in coming was fruitless.
Lady Sea Snake coldly snorted and instead asked, “What do you want explained to
you?”
Yang Cong Tou replied, “At least honor the promise you made to me before.”
Beforehand, to motivate the Stench Pirates, Lady Sea Snake had offered a high
reward and gave the Stench Pirates a chance to join the Fire Beard Pirates.
Lady Sea Snake’s tone was ice-cold, “Commander Yang Cong Tou, you didn’t
capture the target, don’t think about the money, there is no such charity in
this world.”
“As for nominating you to join the Fire Beard Pirates, I will go do that, but
truth be told, your pirate group still has some ways to go before it is strong
enough to join us.”
When Yang Cong Tou heard this answer, he couldn’t help but clutch his
communication device with an aching heart, “This harlot wants to renege on my
debt!”
Lady Sea Snake was very insincere, she said she would, but who could verify
that after this, she would really nominate his group? 
Yang Cong Tou took a deep breath, then proposed, “Although the target is gone,
the Iron Lump is still here. We can work together to take on the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps!”
Cang Xu had withdrawn on the ghost ship, but Yang Cong Tou was still unwilling
to give up.
Because the Sun Halo was massive and might have been left on the ship.
Lady Sea Snake smiled, “Just now, the Applaud Pirates also want to attack the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, asked me for help, I turned them down.”
“You two can work together instead to deal with this matter. I won’t be joining
you.”
Yang Cong Tou coldly snorted, feeling it beneath his dignity, “Hu Li is dead,
and the Applaud Pirates’ commander is a trifling iron level, what are they
capable of?”
Lady Sea Snake laughed, “Cannon fodder has value too.”
Yang Cong Tou tried to persuade her, even offering a high price, but Lady Sea
Snake’s refusal was very firm.
Finally, Yang Cong Tou angrily threw the communication device to the ground and
cursed wantonly, “This damned bitch, she only wants to exploit me!”
“If I agree to work with you again next time, I will be a dog!!” 
Lady Sea Snake had said she wanted to deal with Cang Xu, but she actually had a
deeper purpose.
The sudden appearance of the black clothed person proved that Lady Sea Snake
understood necromancers and had made arrangements for them.
Jian Gui had been caught in critical circumstances, and only after receiving
Cang Xu’s warning was he able to break away from the black clothed person.
After getting through the Weeping Pine Naval Battle, Yang Cong Tou finally saw
and realized that he and the other pirate groups had been mere tools used by
Lady Sea Snake, greatly diminishing his opinion of her.
Lady Sea Snake didn’t care what Yang Cong Tou thought. After confirming she was
safe, her true body flew out of the ocean and slowly landed on her flagship.
Soon after, the ghost magician Qi Ling also emerged in front of Lady Sea Snake.
Lady Sea Snake narrowed her eyes and coldly snorted, “Qi Ling, have you figured
out a good explanation for me? You obviously had strength, yet you deliberately
let the target go.”
Magician Qi Ling shook her head, “I have accomplished what our agreement
stated.”
Lady Sea Snake sneered, “It seems that you don’t plan on saving your clan. Your
clansmen are all within our grasp,”
Qi Ling’s face quivered, “It is because they are still in your hands that I let
the target go. Now, do you know where they are? Hehe, I do!”
“Oh?” Lady Sea Snake’s expression minutely changed, and her eyes coldly
flashed. She couldn’t help but extend her tongue and lick her scarlet lips,
sizing up magician Qi Ling with full interest, “You do know.”
Qi Ling gave her conditions, “Let my people go, then I will tell you what you
most want to know!”
Lady Sea Snake shook her head, “I cannot release them all, how will I know if
your information is true or false? However, I can release 10 fishmen to
indicate my good faith.”
“10?” Qi Ling shook her head, her attitude firm, “That’s too few.”
Shortly after, the two magicians began to haggle over how many hostages would
be released for the information.
After wasting a lot of time, the price of this transaction was finalized.
Qi Ling stated the position of an uninhabited island.
Lady Sea Snake immediately ordered that they would be sailing there!



****** Chapter 255: Sailing the Ghost World ******
Lady Sea Snake’s fleet officially departed.
After Lady Sea Snake had greatly exploited the Applaud, Stench, and Lightning
Pirates, she had pitilessly tossed them to the back of her mind.
When she went to the highest level of her ship, and returned to her captain’s
room alone, Wei Ying flashed to her. 
“You’re letting that fishman ghost off?” Wei Ying questioned.
Lady Sea Snake giggled, “Lord Wei Ying, I am not a gold level fighter like you.
I am only a silver level magician, having a necromancer at the same level as my
slave is a treasure I must treat well.”
“Qi Ling, that necromancer, is really interesting. She has become an undead,
yet she is unable to let go of her former clansmen.”
“With such great leverage in my hands, she won’t be able to turn things
around.”
“She still has resistance in her heart, so I’ll play with her first and give
her a bit of hope.”
“By the time she genuinely despairs, she’ll be willing to acknowledge
allegiance to me.”
Wei Ying was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly, “She is your catch, and
also your responsibility. Anyways, the coordinates she gave are real, according
to our information, that place certainly is one of Jian Gui’s long time
bases.” 
Lady Sea Snake cackled, “I also think that information is true.”
Lady Sea Snake unfolded a sea map and quickly found where the barren island
was, “Lord Wei Ying, come look. This barren island is quite close to Weeping
Pine Island and is part of the Eulogy Tombstone teleportation network.”
“I can surmise that Jian Gui used the Eulogy Tombstone hidden here to teleport
to Weeping Pine Island.”
“Now the question is how many defenses Jian Gui has on this island? If we rush
over, we won’t have any cannon fodder to use.”
Wei Ying shook his head, “This mission is very important, we have to capture
the target alive! If this mission fails, you and I won’t have a good end.”
“What I’m more worried about is that Jian Gui is purposely avoiding this place.
Qi Ling was exposed as a traitor, and this barren island is not secure. If it
was me, I wouldn’t stay there.”
Lady Sea Snake muttered to herself, “I still believe that Jian Gui might make a
stop here.”
“Lord Wei Ying, it seems your understanding of the Underworld River isn’t
deep.”
“That river is very dangerous, and a mere silver level ghost ship cannot sail
it consecutively.”
“When Jian Gui wants to leave the Ghost World and return to the Main World, he
needs spatial coordinates. Every Eulogy Tombstone location is a stable spatial
coordinate. If they are attacked by a powerful enemy in the Underworld River,
they must spatial shift immediately. Under those circumstances, the closest
spatial coordinate is that barren island.”
“I believe that it is both possible, and very likely.”
Wei Ying nodded, approving of Lady Sea Snake’s inference, “Then we’ll travel
there.”
Lady Sea Snake’s fleet sailed off, leaving Yang Cong Tou’s and Bei Xiang’s
respective pirate groups at odds and vigilant of each other.
They didn’t attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, mainly because they weren’t
strong enough.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t care about all that.
He asked Zi Di again, “Can you really not find Cang Xu?”
Zi Di sighed, “I am powerless to do anything, the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s
detection methods cannot find the ghost ship. Especially when the ghost ship is
still in the Ghost World.”
“In fact, interplanar detection is always challenging.”
The dragonman youngster sighed, and after confirming it again, he was forced to
drop the matter.
Zong Ge raised his own proposal, “If we decide to track him down, perhaps we
can follow Lady Sea Snake’s fleet. Look at how they set out immediately, plus
Qi Ling has boarded their ship, its very possible they have some crucial
clues.”
Zong Ge had many ideas.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps couldn’t follow the ghost ship directly, but
they could hang behind Lady Sea Snake’s fleet.
Although normally, Zong Ge and Cang Xu didn’t get along, Zong Ge was still
trying his utmost for Cang Xu now.
This was the battle friendship that was fostered on Mystifying Monster Island.
“Following Lady Sea Snake…” The dragonman youngster hesitated.
Although he was worried about Cang Xu, as leader, he had to shoulder many other
responsibilities.
Lady Sea Snake didn’t attack us, great fortune indeed.”
“If we follow behind them now, that might provoke that black clothed fighter
into attacking us.”
“They are a gold level, and with the help of the Shadow Plane, they can blink
attack, too great a threat to us.”
“We don’t have a gold level, and outside of me being able to hold him back, we
don’t have anyone else who can.”
“Hmm…perhaps if Zong Ge wears the Golden Silk Chainmail, he can also vie with
him for a time.”
“But anyone else will be in grave danger.”
The dragonman youngster contemplated.
Zong Ge didn’t say anything else, that proposal of his naturally had many clear
systemic problems.
Following Lady Sea Snake’s fleet was very risky.
But sometimes, troops marched forward understanding the extreme risks, and that
sacrifice was very likely, yet still advanced ahead.
Zong Ge never feared sacrifice.
Zi Di spoke at this time, reminding, “For now, Cang Xu is still safe. We have
already saved t he dwarfs and humans, and don’t have sufficient grounds to
pursue a gold level enemy. The risks are too high, the profits are unclear, and
this will stir up suspicions. We are just one mercenary corps, and at worst
munitions smugglers.”
Zong Ge also said, “The gold level black clothed fighter who appeared was
obviously prepared for Jian Gui. It was a meticulous attack plan; we just
mistakenly stumbled into it.”
“Following Lady Sea Snake is rather risky, and it just occurred to me that we
actually have other clues.”
This reminder also caused the dragonman youngster to reply, “Yes, we still have
other clues.”
In Cang Xu’s secret letter, heh had given them information on the entire undead
gathering.
The dragonman youngster spoke to himself, “Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and the
others boarded the ghost ship. Every year, Xiao Wang Zi meets with his
pareznts, said meeting is not far off.”
“The ghost magician Qi Ling said something during the meeting. It had to do
with the White Hair Ocean Trench, and the matter about the seabed beast groups
migrating in. This might imply that the fishman Qi Ling protects lives near
White Hair Ocean Trench. Even if it isn’t, their clan might have migrated and
participated in the hunting of those beast groups.”
Zi Di agreed, “That’s right, there are still many clues. We don’t need to
shadow Lady Sea Snake.”
“Even if we can rescue Cang Xu, what are the benefits of doing so?”
“Jian Gui and the other necromancers have shown that they aren’t fiendish or
the type that kills people like flies.”
“We should do our own thing, do our best to strengthen ourselves so that if
Cang Xu gets into danger in the future, we can provide him with more support.”
“Don’t forget, our time is very scarce. It has already been two months since
Mystifying Monster Island has been destroyed.
The dragonman youngster nodded, and all thoughts of following Lady Sea Snake
were dispelled.
This voyage to Weeping Pine Island went smoothly at first, but in the later
stages, unexpected things appeared.
The survivors had accomplished most of their plans, the dwarfs had been saved,
they had captured the Iron Lump, and they white washed lots of the treasures
they picked up from Two Eyes Island’s seafloor.
But Cang Xu was gone.
There were discrepancies between the plans and reality.
With deep frustration and worry about Cang Xu in mind, the dragonman youngster
ordered the fleet to sail to Ice Sculpture Island.
The Ghost World.
Dark clouds covered the sky densely.
The earth was a sickly white, like a dead man’s bones.
The ghost ship quietly sailed through the Underworld River.
Cang Xu stood on deck, on the sides of the ship, watching everything around him
with a novel expression.
“This is what the Ghost World looks like?”
“Such dense negative energy!”
Qing Xin was standing next to him, her face green and deep black bags under her
eyes.
She was using magic power to protect herself from the negative energy
everywhere. As a living being, she was incompatible with the Ghost World.
In fact, Cang Xu was also feeling the burden.
The negative energy was constantly eroding his body, and even though he had
transformed his corporeal body, to maintain his humanity, he was half alive and
half dead, part of his body was still alive.
By contrast in the distance, Ku Feng and Xiao Wang Zi felt incomparable
pleasure, like a fishman returning to the ocean.
Xiao Wang Zi reclined on his pet three headed undead sea serpent’s back,
treating his generalissimo as a couch. He lazily said to Cang Xu, “Not all of
the Ghost World has such dense negative energy.”
“We are now in the Underworld River, which could be said to be a river of
negative energy.”
When Cang Xu heard this, he looked down at the Underworld River under the ship.
The Underworld River was very wide, and Cang Xu couldn’t see either shore.
Fog floated across the surface of the Underworld River, occasionally dense, and
occasionally thin.
The water of the Underworld River was light gray.
Cang Xu gazed at it with rapt attention, noticing to his astonishment that as
he kept gazing at it, it grew clearer and more transparent.
“Not good!” Xiao Wang Zi shouted loudly, “Save him now!”



****** Chapter 256: Snow Elf Patrol Inspection ******
Ku Feng acted almost as fast as Xiao Wang Zi called for help.
He grabbed Cang Xu by the neck and pulled him back.
Cang Xu was roused.
He was horrified to discover that he was unwittingly lying across the side of
the ship, stretching out his upper body, and was about to fall into the
Underworld River.
“Newcomer, you went so far as to dare gaze into the Underworld River, you
really don’t know what fear is.” Xiao Wang Zi slapped his palm across his ribs
with a gasp of surprise.
“Don’t gaze into the Underworld River, it will absorb your soul.” Ku Feng
explained.
“Many thanks.” Cang Xu shivered with post-traumatic stress.
Compared to veteran undead like Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng, his knowledge
appeared superficial.
In fact, conventional books had no accounts about the taboos of the Underworld
River.
Any knowledge pertaining to the undead was strictly controlled by major powers.
Furthermore, in the wake of growing numbers of necromancers, this control grew
ever stronger.
Xiao Wang Zi sighed, “It’s a pity that the gold level black clothed person
didn’t chase us. Since he used the Shadow Plane to move, he should have been
able to use it to intrude into the Ghost World.
“If he came here, without the ghost ship to carry him, he would have definitely
been absorbed by the Underworld River.
The Underworld River was very treacherous, and if Qing Xin wasn’t on the ghost
ship and was alone, she wouldn’t have enough time to react before the
Underworld River absorbed her.
Cang Xu calmed down, then looked at the Underworld River’s surface, but this
time he only looked at it from the corner of his eyes and constantly shifted
his line of sight.
He let out a sincere sigh, “The Underworld River, how mysterious and
intriguing. When my soul was being sucked in, I felt infinite peace and seemed
to be an exhausted traveler finally returning to a warm home.”
“In the Underworld River I also saw a shadow, I don’t know what it was.”
When Ku Feng heard that, he immediately grew discolored.
Xiao Wang Zi cried out in alarm, “What newcomer, what did you just see?”
Cang Xu suddenly grew tense, “I didn’t see it clearly, it looked like a vague
silhouette of a human.”
A moment later, there was a wail, and a ghost flew out of the Underworld River
and blocked the path in front of the ghost ship.
A gold level water ghost!
Cang Xu’s heart shook, then relaxed slightly, “Not bad, its only gold level.”
But Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng were panic-stricken.
Xiao Wang Zi was so anxious that his voice cracked, “What nonsense! Gold levels
in the Underworld River can only survive in groups.”
Just as he said that there was more ghostly wailing.
Ten gold level water ghosts floated up and barred the ghost ship’s way.
Cang Xu and Qing Xin were overwhelmed with horror.
“Lord Jian Gui, save us, save us!” Xiao Wang Zi called.
As a matter of fact, Jian Gui didn’t need Xiao Wang Zi’s yelling, he had been
alarmed by the situation already.
“Everyone into the ship cabin, I need to return to the Main World!” Jian Gui
shouted.
Cang Xu and the others rushed into the ship cabin.
Fortunately, the water ghost group had no intelligence, they had been utterly
eroded by negative energy and their original memories had been eroded to
nothing.
The water ghosts only detested living beings.
They vaguely sensed the smell of a living being from the ghost ship, but then
felt perplexed.
As they circled around the ghost ship, space fiercely fluctuated, and the ghost
ship seemed to dissipate like the fog.
“Returned!” When Cang Xu and the others returned to the deck, they saw a blue
sky and white clouds, along with a barren island not too far in the distance.
“Where are we?” Qing Xin asked.
Cang Xu took out a palm compass and began to orient himself.
Jian Gui transmitted, “This is one of my bases, it has some resources in
storage. Of course, most importantly, it has a Eulogy Tombstone, and by relying
on its spatial coordinate, I was able to quickly return to the Main World.”
“Wait a moment.” Cang Xu felt something was fishy, he looked at the eastern
sun, “When we left Weeping Pine Island, it was afternoon.”
Xiao Wang Zi giggled, “Newcomer, you are so stupid.”
“You think that sailing through the Underworld River only affects space?”
“Time flows differently in the two planes, or to be more precise, it has been
four days since Weeping Pine Island.”
Cang Xu’s eyes couldn’t help but widen, “So that’s how it is!”
Jian Gui transmitted, “I must heal and rest here for a bit. It is inadvisable
to stay here for long for since Qi Ling is a traitor, this place is no longer
safe.”
When Qi Ling was mentioned, Xiao Wang Zi coldly snorted, and his anger quickly
flared.
He was just about to curse when a fleet came from the other side of the island.
Everyone on the ghost ship changed color simultaneously.
“Not good, its Lady Sea Snake’s Petal Snake Pirates!”
Meanwhile, as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps entered Ice Sculpture Island
waters, they all had the same feeling.
The air temperature was dropping.
The closer they got to Ice Sculpture Island, the colder it got.
While the necromancers encountered Lady Sea Snake’s fleet, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps also had a fleet appearing before it.
“This is Ice Sculpture waters, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s seas, we are the
kingdom’s 17th patrol fleet, if you want to land on Ice Sculpture Island,
please stop your ships and accept inspection and registration.” The patrol
captain was a silver level fighter who spoke through a sound amplification
device to convey their message. 
“Two silver levels, three bronze level magic ships.” The dragonman youngster
gazed into the distance, immediately sensing the other side’s auras.
Bai Ya stood on the side of a ship, today it was his turn to wash the deck.
When he heard the patrol fleet’s declaration, he couldn’t help but exclaim in
surprise, “Heavens, they are only patrol fleet 17, that means there are at
least 16 other fleets of similar scale? The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is so
strong!”
The mercenaries near him immediately ridicule that, “Youngster, you have little
experience. Ice Sculpture Island cannot be compared to Snake Rat Island or Two
Eyes Island.”
“Its territory is vast, it more than a dozen cities and no less than 8 large
harbors.”
“The patrol fleets are not the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s main maritime power, the
kingdom has three main fleets, which includes the royal fleet’s saint level
flagship!”
Bai Ya was dumbstruck by this.
Sufficient maritime military power gave Ice Sculpture Island safe waters.
In fact, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had encountered a patrol fleet a long
way from the island.
In light of this distance, it could be assessed that the patrol fleet’s routes
were at least a hundredfold larger than Two Eyes Island’s patrol fleet’s!
The dragonman youngster ordered the ships to stop and accepted an inspection.
It was quite hard to stop ships in the sea, sometimes ship anchors couldn’t hit
the bottom.
Anyways, the patrol fleet didn’t need the ships to stop, they dispatched an
inspection team composed of all cultivators that could jump the five to six
hundred meters distance to them.
Snow elves!
Most of the mercenaries widened their eyes, amazed to take measure of these
people.
To be more precise, these were not humans, they were elves.
Elves had many classifications, there were wood elves, dark elves (Drow), sea
elves, and more, and one of them were snow elves.
Snow elves had the characteristics of elven kind, regardless of gender, they
were equally pretty, and their statures were tall and thin.
They had the distinctive long ears of elves, along with white hair and
eyebrows, a bloodline trait that distinguished them from other elves.
The entire snow elf inspection team wore leather armor and had cutlasses
strapped to their waists. 
They were equipment with special alchemy equipment that were used to scan for
hidden things.
Zong Ge calmly observed them, noticing that in a small team of 7, there was at
least one magician.
The team had a magician to fighter ratio of 1:6.
This ratio was astonishing!
This was also the advantage of elven bloodlines – their magical gifts were very
strong and far exceeded that of humans.
Two inspection teams examined the Love Triangle together.
This was their main inspection target.
“Stay away, humans.” The snow elves haughtily held their long handle alchemy
items as they scanned back and forth.
At the front end of the item was an iron circle that emitted a blue light.
The inspection team climbed down the ladder to a lower floor, then stopped
moving in front of a cabin door.
Their long handle iron circles produced a red light.
“What’s inside?” A snow elf investigator asked with a tough attitude, “Please
open it, so we can continue inspecting.”
The dragonman youngster ordered that the cabin door be opened.
A cabin filled with weapons and armor was revealed to the snow elves.
The snow elves looked at the walls filled with alchemy crossbows and firearms,
their eyelids jumping.
These long range weapons came from War Merchant’s warehouse and were of
superior quality.
The snow elf investigators had seldom seen such a scene.
“This is the armory, under normal circumstances, this equipment is stored here.
Only during wartime are they given out.” Lan Zao, who was accompanying them,
presented.
The snow elf investigator nodded, “A good system.”
“Hey, partner, look what I found!” Another snow elf investigator couldn’t help
but whistle.
The long handle iron circle in his hand was also glowing red.
He was in front of a cannon.
The gold level cannon.
Chi Lai was nearby, watching the cannon, and he coldly replied to the snow elf
investigator, “It is my treasure, and as you can see, it needs repairs.”
The snow elf investigator nodded, then took out paper and pen to record it
while saying, “My country has many outstanding alchemy masters, the Icey
Alchemy Workship is even one of the best in the world. You will be able to
repair it. Of course, if you have enough money to repair it.”
Chi Lai nodded back and didn’t reply.
The snow elf inspector on the Iron Lump was taking measure of the Feather Snake
Sail with a reprimanding tone, “I find it hard to imagine that you actually
installed such a beautiful sail on such a stupid thing. Heavens, this is just a
temporary magic power flow channel, don’t tell me you didn’t know this kind of
magic power transference is not stable? Using the Feather Snake Sail like this
will reduce its usage life, this simply is a waste of resources!”
The inspection team took quite a while, ascertaining what was what to the
bottom of the ship.
Zong Ge had an iron expression.
As a general, he had investigated his troops thoroughly, and this made him
extremely resentful and even humiliated.
The inspection team reported all kinds of information to the patrol fleet
captain.
“Three magic ships, the iron level Love Triangle, the bronze level White
Bandage and Iron Lump.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps…Commander Long Fu is silver level; Auxiliary
Commander Shi Qi is also silver level. In addition to that, there are other
silver level fighters.”
“A gold level cannon, and a Feather Snake Sail of the same level…”
“As a small sized mercenary corps, they actually have gold level equipment!
Along with many silver levels. It could even be said they have a deep
foundation and are a group of competent people.”
“But…” When the patrol captain saw it, he exposed a weird expression, “What’s
going on with their ranks? They have all kinds of races.”
“Dwarfs, water pigmen, dogmen, humans, a half giant, a dragonman…do they want
to open a circus?”
“What a mess!”
The patrol captain was worried about the dragonman youngster. This was a mixed
group composed of many races and many religions, how could such a group
continue to exist?
If only he knew that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also had a half beastman,
a goblin, and even a necromancer, who knows what he would think about that.



****** Chapter 257: Cang Xu’s Despair ******
The Petal Snake Pirates.
Flagship – Flower Snake Tower.
“Reload!” A gunner shouted.
The six sailors assisting them used their entire bodies to lift a gigantic
artillery shell together.
The artillery shell was overall cylindrical, its front end was a hemisphere,
and it gave off a golden light.
The long cylindrical artillery shell was a Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell.
This shell emitted a gold level aura and was obviously not made of ordinary
materials.
The artillery shell was pushed into a cannon by the sailors.
This peculiar cannon was known as an Arched Anti-air Cannon, it was ten meters
long, and its cannon barrel curved several times around the ship’s central
tower until the cannon mouth sat on the tower’s roof.
The Arched Anti-air Cannon had most certainly been remade by alchemy, its
outward appearance and the Flower Snake Tower were in agreement, with the
cannon’s mouth being a large, open snake mouth.
The surface of the entire serpentine cannon was covered in thousands of shields
that were layered upon each other, completely covering the cannon to protect
it.
“Close the cannon breech, activate the Arched Anti-air Cannon.” The main gunner
sat in the central ship tower, controlling the alchemy system, this cabin was
dedicated to shooting the cannon.
A large amount of magic power poured in from the Flower Snake Tower’s magic
power reservoir and into the Arched Anti-air Cannon.
The anti-air cannon began to faintly shudder while simultaneously producing a
snake hiss.
Two auxiliary gunners put both hands on the snake tail, mixing their battle qi
into it to control the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell.
The gold level artillery shell slowly activated, and from the snake tail, it
began to accelerate through the tight spiral rifling of the cannon barrel.
As it circled through the cannon’s serpentine barrel once, the main gunner
heard the alchemy system’s monotonous voice, “Level one acceleration complete.”
Then when the artillery shell circled around a second time, the alchemy system
stated, “Level two acceleration complete.”
Soon after.
“Level three acceleration complete.”
The main gunner growled, “Fire!”
After the third level of acceleration, the gold artillery shell had reached an
astonishing speed, it became a shadow that shot out from the cannon and within
two seconds, it swiftly ascended into the air to an altitude of 1000 meters.
After the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell reached maximum altitude, it began to
fall.
At this time, its steel wings ejected from its two sides.
The steel wings vibrated through the air, producing a warbling rumble.
Whizz!
As it took aim at the ghost ship, the shell swooped down as its warbling
lengthened, causing hearts to tense and hair to prick up of those who heard it.
On the ghost ship, everyone abruptly became discolored.
Ku Feng growled, “Not good, we must intercept it!”
Jian Gui’s ghost ship was only silver level, while Lady Sea Snake’s Arched
Anti-air Cannon and Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell were both gold level.
If it hit the ghost ship, the consequences would be too horrible to
contemplate!
Before Ku Feng shouted his warning, the three magicians were already moving,
Qing Xin produced a gigantic wind blade.
Xiao Wang Zi suddenly pulled off his left index finger and threw it.
The index finder turned into a lance as it flew through the air.
While Cang Xu took out the deteriorated magic book.
It was the water path magic book he and Zi Di had bought from Two Eyes Island’s
auction.
The magic book only had three pages, but they were all gold level magic spells.
Cang Xu’s soul burden was very heavy, thus, his casting speed and success rate
were very low, so during this emergency, he could only use this trump card.
One of the magic book’s pages disintegrated to ash and drifted into the wind.
A water arrow appeared from nothing and launched towards the Baby Bird Mushroom
Cloud shell.
Qing Xin’s massive wind blade was the fastest and was the first to crash into
the gold artillery shell. It turned to green light and only slowed down the
artillery shell somewhat, nothing else.
Xiao Wang Zi’s bone spear had exceptional quality, it was an adequate silver
level. It was not a spell, but rather a magic item that was shrunk normally,
disguised as his finger.
But the bone spear didn’t hit the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell.
In a crucial split second, the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell unexpectedly
ascended a bit to avoid the bone spear!
Of course, the gold level shell was not only powerful, but it also was
excellently designed.
Since the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell was designed to be a high altitude
shell and its trajectory was a huge parabola, it gave the enemy a lot of time
to intercept it.
With this taken into consideration, the alchemist master who manufactured this
artillery shell had installed some meticulous things inside it to give it the
capacity to evade.
“It avoided it?” Xiao Wang Zi was astonished and rushed to use his spiritual
control to bring the spear back.
But how could the bone spear catch up with the gold artillery shell?
Xiao Wang Zi was forced to watch as the artillery shell quickly outpaced the
bone spear.
Cang Xu used the magic book, and according to convention, his water arrow
should have formed first.
But his mental state was quite terrible and in actual combat, he was the last
to move.
“It’s all on me.” When Cang Xu saw Qing Xin and Xiao Wang Zi fail, he took in a
nervous breath and used all of his spirit power.
He willed the water arrow to smash into the gold artillery shell
The Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell’s steel wings slightly turned, it wanted to
use the same trick to avoid the Water Arrow spell.
However, the Water Arrow spell was being controlled by Cang Xu’s spirit and
Cang Xu had been prepared for this and immediately changed the Water Arrow
spell’s flight direction.
Ding.
The Water Arrow spell struck the gold artillery shell.
The gold artillery shell screeched to a halt, and the hemisphere warhead was
smashed vertically down into the ocean.
It ended up in the seawater.
Boom!
With a large explosion, the shell blew up in the ocean.
The fierce explosion lifted a jet of water up to ten meters tall, which crashed
back down into gigantic white waves that swept from the explosion.
The ghost ship rode the waves.
On the deck, the necromancers and the rest were in indeterminate panic and
lingering fear.
Xiao Wang Zi clapped his chest, “How dangerous, good think it was intercepted.”
The bone spear he had thrown out had flown back, and Xiao Wang Zi grabbed it.
Xiao Wang Zi then shouted, “Save me, save me Lord Jian Gui!”
Like before in the Underworld River, he cried for help just the same now.
Cang Xu couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows and think, why was Xiao Wang Zi’s
call for help so practiced?
A moment later, Jian Gui weakly replied, “A gold water ghost came back with us,
I am in the process of suppressing it.”
“For a short time, we cannot go back to the Ghost World.”
“The magic power reservoir has already reached critical levels.”
“Next, I will use the Ghost Fog spell, you will all hide in the ship cabin and
do your best to fight for time.”
If Jian Gui used Ghost World Transversal again, the ghost ship would return to
the Underworld River again.
They would once again face the water ghost group and were sure to face
disaster.
Even if they bet on the ghost group dispersing before then, the ghost ship
couldn’t return to the Ghost World.
Because planar teleportation used up great amounts of magic power, and
traveling the Underworld River also consumed lots of magic power too.
The ghost ship had inadequate magic power.
If it went back to the Ghost World again, it wouldn’t have enough magic power
to return to the Main World.
They would meet their end in the Underworld River, for after barely traveling a
bit, their magic power would be utterly exhausted, and the ghost ship would be
eroded completely by negative energy, until finally, it was assimilated into
the ecology of the Underworld River.
The Flower Snake Tower.
When Lady Sea Snake saw her first artillery shell was stopped, her face
flickered and she ordered, “Keep shooting.”
The other side using gold level magic to intercept the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud
shell was sensible.
The advantages of the strong were reflected here.
If a gold level magician used magic to intercept the artillery shell, they
would have a high success rate of doing so. Magicians only expended magic and
spirit power.
After a time, they could autonomously recover it.
The cost was so low!
By contrast, when factoring in the artillery shell’s price, along with the
anti-air cannon’s maintenance and magic power cost, Lady Sea Snake had paid a
few hundred gold coins to fire that shell.
But Lady Sea Snake remained unmoved and still ordered the crew to keep firing.
Because even though the first was intercepted, it didn’t mean the second or
third would be.
Even if only one worked, she would be content.
This was tantamount to her spending money to deplete the other side’s magic
power.
Magic power needed time to recover, or recovery medicine, both would consume
the enemy’s war potential.
Soon after, a second Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shell was loaded in.
But as the anti-air cannon was being activated, a thick fog rose around the
ghost ship.
The thick fog quickly expanded, completely covering the ghost ship.
The main gunner reported, “Commander, we lost visual.”
Lady Sea Snake coldly snorted, “Thia is the Ghost Fog spell, the necromancy
school’s advantage still exist, and conventional detection methods won’t work.
Forget about it, stop firing.”
After Lady Sea Snake said that she couldn’t help but laugh.
She turned around to look at Wei Ying.
The gold fighter’s arms were crossed, and he was leaning in a corner. The
captain’s room was obviously well it, but he was surrounded by dense shadows.
Lady Sea Snake said to him, “It seems our luck is pretty good. The ghost ship
was obviously forced to come here, the Underworld River’s dangers are hard to
estimate.”
“They are now stalling for time; grab hold of this chance to accomplish our
mission.”
“What are we waiting for?” As Wei Ying spoke, the shadows around his body
quickly vanished.
Cang Xu hid in a ship cabin.
But this ship cabin didn’t give him any sense of security.
He sensed that the ghost ship was sailing far away from where it had once been.
But not far enough.
The Ghost Fog spell had a finite range, and the other side had many men.
Given enough time, they would be found.
Cang Xu most dreaded the mysterious black clothed fighter, followed by Lady Sea
Snake’s gold level magic pet.
If any came calling, the necromancers would be in trouble.
“If battle starts, I will be most in danger.” Cang Xu was only an iron level in
actuality.
“Battle strength, I need battle strength!” Cang Xu’s mouth and tongue were dry
as his heart filled with a strong longing for greater battle strength.
Every increase of military power would increase his chances of survival.
But how to increase it?
Faced with this difficult problem, Cang Xu sank into rapid pondering. 
Despite obtaining many undead inheritances, these all new magics needed time to
familiarize with and to develop, so he could cast them successfully.
Risking casting them now would likely lead to them failing and him suffering
the terrifying backlash.
“Calm down.”
“I cannot take too many risks, that would be almost equal to committing
suicide.”
Cang Xu pondered for a moment, unable to find a solution, causing the trace of
despair in his mind to turn into a flood.



****** Chapter 258: Ghostly Transformation ******
Cang Xu was only an iron level, and he was facing gold level enemies.
The gap between their life levels were too high, and it was too difficult for
him to resist them.
The formidable spiritual pressure caused Cang Xu to inevitably sink into self-
doubt, “To scheme for the benefits Jian Gui on him, I chose to take a risk, was
that the wrong choice?”
“Should I be more cautious and not act so radically?”
Cang Xu felt regret.
But soon after, he shook his head and strived to get rid of this defeatist
mindset.
He understood that at this crucial juncture, any defeatist feelings would
lessen his chances of survival.
In fact, Cang Xu never thought that he’d be in danger. 
In addition, at the time, he had no choice but to board the ghost ship.
If he hadn’t, he would have been chased down by pirates. When Jian Gui and the
ghost ship vanished, he would be left behind and turn into the sole target,
likely being killed by the mysterious black clothed man in passing.
Calm.
Deep breaths.
Cang Xu forced himself to calm down.
Suddenly, he had a flash of inspiration, “The chances of getting myself out of
trouble with these gold level enemies is next to nothing. What I really need to
do is learn from Xiao Wang Zi!” 
He coughed a bit, then started talking, “Lord Jian Gui, help me, I need your
help!”
Although Jian Gui was not in front of Cang Xu, the entire ghost ship was him.
According to Cang Xu’s conjecture, his every movement and word could be sensed
swiftly by Jian Gui.
Were that not so, Jian Gui wouldn’t have been able to hear Xiao Wang Zi’s call
for help and quickly act on it.
As expected, Jian Gui soon answered Cang Xu, “You need me to help you? Xu Jia.”
Xu Jia was the pseudonym Cang Xu had given in the undead gathering.
Cang Xu candidly recounted his predicament, “You know me, Lord Jian Gui. I just
received an advanced soul aspect inheritance, and have three silver level
ghosts, my spiritual burden is enormous. I need to use the Burden Alleviation
and Karma Reduction spells as soon as possible, but those two spells need a lot
of time and practice before I can grasp them. Did you say you had some
pertinent magic scrolls? I can purchase them…”
Before Cang Xu could finish, the space in front of him fluctuated.
The fluctuation quickly faded.
A magic book appeared from nowhere.
“This is my secondary magic book, you can borrow it.” Said Jian Gui.
Cang Xu was overjoyed at the unexpectedly good news, he only wanted some magic
scrolls and never expected to get an entire magic tome.
“So, the price…” Cang Xu asked again.
Jian Gui interrupted him again, “You can use it first, don’t worry, I won’t
extort you!”
Jian Gui’s bearing was just as always and didn’t take the opportunity to ask
for a high price.
He could have done so, because Cang Xu at this moment was mentally prepared to
bear a high price.
But he didn’t do that.
The magic tome was a conventional type of magic item, similar to magic staves,
wands, crystal balls, and more.
But magic books were different from other casting items.
It could be regarded as a collection of an indeterminate amount of magic
scrolls.
But magic scrolls would be destroyed upon use, while magic books possessed the
ability to be recharged, able to be used a number of times.
The manufacturing cost of magic books differed, it was based on their magical
contents, the amount of pages, materials, and so on, leading to the cost range
to be quite wide.
With regards to necromancers, their magic tomes were very difficult to buy
externally and were normally made by themselves.
Jian Gui was worthy of being a direct descendent of the undead, the book he
lent to Cang Xu was merely his secondary book. This indicated that he had at
least two magic tomes, the first undoubtedly more exceptional than the second.
Cang Xu opened up the secondary magic tome.
The secondary book’s first spell was the Burden Alleviation spell.
After that there was the same spell four more times.
Then on the fifth page was the Karma Reduction spell.
The pages dedicated to those two spells made up one tenth of the magic tome,
this made clear how important they were to a necromancer’s cultivation.
Without any hesitation, Cang Xu immediately poured in some magic power and
formed a spiritual link.
Not much magic power was consumed; it was more used as the trigger.
The magic book blossomed with ashen light that enveloped Cang Xu’s entire body.
Afterwards, the spell’s power seeped into Cang Xu’s soul.
First was the Burden Alleviation spell, then the Karma Reduction spell.
Ah, what a wonderful feeling!
Cang Xu groaned a bit.
The enormous spiritual pressure on him was like a sick person carrying a
mountain reaching the limits of their stamina as they walked along a precipice,
the slightest mistake able to destroy his life and soul.
Now, the heavy weight on him dissipated for the most part, his entire being
relaxed, and his illness had been alleviated greatly.
Cang Xu had used ten of the magic book’s pages.
Five Burden Alleviation spells and five Karma Reduction spells.
The former reduced his soul burden greatly and the latter eased the negative
energy that eroded Cang Xu’s heart and soul.
After those ten spells, Cang Xu released three silver level ghosts.
He no longer felt dizzy or depressed.
So unstressed.
It seemed as if had another silver level ghost, he’d still be capable of
controlling it.
Unfortunately, they couldn’t be used further. 
Cang Xu noticed at after using the ten pages, the pages now appeared to be
gray, they need to be replenished with magic power, materials, and other
things. They need to be “charged” to be used again.
Of course, forcefully using them wasn’t out of the question.
But doing so would squeeze the magic book and turn it into a disposable item,
In the future, even if it was “recharged”, it wouldn’t be charged ever again.
This was not Cang Xu’s magic book, and Cang Xu didn’t intend on killing the
goose that lays golden eggs.
He continued to thumb through the magic tome.
Intermediate level Water Ghost Refinement spell. 
This as the content of page 11.
Generally speaking, low level magic was bronze and iron level. Intermediate
level was silver and gold level. High level was saint and legend level.
Cang Xu immediately retrieved knowledge from the advanced soul aspect
inheritance he had just obtained.
“Intermediate level Water Ghost Refinement spell, it can turn a ghost into a
silver level or a gold level water ghost. But the main material needed must be
an intermediate level ghost.”
“Furthermore, the ghost lifeform should have abundant water attributes. The
more water attributes the ghost bloodline has, the higher the casting success
rate of transforming it into a water ghost.”
“The undead bloodlines, most are from the remnants oh what they once were
alive, therefore, their living bloodlines usually determined the ghost’s
transformation path.”
After looking this up, Cang Xu had an understanding.
“Undead lifeforms have their foundation in life and were made from them.”
“Undead lifeform creation, regardless of whether it is soul, corpse, or bone
aspect, must all be in line with the being’s aptitude.”
“One cannot change them as they wish.”
Cang Xu was somewhat restless.
He had three silver level ghosts on hand; they were all intermediate level and
suitable for this magic.
But there was one crucial problem.
“Do any of my three silver level ghosts contain water attributes?”
“If they don’t contain a water nature, or have a minimal amount of it, then the
refinement spell will likely fail, and even if it succeeds, the transformed
water ghost’s battle strength will be quite low.”
“Because this path does not suit its development, and it cannot display its
potential from life!”
This problem stumped Cang Xu.
Because this involved bloodline testing, and of the survivors, only Zi Di could
barely do it.
It was impossible for Cang Xu to do that under the current circumstances.
“Perhaps the magic tome has a testing magic?” Cang Xu’s heart quivered, and he
began to flip through the book.
Ghost Horse Refinement spell.
This was a horse ghost type of transformation magic; after being refined, the
ghost horse could become a necromancer’s mount.
Ghost Elf Refinement spell.
The higher the charisma of the undead life form, the greater the chances of
success and the stronger it would be.
Hungry Ghost Refinement spell.
Life forms with the Gluttony, Starvation, or similar bloodlines can be refined
by this spell after being turned into a ghost.
Frost Ghost Refinement spell, Death Substitute Refinement spell, Shield Bearer
Ghost Refinement spell, Poltergeist Refinement spell…
There were many pages of ghostly transformation spells.
The latter part of the magic tome dealt with soul aspect attack, defense,
teleportation, and other such magics.
“Nothing that can detect a ghost’s aptitude…” After rummaging through the magic
book, Cang XU was somewhat disappointed.
He quickly settled his mind and calmly reflected, “Wrong, the magic tome might
not have it, but that doesn’t mean Jian Gui doesn’t have it!”
“Since he has the ghostly transformation spells, then that proves that this
field has been studied deeply, it is impossible for there to be no testing
magics.”
“Beforehand, Jian Gui saw through me and hew that I had transformed by body
somewhat.”
“Furthermore, he also refused my request for a deeper level necromancy
inheritance, the reason was my aptitude wasn’t good enough!”
“That proves that he has a method of gauging aptitude!”
When he thought of that, Cang Xu shouted again for Jian Gui’s help.
Jian Gui admitted that he did have this supplementary magic that could
determine an undead life form’s aptitude and potential to a degree. However, he
couldn’t give it to Cang Xu. Because even a magic scroll could give Cang Xu a
glimpse at a few of the magic’s secrets, thereby obtaining crucial
enlightenment of its properties.
This was one of the high level core inheritances and needed to be treated very
prudently.
Jian Gui wanted to help Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and the others, but his help was
not endless, Jian Gui had a firm bottom line.
Cang Xu sighed, because the feeling of frustration and despair over his
unqualified aptitude surfaced in his mind again. 
Therefore, he asked Jian Gui to help him test his ghosts’ aptitudes.
But Jian Gui still declined, “So sorry, currently we need to stay hidden in the
Ghost Fog and stall for time. Xu Jia, this magic takes a long time to cast and
will draw in a large amount of my spirit, it cannot be concealed and will
expose us.”
“Perhaps, you can wait until after this crisis, then I will naturally help
you.”
This path was also blocked.
Cang Xu shook his head internally as Jian Gui overruled his final suggestion.
He never entrusted his survival to luck, nor would he be unduly conservative,
which would lead to his chances of survival declining.
“These three silver level ghosts must be transformed!”
“Since aptitude can’t be tested, then there’s no harm in switching my angle.”
“Which ghost do I need the most?”
Cang Xu’s eyes twinkled with calmness and wisdom.



****** Chapter 259: Cang Xu Dies ******
Cang Xu once more opened Jian Gui’s magic tome.
The first part of the ghostly transformation section was the Water Ghost
Refinement spell.
In this oceanic environment, refining water ghosts was undoubtedly the most
practical choice. From how the book’s contents were arranged, one could glimpse
the author’s, Jian Gui’s, pondering.
“Is it worth refining a water ghost?” Cang Xu calmly analyzed.
He thought of Qi Ling’s water ghosts.
The water ghosts had dealt enormous casualties to the Lightning Pirates.
Especially when Qi Ling used an intermediate level Soul Send spell with her
silver level water ghosts, allowing her to control key members of the pirates.
Cang Xu personally experienced how strong those water ghosts were.
“But it doesn’t suit me right now.”
The reason was very simple; water ghosts were partial towards attacking.
They were not individually strong, they needed numbers.
Provided they were a group and fighting at sea, their combat effectiveness was
usually decent.
Magician Qi Ling’s group magic and utilization of the Soul Sending spell really
was sharp.
But now, Cang Xu was facing a gold level enemy. There was a two life level
difference between him and them, Qi Ling’s group magic would be ineffective.
Cang Xu constantly thumbed through the magic tome’s pages.
Suddenly, he froze.
Dragon Spirit Refinement spell!
Gigantic dragons were one of the strongest lifeforms in the world, and dragon
spirits were absolutely one of the strongest ghosts too.
Cang Xu couldn’t move his eyes away.
“If I had a dragon spirit, even only a silver level one, it could temporarily
hold back the mysterious black clothed person. Even an iron level one, could
last a few seconds.”
A few seconds was a fundamental change!
Because Cang Xu was on the ghost ship, and a few seconds was enough for Jian
Gui to react and lend a helping hand.
However, Cang Xu lacked the most important material to refine a dragon spirit.
He needed a dragon soul, the purer the better, while sub-dragons were second
level quality.
“Lord Jian Gui, do you have a dragon soul on you? I can buy it at a high
price!” Cang Xu asked again.
But Jian Gui didn’t have one, “Pure dragon souls are very rare, I don’t have
such a good thing.”
Cang Xu thumbed through the tome once more.
“Ghost Horse Refinement spell?”
He quickly shook his head.
Even if he could refine a ghost horse to be his mount, his speed could never
compare to the mysterious black clothed figure’s blink shift.
“Shield bearer ghost?”
This was a type of protection ghost.
Cang Xu had seen how they were used from the advanced soul aspect inheritance
he had received.
One of them was after a necromancer turned themselves into a ghost, they could
entrust themselves to a shield bearer ghost.
When that happened, then a ghost would be in a ghost.
Cang Xu could get the shield bearer ghost’s defenses.
“A silver level shield bearer ghost, almost no offensive use, all of its
potential is spent on defense.”
“If I use it this way, then against the mysterious black clothed person, I can
struggle at death’s door for a second more.”
Cang Xu’s brows wrinkled.
Because he knew this option was barely passable.
The mysterious black clothed person not only had a gold level life level, but
also three pieces of high end gold level equipment.
When his powerful dagger stabbed Jian Gui, the latter of whom was a direct
inheritor of the undead, it put him into peril and seriously injured him.
Even with the shield bearer ghost, it would only be a difference of two to
three blade strikes to Cang Xu at most.
“The Death Substitute Refinement spell?”
“That could do!”
When Cang Xu saw it, his brows finally smoothed out, and his mind shook.
He instantly envisaged a few good tactics of playing dead and fleeing for his
life.
Looking again at the content after it, Cang Xu returned back to the “Death
Substitute Refinement spell” part of the magic tome.
“This is the one!”
Cang Xu made his decision.
He immediately used the magic tome on one of his silver level ghosts.
Ding.
A few second later, the ghost looked like a tiny firework that exploded, then
died.
Cang Xu took a deep breath.
His cast failed!
This was within Cang Xu’ expectations.
The silver level ghost being used as a material probably didn’t have the
pertinent bloodline; therefore, the refinement spell failed and killed the
ghost.
Luckily, Cang Xu wasn’t affected that much.
Because he was casting with the magic tome, not with himself.
This was the benefits of a casting item!
Without any hesitation, Cang Xu immediately used it on a second ghost.
Ding.
The second silver level ghost was also blown up.
Another failure!
Cang xu felt distressed.
Silver level ghosts were something that were hard to obtain.
“If Zi Di were here, it would be better.”
“No, her medical tests still have a way to go before they can be used on undead
lifeforms.
“Only one silver level ghost left”
Cang Xu stopped trying to refine a Death Substitute ghost.
The reason was that the pages with the Death Substitute Refinement spell had
gone gray after those two casts, it couldn’t be used a third time and needed to
be “recharged” again.
“What to transform the final ghost into?”
Cang Xu quickly pondered, rationally altering his strategy, and became
conservative.
He decided to refine a shield bearer ghost.
On the third try, he finally succeeded!
After transforming the silver level ghost, it looked like an old turtle-man,
its body was stooped, and its back and even its buttocks were covered with an
enormous shield. The elliptic shield was very similar to a turtle shell.
“Good, next is the use the intermediate Soul Sending spell!”
Cang Xu used the magic tome again.
But a moment later, a shadow suddenly appeared!
“Found you!” The mysterious black clothed man sneered as he abruptly appeared
behind Cang Xu, his dagger stabbing towards him.
By the time Cang Xu reacted, his heart was already stabbed by the dagger.
“Eh? You’re not him.” The mysterious black clothed man stared at him, then
shadow covered his body, and he vanished once again.
Plop.
Cang Xu’s body fell onto the floor.
His eyes opened wide, and his last thought facing death’s door was the
mysterious black clothed man thought he was Jian Gui, this showed that Jian Gui
had used him as bait!
“It’s no wonder I was given his secondary magic tome!” Cang Xu’s life aura
quickly dissipated into nothing.
His body had been transformed by his hands into a living dead person. But he
was a bottom iron level undead lifeform, and he would certainly die from an all
out assassination from the black clothed man!
Cang Xu was no exception.
He died.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The survivors had gathered in the alchemy cabin, even the big guy was crammed
in the hallway outside the cabin.
The alchemy formation slowly ceased, and the dragonman youngster walked out.
“Next.” Zi Di controlled the formation.
Zong Ge grunted his compliance and stepped into the formation.
Buzz.
Soon after, the formation activated again and replenished Zong Ge’s Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had gotten through Ice Sculpture Island’s first
inspection and hadn’t reached their destination yet.
Taking advantage of this gap of time, the survivors camouflaged themselves and
quietly returned to the Deep Sea Monster Fish to fill in the gaps in their
Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spells.
These two magics were wonderful, but were not constant, they needed to be
replenished every so often.
The dragonman youngster watched the formation operate, his mind worried about
Cang Xu, “He hasn’t replenished these magics, if it is exhausted near Jian Gui
and the others, then it will very troublesome. I hope he can return soon.”



****** Chapter 260: Shadow Monk ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish
The Anti-investigation and Prophecy and Deceptive Disguise spells had just
finished being replenished.
The survivors began to swim up to the surface one after the other.
The dragonman youngster was the last to depart.
Zi Di opened the captain room’s door and met with the dragonman youngster
alone.
“Lord Commander, everyone’s Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spells have been replenished, this is the subsequent financial
report.” Zi Di handed the dragonman youngster a list.
The dragonman youngster quickly skimmed through it.
Converted into gold coins, it cost 180 gold coins.
Compared to the first time, it cost an additional 15 gold coins.
This was mainly due to the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
The Deceptive Disguise spell’s cost cannot be calculated, because the main
thing it used was the god level material – Pearl Bubbles.
“Not bad.” The dragonman youngster was still, “We have a few hundred thousand
gold right now, and in the short term, replenishing these two spells isn’t an
issue.”
Zi DI immediately shook her head, “Lord Commander, you’re thinking about it
wrong.”
“The more of the Pearl Bubbles we use, the less there are, they cannot be
replaced with normal materials.”
“Although we have a lot of capital, we need to spend money in a lot of areas!”
“For example, when we reach Ice Sculpture Island, we need to purchase a silver
level magic ship, that will cost a huge sum.”
“Another example, your Lordship’s and Zong Ge’s cultivation also need constant
investment.”
“This time, the main reason why the Anti-investigation and Prophecy cost 15
more gold coins is because you two have grown stronger.”
The stronger the survivors got overall, the more it would cost to conceal
themselves.
This was obvious. To cover up an ant, one only needed a finger. But to cover up
a tree leaf, one needed at least an open palm.
“Your bloodlines are the most exceptional, therefore in the future, the cost of
the Anti-prophecy and Investigation spell will continue to rise.”
When the dragonman youngster heard this, he shook his head, “No you are
overlooking Xiao Guai.” 
The big guy Xiao Guai’s bloodline had been tested to be at least legend level.
Zi Di nodded, “I forgot about that.”
Ther dragonman youngster smiled, “Understandable, after all with Xiao Gui’s
lowly strength and us hiding him away on the ship most of the time on the
ship’s bow house, and not showing himself rashly, his sense of presence has
always been small.”
“But I believe that as long as our guidance is fruitful and he is able to cross
over the most crucial first step, he will be able to truly cultivate and be
able to show his extraordinary svelte.”
The dragonman youngster had high expectations for the big guy’s future.
“That is the reason why.” Zi Di plainly looked at the young man, “Commander,
you must be prudent and cannot be negligent.”
“Don’t be fooled by our current funds and become lax.”
“Our finances have a massive systemic problem.”
“We will be spending ever more in the future, if we don’t operate properly, it
might become a vicious circle and we’ll be unable to make ends meet.
“At the moment, we need to set up a steady flow of income. Perhaps, we can try
to sell our medicine on Ice Sculpture Island.”
“In addition to that, looking for a suitable location to covertly build an
alchemy factory to produce munitions will also work for us.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, he looked deeply at Zi Di, “My ability in this
aspect cannot in a million years compare to yours.”
“Luckily we have you, I believe that our financial situation will be very
healthy.”
As he said that, the dragonman youngster stretched out his palm to Zi Di.
Zi Di softly placed her palm above his, a minute gap between their palms.
She was a ghost, and if they didn’t maintain distance, she would go through the
dragonman youngster’s palm.
To be regarded as this important by her beloved, Zi Di’s mouth could help but
rise as her heart filled with happiness and she softly said, “Don’t worry, I
will manage our assets well.”
In a ghostly mist covered the entire sky, specters were howling on the ghost
ship. 
A fierce battle was taking place.
A large number of ghosts were crazily shuttling through the crushed hull; they
had a single enemy, the black clothed fighter who could use the Shadow Plane.
The black clothed man had boarded the ghost ship in the boundless ghost fog and
did an assassination when he first appeared.
Cang Xu had died by his hand.
But to him, it had been a failure.
Because his target was his equal, Jian Gui!
“That life aura mislead me. Jian Gui’s magic tome? Although a small trick, it…”
The black clothed man’s brows deeply wrinkled as he constantly pondered.
“Why am I still not able to detect Jian Gui’s location inside the ghost ship?”
“He has obviously been marked by my battle skill.”
Yi Ying was very puzzled.
At this moment, three ghosts found him in the corner and threw themselves at
him simultaneously.
A heavy shadow suddenly spurted up next to Yi Ying, and like ink, it flowed
around him, causing him vanishing instantly from where he stood.
Appearing once again, he found himself in another cabin.
Although three ghosts that attacked him were not his match, Yi Ying didn’t want
to fight them.
“This ship has too many ghosts, if I waste battle qi to destroy those
insignificant things, I will fall into the other side’s tactics.”
“The most crucial thing is to find Jian Gui’s real body!”
Yi Ying was strong, and in an open contest, he could suppress Jian Gui.
But now, Jian Gui had “disappeared”.
The only thing Yi Ying was certain about was that “Jian Gui was somewhere on
this ghost ship”.
Thump.
At that moment, there was a loud sound.
The entire ghost ship’s hull suddenly tilted and nearly capsized!
The main culprit was Lady Sea Snake’s magic pet; the gold level sea snake had
used its gigantic and sturdy head to ruthlessly smash the ghost ship’s bottom.
“Support has finally arrived.” Yi Ying was unperturbed.
He had found the ghost ship first, and had informed Lady Sea Snake soon after,
her gold level sea snake coming in to provide assistance came at no surprise to
him.
The sea snake had made matters even worse for the necromancers.
“Generalissimo, attack! You must entangle the magic snake on the seafloor;
don’t let it destroy the ghost ship!” Xiao Wang Zi wobbled about as he gave
orders in a flurry.
Although the ghost ship was silver level, it had the undead school’s advantages
and was able to withstand the gold level sea snake fairly easily.
But now, most of the ship’s ghosts were occupied with dealing with Yi Ying and
were barely able to resist the gold level sea snake.
The undead three headed sea serpent plopped into the water and began to fight
tooth and nail against the gold magic snake.
Its three snake heads attacked from different directions, biting at the gold
magic ship’s body.
The gold magic snake yelped and wanted to turn around to deal with the undead
sea serpent, but then it received Lady Sea Snake’s order.
The gold sea snake vigorously used all of its strength to pull itself onto the
ghost ship and wrapped its immense snake body around it, beginning to strangle
it!
The undead three headed sea serpent sprayed negative energy and attacked the
gold magic beast with all it had, but good things didn’t last forever as Lady
Sea Snake quickly shot it with magic.
The undead three headed sea serpent was turned sluggish and stiff by water path
magic, and its offensive was greatly affected.
The ghost ship couldn’t bear the heavy load and echoed with groans.
Its hull had been inherently corroded by negative energy to utter decay, and
now with a gigantic snake strangling it, large stretches of ship planks were
splintering, and massive amounts of cracks were forming on both sides of the
ship.
When Jian Gui saw this, he had no choice but to transfer ghosts to attack the
gold sea snake.
The unending ghosts of tremendous scale enveloped the battlefield in a cold
eeriness.
The gold sea snake had many ghosts flooding into its body, suffering intense
negative energy erosion, its memory quickly became chaotic and its mind
delirious.
The gigantic sea snake gradually went limp, winning the ghost ship valuable
time to take a breather.
“Ku Feng, please engage the black clothed fighter for a time.” Jian Gui’s voice
transmitted to Ku Feng’s ears.
Ku Feng immediately obeyed, abandoning Xiao Wang Zi and rushing into the ship
cabin, towards Yi Ying.
As a silver level with strong blade techniques, he would be able to resist Yi
Ying for a short time.
Very quickly, Yi Ying sensed Ku Feng’s movement.
He sneered, and instead of dealing with Ku Feng, he blink shifted again, this
time behind Xiao Wang Zi!
Xiao Wang Zi turned pale with fright, he didn’t have enough time to run away
before Yi Ying stabbed him.
Then at the moment Yi Ying had succeeded in that, Jian Gui appeared, and with
lightning speed, he jumped into Yi Ying’s body!
Yi Ying’s figure instantly collapsed, turning into a dense shadow.
As it turns out, the one Jian Gui attacked was actually his disguised clone.
“So, you finally appeared!” Yi Ying’s real body appeared behind Jian Gui and
used a battle skill on Jian Gui’s back.
Jian Gui wailed in anguish, and his ghost body was heavily damaged.
He used Xiao Wang Zi as bait, but in the end, Yi Ying had beaten him at his own
game.
Jian Gui had been injured to start with, and with these wounds added on, he was
nearing the edge of death!
He hurried to use a movement trump card and vanished.
But this time, Yi Ying saw it and made out clues.
The gold level transcendent slightly changed color, “So that’s how it is!”
“Jian Gui turned into a ghost and merged into the ghost ship.”
“He became the ghost ship, in other words, the ghost ship is him.”
“It’s no wonder the mark I left him only appeared on the ghost ship.”
“From a certain point of view, he has become this ghost ship’s ship spirit.”
Realizing the truth, Yi Ying couldn’t help but expose a smile of triumph.
No matter how Jian Gui was hiding, it as no use. It was merely struggling at
death’s door and delaying the time before defeat and death.
Even if Yi Ying couldn’t find him, so long as he dealt with the ghost ship and
destroyed it, he could force Jian Gui’s main body to separate from it and
appear once again.
Of course, Jian Gui also knew that he had exposed the truth.
Therefore, after merging with the ghost ship, he began to cast with all he had.
Necromancy spell – Ghost World Transversal!
Space fiercely fluctuated, and the ghost ship separated itself from the Main
Plane once again, appearing above the Underworld River.
The gold sea snake howled in agony.
It had been wrapped around the ghost ship and landed in the Underworld River.
In a split second, it was soaked in the Underworld River’s water, the severe
corrosion turned its flesh into nothing, leaving only some gloomy white snake
bones behind.
Yi Ying crossed his arms and sneered, despite being able to blink shift away,
he didn’t choose to do so, instead he followed the ship into the Ghost World.
But this time, he was inside the ghost ship and hadn’t fallen into the
Underworld River.
“The same trick, do you think it’ll work again, Jian Gui?” Yi Ying ridiculed
with a smile.
Jian Gui weakly replied, “If you kill me or sink this ghostship, then you will
die too!”
Jian Gui was at the end of his rope and was forced to use mutual destruction to
coerce the enemy.
However, Yi Ying raised his head and burst into laughter, “Jian Gui, why don’t
you take a look at this?”
He took out a sacred emblem and put it on his chest.
Jian Gui growled, “The Gloom God’s sacred tool – the Shadow Monk Sacred
Emblem?”
“You are a pure human, yet you believe in an elven god?”
Yi Ying was solemn, “I believe only in the Gloom God, the master of the Shadow
Plane!”
“Without my God’s bequeathed pity, how could I reach my current heights?”
“With this sacred emblem, I can leave the Ghost World at any time and return to
the Shadow Plane.”
“I win, Jian Gui.”
“You lost this battle due to my God’s power!”
Jian Gui sank into silence.
The moment he was unable to drive away Yi Ying from the ghost ship when he
teleported to the Underworld River was the moment that decided the outcome of
the battle.
True victory would have been if Yi Ying followed the teleporting ship, and
without its protection, been immediately absorbed into the Underworld River.
But Jian Gui lost his only chance.
Bang.
Ku Feng kicked open a cabin door, rushing back over.
Xiao Wang Zi was standing to the side, like a foolish fowl. He had been
severely injured, his backbone had nearly fractured, and he had lost half of
his ribs.
But more importantly was his psychological trauma.
When he heard Yi Ying and Jian Gui talking, he realized Jian Gui had lost,
causing his fighting spirit to subsequently be utterly lost too.
“We’re done for!” Xiao Wang Zi wanted to cry, but there were no tears.
Ku Feng took out a long blade to protect Xiao Wang Zi, his eyes locked onto Yi
Ying.
Yi Ying merely glanced at him, and stood still, not bothering to engage him.
Outside the ship, the gold sea snake let out its last dying rasp.
When its body directly touched the Underworld River, it suffered boundless
negative energy corrosion and quickly turned to snake bones, it had no strength
to get out of it.
Yi Ying was still expressionless.
It was not his magic pet.
Furthermore, the battle had already been determined, the gold sea snake had
made its contribution.
Yi Ying continued, “I haven’t attacked yet, I want to give you a single chance,
Jian Gui.”
“Sign a magic contract, serve me.”
“I can spare your life.”
Xiao Wang Zi’s body trembled, he who had lost all will to fight suddenly got a
new hope.
Xiao Wang Zi was scared of death.
Despite being undead.
He was more afraid of never seeing his father and mother again.
Therefore, he wanted to survive.
But his open mouth didn’t say anything, because he knew that Jian Gui was the
one who decided his end.
Ku Feng coldly snorted and was unmoved.
Compared to Xiao Wang Zi, he was one who endured millstones and was an
experienced fighter.
Meanwhile, Cang Xu’s corpse was already cold, he was laying on the floor his
corpse swaying along with the ship.
After a good while, Jian Gui hoarsely replied, “Serve…so you wanted to capture
me alive.”
Yi Ying smiled, “A living necromancer is naturally far more valuable than a
dead one.”
“No need to doubt my sincerity, everyone knows that even the Sheng Ming
Empire’s great noble clans are also covertly cultivating necromancers.”
Jian Gui went silent again.
The ghost ship was sinking.
The Underworld River’s water was flowing through gaps in the hull.
The ghosts inside the ship were fluttering in a panic, all avoiding the river
water.
But as more river water poured in, some ghosts were taken in by the Underworld
River, and they absent-mindedly sank into the river, and were assimilated by
it.
Very swiftly, the Underworld River’s water also permeated the cabin where Cang
Xu’s body way.
The river water touched Cang Xu’s corpse, rapidly rising from his feet and
ankles, then into the hole in the middle of his back, permeating into his
body. 
A moment later, Cang Xu suddenly opened his eyes and sat back up.



****** Chapter 261: Walking on the River ******
“Cough! Cough!”
Cang Xu opened his mouth wide and took unprecedented breaths.
His eyes were filled with bewilderment.
“I…didn’t I die?”
The bewilderment waned, and Cang Xu realized something, quickly checking his
chest’s space pouch.
In the bag, he discovered the Death Substitute Puppet.
The survivors had purchased it from Two Eyes Island’s auction.
The Death Substitute Puppet looked like a doll, it was made of dark green wood,
had yellow straw hair, and its doll eyes and nose were very crooked, giving it
a eerie beauty.
Now, the Death Substitute Puppet had crumbled, its limbs and torso were
crushed, and the biggest remainder was the shattered half of its squashed head.
Cang Xu and Zi Di had purchased the Death Substitute Puppet for the dragonman
youngster to use.
To the survivors, the dragonman youngster was the most crucial person among
them.
But before Cang Xu attended the undead gathering, the dragonman youngster
considered the hereunto risks and gave the Death Substitute Puppet to him.
“The Death Substitute Puppet revived me.”
“No, the commander saved my life!”
In his post-traumatic stress, Cang Xu felt a spurt of warmth.
“This is the Underworld River’s water?!” After realizing his situation, he
seemed to be shocked by electricity and suddenly stood up.
Previously, he had looked into the Underworld River, and nearly lost his life,
and now he was touching the Underworld River, what kind of evil consequences
would occur?
Cang Xu had eaten a loss then and had incomparable fear of the Underworld
River. He jumped onto a bed and completely got out of the water.
“Huh?” The mysterious black clothed man subconsciously tilted to look toward
Cang Xu’s direction.
When Cang Xu came back to life and revealed his life aura, the black clothed
man instantly detected it to an extent.
“He came back to life?” The black clothed person was astonished for a moment
but then guessed why.
“It seems to be that Death Substitute Puppet.” The black clothed man had
obtained ample intelligence.
Cang Xu and Zi Di had purchased many things from the auction, the Death
Substitute Puppet was one of them.
Many people knew this information.
The black clothed man and Lady Sea Snake had been following Cang Xu’s trail and
wouldn’t miss such important information.
The black clothed man turned back around and ignored Cang Xu.
A mere silver level was nothing to worry about.
The black clothed man pondered: if he could easily kill Cang Xu once, then he
could do it a second time.
He was powerful and turned a deaf ear to Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng near him, he
only had one real target.
It was Jian Gui!
“Jian Gui, how is your considerations?” The black clothed man interrogated.
Jian Gui heavily sighed, “Ku Feng, put away your weapon.”
Ku Feng’s eyes narrowed.
Jian Gui continued, “I know you don’t fear death, but at this moment,
unnecessary sacrifice is pointless.”
Ku Feng clenched his teeth, but ultimately still sheathed his blade.
Jian Gui weakly said, “I still don’t know where your distinguished self comes
from, what power will I serve, or who you really are. If I surrender, what will
I get for it?”
Those words made Jian Gui’s intention of surrendering very clear.
Xiao Wang Zi’s mind shook.
The black clothed man’s mouth quivered up into a smile.
The atmosphere in the ship cabin greatly eased.
Cang Xu, standing on a bed, was watching the Underworld River’s water quickly
rising. 
The ghost ship is leaking, it is sinking!”
“But Jian Gui isn’t repairing it.”
“What’s going on?”
“What will happen after I die?”
Cang Xu looked towards the cabin where the black clothed man, Xiao Wang Zi, and
Ku Feng were.
Despite walls blocking his line of sight, he could still distinctly make out
the three life auras.
“There is no fighting, it seems they are in a standoff?” Cang Xu still didn’t
know the situation.
But that didn’t hinder him from acting first.
He took out a flying spell magic scroll and tore it open.
His body floated up, then he flew out, maintaining a cautious distance from the
Underworld River’s water.
Cang Xu left the bed, pushed up the cabin door, then followed the ship’s ladder
to the deck.
He fell onto the deck, ice-cold from head to toe with a spell of dark
dizziness!
It was a simple flying spell, yet it had reduced Cang Xu to this state.
Although he returned to life, he was in an exceedingly terrible condition!
Cang Xu hurriedly examined himself.
He was horrified to find that his left chest had a hole in it, and that his
heart had been obliterated by the black clothed man’s stab.
His entire body was full of intense negative energy.
It was very clear this negative energy had come from the Underworld River’s
water, and it was wildly eroding Cang Xu’s body and soul.
There was also a dark green power that was barely holding Cang Xu alive.
Most of the dark green power was lingering in Cang Xu’s left chest,
substituting his heart, and keeping Cang Xu alive.
At the same time, there was also threads of green light stretching from his
heart like tree roots and vines into Cang Xu’s internal organs, limbs, and
bones.
“This is the Death Substitute Puppet’s power, the Voodoo Church’s divine
spell’s power.”
After Cang Xu examined himself, he immediately noticed that the dark green
power was visibly waning.
Although he had gotten out of the Underworld River’s water, that soaking had
flooded Cang Xu’s broken body with a tremendous amount of negative energy.
“This negative energy will drag me into death’s embrace again!”
“What should I do?”
Cang Xu’s forehead filled with cold sweat, and he impatiently pondered how he
should get out of this trouble.
He first thought of the Karma Reduction and Burden Alleviation spells.
They came from Jian Gui’s magician auxiliary book, which he still had in his
hands, and wasn’t grabbed by the black clothed man.
But the Karma Reduction and Burden Alleviation spells inside it were already
spent.
Cang Xu couldn’t cast them himself.
“Right, there is still medicine!” Cang Xu rushed his spirit into his storage
bag and took out some medicine.
He drank the medicine or poured on the hole in his heart.
But the medicine’s effect were quite terrible.
“There are too few medicines suitable for the undead.
“Now that my body is full of negative energy, it has greatly reduced the
effects of this medicine.”
The medicine Zi Di had refined were mostly bronze and iron level, with a few
silver level medicine.
As for gold level medicine, she was currently unable to refine any.
The medicine did not alleviate Cang Xu’s terrible state much.
He took out some black crystals.
The crystals were long and short, big and small, but they all had the same
strip shape. They were very dark and emitted an inexplicable chill, it was soul
crystals.
It was very simple to use soul crystals.
Cang Xu simply grabbed one, then used his spirit to connect to them to receive
the soul crystal’s nourishment.
The soul crystal in his hand rapidly shrunk like an ice cube in heat, before
fading into nothing.
Cang Xu used several soul crystals, and his soul was greatly nourished,
forcefully stirring his spirit.
“I feel a bit better.” Cang Xu’s dizzy spell was greatly weakened.
But the problem of negative energy hasn’t been solved yet.
Despite the soul crystals strengthening his soul’s foundation, it didn’t solve
his peril.
At that moment, a skeleton magician flew over to Cang Xu.
“Newcomer, I have come to help you!” The one who came was Xiao Wang Zi.
After Cang Xu had revived, he could sense the others’ life auras, and of
course, Xiao Wang Zi could sense Cang Xu’s life aura too.
Cang Xu’s life aura was very weak, like a candle in the wind.
Xiao Wang Zi was under immense psychological pressure near Yi Ying, and felt
quite unwell, so he might as well courageously try to fly out of the ship cabin
and assist Cang Xu.
When Cang Xu saw Xiao Wang Zi, he quickly asked about the battle.
Xiao Wang Zi’s tone was heavy, “The enemy is too strong, but we won’t die by
his hands. They are currently negotiating with Lord Jian Gui over his
surrender.”
Cang Xu’s eyes flashed.
The circumstances didn’t surprise him, and he guessed what was going on.
“If Jian Gui reaches a compromise and surrenders, then I will become a captive
too.”
“Alas, I am still too weak.”
The situation was beyond him.
Cang Xu quickly cast off his distracting thoughts, now was not the time to be
worrying about the future, if his problem wasn’t dealt with, then death would
be before him. 
Necromancy spell – Karma Reduction spell!
Necromancy spell – Burden Alleviation spell!
Xiao Wang Zi continuously used magic on Cang Xu.
Cang Xu’s decent into the abyss of death slowed greatly, but his trend towards
it didn’t change.
Xiao Wang Zi was very grave, “Not good, newcomer, you touched the Underworld
River’s water, there is too much negative energy.”
“This energy has not just permeated your body, actually most of it has poured
into your soul.”
“If you hadn’t transformed your body, then you would have been assimilated by
the Underworld River already!”
“In light of the speed of this, I cannot save you.”
“Lord Jian Gui, help me, save the newcomer.” Xiao Wang Zi raised his head and
shouted, calling for help as candidly and proficiently as always.
In the ship cabin.
When Yi Ying heard Xiao Wang Zi’s call for help, he laughed, “Jian Gui, do you
want to save him? Then sign my magic contract first.”
If Jian Gui acted and used magic to aid Cang Xu, then he’d have to show
himself.
When that happened, Yi Ying could act as he wished.
Yi Ying treated Cang Xu as a bargaining chip to blackmail Jian Gui, “I heard
that normally, you typically treat the undead by your side very well and with
consideration.”
“Anyways, you are an orthodox undead, of You Shen’s direct line, and keeping an
eye on other undead is what orthodox people like yourself should do.”
Jian Gui interrupted Yi Ying, “Who are you actually sire, how do you know my
identity?”
Yi Ying sneered, “You have held an undead gathering on Weeping Pine Island no
less than ten times already.”
“A lot of information on it was quite easy to obtain.”
“That you could take out soul crystals to sell and have a steady external
supply proves that you know how to make soul crystals.”
“This is the most distinct trait of orthodox undead.”
“Don’t ask about hy history and identity again. I won’t tell you anything but
this, my force is far more powerful than yours!”
Jian Gui immediately responded, “My founder, Lord You Shen is a legend level
magician, and although Fire Beard is also a legend level too, he is just a
single fighter. The necromancer’s power is not as outward as the Fire Beard
Pirates, but its hidden strength far exceeds imagination!”
Yi Ying coldly snorted, “Unnecessary to carry out such pointless prying.”
“Jian Gui, my patience is spent.”
“Come out.”
“Agree and sign my contract, and I will spare your life.”
“Otherwise, I will smash your ghost ship and destroy your people!”
Jian Gui deeply sighed, “I am, in the end, a gold level caster, and also a
necromancer. If surrendering and becoming your slave is worse than death, then
I am better off simply dying in battle.”
Yi Ying gave off a strong killing intent, “You still want to discuss conditions
with me?”
“I will destroy your ghost ship first and let you recognize reality!”
“Reality?” Suddenly, a strange voice could be heard in the distance, “It is you
who should recognize that.”
In the wake of that voice, Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and the others on deck were
shocked to see a silhouette walking on the Underworld River.



****** Chapter 262: Flying Head Spell ******
The transcendent walking on the river had short silver-gray hair and deep blue
eyes.
He appeared ordinary, had gray skin, and black surgical thread scattered across
his skin. Regardless of whether it was his check, nape, arm, palm or any other
parts of his body, all of it had been stitched together with thread long and
short.
His clothes were an ashen gray magician gown, the gown had two long sleeves,
wide cuffs, and as he walked, his arms naturally tugged at the cuffs, swinging
them about.
A saint level aura was brimming all about and covering everything.
Cang Xu was shocked, he had sunken into a life threatening crisis when he
touched the water, while this person was walking across its surface.
“A saint level necromancer!”
“It is said that a saint level transcendent understands laws and can form their
personal domain that can vie with nasty external influences.”
“Who is he really?”
A moment later, Xiao Wang Zi’s shout answered the puzzlement in Cang Xu’s
thoughts.
Xiao Wang Zi pliantly shouted, “It is Lord Doctor Sui Shi!”
The one who had come was You Shen’s personal apprentice, the saint level
necromancer – Doctor Sui Shi.
Ku Feng had been brought back as an undead by his hands.
What was odd was that when Ku Feng saw Doctor Sui Shi, he didn’t match Xiao
Wang Zi’s feelings, instead his eyes exposed both pleasant surprise and also
other feelings.
In the cabin, Yi Ying’s face radically shifted, and he was no longer as calm,
“You were stalling for time?”
Jian Gui sneered, “You know I am an orthodox undead, of You Shen’s direct line.
But it seems you didn’t really understand the meaning of those two things.”
“Very well, you’ve escaped this time, wait and see until next time!” After Yi
Ying coldly threw out those words, he activated the Shadow Monk Sacred Emblem.
A moment later, space fluctuated, showing a half meter long chink.
From that chink came dense shadows.
Yi Ying’s entire being sank into the shadows.
The shadow rapidly flowed back into the spatial chink and Yi Ying vanished
without a trace.
A second later, the spatial chink was completely gone, and space was returned
to normal.
Doctor Sui Shi arrived at the ghost ship, then lightly jumped aboard onto the
deck.
“He actually runs pretty fast.” Doctor Sui Shi sensed the spatial fluctuation
and Yi Ying’s aura completely vanishing.
“Lord Doctor Sui Shi!” Xiao Wang Zi yelled, even though a skull couldn’t show
facial expressions, his adoration and esteem were exhibited in his words.
As one of the twelve saints, Doctor Sui Shi just appearing was enough to scare
away the enemy that had nearly taken them all captive.
That kind of style and disposition was something Xiao Wang Zi bowled over for.
From Doctor Sui Shi’s body, one could glimpse a trace of Founder You Shen’s
graceful bearing.
Doctor Sui Shi nodded to Xiao Wang Zi, looked at Ku Feng and Cang Xu, then
froze his gaze on the ghost ship’s deck.
After that, he began to chant and use necromancy.
The magic raised a billow with vast grandeur.
The magic’s power all flowed into the ghost ship.
The ghost ship was damaged beyond reckoning, but the magic quickly restored it.
The ship’s holes were all patched and no longer leaked.
So much so that the Underworld River’s water was also pulled out of the ship by
Doctor Sui Shi and back into the Underworld River.
Doctor Sui Shi used three spells, none of which Cang Xu was able to discern
what was going on.
After Doctor Sui Shi stopped casting, Jian Gui’s main body appeared on the
deck.
Most of his injuries had been healed, and he was no longer near death.
Jian Gui deeply saluted Doctor Sui Shi, “Lord Doctor Sui Shi, many thanks for
your help this time. Please save us one more time, the ghost ship’s magic power
reservoir is empty, and I cannot replenish by myself.”
The magic power reserves were inadequate, and the ghost ship was unable to use
Ghost World Transversal to return to the Main Plane.
The ultimate ending waiting for them was to be lost in the Ghost World,
completely forfeit their original consciousness, and turn into muddleheaded
beings of the Ghost World.
Doctor Sui Shi laughed, “That can be done.” 
He extended his palm, exposing a black threaded seam in the center of his palm.
Then, he extended his other hand’s index finger and softly cut the black thread
with his sharp fingernail.
The black thread was untied, forming a wound, from which ashen flesh quickly
opened up on either side, showing not the bones of the hand, but rather a
pitch-black space.
Doctor Sui Shi aimed his palm at the deck and mobilized his magic power.
A moment later, a majestic magic power flowed from his palm cut and directly
into the ghost ship.
The magic power even lifted a gale with astonishing presence.
“Full, full!” Jian Gui called out a few seconds later.
The saint level magician had astonishing magic power reserves, and filling up a
silver level magic ship was the flick of a finger for Doctor Sui Shi.
Jian Gui expressed his gratitude again.
Doctor Sui Shi nodded faintly, “Your luck’s pretty good, I have been exploring
the Ghost World for over three months already and was planning to leave when I
received your distress call.”
“Although I had your ghost ship’s spatial coordinates, long-distance
teleportation spells are not very precise.”
“Luckily, you weren’t harmed that much.”
Thanks to Doctor Sui Shi’s timely assistance, although the necromancers had
lost, they didn’t lose that much, by contrast, the pirates had enormous losses.
Xiao Wang Zi shook his arm in cheer, “Lord Doctor Sui Shi, if you came even a
moment too late, we would have had a tragic end.”
Ku Feng saluted, “Your Lordship.”
Doctor Sui Shi looked at Ku Feng, “It seems you have getting by decently these
last years.”
Ku Feng expressed his gratitude, “Thanks to your Lordship’s actions, I was
given a second life that allowed me to keep pursuing the path of the blade.”
Doctor Sui Shi shook his head, “You were designed in the spur of the moment and
can only be considered mediocre. What a pity…I lacked some materials then,
leading to your subpar aptitude, otherwise, you could have become an orthodox
undead too.”
Ku Feng bitterly laughed, “To be able to regain my life is enough to satisfy
me, chasing the path of the blade is my life’s purpose, regardless of the final
outcome.”
Finally, Cang Xu got a chance to interject, “I say everyone, can you help me? I
am dying!”
Xiao Wang Zi cried out in alarm, and he asked Jian Gui for help, “Lord Jian
Gui, you have to save the newcomer now, I was unable to.”
Compared to Doctor Sui Shi, Xiao Wang Zi was closer to Jian Gui and didn’t dare
to ask for the saint necromancer’s help
Jian Gui nodded and didn’t refuse the request.
Although he had treated Cang Xu and Xiao Wang Zi as bait during the battle, the
situation had been at a desperate moment. 
Looking after himself and abandoning others was human nature.
Now that the situation had calmed down, Jian Gui was no longer as stingy.
However, just as he was about to cast, Doctor Sui Shi prevented him, “Wat a
moment.”
Jian Gui paused.
Doctor Sui Shi sized up Cang Xu with interest, gazing at his chest, “Your
condition is a little rare, you have sparked my inspiration.”
“Let me remake you.”
Jian Gui was slightly startled.
Xiao Wang Zi replied with a cheer to congratulate Cang Xu, “Newcomer, I didn’t
expect you to have a blessing in disguise! Being remade by Lord Doctor Sui Shi
will make you stronger!”
Cang Xu also felt pleasantly surprised but quickly noticed Jian Gui’s and Ku
Feng’s amiss expressions.
Cang Xu rushed to ask, “May I ask, what is the transformation success rate?”
Doctor Sui Shi excitedly shrugged his shoulders, saying irresponsibly, “I
haven’t done any tests, this will be the first time, I can’t give an estimate.”
Xiao Wang Zi stared at him.
Jian Gui and Ku Feng held even stronger faces of agony.
Cang Xu hurriedly declined, “I want to be more cautious compared to getting
stronger.”
Cang Xu had a prudent disposition and naturally didn’t want to take risks. He
avoided Doctor Sui Shi’s gaze and looked at Jian Gui.
But Jian Gui avoided his eyes.
Doctor Sui Shi shook his head and smiled, “No one will save you, little
magician.”
“Only you can determine whether you die.”
“You only have one road, that is to obediently work with me and become my test
subject.”
Cang Xu’s heart sank into the depths, and resentment boiled out, but he quickly
calmed down.
Cang Xu knew he had no other choice.
He nodded and weakly replied, “Then please do it Lord Doctor Sui Shi!”
Doctor Sui Shi lightly raised a hand, and with his spirit power, bound Cang Xu
and raised him into the air.
Doctor Sui Shi extended his other hand and moved his fingers.
Magic was used in a second and hadn’t been stored, it was a silent casting
technique.
The five fingers’ sharp aura lightly cut Cang Xu’s body everywhere from a
distance.
A moment later, Cang Xu’s four limbs were severed and fell to the floor.
Cang Xu blankly stared, then opened his mouth and exploded with a miserable
scream.
Pain, so painful!
He had never experienced such pain before, one far worse than pain that
penetrated the soul, it was hard to keep himself composed and he could only
vent it through his wretched howls.
Xiao Wang Zi was dumbstruck, and his heart went cold.
He saw that not only did Cang Xu’s severed limbs fall to the floor, but his
soul had also been severed too, sealed inside each of the limbs.
It was this soul cutting that caused such unimaginably terrible pain.
“A little noisy.” Doctor Sui Shi was apathetic and lightly cut with his fingers
again.
Cang Xu’s head left his neck and fell to the deck, tumbling in a circle. 
Doctor Sui Shi did not care about Cang Xu’s head and cast a spell in passing.
Despite Cang Xu still mournfully howling, his voice was already gone and no
longer spread.
“The impurity is removed, only the main material is left.” Doctor Sui Shi
clicked his tongue, carefully taking measure of Cang Xu’s body with interest.
Soon after, a treasure was spat out of the wound in his palm.
This treasure looked like a frog statute, it was the size of a washbowl, and it
emitted a gold level aura.
It was a sacred item of the Voodoo Church!
A moment later, Doctor Sui Shi used magic to crush it into slag.
Without the sacred item, the divine energy hidden inside it became visible.
The large dark green divine energy was spiritually guided by Doctor Sui Shi
into Cang Xu’s body.
The dark green energy inside Cang Xu’s body was massively replenished, and a
split second later, the negative energy inside it was eliminated and Cang Xu’s
torso swelled.
Cang Xu’s toro swelled further, like a balloon, it seemed full enough to burst
apart.
Doctor Sui Shi slightly raised his eyebrow, “Little magician, your aptitude is
too low.”
Doctor Sui Shi had no choice but to add an extra investment and took out a palm
from his wound.
This severed palm looked like a claw, it had exposed veins and was very
sinister, it too emitted a gold level aura.
Doctor Sui Shi poured in his magic power, and the paw immediately reacted, its
appearance grew fuzzy, and it rapidly melted into a dripping green.
Doctor Sui Shi used spiritual control to drip the green drops onto Cang Xu’s
torso.
Then, Cang Xu’s limbs received drops.
The green drops extended across the body, forming a viscous green coating that
stopped the torso from exploding from inflation.
Doctor Sui Shi cast once again.
After the transformation continued for a few minutes, he used his spirit to
lift up Cang Xu’s limbs and attached them back.
Once connected back, the four limbs also began to rapidly swell, full of the
voodoo divine energy.
Very quickly, there was a giant balloon floating in the air, a balloon with
four smaller ballons attached to it.
“Next is the most crucial step.” Doctor Sui Shi exposed a serious look for the
first time.
He took out another thing from his palm.
It was a zombie head.
“Open.” Doctor Sui Shi undid the head’s seal, revealing that the zombie head’s
original size was gigantic, the size of a carriage.
“This is one of my collector’s items, a gold level voodoo zombie.”
“Killing this kind of this is very easy but cutting off its head and keeping
its soul and the voodoo divine energy inside it isn’t as easy.
Doctor Sui Shi sighed and placed the gigantic voodoo zombie head onto Cang Xu’s
body.
The gigantic zombie’s eyes were originally closed, then the instant it was
connected, its eyes suddenly opened with cold killing intent!
But Doctor Sui Shi suppressed it at the same time as that, and the gigantic
zombie’s eyes had no choice but to close again.
The dense voodoo divine energy inside the gigantic zombie head and Cang Xu’s
body quickly formed a link.
Cang Xu’s body continued to swell, but this time, with the gigantic zombie
head’s influence, it no longer looked like a balloon, but rather a enormous
body and limbs.
“A Great success!” Doctor Sui Shi burst into laughter.
Jian Gui and the others congratulated him.
Doctor Sui Shi looked at Cang Xu’s head and lightly snapped his fingers.
Magic was used, and Cang Xu’s soul calmed down and no longer felt pain, while
simultaneously stopping the harm the Underworld River’s water brought.
In addition, knowledge passed through spiritual power was poured into Cang Xu. 
“This is a small result of my research.”
Consider it a reward for me taking your body.”
Cang Xu was dazed, and in the moment of unconsciousness, swiftly looked at the
knowledge Doctor Sui Shi was imparting onto him.
“Flying Head spell…”



****** Chapter 263: Giant Type Intelligence Potion ******
The sky was azure, and the seawater was dark green.
The air temperature was very low.
The sky had snow fluttering in it, and mercenaries were trembling with cold.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fleet had finally reached Ice Sculpture
Island.
“It seems that we need to procure warm clothes.” Said the dragonman youngster.
He had the Flame Dragon King bloodline, and his strong and tough dragon scales
maintained his body temperature well.
Zong Ge sized up the harbor ahead of them.
He also didn’t feel much with regards to the temperature. He looked human, but
that was just the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spells at work.
Zong Ge was a half beastman, and had a lion-man bloodline, his thick hair was a
natural protection against the cold.
This was Snow Bird Harbor, one of Ice Sculpture Island’s eight harbors.
Snow Bird Harbor had a flat terrain that stretched as far as the eye could see.
The harbor was a bustling sight, ships of all sizes were anchored there, and
the many standing masts permitted flocks of white feathered snow birds to sit
on them.
Zong Ge’s gaze mainly focused on the harbor’s military defenses.
The harbor’s embankments had a row of artillery, the biggest main cannon was
gold level, while the rest were uniformly silver level.
A small distance from the harbor stood a lofty magician tower.
The magician tower was an impressive gold level too!
With that magician tower, Snow Bird Harbor’s defensive power far exceeded Two
Eyes Island’s.
Laborers towed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships slowly into mooring
positions.
Anchors dropped, and after the ships were berthed appropriately, the laborers
boarded to receive their payment.
The anchorage fee was very expensive.
The small ship anchorage fee was three times the normal price. 
The medium ship anchorage fee was four times the normal price. 
The large ship anchorage fee was unexpectedly five times the normal price!
“Excuse me, many I ask why the ship, ship anchorage fee is so expensive?” Fei
She asked a laborer.
The laborer answered: it is due to a recent adjustment.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom intentionally raised the anchorage expense of foreign
ships by a lot.
While the citizen’s ships’ anchorage fee were kept at the same low price.
After Fei She heard this, he faintly nodded and looked pensive.
The high ship anchorage fee was nothing to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
They cared more about the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s attitude towards outsiders.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already made the following arrangements.
Zong Ge would continue overseeing the fleet and defend the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ships.
Almost all of the mercenaries would remain on the ships.
If it was any other mercenary corps, the mercenaries would be in an uproar. But
in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, one trained by Zong Ge and with strong
military discipline, it wouldn’t happen.
The dragonman youngster and a group split off and were the first to enter the
harbor.
Men Shi and Tripleblade were responsible for reporting to the Mercenary Guild
Branch. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was registered as a regular mercenary
corps, and in every region they moved to, they could register at the local
Mercenary Guild Branch to gain some support.
Meanwhile, Chi Lai and Lan Zao needed to go to the Thief Guild Branch to
purchase more information.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted detailed and reliable information on the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom, this was a convenient and fast way to do so. Of course,
it had its shortcoming – buying information cost money.
The third group was the dragonman youngster and Zi Di, they wanted to
investigate the marketplace.
Snow Bird Harbor’s marketplace was obviously rigorously mapped out, it was
divided into 5 parts, and the biggest among them was the seafood market.
Of course, the seafood market was not their first destination, they were
entering the most highly detailed alchemy market.
The alchemy market had great numbers of stores and brightly colored signs.
The shop buildings were of a unified design, and consequently, they warmed the
heart and delighted the eyes.
Red buildings, white walls, yellow roofs.
Zi Di recognized them and pointed a finger at the yellow roofs, saying to the
dragonman youngster, "That is Light Clear Potion, that potion is fellow and can
be used to coat roofs. In the day, it can absorb sunlight, then at night, it
can illuminate the rooms inside.”
“Although a lot of the potion is applied in the early stages, its use cycle is
long, and the cost spread out over that time makes it a bargain.”
The roof coating was just one thing; the entire alchemy market had many
practical applications of alchemy throughout it that functioned during the day.
The alchemy market had streams of people moving through it, it was mainly
composed of elves, followed by humans, then dwarfs, beastmen and other races
were comparatively rare.
Thus, the dragonman youngster was quite eye-catching as he walked.
Pedestrians often looked at him.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di walked together.
They had seldomly moved alone like this, and when they looked at each other,
they could sense the others’ affection.
Seeing Zi Di at his side, the dragonman youngster’s finger twitched, and in his
heart, the impulse to pull Zi Di’s hand along rose.
Despite Zi Di’s outward identity being Hong Teng, and that if the mercenary
commander and a subordinate magician loving each other and holding hands
together was seen in public, it would have a great adverse influence.
A small girl decided to walk in front of them, holding a snow bird figurine,
“Big older brother, purchase a snow bird for your girlfriend.”
The dragonman youngster stared at them.
The small girl added, “Snow birds represent pure love in our Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.”
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di looked at each other, making out the others’
feelings. 
But the dragonman youngster refused, “You are mistaken, girl, we don’t have
that kind of relationship.”
The small girl didn’t give up and still tried, “Not now, but that doesn’t mean
it won’t happen in the future. To be exact, the snow bird represents the
nascent arrival of pure love!”
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but look at Zi Di.
But Zi Di didn’t look at him, instead she turned her gaze away. 
The small girl giggled and smiled.
The dragonman youngster slowly shook his head and fished out 10 copper coins.
The small girl’s eyes opened, “Mr. Dragonman, that’s not enough money!”
The dragoman youngster replied, “This money isn’t for the snow bird figurine.
If you can help us familiarize ourselves with the stores here and tell us
everything you know, then these 10 copper coins will be yours.”
The small girl’s eyes narrowed, and didn’t agree to that, instead after some
pondering, she asked, “So, may I ask how long Mr. Dragonman wants to hire me?”
The dragonman youngster didn’t reply, instead he looked at Zi Di.
Zi Di gave her assessment, “In my opinion, two hours with you will be more than
enough.”
The girl nodded, “In that case, Mr. Dragonman, Miss Magician, this snow girl is
ready to serve you.”
The small girl temporarily joined the two.
Whenever the two visited a store, the small girl would tell them some
information outsiders didn’t know about it.
“This store looks small, but its business is very good. Natives regularly
visit!”
“This inn’s boss is very sinister and stingy; they often are behind on salaries
and also likes to scam outsiders.”
“This is our biggest medicine shop, unfortunately, it is not one of our Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s stores.”
.
Finally, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di stopped in front of the biggest
store.
The store’s sign had for words written on it – Secret Medicine Merchant
Alliance!
One of the Sheng Ming Empire’s six great merchant alliances,
Not only was the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance here on Ice Sculpture
Island, the other five great merchant alliances also had many branches across
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. On the way here, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di
had seen the Gem and Scale Merchant Alliance stores.
The three entered the Secret Medicine store.
The store employees inside the store were nearly all snow elves, but higher up
positions in it were all staffed by humans.
Zi Di’s mind stirred, and she silently and attentively how the Secret Medicine
branch was arranged, what kind of merchandise was on sale, along with at what
scale and at what price.
Currently, although the survivors had a lot of gold, they lacked a steady
income.
Selling medicine should be the most probable way to bring about that channel of
earnings.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s medicine market was always of an impressive scale.
On Two Eyes Island, Zi DI had improved prescriptions and sold medicine to make
a considerable profit.
This kind of success could be duplicated.
Zi Di was confident that with the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s magic potion
production capacity and War Merchant’s vast database of recipes, no matter
which type she produced in, it would be competitive in the marketplace.
The dragonman youngster attracted the attention of the salespeople when he
walked in.
His tall and sturdy body, silver level aura, and his female magician companion
drew attention to his potentially formidable purchasing power.
Seeing a snow elf salesperson wearing a smile, and walking over, the dragonman
youngster deliberately said to Zi Di, “Hong Teng, you are the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ expert on making medicine, can you take a look at what the
mercenaries need from here? Purchase a lot, the mercenary corps’ funds are to
be used in this aspect.”
“You two, please come here!” After the snow elf salesperson heard that, their
smile grew more cordial.
Zi Di came to the sales counter, carefully observing all kinds of medicine
while asking the price, comparing it to the market price, understanding and
analyzing the concrete market situation.
The Secret Medicine store had five floors. 
Every floor had large amounts of potions for sale.
On the first floor, Zi Di even saw some barbarian race herbal medicine, making
clear that the Secret Medicine store offered a large and comprehensive
selection of medicine.
After Zi Di bought some, she went to the second floor and saw tons of iron
level medicine.
Then on the third floor, the medicine on sale was silver level on average.
On the fourth floor, the quantity of the magic potions was far lower than the
third, but the quality was gold level!
Hun Tong had a flourishing commerce on Two Eyes Island, but if one wanted to
buy a gold level potion, it was only possible during an auction.
In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, gold level medicine was in steady supply.
“Heavens there really is a giant type intelligence potion! Lord Bing Xiao, I
want this potion as my birthday present.”
“Very good, that type of intelligence potion isn’t common, and it can be used
on your giant slave.”
These words were heard by the dragonman youngster and Zi Di.
The two were immediately interested and rushed over.
One was a human girl; the other was an old snow elf man.
They were the two that wanted to buy the giant type intelligence potion.
The salesperson serving that was just about to hand the carrot thick medicine
bottle over to the old man.
The dragonman youngster walked up to them, “We also need that kind of
intelligence potion.”
But the salesperson shook their head, “So sorry, Mr. Dragonman, we only have
one in stock.”
The dragonman youngster was stunned.
Zi Di rushed over after him and laughed, “How much is that intelligence potion,
we will purchase it!”
When the girl heard that, she immediately cried out, “Hey, we wanted to buy
it.”
Zi Di laughed again, “But you haven’t paid yet, right? Since it hasn’t been
sold yet, we have a chance.”
The old man coldly snorted, and his brows tightly creased, saying with
annoyance, “Who are you to think of cutting my beard, do you know what the
consequences are of that?”



****** Chapter 264: Obtaining the Potion ******
The old elf man showed a vile attitude, somewhat more than what the dragonman
youngster and Zi Di expected.
Normally, annoyance was certain, but it was unnecessary to show such strong
hostility.
Zi Di was faintly startled, and she looked at the old man, her face layered
with a smile as she asked, “Senior, may I ask what your name is?”
The old elf man coldly snorted and arrogantly refused to answer.
His human companion held up her head and looked at Zi Di and the dragonman
youngster as if they were bumpkins, “You don’t know about Lord Bing Xiao? Where
did you come from? Who are you?”
Zi Di’s smile did not fall, and she replied, “We just arrived at Snow Bird
Harbor.”
The dragonman youngster looked at the small girl with them.
The small girl avoided his gaze and cowed out an answer, “That is Lord Bing
Xiao, the previous leader of the Bayonet Gang.”
“Bayonet Gang?” Zi Di was puzzled.
The small girl continued, “The Bayonet Gang is the biggest local gang.”
The dragonman youngster felt a bit surprised, this was the first time he had
come across a gang.
Thinking about it carefully, the past island the survivors had landed on were
quite small.
Snake Rat Island hadn’t been developed for long and hadn’t formed any gangs on
it yet.
As for Two Eyes Island, Feudal Lord Hun Tong’s faction was the strongest, and
he had complete control over his territory. There was only one religion in it,
it was the Wealth Church’s parish. Adding in Two Eyes Island’s special nature,
where half of it would sink into the ocean or float back up every so often, it
was quite difficult for a gang to develop and expand on its soil.
Ice Sculpture Island was different.
It had grown for a very long time, and those settled here not only included a
traditional royal family, various officials, a standing army, and more, but
also there were mercenaries, thieves, and other types of people moving through
the street corners.
When Zi Di learned of this information, her eyes could help but narrow, and she
pondered to herself: we’re fresh off the boat, it is inadvisable to offend the
local tyrant.
Zi Di laughed, “We really need that intelligence potion, we didn’t intend to
clash with you two…”
Before Zi Di could finish speaking, the old elf man’s female companion
interrupted, “My giant slave needs it more! We’ll be taking this intelligence
potion!”
Zi Di slightly grinded her teeth and looked at the salesclerk, “Do you know if
we can place an order?”
The salesclerk blurted out, “You can, you can do that. The producer of this
potion is Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s famous Master Alchemist Hua Ni. Our merchant
alliance has a firm relationship with her and have maintained close
connections. As long as you place an order, you can get one in half a month.”
“Half a month?” Zi Di pursed her brows.
The salesperson honestly replied, “That is the fastest time possible.”
Zi Di laughed, “We can add money.”
The salesperson looked distressed, “Master Hua Ni cannot be rushed, guest, you
are also a magician. You presumably know more of a master’s temperament.”
The old elf man Bing Xiao was utterly impatient, “Ok, stop dillydallying. I
still want to catch tonight’s opera and continuing this will sour my mood. You
can get lost, if you want to buy anything, you can come tomorrow, I don’t want
to see you anymore.”
The human female echoed that, “Heard that? Why aren’t you leaving already?”
Then he disdainfully sized up the dragonman youngster and Zi Di, “Bumpkins who
have never seen the world, how can money move Master Hua Ni’s temperament?”
Zi Di’s face sank.
The dragonman youngster suddenly chuckled, “Makes sense.”
“Since that is so…” The dragonman youngster dragged out his tone, “Then I
should purchase the one before me, isn’t that correct?”
The dragonman youngster looked at the salesperson, “You are the Secret Medicine
branch store, how much is this potion?”
“If you are afraid of Lord Bing Xiao and won’t dare to sell it to another, then
that’s fine.”
“You?!” The human female glared at the dragonman youngster with shock.
The old elf man’s expression was gloomier than Zi Di’s.
The salesperson was a snow elf and was a little scared of the dragonman
youngster deliberate bullying and didn’t dare to speak.
But he quickly responded with, “I will ask the store manager for instructions!”
The store manager’s voice could be heard, “No need to ask, I’m already here.”
The store manager looked ordinary, but he had a silver level fighter aura. He
smiled and said, “Our Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance is one of the six great
merchant alliances of the Sheng Ming Empire, and as always, our merchant
alliances’ goods are sold impartially to the one who offers the highest price.
This giant-type intelligence potion’s price is 360 gold. Anyone present can buy
it. This is the potion’s detailed medicinal effect: it can substantially
increase a giant’s intelligence for a short time. As time passes, the medicine
will weaken until it expires entirely. However, the giant who takes this potion
has a certain probability of improving their intelligence’s basis permanently.”
“Alright then.” The dragonman youngster looked at Zi Di, using his eyes to ask
whether 360 gold was a fair price.
The two had an unspoken understanding and had used their eyes to communicate
many times.
Zi Di nodded faintly to the dragonman youngster, indicating that the price was
reasonable.
A gold level intelligence potion had a lower price to a healing potion of the
same level. Because the latter was almost tantamount to a second life in
critical moments.
300 gold could buy the vast majority of high quality silver level armor.
Therefore, this price didn’t shame its gold level quality.
The dragonman youngster didn’t hesitate, “Since that is the case, I will offer
360 gold.”
His gaze changed from the store manager to the old elf man.
The female human reacted by screeching, “You really dare to buy it, you really
have the nerve. You actually don’t care about Lord Bing Xiao!”
Bing Xiao sneered, and sized up the dragonman youngster again, “Young outsider,
you are very courageous.”
Then, the old elf man glanced at the store manager and bid, “400 gold.”
The dragonman youngster followed a split second later, “500 gold.”
The female human’s heart jumped, she didn’t expect the dragonman youngster to
add on 100 gold.
Bing Xiao deeply said, “600 gold.”
Likewise, he too raised the price by 100 gold.
The dragonman youngster softly chuckled, he crossed his arms and calmy said,
“800 gold.”
This time, he raised the price by 200 gold, which caused the store manager to
raise an eyebrow.
The female human was frightened, and she looked at the old elf man with worry. 
The female human hugged the old elf man’s arm and squeezed it to her chest,
softly rocking the old man as she threw a tantrum, “Lord Bing Xiao, I want that
potion.”
Bing Xiao gloomily looked back, and gently clapped the back of her hand, “900
gold!”
The dragonman youngster smiled, and pressured calmly, “1,200 gold.”
300 gold!
He had increased the base price by 900 gold coins!
The female human turned pale, the price of 1,200 gold was enough for her to
completely recognize the dragoman youngster’s strength, these two bumpkins were
rich.
Bing Xiao rigidly stared at the dragonman youngster, his eyes not covering up
his killing intent.
The dragonman youngster remained calm and used eyes filled with battle fervor
and an upright chest to respond to Bing Xiao’s killing intent.
Bing Xiao finally cowered, a sinister smile now appearing on his face, “Young
dragonman, you really are fiery and exuberant, and your wealth surprises me. Do
you know how long you’ll be able to keep the potion you bought today safe?”
The dragonman youngster serenely responded, “Of course I can keep it safe,
don’t trouble yourself about it.”
Bing Xiao coldly snorted, “We’re leaving.”
He had lost face and decided to leave with his human companion.
The store manager said to the salesperson, “See Lord Bing Xiao off.”
The salesperson hurriedly nodded and bowed, then left to see their customer
out.
The dragonman youngster watched Bing Xiao and the others leave; his expression
staunch from beginning to end.
If they wanted this potion in advance, they needed to wait at least half a
month.
This was too long for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The survivors didn’t have the ability to refine gold level medicine yet.
To Xiao Guai, this giant-type intelligence potion had to be gotten!
The dragonman youngster had an acute sense of looming danger in his mind at all
times. .
He hoped that he and the people at his side could grow and strengthen as
quickly as possible.
Because they didn’t know when that gigantic, hidden crisis would burst out.
The survivors’ future was uncertain.
Of course, as a Justice God believer, the dragonman youngster didn’t have a
good opinion of the old elf man.
It was rather difficult for a Justice God believer to think well of a gang
member.
A simple and direct transaction.
1200
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was easily able to part with 1,200 gold.
“Finally got an intelligence potion.” Zi Di happily thought, thinking of the
big guy’s bloodline, her heart filled with expectations as the store manager
warned them, “You two should be more careful, especially at night, don’t go out
then.”
“Perhaps, you can employ the Snow Cotton Mercenary Corps. The Snow Cotton is
Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s biggest mercenary corps, their predecessor is the
Kingdom’s Female Guard, they are very good at protecting people.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “No thanks, we are a mercenary corps.”



****** Chapter 265: Complete Battle Qi Cycle! ******
Snow Bird Harbor Mercenary Guild.
The vice branch president received Men Shi and Tripleblade.
“I have read about your mercenary corps, and as a small mercenary corps, you’re
quite fearsome.”
“But you’re only ranked at one star, this rank is too low. Based on our rules
and regulations, the Mercenary Guild can only offer limited support to you.”
“I don’t believe your corps should be at this star ranking.”
“If your corps can increase your star rating, then the support you will get
will be considerable.”
“When you attain a five star rating, your corps can become a permanent resident
of Ice Sculpture Kingdom. The treatment of your mercenaries will be nearly
identical to that of our citizens. This Mercenary Guild branch will also
provide a mercenary encampment here free of charge.”
Men Shi was moved somewhat by those words, so he asked, “How can we get out
mercenary corps’ star rating to five stars?”
Men Shi didn’t know much about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and he really
believed that he had joined an actual mercenary corps. At most he knew the
mercenary corps had a rather deep background, and that it involved arms
smugglers, something that should be mentioned excessively.
That question didn’t need to be answered by the vice branch president,
Tripleblade could do that.
“The base standard to be a five star mercenary corps is to have a gold level
transcendent. The second standard is that the mercenary corps needs to have at
least two people.”
This was the world of the strong.
Regardless of any power, when considering how powerful one was, it depended on
the individual transcendents in them were, the scale of the power was
secondary. 
When the vice branch president heard Tripleblade’s answer, they smiled,
“Indeed.”
Apart from that, there is another short cut.”
“For example, recruiting a snow elf clan’s transcendent can obtain the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s royal family’s favor.”
“Through gaining the royal family’s special official approval, one can reduce
the criteria in the Mercenary Guild Branch.”
“The Snow Cotton Mercenary Corps did that back in the day, at the time, they
didn’t have a gold level, their head was only silver level. But through the
royal family’s special approval, their just established mercenary corps became
a five star mercenary corps.”
“Of course, nowadays, the Snow Cotton Mercenary Corps is worthy of being a five
star corps. Their head and vice head are both gold levels.”
“Now, they are publicly known to be the strongest mercenary corps in all of the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
Men Shi curiously asked, “Then, what are the requirements to become a six star
mercenary corps?”
The vice branch president replied, “Very simple, six star mercenary corps need
to have a saint level transcendent.”
Men Shi clicked his tongue, “Is a saint level willing to be a mercenary?”
The vice branch president bitterly laughed.
Tripleblade answered, “That is the reason why six star mercenary corps are
quite rare.”
Meanwhile.
The Snow Bird Harbor Thief Guild Branch.
Chi Lai, Lan Zao, and the vice branch president were conversing.
They were discussing the specific price of all kinds of information.
Chi Lai and Lan Zao were buying a large amount of information, and this
naturally involved a great sum of money, causing the vice branch president to
come out themselves to haggle over the price.
As both parties were talking, Chi Lai’s communication device rang.
After Chi Lai connected, the dragonman youngster gave him a new order.
“The commander wants us to gather information on the Bayonet Gang.” Chi Lai
told Lan Zao.
The information trade began apace.
The dragonman youngster put away the communication device.
After they had left the Secret Medicine branch store, they immediately
contacted Chi Lai, Men Shi, and Zong Ge, warning them to pay attention to
possible trouble.
“Someone is shadowing us.” Said Zi Di.
The dragonman youngster nodded slightly, he looked around and saw three rogues
stop in a second.
When the rogues saw that he had found them, they didn’t run. One even sneered
at him and cut his hand across his throat in a threatening fashion.
It was clear these people had been dispatched by the old elf man, Bing Xiao.
They were all transcendents, two were bronze, one was iron level. When facing
the silver level dragonman youngster, they didn’t fear him at all, brazening
tailing him with reckless abandon.
Zi Di couldn’t help but worry, “With this attitude, the Bayonet Gang seems to
be a huge power in Snow Bird Harbor.”
The dragonman youngster’s gaze was calm, “No need to burden yourself, since the
other side is this arrogant, it instead divulges that they won’t be attacking
at least for the time being.”
Of course, the dragonman youngster wasn’t scared of a mere iron level and two
bronze levels.
Zi Di wasn’t worried about her safety either.
Because she was a ghost, immune to physical harm. If it were not for the fact
she was acting like a normal person, she could walk through walls.
Zi DI looked at the magician tower in the distance, regretfully saying, “We
can’t attack either. Although there isn’t a magic prohibition environment here,
that magician tower must be supervising the entirety of Snow Bird Harbor at all
times. If we attack, magic images are bound to be recorded, and when it is
investigated in the future, it will be impossible to disavow.”
“Since the Bayonet Gang is Snow Bird Harbor’s local bully, they must have
secret relationships with officials large and small here.”
“We want to avoid conflict with Ice Sculpture Kingdom officials as much as
possible, otherwise, we will be in a very passive state.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Let’s return to the ship first.”
The two smoothly returned to the dock.
Like the dragonman youngster surmised, the three following them tried to put
more psychological pressure on them but never attacked.
To avoid further complications, the dragonman youngster decided to use the gold
potion immediately.
He came to the ship bow house.
“Xiao Guai.” The dragonman youngster softly called out.
“Father.” The big guy happily said, but a moment later, he rushed to cover his
mouth.
The dragonman youngster had told him he needed to pay attention to how he
addressed him. Addressing him as father would easily expose the real
relationship between them.
The big guy had forgotten this due to his delight.
“Whisper a bit.” The dragonman youngster hissed, fortunately, he had put down
an acoustics case.
The alchemy device could prevent sound from spreading.
The big guy lowered his head and admitted his mistake, “Sorry, my mistake.
Father, I won’t do it next time.”
The dragonman youngster took out the potion and gave it to the big guy, “Drink
it.”
The big guy had complete trust in the dragonman youngster, and drank down the
potion at once, till not even a trickle remained.
When the dragonman youngster saw this, a bit of worry sprouted in his relief. 
“That won’t do, Xiao Guai.”
“If I was an enemy in disguise, you would be too easy to dupe.”
“We must set a countersign.”
“In the future, when it comes to important decisions and operations, you can
use that countersign to state clearly who you are.”
“The countersign will also be changed every so often.”
The big guy nodded repeatedly, “Father, that is a good method, what is the
countersign?”
After considering the big guy’s intelligence, the dragonman youngster said,
“The first countersign is Hog’s Kiss.”
“Hog’s Kiss!” The big guy nodded, that was the ship he had spent many years on,
and it naturally had a deep impression on him. 
The dragonman youngster didn’t need to worry that he would forget the
countersign.
However, to prevent accidents, the dragonman youngster made sure the big guy
memorized the countersign. 
“Now how do you feel?” The dragonman youngster reckoned that enough time had
passed for the gold potion to take effect.
But the big guy still gave off the same impression as before.
The big guy clicked his tongue, “Feel, feel…a little sweet.”
When the dragonman youngster heard this, he suddenly became a bit apprehensive.
Why wasn’t the big guy feeling a bit smarter?
To be safe, the dragonman youngster decided to run a test.
He asked, “What does 33 multiplied by 7 equal to?”
“Huh?” The big guy scratched his head, showing perplexion, “Father, what is
multiplied?”
The dragonman youngster: …
“I’ll change the question. How much is 48 plus 21?
The big guy scratched his check, and flicked his toes, after trying hard for a
long time, he shamefully said to the dragonman youngster, “Father, Xiao Guai
doesn’t know.”
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, “12 plus 6?”
The big guy puffed hard, waggled his fingers and toes, and after a long while,
he still looked confused.
Seeing this happening, the dragonman youngster’s heart chilled.
He contacted Zi Di to ask: did we really buy a gold potion?
He felt like this was a fake!
“Impossible, I already tested it.” Zi Di denied the dragonman youngster’s
guess.
Then at that moment, the big guy suddenly jumped up with glee, “It is 17, 17!
Father, I calculated it!”
The dragonman youngster sank into a deep silence.
“Could the giant-type intelligence potion have been replaced after Zi Di tested
it?” He couldn’t help but think.
But he soon rejected that notion in his heart, “Impossible. This intelligence
potion has been in my hand for nearly the entire journey.”
“Then, there is only one possibility.”
The dragonman youngster profoundly gazed at the big guy, thinking, “How great
is Xiao Guai’s intellect shortfall? That even a gold level intelligence potion
specialized for giants is not enough to fill it?”
“Father, did I calculate it wrong?” The big guy impatiently looked at the
dragonman youngster, looking forward to the latter’s affirmation.
The dragonman youngster sighed, “That wasn’t important. Let us officially
begin.”
“Ok!”
After that trouble, the dragonman youngster’s ample confidence had waned to
uncertainty. 
He began to guide the big guy in cultivation.
The bug guy reclined on the ground, using his most comfortable sleeping
position, and began to circulate battle qi.
His cultivated battle qi technique was called the Mindless Sleeping Posture
Technique.
The dragonman youngster had thought about it very much and specifically chose
this one very carefully.
This battle qi technique was very easy, so long as one successfully completed
internal circulation several times, their body would remember it. When they
slept, their body would act on its own, refining and circulating their battle
qi.
The dragonman youngster had tried many times to guide him, but the outcomes
were less than ideal.
The big guy couldn’t remember or understand the fundamentals, and as of now, he
was never able to complete a battle qi cycle.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, prepared himself mentally, and
began hands on instruction.
Despite not cultivating the Mindless Sleeping Technique, because he had taught
the big guy many times, he almost knew it by heart.
After five minutes, the big guy had surmounted the first difficulty.
The dragonman youngster was pleasantly surprised.
Although the big guy had broken through this difficulty before, it usually took
half an hour. This time it only took 5 minutes to break through, a truly
outstanding achievement!
“Xiao Gui, you’re doing pretty good. A good beginning is half a success.”
The second difficulty was surmounted at 11 minutes.
“Xiao Guai, you’re doing great. You are making far more progress than ever
before.”
The big guy starched his head and giggled gently, his father praising him this
way made him feel very happy.
Then at 24 minutes, the third difficulty was broken through.
The dragonman youngster was more excited than the big guy, grabbing the big
guy’s arm and shaking it, “You did it, Xiao Guai! You have never done this
before.”
The fourth difficulty was surmounted.
“Quickly, Xiao Guai, avail yourself while you’re still intelligent and waste no
time.”
As the dragonman youngster guided him, he noticed that the big guy’s
comprehension and ability to remember was clearly declining.
The gold potion’s intelligence boosting effects was decreasing as time passed.
Then at 37 minutes, the fifth difficulty was crossed by the big guy.
But he was injured.
“Xiao Guai, how are you? Don’t give up, persevere with all you got.” The
dragonman youngster encouraged.
He became irascible, and his guidance also became a little impatient.
The big guy’s comprehension and memory decline was growing more severe, and
this caused battle qi to batter against his internals, consequently causing him
to cough up blood.
“Father, I can do it! I can still persevere.” The big guy was unwilling to give
up, and the dragonman youngster’s mood had infected him, he knew they were
doing it all for his own good.
The dragonman youngster didn’t give the big guy a healing potion.
Healing potions might affect the intelligence potion.
Right now, the big guy had to bear with it.
With the big guy’s tough flesh, such an injury did not endanger his life.
Time passed, and the rate of progress grew slower.
From morning till dusk, the dragonman youngster and the big guy did not eat or
drink, nor did they get any rest.
As the sunset quietly vanished from the ship bow house’s window, the dragonman
youngster embraced the big guy, nearly crying tears of joy, “Success! Xiao Gui,
you finally accomplished your first complete battle qi cycle!”
The big guy yelled in delight.
The giant sound wave was perfectly restrained by the acoustics case and didn’t
get out.
“Cough, cough.” The big guy coughed out blood.
The dragonman youngster took out a healing potion and let the big guy drink it
down.
The big guy’s injuries were swiftly stabilized.
The dragonman youngster, restless and on edge, once again had him circulate his
battle qi completely.
The big guy was obedient and immediately lay down to circulate his battle qi.
“Pfff.” After a half minute, he spat out blood, the battle qi diverged, and he
failed again.
The dragonman youngster’s heart skipped a beat, and he looked grave.
The big guy tried again and failed again.
The dragonman youngster suddenly felt his heart go cold.
“Father…I’m too stupid…” The big guy looked very solemn, he lowered his head
and didn’t dare to look the dragonman youngster in the eyes out of shame.
“Xiao Guai, I’m sorry.” The dragonman youngster suddenly said.
“Huh?”
The big guy was just about to look up when the dragonman youngster knocked him
out with a slap.
Not long after the big guy sank into deep slumber, his internal battle qi
spontaneously circulated.
The anxious dragonman youngster gave his full attention into observing him.
Before too long, the big guy’s battle qi completed a complete circulation.
The dragonman youngster kept waiting patiently.
The big guy’s battle qi successfully did 2, 3, then 4 cycles.
The dragonman youngster let out his breath. Only now did he truly confirm that
the big guy had successfully cultivated the Mindless Sleeping Posture
Technique! 
“So difficult, so ridiculously difficult.” The dragonman youngster relaxed and
sat down on the planks.
He was exhausted, feeling more tired than the times he had fought gold level
cultivators!
“It wasn’t easy, it really wasn’t easy, but it was all worth it.” Zi Di had
been closely following the guidance secretly, sighing ruefully.
“When the big guy cultivates knowingly, he will still fail. But when he sleeps,
he can succeed. This proves that his body is far more reliable than his mind,
it is worthy of possessing at least a legend level bloodline!”
The dragonman youngster stood up, gratefully looking at the sleeping big guy,
“In that case, from now on, let him sleep more. Based on his bloodline quality,
when he sleeps, his progress will far exceed that of an ordinary person.”
The sleeping big guy was confused.
The other people on board also didn’t know the truth.
The only two who knew the truth of his bloodline was the dragonman youngster
and Zi Di, they understood how bright the big guy’s future was, one they
awaited with bated breath!
“This joyous news really needs to be shared with Cang Xu, I wonder how he’s
doing.” The dragonman youngster lamented.
In the ghost ship.
Now just a head, Cang Xu slowly opened his eyes.
The big guy sank into unconsciousness as he regained consciousness.



****** Chapter 266: Cang Xu’s Bloodline Change ******
Cang Xu’s indistinct vision gradually cleared, and he recalled everything.
“I am done being tested on by Doctor Sui Shi.”
“My body…is gone.”
He hung down his eyelids and gazed down.
As expected, there was nothing past his neck.
He looked around, noticing that he was lying in a bed. The scene around him was
one he was familiar with; it was the cabin he had been staying in.
Cang Xu took a deep breath and began to examine his condition.
He noticed that the erosion from the Underworld River was completely gone.
He was no longer in life threatening danger.
But he had landed in an unprecedented all time low, because he was just a head
now.
“How terrible, my storage bag was in my chest.” Cang Xu’s heart sank when he
suddenly thought of that.
Cang Xu’s storage bag had been disguised as skin and sewn into his chest. It
hid it while simultaneously making it easy to get things out of it.
Now, Cang Xu’s body had been taken away by another, including his storage bag
which had followed with it.
The storage bag had all of Cang Xu’s accumulated belongings!
Those included the alchemy treasures that he and Zi Di bought from the auction:
the Fresh Water Infusion Bottle, the palm compass, and the gold level water
path magic book.
Before Cang Xu had joined the undead gathering, the dragonman youngster had
given him the Death Substitute Puppet.
“I used the Death Substitute Puppet.”
“But the Fresh Water Infusion Bottle, palm compass, and the water path magic
book were still in my bag.”
Although the water path magic tome was badly damaged, it still had two pages.
Those two pages held the Water Snake spell and the Thick Fog spell. Those two
spells were gold level and were Cang Xu’s trump cards.
It was an utter pity to lose them.
Compared to those losses, Cang Xu’s bronze level corpse cloth was nothing.
Apart from those alchemy items, the storage bag also had many magic scrolls.
Zi Di had also prepared many magic potions for Cang Xu too.
There was also the casting materials he had accumulated with great difficulty,
such as the Dead Sea Shell fragments, the Grimace Mushrooms, the Ghost Spider
legs, and much more that were gone now.
Finally, there was a large amount of food, water, clothes, and other items
needed to live.
“That’s right, my fingers also had the five fire path rings. Along with the
magic conduction bracelet.”
“The curved magic mask was on my face and actually wasn’t lost.”
Cang Xu calculated the losses, his mood becoming ever more terrible.
He fully sensed the sorrow of the weak.
As a weak person, he was unable to control even his own body, while the strong
was able to process it without restraint, treating it as experiment material.
“Too weak, I’m still too weak!”
Cang Xu’s heart roared, stimulating the desire to get stronger more intense and
pressing. 
However, relying on the want and strong desire to become strong wouldn’t do,
one still needed to show potential and that was decided by the lifeform’s
bloodline. 
“In the future, with the Bloodline Purification formation and the Bloodcore, I
will raise my aptitude, I will truly become strong.”
“Doctor Sui Shi, this humiliation is one I will personally reciprocate!”
Cang Xu inwardly vowed.
“Newcomer, you’re awake!” At that moment, the cabin door suddenly opened.
The skeleton magician Xiao Wang Zi, the wandering ronin Ku Feng, and Jian Gui
walked in together.
The three came to the side of Cang Xu’s bed.
Ku Feng said, “You were out for one day and night.”
Jian Gui took out a zombie from his storage device and placed it straight up on
the floor, “I have prepared this for you. Xu Jia, you can put up with it for a
short time.”
Cang Xu weakly thanked him.
Jian Gui sighed, “No need for thanks. We are comrades, mutually helping each
other is just doing my part.”
The necromancers had experienced this perilous war together and fostered the
camaraderie of comrades.
Cang Xu looked around and asked, “Where is my companion?”
Cang Xu was naturally talking about the wind path magician Qing Xin.
Xiao Wang Zi answered him, “When we found her, she was already unconscious,
negative energy has eroded her seriously and her body’s magic power was dry,
she is still unconscious as of now.”
“We guess that after we entered the Ghost World, it was likely her spirit was
addled, then when she was unable to keep her magic shield up, she was eroded by
negative energy.”
The Ghost World was a paradise for undead and did not welcome normal lifeforms.
Ku Feng Said, “The Ghost World really doesn’t suit normal living beings, and
the Underworld River has the highest concentration of negative energy. You
don’t need to worry too much, Xu Jia. Qing Xin is already stable. Then, after
we returned to the Main Plane, she will get much better, and there will
probably be no problems with her coming to.”
Cang Xu wanted to unconsciously nodded, causing him to notice that he couldn’t
do such a gesture. 
He could only blink to state that he knew what was going on.
He looked at Jian Gui, “May I ask where Lord Doctor Sui Shi is? I want to meet
him and give him my…thanks.”
Xiao Wang Zi replied, “Ah, Lord Doctor Sui Shi left yesterday.”
“What?” Cang Xu was startled.
Ku Feng used a deliberate tone of warning, “Xu Jia, your body now belongs to
Lord Doctor Sui Shi’s collection. There is little chance of getting it back.”
Cang Xu mumbled out, “Apart from my body, there was also my storage bag! It was
sewn into my chest.”
As he said that, he looked pleadingly at Jian Gui. Of the necromancers present,
only Jian Gui was qualified to seek out Doctor Sui Shi.
But Jian Gui bitterly laughed and shook his head, “Xu Jia, I advise you against
having hope. Lord Doctor Sui Shi is a saint level necromancer, since I was able
to see your chest’s storage bag, how could he not be able to see it too?”
“Since he left and didn’t leave behind your storage bag, that indicates that it
was a trifle he didn’t have on his mind. Even if I could contact him now, he
wouldn’t return here because of such a trivial matter.”
Cang Xu remained silent and dumbfounded for a moment.
Ku Feng comforted him, “As a matter of fact, you’re a lucky one. You still have
the most valuable thing of all, your freedom, isn’t that right? Because of my
insufficient aptitude at the time, Doctor Sui Shi abandoned me. Otherwise, I
would have become one of his collectibles. Just like the giant zombie he made
from your body, no longer a free being.”
Cang Xu slowly closed his eyes.
Jian Gui said, “We have sailed through the Underworld River long enough. Doctor
Sui Shi had been protecting us, but the Underworld is full of hidden dangers,
we need to return to the Main Plane as soon as possible. Based on the plan, we
will stay at a one of my safehouses to rest for a time.”
Cang Xu hearing the intent of parting from these words, and he opened his eyes
and asked, “IN that case, what about future undead gatherings…”
Jian Gui replied, “From now on, undead gathering locations will be altered, but
we haven’t determined it just yet, it is too early for that.”
“We plan to abandon Weeping Pine Island.”
“We leaked too much information there. The enemy knew too much about us.”
Cang Xu’s heart suddenly grew anxious.
Hearing Jian Gui’s tone, he planned to separate from Cang Xu and Qing Xin when
they returned to the Main Plane.
This wouldn’t do!
The reason Cang Xu had taken a risk to get close to Jian Gui was because he was
scheming for the latter’s undead inheritances.
Whether it was the soul crystal making method or how to use memory crystals,
all of it was important to Cang Xu, no, to all of the survivors.
However, if Cang Xu suggested that he remain and keep in contact with Jian Gui,
that would be too direct.
It might provoke suspicions.
Cang Xu thought on it, then immediately chose a strategy, with a trace of
unwillingness, he deliberately asked Jian Gui, “Lord Jian Gui, how possible
will it be for me to get back my body?”
Jian Gui was silent, then solemnly soon spread across his face, “Xu Jia, I
advise you to give up this intention, don’t play with your small life. You are
only silver, and that will be the extent of your life. Your body no longer
belongs to you, and you made a deal with Doctor Sui Shi, he saved your life,
and you gave him your body as a reward.”
Cang Xu bitterly laughed, “Not just my body, but also everything in my storage
bag.”
He was still didn’t give up, “I don’t dare to oppose Lord Doctor Sui Shi, but
is it possible to make a trade back for it?”
Jian Gui slowly shook his head, “You don’t know Lord Doctor Sui Shi well, he
has always been obsessed and serious with adding things to his collection. On
the whole, he will never sell off his collection, at least I have never seen
that happening. Even under unusual circumstances in the future, what you can
offer will be far less than the price tag he puts on his collection.”
“As far as you are concerned, such a transaction is unfair, and the gains don’t
make up for the cost.”
“Rather than doing that, I sincerely suggest that you change your body.”
“Speaking on us necromancers, changing our bodies is a simple affair. Did you
not change your body in the past too? Actually, your corporeal body, as a
cultivator of the undead faction’s soul aspect, is not that important.”
Cang Xu deeply sighed, his face filled with dense misery.
Xiao Wang Zi lowered his head and deeply sighed too.
He sympathized greatly with Cang Xu.
Not just him, Ku Feng and Jian Gui were the same too.
They had worked to fend off powerful enemies and had the friendship of
comrades.
Cang Xu had helped out Jian Gui a lot, and on Weeping Pine Island, he had
warned Jian Gui, allowing the latter to realize what was going on, leading to
him calling the ghost ship to resolve his plight.
After sailing the Underworld River for some time, Jian Gui had given him his
magic tome and treated Cang Xu as bait.
It was an emergency, and for his own survival, Jian Gui had no qualms of
putting another into danger.
But now, they were safe.
Apart from sympathy for Cang Xu, Jian Gui also felt ashamed of how much he
exploited him.
But in reality, Cang Xu wasn’t as attached to his body as they envisioned.
Not long after Cang Xu had come to, he had recognized reality and accepted it.
The reason why he said these things was to evoke sympathy from the others.
“But to just this level is still not enough.” As a noble steward, Cang Xu had
come into contact with every social class and had an incisive understanding of
the hearts of men.
He then purposely looked at the zombie.
This was the zombie Jian Gui had just taken out; the new body prepared for Cang
Xu.
This zombie was also male, and its height was about the same as Cang Xu was
before, furthermore, it had a silver level aura.
The quality Cang Xu had swindled.
Because Cang Xu’s main body’s life level was only iron level. Being a silver
level was a facade Deceptive Disguise had produced.
Cang Xu looked at the zombie as he said, “Lord Jian Gui, if I am not
remembering wrongly, according to the soul aspect inheritance – when changing
one’s body, bloodline needs to be considered. If my head is incompatible with
this zombie’s bloodline, they will interfere with each other and produce a
bloodline rejection. After a time, the bloodline rejection will cause more vile
consequences.”
Jian Gui’s face stiffened for a bit, then he nodded, “You weren’t mistaken,
that is true. Therefore, finding a body one can use long term still had a
degree of difficulty. Do you at least know what your current bloodline is? What
did you find the bloodline of your body to be?”
Cang Xu deliberately looked troubled, “I need bloodline testing…Lord Jian Gui,
can you really not teach me the spell that can test undead bloodlines?”
“Although I lost everything I had, as long I contact the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance, I can still reward you generously.”
Jian Gui shook his head, “Sorry, that is the bottom line of the orthodox
undead. That inheritance cannot be taught as one wishes, one has to pass
aptitude and loyalty evaluations. Especially right now, when every power is
researching the undead faction and our starting advantages are quickly
dwindling.
Cang Xu deeply sighed, then asked, “In that case, Lord Jian Gui, what is my
bloodline?”
Since Jian Gui had provided Cang Xu a body, then based on Cang Xu’s
speculation, he should know what Cang Xu’s bloodline is.
However, a moment later, Jian Gui shook his head, “I still don’t know yet.”
Cang Xu was astonished.
Jian Gui said, “While you were unconscious, I used undead bloodline detection
magic on you. They were present for that too.”
“Our goal was to choose a suitable body for you.”
“But the outcome actually went beyond everyone’s expectations.”
“You are in the process of a bloodline change.” 
Cang Xu slightly widened his eyes, showing a bit of disbelief, “A bloodline
change?”
He knew of bloodline changes.
Bloodlines certainly could be changed.
Otherwise, how could there be so many bloodlines in the world?
However, bloodline changes often happen when lifeforms reproduced and created
newborns that contained a different kind of bloodline.
The result of mixing bloodlines, apart from deformities, malforms, and death,
was that there was an extremely infinitesimal part of offspring that blended
their bloodlines together to form an entirely new bloodline.
Cang Xu was in that very situation now and was naturally not a newborn.
It was because external stimulation had trigged a bloodline change!
Jian Gui explained, “Initially, you transformed your own body into that of a
living dead person, half alive, half dead. This situation actually isn’t that
good, because you haven’t completely changed into an undead lifeform. You still
had a large amount of your living bloodline. Although your body could resist
negative energy corrosion, it also hindered you from getting stronger.”
“During the battle, your body was soaked in the Underworld River’s water. After
you were revived by the Death Substitute Puppet, Voodoo divine power also
entered into your head. After that, Lord Doctor Sui Shi used magic on your head
to save your life, while simultaneously exerting a formidable influence on it.”
“With all of those elements stacking on each other, and perhaps other factors
that were overlooked, an unforeseen change has happened to your bloodline.”
Cang Xu slowly asked, “In that case, Lord Jian Gui, was the outcome of this
bloodline change good or bad?”
“I cannot say, I cannot determine it.” Jian Gui shook his head again, :I am
only a necromancer, not a priest of the Life Church. Furthermore, your
bloodline change is still in progress, far from done. Perhaps after it
finishes, you will have the ability to learn what it ultimately ends up as.”
Cang Xu went silent again.
Ku Feng comforted him, “Don’t worry, normal people would worry for their lives
when a bloodline change happens. However, you Xu Jia, are already an undead,
the bloodline change probably won’t kill you.”
Xiao Wang Zi added on, “Your aptitude might rise, it might also fall. Actually,
I envy you, newcomer. Perhaps you can improve your aptitude as a result of this
and reach the criteria of learning undead inheritance!”
Cang Xu wasn’t excited in the slightest.
Because he knew he already had a better option.
“A bloodline change increasing my aptitude is too unlikely.” Cang Xu bitterly
laughed.
This situation went a little beyond his expectations, but it didn’t hinder him
from spouting his manipulative words. 
Cang Xu looked at Jian Gui, his eyes full of pleading, “Lord Jian Gui, can you
shelter me for a time?”
“My future is full of apprehension and emptiness.”
“Only by relying on your strength will it be more possible for me to obtain a
body that truly fits me.”
“There is also my bloodline change…”
Jian Gui didn’t answer, instead he sank into deep thought.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng both looked at Jian Gui, deeply concerned.
Finally, Jian Gui nodded, “You can follow me around for a time. But I have to
explain in advance, I fear we will welcome more fights, even against that gold
level shadow monk again.”
Cang Xu stared, then replied, “He is my enemy too, I was reduced to this
because of them! Lord Jian Gui, please let me contribute my strength, even if
that strength is insignificant.”
Jian Gui nodded, he was very happy to see Cang Xu’s hatred was staked on Yi
Ying and not the undead orthodox member Doctor Sui Shi.
To the side, Ku Feng smiled.
Xiao Wang Zi cheered, “Very good, Xu Jia, we can kill the enemy together.”
“We have already talked it over, after resting, we will go out to sea to save
Qi Ling’s fishman clan.”
Cang Xu exposed a pondering look, “I understand, Qi Ling is not a sincere
traitor. Otherwise, on Weeping Pine Island, she wouldn’t have revealed herself
as a traitor and then stopped fighting me.”
“Her weak spot is her clansmen. As long as we save her fishman clan, Qi Ling
will be free.”
Jian Gui responded with, “You’re not wrong.”
Xiao Wang Zi angrily hmphed, “Even if she has difficulties, I won’t forgive
her. She made the mistake of betraying Lord Jian Gui, she bit the hand that fed
her, harumph! Surrendering to the enemy means she didn’t have a bit of
backbone, if it were me, I would have an unbreakable backbone and would never
surrender.”
Ku Feng teased him, “Right, you have the toughest backbone, you are just
bones.”
“Huh?” Xiao Wang Zi was perplexed, and for a moment, he didn’t know whether Ku
Feng praised or ridiculed him.



****** Chapter 267: Heroic Duel ******
The gleam of sunset gradually dissipated, and the curtain of night gradually
covered Snow Bird Harbor.
At the docks, on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship, the Love Triangle,
the survivors secretly gathered together to discuss their future projects and
plans.
“That is roughly what the situation is.” Zi Di had just explained the conflict
between them and Bing Xiao, giving a detailed account of it.
Everyone was silent.
Zong Ge put his hands on the intelligence reports.
These intelligence reports had been purchased from the Thieves Guild at a hefty
price.
This intelligence report had detailed information on the Bayonet Gang.
The old elf Bing Xiao had come from the army.
He was once a gold level, but after being wounded on the battlefield, he was
reduced to silver level.
After being discharged, he returned to his hometown, in other words, Snow Bird
Harbor.
A year later, he joined the Bayonet Gang.
After living in the gang for some time, he had successfully nurtured a gold
level giant slave.
With it, he had become the Bayonet Gang’s leader.
Three years later, another veteran returned to Snow Bird Harbor and decided to
join the Bayonet Gang.
When he was promoted to become part of the core backbone of the gang, he
challenged Bing Xiao to a heroic duel.
This veteran was the current leader of the Bayonet Gang – Teng Dong Lang.
From this, the outcome of said heroic duel was self-evident, Teng Dong Lang was
the winner.
Bing Xiao had lost and so lost the position of leadership.
He then simply retired with his lovers.
Bing Xiao’s gold level slave was called Tie Tou Tong, and because it had
participated in too many of the gang’s fights, their body was gravely injured
and its military strength greatly declined.
Anyways, in recent years, Bing Xiao had been cultivating new giant slaves.
He had some results in the current times.
He wanting to purchase a giant-type intelligence potion should be him striving
to cultivate new giants.
Apart from Bing Xiao, the information on the Bayonet Gang gave a clear
understanding of the rest of it.
This gang had almost a thousand people in it, and its current leader, Teng Dong
Lang, was a genuine gold level fighter with rich battle experience.
He had more than twenty silver level subordinates, the vast majority of which
were snow elves. 
Elves had greater transcendent gifts compared to the humans and beastmen.
However, elves were always a sparse people, as they couldn’t reproduce as much
as humans and beastmen.
Beastmen were better at reproducing, but of the three races, their transcendent
gifts were the lowest.
Humans were the median of the three. Their reproduction and transcendent gifts
were not the strongest, but with them, humanity’s total strength became the
greatest over time.
The Sheng Ming Empire was a superpower on the Main Plane, and the greatest race
of modern times was humanity, for the empire had the most territory of the Main
Plane and the strongest transcendents.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a small force, and the survivors didn’t
even have a gold level.
Whether one had a gold level determined how large a force was determined to be.
Without a gold level, even if one had many silver levels, they would be merely
a small power.
Zong Ge’s growth potential could be easily seen, and his battle qi already had
a gold sheen, but so long as he wasn’t a gold level yet, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps would remain a small sized force.
It was clear that the Bayonet Gang was a true medium sized power.
Zong Ge held the intelligence report in his hand and analyzed, “The Bayonet
Gang’s strength far exceeds ours, but we have advantages they do not possess.”
“Such as in naval battles, we have a distinct dominance in that, for they don’t
seem to have many ships.”
“In large scale battles, we also might hold a certain superiority. Gang members
are better at fighting in cities in either groups of three to four, or alone.”
“What’s concerning is that the Bayonet Gang’s prior and current leader are from
the army, we don’t know what things they brought into the gang from there.”
If they did what Zong Ge did to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, then the
Bayonet Gang would have tight military supervision and training, that would add
another level to the Bayonet Gang as a whole.
The dragonman youngster thought on it, “The intelligence report doesn’t mention
any army drills.”
“If the Bayonet Gang did military administration, would Snow Bird Harbor’s
officials sleep soundly at night?”
Zong Ge nodded, “That is indeed so.”
“However, we cannot launch a naval battle or wide scale warfare.”
“This is the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, Snow Bird Harbor is one of its eight
harbors. The coast is lined with cannons, there is a magician tower, and
everyone would see it.”
“The magician tower monitors the entire harbor at all times, if we assemble on
a large scale, there would be no need to use the cannons, one or two of the
magician tower’s large scale spells would inflict disastrous damage on us and
even wipe out our organizational structure.”
Zong Ge’s intent was very explicit, forcing things was out of the question.
Zong Ge had finished speaking, and sitting at his side, Tripleblade spoke next,
“On the face of it, the Bayonet Gang is very strong, however, the true strength
they can muster is far less than what is on paper.”
Tripleblade was once a mercenary commander. He had dealt with merchant
alliances, gangs, and all sorts of walks of life, thus, he had quite an
understanding of gangs.
“Say for example.” Tripleblade continued to analyze, “The Bayonet Gang has
twenty silver levels. But most of the silver level members cannot be directly
dispatched, for many of them are figureheads in the gang.”
“The truly capable people depend on their specific status and position in the
gang.”
“In my opinion, the genuine backbone only has 6 people, the 6 that the
neighborhood gang leader controls.”
“Interesting, of the 6 silver levels under this gang leader only has two snow
elves, the rest are a human, a bear-man, a treeman, and even a demon-human
hybrid, quite the mixed group.”
This was actually similar to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
A gang was like this, where dragons and snakes mingled, and as long as one was
strong, they could usually rise to the top.
The backbone had many races, something actually quite common in gangs.
Especially in a harbor like Snow Bird Harbor, where there were many people of
all sorts of races traveling through, making it even more necessary to
designate some strong gang leaders for specific races.
Such leaders could gain their corresponding race’s respect, increasing the
understanding in the hierarchy and greatly reducing supervision costs.
Tripleblade stopped analyzing and looked at the dragonman youngster, “Alas, we
really didn’t need to clash with Bing Xiao, although the giant-type
intelligence potion really suits the big guy, there was no need to make a rush
for it.”
“If we preordered the potion, we could have gotten it within half a month.” 
It was very clear that Tripleblade did not approve of the dragonman youngster’s
and Zi Di’s decision at the Secret Medicine Merchant Alliance store.
To him it seemed irrational.
Zi Di and the dragonman youngster were silent and indifferent.
The bloodline testing results were only known by Zi Di, the dragonman
youngster, and Cang Xu.
If Tripleblade knew what the big guy’s bloodline was, he wouldn’t be thinking
what he did now.
But the bloodline testing results was something the dragonman youngster
wouldn’t speak rashly about.
The dragonman youngster looked at Tripleblade and asked, “Based on what you
see, what should we do, what is the best response to our current situation?”
Tripleblade shook his head, “Although we have considerable strength, we can
still be easily eaten up by a gang.”
“The reason is simple; we lack elite stealth units. That is to say, thieves and
assassins.”
“In Snow Bird Harbor, large scale warfare is impossible.”
“The Bayonet Gang can’t do it either. Their most likely operations will be
dispatching stealth units to spy on us, steal from us, and attack us.”
“It is also possible that they will kidnap and blackmail people we dispatch.”
“From this evening onwards, we will be fully vigilant to prevent enemy
infiltration, theft, and damage.”
“For the next several days, we will restrict our people as much as possible,
keep them on the ships. But this can only be done for so long.”
“In the long term, the sailors will grow agitated and displeased. Sooner or
later, we will have to let them out.”
“Also, only by letting them out will we be able to take the most mercenary
missions to develop and expand the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Apart from the Thieves Guild in a city, gangs were the force with the most
thieves and assassins.
The survivors really lacked such talents.
The closest to that was Tripleblade. But his battle skills weren’t able to hide
his traces, and his fighting style was through agility and rapid movement
within a small distance to directly grapple with the enemy and seize any gaps
to throw the enemy formation into confusion.
In short, Tripleblade’s fighting style made him a competent mercenary good at
conventional warfare. 
Expanding this criterion to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the best of them
in sneaking was Xu Ma.
Xu Ma cultivated the Dark Spider technique, and cultivated compatible battle
skills for stealth and eavesdropping, along with being able to fight. But Xu
Ma’s bloodline was not outstanding, and he was an iron level nowadays, the
limit of his aptitude.
Tripleblade continued, “If our luck is good, we can recruit one or two silver
level infiltrators that can alleviate the current situation.”
“In fact, we need such talents for investigative work. Although we have many
alchemy puppets, in many situations, alchemy puppets are no substitute for
people, such as making intelligence reports.”
Tripleblade’s words were reasonable, and the dragonman youngster nodded
repeatedly at them.
At the same time, the dragonman youngster’s thinking was growing, nonchalantly
looking at Qiao Shan.
He thought of Qiao Shan’s bloodline.
Qiao Shan had a dark elf (Drow) bloodline, and the dark elf race could be said
to have the most amount of rogues on the Main Plane. 
“However, cultivating Qiao Shan takes too much time. Distant water cannot
quench thirst now.” The dragonman youngster thought.
Zi Di then opened her mouth, “We don’t need antagonism, perhaps we can offer
amends and apologize? Since the Bayonet Gang is Snow Bird Harbor’s local bully,
building a good relationship with them can be beneficial to us and will help
our future business activities.”
From Zi Di’s point of view, since they had taken the giant-type intelligence
potion and used it on the big guy, then it was fine to bow their heads to the
Bayonet Gang for the time being.
Even if they had to pay some compensation, it was a drop in the ocean for the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ 60,000 gold coins of assets.
If both sides could reach a settlement, with the Bayonet Gang’s protection and
contact network, Zi Di’s business would go smoothly here.
Looking at the long term, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ hefty investment
would earn much more in the future!
However, everyone met her proposal with silence.
Even the dragonman youngster declined to comment.
The dragonman youngster looked at the rest, “Anyone can speak, what is your
opinion?”
Lan Zao answered first, “My Lord, you are our commander, your decision is how
we will operate!”
Lan Zao was a powerful supporter of the dragonman youngster, and since he
started following the dragonman youngster, his position never wavered from the
latter’s.
Fei She said, “On Mystifying Mon, Monster Island. If it wasn’t for the big
guy’s protect, protecting our ship, everyone would have died un, under the
beast tide. Before the old boatswain died, he ga, gave the big guy to the
commander, the big guy treated the com, commander as his new father. And a
father buying his son a potion is completely within reason, a mat, matter of
course.”
Fei She’s words were more tactful and pleasant to listen to than Lan Zao’s.
He also explicitly expressed his support for the dragonman youngster.
Mu Ban scowled, “I am more worried about other things.”
“Since the Bayonet Gang has entrenched itself here for many years, they must
have many hidden connections with the local government of Snow Bird Harbor,
such as public officials and the city guard.”
“If they borrow the city guard’s hand to deal with us, then that will be more
troublesome. If it isn’t dealt with well, we will antagonize the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s government, that will be exceedingly detrimental to us.”
Qiao Shan said, “If nothing else can be done, at worst we can leave Snow Bird
Harbor for good. This harbor is only one of eight in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is vast; we don’t need to be entangled in one place.
We are free and our situation is very strained, the longer time drags on, the
worse it will get for us.”
Everyone had said their piece, except Bai Ya.
The dragonman youngster looked at Bai Ya, “Do you have an opinion, Bai Ya?”
Bai Ya was somewhat nervous, “I, should I really speak? I don’t really have
anything to say.”
The dragonman youngster smiled at him, “Have the courage to speak, mistakes
don’t matter, we are all the same here.”
Bai Ya muttered to himself, then decide to change the subject, “Everyone knows
that I am a hunter.”
“When I was old enough to shoot arrows and hunt rabbits, my father took me into
the forest mountain to hunt.”
“One winter, when the first snow fell, my father and I were preparing to hunt.”
“Just as we entered the forest mountain, we saw a mess in the woodland,
discovering that a ferocious beast had left blood traces, talon marks across
trees, and footprints in the snow from its fight.”
“My father called off the hunt on the spot.”
“I felt very puzzled and asked my father why he did that.”
“My father said to me that this forest mountain only had one fierce tiger. The
marks at the scene, however, showed that two fierce tigers had fought there.”
“It was very clear that one of the tigers was an outsider. It had intruded in
and clashed with the master of the forest, so we had to wait for the fight to
finish, for them to determine the outcome of the battle.”
“We would wait until the forest mountain grew tranquil again, and after it
stabilized, we would go hunting again.”
“My father warned me: we are ordinary people, and even fully armed, we couldn’t
fight a magic beast. Don’t even think of taking advantage of another’s
misfortune to pick up a steal. A wounded and hungry magic beast is far more
dreadful than it is normally! Transcendents are different, and we will never be
their match.”
“We merely live on this forest mountain, killing only the prey we need to eat.”
“Don’t take risks, hunting in of itself is already a great risk. What is the
difference between taking a risk and seeking death? We are men, and if we die,
what will happen to our family?”
When Bai Ya said that he came back to the topic at hand, declaring his opinion,
“I believe that our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is a ferocious foreign beast.
We need to have a true battle so the ferocious beasts in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom acknowledge us, that we are qualified to truly have a footing here.”
“Snow Bird Harbor isn’t our only option.”
“But everywhere else is the same.”
“Don’t tell me the other harbors don’t have gangs? Like that forest mountain,
there will always be magic beasts entrenched there that divide up their
respective territories.”
“This time, we provoked the Bayonet Gang, actually, if we didn’t provoke them,
wouldn’t they provoke us instead?”
“Even if there wasn’t such a conflict, there will always be another, other
powers that will make things difficult for us and shove us aside.”
When Bai Ya finished, the people around him looked at him we newfound respect.
The dragonman youngster pumped up his fist and loudly encouraged, “Well spoken,
correctly spoken, Bai Ya!”
Bai Ya scratched his head in bemusement; the praise made his face somewhat red.
The dragonman youngster looked around and raised his voice, “Just as Bai Ya
said, that is the situation we are in.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is different from Snake Rat and Two Eyes Island. It
has been developed for a very long time. It is full of all kinds of people of
all sorts of professions. This is not vacant land. And to obtain sufficient
space to survive, we will inevitably tussle with the natives here.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needs an adversary so we can prove our power to
others.”
“The Bayonet Gang is very strong, but it is not insurmountable.”
“If we defeat them, the fruits of victory we will reap are sure to be far more
ample than the ones from a puny enemy!”
“Furthermore, this is not the naval battles of Two Eyes Island and Weeping Pine
Island, nor is it surviving on Mystifying Monster Island. The only
contradiction between us and the Bayonet Gang is a gold level potion.”
“This battle doesn’t need to determine life and death, but it does need an
outcome.”
“As long as we display our true strength, the Bayonet Gang will inevitably fear
us, and if that happens, we can vie for ground to make a footing on.”
Zong Ge looked pensive, observing the dragonman youngster, “In that case, what
is the plan?”
The dragonman youngster faintly smiled, “Early tomorrow, I will move to
publicly challenge the Bayonet Gang’s leader to a heroic duel!”
Those words caused a variety of expressions to appear on the others.
Zi Di couldn’t sit still, “Lord Commander, you want to fight Teng Dong Lang? He
is a veteran gold level.”
The dragonman youngster’s smile grew, flowing with battle intent, “Gold
level...it’s quite exciting to fight against such an opponent.”
The dragonman youngster had fought Er Gua Zi at the Battle of Two Eyes Island.
But the fight ended too soon and didn’t satisfy his craving.
The dragonman youngster was exuberantly interested at this chance.
Tripleblade approved, “A good method. Even if you lose commander, it’s not that
bad. You’re a silver level after all. But as long as your fight is majestic and
enough for people to sit up and take notice, we can display our Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ strength, so others won’t dare have contempt for us from then
on.”
Zong Ge once again gazed at the intelligence report, “This battle can be
fought.”
“Teng Dong Lang does not fight like Hun Tong, he is from the army, his moves
are terse and clear, and his battle style should be frontal and direct. A most
suitable opponent for you, Commander.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “That’s right, I think so too.”
Unconsciously, he reached out and rubbed the Grand Arena Medal he wore.



****** Chapter 268: Teng Dong Lang’s Scheme ******
Teng Dong Lang was sitting at a dining table, enjoying his breakfast.
The breakfast he liked the most was sashimi.
This was the freshest way to dine on fish, caught from the ocean at first
light.
Teng Dong Lang was a middle aged man.
As a snow elf, he looked attractive, but the wrinkles around his eyes revealed
the ups and downs of his life.
Once part of the army, he not only sat very straight, but he also had a
majestic presence far beyond an ordinary person.
Teng Dong Lang ate his sashimi while listening to a subordinate’s report.
The Bayonet Gang was the top gang in Snow Bird Harbor, and naturally had many
affairs, so Teng Dong Lang was a true busybody that couldn’t be idle while
dining.
Suddenly, Teng Dong Lang raised an eyebrow, “Oh, Bing Xiao wanted to dispatch
gang members to deal with a mercenary corps? Why?”
The subordinate replied, “According to Lord Bing Xiao’s account, this mercenary
corps doesn’t know good from bad, and in the Secret Medicine store, they outbid
him for a giant-type intelligence potion. This potion would have been a great
help for Lord Bing Xiao’s training of giants; thus, Lord Bing Xiao wants to get
this potion back.”
Teng Dong Lang faintly nodded, his mind perceiving Bing Xiao’s intent.
Although Bing Xiao had been forced from the position of leader, he still
retained a group of people, those who were his confidants and diehards.
Such as his gold level giant slave.
But Bing Xiao didn’t attack immediately, instead he made a request to the
Bayonet Gang and informed Teng Dong Lang ahead of time.
This kind of attitude and conduct made the current leader, Teng Dong Lang feel
good.
At once, Teng Dong Lang was trending towards giving Bing Xiao a favor and
offering some help.
However, Teng Don Lang was a naturally cautious person.
Before officially deciding, he asked, “What is the state of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps?”
The subordinate immediately took out a piece of paper and handed it to Teng
Dong Lang, “This is the intelligence report of our inquiry.”
Teng Dong Lang laid the paper on the dining table, putting jam into his mouth
as he read through the intelligence report.
The report stated:
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were a small sized power and didn’t have a gold
level powerhouse.
Their head was Long Fu, and their vice head was Shi Qi, both silver levels.
Apart from them, there was also the silver level Chi Lai and Men Shi. 
They had two magicians, the iron level Lao Zhong and the bronze level Hong
Teng.
The mercenary corps had many races in it, including humans, dogmen, water
pigmen, a dragonman, and a half giant.
The mercenary corps had three magic ships. The flagship the Love Triangle,
along with the Iron Lump and the White Bandage. The first was iron level, and
the other two were bronze level.
Apart from those three, the rest were ordinary ships, they had no large ships,
and their 13 ships were mostly medium and small sized ships.
The fleet had two gold level components, the Feather Snake Sail and the gold
level cannon. The latter was damaged and couldn’t be used for the time being.
The Bayonet Gang deserved to be the local bully, the information they obtained
was detailed and reliable.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had entered the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s harbor
just two days ago, and the Bayonet Gang had gotten so much information on them.
That was because when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was on the sea, the
patrol fleet had inspected them. Then after mooring at the docks, they
specifically registered information on their ships.
The Bayonet Gang’s tentacles were long, and they had penetrated into many
departments, so obtaining this information was no challenge.
Teng Dong Lang looked at the information report while thinking out his
assessment.
“A group of outsiders…”
“Although a small sized power, their strength is decent.”
“They also have some potential…”
“There are also many hidden dangers.”
Teng Dong Lang believed that a hidden danger was the mercenary corps’ complex
racial mix.
He understood the hidden troubles of this.
Because the Bayonet Gang was in a similar situation. The six people under him
all belonged to different races, and he had eaten plenty of suffering when
dealing with them.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wasn’t as strong as the Bayonet Gang.
After Teng Dong Lang finished the report, he was trending even more towards
helping Bing Xiao.
“Although Bing Xiao is retired, he was once the Bayonet Gang’s leader and has
an inseparably close relationship with it. If he can train a second gold level
giant slave, it will be favorable news for the entire Bayonet Gang.”
“Anyways, since Bing Xiao wants to deal with these people, based on his conduct
style, this information report won’t satisfy him.”
“He will make further inquiries.”
“Since he is seeking the gang’s help, this information should be sent to him.”
Teng Dong Lang was from the army, and his main military position was as a staff
officer, thus, his thoughts were very meticulous, and he was an expert
administrator.
He turned to look at his subordinate, “Is there anything else to report?”
As expected, the subordinate had prepared another intelligence report and
handed it to him.
“This information report has been specially provided by Lord Bing Xiao.” The
subordinate reported. 
Teng Dong Lang scanned the intelligence report as he kept on eating.
Very quickly, his chewing slowed, and his face exposed a cautious look.
The information gathered by Bing Xiao did not describe what people the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps was composed of, or what kind of ships, weapons, and
equipment it had, instead, he spoke of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ prior
military achievements and history. 
As a result, Bing Xiao learned that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
participated in the battle for Two Eyes Island.
The dragonman youngster had fought a gold level fishman pirate outright and
only at a slight disadvantage.
Their three magic ships had all once been another’s.
After the battle for Two Eyes Island, they chased down a group of necromancers
to Weeping Pinen Island and clashed with the fleet Lady Sea Snake had
assembled.
Finally, they rescued some hostages and also captured the Iron Lump and the
Love Triangle.
Because time was limited, Bing Xiao was unable to learn of what the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps did on Snake Rat Island.
But that didn’t hinder how Teng Dong Lang thought of them, on the contrary,
this information greatly increased his assessment of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
“These people are bold and fierce in battle. After the battle of Two Eyes
Island, they decided to purse and attack the necromancers fearlessly.”
“Although Commander Long Fu is a silver level, his body is extremely fine, he
can surprisingly withstand a gold level directly and can be regarded as a
quasi-gold, he cannot be looked down on.”
Teng Dong Lang couldn’t help but grow vigilant.
These two information reports had given him ample knowledge into the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ strength.
He couldn’t help but inwardly warn himself, “I cannot underestimate the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, and when helping Bing Xiao’s search for the giant-type
intelligence potion, I need to pay attention to our behavior and cannot
overstep too much.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t want to go to war with the Bayonet Gang,
and surprisingly, Teng Dong Lang felt the same.
Even though the Bayonet Gang was clearly stronger than them.
An enraged Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could inflict disastrous casualties on
the Bayonet Gang.
“How should this matter be handled?” Teng Dong Lang sank into thought.
Negotiation and trade were two methods that Teng Dong Lang threw away first.
Although these two methods had hope of recovering the potion, Teng Dong Lang
knew he couldn’t do either.
His position and identity restricted many of his choices.
He was not an ordinary person; he was the leader of the Bayonet Gang. If he did
those things, it was tantamount to the Bayonet Gang giving into a small sized
mercenary Corps, then how would others look at him?
If the Bayonet Gang was considered weak, then that would be too terrible.
A gang’s reputation was always important.
Only by displaying power constantly to cow the people into fear could they
collect protection money and other such things smoothly.
“The conflict between the two of them occurred at the Secret Medicine branch
store. This news will be disseminated widely over the next several days.”
“As of now, there are certainly many resolute people already waiting for Bing
Xiao’s and the Bayonet Gang’s reaction.”
Teng Dong Lang understood the situation.
The Bayonet Gang not only needed to recover the potion but also give the other
party a lesson. Only by doing that would they be satisfied.
“The most direct method is stealing it back.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships are at the dock, and after this
contention, they will surely have added more precautions.”
“The dock is easy to infiltrate; the pivotal thing is the magician tower.”
“The gold level magician tower keeps watch over all of Snow Bird Harbor at all
times, and anchored ships at the dock is an important district that is
supervised even more.”
“If we want the magician tower to turn a blind eye, then we need to bribe them.
But that’s expensive!” 
“Apart from that, I also have to put up a favor.”
Thinking of that, Teng Dong Lang couldn’t help but shake his head.
That method wasn’t good; it was too costly.
His mind turned, then thought of another way, “Then I’ll look for an
opportunity to kidnap one of the important members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. Then when I negotiate with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, I can demand
they return the giant-type intelligence potion in exchange for the hostage.”
Teng Dong Lang was making his plans, but then his subordinate looked distressed
and reported to him, “Lord Gang Leader. After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
entered the harbor, they restricted their entire crew, almost none of them got
off the ship. Yesterday, only a few of their ringleaders acted off the ships.
If those people don’t come out, we won’t find a good chance to kidnap them.”
Teng Dong Lang was flabbergasted, “Huh? They chose to do that?”
He soon sneered, “Just a trick, as time goes one, those mercenaries will kick
up a fuss and even stir up a rebellion.”
“But…” Teng Dong Lang’s sneer gradually vanished, for he felt trouble.
He didn’t believe the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could restrict its
mercenaries for long.
Under normal circumstances, Teng Dong Lang didn’t need to act. He only needed
to keep calm and for changes, to wait for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to
lash out.
But the problem was that Teng Dong Lang couldn’t delay.
Now that the intelligence potion was in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ hands,
Bing Xiao had asked for help, explicitly pointing out that time was an issue.
The more time passed, the greater the possibility that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps would use the potion.
When that came to pass, even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps conceded, the
potion would be gone, the Bayonet Gang would have left them alive for a long
time, the original goal would be unattainable, and it would all be a waste of
effort.



****** Chapter 269: One Fist to Victory ******
After Teng Dong Lang deliberated for a moment, he decided that recovering the
potion was the top priority. 
“First thing is to steal the potion back!”
“I have no choice but to ask Hua Tang for help. He still owes me a favor.”
“He will be able to avoid the magician tower’s surveillance.”
“Hiring him will also be far cheaper than bribing the magician tower.”
“Not bad, this will do!”
Teng Dong Lang had just made his decision when another subordinate hastily
intruded into the dining room and reported to him.
“Lord Gang Leader, a dragonman is blocking our door.”
“He is carrying an ice chunk and has made it known that he wants to duel you
Gang Leader!”
“Right now, the downstairs is packed with pedestrians.”
“A dragonman?” Teng Dong Lang suddenly felt his heart jump, for a split second,
the name Long Fu flashed through his mind.
“He brought ice over; does he want to have a heroic duel with me?” Teng Dong
Lang guessed.
“Precisely so.” The subordinate bowed their head.
To bring ice to a battle meant one wanted a heroic duel.
This was a tradition that came from a story from the barbarian race’s
continent.
It was similar to what happened in the Sheng Ming Empire, where humans would
throw their glove to ask for a duel.
When Teng Dong Lang learned of this news, he couldn’t sit still.
He got up and looked down from the second story window.
A moment later, he saw the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was tall and robust, his red dragon scales stuck to his
body like armor, and everyone who saw it knew of its astonishing defense.
“It is indeed unforgettable at first sight.” Teng Dong Lang thought to himself.
Sensing movement by the second floor window, the dragonman youngster raised his
head and his amber dragon eyes gazed at Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang gradually narrowed his eyes; they were glistening with a cold
light.
Their stares collided in the air, nearly creating sparks.
The dragonman youngster had Lan Zao next to him.
He strongly requested that he serve as the dragonman youngster’s attendant for
this. He sincerely felt honored to follow the dragonman youngster like this.
Noticing that there was a middle aged elf at the second floor window that
matched the intelligence report, Lan Zao knew it was Teng Dong Lang and yelled
loudly, “Distinguished Teng Dong Lang, we are from the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. This is our Commander, Lord Long Fu. We have heard of your power and
have intentionally come here to challenge you to battle, to carry out a heroic
duel!”
The dragonman youngster and Lan Zao had already grabbed the attention of
spectators, and there was three rings of them both behind and in front of them.
This was the first time they had seen the dragonman youngster and didn’t know
who he was. But they were well acquainted with the person he wanted to
challenge!
At this moment, the crowd saw Teng Dong Lang show his face and immediately made
a big fuss.
“Lord Teng Dong Lang has appeared!”
“This dragonman really wants to challenge Lord Teng Dong Lang, he wasn’t
lying.”
“A silver level actually wants to challenge a gold level; he really has guts!”
“Hmph, challenging Lord Teng Dong Lang is simply embarrassing himself. This
duel has no suspense to it!”
“Lord Ten Dong Lang, you must make this young man eat a bitter defeat!
Teng Dong Lang looked at the scene downstairs, his complexion gradually growing
gloomy.
He felt a bit prickled.
From their interlocked gazes, he adequately felt the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ confidence and their brimming fighting spirit.
“Interesting, before I could deal with them, they decided to find trouble with
me first.”
Teng Dong Lang’s train of thought changed, “Such confidence, don’t tell me he
has a trump card dedicated to dealing with a gold level?”
Heroic duels did not restrict the usage of items.
It wasn’t impossible for a silver level to be victorious over a gold level.
Especially when many items were unconventional and outstanding. 
Teng Dong Lang thought of the information report, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ fleet had two gold level modules.
“The patrol fleet’s inspection was not able to analysis all of their storage
devices. It is very possible that they have other trump cards.”
“They have confidence by means of these trump cards, something that allows a
silver level to defeat a gold level in battle.”
“I cannot be impulsive; I have to be careful!”
Thinking of this, Teng Dong Lang originally low battle intent sharply declined.
He put his hand on the window sill and raised the other, indicating to the
crowd downstairs that he was going to speak.
Everyone downstairs suddenly stopped speaking, showing Teng Dong Lang’s
prestige in this place.
After waiting until the crowd downstairs calmed down, Teng Dong Lang opened his
mouth, “Commander Long Fu, I am very happy to see you, and I welcome you to
Snow Bird Harbor.”
“I can’t help but say, although this is the first time meeting, you have left a
profound impression on me.”
“I never fear any challenge, and I am quite happy that you proposed to have a
heroic duel with me.”
“However, you are only a silver level, and an outsider who has just arrived at
Snow Bird Harbor.”
“I am a gold level; I surpass you by one level. If I were to take advantage of
your travel weary state and do battle with you now, that be too inelegant.”
The dragonman youngster’s expression slightly shifted, and when he heard those
words, he suddenly sensed something going wrong, so he quickly taunted, “Teng
Dong Lang, what are you afraid of?”
Teng Dong Lang laughed, “Please understand, if every silver level here wanted
to duel me, then how would I have time to do anything else? Without time and
energy, I wouldn’t be able to engage in more important matters.”
“If you were a gold level, I would have agreed to a contest immediately, but
you aren’t.”
“You have the courage to challenge a gold as a silver, but not necessarily the
strength. You must prove that first.”
“Defeat the Bayonet Gang’s six famous block leaders, then I will acknowledge
your strength and deem you worthy of dueling me.”
After saying that, Teng Dong Lang turned around to leave, vanishing from the
window before the dragonman youngster could reply.
“Hey, don’t leave!” Lan Zao hastily shouted.
The dragonman youngster bade him to stop.
Lan Zao turned around, looking anxious, “Lord Commander, what should we do?”
“It doesn’t matter, this was within our predictions, isn’t that so?” The
dragonman youngster smiled, “We’ll do as he demands. He can’t run away.”
The dragonman youngster turned around and looked to the northwest, “If I am
remembering correctly, the closest Bayonet Gang ringleader should be Ban Lan
Gen?”
“Yes, Lord Commander.” Lan Zao recalled it and immediately nodded.
“Teng Dong Lang, remember your promise! I will go find your subordinates, wait
until I defeat them one by one.” After the dragonman youngster threw that out,
he left in a swift and decisive manner.
The spectators lining the street that witnessed the conversation between the
dragonman youngster and Teng Dong Lang bubbled with turmoil.
“A good show.”
“Catch up, keep pace!”
“Don’t disappoint the people, I still want to see Lord Teng Dong Lang teach
that dragonman a lesson.”
“Did I mishear Lord Teng Dong Lang, why didn’t he agree to fight? His opponent
is just a silver level!”
“That dragonman needs to beat all of the Bayonet Gang’s six ringleaders to be
qualified to challenge Teng Dong Lang. I think that is reasonable.”
“Can that outsider really beat them? Everyone knows the six ringleaders are no
simple silver levels.”
“He will go challenge the six ringleaders, I want to see how strong he is, what
boldness does he have?”
The large crowd of pedestrians followed behind the dragonman youngster, looking
ready to see a good show.
Ban Lan Gen was the name of a treeman.
When his subordinate notified him of this matter, he was eating breakfast too.
Branches spread across his head, and gaudy tree leaves were rolled out as much
as possible, so he could absorb as much sunlight as he wanted.
His ten long fingers and toes stretched out, forming the shape of tree roots
that dug into a bathtub in the ground.
The bath tub was filled with clear and slightly sweet spring water.
Ban Lan Gen was absorbing sunlight and water, lounging and unwilling to budge.
Upon hearing the dragonman youngster was rushing over to him, Ban Lan Gen
curled his lip and paid the dragonman youngster no heed.
“Year after year, there is someone who wants to challenge the gang leader, but
a silver level doing so is rather rare.”
“This year it is a dragonman, how strong are they?”
An underling urged him, “Boss, you can’t be negligent, since the other person
dared to challenge our gang leader, they mush be capable.”
The rate of the bathtub’s draining water level visibly decreased.
Ban Lan Gen slowly shut his eyes and rocked his recliner.
This was far from the first time someone had acted similarly to the dragonman
youngster.
Many transcendents used heroic dules to display their majesty and to raise
their renown.
Once, there was a silver level who deliberately challenge Teng Dong Lang and
did their best to leave a profound impression on him, then joined the Bayonet
Gang, it was quite the scheme.
“The Lord Gang Leader even transmitted an order that you will fight properly,
boss.” The underling reminded him again.
Ban Lan Gen nodded, “I know what the gang leader intends. He is a gold level
and feels it beneath his dignity to take advantage of the small. Therefore, we
are to act and give that outsider a good lesson on his behalf.” 
The dragonman youngster traveled quite quickly.
Not long after, Ban Lan Gen saw the dragonman youngster and Lan Zao with his
own eyes.
“I know why you have come.”
“I’m actually quite bothered by your type. The Lord Gang Leader has his
business, and I also have my own affairs I need to deal with.”
“Do you know how much of my time this challenge wastes?”
“However, since the Lord Gang Leader has given the order, then I will
reluctantly fight you.”
“But let’s make it simple, don’t take too much time.”
“This is what’s going to happen, I will stand here, not attacking or defending.
You will throw one fist, and so long as you knock me back, you will win. How
about it, do you dare agree to my challenge?”
“Huh?” The dragonman youngster’s face twitched.
He recalled some information on Ban Lan Gen.
This treeman was an expert at defense, especially when he stood motionless and
had his roots dug deep into the earth. His defense and recovery abilities were
rather astonishing then.
Although Ban Lan Gen’s suggestion seemed arrogant, it actually demonstrated his
strengths and was full of scheming.
If he won, he would have face on both ends.
“But is it fine for you to underestimate me like that?” The dragonman youngster
laughed inwardly, but on the face of it, he revealed a hint of anger.
He chided Ban Lan Gen, “You are a silver level, and so am I. Suggesting this
kind of dueling requirement makes it seem you rather look down on me.”
“You should give respect to one on the same level as yourself.”
“Since you decided to propose such a method of competition, then I accept,
receive my fist!”
Just as he said that the dragonman youngster came at him.
He mobilized his Bursting Explosion battle qi, while simultaneously activating
the Bloodcore to bring about the spurting smoke dragon transformation.
In a split second, dragon ring mounds appeared on the dragonman youngster’s
elbows, arms, and on the back of his hands.
Then the dragonman youngster took a deep breath, one which caused Lan Zao to
hear the rustling of the wind.
Battle skill – Surge!
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The dragonman youngster had practiced these two battle skills to the deepest
level, and he could use them on instinct and as second nature.
Meanwhile, Ban Lang Gen had just placed his roots on the soil.
“Oh no, I didn’t have time to get ready!” Ban Lan Gen internally cried out in
fear.
He didn’t anticipate the dragonman youngster to attack so soon after speaking
and was forced into a race against time to use his defensive battle skills. 
Battle skill -
It was too late!
A moment later, the dragonman youngster vanished from where he stood, and
abruptly appeared in front of Ban Lan Gen, ruthlessly filling the latter’s
entire field of view.
Then with a tick and massive dragon fist, he ferociously struck Ban Lan Gen in
the chest.
Bang!
With a great boom, Ban Lan Gen soared like a ball, smashing through three full
streets, until finally crashing into a hotel, collapsing it.
After the smoke and dust cleared, Ban Lan Gen was seen lying in the ruins, his
eyes rolled back to white and his mouth spitting out foam, he was unconscious.
“Boss!” The Bayonet Gang members all cried out in alarm and rushed around him
to give him a helping hand.
Ban Lan Gen had lost all fighting strength!
Everyone around turned to look at the dragonman youngster with astonishment.
Some people around came over.
They stood outside the crowd, on their tippytoes to look inward, asking, “What
just happened?”
“Where did that loud explosion come from?”
“Did a fight start? Why is no one moving?”



****** Chapter 270: Spring Boxer ******
The crowd was in an uproar.
“What did I just see?”
“This guy! He launched Ban Lan Gen with a single fist?”
“Oh dear, Ban Lan Gen was too careless.”
“Hey, what just happened?”
After they were told, their eyes widened with incredulousness.
Those who knew the ropes were also shaken.
Even though Ban Lan Gen hadn’t used his true strength, to be knocked out by a
single fist meant the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was most
certainly no simpleton.
“He has the courage to challenge Lord Teng Dong Lang, naturally he has to be
capable.
The dragonman youngster loosened his fist, and slowly stood up, purposely
asking Lan Zao loudly, “One down, who is the second?”
The dragonman youngster looked calm, while Lan Zao was more excited.
The latter loudly replied, “Lord Commander, the next block leader is Spring
Boxer.
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Very good, let’s go to him next.”
The two advanced, and the crowd automatically parted for them.
The dragonman youngster’s strength had swept away those questioning him, and in
exchanged was now looked at with disbelief, curiosity, and reverence.
Teng Dong Lang quickly received news of this fight.
Blue veins showed across his forehead as he clenched his teeth in anger, “Ban
Lan Gen, this guy!”
He had intentionally reminded Ban Lan Gen and didn’t expect him to be beaten
like this.
A headache.
Teng Dong Lang clutched his forehead, he had implicitly ordered Ban Lan Gen to
entangle the dragonman youngster as much as possible, to probe into him and at
best, scout out his trump cards.
In the end though, Ban Lan Gen didn’t understand that hidden meaning, and
remained arrogant, leading to the dragonman youngster to drop him in a single
fist.
Besides contributing to the dragonman youngster’s renown, Ban Lan Gen was
completely useless.
“In any case, my plan is sound. Long Fu has already fallen into it, and in
light of the plan, he still needs to beat 5 other people. Even if Ban Lan Gen
wasn’t able to, the next 5 people should be able to force out his trump cards.”
Teng Dong Lang handled this matter very prudently.
He had the burden of his position; he couldn’t lose this war rashly.
If he lost, he would not only lose his prestige, but that of the entire Bayonet
Gang, and even impair their interests.
“Long Fu will be going to Xiao Tan next…”
“Xiao Tan…I fear he isn’t Long Fu’s match.”
The Xiao Tan Teng Dong Lang had his heart on was Spring Boxer.
The latter was a young man, not just the only snow elf ringleader, but also his
fellow soldier.
On the battlefield, a fellow soldier of his had heroically sacrificed himself
to take a shot for him. On his deathbed, he asked Teng Dong Lang to look after
his own relative in the world.
Teng Dong Lang look extreme care of Xiao Tan, however, gunfire on the
battlefield had no eyes.
In the first battle, Xiao Tan was taken captive and narrowly avoided being
eaten by the enemy.
Although Teng Dong Lang hastily risked his life to rescue Xiao Tan, Xiao Tan’s
forearms and lower legs had been chopped off, crippling him.
Too much time had passed, and a priest was unable to heal him.
Xiao Tan consequently sank into despondence for a good while.
Teng Dong Lang then spent a huge sum to modify Xiao Tan’s body alchemically,
molding him into the Spring Boxer, one of the six bosses of the Bayonet Gang.
But Teng Dong Lang knew in his heart that Spring Boxer’s strength was
considered mid-level among the six ringleaders, and he would be unable to stop
Long Fu’s advance.
After pondering it over, Teng Dong Lang suddenly said, “Somone, give my order
to Xiao Tan, he will fight Long Fu well and see the ins and outs of his skills,
the more information, the better.”
The underling hurried to follow and pass on the order.
This time, Teng Dong Lang learned from his prior experience and made his order
clear and obvious.
Spring Boxer would definitely understand it!
Spring Boxer first received news of Ban Lan Gen’s defeat, then he received Teng
Dong Lang’s order.
This young snow elf didn’t dare to neglect his duty, so he decided to sally
over and intercepted the dragonman youngster and Lan Zao midway.
The dragonman youngster sized up Spring Boxer.
The young snow elf’s hands were both yellow boxing gloves. They wrapped all the
way around and emitted a siler level aura.
Apart from that, Spring Boxer’s ankle boots were also silver level equipment.
What was most notable was his elbows and knees, which had all been replaced by
thick and enormous elastic springs.
His body had been remolded by alchemy, and that was where his nickname, Spring
Boxer, came from.
“Long Fu, you want to challenge Lord Teng Dong Lang, then you’ll have to get
through me first! I will stop you will all my strength.” Spring Boxer was
solemn and respectful.
The dragonman youngster slyly smiled, commending him, “Not bad, you have a far
more proper attitude than Ban Lan Gen. Giving your opponent respect will usher
in their respect for you.”
“It is with the greatest respect that I wholeheartedly engross myself in this
battle with you!”
“Then come and fight!” Spring Boxer roared, and without fooling around, charged
at Long Fu.
Halfway through the charge, the springs that were now his knees firmly
compressed, then vigorously sprung out, bestowing him great motive force.
Spring Boxer accelerated massively from this.
The dragonman youngster held his fists up and stood his ground, prepared for
battle.
He didn’t move, yet Spring Boxer felt an intense oppression from him.
“This guy…” Spring Boxer secretly clenched his teeth and sensibly altered his
direction.
Whoosh!
Spring Boxer circled around the dragonman youngster, shooting from both sides
of the street in all directions
His speed grew faster, becoming a shadow that an ordinary person had a hard
time distinguishing.
The black streaking silhouette interweaved into a net that gradually hemmed in
the dragonman youngster. The dragonman youngster seemed to an insect falling
into a web that was made of Spring Boxer’s silhouette shooting in all
directions.
Suddenly, Spring Boxer launched at the dragonman youngster’s back, throwing a
fierce fist.
The dragonman youngster didn’t move.
“It hit!” Spring Boxer excitedly thought, and both of his fists were about to
pound into the dragonman youngster’s back.
Suddenly, a red shadow attacked, blowing a strong wind.
Spring Boxer quickly blocked it with his left fist.
Pow.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster’s dragon tail slammed into Spring
Boxer’s left arm.
The enormous power seriously perturbed Spring Boxer’s boxing glove connector.
His offensive immediately crumbled.
The dragonman youngster took advantage of that to turn around and grab Spring
Boxer’s left boxing glove.
Spring Boxer fought back but found it hard to struggle free.
The dragonman youngster suddenly raised his foot and ruthlessly kicked Spring
Boxer’s abdomen.
Ding.
With a dull echo, Spring Boxer’s frail body nearly folded into two.
The instant he suffered that heavy blow, his eyes nearly flew out of their
sockets.
Battle skill – Reverse Spring Leg!
Spring Boxer’s elastic spring legs firmly compressed again, and with silver
battle qi washing into them, he successfully used his battle skill.
A moment later, his legs kicked the dragonman youngster’s chest.
Reverse Spring violently launched his body backwards.
At the same time, his right boxing glove used a battle skill – Spiral Fist
Wind!
This battle skill was supposed to help his attacks, but now, Spring Boxer was
using it to throw off the dragonman youngster’s grapple.
Spring Boxer’s elastic spring arms twisted and compressed, then extended back
open.
His left arm suddenly launched forward with an intense cyclonic force.
The dragonman youngster’s left hand was holding Spring Boxer’s fist.
But when the latter’s fist began to spin instantly, the friction across his
palm caused the dragonman youngster to let go.
He didn’t have the appropriate battle skill to obstruct Spring Boxer’s battle
skill.
Spring Boxer’s arm was freed as a result, and with the help of Reverse Spring
Legs’ momentum, he was able to struggle free from the dragonman youngster’s
grasp and jump far away, putting space between him and the dragonman youngster.
“Cough, cough, cough!” Spring Boxer squatted on the ground, coughing intensely.
The dragonman youngster’s kick was so powerful that even if he had battle qi
protecting him, he wouldn’t have been able to withstand it.
At this moment, pain was spreading and intensifying across his abdomen.
Spring Boxer’s entire face gradually went flush, and matching his squatting
hunched stoop, his entire likeness looked like a boiled curled up lobster, a
sorry figure indeed.
“I fell into his trap!”
“Long Fu, this guy, he really is strong.”
Spring Boxer looked up at the dragonman youngster, his face showing a trace of
terror.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline was legend level, and it gave the dragonman
youngster impressive dynamic vision and powerful hearing.
Normal people wouldn’t be able to see Spring Boxer clearly, but the dragonman
youngster had locked onto Spring Boxer’s position.
Then, the dragonman youngster purposely exposed a weak point and didn’t look at
where Spring Boxer really was, using his back to withstand Spring Boxer’s
charge.
Spring Boxer, as expected, walked right into the dragonman youngster’s trap. 
The first contest of testing had concluded in a flash.
“How dangerous, luckily I struggled free! If he grappled me, the consequences
would be unthinkable.” Spring Boxer had lingering fears.
The dragonman youngster looked at his palm with interest, sensing the intense
friction that felt boiling hot.
Then the dragonman youngster slowly looked up towards the squatting Spring
Boxer.
A smile emerged from the corner of his mouth, and he praised, “How interesting,
you got free of my grab by using an agility battle skill. You are a talented
combatant and aren’t rigidly adherent to how battle skills are supposed to be
used.”
Spring Boxer coldly snorted, “Don’t think a few words of praise can make throw
the match!”
He stood back up and catapulted back into it.
With the help of the walls, ground, and other things around him, Spring Boxer
once again became as fast as before, becoming a black phantom.
“No, not fast enough!” Spring Boxer grinded his teeth secretly and used more
force to reach the limits of his speed.
The dragonman youngster was still standing there, watching Spring Boxer bounce
all over the place.
Gradually, Spring Boxer’s shadow slowly drew near to the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster remained motionless, as steady as Mt. Tai.
Due to his prior loss, Spring Boxer didn’t act so blindly this time.
Many times, he moved behind the dragonman youngster but didn’t attack rashly.
Because he knew this was a weak point the dragonman youngster was deliberately
flaunting off to him.



****** Chapter 271: Come, Use Your Strength, Hit Me! ******
The dragonman youngster waited for a long time, and when he saw Spring Boxer
wasn’t attacking, he couldn’t help but ask, “Why aren’t you attacking?”
“Be a bit courageous!”
Spring Boxer turned a deaf ear.
“You’re always jumping about; don’t you hate getting tired?”
Wasting stamina like this was unwise.
Spring Boxer feigned ignorance.
The dragonman youngster deeply sighed, “This battle is taking too long. Get a
move on, I still plan on challenging the other ringleaders.
Spring Boxer burst into laughter, “Commander Long Fu, do you think such simple
insults are enough to entrap me?”
“Today’s battle is foreordained to be a battle of attrition!”
Spring Boxer remembered Teng Dong Lang’s order, he wanted to fight a prolonged
battle, thereby learning more of how the dragonman youngster fought.
The dragonman youngster gazed at the bouncing Spring Boxer and suddenly
suggested, “Come hit me, young snow elf, I won’t retaliate.”
“As long as you can make me bleed, you will win. My challenge will end here,
and I won’t challenge the other ringleaders, let alone your gang leader.”
The onlookers’ expressions changed.
The dragonman youngster’s words felt very familiar to them. Previously, Ban Lan
Gen had said a similar thing to the dragonman youngster.
“Huh?” Spring Boxer’s mind shook.
He continued to launch in all directions while pondering: what was this
dragonman youngster plotting?
“Long Fu clearly wants to resolve this in the quickest way possible. He has
great faith in his defense, and the Lord Gang Leader told me repeatedly that I
had to test how he fights. I cannot give the enemy what they want!”
Spring Boxer shouted, “I won’t agree to that. I want an honest fight, use all
of your strength and skills to carry out an honest duel.”
“Your proposal looks down on me too much!”
The dragonman youngster chuckled, and ignored Spring Boxer’s refusal, “Just do
as I say.”
“Come.” He put his hands behind his back, stood still very straightly, and left
himself wide open, “I will only block and won’t counterattack.”
When Spring Boxer saw his posture, his heart jumped again, feeling more that
this was a trap.
He increasingly didn’t dare to act thoughtlessly.
However, this was all within the dragonman youngster’s expectations.
Very quickly, the onlookers grew impatient.
To them, it seemed that Spring Boxer was just jumping around and not attacking,
what was this dillydallying?
“Hit him now.”
“What is all that jumping?”
“Aiya, this makes me so anxious. What is the meaning of this procrastinating?”
The crowd who watched for fun usually didn’t like such things.
When Spring Boxer heard these words, he grit his teeth harder.
He was aware things were far from good: if he kept delaying, it would make the
people mistakenly believe that he feared his opponent and didn’t dare attack
him directly.
His name and the Bayonet Gang’s name would be implicated as a result.
Left with no other choice, Spring Boxer was forced to eventually attack.
Battle skill – Spring Shot Fist!
Both of Spring Boxer’s arm springs compressed, then suddenly released. The
powerful elastic force pushed his fists like an artillery shell being fired.
The glittering silver glowing boxing gloves smashed into the dragonman
youngster’s chest.
However, the dragonman youngster was as motionless as a mountain range.
Spring Boxer’s pupils contracted, and with a great shout, he used the battle
skill again.
He pulled back his arms, brought together his fingers, and merged them into a
singular fist.
His elbow springs compressed again, then discharged.
Battle skill – Double Shot Fist!
Spring Boxer’s eyes glistened with the will to win.
This was his strongest attack!
He once tried this attack on a gold level shield.
Under the double fist bombardment, the gold level shield cracked a tiny bit.
“Fall for me, Long Fu!” Spring Boxer shouted internally. 
But in reality, the dragonman youngster’s body only shook a bit.
The hard and heavy fists did not a whisp of harm to his chest, nor were any of
the dragon scales broken.
“Interesting.”
“But not good enough.”
“Come again!” The dragonman youngster laughed to Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer was shocked, which soon gave way to more intense rage.
He brought back both arms, and without a moment to breathe, he charged once
more.
Battle skill – Double Shot Fist!
The heavy fists struck the dragonman youngster’s chest again, causing his body
to subsequently sway.
“Not strong enough, again.” The dragonman youngster growled.
Thus, Spring Boxer used Double Shot Fist a third time.
And this time, the dragonman youngster’s body shook far less than the two
previous times.
“Do you not have the strength? Why was that time much worse?” The dragonman
youngster deliberately yelled with disappointment.
Spring Boxer gasped for air.
That was his most powerful attack, and he couldn’t use it in succession.
It was an immense burden on his body and elbow springs.
“I don’t believe you can protect yourself from such power!” Spring Boxer
howled.
Pushed by anger, he stepped in front of the dragonman youngster.
Battle skill – Reckless Fist.
Ding, ping, ding…
Spring Boxer wildly swung his fists, his rapid punches lifting a furious storm
of attacks.
Because the dragonman youngster wasn’t dodging, every single one of Spring
Boxer’s fists hit him.
The dragonman youngster held up his head and chest high, had both arms behind
his back, and strictly abided by his words, he did not retaliate and was always
on the defensive.
This kind of attitude provoked Spring Boxer into further frenzy.
The rate of his attacks accelerated, causing his battle qi consumption to reach
an unprecedented level.
The power of Reckless Fist was able to force the dragonman youngster to take
some steps backwards.
But the dragonman youngster’s scales weren’t even chipped.
The dragonman youngster was forced back by Spring Boxer’s attacks, yet he
appeared to be smiling excitedly, constantly encouraging his opponent.
“Good, very good.”
“Keep attacking!”
“You’re finally doing something.”
“If this keeps up, perhaps you might really succeed in making me bleed.”
When Spring Boxer heard those words, he was unable to restrain his anger, and a
roar rumbled from his mouth.
The fists became more frantic.
The dragonman youngster continued to take several steps back, then he began to
feel Spring Boxer’s offensive weakening.
He immediately asked, “Are you getting tired?”
“Did you eat breakfast?”
Spring Boxer was furious, and his punching force increased, even surpassing his
prior limits.
But such things didn’t last forever, and very quickly, Spring Boxer weakened
again.
The dragonman youngster used a despairing tone to assess him.
“Your stamina is too low.”
“Use all of your strength against me, don’t stay your hand, attack we with
everything you have.”
“Is that it? Is that all you have?”
“Use your strength, use all of your strength!”
“Is this your full strength?”
“Should you go eat something? Or perhaps, drink some milk?”
“Ah, ah, ah…” Spring Boxer angrily bellowed, his voice hoarse.
He had been full of youthful vigor.
The dragonman youngster’s words really angered him.
But that intense ire couldn’t make the dragonman youngster cough up blood.
Spring Boxer’s stamina and battle qi also couldn’t be replenished by the wr4ath
filling his heart. 
The battle skill, Reckless Fist, gradually ceased.
Spring Boxer’s fists quickly slowed.
Gradually, the ordinary people watching could see his movements again.
Finally, his fists became so slow, it seemed like there were shot puts tied to
them.
“Huff, huff, huff…”
He panted, focused solely on taking in air, and no longer able to bellow.
His fists stopped punching, and even his arms went slack.
But his eyes were still furiously glaring at the dragonman youngster, exposing
his unyielding fighting spirit.
The dragonman youngster looked at Spring Boxer and smiled, “You being able to
force me back so many steps is actually pretty good.”
Those words were like an incorporeal iron awl that deeply drilled into the
young snow elf’s mind.
Spring Boxer was so angry his vision was growing dark, and his sweat plastered
body was violently swaying, nearly causing him to fall on his buttocks.
“A bit painful.” The dragonman youngster wiped his chest clean.
The red dragon scales looked as they had before, not a single scratch on them.
This attracted the gaze of everyone.
The onlookers all exclaimed in unison.
“A phony?”
“Heavens, how is he not even injured in the slightest?!”
“What did I just witness?!”
“What monstrous defense, I pity Spring Boxer a little.”
All kinds of comments wafted into Spring Boxer’s ears, and his glowering eyes
at the dragonman youngster were gradually replaced by bewilderment. 
The dragonman youngster really wasn’t injured in the slightest, but this wasn’t
because of his dragon scales.
His legend level Flame Dragon King Bloodline wasn’t fake, but it was
incomplete.
The dragonman youngster’s dragon scales were comparable to gold level armor,
but Spring Boxer’s all-out attack couldn’t be looked down up and its strength
was considerable. Ordinary gold level armor would crack after taking so many
blows.
If the dragonman youngster was relying just on his dragon scales, the scales on
his chest would have been damaged.
The reason why this didn’t happen was because the dragonman youngster was
wearing the Gold Silk Chainmail!
This gold level armor was something the survivors had purchased from Two Eyes
Island.
The dragonman youngster wanted to challenge the gold level Teng Dong Lang and
naturally made some preparations for it.
The survivors had put the Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spells on the Gold Silk Chainmail, making it completely “invisible” to
any normal person’s eyes.
Even when Spring Boxer was constantly punching the dragonman youngster, he
wouldn’t detect anything wrong with how it felt.
Deceptive Disguise’s casting material was the god level material, the Pearl
Bubbles. Under normal circumstances, this magic could be maintained through
external attacks.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster protected himself not only with his dragon
scales, but also with the Gold Silk Chainmail.
With double the gold level armor, he was very confident in his defenses.
Actual combat also validated the dragonman youngster’s confidence.
Spring Boxer’s firepower was quite impressive, but even after depleting his
body’s strength, he couldn’t harm the dragonman youngster. The dragon scales
and the Gold Silk Chainmail prevented the dragonman youngster from being
scratched; him coughing up blood was out of the question.



****** Chapter 272: Accepted Wholeheartedly ******
“This monster!”
“How can there be a dragonman with such defenses?”
“Spring Boxer attacked him wildly yet didn’t leave a scratch! If I didn’t see
it with my own eyes, I would have never believed it.”
“Apparently, an amazing figure has come to our Snow Bird Harbor.”
“It’s no wonder he wants to challenge Lord Teng Dong Lang!”
“With that defense, I think he is qualified.”
The onlookers wagged their tongues.
Public opinion was gradually shifting.
At first the people were very skeptical of the dragonman youngster.
But after the dragonman youngster knocked Ban Lan Gen unconscious with a single
punch, the people began to look at him squarely.
Now, the dragonman youngster had taken Spring Boxer’s attacks head on and was
never scratched. Such a marvel caused the people to universally recognize his
strength.
The dragonman youngster focused on Spring Boxer, somewhat astonished.
Last Night, when he read the intelligence report on Spring Boxer, he had
discovered that their fighting style was similar to his.
For instance, their assault methods in battle was almost identical.
The difference was that the dragonman got driving force from battle qi
explosions while Spring Boxer did so through elastic force produced by his
springs.
The battle skills Spring Boxer displayed in succession were also similar to the
dragonman youngster’s Demolition Fist.
“That final battle skill, Reckless Fist is actually suitable for me to
cultivate.”
“He punched many times in a row, and the Grand Arena Medal should have absorbed
a lot of experience.”
The dragonman youngster would have half the effort and twice the results
cultivating Reckless Fist
That was why the dragonman youngster provoked Spring Boxer constantly and
decided to not retaliate, it was all to entice them into attacking him
constantly to display his fighting methods as much as he liked.
Spring Boxer was not just an opponent for the dragonman youngster, he was more
so a mineral deposit. 
“This deposit can still be excavated.” The dragonman youngster didn’t plan on
defeating Spring Boxer.
But Spring Boxer was at a loss and despairing, he had lost all of his fighting
spirit and didn’t seem he was going to keep fighting.
The dragonman youngster said, “What’s with you?”
“Why did you stop?”
“Are you out of stamina?”
“You are one of the Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders, is that all you have?”
“It seems Teng Dong Lang’s eyes doesn’t amount to much; he actually promoted a
waste like yourself to ringleader.
Spring Boxer had been indifferent, but when he heard that last sentence, he
suddenly hissed like a cat with their hair standing up, “Shut your mouth, I
won’t allow you to insult Lord Teng Dong Lang!”
“Oh?” The dragonman youngster’s eye shined upon finding a new way to provoke
Spring Boxer.
“Then come and fight, keep punching with your fists.”
“Prove Teng Dong Lang made the right chose!”
“Ah, ah, ah!” Spring Boxer bellowed in rage; he used all he had to raise his
right arm and punch the dragonman youngster’s chest.
The dragonman youngster didn’t move even a bit, and the reaction force caused
Spring Boxer to fall backwards.
A moment later, he really was sitting on the ground.
The dragonman youngster shook his head with disappointment, “You are too tired,
your stamina is gone, and you have lost.”
After saying that, the dragonman youngster turned around to leave.
Spring Boxer shouted soon after, “Don’t leave, you wretched man. I can
still…still fight.”
The dragonman youngster stopped walking and looked back to see Spring Boxer in
the process of climbing to his feet.
But he really was exhausted, his limbs were aching and limp, and everyone
passing by could see his arms and thighs constantly trembling.
After spending a good deal of effort, he managed to stagger back up.
Spring Boxer had remembered Teng Dong Lang’s order.
“I will fight will all my strength, to probe into that young dragonman’s
methods!”
“This guy is no ordinary silver level, he is a monster, a gold level threat.”
“The more information I piece out, the greater Lord Teng Dong Lang’s odds of
success.
Seeing the swaying Spring Boxer, Lan Zao sneered, “What are you thinking? Going
to pester us? As a ringleader of the grand Bayonet Gang, do you not have the
forbearance to admit defeat?”
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster stopped Lan Zao from further
berating.
He took the measure of Spring Boxer with interest, stating, “I have to say,
Spring Boxer, you have made me respect you on a whole new level.”
“That kind of fighting spirit is deserving of respect.”
“So sorry. I take back saying you were a waste. As long as you retain that kind
of fighting spirit and toughness, you will never be a waste!”
“You are very strong, unfortunate that you happened to meet me.”
“Right, those eyes exactly, that is the expression of a fighter who will never
surrender, who will never give up.”
“Spring Boxer, you are excellent.”
“I promise you, as long as you don’t give up, I will keep fighting you today
until the end!”
Spring Boxer panted for air, his tired eyes were half shut, for it was hard to
keep them open.
The dragonman youngster’s words of praise gave him a new impetus.
Because the dragonman youngster’s words were pleasant to listen to, especially
the phrase “as a fighter, one should never surrender, never give up”, those
words simply spoke what Spring Boxer thought from the bottom of his heart.
Spring Boxer couldn’t help but have a strong sense of like-mindedness with the
dragonman youngster.
Then when he heard that the dragonman youngster would “fighting with him until
the end”, he immediately lay down his worries, feeling that there as still a
chance that her could accomplish Teng Dong Lang’s order.
However, he was exhausted, and there was no way he could keep fighting, how
could he force the dragonman youngster to use his trump cards?
Just as Spring Boxer sank into panic, he heard the dragonman youngster say,
“You are too tired.”
“Give yourself time to rest, it isn’t necessary to rush back into the fight.”
Spring Boxer’s body shivered, and he scowled at the dragonman youngster again.
He didn’t know if it was all in his mind, but it seemed the dragonman youngster
had grown loftier in his eyes.
“What?”
The onlookers felt somewhat surprised.
Truth be told, heroic duels were a common sight in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
But allowing an opponent to rest during a duel was a rare sight indeed.
“Since that is so, then I will rest!” Spring Boxer sat back down, then shouted
to an underling, “Get me some water to drink!”
He had gasped too heavily, and his throat was burning, as if his lungs were
baking.
The underling quickly brough over a cup of water and Spring Boxer drained it a
single gulp.
Another brought medicine.
Spring Boxer hesitated for a moment, then glanced at the dragonman youngster to
see him smiling.
Spring Boxer coldly snorted, and with a mild blush, drank down the medicine and
swallowed it.
The dragonman youngster patiently waited.
An hour quickly passed.
The spectators gradually grew impatient, and some began to grumble: how much
longer did they need to wait?
The dragonman youngster was in no rush.
He was very patience for the imminent battle experience.
Spring Boxer couldn’t endure the comments and stood up again.
“I can keep fighting now.”
The dragonman youngster grinned, “Since you’ve rested enough, then come at me.”
They both began to fight each other once more.
To be more accurate, Spring Boxer unleashed his fists upon the dragonman
youngster.
The dragonman youngster didn’t retaliate, still remaining on the defense.
A few minutes later, Spring Boxer was half dead from exhaustion once again.
“You can stop and rest for a bit.” The dragonman youngster suggested.
Spring Boxer lowered his head, not daring to look at the crowd’s eyes, he
considered giving up, but when he thought of the mission Teng Dong Lang gad
given him, and in the end, he forced himself to stay in it and rest.
His underlings gave him water, and another massaged his muscles to loosen them
sufficiently, so he could more quickly recover his stamina.
The dragonman youngster came to Spring Boxer, and the Bayonet Gang member
vigilantly watched him actually give him a potion.
“My potion will be quite good for you. Not only can it restore stamina, but it
can also help you create battle qi faster.”
Spring Boxer stared blankly at it.
When the dragonman youngster saw his hesitation, he tutted, “Drink it if you’re
brave enough!” 
That provocation was enough for Spring Boxer to take the potion.
“I’m not brave enough?” Spring Boxer coldly snorted and glowered at the
dragonman youngster.
He popped the potion’s cork and drained it instantly, slapping away his
underlings that tried to stop him.
A moment later, he changed color slightly and blurted out, “It really is a good
potion.”
The medicine took effect quickly.
Spring Boxer clearly felt his stamina quickly being restored, while
simultaneously feeling his internal battle qi slowly rise without the need for
a specific cultivation method.
The dragonman youngster’s potion was undoubtably good, it had been specially
refined for him by Zi Di.
The potion’s recipe had come from War Merchant’s database and was of excellent
quality.
Using it on Spring Boxer was equal to trading the potion for his battle
experience.
If Zi Di was present, she would commend this great deal!
When the spectators saw this, they were dumbfounded.
Today’s event had broadened their horizons.
Many people had never seen a heroic duel where one let the other rest during
it, nor had they seen one give their opponent a recovery potion while they
rested.
After drinking the potion, Spring Boxer recovered at a faster rate.
He once again took to battle and dueled the dragonman youngster.
A short while later.
He was paralyzed from fatigue again…
Seeing the dragonman youngster standing straight, still untouched, Spring Boxer
was puzzled, “Why is Long Fu’s chest feeling harder?”
The Grand Arena Medal was quietly taking effect.
It not only absorbed an opponent’s battle experience but also gave it to the
wearer.
Furthermore, during the battle, the more eyes on the wearer, and the longer
those eyes paid attention to them, the more the medal amplified the wearer.
This amplification included offense, defense, restoration, speed, and more.
“Abominable…such abnormal defense, how can I ever break through it?” Spring
Boxer gazed at the dragonman youngster and couldn’t help but despair.
If this was his first time losing, Spring Boxer might not have accepted it. 
The second time, perhaps he still felt it was a fluke from the bottom of his
heart.
But now the dragonman youngster had let him rest again and again and let him
try as much as he pleased.
Spring Boxer was convinced that he had used everything he had, and
consequently, completely understood the immense disparity between him and the
dragonman youngster.
He ..believed it.
“But I haven’t accomplished Lord Teng Dong Lang’s commander, what can I do?”
Spring Boxer was deeply disturbed.
Teng Dong Lang looked after Spring Boxer well, and Spring Boxer was very
grateful for that, and always thought of ways to repay Teng Dong lang.
“What should I do?” Suddenly, Spring Boxer came up with an idea.
He looked up and glared at the dragonman youngster, “Long Fu, I have discovered
your plan!”
The dragonman youngster was startled, “Oh? What are you saying?”
Spring Boxer deeply replied, “Is your speed inadequate?”
“You’ve been hiding your weakness.”
“You can’t actually match my speed, and when I am moving at high speed, you
cannot attack me effectively.”
“Therefore, you deliberately stood still, suggested that you would defend
without counterattacking, and tricked me into abandoning my strengths and
getting into a direct confrontation with you!”
That inference caused the spectators to stare blankly.
Upon careful thought, Spring Boxer’s words had some sense to it.
The dragonman youngster really didn’t display any speed.
For a moment, a great mount of suspicious and probing looks were cast on the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster’s face blossomed with another smile, “Since that is so,
then let me win you over. Next, we shall change our manner of contest, we shall
compete in terms of speed.”
“Good, that will do!” Spring Boxer made a fist, stirring himself.
He took off first, kicking his legs and launching himself forward.
The dragonman youngster watched him move and didn’t pursue hurriedly.
After Spring Boxer launched himself many times, his speed became lightning
fast, and his body became a line of shadow, one hard for people to see.
“How about it, can you chase me down?” Spring Boxer arrogantly provoked the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster flatly replied, “Since you are ready, then I’m coming
for you.”
Spring Boxer’s heart jumped, and he coldly snorted as he sped up further,
faintly wanting to exceed his recorded limits.
But a moment later, a gigantic shadow enveloped him.
Spring Boxer looked up suddenly, and to his shock, he saw the dragonman
youngster somehow appear right above him!
The dragonman youngster’s massive body covered the sun, and the heavy shadowing
being cast on the young snow elf oppressed him with incomparable power. 
Like a eagle catching a rabbit, the dragonman youngster grabbed the back of
Spring Boxer’s neck with his dragon talon.
Ding.
He took advantage of that pressure to push Spring Boxer into the ground,
smashing the floor tiles in the street.
“Fast, too fast! He is so quick and aggressive!” Spring Boxer’s face retained
its dense shock as the dragonman youngster pinned him by the neck to the
ground.
The dragonman youngster lightly released his dragon talon, and slowly stood up,
looking down at Spring Boxer. He gently asked, “Still want to compare
ourselves?”
Spring Boxer returned to his senses; he reverently looked up at the dragonman
youngster and wanted to shake his head.
But he thought of Teng Dong Lang’s order, so he had to clench his teeth and
purposely feign denial, shouting, “I am unconvinced!”
“Then let’s do it again.” The dragonman youngster nodded, “I did say I would
give you the greatest honor of accompanying you until the end.”
The dragonman youngster was glad to see Spring Boxer not conceding and still
wanting to compete.
This kind of catapulting dash movement method was very similar to his Surge
battle skill.
That kind of experience always suited the dragonman youngster and was very
valuable to him.
Thus, the same scene constantly played out.
In the spectators’ point of view, there was one dark shadow and one red shadow
flying through the street and tangling with each other, wherever one went, the
other followed.
The street tiles and walls they trampled on were shattered.
The result of every competition was the same.
Spring Boxer always lost. 
As the sun set in the west and gradually fell into the flat ocean, Spring Boxer
couldn’t last any longer, despite how thick his face was.
The spectators had also become few.
Spring Boxer gave in, candidly saying to the dragonman youngster, “Commander
Long Fu, you are the strongest silver level I have ever met. I feel that you
are completely qualified to challenge our gang leader. I lost to you, I accept
my lost wholeheartedly!”
The dragonman youngster encouraged him: your potential isn’t limited to this,
in the future, perhaps we can compare notes with each other again.
Finally, with complex emotions, Spring Boxer watched the dragonman youngster
and Lan Zao leave.
He was exhausted, completely limp, and his battle qi had dried up many times.
“Lord Teng Dong Lang, I really tried this time.”
“What a pity, even though I used all of my strength, I was unable to force him
to use any trump cards.”
“I only proved that Long Fu is very strong, mindboggling strong!”
“Another thing…”
“Long Fu is not only a strong person, but he is also a venerable fighter and
possess a very noble character.”
This sort of transcendent was one Spring Boxer had accepted wholeheartedly.



****** Chapter 273: Speak, Don’t Give Constant Praise ******
Teng Dong Lang was looking at a magic image and sank into a long silence.
The magic image showed the entire fight between the dragonman youngster and
Spring Boxer, along with the reactions and comments of the spectators.
“The situation is a little troublesome.” Teng Dong Lang pursed his brows.
He realized that the situation had subtly changed, and things had taken a turn
for the worst for him and the Bayonet Gang.
On the one hand, it was because of the dragoman youngster’s incomprehensible
fighting strength. On the other hand, it was also due to the crowd’s reaction.
The people universally expressed positive emotions about the dragonman
youngster, such as esteem and curiosity.
Spring Boxer had always been esteemed and respected by the people.
But the dragonman youngster was in a completely different situation.
The people universally had a favorable impression of the dragonman youngster.
“How many days has he been in Snow Bird Harbor?”
Teng Dong Lang analyzed to himself the reason why this happened, it was mainly
due to how the dragonman youngster behaved during the battle.
The dragonman youngster not only didn’t retaliate, but he also let his opponent
rest during the duel and even gave them a potion so they would recover faster.
These actions were rarely seen, and both amazed the people in a novel manner,
along with thoroughly displaying the dragoman youngster’s unique svelte as a
transcendent.
Teng Dong Lang was certain that tonight, taverns large and small were sure to
circulate the dragonman youngster’s deed.
Then, so long as the dragonman youngster’s challenge continued, his deeds would
be disseminated like the wind.
The dragonman youngster’s dramatic rise in renown and influence troubled Teng
Dong Lang.
“I was a little careless, no matter if it was his intention or this was all
accidental, I cannot treat Long Fu or the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps like an
ordinary power.”
The more Teng Dong Lang thought, the less he could sit still.
He decided to order all six ringleaders to convene for a meeting.
Very quickly, Ban Lan Gen, Spring Boxer, Xiong Ju, and the others showed up.
Teng Dong Lang, “Everyone should know about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
matter. How should we deal with them? Tell me your ideas.”
The six ringleaders looked at each other for a moment, then gradually, everyone
shifted their eyes towards Ban Lan Gen and Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer was somewhat red.
Ban Lan Gen the treeman had a wooden expression.
After a moment of silence, Ban Lan Gen spoke first, “I was too careless. I
didn’t expect Long Fu to attack right after he finished speaking, I didn’t have
any time to use my defensive battle skills. Don’t be fooled by his magnanimity,
he is actually very treacherous.!” 
Spring Boxer suddenly pursed his brows and retorted, “I don’t believe that is
the case, the main reason was because you didn’t give him the respect he
deserved.”
“Commander Long Fu is the paragon of a transcendent. It’s just a fact you
suffered a crushing defeat by his hands!”
“Even if you use your defensive skills, could you really defeat him?”
“Hehe, are you saying I don’t know your strength?”
“You are now slandering him to exonerate yourself, that makes you appear more
despicable.”
Spring Boxer had accepted the dragonman youngster wholeheartedly and defended
him subconsciously.
Ban Lan Gen immediately bellowed hack, “How much better did you do? You
couldn’t even break a single one of his dragon scales, an utter loss of face!”
Spring Boxer coldly snorted, “At least I fought him for a while, you? How many
seconds did you last?”
Ban Lan Gen angrily stood up, “Did you actually fight him? He gave you water,
right? I would rather fight to the death and wouldn’t rest during the duel, let
alone accept his potion. Where is your face? Did you feel no shame in doing
that?”
For a moment, neither Ban Lan Gen nor Spring Boxer gave way, and all sorts of
insults wrangled their way from their mouths.
Teng Dong Lang inwardly had a headache.
The meeting just began, and his own people already had an internal conflict.
The other four ringleaders didn’t participate contrary to expectations.
They saw Ban Lan Gen and Spring Boxer had very different opinions on Long Fu;
this inevitably made them more curious – what kind of person was Long Fu?
Teng Dong Lang coughed twice, “Stop quarreling.”
He stopped the dispute between the two with a light sentence, revealing his
immense prestige.
“We need to think over how we should deal with Long Fu.” Teng Dong Lang ran his
eyes over them, his gaze quickly streaking past Ban Lan Gen.
Ban Gen Leng had been defeated too swiftly; his opinion didn’t have any value.
Teng Dong Lang’s eyes settled on Spring Boxer. “I want your thoughts.”
Spring Boxer had fought Long Fu for a long time, and of the people present, he
was most qualified to speak on the matter.
Spring Boxer tightly scowled, then after a moment of deliberation, he said,
“Long Fu is very strong! He definitely is no ordinary silver level.”
“His greatest strength is his defense. I have never met a silver level who
possessed such terrifying defense. I attacked him with my full strength yet
didn’t leave a scratch on him!”
“Truth be told, if someone told me about it before the battle, I would have
believed it to be a gargantuan joke. But now, after personally experiencing it,
I would no longer laugh at it.”
“Thinking back now, I was very dismayed, frustrated, and even felt hopeless!”
As a matter of fact, it wasn’t just Spring Boxer. When the other five
ringleaders saw the magic image, they didn’t laugh either.
The dragonman youngster’s observable defense shocked them.
Spring Boxer continued, “Commander Long Fu caused the main focus to be on his
defense, but everyone please, don’t underestimate his other attributes as a
result. I believe that Long Fu is a holistically formidable fighter, he has no
obvious shortcomings.”
“At minimum, his mobility is very strong, completely above mine.”
The five ringleaders were silent.
They looked all seen the magic image; some had done so several times.
They had seen the dragonman youngster’s speed utterly trounce Spring Boxer’s.
But they didn’t understand that this was actually after the dragonman youngster
had been amplified by the Grand Arena Medal.
This medal and the Gold Silk Chainmail were both made “invisible” by Deceptive
Disguise.
Spring Boxer added on, “I believe that Commander Long Fu absolutely has other
skills. I am just not strong enough and was unable to force them out. Think
carefully everyone, he is a dragonman, he most definitely isn’t lacking in
recovery capabilities.” 
“I have a strong feeling, that when he and I fought, he never truly displayed
his offensive capability either.”
“Because I had no way of dealing with his defense.”
No one spoke.
The atmosphere saturated with pressure.
Ban Lan Gen might be the one under the least pressure.
Because he had lost already. 
The other four ringleaders, along with Gang Leader Teng Dong Lang, would be
challenged by the dragonman youngster.
Spring Boxer looked at Ban Lan Gen and sneered, “There is nothing shameful of
admitting one’s defeat, nor is recognizing an opponent’s power.”
“Commander Long Fu is very strong.”
“His strength makes people respect him.”
“Like he said to me, so long as other respect him, he will give them equal
respect!”
“He obviously could have defeated me quickly, but he acknowledged my fighting
determination and kept fighting me until dusk. He strictly abided by the
promises he made during the fight and never violated them.”
“He is an adversary worthy of respect. I look forward to the fierce battle
between him and the Lord Gang Leader!”
Spring Boxer’s opinion was clear; he believed that Long Fu was qualified to
challenge Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang couldn’t help but cough again, sighing to himself, “Xiao Tan…I
want you to speak about your experiences, not constantly praise him and foster
the enemy’s imposition.”
“Good. Your praise of your opponent ends here, tell me about his weak points.”
Teng Dong Lang ordered.
But Spring Boxer just stared at him, then held out his hands, “Lord Gang
Leader, I don’t think Long Fu has any weak points.”
This immediately annoyed the human ringleader.
“Enough, Spring Boxer.”
“You losing and being unable to force out Long Fu’s trump cards does not mean
he doesn’t have flaws.”
“I watched your fight with him, and I have found at least two flaws.”
“The first flaw is his dashing. Are you telling me you didn’t notice? He moves
similarly to you, a pause before exploding with speed, that is the biggest weak
point of both of you.”
“The second possible flaw is that Long Fu lacks long range attacks. When faced
with you jumping all over the place, he first lured you into attack him, then
used swift movements to close the gap with you.”
Only when a fighter reached the gold level could their battle qi exist outside
of them. This was known by all.
“Hehehe, you aren’t wrong.” The dwarf ringleader laughed, “Long Fu has one
other flaw.”
“He doesn’t use a weapon.”
“In the intelligence report, he only used his fists and feet at the Battle of
Two Eyes Island.”
“He might not have specialized weapons training, rather he has spent most of
his time training unarmed fighting.”
The demon hybrid ringleader nodded, approving the dwarf ringleader’s words.
He said, “Long Fu is very young, and managing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
takes a lot of his energy.”
“How much time does he have?”
“Being able to train his martial arts is already pretty good.”
“However, since he has the guts to challenge our gang leader, this indicates
that he has trump cards capable of battling a gold level! As for what those
trump cards are, we don’t know yet. The intelligence reports don’t have any
clues.”
Those final words hit a nail deep into Teng Dong Lang’s heart.
Teng Dong Lang tapped the table with a finger, “Next, how do you plan on taking
on Long Fu?”
The human ring leader tossed his opinion out casually, “Very simple. We contact
a security official and have them make a trap and frame the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. Get them to jail their people.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ members are still on their ships, unable to
freely move about.”
“But what’s the use of that?”
“Their ships are berths at the dock and are under Snow Bird Harbor government
supervision.”
“So long as a security official makes a move, it will be very easy to frame
them.”
“Every year we deliver them many benefits and now is a good chance to get
something back from all the money we sent them.”
“You want to frame Commander Long Fu? Out of the question!” Spring Boxer
objected to it at once.
He was disgusted by the human ringleader’s method and sneered, “Your small
tricks outside the arena are not what a transcendent does, and it divulges your
cowardice and fear of battle.”
The human ringleader raised his eyebrows and replied with annoyance, “I say,
Spring Boxer, could it be that after Long Fu let you off, let you rest, and
also gave you medicine that you now completely support him now? Don’t forget
yourself, you are one of the Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders, what’s with your
demeanor?”
Spring Boxer coldly snorted, “It was because I am a gang ringleader that I
consider the Bayonet Gang’s name in its entirety! If this happens, what will
the people think? The many people will know it in their hearts, and even if
there isn’t proof, the perceptive will know it was our plot!”
“Do we not have any shame? If we can’t beat them and resort to assassination
and entrapment, how will the people see our Bayonet Gang?”
The human ringleader was shocked when he heard that.
He stared at Spring Boxer with outrage, “Hey, have you gone soft in the head?
We are the Bayonet Gang, a gang, we are not the army you came from! Besides,
when the army fights, isn’t victory what comes first, and for that, any
strategy and method can be used and considered!
“You go so far as to consider our Bayonet Gang’s reputation, simply ridiculous!
What need does our Bayonet Gang have for a good reputation?” The human
ringleader didn’t conceal his reproach from Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer was furious, he couldn’t refute the human ringleader, but he still
showed his serious objections.
Ban Lan Gen seized the opportunity to kick him while was on the backfoot,
saying curiously, “Some people who have lost to Long Fu hope that others also
taste defeat, thus, making their own defeat not so conspicuous.”
Spring Boxer exploded in anger, he was just about to spit insults when Teng
Dong Lang stopped him on time, “Enough, do you still want to argue?”
Spring Boxer and the others quickly stopped talking.
Teng Dong Lang muttered to himself, “We are a gang, not an army, that statement
isn’t wrong.”
“But it is a bit early to use such a trick.”
“We are a medium sized power, while the other side is a small sized power.”
“Using this kind of trick outside the arena proves that you believe you are not
confident in facing Long Fu and even feel that you will lose.”
“Long Fu has wanted to make this a big deal.”
“After today, many people will know about it, and there will be more eyes on
us.”
“The best way of handling this for the Bayonet Gang is to defeat Long Fu
outright.”
“I don’t need to get involved; you can force him to withdraw yourselves!”
When Teng Dong Lang said that, he stooped, and after looking around at them, he
continued, “We must seize the initiative.”
“We cannot allow Long Fu to keep dueling us one by one.”
“If he beats you six, the Bayonet Gang’s reputation will be greatly damaged.”
“Therefore, tomorrow, I need one of you to challenge Long Fu and defeat him!”
When Teng Dong Lang said that the six ringleaders were silent once again.
Using their eyes to communicate with each other, all of them eventually settled
their gazes on the beastman ringleader Xiong Ju.
Of the six bosses, Xiong Ju was first among them in terms of military strength.
The human ringleader spoke first, breaking the silence, “Xiong Ju is the
strongest among us, if Long Fu can defeat him, then the rest of us have no hope
of winning.”
“I fully support Xiong Ju!”
After saying that, the human gang leader gave him the epaulet he wore.
This is my strongest equipment, I will loan it to you Xiong Ju for tomorrow’s
fight.”
Everyone’s look changed at this.
The human gang leader’s epaulet was gold level equipment!
It was called the Flowing Wave Armor, and the human ringleader had relied on it
to stop many assassination attempts and it was his life saving trump card.
But now, he had simply loaned it to Xiong Ju.
The human ringleader frankly said to Xiong Ju, “This is the best thing I can
give you, the rest are worse than what you current possess.”
Teng Dong Lang gave him an appreciative look.
The dwarf ringleader muttered to himself for a moment, then took out a short
war hammer.
“This is my weapon that I meticulously forged, as you can see, it actually
isn’t finished yet.”
The war hammer emitted a mixed and ununified aura.
The hammer’s head and shaft were silver level, while the gem inlaid into it
emitted a gold level aura and sparkled with lightning.
“This is my recreation of the legendary Great Thunder God’s Flying Hammer – the
Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.”
“Xiong Ju, I know your main weapon is very powerful, but you can treat this
Small Thunder God Flying Hammer as a secondary weapon.”
Xiong Ju shook his head, “I have little experience with war hammers, and my
hacksaw needs to be wielded by both of my hands, this weapon doesn’t fit me.”



****** Chapter 274: Teng Dong Lang’s Pills ******
Faced with Xiong Ju’s refusal, the dwarf ringleader shook his head, “The Small
Thunder God Hammer is very easy to use, you just need to throw it in advance,
then with you as its center, it can hit any enemy within its circle of effect.”
“You can treat it as a quasi-gold level heavy flying dart.”
“I can help you train with it later, and coach you in its usages. It will take
about a half hour for you to be completely proficient with its usage.”
“When the time comes, you can use your spirit to guide the hammer and force a
truly close bond and coordination with it.”
Xiong Ju nodded, “In that case, it’s pretty good.”
The demon hybrid ringleader exclaimed in admiration, “You both took out such
good things, it seems I too need to fish out my own thing.”
He suddenly turned his head upwards, took a deep breath, and then something
came from his stomach, up his rolling throat, and then a damp eyeball spat out
of his mouth.
The eyeball was as large as a fist; it was full of blood wisps and also had
fine fleshy feelers.
“An Evil Eye?!” When everyone saw that eyeball, they were equally disturbed.
The eyeball fell onto the long table, and after bouncing twice, it extended its
fleshy feelers and “stood up”.
Soon after, under the demon hybrid’s spiritual control, the eyeball used its
fleshy feelers as legs to walk over to Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju looked at the saliva doused eyeball, obviously detesting it.
The demon hybrid ringleader giggled maliciously, “Xiong Ju, you need to swallow
it, it can grow in and fuse into anywhere in your body, as if it was a natural
organ.”
“Besides giving you an expanded field of view, the most important thing it can
do is shoot three spiritual rays in a short timeframe.”
“Barring any special defensive skills, it can even take down a gold level
target. As long as one’s spiritual power is weaker than the Evil Eye’s, the
target will go unconscious, experience strong dizziness, or hallucinate. The
specific result will depend on how strong the target’s spiritual power is.”
Xiong Ju reluctantly nodded when he heard that.
Although he loathed the eyeball, he knew its value.
The demon hybrid ringleader was a little uneasy and took him to take care,
“Take note of this, don’t use it too many times during battle. If it shoots
more than three rays in a short amount of time, the Evil Eye will be unable to
sustain itself and it might fall apart. And if the Evil Eye falls apart, as the
host, your spirit will be greatly shaken, and your body will also be severely
injured. Remember that at all costs, at all costs!”
The human, dwarf, and demon hybrid ringleaders had all handed over their trump
cards, so Xiong Ju couldn’t help but look at Ban Lan Gen and Spring Boxer.
After a moment of self-deliberation, Ban Lan Gen took out a syringe as thick as
a baby’s arm.
“After some consideration, this is the thing that most suits you. You all
should be familiar with this treasure, it is the Battle Qi Syringe.”
“As a fighter, we can store our battle qi into it. During a fierce battle, when
our battle qi is nearly spent, injecting this into yourself can greatly
replenish your battle qi in a short amount of time.”
“The amount it can store is about equal to the total sum of my battle qi
reserves. Xiong Ju, if you use it, I estimate it can restore 150% of your total
battle qi.”
“How wonderful!” Xiong Ju exclaimed in admiration, taking the Battle Qi
Syringe.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that the Battle Qi Syringe was just silver level,
it was very practical and had a great impact during combat.
Xiong Ju finally looked at Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer shrugged his shoulders, “You know me, I haven’t been here, nor
have I been a ringleader for that long. Normally, my savings are all used for
cultivation. The strongest things I have are my spring components, how can I
give them to you?”
Xiong Ju coldly snorted with dissatisfaction, “You don’t need to give me those
springs.”
Spring Boxer was also resentful that these people were colluding with each
other, but he didn’t say anything.
For one, he was a Bayonet Gang ringleader, and was part of them, he would never
side with an outsider.
Secondly, they weren’t going against dueling regulations.
Seeing Spring Boxer not offering something, Teng Dong Lang decided to broker a
compromise.
He took out a transparent medicine bottle, and inside, one could see there were
three pills inside it.
These pills were the size of an adult human’s thumb, and the surface of them
gleamed with a slick black.
“These are cultivation pills made by the Empire’s eastern monks, after taking
one, a fighter’s battle qi will gain penetration imbuement.” 
Teng Dong Lang serenely introduced it.
This resulted in every ringleader gasping.
“Oh, it’s actually penetration imbuement!”
“This pill is very rare. I’ve only heard of it and never seen it with my own
eyes.”
“The eastern monks refine this pill to cultivate penetration imbuement. But
making this pill is very costly, and apart from needing a brilliant pharmacist,
one also needs to have a saint level who cultivated penetration imbuement
participating in its refinement the entire time.”
“In the abbey, this kind of pill never meets demand. Don’t be fool by its
silver level, it does not have a market price and often reaches a gold level
price during auctions!”
“Boss Gang Leader, how did you get ahold of these pills?”
The ringleaders were all excited.
Because they were all fighters.
Magic usage had techniques. Such as quicken casting, consecutive casting, and
heightened casting.
Likewise, battle qi usage also had techniques.
Among them was piercing imbuement, slashing imbuement, and penetration
imbuement, the three great classical battle qi attack techniques.  
A master of penetration imbuement could give defense penetration to their
battle skills.
If the dragonman youngster grasped penetration imbuement, then each of his
Demolition Fists would be imbued with penetration. Regardless of whether the
explosion or penetration imbuement came first, grasping it would double his
attack’s might.
It could be said that mastering any like of imbuement would cause a fighter’s
strength to rise dramatically.
But mastering this kind of battle qi technique was always a challenging affair.
Cultivating it not only needs a vast volume of laborious efforts, but also
comprehension.
Of the Sheng Ming Empire fighters, the Eastern Monastery’s monks were the best
at cultivating this battle qi technique.
They were not only good at cultivating it but also compiling information on it
and developing many helpful educational materials that allowed others to more
easily master this imbuement.
Even so, there were few monks that could learn penetration imbuement.
Of the three classical battle qi attack techniques, penetration imbuement was
rarer than the piercing and slashing imbuements, harder to master, and also
more applicable.
Piercing and slashing imbuements could be used with battle skills, in
substitute of a weapon, resulting in piercing and slashing damage.
But penetration imbuement was very difficult to supplant (of course, there were
rare battle skills that had penetration).
Its specific effect was that an offensive battle skill could penetration outer
defenses and go directly into the enemy’s body.
It was undoubtably the bane of armor!
Therefore, the ringleaders were very excited to learn about this.
Of the six ringleaders present, none of them knew how to use any imbuement.
Then Teng Dong Lang suddenly took out a pill bottle. Those pills were able to
help the user temporarily imbue their attacks.
Increasing their military strength for a short time was the most unremarkable
effect of the pills.
Their greatest impact was helping a fighter understand how penetration
imbuement felt earlier. 
This was a great aid to a fighter mastering this imbuement.
In fact, the eastern monks had developed this pill as a precious teaching aid,
made to instruct the younger generation that was learning about penetration
imbuement!
Teng Dong Lang looked at Spring Boxer and sighed, “I haven’t mastered any
imbuement, but this pill was not mine to take. A few years ago, I requested
this from the army for the younger generation, and after many difficulties, I
was finally able to obtain three.”
“Now, I will use them to deal with Long Fu, I believe that is an appropriate
use of them.”
“Don’t underestimate our adversary this time. After they had a clash with Bing
Xiao, they struck first and gained the initiative, they are not simpletons!”
“Now that the entire gang has been challenged, we need to unite as one and
dedicate ourselves sincerely.”
“Because we are one gang, one body, one people.”
“Do you believe that, Xiao Tan?”
Spring Boxer couldn’t help but be discolored, he felt both touched and ashamed.
He lowered his head and admitted his mistake to Teng Dong Lang, “Lord Gang
Leader, I will memorize your words. I too believe…that it is appropriate that
these three pills be given to Xiong Ju.”
The other ringleaders were silent.
Teng Dong Lang and Spring Boxer’s relationship was known to them.
Teng Dong Lang had taken extremely good care of Spring Boxer, and in fact,
Spring Boxer being able to become a gang ringleader was because Teng Dong Lang
was backing him.
Teng Dong Lang’s three pills had clearly been for Spring Boxer.
However, Spring Boxer was too young, too high on himself, and made mistakes.
His biggest mistake was not being unable to defeat the dragonman youngster, nor
was it thinking highly of him, but rather it was his terrible attitude that all
of the gang members could recall from memory.
He actually opposed his own people and supported an external adversary!
Xiong Ju showed his discontent, and were the other four ringleaders not the
same too?
Of course they were.
They were merely constrained by Teng Dong Lang and didn’t show their true
feelings.
Luckily Teng Dong Lang was here.
He cleaned up Spring Boxer’s mess and publicly made up for his mistake.
The three treasured pills were given to Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju’s dissatisfaction vanished.
Spring Boxer also got a lesson and understood his error.
The other ringleaders also increased their approval of Teng Dong Lang. Their
gang leader’s handling of this gained their respect.
Spring Boxer’s “loss” also greatly offset their discontent.
Due to Teng Dong Lang’s actions, the hidden danger of internal strife was
eliminated from the Bayonet Gang’s leadership
They were once again united, and most crucially, Teng Dong Lang was their core!
Teng Dong Lang finally looked at Xiong Ju, “Now, how sure are you of tomorrow’s
fight?”
Xiong Ju, with equipment and medicine in hand, burst into laughter and clapped
his chest in oath, “Long Fu’s defense is very formidable, but my hacksaw has
never been bothered by such enemies. With the treasures I received, I don’t
believe a silver level like him is stronger than me. I am certain of victory!



****** Chapter 275: Absorbing Experience and a Dragon Corpse ******
The nightly threads enveloped Snow Bird Harbor’s docks, and the sea waves were
as gentle as a mother’s hand, softly patting the hulls as if placating a baby
to sleep.
In the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ flagship the Love Triangle, the dragonman
youngster was training alone in a room and fiddling with his Grand Arena Medal.
Different from last time, the Grand Arena Medal emitted a small white light,
giving him a feeling of fullness.
The dragonman youngster surmised, “This should be caused by the large amount of
battle experience it absorbed during today’s fight.”
He gripped the Grand Arena Medal and used his spirit to draw from the large
amount of battle experience stored in it.
He was familiar with this step.
He had used the Grand Arena Medal before many times.
What was different was that there was an unprecedented amount of experience
being poured into him this time.
It took a full 5 minutes for him to absorb all of the experience.
Then after resting for 3 minutes, his mind slowly came to.
This battle experience was another’s and not the dragonman youngster’s.
Therefore, when he absorbed external experience, it would have an impact on
himself.
Using the Grand Arena Medal needed both tension and relaxation, it couldn’t be
misused.
This was not a shortcoming of the Grand Arena Medal, because almost everything
in the world needed tension and relaxation. Overuse would cause harm; money was
the same too.
The Grand Arena Medal’s absorption mechanism made the user incapable of
activating it between the scant seconds between fights.
This was the reason the dragonman youngster was unable to improve himself with
the Grand Arena Medal during his battle with Spring Boxer.
The dragonman youngster sat cross-legged on the floor, slowly closed his eyes,
and carefully comprehended the experience he just absorbed.
There was very little experience from the fight with Ban Lan Gen, that fight
went too quickly and he wasn’t able to absorb any defensive battle skills, as
the dragonman youngster had knocked him out in a single punch.
Almost all of the battle experience came from Spring Boxer.
Roughly 60% of it was his dashing and movement experience.
The other part concerned battle skills like Spring Shot Fist, Spiral Fist Wind,
Reckless Fist, and Reverse Spring Legs.
Finally, the final last bit was about how he used his alchemically modified
spring body. This part was quite worthless to the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster recalled this experience, and it seemed like his body
had been remodeled by alchemy and his elbows and knees had been replaced with
alchemy springs.
This was an obvious conflict between his memories and self-perception.
Luckily, the impact this memory had on him was rather small, and it didn’t
cause him to think he was another, blurring the lines between experience and
reality.
“Let’s try sudden movement first.”
The dragonman youngster stood up and began to practice martial arts in the
room, moving all over the place.
The martial arts training room was considered to be the most spacious room on
the Love Triangle.
The Applaud Pirates’ commander Hu Li once used this room.
The training room had an alchemy puppet in it; it was tough and thick, able to
absorb magic power from the reservoir to increase its defense. Not only that,
but it could also repair itself and had been used as a boxing dummy by Hu Li.
The dragonman youngster didn’t use the alchemy puppet, instead he sprinted
around the room.
Bang, thump, dink.
The dragonman youngster’s body was strong and heavy, and whenever his feet hit
the floor, it would create a dull drum like noise.
But this sound didn’t ring outwards, because the practice room was
soundproofed.
The simple dash movements felt different to the dragonman youngster.
He was constantly reflecting on the experience he had absorbed.
Spring Boxer’s experience was like an old yellow photograph gradually becoming
colored, distinct, and vivid.
The dragonman youngster continuously adjusted and rapidly improved.
Spring Boxer and the dragonman youngster had both worked hard in this movement
type, and the dragonman youngster absorbed that experience with his robust
foundation very easily and at a high conversion rate.
After a dozen minutes, the dragonman youngster stopped moving.
He had made this part of the experience wholly his to use.
The improvement it gave him was also clear to the naked eye.
If he was merely familiar with it before, now he was perfect through practice.
Before, he didn’t have any energy to do anything else while dashing. Now, it
was familiar and easy, and he could stop calmly and more easily shift his
direction.
The dragonman youngster began to use the Surge battle skill.
Bang, thump, boom!
This time, the dragonman youngster made ten times the noise as before.
But the practice room was of rather high quality and was made entirely of
silver level materials. It could not only absorb sound, but also intense
vibrations too.
While using Surge, the dragonman youngster kept absorbing battle experience and
adjusting himself.
His progress was visible to a layman’s eyes.
If anyone had been witnessing this, they would clearly notice the improvements
in the dragonman youngster’s dashing movements.
Before, the explosions he wielded launched the dragonman youngster’s body like
an artillery shell.
But now, his movements and jumps had become more graceful and lithe.
Although his speed hadn’t increased, his flexibility and control had vastly
improved.
The dragonman youngster was gradually engrossed in his practicing.
After a half hour, he sensed that his progress was no longer improving at an
obvious rate, so he regrettably stopped.
He had completely absorbed that portion of experience.
The dragonman youngster sank into reflection.
“Next, I need to practice Surge more and learn how to control its explosive
might more.”
“Before, growth was average and in agreement with each other, now that my
posture has improved by a large amount, this part has become a shortcoming.”
“So long as this portion is improved, my dashing and turning movements will be
substantially improved.”
“Is there anyone who cultivates the Surge battle skill?”
It was easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but not the other way around.
The dragonman youngster had gained a large amount of experience from the Grand
Arena Medal in such a convenient and fast way, and the first thing he thought
of was that he really wanted to find a suitable opponent to fight so he could
gain their experience.
“Next up, Spring Boxer’s battle skills.”
The dragonman youngster began to try to practice Spring Boxer’s four battle
skills.
These battle skills were widely circulated and had a detailed description in
War Merchant’s database.
Spring Boxer came from the military and didn’t have familial relationships.
These battle skills came from transcendents of the Rubber bloodline.
As they cultivated, they created battle skills like the Spring Shot Fist,
Reckless Fist, Reverse Spring Legs, and other battle skills.
Spring Boxer just chose these battle skills because he was compatible with
them.
Although this was the first time the dragonman youngster had cultivated these
battle skills, he quickly had results.
The difficulty of mastery was very low, and from beginning to end, the
dragonman youngster never failed. It was as if he had practiced this before,
and merely took a break for a while, then began to practice them again.
The most difficult part was the start, and after constant practice, his body
remembered it.
The dragonman youngster didn’t practice them deeply, only a superficial session
before stopping.
The dragonman youngster’s body structure was different from Spring Boxer’s and
he didn’t have the Rubber bloodline either. 
“This most suitable battle skill for my dragonman form is Reckless Fist.”
“Even so, this battle skill is more suitable for Spring Boxer and has a low
compatibility with me.”
The dragonman youngster planned to practice another battle skill – Machine Gun
Fist!
The actual combat effect of both were very similar, raising the frequency of
punches to increase attack power.
The internal force application and mechanisms of both battle skills were also
alike.
This was because Machine Gun Fist was the improved version of what Spring Boxer
was using. 
A transcendent that was fond of red waistcoats who had the Rubber bloodline had
improved the basic skill Reckless Fist into Machine Gun Fist.
His inspiration had been machine guns.
This was a newly innovated type of weapon that had just popped up in the arms
market in recent years.
Compared to Reckless Fist, Machine Gun Fist was better suited to the dragonman
youngster, for he was in a contrary situation to Spring Boxer.
The dragonman youngster began to evaluate the key points to practice for
Machine Gun Fist.
He quickly mastered it, and after using it several times in a row, he became
very proficient at it, as if he had trained it for 3-5 years.
As of now, he had processed most of the battle experience.
The other parts were rather worthless to him, and he wisely chose to discard
them.
“In the future, if there is a chance, I want to spar with Spring Boxer again.”
The Grand Arena Medal had improved the dragonman youngster by so much. Thus,
the dragonman youngster had saved a considerable amount of time and energy.
Upon finishing his cultivation, the dragonman youngster opened the practice
room’s door and secretly traveled to another cabin.
Zi Di was waiting for him there.
Today, the dragonman youngster spent the daylight hours fighting.
Zi Di meanwhile, had been visiting Snow Bird Harbor’s great markets to purchase
a large amount of alchemy materials.
The Battle of Two Eyes Island had given the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps a lot
of gold. Snow Bird Harbor was one of the great harbors of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, and after some market research yesterday, Zi Di found that there were
full stocks of materials here, both quality and quantity far surpassed Two Eyes
Island.
“Lord Commander, today I purchased three dragon corpses.”
“They are all offshoots of the Flame Dragon King Bloodline based on the
bloodline archive map.”
“This is a red tamed dragon, this is a hammer dragon, and this is a fat ocean
dragon flank.”
The red tamed dragon tail was slender, it was the smallest of the three, and it
was only slightly bigger than a normal sized cart.
The hammer dragon was short and stout, its dragon skin was yellow-green, and
its most distinct trait was its ball shaped protrusion on its tail section, it
looked like a circular hammer head.
The fat ocean dragon was the biggest of the three, despite just being a flank,
it was far bigger than the other two corpses combined.
From the flank, one could see the fat ocean dragon’s deep blue dragon skin. It
didn’t have scales, instead it had very smooth skin.
The dragon skin was 0.7 meters thick.
Under the dragon skin was ample layers upon layers of fat that bundled up
viscera and seeped grease. 
It is said that some giant tribes and titans domesticated the red tamed dragons
for the purpose of becoming their hunting dogs. 
The hammer dragon was a grass eating sub-dragon species, it had a lukewarm
temperament, and only when its life was in danger would it lash out its dragon
tail and erupt with strong and stalwart attacks.
The fat ocean dragon reproduced and dwelled in the deep sea, only a seldom few
ventured into the shallows, thus, catching them was very hard, but people still
kept on trying to devise all sorts of ways to fish them up.
Because they had massive economic value.
The fat ocean dragon’s fat could be cooked and refined into a unique kerosene,
a widely used energy source in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom that was even more
important to the kingdom.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had been always looking for how to breed fat ocean
dragons on a massive scale, offering a large bounty to every great power for
the last five hundred years.
The dragonman youngster absorbed each of the three dragon corpses.
The red tamed dragon gave him a lower leg and foot transformation.
The dragonman youngster turned his lower legs and feet into that of a red tamed
dragon. 
Compared to his previous thick and solid feet, the red tamed dragon feet were
thinner. The toes spread open like petals and each of the toes had a bent
hooked talon on them.
The dragonman youngster tried them out and found there was nothing to write
home about them.
The dragonman youngster liked his prior form more, it could fully display his
strength.
The bones of the red tamed dragon lower legs and feet were also slimmer, and
were incompatible with the dragonman youngster’s upper body, and it felt really
weird to him.
To speak plainly, the red tamed dragon toes’ hooked talons actually made it
easy to climb and tear apart things.
An adult red tamed dragon could use their bent toes to grab hold of rocky
surfaces and climb freely up precipices.
But this point of usefulness was not something the dragonman youngster needed
currently.
The hammer dragon corpse gave the dragonman youngster a dragon tail
transformation. He could now turn the tip of his tail into a hammer shape.
The dragonman youngster tossed his tail and noticed that this transformation
had quite the growth potential, but it needed practice and a lot of time for
diligent training.
Before that happened, recklessly transforming would instead hinder himself.
The fat ocean dragon corpse just gave him fat; it was not worth talking about
something so negligible.
The dragonman youngster inherently didn’t have much hope for this and wasn’t
disappointed at all.
To him, the true worth of these three dragon corpses was that it could raise
the percentage of a complete Flame Dragon King bloodline.
After absorbing the three dragon corpses, the dragonman youngster’s Flame
Dragon King bloodline concentration was elevated to 34%.
“Today I also purchased a lot of excellent alchemical and medicinal
ingredients. Tonight, I will refine some good potions that should help you in
your Lordship’s fight tomorrow.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “Although I had two victories today, the
Bayonet Gang will absolutely have a response to that, tomorrow will be a
challenge!”
Zi Di added on, “In addition, we have more information pertaining to Teng Dong
Lang.”
“His bloodline is the Holly bloodline, he simultaneously possess an ice and a
wood attribute, though his battle skills trend more towards the ice attribute.”
“I suggest that before you challenge him Lord Commander, you absorb some white
dragon bloodlines.”
The ice Sculpture had some white dragon communities in its territory, along
with a large amount of white dragon subspecies.
The most populous of the white dragon subspecies was the hoar frost dragon.
If the dragonman youngster absorbed white dragon bloodlines, it could greatly
improve his ice resistance, very helpful for dealing with Teng Dong Lang.
“Finally, I also inquired about some talents in Snow Bird Harbor.” Zi Di handed
the dragonman youngster a list of several names composed mainly of alchemists
and one outstanding silver level thief.
The dragonman youngster carefully looked at each name and their brief
introduction, “You can contact them and investigate them further.”
Zi Di reminded him, “Lord Commander, if you display your strength and grace as
much as possible in the coming fight, the difficulty in recruiting these
talents will lower accordingly.”
The dragonman youngster smiled, “I will do my best!”



****** Chapter 276: The Wind Rises in Snow Bird Harbor ******
Early morning.
The morning sun had just risen amidst the residual coldness of night.
The ice-cold daybreak wind brushed across the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
flag, fluttering it.
A ship plank clacked down, and the dragonman youngster disembarked his ship.
Unlike yesterday, the dragonman youngster did not have just Lan Zao following
behind, but also Chi Lai and Men Shi, two silver levels.
The three people sensed many eyes just as they got off the ship.
Following one’s perception of these eyes, one would see some were brazenly
staring, while others were hiding in some unremarkable corners.
Chi Lai slightly detected the aura of these people; there were at least 5
silver levels.
Things had shifted greatly.
This was because the dragonman youngster challenged two of the Bayonet Gang’s
ringleaders yesterday.
During those battles, he had shown his unique graceful bearing.
Yesterday, the dragonman youngster had just begun his public challenge, this
sudden matter had been followed by many ordinary onlookers and not many
transcendents.
Then after a day and night of simmering, especially last night, Snow Bird
Harbor’s taverns large and small had circulated the dragonman youngster’s
story.
It could be said that the conflict between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
the Bayonet Gang had already become a gale that had spread through the entirety
of Snow Bird Harbor.
Snow Bird Harbor’s mainstay powerhouses were 4 famous gold levels. The city
lord, the Seabird God bishop, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance branch head, and
the Bayonet Gang’s leader.
The dragonman youngster challenging the Bayonet Gang’s leader, Teng Dong Lang
to a heroic duel was undoubtably destabilizing Teng Dong Lang’s authority. If
the latter didn’t deal with this matter well, the dragonman youngster would
affect the equilibrium standoff between the upper levels of Snow Bird Harbor.
It wasn’t that no one challenged Teng Dong Lang before.
But the dragonman youngster was a rare powerful challenger, one other people
considered capable of rattling Teng Dong Lang’s position.
Seeing the dragonman youngster slowly leaving the dock, four silver levels
gathered on an open balcony and talked with each other.
They were all highly respected people in Snow Bird Harbor, like a mercenary
commander, a large shop owner, and a fishing ship captain.
A bearded dwarf watched the dragonman youngster with envy, “He has a dragonman
bloodline, his body is far stronger than that of humans, snow elves, and
dwarfs. At the silver level, he is able to challenge a gold level’s things!”
The dragon race was a higher race; this was reflected in the creation myth and
ever race related to the dragons was mostly not found lacking.
An old human man, with forlorn features, saw himself in the dragonman
youngster, smoky clouds flashing in his memories, “It isn’t easy to make a
living in Snow Bird Harbor.”
“This place already has a stable authority and social classes; there isn’t any
space for foreigners.”
“Thinking back to those years, when I led my mercenary corps here, I had to pay
visits to everyone, cut relationships, and build a network. In the end, I still
had to spar with my rivals to be acknowledged.”
“Now the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is doing what I did back then. Only by
proving their power will the surrounding people acknowledge them. Only by
proving oneself a ferocious beast   will the other beasts concede a hunting
ground for you.”
The longbeard dwarf shook his head, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is only a
small power, and it wanting to use a heroic duel to become famous and prove
their strength is a good move. But they didn’t poke the right opponent, why did
they go against the Bayonet Gang? In fact, as long as they challenge another
small power, that will be able to obtain the same approval and have the
qualifications to live in Snow Bird Harbor.”
Someone laughed at those words.
It was a silver level female snow elf.
The female snow elf wore black frame spectacles. Her eyes narrowed, “It seems
that you haven’t gathered enough information, and you don’t know how things
stand with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. They are not as simple as they
appear to be, I have gathered many rumors and learned they are actually a front
for a gang of arms smugglers.”
“It is merely happenstance that they established the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, to make selling weapons easier. They being a small power is true, but we
cannot look at just that because of their patron behind them.”
The longbeard dwarf became slightly discolored, he knew a patron capable of
selling weapons was clearly remarkable.
He couldn’t help but suddenly realize, “It’s no wonder Long Fu seems so rash,
it seems he’s very confident.”
The snow elf with the black glasses continued to analyze, “Not only that, I
believe that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has an even deeper interest they
are demanding for with this move.”
The old human paused to comprehend the truth, “Are you saying that they want to
sell their weapons in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom?”
The snow elf nodded, “That should be it, otherwise why would they challenge the
Bayonet Gang? Also, only by fighting such an opponent will they be able to win
enough space and tolerance, allowing them to establish their arms business
smoothly afterwards.”
“So that’s how it is.” The longbeard dwarf muttered.
“Everything is about business!” The old human sighed ruefully.
The longbeard dwarf clapped his hands together, “Now that I recall, the
conflict between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Bing Xiao is actually
rather complex!”
“Who normally want a giant-type intelligence potion? Also, only Bing Xiao
trains giant slaves, and has a strong demand for gold level potions of that
type, such a demand is very easy to learn about.”
“In that case, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must have deliberately
manufactured this conflict into being.”
The other silver level snow elf felt perplexed, “If it was purposely
manufactured, how could they be certain of their success? Was Bing Xiao
guaranteed to find trouble with them? If Bing Xiao exercise a step of
forbearance, wouldn’t their plan come to nothing?”
The glasses wearing snow elf smiled, “If that plan failed, then they could
implement another one. The Bayonet Gang has dominated the dark side of Snow
Bird Harbor for many years; it is actually quite easy to provoke such a
colossus.”
“I believe that if Bing Xiao is provoked, he will inevitably issue a response.
Because as the Bayonet Gang’s former leader, he is in an awkward spot.”
“After being the Bayonet Gang’s leader for many years, he has definitely
offended many people. Therefore, after he retired from leadership, he still
retained a portion of devoted underlings and also his gold level giant slave,
and still to this day continues to train new giant slaves.”
“For one, he has to pay attention to his own strength and restrain his growth.
If his strength expands to surpass some line, it will break his mutual
understanding with the current gang leader, and the first person to deal with
him would be said gang leader, Teng Dong Lang.”
“After Bing Xiao was provoked, he didn’t act himself, rather he asked the
Bayonet Gang Leader Teng Dong Lang for help. This was precisely caused by his
awkward situation, because he both needed to display his strength while also
being worried that his strength would arouse Teng Dong Lang’s disdain and fear.
Therefore, he directly asked Teng Dong Lang for help, to both reassure himself
and also show outwardly that he and the Bayonet Gang had an inseparably close
connection.”
“Teng Dong Lang also clearly knows why Bing Xiao is asking for help and is very
willing to preserve his common understanding with Bing Xiao.”
“Therefore, the current situation exists, where a conflict undoubtably happened
between Bing Xiao and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. But the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps tried to find trouble with the Bayonet Gang directly. And so,
the Bayonet Gang is also willing to take on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
When the glasses wearing snow elf’s analysis reached this point, the other
people sank into silence.
In their silence, they sensed the ripples of the treacherous games of power
underpinning this battle.
After a good while, the old man broke the silence first, “Actually, I will be
happier if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps won.”
“You know my mercenary corps has clashed many times with the Bayonet Gang.”
“This gang is too big, and takes up too much space, I don’t believe you don’t
think the same.”
“Another important thing: I hope I can buy better weapons; the current arms
market really isn’t worth looking at.”
Those words immediately solicitated a strong resonance from the others.
The longbeard dwarf grumbled, “Yes, also I don’t know what happened to the arms
black market, what happened to it? A good few big arms dealers suddenly went
missing and there is no stock.”
“Arms smuggling is illegal, and every nation cracks down on it. Arms merchants
that suddenly run out of stock means they have been eliminated. But for so many
arms merchants to collectively run out of stock and vanish without a trace is
quite rare.”
“Wasn’t there news that the Sheng Ming Empire was responsible for this crack
down?”
“That has been stated, but there is no evidence.”
“Who needs proof? Doing this is to the Sheng Ming Empire’s advantage. They are
invading the Beastman Continent, and their weapons and equipment outclass the
beastmen’s, they really hold a massive advantage there. Of course, they are
very worried that arms smugglers and merchants will sell large quantities of
excellent weapons to the beastmen, therefore, they mopped them up in advance.”
“The Sheng Ming Empire is too overbearing, they can invade wherever and
whenever they want! This time they are encroaching on the Beastman Continent,
and the official justification for it makes me sick. This human empire also
wants to turn our Ice Sculpture Kingdom into a vassal state, such rapacious
designs. I really hope they faceplant in the Beastman Continent. Historically,
those who launch an ocean spanning expedition usually aren’t victorious.”
The silver levels discussed amongst themselves.
The survivors could actually answer their questions about the arms market.
The answer was that War Merchant was dead.
War Merchant held a comparatively large share of the arms market, and he played
many roles in it.
These roles was War Merchant pretending to be different merchants to guard
against attracting too much attention to himself.
With War Merchant’s death, both he and his various identities died together,
and naturally could no longer do business.
It had already been two months since Mystifying Monster Island had been
destroyed.
The arms market had been greatly affected. Especially powers in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, which was quite close to Mystifying Monster Island.
As the silver levels continued to converse, one of the bespectacled woman’s
subordinates came over to the elf and whispered a report to them.
Then the subordinate quietly withdrew.
The glasses wearing woman got up, “The breakfast ends here.”
“I have received the latest news; the Bayonet Gang has dispatched Xiong Ju to
meet Long Fu head on.”
When the other silver levels heard that, they showed different expressions.
The old human muttered to himself, “Of the Bayonet Gang’s six bosses, the
strongest is Xiong Ju, that is publicly known.”
The longbeard dwarf laughed, “Yesterday I said that Xiong Ju getting involved
was a certainty! Through the last two fights yesterday, Long Fu has already
revealed his strength. If he was allowed to run roughshod over the six
ringleaders, then the Bayonet Gang’s name would suffer immensely. Then even if
Teng Dong Lang beat Long Fu, the people would still believe that only the
Bayonet Gang’s leader was the only one who could fight. Based on Teng Dong
Lang’s disposition, he will surely regain the initiative.”
The other snow elf looked interested, “Xiong Ju was chosen by them to stop Long
Fu, he must have come prepared. Today’s fight is certain to be a spectacle.”
“Xiong Ju is also considered to be one of the strongest silver levels in Snow
Bird Harbor.” 
“Long Fu…he hasn’t shown his true strength yet. Despite his outstanding
defense, don’t forget, Xiong Ju’s weapon is the gold level Gold Flower
Hacksaw!”
“All I know is that today, we can see a good show. Let’s go together.” The
black glasses wearing woman left first, “The Bayonet Gang has already made
arrangements, Xiong Ju is currently at Snow Bird Dueling Arena. Long Fu and his
people are going there right now.”



****** Chapter 277: Long Fu vs Xiong Ju ******
Not long after the dragonman youngster left the dock, he found the Bayonet Gang
ringleader, Ban Lan Gen, before him.
The latter had come over to pass on a message to the dragonman youngster: Xiong
Ju was waiting for him at the dueling arena.
The dueling arena was a common structure in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was fond of martial tradition, no matter if it was
the upper or lower class, they all habitually utilized the dueling arenas to
solve daily disputes, great conflicts, and animosity as deep as an ocean of
blood.
In Snow Bird Harbor alone, there were more than dozen dueling arenas of all
sizes.
The Bayonet Gang chose a dueling arena called “Snow Bird Dueling Arena”, it was
Snow Bird Harbor’s largest dueling arena.
Before the dragonman youngster even arrived, Snow Bird Dueling Arena was
already packed with crowds.
All six of the Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders showed up, Spring Boxer, the dwarf
ringleader, the human ringleader, and the rest had taken their seats already.
Snow Bird Harbor’s leaders or representatives of powers large and small also
tried to get the best seats.
In addition to him, there were also many spectators and busybodies that walked
in from the dueling arena’s doors.
The dueling arenas never charged for admission, and there were even magic
images hanging outside the arena, constantly advertising the duel between Xiong
Ju and Long Fu.
This attracted even more people to watch the duel.
“This time, the Bayonet Gang used Snow Bird Dueling Arena, what a grand
showing!”
“Last night, when I was drinking, I said that the Bayonet Gang won’t sit and
wait for death.”
“The betting pool outside has already been set up; I bet that Commander Long Fu
would win.”
“I put down 10 gold coins on Xiong Ju.”
The people conversed with each other in the lively atmosphere.
Dules were something the citizens of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom were familiar
with, and they were fond of participating in the sport.
It was precisely with this base of people that heroic duels were always the
optimal shortcut to expand one’s influence and notoriety.
Snow Bird Dueling Arena was shaped like an oval, it had more than a dozen
stairways, and in the middle was a vast stretch of sand.
All kinds of peddlers were shuttling up and down the stairs, selling their food
and beverages.
“Chicken kebobs, 1 copper coin for 5 skewers, snowflake candy, 1 copper coin
for one.”
“Give me ten rock candy.”
“Want something to drink? This is orange juice from the Iron Magic Kitchen, 1
medium cup for only 1 copper coin, a large cup for only 2 copper coins, and an
extra-large cup for 2.5 copper coins.”
“Give me a small cup of orange juice.”
“Sorry sir, we only have medium, large, and extra-large cups.”
“I said I want the smallest cup.”
“Sorry sir, this is the medium sized cup.”
“I don’t care how you classify it; I want this small cup, do you understand?”
“Sorry sir, this is the medium cup!”
Clack, clack, clack!
The customer was provoked to anger, causing them to suddenly stand up and shake
their fist.
The small peddler selling drinks was slapped a few times, reacting to the
attack with a great shriek and began to hit the customer back.
The two people’s scuffle drew the applauses and cheers of others around them.
“Right, hit his face!”
“Kick is butt!”
“Oh oh oh! Bite him, bite his bottom!!”
No one stopped them.
The vast majority of the people here treated this spat as the appetizer to the
banquet ahead.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s martial spirit could be seen from this incident.
Suddenly, someone stood up and cheered, this attracted many eyes, and soon
after more of them began to chant and yell in excitement.
A thousand pairs of eyes were concentrated on the dueling arena’s entrance.
There, the dragonman youngster, Lan Zao, Chi Lai, and Men Shi were ambling in.
Seeing the protagonist of the duel finally arrive, the customer and peddler
immediately stopped fighting each other.
The small peddler’s beaten face swelled like a pig head; the customer had been
obviously winning.
The small peddler covered his face, drawing in a cold breath, “You win, you’re
the one in charge, so did you still want a drink?”
The customer nodded, taking out a single copper coin, “Give me a small cup of
orange juice.”
The small peddler took out some orange juice and took the coin, then continued
to sell his merchandise.
The dueling arena’s workers welcomed the dragonman youngster’s group.
Soon after, Lan Zao, Men Shi, and Chi Lai were seated in the area for friends
and relatives.
The dragonman youngster walked alone into the center, where Xiong Ju was
waiting.
The two approached each other.
The distance was 5 meters apart when the dragonman youngster stopped.
Neither spoke first.
Each of their pupils reflected the other.
The dragonman youngster sized up Xiong Ju.
He was a bear-man, a bear head on a human body, and a full mouth of teeth.
Long black hair filled his bear face, a face with a gigantic cross shaped blade
scar.
Xiong Ju’s body was especially tall and sturdy, somewhat taller than the
dragonman youngster.
This was not to say a bear-man was taller than a dragonman, rather it was due
to the fact that the dragonman youngster was far younger than Xiong Ju.
The dragonman youngster was not fully grown, while Xiong Ju was a complete
adult.
Contrasted with Xiong Ju’s gigantic body, the dragonman youngster looked thin
for the first time.
The dragonman youngster observed Xiong Ju, his gaze lingering on the latter’s
weapons and equipment.
Xiong Ju was wearing an epaulet on his arm.
His belt had a one handed iron hammer in it.
On his back he was carrying an enormous hacksaw, and if the sharp saw teeth
lining the hacksaw were removed, it would look almost identical to a great
sword.
Xiong Ju wore leather armor.
With his square body and tremendous strength, putting on mail plating was
perfectly doable.
But Xiong Ju was a member of the Bayonet Gang, he lived on the streets and
alleys on the daily.
Wearing plate mail all day would waste too much stamina, and in narrow spaces,
it would be very inconvenient to move in.
Leather armor was good enough.
It balanced defense and agility.
Generally speaking, gang members all wore leather armor.
Compared to the fully equipped Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster seemed
destitute by comparison.
But his red dragon scales were very striking, and they served to highlight his
strong and tenacious temperament, something the people didn’t dare to look down
on.
The dragonman youngster did have some equipment.
On his lower back, he had two alchemy crossbows.
On his upper back he had a giant quiver filled with alchemy arrows.
The two alchemy crossbows were silver level and originated from War Merchant’s
arsenal.
Of course, he also had the Grand Arena Medal and the Gold Silk Chainmail, but
those had been hidden by Deceptive Disguise.
As the dragonman youngster sized up Xiong Ju, so did Xiong Ju likewise. 
The normally forthright Xiong Ju currently looked solemn and serious.
Xiong Ju always treated the dragonman youngster cautiously.
Because he understood the heavy responsibility and burden he shouldered!
Although he was the third Bayonet Gang ringleader to be fought, as far as the
Bayonet Gang was concerned, he would be the final one.
Because the other ringleaders, like the human, dwarf, and demon hybrid
ringleaders, were weaker than Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju had gotten everyone’s support, was armed to the teeth, and in peak
condition. But if he lost this duel to the dragonman youngster, then the other
three ringleaders would be unable to defeat this adversary.
They didn’t have the strength to do so.
“I have to win this battle, only by defeating you in front of everyone can I
revitalize my Bayonet Gang’s martial glory!”



****** Chapter 278: Even a Gold Level Weapon Can’t Break His Defense? ******
Four silver levels were sitting in the VIP seats.
The seating room was cut off from the masses, forming a privacy that displayed
its grand tranquility.
The walls around them used alchemy technology, and when a user used spiritual
control, they could be made completely transparent or turn into a
unidirectional lens.
Its main function was to turn into a magic image of the dueling grounds that
was broadcast to the spectators inside the room.
The magic image could be big or small, far or close, whatever suited the
spectators.
Outdoor seating didn’t need to buy tickets, but the VIP seating did.
The black glasses wearing elf didn’t lack coin.
She owned three alchemy workshops and was the best alchemy master in Snow Bird
Harbor.
When she came over from the dock, thanks to her status, she easily rented the
VIP spectator room.
At this time, the biggest wall was transmitting a magic image.
The image had the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju in it, as if they were right
next to them.
The longbeard dwarf surveyed Xiong Ju, and couldn’t help but purse his brows,
“I have never seen Xiong Ju so well equipped.
The old human was more interested in sizing up the dragonman youngster, “Apart
from Commander Long Fu’s two alchemy crossbows, he has nothing. This is too
arrogant, he is not a martial monk, but an arms smuggler. How could he possibly
lack weapons?”
The snow elf put her finger on her black glasses, guessing, “Perhaps Long Fu
has a storage device on him, we’ll see what happens. Regardless of what he’s
hiding, this duel will force out his trump cards.”
“Similarly, we’ll be able to observe whether Xiong Ju’s fighting strength has
risen or fallen these last few years.”
The other snow elf approved of her points.
The dragonman youngster was a newcomer and had already shown off his powerful
and graceful bearing, he will be a powerful competitor in Snow Bird Harbor
soon.
While the Bayonet Gang’s Xiong Ju was a well-known silver level fighter.
Every single person living in Snow Bird Harbor would unavoidably have a
connection with the Bayonet Gang.
Therefore, no matter which of the two it was, both were worth watching
carefully.
Xiong Ju ran his eyes over the audience, then fixed his eyes on the dragonman
youngster’s face, cackling, “Long Fu, you challenge our gang leader, you’ve got
guts, but you’re also really stupid! In today’s battle, I will give you a good
lesson and let you all know that I will end your challenge here.”
He had a very arrogant and overbearing attitude.
The dragonman youngster brightly smiled and his eyes were overflowing with
battle intent, eager to give it a try, “It seems today you will be fighting
with all of your strength, I like that zeal, so no matter who wins or loses, it
is good to maintain that enthusiasm.” 
He was neither servile nor overbearing, which immediately caused Xiong Ju to
boil with brutalness.
“You can speak well; I’m going to tear out your mouth first!”
Xiong Ju attacked first right then, rushing towards the dragonman youngster.
Both had been quite close to each other, and within a few steps, Xiong Ju came
to the dragonman youngster.
He swung his fist at the dragonman youngster’s fist.
The dragonman youngster leaned to the side and raised his left arm to block
Xiong Ju’s fist, while swinging his right fist at Xiong Ju beneath his rib.
Xiong Ju took a step back and threw a heavy punch with his other hand.
Ding!
With a dull echo, each other’s fists collided head on precisely in a firm blow.
Both fell back a step, each sharing the limelight.
Neither took a breath before they both attacked each other again.
At first there were dodges and blocks, but gradually, their punches became
faster and their movements more violent.
Then, they stopped bothering to dodge and duck, now only focused on attacking
and using their bodies to resist the punches and kicks of the other.
For a moment, fists were flying and the air screamed from punches.
When the audience in the dueling arena saw the flurry of fists and the contest
of toughness, they couldn’t help but be excited. 
The dueling arena began to fill with cheers and hoots.
After a short period of violence, Xiong Ju suddenly raised his leg and kicked a
piece of floor tile at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster’s field of view was covered by the floor tile, and
knowing that was a bad sign, took a large step back.
As expected, a moment later Xiong Ju used a dirty trick, he deliberately
lowered his body and aimed his right hand at the dragonman youngster’s lower
extremities for a ruthless chop.
The dragonman youngster had retreated in a timely manner and didn’t fall for
it.
When Xiong Ju saw his storm of blows couldn’t suppress the dragonman youngster,
he started to use many despicable moves commonly used by street gangsters.
These battle skills were engraved into him at the deepest level.
As he grew, he fought in close quarters amongst alleyways a great number of
times.
This was his inherent nature!
The dragonman youngster at first couldn’t adapt and seemed somewhat on the off
foot.
But the more times Xiong Ju used his treacherous moves, the dragonman youngster
gained experience and gradually adapted to them.
After another short period of fighting, Xiong Ju gasped for air, his heart
filled with increasing irritation.
“Long Fu is indeed a thorn.” Xiong Ju had rarely encountered such an opponent.
In the past, few people wouldn’t drop like the wind from his violent storm of
punches.
Generally speaking, Xiong Ju would always have the upper hand, forcing the
other side to prioritize using battle skills in an attempt to recover the
situation.
But this time, it was he who was using battle skills first.
Fierce Wind Punch, Accelerate Fists.
Xiong Ju’s fists glistened with a white silver luster, and his threat level
rose dramatically.
With battle skills now in play, the probing was formally declared finished,
while simultaneously implied that Xiong Ju was on the downturn during the
probing phase.
The dragonman youngster had been prepared for this and ducked to avoid Xiong
Ju’s battle skill.
Soon after, he too used his most proficient attack skill.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Xiong Ju was struck by Demolition Fist, causing his body to soar into the ark
and fly backwards.
The dragonman youngster pressed the attack, but Xiong Ju rapidly adjusted his
posture in the air and smashed the dragonman youngster back with both his
fists.
Battle skill – Hammer Punch!
The dragonman youngster raised his left palm, and an explosion detonating in it
launched his body to the right.
Bang.
Xiong Ju’s fist pounded the floor tiles, and because of the battle skill
increasing his attack power, it smashed a shallow hole into the ground.
He had just landed on the floor when the dragonman youngster charged at him
again.
The dragonman youngster’s thin red figure was somewhat visible as he tangled
constantly with Xiong Ju’s massive black body.
The two fought in the dueling arena, charging, retreating, and fighting with
increasingly intense vigor.
The transcendents around the dueling grounds could already made out clues.
“Although Xiong Ju is powerful, Commander Long Fu is still somewhat on top
surprisingly.
“Comparing them, Long Fu is more flexible and is able to avoid most of Xiong
Ju’s attacks. While Xiong Ju is bigger and heavier, and when faced with that
young dragonman’s attack, is often forced into passive defense and has to eat
many losses.”
“The main cause of this situation is Long Fu’s battle experience. Although he
is young, his combat experience is nevertheless exceptionally rich, therefore,
Xiong Ju’s many dirty tricks don’t work on him.”
Battle skill – Barbarous Collision.
Battle skill – Bear Pounce!
Xiong Ju opened his legs and charged forward.
He opened his arms wide, exposing himself, and with incomparable bravery,
charged into the dragonman youngster.
While using those two battle skills, his legs and hands both glowed with silver
radiance.
The dragonman youngster at first constantly drew back, then suddenly, he sprung
from the floor and counter charged Xiong Ju.
Due to the shock, Xiong Ju unconsciously brought his arms to his chest.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster used Surge and quickly broke out
and cleverly neutralized Xiong Ju’s Bear Pounce.
Xiong Ju grabbed nothing.
The audience’s applause disseminated everywhere.
Feeling he was being played with, Xiong Ju angrily roared, and his eyes
reddened, hating the dragonman youngster ever more.
In a battle like this, the slightest difference led to grave errors.
No matter how imposing and astonishing Xiong Ju was, if he didn’t hit his
opponent, it would be all in vain.
Xiong Ju had expended a large amount of stamina and battle qi yet was unable to
exchange it for a good battle result.
He grew more irascible, reaching out now to pull out his main weapon.
The gold level weapon – the Gold Flower Hacksaw!
Generally speaking, silver level fighters rarely had gold level equipment.
Because it was an extravagant act. The money used to purchase gold level
equipment could be used to supplement many aspects, make sure a silver level
didn’t have any shortcomings, and increase their overall strength.
If one just used their money to buy a gold level weapon, they were liable to
have a great offense and a weak defense, an awkward situation an opponent could
easily target, as such, the gains didn’t make up for the losses.
Xiong Ju, as the top boss of the Bayonet Gang’s six ringleaders, had a rather
high status, and this genuine power also produced great profits capable of
making up for the fundamental prerequisites and to pay the expensive price to
buy a powerful weapon that surpassed his level.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw was as long as a broadsword.
With hacksaw in hand, Xiong Ju’s attack range immediately doubled.
The dragonman youngster was within his attack range, dodging left and right as
nimbly as a fish.
Xiong Ju’s silver battle qi poured into the Gold Flower Hacksaw, causing the
hacksaw’s teeth to swiftly turn and the hacksaw’s embedded gemstone to emit an
earthen yellow light.
The yellow light caused the dragonman youngster’s speed to slow by 50%, and his
body suddenly sank, as if a heavy object was suddenly weighing him down.
Due to this disturbance, the dragonman youngster was unable to evade the Gold
Flower Hacksaw slash across his chest.
The sharp teeth instantly tore apart the Gold Silk Chainmail.
The Gold Silk Chainmail was likewise gold level.
The contest of a gold level weapon against a gold level armor created dazzling
sparks.
The sparks condensed in the air, forming a golden flower.
The gold flower’s points were sharp, and it spiraled in the wind like darts,
cutting through the air in various arcs towards the dragonman youngster’s eyes,
ears, nose, and other vulnerable points.
The dragonman youngster wasn’t surprised at this, because the intelligence
report on him contained a detailed account of Xiong Ju’s main weapon’s effects.
The golden flower was very frail.
The dragonman youngster used Demolition Fist to explode it to bits in two to
three hits.
Without the gold flower, the dragonman youngster could use his arm or dragon
scales to block the attack.
But this undoubtedly slowed down his battle tempo.
Xiong Ju seized the opportunity to launch a stream of attacks.
Unlike the prior contests, this time, his attacks slashed the dragonman
youngster again and again.
Every blow energetically swung down, causing the Gold Flower Hacksaw to spark
abundantly across the Gold Silk Chainmail.
The brilliant dazzling sparks quickly turned into another gold flower that
attacked the dragonman youngster all over.
The dragonman youngster was in a disadvantageous position.
The Gold Silk Chainmail was being quickly scared and even had some gaps in it.
Prior to this, the Gold Silk Chainmail was damaged somewhat in his fight
against Spring Boxer.
But that damage was far less serious than what was occurring now.
Xiong Ju had managed to damage the Gold Silk Chainmail far more in a few
minutes than everything Spring Boxer was ever able to.
The gold level weapon was indeed formidable!
Even though the dragonman youngster was psychologically prepared, faced with
this kind of situation, he was very disturbed by it.
Xiong Ju wasn’t happy, rather he was full of shock!
“Long Fu, this guy, why is his defense so formidable?!”
He had never experienced such an opponent.
So many times, his Gold Flower Hacksaw had slashed Long Fu.
Yet none of his attacks pierced a single dragon scale!
If it was a saint level or a legend level, Xiong Ju would have conceded it, but
the crucial thing was that the dragonman youngster was just silver level.
Xiong Ju was beginning to have doubts that his own Gold Flower Hacksaw was a
fake.
“What is his bloodline actually, to have such hard dragon scales?”
“I thought that Long Fu’s defense was exaggerated enough, I didn’t expect it to
exceed the limits of my imagination.”
“Don’t tell me a gold level weapon can’t get through his dragon scales?” 
“It’s no boast that it is impossible to break through his defense.”
The audience was in an uproar.
Not only were the ordinary people shocked, but the eyes of many transcendents
couldn’t help but widen with utter flabbergast.
They were being swindled by Deceptive Disguise and didn’t know the dragonman
youngster was wearing the Gold Silk Chainmail.
And the Gold Silk Chainmail was currently being sliced apart wildly by the Gold
Flower Hacksaw.



****** Chapter 279: Contest of Equipment ******
“Long Fu! I don’t believe I can’t pry off a dragon scale. Get over here so I
can cut it off!” Xiong Ju roared, his face full of ruthlessness as he raised an
even more wildly fierce offensive. 
The dragonman youngster chose to avoid his blade, deciding to fall back and in
between dodging, took every chance and gap to unleash counterattacks.
He quickly adapted to Xiong Ju’s attacks and was instantly struck far fewer
times. 
The audience was awed by Xiong Ju’s offensive and also amazed by the dragonman
youngster’s adept sidesteps.
“He seems to be dancing across the blade’s edge.” The longbeard dwarf exclaimed
in admiration.
Spring Boxer deeply sighed, “I didn’t expect that Long Fu, even in terms of
movement, hadn’t used his full strength when doing battle with me.”
He didn’t understand that this was actually his contribution.
Even though Ban Lan Gen hated the dragonman youngster deeply, he too had no
choice but to concede that the latter was outstanding, “Long Fu’s use of the
Surge battle skill surprisingly makes me feel lithe. Against Xiong Ju’s
arrogant offensive, it is very difficult for someone to handling that blade
with ease like him.”
The Grand Arena Medal really was practical, who would have thought that this
would have been impossible for the dragonman youngster to do this yesterday?
With Spring Boxer’s battle experience, the dragonman youngster’s last minute
preparations last night had given him a breakthrough in his dodging
capabilities.
The female snow elf adjusted her black frame glasses, her tone serene,
“Although Xiong Ju is currently winning, if this situation continues, it will
be more advantageous for Long Fu.”
“That’s right.” The old human next to her agreed, “Although Xiong Ju’s
offensive is fierce and shocks the people, if it doesn’t hit his opponent, it
is utterly worthless. Considering their expenditures, Xiong Ju is using up far
mor than Long Fu.”
Xiong Ju hit the dragonman at a decreasing rate, making him incessantly vexed
and impatient.
“Long Fu, you don’t have the guts to battle me outright. Are you a coward?
You’re just avoiding me, what use is that!?”
The dragonman youngster calmly responded, “Xiong Ju, I am just cautiously
watching your military strategy, this is giving you respect. If this is causing
a misunderstanding with you, then I shall strike back.”
Xiong Ju was overjoyed to hear that, but a moment later, he saw the dragonman
youngster pull back further, holding an alchemy crossbow in each hand.
The dragonman youngster proficiently nocked in arrows. 
A moment later, an alchemy arrow shot out.
Xiong Ju rushed to evade it; however, he wasn’t very agile.
The dragonman youngster’s archery was very exquisite and hit almost every
arrow.
After being shot a dozen times, Xiong Ju finally recognized reality.
He used the Gold Flower Hacksaw as a shield, placing it front of his body, then
used the battle skill Barbarous Collision to charge the dragonman youngster.
His tactics were obvious; he wanted to close the distance between him and the
dragonman youngster.
Seeing Xiong Ju coming towards him, the dragonman youngster calmly fell back
while shooting more alchemy arrows.
The arrows hit Xiong Ju, breaking out in showers of different elemental
sparkles.
Xiong Ju’s speed wasn’t impeded that much.
But at this moment, the dragonman youngster suddenly shot a silver level slow
arrow.
The arrow hit Xiong Ju dead center, instantly decreasing his speed by 30%.
Due to this speed decrease, the dragonman youngster began to pull distance from
him.
Xiong Ju roared loudly.
As if into response to his bellow, the dragonman youngster shot another silver
level alchemy arrow.
It was a numbing electric arrow. 
After Xiong Ju was shot by the arrow, electricity crackled across his body,
causing his muscles to feel incomparably limp and numb all over.
In this split second of losing motive power, he came to a standstill and
lightly shuddered.
The dragonman youngster seized that opportunity to put even more distance
between him and Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju’s tactics failed, and this also caused him to admit that he had to
block the dragonman youngster’s alchemy arrows, otherwise, he wouldn’t have the
chance to get close to them.
The dragonman youngster shot another three arrows.
These were silver level poison arrows.
After Xiong Ju was struck by those arrows, his field of view suddenly went
dark, and with every breath, purple bubbles popped from the corner of his
mouth.
Xiong Ju had just been paralyzed and slowed, and now because he was poisoned,
he became dizzy too.
The audience was stunned to see this.
“I didn’t expect Long Fu to be adept at archery.”
Spring Boxer felt ashamed, “Lord Long Fu’s archery skills are amazing. When I
fought him, I misunderstood what he was, believing that his long ranged
abilities were weak, therefore, that was why he deliberately provoked me into
close quarters combat.”
In fact, the dragonman youngster hadn’t shown off his archery skills much after
leaving Mystifying Monster Island.
This was because his exquisite archery skills were inherent to a bloodline.
The Gold Needle Queen Bee was a legend level magic beast, and the dragonman
youngster’s human form contained the Gold Needle Queen Bee’s legend level
bloodline. It was that bloodline that gave him the gift of precision. 
After leaving Mystifying Monster Island, the dragonman youngster had always
remained in the dragonman form.
Due to this, the Flame Dragon King bloodline suppressed the Gold Needle Queen
Bee bloodline, causing his archery skills to fade away.
That was the reason he didn’t do much archery.
The reason why he could use it now was because he was secretly using the
Bloodcore.
Right now, he had two bloodlines augmenting each other.
This was one of the usages of the Bloodcore the dragonman youngster discovered
on Mystifying Monster Island – compound transformations!
The transformations were mighty, but it had a massive systemic problem, it
depleted the Bloodcore at an intense rate.
Due to the dragonman youngster’s arrow storm, Xiong Ju started to lose.
All of the spectators, without exception, were deeply moved.
“Who would have thought it would end up like this. For the longest time, most
people favored Xiong Ju, who is currently taking a beating.”
“I heard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ backer is an arms smuggling merchant.
Putting that aside, look at his alchemy arrows’ actual combat effectiveness,
they are indeed strong. If there is a chance, I want to purchase a large batch
of them.”
Many spectators were watching the dragonman youngster creating this battlefield
situation, seeing that his usage of alchemy arrows was a big element in doing
so.
“Unfortunately, Long Fu isn’t a true archer, many of the arrows he shoots
interfere with each other and are unable to display their maximum might.”
An archer was a fighter specialized at using long ranged weapons, they
cultivated unique battle skills for continuous fire of arrows that didn’t
offset each other, instead they would conform with and amplify each other, so
that 1+1>2.
From a certain point of view, this was similar to spell casting.
Inside the VIP room, the Bayonet Gang’s human ringleader saw things were going
south, and he couldn’t help but howl, “You idiot, use the Flowing Wave Armor I
gave you!!”
The human ringleader used a battle skill, his voice ringing like a big bell.
The dueling arena didn’t strictly prohibit reminders from the audience, so the
human wasn’t breaking any rules.
What was needed was that one’s voice had to rise above the noise of everyone
present and reach the ears of the duelers.
Xiong Ju heard the human ringleader’s howl and immediately quivered in
response.
The fretfulness he felt weakened somewhat, and he immediately used the Flowing
Wave Armor.
The Flowing Wave Armor looked like an epaulet, and it was hanging on his
shoulder. But after being imbued with battle qi, a large blue stream of water
suddenly bubbled from the Flowing Wave Armor.
The stream looked like silk that quickly wrapped around Xiong Ju’s entire body;
however, his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth were still exposed.
The alchemy master who designed this protection device had given sufficient
consideration to how fighters really acted during wartime.
Many fighters during battle needed to use their senses to the fullest.
Apart from the eyes providing sight, the nose providing smell, and the ears
giving hearing, many fighters also needed to have their mouths free to use
their unique battle skills.
Xiong Ju’s entire body was wrapped with the stream.
The dragoman youngster’s alchemy arrows shot him again and were blocked by the
water armor.
The alchemy arrows’ various elemental explosions caused flowery sprays to puff
from the water armor.
The stream was rapidly depleted, and many parts of Xiong Ju’s body were
temporarily exposed.
But a moment later, the Flowing Wave Armor’s epaulet produced more water that
quickly plugged the gaps created.
This was a unique item, armor that could rapidly mend itself on demand!
When the dragonman youngster saw this, he immediately changed his alchemy
arrows.
He no longer used elemental arrows, instead he used armor breaking and heavy
arrows.
But after these arrows hit the water armor, the water armor flowed in a way
that completely deflected the arrows.
The Flowing Wave Armor had amazing defense.
It was able to restrain those two types of alchemy arrows.
The dragonman youngster’s arrows were no longer able to menace Xiong Ju.
However, the dragonman youngster didn’t decide to stop firing, on the contrary,
he increased his rate of fire.
The human ringleader had used the epaulet many times.
The Flowing Wave Armor had helped him get through many perilous moments.
Such important information about it had been acquired by the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster’s choice was undoubtedly wise.
Although Xiong Ju had remarkable defense, it was being depleted.
Although the Flowing Wave Armor was convenient, the stream of water that was
constantly repairing the armor consumed large amounts of Xiong Ju’s battle qi.
By contrast, the dragonman youngster was only using a tiny bit of battle qi to
fire his alchemy arrows.
This kind of exchange was obviously partial towards the dragonman youngster.
Of course, it wasn’t without its problems.
Every alchemy arrow was expensive, especially the silver level arrows.
In comparison, Xiong Ju was paying a lower monetary cost. His battle qi would
be completely recovered in a day’s time.
Put into terms of exchange, the dragonman youngster was attacking with money to
intentionally reduce Xiong Ju’s battle qi reserves.
“Long Fu, you wretched guy! Eat my hammer!!” After Xiong Ju used the Flowing
Wave Armor, he had a spark of inspiration.
He took out the iron hammer in his belt and threw it.
This hammer was not something the dragonman youngster knew from intelligence
reports.
Because this equipment was something the dwarf ringleader was quietly refining
and hadn’t finished yet.
This had been lent to Xiong Ju for the duel, and it was the first time the
hammer had been shown off in public.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer flew in a circle, then swung towards the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster easily dodged it.
But a moment later, the iron hammer was controlled by Xiong Ju to circle back
around and swing at the dragonman youngster in the back of the head.
The dragonman youngster had to dodge it again.
After evading it again, he used Demolition Fist to ruthlessly pound the iron
hammer into the ground.



****** Chapter 280: A Fierce Close Combat Battle ******
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer was smashed into the ground by the
dragonman youngster’s battle skill.
But it quickly flew back into the sky by Xiong Ju’s spiritual control.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer continued to harass the dragonman youngster
as it circling around him.
If the dragonman youngster was careless, the Small Thunder God Hammer would
whack him. Besides the pain of the strike, the hammer would also shock him with
electricity and cause paralysis.
Luckily, the dragonman youngster’s Flame Dragon King bloodline was pretty
resistant to magic.
If it were someone else, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer would not only
pound their flesh into pulp but also paralyze them with electricity.
“Do you see it? That is the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer I forged!” The
dwarf ringleader proudly exclaimed inside the VIP room.
Due to the flying hammer’s interference, the dragonman youngster couldn’t shoot
as freely as before.
He had thought the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer was a close combat weapon
and didn’t think it was a long ranged type weapon.
To withstand the flying hammer’s interference, the dragonman youngster was
forced to shoot his arrows at it.
The alchemy arrows worked, continuously shooting down the Small Thunder God
Flying Hammer to the ground.
But it quickly flew back up again.
The Bayonet Gang’s dwarf ringleader had used a large amount of precious
materials to make this hammer, causing it to be very tough and tenacious.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer would only be scuffed black a bit by
alchemy arrows and the dragonman youngster’s battle skills, barely taking any
damage.
“This flying hammer is silver level, but unless I use gold level firepower, I
won’t be able to get rid of it.” The dragonman youngster quickly recognized
this fact.
He unavoidably landed into a conundrum.
At first, Xiong Ju was using the Flowing Wave Armor to block the alchemy
arrows.
Now, the dragonman youngster had no choice but to divide his firepower to deal
with the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
Pressure on Xiong Ju plummeted, and with a howl, he charged at the dragonman
youngster.
The Flowing Wave Armor’s stream was also wrapped around Xiong Ju’s feet. While
he moved, the stream under his feet acted in concert with him, bursting with a
spray of water that accelerated him.
Xiong Ju’s charge was too obvious, and the dragonman youngster avoided it.
Xiong Ju’s Gold Flower Hacksaw hit air, and with a thump, smashed a giant hole
in the ground.
The teeth frantically whirled, easily cutting through the tile.
Xiong Ju’s hacksaw also caused a great amount of rocky debris to fly everywhere
in a split second.
The dragonman youngster retreated, trying to pull distance between him and
Xiong Ju again.
But during this, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer did its best to impede
him, greatly perturbing him.
Xiong Ju charged at the dragonman youngster again.
The dragonman youngster hadn’t gotten far when the Small Thunder God Flying
Hamme suddenly struck the dragonman youngster’s lower back from a tricky angle.
The dragonman youngster was consequently exposed.
Xiong Ju just happened to reach him then.
The beastman excitedly howled and precisely grabbed hold of this opening to
swing the Gold Flower Hacksaw with both hands.
This time, the dragonman youngster didn’t dodge, he barely had enough time to
raise his arms to block it.
A moment later, the Gold Flower Hacksaw ferociously slashed the dragonman
youngster’s arms.
The dragonman youngster was flung back like an artillery shell.
At this time, both were quite close to the dueling arena’s oval walls. 
The dragonman youngster was flung right into said wall.
Despite this, his arms safely shielded and protected his face and head.
Even though he was smashed into a wall, the dragonman youngster’s defense
hadn’t been broken.
Xiong Ju gnashed his teeth when he saw that.
He had confidence in his heavy attack, but when he saw the dragonman youngster
was unharmed, his heart suddenly sank. 
To him, the dragonman youngster was as stubborn and unchanging as a tenacious
costal reef. His attacks were like heavy sea waves, yet no matter how many
battered the reef, it was to no avail.
The dragonman youngster quickly got out of the wall, then threw away his
alchemy crossbows.
Seeing Xiong Ju charging with the Gold Flower Hacksaw again, the dragonman
youngster decided to not pull back again, instead he charged too.
Both duelists quickly crashed into each other, starting a fierce confrontation.
This time, the dragonman youngster chose to fight in close quarters, abandoning
long range warfare.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer spun around the two, its hammer head
spinning and humming in the wind, yet it was unable to attack.
Although the hammer the dwarf ringleader had lent to Xiong Ju could be easily
controlled with one’s spirit, time was too short, and Xiong Ju had barely
learned how to use it over the course of one night.
Due to the two fighting close to each other, their bodies constantly changing
position, Xiong Ju was unable to accurately control the hammer in this fight.
“I guessed right!”
“The intelligence report didn’t mention Xiong Ju having this weapon.”
“This proves: this flying hammer is like the Flowing Wave Armor; it was loaned
to him.” The dragonman youngster thought.
His close combat abilities were not inferior to Xiong Ju, he had just decided
to use longe ranged firepower to wear down Xiong Ju more and make things more
advantageous for the dragonman youngster.
The battle situation was constantly shifting, and when Xiong Ju used the
Flowing Wave Armor and Small Thunder God Flying Hammer, the dragonman youngster
realized his prior tactics were no longer appropriate.
Under these circumstances, it was more favorable for him to choose melee
combat.
With this choice of tactics, the Small Thunder Gold Flying Hammer temporarily
became useless.
From this, the power of intelligence would be seen to be omnipresent.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The dragonman youngster’s exploding fist struck Xiong Ju.
The Flowing Wave Armor showed its defensive function, and blew apart in a
shower of water, counteracting Demolition Fist’s attack power.
Then a moment later, the hole was quickly mended.
Battle skill- Total Annihilation.
Xiong Ju swung the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
The gigantic hacksaw flew through the air in a stripe of golden light, its
momentum staggering.
The dragonman youngster didn’t dodge it, instead he planted his dragon feet
tenaciously, ready to block it.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw smashed into the dragonman youngster’s Gold Silk
Chainmail.
The gold flowers that appeared throughout the air were unable to harm the
dragonman youngster.
The battle sank into a deadlock, as both sides competed fiercely in terms of
battle qi, stamina, military power, and equipment!
During this contest, Xiong Ju suddenly opened his mouth and used his racial
magic – Bear Roar!
An explosion of sound.
Because both were so close together, the dragonman youngster was instantly hit.
His head went dizzy, and his entire body lost mobility for a split second.
Xiong Ju raised his leg and kicked the dragonman youngster in the chest,
tossing him to the ground.
Xiong Ju seized the opportunity to raise his body and arms, lifting the Gold
Flower Hacksaw.
Battle skill – Mountain Splitter!
The hacksaw smashed into the dragonman youngster’s chest with ruthless and
incomparably violence.
The teeth wildly whirled, wanting to sever the dragonman youngster at the
waist.
Large amounts of splattering sparks quickly formed a gold flower that filled
the sky.
This resplendent and dazzling scene contained brutality and grave danger.
Countless people cried out in alarm simultaneously.
Some people even stood up anxiously.
Among them was Chi Lai.
Although Chi Lai had just joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he had a
strong bond with the dragonman youngster.
The main reason was that they both had the same religion.
On the contrary, Lan Zao was calmly sitting in his seat.
Lan Zao worshiped the dragonman youngster. In addition to that, he also knew
much more about the dragonman youngster, thus he was more confident in him than
others.
As a matter of fact, the dwarf Men Shi was also standing up.
But because he was very short, this wasn’t that apparent.
Seeing signs the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ people wanted to interfere, the
dueling staff immediately took precautions and glared at the three like tigers.
Heroic dules did not permit outsiders to meddle, but they were allowed to
interrupt it.
If an outsider interfered, it would tarnish age-old tradition, and the people
would turn against them.
Even the Bayonet Gang would never desecrate the meaning of this rule.
Not at all!
If someone among them acted to break a heroic duel, the Bayonet Gang’s
reputation would be thrown into the ditch. The entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom
would spurn them, and they would no longer have room to survive.
But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were outsiders, they wouldn’t care such
things as much.”
“Prepare yourself, if all else fails, we’ll save our commander!” Chi Lai
grumbled.
Men Shi firmly modded, his face solemn, “I’ll cover you when the moment comes,
you guys get out first.”
Lan Zao looked at the two silver levels with astonishment, increasing his
opinion of them.
Lan Zao understood clearly: regardless of whether it was Chi Lai interfering in
the duel or Men Shi covering their escape, both would be in enormous danger.
Even so, the still planned on rescuing the dragonman youngster.
Lan Zao rushed to soothe them, “Don’t worry, the Lord Commander won’t lose so
easily. He hasn’t used his full strength just yet.”
As expected, a moment later the dragonman youngster cleared his head.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Bang.
With an explosion, the dragonman youngster blasted the Gold Flower Hacksaw away
from his abdomen.
Then he seized that opportunity to disengage.
Xiong Ju growled, hacksaw in hand as he pursued close behind.
The dragonman youngster did a fighting retreat as he examined himself.
The Gold Silk Chainmail around his abdomen suffered severe damage.
If a few more seconds had passed, a hole might have been cut into it.
To tell the truth, the Gold Flower Hacksaw was not a conventional weapon, when
its teeth swiveled and turned, it could saw through many solid armors.
As long as Xiong Ju had an opportunity, the Gold Silk Chainmail would be
grinded through.
Xiong Ju swung the Gold Flower Hacksaw in wide ranging sweeps.
Every slash that hit the dragonman youngster would cause a glittering golden
flower to spark into being.
However, when these golden flowers attacked the dragonman youngster, it didn’t
do much harm.
Because at this point in the fight, the dragonman youngster’s Grand Arena Medal
was amplifying his overall attributes greatly, its steady growth throughout the
fight now reaching an obvious level.
Seeing the dragonman youngster smoothly escaping, and once again doing battle
with Xiong Ju, everyone watching cheered continuously.
Those watching for fun didn’t mind the trouble.
The audience wanted to see a more marvelous and protracted battle.
After seeing this happen and finding the dragonman youngster wasn’t that
injured, Chi Lai and Men Shi let out a breath and sat back down.



****** Chapter 281: Nothing Stands Above Speed ******


****** Chapter 281: Nothing Stands Above Speed ******
The dragonman youngster put more attention to the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
This gold level weapon was the biggest threat to him.
The dragonman youngster at this time felt the Gold Silk Chainmail was reaching
its limit.
“Xiong Ju’s attack power with the Gold Flower Hacksaw is on an entirely
different level than without it. After this fight, perhaps I too should
consider getting a weapon that fits me.” The dragonman youngster sighed to
himself.
He couldn’t help but be perplexed.
If he got into melee with Xiong Ju, he had to face the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
In long ranged combat, although he could avoid the Gold Flower Hacksaw for a
time, he was constantly being harassed by the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
Furthermore, the Flowing Wave Armor obstructed most of his alchemy arrows’
power.
The dragonman youngster gradually attacked less and defended more.
Although the Gold Flower Hacksaw didn’t seem to be breaking his defenses, in
actuality, the Gold Silk Chainmail was damaged in many places.
If this kept up, there would come a moment when the Gold Flower Hacksaw would
cut the chainmail apart.
The situation was getting worse for the dragonman youngster.
“This cannot continue!”
The dragonman youngster was determined and prepared for the opportunity to meet
the Gold Flower Hacksaw head on in the next clash.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Battle skill – Surge.
His fist smashed into the Gold Flower Hacksaw’s flat half, producing a reaction
force.
The two battle skills were used simultaneously, allowing him to do a explosive
retreat.
Within a few seconds, he had put 30 meters between him and Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju immediately pursued while simultaneously using his spirit to throw the
Small Tunder God Flying Hammer at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, then shouted.
A roar shook the arena and the air rippled.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer fell to the floor, and for a brief moment,
Xiong Ju also went stiff.
It was the young man’s racial magic – Dragon Roar.
Using the opportunity this racial magic created, the dragonman youngster took a
deep breath and loudly declared, “Xiong Ju, let me show you my ultimate form.”
After saying this, he used the Bloodcore to transform many spurting smoke
mounds across his body.
Xiong Ju was awed by the dragonman youngster’s words, he didn’t attack but
instead stood there and waited sternly.
He had obtained information on this.
The dragonman youngster’s form had been revealed to the masses during the
Battle of Two Eyes Island.
Since the Bayonet Gang had made discreet inquiries, information of his ultimate
form at Two Eyes Island would not be overlooked.
Click, click, click.
The dragonman youngster had two gigantic ring mounds on his back that were
spraying yellow flames.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster used Surge.
The battle skill’s force followed the ring mounds spraying fire, and in an
instant, it gave him ferocious forward momentum.
Like an unleashed arrow, the dragonman youngster swiftly charged into Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju took a deep breath and assumed a defensive and counterattack stance.
Both hands firmly held the Gold Flower Hacksaw, holding it to his left side.
If the dragonman youngster’s attack showed a weak point, he would grab hold of
that opportunity to swing and slash the dragonman youngster to the ground.
“Faster, a bit faster, I can go even faster!” The dragonman youngster’s amber
eyes burned with the fiery flames of battle intent.
As the dragonman youngster was about to reach Xiong Ju, 3 more mounds suddenly
appeared on his back.
With these additional spurting smoke mounds working in tandem with Surge, the
dragonman youngster’s speed increased further!
Xiong Ju was just about to adapt to the dragonman youngster’s increasing speed,
but a moment later, the dragonman youngster sped up further, causing him to
instantly lose track of his target. 
“Damn it, where is he?”
“The right!!”
Just as Xiong Ju was reacting, the dragonman youngster had already dashed to
his right side.
“Crap!” Xiong JU glared in anger, and with both arms, swung the Gold Flower
Hacksaw with all his might.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw was a two handed weapon and very heavy.
Xiong Ju’s defensive and counterattack stance had placed the Gold Flower
Hacksaw on his left.
This was equal to Xiong Ju’s right side being a wide open gate left undefended.
However, this was not a problem with his defensive stance.
This movement was carefully selected; it wanted to leave the right side open to
lure the enemy into attacking it.
When he was attacked, Xiong Ju would swing his Gold Flower Hacksaw and sweep
across his right.
Because there was enough distance to give Xiong Ju sufficient time to exert
himself and give this sweep ample power.
But the dragonman youngster’s burst of speed had surpassed Xiong Ju’s limit.
He even lost track of the dragonman youngster for a time!
It was too late for Xiong Ju to react, nor was there time to activate his
painstakingly arranged trap.
The dragonman youngster’s sudden attack worked, turning the trap into Xiong
Ju’s vulnerability!
Xiong Ju snarled to himself, and in his eyes, time seemed to slow.
He looked on helplessly as the dragonman youngster’s fist smashed into him,
while the Gold Flower Hacksaw on his left just started to move!
Xiong Ju was a veteran silver level fighter, and he had rich combat experience,
with every part of his body capable of being a weapon.
In this critical moment, Xiong Ju suddenly loosened his arms and tensed his
right shoulder’s muscles, using his shoulder to take on the dragonman
youngster.
But the dragonman youngster had already used Demolition Fist.
One was using a battle skill while the other didn’t have such time.
This time, the one who ate the loss was naturally Xiong Ju.
Boom.
Xiong Ju’s right shoulder felt pain, and his entire being toppled backwards due
to his center of gravity being utterly destabilized.
He finally swung the Gold Flower Hacksaw
While swinging it, Xiong Ju cleverly used his weapon’s weight to steady his
center of gravity.
It got instant results!
Xiong Ju was really experienced and had a strong martial skill foundation and
was able to quickly make up for his weak points after the fact.
However, by the time he stabilized his center of gravity, his eyes had lost the
dragonman youngster again.
He turned his neck and ran his eyes everywhere.
The dragonman youngster suddenly appeared behind him.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
The fist smashed into Xiong Ju’s lower back, pulverizing the Flowing Wave Armor
into countless droplets.
Demolition Fist’s power was consequently decreased immensely.
Soon after, Xiong Ju’s leather armor was hit.
Xiong Ju’s leather armor was hard and thick, and the dragonman youngster’s
demolition fist was unable to split it open.
He only felt pain and his battle qi being depleted.
Xiong Ju quickly turned around, but he could only see the dragonman youngster’s
red silhouette.
Xiong Ju was unable to adapt to the dragonman youngster’s speed for a moment!
Xiong Ju subconsciously picked the best response.
He simply squatted in the ground and used the Gold Flower Hacksaw to shield his
front. 
His ears were filled wit the dragonman youngster’s blasting echoes.
His eyes found it difficult to lock onto the dragonman youngster, and under
most circumstances, he was only able to catch a glimpse of the red figure,
nothing more.
The dragonman youngster used Demolition Fist repeatedly, constantly bombarding
Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju was wearing leather armor, along with the Flowing Wave Armor, with
both of these combined, he also had outstanding defense.
The dragonman youngster’s attacks didn’t do much.
Xiong Jux successfully steadied himself and immediately used his spirit to move
the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
The flying hammer pursued the dragonman youngster.
Despite his high speed, the flying hammer still locked onto him.
He then purposely pulled distance and charged from behind Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju quickly reacted, quickly adjusting his defense direction.
The dragonman youngster was being closely followed by the Small Thunder God
Flying Hammer.
Just as the dragonman youngster reached Xiong Ju, he suddenly dodged out of the
way and nimbly avoided the latter.
But the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer behind him didn’t have enough time to
adjust, and it flew in a straight line right into Xiong Ju’s head.
Seeing this, the dwarf ringleader couldn’t help but cover his face.
Xiong Ju had only practiced with the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer for a
single night.
Although the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer was easy to use, as the fight got
fiercer, Xiong Ju’s basic usage of it was not enough.
His reckless and random use of it instead backfired on himself.
The dragonman youngster had guessed previously what Xiong Ju’s relationship
with the Small Thunder Flying Hammer was, and so, he used this strategy.
He succeeded.
Xiong Ju was ruthlessly pounded by the flying hammer, instantly creating a weak
point in his defense.
The dragonman youngster was prepared for this and instantly seized upon it to
launch a wild attack.
Battle skill – Machine Gun Fist!
Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, bang…
The dragonman youngster’s downpour of punches unceasingly bombarded Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju’s Flowing Wave Armor blocked the dragonman youngster’s fists,
splattering droplets everywhere.
Very quickly, there were more and more shadows of the dragonman youngster’s
fists.
The hard dragon fists penetrated the water armor and bombarded Xiong Ju’s
leather armor.
After the Flowing Wave Armor broke apart, it could be repaired, but it was best
done when it wasn’t being attacked.
And now, Xiong Ju was being beaten by the dragonman youngster’s fists. The
Flowing Wave Armor’s repair speed couldn’t compare to the dragon fists’
destruction rate.
Using water instead of conventional metal armor meant that it was easy to carry
and had its hidden benefits, but it also meant it had its shortcomings.
When confronted with Machine Gun Fist’s high frequence of attacks, the Flowing
Water Armor found it difficult to provide protection.
Xiong Ju’s leather armor was only silver level.
Although it blocked the vast majority of Machine Gun Fist’s might, it was still
very unpleasant for Xiong Ju.
At this moment, he was deeply feeling the pain from this rain of fists.
“Now Commander Long Fu is winning!”
“Xiong Ju is being suppressed by his attacks.”
The audience was unable to take their eyes off it; the twists and turns of this
wonderful duel was exciting to watch and very satisfying.
When Spring Boxer saw this, his eyes also shined, thinking to himself,
“Commander Long Fu’s battle skill Machine Gun Fist is closely related to my
Spring Shot Fist.”
“Thinking about it carefully, I have a very similar fighting style to Commander
Long Fu.”
“When will I be able to hit Xiong Ju like him?”
Spring Boxer came from the army, and detested gang members like Xiong Ju.
Normally, he had much friction with Xiong Ju and the others. Contradictions
large and small also piled up.
Compared to Xiong Ju, Spring Boxer was undoubtably more engrossed in watching
the dragonman youngster.
After the dragonman youngster used the spurting smoke mounds transformation,
his speed rose dramatically.
The imperial east had a martial warfare philosophy – in the world of battle
skills, nothing stands above speed! 
The only aspect the dragonman youngster had above Xiong Ju was speed, and he
was able to completely overturn the fight, firmly take the initiative, and
suppress Xiong Ju with his attacks.
Xiong Ju found it hard to catch the dragonman youngster’s figure and was even
less capable of retaliating.
For a moment, he could only defend himself passively, becoming a wooden dummy
that was subjected to the dragonman youngster’s painful punches.



****** Chapter 282: Enormous Advantage ******
The dragonman youngster’s accelerating speed grew even faster.
Because his elbows, back, and even the bottom of his feet had sprouted spurting
smoke mounds.
This gave him forward thrust in every direction.
The him from before could never have done this.
Previously, he could only use two spurting mounds on his back, no more than
that.
After ingesting Spring Boxer’s battle experience, the dragonman youngster’s
movement abilities had an enormous upgrade. 
This gave him enough energy to control a third spurting smoke mound.
Since the battle began, Xiong Ju had never sunk into such a predicament!
He was enduring incomparable resentment.
After the dragonman youngster’s speed rose dramatically, the battle tempo
suddenly expanded.
Xiong Ju was unable to adapt to this kind of tempo, and under the dragonman
youngster’s constant surprise attacks, he was unable to use battle skills.
This kind of battle dispirited him.
Xiong Ju angrily raised his head and roared, then ferociously stood up straight
and swung the Gold Flower Hacksaw horizontally viciously.
He wanted to use this to force the dragonman youngster to pull back and give
him space to regroup.
But it was obvious what he was overthinking things. 
This large movement was full of mistakes in the dragonman youngster’s eyes.
A split second later, the dragonman youngster suddenly planted his body nearly
flat to the tiles and then shot out like a gigantic arrow.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster struck Xiong Ju’s calf.
Xiong Ju’s struck calf flew backwards, causing him to suddenly lose his footing
and be tripped by the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster seized the opportunity to use Demolition Fist to
explode Xiong Ju into the air.
Xiong Ju’s legs flew two meters above the ground.
His body was very heavy and quickly fell back down.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster appeared underneath Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju realized things were going terribly, but in the air it was hard for
him to adjust his body in time.
The dragonman youngster struck with his two fists.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
Although Demolition Fist’s fury was blocked by the Flowing Wave Armor, the
remaining power was enough to keep the falling Xiong Ju in the air.
The dragonman youngster blasted yellow flames from his feet’s ring mounds with
all he had.
The strong explosive force, along with his thigh and calf muscles, instantly
rocketed his entire being into the air. 
Xiong Ju had finally adjusted his posture in the air.
He looked down at the charging dragonman youngster, then with the Gold Flower
Hacksaw firmly in his grasp, he lifted it up, then ferociously chopped down at
the dragonman youngster.
This posture was very suitable for using the battle skill [Mountain Splitter].
But the dragonman youngster’s battle tempo was too fast, and if Xiong Ju forced
himself to use a battle skill, it would certainly expose greater
vulnerabilities.
However, even with an ordinary downward chop, as a gold level weapon, the Gold
Flower Hacksaw still had immense attack power.
Faced with the chopping Gold Flower Hacksaw, ring mounds suddenly appeared on
the dragonman youngster’s left arm.
A total of five ring mounds of various sizes flared, and the enormous kinetic
energy produced pushed the dragonman youngster backwards in a flash.
The dragonman youngster easily avoided the Gold Flower Hacksaw’s swing, then
vanished from Xiong Ju’s field of view.
When Xiong Ju relocated the dragonman youngster, the latter was already
ambushing him from the right.
Xiong Ju was thrown towards the ground by the dragonman youngster once again.
The dragonman youngster, by contrast, used his ring mounds to ascend higher
into the air.
In the air, he twisted his dragon tail to effortlessly and quickly adjusted
himself into a diving stance.
He put both hands behind his back, his palms facing backwards.
His perfectly straight body swooped down towards the falling Xiong Ju.
In order to produce the greatest driving force, the 3 ring mounds on the
dragonman youngster’s back, along with the 4 on his thighs and palms were all
constantly jetting with yellow flames.
The dragonman youngster accelerated further as a result.
He was like a shooting artillery shell whose speed stirred up the wind.
Xiong Ju heard the whistling wind approaching him, and quickly threw his arm,
wanting to turn the Gold Flower Hacksaw around.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster ruthlessly rammed him.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist!
The exploding fist smashed into Xiong Ju’s belly.
The Flowing Wave Armor burst with a massive spray of water and was cut into
twain in the middle of Xiong Ju’s belly, exposing the greatest gap in his
defense so far.
Luckily, he still had the silver level leather armor under it.
But Xiong Ju’s body was bent by the attack, his back protruding out.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, then used another battle skill –
Machine Gun Fist.
Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding…
For a moment, blurred dragon fists flew like the rain!
Xiong Ju’s field of view was completely filled with innumerable fists.
His head, chest, arms, legs, and abdomen were punched by those fists.
The pain and fear in his heart leapt up, replacing his irritation and rage.
Xiong Ju realized: if he couldn’t withstand this round of attacks, he would
inevitably lose!
Battle skill – Black Armor!
At the moment of victory or defeat, Xiong Ju used all of his strength to use a
defensive battle skill.
Under these circumstances, this was a massive risk.
Generally speaking, defensive battle skills were used in advance and shouldn’t
be disturbed when used to make them safe and effective.
Xiong Ju’s entire body was being punched in critical areas, and the external
force on his body, along with the pain was also strongly disturbing him.
Battle skills did not always work the first time used.
If the internal battle qi circulation wasn’t complete, it would fail.
At minimum, failing led to coughing up blood, worsening to internal injuries,
near death, and even death!
Xiong Ju had no choice but to take this risk for the sake of victory.
Fortunately, his risk paid off.
Xiong Ju’s foundation was quite strong.
He had tempered many battle skills into instinct.
When crisis came knocking, his instincts would grow more powerful to forcibly
resist formidable external interference and allow him to use his defensive
battle skill.
In a split second, Xiong Ju’s skin turned black and became very hard.
When the dragonman youngster’s fists struck the skin, it unexpectedly produced
sounds of metal being struck.
Meanwhile, Xiong Ju raised his farms to firmly protect his head and curled up
as much as possible to reduce his area of attack.
Machine Gun Fist had a high frequency of attack, but in terms of instant
output, it couldn’t compare to Demolition Fist.
The dragonman youngster was unable to break Xiong Ju’s defensive stance.
Very quickly, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer whizzed over, once again
pestering him.
The dragonman youngster was overflowing with battle intent and didn’t dodge or
evade, continuing to fire away with Machine Gun Fist as the flying hammer kept
pounding at him.
In this manner, the dragonman youngster assaulted Xiong Ju as they fell from
the sky.
Xiong Ju felt to the ground, with the dragonman youngster standing on him,
still beating him up!
“I was actually hit to the ground. Damn it, let me stand up!” Xiong Ju was
incomparably resentful.
Against an opponent of the same level, he had seldom been put in such a
difficult and passive situation.
He had always been on top, while his opponent was underneath him, when had he
every been at such a disadvantage!?
The dragonman youngster was actually the strongest silver level he had ever
faced.
Against the dragonman youngster’s Machine Gun Fist, the Flowing Wave Armor
revealed its design flaws, gaps kept on forming and it could no longer protect
Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju’s leather armor was also struck by Machine Gun Fist and became damaged
in many areas.
He sensed the pain the rainstorm of punches caused, doing his best to maintain
his defensive battle skill to protect himself.
Xiong Ju sank completely into a passive state.
If this continued, and he failed to turn the situation around, the dragonman
youngster would beat him into submission.
However, the Gold Flower Hacksaw had fallen to the side.
Although the Black Bear Armor battle skill was strong, it took more than half
of a body’s battle qi circulation to use.
Under these circumstances, Xiong Ju couldn’t use other battle skills.
But it didn’t matter, he still had his bloodline racial magic.
Racial magic – Bear Roar!
The dragonman youngster saw him open his mouth, already on guard. He suddenly
sighed in exasperation and immediately pulled back.
Xiong Ju’s methods weren’t limited to just that.
He used his spirit to throw the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
After the flying hammer spiraled around, it went to stop the dragonman
youngster.
But the dragonman youngster’s speed was far beyond what it once was, and after
nimbly changing directions, he easily shook off the flying hammer.
A moment later, Bear Roar burst out.
The dragonman youngster was already out of range.
Despite taking the potion Zi Di had given him before the battle, it was not
enough to take on Bear Roar head on.
Xiong Ju quickly crawled back up, gasped for breath, and finally freed himself
from his predicament.
The Bayonet Gang members in the audience were watching the duel on edge, and
when they saw Xiong Ju finally escaping, they all let out a breath, then
shortly after, they let out loud cheers and hoots to encourage Xiong Ju’s
moral, wanting him to ruthlessly take back the bout. 
When Teng Dong Lang saw this, he also let out a breath surreptitiously.
When Xiong Ju was hit up into the air, then back down, his heart was thumping
tensely.
Xiong Ju was only a silver level, he couldn’t fly.
When he was launched into the air, and didn’t have any footholds, he passively
got thrashed.
In this aspect, the dragonman youngster and him had a distinct contrast.
Even though the dragonman youngster can’t fly either, his spurting smoke ring
mounds could give him strong motive power that allowed him to exert himself
even while in the air.
“Fortunately, Long Fu’s battle skill and strength was not enough to keep Xiong
Ju in the air.”
“Xiong Ju’s defensive battle skill also activated at that crucial juncture.”
Teng Dong Lang thought.
The situation just now was an enormous opportunity for the dragonman youngster.
But currently, the dragonman youngster was only strong enough to create this
opportunity to get an advantage and was unable to turn this advantage into a
victory.
Xiong Ju picked up the Gold Flower Hacksaw, lifted it up with both hands, and
gathered himself to continue fighting the dragonman youngster.
The last clash cut too deeply, and now Xiong Ju was very cautious and made a
supreme effort to prevent himself from being hit into the sky by the dragonman
youngster.
Bear Roar had gotten him out his beatdown without a hitch, and he thought about
using again to restrain the dragonman youngster.
However, its actual combat effectiveness wasn’t that good.
The dragonman youngster was very wary of Bear Roar, and his absurd speed
allowed him to smoothly dodge Bear Roar.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer was already having less of an impact.
“Damn it, how is his speed still increasing?” Sensing this phenomenon, Xiong Ju
felt his heart slightly chill.



****** Chapter 283: To My Heart’s Content ******
The dragonman youngster’s speed was indeed increasing.
Despite his prior speed already being his limit.
But now, the dragonman youngster was constantly breaking his limits.
There was one reason for this phenomenon, the Grand Arena Medal.
If the Grand Arena Medal only improved speed, the dragonman youngster wouldn’t
be able to adapt and would show weakness during this duel.
But the Grand Arena Medal amplified all attributes, it didn’t just increase the
dragonman youngster’s speed, but also his defense, strength, dynamic vision,
reaction speed, and so on.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster automatically mastered his limit breaking
speed.
“Fast, too fast. How is Long Fu still speeding up?!” Many spectators were
watching this with fright.
Fewer Bayonet Gang members were cheering and hooting.
Because they all discovered that although Xiong Ju had escaped, he was clearly
at a disadvantage, and his attacks found it difficult to threaten the dragonman
youngster.
Many times, Xiong Ju could only eat the dragonman youngster’s dust.
His moves were wide ranging, and after the dragonman youngster dodged them in a
timely fashion, Xiong Ju’s weak points could be seen from anywhere.
“A chance!”
The dragonman youngster saw Xiong Ju had missed an attack and used Demolition
Fist.
Xiong Ju staggered back, constantly being forced back by the force of
Demolition Fist.
His defensive strategy was adjusted, paying particular attention to certain
attacks from the dragonman youngster.
As long as he was standing on the ground and not hit into the air, his
situation wouldn’t be as terrible.
Battle skill – Machine Gun Fist.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
The dragonman youngster use offensive battle skills one after the other,
forcing Xiong Ju to retreat again and again.
The Bayonet Gang members gradually sank into silence.
All of them could see clearly that their ringleader Lord Xiong Ju was slowly
losing the power to retaliate.
The dragonman youngster’s offensive was as unending as the tide.
He couldn’t help but roar again and again to display the appearance of
strength.
The dragonman youngster felt this was to his heart’s content!
During the battle of Two Eyes Island, he had once battled the gold level
fishman Er Gua Zi directly.
But regretfully, the situation then was dire and as the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ leader, the dragonman youngster had to put the entire group first.
Ultimately, he restrained his desire to duel the strong and chose to retreat at
his own volition.
Although Xiong Ju was not a gold level transcendent, he had great strength and
luxurious equipment on him, making him the strongest opponent the dragonman
youngster had faced on this island so far.
Another crucial thing was that Xiong Ju’s skin and flesh were thick and tough,
and along with his extremely high defense, he became an excellent boxing
target.
The dragonman youngster seldomly had the chance to use his offensive methods as
much as he liked. He couldn’t do that in his magic ship’s training room.
It always felt comfortable using one’s full strength.
As he attacked, the dragonman youngster brought forth his full power.
His spirit and body were highly unified.
His battle qi, battle skills, battle reflection, subconscious reactions, and
other such elements in a fight harmonized and interweaved with each other.
During intense battle, all kinds of factors formed a marvelous chain reaction.
This improvement was not something normal training could give him.
Only in pitched battle where he was going all out could these elements appear
in sufficient amounts, then be swiftly interweaved and become more harmonized
with each other.
The result of this harmonization allowed the dragonman youngster to become
faster and stronger in battle!
His mind and soul seemed to be flying out, like it was detaching themselves
from the shackles of his physical body.
He had never had such a moment before. He could understand the vividness of his
life and sense his own existence.
Every time he charged, every time his feet rebounded from the ground, every
time he punched, every time he crisply felt his fist cave into Xiong Ju’s
body…it all proved his existence.
He was himself!
He was not Zhen Jin, he was not Long Fu, those were just parts of him.
The Grand Arena Medal was also elevating the dragonman youngster’s attributes.
His current speed, strength, defense, and recovery had far exceeded his normal
limits.
Surpassing one’s limits was novel, and the thrill was one people were unable to
stop themselves from continuing.
The constant surpassing of limits was naturally also unending.
“So, my speed had swiftly reach to this extent.”
“So, after my punch becomes this strong, this is how it feels to strike my
enemy!”
The dragonman youngster was becoming stronger at every moment, transcending his
limits every second.
The dragonman youngster’s offensive became as wild as the waves!
Xiong Ju had been beaten back by him repeatedly, he was dizzy and could only
rely on his bodily instincts to weakly resist.
The Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders all looked heavy, some were even subconsciously
holding their breaths.
Xiong Ju’s defeat was wholly visible.
If this continued, he would lose!
The demon hybrid ringleader was sitting in a VIP room alone, he inwardly
grinded his teeth, looking at the dragonman youngster with dense determination.
He then watched Xiong Ju closely, mumbling to himself, “This damned guy, this
idiot! Why aren’t you using the Demon eye I gave to you?”
Xiong Ju forgot.
Such a situation was actually rather normal.
When normal people suddenly got caught up in a fight, their brains would
usually have blanks, their glands would fire, their field of view became very
narrow, and their body and mind were very tense and emotional.
Although Xiong Ju was not a normal person, and experienced countless battles,
he forgot to use some of his equipment.
In fact, Xiong Ju wasn’t a fighter capable of calm analysis.
He was a real warrior.
During this battle, the greater his irritation and hatred were, the more
formidable his fighting strength was. 
His bodily instincts were stronger than his mind.
He was the one who shaped this powerful bodily instinct.
He had gone through innumerable arduous training and battles large and small
throughout his life, gradually forming his current battle style.
This also lead to the prior situation happening.
Although Xiong Ju had the Flowing Wave Armor epaulet and the Small Thunder God
Flying Hammer hanging at his waist, he didn’t prioritize using them.
Because his bodily instincts were placed above his brain, it directed the
fight.
It took the dwarf ringleader reminding Xiong Ju for him to use the Flowing Wave
Armor and Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
“Xiong Ju, use the thing I gave you now!” The demon hybrid ringleader finally
couldn’t restrain himself, sharply shouting.
But Xiong Ju didn’t hear him.
The dragonman youngster had silently activated the acoustics case he was
carrying.
This alchemy device could absorb sound and prevent it from spreading.
Using it inside, one could plot within it.
Using it outside, one could form a tranquil space.
The dragonman youngster had used it to prevent Xiong Ju from receiving
reminders.
He didn’t know whether Xiong Ju had other borrowed equipment on him, but the
Flowing Wave Armor had taught the dragonman youngster a bitter lesson.
Just in case, he decided to take precautions in advance.
To prevent Xiong Ju from getting more reminders.
He was different from Xiong Ju.
Despite carrying the Flame Dragon King Bloodline, using explosive battle skills
and dashing in straight lines, he still fought with his brain.
Regardless of how intense the battle was going; he never ceased his pondering.
The acoustics case blocked the demon hybrid ringleader’s reminder.
While Xiong Ju didn’t notice this small alchemy device being activated.
His condition was worsening, dodging left and right, relying on his beast-like
battle instincts to barely resist the dragonman youngster’s violent attacks.
“Gods damn it!” The demon hybrid ringleader saw his voice had no effect, and
the determination in his eyes became denser.
“Xiong Ju cannot lose, let alone the Bayonet Gang!” The demon hybrid began to
whisper to himself.
Although he was a fighter, he had a demon bloodline.
He had his bloodline’s racial magic!
This gave him the ability to cast to a certain extent.
Despite opening and closing his mouth, the demon ringleader didn’t say
anything.
This was silent casting!
A powerful casting technique.
In terms of this aspect, the demon hybrid was stronger than the dragonman
youngster.
The dragonman youngster also had racial magics like the Life Scorching Dragon
Breath. But every time he used Life Scorching Dragon Breath, it needed loud
chanting of the draconic tongue.
After spending some time, the dragonman youngster could cast the magic. During
this process, his aura was exposed, and his bombastic dragon speech was bound
to attract enemy attacks.
The demon hybrid was in the VIP spectator room, and adding on his silent
casting, he couldn’t be detected momentarily.
He had lent Xiong Ju the Demon eye last night.
Before the battle, Xiong Ju had swallowed the eye, putting it into his stomach.
Therefore, when the demon hybrid used his racial magic, the Demon eye within
Xiong Ju’s body activated immediately.
The Demon eye moved through Xiong Ju’s body and quickly emerged out of it.
The leather armor around Xiong Ju’s chest already had holes torn into it by the
dragonman youngster.
When the Demon eye emerged, it came out of one of these holes.
But Xiong Ju’s outermost layer around his chest was still there, the Flowing
Wave Armor.
This didn’t hinder the Demon eye from locking onto the dragonman youngster.
Because the Demon eye mainly relied on spiritual reactions, rather than line of
sight to spy on things.
The dragonman youngster didn’t detect the Demon eye being activated.
A moment later, the demon ringleader’s mouth curled in a smile, exposing his
merciless killing intent.
He unleashed the Demon eye.
The Demon eye suddenly erupted with a cold gray ray.
The gray colored ray instantly hit the dragonman youngster.
Both sides had been very close to each other, and the dragonman youngster
simply didn’t have time to react before being struck by the Demon eye’s
spiritual beam.
His soul ruthlessly shuddered, and his mind suffered serious damage, instantly
on the edge of collapse.
It seemed that he was just about to use Machine Gun Fist, and by chance, this
caused it to fail.
The battle skill’s failure caused it to backfire on him.
The dragonman youngster’s internal battle qi became chaotic, and he coughed out
scarlet watery blood.
His nose, ears, and canthus all leaked blood as his entire person sank into an
intense vertigo.
For a moment, he couldn’t even think.
His speeding shadow had come to a spontaneous stop, becoming completely
visible.
At this moment, the dragonman youngster was so weak that he was covered in
vulnerabilities.



****** Chapter 284: Crushing the Demon Eye ******
The dragonman youngster’s mind was heavily damaged, and for a moment his body
swayed, barely able to stand on his feet.
Xiong Ju didn’t take this chance to attack the dragonman youngster.
Because he was also in a terrible state.
He had been miserably suppressed by the dragonman youngster, and now Xiong Ju
finally got a pivotal chance to gasp for breath.
He knelt to the ground, leaning on the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
This gold level weapon had become the nightmare of many an enemy of Xiong Ju,
but now it had been reduced to a crutch.
Huff, huff, huff…
Xiong Ju’s mouth was wide open, doing his best to breath. He was covered in
sweat, his vision was fuzzy, and he felt extremely weak.
After a few seconds, he realized the dragonman youngster had stopped attacking.
He quickly looked for signs of his foe.
In his field of view, he was astonished to discover that the dragonman
youngster had stopped moving and was on the verge of collapse.
“What’s going on?” Xiong Ju was puzzled.
When he looked down at his chest, he realized it.
“The Demon eye.”
He had found the Evil Eye popping out of his chest.
“Abominable!” Immense anger leapt from Xiong Ju’s heart.
“It was that damned demon hybrid.”
“He meddled in this heroic duel!”
Xiong Ju’s rage was not aimed at the dragonman youngster, but rather the demon
ringleader who had secretly helped him.
Xiong Ju’s grandfather was an immigrant, but his father had lived his entire
life in Snow Bird Harbor.
Therefore, don’t be fooled by the fact that Xiong Ju was a beastman, he was
actually a wholly indigenous inhabitant of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
From childhood until now, he had accepted the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s cultural
influence.
Despite not having the money to enter college, he still obtained a cultural
upbringing.
Heroic duels were always sacred to him.
To restate: interruptions were fine, but interference was absolutely out of the
question.
“He sullied this sacred duel!”
“This guy lent me his demon eye and also concealed his method. Even if I didn’t
use it, he could still do so remotely.”
“That shameless reprobate, I will make him pay!”
Xiong Ju’s fury rose.
Then at that moment, a spiritual fluctuation came from the demon eye.
The spiritual fluctuation transmitted into Xiong Ju’s mind.
Xiong Ju heard the demon hybrid’s voice saying, “Xiong Ju, I am helping you!”
The demon ringleader’s tone was quite proud, “Attack now! Long Fu has been hit,
he is now at his most vulnerable.”
“Shut up for me.” Xiong Ju bellowed weakly, strong in appearance but weak in
reality.
The demon hybrid sensed Xiong Ju’s mood through the demon eye, then after a
pause, he quickly replied, “Xiong Ju, now is not the time to show off!”
“You must know that if you lose, the other ringleaders, me included, are not
Long Fu’s match.”
“We lent you equipment so you could use it. That means we cannot use them
again. If this equipment was used against Long Fu again, others will definitely
ridicule us.”
“This will also cause outsides to think: our Bayonet Gang doesn’t have much of
a foundation. The ringleaders all had to use their full strength to resist Long
Fu.”
“Therefore, you have to win, to thoroughly eliminate Long Fu, and at best kill
him! That will restore our Bayonet Gang’s fighting prestige.”
The demon hybrid’s killing intent was leaking.
“So noisy!” Xiong Ju grew even more indignant, letting out a curse.
That brief time allowed him to calm down somewhat.
He was no longer gasping for air and his breathing gradually leveled out.
He also regained some stamina and was able to stand again.
The demon hybrid rang through his mind again.
“Get a move on, Xiong Ju! Long Fu is taking medicine; he is quickly
recovering.”
“Wait a minute, I can shoot a second spiritual beam.”
“Long Fu has a weak defense in this respect; this is his weak point and also
your chance for victory.”
“You must seize it, as I said last night, the demon eye can only be used three
times in a battle.”
“Now there are only two left, and when they are depleted, you won’t have
another chance.”
“Grab hold of this chance, and you can win!”
Then a moment later, Xiong Ju suddenly extended his left hand and resolutely
thrusted it into his chest.
Plop.
With a pop, blood splattered everywhere.
Xiong Ju tore the demon eye out of his body!
The demon eye’s feelers that had taken root in his flesh were also ruptured by
this.
Then Xiong Ju squeezed with his left hand.
The demon eye by itself had weak defenses, and simply couldn’t withstand Xiong
Ju’s grip, bursting into a pile of mush in his hand.
Pop!
The moment the demon eye was destroyed, the demon ringleader’s body trembled,
and he coughed out a lot of blood.
His mind shook, and he lost control of his body, falling backwards.
Luckily, he had been sitting.
The demon ringleader sat paralyzed in his chair, his eyes rolled white, his
tongue lolling out his mouth, and his limbs limp. His mind had been severely
damaged, and he sank into unconsciousness. 
It was also very unpleasant for Xiong Ju to destroy the demon eye.
The wound in his chest dripped with a great amount of blood.
“It’s finally quiet.” He took a deep breath, grimacing with pain. The pain from
the massive wound in his chest caused him to drip with cold sweat.
Xiong Ju fully mobilized his battle qi to seal off the wound, quickly
staunching the bleeding.
Soon after, he took out some medicinal power, first sprinkling it on his chest,
then swallowing the rest.
The dragonman youngster was also taking medicine.
After the demon eye’s attack, he was barely able to regain some of his mind.
After having the ability to move again, he immediately took Zi Di’s medicine.
His serious spiritual wounds became minor injuries. 
The medicine also began to affect his body, improving his spiritual defenses
for a short time.
Then, the dragonman youngster saw Xiong Ju pull out the demon eye and crush it.
The dragonman youngster was startled by this, his eyes flashing with
understanding, then he looked at Xiong Ju again, with somewhat complex
feelings.
Most of the audience were confused about the changes the demon eye had wrought
and didn’t know what was happening.
The Bayonet Gang ringleaders knew some of the details and were stupefied by
this.
When Teng Dong Lang noticed that Xiong Ju had destroyed the demon eye, his look
immediately became downcast.
He was the current Bayonet Gang leader, and he had a deep understanding of his
subordinates’ disposition.
At this moment, Teng Dong Lang couldn’t sit quietly, he immediately got up and
quietly left his spectator room to make a beeline for the demon ringleader’s
room.
Xiong Ju gulped down medicine, as did the dragonman youngster.
The fierce fighting suddenly gave way into a strange contest of who could take
more medicine.
This heroic duel really had its twists and turns.
After the dragonman youngster took spirit improvement medicine, he swallowed
some healing potions.
The medicinal effect quickly restored his battle qi reserves.
His fierce attacks had come at the cost of severely depleting his battle qi.
Even with the Flame Dragon King Bloodline, it couldn’t match the expenditure
rate of such ferocity.
Regardless of whether it was Surge, Demolition Fist, or Machine Gun Fist, they
all depleted large amounts of battle qi.
Meanwhile, Xiong Ju took out a precious medicinal bottle that contained three
pills.
Xiong Ju took out one and swallowed it, not bothering to even chew.
Then, he did something that shocked the audience – he tossed the Gold Flower
Hacksaw away.
Teng Dong Lang had arrived at the demon ringleader’s viewing room’s door.
As he was pushing the door open, he saw Xiong Ju eat the pill.
Teng Dong Long felt relieved.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw was very heavy, and such a weapon couldn’t threaten the
dragonman youngster, instead it was an encumbrance on Xiong Ju.
The hacksaw was Xiong Ju’s main way of fighting, and his strongest too.
If Xiong Ju stubbornly wallowed in his habits, then he would inevitably lose.
But at this moment, under the dragonman youngster’s pressure, he broke through
his ego. He decided to abandon his deepest habits and most confident style of
attack.
Xiong Ju raised his fists, his eyes gleaming with resolve.
Next, he decided to use wrestling techniques to continue the fight with the
dragonman youngster.
This was undoubtedly the wisest choice!
Compared to the Gold Flower Hacksaw, Xiong Ju’s fists and feet would increase
his battle tempo and allow him to contend with the dragonman youngster’s great
speed.
“Xiong Ju, you’ve grown.”
“This battle, even if you ultimately lose, will give you immense gains.”
“Remember your choice…”
“It can remake you!” 
Teng Dong Lang sighed out a few words, then forced open the door of the viewing
room the demon ringleader was in.
The demon ringleader had regained consciousness and was currently healing
himself.
The clothes around his chest and chin were stained with blood.
While healing, he harped on, “Xiong Ju, you’re done for!”
“You stupid bear, you dared to crush my eye.”
“I will tell the gang leader; I will make you pay a bitter price!”
“Gang leader?!”
When the demon ringleader saw Teng Dong Long bursting in, he was pleasantly
surprised.
He instantly started to complain, “Lord Gang Leader, you should’ve seen…”
“I saw it.” Teng Dong Lang nodded, coming in front of the demon ringleader.
The demon ringleader stopped healing his wounds as he continued to speak,
“Xiong Ju doesn’t know what’s good for him, I decided to help him, yet he
unexpectedly did this, this…”
Pow.
Teng Dong Lang, with no expression, slapped him with his hand.
The demon ringleader covered his face, and fell onto his seat, foolishly
staring up at Teng Dong Lang.
For a moment, he was struck stupid.
Teng Dong Lang’s eyes were ice cold, “You’re the idiot!”
“Behold your folly.”
“Gang, Gang leader, I was also doing it for the Bayonet Gang…” The demon
ringleader’s eyes were red.
Teng Dong Lang took a deep breath, retraining the anger in his heart, “You
thought you could win with underhanded means? Do you think the thousands of
people in front of your eyes you’re defrauding are all idiots?”
“You aren’t even aware the city lord is secretly in attendance!”
“You better get up right now and clean up this place.”
“The dueling arena’s investigators will be coming very soon.”
“If you are investigated, I cannot protect you!”
The demon ringleader knew the seriousness of this.
He couldn’t attend to his aching cheek as he rushed into action, doing his best
to tidy up all of the traces in the VIP room.



****** Chapter 285: The Victor is Long Fu! ******
The dueling arena.
Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster collided with each other once more.
Their fists and feet greeted each other’s body, seldomly protecting themselves.
This was quite similar to how the fight began.
But it was also rather different, they were both using their battle qi fully.
Unlike when they were probing each other and holding back.
They had pressed their battle qi to their limits, amplifying the might of every
punch.
The surface of both bodies had a faint silver glow.
“This is?!”
After crossing blows for a moment, the dragonman youngster decided to retreat.
He covered his hand with his chest, gazing at Xiong Ju with bewilderment as his
mouth constantly leaked blood.
“Penetration power.”
The answer flashed through the dragonman youngster’s mind.
Although he had amnesia, he still had common sense.
Penetration power was one of the classical battle skill attack techniques, its
characteristics were distinct and everyone knew of it.
“I didn’t expect that the Gold Silk Chainmail would lose its effectiveness
before it broke.” The dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
After Xiong Ju took the pill, each of his attacks had penetration power in
them.
His attacks pierced the dragonman youngster’s defense and reached into the
latter’s body, injuring and damaging him.
This struck at the dragonman youngster’s weak points.
Because the dragonman youngster didn’t have a regular dragonman bloodline, but
rather the Flame Dragon King Bloodline.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline was a dragon bloodline.
The young man assumed a dragonman form because the dragon bloodline was
incomplete.
Right now, he only had a Flame Dragon King bloodline concentration of 33%.
Henceforth, as the bloodline concentration increased, the young man’s form
would gradually distance itself from a humanoid form and shift closer to that
of a dragon.
Eventually, he would transform into a gigantic dragon.
A 33% bloodline concentration had more of an effect on the young man’s external
appearance, turning him into a dragon with a human body.
This meant the dragonman youngster’s internals were still ordinary and weren’t
benefiting from the Flame Dragon King bloodline.
“My armor is ineffective against penetration power.”
“Strange, why didn’t Xiong Ju use penetration power when we tussled before?”
“Was it because he just had a breakthrough in understanding this battle qi
technique?”
“The information report didn’t say Xiong Ju knows how to use penetration power.
There isn’t even rumors of him training himself in penetration power.”
“Was he secretly cultivating this, always hiding this trump card, or did he
have a sudden flash of inspiration and out did himself?”
“Or perhaps this is the effect of the medicine he just took?”
A few guesses quickly flashed through the dragonman youngster’s mind.
“Wait a moment, perhaps…I am not lacking methods that can restrain penetration
power.” The dragonman youngster had a burst of insight.
Before the battle, he had absorbed three sub-dragon corpses.
One of them was the fat ocean dragon abdomen.
After absorbing it, the dragonman youngster gained some of the fat ocean
dragon’s bloodline, along with the corresponding bloodline transformation.
That transformation could increase the young man’s internal fat.
At the time, that transformation was judged to be useless by the dragonman
youngster.
But in the current situation, it seemed…it could help the dragonman youngster
somewhat?
The dragonman youngster wasn’t entirely convinced it would. 
But he did it anyway.
Bloodcore – compound transformation!
A thick layer of fat appeared around his internal organs.
The dragonman youngster charged Xiong Ju again.
Both sides fought in fierce close quarters combat.
Xiong Ju’s penetration power easily brought through the dragonman youngster’s
outer defenses and reached his internal organs again.
But after that, the fat blocked it.
The fat ocean dragon’s blubber was different from normal animal fat.
Its fat balanced toughness and hardness.
The fat ocean dragon could rely on said fat to resist alchemy ballista arrows!
This was the defensive method the fat ocean dragon used to survive.
By virtue of being able to exist and reproduce in this extraordinary world, the
fat ocean dragon’s blubber’s capabilities could be inferred as such.
When the penetration power was blocked by the fat ocean dragon’s blubber layer,
its might greatly decreased.
The fat ocean dragon’s blubber layer jiggled when struck by the penetration
power.
The dragonman youngster had a very low concentration of the fat ocean dragon
bloodline.
The dragonman youngster could only use the Bloodcore to give himself more fat.
After the fat jiggled, it was unlikely that the attack would shake and batter
the dragonman youngster’s internals, rather the Bloodcore would immediately
turn it back into magic.
Soon after, the Bloodcore would transform a new layer of fat ocean dragon
blubber.
There was only one systemic problem, the dragonman youngster had to divert his
attention to control the Bloodcore, enough to constantly transform the fat
ocean dragon blubber layers in and out of existence.
Battle skill – Wreathed in Silver.
Battle skill – Power Punch.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Battle skill – Machine Gun Fist.
Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster fought in close combat, reaching the
climax of the duel.
Both sides used battle skills continuously.
Nearly face to face, their battle skills collided with each other and produced
violent gusts of wind and tempestuous impact waves.
The audience loved watching this sincere combat of the flesh and excitedly
clamored and shouted.
Xiong Ju gradually fell into a disadvantage in this fierce struggle.
But he tenaciously persevered and believed firmly in the strength of
penetration power.
A fierce blow occurred between them, and both sides took advantage of the
reaction force to pull back a large distance.
They looked at each other as they gasped for breath.
Xiong Ju’s muscles were aching and weary, and hot sweat was steaming off of
him.
The dragonman youngster’s mouth was leaking blood, and despite his fat layers,
because of how close the battle was along with the frequency of attacks, it was
very difficult for him to use the Bloodcore.
Therefore, his internal organs didn’t have a refined defense.
His internal organs were quite injured, and he had a massive amount of internal
bleeding, yet the dragonman youngster was standing straight with glowing eyes,
the fighting spirit in his mind burning like a flame, and the more it did, the
greater his exuberance.
Xiong Ju looked at Long Fu. His eyes were sunken, and his face was full of
exhaustion, but his eyes too were filled with the same staunch fighting spirit!
After breathing for a few second, they charged at each other at the same time.
Another round of close quarters combat began anew.
Both sides’ battle qi, stamina, spirit, and willpower were being spent
ardently.
The seven apertures bled, and inner organs were hurt.
The duel continued.
Ribs broke, and the pain drew out cold air.
The duel continued.
An eye was ruthlessly pounded, and it swelled completely, no longer able to
see.
The duel continued.
Not enough stamina, and like an oil lamp running dry, punches were sinking to
as slow as a tortoise.
The duel continued!
The battle between the two became deadlocked.
Their battle qi and stamina had reached their limits.
Whether it was attack or defense, neither were as fierce as before.
The two sluggishly punched and kicked, as if a thousand catty burden was on
them. They were also staggering and swaying. If any suddenly fell to the
ground, the audience would not feel surprised.
However, regardless of if it was the dragonman youngster or Xiong Ju, both were
wholeheartedly dedicated to this duel.
Their sore bodies and exhausted minds seemed to have left them.
Their blood was boiling hot with the carefree pleasure this kind of battle
brought.
Unconsciously, everyone present sank into silence.
In the last round of battle, the dragonman youngster’s acoustics case had been
broken.
The entirety of Snow Bird Dueling Arena could clearly hear their every heavy
breath, every thud their fists made when they hit each other, and the
occasional creaking of their weak bodies.
The silent audience did not show the slightest impatience.
They looked at the two men battling each other fiercely in the arena with
admiration and emotion.
“This is an amazing duel, a wonderful duel.”
“In my many years, I have never seen such a marvelous duel.”
“They are both in a difficult situation precisely because they embody their
tenacious fighting spirit. No matter how loses or wins, it is enough for the
people to admire them.”
“They never had a moment of weakness; Long Fu used his intelligence during the
fight while Xiong Ju used his emotions to empower himself. They are both true
fighters!”
Some transcendents had their craving for battle aroused, and one by one, by
secretly decided that after this duel finished, they would go look for someone
to spar with.
Meanwhile, in the demon hybrid’s VIP viewing lounge.
The investigation staff was in the process of clashing verbally with Teng Dong
Lang.
“We seriously suspect that your gang’s backbone has meddled in today’s duel.”
The two investigators gazed frostily.
“Think clearly of what you just said. Can you assume the responsibility and
consequences of that sentence?” Teng Dong Lang coldly let out.
The investigation staff also took a tough stance, “We were ordained to come
here and have to test this place. This is our Snow Bird Dueling Arena’s right,
and even though you are the Bayonet Gang’s leader, you don’t have the authority
to block us.”
“How impudent!” The demon ringleader held up his fists, forcing himself to get
up and show his teeth full of malice.
The investigation staff held up their chests and didn’t take a step back, nor
did their gazes waver, “I forgot to tell you Lord Teng Dong Lang, our
investigation order did not just come from our dueling arena’s master but also
Snow Bird Harbor’s city lord.”
Teng Dong Lang instantly reached out and pulled the demon ringleader over.
When the demon ringleader heard the city lord was involved, he wanted to flee,
but with Teng Dong Lang blocking him, he sat on his butt and coldly snorted,
not continuing to kick up a fuss. 
The two investigators were both snow elves. They first used magic, then many
kinds of alchemy tools to obtain a verdict.
“Not long ago, someone used racial magic or a spell here. But the specific
magic cannot be detected for the time being.”
When the investigator said that they looked at Teng Dong Lang and the demon
ringleader deeply.
Because their destruction of the scene was too obvious.
The demon ringleader laughed, “Oh? Did you say magic, I saw that this place was
too dirty and decided to use a cleaning spell scroll.”
“Speaking of that, how exactly do you clean this place? You know, you gave me a
terrible experience.”
The demon ringleader made bogus accusations.
The investigator sneered, “Our investigation has reached this result, which
doesn’t mean the others will be the same. Our abilities are limited, but you
should know that there are many more capable people above us.”
“No matter if it is the Lord Arena Master or the City Lord, both can be
dispatched.”
The demon ringleader’s smile suddenly went stiff.
Teng Dong Lang’s brows deeply wrinkled, feeling great trouble.
The at this time, a magic image appeared on the wall, showing the bitter
struggle between Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster.
It also had the quiet ambience of the audience.
When Teng Dong Lang saw this, his eyes twinkled with a sudden idea.
He took out an alchemy device from his pocket.
The Snow Bird Dueling Arena Master was also present.
Teng Dong Lang knew the arena master well, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to use
this seating venue.
Then Dong Lang easily contacted the arena master.
“You see, old friend, I am the one who provided you this marvelous duel.”
“Look at the people’s reaction.”
This duel will be engraved into their memory and will be discussed
enthusiastically for several years.
“Without the conflict between our Bayonet Gang and the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, without us choosing Snow Bird Dueling Arena, this duel wouldn’t have
happened.”
“Shouldn’t you be thanking me?”
“Old friend.”
The communication device was silent for a good while, then the dueling arena
master slowly replied, “You’re not wrong.”
“I should thank you.”
“Let me recall my investigators.”
This is my gift of appreciation, are you satisfied?”
Teng Dong Lang smiled, “Very satisfied.”
When the two investigators heard the communication device, they glanced at each
other, then asked to withdraw.
With this crisis solved, the demon ringleader whistled.
But after Teng Dong Lang glared at him viciously, the demon ringleader quickly
lowered his head and knew it was time to shut his mouth.
Teng Dong Lang had solved his problem and now looked at the dueling arena.
Racial magic – Bear Roar.
Racial magic – Dragon Roar!
Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster roared at each other.
Both tilted their heads back, their vision went black, their buzzed
incessantly, their bodies wavered, and both staggered backwards.
The dragonman youngster recovered first, but his spinning vision was incapable
of finding where Xiong Ju was.
He simply closed his eyes and used his memory to punch blindly.
The fists struck Xiong Ju’s chin.
Xiong Ju’s head tilted, and he fell to the ground with a loud rumble. He went
unconscious and didn’t rise.
The dragonman youngster had exerted himself too much and also fell to the
ground.
But he soon used his hands to push himself up, and after gasping for a good
while, he barely got to his feet.
A dueling arena staff member walked in, and after quickly inspecting Xiong Ju,
loudly declared, “This victor is Long Fu!”
A moment later, the cheers of the entire audience swept through like a tsunami.
“Long Fu, Long Fu!”
Thousands of people shouted the dragonman youngster’s name simultaneously.
Many people sat up from their seats, shook their arms, shouted endlessly, far
more emotional than the victorious dragonman youngster.
Through this duel, the dragonman youngster had established his prestige in Snow
Bird Harbor completely.
In the seating area for friends and relatives, Chi Lai and Men Shi relaxed.
They felt sincere joy and excitement for the dragonman youngster’s win.
“The commander won!” Men Shi radiated with delight.
“This victory did not come easy. This was not just a showdown between two
people, it was more so a confrontation between the Bayonet Gang and our Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.” Chi Lai sighed ruefully.
Xiong Ju had gotten a lot of help from his gang, while the dragonman youngster
had information reports, Zi DI’s medicine and other things that had been
contributed by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps behind him.
“How could the Lord Commander lose?” Lan Zao’s eyes shined, like one who had
foreseen this.
The VIP lounge.
Teng Dong Lang stared at Long Fu in the magic image, his narrowed eyes
glistening with cold sharpness.
The demon ringleader’s lips felt dry, feeling an imperceptible pressure pushing
onto him.
Most of all, he was thinking about when he had to face the dragonman youngster,
when he had to fight such a monster.
He asked Teng Dong Lang for help, “Lord Gang Leader, I am not Long Fu’s match.
I fear the others are the same. It doesn’t matter if we lose, the crucial thing
is our gang’s prestige…”
Teng Dong Lang coldly glanced at him, then said something that pleasantly
surprised the demon ringleader, “Following this, you guys don’t need to act, I
will deal with him personally.”
The demon ringleader excitedly stuttered somewhat, “Lord Gang Leader, if you
fight him, Long Fu has no hope for victory!”
Teng Dong Lang was expressionless, “I didn’t say I would fight him physically.”



****** Chapter 286: Blind Adoration ******
Night enveloped Snow Bird Harbor.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships were still anchored at port in a row.
By Zong Ge’s order, the ships had mercenaries patrolling everywhere, every five
steps was a person, and every ten steps was a sentry post, security was very
tight.
Some mercenaries were rotated out, but they didn’t rest, instead they crowded
around Lan Zao and listened attentively to how the duel played out.
Lan Zao gestured animatedly, enthusiastically describing the dragonman
youngster’s dashing figure during the battle.
“The Bayonet Gang is so shameless, they knew our commander was formidable and
put together the gang’s best gear for Xiong Ju to use.”
“Xiong Ju had at least three gold level equipment on him, while our commander
was empty handed.”
“Xiong Ju’s Gold Flower Hacksaw is very powerful, and he is also quite strong
himself. His bloodline’s racial magic Bear Roar Is very difficult to guard
against, and if one becomes dazzled by it, they will lose the ability to move.”
“The Lord Commander fell into his trap, and was knocked down for a time, with
Xiong Ju using his Gold Flower Hacksaw to cut through our commander’s belly,
filling the air around them with sparks.”
“The entire audience cried out in alarm, believing our commander was done for.
Even Chi Lai and Men Shi also nervously stood up and planned to save the Lord
Commander.”
“Hehe, they just joined our mercenary corps, and don’t have much faith in
Commander Long Fu. This is understandable. Only an old fellow like me knows how
strong the Lord Commander is.”
Sure enough, when Bear Roar wore off, the commander smashed aside the Gold
Flower Hacksaw with a single punch and easily escaped.
“Xiong Ju was stupefied! He had painstakingly grinded with the Gold Flower
Hacksaw for a time yet was unable to even break a single one of the Lord
Commander’s scales. His whole heart chilled. Everyone present was also
dumbstruck; they had never seen such powerful defense! You must know that this
gold level weapon, the Gold Flower Hacksaw, is amazing at restraining armor.”
“After the Lord Commander used his final form, the duel lost its suspense. The
Lord Commander’s final form had been used during the Battle of Two Eyes Island.
Those who had the chance to see it should remember it?” Lan Zao deliberately
questioned.
The mercenaries around Lan Zao listened attentively.
When they heard Lan Zao mention Long Fu’s final form, many mercenaries quickly
raised their hand and shouted, “I saw it, I saw it with my own eyes.”
He excitedly continued, “On Two Eyes Island’s pier, our Lord Commander had a
mystical transformation, becoming wilder and more ferocious! He fought the gold
level fishman Er Gua Zi head on and wasn’t conceding one bit.”
The other mercenaries who hadn’t seen that looked at the talking mercenary with
envy and curiosity.
The mercenary speaking raised his head and showed his pride.
Lan Zao continued onwards, “After our commander used final form, Xiong Ju was
no longer his match. He couldn’t see where our commander was clearly. The
commander was too fast, much to fast! Xiong Ju’s eyes couldn’t catch our
commander, let alone attack with his heavy Gold Flower Hacksaw.”
“However, Xiong Ju is a long renowned silver level cultivator. He continued to
persevere until the end, until our commander knocked him out with a single
punch. Our commander is magnanimous and when he saw he lost the ability to
resist, he didn’t deal the killing blow. If it were me, I would have eradicated
evil completely, such a sinister and contemptible enemy is not easy to deal
with and killing one’s opponent on the spot is wholly within dueling
regulations.”
“After our commander won, the entire dueling arena audience of thousands
erupted into cheers, all of them yelling our commander’s name. It really got
people fired up. That kind of cheering was like a mountain high tsunami that
could drown you in its waves. Only by being there could you truly sense our
Lord Commander’s grandness!”
Lan Zao’s descriptions were mixed with his personal feelings; he strongly
revered the dragonman youngster.
His story caused the mercenaries around him to look on with longing and
yearning.
After Lan Zao finished his account, the mercenaries weren’t satisfied and
didn’t leave, rather they discussed it with each other.
“During the Battle of Two Eyes Island, I knew Commander Long Fu was no simple
silver level.”
“When we were in our ship cabin, our commander was fighting bravely and
protecting us.”
“The Bayonet Gang is Snow Bird Harbor’s local bully, and if we are alone when
we spend our free time in the harbor, I fear these people will be plotting
against us, it is still safer to stay on the ships.”
“Scaredy chicken! I’d just fight the Bayonet Gang. It doesn’t matter that much,
if we can’t beat them, we can set sail and leave the harbor.”
“Also don’t cause trouble for the Lord Commander. After all the Bayonet Gang
has a strong gold level.”
“Even against a gold level fighter, Commander Long Fu won’t have a trace of
fear.”
“Don’t treat our commander as an ordinary silver level. I believe he is
completely capable of defeating Teng Dong Lang, otherwise why would he publicly
challenge him?”
“The Lord Commander has already defeated three of the Bayonet Gang’s
ringleaders in a row, so there are three left. They are absolutely not Lord
Long Fu’s match. So long as our commander prevails over Teng Dong Lang, our
mercenary corps can walk through Snow Bird Harbor. Hehehe…”
The mercenaries thought of their beautiful future, while Lan Zao’s eyes hid a
trace of anxiety.
Lan Zao had spent many years on a ship, traveling extensively and have a wide
horizon. He knew the gap between the silver level and gold level.
This qualitative change was related to battle qi.
Silver level battle qi needed to attach itself to the body, weapons, or
equipment. But at the gold level, battle qi could leave these shackles and
could exist by itself.
Battle qi existing by itself could improve a gold level fighter’s range, attack
methods, and more. Making it nearly analogous to magic.
Of course, the prerequisite was that the fighter knew the corresponding gold
level battle skills.
If one lacked said battle skills, it would be very difficult for a gold level
fighter to display their strength.
“But does Teng Dong Lang lack battle skills?”
“He is the grand Bayonet Gang leader, a position of high weight that controls
many resources. He comes from Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s military, with his
contacts, does he really lack battle skills?” Lan Zao shook his head
internally.
It is even possible that Teng Dong Lang also knows how to use a gold level
flying skill.
Flying battle skills were rare and most gold level fighters would search for
them bitterly without avail.
It was unknown if Teng Dong Lang had one.
At present, it was not feasible to exclude this possibility.
If he could fly, he would have an invincible position and the dragonman
youngster would find it hard to threaten him.
Just as Lan Zao was secretly having worries, Chi Lai and Men Shi were having
their own discussion about today’s duel.
“Our commander is quite fearsome; he is absolutely a peak silver level.
“The Bayonet Gang is also rather strong; we saw during today’s duel that Xiong
Ju had no less than three treasures. Especially during the later stages, when
he strangely mutilated himself to dig out that eyeball.”
Why did Xiong Ju destroy his own equipment?
They had looked into this question.
After Chi Lai and Men Shi discussed it, they believed that it was very possible
that Xiong Ju lost control over the eyeball. Therefore, he destroyed it before
it could backfire on him.
“The information report on Teng Dong Lang shows that the last time he acted was
a year ago. It has been quite difficult to gather any more information on him
from the Thieves Guild. We don’t have a good understanding of Teng Dong Lang,
for he has been hiding in a veil of smoke. Although the commander won, all of
the information on his military power has basically been exposed.”
“Alas, unless Commander Long Fu has more hidden trump cards, I don’t have good
prospects for his duel with Teng Dong Lang.”
Chi Lai and Men Shi had very similar viewpoints.
They maintained a pessimistic opinion of the dragonman youngster’s duel with
Teng Dong Lang.
Their bloodlines determined their upper limits, and the highest they’ll ever
get in their life was just the silver level.
They had already been silver levels for a long time. So they had a clearer
understanding of the disparity between silver and gold levels than Lan Zao and
other people.
It was because of this understanding that they knew how difficult it was for a
silver level to defeat a gold level.
“What should we do, how can we help Commander Long Fu?” Chi Lai looked
dejected.
Men Shi stroked his silver level war hammer, sighing, “Commander Long Fu’s
strength is actually beyond Xiong Ju’s, the reason why today’s fight was so
difficult was mainly due to Xiong Ju’s exceptional equipment. Unfortunately,
Commander Long Fu is an unarmed fighter, if he mastered a few weapons, then he
could deal with Teng Dong Lang with more certainty.”
Chi Lai replied, “Weapons are out of the question, but perhaps we can buy some
armor.”
The two had the same line of thought, both then looked for outside assistance.
Because a fighter increased their strength at a steady pace, there were hardly
any sudden jumps.
Fighters relied on constantly producing battle qi and practicing battle skills
to cultivate, continuously unearthing their body’s potential and slowly
accumulating their progress over a long period of time.
Zi Di faintly coughed.
She had dived down to the Deep Sea Monster Fish with great difficulty.
On Two Eyes Island and Snake Rat Island, the survivors could secretly berth the
Deep Sea Monster Fish on the seafloor near the islands.
They did the same here too.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had nearly perfect camouflage and even though there
was a magician tower right above it, it wasn’t discovered.
However, Snow Bird Harbor’s security was tight, making it very troublesome for
the survivors to return to the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
It took Zi Di a lot of effort to sneak back into the Deep Sea Monster Fish. 
She first went to the captain’s room.
There, she could mobilize the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s functions, command many
investigation type alchemy puppets, along with being able to survey the pier
and ships in all aspects.
On the one hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had Zong Ge on watch and many
mercenaries making the rounds.
On the other hand, numerous investigation type alchemy puppets could help with
scouting and ensure there were no gaps in surveillance coverage.
Through these alchemy puppets, Zi Di could hear what Lan Zao, and the others
were saying, along with Chi Lai’s and Men Shi’s discussion.
“Compared to the bottom level mercenaries, the higherups’ understanding is
closer to reality.”
“Although Chi Lai and Men Shi have just joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
the commander’s personal charisma has convinced them, and it can be seen now
that their loyalty is not a problem.”
“The bottom level mercenaries are gradually starting to have blind adoration.
They believe the commander can defeat a gold level transcendent, that belief
comes from personal feeling and not from meticulous logical deductions and
facts.”
Zi Di believed there were two reasons for this happening.
The main reason was that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been led step by
step to victory by Long Fu. Constant victory made the people complacent and
confident, and the more confident one got, said confidence could turn into
arrogance.
The second reason was because of Lan Zao, Bai Ya, and the others. They adored
and respected the dragonman youngster. It came from the bottom of their hearts
and was exhibited in their speech. Their every word and action daily showed
their attitude and emotions, silently influencing and infecting the others
around them. Of them, Lan Zao had the biggest impact.
Zi Di gradually noticed Lan Zao’s impact.
He not only helped the dragonman youngster on the individual level but was also
capable of influencing the low level mercenaries’ feelings of the leadership
above them.
Loyalty could be passed on.
Zi Di couldn’t help but think back to Mystifying Monster Island, when she
greatly objected to the dragonman youngster taking in Lan Zao. Because for
survival’s sake, Lan Zao had sacrificed his younger brother Huang Zao.
“Now it seems the Lord Commander is right.”
“In this aspect, I am not his equal.”
Zi Di was glad to see the changes Lan Zao was having in the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster needed people like Lan Zao, especially when Zong Ge and
Tripleblade were forming their own small team.
The dragonman youngster needed someone to help keep the lower strata in check
to consolidate his authority.
Both Zi Di and Cang Xu would find it difficult to accomplish this.
On the face of it, it was because they were necromancers, ones who people
fears. The intrinsic reason was due to their background, experience, style of
conversation, conduction, and values, such things were natural barriers with
the lower class people.
After ensuring the dock was secure, and that the environment around the Deep
Sea Monster Fish was also safe, Zi Di left the captain’s room and went into the
alchemy cabin.
Today, she didn’t go watch the dragonman youngster’s duel, because she had more
important business to attend to.
Standing in front of the alchemy formation, Zi Di took out a large pile of
alchemy materials from her storage device.
Due to a lack of materials previously, she had reached a limit to her bloodline
testing and was forced to suspend it.
But Snow Bird Harbor was flourishing and had abundant resources.
Zi Di searched for the entire day, buying many things she wanted.
“Tonight, I should test my bloodline and perhaps get an answer to Lan Zao’s
bloodline too.”



****** Chapter 287: Zi Di’s Bloodline ******
The night was dark, but the Deep Sea Monster Fish’s alchemy cabin was
brilliantly illuminated.
The ghost girl Di Zi floated behind the alchemy formation, her mood somewhat
unstable.
“Tonight’s magic medicine blood measurement will finally tell me what my
bloodline is.”
Bloodlines had an incomparably immense effect on an individual’s life, almost
no other factor could compare to its impact.
For years, Zi Di had imagined countless times how much better things would be
if her bloodline was just more outstanding. 
But that was clearly impossible.
If bloodlines could be changed as one wished, then the world would be changed
beyond recognition.
When Zi Di learned of the Bloodcore’s existence and about the Bloodline
Purification Formation, she was very emotional.
Zi Di was constantly thinking about the Bloodline Purification Formation, of
how it would give her a second chance to change her life!
This kind of chance for her was really impactful and significant.
It was so important that it might completely change her life, so much so that
her entire world would seem to be altered. 
Previously, her magic medicine blood measurement had gotten to a particular
stage.
Zi Di’s bloodline had four possible answers.
They were the Bitter Mouth bloodline, Mix Up bloodline, Gunpowder Flower
bloodline, and King Sunflower bloodline.
The alchemy formation slowly activated.
The formation once again produced a bright white mist.
Zi Di’s blood sample condensed into a small ball, floating above the center of
the alchemy formation.
Due to practice, Zi Di was far more familiar with the process.
She threw in the prepared testing medicine.
The medicine flowed into the light mist and quickly dissolved completely,
turning the light mist into a sandy yellow.
Zi Di’s blood in the yellow light gradually changed into a red ball of light.
At the beginning the ball of light had an irregular and bumpy surface and was
constantly undulating.
After a moment, the ball of light gradually stabilized and turned into a
completely smooth sphere.
When Zi Di saw this, she suddenly let out a breath.
This result had indicated that she didn’t have the Bitter Mouth bloodline.
If it were the Bitter Mouth bloodline, the ball of light would still be
spherical, but its surface would end up being filled with sharp thorns.
But that was clearly not what happened.
Zi Di was hoping she didn’t have the Bitter Mouth bloodline.
The reason was simple: the Bitter Mouth bloodline was only iron level.
If she had that bloodline, then even if she used the Bloodline Purification
Formation, nothing much would change.
Zi Di had already been an iron level during life, and the limit of the Bitter
Mouth bloodline was likewise iron level.
At most, it would increase her strength somewhat, however, her lifelong
achievements would still be restrained to the iron level.
Zi Di continued to throw in medicine.
The medicine completely evaporated in the alchemy formation, turning the yellow
light mist back to white.
In this white mist, the red ball of light gradually changed again.
Something in the ball of light gradually shrank to the size of an eye.
Looking from the outside, the red ball of light looked like a plump eyeball.
The eyeball’s sclera was yellow, and the pupil was black.
Red, yellow, and back, these three colors were clearly separated, none of them
mixed. This indicated that Zi Di’s bloodline was not mixed.
If it was the Mix Up bloodline, then the three colors would be mixed with each
other, and like constantly stirred dye, there would not be a final blended
color. 
Zi Di was inwardly disappointed. 
Because the Mix Up bloodline was a saint level bloodline.
A pharmacist with this bloodline was an expert at mixing different medicinal
ingredients together and easily controlling their proportions, thereby reaching
the planned reactions.
To Zi Di, the Mix Up bloodline was the one most suited to being a pharmacist of
the options.
Unfortunately, she didn’t have it.
Zi Di’s third medicine was put into the alchemy formation.
Every testing medicine was different and had been specially refined by Zi Di.
This testing medicine was absorbed by the red eyeball, causing its form to
slowly change.
The eyeball’s black pupil gradually turned into the shape of a flower.
This change was within Zi Di’s expectations.
Her bloodline now only had two possible choices, one was the Gunpowder Flower
bloodline, and the other was the King Sunflower bloodline.
No matter which it was, both would produce this change.
If it didn’t have this change, then that would be terrible – it would prove a
mistake happened during the testing procedure.
It was possible the testing medicine was wrong or that there was a problem with
the alchemy formation. There were too many places where things could go wrong,
and Zi Di had to start from the beginning and examine every step to see where
the error occurred.
Bloodline testing was so troublesome.
Magic medicine blood measurement was tantamount to using a nonstandard gauge to
weight a mysterious object.
“The next change will determine whether it will be the Gunpowder Flower
bloodline or the King Sunflower bloodline.”
Zi Di subconsciously held her breath.
At this moment, she nervously forgot that she was a ghost, she didn’t need to
breathe at all.
The moment seemed to stretch on and on.
It was obviously just a few minutes, but Zi Di seemed to live through seven or
eight days.
Zi Di unblinkingly stared at the flower in the eyeball sized ball of light as
its color gradually changed.
The black turned to crimson.
Then the outline of the flower pupil also became soft and curved.
The crimson color stretched outwardly, slowly forming the shape of a flame.
It gave people who looked at it a feeling of warmth.
At this moment, the question of Zi Di’s bloodline had been answered.
“It is the Gunpowder Flower bloodline, and not the King Sunflower bloodline.”
Zi DI was very disappointed.
The King Sunflower bloodline was saint level, while the Gunpowder Flower
bloodline was only gold level.
Of the two, Zi Di naturally admired the King Sunflower bloodline more.
But reality was not what you wanted it to be.
Reality was reality, it could not be altered by people’s mere thoughts.
Therefore, saying that you hope one’s wishes come true is a throwaway blessing.
“Thinking carefully, this outcome is pretty good.”
“The King Sunflower bloodline is more suited for magicians that grow medicinal
plants and engage in magical plantations.”
“The Gunpowder Flower bloodline is more suited for making compounds, especially
gunpowder.”
Gunpowder was also a type of medicine, as medicine usually appeared as fine
powder. It was used broadly in firearms, cannons, and other long ranged
weaponry.
Zi Di tried to console herself, to little success.
“Even though the King Sunflower Bloodline is not specifically inclined towards
pharmacists, when refining medicine, the bloodline is still very useful, and
more rounded than the Gunpowder Flower bloodline. Compared to it. the Gunpowder
Flower bloodline only has an advantage when making gunpowder, and even then,
the King Sunflower bloodline is only a bit inferior to it.”
Zi Di deeply sighed, “Alas, I didn’t expect my bloodline to be the Gunpowder
Flower bloodline.”
“Hold on, what am I going on about? To an iron level, this outcome is pretty
good. Why am I not content with my lot?”
Zi DI could only bitterly laugh for a moment.
Mainly because the contrast was too distinct.
Saint level and gold level. The latter could be Lord of a territory, such as
Hun Tong was. While the former could be the backbone of an entire region.
The two were in completely different social classes.
In society, the scenery one’s life had was poles apart with every social class
one rose.
Zi Di’s mentality had a massive disparity, despite being mentally prepared.
Perhaps there was another reason.
During the last magic medicine blood measurement, she had tested the big guy’s
bloodline to be at least legend level.
With such an example before her, Zi Di couldn’t help but fantasize how things
would be if her bloodline was like that too.
But the facts proved she was overthinking.
Zi DI gradually calmed down and slowly accepted the facts.
She began to reflect on how to use this bloodline.
“Magicians with the Gunpowder Flower bloodline are experts at making
gunpowder.”
Zi Di had known of many different types of gunpowder. They all had different
characteristics and effects.
After she obtained War Merchant’s database, she found out that there were many
more types of high end gunpowder, and that when classified by actual combat
results, they were leagues apart from each other. 
After cannons and firearms were invented, gunpowder had a fairly quick and
violent development, and nowadays, there were over a hundred classifications
and dozens of qualities of them. 
“But at present, my group doesn’t need to refine large amounts of gunpowder.”
Zi Di understood clearly that they needed spirit type medicine.
Ones capable of increasing one’s spiritual strength to death with mental
attacks and willpower tampering, among other methods.
But currently, despite having War Merchant’s database’s fine prescriptions, the
spiritual medicines Zi Di could make had a mediocre effect. 
During the duel, the dragonman youngster had taken this medicine beforehand,
yet still became dizzy when hit by Bear Roar.
When dealing with the Evil Eye’s spirit rays, the medicine’s defensive effects
were even more useless. 
Zi Di understood that guarding against sprit type attacks was very difficult.
To ensure real results, she had to use gold level medicine.
But as of now, she could only make small batches of silver level potions, and
her success rate of refining gold level potions was very low.
“If it were the Mix Up bloodline or the King Sunflower bloodline, perhaps I
could increase my gold level medicine refinement success rate. But it is the
Gunpowder Flower bloodline, and it won’t help me much in the early stages.”
When Zi Di thought of that, she sighed again.
Outstanding bloodlines could step across the levels in many aspects.
For example, the dragonman youngster’s Flame Dragon King bloodline could give
him dragon scales analogous to a gold level defense at the silver level.
Zi Di had very high hopes for her bloodline, part of the reason was that the
entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed medicine manufacturing capabilities.
With an outstanding medicine manufacturing ability, Zi Di could sell medicine
and establish a steady profit channel for the entire team and be able to
improve the team’s unhealthy financial situation.
With outstanding manufacturing means, Zi Di could also refine cultivation
accelerating medicine that could help the survivors strengthen themselves
faster.
The Gunpowder Flower bloodline was something the majority of people could
wholly accept as
But when put into Zi Di’s body, and the current Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
reality’s answer did not meet expectations.



****** Chapter 288: Fight Analysis (1) ******
The dragonman youngster didn’t sleep.
In the Love Triangle’s training room, he was watching the recording of the duel
between him and Xiong Ju.
Because of mature alchemy technology, people could easily obtain such
recordings.
Lan Zao, Chi Lai, and Men Shi had joined the dragonman youngster at the Snow
Bird Dueling Arena, and they had made recordings with alchemy devices.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t watch those recordings.
This recording was from Snow Bird Dueling Arena itself.
The dueling arena had more sophisticated alchemy devices, and their recordings
were clearer and more comprehensive than normal alchemy devices. Furthermore,
their viewing distance could be adjusted at will, making it convenient for
watchers to observe each detail of the fight.
If it was a marvelous duel, then after it, the dueling arena would sell the
fight recordings to make a tidy profit.
A portion of these profits went to the duelists, but most of it went into the
dueling arena’s pocket to maintain the dueling arena itself, rebuilding
facilities, doing improvements, and the like. 
Apart from this, the dueling arena also profited from other sources. For
example, they charged a fee on the constant flow of peddlers in the arena.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had all kinds of dueling arenas in it.
These dueling arenas were popular, not only through the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
culture of revering martial arts, but also due to the mature business models of
these dueling arenas.
The dragonman youngster also profited from the duel.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t know the exact amount he would earn.
After all, this was his first time.
Also, he wasn’t focused on the money right now.
After the Battle of Two Eyes Island, the survivors had 70,000 gold coins in
capital. For a short time, money was not a problem.
The dragonman youngster rewatched his fight, for the purpose of continuous
study and review, so he could he stronger!
At the start of the fight, the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju fought with
their fists, neither using battle qi.
“Xiong Ju’s boxing is energetic and heavy, and his wrestling technique is quite
solid.”
“He also had some dirty tricks from street brawls, they were very vicious, and
at the time, I almost ate a loss and chose to scurry from a vanguard
approach.” 
When the dragonman youngster watched it, his memories of it became vivid.
From an observer’s point of view, the dragonman youngster quickly noticed that
he actually had excellent solutions to Xiong Ju’s dirty tricks.
With these responses, he was able to hold more of the initiative during combat.
The recording continued to when Xiong Ju started to use his main weapon.
“After Xiong Ju took out the Gold Flower Hacksaw, his attack power rose
dramatically, and his range also doubled in size. The team’s funds are
sufficient enough, perhaps I should buy myself a gold level weapon.”
This thought appeared in the dragonman youngster’s mind again.
Next, he saw himself using the pair of alchemy crossbows, shooting Xiong Ju
from range.
The dragonman youngster shook his head.
“Although I was relying on the Gold Needle Queen Bee bloodline, and once again
possessed a gift for shooting, I am not a true archer.”
“I am not qualified to be one.”
“Many of the alchemy arrows counteracted each other. If I were a qualified
archer, this wouldn’t have happened. An excellent archer could even use their
arrow type battle skills to amplify the power of their arrows and strategically
integrate their shots together so that their power would be greater than the
sum of their parts.”
“Perhaps, I can choose an alchemy crossbow as my main weapon.”
The recording carried on to when the dragonman youngster found himself on the
ground.
He had been stunned for a brief moment, and Xiong Ju was ferociously slicing at
his abdomen with the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
What caused this situation was Xiong Ju’s racial magic Bear Roar.
In the prior clash, the dragonman youngster didn’t sense it, let alone was able
to dodge it.
In that point in the fight, he from a spectator’s viewpoint quickly noticed
that Xiong Ju had an indicator that showed when Bear Roar was about to be
used. 
However, that sign was not clear and also very brief.
“Remember that sign, if I cross blades with Xiong Ju again, perhaps I will be
able to detect when he uses Bear Roar ahead of time.”
“Anyways, even if I notice Bear Roar, that ability activates too quickly. It
would be nearly impossible for me to evade it completely.”
“Even with my current strongest form that gives me extreme speed, it is still
hard to dodge.”
Magic was unlike fists and swords; they usually couldn’t be avoided through
just evasion.
The dragonman youngster then saw himself use Machine Gun Fist on Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju’s Flowing Wave Armor visibly melted away under Machine Gun Fist.
This peculiar armor had its own weak points; one Machine Gun Fist could
exploit.
“Although I learned Machine Gun Fist last night, it was thanks to Spring
Boxer’s battle experience that allowed me to have a very deep mastery of it.
Today, I was able to use it against Xiong Ju in real combat, with great
results.”
Before learning Machine Gun Fist, the dragonman youngster only had one attack
type battle skill, Demolition Fist.
Comparing the two battle skills was difficult,, each had their own merits and
shortcomings.
Demolition Fist was one hit with massive power. While Machine Gun Fist had far
lower power in comparison to Demolition Fist, however its strong point was that
it could constantly unleash a string of attacks.
When dealing with the Flowing Wave Armor, Demolition Fist didn’t do much, after
all it was just a single strike. While Machine Gun Fist was actually able to
restrain that kind of armor.
It could be said that by learning Machine Gun Fist, the dragonman youngster
complemented a gap in his attack methods.
“How on, this is…” The dragonman youngster decided to pause the recording at a
certain moment.
That moment was when his two fists smashed Xiong Ju into the air.
“What a tragedy!”
“If I was able to follow up that attack and keep Xiong Ju in the air, then I
would have decided the duel then in a smoother fashion.”
“The dilly-dally and bitter struggle afterwards wouldn’t have happened.”
The dragonman youngster hadn’t detected this opportunity for victory during the
battle.
Now that he was watching the recording he immediately noticed that rare
opportunity.
He repeated this section of the fight recording.
Then he noticed that keeping Xiong Ju in the air would have been challenging.
At the time, he had just attacked with all of his strength. It could be said
that what happened was the best outcome.
“My offensive battle skills are limited, and I never had the methods that could
keep Xiong Ju in the air.”
“Xiong Ju was also paying attention to that afterwards, and for the rest of the
battle, he made sure both legs were on the ground, no longer giving another
chance.”
Seeing that, the dragonman youngster had a new realization.
“Actually, when fighting a silver level fighter, if I am able to hit them into
the air, I will hold a massive advantage.”
“There is nothing to gain a footing on in the air, and my opponent will be
greatly limited. Unless they are able to alter their position with equipment or
a skill.”
“As for gold level fighters, the air is no longer a weakness. Even if they
don’t have a flying skill.”
Flying skills were rare, and not every gold level fighter had one.
But even if a gold level fighter didn’t have a flying skill, they could use
their gold level battle qi to move through the air.
The reason was simple; gold level battle qi could exist by itself.
Therefore, so long as a fighter discharged some battle qi into the air, they
could use them as a stepping stone.
“Perhaps I should look into a set of skills and choose a few suitable ones that
I can use in succession.”
“Under that combination of battle skills, I am more likely to toss my enemy
into the air.”
“I only know Demolition Fist and Machine Gun Fist, that is far from enough.”
By quickly switching to different battle skills in succession, an enemy would
find it difficult to protect themselves.
If it was just Demolition Fist and Machine Gun Fist, an enemy would find it
easy to protect themselves.
Xiong Ju in the recording was a living example.
Xiong Ju used his defensive battle skill Black Armor to avert danger.
“Xiong Ju has a good grasp of this battle skill.”
“Later when I absorb the Grand Arena Medal’s experience, his battle skill will
be mine.”
“Machine Gun Fist couldn’t break that defensive skill, in fact, I doubt
Demolition Fist could either.”
“It seems that although Demolition Fist is powerful, I lack a truly formidable
attack method that can fix the tone in a single blow.” The dragonman youngster
realized his inadequacy.
Demolition Fist was just his conventional attack method.
The dragonman youngster needed true offensive trump cards and using them might
require a high price. When they were used, they could instantly erupt with
great firepower and thereby smash the enemy’s defenses.
In this aspect, the dragonman youngster actually had one method.
It was the legend level Flame Dragon King bloodline’s racial magic – Life
Scorching Dragon Breath.
But although this racial magic was formidable, and had once restrained Rou
Zang, its conditions of usage was too harsh.
Normally, it was very difficult to find a chance to discharge it in actual
combat, its battle success against Rou Zang was actually rather hard to
duplicate.
Take today, when the dragonman youngster fought Xiong Ju. Both fought at an
extremely rapid tempo, and the dragonman youngster never found an opportunity
to let lose Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
At the end of the fight, when both were exhausted, the dragonman youngster
didn’t have the strength to use that racial magic.
In fact, using something so powerful was wholly unnecessary.
The recording proceeded to the latter part of the duel.
The dragonman youngster relied on his final form and the speed boost it gave to
miserably suppress Xiong Ju.



****** Chapter 289: Fight Analysis (2) ******
“In the world of martial skill, nothing stands above speed. That is an eastern
empire martial skill philosophy, a reasonable one at that.”
The dragonman youngster seeing it again, found that the origin of this
qualitative change was not just the experience he absorbed from Spring Boxer,
he had also greatly improved the Surge battle skill overnight.
There was one other reason, the Grand Arena Medal.
“This medal really suits duels. The more people paying attention to me and the
longer they do so, the more the medal boosts me.”
“More wonderfully, the medal amplifies all attributes and won’t cause
imbalances in me.”
The dragonman youngster subconsciously clutched it with his dragon claw.
His skin and flesh were aching and weary.
Because today’s fight had depleted him too much, even after resting until now,
he was still in a weak state.
This hadn’t happened before.
Even the Battle of Two Eyes Islands hadn’t worn him out this much.
The moment the feeling of exhaustion spread through his body, the recoding show
him fighting to his heart’s content, forming a distinct contrast.
The dragonman youngster inevitably felt a sense of frustration and yearning in
his heart.
“My true strength was not recorded here.”
“This battle really felt refreshing.”
“I want to become stronger, until one day, I can rely on myself to achieve this
level of power.”
“Getting stronger is the righteous path!”
The recording entered the final stage of the fight.
The demon eye attacked from Xiong Ju’s body.
A grey spirit ray quickly shot out, almost instantly hitting the dragonman
youngster. 
The dragonman youngster muttered to himself, “That eyeball is very weird, and
there was no time to dodge its spiritual ray.”
Soon after, Xiong Ju decided to tear the demon eye out of his body and crushed
it.
Xiong Ju looked very indignant.
When the dragonman youngster saw this scene again, he was more certain of his
guess at the time.
“Xiong Ju wasn’t the one who used that artifact, it was probably outside
interference.”
“Therefore, Xiong Ju was indignant about it and made his move.”
“Based on the intelligence reports, the demon eye has the aura of the Abyss and
should belong to the demon hybrid ringleader.”
“He must have acted in the dark.”
“But to the vast majority of the people in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, heroic
dules are sacred and cannot be profaned. A silver level expert like Xiong Ju is
like them.”
“That was what brought about such an outcome.”
After this incident, the dragonman youngster had a deeper understanding of the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s customs.
“If Men Shi and Chi Lai actually interfered in the heroic duel, then I fear our
end would be dreadful.”
The dragonman youngster pursed his brows in deep thought.
Since the Bayonet Gang decided to secretly meddle in this heroic dule, then
could he exploit this flaw?
After a moment of pondering, the dragonman youngster bitterly laughed and shook
his head.
He didn’t have any evidence.
It would be difficult for him to prove that the demon hybrid ringleader slyly
moved to meddle in the heroic duel.
This was merely his conjecture.
Especially after Xiong Ju had squished the demon eye, destroying the biggest
piece of evidence.
Snow Bird Dueling Arena didn’t detect anything either.
“It seems that it doesn’t matter whether the demon ringleader played a trick.
Since the other side has the guts to do this, it proves that they are confident
they were able to conceal themselves.”
“Even if I investigate now, I fear that the other party has already removed all
of the clues.”
The survivors lacked expert investigators.
In addition, the dragonman youngster was considering the position of Snow Bird
Harbor’s inhabitants.
Were the proletariat masses willing to believe an outsider like him?
The recording finally showed the end of the duel.
Both sides stopped fighting for a moment, doing their utmost to ingest
medicine.
The dragonman youngster let out a wheeze.
“Taking medicine so crazily is not the most effective way to use them. Medicine
has to be absorbed over time when it enters the stomach, and it would be best
to take it in intervals. Such hasty ingestion of medicine will have medicinal
effects offsetting each other. Sometimes different medicinal effects will cause
highly toxic reactions and harm the body.”
“This also exposes another of my failings; my battle qi reserves.”
“Normally it is fine. But when using my strongest form, all my battle skills
will consume large amounts of my battle qi. Even with the Flame Dragon King
bloodline’s recovery speed, it can’t match the depletion rate.”
The dragonman youngster didn’t think that one day he’d have the problem of
having a battle qi shortage.
The last scene of the fight played out before the dragonman youngster’s eyes.
He and Xiong Ju roared at each other, receiving each other’s blow. 
But he recovered first and knocked Xiong Ju out.
The dragonman youngster coughed, summing up everything to himself, “This was a
challenging victory. Xiong Ju is the strongest silver level I’ve encountered on
this island. He himself is powerful and was also outfitted with a lot of
quality equipment, he was exceptionally troublesome. He and I both fought
especially hard.”
“The greatest reason I emerged victorious in this heroic duel was that I came
out on top of this intense confrontation.”
“This included the time I was attacked by the eyeball and was unable to defend
myself. But at the time when Xiong Ju saw I was in poor health, he was only
able to squat on the ground gasping for air, simply unable to grab hold of that
chance for victory.”
The dragonman youngster wasn’t satisfied with one viewing and watched through
another time.
From another spectator’s viewpoint, he gained many more things.
Every time he watched it, he would think back to how he felt, both physically
and mentally.
Why did I choose this tactic?
Why did I attack or defend? What result did it produce?
Was there a better choice?
The dragonman youngster was good at reflection.
Every review and reassessment could give him all new ways of thinking.
Through contrasting notions, the dragonman youngster found his many
inadequacies and places where improvements could be made.
As for what those improvements would be, the dragonman youngster also had a
practical plan mapped out.
He had lightning fast improvement.
This progress was not on the surface.
It was unlike the Grand Arena Medal’s attribute boost, which clearly improved
his attack, defense, and mobility, and speed.
This improvement was rather vague; it was the progression of his ideology.
He was constantly shoring up his foundation. Every minor shortcoming and every
blemish that was improved and refined would make his skyrocketing strength less
ephemeral and unstable.
And the battle with Xiong Ju was an excellent chance to learn.
The dragonman youngster seized this opportunity and exhausted his wisdom to
unearth nutrients that could grow himself.
“I have never encountered an enemy as fearsome as Xiong Ju.”
“Although I can battle gold level enemies, those were just superficial dips
before stopping, they didn’t last.
“Fighting a heavyweight opponent like him was enough to expose my
deficiencies.”



****** Chapter 290: Accidentally Learning Penetration Power ******
The dragonman youngster began to summarize today’s heroic duel.
First point: his attacks needed to be enhanced.
Normally, Demolition Fist was enough to handle the situation, however, when the
dragonman youngster met a truly powerful foe, it was insufficient.
Second point: although his defense was formidable, and was entirely gold level,
it still had flaws cand could be broken through with penetration power.
Furthermore, a previous weakness still existed, his low spiritual defense.
Although Zi Di’s medicine slightly helped in that respect, it didn’t change
things completely. When confronting a powerful enemy, it was an immense weak
point. Thus, the dragonman youngster was constrained by Bear Roar and the Evil
Eye.
Third point: when the dragonman youngster used his strongest form, his speed
had a qualitative change.
This was the biggest factor that allowed him to prevail over Xiong Ju.
Speed was already the dragonman youngster’s strongest attribute, but it still
had room to grow.
The fourth point was recovery rate: when the dragonman youngster was in his
strongest form and attacking at his full strength, his battle qi rapidly
depleted. His bloodline’s recovery rate could not keep up.
His stamina was also like that too.
During his battle with Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster was forced to use
medicine to make up for this deficiency.
After the dragonman youngster thought about it more, he came up with a way to
resolve it. 
For attacks, he could buy a gold level weapon.
At the same time the dragonman youngster also planned to meticulously choose
some more battle skills. These battle skills had to be compatible with each
other, form combos, so when he faced another silver level expert in the future,
he would be able to hit them into the air at best. 
Defense was comparatively difficult to handle.
It was extremely hard to make up for his weaknesses there.
Previously, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ improvement project in this was
pretty good, and the dragonman youngster couldn’t think of a better solution.
But to realize this plan, they needed time and opportunity.
In terms of speed: it could still be improved.
But it required the dragonman youngster to precisely master the size and scale
of every battle qi explosion. This needed diligent study, which would consume
large amounts of his energy and time.
Of course, there were shortcuts. One would be looking for an opponent that was
a master at the Surge battle skill and then using the Grand Arena Medal to
absorb their battle experience.
In the recovery aspect: the dragonman youngster could only entrust his hopes
into medicine, equipment, and other external help.
“My fighting strength is peak silver level already. Battle qi cultivation is
incremental progress, a slow process that needs time for accumulation.
Therefore, within a short time span, I had to rely on external things to
improve my military power.”
“If the mercenary corps’ medicine manufacturing capability was improved by a
level, then that would immediately solve many problems.”
Thinking of that, the dragonman youngster couldn’t help but shake his head,
feeling that he shouldn’t make things difficult for Zi Di in this respect.
Zi Di was only a ghost girl who only reached the iron level in life. She also
hadn’t cultivated as a necromancer for long. Therefore, she was only a bronze
level magician right now.
It was rather quite difficult for a bronze level magician to make gold level
medicine.
“After my duel with Xiong Ju, much of myself has been exposed. While the
information on Teng Dong Lang’s military power is still vague, and in the
future when I fight him, I’ll be at a disadvantage in that aspect.”
“So, during this resting period, I have to improve my strength and increase my
trump cards.”
“The team has sufficient capital, perhaps I can imitate Xiong Ju and arm myself
as much as possible!”
The dragonman youngster had a great longing for and a pressing need to improve
his military strength.
The survivors’ future was uncertain, and they couldn’t say at what moment
imperial experts would come to arrest and chase them down. 
Looking in the near term, the pressure on the dragonman youngster was coming
from the Bayonet Gang’s current leader Teng Dong Lang.
Since he had declared that he wanted to challenge this gold level fighter, he
naturally wouldn’t be getting cold feet.
If he decided to renounce his challenge, the prestige he just established would
take a devastating blow.
“Actually, there is another way that can improve myself overall, and resolve
all of my weaknesses and needs.”
“It is the Bloodcore!”
The dragonman youngster had absorbed the fat ocean dragon abdomen before his
duel with Xiong Ju.
It gave him a Bloodcore transformation, wrapping his internal organs in a layer
of thick and solid, yet pliable fat.
It was this layer of fat that prevented the penetration power from injuring him
too much.
This then led to him completely strangling the last chance of victory Xiong Ju
had.
It could be said that in this heroic duel, the Bloodcore too played an
extremely significant role.
Because of this experience, the dragonman youngster didn’t dare to
underestimate any of the Bloodcore’s transformations.
At the same time, his assessment of the Bloodcore’s practicality rose by
another level.
“The more bloodlines I absorb, the more complex transformations I have. That
can fill in the weak areas and flaws I find in offense, defense, recovery, and
can improve all attributes overall.”
“Doing this not only have the advantage of being easy to pull off but is also
very covert in nature.”
“When I purchase equipment in Snow Bird Harbor, information on it will
definitely be leaked. As the local bully, the Bayonet Gang will be making
discreet inquiries, thereby making their own responses and precautions.”
“If I can gather the right raw materials to gain the corresponding Bloodcore
transformations, then from a production cost standpoint, this will cost less
than buying gold level equipment.”
After analyzing his battle with Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster then
summarized it and formed plans.
He now had a clearer understanding and direction of the future.
The night wind slowly blew through the ship’s flag, its vibrating letting out
noises.
Despite his endless exhaustion, the dragonman youngster didn’t rest, rather he
struck while the iron was hot and clutched the Grand Arena Medal. 
He began to absorb the ample battle experience inside the medal.
The accumulated battle experience inside the Grand Arena Medal was far more
bountiful than last time!
The dragonman youngster spent more time absorbing the greater amount of skills
in it.
He closed his eyes sand sat cross-legged on the floor, taking a good while to
slowly recover.
When he finally opened his eyes again, his dragon eyes were dazzling, coming to
a realization that was difficult to put into words.
It came from Xiong Ju’s vast battle experience.
The first part was his wrestling fundamentals.
Xiong JU was a seasoned fighter!
From a young age, he had scuffled through the streets.  Then after growing up,
he joined the gang and matured in street blade fights. 
In present times, he served as one of the Bayonet Gang’s six bosses and had
experience countless fights of all sizes.
Xiong Ju’s wrestling style sufficiently displayed his formidable physical
strength. His attack frequence was low, but every strike was heavy and
powerful. Because his body weighed a lot, he tended to fight in place and
didn’t move much.
Apart from that, Xiong Ju also had some vicious dirty tricks he could use by
surprise, often to wonderful effect.
He had some similarities and also some differences with the dragonman
youngster.
The first similarity was their physique.
It can be envisioned that as the dragonman youngster absorbs dragon race
bloodlines and constantly improves the Flame Dragon King bloodline’s
concentration, his body would get taller, larger, and more robust. He would
become as tall as Xiong Ju, then grow to be even larger than the latter.
The second similarity was that both were strength type users.
The most obvious difference was this: the dragonman youngster trended towards
constant movement while fighting and rapid breaking of an opponent’s defense.
Through running and dashing, he increased his firepower or attack frequency.
The dragonman youngster didn’t plan on changing his fighting style. Therefore,
in this part of the battle experience, after absorbing the useful parts, he
abandoned the rest that went contrary to himself.
He would say Xiong Ju’s fighting style was too cumbersome. Giving up his
superiority in movement was very stupid.
After absorbing the wrestling experience, the dragonman youngster’s wrestling
fundamentals became very shrewd and ruthless.
Xiong Ju’s battle experience was rich, and he could turn every part of his body
into a weapon.
In this respect, the dragonman youngster was not his equal.
The gap between their ages is shown here.
Xiong Ju was also an adept weapon user. He was skillful enough to use the Gold
Flower Hacksaw and treat it as an extension of his body.
During the heroic duel, Xiong Ju had cleverly used the Gold Flower Hacksaw’s
weight to regain his center of gravity.
When it came to weaponry, the dragonman youngster was far from Xiong Ju’s level
of mastery.
These experiences were very helpful to the dragonman youngster.
The second part of battle experience was about battle skills.
Xiong Ju knew many battle skills and displayed many of them during the heroic
duel.
There was the two handed battle skill Hammer Fist. 
The battle skill Barbarous Collision mixed firepower and movement.
During actual combat, Xiong Ju combined the battle skill Bear Pounce and
Barbarous Collision together to form a small battle skill combo.
At the time, when the dragonman youngster faced that combination of battle
skills from Xiong Ju, he wisely chose to avoid his attack.
However, it can be seen from this that Xiong Ju was not good at mobility. To
get close to the dragonman youngster he had to rely on Barbarous Collision.
The battle skill Total Annihilation and Mountain Splitter matched Xiong Ju’s
Gold Flower Hacksaw.
The dragonman youngster’s Gold Silk Chainmail was ravaged as a result.
The battle skill Black Armor helped Xiong Ju out of danger and allowed him to
stabilize his footing.
If it weren’t for this battle skill activating, the dragonman youngster would
have won the duel then and there.
This specialized defensive battle skill had a very good combat result.
But it also had its shortcomings.
Because the battle skill used a very wide circulation pattern, which caused the
user to be unable to use any other battle skills at the same time.
When Xiong Ju used Black Armor, he couldn’t use any other battle skills,
instead he used his racial magic to force the dragonman youngster back.
If the dragonman youngster wanted to adopt Black Armor, he could make the same
choice as Xiong Ju – substituting Dragon Roar for Bear Roar.
During the fierce unarmed combat section of the fight between the two, Xiong Ju
decided to deactivate Black Armor and instead use another defensive battle
skill – Wreathed in Silver.
This battle skill could protect some parts of the body. It was clearly inferior
to Black Armor in terms of defense.
But Xiong Ju could also use the battle skill Power Punch simultaneously. 
The battle skill Wreathed in Silver and Power Punch worked together, allowing
Xiong Ju to fight the dragonman youngster on even footing.
The two battle skills combined had a pretty good combat result.
Apart from those two battle skills, Xiong Ju used the racial magic Bear Roar a
number of times.
This experience was also very helpful to the dragonman youngster. After all,
Bear Roar was very similar to Dragon Roar.
The third portion of experience concerned equipment usage.
The main part was how Xiong Ju used the Gold Flower Hacksaw. 
With this experience, the dragonman youngster had gone from a novice at using
two handed hacksaw weapons to an experienced user.
But if he wanted to reach Xiong Ju’s level of expertise, one heroic duel’s
worth of experience was insufficient.
Xiong Ju was very experienced with the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
Besides normal attacks, he also used the hacksaw’s flat edge as a shield.
He could throw the hacksaw to help adjust his center of gravity.
When Xiong Ju wielded the Gold Flower Hacksaw, he did so with his own fighting
style. His attack frequency greatly decreased, but each strike’s power rose
dramatically and were very threatening. Against a normal enemy, as long as
Xiong Ju hit them with the Gold Flower Hacksaw, if they didn’t die outright,
they would be seriously injured. Either way the aftermath was grim.
In other words, the dragonman youngster’s gold level defense diminished the
charm of Xiong Ju’s main weapon.
Apart from the Gold Flower Hacksaw experience, the rest of the experience
pertained to how to use the Flowing Wave Armor and the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer.
These experiences were of low practical worth to the dragonman youngster.
Because both the Flowing Wave Armor and the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer
were equipment of unique design and weren’t often seen on the marketplace.
Furthermore, because Xiong Ju had borrowed this equipment, he was very
inexperienced with them.
In real combat, the dragonman youngster had even exploited the Small Thunder
God Flying Hammer to his advantage to launch his counterattack against Xiong
Ju.
Xiong Ju had a lower level of control of these two pieces of equipment.
What was worth paying attention to was that the experience didn’t contain
anything that indicated Xiong Ju used the Evil Eye.
This proved the dragonman youngster’s conjecture during the fight.
But unfortunately, this minute evidence could not be brought forth.
Xiong Ju had indignantly crushed the Evil Eye, and due to that unexpected turn
of events, had annihilated the biggest piece of evidence.
The fourth part of battle experience was the part that most pleasantly
surprised the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster unconsciously stretched his limbs and stood up from the
floor.
The Love Triangle’s training cabin had a humanoid puppet, a specialized boxing
training dummy.
The dragonman youngster walked over to it, then mulled for a good while.
He mobilized his battle qi and used Demolition Fist.
Bang.
He punched the humanoid puppet’s chest.
After an explosion rang out, the humanoid puppet’s chest had a small hole in
it.
The dragonman youngster immediately walked behind the humanoid puppet.
The humanoid puppet had a hole in its back, one far larger than the one in its
chest.
The dragonman youngster’s Demolition Fist had penetrated into the humanoid
puppet, carrying the explosion with it, leading to the resulting impact.
A rich smile emerged on the dragonman youngster’s face.
This was the offensive effect of penetration power!
“The medicine Xiong Ju took gave each of his attacks penetration power.” 
“Through the battle experience I absorbed from him, I have learned penetration
power.”
When Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster were taking medicine throughout the
battle, the former had taken all three of Teng Dong Lang’s pills one after the
other,
This gave the dragonman youngster much more battle experience.
This resulted in the dragonman youngster understanding the secrets of
penetration power.
“This really is penetration power!”
When it came to using battle skill techniques, three techniques stood as the
most classical. 
Penetration power was the first among them and was very difficult to learn.
Due to unexpected circumstances, the dragonman youngster had gained it after a
battle!



****** Chapter 291: Formation Construction Plan ******
The dawn’s light illuminated Snow Bird Harbor’s docks.
The color of the sky gradually brightened.
First to awaken was the food market, which was gradually filled with clamorous
voices of transactions.
On the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships, mercenaries that had been on night
watch sleepily yawned and began to change their shifts.
In the flagship’s training cabin, the dragonman youngster had an exciting and
sleepless night.
He was constantly trying to use penetration power.
After absorbing Xiong Ju’s battle experience, the dragonman youngster had
gained the ability to use penetration power.
This unexpected gain had given him an exceptionally pleasant surprise.
In any case, in practice, there were still some problems.
To ensure each strike had penetration power, the dragonman youngster had to
focus for a moment.
This was obviously not practical in actual combat.
Take when he and Xiong Ju fought at a rapid tempo, it would have been
impossible for him to have any chances to prepare himself.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster was constantly practicing.
Like with the other experience he absorbed, the dragonman youngster’s usage of
penetration power swiftly improved as he trained, progress clearly visible with
every session of practice.
He unwittingly trained through the night.
By the time dawn rolled around, he had ensured that when he used pure battle
qi, he could bring forth penetration power.
When using Demolition Fist, his success rate of attacking with penetration
power had reached 70%.
Machine Gun Fist’s success rate was somewhat lower than that.
But the dragonman youngster was confident that in the wake of more practice,
his success rate would increase.
Zi Di stealthily returned from the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
She first showed her face publicly to deal with some affairs.
Normally, when she wasn’t present, an alchemy puppet pretended to be her. 
Cang Xu was like that too.
These two alchemy puppets had been given Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spells, with no hints of flaws.
Therefore, to the other mercenaries it seemed that the magicians Lao Zhong and
Hong Teng had always been on the ship and hadn’t gone off on their own.
Many of the tasks that Cang Xu would have dealt with now fell on Zi Di’s
shoulders due to his absence.
When breakfast came around, Zi Di still hadn’t seen the dragonman youngster.
She went to the training cabin to see the dragonman youngster alone.
The dragonman youngster had been immersed in practicing penetration power and
was startled to find that it was breakfast time when Zi Di came over.
The dragonman youngster paused his training.
The alchemy puppet had been ravaged beyond recognition, devastated beyond
repair.
Zi Di’s gaze paused on the alchemy puppet, unable to make out the secret of
penetration power.
She was more concerned about the dragonman youngster.
Seeing that her beloved was covered in sweat and hadn’t slept all night, Zi Di
inevitably became distressed.
She knew that as their leader, the dragonman youngster had to face a gold level
expert, the psychological pressure on him was massive.
“I have some good news.” Zi Di smiled, using a clever method to comfort the
dragonman youngster.
She told the dragonman youngster what she had gained last night.
“I finally determined my bloodline; it is the gold level Gunpowder Flower
bloodline!”
“In other news, Lan Zao’s bloodline hasn’t been determined yet. But last night,
I have made some headway in his bloodline archive paths.”
When the dragonman youngster heard it was the Gunpowder Flower bloodline, he
faintly stared at her, soon feeling pity for Zi Di. 
Previously, he had learned that Zi Di’s bloodline had four possibilities.
Of the four, two of them were saint level bloodlines.
After finding out the big guy had a legend level bloodline, it was hard for the
dragonman youngster to not have high hopes for Zi Di’s bloodline.
But in the end it was not a saint level bloodline.
After thinking on it, the dragonman youngster comforted Zi Di, “The future is
uncertain and anything is possible.”
“In the future, when we get stronger, and have a deeper understanding and
control over the Bloodcore, we can use it to change our bloodlines. Like how I
am now, able to adjust my bloodline at will.”
“At that time, a saint level, or even a legend level bloodline won’t be worth
our attention.”
Zi Di gently chuckled.
Last night, she had already adjusted her attitude.
Now, she felt the full romantic happiness from the dragonman youngster’s
consoling.
The ghost girl shook her head and replied, “It is so far off before we will be
able to completely grasp the Bloodcore’s secrets. Right now, I am only looking
forward to the Bloodline Purification formation.”
“I am actually quite satisfied with the bloodline testing results. At least my
bloodline isn’t the Bitter Mouth bloodline. The Gunpowder Flower bloodline is
gold level and has great potential. As I am now, it has plenty of upsides. By
the time I unearth all of my potential, it won’t be too late to look at the
Bloodcore again.” 
“The issue at hand now is that we need to build the Bloodline Purification
formation as soon as possible!”
“But we are a long way off from completing it.”
To be honest, Zi Di was unable to hold herself back now, especially after she
had determined her bloodline.
Upon mentioning the Bloodline Purification formation, Zi Di was inevitably
anxious, “Cang Xu and I had been constantly researching the Bloodline
Purification formation’s alchemy blueprint.”
“To ensure the construction of this alchemy formation, we need a master
alchemist’s help.”
“Based on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ current capabilities, recruiting a
master alchemist is as difficult as scaling the heavens.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, he understood how truly hard it was.
Master alchemist was a type of title, one of six ranks in the profession.
Ranked lowest to highest it was apprentice alchemist, alchemist, master
alchemist, great master alchemist, grandmaster alchemist, and great grandmaster
alchemist.
The grading rating of an alchemist was based on an individual’s alchemy
ability. But as a matter of fact, one’s professional ranking and their magician
level were strongly related.
Because many alchemy items needed a high level magician to refine them.
Only those with sufficient strength had the ability to guarantee the success
rate.
Generally speaking, an apprentice alchemist was a bronze level magician.
An alchemist was iron level.
A master alchemist was silver level.
Finally, a great master alchemist was gold level.
Above that, a grandmaster alchemist was saint level.
A great grandmaster alchemist was legend level. War Merchant was a great
grandmaster alchemist and was himself a legend level magician.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to recruit a great master alchemist,
which meant that they wanted to recruit a gold level expert, a gold level
caster at that.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was only a small sized power, Long Fu and Shi
Qi were just silver levels.
As a power of that scale, it would be nigh impossible for them to recruit a
gold level caster.
Zi Di said with vexation, “Recruiting a gold level caster is obviously
unrealistic. I am more inclined towards an alternative plan – using quantity to
make up for quality.”
“We can recruit silver level master alchemists.”
“Through their combined efforts, the plan to build the Bloodline Purification
formation has a high chance of success.”
Of course, the success rate would be lower than having a great master
alchemist.
A great master alchemist could guarantee the Bloodline Purification formation’s
success rate.  In other words, they had a 100% chance of success.
The Bloodline Purification formation’s construction requirements were not too
strict. Its most central and crucial component was the Bloodcore, which was
provided by the dragonman youngster.
Recruiting silver level alchemist for a joint project.
The success rate was approximately 60%, that was entirely acceptable. If this
plan was adopted, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had to prepare much more
alchemy materials for the formation construction. With many attempts, one would
eventually work.
If it were Zi Di and Cang Xu working together, the success rate would be too
low, it would be less than 3%.
Such a success rate could not be made up for with stockpiles of materials. The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would need to spend too high of a price for it.
There was no need to be so stubborn.
The dragonman youngster suddenly had a thought, “Can we not recruit a silver
level great master alchemist?”
When he said that, the dragonman youngster laughed involuntarily, knowing how
stupid his question was.
If a magician attained the title of great master alchemist at the silver level,
then that would prove their extraordinary gifts in the field of alchemy.
Such a talented person was positive to be treasured by a power; one they would
focus on nurturing. How could the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps swipe them away?
The dragonman youngster thought about it, then asked, “If we cannot recruit
alchemists, would it be feasible to hire them, using magic contracted to
maintain secrecy?”



****** Chapter 292: Invitation Letters ******
Zi Di shook her head. “I considered that plan of action too. Naturally that has
a chance of success and can allow us to more quickly make the Bloodline
Purification formation.”
“But doing that is too risky!”
“Magic contracts seems reliable, but in actuality, there are many ways of
breaking them.”
“Like how theft and anti-theft technology alternately advance, so too do does
the game of contract making and contract breaking play out perpetually.”
“Magic contracts will invariably be broken, and then more stringent magic
contracts will be created. After more advanced methods are made, more advanced
ways to break magic contracts will arise. This back and forth is an endless
cycle.”
“Me and Cang Xu once explored this plan many times.”
“Compared to drafting magic contracts, we instead considered a more dependable
plan.”
“That is to break the Bloodline Purification formation into many parts. We can
employ outside alchemy masters to build a part of the formation.”
“We can hire different alchemy masters to obtain different parts of the
formation. After collecting all of the parts, we can put them together.”
If that happens, we can obtain the Bloodline Purification formation with
minimal information leaks.”
“But doing that is also quite risky.”
“First, despite being just a part of the formation, it will divulge the secret
that is the Bloodline Purification formation.”
“Second, when it comes time to assemble it, we need excellent alchemy skill,
from at least a master alchemist. In this aspect, neither I nor Cang Xu are
qualified. If the assembly does not succeed and parts are damaged, we will have
to re-refine them again.”
“Third, If the Bloodline Purification formation is broken up into parts, it
will involve two steps. Step one is to break the blueprint up, something that
is impossible for me and Cang Xu. Step two, we need to refine formation plates.
These plates are divided into the main plate, the secondary plate, the
distribution plate, the foundation plate, the base plate, and so on. This
involves advance alchemy technology like formation disassembly, formation
support, and formation plate refinement.”
“The tower spirit can break up the Bloodline Purification formation, but it
will take a large amount of calculations.”
After the survivors had obtained the tower spirit, it had been silently
performing an important function.
It could help a magician control formations and increase medicine refinement
efficiency.”
It could also preform calculations that could improve recipes and formations
and was also able to design some simple blueprints.
“The first step can barely be surmounted, but there is nothing we can do to
cross the second step. It isn’t possible for us to refine formation plates.
Leaving aside the rare and treasured alchemy materials needed, we will need at
least a great master alchemist to make them.”
The dragonman youngster paused to rub his sore head.
After all this talk, the problem returned to square one.
The problem of talent!
The survivors needed a great master alchemist or a master alchemist.
Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster, “I believe the most dependable plan is
still recruitment. We need loyal and reliable people by our side.”
“The Bloodline Purification formation’s impact is too great.”
“If it is exposed, every power in the world will seek after it.”
“Our enemy will not just be the Sheng Ming Empire, but the entire world!”
“This significant secret must be defended to the death, and the optimal
strategy is to pinch it off at the source! We now need to take the more
conservative stratagem, so future risks will be smaller. If this secret is
leaked, it will be too troublesome, so big that we will be unable to deal with
it, it will undoubtably land us in a dire place.”
The dragonman youngster nodded repeatedly, approving of Zi Di’s viewpoint.
“But then again, there is a silver level alchemy great master in Snow Bird
Harbor. She is not part of any power.” Zi Di had a somewhat inexplicable
expression when she said that.
The dragonman youngster knew who she was talking about.
On the first day they arrived at Snow Bird Harbor, they had bought a lot of
information from the Thieves Guild.
In these information reports, there was intel on the many talents of Snow Bird
Harbor, focused mainly on those in the field of alchemy.
Zi Di was talking about a female snow elf named Bu Quan.
She wore black framed glasses and had many alchemy workshops in Snow Bird
Harbor.
She was, without questions, one of Snow Bird Harbor’s lead figures.
The dragonman youngster sighed, “Recruiting her is extremely difficult, I don’t
have any hopes of doing so.”
But Zi Di replied, “It isn’t impossible. As long as there is a thread of
possibility, we can still try, right?”
“Lord Commander, you might not know about it yet. After yesterday’s heroic
duel, your prestige now from what it was previous is as far as the distance
between heaven and earth.”
“When she said that, Zi Di took out a pile of letters.
These letters were all invitation letters without exception.
They universally came from Snow Bird Harbor’s great powers.
These powers were inviting the dragonman youngster in hopes of forming a closer
connection with him.
After the dragonman youngster fought Xiong Ju, he had completely established
his renown.
The people were realizing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strength.
From this pile of invitation letters, one could make out that the dragonman
youngster’s goal in initiating heroic duels was half complete already.
This was the world of the strong. Only when one’s strength was acknowledged
could they get respect and be qualified to have relationships.
The dragonman youngster quickly read through the invitation letters.
The six great merchant alliances of the Sheng Ming Empire all sent him a
letter, with some containing a few small gifts.
The letter contained their cordial attitude, expressing that they wished to
form a business relationship with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Merchant alliances and mercenary corps had a close relationship with each
other.
Despite the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ star rating being a trifling one star,
the dragonman youngster’s duel yesterday revealed his individual strength and
style.
Therefore, the six merchant alliances tossed him an olive branch.
Snow Bird Harbor’s mercenary corps also sent letters.
In these letters, they explicitly stated or hinted that they wanted to buy some
alchemy arrows.
During the battle between the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju, the former had
used alchemy crossbows. The alchemy arrows’ combat result then was pretty good
and moved the hearts of many people.
Evidently, the hearsay that an arms merchant was the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ backer had spread like wildfire across Snow Bird Harbor in the wake of
the dragonman youngster’s popularity.
There was also an invitation letter from the Seabird Church.
The Seabird Church’s bishop personally inviting Long Fu to join them in the
next prayer session.
The written intent was very clear.
The most luxuriously adorned letter came from Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord.
The invitation letter was written on black paper, and its surface was covered
in gold and silver lines that depicted the city Lord’s family name.
After opening the letter, many magic images flashed by inside it. 
These images depicted the many iconic locations of Snow Bird Harbor.
The final last magic image was that of the city Lord himself.
He was a middle aged snow elf with slender eyes and gorgeous clothing. He sat
upright with a hand on a brown scepter, putting on an air of nobility.
This invitation letter was a lower level alchemy item.
After the magic image dissipated, some words appeared.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was inviting the dragonman youngster to a one on
one dinner with him, there was an important matter to discuss.
After beating Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster had become Snow Bird Harbor’s
most popular figure.
The people accepted that the dragonman youngster had the strength to threaten
gold levels.
Xiong Ju was the head of the six bosses, and he had already been defeated by
the dragonman youngster. The remaining three ringleaders were not Long Fu’s
opponent.
What surprised the dragonman youngster was the last letter, it actually came
from the great master alchemist Bu Quan!
In the letter, Bu Quan expressed that she wanted to give the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps a mercenary mission.
It was undoubtedly a way to get close to Bu Quan, get an understanding of her,
and a great chance to recruit her.
“How does it feel to be famous?” Zi Di waited until the dragonman youngster
thumbed through all of the invitation letters, tilting her head slightly when
she teased him.
“Without question, it is glorious.” The dragonman youngster smiled, confessing
his fine mood.
But soon after, he faintly pursed his brows.
Because he took note that all of these letters had come from large powers.
None from any small powers.
Large powers didn’t consider the Bayonet Gang’s attitude.
While small powers generally feared the Bayonet Gang. Therefore, at this time,
they chose to maintain distance from the dragonman youngster.
Bu Quan was the only exception.
From her invitation letter, the dragonman youngster could see she didn’t fear
the Bayonet Gang.
Be aware, she was only a silver level caster who had her property in Snow Bird
Harbor.
From this, one could make out the aloof independence an alchemy great master
had in their status and position.
Recruiting such a talent would be extraordinarily difficult for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.



****** Chapter 293: Dragon Rider ******
The dragonman youngster’s voice was tranquil, “The Bayonet Gang is undoubtably
a colossus in Snow Bird Harbor.”
“I initiated a heroic duel to sway the Bayonet Gang’s position and prestige.”
“Most people enjoying where the crowds are, and many of them harbor
unfathomable motives. They are looking forward to the Bayonet Gang and our
mercenary corps to become deadlocked, exposing our weakness and
vulnerabilities, then act against us!”
“We are already standing in the heart of the struggle; we must be careful and
prudent.”
“Based on how things proceeded today, we have displayed our strength and have
achieved our original objective.”
“Next, we need to control the scale of the fight, we cannot allow it to expand
or intensify the conflict.””
“After my duel with Teng Dong Lang, the outcome at an individual level doesn’t
actually matter.”
“Of course, I maintain my desire for victory.”
When Zi Di heard the dragonman youngster say this, she couldn’t help but show
her appreciation and loving admiration.
The dragonman youngster was not just a fighter, he was more so an excellent
leader.
He could look at the big picture, recognize reality, analyze pros and cons, put
himself second, and issue policy that most suited the collective.
He was very reliable leader and could put the people at ease.
The dragonman youngster continued, “As for these invitations, I will tactfully
reject them, even Bu Quan’s invitation.”
“I have thought of a good justification already.”
“During my fight with Xiong Ju, I was injured by penetration power, and I need
a time of self-cultivation.”
“What, penetration power?” Zi Di suddenly grew worried.
“Of course it is a lie. It is merely an excuse.” The dragonman youngster
smiled, then explained himself.
He had also told Zi Di his conjecture about the Evil Eye, deciding not to
conceal it.
“In addition, I would like to tell you some good news. After I absorbed the
experience from the Grand Arena Medal, I unexpectedly learned how to use
penetration power.”
That information caused Zi Di’s eyes to widen.
The girl’s eyes flashed with heartfelt happiness for the dragonman youngster
“That is amazing! I know comprehending penetration power is always
challenging.”
“That is an immense gain!”
“I didn’t anticipate that the Grand Arena Medal was a way of learning how to
use penetration power.”
“I look forward to what expression the Bayonet Gang’s higherups make when they
hear about this. Hehe, Xiong Ju took three penetration power pills, but his
chances of learning how to use penetration power is quite low. They wanted to
use penetration power to deal with you, but as a result, they handed it over to
their opponent.”
“Hold on, can this method be utilized again?”
“In the future, can we purchase penetration power pills, then use the Grand
Arena Medal to cultivate some capable subordinates into grasping penetration
power?”
When thinking of this, Zi Di looked vexed.
“What a pity, penetration power pills are rarely seen on the marketplace. They
are only ever seen at auctions and sold at a very high price.”
“Alas, War Merchant’s database doesn’t have the recipe for penetration power
pills. The Eastern Temple tightly safeguards that recipe vigorously. IF we want
to buy penetration power pills, we need special channels and contacts. Just
being wealthy is not enough.”
The dragonman youngster burst into laughter and gently flicked the bridge of Zi
Di’s nose, “What are you thinking?”
“I already know how to use penetration power and also have the Grand Arena
Medal.”
“We just need to give the Grand Arena Medal to another and have them fight me.
During that fight, I will constantly use penetration power.
“If that happens, can’t the person grasp penetration power through the absorbed
battle experience?
“Huh?!” Zi Di looked endearingly silly.
She was a pharmacist, and her line of thinking was geared towards medicine,
thus, she made a foolish mistake.
After reacting, Zi Di couldn’t help but sigh, “The Grand Arena Medal really is
useful. In light of this method, we don’t need to make batches of penetration
power pills for our fighters?”
But the dragonman youngster hesitated, “We can try, but such a thing might not
be so simple!”
“It is reasonable to say that although the penetration power pills and the
Grand Arena Medal are rare, as long as a large power is willing to pay the
price, it is possible to possess both of them.”
“If this kind of method could work, a large power would have done it already.
But I have never heard of an example of this working.”
Zi Di approved of this analysis, “Perhaps there are other obstacles we don’t
know about in this, but it is worth trying.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “I plan to attempt it with Zong Ge first.”
“If he can learn penetration power, it will greatly improve ourselves.”
Zi Di hesitated for a bit, but still nodded, not expressing any objections.
The dragonman youngster muttered to himself, “The battle against Xiong Ju
caused me to realize that at my current strength, I fear I am more likely to
lose against Teng Dong Lang.”
“Although losing against a gold level is something everyone can understand.”
“But if I can defeat Teng Dong Lang in a heroic duel, the gains will be
immense! It will be the most favorable outcome for the mercenary corps.” 
“Therefore, I want to use this excuse to rest and fight for more time. During
that time, I will do everything I can to strengthen my military power.”
“What I need most is time!”
“The more time I have to prepare, the stronger I will be.”
“Externally, we must buy all the gold level equipment we can.”
“I also need to gather biomaterials the Bloodcore can absorb.”
“Any bloodline transformation can give me unexpected assistance.”
“For example, when I was facing penetration power, the fat ocean dragon’s
blubber helped protect me in a pinch.”
Zi Di nodded repeatedly, cutely complying, “My Lord, I will obey.”
“Using penetration power is a good excuse.”
“I believe that even the Bayonet Gang will also be deceived. Because Xiong Ju
really did take penetration power pills and they don’t know about the
Bloodcore’s existence.”
“They will believe that you barely endured the pain to defeat Xiong Ju, while
in actuality, your internal organs have been gravely injured.”
“Such internal injuries cannot be discerned from one’s outward appearance.”
“The outside world is looking forward to the Lord Commander’s confrontation
with Teng Dong Lang, but with this excuse, everyone will approve and accept a
delay.”
“You were the one who incited the heroic duel, and so you control the
initiative.”
“The Bayonet Gang is a colossus, but they can only passively wait for your
challenge. In this aspect, they are in a completely passive position. As of
now, their three remaining ringleaders and their gang leader must be feeling
quite uncomfortable.”
Zi Di giggled with a charming smile.
The dragonman youngster looked solemn, “Don’t underestimate the enemy.”
“They are a gang and might use treacherous tricks.”
“Didn’t they interfere in the dueling arena? Snow Bird Dueling Arena is Snow
Bird Harbor’s largest dueling arena, yet they detected nothing.”
Zi Di’s smile vanished, and she conscientiously replied, “I have made plans.”
“Next, we must gather alchemy materials on a wide scale.”
“The focus will be dragon corpses, gunpowder flowers, and other materials to
magic blood testing medicine.”
“As we have an arms merchant backing us, long term and extensive alchemy
material gathering is justifiable. There is no need to explain ourselves,
outsiders will have thought of what our reasons are.”
“To deal with Teng Dong Lang, we need to procure as much gold level equipment
as we can. However, this is very liable to be thwarted by the Bayonet Gang.”
“Finally, we need to peddle medicine and establish preliminary sources of
steady income.”
“I have already chosen a good medicine; it is called Dragon Rider.”
This medicine is to be given to a mount. For a short time, it can give that
mount the strength and stamina of a dragon.”
“We have already investigated the marketplace here, and found that there were
many medicines for mounts, but none of them will be able to compete with Dragon
Rider.”
The dragonman youngster rapidly recalled what he heard and saw, as well as the
great amount of intelligence reports he purchased.
He couldn’t help but applaud Zi Di’s choice.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy technology was fairly developed, and it
possessed numerous alchemists and master alchemists.
After all, the main race here was snow elves.
Elves had better magical gifts than humans.
Normally, when medicine made for a person’s consumption is put on Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s marketplace, the competitive pressure would be fierce.
Zi Di’s choice could even be said to be finding an alternative, having mounts
be the target.
Crucially, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had many mounts.
The most common was sled dogs.
There were giant sled dogs capable of hauling heavy goods by themselves and
there were conventional sled dog packs good at working together.
Apart from sled dogs, there were also horses, deer, and chocobos.
On the costal port cities, there were also dolphins, walruses, seals, sea
horses, surfing starfish, and other aquatic mounts.
“Even though I am not a professional, I also think that the Dragon Rider
medicine will have great sales here.” The dragonman youngster commended Zi Di,
“In this field, you have always been astounding!”
Zi Di enjoyed her sweetheart’s compliment, laughing, “We should thank War
Merchant most of all. His database contains so many medicinal recipes. I only
needed to choose a suitable one, that’s all.”
Zi Di spoke modestly, but in actuality, most people couldn’t do this.
Her business talent was outstanding.
Only with such business talent and ability could she pick the best medicine out
of a sea of choices.
“By the time we get stronger, we’ll be able to make much more medicine.”
“These medicines will all absolutely be market competitive!”
“We stand on the shoulders of a great grandmaster alchemist.”
“In addition, if in the future we can find a place to securely and secretly
manufacture alchemy munitions, that would be even better.”
“Many people witnessed yesterday’s heroic duel, those are our potential
customers.”
The ghost girl’s eyes glistened gold when she thought of the wonderful scene of
her making especially large profits in the future.
The survivors had narrowly escaped Mystifying Monster Island.
In great dangers, there was also great opportunities.
But most of the things from Mystifying Monster Island could not be liquidated.
Only with sufficient strength could they make money out of them!
As president of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, Zi Di had a profoundly deep
understanding of this.



****** Chapter 294: Fighting Zong Ge ******
Ding.
A clenched dragon claw hit Zong Ge’s forearm.
At that moment, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were fighting in the Love
Triangle’s training room
Zong Ge was a weapon great master, he was capable of using almost every type of
weapon in a menacing fashion. Compared to his weapon mastery, his unarmed
combat was undoubtedly a bit worse.
Even so, Zong Ge’s hand to hand skill was very solid he was steady and struck
hard, simple and effective. Those traits matched each other and had a
militaristic style.
The Gold Silk Chainmail and the Grand Arena Medal were being worn by Zong Ge.
Zong Ge was mainly defending against the dragonman youngster’s assault.
The dragonman youngster’s every attack had penetration power!
After some fighting, the dragonman youngster stopped attacking.
Zong Ge stared at him and asked, “What’s going on?”
The dragonman youngster pointed at his nose, “Your nose is bleeding.”
Zong Ge nonchalantly wiped it clean, replying boldly, “An insignificant injury
not worth mentioning. Continue!”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “Internal injurie are difficult to
judge from the outside, you better rest for a bit first.”
Zong Ge didn’t insist on it.
He stood in place, drank a potion and smeared some other medicine across his
body. 
The medicine had decent effects.
Zong Ge felt his chest tightness and short breathing quickly dissipating after
using the medicine.
His external superficial injuries also visibly recovered.
This medicine had been quickly refined by Zi Di this morning to protect against
penetration power.
Before the dragonman youngster started sparring, Zong Ge had taken some
medicine that helped protect his internal organs.
After Zong Ge took the medicine, he sighed, “I have taken at least three
dosages. Penetration power really is strong; the Gold Silk Chainmail is
practically useless. It’s no wonder so many people rush like ducks for this
battle qi technique and spend loads of energy and time pursuing it constantly.”
Zong Ge had little grasp of battle qi techniques.
The biggest reason was his age.
He was still very young.
He was already a weapon great master and had become an excellent general. His
life level was close to the gold level, with his silver battle qi already
having a trace of gold luster, he was tantamount to being a half step into the
gold level.
These were already immense accomplishments.
Of course, Zong Ge’s bloodline also had a significant impact on this.
The vast majority of people in this world could not reach his pace, no matter
how much time and effort they put in.
Bloodline talent decided one’s life.
Many things decided by birth could not be done through hard work.
In such a world, if things like the Bloodcore or the Bloodline Purification
formation were exposed, it would stir up incomparably huge trouble.
Zong Ge was also a very hard working person.
He certainly knew the benefits of battle qi techniques. But he had to spend a
lot of time and energy training to learn one.
Zong Ge chose to spend his time and energy in more productive areas.
His choice was very sensible.
Generally speaking, those pursuing battle qi techniques were those who had
reached the limits of their individual strength, those who had unearthed all of
their potential.
Under those circumstances, they pursued battle qi techniques because it was a
possible way of getting stronger. 
Zong Ge was nowhere close to pursuing battle qi techniques.
Of course, when he learned the dragonman youngster had quickly grasped
penetration power through the Grand Arena Medal, he was moved by it.
Because the learning cost a fighter paid for this was extremely cheap!
If one only needed to pay a small price to learn penetration power, was there
no reason not to?
After Zong Ge rested, the two continued sparring.
“The accumulated experience should be enough; you can use it now.” Not long
after, the dragonman youngster stopped again.
According to his directions, Zong Ge sat cross-legged on the floor and began to
use the Grand Arena Medal.
A moment later, he opened his eyes.
His eyes flashed with inspiration.
“Interesting, so this is how using the Grand Arena Medal feels…”
This was Zong Ge’s first time using the Grand Arena Medal, it felt rather
novel.
“How is it?” The dragonman youngster asked.
Zong Ge pursed his brows, “There is a lot of experience, mainly made up of
penetration power, but I cannot grasp it.”
The dragonman youngster smiled, unconcerned, “If the first time doesn’t work,
then we can test it several more times.”
However, the following tries all failed.
“How strange, why was I able to succeed on the first try?” The dragonman
youngster felt perplexed.
“It doesn’t matter how many times I fail, not even 10 times. As long as I try
enough, I will succeed eventually.” Zong Ge greatly coveted penetration power.
Following this…
“Another try!” Zong Ge firmly wiped his bloody nose.
Zong Ge began to bleed from his eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth.
“Another…cough, cough.” Zong Ge spat out blood.
Despite so many tries, he was still unable to control penetration power.
He certainly absorbed experience pertaining to penetration power, but for some
unknown reason, he could never get it.
“We have tried so many times; it shouldn’t end like this.” The dragonman
youngster’s brows creased.
“He continued to hypothesis, “Could it be because I didn’t use my full
strength?” 
The most obvious difference between their sparring now and the heroic duel was
that Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster were truly fighting with everything
they had.
While during this sparring, the dragoman youngster held himself back, worried
that he’d hurt Zong Ge.
“Maybe, the Grand Arena Medal is dependent on the intensity of the fight?” The
dragonman youngster thought of a possibility.
“Makes sense.” Zong Ge muttered, “The god who made the Grand Arena Medal,
Serene Fury, belongs to the demon race. He has battle clerics, and his sect’s
doctrine always reveres fighting with your enemy with your full strength. Our
spar was not that intense.”
From its nature, the Grand Arena Medal was no ordinary alchemy treasure, rather
it was a sacred tool.
Sacred tools were similar to divine artifacts; they were the gods’ (or the
clergy’s) and were made from divine power.
Of course, some included alchemy technology, but the core of them was divine
power and divine spells.
In the vast majority of circumstances, only a clergy using divine power of
their church could use a sacred tool.
Divine artifacts were more stringent with their usage. Normally, one needed a
god to bestow their permission or otherwise be a pope. Red clothed archbishops
or other types of high ranked clergymen could not use one as they wished.
The survivors were in a special situation.
They had two divine artifacts, the Mermaid Fairy Tale and the Greed Jade Gold
Coffin. (The Bloodcore was uncertain.)
The gods behind these two divine artifacts were either fallen or were on the
brink of doing so. Their control of these divine artifacts were at its lowest
point.
The survivors had dug into this loophole and were able to utilize these two
divine artifacts.
The reason why they could was due to War Merchant.
Without that legend level great grandmaster alchemist leaving behind his
foundation, the survivors would have found it incredibly difficult to use these
divine artifacts.
Even so, they were never able to display the divine artifacts’ true power.
Returning to the Grand Arena Medal.
It was a very special sacred tool. Its creator, the demon god Serene Fury
wanted this sacred tool to be given to outsiders.
Zong Ge thought that since the Grand Arena Medal came from Serene Fury, it
would reflect the demon god’s disposition, doctrine, and clergy, among other
things.
Serene Fury encouraged fighting with everything one had and was certain to
loath fraudulent fisticuffs.
Serene Fury would not have enjoyed the dragonman youngster’s and Zong Ge’s
spar. 
Perhaps, this was the reason for the Grand Arena Medal’s low efficiency.
His conjecture had logic to it.
“We can actually fight to validate that theory.” Said Zong Ge.
That sentence caught the dragonman youngster’s interest.
The two looked at each other, both seeing the other was eager to give it a try.
On Mystifying Monster Island, the two had competed with each other, but never
had a real scrap against the other. Because survival was the main focus and
beating each other up would cause stupid internal friction.
After escaping Mystifying Monster Island, despite constantly fighting, the
dragonman youngster and Zong Ge never had an actual spar with each other.
They had a complex relationship.
They were comrades and also rivals.
They both held high positions and had to consider the team (despite Zong Ge not
having good prospects for the survivors). They didn’t want to fight each other
rashly, for no matter who won or lost, it would have a negative impact on the
group.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, enduring the battle intent in his
heart, “Speaking of which, we really didn’t use our full strength during this
spar.”
The dragonman youngster’s progress was quick and violent, but Zong Ge’s arm had
been healed, and his battle qi cultivation was distinctly higher by a bit more.
The latter’s battle qi had a gold luster within it.
The dragonman youngster did not know as many battle skills as Zong Ge. 
The dragonman youngster had outstanding defense, and his current final form
fundamentally changed his speed, while Zong Ge had that pair of mysterious
short spears that were most certainly not ordinary.
Everyone, including the dragonman youngster guessed that those short spears
were Zong Ge’s trump card, and using them had a high price. The short spears
were filled with a mysterious character. Even in the most critical moments on
Mystifying Monster Island, no one saw Zong Ge fighting with them.
“Yep.” Zong Ge gazed into the dragonman youngster’s eyes, not covering his own
battle intent.
“Regrettably, there isn’t an appropriate place for us to have a real battle
here.” Zong Ge looked around the training cabin with frustration.
Although the Love Triangle’s training cabin had carefully selected materials
and was a hidden place, if the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge fought here, it
would destroy it beyond recognition.
In fact, the entire Love Triangle would be unable to withstand it.
It was only an iron level magic ship.
“Snow Bird Harbor has many dueling arenas; we can contract one for a private
battle.” But when Zong Ge said that he shook his head.
It wasn’t appropriate to do that in their current situation.
The Bayonet Gang was the local tyrant here, and they were surely paying very
close attention to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and they were constantly
making discreet inquiries on the important members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
If the two really did have an all-out fight in a dueling arena, then the
Bayonet Gang would almost certainly learn that the dragonman youngster could
control penetration power.



****** Chapter 295: The Young Man’s Main Weapon ******
The dragonman youngster would be dueling Teng Dong Lang in the future.
Penetration power was a great trump card, and if it was exposed like that, it
would be such a pity.
Zong Ge sighed, “The ship can’t stand it. Even if we sail out and look for an
uninhabited island, the conditions haven’t been met sufficiently.”
“I still need better medicine to resist penetration power.”
Zi Di supplied a lot of medicine, including those that were silver level.
But when Zong Ge used them, he noticed they was inadequate.
The dragonman youngster defended Zi Di, “She is just a bronze level magician,
and wanting her to refine gold level medicine is making things too difficult
for her.”
“We can buy some from the Secret Medicine store.”
“Even if they don’t have any now, we can place an order.”
Zong Ge nodded, “Next, I will teach you.”
After saying that, Zong Ge returned the Gold Silk Chainmail and the Grand Arena
Medal to the dragonman youngster.
Zong Ge then asked, “Have you considered it yet? What will be your main
weapon?”
The dragonman youngster spoke honestly, “As of now, I am considering a crossbow
or a firearm.”
“By choosing a crossbow, I can improve my deficiency in long range attacks.”
“If Teng Dong Lang has a flying battle skill, I will be mainly relying on a
crossbow or a firearm.”
Although the dragonman youngster could forcefully displace himself through the
air, that was through Surge working in concert with the spurting smoke dragon
ring mound transformation.
This kind of displacement could bully Xiong Ju, but it was far from being close
to gold level flight.
After muttering to himself, Zong Ge shook his head, “You have the fundamentals
of shooting, but that isn’t enough.”
“Your battle with Xiong Ju is proof of that: silver level crossbows with
alchemy arrows was not enough to threaten him.”
“Therefore, you need have at least a gold level crossbow or firearm.”
“But even doing that is insufficient.”
“If you want to sufficiently display a crossbow’s might, you need to pair it up
with all kinds of archery battle skills.”
“Generally speaking, qualified archers need to have at least three archery
battle skills.”
“Comparatively outstanding archers know even more of them, about 5-6.”
“I experienced a few archery experts myself; they knew at least 10 archery
battle skills.”
“I know 4 archery battle skills and War Merchant’s database has many more.”
“The crucial problem is time. Even with the Grand Arena Medal, there is not
enough time for you to learn those before you duel Teng Dong Lang.”
“Using penetration power as an excuse won’t give you enough time.”
Long ranged weapons like crossbows and firearms were quite easy to use, while
simultaneously placing the user at a safe distance.
But the advantages of long ranged weapons also had their disadvantages too.
After arrows and bullets were shot, a fighter had low control over them.
Even an ordinary person, as long as they practice martial art techniques, could
evade those arrows and bullets.
Therefore, one needed battle skills to change the flight trajectory of arrows
and bullets.
Archery battle skills could also increase the might of ammunition, lessen
interference, form combinations, and so on.
Only by doing this could monotonous fire become complex and be hard to defend
against.
If one only knew one or two archery battle skills, they wouldn’t be very
threatening.
A long ranged fighter not only needed to invest in increasing their battle
skills, but they also needed to have the money to support their ammo
consumption.
Arrows and bullets were expendable goods. The price of a single arrow or bullet
wasn’t high, but during a battle, it was impossible to fire only a few arrows
or bullets.
With many drops making an ocean, these arrows or bullets could become a
gigantic sum of money.
The more one fought, the more one’s personal finances were tested.
The dragonman youngster understood what Zong Ge was saying, and was willing to
accept his view, thus, he dispelled his thoughts of choosing a long ranged
weapon as his main weapon.
“What do you suggest?” The dragonman youngster asked.
Zong Ge explicated stated, “I suggest you chose a close quarters weapon.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyebrows wrinkled, “Then if Teng Dong Lang has a
flying battle skill, I will be very passive.”
Zong Ge nodded, “Not just passive, you have no chance of winning.”
“Your opponent is a gold level.”
“There is a giant gap between silver levels and gold levels.”
“Your dashing through the air via explosions is very crude. It’s decent when
dealing with silver levels, but against a flying gold level, it will expose
many weak points.”
“Therefore, if Teng Dong Lang can fly, your best response is to find a way to
concede with dignity.”
“There is no need to fight an impossible battle, right?”
The dragonman youngster’s face stagnated.
Zong Ge’s words were not pleasant to hear but were indeed reasonable.
Zong Ge continued, “Luckily, based on our current intelligence reports, Teng
Dong Lang doesn’t possess a flying battle skill.”
“Envision engaging him on the ground, close ranged weapons are far more of
threat to him than long ranged weapons.”
The dragonman youngster asked, “In that case, what weapon should I chose, which
one fits the best?”
Zong Ge had obviously thought on this question and blurted out, “The
appropriate weapon is one that can restrain the enemy, and will best display
your superiorities, you need to play to your strengths.”
“Teng Dong Lang’s bloodline is the Winter Blue bloodline, he has many ice
attribute battle skills, and his main weapon is a long whip, a medium-ranged
type weapon.
“While your current greatest advantage is your speed. Your high frequency of
unarmed attacks can force the enemy to be caught up in your quick tempo.”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes suddenly lit up when he was told that, “Do you
mean claw sheaths or boxing gloves?”
But Zong Ge shook his head.
He looked at the dragonman youngster’s dragon claws.
“Your hands are already natural weapons, and I believe they will get sharper in
the future; it is unnecessary to drag legs on a snake.”
Zong Ge and Tripleblade knew the dragonman youngster had kept the Bloodcore
when they left Mystifying Monster Island.
They surmised that the Bloodcore was crucial for the dragonman youngster’s
various beast transformations.
The dragonman youngster had clearly gained the spurting smoke dragon
transformation, among others, after they left that island.
Therefore, Zong Ge had guessed that in the future, the dragonman youngster’s
beast transformations would develop further.
Zong Ge continued, “Axes and swords do suit you. To deal with Teng Dong Lang’s
long whip, you need cutting damage.”
“In addition to that, short spears and hammers are also not so bad. The former
can pierce through an opponent’s defense at a single point. The latter is
compatible with your battle qi and can increase the power of your explosions.”
Zong Ge was worthy of being a weapon great master; he had a deep understanding
of all types of weapons.
He carried on, “According to your current fighting style, short spears are the
most suitable for you. Because your two offensive battle skills exert force
similar to a short spear’s thrust. It will take a minimal amount of time and
energy for you to grasp how to use a short spear.”
“With hammers, the round melon shaped hammer best suits you. When Xiong Ju was
swinging a square hammer, he needed to pay attention to which direction he was
moving it towards. Regardless of whether it is a square or round hammer, it
will need to have a short shaft and not a long one.”
“Your speed advantage is very clear, and you don’t need to put time and effort
into attack range. Because you can dash at an opponent with your rapid
displacement and attack them directly.”
“A short weapon will make full use of your fighting style and won’t impair your
superiority in high frequency of attacks and having a rapid tempo.”
“When choosing weapons like axes, knives, and swords, you can follow the
aforementioned principles.”
“Those three are nearly identical to you.”
“If you want to choose one, see what you like.”
“Of course, the main thing we are looking for is what we can buy right now.”
“What the specific type of and of what quality the equipment is very crucial.
Zong Ge gave his suggestion, it was voluminous and had many penetrating
insights.
His suggestion was full of sincerity.
Like how the dragonman youngster treated him, Zong Ge also wanted to help the
dragonman youngster from the bottom of his heart.
The two had quite a complicated relationship.
They were comrades and competitors.
They were open-minded types of people, they didn’t want to suppress the other,
rather they wanted to support the other, then use the other’s strength to
validate themselves, encourage themselves, and make themselves stronger.
After some reflection, the dragonman youngster decided to pick a short spear
for the time being.
He thought of the short spears Zong Ge had on his back, perhaps that signified
that out of all the weapons, Zong Ge was the best at using short spears.
From this angle, through absorbing Zong Ge’s battle experience, the dragonman
youngster’s growth of using short spears would be more effective.
Although the tower spirit could not refine iron and silver level weapons, it
could rush out a few ordinary short spears that were usable.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge both held a pair of short spears and began
to train.
The dragonman youngster challenging Teng Dong Lang was not him acting alone, it
was a major event for the entire mercenary corps.
To help the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge decided to give up training the Quick
Knife and Backwater battle squads.
He had trained troops before, and now he was training the dragonman youngster.
While resting between bouts, he made every second count to talk about his
insights as well as point out the dragonman youngster’s abnormalities. He was
doing his utmost and wasn’t withholding anything back.
Time flew by.
The two were so immersed in it that they forgot lunch.
Zi Di came by with food, so the two stopped for a spell to wolf it down. 
The ghost girl found out about how Zong Ge’s attempts went, as well as what the
two hypothesized on why they failed. Then after a round of fighting, she took
out a set of medicine. 
She said to Zong Ge, “The medicine you wanted is right here. The main one is
gold level and has a strong defensive effect against penetration power. The
other three are silver level medicine with different helpful effects, plenty of
them can increase your defense, and others heal you.”
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge felt curious.
Zi Di told them, “Of course I didn’t refine these, rather at noon, someone gave
this as a gift.”
“Using gold level medicine as a present?” Zong Ge grew more curious, “Who would
have so much sincerity?”
Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster, and the latter guessed, “Could it be
Bu Quan?”



****** Chapter 296: Giving the Dragonman Youngster Presents ******
It was logical for the dragonman youngster to surmise it was Bu Quan. 
He knew Bu Quan was an alchemy great master and had many alchemy workshops in
Snow Bird Harbor. Someone with her status and strength would find it far easier
to give gold level medicine than an ordinary person.
He also knew that Bu Quan had sent him an invitation letter, saying they had a
mercenary mission she wanted to discuss, giving her a motive.
Both of them combined led the dragonman youngster to this conjecture.
But Zi Di shook her head and told him and Zong Ge, “The gold level medicine
isn’t from Bu Quan, but Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord.”
This morning, after Zi Di and the dragonman youngster had their discussion, she
had told the outside world that the dragonman youngster needed to rest.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord had learned that the dragonman youngster had been
wounded by penetration power and decided to gift this batch of medicine.
Zong Ge responded, “Penetration power is very rare, but Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord was able to immediately provide medicine focused on it. Doing this is not
so easy.”
Zi Di analyzed, “According to our intelligence reports, Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord was born into one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s great noble clans.”
“His contacts and channels obviously surpass the Bayonet Gang’s.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, showing his agreement.
The top powers in Snow Bird Harbor were the four gold levels. It could be said
that the first amongst them was considered to be Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord.
Zi Di continued on, “The City Lord’s people didn’t just send this gold level
medicine, he also invited the Lord Commander to dinner again. The messenger
specifically mentioned that it will be worthwhile for you to attend.”
“Anyways, I already tactfully refused on your behalf.”
The dragonman youngster replied, “The right decision, since we declared we
needed a period of self-cultivation, that will be carried out. If we opened up
for the city Lord here, it would be hard to explain to others.”
Both the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were treating this as a brief
interlude.
After lunch, they continued practicing.
The dragonman youngster was visibly improving!
Because this time, he not only had the Grand Arena Medal helping him, but Zong
Ge too.
Zong Ge was absolutely a qualified teacher.
To be more precise, he was an excellent military instructor!
Zong Ge was very savvy at training troops, and when it came to training the
dragonman youngster, he was just as effective.
“In just an afternoon, your short spear mastery has gone from nothing to an
experienced user. Under normal circumstances, a soldier needs at least 5 years
to get to your level of mastery.”
The dragonman youngster’s progress was fairly immense, and Zong Ge was deeply
moved by this.
“Another thing.” When Zong Ge said that he looked at the dragonman youngster
with somewhat complicated feelings.
“You are a natural fighter!”
“You are very good at learning, and your comprehension is quite high. You have
the highest comprehension out of anyone I’ve met.”
The dragonman youngster was somewhat hesitant, “Really? The more I use the
Grand Arena Medal, the more I can feel its value. During training, there are
many things that are hard to convey with or cannot be articulated with words.
However, when I use the pertinent experience from the Grand Arena Medal, and
pour that profound meaning into myself, I am given a shortcut that can bypass
the language barrier.”
But Zong Ge shook his head, “I didn’t mean that. Don’t forget, I also used the
Grand Arena Medal and know how the battle experience it gives helps me.”
“Your learning talent is quite astounding, perhaps you haven’t realized it
yet.”
“Before you started absorbing battle experience from the Grand Arena Medal, it
had happened many times already. So long as you put in the hours, you can learn
the essentials and deduce many things from a single instance during training.”
“The more significant phenomenon I noticed is after you learned many moves, you
were able to fine tune them.”
“Is that so?” The dragonman youngster’s eyes widened slightly, feeling puzzled.
Zong Ge affirmed it, “You don’t feel it yourself, but it is what makes you so
valuable.”
“Because your body self corrects and adjusts.”
“The movements I taught you came from me, and my body is different from yours.”
“These movements suit me and were the produce of hard work and numerous
revisions, while you, who just started to learn and practice them, have grasped
them.”
“But so long as you know them a little, your body can adjust itself, the
adjustments are very small, but very fine. After these adjustments, these
things will become things that fit you.”
“Don’t look down on this.”
“Many people don’t have such improvements and will use another’s things for
their entire lives.”
“Through long periods of diligent training, battle, and the polish of fierce
fights, experts are able to adjust themselves.”
“A fighter’s talent is not just about their mind, but also about their bodies
too.”
“This is different from those scholars.”
“I can say for sure that your fighting talent is quite good, quite astounding.”
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but lament in his thoughts, “The Flame
Dragon King bloodline is worthy of being legend level!”
Zong Ge continued, “Now think back to when you learned penetration power.”
“Your fighting talent should have played an important role in that.”
Zong Ge had trained many soldiers and had been born into a great noble family.
He had a wide horizon and from childhood had experienced all kinds of elite
figures.
His assessment of the dragonman youngster’s talent was apropos. 
When the sunset glow filled the sky, Zong Ge stopped training.
“Based on today’s rate of progress, in three days you will have a deep mastery
of all of the techniques I have taught you.”
“They will be combat ready.”
“I have never seen such unprecedented improvement. Don’t divulge this wantonly,
especially to our mercenaries.” 
“It will negatively affect and heavily impact their daily training.”
Zong Ge intentionally reminded him before leaving.
If others knew about this, that someone did in three days what took them five
years, it was sure to severely disturb their state of mind.
The dragonman youngster was relying on the Grand Arena Medal, Zong Ge, as well
as his outstanding fighting gifts to make mind startling training results.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge entered the dining room together.
At this time, Zi Di came over to them.
Zi Di brought over a blanket and put it on the table.
This attracted the dragonman youngster’s and Zong Ge’s gaze, while
simultaneously making them feel a bit puzzled.
The blanket was a reddish brown, it was made of soft fur, tight knitting,
portrayed an exquisite design, and emitted a silver level aura.
Zi Di presented it, “This is the warm current sleeping blanket. It itself has
no healing capabilities, but it can increase the medicinal effect of other
things. It can spread the effects of magic medicine evenly across a person to
ever corner of their body or concentrate it on an injury.”
“By a conservative estimate, the warm current sleeping blanket can improve the
healing effect of something by 30%.”
“Its practical qualities are not in doubt. It can help any medicine heal you.” 
After the dragonman youngster heard this, he suddenly understood what was going
on.
“This kind of practical equipment should be seldom seen on the market.”
“Let me guess, we didn’t buy this today.”
“Did it come from the City Lord again?”
“You guessed correctly.” Zi Di forced a smile, still looking worried, “Tonight,
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord sent people over with this present, saying he was
giving it to you, Lord Commander, so you could heal.”
For a moment, the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge pursed their brows.
At noon, Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord had sent gold level medicine. Then in the
evening, he had sent another very practical silver level treasure as a gift.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s attitude was excessively cordial.
As the saying goes: respect for the wise will have people looking for it.
“What is this City Lord after?” Zong Ge questioned.
“That’s what I’m worried about. Said Zi Di, “When the envoy delivered this
present, they also passed on a message. Snow Bird Habor’s city Lord will be
coming to the port tonight to check on how the Lord Commander is doing.”
The dragonman youngster stopped chewing his food, and his brows deeply
wrinkled.
He sensed power in Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s cordial attitude.
The dragonman youngster had refused Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s invitation
to dinner and didn’t expect them to come pay a visit.
They were a gold level fighter and also the most powerful local presence in
Snow Bird Harbor, yet they treated an outsider like the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps so warmly. 
This kind of attitude and action was abnormal.
What did Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord actually want?
In this world, there was never love without reason and never hatred without
cause.
What did he want from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
After pondering it for a moment, he couldn’t sit still.
After all, his penetration power injuries were bogus.
Based on the cadence and way Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was acting, he feared
that the next step the former would take would be to bring over a doctor to
heal the dragonman youngster.
Of course, that was not the main point.
The main point was what was Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s intention?
The dragonman youngster had to take it seriously.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was not just a strong individual, but he also
controlled genuine authority. 
His attitude and conduct would greatly affect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After a moment of contemplation, the dragonman youngster said, “No need for
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord to come over, I will go attend his dinner.” 
Allowing Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord to pay a visit would have a greater
impact.
Excessive attention from an authoritative figure would often provoke unforeseen
consequences.
Rather than doing that, it was better for the dragonman youngster to sally out
first.
Furthermore, after today, he would accept the invitations of other large powers
and converse with them. 
When this was done, others would realize the dragonman youngster’s wounds
weren’t so serious.
This would reduce the amount of time the dragonman youngster had to prepare for
battle.
But at the same time, it would minimize the negative effects as much as
possible.
This was the more dependable move.
Zong Ge’s gaze deepened, “In his invitation letter, Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord stated that he had a very important matter to discuss with the commander.”
“Regardless of what this matter is, I can smell trouble brewing.”
It was clear this trouble could not be avoided.



****** Chapter 297: The City Lord’s Intention ******
Due to the dragonman youngster challenging Teng Dong Lang, like the wind and
the waves, his influence had already spread across all of Snow Bird Harbor.
As these winds and waves got bigger, it was faintly trending towards backfiring
on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After the dragonman youngster made his decision, he dispatched a messenger to
notify Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord.
Night fell and starlight filled the sky.
The dragonman youngster publicly left the Love Triangle, then took a carriage
to Snow Bird Harbor’s government prefecture.
He was led into the banquet hall.
The banquet hall had splendid lights, exquisite and luxurious decorations, and
was full of gorgeous elven art.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was an unprepossessing snow elf.
All elves were generally beautiful.
This made Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord somewhat unusual.
The city Lord enthusiastically entertained the dragonman youngster.
The banquet’s dishes were very fine; it was mostly made up of seafood, but
there was some venison from the inland, dragon meat, and so on.
Ice Sculpture Island was very wide and had areas that could be counted as
inland places.
The dragonman youngster had eaten dinner before coming, but he still couldn’t
help himself from feasting in the banquet hall. 
Because these dishes had come from a magic chef’s hands.
Not only was the taste exquisite, completely beyond any food the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps had, but to a fighter, these magic materials also helped with
their cultivation.
As he dined, the dragonman youngster inquired about the city Lord’s
intentions. 
After all, the city Lord had an important matter he wanted to discuss with the
dragonman youngster.
But the city Lord didn’t give a direct answer, using clever methods to shift
the topic.
At the end of the dinner, after the servants provided desert, the city Lord
waved his hand and had his two servants withdraw completely.
“Now we are only two here.” The city Lord smiled at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but sit upright.
It seemed that the city Lord finally wanted to divulge his true intentions.
However, the city Lord’s next words stupefied the dragonman youngster.
“Commander Long Fu, did you know that during your duel with Xiong Ju, the
Bayonet Gang secretly meddled to put you at a disadvantage?”
Seeing how the dragonman youngster reacted, Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord
laughed, “It was the Evil Eye.”
As he said that, a magic image appeared above the middle of the dining table.
The image showed the duel between the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju.
A section of it was replaying itself over and over again.
It was when the Evil Eye in Xiong Ju’s chest attacked with its spiritual ray.
After the dragonman youngster was struck, he sank into a fainting vertigo for a
time.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord pointed his finger at the Evil Eye in the magic
image, “This equipment came from one of the Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders, it is
alchemy item that contains the power of the Abyss.”
“But at the time, Xiong Ju wasn’t the one who activated it.”
“It was the Evil Eye’s real master, he secretly casted in the viewing room,
controlling it to attack you Commander Long Fu.”
The image continued to be broadcast.
Next, Xiong Ju exposed a resentful expression, he pulled the Evil Eye out of
his chest and crushed it between his fingers.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord continued, “I know Xiong Ju well. He does not like
anyone who desecrates a heroic duel.”
“Even though it is one of the Bayonet Gang’s six ringleaders who helped him.”
“Evidently, he was furious at the time, therefore, due to that anger, he
destroyed the Evil Eye.”
“But when that happened, we lost our biggest piece of evidence.”
“After the Evil Eye attacked, Snow Bird Dueling Arena also detected it.”
“The dueling arena’s master immediately dispatched investigators to look into
it.”
“But the investigation was thwarted by the Bayonet Gang’s leader Teng Dong
Lang.”
“At the time, you and Xiong Ju were reaching the end of your duel. Teng Dong
Lang and the dueling arena master reached a secret agreement. I don’t know what
price he paid, but in the end, the dueling arena master abandoned the
investigation.”
“And so, the truth was covered up.”
“Commander Long Fu, the recordings of your duel with Xiong Ju has been selling
very well right now.”
“When the public saw it, they universally believed that the Evil Eye went
berserk, and Xiong Ju was forced to destroy it.”
“The Bayonet Gang’s crime has been concealed.”
“But I believe that as one of people involved, the one who was in this duel,
you surely sensed it some extent.”
The dragonman youngster’s brows deeply pursed, and for a moment, he silently
muttered to himself.
He had extrapolated this topic already.
Through the Grand Arena Medal’s battle experience, he had confirmed his
inference.
Now, Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord wanted to help him look into this matter, but
the dragonman youngster didn’t feel the slightest bit happy, nor did he feel
understood or supported.
He couldn’t help but feel his heart chill.
During the duel with Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster gained a deep
understanding of the customs of heroic duels.
Heroic duels were a social custom that were deeply ingrained in the hearts of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s populace and could not be tarnished.
If the Evil Eye was successfully investigated, then it would deal a heavy blow
to the Bayonet Gang.
It could even be said that it could destroy them.
Even if Teng Dong Lang lost to the dragonman youngster in their heroic duel,
that outcome couldn’t match the impact of this.
If Teng Dong Lang lost his duel, the Bayonet Gang’s prestige and interests
would take a massive dip.
While if the Evil Eye issue was verified, the Bayonet Gang’s foundational
existence would be strongly rattled.
The people would be disgusted with the Bayonet Gang and despise any Bayonet
Gang member from the depths of their hearts. The vast majority of its member,
and even ringleaders like Xiong Ju and Spring Boxer, would also feel deep
shame.
Those on the righteous path are well supported, while those who stray from the
proper course have scant aid.
Everyone in the Bayonet Gang would be spurned and wouldn’t have a shred of
reputation left.
Perhaps ordinary people would still be intimidated by the Bayonet Gang’s
military forces and continue to pay protection money, but their mentality while
doing so would be completely different.
Equal powers would believe that the Bayonet Gang didn’t have the qualifications
to hold its current power, position, and benefits.
The masses were bound to rise up and attack it.
The Bayonet Gang was just a gang; it was difficult for them to withstand
attacks from all sides.
The most likely outcome was its defeat and even elimination.
It was precisely his awareness of how serious this issue was that the dragonman
youngster didn’t perform an in-depth investigation into the Evil Eye and
instead decided to give up on it.
Because if he looked into it, he was bound to trigger a fierce response from
the Bayonet Gang.
When it came to that, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ and Bayonet Gang’s fight
would escalate to irreconcilable adversaries.
This was extremely unfavorable for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster didn’t want to investigate it, but Snow Bird Harbor’s
City Lord wanted to grab hold of this weak point and verify it.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s evil intentions for the Bayonet Gang was very
clear.
The dragonman youngster contemplated for a good while, then with a deliberate
tone, he carefully replied, “Perhaps it is just as you said City Lord, the
Bayonet Gang secretly interfered in my heroic duel.”
“But as someone involved, I don’t have any deep feelings about it.”
“I also don’t have any proof that the Evil Eye was activated by someone else.”
“If I suspected it, I would have flared up at the time.”
“May I ask if you have any conclusive evidence in the Evil Eye matter City
Lord?”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord looked deeply at the dragonman youngster for a
while, then broke the silence, “Conclusive evidence? Of course it exists. I
believe that as long as I am willing to invest the time, energy, manpower, and
resources, I will be able to obtain it.”
“After it happens, there are facts. These facts will have traces.”
“The crucial bit is that if I want to open an investigation, I need to have a
justification. As one involved in this, you can raise your doubts, and when you
do, I will organize an investigation team.”
When the dragonman youngster heard that, he shook his head in refusal, “I don’t
have those doubts.”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord became silent again.
He let out a long sigh, then used a melancholy and aggrieved tone to say,
“Commander Long Fu, you are an outsider, you don’t know the aggregate crimes
the Bayonet Gang has done. It is Snow Bird Harbor’s biggest malignant tumor,
bar none!”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord seemed to recall something, “In the beginning, the
Bayonet Gang was just a young thief organization.”
“Those thieves roamed everywhere in the city committing crimes, and through
pickpocketing, they accumulated their starting capital from the stolen property
of others.”
“With this capital, these thieves dedicated themselves to strengthening
themselves, improving their equipment and recruiting more criminals.”
“Gradually, they were no longer satisfied with being small pickpockets and
began to start doing assassinations and robberies.”
“Many innocent victims were murdered and robbed because they walked down an
alley alone, then had their bodies thrown into the sewer, drainage channels,
and off the coast.
“The Bayonet Gang was too rampant and eventually drew in an extermination
campaign.”
“They faded away from Snow Bird Harbor for a time, but then their ashes burned
once more afterwards.”
“After reorganizing, the Bayonet Gang became more treacherous and cunning, they
decided to reduce their brutal robbery and murders, and changed to extortion
and blackmail.”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s finger tapped the dinner table lightly, changing
the magic imagine in the middle of it.
A middle aged snow elf appeared before the young man’s eyes.
The city Lord introduced them, “This is a rich snow elf merchant who was set up
by them, they lost a lot of money gambling and owed a high interest loan. After
he was extorted for thousands of gold coins, his property was annexed by the
Bayonet Gang.”
The magic image changed again, this time it showed a bandaged fat human.
“This was the owner of the Soaring Ox Butchery.”
“His butcher shop didn’t just sell raw meat, but also processed and cooked
meat.”
“The shop owner had a secret recipe passed down by his forefathers, and his
processed cooked beef could be regarded as a magic dish. Every beef slice was
as thin as a cicada’s wing, and if they were blown on, they could flutter in
the wind. The cooked beef not only tasted great, but it also helped cultivation
to an exemplary extent. Many transcendents were long time customers and his
business was prosperous.”
“Soaring Ox Butchery provoked the Bayonet Gang’s greed. They moved directly and
violently, sending a dozen people with machetes to cut the shop owner down.”
“The shop owner was an iron level fighter, but due to being heavily
outnumbered, he was seriously wounded while protecting his secret recipe and
didn’t relent.”
“But the Bayonet Gang had plenty of methods.”
“They kidnapped the shop owner’s only child, and with them, they blackmailed
and extorted the shop owner.”
“The shop owner asked the government for help.”
“But Snow Bird Harbor’s government at the time had been infiltrated by the
Bayonet Gang and had a serious problem with bribes. Many officials were in the
Bayonet Gang’s hands and had to follow them obediently.”
“The Soaring Ox Butchery owner’s pleas were only met with the Bayonet Gang’s
admonishments.”
“They explicitly repeated every word the Soaring Ox Butchery owner said to the
government.”
“In his endless despair, the shop owner was forced to bow his head to those
criminals and handed over his secret recipe.”
“The next day, the entire family was found rotting in a gutter.”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord deeply sighed, “The Bayonet Gang profits immensely
from forced deals, blackmail, high interest loans, among other things.”
“Now they are Snow Bird Harbor’s foremost gang under the guise of innumerable
casinos, restaurants, dueling arenas, and other assets.”
“These were the people’s blood, sweat and tears!”
The dragonman youngster gazed at the magic image, his look as deep as water.
He was a believer of the Justice God and wanted to walk the path of
righteousness.
He believed these crimes had happened.
Because Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord had provided detailed information that was
completely verifiable.
His feeling of justice compelled the dragonman youngster to eradicate the
Bayonet Gang.
But he forcefully restrained himself.
Because as the survivors’ leader and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
commander, he shouldered a heavy responsibility and couldn’t let emotions
affect his decisions.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had come to Snow Bird Harbor to contact the
empire’s higher-ups and redeem themselves, while also establishing a footing
here at the same time so they could grow and do their best to strengthen
themselves against an unknown future.
Since they wanted to achieve triumphant progress, they also had to go steady
and strike hard.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster decided to challenge Teng Dong Lang, while
simultaneously tightly controlling the intensity of this fight to prevent the
conflict from escalating.
Escalating the fight with the Bayonet Gang to irreconcilable adversity was
obviously not wise.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could not waste time like this.
After a moment of silence, the dragonman youngster tactfully refused the city
Lord.
He stated that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was only a small power and was
unwilling to fight to the death over mere suspicions.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord sincerely replied, “Commander Long Fu, I
understand your decision. I can see from that that you are an outstanding
commander.”
“I hope you can reconsider it.”
“No need to rush to give me a reply.”
“Outside of that, we can also discuss some other business. Such as this…”
As he said that, Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord took out a scroll, pushing it
across the dining table to the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster unfurled it and noticed it was a list of items.
“I am a city Lord and have many channels. I can provide you with many resources
that are not commonly seen on the market.”
This gave the dragonman youngster a feeling of déjà vu.
The dragonman youngster looked at it, unable to take his eyes off it.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was worthy of being a senior noble, his strength
was robust, his foundation was deep, and his network and relationships were
vast.
The dragonman youngster saw there were many alchemy treasures on the list.
He wanted to buy three gold level weapons, a longbow, a harpoon, and a set of
darts.
There was also gold level armor, a round shield.
Apart from those, the list was a cornucopia of delights with its myriad alchemy
materials.



****** Chapter 298: Armor Prohibition, Slavery Ban ******
The list of alchemy materials was the longest.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a well-developed alchemy industry and possessed
many outstanding alchemy talents. This meant that its alchemy marketplace was
also massive.
The dragonman youngster’s gaze suddenly stopped when he saw some undead
materials.
These materials were extinct on the marketplace, but Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord could get them through his means.
Why was he selling them?
Wasn’t he worried about the risks?
The entire world hunted necromancers, and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was no
exception.
The dragonman youngster didn’t know what was going no, but Zi Di did.
As a matter of fact, before the undead school of magic had been established,
undead materials had been sold all over the world.
Fire type alchemy materials weren’t just used to make fire magical items, and
undead materials were the same.
Although the item list had a few undead materials on it, they had a wide usage
in the field of daily alchemy.
From this, it could be seen how high end Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy
marketplace was.
Despite the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps having a strong demand for undead
materials, the dragonman youngster chose the more dependable option and
immediately turned his gaze away.
He continued to be enthralled in his reading.
For a time, Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord calmly sipped his wine very patiently.
The dragonman youngster read it through once, then reread it. 
After two readings, he decided.
He put for a transaction, and in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ name, he
first purchased a large amount of magic beast meat.
His battle qi cultivation needed him to eat a lot of path attribute magic beast
meat. Zong Ge needed steel rhinoceros magic beast meat.
The mercenary corps added Chi Lai and Men Shi, two silver levels. They also
need magic beast meat for their battle qi techniques.
There was also the Quick Knife and Backwater battle squads whose daily training
was very arduous. If they were provided with plentiful magic beast meat, it
would greatly improve their training efficiency. In addition, nutritious meals
could also reduce complaints from the battle squad members to a certain extent.
It could be predicted that in the future, when the dragonman youngster’s and
Zong Ge’s level improved and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps expanded and
recruited, along with the big guy and others suddenly distinguishing
themselves, their demand for magic beast meat and other transcendent
ingredients would grow bigger.
After the magic beast meat, the dragonman youngster purchased a large batch of
alchemy materials.
This included all of the dragon corpses available.
It also included some undead materials.
Then, he bought all of the gold level equipment. 
There were four, the longbow, harpoon, darts, and round shield.
The scale of this spending startled Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord a bit, causing
him to laugh, “It seems that after your corps captured the Iron Lump, you have
quite the harvest.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, calmly admitted, “Indeed.”
One of the goals of the battle of Weeping Pine Island was to wash their gains
from Two Eyes Island’s seafloor clean. 
Seeing Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s reaction now proved that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ mission during that battle had been accomplished.
The dragonman youngster slightly explained the reason why he was buying gold
level equipment.
“My showdown with Teng Dong Lang is coming. The better my equipment, the
greater my chances of victory.”
Those words caused a smile to creep up Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s face, he
nodded in agreement, “Commander Long Fu, Xiong Ju has already been defeated by
you, and the remaining ringleaders are not your match.”
“I await your fight with Teng Dong Lang.”
The city Lord paused, then added, “If you have any special needs, you can put
them forth. Perhaps I can use some relationships to give you some help there.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, immediately saying in passing, “As a matter of
fact, we need a store to sell some merchandise. Of course, we are just a small
power and have some merchandise that can’t be put into the public purview.”
The merchandise out of the public purview was naturally pointing towards
smuggled armaments.
The dragonman youngster said this to lay the groundwork for Dragon Rider, and
also to give them a platform to sell alchemy arrows and other munitions in the
future.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was the bigger than Teng Dong Lang.
Every power craved outstanding armaments.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord was no exception.
The city Lord nodded, “I can make the decision and sell a prosperous shop to
your corps.”
“But forgive my bluntness, engaging in a business requires giving sufficient
consideration to the environment around it.”
“At least wait until your duel with Teng Dong Lang is decided Commander Long
Fu, the environment will be considered stable then.”
The dragonman youngster thanked the city Lord for his advice.
After reflecting on it, he had another request for Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord, he wanted to buy a gold level short spear.
Along with blank magic formation slabs.
“If you have gold level armor, that would be better.” The dragonman youngster
added.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord shook his head with a laugh, “Gold level armor is
difficult to purchase. The list having that round shield is already a
considerable rarity.”
“Don’t have much hope of buying a short spear in a short time span either.”
The dragonman youngster was puzzled, “As far as I know, the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom has flourishing alchemy technology, and also has many alchemy talents.
Since the market demands this kind of equipment, don’t tell me none of them
want to make money?”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord explained, “You are fresh off the boat and don’t
know about this matter. The kingdom has explicit decrees on alchemy that all
alchemy workshops in the kingdom have to strictly comply with. One of the ten
decrees stipulates that the amount of gold level armor the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom produces every year cannot exceed 27. We commonly refer to it as the
armor prohibition.”
The dragonman youngster thought on it, somewhat understanding.
The armor prohibition was obviously a decree the Ice Sculpture Kingdom made to
protect its rule.
Refining arrows, bullets, and other weapons took less materials and time than
armor.
Many small weapons were far easier to transport and hide than armor.
Therefore, when regulating these, it was better to regulate armor.
Regulating armor was more cost efficient.
Apart from that reason, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was also considering its
people’s livelihood.
Regardless of whether it was a hunting group, fishing boat, mercenary corps, or
so on, all of them needed weapons, and nowadays, pirates were getting more
rampant by the day. All of them expended lots of arrows and bullets.
If they put a ban on weapons, then that would affect every profit everywhere,
affect national defense, and impact the national economy.
The amount of 27 pieces of armor under the prohibition was decided after
challenging negotiations and the weighing of the pros and cons between all
parties.
As for the gold level armor that was made, the dragonman youngster could guess
with his tail that those in positions of power would be the first to receive
them.
“My corps has an alchemy magic ship and also a gold level cannon that needs
repairs. If they aren’t fixed, they cannot be used.”
The city Lord nodded, “I can arrange for master alchemists to come do repairs
for you. The repair cost will be 20% below market value.”
Of course, the dragonman youngster didn’t forget to mention alchemist talents.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ greatest deficiency was of master
alchemists and alchemists.
But strangely, the city Lord’s list didn’t have any slaves.
After the dragonman youngster asked, the city Lord answered that it was due to
an Ice Sculpture Kingdom decree.
“My country strictly prohibits slaves on the marketplace.”
“All slaves were nationalized.”
“This is my country’s slave ban.”
Under those circumstances, the dragonman youngster regretfully abandoned the
matter.
After ten minutes, the transaction was struck and both sides determined the
time and place of delivery in detail. 
The dragonman youngster looked out the window, and upon seeing the night was
deeper, asked the city Lord if he could take his leave.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord gave the dragonman youngster a warning before
parting, “Commander Long Fu.”
“Please be careful of Teng Dong Lang.”
“According to my understanding of him, he will never resign himself to be
passive.”
“While you are recuperating, you need to pay more attention.”
“He won’t let you calmly heal. Therefore, I sent you medicine and the blanket
to lessen the possibility of attacks.”
“He will make a move.”
“Gangs often use dirty and despicable methods.”
“I’ll also reveal some secret information to you.”
“Teng Dong Lang and Hua Tang have a secret relationship.”
“Perhaps you don’t know who Hua Tang is.”
“He is an excellent thief who has been active all over the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. Many city governments have been robbed by his hands.”
“The magician tower cannot detect him either.”
“He has been wanted throughout the kingdom for a long time, but after a dozen
years, Hua Tang has never been caught.”
The dragonman youngster memorized the name Hua Tang.
Previously, although he had purchased a lot of information from the Thieves
Guild, this information was centered on Snow Bird Harbor.
This resulted in a big time thief like Hua Tang who committed crimes everywhere
and didn’t have a fixed residence being overlooked.
The dragonman youngster decided on the spot that starting tomorrow, he would
buy information on Hua Tang.
The night sky had many stary specks.
The lights along the way illuminated the streets.
The carriage’s wheels rolled across the flagstones, issuing a rumbling noise.
After the dragonman youngster left the government mansion, he specifically
chose the road with the least pedestrians.
Even so, the streets were still clamorous with the sounds of people.
The more bustling a city was, the livelier the nights were.
Snow Bird Harbor was one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s eight harbors, and so
it was naturally very bustling.
Under this bustling, the dragonman youngster sensed the tumultuous and bubbling
undercurrents.
When he recalled his conversation with Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord, the
dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
“I didn’t expect that the Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord would have such a deep
hostility to the Bayonet Gang.”
“The prior inquiries and information reports didn’t indicate that at all.”
“As expected, simple information purchases cannot ascertain this kind of secret
relationship and the attitude of a high ranking person.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needs a competent person that can scout out
the truth and crucial facts.”
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord had invited the dragonman youngster to dinner to
use the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as reasonable grounds to attack the Bayonet
Gang.
“Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord has hidden his enmity well; this is the mind of a
profound person. To deal with the Bayonet Gang, he must have already prepared
many methods and only needs a sensible justification.”
“If I agreed, then Snow Bird Harbor would get caught up in a massive internal
struggle.”
The dragonman youngster knew that Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord wanted to
exploit him.
But at the same time, the dragonman youngster knew this was a rare opportunity.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps aligned themselves with Snow Bird Harbor’s
government, and were victorious, after the Bayonet Gang was suppressed, a
massive gap would appear.
They only needed to take a fraction of it for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
to completely root themselves here.
This was something may people desired but couldn’t obtain.
Generally speaking, without such an opportunity, it would take at least two to
three generations of hard work for someone to reach the upper layers of power
in Snow Bird Harbor.
This rare stroke of luck also implied immense risks.
If the dragonman youngster had agreed, then the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would be on the foremost front lines of it.
The Bayonet Gang would want to eliminate the Dragon Lion Mercenary corps as
quickly as possible.
While Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord had to protect the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to defend crucial witness and reasonable grounds for making war.
Two of Snow Bird Harbor’s big native powers were centered around the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, constantly tearing, tugging, tussling, and grappling
against each other.
It would last until a winner was decided.
Regrettably, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was not a normal mercenary corps,
nor was it the transportation power of an arms merchant.
Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord’s error of judgement happened because of that.
“It seems I cannot put off my heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang.”
“Snow Bird Harbor might become a troubled city.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needs to attain qualifications as soon as
possible and enter into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom proper.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ destination was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
capital.
However, as foreigners, being able to rush to the capital was impossible.
The laws and institutions here did not permit newcomers to travel to important
areas like the capital.
To go there, they needed to be audited.
Many things would be audited, such as how long they would be staying in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, what they would be doing, if they had anyone vouching for
them, what kind of property they had, and so on.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had registered with the Mercenary Guild and
could rely on them to reduce the relevant indexes to travel to the capital at
an earlier date.
But the lowest criterion was staying for 12 days, having a 3 star mercenary
corps rank, along with the local Mercenary Guild’s recommendation letter and
vouching.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had the Anti-investigation and Prophecy and
Deceptive Disguise spells and were capable of ignoring the law and sneaking
into the capital.
But after everyone in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps deliberated, they felt
that plan was too extreme.
On the one hand, the blackmail bizarrely vanished without a reply, and none of
them knew what problem had arisen.
On the other hand, the survivors had to consider this: if their communication
with imperial higherups failed, it was possible they would hunted down for the
treasures.
Therefore, the survivors had to keep a firm grip on time and every opportunity
to increase their fighting strength.
After comprehensive consideration, the dragonman youngster and the others
decided temporarily settling in Snow Bird Harbor and grow during this time.
During this time, they would absorb Snow Bird Harbor’s resources to develop,
liquidating their riches and turning it into strength as much as possible.
If they could create a way out in Snow Bird Harbor, then that would be even
better.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was vast, and completely different from Snake Rat
Island and Two Eyes Island.
On other island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could flee with the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
But in the interior of Ice Sculpture Island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
would be far from the Deep Sea Monster Fish. This way out was now suspended and
temporarily lost.



****** Chapter 299: Stirring Up Trouble ******
Under the starry night sky, the dragonman youngster returned to the port.
At the same time, in a courtyard.
Teng Dong Lang was drinking ice crystal wine and enjoying sashimi alone,
“Your tastes haven’t changed over the many years.”  A voice suddenly came from
behind him.
Teng Dong Lang paused, then stood up and looked behind him with pleasant
surprise.
He saw a slender silhouette standing under the shadows of the grapevine frames.
The silhouette wore a white robe with all kinds of exquisite and gaudy flowers
threaded into it.
His face was wearing a silver fox mask.
In its eye slits, there were pink pupils.
In the dim light of night, they were especially striking.
“Hua Tang, why are you here?” Teng Dong Lang’s face blossomed with a smile.
“Naturally there is an important matter I have to do here. Do you remember the
clues you gave me?” The silver white fox mask left the shadows and slowly
walked to Teng Dong Lang.
“What clues? I have given you a lot of clues over the last few years.”
“Chicken Cluck Cave.” Hua Tang said the place’s name.
Teng Dong Lang immediately raised his brow, “So you found the Saint Thief’s
relic? Don’t tell me it was a fake.”
Hua Tang shook his head, his tone serious, “This time it is unlikely, I am
quite certain.”
Teng Dong Laugh involuntarily laughed, “You said that several times before.”
“We aren’t talking about me, but you. It seems you’ve run into a bit of
trouble.” Hua Tang stepped in front of Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang waved his hand, “It isn’t really a problem. Just some small time
mercenary corps, at most their backer is somewhat complex.”
“We rarely see each other. Don’t let that matter spoil things. Come, lets drink
together.”
Hua Tang laughed, and took a seat with Teng Dong Lang.
When he woke up, the dragonman youngster felt refreshed.
He had completely recovered.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline once again revealed its legend level quality.
At breakfast, a subordinate handed over a purchased intelligence report.
This information report was about Hua Tang.
It had a lot in it but was pretty cheap.
Hua Tang’s warrant for arrest was posted everywhere in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, and stories about him circulated far and wide, thus information on
him, relatively speaking, was not that valuable.
The dragonman youngster ate while thumbing through it.
Each case spoke of the beautiful skill of this gold level thief.
Even under impossibly tight security, he always miraculously stole all sorts of
treasures.
Many times, Hua Tang would distribute the things he stole to the poor in a
city.
Hua Tang had a bombastic style.
For example, his attire.
His clothes were iconic.
He wore a spacious white gown adorned with several flowers.
He wore a fox mask with a silver texture.
Whenever he moved through the night, his white gown was like a floating cloud
with flowers swirling in it. The mask glittered with silvery light, as if its
owner didn’t fear being conspicuous in the night.
Every time he committed a crime, he would leave behind a vibrant freshly
plucked flower at the crime scene.
In addition, many other times, before he robbed someone, he would send a
warning letter to the treasure owner.
The dragonman youngster analyzed it in his thoughts, “It seems he wasn’t
satisfied with ordinary thievery and would raise the difficult of his own
accord. He constantly challenges himself and the world, and from this
challenge, he feels joy.”
“Is he really just a gold level cultivator?’
“Despite weaving through the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for many years, he has
remained uncaught.”
“Looking at these theft cases is like looking at a compilation of stories.”
The dragonman youngster’s gaze gradually congealed.
“Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ preventative measures is mainly
composed of patrolling mercenaries, along with Zong Ge and the others standing
guard. Secretly, there are alchemy puppets scattered all over the place to keep
watch. Then on the distant seafloor, there is also the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
“But these defenses cannot stop Hua Tang.”
Places with far more defensive measures that were tighter and stronger than the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps; have been robbed by Hua Tang.”
But they still couldn’t stop Hua Tang, to him, they existed in name only.
The dragonman youngster had no choice but to predict, “If Teng Dong Lang asks
Hua Tang to act, how likely will it be for him to attack my mercenary corps?”
It couldn’t be predicted.
Because he didn’t know the relationship between Teng Dong Lang and Hua Tang.
He couldn’t help but feel how tight time was.
“I have to get stronger as soon as possible! I must carry out my heroic duel
with Teng Dong Lang as soon as possible, if I put it off, I fear there will be
many long nights.”
Despite the dragonman youngster holding the initiative in the heroic duel, it
was difficult to change that it was the weak fighting against the strong.
The more dragonman youngster knew, the more he could perceive the risks.
After hurriedly eating breakfast, he made his way to the training cabin to spar
with Zong Ge.
Scarcely half an hour into training, noise came from outside the ship.
The Bayonet Gang ringleader Ban Lan Gen, bringing along Bing Kuai and a group
of underlings, had openly come to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships,
loudly shouting a challenge.
Ever since the dragonman youngster had publicly challenged Teng Dong Lang, the
two had been at the heart of the struggle and had their every movement being
closely watched.
Ban Lan Gen and his people stormed in and raised a ruckus, afraid that someone
wouldn’t hear.
Therefore, when he was publicizing his challenge, there was already a ring of
people enjoying the show.
Ban Lan Gen didn’t challenge the dragonman youngster, to prevent gossip.
Because the masses knew the dragonman youngster had been injured by penetration
power and was in the process of training.
So, Ban Lan Gen challenged Zong Ge – the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ auxiliary
commander.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were startled and had to suspend their
training.
Zong Ge naturally could not accept this challenge.
He had to teach the dragonman youngster, and with him there, the dragonman
youngster’s military power would be improved more.
Zong Ge was too busy to get out.
But direct refusal was inappropriate.
That would cause the public to believe that Zong Ge was a coward who wouldn’t
dare meet a challenge.
It would trouble the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ newly established prestige.
“This is easy to manage; we can rebuff Ban Lan Gen’s challenge the same way
Teng Dong Long did mine.” The dragonman youngster proposed after some thought.
Zong Ge agreed with this method and quickly appeared on the side of the ship.
He looked down at Ban Lan Gen and stated, “You are just one of six ringleaders
of the Bayonet Gang, while am the number two person in the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.”
“Treeman who was defeated in a single punch, you must first prove your
strength.”
When Ban Lan Gen’s old wound was ripped open, he immediately became ashamed and
angry.
Men Shi and Chi Lai had received the dragonman youngster’s order and came out
in a timely fashion, saying one after the other, “If you want to challenge our
auxiliary commander, you have to get past me first.”
“Let me measure your strength first!”
Ban Lan Gen was forced to acknowledge this arrangement.
Men Shi went first and left with Ban Lan Gen to the nearest dueling arena.
The crowd of onlookers followed behind them, loudly departing the docks. 
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge returned to the cabin to continue their
training.
A half an hour later, someone else paid a visit.
It was a dock worker.
He deliberately made things difficult, urging them to hand over their anchorage
fee.
According to what he said, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had to pay double
the fee due to incomplete reporting, polluting the docks, among other reasons.
Zi Di came out to hand over the entire sum in order to resolve this matter.
But the dock worker didn’t let the matter drop, “kindly” reminding them before
leaving: the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needs to go to the dock
administration, submit a comprehensive report, resolve your ships’
environmental pollution, and the other listed problems. Otherwise, you will
face fines, and if you have repeated offenses, you will face incremental fines
that will become quite expensive.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had 60,000 gold coins, so naturally they
wouldn’t care about such a small sum.
But this kind of method really made people sick.
It was very clear that the Bayonet Gang was already beginning to exert
themselves, these acts exposing the foundation of this local bully.
In the morning, Zi Di had to deal with four more officials making things
difficult so the dragonman youngster could keep his mind on training.
But at noon, Zi Di stopped blocking them.
Because the Bayonet Gang asked patrol fleet troops to come over.
The snow elf investigation team had a tough attitude, claiming that someone
reported the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had concealed heavy weapons and didn’t
report them, so they needed to reinspect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships
thoroughly again.
The snow elf investigation team came from the government.
Zi Di thought about it and found that it wouldn’t be good to obstruct them. If
they did, it was bound to lead to charges of resisting investigation, which
would confirm their pretexts that the mercenary corps was hiding something.
Zi Di was forced to allow the investigation team to carry out their survey. 
And this time, the snow elf team was far nastier than normal.
They did not do a survey, but a search.
Wherever they went, there was nothing not turned over and in disarray.
The mercenaries were indignant and many of them raised their fists, wanting to
teach these arrogant snow elves a lesson.
But Zi Di strictly ordered them to stop.
If a conflict happened between then and the snow elf investigation squad, they
would undoubtedly fall into the Bayonet Gang’s plot. The latter was eager for
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to get caught up in this conflict and were
positive to have prepared many follow up tricks and traps they were waiting for
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to fall into.
Seeing the mercenaries’ persistent forbearance, the snow elf investigators
became more aggressive.
The inspectors reached the water pigmen, causing the team leader to pinch his
nose, saying with disgust, “That strange odor, it turned out to be a group of
pigs.”
“What are you looking at! Calling you pigs is speaking highly of you.”
“A group of bumpkins…”
“Are you still staring? Hehehe.”
“Come, stand over there, I suspect you are carrying and hiding hazardous
materials on you, I need to do a body search!”
The investigation team leader dragged out a female water pigman from the group.
The investigation team leader circled around the female water pig a few times,
extended an examination rod, then started to poke the water pigman’s body,
followed by lifting the hem of her clothes.
The female water pigman indignantly growled.
The surrounding water pigmen also were enraged and began to close in.
The investigation team leader burst into laughter and glared at the water
pigmen around him, sharply reprimanding, “You dirty and contemptible beastmen
are still thinking of resisting investigation?”
“Come and fight then!”
“You looking to fight, to beat up an Ice Sculpture Kingdom snow elf
investigator and violently resist the law?’
“Hm?!”
The investigation team leader chided, causing the water pigmen to hesitate.
The female pigman’s eyes were bloodshot and also glistening with teardrops.
She shuddered, clenched her fists, and steeled herself.
The investigation team leader’s mouth twitched up, slowly raised the hem of her
clothes to expose her private partes when suddenly, a figure charged at from
him from behind.
The investigation team leader felt a strong wind from behind, and one of his
companions shouting, “Captain be careful.”
He quickly turned around to see a fist fill his perspective.
Ding!
The staunch fist ruthlessly knocked the investigation captain to the ground.
He had been hit with so much force that the investigation captain’s head
smashed into the floor.
He coughed out blood and also some teeth.
The beaten investigation team leader wasn’t anger, instead he laughed like one
whose scheme had prevailed, “Hehehe, I knew you stupid beastmen couldn’t stand
being provoked.”
“Idiots, you group of idiots! You actually dared to beat up an investigator!”
“Get over here, seized them!!”



****** Chapter 300: Your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is Finished ******
Hearing their leader’s command, the snow elf investigation team all took out
shackles and fetters.
The investigation captain looked malevolent, but in actuality, he was quite
proud of himself.
He had been corrupted by the Bayonet Gang long ago.
The Bayonet Gang used him to make things difficult for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The investigation team leader didn’t act alone, rather he had been given a
special mission from his superior. 
This mission was to pick a quarrel as much as possible, then detain some of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ members. By taking them away and detaining them,
they could threaten the mercenary corps.
The investigation team checked a few ships and didn’t find any suitable
targets. At least until the team leader saw the water pigmen. 
The second the investigation captain saw the water pigmen, he was delighted,
“This Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is indeed chaotic, it even has water pigmen!
This isn’t my fault.”
After purposely provoking these water pigmen, as expected, they fell into the
trap.
The investigation captain’s mission was finally accomplished.
He immediately relaxed.
The investigation team approached the water pigmen.
The water pigman showed their teeth subconsciously wanting to resist the chains
and shackles and began to get restless.
A fight could happen at any moment.
Thump, thump, thump.
The water pigman leader charged into the cabin with heavy steps.
When he saw the investigation captain’s miserable condition, his heart thudded,
knowing what terrible event had occurred.
“Don’t touch him!” He yelled at the water pigmen, “Are you insane? Do you know
what the consequences are? Don’t cause trouble for the mercenary corps!”
Gang Lie growled, “I hit that guy. Arrest me alone, the others had nothing to
do with this!”
“Shut up. You idiot, you’re rushing to calamity!” The water pigman leader
angrily stamped his foot.
After scolding Gang Lie, he forced a smile and stooped before the investigation
captain, “Lord Captain, everything is a misunderstanding.”
“Misunderstanding?!” The investigation captain shouted. He pointed finger at
his red cheek, then at the broken teeth on the ship deck, “You call this a
misunderstanding?!”
The investigation captain angrily extended his palm and slapped the water
pigman’s cheek with a sharp crack.
At the same time, he questioned, “If I hit you like that, would you consider it
a misunderstanding?”
“It is a misunderstanding, of course it is a misunderstanding!” The water
pigman leader emphasized.
An evil grin floated onto the investigation captain’s face, and he suddenly
slapped again. 
Pow!
A crisp ring.
He ruthlessly slapped the water pigman leader.
“Leader!” Gang Lie’s eyes widened in a glare, his urge to hit the investigation
captain suddenly rising again.
The investigation captain cowered a little, but soon after straightened his
chest and yelled at Gang Lie, “Come, you still dare to hit me? I’ll let you do
it!”
The water pigman leader staunchly yelled at Gang Lie, “You will stay your hand
for me! Have you not caused enough upheaval? Gang Lie, you moron!”
The water pigman leader looked at the other water pigmen, his anger rising,
“Stop right there! Can you bear the consequences of attacking?”
The water pigmen all stopped at his shout.
Upon seeing this, the investigation captain grew more aggressive.
He used a pair of gloomy eyes to stare at the water pigman leader, grinning
with a bloodstained and mangled jaw, “I didn’t know you were so interesting.”
The water pigman leader continued to stoop and smile, “If your Lordship wants
to vent his anger on me, then give me a good beating.”
The investigation captain laughed heartily, “As you say!”
Pap, pap, pap!
The snow elf swung his hand, each slap ferociously hitting the water pigman’s
face.
To ensure each slap was powerful, he even used his iron level battle qi.
The water pigman leader’s cheeks quickly swelled, and blood spilled from the
corner of his mouth.
But he tenaciously stood in place, not saying a word. He was wholeheartedly
serving as the object of the snow elf’s ire.
The water pigmen around him were sad and indignant, but at the same time, they
were trapped in a deep helplessness.
This was a scene they were familiar with.
It seemed like they returned to their life of slavery.
As slaves, they had to swallow their anger, and submit meekly to bullying, as
daring to rebel would lead to severe punishment and even death!
“Thing…” The investigation captain grew tired of hitting, looking at the
wordless pigman leader with boredom and vapidness.
He gave an order to the investigation team, “Take these water pigmen away.”
When the water pigman heard this, he suddenly became worried.
He rushed in front of the investigation team captain and implored loudly, “Lord
Captain, you have already vented your anger!”
The investigation team captain cackled.
“Right, I have vented my anger.”
“You did wonderfully.”
“But my work still needs to be finished. These water pigmen violently resisted,
and as investigation captain, I have to justly enforce the law! I don’t want to
take them away; it is the kingdom’s laws that do. I will remind you of
something important, this is Snow Bird Harbor! This is the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom!”
“Why do you think you can violently defy the law?”
The investigation captain glared at the water pigman leader, blue veins pulsing
in his forehead.
How could he so easily let off these water pigmen?
If he didn’t bring back prisoners, he was sure to be criticized harshly by his
superior.
The water pigman leader was incomparably impetuous, but he was unable to do
anything.
Then at that moment, Zong Ge, Tripleblade, and the others walked into the
cabin.
“Who is arresting my troops?” Zong Ge faintly said.
The snow elf investigation captain slightly raised his head to size up Zong Ge.
“You are the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ auxiliary commander? Our
investigation team has been here for a long time, and finally the higherups are
willing to appear. I will inform you now that your water pigmen underlings
violently resisted the law! I will arrest them all, and your Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is in big trouble!”
Tripleblade questioned, “How did they violently resist the law?”
The snow elf investigation captain glared and pointed at his cheek, “It seems
you aren’t just short, but your eyes don’t work properly. Can you see? I was
struck by them; this is the best proof!”
Even when facing the silver level Zong Ge and the others, he still remained
arrogant. Even surrounded by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he was secure in
the knowledge he had backing.
Because the investigation captain had seen many outsiders, and even if they
were strong, when they came to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, they had to bow
before him.
Zong Ge glanced at the investigation captain’s check, “Whose hand did that?”
“Lord Shi Qi, it was me!” Gang Lie knelt down and hastily admitted his mistake,
“Everything was my mistake, it doesn’t involve anyone else. But the
investigation team wants to take everyone away!”
Zong Ge held out a hand, halting Gang Lie’s words, he then shifted his eyes to
the water pigman leader’s face.
“Whose hand did that?” He pointed at the water pigman leader’s injured face.
The investigation captain didn’t say anything, merely sneering.
The water pigman leader quickly stammered, “It was me, Lord Shi Qi, I did it to
myself.”
When the investigation captain heard this, he couldn’t help but let out a
laugh.
Zong Ge inevitably raised a brow, “is that so, did you hit yourself?”
“Yes I did, your Lordship.” The water pigman leader swiftly nodded.
“Hehehe.” This time, it wasn’t just the snow elf investigation captain, the
entire investigation team laughed. 
Their laughter was full of ridicule and disdain.
Zong Ge didn’t seem to notice and simply nodded.
The investigation captain impatiently waved his hand, “Shi Qi, did you hear it
too? It is indeed as your person said. Hehe. Now then, get out of the way, I
need to take these water pigmen away. If you want to redeem them, you had best
come back with me, and we’ll have a nice chat.”
“Take them away!” The investigation captain raised his voice.
The investigation team was just about to act when Zong Ge suddenly interrupted
them, “Wait.”
“What do you want this time?” The investigation captain wrinkled his eyebrows.
Zong Ge looked at Gang Lie and asked, “How did you beat the investigation
captain?”
Gang Lie was confused by the question, and he subconsciously raised his right
fist and replied, “I, I only hit him with his hand.”
“Did you hit them like this?” Just as Zong Ge said that he strode over to the
investigation captain.
He raised his left hand, then suddenly swiped out a slap.
Pow!
A crunchy ring.
Zong Ge firmly gave the investigation captain a real slap to the face.
This slap had immense strength behind it, to the extent that the investigation
captain actually flew into the air.
Then, he fell to the floor.
Plop.
He spurted out blood, along with a few broken teeth.
The investigation captain was shocked, and he unconsciously covered his mouth
as he rigidly stared at Zong Ge, shrieking, “What did you do?”
“You attacked me! You actually attacked me?!”
When he said that, he finally reacted.
He broke out into strange laughter.
“You’re finished.”
“Shi Qi, you actually raised a hand and violently defied the law! You, a mere
silver level dared to defy the law, you’re finished.”
“You are the auxiliary commander; your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is also
finished.”
“Hehe, all finished.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps having you as their auxiliary commander is
indeed bad luck!”
Zong Ge was calm.
The water pigmen and the investigation team were both stunned too.
The investigation captain saw Zong Ge, and he hesitated a little as a
misunderstanding appeared in his heart.
He continued to hoot, “We have alchemy devices on us, and everything that just
happened has been recorded into magic images.”
“This is ironclad evidence! Denial will do nothing.”
“Hehehe!”
The investigation captain’s finger pointed at a button on his collar.
“Is that it?” Zong Ge walked over to him and stooped down to pluck out the
button.
He looked at it, carefully scrutinizing it, and discerned that the button
really was an alchemy device.
But what were its specific functions?
Zong Ge was not an alchemist and wouldn’t figure it out quickly.
The investigation captain allowed Zong Ge to take away his button.
His face was filled with a victorious smile.
“Hehe, are you still thinking of destroying evidence? Useless! We all have
those devices on us!”
The other investigation team members slightly shifted at those words.



****** Chapter 301: Fighters Won’t be Easily Humiliated! ******
The Investigation Captain continued as he laughed: "Even if you destroy all of
our alchemy devices, it is useless!"
"The mage tower at the port already has a copy of the magic video."
"What's ironclad evidence? This is ironclad evidence! "Unless you destroy the
mage tower, you can't destroy the evidence."
"Attack the mage tower if you have the guts."
"Do you dare? Do you guys dare?"
The water pigmen all showed expressions of uncertainty and fear on their faces.
Zong Ge shook his head as he replied as calmly as ever: "Of course we won't
attack the mage tower."
"You might have misunderstood my words."
"The slap I gave you earlier was merely to uncover the truth."
"I took your alchemy button simply because…I felt that the filming angle was
not too good."
"I wanted to help you, but you misunderstood my kind intention."
"How about this, let's film it again!"
"What do you mean?" The Investigation Captain felt something amiss.
"Gang Lie, stand here." Zong Ge waved.
Gang Lie quickly got to the designated location, and in the next moment, Zong
Ge passed him the alchemy button.
Zong Ge commanded: "Raise this button and point it at us. Yes, that's it."
After Gang Lie got into position, Zong Ge walked to the Investigation Captain
again.
He bent down and grabbed the Investigation Captain's collar.
After exerting slightly, he easily lifted the lightweighted Investigation
Captain.
"Wh-what do you want?" The Investigation Captain panicked.
"Calm down," Zong Ge helped him up and kindly patted the dust off his clothes.
Next, he took a step back and waved his palm again.
Slap!
This time, the sound was much louder than before.
The pitiful Investigation Captain not only flew in the air from the impact, but
he even turned one whole round before falling on the ground.
The intense feeling of dizziness even made him forget to cough out the blood in
his throat.
"Gang Lie, did he slap him like this?" Zong Ge asked loudly.
The Investigation Captain was dizzy, and his vision blurred as if the sky was
spinning around him.
He could not hear what Zong Ge was asking, so he nodded subconsciously.
Gang Lie shook his head subtly. Zong Ge's slap was far harsher than what he had
experienced.
Seeing the Investigation Captain's response, Zong Ge couldn't help but laugh.
"Since that's not it, let's try to remember the scene again."
He hoisted the Investigation Captain again.
At this point, the latter was already unable to stand up on his own.
Zong Ge could only grab his collar "caringly" with one hand and slap at his
face with his other hand.
Slap, slap, slap!
A series of slaps rained down quickly, forming after shadows in the eyes of the
others.
The Investigation Captain's head shook left and right as he moved vigorously
along with the slaps.
He opened his mouth and blood spewed out endlessly, along with his teeth at
times. 
His neck cracked along as if it was about to break at any time.
The Investigation Captain was merely at the iron level while Zong Ge was at the
silver level.
To protect himself, the Investigation Captain, urged his iron level battle qi
instinctively.
It was useless.
He was not a fighter like Xiong Ju, so the intense pain and humiliation made
him unable to use any of his battle skills.
Soon, both his eyes rolled till they turned white, and his mouth opened wide.
He had fainted.
Zong Ge stopped slapping after seeing this.
He let go of his left hand and the Investigation Captain fell on the ground
motionlessly.
The surroundings went quiet.
The calmer Zong Ge looked, the more intimidated they were.
"Are you done filming?"
"Did you get the angle correct this time?"
Under everyone's dumbfounded gaze, Zong Ge slowly walked to Gang Lie's side.
Gang Lie had been holding the alchemy button the entire time, being still as a
statue.
He looked at Zong Ge with admiration in his eyes.
Zong Ge took back the alchemy button and flicked it towards the body of the
Investigation Captain.
Next, he looked at the surrounding investigation team members who didn't dare
to move and said: "Aren't you going to wake your captain up?"
"It's not responsible to fall asleep while doing your job."
The members jolted awake at his words and quickly gathered at the Investigation
Captain's side.
"Captain!"
"Captain, captain, how are you?"
"Captain, wake up."
They shook his body vigorously as some took out potions and poured the contents
into his mouth.
There was even a bronze level magician who used healing magic on the spot.
After some time, the Investigation Captain slowly opened his eyes.
"Wh-what happened to me?"
"I'm so dizzy."
"Ouch, my face hurts!"
As the members helped him to get up, his eyes regained clarity as he recalled
what had happened earlier.
His body shook as he turned to look at Zong Ge.
The Investigation Captain was filled with fear and anger towards this man.
"What did you do? Were you trying to kill me?"
"I was almost killed by you!"
Zong Ge shook his head and replied in his usual calm tone: "You're the great
Investigation Captain, how could I kill you? If I did that, it'd be seen as
resisting the law with violence."   
The Investigation Captain's eyes turned wide as he felt that his intelligence
was being mocked.
He shouted shrilly: "Do you think I'm a fool? Looking at how you treated me
earlier, can that not be considered violence?"
Upon hearing this, Zong Ge moved towards the Investigation Captain.
The surrounding members flustered and scattered away.
The Investigation Captain who was held up by them lost his support in an
instant and plopped to the ground.
He ignored the pain on his butt and held the ground with his hand as he
shuffled back, shouting: "D-don't come towards me!"
Zong Ge looked down and asked: "So, Sir Investigation Captain, was I resisting
with violence earlier?"
The Investigation Captain took a deep breath as his expression turned livid.
In this situation, he had no choice but to give in. He relented: "No, that was
not considered violent resistance."
"So, is it a misunderstanding? Am I right to say that?" Zong Ge asked softly.
The Investigation Captain nodded and lowered his head to hide his shameful and
furious gaze: "Yes, this is all a misunderstanding!"
He felt that Zong Ge was too unreasonable.
There was no need to argue with him.
After all, a wise man would not fight when the odds were against him.
"Since the investigation is done, you can all leave," Zong Ge concluded.
After the investigation team members heard this, they ran towards the ship door
like they had just been spared.
The Investigation Captain quickly climbed up and rushed out before his group
members in a short period of time.
They no longer talked about capturing the water pigmen.
"Lord Shi Qi. After this confrontation..." Seeing Zong Ge deal with the
situation in such a direct manner, the leader of the water pigmen felt very
worried.
"Just you wait, just you wait!" The Investigation Captain screamed loudly in
his mind.
"Even if I failed to capture these water pigmen, as the auxiliary commander of
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, you dared to beat me! I have ironclad evidence
now!"
"I will settle the score with you soon."
"If I can't take your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps down a notch, I'll no longer
call myself a snow elf!"
"Hold it." Zong Ge looked at the investigation team members who rushed out and
spoke.
All of them jolted like they were hit by lightning and froze on the spot, not
daring to move.
The Investigation Captain gritted his teeth and turned around to look at Zong
Ge with a stiff posture.
His face showed obvious fear, but his tone also sounded aggrieved, "What else
do you want?"
Zong Ge pointed at the floor.
"You left this behind. Take it with you."
The Investigation Captain looked at where Zong Ge pointed and found that it was
the alchemy button from his shirt.
This was the alchemy device that recorded the process of his investigation.
The video was not only stored in the alchemy device but also transmitted to the
mage tower as a copy.
Because of the copy's existence, the Investigation Captain did not think too
much of this button.
Zong Ge said: "I helped you a lot."
"Earlier, when I gave you the first slap, the filming angle was
unsatisfactory."
"But later, after I adjusted the angle, it could be seen clearly in the video."
The Investigation Captain shook from anger after hearing these words, and his
eyes were burning like fire.
He had never seen a more arrogant outsider in his career.
"Arrogant! Reckless! Far too arrogant!"
"I've seen it all today!"
"I must report this! Let's see how long you can remain arrogant in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom!" 
The Investigation Captain restrained his anger and lowered his head. He quickly
took back the alchemy button he lost.
The moment he straightened his back, Zong Ge's palm landed on his shoulder.
The Investigation Captain's body turned stiff as a rock as if he had been
paralyzed.
At the next moment, he heard Zong Ge's calm words: "Look, I helped you so much,
but you still haven't thanked me. It isn't too much to ask for a word of
gratitude, is it?"
"You humiliated me, but you still want my gratitude?" The Investigation Captain
was so upset he could feel his organs hurting inside. He wished he could bite
this muscular human to death.
In the end, the other party was stronger, so he had no choice but to give in...
"Thank you."
"Hahaha!" This time, it was Zong Ge who laughed out loud.
As he laughed, the Investigation Captain brought his men away shamefully.
After the group left the cabin, they reached the deck.
They approached the ship's rail, intending to follow the deck planks and leave
the vessel.
At that moment, a group of alchemists approached them.  
Upon seeing the alchemists, the Investigation Captain froze in place, his face
betraying disbelief.  
He recognized the identities of the alchemists.  
They were officials from the city government palace, trusted subordinates of
the city Lord of Snow Bird Harbor, and the leader among them was one of the
city Lord's closest confidants.
Zi Di walked alongside the group of alchemists, leading the way for them.
The two sides met at the ship's rail.
The Investigation Captain hurriedly led his team members to greet the group of
alchemists.
The leader of the alchemists noticed that these people were wearing the
investigation team's uniforms and couldn't help but feel curious. He asked,
“Why is there an investigation team at the dock?”
The Investigation Captain bowed and scraped, hurriedly explaining a few words.
The alchemist leader immediately let out a disdainful cold laugh.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship had already entered the dock, yet they
were still conducting an investigation at this time.
He immediately saw through the underlying scheme.
The Investigation Captain before him had undoubtedly become a lackey of the
Bayonet Gang.
As the city Lord's confidant, he despised such people from the bottom of his
heart.
Zi Di spoke up at the right moment, “I don't know why, but today has been
particularly busy. From early morning, people began arriving one after
another."
“The investigation team is one thing.”
"The dock workers are also demanding payment of mooring fees. The reason is
that our ship is in a damaged state, so when it is moored at the dock, the dock
bears a higher risk, and we need to pay several times the mooring fee. They
also informed us that our ships are polluting the environment and must be
repaired immediately; otherwise, we will face additional fines."
The alchemist leader paused for a moment before breaking into a cold smile:
"Those are some pretty good excuses."
"However, please don't worry, Magician Hong Teng. We are here on the orders of
the city Lord to first investigate the damage to the ships, cannons, and other
equipment."
"Your group's gold level cannons and all your vessels will receive the best
repairs."
"The city Lord has explicitly stated that we should use all available
resources, and repair fees will only be charged at half the market rate.
Additionally, he's made his private shipyard available to you. If any issues
arise during repairs, your group's vessels may directly enter his private
shipyard. There are large-scale repair facilities there, and no mooring fees
will be charged. I can guarantee this last point!"
After saying this, the alchemist leader looked at the Investigation Captain
again.  
What met his eyes was the Investigation Captain's wide-eyed, pale-faced
expression of panic.
The alchemist leader was satisfied.
He sneered at the Investigation Captain with disdain, then walked past him with
his head held high.
The investigation team members instinctively lowered their heads to avoid the
alchemists' icy stares.
The Investigation Captain felt as though he had fallen into an ice cave, his
heart growing cold.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had actually aided the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, openly displaying such an attitude. Could they still cause trouble for
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
After all, the one who managed them was the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, not the
Bayonet Gang.
The Bayonet Gang had bribed them precisely because of their work and positions.
All of that had been granted to them by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The Investigation Captain suddenly realized: his slap had been endured in vain,
and he understood why Shi Qi was so brazen and arrogant.
“But how could this be?”
“Why is the city Lord so close to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
The Investigation Captain felt like his world was collapsing.
"Hurry up, let's leave!" He lowered his head and dared not linger any longer.
Having lost his greatest support, the Investigation Captain now felt that the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships were like a den of tigers and dragons.
The hatred that had filled his heart was now completely replaced by panic.
Zong Ge led the water pigmen onto the deck as well.
Seeing the investigation team fleeing in disarray, the water pigmen couldn't
help but erupt into cheers and applause.
The water pigmen had also heard the alchemists' words.
He sighed in relief, his gaze toward Zong Ge filled with admiration.
"Gang Lie," Zong Ge turned sideways and suddenly spoke.
The water pigmen's cheers came to an abrupt halt.
Gang Lie immediately knelt down: "Lord Shi Qi, I was wrong! I couldn't hold
back; I was too impulsive..."
Some water pigmen wanted to speak up for him, but Zong Ge's authority was too
great, and they ultimately remained silent.  
Zong Ge's training had been highly effective; this group of water pigmen had
been thoroughly disciplined by him.
“Well done,” Zong Ge interrupted the explanation.
"What?" Gang Lie looked up abruptly.
Remember, you are fighters, members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. You're
no longer slaves.”
"I don't care if you're beastmen. Once you join the Mercenary Corps, you are my
people. You are one of us."
"In the future, in such situations, don't hesitate. Just hit them hard."
“A fighter may die on the battlefield but must never endure humiliation
lightly.”  
The water pigmen trembled at these words, some with reddened eyes, others
choked with emotion.
"Gang Lie," Zong Ge walked over and placed his left hand on the top of his
head.
Zong Ge rubbed his head twice and left a faint remark: "Keep it up." 
After saying this, he left.  
He had to go to the training room to continue sparring with the dragonman
youngster.
“Yes, Lord Shi Qi.” Gang Lie did not stand up; he kept his head bowed, his
tiger-like eyes brimming with tears.  
He was easily embarrassed and did not want others to see him crying.  
For a moment, he could only maintain his half-kneeling posture, remaining
motionless for a long time.  
The deck directly below him was already covered with a tiny puddle of tears.



****** Chapter 302: Men Shi vs Ban Lan Gen ******
Snow Bird Harbor.
In a small arena closest to the dock.
The grueling battle had already lasted half a day.
"Puff, puff, puff..."
The dwarf Men Shi was panting and drenched in sweat.
He looked helplessly at Ban Lan Gen, feeling powerless.
Ban Lan Gen was a treeman, and he had already taken root in the sand of the
arena.
His body was three times larger than normal, and there were dozens of times the
branches on his tree body, swaying around as the wind blew.
"Come, I'm standing right here."
"Come attack me!"
"Consider it my loss if I take even a step back."
Ban Lan Gen taunted the dwarf Men Shi arrogantly.
His face could be seen on the upper half of the tree trunk.
A large number of branches and vines intertwined into two huge wooden palms by
the sides of the tree.
One hand was holding the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
The other hand was holding a silver level rectangular tower shield.
At the same time, there was a epaulette hidden in his tree crown. It was the
Flowing Wave Armor. 
Other than the Flowing Wave Armor, his Battle Qi Syringe was concealed
somewhere too.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer flew around him, landing on the tree crown
at times like a flying bird.
In order to guarantee his victory, Ban Lan Gen had borrowed equipment from the
other leaders before beginning the challenge.
He was fully armed!
In terms of equipment, he far surpassed Men Shi.
Men Shi only had his two-handed war hammer in his hands.
This war hammer was only at the silver level.
The dragonman youngster wanted to lend equipment too.
However, he had very few to begin with.
The Grand Arena Medal and Golden Silk Chainmail could not be lent out.
The Grand Arena Medal was constantly in use while the Golden Silk Chainmail
needed repairing.
There was also another important reason: these two pieces of equipment were
under the effect of both the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and
Deceptive Disguise spell.
If he lent them to Men Shi, the secret would be exposed.
To be fair, Men Shi himself did not think that Ban Lan Gen would be this well-
equipped either.
Xiong Ju had already done this before and now Ban Lan Gen did the same again.
"Both battle qi and stamina are nearly depleted."
"I can't fight anymore..."
Realizing this, Men Shi sighed deeply.
Then, he shouted: "I surrender."
He walked down the arena with dignity, but he could not conceal the frustration
on his face.
He had been completely suppressed the entire fight. Other than the initial
stage, he could not even threaten his opponent at all.
When they fought, Ban Lan Gen had thrown out the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer at the first moment.
It caused a great disruption to Men Shi.
Men Shi fought like a typical dwarf; he had outstanding defense but not enough
offense.
While Men Shi was distracted, Ban Lan Gen quickly retreated and took root in
the sand after pulling some distance.
Men Shi knew the situation was bad when he saw the treeman taking root, so he
quickly expended his battle qi to launch a fierce assault.
When he arrived before Ban Lan Gen, he stood firm and prepared to engage in
close combat.
The distraction level and threat of the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer quickly
decreased.
Ban Lan Gen had only received this equipment for a short time, so he could not
control it accurately.
However, this was within his expectations.
He had once observed the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju's fight. The
dragonman youngster had used this weakness to cause trouble for Xiong Ju
instead.
Ban Lan Gen gave up the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer and used battle skills
in a frenzy, disregarding the battle qi usage.
The audience thought it was unwise to engage in this style of fighting.
In a clash of battle qi expenditure, it was obvious that Men Shi had the
advantage.
Even though Ban Lan Gen had taken root, it only gave him a slight boost in
recovery speed and some minor effects.
In terms of battle qi consumption, his remaining reserves could not hold
against the relentless attacks by Men Shi.
Ban Lan Gen kept to this combat tactic.
After paying the price of an enormous amount of battle qi, he finally took root
in the sand of the arena.
Men Shi was full of vigor thinking that he had the advantage now.
But in the next moment, Ban Lan Gen took out the Battle Qi Syringe with a loud
laugh.
He stabbed it fiercely into his arm.
The Battle Qi Syringe contains the battle qi he has accumulated over time,
which is of the same origin as him.
After the jab, his battle qi was quickly replenished to its peak state.
Men Shi was stunned on the spot.
When Xiong Ju and the dragonman youngster fought, he had forgotten to use the
Battle Qi Syringe.
This allowed Ban Lan Gen to successfully catch Men Shi unguarded.
This tactic succeeded brilliantly!
After taking root, his defense and recovery abilities gained the advantage.
His battle qi reserves also surpassed Men Shi.
This Battle Qi Syringe easily turned the tide in his favor.
The audience was shocked and discussed among themselves fervently.
The heroic duel did not ban equipment, potions, or other external-use items.
However, the audience gave greater recognition to the battle between the
dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju.
It was able to show the determination and fighting spirit of the duelists.
Ban Lan Gen had such an advantage in equipment, but he still fought so
carefully and reservedly. It was hard for the audience to cheer him on.
The rest of the battle had no surprise.
Men Shi continued to attack while Ban Lan Gen guarded himself.
He extended his roots into the ground and recovered more stamina and battle qi.
Even though there were injuries sustained on his branches, he quickly
recovered.
His self-healing speed was only slightly inferior to healing spells.
Ban Lan Gen's greatest weakness was that he could not move.
However, Men Shi could not take advantage of this weakness now.
This was because he lacked long-range attack methods.
His strongest long-range attack was a battle skill. This battle skill allowed
one to throw their war hammer at the enemy.
It could not be used easily.
Ban Lan Gen was in a good condition now, so if Men Shi threw his hammer, it was
likely he'd lose possession of it.
By then, Men Shi would be in an even more embarrassing spot without a weapon.
Men Shi's only choice was to engage in close combat with Ban Lan Gen.
However, he lacked an attack strong enough to decide the battle.
He was not only facing the fully armed Ban Lan Gen, but also his massive wooden
palms and the vines and branches that could strike from any angle at any
moment.  
Ban Lan Gen had transformed into a tree-shaped fortress with no blind spots.  
After several such exchanges, Ban Lan Gen burst into laughter and began to
persuade Men Shi to surrender.
“Give up. My advantage is too great.”
"Can't you see it? The winner of this duel can only be me."
"You're just a clown. You can't threaten me at all. Why waste any more time?
Just admit defeat gracefully."
"Once my tactic succeeds, this battle can be considered over. I've already
secured victory."
Men Shi acknowledged that Ban Lan Gen had a point.  
But he didn't give up.
Because he thought of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and also of the dragonman
youngster.
The Bayonet Gang had issued the challenge to disrupt the dragonman youngster’s
recovery. They sought to use various underhanded means to force the dragonman
youngster to face reality and engage in a heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang as
soon as possible.
Men Shi knew this was the Bayonet Gang's scheme.
He wouldn't let Ban Lan Gen succeed so easily.
Thus, Men Shi adopted a stalling tactic.
Every time he launched a close combat attack, he quickly retreated to a safe
area to rest and prepare.
During this time, he resisted the interference of the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer while consuming potions.
This left Ban Lan Gen speechless.
Remember, he could not move.
Even if he gained the upper hand in close combat and even injured Men Shi, it
was still difficult to press the advantage.  
Because once he pursued, he had to leave the ground and release his rooted
state.  
Once the rooted state was released, it would become extremely difficult to do
it again.
This tactic succeeded because it caught Ban Lan Gen off guard.
If the Ban Lan Gen attempts to root again, Men Shi will certainly not agree.
The more critical point was the Battle Qi Syringe.
All of the battle qi stored had been used. It would take more than a few days
to reaccumulate it.
Without this crucial equipment, Ban Lan Gen would find it difficult to execute
the rooting tactic again.
"I cannot easily release the rooting state."
“Otherwise, all my careful preparations and efforts would be in vain.”
“Who would voluntarily give up their advantage?”
"Moreover, what if this is the opponent's trick, with Men Shi acting openly
while setting a trap secretly? If I rush to victory, actively pursue, abandon
the rooted state, and ultimately lose, wouldn't I become the biggest
laughingstock in Snow Bird Harbor this year?"  
Ban Lan Gen felt a heavy psychological burden.  
Earlier, in his duel with the dragonman youngster, he had been careless and was
successfully ambushed, knocked unconscious with a single punch.
Due to this humiliating outcome, he had endured mockery and ridicule in the
days that followed.
On the surface, there might not be much open mockery directed at him, but the
members of the Bayonet Gang privately gossiped about Ban Lan Gen.
After all, Ban Lan Gen was one of the six leaders of the Bayonet Gang, a high-
ranking figure who needed to maintain his dignity.
Those in power needed reputation.
“This time, I must be cautious.”
“Losing to Commander Long Fu is one thing, after all, Xiong Ju was no match for
him.”
“But losing to an obscure silver level member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would be too embarrassing.”
“What face would I have left to continue serving as the leader of the gang?”
Ban Lan Gen dared not be so arrogant anymore.
This time, he acted with extreme caution.
To provoke Men Shi into attacking and engaging in prolonged close combat, he
constantly taunted and insulted Men Shi, aiming to stir up his anger.
If it were someone like Gang Lie, they might have fallen for it.
But Men Shi was an honest man.
No matter how vile Ban Lan Gen's insults were, he endured them in silence and
steadfastly executed his delaying tactic.
Gradually, Men Shi spent more and more time resting and less and less time
attacking.
In close combat, the situation was clearly unfavorable for Men Shi.
Whether it was the Flowing Wave Armor or the Gold Flower Hacksaw, both gave Ban
Lan Gen a significant close combat advantage.  
Meanwhile, the best equipment Men Shi had was his silver level war hammer.  
The gap was too obvious.  
However, once Men Shi retreated and created a safe distance, Ban Lan Gen also
lacked effective long-range attack methods.  
He was, after all, a close combat battle qi cultivator.
His most reliable long-range attack method was the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer he just borrowed.  
However, while this flying hammer could cause disruption and threat, the level
of threat it posed was insufficient to create a window of opportunity for
victory. 
In fact, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer itself was not yet fully crafted
and remained an unfinished product.  
Men Shi relies on his long-handled two-handed war hammer to block the attacks
of the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer. During the period when the Small
Thunder God Flying Hammer was spinning around, he could calmly swallow potions.
In this situation, the Evil Eye was different.
The mental beams emitted by the Evil Eye were extremely powerful, almost always
hitting their target, and extremely difficult to defend against.
Unfortunately, this precious artifact imbued with the power of the abyss had
already been destroyed by Xiong Ju.
As a result, although Ban Lan Gen held a significant advantage, the initiative
remained firmly in the hands of Men Shi.
The scene of the duel grew increasingly grim.  
At first, the spectators were enthusiastic, nearly filling every seat in the
duel arena.  
But soon, the battle became monotonous and tedious.  
Some spectators grumbled and left.
Those who remained still held out hope that Men Shi might have other tricks up
his sleeve. Would some unexpected change suddenly occur?  
But as time dragged on, hour after hour passed.  
Those who persisted in watching could see clearly: Men Shi had no other tricks;
he was merely stalling for time.  
More and more spectators left the small duel arena.
What had once been a packed arena now had only a few scattered spectators, with
large empty sections.
Even the vendors had disappeared.
A group of children were laughing and chasing each other between the seats.
A few elderly people were lying on the seats, sound asleep. They had grown
bored from watching and dozed off, falling asleep like that.
A few couples were chatting in the corners, whispering to each other, filling
the air with the sweet stench of love.  
Some new spectators entered the arena, hoping to catch the excitement.  
But they usually couldn't last more than ten minutes before leaving in
disappointment.  
“I should have brought more potions,” Men Shi, who was in the midst of battle,
regretted more and more.  
He did not bring enough potions!
Earlier, he had not anticipated such a battle scenario.
Normally, in intense combat, there was rarely an opportunity for one to consume
potions.
Men Shi had thought he had brought enough potions.
Now, he deeply regretted it but there was nothing he could do.
Without potions to replenish him quickly, his stamina and battle qi had
plummeted to rock bottom, and his combat effectiveness had declined severely.
Men Shi found it difficult to engage in close combat again.
Meanwhile, Ban Lan Gen remained in peak condition.
In this rooted state, the treeman continuously accumulated advantages.
Ultimately, Men Shi decided it was unnecessary to risk close combat.
If he were injured, it would not just cause trouble for the mercenary corps or
worry the Commander Long Fu, but it would also allow the Bayonet Gang’s plot to
succeed.
Men Shi finally shouted out loud and admitted defeat.
The referee had already fallen asleep and was woken up by a staff member
nearby.
“Ah, it's over?” The referee looked up at the sky.
It was already dark.



****** Chapter 303: Gold Level Equipment Comes ******
The referee had no surprises regarding the outcome of this duel.
He walked onto the stage with resentment and announced the result of the duel
loudly to the empty stands.
"I won; I finally won."
"It was not easy, not easy at all!"
After securing this victory, Ban Lan Gen felt a sense of relief.
He could finally relax and exit his rooted state.
His size quickly shrank, returning to his previous mobile state.
However, the joy on his face did not last long.
As he was leaving, he overheard the audience's discussions and conversations.
"Have you heard? The Bayonet Gang started causing trouble for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps early this morning. They firs sent in Ban Lan Gen to issue a
challenge, then had the port officials and an investigation team pick a fight."
“They're just bullying outsiders.”
“The Bayonet Gang is too despicable!”
“This puts the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in a dire situation.”
“Fortunately, the city Lord promptly dispatched a team of alchemists to assist
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in repairing their magic ship and their gold
level cannon.”
“Thanks to the city Lord's intervention, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
able to turn the situation around.”
“The city Lord is truly wise!”
“The Bayonet Gang is despicable; they deserve to be dealt with.”
“It turns out that last night, Commander Long Fu, despite his injuries, held a
secret meeting with the city Lord and secured his strong support.”
"It seems Commander Long Fu is not only a formidable fighter but also a capable
leader.   He had already anticipated this."  
“According to reliable sources, Long Fu has purchased a large quantity of gold
level equipment from the city Lord.”  
"What? This is going to be interesting!"  
"Commander Long Fu, almost unarmed, defeated the fully armed Xiong Ju and
emerged victorious. If he had been fully armed as well, Xiong Ju would have
been no match for him."  
“I can't wait to see the showdown between Commander Long Fu and Teng Dong
Lang.”  
"I wonder what kind of gold equipment? If he's acquired powerful and unique
treasures, Teng Dong Lang won't have it easy."
“Not necessarily! If Commander Long Fu is only skilled in hand-to-hand combat,
using unfamiliar weapons recklessly could become a huge weakness.”  
"Teng Dong Lang is very powerful. Though he hasn’t fought much in recent years,
he's not just an ordinary gold level fighter. As the leader of the Bayonet
Gang, how could he be simple?"
Upon hearing the various discussions, Ban Lan Gen’s joy at victory vanished
instantly.  
“What’s the difference between this and the city Lord helping the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps openly?”  
“Is the city Lord using the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as a pawn to challenge
our Bayonet Gang?”  
“No, that’s unlikely. Since he became the city Lord, he's always coexisted
peacefully with our Bayonet Gang. Back when he first became city Lord, he even
specially invited Lord Teng Dong Lang to a banquet to discuss governance
policies."  
“So, he's just admiring Long Fu, purely out of appreciation, and wants to
befriend them?”  
Ban Lan Gen speculated on the city Lord's intentions.
His thoughts reflected the current thinking of the Bayonet Gang.
No one had anticipated that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would suddenly act
this way.
This had a significant impact on the Bayonet Gang.
With the city Lord’s intervention, many of their tactics were no longer viable.
Without the City Lord’s protection, the Bayonet Gang had meticulously prepared
further obstacles for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, including a third wave,
a fourth wave, and more.
They would then search the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships under various
pretexts, humiliating them.
During the searches, they would have made every effort to gather intelligence
on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and probe into their background. If given
the opportunity, they might even plant a few pieces of evidence to frame the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This was something that could not be helped.
The storm the dragonman youngster had stirred up had already engulfed him and
endangered the entire mercenary corps.
In fact, once he had forcibly purchased that giant-type intelligence potion,
the power struggle between the Bayonet Gang and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had already begun.
Only by determining the true winner and loser could the rivalry between the two
sides come to an end.
After training with Zong Ge for nearly an entire day, the dragonman youngster
was completely exhausted.
However, at the same time, he felt deeply satisfied. A day of training had
yielded immense gains, with his progress clearly visible.
Before dinner.  
The city government palace sent another group of people.  
This group was led by four silver level individuals, with the rest being the
city Lord's elite guard troops. They escorted the shipment, bringing seven
large boxes.  
Along the way, they attracted countless curious glances.  
The group arrived smoothly at the dock and completed the handover with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
They exchanged goods and money at the same time.
The boxes contained the supplies the dragonman youngster had purchased from the
city Lord the previous night.
Two of the boxes were filled with magic beast meat and other items.
The remaining four boxes were packed with various alchemy materials.
The remaining boxes contained gold level items, the most valuable part of this
shipment.
The dragonman youngster opened the final box and personally inspected these
gold level items.
A massive gold level longbow, without matching arrows.
Five three-pronged darts, with sharp edges and a cold gleam.
The gold level harpoon was a long-handled weapon, roughly the same height as
the dragonman youngster.
Additionally, there was a set of gold level formation diagram panels.
These were specifically requested by the dragonman youngster from the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord. He had not anticipated receiving them during their first
handover.
When assembled, these formation diagram panels could form a complete portable
magic formation.
Of course, the panels were currently blank.
To construct any type of formation, an alchemist must first build the formation
on each plate before assembling them.  
Regarding the construction of the Bloodline Purification formation, the
dragonman youngster had discussed it with Zi Di, but no formal plan had been
finalized.  
If external alchemists were hired to build portions of the formation on the
plates, there was still a risk of information leakage.
If the Bloodline Purification formation was exposed, it would be unbearable for
both the dragonman youngster and the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
However, these preparations must still be made.
Preparing in advance was better than being caught off guard.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps held a large amount of funds, so investing in
this area in advance was the correct strategy.
This was the first handover.
According to the agreement between the dragonman youngster and the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord, there would be two more handover sessions.
It was because the dragonman youngster's procurement volume was extremely
large.  
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could not immediately provide all the goods
directly.  
The items on the list were not exclusively his own.  
Rather, they were sold by the entire network of connections and channels behind
him.  
The same list was also in the hands of other forces' leaders.  
The resources the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sold externally were only a
portion of the list.  
Therefore, it took time to gather them.
After sending off the city Lord's entourage, the dragonman youngster found
himself in a blissful dilemma.  
He had purchased a lot of gold level equipment, but storage had become an
issue.  
“We need a spatial storage device, and this storage device must be at least
gold level.”  
These supplies and equipment were collective property.  
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a corresponding military equipment system.
For example, the alchemy crossbows and firearms used by the mercenaries were
considered collective property and were stored in the armory during
peacetime.  
They were only distributed urgently when combat arose.  
Previously, the higher-ups of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had also promised
the mercenaries: as long as their merits were sufficient, these alchemy
crossbows and firearms would be transferred to private ownership. This
undoubtedly sparked immense combat enthusiasm among the mercenaries.
The large quantities of equipment and supplies that the dragonman youngster
procured from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord this time were also collectively
owned.
The treasures they purchased at the Two Eyes Island auction were also of the
same nature.
As for how to use them, the priority of distribution went to the extent of
urgency and necessity.
Therefore, the substitute death puppet was first given to the dragonman
youngster. He was the most critical figure in the entire team.
Then, when Cang Xu had to venture out to attend the undead gathering, the
dragonman youngster voluntarily gave it to Cang Xu.   Because under the
circumstances at the time, Cang Xu needed it more.  
In fact, the outside world has always believed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps possessed a gold level storage device.  
This misunderstanding stemmed from the battle between the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps and Rou Zang.
However, in reality, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps did not yet possess such
high-end equipment.
Zi Di sighed, "It's very difficult to purchase a gold level spatial storage
device. Such treasures are almost extinct on the market and can only be found
at auctions."
"The list provided by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord already exceeds the limits
of the normal market. However, there are no spatial storage devices on the list
either."
Zi Di explained the market situation to the dragonman youngster.
Low-end storage equipment was actually quite common.
For example, the human skin storage bag that Cang Xu once made himself.
But once the grade reached gold level or higher, it became extremely rare.
High-level spatial devices were not only difficult to craft and required
premium materials, but there was also a crucial external factor.
That was the strict control exercised by major factions!
It was because high-level spatial devices had a significant impact. If used
properly, they could alter the outcome of a major battle. Whether it was
transporting war supplies or troops, they were critical factors that greatly
influenced the course of a war.
Zi Di believed: Rather than relying on purchasing gold level spatial storage
equipment on the market, it would be better to enhance one's alchemy abilities.
It would be more reliable to create it themselves in the future.
After dinner, the dragonman youngster left the dock again.
The carriage carried him along the road.
This time, his destination was the Treasure Merchant Alliance..
The Treasure Merchant Alliance. was one of the six major merchant alliances of
the Sheng Ming Empire and naturally had a branch in Snow Bird Harbor.
Such merchant alliances typically maintained a neutral stance. They did not
openly support others or other factions like the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
did.
However, in reality, the relationship between merchant alliances and
mercenaries was closer.
Gangs like the Bayonet Gang often stood in opposition to the merchant
alliances. They extort protection fees and even blackmail the merchant
alliances.
The dragonman youngster believed that this inclination alone was sufficient to
secure some support from the merchant alliance.
He did not require much support.
His primary objective was to acquire gold level items through the merchant
alliance's channels.
After all, he had the funds to do so!
The primary business of the Treasure Merchant Alliance. was the sale of various
items crafted through alchemy.



****** Chapter 304: A Thief Visits ******
A mysterious figure has been hiding by the window.
He watched as the city Lord's men carried seven large boxes to the dock,
boarded the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship, and then returned with the empty
boxes.
Then, he watched quietly as the carriage carrying the dragonman youngster
departed from the pier.
Glancing at the sky, he began his action.
He reached into his robe and pulled out a tomato.
Of course, this was not a real tomato, but an alchemy artifact.
The artifact was of gold level quality!
The mysterious man pressed his thumb against the top of the tomato.
In the next moment, the tomato opened like a pocket watch, revealing a smooth,
flat surface inside.
The mysterious man infused it with battle qi.
After being filled with a large amount of battle qi, the tomato's surface
transformed into a clock face with clear markings.
The dial also had three hands, representing hours, minutes, and seconds.  
The mysterious figure pressed the top of the tomato again with his thumb, and
the clock hands immediately began to move.  
A few seconds later, the mysterious figure's figure quickly faded, becoming a
vague outline.  
Soon, the outline disappeared as well, and the mysterious figure vanished
completely.
The mysterious figure closed the tomato clock and tucked it into his chest.  
He gently pushed open the window and leaped out.  
He ran across the roof, swiftly approaching the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
ship.  
Upon reaching a certain distance, he landed lightly on the empty ground of the
pier.  
There were few people on the pier.  
The mysterious figure quickly made his way to the underside of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' flagship.
Without hesitation, he leaped lightly. He landed on the side of the Love
Triangle.
He extended his hands, spreading his fingers apart. 
He gently touched the surface of the Love Triangle's hull with the pads of his
fingers. 
At the moment of contact, his golden battle qi created ripples on the hull,
providing him with a solid foothold.
The mysterious figure hung in mid-air, relying solely on his hands to alternate
and support himself with his fingers, effortlessly climbing upward. 
The entire process was as light as a dragonfly skimming the water, drawing no
attention.
In about 10 seconds, he had scaled the ship's rail and truly set foot on the
deck of the Love Triangle.
Numerous scout-type alchemy puppets were stationed around the dock.
They monitored all the ships of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, with a
particular focus on the Love Triangle.
However, the mysterious man's entire operation did not trigger any detection
from the alchemy puppets.
At the same time, magic images were projected inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Similarly, there was no trace of the mysterious man in the images.
The mysterious man walked across the deck.
His walking posture was different from that of an ordinary person.
He only touched the ground with the tips of his toes, walking on his heels.
Every time his toes touched the deck, a small golden battle qi rippled out for
an instant.
The aura, which was originally visible, became invisible and odorless under the
influence of the tomato clock.
A group of patrol mercenaries approached from the corner.
The mysterious figure sidestepped, pressing against the wall, and easily
avoided them.
The mercenaries crossed paths with him narrowly.
The mysterious figure's shoulder was only a fist's length away from one of the
mercenaries at the most dangerous moment.
Without waiting for the mercenaries to move further away, the mysterious figure
followed them and continued on his way.
As he passed the forecastle, the mysterious figure's ears twitched.
He heard unusual sounds coming from inside the forecastle.
He approached the door of the forecastle.
First, he spread his left hand and gently pressed the pads of his fingers
against the door.
Golden battle qi ripples reappeared, swiftly spreading across the entire door
surface before penetrating into the forecastle.
The door to the forecastle was originally locked.
Under the influence of the golden battle qi, the lock opened silently.
At that moment, there were two patrol teams on the deck, and the mercenaries
were walking around while searching the area.
The door to the forecastle was right under their noses, and their gaze often
swept over it.
The mysterious man, bold and daring, decisively pushed the door open a crack.
The next moment, he unleashed his battle skill.
His entire body moved like water, swiftly sliding through the crack.
The interior of the forecastle was spacious and sparsely furnished.
There was only one person inside—the big guy.
“So, the sounds I heard earlier were just snoring?”
The mysterious man's gaze was immediately drawn to the big guy.
He immediately saw through the trick.
Although the big guy was asleep, he was also cultivating battle qi.
"Cultivating battle qi while sleeping. What kind of battle qi technique is
this? It's interesting."
“No wonder the snoring sounds so strange, with a hint of extraordinary power
leaking out.”
“I thought it was those treasures.” 
The big guy’s cultivation technique, the Mindless Sleeping Posture Technique,
was carefully selected for him by the dragonman youngster from the War
Merchant’s database. 
The mysterious figure did not recognize the origin of this battle qi
cultivation technique; in fact, it was quite difficult to determine its source
from just observation.
“This little giant is on the verge of a breakthrough.”
The mysterious man's expression was somewhat subtle.
He sensed that the big guy's life aura was approaching the threshold of
transcending.
The next step was to transcend the ordinary, shed the identity of a normal
person, and elevate his life level to bronze level!
The mysterious figure narrowed his eyes, contemplating the idea of striking him
down with a single blow.
But the next moment, he dismissed the thought.
He had more important matters to attend to.
If he killed the big guy, others might notice, and it would thus implicate his
entire operation.
“Even if I kill him, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would only lose a bronze
level member.”
“Moreover, they might not even realize that this big guy was on the verge of
breaking through.”
“The operation has only just begun; there's no need to unnecessarily increase
the risks.”
The mysterious figure spared the big guy.
If he knew the big guy's bloodline quality, he would definitely change his
mind.
He had no idea what he had missed.
The mysterious figure slipped through the narrow gap in the door, channeled his
battle qi once more, and left the forecastle.
As he departed, he gently closed the door completely and relocked it.
By then, the deck had already been reinforced with an additional patrol unit.
The mercenaries from the three patrol teams hadn’t noticed that the forecastle
had already been visited by an enemy.
The door’s opening and closing had been too subtle to detect.
The big guy was still sound asleep and had no idea that he had narrowly escaped
death.
After leaving the forecastle, the mysterious figure headed straight for the aft
cabin, knowing that was where the captain's cabin were.
The captain's cabin were empty.
The dragonman youngster had already gone to the Treasure Merchant Alliance..
The mysterious figure stood in the center of the captain's cabin, looked
around, then spread his hands wide, fingers splayed.
Golden battle qi ripples emanated from him in waves.
The golden battle qi ripples spread rapidly, sweeping over the surface of every
object in the captain's cabin.
Some magic traps and small mechanisms were instantly disarmed, without a single
alarm sounding.
Then, some drawers and cabinets opened automatically, revealing their contents.
The mysterious figure discovered the nautical charts, paper, pen, ruler, and
other measurement tools used daily by the dragonman youngster.
He found the interactive map and immediately unfolded it for examination.



****** Chapter 305: Sacred Artifact — Golden Finger ******
These daily activity maps often recorded the recent routes taken by the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps and might also contain valuable intelligence about future
travel plans.
After the mysterious figure opened it, they took a look but found it was less
detailed than the intelligence description of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. 
This activity map was purchased by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on the Two
Eyes Island, and the previous route was not recorded within it. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were not true arms smugglers; their destination
is the capital city of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The next steps would depend on how the situation developed.
The mysterious man was not satisfied and examined the activity map more
carefully.
He hoped that the map contained more hidden information which was usually
concealed.
In fact, such nautical charts were not uncommon.
This was especially for those used by pirates. The surface layer contained
information, while the hidden layers held more genuine and secret intelligence.
In the end, after studying the map, the mysterious figure was left with only
disappointment. He was certain that it was just an ordinary nautical chart.
In the drawer of the dragonman youngster's desk, the mysterious figure stumbled
upon a pile of invitation letters.
He glanced at the invitation letters and took note of all the parties involved
in sending them.
“There are no secret compartments or treasure chests here,” the mysterious man
said disappointedly, instinctively looking down at his feet. “It seems that
today's cargo is hidden in the lower hold.”
One of the main purposes of the mysterious man's journey was to steal the gold
level equipment that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had just purchased.
After finding nothing in the captain's cabin, the mysterious figure left
immediately.
He came to a ship ladder and was about to descend it.
At that moment, a patrol of mercenaries happened to be ascending the ladder.
The mysterious figure quickly stepped aside.
Although he was in an invisible state, he could still bump into them
physically. He was not like a ghost or a spirit that could ignore physical laws
and pass through objects.
“There's really a lot of people patrolling here.”
“Their patrol routes are very strict,” the mysterious person thought to
himself.
While stepping aside, the mysterious person took out the tomato clock from his
pocket again.
He opened it and quietly noted how much time was left.
Very soon, the patrol team walked away.
They were completely unaware of the mysterious person right next to them.
The mysterious person climbed the ship's ladder and smoothly reached the second
deck.
Following the same actions and procedures as before, he quickly checked the
ship's cabins on both sides along the way.
His movements did not make a sound.
The tomato clock perfectly concealed his presence.
As time passed, the mysterious figure still hadn't found his target, and he
couldn't help but feel anxious.
A patrol team passed by him again.
The leader, Lan Zao, suddenly stopped in his tracks and cast a puzzled glance
toward the mysterious figure's location.
The mercenary behind him stopped and asked, “Lord Lan Zao, what's wrong?”
Lan Zao shook his head and laughed, “Nothing.”
He had just felt something was off, but after looking closely, he confirmed
there was nothing.
“It was probably just an illusion,” Lan Zao thought to himself.
The mysterious man remained motionless.
He stared intently at Lan Zao's back until he disappeared around the corner of
the corridor, then finally averted his gaze.
The mysterious man's eyes flickered with icy intent to kill.
He recalled the scene from earlier.
Since boarding the Love Triangle, this was the first time he had faced the
danger of being discovered.
“I haven't found the treasure storage cabin yet, and my nerves are getting
frayed, causing my movements to become more noticeable.”
“Did that mercenary detect me through the fluctuations in the air?”
The mysterious figure had a physical presence, so even slight movements caused
the air to flow differently.
At that moment, he almost attacked!
Lan Zao was merely a bronze level individual, and the mercenaries behind him
were all ordinary people.
With the mysterious figure's gold level strength, he could eliminate them all
within two seconds.
Throughout the process, he could do so without making a single sound.
Furthermore, within the next 10 seconds, the mysterious figure could swiftly
dispose of their bodies, leaving no trace at the scene.
However, the mysterious figure suppressed his killing intent and ultimately did
not act. 
“Such a tightly organized patrol route, with so many patrol teams, it's almost
like a military camp.” 
“There must be a connection between them, a secret code for transmitting
emergency information.” 
"If any patrol team delays even slightly, the entire patrol system will detect
it. Killing them would be easy, but if this team goes missing, it will trigger
the entire system's alarm!" 
It was precisely because of this consideration that the mysterious figure did
not act. 
“Half the time has already been consumed.” The mysterious figure opened the
tomato clock again, furrowing his brows. 
There wasn't much time left.
The mysterious figure decided to use his battle skill to search for the gold
equipment. 
After the battle skill was unleashed, there was no effect.
This battle qi was specifically designed for investigation. Within a certain
range centered on the mysterious figure, detection of any extraordinary aura
could be captured by the battle skill and fed back into the mysterious figure's
mind.
Gold level equipment naturally had a gold level aura.
However, those who collected such equipment would typically store them in
treasure chests.
As a result, the auras were completely blocked and concealed.
The mysterious person's search attempt failed, but it did not surprise him.
“In this situation, I can only consume a potion,” the mysterious person sighed
deeply.
Then, with a constipated expression on his face, he pulled out a vial from his
robe.
He removed the stopper, tilted his head back, and poured the entire contents of
the vial into his mouth, then swallowed it in one gulp.
The next moment, a look of pain appeared on his face.
He opened his mouth wide, stuck out his tongue, and leaned against the wall,
vomiting repeatedly.
His tongue turned an eerie purple in an instant from the potion.
As he vomited, the mysterious man shed copious amounts of snot and tears.
But no matter how loud he screamed, his cries were drowned out by the tomato
clock.
Furthermore, the snot and tears he shed were carefully collected by himself,
lest they become a weakness in his infiltration.
After about half a minute, the mysterious figure finally regained his
composure.
He twitched his nostrils and immediately detected a peculiar scent.
Following the scent, he descended another deck to the lower level of the Love
Triangle.
“This must be the place,” he said, precisely locating the cargo hold containing
the gold equipment.
The mysterious figure extended both hands, spreading his ten fingers, with all
fingertips gently pressed against the surface of the hatch. 
Golden-colored battle qi ripples spread outward from the contact point. 
Soon, the mysterious figure detected numerous traps behind the door. 
His expression grew serious and focused. 
This was because he sensed numerous magic traps and intricate mechanisms
inside.
These mechanisms and magic traps were intertwined, forming a series of tight
security barriers.
If the mysterious figure made even the slightest mistake, it would trigger the
traps and catch him off guard.
More critically, it would activate the alarm, alerting the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Disarming these traps and mechanisms was not difficult for the mysterious
figure.
The survivors did not have advanced equipment in this regard. 
In addition, Zi Di, who had set up these magic traps, was greatly limited by
her magician level. 
But for the mysterious figure, he could not afford to waste precious time
dismantling these traps and mechanisms.
The buff granted by the tomato clock has a time limit.
The mysterious figure then pulled out a sacred artifact from his robe.
This artifact was quite unique, resembling a goblin's finger. The tip of the
finger had a long, sharp nail.
The finger was as golden as if cast in gold, radiating a brilliant golden glow,
and felt heavy in the hand.
This was the sacred artifact—Golden Finger!
The mysterious man gently touched the surface of the hatch with the Golden
Finger.
The moment he activated it, a burst of golden light flashed briefly.
The commotion was still suppressed by the tomato clock.
In an instant, all the magic traps and mechanisms around the hatch were
perfectly disarmed without triggering a single alarm.
The mysterious figure glanced at the Golden Finger, which surface had grown
dim, and carefully placed it back into his robe. 
He pushed open the hatch, slipped inside, and then gently closed it behind
him. 
The entire process took less than a second. 
The ship's cabin was empty.
The mysterious figure paused for a moment.
Just then, another patrol team arrived nearby.
The mysterious figure heard the footsteps of the patrol members.
The footsteps grew closer, seemingly heading straight for this cabin.
He realized something was wrong.
He had just disabled all the magic traps and mechanisms, so there was no way he
could rebuild them in an instant.
This was a huge flaw!
Even if the patrol team couldn't detect his presence, they would certainly
notice that the magic traps and mechanisms had been disabled.
Realizing this, the mysterious figure narrowed his eyes slightly and drew his
dagger.



****** Chapter 306: Dispelling the Formation ******
The patrol team's footsteps gradually faded away until they had completely left
the ship's cabin.
The mysterious man remained calm as he quietly sheathed his dagger.
He exhaled silently, unable to help but marvel once again at the strict
discipline of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Generally speaking, patrol duty is a tedious task. Patrol members typically
engage in casual conversation during their rounds to combat boredom and pass
the time.
When the mysterious man inspected many barracks, it was common to see patrol
members chatting with each other.
However, when he arrived on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship and
encountered several patrol teams, he never saw any of them chatting idly with
each other. Each patrol team focused their attention solely on their work.
Because once they started chatting, it would distract them from their
surroundings. Sometimes, even if an intruder made a slight noise, it would be
drowned out by the patrol members' conversations.
“Mercenary Corps rarely have such discipline; even military camps might not
reach this level.”
The mysterious man couldn't help but think of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
other identity—arms smugglers—and suddenly understood.
Arms smuggling was an illegal activity that could cost one their life.
It was far more dangerous than regular mercenary work.
Only by cultivating such discipline could one enforce orders and keep secrets.
This would raise the success rate of smuggling.
“When it comes to arms smuggling, these people are undoubtedly very
professional.”
The mysterious figure's attention returned to what was before him.
The ship's hold was empty, but the mysterious figure knew not to trust what his
eyes saw.
Earlier, when he had used his battle skill to inspect the area outside the
door, he had discovered that gold equipment and various alchemy materials were
stored within this hold. However, they had been concealed by a magic formation,
which had erased all traces and suppressed their aura.
As a result, even if an outsider stood right in front of these treasures, they
would be completely undetectable to the naked eye.
The mysterious figure approached the formation and once again used his battle
qi to create ripples of golden battle qi.
Ripples spread rapidly, covering the entire invisible magic formation without
triggering any alarms.
After investigating, the mysterious figure quickly confirmed that the magic
formation before him was primarily used for camouflage and concealing energy.
Its grade was not particularly high.
"The magicians of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are Lao Zhong and Hong Teng.
These two are iron level and bronze level, respectively."
"This iron level formation shows clear signs of recent construction. I wonder
which one of them constructed it?" 
Although the mysterious figure immediately saw through the formation, he could
not immediately set about breaking it.
This was because, in addition to the main magic formation itself, four smaller
magic formations had been set up in the hidden corners of the ship's cabin.
These four smaller magic formations were secretly connected to the main magic
formation.
Once the main magic formation was broken, or any one of the four smaller magic
formations was damaged, an alarm would be triggered.
The mysterious figure's sacred artifact, the Golden Finger, could break this
arrangement.
But he did not wish to use it as it was too wasteful.
The Golden Finger could be reused, but each use consumed the divine power
stored within it.
Obtaining divine power was extremely difficult.
The mysterious figure was not a devout believer. Accumulating divine power
through prayer would require numerous attempts to gather enough for a single
use. 
The mysterious figure decided to take action himself.
He retrieved a set of tools.
They were kept in a small leather pouch. 
He untied the rope binding the pouch, unfolding the entire leather strip
completely and suspending it in mid-air before him. 
The leather pouch had numerous clasps, each securing a variety of precision
tools. 
Without exception, these tools were all gold level, their auras faintly
resonating with one another. 
Even the leather pouch housing them was of the same quality.
This was a relatively rare set of gold level tools, and the mysterious man's
primary tools of the trade.
The mysterious man first used his battle skill, causing his eyes to glow with a
golden light. 
After using his battle skill, a vague image of a magic formation appeared in
his field of vision.
This main magic formation was three-dimensional, nearly cubic in shape, and
nearly filled the entire ship's cabin. 
Every detail of the formation and the ripples caused by the flow of magic power
were clearly visible to the mysterious figure, who memorized them all.
The mysterious man observed for a moment before taking out several long
needles.
Under the infusion of his battle qi, the slender needles rapidly elongated,
growing significantly longer.
From their original length, which was only as long as a finger, they stretched
to the length of an adult's forearm.
The mysterious man carefully selected the needles and swiftly embedded them
into the three-dimensional magic formation.
The formation continued to operate normally, seemingly unaffected by the
needles.
The mysterious figure then took out a magic ink pen.
Using the pen, he first drew new alchemy pathways in the blank spaces of the
formation.
This was no easy feat.
The mysterious figure was clearly a battle qi cultivator with exceptional
alchemy skills.
After outlining at least six alchemy pathways, the mysterious figure returned
the magic ink pen to its original place in the leather case and withdrew a
carving knife.
He hovered the carving knife over the position he intended to alter.
Taking a deep breath, he struck swiftly.
His movements were lightning-fast, making over a dozen cuts within a single
second. Each strike was precise beyond belief, striking exactly where he
intended.
The magic formation was damaged, and its stable operational state began to show
signs of collapse.
But in the next instant, the several thin needles inserted by the mysterious
figure activated simultaneously, emitting a variety of colorful lights.
The needles temporarily stabilized the magic formation, barely keeping it
functioning.
Subsequently, the magic power flowing through the magic formation was
deliberately guided by the mysterious figure. The magic power entered the
alchemy pathways he had previously outlined.
Soon, these alchemy pathways were all infused with magic power.
After passing through these pathways, the magic power quickly returned to the
original parts of the alchemy formation.
The original parts that had been severed by the mysterious figure were thus
abandoned.
In silence, the alchemy formation underwent a transformation.
After abandoning the original sections, it merged with the new sections
deliberately drawn by the mysterious figure, forming a new formation.
This formation retained the original functions of storing materials and
gathering energy, but its control had fallen into the hands of the mysterious
figure.
Most critically, throughout the transformation, the formation continued to
function without triggering any alarms from the four smaller formations.
The mysterious figure casually snapped his fingers, and the formation moved at
his will. 
The scene before his eyes suddenly changed. 
A large quantity of alchemy materials were neatly arranged. 
Three gold level pieces of equipment also came into view. 
The mysterious figure raised his eyebrows slightly, revealing a hint of
surprise.



****** Chapter 307: Trigging the Alarm ******
The mysterious man was surprised to see a large amount of alchemy materials and
gold level equipment just lying around, stored haphazardly.
Previously, he had assumed there would be at least one treasure chest, serving
as his final obstacle.
But there wasn’t any.
Not even the Balloon Knapsack mentioned in the intelligence report could be
found.
The mysterious figure’s expression briefly relaxed. Without the final storage
device, he could skip the trouble of cracking it. 
But his gaze quickly grew solemn. 
“According to the information we’ve gathered, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
revealed during their naval battle with Rou Zang that they possess at least one
gold level storage device.”
“And the gold level Balloon Knapsack was acquired from the auction on the Two
Eyes Island.”
“Which means to say they have at least two such spatial storage devices.”
"This defies logic. They are so careless, storing these precious alchemy
materials and gold level equipment like this. Why?"
“Could it be that all their spatial storage devices are already filled with
other items?”
The mysterious figure couldn't help but think of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ other identity once more.
An answer immediately came to mind.
“In that case, these arms smugglers must be carrying a large quantity of arms.”
“At least two of the storage devices are being used to carry arms.”
“Where?”
“If I can find those arms, it will be even better!”
The mysterious man looked at the materials and equipment within arm's reach but
did not act immediately.
He used his battle skill again to confirm safety.
He was extremely cautious, knowing that many renowned thieves often fell at the
final step.
After the battle skill inspection, he used a tool.
In the end, he found nothing suspicious.
"There really are no traps. These people are really bold… no, perhaps they
don’t even care about these things?” 
“Perhaps they only traded with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to establish a
cooperative relationship, deepen their connections, and pave the way for future
arms sales in Snow Bird Harbor?” 
The mysterious man thought to himself as he walked forward. 
He first picked up the gold level longbow, then glanced at the long-handled
harpoon.
Finally, he picked up the set of darts.
He ran his fingers over the surface of the darts, then swung his forearm in a
throwing motion.
From this throwing motion alone, it was clear that he possessed a mastery of
darts as a combat technique. He must have put in a great deal of practice.
Among the three gold level equipment pieces, the mysterious man favored this
set of darts the most.
He held onto them lovingly, examining them for over ten seconds before tucking
them into his robe.
Afterward, he took out two silver level storage bags and stuffed them with
various alchemy materials.
Even after filling them, there was still plenty left in the ship's hold.
“I can't take it all,” the mysterious man thought regretfully.
“It's too difficult to buy a gold level storage item.”
“Sigh, if they used that Balloon Knapsack to store these things, it would be
perfect!”
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps used the Balloon Knapsack to store these
supplies and treasures, it would be very convenient for the mysterious man.
He could simply pick up the bag and go.
The Balloon Knapsack is merely a storage item and lacks anti-theft measures.
Of course, the mysterious figure was aware of the Balloon Knapsack's
properties: when the value of the stored items exceeds a certain threshold, the
Balloon Knapsack expands significantly.
At this point, the two silver level storage bags he carried with him came in
handy.
Hopeful expectations often diverge from reality.
Silver level storage bags could not hold gold level equipment.
This meant the mysterious person had to carry the three gold level items
himself.
However, there were still gold level items here.
Specifically, the blank formation diagram panels.
These were too large—even the smallest one was equivalent to a large shield
nearly two meters in diameter.
Not only were they massive, but they were also extremely heavy.
The mysterious figure retrieved several bundles of alchemy bombs, set the
countdown timers, and placed them at the center of the magic formation.
He held a longbow in one hand, a harpoon in the other, and darts in his pocket.
Finally, he forcefully clamped a formation diagram panel under his arm.
He walked to the hatch, his face showing a look of distress and resignation.
He knew that in this heavily burdened state, if he encountered combat, it would
be disastrous.
Moreover, when he picked up the longbow, harpoon, and other gold level
equipment, their power was obscured by the tomato clock's influence.
This accelerated the depletion of the tomato clock's concealment power, causing
the hands to move faster.
The mysterious man already had little time left, and now he had even less.
After thinking it over, the mysterious man had no choice but to turn back and
reluctantly put the formation diagram panel back in its original place.
After doing this, he turned and left.
Using his golden battle qi to open the door, he avoided the two patrol teams
using the same method as before and arrived at a ship's cabin.
This was a storage cabin for miscellaneous items.
During his previous explorations, the mysterious figure had already marked its
location in his mind, intending to use it as a temporary hiding place for his
treasures.
Here, he set down the longbow and harpoon.
Then, he pulled out a vial of potion from his robe.
After removing the stopper, he evenly sprinkled the mustard-yellow powder over
the surfaces of the longbow and harpoon.
The powder quickly took effect, concealing the shape and aura of the longbow
and harpoon. 
Clearly, this was a gold level potion. 
However, the effect was only temporary. 
Once the time limit expired, the longbow and harpoon would reveal their true
form and emit a gold level aura, making them easily detectable.
After gaining a critical window of time with the powder, the mysterious figure
once again emerged from the storeroom.
His mission had a second objective besides treasure theft—to assassinate a key
figure within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster was not part of his plan.
The defensive prowess the dragonman youngster demonstrated in the heroic duel
had even left the gold level mysterious figure feeling exasperated.
Moreover, the dragonman youngster had already left the dock.
According to the intelligence gathered by the mysterious figure, the second-in-
command of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was undoubtedly their deputy
commander, Shi Qi.
However, Shi Qi himself was a peak silver level battle qi cultivator, with
golden-hued battle qi.
Such a figure would be difficult to assassinate in a short period of time.
More critically, the mysterious figure feared that if he made a sound while
assassinating Shi Qi, it would trigger an alarm. 
This would cause significant complications for his subsequent actions. 
For him, the more key figures he could assassinate, the better. 
In the mysterious figure's plan, the assassination targets had already been
listed, and there was a strict order to follow.
The mysterious figure continued to explore the cabins of the Love Triangle.
He first discovered the cabin of the magician Lao Zhong. 
The mysterious figure stood before Lao Zhong's cabin door, pressing his
fingertips lightly against the door, using gold level battle qi ripples to
probe Lao Zhong's condition. 
Lao Zhong was seated in meditation, his eyes tightly closed, with intense
elemental fluctuations surrounding him.
He was clearly meditating. 
This made the mysterious figure contemplate.
After thinking it over, he did not act immediately. 
He continued his search. 
Soon, he found the cabin of the magician Hong Teng. 
Hong Teng was preparing potions, completely focused on her task. 
This time, the mysterious figure began to act. 
He first used the sacred artifact Golden Finger to bypass the cabin door's
defensive measures.
He did not rush inside but instead opened a small crack in the door and pulled
out a bamboo blow dart from his robe. 
Though only silver level, it was more than sufficient to deal with a mere
bronze level magician.
The mysterious figure paused for a few seconds before blowing with all his
might. 
The slender needle, as thin as a cow hair, struck Hong Teng's neck directly.
Hong Teng furrowed her brows slightly.  
It felt like being bitten by a mosquito. 
But at that moment, she was busy brewing potions and couldn't spare her hands
to swat the mosquito. 
The mysterious figure smiled darkly and closed the hatch again. 
The needle was coated with gold level poison, and killing a bronze level
magician was well within the poison's effectiveness range.
The mysterious figure had used this tactic to assassinate numerous targets,
including several silver level targets.
In the mysterious figure's mind, Hong Teng was already as good as dead! 
After completing this assassination attempt, the mysterious figure's movements
clearly accelerated, rushing toward the cabin where Lao Zhong was located with
a sense of urgency. 
He once again activated the sacred artifact Golden Finger, breaking through the
cabin door's defensive measures, then gently pushed open a small crack.
He retrieved the silver level bamboo blow dart once more.
He placed his lips at the tip of the blow dart, aiming it at the exposed neck
of the magician Lao Zhong.
Just as he was about to blow, Lao Zhong suddenly opened his eyes wide and
glared at him angrily.
At the same moment, a piercing alarm sounded on the Love Triangle!



****** Chapter 308: Successful Assassination ******
The alarm suddenly sounded, and the mysterious man's heart skipped a beat.
“I've been discovered!”
“How did I get discovered?”
In an instant, his mind flashed with suspicion.
“Was it because the ship's hold where I planted the alchemy bombs after
stealing the treasure was discovered?”
He couldn’t have replicated the mechanisms and magic traps at the hatch, which
was a glaring flaw.
“Or did Magician Hong Teng realize she was poisoned?”
Though the mysterious figure had coated the blow dart with lethal poison, there
was still time before the target would succumb to it.
This time was what the mysterious figure had bought for himself, but it also
gave the enemy an opportunity.
Never underestimate a magician’s capabilities, even if she was only a low-level
magician.
Then, in the next moment, the mysterious figure completely cleared his mind of
all distractions.
If he was discovered… So be it!
The strongest members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were only silver
level. Moreover, the group’s leader, Long Fu, had already left the dock long
ago.
Earlier, from the heroic duel between Men Shi and Ban Lan Gen, it was clear
that Men Shi's strength was nothing special. 
The only one who caught the mysterious person's attention was the auxiliary
commander, Shi Qi. 
“I am a gold level battle qi cultivator!” The mysterious person's eyes flashed
with murderous intent. 
Gold level battle skill—Instant Flash. 
The mysterious person vanished from his original position in an instant.
The next moment, he suddenly appeared behind Lao Zhong.
It all happened too quickly!
Lao Zhong was still glaring angrily at the mysterious man, but the next moment,
the mysterious man had vanished from his field of vision.
Gold level battle skill—Slicing Song.
The mysterious man drew his dagger and slashed across the magician Lao Zhong's
neck.
A brilliant flash of blade light flickered and vanished.
The sharp dagger combined with the gold level battle skill severed Lao Zhong's
entire head.
In the mysterious figure's perception, bright red blood gushed out from Lao
Zhong's neck, propelling his head into the air before it rolled onto the floor.
The fountain of blood quickly subsided.
The mysterious figure slowly rose to his feet and gently kicked with the tip of
his toe.
Lao Zhong's headless corpse fell to the floor.
Blood quickly stained the ship's floor red.
Even in death, Lao Zhong's eyes remained wide open in anger.
Clearly, he died with unresolved grievances.
The mysterious figure exhaled a breath of stale air and coldly glanced at Lao
Zhong's severed body.
He was a gold level battle qi cultivator, while Lao Zhong was merely iron
level.
The gap between them was not just one level; more importantly, the mysterious
figure had complete initiative.
Lao Zhong was instantly killed without any chance to fight back, and the
mysterious figure was not the least bit surprised by this outcome.
But the next moment. He heard the shouts and footsteps of a large group of
people rushing toward this location.
“Follow me and charge!”
“Hurry, hurry!” 
The dwarf Men Shi led the way, growling constantly. 
Bang!
Men Shi charged forward with his shoulder, smashing through the ship’s hatch. 
He was the first to rush into the ship’s hold, followed by the mercenaries
swarming in.
The next moment, Men Shi’s eyes widened, and his pupils contracted to the size
of needles.
He saw a bundle of alchemy bombs stuck to the ship’s hull.
The fuse of the bombs had already burned to the end.
“Get out of the way, no, get down!” Men Shi roared, warning the mercenaries
behind him.
Some mercenaries saw the alchemy bombs, some retreated, and some hurriedly
dropped to the ground.
Those who retreated collided with those rushing into the ship's hold from
behind, plunging the scene into chaos.
“It's too late!”
Men Shi's face twisted into a ferocious expression as he boldly activated his
defensive battle skill and charged toward the alchemy bombs.
Boom!
The next moment, the bombs exploded.
Flames and explosions erupted simultaneously, but most of the blast's
destructive force was absorbed by Men Shi. 
Men Shi suffered severe injuries, his body swaying, blood spilling from his
mouth, his ears ringing, and his head spinning.
The mysterious figure struck silently from the side of the hatch!
It turned out he had been hiding on the side of the hatch all along, his body
completely invisible.
Men Shi did not see him; after crashing into the ship's cabin, the first thing
he noticed was the alchemy bomb.
All his attention was immediately drawn to the bomb, causing him to overlook
the mysterious figure.
The situation was too urgent. 
He had no time to think, instinctively unleashing his defensive battle skill to
withstand the bomb’s explosion. 
He protected most of the mercenaries behind him, but also inadvertently
shielded the mysterious figure. 
Everything was within the mysterious figure’s calculations. 
He drew a dagger and stabbed toward Men Shi’s lower back.
Gold level battle skill—Kidney Strike.
Men Shi was struck, and one of his kidneys was pierced through by the dagger.
The power of the gold level battle qi was immense, piercing directly through
his lower back.
Men Shi let out a muffled groan, the pain jolting him back to his senses.
He didn’t dodge but instead reached out with his free hand.
He grabbed the mysterious figure’s arm with both hands!
The mysterious figure tried to break free but found that Men Shi was using all
his strength, his large hands clamping down on the man’s arm, preventing him
from escaping.
The mysterious figure sneered coldly, unhurried.
In the next moment, he used his battle skill—Slippery Body.
The mysterious figure's entire body became oily and slippery, as if it were
covered in grease.
The harder Men Shi tried, the more he was unable to restrain the mysterious
figure.
The mysterious figure gently pulled his hand away and broke free from Men Shi's
grasp.
He pulled out his dagger again and was about to slit Men Shi's throat to
deliver the fatal blow.
But in the next moment, Zong Ge pounced.
The mysterious figure didn't need to turn around to feel a strong gust of wind
behind him.
He chose not to assassinate Men Shi and let him go for the time being.
He pulled a small spherical alchemy item from his sleeve.
He flicked his wrist and threw the spherical alchemy item onto the floor.
With a dull bang, the spherical item exploded into a large cloud of thick
smoke.
The white smoke quickly filled the entire cabin, and the pungent smell forced
the mercenaries to close their eyes and mouths.
Zong Ge also held his breath for a moment.
After distracting all of his enemies, the mysterious figure disappeared again.
Zong Ge's weapon missed its target, but it saved Men Shi.
Thick smoke billowed out of the hole in the ship's hull.
The mysterious figure emerged from the smoke and flew out like an arrow.
Boom!
The sound of a cannon resounded!
The cannonball hit the mysterious figure with precision.
When the alarm sounded, Chi Lai did not follow the others.
He understood his strengths, and his excellent military training allowed him to
know how to cooperate with his comrades.
He immediately took up a position at a cannon and waited in readiness.
When the mysterious figure leaped into the air, he immediately fired the
cannon.
Chi Lai was a professional gunner with specialized battle skills. Not only
could he increase the power of the cannonball, but he could also increase its
accuracy.
After being hit by the cannon, the mysterious figure immediately fell into the
sea.
“Follow me!”
The water pigman roared fiercely and took the lead in jumping into the sea.
The rest of the water pigmen followed suit.
Water pigmen were naturally good swimmers and had always been one of the best
sources of soldiers for naval warfare.
“Gang Lie, get back!” The water pigmen's leader arrived first and dragged Gang
Lie behind him.
The water pigman leader was at the iron level, much stronger than Gang Lie.
His outward display of weakness was just a strategy for survival.
He was also a responsible leader.
He knew that the enemy was mysterious and powerful, so he preferred to charge
ahead himself to protect his people behind him.
Zong Ge ran to the breach created by the alchemy bomb and saw waves rolling on
the sea.
The water pigmen were fighting a fierce battle with the mysterious figure.
Zong Ge snorted heavily, his face grave, his heart filled with anxiety.
He knew that this newly formed Backwater Battle Squad was no match for the
mysterious figure.
The enemy was truly gold level.
The Backwater Battle Squad going into battle was tantamount to sending them to
their deaths.
However, just as Zong Ge was about to give the order for the water pigmen to
retreat, he saw the leader of the water pigmen excitedly raise a corpse and
emerge from the water.
Gang Lie also emerged from the water and shouted excitedly, “We killed him!”
There was no surprise on Zong Ge's face.
He quickly shouted, “This is not his real body, be careful!”
In the next moment, the leader of the water pigmen was surprised to see the
corpse in his hands gradually revert to a humanoid alchemy puppet.
The mysterious figure took advantage of the thick fog obscuring everyone's
vision to release the alchemy puppet and disguise himself.
He tricked them with the classic art of diversion.
His true form was nowhere to be found.
Zong Ge held his weapon, fully alert, his face pale.
He would rather fight this mysterious enemy.
A worse situation had already arisen—the other party had quietly slipped away.
Zong Ge had no idea what the enemy's next move would be, or what his purpose
was.
He could only defend passively.
But what effect would such a defense have?
The enemy had already secretly boarded the flagship of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and attempted to assassinate the two magicians, Hong Teng and
Lao Zhong.
Such actions had fully demonstrated his infiltration capabilities.
Given the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ current defensive measures, they truly
could not guard against such a skilled individual.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been completely forced into a defensive
position.
Under Zi Di's control, the two scout alchemy puppets charged into the storage
compartment.
“Damn it!” Zi Di's expression soured.
She realized that many of the items they had just obtained were missing.
A large amount of alchemy materials were gone.
Most importantly, the three gold equipment were gone.
Only the formation diagram panels remained.
Even more terrifying was that there were several bundles of alchemy bombs in
the ship's hold.
Without time to think, Zi Di immediately controlled the scout-type alchemy
puppet, instructing it to grab the alchemy bombs and fly out of the ship at
full speed.
The scout-type golem used all its speed, but it couldn't outpace the countdown.
“It's too late!”
“Everyone, pay attention! It's going to explode!”
Through the communication device, Zi Di hurriedly notified Zong Ge and the
other survivors.
Just as the alchemy bombs were about to explode, a beam of light suddenly shot
out from the mage tower on the pier.
The beam hit the alchemy bomb right in the middle.
In an instant, the bomb was decomposed and reduced to countless particles of
powder.
“Hmph.” The mysterious figure had returned to the pier and was hiding in the
shadows, watching the scene of the alchemy bomb being destroyed.
The next moment, the mage tower sounded an alarm.
The people nearby let out panicked cries.
A large number of city guards quickly gathered and rushed to the pier.
It quickly became bustling with activity.
Meanwhile, the mysterious figure, carrying a harpoon in one hand and a longbow
in the other, calmly left the pier, following the shadows.



****** Chapter 309: Lan Zao’s Bloodline ******
The Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The spectral Zi Di was currently cultivating.
She held a soul crystal in each hand, continuously drawing power from them.
The soul crystals appeared to be black, elongated crystals, but at their core,
they were the essence of souls. 
Necromancers utilized necromantic magic to slaughter beings of various races,
extracting their souls, grinding them, pressing them, and purifying them,
ultimately producing soul crystals of varying sizes and qualities.
With the two soul crystals in her hands, Zi Di's soul foundation was advancing
at a visible pace. As her soul foundation deepened, her spirit strength also
continued to rise.
Soon, the soul crystals in Zi Di's hands completely dissipated.
Zi Di looked at the few soul crystal shards in her hand with regret, feeling a
sense of loss.
"Soul crystals are really useful! It's a pity there aren't many of them."
“In fact, Cang Xu was very lucky to be able to purchase them.”
Cang Xu acquired a large amount of undead resources from the undead gathering
on Weeping Pine Island.
He stored half of the soul crystals and half of the undead materials on the
Iron Lump. 
Additionally, he obtained replicas of all the undead inheritances at the
auction. 
Zi Di benefited from this. 
The soul crystals she now used for cultivation came from Cang Xu.
In fact, it wasn't just these gains; Cang Xu also gained a lot of insight at
the auction, learning about the current state and situation of necromancers. 
Zi Di also learned that necromancers capable of creating soul crystals were
extremely rare. Moreover, even those who could create them rarely sold them
externally.   Because once exposed, it would provoke an imperial crackdown or
even a scramble among necromancers themselves!
It was a relatively uncommon situation for Jian Gui to sell soul crystals
externally. 
Soul crystals could not be abused; they were like food for the soul and had to
be used at intervals rather than concentrated in a short period of time.
Using them in the latter manner could cause explosive growth in the soul,
leading to indigestion or even soul deformity.
After finishing her soul crystal training, Zi Di began to chant a spell.
Necromancy—Burden Alleviation.
After successfully casting the spell, the power of the Burden Alleviation spell
enveloped her. 
The mental burden she had incurred from enslaving other souls became lighter. 
After casting the Burden Alleviation spell three times in succession, Zi Di
began chanting the Karma Removal spell.
The name of the Karma Removal spell has an imperial eastern style, and its
primary function is to reduce the erosion of negative energy on the necromancer
herself. 
Both the Burden Alleviation spell and Karma Removal spell were extremely
precious core spells. 
Zi Di has obtained these two spells for some time now. 
The effect of the Burden Alleviation spell on her has begun to weaken
significantly.
The Karma Removal spell, however, was still effective.
Zi Di had only recently transformed into a spectral lifeform, but the erosion
of negative energy on her was constant and gradually accumulating and
deepening.
"Now, I can fully control the silver level ghost Lan Lu. Adding another silver
level ghost is also possible."
This was primarily due to the absorption of soul crystals and the use of the
Burden Alleviation spell.
“At this rate of progress, my promotion to iron level necromancer is just
around the corner.”
Zi Di was an iron level magician in her lifetime, and after her death, she was
transformed into an iron level ghostly girl. But after switching to necromancy,
she had to start from scratch.
Therefore, her necromancer level was cultivated from the start, and now she was
at the bronze level.
Although she had never ceased her related cultivation, the effects of her
progress were not significant. 
This situation persisted until she obtained soul crystals, the Burden
Alleviation spell, the Karma Removal spell, and so on. 
Therefore, a magician's cultivation heavily relies on resources. If resources
were abundant, the effects of training could be greatly improved, saving a lot
of time.
Zi Di had a strong premonition.
She could feel that she would be able to be promoted to an iron level magician,
and that day was not far off.
This was because she had already gone through the process of being promoted to
an iron level magician once before in her lifetime.
The feeling between the two was very similar.
“I just don't know what the qualifications of my ghost body are, and whether
the iron level is the upper limit.”
Although Zi Di detected that her bloodline was the Gunpowder Flower bloodline,
this answer was related to her body before she died, not her current ghost
body.
Zi Di currently did not have the ability to test the bloodline of an undead
life.
This was beyond her capabilities.
She had to wait for Cang Xu's return and obtain more comprehensive undead data
before she could perform a magic blood test on an undead life form. 
“I hope Cang Xu's mission is a great success.” 
"If he can obtain information on the usage of memory crystals, that would be
perfect. It would be a huge piece of good news for all the survivors." 
Zi Di thought to herself and silently wished Cang Xu well.
Whether Cang Xu's mission succeeded or failed, the impact on all the survivors
would be enormous.
The day's undead training came to an end.
Zi Di left the training cabin and returned to the alchemy cabin.
The alchemy formation in the alchemy cabin emitted a brilliant glow.
Before the training, Zi Di had already conducted a magic blood test here.
Since she had obtained the key materials from the alchemy materials sent by the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Lan Zao's blood test could continue.
However, the reaction time for this magic potion blood test was too long, so Zi
Di, valuing her time, had the tower spirit control and oversee the alchemy
formation.
She herself went ahead to perform her necromancy cultivation.
When the alchemy cabin door opened, Zi Di immediately saw the results of the
magic potion blood test within the alchemy formation.
The small sample of Lan Zao's blood had expanded over a hundredfold in volume,
forming a massive blood bubble.
The blood bubble floated above the alchemy formation, slowly rising and falling
vertically, constantly fluctuating.
A flash of light shimmered in Zi Di's eyes.
“So, Lan Zao's bloodline is the Fish Bladder bloodline.”
“This bloodline can give its owner a strong perception of airflow.”
"If the bloodline concentration reaches 30%, the owner of the Fish Bladder
bloodline can consciously control the gas concentration in their body. For
example, by absorbing a large amount of air and infusing it into the
bloodstream, they can enhance physical performance." 
“If the bloodline concentration reaches 60%, the possessor of the Fish Bladder
bloodline can freely float up and down in water, demonstrating exceptional
aquatic prowess.” 
"If the bloodline concentration exceeds 95%, the possessor of the Fish Bladder
bloodline can even float mid-air. However, the height at which they can float
is limited."
Various pieces of information about the Fish Bladder bloodline flashed through
Zi Di's mind.
This information came from the War Merchant's database.
“Obviously, the concentration of this extraordinary bloodline in Lan Zao is
very low, definitely less than
"The Fish Bladder bloodline is a silver level bloodline. If Lan Zao can purify
it, his strength will break through bronze, cross iron, and reach silver level.
This will be a tremendous change to his life trajectory!"
Just as Zi Di was silently thinking, the tower spirit suddenly issued a
warning.
Zi Di immediately realized that the alchemy puppet impersonating her on the
Love Triangle had come under attack. 
The alchemy puppet impersonating Zi Di had its own behavioral programs and was
also remotely controlled by the tower spirit. 
The mysterious assassin's blow dart was coated with poison. The poison reacted
violently to the surface of the alchemy puppet, causing it to be detected.
“Enemy attack!”
Zi Di immediately reacted and remotely controlled the alchemy device in the
Love Triangle, emitting a loud and shrill alarm.
Then Zong Ge and the others rushed to catch the thief. Zi Di found the alchemy
bomb and controlled the scout-type alchemy puppet to take out the explosives.
In the end, with the unexpected help of the mage tower, the explosion was
stopped in advance.
The mysterious assassin disappeared with the many treasures he had stolen.
The tower spirit then analyzed the poison on the blow dart.
"The cost of manufacturing this highly toxic poison is very high. In order to
deal with Hong Teng, a bronze level magician, this gold level assassin was
willing to spend a fortune." After seeing the test results, Zi Di felt
flattered.
She did not feel in danger.
Even for her, blow darts and poison had no effect on her ghostly body.
Although Zong Ge and the others had scared away the mysterious assassin,
everyone's faces were grave.
Where did this mysterious assassin come from?
What exactly is his identity?
What is his primary objective?
Will he return again?
How did he manage to infiltrate the premises?
These questions were of urgent concern to the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps!
If appropriate countermeasures were not taken in a timely manner, then the
mysterious assassin who came the first time would naturally come again the
second time.
This was a huge psychological burden for all the mercenaries of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
If such assassins were allowed to come and go as they pleased, they might even
be beheaded in their sleep.
The carriage carrying the dragonman youngster was slowly making its way down
the street.
He was carefully studying a list in his hands.
Tonight, he accepted an invitation from the Treasure Merchant Alliance. to
discuss matters with its leader.
This list came from them.
The Treasure Merchant Alliance. was one of the six major merchant alliances of
the Sheng Ming Empire, specializing in the sale of alchemy treasures.
The dragonman youngster wanted to obtain more gold level equipment from this
channel.
However, after carefully studying the list in his hand, he found that the
equipment provided by the Treasure Merchant Alliance. was inferior to that
provided by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, with only a few items standing out.
This showed the depth of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's resources.
"Commander Long Fu!" Suddenly, a mercenary rushed over to report.
The Love Triangle had been robbed.
Not only had a large amount of alchemy materials and gold level equipment been
lost, but the magicians Lao Zhong and Hong Teng had also been assassinated!
The dragonman youngster's face suddenly changed, and he immediately jumped out
of the carriage and displayed his strongest form.
Battle skill—Surge!
With the cooperation of spurting smoke ring, he increased his speed to the
current limit in just a few seconds.
The commotion caused by the dragonman youngster immediately drew the attention
of many people on the street. 
When he returned to the dock, the city guard had already secured the area. A
squad of snow elf magicians had boarded the Love Triangle and conducted an on-
site investigation. 
Upon seeing the bodies of Lao Zhong and Hong Teng, the dragonman youngster
erupted in anger. His face contorted with fury as he growled, “Investigate!
Find out the truth! I will make the murderer pay a heavy price." 
The snow elves who came to investigate had already confirmed the deaths of Lao
Zhong and Hong Teng. 
Both of these alchemy puppets were equipped with the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell. Not only did they deceive the
mysterious assassin, but they also managed to keep almost everyone else in the
dark.
The snow elf magician in charge of the investigation even comforted the
dragonman youngster.
He expressed sympathy for the situation.
According to intelligence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had only two
magicians, both of whom had perished in this assassination. This was
undoubtedly a massive loss for them, even if only one bronze level and one iron
level magician died.
However, when the dragonman youngster returned to the captain's cabin, the
resentment on his face quickly disappeared.
Zi Di had secretly rushed back.
The two met in the captain's cabin.
When Zi Di saw the dragonman youngster, she smiled and spread her hands, "I
just tested Lan Zao's bloodline, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself
dead."
A look of joy flashed across the dragonman youngster's face, and he was about
to ask a question.
Zi Di answered him in advance, “Lan Zao's bloodline is the Fish Bladder
bloodline, which is consistent with what you predicted earlier.”
“A silver level bloodline... Very good!” The dragonman youngster was happy for
Lan Zao.
He then asked, “Can the location of the alchemy equipment be determined?”
Zi Di nodded: "Although the positioning device was blocked for a period of
time, it has now been restored. These gold level pieces of equipment are not
scattered but concentrated in one place. Looking at the map of Snow Bird
Harbor, it should be somewhere in the slums. It is very likely that the
mysterious assassin is also there!"
The dragonman youngster nodded: “Next, let's implement the plan we discussed
earlier.”



****** Chapter 310: Two Heads Are Better Than One (1) ******
It turned out that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already taken
precautions against the assassins' invasion.
Earlier, the dragonman youngster had accepted the city Lord's warm invitation
and learned from him about the existence of Hua Tang and his secret connection
to Teng Dong Lang, the leader of the Bayonet Gang.
The dragonman youngster immediately took note of this crucial information and
began to gather information about Hua Tang.
After learning about Hua Tang, the survivors began to prepare for the worst.
Zong Ge looked up from the information in his hands and looked at Zi Di:
"Obviously, Hua Tang is not an ordinary gold level thief. With such a track
record, his bloodline must be extraordinary. Gold level is not his limit."
“It's difficult for a fighter like me to guard against him.”
“I think magic and alchemy are more useful.”
Zi Di smiled bitterly: "I'm just a bronze level magician. It's basically
impossible to rely on magic traps to guard against a legendary figure like Hua
Tang."
"As for other alchemy methods... we are currently struggling to even make
silver level alchemy equipment. It was only after we obtained the magic
medicine bath tub that our medicine-making abilities greatly improved. I can
refine some specific potions as a prevention measure."
"But you need to understand that only gold level potions can be effective
against such an opponent. Gold level... that exceeds our current pharmaceutical
capabilities. We have no lack of formulas, but there will definitely be a
shortage of alchemy materials. I can't estimate how long it will take to gather
all the medicinal materials we need in such a short period of time."
At this point, Zi Di changed the subject.
"Compared to this Hua Tang, I'm more concerned about the attitude of the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord."
“According to our intelligence, this Lord has never had any conflicts with the
Bayonet Gang since taking office.”
“Does he truly intend to confront the Bayonet Gang?”
"Is there a possibility that he has already established a secret alliance with
the Bayonet Gang? Could he be the Bayonet Gang's greatest ally in Snow Bird
Harbor?"
"According to the policies of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the position of Lord
is rotated. Snow Bird Harbor is one of the eight major ports of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom and is a very important city. Calculating the time, the city
Lord's tenure is already short. Would he really be willing to take the risk of
targeting the Bayonet Gang, such a local powerhouse?" 
The dragonman youngster nodded solemnly: “If that's the case, then the city
Lord's invitation to me is the prelude to the Bayonet Gang targeting us—it's a
trap they've set.”
Zi Di continued, “If the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord truly intends to confront
the Bayonet Gang, we must not grow complacent.”
“Since he has been able to endure for so many years, he is clearly a man of
great schemes.”
“What are his plans for outsiders like us?”
“Will he strike us down ruthlessly after we have made great efforts and
sacrifices to achieve ultimate victory?”
“Is his stance against the Bayonet Gang truly resolute?”
"If the situation changes, will he stab us in the back and abandon us? Will he
use us to curry favor with the Bayonet Gang?"
Although Zi Di was young, she had a wealth of experience.
In particular, she had recently learned some secrets about her father and the
difficult times the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had gone through.
She had a deeper understanding of and guarded against the deceitfulness of
human nature.
The dragonman youngster agreed with Zi Di's analysis.
This was also his hidden concern.
Although the youngster was a believer in justice, that did not mean he would
trust outsiders unconditionally. Especially since he had only just met the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord for the first time.
The dragonman youngster looked at the survivors around him and sought their
opinions: “Let's hear what you all think.”
After everyone looked at each other for a moment, Tripleblade spoke first.
“As you all know, I used to be the leader of a Mercenary Corps.”
“From my previous position, this is a very rare opportunity.”
"It's difficult for a Mercenary Corps to establish itself in a city. Especially
for outsiders like us arriving in such a city."
“Snow Bird Harbor has been developing for a long time, and every industry is
already crowded with people.”
“Even if the commander and Teng Dong Lang's heroic duel was impressive, it only
secured a foothold for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.” 
“If it were me, I'd take the risk!” 
“Such an opportunity might never come again for a normal Mercenary Corps.” 
“Besides, as we discussed earlier, we might have to stay in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom for a while.”
“Even if the ransom note has been sent, it will still take some time to
negotiate and exchange hostages.”
"The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is a neutral nation. Even if our secret on
Mystifying Monster Island is discovered, the imperial pursuit force would have
to consider the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's stance before attempting to capture us
here."
"Regardless of the final outcome of the Redemption Plan, we must act swiftly to
convert our gains along the way into our strength. Only a place like the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom has sufficient resources to help us achieve this
transformation."
The dragonman youngster nodded in agreement with Tripleblade's words.
Giant islands like the Ice Sculpture Kingdom are rare.
It was not to say that giant islands were not rare. It's that the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom had developed over thousands of years and had abundant resources.
It was an independent kingdom in the vast sea, capable of self-sufficiency, and
many of the alchemy products it refined were widely sold all over the world.
After Tripleblade finished speaking, Lan Zao said, “Regardless of the attitude
and intentions of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, providing us with a large
amount of resources is a real benefit.”
"We can definitely drag it out. Through his channels, we can acquire a large
amount of alchemy materials and gold level equipment."
Seeing that the conversation had reached this point, Zi Di interjected, "There
is one thing I need to remind everyone. No matter what you buy, there are risks
involved."
“Even gold equipment.”
“There are countless cases of gold level equipment being counterfeited on the
market in order to sell at high prices and obtain illegal profits.”
"We need a way to detect this equipment. Unfortunately, we don't have that
ability at the moment. We desperately need a qualified alchemist." 
"Buying counterfeit goods is still somewhat acceptable. But if the equipment we
purchase has been tampered with or has surveillance devices installed, our
situation will be very disadvantageous." 
Zi Di paused for a moment before continuing, “Currently, purchasing alchemy
materials is relatively safe.” 
"This is because we purchase a very large quantity of alchemy materials. If
someone with ulterior motives were to tamper with them, it would be difficult
for them to choose the right target." 
“Inspecting alchemy materials has much lower requirements than inspecting
equipment.” 
"The consequences of tampering with alchemy materials are also less severe.  
Even if we fail to detect it, the worst that could happen is that we fail when
refining potions or crafting equipment.   Because the other party doesn't know
exactly what we're trying to refine, they can't target us specifically."
“But gold equipment is a different matter.” 
"If we purchase gold equipment, it is clearly targeting Teng Dong Lang. If the
city Lord is colluding with them, they might tamper with these items." 
“If the gold equipment malfunctions during the captain's duel with Teng Dong
Lang, the consequences are easy to imagine.”
“So even if we manage to purchase a large quantity of gold equipment, we must
remain vigilant when using it.”
After Zi Di finished speaking, everyone fell silent for a moment.
Bai Ya gathered his courage and spoke up: “If that's the case, I... I have an
idea.”
"We have the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise
spell; we can fully utilize them. We can add these two spells to those scout-
type alchemy puppets." 
“We can also add them to those trigger-type spell traps.” 
"If someone tries to sneak in, they won't be able to detect the traps. On the
contrary, we'll detect them, or they'll trigger the traps and set off an
alarm."
“That way, we'll be able to detect intruders.”
Bai Ya was a hunter by trade, and setting traps was one of his habits of mind.
He kept his head down as he spoke, and when he finished, he looked up anxiously
to observe the reactions of the others.
Then he saw the dragonman youngster and Zi Di smiling at him.
Their smiles were full of encouragement.



****** Chapter 311: Two Heads Are Better Than One (2) ******
Zi Di nodded and said, "That is indeed a good idea. We can do that."
“But I have some bad news to share with everyone.”
"The efficiency of the Mermaid Fairy Tale divine artifact in producing pearl
bubbles has been decreasing. It is clear that we have consumed a significant
amount of the divine power stored within the artifact."
“We need to use it sparingly and avoid waste.”
“Of course, I agree with using it in the current situation.”
“However, this method is not foolproof.”
“Hua Tang might not notice the scout-type golems, but his stealth skills are so
advanced that he won't be detected by our scout alchemy puppets either.”
“Setting the trap is acceptable. If Hua Tang comes, we can catch him off
guard.”
Most people agreed with this plan, but Fei She, who had always been a staunch
supporter of Zi Di, shook his head.
He offered a different opinion.
“If we find Hua Tang sneaking in, are we really going to expose him?”
"He is a gold level assassin with a legendary track record in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. Even if we find him, what can we do to him?"
"Can we really keep him here? The city Lords and so many powerful people
couldn't make him stay, so how can we?"
“My idea is: if Hua Tang is only here to steal some equipment and alchemy
materials, then he is acting on Teng Dong Lang’s request to give us a profound
lesson.” 
“We should just let him have it. From the start, we should pretend we never
discovered him.” 
“This doesn’t mean we’re giving up on dealing with him! This is just a
strategy. We need time to develop and grow, right?"
Everyone fell silent.
Fei She's seemingly cowardly suggestion was unexpectedly approved by Zong Ge.
He then revealed his true thoughts: “If we expose the existence of the gold
level assassin, then our flagship and the pier we are in will become a
battlefield.”
“Regardless of the final outcome, our losses will be immense.” 
“Perhaps none of our ships will survive, and the mercenaries will suffer heavy
casualties.” 
The crowd fell silent once more. 
Fei She’s words made sense.
Zong Ge continued, “Actually, we can design the trap from a different angle.”
“We can't allow a battle to take place on our ship, and we can't treat this
place as a battlefield.”
“Based on our current defensive measures, only an expert can break through.”
"Trigger-type magic traps are actually a weakness for us. They will provoke
conflict and cause a battle to break out here."
“Why not be bold and not set up any such traps at all?” 
"We can use a tracking device. Imbue it with the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell." 
“We can deliberately place some valuables in the cabin to attract Hua Tang to
steal them.” 
“There's a high probability he'll steal the tracking device.”
“According to the intelligence we've gathered, Hua Tang always steals something
during each of his crimes.”
“With these two spells, even he would find it hard to notice.”
"Once he leaves, we can track him down using the locator. We'll find his exact
location and launch an assault."
“This way, the battlefield won't be at the pier.”
“Most importantly, we have allies.”
“If the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is serious about dealing with the Bayonet
Gang, he will take action.”
After Zong Ge finished speaking, Tripleblade immediately applauded and agreed,
“As expected of Lord Zong Ge!”
Zi Di also nodded, "Good plan! We can even use this to judge the city Lord's
true attitude."
The dragonman youngster fell into deep thought.
He was surprised to hear Zong Ge agree with Fei She.
After listening to Zong Ge's entire opinion, he couldn't help but feel
emotional: “This is the Zong Ge I know.”
Zong Ge's plan was just like his personality, with the iron-blooded style of
the military.
Seeing the dragonman youngster's indecision, Zong Ge saw through his thoughts
at a glance and said to him, “You have to understand one thing.”
"We can't guard against a gold level thief. Especially someone like Hua Tang."
“I know what you're worried about.” 
“You're worried that he'll come to assassinate us, and without trigger-based
magic traps, we'll have a hard time detecting him.” 
“If he's not just here to steal treasures but to assassinate us, then let him
do it!” 
"Even if we use trigger-based magic traps to detect him in advance, what can we
do?   He can just retreat temporarily."
“We can detect him once, block him twice, but can we stop him a third or fourth
time?” 
“According to the intelligence we've gathered, even if the traps are triggered,
given Hua Tang's skills, he can overpower most people.” 
"He has encountered hidden traps before; he didn't notice them and triggered
the alarms.   That's how he operates—if one attempt fails, he tries again and
again. Long term defense will eventually fail; the highest number of attempts
he’s tried is three. So far, there’s no target he can’t assassinate.” 
“Our strength is far weaker than the powerful figures and faction leaders
mentioned in the intelligence.” 
"Since we’re attacking the strong as the weak, how can we avoid taking risks?"
"If anyone here, including myself, unfortunately sacrifices their life, it will
be a worthy death. The rest of us can avenge them, right?"
Finally, Zong Ge stared at the dragonman youngster and asked, "As a leader, you
are very responsible, but don't exaggerate this responsibility. Can you protect
the life of every single person? Can you make such a guarantee? You must
recognize the limits of your own abilities."
“Therefore, you must be mentally prepared—on this path we seek redemption, some
among us will sacrifice themselves.”
“Who can guarantee that we will all survive to see that moment of success?”
“Sacrifice is not the issue; what matters is that the sacrifice must have
value.”
“They cannot die in vain!”
Zong Ge's words were sharp and piercing, exposing the biggest burden in the
dragonman youngster's heart.
The dragonman youngster fell into a long silence.
He reflected on himself: could he really make such a guarantee? Could he
guarantee the safety of every member's life?
Of course not.
He was only a silver level battle qi cultivator.
This environment was much more complicated than the Mystifying Monster Island,
and the opponents he had to face were much more powerful than those artificial
monsters.
Because of this psychological burden, did he become timid in his decision-
making and actions?
Yes.
The dragonman youngster had to admit this.
He knew that Zong Ge's plan was the right one.
It could truly solve the problem.
Using two concealment spells to set off traps could not solve a difficult
problem like Hua Tang's infiltration.
Zong Ge's plan had more possibilities.
Finally, the dragonman youngster looked up and sighed deeply, “I am too weak!”
Then, he turned his head to look at the people around him.
“We are all too weak!”
“Sure enough, pursuing one's own strength is the path of righteousness.”
The dragonman youngster agreed with Zong Ge's plan, but he still asked the
others for their opinions on the plan.
Lan Zao was the first to speak up: “I will follow you to the death!”
The big guy was the second to speak: “I'll listen to my dad.”
Tripleblade looked at Zong Ge: “Lord Zong Ge's plan is the best; I am willing
to carry it out.”
Zi Di glanced at the dragonman youngster.
Now that Cang Xu was gone, she was the one who understood the dragonman
youngster best and knew his long-term plans for the entire team.
The dragonman youngster wanted to share the secret of the Bloodcore, so the
more allies he could establish, the better.
The survivors in front of him were natural allies.
Now it was even more important to let them fight the enemy together and deepen
their mutual recognition through repeated life-and-death cooperation.
Zi Di said, “I have no objections.” 
Seeing Zi Di's stance, Fei She hesitated. He was more concerned about Zi Di
than himself. 
If possible, Fei She was willing to take on a riskier position himself, even
acting as bait, as long as Zi Di remained safe. 
However, Fei She knew it was impossible, and he also knew that such moments of
declaration were always critical. 
He then expressed his approval.
Bai Ya unconsciously clenched his fists. As a young man, he was stirred by the
atmosphere and exclaimed, "Isn't this how we've always pushed forward? Does
leaving the Mystifying Monster Island mean we've become cowards? That's clearly
impossible." 
Seeing that most agreed, Mu Ban nodded in agreement. 
Qiao Shan's face paled slightly as she was the last to speak.
The dragonman youngster saw her expression and comforted her, “If you don't
want to take the risk, you can find an opportunity to return to the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, where it should be safe.”
“Everyone don't force yourselves. This choice applies to everyone here.”
When the dragonman youngster said this, he tried hard not to look at Zi Di.
Zi Di, however, felt something in her heart and looked at the side of the
dragonman youngster with a smile on her lips.
These words made Qiao Shan firm in her resolve, and she agreed to the plan.
Two heads were better than one.
In the end, everyone agreed to Zong Ge's strategy.



****** Chapter 312: City Lord, Please Help Me ******
Because he had already made plans, when the dragonman youngster heard the
mercenary report in the carriage on his way home that the Love Triangle had
been attacked by assassins, he was not shocked. His first thought was, “The
other party actually took action tonight!”
When the city government palace handed over the goods to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, it caused quite a stir.
In fact, when the transport team was halfway there, the news had already spread
throughout Snow Bird Harbor.
This was the first time that both sides had completed the handover and settled
the payment.
The survivors had already discussed this during their deliberations—this was
the first dangerous period, and it was very likely to attract the enemy to
infiltrate!
Because everyone knew that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was buying up gold
level equipment on a large scale, obviously to help their commander, Long Fu,
prepare for the heroic duel that would take place in the near future.
As Long Fu's opponent, would Teng Dong Lang sit idly by and watch his opponent
grow stronger?
Even if he was proud of his identity, his subordinates would inevitably take
the initiative to be the "bad guys", tripping up the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps and playing dirty tricks.
Because the duel between the two had a very wide-ranging impact, it was not
only about the two parties involved, but also about the future activities and
profits of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Bayonet Gang in Snow Bird
Harbor.
It could be said that the survivors were already on guard against the
mysterious intruder and had taken as many defensive and investigative measures
as possible.
But the mysterious intruder was indeed skilled and daring. That night, he
struck and “successfully” assassinated the only two magicians of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, then disappeared with a large amount of treasure.
After receiving this news, the dragonman youngster immediately rushed out of
the carriage and rushed to the pier at full speed, looking extremely anxious
and urgent.
Of course, he was extremely vigilant on the way.
This was because the survivors had also analyzed in advance that it was very
likely that the other party would ambush the reinforcements.
Fortunately, the dragonman youngster ran all the way back without any
accidents.
When the dragonman youngster returned to his flagship and saw the corpses of
Hong Teng and Lao Zhong, he immediately put all his worries aside.
They were just two alchemy puppets.
As for the lost supplies and equipment, the dragonman youngster didn't care.
The lost gold level equipment was risky and unsuitable for the dragonman
youngster to use in the first place. Using it as a vessel for the positioning
device was the best use for it at the moment.
The lost alchemy materials could be bought again. The alchemy materials
delivered in the first batch were naturally more common and ordinary than the
latter two batches. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had sufficient funds and
the confidence to do so.
The dragonman youngster even felt that these alchemy materials had already
served their purpose by distracting some of the mysterious assassin's energy
and time.
The magician leader of the investigation team talked with the dragonman
youngster, his words revealing a hint of comfort and sympathy.
However, he did not know the true thoughts in the other party's mind.
Such a “loss” was good news for the survivors!
The dragonman youngster perfunctorily replied to the magician leader with a few
words, then returned to the captain's cabin to meet secretly with Zi Di.
Good things came in pairs.
He learned another piece of good news from Zi Di—
What exactly was Lan Zao's bloodline?
The answer to this question has been found.
The Fish Bladder bloodline was a silver level bloodline, which meant that Lan
Zao would have more room for growth. He would no longer be limited to the
bronze level for the rest of his life.
Of course, in order to enhance the Fish Bladder bloodline in his body, the
survivors had to build a Bloodline Purification formation.
This brought them back to the old problem.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps urgently needed an alchemist!
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di didn't stay long. The former left the
captain's cabin.
He came before Zong Ge, the magician leader, and the city guard leader, and
instructed, "Shi Qi, take care of the two leaders and continue to command the
flagship."
“I'll go ask our city Lord for help!”
The magician leader's eyes lit up when he heard this. He ran a few steps to
catch up with the dragonman youngster and whispered a few words to him,
implying that he had received orders from the city Lord to favor the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps before taking action!
After hearing this, the dragonman youngster immediately thanked the magician
leader.
The implied meaning was very clear: the city Lord was on the side of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, and there was a high possibility of cooperation between
the two sides!
The dragonman youngster jumped directly off the ship and stepped onto the pier.
His every move immediately attracted a large number of hidden eyes.
The pier was very noisy, attracting a large number of intelligence workers to
come and spy. However, the city guard and the magician investigation team were
one step ahead of them, preventing them from getting close to the Love
Triangle.
Under the gaze of everyone, the dragonman youngster, with an angry look on his
face, did not take a carriage, but rushed directly to the city government
palace.
He was much faster than a carriage.
Soon, he arrived at the gate of the city government palace.
An attendant had been waiting for a long time. When he saw the dragonman
youngster, he immediately greeted him and whispered, “The city Lord had already
anticipated your arrival, Lord Long Fu. He has given orders that you should go
directly to his study.”
In the study, the dragonman youngster met the city Lord.
The city Lord was very concerned about the vicious incident that had occurred
at the pier. As soon as they met, he asked directly, “Commander Long Fu, is the
mysterious assassin who committed this crime really Hua Tang?”
The dragonman youngster bowed his head and said, “I am ashamed to say that our
group was completely fooled by this despicable mysterious assassin. From
beginning to end, we were unable to determine his true identity.”
“All we can say now is that he may be Hua Tang.”
The city Lord looked up and sighed, "Ah, if it really is him, it's
understandable that your group couldn't defend against him. Not to mention the
pier, even my castle is probably just a place that Hua Tang can come and go as
he pleases."
The city Lord was very eloquent.
He was both comforting the dragonman youngster and excusing himself for his
poor supervision of the pier.
The dragonman youngster bowed slightly and said bluntly, “I came here to ask
for your help in investigating the truth.”
The city Lord looked solemn and said, "The criminal committed a heinous crime,
and it is my duty to investigate and pursue the murderer. What's more, we are
close trading partners."
"Commander Long Fu, you asked me for help, which shows that you trust me. I
naturally don't want to betray that trust. However, I can't guarantee the
success of the investigation. Especially if the perpetrator is really Hua
Tang."
The dragonman youngster nodded, "If it really is Hua Tang, I want revenge! He
slaughtered the only two magicians in our group. This is a deep hatred that I
will never be able to get over."
The city Lord patted the dragonman youngster on the shoulder: “Let's go, we
have to hurry, many clues will gradually disappear with the passage of time.”
The city Lord personally led the dragonman youngster into the magician tower on
the pier.
It was the first time the dragonman youngster had entered such a core location.
The magician tower lived up to its reputation indeed!
Although it was just a quick tour, it still made the dragonman youngster
envious.



****** Chapter 313: Silver Fox Mask ******
Soon, the city Lord took the dragonman youngster to the third floor of the
magician tower.
This was the core floor of the magician tower.
Each magician tower had a different structure, so the number of core floors
varied. Generally speaking, the top floor of a magician tower was the
observation and detection floor, and the basement was the energy floor.
However, there are also examples of magician towers that place the core layer
in the basement to avoid enemy targeting.
On the third floor, the city Lord introduced the dragonman youngster and the
magician tower master to each other and reiterated their intention to
investigate the identity of the mysterious assassin.
On the way there, the city Lord first communicated with the magician tower
master to express his intention.
When they approached the magician tower, the city Lord and the dragonman
youngster were both subjected to detection by the magician tower. During this
process, they were surrounded by several alchemy puppets and had to remain
where they were.
After passing this test, they entered the gate and arrived at the first floor.
Here, there was a special device for detecting lies, and the city Lord
communicated with the magician tower master and asked key questions.
Only after answering correctly could they proceed further.
The procedure for entering the magician tower was extremely strict.
This was to prevent enemies skilled in disguise from first imprisoning the city
Lord, then impersonating him to enter the magician tower and breach the
defensive core of Snow Bird Harbor from within.
“I have prepared the relevant video, City Lord. Please take a look.” The
magician tower master summoned the magic image through mental projection.
In the next moment, a three-dimensional floating magic image appeared before
the dragonman youngster's eyes, showing the scene at the pier earlier.
In the image, there were patrol teams on all the ships of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, with the most patrol personnel on the Love Triangle.
Scout-type alchemy puppets were distributed on the masts, gunwales, and
buildings near the pier.
The dragonman youngster quickly saw himself walking down the gangway, getting
into a carriage, and leaving the pier.
“Look, the assassin has begun his operation. He started from this building.”
The magician tower master stopped the magic image and gestured to the city Lord
and the dragonman youngster.
The two followed the direction of his finger and saw a faint, transparent human
figure jumping out of the window upstairs.
The dragonman youngster immediately asked, “Since you have already discovered
his whereabouts, why didn't you take immediate action when he first made his
move?”
The magician tower master shook his head with a cold expression on his face and
said, "This is a video that I have processed preliminarily. At that time, the
magician tower did not find anything unusual. As for how we were able to deduce
the assassin's current movements, it involves professional alchemy techniques.
I won't go into detail here; please continue watching." 
The footage continued to play. 
The semi-transparent human-like silhouette representing the mysterious figure
effortlessly crossed the pier, climbed the ship's hull, leaped over the ship's
rail, and arrived on the deck of the Love Triangle.
After brushing past a patrol team, he entered the forecastle.
Seeing this, the dragonman youngster's pupils contracted imperceptibly.
But soon after, the mysterious assassin came out of the forecastle and went to
the captain's cabin at the stern.
Then, he left the captain's cabin, was stopped by the patrol team at the ship's
ladder, waited for a moment, and descended the ship's ladder to the next deck.
"Once the other party is inside the ship, the magician tower cannot detect
anything. I'll speed things up a little." The magician tower master sped up the
playback speed of the magic image.
Soon, the dragonman youngster saw a sharp alarm sound from the Love Triangle,
and the mercenaries sprang into action.
Zong Ge and Men Shi led their men and rushed into the cabin.
In a short while, the hull was blown apart by an explosion. Amidst the
explosions, flying debris, and smoke, a hole appeared in the ship's hull.
A figure leaped out of the hole through the thick smoke.
But just as it reached mid-air, it was struck down by a cannonball.
The one who fired the cannon was Chi Lai.
Gang Lie and the other water pigmen jumped into the sea together, launching a
pursuit of the fallen assassin, causing the sea surface to churn violently.
The leader of the water pigmen held up a corpse, floated to the surface, and
shouted loudly.
Zong Ge gave the order to continue searching for the killer.
Several scout-type alchemy puppets carrying alchemy bombs had just flown out of
the Love Triangle. At this moment, the magician tower suddenly fired a
disintegration beam, successfully destroying the alchemy bombs.
“Damn that guy, I'll make him pay!” The dragonman youngster saw the mysterious
assassin's actions with his own eyes, and couldn't help but snort, clenching
his fists in anger.
The city Lord patted him on the shoulder to comfort him.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath and bowed slightly to the city Lord
to express his gratitude for the magician tower's help.
The magic image finally froze on the mysterious assassin reappearing, lingering
at the corner of the pier, looking back at the moment the alchemy bomb was
disintegrated.
The dragonman youngster still couldn't see the assassin's true appearance, only
a translucent human-shaped outline.
However, unlike before, the assassin was now holding a longbow and a harpoon in
each hand.
Even the gold level darts he was holding in his arms were clearly visible.
The magician tower master explained in advance, “This is also the result of
post-processing. We didn't discover anything at the time.”
"The relevant alchemy technique is called the ‘Aura Algorithm’.
"We all know that everything has its own aura. Life has its own aura, battle qi
has battle qi aura, and weapons and equipment also have their own auras."
"There are no two identical leaves in this world, so every aura is unique. Even
if two leaves are infinitely similar, their auras will have extremely minor
differences."
“By analyzing these auras to infer other information about the owner, that is
the essence of the Aura Algorithm.”
“The above is only the basic principle of this alchemy technique. The actual
details are too technical and vast, so I won't explain them.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded and looked at the dragonman youngster,
explaining, "The gold level equipment I sold you did not belong to me. They
came from many sources and had long been registered in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom."
“Therefore, their auras were all recorded.”
“After analyzing this incident, the magician tower will be able to restore
their specific locations through these auras.”
The dragonman youngster frowned and keenly grasped the key point: “So, the
magician tower can analyze the outline and shape of the murderer because of his
life aura?”
“If that's the case, can his true appearance be revealed?”
The magician tower master nodded: “Hua Tang has committed many crimes in the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“Therefore, a significant amount of his aura remains.”
“The tower spirit is currently comparing these auras.”
“This semi-transparent human-shaped outline is the result of that process.”
"While I was receiving the two of you earlier, the tower spirit was
continuously performing aura calculations. I believe it has now produced new
results."
As he spoke, the magic image in front of everyone gradually changed.
Under the gaze of the dragonman youngster, the face of the translucent human-
shaped outline gradually turned into...
A silver fox mask.



****** Chapter 314: Leaving the Harbor ******
Seeing the silver fox mask on the mysterious figure's face, the dragonman
youngster couldn't help but take a deep breath.
He had previously collected information about Hua Tang, which included details
about the silver fox mask.
Hua Tang always wore a silver fox mask when committing crimes.
According to the information, the silver fox mask was a very effective
disguise.
It had also become one of Hua Tang's trademarks.
The dragonman youngster continued watching, but the magic image stopped.
The youngster immediately shifted his gaze to the magician tower master and
silently asked a question.
The magician tower master shook his head: “It seems that this is all the tower
spirit has calculated.”
The dragonman youngster said disappointedly: “The result is just a silver fox
mask?”
The magician tower master explained, "Hua Tang is extremely cunning. He knows
the Aura Algorithm, so every time he goes out, he uses methods to conceal or
confuse his own aura. This is also one of the reasons why the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's nationwide manhunt for him has been ineffective."
“Therefore, using the Aura Algorithm to predict his whereabouts has significant
limitations.”
“On many occasions, official calculations using this method have only yielded a
silver fox mask.”
“Because this mask is Hua Tang's outer layer of disguise, its aura cannot be
further concealed for it to function normally.”
“If it were concealed, it would be superfluous and counterproductive, actually
impairing the mask's effectiveness.”
The dragonman youngster’s brows pursed, and he looked at the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and asked, “Since that is so, can we confirm if he really is Hua
Tang?”
"With this evidence, can we ask the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for help? Can we get
powerful reinforcements?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed deeply and said helplessly, “This
evidence is too weak, it's difficult to get help from the upper echelons.”
“This might be Hua Tang's cunning strategy.”
“Similar incidents have occurred before, where someone wore a silver fox mask
and impersonated Hua Tang to commit crimes.”
“You've gathered intelligence on Hua Tang, so you should know that such
impersonations have happened multiple times.”
"The authorities even believed on several occasions that they had already
captured Hua Tang. In the end, Hua Tang committed another crime, greatly
embarrassing the authorities."
The dragonman youngster fell silent.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, "According to intelligence, when Hua
Tang is in action, he likes to wear a white robe with colorful flowers blooming
on it. His eyes are bright pink. He acts very conspicuously, which is different
from the mysterious person who attacked your group this time."
“The existence of all these doubts makes it even more impossible for us to get
support.”
The dragonman youngster frowned even more deeply: "If I were Hua Tang and had a
secret connection with Teng Dong Lang, I would of course make some changes when
taking action against my group. In that case, even if discovered, it wouldn't
expose the secret connection between Teng Dong Lang and Hua Tang." 
“In my opinion, these differences are actually further proof of his identity!” 
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke sincerely: “Commander Long Fu, to be
honest, from my personal perspective, I also find it difficult to immediately
request assistance.”
“Before the suspect Hua Tang causes more harm, if I rashly ask for help, it
will be a stain on my political career.”
“My governance ability will also be questioned by the upper echelons.”
The dragonman youngster fell silent again.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke quite frankly.
The dragonman youngster also heard the subtext of his words.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was just a group of outsiders. Even though they
had lost two magicians, it was not a big deal for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
It was just a trivial matter!
Until their vital interests were affected, they had no sufficient motivation to
help the outsiders and deal with “Hua Tang”.
Especially since the identity of this “Hua Tang” was still in doubt.
The dragonman youngster gritted his teeth, subconsciously clenched his fists,
then helplessly relaxed them.
He looked at the mage tower master, his eyes revealing a look of expectation:
“Since we have discovered this mysterious person, can we track his current
location?”
The magician tower master shook his head and spread his hands: "We failed. We
have tried many times, but the other party was obviously prepared and there is
no way to track him! "
The magician tower master pointed at the magic image before them: “This is the
limit of what we can currently achieve.”
The city Lord added: "In fact, if the mysterious assassin left enough clues for
us to track him down, we should be even more vigilant. This is likely a trap
set by the other party."
“If it's Hua Tang, he's not alone in Snow Bird Harbor. Behind him is the entire
Bayonet Gang!”
Upon hearing this, the dragonman youngster finally looked up and sighed deeply,
saying with confusion and bewilderment, "What should we do? Our defenses are
completely ineffective against a powerful man like Hua Tang. He can freely
sneak onto our ship anytime, anywhere."
“All of our lives are in danger.”
“Against a powerful assassin, even if he doesn't act, he exerts immense
pressure on us!”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord mused, “Commander Long Fu, your group has
already performed exceptionally well.”
“If the opponent is Hua Tang, this is already an extraordinary achievement.”
“You must know that the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom has no effective
countermeasure against Hua Tang.”
“However,” the city Lord shifted his tone, “under the current circumstances, we
do have countermeasures.”
“Do you remember the invitation I once extended to you?”
“Hua Tang targeted you to protect the Bayonet Gang led by Teng Dong Lang.”
“There must be deep ties of interest between them. I suspect the Bayonet Gang
has provided Hua Tang with significant intelligence.”
"We can't catch Hua Tang, nor can we defend against him. But his weakness is
right under our noses, isn't it?"
The Lord looked deeply at the dragonman youngster: “Blindly defending has no
future. Sometimes, offense is the best defense!”
The dragonman youngster looked hesitant.
The magician tower master beside him spoke with a serious expression:
“Commander Long Fu, please trust our sincerity!” 
“All along, the City Lord has been biding his time, secretly gathering evidence
of the Bayonet Gang’s crimes.” 
“Earlier, they dared to interfere in the heroic duel—this is the biggest flaw
they’ve exposed, and it’s the best opportunity we’ve been waiting for all these
years!”
"The Bayonet Gang is definitely a cancer tumor in Snow Bird Harbor. Eliminating
them will be good for everyone! It is an act of absolute justice!"
“The mysterious assassin suspected to be Hua Tang attacked your corps and
killed two of your magicians. This was revenge by the Bayonet Gang and a stern
warning to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“But such retaliation also proves their weakness.”
“We must join forces and fight terror with courage. Only by taking up arms
against such vicious enemies can we make them understand that evil cannot
prevail in this world!”
The dragonman youngster looked even more hesitant.
After a long pause, he said, “This matter is too important. I need to consider
it carefully!”
"It's about time, and I need to return to my ship. It's best for me to
personally command the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps right now."
The city Lord patted the dragonman youngster on the shoulder and said, "Think
it over carefully. I'll accompany you to the pier, and my presence will also
serve as a deterrent to the assassins."
“But I can't guarantee how effective it will ultimately be.”
The dragonman youngster hurriedly thanked him.
In the carriage rushing back to the pier, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord once
again recounted the various evils and crimes of the Bayonet Gang to the
dragonman youngster, persuading him to cooperate with him.
The dragonman youngster only made excuses, saying he needed to think about it.
By the time they returned to the pier, the senior members of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps were ready to welcome the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The dragonman youngster led the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord onto the Love
Triangle and into the captain's cabin.
While serving the Lord tea, the dragonman youngster suddenly said, “I've made
up my mind, City Lord.”
“I'm sorry, but I may have to disappoint your expectations.”
Upon hearing this, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression suddenly
darkened.
The dragonman youngster said sincerely, "The Bayonet Gang is the local
powerhouse in Snow Bird Harbor, while we are just a small mercenary group. We
cannot possibly be a match for Teng Dong Lang."
"Whether or not the person who came this time was Hua Tang, this assassination
attempt alone shows how weak we are. Facing such a powerful assassin, we had
almost no chance to fight back." 
“The two magicians in our group both lost their lives because of this.” 
"Such a loss is too devastating!"
“This has also made me deeply realize the gap in strength between our sides.”
“Continuing to confront the Bayonet Gang head-on would be extremely unwise.”
“Since the city Lord is here, I'll be straightforward: our group wishes to
apply to leave the port immediately.”
“Of course, our transactions will continue and will not end because of this.”
“However, the locations and times for the next two transactions will need to be
arranged by us.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had a stern expression.
He had a deep background and a strong personality.
This could be seen from the way he invited the dragonman youngster.
First, he sent an invitation letter, and then when he heard that the dragonman
youngster was pretending to be sick, he sent a set of gold level medicine
directly. After that, he even threatened to visit the dragonman youngster
himself.
The dragonman youngster knew the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's determination and
had no choice but to accept the invitation and go to the Lord's mansion ahead
of time.
Although the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was enthusiastic at the dinner party
and reached an agreement with the dragonman youngster, his main purpose was to
obtain the most legitimate reason to deal with the Bayonet Gang and make the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps the sharpest weapon against them.
He never gave up on this goal from beginning to end.
When he heard that the mysterious assassin had attacked the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, he immediately took the dragonman youngster to the magician
tower to investigate the magic image after receiving the request for help.
This action was still self-serving, as he had been trying to persuade the
dragonman youngster to cooperate closely with him in dealing with the Bayonet
Gang.



****** Chapter 315: List Your Requests, We Can Discuss ******
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had put in so much effort, but in the end, in
the captain's cabin of the Love Triangle, he heard the dragonman youngster
refuse his offer.
As a domineering leader, his mood was understandable. His face immediately
turned grim, expressing his displeasure.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stared at the dragonman youngster, slowly shook
his head, and said slowly, “This is not a good decision, Commander Long Fu.”
“You took the initiative to propose a heroic duel to Teng Dong Lang. You are
the initiator!”
“If you leave Snow Bird Harbor now, what difference is there between you and a
deserter?” 
"You have gained a high reputation in Snow Bird Harbor, which is rare. However,
once you flee, this reputation will turn into a massive force that will
backfire on you. The higher you climb now, the harder you will fall."
“Anyone who dares to back down in a heroic duel will face the deepest contempt
and widespread scorn in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.” 
“Essentially, you will be treated as dead in this society.” 
“Everyone will despise you. You will live under the gaze of contempt and
disdain until the end of your life. This is a very serious consequence!"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flashed with a fierce look.
The dragonman youngster stared back at him without flinching, revealing his
determination.
"Death in society is only a symbolic death, which is better than losing my
life."
"I am only a silver level, so I basically have no hope of defeating a gold
level like Teng Dong Lang."
“But what I'm more worried about is that before I fight Teng Dong Lang, I'll be
killed by that mysterious assassin.”
"Only when people are alive can they have more possibilities. Leaving the port
and avoiding the enemy's threat is a wiser approach and choice."
At this point, the dragonman youngster paused, then continued.
“The city Lord must be aware of our mercenary group's background. We came to
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom this time solely to expand our arms business.”
“From the very beginning, we never intended to provoke the Bayonet Gang, let
alone engage in a life-or-death confrontation.”
“We merely sought to demonstrate our strength and secure the right to conduct
business here.”
“The current situation has exceeded our original plans and is not what we
desired.”
"The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is so big. If Snow Bird Harbor doesn't work, there
are other ports. If the other ports don't work, there are inland cities. We
have many options."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke in a low voice, shook his index finger at
the dragonman youngster, and said, “No, in fact, you have no choice.”
“Information is shared, and it spreads quickly.”
“Believe me, before you even reach the next port, the news of your cowardly
escape will have spread throughout the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“You will be boycotted everywhere, and no one will buy from you anymore.”
“Everyone will think you are weak, and it will be much more difficult for you
to regain the right to do business.”
But the dragonman youngster had long anticipated that the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord would say this.
“We already anticipated this.” The dragonman youngster smiled slightly and
said, “Lord, you seem to have misunderstood our plan of action.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is just one of our identities.”
“If its reputation is ruined, we can just discard it.”
"If my reputation is ruined, I can just stop operating in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom."
"Besides me, there are other people in my corps. My deputy commander, Shi Qi,
is no weaker than me in combat."
"Even if it is inconvenient for all of them to continue operating in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. Believe me, there will be people even better than us to
replace us. By then, even you won't know their true identities."
The dragonman youngster's words were full of meaning and hinted at a sense of
strength.
What he meant was to tell the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord in front of him that
they were not just a mercenary group!
They had powerful backing.
Those who could engage in arms smuggling were naturally very powerful.
Sure enough, after hearing the dragonman youngster's words, the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord fell silent for the first time.
The dragonman youngster's bluffing tactic was successful.
Although there was a gap in strength between the two sides in the negotiations,
and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could not compare to the Snow Bird Harbor,
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been fooled by the dragonman youngster's
bluff.
Information about the mysterious background of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
had been circulating for a long time.
The more detailed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's investigation was, the more he
believed in this identity!
This time, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord carefully considered for a moment before
speaking solemnly.
“Commander Long Fu, I believe you can see that I really need your help!”
Unlike before, this time his tone and attitude were much more conciliatory, and
he appeared more sincere.
The city Lord looked at the dragonman youngster and said, "I'll be honest with
you! In order to deal with the Bayonet Gang, I have prepared for a very long
time and expended a great deal of energy. Now, I am very confident."
“I can say that we will defeat the Bayonet Gang without fail!”
“I just need an opportunity—a formal opportunity to declare war!” 
“Now, that opportunity is right before us.” 
“This time, the Bayonet Gang made a mistake, exposing a massive weakness. This
is truly rare.”
“Missing such an opportunity would leave me with lifelong regret.” 
"As you know, my term is nearly over. What else can I do for Snow Bird
Harbor?” 
“Am I just going to let it slide? Are we going to let the Bayonet Gang, this
cancer, continue to harm this beautiful port? Am I going to leave this mess for
the next city Lord to deal with?” 
“That would be betraying the royal family’s trust in me and an irresponsible
act toward the people here.”
"I hope to have such a bright spot in my political career. I hope that when I
return to this port in my old age, I will be highly praised by the citizens
here. They will say that I was an excellent city Lord who brought tremendous
improvements to Snow Bird Harbor during my tenure!"
When the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said this, he stroked his chest and
revealed a lot of emotion.
This was the first time the dragonman youngster had seen him being so
emotional.
As a believer in justice, the youngster's impression of the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord changed greatly at this moment!
If he were alone, he would probably have agreed.
However, the youngster always kept in mind his responsibility as a leader.
Therefore, he sat steadily in his seat, his expression calm.
Such a calm gaze put even more pressure on the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The city Lord slowly composed his expression, slowly stood up, and paced back
and forth in front of the dragonman youngster.
His feet stepped on the floor, occasionally making a creaking sound, while he
himself bowed his head and fell into deep thought.
After pacing back and forth a few times, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
stopped, turned around to face the dragonman youngster again, and offered new
conditions.
In view of the dragonman youngster's stated purpose for coming to the port, the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord proposed that he could use his connections to take
the initiative to open up upper level channels for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. This would allow the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to sell their weapons on a large scale throughout the country!
This level of support was completely different from before.
Previously, he had only been willing to promise to sell the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps a prosperous shop. He would allow them to sell their weapons in
Snow Bird Harbor to a limited extent.
“If your weapons are of high quality, like the alchemy arrows that you,
Commander Long Fu, used in the Snow Bird Dueling Arena...”
“I can even help you establish connections with important members of the royal
family in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord offered very generous terms.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps really had a background as arms dealers,
this condition would undoubtedly be very tempting.
But the dragonman youngster did not.
The secrets he and the survivors carried were far beyond the imagination of the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster remained calm, and the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord secretly admired his composure.
The dragonman youngster said, "City Lord, in fact... Well... we're not just
interested in selling some alchemy products. We also hope to purchase some
unique resources within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom."
“Such as the Ice Heart.”
The Ice Heart was a specialty of Ice Sculpture Island.
It could be consumed directly by people.
After consumption, one would become extremely rational, with all emotions
frozen, and mental strength and willpower greatly enhanced.
Of course, if the dragonman youngster got his hands on the Ice Heart, he
wouldn't use it that way.
Extreme rationality with all emotions frozen—at first glance, it sounded very
powerful, but in fact, it had a big flaw. The dragonman youngster didn't want
to be heartless towards Zi Di.
The Ice Heart was a very precious and important alchemy material.
It could be used to make alchemy tools.
The most successful product was the Ice Heart Headband.
Wearing it allowed magicians to remain calm at all times, enhancing their
mental power, and accelerating their spellcasting speed. Of course, it also
served to protect their willpower.
So far, the entire survivor team urgently needed to strengthen their mental and
willpower defenses.
They had already suffered losses in this regard on multiple occasions.
However, conventional solutions are not suitable for the survivors.
Before arriving at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the Ice Heart was one of their
primary objectives.
Obtaining a sufficient quantity of Ice Hearts and crafting enough Ice Heart
Headbands would resolve their severe issues with weak mental defenses.
When the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord heard the request made by the dragonman
youngster, he frowned deeply.
“Ice Heart...” He shook his head and smiled bitterly, “Commander Long Fu, you
are an outsider and don't understand the situation.”
“Let's put it this way, obtaining an Ice Heart is much more difficult than
obtaining a gold level armor!”
The dragonman youngster already knew that the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a ban
on armor.
Basically, it was very difficult to buy gold level armor in the market here.
Even though there were many alchemists here, and it had the largest alchemy
market in the nearby sea area and the most advantageous alchemy production
environment, alchemists were strictly restricted by law when it came to forging
gold level armor.
The number of gold level armor produced by the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom
each year was fixed.
Even if it was made, it was given priority to the upper echelons and powerful
figures of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The dragonman youngster heard the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's answer and felt
puzzled: “The Ice Heart is just an alchemy material, it can't be compared to
gold level armor, right?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed and shook his head slightly: “In fact,
the production of Ice Hearts is actually very high.”
He revealed a secret.
Rumors in the market said that the production of Ice Hearts was very low.
This was actually false information deliberately released by the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.
"Ice Hearts are secretly controlled by the royal family. The control is much
stricter than that of gold level armor."
“Ice Hearts are a very important alchemy material and are the main ingredient
in many alchemy items.”
“They are rare all over the world.”
“Back then, one of the main reasons our snow elf ancestors chose to migrate to
Ice Sculpture Island was the Ice Hearts.”
“In fact, the quality of the Ice Hearts currently used for alchemy potions and
items is quite low.”
“The truly high-quality Ice Hearts are all in the royal family's possession and
have never been released.”
"Even the inferior-quality Ice Hearts are strictly regulated every time they
circulate. Even for me, it is very troublesome to obtain them for my own use,
as I have to go through layers of reporting procedures. Under these
circumstances, it is even more impossible for me to sell them to you."
“It's not that no one has ever done this, but in the end, they were all
secretly dealt with for treason.”
"Treason?!" The dragonman youngster was secretly surprised.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was silent for a moment, staring at the
dragonman youngster, his tone and expression very serious: “Commander Long Fu,
if you have any other conditions, feel free to bring them up, and we can
discuss them.”
Of course, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not easy to fool.
When the dragonman youngster brought up the Ice Heart, he immediately saw
through the ploy.
The dragonman youngster's previous threat to leave the port was just a tactic
to gain the upper hand in negotiations.
The dragonman youngster was silent for a moment. Since the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord had made such a statement, he didn't hide anything anymore.
He directly took out a list that he had prepared in advance.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord immediately took it and examined it carefully.
There were many items on the list.
After reading through it, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord found that there were
only three important items.
The first item was the purchase of a silver level magic ship.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had advanced alchemy technology and was skilled at
manufacturing a type of magic ship.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had obtained the Love Triangle, Iron
Lump, and White Bandage, it still had a huge demand for magic ships.
This was because even the flagship, Love Triangle, was only iron level.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed at least one silver level magic ship to
barely protect their gold level cannon.
The second item was the white dragon and all alchemy materials related to them.
This was mainly for the dragonman youngster's Bloodcore.
Absorbing the bloodline of the white dragon could quickly enhance the dragonman
youngster's resistance to frost.
This would also be of great help to him in dealing with Teng Dong Lang.



****** Chapter 316: Solving the Most Difficult Problem ******
The third item was some alchemy blueprints and alchemy techniques unique to the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had the War Merchant's database, it
was incomplete.
Secondly, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom did have its own unique features and
possessed alchemy techniques that the War Merchant did not have.
For example, some potion recipes related to the Ice Heart. Among them, the ice
head flower potion was not found in the War Merchant's data.
The survivors collected these, on the one hand to supplement the database, and
on the other hand to deepen their understanding of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
so that when they sold potions here in the future, they could greatly enhance
their market competitiveness.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took the list and looked at it a second time.
After that, he began to walk alone, thinking rapidly.
He didn't think for long. Soon, he stopped and stared at the dragonman
youngster.
He put the list on the table and pointed to the contents on it.
“Regarding the magic ship, Commander Long Fu, you must understand that there is
no way you can buy a brand new magic ship.”
"The situation now is completely different from a few years ago. Pirates are
rampant, and the emergence of the Pirate Throne has plunged the world’s oceans
into chaos.” 
“You should know that even on Gear Island, orders for magic ships are already
booked years in advance.” 
“Although our Ice Sculpture Kingdom has the capability to produce magic ships
independently, our production capacity still has its limits.”
“Several years ago, our country began to devote all its efforts to the
production of magic ships, and every year, new magic ships are launched.”
"But these ships, just like on Gear Island, have long been reserved. Even I
can't get one."
Seeing the dragonman youngster frown, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord changed
the subject.
“However, although we can't buy new magic ships, we can buy old ones!”
“Every warship has a limited service life.” 
"Especially in recent years, with the abundance of newly produced magic-powered
ships, the navy takes priority.   As a result, the kingdom's navy retires a
significant number of warships each year." 
“Though the alchemy technology used on these warships dates back several or
even over a decade, they remain highly sought after in the lower level market.”
“A large number of mercenary corps, hunting groups, and merchant alliances are
all eager to get their hands on these decommissioned warships!”
“If you are willing to accept old warships, I can still deliver them.”
After hearing this, the dragonman youngster stated, “My group needs silver
level magic ships.”
“Right.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded affirmatively, “Gold level is
difficult, but silver level old warships are still within my capabilities.”
Hearing this reply, the dragonman youngster did not hesitate much and
immediately nodded, “Of course, that's fine.”
Having solved a difficult problem, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord perked up and
continued the discussion.
“Regarding the white dragon and related alchemy materials, it is also very
difficult for us to sell them.”
“Although there are a large number of white dragons living in the interior of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the royal family and the white dragon clan have long
had a treaty of non-aggression and mutual exchange.”
“The highest snow peak in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is called White Dragon
Peak, which is the gathering place of the largest white dragon clan.”
“The current White Dragon King is a saint level existence, and there are also a
large number of gold level white dragons in the white dragon clan, who are very
powerful.”
“Even the royal family finds it difficult to obtain the bodies of pure-blooded
white dragons, let alone us.” 
"The bodies of white dragons that circulate in the market are extremely rare
and are mostly obtained by tomb raiders.   They can only be traded on the black
market. Alternatively, they are processed through alchemy to disguise them as
other materials, then traded in a private transaction where both parties are in
on the secret." 
"One of the prohibitions in our country's laws is the ban on hunting white
dragons. If I were to trade with you, it would first violate the kingdom's
laws, and secondly, I simply have no goods to sell." 
“However, the sale of wyverns and dragon beasts are permissible.”
Wyverns were no longer pure dragons, but their dragon bloodline still
dominated.
Dragon beasts had even weaker dragon bloodlines, which were no longer the
primary bloodline, with other racial bloodlines being more concentrated. Dragon
beasts only possess individual dragon characteristics. Sometimes, these
characteristics were not very obvious.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, “The sale of wyverns and dragon
beasts is not prohibited by the royal family.”
“I wonder if these can be used as substitutes?”
Of course they could!
The dragonman youngster mainly wanted to use the Bloodcore to absorb the white
dragon's bloodline and enhance his resistance to frost.
By absorbing the bloodlines of related wyverns and dragon beasts, the dragonman
youngster could also achieve this goal after accumulating a small amount.
However, the dragonman youngster did not immediately agree.
Instead, after thinking about it for a while, he looked hesitant.
Finally, he said, “If there really are no white dragons, then we can barely
accept the related wyverns and dragon beasts.”
“But in that case, the number needs to be greatly increased.”
A flash of joy appeared on the face of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and
without any hesitation, he nodded and agreed, “That's no problem at all!”
White dragons were relatively rare, and each one was cherished by the White
Dragon King.
However, the number of related wyverns and dragon beasts is indeed quite large.
Every year, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom organizes hunting parties and mercenary
corps to conduct large-scale sweeps around White Dragon Mountain.
Sometimes, royal family members even participate personally, organizing royal
hunting activities.
These actions were strictly enforced to prevent the numbers of these wyverns
and dragon beasts from becoming too numerous and posing a threat to the
kingdom's inland security.
Two of the three difficult problems had been solved, and the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord pointed to the last one.
“I cannot provide you with anything related to ice sculpture technology
either.”
"This also violates the kingdom's prohibition. Once discovered, it will be
treated as treason."
The dragonman youngster's expression remained unchanged. He was already
somewhat familiar with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's conversational habits,
so he said, "So, there is room for compromise on this issue, right?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled slightly and nodded, “That's right.”
“These alchemy techniques are taken extremely seriously by the royal family.
Even alchemy from more than ten years ago has been under strict control.”
“This is because these are one of the foundations of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.”
"Although alchemy techniques can be leaked, they are strictly regulated. But
even the royal family cannot prohibit the movement of alchemy talent."
"My opinion on this matter is: your group might as well spend a lot of money to
hire some alchemy talent from outside. These talents happen to have mastered
some alchemy techniques related to ice sculpture."
“Spend a lot of money to hire from outside?” The dragonman youngster looked
hesitant.
"We are only a silver level mercenary corps, and although we are willing to pay
the price to hire them, if they are only alchemy apprentices or alchemists, it
is not necessary."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head slightly and continued to
explain, "Your group can definitely hire extremely talented silver level
Alchemy Masters. Although the cost is relatively high, believe me, it is
definitely worth it. You can sign strict and even harsh contracts with them,
which will basically bind these Alchemy Masters for life."
After hearing this, the dragonman youngster couldn't help but appear even more
hesitant.
This was because the suggestion put forward by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
was in stark contrast to what he had said before.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord clearly understood the dragonman youngster's
doubts, so he explained at the right moment, "I told you before: The Ice
Sculpture Kingdom has an anti-slavery law, prohibiting the buying and selling
of slaves in the market." 
"However, the reality is: pirates are rampant, and naval battles are constant.
Wherever there is war, there are winners and losers; where there are winners
and losers, there are prisoners of war, and these prisoners of war become
slaves. As long as wars continue, slaves will keep coming."
“These externally hired alchemists are essentially slaves.”
"However, in our country, only the royal family can own slaves. Therefore, we
use strict contracts to control these slaves in the form of external hiring."
The dragonman youngster suddenly understood.
In short, there were policies from the top and countermeasures at the bottom.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, “In order to comply with the national
conditions of our country, the cost of hiring these alchemists is not cheap.”
"The remuneration paid must at least meet the average salary in our country.
The details must be recorded in the external contract and notarized. Every once
in a while, it even needs to be inspected."
"Our Ice Sculpture Kingdom is famous for alchemy. It can be said to be the
kingdom of alchemists. In our country, alchemists usually have a high status
and freedom."
“I can use my connections to squeeze out a few silver level alchemists for
you.”
“But Commander Long Fu, you have to be prepared for a large expenditure.”
The dragonman youngster nodded and said, "No problem! If they are excellent
high level slaves, their masters will improve their treatment to ensure their
motivation to work, right?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord clapped his hands and smiled, “That's right.”
The dragonman youngster's eyes lit up slightly as he suppressed the excitement
in his heart.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had always been looking for alchemists.
The demand for alchemists was extremely high!
Because they needed to build a Bloodline Purification formation.
This formation was of utmost importance to all survivors, as it concerned their
present and future.
The sooner it was built, the better!
However, they were currently stuck on the alchemist issue, as they lack the
necessary talent. 
Zi Di and Cang Xu did have some expertise in alchemy. However, specialization
was key, and their abilities were insufficient for constructing such an alchemy
formation.
The dragonman youngster had thought about using alchemist slaves.
But when he communicated with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord before, he learned
about the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's ban on slavery and had to abandon the idea.
After communicating with them now, the dragonman youngster realized that he was
still naive.
Although the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a ban on slavery, the demand for slaves
could not be prohibited. In fact, the more slavery was banned, the more vibrant
and massive the demand became.
Hiring external magicians was a strategy to address this demand. It
significantly addressed the demand for high-quality slaves among the upper
echelons of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.



****** Chapter 317: Having a Whole Level of New Respect ******
The dragonman youngster looked at the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and thought to
himself that this round of negotiations had indeed been very fruitful!
The last time the dragonman youngster and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had a
pleasant conversation, they had reached a big deal.
But after all, it was their first meeting, and the degree of cooperation
between the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
limited.
Now that the dragonman youngster was threatening to leave the port, the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord had no choice but to show greater sincerity.
From this perspective, the mysterious assassin's attack on the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps was actually a good thing for the dragonman youngster and the
survivors, as the benefits outweighed the disadvantages.
Without this unexpected event as a catalyst, the level of cooperation between
them and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would never have progressed to this
depth.
The dragonman youngster said, "Our corps needs many alchemists. We need at
least three silver level Alchemy Masters and one gold level Alchemy Great
Master."
Upon hearing this, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hurriedly raised his hand and
said, "Wait a minute! A gold level Alchemy Great Master is completely
impossible."
“Gold level slaves are very rare, and even a single battle qi cultivator is
strictly controlled by the kingdom.”
"An Alchemy Great Master is even more impossible. He represents not only a
spellcaster, but also the productivity to continuously produce various alchemy
items in the future, which means long-term and huge profits."
“A gold level Alchemy Great Master slave will basically stay in the hands of
his first owner and will rarely be traded, unless it is a special situation
where there is no other choice.”
“In fact, even if they become slaves, people of this caliber will quickly
receive better treatment due to their contributions and abilities and will
eventually be freed from slavery.”
The dragonman youngster fell silent.
He had known about this situation for a long time and had only mentioned it as
a test balloon.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's decisive refusal was also within the dragonman
youngster's expectations.
He continued, "I can provide a few silver level Alchemy Masters at most."
“The specific number will depend on the situation after I make contact.”
“At least, I don't have such resources at my disposal at the moment.”
“However, I can provide your corps with a large number of alchemy apprentices
and some alchemists.”
“Your group wants to sell arms on a large scale in Snow Bird Harbor and even
the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and building a corresponding alchemy factory
is also part of your plan, right?”
“At that time, these alchemy apprentices and alchemists will have a place to
use their skills.”
The dragonman youngster fell silent again.
Such a large-scale investment was not yet part of the survivors' plans.
However, if things continued to develop in this manner, constructing alchemy
factories in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom would be a natural progression.
This was because the cost of transporting military supplies across the vast
ocean was extremely high.
Especially with pirates rampant at present, the transportation risks were many
times higher than before.
Building an arms factory in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom offered numerous
advantages. 
On one hand, it reduced transportation costs and significantly minimized
transportation risks. 
On the other hand, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom possessed abundant alchemy
resources. It was very convenient to build an alchemy factory. In terms of the
entire sea area, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had the best environment for
building factories.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's proposal made the dragonman youngsters think
about the distant future.
It was not that they hadn't thought about this before.
But the fact was that the current situation of the survivors was quite
complicated.
The specific progress of atoning to the Sheng Ming Empire was related to their
current survival situation.
In many cases, they had to take things one step at a time and assess the
situation before acting.
If they rashly made large-scale investments and the secret of Mystifying
Monster Island was discovered, they would have to flee into exile if they made
no progress in atoning for their sins. Then, all their previous investments
would be wasted.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was, of course, unaware of the complex situation
the dragonman youngsters were currently in.
Seeing the dragonman youngster remain silent, he thought he had guessed his
thoughts and plans correctly.
The city Lord became even more confident.
Of the three items on the list given by the dragonman youngster that he
considered most difficult, he had revised them during the negotiations, and
both sides had successfully reached an agreement.
Finally, he brought up the topic again and took the initiative to add the
trading options of alchemy apprentices and alchemists.
Looking at the dragonman youngster's expression, the city Lord judged that the
chances of success in this negotiation were very high!
But just then, the dragonman youngster changed the subject.
He first thanked the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Then he said bluntly that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was still not sincere
enough in terms of cooperation!
These words surprised the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and made him feel angry.
He believed that his side had already expressed sufficient sincerity and made
significant concessions. Commander Long Fu still wanted to ask for more, which
was too greedy.
For a moment, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not question, but stared at
the dragonman youngster, his eyes revealing a silent inquiry.
The dragonman youngster was fearless, looking back at him with an open and
sincere gaze.
He said slowly, "City Lord, the deal needs time."
“Don't forget, we still have two more exchanges to complete from the deal we
made before.”
“Our new negotiation is meaningless until that is completed.”
“Time is precisely the key.”
“Now, our group has been attacked by a mysterious assassin, and two important
members have already been killed!” 
"It can be said that every moment from now on is dangerous for our entire
group. After all, we cannot prevent the mysterious assassin from attacking
again." 
“Especially since there is evidence suggesting that this mysterious assassin is
likely Hua Tang!” 
"Therefore, before we proceed with the transaction, you must first demonstrate
sufficient sincerity. Let us believe that you are truly willing to cooperate
with us."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but laugh in anger.
The deal was a condition of cooperation, but the city Lord never expected that
the dragonman youngster would have conditions on top of conditions.
This was a bit too much!
The city Lord took a deep breath, slowly turned around, walked a few steps, and
sat back down in his original position.
He tilted his head slightly, looked down at the dragonman youngster, and added
a hint of coldness to his tone: "Go ahead and say it. I may not necessarily
agree."
The dragonman youngster could sense the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's anger, but
in this situation, he became even more assertive.
Leaning back in his chair, he shook his head slowly, his gaze unwavering, his
tone absolute: “This is the most fundamental requirement. If the city Lord
cannot meet this condition, there can be no cooperation between us.”
“Everything discussed earlier is null and void!”
“We will depart the port tonight, even if we have to force our way through the
gates.”
Seeing the dragonman youngster so assertive, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
heart stirred slightly, and the coldness on his face softened a little.
He narrowed his eyes slightly and carefully examined Commander Long Fu in front
of him.
At this moment, the city Lord suddenly realized that Long Fu's previous threat
to leave the port was not just a negotiating tactic. He really seemed to be
determined to do so!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord considered his tone carefully: “Commander Long
Fu, relax, I am not your enemy.”
“We can cooperate, and we have already begun to cooperate.”
"We have already completed the first handover of our transaction. Regardless of
whether this negotiation is successful or not, we will complete the next two
handovers. Because I keep my promises!" 
“Please tell me the specific conditions.” 
The dragonman youngster said, "Our group is currently facing a severe survival
crisis.   Therefore, we must eliminate that mysterious assassin! Only then can
we have the confidence to cooperate with you, the city Lord, to deal with the
Bayonet Gang."
"Only when we no longer have such worries can we devote our energy to dealing
with external enemies. Otherwise, we will be on edge every day and every night
during the upcoming operation."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spread his hands helplessly and said, “Commander
Long Fu, you must understand that you are asking too much!”
“Just a short while ago, you came to me for help, and I led you into the
magician tower, such a sensitive location. You witnessed the results of our
investigation with your own eyes.”
"Don’t even mention eliminating the mysterious assassin—we’ve had great
difficulty even locating him. The prospects of eradicating him are extremely
slim!"
He took a sip of tea first, then looked at the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and
said calmly, “We already know the killer's exact location.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: “???”
After hearing the dragonman youngster's words, he was stunned for several
seconds, his face full of surprise.
After that, his face showed surprise.
This emotion was so strong that he couldn't help but stand up subconsciously,
staring intently at the dragonman youngster in front of him.
It was as if they were meeting for the first time!
It was also as if he was shouting: I didn't expect you, Commander Long Fu, with
your thick eyebrows and big eyes, to be so calculating! You actually have such
deep thoughts!
In those few seconds, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly realized that all
of this was Commander Long Fu's plan and arrangement!
First, he pretended to ask for help.
Then, in the magician tower, he learned that the city Lord was unable to track
down the mysterious murderer.
If the city Lord hadn't taken the initiative to follow him to the pier this
time, Commander Long Fu would have invited him to this negotiation later.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had long known the killer's location.”
“But they don't want to do it themselves!”
“Because the assassin is at the gold level, acted mysteriously, and is
ruthless, dealing with him is extremely risky.”
“With the help of my power to capture and kill the assassin, the risk is
minimal, and the reward is the highest for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
"After all, I am the city Lord and this is my duty." It's also my fault for
repeatedly expressing my willingness to cooperate with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to deal with the Bayonet Gang."
After figuring this out, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's attitude towards the
dragonman youngster changed subtly once again.
He deeply sighed, “Commander Long Fu, I have a whole new level of respect for
you!”
“It’s no wonder you were made commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
was entrusted with the duty of breaking into Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s market.”
“I underestimated you. In fact, the Bayonet Gang underestimated you, and almost
everyone in Snow Bird Harbor underestimated you!”
“But this is a matter of great importance.” The city Lord asked the dragonman
youngster again, “Can your group really determine the location of the
murderer?”
“Of course!” The dragonman youngster replied very decisively and confidently.



****** Chapter 318: The Assassin Flees ******
Snow Bird Harbor, slums.
The mysterious assassin is having a meal.
He was currently in a private house.
On the surface, this humble dwelling appeared no different from the surrounding
houses, utterly unremarkable. However, in reality, it was heavily fortified.
After all, this was one of the hideouts of the mysterious assassins.
Setting aside the intricate traps and mechanisms, the defenses here were
primarily divided into three layers.
The first layer of defense was the magic potion-created illusory maze.
The potion coated the interior walls of the house.
Most people who entered this shantytown, even if they wandered around
searching, would find it to be an ordinary house with no valuables at all,
literally bare walls, plain as day.
Even if the mysterious assassin was right nearby, they would not notice.
The second layer was a candle lit on the dining table. 
This candle was pure white in color, as thick as an infant's arm, and stood 10
centimeters tall, burning quietly.
The flame of the candle was pure white.
Its glow illuminated the surroundings, faintly forming patches of mirror-like
surfaces.
This was the Mirror Light Candle, a sacred artifact.
It originated from the Mirror God.
The Mirror God was a deity of the dwarf race, and the mysterious assassin was
also one of his devotees. Through the church, he obtained this sacred artifact.
When the Mirror Light Candle burns, it emitted reflective light.
Within the range of this reflective light, all external attacks were reflected
away.
This power reflected all external attacks, regardless of their nature. It was
effective against battle skills, spells, and even divine magic. Of course, the
actual effectiveness depended on the specific situation.
The third layer of defense was a defensive magic formation buried underground
by the mysterious assassin.
Although the mysterious assassin was not a magician, he had a certain
foundation in alchemy.
Of course, this defensive magic formation was not laid out by him personally
but was built on a set of formation diagram panels.
This set of formation diagram panels was only silver level, much smaller and
lighter than the one the dragonman youngster had obtained from the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord, and even more portable.
The third layer of defense was mainly to guard against surprise attacks from
underground.
Of course, if enemies breach the first two layers of defense, the mysterious
assassin can fully activate this defensive formation to provide ground-based
defensive support. 
Under the candlelight, the mysterious assassin enjoyed a delicious dinner with
peace of mind. 
The number of dishes was limited, but they were exquisitely prepared. 
It was clear that the magic chef who created them possessed extraordinary
culinary skills. 
The mysterious assassin felt at ease.
The defenses in the room gave him a sense of security.
But the main source of his confidence was his own strength.
It was not that he was confident he could fight a thousand enemies, but if a
strong enemy attacked, the mysterious assassin would immediately retreat and
abandon this hiding place.
This was just a place for him to stay, so it would not be a pity to abandon it.
According to his gold level strength, there were only four people in the entire
Snow Bird Harbor who were his equal.
Moreover, he was not alone in Snow Bird Harbor.
The mysterious assassin took a small sip of wine, then put down his glass.
He leaned back in his chair and took three gold level darts out of his bosom.
This set of darts was what he had stolen from the Love Triangle.
The three darts flipped between his fingers, landing obediently between the
assassin's fingers. 
The sharp blades of the darts caused him no harm. The mysterious assassin's
movements were smooth and fluid, as if the three darts were not menacing
weapons but coins or marbles.
The mysterious assassin suddenly flicked his finger.
One dart whizzed out.
After flying half a meter, a centrifugal force caused it to return to its
starting point.
The mysterious assassin continued to play with the remaining two darts in his
hand, making no extra movements to intercept it.
The returning dart landed precisely between his little finger and ring finger. 
In the next instant, it joined the other two darts, spinning continuously
between the assassin's fingers.
From this single move alone, it was clear that the mysterious assassin's
mastery of throwing weapons was extraordinary.
Because throughout this process, the assassin did not use any battle qi or
mental control techniques. It was purely a matter of his throwing technique!
Among the three gold level items stolen by the mysterious assassin, his
favorite was this set of darts.
The darts twirled in his hand.
The other two gold level items, the longbow and the harpoon, were placed
directly at his feet.
The contrast between the two was very obvious.
The mysterious assassin played with the darts while thinking back on his recent
actions.
Regarding this theft and assassination operation at the pier, the mysterious
assassin was fairly satisfied. 
Killing two magicians was nothing to boast about for him.
As a gold level assassin, killing one or two magicians who weren't even silver
level was a foregone conclusion.
The mysterious assassin's best record was far beyond that.
The main reason he was satisfied was the generous loot he had gained this time.
The storage bag he carried with him was already filled with various alchemy
materials.
The three gold level equipment items could not fit in the storage bag, so he
had to carry them with him. They were the most valuable part of his haul this
time.
Even with the mysterious assassin's experience, he could not steal so many
things at once during his usual operations.
“Their gold level equipment was not stored in a treasure chest.”
“If all my future opponents were like the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, how
wonderful would my life be?!”
“They must be living in constant fear now, haha.” 
The mysterious assassin chuckled to himself. 
He was about to take another sip of wine when a sudden sense of foreboding
gripped him, causing his pupils to contract to the size of needle tips. 
A powerful flame spell descended from the sky, striking the civilian house
where he was hiding with pinpoint accuracy.
The flames were intense, quickly burning through the walls.
The raging heat spread, filling the mysterious assassin's field of vision.
The magic potion serving as the first line of defense melted and evaporated
under the flames, unable to provide any protection.
The flames surrounded the mysterious assassin from all sides and closed in,
launching a relentless assault.
This offensive triggered the effect of the Mirror Light Candle.
Reflected light formed mirror-like surfaces within the flames.
Countless mirrors interlocked, creating a vast protective barrier.
However, this barrier held for just over a second before collapsing completely.
The white candle, which was originally as thick as a baby's arm and 10
centimeters high, also burned out in that second.
The mysterious assassin's face was grave: "A gold level fire spell! It exceeds
the limits of the Mirror Light Candle."
This sacred object was only silver level.
However, it had already played a very powerful role.
Under the reflected light, part of the gold level fire magic was reflected,
causing internal friction. After canceling each other out, its power was
greatly reduced, and its momentum plummeted, becoming a spent force.
However, in the next moment, the color of the flames changed from orange red to
white.
The temperature of the air dropped suddenly.
In an instant, the mysterious assassin seemed to have been transported from the
side of an erupting volcano to a thousand-year-old ice cave.
Crack, crack...
Extremely cold air gushed out, quickly covering the ground with a layer of
frost.
The fire spell had actually turned into an ice spell.
The latter was equally powerful, still at the gold level!
The mysterious assassin hesitated not a moment, immediately activating the
formation diagram panels buried in the shallow layers of the ground.
The next instant, the defensive formation activated, forming a spherical shield
that enveloped the mysterious assassin.
Half of the spherical shield was above ground, half below, providing him with
all-around protection.
The freezing air engulfed the spherical shield, raging unchecked.
After a few seconds, the spherical shield began to fade in and out, showing
signs of collapsing.
But the mysterious assassin had already gained the most precious time he
needed.
He even had time to clean up the scene and remove his traces and clues as much
as possible.
He carried the gold level longbow and a harpoon, stirred up his battle qi, and
used his battle skill. Like a sharp arrow, he shot out the moment the spherical
shield collapsed.
The mysterious assassin successfully escaped from his landing point, stepped on
the roofs of the surrounding houses, and quickly retreated.
While leaping and fleeing, he also quickly observed and gathered intelligence.
He soon discovered the three groups of magicians who had cast spells and
attacked him.
One group of magicians emitted a strong aura of fire elements, another group
was surrounded by icy coldness, and the middle group of elf magicians was the
smallest in number and had the deepest aura.
The mysterious assassin immediately recognized them.
These were the three magic teams of the city government palace!
They were the Fire Meteor Team, the Face Frost Team, and the Coordinator Team.
The elves were a race with strong magic talents.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only had a handful of magicians, but in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, there were so many magicians that they had to organize teams
to accommodate them.
The mysterious assassin was greatly relieved.
He had originally thought that it was a gold level magician casting a spell,
but he didn't expect that it was just three teams with nearly ten silver level
magicians.
For the mysterious assassin, the former was much more threatening than the
latter.
“These people can't stop me!” The mysterious assassin ran all the way, and in a
short time, he had already pulled away hundreds of meters from his hiding
place.
But just then, a clump of bird droppings fell from the sky, landing on his
head.
The mysterious assassin was stunned.
The droppings appeared out of thin air, falling from the sky at such speed that
he didn't even have time to react.
He was hit!
Divine spell—Bird Poop!
The mysterious assassin's heart sank, and he cast a sharp glance straight
ahead.
The clergyman who had used the divine spell had also revealed his exact
location with this move.
He was the bishop of the Sea Bird Church in Snow Bird Harbor.
One of the four gold level high-ranking officials in Snow Bird Harbor!
"You've been hit by my divine spell, you can't escape. Surrender, Hua Tang."
The Sea Bird Bishop announced loudly with a solemn expression.
"How is that possible?!" The mysterious assassin sneered and used his battle
skill to increase his speed.
He did not sprint for long before suddenly changing direction and pouncing on
the nearest magic team like a hawk diving for its prey.
He did not want to fight the bishop standing in front of him.
The other party was also gold level, and once the battle began, it would be
difficult to determine the winner in a short period of time.
Moreover, he was currently holding two gold level weapons in his hands.
The mysterious assassin did not want to be entangled, so he made a quick
decision and charged towards a magic team.
He wanted to use this as a breakthrough and escape!



****** Chapter 319: Death ******
There were three magic teams surrounding the mysterious assassin.
The mysterious assassin chose the team with the most members.
This group of magicians was full of energy and heat, and it was the Fire Meteor
Team.
The mysterious assassin, who was well-traveled and experienced, chose the
largest team not because he wanted to deal a heavy blow to Snow Bird Harbor,
but because this team was the weakest and easiest to break through.
Among the three magic teams, the Coordinator Team was the strongest. Although
they had the fewest members, they had the most silver level magicians.
The Coordinator Team only played a supporting role, but their standards for
recruiting members were the highest.
Only magicians who had mastered the art of spell fusion could join this team.
It was their role that allowed the previous fire spells and ice spells to be
coordinated and fused.
After the fire-based spells' attack power was significantly reduced, they
smoothly transitioned into ice-based spells. 
The transition between the two was seamless, causing no internal conflicts or
energy loss. The remaining energy from the fire-based spells was even passed on
to the next ice-based spell, creating nearly perfect coordination.
Spellcasting techniques were similar to battle skill techniques in that they
were both icing on the cake.
Only when their own level, battle skills, and spells had reached the limit of
what could be achieved would transcendents begin to study these techniques in
order to effectively improve their own strength.
Those who mastered spellcasting techniques were rarely young. Though their
natural talent might be limited, their extensive spellcasting experience made
them formidable opponents. 
Upon closer observation, it became evident that the members of the Coordinator
Team appear significantly older than those of the other two teams.
At first glance, the mysterious assassin realized that the Coordinator Team was
the most formidable of the three.
Of the remaining two teams, one specialized in frost magic, while the other
focused on fire magic.
Fire magic was the most powerful, while frost magic excelled at controlling the
battlefield.
The members of both magic teams were relatively young, with no obvious
differences in appearance.
Which team should be targeted as the breakthrough point?
Of course, the fire-based team!
Because this was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The members of the magic teams were almost all snow elves.
The bloodlines of snow elves clearly leaned toward the ice attribute.
When they cast ice-based spells, their bloodlines provided a boost. The
magicians of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom were most skilled at ice magic, and
after years of research, they had achieved many unique results.
However, when they cast fire magic, they were negatively affected by their
bloodline.
It could be said that among the three magic teams, the Fire Meteor Team was the
weakest overall.
The reason why successive city Lords had maintained the Fire Meteor Team was
only to ensure the diversity of troop types.
If they went to the battlefield, only the ice-type magicians on their side
would be at a disadvantage, easily targeted by the enemy and thus falling into
a disadvantageous position.
Seeing the gold level battle qi cultivators rushing towards them, the Fire
Meteor Team immediately fell into chaos.
The snow elves who were selected to form the fire-type magic team were
basically those with weaker qualifications.
Those who were better than them were selected for the Face Frost Team.
Of course, the most talented individuals were the independent and free
magicians.
The Fire Meteor Team's chaotic reaction also proved that the mysterious
assassin's choice was correct.
Based on the mysterious assassin's strength, as long as he closed the distance,
the Fire Meteor Team would inevitably suffer heavy losses.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would certainly not allow this to happen right
before his eyes.
Spell—Short-distance Teleportation.
The spell's light scattered, and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly
appeared halfway there.
Seeing an ordinary-looking snow elf suddenly appear right in front of him, the
mysterious assassin's expression suddenly became serious.
Obviously, he recognized the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a short staff in his hand and successfully
blocked the mysterious assassin.
The short staff in his hand was also ordinary in appearance, resembling a
rolling pin used by a housewife.
The mysterious assassin's dagger and the short staff collided repeatedly,
clashing over fifty times within a dozen seconds.
Both sides fought with lightning speed.
The mysterious assassin moved with incredible agility, swinging his dagger
continuously, creating a series of illusory shadows.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was equally fast, with a wide range of short
staff techniques, blocking, parrying, slashing, and stabbing, combining offense
and defense with astonishing skills.
The mysterious assassin was exceptionally powerful, but he was entangled by the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and couldn't escape for a while.
From time to time, lightning or freezing air burst forth from the short stick,
causing the mysterious assassin a lot of trouble.
It turned out that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord practiced both martial arts
and magic.
He relied mainly on his own battle skills, but in between battles, he used
various small and micro spells to assist himself and create advantages.
Even if the advantages were extremely small each time, after many times, they
accumulated to the point of qualitative change, and he was able to turn the
advantage into a winning position.
The short staff in his hand was not only his melee weapon, but also his
spellcasting tool. It had good conductivity for both battle qi and magic power.
Spell—Clone!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly swayed, transforming into three bodies
and surrounding the mysterious assassin.
Battle skill—Stab.
Spell—Electric Shock.
Spell—Slow.
Battle skill—Flying Kick.
The three Snow Bird Harbor City Lords were indistinguishable from each other,
each simultaneously casting different battle skills and spells.
In an instant, the three city Lords formed a fierce offensive.
The mysterious assassin was stunned for a moment.
Because his opponent's moves were so varied and never repeated, he didn't know
how to deal with them at first.
The combination of battle skills and spells created a very complicated
situation, and it was difficult to think of a solution in an instant.
The mysterious assassin could only dodge and block, retreating continuously.
He made a series of mistakes, which were seized upon by his opponents.
The three Snow Bird Harbor City Lords scored consecutive hits, adding multiple
wounds to the mysterious assassin's body.
The originally evenly matched scene suddenly changed dramatically, with the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lords gaining a clear advantage.
Seeing that the situation was not looking good, the mysterious assassin was
just about to use a smoke bomb to try to escape.
The two Snow Bird Harbor City Lords suddenly disappeared, leaving only his true
form to rush towards the mysterious assassin.
The short staff in the City Lord's hand emitted a metallic glow.
Battle skill—Battle Qi Weapon!
Battle skill—Stab.
Spell—Cat's Agility.
Spell—Acceleration.
The short sword pierced the mysterious assassin's heart with lightning speed.
The mysterious assassin stared at Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with blood flowing
from his eyes.
A few seconds later, he fell to the ground, his life force gone.
However, in the next moment, his entire body transformed into an alchemy
puppet.
Seeing this, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression changed greatly, and
he shouted, “Be careful, this is not his real body.”
The mysterious assassin had a substitute puppet.
He had used one during his infiltration of the Love Triangle.
The one he was using now was clearly far superior in specifications and quality
to the previous one.
The Sea Bird Bishop hurriedly cast a spell.
Divine spell—Bird Swarm Tracking!
The sky suddenly flickered with a mix of blue and white light. 
Within the light, one by one, birds took shape. 
A flock of blue and white birds circled and danced above the battlefield. 
Then, with a loud explosion, the birds scattered across the battlefield. 
Soon, one of the birds suddenly exploded.
The light that spread out was like crushed diamond powder.
Amidst the dazzling light powder, the mysterious assassin appeared.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a short staff and rushed towards the
mysterious assassin again.
The mysterious assassin glanced at the enemy but had no intention of fighting
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. He sprinted with all his might and attacked the
Sea Bird Bishop.
Obviously, the Sea Bird Bishop's divine spells were a huge obstacle to his
escape.
The Sea Bird Bishop fought while retreating.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord arrived, and soon the three were fighting
together.
The mysterious assassin's situation became increasingly difficult.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord engaged the mysterious assassin in close combat.
The Sea Bird Bishop continued to cast spells from behind to assist in the
attack.
As for the three magic teams, they had retreated a distance and were stationed
at the edge of the battlefield.
Once the mysterious assassin found an opportunity to escape, they would seize
the opportunity and block him.
Even if they sacrificed many team members at that time, as long as they gained
a little time, they could allow the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord or the Sea Bird
Bishop to catch up with the mysterious assassin again.
The three magic teams all had silver level magicians who could match gold level
opponents in a short period of time.
The spells cast by the teams earlier all had gold level power.
Bang, bang, bang...
The clash between the three gold level magicians ravaged the slums beyond
recognition. Countless houses collapsed, and large numbers of civilians
screamed and ran around in panic.
The scene became increasingly chaotic.
Amidst the rolling smoke and explosions, the alchemy puppet that had been
stabbed in the heart by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and had fallen to the
ground suddenly got up and shot out like lightning.
This unexpected change stunned everyone.
“Which one is the real assassin?” Everyone wondered.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was unable to reach the alchemy puppet that had
suddenly escaped, so he could only do his best to engage the “mysterious
assassin” in front of him.
The Sea Bird Bishop hurriedly cast a spell.
The divine spell fell from the sky, but it missed the escaping alchemy puppet
by a hair's breadth.
The alchemy puppet burst into laughter, its face gradually transforming into a
silver fox mask.
“The one that escaped is the true form!” Realizing this, the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord turned around immediately, intending to pursue.
The “mysterious assassin” who had been engaged in close combat with him acted
swiftly.
It let out a piercing scream, its disguise tearing apart to reveal the alchemy
puppet's true form.
Two round holes appeared under its armpits, revealing two brand-new metal arms.
Each of the four hands held a dagger, and they frantically attacked Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
The attack was like a raging storm, completely chaotic, completely disregarding
the intense consumption of the magic crystal inside its body. It had only one
goal: to cling to the city Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could only defend himself and was unable to
pursue the mysterious assassin.
The three magic teams had originally focused their attention on the center of
the battlefield, never imagining that the fallen alchemy puppet was actually
the mysterious assassin's true form.
No one knew how he had managed to deceive the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
senses.
His skill at feigning death was simply unparalleled!
The mysterious assassin, who had been overlooked, had been secretly controlling
the real alchemy puppet.
Therefore, the alchemy puppet's battle skill techniques remained above average,
and its intelligence was normal, so it did not arouse suspicion.
In this way, the mysterious assassin not only influenced the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and Sea Bird Bishop, two gold level opponents, but also indirectly
controlled the battlefield positions of the three magic teams.
When he felt the time was right, he was already lying on the edge of the
battlefield.
The three magic teams were unable to surround the entire battlefield. There was
a huge gap between them.
The mysterious assassin had been preparing for a long time and easily
penetrated this gap, about to walk away.
Suddenly, a bright green light pierced the sky and shot at him.
It turned out to be an attack from the magician tower in the distance.
The mysterious assassin was already prepared.
Earlier, it was the magician tower's disintegration ray that destroyed his
alchemy bomb.
He had already taken this into consideration when he broke out.
The mysterious assassin twisted his waist violently, about to use his battle
skill to dodge.
Suddenly, his whole body went limp, and his head buzzed.
His battle skill failed!
His hair stood on end, and he wanted to use his alchemy tool.
But it was too late.
The disintegration ray hit the mysterious assassin directly.
The protective tools on the mysterious assassin's body quickly split and
disintegrated in the pale green light.
He was pierced by the ray.
A huge hole appeared in his abdomen.
The edges of the hole were bathed in thick green light, resembling flames
burning. 
Within the green light, his flesh and blood disintegrated and collapsed, like
ashes formed after paper burns, swiftly dissipating in the wind.
Within a mere second, the mysterious assassin was completely disintegrated
within the green light. 
Even the silver fox mask he wore did not remain.
The upper half of the silver fox mask fell to the ground and completely
dissolved in the glowing green light.
The mysterious assassin had died!



****** Chapter 320: Watching From the Sidelines ******
As dawn broke, Snow Bird Harbor seemed to be shrouded in a layer of silver-gray
gauze.
The surface of the sea was calm.
However, the inside of Snow Bird Harbor was not. Sounds of combat resounded
continuously.
When it came to gold level battles, the commotion was never small.
At this time, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships had already left Snow Bird
Harbor.
They had not left completely yet.
After the dragonman youngster and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord reached an
agreement, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was given permission to leave the
port.
At this time, their ships maintained a distance from the Snow Bird Harbor pier.
Near the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' fleet, there was also a Snow Bird Harbor
patrol fleet.
When the agreement was reached, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord specifically
proposed to dispatch a fleet to protect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Nominally, this was for protection, but in reality, the dragonman youngster and
the others knew very well that this was sent by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
specifically to supervise the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster accepted this proposal. This was because both parties
in the cooperation had to earn each other's trust.
Trust was the foundation of cooperation.
At this moment, the core members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gathered
secretly.
Everyone was intently watching the magic images before them. 
Numerous scout-type alchemy puppets were scattered across the chaotic
battlefield. 
The situation on the battlefield was being transmitted in real-time to
everyone's eyes. 
Moreover, the Deep Sea Monster Fish, stationed near the Snow Bird Harbor pier,
was also conducting full-scale reconnaissance, recording everything that
occurred on the battlefield.
The first thing the survivors saw was the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord preparing
for battle.
Fearing that he would alert the enemy, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not
disperse the people in the slums at the beginning.
He dispatched three magic teams.
Before entering the battlefield, these three magic teams had already used magic
to conceal themselves.
The dragonman youngsters and the others could only vaguely see some smoke and
dust, sensing some small clues.
After the magic teams were in position, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord secretly
dispatched his subordinates to quietly disperse the surrounding crowd.
At the same time, he appeared on top of a house and began to cast a spell.
He did not chant but took out a gold level scroll.
Spell—Silent Accumulation.
It was a fairly common spell.
The spell's effect was to slightly increase the power of the magician's spells.
The key point was that when the spell was cast, the caster remained silent
throughout the entire process, and the spell's aura was completely concealed.
It was only when the spell was released that its aura would completely erupt.
This spell often appeared in the history of world wars and was often used by
magicians in surprise attacks and ambushes.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord used three identical Silent Accumulation scrolls
in a row.
He invested a large sum of money at the beginning of the battle.
The Silent Accumulation spell was area-of-effect.
If the three magic teams were gathered together, perhaps only one scroll would
have been needed.
However, under the command of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the three magic
teams were spread out, so three scrolls had to be used to cover everyone.
After the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord successfully cast the spell, he
immediately gave the order.
The magic teams began to cast spells one after another.
Accompanied by the silent chanting of the snow elves and the use of spell
materials, their figures gradually materialized.
The civilians being dispersed witnessed this scene and felt a sense of dread.
Many were reluctant to leave and showed signs of resistance.
However, upon seeing the magic teams, the majority realized something
significant was about to happen and fled the area without further persuasion.
The surrounding area gradually became more and more noisy.
“So many magicians...” It was the first time the dragonman youngster had seen
such a scene, and he couldn't help but feel envious.
For the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, magicians had always been a scarce
resource.
But here, in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the elves' racial talents had brought
them a large number of magicians, to the point where they could form teams.
The dragonman youngster glanced around and roughly counted that there were
nearly 10 silver level magicians in the three teams!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps currently did not have a single magician of
this level.
Whether it was Cang Xu or Zi Di, their magician levels were below silver.
Qing Xin was a silver level wind magician.
But her loyalty still needed to be assessed.
Moreover, it would be difficult to get her to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
In Qing Xin's understanding, Zi Di, Cang Xu, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had no relationship. Strictly speaking, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
could even be considered their enemy. They had clashed on the Two Eyes Island
and the Weeping Pine Naval Battle.
“The Fire Meteor Team, the Face Frost Team, and the Coordinator Team.” Zong Ge
softly said the names of these three teams.
They had obtained this information long ago.
The existence of these three magic teams had never been a secret. The people of
Snow Bird Harbor were well aware of this information.
Although the Coordinator Team only played a supporting role, it was clear that
they were in a leadership position.
This team was the first to begin casting spells. 
No survivor could identify the specific spells they were casting. 
Immediately afterward, the members of the Fire Meteor Team began chanting in
unison. 
Immediately afterward, the members of the Fire Meteor Team began chanting in
unison. 
While chanting, they all retrieved their spellcasting materials.
Most of the spellcasting materials were consistent, with only a few
differences. 
The quantity of spellcasting materials was also roughly the same for everyone. 
Members with weaker abilities naturally used more spellcasting materials. 
These spellcasting materials dissipated in their hands, transforming into a
large amount of fire elements. 
The fire elements swirled around the team members, their concentration rapidly
increasing to form a large number of sparks.
The sparks flashed continuously above the team's heads.
The aura of all the members of the Fire Meteor Team condensed into one,
indistinguishable from each other. Their momentum continued to rise, and the
magicians' robes moved without wind, creating an imposing presence.
The survivors had mixed feelings.
They were delighted by the teams' extraordinary strength but worried that their
overwhelming aura might reveal their identity and alert the mysterious
assassin. 
The Silent Accumulation spell was doing its job, and the mysterious assassin
showed no signs of action. 
When the Fire Meteor Team's spellcasting was halfway through, the Face Frost
Team also began their spellcasting. 
They retrieved a large amount of ice-elemental spellcasting materials and began
chanting in unison.
The survivors still couldn't hear anything.
In fact, even if they could hear it, most of them wouldn't understand it.
This was because the snow elves used the elven language.
Among the survivors, only Zi Di and Cang Xu were proficient in the elven
language and could use it for daily communication.
Fei She and Zong Ge knew some of it; the former used it to identify elven
merchandise, and the latter used it to read elven war history.
The dragonman youngster did not know the elf language at all.
When he communicated with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, it was the latter who
took the initiative to use the human language.
The quality of the members of the Face Frost Team was obviously a cut above
that of the Fire Meteor Team.
They cast spells more quickly, and the ice elements accumulated very rapidly,
soon filling the surroundings with cold air.
The snow elves were slender in build, but at this moment, their auras coalesced
into a single, surging force, resembling majestic snow-capped peaks, exerting
an overwhelming sense of pressure on those around them. 
The Fire Meteor Squad unleashed their fire-based spells. 
The intense flames erupted like a monstrous beast opening its jaws, engulfing
the mysterious assassin's dwelling in a single gulp. 
The flames raged fiercely.
The survivors watched the magic images and seemed to be able to feel the
terrifying heat.
“This is a gold level spell. They cast a spell beyond their level, and the key
is that they succeeded!” When Tripleblade saw this scene, he was moved.
He subconsciously compared the mercenary's squads with these three magic teams.
Whether it was the Quick Knife Squad or the Backwater Battle Squad, if they
encountered any of the magic teams, they would only suffer defeat and be
slaughtered.
The gap between the two sides was enormous!
A gold level spell was similar to a gold level cannon, with the power of a gold
level cannonball.
“If such a spell fell on our heads, how could the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
resist?”
When Tripleblade thought of this, his face turned a little pale.
Zong Ge, on the other hand, looked longingly at them.
He had once served in the imperial army and had seen the magic teams of the
Sheng Ming Empire.
At this moment, Zong Ge compared the magic teams in front of him with those in
his memory.
He found that in terms of spellcasting skills, the snow elves was obviously
more proficient and experienced.
Of course, the army Zong Ge served in was just an ordinary regular army.
But the problem was that the three magic teams here were of a lower standard.
They were only part of the Snow Bird Harbor's city defense system.
At best, they were just garrison troops.
“In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, what is the standard of the magic teams in the
regular army?”
Zong Ge thought of himself again.
“When will I be able to form a magic team in the future?” Zong Ge smiled
bitterly to himself.
This goal was too long-term. For him, it was simply a distant dream.
So far, he had formed two teams, the Quick Knife Squad and Backwater Battle
Squad. Both teams have few members, and the death of even one member would
cause Zong Ge great pain.
It was difficult to replenish the team members.
Only those with the right bloodline could join the team.
Only countries and large aristocratic families had enough people to select from
to build a team of sufficient size.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was too small, and even if it tried its best to
recruit new members, it would only be a small group. Luck played a big part.
To be honest, the Quick Blade and Backwater squads were mostly products of good
luck.
The flames burned out, and before they were extinguished, they turned into
countless frosts that raged.
The transition between the fire and ice spells was seamless and natural.
“What beautiful spells,” Bai Ya exclaimed in admiration.
The spells cast by the elves seemed to possess an extraordinary sense of
beauty.
Bai Ya had also experienced major battles.
The Snake Rat Island, the Two Eyes Island, and the Weeping Pine Naval Battle.
But upon reflection, he had never seen spells like this before.
They looked both magnificent and dazzling yet also contained terror and danger.
Zi Di glanced at Bai Ya with a solemn expression: "It's not just beautiful.
These three magic battle teams are exceptionally powerful, condensing
battlefield-class spells into tactical-class spells. Perhaps that is the secret
to their ability to cast spells beyond their level."



****** Chapter 321: Seabird Church ******
Spells could be classified into tactical, battlefield, and strategic classes
according to their effectiveness.
Tactical-class spells could influence individual combat.
Battlefield-class spells could determine the outcome of an entire battlefield.
Strategic-class spells were mostly used for deterrence. Once released, they had
an enormous impact and were difficult to contain.
Battlefield-class spells were almost always large in scope, but the magic
team's spellcasting was confined to a very small space.
This was not something ordinary people could achieve.
The dazzling fire spells moved the survivors.
From these three magic teams, they sensed the power of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.
Tactical-class fire spells were perfectly suited for the current battlefield.
The mysterious assassin's hiding place seemed ordinary and unremarkable, but
even a fool could guess that this civilian house must have all kinds of
defensive measures.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not send an assault team to trigger the
traps but instead burned it down with fire.
Soon, most of the defensive measures were destroyed by the flames.
Amid the flames, fragments of translucent mirrors began to emerge.
A second later, these mirrors shattered one after another.
The fire spells were neutralized, and their power was greatly reduced.
But in the next instant, the fire spells transformed into ice spells, with the
magic power of the former seamlessly transferring to the latter.
The power of ice spells was even stronger than that of fire spells, emitting a
large amount of energy and a bone-chilling cold.
Zi Di narrowed her eyes and her heart trembled slightly.
“The ice spells are also gold level!”
“It seems that casting spells above their level is a normal operation for
them.”
“Any magic team can give the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps a hard time.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is truly powerful.”
“But if you compare them to the Sheng Ming Empire, they are incomparable.”
The Sheng Ming Empire was the world's leading power today, and its national
strength completely surpassed that of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Compared to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was like
an ant.
Compared to the Sheng Ming Empire, it was not even an ant.
“If we are hunted down by the Sheng Ming Empire, we're truly doomed.”
“Only by acting preemptively and successfully atoning for our sins can we
secure a brighter future.”
With this in mind, Zi Di's resolve grew even stronger.
Amidst the biting cold air, a hemispherical light barrier suddenly appeared.
"This is a defensive magic formation. The formation diagram should be laid out
in the shallow underground layers."
Just as Zi Di noticed the clue, the defensive magic formation collapsed.
A figure shot out like lightning.
It was the mysterious assassin!
“Ah, he's escaping, escaping!” Fei She let out a low cry, feeling disappointed.
The best case scenario was that the mysterious assassin would not be able to
withstand the surprise attack and would die directly under two rounds of magic
attacks.
But that was not the case.
As a gold level battle qi cultivator, the mysterious assassin was quite
difficult to handle and could not be dealt with that easily.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge were not very surprised.
Regardless of whether the mysterious assassin was Hua Tang, judging from his
assassination attempt on the Love Triangle, it was clear that he was quite
skilled.
The assassin's escape made the survivors' hearts sink.
But in the next moment, the Sea Bird Bishop appeared and unleashed his divine
spell.
Until then, he had been hiding his presence.
It was only when he suddenly made his move that the survivors discovered him.
Divine spell—Bird Poop!
The big guy saw a pile of bird poop fall on the mysterious assassin's head and
couldn't help but laugh loudly, “Look, poop fell on his head!”
Unlike before, this time the dragonman youngster also brought the big guy in.
The main purpose was to broaden his horizons.
At the same time, the dragonman youngster also had some other concerns.
If the big guy was left out every time important matters were discussed, it
would create a barrier between him and the group.
The old captain entrusted his son to the dragonman youngster, who also did his
best for the big guy and fulfilled his responsibilities as a brother and
father.
The dragonman youngster pointed at the magic image and said to the big guy,
“Xiao Guai, don't underestimate this divine spell.”
“This is one of the core divine spells of the Sea Bird Church.”
"It has many uses. In addition to marking enemies, it can also be used to
declare sovereignty, occupy territory, and increase soil fertility."
The deity worshiped by the Sea Bird Church was unique. 
Though it was the native deity of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, it was not a snow
elf.
Long, long ago, it was merely a sea bird. 
According to legend, the sea bird was in distress and was saved by a young
fisherman from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
After recovering from its injuries, the sea bird regained its strength. It
attempted to assist the young fisherman to repay the debt of gratitude for
saving its life. 
At first, the sea bird guided the young fisherman in finding directions,
successfully locating large schools of fish each time, ensuring the young
fisherman reaped abundant catches every time he went fishing.
Before storms arrived, the sea bird would issue early warnings, allowing the
young fisherman to evacuate in advance and avoid disaster. 
The young fisherman was ostracized and betrayed by others, becoming a farmer
but only receiving a plot of extremely barren land. 
The sea bird led its flock to frequently fly over this land, dropping countless
bird droppings.
The bird droppings, rich in nutrients, seeped into the soil, transforming the
once barren land into fertile ground.
The sea bird's actions earned the faith of the young fisherman. They also
inspired the surrounding fishermen to begin worshipping the Sea Bird.
The sea bird began assisting others, gaining even more devotees.
The young fisherman grew into a transcendent and, in turn, aided the sea bird.
The sea bird unexpectedly received fragments of divinity and successfully
ascended to godhood.
The young fisherman also became the pope of the Sea Bird Church.
This was the origin of the Sea Bird Church.
The dragonman youngster originally wanted to tell the big guy the story of the
Sea Bird Church.
But in the next moment, his attention was drawn to the new battle situation.
The mysterious assassin rushed out of his hiding place and immediately jumped
to a high place to observe the battlefield.
Without the slightest hesitation, he made a split-second decision and chose the
Fire Meteor Team, which had the largest number of members, as his breakthrough
point.
Seeing his choice, even the dragonman youngster, who was his opponent, couldn't
help but admire him in his heart.
This choice was quite correct.
The dragonman youngster couldn't help but ask himself: Could he make such a
quick decision?
The dragonman youngster was open-minded and saw the assassin's strengths,
secretly learning from him.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord naturally would not sit idly by and watch his
team be slaughtered.
He took the initiative to intercept the mysterious assassin.
The battle between the two gold level battle qi cultivators attracted the full
attention of the survivors.
The dragonman youngster watched with the most fascination.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was undoubtedly a veteran gold level battle qi
cultivator.
The dragon youngster had also seen several gold level battle qi cultivators.
But unlike Hun Tong, Er Gua Zi, and others, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was
a snow elf and a high-ranking member of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
If the dragonman youngster wanted to have a heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang,
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a more valuable reference.
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom has a large number of alchemist magicians.”
"The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is also highly influential. I wonder how many
alchemy tools does he have? Will they be endless?"
The survivors were all looking forward to it.
However, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord only used a short staff as a weapon.
This was unexpected.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's subsequent display of combat prowess also
impressed the survivors.
He used both battle qi and magic!
This was a true dual cultivator. The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had perfectly
combined battle skills and magic to form his own unique fighting style.
Watching the two gold level battle qi cultivators move at lightning speed,
their figures flickering as they shuttled between the slum houses, the
dragonman youngster and Zong Ge's expressions gradually became serious.
Because they discovered that if they fought the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord or
the mysterious assassin alone, they would be at a disadvantage and would not be
their match.
The speed of the two gold level battle qi cultivators was astonishing.
When pushed to his limits, the dragonman youngster could match them in speed.
However, he was far inferior in terms of agility. Both the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and the mysterious assassin were superior to him, being more agile
and flexible.
This was because the dragonman youngster's movements were mostly thrust type.
Similar to catapulting, his direction was straight, and his movements were
obvious. Such a monotonous way of moving is itself an obvious flaw.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the mysterious assassin continued to fight,
jumping and turning, often condensing their golden battle qi to borrow power
from thin air.
This scene caught the eye of the dragonman youngster, making him wary.
The moves of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the mysterious assassin were
very precise, not the kind that were wide and sweeping.
The dragonman youngster also noticed that neither of them seemed to possess
flying battle skills, or at least they were not used yet.
After thinking about their situation for a moment, the dragonman youngster
understood.
If the mysterious assassin could fly, then he would become a living target if
he flew recklessly. At the edge of the battlefield, the three magic teams that
had not yet intervened were already on high alert.
Since the mysterious assassin did not fly, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
naturally did not take to the skies either.
The current situation was favorable to him, so if he had flying battle skills,
it would certainly be safer to reserve them as a backup to deal with unexpected
situations.
The mysterious assassin tried to escape several times but was held back by the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Compared to each other, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's moves were undoubtedly
more varied and even spectacular.
He was extremely skilled at using both battle skills and magic at the same
time, and his coordination was exquisite, dazzling his enemies and making him
difficult to deal with.
The dragonman youngster put himself in the mysterious assassin's position.
Faced with such an attack, he could only retreat or fight back.
Retreating was difficult.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's attacks were relentless and frequent. This
fighting style was actually quite similar to that of the dragonman youngster.
The mysterious assassin's flexibility surpassed that of the dragonman
youngster, but he was also entangled by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and
unable to escape.
What about resisting?
That was not easy either!
In order to block the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's attacks, the dragonman
youngster had to have extremely strong physical and magic defenses.
The Golden Silk Chainmail primarily defended against physical attacks, while
the dragon scales offered protection against both. 
However, the Golden Silk Chainmail was severely damaged and urgently needed
repair. 
As for the dragon scales, they would also gradually sustain damage from these
attacks.   Once the damage accumulated, the defenses would be breached, making
it difficult to continue defending.



****** Chapter 322: In Position ******
“The situation is in our favor. If things continue like this, the culprit will
be brought to justice!” Lan Zao watched the battle for a long time and saw that
the mysterious assassin was unable to escape, so he couldn't help but show a
look of joy on his face.
But Zong Ge slowly shook his head, his face calm: "Although the battle between
the two is fierce, neither of them has used powerful techniques. The outcome of
the battle is still unclear, and it is far from over."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a shocking scene unfold in the magic
image.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's short staff pierced the mysterious assassin's
chest.
The mysterious assassin's heart was crushed, and he died on the spot.
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge both frowned at the same time, sensing that
something was wrong.
In the next moment, the mysterious assassin's body reverted to an alchemy
puppet.
Obviously, this was a gold level alchemy puppet, whose quality and grade far
exceeded the materials used in the Love Triangle.
The survivors' hearts trembled, and they all shared the same doubt—
“Where is the real assassin?”
Fortunately, the city Lord's side made the right response.
The Sea Bird Bishop unleashed his divine spell and saw through the mysterious
assassin's true identity.
“Kill him!” The big guy couldn't help but shout.
He knew that the mysterious assassin was an enemy of the mercenary group.
When the mysterious assassin was in action, he was still asleep. After waking
up, he learned everything that had happened from the others.
With the three gold level fighters fighting together, the mysterious assassin's
situation became even more disadvantageous.
Suddenly, another unexpected change occurred.
The damaged alchemy puppet suddenly sprang up and jumped toward the edge of the
battlefield.
Then, the mysterious assassin's “true identity” was revealed. He tore off his
disguise and fought with all his might, disregarding his energy consumption,
desperately entangling the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“I didn't expect the assassin's true identity to be the alchemy puppet from
earlier?”
"What kind of trick is this? It's one thing to disguise himself as an alchemy
puppet and fool us, but he actually fooled the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and
the Sea Bird Bishop too!"
“This assassin is really something.”
The mysterious assassin's tactics greatly surprised the survivors.
It was a plan within a plan!
This move alone showed that the mysterious assassin was no ordinary person.
“We can't let him get away!” Seeing that the assassin was about to break
through, the dragonman youngster subconsciously stood up, looking anxious.
"It's too late to stop him. Everyone's attention is focused on the battle with
the three magic teams, and their position is not ideal." Zong Ge sighed
heavily.
Zi Di hurriedly controlled some scout alchemy puppets, attempting to intercept
the mysterious assassin's escape route.
However, it was evident that the distance was too great.
The mysterious assassin's tactics were astonishing, and his intellect was also
remarkable, deceiving everyone.
Just as he was about to succeed, a bright green beam of light suddenly shot
toward him from a distant location outside the battlefield.
The magician tower!
Hope rose again in everyone's eyes.
The mysterious assassin was already on guard, his aura rising, but in the next
moment, his battle skill failed.
The splitting beam hit the mysterious assassin squarely.
His defenses were completely split in an instant, and he fell dead on the spot!
Only the fragments of the silver fox mask remained, falling to the ground, and
then quickly disintegrating completely.
The big guy raised his arms and shouted, "He's dead, he's dead. The villain has
been defeated!" 
Qiao Shan exhaled a breath of stale air, patted her chest, and smiled broadly,
“Finally, we no longer have to live in fear.”
Zi Di sneered, “This is the fate of those who steal our property.”
The dragonman youngster and Zong Ge fell silent for a moment, saying nothing.
Bai Ya sighed and spoke the thoughts of many at that moment, “This is the
magician tower, how powerful!”
A gold level magician tower was far more powerful than a magician of the same
level.
It was the absolute core of the city's defense system.
Don't be fooled by its location on the dock which was far away from the
battlefield.
Its attack range was very wide and could completely cover the slums.
Territory with a magician tower had an entirely different level of defense.
Tripleblade frowned as he looked at the magic image, his face showing
hesitation: “Is the culprit really dead?”
The survivors all had the same concern.
The mysterious assassin was highly skilled in using alchemy puppets, employing
them to achieve tactical objectives during the previous dock assassination and
the recent fierce battle.
“It must be his true body!” Zi Di replayed the magic image, allowing everyone
to clearly see the details of the mysterious assassin's flesh dissolving in the
light.
Both the scout alchemy puppet and the Deep Sea Monster Fish conveyed the result
of the assassin's death.
Soon, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sent a message while cleaning up the
battlefield.
He had proof from the magician tower.
The Aura Algorithm and other means confirmed that the culprit had been brought
to justice.
“A gold level character has fallen just like that!” Qiao Shan sighed, covering
her chest with her hand, feeling somewhat unreal.
Zong Ge nodded: “That's reasonable.”
“The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Sea Bird Bishop are both gold level,
and the two of them together are already superior to the mysterious assassin.”
“In this battle, they launched a successful surprise attack, were well
prepared, and completely took the initiative.”
“The three magic teams can cast gold level spells beyond their level, which can
be regarded as two gold level combat forces.”
“The magician tower's final blow was successful, and its strength far exceeded
that of a normal gold level magician.”
“A simple calculation shows that at least five gold level combat forces
surrounded and killed the mysterious assassin. If the latter couldn't escape,
his demise was inevitable.”
"However, the most important thing is that the magician tower's blow was
decisive, and the killer failed to use his battle skills at the critical
moment. If this hadn't happened, he could still put up a fight. The murderer
should have powerful means but didn't get to use them."
“But this is real combat, and not everyone has a chance to fully exert their
strength in battle.”
“This is the charm of war.” Zong Ge was very moved.
“This is also the charm of strategy.” The dragonman youngster was silent, with
many insights in his heart.
His perspective was different from Zong Ge's.
This time, as the leader of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the dragonman
youngster could only seek outside help when faced with an unbeatable enemy.
The result of seeking help was very good!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps dealt with the mystery assassin without losing
a single soldier.
The key point was that during this process, almost all the risks were borne by
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps only needed to stand by and watch.
The post-battle gains were also guaranteed.
At least, the gold level longbows and harpoons were left behind in the ruins of
the slums.
When the mysterious assassin broke through, he didn't have time to take them
with him.
“In the future, it won't necessarily be necessary to deal with enemies
personally.”
“Sometimes, using diplomacy appropriately can save time and effort and reduce
risks.”
“The reason why the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was able to help this time was
mainly because of an exchange of interests.”
“Next, it's my turn to help him deal with the Bayonet Gang.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord eliminated the mysterious assassin, which earned
him the basic trust of the dragonman youngster.
“At least the relationship between the two is not that of allies, but enemies.”
“This also means that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord probably really wants to
deal with the Bayonet Gang.”
"The Sea Bird Bishop was also present and participated in the entire battle.
The position of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is rotational, but the Sea Bird
Bishop has been in office for a long time."
“Moreover, our side and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord are bound by a magic
contract.”
The three magic teams were still cleaning up the battlefield when the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord arrived at the sea with two gold level weapons.
On the Love Triangle, he received a warm welcome from the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster took the two gold level weapons from the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord apologized, "Unfortunately, we only recovered
these two. We searched his residence and the underground. The rest of the
stolen property should have been destroyed by the disintegration ray."
The dragonman youngster shook his head, "According to the magic contract we
made before the operation, City Lord, you have done your best. Your sincerity
is obvious to all."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took a deep look at the longbow and harpoon.
He was very curious about how the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had located the
mysterious assassin.
Before coming, he had used his methods to inspect the longbow and harpoon but
found nothing.
“Could it be that they tampered with that set of gold level darts?” The Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord did not know that the three pieces of gold level
equipment all had tracking devices.
But the combination of the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive
Disguise spell was extremely effective.
Even under his very nose, he was unable to detect it.
The mysterious and effective reconnaissance methods made the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord look up to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps even more.
The dragonman youngster asked him: Could the identity of the mysterious
assassin be confirmed as Hua Tang?
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head. Based on the existing evidence,
it was impossible to confirm. Perhaps it was Hua Tang, but he didn't want to
risk reporting it that way.
If it wasn't, the negative impact would be even greater.
The sky was already completely bright.
The dock was crowded with people, and the morning market was bustling. Many
people were discussing last night's battle.
After a thrilling night, the situation in Snow Bird Harbor had changed
dramatically.
But just like in a play, the climax was about to unfold.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships slowly sailed into the dock again.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood side by side with him at the bow of the
ship, and the two of them attracted a lot of attention.
The key actors were in place!



****** Chapter 323: Commotion at the Port ******
The entire Snow Bird Harbor was discussing last night's battle.
Who was the enemy? They were so powerful that they forced the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and the bishop to join forces.
The deployment of three magic teams and the fatal blow from the magician tower
were both grand gestures, causing people from all walks of life in Snow Bird
Harbor to actively investigate.
“That mysterious gold level assassin has been killed in battle!”
“Some people speculate that he is Hua Tang?”
"Hua Tang! That's unlikely, right?"
“What's going on with all this?”
“It has something to do with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps...”
Because of his previous heroic duel, the dragonman youngster had become the
center of public opinion.
Although he did not participate in this gold level ambush battle, he was very
involved before and after the battle.
Before the battle, he took the initiative to ask the city Lord for help.
After that, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps quietly left the port in the middle
of the night, obviously with the permission of the city Lord. Snow Bird Harbor
even sent a patrol fleet to protect their fleet.
After the battle began, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took the initiative to
come to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' fleet and bring them two pieces of
gold level equipment.
After that, many people saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' fleet sailing into
the port again. Commander Long Fu and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood side
by side at the bow of the ship, looking quite close with each other.
Snow Bird Harbor, Clam Cloth Branch.
“Haven't you found out the inside story yet?” The Clam Cloth Branch Leader
questioned his subordinates.
The three subordinates broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly reported.
“We are already investigating with all our might.”
“The gold level who died in battle assassinated two magicians of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps during the previous operation and stole a large amount of
property.”
“And this property was precisely the first transaction completed between the
city government palace and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps yesterday evening.”
"My guess is that although the mysterious assassin was targeting the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, he undoubtedly also caused the city government palace to
lose face. That's why there was such a fierce battle last night..."
The subordinate who was reporting hadn't finished speaking when he was hit on
the head by a vase.
The vase shattered, but the subordinate, being a transcendent, remained
unharmed. 
He immediately knelt on one knee and apologized to the branch leader of the
Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, repeatedly saying, “I deserve to die.” 
“You are all incompetent!” the Clam Cloth Branch Leader growled, scolding them
repeatedly.
“Just because it's embarrassing, the city Lord teamed up with the bishop to
risk their lives and attack an enemy of the same level?”
"Clearly, a lot has happened here. There must be a huge conflict and
entanglement of interests!"
“I want the inside scoop, the real key information!”
"What did you find out? Who doesn't know this information? The whole of Snow
Bird Harbor is already abuzz with it."
The Clam Cloth Branch Leader was extremely powerful.
He was one of the four gold level experts in Snow Bird Harbor and one of the
most authoritative figures in the city.
But he had not received any advance warning of last night's fierce battle.
This made the Clam Cloth Branch Leader angry, but he also felt a vague sense of
fear.
He had been operating here for a long time and had always believed that Snow
Bird Harbor was his territory.
But even in such a place, such a major conflict had occurred, and he was the
last to know.
Did this prove that his control over Snow Bird Harbor was far less than he had
imagined?
Had all the effort and time he had invested here been nothing but a dream, a
very illusory thing?
“Get out of here and investigate thoroughly!” 
“Understood, Lord!” 
“I will do my best!”  
The Clam Cloth Branch Leader dismissed his three subordinates, his brows
furrowed in deep thought. 
“Even if we don't uncover any crucial information, the sudden changes in Snow
Bird Harbor indicate that something major is about to happen.”
“Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is only a small mercenary group,
based on various clues, this force must play a very important role.”
“It is very likely that it is related to the previous heroic duel and the
Bayonet Gang.”
"What puzzles me most is the city Lord. The mysterious assassin targeted the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, so why did he fight so desperately and bring the
Sea Bird Bishop with him? What was the deal between him and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps? What was it that made it worth his while to do this?"
Just as he thought of this, there was a knock on the door.
A subordinate reported excitedly from outside the door, “Branch Leader, there's
new intelligence!”
“Oh?” The Clam Cloth Branch Leader raised his eyebrows, "Come in.”
He took the intelligence and quickly reviewed it.
The next moment, he jumped up from his seat.
"What?  
“Commander Long Fu filed a complaint against the Bayonet Gang. During his
previous battle with Xiong Ju, the Bayonet Gang secretly interfered, committing
sacrilege!”
“And just after Commander Long Fu reported this crime to the city Lord, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suffered an assassination and theft by a mysterious
gold level assassin.”
“A large amount of property was stolen, and the mysterious assassin took away
three gold level equipment items that had just been purchased.”
“Furthermore, the only two magicians of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were
assassinated!”
Something big had happened!
The Clam Cloth Branch Leader couldn't tell if Long Fu's accusation against the
Bayonet Gang was true.
But he knew that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had taken such drastic
measures, so his attitude was very clear.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was on the side of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, and a standoff had formed between the city government palace and the
Bayonet Gang!
The Clam Cloth Branch Leader immediately ordered his men to gather and guard
the shops, warehouses, and other important industries in Snow Bird Harbor.
He was a human from the Sheng Ming Continent.
If a violent conflict broke out between the city government palace and the
Bayonet Gang, his first priority was to ensure that the interests of the Clam
Cloth Merchant Alliance were not harmed.
Teng Dong Lang's face was gloomy.
He had learned of the dragonman youngster's accusation that the Bayonet Gang
had desecrated the duel a little earlier than the Clam Cloth Branch Leader.
When he first saw the information, his heart skipped a beat. 
The demon hybrid ringleader had indeed committed the act. 
As the gang leader, Teng Dong Lang personally covered up the crime for his
subordinates and promptly reached an understanding with the master of the Snow
Bird Dueling Arena. 
The exposure of the crime was not what weighed heavily on Teng Dong Lang's
mind.
The Bayonet Gang was a gang, and many of the things they did were illegal. In
the past, their crimes had been exposed many times.
Teng Dong Lang's main concern was the attitude of the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
“He helped the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in this way and even personally took
part in the fight. How many benefits did the former promise him?”
There was one more thing that weighed heavily on Teng Dong Lang's mind.
"A mysterious gold level assassin was encircled and killed. Someone saw a
broken silver fox mask, which eventually melted and disintegrated."
“Was it Hua Tang?”
Teng Dong Lang met with Hua Tang, and after eating and drinking together, the
latter left.
Hua Tang had a motive to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“It shouldn't be him.”
“The other characteristics don't match him.”
“With his skills, how could he easily be defeated in Snow Bird Harbor?”
Teng Dong Lang comforted himself in this way.
But until it was confirmed, he felt uneasy inside.
He was uncertain.
Putting himself in Hua Tang's shoes, if Hua Tang had secretly helped him, he
should have actively concealed his own features, but the silver fox mask could
not be concealed. 
Although Hua Tang was highly skilled, facing such an overwhelming force last
night, his defeat and death were not entirely impossible. 
At that moment, a subordinate reported, “Leader, Lord Bing Xiao has arrived.”
Bing Xiao had arrived.
Last night's fierce battle and this morning's testimony from Long Fu had left
the old leader restless. Upon receiving the news, he had immediately rushed to
the gang's headquarters to meet with Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang dismissed those around him.
In the room, only he and Bing Xiao remained.
Bing Xiao impatiently asked, “Is what Long Fu said true?”
Teng Dong Lang's expression grew somber, and he did not answer the question
directly.
He said, “Discussing this now is pointless.”
Bing Xiao's heart sank instantly.
He knew Teng Dong Lang well and immediately understood the implication of his
words. He paused, holding his walking stick: "You're too foolish. Why interfere
in the heroic duel? Don't you have the confidence to deal with a mere silver...
no, wait... someone acted without authorization. Who was it?" 
Teng Dong Lang's gaze sharpened as he stared at Bing Xiao: “I said, discussing
this now is pointless.”
Bing Xiao tilted his head slightly; he knew Teng Dong Lang was determined to
protect his errant subordinate.
Bing Xiao fell silent for a moment before nodding: “You're right; discussing
this now would indeed be of no help.”
Under the current circumstances, the Bayonet Gang absolutely cannot admit to
it. Even if they did do it!
Once they admitted it, their reputation would be completely ruined, despised by
everyone. Even beggars or children would look down on the Bayonet Gang from the
bottom of their hearts, despising them deeply. The gang itself would also face
internal conflicts, with many demanding the purging of the traitors.
For an organization like a gang, if no one feared them, internal turmoil
ensued, and they were not the sole dominant force—the consequences were
obvious.
Bing Xiao asked again, “Was it the Hua Tang who carried out the assassination
operation at the dock? Is it related to us?”
Teng Dong Lang sighed and shook his head, admitting that he couldn't confirm
this either.
Bing Xiao gritted his teeth: “We have to find a way to prove our innocence!” 
“Right now, public opinion in Snow Bird Harbor is running high. As per
tradition, the city government palace will definitely send an investigation
team.” 
“We can use this investigation team to help us prove our innocence.” 
The Bayonet Gang has been corrupting the officialdom of Snow Bird Harbor.
Teng Dong Lang nodded: “The key question now is, what is the city Lord's
attitude?”
As he spoke, memories flooded his mind—the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiling
and raising his cup, drinking with him and enjoying the conversation.
Teng Dong Lang also thought of last night, when the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
personally went into battle and surrounded the mysterious assassin.
“What price did the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps pay to get the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord to help them like this?” Teng Dong Lang asked Bing Xiao.
Bing Xiao also frowned and tried to analyze the situation: “A gold level
assassin who sneaked into Snow Bird Harbor without reporting it basically has
bad intentions.”
“Moreover, he assassinated members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Even if
the latter was not a local of Snow Bird Harbor, this illegal act was a
provocation to the city Lord.”
“What's more, the city Lord had just handed over the money and goods to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps when they were stolen by a mysterious person.”
“Of course, I think the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must have paid a heavy
price to get the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to help them.”
“Now, Long Fu has publicly accused my gang of crimes, and he is also coercing
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and forcing him to uphold justice.”
“This time, we have to get the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to stand on our side,
but I'm afraid it will cost us dearly!”



****** Chapter 324: We are Victims ******
Teng Dong Lang nodded lightly, agreeing with Bing Xiao's analysis.
Bing Xiao added: "The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is our top priority, while the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the second. All our troubles were caused by this
external force."
Teng Dong Lang shook his head: "The mysterious culprit was killed yesterday. It
is impossible for us to take action against them now."
"Once we do, it'll confirm their accusations towards us, and everyone will
think we're trying to silence the victims."
Bing Xiao added: "The dock is already swarmed with city guards. This is the
city Lord's arrangement."
"Now is not a good time to get rid of them."
"But we have many ways to deal with this external force. For example, we can
tempt them with benefits. If we can get Long Fu to withdraw his accusation, we
will be able to ease our predicament to a great extent."
Teng Dong Lang stared at Bing Xiao coldly: "The chance of successfully bribing
him is not high."
"He is the victim, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lost their only two
magicians."
"At this crucial time, if he withdraws the accusation, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps will develop a negative opinion towards this commander."
"If I were Long Fu, I would not easily withdraw my earlier accusation.
Otherwise, my reputation in Snow Bird Harbor will be ruined, and nobody will
trust me anymore."
Bing Xiao retorted: Gang Leader, this does seem unlikely, but after close
consideration, I have a different perspective."
"Look."
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is not an ordinary silver level organization.
They are arms merchants. They smuggle illegal goods."
"This is not a normal force. Do you think they really have just two magicians?
In fact, their only two magicians weren’t even silver level. Is that possible?"
Teng Dong Lang contemplated.
Bing Xiao continued: "Gang Leader, did you notice?"
"Although Long Fu exposed our actions in the heroic duel, he only publicly
declared it and did not take out evidence!"
"Does he actually have evidence?"
Teng Dong Lang thought about what he did that day. He had already cleaned up
the place and removed all traces of magic power.
The most useful evidence now was the demon hybrid ringleader.
However, how could he accuse Teng Dong Lang of being the culprit?
After thinking, Teng Dong Lang shook his head: "I think Long Fu does not have
any evidence."
"He only publicly announced it to show his attitude."
"After all, two magicians in his Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were assassinated
and killed. Seeing such a commotion yesterday, it is obvious he paid a huge
price to get the help of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord."
"If he had proof, he would have taken it out already!"
Bing Xiao nodded: "I think so too."
"He has no evidence, and the mysterious assassin has melted under the
disintegration ray. They are far from being able to ascertain our crime."
"In any case, the worst scenario is that he has some evidence of our
wrongdoing. Then, why is he not showing it?"
Teng Dong Lang had an idea: "The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps does not want to
fight to the death with us."
"We are the local tyrant here!"
"Long Fu has a mission to accomplish. They want to spread their smuggling
business in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom."
"How can he go all out against us, a local force, the moment they arrive?"
"That is illogical!"
Bing Xiao nodded: "This is the same reason why we didn't go all out to
eliminate this external force when they first arrived."
"Any sort of conflict carries risks. One loss can mean the end for us!"
"Of course, there is another possibility."
"Long Fu is keeping the evidence and waiting for us to go negotiate with him."
"He wants to extort us using this opportunity. I can already imagine his
request. He definitely wants us to relent and cooperate with their arms
smuggling business!"
"So, no matter what the situation is, we need to have a good talk with Long
Fu."
"If we can convince him to withdraw the accusation, we will cross one hurdle.
In the future, if he accuses us again, we can use this bribing incident to our
advantage. As long as the people see his true nature, their trust in him will
fall drastically!"
Teng Dong Lang thought about it silently for a while before nodding.
"You are right."
"Then, who should we send?"
Teng Dong Lang looked at Bing Xiao and said with deep meaning: "Ban Lan Gen has
the brain of a wooden block. He messed up earlier and was defeated by Long Fu
in one punch."
"Xiong Ju is rash and simple. He is suitable for combat but not negotiations.
I'm afraid they'll start fighting if they meet."
"But if I let Spring Boxer go..."
At this point, a voice spoke out from outside.
"Let me in!" It was Spring Boxer who spoke.
The guard stopped him: "The Gang Leader instructed that nobody is to interrupt
him while he's in a meeting."
"Let me in!" Spring Boxer shouted.
The guard held onto the door handle firmly, obstructing him.
"No, I must get an answer on this matter!" Spring Boxer was obstructed so he
could only shout loudly, "Gang Leader, are the rumors true?"
"Did we really make a move on Commander Long Fu in the heroic duel?"
"This fellow..." Teng Dong Lang was speechless.
He knew that if he did not respond, Spring Boxer would not stop making a scene
outside until he got an answer.
Thus, Teng Dong Lang shouted: "Of course not."
"Commander Long Fu has misunderstood."
"Don't worry, this misunderstanding will be resolved in some time."
"This is not something you should be concerned about. Go back and do your job
now!"
Although Spring Boxer was scolded, he got the answer he wanted. He smiled
sheepishly and replied: "I knew it was like this."
"Gang Leader, I'll leave now. Hehe!"
The outside became quiet again.
Teng Dong Lang looked at Bing Xiao and sighed helplessly: "I've spoiled this
brat too much."
Bing Xiao laughed: "He has a pure heart. It is a rare thing."
"He is the successor you nurtured. How enviable. Don't act like you're not
happy about it!"
Teng Dong Lang had a solemn expression most of the time, but now he showed a
slight smile.
But soon, this smile disappeared and was replaced by seriousness.
Teng Dong Lang said: "Even a ringleader like him is uncertain. We can imagine
the situation in our gang now."
"Although the Bayonet Gang is huge and has many members, we can't find a proper
person to go negotiate with."
Bing Xiao laughed as he knew Teng Dong Lang's intentions in saying so.
At the next moment, Bing Xiao took on the duty: "Then let me go."
"This..." Teng Dong Lang pretended to be hesitant.
Bing Xiao said: "The person who is going to negotiate has to have status. Right
now, the six ringleaders have status, but their personality and abilities are
not meant for this."
"As the gang leader, you cannot go personally. You are the pride and dignity of
our gang. We must make sure you can deal with future situations that occur."
"Only I, a silver level and also the previous gang leader, can go. Most
importantly, the reason why Long Fu had a conflict with us was due to me."
Saying this, Bing Xiao sighed as he looked up, sighing deeply: "I did not
expect it to turn out like this."
"Had I known this, I would've politely given that intelligence potion to Long
Fu."
Teng Dong Lang shook his head and consoled: "It is not your fault."
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has a heavy responsibility. As newcomers, they
will definitely choose a target to flex their muscles and show their strength.
This is the only way to pave the way for their arms business."
“Old gang leader, you just happened to run into them by chance.”
“I don't think the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps really wants to clash with our
Bayonet Gang.”
"If Long Fu had evidence, why didn't he point it out during the duel with Xiong
Ju? Even if he didn't notice it during the duel, he should have publicly
accused us after reflecting on the battle."
"He originally wanted to control the scale of their conflict with us. But last
night’s events happened too suddenly.   He was caught off guard!” 
Teng Dong Lang was pleased and grateful that Bing Xiao had voluntarily taken on
the matter. 
Bing Xiao was indeed the best choice for negotiations. 
But Teng Dong Lang couldn’t directly order him to go. 
On one hand, Bing Xiao was the former gang leader, and both were military men.
On the other hand, if Bing Xiao went to negotiate, he might be insulted. 
Only if Bing Xiao volunteered to go would he not harbor resentment toward Teng
Dong Lang after being mocked or humiliated.
Based on Teng Dong Lang's understanding of Bing Xiao, he was confident that
Bing Xiao would volunteer. 
The situation unfolded exactly as he had anticipated.
Bing Xiao stood up: “There's no time to waste. I'll prepare and depart as soon
as possible.” 
“I'll explain to Long Fu that last night's assassination had nothing to do with
us.” 
“He won't believe it, but this isn't an explanation for him—it's our
explanation to the people of Snow Bird Harbor!” 
Teng Dong Lang stood up to see him off.
“I will have the other three ringleaders surrender voluntarily and urge Long Fu
to engage in a heroic duel with me as soon as possible!” 
“At that time, in the arena, I will personally take Long Fu's life.” 
“This dragonman has caused us great trouble, plunging the Bayonet Gang into a
crisis of survival. I cannot ease my hatred unless I kill him!”
"Of course, if circumstances permit, such as if he has already secretly reached
an agreement with us. Then I will spare his life to demonstrate the magnanimity
of the Bayonet Gang." 
Bing Xiao nodded: “It's time to teach this scoundrel a lesson.” 
“This plan to resolve the issue is well-thought-out.” 
"Teng Dong Lang, you are a more suitable leader than I am. You have always put
the interests of the gang first. You've done better than me."
“For the sake of the Bayonet Gang, what does it matter if I sacrifice my
reputation and suffer some sarcasm?”
Teng Dong Lang sighed, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps took the initiative to
frame us, and the outside world misunderstands us too much.”
“We are the real victims.”
At the same time, on the Love Triangle.
There were only two people in the cabin.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: “Commander Long Fu, I carefully selected these
pieces of equipment for you.”
"With them, your chances of winning against Teng Dong Lang will greatly
increase!"



****** Chapter 325: Borrowing the City Lord’s Treasures ******
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord made a secret visit this time, mainly to bring
powerful equipment to the dragonman youngster.
Under the current circumstances, powerful equipment could quickly increase
individual strength.
Equipping the dragonman youngster in advance would also give him more time to
familiarize himself with the use of the equipment, allowing him to make better
use of it.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took a small bag out of his bosom.
This bag was obviously a gold level treasure, capable of concealing the aura of
its contents.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord unfolded the small bag completely.
In the next moment, all the equipment was visible to the dragonman youngster.
The small bundle clearly did not have the ability to shrink space, and all the
equipment was actual size.
The equipment was very small and delicate, with many large and small rings.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not prioritize introducing these rings but
first picked up a scale with his finger.
It was a white, translucent dragon scale, only the size of an adult's thumb.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord introduced, “Commander Long Fu, this is a badge
from the Dragon's Reverse Scale series, specifically the Sword Return Reverse
Scale.”
The dragonman youngster immediately nodded, “I know this series of alchemy
treasures.”
The Dragon's Reverse Scale has a series of badges, ranging in quality from
bronze to saint level.
The one that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took out was naturally gold level.
All the equipment he was lending to the dragonman youngster this time was of
this level.
The main material used in the Dragon's Reverse Scale series of alchemy badges
was dragon scales. The dragon scales used were also extraordinary, as only the
unique reverse scale from among all the scales on a dragon's body was used.
The bodies of dragons were covered in resilient dragon scales, which offered
exceptional defense. 
However, among all dragon scales, there was typically one special scale. 
Almost all dragon scales grew in the same direction, but this special scale
grew in the opposite direction. Due to this characteristic, it is commonly
referred to as the reverse scale.
The reverse scale was the weakest point in terms of defense among dragon
scales. 
In many stories, dragon slayers exploited this defensive weakness by targeting
the reverse scale, inflicting severe or even fatal injuries on the dragon.
The dragonman youngster had some knowledge of this type of alchemy equipment,
which he had gained from expanding his reading while memorizing knowledge about
dragons in his daily life.
For the youngster, once the bloodline concentration of the Flame Dragon King
reached a certain level in the future, he would also develop a reverse scale.
Among the Dragon's Reverse Scale series, the most classic product was Dragon
Reverse: Rage. When a battle qi cultivator wore it, every time they were
attacked, they would accumulate Rage.
Once the Rage reached a certain level, it would erupt, granting the battle qi
cultivator enhancements in strength, attack power, speed, and many other
aspects.
While the variety of the enhancements did not match that of the Grand Arena
Medal, the extent of the enhancements was very high.
Once Rage erupted, it often gave the battle qi cultivator several times the
combat power in a short period of time, thereby changing the situation and
securing victory.
·
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not lend out the most classic Dragon's
Reverse Scale, but the relatively rare Sword Return Dragon Reverse Scale.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord explained in detail, "This alchemy badge uses
the reverse scale of the Back Sword Dragon. Every time a battle qi cultivator
takes a hit, whether it's melee or ranged, whether it's battle skills, magic,
or divine spells, sword qi will accumulate in the badge."
“When the accumulation reaches its limit, it will erupt, forming a terrifying
wave of sword qi.”
"Of course, if you can actively control it, you can also release it actively.
During the process of accumulating sword qi, you can shoot it out one by one.
It is very accurate and convenient, as long as you lock onto the enemy."
The dragonman youngster nodded, a hint of joy appearing on his face: “In this
way, my long-range attack ability will be greatly supplemented.”
The dragonman youngster was only silver level, and silver level battle qi could
not be condensed out of thin air like gold level. Therefore, the vast majority
of battle skills were close-range, with almost no long-range battle skills.
Looking at his battles with Xiong Ju, Spring Boxer, and others, the silver
level battle skills were all close-range attacks.
If his strength was not enough, his equipment could make up for it.
The Sword Return Badge directly made up for the dragonman youngster's long-
range combat deficiency.
Although he could also use the alchemy crossbow, the Sword Return Badge allowed
him to directly use it in close combat through mental mobilization.
It was convenient and fast, and very compatible with his fighting style.
The actual combat effect was much better than the crossbow!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord put down the Sword Return Badge and took out the
largest gold level item from the small bag.
It was a spherical glass reagent bottle, about the size of a kiwi fruit.
When Zi Di prepared the potion, she had glass reagent bottles of various sizes.
The one in front of the dragonman youngster was very high-end, reaching the
gold level.
“This is the Automatic Blood Bottle,” said the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, "You
can swallow it temporarily or hold it in your mouth. When you want to speak,
you can press it under your tongue, and you will be able to barely speak."
“It has the function of storing potions.”
“Don't let its compact size fool you; it has a large internal space capable of
storing a significant amount of potion.” 
“As the name suggests, its primary function is automatic medication
administration.” 
“Once your condition deteriorates, the potion will be automatically released
and infused into your body.” 
"The drawback is that it can only store healing potions, and the potions must
be of the same type. Different healing potions cannot be mixed together in the
bottle, as that would cause immeasurable damage to the bottle."
The dragonman youngster immediately praised, “Very practical.”
He thought of his fierce battle with Xiong Ju.
In the final stage, both he and Xiong Ju were exhausted and had to temporarily
stop fighting. The two sides were far apart, each desperately swallowing
potions to improve their condition.
With this Automatic Blood Bottle, he wouldn't have to be so desperate.
The blood bottle also had a hidden function, which was that he could secretly
take medicine without his opponent noticing.
This would cause his opponent to misjudge the situation.
In a short period of time, that was all the dragonman youngster could think of.
The further practical value of the blood bottle remained to be explored by the
dragonman youngster.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord put the Automatic Blood Bottle aside and took
out the largest round object.
Before he could speak, the dragonman youngster said, “I know this equipment.
It's the Ice Heart Headband.”
The main material of the Ice Heart Headband was the Ice Heart.
One of the goals of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' visit to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom was to purchase this alchemy treasure.
After wearing the Ice Heart Headband, magicians would remain calm at all times,
their mental power would increase, their spell casting speed would be
accelerated, and their personal will would be protected.
The last point was the most important to the survivors.
The Ice Heart Ring could protect their will!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded, "I saw your battle with Xiong Ju, and he
suppressed you with his Bear Roar battle skill. You need to strengthen your
mental defense, especially since Teng Dong Lang has mastered the relevant
battle skills."
“Is that so?” The dragonman youngster keenly grasped this new information,
which the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had not collected.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: "I'll tell you about Teng Dong Lang later.
Next, I want to cover this set of equipment."
“You heard right.”
“This is a set!”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pointed to the remaining large and small rings
in the small bag, his tone proud.
"Each of these rings is gold level. But what makes them truly powerful is that
they can form a complete set."
“The set is called Diamond Protection.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord first took out a small orange-gold ring.
The ring was about the size of an adult's index finger bent at the knuckle,
with the fingertip touching the tip of the thumb to form a circle.
The round equipment was full-bodied and gave a heavy visual impression.
"This is one of the components of the set, the orange steel nose ring. It can
enhance your sense of smell, but at the same time help you resist attacks such
as poison gas and foul odors, acting as a filter."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord picked up a pair of smaller rings with his other
hand.
The rings were only half the size of the orange steel nose ring, relatively
thin, and shimmered with a crimson metallic luster.
“This pair is the crimson steel earrings, which can enhance your hearing, but
at the same time help you resist attacks such as sound waves.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued his introduction.
“This pair of green steel bracelets can speed up your hand's actions, while
also providing some protection for your forearms and palms.”
“Finally, the ink steel ankle rings allow you to move faster, kick harder, and
provide excellent protection for your lower limbs.”
“After wearing all the components, the entire Diamond Protection Set will have
a spell effect called Diamond Body.”
"Diamond Body makes your surroundings incredibly hard; even your internal
organs are somewhat enhanced. You can think of it as an enhanced and optimized
version of the battle skill Black Armor, or a comprehensive version of the
battle skill Silver Armor."
“The most important thing is that the Diamond Body is just a thin layer of
light that does not affect any of your movements but provides good defense
against swords and magic.”
“Great!” After listening to the introduction, the dragonman youngster's eyes
lit up, and he immediately praised it.
All the components were gold level, and when combined, the defensive effect of
the Diamond Body was unimaginable!
The dragonman youngster himself had amazing defenses.
With this set of equipment, even when facing gold level opponents, the
dragonman youngster might still maintain a relative advantage.
Under the guidance of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the dragonman youngster
tried on all the equipment one by one.
After last night's battle, both sides had established a foundation of mutual
trust. Coupled with the constraints of the contract, the dragonman youngster
felt at ease and boldly tried them all out.
Before he could carefully understand them, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said,
“Commander Long Fu, you can slowly familiarize yourself with this equipment
later.”
“I'll show you two videos, both of Teng Dong Lang's battles.”
The dragonman youngster raised his eyebrows slightly and instantly felt the gap
in intelligence capabilities between them.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had spent a large amount of money but had not
been able to gather any intelligence on Teng Dong Lang's combat capabilities.
Not only had the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord collected it, but he had also
obtained two videos!
“The first video shows Teng Dong Lang's combat performance during his military
service.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord placed the alchemy device on the floor
and turned it on.
The dragonman youngster glanced at it and saw a group of snow elves being
attacked by a large pack of wolves in a snowstorm.



****** Chapter 326: Radiance Ring ******
In the magic image, there were very few snow elves, but their defense line was
very solid.
The dragonman youngster quickly spotted Teng Dong Lang among the crowd.
He was in the middle and seemed unable to move. At his feet, several long whips
of ice and snow were rooted in the ground, lashing around.
The whips were extremely accurate and powerful.
Each lash hit the gaps in the snow elf formation in front of him without
accidentally injuring his allies.
Each lash also took the lives of one or two ice plain giant wolves.
“This is the battle skill Cold Ice Whip,” explained the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord, "This gold level battle skill has undergone a qualitative change and can
almost be considered a small-sized magic spell.”
The dragonman youngster nodded: “Yes, it can be condensed into shape
independently, making the combat methods of gold level battle qi cultivators
quite rich, no longer comparable to battle qi cultivators silver level and
below.”
A large number of ice plain snow wolves lost their lives on the front line,
which angered the king of the wolf pack.
A slender ice plain wolf king as big as a small elephant rushed towards the
snow elves.
Teng Dong Lang was the highest-ranked member of this snow elf team.
Seeing this, he immediately shouted, “Get down!”
The tacit understanding and trust that had been cultivated over a long period
of time allowed the snow elves fighting on the front lines to immediately obey
his orders and lie down on the ground.
Teng Dong Lang took a deep breath and pushed his battle qi to the limit.
He stretched out his left arm and aimed his left fist straight ahead.
The king of the wolf pack rushed forward, fierce and powerful, accompanied by a
strong wind and blizzard.
In the next moment, the crystal ring on Teng Dong Lang's left index finger
suddenly shot out a blue light.
Streams of blue light were fired one after another, striking the wolf king
repeatedly within just a few seconds. 
With each hit from the blue light, the wolf king's speed decreased slightly. 
By the time it reached the front lines, it had frozen into an ice block, posing
no threat. 
The wolf king was bound by the ice block, and the morale of the remaining ice
plain wolves plummeted, causing them to flee in disarray.
The video ended there.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said, "The ring used by Teng Dong Lang is a
silver level Radiance Ring. This was equipment used by the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's army, specifically for officers. Teng Dong Lang has made many
contributions to the army, and he exchanged his military merits for this ring."
“The Radiance Ring is very practical. Its specific effect is to transform
battle skills into rays of light and shoot them out in a focused manner.”
“At the end of this battle, Teng Dong Lang used the battle skill of extreme
cold air.”
“The original effect of this battle skill was that after taking a deep breath,
he would open his mouth and spit out a large amount of cold air. It was a
range-type battle skill that combined offense and defense.”
“But after the transformation of the Radiance Ring, the attack method became a
series of rays.”
“More than a dozen frozen rays hit the wolf king, who was completely engulfed
by the extreme cold air and frozen into an ice lump.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord paused here and then explained.
“Teng Dong Lang in this image had just become gold level not long ago.”
"This image is from the military archives. Back then, Teng Dong Lang used this
magic image as evidence, submitted it to the military department for review,
and earned a third-class merit."
The dragonman youngster finally understood the source of this image.
At the same time, he gained a deeper understanding of the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord's connections.
At the very least, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had considerable connections
in the military of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
“Let's look at the second image. This image is more valuable than the previous
one.” After saying that, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord played the second
image.
The dragonman youngster watched intently and saw that it was deep into the
night, and on a deserted island in the sea, two gold level beings were
fighting.
One was Teng Dong Lang, and the other was wearing a silver fox mask and a white
robe with colorful flowers blooming on it.
“A silver fox mask... Could it be Hua Tang?” The dragonman youngster's pupils
suddenly contracted.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said, “This is valuable information obtained by
my subordinates during a night patrol of the sea.”
“Commander Long Fu, look closely. These two are not fighting to the death, but
sparring.”
The dragonman youngster watched for a while and immediately confirmed the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord's statement: “They are indeed sparring.”
Neither Teng Dong Lang nor the silver fox mask individual used any consumable
combat items, such as potions, scrolls, and so on.
Furthermore, the dragonman youngster observed that there were many times when
the two actively let opportunities to attack pass.
The two seemed to be enjoying the pleasure of battle, taking no risks and not
being aggressive.
Even their battle skills were used very infrequently. Most of the time, they
were simply sparring using their fists and feet, amplifying their bodies with
battle qi.
The silver fox masked individual moved gracefully, as agile as a butterfly in a
flower garden.
Teng Dong Lang's movements were also very fast, only slightly slower than the
silver fox mask individual.
He wielded a long whip, using it to attack and defend, firmly maintaining the
distance between himself and the silver fox mask individual.
During the battle, the two used their respective battle skills.
For both of them, every battle skill they used was extremely familiar, as if it
had become an instinctive part of their bodies.
The dragonman youngster watched the entire battle, his expression and mood
equally heavy.
In terms of fighting skills alone, Teng Dong Lang had a distinct military
style. But this fighting style was different from Zong Ge's military style.
“The long whip in his hand is as flexible as his arm.”
“He's constantly controlling the distance between himself and his opponent.”
"His fighting performance at medium range is the best. At long range, he is on
par with the silver fox mask individual. At short range, he is weaker."
In the video, there were several times when the silver fox mask individual
seized an opening and rushed in front of Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang had no choice but to use his battle skills to try to create
distance.
Most of the battle skills he used in this fight were for medium range.
When the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw the magic image being played back for
the third time, he couldn't hold back any longer and spoke up, “It is precisely
because of this information that I suspect the relationship between Teng Dong
Lang and Hua Tang. There must be some inside information between the two that
outsiders don't know about!”
"Unfortunately, I can't use this information publicly. Because I don't have
direct evidence to prove that the person wearing the silver fox mask is Hua
Tang."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord then proceeded to introduce the dragonman
youngster to the battle skills and equipment that Teng Dong Lang had displayed
in this battle.
"Commander Long Fu, please recover from your injuries and start competing with
Teng Dong Lang as soon as possible!" Snow Bird Harbor City Lord urged.
“If you use this equipment well, it will definitely cause huge trouble for your
opponent.”
“I came here secretly this time, so please restrain your subordinates and do
not easily reveal my movements, lest the Bayonet Gang become alert.”
The dragonman youngster nodded and replied on the spot, "I understand. In the
next few days, I will publicly challenge the next leader of the Bayonet Gang."
“Very good.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord got up to leave.
Just then, the dragonman youngster received a report from his communication
device—
Bu Quan was visiting.



****** Chapter 327: Bu Quan Gives Treasures ******
“Why did she come to visit?” The dragonman youngster's first reaction was
surprise.
He knew Bu Quan.
The latter was an excellent alchemist who had an alchemy workshop and property
in Snow Bird Harbor and was one of the leading figures in the city.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di had discussed her when they were talking.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in dire need of alchemists, and the
dragonman youngster had thought of recruiting her, but he also knew that it was
difficult for a mercenary corps of their size to recruit such talented people.
“She had sent an invitation letter before, saying that there was a mercenary
mission.”
“Could it be related to this mercenary mission?”
The dragonman youngster speculated in his heart.
He had wanted to take advantage of the invitation letter to visit Bu Quan alone
and establish preliminary contact. But then a mysterious assassin sneaked in
and committed a crime, disrupting the dragonman youngster's plans.
Now, Bu Quan had taken the initiative to visit the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This was indeed strange!
After the dragonman youngster had publicly accused the Bayonet Gang and
intervened in a heroic duel, the conflict between him and the gang had
escalated to a very intense level.
The major forces that had originally sent invitation letters to the dragonman
youngster were now sitting on the sidelines and suspending their contact with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
They had all realized that it was almost impossible for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and the Bayonet Gang to coexist in Snow Bird Harbor.
They were waiting to see who the ultimate victor would be after the conflict
ended.
Compared to these large forces, although Bu Quan had the status of a
transcendent alchemy great master, her overall strength was relatively weak.
According to common sense, she should also wait quietly and be a safe
bystander.
“But why did she suddenly visit me?” the dragonman youngster muttered to
himself.
Seeing the look of confusion on Long Fu's face, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
immediately smiled and said, “Perhaps I know the reason.”
“Bu Quan and the Bayonet Gang have a deep conflict.”
“Even before she had fully matured, she had already shown exceptional alchemy
talent, which aroused the Bayonet Gang's greed.”
“The Bayonet Gang used both force and persuasion to try to force Bu Quan onto
their side.”
“Their strong-arm tactics provoked Bu Quan's aversion, and she refused to
comply.”
“During her escape, the nanny who had raised her was killed by the Bayonet
Gang.”
“Bu Quan had been raised by her nanny since she was a child and had a deep
affection for her, like a daughter for her mother.”
“She would definitely want to avenge the murder of her mother!”
“After Bu Quan escaped from Snow Bird Harbor, she took the initiative to go to
the Alchemy Guild, where she displayed her talent and ability and successfully
obtained the protection of the Alchemy Guild.”
“She thus escaped the pursuit of the Bayonet Gang and cleverly concealed her
feelings for her nanny.”
“She gradually grew up and became a recognized alchemy genius.”
"During this period, the Bayonet Gang realized her influence and took the
initiative to make peace. Bu Quan was wise. She pretended to accept the Bayonet
Gang's apology and put an end to their past feud.
Once she had earned enough contribution to fully repay the Alchemy Guild, she
gained her freedom.
She returned to Snow Bird Harbor and opened several alchemy workshops.
She had been secretly searching for and collecting evidence of the Bayonet
Gang's crimes, which was also my job. Many times, I deliberately designed and
took the initiative to leave some evidence of their crimes for her.
"Because of this, I realized her true purpose, investigated it, and understood
her motive for revenge.
"The main reason she took the initiative to visit this time was because you,
Long Fu, clearly accused the Bayonet Gang, and the conflict between you and the
Bayonet Gang is irreconcilable. This gained her approval to the greatest
extent. She came to help her allies!"
“So that's how it is.” The dragonman youngster suddenly understood and couldn't
help but show his joy.
On second thought, the dragonman youngster looked at the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord again: “Since that's the case, I might as well introduce her to you, City
Lord.”
“We are all fighting against the Bayonet Gang, so comrades-in-arms must
naturally unite.”
But the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head.
“I don't recommend that, Commander Long Fu.”
"Our plan has already been agreed upon. You just need to engage in a heroic
duel with Teng Dong Lang and keep him occupied in the dueling arena."
“Trust me, I've been preparing for so many years, taking down the Bayonet Gang
is not a problem!”
"Before the heroic duel, we must declare war and delay time. Therefore, even
though I have a lot of evidence of the Bayonet Gang's crimes in my hands, I
haven't brought it out."
"Don't provoke the Bayonet Gang too much. Let them think that although the
situation is bad, it is still under their control.
"I need time to make the final arrangements. And you, Commander Long Fu, need
to heal your internal injuries, don't you?"
At this point, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord paused and said, “To be honest, after
realizing Bu Quan's true attitude towards the Bayonet Gang, I once wanted to
put her up as our banner's symbol.”
“She is very influential, has had a tragic experience, and has achieved success
through her own efforts, so once her past is exposed, she will inevitably gain
a lot of sympathy and recognition.”
“The more recognition and sympathy the public has, the more disgust and hatred
they will have for the Bayonet Gang.”
“But in the end, I chose you.”
"Because the crime of desecrating a heroic duel is far more serious than the
crimes the Bayonet Gang committed against Bu Quan. Even gangs in other cities
would despise and loathe the Bayonet Gang after this."
“There is another reason, which is profit.”
“Bu Quan is a snow elf and an alchemy master with connections and background in
the Alchemy Guild.”
“If I cooperate with her, when I win and eliminate the Bayonet Gang, she will
take a large share of my gains, including political influence.”
“In comparison, Commander Long Fu, you are the one I am more willing to
cooperate with.”
These words moved the dragonman youngster on the spot.
“Thank you for your honesty. I admire your sincerity and wisdom!” The dragonman
youngster bowed slightly to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
He had learned something!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's choices, actions, and considerations allowed
the dragonman youngster to see the political side of a mature struggle.
This was something he had never encountered in his past experiences.
Struggle was never just about fighting and killing.
The dragonman youngster was eager to learn and good at reflection.
His communication with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord allowed him to learn a
lot of things he was lacking.
These words showed him the way forward—he could become a more mature leader
going forward.
“It's great that you understand.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord patted the
dragonman youngster on the shoulder to show his closeness.
Of course, he wouldn't usually speak so plainly.
But he knew even more clearly that the trust he had worked so hard to build
with the dragonman youngster could not be destroyed by anything.
This trust had not come easily; he had earned it by slaying a gold level
opponent.
It was also a golden opportunity that he had been waiting for many years!
“Go on,” said the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, "Bu Quan has come to visit you on
her own initiative to reinforce you. She will bring you some equipment or
medicine. Perhaps there will also be evidence of the Bayonet Gang's crimes. But
that's unlikely, since you don't have a deep trust between you."
"The most important point is that this evidence alone won't be enough to bring
down the Bayonet Gang. If you defeat Teng Dong Lang, then maybe it'll be a
different story."
“Speaking of which, Bu Quan is quite skilled at making alchemy equipment for
reconnaissance.”
"When she was studying and growing up in the Alchemy Guild, she created an
alchemy blueprint. It was a telescope that could uniquely mark targets within
its field of view based on threat level—a highly creative design."
“The first such telescope she personally crafted earned her seventh place in
the Warm Snow Cup Alchemy Competition.” 
"Don't underestimate seventh place—the Warm Snow Cup is the highest-tier
alchemy competition in our kingdom. The top ten in each competition are
extremely valuable!"
The dragonman youngster temporarily bid farewell to the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord, left the cabin, came to the ship's rail, and greeted Bu Quan.
Bu Quan had the beautiful appearance of a snow elf.
But what was even more memorable was that she always wore a pair of black-
rimmed glasses.
“Commander Long Fu, please forgive me for my presumptuous visit.” When Bu Quan
saw the dragonman youngster, she was very polite and did not act like an
alchemy master.
Other places are another matter, but in Snow Bird Harbor, she is considered the
best in the field of alchemy.
The dragonman youngster hurriedly said, "Master Bu Quan, your visit is a
pleasant surprise. Though we have only just met, I have long admired your
reputation." 
“To be honest, after receiving your invitation letter, I had planned to visit
you.” 
“Unfortunately, that plan was disrupted.” 
Bu Quan comforted him, "Commander Long Fu, you are a believer in the Justice
God.   I believe that under your hands, justice will prevail."
“I admire your courage.”
“The Bayonet Gang has committed countless crimes, and you are the first person
to stand up and publicly accuse them!”
"I admire you as a person, and at the same time, I have a deep grudge and
hatred towards the Bayonet Gang. So, don't be surprised by my visit. I am here
to help you!"
Bu Quan was also very frank and directly stated her purpose.
The dragonman youngster hurriedly thanked her, then led her into the captain's
cabin at the stern of the flagship to entertain her.
The first item she took out was a pair of ski goggles.
The lenses were large, covering half of the dragonman youngster's face.
“I modified these for you overnight, Commander Long Fu.” 
“These goggles can automatically mark targets based on threat level, with
colors ranging from white, green, yellow, red, to purple.” 
“White indicates no threat.” 
“Green means the threat is minimal but should not be ignored.” 
“Yellow indicates the target poses a certain threat and requires attention.” 
“Red signifies a severe threat and demands extreme caution.”
"Purple is the highest level of threat, typically exceeding your combat
strength.   Withdrawing temporarily is the wise choice." 
Finally, Bu Quan said with a touch of pride, “This equipment is my original
creation and has not been disclosed yet.” 
“Even the Alchemy Guild has not received any information about it.” 
“Commander Long Fu, I am gifting it to you, and I believe it will be of great
assistance to you.”



****** Chapter 328: Bing Xiao Makes Amends ******
The dragonman youngster took the goggles, examined them, put them on his face,
and found that they fit perfectly, as if they had been tailor-made for him.
Bu Quan was also satisfied with the result. She pinched the frame of her
glasses with her thumb and index finger and raised them slightly: “My
assessment of people has always been very accurate.”
Next, she took out the second alchemy artifact.
It was a small bag.
The bag was semi-transparent blue.
From the outside, one could see that it contained small cubic ice cubes.
“This is the Cold Heart Ice Bag,” Bu Quan explained, "Its effect is to absorb
external ice-attribute battle qi and automatically convert it into a defensive
force. This force can help the user temporarily increase their spirit power and
clear their mind, thereby protecting them from spiritual attacks."
After listening to this introduction, the dragonman youngster's first
impression was that this was an alchemy item made to target Teng Dong Lang.
This was because the battle qi and battle skills that Teng Dong Lang practiced
were all ice-based.
This equipment was particularly suitable for the dragonman youngster.
He could even deliberately not dodge in battle and let Teng Dong Lang hit him
so that he could absorb the external ice-type battle qi and help himself
increase his spirit power.
“No, to be more precise, Bu Quan imagined a battle situation like this...”
“After suffering a mental shock, I'll be temporarily unable to fight back and
suffer from Teng Dong Lang's frenzied attacks.”
"At that time, the cold bag will take effect, absorbing Teng Dong Lang's ice-
based battle qi, which weakens the enemy's offensive on the one hand and
reduces my healing pressure on the other. Most importantly, it will also
increase my spirit power. It will clear my mind and restore my combat
strength."
The dragonman youngster had suffered greatly from his lack of willpower
defense. Therefore, any items and treasures that could help with spirit defense
were welcome to him.
The third item taken out by Bu Quan was a spell scroll.
This spell scroll exuded a gold level aura.
After Bu Quan introduced it, the dragonman youngster was secretly startled.
Because the content recorded on this spell scroll was none other than the
spell—Lava Hell!
Spells were divided into tactical-class, battlefield-class, and strategic-
class.
The spell Lava Hell was battlefield-class, surpassing tactical-class spells.
Once used, it could transform the surrounding area into a hellish scene of
constantly erupting dragon rocks.
The dragonman youngster was puzzled: "Battlefield-class spells are very
difficult to find on the market. This is because such spells cause considerable
destruction. Many nations have explicitly banned the trade of such spells and
enforced strict regulations." 
"If I were to use such a spell in the dueling arena, would that be permissible?
Would it violate your nation's laws?" 
“As far as I know, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has strict regulations and imposes
a strict ban on such spells.”
Bu Quan shook her head with a smile and explained, “Don't worry about that,
Commander Long Fu.”
“Although this is a Lava Hell spell, it has been deliberately weakened.”
“The spell's range has been greatly reduced, now only about a third of the
original version.”
“Using this spell scroll during the heroic duel is completely fine.”
“I believe that when the entire Snow Bird Dueling Arena is turned into a lava
hell, it will greatly weaken Teng Dong Lang.”
“Not only that, but the scorching battlefield environment will surely be more
suitable for you, Commander Long Fu.”
The dragonman youngster nodded and gracefully admitted this point.
He carried the bloodline of the Flame Dragon King, a secret that could not be
deduced from his appearance.
However, people could infer from the dragonman youngster's bright red dragon
scales, burly physique, amber dragon eyes, and other characteristics that his
bloodline was inclined towards fire.
After giving the dragonman youngster three treasures, Bu Quan exchanged a few
words with him and then took her leave.
Her quick and decisive behavior made the dragonman youngster like her even
more.
The dragonman youngster accompanied her all the way to the pier.
At the moment of parting, Bu Quan blessed the dragonman youngster and expressed
her hope that he would defeat Teng Dong Lang.
The dragonman youngster said that he would deeply remember Bu Quan's help and
looked forward to deeper cooperation between the two sides in the future.
After returning to the ship, the dragonman youngster continued to gaze at the
carriage Bu Quan had left in.
“Compared to these three treasures, I would rather have you, Bu Quan,” the
dragonman youngster sighed secretly.
He did not reveal his intention because he also understood that this was not
the right time to recruit Bu Quan.
He also understood that this was not the right time to recruit Bu Quan.
The current progress was already very good.
Having a common enemy allowed two strangers meeting for the first time to get
off to a very good start.
Shortly after Bu Quan left, another visitor arrived at the pier.
“Bing Xiao?” The dragonman youngster heard his subordinate's report and found
it hard to believe at first.
Bing Xiao was the former head of the Bayonet Gang.
How could he come at a time like this?
This was completely unexpected by the dragonman youngster.
"Commander, are you going to see him? Or should we just kick him out?" asked
the subordinate.
The dragonman youngster quickly thought about it and said, “Let him wait
outside first.”
The dragonman youngster turned and went down into the cabin to meet with the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord again.
He briefly told the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord about the three items that Bu
Quan had sent and then mentioned Bing Xiao.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was secretly satisfied with the dragonman
youngster's behavior.
The dragonman youngster could have met with Bing Xiao first and then told him
the results.
But he didn't do that.
Instead, before acting, he came down specifically to communicate with the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord and ask for his opinion.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew that Commander Long Fu was a very
opinionated person, and the main purpose of doing so was to express his
sincerity of cooperation to him!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said, “I do understand the personalities of Bing
Xiao and Teng Dong Lang very well.”
“He must have discussed this with Teng Dong Lang beforehand before coming here
this time.”
“The main purpose is to show goodwill and weakness, to paralyze you, to try
their best to undermine your fighting spirit, so as to buy time for
themselves.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, his eyes determined: “No matter what
price they pay, the city Lord and I have already reached an alliance, and we
will never waver.”
But the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head: “No, what I mean is,
Commander Long Fu, please try your best to be tactful and play along with their
plan.”
“With the condition of not signing any contract with Bing Xiao, try your best
to soften your attitude and lull them into a false sense of security.”
“That way, my subsequent actions will have a higher success rate!”
“I understand.” The dragonman youngster agreed, frowning.
Because for him, this was a difficult challenge.
It was hard for him to control the situation.
After temporarily bidding farewell to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the
dragonman youngster returned to the captain's cabin.
Here, he received Bing Xiao.
When Bing Xiao saw the dragonman youngster, he first bowed deeply and said in a
sincere tone, “Commander Long Fu, thank you for forgiving me and giving me this
opportunity to meet with you.”
“I am here to apologize to you.”
“Regarding the conflict over the giant-type intelligence potion, I was arrogant
and did not recognize your strength.”
“Ah!” Bing Xiao sighed deeply, his face filled with regret, "If I had known
that the minor conflict from back then would escalate to this extent, I would
never have acted that way.” 
“Giving up a portion of the giant-type intelligence potion to gain a friend
like you, Commander Long Fu, is truly a worthwhile trade.” 
"I was blind!"
When the dragonman youngster heard his apology, he did not feel any relief but
instead felt a strong chill.
Bing Xiao's attitude was definitely not a sincere apology, but rather an
attempt to lull the dragonman youngster into a false sense of security.
He was a dignified former gang leader, yet he did something so humiliating
without any regard for his own reputation.
He was truly a remarkable person that was able to put down his pride.
“The lower he can stoop today, the stronger his revenge against me will be when
he has the chance in the future.”
“This kind of person is very dangerous!”
The dragonman youngster understood this clearly, and said in a low voice, full
of emotion, “Lord Bing Xiao, I never thought it would come to this.”
“I admit that the conflict with you was the natural result of me going with the
flow.”
“When I found out your identity, I regretted it.”
"But there was no way out, so we had to go along with it. Although I took the
initiative to provoke a heroic duel, my original plan was to impress Teng Dong
Lang, show my strength, and promote peace through war."
"I never expected the Bayonet Gang to be so domineering. After I defeated Xiong
Ju, not only did you use your connections to make things difficult for us, but
you also sent a gold level assassin to steal and assassinate, causing us heavy
losses..."
Bing Xiao raised his hand and hurriedly said, "Commander Long Fu, please
forgive me for interrupting you. Our side definitely did not send any assassin
to infiltrate and assassinate."
“The gold level battle qi cultivator that Snow Bird Harbor City Lord killed was
definitely not one of our people.”
“This is a huge misunderstanding!”
“The main purpose of my visit this time is to clarify this matter!”
The dragonman youngster's face darkened, and he snorted coldly, “Since you've
done it, you should face up to it.”
“No, no, no, we definitely didn't do that.” Bing Xiao waved his hands
repeatedly.
The dragonman youngster sneered, "I understand. Your explanation is not for me,
but for the people of Snow Bird Harbor."
“If I were you, even if the assassination failed, I would never admit that I
was the mastermind behind it.”
Bing Xiao sighed deeply, “Commander Long Fu, you have too many prejudices
against our gang.”
“Our gang has never had any intention of assassinating your gang members, let
alone taking action.”
“The second purpose of my visit is to make up with your mercenary corps.”
“The compensation on this list is a token of our sincerity. Please take a look,
Commander.”
With that, Bing Xiao handed the dragonman youngster a piece of paper.
The dragonman youngster took it and looked at it, his breath pausing slightly.
In order to paralyze the dragonman youngster, the Bayonet Gang had come up with
a list of apologies worth a fortune!
There were eight gold level items on this list alone.
In addition, some fixed assets, such as shops in excellent locations, were to
be compensated to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps free of charge.
There were even two alchemy workshops among these fixed assets!



****** Chapter 329: Giant Nurturing Insights ******
Bing Xiao was old and cunning. Seeing the slight change in the dragonman
youngster's expression, he took the opportunity to hand him another scroll.
It was a contract scroll.
“As long as you, Commander Long Fu, sign this contract, then all the assets on
the list will be yours!”
The dragonman youngster put down the asset list in his hand, and his expression
returned to normal.
He did not take the contract scroll but looked at Bing Xiao: “Let me guess—the
contract’s terms aren’t about making me abandon the heroic duel, are they?”
“That’s not the case,” Bing Xiao smiled, "We have fully considered your
circumstances, Commander Long Fu.”
“The heroic duel was something you initiated voluntarily.”
“If, under the current circumstances, you suddenly take the initiative to give
up your challenge to our gang leader, Teng Dong Lang, how will the outside
world view you?”
“You will be misunderstood as cowardly, weak, and a loser who dares to talk but
not act.”
“This will cause too much damage to your reputation!”
“I came here to sincerely seek cooperation with your group, so of course I
won't do that.”
The dragonman youngster sneered, “If I accuse the Bayonet Gang of crimes and
then suddenly announce that I am giving up the heroic duel, I'm afraid the
outside world will guess that you threatened me.”
Bing Xiao hurriedly waved his hands and denied, “I have no intention of
threatening you, Commander, during this visit!”
He continued, "We only need you to publicly clarify that the previous
accusation was a misunderstanding. Our gang has never done anything to
desecrate the heroic duel."
The dragonman youngster smiled and leaned back in his chair: “Are there any
other requests?”
Bing Xiao hesitated for a moment before saying, “If you are willing to lose to
our gang leader in the heroic duel, then I personally will give you a generous
reward!”
The dragonman youngster looked strange: "Bribing your opponent to stage a fake
fight—is that not a desecration of the honorable duel?"
Bing Xiao immediately replied, "Of course not! This is a mutually beneficial
arrangement between both parties—how could it be considered a desecration?" 
The Bayonet Gang's demand hit the nail on the head. 
Without this accusation, the Bayonet Gang would be out of danger, with no
longer any threat to the gang's survival.
Even if Teng Dong Lang was careless and lost to the dragonman youngster, it
would not cause serious damage to the Bayonet Gang.
But how could the dragonman youngster agree to that?
This was the opportunity that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been waiting
for many years!
He had already made a contract with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and based
on the dragonman youngster's beliefs and values, he would not conspire with the
Bayonet Gang.
However, the dragonman youngster remembered the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
request to let him play along and paralyze the enemy as much as possible.
So, after thinking about it for a while, the dragonman youngster said
carefully, “You want me to explain that this is a misunderstanding?”
“That request sounds easy, but it's actually very unreasonable!”
“You did interfere with the heroic duel and used the devil's eye outside the
arena.”
Seeing that Bing Xiao wanted to speak, the dragonman youngster immediately
waved his hand: “Don't deny it, because if you do, I definitely won't believe
you.”
“If you do something wrong, you have to be punished!”
“The assets on the list alone are not enough, far from enough to compensate for
the damage to my reputation.”
Hearing this, Bing Xiao suddenly felt a flash of hope.
Before he came, he had discussed it with Teng Dong Lang and felt that the
dragonman youngster did not have any relevant evidence.
If there was sufficient evidence, the dragonman youngster would have brought it
out immediately to nail down the blasphemy of the Bayonet Gang, which would be
in the best interests of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Therefore, it was highly likely that the dragonman youngster had no evidence.
But in case he really did have it, considering that he did not bring it out and
announce it directly, Bing Xiao naturally wondered: Was the dragonman youngster
worried about the Bayonet Gang's desperate retaliation, so he deliberately left
room for reconciliation in the end?
After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was far weaker than the Bayonet
Gang.
Or there was another possibility.
The dragonman youngster was holding onto this evidence, waiting for the Bayonet
Gang to negotiate, so that he could get what he wanted from the negotiating
table.
Now, the dragonman youngster's answer confirmed Bing Xiao's previous guess.
There was hope!
Bing Xiao smiled and said, “Commander Long Fu, whatever you want, you can ask
for it, and we can discuss it.”
These words sounded familiar to the dragonman youngster.
Not long ago, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had said something similar to him.
So, the dragonman youngster made an exorbitant demand, asking for a price so
high that it made Bing Xiao's face turn solemn.
Bing Xiao's eyes twitched, and he took a deep breath before managing to compose
himself: "Commander Long Fu, your demand is rather unrealistic. I doubt that
all of our Bayonet Gang's assets would be enough to meet your asking price!"
This time, it was the dragonman youngster's turn to smile: “Didn't you just say
that we could discuss it?”
Bing Xiao was taken aback for a moment, and the look in his eyes changed
slightly as he looked at the dragonman youngster.
I didn't expect you, with your honest-looking thick eyebrows and big eyes, to
be such a cunning businessman!
"Come, have some coffee." The dragonman youngster took the initiative to make
coffee for Bing Xiao.
"Do you have tea? I'm getting old, so I prefer to drink that."
“Of course.”
The dragonman youngster and Bing Xiao then engaged in a difficult negotiation.
The best outcome of Bing Xiao's trip would be to get the dragonman youngster to
sign a contract and publicly state that the previous accusation was a
misunderstanding.
Therefore, Bing Xiao was prepared to make a big sacrifice.
He already had a plan.
“Even if Long Fu demands a high price, I can agree to it for the time being.”
“As long as he signs the contract, we can stabilize him and have him clarify
that his previous accusation was a misunderstanding, and the Bayonet Gang will
be safe.”
"After that, how we deal with him and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will
depend on our mood, right? "
“Even if these assets fall into his hands, there will always be countless ways
to get them back.”
"But we have to be careful with the gold coins, potions, equipment, and so on
that can be taken away. I have to minimize the scale of such transactions to
prevent the difficulty of recovering the losses in the future."
Although Bing Xiao's plan was very good, the dragonman youngster didn't want to
reach an agreement with him!
The dragonman youngster deliberately made things difficult, even though Bing
Xiao repeatedly said that the Bayonet Gang really didn't have that many assets.
He spoke with sincerity, almost to the point of tears.
The dragonman youngster relented a little, but only very slightly.
Bing Xiao gradually felt despair at the deadlock in the negotiations, which
were difficult to move forward.
Suddenly, he had a flash of inspiration: “Commander Long Fu, I have something
that you will definitely be interested in.”
"Oh? Tell me about it," said the dragonman youngster.
Bing Xiao's smile was a little forced, and his face showed a look of pain: “As
everyone knows, I have experience in training giant slaves.”
“When I was in the Bayonet Gang, I trained a gold level giant slave.”
“After I retired, I had more time to study and refine my skills, and I
summarized a set of unique training techniques.”
“With these techniques, I am about to train my second gold level giant slave.”
“Commander Long Fu, since you are pursuing giant-type intelligence potions, and
your group also has a giant... this knowledge will definitely be of great help
to you!”
“Commander Long Fu, since you are pursuing giant-type intelligence potions, and
your group also has a giant... this knowledge will definitely be of great help
to you!”
The dragonman youngster instantly thought of the big guy.
He was moved.
Although the big guy's bloodline had not been tested for the final results, it
was at least legendary.
This represented his bright future!
But to grow up, a lot of investment was needed.
If there was a unique insight into cultivating giants, it would allow the
dragonman youngster to have a higher return on his subsequent investment in the
big guy.
Not to mention anything else, just the time saved was enough to tempt the
dragonman youngster.
The survivors' time was very tight.
What they needed was to continuously and rapidly strengthen their own power,
communicate with the upper echelons of the empire, and successfully atone for
their sins.
The future of the survivors was also uncertain.
As their leader, the dragonman youngster had to consider the consequences of
failing to atone for their sins.
That was why he had risked a minor conflict with Bing Xiao in order to obtain
the giant-type intelligence potion.
As for the conflict escalating to its current state, it was not a normal
development and was beyond the dragonman youngster's expectations.
If the dragonman youngster had known at the time that such a small conflict
would lead to a life-and-death struggle between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
and the Bayonet Gang, he would not have done it.
Even if he knew about the help of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
It was an unnecessary risk.
It had nothing to do with their main purpose.
But since it had already happened, the dragonman youngster naturally had to go
with the flow.
Time would not give him a chance to regret it!
Similarly, since the giant cultivation insight had been shown to the dragonman
youngster by Bing Xiao in such a strange way, he naturally had to get his hands
on it.
So, the dragonman youngster said bluntly, “Then tell me, how can I cultivate a
gold level giant slave?”
“Commander Long Fu, I can't go into detail about that,” Bing Xiao smiled.
He mentioned a few minor points that were relatively unimportant.
But even these points were very useful to the dragonman youngster, who eagerly
memorized them.
Seeing that the dragonman youngster was interested, Bing Xiao took advantage of
the moment and tempted him, “Commander, I heard that your group has a giant
member who seems to be of mixed race.”
“You can use my unique knowledge and insight.”
“The bloodline of giants is very excellent, comparable to that of dragons in
terms of bloodline grade.”
"The prerequisite for cultivating a gold level giant is to find a giant with
gold level talent. This is much easier than finding a snow elf or human with
gold level talent."
“The most important point is, once we have cultivated a gold level giant, how
do we control him
“The bloodline of giants is excellent. To make a gold level giant obey us, to
keep the slave contract in effect, and to make him listen to our every word, it
requires our spirit power to be much higher than that of the giant slave.”
"The core of my insights is to skillfully suppress the spirit of the giant
slave so that we can firmly control him. Even if we are only at the silver
level!"



****** Chapter 330: This Dragonman is Very Greedy ******
The dragonman youngster and Bing Xiao tugged at each other for a long time
before the latter finally took his leave.
The dragonman youngster remained in the captain's cabin, looking at a piece of
paper in his hand.
It was a thick piece of parchment from Bing Xiao.
The dragonman youngster continuously infused it with battle qi, and the text on
the surface of the paper continuously evolved, as if a book had been compressed
into a piece of paper.
This was the alchemy technique of the endless paper.
The content on the paper was Bing Xiao's insights on cultivating giant slaves.
Of course, it was a simplified version.
The most important core content was missing—how to control higher level giant
slaves as a lower level life form.
The dragonman youngster read it intently.
Although the core was missing, he didn't actually need it.
He had never thought of using a slave contract to control the big guy.
They were companions, comrades-in-arms who had experienced life and death
together, not tools.
Bing Xiao was not easy to deal with.
A straightforward refusal was not in line with the strategies of the dragonman
youngster and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
This time, in order to paralyze the enemy and ease the situation, the dragonman
youngster still signed a contract with Bing Xiao.
However, it was not the magic contract that Bing Xiao carried with him, but a
temporary draft.
The dragonman youngster would not change his mind and say that the previous
accusation was a pure misunderstanding.
This was the core reason for the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to launch an
offensive against the Bayonet Gang, and it was the best opportunity to strike
the Bayonet Gang.
According to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, he had been waiting for this
opportunity for many years!
But the dragonman youngster promised Bing Xiao that the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would not take any further action against the Bayonet Gang unless the
Bayonet Gang attacked first and violated the agreement.
This promise was beneficial to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
It was to prevent the Bayonet Gang from sensing something was wrong and
becoming evil and daring, carrying out a second assassination attempt on the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, or even more despicable, insidious, and vicious
ambushes!
The final agreement between the two sides was that the dragonman youngster said
he would sign it after the end of his heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang.
He made it clear to Bing Xiao that this heroic duel was his initiative, and he
needed to fulfill it. He also needed to personally gauge the strength of the
leader of the Bayonet Gang!
When he said this, the dragonman youngster stared intently at Bing Xiao, his
eyes burning like flames.
Under such a gaze, Bing Xiao felt the dragonman youngster's fighting spirit.
When Bing Xiao left the captain's cabin, the expression on his face was
somewhat complicated.
“Commander Long Fu really wants to have a duel with Teng Dong Lang!”
“Judging from his previous performance, I'm afraid he really has a way to deal
with gold level opponents.”
“Otherwise, with his silver level, he wouldn't be so confident as to challenge
a gold level opponent to a duel.”
“He is the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and his every move is
not just his personal will.”
Thinking of this, a look of concern flashed across Bing Xiao's face.
“What is his trump card?”
“What makes him confident enough to challenge someone above his level?”
"Teng Dong Lang's previous caution was right. Unfortunately, his arrangements
didn't seem to work. Even Xiong Ju couldn't force him to reveal his trump
card!"
“The other three ringleaders can't do it either.”
“Given the current situation, perhaps Long Fu's trump card can't be revealed
lightly.”
“Once the opponent is on guard, the threat will plummet!”
“The primary objective of this operation has not been achieved.”
A fleeting glimpse of coldness flashed in Bing Xiao's eyes.
“Long Fu is holding out for a better offer.”
“I presented such a tempting list, but he didn't buy it!”
“He wants more.”
“This dragonman is greedy, very greedy.”
“He wants to use his trump card to defeat Teng Dong Lang and embarrass the
leader of the Bayonet Gang in front of everyone.”
“This will put him in a more advantageous position in the upcoming
negotiations.”
“He wants to take more from us!”
"Hmph, this dragonman is really bold and reckless. Teng Dong Lang should indeed
deal with this kind of thing and restore the reputation of the Bayonet Gang!"
“Let the whole of Snow Bird Harbor know what kind of existence the Bayonet Gang
is.”
Bing Xiao was not satisfied with the results of his trip, but it wasn't as if
he had nothing to show for it.
At least, after negotiating with Long Fu, he had softened the other party's
attitude and greatly reduced the intensity of the conflict.
Next, it was time to watch the heroic duel between Teng Dong Lang and Long Fu.
“The Bayonet Gang needs a decisive victory with a huge advantage!”
“Long Fu needs to be taught a harsh lesson, preferably by losing his life in
the arena under the gaze of everyone.”
“Even if his trump card works and Teng Dong Lang is humiliated, we can still
compensate the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps after the duel.”
“It doesn't matter!”
“They are just outsiders. If they want to settle in Snow Bird Harbor in the
future, we will have plenty of opportunities and time to deal with them.”
“There are many ways to do this.”
“We'll make them spit out the meat they've swallowed, though this alone won't
be enough.” 
“If we don't make them pay back tenfold, how can we live up to the reputation
of the Bayonet Gang?” 
As the saying went, a true man could lower his head when necessary. Bing Xiao
understood this well. 
We'll see how it goes!
The dragonman youngster returned to the cabin with the endless paper and met
with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
He concisely described his negotiations with Bing Xiao and the preliminary
results.
Upon hearing about the magic contract between the dragonman youngster and Bing
Xiao, he shook his head slightly, unconcerned: “This contract is not a
problem.”
“According to our previous plan, Long Fu, you only need to accuse the Bayonet
Gang of desecrating the heroic duel and fulfill the heroic duel with Teng Dong
Lang.”
“I will take care of the Bayonet Gang.”
“You are just a battle banner. Wave the battle banner to attract the main
attention of the Bayonet Gang. You don't need to follow up with a charge into
battle.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said this and gave the dragonman youngster a
meaningful look.
He knew that the dragonman youngster had deliberately made this contract with
Bing Xiao in order to counterbalance him, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
In the event that it came to a full-scale battle, if the city Lord wanted to
force the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to help out on the grounds that the
situation required it, the dragonman youngster could use this magic contract to
block him.
The dragonman youngster's move once again made the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
feel the dragonman's tactics. The latter was definitely not a partner who could
be manipulated at will.
The dragonman youngster noticed the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's gaze and
smiled slightly: “Right, this is the giant training insight from Bing Xiao.”
The dragonman youngster said, and then directly handed over the parchment.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was slightly taken aback, but then smiled: “To
be honest, I am indeed very interested.”
He took it and quickly glanced through it, then pondered, “There is some
content, but the most core secrets are not there.”
“The most powerful aspect of Bing Xiao's training insight lies in the fact that
this method can be used to make weak slaves strong.”
“The gold level giant slaves he trained always obeyed his every command, even
if it meant dying on the battlefield, they were willing to do so.”
The dragonman youngster looked slightly stern. After hearing this, he realized
that he had underestimated Bing Xiao's cultivation insight.
Sacrificial fighters were always troublesome.
Gold level sacrificial fighters were very dangerous.
This was because those who reached the gold level were basically city Lords.
Even if they were not, their social status was not low.
But Bing Xiao was able to get a city Lord-equivalent expert to fight to the
death for him!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said with emotion, “Gold level giant slaves can
really play a role on large battlefields.”
“Unfortunately, they ended up in the hands of a local gang like the Bayonet
Gang.” 
“The most common battle scenes are street fights in alleys, which are mere
skirmishes. For giant slaves, it's like being tied up.” 
“Bing Xiao cannot truly unleash the value of giant slaves!”
“To be honest with you, I've always been interested in Bing Xiao's method and
have been secretly using means to probe into the specifics.” 
“The things you have in your hands are indeed substantial, but I've already
collected them.” 
"Much of the content is actually available in major factions, libraries, or
academies. As long as you're willing to pay the price in time, money, and so
on, you can collect it."
"The information I have collected is even more comprehensive than yours. When I
return, I will have someone send it to you."
“Like yours, we are missing the most core secrets!”
The dragonman youngster thought to himself, “Actually, I don't need it. This
information alone is enough for me to train the big guy.”
Of course, he did not say what he was thinking.
In fact, the dragonman youngster changed his mind and thought that if he could
really collect such secrets, it wouldn't be bad.
What if it came in handy in the future?
Seeing the reaction of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the dragonman youngster
knew that he had done the right thing by taking the initiative to share the
insights this time.
Since the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord wanted to deal with the Bayonet Gang, it
was impossible for him not to consider Bing Xiao and his gold level giant
slave.
Before leaving, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord patted the dragonman youngster
on the shoulder to show his closeness.
He was satisfied with the dragonman youngster's sharing.
This showed that the dragonman youngster did not want to hide anything from him
and was happy to give back to his allies.
The dragonman youngster had previously made the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
express his sincerity in cooperation in an almost calculating manner, so the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was naturally uncomfortable in his heart.
But now, after cooperating, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord felt much better.
Because all signs indicated that although the dragonman youngster was difficult
to deal with, he was quite reliable as an ally.
“You've gained a lot of good things today.”
“Familiarize yourself with this equipment as soon as possible, you don't have
much time left.”
“Also, hurry up and heal your injuries.”
“The sooner you engage in a heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang, the less likely we
are to be exposed.”
The dragonman youngster nodded.
He didn't have any internal injuries, so he didn't feel any psychological
pressure in this regard.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord quietly left.
He didn't want to expose his whereabouts and let the Bayonet Gang guess his
true relationship with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster began to inspect all the equipment he had obtained
today.
These alchemy treasures were very valuable, but since they came from outside,
he could only feel a little more at ease using them after testing them.
After Zi Di finished her inspection, she said with emotion, “Compared to the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Bu Quan is much more generous by giving them away
directly.”
She then asked the dragonman youngster, “When will the alchemists we want
arrive?”
The dragonman youngster shook his head slightly and said, “I asked, but the
city Lord said that it would take time to make arrangements. There should be
two alchemists.”
Zi Di said, "I understand. We will only get these agreed-upon rewards after we
complete the duel."



****** Chapter 331: Greed God’s Bone ******
On the calm sea surface, a faint gray-white glow suddenly flickered.
Massive magic fluctuations intensified the waves, causing the surrounding
seawater to surge into towering waves.
A dense negative energy rapidly expanded outward in all directions.
Amidst the surging waves, the outline of a ship gradually emerged and
solidified into a tangible form within mere seconds.
This was no ordinary vessel.
From its appearance alone, it was hard to believe such a dilapidated ship could
still sail.
The ship's sails were covered with holes of various sizes, and the planks were
like rotten wood that had been decaying for many years, covered with moss,
shells, and other debris.
The ship was filled with a gloomy atmosphere, and from time to time, ghosts
would float out and then dive back into the cabin.
This was a ghost ship, a gold level ghost ship.
The cabin door opened, and several necromancers filed out and walked onto the
deck.
They were Jian Gui, Cang Xu, and the others.
“The Main world, we're finally back!” The little skeleton Xiao Wang Zi with a
big head and small frame raised his arms and shouted.
The zombie ronin Ku Feng looked at the blue sky and sea and exhaled a cloud of
smoke: “Now, we are finally safe.”
After Doctor Sui Shi left, they had originally planned to leave the Ghost World
as soon as possible and return to the main world.
But unexpectedly, they encountered trouble on their way back.
The main channel of the Underworld River was teeming with powerful undead
beings.
Jian Gui and the others struggled desperately and narrowly escaped with their
lives from a life-threatening crisis.
Even now, thinking back on it, everyone still felt a chill run down their
spines.
“Even a gold level ghost ship is not safe sailing on the Underworld River.”
Cang Xu was deeply impressed by his first trip to the Ghost World.
He was no longer just a head.
He had a body again.
This silver level zombie body was a gift from Jian Gui.
After Cang Xu awoke, the first thing he did was remove the zombie's head and
replace it with his own.
Jian Gui was the leader of these people. Upon returning to the main world, he
immediately detected his location and the time in the main world. 
After hearing Cang Xu's reflections, he explained while casting spells: “This
is why I don't often use the Ghost World Transversal spell.”
“Before, there was no choice but to risk fleeing to the Ghost World.” 
“Traveling the Underworld River is extremely dangerous; one must at least reach
the saint level to truly qualify for exploration.” 
At this point, he paused. 
“Alright.” 
"Our current coordinates have been confirmed. The good news is we're less than
five nautical miles from the nearest safe house." 
“The bad news is: eight days have passed in the main world since we last used
the Ghost World Transversal.” 
“Eight days?” Cang Xu narrowed his eyes slightly. 
In his perception, it had only been three days.
The flow of time in the Ghost World was different from that in the main world.
Furthermore, when traveling between spatial planes, it was possible to
encounter time disturbances, causing a portion of time to be lost for no
apparent reason.
As a magician, Cang Xu was no stranger to this kind of knowledge, he just
didn't have any relevant experience.
“Eight days have passed, I wonder how the mercenary group is doing.”
“They should have reached the Ice Sculpture Kingdom by now. I wonder if they've
entered the capital city.”
Cang Xu silently thought about his companions.
His primary objective on this journey was to approach Jian Gui, gain his trust,
and obtain higher level knowledge.
After experiencing battles in the Underworld River voyage, he had made some
progress but had lost his body.
Only his head remained intact.
After a brief rest, the necromancers boarded the ghost ship and set sail for
their next destination.
Necromancers usually set up multiple safe houses.
Their situation around the world was dire, as they were being hunted down by
almost all forces.
Without two or three safe houses as a fallback, the necromancers would not feel
at ease.
Jian Gui's safe house was established on an uninhabited small island.
According to his rough description: the island was very low-lying. During the
evening high tide, it would be completely submerged. Only between midnight and
3 PM would the island be exposed.
However, as they neared their destination, an unexpected incident occurred.
A scene of relocation came into view through their magic surveillance.
“Lord Jian Gui, is this the safe house you mentioned?” Xiao Wang Zi asked in an
odd tone.
Jian Gui was also at a loss for words.
At that moment, three pirate ships were already anchored on the island.
A group of pirates were loading items onto the ships.
It was clear that the supplies Jian Gui had hidden in the safe house had been
discovered by the pirates for some reason.
Now the pirates were loading the supplies onto the ships.
Ku Feng and the others looked at Jian Gui, silently asking him what to do next.
Based on the current reconnaissance results, this group of pirates was weak,
not even reaching the silver level, with only three iron level pirates.
But Jian Gui was in no hurry to take action.
He first used magic to raise a thick fog to hide the entire ghost ship.
Then he asked, “They shouldn't have discovered us yet. Do you know which pirate
group this is?”
Jian Gui had a certain understanding and grasp of the pirate groups operating
in the surrounding area.
But the origin of the group in front of him was beyond the scope of his
intelligence.
The flags of the three pirate ships were all the same.
On the white background, a large number of black lines intertwined, weaving a
pattern of crossed swords.
This was not the flag of any famous pirate group.
The necromancers shook their heads, indicating that they did not know.
Qing Xin pondered, "Once the Pirate Throne appeared, every day a large number
of sailors became pirates. Even inlanders who aren't sailors are willing to
sell everything they own to buy ships and set sail as pirates. These people are
probably of that kind." 
Qing Xin did not participate in the battle of the Underworld River.
After the battle, Qing Xin awoke from her coma and learned of everything that
had happened. 
As the only living person on the ghost ship, her situation was awkward, and she
had been marginalized.
Speaking up now would increase her sense of presence.
Xiao Wang Zi said, "That's probably how it is. Let's act quickly and eliminate
these pirates! They dare to take our supplies!"
He was already active along several merchant ship routes, focusing on
protecting his country's ships and severely cracking down on pirates.
He had no sympathy for pirates.
Jian Gui nodded slightly: “Then let's do it together, and make sure not to let
a single one get away.”
Cang Xu added: "First, let's sneak up on them and destroy their communication
devices as much as possible. Try to keep a few alive to gather information. At
the very least, we need to know how they were able to dig up the safe house."
Jian Gui looked at Cang Xu with appreciation and agreed: “That's right.”
Fog began to gather around the pirates.
“It's getting cold!” one pirate sneezed.
More people looked up at the sky, noticing the sunlight had grown much weaker,
with mist rising constantly. They cursed, “This damn weather—could a storm be
coming?”
The three captains, stationed on their respective pirate ships, sensed
something was amiss and urged their men to hurry.
What they didn't know was that Ku Feng and Cang Xu had quietly broken through
the bottom of the ship and sneaked into the cabin.
The ghosts controlled by Jian Gui took the lead in completing the
reconnaissance.
Ku Feng and Cang Xu easily destroyed the ship's long-distance communication
equipment according to the intelligence.
“Attack!” Seeing that everything was ready, Jian Gui immediately ordered the
general attack.
Xiao Wang Zi was already prepared and cast a spell.
Hundreds of white bone spears appeared out of thin air, descending from midair
and covering the densest area of pirates.
In an instant, the pirates were killed in large numbers by the bone spears.
“Enemy attack!”
“No, my first mate...”
"What is this thing?
"Damn it, they're necromancers!"
The pirates were caught off guard by the surprise attack and immediately fell
into chaos.
Ku Feng swung a sharp slash from the lower deck, striking the pirate captain
standing above in a single blow.
Cang Xu charged at the gunners.
His hands transformed into claws, powerful and heavy, each strike effortlessly
sending pirates flying into the air.
The pirate gunners were all broken-boned and died on the spot.
Seeing the dire situation, a pirate captain hurriedly ordered, "Sail away, sail
away! Escape from here quickly."
The next moment, several wind blades flew toward them, precisely cutting down
the pirate ship's sails.
“No!” The pirate captain fell into despair.
Ku Feng jumped over from the ship next to him, stabbed several times into the
pirates, and then killed the captain with one stab, showing his fierce fighter
spirit.
The necromancers' surprise attack was successful, and they immediately took
control of the battlefield.
The pirate captain was quickly killed, and the first mate and others also
perished, unable to organize any decent resistance.
Soon after, the battle was over.
Only a few pirates remained, and they were deliberately left alive by the
necromancers.
It was not difficult to interrogate the pirate captives.
These people were completely terrified.
They revealed their identities—they were members of the Rope Pirates.
As Qing Xin had guessed, the Rope Pirates were a pirate gang that had recently
been formed.
Jian Gui was more concerned about why this pirate gang was able to find his
safe house.
“It was the Greed God's Bone,” Jian Gui sighed.
These were the remains of the fourth generation pirate king, scattered all over
the world.
As long as intelligent beings obtained these bone fragments, the greed divinity
inside would take effect. These bone fragments will point to the location of
the deepest desires within the user's heart. 
The deputy leader of the Rope Pirates possesses a fragment of the Greed God's
Bone. When passing through this area, the bone fragment reacted, leading her to
discover this safe house. 
The Rope Pirates' leader and deputy leader collaborated to breach the safe
house's defenses, entered it, and took some supplies.
They were in a hurry to do other things, so they left three ships behind and
ordered them to move all the supplies here, while they set off with the main
force.
"Magician Huo Sheng and Archer Chuan Yun. The two of them joined forces to form
the Rope Pirates." After learning the name of the leader, Jian Gui and Xiao
Wang Zi both remembered.
They were two famous bounty hunters.
Previously, they made a living by accepting missions and hunting down
criminals.
But recently, the two of them joined forces, gave up their former lives, and
became pirates.
“The sea is becoming more and more chaotic,” Jian Gui sighed, "Hurry up and
clean up the battlefield, we have to leave as soon as possible. It's no longer
safe here."



****** Chapter 332: Head Creation Spell ******
The fog did not dissipate with the end of the battle but instead grew thicker
and thicker.
A powerful magic fluctuation suddenly erupted from the ghost ship.
The fluctuation swept across the battlefield, quickly covering every corner and
causing the fog to roll and churn.
The spell fluctuation came quickly and disappeared just as quickly.
A few seconds later, the thick fog returned to calm.
From the large number of pirate corpses, ghosts began to emerge one after
another.
A gold level spell—Intermediate Soul Summoning Spell!
Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and the others did not intervene, but floated above the
battlefield, quietly watching the ghost ship cast the spell.
This was the ghost ship casting Intermediate Soul Summoning Spell.
More accurately, it was Jian Gui casting the spell.
When Jian Gui turned into a complete ghost form and merged with the ghost ship,
any spell he cast would be twice as powerful!
“In a sense, this ghost ship is Jian Gui's spellcasting tool,” Cang Xu thought
to himself.
Over the past few days, he had been traveling on the ghost ship along the
Underworld River and had gained a deep understanding of this unique vessel.
Strictly speaking, the ghost ship was not like the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Iron
Lump, or White Bandage ships.
The latter were magic ships. They were crafted using alchemy technology. There
were various alchemy components on the ships that made the magic ships powerful
and versatile.
Ghost ships were similar to undead creatures such as ghosts, zombies, and
skeletons. It was just that its life form looked like a ship from the outside.
Cang Xu once asked Jian Gui how to build a ghost ship.
Jian Gui replied that it was a higher level soul aspect spell that was not
taught to outsiders. Only after passing a deeper test and signing a contract
could it be taught to others.
Jian Gui also gave a rough introduction to this necromancy spell.
Cang Xu thus learned that to cast this spell, the caster had to be at least
gold level. Although the spell had a high success rate, the materials had to be
carefully selected—it had to be the wreckage of a ship with spirituality.
The ghost ship that Jian Gui possessed was not made by him.
It was looted from the Underworld River by his teacher while exploring it.
The Underworld River was the main road of the Ghost World, possessing the
strongest negative energy, and countless undead creatures of all kinds lived
there.
His teacher had given this ghost ship to Jian Gui.
Therefore, when Jian Gui used the ghost ship to cast the world travelling
spell, he returned to the Underworld River.
This was because the ghost ship came from the Underworld River and was closely
related to it.
Under the effect of intermediate Soul Summoning Spell, a large number of ghosts
floated in midair, enveloped in thick fog.
Although Xiao Wang Zi was a magician of the bone aspect, he still knew a lot
about the soul aspect.
When he saw this scene, he couldn't help but praise it.
“Basically every corpse has summoned a ghost.”
"The success rate is close to 100%. As expected of Lord Jian Gui!"
Cang Xu added, “Not only is the success rate extremely high, but look at the
spirits that have been converted. Their quality is very high, basically the
same as the life level of the corpses when they were alive.”
The effect of necromancy was to use the souls in the corpses as material to
create ghosts.
If Cang Xu were to cast the spell, there would never be such a high success
rate and efficiency.
“Such an intermediate Soul Summoning Spell is already a battlefield-class
spell.”
“The combination of Jian Gui and the ghost ship is very powerful. This spell
alone can overturn the outcome of a battle.”
At the same time, Cang Xu was secretly paying attention to the thick fog around
him.
This was the spell—Soul-Binding Mist.
The effect of this spell was to temporarily detain and conceal the souls of
living beings, preventing them from being detected and taken by the deities
they worshipped in life, nor being drawn into the abyss or hell. Of course,
they would not dissipate into thin air either.
It was precisely because of this dense fog that the souls within these corpses
were largely preserved.
Otherwise, when Jian Gui cast his Soul Summoning Spell, at least half of the
souls in the pirates' corpses would have disappeared.
Jian Gui reappeared on the deck.
He divided the ghosts into several groups, throwing most of them into the ghost
ship and assigning the rest to the necromancers present.
The standard for distribution was the magicians' merits in this surprise
attack.
The more military merits one had, the more one would be assigned.
The humanoid ghosts let out shrill screams, their bodies quickly twisting and
distorting, constantly condensing.
In just a few seconds, the essence of the humanoid ghosts was poured into the
ghost ship, and the remaining soul debris turned into specks of gray light,
quickly dissipating on the deck.
“This is the Soul Healing Spell,” Cang Xu realized.
He also mastered this spell, but only at a basic level. Jian Gui was clearly
not using such a low level spell.
He consumed the ghosts he had just obtained to heal the ghost ship.
The ghost ship was not essentially a magic ship, but an undead life form, so it
could be healed by the Soul Healing Spell.
Jian Gui quickly consumed all the ghosts he had just obtained.
“There's still a long way to go.”
"To completely restore the ghost ship to its prime, at least 1,000 ordinary
humanoid ghosts are needed. Of course, if they are transcendents, the number
required will be greatly reduced."
“I hope we can encounter such pirates next.”
“If that doesn't work, we'll have to catch fish in the sea, but that will
increase the demand even more.”
Jian Gui took the initiative to explain the ghost ship's damage.
"The ghost ship is very important, so I think we should try our best to repair
it. I am a bone aspect necromancer, and these ghosts are of little use to me.
Jian Gui, I'll give these to you." Xiao Wang Zi took the initiative to
contribute his ghosts.
Ku Feng said, “I'm just a ronin, I don't need these ghosts either.”
Cang Xu obtained a total of seven ghosts this time. He thought for a moment,
kept three transcendent ghosts, and gave away the rest of the ordinary ghosts.
“Let's make a deal.” Although Jian Gui accepted these ghosts, he did not take
them for free but gave money corresponding to the market price.
“Finally, I have money,” Cang Xu said emotionally.
He was truly penniless.
Even his current body was given to him by someone else.
Next, it was time to distribute the pirates' bodies.
Xiao Wang Zi expressed interest in their bones, but upon seeing Cang Xu, he
asked, “Do you need their heads?” 
Although Cang Xu’s body had been taken by Doctor Sui Shi, he wasn’t entirely
without gain. 
Doctor Sui Shi had directly imparted his unique Flying Head Spell to Cang Xu. 
Cang Xu nodded, “I only need the heads of transcendents, at least five of
them.”
Jian Gui said, “We are all curious about the Flying Head Spell, so you can take
all of these heads and use them.”
Xiao Wang Zi nodded, “That's right.”
The Flying Head Spell was the original creation of Doctor Sui Shi, but its
value was difficult to assess.
This was because such original creations usually required a long period of
practical testing before their true value could be determined.
In history, many great magicians' original creations had a mediocre response,
while some minor figures' creations had a widespread impact. There were also
many unconscious innovations that had created enormous value, or by-products of
innovation that had overshadowed the original.
“Okay,” Cang Xu nodded, “I do need fresh heads to try the Flying Head Spell.”
“The extra resources will have to be considered a debt for now.” 
Cang Xu thanked the others. 
He was also eager to see the actual effects of the Flying Head Spell.
After distributing the spoils, Cang Xu retreated into his cabin and began
casting spells on the pirate heads. 
The necromancy school has evolved into three branches: Bone, Soul, and Corpse.
Doctor Sui Shi was a master of the corpse aspect, and his uniquely created
Flying Head Spell naturally belonged to it.
However, after studying it, Cang Xu discovered that while the Flying Head Spell
was a necromancy spell, it involved a significant amount of alchemy knowledge. 
It was not just a single spell but a combination of multiple spells.
The most important Head Creation Spell could transform the head of a normal
living being into a special undead creature—a death head.
Death heads had the ability to float and move, so flying was one of their
characteristics.
Just as Jian Gui controlled ghosts and Xiao Wang Zi manipulated skeletons, Cang
Xu could use the Head Creation Spell to refine a large number of death heads
for his command.
“Ghosts can be transformed into water ghosts, frozen ghosts, substitute ghosts,
ghost horses, and so on.”
“Death heads can also be transformed.”
"Necromancers can even transform their own heads into death heads. In this way,
the main part of their life is just a flying head, and their bodies can be
replaced at will."
Cang Xu thought of himself. 
His situation was: his original body was not only taken away but also refined
into something else. 
He was left with only his head. 
“Doctor Sui Shi entrusted me with the Flying Head Spell, ostensibly as payment,
but in reality, he wanted to see me practice the spell and observe the
practical application of his innovation.”
“And I had no choice but to follow his wishes!” 
“How infuriating...” 
But Cang Xu had no practical experience, so he dared not experiment with his
own head first. 
He had only this head left; if the spell failed, losing his head would mean he
could only transform himself into a ghost.
Without a body, Cang Xu cherished his own head all the more.
The Head Creation Spell was quickly released by him.
He was very familiar with the spell.
In recent days, he had been studying the contents of these spells and
practicing them.
Under the effect of the spell, the pirate's head quickly shriveled, with almost
all the moisture drained from its flesh, leaving only a small amount of blood,
which had turned blue.
The skin color changed from its normal wheat-like hue to a pale white.
The pirate's head, which had been contorted in agony before death, now appeared
calm and serene.
Suddenly, his eyes opened.
His pupils had turned blue, filled with icy coldness and cruelty.
Cang Xu released his grip, and the skull slowly floated into the air, moving
slowly and easily becoming a target for arrows. 
One by one, the skulls, after being subjected to the Head Creation Spell,
became death heads, floating in the air within the ship's cabin like balloons.
They drifted slowly, occasionally colliding gently before bouncing apart.
Negative energy filled the ship's hold, creating a spine-chilling scene.
Cang Xu's face betrayed a hint of surprise.
In practice, he found that the success rate of the Head Creation Spell was very
high.
As long as he cast the spell successfully, he could basically create a death
head. This success rate far exceeded that of the spells that summoned souls,
skeletons, or zombies.
This alone gave the Flying Head Spell a unique advantage.
“Next, I will use deep mental communication to fully control these heads.”
“Then, I will study their characteristics and perform targeted modifications
and enhancements.”
With a solid start, Cang Xu proceeded methodically.



****** Chapter 333: Tycoon Long Fu Enters the Dueling Arena ******
Snow Bird Harbor.
“Have you heard? The Snow Pearl theft case from back then was the work of the
Bayonet Gang!”
“The fire at the Nightingale Dress Shop was also their doing, and the victims
have already filed a complaint with the city government palace.”
“The previous city Lord had planned to reduce taxes, but the Bayonet Gang
bribed officials to secretly resist it.”
“How many evil deeds have these damn guys done?!”
“They are the termites of Snow Bird Harbor.”
“It's no wonder that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was attacked before. It
must have been their doing.”
"In my opinion, there's not a single good thing about gangs. I wish Commander
Long Fu could give Teng Dong Lang a good beating!"
“I wish that too, but Commander Long Fu is only a silver level fighter.”
"Even if he loses, I still support him and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
Because he is the first fighter in recent years to openly oppose the Bayonet
Gang!"
“That's right.”
“That's so true!”
Similar comments were heard constantly in the streets and alleys of Snow Bird
Harbor.
While the dragonman youngster was secretly training under the pretext of
recovering from his injuries, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not idle
either. He secretly distributed a lot of evidence of crimes and manipulated
public opinion.
For the Bayonet Gang, public opinion in Snow Bird Harbor suddenly turned
against them.
The upper echelons, including Bing Xiao and Teng Dong Lang, sensed that
something was wrong and actively investigated, but saw no results in the short
term.
The former and current gang leaders discussed the matter.
“Could it be Bu Quan's doing?”
"Before I went to negotiate with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, she publicly
boarded the Love Triangle. She must have given Long Fu a lot of evidence."
“Hasn't Long Fu already reached a preliminary agreement with us?”
“So, these rumors and frame-ups are more likely to have been secretly spread by
Bu Quan herself?”
“I’ve always said that that snow elf is trouble. She’s been secretly
investigating us and collecting evidence of our crimes. We should find a way to
eliminate her!” 
“I’ve tried, but she’s an alchemy great master and a member of the Alchemy
Guild. That operation failed, and we received a severe warning.” 
“Talking about this now is pointless. We can’t act against Bu Quan either. The
whole of Snow Bird Harbor is watching us. I spoke with the city Lord not long
ago, and he also warned me not to act rashly."
When the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was mentioned, Bing Xiao's face darkened.
“This guy really has a big appetite. We paid so much to get him to back down
and stay out of this.”
"Be patient. His term is almost over, and he's about to leave. Overall, he's
not bad, unlike his predecessor who had a lot of opinions about our Bayonet
Gang. All he wants now is peace and quiet. He doesn't want any blemishes on his
record during the last days of his term."
“Let's just take note of this incident for now. Once the commotion is over,
we'll settle the score with Bu Quan!”
After deliberation, the two gang leaders decided to hold their horses.
They didn't make any big moves, and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was happy to
wait quietly for the right moment.
The surface of Snow Bird Harbor was calm, but in reality, there were turbulent
undercurrents.
Two days later, the dragonman youngster suddenly announced that his injuries
had healed.
The Bayonet Gang immediately responded, and the remaining three ringleaders
simultaneously announced their defeat.
When the public heard this news, they were mostly excited.
The duel between the dragonman youngster and Teng Dong Lang was just around the
corner.
As a result, after learning of the Bayonet Gang's response, the dragonman
youngster publicly announced that afternoon that he was willing to fight Teng
Dong Lang as soon as possible.
Teng Dong Lang immediately proposed, “Why don't we fight tonight?”
The Bayonet Gang's situation was getting worse and worse, so Teng Dong Lang was
eager to resolve the predicament.
After hearing this proposal, the dragonman youngster immediately agreed.
Just like that, before the crowd could even react, the two parties reached an
agreement, making this heroic duel, which was the focus of everyone's
attention, come much sooner than anyone expected.
The location of the duel was still the Snow Bird Dueling Arena.
This was the largest arena in Snow Bird Harbor, with comprehensive facilities
and the largest capacity for spectators.
It was the second time the dragonman youngster had been here.
He found that the arena was completely full. Not only that, but even the aisles
were crowded with people.
In fact, there were still many spectators who could only gather outside the
arena.
There, there was also a live broadcast of the event via magic images.
It was the first time in more than 20 years that Snow Bird Harbor had seen such
a spectacular duel.
“Come on, Commander Long Fu!”
“Even if you can't win, make Teng Dong Lang suffer!”
“Let him taste your iron fist, Commander Long Fu.”
When the dragonman youngster walked into the arena wearing a hooded robe, the
audience in the stands cheered and shouted.
Even the audience outside the arena was noisy.
As the local tyrant, Teng Dong Lang also had the support of the Bayonet Gang
members. But even though the latter waved their flags and shouted, their
momentum was far inferior to the crowd cheering for the dragonman youngster.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has only been here for a few days, and they
already have such momentum. If they continue to develop, what room will there
be for our Bayonet Gang?” Bing Xiao, in the VIP viewing room, had a gloomy look
on his face.
At this moment, he felt a huge threat from the dragonman youngster.
Also in the room were leaders such as Xiong Ju, Ban Lan Gen, and Spring Boxer.
Their eyes were all focused on the dragonman youngster.
When the dragonman youngster walked to the center of the arena and removed the
hooded robe covering his entire body, the entire arena suddenly erupted with a
buzz.
“Look at his equipment!” Seeing the dragonman youngster in the magic image, the
human ringleader cried out in surprise.
The dragonman youngster was wearing silver level leather armor and boots, and
silver level arm guards.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a ban on armor, which targeted gold level and
above armor, but silver level was not included in the ban.
This equipment was not difficult to obtain.
Just like in the last duel, the dragonman youngster also brought two silver
level crossbows. They were spoils of war obtained by the survivors on
Mystifying Monster Island.
Compared to these, the other equipment on the dragonman youngster was even more
eye-catching.
He wore the Ice Heart Headband, huge ski goggles over his eyes, an orange-gold
nose ring, and pink metal earrings on both ears. His forearms and calves each
had bracelets and anklets. 
On his chest was a Dragon's Reverse Scale badge. 
A blue ice pack hung from his belt.
On the dragonman youngster's back, there was also a longbow and a pair of short
spears.
All of the above equipment exuded a gold level aura.
"More than ten pieces of gold level equipment?!" Bing Xiao couldn't sit still
and stood up immediately.
“I... I...” Ban Lan Gen stammered, wanting to curse.
Compared to the battle with Xiong Ju earlier, the dragonman youngster was fully
equipped from head to toe, transforming from a commoner to a tycoon. The
difference was huge and out of everyone's expectation.



****** Chapter 334: Teng Dong Lang Does Not Feel Satisfied ******
Seeing the dragonman youngster fully armed, the entire audience was shocked.
In the VIP viewing room, Bing Xiao couldn't sit still and stood up immediately:
"Quick, quickly find out what equipment Long Fu is wearing! We need to figure
out their functions as soon as possible and inform the gang leader!" 
Heroic duels strictly prohibit outsiders from intervening, but reminders from
outside the arena were permitted. 
Spring Boxer spoke first: “I recognize the badge worn by Long Fu. It is the
Dragon's Reverse Scale."
"Everyone knows it's the Dragon's Reverse Scale badge, but there are many
variations in this series. Which exactly is it?" Bing Xiao frowned.
Spring Boxer shook his head, indicating that he didn't know.
Ban Lan Gen pointed to the dragonman youngster's belt: “The blue bag hanging
from his waist is a Cold Heart Ice Bag.”
“It can absorb ice-type battle qi and convert it into mental and spiritual
defense.”
“Add to that the Ice Heart Headband worn by the dragonman youngster, and this
time, it will be very difficult to achieve anything in terms of mental impact.”
“I found it!” The human ringleader suddenly said, "His badge is the Sword
Return Reverse Scale. It can absorb external blows, accumulate them, and
eventually burst forth with a torrent of sword qi. If the user has sufficient
ability, they can repeatedly draw on this power, releasing wave after wave of
long-range sword qi." 
Bing Xiao's expression darkened: "This equipment is a perfect match for Long
Fu! His defense is already formidable; with this equipment, he can extend his
defensive advantage into his attacks." 
“I've also found out something,” the demon hybrid ringleader exclaimed, “and
it's bad news!”
"Do you know what? The nose ring, earrings, nose ring, and anklets he is
wearing are actually a gold level defensive set!"
“What?” Everyone was shocked.
On the market, defensive equipment was more valuable than offensive weapons.
Defensive equipment that could reach the gold level was rare on the market and
in short supply. This was especially true in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, where
armor was banned.
As a result, the dragonman youngster not only wore defensive equipment, but it
was gold level, and what's more, it was a set!
The demon hybrid ringleader continued, “Fortunately, this set only has one
spell, called Diamond Body.”
“The Diamond Body provides comprehensive protection inside and outside the
body. When used, it is only a faint golden halo, so it does not affect the
battle qi cultivator's movements in the slightest.”
Bing Xiao slowly shook his head, his heart heavy: “Only one spell is precisely
the worst situation.”
"This shows that the alchemist who created this set of armor put all his energy
into defense. One can imagine the defensive capabilities of the Diamond Body."
Upon hearing this, Xiong Ju couldn't help but turn pale.
He recalled his battle with the dragonman youngster, and he had truly witnessed
the dragonman youngster's strong defense.
The dragonman youngster's defense was once comparable to the gold level.
Now he had obtained a gold level defensive set!
It was really hard to imagine how outstanding his defense would be.
Xiong Ju couldn't help but feel relieved that he had already fought Long Fu. He
wouldn't have to face that thick turtle shell again!
The Bayonet Gang was the local tyrant of Snow Bird Harbor, and its high-ranking
members were well prepared.
Soon, they had dug up most of the information about the new equipment on the
dragonman youngster.
However, the goggles he wore on his face was Bu Quan's original creation, and
today's battle was its first appearance, so the upper echelons of the Bayonet
Gang were unable to obtain relevant information.
Not only the goggles, but also the Automatic Blood Bottle that the dragonman
youngster had swallowed in advance and the spell scrolls he had hidden on his
person were not exposed for the time being.
The members of the Bayonet Gang shouted loudly, informing Teng Dong Lang in the
arena of the situation.
Not only the Bayonet Gang, but also many transcendents and alchemist magicians
among the spectators discussed and exchanged information with each other, and
they also figured out most of the dragonman youngster's equipment.
Everyone was talking about it.
"Commander Long Fu really knows how to surprise people. In the last battle, he
was almost empty-handed. In today's battle, he's completely blown me away with
his wealth!"
"This set of equipment suits him well. I just wonder how effective it will be
in actual combat?"
“How did he suddenly get so much luxurious equipment?”
"Hehehe, don't forget their identities. Behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
is a mysterious arms dealer."
At this moment, Bu Quan was also in a VIP viewing room.
She looked at the dragonman youngster in the magic image with a smile and
anticipation on her face.
She had also thought of many ways to take revenge.
Challenging the important high-ranking members of the Bayonet Gang to a heroic
duel was something she had thought of long ago.
Unfortunately, this method was not suitable for her at all.
Although she was a magician, she specialized in alchemy, and her combat
strength was very weak.
If she rashly challenged them to a duel, she would be putting herself in danger
and fighting with a disadvantage, which would be very foolish.
The dragonman youngster stared intently at Teng Dong Lang, who was not far
away.
When he lifted his robe and made his official appearance, the entire Snow Bird
Dueling Arena was filled with discussions about his equipment.
But in fact, he had two other important pieces of equipment that were well
hidden, even though they were in plain sight.
Those were the Grand Arena Medal and the Golden Silk Chainmail.
“If these pieces of equipment were mine, covering them with the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell would be more
advantageous to me.” The dragonman youngster felt pity in his heart.
Once these items were revealed, it meant that the information had been leaked.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
In fact, the Automatic Blood Bottle he had swallowed, and the spell scrolls he
had hidden were also giving off an aura.
As time passed, they would inevitably be exposed one after another.
Unlike the dragonman youngster, Teng Dong Lang did not have any new equipment.
He had a Small Thunder God Flying Hammer hanging from his waist and wore the
full body Flowing Wave Armor.
He did not take Xiong Ju's Gold Flower Hacksaw. This was wise, as this gold
level attack weapon was very different from Teng Dong Lang's fighting style.
Although he did not see the Battle Qi Syringe, the dragonman youngster knew
that this extremely practical tool must have been brought along.
Other than that, Teng Dong Lang was wearing silver level leather armor.
Due to the armor ban, even the leader of the Bayonet Gang did not have any gold
level armor.
However, he did have gold level protective gear.
That was the boots on his feet.
The boots were made of deer skin and had exquisite green vine patterns on the
surface.
This was something that was not mentioned in the intelligence report.
It seemed that Teng Dong Lang was wearing it for the first time.
The dragonman youngster looked at it several times and secretly guessed its
function.
Like the Bayonet Gang, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also had personnel
accompanying them to watch the battle.
They were also actively searching for and finding information about Teng Dong
Lang's equipment, then informing the dragonman youngster.
In fact, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was also secretly and actively
providing all kinds of information.
“We can't find the origin of those boots!”
“But we've detected that their aura contains ice and wood elements.”
“Combined with Teng Dong Lang's Holly bloodline, they should be his trump
card.”
The dragonman youngster's ears twitched slightly as he heard his companions'
shouts.
The information was not worth much.
Teng Dong Lang also listened attentively and learned a lot of information about
the dragonman youngster's equipment, which was quite a gain.
“Commander Long Fu, if your only reliance is on your equipment, then you will
definitely lose today!” Teng Dong Lang spoke first, his tone flat and his
expression calm.
As a gold level, he was very arrogant when facing a silver level like the
dragonman youngster.
He was putting pressure on the dragonman youngster in this way.
The dragonman youngster smiled slightly and immediately retorted, “Even if I
lose this battle, so what?”
“Teng Dong Lang, your problem is not this duel, but my testimony and whether I
will change my statement in the future.”
Teng Dong Lang's face darkened. From these words, he felt a strong threat from
the dragonman youngster.
This was indeed his greatest concern.
Teng Dong Lang said directly, “Our side has never desecrated the heroic duel.
Commander Long Fu, perhaps you have misunderstood, or perhaps you are
deliberately slandering us.”
“But none of that matters now.”
“Tonight's competition is the best way to resolve the dispute.”
“I hope you can still be so tough when you beg for mercy soon!”
Teng Dong Lang's heart was filled with a fierce killing intent.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps threatened the survival of the Bayonet Gang,
and Teng Dong Lang was determined to kill the dragonman youngster.
But given the current situation, the most helpful outcome for the Bayonet Gang
was to defeat Long Fu on the spot and force him to “clarify” that he had
misunderstood the Bayonet Gang. All of his previous accusations were
fabricated.
Thinking of the Bayonet Gang, Teng Dong Lang could only take the initiative to
restrain his murderous intent.
This made him feel very dissatisfied.



****** Chapter 335: Then Let’s fight to Our Heart’s Content! ******
There was nothing else to say.
After the dragonman youngster exchanged a few words with Teng Dong Lang, he
jumped back.
Unlike the previous duel, this time, the dragonman youngster chose to start the
battle with long-range shots.
In the battle with Xiong Ju, the dragonman youngster could fight with his fists
and feet. But when fighting Teng Dong Lang, the enemy was strong and he was
weak, so the dragonman youngster chose a conservative and safe tactic,
intending to first adapt to the rhythm of the battle with the gold level
opponent, and then implement different tactics depending on the specific
situation.
The crossbow was already loaded with alchemy arrows.
The arrows flew through the air, leaving trails of sparks, frost, and
lightning—various elemental effects.
Teng Dong Lang snorted coldly and slashed with one hand.
Suddenly, a golden battle qi, like a huge sword beam, slashed forward with
great momentum.
Wherever the battle qi sword beam went, the arrows were either shattered or
changed direction and were unable to threaten Teng Dong Lang at all.
Teng Dong Lang snorted coldly, his voice not loud, but it spread throughout the
venue: “Commander Long Fu, your attack isn't even enough to tickle me.”
“This kind of meaningless test is fruitless.”
"Come on, face me head-on. I'm standing right here."
Teng Dong Lang's words were full of provocation.
The dragonman youngster raised his eyebrows slightly and continued to use his
alchemy crossbow to shoot arrows.
It had no effect.
Most of the various types of alchemy arrows were destroyed by Teng Dong Lang in
advance, and even if they were shot in front of him, they were blocked by a
gold level battle qi shield that condensed out of thin air.
At the gold level, because battle qi could condense out of thin air, the battle
qi cultivator's combat methods became very rich.
Teng Dong Lang did not use any battle skills at all, relying solely on his
battle qi to steadily maintain his combat power and easily block the dragonman
youngster's barrage of arrows.
In the audience seats outside the arena.
Lan Zao showed a hint of joy on his face: “The commander can use alchemy arrows
to consume a lot of Teng Dong Lang's battle qi, which is advantageous for us.”
However, Men Shi frowned: “Don't forget that the Bayonet Gang has the Battle Qi
Syringe.”
The dwarf had a very deep impression of this equipment.
It was because of this equipment that he lost to Ban Lan Gen.
"Although I haven't seen the Battle Qi Syringe, Teng Dong Lang must have it on
him. That's why he's wasting his golden battle qi like this."
“No, to be precise, he can't be said to be wasting it.” Tripleblade had a
different opinion, "The quality of gold level battle qi far exceeds the silver
level alchemy arrows of the commander. Therefore, Teng Dong Lang only needs to
consume a small amount of gold battle qi to deal with the commander's attack.
The consumption of his battle qi is much less than we imagined."
Tripleblade understood this, and the dragonman youngster was naturally very
clear about it as well
“If I don't pose a threat to Teng Dong Lang, then there's no question of
draining his fighting power!”
After firing the arrows from his crossbow again, the dragonman youngster threw
them both into the air, then took out the gold level longbow from behind his
back.
He drew his bow, infused it with battle qi, and in a second, fired an arrow.
The arrow was powerful and made a sound as it broke through the air.
It shot in front of Teng Dong Lang, violently collided with the shield formed
by golden battle qi, and caused a violent explosion.
The arrow completely sacrificed itself and turned into nothingness.
The floating golden battle qi shield was badly damaged, but it quickly returned
to its original state due to the newly filled battle qi.
This arrow excited all the spectators.
“Gold level weapons are really powerful.”
“If he shoots a volley of arrows, Teng Dong Lang's shield will be completely
destroyed and there won't be time to repair it.”
But in the next moment, the dragonman youngster put away his golden longbow
again. Just then, the crossbow he had thrown into the air fell back down, and
he caught it with his now free hands.
Both crossbows had an automatic reloading function.
They would automatically absorb the alchemy arrows from the quiver behind the
dragonman youngster. The arrows were automatically loaded into the quiver,
saving the dragonman youngster a lot of time.
When the dragonman youngster took the crossbow, both weapons were already fully
loaded.
He continued to fire the crossbow at Teng Dong Lang.
Lightning, flames, and poisonous mist exploded.
All kinds of arrows created a dazzling scene of bombardment around Teng Dong
Lang.
But after the smoke and dust cleared, Teng Dong Lang was still standing in the
same place, unscathed.
However, the dragonman youngster did not waver in the slightest. Every time he
fired the crossbow, he would draw his golden longbow and shoot an arrow that
threatened Teng Dong Lang.
The spectators discussed this.
"Long Fu's barrage is so fierce. The alchemy crossbow he uses is really
practical."
“If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps sells them, I want to buy one too.”
“If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps sells them, I want to buy one too.”
“That's right. Although Long Fu used a gold level longbow, he didn't seem to
have matching gold level long arrows. Moreover, he is not a qualified archer,
and I didn't see him use any archery battle skills at all."
"If it were me, I would do the same. Long Fu challenged Teng Dong Lang, which
was essentially a weak fighting a strong opponent. Only by not letting go of
any opportunity to wear down his opponent and fully grasping and utilizing it
would Long Fu have a better chance."
"Teng Dong Lang is still standing motionless... I can understand that he wants
to fully demonstrate his strength and contempt for his weak enemy. But isn't he
being too arrogant? His opponent is not a simple silver level."
Just as everyone was discussing this, the battle suddenly changed.
The dragonman youngster completely threw the crossbow and golden longbow to the
side of the field, and like an arrow released from a bow, he rushed towards
Teng Dong Lang.
This scene surprised almost everyone.
Even the members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were no exception.
“What's going on?”
“30%”
“The commander brought a lot of alchemy arrows, and he's so skilled, he hasn't
even used up 30% of them yet.”
It was very strange.
Just as many people were praising the dragonman youngster for resolutely
executing the correct tactic, the latter suddenly abandoned his persistence and
“recklessly” rushed towards Teng Dong Lang.
However, when the dragonman youngster rushed forward and was 50 meters away
from his opponent, something unexpected happened.
A translucent ice vine suddenly shot out from the ground.
The dragonman youngster used his battle skill, causing a small explosion on the
side of a ring mound, pushing him to the other side and successfully dodging
the ice vine's sneak attack.
But immediately, several more ice vines burst out of the ground, some shooting
out violently, some sweeping across, and some even attempting to entangle the
dragonman youngster.
The ring mounds around the dragonman youngster exploded, causing him to move
repeatedly.
He successfully dodged all the ice vine attacks but was forced back and did not
rush to Teng Dong Lang's front.
The dragonman youngster's face darkened as he looked at Teng Dong Lang
surrounded and protected by the ice vines. He realized that he had fallen into
a trap!
Teng Dong Lang stood with his hands behind his back, calm and composed, looking
at the dragonman youngster with interest: “You're quite sharp. You can see
through my tactics, which proves that you are fighting with your head.”
“That's right, when I use the battle skill ‘Base’, I can't move.”
“My weakest moment is right after I use this battle skill.”
“Unfortunately, by now, my base has spread to a radius of 50 meters.”
“Can you stop me?”
“If you can't destroy my battle skill, my advantage will continue to grow until
‘Base’ covers the entire battlefield.”
“No, to be precise, when my ‘Base’ expands to a radius of 300 meters, you will
have no chance of winning.”
When the dragonman youngster adopted a long-range attrition tactic, Teng Dong
Lang took advantage of the situation and used his battle skill, 'Base'.
He spoke, playing the role of a powerful figure looking down on others, to
cover up his own tactics.
The dragonman youngster was executing an attrition tactic, and Teng Dong Lang
was secretly executing his own tactics!
Obviously, the dragonman youngster's tactics were not very effective, while
Teng Dong Lang had established his own advantage.
As time went on, his advantage would grow larger and larger, until he reaped
the fruits of victory! 
The spectators were in an uproar. 
“That treacherous, despicable bastard!” Bu Quan gritted her teeth; her eyes
filled with hatred. 
“Another rooting tactic—how shameless!” Men Shi clenched his fists in anger.
Not long ago, his opponent, Ban Lan Gen, used this tactic to establish an
advantage from the start of the battle, maintain it, and expand it until he
won.
Men Shi had a bad experience.
Even though he tried his best, he couldn't see any hope!
Now, Teng Dong Lang was also using this tactic.
Moreover, compared to Ban Lan Gen, Teng Dong Lang's execution of the tactic was
undoubtedly more covert and faster.
“Heroes think alike!” When Ban Lan Gen saw the tactic Teng Dong Lang had
chosen, he laughed loudly, smugly.
Xiong Ju glared at Ban Lan Gen: "Stop laughing, it's noisy! The battle has just
begun, and Long Fu won't give up easily."
Spring Boxer said, "Commander Long Fu is indeed better than me, I couldn't
sense anything at all. How did he find out?"
How did the dragonman youngster find out that something was wrong?
The biggest contributor was still the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
In the first piece of magic image he provided, Teng Dong Lang was standing in
place, summoning ice vines to deal with the ice wolf pack.
This gave him a big clue.
“The discovery was quite timely!”
“50”
"It's already difficult to break into a 50-meter radius. If this radius
expands, I will have no chance of winning."
“But I still have to stay calm!”
“Teng Dong Lang's words seemed honest, but in fact, he was putting pressure on
me, trying to make me feel overwhelmed and lose my composure.”
This was the first time the dragonman youngster was fighting a gold level
opponent.
During the battle at Two Eyes Island, although there were fights of this level,
the dragonman youngster only had a taste of it.
This time, he could fight to his heart's content!
Bloodcore Mutation — Spurting Smoke Dragon Transformation.
Gold level Diamond Protection set — Diamond Body!
Dragon's Reverse Scale, activate!
The Cold Heart Ice Bag, Ice Heart Headband, and Grand Arena Medal had already
taken effect.
Battle skill—Surge!
Bam!
With a loud explosion, the dragonman youngster suddenly disappeared from where
he stood.
He seemed to have transformed into a crimson cannonball, charging at Teng Dong
Lang with all his might.



****** Chapter 336: Three Segment Whip ******
Even though he was his enemy, Teng Dong Lang couldn't help but admire the
dragonman youngster's decisiveness as he charged towards him.
As soon as the dragonman youngster discovered the truth, he immediately changed
his tactics, completely and decisively.
His eyes burned with fighting spirit, but they still shone with the light of
thought.
Not long after the fight began, the youngster already felt that the enemy in
front of him was completely different from Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju was a fierce fighter whose instincts prevailed, while Teng Dong Lang
was clear-headed and used his wisdom to fight.
Such an enemy was much more difficult to deal with than Xiong Ju. In addition,
he was a gold level battle qi cultivator, which made him even stronger.
After changing his tactics, the dragonman youngster exploded with all his
strength, holding nothing back.
Because he had no way to hold back.
Facing such a strong enemy, he had to give it his all. To hold back would be
extremely foolish!
“He's charging!” In the VIP viewing room, Ban Lan Gen was a little restless.
Seeing the dragonman youngster's charge, he couldn't help but recall the time
he was knocked out by his fist.
Even though he knew that the gang leader Teng Dong Lang was on a different
level than himself, he still couldn't help but feel subconsciously worried.
The Snow Bird Harbor Dueling Arena erupted with surprised cheers.
The situation took a sudden turn, and the two sides were about to engage in
close combat.
The duel suddenly became exciting!
Hiss.
With a soft sound, the ground was broken open, and an ice vine stabbed at the
dragonman youngster's ankle.
Teng Dong Lang had deliberately said that his battle skill 'Base' had expanded
to 50 meters.
This was just a smokescreen.
The truth was that it had already reached 60 meters!
Bu Quan cried out in surprise.
The dragonman youngster was clearly at least 60 meters away from Teng Dong
Lang, yet there were ice vines lying in wait underground.
Bam!
The dragonman youngster used his Surge battle skill to dodge.
He snorted coldly in his heart, as he had already been mentally prepared for
this.
When he realized that Teng Dong Lang was a powerful enemy skilled in strategy,
he understood how untrustworthy the latter's words were.
The dragonman youngster continued to sprint.
Ice vines burst out of the ground and stabbed straight at him, like a group of
spears.
The dragonman youngster did not dodge or evade but charged straight through.
The ice vines broke into pieces.
The dragonman youngster's momentum was astonishing, destroying everything in
its path!
But the ice vines were not without effect. They offset the dragonman
youngster's momentum, and the cold air wrapped around his body, inevitably
slowing him down.
Teng Dong Lang stood still, not moving.
The dragonman youngster was so brave, but he remained calm.
However, the way he manipulated the ice vines in battle had changed.
The ice vines no longer stabbed straight but instead wrapped around and
whipped.
Soft tactics could overcome hardness.
For the dragonman youngster, the ice vines posed an even greater threat.
“He can't lose his speed, otherwise the commander will be surrounded by ice
vines,” said Tripleblade.
The members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were all nervous.
The power of each ice vine was comparable to the attack of a silver level
battle qi cultivator. If any of them faced it, there would be no way out, and
they would die a miserable death on the spot.
Of course, that didn't include Zong Ge.
Zong Ge still didn't come to watch the battle this time.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships needed a reliable person to stay behind.
The dragonman youngster also responded to this.
He no longer charged headlong but focused on dodging.
He fought with all his might and made remarkable progress in breaking through.
While dodging, he kept getting closer to Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang suddenly smiled.
Swish, swish, swish.
A large number of ice vines suddenly shot out from the ground, trapping the
dragonman youngster who had just dodged and arrived at the spot!
Teng Dong Lang had secretly planted a large number of ice vines as a trap.
Relying on other ice vines, he forced the dragonman youngster to move and
successfully drove him into the trap.
Hundreds of ice vines densely covered the dragonman youngster and attacked him
from all directions.
At this critical moment, the dragonman youngster used his Machine Gun Fist
battle skill.
Bang, bang, bang...
A series of explosions resounded.
One by one, the ice vines exploded into countless pieces under his fists.
Ice shards flew everywhere.
This battle skill had proven itself in the battle against Xiong Ju, and it was
still effective this time.
The dragonman youngster attacked instead of defending, defeated the ice vines,
and rushed out.
He finally faced Teng Dong Lang!
The next moment, Teng Dong Lang gently swung his right arm.
A thin whip wrapped around his forearm stretched out with momentum.
A gold level long whip!
Teng Dong Lang infused it with battle qi and swung the long whip.
The speed of the whip suddenly increased.
Battle skill—Fast Whip.
The whip lashed out fiercely.
The dragonman youngster quickly raised his arms to shield his face.
The next moment, the tip of the whip struck his forearm.
The light golden aura of his Diamond Body trembled violently, and the blue
steel armbands on his arms emitted a buzzing sound.
Relying on the powerful defense of his gold level armor, the dragonman
youngster blocked the attack.
The youngster was about to continue his charge when suddenly his pupils
contracted slightly.
The long whip had just finished striking, but suddenly recoiled, completely
defying the laws of physics, and struck him again.
Battle skill—Additional Whip!
The dragonman youngster was caught off guard and was struck on the forearm.
His forearm swung open, leaving him wide open.
Gold level battle qi filled the long whip, which suddenly gushed out and turned
into a knife beam.
Battle skill—Blade Beam.
The gold level battle qi was like a machete with powerful cutting properties,
slashing the dragonman youngster's chest.
The faint halo of the Diamond Body trembled violently again, blocking this
attack.
The dragonman youngster was completely knocked out of his momentum by this
blow.
The long whip, which had lost its gold battle qi a moment ago, suddenly rose
like a python raising its head.
Battle skill—Wild Whip.
The gold level battle qi expanded at the end of the whip, forming a round
hammer.
The round hammer collided with the dragonman youngster, fiercely.
The dragonman youngster hurriedly retreated backwards.
Boom!
With a loud bang, the curled end of the whip crashed into the ground, forming a
small pit.
As the dislodged soil flew, a large number of ice whips rose up.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
They were like a group of snakes launched by a trap, giving the dragonman
youngster no chance to catch his breath.
The dragonman youngster no longer had any intention of approaching Teng Dong
Lang.
At this moment, he only wanted to retreat with all his might!
The spurting smoke ring mounds appeared on his knees, palms, chest, and other
places.
Bang, bang, bang...
The Surge battle skill caused a series of mini explosions in the smoke ring
mounds, propelling the dragonman youngster's body and causing him to
continuously retreat.
A large number of ice vines missed their target.
Finally, the dragonman youngster rolled awkwardly and retreated to a relatively
safe distance.
Looking closely, he was already a hundred meters away from Teng Dong Lang.
His first full-force attack ended in failure!
The entire venue fell silent for a few seconds.
Immediately after, the audience began to discuss heatedly.
“Teng Dong Lang is truly a gold level battle qi cultivator. This is how he
really fights.”
“When Long Fu charged, I thought for a moment that Teng Dong Lang would be
forced to move, but I didn't expect him to easily defuse the attack with a
series of strikes.”
“Very impressive, Teng Dong Lang is very impressive!” Some discerning
spectators were shocked.
“Teng Dong Lang just used several battle skills in succession, but in fact, the
Fast Whip was not the first battle skill he used, but the second.”
"The first battle skill he used was the Triple Whip! The final battle skill was
also the Triple Whip."
"When he used the Triple Whip, he also used the Fast Whip, the Additional Whip,
and the Wild Whip in succession. He even had enough energy left in between to
use a gold level Knife Beam!"
“His whip skills are really profound.”
In the viewing room where Bing Xiao was located, the senior members of the
Bayonet Gang were also very excited.
Ban Lan Gen sat down and clenched his fists: "My worries were completely
unnecessary. Lord Teng Dong Lang's strength far exceeds mine. I was worrying
needlessly."
Bing Xiao recalled a scene from the past.
At that time, Teng Dong Lang was much younger than he was now.
It was by using his whip skills that Teng Dong Lang defeated Bing Xiao's gold
level slave in front of everyone and became the leader of the gang in one fell
swoop.
As the memory faded, Bing Xiao stared at the magic image in front of him.
Teng Dong Lang's once young face was gradually replaced by a more aged one.
This was the result of being burdened by gang affairs and working hard.
It was also the price of power.
“Although I rarely see you fight, there is no doubt that you are now stronger
than before, Teng Dong Lang.”
"Based on the Triple Whip, you combine different battle skills, giving the
ordinary Triple Whip special effects with each whip. It's difficult for enemies
to defend against this extremely targeted attack!"
“The complicated gang affairs and the power of the gang leader have not made
you slack off in training yourself.”
“It was the right decision to hand over the position of gang leader to you!”
Once he used his main weapon, Teng Dong Lang easily defeated the dragonman
youngster.
Remember that the dragonman youngster was fighting with all his might!
The dragonman youngster was panting heavily, but his attention was focused on
the ski goggles in front of him.
His field of vision was different from that of normal people.
The ski goggles given to him by Bu Quan could mark different levels of threat.
Just now, when Teng Dong Lang used various battle skills, his gold level whip
produced different colors.
“When gold level battle qi is infused into gold level equipment, it turns red,
representing a strong threat.”
“Every time a battle skill is used, the threat level of the whip skyrockets.”
“The threat level of the first battle skill was relatively low, but by the time
he used the final whip, the color had turned deep purple!”
It was precisely because of this that the dragonman youngster instantly
realized that if he resisted, he would suffer serious damage.
Even though he had gold level protective gear.
A gold level battle qi cultivator used gold level equipment and performed gold
level battle skills.
The combined power of the three far exceeded that of the gold level artillery
and gold level shells.
The Wild Whip missed and hit the ground, only making a small, yet deep pit
But don't forget, this was the largest dueling arena in Snow Bird Harbor, with
high-end and complete facilities.
To be able to create such a deep pit, the attack power was already
extraordinary.
The dragonman youngster was only silver level, and although he had a large
amount of gold level equipment, without the corresponding level of battle qi,
he was unable to unleash its full power.
“This Teng Dong Lang is probably the strongest gold level I've ever seen.”
“Perhaps Hun Tong can compete with him.”
“But these goggles are really convenient.”
“Even though it's my first time fighting Teng Dong Lang, with these goggles, I
can see through every move he makes and make accurate judgments.”
Under normal circumstances, the dragonman youngster could only deeply
understand Teng Dong Lang's methods through continuous battles, learning from
pain and injuries, and paying the price of blood, in order to make such
accurate judgments.
It was just like when he fought Xiong Ju before and was unable to guard against
the Bear Roar battle skill.
But after fighting him once, the dragonman youngster kept reviewing the battle,
and now if they fought again, he would be able to judge Xiong Ju's Bear Roar
battle skill in advance based on details such as Xiong Ju's Adam's apple.
“Teng Dong Lang is the leader of a gang, and his strength is not just ordinary
gold level.”
“When he uses his long whip, that's when he really gets going.”
“Long Fu was nearly knocked down by a few lashes.” 
"Silver, gold... the former is lower-tier, while the latter is already mid-
tier. The gap between the two is not easily bridged." 
“Wait, look, Long Fu has drawn his short spear.” 
“This is the first time I've seen him use a melee weapon.” 
“This stance... seems unusual.”



****** Chapter 337: Root Boots ******
The dragonman youngster held two antique bronze short spears in his hands.
These were weapons that he had specifically requested, and which the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord had acquired for him with all his might.
Over the past few days, the dragonman youngster had studied short spear battle
skills under Zong Ge.
Thanks to his fighter talent and the Grand Arena Medal, he had successfully
mastered the short spear and made it his main weapon.
The enemy used their main weapon, but this time, the dragonman youngster also
had his weapon.
Teng Dong Lang couldn't help but show a hint of caution.
This was the first time the dragonman youngster had used a melee weapon, and
just by looking at his posture, it was clear that his skill with the short
spear far exceeded that of the bow and crossbow.
Ice vines broke through the ground and stabbed at him.
The dragonman youngster did not dodge the ice vines that stabbed straight at
him, but collided with them directly, using this to recharge his Sword Return
Reverse Scale.
He mainly dodged the ice vines that entangled and whipped at him.
If dodging was too troublesome, he would use his short spear to fight back.
The short spear was a gold level weapon, and its quality alone was superior to
most ice vines.
The quality of these ice vines varied, with some having gold level combat
power, some silver level, and many bronze level and iron level.
Relying on the advantage of his short spear, the dragonman youngster once again
broke through the ice vine organization's defense line and rushed to Teng Dong
Lang's front.
Smack, smack, smack.
Teng Dong Lang swung his long whip.
Both sides simultaneously used their battle skills.
The long whip and short spear collided, and the dragonman youngster's short
spear almost slipped out of his hand.
The dragonman youngster's offensive was blocked, while Teng Dong Lang's whip
shadows continued unabated.
The dragonman youngster was forced to retreat again.
The battle reached a stalemate.
The dragonman youngster continued to charge forward, and no matter how many ice
vines there were, they couldn't withstand him using his main weapon for the
first time.
However, when he faced Teng Dong Lang, his attacks were always repelled.
Teng Dong Lang's long whip was both soft and hard, and he was very good at
defusing the dragonman youngster's horizontal charges.
“This can't go on!” Bu Quan gritted his teeth, the worry on his face growing
heavier and heavier.“ Commander Long Fu has been unable to attack for a long
time, while Teng Dong Lang continues to accumulate advantages.”
The spectators could clearly see that the range of Ice Vine's attacks was
getting wider and wider.
After several failed charges by the dragonman youngster, the radius of the Base
battle skills had expanded to more than 80 meters.
In the VIP viewing room.
Xiong Ju said with emotion, "I didn't expect Long Fu to be so good with a short
spear. But why didn't he use it in his duel with me?"
Xiong Ju couldn't imagine that the dragonman youngster had gained some insight
after his duel with him. 
Moreover, in the short period of a few days after that, his intensive training
yielded such fruitful results. 
The demon hybrid ringleader sneered, “He must have underestimated you, Xiong
Ju, and nearly lost to you as a result.”
"Since he initiated the heroic duel against the gang leader, these short spears
should be left for the gang leader. That must have been his plan."
Spring Boxer praised, but also felt puzzled, “It's hard to imagine that
Commander Long Fu is a young man, yet his fist technique, footwork and weapon
skills are so outstanding.”
The human ringleader shook his head slightly and sneered, “He's taking
shortcuts.” 
"Notice how he uses the short spears in combat—it's the same as how he throws
punches. Even if there are differences, they're very minor." 
"So, when he trains his fist and foot techniques, he's also training his spear
skills.   Similarly, training with short spears also helps his basic combat
skills. There are many overlapping areas between the two." 
Spring Boxer finally understood: “So that's how it is.” 
"Hmm? That's a good idea. Does that mean I should also train with short spears
too?" 
The situation was favorable for the Bayonet Gang, so the ringleaders felt
relaxed and engaged in casual conversation.
“Even if he had kept the short spears for this battle, it is still useless.”
Bing Xiao analyzed calmly, “The gap between the silver level and the gold level
is quite huge.”
“If Long Fu was gold level, he wouldn't have been forced to retreat
repeatedly.”
“In fact, in the same circumstances, it is difficult for a hard weapon such as
the short spear to be forcibly repelled by a soft weapon such as a long whip.”
At the same time.
Among the comrades and friends, Tripleblade sighed regretfully, “If Commander
Long Fu had chosen swords, it would have been more advantageous, right?”
He knew about the dragonman youngster's assault training.
Zong Ge had tutored the dragonman youngster, and he had advised the dragonman
youngster not to publicize his fighter talent.
But for the survivors, this was not something worth keeping secret
On the contrary, the dragonman youngster, Zi Di, and others were more inclined
to announce it in order to maintain the dragonman youngster's leadership
influence.
The dragonman youngster, who was in the midst of a fierce battle, had a similar
realization to Tripleblade.
If it were a sword, it would be more convenient to chop ice vines and long
whips.
Short spears were a little awkward to use.
Although the spear tip could still be used for cutting and slashing attacks, it
was indeed difficult to compare with swords.
“But there's nothing we can do about it!”
“If I use swords, then it will be different from my fighting style.”
“Even with the Grand Arena Medal and Zong Ge's guidance, I couldn't achieve my
current level of proficiency.”
“The learning cost is at least twice as much as a short spear, and I don't have
enough time.”
Training with swords and other weapons would have to wait until later.
With the Grand Arena Medal and his own fighter talent, it would not be
difficult for the dragonman youngster to master other weapons.
After a series of failed advances, the dragonman youngster deeply felt the gap
between himself and his opponent.
There was a qualitative difference in their battle qi.
The dragonman youngster's weapons and armor were not bad, but it was difficult
to fully utilize their effects with silver battle qi.
The battle between the two sides had been going on for nearly ten minutes, but
the dragonman youngster still couldn't shake Teng Dong Lang, and couldn't even
force him to leave his position.
Teng Dong Lang did not forget to use words to put pressure on the dragonman
youngster.
“I can see that you have worked hard on your short spears, Commander Long Fu.”
“What a pity.”
“If this is all you've got, you will definitely lose today!”
Just then, a shout came from the audience area.
He said, “Commander, it's the boots!”
“The gold level deer skin boots on Teng Dong Lang's feet are called the Root
Boots.”
"They can be used with almost all wood-based bloodlines and give a powerful
bonus when using related battle skills. In particular, they give the strongest
boost to the battle skill, Base, up to 80%!"
The dragonman youngster heard this new information.
While he was fighting, the other members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
were not idle either.
Of course, the dragonman youngster also knew that the source of the information
should be the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Before this battle, the latter had agreed to use the magician tower to remotely
investigate Teng Dong Lang's equipment. Through alchemy technology that
calculated aura, he could get to the bottom of things and find out the details
of his opponent's equipment.
Nearly ten minutes had passed since the start of the battle.
The results of the magician tower's reconnaissance finally reached the
dragonman youngster's ears.
“Root Boots...” The dragonman youngster sighed in his heart.
An 80% increase was really too strong.
It was almost equivalent to having two Teng Dong Lang working together to use
the Base battle skill.
No wonder the range of his Base battle skill spread so quickly.
The dragonman youngster's equipment was luxurious, but as the leader of the
Bayonet Gang, Teng Dong Lang was naturally no slouch either.
The Root Boots on his feet were perfect for him!
The battle continued.
Every charge by the dragonman youngster brought a wave of hope and expectation.
Then, as he was forced back by Teng Dong Lang, the hope and expectation that
had just risen in the hearts of the audience was dashed.
“The range of Teng Dong Lang's Base battle skill is already close to 100
meters.”
“Commander Long Fu has no hope!”
"It's not his fault. A silver level battle qi cultivator who can actively
challenge a gold level battle qi cultivator is already a brave man.
Unfortunately, the gap in strength cannot be made up for by courage alone."
“If Teng Dong Lang were a brute like Xiong Ju, Commander Long Fu might still
have a chance.”
“No, he still has a chance.” Bu Quan gritted her teeth and stubbornly held on
to her hopes. She really wanted to see the dragonman youngster win.
In the VIP viewing room.
Ban Lan Gen laughed loudly, “We're going to win!”
“No, there are still some uncertainties.” Bing Xiao was not blindly optimistic,
"Long Fu still has unknown gold level items. Why haven't our alchemists
calculated the specific results yet?"
The human ringleader agreed, "Even if we exclude the unknown items, Commander
Long Fu still has the Sword Return Reverse Scale. I've carefully counted, and
there have been many times when the Dragon Robe deliberately took hits and
charged toward the ice vines. He's charging up the dragon scale."
“Once it's charged up enough, he'll definitely launch an explosive attack.”
“That's probably his biggest advantage!”
Many people saw this.
In fact, this was precisely the dragonman youngster's tactic.
He attacked with all his might and full firepower, but he was still no match
for Teng Dong Lang, who wielded a long whip.
So, the only way to break the deadlock was to rely on even more powerful means
of attack.
From his previous battle with Xiong Ju, he understood that he lacked powerful
means of attack. Now, he felt this even more deeply.
It wasn't that the dragonman youngster hadn't thought about making up for this
weakness.
But no matter what battle skill it was, it took time to master.
He had already made full use of every second of these past few days. He simply
didn't have the time or energy to start practicing a powerful battle skill from
scratch.
Fortunately, before this battle, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had taken the
initiative to lend the dragonman youngster the Sword Return Reverse Scale.
This equipment brought the dragonman youngster the greatest hope.
Of course, the dragonman youngster had also thought about using his bloodline
spell, Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
This was a legendary bloodline talent that originated from the Flame Dragon
King.
However, casting this spell required chanting, which would leave him very
vulnerable.
Even if Teng Dong Lang stood still, the dragonman youngster would not have had
any chance to do so.
Don't forget that since the fight began, Teng Dong Lang had not yet used the
Small Thunder God Flying Hammer hanging from his waist.
It was obvious that Teng Dong Lang still had a lot of energy left!
The only gold level equipment he used were the long whip and the boots.



****** Chapter 338: Thin Ice Wall Shield ******
There were at least two more unknown gold level auras on Teng Dong Lang.
Like the members of the Bayonet Gang, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord were actively using aura calculations and other
methods to investigate the specific appearance of these gold level items.
“No matter how many gold level items he has, he most likely has defensive gold
level equipment!” The dragonman youngster had already guessed this.
But until now, his aura was surging, his physical strength and battle qi were
greatly depleted, and he still hadn't forced Teng Dong Lang to use his gold
level defensive equipment.
The dragonman youngster charged again.
Ice vines grew densely in front of the dragonman youngster.
Battle skill—Charge.
The dragonman youngster raised his double spears in front of him, stretched out
his arms, and sprinted straight forward in a second, charging more than ten
meters away.
Wherever he went, the ice vines disintegrated. Even gold level ice vines
couldn't stop him.
The dragonman youngster had already seen that Teng Dong Lang was still unable
to use the ice vines scattered all over the ground to perform whip-type battle
skills.
Otherwise, his combat power would be terrifying.
“Since the start of the battle, he has been maintaining his Base battle skill.”
"When I changed tactics and kept charging, he was forced to use the gold level
whip. At most, he used three battle skills at the same time."
“Even if this isn't his limit, he's not far from it.”
As the number of exchanges increased, the dragonman youngster gathered more and
more relevant information and gained a lot of understanding about Teng Dong
Lang.
The Charge battle skill lasted only one second.
The dragonman youngster's momentum was exhausted, and he immediately jumped up.
The next moment, several ice vines attacked him from behind, catching him off
guard.
A second earlier, the dragonman youngster had used his battle skill to destroy
the ice vines along the way. But the next second, ice vines grew out of the
ground again.
This was the power of the battle skill, Base.
Within the domain of Base, the battle qi spread, receiving support from all
directions and responding immediately. As long as the source was not depleted,
the battle qi would not run out.
The dragonman youngster's situation became increasingly difficult.
Because the ice vines could be quickly replenished, every time he failed to
sprint forward, even retreating was fraught with danger.
The dragonman youngster leaped into the air, but he didn't go very high.
He was deliberately restraining himself.
Sure enough, in the next moment, three or four ice vines broke through the
ground and shot straight at him.
One of them was surging with energy and was actually gold level.
The gold level ice vine was mainly controlled by Teng Dong Lang. The whip’s
head was as agile as a snake. After drawing a smooth arc in the air, it wrapped
around the dragonman youngster's waist.
Two large ring mounds appeared behind the dragonman youngster.
He raised his arms behind him, and two small ring mounds appeared at his elbow
joints.
Crack!
Four ring mounds burst into yellow flames.
The Surge battle skill worked again, pushing the dragonman youngster forward.
The dragonman youngster used this to avoid the entanglement of the gold level
ice vines.
Although he was only silver level and did not have flying battle skills,
because of his clever combination, he was still able to forcefully move in
midair.
The ice vines grew on the ground, and each one had a limited range of attack.
The dragonman youngster had just escaped from the gold level ice vines, only to
find a row of ice vines standing in front of him.
The ice vines were like a city wall, blocking his path.
There was no time to examine them closely.
But through his perception of their aura, the dragonman youngster understood
that at least seven of the ice vines were silver level.
The dragonman youngster let out a low cry and swung the short spears in his
hand.
The short spears shot out a dazzling light.
Battle skill—Horizontal Cut.
The dragonman youngster used the sharp blade of the spear tip to cut off the
row of ice vines at the root.
After the ice vines broke, Teng Dong Lang suddenly lost control.
The dragonman youngster took the opportunity to roll over and cross this
obstacle.
Behind him, the broken ice vines were transformed back into elements and battle
qi
The elements dissipated, and the battle qi flowed back underground.
This was also one of the effects of the Base battle skill.
It could help the cultivator recover battle qi, effectively reducing its
consumption.
The dragonman youngster rushed forward another ten meters or so and once again
found himself in danger. Three gold level ice vines attacked the dragonman
youngster's head, waist, and calves from three directions, simultaneously
striking the upper, middle, and lower areas.
The closer he got to Teng Dong Lang, the higher the level of the ice vines
growing from the ground.
Battle skill—Pointed Spear!
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath and stabbed the short spears in his
hand three times in succession.
Each stab accurately hit one of the three ice vines.
The ice vines were pierced by the spear tip and shattered almost
simultaneously.
After overcoming this obstacle, the dragonman youngster rushed forward again.
After this scene passed, the spectators let out low cries and looked surprised.
The dragonman youngster's move was beautiful and eye-catching.
"In an instant, he used his Pointed Spear battle skill and successfully
repelled three gold level ice vines. It seems that Commander Long Fu has
practiced this battle skill many times in his daily training."
“Without solid basic skills, it would be almost impossible to use it so
perfectly in such a short time.”
“The ice vines are very fast and can strike accurately instead of slashing,
which shows that Long Fu's dynamic vision is excellent!”
Just as people were discussing this, they all fell silent.
This was because the dragonman youngster had fallen into a trap once again.
A large number of ice vines surrounded him.
This time, the dragonman youngster did not dodge away. First, his speed was
slowed down, affecting his rhythm, and then his body was entangled by the ice
vines.
The ice vines became more and more entangled, gradually covering his whole
body.
A large number of ice vines followed one after another, like a swarm of snakes
spreading out, enveloping the dragonman youngster and forming a hemispherical
tomb.
“It's over!” The members of the Bayonet Gang shouted excitedly.
“The gang leader is mighty!” Teng Dong Lang's supporters cheered and jumped for
joy.
“Commander Long Fu...” Bu Quan's face turned pale at this moment.
"It's already very difficult to hold on until now. After all, he's only at the
silver level..." More people shook their heads and sighed.
Suddenly, the dragonman youngster's low grunt rang out from among the countless
ice vine balls.
Battle skill—Close Spiral Spear!
The dragonman youngster stretched his arms above his head, clutching two short
spears in his hands, the tips of which were tightly pressed together.
His whole body was like a sharp arrow, constantly spinning in a spiral,
shooting through the layers of ice vines and darting out.
Wherever he went, even the gold level ice vines crumbled.
The ice vines that had originally entangled him were all torn apart.
With the boost from the Close Spiral Spear battle skill, the dragonman
youngster shot forward more than ten meters.
When his battle skill was over, he rushed to Teng Dong Lang's front again!
Such a turn of events reignited hope in the disappointed audience.
“How many times has he charged toward the powerful enemy?” Bu Quan's face
flushed again, her eyes slightly red, revealing a look of emotion.
As an observer, she couldn't count exactly how many times.
Ten times, or twenty times?
At least a dozen times.
Every time the dragonman youngster charged, he ended in failure.
But he was not discouraged in the slightest, his fighting spirit was fierce,
and his fighting spirit was unyielding.
He kept persevering!
“No matter how many times, it's futile.” Teng Dong Lang swung his long whip.
The gold level long whip was different from those ice vines.
The two were worlds apart in terms of quality!
Even with his short spear and battle skills, the dragonman youngster couldn't
defeat the whip.
Every time he reached this stage, the dragonman youngster would return empty-
handed.
But this time, it was different!
The badge on the dragonman youngster's chest suddenly burst into an
intimidating glow.
“Sword Return Dragon Scale!” Many spectators screamed.
They had been waiting for this moment.
Swoosh!
As soon as the gold level whip was swung out, the whip immediately arched,
causing the whip head to swing back defensively.
Battle skill—Reverse Whip.
The long whip swung back, circling around Teng Dong Lang like a thin python
flying and circling.
Teng Dong Lang was already prepared for the Sword Return Reverse Scale.
He knew the dragonman youngster's tactics very well!
In the next moment, a dazzling sword light suddenly shot out, aiming at Teng
Dong Lang's face.
The whip moved and blocked the sword light.
Teng Dong Lang frowned slightly, surprised in his heart: “Only one?”
This did not match the sword qi he had expected.
If the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been there to watch the battle and saw
this scene, he would have been very pleased.
This was because the dragonman youngster had followed his advice and practiced
his skills as much as possible, achieving precise control of the Sword Return
Dragon Scale in just a few short days.
Only with precise control could he shoot out the sword light again and again.
Rough control would only cause all his accumulated energy to be released at
once.
The gold level whip actively retreated to defend, leaving space.
The dragonman youngster exchanged his chance to charge forward with just one
sword light.
He firmly grasped the opportunity he had created and finally fought his way to
Teng Dong Lang!
This was the closest he had ever been to Teng Dong Lang.
The distance between the two was less than 5 meters!
The whip flying around Teng Dong Lang's body was like an angry python, breaking
through the air.
Battle skill—Multiple Whip Shadows.
The long whip swung, throwing out a series of black whip shadows.
The whip shadows were dense and intertwined, instantly forming a fishing net
curtain that covered the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster let out a low cry and suddenly threw the short spear in
his hand.
Battle skill—Spear Throw!
Bam!
An explosive sound echoed as the short spear pierced through the layers of whip
shadows.
Spear Throw involved throwing a close-range short spear directly, serving as a
decisive move in critical moments, a desperate gamble in dire straits.
Its power was immense; the whip shadows shattered, and even the whip itself was
struck, causing the whip body to soften and reveal a defensive weakness.
The whip itself is a soft weapon, and under the dragonman youngster's forceful
attack, it still showed the characteristics of a soft weapon.
The dragonman youngster took advantage of this opportunity to jump over the
long whip and attack Teng Dong Lang directly.
At this moment, the distance between them was less than 1 meter!
Battle skill—Demolition Fist!
The dragonman youngster used his free hand to perform his most proficient
battle skill.
Boom!
There was a loud bang.
His long-planned punch was blocked by an ice shield.
The ice shield was thin, translucent, 1.8 meters high, and covered with cracks.
At the top of the shield was an uneven shape, like the battlements on a city
wall.
It exuded a gold level aura and firmly blocked the dragonman youngster's punch.
At the critical moment, Teng Dong Lang took out his defensive shield and
successfully stopped his opponent's powerful attack.
“Thin Ice Wall Shield!”
“This should be a shield used by the kingdom's regular army, so how did it end
up in Teng Dong Lang's hands?”



****** Chapter 339: Abandoned Person's Shirt ******
Teng Dong Lang and Bing Xiao come from the same background. They both served in
the royal army."
“Even so, could he bring military equipment out with him?”
"It must have been a special situation. His Thin Ice Wall Shield is gold level.
He must have exchanged it for his military merits. It's his personal property.
What's so strange about him bringing it out? Even if it's not a personal item,
haven't we seen plenty of military equipment on the black market?"
People were discussing it heatedly.
At the same time, many people sighed in regret for the dragonman youngster.
He had clearly done his best, but in the end, all his efforts were blocked by a
shield.
However, the dragonman youngster was not disappointed.
He had expected gold level defensive equipment.
He was about to change direction and continue close combat when the whip
returned to defend.
At the same time, Teng Dong Lang's eyes suddenly lit up.
·
Battle skill—Invisible Vine - Entangling Heart!
This was a very rare battle skill.
Even at the gold level, it could only be used at close range to hit the enemy
in front of him.
This was one of Teng Dong Lang's trump cards for self-defense.
He was good at mid-range combat, but once a strong enemy closed the distance
and engaged him in close combat, putting him in danger, this battle skill was
an excellent way to escape from a difficult situation!
The most powerful aspect of this battle skill was that it was difficult to
defend against.
It was an attack on the mind!
The dragonman youngster was hit by this battle skill, and his originally high
fighting spirit quickly diminished, and his determination began to waver.
Negative emotions such as loss and despair entangled his heart like vines,
quickly spreading and covering it.
At the same time, his battle qi was suppressed, breaking his state of full-
power, high-speed consumption and slowing down significantly.
Externally, the dragonman youngster suddenly became listless, exposing a huge
opening.
Teng Dong Lang took advantage of the opportunity to strike with the gold level
whip.
Ice vines sprouted from the ground, binding the dragonman youngster.
Teng Dong Lang immediately used his whip-type battle skills to attack with all
his might.
The whip danced wildly, causing the spectators to gasp in surprise.
The dragonman youngster did not have time to dodge and was covered by countless
whip shadows, enduring the fierce attack.
Smack, smack, smack.
The light golden halo around the dragonman youngster's body quickly dimmed
under the lashes of the whip, then shattered with a bang.
His earrings, nose ring, arm rings, and ankle rings shook violently and buzzed
loudly.
The whip struck his dragon scales and the Golden Silk Chainmail.
The Golden Silk Chainmail was not intact. 
It had already sustained significant damage in the battle against Xiong Ju and
now, under the relentless lashes of the whip, it could no longer bear the
strain.
The dragon scales couldn't withstand the blows in areas not protected by the
chain mail and shattered one after another.
At this critical moment, a sudden chill entered the dragonman youngster's
heart, and his chaotic will was suddenly stimulated, as if he had suddenly
swallowed a mouthful of ice, and he suddenly sobered up!
“It's the Cold Heart Ice Bag and the Ice Heart Headband!” The dragonman
youngster instantly realized what had saved him.
His negative emotions were severely suppressed, his battle qi was replenished,
and his movements became agile.
His listless state was completely gone.
He swung his short spear, struggling to clear the space and escape from the
enemy's attack.
His skin was torn and covered in blood.
He was in pretty bad shape.
His Golden Silk Chainmail was completely destroyed and damaged beyond repair.
The components of the Diamond Protection Set were dull and lifeless. It would
take some time to reform the Diamond Body.
The dragonman youngster immediately retreated.
But Teng Dong Lang would not let him escape so easily.
Ice vines sprouted one after another, blocking the dragonman youngster with all
their might.
Battle skill—Extended Whip.
The gold level whip suddenly grew in length, doubling its attack range and
keeping the dragonman youngster within striking distance.
Teng Dong Lang stood motionless, while the dragonman youngster suffered his
pursuit.
Then, he suddenly opened his mouth and spat out cold mist, causing frost
flowers to fill the sky.
Battle skill—Mouth Mist - Calm Breath.
Battle skill—Mouth Mist - Frostbite.
Teng Dong Lang used two battle skills at the same time.
In the fog, all the aura coming from Teng Dong Lang merged into one, and it was
impossible to distinguish between them.
Previously, the dragonman youngster could sense the aura of the whip and the
ice vine and could tell which one was gold level and which one was an illusion.
But now, these auras were completely consistent, and the dragonman youngster's
vision was also obscured by the fog.
At the same time, countless frost flowers brought icy cold damage, sucking and
eroding the dragonman youngster's torn body, transforming into gold level icy
cold battle qi that invaded his body and eroded it.
youngster's torn body, transforming into gold level icy cold battle qi that
invaded his body and eroded it.
In the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' audience area, Men Shi, Tripleblade, and
others couldn't help but stand up.
“It's dangerous!”
"Teng Dong Lang wants to press his advantage. Even though he has a firm lead,
he has no intention of fighting a war of attrition! He wants to defeat the
commander now!"
It wasn't just them; many spectators saw Teng Dong Lang's intention at this
moment.
Bu Quan clasped her hands tightly together, her heart cold: “Could it be that
Commander Long Fu's best attack this time has become the trigger for his
defeat?”
“We're going to win.” In the viewing room, Bing Xiao stared at the magic image,
the corners of his mouth slightly upturned.
But in the next moment, he saw Teng Dong Lang's face suddenly turn slightly
startled in the magic image!
The fog obscured his vision, but Teng Dong Lang could clearly sense the
situation inside.
Because this was within his Base.
In his perception, the dragonman youngster accurately avoided the powerful gold
level whips.
Even in the thick fog, he could see clearly.
“Is it those goggles?” Teng Dong Lang guessed the truth.
It was the ski goggles that allowed the dragonman youngster to clearly see Teng
Dong Lang's various ice vines and the gold level whip among the whip shadows.
The dragonman youngster suddenly rushed out of the cold fog!
The spectators couldn't help but cry out in unison.
Because they saw that Commander Long Fu not only still maintained his combat
effectiveness, but also did not retreat, instead continuing to rush towards
Teng Dong Lang!
Teng Dong Lang's heart skipped a beat.
He had used his Extended Whip battle skill and made the attack distance too
long.
Now it was not easy to cancel the battle skill and retrieve the long whip,
which would take at least three seconds.
Those three seconds were enough to become his huge weakness!
“Teng Dong Lang, come and taste the power of my reverse scale,” the dragonman
youngster roared.
When he was still more than ten meters away from Teng Dong Lang, he ruthlessly
activated his Sword Return Dragon Scale with full force, without holding back
in the slightest.
A large amount of sword light shot out, forming a dazzling sword light storm!
The storm swept fiercely past, instantly engulfing Teng Dong Lang's entire
figure.
Teng Dong Lang's field of vision was filled with white light.
The Thin Ice Wall Shield in front of him still stood stubbornly in front of
him, blocking the sword qi coming from the front.
But there was too much sword qi.
It overflowed the shield and hit Teng Dong Lang's body.
The Flowing Wave Armor activated.
The water-like armor blocked the impact of the sword qi.
This was a gold level defensive item.
Its design was ingenious.
Driven by Teng Dong Lang's gold level battle qi, it was able to fully unleash
its power, which was much stronger than the one in Xiong Ju's hands.
However, after a few seconds, the Flowing Wave Armor also showed signs of being
unable to withstand the attack.
The reason was simple.
This sword qi attack was more comprehensive than the Machine Gun Fist, covering
almost Teng Dong Lang's entire body.
Therefore, the Flowing Wave Armor could not be repaired in time.
Soon, the armor collapsed completely!
The sword qi began to wash away Teng Dong Lang's leather armor.
His leather armor was only silver level, so of course it couldn't withstand
this level of attack, and it shattered in less than a second.
At this critical moment, Teng Dong Lang remained motionless.
He didn't even use any defensive battle skills!
Because in the next second, his inner shirt took effect.
A large number of intricate magic lines appeared on the surface of the snow-
white shirt. The magic runes moved quickly, like chains.
A mysterious power was generated.
The shirt emitted a grayish-white light.
The light enveloped Teng Dong Lang's entire body, and despite the sword qi, it
easily expanded and turned into a sphere in the blink of an eye.
All the sword qi washed over the gray sphere and then mysteriously disappeared.
Gold level defensive equipment—the Abandoned Person's Shirt.
The gray light sphere was not a traditional defensive measure, but rather a
teleportation spell. 
It channeled the massive sword qi surging toward it into spatial fissures or
alternate dimensions. 
The sword qi dissipates completely.
Crack, crack.
Cracks spread across every corner of the Thin Ice Wall Shield, and it finally
couldn't bear the burden, completely shattering into pieces of thin ice.
Teng Dong Lang glanced nostalgically at the ice fragments scattered all over
the ground.
This shield, which had accompanied him for many years and experienced many
thrilling battles with him, had finally reached its end.
Teng Dong Lang raised his eyes, and in an instant, his gaze became sharp and
cold, firmly locked on the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was panting heavily.
When he poured out the accumulated power into his dragon scale, he was
completely focused and exhausted his mind.
It was extremely mentally exhausting.
However, the sword qi did not achieve its goal. Although Teng Dong Lang lost a
gold level shield and his silver level leather armor, his body remained
unscathed!
The entire venue fell silent.
This clash of power had filled everyone with fear due to the overwhelming sword
qi.
The result of the competition disappointed most people.
"How powerful is Teng Dong Lang! Until now, he hasn't been forced back by Long
Fu, and he doesn't have a single scratch on him!" Some people exclaimed, even
if they hated Teng Dong Lang, they couldn't help but admire his strength.
"No, don't look at the surface. In fact, he has been forced to use all his
skills." Some people held a different view.
This view was agreed upon by many people.
“Look, when Teng Dong Lang was defending against the sword qi attack, he was
completely unable to control the ice vines to deal with Commander Long Fu.”
“This is the best proof.”
“He can hold nothing back anymore!”
“What a pity.”
“I didn't expect Teng Dong Lang to have such special defensive equipment.”
“Long Fu has done well enough.”
"He is not just a normal silver level, but perhaps an ordinary gold level, and
he would have won long ago. But unfortunately, Teng Dong Lang is not just an
ordinary gold level, he is the leader of a gang!"
A button suddenly broke off and fell at Teng Dong Lang's feet.
Teng Dong Lang glanced at it and found that it was a button from the collar of
the Abandoned Person's Shirt.
This meant that during the defense just now, this shirt had also been pushed to
its limit. Although it had successfully repelled the sword qi, it was not
without a cost.



****** Chapter 340: That’s the Magician Scroll I Gave! ******
The collar of his white shirt was half open, exposing half of Teng Dong Lang's
chest.
The thin Teng Dong Lang stood still and sneered at the dragonman youngster,
"Now, what hope do you have? Commander Long Fu."
"Dragon breath?"
"Perhaps you can try it."
The dragonman youngster had used this spell when fighting against Rou Zang. The
Bayonet Gang had already obtained relevant information, and Teng Dong Lang had
long prepared countermeasures.
The dragonman youngster's decision not to use the Scorching Dragon Breath was
undoubtedly correct.
The dragonman youngster panted heavily and replied deliberately, “That's right,
although the Sword Return Reverse Scale didn't defeat you, I've seen through
your trump card.”
“Next, I'll use my dragon breath to finish you off!”
He first showed his determination to fight, but quickly changed his tone:
“However...”
“You are indeed formidable; I've seen it for myself.”
“Perhaps...”
He was deliberately stalling for time.
When Teng Dong Lang spoke earlier, the ice vines did not attack.
Every time the dragonman youngster took a breath, his condition improved.
This was because the bloodline of the Flame Dragon King was rapidly healing his
injuries. At the same time, the Automatic Blood Bottle he had swallowed earlier
was also having a healing effect.
Don't forget, there was also the Grand Arena Medal!
This comprehensive silver level item was also enhancing the dragonman
youngster's own recovery ability.
“Cunning dragonman!” Teng Dong Lang snorted coldly, immediately seeing through
the dragonman youngster's delaying tactic.
Even if the dragonman youngster wanted to compromise with the Bayonet Gang,
revise the previous agreement, and no longer make exorbitant demands, he
wouldn't say it out loud in the dueling arena.
A large number of ice vines and whips attacked again.
The dragonman youngster clenched one fist and held a short spear in the other,
defending himself with all his might while retreating.
The retreat was not easy.
With many new wounds and a large amount of battle qi expended, he finally
pulled away, escaped the coverage of the Base, and was safe again.
“What's the point?” Ban Lan Gen sneered, "If it were me, I would admit defeat
now. He won't have any chance next."
“Even if there's no chance, they have to fight to the end!” Xiong Ju glanced at
Ban Lan Gen, his disapproval evident.
Although he had lost the previous fierce battle with the dragonman youngster,
he had gained a lot of respect for him.
The dragonman youngster's determination at this moment, just like before,
resonated deeply with Xiong Ju.
“Something's wrong,” Bing Xiao suddenly narrowed his eyes and stared at the
magic image, “His recovery speed is a little too fast.”
“I clearly didn't see him take any medicine.”
“His recovery is far beyond that of the previous duel.”
Bing Xiao keenly noticed something unusual about the dragonman youngster.
It was mainly due to the effect of the Automatic Blood Bottle.
But Ban Lan Gen said, "It's useless. Even if he can recover, even if he can
recover to his pre-battle state, so what?"
“Lord Teng Dong Lang's Base has expanded greatly, and his advantage is
unbreakable.”
"Of course, this battle skill consumes a lot of battle qi. Lord Teng Dong
Lang's battle qi reserves should be close to the warning line now."
“But it doesn't matter!”
"He still has my Battle Qi Syringe."
“Haha, look, the gang leader is starting to use my equipment.”
In the magic image, Teng Dong Lang took out the Battle Qi Syringe and jabbed
himself in the chest.
His aura quickly rose, and his battle qi reserves quickly returned to their
peak state.
“Now, his only weakness no longer exists, hahaha.” Ban Lan Gen laughed loudly.
“Quickly adjust it and enlarge the magic image. I want to see the expression on
Long Fu's face right now.”
However, when Bing Xiao adjusted the magic image to reveal the details of the
dragonman youngster's face, everyone saw a bright light flashing in his dragon
eyes.
Then, they heard the dragonman youngster say, “I've been waiting for you to use
this equipment, Teng Dong Lang.”
“Next, try this!”
The dragonman youngster took an item out of his bosom.
It was a gold level spell scroll.
“What is it?”
The entire audience was attracted by this scroll.
Only Bu Quan understood the details of this scroll. She was so excited that her
whole body trembled slightly, and she shouted in her heart, "That's right, use
it. Use it quickly, Commander Long Fu!"
The dragonman youngster opened the scroll, infused it with battle qi and spirit
power, and without a moment's hesitation, triggered the scroll.
Gold level spell—Lava Hell!
The spell was released very quickly.
A huge magic circle spread out almost instantly, centered on the spot where the
dragonman youngster was standing, covering almost the entire dueling arena.
Looking down from above, one could see that Teng Dong Lang's Base only occupied
one-third of the magic formation.
The extremely complex magic formation suddenly appeared and then disappeared
just as quickly.
But with just a glance, the owner of the Snow Bird Dueling Arena stood up in
shock and shouted, “Quick, activate all defenses!”
The Snow Bird Dueling Arena immediately activated its full defenses, and a
massive hemispherical light barrier suddenly appeared in the arena.
The light barrier, pale blue in color, covered the entire dueling arena,
instantly separating the duelists from the audience.
Within the light barrier, the magic was taking effect.
The air suddenly became scorching hot.
Endless heat rose up, breaking through the ground to form lava fountains. 
The fountains started small but quickly expanded, rising upward to form
miniature volcanoes. 
The volcanoes erupted, showering the sky with fiery rain. 
Within a dozen seconds, the once-flat terrain of the arena became rugged and
uneven.   Some areas were covered in miniature volcanoes, while others were
filled with lava pools.
Under the shocked gaze of the spectators, a hellish scene took over the
original arena.
“Lava Hell spell, it's the Lava Hell spell,” someone recognized.
“What an extravagant move, I didn't expect Commander Long Fu to have such a
trick up his sleeve,” many people shouted excitedly.
The audience outside the arena broke into cheers.
What they wanted to see most was this kind of dramatic duel, which was becoming
more and more exciting.
“It's so exciting. It's been ten years since I've seen such an exciting heroic
duel.”
“Commander Long Fu really wants to win, so much so that he's willing to use up
a scroll like this.”
“A gold level spell scroll, and a battlefield spell like Lava Hell at that.
This scroll has an astonishing market price, and it's priceless!”
The audience was buzzing with excitement, talking animatedly, many of them with
faces flushed with excitement, even brighter than the flames of lava in the
arena.
Listening to everyone's discussions and conversations, Bu Quan's eyes, hidden
behind her glasses, revealed intense joy and pride.
She proudly shouted in her heart, “You never would have guessed, but this
scroll was a gift from me to Commander Long Fu.”
“Don't ask about the price.”
“It's a free gift.”
“It's free!”
To be honest, after giving away the treasure, Bu Quan left the dock with some
regret and doubt.
After all, giving away three precious items was equivalent to giving away half
of her savings.
At the same time, Bu Quan was also skeptical about whether Commander Long Fu
could live up to expectations and embarrass Teng Dong Lang in battle.
Now, Bu Quan had witnessed the entire process of how the dragonman youngster
fought resolutely, how he fought fiercely, and how he used this spell scroll.
“Commander Long Fu, how lucky I am to have met you!”
“Thank you, thank you for forcing Teng Dong Lang to this point.”
"Come on, come on! If you can defeat Teng Dong Lang in public and destroy the
reputation of the Bayonet Gang, I will give you all my savings!"
"I, Bu Quan, will repay your kindness!"
Inside the arena.
For the first time, Teng Dong Lang's face was as gloomy as water.
The moment the Lava Hell spell was released, he took the initiative to withdraw
his Base.
The Base battle skill was to transform the battlefield and create a field
advantage.
The Lava Hell also transformed the terrain, but one was fire and the other was
ice, one was magic, and the other was a battle skill, and the two were
completely incompatible.
If Teng Dong Lang still wanted to keep his Base, he would have to counteract
the full power of the Lava Hell.
This was obviously quite unwise!
The power of the Lava Hell was enormous, and it would be very foolish to resist
it head-on.
Magicians used spells with the help of external support. Although their own
magic power was also involved, in fact, they had always been using spirit power
to pry open a part of the power of heaven and earth.
Battle qi cultivators were skilled at using their own strength. When faced with
magic, they always dodged and focused on breaking through the enemy's guard.
Exhausting all their battle qi against magic?
Unless forced by special circumstances, battle qi cultivators would never do
such a thing.
A smart person like Teng Dong Lang would naturally not do such a thing!
He scanned the drastically changed battlefield and finally looked far away at
the dragonman youngster: “I underestimated you, Commander Long Fu.”
"This is a carefully weakened battlefield-class spell scroll, “This is not the
true power of Lava Hell."
Once this spell was used, the tactics he had previously adopted became a joke.
The advantages he had worked so hard to accumulate were all gone.
In fact, it was even worse than that.
In order to maintain and accumulate the advantages of his Base, Teng Dong Lang
had invested a lot of battle qi into it.
He remained motionless, defending himself for a long time, and even wasted a
gold level shield.
Just as he was about to turn his advantage into victory, a spell scroll
completely negated it.
Who would have thought that the dragonman youngster would have such a scroll?
To be fair, Teng Dong Lang's tactics were not wrong. He took advantage of the
situation and misled the dragonman youngster for a period of time.
After that, Teng Dong Lang was willing to persevere and invest himself, which
allowed him to maintain the initiative. Even though he had to remain motionless
for a long time.
Every time the dragonman youngster charged, the spectators realized that the
former was one step closer to defeat.
It was all thanks to the Lava Hell spell scroll that turned the tide!
It was no exaggeration to say that the dragonman youngster made 500% use of
this scroll in actual combat.
This was because Teng Dong Lang's tactics happened to be completely countered
by this scroll!
Who made Teng Dong Lang choose such a tactic?
The dragonman youngster did not consciously influence or control him. This was
completely beyond the dragonman youngster's capabilities.
Therefore, Teng Dong Lang made this choice himself.



****** Chapter 341: Hope of Defeating a Gold Level ******
Even Bu Quan, who had given him the spell scroll, had not realized that it
would bring such a reward.
At the time, she said to the dragonman youngster, “I hope this scroll will be
of some help to you.”
It wasn't until now that Bu Quan realized what a great gift she had given the
dragonman youngster!
A powerful weapon!
A trump card!
“If you lose this duel, then you won't have lost to just me,” the dragonman
youngster said loudly.
Struck by the sudden gratitude, Bu Quan's body trembled, and her eyes reddened
slightly.
“You cunning dragonman, but in this situation, it's not your turn to declare
victory!”
Teng Dong Lang swung his whip and took the initiative to pounce on the
dragonman youngster, shouting coldly, “This battle has only just begun.”
"Go! Charge!" Countless spectators cheered for the dragonman youngster.
The members of the Bayonet Gang cheered for their leader.
Amidst the excited atmosphere, the dragonman youngster did not engage in a
passionate battle but instead retreated intensely.
He picked up the golden longbow, crossbow, and quiver with arrows left in the
corner, and began to shoot from a distance while moving.
His tactics had changed again!
This scene greatly surprised the excited spectators.
But after they reacted, they could only accept this fact with strange and
bitter expressions on their faces.
A calm analysis showed that the dragonman youngster's tactical choice was
undoubtedly the most correct.
The dragonman youngster now had the advantage of the terrain, while Teng Dong
Lang was suffering in the Lava Hell, constantly being weakened.
Teng Dong Lang had just used a Battle Qi Syringe, restoring his battle qi
reserves to their peak, and his combat effectiveness was still intact.
The dragonman youngster, on the other hand, was injured and needed time to
recover.
The members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps knew even more key information.
The Grand Arena Medal!
With this equipment, the longer the dragonman youngster stalled, the greater
the increase he would get.
Before, there was no way.
If the dragonman youngster didn't stop him in advance, Teng Dong Lang's Base
would quickly spread throughout the dueling arena, giving him such a great
advantage that the dragonman youngster would be quickly defeated.
Now, the dragonman youngster had the advantage in time.
The dragonman youngster's tactical choice made Teng Dong Lang's face even more
ugly.
This kind of clever enemy was the most troublesome.
Seeing Teng Dong Lang's expression, Bu Quan smiled like a flower.
It had been many years since she had seen her enemy suffer so much, being toyed
with by a silver level battle qi cultivator in front of everyone.
This made her feel the joy of revenge.
“Even if you lose, Commander Long Fu, you have already met my expectations by
coming this far.”
“After this duel, I will send you three more pieces of equipment!”
“Gold level.”
“Don't ask about the price.”
“It's a gift.”
Teng Dong Lang saw through the dragonman youngster's tactics and naturally
tried his best to catch up and bring him within his attack range.
However, based on the information he had obtained earlier, the dragonman
youngster knew that he was best at mid-range attacks, so he did not let his
guard down in the slightest and did his best to maintain a long distance.
Teng Dong Lang naturally had a set of tricks for fighting distant enemies,
which allowed him to close the distance between them.
However, when the dragonman youngster was hit by his battle skill, his speed
dropped dramatically, and he was forced to clash with Teng Dong Lang, but by
then, he had already shot all the arrows in his quiver!
The dragonman youngster held a short spear in one hand and clenched his fist in
the other and clashed with Teng Dong Lang again.
He had thrown the short spear before and tried to retrieve it.
Teng Dong Lang had anticipated this and used it as bait to lure the dragonman
youngster to pick up the spear, thereby bringing him within his attack range.
After a few attempts, the dragonman youngster saw through Teng Dong Lang's trap
and had no intention of picking up the spear again for a short time.
With a spear in one hand and a fist in the other, he could use both spear and
fist techniques, which gave him much more combat options than if he had two
spears or two fists.
“What I need to do most now is to stall for time.”
“Let the effect of the Grand Arena Medal increase.”
“At the same time, I can still take hits in battle and recharge the energy of
the Sword Return Dragon Scale!”
The dragonman youngster did not seek to achieve anything, but only to avoid
mistakes, fighting while retreating.
Teng Dong Lang chased after him, constantly sneering and taunting him with his
words, but to little effect.
After all, the dragonman youngster was weak against the strong, so he had no
burden in using such tactics.
On the other hand, Teng Dong Lang, as a gold level battle qi cultivator, was
unable to defeat the dragonman youngster for a long time, which greatly damaged
his reputation.
Teng Dong Lang became increasingly angry and frequently used his battle skills.
The dragonman youngster's Diamond Body had recovered, and he relied mainly on
this defense to struggle against Teng Dong Lang's attacks.
Teng Dong Lang specialized in ice battle skills, which he was skilled at using,
and when used in combination, they were even more unpredictable.
Despite his best efforts to dodge, the dragonman youngster was still frequently
hit.
There was no way around it, his movements were too monotonous, rushing straight
ahead and sideways, making it easy to predict his movements.
After being hit, the cold air corroded the dragonman youngster's body, slowing
down both his movement speed and attack speed.
Fortunately, the Cold Heart Ice Bag allowed the dragonman youngster to
counteract the negative effects of the cold air corroding his body.
There was another key factor.
Before the battle, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had given the dragonman
youngster a batch of dragon beast materials.
After the dragonman youngster swallowed them with his Bloodcore, his white
dragon bloodline increased.
The Bloodcore had long since undergone a mutation, giving the dragonman
youngster some basic frost resistance.
Although it was only basic, it triggered a qualitative change, allowing him to
narrowly resist the negative state.
Teng Dong Lang's prolonged attack and frequent use of battle skills led to a
sharp increase in battle qi consumption.
The dragonman youngster was also in a difficult situation.
There were several hair-raising moments when the defensive aura of the Diamond
Body was broken by Teng Dong Lang.
His Golden Silk Chainmail was extremely tattered.
His dragon scales were broken, and the youngster's skin was covered with whip
marks.
However, with the Automatic Blood Bottle, the Grand Arena Medal, and the
recovery abilities of his legendary bloodline, the dragonman youngster was able
to endure the pain.
He had brought medicine with him this time as well.
But since Teng Dong Lang took the initiative to attack, his offensive was
continuous and endless, and they worked together, not giving the dragonman
youngster any time to take medicine.
Not to mention using Life Scorching Dragon Breath.
Facing such a strong enemy as Teng Dong Lang, using such a big flaw in his
technique was tantamount to begging for defeat and death.
"We can win this battle! The commander will definitely win." Lan Zao's face was
determined, his eyes shining brightly.
“Although the situation is difficult, we do have a chance of winning.” Men Shi
nodded in agreement.
He now admired the dragonman youngster greatly.
After all, Teng Dong Lang was at the gold level.
Not only had the dragonman youngster not been defeated, but he had also
persisted in fighting until now, and there was even hope of victory!
Although he had turned the tables with a spell scroll, Men Shi felt from the
bottom of his heart that the dragonman youngster deserved it.
It was all because of the dragonman youngster's hard work and fighting skills
that had supported him and brought him to this point.
He deserved it!
Tripleblade's expression was complex as he exclaimed, "If he wins this duel,
the commander will gain unimaginable fame! And the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
will also benefit greatly."
“It's not that no one at the silver level has ever defeated someone at the gold
level, but those are basically special circumstances.”
“Today, both sides are fighting at full strength, and in front of so many
spectators; a rare occurrence in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for the last
decade.”
"As long as he defeats Teng Dong Lang in this battle, the commander will be
famous throughout the kingdom. Our mercenary corps will rise to become the most
sought-after one!"
The gap between the silver level and the gold level was obvious.
Precisely because the vast majority of people couldn't do it, if the silver
level won, it would be all the more precious!
Tripleblade once led a mercenary group and was quite knowledgeable about their
business and future prospects.
Upon hearing this, Men Shi became even more excited.
But at the same time, he also became worried and immediately asked, "Doesn't
our identity matter? After all, we are outsiders, and we have a background as
arms dealers..."
Men Shi was not one of the survivors, so he was not yet qualified to know the
core identity of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Tripleblade smiled and shrugged indifferently, "What's there to fear? We're a
mercenary group registered through official channels. Even if they suspect us,
they'd have to find the Mercenary Guild first." 
Tripleblade added in his mind, "Besides, we have no connections to arms
dealers.   Even if the Ice Sculpture Kingdom wanted to investigate us or gather
evidence of our criminal records, it's impossible." 
“If they can't investigate us, they can't cause us trouble.”
“They might even overestimate us because of this, and out of fear, they won't
dare to take action easily.”
Men Shi was reassured and couldn't help but have higher expectations for the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and his own future.
He stared at the dragonman youngster in the fierce battle and muttered, "How is
the energy storage of the Sword Return Dragon Scale? It should be almost full,
right?"
Men Shi was even more eager to see the dragonman youngster turn the tables and
win with the Sword Return Dragon Scale.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' audience area was full of anticipation, but in
contrast, the atmosphere in the Bayonet Gang's VIP viewing room was solemn, and
the leaders were worried.
Xiong Ju frowned deeply and Ban Lan Gen stopped shouting as he revealed a
bitter expression.
Spring Boxer also looked nervous. Although he admired the dragonman youngster,
he was more inclined to see his own gang leader win.
Bing Xiao was, after all, the former gang leader, and seeing this situation, he
spoke up to boost morale: “There's no need to worry too much.”
"Even if the Sword Return Dragon Scale successfully accumulates energy, it
still needs the right moment to release it. Before, it was because the gang
leader stood still that he was easily hit."
“If Commander Long Fu rashly unleashes his sword qi, it is very likely that the
gang leader will be able to dodge it.”
“His best tactic should be to fight the gang leader at close range.”
“Only at the closest distance can he maximize the chance of his sword qi
hitting the target.”
“But it's not that easy to achieve this.”
“You have to believe in the gang leader, he won't let Long Fu succeed easily!”
Without a doubt, the Sword Return Dragon Scale was the dragonman youngster's
trump card.
Not only the two combatants, but also the forces behind them and the countless
spectators were thinking about this key factor.
Suddenly, a dazzling white-hot sword qi erupted from the Sword Return Dragon
Scale!



****** Chapter 342: The Final Spear Throw ******
The sword qi shot out and was shattered by the gold level whip.
At the same time, it also startled many people.
Ban Lan Gen let out a low cry, causing Xiong Ju to glare at him fiercely.
Bing Xiao also frowned slightly in dissatisfaction, but to be honest, his heart
had just skipped a beat.
On the surface, Bing Xiao remained calm. He had to stabilize the morale of his
troops.
He snorted coldly, with a hint of disdain, and analyzed the situation, “It
seems that Commander Long Fu wants to take action.”
“He has been on the defensive the whole time. If he doesn't act now, he will
really be defeated.”
“That sword qi blast just now was both a threat and a test.”
“But our gang leader had already anticipated it and directly shattered it with
a whip.”
As soon as Bing Xiao finished speaking, the dragonman youngster fired several
more sword qi blasts in the magic image.
Teng Dong Lang immediately switched from offense to defense and directly
extinguished the sword qi blasts.
“What's going on?”
“What kind of tactic is this?”
For a moment, the audience looked puzzled.
Bing Xiao's brow furrowed, and he also felt confused: if Long Fu abused his
sword qi like this, how could he store up more energy?
In the next moment, the dragonman youngster used the sword qi blasts even more
frequently.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
For a moment, sword qi flew everywhere.
Teng Dong Lang was forced to retreat.
The dragonman youngster seized this opportunity and quickly retreated, taking
medicine while retreating.
Unexpectedly, Teng Dong Lang chuckled softly and immediately used his battle
skill, Extended Whip.
The whip lashed out, interrupting the dragonman youngster's action of taking
medicine, and he almost spilled the medicine.
Seeing this scene, Bing Xiao suddenly frowned and laughed loudly, “Hahaha, I
know.”
“It's battle qi!” The human ringleader on the side followed suit and spoke up,
as he also understood.
Bing Xiao nodded, his face brightening as if the clouds had cleared: "That's
right, that's it! Long Fu's battle qi is insufficient."
“He's not a gold level battle qi cultivator. As a silver level battle qi
cultivator, he can't compare to a gold level battle qi cultivator in terms of
the quality and quantity of his battle qi.”
Bing Xiao looked at Xiong Ju again: "Do you remember the last duel? Long Fu and
you were both in the final stages, constantly taking medicine."
“Judging from that situation, Long Fu's battle qi reserves and recovery speed
are only slightly above normal.”
"Don't forget, there is another key point. He practices the Bursting Explosion
battle qi, which is powerful but easily depleted."
Xiong Ju nodded, a flash of recollection passing through his eyes: "That's
right. His battle skills also consume battle qi very quickly. Once the battle
time is extended, he needs to replenish a large amount of battle qi."
"Come to think of it, after Long Fu discovered the gang leader's Base, he
entered a state of full power. He has been fighting in this state until now, so
it's normal for him to be low on battle qi."
The others also realized this.
“Yes, he's only at the silver level.” Ban Lan Gen's expression was somewhat
complicated.
He realized that, at some point, he had begun to regard the dragonman youngster
as being at the gold level.
It was only at this moment, when he was reminded of this, that he understood
that the person who was currently fighting back and forth with the gang leader,
and still had a chance of victory, was actually at the same silver level as
him!
The others felt the same way as Ban Lan Gen.
Spring Boxer sighed, “Commander Long Fu is truly remarkable to have made it
this far.”
“Although he has luxurious equipment, his own strength is also sufficient,
which is why he has been able to fight this far.”
In the past, when others heard Spring Boxer's praise, they would roll their
eyes and feel annoyed.
But now, they had no objections.
Even though the dragonman youngster was their enemy and had caused them great
trouble and even humiliation, they had to admit that the dragonman youngster
was no ordinary silver level!
Even Bing Xiao sighed, “I have to say, Long Fu is no ordinary person.”
“Even if someone else had the same equipment as him, it would be unlikely that
they could have fought until now.”
“His fighting spirit, technique, and mental strength are all top-notch. He has
come this far, so even though he lost, he still has honor.”
Although the duel was still ongoing, from his words, Bing Xiao had already
considered the dragonman youngster to be the loser.
More and more spectators also saw through the dragonman youngster's
predicament.
Insufficient battle qi!
This discovery made the people who supported the dragonman youngster and
expected him to defeat the stronger opponent look gloomy, sighing with regret
for the dragonman youngster.
"Without battle qi, he has lost his foundation. How can he fight at an
extraordinary level?"
"Alas! Commander Long Fu ultimately failed."
“It's already quite remarkable that he made it this far.”
"Teng Dong Lang gave it his all. His battle skills, equipment, and mental
strength were all excellent. If it had been an ordinary gold level battle qi
cultivator, Long Fu might have won."
“Commander Long Fu chose a strong opponent, and because of that, he proved his
own extraordinary abilities.”
“If he could take a potion to replenish his battle qi, Long Fu might still have
hope.”
"Come on, you saw what just happened. Teng Dong Lang is a veteran of the
battlefield, how could he give Long Fu such an opportunity?"
But Bu Quan never gave up hope.
"Hang in there, hang in there! Commander Long Fu."
She secretly cheered on the dragonman youngster and prayed for him.
“As long as you find an opportunity to take the potion, you will be able to
replenish your battle qi!”
She was good at alchemy, but not at all good at fighting. Her insight was poor,
and she didn't realize that it was actually very difficult for the dragonman
youngster to find such an opportunity.
The dragonman youngster rolled around awkwardly and dodged the Small Thunder
God Flying Hammer.
When Teng Dong Lang began his pursuit, he immediately used this annoying
weapon.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer pursued relentlessly.
The dragonman youngster had no choice but to draw on his sword qi again to
temporarily repel it.
“Is this as far as I can go?” The dragonman youngster's heart was filled with
regret.
His battle qi was severely depleted, and under duress, he had no choice but to
draw on the sword qi reserves in his Sword Return Dragon Scale ahead of time.
But this was undoubtedly drinking poison to quench his thirst.
“With such a severe depletion of sword qi, there's no way I can turn the tide.”
“If I could take a potion, I could delay it a little longer.”
In fact, he had already taken a potion.
It was not a healing potion stored in an Automatic Blood Bottle, but one
specifically used to restore battle qi.
Earlier, when the dragonman youngster repeatedly attacked Teng Dong Lang's
Base, and after retreating to a safe distance, he swallowed it with a flourish.
Otherwise, with only his own battle qi reserves, he would not have been able to
hold out to this extent.
However, once Teng Dong Lang was no longer bound by his Base and took the
initiative to pursue, the dragonman youngster no longer had the opportunity to
take the medicine.
“Taking medicine in front of him would be a mistake!”
The dragonman youngster tried once, and after failing, he completely understood
that he would not have such an opportunity.
Teng Dong Lang's strength surpassed his own, and he was also very rigorous,
controlling the attack distance with exquisite precision.
This medium range was enough for him to get close in time to prevent the
dragonman youngster from taking medicine. At the same time, if the dragonman
youngster charged at him, he could quickly retreat.
Up to this point in the battle, he had not shown any flying abilities.
The dragonman youngster was basically certain that Teng Dong Lang did not have
any flying battle skills.
If he did, he would not need to run around in this Lava Hell.
However, Teng Dong Lang's mobility was not weaker than that of the dragonman
youngster. More accurately, it was slightly superior to that of the dragonman
youngster.
Even moving at full speed, the dragonman youngster couldn't shake him off or
pull away.
The youngster racked his brains, searching for a way to break the deadlock.
“Spear technique can't solve my predicament.”
“Until now, I still haven't picked up a short spear.”
Teng Dong Lang was really good at controlling the battlefield.
Of course, this was based on his solid advantage.
“Fist techniques won't work either.”
“Not to mention long-range attacks, I've almost used up all my arrows.”
The dragonman youngster thought about his equipment.
Only the Sword Return Dragon Scale gave him hope!
He couldn't rely on defensive equipment in this situation.
Thinking this, the youngster suddenly felt his legs go weak, and he staggered,
almost falling down while running at full speed!
The dragonman youngster was startled and instantly understood: his body had
also reached its limit.
Even though the Automatic Blood Bottle was constantly healing his wounds, the
blood he had lost could not be quickly replenished.
Only the flesh wounds could heal quickly.
This scene fell into the eyes of those who cared, once again triggering a wave
of sighs.
Teng Dong Lang saw the dragonman youngster's weakness and attacked again,
whipping the dragonman youngster's back with a whip.
Smack!
The dragonman youngster was knocked down on the spot.
He used the momentum to roll on the ground, dodging the hammer blow from the
Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
He kicked the ground with his back foot, causing the ring mound to flash with
yellow light, and counterattacked Teng Dong Lang.
Teng Dong Lang was prepared and quickly retreated.
The whip was light, but when it landed on the dragonman youngster, it was as
sharp as a sword.
The dragonman youngster was whipped until blood splattered, his momentum
dissipated, and he could only retreat.
Teng Dong Lang followed again.
He followed the tactical principle of advancing when the enemy retreated and
retreating when the enemy advanced, firmly controlling the distance between the
two sides.
The dragonman youngster was only at the silver level and could not condense his
battle qi into a corporeal form, so he was completely overwhelmed.
He kept trying to get closer to Teng Dong Lang.
But times were different. Teng Dong Lang was no longer bound by his Base and
was very agile. The distance was clearly not long, but after actually trying,
the dragonman youngster couldn't help but feel a sense of despair.
“The gang leader's control of distance is simply exquisite,” Xiong Ju
exclaimed.
Ban Lan Gen laughed loudly again, "Hahaha, this is so funny. Look at the
dragonman, every time he tries to get close for a melee battle, he gets beaten
to a pulp by the gang leader and has to run away again. It's really
embarrassing."
Bing Xiao stroked his beard and smiled.
As the battle progressed, the dragonman youngster used more and more sword qi,
and they all gradually calmed down.
There was no chance at all!
“It's difficult this time,” Tripleblade sighed, "If the commander could get
into close combat, there would still be a little hope. It depends on whether
Teng Dong Lang will make a mistake next."
Obviously, Tripleblade also saw that, based on Teng Dong Lang's current
abilities, under normal circumstances, it was impossible for the dragonman
youngster to get close to him.
If it was just the beginning of the battle, there might still be a chance for
close combat.
But the battle had been going on for so long that both Teng Dong Lang and the
dragonman youngster had a clear understanding of each other's abilities.
The boost brought by the Grand Arena Medal, which the dragonman youngster had
secretly hoped for, could not offset his current huge disadvantage.
“If the Grand Arena Medal was a gold level equipment, perhaps the current
situation would be different.”
“But it's only silver level.” Tripleblade sighed deeply in his heart.
In this gold level battle, silver level equipment seemed a little inadequate.
But that's not to say that the Grand Arena Medal didn't help the dragonman
youngster.
Its help was still substantial.
Without this help, the dragonman youngster might not have been able to hold out
until now.
But this level of help was far from enough to allow the dragonman youngster to
turn the tables again.
Outside the arena.
The owner of the Snow Bird Dueling Arena was also shaking his head.
“What a pity.”
“It's such a shame!”
He expressed pity for the dragonman youngster.
If the dragonman youngster defeated the stronger opponent, then the Snow Bird
Dueling Arena would also benefit greatly.
The dragonman youngster's fame would spread throughout the kingdom, and the
Snow Bird Dueling Arena would also become well-known.
Not only that, but the video of a silver level defeating the gold level expert
would definitely become the hottest bestseller of the year throughout the
country.
This would be a very considerable fortune!
The dragonman youngster's vision began to darken.
He stumbled and lost his strength more and more often.
His injuries were also becoming more serious.
There was still a lot of healing potion left in the Automatic Blood Bottle, but
even with the recovery speed of the dragon bloodline, it couldn't keep up with
the damage caused by Teng Dong Lang.
The dragonman youngster was sliding into the abyss of defeat!
Teng Dong Lang played extremely steadily, not giving the dragonman youngster
any chance.
Expecting him to make a mistake?
It was simply impossible!
“No, it's not over yet.”
“Commander Long Fu, you still have a chance. Don't give up.”
“Even if there's only a sliver of a chance, you have to keep going, right?”
Bu Quan stared at the magic image.
She never gave up hope, stubbornly waiting for a miracle to happen.
“You have no hope!” Teng Dong Lang sneered, chasing after him and striking the
dragonman youngster's back again.
“Long Fu, the outcome of this battle had been decided from the very beginning.”
“Even if you used that special spell scroll, what difference did it make?”
“At most, it can only delay your defeat...”
Teng Dong Lang paused, not finishing his sentence, as the dragonman youngster
counterattacked again.
He immediately retreated, successfully pulling away.
But this time, the dragonman youngster did not retreat.
He had truly reached his limit.
“I can only bet on this one chance!” With this determination, the dragonman
youngster resolutely used the Sword Return Dragon Scale.
In the next moment, a torrent of sword qi gushed forth.
But this time, the scale of the sword qi was much smaller than last time.
Teng Dong Lang was already on guard and immediately used his battle skill to
increase his speed and dodge it.
But in the next moment, his legs went weak and his expression changed suddenly.
At that moment, he failed to unleash his battle qi!
His battle skill immediately drew a backlash.
The next moment, the sword qi rushed towards him.
At the most critical moment, he made a mistake!
Seeing this scene, a large number of spectators gasped and stood up.
In the VIP viewing room.
Bing Xiao and the others couldn't sit still either and stood up to watch.
“What's going on? The leader didn't dodge it?” Xiong Ju couldn't believe it.
The next moment, a gray light formed a hemispherical defensive shield,
appearing within the sword qi surge.
The Abandoned Person's Shirt!
No matter how the sword qi surge surged, this layer of light remained unmoved.
It was a very strange defense method.
It didn't harden against the attack but instead transmitted the sword qi away.
In just a few seconds, the sword qi storm came to an abrupt halt.
The accumulation this time was not as sufficient as last time. And before it
poured out, the dragonman youngster repeatedly drew on and consumed it.
The most powerful counterattack had been used up.
But the dragonman youngster still had one last strike left.
Battle skill—Spear Throw!
He clenched the gold level short spear tightly in his hand and threw it with
all his remaining battle qi and strength.
The short spear collided with the gray-white light ball but was not teleported
away.
The dragonman youngster seemed to hear an explosion.
The white-hot sword qi slowly dissipated, and the gray light ball disappeared,
revealing the protected user.
Teng Dong Lang's lower body was in a lunge position, his upper body was
straight, and his face was fierce.
He stood motionless, as if frozen in place.
The dragonman youngster fell to his knees with a thud.
He was about to admit defeat when suddenly his pupils contracted, and he froze
on the spot.
Then, his mouth slowly opened wide.
“Is this an illusion?”
In his field of vision, there was a large hole in Teng Dong Lang's heart,
visible from front to back.
The short spear had fallen behind him, covered in blood.
Along the path it had flown, there were large amounts of flesh and fragments of
heart.
This was...
A fatal blow.
Plop.
As if a gentle breeze had blown, Teng Dong Lang's body fell to the ground like
a broken sack.
Immediately afterwards, bright red blood quickly spread out, like a red carpet,
covering the body of a gold level battle qi cultivator.
He...
Was dead.



****** Chapter 343: The Bayonet Gang is in Danger ******
The entire arena fell silent.
Teng Dong Lang's death came as a shock to everyone.
Even the dragonman youngster who killed Teng Dong Lang was no exception.
Looking at the corpse not far away, the dragonman youngster's heart was filled
with a sense of unreality.
In the audience area at the edge of the arena.
Lan Zao, Tripleblade, and the others were all stunned.
They had imagined that the dragonman youngster would use his Sword Return
Dragon Scale, seize the last chance, and win with difficulty. They never
thought that the dragonman youngster would kill Teng Dong Lang!
“Ah, ah, ah!” Men Shi was so excited that he couldn't speak in complete
sentences. He could only point at Teng Dong Lang's corpse and stare wide-eyed.
There was someone even more overjoyed than him, and that was Bu Quan.
Bu Quan had jumped out of her seat and was so close to the magic image that she
was almost about to dive into it.
“Dead?”
“Teng Dong Lang is dead!”
"Commander Long Fu killed him?
“Oh my God, oh my God, I must be dreaming.” 
She couldn't help but pinch herself, and the pain immediately came. 
The next moment, she was in tears. 
Of course, it wasn't from the pain, but from the joy in her heart! 
What could be more satisfying than revenge? 
Especially seeing the leader of the Bayonet Gang die right before her eyes! 
In the VIP viewing room.
“Impossible.” Bing Xiao also left his seat, the calmness and composure on his
face completely disappearing.
He stared intently at the magic image and growled, “This is absolutely
impossible!”
“This is fake, it must be fake.”
He had such a big advantage before, but at the last moment, everything took a
sudden turn for the worse.
Not only did Teng Dong Lang lose, but he also lost his life.
This was far too different from the previous battle situation, far beyond the
comprehension of the higher-ups of the Bayonet Gang.
Xiong Ju, Ban Lan Gen, and the others were all stunned.
Suddenly, Spring Boxer shouted loudly, burst through the door, and rushed out.
The others were in a daze and didn't hear what the Spring Boxer had shouted.
But that shout snapped them out of their stupor.
“Oh God, great Oak Grandfather, what have I seen?” Ban Lan Gen covered his face
in panic.
"Am I hallucinating? Is that what's happening?" The human ringleader looked at
the others with a hopeful gaze, hoping for an answer.
But Xiong Ju shook his head.
In those few seconds, this fierce fighter of the Bayonet Gang had already
turned red-eyed, filled with bloodshot veins. 
He growled softly, “He’s dead! Our gang leader has fallen in battle!” 
The human ringleader’s body swayed as if struck by lightning. 
He collapsed onto his seat, staring at the pool of blood and corpses in the
magic image, muttering, “Dead? The gang leader... died just like that?"
“Something's fishy, something's wrong!” the demon hybrid ringleader screamed.
"Why did the gang leader suddenly stop at the last moment instead of dodging?
He clearly had the ability to do so. And why didn't the Abandoned Person's
Shirt block that short spear, even though he had activated it?"
“Someone desecrated this heroic duel. Yes, there must have been outsiders
meddling!”
“They saw that the Long Fu had no hope of winning, so they tampered with it.”
“Right, it must be that way!”
“What are we waiting for?” Upon hearing this, Xiong Ju was so angry that his
hair stood on end, "Grab your weapons, let's go find Long Fu and ask him about
it, and search the scene for evidence!”
In the Bayonet Gang, Xiong Ju respected Teng Dong Lang the most.
Teng Dong Lang's death had a strong psychological impact on Xiong Ju.
Originally, since his own gang leader had died in a heroic duel, Xiong Ju
couldn’t say much, only feeling filled with sorrow and pain.
But now, upon hearing that someone had tampered with the sacred heroic duel in
his heart, he was filled with rage and wanted to uncover the truth.
Seeing Xiong Ju approach the wall and grab the Gold Flower Hacksaw, the human
ringleader hurriedly stopped him: “Wait!”
“What's most important now isn't to uncover the truth.”
“The gang leader is dead, and our Bayonet Gang is in danger!”
These words had no effect on Xiong Ju, but they startled Bing Xiao, who had
been staring blankly, as if he had been doused with icy seawater in the dead of
winter. 
A strong sense of crisis rose within him, and Bing Xiao snapped back to
reality. 
He shouted, “Everyone, stay calm!” 
“Quickly collect the leader's body and return to the Bayonet Gang.”
“I will immediately summon my slave to defend the headquarters!” 
“Until the next gang leader is elected, I will take charge of the entire
situation.” 
"Everyone, we must unite. The Bayonet Gang is now in its most dangerous
moment.   To overcome this crisis, we must work together!" 
At this critical moment, the former gang leader stepped forward and took charge
of the situation.
The other ringleaders turned their attention to him.
Whether it was hatred, anger, confusion, or panic, seeing Bing Xiao take such
responsibility, they gradually calmed down.
Seeing the ringleaders show their obedience, Bing Xiao breathed a sigh of
relief.
The first step was complete.
He had just been worried that his prestige was not enough to lead these people.
After all, they were not his confidants, but Teng Dong Lang's.
The position of gang leader was also quite tempting to these ringleaders
Now it seemed that these ringleaders were still reasonable.
However, the real headache was still there, and it had to be faced with caution
and resolved with all efforts.
The Bayonet Gang was already in a bad situation, and they wanted to use this
heroic duel to solve their problems.
This was the solution agreed upon by Teng Dong Lang and Bing Xiao.
The Bayonet Gang wanted to fully demonstrate their strength in this duel to
stabilize the hearts of the people and revive their prestige.
It was because of this consideration that Teng Dong Lang took advantage of the
situation and adopted the Base tactic at the beginning of the battle. The goal
was to remain motionless and push Long Fu aside with ease.
But unexpectedly, the final outcome of this duel was his death in battle!
Who could have predicted this ending?
Even the most daring guess would have been that Long Fu would win and defeat
Teng Dong Lang.
Due to Teng Dong Lang's death in battle, the Bayonet Gang's situation
immediately fell into an irreparably dire state.
This was the world of the strong.
The Bayonet Gang was able to become the local tyrant and occupy a large amount
of resources in Snow Bird Harbor for one main reason: their gang leader was at
the gold level.
Otherwise, Bing Xiao would not have voluntarily ceded his position to Teng Dong
Lang.
The four gold level experts were the highest-ranking figures in Snow Bird
Harbor.
Teng Dong Lang was one of them.
Now that Teng Dong Lang had died in battle, the four highest levels of power
were missing a piece, and the balanced political landscape had been disrupted.
“Fortunately, the situation is not the worst.”
“I still have my gold level giant slave, so I can still barely control the
situation.”
“However, the Bayonet Gang's territory must be reduced.”
“Only Teng Dong Lang could handle something of this scale when he was alive.”
Thinking of this, Bing Xiao couldn't help but cast a hateful and murderous gaze
at the dragonman youngster in the magic image.
It was him.
It was this dragonman who caused the Bayonet Gang to fall into its current
situation.
Damn him.
He deserved to die!
Bing Xiao was filled with regret.
If he had ignored the consequences and surrounded and killed the dragonman
youngster during the conflict, would he have avoided the current trouble?
“Teng Dong Lang is dead?!”
"My god, the leader of a gang was killed by Long Fu!
“Why didn't he dodge in the end?”
"His breathing was disordered, so he failed to use his battle skills? Well
deserved! Such a sinner truly deserves such an end." 
"Snow Bird Harbor is about to erupt into chaos. The Bayonet Gang has lost its
strongest combat power; there will undoubtedly be turmoil. I must leave this
place of trouble immediately." 
The crowd gradually grew noisy. 
People finally accepted the reality before them.
Some were excitedly chatting, some were discussing their doubts, and others
were thinking more long-term, already planning to leave tonight.
It was foreseeable that Snow Bird Harbor would be plunged into turmoil for some
time to come.
Teng Dong Lang was dead!
With the fall of a gold level powerhouse, his sudden disappearance and the
power vacuum he left behind would trigger fierce competition among all levels
and factions.
“Let me in, let me in!” Spring Boxer rushed forward, attracting countless
curses, and was eventually stopped at the edge of the arena.
He shouted; his eyes fixed on Teng Dong Lang's body.
The owner of the Snow Bird Dueling Arena glanced at Teng Dong Lang, then
scanned the entire arena, and announced loudly: "The winner of this duel is
Commander Long Fu."
Countless people cheered in unison.
Many people put aside their discussions and plans to leave, and at this moment,
they offered their applause and encouragement to the dragonman youngster.
The members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps immediately rushed into the
arena and helped their leader up.
But this time was different from last time. The dragonman youngster frowned,
his eyes full of doubt.
He did not enjoy this moment of glory that belonged to him, but said to Lan
Zao, “Let's go, let's leave here and go back to the ship first.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the closed door of the arena was forced open
from the outside.
A group of people barged in.
The arena owner was about to get angry, but when he saw that the person leading
the group was the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, he immediately shut his mouth.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked at the arena, first confirming Teng Dong
Lang's death, then looking at the dragonman youngster.
He congratulated him, "Commander Long Fu, you are truly a fighter! You are a
true believer in justice!"
“You actually killed a gold level opponent as a silver level.”
“You have made a name for yourself in one battle!”
“City Lord...” The dragonman youngster was about to respond but saw the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord raise his hand to stop him from continuing.
Then, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's voice clearly spread throughout the
arena: “I once again declare that the Bayonet Gang is guilty of heinous crimes
and is a cancer on Snow Bird Harbor. Only by eradicating this cancer can we
bring a truly bright future to this city.”
“Bystanders, do not move rashly. I am here in person only to arrest the
relevant gang members!”
"All members of the Bayonet Gang, listen up. Surrendering your weapons is your
only way out. If you resist, you will end up like this person."
With that, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took a human head out of his spatial
storage ring and threw it on the ground.
The skull was huge, with a ferocious expression frozen on its face before
death.
It was the head of a giant, exuding a gold level aura.
Seeing such a head, Bing Xiao's face turned pale in an instant. He immediately
recognized it as the head of his gold level giant slave!
“The Bayonet Gang is in danger!”
“Run away, break out of the dueling arena first, then scatter and escape.”
“Every man for himself!”
A flash of cruelty flashed in Bing Xiao's eyes as he gave the order in a hoarse
voice.



****** Chapter 344: Choosing a Store ******
The date of the duel between the dragonman youngster and Teng Dong Lang was
destined to be remembered by the whole of Snow Bird Harbor.
Because on this day, two major events occurred simultaneously.
These two events were closely related to each other.
First, the leader of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, as a silver level battle
qi cultivator, launched a heroic challenge and not only successfully defeated
the gold level Teng Dong Lang, but also killed him on the spot.
Second, the Bayonet Gang was destroyed!
The leader of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's army was known for his decisive
actions.
He directly mobilized the magic teams, all the city guards, and even the
military camps outside the city.
He struck like thunder, and nothing could stand in his way!
The Bayonet Gang's defenses were extremely weak.
At that time, the heroic duel between Teng Dong Lang, the leader of the Bayonet
Gang, attracted almost all of the gang's high-ranking members. The only one
left to preside over daily affairs was the dwarf ringleader.
The latter actually wanted to come and watch the battle, but unfortunately, he
was the only loser in the lottery.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took the lead and personally intervened.
The dwarf ringleader was only at the silver level, unlike the powerful
dragonman youngster who could fight above his level, so he was unable to
resist. He tried to escape, but his speed was not fast enough, and after
suffering heavy losses, he was captured alive.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spared his life because he recognized his talent
for forging.
He wiped out most of the Bayonet Gang's base and rushed to the Snow Bird
Dueling Arena.
When he burst in, the Bayonet Gang's senior members were completely unaware and
did not have time to gather any military intelligence.
The current leader of the Bayonet Gang, Teng Dong Lang, was killed in the duel,
and the former leader, Bing Xiao, had just stabilized the senior members when
the army arrived at the city gates.
Bing Xiao still had fighting spirit, but the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took
the initiative and took out the head of the gold level giant slave.
It turned out that long before his large-scale operation, he had joined forces
with the Sea Bird Bishop to launch a successful surprise attack and kill the
gold level giant slave.
When Bing Xiao saw this, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave. He
immediately realized that the Bayonet Gang was doomed and ordered a breakout
and escape on the spot.
However, since the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had already led his troops over,
he was naturally fully prepared.
The magic teams had already formed their formation, waiting for the members of
the Bayonet Gang to break through.
The city guards and the army outside the city acted as auxiliaries, forming a
tight encirclement, like a giant net, trapping any small fry who wanted to
escape.
Without the gold level at the helm, no matter how many silver level members the
Bayonet Gang had, they were all small fry in the eyes of the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord!
After a period of chaos in the Snow Bird Dueling Arena, the scene became clear.
Inside the arena was the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and outside the arena was
the Sea Bird Bishop.
All the ringleaders of the Bayonet Gang were caught, and Bing Xiao was no
exception.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had succeeded in his surprise attack just one
day later, wiping out the entire Bayonet Gang!
The people heard this bombshell news amid the chaos and were stunned for a long
time.
For a moment, they found it difficult to accept that the Bayonet Gang, once
such a huge organization, had been destroyed in a single day!
After this battle, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's reputation suddenly rose to
its peak in a single day, and he became the object of praise and admiration
from the people.
His popularity was unmatched, comparable to that of the dragonman youngster.
Under the protection of Men Shi, Tripleblade, and Lan Zao, the dragonman
youngster successfully left the dueling arena and returned to the flagship at
the dock to rest.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps did not participate in the encirclement and
suppression of the Bayonet Gang.
This was an agreement made when the two sides formed a contract earlier.
Late at night, one day later.
The city government palace held a large banquet, inviting almost all the
celebrities and powerful figures in Snow Bird Harbor.
In the study on the second floor, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was alone with
the dragonman youngster.
The city Lord took the initiative to pour wine for the dragonman youngster and
introduced, “This is Cold Emotion Wine.”
“Even in the capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, this is a very rare wine.”
“I only have one bottle of it in my wine cellar!”
“I'll offer a toast to you, Commander Long Fu. You are the biggest contributor
to our defeat of the Bayonet Gang today.”
The wine was poured into a glass, and immediately a layer of frost formed on
the surface of the glass.
The dragonman youngster took the wine glass handed to him by the city Lord. He
knew nothing about wine, but he had no doubt about the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord's praise for this wine.
This was because the bright red wine exuded a gold level aura.
This was a gold level potion!
The dragonman youngster was curious about the effects of the cold wine, but he
also knew what to say at this moment.
“City Lord, your praise makes me feel uneasy!”
“Everyone knows that you made the greatest contribution to the destruction of
the Bayonet Gang, and no one can compare to you.”
“Just one day has passed, and the people of Snow Bird Harbor all believe that
you are the most accomplished city Lord in the history of Snow Bird Harbor!”
Hearing these words, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord laughed loudly, his eyes
narrowing with laughter, making no attempt to hide his pride.
He handed over his wine cup.
The dragonman youngster also handed over his wine cup at the right moment.
Clink.
The two wine cups gently collided in the middle.
Immediately, the fine wine flowed into the mouths of the two.
Although the dragonman youngster's ability to taste wine was almost zero, good
things were good things. The moment the Cold Emotion Wine entered his mouth,
his eyes changed.
When the Cold Emotion Wine first entered his mouth, it seemed bland and cold,
but then it exploded on his taste buds and in his throat, becoming warm and
fragrant.
In an instant, the strong aroma of the wine spread throughout the dragonman
youngster's entire body and mind, affecting his mood as if he were ascending to
heaven.
What wonderful enjoyment!
For a moment, both of them in the room forgot to speak.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was the first to open his eyes and break the
silence: "Did you know? Every year, the entire Drunkard Harbor holds a Wine God
Festival, and Cold Emotion Wine is one of the offerings. In other words, this
is the enjoyment of the gods."
The dragonman youngster knew that Drunkard Harbor was one of the eight major
harbors of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, with a trade status equivalent to that of
Snow Bird Harbor.
However, he was unaware that the Wine God cult was so prevalent in Drunkard
Harbor.
He couldn't help but feel curious: "As far as I know, there is no Wine God
among your country's deities. I wonder which deity is being worshipped at the
Wine God Festival in Drunkard Harbor?"
There were many Wine Gods in this world.
As far as the dragonman youngster knew, there were three among the dwarves, one
among the humans, two among the elves, and one among the demons.
From this, it could be seen that competition for the identity of the Wine God
was fierce.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not hesitate and replied immediately, “Of
course, it is the Wine God of the Sheng Ming Empire.”
The dragonman youngster's expression became even more strange, "This is a human
deity. Has your country's openness reached such a level?" 
Faith was a resource of the deities. 
Every parish was a contested area among the churches. 
The faith of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was a resource of the snow elf's
deities. Yet one of the eight great harbors, Drunkard Harbor, was actually
holding a large-scale festival for the human Wine God. 
A large-scale festival was one that affected the entire city.
To give an example, it would be like the scale of the heroic duel between the
dragonman youngster and Teng Dong Lang.
If there weren't many believers, it would be impossible to hold a festival of
this scale.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head and said helplessly, "The Sheng
Ming Empire is the world's number one power, with unparalleled strength. A few
years ago, the human race used an astonishing trade shock to transform Drunkard
Harbor. The original church had been completely defeated, and the faith in that
place had been completely lost. Of course, the royal family would not admit
this publicly. But you can completely regard Drunkard Harbor as the parish of
the human race's Wine God!"
“I see.” The dragonman youngster fell silent.
The Empire's influence was everywhere and was constantly growing.
Even the independent overseas kingdom of Ice Sculpture Kingdom was not spared.
The dragonman youngster couldn't help but worry secretly: if they failed to
atone for their sins, would the Ice Sculpture Kingdom become their place of
refuge?
The two chatted for a while, then turned to the main topic.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took out an activity map and spread it out on
the desk between them.
After a few changes, the map showed several streets.
Most of the shops on these streets were marked with different colors.
“Choose one of these,” said the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
This was one of the terms of the deal they had agreed upon earlier—the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord would provide the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with a
shop.
Now was the time to fulfill that agreement.
The dragonman youngster looked closely and quickly discovered that these shops
were not originally the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's assets, but all came from
the Bayonet Gang.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had destroyed the entire Bayonet Gang this time,
and he had made a fortune!
Not only did he gain explosive growth in terms of reputation and prestige, but
the actual profits were also unimaginably rich. After all, almost all of the
Bayonet Gang's assets had fallen into his hands.
Now, the dragonman youngster recalled the agreement he had made with the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord on the ship.
The dragonman youngster only intended to fulfill his heroic duel with Teng Dong
Lang and did not want the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to participate in the
upcoming battle.
At that time, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not hesitate and agreed to
this request.
"I was worried that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would become his henchmen
and sacrifice too much. In fact, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was also
unwilling to have our corps participate."
“Because this was a battle that was bound to be won.”
“The more people participated, the more the profits would be divided.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord planned carefully before acting, and the entire
operation went according to his plan from start to finish, without any
unexpected incidents.
He reaped all the rewards.
Of course, he would definitely distribute part of the profits to the Sea Bird
Church.
Before this operation, he must have reached an agreement with the bishop of the
Sea Bird Church. The two sides must have discussed the distribution of profits
in advance.
Whether it was the operation to surround and kill the mysterious assassin or
the operation to destroy the Bayonet Gang, the Sea Bird Church was the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord's most steadfast ally.
With the destruction of the Bayonet Gang, the political landscape of Snow Bird
Harbor underwent a huge change.
Previously, there were four powerful factions, but now there were two strong
ones and one weak one.
The weakest faction was, of course, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance.
The dragonman youngster and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord reached an
agreement, and on the day they returned to the harbor, the branch leader gave
the order: gather all the men, retreat into a defensive position, and protect
important places such as warehouses and shops.



****** Chapter 345: Harmonious Discussion ******
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Sea Bird Church Bishop clearly had no
intention of bringing the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance Branch Leader along,
throwing all their plans behind him.
The former two acted together, moving too quickly and with too much effect. By
the time the Clam Cloth Branch Leader wanted to intervene, he found that the
situation had already been completely decided.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps did not participate in the battle to destroy
the Bayonet Gang. Although they protected themselves, they also lost the
opportunity to obtain more spoils.
But the dragonman youngster did not regret this.
“In the current situation, there is no need to act as an eyesore.”
“If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were to participate in the battle, the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord would see it as us coming to take advantage.”
“He is too well prepared and does not need the help of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to easily swallow up the Bayonet Gang.”
“Even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps participates in the battle and obtains
some resources, it will provoke the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's aversion,
which is completely not worth it.”
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will establish a stronghold here. As the local
Lord, it would be too easy for him to deal with the fixed assets left behind by
outsiders. There are too many ways to do so."
“For now, maintaining a good cooperative relationship with the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord is the top priority.”
The dragonman youngster would not have had this realization before, but after
this experience in Snow Bird Harbor, he learned a lot from the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord.
The young leader became more mature.
He had become more thoughtful in his considerations, no longer limited to using
force to deal with problems, and his political sensitivity had also improved
somewhat.
Seeing that the dragonman youngster was looking at the activity map but was
slow to make a choice, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but point
out three places in succession.
He said, "I suggest you choose from these three places, as they are all in very
good locations. Of course, there are differences between them, so you need to
compare them carefully."
The dragonman youngster shook his head slightly and smiled, “I need to think
about this matter.”
He had not thought about making his own decision on this matter because he
trusted Zi Di's judgment more.
There was no need to ignore a talented businessperson and make a rash decision
himself. That was not something a wise leader should do.
“Of course,” said the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord as he put away the activity
map.
He said in an expectant tone, "I believe that if your group's crossbows are put
on sale, they will definitely sell very well."
“I have no problem with granting the qualifications for selling weapons.”
"As you know, our country only has a ban on armor, not a ban on crossbows. As
long as you don't sell gold level armor, there will be no problem."
The dragonman youngster nodded and said emotionally, “So, the gold level
defensive items that can be used are not full body armor but rather shields and
accessories.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed and said, “That's right.”
Whether it was the Diamond Protection Set, the Flowing Wave Armor, or the Thin
Ice Wall Shield, it was all the same.
At most, there was Teng Dong Lang's Abandoned Person's Shirt, but this garment
did not actually have orthodox defensive properties but rather took an
unconventional approach.
The dragonman youngster pondered, “In the short term, we only plan to sell one
type of potion.”
This potion was naturally the dragon rider potion that he had discussed with Zi
Di before.
“As for those alchemy crossbows.” At this point, the dragonman youngster paused
and showed a hint of helplessness, “That's not something I can decide.”
The implication was that he still had to listen to the specific orders of the
arms dealer behind him.
The implication was that he still had to listen to the specific orders of the
arms dealer behind him.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was fooled, and although his expression did not
change, his eyes clearly flashed.
It had to be said that the excuse and identity of an arms dealer and smuggler
were really useful.
Such bluffing made the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps more respected and feared.
Unknowingly, it had already gained considerable benefits for the dragonman
youngster.
The two continued to talk.
For the dragonman youngster, good news came one after another.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had collected more dragon beast corpses, which
would be transferred to the dragonman youngster during the next handover.
He also found two pieces of gold level equipment, both of which would be sold
to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Speaking of gold equipment, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had lent out some,
which had already been returned by the dragonman youngster yesterday.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not as generous as Bu Quan, who would give
things away for free.
Of course, what was borrowed had to be returned.
The news that surprised the dragonman youngster the most was about the
alchemists.
Currently, a silver level alchemist was on his way to Snow Bird Harbor.
According to his itinerary, he would arrive at the dock in a day. At that time,
once both sides signed the contract, he would immediately join the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
With the destruction of the Bayonet Gang, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
biggest obstacle suddenly disappeared, and their future suddenly became bright.
The same was true for the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
In fact, he gained far more benefits than the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was just an outsider.
During his conversation with the dragonman youngster, the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord also admitted that after this battle, his influence within his faction had
skyrocketed several times over. When he was raising those resources through his
connections before, it was nowhere near as easy as it was now.
Many people saw his achievements and were more willing to actively cooperate
with him.
That was why this silver level alchemist was able to arrive at Snow Bird Harbor
so quickly.
The other two alchemists were also handing over their original work and tasks.
“So, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will welcome three silver level
alchemists?” This good news made it difficult for the dragonman youngster to
hide the joy on his face.
But he did not get carried away.
Throughout the entire process, he remained quite cautious.
When talking to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, every word he said was
carefully thought out and weighed before he spoke.
To be honest, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's decisive destruction of the
entire Bayonet Gang really surprised the dragonman youngster.
Such tactics were truly formidable.
The most outstanding aspect of this operation was that the destruction of the
Bayonet Gang did not have a significant negative impact on Snow Bird Harbor or
the general public.
Normally, the destruction of such a large organization would inevitably result
in a considerable number of innocent people being affected.
But not this time!
This showed that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was in complete control of the
situation.
He had once told the dragonman youngster that he had been preparing for many
years and was quite well prepared.
When the dragonman youngster heard this, he thought that the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord was trying to boost his confidence. He was encouraging the dragonman
youngster to cooperate with him.
However, it turned out that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's words were not
exaggerated in the slightest.
He was indeed very well prepared.
Throughout the entire process, the Bayonet Gang did not put up any resistance.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had clearly guaranteed the dragonman youngster
that he would definitely win this time.
Now, looking back, the dragonman youngster realized that with such thorough
preparation, it was only natural to have confidence in victory.
Similarly, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not dare to underestimate the
dragonman youngster in the slightest.
He had almost suffered a loss before.
That night, on the Love Triangle, when he heard the dragonman youngster say
that he could accurately locate the mysterious assassin, the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord subconsciously stood up from his seat, his heart filled with surprise
and doubt.
That left a deep impression on him.
On the other hand, the outcome of the duel between the dragonman youngster and
Teng Dong Lang clearly told everyone that the dragonman youngster could not
simply be regarded as a silver level battle qi cultivator.
The dragonman youngster was extraordinary.
Thirdly, he also had interests to pursue.
The alchemy crossbow that the dragonman youngster used in his heroic duel was
indeed very sophisticated.
From this, it could be inferred that his other weapons would also be of good
quality.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hoped to have such weapons supplied to himself.
Even though he was about to step down from his position as city Lord, it did
not prevent him from maintaining contact with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
In many cases, the exchange of resources could generate invisible benefits
beyond the transaction itself. For example, political influence.
For all of the above reasons, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took a more equal
attitude toward the dragonman youngster.
The two talked very smoothly.
The atmosphere in the study was harmonious.
Neither of them felt the passage of time as they talked. Both sides were very
sincere and respectful of each other, willing to make concessions, and quickly
reached a lot of consensuses.
But just then, the sound of fighting suddenly came from downstairs.



****** Chapter 346: Bu Quan Shares a Dance ******
The dragonman youngster was slightly taken aback.
With the Bayonet Gang destroyed, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's faction was
at its peak. Who would dare to attack the city government palace?
Could it be the remnants of the Bayonet Gang?
But immediately afterwards, the dragonman youngster heard his own voice.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord paused for a moment, then realized what was
happening and explained with a smile, "Time flies."
“The dance is about to begin.”
He reached out and gently stroked the air above the desk, and a miniature magic
image immediately appeared.
The magic image showed the scene in the first-floor hall below them.
"Before the dance begins, we have carefully prepared a magic image that vividly
depicts your heroic battle stance, Commander Long Fu. I believe this video will
definitely have an excellent warm-up effect."
“Of course, please forgive us if we have offended you.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke very politely, but upon closer inspection,
his strong personality was still evident.
The dragonman youngster immediately said that it was his honor.
At this moment, in the first-floor hall of the city government palace.
The lights were bright.
Long tables were arranged on both sides of the hall. 
The tables, covered with white cloth, were adorned with exquisite candles,
emitting a fragrant aroma. Exquisite silver platters held a variety of
delicious dishes. 
Gentlemen were dressed in formal attire, and noblewomen and ladies competed in
elegance.
Some were tasting fine wine, stopping here and there to chat in small groups.
Others gathered together, discussing the same topic, laughing in unison from
time to time.
Some were tasting fine wine, stopping here and there to chat in small groups.
Others gathered together, discussing the same topic, laughing in unison from
time to time.
Everyone's eyes were immediately drawn to the magic images.
Soon, people were praising the dragonman youngster in the images.
The dragonman youngster in the study on the second floor saw his previous
battle through the images.
He soon discovered that this time, the magic images showed much more than just
the battle between him and Teng Dong Lang.
From the very beginning, his duel with Ban Lan Gen had been recorded.
Ban Lan Gen was careless and underestimated his opponent, and the dragonman
youngster knocked him unconscious with one punch.
Next was the battle between the dragonman youngster and Spring Boxer.
He completely suppressed his opponent, standing still in place, becoming a
classic image. Spring Boxer gave it his all, but still couldn't shake him,
allowing the dragonman youngster to show his strength.
Next was the battle between the dragonman youngster and Xiong Ju.
It was a tough battle.
Finally, there was a heroic duel between him and Teng Dong Lang.        
The dragonman youngster was suppressed for most of the fight, but he held on to
the hope of turning the tide and ultimately defeated the stronger opponent!
It was a classic battle.
Of course, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would not combine all the battle
scenes together, as that would be too long.
Therefore, this magic image was carefully edited.
The focus was on the dragonman youngster's brave and heroic appearance in
battle.
Many of the scenes were deliberately slowed down or even paused, either to show
the dragonman youngster's brilliant performance or the miserable state of his
opponents, highlighting the dragonman youngster's strength and intelligence in
battle, as well as his courage, persistence, and other rare qualities.
In particular, the image of him covered in blood and wounds during his battle
with Teng Dong Lang was repeated many times.
Finally, when Teng Dong Lang fell in a pool of blood, the dragonman youngster's
previous desperate struggle was rewarded.
Seeing the final scene, everyone in the hall applauded spontaneously.
However, the magic image did not stop after being played once.
Instead, it began to repeat.
Even so, almost no one around him looked away, and they continued to watch with
great interest.
This time, the band in the hall played a rousing battle song at just the right
moment, allowing the dragonman youngster's battle to resonate with everyone and
stir their blood.
This was a competitive world.
This was the world of the strong.
This was especially true in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, where heroic duels were
prevalent.
The image presented by the dragonman youngster undoubtedly deeply resonated
with the culture and values of the kingdom.
In addition, he had defeated the notorious leader of the Bayonet Gang, so many
people considered him an ally of justice and a hero.
Not only did the famous ladies in the audience stare intently, but even the men
were excited and subconsciously put themselves in his shoes. In the study on
the second floor, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord focused on the expressions of
these guests.
After finding that it was as he expected, he smiled at the dragonman youngster
and said, "Do you know? You are already famous."
“The name of Long Fu and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are spreading rapidly
throughout the country because of this battle!”
“You are completely famous!”
After a pause, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord also told the dragonman youngster
some good news.
"More than 30,000 copies of the magic images of your duel with Teng Dong Lang
have been sold. This is a terrifying number, considering that it has only been
one day since the duel ended."
“And I believe that the video of this duel will definitely be widely sold
across the country, and many people will buy it for their collections.”
“The owner of the Snow Bird Dueling Arena has already contacted you, right?”
The dragonman youngster nodded: “Yes, he took the initiative to talk to me and
even voluntarily reduced his own share of the profits to give me more.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's smile grew even wider as he said bluntly, “I
told him to do that.”
“You are a hero, and you must not be treated unfairly!”
"In the process of destroying the Bayonet Gang, you personally killed the
leader of this criminal organization. You are the one who deserves the most
credit! You are a fighter who practices the way of justice."
“The previously agreed-upon profit share was too unfair!”
“How can we treat a fighter and hero unfairly?”
“If we did that, how would the outside world view me and Snow Bird Harbor?”
The dragonman youngster immediately understood that the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord was actively expressing his goodwill and trying to get closer to him.
He was selling himself very well.
He had nothing to lose, so he was generous and said very nice things.
The dragonman youngster understood this and immediately thanked the city Lord.
When the Snow Bird Dueling Arena owner came to him to revise the contract, he
was a little surprised, but he didn't expect that the biggest driving force
behind it was the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
According to this profit-sharing ratio and previous sales cases, if his magic
images of this standard were widely sold nationwide, they would bring the
dragonman youngster at least 500,000 gold coins in revenue!
Of course, the revenue would not be obtained in a lump sum but would continue
to be increased with continued sales.
The dragonman youngster sighed from the bottom of his heart, “After this
battle, I feel like the world has changed.”
“On the night I returned to the dock after the battle, I received a large
number of invitation letters, so many that they were like snowflakes falling
from the sky.”
“The president of the Mercenary Guild Branch also came to my door in person to
tell me that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been promoted to a higher
level.”
“Although this did not comply with the procedures of the Mercenary Guild,
special treatment for special cases is also one of the guild's rules.”
“He also told me that many merchant alliances, families, and so on had
specifically requested for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to carry out some
tasks.”
“These tasks all had the same characteristics: they were very simple, and the
rewards were generous.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded and smiled, explaining, “This is their
way of showing goodwill.”
"For a mercenary group, this kind of goodwill is even more beneficial. Not only
can you receive many gifts, but you can also improve your resume and level by
completing these tasks."
“However, this situation is not something that a silver level mercenary group
can enjoy.”
"Your battle with Teng Dong Lang was a real victory. Countless people witnessed
this duel with their own eyes."
"Being able to kill a gold level person, you are already considered half a gold
level. That's why you are being treated so specially."
The dragonman youngster then changed the subject: “But now, there is still a
hidden danger.”
"We previously accused the Bayonet Gang of desecrating the sacred heroic duel.
Until now, we haven't produced any evidence. What should we do?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord laughed loudly, “Commander Long Fu, you don't
need to worry.”
“There will always be evidence of guilt.”
“Now, the upper echelons of the Bayonet Gang are either dead or have been
arrested.”
"I have already given orders to severely torture these ringleaders. No matter
how tough they are, there will always be a day when they can't hold out any
longer."
“We can wait slowly, there's no rush.”
That's right.
Now, the Bayonet Gang has been destroyed.
Unless someone deliberately targeted the dragonman youngster or the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord, they would not deliberately dig up this mistake and attack
them, accusing them of false accusation.
Seeing that there was still worry on the dragonman youngster's face, the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord said again, “Don't worry, I guarantee that we will
definitely be able to collect evidence of this matter.”
With the assurance of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the dragonman youngster
finally relaxed his brow and said, “I believe you, City Lord!”
“Only in this way can the Bayonet Gang's foundation be completely eradicated.”
Just then, the magic image showed Teng Dong Lang lying in a pool of blood
again.
The dragonman youngster's brow furrowed slightly again, and he said
deliberately, “When I think back on this battle, I actually feel a little
ashamed.”
“If Teng Dong Lang hadn't made a fatal mistake at the last moment, I wouldn't
have been able to defeat him.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked deeply at the dragonman youngster, took
out the wine bottle again, and poured wine for the two of them.
Taking advantage of this action, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said
reassuringly, “Commander Long Fu, you don't have to think that way.”
“Teng Dong Lang's mistake shows that he lacks training and combat experience.”
“He was too obsessed with power and spent most of his time dealing with the
affairs of the Bayonet Gang.”
“Therefore, he paid the price for his choices.”
"As for you, you fought against a stronger opponent and never gave up. Your
fighting spirit never wavered. You endured countless blows and persevered."
“Finally, the miracle has arrived.” 
“There was indeed an element of luck involved, but what mattered most was your
dedication and effort.” 
“The people will not see you as someone who got lucky; they will admire and
respect you, even worship you.” 
“Enough of these trivial thoughts.” 
“Come with me downstairs. Our great hero, today you are the star of the show.”
The dragonman youngster had no choice but to follow.
He walked down the stairs with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and appeared in
the main hall on the first floor.
The crowd immediately cheered.
The dragonman youngster suppressed his doubts and put on a smile.
After a series of events in Snow Bird Harbor, he had a better understanding of
human relationships.
He knew that in many cases, he could rely on others to deal with his enemies.
The cooperation with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a complete win-win
situation. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' situation had improved greatly as a
result, and they had reaped huge rewards.
Everyone present was a high-ranking figure in Snow Bird Harbor, and getting to
know them, even if only by face, was more beneficial than harmful.
The dragonman youngster was now a popular figure.
Such fame and influence were definitely advantageous when it came to
socializing.
People were happy to interact with him and were even flattered by the dragonman
youngster's enthusiasm and kindness.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord motioned for the dragonman youngster to stand
beside him.
He stood on the platform in the middle of the stairs, slightly higher than
everyone else in the room, and said a few words focusing on congratulating the
dragonman youngster on his victory in the duel. Then, he announced the official
start of the ball.
The magic images occupying the dance floor disappeared, and the bands began to
play melodious dance music.
Originally, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was supposed to lead the first
dance, but just now, he had announced that this time, the dragonman youngster
would lead the dance.
The dragonman youngster walked down the stairs and entered the hall.
Almost all the famous ladies and noblewomen cast expectant and seductive
glances at him.
But the dragonman youngster had already found his target.
He walked straight to a relatively secluded dining table where five or six
people were gathered.
At the center of the crowd was Bu Quan.
This silver level Alchemy Great Master was the focus of attention wherever she
went.
However, people were not interested in her appearance, but rather her ability
to make alchemy tools and her foundation of owning many alchemy workshops.
At this moment, they were discussing business or future cooperation projects
with Bu Quan.
The dragonman youngster's every move attracted everyone's attention.
When they saw him walking towards them step by step, Bu Quan and the others
looked surprised.
Among them, there were mostly men, and Bu Quan was the only woman.
In fact, Bu Quan, who always wore black-rimmed glasses, was far from being the
most beautiful one there.
When Bu Quan saw the dragonman youngster walking towards her, her heart began
to beat faster.
Thump, thump, thump!
Her heartbeat quickened, and at the same time, a blush of panic appeared on her
face.
The dragonman youngster walked up to Bu Quan, bowed slightly, and extended his
dragon claw as elegantly as possible: “Miss Bu Quan, would you do me the honor
of being my first dance partner tonight?”
Bu Quan's mouth opened slightly, and her head was buzzing with confusion.
She couldn't speak, but she subconsciously reached out her hand.
So, the dragonman youngster took her hand and led her onto the dance floor.
The dragonman youngster was not good at dancing, but as a battle qi cultivator,
he had excellent control over his body.
In contrast, Bu Quan was obviously unfamiliar with the dance steps and looked
nervous.
Bu Quan came from a lower-middle-class family and suffered a tragedy when her
nanny, who was like a mother to her, was killed by the Bayonet Gang. She fled
to the Alchemy Guild and was given asylum.
In the days that followed, she studied diligently, determined to seek revenge. 
After achieving success, she gave up the opportunity for further education,
pretended to compromise with the Bayonet Gang, returned to Snow Bird Harbor,
built an alchemy workshop to increase her influence, and secretly gathered
evidence to prepare for bringing down the Bayonet Gang. 
Dancing? 
Such activities had long since faded from her life!
She had no interest in dancing whatsoever.
So, when the dragonman youngster invited her to dance, she inevitably felt
nervous.
She couldn't dance, but she didn't refuse.
Because it was the dragonman youngster who invited her.
He was the benefactor who helped her take revenge, the great hero in her
heart!!



****** Chapter 347: Agreeing to a Marriage Proposal ******
Bu Quan seemed to have fallen into a state of dizziness.
Everything before her eyes had become distorted. The crystal chandelier had
turned into a hazy white starlight, and the gilded wall decorations had become
blurry columns of light.
The stage had turned pink, and the bubbles that rose were shaped like hearts.
Her heart was filled with immense surprise and happiness.
“Is this all a dream?” She stared blankly, incredulously, as if she were in a
dream.
The dragonman youngster also sensed Bu Quan's unusual state.
Not only had her eyes lost their focus, but her limbs were limp and weak, and
she was practically lying on top of him.
Fortunately, the dragonman youngster was big and strong, and well versed in
various fighting techniques.
In order to keep the scene going, he had no choice but to support Bu Quan's
waist with one hand to support her weight, while holding her hand with the
other.
The dragonman youngster danced, maintaining Bu Quan's balance while trying his
best to get her to dance with him.
"I've only danced a few times, and I didn't expect my first dance party to be
this difficult!"
The dragonman youngster still had enough energy to sigh inwardly.
As the dance progressed, he gradually became more familiar with it and more at
ease.
“I didn't expect that basic fighting techniques could also be used in dancing.”
“If I were in my original state, I would have made a fool of myself.”
"I have to thank Xiong Ju and Teng Dong Lang for contributing so much basic
fighting experience to me."
On the night the duel ended, the dragonman youngster took advantage of the
momentum and used the Grand Arena Medal, reaping rich rewards.
“Huh?” As he danced, a strange look flashed across the dragonman youngster's
face.
A wave of heat rose from his lower abdomen.
Lust gradually spread through his heart.
Looking at Bu Quan in front of him, his heart also gradually became restless.
Bu Quan was dizzy, completely led by the dragonman youngster in the dance, her
whole body pressed tightly against him.
The dragonman youngster's arm around her waist almost encircled her completely,
on the one hand holding her firmly in place, and on the other hand fully
feeling the soft, boneless waist of the young girl.
Bu Quan's face was almost pressed against the dragonman youngster's chest, and
the sweet scent of the young girl's breath wafted towards him from time to
time.
The dragonman youngster couldn't help but be moved.
In the corner of the hall, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord quietly watched the
two slow dancing on the dance floor.
“Long Fu reacted quickly,” the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled, his eyes
hiding a subtle meaning.
“City Lord, our arrangements...” A confidant quietly came over to ask for
instructions.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord took a sip of wine: "It doesn't matter, he's not
just dancing this one dance. The effect of the Cold Emotion Wine will last for
a while, so let's have our people approach him next."
“Understood, Lord.” The confidant quietly withdrew.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had specially arranged a beauty trap for the
dragonman youngster.
There were three beauties, respectively from the human race, the snow elves,
and a succubus mixed blood. The three had their own charms, one was cute and
lovely, one was pure and ethereal, and one was seductive and graceful.
The city Lord served the dragonman youngster Cold Emotion Wine, which tasted
cold, but once it entered the mouth, it would stir the emotions. To put it
bluntly, it was an aphrodisiac.
“Dragons are inherently lustful... You will have a wonderful night, Commander
Long Fu.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled.
The first dance ended.
There was enthusiastic applause from the audience.
Everyone could see at a glance that the dragonman youngster was awkward at
dancing, and Bu Quan was even worse, like a soulless puppet.
But who would blame the dragonman youngster who was the star of tonight's
banquet?
Furthermore, no one dared to underestimate Bu Quan, the rising star in the
field of alchemy!
The dragonman youngster put his arm around Bu Quan's waist and walked out of
the dance floor. The latter hadn't reacted yet and looked very cute with her
dazed expression.
The dragonman youngster smiled and politely declined the women who approached
him to ask him to dance.
He still held Bu Quan's waist as he walked out of the hall and toward the
garden.
To be honest, this was not in line with convention.
As the star of the banquet, he should have danced with many women and engaged
in friendly and harmonious exchanges with many people.
However, he was a little worried about Bu Quan's condition.
Moreover, among all the guests, Bu Quan was undoubtedly the most valuable.
“City Lord, they've gone to the garden,” his confidant reported again.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded, “I can see that.”
“Then we...”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a little worried about the effects of the
Cold Emotion Wine, so he pondered for a moment and said, “Let's wait and see.”
His confidant reminded him, "City Lord, I think something seems a little off
with Miss Bu Quan. She didn't drink it too, did she...?"
"No, that's not it. However, I can understand her feelings for the dragonman.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord frowned slightly and immediately gave the order,
“Don't make any rash moves for 15 minutes. If they haven't shown up after 15
minutes, then go and disturb them. The garden of the city government palace is
not a bedroom."
The dragonman youngster and Bu Quan stepped onto the grass and gradually walked
to the fountain in the center of the garden.
The cold night wind mixed with water vapor suddenly sobered Bu Quan up.
She let out a scream: “Ah, Commander Long Fu!”
She subconsciously took a step back and broke free from the dragonman
youngster's embrace.
The dragonman youngster was a little speechless.
What's with your sudden jump? You're making me look like some kind of lecherous
thief who drugged you and kidnapped you.
Thinking about it, the dragonman youngster also felt a little dry in the mouth.
His mind wandered, and he even reminisced about the feeling of holding Bu
Quan's waist.
Just now, the beauty was in his arms, but now that they were separated, the
dragonman youngster felt a little reluctant to let her go.
Bu Quan was not drugged after all, and as her mind cleared, her previous
memories gradually became clear.
When she recalled the feeling of being held in the dragonman youngster's arms,
her heartbeat quickened again and her face flushed red.
The atmosphere became ambiguous and awkward.
The dragonman youngster broke the silence and asked with concern, “Miss Bu
Quan, are you okay?”
“I'm, I’m fine,” Bu Quan replied hastily, "I've been fine these past few days.
I couldn't be better!"
At this point, Bu Quan mustered up her courage, raised her head, and looked
directly at the dragonman youngster.
She said sincerely, “Commander Long Fu, you should have some understanding of
my experiences, right?”
“Of course,” the dragonman youngster nodded, “Ever since you took the
initiative to give me equipment that day, I have collected relevant information
through the Thieves' Guild.”
“Snow Bird Harbor City Lord also provided help in this regard.”
Bu Quan smiled, “So, I am very grateful to you, Commander Long Fu.”
“You helped me avenge my hatred!”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, "I should be thanking you. The ski
goggles and ice bag you gave me were very practical. And most importantly, that
spell scroll became a powerful weapon that turned the tide for me!"
Bu Quan disagreed: “What I did doesn't deserve your gratitude.” 
"I gave you the equipment out of self-interest. To put it bluntly, I was using
you." 
"You eliminated the gang leader, leading to the downfall of the Bayonet Gang.
I'm more than willing to repay you. What can I do for you?"
“If possible, I would like to give you all of my alchemy workshops in Snow Bird
Harbor. I hope you will accept them.”
The dragonman youngster was taken aback.
Bu Quan's sincerity was overwhelming.
Even the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't compare to her!
But in the next moment, the dragonman youngster shook his head: “I'm not
interested in those alchemy workshops.”
“I want you more, Miss Bu Quan!”
The dragonman youngster had already had his heart set on recruiting Bu Quan.
He had drunk the Cold Emotion Wine earlier, and its effects were kicking in.
He had just danced with Bu Quan, and his masculine side had suddenly kicked in,
causing him to speak too directly.
Bu Quan stared, looking foolishly at the dragonman youngster.
"Wh-what?"
“What did I just hear?”
“How could Commander Long Fu say something like that?”
"Is he confessing his feelings to me?"
Bu Quan's face turned red.
Her heart was beating so fast that it seemed to be pounding in her ears.
Her ears were ringing, her mind was exploding, and she couldn't think straight.
All she felt was immense shock and endless joy.
The dragonman youngster regretted his words as soon as they left his mouth.
Seeing Bu Quan's reaction, he immediately realized that she had misunderstood
him.
The youngster quickly tried to remedy the situation: “Ahem, please forgive my
directness.”
“Let me rephrase that more accurately.”
“Miss Bu Quan, would you do me the honor of joining my mercenary group?”
“Miss Bu Quan, Miss Bu Quan?”
Bu Quan gasped and reacted, subconsciously reaching out her palm and placing it
on both sides of her cheeks.
“I agree, Commander Long Fu!”
“December 2nd is a good day to get married.”
"If we have a boy, we'll name him Long Tai. If we have a girl, we'll name her
Quan Zi!"
This time, it was the dragonman youngster's turn to be stunned.
'In just a moment, you've already thought about getting married and having
children?'
'Besides, isn't December 2nd tomorrow?!'



****** Chapter 348: Telling Zi Di ******
In the garden at night.
The fountain gurgled softly.
The dragonman youngster and Bu Quan looked at each other, neither saying
anything for a moment.
Bu Quan looked at the surprised expression on the dragonman youngster's face
and suddenly came to her senses: "Ah, Commander Long Fu, I was just talking
nonsense! Don't take it to heart!"
The dragonman youngster twitched the corner of his mouth and forced a laugh:
"Miss Bu Quan also enjoys joking around. Tonight, I got to see your interesting
side."
The young man tried to ease the awkward atmosphere, emphasizing the word
“joke.”
He then changed the subject: “In the end, it was too abrupt of me to rashly
invite you to join my mercenary group.”
The dragonman youngster was slightly serious, his gaze sincere: "However, Miss
Bu Quan, my invitation just now was completely serious and sincere. Please give
it some serious consideration."
The dragonman youngster could sense the feelings expressed in Bu Quan's words
just now.
“Is it because I defeated and killed Teng Dong Lang that she is overly
grateful?”
The dragonman youngster could understand this feeling of gratitude.
However, Bu Quan's emotional state was clearly not right at this moment.
To be honest, just now, the dragonman youngster did feel an impulse in his
heart.
He really wanted to drag Bu Quan away, go to the Alchemy Branch, sign a
contract on the spot, and put the dazed Bu Quan on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' ship.
The dragonman youngster had a feeling that if he did so, the chances of success
would be very high.
“But doing so would be tantamount to taking advantage of someone while they're
not clearheaded.”
“If Bu Quan agrees to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on impulse, what if
she changes her mind in the future?”
Forced relationships were never happy ones.
The dragonman youngster did not want to treat the talented girl in front of him
this way.
Moreover, what he needed more was unity.
If Bu Quan regretted it in the future but couldn't leave the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, the negative emotions would accumulate, and over time, it
would become a time bomb.
There was one more thing.
“I have a feeling that if I recruit Bu Quan like this, I'll be in big trouble
in the future.”
The dragonman youngster didn't know exactly why he had this inexplicable
premonition.
After listening to the dragonman youngster express his invitation again, Bu
Quan's face lost some of its redness and took on a solemn expression: "I, I
understand. I will definitely consider it seriously, Commander Long Fu."
After listening to the dragonman youngster express his invitation again, Bu
Quan's face lost some of its redness and took on a solemn expression: "I, I
understand. I will definitely consider it seriously, Commander Long Fu."
Bu Quan was greatly surprised and hurriedly asked, “Commander Long Fu, are you
leaving so soon?”
This was clearly beyond Bu Quan's expectations.
The dragonman youngster's victory over Teng Dong Lang in their duel had made
him famous throughout the country. The destruction of the Bayonet Gang also
meant that the foreign Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a promising future in
Snow Bird Harbor.
Many people believed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would stay in Snow
Bird Harbor, seize this rare opportunity, focus on development, and put down
deep roots.
They did not know the true intentions of the survivors.
The dragonman youngster replied, “Yes, our original plan was to go to the
capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“We will only set up a branch here in Snow Bird Harbor.”
“We will leave a group of people here to carry out small-scale construction.”
“But most of us will go to the capital together.”
This was indeed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' current plan.
The shops that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord traded to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps would become the main sales points for the survivors to sell
their weapons.
The dragon rider potion would become the main product for the foreseeable
future.
Ships such as the Deep Sea Monster Fish would remain in Snow Bird Harbor.
The capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was located inland, so ships obviously
could not pass through.
The survivors would try their best to turn Snow Bird Harbor into a path for
retreating.
Soon, the dragonman youngster and Bu Quan reappeared in the hall.
The band played a lingering dance tune.
There were already more than a dozen couples dancing gracefully on the dance
floor.
The second dance had already begun.
The appearance of the dragonman youngster and Bu Quan immediately attracted the
attention of many people.
This was mainly because of the dragonman youngster.
Without a doubt, he was the star of tonight's banquet!
The dragonman youngster nodded and smiled, responding to these friendly
glances.
Bu Quan walked behind him, her brow slightly furrowed, lost in thought.
She now realized that if she agreed to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
her life would take a major turn.
Making such a decision undoubtedly requires tremendous courage, as well as
expectations and judgments about the future.
When the third dance began, the dragonman youngster slowly walked onto the
dance floor with another female snow elf.
As the leader of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he had an important social
agenda.
In the time that followed, he danced occasionally but mostly mingled with
people from all walks of life.
Bu Quan was distracted, sometimes even answering questions unrelated to what
was asked.
This made many people curious. When the two of them went out together just now,
what did Commander Long Fu do to Miss Bu Quan?
The banquet ended, and the guests dispersed.
The dragonman youngster did not accept the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
invitation to stay, and took a carriage back to the dock.
The dinner party had exhausted him both physically and mentally, and he felt as
if he had fought a hard battle.
The confidant came to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and said, "City Lord, none
of the beauties we prepared were successful, and they didn't even get to dance
with Commander Long Fu. We had already arranged for the three beauties to visit
his room late at night. But Long Fu actually left the city government palace.
Should we send the beauties over ourselves?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head: “No need, postpone the beauty
plan.”
“I didn't expect that even after drinking the Cold Emotion Wine, he still had
such strong self-control.”
“What an amazing guy, with such a strong will.”
“Now I understand why he was appointed by the arms dealer behind him as the
leader of the expedition.”
“Such a subordinate is indeed reliable.”
After this incident, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's opinion of the dragonman
youngster rose another notch.
“I just didn't expect that Long Fu would actually invite Bu Quan to join his
mercenary group.”
“Should I…stop this?”
When the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord thought of this, he couldn't help but frown
slightly.
He subconsciously wanted to stop it.
The secret meeting between the dragonman youngster and Bu Quan took place in
the garden of his city government palace. The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was
well aware of the conversation between the two, as well as their tone and
expressions at the time.
“Bu Quan has a strong fondness for Long Fu and has even developed feelings for
him.”
“Under these circumstances, there is a good chance that she will agree to
join.”
"If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps really gets her, I'm afraid many people
will be shocked. The Alchemy Guild in the royal capital will also have a huge
reaction. Bu Quan is their recognized rising star, with a bright future and the
potential to become a pillar of society in the future."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had to admit that he was a little envious and
jealous.
He had once tactfully revealed his intention to recruit her, but Bu Quan had
directly refused.
Bu Quan understood her own value. With the Alchemy Guild behind her, she didn't
need to sell herself in exchange for revenge.
In fact, she wanted to take revenge with her own hands.
After returning to Snow Bird Harbor, she had been trying to take revenge in her
own way.
This time, she took the initiative to send treasures to the dragonman
youngster, which was also based on her personality and way of acting.
“I was the main force in the destruction of the Bayonet Gang.”
“Even if Long Fu didn't kill Teng Dong Lang, I could have made sure he died in
the dueling arena!”
“But I'm afraid Bu Quan's gratitude towards me is less than one percent of her
gratitude towards Long Fu.”
"In the end, it was because of the three items she took the initiative to give
him. These gold level items were of great help to Long Fu in his difficult
battle against Teng Dong Lang."
“Especially that scroll of the Lava Hell spell!”
“All of this gave Bu Quan a sense of participation, making her feel that she
and Long Fu had worked together to successfully take revenge.”
“This is exactly the revenge she wanted!”
“Long Fu inadvertently gave her what she wanted most.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord analyzed the situation deeply and was deeply
moved. At the same time, he dismissed the urge to secretly obstruct and
sabotage.
“Forget it, Long Fu is not easy to fool.”
"He has powerful backing and is now famous throughout the country. If I am
discovered secretly sabotaging and obstructing him, the loss of reputation,
interests, and so on will be too great."
At the dock.
On the Love Triangle.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di were alone in a room.
He told his beloved everything that happened at the dinner party, emphasizing
that he had invited Bu Quan to join the mercenary group.
Zi Di immediately reproached the dragonman youngster: “Commander, what you did
was too rash!”
“Bu Quan's good impression of you and our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps cannot be
wasted so easily.”
“If you really want to recruit her, I can come up with a better plan.”
“What you did just now was too reckless.”
"Sigh..."
Zi Di sighed deeply, her frustration evident. 
“However, Bu Quan didn't reject you on the spot; she's genuinely considering
the invitation, which means we still have a chance!” 
“Quickly explain the details; I need to analyze this thoroughly.” 
“So, Commander, please repeat every word, not just the sentence, and try not to
omit anything.”
“Ahem.” The dragonman youngster felt inexplicably uneasy, “I'll try my best.”
His tone immediately made Zi Di dissatisfied.
The ghost girl emphasized, “Lord, please understand that every word you say now
may affect the ultimate success or failure of our recruitment of Bu Quan.”
“You are not a magician, so you don't really understand the importance of a
silver level alchemy great master!”
"Bu Quan has a bright future. Looking at the entire Snow Bird Harbor, she is
the most precious gem among all the talents!"
"The only concern may be the concentration of her bloodline. If she cannot be
promoted to the gold level in the future and is limited to the silver level for
the rest of her life, her value will be greatly reduced."
“But we don't need to consider this point, do you understand?”
“Yes, yes.” The dragonman youngster nodded hurriedly, “We have the Bloodline
Purification formation. With it, even if Bu Quan's bloodline concentration is
limited, we can purify it and raise her talent ceiling.”
"I'll try to repeat the previous situation as best I can. Don't get so upset,
okay?"
Zi Di nodded in satisfaction, “Don't worry.”
The dragonman youngster was still worried, so he emphasized, “Promise me, don't
get too agitated.”
“I know, hurry up and tell me.”



****** Chapter 349: The Young Man's Lustful Dream ******
“Ahem, that's how it happened.” The dragonman youngster exhaled a breath of
stale air.
It was too difficult to repeat his previous conversation with Bu Quan to Zi Di!
In the end, the dragonman youngster still didn't reveal some information.
An inexplicable sense of crisis lingered in his heart, causing him to hesitate
repeatedly before finally choosing to conceal it.
“Bu Quan also said that she was just talking nonsense.”
“She was just too grateful to me, and maybe she drank a little too much, so she
made a joke.”
"There's no need to mention the joke. That's not the point."
The dragonman youngster persuaded himself in his heart.
Zi Di lowered her head in thought and began to ponder the version that the
dragonman youngster had secretly edited.
“It sounds like Miss Bu Quan has a strong fondness for you and our Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.”
“From this, we can see how deep her feelings are for the nanny who took care of
her.”
“Alas, perhaps you should have struck while the iron was hot and directly
finalized the contract with her.”
“Now that she has been given enough time to think about it, every moment she
spends thinking about it reduces our chances.”
Upon hearing these words, the dragonman youngster's expression turned solemn,
and he immediately shook his head and said, “That is not advisable.”
“Taking advantage of her heated state of mind to do something that benefits us
is taking advantage of someone's weakness!”
"Bu Quan is not our enemy, nor has she done anything wrong. On the contrary,
she has been a great help to me. It can be said that without the gold level
item she took the initiative to send me, I would not have been able to defeat
Teng Dong Lang."
“We can't treat our friends like this!”
Zi Di was scolded a little, rolled her eyes, and said reproachfully, "Joining
us will also be very helpful to Bu Quan."
“In the future, after her loyalty has been verified, we can use the Bloodline
Purification formation on her.”
“Our help to her will be far more valuable than those three gold level items!”
“That's a matter for the future,” replied the dragonman youngster, "If we take
advantage of her situation and let her join us.”
“Once she calms down, the regret and disgust in her heart will become a hidden
threat for us, posing a significant threat to our unity.”
Zi Di still opposed the idea: “I don't agree!”
“Even if she feels regret, that's just a normal emotion.”
“As long as we give her enough time, she will eventually integrate into our
group.”
“Because I believe that emotions grow through interaction, gradually becoming
deep attachments.”
“First, we have to get along with each other before our feelings can grow,
right?”
The speaker had no such intention, but the listener had an interpretation of
their own.
The dragonman youngster's heart skipped a beat. Was Zi Di hinting at something?
But immediately, Zi Di said, “Let's think about ourselves.”
"Before entering Mystifying Monster Island, how deep was the gap between us? We
were all strangers."
“However, after going through a series of life-and-death crises, we had become
the closest of comrades by the time we left Mystifying Monster Island!”
“Bu Quan is definitely worth fighting for.”
"I think she will get along very well with us. Mainly because of you, my Lord."
At this point, Zi Di smiled, looking into the dragonman youngster's eyes, which
were filled with love.
“Me?” The dragonman youngster's heart skipped a beat again.
What was this inexplicable feeling of guilt?
Zi Di said, “Think about what kind of people we are.”
“Undead, goblins, beastman, half-giants... magicians, mercenaries, soldiers,
butlers, hunters, carpenters...”
“It is you who has brought us together, and under your leadership, we act in
unison.”
“What difference does it make if we add a snow elf alchemist now?”
The dragonman youngster smiled and responded to the young lady with a loving
gaze: “Thank you for having such confidence in me.”
The two looked at each other for a moment.
Zi Di chuckled: "Anyway, I'll negotiate with Bu Quan next. I have a lot of
negotiation skills, as for you, my commander, you just need to be responsible
for signing the contract in the end."
The dragonman youngster frowned: “But your identity...”
Zi Di's former identity was Hong Teng.
But this identity had already died in the assassination by the mysterious
assassin.
Zi Di smiled and said, "It's very simple. Starting tomorrow, we need to recruit
some members."
“With the reputation of our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, there will definitely
be many people who want to join us.”
“We need some locals to run our shops here.”
“Perhaps there are spies from other factions mixed in, but that doesn't matter.
They will only be peripheral personnel.”
“I'll take this opportunity to join.”
“Let's do it.” The dragonman youngster nodded.
The two exchanged a few more words before parting ways.
Zi Di secretly sneaked back into the Deep Sea Monster Fish and began large-
scale alchemy.
When the shop opened, she would need at least a hundred doses of dragon rider
potions to barely keep up with demand.
The dragonman youngster went to his cabin to sleep.
Everything that happened tonight was very challenging for him. His body was not
tired, but his mind was exhausted.
In his hazy sleep, the dragonman youngster saw Bu Quan again.
He danced with Bu Quan.
Their bodies pressed tightly together, growing closer and closer, as if they
were trying to merge into one another.
Their faces drew nearer, until their lips touched.
The dance floor transformed into a fountain.
He and Bu Quan fell into it, tearing at each other's clothes in the warm water.
“Love me, love me!” Bu Quan spoke in the water, her face flushed red, her charm
overflowing.
“Let's be together, and when we have a son, we'll name him Long Tai, and when
we have a daughter, we'll name her Quan Zi...”
Bu Quan's voice was like silk, lingering in the dragonman youngster's heart.
The dragonman youngster breathed heavily and thrusted...
The next moment, he suddenly opened his eyes.
In the darkness, his amber dragon eyes flashed with a ray of light, then
disappeared.
Huff, huff, huff.
The dragonman youngster gasped a few times and blinked: “It was just a dream.”
“Why did I have such a dream?” 
“No, this is perfectly normal, isn't it?” 
“I'm just an ordinary man.” 
“Perhaps it's because the Bayonet Gang was destroyed, the Bloodline
Purification formation made breakthrough progress, and after the stimulation of
the dance, my subconscious mind produced a lot of sexual desire while I was
relaxed.”
He subconsciously looked down and saw that his pants were bulging.
“But why did I dream about Bu Quan instead of Zi Di...”
Thinking of this, the dragonman youngster couldn't help but feel a little
ashamed.
He tried to go back to sleep but ended up feeling very energetic.
He decided not to sleep anymore and got up.
After a cold shower, all his restless desires vanished.
He went to the combat chamber to train.
Now, the combat chamber had a weapons rack. It was filled with various types of
weapons.
The dragonman youngster studied under Zeng Ge and underwent intensive training,
becoming skilled with the short spear.
After the battle with Teng Dong Lang, he gained a lot of experience in using
soft weapons.
The dragonman youngster first took out the short spears and did some practice.
The short spears were, of course, the gold level pair.
The dragonman youngster also used them when training, in order to improve his
connection with this pair of weapons as much as possible.
After training with the short spears for a while, he picked up the whip and
practiced with it for a while.
Thanks to Teng Dong Lang, after that duel, he had also learned the whip.
Recalling the scene of his battle with Teng Dong Lang, especially the scene
where he threw the winning throw, the dragonman youngster frowned slightly.
At the most critical moment, Teng Dong Lang had actually shown a weakness.
He had failed to use his battle skill, suffered a backlash, and had not dodged
the dragonman youngster's sword qi.
This was very strange.
In particular, the dragonman youngster thought that when the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and the Sea Bird Bishop had joined forces to surround and kill the
mysterious assassin, the same situation had occurred.
At the critical moment, the mysterious assassin wanted to use his battle skill
to quickly move away, but he failed and was hit by the disintegration beam,
disintegrating on the spot, leaving not even ashes behind.
“The two situations are very similar... Is it a coincidence?”
"Teng Dong Lang had never shown any weaknesses in previous battles. Why did he
show weakness at the critical moment?"
“Unfortunately, my probe of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord before the ball did
not yield any results.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head slightly and suppressed his doubts for
the time being.
He did not revel in his glorious achievements.
On the contrary, although the dragonman youngster defeated and killed Teng Dong
Lang, he was very keenly aware of the gap between them.
The dragonman youngster's victory was very close, and luck played a big part in
it.
Outsiders believed that this was the dragonman youngster's fate, as he had
defeated a stronger opponent through bloody combat and perseverance.
But the more praise the dragonman youngster heard from these people, the calmer
he became.
“Teng Dong Lang didn't have any flying battle skills, but I still wasn't his
match.”
“I wore a set of luxurious equipment, but in the end, it only gave me the
preliminary qualifications to fight him.”
“The gold level equipment is indeed very powerful, but with my silver level
battle qi, I cannot bring out their full potential.”
“I am a burden to this equipment.”
This battle made the dragonman youngster quite dissatisfied with his own battle
qi cultivator cultivation.
He had gained a lot from his previous battle with Xiong Ju.
After the battle with Teng Dong Lang, his biggest feeling was that it was
really awful to be at a lower level!
Unfortunately, cultivating battle qi was always a process of quantitative
change leading to qualitative change.
It was a long process of accumulation that could not be achieved overnight.
After practicing with the whip for a while, the dragonman youngster began to
swing his fists continuously to exercise his battle qi.
After his battle qi was replenished to its peak state, he began to practice a
new spear technique.
This battle skill was called the Shooting Star Spear, which was a battle skill
that involved throwing a short spear in one's hand, and it was more powerful
than Spear Throw. It was very difficult to master, and it required a starting
stance before throwing.
Even so, it was much better than the Scorching Dragon Breath.
At the very least, after practicing for a while, even when facing Teng Dong
Lang, it could be used without exposing a major flaw.



****** Chapter 350: Zhong Yong - I Want 500 Gold! ******
That night, Bu Quan didn't sleep well either.
Unlike the dragonman youngster, she was awakened by nightmares.
In her dream, she returned to the deepest part of her memory, to the moment she
couldn't bear to look back on. She held a middle-aged female snow elf in her
arms and cried in pain and despair, "Nanny, please don't die, don't die! Don’t
leave me…”
The nanny who had raised her since childhood gazed at Bu Quan with eyes filled
with tenderness and love: “Xiao Quan, though elves live long lives, they must
eventually die.”
“Our parting is merely a bit earlier than expected.”
“Do not think of revenge under any circumstances. Flee, leave this place
quickly." 
"You're such a kind-hearted child. After leaving, be careful and don't trust
others easily. You must know that human hearts are hard to judge by appearance,
and even by actions."
“Human hearts are also prone to change.”
“Take good care of yourself. I can no longer be by your side.”
“Live well...”
The middle-aged female elf in Bu Quan's arms had stopped breathing.
The next moment, Bu Quan opened her eyes on the bed, tears streaming down her
face.
Grief filled her heart, making it hard for her to sleep.
She sat at her desk, took out an alchemy device from the drawer, and activated
it.
A magic image of her nanny appeared before her.
In the past, whenever she felt that she couldn't go on, she would activate this
alchemy device to draw hope for survival and the motivation for revenge from
maternal love.
“Nanny, please rest in peace.”
“I have avenged you with the alchemy device I gave out.”
How many times had she awakened from similar nightmares like this one?
But this time, recalling the scene that had unfolded in the dueling arena, the
sorrow in Bu Quan's heart was no longer as intense, and the pain had diminished
significantly.
She closed the alchemy device and put it back in the drawer.
There was another alchemy device in the drawer, which also stored a magic
image. This magic image recorded the duel between the dragonman youngster and
Teng Dong Lang.
Bu Quan placed the two alchemy devices side by side.
In another corner of the drawer was a graduation certificate. 
It had been signed by her mentor. 
During her days studying at the Alchemy Guild, her female mentor had provided
her with immense support. 
The scene of their parting remained deeply etched in her memory. 
“Teacher, I'm leaving,” Bu Quan said reluctantly at the entrance of the
magician tower.
The middle-aged female elf sighed, “Bu Quan, don't waste your talent. Don't
disappoint my expectations of you.” 
The female mentor knew what Bu Quan intended to do upon returning to Snow Bird
Harbor. 
She wanted to say something comforting but knew it was best not to reveal this
secret. 
She paused for a moment before finally saying, “I won't say anything else.”
“Here is your graduation certificate. Use it to report to the local Alchemy
Guild, and you will receive the necessary support.” 
“Return as soon as possible.” 
“No matter when you return, the doors here will always be open for you.” 
The other apprentices behind the female magician heard these words and were
immediately stunned, then began to show envy and jealousy toward Bu Quan.
“I'll remember it!” Bu Quan choked up, her eyes reddening, and finally left.
As the memory faded, Bu Quan's gaze once again focused on the graduation
certificate.
She gently traced her fingertips over the certificate's cover, feeling the
texture of the matte surface.
The nanny taught Bu Quan to doubt.
Her mentor, however, taught her to always maintain curiosity and a thirst for
knowledge.
These two principles combined forged Bu Quan’s heart as a magician.
Her original plan was after successfully avenging herself against the Bayonet
Gang, she would return to the magician tower, back to her mentor’s side, and
continue exploring the vast, mysterious realm of alchemy.
Bu Quan never imagined that the Bayonet Gang’s downfall would come so suddenly,
so swiftly.
This surprised and delighted her, but it also caught her off guard.
At the ball, the dragonman youngster's invitation made her heart flutter.
At this point in her life, she had reached a crossroad.
One path led to the magician tower and the world of alchemy that she was
curious about and longed for.
The other path led to a dragonman youngster who was smiling and inviting her
with outstretched arms.
However, behind the dragonman youngster was a layer of fog.
After thinking about it carefully, Bu Quan realized that she actually knew very
little about the dragonman youngster.
"What kind of person is he really? All I've seen is his performance in battle,
but what is his true personality? What is his past experience?"
"Could he be just like the Bayonet Gang in reality? He invited me so warmly, so
my alchemy talent must be the most important thing."
“After all, my perception of him and his perception of me are completely
different.”
“Behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is a mysterious arms dealer. I am an
Alchemy Great Master with several alchemy workshops under my command. Isn't
that exactly what an arms dealer needs?"
The more Bu Quan thought about it, the more her brow furrowed.
In her heart, she felt curiosity, confusion, and growing suspicion towards the
dragonman youngster.
Just as Zi Di had analyzed, when Bu Quan really thought about it, she would
drift further and further away from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After all, the connection between the two was weak, and they had only met a
handful of times.
The wheels of the carriage rolled swiftly over the cobblestone street, emitting
a series of soft clinks.
Inside the carriage sat an alchemist, sharing Bu Quan's curiosity and concerns.
"Commander Long Fu, what kind of person is he? How could he defeat and kill a
gold level person with only a silver level power?
"What kind of organization is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? Is the mercenary
corps just their cover identity?"
This alchemist was named Zhong Yong. He was a silver level magician and had
reached the level of Alchemy Master.
His body was covered in blue fish scales, his head was that of a fish, and his
fish eyes were yellow with a hint of green. 
He was not tall but there were fish fins growing on his back that shimmered
with a golden glow. 
These were the distinctive traits of the fishman race—the Bluefin bloodline.
The magic aptitude of a fishman was quite poor, but the Bluefin bloodline was a
relatively rare magic bloodline among the fishman race.
Zhong Yong was also quite fortunate.
The concentration of the Bluefin bloodline within his body was not low,
sustaining him through his cultivation journey all the way to the silver level,
where he finally reached his limit.
The dragonman youngster's battle record astonished Zhong Yong.
Although he was a magician, as another transcendent, Zhong Yong understood how
rare such a record was.
Even before meeting Commander Long Fu, Zhong Yong already felt a sense of
pressure.
“Anyone capable of achieving such feats must be extraordinary. This explains
why the family transferred me to him.”
Zhong Yong was willing to submit to such a powerful figure.
What he truly worried about was whether the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could
provide him with a good working environment. Could they provide him with
sufficient alchemy materials?
One had to know that mercenary groups and families were different.
Mercenary groups are often on the move, but Zhong Yong had already grown
accustomed to—and enjoyed—the peaceful life of preparing potions at the family
base.
Zhong Yong had never imagined that his once unchanging life would undergo such
a drastic change just two days ago.
His personal will was easily overlooked in the face of the family's grand
plans.
Zhong Yong, who had been raised by the family since childhood, though
unwilling, did not even utter a word to advocate for himself. Because he always
understood his place. 
He was a fishman, an Alchemy Master cultivated by the family, and now a crucial
bargaining chip for the family’s diplomatic relations. 
“The most important thing is my salary.” 
“My annual salary within the family is 260 gold.” 
“The normal market rate is 300 gold per year.”
“When negotiating with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps later, I'll start by
asking for 500 gold, leaving room for bargaining.”
“Both of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' magicians were assassinated. They are
so desperate for an alchemist, and with a mysterious arms dealer backing them,
they might agree to the 500 gold condition!”
The carriage arrived at the dock before dawn.
In the distance, where the sea met the sky, a faint white glow had already
appeared.
It was dawn.
The fish market had already opened, and the sounds of buying and selling were
growing louder.
Zhong Yong stepped down from the carriage, paused at the dock, and spotted the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships.
“Why are there only three ships?” The fishman magician was disappointed, "Even
the flagship is only iron level?”
Such assets were quite pitiful.
What Zhong Yong didn't know was that before he arrived at the dock, Zong Ge had
already led a group of people out to sea for military training.
During this period, the vast majority of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lived
on the ships and hadn't even set foot on the dock.
After the Bayonet Gang was wiped out, Zong Ge finally got his chance.
He waited patiently for another day until the dragonman youngster returned from
the banquet and he was finally sure it was safe.
The next morning, he couldn't wait to lead his men out to sea.
As he put it, these men needed training—a lot of training—to make up for the
time wasted earlier!
The fishman magician stated his purpose, and the guarding mercenaries
immediately went to report.
Soon, the dragonman youngster personally came down to greet him: “Hello,
Magician Zhong Yong, I am Long Fu. Welcome to my mercenary group.”
Zhong Yong hurriedly bowed, showing gratitude.
The dragonman youngster stood alone before him, and his imposing stature and
extraordinary demeanor made him feel the presence of a true powerhouse. 
“He's so young.” 
“The man before me is the one who defeated a gold level as a silver level!” 
“Yet he has come personally to greet me.”
Zhong Yong felt a sense of being valued, and his resolve from the carriage only
grew stronger.
“It seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps desperately needs an alchemist. A
yearly salary of 500 gold is very likely. As long as I insist...”
Zhong Yong pondered, but the next moment, the dragonman youngster did not board
the ship with him.
A human female magician approached Zhong Yong: "Greetings, Magician Zhong Yong.
I am Yao Ma, a silver level magician. Please board the ship first.”
Yao Ma was Zi Di’s new identity.
Zhong Yong was puzzled: “Isn’t the commander coming with us?”
“No, he’s waiting for an important guest!” Zi Di explained with a smile, “We
just received the news ourselves.”
At this moment, Zhong Yong finally understood that the dragonman youngster
hadn’t come to greet him after all!



****** Chapter 351: Bu Quan Will Never Agree to Join ******
“An important guest?”
“What kind of person could be more important than me?”
The fishman magician Zhong Yong heard Zi Di’s explanation and couldn’t help but
feel a bit suspicious.
He stared intently at Zi Di and muttered to himself, “Also, didn’t they say
that the only two magicians in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already been
assassinated? How could there be another human female magician, and one of the
silver level at that?” 
“Since the commander is going to greet the distinguished guest, I’ll wait here
too.” Zhong Yong didn’t rush to the captain’s cabin but lingered in place out
of curiosity.
Soon, the distinguished guest he had been expecting arrived.
There was no fanfare, just an ordinary carriage.
Very ordinary.
“No, that’s not right!” After carefully examining it, Zhong Yong’s eyes widened
in shock.
As an alchemist, he gradually realized that the carriage, though seemingly
ordinary, contained a great deal of alchemy technology and was a high-spec
alchemy creation. 
Its ordinary appearance was deliberately crafted. 
In reality, it had high defensive capabilities. 
From the moment the door opened, Zhong Yong caught a glimpse of the interior of
the carriage and spotted one of the alchemy components.
“A teleportation formation! The carriage is carrying a miniature teleportation
formation!” 
“This carriage must have cost at least 2,000 gold pieces!”  
At that moment, Bu Quan stepped down from the carriage. 
“A young snow elf girl?” Zhong Yong was puzzled, "She's too young, and she's
only a silver level magician."
“Is she the only one in the carriage?” 
"Is she the distinguished guest Commander Long Fu has been waiting for? Perhaps
she's his lover, or maybe not..." 
“Wait a moment.” Zhong Yong's expression changed, "She... she seems to be Bu
Quan?” 
Zhong Yong was deeply shaken. 
He knew Bu Quan. 
In fact, many alchemists knew Bu Quan, though Bu Quan did not know them.
Bu Quan was quite famous in the alchemy circles of the Ice Sculpture Capital.
She was a genius, one of the most brilliant new stars in alchemy in recent
decades, and the winner of the Warm Snow Cup Alchemy Competition. 
Her bloodline and talent were exceptional. The royal grand magician had once
praised her, saying she possessed an extraordinary ability to make cognitive
advances, and that if she continued to develop, she would achieve many
innovations in alchemy and create results beyond the imagination of ordinary
people.
Although the royal grand magician was not an alchemist, he was widely
recognized as the strongest magician in the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom. His
evaluation of Bu Quan was undoubtedly very high. 
“Miss Bu Quan, welcome to your arrival.” The dragonman youngster smiled as he
walked to the carriage door to greet her.
Bu Quan also smiled at the dragonman youngster: “Commander Long Fu, I apologize
for visiting you so early.”
“Regarding last night's matter, I have already considered my answer.” 
“May I board the ship to discuss this further?”
“Of course, please come this way.” 
The dragonman youngster escorted Bu Quan and Zhong Yong into the captain's
cabin.
Zi Di followed them inside. 
After everyone had seated themselves, the dragonman youngster introduced Zi Di
to Bu Quan and Zhong Yong first. 
“This is the Magician Yao Ma who has recently joined our Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.” 
“She is trustworthy.”
Bu Quan glanced at Zi Di, a thoughtful expression fleeting across her eyes
behind her glasses.
Zi Di laughed and said, “Newly joining is just a cover story.”
“Actually, I was ordered by the head of my family to come and support the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“Thanks to the brave fighting of Commander Long Fu, we have broken through the
deadlock at Snow Bird Harbor. Therefore, in the future, the head of the family
will also increase investment in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
The words of the dragonman youngster were thought-provoking, and it was easy to
connect them to the arms dealer background of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zi Di spoke the “truth” directly, immediately making Bu Quan and Zhong Yong
feel her sincerity.
Furthermore, Zi Di also used the background of a powerful family.
Bu Quan thought to herself, “I knew it.”
Zhong Yong also thought to himself, “No wonder.”
The fishman magician adjusted his posture in his seat.
He silently warned himself: Be cautious when dealing with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. This is no ordinary force. Their backers could easily dispatch
silver level reinforcements.
As for why they didn't dispatch gold level reinforcements?
The fishman magician already had the answer.
Because this was an unspoken agreement, or rather, an unwritten rule.
Silver level cultivators were considered low tier transcendents, suitable for
reconnaissance.
Gold level was already mid-tier, with individual strength not to be
underestimated; often, the ruler of a city was of this level.
When a gold level individual arrived, it always attracted attention and
instilled fear.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps came to explore the market, not to invade.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord originally had four gold level individuals,
occupying the highest echelons of power.  Among them, only one was an outsider,
serving as the Clam Cloth Branch Leader.
This was because the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance had extensive business
operations within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, with a scale of operations that
was extremely vast. 
With royal permission, the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance was permitted to
station a gold level individual at the main transportation harbor.
Local factions rarely allowed outsider gold level individuals to reside
permanently.
A single gold level individual could rival an entire army, easily undermining
local rule.
“This fishman magician...” The dragonman youngster was about to introduce him.
Zhong Yong hurriedly stood up.
He dared not be presumptuous and introduced himself proactively: “My name is
Zhong Yong. I possess the bloodline of the Bluefin fishman and specialize in
alchemy. The most common potions I create are the teary water and anti-movement
powder.”
Zhong Yong was savvy enough to adopt this attitude, which immediately earned
him smiles from the dragonman youngster and Zi Di.
In fact, the survivors were all aware of Zhong Yong’s background. 
They knew the details of the few alchemists who had come.
When Zhong Yong was sold into slavery, he was still in his mother’s womb. 
His mother died shortly after he was born.
It was a stroke of luck for Zhong Yong. 
The noble family that purchased him had a granddaughter who needed a toy. 
Zhong Yong became a prop for her make-believe games, primarily playing the role
of an infant. 
As the granddaughter grew older, he became a pet akin to a cat or dog. 
Thus, during his childhood, Zhong Yong received treatment that was unimaginable
for most fishman slaves.
As he grew older, his bloodline traits became more pronounced, and he was even
detected to have magician potential!
Magician bloodlines among fishmen were far rarer than among humans, and even
more so compared to snow elves.
The eldest granddaughter also grew up gradually. Due to the affection
cultivated since childhood and the promising future benefits, she bestowed the
name Zhong Yong upon him and invested resources to nurture him.
Once he had completed his education, he worked in the noble alchemist's
workshop, creating value.
Zhong Yong's personal background was straightforward.
What pleased the dragonman youngster and Zi Di was that Zhong Yong had been
raised by snow elves from a young age, receiving a servant's education, and had
remained consistent, showing remarkable maturity.
He was good at following orders and was a very competent subordinate.
This could be seen from his recent performance.
“Magician Zhong Yong, you have traveled a long way to get here. Please have a
cup of tea first.” The dragonman youngster greeted Zhong Yong first, gesturing
for him to sit down again.
Then, the dragonman youngster explained to him in a gentle tone: “Although you
arrived at the dock first this morning, the matter involving me and Bu Quan
Miss actually occurred earlier.”
“Please wait a moment, okay?”
“Of course, of course,” Zhong Yong hurriedly replied. Deep down, he was
extremely curious about why Bu Quan, such a genius, was involved with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Could it be that they are discussing a major deal?”
“This is good, I can see some of the strength of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps as an observer.”
Zhong Yong was filled with curiosity and looked forward to the negotiations
between the dragonman youngster and Bu Quan.
But then, the dragonman youngster got straight to the point: "Last night's
invitation to Miss Bu Quan made me reflect on myself. It was my uncontrollable
emotions that caused such a sudden move. I've been eagerly awaiting your
answer. Have you made up your mind? Will you join us?"
Bu Quan opened her mouth and was about to answer.
Plop.
Zhong Yong, who had just taken a sip of tea, spat it out immediately. 
Fortunately, he lowered his head in time, spitting it onto the floor. 
"Cough cough cough. I-I apologize for my rudeness." Zhong Yong coughed while
apologizing, looking utterly embarrassed. 
At the same time, he was filled with shock. 
“Goodness gracious, what did I just hear?”
"Long Fu is actually recruiting Bu Quan? What gives him the right?"
Zhong Yong admitted that the dragonman youngster was indeed extraordinary,
capable of slaying a gold level opponent as a silver level. The Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps also had powerful backers; anyone capable of being an arms
dealer must have formidable connections.
But none of this gave grounds for recruiting Bu Quan.
An outsider might not be qualified, but Zhong Yong was an insider; he was well
aware of Bu Quan's status.
She was a prodigy who had been the focus of attention since she first emerged.
Her mentor adored her and was willing to invest heavily in her cultivation.
The investment was substantial, almost treating Bu Quan as the next heir to the
magician tower.
The president of the Royal Alchemy Guild also held high hopes for Bu Quan.
During a banquet, he publicly evaluated the alchemy prodigies that had emerged
in the kingdom over the past few decades.
Bu Quan was ranked fifth.
This position meant that as long as Bu Quan's bloodline potential was high
enough, she would grow up to become a pillar of the alchemy field in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
How could such a figure be recruited by a mercenary group?
Even if the arms dealer behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were to
intervene, it still wouldn't feel right.
In Zhong Yong's heart, Bu Quan's bright future should be like this. 
She would be nurtured and continue to grow. 
She would achieve success step by step, and her title would rise at a speed
that ordinary people could not match. 
When she became a gold level alchemist, she would be entrusted with important
responsibilities. 
She would be cherished and protected by the kingdom, free from any mundane
concerns, allowing her to devote all her energy to the study of alchemy.
Perhaps, in the distant future, one of the alchemy items she created would
greatly enhance the military strength of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Or perhaps
an alchemy technique she improved would significantly improve the quality of
life for the people. Or perhaps an alchemy principle she discovered and
verified would become a tool for alchemists worldwide to explore, and her name
would be remembered by all, immortalized for generations to come.
“This is the destiny a genius like Bu Quan should have.” 
“This is the path a person like Bu Quan should take, the life that best
showcases her value.” 
“But now, she's been recruited by an arms dealer?” 
"What's so hard to guess about an arms dealer's motives? He just wants to use
Bu Quan's alchemy skills to manufacture weapons!” 
“But is that something Bu Quan should be doing?” 
“Of course not.” 
“That’s something alchemists like me should be doing. A genius like Bu Quan
should be allowed to create and explore the frontiers of alchemy for the
kingdom!” 
Zhong Yong harbored the pride of an alchemist.
He had no choice but to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and he valued the
background of the dragonman youngster and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
But compared to Bu Quan, Zhong Yong looked down on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps from the bottom of his heart! He deeply felt that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, and the arms dealers behind it, were unworthy of a genius like
Bu Quan.
“Bu Quan will never agree to this!” 
Yes, magicians were short on funds and pursued various resources. But it was
only to facilitate their pursuit of knowledge and exploration of mysteries. 
The stench of money could not buy a magician's dignity! 
As a magician, Zhong Yong naturally had his own dignity. 
Especially since he was an alchemist and resided in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
where alchemists were treated with such high regard.
He believed he was merely forced into this situation, a fate he could not
resist. 
But this was not what he desired. 
The life he sought was to own his own alchemy workshop, craft alchemy items
with his own skills, sell them to sustain himself, and simultaneously fund his
own alchemy experiments, dedicating his entire life to exploring the mysteries
of alchemy. 
This was the heart of a magician.
Rising above mortals, pursuing knowledge and truth! 
Zhong Yong believed himself to possess the heart of a magician, but such was
simply his fate. 
He was even more convinced that Bu Quan also possessed the heart of a magician!
How could someone without the heart of a magician exhibit such genius and
receive such high praise from so many people?
“Bu Quan would never agree to such a recruitment!” Zhong Yong growled inwardly.
He was incomparably certain.



****** Chapter 352: Goddess, You Cannot Be Simping! ******
Love Triangle, captain's cabin.
Zi Di gave the dragonman youngster a subtle glare.
How could they negotiate like this?
Who started off by demanding answers?
According to Zi Di's understanding, negotiation could be likened to a war.
Verbal language and body language were the main weapons in this war, ultimately
achieving the goal of influencing others and obtaining personal gain.
The most important part of the early stages of war was preparation and
intelligence gathering.
Therefore, before negotiations, both parties usually started with lighter
topics. Like the weather, for example.
During this process, Zi Di would probe and confirm the other party's physical
condition, emotions, interests, and even personal values.
These things could all become tools Zi Di could use, or even fatal weaknesses
in her opponent.
However, after the dragonman youngster invited Bu Quan to the captain's cabin,
he immediately asked for the answer. 
That was too reckless! 
It was like two armies clashing, with one side launching a full-scale charge
from the start, completely bypassing the preliminary intelligence gathering,
mid-game tactical shifts, and the back-and-forth exchanges of moves and
countermeasures. 
"Moreover, directly demanding answers reveals a sense of superiority that can
be off-putting. Additionally, the urgency you display will only become your own
weakness." Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster and sighed helplessly. 
The dragonman youngster sensed Zi Di's gaze, blinked, and realized he was
holding her back. 
Zi Di didn't bother with the dragonman youngster and immediately turned to Bu
Quan, trying to salvage the situation: "Miss Bu Quan, there's no need to answer
immediately. Regarding the invitation to join the mercenary group, it's not
just us—even the clan leader is very sincere. Any conditions can be
discussed!" 
Zhong Yong, standing nearby, heard this and immediately felt envious. 
He also wanted such treatment—who wouldn't? 
“Unfortunately, I'm not a genius like Miss Bu Quan.”
“And your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps isn’t qualified to recruit her either.”
“Even if the conditions are good, what use are they?”
“Can you give her endless alchemy knowledge? Can you nurture her so that her
talent and abilities can be fully realized?”
“No. Only in the right soil can rare and precious flowers bloom.”
Bu Quan looked at Zi Di, nodded slightly, then shook her head: “Let's not talk
about this for now, okay?” 
“Let's discuss the reward first.” 
"Last night at the ball, I wanted to discuss this important matter with
Commander Long Fu. But unexpectedly, I had the honor of receiving the
commander's invitation, which disrupted my original plans." 
“However, in fact, this matter is very important to me.”
“Before this matter is resolved, can we not discuss anything else?” 
“This...” Zi Di's smile grew forced. 
Her heart sank. 
This situation was not good!
Bu Quan adopted a calculating expression, a gesture that proved she was setting
aside the influence of her feelings toward Long Fu and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster shook his head in refusal: “Bu Quan, you don’t owe me
any favors. In fact, I’m the one who owes you.” 
“As for the specific reasons, I already mentioned them at last night’s banquet,
right?” 
“Of course,” Bu Quan smiled, “but that’s your reason, not enough to serve as a
standard for action.”
"The Bayonet Gang was annihilated, and Teng Dong Lang was killed by you, the
commander, in full view of everyone. Most importantly, you used the spell
scroll I gave you to turn the tide in this battle." 
“This is the best revenge for me.” 
“There is no doubt that you are my benefactor.” 
“I must repay you!” 
“Repaying you is the prerequisite for everything.”
Bu Quan had already anticipated the dragonman youngster's attitude and
displayed an unusual assertiveness.
“This...” The dragonman youngster was about to refuse. 
Zi Di thought to herself, “Commander, please speak less.”
She once again stopped the dragonman youngster with her gaze, then said
seriously to Bu Quan, “Let's talk about it properly.”
Bu Quan took out a list and placed it on the desk.
“These are my main assets in Snow Bird Harbor, and also my personal repayment
to you, Commander Long Fu.”
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the list.
Bu Quan's main assets consisted of four alchemy workshops. Specifically, one
large alchemy workshop, two medium-sized ones, and one small one.
Bu Quan then gave a brief introduction.
"The large alchemy workshop is located on the southeast coast of Snow Bird
Harbor, equipped with a ventilation system and a cubic furnace, capable of
processing silver level materials on a large scale. Its primary function is to
supply processed materials to the other three alchemy workshops."
"The two medium-sized alchemy workshops are located in Mercury Cave and Rose
Beach. The former utilizes local resources and has a complete production line
for crafting alchemy puppets. The latter draws on the geothermal energy beneath
the beach, primarily for the production of potions."
"The small workshop is located within the city and is managed by me year-round.
It houses alchemy components such as a living fossil workbench, a hollow coral
forging anvil, a flame engineering hammer, and a blue crystal future
projector."
Zhong Yong listened beside her, his mouth agape, nearly drooling with envy. 
His life's dream was to own his own alchemy workshop, to support himself while
continuing to explore the field of alchemy. 
He never imagined that Bu Quan would give out four of his dream workshops at
once! 
Zhong Yong, being an expert, quickly assessed the value of these four alchemy
workshops in his mind.
"In large alchemy workshops, the ventilation wheel is the core energy source.
Such alchemy devices are already renowned for their affordability and quality.
The cubic furnace, however, is no ordinary device. It can be folded up for
portability, with a volume less than one percent of its operational state. Such
portable alchemy tools are typically used for setting up temporary camps. Using
them in a fixed location is actually a waste of functionality." 
"The two medium-sized alchemy workshops are carefully selected for their
locations, clearly designed with specific structures, making them custom-made
alchemy workshops. They produce alchemy puppets and potions, with significant
production volumes." 
"The value of the small workshops is the greatest, and it's quite exaggerated!
Every tool mentioned by Bu Quan is made of gold level components!"
"The living fossil workbench effectively maintains the activity of materials.
It also has a built-in spell that activates everything, allowing for automated
material processing. For example, it can make wood actively jump into flames to
burn itself. It can make potions actively crowd together, spin wildly, and
complete the mixing process on their own." 
"The main material for making coral anvils is rare golden coral. The
manufacturing process is extremely labor-intensive, with each hollowed-out
section being a miniature compressed space. With such a structure, the coral
anvil can store a large amount of materials. It can instantly absorb waste
materials during the material forging process. It can also store and retrieve
suitable materials, saving a significant amount of materials and preventing
waste. The spell it carries significantly increases the success rate of
material processing and the quality of the final product."
"The flame engineering hammer is a fully flame-formed alchemy tool that can be
scaled to any size. Besides forging, it also functions as a furnace, capable of
enveloping and melting various materials for refinement, making it highly
convenient and practical." 
"The blue crystal future projector is the most precious treasure among them
all. It is extremely rare, and alchemists often have no way to purchase it."
"Its function is highly powerful, enabling the prediction of alchemy outcomes
and their expression through magic images. In other words, with it, alchemists
can foresee the success or failure of an important alchemy endeavor in advance.
Furthermore, they can carefully analyze the magic images to identify the
specific cause of failure and avoid it beforehand."
"Bu Quan is indeed a talent that the Alchemist Guild values. These precious
items must be the rewards she exchanged for completing her tasks using her
contribution points."
The more Zhong Yong analyzed, the more he felt a sense of joy.
The reason was simple.
Bu Quan was giving these to the dragonman youngster as a token of gratitude.
So, once Zhong Yong joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, wouldn’t he have
the opportunity to access and use these alchemy devices?
“I never expected such a good thing!”
“Thank you, Miss Bu Quan. On my first day joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, you’ve already sent such a generous gift to improve our working
conditions!”
Although Zhong Yong didn't understand the full story, after eavesdropping, he
vaguely understood Bu Quan's attitude toward the dragonman youngster and the
motive behind this action.
“These assets are of great value, yet Bu Quan gave them away so easily.”
“I understand!”
“Bu Quan did this to distance herself from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
reject Long Fu's invitation.”
Zhong Yong felt he had guessed Bu Quan’s intention.
On one hand, he marveled at Bu Quan’s generosity, giving such a heavy gift of
gratitude on a whim—truly the personality of a rising star.
On the other hand, he also approved of Bu Quan’s actions.
Why should the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps try to recruit Bu Quan?
How dare they make such an excessive demand?
How thick-skinned can they be?
It could be said that Bu Quan was like a pearl, a rising star in the alchemy
circle. 
The dragonman youngster recruiting Bu Quan felt like an outsider coming to the
kingdom to court the princess. 
The key was that this outsider wasn't even a prince; at best, he was just a
peddler. 
They weren't a match. 
The princess's future could not end up like this. 
The dragonman youngster couldn't bring the princess happiness!
Zhong Yong was just about to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps but hadn't
officially joined yet, so his approval of the dragonman youngster and others
was very low.
Additionally, he grew up in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and though he was a
fishman, he had been treated kindly due to his bloodline.
Therefore, he always believed himself to be a resident of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, a member of its alchemists.
Bu Quan was his idol!
Young, snow elf, genius, talent, and brilliance—Zhong Yong aspired to become
such an alchemist.
Unfortunately, in reality, he was far from Bu Quan's level.
At the same time, he saw many similarities between himself and Bu Quan.
For instance, the hardships of her early years, her relentless personal
efforts, her thirst for knowledge, and her dedication to the study of alchemy.
Zhong Yong had been secretly observing Bu Quan for a long time.
Many alchemists paid attention to Bu Quan, and it was quite normal for a genius
like her to attract attention. 
To put it dramatically, Bu Quan was like Zhong Yong's goddess. 
The former had lived out the life the latter most desired. 
Therefore, when Zhong Yong discovered that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
recruited Bu Quan, he felt Bu Quan was undervalued, and his heart was filled
with resentment and aversion.
To some extent, this was him protecting his personal ideals, not wanting them
to be tarnished.
The dragonman youngster sighed, “This gift is too valuable.”
Bu Quan shook her head and insisted, “Commander Long Fu, please accept it.”
Seeing this, Zi Di's heart sank to the bottom.
Her thoughts were the same as Zhong Yong's.
Bu Quan was using material wealth to repay the gratitude in her heart. 
This was precisely what Zi Di did not want to see. 
This sense of gratitude was the greatest bargaining chip in the negotiations
between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Bu Quan. 
Yet Bu Quan was undermining it. 
“What should we do?” Zi Di thought urgently. 
"We cannot accept this gift hastily; we need to delay and negotiate."
"We need to show our bargaining chips. The database from the War Merchant is a
huge temptation for any alchemist!"
“Additionally, perhaps her gratitude toward the commander can also be
utilized.”
As Zi Di pondered the negotiation strategy, she heard the dragonman youngster
speak again.
“Alright, I accept this token of gratitude.”
Zi Di’s eyes widened in shock, as if struck by lightning.
Then she heard the dragonman youngster ask, “And what is your answer?”
Zi Di was furious, so much so that she wanted to punch the dragonman youngster
in the head.
But then she saw Bu Quan flash a dazzling smile and nod, saying, "I accept your
invitation, Commander Long Fu!"
Zi Di: ????
The dragonman youngster burst into laughter, unable to resist clapping his
hands forcefully.
Thud.
The next moment, the utterly shocked fishman Zhong Yong fell from his chair
onto the ground.
He opened his mouth agape as if his world view had collapsed.
He seemed to be screaming—
Goddess, what's happened to you?!
Goddess, you can't be simping!!!



****** Chapter 353: I Don’t Want to Regret ******
There was no wind on the sea.
The sea surface was calm.
Tall fish fins, like battle flags, suddenly appeared above the water.
A large group of sailfish flicked their powerful tails and swam swiftly through
the shallow waters with agile movements.
In front of them, a silver level whale was frantically trying to escape.
The whale was massive and moved slowly, quickly caught up by the sailfish.
The sailfish darted like arrows, piercing the whale’s defenses with their long,
sharp beaks
The whale bled profusely, emitting agonized cries.
Soon, the massive whale lost its life, its heavy body sinking slowly to the
ocean floor.
The sailfish remained in place, gathering into a group, quietly awaiting the
arrival of their leader.
The aura of a gold level magic beast swiftly rose from beneath the sea surface.
The leader of the fish school appeared.
It was a gold level sailfish, but it had only a fish head remaining.
The sailfish head emitted cries and magic fluctuations, continuing to command
the sailfish school.
The sailfish dived to the bottom, using their razor-sharp mouths to slice
through the whale's corpse. 
Soon, blood spread rapidly, staining more and more seawater red. 
Not long after, an eerie, gloomy mist covered the battlefield, and the ghost
ship sailed into the area.
On the ship's rail stood Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and Ku Feng.
Their leader, Jian Gui, had merged with the ghost ship in his ghostly form.
This allowed him to expand the ghost ship's reconnaissance range. Whenever they
entered unfamiliar waters, Jian Gui would do this to prevent unforeseen
circumstances.
As for Qing Xin, the only living person on board and a wind magician, during
the ghost ship's voyage, she frequently used the Wind Booster spell to increase
the ship's speed, contributing her value.
The sailfish school immediately became agitated and chaotic upon the ghost
ship's arrival.
Almost all living beings instinctively felt fear, disgust, and other negative
emotions toward undead lifeforms.
Positive energy and negative energy inherently opposed each other.
“Another silver level whale,” Ku Feng exclaimed with admiration, "Today's luck
is good; this is already the third one this morning.”
Cang Xu smiled: “After all, this is the Whale Song Sea; it's normal for there
to be more whales here.”
Xiao Wang Zi looked enviously at Cang Xu: "You can actually command the
existing school of fish through the death head. Not only for hunting, but also
to have the fish school process the corpses for us—that's truly convenient!" 
Cang Xu smiled; he hadn't anticipated such benefits from practicing the Flying
Head Spell.
The group of necromancers departed from Jian Gui's safe house and headed
directly for the White Hair Trench.
During this time, Cang Xu practiced and gained a basic mastery of the
necromancy spells involved in the Flying Head Spell.
As they were about to enter the Whale Song Sea, they were attacked by a school
of sailfish.
Jian Gui personally intervened, dispersing the school of fish, after which Cang
Xu voluntarily requested and successfully obtained the head of the sailfish
leader. 
He utilized the Flying Head Spell, narrowly succeeding in gaining control of a
gold level death head.
Through this sailfish head, he unexpectedly discovered that he could indirectly
control the sailfish school.
During subsequent voyages, he focused on gathering sailfish, gradually forming
the current-sized school.
The Flying Head Spell had already begun to demonstrate its advantages in Cang
Xu's hands.
It should be noted that while Cang Xu appeared to be a silver level
necromancer, his true rank was only iron level.
Yet he had managed to transcend two levels to control a gold level death head.
This degree of crossing levels was absurd.
Among the three necromancer aspects, the bone aspect controlled skeletons, the
corpse aspect commanded zombies, and the soul aspect wielded ghosts—all capable
of forming armies. 
They could also cross realms to control servants stronger than their own
bodies. 
But Cang Xu easily compared and found that their realm-crossing capabilities
paled in comparison to the Flying Head Spell.
“The Flying Head Spell must have drawn upon the essence of the corpse and soul
aspects, making transcending levels much easier.” 
"Through the death head, I can indirectly control the beast herd. But two
conditions must be met: first, the beast herd must have very limited
intelligence. Second, the death head must restrain all its undead aura."
The whale was quickly sliced to pieces by the sailfish swarm. 
"As per our previous agreement, the flesh and bones are yours. The souls belong
to Lord Jian Gui; I'll only take the heads." Cang Xu distributed the spoils. 
After tasting the benefits of the Flying Head Spell, Cang Xu now viewed every
head with a different perspective.
Xiao Wang Zi saw another whale head fall into Cang Xu's hands and couldn't help
but exclaim, “This is already the fifth one, right?” 
“Unfortunately, whales exist in family units.” 
“However, summoning five whale death heads at once is still quite impressive.” 
Xiao Wang Zi imagined the scene and became excited.
Cang Xu gave a wry smile and replied, “You're underestimating the difficulty of
the Head Creation Spell.” 
“In fact, the higher the level of the skull material, the harder it is to
succeed.” 
“I was very lucky to have mastered the art of making sailfish death heads; such
success is almost impossible to replicate.” 
Cang Xu gradually began to grasp some of the mysteries of the Head Creation
Spell.
Although the Head Creation Spell is a necromancy spell, necromancy was merely
the foundation. What was truly utilized was a vast formation of alchemy
techniques. 
One could even say that alchemy techniques were the more critical element,
significantly determining the success rate of death head creation. 
The more appropriate and advanced the alchemy techniques employed, the higher
the quality of the resulting death head, endowed with extraordinary power.
This posed a significant challenge for Cang Xu. 
Cang Xu's expertise in alchemy was quite ordinary, and he had no natural talent
for it. 
Even attempting to replicate alchemy formations would likely result in
failure. 
In recent days, Cang Xu had showcased his skills through the inheritance of the
Flying Head Spell.
But he was well aware that his alchemy abilities would severely limit the
potential of the Flying Head Spell in the future. 
“To avoid this weakness, the most direct solution is to rely on external
assistance.” 
“But where can I find an alchemist who is suitable for me and whom I can trust
to collaborate with?” 
The people around Cang Xu were not suitable. 
Among them, Xiao Wang Zi had a notable talent for alchemy.
But Cang Xu had no intention of asking him for help.
Because Xiao Wang Zi was a necromancer himself.
If he participated in the creation of the death head, he would easily uncover
the secrets of the Flying Head Spell during the process.
This would be very easy for him.
Cang Xu was also thinking of using the teachings of the Flying Head Spell as a
bargaining chip to trade with these necromancers.
Especially Jian Gui.
If possible, Cang Xu wanted to obtain more advanced necromantic inheritance
from Jian Gui. Whether it was soul crystals or memory crystals, such knowledge
would bring immense assistance to both Cang Xu himself and the survivors.
“But if one isn't a necromancer, which normal alchemist would collaborate with
a necromancer?”
“This is something that can't be hidden or avoided.”
“The foundation for creating a death head is undead magic power.”
While Cang Xu was worrying about the future, he didn't know that two alchemists
had already joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
And one of them was a prodigious new talent among the few in the entire Ice
Sculpture Kingdom!
When the fishman magician Zhong Yong heard that Bu Quan had agreed to recruit
him, he was so shocked that he fell off his seat.
“Magician Zhong Yong, are you okay?” the dragonman youngster expressed his
concern.
Zhong Yong hurriedly said, “I just didn't sit properly. I'm fine.”
But his stammering tone and shocked expression revealed the extreme turmoil in
his heart at that moment.
Bu Quan maintained the posture she had when she agreed to recruit him. She
stared at the dragonman youngster with intense eyes, her face flushed. 
Zi Di did not hide her surprise, but seeing Bu Quan's gaze, she couldn't help
but be taken aback. 
She instinctively looked at the dragonman youngster. 
The latter looked at Bu Quan and laughed foolishly.
The ghost girl's expression darkened, filled with confusion, unease, and
irritation.
She forced herself to suppress her emotions and pulled out a blank spell
scroll: “Let's discuss the specifics.”
“The most important item—remuneration.”
“What is your ideal salary, Bu Quan?”
Bu Quan paused, unsure of how to respond: “I’m sorry, Magician Yao Ma, I
haven’t thought about that yet.”
“You can decide.”
Zi Di froze, wondering: Was that her honest answer, or was it a negotiation
tactic?
Zhong Yong was stunned!
“What do you mean, ‘you can decide’?”
“Hey, you're Bu Quan!”
“How can you be so casual about something as important as compensation?”
“Please show some dignity!”
“You're an Alchemy Great Master, a genius of the kingdom!”
Zhong Yong roared in his heart, frustrated by her lack of ambition.
Bu Quan's 'you can decide' didn't faze Zi Di. 
The ghost girl had prepared extensively and immediately began speaking
confidently: “As far as I know, there are currently three main methods for
hiring alchemists...” 
She detailed the differences between the three methods and kept observing Bu
Quan's reactions throughout.
Bu Quan no longer stared at the dragonman youngster. 
She had already exhausted her courage by staring at him earlier. 
Her gaze shifted around, and after a moment of thought, she replied, "I don't
have high demands for an annual salary. If I must say, I prefer a profit-
sharing arrangement. For each alchemy item sold, a proportion of the profits
should be allocated to me. The specific proportion will be determined based on
the specific alchemy item. What do you think?" 
“No problem.” 
Bu Quan added, “After joining, I hope the working environment will be better,
at least as good as the conditions I had in Snow Bird Harbor.” 
“That's also no problem,” the dragonman youngster replied, "The gratuity you
receive will be entirely yours to use. In the future, we will definitely
provide you with better alchemy tools." 
The negotiations proceeded smoothly.
Bu Quan was easy to talk to, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was indeed
sincere.
But just as they were about to sign the contract, the fishman Zhong Yong
couldn't help but ask, “Miss Bu Quan, what exactly made you decide to join a
mercenary group?”
Bu Quan's expression faltered slightly, and images of her mother and mentor
flashed before her eyes.
She smiled faintly: “Indeed, I have a clearer path in life, and I can be
certain that this path will be full of promise.”
"But last night, I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. I asked myself if I will
regret this."
“In the future, when I have achieved more and grown old, will I regret choosing
a safe option in life when I look back on today?”
“I am still young.”
“I don't want to regret it.” 
Her tone was calm, yet it revealed her resolve. 
After speaking, she signed the magic contract. 
Zhong Yong sighed deeply. 
Zi Di's expression changed. She turned her head to look at the dragonman
youngster, her gaze growing somber. 
This time, it was the dragonman youngster who had a bad feeling.



****** Chapter 354: Building the Bloodline Purification Formation ******
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The alchemy cabin.
Hiss.
A soft click sounded as the hatch slid open.
Zi Di, expressionless, stepped into the alchemy cabin first.
Following closely behind her were two alchemy puppets.
The puppets were equipped with swords and shields, clearly the swordsman
guards.
The two swordsman guards carried a fishman, one in front and one behind, into
the alchemy cabin.
The hatch closed immediately.
The swordsman guards gently placed the fishman on the ground, then stepped
back, firmly guarding the hatch.
The fishman emanated the aura of a silver level magician—it was Zhong Yong.
Zi Di took a vial from her bosom and removed the stopper.
A wisp of yellow-green smoke immediately drifted out of the bottle. It seemed
drawn to the fishman magician, approaching him on its own. 
The fishman magician was unconscious, but upon sensing the yellow-green smoke,
his brows furrowed tightly, and his limbs began to twitch. 
Soon, he suddenly opened his eyes amid the twitching.
His eyes were filled with bloodshot veins.
“Where... where am I?”
“What was I doing?”
The fishman magician's vision was blurry, and his mind was foggy, leaving him
disoriented.
He heard Zi Di's voice: “Zhong Yong, get up. You've arrived.”
Zhong Yong recognized the familiar voice. He lifted his head and saw Zi Di.
His vision cleared, and his mental faculties quickly returned. The memories of
what had just happened flooded back.
“I remember now!”
“I received orders from my family to go to Snow Bird Harbor and join the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, and from then on, serve them.”
“What I never expected was that I would see Bu Quan on the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' ship.”
“Bu Quan had also joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, giving them all four
of her alchemy workshops, and even agreeing to recruit others to join as well.”
“Most astonishingly, she had no demands regarding compensation!”
As his memories gradually returned, Zhong Yong’s heart was filled with a mix of
emotions.
Shock, doubt, pity for Bu Quan, envy for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and
hatred for the dragonman youngster.
“Bu Quan's gaze toward Long Fu was off!”
“If I'm not mistaken, she must have fallen for Long Fu.”
“Oh my god, how could this happen...”
“The princess has really been brought away by an outsider!”
Zi Di grew impatient and urged again, “Zhong Yong, the magic potion I gave you
to drink doesn't have the side effect of causing limb weakness.”
Her voice startled Zhong Yong, who quickly suppressed his surging emotions. 
He immediately stood up. 
As a fishman, even when standing straight, his head didn't reach Zi Di's chin. 
“Magician Yao Ma,” Zhong Yong bowed slightly to Zi Di, then surveyed his
surroundings. 
At that moment, he was utterly shocked.
The gold level aura filled the entire ship's cabin.
Even without activating it, Zhong Yong could tell that the alchemy formation in
the cabin was of the highest specifications.
Various alchemy tools were neatly arranged along the walls, fully equipped.
A bizarre-looking alchemy puppet stood in an auxiliary position within the
alchemy formation. It resembled a giant crab, and as Zhong Yong observed it, it
seemed to be observing him in return.
“This... where is this?” Zhong Yong asked.
“Of course, it's our group's secret workshop,” Zi Di said with a smile, her
expression calm.
Zhong Yong realized what it was, and his expression grew tense, "Then, what
exactly is the content of my assessment?”
No wonder he was tense. 
According to the previous agreement, his annual salary would depend on his
alchemy abilities. 
This required a preliminary alchemy test. 
Although Zhong Yong did not want to see Bu Quan join the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, he could not stop it. He could only watch as Bu Quan signed his name on
the contract and recorded his magic power, life force, and other vital signs.
Afterward, the group discussed compensation, and Zi Di proposed the alchemy
test. 
Both Bu Quan and Zhong Yong had no objections to this process. 
Zi Di separated Bu Quan and Zhong Yong, giving Zhong Yong a potion to drink. 
After drinking it, Zhong Yong immediately fell into a deep sleep, unconscious.
During this time, Zi Di secretly brought him back to the Deep Sea Monster Fish
and directly to the alchemy cabin.
“This is what the test is about.” Zi Di activated the alchemy formation.
After a spatial fluctuation, a piece of formation plate and an incomplete
formation diagram suddenly appeared.
They floated slowly through the air and eventually landed in front of Zhong
Yong.
He quickly picked them up and examined them carefully.
He had encountered many formation diagram panels before, but gold level ones
were rare.
After reviewing them once, he focused his attention on the formation diagram.
It was a fragmented alchemy formation diagram.
Zhong Yong studied it carefully and couldn't help but be amazed.
He couldn't understand it! 
“Is the test content this difficult?” Zhong Yong's heart sank, “Or are they
intentionally testing such a difficult question just to suppress the salary?” 
“Never mind.” 
“What can I do?” 
“I must join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, even if the remuneration is poor,
I have to do it.”
“Plus, Bu Quan has already joined this organization. She not only has no
demands regarding salary but also contributed four alchemy workshops!” 
“Compared to her, what am I?” 
Zhong Yong gradually lost all hope. 
Seeing his pale face and dejected expression, Zi Di’s heart couldn’t help but
tighten.
After a moment, Zi Di asked, “Tell me, what did you notice about this formation
diagram?” 
Zhong Yong shook his head, "I'm just too incompetent
“This formation diagram is very incomplete, and I can't deduce the function of
the complete formation diagram.” 
“I think this should be a human alchemy formation, which seems to have a
healing effect on the human body?” 
"Pardon my frankness, Magician Yao Ma. The more incomplete the formation
diagram, the harder it is to deduce and reconstruct. This incomplete diagram is
likely only one-eighth of the original. Deducing the original diagram from this
is extremely difficult. Perhaps Miss Bu Quan has the ability, but this task far
exceeds my capabilities!"
Zi Di nodded slightly: “I didn't ask you to deduce the original diagram. I am
also a magician, so I understand the difficulty involved.”
“The content of this assessment is for you to create this part of the formation
diagram and engrave it on the formation diagram panel.”
“Just that?” Zhong Yong suddenly looked up, his face full of surprise.
"Of course. Do you find it difficult?" Zi Di asked with concern.
“This is easy!” Zhong Yong exclaimed with delight, "Although I specialize in
potion-making, laying out such a formation is merely basic training.” 
“Basic training...” Zi Di recalled the times she and Cang Xu had collaborated,
repeatedly attempting and failing, and couldn't help but sigh. 
"Then do your best and let me see your basic skills. The alchemy formation here
can be lent to you for use. The alchemy puppet within the formation will
monitor the entire process and record your work as a magic image. The commander
and others will review it.” Zi Di said.
“Got it.”
“Do a good job!” Zi Di reminded him as she stepped out of the cabin.
“Sure thing!” Zhong Yong looked excited.
Meanwhile, on the Love Triangle.
Bu Quan was also studying an incomplete formation diagram.
This damaged formation and the one that tested Zhong Yong both came from the
same place—the Bloodline Purification formation.
Zi Di had knocked Zhong Yong unconscious and secretly brought him aboard the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, but she couldn’t treat Bu Quan the same way.
Bu Quan’s status and contract were vastly different from Zhong Yong’s.
Although Zhong Yong had just joined, the strict contract allowed him to gain
trust instantly.
Bu Quan, however, was not the same; her contract was very lenient. The Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps could not sign a contract with her that was as restrictive
as Zhong Yong's, which was nearly akin to a slave contract. 
Bu Quan studied the formation diagram, becoming increasingly engrossed in it. 
It wasn't until the dragonman youngster coughed a few times, interrupting her
thoughts, that she looked up. 
Bu Quan said sheepishly, " Sorry, when I study these alchemy-related things, I
get so engrossed that I often lose track of time."
The dragonman youngster smiled, “It's okay.”
Bu Quan also smiled, "Is this the content of this test? It's quite
interesting."
“Although the formation's structure is simple, upon closer examination, one can
see that despite its simplicity, it is incredibly efficient and harmoniously
structured. It must have been created by a master.”
“Hmm... so far, I've only deduced three possibilities.”
“I'll draw it out right away.”
Bu Quan spoke as she extended her index finger, sketching in the air before
her.
She manipulated her magic power to linger in the air and take on different
colors.
The magic lines intertwined, adorned with magic runes.
The dragonman youngster was dazzled and hurriedly said, “Miss Bu Quan, I think
you might have misunderstood our intentions.”
“This test only requires you to construct this incomplete diagram and engrave
it onto the formation diagram panel.”
"Ah? Is it that simple?" Bu Quan was taken aback.
Having left Zhong Yong aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Zi Di, who was still
uneasy, had just returned when she heard Bu Quan's words. 
“Simple...” 
Zi Di's eyelid twitched slightly. 
However, when she pushed open the captain's cabin door and saw the three
possibilities Bu Quan had sketched out in midair, she was still deeply shaken.
80%
Because she keenly noticed that one of the possibilities bore an 80% similarity
to the complete formation diagram!
In an instant, she realized the huge gap between herself and Bu Quan.
She also truly understood Bu Quan's innate talent in the field of alchemy for
the first time. 
“That's amazing!” 
“How did you manage to do that in such a short time, Miss Bu Quan?”
“If you had a few days, you could even deduce the complete formation diagram,
right?” Zi Di marveled. 
Bu Quan's face flushed slightly as she shook her head and replied earnestly,
“It's not that simple.” 
“The work of deducing the original diagram becomes increasingly difficult as
you progress.” 
"The initial stages are the easiest. Because we can identify the incomplete
diagram and follow the clues."
“But afterward, we have no markers and no direction, so we can only speculate
on multiple possibilities, continue to test one by one, and keep undergoing
trial and error.” 
"The workload here is enormous. The more incomplete the formation diagram, the
more so." 
"Moreover, not all formation diagrams can be restored. After all, some of the
designer's ingenious ideas cannot be deduced conventionally."
Upon hearing this, the dragonman youngster sighed in relief.
He realized that Zi Di’s flattery was actually a probe.
She was worried that Bu Quan might deduce the formation diagram and uncover the
secrets of the Bloodline Purification formation.
Bu Quan sighed regretfully, “If I were given a second fragment of the diagram,
and it were not closely connected to this one, perhaps I could deduce it within
half a year.”
“This formation diagram is not overly complex or intricate.”
“Of course, during this period, I would be unable to attend to other matters.”
Upon hearing this, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di exchanged a subtle glance,
both thinking to themselves, “There will be no second fragment of the diagram
for you!”
Bu Quan's talent was too outstanding, so much so that it made both the
dragonman youngster and Zi Di feel threatened.



****** Chapter 355: The Big Guy’s Appetite ******
Two days later.
In the iceberg sea.
Zong Ge led most of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in training at sea.
At this point, they were already far away from Ice Sculpture Island.
In order to maximize the effectiveness of the military training, Zong Ge had
not returned to harbor for the past two days.
“There’s good news from Snow Bird Harbor,” Tripleblade approached Zong Ge and
reported, “Our commander has successfully recruited Bu Quan. We now have an
Alchemy Great Master.”
Upon hearing this, Zong Ge raised his eyebrows.
He took the intelligence report, examined it carefully, and also showed a
pleased expression.
“That’s excellent.”
"A silver level Alchemy Great Master who hasn't reached the bloodline limit.
Such a fortunate event has occurred."
"Oh... it's because the Bayonet Gang and Bu Quan have a deep-seated grudge
against each other. This is an unexpected gain."
Tripleblade nodded but also expressed concern: “This is a genius talent,
extremely gifted.”
“Although we're both willing, the Alchemy Guild probably won't let her go
easily, and there will be more trouble later.”
Tripleblade had run a mercenary group before and knew that someone like Bu Quan
was hard for the current Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to keep.
Zong Ge nodded slightly: "An Alchemy Great Master is like a never-ending gold
mine. Especially such a special alchemist."
“Bu Quan is still young; her achievements may one day surpass those of a
master.” 
“Having such a companion would be a blessing for all of us.” 
“We’ve seized a lot of alchemy documents, which are the best resources for
cultivating alchemists.” 
Thinking of this, Zong Ge stroked his chin: “Did the communication mention
anything about recruitment?” 
“Not yet,” Tripleblade replied.
Zong Ge smiled: “Bu Quan has joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Once this
news spreads, it will surely stir up excitement.” 
“I bet the recruitment results will be fantastic.” 
“Our commander has really made a name for himself this time.” 
“Yes, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has also gained fame throughout the
kingdom.” Tripleblade sighed with emotion.
Once upon a time, he had also dreamed of such a thing, dreaming that his
mercenary group could become famous nationwide. 
Who would have thought that after being stranded on the Mystifying Monster
Island, surviving countless dangers, and eventually arriving at the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, his former dream would be realized in this way. 
Tripleblade looked at Zong Ge and said again, "The commander was able to
achieve such military exploits, and it’s all thanks to you, sir, for training
him. Otherwise, would he have mastered such solid gun skills?" 
Zong Ge waved his hand, showing no intention of taking credit: “I only played a
supporting role; he was the main one.” 
“Bu Quan is a genius in alchemy, but Long Fu... In my opinion, his fighter
talent far surpasses that of Bu Quan.” 
Tripleblade wore a complex expression.
Zong Ge had once advised the dragonman youngster to conceal his innate fighter
talents, lest they be revealed and dampen the training enthusiasm of most
mercenaries.
However, this information was not withheld from the survivors.
Tripleblade and the others were all aware of this truth.
At that moment, a mercenary stepped forward and reported loudly, “Sir, there is
a small island ahead.”
"Oh? Go take a look." Zong Ge's eyes lit up.
Although they had a map of this sea area, it was not detailed enough to record
every single island.
This was related to the special nature of the iceberg sea area.
Soon, the ships of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps arrived around the island.
It was an iceberg floating on the sea surface, forming a slowly drifting ice
island.
The mercenaries soon discovered something new: “Lord Shi Qi, we've spotted a
group of sea lions at the southeast corner of the ice island.”
Zong Ge reviewed the detailed intelligence and personally observed the scene
through a telescope. 
There were at least two hundred sea lions, with two silver level magic
beasts—one male and one female—leading the herd. There were approximately
twenty iron level magic beasts among the sea lions.
“Excellent, perfect for training,” Zong Ge praised lightly, then issued the
order to prepare for attack.
Upon receiving the order, the mercenaries sprang into action—some waving flags,
others blowing horns.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ships gradually closed in. The sea lions grew
restless, and the two leaders let out a loud roar. Soon, the entire herd joined
in, emitting a deafening roar as a threat and warning.
Zong Ge remained calm, adjusting the ship formation.
The iron level magic ship, the Iron Lump, led the charge.
The sea lion herd leaped into the sea from the edge of the iceberg and
surrounded the Iron Lump. 
The Iron Lump, with its thick hull, withstood the sea lions' attacks from all
directions, as well as magic spells. 
Zong Ge remained on the White Bandage, leading the other ships to quickly
surround the Iron Lump.
The mercenaries stood at the ship's rail, holding alchemy crossbows and
muskets, firing at the sea lions. 
Soon, the sea lions suffered heavy losses.
The two leaders were enraged. One leaped onto the Iron Lump, while the other
charged toward the White Bandage.
Zong Ge did not intervene personally. 
Men Shi and Chi Lai were also ordered to observe the battle. 
The Quick Knife Squad led by Kuai Tui, along with the Backwater Battle Squad,
boarded the battlefield and each took on one of the two silver level magic
beasts. 
Magic beasts have different physiques from humans and snow elves, with thick,
rugged skin, yet they lack intelligence, making them ideal targets for
practical combat training.
After about sixteen minutes of combat, the two sea lion leaders were enraged to
the extreme, disregarding their injuries, and rampaged wildly across the deck. 
Zong Ge finally ordered Men Shi and Chi Lai to act. 
Both combat teams were extremely exhausted and withdrew smoothly. 
Men Shi and Chi Lai found it difficult to block them head-on. Despite their
battle qi enhancements, they could not match the sea lion beasts' strength.
This was a difference in race and bloodline.
Fortunately, the Iron Lump and White Bandage were magic ships capable of
withstanding such intense combat.
Men Shi, being a dwarf, was stronger than Chi Lai, the human, with a lower
center of gravity and a focus on defense, allowing him to handle the situation
more calmly.
Chi Lai's skills were primarily in artillery fire, but he was somewhat lacking
in close combat, so he could only maneuver around the sea lion as much as
possible.
“Ah, I'll handle this!” The big guy suddenly intervened in the battle.
Bam!
He collided with the silver sea lion leader using his shoulder.
Both sides were subjected to a powerful recoil force, losing all momentum.
Zong Ge's eyes lit up at the sight.
Chi Lai muttered, “Thanks!”
He then rushed forward, firing his musket directly into the sea lion's eyes.
Deprived of vision, the sea lion was enraged and charged wildly once more.
The big guy gritted his teeth and fought the sea lion, transforming into a
beast himself. The scene of the struggle attracted the attention of many
people.
Tripleblade's eyes lit up: "I didn't expect that after the big guy ascended to
the transcendent realm, his physical abilities would increase so terrifyingly.
He can actually go head-to-head with a silver level beast!"
“His bloodline seems to be extraordinary.”
“Who would have thought that he could become a transcendent.”
Zong Ge sighed regretfully, “Unfortunately, although he has become bronze
level, he hasn't mastered any battle skills, and his hand-to-hand combat
techniques are even more pitiful.” 
“If he could make up for these shortcomings, he would be a formidable weapon on
the battlefield.” 
Zong Ge watched the big guy's intense battle, his eyes gradually brightening. 
He developed a strong interest in training the big guy.
Tripleblade expressed his concerns: “Sir, please be cautious.”
“The big guy has a mental illness.”
“If he were to master solid hand-to-hand combat skills, or even battle skills,
it would actually be a major risk for us.”
Zong Ge shook his head, having already made up his mind: “With my strength, I
can keep him in check.”
Soon, the battle ended.
After the two leaders were killed, the sea lion herd dived into the sea in
panic, fleeing for their lives.
Zong Ge ordered his men to shoot and fire cannons, killing most of them.
After cleaning up the battlefield, Tripleblade reported the results: “Sir, with
this batch of sea lion meat, we can sail for another half day.”
Zong Ge sighed: “Let's go back tonight.”
“There's no need to wait until we reach the food reserve warning line before
returning to harbor.”
"This time, I miscalculated. I didn't expect that after becoming a bronze level
cultivator, the big guy would eat so much!"
The big guy's appetite had always been far greater than that of an ordinary
person, but after reaching the bronze level, he ate even more than before.
His appetite had increased dramatically, with his food intake reaching nearly
80 times that of before, becoming the main consumer of provisions.
The reason for this was that after becoming a transcendent, the battle qi
cultivator's body required a much larger intake of energy. 
The big guy needed at least 80 times the amount of ordinary food to sustain
himself.
However, if the main ingredient was magic beast meat, his appetite would return
to that of an ordinary person. 
When the news of Zong Ge returning to harbor came back, the dragonman youngster
was hosting the recruitment event.
The recruitment location was their own shop. 
The shop's location was personally selected by Zi Di. With her business acumen,
she naturally chose the best possible spot. 
Those who came to sign up to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already
formed a long line extending from the shop. The line was over 200 meters long,
stretching all the way to the corner of the street.
“Commander Long Fu, I am a magic apprentice who can currently craft deodorizing
lozenges and fever detection reagents.” A snow elf entered the room and, upon
seeing the dragonman youngster, couldn't help but reveal an excited
expression. 
The dragonman youngster had seen such expressions many times before. 
He had gained national fame and had slain the leader of the Bayonet Gang,
earning the admiration—even worship—of many in Snow Bird Harbor.
The dragonman youngster put down the communication device in his hand, smiled,
and asked the magic apprentice being interviewed, “Can you make magic
cuisine?” 
The magic apprentice looked startled, then replied, “Oh, well, I can make most
ordinary magic cuisine.” 
“Bronze level magic cuisine is also possible, but the taste isn't great.” 
“Iron level cuisine is very difficult for me.”
The magic apprentice was only bronze level and spoke honestly to the dragonman
youngster. 
The dragonman youngster nodded, “If I hire you to make magic cuisine, would you
be willing?” 
The snow elf immediately looked troubled, “Are you asking me to be a magic
chef?” 
“I'd rather work in the alchemy workshop, making potions...” 
“In fact, I came here to apply for that kind of job.”
The dragonman youngster grinned, "I understand. I'll double your salary. Would
you be willing to become the magic chef for our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?" 
“Double the salary?” The snow elf's eyes lit up, and quickly agreed, “Of
course, I'm willing!” 
The dragonman youngster reminded, “If you join, you'll need to accompany the
group on missions in the future.”
"No problem. Even going out to sea is fine!" The snow elf apprentice nodded
eagerly. 
As long as the money was right, everything else was negotiable. 
Next, it was time to sign the magic contract.
“This is the fourth magic chef.”
“Xiao Guai, you won't have to worry about food and drink when you come back.”
The dragonman youngster was satisfied with the results of the recruitment drive
and thought to himself.
Bam!
Just then, the door to the interview room was pushed open with a bang.
A snow elf strode in with his head held high and a cold expression on his face.
“Commander Long Fu, I am Zhong Bei, a magician from the Alchemy Guild. We need
to have a serious talk about Bu Quan joining your group!”
“Even if you defeated the stronger opponent and killed Teng Dong Lang, you
still don’t have the qualifications to recruit our nation’s alchemy genius.”



****** Chapter 356: Zi Di – Originally I was Determined to Recruit Her ******
“A magician from the Alchemy Guild?” The dragonman youngster saw the magician
burst in and was not surprised, but thought to himself: Finally, they're here.
Earlier, the dragonman youngster had learned that Bu Quan was a silver level
alchemist and a genius.
Combined with subsequent intelligence from acquisitions and information
obtained from Zhong Yong, the dragonman youngster’s understanding gradually
deepened, and he finally realized: even among silver level alchemists, Bu Quan
was extraordinary.
Bu Quan’s talent had been acknowledged by many prominent alchemists.
It could be said that she was one of the Alchemy Guild’s most prized assets.
Although it could be said that Bu Quan voluntarily joined the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, as an external mercenary organization, recruiting such talent
would inevitably lead to complications.
The dragonman youngster put himself in their shoes: if the big guy were in such
a situation, kidnapped by those with ulterior motives and taken to another
organization, how would he feel? What would he do?
He would naturally be unhappy and unwilling.
If the organization harbored malicious intent, the dragonman youngster would
likely resort to violent action and destroy it by force!
Facing a colossus like the Alchemy Guild, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
situation would be dire if they recruited Bu Quan.
Before Bu Quan’s second visit to the dock, Zi Di had already discussed the
matter privately with the dragonman youngster.
She made it clear: "If we recruit Bu Quan, it could bring us major trouble. If
we provoke the Alchemy Guild's retaliation, the current Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps might not be able to withstand it." 
The key word here was “current.” 
Clearly, Zi Di was optimistic about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ future,
especially since they are about to complete the Bloodline Purification
formation.
“If Bu Quan has a strong desire to join us voluntarily, our strategy for
recruiting her must be adjusted to better handle future complications,” Zi Di
suggested.
The dragonman youngster furrowed his brows in concern: “Perhaps abandoning the
recruitment of Bu Quan, becoming friends with her, and reaching some form of
cooperation could also be a viable option.” 
Zi Di shook her head firmly and advised the dragonman youngster: "Lord, do not
focus solely on the present; consider the future. In the future, Bu Quan's role
will be irreplaceable." 
“According to our agreement with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, we will obtain
three silver level alchemists.” 
“Since these three alchemists were traded as bargaining chips, do not expect
them to have much potential for growth.” 
“Unless they are allowed to use the Bloodline Purification formation.”
“Bu Quan is different.”
"If she grows up to become a gold level alchemist or her alchemy skill rises
another level, her value will far exceed the combined value of these three
silver level alchemists!”
“Then we'll make a huge profit!”
Zi Di changed the subject slightly and continued.
"Of course, the issue with Bu Quan is her loyalty. Her loyalty hasn't been
tested, unlike our other companions." 
"But that's not her fault. She simply hasn't shared experiences with us, like
the Mystifying Monster Island incident." 
“Therefore, we need to have her join us and act together to increase our shared
experiences.” 
"Only through constant interaction can we cultivate her trust in us. We can
also gradually understand her character and personality. If things go smoothly,
she could become a core member of our group in the future."
“While our bloodline can be enhanced, wisdom is a different matter altogether.”
"I cannot deny that a significant portion of Bu Quan's alchemy talent stems
from her bloodline. However, there are alchemists with the same bloodline as
hers who lack her alchemy prowess."
“She is well worth recruiting.”
“We have the alchemy data from the War Merchant, but we cannot fully capitalize
on it to maximize its value.”
“Even if we had three silver level alchemists, it would be the same.”
“My and Cang Xu’s alchemy talent... Commander, you should know this very well.”
“One must know their own limitations!” 
“If Bu Quan joins us, it will have a tremendous positive impact on the present
and future of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.” 
“In any case, we cannot afford to let this opportunity slip away.” 
“Since fate has brought her to us, we should cherish this chance and quickly
bring her into our fold.”
“If we merely befriend her and let her stay outside, we won’t have time to
cultivate our feelings for one another.”
“Over time, her gratitude toward you, the captain, and her goodwill toward our
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will gradually fade.”
“It’s like how nobles maintain their mistresses—they must spend time with them
periodically to sustain the relationship.”
Zi Di’s peculiar analogy caused the dragonman youngster’s expression to grow
somewhat peculiar. 
She didn’t notice this and remained immersed in her own thoughts. 
“So now is the best opportunity to recruit her.” 
“Though there will be risks from the Alchemy Guild, if we handle it properly,
those risks will be significantly reduced.”
“Even if the situation becomes critical in the future, we can proactively
terminate the contract to avoid the risk.” 
Zi Di’s point was to try and not give up easily. Though the risk was
significant, from a long-term perspective, the benefits Bu Quan could bring to
the survivors were immense. 
She then proposed a series of solutions.
The dragonman youngster accepted her suggestions and implemented them
accordingly.
Ultimately, the agreement between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Bu Quan
was very lenient.
Bu Quan had once said that she had no specific requirements for compensation,
leaving it up to the dragonman youngster to decide.
Thus, Zi Di proposed a compensation of one gold coin.
This was undoubtedly more symbolic than practical.
This compensation left Bu Quan herself momentarily speechless.
Zi Di quickly added: The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would formally hire Bu
Quan as a senior alchemy advisor accompanying the group. The true compensation
would be some valuable alchemy knowledge.
The specific form of this knowledge included data and materials from alchemy
experiments, as well as blueprints and formulas for alchemy potions and tools.
Upon hearing this, Bu Quan's astonishment faded, and her eyes lit up.
She was very interested in this form of compensation and agreed without much
hesitation.
When the dragonman youngster asked about Zhong Yong's ideal compensation, the
fishman magician could only grimace and propose a low price of 100 gold.
Before this, Zhong Yong had intended to demand a high price of 500 gold, but he
unexpectedly faced such fierce competition from Bu Quan.
Seeing the situation was unfavorable, Zhong Yong could only abandon his
previous plan and voluntarily lower his intended salary.
This action undoubtedly made the dragonman youngster and Zi Di view him more
favorably.
The two had, of course, conducted thorough research into the hiring costs for
an alchemist.
Typically, an alchemist like Zhong Yong would command an annual salary of 200
gold pieces.
The hiring costs for an alchemist far exceed those of fighters at the same
level and even surpass those of conventional magicians.
The reason was simple: alchemists could create value on their own.
They could create alchemy items, and by selling these items, the hiring party
could receive a steady stream of returns.
Hiring an alchemist for 200 gold might seem expensive, but in reality, it was
quite profitable for the hiring party. Additionally, the terms of such
contracts did not impose strict constraints on alchemists.
Zhong Yong was different from most situations in the market.
Essentially, he was just a slave. The contract to be signed with him would
undoubtedly be very strict. 
Zi Di shook her head at the 100 gold offer.
She said, “a yearly salary of 100 gold is simply too low,” and proactively
raised the salary to 300 gold. 
That's not all.
Zi Di also stated that in the future, Zhong Yong's performance will be
evaluated annually. Different performance levels would result in different
tiers of rewards. Zhong Yong's loyalty to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would
entitle him to a fixed dividend annually once he reached three years of
service. Additionally, as the years increased, the proportion of the fixed
dividend would also grow.
Zi Di was a wise merchant who pursued profit.
Therefore, she proactively increased Zhong Yong's wages to incentivize his
productivity and ultimately expand profits. 
Zhong Yong was overjoyed! 
The terms of this contract offered him a glimpse of a new way of life. 
Two days have passed since they signed the contract. 
During this time, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps discreetly leaked some
information.
This move yielded results—now, the alchemist from the Alchemy Guild had come
knocking on their door.
The appearance of Zhong Bei was not so much something the dragonman youngster
had anticipated as it was part of his plan!
When the alchemists came to hold him accountable, the dragonman youngster
immediately stood up, smiled, and greeted them, “Magician Zhong Bei, hello,
please sit down.”
The snow elf was arrogant and cold-faced, but as the saying goes, one would not
slap a smiling face. He nodded faintly and sat down beside the chair. 
The dragonman youngster moved over and sat beside him. 
A mercenary brought tea and pastries. 
“I don't need your hospitality,” the snow elf magician said without glancing at
the tea and pastries.
He stared into the dragonman youngster's eyes with a firm expression. 
“Commander Long Fu, you may not fully understand the severity of this matter.” 
"You deceived Magician Bu Quan with your recruitment tactics! Even if you have
already signed a magic contract with her, it is useless." 
"You have harbored improper intentions! Magician Bu Quan is a member of the
Alchemy Guild. Do you think the Alchemy Guild is comparable to the Bayonet
Gang?” 
The dragonman youngster hurriedly waved his hands. 
“Magician Zhong Bei, I have never intended to oppose the Alchemy Guild.” 
“Even with a million guts, I would never become your enemy.”
“On one hand, I’m well aware that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps isn’t a match
for the Alchemy Guild.”
“On the other hand, why would I want to oppose my friends?”
“There are some things we can discuss properly.”
After hearing these words, the snow elf magician Zhong Bei couldn’t help but
scrutinize the dragonman youngster before him once more.
Earlier, he had actually been quite nervous.
Who didn't know the dragonman youngster's reputation? 
The origins of his conflict with the Bayonet Gang were a topic of lively
discussion among the citizens of Snow Bird Harbor. 
The most widely circulated version was Bing Xiao had a confrontation with the
dragonman youngster and others in a shop over a gold level potion. He mocked
the newly arrived Long Fu and others, which sparked the dragonman youngster’s
spirit of resistance. 
Later, Bing Xiao even influenced the Bayonet Gang to repeatedly harass the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Not only did he impose various obstacles, but he
also sent assassins to kill two magicians from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster rose up in defiance, ultimately overcoming the stronger
foe, and justice triumphed over evil! 
In Zhong Bei's heart, the dragonman youngster was a very tough individual. 
Who would challenge Teng Dong Lang if they weren't tough?
However, upon first contact, he was surprised to discover that the dragonman
youngster was actually quite easy to talk to, and his attitude was very polite!
"Perhaps the Alchemy Guild's reputation is too great; the Bayonet Gang can't
compare. Has Long Fu already backed down?"
Thinking this, Zhong Bei couldn't help but feel hopeful: “Perhaps this time, I
can resolve this crisis easily.”



****** Chapter 357: Dragonman – Bu Quan Did Everything of Her Own Accord ******
Finding the dragonman youngster easy to talk to, the alchemist Zhong Bei was
pleasantly surprised.
If it weren't for the problem with Bu Quan, he wouldn't have wanted to cause
trouble for the dragonman youngster.
Zhong Bei sighed inwardly, knowing that this time, he had no choice but to
come.
The dragonman youngster’s attitude caused Zhong Bei to lower his guard, and his
tone softened.
He introduced himself, “I am Magician Bu Quan's guardian, primarily responsible
for ensuring her safety in everyday life. In emergencies beyond my personal
capabilities, I can request assistance from the Alchemist Guild. My authority
to request aid is quite high, and in necessary situations, a gold level
alchemist will be teleported here to provide reinforcements.”
Gold level transcendents typically held high social status, such as being the
ruler of a city. They were usually busy with their own affairs. 
However, Bu Quan could obtain gold level reinforcements from the Alchemy Guild
during dangerous situations. 
Bu Quan was well protected, which also confirms her immense talent. 
Of course, in addition to protecting Bu Quan, Magician Zhong Bei also had
routine monitoring duties.
Every so often, he compiled a report on Bu Quan's performance and behavior
during that period and submitted it as intelligence. 
This intelligence was compiled into a dossier, which would serve as an
important reference for higher-ups when considering Bu Quan for future
assignments. 
If Bu Quan were to encounter other unforeseen circumstances, such as leaking
state secrets of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom or being recruited by enemies, then
Zhong Bei's role would extend beyond mere protection.
By the time Zhong Bei learned that Bu Quan had joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, it was already too late. 
He knew his work had been compromised. 
Although he had monitored Bu Quan and learned of her two visits to the
dragonman youngster, he never anticipated that Bu Quan, who had only met him a
few times, would agree to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
Such a talented individual as Bu Quan had been recruited by an external
mercenary organization! 
After all, she was a key talent being cultivated by the Alchemy Guild. Once
trained, Bu Quan was supposed to serve the royal family and become one of the
pillars of the Alchemy Guild. 
Now, she had been lured away by others. 
What was to be done?
Zhong Bei knew that if this matter were exposed, he would be severely dealt
with for failing his duties. 
Fortunately, at this time, only rumors had leaked out. He had to do everything
in his power to resolve this matter before it became common knowledge. 
“Commander Long Fu, as long as you voluntarily revoke this contract, I can
pretend nothing ever happened,” Zhong Bei said.
The dragonman youngster smiled and shook his head: "Magician Zhong Bei, I admit
I did actively recruit Bu Quan. Who wouldn't be tempted by such a talent?"
“But the specifics may differ from what you imagine.”
“The real process was like this...”
The dragonman youngster briefly recounted the events, emphasizing Bu Quan's
initiative and willingness throughout his narrative.
Zhong Bei finally understood that Bu Quan had directly gifted her four alchemy
workshops to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps out of gratitude. 
One had to know that this was almost equivalent to her entire assets in Snow
Bird Harbor! 
Magician Zhong Bei furrowed his brows deeply. 
There was no doubt that the real situation was far more complicated than he had
imagined.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was being stubborn or deceiving Bu Quan, it
would almost be like handing over the upper hand to Zhong Bei.
Zhong Bei, backed by the Alchemy Guild, could not only easily suppress the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps but also take the opportunity to extort a sum of
money.
However, the issue now was that Bu Quan acted of her own accord, and her
personal will was extremely strong.
The situation was extremely complicated!
Even the Alchemy Guild, or even Bu Quan's mentor personally intervening, would
find it difficult to directly intervene in Bu Quan's personal actions.
On one hand, this was due to the broader context of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, alchemists held a very high status. The
independent and free will of magicians was respected and protected. 
If the Alchemy Guild were to forcibly request Bu Quan to revoke the contract,
it would undoubtedly infringe upon the independent and free will of magicians.
This would lead to widespread resentment, and even resistance, among most
magicians. 
On the other hand, the Alchemy Guild had to also consider Bu Quan's genuine
feelings. 
They cultivated Bu Quan with the aim of nurturing a talent with innovative
capabilities. They hoped Bu Quan could achieve success in unexplored fields and
drive iterative updates to alchemy technology across the entire Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. 
Such talent should never be stifled. 
If Bu Quan developed feelings of aversion, it would severely undermine her
motivation.
The Alchemy Guild's forced intervention would trigger Bu Quan's passive
resistance. Even if they restricted her freedom, the Alchemy Guild would only
end up with a skilled alchemist.
For example, suppose the big guy wasn't kidnapped by someone with ulterior
motives, but voluntarily and actively joined another organization, and the big
guy had strong feelings for this organization, the dragonman youngster would
find this situation tricky to handle, as he had to consider the big guy's
feelings. 
If the methods were too harsh and coercive, it could easily lead to a feud,
which would be completely counterproductive. 
If such a situation were to arise, the dragonman youngster would thoroughly
investigate to uncover the truth. 
Once he confirmed that the big guy was determined to join this organization,
and the organization was well-intentioned and would not conflict with their
side, the dragonman youngster would let go.
He would also actively seek to befriend the organization, provide support, and
advocate for the organization to improve the big guy's treatment.
The old boatwright entrusted the big guy to the dragonman youngster.
For this comrade who has been through life and death, the dragonman youngster
cared for him and had never once considered controlling the latter's entire
life.
In the case of Bu Quan, the situation was similar.
Bu Quan possessed exceptional alchemy talent, which had caught the attention of
the Alchemy Guild, but this talent would only bear fruit in the future.
She needed time to grow.
If Bu Quan had already matured and gained access to some of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's secrets, the dragonman youngster would never have attempted to
recruit her.
In fact, once Bu Quan had grown up, every person she came into contact with
each day would be investigated, monitored, and even arrested and interrogated
by the kingdom's spies. 
While Bu Quan's talent was good, it was not so exceptional that a gold level
individual would serve as her personal bodyguard, providing 24/7 protection. 
Seeing the grim expression on the magician's face, the dragonman youngster felt
a surge of amusement.
He had learned a great deal from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Now he had come to understand the excitement of strategic maneuvering beyond
combat.
This feeling was truly wonderful.
Everything was under his control.
Though the dragonman youngster appeared to be in trouble, with Magician Zhong
Bei pressing him relentlessly, in reality, the dragonman youngster had complete
control of the situation.
He then took out a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Magician
Zhong Bei.
“This is the detailed content of the contract we signed with Magician Bu Quan.”
“Magician Zhong Bei can examine it carefully.”
“You can verify it with Magician Bu Quan herself.”



****** Chapter 358: Zhong Bei - Bu Quan, You’re Foolish ******
Zhong Bei took the paper and looked at it carefully.
“Senior alchemy advisor accompanying the group?”
He saw the key words.
He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Compared to regular members, so-called “advisors” were undoubtedly non-staff
members of an organization.
From this perspective, Bu Quan hadn’t fully joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps yet.
“But this ‘accompanying the group’…”
The more Zhong Bei pondered this phrase, the deeper his brows furrowed.
This phrase was also crucial.
“If Magician Bu Quan travels with the mercenary group, then what’s the
difference between that and fully joining?”
Zhong Bei pondered this, feeling gloomy. 
As he continued reading, he saw her written salary. 
His face immediately betrayed astonishment, and he muttered in disbelief, "What
does this mean? Magician Bu Quan's annual salary is only one gold coin?" 
A surge of anger welled up in Zhong Bei's heart.
He looked up at the dragonman youngster, his gaze filled with accusation:
"Magician Bu Quan is a prodigy favored by the Alchemy Guild! Yet the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps only offers a yearly salary of one gold coin. Isn't this
taking advantage of her? Is her gratitude toward the commander being exploited
in this way? How can you exploit her value so ruthlessly? Where is your
conscience?"
The dragonman youngster remained calm: "Magician Zhong Bei, you’ve
misunderstood.   We’ve never had any thoughts or actions of exploiting her
gratitude." 
"In fact, I greatly admire Magician Bu Quan. She is a true magician, possessing
a pure magician’s heart, where her curiosity and pursuit of knowledge far
surpass worldly wealth." 
“Please look further.”
“This is the true compensation we are paying.” 
“This remuneration differs from conventional salary.” 
“In this contract, the annual salary of 1 gold coin is merely symbolic.” 
Mage Zhong Bei shifted his gaze and continued reading. 
The paper stated: The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will provide Bu Quan with
valuable alchemy knowledge.
The knowledge includes alchemy experiment data, blueprints for alchemy tools,
formulas for alchemy potions, and various alchemy techniques. 
This alchemy knowledge must be precious and satisfactory to Bu Quan. 
If Magician Bu Quan is dissatisfied with the alchemy knowledge at the time of
payment, she may request a replacement. 
At the end of each year when the annual salary is paid, both parties have the
right to revise the contract and negotiate amicably. This includes, but is not
limited to, termination of employment, etc. 
In addition, Magician Bu Quan has the right to unilaterally terminate the
contract at any time. However, when exercising this right, Bu Quan must pay
half the value of the salary previously received from the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. Compensation will only be accepted in the form of alchemy knowledge. 
The specific value of the alchemy knowledge will be determined and appraised by
professionals.
Upon reading this, Magician Zhong Bei's brows finally relaxed. 
Clearly, the contract between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Bu Quan was
drafted with considerable flexibility. 
This significantly reduced his aversion and suspicion toward the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. 
Even he had to acknowledge that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps genuinely
sought to recruit Bu Quan.
Bu Quan's pursuit of alchemy knowledge over money also aligned well with the
values of magicians.
“Spreading this contract would actually enhance Bu Quan's reputation.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has handled this quite well, starting with the
intention of parting ways amicably!”
“According to the contract, Bu Quan can leave the mercenary group at any time.”
"She only needs to pay half the value of the alchemy knowledge. This is
something the Alchemy Guild can fully accommodate.   If she doesn't wish to
remain in the mercenary group, she can wait until the end of the year, when she
receives her annual salary, to negotiate. She can also terminate the contract
at any time. In such a case, she would need to compensate for certain losses.
The Alchemy Guild can fully assist her in redeeming herself and even use this
opportunity to owe her a favor."
Magician Zhong Bei hadn't yet realized the severity of the issue. 
In his view, how much alchemy knowledge could the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
possibly provide? 
Even if they had arms dealers backing them, how could they compare to the
Alchemy Guild of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom? 
“There's another option...” 
"Since they have to pay annually for alchemy knowledge that satisfies Magician
Bu Quan, we can teach Bu Quan many alchemy techniques in advance, making it
harder for her to be satisfied." 
"Over time, her gratitude toward the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will fade, and
she will gradually come to terms with reality. How much can the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps offer to satisfy her?"
“But this situation doesn't help me at all.”
“I have to nullify this contract, or else I'll be found guilty of neglecting my
duty!”
Upon seeing this, Magician Zhong Bei gained a deeper understanding of the true
situation.
“So, to resolve this matter, the key lies with Magician Bu Quan.”
"Regarding her, I don't really have any good ideas, so I can only try to
persuade her with kind words. If that doesn’t work, I’ll have to go all out and
expend my resources to make her change her mind.”
Neglecting his duties would have a significant impact on Magician Zhong Bei's
assessment.
Zhong Bei glanced at the dragonman youngster again and thought to himself, “I
need to negotiate with Bu Quan, but I can’t give up on Long Fu either.”
He forced a smile onto his face.
Before barging in, he never would have imagined that he would smile at the
dragonman youngster.
But there was no choice; at this moment, he had to beg them.
Zhong Bei pleaded with the dragonman youngster to lend a hand.
If the dragonman youngster helped him persuade Bu Quan to change her mind,
Zhong Bei personally promised to reward him generously.
The dragonman youngster burst into laughter, shook his head immediately, and
rejected the request.
“No matter how generous the reward, it couldn't compare to Magician Bu Quan
herself.”
Magician Zhong Bei furrowed his brows and said threateningly, “Commander Long
Fu, please consider this carefully.”
“You must understand one thing: no matter how complex your background may be,
your group's strength pales in comparison to our nation's Alchemy Guild.”
“Magician Bu Quan is so grateful to you; are you really going to take advantage
of her?” 
"Why not think about it from her perspective? She may be a genius, but she
hasn't truly grown yet." 
“And the environment suitable for her growth is not your group, but the Alchemy
Guild, which has vast knowledge, numerous mentors, and many alchemy
predecessors.”
“Forcing her to stay here will only hinder her future.” 
“Over time, Magician Bu Quan will come to realize this and may even request to
leave, or worse, develop hostility toward you.” 
"Rather than risk that, it would be better to let her go voluntarily. In the
future, you might gain the friendship of a great alchemist!"
Magician Zhong Bei had a way with words, appealing to the dragonman youngster
with reason and emotion. 
The dragonman youngster still shook his head. 
"Magician Zhong Bei, I must emphasize once more: we are not forcing her to
stay, nor are we deceiving her. In fact, we couldn't force or deceive someone
like her anyway."
“It's entirely her own strong desire to join us.” 
“For such talent, we can't let go just because of external pressure.” 
"Put yourself in my shoes. If you were the leader of a mercenary group, would
you give in so easily? Would you back down?" 
"If I did that, the reputation of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be
ruined. If we have to abandon a talent who actively wants to join us just
because of a small threat, how will others view us?" 
“Any organization that wants to grow must absorb fresh blood from the
outside.” 
“Please understand our predicament.” 
As soon as these words were spoken, Magician Zhong Bei's expression turned
extremely dark.
The dragonman youngster softened his tone and continued:
“However, if Magician Zhong Bei can successfully persuade Bu Quan, we will
immediately let go.”
“If this matter spreads, parting ways amicably after meeting would be more
beneficial for our mercenary group’s reputation.”
“Magician Zhong Bei, you have already seen the true contents of the contract.
When we signed the contract initially, we had already anticipated this kind of
scenario." 
The dragonman youngster spoke so reasonably that Magician Zhong Bei couldn't
help but nod in agreement. 
The contents of the contract were easy to verify. 
Magician Zhong Bei was highly likely to believe it was true and clearly sensed
the dragonman youngster's sincerity.
Realizing he couldn't get the dragonman youngster's help, Magician Zhong Bei
also left without hesitation.
He walked quickly.
As a guardian, he naturally knew Bu Quan's exact location.
“The most important thing now is to find Bu Quan and explain the consequences
to her.”
“What she's doing is essentially destroying her own future!”
“No matter how grateful she is, it's not worth it to go this far. Sigh, she's
still too young."
The dragonman youngster stood at the window, watching the magician leave, and
used the alchemy communication device to contact Zi Di: “Has the alchemy data
been handed over to Bu Quan?” 
Zi Di's voice came through: "This is half of her annual salary paid in advance,
and she accepted this arrangement. She is now completely immersed in it,
devoting herself entirely to her research." 
“Then it's settled,” the dragonman youngster said with a smile.
Moments later, Zhong Bei met with Bu Quan. 
After learning the purpose of his visit, Bu Quan remained unmoved: “Magician
Zhong Bei, joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was indeed something I
voluntarily agreed to after being recruited by Commander Long Fu.”
“Thank you for your analysis and advice, but I made this decision after careful
consideration.” 
“In the short term, I will not leave the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.” 
“You're being foolish, Magician Bu Quan,” Zhong Bei exclaimed in frustration,
"Was my previous analysis incorrect? No matter how you weigh the pros and cons,
joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was a mistake." 
“This is too detrimental to your future development!” 
But Bu Quan shook her head: “I don't see it that way.” 
“If life is just about weighing pros and cons, then it's too boring.” 
“In my past life, revenge has been my primary life goal.”
“Now that I have successfully avenged myself, it's time to try a new life.” 
Zhong Bei continued to plead with her, but Bu Quan grew impatient and took the
initiative to send him off: “It's already very late. Magician Zhong Bei, I
won't entertain you any longer.” 
Zhong Bei walked out of the alchemy workshop's gate, looking up at the
afternoon sun still high in the sky, his face pale with disappointment.
After sending off Zhong Bei, Bu Quan plunged into the alchemy laboratory.
She looked at the alchemy documents brought by Zi Di, her eyes sparkling: “I
never expected the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to have such advanced alchemy
documents!”
She looked at the alchemy documents brought by Zi Di, her eyes sparkling: “I
never expected the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to have such advanced alchemy
documents!”



****** Chapter 359: Zi Di vs Bu Quan ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been operating the shop they acquired
through a deal with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord for two days.
The shop was bustling with people, and the counter was crowded with customers.
“Give me two doses of dragon rider potion.”
"I want ten doses. Here's the money! Hurry up and give me the potions."
Those purchasing the potions were visibly agitated. Because anyone could see
that the shelves behind the counter were already empty.
Estimating roughly, there were less than 30 dragon rider potions remaining.
If you were a step too late, you wouldn't be able to buy any.
This was only in the morning, or more accurately, not even the entire morning
had passed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ inventory was almost completely sold out.
The sales of dragon rider potions, after being validated by the market, had
become extremely popular.
At that moment, two figures were sneaking around near the back door of the
shop.
“Xiao Fan, I'm here.”
“Uncle, hurry up, come this way, don't let others notice us.”
Under the shop clerk's guidance, they entered the warehouse behind the shop.
There were still 50 doses of dragon rider potions in the warehouse.
The transaction was quickly completed, and the uncle took the 50 doses of
dragon rider potion.
He was very pleased and patted the shop clerk Xiao Fan on the shoulder before
leaving: "Good job. If any new stock arrives, let me know promptly."
The shop clerk was nervous and urged the uncle to leave quickly, comforting
himself in his heart: "This is just normal sales; Uncle didn't shortchange me a
single coin!" 
The two who took the back door thought no one had noticed, but in fact, the
entire transaction had been observed by Zi Di and Bu Quan. 
In another room of the shop, Zi Di said to Bu Quan, “You saw it, right? That's
how it really is; I didn't lie to you.” 
“We need more dragon rider potions.”
“You need to put your research aside and focus on pharmaceutical production.”
Bu Quan didn't respond directly, but her tone betrayed a hint of surprise: “I
never expected such a potion to be so popular.”
“I've also crafted many alchemy tools and sold them, but I've never encountered
such a situation.”
"I already know the formula for the dragon rider potion, and it is indeed
ingenious. But some of the alchemy items I’ve made are even more ingenious and
of higher quality.   Why haven’t they ever been this popular?” 
“If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d find it hard to believe that reality
is really like this.” 
Zi Di smiled and replied, “The reason is simple. The dragon rider potion fills
a gap in the potion market.” 
“Magic potions can’t be taken casually.”
“When a transcendent uses one potion, using another potion afterward comes with
many restrictions.” 
“In such situations, administering potions to mounts can resolve many issues in
urgent battles.” 
Bu Quan, upon being reminded, understood: "Thinking about it carefully, there
truly are no potions suitable for mounts. Most potions on the market are
designed for transcendents themselves."
“If I had known about this situation earlier, perhaps I would have also created
and sold such potions.”
Which magician would complain about having too much money?
However, Magician Bu Quan had never paid much attention to making money.
Her life's focus was taking revenge on the Bayonet Gang. Beyond that, she
pursued knowledge and explored further in the field of alchemy.
Basically, Bu Quan hadn't studied the market.
The alchemy tools she created were primarily for alchemy research. Selling them
was merely to recoup funds for the next experiment.
"I didn't expect corruption to arise within the shop so soon after it opened.
Such members cannot be tolerated; they must be dealt with." Bu Quan suggested
again.
Zi Di shook her head, revealing a subtle smile.
“Just give him a good scolding; there's no need for a major crackdown.”
“In fact, this is exactly what we want to see.”
“What do you mean?” Bu Quan was puzzled.
Zi Di stared into her eyes and said, "We, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, are
outsiders; we're not locals of Snow Bird Harbor. Therefore, we have hired a
large number of locals to serve as peripheral members of our mercenary group.
Almost all the people working in this shop are such peripheral members. We hope
they can form a collusive relationship with customers, which will be more
advantageous for our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to establish a foothold here.”
Bu Quan didn't understand: "Commander Long Fu publicly executed the gold level
Teng Dong Lang, and the mercenary group has already gained fame throughout the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Doesn't that count as establishing a foothold?" 
Zi Di sighed: "The reputation has indeed spread, but only within the mercenary
group. From now on, we won't lack mercenary missions."
"But in terms of commercial operations, we've only just begun. What we need is
to stay grounded and integrate with local powers. Only then can our business
thrive in the long term." 
Bu Quan grasped something and nodded in realization: “So, you didn't intervene
to stop this private transaction because a faction capable of purchasing 50
doses of dragon rider potion must be quite powerful.”
“Such transactions, if continued over the long term, will also cultivate your
network of connections.”
Zi Di immediately corrected her: “Not ‘your’ network, but our network.”
Bu Quan smiled awkwardly.
She had only recently joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and some of her
thinking habits had not yet shifted; she needed time to adjust.
Bu Quan thought for a moment and added, “Since the dragon rider potion is in
such high demand and supply is insufficient, perhaps we should raise the
selling price of the potion.” 
Zi Di shook her head again. 
“The current price is already the most appropriate; there’s no need to adjust
it further.” 
“Any potion is a consumable item; the price cannot be too high.”
"Of course, if we raise the price, we can indeed ensure profits and prevent
some of the current private transactions. However, in the long run, doing so
would actually result in losses." 
“How so?” Bu Quan asked for clarification. 
Zi Di replied, “The strong sales of the dragon rider potion will undoubtedly
inspire many powerful individuals.”
“I believe that soon, similar potions to the dragon rider potion will appear on
the market.” 
“In fact, our biggest competitor is not someone else, but the Alchemy Guild of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.” 
“The Alchemy Guild has long dominated the majority of the kingdom's alchemy
market. Once this colossus sees the business opportunities in the dragon rider
potion, they will definitely enter the market.”
“Once competitors emerge, we will have to lower prices, even sell at a loss.” 
“The primary purpose of this is to capture the market.” 
"If we capture the market and successfully secure the majority share in the
mount potion sector, we will have established our reputation, truly built our
own brand, and left a deep impression on customers throughout the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom."
"Once we reach this stage, we will have a voice that cannot be ignored in the
kingdom's business circles. When collaborating with others in the future, we
will have the qualifications for equal dialogue." 
“Therefore, the current period is extremely critical.” 
“If we fail to seize this opportunity and secure the market, we will inevitably
face bitter consequences in the future and encounter fierce competition.
Countless others will see the opportunity and rush into this market, becoming
our competitors." 
"Let alone the great nobles, merchants, or renowned alchemists, even the
Alchemy Guild. In terms of productivity, connections, and other aspects, the
guild is far superior to us." 
“Our current advantages are only twofold.” 
"The first is that Commander Long Fu slew Teng Dong Lang. Riding this wave, we
can seize the market faster. Because many people will feel curious and have a
slight preference for the dragon rider potion sold by the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps before their first purchase, making them more willing to try buying it." 
"The second advantage is time. Our competitors need time to develop premium
products, and they also need time to produce sufficient quantities to compete
in the market."
“I've made a preliminary estimate that we need to secure at least 30% of the
market share to successfully establish a foothold in the commercial
landscape.” 
“With 48% of the market share, it's like establishing a forward base camp.” 
“Securing 65% of the market share is what truly establishes a moat.” 
"The dragon rider potion has been very well received in the market, but over
time, its popularity will decline sharply. Because the potion itself doesn't
have much competitive advantage."
“We are currently using it as our flagship product to capture the market and
establish our influence.”
“In the future, we will develop unique alchemy tools and leverage our influence
to expand our market share and establish our stronghold in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom market.”
Zi Di explained her business plan to Bu Quan.
She continued, "So, you should understand that pharmaceuticals are crucial to
us! This is the core focus of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Of course, if
there are any shortcomings in this business plan, please do not hesitate to
offer your guidance, Magician Bu Quan."
Zi Di smiled at Bu Quan. 
When it came to alchemy talent, Zi Di acknowledged Bu Quan’s superiority.
However, in terms of business, she was the expert, while Bu Quan was as
inexperienced as a novice. 
Bu Quan fell silent, her gaze toward Zi Di now carrying a new sense of
appraisal. 
She couldn’t help but think of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ background as
arms dealers.
She realized for the first time that the female magician before her, Yao Ma,
possessed business acumen beyond that of ordinary people. 
Bu Quan couldn't help but exclaim, “No wonder your family sent you here to
assist Commander Long Fu.” 
“It seems like your collaboration is very harmonious. How long have you known
each other?” 
Bu Quan forced herself to sound casual, as if she were merely asking out of
curiosity.
From the day the contract was signed, Bu Quan had observed the exchange of
glances between Zi Di and Long Fu, keeping it in her mind. 
She wasn't actually concerned about the dragon rider potion or Zi Di's business
plans. 
She was concerned about other matters. 
A sharp gleam flashed briefly in Zi Di's eyes. 
As the president of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, she had been exposed to
such matters from a young age. Such probing from Bu Quan was obvious to her.
Zi Di paused for a moment before deciding to speak honestly.
“The time I’ve known Commander Long Fu hasn’t been very long.”
“At most, it’s only been two or three months.”
“But how to put it… we hit it off immediately and work together seamlessly.
We've solved many problems together, and our relationship is indeed very
close!"
As she spoke these words, Zi Di's lips curled slightly, revealing a happy,
sweet smile.
If possible, Zi Di would have liked to announce her romantic relationship with
the dragonman youngster directly.
This relationship was known to all the survivors.
But what could she do? Her current identity was Yao Ma.
She had to conceal it and couldn't tell Bu Quan directly.



****** Chapter 360: Conditioning Bu Quan Successfully ******
Bu Quan's feelings for the dragonman youngster were not only felt by the
dragonman youngster himself, but also very clearly by Zi Di.
When the two parties signed the contract, Zi Di saw the look in Bu Quan's eyes
as he looked at the dragonman youngster.
That intense gaze was all too familiar to Zi Di!
The flush on Bu Quan’s face also betrayed the secret in her heart
“So that’s how it is…” After hearing Zi Di’s response, Bu Quan’s expression
darkened slightly.
The smile on Zi Di’s face made her feel repressed.
Zi Di returned to the topic at hand.
She had brought Bu Quan out of the alchemy workshop and to the shop for an
inspection not to discuss their relationship, but for a more important purpose.
Zi Di continued directly, “Now, you've seen the situation at the shop.”
“I hope you can focus on producing dragon rider potions from now on, at least
to meet the market demand in Snow Bird Harbor.”
“This is our top priority at the moment!” 
Bu Quan's eyes flickered slightly. 
Looking at the female magician closely associated with Commander Long Fu, she
instinctively felt resistant. 
But she didn't refuse outright. After a moment's thought, she came up with a
reason. 
"In the past two days, two more silver level alchemists have joined the
mercenary group. Combined with Zhong Yong from before, we could easily delegate
these pharmaceutical tasks to them." 
But Zi Di shook her head: “I wish we could do that.” 
“Unfortunately, they have more important tasks to attend to and cannot spare
the time right now.” 
Bu Quan slightly pursed her lips. 
This subtle gesture caught Zi Di's attention, immediately revealing Bu Quan's
displeasure.
Zi Di remained composed. 
Bu Quan's reaction was exactly what Zi Di had anticipated. 
Bu Quan was a master of alchemy, always approaching it as a researcher rather
than a competent producer or merchant. 
If Zi Di had Bu Quan's talent and the backing of the Alchemy Guild, her assets
would long since have surpassed four alchemy workshops—they would have expanded
tenfold or more!
But how to put it? 
If Zi Di were Bu Quan, she wouldn't be able to achieve such high alchemy
accomplishments either. 
“Magician Yao Ma, please take a look at this first.” Bu Quan took out a
document. 
Zi Di's expression changed slightly upon seeing the document. 
The document clearly contained information about the Bloodline Purification
formation.
Bu Quan explained, "This is the result I deduced recently. How about it? Isn't
it a significant improvement compared to before?" 
“That's right. It's a huge improvement!" Zi Di's pupils contracted slightly.
She realized that the result Bu Quan had calculated had left her speechless. 
Even though she hadn't provided Bu Quan with any additional formation diagrams,
he had still made such a breakthrough.
“Such alchemy talent...” Zi Di sighed inwardly, then casually remarked, "Have
you been researching the half of your ‘annual salary’ we paid you in advance?  
Why are you investing so much effort and time into this?   In fact, this was
just a test question for us; we didn't have any expectations for it."
Bu Quan laughed, “How could it take any effort or time!   I just had a sudden
flash of insight during my lunch break, resolving many contradictions from
previous calculations and figuring out some of the structural concepts of this
formation.” 
“I have a feeling I’ve finally figured out the direction!”
Zi Di forced herself to suppress her concerns: “How long will it take you at
most to calculate this complete alchemy formation?”
Bu Quan shook her head: "It's very difficult. Although we've made a
breakthrough, this kind of success is hard to replicate."
"We only have this one diagram. If we had a few more, that would be great. Even
if it's just one, it has to be the one in the opposite position."
"Otherwise, even if I succeed in calculating it, the result is likely to be
vastly different from the original answer. We've merely created a new formation
based on the original."
“That reassures me,” Zi Di thought to herself, but on the surface she comforted
her, "It doesn't matter. This formation diagram is just a small part of our
adventurous gains; the prospects are slim, and it's not worth wasting time and
effort on this."
But Bu Quan shook her head: "This formation has a simple structure and
ingenious design; it's definitely the work of a master. The original version
must have had significant effects." 
“Enough,” Zi Di interrupted her, “Magician Bu Quan, I understand why you gave
me this information.” 
“Your talent is truly remarkable!” 
"You want to prove that the work where you can truly showcase your value is
this kind of work. Not to have you act as a human alchemy workshop, endlessly
refining potions, is that correct?" 
Bu Quan nodded, openly admitting, “Exactly.” 
Zi Di sighed deeply, “That is precisely my concern about you.” 
When she saw the look of confusion on Bu Quan's face, Zi Di continued,
“Magician Bu Quan, we are very welcoming of your joining us.”
“But in fact, we also have our concerns.” 
“We have gathered information about you. Although you joined the Alchemy Guild,
you have only studied under your mentor and have never truly participated in
any organizational activities.” 
“You are actually a lone wolf.” 
“Your mentor has never involved you in her organization but has focused solely
on cultivating your alchemy talents.”
“Am I right?” 
Bu Quan nodded. 
Zi Di continued, “Precisely because you have long acted as a lone wolf, your
thinking has become rigid. You tend to view issues and matters from your own
perspective, prioritizing your own interests.” 
“However, once you join an organization, this mindset must change. You must
learn to consider problems from the collective perspective and resolve issues
accordingly.”
“Often, when two ways of thinking clash and cannot be balanced, we must
prioritize the collective interest.” 
“That is what an individual who truly joins an organization should do.” 
Bu Quan furrowed her brows. 
Zi Di spoke earnestly, “I’m not asking you to sacrifice your personal interests
and emotions for the collective.” 
“In fact, we need to establish this positive feedback cycle.”
“Each of us sacrifices a little of our personal interests for the organization,
in exchange for the realization of the organization's grand plan and the
attainment of significant benefits.”
“These benefits are something we couldn't achieve on our own.”
“When divided among everyone, it might be less than what we'd get on our own,
but more often than not, it's more.”
“That's the difference between joining a collective and living as a lone wolf.”
Bu Quan furrowed her brows deeply, pondered for a moment, then said, “Since I
agreed to Commander Long Fu's recruitment, I naturally have the resolve to
contribute to the collective.” 
“Otherwise, I wouldn't have offered my four alchemy workshops.” 
"But how can you guarantee that after the organization achieves its plans and
goals, our overall personal benefits will be greater? What if the plan fails?
Many organizations have collapsed before."
Zi Di wanted to say that giving up her alchemy workshops wasn't contributing to
the collective; it's essentially acting on one's own emotions.
Zi Di was actually quite unimpressed with Bu Quan's approach.
If it were her, she would have given gold coins or alchemy tools at most,
rather than giving away the alchemy workshop outright. From a business
perspective, this was not selling eggs but the hen.
As a leader, Bu Quan had never considered the well-being of those working in
the alchemy workshop. She lacked the responsibility of a leader.
Her gift was generous, but at its core, it was merely a personal act.
She did it to make herself feel better.
In comparison, the dragonman youngster was far superior to her.
The dragonman youngster was a believer in justice. Often, he prioritized the
organization's interests over his own or suppressed his personal emotions.
Bu Quan couldn't do that—or more accurately, she couldn't do it at this stage.
“Although she has joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, can she truly
integrate into it?” On the night after the contract was signed, the dragonman
youngster and Zi Di discussed this, expressing such concerns.
Zi Di brought her here to inspect the shops this time, partly to increase the
production of dragon rider potions, and partly to guide Bu Quan, helping her
change from within so she could more smoothly integrate into the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
In response to Bu Quan's questions, Zi Di answered seriously, “The situations
you mentioned are objectively real.” 
“Organizations can fail, and even collapse.” 
“Organizational plans and actions carry risks. But aren't such risks also
present when individuals act alone?” 
“In fact, an organization's ability to handle risks is far greater than that of
an individual.” 
“Organizational actions are also far more stable and reliable. Because many
factors affect individuals, such as sudden serious illness or traffic
accidents, but for an organization, even when many unexpected events occur, the
organization can still function normally." 
“With lower risks and greater stability and reliability, collective gains
become more stable.” 
"An organization often has more resources than an individual. Resources that a
lone wolf finds difficult to obtain can be more easily acquired by an
organization, which can then concentrate its efforts and invest heavily in
cultivating a particular member. Once this member makes significant progress,
they can break through certain limitations of the organization's capabilities,
driving the collective to earn more benefits."
“This is the win-win situation between the collective and the individual!”
After a pause, Zi Di continued, “Let's take the current situation as an
example.”
“From your personal perspective, engaging in research work allows you to
maximize your own value.”
“However, for the entire mercenary corps, producing a sufficient quantity of
dragon rider potions in the short term to capture the market will yield far
greater profits.”
“As you mentioned earlier, there is no guarantee that the formation can be
reproduced, and it still requires significant investment of manpower and
resources.”
"But once the mercenary group's plan is realized, we will reap the profits of
the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.   These profits will greatly fund your
various alchemy experiments in the future." 
“I think that even if you have a good mentor and are favored by the Alchemy
Guild, you couldn't possibly experiment with various materials and conduct
trials at will, could you?” 
Bu Quan fell into a long silence.
Though she harbored some subtle reservations toward Zi Di, she couldn't deny
that Zi Di's words made perfect sense. 
“You've convinced me, Magician Yao Ma.” Bu Quan said, her gaze fixed on Zi Di. 
"I've always been a loner. Even after I joined the Alchemy Guild, I didn't feel
a sense of belonging to it. It’s more like a protective umbrella or a resource
platform.” 
“Even between me and my mentor, our daily interactions are primarily
transactional.   Even if I want to acquire alchemy knowledge, I need to make
corresponding contributions and exchange them with my mentor.” 
“Thank you. You’ve taught me a lesson.” 
“Joining the mercenary corps has indeed given me a different life experience.”
“After I return, I’ll put my studies and research on hold and focus on
producing dragon rider potions.”
Zi Di smiled upon hearing this: “Bu Quan, trust me, you made the right choice.”
Meanwhile, the ghost girl was secretly thrilled inside: “First successful
conditioning!”



****** Chapter 361: Store Dispute ******
Inside the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' shop, an argument was taking place.
The dwarf with the big beard stood at the counter, straining to look up at the
snow elf shop assistant, his eyes wide with anger, "What, you're out of
stock?!"
The shop assistant hurriedly apologized, "It's true. Sir, you're too late. I
can't deceive you. Look at the shelves in the store—they're all empty. Where
would there be any dragon rider potions?"
But the dwarf with the big beard was different from the other customers.
He raised his hand: “This is impossible!”
"Even if you don't have stock for others, you must provide it to me!"
“I made a reservation with your store manager a day ago.”
“The pickup slip is right here, and the time is now.”
"Now that I've come, you tell me there's no stock?! Even if this is Commander
Long Fu's business, I demand an explanation!"
The snow elf clerk's face paled slightly, and he hurriedly said, "Sir, you are
indeed a special case. I’ll go get the store manager right away!” 
Meanwhile, the store clerk who had just made the private deal turned ashen
faced. He suddenly realized that the potions stored in the warehouse were meant
for the dwarf with the big beard. 
But now, he had already sold them all to his uncle in private. 
With this commotion, his scheme was about to be exposed. 
This was terrible!
The dwarf with the big beard didn't wait for the store manager but saw two
female magicians walking into the store together.
It was Bu Quan and Zi Di.
Seeing the two female magicians, the dwarf with the big beard paused,
suppressed his anger, and greeted them proactively: "Magician Yao Ma, Magician
Bu Quan, hello. I didn't expect to see you two in the store."
“This is great!”
"I had already ordered the goods but was told they were out of stock. Not only
did I make a wasted trip, but does the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps have no
credibility in business?"
“Magician Bu Quan, we're old friends. You must help me with this matter.”
The dwarf with the big beard was a well-known figure in Snow Bird Harbor,
owning numerous fishing boats and a large business empire. 
Back when the dragonman youngster first began his challenges, Bu Quan, the
dwarf with the big beard, and the human elder had all watched the dragonman
youngster from afar at the dock. At the time, there had been some discussion. 
In Snow Bird Harbor, Bu Quan indeed had a closer relationship with the dwarf
with the big beard, and the human elder.
The three of them frequently collaborated on various matters.
At that moment, the shopkeeper approached.
The shopkeeper was a snow elf. He looked at the dwarf with a big beard and
smiled, "Your goods are in the warehouse behind the shop. The regular staff are
unaware of this matter. I will have someone fetch them for you immediately."
The shopkeeper was unaware that the magic potions specifically reserved in the
warehouse had already been sold.
The store clerk who had been selling them privately felt as though he had
fallen into an icy abyss.
But the next moment, Zi Di said, "There's no need to fetch them; the warehouse
is empty. His order has already been purchased by someone else." 
"What?!" The store manager was startled and looked at Zi Di, wanting to ask but
dared not. 
Zi Di could tell from his expression that he had misunderstood.
The ghost girl chuckled softly and turned her gaze toward the clerk. 
The clerk, seeing Zi Di's gaze, broke out in a cold sweat and stepped forward
to admit to the matter. 
The store manager glared at him and scolded, "I told you to take the inventory,
not to do such things! I thought you were a clever fellow, but I never expected
you to be this foolish..."
“Quickly, tell me who you sold the potions to?” 
“Go get it back immediately!” 
“Those are all this gentleman's goods!” 
“I sold it to my uncle,” the clerk finally revealed the truth. 
The store manager asked again, “Who is your uncle?” 
The clerk then explained his uncle's identity. 
The store manager stood there speechless.
It was because the store clerk's uncle and the dwarf with the big beard were of
similar status. If he wanted to curry favor with the dwarf with the big beard,
he would have to offend another powerful figure in high places.
The snow elf store manager hesitated for a second or two, then turned around
and approached Zi Di, bowing and scraping: “Magician Yao Ma, how should we
handle this matter?”
Zi Di gave him a faint glance but did not speak.
The dwarf with a long beard looked at Zi Di.
He wanted to purchase an adequate supply of dragon rider potion. However,
forcibly demanding it back would offend someone of his own status.
This was something he did not want to see.
However, he also did not want to compromise, so he could only continue to
formally demand an explanation from the shop.
Inside the shop, there were still many dissatisfied buyers, who were watching
the scene with curiosity, casting their attention toward Zi Di. 
Zi Di smiled slightly, then turned her head to ask Bu Quan beside her,
“Magician Bu Quan, what do you think we should do about this matter?” 
Bu Quan looked deeply at Zi Di and understood her meaning.
Bu Quan thought for a moment and said to the dwarf with the big beard, “You
ordered 50 portions of the dragon rider potion. You’re a fisherman—what do you
need so many for?” 
They were business partners and friends, so Bu Quan didn’t sugarcoat her
words. 
The dwarf with the big beard actually liked this bluntness. 
It meant that their relationship was very close.
The dwarf with the big beard said, “Magician Bu Quan, are you looking down on
me again?” 
“Although I use a boat for fishing, after using this potion, I found that
having the fishermen control the butter sailfish mounts to coordinate net
casting resulted in a harvest more than twice as large as before.” 
“Many times, we could even catch rare fish species.”
“If the dragon rider potion is supplied long-term, I'll definitely be your
biggest customer here!”
Butter sailfish mounts were a common type of fish mount; fishermen often kept
one or two at home.
These sailfish were large in size, had a stocky build, were easy to raise, and
had decent speed.
The only drawback was that they leaked oil.
Once these sailfish engaged in prolonged movement, they would begin to seep
fish oil. If not cleaned promptly, a thin layer of butter would accumulate,
making it difficult for riders to stay seated. 
The waters near the Ice Sculpture Kingdom were abundant in this type of butter
sailfish, but the military never used them. 
The reason for their rejection by the military was not the stability issue, but
rather that the leaked butter, carried by seawater currents, left extremely
obvious traces, making it easy for enemies to track the military's movements.
While solutions existed, the effort required did not justify the benefits.
Additionally, the military had better alternatives, so this option was not
chosen.
After hearing the dwarf's response, Bu Quan paused for a moment: “Since the
potion has already been sold, I cannot sell it to you.”
“However, I can personally intervene and expedite production. At the latest, I
can provide you with 50 doses of dragon rider potion by 2 PM today.”
The dwarf with the big beard was taken aback by this answer.
He couldn't help but look at Bu Quan with a look of astonishment.
Prior to this, he had collaborated with Bu Quan many times, purchasing numerous
alchemy tools from her.
He had never seen Bu Quan act this way before!
Even if there were delays in delivery, Bu Quan would only coldly state that it
was due to her alchemy experiments and ask if the items on the order were still
needed.
The dwarf with the big beard would say yes.
Bu Quan would then set a later delivery date and mention that such situations
might occur again in the future.
The dwarf with the big beard would rub his nose but still placed the order.
After all, the alchemy tools produced by Bu Quan's workshop were of guaranteed
quality
Bu Quan had always focused on her own research into alchemy and had never
voluntarily paused her experiments to rush orders.
But at this moment, she did just that.
The dwarf with the big beard couldn't help but ask, “So, Magician Bu Quan,
you've really joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
He had heard the rumors, but he just laughed them off.
Bu Quan nodded, "That's right.”
She admitted it in front of everyone, immediately drawing a slight gasp from
those around her.
Everyone was very surprised that Bu Quan would make such a choice.
Bu Quan looked at the dwarf with the big beard and simply explained, “I want to
try a new life.”
“Youth is wonderful,” the dwarf with the big beard sighed as a friend, offering
his blessings, then remarked, “No matter how your new life turns out, but
today, I truly saw a different side of you.”
Zi Di finally spoke up, “Regarding this incident, it was a mistake on the part
of our staff.”
“Hereby, I promise you that from now on, whenever you purchase our dragon rider
potion, we will sell it to you at a 10% discount!” 
Zi Di's compensation offer brought an unexpected delight to the dwarf with the
big beard.
He purchased 50 units each time, so over time, the purchase volume would become
enormous. 
A 10% discount might seem small, but when accumulated, the savings would become
quite substantial.
The compensation offered by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was very sincere,
and the dwarf with the big beard was so delighted that he immediately flattered
Zi Di with a compliment. 
After resolving this minor dispute, Zi Di led Bu Quan, the store manager, and
several staff members to the room behind the hall. 
Moments later. 
The staff member who had conducted the private transaction emerged with a
grateful expression.
Zi Di only gave him a mild reprimand, making the staff member feel like he had
narrowly escaped punishment, while the store manager and other staff members
pondered the situation.
Bu Quan watched Zi Di reprimand her subordinates throughout the process and,
seeing this approach, gained some insight.
The market influence of the dragon rider potion was rapidly helping the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps establish commercial relationships. The Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps had deliberately arranged this store clerk here, leveraging his
connections to establish a firm foothold in the shops, which was proceeding
smoothly.
“However, even if I give it my all, the quantity of potions I can refine won't
be enough for the entire Snow Bird Harbor,” Bu Quan said to Zi Di, "We'll need
the assistance of the other three alchemists.”
Zi Di looked at Bu Quan, her smile growing brighter.
In resolving this dispute, she had Bu Quan publicly acknowledge her joining the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, confirming the rumors she had deliberately spread
earlier. This further expanded the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ influence and
instantly established the shop's credibility in the business world.
After all, Bu Quan had already joined. In the past, the alchemy tools produced
by Bu Quan were renowned for their quality.
With Bu Quan stepping forward, the dwarf with the big beard had no choice but
to back down out of consideration for their relationship. 
Furthermore, his compromise was compensated by Zi Di. It was a 10% discount,
but with such a major customer purchasing regularly, Zi Di might earn less but
would definitely not lose out. 
She handled the erring staff member leniently, which also served as a wake-up
call for the other staff members, ensuring that there would be many high-
quality connections and major buyers in the future.
Good products alone could not build a solid network. 
Zi Di understood this well: one had to mix personal relationships into sales. 
What pleased her most was Bu Quan's performance. She took the initiative to
handle the dispute and even proposed the need for manpower. All of this proved
that Bu Quan had truly changed her mind set and habits. 
Wasn't this precisely the result of Zi Di's previous conditioning?
In all these aspects, Zi Di was undoubtedly the biggest winner.
After thinking it over, Zi Di responded, "Additional manpower will come, but
the exact time is uncertain. If everything goes smoothly, perhaps they will
arrive by tomorrow morning."
The corresponding parts of the formation have been constructed on the formation
diagram panel.
Only the final combination remained.
This was the most critical step.
If this step was successful, the Bloodline Purification formation would be
complete!



****** Chapter 362: Formation Completed Successfully ******
Deep Sea Monster Fish, alchemy cabin.
Fishman Zhong Yong looked serious, occasionally glancing at the blueprints for
the Bloodline Purification formation and occasionally checking the formation
diagram panels.
There were 11 formation diagram panels in total, each engraved with a part of
the Bloodline Purification formation.
Now only the final step remained: assembling all the panels together.
And for this step, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di chose Zhong Yong to carry
it out.
The main reason was: Zhong Yong was the strongest among the three silver level
alchemists.
Though he was a fishman, he had decent talent, and most importantly, he had
been nurtured from a young age.
From another perspective, alchemists who could be traded as bargaining chips
were naturally the lowest-quality batch in the seller's hands. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had only been established for a short time and
lacked various types of talent. The addition of these individuals brought
significant improvements to the mercenary group. 
In the eyes of the dragonman youngster, they were all highly sought after.
Zhong Yong meticulously compared the blueprints with the formation diagram
panels, not missing a single detail.
His fingers slowly glided along each engraved line of the formation diagram.
His eyes were bloodshot, fully focused, exerting every ounce of effort.
The entire alchemy cabin was deathly quiet, except for the occasional low
murmurs from the fishman magician.
After comparing them three times, Zhong Yong exhaled a breath of stale air,
finally confirming the panels were correct.
“This alchemy formation actually enhances the bloodline concentration of living
beings...” Zhong Yong was filled with shock.
As an alchemist with a complete formation diagram, he naturally understood the
formation's function.
However, despite recognizing it, Zhong Yong remained deeply skeptical.
"Purifying the bloodline concentration within the body? That's too far-
fetched." 
"How is that possible?"
“But from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ perspective, they're so
desperate—could it be that this formation actually works?” 
“Or are they just rushing to verify it?”
The fishman magician Zhong Yong licked his dry lips. 
He was also filled with curiosity and suspicion about this alchemy formation. 
After resting for a moment and adjusting his state, Zhong Yong began the formal
assembly work. 
First was a large square base plate. 
The alchemy formation lines on the base plate were the simplest. But at the
same time, they were also the heaviest.
Placing the base plate at the bottom, Zhong Yong immediately activated the
switch. 
Immediately, a small stream of magic power was drawn from the magic power
reservoir of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, gently flowing into the base plate. 
The engraved lines on the base plate gradually lit up, emitting a faint white
glow. 
Zhong Yong worked quickly, not daring to delay, and immediately installed three
auxiliary plates along the edges of the base plate.
The content on these three auxiliary plates complemented each other, with the
formation patterns and magic insignias being much more intricate than those on
the base plate.
Zhong Yong held the alchemy pen in one hand and swiftly connected the joints
between the auxiliary plates and the base plate.
Once the connection was successful, the white glow from the base plate's
formation patterns spread like flowing water onto the auxiliary plates.
With each successful connection, Zhong Yong's mental energy was depleted by a
fraction.
By the time he had successfully connected all the necessary points between the
three auxiliary panels and the base panel, his spirit had dropped below 50%.
Zhong Yong set the alchemy pen aside and pulled out a magic potion from his
robe.
He had been prepared for this moment.
Without hesitation, he tilted his head back and swallowed the potion in one
gulp.
His spirit power was immediately restored.
Zhong Yong began installing the main board.
The three sub-boards were arranged in a triangular formation at the three
corners of the base board, while the main board was positioned directly above
the center of the base board.
This step was extremely challenging.
The process of connecting the main board to the base board differed from
previous steps.
Zhong Yong first commanded the alchemy puppet to hold the main board steadily,
suspending it directly above the center of the base board.
He then slowly lowered the height.
When the distance between the base board and the main board was reduced to 0.5
centimeters, Zhong Yong finally halted the alchemy puppet's movement.
Zhong Yong placed both hands over the main board, channeling his spiritual
energy while directing magic power from the magic power pool into it.
Once the magic power entered the main board, immediate changes occurred. 
The alchemy points previously engraved within the main board transformed from
solid to liquid form, rapidly spreading outward. 
Following the force of gravity, these liquid metals extended toward the base
plate, gradually stretching into extremely fine needle-like structures.
Below the main board, there were at least 3,000 metal needles densely packed
together
After the metal needles made contact with the base plate, they continued to
penetrate
Zhong Yong gathered his spirit, ensuring that every needle had penetrated
before commanding the puppet to lower its height once more.
In the next moment, the main board adhered to the central part of the base
plate.
Its edges and the three auxiliary plates at the edges of the base plate fit
together seamlessly, forming a flat surface.
Zhong Yong slightly increased the input of magic power.
But he remained restrained.
The formation plate was not fully assembled, and the alchemy formation was
incomplete. Excessive magic power lingering in the incomplete formation would
damage the alchemy engravings, formation nodes, magic runes, and so on.
Zhong Yong proceeded cautiously, advancing the work bit by bit.
After about ten minutes, the main board not only successfully connected to the
base plate but also established proper connections with the three surrounding
auxiliary plates.
The main board, three sub-boards, and base board became a single unit.
Zhong Yong's face was pale, his gaze wavering, and his mental energy was
severely depleted.
He couldn't stop, so he downed three more bottles of potions and continued
connecting the sub-boards.
Connecting the sub-boards was much easier and simpler than installing the main
board.
The workload was also not too heavy, so it didn't drain Zhong Yong as much.
However, it still took him half an hour to install all the sub-boards.
His condition had deteriorated significantly, so his efficiency was far lower
than at the beginning.
Only one formation diagram board remained—the encapsulation board.
Zhong Yong pushed on and spent over ten minutes successfully installing the
encapsulation board as well.
The next step was the tense moment—the first official activation of the
formation! 
Zhong Yong rested for half an hour before proceeding with this step. 
He mentally activated the alchemy formation, fully activating it while
increasing the output of magic power. 
The engraved lines, runes, and patterns on the formation diagram were activated
by a surge of magic power, emitting a brilliance several times brighter than
before.
The formation diagram was tightly connected, with all previous connection
points seamlessly channeling magic power without any failures. 
Buzz...
The formation activated at full power, emitting a sound akin to the buzzing of
insects. 
This state persisted for ten minutes before Zhong Yong gradually reduced the
magic power input and finally closed the formation. 
“Success! I've successfully assembled it!”
Zhong Yong was overjoyed and suddenly relaxed, plopping down onto the floor.
He was in poor condition, his limbs weak and limp, his head buzzing, and his
spirit at an all-time low.
But he was happy.
This was his first major mission since joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zhong Yong was well aware that his performance in this job would have a
significant impact on his future life.
He could sense the high-ranking members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
emphasis on this magic formation and their sense of urgency.
If Zhong Yong failed this time, it would inevitably lead to the high-ranking
members losing faith in him. He would not be given important tasks anymore for
a long time.
“But fortunately, I succeeded in the end.”
“But is this magic formation really effective?”
Zhong Yong wanted to conduct an experiment immediately.
But he quickly suppressed that strong urge.
He sent a message to the higher-ups informing them of the successful formation
construction.
Zi Di returned shortly afterward.
Not only her, but the dragonman youngster also came aboard the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
“Commander Long Fu, Magician Yao Ma.” Zhong Yong performed a magician's
greeting. Having been raised by snow elf nobles since childhood, he was well-
versed in etiquette. 
“Magician Zhong Yong, you did well. You didn't disappoint us,” the dragonman
youngster encouraged him. 
Zi Di was about to dismiss Zhong Yong from the alchemy cabin: “You may leave
now.” 
Upon hearing this, Zhong Yong grew anxious, gazing up at the dragonman
youngster and Zi Di with eyes brimming with anticipation and longing.
"Let me stay! I'm so curious! Can this formation truly purify bloodlines?" 
“If it succeeds, this would be extraordinary—a world-changing event!”  
Zi Di smiled reassuringly, "Don't get too excited, Magician Zhong Yong. This
alchemy formation diagram was an accidental discovery. We only built it as an
experiment, without any expectations.” 
“But regardless of whether the experiment succeeds or fails, this is the most
critical secret of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.” 
“The fewer people who know about it, the better.” 
Zhong Yong persisted, “I’ve already seen the complete formation diagram, and I
personally assembled the formation panels. Let me take a look, even just a
glance!”
He was too curious about whether the formation would succeed and what the
specific experimental conditions would be like. 
But in the end, he was still driven out. 
Under the dragonman youngster's orders, he was escorted by an alchemy puppet
through the corridor and sent to his crew cabin. 
“Now we have another person who knows about it,” Zi Di sighed.
The dragonman youngster shrugged: "There's no way around it. We need someone to
assemble the entire formation diagram. Leaks of confidential information are
unavoidable, at least for now." 
Zi Di's gaze grew deep: “In that case, let Zhong Yong become the ship's
magician aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.” 
“As for the other two alchemists, they can be allowed limited movement
outside.”
“They don't know much; they've only engraved a few formation diagram panels.” 
“The confidentiality agreements we signed with them can largely prevent this
information from leaking out.” 
“Basically, we've eliminated the possibility of Bu Quan coming into contact
with these formation diagrams.” 
“We can't let Bu Quan know about this; her alchemy talent is truly
astonishing!” Zi Di sighed.
The dragonman youngster watched the humming alchemy formation spinning on its
own, growing impatient. He urged, “Alright, let’s proceed with the first
experiment now.” 
He approached the edge of the alchemy formation diagram and, following Zi Di’s
instructions, extracted the Bloodcore's magic. 
The blood-red energy flowed into the formation diagram panels.
With the correct energy, the alchemy formation suddenly erupted with blood-red
brilliance, forming a three-dimensional formation centered on a seven-pointed
star. 
The formation wasn't large, occupying only one-quarter of the alchemy chamber's
space. 
Zi Di placed the pre-prepared Experiment Subject 1 into the formation. 
As the Bloodcore's magic power continued to diminish, Experiment Subject 1 grew
restless within the formation.
It took less than 30 seconds. The bloodline purification was complete.
Zi Di, filled with excitement and anticipation, immediately tested the
bloodline of Experiment Subject 1.
"The bloodline concentration has indeed increased significantly. We've
succeeded!" Zi Di tried to stay calm, but her voice trembled noticeably.
The dragonman youngster empathized but remained cautious: “Continue the
experiment.”
One experiment was clearly insufficient.
After conducting it seven times, Zi Di and the dragonman youngster finally
confirmed that the magic formation was functioning normally.
“Next, it's my turn.” Zi Di retrieved an ice coffin.
Sealed within the ice coffin was her own body.
“Begin.” The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, his heart tightening once
more.
Moments later, Zi Di looked at the bloodline test results in front of her and
burst into tears of joy.



****** Chapter 363: Purifying Lan Zao ******
The results of Zi Di's bloodline test had already been obtained.
Gunpowder Flower bloodline.
Now, after the effect of the Bloodline Purification formation, the bloodline
within her body had been purified into a gold level Gunpowder Flower bloodline!
It was that easy.
No wonder it was an alchemy formation personally designed by the War Merchant.
Zi Di's eyes were blurred with tears as she wept with joy.
In her life, she only had an iron level bloodline. Since stepping into the
transcendent world, she had been tasting the bitterness of insufficient talent.
This pain continued until the moment of her death.
No, to be more accurate, even now, she was still constrained by her own innate
talent. However, her existence has changed.
Essentially, she was an undead being with unknown innate talent, making it
difficult to detect using potions. 
Her physical body, however, had been clearly identified as having a Gunpowder
Flower bloodline, which was successfully purified just now. 
"Once you are revived, you will at least become a gold level magician.
Congratulations, Zi Di."
The dragonman youngster embraced Zi Di. 
This was a rare moment.
Normally, Zi Di was a ghost girl who could only pass through objects. 
But just now, to purify her bloodline, Zi Di first used the Soul Send spell to
return to her own body. 
Only at this moment did she have the right to embrace the dragonman youngster. 
“Lord...” Zi Di nestled against the dragonman youngster's broad chest, softly
weeping. 
At this moment, her emotions were extremely complex.
There was resentment and sorrow over the unfairness of fate. If she had
possessed such talent earlier, what would her situation be like now? 
There was endless gratitude and attachment toward the dragonman youngster. The
dragonman youngster could have easily concealed the existence of the Bloodcore,
but he did not! It was precisely because of the dragonman youngster's honesty
that Zi Di achieved her current status. 
There was also anticipation for future happiness. Gold level!
Zi Di's future achievements would at least make her the ruler of a city. Once
she matured, she could become someone above others. The limitations on her
natural talent that had once bound her had been raised to a new height, giving
her a vast expanse of room for growth.
The dragonman youngster gently stroked Zi Di's shoulder. He had guessed some of
her inner thoughts and comforted her, “Actually, you are lucky.”
“Imagine if you had been born with a gold level Gunpowder Flower bloodline.
What would have happened?”
“Would the great nobles of the empire have allowed you to grow up and take over
the Wisteria Merchant Alliance?”
“Clearly, that would have been impossible.”
"It was precisely because of your previous weakness, with only an iron level
bloodline, that those villains and murderers let their guard down and didn't
act against you. Isn't that right?" 
“Lord, you're correct.” Zi Di's gaze grew deep, “Once we successfully atone for
our sins, establish ourselves, and I grow stronger, I will definitely make
those murderers face the punishment they deserve.”
Her talent had surged, giving Zi Di an even stronger desire for revenge.
The dragonman youngster embraced the girl while gazing at the Bloodline
Purification formation: “I can’t wait. If only all our companions could use
this formation once, that would be wonderful.”
“Unfortunately, the Bloodcore is still missing some corresponding bloodlines.
Some of our companions haven’t received accurate bloodline answers yet.”
Zi Di took over the conversation: "We also need to consider the timing. To be
honest, I don't recommend revealing the Bloodline Purification formation to
others." 
“This alchemy formation is too important!” 
“Look at Zhong Yong's attitude earlier.” 
“Even in uncertainty, he was already so eager and curious. If he were to find
out that the Bloodline Purification formation is highly effective and can
enhance a life form's bloodline, what would he do?" 
“Such a major secret should be known by as few people as possible!” 
“Currently, only the three of us know about the Bloodcore's secrets, and that's
already more than enough.” 
“Cang Xu traveling outside poses a risk of exposing the secret.”
“And these alchemists like Zhong Yong have all come into contact with parts of
the Bloodline Purification formation, with Zhong Yong even completing the final
assembly.   Every day these people are alive, there is a risk of the Bloodline
Purification formation being exposed…” 
The dragonman youngster interrupted Zi Di’s words: “Zi Di, these people have
already joined us!”
The dragonman youngster spoke earnestly: "I know you're worried, and so am I.
But we can't abandon our principles because of worry." 
“We're not evil; we're just doing what we have to do to survive.” 
“They all have bound contracts, the highest level we can currently make.” 
“They don't know the full truth, and even Zhong Yong is only speculating and
curious.”
“There's also the matter of the secrets surrounding the Bloodcore and the
Bloodline Purification formation. There's always been a risk of leaks, hasn't
there?”
Zi Di nodded in understanding: “Lord, are you referring to Jian Zuan?”
Jian Zuan was a student of the War Merchant, but he vanished without a trace on
Mystifying Monster Island, leaving no body behind.
The dragonman youngster nodded slightly: “It's not just Jian Zuan. What if the
War Merchant deliberately left something behind, or if the Empire has already
uncovered part of the truth?” 
“If we only focus on keeping the secrets, but the truth leaks out in other
areas, then we're actually tying our own hands and slowing down our
development, aren't we?”
"Rather than going to great lengths to keep secrets, I would rather grow
quickly and become stronger. Even if the whole world knows we possess such
secrets, they will fear our strength and dare not provoke us lightly." 
“Moreover, I trust Cang Xu!” 
"Though he is a necromancer, everything that happened on Mystifying Monster
Island was not fabricated. I know his character and integrity." 
Zi Di bowed her head: "Lord, I understand your meaning. However, we can make
some reservations." 
“For example, when others use this Bloodline Purification formation in the
future, we don't need to disclose this secret.” 
"We can simply say that we have developed a potion that improves one's
potential when consumed. The side effect of the potion is that it causes them
to fall into a coma for a period of time.” 
“In fact, we can use the potion to knock them unconscious, then transport them
here for bloodline purification.” 
“This way, we can keep the secret while still helping them.” 
“There are too many divine spells and magic in this world. Like you, I am not
concerned about the rebellion of my companions. However, there are many ways to
steal this information against their will. For example, memory crystals."
The dragonman youngster fell silent.
Zi Di continued to persuade him, “Of course, we are not going to keep it hidden
forever.”
“When the time is right, we can tell them the truth about the Bloodcore.”
“But now, the time is not right.”
“In fact, we are keeping it hidden to protect the others.”
"For example, if others fall into the hands of the enemy and are controlled by
their spells, they might reveal the ‘truth’. The enemy will covet the potion
that enhances one's potential, and not to kill you for the Bloodcore. This will
give us a lot of room to maneuver. Isn't that right?" 
The dragonman youngster pondered for a moment, then sighed, “Zi Di, I must
admit, you have a point.” 
“A benevolent temporary lie could be advantageous for our survival.” 
“Let's proceed with that plan.” 
“When the truth is eventually revealed, I will apologize to the others.” 
The second candidate for bloodline purification was none other than Lan Zao.
The dragonman youngster summoned Lan Zao to the captain's cabin and informed
him that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could now produce a magic potion that
could enhance his bloodline qualities.
After annihilating the Bayonet Gang, the dragonman youngster had a meeting with
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been
actively procuring supplies from outside sources.
Thus, the dragonman youngster not only absorbed a large amount of gunpowder
flowers but also obtained a complete Fish Bladder bloodline in his Bloodcore.
“Lord, are you joking with me?” Lan Zao heard this and widened his eyes; his
face filled with disbelief.
He admired and respected the dragonman youngster, but when it came to a potion
that could improve bloodline qualities, he still found it hard to believe.
This was simply too shocking to his worldview, which had been formed over many
years!
“Drink this potion and let it tell you for yourself.” The dragonman youngster
smiled, took out a potion, and handed it to Lan Zao.
Lan Zao trusted the dragonman youngster completely and drank it without
hesitation.
In less than a second, the bottle was empty.
The potion took effect quickly, and Lan Zao's eyes rolled back, and he fell
into a deep sleep.
The dragonman youngster then teamed up with Zi Di to secretly bring him back to
the Deep Sea Monster Fish ship for bloodline purification.
When Lan Zao slowly came to, two hours had already passed.
“How do you feel?” the dragonman youngster asked.
Lan Zao’s vision was still blurry, but upon hearing the dragonman youngster’s
question, he hurriedly replied, “I feel… normal.”
He spoke the truth.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “You can try cultivating your battle qi.” 
“Right here?” Lan Zao's vision cleared completely. He realized he was still in
the captain's cabin and assumed he hadn't moved since taking the medicine. 
“Right here. Just practice a little,” the dragonman youngster said. 
Lan Zao cultivated the Water Grass battle qi technique. He had been practicing
this all along and had never changed it.
He tried practicing, but stopped right away, his face full of surprise.
“It's... it's unbelievable!”
“My, my current cultivation efficiency is probably more than three times what
it was before.”
At that moment, Lan Zao was so excited that he stammered and became tongue-
tied.
The dragonman youngster patted his shoulder: “Your bloodline is likely the Fish
Bladder bloodline. Practicing the Water Grass battle qi technique isn't
suitable for you. Switch to a more compatible one, and you'll extract more
battle qi.”
“The Fish Bladder bloodline is a silver level bloodline. You're no longer just
a bronze level sailor.”
Lan Zao's expression froze. He had received so much information at once that he
couldn't process it all.
The dragonman youngster waited patiently. 
Lan Zao's expression gradually became livelier, his eyes reddening, almost
shedding tears. 
He looked down at his hands: “Is this true?” 
“This is too incredible.” 
“Can I really become silver level?” 
He couldn't help but recall his past.
Once upon a time, after learning of the limits of his bloodline, he tossed and
turned, unable to sleep. 
How many times had he looked at iron level and silver level transcendents, his
gaze shifting from envy and longing to sorrow and despair? 
“This is how my life will be.” 
“For the rest of my life, I will only be a bronze level battle qi cultivator.”
“Though I am a transcendent, I am only of the lower ranks, the lowest tier
among them.” 
"Why is this so! Damn it, why wasn't I born a genius?" 
“Damn it, even if you gave me just a little more talent, even if you let me
reach iron level, that would be enough!” 
“Never mind, never mind, this is just my fate.” 
“Even if I'm bronze level, it's still better than being an ordinary person,
right?”
Over time, Lan Zao's mindset continued to change. 
From unwillingness to envy and jealousy, from envy and jealousy to accepting
reality, finding solace in those weaker than himself, adjusting his emotions
and mindset. 
Now. 
Lan Zao looked at the dragonman youngster and suddenly burst into tears:
“Lord!” 
“You gave me a new life!”
He knelt down directly and bowed his head to the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster sighed, helped him up, and instructed, “Don't make a
scene; this is our secret.”
“Understood!” Lan Zao nodded firmly, then suddenly his expression changed, and
he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Immediately after, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.
“What’s going on?!” The dragonman youngster’s expression changed abruptly.
It was clear that Lan Zao’s sudden coughing up of blood and fainting were
caused by the purification of his bloodline.
But why did this happen?
The dragonman youngster hurriedly contacted Zi Di.



****** Chapter 364: Passive Meditation ******
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Meditation cabin.
A stunningly beautiful young woman with black hair and fair skin sat with her
eyes closed, meditating.
A large amount of fire elements actively poured into the magic pool deep within
her head, quickly transforming into her personal magic.
Moments later, the girl opened her eyes.
Her features were exquisite, and even with her eyes closed, she already
surpassed the ordinary. Now, as she opened her eyes, her pair of purple eyes
shone like crystal, instantly adding the most stunning touch to her face!
The young woman was Zi Di. 
A look of intense joy flashed in her eyes, and she quickly assessed the
situation in her mind. 
“The gold level Gunpowder Flower bloodline is truly extraordinary!” 
"The range within which I can absorb surrounding elements has expanded by at
least five times compared to before my death. The absorption speed has
increased by six times, approaching seven times."
“The efficiency of converting elements into personal magic power has also
increased by at least 80%.” 
In her previous life, Zi Di had only an iron level bloodline, and in terms of
the range, speed, and conversion rate of element absorption, she was far
inferior to her current state. 
Comparing the two, Zi Di felt a mix of emotions. 
“No wonder the bloodline is the foundation of all cultivation!” 
“If I had such cultivation efficiency, I would already be silver level.”
If Zi Di were still alive, she would still be young. Even with a gold level
bloodline, considering the time spent cultivating, reaching silver level would
be quite possible. However, there was still a significant gap to reach the gold
level.
“The assistance of bloodline is not limited to meditation.”
“The Gunpowder Flower bloodline has advantages in alchemy and is most skilled
at refining gunpowder.”
“The War Merchant's database records many gunpowder formulas; I can choose to
refine some and experience it thoroughly.” 
As she was thinking, Zi Di's upper body swayed slightly, and she felt a wave of
dizziness. 
The dizziness caused her face to darken, and the joyful expression quickly
faded into a shadow. 
She touched her forehead. 
Burning hot.
“My body still needs time to fully adapt to the gold level bloodline.” 
“But the most critical issue is that I am already dead.” 
“My soul and body are mutually repelling each other. Even if I can control my
body, it can only last for a short time.” 
“Beyond that timeframe, the repulsive force will simultaneously damage both the
body and the soul.”
Zi Di's current situation was quite complex.
She had died and became an undead being, a ghost girl.
She appeared to be alive now, but this was an illusion created by her casting
the Soul Send spell to re-enter her own body with her ghostly form.
The ghost body was filled with negative energy. Meanwhile, her physical body,
due to proper preservation measures, still retained a significant amount of
vitality.
Negative energy destroyed vitality.
At the same time, when she meditated, she absorbed external fire elements and
converted them into her own fire-based magic power. 
This magic power also conflicted with the negative energy, triggering
backlash. 
During meditation, Zi Di had to expend a great deal of energy to monitor both
energies and minimize the scale of the conflict. 
Even when she exerted all her strength, the conflict between the two was still
unavoidable.
For ordinary people, meditation allowed them to feel their strength growing and
their magic power pool filling up, which was a fulfilling and pleasant
sensation.
However, when Zi Di meditated, she had to be cautious, maintain stability, and
endure the backlash from both energies, with both her physical body and soul
enduring different kinds of pain.
This situation had significant drawbacks, but it also had advantages.
Currently, Zi Di possessed two magic pools.
One resided within her physical body from before her death, which was a fire-
element magic pool.
The other was the undead magic pool within her ghost body.
Zi Di was an iron level fire magician in life, and after her death, she
transformed into a ghost, with her life essence remaining at the iron level.
She then re-trained as a necromancer, starting from zero.
However, thanks to the soul crystals and other resources obtained by Cang Xu,
her current necromancer level is transitioning from bronze level to iron level.
Zi Di's eyes flickered as she planned her development path given the current
situation. 
"Typically, resurrecting life requires the power of the gods, that is, through
divine resurrection. But we are still seeking connections and atoning for our
sins. Additionally, I have become an undead being rather than a soul, so no
clergy would be willing to perform divine resurrection for me."
"There is no opportunity for resurrection, but I currently need strength to
rely on. Since I have abundant necromancer heritage, I will continue my
cultivation for now. With strength, I can protect myself and assist the Lord." 
"However, I cannot neglect the physical aspect. I can use the Soul Send spell
to control the body, employing the previous meditation method to help the body
absorb magic power and gradually elevate the magician's level."
Zi Di's ghostly bloodline paled in comparison to the Gunpowder Flower
bloodline. This was evident from the efficiency of meditation alone.
In Zi Di's heart, resurrection had always been the top priority.
Even if her innate talent were lower after resurrection, she would still choose
this path. 
Only then could she be with the dragonman youngster. Now, the real her couldn't
even embrace her beloved. 
“Wait.” A sudden insight flashed through Zi Di's mind, giving her a better
idea. 
“This method of assisting the body in meditation is too inefficient.”
“Not only is it inefficient, but over time and with repeated use, it will also
cause damage to both the body and the soul.” 
“I can let the body cultivate on its own.” 
“I remember seeing a lot of related materials in the War Merchant's database.” 
Zi Di thought of this and immediately dissolved the state of body and soul
unity. 
After settling the body, she found the tower spirit and searched for the
information. 
Soon, she found what she was looking for.
War Merchant conducted in-depth research in this area and achieved significant
alchemy results.
This Alchemy Great Grandmaster had once dedicated himself to the development of
artificial magic beasts, including a project on how to enable artificial magic
beasts to practice cultivation autonomously.
However, since magic beasts had limited intelligence, the War Merchant devised
numerous alternative approaches to address this issue.
“This approach seems quite suitable for me,” Zi Di thought to herself after
reviewing it.
This alchemy approach involved creating a suitable external environment by
constructing a series of alchemy components to actively infuse external
elements into the body of transcendent.
Applied to Zi Di, this meant allowing her body to cultivate passively without
the need for active meditation.
“The most critical alchemy device is the magic power needle.”
“By inserting these needles into various parts of the body, the magic power
needles channel elements into the body.” 
“Then, through the engraved alchemy formation, the meditation technique is
solidified, awakening the magic pool to absorb internal elements and complete
the transformation from elements to personal magic power.” 
“Over time, this will steadily elevate the body's magician level!”
After reviewing the information several times, Zi Di marveled at the War
Merchant's profound expertise.
She also consulted reference materials related to this topic.
These included Eastern martial artists' acupuncture techniques, blueprints for
vampire coffins, and comprehensive guides on implementing meditation within
alchemy formations, among others.
“I am unable to craft these alchemy devices myself.” 
"But now we have three silver level alchemists joining us, along with an
alchemy prodigy like Bu Quan. Crafting them should pose no problem!" 
Just then, the communication device beeped. 
Zi Di answered, and the voice of the dragonman youngster sounded anxious on the
other end.
“Lan Zao vomited blood?” Zi Di was slightly startled, then reassured the
dragonman youngster, “Don't worry, this should be normal.” 
“The purpose of the bloodline purification formation is to purify the bloodline
of a life form, making it unique and reaching maximum concentration.” 
“100%”
“The bloodline within Lan Zao should now be 100% Fish Bladder bloodline.”
"However, before this, his body contained not only Fish Bladder bloodline but
also other mixed bloodlines. The Fish Bladder bloodline has a higher quality
and a certain concentration, so it was detected as his primary bloodline." 
“Now that the Fish Bladder bloodline has become his sole bloodline and reached
maximum concentration, it is actively transforming his body.”
"Over the next period, his body will exhibit some symptoms, but this is
actually the bloodline undergoing transformation. His original body will be
transformed from his previous mixed bloodlines. The current bloodline and body
are incompatible, so there must be an adaptation process." 
The dragonman youngster immediately asked, “Will there be any life-threatening
risks during this adaptation process?” 
“No, there won't be,” Zi Di laughed and replied with certainty.
“Lord, if there is a bloodline conflict, it could lead to the collapse of the
life form.” 
"But Lan Zao is no longer a mixed-blooded individual; he is now pure-blooded.
His body contains only the Fish Bladder bloodline, so there will be no
conflicts." 
“Of course, during the adaptation process, he may feel discomfort or even
experience symptoms of severe illness.” 
“No treatment is needed; just eat well and drink well.”
“I see.” The dragonman youngster relaxed.
Zi Di added, “In fact, my body also has fever symptoms.” 
“But my symptoms are much milder than Lan Zao's.” 
“The adaptation process after bloodline purification varies from person to
person.” 
"In my life, I was iron level, surpassing Lan Zao's bronze level status, and my
bloodline was much simpler than his. Furthermore, my physical vitality was far
inferior to his, which is why the symptoms of my physical transformation were
milder."
“Once the physical transformation is complete, both Lan Zao and I should
exhibit some bloodline characteristics.”
“Therefore, we may need to perform the Deceptive Disguise spell once more.”
The dragonman youngster felt reassured by such a detailed explanation.
He patiently waited in the captain's cabin, hoping to witness Lan Zao's second
awakening.
However, before that, the city government palace sent a messenger to convey the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's invitation to the dragonman youngster.
“Should I go there immediately?” the dragonman youngster asked in surprise.
“Yes,” the messenger replied respectfully, "There has been a major breakthrough
in the interrogation of the upper echelons of the Bayonet Gang. The city Lord
has already gathered evidence of their involvement in your previous heroic
duel, Lord Long Fu.”
"Oh? So that's how it is." A hint of joy flashed across the dragonman
youngster's face.
He glanced at the unconscious Lan Zao. Since the latter's condition was already
confirmed, he might as well head to the city government palace first.
He quickly issued orders, instructing Zi Di, the big guy, and others to
temporarily care for Lan Zao, while he descended from the flagship, climbed
into a carriage, and set off toward the city government palace.



****** Chapter 365: A Gang Is Needed ******
At the city government palace.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord led the dragonman youngster to the underground
dungeon.
He introduced to the dragonman youngster: “This dungeon was built by the
seventh-generation city Lord. Almost every subsequent city Lord contributed
funds to expand it, and at the very least, they maintained it.”
“It can be said that this dungeon is the safest place.”
“I'm concerned that if we place the leaders of the Bayonet Gang in ordinary
prisons, they might be rescued.”
“But here, it's almost impossible!”
“This way.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a torch and led the way.
The dungeon was dimly lit, but there were no signs of mold or water stains from
neglect; instead, it was very dry.
The brick walls were thick and sturdy, with massive iron gates every so often
that required the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to operate manually to raise or
lower them.
Along the walls of the corridors, there were hollowed-out sections where two-
meter-tall alchemy puppets stood.
“The entire dungeon is shrouded in a dark, disorienting magic effect.” The Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord spoke in a somber tone, "Without the alchemy torch in my
hand, entering here would leave us in complete darkness, even the sense of
touch against the walls would be distorted. We would only perceive an endless
darkness around us, unable to find our way out." 
“Alright, we've arrived.” 
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stopped before an iron door. 
He reached out and gently touched the surface of the iron door.
A flash of flame-like light suddenly appeared on the otherwise ordinary iron
door.   The light quickly spread across the entire surface of the iron door,
tracing out the patterns of an alchemy formation before fading away. 
The iron door opened, revealing the prisoner inside. 
The prisoner was devouring a feast of meat and fish, eating with such voracity
that it seemed as though he were swallowing it whole.
Upon seeing the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the dragonman youngster arrive,
the prisoner hurriedly stood up, then knelt on both knees and bowed his head in
respect: “City Lord!” 
The dragonman youngster looked closely and realized that this prisoner was none
other than the demon hybrid ringleader of the Bayonet Gang. 
“What's going on here?” the dragonman youngster asked aloud, but he already had
the answer in his heart.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said triumphantly, “After I subjected him to
severe torture, he couldn't take it anymore and surrendered.” 
“That Evil Eye was originally his.” 
“He has confessed without reservation that it was he who secretly intervened
and manipulated the Evil Eye.” 
“While you and Xiong Ju were fighting, he attempted to use the Evil Eye to kill
you!”
“However, his plan was quickly thwarted by Xiong Ju himself.” 
“And the leader of the Bayonet Gang, Teng Dong Lang, arrived shortly after to
erase any traces of his involvement.” 
The dragonman youngster was speechless for a moment. 
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's methods were ruthless; he had directly subdued
the demon hybrid.
However, the dragonman youngster reconsidered and understood the demon hybrid
ringleader's motives.
“The Bayonet Gang was once powerful, but at its core, it was merely a local
gang.”
“The loyalty of its members to the Bayonet Gang was largely based on self-
interest.”
"Among the six ringleaders of the Bayonet Gang, there were few snow elves, and
the group was racially diverse. Each represents their own interests and those
of their respective racial groups." 
“The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord dealt a decisive blow to the Bayonet Gang,
swiftly annihilating them. These individuals now have no hope left, making
surrender a viable option.” 
Having grasped these insights, the dragonman youngster smiled and flattered the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: “City Lord, you truly are a master strategist;
everything is under your control.”
“Now that we have this eyewitness testimony, we should make it public as soon
as possible to let the people know that eliminating the Bayonet Gang was the
right thing to do.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded: "It's not just this crime; the Bayonet
Gang has committed countless crimes over the years. In addition to the
confessions of the demon hybrid ringleader, we also made significant gains from
the other ringleaders."
“We'll discuss these gains later. Let's deal with this guy first.”
“He interfered with your heroic duel. According to the customs of our Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, he is now your common enemy, both yours and Xiong Ju's.”
"Therefore, I must deal with him. I would like to hear your thoughts on the
matter. After all, our cooperation has been very pleasant, and this
relationship will only grow stronger in the future!"
Upon hearing this, the demon ringleader hurriedly crawled on his knees to the
feet of the dragonman youngster.
“Lord Long Fu, spare me! Spare this dog’s life!” 
“I was wrong. I failed to recognize your greatness and dared to plot against
you in secret!” 
“But I failed. After Xiong Ju destroyed the Evil Eye, I suffered backlash and
was severely injured.”
“I will never dare to oppose you again!” 
“Please, Lord Long Fu, please spare me.” 
“I am willing to pay any price to redeem myself.” 
The demon ringleader pleaded loudly, tears streaming down his face. 
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord remained silent.
The dragonman youngster looked at the demon ringleader begging for mercy at his
feet, then at the silent Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and suddenly understood
the city Lord’s intentions in inviting him here.
The dragonman youngster turned to ask the city Lord, “City Lord, what do you
think?”
The city Lord smiled, “In fact, sparing his life would benefit us all.”
“Although the Bayonet Gang has been eradicated, the aftermath is still
troublesome."
"The Bayonet Gang was a criminal organization that had been entrenched for
years. Although its core has been eradicated by us, it still has countless
connections with the outside world. In the hearts of many citizens, the Bayonet
Gang's prestige surpasses that of the city government palace."
“For example, the dwarfs under the dwarf ringleader.”
"In Snow Bird Harbor, there lives a group of dwarves. Their leader joined the
Bayonet Gang and became one of the six major ringleaders."
"The dwarf ringleader participates in the Bayonet Gang's operations,
contributing his own strength, and also mobilizes the dwarves to forge weapons
and equipment for the Bayonet Gang. However, most of the dwarves have not
joined the Bayonet Gang."
"Snow Bird Harbor is one of the eight major harbors of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, very prosperous, and an important window for the kingdom's foreign
relations. Therefore, there is a large influx of people, and the population is
diverse. Dwarves, humans, goblins, and others are active on the streets and
alleys of Snow Bird Harbor, in every corner. They make a living here, and many
are undocumented."
“The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's Mansion finds it difficult to regulate these
people.”
“The city government palace represents the kingdom, represents the snow elves,
not these foreign groups.”
"Thus, gangs like the Bayonet Gang emerge naturally. There is fertile ground
for gangs to thrive here, rooted in the survival dynamics and logic of the
lower classes." 
"Do you believe it? The Bayonet Gang may be destroyed, but soon, new gangs will
emerge here." 
"If we do not intervene, these gangs will clash with one another, form
alliances, and eventually establish another stable power structure. It might be
called the Knife Gang, or it might be several gangs facing off against each
other."
"In this process, there will be a great deal of bloodshed and casualties. The
public order of Snow Bird Harbor will be severely disrupted, and the taxes
collected by the city government palace will be greatly affected." 
“As for me, I don't want my final days in office to be marred by such a poor
record.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's words shook the dragonman youngster to his
core.
He had always believed that organizations like the Bayonet Gang should not
exist. They were criminals, a cancer, bringing disaster to those around them
for their own gain.
But the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord offered a different perspective—while the
Bayonet Gang was a criminal organization, its very existence maintained order
in many ways.
From the perspective of managing Snow Bird Harbor, it serves as a supplementary
layer to the city government palace.
In a sense, the city government palace could not function without the gangs.
Gangs are like weeds—cut them down, and they'll sprout again in time. They
cannot be eradicated.
The dragonman youngster fell silent for a moment before lifting his eyes to
look at the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
He chose his words carefully and said, “I understand your meaning, City Lord.”
“To be honest, I am not a snow elf, nor am I a citizen of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. My understanding and feelings toward heroic duels are far less
profound than those of your countrymen.”
“I am willing to let go of this hatred.” The dragonman youngster paused and
added, “As long as the benefits are reasonable.” 
“Hahaha.” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord patted the dragonman youngster on the
shoulder, "I didn't misjudge you, Commander Long Fu. You are an excellent
partner!” 
“With his defection, I can quickly stabilize the situation, win over the hearts
of the people, and control the emerging gangs.”
“I thank you on behalf of the people of Snow Bird Harbor!” 
"As for the rewards, I have already prepared them for you. I am sure you will
be satisfied. Please come this way!" 
"As for the rewards, I have already prepared them for you. I am sure you will
be satisfied. Please come this way!" 
In his study, he retrieved a document and handed it to the dragonman youngster.
“There are some interesting things here; I believe you will find them
intriguing.” 
"Without your slaying of Teng Dong Lang, my annihilation of the Bayonet Gang
would not have been so straightforward. These ringleaders would have been far
more stubborn and resistant." 
“These are all spoils of war.” 
“You may select three items from them.”
The dragonman youngster examined them carefully and soon his eyes lit up. 
He discovered Bing Xiao's giant cultivation method. 
This was the complete cultivation method. 
He also saw gold level weapons and equipment like the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
He also saw a large number of alchemy blueprints and methods for crafting
weapons and armor. 
“So, Bing Xiao confessed...”
“With so many blueprints and methods for crafting weapons and armor, it means
the dwarf ringleader has also surrendered.”
“The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's interrogation techniques are quite effective;
I didn't expect Bing Xiao to give in so quickly.”
The dragonman youngster analyzed the situation and secretly looked at the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord with new respect.
However, he did not take the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's suggestion.
After everything he had been through, the dragonman youngster was no longer the
same person as before. He immediately stated that there were many things he was
interested in, and if the conditions were right, he could engage in trade.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not reject it. As the two were discussing,
Lan Zao slowly opened his eyes.
“What… happened to me?”
His memories quickly returned, and he also realized that he was no longer in
the captain’s cabin but in the forecastle.
The big guy was by his side, tending to him.
“You're awake. Dad let me take care of you,” the big guy said.
Lan Zao tried to stand up but nearly failed.
He touched his forehead, which was burning hot.
At the same time, his throat ached terribly; even swallowing saliva felt like a
razor blade slicing through it.
“Where is the commander?” Lan Zao asked the big guy.
The big guy didn’t know the details, only saying, “Dad has left, and he’s in a
hurry.” 
Lan Zao’s face darkened: “It seems there’s been an accident!” 
“A potion that can enhance one’s potential—how could it be so easily
concocted?”
“Back then, when the Life God conducted the bloodline experiment, over a
million people lost their lives, and only a hundred or so survived, with their
bloodlines enhanced.”
“Even the gods were so strict; how could I possibly be so lucky to take a
perfect potion and effortlessly enhance my talent?”
“Now that my bloodlines are in conflict, I’m probably going to die!”



****** Chapter 366: Lan Zao and Zi Di Suspect Each Other ******
Love Triangle.
Forecastle.
Zi Di manipulated the scout-type alchemy puppet, flying down in front of Lan
Zao.
She was still on the Deep Sea Monster Fish Ship, observing Lan Zao while
speaking through the alchemy device in a light tone: "You're awake? Looks like
you're doing okay."
Lan Zao looked at the scout-type alchemy puppet in front of him, then glanced
at the dazed giant beside him, shook his head, and said solemnly, “Actually, I
feel terrible.”
He mistakenly believed he was close to death.
He continued, "The potion is destroying me; I can feel it. This potion can't be
used!" 
Zi Di was taken aback for a moment before asking why. 
Lan Zao sighed wryly and explained his suspicions, revealing the experiment
involving the bloodline of the former Life God.
After listening, Zi Di felt both annoyed and amused, with a touch of contempt
and pity for Lan Zao. 
"Don't worry, the magic potion is fine, " Zi Di reassured him again, but she
couldn't say too much, as this was a classified matter.
She had previously advised the dragonman youngster that the fewer people who
knew about it, the better.
Lan Zao was taken aback, then raised his voice and pointed at himself: "I took
the potion; how could I not know? This feeling is terrible. Not only have I
coughed up blood, but now I'm experiencing intense dizziness. Even if I faint
again in the next moment, I wouldn’t be surprised.” 
“Bloodlines aren’t something that can be easily altered.” 
“Even the Life God is like this; how much more so for us?” 
“Bloodline conflicts can be fatal.” 
“What kind of potion is this?” 
Lan Zao trusted the dragonman youngster implicitly. 
But when it came to Zi Di, his trust was greatly diminished.
Lan Zao’s words carried a hint of accusation, leaving Zi Di in a brief silence.
She would not reveal the truth about the blood core to Lan Zao, so she said,
“Don’t worry, Lan Zao. The potion is fine; all these symptoms are just your
body adapting to it.”
“It will be better in a few days.”
“As for the potion, you know, anything that enhances bloodlines is highly
classified.” 
“I can only tell you that it all comes from the War Merchant's database.” 
Lan Zao paused for a moment, then gave a silent, bitter smile. 
The first thing he thought of was the War Merchant's artificial magic beasts. 
These beasts were both powerful and fragile; without a magic-suppressing
environment, they would destroy themselves.
Lan Zao pressed further, “What does ‘a few days’ mean?” 
Zi Di replied, “The adaptation process varies from person to person; I can't
give you an exact answer.” 
Lan Zao asked again, "Am I the first one to use this medicine? Was the efficacy
confirmed before it was used? Have the newly joined alchemists confirmed it?" 
Zi Di fell silent again: “I said these are classified, and those people aren't
trustworthy yet.” 
Lan Zao found it hard to believe: "These alchemists have joined us and are
bound by contracts. Even if we don't give them the formula, we should at least
provide samples for them to test the efficacy and consequences of the drug."
"The others can be ignored, but Bu Quan is a genius alchemist. Shouldn't such
an asset be utilized properly?" 
The ghost girl couldn't help but take a deep breath. 
Even though she didn't rely on breathing to survive. 
Zi Di said, "I know what you want to ask, Lan Zao. The first person to use the
potion wasn't you, but me." 
“You can verify this with the commander.”
“The potion is fine; I don't want to repeat myself.” 
"Additionally, I also have a fever, and my body is exhibiting similar symptoms.
I said, all of this is just..." 
Zi Di hadn't finished speaking when Lan Zao interrupted her: “But you're
already dead!” 
The conversation came to an abrupt halt, and the forecastle fell into silence. 
The big guy looked at Lan Zao, his expression confused.
Lan Zao realized he had said the wrong thing and hurried to clarify: "That's
not what I meant.   What I meant was, you understand... well, why would such
symptoms arise?" 
“I have no intention of revealing the specifics to you, Lan Zao.” Zi Di's
expression betrayed a hint of irritation, "I understand your perspective;
perhaps you believe you are in mortal danger.” 
“But that is not the case.”
“If you don't believe me, you can ask the commander.” 
“You shouldn't doubt his words, right?” 
Lan Zao nodded: “Without a doubt, I believe every word the captain says!” 
“But...” he added in his heart, “what if the commander has also been deceived
by you?” 
Zi Di...
Lan Zao's feelings toward Zi Di were complex.
On one hand, he recognized her talent and understood her contributions. On the
other hand, he maintained a respectful attitude toward her due to her
relationship with the dragonman youngster.
However, the crux of the matter was that Zi Di deliberately orchestrated a
maritime disaster to gain access to the Mystifying Monster Island, resulting in
most of the passengers either perishing in the disaster or dying on the island.
Lan Zao couldn't help but think, "Since Zi Di once dragged everyone on the ship
down for her own gain, would she do the same now?"
"She's already a ghost; she's already dead. And undead naturally hates the
living."
“Has her nature not been corrupted by negative energy?”
“Did she really not hide anything from the commander?” 
"Could it be that this potion has no side effects on the dead, but she hid it
from the commander? She intends for everyone to die after taking it and be
forced to become undead?" 
Lan Zao harbored doubts, but he did not voice them. 
Similarly, doubts also arose in Zi Di's heart.
Lan Zao’s attitude toward her at this moment was not as respectful as usual. 
Zi Di understood him. 
Because he felt his life was threatened, anyone under such pressure would
behave differently from usual. Being a bit agitated was normal. 
However… 
This couldn’t help but remind Zi Di of Lan Zao’s past.
On the Mystifying Monster Island, Lan Zhao had killed his own younger brother
to survive! 
This had always been an obstacle in Zi Di's heart
When the dragonman youngster rescued him, Zi Di had directly advised him, “What
is there to save about such a person?” 
But the dragonman youngster had saved Lan Zhao's life, earning his loyalty and
subordination.
In subsequent experiences, Zi Di also recognized Lan Zao's value.
Though Lan Zao was only a bronze level, his loyalty to the dragonman youngster
bordered on worship, and this intense emotion could influence others.
During the early days of the mercenary group, Lan Zao, as a low-ranking
ringleader, also helped the survivors manage the mercenary group.
But the emotional barrier in Zi Di's heart had not faded.
When Lan Zao subtly questioned Zi Di about his current situation, the caution
Zi Di had harbored toward Lan Zao surfaced in his mind.
The ghost girl couldn't help but think, “Back then, when Lan Zao faced the
pressure of death, he killed his younger brother to secure his own survival.”
“And now, under the mistaken belief that the magic potion he consumed posed a
life-threatening danger, how would he react?”
“In ordinary times, his loyalty to the commander was evident, but now, under
the assumption that he was in mortal danger, would he still maintain that
loyalty?” 
“Especially since the potion he had taken was personally handed to him by the
commander!” 
At this point, Zi Di no longer felt the need to explain and instead said, “I
admit it, Lan Zao.”
“This is a potion from the War Merchant, and there are experimental data in the
database confirming its safety.”
“But you know, when it comes to alchemy, once it involves specific
circumstances, accidents are bound to happen.”
“I cannot guarantee absolute safety.”
“From this perspective, your concerns are reasonable.”
“What I want to tell you is that I was the first to take this potion.”
“I have one more question for you to ponder. If this potion were to end your
life, what would you do?”
After saying this, she controlled the alchemy bird and left the forecastle.
The conversation ended, and Lan Zao sat motionless in his spot for a long time.
Zi Di observed his expression and state, feeling relieved but not overly
concerned.
The reason was simple.
Once the “symptoms” faded after a few days, Lan Zao would naturally be
overjoyed at the improvement in his abilities.
She didn't offer any guarantees.
On one hand, she had no proof. The magic potion formula mentioned as an excuse
was something she simply couldn't produce.
On the other hand, she also wanted to observe Lan Zao to verify his loyalty to
the dragonman youngster.
“It would be better for the commander to handle this personally and comfort
him.”
“The facts that follow will make him realize his own foolishness.”
“Once he learns the truth, his loyalty to the commander will become even more
unwavering.”



****** Chapter 367: Jailbreak ******
Night fell, and the stars twinkled in the sky.
In the city government palace.
Several servants carried a huge platter on their shoulders and entered banquet
hall No.7.
The banquet hall was not large, and only two important figures were present.
They were the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the dragonman youngster.
The massive platter was placed at the center of the long dining table. The
half-spherical lid was opened, revealing a delicious dish.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord introduced the dragonman youngster: “This is the
sea forest lobster, made from gold level or higher magic beasts.”
“These lobsters live in the underwater forest. Their meat is not only delicious
but also carries the scent of the forest.” 
“For other races like humans to catch these lobsters, they must venture into
the underwater forest. If discovered by the sea elf tribes there, they would be
attacked en masse, posing a high risk.”
“However, our country, due to our racial ties, has connections with several
large sea elf clans in the iceberg sea, so these sea forest lobsters have
become an imported trade item for our country.” 
The main population of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom were snow elves, while the Sea
Forest was the home of the sea elves, who had specially created their own
living environment on the seabed.
Though their habitats differ, both belonged to the larger elf race, so
establishing diplomatic relations between them was far easier than with
others. 
In this world, racial barriers were everywhere. 
Servants had already separated the lobster meat. 
Placed before the dragonman youngster is a piece of translucent, pink lobster
meat emanating a herbal fragrance. The shrimp meat was massive, resembling a
basin. However, the basin-sized piece of shrimp meat accounted for only a small
portion of the main course.
The dragonman youngster opened his mouth wide and bit down forcefully.
The tender, elastic, and delicious shrimp meat nearly filled his mouth.
As he chewed vigorously, his cheeks puffed out slightly on both sides.
The happiness brought by the delicious taste spread through the dragonman
youngster's heart like a stream of clear water.
He quickly finished what was in his mouth, suppressed the urge to take another
bite, and, following noble etiquette, was about to speak to express his
gratitude and praise to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
At that moment, the ground suddenly shook.
In the banquet hall, the expressions of both men changed.
Immediately afterward, the ground shook again, along with the city government
palace.
“What's going on?” The dragonman youngster stood up straight.
“It's an enemy attack!” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked grim, "They've
actually made their way into the dungeon. How did they appear?"
He had previously assured the dragonman youngster of the dungeon's security,
only to be proven wrong that very night.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord apologized to the dragonman youngster and stated
his intention to go underground to eliminate the enemy.
Even in an emergency, he maintained his noble demeanor. His actions were swift,
yet every movement exuded elegance and composure.
“The enemy's surprise attack on the dungeon must be to rescue the high-ranking
members of the Bayonet Gang.”
“This is our common enemy so please allow me to contribute!”
The dragonman youngster did not hesitate and immediately volunteered. 
The reason was simple. 
At present, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Bayonet Gang are sworn
enemies. 
If these ringleaders were allowed to escape, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
would inevitably become one of their targets for revenge in the future. 
Of course, the dragonman youngster had no intention of taking the lead.
After all, this was the city government palace, and the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord was a gold level powerhouse. There was no need for him to charge to the
front.
If the enemies were too strong, the dragonman youngster would wisely choose to
retreat and avoid danger.
In the dungeon.
“Wake up, wake up!” Bing Xiao slapped Spring Boxer's cheeks hard.
Spring Boxer struggled to open his eyes, and his blurry vision gradually
cleared.
He couldn't understand why Bing Xiao was suddenly in front of him. He tried to
speak in astonishment but failed.
He had been tortured severely, his body covered in wounds, and his vocal cords
had been cut, leaving him unable to speak.
“Good lad!” Bing Xiao looked approvingly at the dying Spring Boxer. From his
injuries, it was clear that Spring Boxer had been fighting back and had not
given in.
"But just to be sure, I still need to ask you a few questions. Kid, answer me
quickly!" 
Bing Xiao first administered a potion to Spring Boxer, healing his vocal
cords. 
Then, he exchanged the gang's secret code with him. 
He also revealed several secrets known only to a select few high-ranking
members. 
After confirming Spring Boxer's true identity, Bing Xiao immediately had him
carried out of the cell.
Once outside the cell, Spring Boxer heard the sounds of battle growing even
more intense.
Outside the cell door, a towering figure stood guard.
Spring Boxer recognized him immediately—it was Xiong Ju.
“Hurry up! The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord has arrived, accompanied by Long Fu!”
Xiong Ju spoke urgently.
After being captured, he had also been subjected to brutal torture. Although he
had recently consumed some magic potions, his combat strength remained poor.
“Who is coming to rescue us?” Spring Boxer asked, peering over someone's
shoulder.
Xiong Ju sneered, "Who else could rescue people like us? Naturally, it’s our
gang members.” 
“Ask the old gang leader for details; I’m hearing this for the first time
too.” 
Bing Xiao explained, “This is a secret power within our Bayonet Gang that only
the successive gang leaders know about.” 
“This group of people has been secretly maintained using the personal funds of
the successive gang leaders.” 
“It’s for preparing for unexpected situations. Their loyalty is beyond
question!" 
“Now that the Bayonet Gang has been destroyed and we've all been captured, we
don't need to send a message—they'll definitely come to save us!” 
Bing Xiao had also endured brutal interrogations in recent days. 
To lull the enemy into a false sense of security and buy time, he had no choice
but to reveal many of the Bayonet Gang's secrets, including his own methods for
cultivating gold level giant slaves, which he was forced to disclose yesterday.
He had been waiting for the right moment, and now it had finally arrived.
“Let's go!” Bing Xiao led the way, walking at the front.
Xiong Ju and Spring Boxer followed closely behind.
Along the way, they met up with Ban Lan Gen.
Ban Lan Gen was even more pitiful than Spring Boxer, with his limbs severed,
leaving only a tree trunk with a face.
Shortly after, the human ringleader also joined the group.
“Wait, what about the others?” Spring Boxer hurriedly reminded them.
Xiong Ju snorted coldly, “It's just the few of us!”
“Those two have already surrendered. Traitors will surely face punishment.”
Boom!
A loud explosion echoed, and flames surged in.
The intense heat engulfed them.
The gang fighters at the front were overwhelmed by the flames, suffering heavy
casualties in an instant.
A charred battle qi cultivator rushed to Bing Xiao and the others: “Old gang
leader, hurry up and leave! We can only hold on for another two minutes!”
Bing Xiao nodded but did not rush toward the entrance. Instead, he headed
deeper into the dungeon.
Soon, they reached the end of a dark passageway.
From the outside, it appeared that the passageway had been abandoned due to
neglect.
But the next moment, Bing Xiao's actions dispelled this misconception from
Spring Boxer, Xiong Ju, and the others.
Bing Xiao approached the abandoned wall tiles, continuously striking the tiles
scattered throughout the area, infusing his battle qi into each strike. 
The wall tiles showed no initial reaction, but after Bing Xiao finished his
dazzling series of strikes, the tiles at the end of the passageway began to
retract inward before spreading outward on both sides, forming a new secret
passage.
“Old gang leader, how did you know...”
Before Xiong Ju could finish his question, Bing Xiao sneered, “Back when this
underground prison was being built, members of our Bayonet Gang were involved.”
This response left Spring Boxer and the others wide-eyed.
“The Bayonet Gang has been destroyed, but as long as we're here, there's still
hope for rebuilding the gang.”
“We still have powerful external allies we can turn to for help.”
“As long as we leave Snow Bird Harbor, anything is possible.” Bing Xiao said
encouragingly.
Everyone entered the secret passage, but several battle qi cultivators remained
behind.
“Aren’t you coming?” Spring Boxer asked in confusion.
The battle qi cultivators shook their heads in unison: “Our mission is to
rescue you and ensure your safe departure. Hurry up and go!" 
“You!” Spring Boxer was stunned. 
Everyone knew that those who stayed behind would face the Snow Bird Harbor
Lord's furious wrath. 
They would sacrifice themselves. 
In fact, sacrifice was already a good outcome. 
If captured alive, under those brutal tortures, they would suffer a fate worse
than death. 
A few minutes later.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood before the secret passage.
Those who had blocked him were almost all dead, and those who had survived were
only spared by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's deliberate decision to leave
some alive.
"There's actually a secret passage here!" The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke
with shock, “Ah, how deeply had the official authorities been infiltrated by
the Bayonet Gang back then?"
“What should we do now?” the dragonman youngster asked.
He had also intervened several times during the previous battle.
Among the Bayonet Gang's elite fighters sent for rescue, there were many
skilled battle qi cultivators, with both the leader and deputy leader being
silver level, and their equipment was top-notch.
They had temporarily repelled the dragonman youngster's assault.
But without any gold level expert, who could withstand the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord's might?
In the end, both the leader and deputy leader fell in battle at the hands of
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stared at the secret passage, his expression
somber: “This batch of elite fighters from the Bayonet Gang infiltrated through
this secret passage.” 
“Since they control this secret passage, it must be filled with traps. Forcing
our way through will inevitably result in casualties.”
The dragonman youngster furrowed his brows: “Are we to abandon the pursuit?”
“Of course not!” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord declared firmly, “We won't
enter the secret passage, but we can use the magician tower to investigate and
deduce its exit.”
“Previously, the secret passage remained undiscovered, but now that it's
exposed, it will only take a little time for us to uncover their true
intentions.”
“Additionally, we can surround and block their retreat.”
"I don't believe this secret passage can directly traverse the entire city of
Snow Bird Harbor. A secret passage that has remained hidden for so long cannot
be too large in scale." 
“In that case, we only need to control the key points, impose a curfew on the
entire city, and we can once again catch them in a trap.” 
“Their combat strength has been greatly weakened, and it will be difficult for
them to recover in the short term.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord spoke confidently, strategizing with ease.
He immediately issued an order, mobilizing the entire city’s forces to once
again launch a manhunt and pursuit of the escaped members of the Bayonet Gang.
The dragonman youngster’s expression changed slightly: “It seems I need to
return to the dock to take command.”
Since the Bayonet Gang had successfully escaped, they certainly wouldn’t linger
in Snow Bird Harbor.
If the dragonman youngster were in their shoes, he would leave the harbor
immediately. 
However, Snow Bird Harbor was surrounded by inland areas on three sides, with
only one side facing the sea. Would escaping via the inland route be more
convenient than taking the sea route? 
The answer was obvious!
The likelihood of the Bayonet Gang fugitives escaping through the harbor and
leaving Snow Bird Harbor was very high.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ship was anchored at Snow Bird
Harbor.
If this group were to spot their enemies and decide to take revenge along the
way, that would be disastrous.
The dragonman youngster, with a strong sense of leadership responsibility,
immediately bid farewell to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and rushed to the
harbor.
On his way back, he activated the alchemy device to inform Zi Di and the others
of the current situation.



****** Chapter 368: Rocket Assault Boat ******
Snow Bird Harbor.
Inside the sewer.
Bing Xiao and the others stumbled and panted, finally coming to a halt.
He tapped the sewer wall once more, revealing a small shipyard.
There were no torches in the shipyard, but cultivated glowing moss provided a
dim blue-green light.
Spring Boxer could barely make out the shape of a ship hidden within the dock.
The ship's design was peculiar.
It resembled an arrow magnified many times over.
The bow resembled a bullet, the hull a long cylindrical body adorned with
various totems, and the stern resembled a grass skirt covered in yellow-green
thatch.
Bing Xiao introduced it to the others: "This is a rocket assault boat. As you
can see, it is a beastman warship." 
“Beastman?” Spring Boxer expressed his surprise, “What kind of alchemy
technology could they possibly have?” 
Bing Xiao quickly glanced at Xiong Ju. 
Xiong Ju felt nothing.
Though he was a beastman, he was born and raised in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
and lacked the typical beastman mindset. 
Bing Xiao finally replied to Spring Boxer, "You're right; beastman alchemy
isn't as advanced as ours. But they do have their own unique techniques." 
"Like this ship you see here, it uses the totem painting technique of beastman
shamans. The kingdom's alchemy techniques can't detect it." 
"We have sufficient funds to prepare better ships. But magic ships using the
kingdom's or common alchemy techniques are likely to be detected." 
“We have hidden four or five rocket assault boats in the sewers of Snow Bird
Harbor, but they have never been exposed.”
The human ringleader nodded in realization: “I see.” 
He then asked, “Are we going to escape Snow Bird Harbor using these ships?” 
Bing Xiao nodded: “That's correct.” 
“Snow Bird Harbor is surrounded by land on three sides and only faces the sea
on one side.” 
“Traveling by land is too slow, and there are numerous checkpoints, making it
difficult to evade pursuers.”
“But taking the sea route is different.” 
“We can escape the Ice Sculpture Kingdom or, after leaving Snow Bird Harbor,
take a detour and head toward other ports.” 
Xiong Ju worried, "But the magician towers in Snow Bird Harbor must have
already been activated. And the patrol fleets..." 
Bing Xiao smiled slightly, “It seems you don't understand rocket assault
boats.”
“These magic ships are disposable consumables, and their most distinctive
feature is their straight-line speed, which is extremely swift!” 
“The rocket assault boats we've prepared are all silver level, but their
maximum speed can reach 35 knots.” 
"35 knots?!" Everyone was shocked.
Silver level magic power ships typically had a normal speed of less than 25
knots. The rocket assault boat's speed was 10 knots faster, which was quite
impressive. 
Gold level magic power ships typically had speeds of 28 or 29 knots, with most
below 30 knots. The underwater speed of the Deep Sea Monster Fish was only 32
knots. 
A silver level rocket assault boat could reach 35 knots, surpassing even the
Deep Sea Monster Fish. One could only imagine how fast it was!
Although Xiong Ju, Spring Boxer, and others were all gang members, they had
lived in harbor cities for years and had a decent understanding of speed
concepts.
When they heard the unimaginable speed of 35 knots, they were both surprised
and delighted.
However, Bing Xiao poured cold water on their excitement: “Don't get too
excited.”
“The rocket assault boat needs time to accelerate to reach its maximum speed.”
"Even when it reaches maximum speed, it can only maintain it for a short time.
By the time the rocket assault boat sinks, we'll be out of the magician tower's
attack range, but we won't have completely left the patrol fleet's patrol
area."
Spring Boxer asked, “What do we do then?”
Bing Xiao stared at him: “The magic ship coming to pick us up has already
reached the designated location.”
He then scanned the others: “The most dangerous part of the journey is the next
segment.”
“Space is limited in the rocket assault boat. Spring Boxer and I will go
together, the two of you will go together, and the remaining rocket assault
boats will also be activated to serve as decoys.”
“The assault boats will emerge from the sewer and be exposed at the dock.” 
“As soon as we surface, the magician tower's attacks will rain down on us.” 
“Our assault routes will not be consistent, which will help split up the enemy
forces.” 
“This boat is for the two of you. Spring Boxer, come with me.”
Bing Xiao guided Xiong Ju and the human ringleader onto the rocket assault
boat.
The boarding method for this ship was also unique, with a beast totem opening
its mouth to reveal the interior space.
Once the totem closed its mouth, the exterior of the assault boat remained
seamless and without any gaps.
Xiong Ju and the human ringleader entered the narrow, cramped cabin, leaving
barely any room to move.
Especially Xiong Ju, with his imposing build, was squeezed inside, forced to
bend his head and hunch his back, feeling extremely uncomfortable.
The two were stunned. The human ringleader hurriedly asked, "Wait, old gang
leader, where's the steering wheel? Without it, how can we maneuver the ship?"
Bing Xiao scoffed, “Even if I gave you the steering wheel, could you operate
it?”
“Do you have any experience maneuvering a sea vessel?”
The human ringleader fell silent.
Bing Xiao continued, “Considering this, that's why we opted for rocket assault
boats.”
“Once these boats launch, they're like arrows fired from a bow—they won't
change direction; they'll charge straight ahead.”
“So, there are no components for steering the direction.”
“I understand,” Xiong Ju nodded.
Bing Xiao said, “When the time is right, I will activate all the assault boats,
and then we will charge out together.”
After making arrangements for Xiong Ju and the Human ringleader, Bing Xiao led
Spring Boxer as they jogged to another shipyard.
The two followed the previous method, activating the totem, and entered the
rocket assault boat.
The interior space of this ship was similar to the previous one.
However, neither Bing Xiao nor Spring Boxer had Xiong Ju's build, so the space
felt much more spacious.
Bing Xiao pulled out a crystal ball from his chest.
This crystal ball had been given to him by the suicide squad who had rescued
them earlier.
Bing Xiao infused it with his battle qi and mentally manipulated the crystal
ball.
The crystal ball quickly displayed the scene of the magician tower, then
flickered, showing the dock, and flickered again, revealing the gang members in
the dimly lit streets. 
Spring Boxer was startled: “These people...” 
His eyes turned red. 
He recognized many familiar faces.
These were all veteran gang members, like Bing Xiao, who had retired.
There were also many die-hard gang members.
These people were about to cover their retreat, and their fate was predictable.
Bing Xiao didn't turn around, but he knew what Spring Boxer was thinking: “Many
of them were betrayed by traitors and have been hiding in the city these past
few days.”
“They'll follow us and escape together.” 
“This is their best chance to escape.” 
“So that's how it is!” Spring Boxer's eyes lit up, “But how will they get out?”
Bing Xiao laughed: “Our Bayonet Gang has ships, but most of the ones on the
surface have probably been seized.” 
“There are still some ships in secret that can leave the harbor.”
“The number of ships might not be enough.”
"But it doesn't matter. I believe that for this golden opportunity, they will
resort to any means necessary—stealing or looting—even if it's just a fishing
boat. As long as they can break out a short distance and be met by the magic
ships arranged for them, they'll have escaped to safety!"
“Next, let's stir up chaos throughout Snow Bird Harbor.”
As soon as Bing Xiao finished speaking, the crystal ball erupted like
fireworks, with a series of explosions unleashing waves of fire and heat. 
Countless citizens screamed in terror, panicking and fleeing in all directions.
The ground trembled faintly.
The entire Snow Bird Harbor was plunged into chaos.
Bing Xiao laughed triumphantly, “This should keep the city Lord busy for a
while.”
Spring Boxer stared in disbelief at the horrific scene in the crystal ball, a
hint of reluctance in his eyes.
Bing Xiao said, “Don't worry, the explosion sites were carefully designed.”
“The main purpose was to create chaos while minimizing civilian casualties.”
“Especially among the lower classes.”
“Most of the bombs were planted in areas close to the city government palace,
where the residents are either wealthy or noble, and their homes already have
strong defensive capabilities.”
“Due to the tight schedule, to ensure secrecy, our bombs couldn't be placed at
critical locations.” 
“But when these people panic, they will inevitably seek help from the city
Lord.” 
“The city Lord cannot ignore these people; they are his political base.” 
"In my estimation, the city Lord will likely dispatch the city guard to
stabilize the situation, with the defensive focus on those wealthy districts.
This way, we’ll face far fewer obstacles.” 
Bing Xiao explained at length, and the image in the crystal ball shifted to the
dock. 
At the dock, the ships of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were bustling with
activity as they hurriedly set up defenses. 
The dragonman youngster had already sent a message back, and he himself was on
his way back swiftly.
Zong Ge led most of the mercenaries out to sea for training and had not yet
returned. Tripleblade naturally stayed close by, accompanied by the silver
level gunner Chi Lai.
Fortunately, the dwarf Men Shi had stayed behind.
In recent days, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had recruited many dwarves from
outside.
As one of the eight harbors, Snow Bird Harbor was home to a diverse formation
of races, with dwarves being particularly numerous.
This was evident from the leadership of the Bayonet Gang: the dwarf population
is so large that the gang had appointed a dwarf ringleader to serve as a bridge
between the gang and the dwarf community.
As a dwarf, Men Shi was seen as a symbol by the dragonman youngster, playing an
irreplaceable role in recruiting dwarves and soothing newly joined dwarves. 
At this moment, Zi Di was still aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish. 
However, the alchemy puppet impersonating her had already flown to the mast,
overlooking the surroundings from above.
Men Shi boarded the flagship's deck, looked up at her, and hurriedly called
out, “Magician Yao Ma, please come down immediately.” 
In an emergency, the magicians had to hide themselves to prevent being ambushed
by enemies. 
But Zi Di, relying on her alchemy puppet form, shook her head and said, “Let me
cast a reconnaissance spell first.”
As soon as she finished speaking, all the sewer outlets along the dock's
shoreline erupted simultaneously, spewing thick, emerald-green oil. 
The oil quickly covered the water surface near the dock, and one by one,
elemental forms emerged from the oil, attacking randomly in all directions.
Zi Di's pupils contracted slightly: “This color... it's the swamp oil
elemental!”
“Do not use firearms, and do not use rockets.”
“This swamp oil not only ignites easily but may also cause explosions!”



****** Chapter 369: Swamp Oil Amalgamation ******
“Hehehe, swamp oil elemental, even though it's artificial, how can you resist
something on this scale?” In the sewer, Bing Xiao looked at the scene in the
crystal ball and let out a smug cold laugh.
Spring Boxer was utterly astonished. He knew about the swamp oil elemental, but
the swamp oil that had been released just now shrouded the entire dock and even
spread toward the magician tower.
“There's so much swamp oil!” Spring Boxer muttered under his breath.
Bing Xiao snorted coldly: "Our former gang leader from two generations ago
coincidentally rescued a priest of the Voodoo Sect. From then on, our gang
became connected to the Voodoo Sect."
“Every year, we obtain some swamp oil elementals from the Voodoo Sect.”
“Over time, we accumulated this quantity.”
“However, after this battle, our stockpile is depleted.”
Bing Xiao sighed deeply.
The Bayonet Gang had been entrenched in Snow Bird Harbor for so many years,
naturally accumulating a solid foundation.
Bing Xiao and the others were able to escape the dungeon thanks to this
foundation.
The rocket assault boats, and swamp oil elementals were no exception.
However, now the Bayonet Gang's overt forces had been annihilated, and these
foundations were being depleted one by one.
As the former gang leader, Bing Xiao felt a mix of emotions.
There was pride and honor, but also the sorrow and anger of seeing his own
forces destroyed and the glory of the past fade away.
Large amounts of swamp oil quickly covered the stone bricks on the ground.
As the thick oil churned, small mushrooms began to emerge, then swelled rapidly
within seconds, forming half-human shapes, and rushed toward the magician
tower.
The magician tower was shrouded in a faint golden glow, immediately forming a
massive light sphere that enveloped the area hundreds of meters around the
tower.
The swamp oil elementals were blocked by the light barrier and could only
temporarily attack it.
The magician tower immediately scattered hundreds of icy cold beams.
The beams froze each swamp oil elemental, and the ice layer quickly spread
across the oil surface, freezing large areas of swamp oil.
But the effect did not last long. The faint golden glow of the magician tower
suddenly dimmed, and it took a few seconds for it to gradually return to
normal.
“What's going on?” Spring Boxer stared intently at the crystal ball, and the
changes in the magician tower were naturally visible to him.
Bing Xiao smiled smugly, “We chose the location of the bombs carefully.”
“It seems we've damaged some of the magician tower's magic power supply
lines.” 
"You must understand that magician towers are massive consumers of magic power,
with enormous energy requirements for their operations. Therefore, they are
typically constructed atop elemental veins." 
“However, the magician tower in Snow Bird Harbor lacks this condition.” 
“There are no elemental veins beneath Snow Bird Harbor.”
“In such cases, aside from the magician tower itself constructing a magic pool,
the only option is to manually build energy pipelines to supplement the tower's
power supply.” 
“As for the pipeline locations, those are top-secret.” 
“However, having been in Snow Bird Harbor for so long, the Bayonet Gang has
inevitably gathered some clues.” Based on these clues, we calculated that this
explosion would hit the mark!"
“We blew up at least one of the energy pipelines.”
Spring Boxer wore a look of delight.
He hadn't expected Bing Xiao to employ such a grand scheme, nor had he
anticipated that the situation would develop so favorably for them.
“What do you think? Besides restraining the magician tower, where else should
we have the swamp oil elemental focus its attacks?” Bing Xiao asked Spring
Boxer.
Spring Boxer looked at the constantly flickering scenes in the crystal ball,
his expression complex.
After a few seconds, he suddenly spoke up: “The patrol fleet, and... the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Bing Xiao feigned surprise and asked, “Xiao Tan, aren't you quite impressed by
Long Fu?” 
Spring Boxer nodded, then shook his head. 
“Commander Long Fu killed the gang leader, but I don't blame him.” 
“It was a heroic duel. The gang leader died in battle—it's the honor of a
fighter!”
“But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is indeed our enemy. When we flee Snow
Bird Harbor, they will likely dispatch ships to intercept us.”
“Let's make sure they have no ships to sail—that would be best!”
Bing Xiao fell silent for a moment, then curled his lips into a sinister smile:
"I'm different from you. I have no good impressions of Long Fu at all! The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will first taste the vengeful blade of our Bayonet
Gang."
As soon as Bing Xiao issued the order, a large amount of swamp oil elementals
immediately surged toward the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zi Di, whose true form was hidden within the Deep Sea Monster Fish, immediately
noticed the situation and swiftly relayed the urgent report to Men Shi and the
others through the alchemy puppet.
The dwarf Men Shi wore a solemn expression.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was currently in a weakened state, with neither
the commander nor the deputy commander present.
“All hands, hold the line!” 
“Even if we die, we will die on the front lines!” 
The dwarf Men Shi roared, displaying unwavering resolve. 
The mercenaries stood on the ship's rail, firing with all their might. 
A large number of alchemy arrows and bullets struck the swamp oil elementals,
temporarily halting their advance.
However, their numbers were too great. Even if they were instantly eliminated,
a new swamp oil elemental would reappear at the spot where they fell.
This gave the mercenaries the feeling that “no matter how many we eliminate,
the enemies are endless.”
This illusion was undoubtedly demoralizing.
“Both teams have been taken out for training by the deputy commander.”
"Ordinary arrows and swords cannot harm these elementals. We can't start a fire
either! Perhaps starting a fire and burning down the dock is exactly what the
enemy wants to see."
"What really works are frost-type alchemy arrows and bullets. But our stockpile
is too small to sustain prolonged combat!" 
Men Shi assessed the situation, feeling immense pressure.
“Sail away, leave the port!” 'Zi Di' beside Men Shi spoke up. 
“It's too late.” Men Shi shook his head, “The swamp oil covering the sea
surface will also slow our speed.” 
"Have the other two ships come closer to act as shields. We have to abandon
these two ships." Men Shi thought for a moment and issued the order
decisively. 
Since Zong Ge had taken most of the people, there were only three ships left
from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps at the dock. 
The other two were ordinary sea vessels, while the Love Triangle was the only
iron level magic ship.
The original berthing positions of the two sea vessels were right next to the
Love Triangle. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn't have time to sail away
from the port, but at this distance, maneuvering them closer was still
feasible. 
Men Shi commanded from the center, dispatching mercenaries to use the two
merchant ships on either side as temporary walls for defense.
The mercenaries primarily used overwhelming firepower to eliminate the swamp
oil elementals.
However, as Men Shi had anticipated, the swamp oil elementals kept coming in
endless numbers, and the alchemy arrows and bullets of the frost-type quickly
ran out.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ alchemy arrows and bullets were almost
entirely sourced from the War Merchant’s arsenal.
However, the survivors had already endured numerous battles while escaping from
the Mystifying Monster Island, including clashes with Rou Zang, the Snake Rat
Island Sea battle, the Two Eyes Island battle, and the Weeping Pine Island Sea
battle, among others. Their once-abundant ammunition supplies had been depleted
to a significant extent. 
By now, although some reserves remained, they were far from sufficient. 
Especially when facing the swamp oil elemental bodies, most of the ammunition
was ineffective.
The ice-based attack effect ammunition was quickly depleted.
The swamp oil elementals boarded the two ships on either side.
The mercenaries engaged in close combat.
Men Shi charged to the front lines, wielding his two-handed war hammer,
becoming the backbone of the front lines.
“Zi Di” used scrolls and magic items to cast spells continuously, barely
stabilizing the other side.
The swamp oil elementals' offensive was once again contained.
But soon, they underwent a transformation.
"What is that?!" the mercenaries exclaimed.
Many swamp oil elementals gathered in one place, fusing together to form a
super entity.
The super elemental stood over three meters tall, like a small giant, charging
recklessly. 
The big guy tried to break through but was promptly stopped by Zi Di. 
The swamp oil elemental amalgamation collided violently with the sea ship,
shattering the hull on impact and nearly splitting it in two. 
The wreckage of the sea ship tilted and crashed directly into the flagship, the
Love Triangle.
The Love Triangle also shook violently.
The unconscious Lan Zao was no longer in the forecastle but had been moved to
his own crew cabin.
The violent shaking nearly caused him to fall from the bed onto the deck.
In the nightmare Lan Zao was trapped in, the volcano beneath his feet erupted,
propelling his entire body into the air.
As he watched himself about to fall into the lava, he couldn't help but let out
a terrified scream.
“I'm here to save you!” At the moment of crisis, a voice called out Lan Zao's
name.
At the same time, a rope was thrown out, landing in front of Lan Zao.
Lan Zao reached out and grabbed the lifesaving rope, holding on tightly.
The other end of the rope was quickly pulled by the rescuer.
“I'm saved!” Lan Zao landed in the desert and looked up at the person who had
rescued him.
It was Bai Ya.
“Bai Ya, thank you for saving me.”
Bai Ya extended his hand toward Lan Zao, his face shrouded in shadow as he
stood with his back to the sun.
A dangerous alarm suddenly rang in Lan Zao's heart.
He looked up and was horrified to see that Bai Ya's face had turned into Huang
Zao.
His younger brother glared at Lan Zao, reaching out to grab his hair: "Brother,
why? Why didn't you let me live? Why did you make me die!?"
Huang Zao demanded.
Lan Zao opened his mouth to answer, but Huang Zao forcefully pressed down his
head, filling his mouth with yellow sand. 
The sand entered his mouth, as if alive, rushing into his throat, into his
lungs, filling his chest and abdomen. 
Lan Zao struggled desperately. 
The one on the bed also had a hideous expression. 
Inside the rocket assault boat.
Bing Xiao watched as the swamp oil elemental amalgamation tore apart the
ordinary sea vessel and boarded the Love Triangle, unable to suppress a hearty
laugh. 
“Now!” 
He acted decisively, activating the rocket charge. 
The rear of the rocket assault boat was adorned with layers of intricately
woven broad-leaf grass skirts.
In that instant, the grass leaves ignited.
Soon, the rear of the rocket assault boat also caught fire, erupting with
intense heat and thrust.
Boom!
The rocket assault boat burst out of the hidden shipyard, following the sewer,
charging forward.
Wherever it went, flames erupted, and sewage evaporated instantly.
One knot, two knots, three knots...
The speed continued to surge.
The intense recoil caused Spring Boxer to lose his balance and fall backward.
The vibrations of the assault boat also subjected him to severe jolts.
Bam!
The rocket assault boat shot out of the sewer exit on the shore like a
cannonball, soaring at least two hundred meters through the air before landing
on the sea.
The sea surface was covered in oil.
It ignited.
In an instant, the dock was engulfed in flames!



****** Chapter 370: God Did Not Respond ******
“Oh no!” The dragonman youngster looked up and saw flames shooting into the sky
in the direction of the dock.
His heart sank, and he decisively activated his Bloodcore.
Spurting smoke dragon ring mounds appeared on his hind legs and back.
The Surge battle skill was unleashed, greatly increasing the dragonman
youngster’s speed. He transformed into a crimson afterimage and shot toward the
dock.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Zi Di watched the various magic images and felt her heart sink.
“Damn it.”
“How could such a thing happen at a time like this…”
The issue of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ shortage of alchemy ammunition
had been discussed by the higher-ups.
In the end, they unanimously decided to prioritize the production of dragon
rider potions to capture the market and generate substantial funds.
This matter was of great importance.
The higher-ups of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had not anticipated that the
ringleaders of the Bayonet Gang, who were imprisoned in the dungeon, would
manage to escape.
What they never imagined was that their escape would cause such a commotion!
The ghost girl was shocked.
“No wonder the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been playing along with the
Bayonet Gang for so many years, preparing thoroughly before taking action in
the final days of his term.”
At the same time, the ghost girl felt relieved.
“Thankfully, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord struck swiftly, completely
annihilating the entire Bayonet Gang.”
“If they had engaged in direct combat and the conflict dragged on, the entire
Snow Bird Harbor might have been destroyed in the fighting between the two
sides.”
Men Shi, stationed at the front lines, felt the heat wave engulfing him, his
face bathed in flames.
Men Shi, stationed at the front lines, felt the heat wave engulfing him, his
face bathed in flames.
However, such amalgamations quickly regenerated their heads.
As long as the magic crystals within their bodies were not struck, they could
not be completely destroyed.
And within these collectives, the magic crystals were densely packed together.
Men Shi was powerless, unsure of their exact location.
It could be in the head, the chest, or even hidden in the hind legs. 
In fact, even if detected, if Men Shi missed the magic crystal, its location
would quickly shift. 
Flames licked at the ship's hull. 
Both ordinary sea vessels had basic fire-resistant measures, but under the
swamp oil's aid, they soon couldn't withstand the flames and burst into
combustion.
The entire body of the swamp oil amalgamation with the elongated head also
burst into flames. In the blink of an eye, it became a flame giant. 
The flames were so intense that even the Men Shi couldn't approach. 
The dwarf could only shout orders for the archers to fire the torrent arrows.
The torrential arrows slightly suppressed the flames.
Men Shi was filled with anxiety.
He knew that the supply of torrential arrows was also limited and would soon
follow the same fate as the frost-type ammunition.
At that moment, the swamp oil amalgamation abandoned its attack, turned around,
and slowly walked back into the fiery inferno behind it.
Surrounded by raging flames, the swamp oil amalgamation opened its jaws and
took a deep breath. 
It sucked large amounts of flames into its belly. 
The flames burned fiercely inside its belly, releasing massive amounts of heat
that couldn't be vented, causing the swamp oil amalgamation's belly to swell
larger and larger.
After completing this step, the swamp oil amalgamation turned again and charged
toward the Love Triangle.
Men Shi's expression changed drastically.
The swamp oil amalgamation, controlled by the enemy, showed no fear of death.
The swamp oil amalgamation before him had become a massive bomb with its fuse
lit! If it were to explode on the Love Triangle, the consequences would be
unimaginable.
“Commander Long Fu, the debt of gratitude I owe your clan for saving us will be
repaid in this battle!” A resolute light flickered in Men Shi's eyes.
Holding his double-handed war hammer, he channeled his battle qi to the limit,
ready to charge alone toward the swamp oil elemental cluster without regard for
his life.
'Zi Di' blocked him.
"Have you lost your mind?"
The ghost girl manipulated the alchemy puppet, pressing it onto Men Shi's
shoulder.
“Let me go!” Men Shi strained his shoulders, only to discover in astonishment
that the delicate human magician before him possessed incredible strength! He
couldn't break free no matter how hard he tried.
“I must act to stop the explosion!” Men Shi cried urgently.
“Zi Di” shook her head: “You’re only a silver level, and your best weapon is
this war hammer. Going there is just suicide.”
“Besides, it’s just an iron level magic ship…”
“We can always abandon the ship.”
Men Shi frowned: But there are still many people on board, many dwarves, and
they won't have time to evacuate!" 
Just then, several cannon blasts echoed. 
The Love Triangle had fired. 
Due to the close proximity, the alchemy cannonballs all struck the swamp oil
amalgamation.
The cannonballs exploded, and lush vines and thorns began to grow.
Countless thick vines, resembling pythons, tightly wrapped around the swamp oil
elemental amalgamation, rendering it unable to move.
Not only that, but the countless sharp thorns on the vines pierced into the
swamp oil amalgamation's body.
The swamp oil amalgamation, having swallowed flames, was burning fiercely
inside its belly, causing the heat to make it swell continuously.
This led to its body expanding constantly.
On the other hand, the originally thick swamp oil had spread out due to the
expansion, becoming much thinner, like the surface of a fully inflated balloon.
After the thorns on the vines pierced through, a large amount of heat and
flames erupted, shooting out five or six meters away.
The vines, being so close, naturally suffered from the burning, turning from
deep green to withered yellow.
The raging flames spread along the vine, burning one section after another.
But the Love Triangle continued to fire.
These thorn-wrapped shells were purchased by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps at
the auction on Two Eyes Island, and there were plenty in stock.
Originally intended for hunting sea beasts, they were popular among pirates.
Now used here, they proved highly effective.
Inside the rocket assault boat.
Bing Xiao observed this scene through the crystal ball and realized that the
swamp oil amalgamation could no longer approach, so he decisively manipulated
it to explode.
Boom!!!
A deafening explosion erupted as the swamp oil amalgamation detonated the
aggregated magic crystals within its body.
Chaotic elemental energy expanded outward, intensifying the flames.
The distance was too close, and the three ships of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps were all within the explosion's range.
The ordinary ship that had been previously rammed and broken apart was
shattered into countless pieces by the explosion's shockwave.
Fortunately, the Love Triangle was an iron level magic ship and managed to
withstand the explosion with great difficulty.
The side of the ship facing the explosion was melted and twisted, with many
areas burned through, exposing the internal space.
Large flames were burning on the Love Triangle, and the sails that had been
furled were already reduced to ashes.
Even the ordinary sea vessel behind the Love Triangle was engulfed in flames,
turning into a giant torch.
However, there were few casualties among the mercenaries on the deck.
This was mainly because, at a critical moment, 'Zi Di' had used a protective
spell scroll.
However, in areas where Zi Di could not protect them, Lan Zao was already
engulfed in flames. 
His personal cabin was located on the side of the ship that had exploded. 
The explosion had shattered the hull, and flames had spread into his cabin,
igniting his bedding and other furnishings. 
The air was filled with the agonized screams and mercenaries crying for help.
The intense flames produced thick smoke, causing the unconscious Lan Zao to
gradually struggle to breathe. 
In his nightmare, his head was being pressed firmly into the gravel by Huang
Zao. 
He opened his mouth and nose, gasping for air, feeling the scorching hot gravel
constantly pouring into his nostrils, filling his mouth, and forcing its way
into his airways.
Huang Zao's maniacal screams echoed in his mind.
“You're going to die too, you're going to die too, hahaha.”
“Join me in death!”
"Let me kill you, let me kill you! Now you're going to die too, ahahaha."
Lan Zao tried to fight back, but his limbs were utterly weak, and he had no
strength.
In the midst of overwhelming panic and fear, he instinctively began to pray. 
“Fishnet Goddess, I pray to You, please save me...” 
The Fishnet Goddess did not respond. 
"Wave God, please bestow Your great mercy upon me. If you save my life, I will
devote myself to you alone for the rest of my life!" 
The Wave God did not respond.
“Forest Mother, grant me another chance at life. Please have mercy on me,
please lend me your hand...” 
The Forest Mother also did not respond.
Lan Zao was not a pious devotee; he only had shallow faith.
Such people often held faith in multiple deities. For example, praying to the
Road God when going outside, praying to the Mother Goddess when giving birth,
and thanking the Wealth God when making an important transaction. Numerous
deities take responsibility for various aspects of one's life.
But no matter who Lan Zao prayed to, he got no response.
He became furious.
Anger burned in his heart as even Huang Zao started screaming with him: "Why
are you not responding to me?!"



****** Chapter 371: You Are My…Salvation! ******
In the chaotic nightmare that Lan Zao experienced, he and Huang Zao
simultaneously confronted the gods.
"Why won't you save me?!”
"Why?"
“Oh gods, how mighty you are—you could save my life without so much as lifting
a finger.”
“Why won't you save me!?”
“I had faith in you.”
In a daze, Huang Zao's face transformed into Lan Zao.
Lan Zao pressed his other self's head fiercely into the scorching gravel.
Rage seethed within him, grinding his teeth until his eyes blazed crimson.
He clutched the other self's throat, suddenly yanking him out to demand: "Why
won't you save me?! Why won't you save me?!”
Lan Zao was pulled from the sand but couldn't gasp for breath.
Already near death, he weakly replied: “Because...”
“I want to live too.”
These self-spoken words only fueled Lan Zao's fury.
He gripped his dying self tightly, screaming with all his might: "Yes, I want
to live! Yet you won't save me! Why won't you save me?!"
“If you don't save me, I'll kill you!”
Lan Zao clutched his other self's throat fiercely, then plunged him back into
the gravel.
“Save me! Save me!” He roared for help, yet in doing so, he was killing
himself.
Meanwhile, the other Lan Zao had his eyes, nose, and mouth buried in the sand.
Soon, he could no longer hold on. He pounded Lan Zao's arm with his hands,
signaling for mercy.
Lan Zao was overjoyed and hastily pulled himself out, "You're finally willing
to save me?”
But the Lan Zao he pulled out had changed form.
He had become the Fishnet Goddess.
Her face was expressionless, like a statue.
Lan Zao roared in fury, “You won't save me!”
He forcefully pressed the goddess into the sand. Soon, she began pounding his
arm.
Lan Zao rejoiced, pulling her out: “Are you finally lending a hand?”
The Fishnet Goddess transformed into the Wave God, expressionless.
Lan Zao roared in fury: “You won't save me!”
He slammed the Wave God into the sand too, only to feel someone pat his
shoulder again.
“Are you going to save me now?”
He pulled the Wave God up, only to see Him transform into the elf deity—Forest
Mother.
Forest Mother wore a frozen smile, unresponsive to Lan Zao's desperate pleas.
Lan Zao pressed the Forest Mother into the sand again. When he pulled her up,
she had become Huang Zao.
Huang Zao smiled at him: “Brother, you've already killed me. Do you wish to
kill me a second time?”
Lan Zao's body convulsed violently. In his panic, he let go abruptly, and Huang
Zao crashed into the sand.
The pebbles transformed into quicksand, slowly beginning to swallow Huang Zao.
Lan Zao screamed, “No, don't!”
He reached out to grab Huang Zao, desperate to stop his descent.
Simultaneously, he shouted explanations: “I didn't mean to kill you!”
“I truly didn't mean it!”
Wailing, he frantically dug, his fingers stained red with blood. Yet Huang Zao
sank completely into the quicksand, vanishing without a trace.
Lan Zao completely broke down, covering his face with his hands and wailing
uncontrollably.
Back to reality.
At the dock.
“Did we survive?” Dwarf Men Shi, covered in soot and dust, recovered from the
blast and straightened up.
The right side of the Love Triangle's hull was already more than half burned
away.
The crater in the sea caused by the explosion was rapidly filling back in.
Surrounding seawater surged in, creating a massive wave.
The wave crashed against the battered hull, and one surge poured directly into
Lan Zao's cabin.
Most of the cabin's flames were extinguished, but the unconscious Lan Zao was
struck squarely by the wave.
Then, carried by the receding tide, he tumbled through the gaping hole in the
hull and plunged into the sea.
This sequence played out in his nightmare.
A pair of hands suddenly shot out from the quicksand, grabbing hold of Lan
Zao's arms.
There was a violent tug.
Lan Zao's entire body was yanked into the quicksand.
It was dark. Endless, pitch-black darkness.
The crushing pressure surged toward him from the darkness, pressing and
grinding in from all sides.
Lan Zao sensed his impending death.
Struggling desperately, he seized those hands and yanked with all his might,
dragging the murderer who had pulled him into the quicksand before him.
Lan Zao stared intently and suddenly let out a startled cry.
This time, it was neither Huang Zao nor any other deity—it was the dragonman
youngster.
“Lan Zao, are you going to kill me?” the dragonman youngster asked, his gaze
steady and calm.
A faint smile played upon his lips.
Lan Zao's eyes widened, fixed intently upon the dragonman youngster.
His blood-stained hands, radiating the savage aura of murderous weapons, slowly
reached toward the dragonman youngster's chest.
In reality, Lan Zao sank beneath the water.
He couldn't breathe. Vast quantities of seawater sealed his nostrils and surged
desperately inward.
The suffocating sensation made the veins on Lan Zao's face in the nightmare
bulge violently, making him look like a demon.
The demon's claws reached for the dragonman youngster's chest.
Yet the dragonman youngster seemed oblivious, his expression serene and gentle
as he said, “I'm sorry, Lan Zao. It was I who gave you the magic potion.”
“Aaah—!” Lan Zao opened his mouth, letting out a roar of fury beyond measure,
"You killed me!”
The dragonman youngster wore a look of pity, "Yes, I killed you.”
“Now, will you kill me?”
“Aaah—!” Lan Zao roared once more, seemingly intent on taking the dragonman
youngster down with him.
Yet his blood-stained hands slowed with each inch closer to the dragonman
youngster's chest.
His fingers, once splayed wide, gradually curled inward, losing all strength.
Thud.
With just one step left to reach the dragonman youngster, Lan Zao finally
collapsed. His knees buckled, and he knelt at the dragonman youngster's feet.
His face was deathly pale, like a terminally ill man. He looked up at the
dragonman youngster, tears streaming down his cheeks, leaving two deep trails.
His hands, curled like chicken claws, froze mid-air.
He cried out to the dragonman youngster, “Commander! My Lord!”
“How could I ever lay a hand on you?”
The dragonman youngster continued to watch him silently, "But Lan Zao, it was I
who gave you the potion. After you took it, death came. I am the one who killed
you."
Lan Zao collapsed onto the ground, still gazing up at the dragonman youngster.
Tears streaming down his face, he cried, “How could I ever harm you!?”
“You must have been deceived! It was Zi Di! It must be that ghost...”
But the next moment, the dragonman youngster cut him off: "But what if I told
you I did it on purpose? You must understand—the fewer who know about
Mystifying Monster Island, the better. The fewer who share in Mystifying
Monster Island's riches, the sweeter the spoils."
Lan Zao wept like a broken man; his hands clutched tightly to his chest as he
kept gazing up at the dragonman youngster: “Even so... even if that's the
case...”
“I'd still willingly die!”
The dragonman youngster fell silent, gazing down at Lan Zao as if awaiting his
explanation.
Lan Zao dug deep into his heart and spoke: “My Lord.”
“You saved me on Mystifying Monster Island.”
“You saved my life in the first place, so returning it now is only right.”
“I committed an unforgivable mistake!”
“You took me in; you told me I could keep going forward!”
“Being able to walk alongside you for a while has been my greatest honor.”
“You...”
“You are my salvation!”
Lan Zao's words came in fits and starts, but by the end, they were shouted at
the top of his lungs.
A faint, almost imperceptible smile touched the dragonman youngster's face.
His form suddenly shot upward—ten meters, fifty meters, a hundred meters!
He transformed into a giant.
Lan Zao, at his feet, seemed as tiny as an insect.
The dragonman youngster's voice echoed forth. In that instant, it resonated
like the tolling of temple bells, vast and boundless, reverberating throughout
this darkness.
The sound exploded within Lan Zao's heart— “Since this is so, why do you not
bow?”
Lan Zao's expression froze.
The next instant, he knew what to do. The claws curled at his chest slowly
clasped together.
He bowed his head: “My Lord, you are my God. Your path is my path...”
He was dying.
Saltwater flooded his lungs and chest.
His body slowly sank into the sea.
Zi Di, in her true form, observed this scene from aboard the Deep Sea Monster
Fish, yet did not dispatch the alchemy puppet to retrieve him.
It was because the dragonman youngster had already arrived at the dock.
Through the alchemy device, she relayed Lan Zao's peril to the dragonman
youngster.
The dragonman youngster dove headfirst into the seawater, now thick with oil
sludge.
Explosive battle qi surged from the ring mound behind him, allowing him to
seize Lan Zao.
Plop.
In the next instant, he leapt upward, propelling himself and Lan Zao out of the
water.
With successive bounds, he reached the deck of the Love Triangle in mere
breaths.
"Commander!"
"Lord Commander!"
The crew erupted in joyful cheers.
The dragonman youngster's arrival greatly boosted the morale of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
By now, the dragonman youngster's prestige far surpassed that of Zong Ge and
the others.
The primary reason was his legendary feat of slaying Teng Dong Lang. A silver
level slaying a gold level—such an extraordinary achievement commanded
undeniable respect.
A significant portion of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' new recruits joined
specifically for the dragonman youngster, eager to serve under such a
formidable leader.
This was the world of the strong.
The alchemy puppet impersonating Zi Di retrieved healing scrolls and potions,
then hurried to the dragonman youngster's side.
Lan Zao received treatment.
Opening his eyes, he found the dragonman youngster standing before him.
He lay on the deck while the dragonman youngster looked down upon him.
The sea, ablaze with raging fires, cast towering flames behind the dragonman
youngster, making him appear as towering and majestic as in Lan Zao's
nightmares.
“Lord...” Lan Zao cried out involuntarily, nearly breaking down in tears once
more.
The dragonman youngster smiled at him, "I'm sorry...”
He didn't finish before abruptly turning away.
In the next instant, a thick white beam of light swept across, freezing the sea
surrounding the Love Triangle solid.
Support from the magician tower!
The swamp oil elementals surrounding the tower had all been frozen into dense
clusters of statues.
Once the magician tower recovered, it immediately rushed to aid the dock.
After all, if this dock were burned to the ground, the city government palace
would suffer truly catastrophic losses.
The thick white beams swept across the area, extinguishing the flames wherever
they touched and instantly freezing the sea water and swamp oil.
The crisis for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was resolved.



****** Chapter 372: Divine Wind Pirates ******
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hadn't yet arrived at the docks, but the urgent
message reached him first.
He requested the dragonman youngster's assistance—many remnants of the Bayonet
Gang were already fleeing the harbor aboard various vessels.
Leading the charge were several rocket assault boats.
But they had already gained considerable distance, making pursuit seem
unlikely.
There was no time for hesitation. The dragonman youngster immediately pledged
to pursue relentlessly, aiming to eliminate as many enemies as possible.
The battlefield waited for no one. Without further soothing Lan Zao, the
dragonman youngster led the available mercenaries in leaping from the ship and
charging into battle.
He hadn't considered that his unfinished words might have created a massive
misunderstanding for Lan Zao.
All Lan Zao heard was the dragonman youngster apologizing to him.
Though Lan Zao had recovered most of his strength thanks to the spell scrolls
and healing potions, one mustn't forget that his bloodline had just undergone
purification. His body was still adapting.
During this adjustment period, Lan Zao not only suffered from high fever,
ringing ears, and accelerated heartbeat, but also experienced mental fog and
difficulty concentrating.
Compounded by his recent nightmare, Lan Zao's mind had jumped to the conclusion
that the dragonman youngster's apology stemmed from giving him a magic potion
that had brought him to the brink of death.
Watching the dragonman youngster's retreating figure join the battle, Lan Zao
found his breathing growing labored.
This time, it wasn't the suffocation from seawater flooding his lungs, but the
crushing weight of facing death itself.
But soon, his breathing steadied.
“My Lord, I... am now resolved!” he declared inwardly.
Then he rose, scanning his surroundings, "Give me a blade.”
'Zi Di', standing beside him, cautioned, “You should rest now.”
But Lan Zao's mind was foggy, and his senses unclear. He glared at the alchemy
puppet before him: “I said, give me a blade!”
Zi Di was furious.
She had kindly urged him to rest, and it was her who had alerted the dragonman
youngster, saving Lan Zao's life. Yet this was the ungrateful, harsh rebuke she
received in return.
Lan Zao insisted: "I must follow the commander while I still can fight!"
Zi Di fell silent.
Beside them, Men Shi roared with laughter: “He's a fighter! Give him a blade!”
Men Shi had just been temporarily assigned by the dragonman youngster to
organize the flagship.
As a non-survivor, the dwarf knew nothing of Lan Zao's true identity or the
secret connections between Lan Zao, the dragonman youngster, Zi Di, and others.
What the dwarf saw was a bronze level boatswain, restored to near-full strength
by potions and scrolls, displaying the courage and will to grab a weapon and
rejoin the fight!
This undoubtedly delighted the dwarf, who naturally wouldn't refuse. Instead,
he eagerly fulfilled Lan Zao's request to boost their own morale.
Under these circumstances, Zi Di could no longer forcefully intervene.
She could only resolve silently: Keep a close watch on Lan Zao and the others
and do her utmost to protect them.
Lan Zao's actions indeed ignited the morale of the surrounding mercenaries.
Many who hadn't immediately followed the dragonman youngster into battle were
now inspired by Lan Zao, crowding around him.
Among them were the big guy, Bai Ya, and others.
Their joining only added to Zi Di's headache. She knew that on this
battlefield, with the magician tower monitoring everything, many of her methods
couldn't be freely deployed.
With no other choice, Zi Di could only glare fiercely at Lan Zao.
The dragonman youngster had deliberately rushed into battle precisely to keep
Lan Zao and the others safe.
But Lan Zao was mired in profound misunderstanding, completely oblivious to the
goodwill of the dragonman youngster and Zi Di.
He even harbored deep suspicion that Zi Di harbored ill intent.
The nightmares he'd endured had clarified his purpose, strengthening his
resolve to follow the dragonman youngster.
Even unto death!
“While I still can fight, let me offer you more assistance.” With this resolve,
Lan Zao's eyes blazed with a death-defying fighting spirit.
He roared, “Follow me!”
And so, sword raised, he leapt from the ship first, charging onto the ice to
strike at the remnants of the Bayonet Gang attempting to escape Snow Bird
Harbor.
The big guy wanted to help his dad, and Bai Ya was never one to shy away from
battle.
The group charged out with fierce momentum.
Men Shi wanted to follow, but he still had the task the dragonman youngster had
entrusted to him.
Watching Lan Zao charge forward, he couldn't help but admire him from the
bottom of his heart: "He's truly remarkable! Just a mere bronze level battle qi
cultivator, yet he feels like a silver level battle qi cultivator to me!"
At that moment, Men Shi suddenly sensed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
seemed different from other organizations!
He had joined the corps precisely because the dragonman youngster had saved his
people. To repay a debt of gratitude, he had sacrificed himself.
But now, he felt a strong admiration for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This admiration had nothing to do with a desire to follow the strong.
Lan Zao's battle qi cultivator level was far below his own.
This admiration stemmed from respect for a brave soul!
Lan Zao's actions perfectly matched Men Shi's temperament. Men Shi, too, was
one who feared neither life nor death and was willing to sacrifice.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have risked his life at the auction to save his clan.
Nor would he have joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps out of gratitude. And
certainly not moments ago, when he was about to sacrifice himself by charging
into the swamp oil amalgamation just before its explosion.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the ghost girl sighed, pressing her hand to
her forehead.
These people were really good at causing trouble!
Why couldn't they just preserve their useful bodies?
“Lan Zao, you're destined to be at least a silver level battle qi cultivator
someday.”
Zi Di's inner thoughts were inaudible to Lan Zao.
Likewise, Lan Zao's inner thoughts were something Zi Di simply couldn't accept.
Each person was an individual; achieving complete understanding was exceedingly
difficult.
Even between the dragonman youngster and Lan Zao, a minor misunderstanding
could shatter coordination and fragment their actions.
A rocket assault boat raced across the sea.
Unlike its initial form, it was now significantly shorter.
“The third section has detached,” Bing Xiao stated, staring at the crystal ball
within the sole cabin.
The crystal ball's display flickered, revealing the status of each rocket
assault boat.
Almost simultaneously, they shed the rearmost sections of their hulls.
Spring Boxer watched silently.
He now deeply understood why these vessels were named rocket assault boats.
This specialized craft was designed solely for assault—a consumable from the
start. Ignition began at the stern, the flames rapidly consuming the hull as
they raced forward. With each section engulfed in fire, Spring Boxer felt as
though he heard the roars and howls of countless beasts.
This wasn't mere fuel combustion; it involved certain techniques from the
beastman's totems.
It was precisely this self-sacrificing method that allowed the entire vessel's
speed to skyrocket, reaching heights unattainable by a silver level hull.
In terms of pure speed alone, the rocket assault boat ranked among the top few
in the silver level.
“At this distance, we're safe!” Spring Boxer declared.
They had caught the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord off guard. By the time the
magician tower could respond, they had already escaped its striking range.
“Exactly,” Bing Xiao's voice rang with excitement, "Look, there's the ship sent
to retrieve us.”
Spring Boxer followed the direction of the voice to the crystal ball.
Three slender magic ships came into view.
Their sails were disproportionately large compared to the hulls, far exceeding
standard dimensions. They resembled triangular clouds draped over the decks.
Spotting the pirate crew's emblem on the sails, Spring Boxer exclaimed in
astonishment, "That's... the Divine Wind Pirates?
Almost simultaneously, the dragonman youngster received the latest intelligence
from the city Lord through the alchemy device.
“Magic ships have appeared offshore to rendezvous with the Bayonet Gang!”
“They all belong to the Divine Wind Pirates.”
“Divine Wind Pirates?” the dragonman youngster exclaimed in surprise, "Pirates
are actually active in the waters near the Ice Sculpture Kingdom?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord admitted frankly, “Indeed, there are several.”
"Pirates are like greedy jackals. Our nation's import-export trade is enormous,
with countless merchant ships coming and going. There are over a dozen major
shipping routes alone."
“As long as these profits exist, pirates will persist.”
"However, among them, several pirate crews operate year-round. Even when the
Kingdom's navy mobilizes, it's difficult to eradicate them."
“The Divine Wind Pirates are one such group!”
"This pirate crew possesses astonishing speed, far exceeding the norm. Not only
that, but their magic ships can also coordinate to boost their velocity."
"The Divine Wind has already appeared. This gold level magic ship is their
flagship. Their leader is likely aboard as well."
The dragonman youngster furrowed his brow, "A gold level flagship? Then who
exactly is their captain..."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew what he was getting at and answered
directly, "Rest assured, this intelligence has been verified multiple times.
The Divine Wind Pirates' captain is merely gold level in cultivation."
"He was originally the heir to a major trading house. The Divine Wind Pirates'
ships are all custom-made magic ships from Gear Island, built at great expense
by the merchant guild before its bankruptcy."
The dragonman youngster still found it hard to believe, "Your nation's alchemy
technology is so advanced, yet even deploying the navy couldn't catch up to
them?”
“Then how are we supposed to fight them now?”
Anger surged within the dragonman youngster.
The remnants of the Bayonet Gang had inflicted heavy casualties on the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps. He yearned to capture and eliminate all their leaders to
eradicate the threat.
A cold laugh echoed through the communication device from the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord: “Even if they flee to the Divine Wind Pirates' ship, I will make
them pay!”
The moment the city Lord's words faded, the magician tower erupted with a
staggering surge of energy.
Within mere breaths, vast magic power was exhausted, forming a colossal magic
formation above the tower.
The pentagram formation slowly rotated in midair.
Suddenly, a blinding bolt of lightning erupted from its center, shooting
skyward and vanishing from sight.
The next instant, the lightning bolt crashed down.
Having traversed over ten thousand meters, it struck one of the rocket assault
boats with pinpoint accuracy.
Rocket assault boats weren't fragile; they possessed defensive capabilities.
Yet after the lightning strike, the rocket assault boat lost all momentum. The
various totems painted on its hull were completely obliterated.
Most of the hull shattered, leaving only the bow and cabin intact.
Carried by inertia, the rocket assault boat skidded over ten meters before
grinding to a halt on the sea surface.
“Charge!” The dragonman youngster hesitated not a moment, leading the charge
toward the damaged rocket assault boat.



****** Chapter 373: Purple Star Lighting Bolt Magic Formation ******
The rocket assault boat cut through the waves, its hemispherical bow
perpetually raised as it forged ahead.
The stern blazed with searing flames, generating immense thrust.
Waves crashed head-on, but the bow plowed through like a battering ram,
smashing through the water with thunderous booms that sent towering spray
flying.
With unyielding resolve, the rocket assault boat slammed into the Divine Wind.
A masked figure emerged onto the Divine Wind's deck.
Tall and gaunt, he wore a wide white feather cloak and a bronze beast-faced
mask. In his left hand, he held a scythe with a shaft nearly two meters long.
Leaning on the scythe with his right hand, he slowly extended his left arm,
pointing it toward the rocket assault boat.
In the next instant, a howling gale surged forth, pushing back the rocket
assault boat.
Inside the cabin, Bing Xiao immediately coordinated, actively maneuvering to
jettison the final section of the rocket that hadn't fully ignited.
Deprived of propulsion and buffeted by the headwind, the rocket assault boat's
speed plummeted sharply.
By the time it reached the vicinity of the Divine Wind, all forward momentum
had been lost.
The beast totems on the assault boat were now sparse and scattered, starkly
contrasting with their earlier dense, layered clusters.
The totems shifted for a moment, their beast mouths gaping wide to reveal the
inner cabin.
Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer emerged one after the other.
Two ropes were thrown from the Divine Wind's gunwale.
Spring Boxer was pale and dizzy, struggling to grasp the swaying rope.
He was in terrible shape.
Fortunately, Bing Xiao was nearby. Seeing this, he immediately offered
assistance, pulling the rope down and wrapping it several times around Spring
Boxer's limbs and waist.
Bing Xiao climbed the rope, pulling Spring Boxer up with him.
Both men stepped onto the deck.
The pirates on deck met them with cold, scrutinizing stares.
Bing Xiao hurriedly saluted, "Captain Feng Lian, we owe you our lives for this
rescue. I never imagined you would personally intervene this time!"
Feng Lian, wielding his long-handled scythe, was none other than the captain of
the Divine Wind and leader of the Divine Wind Pirates.
His hoarse voice came from beneath the bronze beast mask: “I don't trust the
others enough to let them come over.”
“After all, this is one of the eight harbors of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
Feng Lian lifted his head slightly: “See that?”
Bing Xiao turned slightly, gazing toward the direction of the magician tower.
Above the magician tower, the pentagram magic formation that had materialized
continued to rotate slowly, strikingly conspicuously.
Bing Xiao sighed softly, "I see it. It's the Purple Star Lighting Bolt Magic
Formation.”
“Ah, I never imagined the magician tower of Snow Bird Harbor would one day
actually deploy a Thunder Bolt Magic Formation.”
Spring Boxer furrowed his brow in puzzlement, "Doesn't the city Lord fear the
Sea Bird Church will oppose him?”
The Lightning Bolt Magic Formation was a classic, long-range precision strike
spell.
Though its setup was overly cumbersome, once activated, it was extremely
difficult to disrupt. It also boasted advantages like a vast attack range and
pinpoint accuracy.
Most harbors possessed such defensive measures.
Snow Bird Harbor, however, was unique.
For here lay the Sea Bird Church's largest—and nearly sole—parish.
Before ascending to godhood, the Sea Bird God had endured a fierce battle where
he nearly perished. His assailant was a battle qi cultivator wielding the
divinity of thunder.
After the Sea Bird ascended to godhood, this battle qi cultivator also achieved
divinity, becoming a minor god wielding authority over lightning.
The relationship between these two deities has always been like water and fire.
Throughout their respective growth phases, they experienced countless
frictions, accumulating irreconcilable hatred and conflicts.
The snow elf city Lord, who preceded the current Snow Bird Harbor City Lord,
had made numerous attempts to install the Purple Star Lighting Bolt Magic
Formation in Snow Bird Harbor.
But each effort was met with opposition and obstruction from the Sea Bird
Church, never succeeding.
Unexpectedly, the current Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had secretly constructed
it.
This was clearly a taboo act.
“Hahahaha, the city Lord's desperate!” Spring Boxer roared with laughter, "Now
that he's activated the Lighting Bolt Magic Formation, the Sea Bird Church will
surely come after him!”
Though not a native of Snow Bird Harbor, Spring Boxer had lived here for many
years and knew the Sea Bird Church's ways intimately.
Yet Feng Lian, captain of the Divine Wind Pirates, shook his head slowly, "I
doubt it.”
Spring Boxer shot him a puzzled look.
Bing Xiao sighed deeply, "This current Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is no
ordinary man.”
“He's held his temper this long, waiting until the end of his term to strike
against our Bayonet Gang.”
“He's prepared so thoroughly that we've no chance to fight back.”
“You tell me, would someone like that make such a rookie mistake?”
At this point, Bing Xiao shook his head, his tone unwavering, "The fact that
the magician tower could openly deploy the Lightning Bolt Formation proves the
Sea Bird Church is no longer a concern."
"Looking back, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Sea Bird Church have
collaborated repeatedly, advancing and retreating together. Their collusion ran
deep and tight. They must have forged numerous secret pacts behind the scenes."
“We were far too negligent.”
“This time, the gang's annihilation hinged on the relationship between the Sea
Bird Church and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's city government palace.”
“Had we detected their clandestine alliance earlier, we would have remained
vigilant and avoided such a sudden, catastrophic downfall.”
Bing Xiao reflected, his face etched with bitterness.
Feng Lian spoke up: “As long as you're alive, there's hope.”
“Preserve your useful body and make amends for your mistakes.”
Bing Xiao nodded, sinking into silence.
Spring Boxer couldn't help but feel puzzled.
From this exchange, he sensed that the relationship between Bing Xiao and Feng
Lian wasn't merely a simple business transaction.
“Could it be... the old leader has another identity?”
Hidden behind his bronze beast mask, Spring Boxer couldn't see Feng Lian's
expression. His gaze fell on Bing Xiao instead.
Bing Xiao caught the look, nodding and smiling at Spring Boxer, "There are many
things the gang leader hasn't told you. The timing is too soon for you. Once we
get through this current crisis, I'll explain everything to you."
Spring Boxer's curiosity only deepened.
From Bing Xiao's words, it seemed Teng Dong Lang also harbored similar
secrets—far more than the simple identity Spring Boxer knew.
Boom!
Purple light flashed as another bolt of lightning struck the rocket assault
boat.
This was already the second rocket assault boat to be hit.
The sheer scale of the attack drew the attention of Feng Lian, Bing Xiao, and
the others.
"No! It's the boat carrying Xiong Ju and the others!" Spring Boxer's face paled
as he cried out in alarm.
Bing Xiao swiftly retrieved the crystal orb and remotely activated it.
On the rocket assault boat, the totem opened its beastly maw, allowing Xiong Ju
and the human ringleader to crawl out.
The human ringleader staggered, while Xiong Ju fared worse.
His upper body barely emerged before he collapsed onto the hull, vomiting
violently.
“Damn it, I remember now—Xiong Ju can't handle boats. He gets seasick no matter
what vessel he's on,” Spring Boxer said hoarsely, "There was even gossip in the
gang about it. They say when he was a kid, if you rocked his cradle just a
little, he'd foam at the mouth."
“We have to save them!”
Feng Lian watched Spring Boxer, silently sizing him up, but said nothing.
Bing Xiao's attention wasn't on Xiong Ju and the others. Instead, he was
fixated on another rocket assault boat speeding across the sea.
But in the next instant, Purple Star Lighting Bolt fired again, striking its
target with pinpoint accuracy.
Bing Xiao's expression paled slightly.
The rocket assault boat he'd been secretly monitoring went down as well.
The long, cylindrical rocket hull was blown clean in two. The rear section,
engulfed in flames, careened wildly like a headless fly. The front section,
deprived of power, slowed steadily until it finally drifted lifelessly on the
sea surface.
Bing Xiao sighed bitterly, "I must return to assist!”
“Stay here,” he instructed Spring Boxer.
But Spring Boxer rejected Bing Xiao's offer without hesitation, "No, I'm going
with you to save them.”
“Not just Xiong Ju and the others—there are many more gang members too.”
Chaos reigned at Snow Bird Harbor's dock.
Swamp oil elementals were still wreaking havoc everywhere.
Hordes of gang members boarded fishing boats, cruise ships, even small wooden
boats, racing toward the open sea to escape the harbor.
Others were locked in combat on the dock.
They lacked the capability for large-scale military formations, but acts of
destruction—looting, burning, and smashing—were second nature to them.
Even with a squad of city guards rushing to the scene, they struggled to
contain the situation.
“Lord Feng Lian, could you let our other gang members board your ship too?”
asked Spring Boxer.
Feng Lian fixed his gaze on Spring Boxer, then suddenly chuckled softly, "So
you're the coffin bearer chosen by Teng Dong Lang.”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Spring Boxer was bewildered.
Feng Lian offered no explanation, instead turning to Bing Xiao, "You know I
can't bring the ship any closer.”
"This distance is the limit. Even if the Purple Star Lightning Bolt strikes, we
can evade it."
"But I suspect the magician tower has other tricks up its sleeve. I smell a
trap."
“So, if you want to help, you'll have to get them yourselves.”
“My ship stays here, maintaining distance, and I'll only give you 15 minutes.”
“Understood!” Bing Xiao nodded, "Give us one landing craft. If we're not back
in 15 minutes, you can leave. Don't come to rescue us."
“Give them a ship!” Feng Lian ordered immediately.
The Divine Wind Pirates' landing craft mirrored the flagship's style—long and
slender, with sleek lines.
Spring Boxer leaped from the rope ladder onto the craft, only to stare in
disbelief.
He found no rudder, let alone oars.
Bing Xiao already stood at the bow.
The next moment, Feng Lian spoke: “Let me give you a ride.”
He extended his left hand, palm facing the landing craft.
The landing craft instantly activated, radiating a silver level aura.
This vessel, designed for twenty passengers, was in fact a silver level magic
ship!
The alchemy insignias on its hull ignited, unleashing a powerful gust of wind.
The wind lifted the hull and propelled it forward.
Spring Boxer let out a startled cry and plopped down onto his backside.
The landing craft shot forward like an arrow released from its bowstring.
Bam!
The dragonman youngster's fist smashed through, crushing the skull of a bayonet
gang member blocking his path.
His dragon scales were drenched in blood, all belonging to others.
Beside him lay the wreckage of the first rocket assault boat he had destroyed.
The dragonman youngster charged first, obliterating the entire vessel only to
find it empty.
But now, his keen dragon eyes reflected the image of a landing craft.
Upon it stood Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer.
Gritting his teeth, the dragonman youngster murmured to himself.
"Fantastic."



****** Chapter 374: Thunder Numbing Light Bullet ******
The dragonman youngster had seen several battlefields and understood clearly
that the current chaos at the dock was actually orchestrated to facilitate the
breakout of the Bayonet Gang's high-ranking members.
Therefore, the primary targets were the several rocket assault boats that had
appeared.
Chi Lai wasn't present; he had gone to train with Zong Ge. Thus, even if the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' sole gold level cannon had been repaired, they'd
be powerless against these rocket assault boats.
The magician tower didn't disappoint them. True to its role as the defensive
core, it destroyed one rocket assault boat with its first strike.
But when the dragonman youngster rushed over, he found it empty. He instantly
realized it was merely a decoy!
The dragonman youngster harbored an innate loathing for gangs. Returning to the
dock, he witnessed his faction's heavy losses and perilous ordeal. The
flagship, the Love Triangle, had never been in such a dire state. Rage
naturally surged within the dragonman youngster's heart.
Now, seeing the landing craft returning with Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer aboard,
excitement surged through him, his breathing growing heavy.
Yet he remained composed.
The dragonman youngster knew his speed couldn't match the landing craft's.
Pursuing it recklessly would only backfire. If the landing craft changed
course, he'd be left trailing in its wake.
His sharp gaze swept the area, quickly discerning the landing craft's clear
destination: another rocket assault boat.
That vessel had lost all power, drifting helplessly on the sea.
Xiong Ju lay sprawled on the deck, vomiting, while the human ringleader's face
was deathly pale.
Many were rushing toward their location.
Most were gang members attempting to rescue their two ringleaders. Others were
enemies of the Bayonet Gang, seeking to claim the bounty on the leaders' heads.
Their identities were mixed. Judging by their clothing and equipment, the
dragonman youngster recognized many as fishermen, along with members of other
mercenary groups. There were also a few merchants, magician apprentices, and
others.
This was because moments earlier, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had publicly
issued a wanted notice, offering a hefty bounty for the lives of Bayonet Gang
members.
This had mobilized the citizens of Snow Bird Harbor!
In the past, ordinary folk dared not lay a finger on the Bayonet Gang.
But now, with the Bayonet Gang clearly facing annihilation, their leaders
escaped prison and fled, their combat strength plummeted to rock bottom. They
were nothing more than walking, walking bounties.
Money was the greatest temptation. For some low level transcendents, if they
managed to take down a ringleader, the bounty offered by the city Lord would be
enough to cover their expenses for a lifetime.
Even if they couldn't kill a ringleader, every last remnant of the Bayonet Gang
was worth a bounty.
“Qing Pi, heh heh, back when you bullied me and stole my fruit stall, you never
imagined this moment, did you?”
“Hmph, kill me if you must. Enough talk.”
Some abandoned resistance, kneeling to beg for mercy.
"Spare my life! Joining the Bayonet Gang was forced upon me! Mercy! Mercy! I
have a two-year-old child to raise!"
Driven by the bounty, the men's eyes had long turned red. They showed no mercy.
With a crack, blood spattered as a head was severed from its body.
The killer raised his arms in triumph: These criminals deserved every bit of
their deaths!"
Others scrambled for headcounts.
Two muskets struck a gang member simultaneously, sending him crashing to his
death.
“I got him!”
“No, I did!”
"Calm down! Haven't you heard the city Lord's proclamation? The magician tower
records every battle in real-time. Your contributions won't go uncounted."
Only then did the commotion subside.
The Bayonet Gang had been annihilated, their assets confiscated. Most of the
remnants sought only to flee Snow Bird Harbor, not to fight.
The gang's true core had been decimated long ago, killed or captured by the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord on the day the dragonman youngster and Teng Dong
Lang engaged in their heroic duel.
The dragonman youngster looked down on the ordinary stragglers, fixing his gaze
instead on Xiong Ju and his men.
He raised his foot and kicked forward with all his might, shattering the ship's
hull before him.
Amidst flying wood, he leapt up and seized a long plank with pinpoint accuracy
As he landed on the sea surface, his feet planted firmly on the plank, using it
as a surfboard.
The dragonman youngster crouched low, plunging his palms into the seawater. A
ring mound formed in his palm as his Surge battle skill erupted. With a soft
boom, a spray of water erupted.
The plank beneath his feet shot upward violently, launching him into the air.
He didn't travel far—only a few meters—before splashing back down onto the sea
surface, sending up a large spray of water.
Propelled by momentum, the plank surged forward another dozen meters before its
speed began to wane.
The dragonman youngster pressed on, sustaining the Surge battle skill.
Thus, amid a series of booms, the plank carried him like an arrow released from
its string. Drifting and drifting across the sea, it charged toward the
location of Xiong Ju and the others.
The commotion created by the dragonman youngster was too conspicuous.
Crucially, his fame had spread far and wide. The moment he appeared he was
certain to draw countless eyes.
His movements were detected almost immediately by Xiong Ju, Bing Xiao, and the
others.
“Damn it! Long Fu is coming for us!” The human ringleader's face drained of
color as panic set in.
Xiong Ju snorted coldly, about to put on a brave front, when he suddenly
retched and vomited again.
In the distance, the landing craft carrying Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer had
already closed in on Xiong Ju and his group.
Bing Xiao, intent on stopping the dragonman youngster, drew a short-barreled
flintlock from his coat.
The firearm radiated a silver aura.
Bing Xiao pulled the trigger. The bell-shaped muzzle instantly erupted with a
bolt of lightning.
The bolt raced forward with astonishing speed, reaching the dragonman youngster
in an instant.
The dragonman youngster was long prepared for this. He flipped his palm,
unleashing his Surge battle skill. The ship's deck shifted sideways
effortlessly, evading the bolt's strike.
Bing Xiao showed no surprise. Instead, a smug grin touched his lips.
The next instant, the lightning bolt that had flown behind the dragonman
youngster detonated on its own, erupting into a vast cloud of shattering
fragments.
Caught off guard, the dragonman youngster was engulfed within the explosion,
immediately feeling an intense, numbing tingle.
A torrent of electric light not only clung to the surface of his dragon scales
but also seeped into his body, disrupting the flow of his battle qi.
Silver level alchemy bullet—Thunder Numbing Light Bullet!
The dragonman youngster's brow furrowed slightly.
His defenses were exceptional—his dragon scales offered protection against both
physical and magic attacks, and he wore the Gold Silk Chainmail. Though the
chainmail was damaged, its defensive capabilities still far exceeded silver
level standards.
Combined with the Grand Arena Medal, even after returning the borrowed
equipment, the dragonman youngster could still dominate the current
battlefield.
If Bing Xiao's musket and bullets were both gold level, they might inflict
damage on the dragonman youngster. But being silver level, they posed no real
threat to him.
However, posing no threat to his life didn't mean they couldn't cause trouble.
The Thunder Numbing Light Bullet could detonate, unleashing an area-of-effect
attack. Facing such an assault, the dragonman youngster found it difficult to
evade.
Countless fragments of lightning scattered across the field, significantly
hindering the dragonman youngster and preventing him from charging freely.
Bing Xiao maneuvered the landing craft while firing long-range shots at the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster's martial skills were exceptionally solid—thanks to the
Grand Arena Medal and the contributions of Xiong Ju and others.
He countered the interference, maintaining perfect balance on the deck.
His evasion of bullets grew increasingly adept.
Thus, by the time Bing Xiao's landing craft reached Xiong Ju, the dragonman
youngster was merely two hundred meters away.
“Long Fu is coming!” the human ringleader cried out in alarm.
“I can still...” Xiong Ju tried to stand, but his seasickness was so severe he
couldn't even straighten his body. He swayed violently from side to side,
utterly useless.
Spring Boxer gritted his teeth, about to step forward regardless of the danger
of stopping the dragonman youngster, but Bing Xiao pressed down on his
shoulder.
Bing Xiao smiled, "Watch me.”
Though still aboard the landing craft, he leaned sideways and pressed his hand
against the hull of the rocket assault boat.
The crystal ball in his embrace suddenly burst into light.
In the next instant, every totem on the rocket assault boat rose, coalescing
into tangible forms midair.
These totems, bizarre in form and shimmering with multicolored light, charged
toward the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster's Machine Gun Fist battle skill was perfectly suited
for this situation.
Without hesitation, he unleashed it, shattering the totem beasts one after
another.
Yet he was inevitably held back temporarily.
These totem beasts were all silver level. The dragonman youngster hadn't yet
ascended to gold level, lacking the ability to break through.
“Lord Commander!” In the distance, Lan Zao had seized a fishing boat. Seeing
the dragonman youngster besieged by the totems, he rushed to assist.
This level of combat far exceeded his capabilities. After all, he was merely
bronze level.
But Lan Zao had long since abandoned all thought of survival in this fight.
A minor misunderstanding had led Lan Zao to believe that after swallowing the
magic potion, his bloodline had gone haywire, leaving him unable to survive.
His physical condition was dire now—a high fever burned his forehead, and waves
of dizziness washed over his mind.
Even the hand gripping the knife hilt felt tingling numbness.
“How much longer can I follow you?”
“I'm about to die!”
“But before I die, I will give my all and contribute my strength to you!”
Just as he rushed to assist the dragonman youngster, the alchemy device at his
waist activated.
Zi Di had been monitoring his movements.
Seeing his intended course of action, she immediately intervened: “Are you
trying to get yourself killed?”
“That battle isn't for you to join.”
“Even if you want to die, don't complicate things for the commander.”
Lan Zao's resolve wavered at her words: "I was wrong! I only thought of myself.
Zi Di is right."
“If I join the fight, the commander will sacrifice countless opportunities in
battle to protect me.”
“I can't become a burden to the commander!”
Just then, Zi Di added, "Head over there. My scans indicate the rocket assault
boat there seems to be carrying unusual cargo."
“Don't let anyone else get to it first.”
Following Zi Di's guidance, Lan Zao quickly located the target.
This was the third rocket assault boat destroyed by the magician tower.
It drifted on the sea surface, spinning alone.
Its hull was damaged, exposing the cabin and revealing a corner of a black
wooden cabinet.
This wasn't a purely decoy vessel.
Several people had noticed the boat's condition and were approaching.
Lan Zao charged toward the rocket assault boat.
Along the way, gang members attacked Lan Zao, attempting to stop him.
Lan Zao, knife clenched between his teeth, leaped onto enemy vessels like a
monkey, slaughtering all in his path.
Among the foes was a bronze level cultivator. The moment he clashed with Lan
Zao, he was instantly cowed by the overwhelming presence.
Lan Zao was truly fearless, his aura fierce. Three swift blows ended the
enemy's life.
The rest were mere mortals, and he slaughtered most of them as well.
Lan Zao didn't pursue those who jumped ship to escape. He continued steering
the captured boat toward his target location.
Soon, he boarded the rocket assault boat.
Just as Lan Zao was about to inspect the black cabinet, another group attacked.
Their leader, an iron level battle qi cultivator, bellowed, “Freeze! This is
our spoils!”
Meanwhile, the dragonman youngster had completely destroyed the totem beasts
and charged onto the rocket assault boat.
Xiong Ju and Spring Boxer stood ready for battle.
The human ringleader tried to stall, shouting, “Commander Long Fu, let's talk
this out peacefully.”
The dragonman youngster remained expressionless, his voice icy: “Have a nice
chat with my fists.”
But Bing Xiao chuckled: “Long Fu, you've fallen for the trap.”
With that, a blinding flash erupted from the rocket assault boat. Bing Xiao and
his companions vanished from the spot, leaving only the dragonman youngster
behind.
Only then did the dragonman youngster lower his guard, only to see Bing Xiao
and the others already aboard another rocket assault boat.
He suddenly realized that the rocket assault boats could actually teleport
people between each other!
But by the time he grasped this, it was already too late.
“No! Lan Zao is there!” The dragonman youngster's expression turned into shock.



****** Chapter 375: Misunderstanding ******
Ten minutes earlier.
Lan Zao had just reached the rocket assault boat and was about to slash at the
black chest with his blade when a group of people rushed over.
Their leader, an iron level battle qi cultivator, shouted threats at Lan Zao:
“Freeze! This is our loot!”
Lan Zao was only bronze level, while the group numbered nearly ten. Not only
were they outnumbered, but their leader was iron level.
The old Lan Zao would have been contemplating retreat by now.
But now, mistakenly believing his end was near, the iron level battle qi
cultivator’s warning felt like an invitation.
An invitation to perform a final, dazzling display of life before death
arrived.
Especially when Lan Zao noticed the iron level battle qi cultivator wielding a
long-handled, square-headed war hammer. His mind made a calculation.
Thud.
The next moment, Lan Zao plunged headfirst into the water.
The iron level battle qi cultivator assumed his threat had worked—after all,
the opponent was merely bronze level.
But soon after, a gleaming blade pierced the boat's bottom. With a swift pull,
it left a gaping hole.
Seawater gurgled through the crack, flooding the vessel.
Before anyone could react, the blade reappeared elsewhere.
This time, it stabbed clean through some unlucky soul's sole.
The blade withdrew, and the victim let out a piercing scream, clutching his
wounded foot as he toppled backward.
These men were crammed into a small boat. Its hull was low and thin, the space
cramped—barely suitable for fishing at sea.
The iron level battle qi cultivator instantly realized Lan Zao was behind this.
Enraged, he roared and slammed his square hammer down onto the deck.
Damn it!
His single blow shattered the plank, creating a hole far larger than anything
Lan Zao had managed.
Where two small cracks had previously allowed water to gurgle in, this massive
hole now let seawater pour in with a roaring rush.
The boat sank visibly with each passing moment.
Lan Zao had sensed danger long before and dodged the hammer blow.
Failing to strike his target, the iron level battle qi cultivator took a deep
breath and leapt into the sea himself.
Clearly, he had no intention of letting Lan Zao off so easily.
Spotting the enemy entering the water and closing in, Lan Zao immediately dove
deeper.
The iron level battle qi cultivator gave chase, but instead of closing the
distance, he found himself falling further behind.
Watching Lan Zao move with unnatural agility through the water, he could only
abandon the pursuit, filled with both anger and frustration.
The iron level battle qi cultivator surfaced and swam with all his might toward
the rocket assault boat.
This development was precisely what Lan Zao had anticipated.
From the moment he first saw the iron level battle qi cultivator, he knew this
human was no seafarer.
Advance when the enemy retreated, retreat when the enemy advanced.
Lan Zao swam back.
Halfway there, the iron level battle qi cultivator heard agonized screams
echoing behind him.
The human fighter whipped his head around, his expression a mix of shock and
fury.
He hadn't pursued Lan Zao relentlessly; he had let him go. He never expected
Lan Zao to dare return!
The small boat was nearly submerged. The others aboard were also swimming,
their destination the same rocket assault boat.
Their strength was weak, and their swimming skills couldn't match Lan Zao's. He
disposed of them with ease.
One by one, they became corpses floating on the sea surface.
The iron level battle qi cultivator hesitated but chose not to return for
support. Instead, he continued toward the rocket assault boat.
They were guards belonging to the same merchant guild—merely colleagues, not
sworn brothers bound by life-and-death loyalty.
Lan Zao quickly disposed of everyone else, leaving only the iron level battle
qi cultivator standing.
“My physical condition is better than I expected.”
He had been running a high fever, his entire body burning hot, but the icy
seawater cooled him down, bringing waves of comfort.
He was surprised himself: “I seem to be quite adept at naval combat?”
Before, he had merely been a boatswain on merchant ships. Though he had
experienced naval battles before, none had felt as exhilarating as this one.
His bloodline had been purified, now being 100% Fish Bladder bloodline. All
those “ailments” were merely symptoms of his body undergoing drastic
transformation by the bloodline.
The changes brought by the bloodline were beginning to show.
Soon, Lan Zao caught up to the iron level battle qi cultivator again.
The latter still hadn't managed to board the rocket assault boat.
He had no choice but to fight Lan Zao in the water.
Waves churned as they traded blows, fighting to a stalemate.
The iron level battle qi cultivator was unskilled in aquatic combat. His bronze
level long-handled square war hammer proved awkward and cumbersome in the
water.
Lan Zao, however, moved like a fish in water. He avoided direct confrontations,
constantly maneuvering around his opponent.
A few minutes later.
His opponent was ultimately one level above him. Even as Lan Zao fought
fiercely, the iron level battle qi cultivator managed to swim onto the rocket
assault boat.
“Come on! Watch me smash you with this hammer!” The iron level battle qi
cultivator, dripping water from head to toe, stood on the boat, shouting
defiantly without bothering to wipe his eyes.
Lan Zao kept only his head above water; bloodshot eyes fixed silently on the
iron level battle qi cultivator.
The iron level battle qi cultivator felt a chill run down his spine under that
stare.
Their earlier clash had made it clear: “This bronze level battle qi cultivator
is no ordinary foe—he's ruthless!”
But the next moment, Lan Zao submerged his head and swam away.
The iron level battle qi cultivator remained on guard. After waiting over a
minute without seeing Lan Zao resurface, he relaxed slightly and turned his
attention to the black chest.
Lan Zao hadn't given up.
Paddling with arms and legs, he swam faster and faster until he reached a
floating corpse.
He reached out, groping the body until he found an alchemy crossbow.
He continued searching, pulling several arrows from the breast pocket.
Lan Zao moved away from the corpse and continued clearing the battlefield.
Among the shipwreck debris and bodies in the water, he found numerous arrows,
along with several muskets and bullets.
Most muskets were waterlogged and unusable, but one possessed waterproofing.
His precise search was entirely guided by Zi Di's direction.
Zi Di's true form remained stationed aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish,
conducting meticulous battlefield reconnaissance. Through alchemy devices, she
relayed the precise locations of these ranged weapons to Lan Zao.
Though alchemy puppets existed within the Deep Sea Monster Fish, deploying them
was risky—the magician tower monitored the entire dock battlefield.
Lan Zao swiftly returned to the vicinity of the rocket assault boat, deploying
crossbows and muskets to fire at the iron level battle qi cultivator from a
distance.
The iron level battle qi cultivator made several attempts to smash the black
chest but only drew Lan Zao's attacks.
He had no shield, and the rocket assault boat offered no cover.
He tried to retreat into the cabin, but it was occupied by the black chest.
The iron level battle qi cultivator could barely fend off arrows and bullets
with his long-handled war hammer.
The effect was poor.
Soon, he took numerous hits.
He had no choice but to activate defensive battle skills, barely holding on.
But quickly, his battle qi plummeted to dangerous levels.
Sensing trouble, the iron level battle qi cultivator had no option but to dive
into the water to escape.
Lan Zao pursued relentlessly, firing shots in his wake.
Had the iron level battle qi cultivator seized the rocket assault boat to make
a last stand, he could have held out longer.
Instead, in his panic, he chose to dive into the water and swim away—a move
that was nothing short of suicide.
“Spare me! Spare my life! I swear I'll never oppose you again!”
“Look behind you! A group boarded the boat! They're after your cargo!”
The iron level battle qi cultivator begged for mercy in his final moments.
Lan Zao wore a cold expression as he riddled the iron level battle qi
cultivator with bullets, turning him into a beehive without the slightest
mercy.
After dealing with the man, he hurried back to the rocket assault boat.
While he'd been pursuing the iron level battle qi cultivator, another group
boarded the vessel.
Their roles were clearly defined. Some stood guard while others worked inside,
seemingly figuring out how to extract the black chest or simply pry it open.
“Friend, hold your fire! Whatever we retrieve, we'll share with you,” the
leader of this group shouted as Lan Zao swam toward them, his expression
shifting abruptly.
“Get lost. These belong to me,” Lan Zao retorted bluntly.
The leader's face darkened, a cold smile spreading across his lips, "Killing an
iron level must have taken a toll on you. You're only bronze level. We have
three bronze level cultivators here."
“Being polite to you doesn't mean you can push your luck.”
“Truth is, there's no need for us to fight to the death. These fleeing remnants
of the Bayonet Gang are all bounty targets.”
“Of course, if you insist on fighting us to the bitter end, we won't back down.
At worst...”
Whoosh.
Before the leader could finish, he was cut off by an arrow fired by Lan Zao.
“Hmph! Let's see if you can even get up here!” The leader was enraged, but he
didn't rashly dive in to fight Lan Zao head-on.
He'd just witnessed Lan Zao hunting down the iron level battle qi cultivator
and knew Lan Zao's aquatic combat skills were exceptional. The leader didn't
have that kind of confidence.
He retreated to the inner circle.
Five or six ordinary men guarded the outer perimeter.
Along with the leader, three bronze level cultivators remained in the inner
circle.
This put Lan Zao in a difficult position.
Charging forward wasn't hard, nor was killing one or two ordinary outer
defenders. But afterward, he'd face the coordinated assault of three
cultivators of the same level.
The slightest misstep meant certain death in battle.
Zi Di saw the danger Lan Zao faced.
This time was different from before.
Previously, when Lan Zao faced the iron level battle qi cultivator, though
risky, he had maintained control throughout.
Now, attacking would be far too dangerous.
Zi Di urged Lan Zao to back off: “If it's impossible, then let it be.”
“We can't just give up. How will we know without trying?” Lan Zao retorted.
He submerged once more, scanning the surface around the rocket assault boat
with intense focus, searching for defensive weaknesses.
Zi Di was startled, "Why has Lan Zao become so bold and aggressive?”
She could only urge him to be cautious and avoid recklessness before her
attention was drawn elsewhere—to the dragonman youngster.
Over there, the dragonman youngster had closed in on another rocket assault
boat.
On board were Xiong Ju, Bing Xiao, and four other high-ranking members of the
Bayonet Gang.
Just as the dragonman youngster was about to leap aboard, Bing Xiao activated
his backup plan.
The rocket assault boat erupted in a blinding flash of light.
When the light faded, so too did Bing Xiao and his companions.
Lan Zao was searching for the enemy's defensive weak points when he suddenly
witnessed the rocket assault boat erupt in intense light.
The blinding light quickly dissipated, and Bing Xiao and his group were
teleported over.
The original group were not members of the Bayonet Gang and had never
anticipated such a turn of events.
Caught off guard, they had no choice but to engage Bing Xiao and his group.
The two factions engaged in chaotic combat aboard the rocket assault boat.
Lan Zao spotted Bing Xiao and his group arriving and prepared to retreat, only
to witness both sides locked in a fierce, deadlocked battle.
Though Bing Xiao's group possessed higher levels, their condition was abysmal.
Not only were their physical states dreadful, but they were also completely
unarmed, practically empty-handed.
Xiong Ju was the worst off, utterly incapable of combat.
“An opportunity!” Lan Zao spotted the opening and grew excited.
“Kill these men and clear the way for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“This is likely the greatest contribution I can make to my Lord.”
With this thought, Lan Zao charged forward.
Bing Xiao and his group were too preoccupied with their own struggles.
They had been forcibly teleported here, leaving them unable to counterattack as
Lan Zao charged.
Lan Zao swung his blade at Bing Xiao, but his foot slipped, striking the bronze
level leader instead.
Bing Xiao was startled.
Lan Zao took a deep breath and swung again.
But another bronze level intervened, stabbing him in the back leg with a
dagger.
Gritting his teeth against the excruciating pain, Lan Zao continued his attack,
his resolve to slay Bing Xiao unwavering.
But fate dealt him a cruel blow—a sudden dizzy spell overtook him. His vision
darkened, and he nearly collapsed unconscious.
When his sight cleared, he saw his blade had already flown from his grasp. The
bronze level battle qi cultivator now bore a gash across his chest, blood
gushing forth as he glared furiously at Lan Zao.
“Die!” The bronze leader, enraged beyond measure, abandoned Bing Xiao and
charged at Lan Zao.
This finally gave Bing Xiao an opening. He drew his flintlock and shot the
bronze leader dead.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Several more shots rang out, taking down several more men.
The rest scattered in panic, diving into the water to escape.
Bing Xiao didn't pursue them. Instead, he helped Lan Zao to his feet and called
out to Xiong Ju and the others, “Quick! Get ready. We're teleporting again.”



****** Chapter 376: Coffin Bearer ******
The moment Lan Zao was helped up by Bing Xiao, his mind was a fog.
After seeing Bing Xiao shoot and kill several people, he’d assumed he’d meet
the same fate.
Instead, Bing Xiao had mistaken him for one of his own.
Lan Zao never imagined such a turn of events.
Yet from Bing Xiao's perspective, everything made perfect sense.
Bing Xiao didn't know Lan Zao had slipped, nor that his mind was foggy. What
Bing Xiao witnessed firsthand was Lan Zao risking his life to help him survive
the perilous moment of teleportation.
“He must be one of the gang members!” Bing Xiao instinctively concluded.
As the former gang leader, Bing Xiao had retired long ago and wasn't familiar
with the current members.
In truth, even in a regular army, commanders don't know every soldier under
their command. Not to mention in the complex, motley crew that was the Bayonet
Gang.
Bing Xiao assumed Lan Zao was simply another unfamiliar face in the gang.
His presence here, attempting to flee Snow Bird Harbor, and his recent
assistance to Bing Xiao—his loyalty to the Bayonet Gang was undeniable!
This very act of Lan Zao's was all too familiar to Bing Xiao.
He had witnessed it many times during his tenure.
Gang members would throw themselves into danger, shielding their boss from
blades—even when the boss was powerful enough not to need it.
Through such acts, members expressed their loyalty, earning either generous
rewards or promotions.
The gang leader would always lavish praise on such behavior, as it bolstered
the organization's cohesion. For any gang, the pursuit of organizational unity
was relentless.
In truth, every leader of any group desired such cohesion to be as strong as
possible.
Bing Xiao was no ordinary member—he was the former gang leader.
Thus, instinctively rushing to support Lan Zao was almost a primal reflex for
this superior figure.
Lan Zao understood at once, his gaze locking onto Bing Xiao's chest.
He pondered: Could a single stab here end Bing Xiao's life?
He noticed Bing Xiao wore bronze level leather armor and carried a silver level
flintlock pistol in his other hand.
Lan Zao weighed his options. A direct stab seemed risky, so he resolved to wait
for a better opportunity.
The next moment, he heard Bing Xiao mention teleportation.
Lan Zao's heart sank. An impulse surged through him to strike immediately.
But by then, Xiong Ju, Spring Boxer, and the others had already closed in.
He lost his chance once more.
Soon, Bing Xiao piloted the rocket assault boat and initiated teleportation
again.
Rocket assault boats could teleport between each other.
When the beastmen developed these vessels, anticipating possible destruction by
ranged fire, they specifically designed this feature.
The intent was to allow suicide troops aboard the assault boats to teleport
each other, minimizing casualties before charging the enemy.
But teleportation could only be used once.
After activation, the original rocket assault boat could neither transmit nor
receive teleportation signals.
In combat, the rocket assault boat initiating teleportation was often facing
annihilation or was already severely damaged. Multiple teleports would be
futile.
Bing Xiao kept the teleportation secret hidden the entire time.
It wasn't until the dragonman youngster launched his fierce assault that he
performed his first teleportation.
He rescued Xiong Ju and the human ringleader, instantly transporting them to
the rocket assault boat carrying the black coffin.
Then, carrying the black coffin, Lan Zao, and the others, he returned them to
the very rocket assault boat he had first boarded.
This rocket assault boat was moored alongside the Divine Wind.
They had returned safely!
Lan Zao was speechless.
The situation had changed too rapidly.
He had already reached the enemy's flagship.
Only when Bing Xiao and the others stepped onto the deck of the Divine Wind did
the old former leader exhale a cloud of stale breath and finally relax.
He had just returned to reinforce them, which was actually extremely risky.
If the magician tower attacked them, they wouldn't have much ability to resist.
But just as Bing Xiao had anticipated, precisely because of their weakness, the
magician tower didn't target them first. Instead, it directed its attacks at
the rocket assault boats.
Bing Xiao gauged the enemy's intentions: seeing him and his men return; the
enemy would be pleased.
After revealing the rocket assault boat's teleportation capability, his
situation grew even more perilous
The magician tower realized Bing Xiao might attempt another escape, likely
shifting their focus entirely onto him!
Thus, Bing Xiao exploited a gap in Purple Star Lighting Bolt's attack to
initiate teleportation.
The magician tower had been fully focused on channeling the Purple Star
Lighting Bolt Magic Formation. By the time they realized something was amiss,
Bing Xiao had already teleported again, carrying the target item, and
successfully returned to the vicinity of the Divine Wind.
This time, even if the magician tower wanted to attack, it was too late.
The Divine Wind was now outside the magic formation's range.
Bing Xiao once again thanked Captain Feng Lian of the Divine Wind.
Feng Lian smiled, "This is the result of your efforts. I merely held my
position.”
He held considerable respect for Bing Xiao's daring venture.
“Set sail,” Feng Lian ordered.
But Spring Boxer called out, “Wait! One of our companions hasn't returned yet.”
Bing Xiao explained, “I've made other arrangements concerning Ban Lan Gen.”
The old gang leader gazed at the black chest: "The most crucial item has been
retrieved. There's no need to linger any longer."
Lan Zao suddenly spoke up: "But what about the other gang members? Honorable
leaders, are we simply abandoning them?"
He disguised himself and spoke boldly.
He had no intention of letting this group escape with him.
The human ringleader immediately shot Lan Zao a glare, the message
unmistakable: You're just a lowly bronze level member—keep your mouth shut. You
have no right to speak.
Lan Zao caught Xiong Ju's gaze and shifted his eyes to Spring Boxer.
He knew these ringleaders of the Bayonet Gang well.
First, as one of the survivors and a core member all along, he possessed vital
intelligence.
Second, he'd witnessed nearly the entire confrontation—the heroic duel between
the dragonman youngster and Spring Boxer—and understood Spring Boxer's
temperament intimately.
Spring Boxer sensed anticipation in Lan Zao's gaze.
Lan Zao's interruption was bold, bordering on offensive, yet Spring Boxer
understood the motivation behind it—coming from a “rank-and-file gang member.”
Spring Boxer replied, “Yes, if we leave, what about the others?”
To support Bing Xiao and the others' breakout, the Bayonet Gang's loyalists had
mobilized nearly all their remaining forces. The vast majority of these gang
members intended to flee Snow Bird Harbor under their leaders' guidance.
That was precisely what they were doing now.
But they lacked vessels—and even the few boats available were too small for
long voyages.
Their only hope lay aboard ships like the Divine Wind.
Now, if Bing Xiao and the others withdrew prematurely, these men would face
capture and slaughter in utter despair.
Spring Boxer pleaded with Feng Lian: "Lord Feng Lian, could you use your ship
to carry our gang members? Please help us—how much it would cost?"
Feng Lian starred at Spring Boxer with keen interest.
At that moment, the Divine Wind's first mate lost patience: "Wait any longer?
Impossible!"
“Every minute we linger here brings another minute of danger.”
"You brat, don't push your luck." Most of your gang members are ordinary
people—utterly worthless to save."
But Feng Lian waved his hand, and the first mate immediately fell silent.
Feng Lian smiled, "Interesting. Never imagined Teng Dong Lang would choose a
coffin-bearer with such a temperament.”
“I've agreed to your terms, young man.”
“No need for further payment.”
“My ship stays anchored here. Let your gang members come aboard anytime.”
“But this is my bottom line: the Divine Wind will not voluntarily enter the
magic formation's attack range.”
Spring Boxer hurriedly thanked him, yet his mind filled with more questions.
Feng Lian and Bing Xiao treated him with unusual respect.
The reason lay in his identity—a coffin bearer.
More precisely, Teng Dong Lang's coffin bearer.
But Spring Boxer genuinely knew nothing about this identity.
Unable to contain himself, Spring Boxer voiced his confusion directly.
Feng Lian offered no explanation. Instead, Bing Xiao spoke: "A coffin bearer is
exactly what it sounds like. You will carry Teng Dong Lang's coffin."
As he spoke, Bing Xiao's hand brushed the black coffin.
The coffin disintegrated, revealing a long block of ice within.
Sealed within that ice lay a person.
It was Teng Dong Lang's corpse!
“Ah, gang leader!” Spring Boxer never imagined the black coffin held Teng Dong
Lang's corpse.
Teng Dong Lang had always looked out for him; he was his father's comrade-in-
arms.
Spring Boxer held deep admiration and reverence for him.
Seeing Teng Dong Lang's body, tears welled in Spring Boxer's eyes. Overcome
with emotion, he stepped forward and placed his hands on the transparent ice
coffin.
“What exactly happened?” Feng Lian inquired.
Bing Xiao replied, "We got lucky. I recovered his body before it was too late.
But I can't predict the final outcome—it's up to his luck now."
He then turned to Spring Boxer: “Teng Dong Lang designated you as his coffin
bearer.”
“From here on, you must carry this ice coffin and bring him back to Tranquil
Hill.”
“Tranquil Hill?” Spring Boxer was startled.
The name was all too familiar to him, tied to some legendary tale.
“Does Tranquil Hill truly exist in this world?” Spring Boxer questioned.
“Of course it does,” Feng Lian answered, “At least within the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, there is a Tranquil Hill.”
Lan Zao was utterly confused.
Not being a native, he'd never heard the name Tranquil Hill before.
“Tranquil Hill?”
“They're heading to Tranquil Hill!”
“I must relay this vital intelligence to the commander.”
Even without being an intelligence operative, Lan Zao recognized the value of
this information.
But how to transmit it back?
He carried a communication device in his embrace.
Yet he needed to find the right moment—he couldn't just broadcast to the
dragonman youngster in front of all these people.
Until an opportunity arose, Lan Zao resolved to bide his time.
Bing Xiao had misunderstood him, and he, in turn, had misjudged Zi Di and the
dragonman youngster—convinced that the magic potion he’d consumed meant certain
death.
Thus, even now, surrounded by enemies, his gaze remained steady and utterly
fearless!
It was the dragonman youngster who grew far more anxious.
Gazing toward the pirate ship, the Divine Wind, he declared, “This won’t do! I
must find a way to rescue Lan Zao!”



****** Chapter 377: Mutual Understanding ******
Snow Bird Harbor Dock.
The magician tower hummed with activity as the colossal Purple Star Lighting
Bolt Magic Formation dominated the harbor sky, intimidating the Divine Wind
Pirates.
The slaughter and combat on the sea raged on.
Corpses bobbed in the waves, while fragments of ships sank or floated.
The rocket assault boats had all been destroyed.
Yet remnants of the Bayonet Gang remained active.
Most still struggled, while a few had escaped the lightning zone and boarded
pirate ships.
The dragonman youngster transmitted urgently to Zi Di: "If we use the Deep Sea
Monster Fish to sneak beneath the Divine Wind Pirates and launch a surprise
attack, what are our odds of success?"
Zi Di was startled by this and hurriedly advised, “Sir, please don't be so
anxious!”
“Although Lan Zao has been taken away, it's still safe for now.”
The dragonman youngster sighed and shook his head slightly, "This is merely
Bing Xiao's misunderstanding. He can't conceal the truth for long."
“The battlefield was crowded with onlookers. Lan Zao fought his way through,
killing numerous Bayonet Gang members.”
"Moreover, once the post-battle reorganization begins, they will inevitably
conduct a thorough review. At that point, Lan Zao will be exposed as an
outsider with no ties to any gang members. He will be discovered."
"Even if he pretends to be an ordinary citizen of Snow Bird Harbor who admires
the Bayonet Gang, it's a huge flaw. He can't even clearly name the streets of
Snow Bird Harbor."
“We must rescue him quickly, or he'll truly be in danger!”
Zi Di took a deep breath.
She had anticipated the dragonman youngster's determination to rescue him.
But his plan was truly foolish.
Right now, they were at Snow Bird Harbor's dock. If the Deep Sea Monster Fish
was exposed, what would the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord think?
Right now, they were at Snow Bird Harbor's dock. If the Deepsea Monster Fish
was exposed, what would the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord think?
Zi Di was unwilling to take such a risk to rescue Lan Zao.
Yet she also knew she couldn't outright stop the dragonman youngster.
Fortunately, her negotiation skills were sharp. She immediately shifted her
approach and reasoned, “Lord, even if we expose the Deep Sea Monster Fish and
use it to approach the Divine Wind, can we truly save him?”
“The enemy isn't a silver level magic ship—it's gold level, with formidable
defenses!”
"Moreover, the Divine Wind Pirates' crew hasn't engaged in combat and remains
fully intact. Most critically, their gold level leader, Feng Lian, is present!"
Zi Di paused briefly before continuing, “Truthfully, I have no concern for your
personal safety, my Lord.”
“Your previous heroic duel proved your mettle beyond doubt.”
“You are capable of facing a gold level opponent.”
“But rescuing Lan Zao from the enemy ranks? That difficulty is on an entirely
different level from fighting a gold level alone, isn't it?”
“What worries me more is Lan Zao's reaction...”
The dragonman youngster cut her off: “No, I trust Lan Zao!”
Zi Di immediately added: "I trust him too! That's precisely why I'm more
concerned."
“My Lord, imagine this: if Lan Zao sees you charging recklessly into danger,
how do you think he'll react?”
“He's your most steadfast follower. His heart must be filled with worry for
you.”
"He'll believe he's the one dragging you down. If it weren't for saving him,
you wouldn't be in this perilous situation."
“So, once you're in mortal peril, what do you think he'll do?”
The dragonman youngster's heart lurched as the most likely outcome flashed
through his mind.
His voice heavy, he replied to Zi Di, “By then, even if Lan Zao hasn't revealed
himself, he'll throw himself into battle. He'll seek death in combat, so I
won't risk my life to rescue him again.”
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, a faint smile curved Zi Di's lips. “Precisely
so, my Lord!”
“Damn it.” The dragonman youngster clenched his fists, his heart filled with
both urgency and helplessness.
He knew his own limitations.
Although he had slain Teng Dong Lang, the final blow remained unclear.
He understood that even if he created chaos and an opportunity to rescue
others, he would inevitably face a siege and find himself in dire straits.
Lan Zao would most likely choose to “sacrifice” himself.
“What should I do?” The dragonman youngster felt utterly at a loss.
He stood rooted to the spot, scanning the battlefield with furrowed brows, his
mind racing.
Suddenly, a flash of insight struck him. He spun around sharply; his gaze fixed
on the magician tower at the dock.
He contacted Zi Di again, his voice brimming with excitement: "The magician
tower hasn't attacked the Bayonet Gang members still lingering at sea. They
pose little threat. The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord intends to use them to delay
the Divine Wind Pirates!"
The dragonman youngster revealed the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's plan.
Since the Divine Wind Pirates hadn't immediately departed but remained at sea
to retrieve more Bayonet Gang members, there was still a chance.
The dragonman youngster continued his analysis: "The city Lord had already
reported his achievement in crushing the Bayonet Gang. This unexpected turn of
events means that if the gang ringleaders escape, that achievement will be
severely diminished."
“Since he hasn't resorted to slaughtering these ordinary gang members in a fit
of rage, but is instead stalling for time, he must be devising a plan.”
Zi Di immediately signaled her agreement with the dragonman youngster's
assessment.
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, growing increasingly composed.
He was no longer the person he once was. His experiences in Snow Bird Harbor
had forged him into a more capable leader.
He had learned to leverage power and momentum.
He had used the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's influence against the Bayonet Gang
before—why couldn't he do the same now?
They were partners, and their collaboration had always been pleasant. More
crucially, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord should be even more desperate than he
was!
The dragonman youngster immediately used his communication device to contact
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. After a moment's deliberation, he spoke in a
voice thick with unchecked fury: "City Lord! Are we just going to stand by and
watch? Watch these damned pirates whisk away all these gang criminals?"
“They destroyed my flagship. My losses are catastrophic.”
“We can't let them escape!”
Yet the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's response caught the dragonman youngster
off guard.
“I'm afraid we have no choice,” the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said gravely.
“Why?” the dragonman youngster pressed immediately.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord admitted frankly, “Because of Feng Lian.”
“This human is no ordinary man. His combat prowess is formidable, far
surpassing my own.”
"Pirates active near Ice Sculpture Island have all been battle-hardened. Our
nation once dispatched a saint level expert to eliminate the Divine Wind
Pirates but failed."
“What?” The dragonman youngster gasped, "Could Feng Lian possibly match a saint
level expert?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord chuckled, "Of course not.”
“A gold level who can rival a saint? The difficulty is astronomical—virtually
impossible.”
“Back then, our saint finally cornered the Divine Wind Pirates and struck
directly, executing a decapitation tactic against Feng Lian.”
“Feng Lian abandoned ship to escape, drawing our saint away from the naval
battlefield.”
“In the end, he escaped gravely wounded, and most of the pirates aboard the
Divine Wind and other ships also managed to flee.”
"After that battle, our nation elevated the threat level of the Divine Wind
Pirates. We won't act unless absolutely necessary."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, “As for Feng Lian himself, he is
exceptionally cool-headed and cautious.”
“He rarely takes unnecessary risks.”
"He also knows when to be pragmatic, likely a lesson learned from the saint.
Since that battle, the Divine Wind Pirates have become far more restrained
under his leadership."
“They'll scarcely raid our merchant ships anymore, instead targeting other
foreign vessels.”
“Let's be honest—I'd never risk a sea battle against him.”
“Because I'd likely be cut down by him!”
The dragonman youngster fell silent.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's candid words shook him to the core.
The dragonman youngster had witnessed the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's battle
firsthand.
He weighed the comparison in his mind: based on what he knew, the Snow Bird
Harbor Lord's combat prowess was at least on par with Teng Dong Lang's.
If one disregarded any hidden trump cards the Snow Bird Harbor Lord might
possess, their fighting abilities were comparable.
Of course, it was highly probable that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's combat
prowess surpassed Teng Dong Lang's.
The reason was simple.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had launched a lightning-swift operation to wipe
out the Bayonet Gang, clearly targeting Teng Dong Lang.
Ultimately, since he had the confidence to lead his forces in surrounding the
Snow Bird Arena, he must have been confident in suppressing Teng Dong Lang.
Yet this very gold level battle qi cultivator had directly warned the dragonman
youngster that facing Feng Lian could cost him his life!
Feng Lian's strength was thus evident.
More and more gang members were being ferried aboard pirate ships like the
Divine Wind.
Bayonet Gang members were overcome with gratitude toward the Divine Wind
Pirates.
Many gang members instinctively gathered with familiar faces, some even sobbing
uncontrollably.
Lan Zao grew increasingly anxious.
As an outsider, he had no gang members he knew personally.
The longer this dragged on, the more isolated he appeared, the greater he stood
out.
His only relief was that the dragonman youngster remained stationary, not
rashly attacking this location.
“He must be waiting for my reaction.”
“I have to do something to save myself!”
"Even if I die, it'd be a waste to go down like this. At least I'll put up a
fight."
With that resolve, Lan Zao sprang into action.
Fueled by rage, he tried to persuade Spring Boxer to fire on Snow Bird Harbor's
docks.
Spring Boxer shook his head in refusal: “Rescue our own people first. Firing
now would provoke the patrol fleet into launching a massacre against our
men—that would be disastrous!”
Bing Xiao soothed him: “Rest assured, one day we will exact our revenge.”
Seeing Lan Zao's face twisted with hatred and his eagerness for vengeance, Bing
Xiao felt deeply gratified.
He'd witnessed parts of Lan Zao's earlier battles and recognized his fearless,
fierce combat style.
More importantly, the indomitable spirit Lan Zao displayed deeply impressed
Bing Xiao.
He surveyed the Bayonet Gang members before him. After being rescued, they'd
all lost their nerve—some were even weeping openly. Even several ringleaders
had gone quiet.
Only Lan Zao stood alone, vowing to fire back and counterattack.
The contrast was stark.
Bing Xiao turned to Lan Zao and asked with interest, “Kid, what's your name?
Which leader do you serve under?”
Lan Zao dared not answer that question. Instead, he pressed, “Former gang
leader, now that we've saved these people, can we fire the cannons?”
“We'll evacuate immediately,” the Divine Wind's first mate interjected upon
hearing the exchange.
"Why?" Lan Zao's eyes widened.
He'd been hoping for a fight as it would be his chance to slip away.
The first mate sneered at Lan Zao, "Bronze level kid, don't get too cocky.”
“You lot owe your survival to our captain's authority.”
“If the magician tower decides to slaughter you, how many of you think you
could swim to our ship?”
"The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hasn't given the order to attack, so we can't
fire. This is the long-standing understanding between our group and the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom!"
“Be grateful we saved your lot.”
“Do you really expect us to bombard one of the eight harbors, shatter this
understanding, and provoke the Ice Sculpture Kingdom into directing its full
fury against our pirate crew?”
Lan Zao was stunned.
Reality often felt ironic and absurd.
Who could have imagined the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and a pirate group reaching
such an unspoken understanding?
At least Lan Zao hadn't.
The highest position he'd ever held was merely boatswain on a merchant ship.
His standing was too low.
Yet, upon reflection.
Behind this absurd reality lay a delicate coexistence born of mutual
apprehension.
The Divine Wind Pirates' strength couldn't compare to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's, but the kingdom also avoided direct confrontation.
Surrounded by sea on all sides, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom possessed an
excessively long coastline. Should the Divine Wind Pirates ever become
desperate and launch a full-scale retaliation, it would cause immense trouble
for the kingdom.
Yet after Feng Lian's successful escape from the kingdom's saint, the Divine
Wind Pirates gained the standing necessary to forge this tacit understanding
with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
He proved himself much like how the dragonman youngster killed Teng Dong Lang.
This was the world of transcendents.
This was the world of the strong.



****** Chapter 378: Secret Operation ******
Snow Bird Harbor Dock.
The chaotic battle had calmed considerably.
The situation was now clear: both the Divine Wind Pirates and Snow Bird Harbor
had exercised restraint, preventing the conflict from escalating further.
The dragonman youngster remained rooted to the spot for a moment, gazing at the
Divine Wind and other pirate ships. His gaze was solemn, his expression
impassive.
The tacit understanding between the Divine Wind Pirates and Snow Bird Harbor's
Lord was something the dragonman youngster hadn't anticipated.
But after communicating with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the dragonman
youngster grasped this layer of understanding.
Only then did he realize his earlier misunderstanding—the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord had genuinely chosen a conservative strategy, refraining from rash
attacks.
Upon careful reflection, the dragonman youngster found the city Lord's approach
entirely reasonable.
Recalling the Snow Bird Harbor Lord's modus operandi, he was adept at patience
and restraint, using that time to prepare relentlessly. Once those preparations
were complete, he would strike without hesitation. When he moved, it was with
devastating force.
Conversely, the fact that the Snow Bird Harbor Lord exercised such restraint
spoke volumes about the Divine Wind Pirates' formidable strength.
“Feng Lian... even a saint level powerhouse couldn't touch you?” the dragonman
youngster sighed inwardly.
Gold level existences were rulers of a territory.
Saint level existences were pillars of the nation!
The entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom boasted only three saints.
Legend level powerhouses were even more formidable, possessing strength capable
of toppling nations and wielding immense influence.
Take the War Merchant, for instance. He controlled the majority of the global
arms market, stirring up conflicts everywhere, manipulating smaller nations at
his whim.
“Compared to these powerhouses, I'm still far too weak.”
“If borrowing power fails, there's nothing I can do.”
“Therefore, the true foundation lies in one's own strength!”
The dragonman youngster craved power even more intensely.
But alas, a battle qi cultivator's cultivation could never be achieved
overnight.
Though his innate talent was exceptional, it still demanded time and immense
dedication to transform potential into tangible strength.
His current battle qi cultivation was merely silver level—not even a hint of
gold luster had appeared yet.
“Zi Di, given the current situation, we need to adjust our plan.” Gathering his
composure, the dragonman youngster contacted Zi Di.
She showed no surprise. Knowing him well, she understood he would never give up
easily. Not even the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's refusal to fight could deter
him.
Zi Di felt both helpless and reassured.
The dragonman youngster's unwavering commitment to never abandon any member had
never changed.
He was the most reliable leader imaginable.
It was precisely this quality that earned him the survivors' unwavering trust.
No one but the dragonman youngster could fill the role of their leader.
Before the dragonman youngster could speak again, Zi Di took the initiative:
"We must spare no effort to rescue Lan Zao. But we also need to reach the
capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom as soon as possible."
“We've wasted time at Snow Bird Harbor, and we still haven't determined why we
couldn't receive replies from Two Eyes Island.”
“Time is running out for us.”
“Only by contacting the Empire's higher-ups as soon as possible and atoning for
our sins can we secure a stable environment for development.”
Zi Di emphasized the survivors' most crucial mission.
The dragonman youngster sighed, feeling torn.
The situation with Lan Zao was urgent. Without a quick rescue, he risked
discovery and execution.
Contacting the Empire was even more critical—it determined the survival and
future of all survivors.
After a moment of deep thought, the dragonman youngster declared, “It seems we
must split our forces.”
“Zi Di, you know the Wisteria store best. Only you and Fei She should go.
Besides, no one else is qualified for this task.”
"Therefore, you must proceed to the royal capital next. Take my alchemy puppet,
disguised as me. After meeting up with Zong Ge, depart Snow Bird Harbor
immediately."
"Regarding securing the potion market share, leave that to Bu Quan. Hand over
our magic medicine bath tubs and such to her as well, increasing her
production. As for the three newly joined silver level alchemists, keep Zhong
Yong aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish. The other two should assist too."
“I, meanwhile, will pilot the Deep Sea Monster Fish, tracking beneath the sea
in search of an opportunity to rescue Lan Zao.”
Zi Di's brows furrowed deeply.
Truthfully, she yearned to accompany the dragonman youngster on this mission.
She was profoundly concerned about his safety throughout this journey.
But there was no choice.
The dragonman youngster's arrangements had been meticulously planned, with
personnel assigned logically.
Setting aside emotional considerations, this plan was nearly flawless when
viewed rationally.
Zi Di had considered refusing and hesitated briefly, but ultimately chose to
support the dragonman youngster, just as she had on Mystifying Monster Island.
“I understand. Please take every precaution!”
“If the situation becomes untenable, do not force the issue.”
“Even if Lan Zao were to sacrifice himself, he would never want to see you
endangered because of him.”
"If you were to fall, I could not live on alone. The rest of us would crumble.
No one could replace your leadership. Zong Ge falls far short of you—he lacks
the authority to command our loyalty."
The dragonman youngster nodded slightly, sensing the profound care in Zi Di's
words.
A wave of warmth washed over him. "I understand. You must stay safe too!"
However, just as the dragonman youngster sought an opportunity to dive into the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, an envoy arrived bearing an invitation from the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord. Important matters demanded his presence.
The dragonman youngster glanced at the pirate ship in the distance, still
receiving members of the Bayonet Gang. He thought: This is also my chance to
bid farewell to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
So, he went.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord welcomed the dragonman youngster's arrival.
“Commander Long Fu, first I must apologize to you.”
“This time, the Bayonet Gang's escape caused losses to your group—it was my
fault.”
“I can compensate for part of those losses.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's apology and offer of compensation softened
much of the dragonman youngster's anger.
“Thank you, City Lord,” the dragonman youngster replied immediately.
He then sighed, "My flagship still requires your assistance to be repaired.
Since I acquired it, it has never sustained such severe damage."
“Many of my men were also killed or wounded.”
“I must take revenge!”
“City Lord, are we truly to stand by and watch the pirate ships carry away
these remnants of the Bayonet Gang?”
“We've sworn mortal enmity with them. If they return to seek vengeance, it'll
be impossible to guard against.”
The dragonman youngster persisted in his efforts, attempting to persuade the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Feng Lian to engage in combat.
He was anxious for Lan Zao but couldn't voice it plainly.
To rescue a mere bronze level boatswain?
That justification wouldn't hold water.
In truth, Lan Zao's greatest vulnerability lay in the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord's hands.
His magician tower recorded every detail of the battlefield.
The magic footage showed Lan Zao setting sail from the Love Triangle and
embarking on a campaign of conquest. This was irrefutable proof of Lan Zao's
identity.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head, patting the dragonman youngster
on the shoulder, "I am the Lord of this city, its ruler.”
“Even if these ringleaders escaped, I've eradicated the Bayonet Gang—an
achievement no previous Lord ever accomplished. My merit remains undeniable.”
"After my term ends, with some maneuvering, my position might even rise higher
than it is now. Why would I risk it all?"
“There's no need to lock horns with Feng Lian's crew.”
“Commander Long Fu, your situation mirrors mine.” You've already made a name
for yourself, and your talent is truly remarkable. Why not preserve your
valuable life, actively grow, and build up your strength?"
“Don't let the blind fury of revenge cloud your judgment.”
The dragonman youngster's efforts had failed, only to be met with the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord's earnest and heartfelt advice.
The dragonman youngster's face darkened, yet the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
words held undeniable truth.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, “I invited you here tonight to share
some good news.”
“The ship you purchased has arrived.”
“It's a silver level magic ship—a military vessel from our nation that was
‘retired early’.”
“I believe it will make an excellent flagship!”
Upon hearing this, a thought flashed through the dragonman youngster's mind:
Could this silver level magic ship be used to pursue the Divine Wind Pirates?
He immediately shook his head inwardly, dismissing this impractical notion.
Since his final effort had failed, the dragonman youngster exchanged a few
polite words with the city Lord before formally taking his leave.
The city Lord showed no surprise.
He understood: the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a mission to expand their
market, and heading to the capital was the most crucial step in that endeavor.
After the dragonman youngster departed, an unfamiliar voice sounded through the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's communication device.
"If Long Fu seeks revenge, why not let him go? He can serve as cannon fodder
for us."
Throughout their earlier conversation, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
communicator remained active.
He shook his head, "I deliberately let those ringleaders go precisely to plant
spies.”
“I never imagined that right after planting them, we'd reel in a big fish like
Feng Lian!”
"Hehe."
“This is the Divine Wind Pirates, after all.”
"Truthfully, I never intended to target them. But fate had it that you were the
ones transporting that decommissioned warship."
“This matter must remain strictly confidential.”
“Before the official operation, Feng Lian must not catch wind of anything.”
“Long Fu... Their origins are unclear. They don't deserve our trust yet.”
On the Divine Wind.
“Kid.” Bing Xiao patted Lan Zao's shoulder, "You saved me back on that rocket
assault boat.”
“So, what reward do you want?”
Bing Xiao gradually relaxed.
Most of the gang members had boarded the ship, and Snow Bird Harbor's threats
had proven to be all bark and no bite.
Lan Zao glanced at Bing Xiao, thinking: How about your life?
But those words were absolutely forbidden to utter.
At least not now.
Just as Lan Zao was about to respond, a gang member suddenly shouted: “Old gang
leader, he's a traitor!”
“I saw it with my own eyes—he killed Lao Dong!”



****** Chapter 379: Buying a Silver Level Warship ******
On the Divine Wind, someone publicly pointed out that Lan Zao had also killed
members of the Bayonet Gang.
Lan Zao's heart sank, but his expression remained unchanged.
He had anticipated this situation, though he hadn't expected it to happen so
soon.
“Looks like my cover's blown!”
“Should I go all out now and kill Bing Xiao?”
Lan Zao instinctively glanced at Bing Xiao.
Bing Xiao had been watching him the entire time.
When Lan Zao was accused of killing the Bayonet Gang member, Bing Xiao remained
expressionless.
But when he caught Lan Zao's gaze, Bing Xiao gave a slight nod.
“Why are you nodding?”
“Want me to act faster?”
“Damn it... Taking Bing Xiao out now is nearly impossible.”
Lan Zao gritted his teeth inwardly, failing to grasp the meaning behind Bing
Xiao's nod.
Now, countless eyes were fixed on him, every move scrutinized.
Lan Zao knew that at this moment, he could rely only on himself.
He didn't give up. He stood tall, his gaze icy as he glanced at the gang
members accusing him, his attitude dripping with contempt.
“Today, I did kill quite a few people.”
“Even if I killed them, so what?”
“Daring to stand in my way—they asked for death!”
Lan Zao's expression was unyielding.
“You...” The accuser seethed, “You killed your own men! The gang rules are
clear—you must pay with your life!”
Lan Zao snorted coldly, folding his arms across his chest in a posture of utter
disdain.
Such arrogance incensed many of the gang members present.
Bing Xiao remained silent, instead turning his gaze toward the human
ringleader.
Among the remaining three faction ringleaders, Xiong Ju was a fierce fighter,
Spring Boxer was too young, and only the human ringleader, seasoned and astute,
could grasp Bing Xiao's intent from a single glance or nod.
The human ringleader immediately smiled, defending Lan Zao: “The rules do
forbid internecine conflict, but accidental killing by someone unaware is
understandable.”
"Lord?" The gang member who had accused Lan Zao froze in shock, "Won't your
words make us lose faith?”
The human ringleader merely smiled.
Lan Zao snorted coldly, “You're talking nonsense. I don't buy it. In that
chaotic battlefield just now, there was no accidental killing of our own
people!”
“I witnessed several instances of comrades slaughtering each other when
fighting over ships.”
“If you seek vengeance against me, then come! Right here—we settle this in a
duel!”
Lan Zao blustered through his lies, intent on eliminating any witnesses.
The accuser was merely a commoner, naturally too afraid to confront the bronze
level Lan Zao.
His eyes darted nervously, unable to accept Lan Zao’s challenge. Instead, he
glanced toward the nearby iron level battle qi cultivator.
The iron level battle qi cultivator, also a gang member, sighed and stepped
forward. “You killed Lao Dong, yet you challenge an ordinary person to a duel?
Isn’t that going too far?”
“I accept this duel.”
Lan Zao laughed heartily, “As if I'd fear you.”
Before he finished speaking, he drew his curved blade and lunged at the iron
level battle qi cultivator.
Caught off guard, the iron level battle qi cultivator scrambled backward.
But the deck was crowded, leaving no room to evade. Lan Zao closed the distance
in a few strides, landing several slashes.
The iron level battle qi cultivator urgently summoned his defensive battle qi,
rolling repeatedly across the deck.
Surrounding pirates and gang members scattered to avoid the chaos, allowing the
iron level battle qi cultivator to roll toward the mast.
His skin was torn open, blood streaming freely, but it was only flesh wounds.
Rage surged within him as he seethed with hatred toward Lan Zao, bellowing,
“You cowardly scoundrel! How dare you ambush me!!”
Lan Zao inwardly lamented the missed opportunity. That had been his finest
moment, yet his own cultivation was too low and his condition too weak. He'd
pushed himself to the limit but still failed to take down the iron level battle
qi cultivator.
“You were the one who challenged me to a duel! How is that a sneak attack?” Lan
Zao bellowed, "Die!”
He lunged at the iron level battle qi cultivator once more.
The iron level battle qi cultivator sneered savagely. Caught off guard before,
he was now prepared and immediately counterattacked.
But in the next instant, Bing Xiao suddenly appeared between them. With a
double push of his palms, he sent both battle qi cultivators crashing to the
ground.
“Have you had enough?”
“You were just saved, and already tearing each other apart? Then you might as
well die right here on the dock—at least you'll get to take a few enemies down
with you!"
Bing Xiao growled, his face darkening.
“Old gang leader...” The iron level battle qi cultivator dared not move, crying
out in protest, “This guy has no honor in combat! He ambushed me—look what he
did to me!”
Covered in blood, the iron level battle qi cultivator had been about to
retaliate when Bing Xiao stopped him, leaving him seething with frustration.
Lan Zao glared at the iron level battle qi cultivator, continuing his
provocation: “Your worthless trash! If I were at your cultivation level, you'd
be dead already!”
His sole aim was to escalate the situation, spark chaos, and divert everyone's
attention.
“Enough! Keep arguing, and I'll toss both of you overboard,” Bing Xiao barked
coldly.
The iron level battle qi cultivator had no choice but to shut up.
But Lan Zao's mind stirred.
Throw me overboard?
Perfect!
He immediately shouted, "Coward! If you've got the guts, keep fighting! Jump
off the ship! Let's battle in the water!"
Everyone stared at Lan Zao in shock.
This bronze level battle qi cultivator was far too reckless. Even with the old
gang leader intervening, he still dared to rant on?
'You're the weaker party here! Do you really need to be this bold?'
The iron level battle qi cultivator gritted his teeth in fury.
The human ringleader snorted coldly, pointing at Lan Zao, "You brat, you'd
better know your place.”
Bing Xiao also looked at Lan Zao, softening his tone to soothe him, "Alright,
calm down.”
The iron level battle qi cultivator glanced at Bing Xiao, thinking: Old gang
leader, could you please not make such an obvious distinction in your tone and
attitude toward us two?
Lan Zao couldn't care less about such things. He was preoccupied with thoughts
of being thrown overboard.
This chance to escape had unexpectedly been handed to him on a silver platter.
Naturally, Lan Zao seized it with all his might.
But just as he was about to continue his rant, darkness suddenly engulfed his
vision. He lost consciousness, collapsing onto the deck and passing out.
Everyone was startled.
Bing Xiao rushed over to check on him.
He first confirmed Lan Zao was still breathing and breathed a sigh of relief.
But when he touched Lan Zao's forehead, it was scorching hot.
Bing Xiao immediately called out to Feng Lian for help: “Lord Feng Lian...”
Feng Lian nodded and barked, “Summon all ship's doctors to tend to the
wounded!”
The three pirate ships led by the Divine Wind, having docked for over half an
hour to evacuate all the Bayonet Gang members, finally sailed away leisurely.
As they departed, the magician tower unleashed several purple lightning bolts
that exploded behind the Divine Wind and the other ships, seemingly declaring
they had done their utmost but were hindered by insufficient range.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had his own plans, while the dragonman youngster
had already begun his covert operation.
He used an alchemy puppet disguised as himself, while he personally piloted the
Deep Sea Monster Fish, secretly departing from the ocean depths to trail the
Divine Wind.
That night.
A small fleet entered Snow Bird Harbor's dock.
Among them was the decommissioned warship purchased by the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Zi Di and the alchemy puppet disguised as the dragonman youngster boarded this
vessel.
The warship was entirely white, measuring 112 meters in length with an average
width of 31 meters. Its hull was nearly twice the size of the Deep Sea Monster
Fish.
Two masts stood: the central mainmast and the aft mast.
The lookout towers atop these masts were meticulously engineered alchemy
assemblies—the mainmast housing a silver level spellcasting platform, the aft
mast an iron level long-range firing platform.
The mainmast bore square sails, while the aft mast carried triangular sails.
74361
The warship boasted 74 gunports: 36 on each side of the hull, and one each at
the bow and stern.
The cannons in these gunports were all common items—not a single bronze level
one among them.
In fact, the same applies to the sails.
Originally, the warship's sails were all silver level, and its cannons were all
alchemy cannons. However, these components had been dismantled and either
repurposed for new warships or used as military supplies.
The primary subject of the transaction was this warship itself.
The alchemy components within the warship primarily comprised four elements:
The Grand Seal Kinetic Reactor, the Ice Elemental Magic Pool, the Cold City
Armor, and the Snow Honey Energy Storage Tank.
After thorough inspection, Zi Di and the 'dragonman youngster' formed their
assessment.
“The Grand Seal Kinetic Reactor is an enhanced version of the Seal Kinetic
Reactor. The latter is used in assault ships, emphasizing acceleration, but its
performance in top speed, endurance, and energy consumption is mediocre.”
"The Ice Elemental Magic Pool has considerable capacity, specifically
converting ice elements into magic power. The advantage of such specialized
elemental magic pools lies in their higher conversion efficiency for a single
element."
"The Snow Honey Energy Storage Tank is for attrition. ‘Snow honey’ is a
peculiar resource. Humans can consume it, not only to satisfy hunger but also
to replenish battle qi. Additionally, it can be used for ships—deploying them
into magic pools can also convert them into magic power, though the conversion
rate is lower than that of ice elements."
Zi Di now possessed extensive intelligence on the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Snow honey wasn't considered a specialty resource, but due to its high
practical value, it became standard equipment for the kingdom's army and navy
long ago.
"Among the four primary alchemy components, the most valuable is undoubtedly
the Cold City Armor. This alchemy technology represents the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's third-generation military innovation, consistently demonstrating
stable performance on the battlefield. Primarily providing physical defense, it
is rarely sold separately on the market."
Beyond that, the platforms for spellcasting and archery on the two masts were
also alchemy components, though secondary and easily removable.
In truth, they functioned as battlefield consumables.
Zi Di gradually grasped the vessel's tactical role.
“Snow elf warships only have 74 gun ports—far too few for a ship of this size.”
“They rely primarily on onboard magicians for long-range assault.”
“For us, it's actually not very suitable.”
“First, replace all the standard cannons. Then purchase two wind sails—at least
iron level.”
“Could we use this ship to pursue the Divine Wind Pirates?”
A thought flashed through Zi Di's mind.
But she dismissed it immediately.
A mercenary crew would need time to familiarize themselves with an unfamiliar
warship before unleashing its full potential.
Installing gold level cannons would consume significant labor hours.
At least they now possessed a silver level magic ship. The Cold City Armor
could safeguard the gold level cannons, preventing them from being easily
destroyed by enemies as before.
Yet Zi Di felt little joy over acquiring the new ship.
Her thoughts were occupied by the dragonman youngster: “Ah, I wonder how things
are going over there?”
Indeed, trouble had struck the dragonman youngster's side.
He had followed the Divine Wind and the other ships until midnight.
Suddenly, a fleet appeared and successfully ambushed the Divine Wind and two
other pirate ships!



****** Chapter 380: Ice Sculpture Navy vs Divine Wind Pirates ******
This ambush came far too suddenly.
Fifteen warships seemed to materialize out of thin air!
The dragonman youngster was utterly stunned by this unexpected turn of events.
Prior to this, the Deep Sea Monster Fish had detected nothing.
“This ambushing fleet possesses highly advanced stealth capabilities!” the
dragonman youngster thought to himself.
Even he had been caught off guard, let alone the pirates of the Divine Wind
Pirates.
In truth, since departing Snow Bird Harbor, they had pushed their speed to near
maximum.
By midnight, having reached a safe distance from Snow Bird Harbor, the first
mate ordered a reduction to normal cruising speed. The weary crew was slipping
into complacency.
At that very moment, a hail of cannonballs struck!
The Divine Wind Pirates suffered a devastating blow.
“Enemy attack!” The lookout on the crow's nest shrieked, but it was too late.
Fortunately, the Divine Wind Pirates had their own defenses.
As a barrage of cannonballs descended, the sails of all three pirate ships
burst into brilliant light.
One by one, the sails swiftly detached from their ropes, drifting into the air
before rapidly unfurling and spreading to form multiple layers of protective
domes.
Shells struck the dome canopies, triggering violent explosions.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Amid the deafening barrage, the protective domes were torn layer by layer, yet
they had bought the Divine Wind Pirates crucial reaction time.
"What kind of sails are these? Do they actually have defensive capabilities?"
The dragonman youngster piloted the Deep Sea Monster Fish, concealed deep
beneath the ocean's surface, camouflaged as a motionless reef.
It was his first encounter with sails possessing such defensive capabilities.
Curiosity piqued, he couldn't help but draw parallels to his own mercenary
corps.
“These sails hold significant tactical value. If we could acquire them, perhaps
we could equip our own ships.”
The sudden ambush left the dragonman youngster both startled and conflicted, a
mix of delight and apprehension.
He'd been agonizing over the lack of opportunity to rescue Lan Zao.
Then, tracking them into the night, his chance arrived.
Yet he also worried: “Lan Zao, you must hide deeper. Don't let this naval
battle cost you your life.”
Gaining a moment's respite, the Divine Wind Pirates fully activated their
defenses.
Whirlwinds swept in, intercepting the follow-up cannon fire.
Seeing their cannons ineffective, the ambushing warships immediately began
casting spells.
In an instant, magic fluctuations surged everywhere, stirring the elements
across the battlefield.
“Who on earth is attacking us?”
“These magic fluctuations... the enemy has at least a hundred magicians!”
"Wait, that emblem belongs to the Li Jian clan!
“Damn it, they're the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet!”
The dragonman youngster was unfamiliar with noble crests, but the Divine Wind
Pirates, who'd dealt extensively with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, knew them
inside out.
The pirates instantly identified the enemy from their naval ensign.
Their shouts were picked up by the Deep Sea Monster Fish and carried to the
dragonman youngster's ears.
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet?”
“But why are all their ships so small?”
This question echoed among the pirates as well.
The Second Naval Fleet vessels present looked vastly different from what they
remembered.
Feng Lian spoke up: “Looks like these are the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's latest
warship designs.”
Fifteen new warships encircled the three pirate vessels at the center.
Each warship was crowded with magicians on deck, chanting spells.
These were regular military troops, even more elite than the magic teams at
Snow Bird Harbor.
Feng Lian wouldn't sit idly by. He immediately maneuvered the Divine Wind and
led the other two pirate ships in a breakout attempt.
The Divine Wind surged forward with fierce momentum, but barely had it broken
through when it encountered an obstruction.
Though its path ahead held nothing but open sea, the space before it suddenly
thickened and hardened, like an invisible wall blocking the three ships.
“Kong Pan!” Feng Lian frowned slightly, uttering a name.
Within the new warship, a gold level magician stood with her eyes closed,
sustaining a spell.
She was an elderly female snow elf, her hair streaked with gray, and her face
deeply lined with wrinkles.
Unlike most snow elves, she was not thin, in fact, she was quite plump.
This was Kong Pan, the second-in-command of the Li Jian clan and concurrently
the captain of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet!
Kong Pan Li Jian stood with her eyes slightly closed, holding a magic artifact
in both hands.
This artifact resembled an empty white dinner plate.
This was her primary spellcasting artifact, enabling her to lock down a
specific spatial area.
It was indeed Kong Pan's spellcasting that caused the battlefield space to
warp, temporarily trapping the three ships of the Divine Wind Pirates.
“The best way to break a spatial spell is to kill the caster!” Feng Lian made
his decision, gripped his scythe, and immediately soared into the air.
The space suppressed him, an invisible pressure attempting to force him back
down to the deck, but Feng Lian resisted.
He first ordered a full-scale reconnaissance to pinpoint Kong Pan's location
before casting a detection spell himself.
The dragonman youngster discerned the situation: “There's a powerful magician
aboard the warship who cast a spatial spell.”
“But the caster's exact location remains undetermined.”
“Is this the magician's doing, or the protective measures of these warships?”
Sensing Feng Lian's intent to cast a detection spell, the kingdom’s navy
immediately dispatched assassins.
A gold level battle qi cultivator flashed forward, wielding a slender sword
aimed at Feng Lian's head.
Clang.
A sharp ring echoed as sparks flew.
Feng Lian's scythe successfully parried the gold level battle qi cultivator's
slender blade.
The gold battle qi cultivator smiled faintly, flew backward, and vanished once
more.
“Yue Qian...” Feng Lian's brow furrowed even deeper.
Yue Qian was also a member of the Li Jian clan, the most outstanding talent the
clan had produced in recent years.
His vanishing and reappearing weren't due to invisibility spells or speed
exceeding visual perception—he was directly traversing space.
The Li Jian clan was the proud owner of the Inner World bloodline, renowned for
its spatial prowess.
Building upon this foundation, generations of the Li Jian clan had sought out,
developed, refined, and perfected meditation techniques and battle qi
techniques specifically tailored to this bloodline.
Yue Qian's battle qi technique, the Sky Leap Art, stood as the most classic
example.
Feng Lian declared loudly, “Kong Pan and Yue Qian are both here. I presume
‘Sand Between Fingers’ is here as well?”
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a woman's voice echoed across the
battlefield: “Feng Lian, we were testing a new warship when we received an
urgent military report stating you were harassing Snow Bird Harbor.”
“How amusing. You dare raid one of the kingdom's eight major harbors with only
three ships?”
“Tonight, you shall willingly surrender your life.”
Feng Lian snorted coldly: “Even if all three gold level commanders of the
Second Fleet arrived here, it would be useless.”
“Even the saint couldn't capture me. What good are more gold level ships?”
“I haven't plundered Snow Bird Harbor. I haven't even fired a single shot.”
“If you insist on forcing the issue, you'll bear the consequences.”
“If you can't kill me here, I will unleash my full vengeance upon the entire
kingdom!”
Such threats plunged 'Sand Between Fingers' into silence.
Even Yue Qian vanished from sight.
But soon, Kong Pan's voice echoed across the battlefield: “Feng Lian, there's
no need for false bravado.”
“Had I not set up this magic formation, you could come and go as you pleased.”
"But now, this battlefield is sealed by my spell. You are a turtle in a bottle,
a bird in a cage—no longer able to soar."
“Surrender peacefully, and I may spare your life and those of your men.”
Negotiations had failed.
Feng Lian snorted coldly and lunged toward the nearest warship.
When Kong Pan spoke earlier, he had detected a faint magic fluctuation.
Like the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Feng Lian was also a dual cultivator of
magic and battle qi, possessing profound mastery of wind-element spells.
Feng Lian threw himself into battle with full force, his scythe sharp and
exposed. With each swing of his scythe, he unleashed waves of blood and
carnage.
He effortlessly slaughtered most of the personnel on the warship's deck.
But these were regular navy troops after all—their morale remained high, and
they fought to the death without retreating.
Feng Lian didn't engage them in prolonged combat. He charged deep into the
ship, then swiftly flew back out.
He had lunged at nothing.
It was a trap. An alchemy device inside the ship had mimicked Kong Pan's magic
aura, causing Feng Lian to misjudge the situation.
It was a trap. An alchemy device inside the ship had mimicked Kong Pan's magic
aura, causing Feng Lian to misjudge the situation.
Yue Qian stormed the Divine Wind, unleashing his own storm of carnage.
He moved with ghostly agility. Even when surrounded, he could effortlessly slip
into the gaps between space or directly traverse dimensions to appear far away.
Seeing this, Feng Lian had no choice but to return to reinforce his ship.
There was no alternative. He commanded only three vessels, while the navy
fielded fifteen.
The enemy vastly outnumbered the Divine Wind Pirates.
Thus, even though his slaughter was more efficient than Yue Qian's, such a
trade-off in manpower was untenable.
As Feng Lian returned, Yue Qian vanished in a flash.
“The navy's tactics are working.”
“Yue Qian probably can't defeat Feng Lian, but just by employing this tactic,
he's tied up Feng Lian and prevented heavy casualties on the navy's side.”
The dragonman youngster watched the battle, absorbing and learning as he
observed.
He was still biding his time.
For now, the pirate ship hadn't descended into chaos, and no opportunity for
rescue had presented itself.
What troubled the dragonman youngster was that the pirates were already on high
alert, with even the Bayonet Gang members actively preparing for battle.
But the dragonman youngster saw no sign of Lan Zao.
“Even if he's only bronze level, in this situation, a low level transcendent is
still a reliable combat asset.”
“Where has Lan Zao gone?”
“Could it be that he's been discovered and imprisoned?”
In a solitary cabin.
Lan Zao lay on the bed, fast asleep.
His bloodline was frantically reshaping his body, triggering relentless fever
and excruciating pain throughout his frame.
Even in slumber, Lan Zao's brow remained furrowed in agony.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Scythes and slender blades clashed, producing shrill, metallic screeches.
Yue Qian fought Feng Lian with all his might.
The sailors aboard the warship finally completed their incantations. Countless
spells poured down like a torrential downpour onto the pirate ship.
“Hahahaha!” The first mate of the Divine Wind laughed heartily at the sight,
"Let me show you the new toy we've acquired!”
Alchemy component—Anti-Counter Cyclone Eye.
The bow cannon fired straight upward.
The projectile was a gold level eyeball.
Spinning wildly in midair, it formed a miniature tornado within a second or
two.
The vortex enveloped the Divine Wind, sucking in all surrounding magic attacks.
The navy's second wave of assault was thus neutralized!



****** Chapter 381: Sand Between Fingers ******
The tornado absorbed nearly all the magic attacks, swelling to several times
its original size and bursting into a myriad of colors.
Witnessing this spectacle, the dragonman youngster gained a profound
understanding of the Divine Wind Pirates' formidable strength.
“To operate as pirates near Ice Sculpture Island, this crew possesses power
beyond the ordinary.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is a maritime power renowned for its magic and
alchemy. The Divine Wind Pirates excel at defensive magic and likely possess
countermeasures against alchemy devices too.”
“Yet judging by the Ice Sculpture Navy's earlier large-scale magic assault,
they clearly didn't anticipate the pirates having such capabilities.”
The dragonman youngster observed the battle, drawing lessons from the unfolding
events.
When the ambushing navy first appeared, the dragonman youngster had assumed the
Divine Wind Pirates, outnumbered and caught off guard, would be overwhelmed.
Yet they executed two outstanding offensive and defensive maneuvers.
The battle continued to shift.
The tornado began to move slowly.
It shifted from above the Divine Wind, turning toward the naval vessels.
Originally surrounded by a barrel-shaped wind barrier formed by the tornado,
the Divine Wind now risked its hull piercing through this barrier as it
shifted.
The tornado had absorbed a massive amount of magic attacks, and the force of
these assaults was far from dissipating. For the Divine Wind to pass through,
it would inevitably endure another barrage of magic attacks.
Yet the next scene once again surpassed the dragonman youngster's
expectations—and those of the entire naval force.
Beneath the tornado, magic power was being drawn upward by a powerful
gravitational force.
Originally thick at both ends and narrow in the middle, the tornado now bulged
at its center, tapering slightly at the top and bottom. Most crucially, while
the middle and upper sections still swirled with vibrant, multicolored magic
power, the lower portion had transformed into a pale blue, pure wind.
“What kind of alchemy technique is this, capable of channeling magic power to
such an extent!” Kong Pan couldn't help but reveal a look of astonishment.
They relied on their new warship, while the Divine Wind Pirates brought out a
trump card they had been hiding all along.
The Divine Wind pierced through the wind barrier. Throughout the process, it
was merely suppressed by the raging winds, causing its draft to deepen
slightly.
Pirates on deck had obeyed orders to lie prone or dive below deck in advance.
After the Divine Wind broke through the wind barrier, the pirates rose to their
feet—although some remained pressed down, coughing up blood.
The next instant, healing light enveloped these stricken figures.
Soon, they too were back on their feet, full of life.
Seeing this, the dragonman youngster's pupils narrowed slightly: “Divine
spell?”
The vast majority of the Divine Wind Pirates worshipped the Sea Wind God. The
ship carried priests of the Sea Wind God.
Though their numbers were scarce, their presence made all the difference!
Clergy almost invariably possessed healing abilities.
On the battlefield, timely divine healing spells served not only their curative
purpose but also wielded immense power to boost morale and steady nerves!
The Divine Wind broke free from the tornado's obstruction. Its movement
gradually accelerated as it charged toward the naval forces.
During its shift, the tornado resumed its characteristic shape—thick at both
ends and narrow in the middle—while its multicolored magic power once again
spread across its lower section.
It resembled a dancer in a puffy skirt, first lifting the multicolored hem
slightly before letting it fall again
The navy immediately deployed magic to intercept the tornado.
But the magic assault was once more absorbed and swallowed by the tornado, only
strengthening its destructive force.
"I see it! There's a core within the tornado—it's the orb the pirates just
released. Destroy that, and we destroy the tornado." At the critical moment,
Yue Qian returned to the naval warship.
His left eye was covered by a circular lens.
One of the primary functions of this gold level artifact was magic vision,
allowing Yue Qian to see through the core of most spells.
Once Yue Qian identified the core, he could strike it directly, shattering the
magic with his slender sword.
“Cease magic attacks on the tornado!” Upon receiving Yue Qian's critical
intelligence, Kong Pan immediately issued the order, “Deploy the breaching
shells!”
“But sir, our ship isn't equipped with such ammunition.”
Kong Pan was slightly taken aback.
Their primary mission this time was to test the operational effectiveness of
the new warship.
Transporting the “decommissioned warship” to Snow Bird Harbor was merely a side
job.
One of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's influential connections was the Li Jian
clan.
Naturally, a test deployment wouldn't carry a large supply of ammunition.
Before the Second Naval Fleet set sail, they never anticipated ambushing the
Divine Wind Pirates here.
Thus, their military preparations were far from adequate.
Moreover, breaching shells like these were designed for storming fortified
positions. Their utility in naval warfare is extremely limited—they're only
stockpiled in large quantities when planning to bombard ports with warship
artillery.
Yue Qian declared, "My glasses have locked onto that alchemy artifact. It's a
pity Yun Zhong didn't join us. Otherwise, with my help, a single arrow could
pierce this thing."
“Let me handle it.”
The slender sword in Yue Qian's hand glowed with a faint radiance.
Elven bloodlines were renowned for producing archers and magicians.
Snow elves shared this trait.
Yet when it comes to specific lineages, differences emerge.
The Li Jian clan, bearing the Inner World bloodline, has long lacked
outstanding archers of their own. They boasted many close combatants and
spatial magicians.
But for archers, they had to recruit talent from outside.
Yun Zhong was currently the most renowned archer in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Yet Yun Zhong, with his free-spirited nature, had declined the Li Jian clan's
lavish recruitment offer.
Yue Qian was about to tear open a spatial rift and charge directly into the
tornado when 'Sand Between Fingers' spoke up to halt him: “Hold on a moment.
Let me make a prediction first.”
Sand Between Fingers was not a name, but a title.
This female magician resided aboard another warship, shielded from detection by
its protective wards that concealed all magic activity.
Sand Between Fingers possessed blue eyes and crimson, wavy hair. Her elven ears
were adorned with soft, orange-yellow fur.
Her skin wasn't the typical snow-white of pure snow elves, but rather a warm,
wheat-like hue.
She wasn't a pure-blooded snow elf, but a hybrid of snow elf and foxman.
Sand Between Fingers plucked a small handful of sand from a blue pouch at her
slender waist.
She raised her hand, continuously rubbing her fingers together as the sand
slowly drifted down before her eyes.
This was the time sand, a rare magic ingredient.
Sand Between Fingers used it as the primary material for her spell.
The grains drifted down through the air, shimmering with a faint white glow.
The light twisted, forming ripples like swirling mist.
Through the mist, Sand Between Fingers glimpsed the unfolding battle.
Her expression shifted, "Yue Qian, don't strike it! I see it—this eyeball can
self-detonate. When it explodes, it activates a spatial anchor, locking down
the surrounding area."
“It's a trap. If you go in, you'll be gravely injured if not killed!”
Yue Qian's expression darkened, and he immediately abandoned his attack plan.
“I'll just harass Feng Lian instead.”
“Be careful,” Kong Pan cautioned, “Feng Lian is very powerful, stronger than
you. Don't get too entangled in battle.”
After issuing the warning, Kong Pan spurred Sand Between Fingers onward: "Well
done, San Sha Man Tuo. You've just earned a merit. Can you contain this
tornado?"
San Sha Man Tuo was Sand Between Fingers' real name. Clearly, she wasn't a
member of the Li Jian clan but had been recruited.
If Yun Zhong agreed to join them, his role within the Second Navy would be
similar to San Sha Man Tuo's.
San Sha Man Tuo nodded, "I can do it, but it will consume a great deal of time
sand.”
Kong Pan immediately replied, "It doesn't matter. All materials expended will
be reimbursed—never less than what was used. The Li Jian clan never
shortchanges its own."
Having received the assurance she sought, San Sha Man Tuo sprang into action.
She released over a dozen alchemy hummingbirds, which swiftly flew toward the
tornado.
They plunged directly into the vortex, each detonating to scatter vast
quantities of time sand.
San Sha Man Tuo seized the moment to cast her spell. The time magic took effect
swiftly.
The tornado's rotational speed and movement both slowed dramatically.
“Time magic?!”
“It must be that Sand Between Fingers casting it.”
The dragonman youngster stared in astonishment.
Time magic was exceptionally rare, even more so than spatial magic.
Yet now, the dragonman youngster witnessed it firsthand.
Beyond broadening his horizons, it filled him with awe: “The Ice Sculpture
Kingdom truly lives up to its reputation as an elven kingdom—even time
magicians exist here.”
On the surface, the tornado appeared to slow down, but in reality, the flow of
time within it had become sluggish.
Feng Lian watched this scene unfold, his expression growing grave.
Truthfully, among the three commanders of the Second Fleet, it wasn't Kong Pan
or Yue Qian he feared most—it was San Sha Man Tuo.
If he were struck by such a time spell during his fierce battle with Yue Qian,
causing his movements to become “sluggish,” the consequences were truly
unimaginable.
This signature time magic left Feng Lian utterly convinced that San Sha Man Tuo
was also within the navy.
Earlier, although Sand Between Fingers had spoken, he hadn't acted—there was
still a possibility it was a bluff.
The time magic completely extinguished Feng Lian's lingering hope.
“No wonder the Second Fleet had the confidence to ambush me. It's not just the
new warships—the crucial factor is that all three gold level commanders are
present!”
Feng Lian took a deep breath and shot skyward, soaring into the heavens.
He channeled his battle qi to its fullest, unleashing a terrifying aura.
“Watch out! He's going all out!” Kong Pan immediately warned.
Yue Qian sneered, eager for the fight, “Then let me see Feng Lian's true
strength!”
He vanished through the air, reappearing behind Feng Lian in an instant.
Without even turning his head, Feng Lian casually swung his arm.
The long-handled scythe sliced through the sky, forming a three-meter-long
azure wind scythe.
Yue Qian's slender sword collided with the wind scythe. The next moment, his
expression changed drastically as he was sent flying backward.
But mid-air, he vanished once more.
The dragonman youngster's expression also shifted slightly.
Feng Lian had begun to unleash his full power, and Yue Qian was no match for
him after a single strike. No wonder the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held Feng
Lian in such high regard!
The dragonman youngster sensed: “The decisive moment of this ambush has
arrived.”



****** Chapter 382: Wind Blade - Heart of Freedom ******
The dragonman youngster had seen his share of battlefields.
Summarizing these experiences, he recognized that the decisive factor in
determining the outcome of a war was the presence of peak powerhouses.
In this ambush naval battle, Feng Lian, Yue Qian, Kong Pan, and San Sha Man Tuo
were all gold level—the pinnacle of strength on the battlefield.
Undoubtedly, only the outcome of their clash would determine the battle's
result.
Feng Lian hovered high above, drew a deep breath, and disregarding his battle
qi depletion, unleashed his full power!
Battle skill—Wind Blade: Continuous Slash.
Battle skill—Wind Blade: Gigantic Slash.
Battle skill—Wind Blade: Swift Slash.
He simultaneously activated three battle skills.
He swung his long-handled scythe, each strike unleashing a wind blade.
The blades streaked through the air, rapidly enlarging until they reached over
10 meters in length!
Wave after wave of azure wind blades crashed against the resilient, transparent
spatial barrier.
With every strike, Kong Pan's face paled further.
Within mere seconds, Feng Lian had delivered over a dozen strikes, leaving Kong
Pan's complexion as pale as if struck by a severe illness.
"Quick! Stop him!" Kong Pan called for backup.
Yue Qian had already acted first, teleporting behind Feng Lian.
Feng Lian, prepared, spun instantly, his scythe slashing wildly.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Yue Qian unleashed his own battle skill, his slender sword erupting in dazzling
flashes of light.
White sword beams collided with azure wind blades, slicing through the air with
a series of shrill, metallic clangs.
Three seconds later, Yue Qian could no longer hold on.
Yet retreat was impossible. He had to buy Kong Pan time to catch her breath and
tend her wounds.
Battle skill—Five Stage: Aerial Assault!
Yue Qian retreated, vanishing into another dimension.
Instantly, he materialized beside Feng Lian, extending his slender sword.
Battle qi surged through the blade, especially its tip, sharpening it to a
blinding edge that glinted like sunlight.
Feng Lian raised his other hand, casting a spell.
A magic wind shield abruptly formed, blocking the first strike.
Yue Qian's strike missed, and he retreated into the space behind him,
vanishing.
When he reappeared, he was already behind Feng Lian.
He thrust the sword forward once more.
Feng Lian's brow furrowed.
He recognized the Aerial Assault battle skill. It wasn't exclusive to the Li
Jian clan, but a classic spatial-type attack technique, combining teleportation
and assault.
Employing this battle skill allowed the battle qi cultivator to burst through
the air, instantly materializing elsewhere. The first attack after such a
displacement carried the special effect of spatial penetration, granting it
immense destructive power.
Yue Qian's Five Stage: Aerial Assault comprised five successive positional
shifts and attacks.
Feng Lian could not simply stand by.
Yet if he became tired from defense, he would fall into the enemy's trap,
squandering precious opportunities!
Feng Lian shouted, unleashing a fourth battle skill on top of the three already
active.
Wind Blade: Chaos!
His attack speed surged fivefold in an instant as he wildly swung his scythe.
His arms and scythe blurred into countless dark shadows in the air.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Nearly a hundred wind blades erupted, unleashing a terrifying assault that
engulfed the surrounding area—above, below, and all around.
Yue Qian dared not continue his attack.
He swiftly retreated from Feng Lian using Aerial Assault, landing on a naval
warship.
"Damn it! We can't defend this place." Horror gripped him as he watched nearly
a hundred gigantic wind blades slash violently against the surrounding spatial
barrier.
Yue Qian knew Kong Pan's capabilities well. Facing such a terrifying assault,
Kong Pan simply couldn't withstand it.
However, miraculously, Kong Pan held firm.
The spatial barrier remained intact!
Feng Lian's brow furrowed deeply, and Yue Qian felt puzzled.
“I cast a delay spell!” San Sha Man Tuo's voice rang in Yue Qian's ear, “This
wave of attacks won't take effect until later.”
“I'm buffing you with this spell too. Hurry and stall Feng Lian! We can't let
him keep attacking like this!”
Sand Between Fingers' tone was urgent.
The time magic settled upon Yue Qian, causing diamond-like sparks to
occasionally flicker across his skin.
Bolstered by this newfound resilience, Yue Qian charged at Feng Lian once more.
Feng Lian, clashing with him, soon realized his attacks had no effect
whatsoever on Yue Qian.
Yue Qian fought with reckless abandon, each strike being a desperate gamble
with his life.
Though Feng Lian's strength clearly surpassed his, he struggled to counter such
relentless tactics and could only focus on defense.
Seizing this opening, Kong Pan decisively ordered the fleet to launch a full-
scale assault.
The naval fleet, which had maintained distance from the Divine Wind and other
pirate ships, immediately responded to the command. Half the vessels surged
forward like a swarm of sharks, charging toward the pirates' three ships.
The pirates fired cannons in resistance, but their efforts proved largely
ineffective.
As the navy's new warships closed in for collision, the first mate activated
two alchemy components in succession.
The first component coalesced a massive chain of azure air currents between the
three pirate ships.
The chain fused the three pirate vessels into a single entity.
The second alchemy component unleashed a violent gale that swept outward,
forming a constantly expanding wind barrier.
The naval warships were all pushed back by the barrier.
But the navy had anticipated this.
Both alchemy components had been exposed long ago, and the navy possessed this
intelligence.
After closing the distance, they began deploying their troops.
Propelled by the warships' teleportation devices, the squad materialized
directly onto the decks of the three pirate ships.
The Avalanche Squad thus revealed itself to the dragonman youngster's gaze.
This was the most renowned battle squad of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Its members were almost exclusively composed of snow elves.
Though snow elves were typically slender and tall, the Avalanche Squad members
were each “ball-like in their plumpness.”
This was due to their peculiar alchemy armor, known as Snowball Armor.
Once equipped and activated, this full-body armor caused the snow elves'
surfaces to absorb surrounding frost elements, enveloping them and transforming
them into snowmen.
Consequently, Avalanche Squad members stood over 2 meters tall, with waists as
thick as barrels, resembling miniature giants.
The pirates launched a coordinated assault on these blue-and-white snowmen, but
the Snowball Armor proved exceptionally thick. Their attacks barely made a
dent, at most chipping away flakes of snow.
The moment the assault paused or weakened, the snowmen's surfaces rapidly
regenerated.
The Snowball Armor was also self-repairing equipment.
The Avalanche Squad charged across the deck. Some rolled through arrows and
blades, crushing pirates beneath them. Others formed snowballs and hurled them
indiscriminately. Wherever a snowball struck, it froze into human-sized blocks
of ice, sealing sails, ropes, and cannon barrels.
Though the pirate ship had silver level members, no Avalanche Squad member fell
despite their relentless, death-defying assaults.
Their coordination was flawless.
Whenever a member's Snowball Armor was worn down to its limit, nearby teammates
immediately reinforced them, transferring ice elements from their own bodies.
The reinforced squad member's armor regeneration spiked severalfold. Within
seconds, fully restored, they were back in action!
Such defense left the pirates despairing.
The Avalanche Squad rampaged through the ship, some launching assaults on the
cabins to stir up even greater chaos.
“The moment has come!” Seeing this, the dragonman youngster sprang into action.
He slipped away from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, diving silently all the way
into the Divine Wind.
Before his operation, he'd employed the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell to disguise himself as one of the pirates.
The utter chaos made his infiltration remarkably smooth
He chose not to disguise himself as a snowman for two reasons: frequent squad
training had made members highly familiar with each other, and transforming
into a snowman would inevitably draw the pirates' attacks.
The dragonman youngster probed the ship's hold, searching for Lan Zao, when his
alchemy device sounded an alarm.
After his departure, the tower spirit took control of the ship.
The tower spirit informed the dragonman youngster that a large fleet of ships
had appeared at the edge of the battlefield, charging straight toward them.
“It's our people!” the pirate first mate shouted ecstatically.
The pirates' morale soared.
The main force of the Divine Wind Pirates arrived in timely support.
They inserted themselves into the fray, activating their alchemy components.
Chains of wind linked the pirate ships together, coalescing into a surge of
azure wind that surged toward the Divine Wind.
The blue wind was halted by the spatial barrier.
Feng Lian snorted coldly, gripping the scythe with both hands for the first
time. He straightened his arms and raised it above his head.
Wind Blade: Great Slash!
Swish.
A faint sound echoed as a hundred-meter-long wind blade sliced through the air.
Kong Pan's heart raced with warning: “This attack must not be met head-on! Even
with time magic to delay its impact, I'd still be doomed!”
She had no choice but to cancel the spell.
Without the spatial barrier, the azure wind currents surged toward the Divine
Wind, rapidly coalescing into a massive, thick wind chain.
Two more wind chains connected the Divine Wind to the other two pirate ships.
The chains sprang into action, pulling all three vessels outward.
Even without their sails, the immense pulling force propelled the pirates to
terrifying speeds.
The dragonman youngster, still searching for Lan Zao in the hold, was caught
off guard. The sudden movement of the Divine Wind nearly knocked him off
balance, threatening to send him tumbling.
“They can't escape!” Kong Pan barked out the order, “Avalanche Squad, activate
the snow giant!”
The Avalanche Squad members immediately gathered in one spot, piling atop each
other to form a pyramid-shaped human tower.
Ice and snow elements swiftly spread across their armor, coalescing into a
unified force.
Through the combined effect of their battle skills, they merged into a snow
giant over ten meters tall.
The colossal snowman delivered a brutal shove, snapping the Divine Wind's main
mast.
Another stomp crushed a gaping hole through the deck.
Just as the snow giant prepared to unleash further fury, Feng Lian flashed into
position above its head.
Yue Qian appeared in time to intercept Feng Lian.
Without so much as a glance, Feng Lian remained impassive as he unleashed his
trump card battle skill.
Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom!
Closing his eyes, he exhaled a breath toward his scythe.
A shadowy human form materialized from his body, dragging a phantom scythe. It
sliced lightly straight ahead.
A small, emerald-green wind qi swirled out—no more than 30 centimeters long. It
stood in stark contrast to the earlier terrifying, raging giant wind blade.
Yue Qian's eyes widened in shock as he sensed the scent of death within that
breeze.
He scrambled to retreat through the air, returning to the warship in the next
instant.
“How...?” He hadn't evaded the attack. Horrified, he watched as a strand of
emerald wind qi burrowed into his chest.
The emerald wind qi split into strands, seeping into the snowball giant's body.
The snowball giant disintegrated, leaving countless casualties among the squad
members.
One strand of wind qi drifted below deck, reaching the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster smashed through the hull and plunged into the sea.
The wind, deceptively swift, pierced his back.
The dragonman youngster's body convulsed violently, then went limp. Eyes wide
with fury, he sank to the ocean floor.
Boom!
The Divine Wind's speed erupted fully. Dragged by the massive wind chain, the
entire ship leapt half a meter above the sea surface.
The next instant, the Divine Wind plunged back into the ocean, churning up a
massive wave.
Towing the other two battered ships, it successfully broke through the
encirclement and sped away.



****** Chapter 383: A Traitor’s Communication Device ******
Deploying the kingdom’s newest warships, they executed a flawless ambush. Three
gold level commanders besieged Feng Lian alone. Yet the losers of this naval
battle were none other than the Ice Sculpture Kingdom Navy’s Second Fleet!
Watching the Divine Wind Pirates sail away triumphantly, the naval officers
fell silent.
Kong Pan and the other two commanders gathered together, each wearing an
extremely grim expression. This outcome differed drastically from their initial
expectations!
Suddenly, Kong Pan coughed up a mouthful of blood.
The time was nearing. Feng Lian’s attack would soon manifest its effects on
Kong Pan’s body.
“Feng Lian... this man hid his true strength deeply. His actual combat power
far exceeds what intelligence reported,” Kong Pan gritted out, her voice icy.
“My situation is even worse. I can barely hold on!” Yue Qian's face was the
palest. His voice trembled as he explained to the other two how he had been
struck by Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom.
Kong Pan's expression shifted slightly. She immediately examined Yue Qian's
condition alongside Sand Between Fingers.
Both of them then revealed a hint of horror.
"Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom... Feng Lian used this battle skill during his
battle against our nation's saint. To think its power has grown to such an
extent by now!"
Sand Between Fingers gasped, "The time magic I cast on you is rapidly fading!
I've never encountered such a situation."
Knowing his end was near, Yue Qian cast a wavering glance toward Kong Pan.
Kong Pan was his elder and the de facto leader of the Li Jian clan. Yue Qian,
meanwhile, was the foremost figure among the Li Jian clan's rising generation.
Kong Pan would never stand by and let Yue Qian die!
Yue Qian was the pillar of the clan's future—he had already proven himself. His
death would deal a devastating blow to the Li Jian clan. Not only would morale
plummet, but they would also lose crucial future support.
The Li Jian clan boasted three gold level powerhouses among its core members.
Kong Pan and the current clan leader were both gold level, though advanced in
age.
Should they pass away, the clan would rely on Yue Qian to hold it together.
As for outsiders like Sand Between Fingers, they were merely recruited
additions, a nice bonus, but not a crucial reliance.
Without hesitation, Kong Pan set aside her own injuries and threw herself into
aiding Yue Qian.
“Don't panic! Stay calm!”
“I'll cast a spell to strengthen your defenses.”
"San Sha Man Tuo, can you still cast a delay spell for Yue Qian? We need time
now!"
“Of course!” Sand Between Fingers answered without hesitation, "I can buff him
three more times, but after that, my primary spell component—time sand—will be
depleted. Without this crucial material, I cannot cast spells."
“Excellent.” Kong Pan nodded, "The clan will replenish your consumed time sand
afterward. Regardless of Yue Qian's survival, your contribution will be duly
recorded."
Yue Qian was speechless, his gaze toward Kong Pan tinged with a hint of
resentment.
The situation was urgent; Kong Pan had no time to tend to Yue Qian's emotions.
He was already an adult.
Kong Pan ordered the fleet to sail at full speed toward Snow Bird Harbor, while
directing the accompanying clergy to gather around Yue Qian.
Time slipped away rapidly, each second an agonizing torment for Yue Qian.
Soon, San Sha Man Tuo cast spells repeatedly until the time sand reserves fell
below the threshold for another incantation.
Yue Qian entered the meditation chamber.
As the delay spell neared exhaustion, he had already unleashed every defensive
battle skill at his command.
Moreover, several gold level defensive artifacts stood guard over him.
Kong Pan strained to bolster his defenses.
Ten of the most powerful clergymen—some sustaining defensive spells, others
casting healing magic—all channeled their power into Yue Qian.
“Come on!” Yue Qian roared, rallying himself, “I refuse to believe I can't hold
out like this!”
The next instant, the delay spell vanished completely.
The full might of Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom erupted.
Despite being bathed in radiant light, Yue Qian's eyes rolled back as he
collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
Dead.
Plop.
Kong Pan coughed up another mouthful of blood.
All ten clergymen collapsed, each suffering varying degrees of backlash.
“Lord Kong Pan!” Sand Between Fingers, who had pushed her limits casting
spells, rushed to support the captain.
Kong Pan gritted her teeth, her face twisted with dread, "This battle skill
doesn't just use battle qi. Ordinary gold level cultivators would die
instantly. Feng Lian... truly a terrifying individual..."
Regaining her footing with effort, Kong Pan asked Sand Between Fingers, “How
far are we from Snow Bird Harbor now?”
“Only five nautical miles,” San Sha Man Tuo replied immediately.
“Excellent,” Kong Pan chuckled, “Though we failed, Yue Qian can still live!”
The Second Naval Fleet practically charged into Snow Bird Harbor's dock.
The Snow Bird Harbor Lord had received the communication long ago and prepared
everything in advance.
Before the warship docked, he and the Sea Bird Bishop hurriedly leapt aboard
and entered the meditation chamber.
"I entrust this to you, Bishop! If you revive Yue Qian, you shall be the most
honored guest of the Li Jian clan!" Kong Pan's expression was solemn as she
pledged her promise.
The Sea Bird Bishop bowed respectfully, his tone humble: “All is by the grace
and power of our Lord!”
Though also a gold level, his standing within the kingdom clearly paled beside
that of Kong Pan, captain of the Second Naval Fleet.
The bishop's reply was masterfully crafted, avoiding any bold guarantees of
success.
Whether failure or triumph, all was the will of the Sea Bird God.
Fortunately, the Sea Bird Bishop's resurrection spell succeeded.
Yue Qian slowly opened his eyes. His gaze remained vacant for a moment before
clearing.
“I died?”
“Yes. The Sea Bird Bishop revived you.”
Yue Qian hastily rose to express his gratitude. His face was deathly pale; his
relief mingled with profound dread.
Kong Pan exhaled a heavy breath. As her guard dropped, darkness instantly
clouded her vision, nearly causing her to collapse on the spot.
The others rushed to aid her, casting healing spells that alleviated some of
her condition, though she remained listless.
Though unharmed physically, her spirit was utterly drained. The previous naval
battle had exhausted both her mental fortitude and magic reserves.
“I never imagined Feng Lian's strength could be so formidable!” The Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord spoke with a heavy tone, observing the three gold level naval
commanders in such a battered state.
Kong Pan glanced at him and cautioned, "Feng Lian's intellect is also
extraordinary. Given his cautious nature, he will surely realize there's a mole
among the pirates. You must be prepared."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's face darkened once more. He nodded slightly
and said nothing further.
Over at the Divine Wind Pirates.
The pirates cheered and rejoiced at their escape.
Feng Lian gathered his first mate and other subordinates for a discussion.
Bing Xiao was among them.
Feng Lian scanned the group, "The navy's new warships excel at stealth, but
their ability to ambush us in advance means they knew our movements.”
“Such precision is highly unusual.”
The first mate's eyes widened, "Captain, are you saying we have a mole among
us?”
Feng Lian nodded, looking at Bing Xiao, "Highly likely.”
Bing Xiao's heart sank abruptly.
Sure enough, the next moment, the pirate captains all shot him malicious
glances.
The pirates naturally trusted their own men, but the Bayonet Gang members had
only just boarded the ship—there was no foundation for trust.
The first mate spoke with a sinister edge: “Lord Bing Xiao, what do you suggest
we do?”
“A thorough investigation—a complete investigation!” Bing Xiao roared the words
without hesitation, his face twisted with fury, displaying an uncompromising
stance against the traitor.
Feng Lian forced a thin smile: "Not just the Bayonet Gang—we must search
ourselves too. Secure everyone first, then strip-search them one by one. I need
to find the tracking device!"
In the recent battle, Feng Lian had single-handedly taken on three foes,
displaying formidable prowess.
Within his own pirate crew, he held supreme authority.
Thus, his command was obeyed without question.
Pirates scoured every nook and cranny of the three ships, conducting thorough
body searches on everyone.
Bayonet Gang members were herded onto the deck. Even Lan Zao, who had been
lying unconscious in the hold, was dragged out.
“Commander, we found an alchemy communication device!!! We seized it from the
Bayonet Gang," the pirate reported excitedly.
Bing Xiao's expression instantly turned grim.
Alchemy communication devices commanded a hefty price tag—ordinary gang members
wouldn't invest heavily in acquiring one.
Even if they once owned one, for this voyage to flee the port, they'd likely
sell it cheaply to acquire more useful weapons or vessels.
Such a device almost certainly marked the traitor.
Bing Xiao demanded immediately, “Who is it?”
The pirate shook his head, “I don't know his name, but Lord Bing Xiao should
recognize him.”
Feng Lian sneered coldly, pushing open the captain's cabin door, "Come. Let's
go see for ourselves.”
Bing Xiao hurried to follow.



****** Chapter 384: Acting As Long Fu? ******
The pirate fleet plowed through the waves.
On the Divine Wind, fresh sails were already unfurled.
On deck, members of the Bayonet Gang huddled together, surrounded by pirates
radiating murderous intent.
Feng Lian, Bing Xiao, and others approached the Bayonet Gang members.
Two pirates escorted a captured gang member.
“Captain, the device was found on him.”
“Kneel!”
A pirate kicked the prisoner's knee from behind, forcing him to the ground.
Bing Xiao's brow furrowed instantly upon recognizing the man, "Mu Si, you
betrayed us?”
The gang member named Mu Si looked at Bing Xiao with a complex expression. His
lips moved, but no words came out.
Bing Xiao turned his gaze to Feng Lian.
Feng Lian was examining the alchemy device in his hand.
This communication device had been retrieved from Mu Si's stomach.
After analysis, it was confirmed not only to provide real-time location
tracking but also long-range communication capabilities.
The location it tracked was Mu Si's precise personal position.
The moment Mu Si boarded the Divine Wind; the ship's positioning data was
exposed.
Feng Lian shifted his gaze from the alchemy device to Mu Si but quickly turned
it back to Bing Xiao.
“Bing Xiao, what's your take?” Feng Lian's tone was flat.
Bing Xiao weighed his words carefully before replying gravely, “Mu Si is an
iron level veteran member of the gang. He's a compulsive gambler with no spare
funds. It's impossible he'd purchase such an alchemy device without cause.”
“This alchemy device is compact and can be concealed within the body. It's
clearly a specialized tool for espionage.”
“The evidence is sufficient.”
“He is the traitor!”
Bing Xiao paused before continuing, “Lord Feng Lian, the entire Bayonet Gang is
eternally grateful for your personal assistance in our rescue.”
“Now, with a traitor within our ranks who nearly compromised your mission, I
feel profoundly ashamed.”
“We will compensate you—specifically, double the gold promised for this
mission. Is that acceptable?”
“As for this damned traitor, we leave his fate entirely to your discretion!”
"As for us... simply drop us off on any inhabited island nearby. We can build
our own boat and continue our journey."
Feng Lian was somewhat surprised: “Seems you hold deep loyalty to your gang.”
Bing Xiao's face was grim as he shook his head: "We failed. Precisely because
of that, we must hold fast to our principles! If we abandon everything now, we
become utter failures. Even the dead Teng Dong Lang would look down on us."
“Hmm...” Feng Lian was about to speak when an abrupt change occurred.
Mu Si suddenly began bleeding from the corner of his mouth.
Soon, purple poisonous blood flowed from his eyes, ears, and nostrils.
Within two breaths, his entire complexion turned purplish-black, and all signs
of life vanished.
“What the hell did you do?!” The first mate roared, his eyes blazing as he
glared at the two pirates escorting the prisoner.
The pirates shouted back in panic, “Impossible!”
“We clearly suppressed him with our battle qi! He couldn't resist at all.”
“There's no device on him either—you personally inspected him with the ship's
alchemy components, First Mate!”
Feng Lian channeled his battle qi.
Golden battle qi swiftly extended, seeping into the purplish-black corpse.
When Feng Lian withdrew it, his battle qi had turned purple.
He severed the connection immediately, letting the contaminated purple qi
dissipate.
“That's potent poison—even golden battle qi gets corrupted.”
“This isn't your fault.”
"This traitor ingested poison before the mission. Now that the time has come,
the toxin killed him!"
Feng Lian uncovered the truth.
The two escorting pirates instantly relaxed as if pardoned, flattering Feng
Lian in relief.
The first mate glared, "He took poison before the operation? Was he a willing
sacrificial fighter, or a forced unlucky bastard?"
Feng Lian remained silent, scanning the room instead.
The rest of the gang members were as quiet as mice, their faces showing fear
and confusion.
Their expressions showed no flaw.
Feng Lian fell deep in thought: “We've found one mole, but are there others?”
Whether Mu Si was a willing sacrificial fighter or a forced victim, he had died
from the poison.
The ruthless decisiveness displayed by whoever planned this operation was
chilling.
Feng Lian leaned toward the belief that another traitor existed!
“Mu Si ingested poison before the operation, yet there was no trace of an
antidote on his person.”
"The antidote must be held by another mole. With the antidote, this mole could
effectively control Mu Si."
"If Mu Si died suddenly from the poison without receiving the antidote, it
would inevitably create a suspicious case and draw investigation. Therefore, if
I were the one orchestrating the mole's infiltration, I would never make such a
foolish arrangement."
"Of course, if the mastermind merely intended to deploy a disposable mole—a
sacrificial pawn to serve the earlier naval ambush—then a poison-induced death
would be entirely reasonable."
Feng Lian turned his gaze to Bing Xiao.
Bing Xiao looked deeply troubled.
The two exchanged a glance, each understanding the other's deepest concern.
Bing Xiao had grasped this truth even before Feng Lian's inquiry.
It was highly probable that other traitors lurked within the gang!
Yet Bing Xiao used carefully measured words to present Feng Lian with his
choice: to lead the Bayonet Gang members away.
The Bayonet Gang was already in shambles.
If Feng Lian insisted on investigating, it would become the final blow to crush
the gang.
An internal investigation was far more terrifying than an external enemy
attack. It would spark mutual suspicion and distrust among the members, causing
the group to completely disintegrate.
As the former leader of the gang, Bing Xiao understood very well what the real
crisis facing the Bayonet Gang was.
Traitors?
They might exist, or they might not.
But for now, in the greater scheme of the Bayonet Gang, it was a matter that
could be set aside.
What brought Bing Xiao relief was that after a moment's thought, Feng Lian gave
him a slight nod, "Then so be it.”
“We'll drop you off at Flower Skirt Island.”
“Be careful on your journey!”
Bing Xiao bowed deeply, expressing his gratitude solemnly: “Thank you, Lord!”
When Zong Ge led the fleet back to Snow Bird Harbor, the docks were still
bustling with personnel cleaning up the battlefield.
Broken planks were cleared away, bodies recovered and burned in a mass pyre.
Patrol ships maintained vigilant watch, circling the harbor with tenfold
intensity.
“How could this happen...” Zong Ge grasped the full extent of the situation
upon seeing Zi Di.
The half beastman snorted coldly, "He actually went after them alone!”
The target of the accusation was, of course, the dragonman youngster.
Seeing her beloved blamed, Zi Di felt displeased.
She shot Zong Ge a glance and remarked, “In hindsight, the commander's decision
to pursue them was wise.”
“Who could have predicted the navy would ambush the Divine Wind Pirates?”
“From the intelligence we gathered, the navy suffered defeat. But the commander
likely rescued Lan Zao amidst the chaotic naval battle.”
The navy's arrival at Snow Bird Harbor had caused such a commotion that Zi Di
was initially alarmed and uncertain.
After gathering more intelligence, however, Zi Di began to feel hopeful.
Zong Ge shook his head, his expression grim.
"You had intelligence before the operation began. The Divine Wind's speed
surpasses even the Deep Sea Monster Fish. What good would tracking it do?"
“The navy ambushing the Divine Wind Pirates was pure coincidence!”
“More crucially, he acted alone... That's not how a leader should behave.”
Zong Ge voiced his deep dissatisfaction with the dragonman youngster.
He drew a sharp breath, his face clouded with worry, “The navy suffered
defeat—this was the Second Fleet of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“Three gold level cultivators besieged Feng Lian, yet they were soundly
crushed. One was even killed outright, only surviving by the grace of
resurrection magic.”
“Judging by this battle, Feng Lian must possess peak gold level combat prowess,
potentially even rivaling the saint level—like the Empire's gold level peak
experts, Long Jia, Gang Duo, and Ge Si Rui.”
"Feng Lian once fled for his life from the saint's pursuit. This intelligence
led the kingdom's navy to misjudge the situation. This was one of the primary
factors in the navy's defeat."
“I'm deeply concerned for him now.”
“If he acts amidst the chaos, operating under Feng Lian's watchful eye—even
with the Deceptive Disguise spell—the risks are immense.”
“Did he mention when he'd return?”
Zi Di shook her head, "No. Such agreements hold no meaning. The commander can
only act according to the situation."
“No, it absolutely holds meaning!” Zong Ge declared firmly, “Setting a time
limit means that when it expires, he should at least realize he ought to
return!”
“Abandoning Lan Zao is the wisest choice.”
“Though he escaped the Mystifying Monster Island with us as a comrade, he
remains only bronze level.”
“Sacrificing our leader and the Deep Sea Monster Fish for him would be the
worst, most foolish mistake imaginable.”
“You know what worries me even more now?”
“I fear he failed to get what he wanted in the chaos yet refuses to give up. He
might still be tailing the Divine Wind Pirates!”
Zi Di's heart skipped a beat, her anxiety intensifying.
Based on her understanding of the dragonman youngster, success might be
manageable, but failure would likely mean he’d pursue them relentlessly, just
as Zong Ge had warned!
Zi Di regretted, “I should have set a time limit with him.”
"Saying that now won’t change anything. We can only wait." Zong Ge sighed
deeply, utterly exhausted.
Just then, a subordinate reported that the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had
dispatched a messenger, inviting the dragonman youngster to an audience.
“This is troublesome,” Zong Ge frowned deeply, "The alchemy puppet disguised as
the commander might suffice for minor engagements. But it can't replace him in
negotiations with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord."
“Why would the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly invite him at this time?”
“Could it be related to that naval force?”
“Perhaps trouble from Bu Quan has resurfaced?”
Zi Di stood up and said, “No need to panic. We have a plan.”
“Before he departed, he discussed the plan with me.”
"Our strategy may require splitting our forces. To prevent unforeseen
complications during this operation, before his departure, he entrusted me with
the Deceptive Disguise Formation and some pearl bubbles."
“Now, it's your turn.”
Zong Ge paused, taken aback: “You want me to impersonate him?”



****** Chapter 385: The Dragonman Youngster Wakes Up ******
A moment later.
Snow Bird Harbor's city government palace.
Zong Ge and Zi Di were ushered into the study of the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
“Commander Long Fu, Magician Yao Ma, I apologize for summoning you both so
urgently,” the city lord gestured for them to take seats.
His brow furrowed with worry, yet he maintained a smile, never forsaking his
noble bearing.
He discreetly appraised Zi Di, mentally assessing: “The silver level Magician
Yao Ma, sent as backup by Long Fu's backers. Her presence here indicates her
standing within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
The truth, however, was quite another matter.
To conceal the fact that the dragonman youngster had already departed Snow Bird
Harbor, Zong Ge had to impersonate him.
But Zi Di remained uneasy, hence her accompanying presence this time.
She did not speak rashly.
At the outset of negotiations, she could not be the first to respond. It was
customary for Long Fu to respond to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, showing due
respect.
Otherwise, if the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord offered an apology and Long Fu
remained silent, leaving his subordinate Yao Ma to answer, it would be
downright arrogant!
Zong Ge nodded, “Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, thank you for your invitation.
Might I ask the reason for this meeting?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was slightly taken aback.
He keenly sensed that Long Fu's tone was different from before.
In past exchanges, the dragonman youngster had always addressed him as "city
lord". But now, he used the full title.
“It seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has suffered significant losses this
time, and Long Fu harbors a strong desire for retribution.” The Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord could not have imagined this was purely the Zong Ge
militaristic toughness.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's smile broadened slightly: “Since Commander
Long Fu is so forthright, I'll skip the pleasantries and get straight to the
point.”
“First, please view this magic projection.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord tapped the desk surface.
A three-dimensional magic projection immediately rose from the center of the
desk.
The footage played continuously, depicting the earlier scene where the Bayonet
Gang leader broke through the blockade, triggering the chaotic battle at the
docks.
Zi Di had witnessed it firsthand, but Zong Ge had not.
The magic projection instantly captured the half-beastman's attention.
His gaze was immediately drawn to the rocket assault boat, his heart racing
with excitement. He silently assessed: “This silver level magic ship is
exceptionally unique. Its speed is astonishing. Though a consumable asset, if
deployed strategically, it could prove devastatingly effective on the
battlefield.”
"Oh? It can even teleport between vessels!"
“This is the ideal transport craft for assault squads.”
"Is that the Divine Wind? A gold level magic ship, faster than the Deep Sea
Monster Fish..."
The magic projection abruptly paused as the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord extended
a finger, pointing at a specific figure within the display.
“You both recognize this individual, I presume?” The Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord's gaze grew intense.
Zong Ge and Zi Di felt their hearts sink.
The figure the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pointed at was none other than Lan
Zao!
Lan Zao's discovery was hardly surprising.
The mage tower at Snow Bird Harbor possessed formidable magic recording
capabilities.
The tower's surveillance covered nearly the entirety of Snow Bird Harbor,
especially the dock area. Back when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suffered
from the Bayonet Gang's tactics, the patrol squad conducted a search. The
patrol members had brazenly threatened the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' water
pigmen mercenaries with their portable recording devices.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord deliberately released the Bayonet Gang leaders,
allowing them to break through the blockade and spark a minor skirmish at the
docks. The mage tower, of course, had prepared in advance, meticulously
documenting the entire sequence of events.
Post-conflict, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would naturally receive a
comprehensive debriefing. His intelligence operatives swiftly detected
anomalies concerning Lan Zao.
Lan Zao had been in close proximity to Bing Xiao and others aboard the rocket
assault boat, ultimately boarding the Divine Wind alongside them.
Bing Xiao was already a key surveillance target, drawing attention to Lan Zao
by association.
Amidst the battlefield chaos, a series of coincidences led Bing Xiao to harbor
a misunderstanding about Lan Zao. But the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
subordinates had the advantage of an outsider's perspective. They could replay
magic footage, pause it for close-up analysis, and delve deeper into the
details.
Thus, they swiftly uncovered the truth—Lan Zao had intended to harm Bing Xiao,
but due to slipping footsteps and poor condition, he inadvertently ended up
aiding Bing Xiao instead.
Under normal circumstances, such a fool would be mocked and despised. Yet now,
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw exploitable value in Lan Zao.
That was why he had urgently summoned Long Fu.
“Long Fu” remained silent.
Zi Di finally seized the chance to respond: “City Lord, your insight is truly
piercing, discerning the finest details.”
“You uncovered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' scandal.”
"Indeed, this man was a mole planted by the Bayonet Gang. During the earlier
chaos, he exposed himself while rescuing Bing Xiao."
“We only learned of this ourselves moments ago.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord laughed heartily: “Magician Yao Ma, spare us the
nonsense. It only wastes our time.”
“I invited you both here for a private discussion precisely because I've
already uncovered the truth.”
"This bronze level fighter joined your mercenary group long ago on Snake Rat
Island. If the Bayonet Gang wanted to plant a mole, they wouldn't have sent him
to Snake Rat Island in advance."
"So, he stumbled into Bing Xiao's trust by accident. Now that he is within the
Divine Wind Pirates' ranks, can you contact him?"
Zi Di shook her head with a bitter smile: “City Lord, why must you expose this
little lie?”
“This outcome leaves us feeling absurd and helpless too.”
"Please forgive my earlier deception. For the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
losing a brave junior crew to enemy lines puts us in a difficult position."
"Rescue is impossible. Even the navy can't defeat the Divine Wind Pirates—let
alone us. So we've had to treat this unlucky fellow as ‘killed in action’.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded slightly, “Truth be told, I also have a
spy embedded within the Divine Wind Pirates.”
“It was precisely the specific location provided by that spy that allowed the
navy to successfully ambush the Divine Wind Pirates.”
“I never imagined Feng Lian possessed such combat prowess. Had it not been for
this unexpected turn, the leaders of the Bayonet Gang and Feng Lian himself
would already be our prisoners.”
“Barring any surprises, the spy I sent should have succumbed to poison by now,
dying a heroic death.”
"This battle has shattered the tacit understanding between our nation and the
Divine Wind Pirates. This pirate crew will undoubtedly launch fierce
retaliation against our coastal areas or merchant ships in the near future."
“Therefore, friends, can you discreetly contact your mercenary member?”
Zong Ge and Zi Di exchanged a swift glance.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's intent was clear: after sacrificing his own
spy, he sought another set of eyes.
Lan Zao from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was an ideal candidate for
development.
“No, we don't,” Zi Di shook her head again. "While our higher-ups possess
alchemy communication devices, this mercenary... he's merely bronze level, at
best a small group leader. He lacks the standing for such equipment."
“Truly none? He was the boatswain on your flagship.” The Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord had clearly conducted thorough inquiries.
“Truly not,” Zi Di shook her head again. "A bronze level boatswain could be
eliminated in a single mishap. For our corps, an iron level boatswain would be
far more suitable."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed.
Zong Ge interjected, “If we're discussing covert communication methods, would
the mercenary group's unique code markings count?”
"I suppose if he managed to conceal his identity and survive within the Divine
Wind Pirates, our corps could send someone to make contact in the future and
recruit him as a spy."
“Of course, that possibility is quite low.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pondered, "Even if the odds are slim, it's worth
a try. Regarding this collaboration, let us first formalize the agreement."
The city lord produced a magic contract.
He had been prepared for this moment.
The contract's terms centered on developing Lan Zao into a spy serving both
parties.
Zi Di scrutinized it carefully, confirming its safety.
Subsequently, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Zong Ge signed the magic
contract on the spot.
“I will edit this magic recording, destroy the original copy, and submit the
edited version to higher authorities for reporting purposes.”
“As for those privy to this matter, I will ensure they sign subsequent
confidentiality agreements.”
“Let us hope he survives—though the odds are slim.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed.
Zong Ge immediately rose, “Since the matter is settled, Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord, we must take our leave.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked slightly taken aback, “Is there an urgent
matter, Commander Long Fu?”
Zong Ge strained to soften his tone, though it remained stiff. "It is not
urgent, but there is much to discuss. As you know, we plan to depart for the
royal capital shortly."
"Then join us for tonight's banquet. I'm hosting distinguished guests from the
Li Jian Clan." The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled.
Zi Di's eyes brightened slightly: “May I ask, is it Lord Kong Pan?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord laughed heartily: "Precisely. Given our
consistently pleasant collaborations, I'll offer you a friendly tip.
Cultivating relations with the Li Jian Clan will greatly benefit both your trip
to the capital and your arms trade!"
Darkness.
A profound, unfathomable darkness.
Within this void, the youngster's consciousness gradually stirred.
“Where?”
“What is this place?”
“Where am I?”
Boundless darkness enveloped him, silent and still.
“Then... who am I?”
“Who am I?”
“What... happened to me?”
No response.
Helpless, the young man groped his way through the darkness.
He had no idea how long he wandered, nor how far he'd gone.
“What's that sound?”
The young man thought he heard voices, people calling his name.
But he couldn't make it out clearly. He moved forward, following the sound.
A faint glow began to appear in the darkness.
The light was orange.
Very faint.
Almost imperceptible, flickering in and out.
The youngster strained toward the orange glow.
The next moment, he awoke.
Before him was the familiar ceiling, gleaming with the distinctive metallic
sheen of the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“I...” The dragonman youngster found himself lying in bed. The confusion in his
eyes quickly faded, “I broke free from the wreckage, yet still got hit by a
terrifyingly powerful battle skill.”
“So... the tower spirit saved me?”
"Lan Zao! Damn it..."
“I must find a way to rescue him. I hope I wasn't unconscious for long—the
Divine Wind Pirates can't have gone far.”
The dragonman youngster cursed under his breath, leaping to his feet. He flung
open the hatch and sprinted toward the bridge.
No sooner had he stepped into the corridor than the tower spirit's deliberately
hushed voice echoed: "Captain, minimize all movement. Maintain absolute
silence. We are in an unknown perilous situation. There is a risk of complete
annihilation!"



****** Chapter 386: Saint Level Colossal Beast ******
Upon receiving the tower spirit's warning, the dragonman youngster halted
abruptly, coming to a complete stop.
Only then did he notice the dim lighting along the passageway and the eerie
silence permeating the entire Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The dragonman youngster inquired, "Tower spirit, what exactly is happening?”
The tower spirit replied, "Current ship coordinates unknown. The artifact
Mermaid Fairy Tale has shown abnormal activity. Estimated teleportation
probability: 99%. Probability of being trapped in a super-large illusion: 0.8%.
Other possibilities: 0.2%. Captain, I recommend you consult the navigation
log."
The Deep Sea Monster Fish's navigation logs existed in multiple formats,
recording nearly every moment.
The dragonman youngster tiptoed to the bridge.
Standing before the alchemy control panel, he swiftly accessed the logs.
He discovered he had been unconscious for only a short time—just a few hours.
“What happened while I was unconscious?”
The magic projection began playing.
He witnessed Feng Lian's fierce battle against three gold level opponents.
This scene had naturally been recorded by the Deep Sea Monster Fish, but the
dragonman youngster, trapped inside the Divine Wind at the time, remained
unaware.
“Feng Lian's combat prowess is astonishing!”
“So that was Feng Lian's attack...”
The young man soon witnessed himself breaching the Divine Wind's hull and
plunging into the sea.
Yet in the next instant, a faint blue wind pursued him, seeping into his body.
The dragonman youngster felt his body convulse violently, then all life left
him.
His form slowly sank into the depths, but soon, the Deep Sea Monster Fish
dispatched deep-sea salvagers to retrieve the motionless youngster aboard their
vessel.
Throughout this process, a crimson glow began to flicker across the dragonman
youngster's body.
“Had the Bloodcore activated?” the dragonman youngster's heart pounded
violently.
He knew this glow all too well.
"So that means I was nearly killed. The Bloodcore activated, repairing the
organs destroyed within me.
“This mysterious alchemy artifact can actually activate on its own?”
“Did it sense its host's life-threatening crisis and trigger itself?”
The dragonman youngster had sensed it when that wisp of breeze swept by.
But since it happened aboard the Divine Wind, the magic projection from the
Deep Sea Monster Fish didn't capture that moment.
Still, the dragonman youngster remembered that breeze vividly!
For when he infiltrated the Divine Wind, he wore alchemy goggles.
This alchemy artifact was gifted to the dragonman youngster by Bu Quan. It
could detect threats and mark their severity with different colors.
This treasure proved remarkably practical, offering significant assistance
during the dragonman youngster's battle against Teng Dong Lang.
Naturally, the dragonman youngster wouldn't abandon such a practical alchemy
tool for this infiltration.
Of course, like the Grand Arena Medal and the Golden Silk Chainmail, it had
been enchanted with Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive
Disguise spell.
A wisp of breeze, seemingly insignificant, yet in the dragonman youngster's
vision, it glowed a deep, almost black purple!
The threat levels marked on the goggles ranged from white (lowest) to green,
yellow, red, and purple (highest).
Purple signified the highest level, indicating combat power far surpassing the
user's own. Retreat was the paramount recommendation.
That wisp of breeze wasn't merely purple—it was a deep, almost black purple.
Thus, the moment the dragonman youngster detected it, he fled without
hesitation, breaking through the ship's hull.
Yet he still couldn't evade the strike.
“Without the Bloodcore, I'd be dead!” the dragonman youngster shuddered in the
aftershock.
After being carried back aboard, the yellow crab alchemy puppet rushed over.
Extending its crab-like legs, it examined the dragonman youngster thoroughly
and delivered his diagnosis.
After receiving minimal treatment, the dragonman youngster was sent to the
captain's cabin to rest.
Just as the alchemist automaton exited the cabin, a sudden burst of blue-white
light erupted, filling the entire Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The logbook's entries halted at this point.
Recalling the tower spirit's earlier response, the dragonman youngster
immediately retrieved the magic projection from the other cabin moments prior.
The artifact within the cabin, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, was indeed the source of
the blue-white light's eruption.
Before the light erupted, the artifact had violently trembled, accompanied by a
sharp, piercing sound. The noise resembled fingernails scraping across glass.
“The tower spirit was right—it's this artifact again!” the dragonman youngster
sighed bitterly.
The Mermaid Fairy Tale had shown signs of disturbance before.
That was during the great battle on Two Eyes Island.
After its disturbance, the artifact had inadvertently exposed the fishman's
crucial disguise, unexpectedly granting the survivors tangible benefits.
Now, it had stirred once again.
According to the tower spirit's analysis, the entire ship has been teleported
to an unknown location.
The dragonman youngster continued reviewing the next segment of the navigation
log.
The magic projection showed the Deep Sea Monster Fish scouting the
surroundings.
Thus, the dragonman youngster beheld a 'mountain'.
A 'snow mountain'.
He couldn't help but gasp. This wasn't a snow mountain at all—it was clearly a
gigantic, snow-white beast as vast as a mountain.
The life force emanating from the colossal beast sent a chill straight to his
heart.
Saint level!
“What is this saint level colossal beast?”
“It's surrounded by seawater—it's still in the ocean.”
“But the light is intense... not from the beast itself...”
“This... oh heavens!”
The magic footage continued, revealing the snow-mountain beast's habitat.
His mouth fell open, his face frozen in shock.
Snow Bird Harbor City Palace.
The banquet hall glowed with radiance even more intense than the mysterious
location the dragonman youngster found himself in.
Delicacies wafted their fragrances, and melodious tunes filled the air.
Guests gathered in small groups, their conversations punctuated by occasional
glances toward a single corner.
There, nearly all the most important figures in Snow Bird Harbor at that moment
were assembled.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Sea Bird Bishop, Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the two naval
commanders, Kong Pan and Yue Qian.
Introduced by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Zong Ge bowed in greeting.
Kong Pan smiled, sizing Zong Ge up, “Commander Long Fu, slaying a gold level
foe as a silver level fighter - your fame has spread across the nation.”
Zong Ge immediately responded: “A significant portion of that achievement
belongs to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. It was precisely because he had
voluntarily lent me his equipment, enhancing my combat strength, that I managed
to kill Teng Dong Lang at the last moment."
This answer made the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smile even more broadly.
Zi Di stood nearby, holding a wine cup, a smile on her face.
Zong Ge's response, of course, wasn't his own idea. Zi Di had anticipated the
conversation's direction and briefed Zong Ge beforehand.
Having recited the script, Zong Ge had managed to navigate the situation for
now.
“I'm feeling a bit tired. You young folks should chat among yourselves.” After
exchanging a few more words, Kong Pan frowned slightly, signaling her
departure.
She was injured and undergoing treatment.
In contrast, Yue Qian, who had been fatally wounded, was now perfectly healthy
thanks to a full resurrection.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hastily offered a specially prepared room for
Kong Pan's use.
But Kong Pan shook her head, saying self-deprecatingly, "I feel more at ease
staying on the ship. I'm getting old - perhaps it's just a bad habit of the
elderly."
"Lord Kong Pan, forgive my boldness, but might I speak with you privately?
Would a few minutes of your time be possible?" Seeing this, Zi Di quickly
interjected.
Kong Pan's departure disrupted her plans, forcing her to act.
According to intelligence gathered, Sand Between Fingers was an outsider
recruited by the Li Jian Clan. Though Yue Qian was their future pillar, his
career had been almost entirely military, with little experience in governance.
For the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to gain the Li Jian Clan's support, they
needed to approach through Kong Pan.
Kong Pan paused, glancing at the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hastily returned a smile.
Only then did Kong Pan reluctantly nod, “Follow me. Before I leave the city
government palace and board my carriage, I expect you to make yourself clear.”
In her eyes, Zi Di was merely a silver level magician and a member of a minor
mercenary group. Even with arms dealer connections, she held no standing worthy
of Kong Pan's time.
Zi Di hastily thanked her, shot a glance at Zong Ge before departing, then
hurriedly accompanied Kong Pan out of the banquet hall.
She began by flattering Kong Pan, but noticed her gaze remained distant and
expressionless.
She then mentioned that their side had prepared some supplies to satisfy the
Kingdom Navy's Second Fleet.
This piqued Kong Pan's interest slightly.
She knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was backed by arms dealers.
But after inquiring, she was disappointed to discover the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps was only gifting a batch of dragon rider potions.
Zi Di remained unhurried. As Kong Pan boarded the carriage, she handed over a
storage pouch filled with a full 50,000 gold coins.
Kong Pan accepted the pouch and finally smiled, though she did not invite Zi Di
aboard: “The day is already late, but we shall rest for three days at Snow Bird
Harbor.”
Receiving this response, Zi Di understood perfectly. She watched until the
carriage vanished at the end of the street before turning and reentering the
banquet hall.
She discovered the atmosphere in the banquet hall had drastically changed.
No one danced on the dance floor anymore.
Zong Ge and Yue Qian stood facing each other in the center of the dance floor,
weapons drawn, combat poised to erupt at any moment.
"Wh-what happened? How long have I been gone?!" Zi Di gasped in shock.



****** Chapter 387: Zong Ge vs Yue Qian ******
Zi Di hurriedly scanned the banquet hall for the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
She soon spotted her target and hurried over to confront him: "City Lord, what
on earth is going on? Why are they suddenly fighting?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord glanced at Zi Di before shifting his gaze back
to the dance floor, “Commander Long Fu rashly probed military intelligence,
provoking Commander Yue Qian.”
"Commander Yue Qian then challenged Commander Long Fu to a duel as a wager. One
of the stakes is the specific military intelligence regarding their clash with
the Divine Wind Pirates."
Zi Di was momentarily speechless.
Before attending this banquet, she had indeed discussed certain matters with
Zong Ge.
One objective was to extract detailed battle intelligence from the navy to
confirm the situation of the dragonman youngster.
Though absent, Zi Di could guess Zong Ge’s abrupt tone had secretly angered Yue
Qian.
Zong Ge never minced words. His unyielding nature refused compromise, so when
Yue Qian challenged him, he accepted without hesitation.
Zi Di's heart filled with dread: "The Commander is only silver level. Commander
Yue Qian is gold level - one of the commanders of your nation's Second Fleet.
His combat prowess far surpasses Teng Dong Lang's. This duel has already been
decided before it even began. What do you think, City Lord?"
Zi Di sought this excuse to halt the duel.
The city lord didn't look at her as he replied, "Commander Yue Qian pledged
before the fight that he would suppress his battle qi to the silver level to
ensure fairness! And I was invited to serve as the referee, guaranteeing
impartiality."
Zi Di gritted her teeth. "Commander Yue Qian voluntarily suppressing his
cultivation? That shows he's confident he can handle the commander even at that
level. Oh dear, what are we to do?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord offered no support, merely replying coolly, “We
shall see.”
He now harbored resentment toward Zong Ge as well.
Why stir up old wounds when things are peaceful?
Hadn't the navy suffered defeat? Wasn't Yue Qian resurrected?
When giving in was wise, he remained stubborn. Did slaying Teng Dong Lang make
Long Fu think he could handle all gold level cultivators?
One had to understand—not all gold level experts were the same. Sometimes, the
gap between them was as vast as heaven and earth.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord never intended to preside over this battle.
His original purpose was merely to host a banquet to strengthen ties with the
navy; the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was merely an afterthought.
He had facilitated introductions for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to the
upper echelons of the Li Jian Clan—this was his way of aiding Long Fu.
Yet at the banquet, Long Fu spoke stiffly, showed no tact, and clashed with Yue
Qian. Ignoring the city lord's disapproval, he publicly challenged him to a
duel.
What manner of behavior was this from Long Fu?
It was nothing short of repaying kindness with ingratitude.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was highly perceptive. He could tell: though Yue
Qian maintained a facade of cheerful conversation after being insulted by Zong
Ge, he was actually intent on teaching Long Fu a lesson.
Thus, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could not intervene and instead went with the
flow, presiding over the duel.
“Come then. Let me see how skilled you are with your dual spears after slaying
a gold level foe beyond your level!” Yue Qian taunted Zong Ge.
Zong Ge held a short spear in each hand.
The spears were silver level, drawn from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
treasury.
The dragonman youngster's pair of gold level short spears, naturally, had
departed Snow Bird Harbor aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish alongside their true
owner.
It was worth noting that Yue Qian wielded not a slender sword, but a long
staff.
The staff, too, was merely silver level.
Zong Ge's eyes locked onto Yue Qian. Suddenly lunging forward, he whirled his
twin spears in a sweeping thrust, one to the left, one to the right.
Yue Qian leapt lightly backward, creating distance between himself and Zong Ge.
Simultaneously, he shifted his stance, driving one end of the staff straight
toward Zong Ge's chest.
Yue Qian's weapon was far longer than Zong Ge's. Before Zong Ge could land his
thrust, he would be struck by the staff.
Had the dragonman youngster been here, he likely would have chosen to duck and
break through.
The Surge battle skill could alter direction in an instant, making it highly
effective in actual combat.
But Zong Ge could not use it.
He could only maintain his charging posture. As the staff approached, he
abruptly withdrew his arms, using his left hand's short spear to brace against
the staff.
The short spear and staff body scraped violently, sparks flying.
Zong Ge nearly shouldered the staff as he continued charging straight at Yue
Qian.
Yue Qian raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised.
He had seen the magic footage of the dragonman youngster's duel with Teng Dong
Lang.
The incident occurred before his current campaign.
A silver level slaying a gold level—it was the biggest news in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom for quite some time. The related magic footage sold like
hotcakes.
Yue Qian had already gotten his hands on it.
Thus, he wasn't entirely unfamiliar with the dragonman youngster; on the
contrary, he was quite familiar with certain behaviors.
Yue Qian's thrust with his long staff at Zong Ge was actually a feint, designed
to lure his opponent into a low-stance charge. This way, Yue Qian would be
prepared, executing a set combo to unleash a barrage of strikes on the
dragonman youngster, ensuring he was overwhelmed and unable to retaliate.
But the “dragonman youngster” before him wasn't the real one—it was Zong Ge in
disguise.
Zong Ge's fighting style bore the hallmarks of military
training—straightforward, relentless, and focused on the most efficient means
of elimination.
Yue Qian's plan backfired. Seeing Zong Ge close in, he hesitated, ultimately
choosing not to use his signature battle skill to evade through spatial
displacement.
The reason was simple.
Yue Qian was at the gold level. Even while suppressing his strength, his power
and status far surpassed Long Fu's.
To resort to his signature battle skill to evade so early in the fight would be
utterly humiliating.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The long staff and short spears clashed repeatedly, their impacts echoing
through the air.
The crowd gasped in astonishment.
They were attending a banquet, yet they were witnessing a clash between Long Fu
and Yue Qian, this delighted everyone immensely.
But after the fight commenced, it was “Long Fu” who gained the upper hand,
driving Yue Qian back step by step. This surprised the audience even more.
Yue Qian felt utterly frustrated.
He was being beaten into a defensive stance, unable to strike back!
Several attempts to counter were thwarted by Zong Ge's twin spears—whether
thrusts or sweeps, all parried.
Zi Di's expression froze in disbelief.
She hadn't anticipated Zong Ge's advantage being so overwhelming!
Beside her, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord—a dual cultivator of magic and
battle skills—possessed deeper insight than Zi Di.
"Yue Qian is suppressing his combat power, revealing only silver level
strength. His long staff attacks are inherently slower than short spears. Once
drawn into close quarters, even I would be forced into a disadvantage."
“But his greater distress stems from refusing to suffer even a scratch. He's so
preoccupied with preserving his pride that he's actually losing face.”
Zong Ge's combat style was military-like, where trading minor injuries for
major ones, or even trading injuries for death, was commonplace.
If Yue Qian had fought him head-on, they would have been evenly matched, and
Zong Ge wouldn't have gained much advantage.
But Yue Qian's mindset was: As a proud gold level fighter, the Second Naval
Commander, and the future banner of the Li Jian Clan, how could I possibly get
injured in a duel with a silver level opponent?
It was precisely this mindset that left him exhausted from constant defense.
Zong Ge pressed Yue Qian back, striding forward with long strides while the
latter could only fight while retreating.
They soon charged out of the dance floor.
In his retreat, Yue Qian slammed directly into a dining table.
He let out a fierce growl, his battle qi erupting as he severed the long staff
in his hands.
Holding half a staff in each hand, his attack frequency surged, parrying Zong
Ge's twin short spears.
He finally stabilized his footing!
A dinner plate tumbled from the table, poised to crash to the floor. As if
seeing behind him, Yue Qian kicked backward, sending the plate flying back onto
the table.
This deft maneuver drew gasps and murmurs of astonishment from the crowd.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, however, rolled his eyes inwardly.
Yue Qian was still too concerned with appearances!
Earlier, when he was being forced back, he could have easily used a battle
skill to break this unfavorable situation.
But from start to finish, Yue Qian hadn't employed a single battle skill.
The reason was simple: “Long Fu” had not used his battle skills yet. If he were
to be the first to use one, what reputation would he have left?
Thus, Yue Qian ultimately resorted to using his battle qi to sever his own long
staff.
By doing so, he increased his attack frequency and overcame his disadvantage.
When the opportunity arose, he did not counterattack Zong Ge. Instead, he
caught a tray that was about to crash to the ground. It seemed to say: Look,
even in combat, I haven't damaged the host's property. Everything remains under
my control.
This small gesture did indeed shift the audience's perception of Yue Qian.
Subsequently, Yue Qian gradually gained the upper hand.
With neither fighter employing battle skills and both possessing ample stamina,
superior fundamental combat skills naturally determined the advantage.
Though Zong Ge was a weapon master, his specialty lay not in twin spears.
Yue Qian likewise wasn't adept with dual staffs, yet his techniques proved more
refined than Zong Ge's.
Zong Ge came from a distinguished lineage, but having endured discrimination
since childhood, he hadn't been taught his family's techniques. Instead, he'd
been trained by the military.
Military techniques naturally couldn't match the depth of family traditions.
Their hallmark was simplicity, practicality, and seamless coordination.
Though Yue Qian was a naval commander, he had been trained by the Li Jian Clan
since childhood, naturally mastering more refined martial arts than Zong Ge.
Yue Qian gradually turned the tide.
Zong Ge steadily retreated.
The two fought their way back from the outer perimeter to the dance floor.
Spectators began cheering for Yue Qian.
Zong Ge's fighting style was crude and brutal, while Yue Qian's moves were
intricate and elegant, making him far more appealing to the crowd.
Zi Di was frantic with worry. Amidst the roaring atmosphere, she deliberately
shouted at Zong Ge, “Commander! Use your Spear Throw to fight back!”
Zong Ge's fighting spirit surged. He had been about to unleash his battle
skills when Zi Di's reminder reached him.
He suddenly leapt back, creating distance, and threw both spears to the ground.
Yue Qian's pupils narrowed slightly. He thought to himself, “He wants to fight
with bare hands?”
He hesitated inwardly, somewhat reluctant.
He had suggested using weapons earlier for a simple reason: engaging in close
quarters combat with a dragonman was hardly dignified.
One careless moment, a punch to the face, a bruise forming, where would his
dignity be then?
But if “Long Fu” insisted on bare-knuckle combat, he'd have no choice but to
abandon his weapon and see it through.
As a proud gold level, evading battle was unthinkable.
The next moment, however, he heard “Long Fu” declare, “No more fighting!”
Those around them were astonished, deeply disappointed.
“I've only just warmed up. Why?” Yue Qian inquired.
Zong Ge shook his head: “Too many restrictions. It's no fun fighting like
this.”
Zi Di had deliberately reminded Zong Ge to use a spear-based battle skill
earlier—a reverse hint to remind him of the occasion and their original
purpose!
“It was indeed unsatisfying,” Yue Qian relaxed, “But it is interesting. Long
Fu, you're not quite what I imagined.”
After fighting for a while, the anger Yue Qian felt from being offended
dissipated.
Zi Di hurried between them: "Since we initiated the ceasefire, we lost this
wager. The subsequent stakes will be delivered personally by me to the naval
warship."
She had intended to visit Kong Pan anyway.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled, impressed by Zi Di's quick reaction.
But Zong Ge shook his head, his expression stern, “When I said the fight wasn't
satisfying, I didn't mean I admit defeat, Magician Yao Ma.”
“How about a private duel between us? What do you say?”
Zi Di spun around instantly, glaring at Zong Ge with disbelief.
Zong Ge's fighting spirit surged, his gaze fixed solely on Yue Qian.
Yue Qian paused, then burst into laughter.
At that moment, he found himself developing goodwill towards Zong Ge.



****** Chapter 388: The Dragonman Youngster’s New Bloodline ******
Unknown ocean depths.
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Seated within the cockpit, the dragonman youngster scanned the surrounding
environment through this magic ship.
First in his sights was the colossal sea beast, towering like a snow-capped
mountain.
The creature’s sheer size was awe-inspiring, but its life force surged at the
peak of the saint level.
“This is absolutely beyond my current capabilities.”
The dragonman youngster's expression was grave.
Though he had slain Teng Dong Lang, it was primarily due to the reversal
granted by the Lava Hell spell scroll. The final decisive moment remained
unclear.
Earlier, while attempting to rescue Lan Zao, he had risked diving into the
Divine Wind. There, he had suffered a direct strike from Feng Lian.
He wasn't even Feng Lian's primary target!
Under those circumstances, had the Bloodcore not performed its unforeseeable
emergency healing, he would have perished.
Thus, the dragonman youngster understood his place all too well.
“My current combat strength might allow me to face off against someone like
Teng Dong Lang, a gold level opponent, but I'm absolutely no match for Feng
Lian.”
“In fact, after returning much of my gear to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, my
combat power has dropped significantly.”
“Let alone a saint level opponent!”
The dragonman youngster had no intention of confronting this saint level
colossal sea beast. His first thought was to evacuate this place.
Thus, he began surveying his surroundings.
The next moment, his eyes widened in astonishment, and he let out an
incredulous gasp.
He saw countless pearls growing within the cave walls.
These pearls varied greatly in size, some were as large as carriages, while
others were no bigger than fists.
The pearls were countless, densely packed!
Typically, pearls varied in quality—some dull and misshapen, others lustrous
and perfectly formed.
But the dragonman youngster observed that every pearl on these walls,
regardless of size, was perfectly spherical. All were a milky white hue, and
instantly captivating to behold.
This was an undersea cavern.
Its walls were covered in milky-white pearls. At the cavern's center lay a
snow-white colossal beast, curled up so its full form was hidden.
The cavern was flooded with seawater, its multicolored light rippling softly
with the waves.
These vibrant hues emanated from the pearls themselves.
Each pearl glowed with its own halo—some in soft pastels, others in azure or
emerald.
The light converged and intertwined, creating a dazzling display reminiscent of
the northern lights, breathtakingly beautiful.
Such a wondrous sight left the dragonman youngster utterly transfixed.
What made his heart race, however, was his discovery that every single
pearl—regardless of size—was a transcendent material!
Bronze level, iron level, saint level, gold level, saint level, legend level...
Even more astonishingly, the youngster detected one pearl radiating a god level
aura!
A god level pearl!
“Where on earth have I been transported to?” the dragonman youngster wondered,
his mind filled with confusion.
He wasn't a magician and lacked Cang Xu's vast knowledge.
He could only ask the tower spirit.
The tower spirit did not know.
“Could it be that even the War Merchant's database holds no records?”
“No, perhaps it's due to damage.”
The tower spirit's database was incomplete.
But there was no other way; this was already the result of the survivors' all-
out rescue efforts.
Without specific intelligence, the dragonman youngster, though intensely
covetous, cautiously restrained himself and did not lay a hand on these pearls.
The phrase “worth a fortune” was insufficient to measure the value of this
mysterious cavern.
The god level pearl alone was an item extinct on the market.
The combined value of the legend level pearls alone could easily purchase Snow
Bird Harbor.
“The mysterious colossal beast seems to be slumbering...”
"Now it appears this teleportation might have brought me a surprise? A windfall
from heaven?"
Realizing this, the dragonman youngster gradually set aside his worries and
began searching for an exit from the cavern.
First, confirm an escape route. Then, without disturbing the colossal beast,
harvest as many of the most valuable pearls as possible.
That was the dragonman youngster's plan.
However, the result left him dumbfounded.
"How could there be no exit?!"
After thoroughly scouting the area, he discovered this peculiar cave was
completely sealed. Not only was there no exit, not even the slightest crack!
This greatly exceeded the dragonman youngster's expectations.
With the underwater colossal beast dwelling here, if the cave were completely
isolated, how could it hunt and survive?
“If it's cut off from the outside world, then whether this is truly the ocean
floor is uncertain.”
The dragonman youngster had previously concluded it was the sea floor because
the cavern was filled with seawater.
The water's composition had long been analyzed by the tower spirit, confirming
it as seawater.
But now, who knew what lay beyond the cavern?
Even a desert was a possibility!
“No passageway? Are we supposed to bombard our way through and create one?” The
dragonman youngster frowned deeply, his face clouded with worry.
Currently, the Deep Sea Monster Fish was cloaked in Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell, disguised as an undersea reef,
drawing no reaction from the colossal sea beast below.
But if it resorted to bombardment, even with both spells concealing it, the
explosions and shattered cavern walls would provoke a fierce response from the
deep sea colossal beast.
“Can the Deep Sea Monster Fish even breach these walls?” The dragonman
youngster voiced his doubts.
The vessel's cannons were merely gold level, while this sealed cavern produced
a god level pearl, the disparity was staggering.
This made the youngster deeply uncertain about the effectiveness of
bombardment.
He dared not attempt it recklessly.
The threat posed by a saint level mysterious colossal beast was too great.
He might very well perish if he tried.
“What should we do?” The dragonman youngster asked the tower spirit.
The tower spirit was equally stumped.
It possessed formidable computational abilities, but these relied on
intelligence.
The more detailed the intelligence, the more effectively it could derive
suitable solutions.
Yet now, both the dragonman youngster and the tower spirit knew nothing about
the snow-white colossal beast or this mysterious cavern.
“It seems we must enhance our reconnaissance methods and probe deeper,” the
dragonman youngster concluded after calming down and analyzing the situation.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish possessed three reconnaissance methods: sonar, light
detection, and life detection scanning.
Its sonar device could even emit infrasound to repel most sea beasts.
Combining these three methods ultimately formed the magic projections displayed
before the pilot.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish's reconnaissance capabilities were actually quite
robust.
But they weren't comprehensive.
Previously, on Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island, the survivors had
discovered its flaw through practical experience - the Deep Sea Monster Fish's
reconnaissance was too coarse.
Therefore, survivors crafted numerous bird-type alchemy puppets for detailed
reconnaissance. This somewhat compensated for its weakness.
Now, the dragonman youngster realized the Deep Sea Monster Fish's
reconnaissance lacked depth.
Faced with a saint level colossal beast and a mysterious sealed cavern, it was
utterly helpless, unable to penetrate the target's defenses.
“Is there any way to enhance our reconnaissance capabilities?” The dragonman
youngster inquired.
The tower spirit performed calculations for over ten seconds, generating a
multitude of solutions.
The youngster felt dizzy just looking at them. Not being a magician, he
couldn't make sense of any of the proposals and could only continue questioning
the tower spirit.
The tower spirit's response was to awaken Zhong Yong and have him use the
alchemy cabin to craft several specialized reconnaissance puppets.
The second solution was to awaken Zhong Yong and upgrade the Deep Sea Monster
Fish's alchemy reconnaissance devices. Currently, all three reconnaissance
devices were only silver level, not yet reaching gold level.
The third plan was...
After hearing the first ten options, the dragonman youngster realized every
single one involved Zhong Yong.
He was utterly useless at alchemy; only with Zhong Yong's help could any
alchemy output be achieved.
The fishman magician Zhong Yong was currently asleep.
Ever since he had cobbled together the Bloodline Purification Formation, he had
become the Deep Sea Monster Fish's resident magician. His movements were
severely restricted, confined to a few designated cabins, and he was constantly
accompanied and monitored by alchemy puppets.
When the dragonman youngster set sail from Snow Bird Harbor aboard the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, he had drugged Zhong Yong unconscious beforehand to prevent him
from detecting the vibrations of the “Secret Alchemy Workshop” and realizing it
was mobile.
This arrangement now served the dragonman youngster well.
After a moment's consideration, he did not immediately rouse Zhong Yong,
choosing instead to prepare in advance.
He went to the storage hold and pulled out a freezer.
Sealed within the freezer lay a corpse.
It was not Zi Di, but a fishman.
The fishman's corpse emanated a saint level aura.
It was one of the unexpected spoils the survivors had obtained during the
battle of Two Eyes Island.
After acquiring it, the dragonman youngster chose not to consume it with his
Bloodcore.
The primary reason was resource efficiency.
If he absorbed it with his Bloodcore, the value of this saint corpse would only
manifest within him, granting him a modest boost in combat power. Such a choice
offered far too low a return on investment.
The youngster already possessed the legendary bloodline of the Flame Dragon
King, along with immense potential for growth. He lacked the energy and time to
develop another life form.
More importantly, in the survivors' current plans, the practical applications
for a fishman form were limited.
By preserving the saint corpse, however, numerous avenues for resource
utilization opened up. For instance, when short on funds, it could be sold off.
But if absorbed by the Bloodcore, he couldn't sell it anymore!
The survivors haven't uncovered the specific secrets yet, and there remains a
possibility: that survivors could utilize this corpse to gain immense benefits
from the fishmen.
In short, preserving the fishman's saint corpse for future use is a highly
prudent course of action.
But now, the dragonman youngster had no intention of keeping this saint corpse.
"If the Deep Sea Monster Fish is destroyed during the bombardment of the cavern
walls or our escape, I can assume fishman form and survive in the water."
Looking through the Deep Sea Monster Fish's storehouses, what could possibly
compare to the bloodline of this fishman saint corpse?
On the late-night sea, thick fog accompanied the ghost ship as it moved
steadily.
After days of sailing, Jian Gui, Cang Xu, and their crew finally reached their
destination.
“White Hair Trench lies ahead.”
“Qi Ling's clan should be within the trench, participating in the hunt,” stated
Jian Gui.
Their mission was to rescue the fishman ghost, Qi Ling, who was also a
necromancer.



****** Chapter 389: The Current Situation of the Necromancers ******
During the Weeping Pine Sea Battle, Qi Ling betrayed the group led by Jian Gui.
Yet upon reflecting on the entire incident, Jian Gui resolved to save Qi Ling.
Qi Ling herself was an undead life form created by Jian Gui through his Soul
Refinement Spell. For a time afterward, he trained her as his alchemy
assistant. She proved exceptionally capable, and Jian Gui imparted more of his
undead legacy to her.
Their relationship remained strong, so much so that when Qi Ling begged for
freedom, Jian Gui let her go.
In life, Qi Ling had been a mermaid, deeply devoted to her kind. Even as a
necromancer, she returned to protect her people.
Yet her clan regarded her as a mortal enemy, repeatedly placing Qi Ling in
mortal peril.
Jian Gui intervened several times, rescuing Qi Ling from danger.
Qi Ling was truly “unrepentant in death,” continuing to aid her clan time and
again.
Lady Sea Snake, having obtained intelligence from an unknown source, learned Qi
Ling's weakness. She then seized control of Qi Ling's fishman clan, forcing her
to become her mole.
Qi Ling had no choice but to comply, yet she constantly plotted her
counterattack, striving to regain her freedom.
On Weeping Pine Island, she openly revealed her traitorous status and held back
against Cang Xu and the others—a clear declaration of her intentions to Jian
Gui and his crew.
On the ghost ship.
Jian Gui and his crew stood at the bow.
Jian Gui's tone was grave: “Qi Ling was forced into becoming an informant. Her
clan is her greatest vulnerability.”
“Therefore, we must not only locate Qi Ling and her kin but also attempt to
save both simultaneously.”
Both objectives required simultaneous execution.
Advancing either alone would alert the enemy, triggering countermeasures.
This would severely hinder the impending rescue operation.
“We must proceed with caution from here on,” Xiao Wang Zi voiced his concern,
“We may very well encounter Lady Sea Snake, or even that gold level assassin.”
He was referring to Wei Ying.
Wei Ying had nearly wiped out the entire group of Jian Gui and Cang Xu. Had
Doctor Sui Shi not arrived in time to scare him off, Cang Xu and the others
would have faced dire consequences.
Wei Ying also possessed the Shadow Walker's sacred emblem, allowing him to
swiftly escape and retreat into the Shadow Plane.
He was a formidable and dangerous adversary.
“But now, we don't have Doctor Sui Shi with us,” Xiao Wang Zi sighed bitterly.
Though he understood Qi Ling's desperate circumstances and the pressure forcing
her betrayal, he still felt profound disgust toward her.
Had Jian Gui not insisted on rescuing her, he personally would never have
engaged in such actions.
Cang Xu reassured Xiao Wang Zi: “We may not encounter Wei Ying.”
“They won't anticipate our next move.”
"Even if Lady Sea Snake controls Qi Ling's kin, she likely won't oversee them
personally. In fact, I suspect her situation is far from favorable."
Lady Sea Snake's familiar was a gold level sea serpent.
It perished in the Underworld River.
As a mere silver level magician, having lost her most potent trump card, she
must be under immense pressure. Perhaps she's already struggling to manage her
own affairs.
After all, fierce competition exists among pirates themselves.
Even as a member of the legendary Fire Beard Pirates, she navigates a complex,
cutthroat environment within this legendary pirate group.
Xiao Wang Zi glanced at Cang Xu and sighed again: “Let's hope so.”
Beside him, the undead ronin Ku Feng adopted a different stance: "I, for one,
would relish seeing Lady Sea Snake. The grudge from the Weeping Pine Sea Battle
is etched into my memory."
Ku Feng had always considered Weeping Pine Island his home.
During the battle, the island suffered immense destruction. Now, he couldn't
return home. As the former gathering place for the undead, it had been
completely exposed.
Thus, Ku Feng harbored deep hatred toward both Lady Sea Snake and Wei Ying.
"Alright, I'll now fully merge with the ghost ship to dive beneath the waves.
Prepare yourselves." After giving this order, Ship Ghost merged completely with
the vessel.
Only in this “merged” state could he unleash the ghost ship's full potential.
The ghost ship swiftly submerged, the surface mist gradually dissipating.
As it descended deeper, the water pressure intensified dramatically.
Cang Xu and the others had already cast protective spells to shield themselves
against the pressure.
“The ghost ship is quite impressive, but it's not a conventional magic ship.
Its functionality is far from comprehensive.”
“Essentially, it's an undead life form.”
“Of course, it possesses tremendous potential to become an exceptional magic
ship!”
Cang Xu now understood the ghost ship quite well.
The ghost ship contained almost no alchemy components, but it possessed a magic
pool.
This was because the ghost ship itself carries the magic pool, unlike the Deep
Sea Monster Fish, which was constructed by outsiders.
In a sense, the ghost ship could be considered a necromancer.
However, its intelligence was extremely low, and it could only act on instinct.
Therefore, its abilities could not be fully unleashed. Only when Jian Gui
served as its “spirit,” merging his intellect with the ghost ship's power,
could its full might be unleashed.
Take the Deep Sea Monster Fish, for instance - would Cang Xu and his crew need
to cast spells themselves to counteract the water pressure?
Cang Xu had thus proposed to Jian Gui: could they first upgrade the ghost ship,
transforming it into a fully functional magic ship?
Jian Gui replied with a resigned tone: Forging the ghost ship into a complete
magic ship is a long and arduous journey. The ghost ship's magic pool operated
on negative energy, rendering nearly all commercially available alchemy
components incompatible. Even powerful figures within the necromancer orthodoxy
had sought to enhance their ghost ships by commissioning alchemists for custom
designs, yet the results had been disappointing.
A qualified alchemy artifact required extensive practical testing.
Even if alchemy components suitable for ghost ships were designed, they still
demanded extensive practical application. Through use, flaws were discovered,
necessitating continuous refinement and iteration before a relatively mature
alchemy component could be finalized.
This process demanded immense time, resources, and manpower.
A single necromancer could not independently sustain such an endeavor.
Conventional alchemy artifacts involved countless individuals and factions
collaborating—designers, users, traders, and more—forming a vast,
interconnected system of investment and return.
Necromancers themselves were scarce.
This school of magic had existed for a relatively short time.
Few necromancers possessed ghost ships.
Therefore, ghost ships were even rarer.
Among those who did possess them, only a fraction conceived of enhancing their
ghost ships into fully functional magic ships.
These individuals were scattered across the world, not gathered together.
Their resolve to pursue this goal was also unstable, as they each faced their
own troubles - external threats or more compelling interests.
Such was the reality of ghost ships.
After receiving Jian Gui's response, Cang Xu gained deeper insight into the
survival state of the necromancer community.
He now understood more fully why You Shen had issued his directive, urging his
subordinates to actively spread necromancy inheritances.
The number of necromancers was truly too small.
Many endeavors simply could not proceed without sufficient personnel.
Take the monumental project of upgrading the ghost ship into a fully-fledged
magic ship—it demanded vast manpower, immense time, and colossal resources to
truly develop.
From this, Cang Xu also grasped Jian Gui's intent in rescuing Qi Ling.
“Qi Ling's necromancer aptitude isn't particularly strong; silver level is the
absolute limit.”
“But for necromancers, even silver level talent is precious.”
“This might explain why Jian Gui chose to sponsor me when he first encountered
me.”
Of course, Cang Xu would never forget how, during the battle in the Underworld
River, Jian Gui had used him as bait to draw Wei Ying's fire, leading to his
death!
“Jian Gui represents the orthodox path of the undead, a direct descendant of
You Shen.”
“Therefore, he willingly sponsors undead seeds to expand and strengthen the
undead faction.”
“Yet at the same time, when survival is at stake, he will exploit the
necromancers around him to ensure his own survival.”
“That is Jian Gui.”
Cang Xu's understanding of Jian Gui was profound.
Thus, he silently warned himself: In this rescue of Qi Ling, he must assess the
situation carefully. If things turn sour, retreat immediately.
After all, he wasn't part of the orthodox undead faction!
Moreover, if they encountered a formidable foe, he'd have to guard against Jian
Gui.
Wasn't being used once enough already?
On the other hand, Cang Xu also coveted the advanced inheritance held by Jian
Gui. He had to demonstrate his worth, striving to obtain what he desired from
Jian Gui, things the survivors desperately needed.
"So, this is White Hair Trench? Wow, it's truly massive!" Xiao Wang Zi
exclaimed through psychic communication, his admiration genuine.
Jian Gui replied, “This trench plunges 15,000 meters deep, stretches roughly
3,100 kilometers long, and varies in width—70 kilometers at its broadest,
narrowing to about 30 kilometers at its narrowest points.”
He knew this trench quite well.
Jian Gui continued, “A unique species of coral polyps thrives within the White
Hair Trench. They parasitize the surfaces of living organisms, multiplying and
expanding their colonies.”
“These polyps absorb nutrients from their hosts while secreting waste products
that accumulate, eventually forming white coral formations.”
"This coral differs from ordinary varieties in that it is nearly soft-bodied."
“So, when creatures in the trench swim, the white coral on their surfaces moves
with them, appearing from afar like long white hair drifting through the
water.”
“That's how White Hair Trench got its name.”
Cang Xu felt a surge of excitement. He was suddenly driven by an urge to
collect, dissect, and study this peculiar coral polyp.
He knew his corals.
Coral was both a secretion of the polyp and its structural framework.
Coral polyps typically fed on planktonic microorganisms, but the white hair
coral polyps parasitize the surfaces of their hosts, absorbing nutrients from
the host's body.
“I really want to study them.” Though Cang Xu was a necromancer, he had always
harbored a strong curiosity and desire to explore knowledge related to life
forms.
This was evident from his actions on Mystifying Monster Island.
"Too bad this isn't the Deep Sea Monster Fish. Besides, I have important duties
to fulfill. When will I ever have the leisure to freely study these mysteries
of life?" Cang Xu sighed deeply.
“Marvelous! Absolutely marvelous!” At the same moment, the fishman Zhong Yong
exclaimed excitedly, staring at the mysterious pearl before him.
He had been awakened by the dragonman youngster.
The research environment he possessed aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish was
precisely what Cang Xu yearned for.
What he was studying was a pearl taken from the mysterious cave wall!
“Seems you've made a discovery?” The dragonman youngster stood nearby.
“Indeed, I believe I understand where we are now, Commander,” Zhong Yong
replied excitedly.



****** Chapter 390: Subduing a Saint Level? ******
After absorbing Hai Ping's saint corpse, the dragonman youngster pondered for a
moment before imbuing several alchemy puppets with the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell. He even transformed one into his
own dragonman form.
Only then did he rouse Zhong Yong, briefly informing him of certain matters.
It was then that Zhong Yong realized he was aboard a mobile dock capable of
sailing the seas!
Before the shock had fully subsided, the dragonman youngster informed him they
had apparently been teleported by some mysterious force to a mysterious
location.
Zhong Yong was stunned again.
Then, when he witnessed the wondrous sights within the mysterious cavern with
his own eyes, his astonishment reached new heights.
In what felt like mere moments, the shock he experienced far surpassed the
accumulated awe of previous years.
Then, the dragonman youngster took a risk, deploying an alchemy puppet to
attempt harvesting pearls from the cave walls.
Empowered with the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise
spell, the puppet smoothly and safely plucked a small pearl without incident.
The spells were remarkably effective - the saint level colossal beast showed no
reaction whatsoever.
Of course, it could also be because the target chosen this time was very small.
The harvested pearl was only about the size of an adult's index finger, being
at the iron level.
“If we were to target those saint level, legend level, or even the sole god
level pearl, it might trigger widespread repercussions.”
For the time being, the dragonman youngster harbored reservations and would not
take such risks.
It proved wise to awaken Zhong Yong.
Though this action revealed some secrets of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, he
swiftly studied the pearl and conveyed his findings to the dragonman youngster.
“While not entirely certain, this mysterious location bears a striking
resemblance to a certain historical account!”
Noticing the dragonman youngster's urging gaze, Zhong Yong continued, “This
place is likely an Ocean Mother Nest.”
“What is an Ocean Mother Nest?” the dragonman youngster pressed immediately.
"It is an extraordinary location; a convergence point for the essence of all
things. Across the vast oceans, such nests exist, almost always taking the form
of sealed caverns."
“Within a vast radius around the Mother Nest, immense quantities of material
essence gather, vast amounts of elements are absorbed, and boundless spirit
power also coalesces here.”
“Therefore, high-quality alchemy materials often emerge within the Mother Nest,
in enormous quantities and scale. It can even nurture life.”
“However, the life forms nurtured within the Mother Nest are typically
elemental beings.”
"The colossal sea beast we observe now, however, is clearly flesh and blood. It
must have emerged when the Mother Nest inadvertently absorbed the seeds of
surrounding sea creatures, nurturing and growing them continuously."
The dragonman youngster pondered, “So that's how it is. No wonder this
completely sealed place can sustain a saint level colossal beast growing
naturally.”
“Though it lacks food, everything here is condensed, providing ample nutrients
for its growth.”
“Precisely,” Zhong Yong nodded, “In fact, certain records mention wounded
deities finding such Mother Nests to hide within, recuperating and healing
their divine bodies.”
The dragonman youngster's eyes lit up, “Then how did the deities enter the
Mother Nest?”
Zhong Yong shook his head, “The books offer no account. Even if they did, it's
likely beyond our ability to replicate, Commander.”
“Then we'll have to breach the cavern wall and force our way through,” the
dragonman youngster sighed.
His lament infected Zhong Yong: “Ah, truthfully, I wouldn't advise breaking it
open just yet, Commander.”
"Such a Mother Nest is exceedingly rare, built upon an incredibly delicate
equilibrium. The slightest disruption could trigger a chain reaction, causing
the entire cavern to collapse."
"The most advantageous approach is to stay here as long as possible, gathering
resources without disrupting the balance."
"The Mother Nest concentrates the essence of all things within the surrounding
heavens and earth. Its resources are virtually inexhaustible, flowing
endlessly."
The dragonman youngster's heart stirred, “You mean even after we harvest these
materials, they'll keep growing back?”
“If my assessment is correct, and this truly is the Ocean Mother Nest, then
yes,” Zhong Yong replied.
The dragonman youngster's breathing grew heavier, but soon regret clouded his
expression, “What a pity. We cannot linger here long.”
“Too many urgent matters demand my attention.”
“Does the book mention any method to transport us out?”
“Were we teleported in because the Mother Nest is gathering everything around
it?”
Zhong Yong shook his head, “I have no idea why we were transported here.”
“But I can say for certain: the Mother Nest doesn't gather things through
teleportation. It shatters and absorbs them down to their finest components.”
“Much like coral polyps feeding on plankton.”
"Therefore, unique resources likely form within the Ocean Mother Nest. Take
these pearls before us—they must be a unique resource here, with no equivalent
outside. Because this cavern concentrates the essence of all things, it
unexpectedly gave birth to them."
“As for this colossal beast, it likely began as something akin to fish roe,
possessing exceptional bloodlines. That's why it was treated as essence and
absorbed into the Mother Nest.”
“Our teleportation here... in my view, it's utterly bizarre, no, a miracle!”
The dragonman youngster nodded. "Precisely. If the cavern directly forcibly
teleports external entities by gathering all things, this saint beast must have
endured countless battles. Remember, the ocean depths teem with innumerable sea
beasts."
“As for being transported in... could it be that the divine artifact protected
us?” The last thought remained unspoken, murmured only within the dragonman
youngster's mind.
After a moment of contemplation, the dragonman youngster sighed again, "What a
pity. With ample time, we could have gained immensely here. But now, we must
find a way to leave this place swiftly."
“First, we need to find a way to deal with this saint level sea beast.”
“Zhong Yong, can you discern this sea beast's origins?”
The fishman Zhong Yong shook his head repeatedly, “Commander, I'm afraid I
cannot.”
"It's curled into a ball now—its true form is impossible to identify. There are
simply too many lifeforms resembling its appearance."
"Truthfully, just like these unique pearls, perhaps it too is one of a kind. "
"Everything I've suggested about it so far is mere conjecture. Perhaps the
Mother Nest, gathering the essence of all things, unexpectedly gave birth to
some unique life form. That too is possible!"
The dragonman youngster clenched his teeth slightly.
If it was a peculiar life form created by the Mother Nest, that would be
troublesome.
He had to uncover the exact nature of this colossal sea beast's abilities;
otherwise, escaping this place would be difficult.
“If only there were no saint level sea beast, just vast treasures!” The
dragonman youngster sighed deeply, his voice tinged with resignation.
Zhong Yong's expression flickered with surprise before clearing. He replied,
“Commander, you may be overlooking something.”
“We don't necessarily have to fight this colossal.”
"Consider this: the Mother Nest is sealed off, isolated from the outside world.
This beast has lived here its entire life, from infancy to adulthood. It's
utterly ignorant and naive."
“Without enemies to teach it combat, it retains an infant-like curiosity toward
everything.”
“We can easily tame it!”
“Is there a more suitable target for taming than this creature?”
Zhong Yong's words seemed to open a new window for the dragonman youngster to
view the world.
"You mean... we can tame it? Tame a saint level combat force?" The dragonman
youngster's eyes widened.
Zhong Yong's eyes widened too—fishman eyes were far larger than the
youngster's—his gaze now intense, “Indeed, the possibility of taming it
exists.”
“There's one more thing I must tell you, Commander.”
“The area surrounding the Ocean Mother Nest cannot be barren.”
“Only a place with a favorable environment and abundant resources could give
birth to an Ocean Mother Nest.”
The dragonman youngster's expression instantly grew grim, “So... if we breach
the Mother Nest, powerful beasts might be lurking outside?”
Zhong Yong nodded.
This made subduing the saint colossal beast crucial.
But how?
The ghost ship glided through the depths.
Pitch darkness surrounded them, so thick one couldn't see their hand in front
of their face.
Only by looking up could one glimpse a vast, azure band of light stretching
across the sky.
The ghost ship had penetrated deep into the White Hair Trench, flanked by
towering walls of rock, while above lay the translucent sea surface.
The mist surrounding the ghost ship had completely vanished, and even the
vessel's own undead aura seemed to have retreated into obscurity.
Negative energy was repelled and abhorred by life.
The deeper into the trench they ventured, the more positive energy they
encountered, and marine life thrived in abundance. If the ghost ship pressed
forward recklessly, it risked being surrounded and attacked by a horde of sea
beasts.
“A pack of sharp-clawed water monkeys has spotted us.”
Barely three seconds after Jian Gui spoke, he called out again: “Prepare for
battle! The water monkeys are closing in!”
The sharp-clawed water monkeys were roughly the size of an adult human, covered
entirely in silver-gray fur.
They possessed sharp claws and teeth; when attacking, their talons emitted a
faint blue glow in the pitch-black depths.
Their faces resembled monkeys, yet their noses were bird-like—hard and pointed.
This troop dwelled on the trench walls, carving caves into their habitat.
The ghost ship's approach triggered their coordinated assault.
Cang Xu and his companions, alerted by Jian Gui, prepared for battle.
As the water monkeys entered striking range, Xiao Wang Zi led the charge,
casting necromancy spells to unleash volleys of bone spears.
Qing Xin joined the fray, summoning wind blades.
The bone spears inflicted significant damage, while the wind blades proved
largely ineffective in combat.
As a living being, Qing Xin had to constantly maintain her spells to survive in
the deep sea, leaving her no spare energy for combat.
In this regard, the undead held a distinct advantage. At the very least, they
didn't need to breathe—only withstand the water pressure.
The water monkeys swarmed in dense, countless numbers.
Though some were felled by bone spears and wind blades, the majority still
surged forward.



****** Chapter 391: Ghost Seed Head, Head-Binding Spell ******
Cang Xu was also casting spells.
Under his command, a squadron of sailfish charged into battle from behind the
ghost ship.
The sailfish launched their assault, skewering water monkeys one after another.
When colliding with stronger water monkeys, many sailfish crashed like ships
against reefs, dying instantly.
The scene was brutal. The sailfish fought recklessly, stemming the tide of the
water monkey horde.
When the enraged leader of the water monkey pack stormed onto the deck, the
undead ronin Ku Feng immediately drew his blade to fight.
Ku Feng quickly found himself at a disadvantage, forced into retreat.
The water monkey pack leaders were all gold level, while Ku Feng's combat
effectiveness was already diminished by fighting in the deep sea. Being only
silver level and lacking the extensive gear of the dragonman youngster, merely
holding off the leader was already commendable.
At the critical moment, Jian Gui intervened.
Gold level undead magic, amplified by the ghost ship itself, unleashed
devastating power.
Soon, the water monkeys storming the deck were slaughtered to the last,
including their leader.
After the battle, the group swiftly cleaned the battlefield, assessed losses,
and divided the spoils.
Ship Ghost, Cang Xu, and Xiao Wang Zi all cast the Soul Summoning Spell,
coalescing water monkey spirits from the corpses.
“These spirits are perfect for transforming into water ghosts,” Ship Ghost
remarked with satisfaction as he took two gold level water monkey spirits.
Cang Xu and Xiao Wang Zi took only a small portion.
The finest spirits went to Jian Gui, while the vast majority were assigned to
the ghost ship.
The more spirits parasitizing the ghost ship, the stronger the ship itself
became. Simultaneously, the ghost ship provided protection and enhancements to
the spirits aboard.
It was a mutually beneficial relationship.
Next, Xiao Wang Zi cast another necromancy magic—Summon Skeletons.
The corpses of the sharp-clawed water monkeys convulsed violently. Their bones
split through the flesh, burrowing out.
“Water monkey skeletons... Hmm, passable,” Xiao Wang Zi appraised.
Finally, the remaining flesh and blood were divided.
The distribution followed strict rules based on combat contributions.
Qing Xin had also participated, so she received some water monkey flesh as
compensation.
Cang Xu's primary objective was the water monkey heads.
The heads had to be intact—soul, bones, flesh, everything—preferably without a
single part missing. Only then could the highest probability of creating death
heads be achieved.
In the end, Cang Xu obtained five silver level water monkey skulls, several
iron level ones, and a large quantity of bronze level skulls.
“The success rate of the Head Creation Spell is low, but this haul should
guarantee me at least one water monkey death head, right?” After a period of
cultivation, Cang Xu had roughly assessed his own success probability for
performing the Head Creation Spell.
This time, to gather a large quantity of water monkey skulls, he spared no
expense in commanding his sailfish fleet.
Consequently, after this battle, the sailfish fleet was nearly annihilated,
suffering devastating casualties.
Thus, the sailfish carcasses met the same fate as the water monkeys, swiftly
divided among the necromancers.
The specific distribution rules had been thoroughly discussed with others long
before this battle.
Sacrificing the sailfish school was part of the plan.
Cang Xu had discovered that the sailfish death heads they produced were already
severely damaged and difficult to preserve.
This damage occurred during an undersea hunt when Cang Xu's command was
inadvertently mishandled, causing the death heads to sustain injuries.
“Though the techniques for preserving the death head were passed down to me by
Doctor Sui Shi, I struggle to master them.” Cang Xu's own alchemy expertise
limited his ability to fully harness the true power of the Flying Head Spell's
legacy.
He had discerned the essence of this inheritance: alchemy was its core, while
necromancy served merely as its foundation. In many aspects, profound alchemy
mastery was required to achieve optimal results.
Returning to his assigned cabin, Cang Xu summoned the death head of the
sailfish leader before him.
The next instant, he flicked his finger.
The death head exploded with a loud bang.
The explosion's force was minimal, shattering the decayed flesh and bones
before leaving behind a ghostly essence.
This essence was compact, roughly spherical in shape. Within the gold gray mist
enveloping the sphere, the form of a sailfish head occasionally materialized.
A wisp of ghostly fog rose from the top of the sphere.
This ghostly mist wasn't loose like long hair, but rather denser, resembling
young rice shoots.
According to the Flying Head Spell tradition, after a modified death head
shattered, what remained was the Ghost Seed Head.
Cang Xu opened his mouth and sucked the Ghost Seed Head into his mouth.
Necromancy - Head-Binding Spell.
He proceeded with the incantation. The sailfish Ghost Seed Head temporarily
fused with his own, transforming into a purplish-blue sailfish mark. Like a
tattoo, it appeared on Cang Xu's right cheek.
This represented another application of the death head.
When a death head was damaged beyond repair or intentionally shattered, it
would leave behind a Ghost Seed Head.
Upon binding the Ghost Seed Head, the necromancer gained a certain probability
of mastering all its abilities.
However, Cang Xu gained zero abilities from the sailfish Ghost Seed Head.
This was because he failed to invest resources into its modification.
Consequently, the gold sailfish death head possessed no necromancy magic
whatsoever, merely retaining the ability to command sailfish schools.
Now that the sailfish's form was gone, Cang Xu could no longer command them.
Typically, necromancers cultivated exceptional death heads, imbuing them with
necromancy magic.
These spells were engraved within the Ghost Seed Head's body.
Upon binding, the necromancer effectively gained a built-in spellbook -
boosting casting success rates, accelerating incantations, and reducing costs.
Cang Xu wasn't without this ambition; he had made attempts, all ending in
failure.
As always, the true barrier to this inheritance lies in alchemy mastery.
For Cang Xu, merely crafting the death head of a gold sailfish was already a
minor miracle.
Not only was he constrained by this limitation, but he also lacked sufficient
undead resources, making further cultivation of death heads genuinely
impossible.
“Even so, this gold level Ghost Seed Head remains my most valuable asset
today.” Cang Xu touched his right cheek, feeling nothing unusual.
It was worth noting that the Ghost Seed Head offered another advantage.
Should Cang Xu ever desire a gold level sailfish death head in the future, he
could release this Ghost Seed Head to seek out a gold level sailfish head and
refine it.
The success rate of such refinement far surpassed starting from scratch!
“This too is a process of accumulation.”
“Hopefully, I can refine several silver level water monkey death heads next.”
"Since the highest material level is only silver level, one is too few, two
barely sufficient, and three are just enough to handle minor situations."
Cang Xu took a moment to regroup before beginning work on the water monkey
skull.
His combat strength was weak. This deep dive into the White Hair Trench had
instilled a sense of urgency within him—he absolutely had to focus all his
efforts on boosting his own fighting power.



****** Chapter 392: Vigorous Preparation for Battle ******
Head Creation Spell.
Head Creation Spell.
Head Creation Spell…
Cang Xu entered the ship's hold and remained there for the next two days, never
stepping outside as he processed the undead materials in his hands.
Frequent invocations of the Head Creation Spell produced one death head after
another in his grasp.
These skulls were all monkey heads, sourced from the battle before. In that
engagement, the necromancers had joined forces to wipe out a pack of sharp-
clawed water monkeys. Everyone had reaped substantial rewards.
To secure sufficient necromancy materials, Cang Xu had exhausted his entire
stock of sailfish skulls.
It was a gamble he had no choice but to take.
The reason was that his gold level sailfish death head was already beyond use,
on the verge of destruction.
“Sigh, I lost the gamble...”
Cang Xu's face was pale, his spirit exhausted. Staring at the newly crafted
death heads, his heart was filled with bitterness.
He had obtained a total of five silver level water monkey skulls, over thirty
iron level ones, and more than sixty bronze level ones.
The death head now produced contained only one silver level water monkey skull,
seventeen iron level ones, and fifty six bronze level ones.
While bronze level and iron level were plentiful, silver level was scarce—only
one.
Two were barely sufficient, but one was truly too few!
This was the world of the strong.
Bronze level and iron level were expendable; only gold level served as the true
pillars.
Unfortunately, Cang Xu no longer possessed any gold level death heads. Only one
gold level Ghost Seed Head remained, devoid of any recorded undead spells.
“Sacrificing a gold level skull and an entire sailfish school for this meager
return—my combat strength has diminished rather than increased.”
As Cang Xu sighed, he examined the quantities of skulls across tiers and
discerned certain patterns.
“The success rate of skull crafting decreases with each level.”
“Bronze level water monkey death head has over 80% success rate. Iron level
approaches 50%. By silver level, the success rate dropped to just 20%.”
The success rate of the Head Creation Spell was intrinsically linked to one's
alchemy prowess.
Cang Xu suffered from this limitation, squandering vast quantities of undead
materials for meager returns.
“Alchemy... alchemy...”
Cang Xu muttered incessantly to himself.
He felt utterly helpless.
His innate talent was lacking, his alchemy skill rudimentary—he was practically
a novice.
Fortunately, he wasn't alone; companions stood by his side.
“Xu Jia, you finished too?” Xiao Wang Zi greeted Cang Xu as he stepped onto the
deck.
A large group of water monkey skeletons followed Xiao Wang Zi.
Ku Feng practiced elsewhere, relentlessly swinging his blade.
Qing Xin approached and informed Cang Xu he was the last to finish post-battle
recuperation.
Among this group, Qing Xin and Cang Xu shared the closest bond.
Cang Xu hadn't spotted Jian Gui, but moments later, his voice echoed: “Since Xu
Jia is ready, we shall proceed.”
Though the ghost ship hadn't launched any attacks during this period, Jian Gui
had continuously scouted the surroundings, identifying numerous viable targets.
Moments later, the ghost ship dove deep, intruding into the territory of a
beast pack and once again facing an assault from a water monkey horde.
Jian Gui's decision to target the water monkeys was a prudent choice.
Such foes were no strangers to the necromancers.
Skeletons clustered around the ship's sides, unleashing continuous volleys upon
the water monkeys.
The undead ronin charged from the deck into the depths, single-handedly
breaking through the ranks and swiftly slaying numerous sharp-clawed water
monkeys.
Over time, he had grown accustomed to the underwater environment, developing
considerable proficiency in aquatic combat.
It must be said that undead, needing no air to breathe, faced no significant
barriers in developing aquatic combat skills.
Cang Xu commanded the death heads to divide the water monkey horde.
The leader of this group was only silver level. Cang Xu deployed a silver level
death head to successfully disrupt the leader's commands, leaving a portion of
the water monkeys disoriented and confused.
Iron level and bronze level death heads drifted freely, colliding with or
gnawing at the flesh of healthy water monkeys.
During their charge, many water monkeys were already felled by the water monkey
skeleton archers.
Ku Feng grew bolder with each clash, charging directly at the water monkey
leader. This left the latter overwhelmed and unable to command the horde.
Cang Xu seized the moment, deploying a silver level death head to intimidate
the horde, forcibly recruiting a contingent of living water monkeys to his
cause.
Finally, Jian Gui intervened once more through the ghost ship, unleashing a
gold level spell that instantly killed 70% of the water monkeys.
Shattered by this devastating blow, the horde immediately disintegrated.
The water monkey leader, sensing the enemy's gold level aura, shrieked in
terror and fled first.
Ku Feng couldn't pursue it. Though he possessed some naval combat skills, his
speed couldn't match that of the water monkey leader desperately fleeing for
its life.
“Watch this!” Xiao Wang Zi shouted, snapping off his index finger bone and
hurling it forward.
Mid-air, the bone instantly reassembled into a bone spear.
The spear flew with blinding speed, piercing the water monkey leader with
deadly precision and ending its life.
The necromancers began clearing the battlefield.
This water monkey pack proved far weaker than any they'd encountered before.
Only one silver level leader existed—no gold level.
Victory came easily to the necromancers, though their spoils were significantly
reduced.
Jian Gui cast a Soul Summoning Spell, replenishing the ranks of water monkey
spirits.
Ku Feng remained unsatisfied.
Xiao Wang Zi reaped the greatest rewards, having slain the water monkey leader,
whose head became his spoils.
Of course, Ku Feng also claimed a small portion.
Cang Xu approached Xiao Wang Zi, proposing to purchase the water monkey
leader's head.
“Sure,” Xiao Wang Zi countered, “I'm quite interested in your Flying Head
Spell.”
Cang Xu shook his head with a bitter smile. "The Flying Head Spell isn't
available for trade anytime soon."
Beyond that, however, he possessed little else that might catch Xiao Wang Zi's
eye.
Nearly all his wealth lay within his storage pouch, lost along with his body.
His current body was provided free of charge by other necromancers.
Even his basic materials were acquired on credit.
Ship Ghost and others, including Qing Xin, were his creditors.
Nearly everything he'd accumulated along the way had been squandered—a few
became death heads, most simply consumed.
Cang Xu had demonstrated some of Flying Head Spell's power, tempting Xiao Wang
Zi.
But since Cang Xu refused to trade it, Xiao Wang Zi could only decline.
When Cang Xu attempted negotiation, he met with Xiao Wang Zi's contempt: “You
still owe me money. Pay up first, then we'll talk.”
Even among comrades, aid had its limits.
Past support for Cang Xu had been charity; now that he could stand on his own,
Xiao Wang Zi and his crew preferred Cang Xu to earn resources and settle his
debts first.
After a brief rest and clearing the battlefield, the ghost ship pressed onward.
Soon, they clashed again with a horde of sea beasts.
Over the course of the day, they engaged in no fewer than ten battles, large
and small. Though the necromancers suffered losses, their gains were greater,
and their combat strength grew significantly.
Sustaining themselves through battle, their fighting prowess increased. The
necromancer faction's advantage was now undeniably evident.
The necromancers had yet to discover Qi Ling or even traces of her anywhere.
They continued reconnaissance while actively preparing for battle, ready to
face any unexpected or dire situation.



****** Chapter 393: Investigating Lan Zao ******
The Divine Wind.
Several people gathered inside the cabin.
Lan Zao lay on the bed, still unconscious.
By the bedside stood Bing Xiao, the human ringleader, and a priest.
The priest carefully examined Lan Zao's entire body.
Most pirate crews lacked priests, but the Divine Wind Pirates were an
exception. Their ships carried a small contingent of priests of the Sea Wind
God.
After completing the examination, the priest wiped sweat from his brow, “For
now, his condition is remarkably stable!”
The human ringleader looked astonished. "How is that possible? Priest, does he
look well to you?"
At that moment, Lan Zao's entire body was swollen, and his normally healthy
skin tone had changed, tinged with a hint of blue, as if he were poisoned.
The priest of the Sea Wind God shook his head and said, “I know what you're
thinking. These symptoms he's showing now are precisely signs that his body is
improving.”
His original injuries were minor and have already healed through previous
treatments."
“His current unconscious state and these symptoms are solely due to his
bloodline awakening!”
“Bloodline... awakening?”
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader exchanged a swift glance, both seeing
astonishment on each other's faces.
The Sea Wind God's priest looked at them: “Surely you know what bloodline
awakening is?”
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader shook their heads simultaneously. The latter
replied, “Of course we know!”
“We just never imagined the legendary phenomenon of bloodline awakening would
occur in one of our own faction members.”
Bloodline awakening referred to a qualitative transformation in the
concentration of a specific bloodline within a life form.
This process was often accompanied by visible physical changes. The root cause
lay in the bloodline's intense restructuring of the organism. For instance,
beastman bloodlines manifested tails, while demon bloodlines sprouted horns.
Among the offspring of great nobles, those with exceptional bloodlines might
exhibit signs of awakening during their growth.
Marquis Jin Mang Ke of the Sheng Ming Empire, whose cultivation of the battle
qi technique perfectly aligned with his bloodline, exemplified this. When
unleashing his full power, battle qi surged through his body, enveloping him in
a swarm of golden lightning sparks. Simultaneously, his original black hair
transformed entirely to gold, the strands swelling and coalescing into dense,
block-like masses resembling engorged muscles.
These were manifestations of bloodline awakening.
Some manifestations were passive, others active.
Including the dragonman youngster—whenever he activated his Bloodcore, forming
the ring mounds of a smoke-spewing dragon upon his body, people interpreted it
as a physical mutation signifying bloodline awakening.
The Sea Wind Priest shifted his gaze to Lan Zao and remarked speculatively, "
In my view, he likely experienced a stimulus during the escape battle at the
dock earlier. Under the pressure of death, his bloodline was triggered, leading
to this awakening."
"Of course, that was merely an external catalyst. The true accumulation came
from his constant growth in daily life, where the concentration of his
bloodline within him steadily increased."
“Finally, at this moment, the quantitative change brought about a qualitative
leap, reaching the minimum threshold for bloodline awakening.”
Bing Xiao couldn't help but ask curiously, “Then, what exactly is his
bloodline?”
The priest of the Sea Wind God chuckled and shrugged, “How should I know?”
"I'm just a priest of the Sea Wind God, not someone from the Life Church. I
don't possess the relevant divine spell to detect the truth of a bloodline."
“However, you can make some educated guesses based on his physical traits.”
"Of course, he's still in the midst of awakening. His bloodline characteristics
haven't fully solidified yet and aren't particularly pronounced. From what we
can observe now, he seems to be awakening some sort of water-based bloodline."
The human ringleader nodded slightly, silently agreeing.
In his eyes, Lan Zao appeared as a human. As a member of the gang who has lived
in Snow Bird Harbor for years, where water elements abound, awakening water-
based bloodlines had a solid foundation in reality.
Bing Xiao furrowed his brow slightly: “Priest, in a case like his, does he need
to take bloodline stabilizers?”
The priest shook his head without hesitation: "Given his current state, he's
actually doing quite well and doesn't require bloodline stabilizers. Such
potions are used to manage conflicts between bloodlines. But you see, he's only
in the process of awakening—it's not complete yet. Perhaps in the future, the
awakened bloodline within him might clash with the residual impure bloodline.
In that case, bloodline stabilizers would be necessary."
Bing Xiao pressed further: “Does the Divine Wind Pirates' stockpile contain
anything like bloodline stabilizers?”
The priest shook his head. "Certainly not. Bloodline awakenings are exceedingly
rare. We don't stock such specialized supplies."
"You're heading to Flower Skirt Island next. Perhaps you could procure the
necessary potions there?"
Flower Skirt Island was small, and the priest couldn't say for certain.
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader saw the priest off before returning to the
cabin.
Gazing at the unconscious Lan Zao, both fell silent for a moment.
The human ringleader spoke up, "Bloodline stabilizers don't come cheap. Lord
Bing Xiao, it seems you hold high hopes for this lad. Do you intend to nurture
him?"
Bing Xiao made no attempt to conceal his thoughts, nodding frankly, “Indeed,
that is precisely my intention.”
The old gang leader paused before elaborating to the human ringleader, “This
boy performed admirably during the battle at the previous dock. He saved my
life and deserves commendation.”
“I'm quite impressed with this youngster.”
“He's full of drive, isn't he?”
"He showed no fear toward the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps or the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord. His heart burns with vengeance. Even during our escape, he
wanted to bombard the dock. Though it was reckless and naive, such courage is
rare and valuable."
“After all, the gap between us and our enemies is starkly evident.”
Bing Xiao had deeply misunderstood the situation.
In truth, Lan Zao had sought to incite conflict between the two sides, hoping
to create chaos. This would have given him more opportunities to slip back into
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Ultimately, his suggestion was rejected.
But Bing Xiao had witnessed it all.
Bing Xiao sighed deeply: “The Bayonet Gang suffered too severe a blow. The
surviving members are of poor quality, their fighting spirit completely gone.”
“The true grassroots backbone was wiped out by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
His preparations were simply too thorough.”
“Our current group is at best marginal - the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord doesn't
even consider us worth his attention.”
"Therefore, we must recruit new members, select promising individuals from this
group, cultivate them, and forge them into new pillars. At the very least,
their loyalty is plain for all to see."
The human ringleader voiced his concern: “Could it be that Mu Si is truly the
only mole?”
Bing Xiao chuckled, a cold gleam flashing in his eyes: “There might be others,
or there might not. Either way, it won't hinder our rebuilding of the Bayonet
Gang.”
“In my view, this lad's suspicion remains minimal.”
“He's been unconscious the entire time, and his gear is remarkably ‘clean’.”
“We cannot allow the fear of potential traitors to paralyze us or slow our
progress.”
The human ringleader nodded, “The gang leader speaks wisely.”
“I also doubt this lad is the mole.”
"If I'd planted a spy, I wouldn't have let him openly kill our own men.
Instead, he'd save a group on the battlefield to cover his tracks."
Lan Zao had been harassed aboard the Divine Wind after killing several Bayonet
Gang members during the dock battle.
Bing Xiao frowned slightly and snorted coldly: “Those guys picking on the kid?
Besides losing some close associates, it's mostly about power struggles.”
“What's the name of that iron level troublemaker?”
“Zhao San,” the human ringleader replied.
"Hmph. Zhao San and his crew lack the guts to fight enemies, but they're
experts at internal strife. They barely escaped death and already scheme to
seize power within the gang, trying to bring this kid down." Bing Xiao
understood their nature all too well.
With his extensive experience leading gangs, he'd seen plenty of such
characters.
Bing Xiao turned to Lan Zao, his tone softening slightly. "Even without his
bloodline awakening, I would have brought him close as my personal attendant.
Now that his bloodline has awakened, all the better."
"His achievement shouldn't be limited to the bronze level. If he advances to
iron level, he can become a basic group leader. Let that iron level Zhao San
who's been giving him trouble be his opponent."
If he can still reach silver level, he'll be one of the Bayonet Gang's
ringleaders.
“What do you think of this arrangement?”
Bing Xiao sought the human ringleader's opinion, instantly causing the latter's
expression to shift from panic to excitement. He hastily declared the boss's
arrangement perfectly reasonable and pledged full cooperation.
This attitude immediately satisfied Bing Xiao, who nodded approvingly.
Only three leaders remained in the Bayonet Gang.
Xiong Ju was a brute, while Spring Boxer was still too young. The human
ringleader's combat prowess fell far short of Xiong Ju's, and his potential
couldn't match Spring Boxer's. Yet at this stage, he was Bing Xiao's most
capable assistant.
It was because he possessed basic political acumen, foundational management
skills, and could work in tandem with Bing Xiao.
This was precisely why Bing Xiao patiently explained his views and plans
regarding Lan Zao to the human ringleader. On this matter, Bing Xiao and the
human ringleader reached a consensus. Lan Zao would become Bing Xiao's future
confidant.
“Next, investigate this kid's background,” Bing Xiao ordered, “Come to think of
it, I haven't even figured out what this little guy's name is yet.”
The human ringleader nodded promptly: “Yes.”
“There are quite a few gang members aboard the ship. We should be able to learn
something from them.”
Snow Bird Harbor.
A certain dueling arena.
Zong Ge and Yue Qian's weapons clashed fiercely, unable to withstand the
strain, snapping clean in two.
“Hahahaha! Long Fu, I never expected you to wield the twin-handed war hammer
with such skill!” Yue Qian paused the fight; his admiring gaze fixed on Zong
Ge.
Not a single spectator watched the arena; this was their third private duel.
Yue Qian studied Zong Ge, “If I'm not mistaken, you served in the military,
didn't you?”
Zong Ge nodded. "Let bygones be bygones. I'd rather not speak of it. How about
we test our two-handed greatswords next?"
Yue Qian shook his head. "Your greatsword proficiency is clearly formidable.
But I yearn for a true battle with you."
"Long Fu, draw your short spears. Unleash your full combat prowess. Use your
most potent battle skills."
“Today, we shall settle this once and for all!”



****** Chapter 394: Ramhorn Turtles ******
White Hair Trench.
“I'm in position,” Xiao Wang Zi relayed through magic.
“Then begin,” Jian Gui commanded, striking first.
A powerful surge surged forward, engulfing a group of turtles.
Struck by the necromancy magic, some young turtles died instantly. The silver
level turtles staggered, while the gold level leader, enraged, charged toward
the ghost ship.
Under Jian Gui's command, the vessel slowly retreated, attacking while drawing
the turtle herd toward it.
The leader relentlessly pursued the enemy, paying no heed to what lay behind.
The gap between the sea turtles widened, stretching their formation into a
chaotic, single-file line.
The ghost ship lured the turtle pack into narrow terrain. As the turtle leader
advanced, ambushes sprang up on both sides.
Hordes of sharp-clawed water monkey skeletons pounced upon the turtles, while
numerous skeleton archers rained arrows from elevated positions.
Skeletons raised from sharp-clawed water monkey corpses rarely included
skeleton magicians. Most were unarmed melee fighters, relying solely on their
claws as weapons. A few were skeleton archers.
The sharp-clawed water monkey skeletons swarmed over the sea turtles like a
vast ant colony. Yet their claws, capable of easily piercing reefs, made little
impact against the turtle's shell.
These turtles possessed a distinctly aggressive appearance. Their shells were
covered in black, hard spines, and a triangular horn protruded from the front
of their heads.
These were ramhorn turtles.
In the early days, before magic ships existed, people hunted ramhorn turtles
for the horns on their heads, using them as ship rams.
During the age of magic ships, these horns became the primary material for
crafting alchemy components of the Ramhorn type.
The turtle shells of ramhorn turtles remained a material for shields. With
minimal processing, they could be transformed into massive defensive shields
covered in spikes.
During the great war against the demon invasion of the main world, the
legendary Minotaur, Great Herculean, single-handedly poisoned the largest group
of ramhorn turtles dwelling in the depths of the ocean at that time.
The acquired turtle shells were immediately dispatched to the desperately
embattled city of Fan City.
The giants within Fan City wielded the shells directly as shields, ultimately
repelling the demon hordes' frenzied assault and safeguarding the city. This
victory laid the groundwork for the subsequent major counteroffensive on the
main world.
The sea turtles were in a frenzy.
They shook their bodies relentlessly yet couldn't dislodge the water monkey
skeletons clinging to them.
They then swung their fin-like limbs with all their might, thrusting their
heads forward to slam violently against the surrounding cliffs.
Deep craters pockmarked the undersea cliffs. The intense pressure and friction
between the shells and rock crushed many of the sharp-clawed water monkey
skeletons into dust.
The bone arrows fired by skeleton archers struck the turtles like mosquito
bites—barely causing a scratch.
Xiao Wang Zi remained utterly composed, having anticipated this outcome.
His primary role in this engagement was to distract and provide cover. The
water monkey skeletons sacrificed were either substandard units slated for
disposal or common fodder whose loss carried no weight. His true elite
forces—the iron level and silver level skeletons—remained deployed elsewhere.
Necromancy magic - Soul Capture!
Jian Gui channeled his full power, the spell's potency amplified severalfold by
the ghost ship itself.
The gold level ramhorn turtle leader, struck by this spell, froze instantly,
rendered immobile as if turned to stone.
Instead of advancing, the ghost ship retreated, sailing right up to the ramhorn
turtle leader, who remained frozen in place.
As the two passed each other, a turtle-shaped soul was extracted by the ghost
ship, becoming one of its many specters.
Then, an invisible force seized the ramhorn turtle leader's corpse.
The gold level turtle corpse was tossed into a gaping hole in the ghost ship's
hull, vanishing into the darkness.
The ghost ship charged back across the battlefield, its swarm of wailing
spirits darting swiftly through the fray.
Ramhorn turtles possessed formidable physical defenses, their unique shell
design granting a built-in damage reflection effect. However, their resistance
to magic attacks was notably weak.
Ghosts could freely pass through solid objects like rocks, rendering the
ramhorn turtles' prized spiked armor useless.
Only by casting racial magic could they offer any resistance against the
ghosts.
Yet the ghosts were numerous, forming the initial makings of an army.
Jian Gui didn't even need to cast spells; the sheer impact of the ghosts alone
threw the turtle horde into chaos.
Soon the turtle herd collapsed and turned to flee.
But this battlefield had been meticulously chosen by the necromancers - narrow
terrain flanked by large numbers of water monkey skeletons.
As the turtles fled, they lost their lives one by one.
The underwater trench fell into dead silence.
The necromancers began clearing the battlefield.
“This haul is truly substantial!” Xiao Wang Zi exclaimed joyfully.
His contributions were immense, having sacrificed countless skeletons, and the
spoils of war would be rich indeed.
Necromancy spell - Summon Skeletons.
Necromancy spell - Summon Skeletons.
Necromancy spell - Summon Skeletons...
Xiao Wang Zi cast the spell repeatedly, and one by one, massive turtle
skeletons emerged from the corpses.
Their white shells were covered in sharp bone spines, and the striking horns
atop their turtle heads remained intact, commanding attention.
"Now I have a heavy cavalry unit. This is fantastic! Generalissimo, you truly
live up to your name." Xiao Wang Zi called out to his mount.
His mount was a three-headed sea serpent, also an undead creature, named
Generalissimo by Xiao Wang Zi.
Jian Gui revealed his true form.
He began casting the Soul Summoning Spell.
The sea turtles had just fallen in battle, and their souls still lingering on
the battlefield.
Soon, ghostly sea turtles began appearing across the field.
“These turtle spirits are prime material for crafting Shield Bearer Ghosts,”
Xiao Wang Zi beamed.
The soul aspect faction within the undead realm excelled at modifying spirits,
and Shield Bearer Ghosts were one such application. The spirits thus created
could grant necromancers formidable defense.
Jian Gui set aside some turtle spirits for Cang Xu and the undead ronin, Ku
Feng.
In this battle, Cang Xu's death heads served only as scouts. The undead ronin
Ku Feng remained stationed on the ghost ship's deck without engaging,
contributing the least.
Within mere days, the necromancers' combat power had multiplied several times
over.
They eradicated over a dozen sea beast swarms, including sharp-clawed water
monkeys, Ramhorn Turtles, and schools of oceanic fish.
As their strength grew, the necromancers' actions became bolder and their
coordination sharper.
Like in this recent engagement: no longer confined to the ghost ship, they
preemptively divided forces, selected battlefields, and set up ambushes.
They employed tactics to lure the turtle swarm into the ambush site before
striking with full force.
Clearly, sound strategy greatly enhanced their efficiency in hunting down
turtle swarms.
Cang Xu stowed the newly acquired ghosts without immediate processing.
He returned to his cabin, continuously casting spells.
Necromancy spell - Burden Alleviation.
Necromancy spell - Karma Reduction Spell.
The former eased Cang Xu's mental strain, while the latter mitigated the
erosion of his secondary abilities.
Currently, his collection of death heads was substantial.
He possessed 4 silver level, 27 iron level, and a staggering 86 bronze level
specimens.
Commanding this multitude of death heads had already imposed a tremendous
mental burden on Cang Xu.
“My innate talent is limited. Even transformed into an undead life form, I can
only reach iron level.”
“It's only because the Flying Head Spell inheritance imposes less burden than
ordinary ghosts, skeletons, or zombies that I can control so many.”
Cang Xu appeared to be silver level, but in truth, he was merely iron.
Even using the Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Reduction Spell daily, he was
nearing his control limit.
Only after halting these two spells did Cang Xu begin processing the newly
acquired spirits.
“This battle yielded only these.”
“Far too few.”
“This situation is unfavorable for me.”
Cang Xu's low contribution naturally meant meager spoils.
It wasn't that he lacked willingness, but his inherent weakness placed him low
in the tactical hierarchy.
In every battle, Jian Gui claimed the largest share of spoils. The ghost fleet
aboard the ghost ship had swelled nearly tenfold!
Xiao Wang Zi's haul usually ranked second, his skeletal army now forming a
formidable force.
Cang Xu came third, his death heads increasing in number. But constrained by
his innate talent, he was nearing his personal limit.
Among the necromancers, Ku Feng ranked lowest. Just like this time, where his
involvement was scarcely needed anymore.
As for Qing Xin, she needn't be mentioned.
In the deep sea, she had to constantly maintain her spells to sustain her own
respiration.
She scarcely left her quarters.
Each day consumed vast amounts of time in meditation, replenishing her magic
power.
Yet in the ocean depths, water elements abounded while wind elements were
scarce, making her meditation highly inefficient.
She had been completely marginalized....
…
The Divine Wind.
The human ringleader's brow furrowed deeply.
After thorough inquiries, he discovered no one recognized Lan Zao.
“How is that possible?”
“Could he not be part of the Bayonet Gang?”
The human ringleader fell into deep thought: “The people on the ship are merely
remnants of the gang. Perhaps none of them ever interacted with him.”
“But that possibility is too low.”
“Could he be a spy, deliberately rescuing Bing Xiao to gain trust?”
“Everything had been going smoothly until the bloodline awakening became an
accident, knocking him unconscious.”
At this thought, the human ringleader shook his head again.
“If I'd planted a spy, it wouldn't have been so crude and sloppy.”
"At the very least, I'd have arranged a proper cover identity. The rocket
assault boat's teleportation capability manifested unexpectedly. Him rescuing
Bing Xiao was also accidental."
“Regardless, I should inform the old gang leader of this news first.”
The human ringleader approached Bing Xiao's cabin door, about to knock.
Boom!
A sudden explosion rocked the entire ship violently.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted one after another inside the Divine Wind, immediately
causing significant casualties.
“What's happening?!” The human ringleader exclaimed in shock.
With a crash, the cabin door burst open, nearly colliding with the human
ringleader.
Bing Xiao had just burst out when he and the human ringleader heard the Divine
Wind's first mate shout: "Enemy attack!"
"Enemies again?"
“Where?”
Feng Lian, wielding his long-handled scythe, immediately prepared for battle,
but could find no sign of the enemy.
“In the sea!” the lookout on the mast shouted the warning.



****** Chapter 395: Mian Li Cang ******
The lookout scanned the sea below and caught glimpses of giant turtle shadows
flickering in and out of view.
Bang, bang, bang...
They kept slamming their horns into the Divine Wind's hull, sending the gold
level magic ship reeling violently.
“It's a ramhorn turtle swarm!”
“At least three gold level ones.”
"How is that possible? We scanned this area—where did this swarm come from?"
“At this rate, the Divine Wind's hull will be breached!”
Feng Lian shot forward like an arrow.
Hovering midair, he swung his scythe, unleashing wind blades that sliced toward
the ramhorn turtles below.
But in the next instant, dense spatial ripples erupted around each turtle.
One by one, the ramhorn turtles vanished into the distance, perfectly evading
every wind blade.
Simultaneously, similar spatial ripples manifested within the Divine Wind's
hold.
This time, bundles of alchemy bombs materialized out of thin air.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The alchemy bombs detonated in rapid succession, wounding countless pirates and
destroying vast sections of the ship's interior, causing immense destruction.
“Damn it!” Feng Lian had no choice but to dive back into the Divine Wind,
taking control of the situation.
Though his scythe was razor-sharp and his personal combat prowess formidable,
he found himself unable to act in this situation, his strength rendered
useless.
Feng Lian nearly ground his teeth to dust.
He couldn't find the enemy!
"This style of attack... Mian Li Cang! You are the honorable leader of the Li
Jian Clan! Have the courage to show yourself and face me in battle! Hiding
elsewhere, where is your honor as a noble?!"
The next moment, Mian Li Cang's voice pierced the air, responding to Feng Lian.
“Captain of the Divine Wind Pirates, you struck while my clan tested its new
naval warships during a vulnerable period, reaping immense gains. Did you truly
believe you and your men could depart unscathed?”
“Now I shall make you and your crew pay a heavy price!”
Mian Li Cang possessed no noble honor, only utter shamelessness. Though the
navy was ambusher, he spun it as if he were the victim.
As Mian Li Cang finished speaking, waves of spatial disturbances, varying in
size, erupted once more.
This time, however, the disturbances were far more numerous. Their reach
extended beyond the Divine Wind, engulfing nearly every pirate vessel.
Beasts materialized from thin air, launching frenzied assaults on all nearby
people and objects.
Ice wolves, snow monsters, white tigers, and wyverns bearing the bloodline of
white dragons appeared.
Chaos erupted throughout the Divine Wind Pirates.
Countless pirates were slaughtered.
They were forced to fight individually.
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader also found themselves in trouble.
“Run!”
Both were only silver level, now under attack by three silver level snow
spiders.
Among the Bayonet Gang leaders, the human ringleader was already the weakest
combatant.
Bing Xiao was ancient and specialized in breeding giant slaves. His personal
combat prowess had never been exceptional.
Most critically, the beasts summoned by Mian Li Cang were utterly fearless.
They even turned on each other!
For Bing Xiao and the human ringleader, the most rational approach was to fight
while retreating.
To confront them head-on was suicide!
This was the ship of the Divine Wind Pirates. Both Bing Xiao and the human
ringleader agreed: Feng Lian would ultimately resolve all these troubles.
“Can anyone help me?” Bing Xiao shouted for help as he ran.
But everyone they encountered, whether members of the Bayonet Gang or the
Divine Wind Pirates, was too preoccupied with their own survival.
Throughout their perilous escape, Bing Xiao witnessed countless corpses, blood
staining the ship's holds and corridors crimson.
Every passing second felt like torture.
Finally, the pair succeeded in diverting the pursuers' attention by using
others as decoys, temporarily escaping the crisis.
But the cost was immense.
A sharp ice spike pierced Bing Xiao's right shoulder. Frost elements were
violently corroding his body.
The human ringleader brought up the rear, shielding Bing Xiao. Now he was
covered in blood, a massive wound gushing uncontrollably from his midsection.
His condition was critical.
As Bing Xiao passed by Lan Zao's cabin, he saw a giant ice wolf bursting
through the door, poised to end Lan Zao's life.
"Save him!" Bing Xiao roared at the crucial moment.
The giant ice wolf was only bronze level. It was swiftly slain by the two. If
it were a silver level, or even an iron level beast, Bing Xiao might have made
a different choice.
“Quick, block the door with whatever you can find!” After slaying the wolf,
Bing Xiao burst into the cabin and shouted.
The human ringleader hurriedly moved tables and chairs to seal the gaping hole
in the cabin door, braced his body firmly against it, and pushed with all his
might.
Outside, the sounds of pirates clashing with beasts echoed relentlessly—death
throes, desperate cries for help...
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader remained tense and alert for a while before
gradually relaxing.
During this time, though beasts approached the cabin with heavy footsteps, they
all passed by without entering, drawn instead to the pirates putting up
resistance.
“Phew, safe for now!” The human ringleader exhaled a cloud of stale breath
before collapsing exhausted onto the floor.
“You've lost too much blood—you need bandages immediately!” Bing Xiao scanned
the room, then strode swiftly to Lan Zao's bed. Bending low, he tore a strip
from the bedsheet and tossed it to the human ringleader.
“You brat, I saved your life this time. We're even now,” Bing Xiao said, gazing
at the unconscious Lan Zao.
“The bloodlust here is too strong. It'll draw beasts. We should move to a safer
place,” Bing Xiao turned to the human ringleader.
The human ringleader's eyes were closed.
Bing Xiao's expression darkened instantly. “Damn it!” he cursed aloud.
He rushed back to the human ringleader, checking his condition.
The human ringleader wasn't dead—there was still a faint breath—but he lay
unconscious from his severe injuries.
“Mian Li Cang is hiding within a sub-space. As long as he doesn't appear in the
Main World, I can't threaten him.” Feng Lian pieced together the intelligence
and grasped the situation.
Feng Lian felt his resolve waver.
He had provoked Mian Li Cang with everything he had, yet the man refused to
show himself.
“Launch the ship! Full speed ahead! Get us far from here!” Feng Lian suddenly
ordered.
The effect was immediate.
As they gradually distanced themselves, spatial fluctuations diminished
sharply, and the number of beasts or alchemy bombs teleported by Mian Li Cang
decreased dramatically.
Once the Divine Wind Pirates had pulled away to a safe distance, no more beasts
or alchemy bombs appeared.
Mian Li Cang, residing within the suppressed space, relied on spatial
positioning to teleport objects and creatures.
Once the Divine Wind pirate ships were no longer at their original location,
pinpointing their new position became a cumbersome task.
For Mian Li Cang, separated by an entire plane, it required a series of complex
recalculations to obtain new precise coordinates for accurate teleportation.
The Divine Wind Pirates fled in disarray.
Feng Lian's face was as cold as frost.
His combat prowess far surpassed that of Mian Li Cang, the current head of the
Li Jian Clan. Yet, the enemy refused to engage him directly, instead
continuously deploying forces across dimensions.
The frenzied, death-defying beasts served as perfect suicide troops..
The Divine Wind Pirates suffered devastating losses, all because of Mian Li
Cang alone.
Feng Lian etched this humiliation deep into his heart.
“The Li Jian Clan... Mian Li Cang!” Feng Lian's eyes blazed with seething fury.
“They ambushed us again. How did they pinpoint our fleet's exact location?”
“There must be a mole aboard!”
"Investigate!!"



****** Chapter 396: The Fishman Youngster Appears! ******
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The alchemy cabin.
Zhong Yong tilted his head back and downed a bottle of potion, instantly
feeling a surge of energy. After days of relentless alchemy, his exhausted body
was infused with fresh vitality.
The glow from the alchemy formation behind him gradually faded, revealing the
fruits of his labor over the past days.
“Commander, the dual-eared detection puppet is complete,” he relayed to the
dragonman youngster via communication.
Shortly after, the hatch slid open, and the “dragonman youngster” stepped
inside.
Zhong Yong hurried forward to greet him and introduced, “These dual-eared
alchemy puppets utilize sound wave transmission alchemy. They can emit sound
waves across a wide range of frequencies.”
“Using them to probe the Ocean Mother Nest not only allows us to detect
conditions within the nest, but the sound waves can also penetrate the cavern
walls to gather some intelligence on the external environment.”
The “dragonman youngster” nodded slightly, “And what are the drawbacks of these
puppets?”
Zhong Yong replied, "The main drawback is their energy consumption. They
consume a tremendous amount of energy and require substantial replenishment at
regular intervals."
“Additionally, they're quite fragile. Designed primarily for reconnaissance,
their combat capabilities are weak.”
"Finally, their reconnaissance takes considerable time, largely due to how the
sonic waves are utilized. We must deploy them covertly, allowing them to swim
around the Mother Nest's perimeter, scatter, and emit sonic waves for
continuous surveillance. It takes at least 24 hours to gather phased results."
The “dragonman youngster” pressed further: “Then when might we detect
conditions beyond the Mother Nest?”
“Well...” Zhong Yong looked troubled, shaking his head slightly. "Commander,
I've only heard of the Ocean Mother Nest—its secrets remain unknown to me. I
cannot estimate how long the sonic waves would take to penetrate the Mother
Nest's cavern walls. The composition and thickness of those walls are critical
variables affecting the outcome."
The dragonman youngster pressed further, "Then, if we deploy these
reconnaissance puppets, will the saint level sea beast react? Could the emitted
sonic waves awaken it—or even provoke its wrath?"
Zhong Yong shook his head, “I cannot say, my lord.”
“This saint level sea beast remains curled in a ball. Its true nature remains
unknown.”
“Every living being has a limited hearing range. If the sonic waves fall
outside the saint level sea beast's audible spectrum, they might have no
effect.”
“If within its hearing range, it would depend on the specific volume.”
"My suggestion is we test it first. Adjust the power from low to high, probing
incrementally."
"I still believe there's risk involved. Even a pure-minded saint level sea
beast, untouched by the outside world, would likely feel some irritation upon
being roused from slumber, wouldn't it?"
"Commander, we're somewhere deep beneath the sea. This combat environment
doesn't allow you to fully unleash your strength, and my own combat power is
rather weak..."
Noticing Zhong Yong hesitating, the “dragonman youngster” smiled reassuringly,
“Rest easy. This mobile alchemy vessel possesses combat capabilities.”
“I won't be fighting either; I'm only silver level.”
“Nor will I risk you in battle. Your value lies in alchemy.”
“I have confidence in the ship's camouflage capabilities. Moreover, my trusted
confidant and capable assistant is aboard!”
"Come in. Hou Lang, you're a fishman too. Meet Zhong Yong."
Zhong Yong's interest was instantly piqued.
From the “dragonman youngster's” words, he gathered there were others aboard
the alchemy ship.
This man was no ordinary figure—a high-ranking member of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, deeply trusted by Commander Long Fu. And his identity? A
fishman!
The next moment, the alchemy cabin door slid open again, revealing a fishman
stepping inside.
This fishman stood a towering 1.6 meters tall.
Among his kind, that height was far from short.
His form was robust, his belly, thighs, and thick arms bulging with visible
subcutaneous fat. His entire body was covered in deep blue fish scales, adorned
with black, wavy patterns.
His eyes were large and pure black, giving off an intense, profound aura.
The life force emanating from him told Zhong Yong that this was a silver level
transcendent fishman.
“Hello, my name is Zhong Yong. I recently joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps,” Zhong Yong hurriedly introduced himself.
The dragonman youngster nodded in response. "I am Hou Lang, guardian of this
submersible alchemy vessel. I know you. Though this is our first meeting, it is
a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
The entity conversing with Zhong Yong was, in truth, an alchemy puppet equipped
with a communication device.
Through the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, coupled with the Deceptive
Disguise spell, the dragonman youngster had transformed it into his own
dragonman form. His true form, meanwhile, had transformed into that of a
fishman.
This allowed him to conceal many secrets from Zhong Yong.
For instance, that only the dragonman youngster and Zhong Yong were currently
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Or, for example, Commander Long Fu could effortlessly alter his form!
“You two talk. I have business to attend to.” The “dragonman youngster”
departed first.
Hou Lang and Zhong Yong bowed in farewell.
Inside the alchemy cabin, only the two fishmen remained.
The dragonman youngster, or more accurate, the fishman youngster, now examined
the reconnaissance puppets within the alchemy formation.
These puppets resembled rabbits, each sporting two long ears. One ear emitted
sonic waves, while the other received them.
"Zhong Yong, you joining us has greatly enhanced our alchemy capabilities. We
couldn't have crafted these before," the fishman youngster praised.
Zhong Yong chuckled: "This model of alchemy puppet is indeed ingenious. When I
first got the alchemy blueprints, I studied them for quite some time."
“I've discovered our corps' alchemy knowledge is exceptionally refined.”
"During my entrance exam, I encountered a wondrous alchemy formation.
Theoretically analyzing it, I discovered it actually affected bloodlines.
“This dual-eared reconnaissance puppet is a rare masterpiece, even by the
standards of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild.”
"I plan to craft other reconnaissance puppet models next. These puppets will be
no weaker than the dual-eared detection puppets!"
The fishman youngster appraised Zhong Yong: “Seems you're quite enthusiastic
about your work here. That's commendable.”
“I was a bit worried you might struggle adapting to this environment.”
“What's the big deal!” Zhong Yong shook his head, “Back in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, I barely left my lab either. Every day was either alchemy experiments
or alchemy itself.”
“The realm of alchemy is so vast, I could spend my entire life without fully
grasping all its mysteries.”
“What's even more wonderful is that this realm expands every single moment.”
"In this world, there are alchemy geniuses who stand at the forefront of their
specialized fields. Every tiny breakthrough they make is unprecedented. Thus,
our alchemy domain ceaselessly expands, ever renewing itself."
“I would gladly dedicate my entire life to alchemy!”
Zhong Yong's expression softened with emotion, his eyes brimming with sincere
passion.
"Ah, my apologies. Lord Hou Lang, it's rude to share such personal thoughts
upon our first meeting." The next moment, Zhong Yong realized his error and
apologized to the fishman youngster.
By normal standards, expressing such heartfelt sentiments to someone you've
just met, even within the same race, would be considered abrupt.
But the fishman youngster had anticipated this.
He patted Zhong Yong's shoulder, “I see your magician's heart, Zhong Yong. I'm
glad our corps has gained another fishman.”
“It's good you can adapt here.”
“If the chance arises, I'll speak to the commander about giving you
opportunities for alchemy experiments.”
"Really? That's fantastic!" Zhong Yong's face lit up instantly.
Currently, he could only perform alchemy and work tirelessly, lacking the
authority to independently design experiments, explore, or verify theories
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“Honestly, seeing a fellow fishman here feels really good.”
Zhong Yong admitted, “I've always had this worry. You know, the commander is a
dragonman, and most members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are human.”
Racial barriers were everywhere.
Zhong Yong couldn't help but share such worries.
The fishman youngster desperately wanted to tell him, 'Your worries are
completely unnecessary. What does fishman even mean in this team? We even have
necromancers.'
After offering more comfort and encouragement to Zhong Yong, he left the
alchemy cabin.
After their conversation, Zhong Yong felt rejuvenated, a powerful surge of
motivation welling up from within as he threw himself into another round of
alchemy.
Meanwhile, the fishman youngster reflected on their meeting: “Is this the
effect of the Affinity Aura?”
It was one of the transcendent abilities granted by his fishman form.



****** Chapter 397: Mental Secret ******
After the dragonman youngster devoured Hai Ping's saint corpse with his
Bloodcore, he unexpectedly gained two types of fishman bloodlines.
This outcome surprised him.
The concentrations of the two fishman bloodlines were 52% and 11%,
respectively.
He experimented with mutations one after another. The 52% concentration of
fishman blood transformed him into a yellow green fishman—tall, burly, with
bulging muscles and sturdy bones.
Due to its distinct characteristics, the dragonman youngster easily identified
it through the tower spirit's records: this was the Barbarian Fish bloodline.
The Barbarian Fish bloodline was a gold level lineage.
Currently, it possesses only one innate talent: racial magic—Berserk.
The Berserk talent was commonly found among barbarian tribes.
The Frost Continent was even larger than the Sheng Ming Continent and the
domain of the barbarians in the main world.
Once a barbarian entered Berserk, their individual combat power surged
severalfold. The more formidable the barbarian warrior, the greater the
destructive force of their Berserk state. This led to the legendary prestige of
elite barbarian warriors spreading far and wide.
In ancient times, barbarians and dragons were equally renowned, reigning as the
world's dominant races. The Berserk talent played a pivotal role in this.
Had it not been for the critical drawback of losing rationality during the
Berserk state, the course of world history and the status of the barbarians
would have been utterly transformed.
Of course, certain barbarian prodigies could maintain composure during their
Berserk state.
This proved that the drawback of Berserk could be overcome.
Berserk was a racial magic with an exceptionally high barrier to entry. If its
drawback was conquered, its ceiling became extraordinarily high, making it a
world-class, top level talent.
The primary reason the Barbarian Fish bloodline bore the 'Barbarian' term was
precisely this Berserk talent.
The dragonman youngster attempted the Berserk state in the meditation chamber.
Just as it was about to take effect, he sensed he would lose his sanity and
decisively halted the process.
The gold level fishman bloodline held little appeal for him.
The Bloodline of the Flame Dragon King was legend level.
The current concentration of the Flame Dragon King bloodline remained at 34%.
During their time in Snow Bird Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
conducted multiple transactions with the city lord, allowing the dragonman
youngster to absorb numerous dragon beast materials. However, since most were
from white dragon bloodline beasts and wyverns, they offered no benefit to the
Flame Dragon King bloodline.
Even so, the boost from 34% Flame Dragon King blood far surpassed that of 52%
fishman blood. Whether in defense or recovery, the former vastly exceeded the
latter.
After all, the former was legend level blood, while the latter was merely gold
level, a full tier below, separated by the saint level.
What intrigued the dragonman youngster more was the 11% fishman bloodline.
Upon activating this bloodline, the dragonman youngster's appearance
transformed into what Zhong Yong witnessed—thick layers of fat, not as tall as
the Barbarian Fish bloodline form but still standing at 1.6 meters, with deep
blue fish scales and black wavy patterns.
“A mere 11% concentration could cause such complete physical
transformation—this bloodline is exceptionally potent!”
The dragonman youngster remained unaware that this fishman bloodline surpassed
even the Flaming Dragon King's in grade, being the god level Surging Wave
fishman bloodline!
War Merchant's database offered no clear matching results.
“With only 11% blood concentration, many bloodline traits haven't manifested
yet."
“If Zi Di were here, we might be able to test it with a blood-testing potion."
But that was only a “might.”
Blood-testing potions weren't accurate; they were full of pitfalls.
“Calculating the time, Zi Di should be departing Snow Bird Harbor for the royal
capital soon.”
The dragonman youngster sighed at this thought.
He longed to return.
The journey to the royal capital was crucial for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
But there was nothing he could do. He had been unexpectedly teleported into the
Ocean Mother Nest. Even now, he didn't know his exact coordinates.
“With the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, Deceptive Disguise spell, and
Zong Ge by her side, the mercenary corps should be fine for the short term.”
“Hopefully, the connection with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord will prove useful,
allowing the royal capital's network to lend support.”
The dragonman youngster gathered his thoughts and focused on the present.
The Ocean Mother Nest isolated its inhabitants from the outside world, existing
almost entirely in isolation. His current predicament could only be overcome
through his own efforts, relying solely on himself to break through.
“I must quickly become familiar with this fishman form to prevent the worst-
case scenario.”
“The Affinity Aura has already been tested. Next up are Mental Flogging and
Mind's Eye.”
The Surging Wave fishman bloodline had granted the youngster four transcendent
talents.
In addition to the above three, there was also a healing spell.
The healing spell was the first to be tested, and it proved highly effective.
"I've witnessed the effects of the Affinity Aura. In this form, it's my first
meeting with Zhong Yong, yet I managed to draw out the true thoughts of this
silver level magician. This transcendent ability significantly enhances my
leadership and interpersonal skills, making it an exceptionally valuable
support ability."
"However, the only test subject so far has been Zhong Yong. I wonder how
effective it would be on races other than fishmen."
"Mental Flogging... involves using one's own mental energy to lash out at the
target. The intensity of the lash depends partly on the caster's mental
strength and partly on their active control."
Bloodlines contained all the life information of an individual.
Higher level bloodlines carried vastly more data than lower ones.
The dragonman youngster had gained four transcendent talents from the Surging
Wave fishman bloodline, each accompanied by detailed information instinctively.
The dragonman youngster did not know the nature of this bloodline yet possessed
innate understanding of these four innate spells.
In truth, the information within a higher bloodline naturally identifies its
own lineage.
For instance, when a dragon hatchling is born from an abandoned dragon egg. Its
bloodline information would inherently let it know it was a dragon. It would
also specify whether it belonged to a particular type of dragon, such as a
green dragon or a red dragon.
However, the dragonman youngster possessed only an 11% concentration of the
Surging Wave fishman bloodline, resulting in incomplete information.
The presence of information for all four extraordinary talents was not mere
luck. The fact that he could actually use them indicated that this portion of
the information was relatively intact.  Even if incomplete, it certainly
exceeded 50%.
Thus, the dragonman youngster knew both the names of these four transcendent
talents and their general nature.
However, the actual effects when used had to be analyzed on a case-by-case
basis.
Given that the youngster possessed only 11% Surging Wave fishman bloodline, the
racial magic effects he could manifest would inevitably be far weaker than
those of a carrier with 100% bloodline.
The dragonman youngster showed little interest in the Mental Flogging racial
magic.
Given a choice, he would prefer to replace this offensive transcendent talent
with the defensive Mental Barrier.
That was his true weakness.
For offensive capabilities, he had numerous alternatives, like weapons,
equipment, spell scrolls, and so forth.
"The final of the four transcendent talents is Mind's Eye. According to the
bloodline records: when the user employs this racial magic, they gain a unique
transcendent vision. Within this field of vision, all living beings reveal
fragments of their mental secrets."
The first question that arose in the dragonman youngster's mind upon receiving
this information was: “What exactly are these so-called mental secrets?”
Unfortunately, he had no way of knowing.
The bloodline information abruptly ended, offering no further explanation.
To test this transcendent talent, the dragonman youngster first considered
Zhong Yong as his target.
However, he remembered Zhong Yong was currently engaged in alchemy work. This
task was far more important than the youngster experimenting with his newly
acquired ability.
Therefore, in the end, the youngster only tested the Affinity Aura ability on
Zhong Yong.
“Clearly, Mind's Eye is a reconnaissance skill, likely similar to the ski
goggles,” the youngster speculated inwardly.
The ski goggles, forged by Bu Quan, could mark external threats and their
relative danger level to the user.
This practical alchemy device had proven immensely helpful to the youngster.
The former dragonman youngster, now a fishman youngster, activated Mind's Eye.
He first scanned his own body, but nothing unusual appeared.
“Does this skill not work on oneself?”
After pondering, the fishman youngster headed to the storage room.
There, he discovered a large quantity of tide snake eggs.
They had gathered many of these eggs during their time on Snake Rat Island.
Though they had sold some later, they still retained the majority of them.
Under the Mind's Eye, these tide snake eggs all displayed an almost identical
white glow.
This white light wasn't pure white, but rather a milky white. To the fishman
youngster, it radiated a sense of young, hopeful vitality.
"Compared to colored light, this mental perception is far more significant.
Thus, the essence of the Mind's Eye lies not in vision, but in the mind, it
prioritizes spiritual sensation."
“As for why they appear white... could it be because these tide snakes haven't
hatched yet, leaving Mind's Eye blank?”
He also keenly observed that the milky white glow emanating from each tide
snake egg exhibited subtle variations.
While most appeared spherical, some displayed unusual shapes.
Beyond this, the size of the milky white light clusters also differed. Some
tide snake eggs were large, yet their milky white light clusters remained
small. Others were quite small, yet the milky-white spheres they projected
within the mental vision were substantial in volume.
“What does this mean?”
"Could it be that eggs with larger milky-white spheres hatch tide snakes with
richer mental worlds? Or perhaps higher spiritual potential?"
After letting his thoughts wander briefly, the fishman youngster fetched a
mirror and examined the eggs through its surface.
Yet the eggs reflected in the mirror showed no unusual signs.
The fishman youngster couldn't discern a single milky-white light cluster.
“So, must we observe the living beings themselves directly?”
To verify this, the fishman youngster made a special trip back to the cockpit.
Through the monitoring devices there, he observed the tide snake eggs in the
storage room once more.
Still, not a single milky-white light cluster was visible.
Returning to the storage room, the fishman youngster retrieved his ski goggles
and donned them.
However, he did not activate the alchemy device, choosing instead to simply
look through the lenses.
This time, he still saw countless milky-white light clusters.
The fishman youngster fell deep in thought.
Moments later, he retrieved several pieces of glass. These panes were
exceptionally clear and thick. They were spare parts for the Deep Sea Monster
Fish's portholes.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish possessed numerous circular portholes. These windows
employed exceptionally thick glass, capable of withstanding external water
pressure while allowing one-way light transmission.
This meant crew members could observe the exterior from within the ship, yet
nothing inside was visible from outside.
The fishman youngster continued observing the tide snake eggs through these
panes.
When the glass panels reached eleven in number, the luminous anomaly in his
mental vision vanished.
“So, if too many barriers separate me from the observation target, I won't be
able to perceive the mental secret either.”
“Could I try observing that saint level sea beast?”
Once this thought surfaced in the fishman youngster's mind, he couldn't
suppress it.
To be honest, it was a bit risky.
After all, it was a reconnaissance skill. Using it risked awakening the
slumbering saint level sea beast and provoking its wrath.
After careful consideration, the fishman youngster concluded the risk was
relatively low.
First, the Mind's Eye was not an offensive skill, merely reconnaissance. The
saint level sea beast was currently asleep, making it unlikely to be startled
awake.
Second, the fishman youngster had complete confidence in his Anti-investigation
and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell. These had consumed god level
materials. They had consistently provided protection for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps without a single slip-up.
Finally, the fishman youngster realized he had no choice but to take the risk.
Because next, he would deploy those dual-eared reconnaissance puppets to
conduct a thorough, genuine reconnaissance of the Ocean Mother Nest. Compared
to sonic transmission and reception, the Mind's Eye's reconnaissance power was
far weaker, making the chance of waking or angering the saint level sea beast
much smaller.
Rather than risking greater danger later, it was better to use this innate
ability now and see.
After making his decision, the fishman youngster first went to the cockpit to
make preparations, bringing the Deep Sea Monster Fish to its maximum
operational state.
Then, he moved to a window suitable for direct observation.
Standing before the window, he once again activated his transcendent talent,
Mind's Eye.
A blood-red, volcano-like mass of mental light instantly filled his field of
vision. The crimson light resembled both fire and blood, radiating profound
fury and hatred.
At the base of this volcanic mass lay vast swathes of pitch-black darkness,
evoking an unfathomable sense of mental abyss.
Merely observing this anomaly subjected the fishman youngster's mind to a
violent assault of rage and world-defying hatred!
The fishman youngster hastily withdrew his mental vision, and in the next
instant, his sight returned to normal.
“What on earth is going on?”
“Wasn't the saint level sea beast supposed to grow in isolation, free from
want, pure as a blank sheet of paper?”
Doubt and alarm surged within the fishman youngster.
In his estimation, the saint level sea beast should have been a giant sea beast
cub. Instead, he discovered a world-weary murderer!
The difference between the two was simply too vast.
“Did I misread it?”
“No, this direct mental perception cannot be wrong.”
“So, what exactly is going on?”
As if responding to the fishman youngster's inner doubts, a powerful
disturbance suddenly erupted within the Ocean Mother Nest.
In the next instant, a massive horde of sharp-clawed water monkeys was
teleported inside!
The saint level sea beast awoke!
It stretched its limbs, emitting furious mental waves, and charged in while the
water monkeys were still dazed.
Only then did the fishman youngster realize the saint level sea beast was a
colossal octopus!
The octopus sea beast wildly lashed its tentacles, unleashing a bloody carnage
among the water monkeys.
After a brutal slaughter, the water monkeys became the sea beast's meal,
swallowed whole, one by one.
Watching the saint level sea beast's savage display, cold sweat beaded on the
fishman youngster's forehead.
“It seems this teleportation phenomenon has been ongoing for quite some time,
it's not just us this time!”
“That's why this saint level sea beast is so ferocious and brutal.”
“If not for the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise
spell, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would have been torn apart the instant it was
teleported in!”
The thought sent a chill down the fishman youngster's spine.
His brow furrowed deeply as he sank into profound distress: “How on earth am I
supposed to tame such a ferocious saint level sea beast?”



****** Chapter 398: Snow Pear Octopus…Slice ******
The pure slaughter slowly drew to a close before the fishman youngster's eyes.
The sharp-clawed water monkey horde fled in disarray, dying in their escape,
ultimately becoming prey for the saint level sea beast.
Blood stained the Ocean Mother Nest crimson, filling the fishman youngster's
vision with a pale red hue.
The saint level sea beast opened its massive jaws, sucking in water with
tremendous force.
The blood-tinged water was swallowed whole, only to be expelled as colorless
seawater.
“This sea beast didn't even spare the blood...” The fishman youngster witnessed
this detail, once again feeling the sheer savagery of the saint level sea
beast.
Having finished its hunt, the saint level sea beast retreated back into its
lair. Just as the fishman youngster had seen before, it curled into a snow-
capped mountain.
Soon, the waters within the Ocean Mother Nest grew still once more, as if the
bloody slaughter had been nothing but an illusion, as if it had never happened
at all.
A chill gripped the fishman youngster's heart.
He grasped a harsh truth - the saint level sea beast sharing his chamber was no
helpless, innocent, curious little creature. It was a cunning, vicious
predator, a being standing at the apex of the food chain.
“One could say it is the master of this Ocean Mother Nest.”
“Regardless of the origin of the teleportation mechanism, this saint level sea
beast has fully adapted to this environment.”
“It was nurtured here, grew here, fought here, and was tempered time and again
here. Ultimately, only it survived.”
“Or perhaps... it, like me, was also teleported here?”
The fishman youngster pondered for a moment before venturing to use his
transcendent talent, Mind's Eye, on the saint level sea beast once more.
Through the circular porthole, he glimpsed the creature's mental landscape
again.
The volcanic shape remained unchanged, but now the crater erupted with vast
flows of magma.
The deep black that had pooled at the volcano's base had nearly all transformed
into a deep crimson.
In the upper half of the crater, the original deep red had faded to a lighter
crimson.
Near the crater's rim, the once-red hues had even shifted toward a faint
yellow.
Witnessing this mental landscape, the fishman youngster simultaneously sensed
the saint level sea beast's current state of mind.
It was the faint pleasure and relief of venting accumulated hatred and fury
after a brutal slaughter.
There was also the lingering dissatisfaction of not being fully sated!
“This saint level sea beast's nature is undoubtedly savage and tyrannical!”
“The Ocean Mother Nest could provide ample nourishment for its growth, yet it
remains unsatisfied.”
“Having tasted the savory flavor of blood, how could it possibly settle for
bland, insipid fare?”
"In its normal state, it curls into a ball, sinking into slumber, waiting for
the teleportation mechanism to activate. The moment a living creature is
transported in, it launches its attack without delay. While feasting to its
heart's content, it also vents its inner savagery, hatred, and other negative
emotions."
Having confirmed the saint level sea beast's nature, the fishman youngster had
completely abandoned any notion of taming it.
It was impossible to tame.
The fishman youngster was only silver level, not even reaching gold level.
Though the Deep Sea Monster Fish was a gold level magic ship, its strongest
ability was stealth and concealment. If it were to engage in actual combat
against a saint level sea beast, the ship's combat prowess alone was
negligible.
When the fishman youngster had acquired the transcendent talent of the Affinity
Aura, he had felt a flicker of secret delight.
This ability could also be applied to the saint level sea beast, potentially
increasing his chances of subjugation.
Now, that seemed utterly impossible.
To subdue a sea beast of such nature, one had to deliver a brutal beating,
forcing submission through sheer strength.
Even then, it would only be physical submission, not mental, leaving
significant risks.
Merely expressing affection, or attempting to lure it with benefits, was
virtually impossible.
Of course, if the fishman youngster had a master magician by his side,
employing potions, magic formations, or other means, taming it might not be
entirely out of the question.
But unfortunately, the only magician currently with the fishman youngster was
Zhong Yong. He was merely a fishman, a silver level alchemist at best.
“We must leave this place immediately!” the fishman youngster sighed inwardly,
acutely aware of the perilous nature of this Ocean Mother Nest.
He hadn't yet deciphered the teleportation mechanism, but he knew for certain
that once a transfer occurred, combat would likely erupt within the Mother
Nest.
Though the Deep Sea Monster Fish was well-camouflaged and had evaded detection
by the saint level sea beast, the space within the Ocean Mother Nest was
finite.
Should fierce fighting break out, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would likely be
caught in the crossfire.
If this magic ship were to be destroyed, the fishman youngster's tears would
run dry.
"To be on the safe side, we'll need to use the Deceptive Disguise spell to
alter the appearance of the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
To the uninformed observer, the Deep Sea Monster Fish would appear as nothing
more than an ordinary underwater rock formation
Yet in this environment, the submerged rock stood out starkly against the
surrounding sea of pearls, appearing utterly out of place.
Though it had temporarily deceived the saint level sea beast, it offered no
lasting security.
What if, in the future, boredom drove this saint level sea beast to toy with
the reef?
The fishman youngster harbored another concern: if the teleportation mechanism
activated again, might intelligent transcendents arriving through it notice
something peculiar about the underwater reef and uncover a fragment of the
truth?
“If disguised as a pearl, it shouldn't be a single massive pearl, but rather a
cluster of tiny pearls,” the fishman youngster decided.
This teleportation and massacre had given him a solid scare.
Still, he hadn't come away empty-handed.
The saint level sea beast had revealed its true form, and the fishman youngster
quickly obtained its intelligence from the tower spirit.
It was a Snow Pear Octopus.
Gentle in nature, it subsisted on feeding upon schools of fish in the sea.
In terms of its bloodline, saint level was not its limit. If its bloodline
concentration reached a certain threshold, it could ascend to become a legend
level transcendent life form!
The Snow Pear Octopus bloodline was legendary in itself. Yet, historically, any
legendary Snow Pear Octopus that had ever existed was at least 1,500 years old.
Judging by its size, the one currently in the Ocean Mother Nest was only around
sixty years old.
By the Snow Pear Octopus's standards, it was still a child.
The Snow Pear Octopus's hunt caused significant turmoil. Amidst the relentless
churning of the sea, the Deep Sea Monster Fish's hull shook violently.
This disturbance forced Zhong Yong to halt his alchemy temporarily.
The fishman youngster seized the moment to enter the alchemy cabin and relay
the latest developments.
Zhong Yong was utterly stunned.
He too possessed knowledge of the Snow Pear Octopus.
Truly befitting a magician of vast learning.
“The Snow Pear Octopus is an exceptionally rare marine creature.”
“It's not typically documented in standard texts.”
“The most memorable book I recall, The Complete Guide to Raw Cuisine, happened
to feature a description of it in its later pages.”
"The text records that MasterChef Guo Ren once hunted a Snow Pear Octopus. He
sliced the octopus's tentacles into thin, edible slices. Snow Pear Octopus
slices are incredibly delicious! The texture is crisp yet slightly chewy, with
a flavor that combines the savory richness of seafood alongside a refreshing,
fruity sweetness."
“MasterChef Guo Ren directly declared it one of the world's finest
ingredients.”
After hearing Zhong Yong's explanation, the fishman youngster was speechless.
“How does this connect to ingredients?”
His curiosity piqued, he inquired about MasterChef Guo Ren's identity.
Zhong Yong explained, "MasterChef Guo Ren is the most renowned snow elf magic
chef in the history of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. He's a legendary figure with
unparalleled knife skills. His defining battle occurred at the saint level.
Within three seconds, he sliced an opponent of equal level into countless thin
slices."
"He cherishes peace and isn't bloodthirsty. His greatest passion is creating
culinary masterpieces, always identifying as a magic chef. His cooking skills
rank among the world's finest, with sashimi being his specialty."
The fishman youngster sighed, “Using Snow Pear Octopus as an ingredient is
possible because MasterChef Guo Ren is a legendary magic chef.”
“But here, we are the ingredients for the Snow Pear Octopus.”
Seeing the fishman youngster's troubled expression, Zhong Yong couldn't bear it
and offered comfort: “I previously briefed the commander on intelligence
regarding the Ocean Mother Nest.”
“Now it seems the actual situation differs greatly from my earlier report.”
“This place is unsafe; it's absolutely no place to linger!”
“Breaking through the Mother Nest and escaping as quickly as possible is the
wise course of action.”
The youngster frowned. "But shattering it will create a commotion that will
surely provoke the saint level sea beast. We'll be the first targets."
“Not necessarily,” Zhong Yong replied thoughtfully, “It depends on the results
from the dual-eared reconnaissance puppets I've refined.”
"If we detect that powerful sea beasts inhabit the area surrounding the Ocean
Mother Nest, then even if we shatter the nest, waking and enraging the saint
level sea beast, we might still have a chance to escape."
The fishman youngster's eyes lit up at this.
Zhong Yong's proposed plan held some feasibility.
Using the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell,
the Deep Sea Monster Fish could disguise itself. Then, the fishman youngster
could command alchemy puppets to perform explosive tasks.
The Snow Pear Octopus's nature was savage and tyrannical; once its lair was
destroyed, it would inevitably plunge into a fury.
It would vent its rage, and at that moment, the sea beasts on the periphery
became the most obvious targets for its fury.
As long as the two sides started fighting, the Deep Sea Monster Fish could take
advantage of the chaos to escape.
"Now it all depends on the reconnaissance results. I hope this Ocean Mother
Nest is teeming with sea beasts," the fishman youngster silently hoped.
While the fishman youngster on the ocean floor was troubled, Feng Lian on the
surface faced his own worries.
The Divine Wind Pirates suffered heavy losses from the sudden attack by the Li
Jian Clan leader.
After a swift retreat, Feng Lian immediately ordered a thorough investigation
into the mole.
Yet after combing through every detail, even examining the unconscious Lan Zao,
no evidence surfaced.
The investigation concluded that everyone was innocent.
After pondering briefly, Feng Lian summoned Bing Xiao and declared bluntly,
“The Li Jian Clan leader Mian Li Cang hides vicious treachery beneath a gentle
exterior, inflicting devastating casualties on our crew.”
“This debt of blood, I shall repay tenfold!”
“Every second of this hatred feels like torture.”
“Therefore, I won't be sending you to Flower Skirt Island personally.”
“It's not far from here. I'll give you three landing craft, more than enough to
get you there.”
Upon hearing this, Bing Xiao instantly grasped Feng Lian's underlying meaning.
Feng Lian still suspected a mole among the Bayonet Gang members!
But he didn't state it outright.
Nor did he expend more effort investigating.
On one hand, it wasn't convenient for him to treat the Bayonet Gang members
this way. On the other hand, he didn't have much confidence that any
investigation would yield results.
The pirate crew had already given their all during the previous two thorough
searches.
Therefore, for Feng Lian, the most hassle-free and effortless approach was to
simply get rid of the Bayonet Gang members!



****** Chapter 399: Departure ******
The Divine Wind.
Bing Xiao looked at Feng Lian.
The night was deep, and the light in the captain's cabin was dim.
Feng Lian wore a mask, so Bing Xiao couldn't see his expression, but he could
sense the latter's tightly furrowed brow.
Feng Lian stated he was in a hurry to seek revenge, so he was leaving the
Bayonet Gang members behind that very night. Bing Xiao smiled.
He didn't expose Feng Lian's true motives, instead nodding in agreement. "Lord
Feng Lian, the torment of hatred is indeed excruciating. But all that pain will
transform into the sweetest wine in the world the moment vengeance is
achieved."
“You have already aided us so greatly. Alas, my strength is meager. I can only
offer my best wishes here for your complete triumph.”
“Bing Xiao...” Feng Lian sighed. He knew Bing Xiao understood his true
intentions, and this display of understanding made him feel a wave of
weariness.
“Given the situation, what else can be done?” Feng Lian sighed deeply within.
Bing Xiao's expression remained calm.
As a gang leader himself, Bing Xiao understood Feng Lian completely.
If he were in Feng Lian's shoes, he would have done the same.
It was the logical course of action.
Before the Divine Wind and other pirate ships carried members of the Bayonet
Gang, the Divine Wind Pirates had never suffered such ambushes.
Such attacks clearly required precise knowledge of the Divine Wind Pirates'
location to execute.
Therefore, it was highly probable that a traitor within the Bayonet Gang
possessed some covert means of tracking their location.
That was precisely why Feng Lian, after a thorough investigation yielded no
results, had decisively abandoned the Bayonet Gang.
It was the action an excellent leader should take.
For the Divine Wind Pirates, their situation was dire.
Though they had defeated the Kingdom's Second Fleet in their previous battle
and escaped successfully, they had gained no spoils, and the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's resources far surpassed those of a mere pirate crew.
The current head of the Li Jian Clan, Mian Li Cang, personally led an ambush
against the Divine Wind Pirates.
The pirates suffered heavy losses. They couldn't even mount a defense, let
alone fight back, forced to endure the beating passively. This was devastating
to morale.
Bing Xiao believed that in a direct confrontation, relying on Feng Lian's
strength, they could certainly suppress Mian Li Cang, inflict heavy damage or
even kill him. But in the second ambush, Feng Lian's combat prowess was
rendered useless, leaving him utterly frustrated.
Bing Xiao looked at Feng Lian. Though he was about to be expelled, he still
cautioned, “Lord Feng Lian, if you can find a way to counter Mian Li Cang,
revenge is highly achievable.”
In other words, without a means to counter Mian Li Cang, blindly seeking
revenge would only lead to certain death.
Feng Lian nodded slightly, “I'm heading out to find the item that counters Mian
Li Cang.”
“I know a friend who carries one.”
“I already have follow-up targets and plans. You can leave with peace of mind.”
“But before you go, take some equipment with you.”
“Don't worry, this is a gift of friendship. No payment needed.”
Feng Lian gifted Bing Xiao some weapons and gear. Of course, ample food and
water were included as well.
Soon after, the Bayonet Gang members boarded the landing craft.
These three landing craft were essentially Feng Lian's bonus gift, so they were
no longer the previous silver level vessels but ordinary ships.
The Bayonet Gang's numbers were already thin, and after the ambush by Mian Li
Cang succeeded, they'd conveniently killed off quite a few more of their men.
Still, Feng Lian's donation of supplies meant the three landing craft were
packed to the brim, leaving little room to spare.
Standing on the landing craft, Bing Xiao looked up and formally bid farewell to
Feng Lian.
The two groups parted ways, heading in opposite directions. Soon, both were
swallowed by the thick night, invisible to the naked eye.
The sea stretched out, pitch black.
The sea breeze swept in, carrying a heavy weight that battered the hearts of
the Bayonet Gang members.
The Bayonet Gang's morale was visibly low.
They were natives of Snow Bird Harbor. Leaving their homeland behind would make
anyone feel melancholy and anxious.
Now, having severed ties with their powerful ally, the Divine Wind Pirates,
their sense of disorientation and confusion only deepened
Bing Xiao's brow furrowed slightly.
He scanned the deck.
The human ringleader lay unconscious, his head bandaged.
The comatose Lan Zao rested beside him.
All three landing craft carried wounded members.
The most formidable warrior, Xiong Ju, lay prostrate against the landing
craft's gunwale, vomiting incessantly.
As for Spring Fighter, he guarded a black coffin, his entire being radiating an
emotion called sorrow.
Within the coffin lay the corpse of Teng Dong Lang.
Without a doubt, this was a band of defeated stragglers.
After the vigorous Teng Dong Lang fell, the aged Bing Xiao had no choice but to
take on the responsibility of leadership.
Bing Xiao frequently lowered his head to consult the compass and charts in his
hands.
He knew his course was correct.
Yet when he looked up at the vast expanse of dark sea stretching before him, he
couldn't help but ask himself: “Even if this is the right direction, can we
truly reach our destination?”
As time passed, the darkness gradually faded.
The horizon brightened, the sky was turning pale blue.
The dawn glow spread as the sun rose, casting shimmering reflections upon the
sea.
Seabirds chirped overhead in Snow Bird Harbor.
Warships lined the docks in orderly rows, their flags fluttering.
Yue Qian stood at the ship's rail, watching Long Fu and Zi Di depart.
Today marked the departure of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from Snow Bird
Harbor, bound for the capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
To solidify their alliance, Zi Di paid a special visit to Kong Pan before
leaving.
Zong Ge, who had been posing as Long Fu, also spoke briefly with Yue Qian.
A spatial ripple rippled through the air, and Kong Pan suddenly materialized
before Yue Qian. Her gaze followed Zi Di and Zong Ge as they departed. She
said, “It seems these days of sparring have brought you and Long Fu remarkably
closer.”
Yue Qian nodded, “He was definitely a soldier once. His straightforward nature:
perhaps that's why I feel such an instant connection with him.”
Kong Pan acknowledged this with understanding. "That's how it is between
people. Some people spend a lifetime together yet never truly reach each
other's hearts. But others need only a few days to become kindred spirits."
Yue Qian paused, shaking his head slightly, “We're not quite at that level of
friendship yet.”
“Is that so?” Kong Pan glanced at him, neither confirming nor denying.
As an elder in the clan, she knew Yue Qian well.
She had never seen him converse so intimately with anyone before. In the
captain's cabin, she and Zi Di chatted while she covertly probed with her
mental senses.
Every word of Yue Qian and Zong Ge's conversation reached her ears.
They discussed combat tactics, timing for using battle skills, and the
countering relationships between weapons.
Zong Ge and Yue Qian were discussing insights gained from their repeated
private sparring sessions over the past few days.
“Tell me,” Kong Pan deliberately tested Yue Qian, “what kind of person do you
think Long Fu is?”
She had never been entirely satisfied with this younger generation clansman.
Because compared to a noble, Yue Qian resembled a soldier more.
That was not good.
Without sufficient political acumen, how could Yue Qian shoulder the future of
the clan?
Gazing distantly at Long Fu's figure, Yue Qian's tone and expression grew
solemn: "He's strong! He'll be even stronger in the future!"
“At least gold level.”
Kong Pan was somewhat surprised; this was already a high assessment. "How did
you discern his potential? Are you, at least...implying he could even reach the
saint level?"
Yue Qian gave an awkward smile, “It's my intuition.”
Kong Pan's expression instantly grew solemn.
This was the worst possible answer.
Intuition?
What seasoned politician bases judgments on gut feelings?
Noticing Kong Pan's shifting expression, Yue Qian hastily added, "It's not
purely intuition. During our sparring, despite using only silver battle qi, he
displayed offensive and defensive capabilities on par with mine!"
“His Demolition Fist, Surge, and other battle skills all proved troublesome.”
“When I fought at full strength, I could suppress him, but it was clear his
combat power had completely surpassed the normal silver level!”
“I can confirm he wasn't using any powerful equipment.”
"I also saw the magic footage of his battle against Teng Dong Lang. I'm certain
his combat strength has surpassed the level he displayed against Teng Dong
Lang."
"Such remarkable progress in such a short time indicates exceptional bloodline.
Therefore, his is at least gold level!"
After hearing this analysis, Kong Pan's expression finally eased slightly.
“Then let's maintain this relationship with him,” Kong Pan said. "This arms
dealer has grand ambitions, aiming to distribute nationwide. I've already
established some cooperation with them. If their arms truly match the
alchemist's claims, excellent quality, akin to the alchemy crossbows once used
by Long Fu, then the Li Jian Clan will become their largest partner."
“Large-scale cooperation with an external arms dealer?” Yue Qian's expression
turned skeptical.
Kong Pan sighed, “The winds of change have shifted, Yue Qian. The landscape is
different now.”
“The family shouldn't pass up any opportunity to strengthen our forces, even if
it means bending the rules.”
“I must admit, the arms dealer backing them has keen insight and excellent
timing.”
“Right now is indeed the best chance to enter the kingdom's arms market.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord personally saw off “Long Fu”. “Our collaboration was
most pleasant. I trust our future cooperation will be even more so.”
The series of events in Snow Bird Harbor had cemented the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' most reliable ally.
The Li Jian Clan's power surpassed that of the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, but
as the partnership was new, everything required initial familiarization.
Though “Long Fu” was not eloquent, Zi Di had prepared him beforehand. While
Zong Ge's words weren't polished, he could manage the situation.
Soon after, Zong Ge, Zi Di, and the others formally set off, leaving Snow Bird
Harbor behind.
“Finally heading to the royal capital,” Zi Di sighed, a lingering pressure
weighing on her heart.
“I wonder how the commander is faring?” The ghost girl couldn't shake her worry
for the dragonman youngster either.
“We can't contact him. Any concern is pointless,” Zong Ge said, “What we should
focus on now is completing our own tasks.”
“At least, after so many duels with Yue Qian, we've verified that the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell are reliable.”
“Even though I don't know how to use battle skills like Surge or Demolition
Fist, Yue Qian was still deceived.”
Zi Di nodded, “This means that even if we face a duel challenge in the capital,
we can handle it to some extent.”
“It's just that the consumption of pearl bubbles has become much more intense.”
“We need to use them sparingly.”



****** Chapter 400: Rescuing Lan Zao ******
Flower Skirt Island.
The icy sea breeze that swept across this island naturally rose, merging into
the clouds above.
Flowers bloom year-round here, creating an eternal spring—a unique oasis amidst
the frigid seas.
“Who goes there?!” The patrol fleet intercepted the Bayonet Gang members three
nautical miles offshore.
Bing Xiao stepped forward to answer: “We are the Sea Breeze Mercenary Corps...”
After leaving the Divine Wind Pirates, the Bayonet Gang members could not
operate under their gang's name. Snow Bird Harbor had undoubtedly issued a
wanted notice.
Though not a national level warrant, its impact was significant.
Bing Xiao needed to cover their tracks, buying time for his group.
The patrol fleet comprised only three seagoing vessels. Upon seeing silver
level Bing Xiao, Xiong Ju, and Spring Boxer, the captain's expression darkened.
He was the only silver level among the entire fleet.
Though the Bayonet Gang possessed only three landing craft, not a single
standard seagoing vessel, they remained a formidable force.
“Present your mercenary credentials!” the captain shouted.
Bing Xiao complied, attaching the certificate to an arrow and shooting it
across to the opposing vessel.
The mercenary credentials were, of course, genuine.
This reflected the Bayonet Gang's established standing.
Occasionally, they employed false identities to facilitate their operations.
Of course, this particular certificate was genuine - it belonged to a
fictitious Sea Breeze Mercenary Corps, duly registered with the Mercenary
Guild.
After verification, the patrol fleet immediately granted passage.
As they neared the dock, Bing Xiao cautioned his companions: "Flower Skirt
Island is a neutral territory, a melting pot of all sorts. Once ashore,
everyone must be vigilant. Do not stray from the main group. Stay together."
Spring Boxer wore a look of novelty. He rarely ventured out to sea, and this
was his first time setting foot on Flower Skirt Island, his first time leaving
his country.
Spring Boxer asked, “Boss, what do we do once we're ashore?”
Bing Xiao sighed, “First, tend to their injuries.”
Many members of the Bayonet Gang were wounded.
They had sustained injuries during their escape from Snow Bird Harbor. The
sneak attack by the Li Jian Clan leader Mian Li Cang had also inflicted
casualties on the Bayonet Gang, adding to the number of wounded. The human
ringleader had been injured and fell unconscious as a result.
These casualties had to be prioritized.
Bing Xiao clearly had no intention of abandoning them.
The Bayonet Gang's numbers had already dwindled drastically, leaving only this
small group. They were already a candle flickering in the wind. Losing more men
would bring them perilously close to complete collapse.
"The Divine Wind was overcrowded with wounded. Their priests can't treat
everyone. Flower Skirt Island has many skilled physicians. For a price, we can
secure proper care," Bing Xiao stated.
Money wasn't the issue.
Even a broken ship had three nails holding it together, let alone the Bayonet
Gang, which had dominated Snow Bird Harbor for years. Besides, they'd brought
ample supplies during this escape.
Yet a worry lingered in Bing Xiao's heart.
This worry mirrored Feng Lian's.
He feared a mole.
The mole was likely among the Bayonet Gang members, yet he couldn't identify
them.
“If even the demon ringleader has surrendered, subduing ordinary gang members
should be even easier for the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.”
"What's more terrifying is that he could swiftly annihilate the entire Bayonet
Gang. Such thorough preparation must mean he planted numerous spies beforehand.
Such spies are undoubtedly fiercely loyal. If they've infiltrated our ranks,
they pose an immense threat!"
Bing Xiao's concern was well-founded.
As they neared Flower Skirt Island, unusual activity began unfolding somewhere
on the island.
“Lord Shuang Tu, we've detected Snowflake's life coordinates. He's heading our
way and appears to be approaching the island,” a subordinate reported.
Shuang Tu, a snow elf, paused the pounding of herbs upon hearing this,
instantly recalling the recent orders from above.
His eyes narrowed slightly. "The Divine Wind Pirates have taken in the remnants
of the Bayonet Gang and evaded the Second Royal Navy's ambush. The Bayonet Gang
actually made it here? Bring the nautical charts."
The chart was swiftly spread across the table before Shuang Tu.
Shuang Tu traced a slender finger across the map, shifting it slightly.
His brow furrowed as he analyzed aloud: “The Li Jian Clan leader, Mian Li Cang,
should have launched the second ambush in this vicinity.”
“Given this distance, Flower Skirt Island is indeed the closest island to
them.”
"But I wonder how the second ambush went? Did the Divine Wind Pirates also land
on the island?"
Over an hour later, new intelligence arrived.
“Lord, according to reports from the patrol fleet, all three landing craft
carried members of the Bayonet Gang—no Divine Wind Pirates!”
Shuang Tu pondered for a moment, then smiled, “It seems Feng Lian abandoned
them all.”
“Mian Li Cang must have dealt the Divine Wind Pirates a severe blow. Otherwise,
Feng Lian would have at least sent this group to Flower Skirt Island.”
“This is good news.”
“The political pressure on the Li Jian Clan from their defeat will ease
considerably. Without the Divine Wind Pirates lurking nearby, our upcoming
operations will be much smoother.”
“Make preparations. We're going to retrieve Snowflake.”
"New orders have come down from above. We can develop a new mole within the
Bayonet Gang. Hope that unlucky bastard is still alive, heh."
Bing Xiao and the others finally reached shore.
Their arrival caused quite a stir.
A full three silver level individuals, that was considered exceptional strength
on Flower Skirt Island.
The island had only one gold level cultivator, who lived in seclusion year-
round, detached from worldly affairs. Several other silver level individuals
each commanded some influence. Island affairs were typically handled through
their collective deliberations.
The island patrol guards and patrol fleet were also formed through
contributions of resources and manpower from various factions.
Shuang Tu was one of the silver level leaders among them.
The rendezvous went even smoother than he had anticipated.
Bing Xiao had proactively brought his men to visit him.
The reason was simple: Shuang Tu was the most renowned transcendent healer on
Flower Skirt Island. Of course, other transcendent individuals on the island
possessed formidable healing abilities as well. But Shuang Tu also ran the
largest medical clinic on the island.
With multiple wounded individuals requiring treatment, Shuang Tu's clinic was
the most suitable choice.
Shuang Tu personally welcomed Bing Xiao and arranged for the Bayonet Gang's
wounded to be settled comfortably within the clinic.
Bing Xiao was generous, offering substantial funds to request Shuang Tu's
personal attention.
“Please ensure these two are fully healed,” Bing Xiao hinted to Shuang Tu.
The individuals he prioritized for treatment were the human ringleader and Lan
Zao.
The former was a silver level leader of the Bayonet Gang, undoubtedly high-
ranking, politically savvy, and capable of coordinating with Bing Xiao.
The latter had saved Bing Xiao's life, possessed unwavering loyalty, and showed
promising potential with awakened bloodline abilities.
Shuang Tu immediately pledged full effort in their treatment, though inwardly
found it somewhat absurd.
The reason was simple.
The organization member codenamed Snowflake was none other than the human
ringleader!
Furthermore, the new target to nurture into a mole was none other than Lan Zao
from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!



****** Chapter 401: Beneath The Glory, Shrouded in Shadow ******
Flower Skirt Island.
Shuang Tu established his medical clinic here. The clinic occupied a large
area, comprising four small buildings and a central garden featuring a
fountain.
He rarely attended to patients personally. Under his command are numerous druid
apprentices who serve as physicians, pharmacists, and other medical
professionals. These individuals form the core of the treatment team.
Among the four buildings, the largest served as the main treatment wing.
Two buildings housed patients. The final structure contained Shuang Tu's
private residence, research laboratory, and personal greenhouse.
The silver level human ringleader now lay in a superior hospital room.
As he slowly opened his eyes, Shuang Tu's voice reached him: “You're awake?”
The human ringleader's pupils contracted slightly. Regaining his bearings, he
began discreetly surveying his surroundings.
The ward was simply furnished with basic amenities, bathed in bright light. An
open window offered a view of the hillside beyond. Bathed in brilliant
sunlight, the hillside was carpeted in lush green grass, dotted with countless
wildflowers swaying in the breeze, a dazzling tapestry of vibrant colors.
This was indeed an ideal place for recuperation; the natural scenery alone was
enough to lift one's spirits.
Shuang Tu stood by the window, leaning against the wall, a smile on his face as
he watched the human ringleader.
He introduced himself: “This is Flower Skirt Island. I am Shuang Tu, a snow elf
druid.”
The human ringleader looked at Shuang Tu and saw that he indeed bore the
features of a snow elf - tall and slender, with striking good looks, and hair
and eyebrows as white as snow.
Information about Flower Skirt Island flashed through the human ringleader's
mind.
Flower Skirt Island was not large, merely a small island.
Originally an uninhabited wasteland, it had been transformed after a legendary
druid settled there.
Even though the legendary druid was long gone, her influence persisted,
preserving Flower Skirt Island's unique status.
Flower Skirt Island was a neutral island. Its environment, altered by the
legendary druid, remained spring-like year-round. The frigid winds from beyond
could not bring the bitter cold characteristic of the iceberg sea. Year-round,
the island is covered in lush green grass and blooming flowers, brimming with
vibrant life.
The inhabitants of Flower Skirt Island were a diverse mix. There were
mercenaries, pirates, and many races, but the largest group was the druids.
The primary reason druids were drawn to settle here was, of course, that
legendary druid. She reshaped the natural environment here, which had a
profound impact on those seeking druid cultivation.
Rumors also suggest this legendary druid left behind a legacy, hidden somewhere
on Flower Skirt Island, awaiting those destined to find it.
The human ringleader looked at Shuang Tu and voiced his confusion: "I should be
on a sea vessel. How did I end up on Flower Skirt Island? Lord Shuang Tu, can
you enlighten me?"
The human ringleader's mind was filled with confusion, yet he remained
composed.
He sensed he had received excellent healing and detected clear goodwill
emanating from Shuang Tu.
“Where are my companions?” the human ringleader pressed further. Bing Xiao and
Spring Boxer were crucial to his secret mission.
Shuang Tu shrugged slightly, “Actually, Snowflake, I am your companion.”
The human ringleader's heart jolted upon hearing his own codename, yet he
feigned confusion, as if he hadn't caught it clearly: “What?”
His expression was perfectly measured, bewildered yet tinged with doubt,
utterly unmoved by the word “Snowflake.” He found Shuang Tu's address baffling,
while simultaneously questioning whether he'd misheard.
A deeper smile spread across Shuang Tu's face.
Next, he revealed his identity through action.
The human ringleader watched as Shuang Tu extended the back of his right hand
toward him.
Gradually, a tattoo emerged on the once-smooth skin.
It was a black sun. Within the sun, a dagger's outline was traced in white
lines.
The human ringleader froze for a moment, the bewilderment and confusion on his
face quickly vanishing, replaced by solemn seriousness.
He stared intently at Shuang Tu, then slowly extended the back of his hand.
A matching tattoo gradually emerged on his own hand.
In a deep voice, the human ringleader declared, “Beneath the glory.”
Shuang Tu immediately responded, completing the phrase: “Shrouded in shadow.”
The human ringleader exhaled a faint breath.
Shuang Tu continued, “Snowflake, my codename is Physician. I'm in charge of the
base here on Flower Skirt Island.”
"Flower Skirt Island is one of the most renowned neutral islands in the seas
surrounding the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Every year, numerous mercenaries,
pirates, and others come here for medical treatment."
“The organization assigned me to this location.”
“Not long ago, I received orders from above to stand ready to assist you.”
"Unexpectedly, early this morning, we detected your life signals. It was Bing
Xiao who brought you here for treatment."
The human ringleader relaxed.
The tattoos served as their organization's insignia and also functioned as a
powerful means of identity verification.
This was a remarkable feat of human alchemy, standing at the forefront of the
world's alchemy advancements.
The tattoos could indicate identity, enable short-range covert communication,
and transmit vital signs over long distances.
It was precisely this latter capability that allowed the Li Jian Clan to
pinpoint the Divine Wind Pirates' exact coordinates, enabling them to
orchestrate two ambushes.
No matter how thoroughly Feng Lian and his men investigated, they found no
traces of alchemy within the human ringleader's body.
Thus, the greatest advantage of this alchemy lay in its concealment!
At least, the human ringleader had never encountered anyone who could expose
his identity through his tattoo.
The reason the human ringleader trusted Shuang Tu so quickly was also due to
the secret training he had received.
In critical moments, during unseen operatives, one had to instantly gain an
ally's trust to relay intelligence.
With matching tattoos and codes verified, the human ringleader had no choice
but to trust the figure before him.
After confirming his identity, Shuang Tu immediately asked, “What happened
after you boarded the Divine Wind pirate ship?”
The human ringleader gave him a concise account of the events that followed:
"Two ambushes. The cover was blown, and the decoy was executed."
"During the second ambush, I was wounded and lost consciousness. When I woke
up, I found myself here with you."
This answer caught Shuang Tu off guard: “I thought you'd feigned injury and
unconsciousness to clear yourself of suspicion.”
The human ringleader offered a wry smile, “This time was perilous. I nearly
died during the ambush by Mian Li Cang.”
Shuang Tu offered comfort. "But misfortune brought you fortune. When delivering
your group of wounded for treatment, Bing Xiao personally instructed me to
prioritize two individuals, one of whom was you."
“You've earned Bing Xiao's trust. Keep it up, and you might uncover Tranquil
Hill's exact location.”
The human ringleader shook his head, his tone pessimistic: "If it were that
easy, the organization would've found Tranquil Hill long ago. The reason Bing
Xiao singled me out is because, within the current Bayonet Gang, I alone truly
understand his intentions and can best assist him in rebuilding the
organization."
“This kind of assistance is something neither Xiong Ju nor Spring Boxer can
provide him.”
The human ringleader possessed a crystal-clear understanding of his position
and role.
He confided in Shuang Tu: "Truthfully, I have little confidence in the upcoming
operation. I believe there's a high probability Bing Xiao won't take me to
Tranquil Hill. To accomplish this mission, I alone won't suffice. I need more
reinforcements!"
Shuang Tu nodded slightly, “We already have one reinforcement.”
A flicker of joy crossed the human ringleader's face. "Oh? Who is it? What's
their strength?"
But the next moment, his brow furrowed as he analyzed gloomily, “Given the
current situation, it's difficult to let anyone else infiltrate the group.”
Shuang Tu smiled as he relayed the information about Lan Zao.
The human ringleader's face darkened like storm clouds. His voice dropped with
anger as he snapped, “Are you joking?”
“You expect this newcomer, not even a full member of the organization, to be my
reinforcement?”
“This kind of backup will get me killed!”
"Not only will you nearly get me killed, but you will also cause the mission to
fail. Who's going to take responsibility for that?"
Shuang Tu sighed. "Didn't you just say it yourself? Given the current
situation, we can't deploy any more members. The Bayonet Gang is down to just
these few members now. Their numbers are too thin, we can't take advantage of
the chaos."
“Calm down, okay?”
“I think having someone is better than having no one at all.”
"The person covering you is already dead, right? Using this new recruit as your
cover is just recycling waste."
“Besides, this isn't a discussion, it's an order!”
“I have two video clips you need to review.”
The magic footage Shuang Tu first showed the human ringleader depicted the
Bayonet Gang's escape from Snow Bird Harbor's dock.
The focal point, naturally, was Lan Zao.
His consecutive blunders that unexpectedly earned him Bing Xiao's trust were
replayed before the human ringleader.
“He's an idiot, and a complete unlucky bastard,” the human ringleader fumed
after watching, speechless, “Hard to believe such a man is my reinforcement!”
“I'd call him a lucky bastard!” Shuang Tu shrugged, “Did you know his bloodline
has awakened?”
The human ringleader nodded. He was aware of that fact.
Shuang Tu continued, "I've already examined him. His bloodline awakening is
progressing exceptionally well. The bloodline concentration is high, and the
characteristics are strikingly pronounced."
“He appears to possess the Fish Bladder bloodline. With cultivation, he could
reach the silver level.”
The human ringleader froze.
Learning that Lan Zao might attain the same cultivation level as himself caused
a subtle shift in his perception of this bronze level individual.
“Seems his luck is indeed favorable... provided he survives until the end.”
Shuang Tu then showed him a second magic projection.
The magic projection showed three figures: the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Long
Fu, and Magician Yao Ma.
They had signed a contract and issued orders to their subordinates.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's directive was clear: Lan Zao was an unexpected
variable. Develop him. Use him. Complete the mission. Ensure his safety
whenever possible, provided it didn't conflict with the mission's objectives.
“It seems the leader has other plans for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
After pondering for a moment, the human ringleader looked up at Shuang Tu
again. "Have you uncovered any intelligence on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
Who exactly is the arms dealer behind them?"
Shuang Tu shook his head slightly. "We've been investigating. Without a doubt,
the arms dealer behind them is deeply concealed. We haven't even discovered
their communication methods!"
"The timing of that Magician Yao Ma's appearance was highly suspicious. She
suddenly materialized aboard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship. Her
appearance was too timely, proof that the arms dealer behind them possesses
real-time intelligence on the mercenaries' situation."
“This lead holds no value,” the human ringleader shook his head, “Our analysis
suggests that Magician Yao Ma likely departed with the group all along, merely
concealing her presence.”
“If I were the arms dealer, it would be perfectly logical and normal to conceal
one or two trump cards like this Magician Yao Ma among the vanguard sent to
develop the market!”
At this point, the human ringleader sighed: “...”
“I won't make direct contact with that individual.”
“I must continue concealing my identity.”
“I'll need you to step in and develop him into my cover.”
"And throughout this process, I must observe him covertly. I need to see more
of this partner's actions, understand his character and habits."
“Of course.” Shuang Tu agreed without hesitation. "Based on my observations,
the awakening of his bloodline has stabilized and is nearing its end. It won't
be long before he awakens."



****** Chapter 402: Brave Hero and Tranquil Hill ******
Just as Shuang Tu had anticipated, Lan Zao regained consciousness that very
afternoon.
Lan Zao was also placed in a private ward, which made it convenient for Shuang
Tu to have a private conversation with him later.
“Where am I? And who are you?" Lan Zao asked upon waking.
Shuang Tu introduced himself: "This is Flower Skirt Island. I am Shuang Tu, the
island's physician, a snow elf druid, as you can see. You were brought here for
treatment by Bing Xiao's group."
Hearing this, Lan Zao felt a wave of disappointment washing over him.
When he had regained consciousness in this unfamiliar place, a faint glimmer of
hope had flickered within him.
He had hoped that during his unconsciousness, some unexpected event had
occurred, allowing him to escape the perilous situation aboard the Divine Wind.
But he was disappointed.
“Now I have more important matters to discuss with you,” Shuang Tu said, his
expression turning serious.
Lan Zao stared at him.
Shuang Tu continued, "First, please rest assured and try to relax. A magic
formation has been activated in this room. Any conversation we have from here
on out will be completely confidential."
“Second, what I'm about to say may be emotionally jarring. Please don't get
worked up, stay calm.”
He paused here, giving Lan Zao time to process, before continuing, “I know
you're part of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Clang!
The next instant, Lan Zao leaped violently from the bed, arms outstretched,
lunging toward Shuang Tu.
Several deep green vines suddenly sprouted, snatching him mid-air and binding
him tightly.
Lan Zao was tightly bound, suspended in mid-air, unable to move.
He struggled desperately but couldn't break free from the vines. He glared
fiercely at Shuang Tu, his eyes burning with murderous intent.
Shuang Tu's expression darkened, the earlier smile vanishing.
In the adjacent hospital room, the human ringleader witnessed this scene
through the magic projection and couldn't help but sigh.
Lan Zao's impulsiveness deeply disappointed him.
Then he heard Lan Zao speak: "I've never heard of any Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps! Don't think you can use me! Bing Xiao! Lord Bing Xiao!"
Lan Zao cried out for help.
This action caused the human ringleader to lower his head, covering his face
with his palm.
Lan Zao was being foolish. Denying it now was pointless; his earlier extreme
actions had already spoken volumes.
His attempt to summon Bing Xiao revealed his desperate attempt to rectify his
mistake, his bid to break the deadlock through external forces.
Clearly, it was all self-defeating!
Shuang Tu manipulated the vines with his mind, slowly pulling Lan Zao toward
him.
His face was clouded with worry as he sighed, “I already told you, this room is
sealed by a magic formation. It's completely isolated and hidden. No matter how
loud you scream, no one outside can hear you.”
“Calm down. I'm on your side.”
“Hah! Don't even think about using me!” Lan Zao, immobilized and choked red by
the vines, struggled desperately.
Suddenly, he snapped his jaws shut and bit through his own tongue!
He intended to bite his tongue off and kill himself.
This scene stunned both Shuang Tu and the human ringleader.
Neither had anticipated Lan Zao's ruthless resolve!
They had underestimated Lan Zao's loyalty to the dragonman youngster. According
to the intelligence they had obtained, in their view: Lan Zao was merely a
mercenary recruited by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on Snake Rat Island.
Having served under the dragonman youngster for only a short time, it was a
series of unfortunate coincidences that led to his misunderstanding by Bing
Xiao and subsequent boarding of the Divine Wind.
“This guy's real ruthless!” The human ringleader suddenly recalled the magic
footage he'd seen earlier. Lan Zao had indeed fought with extraordinary bravery
and utter disregard for his own life during the Bayonet Gang's escape battle.
The human ringleader was unaware of Lan Zao's state of mind at the time.
Lan Zao had always believed he had consumed a fatal potion, that his days were
numbered and his body was collapsing. He wanted to contribute as much as
possible before dying.
That was his mindset then, and it remained unchanged upon waking.
Thus, he lunged at Shuang Tu without hesitation, thinking to take down one more
enemy if possible.
Now, biting his tongue to end his life, he showed no hesitation either. He
feared some mysterious magic means might force him to reveal secrets like
Mystifying Monster Island, thereby endangering the dragonman youngster.
Shuang Tu watched Lan Zao spewing blood from his mouth and hastily cast healing
spells upon him while showing him a magic projection.
The magic projection showed the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Zong Ge disguised
as Long Fu, and Zi Di posing as Magician Yao Ma, signing a secret magic pact.
The pact's core concern was Lan Zao.
At the projection's end, Zong Ge, as Long Fu, gazed at Lan Zao through the
image and left a message: "Don't give up hope. Hold on. Trust me. When the time
is right, I'll come for you."
“Commander...” Lan Zao murmured inwardly, his eyes quickly reddening. He had no
doubt about the “Long Fu's” promise. For he knew the dragonman youngster was
precisely such an outstanding, reliable, and admirable leader!
Lan Zao failed to recognize that the "Long Fu" in the magic image was actually
Zong Ge in disguise.
Zong Ge had assumed the role of the dragonman youngster after Lan Zao was
forcibly taken aboard the Divine Wind and carried away.
He had once again employed the Deceptive Disguise spell to alter his
appearance. This was a fact unknown to Lan Zao, so he could not discern Zong
Ge's true form.
But Lan Zao could recognize the figure of Magician Yao Ma in the magic image.
In his eyes, Yao Ma appeared as Zi Di.
He knew the secret that Zi Di was impersonating Yao Ma. Thus, this Deceptive
Disguise spell on Zi Di was ineffective against Lan Zao.
Such is the peculiar nature of the Deceptive Disguise spell.
Zi Di also left words for Lan Zao: "Staying alive is what matters most. Don't
dwell on it too much. Everyone is waiting for your return."
Her words held profound meaning, though Lan Zao failed to grasp it.
After confirming the magic image's authenticity, Lan Zao suddenly calmed, his
entire body relaxing.
“Then who are you?” Lan Zao stared at Shuang Tu and demanded.
The human ringleader who had been spying on this exchange frowned, letting out
another sigh.
Lan Zao had let down his guard and trusted this stranger, leaving the human
ringleader deeply disappointed.
“He's far too gullible!”
“Didn't he consider that this magic image could be forged?”
“How can someone like this cooperate with me during future undercover
missions?”
“How can I possibly dare to work with someone like that?”
Shuang Tu's estimation of Lan Zao dropped another notch.
Neither realized Lan Zao had already verified the image's authenticity through
the Deceptive Disguise spell's properties.
Shuang Tu showed Lan Zao a second magic image.
This was the same one the human ringleader had viewed earlier that morning.
It captured the Bayonet Gang's desperate battle as they fled Snow Bird Harbor's
docks. The footage had been edited to focus solely on one protagonist, Lan Zao
himself.
Upon seeing this, Lan Zao suddenly recognized Shuang Tu’s identity.
He had long known that the mage tower at Snow Bird Harbor’s docks possessed the
ability to record history.
He deduced, “So you’re one of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s men.”
Shuang Tu’s face softened into a faint smile as he nodded, “You’ve guessed
correctly.”
"So I can go back now? When can I return?" Lan Zao grew excited.
Shuang Tu shook his head slightly, then nodded. "You've already seen the first
magic image. You're also aware of the magic contract's signing."
“Once you complete your mission, you may return.”
“Not only that, but you'll receive a generous reward!”
"Though your acceptance by Bing Xiao was a tremendous surprise, it turned out
to be a fortunate mistake, giving us a glimmer of hope."
“To put it plainly, the Bayonet Gang members were deliberately released by the
city lord.”
Lan Zao was utterly astonished, “Why would the city lord do such a thing?”
“Because of Tranquil Hill.”
“Tranquil Hill?” Lan Zao furrowed his brow, utterly perplexed, “What in the
world is that?”
At this point, the human ringleader could no longer bear to watch.
He rolled his eyes, flopping back onto his sickbed, utterly drained.
Lan Zao hailed from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, an organization of pure
outsiders.
Thus, he knew nothing of place names like Tranquil Hill.
Shuang Tu proved far more patient than the human ringleader. He briefly
recounted the legend of Tranquil Hill to Lan Zao.
It happened during the Barbarian and Dragon Era.
The pact between the barbarians and the dragons had shattered.
On the Frost Continent, two leaders emerged.
One was the hero Man Ying, who led the barbarians. The other was the warrior
Xue Yong, who commanded the snow elves.
Man Ying and Xue Yong were the two strongest beings on the Frost Continent.
Both harbored the grand vision of unifying the world and bringing peace to the
land.
Through their encounters and clashes, they recognized shared ideals and
aspirations, gradually developing mutual respect and forging a deep bond.
The cunning Black Dragon King, unwilling to see such a powerful alliance,
struck first. Using deceit and trickery, he orchestrated a series of
misunderstandings, successfully driving a wedge between the two races.
As the barbarians and snow elves stood on the brink of all-out war, Man Ying
and Xue Yong found themselves compelled to fight with all their might,
determined to win the weapon for the person they most admired in this world.
Man Ying, wishing to avoid a large-scale conflict, proposed a personal duel to
Xue Yong.
Xue Yong, equally reluctant to see his people shed excessive blood, accepted
the challenge. They agreed that the outcome of their duel would determine the
fate of their respective tribes.
The barbarians urged Man Ying to gather their bravest warriors in advance and
launch a surprise attack on the snow elves, striking first.
Man Ying refused, rebuking them: “That dishonors our fighters!”
The snow elves proposed a scheme to Xue Yong: to poison and assassinate Man
Ying. Snow Yong rejected it: “That tramples upon our friendship.”
On the day of the duel, both Man Ying and Xue Yong brought an ice coffin.
Man Ying said to Xue Yong: "Though I must fight you, my will is as transparent
and pure as this ice. My dear friend, I vow to fight this battle without
resorting to any underhanded tactics."
Xue Yong also declared solemnly: "My friend, our friendship is as unbreakable
as this ice coffin. Yet our people must contend, and the Frost Continent can
have but one royal lineage. I pledge to you: no schemes, no poison. I will
fight with all my strength and accept whatever outcome befalls us."
The two further agreed: should either fall in battle, the survivor would seal
the fallen's remains within an ice coffin and carry them to Tranquil Hill for
burial.
A breathtaking duel commenced.
They fought for three days and three nights, both perishing in the clash.
Countless black dragons descended like a storm, slaughtering all in their path.
The Black Dragon King seized the opportunity to slaughter the barbarians and
snow elves. With Man Ying and Xue Yong dead, no one remained on the Frost
Continent to challenge the Black Dragon King.
The Black Dragon King placed their bodies in two ice coffins, displaying them
as trophies in his cavern to flaunt his brutal conquests.
Raging ice and snow from the Frost Continent surged into his lair, carrying the
two ice coffins away.
The coffins slid swiftly down the snowy mountains, bouncing over endless
glaciers and snowdrifts before finally landing in a valley.
Not a hint of cold wind touched this valley, where spring lingered year-round,
adorned with blooming flowers and lush foliage. A rainbow of colors arched high
in the sky, while diamond-like springs tinkled softly.
This was Tranquil Hill.
Here, the two heroes found their final resting place, yet they could not rest
in peace. They awoke simultaneously.
Though Tranquil Hill offered a serene environment, it could not grant them
eternal slumber.
For their kin were being slaughtered by the black dragons. Peace hung
precariously over the Frost Continent, blood staining nearly every patch of
snow-white land crimson.
Returning from Tranquil Hill, the two led their respective people to unite and
slay the Black Dragon King, nearly exterminating the entire black dragon race.
Only two black dragons escaped by sheer luck.
After finishing the mythical tale of Tranquil Hill, Shuang Tu explained to Lan
Zao, “This is the legend of Tranquil Hill, and also the origin of the custom of
the heroic duel.”
Lan Zao realized, "No wonder the challenger in the heroic duel carries ice.
Does ‘heroic’¹ refer to Man Ying and Xue Yong?"
"Does Tranquil Hill truly exist in this world? Isn't this just a mythical
tale?"
Shuang Tu smiled: “This isn't mere hearsay.”
“According to the intelligence we've gathered, Spring Boxer is Teng Dong Lang's
coffin bearer.”



****** Chapter 403: I, Lan Zao, am a Reasonable Person ******
Lan Zao froze upon hearing Shuang Tu's words, then furrowed his brow.
He had seen Teng Dong Lang's corpse in the black coffin with his own eyes. He
knew full well that Teng Dong Lang's body was sealed within an ice coffin.
Now, upon hearing the mythical tale of Tranquil Hill's heroic duel, Lan Zao
immediately connected the two events.
“I understand!”
“Why would the Bayonet Gang, fleeing for their lives, still carry Teng Dong
Lang's corpse back?”
“Spring Boxer was designated as Teng Dong Lang's coffin bearer. This means they
intend to carry his ice coffin to Tranquil Hill for burial. Is it to resurrect
him there?”
Such suspicions inevitably arose in Lan Zao's mind.
For him, this was something he must do everything in his power to disrupt.
Because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been deeply involved in the battle
that destroyed the Bayonet Gang, the enmity between the two sides ran deep as
the sea. They were utterly mortal enemies.
"Oh, I see!"
“Why did the commander enter into this secret collaboration with the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord?”
"The commander has always deeply loved President Zi Di, but she is dead. If
Tranquil Hill truly possesses the power to resurrect the dead, it might be Zi
Di's most promising path back to life."
Resurrecting Zi Di would be exceedingly difficult.
No cleric would willingly resurrect an undead soul.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would most likely not pursue this route.
Two primary reasons accounted for this reluctance.
First, those who mastered resurrection magic were typically deeply devout
individuals unlikely to betray their faith.
Second, the risk of identity exposure. Though the Deceptive Disguise spell was
highly reliable, especially when combined with the Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell, the survivors lack confidence in deceiving the gods.
Resurrection was an unquestionably high level divine spell. Every use of divine
magic risked drawing a deity's attention. The higher the spell's level, the
greater this probability.
Zi Di understood the difficulty of resurrecting herself, and the other
survivors were equally aware.
Lan Zao was no exception.
However, the truth was not so straightforward.
The mission to infiltrate Tranquil Hill and pinpoint its exact location was
highly classified. The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had not informed Zong Ge or
Zi Di of this aspect.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps agreed to cooperate with the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and sign a magic contract for one primary purpose: to leverage the
city lord's manpower and resources to protect Lan Zao's life as much as
possible.
Lan Zao believed he understood.
Though he harbored suspicions about Zi Di, he remained utterly loyal to the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster deeply loved Zi Di and was willing to participate in
this endeavor. Lan Zao, in turn, was willing to ease the dragonman youngster's
burdens.
This misunderstanding prompted Lan Zao to agree without hesitation: “I
understand.”
“Next, I'll remain by Bing Xiao's side and follow them into Tranquil Hill,
correct?”
Lan Zao's decisive agreement surprised Shuang Tu.
The human ringleader who was next door, however, harbored doubts: “Does this
fellow truly possess the capacity for rational thought?” Had it been him, he
would have demanded more proof from Shuang Tu or secured greater assurances.
Shuang Tu's expression betrayed no hint of doubt. He regarded Lan Zao with an
admiring gaze and praised, “Congratulations! You've made an absolutely wise
choice!”
Before his words had fully faded, he mentally directed the green vines to
gently lower Lan Zao back onto the hospital bed.
The vines swiftly retracted.
Shuang Tu approached Lan Zao's bedside and handed him a document.
“This contains your new identity. You must memorize every detail.”
Lan Zao gave him an awkward smile, “I can't read it.”
Shuang Tu nodded, accepting this fact quickly.
Not everyone could recognize written characters.
It was perfectly normal.
Lan Zao added, “I only know my own name and can write it, but I only know human
words, not your snow elf writing.”
In this world, the vast majority of people were illiterate, unable even to
write their own names. When names were needed, they typically pressed their
fingerprints instead.
Shuang Tu then read the contents of the materials to Lan Zao: “I'll read this
once. You must remember it well.”
"Your name is Hen Fa. You are not a member of the Bayonet Gang. You committed a
crime in Blood Kin City and fled all the way to Snow Bird Harbor, seeking an
opportunity to join the Bayonet Gang for protection."
"On the eve of your escape with the Bayonet Gang, transcendents from Blood Kin
City tracked you down and attempted to capture you."
"You broke into Snow Bird Harbor's docks, hoping to escape amid the chaos. In
the process, you unexpectedly saved Bing Xiao's life. Afterward, you intended
to conceal your identity further, using the Divine Wind Pirates to leave Snow
Bird Harbor and start a new life."
Hearing this, Lan Zao's brow furrowed even deeper.
He sat up, fixing his gaze on Shuang Tu. "Couldn't you just assign me the
identity of a Bayonet Gang member? Isn't this outsider identity too
troublesome? If Bing Xiao discovers my background, he'll struggle to trust me.
How can I remain by his side in the future?"
Shuang Tu shook his head, “This identity was carefully selected for you after
thorough consideration.”
“It's the optimal choice for your situation.”
Considering Lan Zao was a complete novice, Shuang Tu patiently explained: We
certainly have the capability to design a Bayonet Gang identity for you, but
you wouldn't be able to pull it off."
“The Bayonet Gang members know each other well. Even if none of Bing Xiao's
current crew recognize you, they'll investigate.”
"Snow Bird Harbor still has many former Bayonet Gang members. All of them have
surrendered, and the city lord would never kill them."
"So, if Bing Xiao decides to verify your background, it'll be easy, just send
someone to Snow Bird Harbor. That way, they'll quickly uncover your flaws."
"You've already gained Bing Xiao's initial trust. According to our intel, he
intends to cultivate you and entrust you with important responsibilities. The
main reason is the awakening of your bloodline."
"I must congratulate you on this, you've awakened the Fish Bladder bloodline.
This is a silver level bloodline, allowing you to leapfrog bronze level and
iron level directly to silver."
At this, Lan Zao gasped, his entire focus instantly drawn to the revelation.
"Fish Bladder bloodline? Silver level?!"
“So does this mean the magic potion I took earlier took effect?”
“Did I misjudge Zi Di, or was I just incredibly lucky?”
The news of bloodline awakening was too overwhelming, leaving Lan Zao
momentarily dazed.
Seeing his blank expression, Shuang Tu paused his speech: “Hey, did you hear
what I just said?”
“Huh? What?” Lan Zao's mouth opened slightly, his train of thought interrupted.
Shuang Tu had no choice but to repeat herself: “I've already explained your
current situation clearly.”
“Bloodline awakening has granted you great potential. Combined with your
previous rescue of Bing Xiao, you've earned his initial trust.”
"Most crucially, we're backing you and providing reinforcements. In the coming
days, your strength will rise steadily, and your standing within the Bayonet
Gang will climb step by step."
"With each rung you ascend, the scrutiny you face intensifies. Bing Xiao will
undoubtedly step up his investigation into you. As the former leader of the
Bayonet Gang, he possesses extensive leadership experience and will never
overlook this critical detail."
"Therefore, your identity must be flawless. Though the identity of Hen Fa is
slightly troublesome, it is actually the most convenient, worry-free, and
effortless option."
"There is indeed a fugitive in Blood Kin City named Hen Fa. However, he was
secretly apprehended by us and is now dead."
"He was an orphan from a young age. Growing up, he became a bodyguard, a
solitary figure with a straightforward identity and minimal social
connections."
“Hen Fa's background file is the simplest and most concise of all options. You
must commit it to memory, this is your first step in infiltration.”
“Understood.” Lan Zao took the documents, then frowned and asked, "How long
will my infiltration last? I want to return to the mercenary corps."
“Such impatience is unwise,” Shuang Tu frowned, “But I can tell you this: the
infiltration won't last long.”
"Teng Dong Lang's soul won't hold out much longer. Bing Xiao must deliver him
to Tranquil Hill swiftly."
Lan Zao was puzzled. "Teng Dong Lang died days ago at my commander's hands. Has
his soul still not departed?"
Typically, a deceased soul was guided away by the deity they worshipped in
life.
If they lacked faith or their devotion was shallow, the soul would be cast into
the abyssal hell for another cycle of reincarnation
Since Lan Zao already knew about the Tranquil Hill's mission details, Shuang Tu
saw no point in withholding further information and continued his explanation:
“In fact, this is precisely one of the leads we uncovered regarding Tranquil
Hill.”
"Before his death, Teng Dong Lang had made preparations and modified his body.
Even if he perishes in battle, his soul will remain temporarily bound within
his physical form, it won't dissipate nor be guided away."
“This state cannot last forever.”
“Based on our estimates, his time is nearly up. That's why he must be brought
to Tranquil Hill.”
“So that's it. I understand now.” Lan Zao realized.
Shuang Tu continued his guidance: "Your illiteracy is actually an advantage,
since Hen Fa also cannot read. But I advise you to learn the elven language
diligently while serving Bing Xiao. For often, intelligence transmission relies
on written words as tools."
“You must engrave every detail in this document deeply into your mind.”
Should Bing Xiao ever suspect you, these details might help clear your name
temporarily, or even save your life."
Shuang Tu spoke with solemn earnestness.
When his own survival was at stake, Lan Zao's expression turned grave and
determined. He nodded firmly, “I understand!”



****** Chapter 404: Information Transmitted ******
Shuang Tu left Lan Zao's hospital room and approached the human ringleader.
The two stood in silence for a moment.
Having interacted with Lan Zao, Shuang Tu now deeply understood the immense
burden resting on the human ringleader's shoulders.
He sighed and offered reassurance: “Look on the bright side, your identity
hasn't been exposed yet.”
"That boatswain from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is highly capable and
ruthless toward himself. Though... he is indeed a bit simple-minded. But
looking at it another way, that very trait makes him easier to manipulate,
wouldn't you agree?"
“You make a valid point,” the human ringleader replied weakly, “For now, that's
the only comfort I can offer myself.”
“Continue recuperating. I'll report the situation here first.” Shuang Tu took
his leave.
The human ringleader's injuries remained severe. Had it not been for Bing
Xiao's timely treatment, he likely would have bled to death.
Now at Shuang Tu's clinic, he received proper care, though his abdomen remained
tightly bound in layers of bandages.
Druidic healing often took time to take effect. By comparison, clerical healing
spells were far more direct and brutal, capable of restoring a wounded person
to health in mere seconds.
However, this did not mean clerical healing was vastly superior to druidic
methods.
Both approaches had their distinct advantages and disadvantages.
Divine healing drained the patient's life force; the more treatments
administered, the greater the reduction in the patient's lifespan.
Druidic healing, while slower to take effect, was gentle and did not diminish
the patient's lifespan.
Of course, druids were not without rapid healing methods, but they simply
lacked the speed of divine healing.
Precisely for this reason, members of the clergy were the preferred healers on
the battlefield.
Commanders also favor divine healing.
Its swift efficacy allowed wounded soldiers to be restored to combat readiness
in short order, preserving the army's fighting strength.
Though it drained life force, without rapid healing, fallen soldiers risked
being finished off by enemies, losing their lives entirely.
Weighing two evils, sacrificing some future lifespan to guarantee survival on
the battlefield was the lesser choice.
Shuang Tu's adoption of this healing method was also calculated.
He needed to buy more time for the human ringleader and Lan Zao.
During their recovery period, the human ringleader and Lan Zao, especially Lan
Zao, would have more opportunity to adjust and adapt to their new identities.
Shuang Tu swiftly relayed the situation here.
This intelligence, rigorously encrypted, first reached the relay alchemy
device.
These relay devices were typically installed on uninhabited islands, some even
concealed at fixed points on the ocean floor.
After all, a considerable distance separated Flower Skirt Island and Snow Bird
Harbor.
Following several relay points, Snow Bird Harbor swiftly received the
intelligence.
Professionals swiftly decrypted it, restoring the original content.
Soon, the intelligence was delivered to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s desk.
He was handling administrative affairs.
Upon seeing the urgent intelligence, a faint smile appeared on his face.
“Oh, interesting.”
"Who'd have thought that unlucky bastard actually survived. That backup plan
actually worked."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been rather pessimistic about the mission to
spy on Tranquil Hill.
Previous attempts had all ended in failure.
This time, he saw an opportunity in Teng Dong Lang's death. He deliberately let
the Bayonet Gang leader go to create this chance, though he himself didn't hold
much hope.
Despite this mindset, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would still exert maximum
effort.
Thus, upon discovering Lan Zao's existence, he set his sights on the latter.
Subsequently, he successfully forged a secret pact with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, hoping Lan Zao could assist with this mission.
Beyond that, he also sought to use this step to deepen his covert ties with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. He was even more interested in the arms dealer
behind Long Fu.
Clutching this intelligence, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fell into deep
thought: “Long Fu has already left Snow Bird Harbor. Judging by the time
elapsed, they should now be beyond the maximum communication range from my
location. This intelligence cannot be delivered directly into their hands.”
After pondering for a moment, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord summoned one of
his subordinates and ordered him to deliver this intelligence to the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps' detachment.
Shortly thereafter, Tripleblade received the intelligence.
This goblin was the core figure and true decision-maker within the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ sub-unit.
On the surface, the sub-unit established in Snow Bird Harbor was led by Men Shi
as the chief and Chi Lai as the deputy chief.
After discussion between Zong Ge and Zi Di, they decided to revise the original
plan in the absence of the dragonman youngster. They would lead the expedition
to the Ice Sculpture Capital, leaving Men Shi, Chi Lai, and others behind in
Snow Bird Harbor.
Joining them were Tripleblade, Mu Ban, the big guy, and others.
Men Shi and Chi Lai would primarily handle daily mercenary assignments and
training.
Their main training targets were the Quick Knife Squad and Backwater Battle
Squad.
Both squads remained stationed in Snow Bird Harbor.
The reason for leaving them behind was simple: both squads possessed limited
combat strength and offered little assistance to Zi Di and Zong Ge. If they
encountered real trouble, they would only become cannon fodder, ultimately
sacrificing themselves in vain.
Both Chi Lai and Men Shi were trustworthy.
Chi Lai signed a contract with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. The terms of
the contract guaranteed his loyalty. Moreover, Chi Lai's background and
character naturally inspire trust.
As for Men Shi, there's no question.
He joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to repay a debt of gratitude. This
dwarf possesses an exceptionally strong sense of duty. He risked everything to
rescue his clan from the Two Eyes Island auction, fighting tirelessly for them
even amidst the chaos.
Simultaneously, Men Shi embodies profound self-sacrifice.
He once shielded his comrades from a bomb's blast with his own body. During the
Bayonet Gang's escape, he recklessly attempted to block the swamp oil
amalgamation, despite the slim odds of survival.
Of course, the survivors remained the true core. The trust earned by Chi Lai
and Men Shi fell far short of granting them access to core secrets like
Mystifying Monster Island.
Therefore, Tripleblade had to be left behind.
With the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, Zi Di, Cang Xu, and Lan Zao all gone,
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' fleet needed a true insider to watch over it.
On one hand, many confidential matters had to be kept from Chi Lai and Men Shi;
they couldn't be allowed access.
On the other hand, if an accident occurred, only a true insider could make the
most reasonable choice, one that truly served the survivors' interests.
However, Tripleblade's personal combat strength remained weak.
He was only iron level.
But there was no choice. The current situation demanded he fill such a crucial
position.
"Lan Zao isn't dead? I'm sure the commander will be delighted to hear this
news.”  Receiving this intelligence, Tripleblade sighed inwardly. “I just
wonder when the commander will be able to return."
Tripleblade was privy to the truth, he knew the dragonman youngster had
vanished while pursuing Lan Zao, and that Zong Ge was impersonating him to
infiltrate the royal capital.
Tripleblade immediately set about relaying this intelligence.
Yet the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were outsiders; their communication
capabilities paled in comparison to those of Snow Bird Harbor's city lord.
Typically, long-distance message delivery relied on alchemy devices like the
magic messaging unit.
But such devices consumed vast amounts of energy, required costly maintenance,
and were prone to losing intelligence, or even having it intercepted mid-
transmission.
They offered no guarantee of secrecy.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's intelligence network employed superior
communication devices with greater stealth capabilities, but the investment
required was enormous.
Even with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' current finances, such extensive
deployment costs were difficult to bear.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had no intention of doing so either, it was
both too wasteful of resources and time-consuming.
Moreover, they lacked trained communication beasts. Tripleblade reasoned that
since the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had sent the intelligence and it wasn't
urgent; there was no need to use the city lord's communication routes to
contact Zong Ge and Zi Di.
Therefore, Tripleblade opted for a more down-to-earth method of contact. He
directly dispatched a subordinate, entrusting him with the encrypted
intelligence to travel via teleportation formation to the next town.
Teleportation formations existed in every major city of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.
Using these formations allowed swift travel to destinations.
However, the range was limited, direct travel wasn't possible, requiring at
least five relay points.
Moreover, the cost was exorbitant. The higher the item level and the greater
the quantity being transported, the steeper the price.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps desperately wanted to use the teleportation
formations to “jump” city by city to reach the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. But the
financial burden was too heavy.
There was also a more crucial reason.
That was the limited number of teleportation slots.
The teleportation formation's capacity was limited. Every town had countless
matters to attend to, with numerous people and goods urgently needing to use
the formation, yet they had to queue up.
For the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to utilize the teleportation formation,
they not only had to incur substantial costs but also face long waits. In Snow
Bird Harbor, they could cut in line through connections with the city lord, but
this wasn't possible elsewhere.
All things considered, using the teleportation formation was less efficient
than simply traveling on foot.
“If Lord Zong Ge's route hasn't changed since departure, their first stop
should be Blood Kin City.”
After calculating, Tripleblade estimated that Zong Ge and his group hadn't yet
reached Blood Kin City.
He issued precise orders for the messenger to teleport to Blood Kin City and
await Zong Ge and Zi Di's party in advance.
Cold Wind Valley.
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their group trudged through the terrain.
This valley wasn't large. Though not a major thoroughfare, numerous caravans
passed through annually.
Thus, no high level magic beasts roamed here, and the low level ones were no
match for Zong Ge and Zi Di. The more alert low level beasts fled at the sight
of the group. The less intelligent ones had already become game for Zong Ge and
his companions, or alchemy ingredients.
Xu Ma reported: "Commander, beyond the narrow pass ahead lies the exit from
Cold Wind Valley. The route is clear, not a single low level beast remains."
As a thief, he had been assigned to the royal capital's escort to scout the
path.
Yet Zi Di whispered telepathically to Zong Ge: “Ambushes lie in wait on both
sides of the pass!”



****** Chapter 405: Zong and Zi Disagree ******
Xu Ma's rank was simply too low.
He was only bronze level.
This was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, though not on par with the Sheng Ming
Empire, it far surpassed Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island.
Nearly every major town within the kingdom had gold level guards stationed, and
crucial trade ports like Snow Bird Harbor had more than one gold level figure
at the pinnacle of power.
Cold Wind Valley was considered wilderness territory, but those who operated
there were naturally formidable.
Bronze level was the lowest possible transcendent.
A bronze level like Xu Ma might hold minor status on Snake Rat Island or serve
some purpose on Two Eyes Island, but in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, he was
utterly insignificant.
The same applied to Tripleblade.
Tripleblade was iron level. At this level, he held a fairly solid position on
Snake Rat Island.
But with the addition of Chi Lai and Men Shi, Tripleblade's importance
diminished significantly.
Now in Snow Bird Harbor, someone of his rank simply couldn't become the overt
leader of a mercenary company's sub-unit. He had to retreat into the
background, ceding the positions of leader and deputy leader to Men Shi and Chi
Lai.
Silver level individuals like the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge, however, fit
quite well.
Should they advance further to gold level, it would greatly hinder their future
operations.
Globally, gold level signified an extraordinary core force. In this world where
one individual could match an entire army, gold level commanded far greater
respect than silver level.
Operating abroad with gold level strength would attract intense scrutiny,
suspicion, apprehension, and heightened vigilance, along with targeted
surveillance.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had previously collaborated with the dragonman
youngster to eliminate the Bayonet Gang precisely because the youngster wasn't
gold level.  Had he been of equal standing, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
would never have felt such ease.
Zong Ge did not blame Xu Ma for failing to detect the ambush as it was entirely
reasonable.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' journey to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and entry
into the royal capital had been meticulously planned, with ample preparations
made.
On the surface, Xu Ma, a bronze level scout, served as the reconnaissance lead.
In truth, the primary reconnaissance force consisted of scouting alchemy
puppets.
After Bu Quan, Zhong Yong, and several other silver level individuals joined
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they hastily produced several scouting puppets
alongside their alchemy preparations.
These puppets were vastly superior to those previously crafted by Zi Di.
Zi Di's alchemy skills were far inferior to theirs.
Additionally, Bu Quan had gifted all four of her alchemy workshops to the
dragonman youngster, so the tools at their disposal were far superior to those
Zi Di had used.
The blueprints for these alchemy puppets all came from the War Merchant,
guaranteeing top quality.
Zi Di had even coated the sole silver level alchemy puppet she'd rushed to
complete with the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell.
After Zong Ge, Zi Di, and their group departed Snow Bird Harbor, Zi Di
dispersed all the reconnaissance puppets under her command to scout the
surrounding area. During rest stops along the way, she recalled them to
replenish their magic power crystals before sending them out again.
The silver level reconnaissance puppet model, named the Stealth Breaker,
boasted longer endurance and significantly superior reconnaissance capabilities
compared to other scouting puppets. This time, it was precisely this puppet
that detected the ambush.
Zi Di elaborated to Zong Ge: “There are two ambushers, one silver level and one
gold level.”
“The gold level is a fighter, while the silver level is a magician.”
Zong Ge's expression grew stern as he fell deep in thought.
Though only two ambushers, their ranks were far too high.
A gold level could command an entire city. Why would such a powerful individual
hide here, engaging in petty banditry? What could their purpose be?
As for the silver level... they might prove even more troublesome than the gold
level. Magicians possessed far too many devious methods!
"While Cold Wind Valley does have trade routes, it's not a major thoroughfare.
The valley itself isn't large, it's difficult to hide in, and no bandits
maintain a permanent presence here. What are these two ambushing here for?" Zi
Di voiced her opinion.
“They likely aren't targeting us specifically.”
“To be safe, we could take a detour.”
Zong Ge remained silent. He stared at the valley exit before slowly shaking his
head.
“The exit is right before us. To detour, we'd have to turn back, leave Cold
Wind Valley first, then make a wide loop around it. That would waste too much
time.”
“Besides, how can you be certain they aren't ambushing here specifically for
us?”
Zi Di frowned slightly: "The Bayonet Gang has been wiped out. The Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord is our ally, and we've secured cooperation with the Li Jian
Clan. Thanks to the commander, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is renowned
throughout the entire kingdom. Even if someone were to cause trouble for us,
they'd likely be targeting ‘you’, the commander."
“After all, you defeated a gold level opponent as a silver level commander. For
fame and fortune, you're bound to attract many challengers.”
"But this ambush here clearly isn't about friendly sparring or challenges, it's
far more malicious. We're new here. We don't have enemies like this."
The survivors knew they were outsiders and had always strived to atone for
their past. Especially Zi Di, who had endured the tragedy of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance's collapse, thus prioritizing the mercenary group's external
relations. Thanks to her efforts, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps maintained
relatively smooth external relations.
After forming an alliance with the Li Jian Clan, their external standing had
improved considerably.
Zong Ge glanced at Zi Di before shifting his gaze back to the valley exit.
He spoke calmly, “My thoughts are quite the opposite of yours, Magician Yao
Ma.”
"Your analysis is sound. But that doesn't mean these two ambushers aren't our
enemies. We have no evidence to prove otherwise."
"Often, we make enemies without even realizing it. Many reasons enemies give
for targeting us are laughable. Enemies lurking in the shadows might remain
invisible to you."
“I can't recall when we offended an unknown gold level fighter or an unknown
silver level magician.”
“But it's entirely possible these two ambushed us precisely for that reason!”
"Our route was classified, yet our movements were easily tracked. With only two
of them, both transcendents, not a large force, relocating is effortless.
Setting up an ambush ahead of us would be no trouble at all."
"Retracing our steps and bypassing the valley is pure evasion. If these two are
targeting us specifically, even if we take a detour, they'll strike again. This
time we were lucky to spot them—what about next time? They'll be more cautious,
hide deeper, and our disadvantage will grow."
“If they weren't targeting us, wouldn't detouring just waste our time?”
“Therefore, what we should do is verify.”
Zi Di: “How do you propose to verify?”
“Use the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell to
augment those alchemy puppets. Dress them up to look like our group and have
them leave the valley.” Zong Ge suggested.
Zi Di shook her head immediately, “Impossible.”
She continued telepathically, “We only have 63 pearl bubbles. Empowering that
many alchemy puppets would consume too much.”
“We don't know when the commander will return, nor how long this trip to the
capital will take.”
“We must conserve them as much as possible, saving more pearls for unforeseen
emergencies.”
Zong Ge frowned. "Supplies are meant to be used. If we don't arm ourselves to
the fullest, a major battle could wipe us out, and all those supplies would
become enemy spoils!"
"How many pearls would enchanting those alchemy puppets even use? At most,
three."
Zi Di merely shook her head, her stance unwavering.
Once Zi Di refused, Zong Ge found himself at a loss.
After all, he wasn't a magician.
Among the survivors, only two possessed magic abilities. With Cang Xu having
left the group, Zi Di was the sole one capable of manipulating the Deceptive
Disguise Formation to perform enchantments.
Faced with this reality, Zong Ge could only concede, his tone growing colder:
“If you're unwilling to part with them, then enchant me instead.”
“Let me lead the assault, strike first to gain the advantage!”
In that moment, Zong Ge displayed the true bearing of a formidable commander.
As an exceptional military leader, if he discovered ambush troops ahead while
marching his forces, and remained uncertain of their intentions, what course of
action would he take?
There was no need for deliberation.
Lead the charge immediately and eliminate all potential threats!
Zong Ge would never gamble on whether the ambush was accidental or malicious.
An ambush ahead, even unintentional, posed a threat.
Eliminate the threat outright!
Zi Di gasped in shock, staring at Zong Ge in disbelief, “Are you mad?”
To her, it was utterly unnecessary.
Taking a detour could easily avoid this risk. Even if it delayed them, they
could pay exorbitant teleportation fees to save time and make up for the lost
distance.
Why risk life and limb when money could solve the problem?
Money could be earned again if lost, but what good was wealth without life?
Now Zong Ge not only refused to avoid the risk but actually wanted to provoke
trouble? This was utterly absurd!
Zong Ge shook his head, utterly disappointed in Zi Di, “Miss merchant, do not
fear hardship or challenge.”
"If they set this ambush for us, they are undoubtedly our enemies. Now that
they don't know they've been exposed, I can use the Deceptive Disguise spell to
launch a surprise attack. It'll give us a huge advantage and catch them off
guard."
"If they aren't our enemies, after my surprise attack, they won't fight us to
the death. They'll most likely retreat voluntarily. Because they haven't found
their target, and now they've been exposed."
Zi Di cut him off: "You said it yourself, it's only probable. So, it's also
possible they'll fly into a rage and fight you with everything they've got.
After all, you disrupted their plans. And you're only a silver level, not the
commander. How could you possibly fight them?"
"I don't understand. What benefit would we gain from this? We'd likely just
make enemies for no reason!"
Zong Ge sneered coldly: "The benefit is obvious! No one will dare to ambush us
on our path again. Even if they do, they'll be far more cautious."
“That's the benefit?!” Zi Di glared at Zong Ge. "Once a battle breaks out,
maybe you and I could escape, but the others? They'll all die!"
Zong Ge snorted coldly, “Miss Zi Di, did you think our journey to the capital
would be smooth sailing?”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is already renowned throughout the kingdom.
Who knows how many are waiting for a chance to engage me in a heroic duel?”
“Only by demonstrating our strength can we inspire fear and eliminate many
troubles before they arise.”
“A commander must look to the future!”
Zi Di snapped impatiently, “All I know is you're courting trouble right now,
big trouble!”
“You have a point. We must demonstrate our strength and clear some obstacles
early.”
“But facing a gold level fighter and a silver level magician teaming up, do we
have the strength for that?”
“We can fight,” Zong Ge mused. "Even if we lack strength, we must appear
sufficiently formidable. In this foreign land, we are outsiders, yet our
reputation precedes us."
"Only by demonstrating sufficient resolve can we make others realize that even
if they defeat us, they'll pay a heavy price. They'll think twice, and we'll
reduce our enemies significantly."
Zi Di sneered coldly: "Your resolve will likely cost us heavy casualties. If
the commander were here, he'd never recklessly sacrifice subordinates like
pawns."
Zong Ge frowned. "Therefore, I believe our commander was overly sentimental.
Sacrifice is often unavoidable. Sometimes we must even sacrifice proactively to
secure a better tactical position."
“If you truly care for those pearls, then only have the reconnaissance puppets
disguise themselves as us two to lead these men out of the valley.”
"If we trigger an ambush, it confirms they're enemies, then we can engage then.
If not, we can keep moving and avoid conflict."
Hearing Zong Ge dismiss her beloved, Zi Di instantly felt resistance.
Then, as Zong Ge “coldly” proposed using other mercenaries as bait, a chill
gripped her heart.
Her anger flared: “Tripleblade isn't here, and the two squads you trained so
hard are left behind in Snow Bird Harbor. Does that mean you can sacrifice
others at will?”
Zong Ge drew a deep breath, his own temper simmering.
He never liked verbal negotiations and was never good at this sort of
interaction.
He suppressed his rage and made one final attempt at communication: "You
misunderstand me. Even if Tripleblade were here, I'd make the same decision.
Those two squads aren't irreplaceable. Not even myself! As long as the
sacrifice holds value...
“Enough!” Zi Di snapped, her voice low and furious, “I absolutely refuse to
accept your plan. It's utterly foolish! We turn back immediately!”
Zong Ge closed his eyes, then opened them.
He glanced down at Zi Di before barking an order: “Hold your positions! Full
alert!”
Then he turned and walked away.
Zi Di froze for a moment before calling out to stop him.
But Zong Ge had no intention of wasting words. He broke into a run, reaching
the final stretch of the valley.
Xu Ma and the others were bewildered: "Why did the commander argue with
Magician Yao Ma? Did the commander just storm off in anger?"
But the next moment, the ambushers struck without warning.
They charged at Zong Ge, their intent to kill palpable.
A blinding radiance of magic enveloped the valley's exit.
Within the piercing light, a figure cloaked in gold battle qi charged straight
toward Zong Ge.
Zi Di's heart sank instantly.
It was clear these two were targeting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!



****** Chapter 406: Cold Wind Valley Ambush ******
With a formidable enemy at hand, Zi Di had no time for anger. She immediately
drew her staff and joined the fray.
Currently disguised as Yao Ma, she appeared to be a silver level fire magician.
Her staff was also silver level.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ standing in Snow Bird Harbor, coupled with
their financial resources, made acquiring silver level equipment no problem.
Even for gold level gear, they had secured considerable quantities through
connections with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The staff, named the Soaring Flame Staff, came pre-imbued with three spells:
Fireball, Fire Wall, and Ring of Fire. Fireball was an offensive spell, while
Fire Wall, when used skillfully, served both offense and defense. The Ring of
Fire was purely defensive. It was precisely because of this spell that the
Soaring Flame Staff was undoubtedly a premium silver level staff!
With the staff's aid, Zi Di didn't need to chant at all. She simply channeled
her spirit and infused it with magic power, launching a fireball.
The silver level fireball aimed straight for the top of the hillside.
That was precisely where the hidden scouting puppet had detected the enemy's
position.
The gold level fighter had already charged down, but the silver level magician
remained atop the slope.
The silver level magician spotted the incoming fireball and was taken aback,
surprised their precise location had been revealed so quickly. They hadn't seen
Yao Ma cast any scouting spells at all.
The silver level magician immediately flashed their bracelet.
The bracelet, a silver level magic artifact, nearly instantly cast Light
Shield.
The shield materialized as a square, approximately 1.8 meters in length and
width, immediately soaring forward to collide with the fireball.
Boom!
A sudden explosion erupted as the fireball struck the shield, detonating mid-
air and unleashing intense heat and shockwaves.
The silver level magician successfully defended, and the fireball failed to hit
its target.
Zi Di drew a scroll from her bosom and continued casting Fireball.
The silver level scroll hadn't been purchased but sourced from the War
Merchant's arsenal.
Truth be told, much of that stockpile had already been depleted. Since leaving
Mystifying Monster Island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had endured numerous
skirmishes along their journey. Of the twelve crates of explosive dumbbells,
ten were used up in the battle against Rou Zang. When the remnants of the
Bayonet Gang fled from Snow Bird Harbor dock, they exhausted all water-
elemental and ice-elemental arrows and bullets in their arsenal to counter the
swamp oil elementals.
The original stock of 138 healing scrolls had been depleted by more than half,
but after restocking at Snow Bird Harbor, the count had risen back to 97.
Fireball scrolls were the most abundant, once numbering 250. Though many were
consumed in successive battles, the initial stock was largest, leaving over a
hundred remaining.
Scrolls were naturally faster than chanting spells. Zi Di knew their side was
at a disadvantage and had to rely on equipment to compensate.
Zi Di, whose magician level fell short of silver, tore open three Fireball
scrolls in succession and unleashed them toward the hilltop.
This forced the silver level magician to abandon her position.
A gem ring on her little finger emitted an eerie glow.
The light lingered behind her, rapidly expanding into an elliptical halo.
The silver level magician retreated backward, stepping into the elliptical
sphere of light before vanishing.
The next moment, a similar white line of light appeared atop the opposite
hillside. The silver level magician retreated, stepping out from within it.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three consecutive explosions echoed as the mountaintop where she had stood
moments before was levelled.
The silver level magician then pulled a scroll from her robe.
She tore it open, unleashing a Dazzling Light spell.
The spell did not target Zi Di, but instead shot toward Zong Ge.
“No!” Zi Di tried to intercept it, but was powerless to do so, forced to watch
helplessly as Zong Ge was struck.
Zong Ge was already locked in combat with the gold level fighter and was losing
ground.
After being hit by another Dazzling Light spell, his vision instantly flooded
with blinding white light, making it impossible to discern his enemy.
“Die!” The gold level fighter roared, launching a fierce assault.
This mysterious foe was tall and agile, wearing an iron mask and wielding a
long-handled war hammer with a barrel-shaped head, radiating intense fury.
In the critical moment, Zong Ge closed his eyes and raised his Gold Flower
Hacksaw!
Clang!
The hammerhead aimed for Zong Ge's head, but he crouched slightly and shifted
his stance. The steel saw, raised just in time, blocked the blow.
The mysterious foe's war hammer was merely silver level, but Zong Ge wielded a
gold level Gold Flower Hacksaw.
This weapon had originally belonged to Xiong Ju, ringleader of the Bayonet
Gang. However, the Bayonet Gang was wiped out in a single day by the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord. Xiong Ju and his men were captured, and their weapons and
equipment fell into the city lord's hands.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had long conducted multiple transactions with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Through these deals, the equipment had ultimately ended up in the hands of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Not only the Gold Flower Hacksaw, but other gear like the Small Thunder God
Flying Hammer, the Qi Boosting Syringe, the Root Boots, and Teng Dong Lang's
gold level whip were all traded to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The only regret was that defensive emblem - the Flowing Wave Armor.
It was gold level armor, and the design was ingenious!
With the Ice Sculpture Kingdom enforcing an armor ban, such defensive
accessories were exceptionally rare in the absence of formal gold level armor.
Thus, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord kept it in his possession. Despite the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps inflating the price several times, it remained
unsold.
Seeing Zong Ge lose his vision, Zi Di grew even more tense.
In her view, Zong Ge was already in danger; now, without vision, the situation
had become dire!
But Zi Di lacked a dispelling spell, so she chose to continue attacking. She
immediately wielded her staff, unleashing Fire Wall.
The spell swiftly spread across the hillside crest, forcing the silver level
magician to take flight.
Zi Di tore open another scroll, casting Fireball.
The silver level magician couldn't use her ring to draw a light circle for
teleportation again so quickly. Such magic items usually had restrictions,
requiring a period of time before they could be used a second time.
The silver level magician still had other cards up her sleeve.
She revealed the necklace hanging around her neck. The pendant was a
rectangular tag.
The pendant flashed, scattering light into the air and releasing the sealed
magic pet within.
The silver level magician clearly specialized in light magic; her pet was a
silver level light elemental.
The light elemental had two clawed paws, a bear-like head, and a lower body
tapering to a sharp point like a cone. Flight was its instinct. The moment it
was released, it received its master's command and immediately charged at Zi
Di.
Zi Di took a deep breath, refusing to be distracted by the enemy's magic pet.
“I have a magic pet too!” she whispered, releasing Lan Lu's ghost.
The two headed ogre's ghost was obtained during her time on Snake Rat Island.
It had been severely damaged on Two Eyes Island, rendering it nearly unusable.
However, through Cang Xu's efforts, Zi Di acquired a batch of soul crystals and
numerous potent undead spells, granting her the ability to heal the ghost Lan
Lu.
Now, Lan Lu not only returned to peak condition but was also imbued with the
Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell, masking its
undead nature.
To outsiders, the ghost Lan Lu appeared as a formidable combat-type alchemy
puppet.
Being a ghost, Lan Lu could naturally float through the air.
The light elemental familiar was also silver level, matching Lan Lu's level.
The two magic pets roared at each other before lunging into a fierce clash,
locked in an intense stalemate.
The ambushers numbered only two, but the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fielded
more than just Zong Ge and Zi Di.
“Engage!” roared Xu Ma, swiftly drawing his alchemy rifle and firing a signal
flare skyward.
This was an unmistakable call for backup.
The silver level magician naturally moved to intercept, firing a precise light
spear that shattered the flare before it could fully ascend.
But in the next instant, the other accompanying mercenaries followed Xu Ma's
lead, drawing their alchemy muskets and firing their own signal flares.
The silver level magician was momentarily speechless, having never imagined
such signal guns were standard issue for nearly everyone.
She intended to continue her interception, but Zi Di wouldn't let her succeed.
A barrage of fireballs forced her to constantly shift positions.
Xu Ma then directed the mercenaries to concentrate their fire.
Their alchemy crossbows and muskets, sourced from the War Merchant's arsenal,
now utilized alchemy arrows and bullets.
In an instant, bullets and arrows converged into a dazzling yet deadly barrage,
forcing the silver level magician to frantically dodge while maintaining her
defensive spells. She found it nearly impossible to support her allies or
strike at Zong Ge.
“Zong Ge, hold on!” Zi Di shouted. Relying on her gear and high-frequency
advanced spells, supported by other mercenaries, she had managed to suppress
the silver level magician.
Yet she remained unable to aid Zong Ge, offering only anxious encouragement.
Zong Ge, however, remained steadfast.
No matter how fiercely the gold fighter attacked, he parried every strike with
his Gold Flower Hacksaw.
Zong Ge's combat experience was immense. Even temporarily blinded, he could
pinpoint enemies by sound alone.
Had the enemy been an assassin type, he might have been in danger. But the gold
level foe before him fought with a sweeping, aggressive style, much like Xiong
Ju, charging headlong into battle, relying on sheer force to overwhelm.
Beyond his precise recognition, Zong Ge held another advantage: the Gold Flower
Hacksaw.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw possessed an exceptionally broad blade. As a weapon
master, Zong Ge often utilized the saw as a shield after identifying incoming
attacks, securing himself in a solid defense.
The gold fighter, frustrated by his prolonged inability to break through, grew
dissatisfied with his silver level war hammer and unleashed his battle skill.
Zong Ge immediately sensed the enemy's aura surge, recognizing the use of a
battle skill. He responded by deploying his own defensive battle skill.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The gold level adversary swung his long-handled war hammer like a torrential
downpour, but Zong Ge blocked left and right, steadily retreating while
maintaining a solid defensive line.
“He's clearly only silver level...” The gold level foe's eyes blazed with
bloodshot fury.
Were it not for the glow of silver level battle qi, he might have suspected he
was clashing with an equal.
Zong Ge weathered the most perilous phase through sheer defense. As time
passed, the Dazzling Light spell's effect gradually faded, allowing him to see
again, albeit dimly.
He opened his eyes and simultaneously drew the flying hammer from his waist,
hurling it forward.
It was the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer!
Originally forged by the dwarf ringleader of the Bayonet Gang, it was a replica
of the legendary weapon, the Great Thunder God's Flying Hammer.
Both the hammer body and shaft radiated a silver level aura, but the gem
embedded at the very tip emitted a gold level aura, flickering with threads of
lightning.
It could be considered a near-gold level heavy throwing weapon.
Controlled by mental will, it was extremely convenient and had a low learning
curve.
After Xiong Ju obtained it, he trained with it for just one night and wielded
it in the next day's heroic duel, causing considerable trouble for the
dragonman youngster.
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer spun toward the gold level fighter.
The gold fighter raised his long-handled war hammer, knocking it away with the
hammerhead. But it spun once in midair and charged toward the gold fighter
again.
Meanwhile, Zong Ge shifted from defense to offense, swinging his Gold Flower
Hacksaw to unleash a series of dangerous blade shadows.
The gold fighter, engaged in combat with Zong Ge while also guarding against
the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer, gradually became overwhelmed, exposing
more and more openings.
"This damn thing!" The gold level fighter roared in fury, unleashing a fierce
battle skill to smash the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
Under Zong Ge's mental control, the hammer shot upward, soaring into the air.
The gold level fighter tried to pursue, but Zong Ge had already closed in
before him.
Zong Ge channeled his battle qi into the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
The hacksaw's teeth whirled at breakneck speed, while the gem embedded in its
handle emitted an earthy yellow glow.
The gold fighter instantly felt his body grow heavy, his movements slowing.
Battle skill—Spinning Horizontal Slash!
Zong Ge gripped the saw's handles with both hands, slightly bending his waist.
Using his heels as pivots, he straightened his arms, driving the Gold Flower
Hacksaw to spin forcefully in a full circle.
The saw's speed and power surged dramatically.
Its surface blazed with silver light as it slashed viciously toward the gold
fighter's waist.
The gold level fighter had no time to retreat gracefully. In desperation, he
summoned his battle qi to unleash a defensive battle skill, fortifying his
double-handed war hammer.
He blocked the horizontal slash with the middle section of the hammer's shaft.
Had Zong Ge wielded a greatsword, this attack would have ended there. But in
his hands was the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
In the next instant, the saw teeth savagely tore into the barrel-shaped handle,
erupting in a torrent of sparks.
These sparks coalesced midair into blossoms of golden light.
The sharp edges of the golden flowers whirled and danced, diving toward the
gold fighter's vulnerable points, like the eyes, nose, and throat.
The gold fighter naturally possessed defensive battle skills to protect
himself, but the relentless stream of golden flowers swiftly eroded his
defenses.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Small Thunder God Flying Hammer struck again, hitting his back, waist, and
the back of his head, delivering another heavy blow.
The gold fighter roared in fury, unleashing a powerful battle skill. The
surging shockwave kicked up a cloud of dust, nearly knocking Zong Ge off his
feet.
Zong Ge adjusted his stance and charged forward once more.
Amidst the swirling dust, his and the gold fighter's figures blurred, appearing
and vanishing abruptly.
Outsiders heard only the clashes and explosions.
The dust was soon blown away by the battle skills' aftereffects. To everyone's
surprise, Zong Ge held the upper hand!
In Zong Ge's hands, the Gold Flower Hacksaw and the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer were wielded with astonishing skill.
The two weapons complemented each other with perfect synergy, leaving the gold
fighter scrambling to respond. Occasional flashes of brilliance and masterfully
coordinated strikes kept the gold fighter reeling from relentless blows.
Zi Di couldn't help but breathe a huge sigh of relief.
The key to this battle rested squarely on Zong Ge's shoulders. All she could do
was cheer him on from the sidelines.
The other mercenaries roared in approval, their morale soaring. This surge of
energy fueled an even more intense barrage of arrows and bullets.
“Long Fu, just you wait!” The gold fighter spat out a threat before retreating.
The silver level magician brought up the rear, tearing open a spatial scroll.
Instantly, a swarm of alchemy puppets poured forth.
Over a hundred automatons swarmed toward the main force of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Instead of pursuing the gold level fighter, Zong Ge joined Zi Di in confronting
the automatons to protect their subordinates.
Lacking aerial combat skills, the Gold Fighter was swiftly carried away by the
silver level magician, vanishing from the Cold Wind Valley in moments.



****** Chapter 407: Cultivating a Fishman Battle Skill ******
The battle in Cold Wind Valley gradually drew to a close.
From the very start, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had detected the ambush.
By the time hostilities commenced, Zong Ge's overwhelming dominance over the
gold level Fighter had already sealed the outcome.
Zong Ge and Zi Di chose not to pursue the gold level Fighter or the silver
level magician. Ultimately, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps joined forces to
destroy all the alchemy puppets holding back the enemy.
After the battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suffered three deaths and
seventeen injuries. Among them, eight sustained minor injuries, while nine were
gravely wounded.
The final stretch of Cold Wind Valley, now a battlefield, lay utterly ravaged.
The slopes on either side were bombarded beyond recognition. The narrow exit
was nearly buried by collapsed hillsides.
Traces of scorching flames were everywhere. Fragmented remains of alchemy
puppets littered the ground, while towering ice pillars over a meter high stood
scattered about. Some sealed within them the shattered limbs of puppets, while
others froze solid members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
These mercenaries had frozen to death, their faces still frozen in the terror
of their final moments.
Some alchemy puppets possessed self-destruct capabilities. The instant of their
explosion generated powerful cold air, freezing everything nearby.
When the explosions first occurred, Zi Di and Zong Ge were momentarily
flustered.
But Zong Ge quickly made the right call, deploying the Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer.
It must be said, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer proved its worth once
more, completely countering these ice-exploding alchemy puppets. Its paralyzing
attack effect destroyed them prematurely, preventing the ice explosions.
Otherwise, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' casualties would have risen
significantly!
Zi Di led the mercenaries in clearing the battlefield, melting ice blocks, and
salvaging as many alchemy puppets as possible.
These puppet fragments held significant value, some even retaining intact
cores. More crucially, Zi Di sought clues within them, hoping to trace the
trail and uncover the identity of the mysterious enemy.
Zong Ge inspected the battlefield.
He focused on examining the combat traces left by the gold level fighter.
Studying each hammer mark and the deep footprints gouged into the ground, Zong
Ge recalled the battle's intensity. His voice grew solemn as he addressed Zi
Di: “The enemy deliberately concealed their identity. The gold level fighter I
faced did not use his primary weapon.”
“He temporarily wielded a long-handled war hammer, but during the fierce clash,
he mostly employed slashing and cutting motions. Thrusting attacks like those
were only used in the early stages of our exchange.”
“Based on my assessment, his primary weapon should be a blade, sword, or axe.”
The mysterious gold level fighter, in an effort to conceal his identity, had
not unleashed his full strength.
Zi Di's heart sank: “His primary weapon is likely gold level, with distinct
characteristics, so he deliberately avoided using it.”
"In their eyes, I'm Yao Ma, a silver level magician. You blocked the gold level
fighter's relentless assault and even gained the upper hand by leveraging
weapons. They understand that defeating us would demand a heavy price and take
considerable time."
“The signal flares Xu Ma and the others launched earlier also cleverly
amplified their psychological pressure.”
“Since they wish to conceal their identities, they naturally don't want this
fight drawing other onlookers.”
“Therefore, they chose to retreat.”
“What puzzles me is why these two targeted the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
Zong Ge recalled the battle scene: "The gold fighter gritted his teeth,
radiating intense hatred and fury. Perhaps their target wasn't the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, but me."
“To be precise, ‘Commander Long Fu’!”
Zi Di grew even more puzzled: "If this hatred isn't feigned but genuine, then
these two harboring such intense animosity toward the commander likely have
ties to the Bayonet Gang."
“But we've purchased all available intelligence on the Bayonet Gang.”
"It's merely a local gang with minimal connections to forces outside Snow Bird
Harbor. Would someone ambush us to avenge Teng Dong Lang?"
"Though Teng Dong Lang died by the commander's hand, it was in a heroic duel.
By local custom, seeking vengeance would only tarnish the glory of his valiant
death."
"Perhaps enemies drawn by the Bu Quan affair? But that doesn't make sense
either. Even if the Alchemy Guild refuses to let go, they should know the terms
of our contract with Bu Quan. Killing us isn't a wise strategy to reclaim Bu
Quan."
“Perhaps some faction saw our business plan and wanted to crush us to seize the
kingdom's mount potion market for themselves?”
"No, our potions aren't distributed nationwide yet. They're only selling well
in Snow Bird Harbor. That profit margin shouldn't justify deploying a gold
level to ambush us. More crucially, this won't hinder our business plans
either."
Zi Di speculated endlessly but couldn't fathom where the enemy came from or why
they harbored such intense hatred.
“Regardless, we should leave this place as soon as possible.” Zong Ge withdrew
his gaze, which had been scanning the battlefield for clues.
Zi Di's heart sank.
They had no idea how many hidden enemies lurked. If these two had escaped to
send word and summon reinforcements, lingering here was even more perilous.
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps hastened their pace. After leaving the
Cold Wind Valley, they rode without pause toward the next town.
Fortunately, the town wasn't far. The closer they got, the more carts and
travelers filled the roads.
By evening, the group formally arrived at Blood Kin City.
At the city gate entrance, they underwent inspection by the guards.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, dusty and bearing injuries, quickly drew
attention.
When Zong Ge presented the identity papers issued by the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord to the guards, someone excitedly asked, “Excuse me, are you Lord Long Fu?”
Zong Ge nodded impassively.
This subtle gesture immediately sparked a chorus of gasps and admiration.
“Lord Long Fu, you're incredible, you slayed a gold level as a silver level!”
“I bought your magic portrait! You wiped out the Bayonet Gang—you're a true
hero!”
“How did you manage it?”
“Would you take me as your disciple?”
The crowd at the city gate swelled, the scene growing chaotic.
Even some guards were stirred, casting admiring glances.
After verifying his credentials, the veteran guard promptly returned Zong Ge's
ID: "Blood Kin City welcomes you, sir, and your group. But please hurry on."
Zong Ge led his mercenaries swiftly into the city.
Before nightfall, they found lodging at an inn.
The wounded were settled first. Hired priests entered their rooms to cast
healing divine magic.
The innkeeper was thrilled. Meeting Zong Ge and Zi Di, he voluntarily waived
their lodging and meal fees, declaring it an honor to host the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Late into the night, a messenger who had arrived early at Blood Kin City sought
a secret audience with Zong Ge and Zi Di.
Sent by Tripleblade via a teleportation formation, he delivered intelligence
concerning Lan Zao.
Thus, Zong Ge and Zi Di learned of Lan Zao's current situation.
Zong Ge's tone was flat: "Lan Zao is fortunate to have survived, but from here
on out, he must rely on himself. He's merely a bronze level mercenary. I don't
hold much hope for him becoming a competent spy."
“Lan Zao didn't die. Commander, are you aware of this? Where are you now?” Zi
Di's longing overflowed.
After settling down, she missed the dragonman youngster especially keenly.
Before reaching the next town after leaving Snow Bird Harbor, Zi Di and Zong Ge
clashed, their differences escalating sharply.
The ambush battle erupting in Cold Wind Valley temporarily overshadowed their
discord. After the fight, neither Zi Di nor Zong Ge tacitly brought up the
previous conflict again.
But both knew the truth.
Zi Di, relying on her status and abilities as a magician, sought to seize
control.
Yet Zong Ge had his own agenda.
He lacked Zi Di's exceptional diplomatic skills and eloquence, but his decisive
actions spoke louder than words.
His actions at the valley exit particularly demonstrated his resolve - if
cooperation isn't possible, then I'll act alone!
It was precisely his deliberate exposure that triggered the enemy ambush as
they departed Cold Wind Valley.
Zi Di had no choice but to join the fight, effectively accepting Zong Ge's
course of action.
“If only the commander were here...” Zi Di sighed inwardly.
This situation gave her a headache.
The disagreement in Cold Wind Valley made her fully realize how vastly
different she and Zong Ge were. Their personalities, values, and approaches to
action. Both sought dominance, yet neither was willing to yield.
This journey had only just begun.
“Plus, there's that mysterious enemy lurking in the shadows, waiting to
strike... sigh.” Zi Di felt helpless and anxious.
Ocean Mother Nest.
Inside the landing bay, the fishman youngster practiced battle skills alone.
He practiced a new battle skill called Swift Swim. When activated, this battle
skill amplified the thrust generated by his limbs and fishtail through water,
dramatically increasing his swimming speed.
20
The War Merchant's database listed over twenty battle skills named Swift Swim.
These battle skills themselves differed little in core mechanics. The one the
fishman youngster had chosen was specifically tailored for fishmen.
Battle skills represent methods of wielding battle qi. Each race adapts them
according to their unique physical structures.
For instance, the Surge battle skill and Demolition Fist previously used by the
dragonman youngster were both tailored for dragonmen.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish only had a meditation room, no combat training area,
making it extremely inconvenient for the fishman youngster to practice his
battle skills.
Space on the Deep Sea Monster Fish was severely limited, and the situation here
was actually worse than it seemed. The survivors had gathered a great deal of
treasure from Two Eyes Island, piling it high throughout the Deep Sea Monster
Fish. Even the passageways were cluttered, making it difficult to walk.
Fortunately, many of these antiques and treasures were disposed of at Snow Bird
Harbor. Some were transferred to other ships, and trading with the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord consumed a significant portion, finally freeing up space.
Even so, the fishman youngster still lacked suitable training space, as most
compartments remained too small.
The largest compartment was the landing bay.
Located in the belly of the ship, it possessed both water-filling and drainage
capabilities.
When receiving visitors entering the ship from the sea, the landing chamber
opened to swallow both the visitors and the seawater.
Afterward, the chamber closed, expelled the seawater, and opened the door to
the inner ship's hold, allowing the visitors to enter.
The chamber was actively filled with water mostly when the Deep Sea Monster
Fish was submerged. By absorbing vast quantities of seawater, it also increases
the vessel's weight.
Since he was practicing the Swift Swim battle skill, the fishman youngster
simply flooded the landing compartment halfway, transforming it into a
temporary enclosed swimming pool.
He splashed about freely in the water.
At first, his mastery of the Swift Swim battle skill was still rudimentary.
Unable to control his speed, he collided painfully with the surrounding metal
walls.
Later, he gained much more proficiency, yet the dragonman youngster still found
that after activating Swift Swim, his speed fluctuated erratically, too fast or
too slow, difficult to control.
After some investigation, he pinpointed the issue: Swift Swim battle skill was
incompatible with the Bursting Explosion battle qi.
The Bursting Explosion battle qi cultivated through the Bursting Explosion
battle qi technique possessed a signature explosive nature.
When paired with explosive offensive battle skills like the Demolition Fist,
they complemented each other perfectly. However, when combined with the Swift
Swim battle skill, it often caused the fishman youngster's swimming speed to
fluctuate erratically, making it difficult to control.
This was because the Bursting Explosion battle qi itself could not be refined
with precision.
“Does this mean I have to switch my battle qi?” The dragonman youngster
hesitated inwardly, unable to make this decision for the time being.
He now faced a dilemma.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was trapped within the Ocean Mother Nest. Considering
the worst-case scenario, he might need to battle the saint level sea beast
underwater. In such circumstances, the fishman form was far more reliable than
the dragonman form, as the latter couldn't breathe freely underwater. The deep
ocean floor wasn't the dragonman form's primary battlefield.
But clearly, the fishman form's combat power was nowhere near as strong as the
dragonman form's.
Although it came with four innate racial magic covering healing,
reconnaissance, attack, and support, its defensive capabilities were
drastically reduced, offering the youngster no sense of security.
Moreover, the Demolition Fist, Machine Gun Fist, and Surge battle skills the
dragonman youngster had mastered lost much of their potency in fishman form.
The reason was obvious: these battle skills were designed to synergize with the
bloodline of the Flame Dragon King, completely incompatible with his current
fishman lineage.
The fishman youngster had already undergone a transformation in his battle qi
before, shifting from White River battle qi to Bursting Explosion battle qi. He
knew this process was quite arduous.
To enhance the combat effectiveness of his fishman form, he wouldn't just need
to change his battle qi formula; he'd also have to cultivate corresponding
battle skills.
To develop well-rounded combat prowess without glaring weaknesses, relying
solely on the Swift Swim battle skill was utterly insufficient. He would need
at least three or four battle skills.
This demanded extensive practice from the fishman youngster.
Though he now possessed shortcuts like the Grand Arena Medal for cultivation,
he lacked suitable opponents to gain combat experience. Starting from scratch,
even with his exceptional warrior talent, it would take considerable time to
see results.
The most hesitant point for the fishman youngster was this - he couldn't
abandon his dragonman form.
Assuming he escaped the Ocean Mother Nest, his most frequently used form would
still be the dragonman form. Therefore, if his battle qi transformed into
another type, he would have to convert it back after escaping.
This would be quite troublesome.
Now, the fishman youngster pinned his greatest hope on the reconnaissance
results from the alchemy puppets.
Those dual-eared scout puppets had already been deployed one after another.
The fishman youngster had slowly amplified their sonar signals, pushing them to
the brink of nearly awakening the saint level sea beast.



****** Chapter 408: A Big Secret Hidden in Transmission ******
The dual-eared scouting puppets had been conducting reconnaissance for some
time.
"I hope the area surrounding the Ocean Mother Nest is teeming with powerful sea
beasts. That way, when I shatter the Ocean Mother Nest, it will trigger a
massacre among the sea beasts. The more chaotic it gets, the better my chances
of escaping."
The fishman youngster harbored deep confidence in escaping amidst the chaos.
His confidence didn't stem from himself or the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the
alchemy magic ship, but from the Deceptive Disguise spell Technique and the god
level material, the Pearl Bubble!
However, the reality was: the dual-eared detector had been running for some
time, yet no results had been detected.
The fishman youngster had sought Zhong Yong's opinion on this matter.
Zhong Yong replied: "The walls of the Ocean Mother Nest must be too thick and
heavy, absorbing the sound waves themselves. The waves not only had to
penetrate outward but also bounce back, requiring the alchemy puppet to operate
continuously for an extended period."
With no other choice, the fishman youngster reluctantly accepted this reality.
To address this situation, Zhong Yong remained active, carefully selecting a
specialized reconnaissance puppet model.
The precision eel driller!
This alchemy puppet resembled an eel in form yet was far slenderer and more
compact than a typical eel. They excelled at tunneling, drilling through rock
to explore mineral deposits.
Zhong Yong selected this alchemy puppet model specifically to allow them to
silently burrow into the walls of the Ocean Mother Nest. They would create
imperceptibly fine, deep holes, facilitating sound transmission without
alerting the saint level sea beast.
In other words, the precision eel drillers primarily complemented the earlier
dual-eared detectors.
After practicing the Swift Swim battle skill for a while, the fishman youngster
paused and began training in another battle skill - Wave Treading.
This too was a fishman battle skill.
It generated powerful thrust from the soles of the fishman's feet, enabling
rapid movement over short distances.
For the fishman youngster, the power generation method of this battle skill
felt far more familiar than that of Swift Swim. The sensation resembled
unleashing the Surge battle skill from his soles.
Currently, the fishman battle skills the youngster focused on were all for
movement.
His imaginary battles took place in the deep ocean depths, clashing with the
saint level sea beast. In such encounters, the youngster's goal was certainly
not to defeat the enemy, but to escape.
In truth, he knew escape would be difficult.
Based on his observations, even if he simultaneously employed Swift Swim, Wave
Treading, and Surge, he couldn't outpace a saint level sea beast at its speed.
The fishman youngster's current goal was pragmatic: within a confined space, he
sought to enhance his mobility, evade lethal attacks, and buy himself a
precious second or two to survive.
Though a second or two seemed brief, it often meant the difference between life
and death.
After mastering two mobility-enhancing fishman battle skills, the youngster
began training in a third - Hardened Scales.
This, too, was a fishman battle skill.
Its effect was straightforward, evident from its very name. Upon activation,
every scale covering the fishman's body would become tougher and thicker. His
defensive capabilities would receive a significant boost.
However, this substantial increase was relative to a fishman's baseline.
The fishman youngster had compared it: even after activating Hardened Scales,
his defense still fell far short of the dragon scales in his dragonman form.
The concentration of the Flame Dragon King's bloodline slightly exceeded 34%,
while his fishman form's bloodline concentration was only 11%. Beyond this
primary factor of concentration, inherent strengths and differences existed
between species.
Fishmen bloodlines were fundamentally not adept at defense.
In truth, the fishmen race simply could not compare to the dragons.
That said, having the Hardened Scales battle skill was still better than having
nothing at all.
The fishman youngster planned to cultivate more battle skills in the future,
striving to enhance his defensive capabilities.
Having grown accustomed to the protection of dragon scales, he always felt a
pang of unease and insecurity whenever he shifted into his fishman form.
"If I could purchase the Nomadic Armor, it would be immensely helpful to me
now. Unfortunately, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord refuses to sell this gold
level equipment."
The fishman youngster possessed another gold level armor piece: the Golden Silk
Chainmail. However, this equipment had sustained significant damage during his
battle with Teng Dong Lang and remained unrepaired.
This remained the case even after alchemists like Bu Quan and Zhong Yong joined
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The reason was quite simple.
This piece of equipment was imbued with the Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell and Deceptive Disguise spell. Even if placed before Zhong Yong or Bu
Quan, they wouldn't be able to see it!
It wouldn't be wise to reveal this secret to them either.
Doing so would indirectly expose the existence of the Pearl Bubbles, greatly
increasing the risk of the survivors' core secrets being compromised.
Thinking of the Golden Silk Chainmail, the fishman youngster couldn't help but
recall Zong Ge and Zi Di.
“Wonder how they're doing now.”
“By now, they should have left Snow Bird Harbor and be heading toward the Ice
Sculpture Capital.”
“For Zong Ge, I left behind the Gold Flower Hacksaw, the Root Boots, the Qi
Boosting Syringe, the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer, and a gold level
longbow, among other things.”
“Perhaps, when we parted ways, I should have also entrusted the Golden Silk
Chainmail to them for use.”
The survivors now possessed considerable wealth, enabling them to purchase
large quantities of silver level equipment externally. At this level, such
items were no longer scarce.
The issue was how much they cost.
But obtaining gold level gear was far more challenging. Often, money alone
wasn't enough. Rare and unique gold level equipment was something one either
found or missed out on.
Taking gold level armor, for instance, the entire mercenary corps possessed
only one piece of Golden Silk Chainmail. Both the dragonman youngster and Zong
Ge desperately needed it, yet timely borrowing proved impossible.
When one party used it, the other inevitably went without.
Though Bu Quan had joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, she remained only
silver level. Her alchemist rank held her back, leaving her far from crafting
gold level gear.
Yet the future held promise.
Once Bu Quan reached gold level, mass-producing gold level equipment would
become feasible.
The fishman youngster now felt the Golden Silk Chainmail was of little use to
him personally.
Against a saint level sea beast, a single piece of gold level defensive gear
offered negligible protection. The difference between having it and not having
it was negligible.
But giving it to Zong Ge was a different matter.
"My heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang has made my name known throughout the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. Yet, with great fame comes great scrutiny. For Zong Ge to
take my place will bring many challenges."
“But even without the Golden Silk Chainmail, he can handle it!”
"Zong Ge is an exceptional commander, sharp-eyed, adept at solving complex
problems, and capable of breaking through any stalemate. With him leading the
team, success is assured!"
"His personal combat prowess is formidable. a weapon master whose silver battle
qi now carries a golden sheen. Combined with that gold level equipment, he
should be more than capable of meeting any challenge."
"Though Zi Di's magician rank is lower, she carries ample spell scrolls and
potions. Her true talent lies in commerce. Her skill in negotiating with
outsiders far surpasses my own."
"Both are exceptional talents among the survivors. Having endured hardships
themselves, their characters show no flaws, they're both steadfast. Heading
together to the Ice Sculpture Capital, they should be able to establish a
foothold there."
The fishman youngster attempted to analyze and speculate on the situation with
Zong Ge and Zi Di.
At the same time, this was also a way to comfort himself.
Trapped within the Ocean Mother Nest, worrying about others was less important
than finding a way to escape this place as quickly as possible!
Suddenly, a powerful spatial fluctuation erupted.
The fishman youngster's expression changed drastically.
He recognized this disturbance well.
“It's a teleportation fluctuation.”
“The third teleportation has occurred!”
Realizing this, the fishman youngster abandoned his battle skill training
practice.
He immediately activated his captain's authority, commanding the magic ship to
drain the seawater from the landing pod.
Then, he entered the Deep Sea Monster Fish's bow through the opened metal
hatch.
Entering the cockpit, he quickly surveyed the external situation through the
magic projection.
The next moment, a look of astonishment spread across his face.
This time, numerous sea beasts had been transported in, and their varieties
were chaotic. There were dolphins, sharks, finfish, and even water monkeys,
among others.
“Fishman too?”
“Wait, these sea beasts seem controlled by the fishman.”
“What are they doing?”
The teleportation had roused the saint level sea beast.
Yet it didn't immediately attack, seemingly because it had spotted the fishman.
A silver level fishman, the leader, plucked up his courage and bellowed at the
mountainous Snow Pear Octopus: “Mengl, awngml, ealnmwgm, nlga, nlma.”
He was actually communicating with the saint level sea beast!
The saint level sea beast soon lost patience and launched an attack on the
other sea beasts, but refrained from harming the fishman.
For a moment, the waters of the Ocean Mother Nest churned violently, the air
thick with the scent of blood.
The saint level sea beast feasted with relish, its savage, ferocious nature
laid bare.
The fishmen retreated to the corners of the Ocean Mother Nest. Amidst such a
bloody hunt, they closed their eyes one after another, murmuring prayers.
Upon witnessing this scene, a bolt of lightning flashed through the fishman
youngster's mind.
He suddenly realized these fishmen had come prepared!
Looking closer, he discovered these were no ordinary fishmen, they were
transcendents.
They ranged from bronze level to silver level, with no gold level among them.
He counted.
The number of transcendent fishmen present definitely exceeded 200. Though the
silver level were few, only about 20 to 30, it was still a rare occurrence.
After all, the fishmen were a lesser race, with a probability of producing
transcendents far lower than that of humans.
For over 200 fishman transcendents to gather suddenly like this, how vast must
the fishman clan behind them be?
Another peculiar detail: these fishmen displayed wildly varied appearances.
They weren't of a unified bloodline, nor did any dominant bloodline traits
dominate.
This meant they hailed from all corners of the world, not originating from a
single massive clan.
“What on earth is going on here?”
"This group of fishmen gathered together, teleported in, and brought a large
number of sea beasts to feed the Snow Pear Octopus. Yet they are praying here?"
The saint level Snow Pear Octopus swiftly devoured all the sea beasts. It
sucked up the blood-tinged water, consuming every drop of blood within, then
spat out clean seawater, wasting not a single drop.
It stretched its soft, massive tentacles, slowly advancing toward the fishmen
huddled in the corner.
Even without activating his mental vision, the fishman youngster knew this
saint level sea beast remained fiercely predatory.
To its eyes, these praying fishmen were nothing but delicacies. The greedy
instinct to prey stirred within it, making it restless.
Undoubtedly, the saint level sea beast's approach brought immense psychological
pressure to the praying fishman.
The vast majority trembled, instinctively amplifying their prayers.
They all prayed in the fishman language. The fishman youngster brought shame
upon his bloodline, he truly did not understand a single word.
Yet the sound of their prayers reached the saint level sea beast's ears,
causing its movements to grow increasingly sluggish.
The fishman youngster observed all this, sensing the saint level sea beast's
hesitation.
The Snow Pear Octopus finally extended its massive, snow-white tentacles,
slowly closing in on one praying fishman.
Terrified, the fishman watched the tentacle advance, his psychological pressure
mounting until he finally broke.
With a shriek, he frantically swam backward.
In the next instant, the snow-white tentacle moved with lightning speed. The
venomous snake, already poised, shot out.
The fleeing fishman was instantly bound, his piercing screams echoing.
With a slight squeeze, the Snow Pear Octopus crushed the fishman into a pile of
flesh and bone fragments, blood spreading everywhere.
The octopus opened its mouth wide and sucked in a torrent of water. The
fishman's corpse was pulled into its belly without a single drop wasted.
After devouring the fishman, the octopus displayed an unprecedented sense of
delight, its soft tentacles waving about wildly, a sight the fishman youngster
had never witnessed before.
“Mglnalmn...”
“Gnal, mga...”
“Lanm, wgln...”
This brutal scene instantly amplified the fishmen's prayers.
The saint level sea beast continued to extend its tentacles. Each tentacle was
snow-white and supple, vast like elongated white clouds, beautiful yet deadly.
The tentacles gently brushed over the fishmen's heads or passed close by them.
Many fishmen's faces were contorted with terror, their bodies shaking
uncontrollably like sieves.
Yet a few remained resolute, even serene, their prayers unbroken as they
ignored the octopus tentacles.
The fishman youngster watched this strange spectacle in silence.
At regular intervals, the tentacles would strike with lightning speed, killing
fishmen and devouring them.
The fishman youngster gradually noticed the peculiar behavior of the saint
level sea beast.
It seemed to be slowly tormenting the praying fishmen, toying with them,
driving them to collapse under extreme terror. Yet it also appeared to be wary
of some unseen presence, hesitating to act with full abandon.
“It attacks and devours individual fishmen, seemingly selecting them according
to some hidden pattern...” The fishman youngster watched intently, sensing a
profound mystery unfolding.
About half an hour passed like this when suddenly, the life force of one
fishman underwent a drastic change!
Originally, he was merely a bronze level fishman fighter. But soon, his life
force surged from bronze level to iron level.
“What in the world is going on?!” The fishman youngster nearly doubted his own
eyes at the sight.
Yet moments later, a similar transformation unfolded in another fishman.
One after another, more fishmen saw their life levels rise.
The fishman youngster also noticed carefully: some fishmen remained at their
original life levels, yet their faces lit up with intense joy, clearly, they
had gained something else!
“So, what on earth is going on?” The fishman youngster was utterly astonished.
According to his understanding, life levels couldn't undergo such sudden
mutations.
They required extraordinary cultivation, slowly accumulating through
quantitative changes before triggering a qualitative leap.
It was a gradual process.
Yet the scene unfolding before him now shattered the fishman youngster's
previous understanding.
These fishmen had managed to achieve a qualitative leap in their life levels
within a remarkably short time.
It was utterly unbelievable!
But the fishman youngster's astonishment didn't end there.
Approximately three hours later, spatial fluctuations erupted once more.
The praying fishmen vanished entirely from their original positions.
“They've all been teleported away!” The fishman youngster was utterly
disoriented by this sudden upheaval.
He remained rooted to the spot for a long while before gradually regaining his
senses.
His mind began racing.
“There's a great secret behind this teleportation!”
“How on earth was this teleportation achieved?”
“Is it natural, or man-made?”
"What exactly is going on with these fishmen? How could their life levels
advance so abruptly?"
After pondering for a while, the fishman youngster's eyes burned brightly as he
stared intently at several corners within the magic projection.
Hidden in these corners were dual-eared detectors.
Without exception, each bore a layer of Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell. To outsiders, they appeared merely as pearls.
“The great secret of teleportation might be uncovered through these puppet
scouts!”
Now, the fishman youngster yearned to know what lay beyond the Ocean Mother
Nest.



****** Chapter 409: Cang Xu’s Limit ******
Deep in the sea.
A massive school of grouper fish raced forward in fury, relentlessly pursuing
their enemy ahead.
They had only one adversary, another grouper fish.
Yet this silver level grouper was utterly bizarre, possessing only a fish head.
Its body and tail were gone.
Not only that, but this grouper head radiated an intense undead aura.
It was precisely this unmasked negative energy that provoked the grouper
school's fury and pursuit.
The grouper head charged forward, plunging headlong into a white underwater
forest.
This was White Hair Trench.
Within the White Hair Trench thrived a unique species of coral polyps. These
polyps could parasitize the surfaces of living organisms, multiplying and
growing. Their accumulated excretions formed a soft, white coral.
These soft white corals formed long strands that swayed with the currents,
resembling strands of white hair.
The white hair coral polyps typically parasitized sea beasts. But when a
massive sea beast perished on the ocean floor, vast numbers of white hair coral
polyps continued to draw life-sustaining nutrients from the carcass.
In underwater graveyards where many sea beasts died together, large colonies of
coral polyps often thrived.
The soft corals produced by these polyps gathered to form forests of white
hair.
Generally, these white hair forests were coral clusters posing no threat to
marine life that entered them.
However, the grouper head, radiating an aura of the undead, was an exception.
The white coral was the excretion of coral polyps, still under their control
and possessing a certain degree of offensive capability.
Being living organisms, the polyps naturally abhorred the negative energy
emanating from the grouper head.
Even though this silver level grouper head charged into the white hair forest,
it immediately triggered a violent uprising among countless polyps.
White hair coral lashed out from all directions, overwhelming the grouper head.
The grouper head couldn't withstand even two seconds, exploding on the spot.
Yet the grouper school drawn by the head showed no less fury, charging en masse
into the white hair forest.
The white coral polyps' revolt showed no signs of ceasing. Driven by biological
instinct, they couldn't obey orders to stop.
Each white, soft coral lashed viciously at the grouper, immediately provoking a
counterattack from the school.
Thus, a fierce battle erupted.
The white forest lashed at the grouper as if they were enemies, brutally
whipping and killing large numbers of them.
The vast grouper school counterattacked with racial magic.
Their primary racial magic was petrification.
Strand after strand of white coral hair was turned to stone. Amidst the chaos,
they were either snapped by other strands or shattered by colliding groupers.
The fierce battle raged for over ten minutes.
The final outcome was the complete annihilation of the grouper swarm. The white
hair forest also suffered heavy losses. Its former lush splendor vanished,
leaving the white hair sparse and thin, with some areas completely bald.
Though the white hair coral colony emerged victoriously, it was clearly a
pyrrhic victory.
A ghost ship silently surfaced.
On it were Jian Gui, Cang Xu, and the others.
The grouper head from earlier was actually the deceased skull of a grouper
controlled by Cang Xu.
By exploiting living creatures' aversion and rage toward the undead, he had
successfully lured a grouper swarm into the white hair forest, igniting the
clash between the two colonies.
Now came the cleanup.
Over a dozen ghosts leapt from the ship, most of them gold level!
They charged directly into the white hair forest.
The forest erupted again, lashing out at the ghosts.
White hair corals dealt physical blows, but these ghosts were immune to
physical attacks, suffering no harm.
Only racial magic could truly harm these specters.
But the white hair coral polyps lacked such innate abilities. Their greatest
combat capability was manipulating the white hair coral to lash out.
More seasoned polyps could also control soft corals to entangle and strangle
enemies.
Considering that white soft corals were essentially coral polyps' excretions,
in a sense, these polyps were fighting with their own feces.
A group of “shit-manipulating” little experts.
Beyond this, the white hair coral polyps possessed no other combat abilities.
Coral polyps were a type of insectoid and lacked any racial magic.
This lack was not a disadvantage but rather an advantage.
As parasites, these polyps relied on inhabiting other life forms to survive and
reproduce.
Their hosts were typically massive sea beasts possessing racial magic. They
could passively absorb elements from nature to form magic crystals, using
various racial magic against enemies to dominate the food chain.
If white hair coral polyps could cast racial magic spells, it proved they
possess magic crystals within their bodies. Regardless of the quantity of magic
crystals, they inevitably clashed with the sea beasts they parasitize, causing
issues like magic interference and magic repulsion.
Under such circumstances, the host sea beast prioritized purging the coral
polyps from its body to ensure its own safety and survival.
This effectively eliminated the coral polyps' primary habitat for survival.
Thus, mastering racial magic becomes a catastrophe for these white hair coral
polyps.
Watching the ghosts effortlessly kill the last coral, the undead ronin Ku Feng
stood at the bow of the ghost ship and sighed, "If it were the grouper school's
petrification spell, it would be much harder to deal with. Ghosts or skeletons
hit by petrification would likely not survive. But these white hair corals?
They let us slaughter them without any resistance at all."
This wasn't to say Jian Gui's crew lacked means to break petrification.
Where there's petrification, there's naturally a spell like “Dispel
Petrification.”
Even though most were necromancers, they always carried generic spell scrolls
for contingencies.
Cang Xu, being a penniless wretch, naturally possessed none. But Jian Gui most
likely had scrolls for dispelling petrification. He even carried a spare
spellbook!
Yet the reality was this: for the vast majority of skeletons and ghosts
afflicted by petrification, the necromancers chose not to rescue them.
The reason was simple - cost.
While casting a spell like Dispel Petrification wasn't particularly costly, the
magic power and spirit expended were renewable resources. But for necromancers,
they could create more skeletons and ghosts at a much lower cost.
They would only intervene to save high-quality skeletons or ghosts if they were
petrified.
Xiao Wang Zi now stood beside the undead ronin Ku Feng, his voice tinged with
regret. "This flat seabed terrain would be perfect for my heavy cavalry to
charge across. Alas, in this battle, Lord Jian Gui forbade me from joining the
fray."
Since eradicating that herd of ramhorn turtles, Xiao Wang Zi had amassed a vast
number of ramhorn turtle skeletons. These skeletons were natural heavy cavalry.
Xiao Wang Zi particularly cherished this small cavalry unit, longing daily to
deploy them.
Yet the complex and unique underwater environment rarely offered a stage where
these ramhorn turtle skeletons could truly showcase their strength.
Cang Xu offered reassurance from the side: "Xiao Wang Zi, when we rescue Qi
Ling, we'll likely face pirates. Then, will your ramhorn turtle squad really
lack a place to prove itself?"
“Before that, we should focus on leveraging our strengths, gathering as many
resources as possible to bolster our own combat power and increase the success
rate of this rescue mission.”
“Xu Jia is absolutely right.” Jian Gui materialized as well.
Over these days, the necromancer's crew had launched numerous raids across the
White Hair Trench, significantly bolstering their combat strength.
Initially, Jian Gui had to merge with the ghost ship to control the
battlefield.
Now, the frequency of such merges has noticeably decreased. Relying on their
vast legions of ghosts and skeletons, they could now confront most undersea
beast swarms head-on.
In truth, many engagements didn't even require direct confrontation.
Take the recent battle, for instance. Deploying just one of Cang Xu's silver
level death heads had secured a massive advantage.
Most sea beasts possessed little intelligence.
In this regard, the advantage of sentient races was starkly evident.
After brief communication, the necromancers began cleanup.
Though numerous, skeletons and ghosts possessed low intelligence and were
unsuited for this task. Thus, such meticulous work requires the necromancers'
personal attention.
Several summoning spells coalesced a swarm of grouper ghosts onto the
battlefield. Alongside them were countless, teeming little ghosts of coral
polyps.
These tiny spirits were so feeble that many dissolved into nothingness the
moment they materialized. Like bubbles bursting, they vanished without a sound.
Insect souls were inherently fragile, and after death, the success rate of
summoning them was far lower than for other lifeforms.
However, Jian Gui soon intervened personally, carefully preserving and
gathering these insect ghosts.
“I want all these coral polyp ghosts,” Jian Gui declared.
This request puzzled Cang Xu. But he quickly heard Xiao Wang Zi explain: “In
the advanced soul aspect inheritance, there exists a specialized insect soul
transformation spell capable of altering insect swarms into ghost hordes...
This ghost horde is like an elemental conglomerate, capable of coalescing and
dispersing at will. They're far more troublesome than ordinary modified
ghosts."
“Advanced soul aspect inheritance...” Cang Xu sighed inwardly.
He yearned to possess such inherited knowledge. Yet, inheritance of this
caliber had always been guarded by the orthodox undead factions.
With his lowly bloodline, Cang Xu was utterly unworthy of Jian Gui's
recognition, let alone obtaining such inheritance.
He could only drool with envy.
Still, in this hunt, Cang Xu's spoils were second only to Jian Gui's.
This was mainly because he had sacrificed a silver level grouper death head.
After clearing the battlefield, the necromancers worked together to properly
neutralize all traces of undead energy in the area.
Finally, they boarded the ghost ship and vanished silently into the dark depths
of the ocean.
On the ghost ship, Cang Xu returned to his cabin and began processing the newly
acquired grouper heads.
He didn't use the Head Creation Spell to directly create death heads, opting
instead for some basic preliminary processing. Then, he placed these processed
grouper heads in a corner of the cabin.
The cabin corner was already piled high with undead materials.
These undead materials shared a common trait: they were all heads of some
marine creature.
None of them had been refined yet.
Cang Xu selected several heads from the pile and placed them before him.
After a moment of meditation, he cast the Head Creation Spell upon them.
After several attempts, the silver level undead materials were depleted, yet
Cang Xu gained nothing.
No matter, plenty of silver level skulls remained in the hold's corner.
After two rounds, Cang Xu finally obtained a brand-new silver level death head.
Higher level death heads carried lower success rates.
But Cang Xu had plenty to spare. He charged ahead relentlessly, knowing that
persistence would eventually yield success.
The White Hair Trench teemed with sea beasts and schools of fish, yet Cang Xu's
haul remained meager. Xiao Wang Zi and Jian Gui fared much better than him.
Thus, Cang Xu's stock of silver level death heads returned to its peak,
reaching five.
Beyond that, he possessed 48 iron level death heads and 122 bronze level ones.
This represented the absolute limit Cang Xu could currently command.
This burdened him with immense mental strain.
The strain from death heads was far less than that from ghosts or skeletons.
But remember, Cang Xu was only an iron level magician.
His mental fortitude was weaker than that of a silver level magician.
The relief spells, Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Reduction Spell, offered
him little help now.
Since acquiring these spells, Cang Xu had used them nearly every day.
The benefits gained from them grew increasingly faint.
The Karma Reduction Spell lessens the erosion of negative energy upon him,
preventing the extinction of his humanity. This spell was most effective when
used at intervals, as the erosion from negative energy was cumulative.
The Burden Alleviation Spell lessened the mental strain his undead minions
imposed upon the necromancer. This was the cornerstone of a necromancer
commanding an entire army single-handedly.
Without the Burden Alleviation Spell, the number of death heads Cang Xu could
control would plummet by at least two-thirds.
But now, even the Burden Alleviation Spell's effect on him had become barely
perceptible.
During these days deep beneath the sea, Cang Xu's personal combat prowess had
also expanded tremendously. But having reached this point today, he understood
he had hit his limit.
His bloodline firmly constrained him.
“I've already touched the ceiling. Unless my bloodline becomes superior...”
Though his bloodline mutation was still ongoing, Cang Xu had abandoned all
expectations for his own bloodline.
He could distinctly sense the bloodline mutation was nearing its final stage.
His cultivation efficiency showed no significant change, having even weakened
slightly.
The trajectory of the bloodline mutation was clear. Cang Xu had already
foreseen its outcome, neither good nor bad, merely maintaining the status quo.
Strictly speaking, it had slightly diminished his innate talent, though the
reduction was so minimal it was almost imperceptible. It could be considered on
par with his previous state.
Cang Xu accepted this outcome swiftly.
Bloodline mutations were inherently unpredictable. Most resulted in
deterioration; only a rare few brought improvement.
This differed from bloodline awakening.
Bloodline awakening typically yielded positive results. Essentially, it
involved the bloodline concentration achieving a quantitative accumulation,
reaching a qualitative leap through gradual change.



****** Chapter 410: My Wretched Alchemy Attainment ******
Numerous factors could trigger bloodline mutations.
Take Cang Xu, for instance. His body was submerged in the Underworld River,
then dismembered by Doctor Sui Shi, who used his flesh as alchemy ingredients.
These combined circumstances forced his bloodline to mutate. This process was
utterly irreplicable.
“Maintaining nearly all my original aptitude is already a blessing.”
“My life-changing opportunity has appeared; it lies within the commander
himself!”
"What I truly need is a spell to test my necromancer aptitude, one capable of
discerning my undead bloodline. Alas, such spells exist only within
intermediate soul aspect inheritances, held firmly in the hands of Jian Gui."
As a necromancer, Cang Xu couldn't test his bloodline through potion-based
blood analysis like other survivors.
This lay beyond Zi Di's knowledge.
Only by obtaining the necromancer aptitude detection spell could he determine
the true nature of his bloodline. Then he could hunt vast numbers of such
undead beings, purify his own bloodline through the Bloodline Purification
formation, and achieve bloodline awakening.
Yet, having journeyed alongside Jian Gui, Cang Xu had yet to find an
opportunity to acquire this crucial spell.
Jian Gui adhered to strict principles in this matter. Cang Xu remained
cautious, refraining from rash communication. He possessed no other bargaining
chips and knew full well the outcome of such an approach.
“If all else fails, I'll simply wait until the bloodline mutation concludes
before requesting Jian Gui perform this spell to identify my undead lineage.”
Cang Xu naturally had contingency plans.
But this plan had many drawbacks, hindering Cang Xu's chances of gaining Jian
Gui's recognition.
Jian Gui possessed many valuable resources.
Cang Xu desperately wanted to use this connection to infiltrate the inner
circle of the undead orthodoxy. That was the sound long-term strategy!
If Jian Gui detected Cang Xu's bloodline now, the results would be clear, he
would be utterly rejected from entering the exclusive circle of the undead
orthodoxy.
This was not what Cang Xu desired.
“Now, the only thing offering me significant room for improvement is the Ghost
Seed Head.” Though Cang Xu had reached his bloodline's limit, there remained
untapped potential in his combat prowess.
The Ghost Seed Head emerged from the self-destruction of a death head. When
combined with the necromancy magic “Head-Binding Spell,” it could merge with
its user. In this form, the Ghost Seed Head functioned as a unique spellbook.
All necromancy magic recorded within could be rapidly cast by the necromancer.
A silver level Ghost Seed Head was equivalent to a silver level spellbook. The
spells contained depend entirely on how many the Ghost Seed Head's original
death head had mastered.
Of course, there was an inherent decay.
The best outcome was 100% inheritance. However, according to the records of
Flying Head Spell, such a complete inheritance was extremely rare.
The exact degree of decay depended on specific circumstances.
The Flying Head Spell texts were rather vague on this point, leaving Cang Xu to
figure it out through trial and error.
His current combat power had reached a plateau, leaving the Ghost Seed Head as
the most promising avenue for advancement.
With the ship's hold piled high with undead materials, the conditions for Cang
Xu to mass-produce Ghost Seed Heads were now ripe.
“So, which necromancy magic would be best suited for me?”
Cang Xu fell deep in thought.
He possessed numerous necromancy magic spells.
He possessed the foundational inheritance of the soul aspect by birth. Later,
at the necromancer gathering on Weeping Pine Island, he traded with figures
like Jian Gui to acquire the foundational inheritance of the two other aspects,
along with the elementary inheritance of the soul aspect.
He had also duplicated the content and entrusted them to Zi Di.
The three necromancy aspects were corpse, bone, and soul.
All the spells Cang Xu mastered belonged to these three aspects.
For example: soul aspect spells like the Soul Summoning, Soul Control, Soul
Capture, Soul Devourer, and Soul Send.
Bone aspect spells like Bone Spear and Flying Bone Shield.
Corpse aspect spells like Corpse Explosion and Summon Zombie.
Cang Xu faced many choices, but after deliberation, he first eliminated all
ghost modification spells from the soul aspect inheritance.
These modification spells included Ghost Horse Refinement, Ghost Elf
Refinement, Hungry Ghost Refinement, and Frost Ghost Refinement...
Cang Xu currently primarily controlled death heads.
The mental burden brought by these ghosts far exceeded that of death heads. If
modified, the mental strain from the ghosts would only increase further.
Cang Xu's mental burden had reached its limit.
Of course, he could sacrifice some death heads to gain space and control
certain ghosts.
But after deliberation, Cang Xu rejected this plan.
Even though modified ghosts were often more powerful than death heads, his
greatest concern was that manipulating these ghosts would create
vulnerabilities, allowing Jian Gui, Xiao Wang Zi, and others to uncover his
tricks.
Jian Gui and Xiao Wang Zi knew nothing of the Flying Head Spell, so they
couldn't discern Cang Xu's mental state from the scale of his death heads.
The truth was that Cang Xu's death heads could expand no further. If he
switched to ghosts, it would be easy for Jian Gui and others to pick up on
crucial intelligence.
Though Cang Xu had integrated into this necromancer group, he understood
clearly: this environment was no match for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Especially during the battle at the Underworld River, where Jian Gui used him
as bait to draw enemy fire. Cang Xu nearly died because of it!
For the same reasons he ruled out the ghost modification spells, Cang Xu also
eliminated the Soul Control Spell, Soul Summoning Spell, and other similar
ones.
The Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Reduction Spell were core techniques in
the elementary soul aspect inheritance, practices a necromancer cultivated
throughout their life.
Yet Cang Xu didn't ponder long before dismissing these two as well. For now,
their utility was negligible.
The Soul's Eye spell allowed necromancers to share vision with their
subordinate ghosts. This served as a highly practical reconnaissance tool. Yet
Cang Xu reasoned: currently stationed with other necromancers aboard the ghost
ship, whose inherent surveillance capabilities far exceeded his own, his
personal reconnaissance abilities were redundant. Thus, it too was discarded.
Soul Healing proved exceptionally suitable. This spell consumed ghosts to grant
healing effects. Cang Xu promptly added it to his list of potential choices.
Ghost Fog was also decent. Primarily used for camouflage, it could also create
negative energy environments to temporarily bind souls, facilitating follow-up
spells like Soul Control or Summoning. Advanced ghost magic would be
battlefield-class spells capable of altering the environment, similar to the
effect Lava Hell had when the dragonman youngster used it.
Ghost Fog suited Cang Xu well.
Since the death head was also an undead lifeform, it benefited within the ghost
fog. Cang Xu selected it as a candidate.
The final candidate was a rapid-movement soul aspect spell called Ghost Slip.
It consumed ghosts to gain mobility boosts.
Cang Xu was more interested in Soul Flight. It allows the necromancer to fully
phantomize. Advanced Soul Flight could even spectralize the necromancer's
equipment, granting immunity to physical attacks.
Jian Gui had deeper experience with this spell. Soul Flight was one of the
foundations for his fusion with the ghost ship.
Unfortunately, Soul Flight was only recorded in intermediate soul aspect
inheritances.
Cang Xu's aptitude only allowed him to obtain an elementary soul aspect
inheritance at best.
Beyond soul aspect inheritance, the Corpse Explosion from the corpse aspect was
also promising. Cang Xu considered the Bone Spear and Flying Bone Shield spells
from the bone aspect as potential choices.
After the first round of selection, Cang Xu proceeded to a second round of
screening.
Only three options remained: Flying Bone Shield, Ghost Slip, and Soul Healing.
All three spellbooks were essential choices Cang Xu needed to acquire. The only
question was which one would be his first.
After careful consideration, Cang Xu placed Ghost Slip first.
Though this spell belonged to the elementary soul aspect inheritance, Cang Xu
had practiced it extensively.
He conceived the magic model within his mind, then cradled a death head in both
hands, imprinting the model onto it.
Plop.
The bronze level death head emitted a soft pop as it detonated.
The explosion was minor, yet Cang Xu's face paled. The magic model was
constructed with his spirit; its destruction inflicted damage upon him.
Several consecutive failures followed, leaving Cang Xu's complexion as white as
paper.
Suddenly, he realized: "Wait, isn't this exactly how one crafts spell scrolls
or spell books? The only difference is that normal magicians use paper, while I
use death heads."
A sense of foreboding washed over Cang Xu as he rolled his eyes and sighed
deeply, “My wretched alchemy attainment...”
Ever since acquiring the Flying Head Spell, Cang Xu's lamentations over his
alchemy attainment had skyrocketed.
In a foul mood, he chose to rest. After recuperating his spirit, he resumed his
experiments.
Cang Xu holed up in his cabin, cradling skulls in his palms. He carved runes
relentlessly, day and night, enduring the grueling process.
Soon, a bright, sunny day arrived.
Blood Kin City.
Zi Di visited a medicine shop to investigate the market.
The dragon rider potion was already on sale at the medicine shop, and it sold
quite well. Zi Di stood there for over ten minutes and witnessed more than a
dozen transactions for the dragon rider potion.
“May I assist you, honored customer? What potion might you be seeking?” the
shop attendant approached.
Zi Di produced her contract to verify her identity, eliciting a low gasp from
the attendant.
Soon after, the shopkeeper hurried over: “My Lord, you've arrived!”
This medicine shop belonged to the Li Jian Clan, but through Zi Di and Kong
Pan's partnership, it had been leased to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The lease term was one year.
Zi Di could certainly pay an additional price to outright purchase the shop
instead of renting it.
For the wealthy Li Jian Clan, this was negotiable.
But considering the survivors' precarious, uncertain future, renting was safer
than buying.
“Let me see the ledgers first,” Zi Di requested.
Soon after, the merchant lady set down the ledgers, her thoughts turning: “With
Bu Quan and others mass-producing potions, I've already successfully captured
the mount potion market in Blood Kin City ahead of schedule.”
“At this production level, we can supply all key towns near Snow Bird Harbor.”
“Still, I must personally investigate user feedback.”
Her thoughts drifting, Zi Di glanced back at the ledger: “The largest customer
group here is... the Axe Gang?”
Zi Di paused, slightly taken aback.



****** Chapter 411: Blood Vengeance Axe and Fire Axe Cavalry ******
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Blood Kin City.
After reviewing the ledgers, Zi Di discovered something peculiar: the largest
purchaser of dragon rider potions in the city was a single gang.
The shopkeeper explained, "Lord Magician, you may not be aware, but the Axe
Gang is the largest gang in Blood Kin City, owning a vast herd of long-haired
horses. These horses are exceptionally cold-resistant. Though their charge
distance is short, they possess remarkable endurance, allowing them to gallop
freely in icy, frigid weather."
“Some superior long-haired horses even possess racial magic that provide warmth
to their riders.”
“The Axe Gang has formed a cavalry unit with these horses, known as the Fire
Axe Cavalry.”
Zong Ge, who had accompanied Zi Di, initially paid little attention. But upon
hearing the shopkeeper's words, his keen interest was piqued, and he turned his
gaze toward them.
Noticing Commander Long Fu's attention, the shopkeeper elaborated further: "The
Fire Axe Cavalry wields long-handled battle axes as weapons and cultivates the
Blood Rage battle qi technique. Only a small number are snow elves; most are
humans and dwarves."
"When fighting at full strength, the Blood Rage battle qi erupts, often
igniting the warriors themselves. Their long-haired horses catch fire too. In
such moments, both rider and mount are bathed in crimson flames, their attack
power surging severalfold!"
Zong Ge listened intently, encountering this type of squadron for the first
time.
He envisioned countless scenarios in his mind, pondering how such a unit could
be deployed for optimal battlefield performance.
Zi Di, however, focused on another point and asked the shopkeeper, “What
exactly does a local gang accomplish by maintaining a cavalry unit?”
The shopkeeper hastened to reply, "The Axe Gang's biggest business is escorting
merchant caravans. They protect goods for caravans traveling to and from Blood
Kin City. The Fire Axe Cavalry is their biggest selling point."
“Of course,” the shopkeeper lowered his voice at this point, "if any merchant
alliance refuses to cooperate with them, the Axe Gang members turn into bandits
and carry out robberies. Very few caravans can defeat the Fire Axe Cavalry, so
by now, most merchant alliances in Blood Kin City basically cooperate with the
Axe Gang."
“Even major merchant alliances like the Clam Cloth Merchant Alliance, despite
having their own formidable guards, maintain ties with the Axe Gang.”
Zi Di furrowed her brow slightly, her expression growing grave. "The Axe Gang
is merely a local gang, yet they control the trade routes outside Blood Kin
City, extorting protection fees from caravans large and small. Does the Blood
Kin City Lord not intervene in this?"
“The Axe Gang leader is gold level, but the Blood Kin City Lord is also gold
level—and he's a magician.”
Before setting out, Zi Di had already purchased extensive intelligence on the
towns along their route through the Thieves' Guild.
The shopkeeper lowered his voice further. "Our Blood Kin City Lord is indeed
gold level and a magician, but he hasn't been seen in ages. Rumor has it he's
been training in the royal capital, preparing to win this year's Warm Snow Cup
tournament. His disciple, merely a silver level magician, has been handling
Blood Kin City's affairs in his stead."
“Moreover, the Axe Gang leader isn't just a gold level fighter, he wields a
gold level weapon - the Blood Vengeance Axe.”
"The Blood Vengeance Axe isn't an ordinary gold level weapon. Far surpassing
ordinary gold level weapons, it long served as the symbol of authority for
Blood Kin City's rulers."
“However, over forty years ago, a rebellion erupted in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.”
"At that time, Blood Kin City was still known as Snow Fall City. The ruler of
Snow Fall City, a member of the royal family, suffered defeat and, fearing
death, shamefully surrendered to the rebels."
"The king successfully quelled the rebellion and reclaimed Snow Fall City. He
intended to execute the Snow Fall City Lord, but the king's mother interceded
on his behalf. After all, he was of royal blood."
"The king thus kept the city lord's position, merely changing the city's name.
It was only after this renaming that it became known as Blood Kin City."
Upon learning the city's new name, the city lord was overcome with guilt and
took his own life that very night.
From that day forward, the Blood Vengeance Axe fell into the hands of
outsiders, changing masters many times before finally landing with a powerful
snow elf warrior. Armed with this axe, he carved out a domain within the city
and founded the Axe Gang.
“The Axe Gang's leadership has passed down to the current generation, and the
gang's influence has grown immensely.”
"Our acting city lord has attempted several times to retrieve the Blood
Vengeance Axe from the Axe Gang. Each attempt was thwarted by the current Axe
Gang leader, costing our acting city lord dearly."
“Sigh, she's still too young.”
"After several clashes between the two sides, the Axe Gang has consistently
gained the upper hand. The city lord's faction has grown increasingly weak. All
other factions witnessed this, powerless to challenge the Axe Gang."
"So now, though the acting lord's faction holds nominal authority in Blood Kin
City and commands the city guard, the Axe Gang remains the true dominant force.
The shopkeeper paused here, his expression shifting to one of satisfaction and
delight: “Truth be told, the dragon rider potion is truly remarkable.”
Thanks to this potion, our shop has established connections with the Axe Gang."
“Before, some competitors tried to squeeze us out, but since the Axe Gang
started bulk-buying dragon rider potions, that kind of harassment and exclusion
has dropped significantly.”
After hearing the shopkeeper's words, Zong Ge and Zi Di exchanged silent
glances.
They hadn't imagined the true state of affairs in Blood Kin City would be like
this.
In Snow Bird Harbor, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was undoubtedly the most
powerful figure. Yet here, the acting city Blood Kin City Lord was being
dominated by a local gang.
Though the acting city lord held the title, it was clear she was powerless
against the Axe Gang. When it came to the power struggles of local factions,
one had to look first to the leaders themselves.
After a moment's thought, Zi Di made a swift decision: “Prepare gifts. It seems
we must pay a proper visit to the Axe Gang's leader.”
“Is that really necessary?” Zong Ge frowned at the suggestion.
Coming from a military background, he harbored little regard for pirates or
local gangs.
Zi Di nodded slightly, “Our alchemy workshop in Snow Bird Harbor focuses almost
exclusively on one thing: brewing dragon rider potions.”
“Our shipments will only grow larger.”
“If the Axe Gang acts against us, Blood Kin City will struggle to distribute
our goods.”
"And Blood Kin City is one of the closest cities to Snow Bird Harbor. For
nationwide distribution, this is a crucial transportation hub. The Axe Gang
controls the nearby trade routes, which is a major factor."
“Very well,” Zong Ge nodded, “I'll go with you.”
Despite their serious disagreements and even arguments, when problems arose, he
would set aside their differences and cooperate with Zi Di to handle them
first.
The Axe Gang was the most powerful faction in Blood Kin City. With their Fire
Axe Cavalry, they now control the trade routes surrounding the city.
The acting city lord has been powerless against them. She hasn't even deployed
the city guard.
Zi Di immediately suspected: The Axe Gang has likely corrupted many officers.
If the acting city lord ordered their eradication, the city guard would likely
defect.
She felt no motivation whatsoever to restore order for the acting city lord.
Her purpose in this journey, aside from entering the Ice Sculpture Capital, was
to conduct smooth reconnaissance along the way and execute her business plans.
Sales of dragon rider potions were booming, yet Zi Di remained unsatisfied. The
mount potion market in Blood Kin City still held vast untapped potential.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had significantly increased potion production,
meaning more dragon rider potions would soon flood the city's market.
Only by nearly monopolizing this mount potion niche could she achieve relative
security.
Even if similar potions emerged later, they'd struggle to gain traction in
Blood Kin City. The market space would be almost entirely occupied by dragon
rider potions.
Although a direct teleportation formation connects Blood Kin City and Snow Bird
Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps cannot possibly use teleportation for
shipping due to cost.
Generally speaking, this mode of transport was reserved for major military
operations.
Using teleportation formations for cargo shipment was prohibitively expensive.
Even Zong Ge knew such a venture would incur massive losses.
The most cost-effective transport method was caravan delivery.
If the Axe Gang interfered, it would inevitably cause Zi Di immense trouble.
She aimed to seize the market with dragon rider potions, and timing was
crucial.
Any delay would mean achieving the same market impact later would require more
than double the effort. It might even become impossible to ever achieve
equivalent results.



****** Chapter 412: Fake Medicine Plan ******
Snow Bird Harbor.
The alchemy workshop was thick with smoke and heavy with the pungent scent of
herbs.
Magician Zhong Bei from the Alchemists' Guild covered his mouth as he stepped
inside, immediately engulfed by the acrid fumes.
The same fate befell the gold level alchemist, Da Bei.
With graying temples and a weathered face, Da Bei swiftly covered his nostrils
with a handkerchief amidst the thick fumes.
“Lord Magicians, this way please.” Guided by an alchemy apprentice, they were
led into a small, separate compartment.
The smoke here was finally less oppressive.
Here, Zhong Bei and Da Bei finally encountered the person they sought -
Magician Bu Quan.
Magician Bu Quan was conducting an alchemy experiment.
Before her, a table held a small crucible, steaming as it was baked by magic
flames. In the glass beaker she held, swaying gently, blue and red potions
rippled.
Bu Quan was experimenting with refining the alchemy process for the dragon
rider potion.
The formula for the dragon rider potion came from the War Merchant's database
and was quite sophisticated. Even given Bu Quan's alchemy expertise,
significantly altering the formula itself would prove challenging in such a
short timeframe.
However, she could refine the alchemy process itself, making large-scale,
streamlined production feasible.
Once successful, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' output of this potion would
increase at least threefold!
“Magician Bu Quan, it's been two years since we last met, hasn't it?” Magician
Da Bei initiated the greeting.
Bu Quan glanced up at him before quickly returning her gaze to her beaker,
“Lord Da Bei,” she replied, "you've traveled all the way from the capital
specifically to see me. Is this about me joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps? If you're here to persuade me to leave the mercenary group and return to
the Alchemy Guild, then there's no need to say more."
“As you can see, I'm quite busy right now.”
"Why not skip the small talk and get straight to the point? It saves time and
benefits us both, wouldn't you agree?"
“So, my answer is - I'm staying here.”
Magician Da Bei's mouth opened slightly. His carefully prepared words of
persuasion were completely derailed by Bu Quan's blunt response.
Taking a deep breath, Magician Da Bei clutched his chest, “Magician Bu Quan,
seeing you like this truly pains me.”
“As your senior, I cannot bear to watch a rising star of alchemy fade away
before my eyes.”
“Look at yourself now. What are you doing?”
“You're refining processes for mass-producing potions? Such mundane, uninspired
work, is it truly worthy of a genius like you?”
“Is this how the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps treats you?”
“You're wasting your time, squandering your talent, and expending your future.”
Bu Quan didn't even bother to lift her head this time. She simply issued her
dismissal: “The door is over there. Gentlemen, you're welcome to leave now.”
Magician Zhong Bei and Magician Da Bei: ...
Moments later.
The two magicians were escorted out by the alchemy apprentice.
“Ahem, ahem, ahem.” Magician Zhong Bei coughed loudly.
Magician Da Bei lowered his handkerchief, greedily inhaling the fresh air
outside the alchemy workshop.
Magician Zhong Bei looked deeply concerned: "Father, what are we to do now?
Magician Bu Quan's resolve is too strong. You offered such generous terms just
now, yet she remained unmoved. It seems I'm in for trouble this time."
Magician Da Bei sighed deeply, “This is my fault. I never imagined such a task
would lead to such complications. Remember how much I sacrificed and owed
favors to secure this assignment for you?”
“Father, I've let you down.” Magician Zhong Bei bowed his head; his voice
filled with regret.
Though born into the Alchemy Guild, his innate talent was limited by
bloodline—far weaker than his father's.
He was destined to remain confined to the silver level.
Magician Da Bei had only this one son, pinning his hopes on him to inherit the
family legacy. Thus, Magician Da Bei had mobilized his connections and
resources, going to great lengths to secure this position for him - to secretly
protect Bu Quan and monitor him for the Alchemy Guild.
This role not only offered generous rewards in guild contributions but also
provided an opportunity to establish ties with Bu Quan. Should Bu Quan advance
to the gold level or achieve greater alchemy feats, Magician Zhong Bei could
profit from this early connection.
It could be said Magician Da Bei spared no effort for his son.
Alas, man proposes, heaven disposes. The Bayonet Gang was utterly annihilated
within a single day. After successfully exacting her revenge, Bu Quan actually
joined an outsider mercenary group!
If this news reached the Alchemy Guild, it'd definitely cause an uproar. As the
one responsible for his covert surveillance, Magician Zhong Bei would surely
bear the blame. Given his talent and alchemy prowess, he'd essentially reached
the pinnacle of his career within the Alchemy Guild.
After failing to persuade Bu Quan, Zhong Bei hurriedly relayed the news to his
father.
As a gold level Alchemy Great Master, Da Bei rushed straight to Snow Bird
Harbor.
Yet his attempt to reason with Bu Quan also ended in failure.
“Father, what should we do now?”
“Calm down. Think carefully, there must be a way.” Da Bei's breathing gradually
steadied.
He deliberately tested Zhong Bei: “Have you thought of any solutions?”
Magician Zhong Bei pondered: "If we can't bribe Bu Quan, perhaps we could bribe
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps directly? If the temptation is high enough, I
believe Commander Long Fu will voluntarily expel Bu Quan. That way, Magician Bu
Quan would have no choice but to return to the Alchemy Guild."
Magician Da Bei shook his head. "You underestimate the value of a silver level
Alchemy Great Master! Bu Quan is already indispensable to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' production plan. Her worth will only grow. If they were just
ordinary mercenaries, heavy bribes might work. But they're backed by arms
dealers. Think about it, would a power capable of transnational arms smuggling
be swayed by our petty interests?"
Magician Zhong Bei fell silent.
Magician Da Bei encouraged, “Think again. Is there a better approach?”
Magician Zhong Bei pondered deeply before finally saying, "I have an idea. Our
target isn't the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but the arms dealer behind them.
The arms dealer came here solely to penetrate the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's arms
market. We can leverage our connections within the Alchemy Guild to help them
expand their market reach, using that leverage in negotiations."
Magician Da Bei shook his head again. "Now I'll give you some bad news. The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has already secured a commercial partnership with
the Li Jian Clan. The dragon rider potions produced by Bu Quan are now being
distributed throughout the Ice Sculpture Kingdom via the Li Jian Clan's
commercial channels."
“Can our connections and influence possibly rival the Li Jian Clan's?”
Magician Zhong Bei paled and shook his head. The Li Jian Clan was a major noble
clan within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Their clan's influence was vast, ranking
either second or third in power.
Magician Zhong Bei felt like crying: “In that case, my mission is truly doomed
to fail.”
“Not necessarily.” Magician Da Bei patted his son's shoulder, “We can't bribe
the arms dealer backing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but destruction is
always far easier than construction.”
Magician Zhong Bei's eyes lit up, “Father, are you suggesting we eliminate the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps outright?”
Magician Da Bei tapped his son's head in exasperation. "What exactly is in your
head? We're alchemists, combat isn't our forte. How much combat strength do we
even have? You want us to take on a mercenary group battle-hardened through
countless conflicts?"
Magician Zhong Bei retorted defiantly: “We could hire mercenaries, gangs, or
other factions to do the dirty work for us!”
"How much money do you plan to spend? Even if we spent our entire fortune,
could we guarantee the hired forces would eliminate the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps? And if they were wiped out, how would Bu Quan view us? What would the
arms dealers backing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps do? Do you truly believe
we could keep the secret of paying others to do our dirty work?"
Magician Zhong Bei fell silent once more.
At a loss for solutions, he spread his hands in resignation. "Father, just tell
me what you propose. I'll follow your lead."
Magician Da Bei was so furious he wanted to slap him again.
Magician Zhong Bei failed to grasp his father's earnest intentions. Lacking his
father's alchemy prowess, he would forever be confined to the silver level.
Achieving his father's standing within the Alchemy Guild was virtually
impossible.
Deprived of alchemy talent and lacking gold level potential, Magician Da Bei
could only cultivate his son's political acumen. Yet the son proved unfit for
the task, choosing instead to follow instructions.
“What can I do? You're my only son,” Magician Da Bei sighed, finally revealing
his plan.
“We're going to cause destruction. The goal is to make the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps recognize our destructive power. Use conflict to force peace,
compelling them to voluntarily abandon Bu Quan.”
“They're at a critical juncture right now.”
"You saw it yourself just now, Bu Quan and her crew are frantically mass-
producing potions. I have to admit; the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has some
talented individuals. They aim to break into the market with mount potions and
establish stable sales channels. Once they start distributing all kinds of
alchemy military supplies nationwide, it'll be twice the result with half the
effort.
Magician Zhong Bei was inspired: “If we just destroy their alchemy workshop...”
Before he could finish, Magician Da Bei delivered another sharp blow to his
head.
"Don't openly antagonize them! Don't provoke Bu Quan's hostility. If you act so
directly, even if Bu Quan returns to the Alchemy Guild, she'll become our
enemy. By the time she rises to the guild's leadership, I'll be old, retired,
or even dead. But you? You'll have a very hard life."
“Now, shut your mouth and listen to me properly.”
Magician Da Bei, worn down by his son's torment, lost patience and laid out his
plan: “We can sell counterfeit potions!”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps aims to use dragon rider potions to break into
the market, filling the gap for mount potions across the kingdom.”
"We can produce potions that closely mimic the dragon rider potion, but with
weak efficacy and severe side effects, potions that could even harm the mounts
themselves. We needn’t brew large quantities. Just a fraction entering the
market will utterly ruin their reputation, preventing them from achieving this
crucial step."
“During this process, we can initiate negotiations.”
“Naturally, we won't reveal to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps that we're the
masterminds behind the counterfeit potions.”
"I will step forward, using my authority as an elder, to help the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps clarify the truth and prove their innocence. The condition for
this assistance? Bu Quan must return to the guild!"
"Their time is limited; they need my help. Otherwise, if this drags on, other
nobles or the Alchemy Guild will develop mount potions, seize the market, and
ruin their business plans."
"Brilliant! This plan is truly brilliant! Producing counterfeit potions
requires minimal cost from us, and crucially, it plays to our strengths.
There's no need to risk combat!" exclaimed Magician Zhong Bei enthusiastically.
Magician Da Bei shook his head: “Executing this won't be easy. We don't possess
the exact formula for the dragon rider potion, making it difficult to craft
convincing counterfeits.”
“Should we steal it?” asked Magician Zhong Bei.
“No.” Magician Da Bei shook his head. "I have a better option. We buy several
dragon rider potions and pay a visit to Master Cai Jing."
“Father, you mean the forger, Master Cai Jing?”
“That's right. Creating counterfeit potions ourselves would be quite difficult
in such a short time. But if Master Cai Jing takes it on, success is assured.
Ever since he was expelled from the Alchemy Guild, he's been living on Flower
Skirt Island."
“Given the friendship between us, I'll just swallow my pride and ask him for
help this time. He will assist us.”



****** Chapter 413: Lan Zao – I have a Fish Bladder Inside Me ******
Flower Skirt Island.
In the underground chamber of Shuang Tu's clinic.
Lan Zao lay suspended in midair, encased within a three-dimensional magic
formation.
Beams of light emanating from the formation continuously scanned his entire
body.
After a moment, the formation slowly ceased its scanning.
Lan Zao's suspended height steadily lowered until he touched the floor.
Shuang Tu's voice, controlling the magic formation, came through the chamber
door: “All done, Hen Fa. You may come out now.”
Lan Zao stood up, pushed open the chamber door, and stepped out.
He entered an underground hall.
Bright lights illuminated the space, filled with numerous alchemy components.
Lan Zao recognized none of them, but he could discern the magic aura emanating
from these alchemy components. The vast majority were silver level, with two or
three being gold level.
The magic formation in the chamber had been controlled by a gold level alchemy
component.
Shuang Tu stood before that very component, manipulating the conjured magic
interface.
“100%100%”
Spotting Lan Zao approach, he greeted him with evident delight. "Good news,
your bloodline has fully stabilized. Your awakening was remarkably successful.
You now possess 100% Fish Bladder bloodline within you. This is the best
possible outcome for bloodline awakening; not all awakenings achieve 100%
purity."
Lan Zao nodded, then his gaze was drawn to the gold level alchemy component
before him.
Its metallic surface was smooth and flawless, like a giant mirror.
Lan Zao saw his current appearance reflected in it.
The most striking feature was his entirely blue skin.
To be precise, it was pale blue.
His complexion was no longer that of a human.
“At least I didn't grow fish scales,” Lan Zao consoled himself.
His physique had also changed.
First, he had shrunk in height. From his previous stature, he now stood at just
1.7 meters, yet he had become significantly more muscular.
His upper body formed an inverted triangle. His shoulders broadened
considerably, while his waist and abdomen showcased eight sharply defined
abdominal muscles. His arms were thick and resilient.
Lan Zao's upper body was significantly longer than before his awakening. Due to
the compression of his height, his lower body had become shorter.
Yet both his thighs and calves were bulging with muscle. One glance revealed
the immense power stored within his legs.
His palms and soles had broadened significantly, with webbing-like membranes
growing between his fingers and toes.
These membranes didn't fully connect to the fingertips, reaching only to the
middle of each finger at most.
His head shape had also changed. What was once a normal human skull had become
narrower at the top and wider at the bottom, forming a shape close to an
inverted triangle. His jaw was at least twice as broad as before, and the top
of his head had a slight peak.
His hair had become extremely sparse, yet far denser than before.
Normal human hair consists of fine, soft strands. But Lan Zao's hair was now a
deep blue, long and thick like noodles or seaweed, curling and coiling in its
natural state.
Lan Zao's eyes had also grown larger. Nearly twice their previous size, their
pupils were a deep, abyssal black.
Three “black lines” now ran along each cheek.
These “lines” could unfold, for they were actually gills.
Lan Zao had already experimented with this new organ - he could now breathe
through his gills.
Staring at his reflection on the metal surface, Lan Zao's gaze grew complex.
While lying in the hospital bed, he had already noticed these changes occurring
in his body.
At first, he found it difficult to accept.
But with Shuang Tu's encouragement, he quickly adjusted his mindset. After all,
the awakening of bloodline was a blessing others could only dream of.
“100%”
Noticing Lan Zao staring intently at his reflection, Shuang Tu chuckled softly.
"Your Fish Bladder bloodline has reached 100% concentration. Therefore, after
awakening, all characteristics tied to the Fish Bladder bloodline have been
permanently unlocked."
"Hen Fa, you're incredibly fortunate. After awakening, your life is utterly
different from before. You've won a new life!"
In their daily conversations, Shuang Tu always addressed him as “Hen Fa,”
aiming to help him quickly grow accustomed to the name and heighten his
sensitivity to it.
“Come on, stand over there. Next, we'll teleport away from Flower Skirt
Island.”
Shuang Tu led Lan Zao to another alchemy component.
This alchemy component was also gold level.
Upon activation, a beam of light instantly shot down from the hall's ceiling.
Following Shuang Tu's instructions, Lan Zao positioned himself beneath the
beam.
The teleportation initiated swiftly. He vanished from his original spot,
reappearing in a narrow, dimly lit chamber.
This chamber was considerably smaller than the one where he'd undergone
inspection earlier, barely spacious enough for two or three people.
Five or six seconds later, another beam of light shot down from above Lan Zao's
head.
Lan Zao hurriedly retreated to a corner of the room.
The next second, Shuang Tu's figure appeared within the beam.
The beam vanished swiftly.
“Where is this?” Lan Zao asked Shuang Tu, who had teleported in.
Shuang Tu replied simply, "It's an uninhabited deserted island near Flower
Skirt Island. We carved out a secret chamber beneath the surface of this island
and installed part of the alchemy components for teleportation."
“This is one of our escape routes. If anything goes wrong, we can immediately
evacuate from Flower Skirt Island.”
"Alright, now we'll begin training. Since this is your first formal training
session, the content will be relatively simple, just getting you as familiar as
possible with your own body."
Shuang Tu looked at Lan Zao and inquired, "The awakening of your bloodline has
transformed your body, granting you new organs. You should be able to sense it,
right?"
Lan Zao nodded, “That's right. I can now breathe through my gills.”
“But it doesn't feel very good.”
"I've tried it a couple times. After just one breath through my gills, my
entire jaw aches like I'm caught in a desert storm, sand pouring into my
mouth."
Shuang Tu nodded slightly. "The Fish Bladder bloodline is related to the
fishman. Hen Fa, it's highly likely one of your ancestors was a fishman."
“And such gills, that life-sustaining organ, are typically designed for
underwater respiration. They aren't suited for breathing on land, or directly
in air.”
"However, the Fish Bladder bloodline didn't just grant you gills. It also gave
you a fish bladder! The latter is the most defining feature of this bloodline."
“A fish bladder?” Lan Zao asked in surprise.
He knew what a fish bladder was, of course.
Lan Zao shook his head. "Where is this fish bladder? Why can't I sense it?"
“I've checked. It's correct. Your newly formed fish bladder organ is located
beneath your lungs,” Shuang Tu stated.
"It's perfectly normal that you haven't sensed it yet. Your current state is
like an infant born with disabilities—missing arms or legs. It's only after
reaching adulthood and receiving treatment that the limbs grow back, yet you
won't know how to use them."
“Next, I'll open the valve and push this door. We'll immediately enter the
sea.”
“When you continuously breathe through your gills in seawater, you'll be able
to sense the fish bladder within your body.”
After speaking, Shuang Tu cast a spell upon himself.
Spell - Air Bubble.
A relatively dense sphere of air formed, enveloping Shuang Tu's entire body.
He then approached the chamber's door. Near the chamber entrance, he pried open
several bricks, revealing a bronze handle beneath.
As Shuang Tu turned the bronze handle, Lan Zao immediately heard the clanking
and grinding of chains and mechanisms shifting.
After a series of clattering and creaking noises, seawater suddenly surged in
through the four corners of the chamber's floor tiles.
The water level rose steadily. Within about thirty seconds, it reached Lan
Zao's chin. Another thirty-odd seconds passed before the chamber was completely
submerged.
As Shuang Tu completed the final turn of the bronze handle, the chamber door
swung open of its own accord.
The two swam out into the open sea.
Lan Zao scanned his surroundings.
His newly awakened black pupils captured the undersea light more effectively
than before his bloodline awakening, allowing him to see clearly.
He discovered, just as Shuang Tu had said, that this chamber was a modified
underwater foundation of a deserted island.
It was a crude chamber carved out beneath the island's surface.
“Now, breathe continuously through your gills.” Shuang Tu approached from
behind Lan Zao.
Thanks to the Air Bubble Spell, he wasn't submerged in water. Instead, a sphere
of air enveloped him like a protective dome.
This air bubble not only shielded him from the seawater pressure but also
supplied breathable air.
Of course, with Shuang Tu's continuous breathing, the air bubble gradually
shrank.
Lan Zao had only briefly tried breathing through his gills in the infirmary
ward before stopping due to the pain. But this time was different. He abandoned
his mouth and nose, persistently using his gills instead.
Breathing underwater felt entirely different from breathing in the hospital
room.
Cold seawater poured in through the gills and was expelled, while filtered air
flowed through the trachea to fill the newly formed fish bladder within Lan
Zao.
The fish bladder steadily expanded.
Air continuously filled it, causing Lan Zao's chest to gradually swell.
Lan Zao felt a buoyant force, growing stronger, urging him toward the surface.
“You should now sense the air bladder within you,” Shuang Tu spoke.
Lan Zao nodded immediately. Perhaps earlier, with insufficient air, the air
bladder remained minimally inflated, making it hard to perceive.
But now, as it expanded, the sensation became distinctly clear.
Shuang Tu continued, “Now, try compressing your fish bladder to squeeze the air
out.”
Lan Zao attempted it. The next moment, an intense urge to vomit surged through
him.
His Adam's apple rolled involuntarily. His mouth snapped open wide, expelling a
massive bubble. As he reflexively closed his lips, a string of smaller bubbles
followed.
Gurgle... gurgle... gurgle...
As the tiny bubbles escaped, a torrent of seawater rushed back into his mouth.
Lan Zao quickly clamped his mouth shut, but in his flustered state, he forgot
to breathe through his gills. Instead, he instinctively used his mouth and
nose, immediately choking on water and becoming even more flustered.
Seeing this, Shuang Tu swiftly cast the Air Bubble Spell.
Enveloped in a sphere of air, Lan Zao coughed violently for a long while before
finally catching his breath.
“My bloodline has awakened. My body has changed drastically.”
"I must undergo extensive training to master these changes. Otherwise, this new
body will become a massive vulnerability."
Lan Zao fully grasped his situation.
However, just as he was about to resume training, Shuang Tu's expression
shifted.
“Bing Xiao is approaching. He must have learned you've awakened.”
"Hen Fa, your first trial has arrived. Do you remember what you should do?"
Lan Zao nodded and replied, “If Bing Xiao attempts to recruit me, I will refuse
him outright.”



****** Chapter 414: Investigating “Hen Fa” ******
Before Bing Xiao arrived, Lan Zao and Shuang Tu had successfully returned to
the clinic ahead of schedule.
Lan Zao had barely lain down on the hospital bed when he heard footsteps
approaching.
Soon, the door swung open.
Shuang Tu entered first, followed by Bing Xiao, with the human ringleader
trailing behind.
Lan Zao hurriedly sat up, his heart pounding, his face stiff.
“Don't be nervous, young man. Lie back down,” Bing Xiao waved his hand, smiling
warmly and gently.
“Gang Leader Bing Xiao,” Lan Zao spoke, his voice dry.
Bing Xiao approached the bedside: "No need to be so formal, young man. I should
be thanking you for saving my life."
But Lan Zao shook his head. "I heard about it. You saved me too. Back on the
ship, when I was still unconscious."
As he spoke, Lan Zao instinctively glanced at the human ringleader.
He didn't know the human ringleader was actually part of his own faction, but
he had indeed learned this information from the latter.
The human ringleader's ward was separated from his by just a single wall.
For the sake of Tranquil Hill's mission, though the human ringleader didn't
wish to reveal his true identity to Lan Zao, maintaining contact with him was
beneficial.
Thus, the human ringleader often visited, chatting about everything under the
sun with Lan Zao while probing into his background.
It was during these visits that Lan Zao shared the story behind his name, “Hen
Fa,” and its origins.
Lan Zao exchanged a few words with Bing Xiao.
For the most part, Bing Xiao offered condolences while Lan Zao responded.
Finally, Lan Zao suddenly said, "Lord Bing Xiao, thank you for bringing me here
to recover. I will repay you for the medical expenses."
Hearing this, and noticing Lan Zao's stiff expression, Bing Xiao recalled what
the human ringleader had previously told him. He instantly understood Lan Zao's
intentions.
By insisting on repaying the medical fees, Lan Zao sought to sever ties with
him, Bing Xiao, and the Bayonet Gang.
Bing Xiao's expression remained unchanged, maintaining his gentle demeanor as
he controlled the pace of the conversation.
He was already quite aged, having stepped down from his position as leader of
the Bayonet Gang. Now, he found himself forced back into a position of
authority—an extraordinary twist in his life's journey.
The human ringleader standing behind him watched Bing Xiao's back, his gaze
flickering slightly.
In some ways, Bing Xiao was even more difficult to deal with than Teng Dong
Lang. The vigorous Teng Dong Lang disliked concealing his intentions, whereas
Bing Xiao was an old fox, outsiders could never discern his inner thoughts from
his words, actions, or expressions.
Lan Zao remained taciturn, his expression rigid throughout.
Bing Xiao, however, seemed to have endless topics to discuss.
Finally, he uttered the question: “So, young man, are you interested in working
under me?”
Lan Zao shook his head immediately, inwardly sighing with relief. Finally, the
question was asked. This conversation had been agonizing.
He hastily apologized, explaining his intentions: Saving Bing Xiao earlier had
been a coincidence, and he'd also hoped to use the Bayonet Gang's influence to
escape Snow Bird Harbor. Now that he'd arrived at Flower Skirt Island and his
bloodline had awakened, everything could start anew. He wanted to forge his own
path!
Hearing this, Bing Xiao remained smiling, but the human ringleader snorted
coldly, rebuking Lan Zao for being ungrateful.
Bing Xiao stopped the human ringleader's scolding, offered a few words of
reassurance to Lan Zao, and as he left, tossed out a parting remark: Lan Zao
needn't repay the medical costs, it was all fate.
After leaving Lan Zao's hospital room, the human ringleader escorted Bing Xiao
downstairs.
“Chief, that kid Hen Fa really doesn't know a good thing when he sees it!” the
human ringleader was still fuming.
Bing Xiao shook his head and chuckled softly, "It's understandable. He's young,
and with his bloodline awakening, he wants to carve out his own path. Having
that kind of spirit is a good thing. That's precisely why I see potential in
him."
At this, Bing Xiao sighed, “It's a pity we can barely protect ourselves now.
Back in the heyday of the Bayonet Gang, I wouldn't have needed to recruit him,
Hen Fa would have offered to join on his own.”
The human ringleader hurriedly reassured Bing Xiao, insisting the Bayonet Gang
would surely regain its former glory.
As they reached the first-floor lobby, the human ringleader added, "Gang
Leader, that Hen Fa fellow truly is promising talent. I heard Doctor Shuang Tu
mention the examination results, his bloodline is completely purified, 100%
pure concentration."
“He's a guaranteed silver level, and we rescued him. Are we just going to let
him go?”
Bayonet Gang shot the human ringleader a glance. "The Bayonet Gang is
rebuilding from scratch. Hen Fa is a talent worth recruiting. But now isn't the
right time. Let's get to know him first. Over the next few days, keep building
rapport with him, maintain the relationship, and find out more about him."
The human ringleader hastily replied, “Understood.”
Yet he casually pressed on, "But our treatment will eventually end. Once I'm
fully recovered, I'll have no reason to stay here. And it's not just me, Hen Fa
faces the same situation. Though he's only bronze level now, the island's
factions will surely covet a future silver level talent."
Bing Xiao nodded, keeping his next plans to himself. He only reminded the human
ringleader that his primary focus remained healing, recruiting Hen Fa was
merely a secondary task.
The human ringleader immediately voiced his concerns about the Bayonet Gang's
future, his inner urgency palpable. He pledged that upon returning, he would
thoroughly discuss the gang's foundations and bright prospects with Hen Fa.
“That's enough. No need to see me off.” Bing Xiao stood at the clinic's
entrance, waving the human ringleader away.
Spring Boxer, leaning against the wall beside the door, now approached to
escort Bing Xiao.
Though Bing Xiao was also silver level, age had taken its toll. His true
strength lay in his gold level giant slave. Unfortunately, his sole gold level
giant slave had been beheaded by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Flower Skirt Island presented yet another unfamiliar environment.
Thus, when Bing Xiao ventured out, he was typically escorted by either Spring
Boxer or Xiong Ju.
Spring Boxer exchanged greetings with the human ringleader before gradually
departing the clinic grounds with Bing Xiao.
Along the way, Spring Boxer remarked, "I see the human ringleader's injuries
have healed considerably. He should be discharged now. For daily gang affairs,
he's the most suitable person to handle them. He's also the most adept at
managing these minor matters."
Bing Xiao smiled faintly, “What's this? You've only been handling gang affairs
for a few days, and you're already growing impatient?”
“Gang affairs may seem trivial, but they're actually crucial.”
"I know your past ways. Though you were a ringleader, you'd almost always
delegate your responsibilities to your deputy. But that won't do now. The gang
needs you to handle these matters."
Bing Xiao stopped walking, turning to look at Spring Boxer with solemn
earnestness, “I'm getting old.”
“The next leader of the Bayonet Gang will be you.”
“If you can't even handle gang affairs, how can you shoulder such a heavy
responsibility?”
Spring Boxer gasped, his face clouding with distress.
He'd never shown interest in this position.
Bing Xiao knew his temperament well and pressed on, "You also know there might
be a mole among us now. Do you want the leader's position to fall into the
hands of a traitor?"
“Of course not!” Spring Boxer blurted out, “But...”
"In my view, Xiong Ju isn't the mole. He's a formidable fighter, but his
character isn't suited to treachery."
“And the human ringleader, he's always been loyal to the gang.”
Bing Xiao shook his head and continued walking forward.
Spring Boxer hurried to catch up, hearing Bing Xiao say, “If we can't confirm
the traitor, we must maintain cautious suspicion toward everyone else.”
“Xiong Ju, the human ringleader, either could be it. Even Hen Fa is a
possibility.”
“Hen Fa?” Spring Boxer was taken aback. He knew some information about Hen Fa,
“He shouldn't be, right?”
“He's not one of us Bayonet Gang members.”
“He's not even from Snow Bird Harbor, he comes from Blood Kin City.”
“If I were the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, I'd definitely plant former Bayonet
Gang members among us.”
“Besides, Hen Fa never wanted to join us, did he?”
Leaning against the wall, Spring Boxer overheard the conversation between the
human ringleader and Bing Xiao in the hall.
“But we can't rule him out as a suspect,” Bing Xiao shook his head slightly,
sighing again, “Fortunately, we can investigate him.”
“Investigate?” Spring Boxer was puzzled.
Bing Xiao explained, "He fled from Blood Kin City to Snow Bird Harbor. We
happen to have people inside Blood Kin City."
“Does our Bayonet Gang still have a surviving branch?” Spring Boxer grew more
curious.
Bing Xiao shook his head, “To be precise, it's connections, through Teng Dong
Lang.”
“You actually know this person.”
“Who?” Spring Boxer pressed urgently.
Bing Xiao uttered a name.
Spring Boxer gasped. "What? The bald uncle? He's now the Axe Gang's leader?"
Blood Kin City and Snow Bird Harbor were close in proximity, and Spring Boxer
knew the Axe Gang was the largest syndicate in Blood Kin City.
But he never imagined the Axe Gang leader would be the bald uncle from his
memories.
That was Teng Dong Lang's comrade-in-arms. Though the two usually couldn't
stand each other, each finding the other unbearable, when it came to combat,
they'd risk their lives to save one another, trusting each other implicitly
with their backs. Their bond as comrades-in-arms ran deep.
“Didn't the bald uncle go back to farming?”
Bing Xiao sighed. "Veterans like us can't return to ordinary lives. On the
battlefield, the roar of explosions lulled us to sleep. Lying in a soft bed,
quietly passing a peaceful day, that’s our nightmare. The habits of combat are
etched into our very bones. We've grown accustomed to relying on force to
survive. Like Teng Dong Lang, he's also gold level. His temper is even more
volatile than Teng Dong Lang's—he simply can't endure a life bound by rules.
His current situation is actually quite natural."
Spring Boxer blinked, nodding repeatedly in agreement with Bing Xiao's words.
Bing Xiao: “Next, I'll send a message requesting the Axe Gang leader to
investigate Hen Fa's background.”
“Flower Skirt Island has numerous communication beasts.”
“If all goes well, we should receive a reply within days.”
Blood Kin City.
Zi Di, bearing a heavy gift, arrived at the Axe Gang's headquarters alongside
Zong Ge.
After explaining the purpose of their visit, they were ushered inside.
“Long Fu... He actually came looking for us himself!” The Axe Gang leader's
face darkened.
"Father, we failed to eliminate him in Cold Wind Valley. Now we can activate
the base's magic formation and try again!" The Axe Gang leader's son, Fu Zhao,
seethed with murderous intent.



****** Chapter 415: The Guest Acts as the Host ******
Upon hearing his son's suggestion to use the magic formation within their
stronghold against Long Fu's group, the Axe Gang leader didn't hesitate before
shaking his head.
“The magic formation in our stronghold is indeed powerful and could increase
our chances of victory.”
“But we cannot do this!”
“If we kill both Long Fu and Magician Yao Ma within the compound - that would
be the best outcome, but even then, it would be troublesome.”
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is renowned throughout the kingdom, and Long
Fu is at the height of his fame. To openly murder them within the city would
cause extremely negative repercussions. We are no longer soldiers, merely a
local gang, this would be a crime! Even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
isn't native to the kingdom."
“Then, even if the Axe Gang survives, we will have to flee for our lives.”
"There's also the possibility we fail to kill Long Fu and let him escape. Don't
forget, they're no ordinary mercenaries, they're backed by transnational arms
dealers. During his battle with Teng Dong Lang, Long Fu used a gold level magic
scroll. Do you think he might have more scrolls of that caliber?"
"Our base's magic formation is powerful, but it doesn't suppress magic. If he
uses a battlefield-class spell scroll, our entire base will be destroyed."
"There's another concern: if the fight becomes deadlocked and Long Fu drags out
the battle, what reaction might the acting city lord have?"
“Therefore, to deal with them, we must disguise ourselves and ambush them.”
"Last time in Cold Wind Valley, I underestimated him. I truly didn't expect
Long Fu's strength to be so formidable, far surpassing what he displayed in his
heroic duel with Teng Dong Lang. That's why I didn't use my full strength or
deploy the Blood Vengeance Axe."
"Once they leave Snow Fall City, I'll strike again. This time, I won't just
give it my all, I'll also invite allies of equal level. Even if Long Fu can
fight above his rank as a silver level against gold level opponents, I don't
believe he can withstand two gold levels working together. Two gold level
experts might still be risky; there's a chance he could escape. That's why I
plan to recruit two gold level reinforcements simultaneously."
“With three gold level experts united, I don't believe a single silver level
has any chance!”
Upon hearing his father's plan, Fu Zhao's mouth fell open slightly, his face
frozen in utter astonishment.
He hadn't anticipated the Axe Gang leader's ambitions reaching such heights
this time.
Recruiting a gold level expert for battle would demand a hefty price. This
time, the Axe Gang leader intended to recruit two simultaneously.
All to deal with a single silver level?
Even with the Axe Gang controlling most of Snow Fall City's power, recruiting
two gold level experts would drain nearly their entire fortune.
This was no exaggeration.
For an ambush like the one on Long Fu, exposure was unthinkable and extremely
risky.
Should Long Fu survive and leak the news, the Axe Gang would face devastating
repercussions. Take the Axe Gang leader himself. Even if the gang survived, he
would certainly lose his position.
This was essentially staking his entire future on the outcome of the ambush
against Long Fu.
The Axe Gang leader had his reasons for doing this. But persuading two gold
level helpers to stake their own futures on this? That was far more difficult.
He had to offer a massive sum of money, incurring enormous costs, just to make
them consider it.
"Father, is this really necessary? Hiring two gold levels help at the same
time, three including you, just to ambush a silver level?"
The Axe Gang leader shot his son a glance and spoke frankly: "If I had more
liquid funds, I'd even recruit a third. With the enemy's strength unknown,
victory demands maximizing our odds. Never underestimate any foe. To guarantee
success, you must pay the price. I'd wager my entire fortune without
hesitation."
“You must understand the trouble we'll face if our identities are exposed!”
The depth of the Axe Gang leader's camaraderie with Teng Dong Lang mirrored his
hatred for Long Fu.
"However, since Long Fu and Yao Ma have chosen to visit me today, this presents
an opportunity we cannot pass up. Go challenge him later to probe his
capabilities and trump cards." The Axe Gang leader instructed Fu Zhao.
Fu Zhao immediately looked troubled: “Father, though I'm also silver level like
Long Fu, you know well that silver level cultivators vary greatly in strength.”
The Axe Gang leader patted Fu Zhao on the shoulder: “Of course I know. That's
why for this battle, I'll allow you to wield the Blood Vengeance Axe!” 
Fu Zhao's eyes lit up instantly, his expression brimming with excitement: “With
the Blood Vengeance Axe, I might just stand a chance against Long Fu.”
Moments later. 
Gang members ushered Zong Ge and Zi Di into the reception hall.   Here, the two
met the Axe Gang leader. 
"Long Fu, I've long admired your deeds. I am the Axe Gang leader." The Axe Gang
leader greeted them warmly.
“I am Long Fu. This is our corps’ Magician Yao Ma,” Zong Ge introduced briefly
while sizing up the man before him.
Clearly, the Axe Gang leader was a snow elf. But unlike typical elves, he was
exceptionally stocky and towering. Zong Ge was already quite tall, yet the Axe
Gang leader stood a full head taller.
The Axe Gang leader was aged, his chin sporting freshly shaved white stubble.
The stubble extended outward, reaching the base of his earlobe.
Though his face bore a smile and his demeanor was warm, the sharp gleam that
flashed unconsciously in his eyes, along with his shaven head, conveyed his
formidable strength.
Intelligence on the Axe Gang leader instantly replayed in Zong Ge's mind.
According to the reports, the leader's ancestry was traced back to an Iceborne
Troll.
His bloodline traits closely resembled those of a troll. He possessed the Blood
War bloodline. Though its concentration was low, it still granted him
extraordinary regenerative abilities.
This extraordinary regenerative ability proved highly practical, greatly
enhancing his recovery capabilities. Many injuries could heal completely on
their own given enough time, even without healing from a priest.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Zong Ge stated directly, “Honorable Axe
Gang leader, the purpose of our visit is to propose a partnership with your
gang.”
The Axe Gang leader inquired with curiosity, "Oh? How might we collaborate?"
Zong Ge shifted slightly, turning his head to signal Zi Di beside him with a
glance.
Zi Di stepped forward, bowed respectfully to the Axe Gang leader, then began
speaking eloquently.
First, she expressed gratitude for the Axe Gang becoming the largest purchaser
of the dragon rider potion. Therefore, Zi Di proactively offered that for any
dragon rider potions purchased by the Axe Gang at her potion shops over the
next three years, they would receive a 10% discount.
Secondly, Zi Di wished to recruit several members from the Axe Gang. After
brief training, these individuals would become shop assistants at her medicine
shops.
Finally, Zi Di proposed a three-year escort contract with the Axe Gang. When
merchant caravans departed Snow Bird Harbor and approached Blood Kin City, the
Axe Gang would provide security.
After listening carefully, the Axe Gang leader broke into a smile, “So you're
the ones producing the dragon rider potion.”
"Your group's capabilities are truly impressive. I hadn't realized you had this
capability. I must say, the dragon rider potion is remarkably effective."
"I am, of course, very open to such a partnership. In fact, the entire Axe Gang
welcomes it. However, the specific details require careful consideration."
Following this, the Axe Gang leader and Zi Di proceeded to negotiate the
specifics of the collaboration.
What surprised Zong Ge and Zi Di slightly was that the Axe Gang leader proved
far more articulate than they had anticipated.
Though outwardly rough-hewn, he possessed a shrewd side, often spotting crucial
points within the partnership terms.
Moreover, he possessed a formidable personality. Once he latched onto certain
terms, he wouldn't budge, not even an inch.
"I'm a gangster, not a merchant. I don't haggle. What I insist on is my bottom
line!" He frequently used this line to pressure Zi Di into concessions.
However, Zi Di didn't find herself at a disadvantage.
Her business acumen was remarkable, and she possessed extensive negotiation
experience, having faced opponents like this before.
Whenever the Axe Gang leader dug his heels in on certain terms, Zi Di would
feign concession. She would then find ways to modify other clauses or introduce
new conditions, deliberately framing these terms in complex language.
How could the Axe Gang leader possibly grasp these new clauses as well as their
creator, Zi Di?
After all, he was a retired soldier, no match for someone like Zi Di, born into
a merchant family.
He needed more time to grasp them, and soon his attention became fully
absorbed, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper.
He was forced to ask Zi Di direct questions to help him understand these new
clauses. But this was precisely what Zi Di wanted to see. Under her verbal
tactics, the Axe Gang leader gradually lost his negotiating leverage.
Zong Ge might lack diplomatic skills, but he possessed keen battlefield
intuition. After listening for a while, he gradually realized: the Axe Gang
leader resembled the defender, while Zi Di was the attacker.
Earlier, the defender had stubbornly held the line, making it difficult for the
attacker to achieve any gains. But soon, the attacker feigned retreat to create
space on the battlefield. She then continuously split her forces into left and
right wings, drawing the defender's attention. The defender's lines were
severely disrupted, allowing the main attacking force to advance layer by
layer. The defender had already lost ground without even realizing it!
“That's impressive.” Fu Zhao, hiding behind the scenes, shared the same
observation as Zong Ge.
As an observer, Fu Zhao had been eavesdropping on his father's conversation
with Long Fu.
The Axe Gang leader was already thoroughly confused. Fu Zhao couldn't bear to
listen any longer. He stormed into the reception hall, shouting impatiently,
“Father! I heard Commander Long Fu has arrived!”
The Axe Gang leader immediately glared at his son, “What's with all the
shouting? What do you want?”
After scolding him, he finally snapped to attention, glancing at Zi Di with
lingering fear.
“To find him, of course!” Fu Zhao's face was twisted with impatience. His
burning gaze locked onto Zong Ge. "You're Commander Long Fu! I've seen your
battle footage, it's incredible. Come on, let's have a heroic duel!"
The Axe Gang leader's face darkened as he scolded, "Scoundrel! Commander Long
Fu and Magician Yao Ma are guests of our Axe Gang. Get out of here, you brat."
But Fu Zhao didn't even glance at his own father. He waved him off
dismissively: “Don't stop my heroic duel! Not even you, my own father, can stop
me!”
“You brat...” The Axe Gang leader stood up, clearly furious.
He was about to continue his scolding, then put on a show with Fu Zhao,
ultimately resigning himself to it. But the next moment, he heard Zong Ge say:
“I accept your challenge.”
Father and son froze, both turning to stare at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge added, “Because I've been wanting to challenge the leader myself.”
The Axe Gang duo looked utterly stunned.
The ghost girl was equally bewildered, inwardly groaning: "Again?"
This wasn't part of their plan before arriving.
It was Zong Ge's own initiative.
Earlier, in the Cold Wind Valley, he'd acted similarly, setting off without
hesitation, never wasting words.
This time, accompanying Zi Di to visit the Axe Gang was also a spur-of-the-
moment decision, driven by his desire to challenge the Axe Gang leader, a gold
level expert.
According to the customs of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, a heroic duel was nearly
impossible for outsiders to intervene in. Such a challenge was sacred and
inviolable.
As long as both parties consented, not even a father could stop it.
However, Zong Ge's acceptance came with conditions.
He would accept Fu Zhao's challenge, but only on the premise that the Axe Gang
leader would also accept his!



****** Chapter 416: Changes to the Divine Artifact ******
The Axe Gang leader felt troubled.
He wanted to use Fu Zhao to probe Zong Ge's true intentions—a sound plan, but
he never imagined facing "Long Fu" head-on just yet.
“Does he suspect I'm the one behind the attack in Cold Wind Valley?” the Axe
Gang leader couldn't help but wonder inwardly.
Guilty conscience.
The Axe Gang leader didn't want to fight Zong Ge, for fear of exposing himself.
Even holding back, he'd already clashed with Zong Ge and confirmed firsthand
that this man was no ordinary silver level fighter. Such an opponent demanded
his full strength!
The Axe Gang leader also intended to give his all. He had resolved to spare no
expense in recruiting two allies of equal strength to properly kill “Long Fu.”
Small impatience ruined great plans.
Having decided to eliminate Long Fu, the Axe Gang leader naturally wished to
avoid provoking trouble before the operation.
He sternly reprimanded Fu Zhao, even locking his son in confinement on the
spot!
In the exchange of glances with the Axe Gang leader, Fu Zhao sensed his father
had changed his mind. He had no choice but to play along, feigning deep
resentment while accepting the punishment, then left the scene.
The Axe Gang leader repeatedly apologized, admitting his lax discipline of his
son and stressing his desire to avoid conflict with business partners. Most
crucially, he acknowledged the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' strength,
especially Long Fu's combat prowess, stating they were equal partners.
“Since we're equals, then please, Gang Leader, don't cling rigidly to certain
clauses. Recognize our sincerity in seeking cooperation.” Zong Ge's final
remark stunned the Axe Gang leader.
Even Zi Di was taken aback.
It was a stroke of genius!
After a moment of silence, the Axe Gang leader indeed shifted his negotiating
stance, becoming far more accommodating. Many terms were swiftly agreed upon
with Zi Di, and he even made concessions in certain areas.
Soon after, both parties smoothly signed the magic contract.
This signified the preliminary establishment of their cooperation. The moment
the contract took effect, the atmosphere in the reception hall visibly grew
much more harmonious.
The Axe Gang leader wished to host a banquet in honor of Zong Ge and Zi Di.
However, Zong Ge and Zi Di did not wish to waste any more time here and took
their leave.
The Axe Gang leader personally escorted them out, watching until their carriage
disappeared around the street corner before turning back toward the gang
headquarters.
Upon returning to the reception hall, Fu Zhao had already emerged.
The future Axe Gang leader looked uneasy. "Father. Long Fu suddenly challenged
you. Could it be that he recognized you as the one who attacked him?"
The Axe Gang leader shook his head. "Even if he suspects something, he has no
proof. That's not the point."
Fu Zhao pressed further, “Did signing a magic contract with them interfere with
your plan to kill Long Fu later?”
“There's interference, but minimal,” the Axe Gang leader replied. "I considered
that, of course. There are no absolute guarantees in this world. Any magic
contract can potentially be broken. Before I act, I will certainly break this
contract. If I can't manage it, the two gold level individuals I invited will
possess that ability."
“Moreover, when I signed the contract with them, I had already anticipated
this. The terms were designed with great caution.”
Fu Zhao set aside his bold concerns; his expression tinged with regret. "It's
truly a pity. To be honest, I'd have loved to challenge Long Fu and see this
man's prowess for myself. If I can use the Blood Vengeance Axe, even in defeat,
I’ll give him a lesson he'll never forget!"
The Axe Gang leader's face grew solemn. "I believe that. Your strength is
formidable, but the Blood Vengeance Axe is the crucial factor. Its power isn't
something Long Fu can withstand."
"But I must tell you this: dealing with an enemy isn't just about teaching them
a lesson. The best way to deal with an enemy is to kill them outright!"
"Teng Dong Lang once said it best. What makes the best enemy? An enemy lying
dead is the best."
At this point, the Axe Gang leader sighed heavily, his voice tinged with
nostalgia. "What a pity... that fellow of yours... actually died. But rest
assured, your enemy will soon join you."
Zong Ge and Zi Di departed the Axe Gang, seated in the carriage for their
return journey.
Zi Di activated her alchemy device first, creating a temporary private space
for their conversation. She then looked at Zong Ge with a complex expression:
"I never expected such a big payoff this time. I have to say, you were a huge
help."
Zong Ge glanced at her, his expression calm: “It's what I should do. Even
though we have differences in how we see many things, we're still on the same
team.”
This realization brought relief to Zi Di. Truth be told, Zong Ge's sudden,
unprovoked challenge to the Axe Gang leader had genuinely startled her.
Her inner voice had screamed, “Zong Ge, don't forget you're only silver level!
Do you really think you're the commander?”
But the reality was, Zong Ge's challenge had turned the tables. Not only had it
resolved his own predicament, but it had also helped Zi Di.
Combined with the outcome in Cold Wind Valley, which exposed the ambushers'
hostility, it proved Zong Ge's decision had been correct.
Zi Di's tone softened. "You're right. We're on the same side. Hearing you say
that puts my mind at ease."
She pressed further, “How could you be so certain the Axe Gang leader would
reject you?”
"Also, did you suspect the Axe Gang father and son? After all, the leader's
primary weapon is the Blood Vengeance Axe. I recall you mentioning during
reconnaissance in Cold Wind Valley that the gold level fighter held back his
power. His true primary weapon wasn't a war hammer, but rather a blade or axe
suited for slashing."
Yet Zong Ge shook his head, speaking plainly: “I never suspected them.”
"The father and son are gold level and silver level respectively, which matches
the ambushers' levels. But isn't his son also a fighter?"
Zi Di shook her head. "He likely practices both magic and battle qi, and magic
aura can be concealed. There are many methods for that. Especially without real
combat, it's hard to detect any clues."
She was puzzled, “If you weren't suspicious, why challenge them to probe their
strength?”
Zong Ge remained composed. "I intended to challenge the Axe Gang leader anyway.
On one hand, I wanted to gauge my true gap against gold level opponents. Could
I achieve what a team battle could accomplish? On the other hand, actively
challenging gold level opponents aligns with my upcoming plans."
“What do you mean?” Zi Di sensed trouble.
“Exactly what it sounds like,” Zong Ge replied, “Rather than passively
accepting challenges, I'd rather go out and challenge them myself.”
“Most silver level cultivators want to step on me to indirectly gain glory from
defeating a stronger opponent.”
"Fighting these guys is such a pain, they hold nowhere near the combat value of
gold level opponents! Once I actively challenge gold level opponents, they'll
have no reason to bother me."
Zi Di listened, utterly dumbfounded.
Zong Ge concluded, "On the battlefield, you must seize the initiative by any
means necessary. Taking the offensive is often an excellent tactical strategy."
Zi Di rolled her eyes inwardly.
She fully realized that Zong Ge's previous cooperation with her had been
nothing but a fluke.
As for his plan to actively seek trouble? Zi Di was a million percent against
it!
But she was powerless.
She knew she couldn't stop Zong Ge.
That guy just loved doing things his own way!
His past experiences had forged his habits. Like his true appearance, he was a
lion, fierce and relentless.
Ironically, his choices often yielded favorable outcomes.
Zong Ge was stubbornly independent; Zi Di couldn't sway him.
Even with her keen insight, she sensed a faint disdain for her lurking beneath
his words and expressions.
Military men often looked down on merchants.
"Sigh, Commander, where are you now? If only you were here." Zi Di began
muttering about the dragonman youngster again.
Among all the survivors, only the dragonman youngster could keep Zong Ge in
check.
The youngster was no longer a dragonman; he had become a fishman.
Bam!
Inside the landing pod of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster
slammed his head against the metal hull once more.
He had no choice but to pause his training.
“Bursting Explosion battle qi really isn't suited for the Swift Swim battle
skill.”
It was the same old problem.
The optimal use of Bursting Explosion battle qi was full-power output,
unleashing its explosive properties.
But when applied to the Swift Swim battle skill, it caused the fishman
youngster's swimming speed to fluctuate wildly, making it extremely difficult
to control.
The youngster floated effortlessly on the water's surface, extending a hand to
press against his forehead.
The slightest touch intensified the stinging pain on his head.
That collision had delivered a significant blow.
Racial magic - Healing.
In the next instant, a flash of white light erupted as the fishman youngster
successfully healed himself.
The throbbing pain above his head vanished completely.
The Surging Wave fishman bloodline he possessed granted him four racial magic
spells. He was now most proficient in using Healing.
The use of Mental Flogging, Mind's Eye, and Affinity Aura was relatively
infrequent.
After all, within the Ocean Mother Nest, only he, Zhong Yong, and the saint
level sea beast remained living beings. (The tide snake eggs and Zi Di's corpse
were not counted for now.)
Compared to these racial magics, the fishman youngster had mastered the fishman
battle skills to perfection.
The initial awkwardness upon first using them had completely vanished.
Though he hadn't taken shortcuts like using the Grand Arena Medal for training,
Zong Ge's eye for talent proved accurate, the fishman youngster truly possessed
exceptional fighter potential.
Fishman battle skills were often straightforward, allowing him to grasp them
quickly and master them with ease.
Not only that, but the fishman youngster also trained in the hybrid fishman
form.
He had absorbed two bloodlines from Hai Ping's saint corpse. The first remained
unknown to him, but the second, the Barbarian Fish bloodline, was unmistakably
distinct.
When the youngster activated his Bloodcore and simultaneously unleashed both
bloodlines, he entered the hybrid fishman form.
In this state, his features bore a certain resemblance to the saint corpse.
His training in this form stemmed from a desire to maximize his combat
effectiveness underwater.
The concentration of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline remained relatively
low. For now, the hybrid fishman form undoubtedly possessed greater combat
prowess than the single fishman bloodline form.
Though the hybrid form also brought the drawback of accelerated Bloodcore magic
depletion, the fishman youngster currently faced no shortage of Bloodcore
magic.
The only regret was that the fishman youngster still couldn't properly utilize
his Berserk talent.
More accurately, he couldn't avoid the drawback of losing his sanity when using
it.
"I've already returned the Ice Heart Headband to the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord. The Cold Heart Ice Bag that Bu Quan gave me can keep me lucid, but it has
specific trigger conditions and doesn't work at all with the Berserk talent."
The fishman youngster fretted over this, finding no immediate solution.
He ended today's training early, as the first practical deployment of the
precision eel drillers was imminent.
True to his silver level Alchemy Master status, Zhong Yong far surpassed Cang
Xu and Zi Di in alchemy mastery. After considerable effort, he successfully
crafted the first batch of precision eel drillers.
These drillers were deployed in secret.
The fishman youngster and Zhong Yong entered the cockpit together, intently
watching the precision eel drillers through the magic display.
These slender, microscopic alchemy automatons were only the size of an adult's
finger. Released from the Deep Sea Monster Fish, they swiftly swam to the
surface of the cave wall.
The wall was covered in pearls.
Selecting a relatively weak spot, the drillers commenced their work.
The spiral drills on their heads spun at full speed, generating considerable
noise.
To the fishman youngster's relief, the slumbering saint level sea beast
remained undisturbed.
Once the drillers penetrated the cave wall, their tails fully embedded, the
drilling noise actually diminished.
Zhong Yong remarked, "I can now confirm the walls of the Ocean Mother Nest
absorb sound waves. This explains why our dual-eared detectors failed to detect
external intelligence earlier. Simultaneously, the walls significantly dampen
the noise generated by the precision eel driller's operations."
“Success is within reach.”
The fishman youngster replied, “Let's hope so.”
Zhong Yong returned to the alchemy cabin to resume his work.
As the fishman youngster prepared to head back to the landing pod to restart
his training, the tower spirit alerted him midway: "Captain, the divine
artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale, is behaving erratically. The cause is
unpredictable. You should investigate immediately!"
The fishman youngster froze in shock.
What trouble was the Mermaid Fairy Tale divine artifact stirring up now?
He remembered clearly how it had exhibited suspicious disturbances when the
Deep Sea Monster Fish had been inexplicably transported here before.



****** Chapter 417: Cang Xu – I am a One Man Army! ******
The fishman youngster was suddenly informed by the tower spirit that the divine
artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale, had undergone an unusual change.
The anxious youngster hurried to the cabin, only to discover this anomaly was
actually a blessing.
“The amount of Pearl Bubbles increased!” The fishman youngster stood before the
divine artifact, his eyes widening in astonishment, even though his fishman
eyes were already quite large.
The Mermaid Fairy Tale was the divine artifact of Charming Blue Goddess. In
appearance, it was a large, fan-shaped seashell.
Within the half-open shell lay a sea of iridescent pearl bubbles.
They were uniformly sized, completely transparent inside as if hollow, their
outer layer a spherical foam. Yet these pearls could be grasped by hand and
felt surprisingly hard.
The survivors had obtained this divine artifact from the control tower beneath
Mystifying Monster Island.
They had repeatedly used Pearl Bubbles to construct the Deceptive Disguise
Formation, harnessing the divine artifact's power more effectively.
The Deceptive Disguise spell provided immense assistance to the survivors.
Without this spell, without this artifact, the survivors would never have
reached their current position. It could be said that the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps owed its present scale largely to this divine artifact!
However, the Mermaid Fairy Tale produced Pearl Bubbles at an increasingly
slower rate, and in ever-dwindling quantities.
When the survivors first obtained this divine artifact, the great shell was
filled with layers upon layers of pearl bubbles. Now, only a thin layer remains
at the bottom of the shell.
The yield of Pearl Bubbles has plummeted.
The survivors' consumption of this god level material grew ever more frequent,
showing no signs of abating.
Zi Di, Cang Xu, and others expressed deep concern over this, repeatedly warning
the other survivors.
The reason for the decline in pearl bubble production was simple, and all
survivors understood it—the Mermaid Fairy Tale contained the mystical power of
the Charming Blue Goddess. It was precisely the continuous depletion of this
divine power that enabled the divine artifact to produce Pearl Bubbles.
However, the divine power was like water without a source; it diminished with
every use. As the divine power dwindled, so did the yield of Pearl Bubbles.
This scarcity was one reason survivors urgently sought redemption from the
Empire.
With the divine power of the Charming Blue Goddess unable to be replenished and
Pearl Bubbles dwindling with each use, the day would soon come when it could no
longer aid the survivors.
Without this shield, the survivors will be easily exposed to prophecies,
divinations, or similar means. At that point, the immense wealth they possessed
would compel the Sheng Ming Empire to act against them. The justification for
such action would be noble and righteous, after all, they killed Father Jia Sha
on the Mystifying Monster Island.
The dragonman youngster even secretly slew the Flame Dragon King!
Yet now, within the great shell before the fishman youngster, two layers of
pearl bubbles have already formed.
“The Mermaid Fairy Tale is merely a divine artifact; it doesn't generate divine
power on its own.”
“Divine power emanates from the deity itself.”
“The increased pearl bubble production indicates the divine power reserves
within the Mermaid Fairy Tale have risen.”
“How is the divine power within the artifact replenished?”
The fishman youngster sank into deep thought.
His mind naturally turned to the Ocean Mother Nest.
"Previously, pearl bubble production had been steadily declining. The most
significant difference now compared to before is that the Deep Sea Monster Fish
is situated within an Ocean Mother Nest."
“Could it be... that there is Charming Blue divine power here?”
“Why would Charming Blue divine power be here?”
“Is it precisely because of the Charming Blue divine power that the Mermaid
Fairy Tale divine artifact suddenly reacted, bringing us all here through
teleportation?”
“Could this artifact possess an autonomous consciousness that replenishes
divine power?”
As the fishman youngster pondered this, he distinctly sensed: the Deep Sea
Monster Fish's teleportation seemed fundamentally different from the fishmen's
arrival.
“We must unravel the secrets of teleportation.”
“If the artifact itself offers only limited clues, then the fishmen are our
breakthrough.”
"How I wish we could soon uncover what lies beyond the Ocean Mother Nest! But I
must await the findings of the precision eel drillers."
“Ah, if only I could pierce through this barrier directly.”
“There was indeed such an opportunity once, one that could have granted me this
ability... Why didn't I think of it back then?”
The fishman youngster sank into reflection, his heart filled with regret.
The so-called opportunity he recalled involved absorbing ghosts, allowing his
Bloodcore to record their life essence. Once a certain threshold was reached,
the fishman youngster could also use the Bloodcore to transform himself into a
ghost.
It was possible.
Long ago, through the joint investigation of Cang Xu and Zi Di, the youngster
had discovered that the Bloodcore could absorb the life essence of the undead,
recording their bloodline.
Bloodline, at its core, was essentially life information.
Undead life was a unique form of existence, driven by negative energy rather
than the positive energy that sustained most living beings.
But the youngster did not do so.
"At that time, Cang Xu controlled only a small number of ghosts. Had I absorbed
them using the Bloodcore, it would have significantly weakened both his and Zi
Di's combat strength."
“No, that was merely an excuse to deceive myself.”
“Truthfully, the reason I never considered it was my rejection of the undead.”
The fishman youngster engaged in profound self-reflection.
As a normal living being, he had constantly reminded himself not to
discriminate against any form of life. Yet, influenced by the positive energy
within him, he inevitably felt aversion toward the undead as a natural part of
being a living creature.
He had performed remarkably well, interacting with Cang Xu and Zi Di without
even noticing this trace of aversion and resistance stirring within him.
Yet now, in his profound self-examination, the fishman youngster suddenly
understood.
He could accept Cang Xu and Zi Di because of their close connection to him. It
was precisely this bond that prevented him from discriminating against or
rejecting them based on their fundamental nature as living beings.
But the dragonman youngster had never once considered transforming himself into
an undead.
Nor had Zi Di or Cang Xu ever informed him about this possibility.
“If I could transform into a ghost, perhaps I could pass straight through the
cavern walls and reach beyond the Mother Nest.”
The fishman youngster's regret came too late.
With neither Cang Xu nor Zi Di by his side, there were no ghosts for his
Bloodcore to devour.
“Zi Di must journey to the Ice Sculpture Capital.”
“Cang Xu... where are you now?”
Cang Xu stood atop the ghost ship's quarterdeck.
An underwater battle raged below.
Countless ghosts darted through the inky depths, while Xiao Wang Zi commanded
skeleton archers on deck, unleashing relentless ranged attacks.
Cang Xu remained shielded within a protective circle.
Floating around him were countless skulls of the fallen.
Their foe this time was a school of lanternfish.
These rare deep-sea creatures possessed both light and water attributes.
While water-attribute racial magic were manageable, it was the light-attribute
racial magic that dealt devastating damage to the undead forces.
“This is the toughest battle since we entered the White Hair Trench!” lamented
the undead ronin Ku Feng.
He charged single-handedly into the lanternfish swarm, displaying the prowess
of a silver level fighter.
Other necromancers had grown exponentially stronger through these days of
combat. Though Ku Feng was a Fighter, his strength had also surged
dramatically.
Wielding bone blades in both hands, he hacked relentlessly, charging in and
out. Each time he unleashed a battle skill, it invariably resulted in the
gruesome demise of a magic beast lanternfish.
“This is Ku Feng's true combat prowess!”
"During the battle of Two Eyes Island, he never fought at full strength. This
level of combat power would undoubtedly rank among the elite within the silver
level community."
As Cang Xu observed the battle, his mind continuously formed assessments.
Cang Xu possessed considerable insight.
Whether from his past as a noble steward or his adventures after the Mystifying
Monster Island, he was well-versed in the current state of the silver level
community, enabling him to make accurate judgments.
Necromancy magic - Soul Healing.
Cang Xu's mind stirred, and he cast the spell directly.
A silver level death head beside him immediately emitted magic fluctuations.
But it took a full thirty seconds before the Soul Healing Spell was
successfully released.
Ku Feng received the healing, his wounds rapidly closing. He glanced back
gratefully at the ghost ship, thinking: "With Xu Jia's healing, I have almost
no worries. This battle was truly exhilarating!"
Once transformed into undead lifeforms, most healing methods in the world
became ineffective.
Forcing them could even inflict counter damage on the undead. After all, most
healing methods were designed for living beings.
The undead and the living represent two extremes.
Necromancy magic - Flying Bone Shield.
Necromancy magic - Ghost Slip.
Cang Xu cast spells continuously, tending not only to the undead ronin Ku Feng
but also to Xiao Wang Zi's skeleton archers and the ghost army on the
periphery.
His spellcasting was remarkably effortless, requiring no manual action—merely
mental control over the death heads surrounding him.
These skulls had been modified by him, each engraved with one or more
necromancy magic, serving as crude, simplified grimoires.
Soon, the lanternfish swarm suffered heavy losses. Led by their gold ranked
leader, they broke out of the ghost fog's domain and fled in disarray.
Jian Gui did not pursue with the ghost ship.
The White Hair Trench featured complex terrain teeming with countless magic
beasts. Pursuing them would make the ghost ship a prime target. The risks of a
reckless chase were too great.
“Thanks for the spell support,” Ku Feng said, returning to the ship and
expressing his gratitude to Cang Xu.
Xiao Wang Zi's skeleton archer also benefited from this. Clutching the back of
his head, he said, "Xu Jia, I'm so jealous of you. I've never seen anyone cast
spells as effortlessly as you do."
“You've gotten yourself a great inheritance, you know?”
“That Flying Head Spell Doctor Sui Shi gave you is seriously powerful.”
“Absolutely.” Jian Gui materialized, wholeheartedly agreeing.
After Cang Xu imprinted the magic model onto the death heads, this marked their
first combat deployment.
How effective was it?
Just look at the reactions of Jian Gui, Xiao Wang Zi, and Ku Feng beside him.
“Who knew those death heads could cast spells!” Jian Gui approached Cang Xu,
staring at the heads in awe.
The ability to cast spells fundamentally transformed the value of the death
heads!
“This must be the true power of Flying Head Spell,” said Xiao Wang Zi, “Xu Jia,
you alone can now function as an entire squad of magicians.”



****** Chapter 418: Will You Sell the Flying Head Spell? ******
The battle against a school of lanternfish made Cang Xu the star of the group.
The necromancers gathered around Cang Xu, their gazes filled with a mix of
curiosity and a faint intensity.
Xiao Wang Zi asked curiously, “Xu Jia, how did your death heads suddenly gain
the ability to cast spells? Why haven't I seen you use them before?”
Cang Xu explained that only after engraving magic models into the death heads
could they wield corresponding magic.
Xiao Wang Zi understood, reexamining the skulls with renewed understanding. He
praised, “So the Flying Head Spell has such ingenious applications?”
Jian Gui pondered, "A creature's skull serves as its cognitive base and the
material foundation for spirit power. That must be why death heads can be
imprinted with magic models."
"If that's the case, then different death heads should be able to imprint
varying numbers of magic models. The higher the intelligence level of the
skull's former owner, the more magic models that skull should be able to
imprint."
Jian Gui briefly analyzed the situation, then glanced at Cang Xu with a
questioning look.
Cang Xu felt a slight chill in his heart and could only nod, “That's right.
Exactly.”
Jian Gui was a direct descendant of the orthodox necromancers, possessing
profound knowledge of necromancy magic. This allowed him to analyze many things
at a glance.
Cang Xu already had extensive practical experience. This experience indeed
proved that Jian Gui's analysis was completely correct.
He used numerous undead materials to craft the death heads. He also consciously
inscribed magic models onto different types of death heads for comparison.
At this stage, the death heads bearing the most magic models came from the
sharp-clawed water monkey.
Sharp-clawed water monkeys themselves held a low status in the White Hair
Trench, occupying the middle to lower reaches of the food chain.
Yet compared to other sea beasts, they possessed notably higher intelligence.
The difficulty of engraving magic models onto water monkey skulls was
relatively low, yielding a higher success rate.
Cang Xu offered a wry smile to the other necromancers. "Engraving magic models
onto these skulls is extremely challenging. What you see are only the finished
products. The failed skulls have all been scrapped, their number is five or six
times that of the successful ones."
Cang Xu was not exaggerating.
For he had been engraving them within the ghost ship's hold.
Jian Gui could merge with the vessel itself. It was likely that Jian Gui had
long observed him engraving these magic models.
Hiding this was pointless; honesty felt far more straightforward and sincere.
Xiao Wang Zi stroked his chin with slender fingers, pondering, "So, these
skulls are essentially spellbooks themselves? Imprinting magic models into them
is just like crafting individual spellbooks, right?"
“Following that logic, the success rate of engraving magic models should
correlate with the necromancer's alchemy expertise, right?”
Xiao Wang Zi paused, turning his gaze toward Cang Xu.
Cang Xu could only nod slightly once more.
Xiao Wang Zi's tone grew increasingly astonished: "If these dead heads are all
spellbooks, then the cost of producing spellbooks is ridiculously cheap! That
must be the greatest advantage of the Flying Head Spell. The stronger a
necromancer's alchemy skill, the lower the cost of crafting spellbooks." 
Cang Xu had resolved to remain silent. 
In this single battle alone, he hadn't said much, yet both Jian Gui and Xiao
Wang Zi had glimpsed many of the mysteries of the Flying Head Spell.
Jian Gui added, “Cost is merely one of its advantages.”
He turned to Xiao Wang Zi: "Death heads are far more practical than
spellbooks.   Suppose you had countless spellbooks, could you cast them all
simultaneously?   That's clearly impossible." 
“But a necromancer can command these death heads to cast spells in unison.” 
Upon hearing this, the undead ronin Ku Feng also wore a look of astonishment. 
Even without being a necromancer, he grasped the value of the Flying Head Spell
from these words. 
Cang Xu sensed trouble and hurriedly explained, “These death heads are far
inferior to proper spellbooks. They have many drawbacks.” 
"Even if I engrave the magic models onto them, once the death heads cast
spells, the model wears down. The more they're used, the more they wear down,
until they can no longer cast spells. But that's not the worst part."
“Those skulls that have had magic models engraved but have had them erased from
overuse, they can never have new magic models engraved again.”
Xiao Wang Zi listened and suddenly understood: “I see. It's like a piece of
paper, once you've scribbled all over it, you can't erase it cleanly. It
becomes unusable.”
“Though these death heads are undead entities, not fully formed magicians.”
“No,” Jian Gui corrected, “To be precise, they're merely unfinished products.”
Xiao Wang Zi nodded in agreement, “I also believe these death heads have
significant room for improvement.”
This was precisely why Doctor Sui Shi had disseminated the Flying Head Spell.
He intended to release foundational knowledge, allowing diverse users to forge
unique paths of advancement through varied experimentation.
Xiao Wang Zi continued: “In their current state, they aren't truly spellbooks,
more like bundles of consumable scrolls.”
“But then again, most spellbooks are consumable too, magicians simply replenish
materials during use to offset the wear.”
Cang Xu sighed again, “Truthfully, these death heads pale in comparison to
regular ghosts, skeletons, or zombies.”
“Their combat capabilities are far weaker.”
“Even if they could be organized into magician squads, couldn't ordinary
necromancers do the same?”
"Mass deployment of skeleton archers forms an archer legion; concentrated use
of ghosts creates a ghost army. The most classic example is the corpse mage,
any squad of corpse mages is essentially a magician squad, isn't it?"
“You're quite right.” Jian Gui continued, “But I believe death heads hold
significant advantages over conventional undead lifeforms.”
“If my guess is correct, the mental burden they impose on necromancers should
be far less than that of ghosts, zombies, and the like.”
"Moreover, if we're to organize a magician squad, we must be extremely
selective. Among the undead lifeforms we create, only a minority possess
spellcasting abilities. And even fewer possess identical spellcasting
abilities."
“Without shared spells, achieving economies of scale is difficult.”
“Death heads, however, cast spells with remarkable ease and can actively choose
which magic models to imprint.”
“For a necromancer to command these death heads in spellcasting is far easier
and more precise than managing a magician squad formed from conventional
undead.”
Cang Xu was rendered speechless.
Jian Gui's gaze was piercingly sharp, truly worthy of an undead orthodoxy.
He stared at Cang Xu and suddenly asked, “Is this Flying Head Spell for sale?”
At these words, Cang Xu's spirits soared.
Wasn't this precisely the response he'd been hoping for?



****** Chapter 419: Cang Xu - I am a Pitiful Person ******
Cang Xu had been executing a plan all along.
That plan was to fully demonstrate the value of the Flying Head Spell, then use
this bargaining chip to strike a deal with Jian Gui, thereby obtaining a higher
level undead inheritance.
Now, Cang Xu had succeeded.
A mere death head held no interest to Jian Gui. But once it was imprinted with
a magic model and gained casting capability, Jian Gui proactively inquired
about its price.
Cang Xu steadied his composure, immediately bowed to Jian Gui, and politely
presented his request.
Yet Jian Gui shook his head without hesitation.
“Xu Jia, you are unqualified to receive the intermediate undead inheritance.”
"It's not that I personally refuse to sell it to you, but rather the rule set
by our founder. This is the principle and bottom line of our undead orthodoxy!
Not just me, even the Twelve Saints must strictly adhere to it."
“I'm sorry, I cannot trade you the intermediate undead inheritance. These are
non-negotiable.”
“And if I were to impart it to you in the future, there would be only one
possibility: that you have earned the right to receive the intermediate undead
inheritance!”
As for what qualifications?
Cang Xu had already inquired about them thoroughly back on Weeping Pine Island.
First, Cang Xu's own undead talent must be sufficiently strong, with the
minimum standard being a gold level bloodline. Second, Cang Xu must prove his
loyalty. He must complete at least three tasks to gain preliminary recognition
from the undead lineage. It was like joining a bandit gang—one must submit a
pledge of allegiance.
At this moment, Xiao Wang Zi interjected: “Xu Jia, I also want this Flying Head
Spell inheritance.”
“But don't sell it too expensively.”
“The fact that Doctor Sui Shi was willing to pass this technique to you proves
it's merely an elementary undead inheritance.”
“Expecting to trade an elementary inheritance for an intermediate one? That's
simply unacceptable. You're truly a master negotiator, worthy of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance. We're all on the same side, this isn't how business should
be done among us."
Ku Feng added, "Frankly, we don't need to buy this specifically from you, do
we? Doctor Sui Shi already possesses this legacy. It's just more convenient to
acquire it from you."
Jian Gui remained silent. He merely stared impassively at Cang Xu.
A chill gripped Cang Xu's heart.
In this moment, he found himself targeted by everyone else!
Unanimously, the others pressed Cang Xu, attempting to drive down the price.
Cang Xu suddenly realized: though he'd fought alongside these men through life-
and-death battles, when it truly mattered, he remained excluded.
Even an undead ronin like Ku Feng spoke for others.
Cang Xu had successfully demonstrated the value of the Flying Head Spell yet
faced immense obstacles in the actual transaction!
If Zi Di were here, she would undoubtedly be eloquent and persuasive, extolling
the value of the Flying Head Spell tenfold and engaging in tough negotiations
with the other party.
But Cang Xu was not Zi Di.
He lacked such exceptional oratory skills for business negotiations.
Years of working and living as a noble steward had cultivated Cang Xu's
profound political acumen.
Cang Xu sensed trouble brewing.
He quickly gathered his thoughts. With a bitter expression, he said, “Thank you
for enlightening me. You're both correct, my asking price was indeed
excessive.”
He openly admitted his mistake.
Then he sighed deeply: “I'm truly sorry, but I'm... simply too poor.”
“As I gradually grasped the true value of this Flying Head Spell inheritance,
my feelings became complicated.”
“Had I not staked nearly my entire body and fortune on it, I would have been
overjoyed!”
"To this day, I still owe you all a debt. To be perfectly honest, interacting
with you has been a tremendous burden. I truly wish to repay what I owe you."
Cang Xu's voice was desolate, his expression painfully genuine. His words left
everyone else speechless.
Xiao Wang Zi suddenly realized they had just been ganging up on Cang Xu.
Ku Feng fell silent, a pang of guilt stirring within him. After all, he had
witnessed Cang Xu's former misery firsthand. It had to be said, Cang Xu was a
pitiful man.
Then, Cang Xu fixed his gaze on Jian Gui: “Lord Jian Gui, since you desire this
inheritance, what more is there for me to say?”
“I can only entrust this legacy to you. After all, even this body I now possess
is a gift from you!”
Jian Gui flinched in surprise, then without a moment's hesitation, flatly
rejected Cang Xu's proposal.
His reaction was entirely within Cang Xu's expectations.
Jian Gui had always been the undisputed leader of the undead, displaying great
grace and magnanimity, willing to mentor necromancers. Of course, this was only
when his core interests remained unchallenged.
If he were to accept Cang Xu's offering now, it would look as though he forced
Cang Xu to surrender it, that would be utterly distasteful.
Especially since the Flying Head Spell wasn't Cang Xu's exclusive possession,
if Jian Gui desired it, he could acquire it from others.
A moment's analysis would reveal: Doctor Sui Shi couldn't possibly have
entrusted this legacy to only Cang Xu!
Cang Xu breathed a silent sigh of relief.
By playing the pity card, he had defused this minor storm.
His lamentations once again stirred sympathy in Xiao Wang Zi and the others.
They recognized Cang Xu as a pitiable figure, possessing the Flying Head Spell
was both his fortune and his misfortune.
The group's covetousness toward the technique significantly diminished.
After cleaning the battlefield and distributing the lanternfish-related spoils,
everyone returned to their quarters.
Yet a weight settled in Cang Xu's heart.
His plan had succeeded and failed.
The Flying Head Spell had ignited others' desires, yet the price offered was
far from satisfactory. Cang Xu could never exchange it for an intermediate
undead inheritance.
“Who would've thought Jian Gui would be so principled about this!”
"According to him, even the Twelve Saints couldn't violate this principle. This
might not be merely Founder You Shen's favor or command, it could be a magic
contract they themselves established and signed."
“Sigh. Though I averted the crisis this time, the problem remains unresolved.”
“As long as I alone master the Flying Head Spell while other necromancers do
not, their craving for it will never fade.”
They merely suppressed their craving temporarily out of deference and pride."
On the other hand, Cang Xu had to concede that Xiao Wang Zi's argument during
the price negotiation held merit.
This precious knowledge of Flying Head Spell wasn't Cang Xu's exclusive
possession.
Even if they couldn't purchase it from him, Jian Gui could still negotiate with
Doctor Sui Shi to acquire it from him.
According to intelligence from the Underworld River battle, the fact that
Doctor Sui Shi, a full-fledged saint level being, could provide immediate
assistance indicated a remarkably harmonious atmosphere among the orthodox
necromancers.
Cang Xu fully understood this point.
Orthodox necromancers upheld the principle: Preserve their humanity! Though
necromancy revolves around negative energy, necromancers must not be corrupted
by it.
Thus, when they first met on Weeping Pine Island, Jian Gui felt a strong
affinity for Cang Xu. This stemmed largely from observing that Cang Xu had
undergone certain undead modifications to his body yet had not fully embraced
the undead path.
Cang Xu did not recklessly pursue power; instead, he constantly strived to
maintain the balance between life and death, preserving his humanity.
Among necromancers, the orthodox lineage descending from You Shen possessed the
most profound humanity.
In a world where every faction, large and small, hunted necromancers, what
would orthodox necromancers, those retaining humanity and immune to negative
energy corruption, do?
They would unite tightly, maximizing their chances of survival.
Today you will help me, tomorrow I will help you.
Thus, during the battle in the Underworld River, Jian Gui summoned the aid of
the saint level Doctor Sui Shi without incurring any costs afterward.
It must be said that while following Jian Gui's actions exposed Cang Xu to
immense risks and genuine peril, the rewards were substantial.
The Flying Head Spell was merely one such gain. The greatest reward came from
the invaluable intelligence Cang Xu gleaned about necromancers through their
daily interactions.
Through careful analysis of this intelligence, Cang Xu gained precise insight
into the overall situation of the necromancer faction and his own personal
standing.
“I'm currently on the ghost ship, having demonstrated the value of the Flying
Head Spell, yet I haven't commanded a high price.”
“If I possessed Zi Di's negotiating skills, I might easily drive up the price.”
"No, in truth, even if I could do that, I still couldn't purchase the
subsequent inheritance I desire from Jian Gui. Let alone the various secrets
concerning the memory crystal."
Thinking of the latter, Cang Xu felt another wave of headache.
He had once tried to probe indirectly about the contents of the intermediate
undead inheritance. Jian Gui didn't strictly guard this information.
It was as if Jian Gui couldn't reveal the specific contents of the book to Cang
Xu but could tell him what the table of contents contained.
Cang Xu was almost certain: whether it was the soul aspect, corpse aspect, or
bone aspect, none of the intermediate undead inheritances touched upon the
subject of memory crystals. He also speculated: It was highly likely that
knowledge related to memory crystals could only be found within the advanced
undead inheritance of the soul aspect!
“My previous plan was a bit too naive.”
"Acquiring this knowledge is extremely difficult. After all, for a magician,
knowledge is the greatest treasure!"
Yet Cang Xu harbored no regrets about his choice, even though the only genuine
part left on his entire body was his skull.
“If all else fails, I'll have to sell the Flying Head Spell to others at a
‘discount’.”
“If I persistently refuse, it might create friction with others, hindering
future operations.”
“Acquiring the undead knowledge, I seek will likely be an ultra-long-term
project.”
After confronting this reality, Cang Xu settled his mind, scarcely leaving his
quarters. He continued crafting death heads, inscribing undead magic models
upon them.
He soon discovered that lanternfish heads were unsuitable for death heads.
This likely stemmed from the lanternfish's light attribute.
Light attribute wasn't neutral; it had a strong affinity with positive energy.
It was much like the relationship between the dark attribute and negative
energy.



****** Chapter 420: The “Traitor” Betrays Again ******
Necromancy magic harnessed pure negative energy, so they differed from dark
magic.
Of course, lanternfish heads could still be crafted into death heads, though
the success rate was far lower than with other skulls.
After consuming all his lanternfish heads, Cang Xu had only managed to create
over twenty lanternfish death heads.
When he attempted to inscribe necromancy magic onto the fish heads, he
discovered the engraving difficulty for undead magic models had also increased
significantly. Moreover, the limited space meant only a few spells could be
inscribed onto a single fish head.
By the time Cang Xu had five spell-casting lanternfish heads, he received some
good news.
More accurately, the ghost ship's reconnaissance efforts had finally yielded
results.
They had discovered the whereabouts of Qi Ling!
More precisely, the remains of a water ghost under Qi Ling's command.
Qi Ling commanded an army of water ghosts that had distinguished themselves
during the Weeping Pine Sea Battle. When the scout ghost sent out by the Ghost
Ship discovered it, only the legs of this water ghost remained.
The scout ghost brought the leg back to the ghost ship, where Jian Gui
immediately cast a spell to confirm it bore Qi Ling's magic aura!
“We've finally found her!” Xiao Wang Zi exclaimed joyfully.
Ku Feng remarked, “Necromancers can only control ghosts within a certain range.
Since the water ghost is here, it means Qi Ling must be nearby too.”
Jian Gui breathed a sigh of relief.
Their purpose in coming to the White Hair Trench was to rescue Qi Ling, the
“traitor.”
But truthfully, Jian Gui wasn't certain if Qi Ling was even in the White Hair
Trench.
Her presence here would be ideal. If not, the necromancers could still save her
fishman tribe, freeing them from Lady Sea Snake's control.
Qi Ling cared most for her former clan. Once freed, her greatest burden would
lift.
The remnants of the water ghost's leg slowly dissipated, vanishing into
nothingness.
The ghost ship returned to where the leg had been found, using that point as a
base to explore the surrounding area.
Soon, they uncovered new clues.
From the lingering traces of battle, they deduced that a small school of
sardines had surrounded and killed the water ghost.
The sardines' racial magic inflicted damage on ghosts.
This particular water ghost, clearly a scout sent out by Qi Ling, had been
surrounded by the sardine school. Outnumbered and overwhelmed, it met a
gruesome end.
Its leg drifted with the ocean currents to a nearby location.
Armed with this new lead, Jian Gui dispatched countless ghosts to scour the
surrounding area.
Subsequently, the group gradually gathered numerous valuable clues.
Finally, within a submerged mountain hollow, they discovered Qi Ling's fishman
clan.
“Qi Ling must be nearby. She worries most about her people,” Xiao Wang Zi
murmured. “Even though they've hurt her many times!”
Then, compelling evidence confirmed Xiao Wang Zi's hunch.
The group discovered Qi Ling's scouting water ghosts.
Not just one.
These water ghosts were scattered around the fishman tribe, concealed among the
rocks.
Were it not for the faint aura of undead energy they emitted, the necromancers
would have struggled to detect them.
The necromancers grew cautious.
They feared alerting the enemy prematurely and preferred to quietly pinpoint Qi
Ling's exact location.
To conceal their presence, Jian Gui stationed the ghost ship at a distance
while personally leading Xiao Wang Zi and his companions on foot.
Yet after searching covertly for a long time, they still hadn't found Qi Ling.
"Where on earth is she hiding? We've practically turned over every rock
nearby." Xiao Wang Zi's patience was the most limited.
“The White Hair Trench has complex terrain. Perhaps there are hidden passages
within the cliffs, or even internal caverns?” Ku Feng speculated.
Cang Xu pondered, "It's odd. If Qi Ling is nearby, then Lady Sea Snake
shouldn't be far either. Unless Qi Ling breaks free from control, or Lady Sea
Snake is overly confident in her methods... But if I were merely a pirate and
water magician, I wouldn't presume to control a necromancer."
“Remember, the necromancer faction is a new one.”
Cang Xu voiced his opinion, believing Lady Sea Snake was most likely here too.
“If she's here, then where's her ship?” Jian Gui frowned.
Her flagship during the Weeping Pine Sea Battle had left a deep impression on
him.
Xiao Wang Zi shrugged. "We already scouted the sea surface, didn't we? It's as
empty as a field, nothing but water and wind."
The group faced a massive obstacle.
They simply couldn't detect Qi Ling, nor Lady Sea Snake who might be right
here.
“Actually, this problem can be solved with just a little time.” Cang Xu's words
instantly drew everyone's attention.
He didn't keep them in suspense, stating directly, “If we can't find Qi Ling,
we can track those water ghosts.”
Ku Feng shook his head. "Even I know that ghost reconnaissance doesn't require
returning to report. Necromancers can cast spells to see through a ghost's
vision and access its memories."
Cang Xu smiled. "That's precisely the tracking method I'm referring to. We can
capture a water ghost alive in secret. While Qi Ling casts spells to excavate
the water ghost's memories, we employ tracking spells to pinpoint her exact
location. I recall this spell being part of the intermediate soul aspect
inheritance."
Jian Gui nodded. "Indeed, it's called the Soul Trace Spell. Its primary
function is to discern the location of undead beings through subtle traces.
Necromancers who master it often use it to discover and capture powerful or
unique spectral entities within the Ghost World."
"It can also be used now to locate Qi Ling. After all, necromancers are undead
beings themselves. When she casts undead spells to access the water ghost's
vision or memories, that constitutes an undead trace. However, I cannot
guarantee success, as I rarely employ this spell."
After hearing Jian Gui's explanation, Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng instantly
understood.
Where could one find numerous powerful, unique undead beings?
The Ghost World, of course.
Exploring a plane like the Ghost World required a necromancer to be at least
saint level; gold level was too risky.
Back then, Doctor Sui Shi had discovered Jian Gui's distress signal while
exploring the Ghost World.
Following Cang Xu's suggestion, the group captured a bronze level water ghost
alive.
This action carried inherent risk.
It risked alerting Qi Ling.
After escorting the water ghost aboard the ghost ship and examining it, Jian
Gui made a new discovery.
When he reappeared on deck, he announced, “Good news.”
Xiao Wang Zi beamed. "So, the Soul Trace Spell worked? Tell me, where exactly
is Qi Ling hiding?"
“In the sky,” Jian Gui replied.
"What?!" Xiao Wang Zi strained to widen his eye sockets, well, all he had left
were eye sockets.
“I see,” Ku Feng realized.
Jian Gui continued, “There's always been a white cloud on the sea surface. The
Fluffy Cloud is hiding within that cloud.”
“The Fluffy Cloud?” Cang Xu questioned.
Jian Gui knew about them: "It's the Powerless Pirates. They're also part of the
Fire Beard Pirates. It seems they were invited here by Lady Sea Snake. That's
the intel Qi Ling provided." 
This surprised the others. 
Xiao Wang Zi asked uncertainly, “Lord Jian Gui, you've made contact with Qi
Ling?” 
“That's right. Qi Ling anticipated our arrival and rigged the water ghost.
Through the water ghost, we can now communicate with her and exchange basic
intelligence. That's the good news I mentioned!" Jian Gui declared.
It truly was excellent news!
Qi Ling's “betrayal” stemmed from having her vulnerabilities exploited, she had
no choice. During the Weeping Pine Sea Battle, she clearly held back.
She also anticipated that Jian Gui and the others would come to rescue her, so
she preemptively tampered with the scouting water ghost.
Cang Xu speculated: Perhaps her trust in Jian Gui stemmed from being summoned
by him and serving as his alchemy assistant for many years, fostering deep
familiarity.
Now, Qi Ling had secretly established contact with Jian Gui. With an “eye”
within the enemy's ranks, the situation for the necromancers immediately turned
favorable.
“The Fluffy Cloud is hiding within the clouds. How can we strike?” Xiao Wang Zi
fretted.
“It's difficult,” Jian Gui shook his head, “My ghost ship cannot fly yet.”
Cang Xu's heart stirred. He keenly discerned a secret in Jian Gui's words,
could the ghost ship actually fly?
“I'm useless in aerial combat,” Ku Feng admitted, “Only the ghost army can
maintain combat effectiveness.”
“Exactly,” Xiao Wang Zi lamented, clutching his massive head. "My skeleton
archers pose no threat to the Fluffy Cloud. My skeleton magicians are too few,
and worst of all, my ramhorn skeleton turtle fleet is utterly useless!"
Among his skeleton forces, the most formidable were those ramhorn skeleton
turtles. Their current numbers had more than doubled since the initial
expansion.
Cang Xu advised, “We must lure them into the sea.”
“Mm-hmm, exactly!” Xiao Wang Zi nodded vigorously, “Luring them to the ocean
floor would be ideal, then my heavy cavalry might finally prove useful.”
Ku Feng added, “We operate in the shadows while they're exposed. We can take
our time strategizing.”
Jian Gui shook his head. "The pirates aboard the Fluffy Cloud aren't our only
enemies. According to Qi Ling's intel, another pirate crew will arrive here for
reinforcements in the coming days."
“The Heroism Pirates.”
“But according to the plan, they must first dock at Flower Skirt Island for
several days.”
“So, we don't have much time left.”
“We'd better lure them down here soon!”
But how?
Xiao Wang Zi pondered for a moment, then suddenly looked up: “I've got it!”
His head jerked up too forcefully, and with a crack, his skull separated from
his neck.
His round, skull-like head bounced onto the deck.
Xiao Wang Zi's body scrambled over, crouched down, and reattached his head: “We
can attack Qi Ling's clan!”
“That way, we'll lure those pirates down!”
Seeing everyone fall silent, Xiao Wang Zi pressed on: “Why do you think they're
hiding in the clouds?”
“I don't believe they're lying in wait for us.”
“They're probably threatening and exploiting Qi Ling's clan to hunt sea beasts
on a massive scale.”
"If we strike at the clan now, they'll be shocked and come after us. They'll
think we're here for revenge—after all, Qi Ling betrayed us!"



****** Chapter 421: The Low IQ Small Prince ******
After hearing Xiao Wang Zi's meticulously crafted plan, the others remained
silent for a long while.
Receiving no response, Xiao Wang Zi pressed, "What do you think? It's a
brilliant idea, right?"
The other three exchanged quick glances.
Cang Xu looked at the smug Xiao Wang Zi and suddenly understood a past incident
involving him.
From what Cang Xu had heard from others, when Xiao Wang Zi first encountered
Jian Gui and the others, he repeatedly found himself in peril, only to be
rescued time and again by Jian Gui. It could be said that without Jian Gui,
Xiao Wang Zi would have been finished long ago.
At the time, Cang Xu found it somewhat strange.
Why did Xiao Wang Zi keep getting into trouble? Even with his covert
protection, surely the merchant ships of his own kingdom wouldn't be so
vulnerable?
Perhaps one or two close calls were unavoidable.
But if one acted cautiously, for example someone like Cang Xu, they wouldn't
repeatedly find themselves in peril.
Cang Xu had once darkly speculated that this might be a tactic Jian Gui
employed to win over Xiao Wang Zi. Because of this conjecture, Cang Xu hadn't
probed further into Xiao Wang Zi's past experiences.
But now, Cang Xu felt that previous conjecture was likely his own overthinking.
Given Xiao Wang Zi's intelligence, encountering multiple crises was entirely
expected!
Threatening Qi Ling's fishman tribe to provoke the pirates in the sky into
descending to war...
That wasn't a strategy at all, it was downright foolish.
First, if the necromancers voluntarily exposed themselves, they would instantly
lose the advantage of operating in the shadows.
Second, would Qi Ling even agree? She cared so deeply for the fishman tribe
that she returned to protect them even after becoming a necromancer, even when
it meant leaving the Ghost Ship. The moment the fishmen were threatened, Lady
Sea Snake blackmailed her, effectively controlling her. Would someone like that
ever consent to this plan? Absolutely not!
Third, even if Qi Ling agreed, execution would be nearly impossible. A misstep
would backfire spectacularly, becoming a catastrophe.
While necromancers wield broad control over their minions, precision remains
elusive. Xiao Wang Zi and his allies might show restraint, but armies of
skeletons and specters offer no guarantee each undead will stop short of
killing the fishman.
Moreover, living creatures' aversion to the undead ran deep in their bones.
The fishman tribe's reaction would be nearly impossible to control.
The best case scenario would be the fishmen fleeing. In fact, there's a high
probability they'd resist and attack.
If the latter occurred, the necromancers would face a severe predicament.
If they engaged in combat, their minions could not stop short of killing,
inevitably inflicting casualties among the fishman. What would Qi Ling think?
If casualties mounted, Qi Ling might well turn to hatred and betrayal!
If they didn't fight, the only option was retreat. What would the pirates think
upon witnessing this? The necromancers' wavering resolve clearly showed they
had no desire for vengeance against the fishman clan. Why? It's simple, they're
undoubtedly mindful of Qi Ling's feelings. If they care about Qi Ling, they
must be trying to save her. Perhaps they'd already made secret arrangements
with Qi Ling!
Finally, would this scheme truly lure the pirates down?
Not necessarily.
Lady Sea Snake's gold level sea serpent was already dead, and she herself was
only silver level. The captain aboard the Fluffy Cloud, also leader of the
Powerless Pirates, Ruan Tang Ren, was likewise only silver level.
That's why Lady Sea Snake also invited the Heroism Pirates. Their leader
possessed gold level cultivation.
Facing the undead horde, even if Jian Gui and ghost ship don't show themselves,
Lady Sea Snake and Ruan Tang Ren would likely cower aboard their ship, unable
to move.
Anyone with half a brain would connect the undead army to Jian Gui's crew.
After all, Jian Gui was gold level!
In short, Xiao Wang Zi's plan was utterly foolish. Rather than implementing it,
a direct assault would be far more effective.
Cang Xu remained silent, saying nothing. He wouldn't provoke Xiao Wang Zi for
no reason.
Ku Feng also kept his mouth shut, as if he hadn't heard Xiao Wang Zi's words at
all.
Xiao Wang Zi's gaze was fixed primarily on Jian Gui.
Jian Gui stepped up to Xiao Wang Zi, reached out, and stroked his round, smooth
skull. "Not a bad plan. You clearly put a lot of thought into it. But maybe
don't make plans anymore."
"Ah?!" Xiao Wang Zi froze.
“Besides this plan, what other ideas do you have?” Jian Gui asked Ku Feng and
Cang Xu.
Ku Feng shrugged, indicating he'd just follow Jian Gui into battle with his
sword. He wouldn't think about anything else.
“Who knew Ku Feng could be so cunning,” Cang Xu thought to himself, feeling the
pressure mount.
He pondered, "As things stand, our understanding of the enemy remains limited.
At the very least, we still don't know why Lady Sea Snake is here, why she
invited the Powerless and the Heroism Pirates, and why her pirate ship is
nowhere to be found."
“Since we've already established communication with Qi Ling, why not ask her?”
Cang Xu's words sounded simple, yet they clearly conveyed his stance.
He wanted Qi Ling to devise a plan, with Jian Gui and the others providing
support.
Qi Ling's widespread deployment of water ghost scouts would certainly not
escape Lady Sea Snake's notice. The magic fluctuations generated when
communicating with water ghosts to gain vision and memories were intense.
Therefore, Lady Sea Snake must have consented to Qi Ling's reconnaissance.
What Lady Sea Snake didn't know was that Qi Ling had tampered with the water
ghosts' bodies.
Since Qi Ling possessed reconnaissance capabilities, it was more effective to
make the pirates wary, prompting them to misjudge the situation and launch an
attack from the sea.
"Hmph! What's the point of asking that traitor? She should be grateful that we
came to rescue her and just wait obediently for help!" Xiao Wang Zi was
somewhat annoyed.
After hearing Cang Xu's words, Jian Gui sighed again, as if to say: Finally,
someone who understands.
He nodded slightly: "I cannot communicate with Qi Ling for too long, nor too
frequently. The more times and the longer the duration, the easier it is to be
exposed."
“Still, these matters should indeed be clarified first.”
“I'll contact her in due time.”
Cang Xu remained unaware of the nature of this communication method. He
speculated it might be part of the intermediate soul aspect inheritance. But
considering Jian Gui's principles, Qi Ling likely hadn't been taught knowledge
of this caliber.
Cang Xu recalled: Qi Ling had once served as an alchemy assistant, spending
many years at Jian Gui's side.
“Perhaps this is some sort of alchemy method?”
Soon after, Jian Gui reappeared and informed the others: “I've inquired.”
“Lady Sea Snake's familiar has perished. She came here specifically to search
for a gold level sea serpent to re-establish a familiar contract.”
“To this end, she enlisted the Heroism Pirates. With their gold level captain
leading the charge, they can handle a gold level sea serpent beast.”
"Simultaneously, she invited Ruan Tang Ren. Though only silver level, he
possesses proven combat experience. He can counter gold level entities,
rendering them powerless, limp, and unable to fight."
“Ruan Tang Ren will weaken the gold level sea serpent's abilities, making it
easier for the Heroism Pirates Captain to capture it alive.”
"As for Qi Ling, only Lady Sea Snake knows her true identity. The other two are
unaware she's a necromancer. Lady Sea Snake disguised her. In peacetime, Qi
Ling handles reconnaissance of the ocean."
"Naturally, Lady Sea Snake and her crew also conduct surveillance. But while
they hide within the clouds, the water ghost has the greatest advantage."
Xiao Wang Zi listened with delight: “If that's the case, we can capture a gold
level sea serpent and lure them into the sea to strike!”
Jian Gui replied: “Three days ago, they already identified a suitable target.”
“That's precisely why Lady Sea Snake summoned the Heroism Pirates for backup.”
This arrangement made perfect sense.
The Heroism Pirates was a gold level force, while Lady Sea Snake was merely
silver level. Especially after losing her gold level sea serpent, her
confidence had waned considerably.
It was unlikely she could afford to keep a gold level expert constantly by her
side, waiting endlessly for the right target to appear.
The Heroism Pirates naturally had their own affairs to attend to.
Just as Bu Quan, despite being valued by the Alchemy Guild, wouldn't have a
gold level member assigned to secretly guard it at all times.
The value of gold level power determined the difficulty and cost of enlisting
their services.
“Then why don't we just take action against that sea serpent?” Xiao Wang Zi
called out again.
The more he schemed, the more he revealed himself to be a fool.
Upon hearing this, Cang Xu dismissed the foolish plan without hesitation.
Attacking a gold level sea serpent? Lady Sea Snake would never come down.
With so many sea beasts in the White Hair Trench, finding another gold level
sea serpent wouldn't be difficult.
Even if Jian Gui and ghost ship hadn't appeared, the undead army dared to
target a gold level sea serpent. How could the silver level Lady Sea Snake and
Ruan Tang Ren risk venturing into the sea?
Cang Xu pondered silently: “This intelligence is a mixed blessing. It all
depends on how Jian Gui chooses to act.”
The ghost ship could not fly, but Jian Gui was gold level, and a necromancer at
that.
In truth, if Jian Gui moved now, it would hold a significant advantage against
the enemies aboard the Fluffy Cloud.
If the situation dragged on, allowing the leader of the Heroism Pirates to join
the fray, things would become far more complicated.
But Jian Gui chose not to take the risk of acting directly.
After a brief discussion, Jian Gui made a decision: to lie in wait around the
targeted sea serpent, carefully set the stage for battle, and wait for the
right moment to strike.
Cang Xu understood Jian Gui's hesitation.
His concern was simple and obvious; it was that gold level Shadow Assassin.
Qi Ling didn't know this person, but that didn't mean they weren't here.
Near the waters of Flower Skirt Island.
At the base of an uninhabited, barren isle, Lan Zao deftly opened the chamber
door and swam out into the sea.
All around was utter stillness.
Every cell in Lan Zao seemed to be laughing, a constant surge of exhilaration
and joy welling up within him.
After declining Bing Xiao's recruitment offer, he had repeatedly traveled here
via teleportation for training.
Sometimes Shuang Tu accompanied him.
Sometimes he came alone.
Lan Zao preferred solitude.
During these times, he would immerse himself in the sea, letting the water
envelop him from all sides.
He would remain motionless, drifting silently through the depths.
He loved the sea.
This affection predated his bloodline awakening; it had always been there.
He was born and raised in a coastal fishing village.
Even as a child, he loved diving into the sea, holding still as the currents
carried him in any direction, or slowly sinking while gazing through the
water's glow at the vast, azure sky above.
Such a pure blue, without a trace of impurity.
The sky's blue usually seemed cold and distant, high above. But filtered
through the seawater, this shade of blue became soft, elegant, melancholic, and
approachable.
Lan Zao loved this blue most of all. Immersed in this deep blue, he could
forget himself, forget life's petty troubles, dissolve all worries and
frustrations.
Looking back now, everything had its origin.
Back then, though his bloodline hadn't awakened, the Fish Bladder bloodline had
already flowed within him.
All the signs were there from the start.



****** Chapter 422: Lan Zao’s Future ******
A pristine sky, an azure sea.
Lan Zao swam freely through the ocean, startling schools of fish into scattered
flight.
After his bloodline awakened, his appearance underwent significant changes.
With every stroke, the webbing between his fingers and toes provided immense
propulsion. Simultaneously, his arms, thighs, and calves bulged with powerful
muscles, allowing him to surge forward great distances with a mere flick of his
wrist or swing of his leg.
Before his bloodline awakened, Lan Zao had been a seasoned sailor for years,
possessing swimming skills far surpassing ordinary humans.
Now, his aquatic prowess had surged exponentially. Though he couldn't quite
match the fishman who had lived in the sea their entire lives, he was not far
off.
“This is the power of bloodline...” Lan Zao's heart brimmed with awe.
Over these days, he had truly grasped the weight of the word “bloodline.”
He now understood completely why the entire world placed such immense value on
bloodlines, a truth unchanged throughout history.
Simply because bloodline was truly that crucial!
The mere alteration of his bloodline had granted Lan Zao extraordinary
enhancement. His aquatic prowess had shattered his previous limits. The cost?
Merely eating, drinking, and undergoing some training each day.
“Of course, the meals Shuang Tu provided were top level magic delicacies,
crafted specifically for my needs.”
“The training regimen he designed for me was also tailor-made. I could
genuinely feel how incredibly efficient these exercises were!”
“Thank goodness I'm part of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, otherwise, I
wouldn't receive such preferential treatment.”
“It proves beyond doubt that following the commander was my most correct,
wisest decision!”
Lan Zao developed a fundamental trust in allies like Shuang Tu, feeling
fortunate for his circumstances and having his suspicions toward Zi Di fade
considerably.
All of this only deepened his admiration and obedience toward the dragonman
youngster.
The misunderstandings surrounding him and Zi Di, stemming from the bloodline
purification potion he consumed, along with a series of fateful encounters, had
shifted Lan Zao's inner convictions.
The nightmares of that time had long faded from Lan Zao's memory.
The migration of his deepest beliefs occurred silently.
Even Lan Zao himself remained unaware.
Lan Zao suddenly retracted his limbs, lying completely flat. Without moving a
muscle, he still sped through the sea, his pace only slightly slower than
before.
He was riding the currents.
Just as winds in the sky created stable air currents that skilled birds used to
extend their flight time and distance, the ocean, filled with water, also
formed currents.
Some currents were vast and persistent, but most were minute and fleeting.
Lan Zao now resembled a skilled bird, harnessing a transient current to glide
effortlessly through the depths.
“What a marvelous sensation!”
Though far from his first experience, Lan Zao still felt profound delight and
wonder.
He could sense the currents, every single one, as long as it fell within his
range of perception.
This was transcendent perception; a talent derived from his racial magic -
Fluid Perception.
The fishman youngster had gained four racial magic from his Surging Wave
fishman bloodline: Healing, Affinity Aura, Mental Flogging, and Mind's Eye.
Lan Zao also drew two racial magics from his Fish Bladder bloodline. One of
these was Fluid Perception.
As the name implied, it granted perception of flowing objects.
It was much like humans sensing wind direction by perceiving air currents. Yet
for ordinary people, discerning wind direction proved difficult unless facing
strong gusts. Trained rifle snipers and archers possessed this skill. They
often moistened their fingertips with saliva to heighten their sensitivity to
air currents.
Fluid Perception was this ability but elevated to a transcendent level.
Even in everyday situations, Lan Zao could sense certain fluid movements.
When he concentrated his spirit on this perception, his range expanded
severalfold, and his senses became far more precise.
Lan Zao drifted forward with the ocean currents.
He remained almost motionless, as if lying on an invisible flying carpet in the
sea, effortless and utterly comfortable.
When the currents he rode shifted slightly, he would subtly adjust his posture
to maintain his blend within the flow.
These micro-currents were ever-changing.
Yet with his extraordinary gift of current perception, Lan Zao effortlessly
allowed him to become almost one with the sea's rhythm.
He cherished this sensation.
Each time he swam freely in the sea, a faint, boundless joy would well up from
the depths of his being.
Every training session in the ocean was not arduous for him, but rather filled
with pure enjoyment.
He looked forward to the upcoming underwater training with anticipation.
Lan Zao closed his eyes, the six black lines on each cheek opening and closing.
These were his newly formed organs, fish gills, created after his bloodline
awakened.
The gills closed at least six times faster than before, allowing Lan Zao to
rapidly draw ample air from the sea.
This air filled his fish bladder through his trachea. This too was a new organ,
the most defining feature of the Fish Bladder bloodline.
The fish bladder rapidly expanded, imparting buoyancy to Lan Zao.
As buoyancy grew, he broke free from the ocean currents' grip and shot upward
toward the surface.
In his mind, Lan Zao recalled what Shuang Tu had once told him: “Once the Fish
Bladder bloodline concentration reaches 30%, a transcendent can consciously
control the air concentration within their body.”
"Therefore, you can compress the air within your fish bladder. This is also the
source of the projectiles for the Air Cannon battle skill you're beginning to
cultivate."
"What you must do now is compress all the air within your body, absorb as much
air as possible to reach your limit, and dissolve it into your bloodstream. By
doing so, you will enhance your blood circulation and significantly boost your
physical capabilities."
“You need to replace your battle qi technique. The Water Grass battle qi
technique you mastered is no longer suitable for you.”
This was the core of Lan Zao's current training regimen.
Through rapid breathing, he replenished his body with vast amounts of air,
consciously accelerating blood circulation to elevate his physical prowess.
Shuang Tu had provided him with extensive training materials for a Fish Bladder
bloodline transcendent. These documents contained explicit descriptions of this
state, the Maximum Air State.
In contrast, the initial state where the fish bladder held no stored air, so
subtle Lan Zao couldn't even perceive it, was termed the Minimal Air State.
Lan Zao had now entered the Maximum Air State.
As he neared the surface, he abruptly opened his eyes.
Typically, fishman lack eyelids, but Lan Zao was not a fishman; he retained
this bodily structure. When he opened his eyes, however, his eyelids retracted
to their absolute limit, becoming nearly invisible.
Lan Zao flicked his arms, exerting no force with his legs. His entire body
propelled upward like a leap, bursting through the sea surface.
The sky was clear and cloudless.
Sunlight bathed his smooth, pale blue skin, making countless droplets glisten
like diamonds.
Amidst the surging waves, Lan Zao did not fall directly. He spread his arms
wide, like a flying fish unfurling its fins, allowing him to glide through the
air.
At 30% Fish Bladder bloodline, the bearer could control their own air
concentration. This allowed Lan Zao to rapidly adjust internal and external
pressure, preventing injuries from rapid ascent and resulting pressure
imbalances.
At 60% Fish Bladder bloodline, the bearer gained the ability to freely ascend
and descend in water, along with the racial magic, Water Flow Perception.
Above 95%, they could float mid-air. Though the floating height was limited,
they gained the racial magic, Air Current Perception.
At 100%, the floating height increased significantly, and the related
perception talent upgraded to Fluid Perception.
Hovering above the sea surface, Lan Zao glided over five meters before plunging
back into the water with a splash.
As he plunged, he extended his arms forward and pressed his legs together,
striving to form a straight line.
His smooth skin minimized the splash upon entry. Once submerged, he tucked his
forearms close to his head and kicked his legs like a fishman's tail,
accelerating his speed.
After swimming for a while, he leapt back out of the water, gliding through the
air.
Countless droplets of spray, illuminated by the sunlight, sparkled brilliantly,
seeming to dance and laugh with Lan Zao.
He was practicing another racial magic - Levitation.
Thanks to the enhancement from his bloodline, the distance Lan Zao could glide
through the air was increasing at a visible rate.
“What a thrill!” Lan Zao cheered inwardly.
As he glided through the air, suspended between sea and sky, he felt an elf-
like agility and the vastness of nature. When he plunged back into the water,
the soft sea embraced and caressed his entire body, like a gentle mother
tenderly stroking her beloved child.
Upon his fifth leap into the sky, Lan Zao's life level underwent a
transformation.
At this moment, he ascended from bronze level to iron level!
“I've advanced!”
Lan Zao's heart trembled, tears streaming down his face.
He had long reached the peak of the bronze level, held back by his innate
limitations. But the awakening of his bloodline had shattered those limits,
propelling him far beyond. The bronze level was no longer his ceiling.
He had advanced.
Both his life level and battle qi cultivation had soared to iron level.
Though Shuang Tu had informed him, and his bronze level battle qi had taken on
an iron sheen days prior, when this moment finally arrived, Lan Zao was still
shaken to his core, overcome with emotion!
Tears fell from the sky, mingling with the spray of waves along his gliding
path.
As he plunged into the water, the vast ocean embraced him like a mother, wiping
away his tears and offering gentle solace, as if welcoming a wandering son home
at last.
How many years have passed?
The freshness and innocence of youth had long faded from his face.
The reverence and naivety of young adulthood had been ground away by life's
hardships, leaving no trace.
Fate's merciless torment had once beaten him into a shadow of his former self.
The shackles of guilt weighed heavily on his heart. He had contemplated suicide
yet lacked the courage to act.
The instant he plunged into the sea with iron level battle qi, his eyes opened
beneath the force of the currents, revealing scenes from his past.
Once, he had curled up in the sea, soaking himself to escape monotony and
frustration.
Once, he had labored on the deck, drenched in sweat, the scorching sun lashing
him like whips, his salt-crusted skin stinging with pain.
Once, he lay on a lonely boat, arms raised, fingers splayed wide. Through the
gaps between his fingers, he gazed at the midnight stars, weeping silently:
"Bronze is my limit! Damn it, damn it all..."
Once, he lay in the desert, drinking blood from the corpse of a loved one to
quench his thirst!
Flash after flash of the past streaked before his eyes, finally settling on the
figure of the dragonman youngster.
“My life, my... future!” Suddenly, the visions vanished before Lan Zao's eyes,
leaving them crystal clear.
Boom!
Without warning, a massive golden battle qi hand tore through the air, slamming
downward.
His Fluid Perception instantly alerted Lan Zao to danger. With agile reflexes,
he dove deeper into the sea.
But in the next instant, the giant hand split into two, one on each side,
crashing into the sea and pursuing relentlessly.
Lan Zao couldn't outrun the giant hands and was soon cornered.
The giant hands seized Lan Zao and flung him back onto the ship.
He slammed onto the deck.
He looked up and saw a pirate flag first.
The Heroism Pirates!



****** Chapter 423: Battle Qi Change ******
Lan Zao lay sprawled on the deck, thoroughly disoriented from the fall. The
back of his head, which had slammed against the deck, throbbed with pain.
The first thing he saw in his field of vision was a pirate flag.
The black pirate flag fluttered in the wind. At its center was a white skull,
its mouth wide open in a roar.
Radiating from the skull's gaping maw were concentric white circles, resembling
the violent shockwaves generated by its roar.
“The Heroism Pirates!” The answer flashed instantly through Lan Zao's mind.
Among all the survivors, he was arguably the most familiar with pirate
identities.
Having served as the boatswain of the Hog's Kiss for years, he made his living
on the seas and knew every pirate by name.
He recognized the Heroism Pirates, for they weren't just a gold level pirate
force, they were also members of the Fire Beard Pirates.
Pirates who joined the Fire Beard Pirates were never ordinary folk.
Lan Zao's gaze shifted downward. Following the pirate flag along the mast, he
spotted a massive figure.
Gritting his teeth against the pain, he rolled over swiftly and stood up,
glaring at the man seated beneath the mainmast.
The leader of the Heroism Pirates – the gold level fighter - Ba Qi!
Ba Qi sat with his legs spread wide, and even in that posture, he towered over
Lan Zao by a full two heads.
Lan Zao could tell at a glance that Ba Qi must be over two meters tall.
He was bald, with a square jaw and a robust, muscular build. His upper body was
bare, his chest like a white rampart. Below, he wore gray prison pants so plain
their uneven hems hung well above his ankles.
His bare feet were at least three times the size of Lan Zao's.
Lan Zao's limbs had grown significantly larger than average after his bloodline
awakened.
Most striking, his massive soles didn't touch the deck. Instead, puffs of white
vapor rose from his feet, suspending them slightly above the surface.
Upon closer inspection, Lan Zao noticed white vapor also constantly emanating
from the corners of his eyebrows.
This vapor faintly radiated a golden halo.
The golden hand that had previously captured Lan Zao slowly floated onto Ba
Qi's shoulder. Its golden sheen rapidly faded, transforming into a cloud of
white vapor that merged into Ba Qi's body from his shoulder.
“Bad Weather bloodline!” Information about Ba Qi flashed through Lan Zao's
mind.
The leader of the Heroism Pirates possessed the Bad Weather bloodline. This
bloodline's origin lay in the saint level air element. Theoretically, Ba Qi's
limit as the Heroism Pirates Captain should be the saint level.
However, his bloodline concentration was insufficient. The gold level had
become his ceiling, and his fighter rank had stagnated for over a decade.
Air Element Transformation!
This innate racial magic came with the Bad Weather bloodline.
Thus, even at the bronze level, the Heroism Pirates Captain could diffuse his
body and transform into elemental energy to attack foes. This advantage was
immense. Typically, only gold ranked fighters could project their battle qi
outside their bodies to form projectiles for ranged attacks.
Upon reaching gold level, the Heroism Pirates Captain's Air Element
Transformation grew even more potent. He could now transform his flesh and
blood into air elements, infusing them with gold level battle qi to strike
distant foes.
The massive golden hand that had just captured Lan Zao was forged using this
very ability.
The benefits were manifold, the most obvious being a drastic reduction in gold
level battle qi consumption.
"Air Element Transformation... This racial magic allows vital organs like the
heart and throat to elementalize at critical moments. This means that Ba Qi
possesses no conventional human weaknesses," Lan Zao mused inwardly.
Compared to this innate talent of Air Element Transformation, the Fluid
Perception and Levitation abilities inherent to Lan Zao's bloodline immediately
paled in comparison.
The Heroism Pirates Captain leaned back in his chair, his gaze cold and
indifferent as he looked down at Lan Zao.
Lan Zao spoke up: “Lord-lord Ba Qi... I mean you no harm. Is there some
misunderstanding between us?”
“Hahahaha...”
The pirates on deck roared with laughter, surrounding Lan Zao with savage,
mocking stares.
Surrounded by enemies, Lan Zao had no chance of escape. Cold sweat beaded on
his forehead and back.
He no longer carried the same “ferocity” as before.
The old Lan Zao had mistakenly believed the magic potion had caused a bloodline
conflict, leaving him with only days to live. Thus, he fought with reckless
disregard, always thinking, “Take one down if I can, and two is a bonus.”
But now, things were different.
He discovered his bloodline had awakened, and the potion's effects were
perfect. He now possessed a brand-new future, poised to achieve great things.
Yet, facing a formidable opponent like Ba Qi, his heart trembled, weighed down
by immense psychological pressure.
Amidst the pirates' raucous laughter, Ba Qi spoke indifferently: "What
bloodline is yours? Related to the fishmen, I presume? I sense you have a
strong affinity for my battle qi technique."
Lan Zao froze, a crucial insight flashing through his mind.
In that instant, he seemed to grasp why Ba Qi had attacked him.
Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Ba Qi chuckled: “Regardless of your
bloodline, encountering me today is your luck.”
“But whether it's good luck or bad luck, ha ha, depends entirely on your own
destiny!”
With that, he extended his fan-like hand, fingers splayed wide, unleashing a
powerful suction force.
Lan Zao was utterly powerless to resist and was sucked straight toward him.
Ba Qi seized Lan Zao by the head. Lan Zao tried to struggle, but soon, air
currents flowed from Ba Qi's body, shimmering with golden light. Like thick
golden ropes, they bound Lan Zao tightly, rendering him completely immobile.
The Heroism Pirates Captain let out a savage laugh and abruptly intensified his
battle qi infusion.
A powerful surge of qi erupted from his palm, violently forcing its way into
Lan Zao's body.
Lan Zao let out a piercing scream as his body swelled outward, distorting like
an inflated human balloon.
Ba Qi's gold level battle qi made contact with Lan Zao's Water Grass battle qi.
Though Lan Zao had recently ascended to iron level, his entire body's battle qi
still required time to fully transform from bronze level to iron level.
In truth, even iron level battle qi stood no chance against gold level battle
qi.
Thus, Lan Zao's Water Grass battle qi collapsed upon contact. His defenses
crumbled rapidly, overrun by Ba Qi's gold level battle qi as it relentlessly
pressed forward, forcing him to retreat and huddle defensively in a corner.
Ba Qi's gold level battle qi, being a different type of energy source, clashed
violently with the Water Grass battle qi. This caused Lan Zao to bleed from all
seven orifices, his screams growing shrill.
It was like a magic imbalance, the collision of two battle qi from different
origins inflicted horrific damage within Lan Zao's body. To save his life, Lan
Zao immediately dispersed his Water Grass battle qi outward.
Being bronze level in essence, the Water Grass battle qi couldn't coalesce
outside the body and thus dissipated rapidly.
Soon, only the enemy's gold level battle qi remained within Lan Zao's body.
Lan Zao's head was gripped by Ba Qi's hand, his entire body entwined by gold
level battle qi currents like ropes. He hung trembling in midair, shaking like
a sieve.
Though he had wisely expended all his Water Grass battle qi, years of
cultivating this technique had made his body deeply attuned to it. Even after
complete depletion, it still automatically generated Water Grass battle qi
throughout his body.
But the moment this qi materialized, it was crushed into dust by the
omnipresent gold level battle qi.
The gold level battle qi violently pierced through Lan Zao's internal organs,
muscles, and bones.
Lan Zao endured excruciating agony, as if countless steel needles formed a
brush, repeatedly scraping every inch of his body.
He soon screamed himself hoarse, his voice becoming utterly raspy.
He shook violently, his internal organs severely damaged, massive internal
bleeding occurring, his bones strained beyond endurance, cracks spreading
across his entire body, and blood seeping through his skin everywhere.
The pirates around him instinctively wiped the smiles from their faces.
Though they'd witnessed similar scenes countless times, each occurrence sent a
chill through them, deepening their fear of their captain.
“Not bad. You're still alive.” Ba Qi ceased channeling his battle qi and
offered Lan Zao a rare compliment.
Lan Zao's vision darkened, teetering on the edge of unconsciousness.
He screamed inwardly with every ounce of strength, urging himself to stay
awake. If he lost consciousness, death would surely follow.
“Live on with my gift. If you seek revenge, you're welcome anytime.” Ba Qi
swung his arm, flinging Lan Zao like a ball hundreds of meters into the sea.
He cast him aside like discarded trash, quickly withdrawing his gaze to focus
ahead, “How far to Flower Skirt Island?”
The first mate hurriedly replied, “We're almost there, Lord Ba Qi. In less than
two hours, we'll reach it.”
“Hurry. We have business to attend to.”
"Yes!" 
The Heroism Pirates' ship surged forward at a sudden burst of speed, rapidly
pulling away. Left behind, Lan Zao lay unconscious in a pool of blood, his body
slowly sinking into the sea.
Ocean Mother Nest.
The fishman youngster adjusted the effects of his Deceptive Disguise spell. To
the untrained eye, the Deep Sea Monster Fish no longer appeared as a reef, but
as a pile of pearls.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had seamlessly blended into its surroundings, no
longer standing out as before.
The landing pod, now flooded with seawater, had served as the fishman
youngster's training chamber for days.
Submerged in the water, the youngster wasn't practicing battle skills. Instead,
he kept his mouth open, continuously swallowing and expelling the surrounding
seawater.
With each swallow and expulsion, a fresh surge of battle qi surged within him.
It was no longer the Bursting Explosion battle qi.
After careful deliberation, the youngster had finally decided to convert his
battle qi. Heeding the tower spirit's advice, he had meticulously selected a
fishman battle qi technique called the Raging Tide Surging Wave Technique.
The practice of this technique involved continuous inhalation and exhalation
underwater, using the compression of muscles in the chest and other areas to
generate an endless flow of wave-like battle qi.
“The Raging Tide Surging Wave Technique truly suits my new form.”
Even though he had only just begun the conversion, the fishman youngster could
already sense the superiority of his new battle qi.
This superiority was primarily evident in the compatibility between the battle
qi and his body.
When the Bursting Explosion battle qi circulated in his fishman form, it felt
like his throat was filled with chili powder. Yet, as the Surging Wave battle
qi flowed through him, it brought waves of refreshing coolness that soothed his
soul. He even experienced a strange illusion, as if every cell in his body was
rejoicing.
“It will still take some time to complete the conversion.”
“Sigh, changing battle qi technique is such a hassle.”
“If a master proficient in this type of battle qi could infuse it into my body,
the conversion time would drastically shorten, perhaps even completing within
minutes.”
As the fishman youngster's thoughts drifted, the tower spirit's voice
interrupted: “Captain, the sonar reconnaissance has yielded preliminary
results. Please review them immediately.”
"Oh? Has the situation outside the Ocean Mother Nest been detected?" The
fishman youngster grew impatient.
He immediately left the landing pod and returned to the cockpit, where he
viewed the reconnaissance intelligence.
"This is...!" Staring at the reconstructed magic image, the fishman youngster
felt his heart tremble violently.



****** Chapter 424: Undersea Army ******
Ocean Mother Nest.
Inside the cockpit of the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
A magic projection unfolded before the fishman youngster's eyes, revealing the
landscape beyond the Ocean Mother Nest.
The fishman youngster's expression shifted dramatically!
The projection depicted an undersea valley.
In dim light, a colossal magic formation occupied the entire valley. Even the
cliff walls were carved with countless magic runes, tracing intricate lines of
the formation.
Ocean Mother Nest lay concealed within one cliff face, the one bearing the most
intricate patterns of runes and lines.
Beneath this wall stood an altar constructed from countless bones.
These skeletal remains belonged to various sea beasts, the massive bones of
whales, the fearsome teeth of sharks, turtle shells, and more.
This was no simple assembly. Alchemy techniques had been applied, harmonizing
the essence of every bone into a unified whole, achieving a gold level quality.
A gold level altar.
Upon it stood an octopusman priestess clad in ceremonial robes.
Her body resembled that of a human, yet her neck bore an octopus head. She had
no hair, two eyes, no distinct nose bridge, but a large mouth. From her chin as
the horizontal line, a ring of numerous fine octopus tentacles grew around her
face, extending to the back of her head, serving as a beard.
The octopusman priestess's head was milky white, her eyes pink. Her chest was
swollen, marking her as a female octopus.
What unsettled the fishman youngster most was the aura emanating from this
octopusman.
Her life aura was unconcealed; she was unmistakably a saint level being! Not
only that, but her life aura also carried traces of divine spells and magic.
This indicated the saint level octopusman cultivated both divine spells and
magic power.
At that moment, she was inspecting the altar, her expression utterly focused
and serious.
Standing beside her was another octopusman.
This octopusman was very small, seemingly underage, barely reaching 1.5 meters
in height.
The fishman youngster observed: This octopusman's body had a grayish-white skin
tone, but his octopus head was a deep, dark green.
Though short, his body was stocky, with bulging, rock-hard muscles that gave
the impression of solid marble. His chin tentacles were particularly robust,
though far fewer in number than those of the saint level octopusman priestess.
This octopusman made no effort to conceal his life aura, he was a gold level
fighter.
His octopus head was enormous, especially when the tentacles spread out like an
umbrella canopy, creating a disproportionately large head on a small body.
His tentacles were clearly well-trained; the four largest were each coiled
around a weapon, an axe, a halberd, a knife, and a spear.
Fully armored and heavily armed, his gaze swept constantly around him. He was
likely the bodyguard of the saint level octopusman.
Besides the octopusman priestess atop the altar and the octopusman guards below
it, numerous other intelligent sea creatures surrounded the altar.
Fishmen were the most numerous, followed by octopusmen. The fishman youngster
also glimpsed nagas, mermaids, and even sea giants within the magic projection.
It was hard to imagine so many different races of undersea sentient beings
gathered in one place.
Some had constructed coral dwellings, others lived in caves within the valley
walls, while still others simply sat cross-legged on the ground or slept under
the open sky.
Mortals comprised roughly half the gathering, while transcendents were
exceptionally numerous! Bronze level, iron level, silver level, and even gold
level.
From the magic projection alone, the fishman youngster had already spotted
three other gold level beings!
Most of these intelligent sea creatures were gathered around the altar,
kneeling in prayer. Their number was approximately 300.
Gradually, more and more gathered around the altar, joining the ranks of the
praying.
When the number reached about 500, a sudden clamor erupted.
Then, ripples spread through the water as a massive school of fish and sea
beasts were driven into the valley.
The fish included groupers, lanternfish, manta rays, whales, sharks, and more.
Among the sea beasts, the most numerous were the sharp-clawed water monkeys.
The intrusion of the fish and sea beasts did not cause chaos in the valley. The
inner circle of believers remained utterly still, immersed in their prayers,
undisturbed.
This massive swarm of fish and sea beasts was driven directly onto the altar.
Presiding over the scene was yet another octopusman.
Compared to the previous two, his form was the most colossal.
His octopus tentacles were exceptionally thick, two in front and two behind,
extended downward like four massive arms.
His true arms resembled tree trunks, their dark skin adorned with vivid red
patterns that bloomed like countless flowers.
These crimson floral designs covered not only his arms but also the surfaces of
his four octopus tentacles.
This octopusman who had driven the fish and sea beasts into the valley bowed to
the saint level octopusman, seemingly reporting something: “Jlglu...”
“Gulujili,” the saint level octopusman replied with a slight wave of her hand.
The escorting octopusman then bowed and withdrew.
The fishman youngster couldn't understand them, let alone the lesser-known
octopus language. Fortunately, their conversation was recorded by the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, and the tower spirit could translate it later.
He continued observing.
The sea beasts and fish schools were herded toward the altar.
The massive magic circle activated, its blinding radiance ultimately surging
into the altar.
The altar erupted with a powerful gravitational pull, drawing the sea beasts
and fish toward it. They slammed violently against the altar, instantly crushed
to death.
The gold level altar was exceptionally sturdy.
The sea beasts and fish surged like waves, shattering into countless blood-red
splatters, while the altar stood immovable as a reef.
The corpses of the slain sea beasts and fish rapidly dissolved, flesh and blood
vanishing, leaving only bones behind.
The diverse bones began moving of their own accord, assembling themselves with
the golden altar to make it even larger and more solid.
Occasionally, ghostly apparitions of fish or sea beasts appeared, only to be
instantly scattered by the divine light radiating from the altar.
“This is a blood sacrifice!”
“Moreover, this isn't a pure magic formation.” The fishman youngster's
expression grew grave as the formation activated, surging with countless sacred
runes. He even discerned a prayer inscribed in layers of divine script.
“A formation combining divine spell and magic!”
“Five gold level octopusmen and a saint level priestess!”
“Over thirty silver level, more than a hundred iron level, and at least two
hundred bronze level!”
“This is a mixed-species undersea army.”
Racial barriers were commonplace; under normal circumstances, such a large-
scale coalition would never be formed. But considering they appear to share the
same faith, their gathering becomes plausible.
“But what exactly are they doing here?”
“Why the blood sacrifice?”
"And to whom is it addressing? Could it be the Charming Blue Goddess?"
Watching the magic projection before him, the fishman youngster felt his doubts
lessen significantly, only to be replaced by many more.
“Regardless, I'm fortunate I didn't transform into a ghost and leave the Mother
Nest.” The fishman youngster felt relieved.
Had he done so earlier, he would likely have been discovered the moment he
surfaced.
A massive magic formation surrounded the Ocean Mother Nest, guarded by a united
army of undersea races. What the fishman youngster feared most was the saint
level octopusman priestess.
Her clergy job must be at least that of a bishop.
The fishman youngster harbored no confidence that his Deceptive Disguise spell
could conceal him from such an entity.
Since emerging from the Mystifying Monster Island, the survivors had never
faced such a trial; they had never attempted it.
In truth, the octopusman priestess posed a far greater threat than usual. The
reason was simple: she was orchestrating a blood sacrifice!
This was an offering and ritual to a deity.
A ceremony of such immense scale would inevitably draw the attention of the
gods.
The fishman youngster had no confidence in deceiving a saint level priestess,
let alone a deity.
“Is there a connection between this saint level priestess and the saint level
sea beast in the Mother Nest?”
“The teleportation must be related!”
The fishman youngster spotted some “familiar faces” among the praying crowd.
These familiar faces were precisely the fishman who had teleported in during
the previous incident and ultimately departed via teleportation.
“So, what should we do next?”
With this intelligence, the fishman youngster suddenly felt his situation was
dire.
He had previously envisioned shattering the Ocean Mother Nest to distract the
saint level sea beast with potential external sea beast swarms, allowing the
Deep Sea Monster Fish to escape.
But now, that plan was suicide!
The sea beast swarms might be low-intelligence creatures, but the mixed naval
forces surrounding them were almost entirely sentient beings.



****** Chapter 425: Ba Qi vs Cai Jing ******
Lan Zao slowly lifted his heavy eyelids.
The familiar ceiling met his gaze. Without needing to look around, he knew he
had been rescued and returned to the ward of the Shuang Tu Clinic.
“I remember Ba Qi grabbing me and forcing his battle qi into my body.”
Though I managed to hold on aboard the pirate ship and barely retained my
senses, I fell unconscious after plunging into the water."
“It must have been Shuang Tu who saved me...”
Though Lan Zao wasn't cunning or skilled in strategy, this conclusion wasn't
difficult to deduce.
After each training session, he used teleportation to return to the underground
plaza beneath Shuang Tu's clinic for recuperation.
When he failed to appear at the appointed time, Shuang Tu would inevitably
investigate.
Lan Zao examined himself.
He discovered his entire body was nearly wrapped in white bandages, his head
included.
Layer upon layer of bandages left only slits exposed for his eyes.
Simultaneously, the pain was slowly intensifying.
This was because he had been unconscious for so long; now that he had awakened,
his senses had sharpened considerably.
However, alongside the pain came waves of coolness.
Lan Zao could smell the scent of magic ointment. Clearly, he had once again
received proper treatment from Shuang Tu.
Just as Lan Zao realized this, the ward door opened quietly, and Shuang Tu
entered.
Lan Zao wasn't surprised.
Having seen the alchemy components in the clinic's underground plaza, he knew
the seemingly ordinary clinic concealed numerous hidden facilities. Shuang Tu's
control over the clinic far exceeded appearances. Thus, shortly after Lan Zao
regained consciousness, Shuang Tu learned of his situation and came to his
side.
“Thank you, Physician Shuang Tu. You saved me once again,” Lan Zao offered his
gratitude.
Shuang Tu smiled. "It was indeed perilous. Though your bloodline has awakened,
it still requires considerable training. At least when I found you, your gills
weren't functioning."
“Normally, even unconscious, your breathing ability should remain intact.”
"But you hadn't internalized gill respiration as instinct. You survived
temporarily only through your fish bladder and residual air in your lungs. Had
I arrived ten minutes later, you likely would have drowned."
At this point, Shuang Tu shifted his tone: "But as the saying goes - fortune
and misfortune are two sides of the same coin.”
“This encounter with Ba Qi nearly cost you your life, yet it also transformed
your battle qi.”
"The Water Grass battle qi you previously mastered was unsuitable for your
awakened bloodline. The Air Pressure battle qi from Ba Qi suits you perfectly."
"If you were to convert this battle qi technique alone, it would take at least
ten days to half a month. But after Ba Qi's help, your entire body is now
filled with Air Pressure battle qi. Of course, this is a foreign type of battle
qi. You'll need to cultivate it independently to generate your own Air Pressure
battle qi."
“Even so, you'll only need a day or two to adapt.”
Lan Zao heard this and gave a bitter smile. "If possible, I'd rather convert
the battle qi myself. I never imagined I'd suddenly encounter the Heroism
Pirates. I nearly died at the hands of Ba Qi!"
"When the chance comes, I will take my revenge!"
Shuang Tu nodded. "Until that chance comes, I advise you to bide your time. I
haven't told you yet, the Heroism Pirates have already arrived at Flower Skirt
Island."
“What?” Lan Zao was stunned.
Nearly ten pirate ships were moored at Flower Skirt Island's docks.
The pirate flags fluttering in the wind drew countless gazes.
When Ba Qi led the crew, striding down the gangplank first and setting foot on
Flower Skirt Island, the entire dock erupted.
Cheers broke out from the crowd gathered to watch the spectacle.
“It's the Heroism Pirates!”
“It really is them.”
"Ba Qi... I saw Ba Qi with my own eyes! They're members of the Fire Beard
Pirates!"
Though not a regular in these waters, Ba Qi had long been a renowned pirate
whose fame had spread for years. His formidable personal combat prowess was
matched only by his most legendary feat: escaping the Abyssal Hanging Tower.
His eccentric, one-of-a-kind behavior cemented his status as a pirate
superstar.
The Abyssal Hanging Tower was the number one super prison in the Main Plane.
Its construction dated back over a thousand years.
When the demons invaded the Main Plane, allied races fought countless arduous
battles before finally reaching the Skywell.
This colossal teleportation device, constructed by the demons within a natural
spatial passageway, reached the legend level, capable of transporting legendary
demons.
At the Skywell, the two sides engaged in a decisive battle.
The demons were defeated, and the allied forces emerged victoriously.
The allied commanders nearly destroyed the Skywell but were halted by the
dwarven divine blacksmith Huo Jiao Bian. This legendary female dwarf possessed
unparalleled skill in crafting divine artifacts, her achievements unmatched and
irreplaceable.
Huo Jiao Bian explained to the assembly: Simply destroying the Skywell would
prove counterproductive. It was a meticulously prepared demonic trap, designed
to transform the spatial passage into a vortex of chaotic energy. This vortex
would persist for tens of thousands of years, endangering the Main Plane.
Huo Jiao Bian proposed instead: “Why not remodel the Skywell? Build an inverted
tower upon its foundation.”
She then enumerated the plan's numerous advantages, successfully persuading the
allied commanders.
All races joined forces to construct the Abyssal Hanging Tower. Despite
mobilizing nearly every craftsman and alchemist from the Main Plane and
gathering building materials from across the world, it still took over a decade
to complete the tower.
After its completion, the tower was garrisoned by rotating main armies from
each race. But the abyss's aura proved impossible to shield against, steadily
eroding the tower. After several major rotations, the races agreed to repurpose
the tower as a prison, confining the most heinous criminals to guard it as
penance.
Ba Qi was one such prisoner held within the tower.
However, he managed to escape. Counting back 500 years, he was the only one to
succeed!
At the time, he was merely a bronze level child.
This legendary feat set him apart from the rest. It was said that Fire Beard
personally recruited him, leading him to command the Heroism Pirates under Fire
Beard's banner.
Ba Qi strode forward with long strides.
Wherever he passed, crowds parted automatically.
Many shouted and cheered, seeking Ba Qi's approval to join the Heroism Pirates.
Others stood arms-crossed at a distance, their expressions wary.
Several silver level pirates appeared before Ba Qi.
“Captain of the Heroism Pirates, Lord Ba Qi, welcome to Flower Skirt Island,”
one of the silver level members addressed him stiffly.
Ba Qi stood tall, surveying the group with a condescending gaze. "So, you lot
run this island? Your strength is a bit lacking."
The silver level member replied with unwavering composure, " Lord Ba Qi, Flower
Skirt Island is a land of freedom. We welcome anyone who comes here without ill
intent."
“We are merely fortunate to have earned the trust of others, allowing us to
temporarily serve as the island's administrators.”
“The truth is, the silver level isn't the highest on Flower Skirt Island. The
gold level Master Cai Jing has been living in seclusion here for many years
now.”
Ba Qi fixed his gaze upon him: “What is your name?”
“Sang Shu,” the silver level snow elf who had addressed Ba Qi earlier hastened
to reply.
“Is the one standing behind you your son?” Ba Qi inquired further.
The snow elf named Sang Shu flinched visibly, his response evasive: "Lord Ba
Qi, Master Cai Jing and I have maintained close collaboration. My son is even a
potion apprentice taken under Lord Cai Jing's wing..."
“Hahahaha!” Ba Qi suddenly burst into laughter, cutting off Sang Shu, “Your
son, I've taken a liking to him!”
As he spoke, his fingers spread wide, unleashing a powerful suction force.
The young man behind Sang Shu couldn't resist and was sucked into Ba Qi's palm.
His head was gripped firmly in Ba Qi's palm, while his body was bound by
swirling white currents of air, suspended mid-air.
The youngster struggled desperately, screaming frantically, yet could not break
free.
“Save me, Father! Save me!”
"Lord Ba Qi, I beg you, show mercy!" Sang Shu dared not intervene, pleading
urgently.
But the next moment, his entreaties were cut short by his son's agonized
screams.
Massive amounts of Air Pressure battle qi were forcibly pumped into the young
man's body by Ba Qi, causing him to scream in agony. His body swelled like an
inflated balloon, quickly becoming unrecognizable.
Sang Shu pleaded relentlessly, unable to bear it any longer. He unleashed a
battle skill, attacking Ba Qi.
The pirates surrounding Ba Qi watched the spectacle, making no move to
intervene.
The silver level battle skill was effortlessly blocked by Ba Qi, who then waved
his hand dismissively at Sang Shu.
Sang Shu was sent flying into the air, utterly powerless to resist.
Bam!
In the next instant, the young man in Ba Qi's grasp exploded. Blood, brain
matter, chunks of flesh, and bone fragments splattered everywhere, staining the
scene crimson.
Blood stained Ba Qi's face and chest crimson.
He shook his hand, murmuring disappointedly, “Failed. This youngster seemed
promising. Never thought he wouldn't even last this short a time.”
Dead silence fell over the scene.
The crowd, who had been cheering moments ago, now stared in stunned silence. As
they watched Ba Qi treat human life as cheap as grass, a chill crept into their
hearts.
Sang Shu, witnessing his son's brutal death, was consumed by despair and
seething hatred.
“You killed my son! You killed my son!” he roared, drawing his crossbow and
unleashing a relentless barrage of bolts at Ba Qi.
But the silver level crossbow lacked sufficient power. Even paired with silver
level alchemy arrows, it couldn't scratch Ba Qi.
Ba Qi's body swayed slightly as a mass of air element separated from him.
The air element coalesced into a massive hand, radiating the golden glow of
battle qi, and lunged toward Sang Shu.
Terror washed over Sang Shu's face as he scrambled backward.
The golden hand pursued relentlessly.
Sang Shu fled all the way to the southern tip of Flower Skirt Island, shouting,
“Master Cai Jing! Master Cai Jing! Please intervene! Ba Qi has killed your
apprentice! Save my life!”
Boom!
A spell shot forth, shattering the golden hand.
Master Cai Jing appeared, bellowing at Ba Qi, “Captain of the Heroism Pirates,
Flower Skirt Island is no place for your reckless actions!”
Ba Qi roared with laughter once more: "Cai Jing, this isn't your territory
either. Do you even have the right to speak to me like this? I seriously doubt
it!"
With that, Ba Qi soared into the air and charged toward Cai Jing.
Cai Jing stood his ground, unfazed, wielding his staff as he engaged Ba Qi in
fierce combat.
Both ascended into the air with tacit understanding, ensuring their clash
spared Flower Skirt Island.
Both gold level experts fought fiercely, locked in an evenly matched battle.
The onlookers watched, eyes glued to the spectacle.
After over a dozen exchanges, Cai Jing faltered first, crashing back to the
ground.
Battle skill - Multi-Layered Air Pressure!
Ba Qi thrust both arms forward, unleashing waves of explosive air pressure.
Master Cai Jing swiftly raised his staff, conjuring a blue magic shield.
Each wave of air pressure, heavy as mountains, slammed Master Cai Jing
downward, sending debris and smoke billowing into the sky.
Soon, dust and smoke obscured Master Cai Jing's figure.
When the haze cleared, Master Cai Jing was covered in dust but had avoided
serious injury.
His magic shield had shattered, but the giant trumpet flowers surrounding him
provided protection.
Massive trumpet flowers erupted from the ground—some as large as carriages,
others towering as tall as a man.
Aiming at Ba Qi, they sprayed streams of multicolored potion.
Ba Qi attempted to block them, but his expression quickly changed. He realized
the multicolored potion was highly toxic, capable of penetrating his battle qi
defenses. It mixed into his battle qi, transforming it into other types.
Different battle qi clashed violently with one another.
“Cai Jing, your combat prowess is quite impressive.” Ba Qi voluntarily halted
his attack and descended to the ground.
Master Cai Jing's face was pale as he stared at Ba Qi, “Leave now. Flower Skirt
Island does not welcome the Heroism Pirates.”
Ba Qi laughed heartily, waved at him, and turned to depart, “I don't fancy
staying here either. Once I've resupplied, I'll be on my way.”
Master Cai Jing remained silent, watching until Ba Qi's figure vanished before
disappearing underground himself.
The two gold level experts had clashed, each demonstrating their prowess while
recognizing the other's tenacity. Both chose to call it quits.
Late that night.
Beneath the clinic.
The teleportation light faded as Ba Qi arrived, “Long time no see, Physician.”
He greeted him with a casual wave.
Shuang Tu remained composed, nodding slightly before gesturing toward the
examination room where Lan Zao had been checked earlier. "Go inside and get
your body checked first. Make it quick. The fewer secret meetings we have, the
fewer openings we give."
“You're still as cautious as ever.” Ba Qi entered the room, lying flat as the
magic formation's light scanned his entire body.
“Your condition has worsened again.” Shuang Tu's tone was grave.
Ba Qi shrugged it off: "Escaping that hellhole of the Hanging Tower was already
a huge win for me. All I want now is to fulfill my master's dying wish before I
die, to spread the Air Pressure battle qi technique across the land."
"Speaking of which, that kid you sent me is truly a promising talent. He's
perfectly suited for the Air Pressure battle qi technique. I almost felt
reluctant to plant the Air Knot on him."
Shuang Tu replied, "He was an ‘accident.’ Your Air Knot is necessary to ensure
the final outcome favors us."
Ba Qi asked, “Do you plan to nurture him?”
Shuang Tu stated, "We will indeed invest resources to train him intensively. We
hope he can contribute to the Tranquil Hill espionage mission."
“Tranquil Hill...” Ba Qi chuckled, “That mission has failed over a dozen times,
hasn't it?”
“More than that,” Shuang Tu shook his head, “even if it fails a hundred times,
it remains necessary to execute!”
“Hey, I've done you a favor by testing Cai Jing this time. Now you owe me one,”
Ba Qi said abruptly. "Pull that kid out of the Tranquil Hill mission. Honestly,
I see real potential in him."
Shuang Tu shook his head, then nodded, “Even if the Tranquil Hill mission fails
this time, Hen Fa might not die.”
“I've already made arrangements for what comes next. He'll be coaxed over to us
and placed within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. We're quite interested in
the arms dealer backing that mercenary group. Personally, I think investigating
the arms dealer's identity is far more reliable than investigating Tranquil
Hill."
Ba Qi chuckled: "Hehehe, I agree with your assessment. An arms dealer... that
would indeed be a major achievement."



****** Chapter 426: Air Cannon ******
Flower Skirt Island.
The underground plaza beneath Shuang Tu Clinic.
Lan Zao was training.
Each battle qi technique had its own cultivation method. The Water Grass battle
qi technique involved swinging the arms, while the Air Pressure battle qi
technique required patting.
Lan Zao, wrapped in layers of bandages, repeatedly slapped various parts of his
body with his palms.
After each strike, strands of fresh battle qi emerged from the struck area.
Through continuous slapping, these strands accumulated, coalescing into streams
of newly born battle qi that coursed through Lan Zao's body.
Ba Qi had also infused him with Air Pressure battle qi, but that had been
generated within Ba Qi's own body. It was the same type of battle qi, so Lan
Zao could barely use it. But ultimately, it wasn't his own; it was
fundamentally a foreign battle qi.
Only battle qi generated through his own body's training could be fully
harnessed by Lan Zao.
Before long, crimson bloodstains seeped through the white bandages binding Lan
Zao's body.
His injuries hadn't healed. Ba Qi's forceful infusion had inflicted
particularly severe damage within him.
In truth, each strike to his own body triggered excruciating pain, without
exception.
Yet Lan Zao's expression remained resolute, his gaze unwaveringly firm, showing
not a trace of fear or compromise.
He was genuinely provoked.
Earlier, while training normally, he had been ambushed by Ba Qi, subjected to a
barrage of battle qi, and barely escaped with his life. After regaining
consciousness, he witnessed the clash between Ba Qi and Cai Jing, two gold
level cultivators, at the medical clinic.
Though confined to his hospital bed and unable to see their exchange clearly,
the sheer scale of a gold level clash sent his anxiety skyrocketing.
“Even with my awakened bloodline and advancement, I'm still only iron level.”
“Compared to gold level, I'm utterly defenseless!”
"According to Shuang Tu's assessment, I should be able to reach silver level.
Once I reach silver level, even if I can't defeat Ba Qi, I might be able to
escape. I could gain some initiative against such an existence."
The old Lan Zao never possessed this kind of fighting spirit. Bloodline
awakening didn't just raise his ceiling; it also provided a powerful mental
boost!
“You can rest now.” Shuang Tu had been observing the entire time, monitoring
Lan Zao's physical condition in real-time through the alchemy components.
Having developed a degree of trust in Shuang Tu, Lan Zao immediately halted his
cultivation upon receiving the reminder.
Shuang Tu began unwinding his bandages.
Once removed, Lan Zao's body was covered in a gruesome mess of blood and gore.
Shuang Tu guided him into the magic formation, activated it, and bathed him in
healing light.
Both his internal and external injuries received some treatment, though they
were far from healed.
Shuang Tu explained, “Today marks a critical phase in your battle qi
conversion. If you were fully healed before completing it, your newly formed
body wouldn't fully align with your new battle qi.”
“Thus, your injured state actually benefits you.”
"The residual Air Pressure battle qi from Ba Qi will severely suppress your
bodily instincts, preventing the emergence of the Water Grass battle qi. This
will greatly aid your conversion going forward."
"Next, repeat the previous process. After five more cycles, your conversion
should be complete."
Lan Zao nodded, committing Shuang Tu's words to memory and following the
instructions.
After five cycles, the battle qi within his body had completely been converted.
Not only was it all Air Pressure battle qi, but this battle qi was now
generated entirely by his own body. The foreign battle qi infused by Ba Qi had
either been consumed or channeled away.
“You've succeeded, but this is only the beginning. Here.” Shuang Tu handed Lan
Zao a crystal ball.
“What is this?” Lan Zao asked as he took it.
“It contains records on the Air Pressure battle qi,” Shuang Tu explained.
Lan Zao cut him off: "Have you forgotten? I can't read. Especially not snow elf
words."
“I know,” Frost Tu nodded. "That's why the crystal ball contains magic
projections. When the projections play, they'll also emit sound. You must
continuously channel battle qi into it to activate it. The moment you stop
channeling, the orb ceases to function."
“Though this alchemy artifact is rudimentary, its contents were carefully
selected for you. They hold great value.”
"Your training regimen will stem from this material. Study it thoroughly. Pay
special attention to the final section, it holds a surprise."
“Train diligently.”
Shuang Tu patted Lan Zao's shoulder and departed.
He harbored no concerns about Lan Zao's training progress.
Left alone in the underground plaza, Lan Zao began examining the crystal ball's
contents.
The magic projection revealed a human discussing and demonstrating the
cultivation methods and basic applications of the Air Pressure battle qi
technique.
Compared to other battle qi techniques, Air Pressure battle qi possessed one
distinct advantage: its exceptional proficiency in compressing air.
Upon seeing this, Lan Zao experienced a sudden flash of insight, connecting it
to the fish bladder organ within his own body.
The magic projection continued, introducing another human.
This individual bore a striking resemblance to Lan Zao's current form, clearly
another fighter possessing the Fish Bladder bloodline.
The human fighter meticulously taught the intricate coordination between Air
Pressure battle qi and one's physical structure.
One explanation aligned perfectly with Lan Zao's earlier insight: compressing
air within the fish bladder.
This approach offered numerous advantages.
The first advantage was that while the fish bladder's maximum volume remained
unchanged, the stored air volume increased severalfold. In airless
environments, this dramatically extended one's survival time.
The second benefit was that it expanded the fighter's upper and lower limits
for buoyancy control.
The third advantage was enabling deeper integration with other related battle
skills.
The human fighter stated plainly, “The Air Pressure battle qi technique
complements the Fish Bladder bloodline exceptionally well, it's practically the
perfect pairing.”
As Lan Zao watched the final segment of the magic projection, he discovered the
“surprise” Shuang Tu had mentioned.
Battle skill - Air Cannon.
This battle skill proved exceptionally practical for the Fish Bladder
bloodline. To be precise, once the Fish Bladder bloodline was combined with the
Air Pressure battle qi technique, the Air Cannon battle skill became an
essential component! Its recommended rating was the highest possible: 100.
Most fighters using this technique had to bend their arms, palms pressed
together, continuously compressing air within the spherical space formed by
their hands.
Once compressed, they enveloped it with battle qi to form an air cannonball,
which was then hurled to strike the enemy.
For fighters, only those at the gold level could manifest battle qi directly
from thin air. Thus, the minimum requirement for this Air Cannon battle skill
was gold level.
But for Lan Zao, it's different.
He could continuously compress air within his fish bladder, far more convenient
than using external palms, highly covert, and with the massive advantage of
pre-storage.
Most crucially, compressed air stored long-term within the fish bladder would
become an integral part of Lan Zao's body.
When Lan Zao released this compressed air, it's akin to hurling his own hair or
arm - this was the important point!
This meant that Lan Zao could fill compressed air with battle qi and launch it
even at the bronze level.
The long-range battle qi strike capability possessed by fighters only at the
gold level battle qi was available to Lan Zao at the bronze level.
The magic projection clearly demonstrated how the human fighter practiced
shooting air cannons, detailing specific techniques and precautions.
What truly astonished Lan Zao was the human fighter's display of numerous
projectile cores.
These were alchemy weapons.
Projectile cores were much smaller than conventional bullets, with numerous
varieties. When paired with the Air Cannon, they produced various attack
effects.
For instance, combining a signal projectile with an Air Cannon shell created a
signal flare.
Similarly, pairing a guidance projectile with an Air Cannon shell allowed Lan
Zao to craft air missiles capable of turning mid-flight, adjusting direction,
and tracking targets.
Finally, the human fighter elaborated on how to utilize these projectiles and
how to practice for optimal results. He even demonstrated the combat
effectiveness of some projectiles.
After watching the entire demonstration, Lan Zao fell silent.
Regarding the Air Pressure battle qi technique, he felt he could master it
through War Merchant's database, it wasn't particularly rare.
The same applied to the Air Cannon battle skill.
But what Shuang Tu offered went far beyond that.
He also provided Lan Zao with extensive foundational knowledge, the most
effective training methods, comprehensive precautions, and insights from
predecessors.
He even demonstrated the projectiles themselves. Undoubtedly, these alchemy
artifacts would vastly enrich and enhance Lan Zao's capabilities.
None of this was available through the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's intelligence network is incredibly powerful!”
“They managed to find the most suitable cultivation materials for me in such a
short time.”
“And they were all demonstrated by a human fighter.”
"They'll likely provide me with the projectile cores they showed at the end
too. Otherwise, there'd be no point in them showing it."
“Perhaps this organization wasn't established by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
alone. Behind it, there should be other nobles and powerful figures from the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
Lan Zao wasn't a strategist, but even he sensed the formidable strength of the
underground organization Shuang Tu belonged to through this crystal ball.
“Our cooperation with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was truly wise. At least
for me, the assistance I've received has been immense."
“Once I've mastered my cultivation, I'm sure I'll be able to offer even greater
support to the commander.”
With renewed anticipation, Lan Zao composed himself and began a new training
regimen, following the demonstration within the crystal ball.
This scene was transmitted through the alchemy apparatus, landing squarely
within Shuang Tu's field of vision.
“Seems he's picked up on a hint of something unusual,” Shuang Tu murmured with
a smile.
This was intentional.
Through the crystal ball, he “accidentally” revealed the organization's
formidable power to Lan Zao.
People were drawn to strength.
In the future, Lan Zao's frequent use of projectile cores would also forge a
strong material connection with Shuang Tu's organization, deepening his
dependence.
Following this trajectory, Shuang Tu was confident he could cultivate Lan Zao
as an asset, later infiltrating him into the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps for
reconnaissance and other covert operations.
Shuang Tu remained unaware of the survivors' true connections. To him, Lan Zao
was merely a low-ranking member recruited on Snake Rat Island, possessing only
tenuous loyalty to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, easily swayed.



****** Chapter 427: Gratifying Progress ******
Seeing Lan Zao immersed in the new training regimen, Shuang Tu summoned another
magic recording to study repeatedly.
The footage captured the entire battle between Ba Qi and Cai Jing.
Shuang Tu paused the magic recording at the final scene, his brow furrowing as
he scrutinized it with heightened focus.
As the dust settled, giant trumpet flowers stood towering around Magician Cai
Jing, continuously spewing streams of multicolored potions. Beneath where the
flowers took root, the earth's surface cracked open, revealing a hidden
subterranean chamber.
Shuang Tu recognized Cai Jing's trumpet flowers and understood the effects of
the mixed potions.
“Each giant trumpet flower costs at least 100 gold to create, with daily
maintenance expenses of roughly one gold.”
“Cai Jing has planted over a dozen here, and there should be more underground.”
“After arriving on Flower Skirt Island, he traveled across the island for over
a month before settling in the southern region. Since then, he's lived in
seclusion, publicly claiming to conduct alchemy experiments.”
“But even an alchemy laboratory wouldn't require cultivating this many giant
trumpet flowers.”
"Investing such immense resources into defenses... it seems my earlier
suspicions were correct. Cai Jing has discovered that legacy and has been
secretly developing it all along."
Shuang Tu had been lurking on Flower Skirt Island even before Cai Jing arrived.
Though expelled from the Alchemy Guild, Cai Jing remained the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's most notorious forger, every move he made drew scrutiny.
His disguise was convincing; to avoid suspicion, he even recruited a local
youngster as his potion apprentice.
Yet he could not deceive the intelligence organization to which Shuang Tu
belonged. Through subtle clues, the organization had long suspected Cai Jing
was probing the Flower Skirt Island's legacy.
This legacy originated from a legendary druid, it was the druid who transformed
the uninhabited wasteland into the present-day Flower Skirt Island.
Approaching Cai Jing and attempting to seize this legacy was Shuang Tu's most
significant mission.
Thus, this time, Shuang Tu employed Ba Qi to probe Cai Jing's true intentions,
conveniently eliminating Sang Shu's son in the process.
The latter was Cai Jing's sole apprentice on Flower Skirt Island!
“Now, we simply await Cai Jing recruiting a new apprentice,” Shuang Tu
murmured, his eyes gleaming with a sinister light.
He had been preparing for this moment for a long time.
As the proprietor of Flower Skirt Island's largest medical clinic, Shuang Tu
commanded the largest pool of druid and magician apprentices.
This was the inherent racial advantage of elves.
Their innate aptitude for magic was far more widespread than among humans,
dwarves, or other races.
According to Shuang Tu's calculations, Cai Jing wouldn't recruit silver level
apprentices, such a rank already posed a threat to gold level practitioners.
But bronze level and iron level apprentices? Shuang Tu had the most under his
command. Not only that, he had secretly cultivated and supported several
promising seeds outside his direct influence.
Shuang Tu gazed toward the southern part of the island, murmuring, "If there's
no opportunity, create one. May this time yield favorable progress."
At the same time.
"The opportunity has been presented. Whether you seize it rests solely with
you. You may leave." Cai Jing delivered his final instruction to Sang Shu.
“Yes, sir.” Sang Shu withdrew, “I shall see this matter through!”
Among all the silver level individuals on Flower Skirt Island, he maintained
the closest ties with Cai Jing.
This was primarily because his son had been chosen by Cai Jing to serve as a
potion apprentice for a period.
During this time, Sang Shu also procured vast quantities of alchemy materials
and magic plant seeds for Cai Jing.
Backed by the gold level expert, he gradually rose to become the highest-
ranking silver level administrator on Flower Skirt Island.
But now, his son was dead!
He himself had narrowly escaped death at Ba Qi's hands, had Cai Jing not
intervened.
He witnessed the battle between Cai Jing and Ba Qi. Ba Qi hadn't been defeated;
ultimately, both Cai Jing and Ba Qi had ceased fighting. This outcome left Sang
Shu deeply disappointed, but as a silver level, he could only bide his time and
remember his hatred.
When Cai Jing summoned him, he dragged his wounded body and immediately
accepted the new orders.
His son was dead, his enemy stood before him, yet he was powerless to avenge
him.
Instead, he had to fulfill the task Cai Jing had assigned him: recruiting new
potion apprentices.
"This time, Master Cai Jing wants to recruit twenty apprentices. Twenty... and
that's the minimum requirement. As Master Cai Jing said, the more potion
apprentices, the better!"
Sang Shu knew he couldn't accomplish this task alone.
Therefore, he decided to contact other administrators first.
The foremost among them was Shuang Tu, who ran the largest medical clinic on
Flower Skirt Island.
“Twenty potion apprentices, and the more the better?” Upon meeting Sang Shu,
Shuang Tu's face darkened at the news.
“On Flower Skirt Island, only you, Shuang Tu, have the largest number of druid
apprentices and magician apprentices,” Sang Shu explained. “On the account of
our long friendship, I earnestly seek your help.”
Sang Shu assumed Shuang Tu would refuse.
In his view, if Master Cai Jing lured away these apprentices under Shuang Tu's
command, they'd likely never return to work at the clinic.
Little did he know, Shuang Tu was genuinely thrilled inside.
He'd assumed Master Cai Jing would recruit just one apprentice, maybe two or
three at most.
“I never imagined he'd recruit so many at once... It seems Cai Jing is growing
impatient.” After a moment's thought, Shuang Tu grasped the reason.
Cai Jing had been secretly probing the inheritance site, but after his recent
clash with Ba Qi, he sensed his cover was blown. Now he was racing against
time, desperate to seize that inheritance.
Though he grasped this, Shuang Tu didn't immediately agree. Instead, he shook
his head in refusal: "Every apprentice here has undergone my rigorous screening
and long-term cultivation. The entire clinic's operations depend on them. I
won't agree to this partnership; it offers me nothing but harm."
Sang Shu hurriedly explained.
Shuang Tu remained unyielding at first, but as Sang Shu kept raising the
stakes, his tone softened.
Sang Shu, energized, pressed on, bargaining with Shuang Tu.
He knew securing Shuang Tu's cooperation meant completing over half the
mission!
Half an hour later, Sang Shu and Shuang Tu reached an agreement. Though the
price paid was steep, Sang Shu had ultimately achieved his objective.
Sang Shu left the clinic with a sense of triumph.
Shuang Tu was equally pleased. Sang Shu's initiative to negotiate had played
right into his hands: “This time, we've made truly substantial progress.”
Meanwhile, in the distant Blood Kin City, Zi Di had also made breakthroughs in
her research on the alchemy puppet fragments.
These fragments and shards originated from the battle in the Cold Wind Valley.
After their ambush failed, the gold level fighter and light magician had
retreated, abandoning numerous alchemy puppets to hinder the enemy's advance.
After these puppets were destroyed, Zi Di collected all the remaining
fragments.
Upon arriving in Blood Kin City, Zi Di first took over the shop, then
established a partnership with the Axe Gang. Following that, she observed the
market and began researching these spoils of war.
“This is a magic model for the Freezing Spell...” Zi Di held a small, round
bead in her hand.
The bead was ice-blue and translucent, revealing countless intricate magic
runes shimmering faintly within.
“It's hard to imagine what kind of alchemy technology could condense a Freezing
magic model into such a tiny space,” Zi Di murmured in genuine awe, despite her
limited alchemy knowledge.
“This is the very culprit responsible for our heaviest casualties!”
When the alchemy puppets were destroyed, they often detonated, instantly
freezing enemies caught off guard within blocks of ice.
Even shattering the ice proved futile. For in the instant of the explosion,
they were frozen to death.
As for resurrection methods, Zi Di possessed none.
The most basic Resurrection required at least a bishop clergyman to cast.
"Thankfully we acquired the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer. Its attack effect
prevented all the alchemy puppets from detonating. Otherwise, our casualties
would have been far heavier."
“If my guess is correct, this should be a modified version of the Ice Explosion
Orb,” Zi Di's eyes flashed with sharp insight.
The Ice Explosion Orb was a throwing weapon roughly the size of an adult's
fist. It could create an explosion, instantly freezing and killing enemies
within a certain range.
Although the orb in Zi Di's hand was only the size of a baby's fist, the
similarities between the two were striking.
Over time, Zi Di had gained deeper insight into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's
affairs.
She understood: the kingdom's military alchemy technology stemmed almost
entirely from frost-based magic.
The Ice Explosion Orb's origin lay in the Freezing Spell.
“The Thin Ice Wall Shield used by Teng Dong Lang in his heroic duel evolved
from the Ice Wall Spell.”
"And the Ice Spike Bayonets widely issued throughout the kingdom are alchemy
weapons developed from the Ice Spear Spell. In peacetime, they function as
spearheads or daggers for thrusting attacks. In critical moments, they can be
launched as projectiles. Upon striking a target, they often inflict penetrating
wounds."
The Ice Explosion Orb, Thin Wall Ice Shield, and Ice Spike Bayonet are all
signature equipment of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's military.
"So, this small Ice Explosion Orb in my hand is actually a military product?
Developed from the Ice Explosion Orb specifically for alchemy puppets? Was it
developed specifically for alchemy puppets, based on the Ice Explosion Orb?” Zi
Di couldn't help but speculate.
“Could the ones ambushing us be military personnel?”
Zi Di shook her head slightly, dismissing the possibility.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's military not
only lacked conflict but actually collaborated.
The Li Jian Clan, currently their partner, controlled the Second Navy.
“If not the military, then the most likely scenario is that the enemy obtained
this military level item through some other means.”
“Perhaps certain black markets?” Zi Di speculated silently.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could leverage the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord's connections to procure “decommissioned warships” from the kingdom's
black market, why couldn't others obtain these small Ice Explosion Orbs?
“Another possibility is that these small Ice Explosion Orbs are privately
modified,” Zi Di's thoughts raced.
“We need to investigate...”
For her, the best outcome would be that no such goods were sold on the market,
and the small Ice Explosion Orbs were indeed privately modified products.
In that case, this lead would be highly valuable.
Given future opportunities, Zi Di and her companions could follow the trail to
uncover the true identity of the enemies who ambushed them.
But if these small Ice Explosion Orbs were already circulating widely on the
black market, then this lead would be useless.



****** Chapter 428: Zi Di’s Advancement ******
The thought of conducting an investigation made Zi Di frown slightly.
The current situation was that she couldn’t find anyone reliable to handle the
inquiry.
Zi Di sighed inwardly, there were still too few capable people she could rely
on. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had grown remarkably since its founding,
and when assembled, it was truly a gathering of talent. Yet now, scattered
across operations, even a slight expansion left them stretched thin.
In truth, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had always lacked intelligence
specialists.
No matter how advanced the alchemy components or reconnaissance puppets, they
could never replace human agents.
Every major organization maintained an intelligence apparatus. The Lion Dragon
Mercenary Group primarily acquired intelligence through external purchases,
with the Thieves' Guild serving as the survivors' main source of information.
This arrangement was clearly inappropriate.
From an outsider's perspective, the Lion Dragon Mercenary Group appeared merely
a minor power, its strongest members barely reaching silver level, lacking even
a single gold level individual.
For such factions or organizations, lacking an intelligence division was
perfectly normal. Maintaining an intelligence department carried significant
costs, which small factions struggled to bear. From a cost-benefit perspective,
outsourcing to the Thieves' Guild was highly advantageous.
Yet Zi Di firmly believed that the current small-scale faction was merely the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' starting point. In the future, their organization
would inevitably grow into a major power, even becoming a superpower was
entirely possible.
This conviction stemmed not from wishful thinking or overreach, but from one
primary reason: the Bloodcore.
With bloodlines, anything was possible!
"For us, establishing an intelligence department is essential. Intelligence
personnel must be utterly loyal and reliable, so the sooner we establish it,
the better."
“But that won't be my responsibility.”
"I have no clue about intelligence matters, nor is it my area of expertise.
This issue is best left for the commander to consider!" Zi Di pondered
inwardly.
For the survivors, the immediate priority was contacting the Bai Zhen Clan and
building connections with the upper echelons of the Sheng Ming Empire to atone
for their sins.
The secondary priority was Zi Di's business plan.
Funding was crucial for any endeavor.
The economy was the foundation for everything.
Establishing an intelligence division would demand enormous expenses. Offering
monetary compensation to atone with the Empire's leadership was also a viable
approach.
Though the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps held substantial funds, their loot from
the Two Eyes Island skirmish had made them rich, their current expenditures
were significant and would only grow.
Sitting on their laurels was not an option.
While they still held capital, aggressively expanding, investing, and
establishing a stable cash flow was the wisest course.
Even if atonement failed, this foundation would allow the survivors to scrape
by for a time.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom lay isolated offshore, distant from the Sheng Ming
Empire. Should the Sheng Ming Empire seek trouble with the survivors in the
future, this location could still serve as a temporary refuge.
Once Zi Di successfully expanded her commercial empire within the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, the benefits extended far beyond mere capital. Access to various
scarce resources would become significantly easier. Just as before in Snow Bird
Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps leveraged the city lord's connections
to secretly acquire vast quantities of rare resources, far exceeding what could
be obtained on the open market.
This applied not only to materials but also to human resources.
The dragonman youngster's victory over Teng Dong Lang had made the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps renowned throughout the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Should Zi Di's commercial plan succeed, the group's financial standing would
gain widespread recognition.
With both fame and fortune, more people would acknowledge the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps as an organization. Consequently, the survivors could leverage
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to access better human resources, such as
accomplished alchemists, masterful pharmacists, or genuine intelligence
operatives willing to pledge allegiance.
Most talents only became recruitable once an organization possessed sufficient
strength.
As the saying went: a wise man finds the best opportunities available, and a
wise bird chooses the best tree to nest in.
Without sufficient strength, talented individuals simply would not consider
them.
Having a rare talent like Bu Quan join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
merely an exception.
“Speaking of which, we owe Bu Quan a debt of gratitude this time. She optimized
the production process for the dragon rider potion, boosting output
severalfold.”
“For her, such refinements are merely foundational skills, right?”
Zi Di knew she herself could never achieve such feats.
Not long ago, when she learned the news through a letter, she was genuinely
delighted.
The significant increase in output gave her greater confidence in implementing
her business plans.
“All my previous efforts to persuade her were not in vain.”
Zi Di admired Bu Quan's alchemy talent deeply, yet without a trace of envy.
As a merchant, she understood the concept of human resources very well.
With Bu Quan joining them, it was a tremendous boost for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. The current profits were already substantial, and they were
likely to grow even higher in the future!
Of course, Zi Di was well aware of Bu Quan's affection for the dragonman
youngster.
But the ghost girl placed greater faith in the bond between herself and the
dragonman youngster. Their experiences on Mystifying Monster Island and the
secrets of the Bloodcore formed the foundation of their relationship, and also
the distance between the dragonman youngster and Bu Quan.
“The potion market in Blood Kin City has been thoroughly observed these past
few days.”
“Next, we'll select several individuals to remain at the shop in Blood Kin
City.”
This was part of Zi Di's business plan, designed to strengthen her connections
with each sales point.
Those chosen to accompany Zi Di were all handpicked by her.
Some were mercenaries who joined earlier on Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes
Island. Others were snow elves recruited at Snow Bird Harbor. Most were humans
and snow elves, though there were also oxmen, dogmen, and water pigmen.
Having their own people embedded to oversee operations was essential; relying
solely on the Li Jian Clan's personnel risked being manipulated.
Zi Di decided to station one dogman and one snow elf.
The snow elf could blend into the environment, while the dogman maintained
distance, ensuring loyalty to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Over-integration was unwise; it invited manipulation and defection. The Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps were outsiders; this was a snow elf kingdom. Dispatching
snow elves to every sales point alone was unsafe.
Overemphasizing loyalty while becoming too isolated from the outside world was
equally unwise. Failure to integrate would hinder business expansion. Beyond
financial losses, it could spark severe conflicts—even leading to violent
incidents like local residents storming shops.
Opening branches was no simple task.
Zi Di had to meticulously construct the team structure, building a moat of
authority to lay a solid foundation for long-term, stable business.
Though lacking hands-on experience in this area, Zi Di came from a merchant
family and had observed operational methods from her father. Having been
immersed in this environment, Zi Di possessed abundant confidence in herself.
"In every city we reach, I'll leave behind several people. By the time we reach
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, our sales network will be largely established."
"Zong Ge disdained the combat strength of the people I selected. Back in the
Cold Wind Valley, he even considered using them as bait. Little did he know, I
had secretly tested each of them. They are all talents who can become the
cornerstone of my business plan."
Forming a partnership with the Li Jian Clan was an absolute breakthrough for
the survivors!
None of the survivors grasped its significance, except Fei She. Upon hearing of
Zi Di's success, he trembled with excitement, his eyes gleaming as he sighed
deeply: Looking at Zi Di before him felt like seeing the old president!
Leveraging the Li Jian Clan, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps spread like vines
grafted onto a sturdy trunk, drawing nourishment and flourishing rapidly. This
allowed the survivors to leapfrog their initial vulnerable phase, saving
precious time, seizing critical opportunities, and positioning themselves more
effectively to capture market share across the entire kingdom.
Blood Kin City and Snow Bird Harbor were quite close. The two individuals Zi Di
had selected were considered relatively weaker. In the future, when they
reached more important cities, Zi Di would select those she deemed more
promising to stay behind.
“Once the first caravan from Snow Bird Harbor successfully delivers its goods
to Blood Kin City, we can leave,” Zi Di planned.
“Of course, we must remain cautious when departing.”
They were still unaware of the ambush awaiting them.
"Therefore, capital alone is utterly insufficient. In fact, excessive wealth
can become a source of trouble. Military might is the true safeguard of
everything."
Putting her scheming aside for now, Zi Di retrieved a soul crystal and began
her daily cultivation practice.
As she absorbed its essence, the crystal steadily shrank in size.
A peculiar fluctuation emanated from Zi Di's body.
The ghost girl's body trembled slightly. At that moment, her magician level
advanced by one level.
She advanced from bronze level to iron level!
Zi Di felt not the slightest surprise.
Her promotion to an iron level necromancer had long been within her
expectations.
She had been an iron level magician in life. After death, her soul had been
reshaped by negative energy and, through Cang Xu's Soul Summoning Spell,
successfully transformed into a ghost.
Her life level had always been iron level. However, her original magic pool
remained within her body, while her magician level reset to zero.
She had no choice but to rebuild her magic pool and recommence her magician
training.
Her prior experience and iron level life level provided immense assistance to
her magician cultivation.
“I'm finally back to the iron level,” Zi Di murmured softly.
Transcendent cultivation usually involves gradual accumulation leading to a
qualitative leap.
But considering the time, Zi Di's cultivation period wasn't actually that long.
The primary reason she felt it was so long and agonizing was her urgent need
for a higher magician level.
Because she was constantly pretending to be a silver level magician while
relying on her bronze level magician level, the pressure was immense.
Now that she was iron level again, the hidden pressure had eased considerably.
“On the other hand, it also conserves Pearl Bubbles.”
This was easy to understand.
Pretending to be a silver level magician as a bronze level was much harder than
someone who was already an iron level.
“But my soul crystals are running low.”
As a ghost, soul-devouring was an instinctive act of sustenance. Doing so
risked memory confusion, personality shifts, even loss of sanity and descent
into madness, all negative states.
The fate of most ghosts was to succumb to this primal urge. The more they fed,
the deeper they sank into instinct, corrupted by negative energy until they
became beasts that despised all life.
Soul crystals were different. They were utterly pure, the perfect substitute.
Not only did they satisfy hunger, but they also enhanced a ghost's foundation
and strengthened its spirit power without any adverse effects.



****** Chapter 429: Snake Shadow Ghost and Rat Eye Ghost ******
Zi Di's current soul crystals had fallen below twenty.
Since obtaining them for the first time, her supply had never been replenished.
In truth, she had no way to replenish them.
Each crystal used depleted her reserves, leaving her with less than twenty now.
The resources Zi Di had gathered for undead cultivation came almost entirely
from Cang Xu.
Honestly, her rapid advancement to an iron level necromancer was largely thanks
to him.
“To maintain this cultivation pace before my official resurrection, I must find
new undead resources,” Zi Di frowned again, sinking into distress.
Gathering undead resources was no simple task.
Necromancers had always been in a precarious position, hunted by the entire
world. Just finding reliable channels was incredibly difficult. Numerous
factions secretly laid traps, spreading false information about black markets
to lure necromancers into revealing themselves.
Zi Di currently had urgent matters to attend to and simply didn't have time for
this.
“Acting under my current identity carries too great a risk. If exposed, the
consequences for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be catastrophic,
consequences we cannot bear.”
“Therefore, I must still entrust this to Cang Xu.”
Zi Di sighed softly within.
She harbored deep trust and expectations for her comrades.
On one hand, this mindset had been forged by their arduous struggle for
survival on Mystifying Monster Island. On the other, it stemmed from her
merchant nature.
Merchants excelled at networking, leveraging connections to mobilize resources
and generate profits.
'Just because I couldn't do something didn't mean others couldn't.'
'If others could, through cooperation, I too could benefit and transcend my own
limitations.'
This was the mindset of a merchant.
It was precisely this mindset that led Zi Di to swiftly agree when the
dragonman youngster had persuaded her to share the Bloodcore with others.
This decision stemmed not only from her deep affection for the youngster but
also from her own understanding and values.
Zi Di began meditating, gathering magic power to fill her expanded magic pool
after the upgrade.
Though magicians could harness external elemental energy, their own magic pool
also had to be replenished. It was like a merchant's capital, the larger the
principal, the more leverage they gained.
"Compared to bronze level, my iron level undead magic power has expanded over
twofold. It's even twice as large as my fire-element magic pool in life, and my
spirit has grown stronger too," Zi Di silently compared.
This was a unique cultivation experience one most magicians would never
possess.
“But compared to my bloodline-purified body, my current meditation efficiency
still falls far short!”
The gap was quite evident.
Zi Di's bloodline had been purified to 100% purity, matching Lan Zao's extreme
refinement. Unlike Lan Zao, however, her Gunpowder Flower bloodline was gold
level, surpassing the silver level Fish Bladder bloodline.
Originally, Zi Di had planned to create a passive meditation environment to
continuously elevate her body's magician level.
Unfortunately, an unexpected incident occurred with Lan Zao, forcing the
dragonman youngster to control the Deep Sea Monster Fish to pursue him, and
taking her body with him.
Before parting, both had considered having Zi Di take her body on the journey
to the Ice Sculpture Capital.
But after thorough deliberation, they both deemed the risk too great. If
discovered, the truth about Zi Di's undead identity would be exposed. If danger
struck along the way and her body was destroyed, the consequences would be even
worse.
Judging by the ambush in the Cold Wind Valley, the dragonman youngster and Zi
Di's concerns were justified.
They had made the right choice, leaving Zi Di's body safely aboard the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
Through the Soul Send Spell, Zi Di could control her body, though this wasn't
true resurrection. Meditation remained difficult, plagued by numerous
interferences. Even so, the efficiency of meditation in this state far
surpassed her current capabilities.
The gold level bloodline was truly exceptional!
Having experienced it, Zi Di found it unforgettable.
“My current ghost life form likely caps out at iron level.” With more
experience, Zi Di could now make a fairly accurate assessment.
Generally speaking, transforming a normal life into an undead ghost didn't
necessarily mean an increase in aptitude.
Cang Xu was an exception because he was selected by the soul aspect inheritance
hidden within the oil painting. He had been tested and found to possess the
aptitude for cultivating necromancy magic.
Zi Di hadn't directly accessed the undead inheritance, but her own dual
cultivation achievements proved she was qualified to practice necromancy.
Yet, through practice, Zi Di grew increasingly aware: her aptitude for this
path was also limited.
Zi Di wasn't disheartened. In fact, she felt content.
It was precisely this aptitude that saved her from complete death on Mystifying
Monster Island. Though now transformed into undead life, a sliver of hope for
resurrection remained.
“Besides, my undead aptitude isn't without room for improvement.”
"Once I find the answer, and discover the nature of my undead bloodline, then
purify it, as long as my current bloodline concentration isn't 100%, there's
potential for growth."
Zi Di could test bloodlines with potions, but her methods were limited to
living beings, undead were beyond her expertise.
Cang Xu shared all the undead inheritance he'd acquired from Weeping Pine
Island.
Yet these teachings were either foundational or elementary, lacking any
bloodline knowledge.
The undead school had developed spells capable of directly detecting undead
bloodlines and cultivation aptitude, but such spells were recorded in
intermediate undead inheritances. Cang Xu hadn't even managed to obtain them
from Jian Gui yet.
Zi Di's meditation efficiency was low.
Partly due to bloodline limitations, partly due to a lack of negative energy.
Typically, suitable locations for necromancers to cultivate are graveyards,
mass burial grounds, ancient battlefields, and the like.
Yet she now found herself in the very heart of Blood Kin City.
Fortunately, she still possessed undead resources that could supply negative
energy.
This approach was actually quite wasteful. These undead resources could easily
serve as alchemy materials or similar uses. Extracting the negative energy for
meditation rendered these resources largely useless. Even if some residual
value remained, it would be drastically diminished.
Moreover, to conceal the fluctuations of negative energy and prevent her secret
from being exposed, Zi Di had to lay down a magic formation for camouflage.
She wasn't worried about her identity being revealed through necromancer
cultivation.
Her primary confidence lay in the Deceptive Disguise spell.
To date, this spell had never failed her.
Still, it was a resource drain. The cost was incalculable - the Pearl Bubble
was a god level material!
By the time Zi Di replenished her newly expanded magic pool, it was deep into
the night.
Yet she felt alert and vibrant. As a ghost, she required no sleep. Only when
her spirit reached utter exhaustion would she slip into slumber.
Zi Di summoned several ghosts and began modifying them.
From the undead inheritance obtained from Cang Xu, Zi Di specialized in
cultivating the soul aspect.
The core content of the elementary soul aspect inheritance centered on
necromancers modifying basic ghosts, enhancing them comprehensively or in
specialized areas.
This formed the foundation for a necromancer to build an army single-handedly.
Zi Di modified only two types of ghosts: snake souls and rat souls.
Nearly all these ghosts originated from Snake Rat Island.
On Snake Rat Island, she obtained vast numbers of ghosts by slaying tide snakes
and smelt rats.
Following the methods in the elementary undead inheritance, she was
transforming snake ghosts into snake shadow ghosts and rat ghosts into rat eye
ghosts.
Snake shadow ghosts could blend into shadows for concealment. They could
covertly track targets, providing the necromancer with markings within a
certain range.
Rat eye ghosts enhance reconnaissance capabilities.
“Reaching iron level has significantly boosted my soul-altering abilities.”
The effects of leveling up were immediate and palpable.
Soon, Zi Di's magic power reserves were depleted.
She meditated once more, drawing negative energy from the undead materials.
Once again, her reserves were quickly exhausted.
After several rounds, the undead materials were heavily depleted, but she
gained over twenty iron level modified ghosts.
“Thankfully, modifying ghosts is necromancy, not alchemy.” Zi Di exhaled a
cloud of stale breath.
After hesitating, she decided to activate Deceptive Disguise Formation.
She retrieved the formation diagram panels and swiftly assembled them.
She had practiced this step extensively beforehand, preparing for future
emergencies that might require immediate adjustments to Deceptive Disguise
spell's actual effects.
Compared to the Bloodline Purification Formation, constructing the Deceptive
Disguise Formation was less complex. Back then, Zi Di and Cang Xu had completed
the first such formation.
Once the portable formation diagram panels became available, Zi Di immediately
began secretly assembling a second Deceptive Disguise Formation.
This too was a precaution against unforeseen circumstances.
If the primary Deceptive Disguise Formation were to fail, leaving survivors
without a functioning one when urgently needed, the consequences would be dire.
The ordeal on Mystifying Monster Island had profoundly altered the survivors'
approach to action. Those who had survived now sought the utmost preparedness.
Only through such thoroughness could they maintain a higher margin for error in
this perilous environment and secure greater chances of survival.
After successfully activating the formation, Zi Di gradually channeled all the
snake shadow ghosts and rat eye ghosts into it.
Zi Di knew the truth, these modified ghosts remained unchanged. But she was
certain the Deceptive Disguise spell had been successfully cast. To the
unsuspecting, these ghosts appeared as nothing more than scouting puppets.
To minimize the consumption of pearl bubbles and extend the spell's duration,
the modified ghosts were disguised to closely resemble snakes and rats.
"I must conserve when possible. After all, Pearl Bubbles are running low," Zi
Di sighed inwardly.
Compared to soul crystals, pearl bubbles were an absolute necessity for
survivors, holding immense significance.
Zi Di wouldn't skimp where it mattered.
Like now, casting the Deceptive Disguise spell on these modified ghosts was
essential. Using them directly risked discovery and major trouble.
Now, with the Deceptive Disguise spell, Zi Di could deploy them with
confidence.
Moreover, as undead belonged to a newly established magician faction, even
these lowly iron level ghosts held promising reconnaissance potential.
Take her previous battle in Cold Wind Valley: when she deployed Lan Lu's ghost,
enemies never suspected a necromancer's hand at work, mistaking it for a
combat-type alchemy puppet.
"If I could modify Lan Lu, my combat strength would increase dramatically. Even
facing Zong Ge, I'd have a chance in direct combat."
At this stage, Zi Di wasn't quite ready to attempt modifying Lan Lu.
This ghost had been a two headed ogre magician in life, possessing immense
potential. After its successful soul summoning, its room for growth was
considerable.
Zi Di had devised numerous modification plans for it, but such alterations
typically required substantial time. At this stage, she still needed Lan Lu's
combat strength, making the timing inopportune.
“However, I could emulate that light magician and deploy large numbers of
alchemy puppets.”
Zi Di's own combat prowess, constrained by her magician level, was limited.
Truthfully, she held little interest in combat herself.
Posing as a silver level, she typically relied on superior gear or spell
scrolls to unleash barrages of firepower during battles.
Her foundational skills were solid, a testament to her training at the academy.
But when it came to innate combat talent or brilliant improvisation in the heat
of battle? That was almost entirely absent.
Zi Di herself understood her true interests and where her genuine talents lay.
She wasn't particularly fixated on her own combat abilities.
The battle in Cold Wind Valley had offered her some enlightenment.
After all, an enemy was often the best teacher.
“Compared to a standard magician, I can now control more alchemy puppets.”
After employing soul crystals and casting the Burden Alleviation Spell and
Karma Reduction Spell, Zi Di's mental strain had significantly lessened. Her
recent promotion to iron level had triggered a qualitative leap through
quantitative accumulation, substantially expanding both her magic pool capacity
and mental endurance threshold.
“Moreover, ghosts inherently excel in spirit power prowess.”
This disparity stemmed from their differing life forms.
“Still, acquiring combat-type alchemy puppets will involve Snow Bird Harbor.”
“Purchasing them within Blood Kin City feels unsettling.”
After all, Zi Di and her companions encountered an ambush while en route to
Blood Kin City. The enemy's true identity remained unknown.
“I'll draft the letter now and have it delivered first thing tomorrow morning.”
“Hopefully this batch of alchemy puppets can arrive alongside the first
shipment.”
“May it arrive in time.”
Zi Di's communication method with the Snow Bird Harbor branch was simple and
straightforward: relying on messengers to swiftly travel via teleportation
formations.
Tripleblade received Zi Di's letter at dawn.
At that moment, he was discussing recent expenditure matters for the mercenary
group's funds with Fei She.
He had already learned of the ambush by mysterious powerful foes that Zi Di,
Zong Ge, and their group had encountered in the Cold Wind Valley. Zi Di's plan
to acquire a large number of alchemy puppets to enhance their combat strength
was a good thing.
Tripleblade saw no reason to object and fully agreed.
“President Zi Di has once again become an iron level magician, truly excellent
news.”
"We should inform Magician Bu Quan shortly. She likely knows more about alchemy
puppets than we do. Perhaps she can offer better advice on selecting the most
suitable models for us to purchase." Tripleblade remarked.
Then he sighed again: "But this means our expenses will increase significantly.
What are we to do?"
He looked at Fei She with a worried expression.
Fei She smiled at him: "My stance remains unchanged, Tripleblade. Our current
investment situation is sound. There's no need to worry excessively."



****** Chapter 430: Tripleblade’s Dream ******
Tripleblade himself was the leader of a mercenary group. He now remained in
Snow Bird Harbor, efficiently managing the branch operations behind the scenes.
Yet his experience also had significant limitations.
His original mercenary group had been of modest rank and size, never handling
expenditures of such staggering magnitude.
In this regard, he fell far short of Fei She.
Though Fei She appeared ordinary, he was a veteran of the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance, having handled and witnessed far more money than Tripleblade.
He too remained in Snow Bird Harbor, not accompanying Zi Di to the Ice
Sculpture Capital.
His primary duty was overseeing Zi Di's commercial ventures. As the production
hub for dragon rider potions, Snow Bird Harbor served as the engine of these
ventures, requiring someone with business acumen to hold the fort.
However, Fei She faced a situation similar to Tripleblade's, both were held
back by their combat limitations despite talents exceeding their transcendent
level.
Tripleblade operated behind the scenes, with Chi Lai and Men Shi appearing as
the public faces. Fei She's predicament was worse. As a mere mortal, advancing
the business plans and executing commercial maneuvers required Tripleblade's
intermediary role.
Seeing Tripleblade still frowning, Fei She sighed inwardly and pressed on with
his persuasion.
If Fei She possessed sufficient strength, he wouldn't need Tripleblade to
implement his strategies, he could push them through single-handedly. But
reality dictated otherwise. He had to influence a more powerful figure to
ensure the business plan remained unaffected.
Fei She stated, "You've seen how popular our dragon rider potion is in Snow
Bird Harbor. Therefore, introducing this potion to other regions of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom will undoubtedly lead to massive sales."
“Thanks to Magician Bu Quan's refinement of the production process, our potion
output has increased exponentially.”
“Our partnership with the Li Jian Clan has spared us the initial store setup
work, providing immense assistance!”
“Now, we only need to await the first wave of returned capital to achieve
positive cash flow.”
"As for the sudden expense of purchasing alchemy puppets, there's no need for
concern. This falls entirely within our means. Based on my market observations
and understanding of alchemy puppet pricing, the funds required represent less
than one-tenth of our total capital."
This batch of alchemy puppets was for Zi Di’s exclusive use.
She already had numerous ghosts to manage, so she couldn’t handle too many
puppets.
Despite Fei She’s reassurances, Tripleblade remained uneasy.
For a goblin like him, things that hadn't happened were merely considered
plans, not reality.
Fei She read the room and sighed in resignation.
He had done his utmost to persuade Tripleblade, but the effect was limited.
With his wealth of life experience, Fei She understood that men like
Tripleblade were pragmatic, seasoned by hands-on experience. Tripleblade
himself had once been a successful leader of a mercenary group. These
successful experiences had shaped Tripleblade, but they also bound him,
narrowing his perspective and making him reluctant to trust outsiders' words.
Fei She ceased further persuasion. He understood that for someone like
Tripleblade, no amount of persuasion could replace the power of reality
speaking for itself!
Only when future developments proved Fei She's foresight correct would
Tripleblade come to understand.
Fei She took his leave, while Tripleblade remained deeply troubled.
In stark contrast to his gloomy demeanor here, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
thrived!
The branch left behind in Snow Bird Harbor had, in this short span, elevated
their mercenary rank once more. Their mission success rate stood at 100%, and
their customer satisfaction rating was equally perfect!
Such achievements were nothing short of astonishing.
But a closer look at the missions they'd completed revealed the reason.
The tasks taken on by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch were all quite
“small.” So “small” as to include helping with moving, repairing furniture,
finding lost cats, slaughtering chickens and ducks, and so on.
Yet despite the “simplicity” of these tasks, the rewards were exceptionally
generous, resulting in considerable income for the branch.
“All of this is thanks to the commander.” Tripleblade understood clearly that
all this success stemmed from the dragonman youngster.
Ever since the dragonman youngster had publicly slain the gold level Teng Dong
Lang in a heroic duel, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ fortunes had completely
turned around.
Following that battle, the Bayonet Gang was directly annihilated by the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord, prompting factions large and small to express goodwill
toward the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Numerous factions proactively issued mercenary contracts, specifically
requesting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps by name. These assignments were
remarkably easy yet offered exceptionally generous rewards.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' detachment successfully completed these
missions with only a handful of low level transcendent individuals.
Not only did they earn substantial rewards, but the corps' rank also rose
significantly.
“Though we're still a minor force, our leader can slay a gold level, so
external factions almost universally regard us with respect.”
Tripleblade understood this treatment was exceptionally rare.
Having served as a mercenary leader for years with unwavering dedication, he
had never received such favorable treatment. Nor had he witnessed any other
mercenary group enjoying comparable regard.
It wasn't that the Sheng Ming Empire lacked powerful mercenaries.
Rather, the dragonman youngster's feat of defeating a gold level opponent as a
silver level fighter was exceptionally rare.
Crucially, the dragonman youngster had vanquished the leader of the Bayonet
Gang, a triumph of justice over evil! Such a righteous cause made public
acceptance far easier.
The dragonman youngster's fame throughout the Ice Sculpture Capital stemmed not
only from his astonishing achievements but also from the public goodwill earned
through his righteous deeds.
Having become the true leader behind the scenes of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' branch, Tripleblade's motivation was fully ignited after such a smooth
start.
Originally a mercenary leader himself, he had always harbored the ambition to
lead his group to greater heights.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' current standing now matches that of the
mercenary group he once commanded.
This string of successes fueled Tripleblade's work with boundless enthusiasm,
filling each day with relentless drive. As he lay awake at night, his thoughts
overflowed with both reflection and anticipation: Could it be that his long-
held dream would finally be realized in this foreign land, through such an
extraordinary path?
Thus, when Tripleblade witnessed such a massive expenditure, his heart skipped
a beat, and intense worry gripped him.
He refused to let this promising situation crumble under his watch!
On one hand, it was his sense of responsibility. Appointed to secretly lead the
mercenary company's branch, he certainly didn't want to botch it. On the other
hand, this was his... one could say, his life's ambition. He deeply desired to
see his mercenary company reach the pinnacle.
Of course, he knew the limits of his bloodline. Thus, in leading the Snow Bird
Harbor detachment this time, he eagerly anticipated achieving his ambition
indirectly through this unconventional approach.
Tripleblade was tense even though Fei She had offered extensive explanations
during their conversation.
He was well aware of Fei She's background and had heard about his business
acumen.
“But what if he miscalculated?”
“Better safe than sorry! Even if the odds are slim!”
“No, I have to do something. Even if it doesn't work, I have to act.”
Tripleblade knew he couldn't sit idle; he needed work to ease his anxiety.
But making money... had never been his forte.
He racked his brain: “To secure funds, it boils down to increasing income or
cutting expenses.”
“For income, naturally, we'll take on more mercenary contracts.”
“As for cutting expenses...” Tripleblade's gaze fell on the ledger, which
detailed nearly every financial transaction of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Currently, the largest expense was procurement.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps constantly purchased alchemy materials
externally, in significant quantities and through numerous channels. The main
sources were the six merchant alliances and contacts connected to the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
Among these, the largest expenditure was buying the dragon beasts and wyverns.
Tripleblade was unaware this was specifically for the dragonman youngster to
absorb bloodlines. His alchemy knowledge was non-existent; he couldn't discern
the trickery and genuinely believed these were ingredients for potions.
“These obviously can't be touched.” Tripleblade turned his attention to the
second largest expenditure.
This portion of funds was allocated for purchasing equipment and items.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps now have money. Transcendent cultivation rarely
involved sudden mutations; it required time to accumulate. Thus, acquiring a
single high-quality piece of equipment could often lead to a dramatic surge in
combat power.
Even before the duel with Teng Dong Lang, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
begun aggressively purchasing equipment.
After the duel, the procurement efforts didn't decrease. Instead, they
increased further, fueled by the booming sales of the dragon rider potion.
The survivors genuinely craved high-end gear.
As the capital of alchemists, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom boasted a highly
developed alchemy industry. Here, the survivors could more easily acquire
equipment and items offering superior value for money.
“This is a bit excessive. We could scale it back a bit,” Tripleblade concluded
after analysis, forming a different perspective.
In his view, the current focus on acquiring silver level gear was generally too
high for most of the survivors.
After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn't have many silver level
members. Among the true core members, only the dragonman youngster and Zong Ge
were silver level.
"Acquiring so many silver level items is unnecessary. Besides, there's also
magician equipment. Among our own ranks, both magicians are necromancers—these
items aren't suitable for them."
"Also, should we really be collecting gold level gear and items? We already
have plenty of gold level equipment, and the defensive gold gear we truly need
remains unavailable."
“Regarding this suggestion... I'll write to them shortly.”
Following this, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps proceeded to procure alchemy
arrows, bullets, and other supplies.
Tripleblade had no objections on this front.
He'd witnessed the high level escape battle against the Bayonet Gang. That
conflict had cost the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps dearly, their flagship, the
Love Triangle, had been in the repair shop for days.
Tripleblade continued reading.
The third critical expense category was daily operations.
The largest portion was food cost!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps purchased vast quantities of transcendent
ingredients and employed numerous magic chefs to prepare transcendent food.
The current branch boasted a large number of transcendent individuals, and many
of the newly recruited snow elf members possessed spellcasting abilities. The
two squads currently in training underwent grueling daily drills, and these
nutrient-rich meals ensured they wouldn't be worn out by the training.
“Wait, what's going on here?”
“The big guy's food expenses alone rival those of the Quick Knife Squad?”
Tripleblade stared wide-eyed, utterly baffled.
“That big oaf sure has a huge appetite, doesn't he?”
"I remember his appetite wasn't this massive. Could someone be secretly
embezzling funds?"
Tripleblade couldn't sit still. He immediately set out to investigate
personally.



****** Chapter 431: The Most Gifted Survivor ******
Tripleblade had long known that the big guy had ascended to the transcendent
realm, and that his appetite had consequently skyrocketed.
Under the care of the dragonman youngster, the big guy could now automatically
circulate the Mindless Sleeping Posture battle qi technique while sleeping,
thus formally embarking on the path of cultivation.
After ascending to the bronze level, he had also trained aboard the ship
alongside Zong Ge and the others.
His performance during training caught Zong Ge's attention, though the latter
expressed regret, had the big guy been able to cultivate battle skills, he
would undoubtedly have been a formidable weapon on the battlefield.
Unfortunately, the big guy's intelligence wasn't up to par; he couldn't learn
any battle skills.
"Advancing to the transcendent realm does indeed cause one's appetite to
skyrocket. This is because the essence of life itself grows, demanding greater
nourishment from the outside world. A mouse and an elephant require different
foods and quantities. As the life level increases, so does the cost of
sustaining vital functions."
“But shouldn't a transcendent's appetite stabilize after advancement? Why does
it keep increasing?”
Tripleblade wanted to investigate this, not to skimp on the big guy's meals.
He would never do such a thing.
On one hand, Tripleblade knew: the old shipwright had entrusted the big guy to
the commander on his deathbed, and the commander had always looked out for him.
On the other hand, during their time on Mystifying Monster Island, it was the
big guy who protected the newly built ship, and Tripleblade had indirectly
received life-saving favors from him.
Tripleblade wasn't the type to bite the hand that fed him.
His concern was corruption. He'd witnessed it firsthand in the mercenary group
he once led. Tripleblade understood that wherever profit existed, parasites
bred if left unchecked.
Especially with the big guy's intellectual limitations, the survivors all knew
he was easily deceived.
With no trustworthy subordinates available, Tripleblade resolved to investigate
personally.
His method was straightforward, he confronted the big guy directly, demanding a
clear explanation.
The big guy's response: "Eat? I like to eat."
“Not full... I want more food.”
"Father! I want Father more."
Tripleblade's attempts at communication proved fruitless; the big guy answered
nothing like his questions.
“The big guy's grown taller again, but his IQ seems inversely proportional to
his height, it appears to have dropped further?” Tripleblade sighed in
resignation.
Over this period, the big guy had shot up at least another 0.5 meters. Had the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps not acquired their new flagship, the forecastle of
their previous vessel, the Love Triangle, would have been too cramped for him.
Noticing it was nearing noon, Tripleblade decided to stay and observe
personally.
“Just eat. Don't look over here.”
The goblin hid in a shadowy corner of the forecastle, carefully suppressing his
aura.
Soon after, the meal delivery person nervously knocked on the cabin door.
Then, five or six people filed into the forecastle, bringing food for the big
guy.
My word!
The trays they carried, held aloft with both hands, were nearly the size of a
normal person's footbath, overflowing with magic dishes.
The wooden barrels held enough rice to feed fifty people. This was magic rice,
emitting a faint bronze scent.
Large quantities of green and blue stir-fried vegetables filled the air with an
enticing aroma. Fruits like pineapples as big as human heads displayed vivid
colors.
The main course was a pig's hind leg nearly half a man's height, sparks flying
from it. The sparks formed heart shapes in the air. Tripleblade immediately
recognized it as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' head chef's signature dish -
Heartfire Ham.
The big guy grabbed the pig's hind leg and buried his face in it, devouring it.
In no time, the plump, glossy ham was reduced to a single large bone.
The big guy wolfed it down.
He lifted a foot-basin-sized soup bowl, swallowed several times, and drained it
completely.
He hoisted the wooden rice barrel above his head and poured its contents
directly into his gaping mouth.
After two pours and a few chews, he devoured the meals meant for fifty men.
Though the lunch portions were substantial, the giant finished everything in
just two or three minutes. He then extended his massive tongue, licking every
tray clean.
Finally, he glared at the five or six meal deliverers with wide eyes: “Hungry!”
“More. I want more...”
The giant's massive frame towered over the delivery crew even while seated.
The delivery mercenaries trembled in terror, their bodies quivering slightly.
Their leader, drenched in cold sweat, frantically waved his hands, “There's
none left! You ate all of today's lunch. We didn't prepare any more...”
The giant remained unsatisfied, yet he wasn't violent. He could only smack his
lips, sucking the last bits of food from his teeth. Leaning his back against
the wall behind him, he slowly closed his eyes.
Several delivery staff witnessed this and promptly began clearing the tableware
with careful haste. They then scrambled to leave the forecastle, closing the
door softly behind them.
Tripleblade overheard their voices outside: “I'm genuinely worried that one day
while delivering food, I'll be devoured by a starving giant!”
“I truly never want to do this job again, every shift feels like a life-or-
death ordeal!”
“I think we should report this situation and request higher-ups increase this
giant's rations.”
“We've done this many times before, but getting approval from above keeps
getting harder.”
"It's strange. I've cooked for giants before. I've never encountered anything
like this. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' giant has an extraordinary
appetite; he devours all those magic dishes without any sign of indigestion!
He's only bronze level..."
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is truly extraordinary. Even the giant they
secretly feed is strangely powerful!”
The delivery men's voices faded with their footsteps.
Tripleblade fell silent.
The facts before him contradicted his earlier assumptions.
There was no embezzlement, and the giant’s portions hadn’t been skimped on.
Quite the opposite, the big guy hadn’t eaten his fill!
Tripleblade watched the big guy drifting in and out of sleep, his hands resting
on his slightly rounded belly as he mumbled discontentedly: “Food... meat...”
Soon, he fell into a deep sleep, snoring loudly.
He seemed to dream of the dragonman youngster, beginning to talk in his sleep:
“Father, Xiao Guai isn't full... Where are you, father? Me... hungry...”
Hearing this sleep-talk, Tripleblade's eye twitched.
He fixed a skeptical gaze at the big guy, his mind racing with speculation:
What bloodline could this giant possibly possess? The Gluttonous bloodline? The
Big Eater bloodline? Or perhaps the Abyss bloodline?
All bearers of these bloodlines shared one defining trait: insatiable
appetites!
The next moment, Tripleblade's eyes widened in disbelief.
Unbelievable!
"What am I seeing?!"
He saw the big guy cultivating, refining his battle qi.
Tripleblade knew the big guy practiced the Mindless Sleeping Posture Technique,
a method the captain had painstakingly taught him, allowing the big guy to
automatically cultivate passively while asleep.
Tripleblade also knew the big guy had already joined the ranks of the
transcendents, advancing to bronze level.
But what was he seeing now?
He stared in shock as a faint iron hue began to shimmer within the battle qi
radiating from the big guy's body.
"How long has it been? Has the big guy already reached peak bronze?"
“Iron hues in his battle qi? Does that mean he's about to ascend to iron
level?”
“Did I see that correctly?”
Tripleblade began doubting his own eyesight.
But upon closer inspection, he confirmed he hadn't misread it!
This discovery delivered such a massive shock to his mind and body that he left
the forecastle and closed the door in a daze.
“No wonder his appetite keeps growing, he's constantly absorbing external
nutrients to propel his life level upward.”
“Bloodline!”
“What exactly is the big guy's bloodline?”
“This progress is absurd!”
Tripleblade racked his brain, he'd never seen another fighter advance this
rapidly!
The big guy's performance shattered his understanding, truly broadening his
horizons.
"The commander nurtured the big guy, and his cultivation has yielded the most
unexpected results!"
“The big guy's bloodline is definitely no ordinary thing. He might just be the
most gifted among us.”
“If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, it would be hard to believe... that such
a seemingly dim-witted fellow possesses such cultivation talent!”
“Fate... how unfair you are...”
Tripleblade's emotions were incredibly complex at that moment.
Envy, helplessness, regret—all mingled with bitter reflection on his own fate.
His bloodline was far from ideal. His ceiling was iron level; a plateau he'd
stagnated at for years.
And now, before Tripleblade's very eyes, the big guy. that incredibly fortunate
fool. had ascended to bronze level under his watch. Soon, he'd reach iron
level, standing shoulder to shoulder with him!
Tripleblade didn't even know how he made it back to his cabin.
It took him a long time to steady his emotions.
Once calm, he immediately began writing a letter. he wanted to share this good
news with Zong Ge and Zi Di.
But after finishing it, he promptly destroyed the letter.
“Can't be so careless.”
"Letters can be intercepted, especially with mysterious powerful enemies
lurking outside."
"The big guy's cultivation speed like this proves his bloodline is at least
gold level. No, perhaps even saint level..."
Any higher, and even Tripleblade wouldn't dare imagine it!
“He relies heavily on the leader. If such a giant grows stronger, his value to
us will be immense...”
"Should we fail to atone to the Empire's higher-ups in the future, the big
guy's importance to us will only grow!"
“We must protect him at all costs.”
“Do everything to conceal his cultivation speed. Hmm, we must also control
those delivery personnel, bind them with contracts!”
"No, they don't know the secret yet. From now on, use alchemy puppets for
deliveries. That's the safest approach."
"This information needs to be encrypted before sharing it with others. With my
current privileges, I can't allocate more cultivation resources to the big
guy."
Tripleblade began drafting the encrypted letter.
But after finishing it, he destroyed it once more.
“My encryption measures are only at the level of ordinary mercenary groups,
easily cracked.”
"Perhaps I should deliver this message personally? That would undoubtedly be
the safest approach!"



****** Chapter 432: The Mother Nest’s Ocean Beast’s Secret ******
“Yes, I have to do this.”
“Even at the bronze level, the big guy’s physical prowess rivaled the silver
level. If he advances to iron level, I won’t be able to hold him back at all.”
“Once he reaches iron level, if he goes berserk again, even Chi Lai and Men Shi
might not be able to restrain him.”
The mere thought of the big guy’s madness intensified Tripleblade’s sense of
urgency.
He summoned Fei She once more, left a brief message for Chi Lai and Men Shi,
then immediately set off. Using the teleportation formation, he headed toward
Blood Kin City.
Leveraging his connection with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Tripleblade cut
through the queue and swiftly arrived at Blood Kin City.
Seeing Tripleblade arrive secretly, looking as though he had urgent news to
report, Zi Di's heart skipped a beat. She feared some mishap had befallen the
sub-corps: “Could someone be sabotaging our alchemy workshop, undermining my
business plans?”
Instead, what she heard concerned the big guy's cultivation secret.
Zi Di expressed genuine astonishment.
This was no act.
Though she knew the big guy possessed a high bloodline grade, she hadn’t
anticipated his cultivation progress would be this rapid!
Like Tripleblade, Zi Di’s eyes were opened.
Upon hearing this, Zong Ge remained unflappable: “The big guy's bloodline grade
is exceptionally high, at least saint level, possibly even legendary.”
“If saint level, his bloodline concentration must be over 75%.”
Tripleblade gaped in disbelief.
Unbelievable!
That clumsy oaf was at least a potential saint cultivator?
"What kind of luck have we stumbled into? We just picked up a saint cultivator
like this?" Tripleblade was stunned by sheer happiness.
Zi Di, meanwhile, observed Zong Ge discreetly.
His unflappable composure once again hinted at his extraordinary background.
Based on the big guy's cultivation speed, Zong Ge had swiftly assessed his
bloodline grade, a level of insight beyond ordinary people.
Zong Ge mused, "This is a blessing, but it carries risks. The big guy has
mental instability; his intelligence falls far below average. The stronger he
grows, the greater the hidden danger."
“Exactly,” Tripleblade nodded in agreement.
Zi Di remarked, "I believe the big guy's intelligence issues will ease as his
life level increases. I believe this issue will resolve itself without our
intervention."
But Zong Ge looked at her and countered, "That is precisely the problem,
President Zi Di. As the big guy's intelligence grows, his perception of things
and the outside world will change. How will he view his own situation? How will
he view us? Will he become dissatisfied with his treatment? Will he still rely
on our leader? What if one day he becomes a saint, and our strength falls below
his? What will he think then?"
These questions plunged both Zi Di and Tripleblade into silence.
At that moment, Zi Di realized with a jolt: “Yes! Why hadn't I considered
this?”
She had tested the big guy's bloodline and deduced his intelligence issues
would resolve themselves, but she'd never anticipated the subsequent
complications.
“Not just me, even the commander failed to foresee this. This really shouldn't
have happened...”
“No, it's because we know about the Bloodcore! That's why none of us saw this
as a problem!”
The thought of the Bloodcore instantly calmed Zi Di.
Even if the big guy's bloodline reached legend, or even the god level, so what?
With the Bloodcore, why would they fail to achieve the god level?
The Bloodcore gave the dragonman youngster and Zi Di boundless confidence,
fearing nothing in the big guy's growth.
“But we still need to consider the details.”
“Although the commander's Flaming Dragon King bloodline is legend level, its
concentration isn't high. His cultivation speed pales in comparison to the big
guy's.”
“The safest approach is to proactively suppress the big guy's growth rate
somewhat.”
With this thought, Zi Di turned her gaze back to Zong Ge.
Zong Ge gave her a slight nod. "It seems you've already considered this. We're
heading to the royal capital now, and the commander is still missing. We can't
let the big guy grow like this unchecked. Don't forget he has that madness!
Once he reaches iron level and his madness flares up again, the sub-corps won't
be able to suppress him!"
Zi Di fell silent.
Tripleblade followed suit.
None of them wanted to suppress the big guy, but reality was forcing them to do
so.
Zong Ge grew impatient, looking at Zi Di urgently, “What are you still
hesitating about?”
A bitter expression crossed Zi Di's face, “I'm wondering... if the commander
were here and learned of this situation, how would he handle it?”
Ocean Mother Nest.
The fishman youngster was unaware his son was about to be suppressed. His
entire focus was now fixed on observing the magic projections.
The precision eel driller combined with the dual-eared detector had finally
allowed him to glimpse beyond the Mother Nest.
To his utter astonishment, a coalition army of undersea races had gathered
outside the Mother Nest, a development far exceeding his wildest expectations.
Now, this army had commenced another blood sacrifice.
Hordes of sea beasts were herded onto the altar, where they were obliterated by
the altar and the vast magic formation.
A saint level octopusman priestess chanted prayers in a loud voice:
“Gulrgurluglurglur...”
Two gold level octopusman priests stood beside her.
Beneath the altar knelt a vast congregation of believers, fishmen, octopusmen,
nagas, mermaids, and even colossal sea giants.
In truth, since the moment the fishman youngster first glimpsed the outside
world, six grand blood sacrifices had already been performed.
This was the seventh.
And this time, it was distinctly different.
Not only was the scale more grandiose, with a saint level priestess personally
presiding, but the believers kneeling around the altar had been carefully
selected and arranged beforehand, unlike the random seating of previous
ceremonies.
This unusual detail sparked a suspicion in the fishman youngster's mind:
“Perhaps... they're about to teleport in again!”
After two days of observation, the fishman youngster had gained deeper insight
into this undersea army.
He learned the saint level octopusman priestess was named Zhou Zhang. The other
two octopusmen were: a short one with a head as large as an umbrella, called
Zhang Yu Wan; and a towering one with jaw tentacles as thick as arms, known as
Jiu Hua Bi.
These three were undoubtedly the commanders of the great army.
Though other gold level members and numerous other races existed, all trusted
these three octopusmen priests and followed their directives.
Thanks to the tower spirit's post-translation, the fishman youngster had
learned more.
He now confirmed that this undersea army shared a common faith - Charming Blue
Goddess.
Whether in the octopusman priestess's prayers or the divine script inscribed
within the magic circles, there was only one object of worship: Charming Blue
Goddess!
“Charming Blue Goddess's primary artifact is the Mermaid Fairy Tale. Its
disturbance caused me and the Deep Sea Monster Fish to be teleported here.”
“As for those fishmen teleported in earlier, it was likely the combined
operation of the saint level priestess, the altar, and the magic circles.”
The fishman youngster had already formed several conjectures in his mind. He
couldn't help but ask the tower spirit, “Have all the Rubber Swallowers been
deployed?”
The tower spirit responded immediately, “All six frog-type Rubber Swallowers
have been deployed and confirmed to have reached their designated positions.”
These alchemy puppets had been urgently crafted by Zhong Yong specifically for
this operation.
“They're here.” The fishman youngster's expression brightened.
In the magic projection, the saint level priestess raised both arms, chanting
hymns at the top of her lungs. The surging aura of saint level divine magic,
amplified by the ritual formation, ultimately converged upon the altar.
The altar erupted in blinding radiance, illuminating the kneeling faithful
below.
The light vanished in an instant, and a large number of believers disappeared,
along with numerous sea beasts.
The next moment, violent spatial fluctuations erupted within the Ocean Mother
Nest. The believers and sea beasts that had vanished were teleported back
inside.
“Just as I suspected!” the fishman youngster thought excitedly.
Such commotion immediately roused the slumbering saint level sea beast within
the Mother Nest, the Snow Pear Octopus.
The octopus immediately launched its hunt upon the prey delivered to its mouth.
In an instant, the sea churned violently, its waters stained crimson.
The believers huddled in corners, desperately trying to avoid being swept into
the carnage.
“Now!” The fishman youngster gave the command. Six frog-type Rubber Swallowers,
already positioned throughout the area, sprang into action.
They selected their targets and swallowed them whole.
Empowered by the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell, these Rubber Swallowers were disguised as seawater. Only the informed
fishman youngster could discern their incomplete frog-like forms.
To the other believers, they witnessed only surging waves mysteriously
vanishing nearby believers.
Not one of the six Swallowers missed; all successfully consumed their targets.
On one hand, this was because these Swallowers were all iron level, targeting
bronze level prey, a clear level advantage.
On the other hand, Deceptive Disguise spell ensured their ambushes were utterly
unforeseeable. The targets had fixated their attention entirely on the saint
level sea beast.
Not even their disappearance was noticed by all of the believers.
After securing their prey, the Swallowers immediately turned back.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish was no longer a reef; it now bore the appearance of a
cluster of pearls.
Even as it opened the landing pod and let the Swallowers enter one by one,
neither the sea beasts nor the believers detected the slightest anomaly.
The fishman youngster had long been waiting inside the landing pod.
The Swallowers lined up, each approaching him in turn to regurgitate their
unconscious targets.
These targets had been carefully selected, all fishmen.
The fishman youngster raced against time, using the Bloodcore on these fishman,
swiftly absorbing multiple fishman bloodlines.
“Got it! Looks like my luck's holding!” A flash of delight crossed the fishman
youngster's face.
From one fishman bloodline, he had gained knowledge, information about the
fishman language!
Now, he could understand their conversations.
The information inherent in transcendent bloodlines wasn't limited to racial
magic; it also encompassed racial knowledge, environmental data, and, of
course, languages.
“Too bad there aren't any octopusman...”
After absorbing five fishmen captives, the youngster brought the sixth into the
depths of the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
He swiftly reached a compartment and handed the captive over to the tower
spirit.
After the tower spirit scanned him, the youngster once again activated his
Bloodcore, reducing the final captive to ash.
Carrying the captive's data, the tower spirit manipulated the Deceptive
Disguise Formation to empower a silver level alchemy puppet.
Soon, the puppet took on the appearance of the sixth captive.
Of course, to the knowledgeable fishman youngster, this puppet's appearance was
a chaotic assemblage of puppet and fishman parts, riddled with flaws.
“Deploy immediately!” the fishman youngster ventured.
The disguised alchemy puppet was first swallowed by the Swallower, which then,
like seawater, reentered the Mother Nest.
The saint level sea beast was at its hunting climax. The believers were tense,
their attention severely diverted.
The Swallower opened its maw, and the disguised alchemy puppet swam out,
joining the believers gathered in another corner. Those believers glanced at it
hurriedly before fixing their gaze back on the saint level sea beast.
“The first step succeeded,” the fishman youngster's heart settled.
His attempt primarily aimed to verify whether the Deceptive Disguise spell
could deceive the outer magic formation and the saint level priestess.
If it could deceive them, it meant he too could temporarily leave the Mother
Nest using this method.
“Next, I just hope it gets teleported out,” the fishman youngster watched the
magic projection intently, filled with anticipation.
The Snow Pear Octopus' hunt concluded. It greedily sucked all the blood into
its belly before slowly approaching the believers.
The believers trembled in fear, their prayers rising in unison.
Massive, snow-white octopus tentacles drifted slowly around their bodies.
Suddenly!
A tentacle shot out, snatching one of the believers and retracting with
lightning speed.
In the next instant, the believer was swallowed whole by the saint level
octopus.
The fishman youngster's face turned ashen.
The swallowed believer had been his disguised puppet.
His attempt had failed completely midway.
“Wait, I think I get it!” A bolt of insight struck the fishman youngster's
mind, “I've figured out the pattern this Snow Pear Octopus uses to choose its
victims.”



****** Chapter 433: Salty Cotton Candy ******
“It's faith!” the fishman youngster realized the answer.
"Among those praying fishmen killed by the saint level sea beast, the unlucky
ones were likely those with weaker faith."
"The alchemy puppet I deployed had no issues with its disguise. But even when
it pretended to pray, it lacked true faith. The saint level sea beast instantly
recognized it and killed it outright."
The gruesome death of the alchemy puppet sent shockwaves through the praying
believers. Through the magic projection, the fishman youngster saw many bodies
convulse violently in that instant, as if struck by lightning.
After that, the saint level sea beast, the Snow Pear Octopus, killed several
more believers before reluctantly halting the slaughter.
In the end, the believers' life force surged significantly on the spot. Some
even achieved breakthroughs beyond their current level. Yet the fishman
youngster also noticed that a portion of the believers still showed little
increase in their life aura.
Though he had witnessed this phenomenon before, the youngster still expressed a
hint of astonishment.
Typically, cultivation was a process of accumulation—quantitative change
leading to qualitative transformation or building up strength for a
breakthrough. Yet this scene defied that rule.
In truth, however, this was merely superficial; the reality did not conflict
with the laws of cultivation.
“It's divine power,” the fishman youngster murmured inwardly.
Deities stood at the pinnacle of all life in the world.
Their majestic power knew no bounds.
This was not mere rhetoric, nor exaggerated praise, it was fact.
Divine power represented the highest known form of energy, capable of perfectly
replacing magic power, magic energy, elemental forces, electricity, and all
other forms of energy. Divine power excelled in every domain—healing, damage,
teleportation, creation, and more.
Divine spells were the methods to wield this power, amplifying its effects to
their fullest potential.
“The believers performed a blood sacrifice, praying to the Charming Blue
Goddess. They receive rewards in return, causing their strength to surge.”
This outcome was entirely expected.
A successful grand ritual often drew the attention of the gods. Divine
blessings usually followed. These blessings manifested in various forms:
elevating certain beings to transcendent level, bestowing items, the highest
being divine artifacts, and even resurrecting the dead.
From what the fishman youngster knew, two classic examples stood out.
One involved an elf king without an heir. He held a grand ritual and conceived
on the spot, eventually giving birth to an exceptional successor.
Another occurred when a dwarf tribe plunged into war. Their chieftain performed
a ritual, beseeching the gods for peace. His sacrifices were truly immense. The
gods intervened, altering the hearts and minds of both warring factions. The
two tribes achieved genuine peace, never to fight again. To this day, these two
tribes form the most steadfast alliance within the Dwarf Kingdom.
The gods were omnipotent, the difference lay in the cost.
Take creation, for instance: crafting something entirely from scratch versus
modifying something existing demanded vastly different sacrifices from the
gods.
“These fishmen, nagas, and other believers received divine feedback, achieving
a leap in power.”
“But not all believers fared thus, those with wavering faith were slain
outright by the saint level sea beast!”
"The saint level sea beast was likely deliberately placed here, primarily to
sift the faithful. They also prevent leaks, hasn't the Charming Blue Goddess
already fallen into slumber? Her situation is quite precarious."
Suddenly, flashes of insight erupted in the fishman youngster's mind as he
connected the scattered clues.
While the fishman youngster pondered, the other Charming Blue believers were
teleported away.
The fishman youngster continued his musings: “My teleportation circumstances
differ from theirs.”
"The Mermaid Fairy Tale is at work here. Those believers relied on the power of
the magic formation outside the Mother Nest."
"The Mermaid Fairy Tale is the main artifact of the Charming Blue Goddess.
Undoubtedly, it far surpasses the external magic divine script formation and
this saint level sea beast in scale. Therefore, it can also draw divine power
here."
Since the Charming Blue believers could achieve rank leaps, it proved divine
power was infusing their bodies.
With divine power descending, it was only natural for the Mermaid Fairy Tale to
absorb it.
As for evidence, the fishman youngster had obtained it days ago - the Mermaid
Fairy Tale had gained a vast amount of pearl bubbles!
"This artifact seems to possess an innate ability to actively absorb external
Charming Blue divine power. This instinct intensifies especially when divine
power is scarce. Much like a starving person seeking sustenance."
The most direct evidence supporting the fishman youngster's conjecture lay in
the previous Two Eyes Island.
At that moment, the bishop of Charming Blue Goddess cast a divine spell to
disguise the crucial fishman. However, when the fishman stealthily approached
the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the spell was suddenly broken, revealing its true
form. It then suffered a direct hit from the Golden Flash's light cannon. This
series of unexpected events ultimately made the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps the
biggest hidden winner of the battle on Two Eyes Island.
After the battle, survivors reviewing the events offered their own
speculations.
“The divine spell was likely broken because the Mermaid Fairy Tale absorbed the
divine power sustaining it.”
The cultivation methods of clergymen differed from those of fighters and
magicians. They dedicated their faith, absorbing descending divine power
through prayer to achieve advancement. As divine power infused and accumulated
within them, both body and soul underwent transformation. Ultimately, they
would take on the form of the deity they worship. This facilitated the
infusion, storage, and utilization of divine power. Upon death, they were more
readily transformed by the deity into holy spirits, recruited into the divine
domain.
Thus, the believers' sudden advancement was, at its core, divine assistance.
"It's like converting battle qi. With a skilled practitioner, the conversion
process can be completed swiftly."
“Attempting it alone, however, is an arduous journey.”
For clergymen, this conversion was far more straightforward than for fighters
transforming their own battle qi.
Fighters who absorbed another's battle qi had to first fully digest and purge
the foreign qi. But the divine energy within the clergyman, being a higher
level energy source, could be perfectly converted into lower level energy. It
directly transformed into the clergyman's battle qi or magic power, etc.,
without any confusion or rejection from foreign energy types.
Understanding this, the fishman youngster once again fell into deep worry.
He had originally used the alchemy puppet to test the effectiveness of his
Deceptive Disguise spell. If it worked, he could disguise himself and
infiltrate the fishmen army. This would be nothing short of an escape route.
“The crucial question now is: can the Deceptive Disguise spell mimic faith?”
The fishman youngster harbored deep doubts.
The recent failure of the alchemy puppet wasn't entirely definitive. When
designing the disguise, the fishman youngster hadn't incorporated the aspect of
faith.
"Theoretically, faith can be faked too. But the problem is, how do you design
that?"
The fishman youngster was deeply troubled.
He could use the Deceptive Disguise Formation to alter the perceived appearance
of target objects, but faith involved the intangible, ethereal realm of the
mind.
He had no idea how to proceed!
Soon, the fishman youngster realized: “The Deceptive Disguise Formation we use
comes from the War Merchant. It simply doesn't possess the capability to
disguise faith.”
The core material for the Deceptive Disguise spell and Deceptive Disguise
Formation was the Pearl Bubble.
This god level material originated from the divine artifact, Mermaid Fairy
Tale.
Divine artifacts were meant for deities; other transcendent beings could
scarcely unleash their full power.
War Merchant's ability to wield pearl bubbles already demonstrated his legend
level magician prowess.
“Truthfully, even if I could mimic his divine faith, it would be far too
risky.”
Using the Deceptive Disguise spell to trick the Charming Blue Goddess?
That would be dumber than showing off in front of a master.
Legend had it that the Charming Blue Goddess was in deep slumber, but what if
that was not true? What if she had already awakened? What if she was drawn by
the blood sacrifice and turned her attention here? What if she was roused by
the aura of a divine artifact?
When dealing with a deity's presence, the fishman youngster had to be cautious.
“Looks like I need to find a more reliable way out of this mess,” the fishman
youngster sighed, utterly disheartened.
Lady Sea Snake, however, was freed from her long-standing gloom.
“Finally, they're here.” She cast a spell to observe the sea surface from afar.
The Heroism Pirates was sailing toward her.
The death of her gold level sea serpent familiar had caused her immense
trouble.
This was a world of the strong, where status depended on power.
While Wei Ying had sacrificed the sea serpent and walked away, Lady Sea Snake
had to personally deal with her predicament.
She seethed with hatred toward Wei Ying but ultimately had no recourse.
Thus, Lady Sea Snake could only maintain a façade, pretending her sea serpent
pet still existed, while secretly detaching from her pirate crew. She
discreetly contacted reliable contacts, aiming to capture another gold level
sea serpent to actively fill this gap in combat strength.
As for why she sought only one gold level pet, and specifically a sea serpent,
that was determined by her unique method of taming and the characteristics of
her bloodline.
The silver level was her absolute limit.
Her spirit could only sustain one gold level pet, or multiple silver level
ones.
Clearly, however, a single gold level creature was a far superior choice to
multiple silver level ones.
On the one hand, this represented a qualitative leap in combat power!
On the other hand, Lady Sea Snake herself is a pirate leader. The ocean
battlefield was vast and boundless, offering unobstructed visibility. Escape
was easy, and small-scale combat scenarios were the most common. Possessing one
gold level pet was far more suitable for this kind of battlefield than several
silver level snakes.
“Lord Ba Qi has finally arrived,” Ruan Tang Ren sighed inwardly.
He certainly didn't want the Heroism Pirates to show up so soon.
“Have some,” Ruan Tang Ren nudged closer, offering her a piece of cotton candy,
“I made this especially for you.”
His eyes held undisguised admiration as he looked at her.
Lady Sea Snake glanced at the white fluff and shook her head, “I don't like
sweets.”
“I know, I know,” Ruan Tang Ren replied, “This is specially made for you, it's
a salty cotton candy.”
The Sea Serpent Girl sighed inwardly, reluctantly taking it. She tasted it, it
was indeed salty, and surprisingly good.
But her focus was elsewhere entirely: “Lord Ba Qi has arrived. Let's disembark
and greet him.”



****** Chapter 434: Weakening Fishing Line ******
The Heroism Pirates officially joined forces with the Powerless Pirates and
Lady Sea Snake.
Beneath the mainmast of the Heroism Pirates' flagship, Ba Qi still sat sprawled
casually, leaning against the mast.
As the leader of the Heroism Pirates, the gold level fighter Ba Qi disliked
confining himself to the captain's quarters.
His bloodline stemmed from the air element, making him naturally drawn to open
environments. Constantly interacting with the various energies of the outside
world brought him comfort and contentment.
Bloodlines were the essence of life, determining distinct life forms. Different
life forms often exhibited different biological habits.
Generally speaking, a transcendent’s bloodline profoundly influenced their
personality and behavioral patterns.
For instance, those with vampire bloodlines typically shun daylight, preferring
nocturnal activity.
Ba Qi leaned against the sturdy mast behind him, tilting his head slightly to
gaze at the sky.
The sea breeze swept across his face. The sky was as clear as washed blue, save
for a single white cloud suspended high above.
Ba Qi knew well that this was the Fluffy Cloud's disguise.
When the sky was filled with clouds, the vessel's camouflage was nearly
flawless. But under such clear skies, a solitary drifting cloud stood out
conspicuously, easily arousing suspicion.
Under Ba Qi's watchful gaze, two figures descended from the cloud.
One was male, the other female.
The man was none other than the captain of the Fluffy Cloud, a silver level
fighter - Ruan Tang Ren. He possessed a long, flat face like a pancake, an
ordinary appearance, and sparse yet large black freckles that resembled
chocolate chips.
The woman wore a form-fitting leather outfit, her curvaceous figure drawing
male attention effortlessly. She was none other than the leader of the Petal
Snake Pirates, a silver level water magician - Lady Sea Snake.
The gold level Ba Qi was the most crucial figure in their current operation.
Facing such a gold level expert, the two silver level individuals dared not be
overconfident and immediately flew down to greet him.
There were significant differences even among gold level fighters.
In fact, the higher the level, the greater the disparity in combat strength
between peers.
Ba Qi was no ordinary gold level.
His legendary background was unparalleled. Rumors suggested Ba Qi's bloodline
potential transcended mere gold level. Regrettably, his prolonged confinement
within the Abyssal Hanging Tower had exposed him to the abyss's corrupting
influence, leaving his injuries unhealed. Were it not for these debilitating
wounds, he might well have ascended to the saint level!
“Lord Ba Qi, it is my profound honor to receive your support this time!”
declared Lady Sea Snake as she landed on the deck.
Though not a gold level, her ability to fly was natural for a magician.
What was unusual was Ruan Tang Ren.
Merely a silver level fighter, he had descended without relying on Lady Sea
Snake—he had actually “flown” down.
"Lord Ba Qi, we welcome you. I have prepared a welcoming banquet for you." Ruan
Tang Ren bowed in greeting.
As a magic chef, he had indeed meticulously prepared a feast to honor Ba Qi.
Ba Qi glanced at the two, then fixed his gaze above Ruan Tang Ren's head.
There, he detected a thread.
The thread was so fine it was nearly invisible. It was this thread that had
suspended Ruan Tang Ren as he descended before Ba Qi, creating the illusion of
“flight.”
Ba Qi saw through Ruan Tang Ren's trickery at a glance, causing the latter's
heart to tighten slightly.
Ba Qi waved his hand dismissively at the two. "A welcome banquet? Not
necessary! What is your plan? When can we begin?"
On Flower Skirt Island, Ba Qi received treatment from Physician Shuang Tu and
now felt much better.
Yet, burdened by chronic injuries, he understood his days were numbered, his
condition incurable. Thus, he always treasured time, acting with decisive
urgency.
Lady Sea Snake and Ruan Tang Ren exchanged a swift glance. They had long heard
of Ba Qi's style and prepared accordingly.
The former was naturally delighted by Ba Qi's decisive nature.
She had already chosen her target and was inclined to act sooner rather than
later.
In truth, she had grown impatient waiting for Ba Qi's arrival, spending entire
days cooped up aboard the Fluffy Cloud.
On this point, however, Ruan Tang Ren felt quite the opposite.
What Ruan Tang Ren cherished most was crafting dishes.
Originally a restaurant chef, he'd been thrust into leadership by a series of
misfortunes, unexpectedly becoming captain of the Powerless Pirates.
Ruan Tang Ren wasn't an ambitious pirate. Though he'd led the Powerless Pirates
for years, his fleet had always consisted solely of the Fluffy Cloud.
He rarely bothered with raiding in everyday life, even now, amidst a golden age
where piracy ran rampant and plundering carried minimal risk.
Often, he disguised the Fluffy Cloud as a white cloud drifting in the sky,
hovering over a stretch of ocean, biding his time.
Due to the steady currents, vast shipping routes crisscrossed the open seas.
Thus, even though the Fluffy Cloud employed a wait-and-see approach, it still
managed to regularly raid merchant ships, sustaining itself through plunder.
Ruan Tang Ren didn't fall for Lady Sea Snake at first sight either. Of course,
any man would likely develop feelings for a beauty like her.
Lady Sea Snake wasn't just a simple water magician. Beyond her gold level magic
pet, the sea serpent, she excelled at socializing. In these interactions, she
fully leveraged her striking beauty.
Through a series of subtle maneuvers and suggestive hints from Lady Sea Snake,
Ruan Tang Ren gradually became one of her admirers.
The days spent awaiting Ba Qi's arrival were the happiest for Ruan Tang Ren.
Each day, he could exchange good mornings and good nights with Lady Sea Snake,
share the same vessel with the goddess he admired, and meticulously prepare
delicacies for her. He even developed exquisite dishes tailored specifically to
her palate.
Ba Qi's decisive and swift approach left Ruan Tang Ren deeply regretful. For
the sooner this matter was resolved, the less time he would have with Lady Sea
Snake.
Lady Sea Snake, reading his expressions, quickly confirmed that Ba Qi spoke
with genuine sincerity.
She immediately adopted a serious expression and declared, “Lord Ba Qi, our
target has already been selected.”
“My plan is as follows.”
“Step 1: I will command a fishman clan, secretly under my control, to attack
and drive away our target.”
“Step 2: Once the sea serpent enters our ambush zone, Captain Ruan Tang Ren
will personally intervene, using his fishing line to entangle it.”
“Step 3: Captain Ba Qi, you will then engage the sea serpent, aiming to weaken
its combat strength and subdue it.”
“Step 4: I will then use the contract to forcibly bind it as my magic pet.”
The plan was straightforward and clear.
Ba Qi also knew about Lady Sea Snake and Ruan Tang Ren.
He understood that Lady Sea Snake possessed unique methods to forcibly contract
a gold level serpentine magic beast.
He also knew that Ruan Tang Ren possessed a Weakening Fishing Line. This
fishing line was a gold level artifact, an equipment created by the legendary
magic chef Bu Kong Jun. Paired with his specially made dried earthworm spicy
strips, it had once reeled in many powerful sea beasts.
Ba Qi nodded in approval of the plan: “Excellent. We can begin immediately!”



****** Chapter 435: The Necromancers are Ready ******
Having secured Ba Qi's approval, Lady Sea Snake immediately sent her message.
Soon, aboard the Fluffy Cloud, Qi Ling received her orders.
She had remained on the flagship of the Powerless Pirates, under Lady Sea
Snake's personal supervision. Though Qi Ling had been coerced into signing a
magic contract, Lady Sea Snake remained uneasy about its validity. She feared
the undead faction's nascent advantage might secretly undermine the pact,
prompting her to adopt a cautious approach, keeping Qi Ling under her direct
supervision whenever possible.
Upon receiving the message, Qi Ling's expression shifted slightly. She sighed
inwardly: “What was bound to happen has finally come.”
She had long dreaded this moment, yet now that her fears had materialized, a
strange calm settled over her, easing the constant anxiety that had gripped her
before.
"If I were alone, I'd be at Lady Sea Snake's mercy now. But thankfully, Lord
Jian Gui has arrived. I entrusted myself to the right person."
Though merely a silver level, Qi Ling possessed extraordinary intelligence.
After being taken captive, she had been scheming to escape.
During the Weeping Pine Naval Battle, she deliberately revealed her traitor
identity and intentionally let Jian Gui and his group slip away.
On one hand, she genuinely couldn't bring herself to harm them. She had been
summoned by Jian Gui and served as his alchemy assistant for a long time.
During that period, she received Jian Gui's cultivation. He had even secretly
broken certain orthodox principles of necromancy, imparting advanced knowledge
of the soul aspect to her prematurely. Jian Gui was Qi Ling's benefactor. Her
innate goodness remained intact. By consistently using soul crystals, she had
effectively resisted the erosion of negative energy, preventing her from
betraying the kindness shown to her.
On the other hand, Qi Ling also knew she couldn't rely solely on herself. She
needed external aid to break through her current predicament.
Days prior, through a method she had secretly embedded within the water ghost's
body, she had discreetly received contact from Jian Gui. The moment she
received Jian Gui's message, Qi Ling was nearly overcome with excitement. The
sliver of hope she had carefully preserved amidst despair suddenly burst into
brilliant light.
“I understand,” Qi Ling transmitted back, acknowledging the message.
She immediately began making connections.
First, she contacted Jian Gui and others, then reached out to her former clan,
the Da Ji Clan.
It should be noted that although Qi Ling was a necromancer, she had never
revealed her true nature. Lady Sea Snake's disguise magic was exceptionally
potent. Qi Ling had remained aboard the Fluffy Cloud for many days without
anyone discovering the truth.
The ghost ship lay concealed somewhere within the White Hair Trench.
Ever since Jian Gui and Qi Ling established their secret communication, they
had not launched any further attacks. Instead, they remained hidden here,
patiently awaiting the right moment.
On one hand, this was because their combat strength had nearly reached its
peak. The room for improvement was minimal, and they could no longer progress
as rapidly as before. On the other hand, the primary purpose of Jian Gui and
his companions coming here was to rescue Qi Ling. They did not wish to expose
themselves and lose more than they gained.
Jian Gui had long been awaiting news of Qi Ling. Now, upon receiving it, he
immediately rallied the others and began the operation. Xiao Wang Zi was the
first to emerge from his cabin onto the deck. He raised his arms and shouted,
“This day has finally come!”
He was the least patient among them, nearly bursting with anticipation.
Ku Feng was the second to appear on deck. As a zombie fighter and undead ronin,
his sword training had been suspended, yet he maintained remarkable composure.
These past days, he had paused his active cultivation, instead honing his
stillness practice in his cabin - meditating while embracing his long sword.
This training method truly opened Cang Xu's eyes.
In Cang Xu's view, meditation had always been a practice reserved for
magicians.
Driven by the curiosity of an accomplished magician, Cang Xu couldn't resist
asking Ku Feng about it when the opportunity arose.
Ku Feng replied: Though he wasn't a magician and couldn't absorb external
energy through meditation, pursuing the blade path required integrating both
movement and stillness. Dynamic practice meant wielding blades, refining
chopping techniques, honing movement angles, and testing them in combat. Static
practice involved constant meditation, forging an unseen bond with one's
weapon, and tapping into the user's inner spiritual power.
He further explained to Cang Xu that this philosophy of the fighter originated
from the Eastern Sheng Ming Empire.
Ku Feng himself was rather taciturn, but over these days, Cang Xu had earned
their recognition through his interactions with them. That recognition deepened
steadily with time.
Thus, Ku Feng explained it to Cang Xu in detail.
“The Eastern Empire...” Cang Xu murmured in admiration. He knew that the
martial arts cultivation in the eastern regions of the Empire had always been
underpinned by meticulous theoretical frameworks. Compared to other parts of
the Empire, these theories possessed distinct characteristics—they were richer
and more refined.
Cang Xu couldn't help but think of Rou Zang.
This formidable gold level fighter was the first powerful being the survivors
encountered after leaving the Mystifying Monster Island. To this day, Cang Xu
remembered him vividly.
Rou Zang hailed from the Great Pain Temple, a powerful religious organization
situated in the Eastern Empire.
Jian Gui joined the discussion, stating, "It is true that some martial warriors
practice stillness cultivation. Though lacking a magic pool, they can indeed
tap into their innate spiritual power through meditation."
"More broadly, this spiritual power is termed spiritual energy. Spiritual
energy also forms the foundation of a clergyman's strength. Only those with
exceptional spiritual energy talent can advance further in the clerical path."
Cang Xu heard this explanation for the first time and pondered, “Battle qi,
magic power, spiritual energy, do these correspond to fighters, magicians, and
clergymen?”
He couldn't help but press Jian Gui for more.
Jian Gui shook his head, refusing to elaborate further. He flatly declined Cang
Xu, stating: This knowledge belongs to the advanced soul aspect inheritance. A
brief mention is acceptable, but detailing it would violate orthodox
principles.
Cang Xu, however, surmised more in secret: "The core spells of the elementary
soul aspect inheritance are the Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Removal
Spell. The spell for detecting undead aptitude should be included in the
intermediate undead inheritance. And in the advanced soul aspect inheritance,
since it relates to the clergy, it must be about becoming a blasphemous priest,
right?"
He firmly committed this conjecture to memory.
This was also one of his reasons for joining Jian Gui's faction.
Becoming a blasphemous priest would naturally require the use of memory
crystals. The survivors possessed one alchemy device capable of creating memory
crystals.
"If we could obtain the advanced inheritance and master all memory crystal
techniques directly, it would be immensely beneficial for everyone. Alas, I
can't even secure the intermediate inheritance now, let alone the advanced
one."
Cang Xu felt utterly helpless about this.
He had obtained an elementary inheritance solely because the undead orthodoxy
permitted trading such items.
But what followed demanded both innate talent and unwavering loyalty.
Cang Xu had been ruthlessly rejected on the very first criterion alone.
Despite his current bloodline mutation, he knew the trajectory of his
transformation meant he still wouldn't meet that initial requirement.
“This is going to be tough,” Cang Xu sighed inwardly.
He wasn't particularly invested in saving Qi Ling; he merely wanted to
participate in the mission to stay close to Jian Gui and the others.
Cang Xu was the third to appear on deck, and soon after, Qing Xin followed.
The wind magician Qing Xin had endured days of utter darkness.
Deprived of sunlight, her complexion was pale.
As a normal human, she had to constantly breathe to survive underwater. Even
the simple act of eating became exponentially more difficult. More troublesome
still, as the necromancers' power grew, Qing Xin faced increasingly dense
negative energy.
Thus, life aboard the ghost ship became an ever-greater ordeal for her.
Despite her earnest efforts to prove herself, she had inevitably been
marginalized.
As the necromancers grew stronger, Qing Xin had become virtually invisible.
Yet she demonstrated resilience and endurance, enduring this harsh existence
without complaint.
Cang Xu gave Qing Xin a slight nod. "For now, stay safely aboard the ship.
Unless absolutely necessary, do not reveal yourself. Otherwise, it will greatly
interfere with your future public activities."
Qing Xin forced a faint smile at Cang Xu, assuring him she would follow his
instructions and not cause trouble. But when help was needed, she would give
her all at a moment's notice.
In short, Qing Xin positioned herself firmly within her role.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
The sound of bones colliding filled the air.
Xiao Wang Zi was mobilizing his skeletal subordinates, concentrating large
numbers of elite skeleton archers along the gunwales, bow, and stern to serve
as long-range firepower.
Numerous ghosts emerged from their bodies only to swiftly merge back into the
ghost ship - Jian Gui making temporary, subtle adjustments.
Soon, all these ghosts returned to the ghost ship, fully retracted.
Jian Gui finally appeared before everyone. His pre-battle address was brief:
"We've prepared long for this battle. Now, follow my commands, and victory is
assured!"
Clearly, he was neither Zong Ge nor the dragonman youngster, and he wasn't
skilled at pre-battle speeches.
Yet among this group, his authority was undeniably paramount. Thanks to his
daily leadership, everyone looked to him for guidance.
Cang Xu and the others nodded solemnly, vowing to fight fiercely.
Even Xiao Wang Zi, who harbored strong reservations about Qi Ling, was willing
to cooperate fully with Jian Gui.
Seeing this, Cang Xu couldn't help but reflect: "Though necromancers endure an
utterly harsh environment, it has forged their unity. Of course, that assumes
the problem of negative energy corruption has been resolved. Those gradually
corrupted necromancers have their wills twisted, becoming mad, hating all
living things, their sanity steadily declining until they can no longer
communicate or cooperate normally."
Jian Gui immediately sank into the deck, vanishing in an instant. Cang Xu
understood: he hadn't descended to the next deck below, but had merged directly
with the ghost ship itself.
The ghost ship's aura faintly expanded before contracting again. Its aura level
steadily declined, dropping rapidly from gold to silver. Within seconds, it
plummeted to iron, continuing its fall until it reached its limit at bronze.



****** Chapter 436: Da Ji Clan ******
Most crucially, the aura unique to undead had been completely purged.
Unless they detected the ghost ship itself, most would assume it was merely a
colossal bronze level sea beast.
After completing this step, the ghost ship began silently ascending, gradually
approaching the position of the Fluffy Cloud.
Cang Xu and the others also returned to the ship's cabin one after another.
As magicians, their primary task was to conceal themselves.
Cang Xu's thoughts stirred: “Is there no way to apply further camouflage?”
“In this state, if the ghost ship were detected, our identity would still be
immediately recognized.”
There was no choice. Jian Gui possessed neither the Mermaid Fairy Tale nor any
Deceptive Disguise Formation to employ. This level of concealment was already
the limit of his abilities.
That was precisely why the ghost ship had deliberately kept its distance from
the Fluffy Cloud over the past few days, showing no inclination to draw near.
In terms of disguise capabilities, even the gold level Jian Gui couldn't match
the silver level Lady Sea Snake.
Approaching in this state still carried risks. The closer they got, the greater
the chance of discovery. But now that they'd received Qi Ling's message, battle
was imminent. Such risks no longer mattered.
Only after the ghost ship began its advance did the Da Ji Clan, to which Qi
Ling had belonged in life, finally receive her message.
“Lady Qi Ling has sent word!” announced Qi Miao, the iron level fishman priest.
"I've said it many times, Qi Ling has fallen and become a necromancer. Stop
addressing her as ‘Lady’!" Qi Shu snorted coldly, his expression displeased.
Tall and imposing, he was the Da Ji Clan's foremost fighter, his level reaching
silver.
The clan leader Qi Ren shook his head. "Though Qi Ling became a necromancer,
she's secretly protected us all along. She's secretly eliminated many dangerous
sea beasts for the Da Ji Clan. She has contributed to the clan."
"Clan Leader! If not for Qi Ling this time, would we have been poisoned and
controlled by that despicable, treacherous human pirate woman? She did this
solely to capture Qi Ling. So we've all been dragged down by this damned
necromancer!" Qi Shu shouted in a low voice.
Qi Ren shook his head again. "This is not what Qi Ling would have wanted. The
true culprit is Lady Sea Snake, not her."
Qi Miao quickly lightened the mood: "No need for excessive worry, both of you.
While we appear to be held hostage, Lord Zhou Zhang stands firmly behind us.
This crisis will surely be overcome!"
Qi Miao held unwavering confidence in the tribe's future.
Her assurance stemmed from the octopusman, Zhou Zhang.
Lady Sea Snake had invited Ba Qi as a backup plan. Qi Ling and Jian Gui had
secretly made contact, also holding a reserve strategy. As one faction within
the tribe, they had secretly secured a formidable ally.
On the surface, the Da Ji Clan hunted alone in the White Hair Trench. In
reality, they had covertly reached out to the octopusman priestess Zhou Zhang
through other tribes.
At the deepest reaches of the White Hair Trench, Zhou Zhang had erected an
altar. Surrounding the Ocean Mother Nest, she continuously performed blood
sacrifices.
She commanded numerous intelligent marine species, with fishman constituting
the vast majority. Octopusman numbers, conversely, were quite sparse.
Zhou Zhang naturally had no objection to assisting the Da Ji Clan within her
capabilities.
As a saint level Charming Blue Archbishop, she possessed a powerful drive for
proselytizing. This was especially true upon discovering that over 50% of the
Da Ji Clan's fishman already worshipped the Charming Blue Goddess.
To Zhou Zhang, such a fishman tribe was essentially her own kind.
But after learning the details, Zhou Zhang did not immediately move against
those aboard the Fluffy Cloud. Instead, she secretly ordered the Da Ji Clan to
play along with Lady Sea Snake, turning the tables on her.
Thus, the Da Ji Clan had no choice but to keep up the charade until now.
Frankly, Qi Shu was dissatisfied with this arrangement. He stated bluntly,
“Though we have Lord Zhou Zhang's backing, she intends to use us as bait to
lure more prey for her blood sacrifice.”
Not a Charming Blue believer, Qi Shu harbored wariness toward Zhou Zhang.
Devoted to his tribe, he voiced his concern: “We're about to face a gold level
sea serpent. We'll suffer heavy casualties.”
Qi Ren sighed deeply. "Simply preserving our tribe is already a great
achievement. Relying solely on our own strength, we have no chance of turning
the tide. Bear it. Survive this ordeal, and the Da Ji Clan will have boundless
horizons."
With limited strength, this was the only option.
Qi Miao and Qi Shu exchanged glances, each letting out a sigh.
The fishmen immediately used conch shells to send a message to Zhou Zhang.
This was the contact method Zhou Zhang had specifically reserved for them.
Minutes later, the conch shell sounded, conveying Zhou Zhang's orders.
As Qi Ren, Qi Shu, and Qi Miao had anticipated, Zhou Zhang commanded the Da Ji
Clan to mobilize and temporarily cooperate with Lady Sea Snake's plan.
Qi Ren sighed bitterly and issued the order: “Assemble the entire tribe. We
depart immediately.”
Qi Miao couldn't help but plead, “Clan Leader, let the elders, women, and
children remain behind.”
Qi Shu responded with a hint of coldness: "We march together. If our main force
perishes, those left behind, the old, weak, and sick, will have no chance of
survival either. Even if they're absorbed by other fishman tribes, their lives
will be unbearably miserable. They'll become cannon fodder sooner or later.
Better to face it now, at least this time it's for our own kin."
Qi Ren shook his head, ultimately revising the order to allow elderly fishman
to join the battle while keeping women and children behind.
The Da Ji Clan mobilized.
Following coordinates provided by Qi Ling, they swiftly reached the coral reef
where the sea serpent lurked.
Several hunter fishman ventured cautiously into the reef and successfully
located the gold level sea serpent.
It was a silver-ringed, emerald-scaled sea serpent, measuring 13 meters in
length. Coiled in the shadows of the coral, its belly slightly swollen, it had
clearly fed recently and was now resting to digest its meal.
Qi Ren and Qi Shu, both silver levels, personally took action, hurling a
fishing net at the sea serpent.
It was a gold level net.
Though the Da Ji Clan lacked gold level members, generations of accumulation
had granted them access to gold level equipment.
This net represented the clan's greatest asset.
Caught off guard, the sea serpent was swiftly ensnared, along with the
surrounding coral.
The net contracted rapidly as the remaining fishmen closed in, hurling their
first volley of harpoons.
The sharp spearheads cleaved through the water, nearly all striking the
serpent's body.
Yet the effect was poor. The spears barely pierced the serpent's scales. Only a
few thrown by silver level fishman managed to draw a trickle of blood.
Caught off guard, the sea serpent began thrashing violently within the net.
Hundreds of fishmen strained with all their might, pulling on the ropes
attached to the net's edges.
The four main ropes at the corners were firmly secured to giant sea snails
anchored to the ocean floor.
These sea snails were enormous, resembling small hills.
Strictly speaking, the Da Ji Clan members were nomads of the deep sea. The
giant sea snails served as the main structures for their shifting pastures and
temporary homes.
The snail shells were enormous, hollowed out to create numerous rooms and
windows.
The Da Ji Clan carefully selected specific minerals to feed them daily.
After consuming these minerals, the snail shells hardened to iron-like rigidity
and became incredibly heavy.
To confront the gold level sea serpent, the Da Ji Clan deployed their full
arsenal—not only utilizing the gold level fishing net but also mobilizing every
mountain snail at their disposal.
The snails moved slowly in four directions, like four massive pillars, firmly
anchoring the nets to prevent the sea serpent from escaping.
Wave after wave of harpoon attacks followed, with Qi Ren, Qi Shu, and Qi Miao
joining the assault.
The cumulative damage from the silver level attacks steadily increased, leaving
visible wounds across the sea serpent's body.
The sea serpent lashed out in fury, spewing streams of sickening green venomous
water.
The venom contaminated the surrounding seawater, spreading rapidly like a thick
fog in the ocean.
Fishmen who touched the water were instantly poisoned.
It was extremely potent!
The Da Ji Clan reacted swiftly, consuming seaweed antidotes, to little effect.
After all, this was a gold level racial magic, the sea serpent's ultimate
survival tactic.
At the critical moment, Qi Ren gave the order. Veteran fishmen from the tribe
charged into the toxic fog, one after another. They carried water bladders,
using them to absorb the surrounding seawater. Many even opened their mouths
wide, using themselves as water bags to absorb the surrounding poisonous
seawater with all their might.
Soon, every one of these veteran fishmen lay motionless, their bellies turned
skyward, eyes wide and unblinking.
Qi Ren and Qi Shu wore grim expressions.
Qi Miao looked utterly heartbroken.
A tragic atmosphere swiftly spread. Soon, the second wave of elderly fishmen
charged toward the sea serpent.
Wave after wave of these suicidal attacks successfully mitigated the
surrounding toxic waters.
Most embraced death with a hearty laugh. Yet some, facing imminent death, fled
the battlefield.
These deserters were swiftly beheaded by Qi Shu and his comrades.
Yet even towards these fleeing elders, the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan showed no
scorn or ridicule. The fear of death was inherent to sentient beings. When they
themselves grew old, no one could guarantee they wouldn't act similarly.
Wave after wave of elderly fishmen traded their lives for a turning point on
the battlefield.
Their voluntary sacrifice was also for the Da Ji Clan, to secure sufficient
living space for their kin and alleviate resource pressures.
Even in environments like the White Hair Trench, the fishman tribes still faced
immense survival pressures.
Under such pressures, the oceanic intelligent species continually adapted,
evolving optimal survival strategies.
The sea serpent relentlessly spewed venom, yet the Da Ji Clan's precise
countermeasures neutralized most attacks without altering the serpent's fate,
it remained bound by the fishing net.
Four sea snails flew in simultaneously, dragging the net and pulling the sea
snake forcefully toward the ambush site.
By the halfway point, the Da Ji Clan had already sacrificed over three hundred
fishmen, and even one of the sea snails had been poisoned.
With nearly all the elder fishmen dead, Qi Shu and the others could only lead
the tribe's elite warriors into the fray.
After over three agonizing minutes, another sea snail collapsed.
The transcendent fishmen had also suffered over fifty percent casualties,
causing Qi Ren immense heartache.



****** Chapter 437: Ruan Tang Ren Catches a Snake ******
With only two mountain snails left, they could no longer restrain the gold
level sea serpent.
The sea serpent whipped its body, quickly shaking off the fishing net wrapped
around it, and charged furiously toward the fishmen.
The transcendent fishmen scattered in panic, but the sea serpent opened its maw
and sucked in the three nearest fishmen, swallowing them whole on the spot.
Qi Ren rushed into battle personally, while Qi Miao, having exhausted all magic
and divine power, could only temporarily withdraw.
The gold level sea serpent lashed left and right, killing fishmen one by one,
either by poison or swallowing them whole.
Its belly soon bulged, revealing the uneven shapes of fishmen and weapons
beneath. Yet these were swiftly dissolved by the serpent's formidable digestive
power.
For the Da Ji Clan, the losses were devastating.
Qi Ren's eyes reddened with anguish, but he could do nothing. Neither Lady Sea
Snake nor Zhou Zhang had issued a retreat order.
This was the world of the strong.
No matter how numerous the weak were, they were merely seen as more cannon
fodder.
Silver level fishmen like Qi Ren and Qi Shu were, in the eyes of Lady Sea Snake
and Zhou Zhang, nothing more than high level cannon fodder.
Fortunately, the sea serpent's intelligence was limited. After breaking free
from the fishing net, it locked onto these fishmen, driven by vengeful fury,
determined to fight to the death.
Qi Ren and the others fought a retreating battle, luring the sea serpent toward
the ambush site.
“The casualties are too heavy!” Qi Ren nearly shed tears of blood.
Though the ambush site was still a short distance away, most of the Da Ji
Clan's extraordinary fishmen had already perished. To preserve the remaining
extraordinary combat strength, he had no choice but to sacrifice many of the
weaker members, women and children included.
“Am I to die here in battle?”
“I cannot die. No more transcendents must be sacrificed!”
Qi Ren was gravely wounded, not out of fear of death, but because the current
casualties had pushed the Da Ji Clan to the brink of collapse.
Fortunately, at that moment, Qi Ling relayed Lady Sea Snake's new order: “The
Da Ji Clan may retreat.”
Ironically, it was not Zhou Zhang, on whom Qi Ren and others had pinned their
hopes, who ultimately spared the Da Ji Clan, but Lady Sea Snake.
However, her mercy stemmed not from compassion.
On the one hand, the Da Ji Clan had lured the sea serpent close enough for them
to strike. On the other hand, Lady Sea Snake needed the Da Ji Clan to survive,
it was her leverage against Qi Ling.
“We retreat!” Qi Ren bellowed. The fishmen cheered as if granted a pardon,
while he volunteered to hold the rear.
"Damn it, damn it!" On the Fluffy Cloud, Qi Ling manipulated numerous water
spirits for reconnaissance and knew full well the Da Ji Clan had suffered heavy
casualties.
Her heart burned with hatred and fury, yet bound by the magic contract, she
couldn't lash out at Lady Sea Snake.
Jian Gui whom she'd pinned her hopes on had quietly approached but hadn't
intervened.
Like the fishmen tribe, the backup Qi Ling had counted on failed to materialize
at the critical moment.
The ships of the Heroism Pirates had already retreated far away. Now, only the
Fluffy Cloud, disguised as a white cloud, hovered above the battlefield.
Ba Qi, Lady Sea Snake, Ruan Tang Ren, Qi Ling, and others gathered on the deck.
“Captain Ruan Tang Ren, it's up to you now,” Lady Sea Snake said, her large
eyes glistening with plea, revealing both expectation and entreaty.
Ruan Tang Ren instantly perked up, his spirits soaring. He pounded his chest
and vowed, "With me giving it my all, I won't let you down! Even if it means
dying, I'll make this plan succeed."
Lady Sea Snake suddenly pressed her index finger gently against Ruan Tang Ren's
lips, “No, Ruan Tang Ren. I won't let you die.”
In that instant, Ruan Tang Ren's body trembled violently, his eyes losing
focus.
When he snapped back to himself, his face flushed crimson. Two puffs of air
burst from his nostrils as he declared loudly, "Lady Sea Snake, you watch this!
Just watch!"
Watching this scene, Ba Qi couldn't help but sneer.
Though not old, he'd seen much and carried the shadow of death, making him far
more mature than Ruan Tang Ren. He saw right through Lady Sea Snake's tricks.
Ruan Tang Ren had never been this driven in his entire life!
Feeling motivated, he pulled out a large coil of rope and wrapped it around his
waist.
The rope was thick, its diameter akin to an adult's fist, yet nearly
transparent, its surface merely shimmering with faint golden threads of light.
It was Bu Kong Jun's Weakening Fishing Line.
Such thickness and length were natural, for Bu Kong Jun was neither human nor
elf, but a mushroom treeman. In the underground world, colossal mushroom trees
thrive. Bu Kong Kun was awakened by druidic enlightenment, then cultivated step
by step to become a legend level magic chef.
As a giant, the fishing line Bu Kong Kun used appeared thick and enormous to
ordinary people.
The gold level Weakening Fishing Line was not only transparent in material but
also possessed an extremely muted aura, the essence of gold level was nearly
imperceptible.
Ruan Tang Ren drew out the line's tip, infusing it with his silver level battle
qi.
Though silver level battle qi couldn't exist independently in the air like gold
level could, it could still separate from the body and be channeled into
weapons or armor to enhance their power.
After the infusion, the line's tip immediately curled upward, as if suddenly
alive.
Ruan Tang Ren flung it with all his might, sending the Weakening Fishing Line
flying far out.
Dragged by the line's tip, it shot toward the boat's edge, then plummeted
straight down. Within seconds, it plunged into the sea, heading directly for
the sea serpent.
The fishing line's aura was concealed to near-invisibility, yet careful
detection could still detect a faint trace.
After all, this was a gold level artifact. Ruan Tang Ren, being only silver
level, struggled to harness its full power with his battle qi, like a small
horse pulling a heavy cart, his strength insufficient.
Only a gold level battle qi could conceal the line's aura completely.
Still, for the current situation, this level of concealment was entirely
sufficient.
Though the sea serpent was a formidable gold level creature, its intelligence
paled in comparison to that of a fishman. Moreover, now in a state of frenzied
rage, it hadn't detected the fishing line's approach at all.
As if possessed by eyes of its own, the fishing line effortlessly coiled around
the gold level sea serpent, binding it tightly.
The sea serpent, sensing its renewed confinement and severely restricted
movement, grew even more enraged, churning up massive waves in the ocean.
On the Fluffy Cloud, Ruan Tang Ren fought the gold level sea serpent single-
handedly. He was frantically channeling his battle qi, his face flushed crimson
as he strained every muscle, his entire body trembling slightly.
He desperately harnessed the power of the Weakening Fishing Line, steadily
sapping the sea serpent's strength and deepening its state of exhaustion.
The gold level sea serpent's resistance grew weaker by the moment.
A flicker of joy crossed his face as he looked toward Lady Sea Snake, “I've got
it under control. Maybe I won't need Lord Ba Qi to intervene. I might just...”
He didn't realize that the serpent's weakened state was merely a feigned lull,
the calm before the storm.
In the next instant, the gold level sea serpent unleashed a spell, doubling its
strength beyond measure!
Ruan Tang Ren's face paled. Before he could react, the fishing line yanked him
away.
Thud! He slammed into the mast, quickly wrapping his softened, elongated arms
around it.
The line coiled around his waist, still dragging him toward the water below.
At the other end, the gold level sea serpent swam with all its might, plunging
into the ocean depths.
An ordinary silver level fighter would likely have been torn apart alive by
this force. But Ruan Tang Ren possessed a unique bloodline and a compatible
battle qi technique. His bones and flesh could temporarily soften, stretch, and
even undergo minor deformation.
“See? I've got this under control. Don't... don't worry!” Ruan Tang Ren boasted
to Lady Sea Snake.
“That move was a bit excessive for him,” Lady Sea Snake rolled her eyes
inwardly, though her expression remained outwardly concerned.
Her worry wasn't entirely feigned.
Of course, her concern wasn't for Ruan Tang Ren himself, but rather that he
might screw up and cause the entire operation to fail.
Still, Lady Sea Snake was well-prepared. Should this sea serpent slip away, she
had backup targets ready.
Only, there was no second Da Ji Clan to serve as cannon fodder this time.
Half a minute later, Ruan Tang Ren's expression darkened. Despite his all-out
tugging, the gold level sea serpent continued diving deeper into the ocean.
He was forced to release several coils of fishing line from his waist.
The gold level Weakening Fishing Line could stretch, thinning under tension yet
retaining remarkable resilience, unlikely to snap anytime soon.
“Damn it, my battle qi's down to less than a third!” He finally shouted after
another thirty seconds, “Quick, feed me the potion!”
With both arms and legs wrapped around the mast and his other hand gripping the
slack fishing line, he couldn't take the potion himself.
The first mate hurried over, opened the bottle, and poured it into Ruan Tang
Ren's open mouth.
Ruan Tang Ren swallowed the potion successfully. Its effects kicked in
immediately, dramatically increasing the rate at which battle qi was generated
within him. Despite the constant depletion, his reserves began to rise.
But the next instant, the gold level sea serpent erupted again.
Ruan Tang Ren wasn't torn apart, but the mast could no longer bear the strain
and snapped clean off.
His face paled. Without anything to cling to, he was yanked straight out.
Just as he was about to crash through the ship's rail and be dragged into the
waterway by the gold level sea serpent, at the critical moment, a thunderous
roar filled the air. Ba Qi suddenly appeared at the ship's rail, extending his
massive hand to grab Ruan Tang Ren's shoulder.
Only then did a wave of air surge over.
Ba Qi's intervention was as steady as mountains, instantly securing Ruan Tang
Ren firmly against the ship's rail.
Still shaken, Ruan Tang Ren hurriedly thanked him, finally comprehending why
Lady Sea Snake had spared no expense to summon Ba Qi's aid.
“Captain Ruan Tang Ren, how are you?” Lady Sea Snake asked anxiously.
Her concern, of course, wasn't for Ruan Tang Ren, but for the sea serpent
lurking beneath the waves.
Yet, well-versed in human psychology, she didn't voice this fear. Instead, she
inquired about Ruan Tang Ren's condition.
Ruan Tang Ren felt a twinge of embarrassment, but the warmth of his beloved's
concern outweighed it. He quickly replied, “I'm fine, cough cough, I'm fine.
The sea serpent is under my control too.”
He answered rapidly, blood spurting from his mouth as he spoke.
His struggle against the gold level sea serpent had already pushed him to his
limits. The impact from their clash had been immense, inflicting serious
damage.
Lady Sea Snake's brows furrowed deeply. Her assessment of the situation left
her far from optimistic.



****** Chapter 438: Ba Qi’s Strength ******
Ruan Tang Ren was desperate to prove himself, but actions spoke louder than
words, gradually eroding Lady Sea Snake’s faith in his claims.
Yet what followed unfolded exactly as Ruan Tang Ren had predicted: the gold
level sea serpent’s strength steadily waned.
Lacking wisdom, the serpent had recklessly squirted venom and slaughtered
fishmen early on, severely depleting its power. Later, during its struggle with
Ruan Tang Ren, it failed to take proper measures against the nearly transparent
fishing line, instead persistently dragging the submersible. As time stretched
on, the effect of the Weakening Fishing Line accumulated, steadily draining the
sea serpent's strength.
Ba Qi held onto Ruan Tang Ren with one hand while planting his foot on the
gunwale, leaning over to observe the sea surface.
Activating his battle qi to investigate, he observed the thrashing sea serpent
deep below and murmured praise: “You've chosen your target well this time.”
This constituted early-stage intelligence gathering.
Lady Sea Snake's choice of target wasn't arbitrary. It followed extensive
reconnaissance and observation, revealing the nature of the serpent's racial
magic. They prioritized those posing minimal threat to fishing lines.
The sea serpent she was currently attacking clearly lacked any line-severing
racial magic.
“Weakening Fishing Line, quite impressive,” Ba Qi remarked with a hint of
admiration.
Regardless of the situation, the silver level Ruan Tang Ren was genuinely using
this equipment to take on a gold level sea serpent beyond his tier.
Ruan Tang Ren's lips trembled, wanting to respond to Ba Qi's praise, but he
couldn't manage it.
His face grew paler by the second. Though he'd taken stimulants earlier, their
effects had worn off. His battle qi reserves were plummeting, and he was on the
verge of collapse.
“I'm about to act.” Ba Qi pressed a hand down on Ruan Tang Ren, aware of his
condition, and spoke calmly.
The next moment, he began a long, deep inhalation.
This breath lasted over ten seconds, stirring the air in the windless sky. The
residual force caused the Fluffy Cloud to sway several times.
When Ba Qi finished inhaling, his chest swelled, and his entire body seemed to
grow several centimeters taller.
He leaned forward, gazing at the sea surface, then gently parted his lips to
exhale.
His lips tightened into a thin slit. The compressed air and battle qi surged
through the opening, erupting outward.
A piercing, shrill whistle nearly ruptured the eardrums of those nearby.
Battle skill - Single Breath: Needle Form!
Ba Qi cultivated the Air Pressure battle qi, excelling at compressing air
currents. The air he expelled was violently compressed, turning milky white and
forming a slender needle.
Thinner than silk, the needle plunged into the sea in an instant, piercing
hundreds of meters through the water to strike the sea serpent's body.
In a normal battle, Ba Qi would naturally aim for the gold level sea serpent's
vital points, its skull, throat, and so on. But this battle aimed to capture
the sea serpent alive, so he redirected the qi needle to pierce its spine
instead.
The wound was too small, causing at most a slight tingling sensation.
The gold level sea serpent continued to struggle fiercely. Its massive size was
its advantage, as long as the attack didn't hit a vital spot, its combat
effectiveness remained largely unaffected.
Ba Qi's expression remained unchanged as he continued to blow steadily.
Yet silently, he activated his second battle skill.
Battle skill - Finger-Circling Softness.
This auxiliary battle skill altered the form of other battle skills.
Single Breath·Needle Form, originally linear and only capable of straight
paths, could now bend and curve under Finger-Circling Softness's influence.
The qi needle extended and lengthened, piercing into the sea serpent's body,
then emerging before thrusting back in again, as if stitching a long strip of
flesh.
With each penetration, the needle pierced through the serpent's bones, sinking
deep into the marrow.
The skeleton was the toughest, most resilient part of the gold level sea
serpent's body, yet it offered no defense against the qi needle's assault.
Lady Sea Snake, observing the battlefield through her spell, witnessed this
scene and couldn't help but reveal a look of shock.
On the ghost ship silently drawing nearer, Jian Gui also felt a slight sinking
in his heart.
Ruan Tang Ren indirectly sensed Ba Qi's strength, for the gold level sea
serpent had once again increased its strength, becoming extremely frenzied.
Yet the pressure Ruan Tang Ren endured was significantly reduced compared to
before.
This was because Ba Qi used his needle to assist Ruan Tang Ren, substantially
lightening his burden. Most of the resistance was absorbed by the interwoven
air threads of the needle.
The needle continuously pierced through, sewing countless white threads onto
the gold level sea serpent's body.
Each penetration of the needle precisely avoided the Weakening Fishing Line.
The number of threads rapidly increased, soon outnumbering the fishing line.
Ba Qi's mastery of these two battle skills was profoundly intricate, his micro-
control truly breathtaking.
The transparent Weakening Fishing Line remained invisible, but the white air
threads grew increasingly conspicuous.
They densely entangled the gold level sea serpent, as if knitting it a sweater.
Soon, the density of the air threads surpassed that of the gold level fishing
net.
The sea serpent struggled desperately, its blood spilling continuously,
staining the surrounding sea red.
“You can try reeling it in now,” Ba Qi instructed.
Ruan Tang Ren obeyed, beginning to reel in the line spool by spool.
After all, the Weakening Fishing Line was physical; the compressed air needles
and threads couldn't haul the sea serpent up.
After a few pulls, Ruan Tang Ren was already panting heavily.
He had to order the first mate to pour several more bottles of potion into him.
The potions swiftly restored his strength, allowing him to slowly and painfully
haul the sea serpent upward.
The sea serpent naturally resisted, attempting to dive deeper into the ocean.
Ba Qi coordinated his efforts, slightly opening his mouth. The expelled airflow
instantly swelled, causing the air threads to expand and thicken five or six
times over. The damage inflicted upon the sea serpent surged fifty to sixty
times!
The sea serpent let out a piercing shriek, the excruciating pain rendering it
nearly immobile for an instant.
Ruan Tang Ren seized the opportunity to reel in the line forcefully, dragging
the sea serpent upward by over ten meters.
Ba Qi controlled the airflow, shrinking the air threads back to its original
thinness.
The sea serpent regained its ability to move and resumed struggling. Ba Qi once
again thickened the air thread's diameter, inflicting fresh wounds and
instantly crippling the serpent's mobility.
Ruan Tang Ren seized the moment to reel in another dozen meters.
After repeating this cycle multiple times, the sea serpent was now just over
100 meters from the surface.
As if sensing its impending doom, the gold level sea serpent unleashed its most
ferocious counterattack yet.
It desperately unleashed every racial magic it possessed, wildly attacking the
surrounding sea surface, even striking itself in the process.
Countless air threads shattered, and its own attacks left its body torn and
bleeding.
Ruan Tang Ren saw black spots before his eyes, nearly fainting, as the fishing
line was pulled out another 80 meters.
Witnessing this brutal tug-of-war and exhaustion, the Sea Snake Woman's face
clouded with worry. She couldn't help but warn, “Lord Ba Qi, at this rate, the
sea snake will kill itself!”
Ba Qi nodded slightly.
If this battle were merely about eliminating the sea serpent, it would be far
simpler.
But they needed to capture it alive and subdue it, a task exponentially more
difficult.
This challenge did not faze Ba Qi.
His eyes widened. While maintaining the first two battle skills, he
effortlessly unleashed his third battle skill.
Battle skill - Airtight Seal!
In the next instant, the air threads expanded a hundredfold, fusing seamlessly
with the surrounding threads.
Yet the strands embedded within the sea serpent's body remained unaffected,
retaining their original thickness.
The external air threads instantly enveloped the serpent, forming wide,
bandage-like strands that shielded it from its own suicidal assault.
The gold level racial magic possessed extraordinary power, but the airflow
bandages continuously drew sustenance from Ba Qi. After over a minute of
stalemate, the sea serpent collapsed first, utterly drained of the strength to
cast any further racial magic.
Its expenditure had been too immense; the magic crystal within its body could
no longer fuel a single racial magic.
The air-flow bandages continued spreading, layering over it like a
mummification process.
The sea serpent's vitality plummeted to its lowest point, leaving it utterly
unable to struggle.
Ruan Tang Ren was nearly drained of strength too, but under the encouraging,
expectant gaze of Lady Sea Snake, he squeezed out a fresh surge of power.
Finally, gritting his teeth, he succeeded in pulling the sea serpent up to the
surface.
The mummy-like sea serpent floated motionless on the sea surface, helpless and
vulnerable.
Ba Qi continued to blow air, sustaining the three battle skills.
In contrast, Ruan Tang Ren slumped against the ship's rail, gasping for breath.
His entire body was drenched in sweat, as if he'd just been pulled from the
water.
For the sake of his beloved, he had truly given his all this time.
“It's my turn now,” Lady Sea Snake said as she flew down from Fluffy Cloud, not
forgetting to express her gratitude, “Thank you both for your tremendous help.”
Hearing these words, a new spark of vitality suddenly burst forth in the weary,
lifeless eyes of Ruan Tang Ren, and he felt his strength returning.
Lady Sea Snake landed on the water's surface near the sea serpent and began its
examination.
Though she had observed the battle, this close-up inspection required different
spells to truly gauge the sea serpent's condition and determine if it was
suitable to be taken as a magic pet.
The results were promising.
Lady Sea Snake immediately produced a spell scroll.
The scroll radiated a silver level aura. Unfolding it revealed a hexagram-
centered magic formation diagram, densely packed with contract spell runes.
Flanking it were crescent and square magic formations. Most distinctive was the
serpentine pattern at the hexagram's core.
These were no ordinary magic lines; it was a totem!
Lady Sea Snake employed not only conventional spell scroll crafting techniques
in this scroll but also incorporated beastman totem alchemy.
This magic scroll was meticulously transcribed and crafted by her own hand. A
scroll of this caliber typically consumed at least a month of her time. Of
course, she did not neglect other duties during this month, but rather
dedicated five to six hours daily to crafting spell scrolls.
The alchemy materials alone consumed exceeded 200 gold coins. Factoring in time
and labor made it even more costly. Yet these exorbitant expenses were entirely
justified.
For such a scroll enabled a silver level Lady Sea Snake to command a gold level
sea serpent beyond her own level.
Commanding higher level creatures was not unheard of, but the significance and
value grew exponentially with each tier.
A silver level controlling a gold level was exceptionally rare.
The former belonged to the lower echelons of the transcendent hierarchy, while
the latter had already reached the middle, a clear distinction in social
standing.
Many coveted such scrolls, willing to pay any price, yet they remained elusive.



****** Chapter 439: Fishman Youngster – Cang Xu?! ******
Lady Sea Snake channeled her magic into the scroll, which then slipped from her
hands and floated slowly before her.
The scroll emitted a faint blue glow.
She deliberately bit her finger, releasing a trickle of blood.
Guided by her will, the blood seeped into the scroll's surface, staining only
the serpentine totem crimson, leaving the other patterns and runes untouched.
In truth, the serpentine totem itself had been drawn primarily with Lady Sea
Snake's blood.
Thus, the blood swiftly merged with the serpentine totem, activating it.
For this magic contract scroll, Lady Sea Snake's blood served as the key to its
activation.
Even if someone were to steal this scroll, without Lady Sea Snake's blood, it
would be nothing more than a worthless piece of paper.
The first step was crucial. Only after Lady Sea Snake completed it did she
proceed with confidence, channeling her magic to fully activate the scroll.
The primary magic formation within the scroll began to radiate a deep blue
glow. The light flickered and swirled ceaselessly, gradually illuminating each
magic rune.
When every rune and magic line was lit, the blue light reached its peak
intensity.
The blinding blue light shone upon the gold level sea serpent, simultaneously
illuminating Lady Sea Snake, binding their minds together in a spiritual
connection.
At that moment, Lady Sea Snake's brow furrowed deeply, her face contorted with
agony. Her blood seemed to boil throughout her body, her head felt as though
struck by an invisible iron hammer, her spirit subjected to a grueling ordeal.
After all, this was a silver level being forcibly resisting a gold level, an
act of defiance against a superior.
As for the gold level sea serpent, its entire body convulsed violently, as if
being savagely electrocuted.
Ba Qi firmly restrained the serpent, ensuring it could not truly resist.
After several seconds, the blinding blue light gradually stabilized and
softened. Lady Sea Snake's expression of agony eased considerably, allowing the
contract process to proceed smoothly.
But at that very moment, a powerful surge of magic power erupted violently from
the nearby sea!
In the blink of an eye, the level of this magic fluctuation skyrocketed from
bronze level to gold level.
Necromancy - Soul Scream Cannon!
On the deck of the ghost ship, countless ghosts swirled and danced behind a
hastily deployed silver level cannon.
The dense mass of ghosts coalesced into a circular, pitch-black vortex. A gold
level ghost plunged into its center, its form compressed and reshaped by the
vortex into a cannonball.
Once loaded into the cannon, it was immediately fired.
The undead, already close to the battlefield, had long since brought Lady Sea
Snake within effective range. This cannon shot caught the pirates completely
off guard!
“I've never seen such a tactic before!” Cang Xu closely monitored the results
of the bombardment.
He noticed that the gold level ghost transformed into the cannonball clearly
bore signs of modification.
Despite being hampered by the silver level cannon, the gold level ghost's role
as projectile, enhanced by the gold level Jian Gui's spellcasting and amplified
by the gold level ghost ship, delivered far greater destructive force than the
Deep Sea Monster Fish's own gold level cannon and gold level cannonballs
combined! Factoring in the undead's new faction advantage only amplified this
superiority.
Faced with such bombardment, Ba Qi and his companions were shocked.
“A gold level spell!”
“Those are necromancers!”
Amidst the collective shouts, Lady Sea Snake swiftly ascended into the air,
attempting to evade the cannon fire.
Having clashed with Jian Gui and others before, she was the most prepared for
this sudden turn of events, making her reaction remarkably swift.
But the artillery fire wasn't aimed at Lady Sea Snake, nor at the Fluffy Cloud.
Its target was the immobilized gold level sea serpent.
“No!”
Amid Lady Sea Snake's shrieks, the cannonball struck the sea serpent with
pinpoint accuracy, blowing it into a pile of flesh and bone fragments. The sea
serpent's gold level soul was utterly obliterated in an instant.
Crucially, Lady Sea Snake was midway through establishing a magic contract with
the serpent—a process that hadn't halted. A psychic link bound them.
One's brutal death instantly inflicted severe damage on the other.
Lady Sea Snake spat blood, her body staggering violently. She nearly tumbled
into the sea, barely managing to stabilize and remain suspended in the air.
Ruan Tang Ren let out a startled cry, intending to assist her. But as he rose
to his feet, his legs buckled, and he collapsed to his knees.
His energy was utterly depleted. He was powerless, his combat strength reduced
to nothing.
“Necromancers! You're too arrogant!” Ba Qi roared, leaping from the Fluffy
Cloud and crashing into the sea surface.
Boom!
A massive column of water erupted as Ba Qi charged toward the ghost ship like a
mountain tiger.
This was a shrewd tactical choice; only close combat could fully leverage a
fighter's inherent advantage against a magician.
However, Jian Gui was prepared.
He had been biding his time all this while, not wasting his efforts, but
quietly brewing his spell in silence.
Black soul chains coiled around Ba Qi.
The Soul Scream Cannon fired once more, striking the restrained Ba Qi.
Boom!
A deafening explosion sent the sea surging upward like a mountain.
Two gold level ghost “shells” were fired. The silver level cannon on the ghost
ship's deck dimmed completely, as if struck by a petrification spell. It turned
entirely grayish white, losing all metallic luster. It had been so severely
corroded by negative energy that it was utterly useless now.
Lady Sea Snake, her body heavy with wounds, attempted to fly back to the Fluffy
Cloud.
During this process, bone spears flew toward her, and ghosts whirled into the
air, blocking her path.
“Those damned necromancers! Qi Ling, act now!” With her life threatened, Lady
Sea Snake abandoned all pretense and issued a direct command.
Qi Ling immediately descended from the Fluffy Cloud, staff in hand.
As she formally unleashed necromancy magic, her true identity was exposed.
Shock rippled through the Fluffy Cloud. No one had imagined that Qi Ling, who
had lived among them for so long, always quiet and unassuming, was actually a
necromancer!
“This is troublesome.” Cang Xu, who had been attacking her remotely with
spells, immediately felt conflicted. He found it difficult to strike Qi Ling
with full force.
Their mission was to save her, not kill her.
Qi Ling was bound by her pact with Lady Sea Snake, she had no choice but to
fight with everything she had.
With Qi Ling holding them off, Lady Sea Snake made it safely back onto the
Fluffy Cloud.
Ruan Tang Ren hurried to support her, his heart aching for the gravely wounded
Lady Sea Snake. He paid no heed to Qi Ling, who had suddenly revealed her true
identity.
Lady Sea Snake scanned the deck and called out, "Everyone, rest assured. I have
Qi Ling under my control. She may be a necromancer, but she is my slave!"
The pirates aboard the Fluffy Cloud stirred once more at these words.
Seeing Qi Ling “loyally” battling the unexpected enemy, they began to believe
Lady Sea Snake's claim.
“Don't be anxious,” Cang Xu advised, his hand resting on Xiao Wang Zi's
shoulder from within the ghost ship's cabin, “air combat favors them. Lure Qi
Ling into the sea first.”
A wise man would choose his own battlefield.
Xiao Wang Zi nodded in agreement with Cang Xu's suggestion.
As for Ku Feng, he guarded the two magicians.
Qi Ling understood “cooperation” well. She plunged directly into the sea,
commanding the water ghosts to attack the ghost ship.
These water ghosts could indeed unleash their full combat power underwater,
ensuring that Qi Ling didn't violate her magic pact with Lady Sea Snake.
“Chaos!”
“Who knew there was a group of necromancers too?”
The fishmen of the Da Ji Clan, already retreating to a distance, witnessed the
sudden outbreak of battle and retreated further in fright.
Qi Ling fought alone against the combined forces of Xiao Wang Zi and Cang Xu,
while the water ghosts tangled with the death heads and the skeleton army.
“What the hell are these flying death heads?” Qi Ling wondered in alarm.
“Too bad I can't deploy my skeleton turtle cavalry. Otherwise, these water
ghosts wouldn't stand a chance!” Xiao Wang Zi scoffed.
The ghost ship, carrying the necromancers, engaged in a retreating battle
against Ba Qi. Meanwhile, vast numbers of undead creatures, commanded by the
necromancers, filled the gaps across the battlefield. They made extensive
contact and began a fierce struggle.
Ba Qi bore minor wounds.
That cannon blast had indeed packed a punch. Despite deploying his defensive
battle skill, he couldn't shield himself completely.
Yet such injuries didn't hinder his combat prowess. Ba Qi accelerated
relentlessly, closing in on the ghost ship with full force.
The ghost ship fought while retreating. Merging with Jian Gui, it shed its
usual rigidity, becoming remarkably agile and alert.
A dozen or so gold level ghosts, each modified to varying degrees, circled and
swirled around the ghost ship, forming the main force hindering Ba Qi's
approach.
Ba Qi continuously unleashed his battle skills, while the dozen gold level
ghosts, under the command of Jian Gui, advanced and retreated with precision,
their coordination seamless.
The situation reached a brief stalemate, and Lady Sea Snake aboard the Fluffy
Cloud grew impatient.
“Fire the cannons!” she ordered on behalf of Ruan Tang Ren.
But the other pirates ignored her, all eyes fixed on Ruan Tang Ren.
Ruan Tang Ren, however, stared back at Lady Sea Snake, his face filled with
worry and concern. Realizing the situation, he quickly issued the command: “Aim
at the ghost ship! Fire hard!”
The Fluffy Cloud carried numerous silver level cannons and a substantial supply
of ammunition.
Silver level cannons firing silver level shells pounded the sea in rapid
succession, sending a dozen water spouts skyward.
Upon impact, the shells trailed long, bubbly white tails through the water,
hurtling toward the ghost ship.
The ghost ship moved swiftly, evading most of the cannonballs. Then Ku Feng
personally intervened, slicing two solid cannonballs clean in half.
Yet to Lady Sea Snake's eyes, this scene appeared entirely different.
She saw nearly every cannonball strike the ghost ship, which was shattered
beyond recognition amid the explosions.
Jian Gui was forced to reveal himself. His aura weakened, the ghost ship's
severe damage had also affected him.
Ba Qi charged toward the necromancers.
The magicians scattered like birds and beasts.
As a fighter, Ku Feng stayed behind to cover their retreat. He was the first to
fall in battle.
Next were Cang Xu and Xiao Wang Zi.
Finally, Jian Gui was also slain by Ba Qi!
“Truly worthy of Lord Ba Qi!!”  Lady Sea Snake watched, her heart racing with
exhilaration.
“The only pity is my sea serpent... wait, what's that?” She suddenly spotted a
gold level sea serpent charging into the battlefield, seemingly drawn by the
scent of blood.
“Launch the ship! Fly above that sea serpent!” she commanded.
The pirates heard and saw Ruan Tang Ren shouting, and immediately obeyed,
maneuvering the Fluffy Cloud slowly into position.
Ba Qi unleashed his battle skills, charging forward relentlessly, sweeping away
the gold level ghosts like withered leaves.
Not only that, but with the Fluffy Cloud's cannons providing support, he
successfully sank the ghost ship.
After a final fierce battle, he also eliminated Jian Gui and his crew.
"Necromancer? Hmph, this time you'll die completely." Just as Ba Qi was feeling
triumphant, sudden agony struck him, causing him to spit out a mouthful of
blood.
He abruptly looked down at his midsection, where thick black smoke billowed,
emanating a potent undead aura.
“Necromancy magic?”
“When?”
He immediately recalled the battle moments ago. He had taken a mysterious spell
from Jian Gui head-on, seizing the opportunity to kill him.
“So that was the gold level necromancer's last-ditch counterattack!”
The next instant, Ba Qi's body shook violently again.
He discovered two more areas on his body erupting with darkness.
Ba Qi hastily activated defensive battle skills while downing potions to heal
his wounds.
The reality was that the gold level octopusman fighter, Zhang Yu Wan, wielded
axes, halberds, swords, and spears, relentlessly stabbing at Ba Qi's sides.
The dark smoke Ba Qi perceived was actually his own blood spurting forth.
Ba Qi reached for a potion to drink, only for Zhang Yu Wan to snatch it away.
Unwittingly, he gulped down a mouthful of seawater instead.
Divine spell—Opportunistic Deception!
Secretly cast by the saint level octopusman Zhou Zhang, the divine spell's
fluctuations went undetected. Yet every enemy sensing the waves was
simultaneously deceived, instinctively ignoring it.
Zhang Yu Wan circled Ba Qi, stabbing relentlessly with his weapons until the
latter was gravely wounded. Then, he clenched his fist and drove it into the
back of Ba Qi's neck with a powerful hammer blow, knocking him unconscious.
Meanwhile, the Fluffy Cloud landed on the ocean surface. Another gold level
octopusman, Jiu Hua Bi, used his four thick tentacles to bind the key pirates:
Lady Sea Snake, Ruan Tang Ren, and the first mate.
Moments later, Cang Xu and the others also fell captive to the undersea army,
all taken alive.
Ocean Mother Nest.
“They're back?” The fishman youngster had already detected the army's movements
outside the Mother Nest through his scouting puppet.
He watched closely.
When the commotion began, temptation flickered in the fishman youngster's
heart.
Could the departure of Zhou Zhang and the others be his chance to escape?
After a moment's hesitation, he dismissed the thought.
The risk was too great.
Though Zhou Zhang and the others had departed, many remained behind, the three
gold levels who were troublesome enough. There were numerous amounts of silver
levels and iron levels too.
Staying here, however, yielded astonishing rewards for the fishman youngster -
the Pearl Bubbles from the Mermaid Fairy Tale kept multiplying, nearly
overflowing!
Crucially, the fishman youngster couldn't be certain of further intelligence. 
What if Zhou Zhang and the others had suddenly departed merely to rendezvous
with a large-scale sea beast horde?
Such scenarios have occurred multiple times before.
Only Zhou Zhang rarely went out alone; most missions involved the other two
gold level octopusman fighters.
This time, all three octopusmen had mobilized, signaling something unusual to
the fishman youngster.
The fishman youngster remained stationed in the cockpit, closely monitoring the
activity outside the mother nest through the magic projection.
He eagerly anticipated a powerful beast tide disrupting the order outside the
nest, giving him an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos.
But his hopes were quickly dashed.
He witnessed Zhou Zhang and the others returning.
“They came back so quickly, thankfully I didn’t risk it.” The fishman youngster
felt a sense of relief.
"This time, they actually captured so many human prisoners? Judging by their
attire, are they pirates?"
“There's even a gold level fighter...” The fishman youngster saw the
unconscious Ba Qi for the first time.
“Wait, Lady Sea Snake?”  The fishman youngster spotted Lady Sea Snake. He had
crossed paths with her during the Weeping Pine Naval Battle.
“Who'd have thought that the Fire Beard Pirates would meet their end here
today,” the fishman youngster murmured with a faint smile.
These human prisoners had all been spellbound, their lives temporarily
preserved in the sea.
But the fishman youngster understood Zhou Zhang and the others' purpose: to
keep them alive temporarily before sacrificing them to the Charming Blue
Goddess. Living sacrifices were naturally best for blood offerings.
“Clearly, Lady Sea Snake's faith shouldn't be in the Charming Blue Goddess.”
Regarding his former enemy, the fishman youngster naturally delighted in seeing
her meet a gruesome end at the hands of the saint level sea beast of the Ocean
Mother Nest.
"Perhaps I can make the first move? Acquiring a human magic bloodline wouldn't
be bad either.” The fishman youngster schemed inwardly.
"Oh? A gold level necromancer... Seems vaguely familiar." The fishman youngster
spotted Jian Gui.
However, Jian Gui wore a full black robe with a hood, lacking any particularly
distinctive features.
The next moment, the fishman youngster's eyes widened in shock.
What was he seeing?
"Cang Xu? 
How did he get captured by Zhou Zhang!”
“Wait, so that means the one in front of him is Jian Gui?” Then, the fishman
youngster spotted familiar faces: Xiao Wang Zi, Ku Feng, and Qing Xin.
The fishman youngster: "…"



****** Chapter 440: Converting to Another Religion ******
The fishman youngster never imagined he would meet Cang Xu under such
circumstances.
“This is truly troublesome,” the fishman youngster murmured, his expression
heavy with worry.
Even saving himself was difficult now, and Cang Xu had become a prisoner of the
saint level priestess Zhou Zhang. Therefore, the fishman youngster not only had
to save himself but also rescue Cang Xu.
“What am I to do?” The fishman youngster once again felt the inadequacy of his
own strength.
He was merely a silver level. Yet before him, even the gold level fighter and
necromancer had been easily captured by Zhou Zhang.
The might of the saint level was too formidable for a gold level to withstand,
far surpassing the difficulty of a silver level slaying a gold level!
Besides Zhou Zhang, there were at least five other gold level enemies. Silver
level and iron level foes were even more numerous.
If the fishman youngster attempted a direct confrontation, he would have to
face an entire undersea army!
Seeing the fate of the necromancers, he felt fortunate he hadn't taken the risk
earlier.
Even with his Bloodcore absorbing undead bloodlines, allowing him to transform
into an undead, acting alone would still be extremely dangerous.
The moment he became a ghost, passing through the walls of the Ocean Mother
Nest to the outside world, would be the moment of his complete destruction. Or
he'd suffer the same fate as Cang Xu and the others, captured.
From these prisoners, the fishman youngster keenly sensed Zhou Zhang's
formidable power. Even without witnessing the battle firsthand.
Zhou Zhang had captured alive Ba Qi, Lady Sea Snake, Ruan Tang Ren, and the
necromancers led by Jian Gui. Such a feat was terrifying.
After all, killing and capturing alive were entirely different levels of
difficulty.
Especially when the fishman youngster calculated the time, Zhou Zhang had
departed the altar and returned in mere moments. To capture so many powerful
foes in such a short span... Such combat prowess was truly terrifying upon
reflection.
The prisoners were escorted beneath the altar.
The octopusman escorting the captured Ba Qi was named Zhang Yu Wan, he cursed
under his breath before delivering a vicious kick to Ba Qi's shin.
Ba Qi's combat power had been completely sealed.
Zhou Zhang had subsequently cast a divine spell upon him, allowing him to
breathe freely underwater and withstand the immense pressure of the sea, yet
leaving him utterly powerless to resist.
The brutal kick sent Ba Qi crashing to his knees.
It must be said, this battle was undoubtedly the most humiliating for Ba Qi.
He possessed the Bad Weather bloodline, cultivated the Air Pressure battle qi,
and mastered the racial magic Air Element Transformation.
His trump card made him virtually devoid of any fatal structural weaknesses in
his body.
Yet he was enveloped by the Opportunistic Deception Spell, completely unaware
he was under attack. Even when he thought he was consuming healing potions, his
enemies had stolen them, yet he remained oblivious.
His formidable racial magic Air Element Transformation remained entirely
unused.
It could be said Zhou Zhang had completely countered him, rendering his
formidable power utterly useless.
But victory was victory, defeat was defeat. Ba Qi's face darkened, yet he
acknowledged the truth. He knelt on both knees, utterly still, offering no
resistance.
Soon after, Lady Sea Snake was dragged to Ba Qi's side and forced to kneel.
Perhaps the kneeling motion was too violent, for she coughed up a mouthful of
blood. Her expression was utterly exhausted, her gaze dim and lifeless,
stripped of her usual radiance.
Her current predicament was an utterly crushing blow!
Lady Sea Snake had considered Jian Gui and others but never imagined
encountering a being like Zhou Zhang.
Success had been within her grasp, only to slip away at the last moment. Not
only was the forcibly contracted gold level sea serpent utterly destroyed, but
she herself had become a prisoner.
The fall from grace was staggering.
Ruan Tang Ren followed closely behind, forced to his knees.
His condition was equally dire. To subdue the gold level sea serpent, he had
not only expended every ounce of strength but also downed two potent potions.
Now, his entire body felt like jelly, utterly devoid of resistance. He couldn't
even maintain his kneeling posture, soon collapsing face-down onto the ground.
Even in this state, he hadn't forgotten to care for his beloved.
Ruan Tang Ren dragged himself forward inch by inch, his chin scraping the floor
as he moved toward Lady Sea Snake.
“No, don't be afraid. At least we're still alive,” he managed to say, his words
strained.
Lady Sea Snake remained unresponsive, her expression vacant.
Seeing his beloved in this state, Ruan Tang Ren felt a sharp pang of sorrow.
Jian Gui soon knelt beside them, joining the line formed by Ba Qi and the
others.
Xiao Wang Zi sobbed quietly while being pressed close against him.
Ku Feng had lost one arm. This was the result of his reaction mid-battle, after
the effect of the Opportunistic Deception Spell faded, as he fought back with
all his might.
His expression was as hard as iron. His combat prowess was at the peak of the
silver level, but his opponent was Zhang Yu Wan of the gold level. He had
managed to survive due to Zhang Yu Wan deliberately holding back.
Cang Xu, however, suffered little damage.
Of course, this was because he had regained his senses and deliberately ceased
resisting.
Cang Xu possessed the weakest strength. In such circumstances, the weakest
often fared better than the stronger.
Cang Xu raised his eyes to observe Zhou Zhang ascending the altar, surrounded
by the vast undersea army, his heart filled with bitter resentment.
The necromancers had sought to play the role of the third party, only for the
true victors to be Zhou Zhang's faction, who had struck last.
This was a crushing defeat in every sense!
"Damn it! Now a prisoner, facing enemies too powerful to hope of escape."
“Must I truly meet my end here this time?”
Cang Xu felt profound resentment, especially knowing the Bloodcore existed.
Yet he also silently urged himself to remain calm: "Since these octopusman
didn't kill me outright on the battlefield but instead captured us all and even
kindly cast divine magic to keep us alive underwater for now... if they truly
intended to kill us, this wouldn't be the moment."
Qing Xin was eventually escorted to Cang Xu's side.
She knelt down of her own accord.
The expression on this wind magician's face was numb.
Her situation had already been dire aboard the ghost ship.
She never imagined that after this battle, she would become a prisoner.
For Qing Xin, it truly felt like there was no worst living environment, only
worse ones!
Qi Ling was not spared either, joining the ranks of kneeling captives.
Yet among all the prisoners, her situation might be the least dire.
For she had connections to the Da Ji Clan. After their retreat, the Da Ji Clan
had now reunited with Zhou Zhang and the others. This offered Qi Ling a glimmer
of hope.
If Zhou Zhang had accepted the Da Ji Clan, perhaps she might also accept her -
this special fishman who had always prioritized the tribe, who even after
becoming a necromancer, secretly protected them?
Besides those kneeling in the front row like Ba Qi and Jian Gui, every pirate
aboard the Fluffy Cloud, and every crew member of the Heroism Pirates, had been
rounded up.
But they weren't worthy of kneeling before the altar.
The fishmen of the Da Ji Clan were not treated as prisoners.
Qi Ren, Qi Shu, and Qi Miao scanned their surroundings.
The immense magic formation sprawling across the mountain wall left them
awestruck. The sight of the gold level beast bone altar filled them with awe.
Seeing their enemies reduced to captives, a sense of satisfaction and
excitement at vengeance filled their hearts.
The clan priestess, Qi Miao, whispered to the clan leader, Qi Ren: “Lord Qi
Ling has also been taken captive. Should we report this situation to Lord Zhou
Zhang?”
Qi Ren's face darkened as he shook his head slightly. "Now is not the time. We
must endure for now. For the moment, they should not be in mortal danger. My
greater concern is that we hold no standing to plead for a necromancer before
Lord Zhou Zhang. Haven't you seen the looks on the others' faces?"
The vast undersea army encircling the altar fixed their gaze upon the
necromancers, their eyes brimming with intense loathing, hatred, fear, and
murderous intent.
Compared to the human Ba Qi and Lady Sea Snake, the necromancers were clearly
far less welcome.
Zhou Zhang had ascended the altar, surveying everyone below.
Her gaze swept lightly over the others before settling on the captives like Ba
Qi.
Zhou Zhang spoke in the Universal Language, introducing herself: "I am Zhou
Zhang, devoted entirely to serving our deity, Charming Blue Goddess. As one of
the archbishops of the Charming Blue Church, your capture by my hand must be
the will of the gods, the arrangement of fate."
“Now, you have a choice.”
“Choose to convert to our deity, the Charming Blue Goddess, and you may gain
the chance to survive, even freedom.”
“But if you cling to your former faith, utter annihilation will be your only
fate.”
As a saint level archbishop of the Charming Blue Church, spreading the
goddess's faith had always been her primary duty.
Hearing her words, the captives revealed expressions of shock.
“Charming Blue?”
“Wasn't she already destroyed?”
“No. As long as a single believer remains, the deity is immortal, at most, she
has merely fallen into slumber.”
“So that's why the saint level priestess didn't exterminate us outright...”
After the initial shock, the captives fell into silence.
Convert?
For them, this was an extremely weighty and difficult decision.
In this world, nearly everyone held onto their own beliefs. Many devout
believers would rather die than renounce their faith. To these believers, death
held no terror. By holding fast to their faith, even in death, they might earn
the deity's favor, be guided to the divine domain, and thereafter enjoy the
blissful life of heaven.
Zhou Zhang's threat of life and death seemed forceful, but in truth, for some
deeply devout believers, it was a negligible threat.
The difficulty of conversion also signifies the difficulty of proselytizing.
Typically, the more powerful the deity, the easier it was to spread their
faith. But Charming Blue Goddess was clearly not a powerful deity, and her
situation was dire. After that divine war, she had remained in slumber.
Given sufficient time, Zhou Zhang might have employed gentler, more measured
methods for proselytizing. But now, tasked with presiding over a blood
sacrifice, she possessed neither the time nor the patience. Thus, she resorted
to threatening life and death, forcing conversion through sheer force.



****** Chapter 441: Rescued Due to Unexpected Events ******
Seeing the captives remain silent, Zhou Zhang said nothing further. Instead,
she signaled with her eyes to the gold level octopusman, Jiu Hua Bi, standing
nearby. 
Jiu Hua Bi immediately understood Zhou Zhang's intent. With a wave of his hand,
he directed the others to escort the sea beast herd onto the altar.
Thus, under the prisoners' gaze, a blood sacrifice commenced.
Though the fishman youngster hiding within the Ocean Mother Nest had witnessed
such rituals countless times, it was the prisoners' first encounter.
They watched the entire process from start to finish, their eyes wide with
astonishment, feeling the immense power of this hybrid formation blending magic
and divine text.
The captives finally understood why such immense power lay concealed within
White Hair Trench.
“As a saint level archbishop of the Charming Blue Church, she intends to hunt
sea beasts here on a massive scale, sacrificing them to her deity.”
“The beast tide in White Hair Trench is their perfect opportunity to gather
ample offerings for the blood sacrifice.”
"We're utterly doomed. Captured by these people, we're being forced to convert.
Refuse, and we'll likely be sacrificed!"
“Life or death?”
“Convert or not?”
The captives faced an agonizing choice.
At that moment, one captive spoke up first: “I’ll convert!”
All eyes instantly focused on him.
People quickly recognized the one declaring conversion as the highest level
necromancer among them -the gold level Jian Gui.
Zhou Zhang's expression remained unchanged as she tilted her chin slightly. The
octopusman behind Jian Gui immediately moved to support him to his feet.
Jian Gui was finally free from kneeling.
He raised his head to look at Zhou Zhang on the altar, bowing slowly as he
introduced himself: “Archbishop of the Charming Blue Goddess, Zhou Zhang of the
saint level... I am Jian Gui, the direct heir to the orthodox necromancer
lineage...”
Jian Gui stated his identity and revealed his teacher was one of the Twelve
Saints. Finally, he invoked the name of You Shen. This legendary figure,
renowned throughout the world for founding the necromancer faction, was a true
superstar!
Jian Gui passionately expressed his viewpoint: the necromancer orthodoxy and
the Charming Blue Church were not adversaries; cooperation between the two was
entirely possible.
Yet these words did nothing to soften the expressions of his enemies. Instead,
the disgust and suspicion on many faces only deepened.
Zhang Yu Wan snorted coldly, fixing a piercing stare on Jian Gui: "Necromancer
orthodoxy? So, you're a blasphemous priest, are you?"
With those words, a torrent of murderous intent surged toward Jian Gui from all
directions.
The hatred between blasphemous priests and the various religions and their
believers ran deep, their conflict utterly irreconcilable, a complete and utter
enmity!
Jian Gui hastily clarified that while he belonged to the orthodox necromancer
faction, he was not a blasphemous priest.
He further emphasized: While many blasphemous priests existed within the
orthodox undead faction, not a single one had ever dared to offend the Charming
Blue Goddess.
This much was true.
At least to Zhou Zhang's knowledge, no necromancer had ever desecrated her
sacred faith.
Jian Gui concluded with a solemn oath: Even if he gained such power in the
future, he would never dare to offend the Charming Blue Goddess. To prove his
sincerity, he declared he would convert on the spot, join the Charming Blue
Church, and become the world's first gold level necromancer to worship the
goddess! Moreover, when the opportunity arose, he would preach to other
necromancers.
These words moved many believers.
Zhou Zhang stared at Jian Gui for a long moment before speaking in the
Universal Language: “All things should worship my Lord, and necromancers are no
exception. Jian Gui, if you truly can spread the Goddess's faith among
necromancers, I shall reward you according to your merits.”
"I will believe you for now, but you must prove your faith to us later. Do not
be a cunning fox or jackal."
"I hope you truly believe in my Lord. Should we discover you deceiving us, even
with You Shen standing behind you, you shall pay an unimaginably heavy price."
Jian Gui hastily pledged he would keep his word and devote himself
wholeheartedly to the worship of the Charming Blue Goddess. He was already
eager to learn the relevant prayers and perform his very first prayer.
Yet deep within, Jian Gui sneered inwardly: "If Founder You Shen truly stood
behind me, would you dare repeat those words just now? Zhou Zhang!"
Circumstances dictated his attitude. Jian Gui chose outward obedience while
secretly seeking an opportunity to call for aid.
During the previous battle, his focus had been entirely drawn to Ba Qi, leaving
him utterly unprepared for the Opportunistic Deception Spell. This left him
unable to even make the gesture to send a distress signal.
Even if he had sent one, the chances of receiving rescue at the level of the
Twelve Saints were slim.
That battle on the Underworld River had been more a matter of good fortune for
Jian Gui. One of the Twelve Saints, Doctor Sui Shi, happened to be nearby and
could receive his distress signal.
With Jian Gui as an example, Xiao Wang Zi and the others immediately understood
what they must do.
It had to be said, necromancers possessed remarkably flexible faith boundaries.
Xiao Wang Zi, whimpering softly, feared death intensely. He dreaded never
seeing his parents again.
But before Xiao Wang Zi could speak, another voice piped up first: “I too shall
convert to the great Charming Blue Goddess!”
All turned to see who had spoken. The speaker was unexpected; it was Ba Qi.
Though Ba Qi held his own beliefs, his faith ran shallow, at best, he was a
casual believer.
After becoming a prisoner, Ba Qi swiftly accepted his reality and chose
submission. This likely stemmed from his past experience being imprisoned in
the Abyss Hanging Tower.
With the two most powerful gold level captives having both declared their
conversion and demonstrated their allegiance, the remaining prisoners swiftly
followed suit: each expressed their willingness to convert.
Thus, these individuals were helped to their feet, though the shackles around
their wrists and ankles remained fastened.
Zhou Zhang issued further orders. She instructed priests of the Charming Blue
Church to lead the captives, teaching them the church's prayers and ritual
protocols. They were also tasked with guiding the captives to settle here,
overseeing and managing their daily lives.
To be spared like this, freed from the threat of death, felt almost
unbelievable to Cang Xu and the others.
“They just let us go like that?”
“She actually believes we've converted?”
“The Charming Blue believers around us are looking at us strangely. There must
be something fishy going on!”
If he could speak to them directly, the fishman youngster would tell them:
'You're thinking far too simplistically! Next, you'll be transported to the
Ocean Mother Nest. The saint level sea beast within the Mother Nest will be the
most rigorous test of your faith. The slightest deficiency in faith will see
you ruthlessly slaughtered, becoming one of the blood sacrifices.'
But for now, the fishman youngster heaved a huge sigh of relief.
If Zhou Zhang had tried to execute the prisoners in public, the fishman
youngster would be forced to break out of the Ocean Mother Nest and attack them
with the Deep Sea Monster Fish in an attempt to save Cang Xu.
He could never stand by and watch his comrade die horribly.
That was utterly beyond him.
For the fishman youngster, this turn of events was undoubtedly the best
possible outcome!
Thanks to the intelligence he'd gathered earlier, he had already guessed Zhou
Zhang's next move.
“Once Cang Xu is teleported in, I can rescue him.”
“When he's brought aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish and sees me, he'll be
shocked, right?” The fishman youngster smiled, anticipating that moment.
"I set out from Snow Bird Harbor originally to rescue Lan Zao. I failed to save
Lan Zao and ended up trapped in Ocean Mother Nest myself. Now, by some twist of
fate, I'm going to save Cang Xu."
In that moment, the fishman youngster felt the capriciousness of destiny.
“Ah, I wonder how Lan Zao is doing now?”
Lan Zao was doing quite well.
He swam freely through the ocean.
Through days of training, he had grown quite familiar with his new life form.
He constantly practiced breathing through his gills, striving to make the
action instinctive.
Before this, he had “accidentally” encountered Ba Qi, enduring a trial. After
falling into the water, Lan Zao had fallen unconscious, ceasing his gill
breathing.
This was a weakness. Following Shuang Tu's reminder, he was now actively
working to improve it.
Ba Qi's infused battle qi allowed Lan Zao to complete his energy transformation
in minimal time.
Now, Lan Zao practiced the Air Pressure battle qi technique.
Battle skill -Air Cannon.
Lan Zao slowed his swimming pace, covertly contracting his muscles to compress
the air sac within his body. The stored compressed air was immediately forced
out in a mass, traveling through his windpipe into his mouth.
From the outside, Lan Zao's Adam's apple rolled, followed by his cheeks
suddenly bulging.
Seizing the moment, Lan Zao opened his mouth and fired an air cannonball.
The projectile flew dozens of meters before exploding with a boom.
Lan Zao assessed that its destructive force should rival that of an iron level
cannonball.
However, since the test was conducted deep underwater, the sea surface remained
perfectly calm.
After fully converting his battle qi, Lan Zao's previous injuries had
completely healed.
Currently, he was focusing on mastering the Air Cannon battle skill.
It must be said that the study materials provided by Shuang Tu have been
immensely beneficial to him.  Combined with his bloodline and battle qi
technique being highly compatible, Lan Zao's cultivation of this battle skill
has progressed rapidly.
He has now fully grasped it. Immersed in his training, he gradually lost track
of time until Shuang Tu teleported over to find him.
Shuang Tu addressed Lan Zao: “Your training session is over, Hen Fa.”
“Lunch is ready for you.”
Lan Zao nodded his thanks to Shuang Tu.
He understood clearly: his rapid progress these past days stemmed partly from
his bloodline and diligence, but equally from Shuang Tu's comprehensive
support. This included daily nutritional feasts, magic cuisine. Not only were
they delicious, but they were perfectly suited to his current needs, providing
him with abundant nourishment.
Just as Lan Zao was planning to continue training after lunch, Shuang Tu
continued, “After lunch, you should rest for a while. Don't train at all this
afternoon. You need to conserve your energy.”
"I'll introduce you to someone. He'll take you down to an underground cavern to
participate in a wild duel."



****** Chapter 442: Wild Duel (1) ******
“What is a wild duel?” Lan Zao asked curiously, having only heard of heroic
duels.
Shuang Tu explained, "You can think of it as a heroic duel without
restrictions. It's more thrilling and bloodier than a heroic duel. Both
duelists may employ any means during combat and cannot surrender voluntarily.
The duel only ends when one combatant is utterly incapacitated. Whether the
loser survives depends entirely on whether the victor chooses to spare them."
"Also, while heroic duels typically involve sentient beings, wild duels are
different. Your opponent could very well be a beast like a tiger or wolf, even
dragons or demons might appear."
Lan Zao frowned. " This sounds incredibly dangerous."
Shuang Tu nodded solemnly: "This danger can be controlled.  You must
understand: Hen Fa, you need to engage in such combat.  It will help you
familiarize yourself with your body and truly hone your battle skill."
“Solitary training in isolation is highly inadvisable.”
"Combat prowess untested in practice is unreliable. You should grasp this
principle."
Lan Zao nodded silently.
Shuang Tu continued: “During your upcoming infiltration mission, you'll likely
encounter formidable foes, even silver level adversaries like Bing Xiao or
Spring Boxer.”
"When that happens, you'll likely have to rely solely on yourself. Therefore,
you must ensure you possess a certain level of combat capability."
“I've already registered for you.”
“You're currently iron level, but as a newcomer, your first battle will be
against a bronze level beast.”
“The risk is manageable.”
“One more thing: members of the Bayonet Gang will also participate in this wild
duel. Rejoining the Bayonet Gang might allow you to approach them and secure
their renewed recruitment.”
Lan Zao understood and grew increasingly eager.
Truthfully, he was also curious about his own combat performance.
The two teleported back together. Lan Zao ate, while Shuang Tu went to the
secret chamber to handle matters at hand.
"Hen Fa has been properly arranged. Over the next period, he'll participate in
several wild duels. His opponents will be pre-selected and arranged by us,
enough to hone his combat skills while ensuring his safety. The key is for him
to feel genuine threat in battle, pushing him to train harder and use the
alchemy gear we've equipped him with more frequently. Take the projectile core,
for instance. He'll sustain injuries in combat, but we'll provide follow-up
treatment. All these measures will gradually make him dependent on us, both
physically and mentally. This is a crucial step in turning him over to our
side."
"Master Cai Jing has recruited over thirty potion apprentices, nearly twenty of
whom are our operatives. It is now confirmed: the underground space he secretly
excavated is precisely where the legacy of the legendary druid lies. This
requires close attention."
"Although Ba Qi has received treatment, his condition remains critical. Based
on timing, the Heroism Pirates have likely joined forces with Lady Sea Snake
and others.  The capture of the gold level sea serpent carries minimal risk of
failure. We should see the outcome of this operation shortly."
"The temporary base for Bing Xiao and his group has been secured. They are
actively arming themselves, having acquired a batch of Ice Spike Bayonets from
the black market. Their overall combat effectiveness has improved, though the
increase is not significant. All movements remain under our surveillance."
Shuang Tu felt content while handling affairs.
With Ba Qi's assistance, his primary mission had achieved breakthrough
progress. Additionally, both Hen Fa and the intelligence gathering on Tranquil
Hill were advancing smoothly.
By afternoon, Lan Zao was led underground by a snow elf.
This subterranean chamber spanned at least 500 square meters by rough estimate.
The ceiling, surrounding walls, and floor were all reddish-brown.
“You can familiarize yourself with this space beforehand. This will be your
next battlefield,” the guiding snow elf advised.
The underground chamber was nearly empty, save for five or six stone pillars.
These pillars were thick and sturdy, most of which reached up to the ceiling,
while a few had been severed.
Lan Zao's gaze lingered briefly on the pillars before sweeping around the room.
He noticed traces of doors lining the perimeter. These doors varied in size,
many barred with iron gratings through which dim, shadowy scenes could be
glimpsed.
Unlike the arena, there were no spectator seats here.
But magic runes covered every surface, the walls, the floor, and the ceiling.
“It seems that the audience for this wild duel watches through magic
projections,” Lan Zao guessed the truth.
Wild duels were filled with bloodshed and violence, and betting rings opened
every time they were held. This activity had long been banned by the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom and was illegal.
Flower Skirt Island lay in the sea near Ice Sculpture Island, a neutral
territory. Islands like this almost invariably hosted wild duel arenas.
Whether driven by the thrill or profit of gambling, a worship of violence, or a
craving for bloodshed, these arenas drew countless spectators each year.
Others attended for different motives, like revenge, or to test vicious
weapons.
Most spectators hailed from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, including influential
figures and dignitaries. Given the event's negative implications, these
individuals naturally avoid public exposure.
“May I freely attack and test the strength of the ground here?” Lan Zao
inquired.
“Certainly. These surfaces can be repaired,” replied the snow elf.
Lan Zao pressed further: “Will my testing within the arena be leaked?”
“Absolutely not. This is our little private operation,” the snow elf replied,
winking at Lan Zao.
“Seems this one is likely Shuang Tu's mole infiltrated into the wild duel,” Lan
Zao surmised inwardly.
His suspicion was well-founded.
The clandestine faction represented by Shuang Tu wielded considerable power.
Moreover, the master of the wild duel arena on Flower Skirt Island was merely a
silver level fighter, penetrating his defenses posed little difficulty.
Lan Zao surveyed the battlefield.
It was undeniably monotonous.
“Stone pillars are the only viable cover.”
Lan Zao personally measured the distance between pillars, calculating the exact
time it would take him to dash from one pillar to another.
He proceeded to attack the pillars.
“Very sturdy. Reliable cover.” The test results gave Lan Zao a quiet sense of
satisfaction.
He then launched attacks at the floor tiles, ceiling, and surrounding walls.
“The defense is astonishing!” Lan Zao unleashed his full power, employing his
strongest skill, Air Cannon, yet couldn't budge it an inch. At most, it caused
the hidden magic inscriptions to faintly flicker with a ripple-like glow.
Lan Zao pondered for a moment, then began firing air cannons in rapid
succession.
He gradually shifted the impact points closer to himself. This test primarily
served Lan Zao's desire to experience the residual shockwave power of the air
cannon.
The air cannon could detonate.
In actual combat, the most common scenario wasn't a direct hit on the target,
but the explosion's shockwave catching the target off guard.
Moreover, the blast radius varied depending on the battlefield environment.
Before Lan Zao could complete the test, the snow elf pushed open the door, a
hint of urgency in his expression: “Time's up.”
Lan Zao felt a pang of regret, yet he was satisfied.
He understood being able to test the battlefield in advance was already
cheating.
The snow elf led Lan Zao into a secret chamber to rest.
Here, he cultivated the Air Pressure battle qi, actively restoring his battle
qi.
As time passed, he could faintly hear the clamor growing louder outside the
chamber door.
The noise became increasingly chaotic, clearly signaling the arrival of more
spectators.
By the time Lan Zao had fully restored his battle qi, another half hour had
elapsed. The chamber door swung open.
“Follow me.” It was the same Snow Elf again. He led Lan Zao out of the chamber,
through a long corridor, and pushed open a large door.
“This is the waiting room. When your name is called to enter the arena, another
door will open.”
“Remember, under no circumstances are you to engage in combat with others
within the waiting room. Violation will result in immediate execution by the
wild duel authorities!” After issuing these instructions, the snow elf parted
ways with Lan Zao.
The waiting room was crowded.
A towering, tiger-headed beastman leaned against the entrance gate.
An elderly man with a sullen expression, radiating bronze aura, sat on a bench
leaning on a staff that resembled a walking stick.
Two long wooden benches ran along the walls of the waiting room.
An ordinary middle-aged man sat on the same bench as the old man, but they were
seated far apart, nearly at opposite ends.
In the middle of the other bench sat a silver level fighter.
Lan Zao recognized him immediately, it was Spring Boxer from the Bayonet Gang.
Spring Boxer couldn't help but show surprise when he saw Lan Zao enter.
He waved proactively, “Never thought I'd run into someone I know.”
Lan Zao knew the Bayonet Gang would send someone, so seeing Spring Boxer didn't
surprise him. Lacking any flair for the dramatic, he maintained his usual
detached expression, gave Spring Boxer a nod, and walked past him.
Finally, he sat down beside Spring Boxer.
“You advanced to iron level?” Spring Boxer asked, a mix of surprise and
curiosity in his voice, “Why come to participate in a wild duel?”
He knew Lan Zao's bloodline had awakened, a pure 100% Fish Bladder bloodline.
This meant Lan Zao could steadily advance to the silver level.
In Spring Boxer's view, Lan Zao should focus on cultivating himself and
striving to raise his fighter level, rather than rushing headlong into
dangerous combat.
Lan Zao replied: "I bought a battle skill and owed some money, so I have to
participate in this wild duel."
This was the response Shuang Tu had prepared for Lan Zao.
Spring Boxer nodded.
Lan Zao asked in return, “What about you, Lord Spring Boxer?”
Spring Boxer offered a wry smile. "I'm after specific resources, things hard to
come by on Flower Skirt Island. Truthfully, my reasons aren't so different from
yours."
“To get us to Tranquil Hill as quickly as possible,” Spring Boxer added
silently to himself.
The weight of his responsibility settled on his shoulders, and his
conversational mood vanished instantly.
Lan Zao said nothing more.
After all, Hen Fa's persona was one of taciturnity.
The waiting room fell silent once more.



****** Chapter 443: Wild Duel (2) ******
A few minutes later, a sudden burst of booming instrumental music filled the
air.
Then, the snow elf presiding over the wild duel bounded energetically to the
very center of the arena. With a voice brimming with enthusiasm, he proclaimed,
“Honored lords and ladies, welcome to witness this wild duel!”
“Enough with the formalities, let us commence the first duel immediately.”
“A bronze thief consumed by greed versus an ordinary man whose wife and
children were dishonored and slain.”
“Heh, today's appetizer promises to be quite interesting.”
“An ordinary man versus a transcendent!”
“Let us see, will the wronged commoner find justice, or will transcendent power
prevail above all?”
“The next 30 seconds are your betting window!”
The moment the snow elf finished speaking, frantic bell chimes rang out.
After thirty seconds of ringing, the doors facing the arena in the waiting room
suddenly slid open to the side.
The ordinary middle-aged man practically lunged out.
Wielding a bloodstained axe, he charged into the arena.
His enemy and opponent, the bronze level thief, limped out from the opposite
doors, dragging a leg that bled incessantly.
Clearly, to enhance the wild duel's entertainment value and ‘fairness’, the
arena owner had provided a transcendent in a compromised state.
The ordinary middle-aged man roared and charged forward, axe raised.
The bronze thief hopped on one leg, attempting to create distance.
“Damn it, he's faking it!” Spring Boxer suddenly whispered.
The door to the waiting room featured an iron grille. Though the view was
narrow, it perfectly framed the middle-aged man's back and the thief who was
“escaping.”
Lan Zao's gaze pierced through the iron bars, drawn to the fight.
He couldn't help but feel tense for the middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man lunged at the bronze thief. At the critical moment, the
thief flashed a triumphant, sinister grin, channeling his battle qi to make his
movements suddenly agile.
The thief deftly dodged the axe swing, then aimed his dagger at the middle-aged
man's back and thrust it viciously downward.
Completely unaware of the dagger thrust toward him, the middle-aged man roared
in fury. His hand shot out, grabbing the thief's wounded leg and digging his
fingers deep into the festering, bleeding wound.
In the next instant, both men roared in agony.
The thief's thrust faltered from the excruciating pain. Though the dagger
pierced the man's back, it failed to deliver a fatal blow.
The man's back arched, the dagger lodged deep as he tore at the thief's wound,
wrestling him to the ground.
He mounted the thief, raised his iron axe high with his right hand, and brought
it down with a savage swing.
In the next instant, the iron axe cleaved the thief's skull clean in two,
leaving only the mouth intact.
The thief's horrified expression froze on his face, nearly severed in two.
Yet the middle-aged man's vengeance had only just begun.
He raised the axe again and again, bringing it down relentlessly.
The bronze thief's skull shattered completely beneath the blows, followed by
his chest, abdomen, entrails, and thighs.
With each furious swing, the wound on the man's back gushed fresh blood.
Yet the man seemed oblivious, his eyes bloodshot, pouring every ounce of
strength into each blow.
Finally, drained of blood and strength, he too collapsed unconscious.
But that didn't stop him from being the ultimate victor.
“Nice work!” Spring Boxer grinned.
Lan Zao glanced at him and suddenly realized: though Spring Boxer was a gang
member, a criminal, he wasn't the morally bankrupt type.
The battle between the extraordinary and the ordinary had ended with the
ordinary man's victory.
This outcome held no surprises.
Many factors determined the outcome of a fight. Bronze level battle qi could
only be amplified internally; external protection was something only iron level
fighters could achieve.
In truth, even a fully-fledged bronze fighter could be killed by an ordinary
person, let alone this bronze thief, who was already gravely wounded.
Only after the fight ended did Lan Zao notice: the terrain of the dueling arena
had changed. It was no longer the red stone pillar terrain he had privately
tested before, but a vast, flat plain dotted with sparse grass.
The unconscious middle-aged man was dragged away.
Black mist began to spread, eventually enveloping the entire arena in a pitch-
black night.
The night quickly dissipated.
The arena transformed once more, becoming a marshland. Solid stone slabs dotted
the deep purple swamp mud.
The snow elf host took the stage once more, standing atop the largest stone
slab, his voice booming.
"Esteemed spectators, I trust the appetizer served earlier was to your liking?
It is my honor to present the second event in this wild duel."
“A bronze level elderly magician, peddling counterfeit alchemy ingredients for
illicit profit.”
"A young noble heir was thoroughly swindled by him. Our victim didn't choose to
report it, that would be too boring."
“Instead, he mobilized his family's influence, captured the old bronze
magician, and brought him here under guard.”
"Here are his exact words to the old bronze magician: 'Since you can craft pain
tentacles so convincing they fool the senses; you must know them intimately.'
I'll give you one chance. If you can traverse the swamp concealing the pain
tentacles and retrieve the token from the treasure chest, you succeed. I'll
spare your life!'"
“Ha! This one is even more entertaining than the last. What do you say, ladies
and gentlemen?”
"The 30-second countdown has begun. Time to choose. Will the old magician
overcome the pain tentacles and save himself, or will the powerful noble
succeed in his revenge, delivering the most brutal lesson to the old magician?"
The moment the host finished speaking, a bell began to toll.
After ringing thirty times, the host shouted, "Now, please witness the bronze
magician's journey of redemption!”
The entrance opened again.
Lan Zao saw the old man seated on the bench begin to move.
Taking a deep breath, he leaned on his slender staff, as thin as a walking
stick, and stepped slowly and heavily onto the duel platform.
The old magician stood at the edge of the platform as the gate behind him
swiftly closed once more.
His face solemn, he did not rashly step into the swamp. Instead, after
chanting, he cast a spell, launching a fireball straight ahead.
The fireball struck the marshland and exploded.
Black muddy water splattered everywhere, a putrid stench surged outward, and
several suspicious skeletal remains were also blown out.
This impressed Lan Zao, who marveled at how the arena could create such a
realistic combat environment.
The old magician, however, lacked Lan Zao's composure. After temporarily
confirming that the area ahead was safe, he cautiously moved forward.
The target treasure chest should be hidden opposite him, within a grove of
broadleaf trees.
Beyond that, the terrain was open and exposed.
The old magician gradually approached the grove, but his use of fireballs to
probe the area decreased sharply.
His personal magic power reserves were finite.
The old magician paused to meditate.
But in the next instant, the swampy ground near him suddenly bulged repeatedly,
and one after another, purple-skinned swamp octopusmen emerged.
They howled and charged at the old magician.
The bronze magician shuddered in terror, abandoning all thought of combat as he
sprinted forward with all his might.
After only a few steps, he sank into the mire.
Yet the next instant, the magician rose, floating above the swamp.
It had to be said, magicians possessed far more diverse methods than fighters;
even at the bronze level, they possessed the ability to fly.
However, the old magician's flight range was clearly insufficient. Soon, he
landed on a patch of rocky ground.
The pursuing octopusmen were closing in.
The old magician had no choice but to turn around, pulling a spell scroll from
his robe.
A barrage of ice spears shot forth, slaying over a dozen octopusmen.
None of these octopusmen possessed extraordinary abilities, but their sheer
numbers were formidable. The loss of a quarter of their numbers only fueled
their fury.
The old magician hurled another vial.
The potion exploded, forming a shimmering cloud of crystalline white dust.
The octopusmen charged into the cloud, only to collapse sprawled on the ground
moments later. Half their remaining numbers perished.
The remaining octopusmen chose to bypass the white dust cloud.
The old magician gained precious time and set off once more, flying toward the
final grove of trees.
Within the grove, he spotted the treasure chest.
But the moment he opened it, countless pain tentacles burst through the ground,
lashing at him from all directions.
The protective magic shield he maintained shattered instantly.
Ultimately, he was completely submerged by the frenzied lashing of the pain
tentacles.
By the time the octopusmen rushed over and subdued the pain tentacles, the old
magician's entire skeleton had been crushed beyond recognition, let alone his
flesh and blood.
The manner of death was truly gruesome.
Witnessing this outcome, Lan Zao gained a deeper understanding of the wild
duel.
Just as Shuang Tu had described, the wild duel was saturated with violence and
bloodshed. If the opponent wasn't human, it was undoubtedly worse. Intelligent
beings possessed emotions like mercy, compassion, arrogance, and might even
spare a defeated opponent's life. But creatures like these pain tentacles
didn't stop at killing the loser, they wouldn't rest until they ground the
defeated into dust.
Black mist rose again, enveloping the entire arena.
When it dissipated, the battlefield had transformed into red stone pillars.
Seeing the familiar scene, Lan Zao's heart skipped a beat, knowing it was his
turn next.
Sure enough, the snow elf host reappeared: “The third wild duel features a
fortunate soul who awakened their bloodline, recently ascending to the iron
level.”
“Damn it, why doesn't something this good ever happen to me!”
“Why is this guy volunteering for a wild duel? Is he desperate, or has his
power gone to his head, craving more thrills?”
“Let's see who his opponent is!”
“Oh crap!”
“He's screwed. His opponent is an iron level snow eagle!”
“I love this. I can't wait to see his body torn to shreds by that snow eagle's
talons.”
“Place your bets now! Our rookie's got nothing but his bare hands against a
flying beast.”
“Will you trust this lucky guy, or do you want to see him get torn apart?”
The 30-second countdown clock chimed.



****** Chapter 444: Wild Duel (3) ******
The ticking of the countdown clock echoed relentlessly, as if striking directly
at Lan Zao's heart.
“Shuang Tu explicitly told me it was a bronze level beast. How could it have
become iron level?”
“Bronze level and iron level are entirely different matters. How could such a
grave error occur?”
"No, this duel arena isn't under Shuang Tu's control. At most, it's been
infiltrated a little. Could a mistake have happened? Of course it's
possible..."
Spring Boxer's voice snapped Lan Zao out of his chaotic thoughts.
“Hen Fa, you're not just facing a beast of your own level—it can fly!”
“Did you bring ranged weapons?”
Due to their different life forms, beasts inherently possess far tougher hides
than humans, granting them a massive advantage.
Lan Zao was iron level, still one level below silver and two below gold. Yet
even among gold level fighters, few mastered aerial battle skills.
Spring Boxer looked at Lan Zao with concern.  It was obvious that Lan Zao was
at a massive disadvantage against the iron level snow eagle!
Lan Zao shook his head, indicating he had no ranged weapons.
This made Spring Boxer's expression darken further. After a moment of silence,
he said, “Perhaps, you should just concede defeat. It's not shameful...”
Surrender?
Just moments ago, that very thought had flashed through Lan Zao's mind.
But upon hearing Spring Boxer's suggestion, he shook his head decisively: “This
is the wild duel arena. Early surrender isn't permitted. If I surrender now, I
fear the arena owner would grind my bones to dust.  Compared to that fate,
facing an iron level snow eagle is preferable.”
Spring Boxer's face darkened, yet he couldn't rebuke Lan Zao's logic.
“Thanks.” Lan Zao nodded to him, “I still have a chance to win.”
With that, Lan Zao stepped out of the waiting room at a measured pace, passed
through the open doors, and formally entered the wild duel arena.
Spring Boxer's concern had earned him a bit more goodwill from Lan Zao.
His conversation with Spring Boxer had also cleared away Lan Zao's earlier
panic, allowing him to settle into calmness.
Lan Zao's figure appeared simultaneously across the magic projections in each
spectator room.
In the room where Shuang Tu watched, he studied Lan Zao's expression with keen
interest.
This arrangement was unexpected for Lan Zao.
But it was precisely within Shuang Tu's plan.
The truth was that Shuang Tu had deceived Lan Zao, misleading him about the
difficulty and easily persuading him to join the wild duel.
This was a test for Lan Zao.
It was also part of his cultivation.
After all, undercover operatives often had to face unexpected incidents.
“Now let me see how you handle this sudden unexpected situation.”
Shuang Tu's initial observation of Lan Zao was, for the most part,
satisfactory.
In the observation room where Bing Xiao resided.
“Hen Fa is here too?” Lan Zao's appearance surprised the veteran old leader of
the Bayonet Gang.
The human ringleader behind him immediately frowned: “Hen Fa is in trouble.”
“He's not equipped with any crossbows or firearms. Aside from a set of bronze
level leather armor and a bronze level scimitar, he has no other gear.”
"Against a land beast, he might stand a chance.  But it's a snow eagle!"
Bing Xiao frowned slightly: "His bloodline has awakened. Why abandon proper
cultivation to enter such a perilous wild duel?  Is there any way to pull him
out?"
The human ringleader sighed: “Difficult! Rescuing him will inevitably disrupt
this wild duel. Our Bayonet Gang is new here, while the wild duel arena owner
has long been the local kingpin. Still, there are precedents for such actions."
"But doing so would mean that the wild duel arena would be destroying its own
reputation. The price we'd pay would be enormous. By my estimate, it would cost
at least this much."
The human ringleader held up four fingers.
Bing Xiao glanced at him and shook his head slightly, “Then forget it.”
Even if Lan Zao could advance to the silver level in the future, the cost would
leave the Bayonet Gang severely in the red if they went through with it.
His choice didn't surprise the human ringleader.
The human ringleader added, "But the loser isn't necessarily Hen Fa. The
primary revenue of the wild duel arena doesn't come from ticket sales, but from
the betting pools they set up."
“As the major bookmaker, the arena owner rakes in a fortune nearly every time!”
“To fuel gambling, they often design wild duels to feature evenly matched
opponents, making the outcome unpredictable.”
"And cases like Hen Fa's now, where one side is clearly at a disadvantage,
might be a deliberately set trap. When the crowd heavily bets on the snow eagle
to win, if Hen Fa triumphs, it's a massive payday for the bookmakers."
Bing Xiao sighed, “Perhaps.”
They fell silent as the third duel commenced.
As Lan Zao stepped toward the center of the arena, the snow eagle, already
poised for attack, let out a piercing shriek and lunged forward.
“So fast!” Even fully focused, Lan Zao was startled by the snow eagle's speed.
He rolled awkwardly to dodge, using his arms to block the eagle's claws.
Fortunately, his bronze level armor prevented any scratches.
The snow eagle, its strike missed, immediately soared skyward.
Lan Zao instantly dove toward a nearby stone pillar.
The snow eagle turned mid-air, charging toward Lan Zao once more.
Lan Zao circled the pillar, using it as cover to evade the snow eagle's
attacks.
After all, the snow eagle was a magic beast with limited intelligence,
repeatedly missing its strikes.
Instead, Lan Zao seized the moment the snow eagle dove down, swinging his
bronze level curved blade to land heavy blows on its body and wings.
Though Lan Zao's blade skills weren't exceptional, they were rock-solid from
countless real battles.
The snow eagle sustained minor injuries.
“If only I had an iron level curved blade!” Lan Zao sighed inwardly.
His fighter level had risen, but his equipment hadn't been upgraded yet.
Having suffered repeated setbacks, the snow eagle abandoned its diving attacks.
Instead, it employed a racial magic, firing feathers from its own plumage as
projectiles.
Lan Zao used the stone pillars as cover, temporarily stabilizing his position.
The snow eagle circled overhead, constantly adjusting its position to fire
long-range shots at Lan Zao.
Battle skill - Air Cannon.
Seizing a moment, Lan Zao suddenly unleashed a ranged attack.
Caught off guard, the snow eagle was struck by the blast.
This counterattack immediately drew low gasps from many in the viewing rooms.
“He actually possesses long-range attack capabilities now.  That must be the
battle skill: Air Cannon.” Bing Xiao felt a flicker of surprise, but quickly
shook his head, “Too bad Hen Fa's practice wasn't thorough enough. If he'd
fired two shots in succession, the snow eagle would've been severely injured. 
Hitting just one doesn't amount to much.”
The human ringleader nodded, casually remarking, “It seems his battle qi
technique has changed too.”
Struck by the air cannon, the snow eagle grew considerably more cautious, no
longer as reckless as before.
It relentlessly fired feathers, while Lan Zao countered through the stone
pillars with Air Cannon.
Lan Zao gradually gained the upper hand.
The snow eagle's feathers were blocked by the stone pillars, while the air
cannon shells exploded even if they missed their mark, dealing area damage. The
snow eagle struggled to evade this damage entirely through flight.
As the damage accumulated, the snow eagle sustained more injuries and its
flight speed slowed considerably.
“At this rate, I can win!” Lan Zao was secretly rejoicing when the stone
pillars before him began to slowly descend.
“Damn it!” Lan Zao cursed, instantly recalling the previous wild duel.
The bronze magician had attempted to conserve his magic power through
meditation, only for a horde of swamp octopusmen to emerge and pursue him
relentlessly.
Clearly, tedious, uneventful duels were precisely what the wild duel sought to
avoid.
Such matches severely diminished the audience's experience.
Therefore, they directly altered the battlefield to make the combat more
intense and spectacular.
All the stone pillars began to sink slowly, stripping Lan Zao of his home-field
advantage.
Lan Zao had no choice but to fight desperately. Wielding his curved blade, he
charged forward, closing the distance between himself and the snow eagle.
After exchanging several long-range attacks with him, the snow eagle, driven by
rage, lunged at Lan Zao once more.
Without cover, Lan Zao could only dodge the snow eagle's claws by rolling.
As it closed in, he relentlessly swung his bronze scimitar or unleashed air
cannons.
After a series of perilous exchanges, the snow eagle crashed to the ground, one
wing severely bent, its flight capability lost.
Lan Zao was also badly wounded. The snow eagle nearly gouged out his left eye,
leaving a gruesome claw mark across his cheek, blood streaming down.
Finally, Lan Zao severed the snow eagle's head with his serrated curved blade,
securing ultimate victory.
No cheers erupted.
Only his heavy, exhausted panting filled the air.
Soon, he was led away.
The wild duel arena was once again shrouded in black mist.
“I wonder who Spring Boxer fighter's opponent is?” Lan Zao's question went
unanswered.
But his performance satisfied Shuang Tu: “Not bad.”
In another viewing chamber.
The human ringleader remarked, “Hen Fa is truly impressive. We should recruit
him—it would strengthen the Bayonet Gang.”
Bing Xiao nodded in agreement, “Wait for a reply. If the situation looks
favorable, you can attempt recruitment.”
“A reply?”
Bing Xiao offered no further explanation, “Judging by the timeline, the letter
should arrive soon.”
Blood Kin City.
Bayonet Gang's base.
Within a secret chamber, two gold level fighters laughed heartily as they drank
fine wine and engaged in confidential discussions.
One was the Axe Gang leader; the other was a gold level fighter named Lin.
Fu Zhao pushed open the door and approached the leader, handing over several
sheets of paper, “Father, these are the results of our investigation into Hen
Fa.”
The Axe Gang leader took them and scanned them quickly, “Draft a letter. Send
all this intelligence to Bing Xiao.”
Lin paused mid-sip, “That Bing Xiao who served under Teng Dong Lang?”
“Precisely,” the Axe Gang leader affirmed, “He escaped Snow Bird Harbor with
his men. Crucially, he retrieved Teng Dong Lang's body and brought out the
designated coffin bearer.”
A grave expression crossed Lin's face. "Time is running out. They must depart
immediately. Otherwise, even if they reach Tranquil Hill, it will be too late."
The Axe Gang leader grinned. "Forget about him! Bing Xiao visited Tranquil Hill
before, but his bloodline wasn't pure enough back then, he got rejected. He
knows his limits. Besides, with the Lord Guide there, why worry about them not
making it back?"
“Our top priority now is eliminating the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps currently
in Blood Kin City.”
“With the two of us teaming up, they're as good as dead!”



****** Chapter 445: The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is Bringing About Their Own
Destruction ******
The gold level fighter Lin was the powerful reinforcement specially invited by
the Axe Gang leader for revenge.
The Axe Gang leader expressed confidence in this battle, while Lin remained
impassive: “Long Fu managed to kill Teng Dong Lang with the final strike. I
suspect there's something fishy about it.”
"I've also reviewed the magic footage from the Cold Wind Valley ambush. His
performance showed clear improvement compared to the Snow Bird Harbor arena,
but if that's all he's capable of, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps truly is
doomed."
Like the Axe Gang leader, Lin was also a veteran of military service, having
experienced numerous battles and possessing extensive combat expertise.
His assessment was grounded in solid experience.
As for the magic footage of the Cold Wind Valley ambush, it was naturally
provided by the Axe Gang leader.
This was a sound practice of the regular army, documenting battle scenes at all
times to facilitate post-battle analysis, learning lessons, and gathering
intelligence. Even if one fell in battle, precious intelligence could still
reach comrades, aiding future engagements.
“1000%”
The Axe Gang leader couldn't help but recall the battle in Cold Wind Valley,
sighing, “That Long Fu was truly extraordinary. He was clearly only silver, yet
his actual combat prowess rivaled that of a gold level fighter. What a pity. If
Jia Bing had accepted my invitation too, with his ice gargoyles supporting us,
our victory rate would have been 1000%!”
Lin looked over in surprise, “You invited that guy too?”
The Axe Gang leader replied, "Unfortunately, he refused after hearing I'd
already invited you. He said he had crucial alchemy experiments to conduct and
couldn't leave the workshop for more than six hours."
Lin smiled faintly: “That's just his nature.”
“But you, buddy, haven't changed a bit, still obsessively chasing
unrealistically high win rates!”
The Axe Gang leader instantly wore a look of displeasure: “How is that a bad
thing?”
"War is inherently dangerous; any battle carries risks. Unexpected events can
occur in any fight."
“So many factors influence battle outcomes. A single drastic shift can alter
the entire result.”
"Pursuing victory odds is taking responsibility for oneself, ensuring
success—it's never excessive. Doesn't every outstanding commander strive to
maximize their forces' chances of victory with every ounce of ability?"
Lin shook his head slightly, offering a different perspective: "That sounds
reasonable, but it's actually incorrect. Resources are always finite, which is
why merchants discuss cost-effectiveness. As commanders, the combat resources
we can deploy are also limited. Therefore, taking risks is worthwhile. Because
often, with only limited combat resources, we have no choice but to take risks.
Excessive pursuit of victory rates is usually predicated on already possessing
a significant advantage. Like now! But in most real combat scenarios, such
circumstances are rare."
Pausing briefly, Lin continued, “Our opponents aren't formidable. The highest
level among them are merely two silver level individuals. Though one is
somewhat unique, he still falls short of gold level.”
“With two gold level members on our side, we already hold an immense advantage.
There's no need to invite a third.”
“We remain undetected and retain the element of surprise.”
"Long Fu might pose trouble for any one of us, but that silver level fire
magician, Yao Ma, is mediocre in combat. Whether it's me or you, if we fight at
full strength, she won't last three minutes."
“Once she's dead, the two of us can surround and attack Long Fu. Failure is
impossible.”
Lin's analysis was logical and well-reasoned, delivered in a calm tone with a
composed expression that radiated strong confidence.
The Axe Gang leader shook his head slightly, disagreeing with Lin's military
strategy. Yet he nodded in acknowledgment, refraining from challenging Lin's
subsequent reasoning—for it aligned perfectly with his own battle projections.
Just then, Fu Zhao burst in urgently.
"Bad news! Father, Lord Lin! The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suddenly departed
Blood Kin City via the teleportation formation!" 
Fu Zhao delivered the devastating report.
"What?!" Lin's brow instantly furrowed.
The Axe Gang leader sprang to his feet, fixing his son with a stern glare. "How
could this happen? Didn't I order you to station men at the teleportation
formation to prevent precisely this?"
Fu Zhao bowed his head: "Yes, that's the situation. I've already planted our
people inside. But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is extremely cunning. They
secretly recruited people to queue up and, within a short time, bribed a few
others with large sums to cut in line collectively. Our people found it
difficult to prevent this from happening."
Teleportation formations existed in all major towns of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.
The cost of teleportation was exorbitant, and the service was extremely busy.
Without solid connections, one had to queue to wait for transport.
In Snow Bird Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps enjoyed excellent
relations with the city lord, allowing them to cut in line and teleport
directly at any time. But in Blood Kin City, they didn't receive such
preferential treatment.
The Axe Gang leader schemed in secret, determined to wipe out Zong Ge and Zi
Di's group. He spared no expense, earnestly inviting Lin and Jia Bing to assist
him. Though only one accepted, the Axe Gang leader patiently awaited Lin's
secret rendezvous.
But just as the operation was about to commence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps slipped away through the teleportation formation!
The Axe Gang leader frowned deeply. This was precisely the scenario he feared,
and yet it had unfolded.
Lin sighed, "Seems there's a capable person among them after all. To secretly
hire people to queue up first, then suddenly bribe the remaining few with heavy
sums to complete the group teleportation, it looks simple but executing it
requires formidable discipline. The slightest mishap could leak the secret and
cause failure."
“This is getting troublesome.”
Lin's expression also grew grave.
As the leader of Ice Spear City's gang, his meeting with the Axe Gang leader
had been arranged in secret.
The secrecy served two purposes: first, to maintain the element of surprise and
prevent enemy detection through information leaks. The other reason was his
status as a gold level individual.
At this level, a transcendent's personal strength could rival that of a small
army, easily threatening the security of an entire town.  Consequently, such
individuals were subject to constant surveillance and investigation from all
sides.
Any rash action by a gold level individual would trigger heightened vigilance
and scrutiny from all sides.
It was like a sharp dagger, normally kept safely sheathed in its place.
Suddenly drawn from its sheath, no matter where it was placed, it would draw
intense attention.
Thus, Lin had to carefully consider the potential repercussions of every move.
Especially since he also managed a gang faction. As its leader and strongest
combatant, his sudden departure would have significant negative repercussions
for his organization.
Under these circumstances, concealing his identity and masking his movements
was the most effective way to minimize such negative impacts.
This also implied another crucial point - Lin could not openly use the town's
teleportation formation.
The reason was straightforward: such large-scale teleportation formations were
subject to the strictest oversight. Teleportation fees increased proportionally
with the user's power level.
Thus, even if Lin concealed his aura and disguised himself as a low level
transcendent, the sheer cost incurred by the formation during teleportation
would instantly reveal his true power level.
Subsequent investigations would then easily uncover his identity. After all, he
had long since reached the gold level.
The same principle applied to the Axe Gang leader.
It was precisely for this reason that the Axe Gang leader had plotted for so
long, waiting for Lin's secret rendezvous - in fact, Lin had come on foot.
Zong Ge and Zi Di could teleport away, but Lin and the Axe Gang leader couldn't
use that method.
This wasn't because they were confined to one location.
Rather, it would cause a massive commotion and attract widespread attention.
If, after their teleportation, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fell victim to
an ambush and perished, then everyone would know they were responsible!
If the Axe Gang leader were willing to risk exposure to eliminate Zong Ge and
Zi Di, he would have done so long ago. Why endure the agony of waiting
patiently for Lin's arrival?
“So, Long Fu has already discovered us? Was his earlier cooperation agreement
with the Axe Gang merely a delaying tactic?” Fu Zhao's expression darkened.
The Axe Gang leader shook his head slowly. "Probably not. Our first
collaboration succeeded yesterday. We successfully escorted the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' first caravan into Blood Kin City."
“They genuinely intend to cooperate with us.”
“It's just that the battle in Cold Wind Valley made them wary. Unable to verify
our true identities, they resorted to this minor trick.”
“If they suspected I was the real culprit, they wouldn't simply leave. They'd
use their connections to target us.”
"You must understand, the acting Blood Kin City Lord has deep-seated conflicts
with our gang. Even without working with our enemies, Long Fu has deep ties
with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Li Jian Clan. He would certainly
use them to strike against us."
"But now, they've just teleported away suddenly. They probably just wanted to
act swiftly to shake off any potential lurking enemies."
Lin agreed with the Axe Gang leader's analysis.
“In that case,” he said, "we'll just have to wait for another opportunity. We
need to know their next destination to set up a new ambush."
The Axe Gang leader gritted his teeth. Though reluctant, he nodded. "We already
have men stationed at the teleportation formation. Haven't we uncovered their
target location yet?"
Fu Zhao hurriedly replied, "Father, the moment we received this intelligence, I
ordered an investigation. It should be here soon..."
He paused abruptly mid-sentence.
An underling had arrived to report fresh intelligence.
Upon receiving the new information, Fu Zhao's face lit up with evident delight:
"Good news! After leaving two men behind at the shop, the entire group
teleported to Snow Rabbit City."
“Our men succeeded in causing a teleportation error! Long Fu is now outside
Snow Rabbit City, a considerable distance from the town!”
The Axe Gang leader froze for a moment, then clapped his hands sharply and
roared with laughter: "Jia Bing is right there! All three of us gold level
experts will work together, our win rate is 1000%. The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps has walked straight into their own doom this time!"



****** Chapter 446: Snow Rabbit City, Rabbit Fur Town ******
“Who did we plant at the teleportation formation?” The Axe Gang leader laughed
heartily before immediately asking.
Fu Zhao reported a name.
The Axe Gang leader nodded promptly and instructed, “Reward him generously.”
“Understood,” Fu Zhao replied, then asked with concern, "Father, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps has already teleported away. To pursue them, we must rely
on teleportation to close the distance. But if we do that..."
Fu Zhao's worry was well-founded.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' teleportation departure carried little
consequence, as their strongest member was merely silver level.
But if the Axe Gang leader and Lin, both gold levels, were to teleport, the
repercussions would be exponentially greater.
Given the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' immense prestige within the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, any mishap involving them would inevitably trigger a
widespread investigation. At that point, the Axe Gang leader and the one known
as Lin, who had been acting suspiciously, would be the prime suspects.
If the kingdom launched an investigation, it would be extremely detrimental to
the Axe Gang, potentially leading to its annihilation.
The Axe Gang leader smiled faintly. "Rest assured, we won't use the official
teleportation formation. In fact, we possess a secret teleportation formation."
“What?” Fu Zhao's mouth fell open, his face etched with utter disbelief.
As the acknowledged successor to the Axe Gang, he routinely managed numerous
gang affairs and allocated resources. These experiences had broadened his
horizons. Fu Zhao understood very well: constructing a teleportation formation
consumed enormous funds. Even the Axe Gang struggled to afford it. Laying a
secret formation would require even greater funds than standard construction.
Beyond that, it carried immense risk.
Secretly building teleportation formations was prohibited by every government.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was no exception, relentlessly cracking down on
private teleportation formations.
The Axe Gang leader turned his gaze to Lin: “Rest assured, after I die, my son
will be the one to carry my coffin!”
This was his deliberate explanation to Lin.
The stakes of a secret teleportation formation were simply too high.
Lin finally nodded slightly: “In that case, sharing some secrets with him is
acceptable.”
The Axe Gang leader turned back to Fu Zhao: "Beyond that, I cannot reveal more
secrets. For now, you only need to know we possess a secret teleportation
formation. Through it, reaching Snow Rabbit City is effortless."
Fu Zhao's mouth fell slightly open. In that instant, he suddenly realized the
relationship between his father and Lin was far more than mere former comrades-
in-arms. It seemed these powerful veterans, retired from the military, had
formed a secret alliance.
Lin frowned slightly, looking at the Axe Gang leader. "I must warn you. If we
use that teleportation formation, neither of us will be able to conceal the
spatial fluctuations. That means the secret teleportation formation will be
exposed. It will most likely be destroyed or seized by the authorities. I know
you and Teng Dong Lang are close, but is sacrificing a secret teleportation
formation truly worth it just to take revenge on two silver level opponents?"
The Axe Gang leader snorted coldly, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has close
ties with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and now collaborates with the Li Jian
Clan. They operate as mercenaries on the surface, but rumors suggest arms
dealers back them. But do you truly believe they're merely a group of simple
arms smugglers?"
Fu Zhao's expression turned puzzled.
Lin's face darkened.
The Axe Gang leader continued, “No, I don't believe they're just arms
smugglers!”
"They are daggers, thrust toward our very hearts! They are the vanguard,
advancing with great fanfare!"
"They used treacherous schemes to kill Teng Dong Lang directly, annihilated the
Bayonet Gang, and yet still gained immense fame. This is a grave provocation
against us!"
“We cannot swallow our pride. We must crush them to boost our morale.”
Lin sighed deeply: "Perhaps you are right. "
The Axe Gang leader: "No time to waste, we move now. Map!"
Fu Zhao immediately retrieved the map, unfurling it on the table. He pointed to
a spot: “Our men caused a teleportation error. Their current location should be
here.”
“Right. They're heading to Snow Rabbit City. This spot along their route is the
optimal ambush point.”
The Axe Gang leader nodded. "Good. We'll head to that location ahead of time.
But before we teleport again, we must notify Jia Bing. Have him arrive early
with his tools. We need him to remove the magic contract binding me before the
operation."
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had signed a cooperation agreement with the Axe
Gang.
Though the agreement imposed few constraints, dissolving it was still the
safest course.
In pursuit of maximum victory rates, the Axe Gang leader planned meticulously.
"Father, I want to join the fight too," Fu Zhao pleaded.
The Axe Gang leader had clearly thought this through beforehand and shook his
head immediately, “There's no need. Three against two, and we're gold level
experts ambushing two silver level opponents. There's no chance of losing. In
my absence, you will lead the Axe Gang."
“Trust me, future battles will come in abundance for you.”
Fu Zhao felt deeply regretful but could only accept the order.
The Axe Gang leader and Lin immediately set off, racing against the clock. Both
men had military backgrounds, deeply understanding that opportunities in battle
were fleeting. Their execution capabilities were formidable.
Snowflakes drifted silently before their eyes.
In the distance.
A mountain peak stood tall in the northeast.
The terrain sloped gently in the other three directions.
“Where are we?” The people of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps looked around in
confusion.
“Weren't we supposed to be teleported to Snow Rabbit City?” Many voiced their
confusion.
“It's freezing!” Some mercenaries shivered uncontrollably, unaccustomed to
suddenly finding themselves in a snowy landscape.
The deeper into the heart of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom they ventured, the
colder the climate became.
Taking the royal capital as the center point, the entire Ice Sculpture Island
formed an irregular circle. Snow Rabbit City lay roughly at the one-third mark
of its diameter, yet the surrounding temperatures already approached those of
the inner two-thirds.
The cause of the bitter cold was plain for all members of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to see.
It was the distant mountain range - Splice Mountain.
The mountains held an exceptionally potent concentration of ice and snow
elements, generating the frigid climate.
Chaos erupted within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Zong Ge and Zi Di conferred.
Zi Di deliberately spoke loudly: "Calm down. This is likely due to uncalibrated
teleportation coordinates. Such errors when using teleportation formations are
not uncommon."
Prompted by her words, a snow elf immediately realized with a start: "So this
is a teleportation error! I've indeed heard that such mistakes are
unavoidable."
Someone objected, “The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's alchemy is exceptionally
advanced. Surely they could fix teleportation errors?”
Zi Di reassured them again, "As far as I know, the Sheng Ming Empire faces the
same issue. Such teleportation errors have been significantly improved. Even
when mistakes occur, they're usually near the original destination. We
shouldn't be far from Snow Rabbit City."
With that, Zi Di produced an activity map.
This map had been acquired from the Li Jian Clan at a steep price.
The cost was justified.
It covered virtually the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom in meticulous detail.
Naturally, military strongholds, royal enclosures, and such were omitted.
Given its extensive and granular coverage, such a map was impossible to find on
the open market within the kingdom.
Only a massive power like the Li Jian Clan could sell it without fear of being
reported.
Zi Di quickly located their current position on the map.
Just as she had suspected, despite the teleportation mishap, they were indeed
near Snow Rabbit City.
Zong Ge leaned in, glanced at the map, and whispered to Zi Di, “Be careful. I
don't think this ‘mishap’ is a coincidence.”
As an outstanding commander, he never relied on luck.
Zi Di's gaze fixed on the map.
Based on their current position, they needed to head southeast to reach Snow
Rabbit City by evening. To the northeast lay the Splice Mountain.
Zi Di's brow furrowed slightly. "We must indeed be cautious. We won't go to
Snow Rabbit City for now. Head south instead. There's a Rabbit Fur Town nearby,
which also has a teleportation formation."
"Though it's a small formation with limited range, we can use it to teleport to
Snow Rabbit City first. When we want to leave later, we can simply use the
large teleportation formation within Snow Rabbit City."
Zi Di was extremely cautious.
At the slightest hint of trouble, she immediately adjusted their strategy.
If the teleportation malfunction was caused by enemies, then Snow Rabbit City
was temporarily off-limits.
Zi Di was deeply concerned they might face another ambush along the way.



****** Chapter 447: Zong Ge and Zi Di Disagree Again ******
Different teleportation formations had different teleportation distances.
Generally speaking, in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, villages did not have
teleportation formations and towns had a small sized one that could teleport
one to a major city.
Said major city had teleportation formations that could teleport one to
neighboring major cities, and the large cities even had teleportation
formations that went to the royal capital.
When the group of Dragon Lion Mercenaries going to the royal capital
encountered a teleportation lapse, it put Zi Di and Zong Ge very on edge.
Zi Di suggested that they retreat and go back to Snow Rabbit Town first.
This was a good suggestion.
Zong Ge immediately agreed.
In light of the Cold Wind Valley Ambush, where the enemy hid their heads and
showed their tails, it was very clear they didn’t want to reveal who they were.
If they were to attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps inside a town, it would
undoubtedly reveal their identities and cause the Ice Sculpture Government to
order their arrests, thus, the possibility of doing so was small.
Zong Ge, Zi Di, and the rest set off to Rabbit Fur town.
The reason why Rabbit Fur Town was named so was because it was the biggest
producer of rabbit fur in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. The snow rabbit fur Rabbit
Hair Town produced was not just white as the snow and smooth, but it also could
have transcendent quality – bronze level, iron level, silver level, and even
gold level goods were produced.
One must know that snow rabbits were hard to raise, for only wild snow rabbits
had quality rabbit fur.
When wild snow rabbits were kept in an enclosure for a long time, even if
strong ice elements were provided, the rabbit fur quality would swiftly
decline. Without predators to induce the snow rabbit into constantly running,
the snow rabbit fur would constantly thicken, and the snow white fur would turn
pure white, and even become grizzled, causing its value to decline.
The reason why Rabbit Fur Town could produce rabbit fur at such a large scale
was not because they knew how to rear them on a massive scale, for if such a
method really existed, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s royal family would have come
to claim it personally, it wouldn’t be kept in such a remote village.
The reason why Rabbit Fur Town could produce so much rabbit fur was because of
snow rabbit-men
Rabbit Fur Town was close to Splice Mountain.
Splice Mountain had an enormous snow rabbit-man clan living on it.
Every year a large amount of snow rabbit-men would come down from the mountain
and sell their fur to Rabbit Fur Town. They wouldn’t go to Snow Rabbit Town.
Rabbit Fur Town was sufficient to meet their demands. Furthermore, the town’s
militia was far smaller than Snow Rabbit Town’s. This gave the trading snow
rabbit-men a greater sense of security.
In fact, there were many cultivators that would take a risk out of desperation
and secretly poach snow rabbit-men. Despite the snow rabbit-man clan and Ice
Sculpture’s royal family signing a treaty of peaceful coexistence and hunting
snow rabbit-men being a crime.
The snow fell more and more.
When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps group teleported here, there were only
sporadic snowflakes wafting through the sky.
By the time they were half way to their destination, the sky’s snowflakes were
like goose feathers and were gradually growing larger.
This kind of weather was common near Splice Mountain, and there was weather
nastier than this.
The heavy snow fall fluttered through the air, greatly hindering Xu Ma’s
scouting.
He was only a bronze level thief, and it was hard for him to resist this bitter
cold, and he quickly began to tremble in the frost.
The group’s scouting was not entrusted to him.
From the start of the journey, Zi Di deployed scouting alchemy puppets.
Not just that, she had also disseminated her transformed snake and rat ghosts
too.
After a half hour, the snow got heavier and there were even a few hailstones
mixed in with the snowflakes.
“Stop!” Zi Di suddenly shouted.
She pursed her brows tightly and glanced at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge’s heart shook and he ran his eyes around, then used a steady tone to
order, “Rest and reorganize here for the time being.”
The group happened to have a gradual slope nearby.
The group walked downwind to the gradual slope, then took out fire starters and
cooking equipment to rest here for now.
Zi Di and Zong Ge went to a corner.
After checking no one was eavesdropping, Zi Di looked grave, “Three gold levels
were discovered in front of us. There are two renowned fighters and one
magician, one of the fighters is the one who ambushed us in Cold Win Valley.”
Zong Ge’s face sank, “Three gold levels…they really think highly of us.”
Zi Di was glad, “How fortunate that before we set out, I remodeled my rat and
snake ghosts. The three gold levels are hiding in a magic tent, the scouting
puppets couldn’t have sensed them, it was a rat ghost would saw through it.”
“This is the advantage of a new school. Now, we have the initiative here.”
After a few seconds, Zong Ge’s heavy look was restored to calm.
Zi Di replied, “We didn’t go to Snow Rabbit City, but Rabbit Fur Town, yet this
movement had been detected by our enemies, and now they lie in ambush for us.”
“Where can we flee to?”
“We are close to Rabbit Fur Town, but the enemy has learned of that already.
Snow Rabbit City is the furthest city, and even if we want to make use of the
city guard, the city guard cannot mobilize to such a distant place.”
Zi Di pondered over a magic map, looking at the other cities and towns, paying
attention to their distance to these places.
But Zong Ge extended a hand over the map, blocking Zi Di’s drilling gaze, “WE
have the initiative now, we shouldn’t want to flee, rather we should ambush
them instead.”
“It is too late to flee; three gold levels are far faster than us. The other
side also has a magician who can definitely fly. When we choose another route,
it will be quickly detected by them and they will realize that we can detect
their tracks, that will most certainly cause them to attack first.” 
“But if we take the initiative to attack, then it will be an excellent battle
opportunity!”
Zi Di’s eyes widened, “You want to attack first?”
The young lady was flabbergasted as she looked at Zong Ge, she was very
skeptical if the teleportation had had left Zong Ge’s brain in Blood Kin City.
Zong Ge’s face didn’t waver, and his tone was impatient, “Don’t let fear
disturb you, Miss Merchant. Think carefully, we have a massive advantage.”
Zi Di almost found it laughable.
“The enemy is three gold levels, while the strongest among us is me and you,
two mere silvers. If we included the silver level ghost Lan Lu, then we’ll
barely have three. I don’t know what advantage you’re talking about!”
Zong Ge replied bluntly, “Deceptive Disguise – this is our strongest trump
card.”
Zi Di’s eyes narrowed, and her tone became somewhat hurried, “That is indeed
our trump card, but don’t forget, we are heading to the Ice Sculpture Royal
Capital.”
“We have lost contact with the Lord Commander, and although we have many Pearl
Bubbles on us, they are water without a source.”
“We don’t know how long we will stay in the royal capital and how long the
Pearl Bubbles will last.”
“We shouldn’t misuse them wantonly.”
“If the Deceptive Disguise spell fades away, and our true identities are
revealed, then we will die in the royal capital!”
Especially Zi Di who was a necromancer, if she was exposed, it would surely be
a terrifying mortal blow.
It was a nation’s capital; how would it tolerate a necromancer?
Zi Di also said, “Even if we still had the Mermaid Fairy Tale with us, the
divine artifact’s production rate declined with each passing day. Only by
linking up with imperial higherups as swiftly as possible while we still can
will we have a chance of redemption, that is the most important part of our
plan.”
Zong Ge shook his head, his attitude resolute, “No, it is most valuable to use
the Pearl Bubbles now.”
“Miss Merchant, do you not realize what kind of situation you are in?”
“The enemy is mysterious and very powerful, before it was one gold level
ambushing us, now it is three. What kind of power can accomplish this?”
“After the commander beheaded Official Teng Dong, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ name was propagated nationwide, they are still attacking us. To deal
with us two silver levels, they didn’t hesitate to mobilize three gold levels.
What is the enmity, what is the grudge?”
“Our opponent’s motives are unknown, and if we don’t know who the enemy is or
where they come from, that is the worst case!”
“We can attack now, perhaps we can kill one or two and gain crucial
information. Most importantly, we can display our true strength and make the
enemy realize that if they want to kill us, they will have to pay a disastrous
price. If that happens, we will have true motive power in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.”
“Otherwise, even if we can escape this time, the enemy won’t let this matter
rest, they will impede us everywhere and manufacture an opportunity to launch a
surprise attack on us. In the next attack, they will be more cautious and even
eliminate the undead ghost scouts. Our situation will be worse than it is now!”
Zi Di was silent for a moment, then she grumbled out, “We already have a trail
that can be investigated.”
Zong Ge coldly snorted, “Is your trail reliable? Since the other side can use
puppets to cut off their retreat, why would they leave behind evidence?
Furthermore, do we have a suitable candidate that can trace this trail to the
truth? Who do you think can do that? Xu Ma?”
Zi Di grit her teeth, “The disparity between the enemy and us is to big…”
Zong Ge directly conceded, “Of course it will be risky, it is impossible to
have no risks this battle. With the Deceptive Disguise spell, I am confident I
can cut down at least one gold level. We must inflict pain on them and display
our strength and threat.”
“Remember that time in Snow Bird Harbor? With the help of Deceptive Disguise,
we were completely invisible to location detection equipment, nether that gold
level assassin nor Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord sensed anything. Does that not
prove the strategic value of Deceptive Disguise sufficiently?”
Zi Di hesitated, she wanted to say something.
Zong Ge interrupted her, “That is the reason why I will fight alone. If you
discharge magic, that magic won’t be protected by Deceptive Disguise, that is
actually be a weakness.”
“Even if I can’t beat them, I can entangle them for a time. You can take the
people away, seize the opportunity for a rapid retreat, and head for Rabbit Fur
Town. It will be safer there.”
Zong Ge’s tone was much milder than it was in Cold Wind Valley.
Because he had to win over Zi Di’s support.
He was not a magician, he still needed Zi Di to use the Deceptive Disguise
formation.



****** Chapter 448: As Long as Victory is Possible! ******
Zi Di pondered quickly.
After a few brief minutes, her head was full of sweat.
Zi Di wanted to avoid battle as much as possible, but Zong Ge’s words made
sense; if they didn’t take up this challenge now, next time, they would be
worse off and in a more passive state.
Zong Ge was also taking responsibility; he wanted to fight alone and give Zi Di
and the others a better chance of escaping.
“I…agree!” After Zi Di made her decision, her entire body seemed to be relieved
from a burden.
At once, Zi Di and Zong Ge walked to the other side of the sloped mount, and
after deploying temporary arrangements, they took out formation slabs from
storage equipment.
Zi Di was skilled at installing these slabs and quickly activated the Deceptive
Disguise formation.
She had privately trained doing this, to prevent accidents from occurring.
Zong Ge walked into the middle of the formation, then Zi Di took out a Pearl
Bubble, fusing it slowly into the activating Deceptive Disguise formation.
The magic formation sparkled, and erupted with a fierce magic aura, but Zi Di
and Zong Ge weren’t worried about it being exposed.
Because this formation had also been imbued with Deceptive Disguise, and gold
level investigation magic would be hard pressed to see through it.
Zong Ge personally determined the camouflage settings this time.
The effect was very simple, and also very direct, it was total invisibility!
Zong Ge first used it on his equipment. The Gold Flower Hacksaw used 2 Pearl
Bubbles, and the rest of his equipment, along with himself used 9 more.
Even though Zi Di knew the truth, when she looked at Zong Ge, she only saw
indistinct shadows.
“I also want to take some Pearl Bubbles along. I want 20! When crushed during
combat, perhaps it will have a wonderous effect.” Zong Ge requested upon
leaving the formation.
Zi Di shook her head, “To be safe, take 30.”
She only had 60 Pearl Bubbles on hand, and for this battle, she invested over
40 of them.
When Zong Ge took the Pearl Bubbles, his eyes betrayed his astonishment.
At this moment, he had a whole new level of respect for Zi Di.
Zi Di reluctantly said, “I am a great merchant, and at this crucial juncture, a
great merchant is willing to part with her investment.”
“Follow my ghosts, they can lead you to the enemy’s tent.”
The squalls screamed and great snow wafted through the air.
Zong Ge, a one man army, departed. He followed a snake ghost through the wind
and snow, heading towards the enemy’s location.
His entire being and equipment was blessed by Deceptive Disguise, to those
unaware, he looked transparent. In this kind of blizzard filling the sky, there
were nearly no flaws in his camouflage.
Battle was imminent, and Zong Ge grew calmer, he even recalled some memories.
The wind and snow as far as the eye could see in his eyes gradually turned into
a sandstorm.
When Zong Ge was still an iron level, he had been following a swordsmanship
military instructor that was leading a group of cavalry in a desert battle.
Desert bandits united together to elect a sand bandit king, they had already
destroyed a good few towns and plundered and massacred five oases.
The nobles had also united and established an allied army.
The decisive battle was here, and both armies were visible to each other in the
distance, however, a sudden sandstorm swept in.
This was abnormal weather stirred up by the Sand God the desert bandits
believed in/
The noble collation hurried to use large scale magic battle formations but
found it hard to change the situation. The noble collation was gravely
perplexed and its tight battle formations were thrown into disorder.
The desert bandits seized the opportunity to launch their attack, and the
superior noble collation sank into a bitter struggle, many nobles saw things
were far from good and were already beginning to retreat.
The cavalry group Zong Ge was with had lost contact with the main army and had
been trudging through the sandstorm for a good while.
Visibility in the sandstorm was very low, and Zong Ge’s eyes could only see a
hundred meters around him.
“It’s like that now.” Zong Ge’s eyes cleared as the yellow sand changed back to
the snow of reality,
He stopped walking and looked into the distance.
In the snow and wind everywhere, he saw the faint outline of a dark green magic
tent.
It was like that sandstorm, when he saw the desert bandits’ great tents.
“Found the enemy!”
“It’s the desert bandit king’s camp!!”
The cavalry hastily reported.
The swordsmanship military instruct burst into laughter, “It seems the
sandstorm is also disturbing the desert bandit king, I heard that his
conviction isn’t pious, our opportunity has come!”
The still iron level Zong Ge looked worried, “But instructor, only a third of
us remain.”
Most of the cavalry had been lost in the sandstorm or perhaps became deserters.
“With our current troops, can we charge into the enemy’s main camp? If we get
stuck here, and enemy gets reinforcements, we will all die tragically.” Zong Ge
expressed his concerns.
The swordsmanship instructor replied, “The enemy is obviously not on their
guard, when we raid them, they will be caught off guard and will likely sink
into chaos. Most wonderful of all, they won’t know how many people we have. The
sandstorm filling the entire sky is also a hindrance to our enemies!”
Zong Ge grinded his teeth, “But can we win…”
The swordsmanship instructor suddenly interrupted him, “Don’t hesitate Zong Ge,
this is war!”
“Look for every chance of victory, even if it puts yon into danger.”
“We have the initiative, so long as there is a chance of victory, we should bet
it all.”
“Troops, here my order, prepare to charge!”
The bugle horns of that charge from times past seemed to echo in Zong Ge’s
ears.
He softly took out the Gold Flower Hacksaw and strode towards the magic tent.
Inside the tent, the magician Jia Bing was in the middle of casting.
His casting target was Axe Gang Leader.
“Endure it, it might be a little painful.” Jia Bing reminded him.
He was in the process of removing a magic contract that bound the Axe Gang
Leader.
The Axe Gang Leader laughed heartily, “Do not hesitate.”
A moment later, a magic radiance filled the entire tent with a tempestuous
transcendent aura.
“I will stand guard.” Lin maintained his coordination from the army, so he
alone lifted the tent flap and walked into the blizzard.
He walked a circle around the tent; the detection battle skill didn’t notice
any tracks.
He walked to the side of the tent, his back to the wind, then untied his
underpants, fished out his appendage, and began to urinate.
“Hm?” While urinating, he slightly wrinkled his eyebrows, subconsciously
turning around.
There was only the wind and the snow.
He kept turning around as liquid poured down, then he suddenly felt a trace of
pace in his abdomen.
The pain wasn’t big, and Lin muttered, “Have I found too many women recently?”
“I am a gold level, how can I suddenly feel a little empty?”
A moment later, he sank into darkness.
The hacksaw severed his upper body, casting it into the snow.
Whoosh!
The tent flap lifted up.
The Axe Gang Leader and Jian Bing turned around at the same time, only seeing
the wind and snow blowing past the tent flap and into the tent itself.
Jai Bing had a flash of unease but soon thought of the continued snow outside
the tent, he was a gold level and had detection type battle skills, once the
strongest in the army.
Jia Bing relinquished his worry and continued to focus his spirit on casting.
“The now is getting heavier, are those people still out there?” The Axe Gang
Leader was also a bit uneasy.
Jai Bing put some energy into a magic map on the table, “Don’t worry, those
people are still headed towards Rabbit Fur Town, according to their speed, they
will get there by evening.”
A moment later, Jia Bing’s head flew into the air, his nape spraying blood all
over the Axe Gang Leader’s face.
From the Axe Gang Leader’s perspective, the wind and snow was strongly
fluttering across his face, “The snow is a little odd…”
He muttered, then his expression slightly changed, “Hey! Don’t tell me you
finished? I still feel the magic contract on me.”
He was completely unaware of Jia Bing’s tragic end.
“Lin, Jia Bing, what is our countersign?!” The Axe Gang Leader shouted, his
brows greatly wrinkling.
Zong Ge walked slowly to his side, then upon hearing what was said, quickly
crushed a Pearl Bubble in his palm.
The Axe Gang Leader’s brows slowly smoothed out, “That’s the right countersign,
but what’s going on? I feel…”
He unconsciously used a defensive battle skill.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw was raised up, then stabbed straight down.
A moment later, the Axe Gang Leader’s chest was impaled through the chest. His
heart was fragmented into flecks in an instant.
Berserk battle qi corroded him from the inside, rapidly bursting all of the Axe
Gang Leader’s internal organs.
The Axe Gang Leader’s eyes widened, and before he arrived at death’s door, he
saw through the illusion and grabbed hold of the hem of Zong Ge’s clothes.
Blood splattered, causing a Blood Enmity Axe to burst forth in a flash of
light.
The strange light squarely hit Zong Ge.
This was the Axe Gang Leader’s final struggle.
A second later, his blood dyed hand went limp.
It was silent inside the magic tent as the odor of blood spread out, only Zong
Ge was left standing there, expressionless. 
A dozen minutes later.
Zi Di obtained the news and decided to break away from the main group to greet
the returning Zong Ge.
In the sky covering wind and snow, Zong Ge was carrying three gold level
corpses towards Zi Di.
Shock flashed through Zi Di’s face, then soon after it was replaced by more
complex emotions.
Zi DI deeply gazed at the half beastman, “So, you were already a gold level.
When did it happen?”
Zong Ge calmly glanced at her, “At Snow Birg Harbor, after the battle with Li
Jian Clan’s Yue Qian.”
On Mystifying Monster Island, Zong Ge’s battle qi had a golden luster, he was
only a step away from the gold level.
On Mystifying Monster Island, his arm had been maimed, causing him to not have
a speedy promotion.
After his injury had been healed, and with the help of the battle with Yue
Qian, he finally broke through into the gold level. However, he didn’t leak
this information out and even Tripleblade was kept in the dark about it.
Zi Di took inn a soft breath, then showed her understanding, “No wonder you
decided to spar with Yue Qian.”
“Also at Cold Wind Valley, when you and that gold level fighter did battle, you
didn’t get suppressed at all.”
“When faced with three gold levels, you chose to attack, because you were
completely confident in yourself.”
“You…” When Zi Di said that she hesitated.
Her mood was very complicated.
On the one hand, she was happy the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps finally had a
gold level. On the other hand, she was also worried that after Zong Ge was
promoted to the gold level, it would gravely batter the dragonman youngster’s
position of leadership.
Zong Ge explained, “Promoting to the gold level is not something worth
flaunting to me. What is more crucial is to deceive the enemy, and to do that,
I needed to start with deceiving our people. The facts prove that keeping this
important information is very favorable for us!”
After saying this, his body glinted with a blood light, and soon after, the
corner of his mouth leaked with a trace of blood.



****** Chapter 449: Splice Mountain, Graft Town ******
A sharp pain shot through him, causing Zong Ge's face to twist unnaturally for
a moment.
“What happened?” Zi Di asked with concern.
After all, Zong Ge was one of their own. His promotion to gold level was a
tremendous boon for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Especially now, when the enemy was powerful and mysterious, and they hadn't yet
fully understood their capabilities, Zong Ge had become the absolute mainstay
of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Naturally, Zi Di hoped he was in good
condition.
Zong Ge drew the Blood Vengeance Axe from his back: “It's this weapon! I killed
the Axe Gang leader but fell victim to his final trick.”
“Periodically, a crimson blood aura swirls around me, striking vital points
inside and outside my body.”
“The exact timing is unpredictable. I must remain constantly vigilant,
channeling my battle qi for protection to survive.”
Zi Di's brows instantly furrowed: "The Axe Gang leader?  He's the one who
ambushed us? Who are the other two? Let me examine you first. Perhaps I can
purge this blood aura."
Zong Ge nodded.
He'd already tried, but could only defend passively, unable to locate the
source.
Magic offered more diverse methods than battle qi; perhaps Zi Di could provide
assistance.
After a thorough examination, Zi Di confirmed Zong Ge was indeed a genuine gold
level fighter but found no other clues.
Having meticulously analyzed the battle sequence Zong Ge described, Zi Di
concluded: “This is likely the power of the Blood Vengeance Axe, merely
activated by the Axe Gang leader.”
“Based on our current intelligence, the Blood Vengeance Axe is no ordinary gold
level weapon.”
“To eliminate this threat, we must focus our efforts on the axe itself. That
holds the key to resolving this.”
Zong Ge nodded. "I've taken down three gold level opponents, but we can't
afford to be complacent. Let's depart immediately!"
“Wait. Before we go, you must replenish your Deceptive Disguise spell first,”
Zi Di reminded him.
Zong Ge looked at himself and nodded. "During intense combat, the Deceptive
Disguise spell drains energy extremely rapidly. In fact, I crushed two Pearl
Bubbles during the fight."
Following this, Zong Ge explained to Zi Di how the Deceptive Disguise spell and
Pearl Bubbles performed in actual combat.
"Before the fight, I used the Deceptive Disguise spell to make myself
‘completely invisible.’ Because the camouflage was so deep, after slaying the
first gold level fighter, the spell's effect diminished by more than half."
“I had no choice but to shatter the first Pearl Bubble.”
“The Pearl Bubble's power acted on the battlefield, allowing me to lift the
tent flap without alerting the enemy.”
"Under the scrutiny and reconnaissance of a gold level fighter, Deceptive
Disguise spell's effectiveness plummeted. Especially after I struck, the moment
the enemy suffered heavy damage, I distinctly felt the spell's power diminish
drastically."
"Inside the tent, I crushed the second pearl bubble. Even so, the Axe Gang
leader launched a death throes counterattack."
“After that battle, these are the only Pearl Bubbles I have left.”
At this point, Zong Ge produced eight Pearl Bubbles.
Zi Di listened intently while retrieving the formation diagram panel and
installing the Deceptive Disguise Formation.
Seeing the eight pearl bubbles, she sighed, “The higher the level of deception,
the greater the spell's consumption, this is something we'd already tested
before.”
“I just didn't expect it to consume this much still.”
Before Zong Ge departed, Zi Di gave him thirty pearl bubbles. Upon his return,
only eight remained. Including the Deceptive Disguise spell Zong Ge had to
recast before and after the battle, his total pearl bubble consumption was
almost thirty.
When Zi Di set out from Snow Bird Harbor, she had carried only about sixty
pearl bubbles herself. Meaning Zong Ge's battle alone had used up half her
reserves.
Zi Di retrieved only five: “The remaining three are for your use, in case of
unforeseen circumstances.”
"Logically speaking, losing three gold level beings at once would be a massive
blow to any faction within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Even if they wanted to
target us, they'd surely hesitate to act."
Zong Ge nodded in agreement with Zi Di's assessment. For the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom wasn't the Sheng Ming Empire; its strongest beings were merely at the
saint level. Below saint level were the gold level individuals.
Gold level individuals formed the backbone of any force.
Take the Axe Gang, for instance: with their leader deceased, their remaining
strongest combatants would instantly drop to silver level, inevitably
triggering massive turmoil. Handled poorly, it could very well lead to the
gang's dissolution.
Zong Ge carefully tucked the pearl bubbles into his robe: "Our use of the Pearl
Bubble is too crude. If we had a high-ranking cleric from the Charming Blue
Church, I believe the Pearl Bubble's consumption would plummet significantly,
and the Deceptive Disguise spell's effect would be far superior."
He turned his gaze to the three corpses lying on the ground. "The Axe Gang
leader was the head of the gang, but he was once a soldier of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. His identity and background bear a striking resemblance to Teng Dong
Lang. I strongly suspect a close connection between them. This might explain
why we were ambushed!"
The clue was too obvious. As a commander skilled in battlefield analysis, Zong
Ge immediately pieced together part of the truth.
“As for the other two, I also suspect they share the same background as Teng
Dong Lang and the Axe Gang leader,” Zong Ge stated.
Zi Di smiled faintly: “They're both gold level, no small figures. A little
digging will reveal their backgrounds and identities.”
“I have a feeling this time, our gains will be substantial!”
The triple reconnaissance of Xu Ma, the alchemy puppets, and the modified
ghosts kept the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps ahead in intelligence gathering.
After reapplying a Deceptive Disguise spell, Zong Ge reunited with Zi Di and
his subordinates.
None of them were privy to the fact that during Zong Ge's brief absence, he had
achieved the formidable feat of slaying three gold level opponents.
The journey ahead proceeded smoothly.
By evening, the group entered Rabbit Fur Town.
Their first task was to request teleportation.
The teleportation formation in Rabbit Fur Town remained heavily used. Even with
Zi Di spending a fortune in bribes, they were still booked until the following
afternoon.
After consulting with Zong Ge, Zi Di decided to stay overnight in Rabbit Fur
Town and use the teleportation formation to reach Snow Rabbit City.
After a hearty dinner, they obtained a crucial piece of intelligence from
information purchased from subordinates.
“Magician Jia Bing?”
“A powerful magician retired from the military, an Alchemy Great Master. His
specialty is crafting variants of the alchemy puppet, a gargoyle – an ice
gargoyle.”
“So, his storage belt should contain ice gargoyles?”
“Fantastic!” Zi Di's eyes lit up, already envisioning acquiring ice-carving
techniques from Jia Bing's legacy.
This was an alchemy technique unique to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!
"Additionally, Magician Jia Bing maintains an alchemy laboratory in Grafting
Town. He occasionally trades with outsiders, mainly selling alchemy tools.
Noticing this, Zong Ge spoke: "It seems we need to make a trip to Grafting
Town."
A gold level magician, who was also an Alchemy Great Master, made Zi Di and
Zong Ge decide to make a detour to his alchemy laboratory.
Zi Di immediately checked the intel on Grafting Town.
Situated at the foot of Splice Mountain, Grafting Town was the closest
settlement to the mountain. Due to environmental factors and poor
transportation, its size was less than a third of Rabbit Fur Town.
The origin of Grafting Town was tied to the legendary druid, Fan Sheng Za
Zhong.
This great druid, a wood elf and direct descendant of the Fan Sheng Clan,
excelled in grafting techniques that enabled different plants to coexist and
thrive.
During his travels, he had journeyed to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and conducted
numerous cultivation experiments on Splice Mountain. The drastic transformation
of Splice Mountain's landscape drew widespread attention, threatening the rule
and interests of certain factions.
The snow elves' transcendents united to expel Fan Sheng Za Zhong. The great
druid descended to battle the snow elves. His masterful grafting abilities
displayed in combat shattered their morale, forcing their retreat.
The battlefield became home to several colossal, grafted hybrid magic plants,
formed from the residual power of the great druid.
Years later, some snow elves successfully survived the harsh cold of Splice
Mountain beneath these plants, gradually forming Grafting Town.
"According to intelligence, the five magic plants in Grafting Town still retain
potent grafting capabilities. Severely damaged plants can be directly grafted
onto their trunks, drawing life-sustaining nutrients to slowly recover and
sprout anew."
“Interesting.”
Zi Di began anticipating the journey to Grafting Town.
Night deepened.
As the ship neared port, the captain breathed a sigh of relief, navigating at
night carried far greater risks than by day. It wasn't the danger of getting
lost; that probability was low. The captain's greatest fear was pirate attacks,
especially since the emergence of the Pirate Throne had unleashed rampant
piracy worldwide. Even once-safe routes now harbor hidden dangers.
The Gold level Magician Da Bei and silver level Magician Zhong Bei disembarked,
formally setting foot on Flower Skirt Island.
They suppressed their auras and activated magic artifacts, disguising
themselves as two iron level fighters.
The identity of iron level transcendents drew less attention while still
commanding enough respect to deter many from acting rashly.  This saved Da Bei
and Zhong Bei a lot of trouble.
Especially since their mission was to seek Master Cai Jing's assistance in
crafting a replica of the dragon rider potion, minimizing unnecessary
complications was paramount.
It was precisely for this reason that they concealed their true identities.
Da Bei didn't want to expose himself to arouse suspicion from the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, potentially forcing him into conflict with these arms
smugglers.
What Da Bei hoped for was to handle the matter discreetly, eliminating the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps while remaining entirely uninvolved.
"Let's head to the tavern first and inquire about Master Cai Jing's residence.
It's too late for a visit, so we'll need to find an inn for the night." Da Bei
whispered.
Zhong Bei nodded repeatedly.
The largest tavern on Flower Skirt Island was located right in the harbor.
Da Bei and Zhong Bei entered the tavern, still drawing no attention.
Though they were unfamiliar faces, the harbor was a place of constant movement,
teeming with strangers.
The first and second floors were filled almost entirely with ordinary folk,
while the transcendents occupied the third and fourth floors.
Bearing the status of iron level fighters, the two ascended to the tavern's
third floor.
There, they found a crowd gathered around a massive fish tank, shouting and
cheering incessantly.
Zhong Bei scanned the scene and spotted a blue-skinned, curly-haired,
triangular-headed fishman and a snow elf fighter engaged in a high-stakes wager
over a miniature fish-themed tactical board game.
By the time Zhong Bei and Da Bei found an empty table and sat down, the match
had become a one-sided affair.
The fishman held a clear advantage, drawing roars of encouragement from the
crowd: "Hen Fa! Hen Fa! Hen Fa!"



****** Chapter 450: Big and Small Fish, Magic Battle Chess ******
"Hen Fa! Hen Fa! Hen Fa!" A group of people surrounded a massive fish tank and
shouted.
The massive fish tank was filled with blue seawater. Within the water, lifelike
miniature models swam about.
These tiny models were mostly various marine creatures, like fish, shrimp,
shellfish...
Lan Zao stood at one side of the massive fish tank. His fingers splayed wide,
with his palms pressed firmly against the tank's base where a pair of palm-
shaped indentations served as pre-set control points.
He focused intently, manipulating his magic model pieces within the fish tank.
The massive fish tank functioned as a silver level magic chessboard,
continuously absorbing the battle qi and spirit power of both players.
Lan Zao commanded a tiny electric shark.
A real shark would dwarf his entire body, but the piece he controlled was less
than the length of his index finger.
The electric shark radiated an iron level aura. It was chasing a school of
iron-plated batfish.
The batfish couldn't match the electric shark's speed, but they scattered in a
panic, causing the shark to lunge at empty air.
The shark shot out an electric fish bone. At such close range, practically
point-blank, even the most skillfully controlled batfish couldn't dodge. One
was struck, its body dissipating like smoke.
The entire school numbered only five iron-plated batfish. Having lost one-fifth
of their strength, the remaining batfish immediately scattered in panic.
This outcome drew cheers from the onlookers.
Clearly, Lan Zao held the upper hand.
His opponent was a snow elf fighter, his face now dark with gloom.
“You bastard just got lucky once, when your bloodline mutated into an electric
shark, and now you're getting cocky!” The snow elf fighter cursed before
focusing all his attention on controlling his pieces.
Under his command, the remaining four iron-plated batfish abruptly split into
two groups, each fleeing to opposite sides.
Lan Zao controlled only one electric shark. Without hesitation, he chose the
left path and continued the pursuit.
The snow elf fighter maneuvered the two fleeing iron-plated batfish, darting
about to buy time. Meanwhile, he directed the other pair of iron-plated batfish
to swim deep, heading toward the bottom of the massive fish tank.
The massive fish tank contained more than just seawater. At its base lay
miniature coral reefs, fine sand, and pebbles, simulating an underwater
landscape.
Dotted throughout the sea sand were numerous rubber sea cucumbers.
These sea cucumbers were among the fishmen's favorite foods. The higher the
level, the larger, darker, and thicker the sea cucumbers became.
Deep within the coral clusters, numerous spitting cloth clams were also
concealed. This transcendent shellfish species had been cultivated to
prominence by a merchant alliance of the Sheng Ming Empire. The cloth woven
from them now dominated the global textile market.
Two iron-plated batfish carried the entire hopes of the snow elf fighter.
Most spectators' eyes were fixed on these two batfish. Everyone knew: the two
batfish being hunted by the electric sharks were merely sacrificial pawns for
the snow elf fighter. If the snow elf fighter wanted to turn the tide, his true
hope lay with the iron-plated batfish along this underwater route.
“What does he want to eat?”
“It's too late now to consume large quantities of rubber sea cucumbers, Hen
Fa's electric shark is too powerful.”
"If he could ingest the spitting cloth clams, there might still be a sliver of
hope for a comeback. But relying solely on two iron-plated batfish, there's
absolutely no way they could breach the spitting cloth clam's hard shell in
such a short time."
“At this stage of the Magic Battle Chess match, both combatants' battle qi
should only have one final round of amplification left.”
“Speaking of which, what bloodline options are associated with the iron-plated
batfish and spitting cloth clam?”
Spectators murmured among themselves, some silently calculating in their minds.
The snow elf fighter guided his two iron-plated batfish through the coral
groves, ignoring the spitting cloth clams within and abandoning numerous rubber
sea cucumbers. His target lay beyond the coral, a patch of deep green seaweed.
This choice baffled many spectators.
Some gamblers who'd bet on his victory began cursing under their breath.
Both Magician Da Bei and Magician Zhong Bei found themselves drawn into the
duel.
Magician Zhong Bei possessed far greater knowledge than most transcendents
present. Upon witnessing this, he instantly grasped the snow elf fighter's
intent.
“Judging by the spiral shape of this deep green seaweed, it must be ascending
dragon grass.”
“According to the latest bloodline charts, ascending dragon grass is linked to
only two batfish bloodlines.”
“One is the green hair turtle, the other the bramble turtle.”
Unlike ordinary sea turtles, the inner shell of the green hair turtle was
covered in “moss” -which was actually its downy fur. This alchemy material had
widespread application.
The bramble turtle's physique has always been massive, with adult specimens
resembling giant elephants on land. Herds of bramble turtles surge through the
ocean depths with astonishing momentum. Their backs bristle with sharp thorns,
serving both offensive and defensive purposes.
“Clearly, the direction he seeks for his bloodline mutation is the bramble
turtle.”
“If he could mutate into a bramble turtle, he could turn the tables.”
"The electric shark is a sea beast with an advantage in electric attributes.
When facing the wood-attributed bramble turtle, the effectiveness of electric
attacks is significantly reduced."
This Magic Battle Chess game was called Big and Small Fish. Its rules dictated
that two or more players each controlled their own pieces, continuously
devouring other magic models on the board. Through constant consumption,
bloodline mutations were triggered, causing the life forms of the pieces to
undergo sudden transformations. Consequently, they acquired different functions
or attribute changes.
Ultimately, through accumulated functional differences or elemental advantages,
pieces clashed until only one remained, declaring the victor.
Thus, a skilled Big and Small Fish player had to possess not only abundant
energy but also exceptional mental control techniques. More crucially, they
needed profound bloodline knowledge! Players had to know precisely when to
devour which creature models to transform them into specific life-form magic
pieces. This allows them to counter opponents or resolve their own
predicaments.
Lan Zao was utterly new to the Magic Battle Chess, Big and Small Fish.
He commanded the electric shark to pursue relentlessly, but the target remained
elusive under his opponent's deft control. It took Lan Zao a considerable time
to finally kill those two iron-plated batfish.
The electric sharks devoured these two batfish, merely extending their own
lifespan without triggering bloodline mutation.
This was one of his opponent's deliberate choices in selecting iron-plated
batfish—even in defeat, the resources gained by the enemy remained minimal.
After clearing one path, Lan Zao immediately drove his electric sharks forward,
pursuing another pair of iron-plated batfish.
Those two iron-shelled batfish had already devoured vast quantities of
ascending dragon grass.
The ascending dragon grass' bloodline combined with the batfish's own
bloodline, causing both to undergo bloodline mutations prematurely as the
electric shark closed in.
The two magic pieces instantly dissolved into wisps of smoke. The smoke
dispersed outward before immediately coalescing again, forming new pieces in
altered life forms.
But to the snow elf fighter's utter disappointment, the two newly born magic
pieces were both green hair turtles! There was not a trace of the bramble
turtle he had pinned his hopes on to turn the tide.
The snow elf fighter had originally reserved a portion of his battle qi,
intending to invest it into the mutated bramble turtle piece to raise its
level.
Players could expend their own battle qi, magic power, or divine power to
increase their number of pieces or elevate the transcendent level of existing
pieces.
But upon seeing his pieces ultimately transform into two green hair turtles,
the snow elf fighter lost all desire to expend even a shred of his battle qi.
Defeat was certain!
Sure enough, under Lan Zao's control, the electric shark effortlessly tore the
two green hair turtles to shreds and swallowed them whole.
Lan Zao had won.
The crowd who had bet on him erupted in a thunderous cheer, pushing the
tavern's already feverish atmosphere to new heights.
Many repeatedly shouted the name “Hen Fa,” celebrating Lan Zao for winning them
money.
After participating in this wild duel, Lan Zao's reputation began to spread
among the transcendents.
The underground arena on Flower Skirt Island served as the primary
entertainment venue for many transcendents on the island.
Though it was Lan Zao's first time participating in a wild duel, the battle
skill he displayed in the arena, Air Cannon, left a deep impression on the
spectators.
This time at the tavern, he “accidentally” got into a verbal altercation with
the snow elf fighter. As the dispute escalated, both sides engaged in this
Magic Battle Chess.
The tavern promptly and efficiently set up corresponding betting odds.
Due to Lan Zao's modest reputation, some gamblers placed their chips on him.
Of course, the primary reason was that Lan Zao was a novice in Magic Battle
Chess, commanding much higher odds than his opponent.
Lan Zao's victory netted some gamblers substantial profits, prompting loud
cheers. In an instant, Lan Zao became the tavern's brightest star.
His opponent, the snow elf fighter, stepped before him: "You got lucky this
time. I didn't lose to you, I lost to luck!"
With that, the snow elf fighter stripped off his iron level leather armor and
tossed it to Lan Zao.
This had been their agreed-upon wager before the match began.
Lan Zao felt no surprise at his victory.
From the moment he entered the tavern to the ensuing dispute and the Magic
Battle Chess, it was all part of Shuang Tu's prearranged script.
Shuang Tu had instructed Lan Zao: “You've now advanced to iron level, but your
equipment requires an upgrade.”
“Since you lack substantial funds, acquiring suitable gear will necessitate
some groundwork.”
“Following my plan, you'll not only hone your disguise skills but also secure
equipment replacement without arousing suspicion from Bing Xiao.”
Lan Zao needed to grow.
His bloodline had awakened, possessing 100% concentration of the Fish Bladder
bloodline. Yet this merely signaled his future potential.
He still needed to reach a certain stage of growth, developing tangible combat
capability. Only then, upon rejoining Bing Xiao, could he secure a higher
standing—facilitating his mission to infiltrate Tranquil Hill. With
insufficient strength, Bing Xiao would be reluctant to entrust him with
critical tasks.



****** Chapter 451: Legend Level Inheritance ******
The primary purpose of this Magic Battle Chess was to legitimately secure iron
level armor for Lan Zao.
Lan Zao felt no joy in victory.
Despite winning, his expression remained impassive.
The Hen Fa he portrayed was a man perpetually silent and taciturn.
However, this Magic Battle Chess sparked Lan Zao's interest in the Big and
Small Fish when he encountered for the first time.
Even after winning, Lan Zao commanded his electric shark to begin devouring the
ascending dragon grass.
After consuming large quantities of ascending dragon grass, the electric
shark's bloodline underwent a transformation.
It dispersed into a cloud of mist.
Within a second, the mist coalesced anew, and the electric shark transformed
into a dragon whisker electric eel.
Its entire body was covered in fine, smooth, azure-blue scales. Its most
striking feature was the two long whiskers growing from the corners of each
mouth.
This spectacle immediately drew gasps from the spectators.
Upon witnessing this, the snow elf fighter cursed again: “You have dog shit
luck today!”
With that, he pushed through the crowd with a dark expression and left the
bustling tavern.
The snow elf fighter was indeed a master strategist. He had actively played
along with Lan Zao's show without revealing any flaws.
He had deceived every gambler in the hall, even the two magicians known as
Zhong Bei and Da Bei.
Zhong Bei murmured in awe, "Combining the electric shark bloodline with
ascending dragon grass produces countless mutations. Statistically, the
probability of transforming into a dragon whisker electric eel is only 3%. This
fishman's luck is truly extraordinary. Despite clearly being outmatched by his
opponent, he emerged victorious."
"He's not a fishman, just a human fighter with the Fish Bladder bloodline. His
Fish Bladder bloodline purity must be exceptionally high to manifest such a
form.” As Magician Da Bei spoke, his expression grew complex, and he mused, ”So
you see, luck is part of strength too."
Magician Zhong Bei's expression also darkened.
Back then, Magician Da Bei had gone to great lengths, paying a hefty price, to
place his son Zhong Bei beside Magician Bu Quan. The plan was twofold: to
secretly protect her and to monitor and document her daily activities.
Under normal circumstances, once Bu Quan returned to the Alchemy Guild,
Magician Zhong Bei would be promoted and rewarded for this service.
But Magician Zhong Bei's luck was truly terrible. Bu Quan joined the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, stunning everyone. The plans of Da Bei and Zhong Bei were
completely dashed.
To salvage the situation, Magician Da Bei had no choice but to take his son
away from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to Flower Skirt Island, intending to seek
help from Master Cai Jing.
After obtaining iron level leather armor, Lan Zao also left the tavern.
Most would have stayed at the tavern, boasting and drinking with the gamblers
and drunkards around them, reveling in their victory.
But Lan Zao, disguised as the aloof Hen Fa, had a solitary nature, the type who
acted fiercely but spoke little. Thus, his departure wasn't abrupt; it
perfectly aligned with Hen Fa's character and habits.
This was no longer part of Shuang Tu's specific instructions. It was Lan Zao's
own insight and choice after days of playing the role of Hen Fa.
Lan Zao's departure didn't arouse suspicion from Da Bei or Zhong Bei.
Neither of them was particularly familiar with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Their primary focus was on Magician Bu Quan, followed by key figures like Long
Fu, Shi Qi, and Yao Ma. During his time in the mercenary corps, Lan Zao was an
unremarkable bronze level sailor.
Now, though he'd risen to an iron level fighter, his appearance had undergone a
drastic transformation due to his awakened bloodline. Even if he stood before
unsuspecting survivors, recognition would be unlikely.
The father-son duo of Da Bei and Zhong Bei focused their attention more on
gathering intelligence.
Simply sitting down in this bustling tavern, sipping a mug of beer, allowed
them to glean valuable intelligence from the chatter of patrons.
Moreover, they could purchase valuable information directly from the bartender.
The father and son gained extensive insight into Flower Skirt Island's current
state.
They uncovered the island's current power structure.
It was loose.
Several silver level individuals, each wielding their own influence, had carved
out their respective spheres of influence across Flower Skirt Island. Should
major events occur, these smaller factions would unite, deliberate, and then
act in concert.
In ordinary times, they competed while cooperating and cooperated while
competing.
The undisputed strongest on Flower Skirt Island was, of course, the gold level
Master Cai Jing.
Several days ago, a clash between two gold level cultivators erupted on Flower
Skirt Island. This confrontation remains a hot topic among tavern patrons to
this day.
Both Ba Qi and Cai Jing voluntarily halted their exchange during the probing
phase. It could be said the outcome was inconclusive.
Following this battle, Master Cai Jing turned his attention to the entire
island, launching a large-scale recruitment drive for potion-making
apprentices, a stark departure from his previous reclusive lifestyle.
Amidst this shift, another rumor began quietly spreading across Flower Skirt
Island.
"A legend level great druid left their legacy hidden within Flower Skirt
Island. Master Cai Jing deliberately chose to live in seclusion here to seek
out and unearth this legacy."
"Had Ba Qi not suddenly arrived, clashed with him, and shattered the surface
during their battle to reveal the subterranean caverns, this secret might have
remained hidden until Master Cai Jing fully claimed the legacy."
The magician father and son exchanged glances upon hearing this whispered
rumor, falling silent for a moment.
"Is this information true? Which legendary great druid is it exactly?” Asked
Magician Zhong Bei, his expression doubtful.
“It should be Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.” Murmured Magician Da Bei.
“This great druid once traveled through the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and lived in
seclusion on Splice Mountain for a time. Back then, Splice Mountain was still
called Ice Step Mountain. He changed its name. The Grafting Town at its base
emerged as a settlement because of him."
"During his travels on Ice Sculpture Island, Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong seemed
to gain much insight. His cultivation experiments indeed yielded significant
results."
"Records indicate that after leaving Ice Sculpture Island, he lived here on
Flower Skirt Island for a time. He transformed this barren island into a place
teeming with life. This was likely the outcome of his cultivation experiments
here.
As for whether he left behind any legacy... I always thought it was just a
rumor. After all, similar tales circulate in places like Splice Mountain and
elsewhere. It's only natural, a legend level figure like him, every move he
made sparked imagination, giving birth to countless stories and legends."
“But now it seems the legacy here on Flower Skirt Island might actually be
real.”
Magician Zhong Bei couldn't help but show a hint of curiosity: “Father, in your
opinion, what exactly might this legendary legacy entail?”
“I have no idea about that.” Magician Da Bei shook his head, his brow furrowed.
Magician Zhong Bei grew troubled too: “Father, is this really the right time
for us to come?”
Magician Da Bei nodded silently.
In his opinion, if he were Master Cai Jing, and had just unearthed a legend
level druid legacy. Amidst swirling rumors, two magicians arrived. They'd
disguised their identities and infiltrated Flower Skirt Island.
What would Master Cai Jing think?
“Could they be here to compete with me for this legacy?”
That would be a perfectly natural assumption.
After a long silence, Magician Da Bei finally spoke: “First thing tomorrow
morning, we will formally visit Master Cai Jing, reveal our identities, and
express the sincerity of our journey.”
Magician Zhong Bei agreed: "Exactly. Since we've come this far, we shouldn't
abandon our efforts halfway. We must at least try. That way, even if we fail,
we won't have regrets."
After spending the night at the inn, the two arrived at the southern part of
Flower Skirt Island early the next morning.
The father and son voluntarily shed their disguises, revealing their true
auras, and paid a visit to Master Cai Jing.
As they had anticipated, Master Cai Jing's attitude was far from welcoming,
brimming with wariness and suspicion.
Even though Magician Da Bei and he shared a history and considerable
friendship.
Magician Da Bei sincerely expressed his curiosity about the great druid's
legacy, though he had neither interest nor inclination to pursue it. His
primary purpose in coming was solely to request Master Cai Jing's assistance in
replicating the dragon rider potion, for which he was willing to pay a
sufficient price.
Master Cai Jing refused outright.
His primary focus now lay entirely on excavating the legacy.
Ever since his battle with Ba Qi exposed the subterranean caverns, he had,
after deep deliberation, altered his excavation strategy. He began mass-
recruiting potion apprentices, accelerating the digging process to seize
precious time.
The secret rumors circulating on the island had long caught his attention.
This added pressure to his shoulders yet also solidified his resolve to
excavate as swiftly as possible.
Under such circumstances, he would certainly not allow himself to be
distracted. Who knew what unforeseen complications might arise if time dragged
on?
Now, Master Cai Jing was single-minded in his pursuit, to secure this
inheritance into his own hands as quickly as possible.
Better safe than sorry!
After failing to negotiate, Magician Da Bei reluctantly bid farewell to Master
Cai Jing.
Yet as they returned to the dock to board their ship, a potions apprentice
intercepted them, bearing a new proposal from Master Cai Jing.
The father and son thus journeyed back to the subterranean alchemy chamber in
southern Flower Skirt Island to meet with Master Cai Jing.
Master Cai Jing addressed Magician Da Bei: “We can collaborate to jointly
excavate the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.”
"Is it truly the legacy of that legendary great druid? But why?" A look of
astonished delight spread across Magician Da Bei's face.
Master Cai Jing explained the reason: “Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong set several
trials. Only the final challenge remains. Once we overcome it, his legacy will
be ours."
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong excelled in the transplantation and grafting of magic
plants. Through cross-grafting different magic plants, he could even create
temporary, unique, extraordinary flora.
“Only by cultivating a hybrid magic plant that meets the challenge's
requirements can one meet Master Za Zhong's standards and solve the final
puzzle.”



****** Chapter 452: Electric Ball Projectile ******
Master Cai Jing said, "I have some experience cultivating magic plants, but I'm
nowhere near Master Za Zhong's level. I could meet his standards, but it would
take at least two years. And time is precisely what I lack right now."
“My plan is to recruit numerous potion apprentices. By mass-cultivating diverse
magic plants and saturating them with my potions to force accelerated growth,
we can maximize survival rates. With sufficient quantity, we may well obtain
hybrid magic plants meeting the requirements.”
“With both of you assisting now, this plan's timeline will advance
significantly.”
"Of course, if Magician Da Bei has better ideas, feel free to propose them. My
original plan isn't set in stone."
“After all, over the years, we've worked together quite harmoniously.”
Da Bei and Zhong Bei exchanged a quick glance, both seeing delight in each
other's eyes.
They had originally intended to ask Master Cai Jing to replicate the magic
potion. But now, a legend level inheritance lay before them, their previous
plan could be completely discarded!
With this legacy, Zhong Bei could establish his own advantage within the
Alchemy Guild entirely on his own; there was no need to bother with Bu Quan
anymore.
Da Bei immediately expressed his gratitude to Master Cai Jing.
This wasn't mere lip service; he pledged to compensate Master Cai Jing with
corresponding magician resources based on the legacy's value.
Zhong Bei followed suit: "Who would have thought this trip to Flower Skirt
Island would bring such a tremendous surprise? We will give it our all!"
Master Cai Jing nodded coldly.
It had taken him an hour of deliberation to make this difficult decision.
The exposure of the underground caverns caused by Ba Qi's attack made him
realize he had to act swiftly. The spreading rumors had completely shattered
any lingering hope he might have had.
At this moment, the arrival of Da Bei and Zhong Bei triggered extreme vigilance
in Master Cai Jing.
In the worst-case scenario, these two had come solely for the inheritance of
the legendary master.
“And this won't be the end—only the beginning.” After careful consideration,
Master Cai Jing felt the situation would only worsen.
As time passed, the rumors spread farther and wider, inevitably drawing more
people to the island.
Rather than facing numerous powerful adversaries alone when that time came, it
would be wiser to sacrifice some of his own interests now, recruiting allies to
defend his position.
In this light, Magician Da Bei emerged as a suitable collaborator.
Not only had they worked together before and understood each other well, but
there was another crucial factor, Magician Da Bei was not skilled in combat.
Lan Zao honed his battle skill in the sea.
He continuously expelled air projectiles.
Each shot struck his chosen targets with pinpoint accuracy.
Through relentless training, his practice targets gradually shifted from
stationary reefs and coral to moving schools of fish, turtles, crabs, squid,
and more.
Following the training materials provided by Shuang Tu, after diligent
practice, Lan Zao's accuracy rose to 100%.
"After cultivating the Air Pressure battle qi technique, I can compress air
effortlessly. When these compressed air projectiles are fired, it feels as
natural as using my own arms and legs."
“This is the power of bloodline!”
Lan Zao marveled.
The benefits of bloodline manifested in every aspect.
His pure Fish Bladder bloodline allowed Lan Zao to effortlessly master the Air
Cannon battle skill. He progressed at an astonishing pace through subsequent
training exercises.
“But achieving this level alone is insufficient.”
Following the methods outlined in the training materials, Lan Zao activated a
compact alchemy device he carried.
The spherical device swam forward, stirring chaotic currents in the surrounding
seawater.
The air projectiles Lan Zao fired lost their accuracy amid the turbulent
currents.
He adapted through trial and error, quickly finding his rhythm.
As time passed, his hit rate climbed again, rapidly rising from the low ten
percentages to over fifty percent.
This was the result of his bloodline talent - Fluid Perception.
Using Fluid Perception, he keenly sensed every movement of the currents. This
allowed him to evade their interference and ensure the projectiles struck their
targets cleanly.
After about half an hour of practice, Lan Zao's hit rate climbed to around 80%.
Another hour passed, and Lan Zao's hit rate dropped to just over 30%.
This was because he began experimenting with using ocean currents to increase
the projectile's flight speed.
He already possessed the ability to harness ocean currents to boost his
swimming speed, and could even utilize air currents to increase his flight
speed and distance.
Now, applying this ability to accelerate air projectiles represented a further
refinement of his skill.
He continued practicing until the sun dipped below the horizon, the sky ablaze
with brilliant sunset hues. By then, Lan Zao's accuracy had rebounded to around
70%.
Shuang Tu arrived, witnessed the training results, and applauded on the spot in
admiration.
“Your opponent for the next wild duel has been confirmed.”
“You will fight underwater. Your opponent will be a shark.”
Lan Zao inquired, “What specific type of shark? What is its transcendent
level?"
Shuang Tu shook his head slightly, “I haven't been able to gather specific
details yet. In truth, you must understand that as the organizers of the wild
duel, they need to create certain illusions: either a balanced matchup or one
where one side holds a clear advantage. This allows them to steer the number of
bettors and maximize their profits in the wagers."
"Like earlier, our investigation had an error because the arena made last
minute modifications to the duel. They replaced the original bronze level beast
with an iron level snow eagle." Shuang Tu explained the discrepancy in their
earlier intelligence.
"You can breathe underwater during combat. This type of battle is rarer than
land combat. The wild duel arena likely arranged this underwater combat to
enhance the spectacle."
“Their selection criteria for aquatic beasts referenced the combat prowess you
demonstrated in your previous wild duel.”
“Therefore, our strategy is straightforward, maximize your combat strength
beyond their benchmark. This will increase your win rate in the next wild
duel.”
Lan Zao couldn't help but look worried, “Compared to the last duel, I've only
added a piece of iron level leather armor. And this was done publicly, many in
the tavern know this information. This also means that the wild duel arena is
aware of my improvement in this area.  They might raise the standards for
selecting aquatic beasts.”
Shuang Tu smiled faintly, producing an alchemy artifact and handing it to Lan
Zao: “That's why I also brought you these.”
Though seeing the actual items for the first time, Lan Zao instantly grasped
their purpose.
“These are the alchemy projectile cores designed for my Air Cannon?”
Shuang Tu confirmed: "Correct. The training materials I gave you earlier
contained extensive details. Refer to those materials for specific usage
details."
Lan Zao nodded and accepted the alchemy projectile cores.
They were significantly smaller than standard bullets, roughly one-quarter the
size.
Holding them in his hand, Lan Zao noticed their surprising weight.
Picking one up between his fingers for closer inspection, he observed a faint
magic glow shimmering across its surface. It was faint and required close
scrutiny to perceive.
Shuang Tu had provided him with three types of alchemy projectile cores.
The first was a deep blue electric ball projectile.
It could transform the Air Cannon attack into an electric ball, granting it a
lightning attack effect.
The second was a grayish-white range-enhancing core.
Using it would increase the Air Cannon's range by at least double.
The third was an orange-yellow pressure-boosting core.
This core increased the Air Cannon's pressure, halving its volume while
maintaining the blast radius but significantly boosting its explosive power.
Lan Zao understood: his upcoming training would revolve around these alchemy
projectile cores.
Mastering their usage and raising proficiency to combat-ready levels was
essential.
Shuang Tu offered sound advice: "Merely increasing proficiency isn't truly
excellent. You must think critically. Consider which alchemy projectile core
would be most effective in specific combat scenarios."
“Practicing this foresight repeatedly will grant you quicker reflexes and more
precise responses when facing actual combat.”
"In real battle, both sides fight against the clock. Opportunities are
fleeting—the slightest misstep can completely alter the outcome."
After relaying these instructions, Shuang Tu hurriedly departed.
He needed to address an unexpected situation promptly.
This unexpected turn of events was the sudden appearance of Da Bei and Zhong
Bei who paid a visit to Master Cai Jing. After some deliberation, the latter
actually began collaborating with Da Bei and Zhong Bei!
Shuang Tu's primary mission at the moment was to acquire the inheritance of the
great druid.
Progress on this task had been going quite smoothly.
Master Cai Jing was actively recruiting potion apprentices, allowing Shuang Tu
to easily infiltrate numerous agents into his ranks. Upon receiving frontline
intelligence, Shuang Tu immediately grasped Master Cai Jing's true progress.
With just one final hurdle remaining, Master Cai Jing could unearth the
legendary master's legacy.
His shift in strategy for excavating the legacy clearly signaled a desperate
attempt to buy time and secure the inheritance swiftly.
Shuang Tu remained unflustered, having prepared long ago.
He even gave things a nudge. The rumors circulating on Flower Skirt Island
about the great druid's legacy were deliberately spread by him.
Shuang Tu's goal was to intensify the pressure on Master Cai Jing, compelling
him to complete the final trial as swiftly as possible.
The greater the pressure on Master Cai Jing, the more he would pursue higher
efficiency and shorter timelines. In this process, he would inevitably invest
more energy and resources, potentially making mistakes in the rush.
By the time Shuang Tu made his move, Master Cai Jing's strength would likely be
significantly depleted.
However, the unexpected appearance of Da Bei and Zhong Bei, coupled with Master
Cai Jing's proactive offer of cooperation, resulted in the alliance of two gold
level magicians. Shuang Tu quickly realized his rumor scheme had backfired.
If he wanted to claim the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong, he would have to
face the combined forces of two gold level and one silver level magicians.
Such power far exceeded his prior preparations.
“It seems I must contact Ba Qi and ask for his aid once more.”
“But I lost contact with him shortly after he departed.”
“To this day, I cannot reach him. What on earth happened to him?”
Ba Qi was praying.
"My Lord, the Charming Blue Goddess, You are so great. When You are angry, the
seas tremble. When You are merciful, You grant us illusory care. I look up to
Your mighty power, certain of Your salvation. Grant me the status of a worthy
believer, so that Your loyal believers may escape their current peril."
The goddess did not answer.
Ba Qi's expression remained composed.
He was thoroughly familiar with the rituals and protocols of prayer, certain
neither had been violated.
After being captured by Zhou Zhang, he swiftly grasped his true predicament and
pledged conversion on the spot.
But conversion proved far from simple.
Especially since the Charming Blue believer lay in slumber, rarely responding
to her believers.
Ba Qi had naturally prepared a contingency plan.
But escape was no simple feat.
He found himself surrounded by a vast undersea army, tightly encircled and
under strict surveillance. Most critically, he had no means to counter the
Opportunistic Deception divine spell of the octopusman priestess Zhou Zhang!
“Shuang Tu knows I went to capture the sea serpent. Having lost contact for so
long, he must be suspicious.”
“Hope he's smart enough to send reinforcements soon.”
“For now, I can stall a little longer.”
Movement at the altar interrupted his thoughts.
Ba Qi stepped out of the makeshift coral shelter beneath the sea and saw
another blood sacrifice beginning.
“Wait, this one's different!” Ba Qi's pupils contracted slightly.



****** Chapter 453: Path of Blasphemy ******
The White Hair Trench.
Beyond the Ocean Mother Nest.
A blood sacrifice had been prepared.
Zhang Yu Wan drove a vast herd of sea beasts onto the golden altar. Bound and
suppressed by the power of the magic formation, the beasts could not move.
Jiu Hua Bi stood at the foot of the golden altar, bellowing as he called out
names one by one.
The believers whose names were called stepped forward in turn, circling the
golden altar before kneeling down to begin silent prayers.
Ba Qi keenly observed: these believers had been meticulously selected, almost
exclusively naga in race.
This differed from previous prayers.
In earlier rituals, believers gathered around the golden altar without regard
to race or order, scattered casually. They prayed in various languages. Some
withdrew silently after finishing, their vacated spaces swiftly filled by
others.
They did not vie for position; to them, proximity to the altar held no bearing
on the depth of their faith.
This unusual ritual drew not only Ba Qi but also Jian Gui, Lady Sea Snake, Cang
Xu, and others.
By the time Jiu Hua Bi ceased calling names, over a hundred knelt at the
altar's base.
The remaining believers maintained a distance from the golden altar, creating a
gap of at least two hundred meters between them.
The blood sacrifice formally commenced.
The presiding officiant of the blood sacrifice was none other than one of the
archbishops of the Charming Blue Church, the octopusman Zhou Zhang.
As the ceremony's host, she reaped the greatest benefits. However, being a
saint level being with an inherently massive form, her enhancement was not
particularly noticeable.
Yet there was no doubt: Zhou Zhang held the entire army in check. She was the
core of the entire ritual, the most crucial figure, without question!
The gold level altar and the grand magic formation slowly activated, revealing
magic lines and divine script that radiated surging energy and brilliant light.
Upon the golden altar, countless sea beasts were instantly dissolved.
Midway through the blood sacrifice, the accumulated radiance of the golden
altar reached its peak, erupting with intense spatial fluctuations.
A strange light enveloped the area within a hundred meters of the altar, and
the nagas kneeling on the ground instantly vanished from their spots.
"It's teleportation! Where were they sent?" Ba Qi's eyes widened; he had never
witnessed such a phenomenon before.
Jian Gui and the others also witnessed this scene, their faces filled with
astonishment and doubt.
The gathered believers, witnessing this, knelt en masse and began fervent
prayers. Others turned their gaze toward the captives like Ba Qi and Jian Gui,
their faces twisted into cold grins.
They tolerated these heretics precisely because they knew their fate.
If Ba Qi, Jian Gui, and the others converted, they would become one of their
own, accepted into the faith. If they refused, they would become sacrifices,
offering everything to the gods they worshipped.
The Ocean Mother Nest instantly erupted into chaos.
The saint level sea beast, Snow Pear Octopus, unleashed a bloodbath, feasting
voraciously on countless sea monsters.
The naga believers had long since retreated to corners, praying fervently in
terror.
The alchemy puppets dispatched by the fishman youngster were already fishing in
troubled waters. Taking advantage of the naga and saint level sea beast's
inattention, the Rubber Swallowers smoothly captured several naga believers.
Subsequently, these Rubber Swallowers quietly returned to the Deep Sea Monster
Fish without alerting the saint level sea beast.
Alchemy Master Zhong Yong stood ready. Upon receiving the captives, he
activated the horned cages, imprisoning them all.
These horned cages were Zhong Yong's latest creation, primarily crafted from
the spiral horns of narwhals.
As the naga captives were thrown inside, countless spiraling spikes erupted
from the cage, piercing deep into their bodies.
The excruciating pain jolted the prisoners awake.
But their attempts to struggle were futile.
The force unleashed by the spikes suppressed their supernatural abilities.
The test results were outstanding, prompting the fishman youngster to praise
Zhong Yong repeatedly.
Zhong Yong was also pleased: “Your satisfaction is the greatest reward.”
He was indeed satisfied.
These past days, holed up aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, his workload had
been immense, yet he reveled in it, finding endless satisfaction.
For he had encountered countless alchemy blueprints, each ingeniously conceived
and uniquely brilliant, leaving him in awe. Furthermore, vast quantities of
alchemy materials awaited his refinement.
Wasn't this precisely the happy life he pursued?
The youngster began interrogating these naga believers.
With only himself remaining, he used his Bloodcore to absorb all the naga
believers, transforming them into his own bloodline accumulation.
Through interrogation, the fishman youngster learned of Zhou Zhang's
intentions.
“She truly does intend to spread her teachings.”
“That's why this teleportation didn't bring these prisoners aboard, they were
sent directly into the Ocean Mother Nest.”
“For now, it's about letting Ba Qi, Jian Gui, and the others witness it
firsthand, making them feel fear and pressure, forcing them to convert their
faith to the Charming Blue Goddess in their despair.”
“Well then, Zhong Yong also needs more time to alchemize more powerful
artifacts to capture Ba Qi, Jian Gui, and the others.”
The horned cages Zhong Yong had rushed to produce were mostly iron level, with
only one being silver level.
Given his current abilities, he was still unable to forge a gold level one.
When the naga believers teleported back and appeared around the golden altar,
the waiting undersea army erupted in boisterous cheers.
Seeing this scene, Ba Qi was stunned once more.
“They've teleported back again!”
“Wait, not all of them returned unscathed. There are some casualties.”
"Huh?"
Ba Qi nearly thought he was seeing things. To his astonishment, he discovered
that the auras of the returned believers had universally strengthened. He
remembered clearly that before teleportation, some believers had been merely
low level transcendents, but now their life levels had directly ascended by one
level.
Even those transcendent believers who hadn't gained a level upgrade possessed
significantly denser life auras than before.
Upon the altar, Zhou Zhang surveyed the naga believers before turning his gaze
to Ba Qi and the others.
The grim, bewildered expressions on Ba Qi's group caused a faint smile to curve
Zhou Zhang's lips.
The gold level figures like Zhang Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi also watched the
prisoners' reactions with keen interest.
The teleported believers merged into the crowd.
Cheers surged anew as the crowd surged forward. The remaining believers rushed
to greet them, chanting the divine name and praising their Lord. Hands reached
out to touch the naga believers' hands, shoulders, legs, feet, and other body
parts. As if touching these believers' bodies could also bestow divine glory.
The naga believers, having endured rigorous trials of faith, now bore solemn
expressions, radiating honor and nobility. The trembling, desperate prayers
they had offered in the Ocean Mother Nest had been utterly forgotten.
For them, though teleportation to the Mother Nest carried mortal peril, the
rewards far outweighed the risks.
Their power had surged dramatically, their renown soared to new heights, and
their status ascended by more than one level.
As Ba Qi, Lady Sea Snake, Jian Gui, Cang Xu, and others watched the jubilant
crowd, the shock fading from their faces gave way to a heavy, somber
atmosphere.
Even the fishman youngster aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, witnessing this
scene through the magic projection, couldn't help but utter a heartfelt
exclamation: "So many intelligent species gathered together, celebrating the
same event. At this moment, racial barriers seemed nonexistent. So this is
faith!"
Jian Gui silently retreated to his makeshift shelter, his mind churning with
turmoil: “This place likely conceals another Ocean Mother Nest!”
Unlike Ba Qi, Jian Gui, a gold level magician, had spent his days in captivity
observing.
Each time a ritual commenced, the magic formation would manifest.
Jian Gui attended each one, meticulously studying the magic runes, divine
inscriptions, and the precise layout of the formation.
“Our founder once tasked us with gathering all intelligence concerning Charming
Blue Goddess.”
“Though the Charming Blue Goddess slumbers, she can reshape the Mother Nest. By
using it as a relay point, she ensures her own safety while deepening devotion
and accumulating divine power!”
“Lord Jian Gui.” At that moment, Qi Ling's voice came from outside the shack.
Jian Gui summoned Qi Ling inside.
Qi Ling then relayed all the intelligence gathered during this period to Jian
Gui.
Jian Gui confirmed his suspicions, and a wave of profound despair surged from
his heart.
“Gather our people. I have words for them.” Jian Gui instructed Qi Ling, who
promptly obeyed.
Though they were prisoners, the intensity of their surveillance had drastically
diminished over time. By now, Jian Gui, Cang Xu, and the others could move
freely within a small area.
Even gathering together wouldn't be stopped. It was like the treatment of
prisoners in a jail.
On one hand, the saint level Zhou Zhang possessed formidable power. On the
other hand, Jian Gui and others wore magic-suppressing shackles, severely
limiting their ability to wield extraordinary abilities.
Soon, the necromancers, including Qing Xin, gathered in Jian Gui's makeshift
hut.
Qi Ling sighed, “Who would've thought we'd reunite under these circumstances.”
Xiao Wang Zi snorted coldly, “And it's all your fault!”
Jian Gui replied, "You all witnessed today's ritual. This isn't a simple blood
sacrifice. There should be a Mother Nest hidden here..."
Jian Gui voiced his conjecture.
Xiao Wang Zi froze.
Over the past few days, his sense of complacency had grown increasingly severe.
He'd even considered putting on a show, feigning deep devotion to buy time
until powerful reinforcements from the necromancer faction found them.
Jian Gui and his companions harbored no such illusions.
They hadn't sent out a distress signal. Even if they had, it was doubtful
anyone would receive it. The battle on the Underworld River had been pure luck
for Jian Gui!
Ku Feng realized: "I see. No wonder Zhou Zhang wanted us to convert. Whether
the conversion succeeded or not, she stood to gain either way. The Ocean Mother
Nest has been reshaped by the goddess, it's nearly impossible to deceive them
with superficial faith."
Qi Ling's face darkened with worry, “Then our only hope now rests on the
success of the transformation.”
Though she had been a fishman in life, she had never worshipped the Charming
Blue Goddess.
In truth, had she been a devout believer, her soul wouldn't have lingered after
death, she would have been immediately guided by the deity.
Jian Gui shook his head, “Faith isn't something you can just talk your way
into.”
“You saw it yourselves, those naga believers were handpicked. Their devotion is
undoubtedly at least devout level.”
“We need to convert successfully in such a short time, and become at least
devout believers, to survive this deadly crisis.”
“The real trouble is, even if we convert out of fear of death, our faith won't
run deep.”
His words plunged the necromancers into silence.
Cang Xu asked, “Then what should we do?”
“There's only one way,” Jian Gui's voice echoed in their minds, “We must use
the means of a blasphemous ritual to disguise ourselves.”
“Blasphemous ritual?”
“I recall this being part of the advanced soul aspect inheritance.”
Xiao Wang Zi and Qi Ling responded one after the other.
They both possessed mastery of this covert communication method. Cang Xu,
however, was encountering it for the first time, able only to listen, not
speak.
The next moment, Jian Gui replied, “Given the urgency, a slight breach of
principle is permissible.”
“To boost our survival odds, I intend to impart some aspects of the blasphemous
ritual to you!”
The words barely left his mouth before Cang Xu received a vast trove of magic
knowledge.
This knowledge materialized directly within his mind, as if conjured from thin
air.
“The legacy of the blasphemous ritual!”
“The way to fabricate false memories!”



****** Chapter 454: Seabed Shadow ******
The instant he received the legacy of the blasphemous ritual, Cang Xu felt an
overwhelming surge of gratitude toward Jian Gui.
As a descendant of Founder You Shen, Jian Gui demonstrated the true
responsibility of the undead orthodoxy at a critical moment. He had risked
violating principles to secretly disseminate the legacy of the advanced soul
aspect, solely to increase the survival odds of the necromancers.
Beyond gratitude, he felt profound astonishment.
Cang Xu never imagined he would acquire the blasphemous ritual's legacy under
such circumstances!
According to his prior assumptions: the method for crafting soul crystals
resided within the intermediate soul aspect inheritance, while the blasphemous
priest's legacy belonged to the advanced soul aspect inheritance.
Given the principles Jian Gui had previously demonstrated, Cang Xu would first
need to demonstrate sufficient talent to qualify for the intermediate soul
aspect inheritance. Then, he would have to complete certain tasks to prove his
loyalty. Only then could he be accepted by the orthodox necromancers. Of
course, this process would inevitably involve extensive covert investigations.
Cang Xu hadn't even met the first requirement yet.
Even if he had, this would undoubtedly be a long-term, large-scale endeavor. It
would consume immense manpower, resources, and time from Cang Xu.
Beyond that lay even greater risks.
For Cang Xu could never join the undead orthodoxy under his true identity. The
secrets and interests of the Mystifying Monster Island far outweighed any
intermediate or advanced soul aspect inheritance.
They were far more critical. Critical enough to threaten Cang Xu's very life.
Under these circumstances, Cang Xu unexpectedly obtained a blasphemous priest's
legacy, even if only a fragment of it, which was enough to fill him with
astonishment.
After imparting the inherited knowledge to everyone, Jian Gui dissolved the
gathering.
Cang Xu returned to his own dwelling.
It was a makeshift shack, similar to Jian Gui's abode, hastily constructed from
coral.
Cang Xu sighed deeply, "Fate is truly unpredictable. I failed to secure the
intermediate soul aspect inheritance yet unexpectedly gained a portion of the
advanced knowledge ahead of schedule. But..."
His expression darkened slightly.
The earlier gratitude and excitement faded significantly.
The pressure of survival now loomed heavily.
Today, Cang Xu witnessed a unique blood sacrifice. At the necromancers' small
gathering, he had also confirmed intelligence, learning part of the truth
concerning the Ocean Mother Nest.
Cang Xu had no confidence in his own conversion.
“For now, my greatest hope for survival lies in fabricating memories, becoming
a blasphemous priest to deceive and manipulate Charming Blue Goddess, Zhou
Zhang, and the others.”
“But the crucial question remains - what is Jian Gui's true intention?”
Having served as a noble steward for many years, Cang Xu had witnessed
countless schemes and plots. When contemplating matters, he instinctively
interpreted others' motives with the utmost suspicion.
The previous battle at the Underworld River had also left an indelible
impression on him.
In that conflict, Jian Gui had manipulated Cang Xu, generously lending him the
supplementary volume of the spellbook. Then, using that duplicate, he forged
his own life essence. Unbeknownst to Cang Xu, he disguised Cang Xu as himself,
causing the gold level assassin Wei Ying to mistake Cang Xu for Jian Gui. Wei
Ying struck to kill Cang Xu. Had the dragonman youngster not provided Cang Xu
with a decoy puppet beforehand, Cang Xu would have died.
Not only Cang Xu, but in subsequent battles, Xiao Wang Zi was also used by Jian
Gui as bait, luring Wei Ying out once more.
This time, however, Jian Gui acted far more discreetly, leaving Xiao Wang Zi
oblivious afterward.
Yet Cang Xu etched this experience and its lessons deep into his heart.
Cang Xu pondered, his doubts growing.
"When I previously sought the intermediate inheritance from Jian Gui, he upheld
his principles, revealing a fierce determination to defend them. Why would he
suddenly abandon those principles, even proactively imparting advanced
inheritance to outsiders?"
“When facing existential threats, Jian Gui will resort to any means to preserve
himself, treating those around him as pawns and sacrificial offerings.”
“Under these circumstances, his voluntary imparting of the blasphemous ritual's
secrets is highly suspicious!”
Jian Gui's inconsistent behavior defied logic.
Every believer harbored profound loathing for the blasphemous priests. This was
evident the day Zhou Zhang publicly interrogated Jian Gui at the golden altar.
Such hatred ran deep in their very bones.
For Jian Gui to now willingly impart knowledge of the blasphemous ritual, if
Zhou Zhang and the others discovered this, his fate would be grim. He might
even be executed on the spot!
“Would he risk such consequences merely to increase others' chances of
survival?” Cang Xu shook his head silently.
That's clearly impossible.
Cang Xu began to seriously doubt the reliability of this particular segment of
the inherited knowledge in his mind.
Carrying this doubt, he sat cross-legged on the sand, eyes slightly closed, and
began to silently delve into the matter.
Not long after, he slowly opened his eyes. Though his doubts remained
unresolved, he couldn't hide his delight.
It was the joy of discovering true knowledge.
“So, the core of the blasphemous priest still revolves around soul
transformation.”
The reason blasphemous priests could conceal themselves from the gods lay in a
breakthrough in a crucial technique: memory alteration.
Necromancers forged their own memories to craft the image of devout believers.
They convinced even themselves, thereby deceiving the gods as well. Mistaking
necromancers for their most pious or fervent believers, the gods often bestowed
blessings without restraint.
The essence of memory alteration was, in truth, a technique for reshaping
souls.
“The foundational legacy of the necromancer soul aspect includes the Soul
Summoning Spell, capable of transforming recently departed souls present at the
scene into ghosts.”
"Within the elementary soul aspect inheritance lies the technique to reshape
these spirits, transforming them into myriad forms. Beyond this, there are also
the Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Removal Spell. These two spells form the
core of the elementary inheritance, targeting the necromancer's own soul."
"The intermediate soul aspect inheritance contains methods for crafting soul
crystals. This unique artificial resource is clearly a major breakthrough
achieved through deep research into souls. Soul crystals are pure, memory-less
essences of souls. Reaching this stage indicates that the ancient necromancers
already possessed methods to completely erase memories."
"In the advanced inheritance, the necromancers' ability to modify their own
souls becomes even more profound. Magicians can perform highly intricate
surgical procedures on their own souls. They can directly fabricate memories
and imbue them into themselves. This constitutes the foundational technology
for blaspheming the gods."
"So then, the means by which deities discern their believers lies within the
soul. Deities should be able to peer into a believer's memories, using them as
proof. Necromancers, the magicians, forge memories, essentially tampering with
the soul itself to alter this proof, thereby deceiving the gods. No wonder... 
Necromancers have become the scourge of all, targeted by nearly every faction!"
The Soul Summoning Spell of the foundational lineage, the elementary
inheritance's ghost modification spells, the Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma
Removal Spell, the soul-crystal technology within the intermediate inheritance,
and the memory-forgery techniques of the advanced inheritance...
At this point, Cang Xu had fully grasped the core framework of the soul aspect
inheritance!
“This must be the sequence and developmental trajectory of Founder You Shen's
soul research.”
“What earth-shattering ingenuity this represents.”
Cang Xu glimpsed the essence through a narrow window, profoundly sensing the
Founder You Shen's extraordinary genius in that moment. It made him feel like
an ant gazing up at a giant.
Cang Xu tentatively used his spirit to secretly modify his own soul.
"Just as Jian Gui said before, it can indeed be modified covertly. In this
regard, the undead still hold an advantage as a newly emerging faction."
Cang Xu's brow furrowed slightly, for he simultaneously sensed constraints and
restraints.
Evidently, while the technique for fabricating memories wasn't entirely
blocked, it remained severely impacted by the external restriction.
“However, directly altering one's own soul... even if forged memories are
acquired, there remains a significant drawback.”
The inheritance provided by Jian Gui explained this drawback quite clearly.
That drawback was memory confusion.
If the fabricated memories were too realistic, they could easily cause the
necromancer to develop a distorted self-perception. This could lead the
necromancer to lose recognition of their true self, or even come to fully
believe the false memories, rejecting their authentic identity.
To address this flaw, Founder You Shen developed the Memory Switching Spell.
The Memory Switching Spell was also one of the most crucial components within
the advanced inheritance knowledge obtained by Cang Xu.
When employing the Memory Switching Spell, the necromancer could either block
or activate the fabricated memories.
Upon activating the fabricated memories, the necromancer would genuinely
believe themselves to be the fabricated persona, thereby ensuring the purity of
their faith. This increased the success rate of deceiving the gods.
Upon deactivating the fabricated memories, the necromancer immediately recalls
his true identity, guaranteeing accurate self-awareness.
To Cang Xu's regret, the inheritance provided by Jian Gui did not include the
memory crystal making device.
Cang Xu reasoned: ‘Memory alteration can be performed directly on oneself or
applied to other targets.’" The memory crystal making device is the tool for
this. Using it makes memory alteration more convenient, precise, and
efficient."
"It's like when humans first ate with their hands. After inventing cutlery,
handling foods like steak became far more convenient and efficient."
“So, back to that crucial question!”
“What exactly is the hidden danger within this inheritance? What trick is Jian
Gui employing?"
Cang Xu was certain Jian Gui had his own agenda.
The situation was dire.
Zhou Zhang's purpose was obvious, and Cang Xu lacked confidence in his ability
to convert successfully.
Though he had obtained the advanced inheritance, Cang Xu dared not blindly
alter his own memories. Until he uncovered Jian Gui's hidden tricks, the
survival odds he boosted through cultivation weren't his own—they belonged to
Jian Gui.
“Another moment of life and death...”
Cang Xu sighed.
His experiences on Mystifying Monster Island had taught him to endure such
immense survival pressure while maintaining inner calm.
But this calm couldn't alter reality, couldn't break through this deadlock.
“What other options do I have to cling to in hope of rescue?”
“Wait for the Twelve Saints like Doctor Sui Shi to come to my aid?”
“Ba Qi and Lady Sea Snake are members of the Fire Beard Pirates. Perhaps they
have reinforcements?”
“No, none of these are reliable...”
Cang Xu pondered long and hard, arriving at only one possibility.
The secret of Mystifying Monster Island!
It involved the divine artifact, especially the Mermaid Fairy Tale ,the very
core artifact of the Charming Blue Goddess. If this secret were revealed, Zhou
Zhang would surely be tempted, granting Cang Xu a temporary reprieve.
“Besides that, there's... the Bloodcore!”
Once the secret of the Bloodcore was exposed, the entire world would be
tempted.  Cang Xu was utterly certain of this.
“I... I could use these secrets to bargain for my life...”
The moment this thought surfaced, Cang Xu immediately stifled it.
Magic flames bloomed in the seawater, mingling with the golden altar's light.
Through the crude shack, it illuminated Cang Xu's back.
His silhouette swayed left and right on the sandy seabed, dancing with the
flickering magic flames.
Amidst the swaying, the thought Cang Xu had just suppressed surfaced once more.
“Use these secrets to buy myself a chance at survival?”
He crushed the notion again.
Yet swiftly, the same idea stirred to life, like his own shadow cast upon the
sand before him.
Crush, emerge, crush, emerge...
After this repeated cycle, the thought grew stronger than before, suddenly
filling his mind until it consumed his thoughts entirely!
At the same moment, the image of the dragonman youngster appeared in his mind.
In an instant, the previous thought vanished without a trace.
But the next instant, the thought sprouted again and began to rapidly grow.
It was becoming impossible to suppress.



****** Chapter 455: Commander, You Saved Me Again ******
Cang Xu's heart was in turmoil.
“I do not fear death, I do not fear...” At this moment, he desperately tried to
convince himself of this truth.
He told himself: “On Mystifying Monster Island, in that cave, I was even
willing to sacrifice myself, to offer myself as food...”
A scene from the past flashed before his eyes.
Cang Xu addressed the youngster: "Eat this food, and you'll regain your
strength. Not only will your chances of survival increase, but you'll also
protect your fiancée. Perhaps it was because you ate an extra piece of meat
that she managed to survive the breakout attempt tomorrow morning."
The youngster, Zhen Jin, erupted in fury: “Are you forcing me?!”
Back then, Cang Xu had smiled. "Yes, I am forcing you. But please forgive me,
Lord Zhen Jin. I am about to die. A dead man fears no worldly authority. I wish
to fulfill my dying wish. For this, my life is but a bargaining chip."
Now, Cang Xu wanted to laugh too, but he couldn't.
Because his own words of persuasion had failed.
At this moment, he suddenly realized, he feared death!
Back on Mystifying Monster Island, he had truly been cornered, with no choice
but to entrust his final wish. But now it was different. Deep down, Cang Xu
knew he still had hope. This wasn't a complete dead end!
Why not take a chance? If he sold the secret, he was almost certain he could
survive!
But without a doubt, this was—betrayal!
Guilt surged like flames within him, burning fiercely, bringing agonizing
torment.
“Am I betraying the commander?”
“Betraying someone like him?”
In Cang Xu's mind, the sincere and resolute declaration of the young Zhen Jin
echoed—."
"I once vowed to do everything in my power to save everyone, to abandon no
one.. This is my promise, and my duty.” Zhen Jin had said this to Zi Di and
Cang Xu.
“Lord, your noble character makes even the brightest stars in the night sky
pale in comparison!” Cang Xu exclaimed from the bottom of his heart, “You are
the very epitome of a templar knight.”
The memory surfaced: the speech before the final battle at the underground
factory, the alchemy hub.
“Even my own appearance looks like someone else, this should have been caused
by War Merchant’s modulations and transformations.”
“In fact, as you can see, I am a beastified person, at most I could only be
considered a comparatively special beastified person.
What a stirring speech!
At that moment, Cang Xu admired the youngster's courage immensely.
“We were betrayed by a close relative.” The youngster looked at Cang Xu.
The old scholar narrowed his eyes, shaken by these words!
“We seem to have lost our direction in life, but as a matter of fact, our
hearts understand how we want to move forward.”
“You were always more suited to knighthood and nobility than Zhen Jin. I've
always believed that.” Cang Xu spoke softly then, wiping his lenses to mask his
surging emotions.
Victory was theirs. They had eliminated Jia Sha and seized the divine
artifacts.
Compared to the templar knight Zhen Jin, the beastified youngster earned Cang
Xu's deeper admiration and approval.
Cang Xu recalled how, after escaping the Mystifying Monster Island, he had
averted total annihilation through necromancy magic, only to face growing
alienation and suspicion from his companions. It was the dragonman youngster
who publicly declared his loyalty, tirelessly mending the rifts between Cang Xu
and the others.
And in the battle at the Underworld River, it was the dragonman youngster who
entrusted Cang Xu with a substitute puppet, saving his life!
“It was the substitute puppet that revived me.”
“No, it was the commander who saved my life!”
Amidst the lingering dread, a wave of warmth surged through Cang Xu once more.
Now, as Cang Xu revisited this memory, the original intensity of that emotion
had faded considerably. Yet it still stirred his heart.
“The commander saved me time and again. Without him, I never would have escaped
Mystifying Monster Island or returned from the Underworld River.”
“He never wronged me. And now I intend to betray him?”
“To expose secrets that would bring him enemies of the saint level?”
“Am I to... repay kindness with betrayal?”
The flames of guilt erupted from his heart, spreading rapidly as if consuming
his entire being.
Though a necromancer who no longer needed to breathe, Cang Xu felt the illusion
of suffocation.
He recalled the moment he learned the secret of the Bloodcore.
It had been utterly staggering.
Cang Xu was stunned not only by the Bloodcore's ingenuity, but also by the
dragonman youngster's magnanimity and vision!
“Without his sharing, I would never have known the Bloodcore's secrets.”
“And now I must use this very secret to bargain for my own survival?”
Cang Xu's head drooped lower and lower, his back growing increasingly hunched.
It was as if an invisible mountain weighed upon his shoulders.
Overwhelming guilt transformed into a burden life could not bear.
His hands braced against the sand and stones of the seabed, fingers splayed
wide, clawing viciously into the mud.
His eyes had clearly lost their focus, unable to see the scene before him, lost
only in his own world.
“But I don't want to die...”
“I truly don't want to die!”
“Dying here now, I refuse to accept it!”
“It's too unfair...”
"If I hadn't known about the Bloodcore, it would have been one thing, but now I
have new hope. Why must I lose my life here?"
"I still had hope! I had a future! A bright future!"
“Truthfully, I don't need to reveal the Bloodcore. Just exposing the secret of
the Mermaid Fairy Tale would make Zhou Zhang spare me for now.”
“Perhaps I could buy time, then later join forces with the commander and the
others to defeat Zhou Zhang?”
“Even if... even if Zhou Zhang wins, perhaps the Bloodcore won't be exposed. I
could secretly obtain it and gain a new life!”
Cang Xu's expression twisted into a grimace, his gaze unfocused. His mouth
gaped open as he gasped for breath unconsciously.
“Wait... there's still the magic contract.”
To bind themselves, the survivors had once purchased magic contracts, pledging
mutual secrecy.
“If exposed, the contract's power would kill me!”
“But there's still room to maneuver.”
"That contract was low level. Zhou Zhang is saint level! And she's the
archbishop of Charming Blue Goddess, the deity most skilled in deception and
disguise. Deceiving the magic contract should be no problem..."
“Wait, what am I even thinking!?”
“Do I really want to do this?”
“Become a shameful traitor and betray the commander?”
Cang Xu's thoughts wrestled fiercely within him.
Amidst his struggle and hesitation, it felt as though he heard the dragonman
youngster's speech once more.
It was during the battle of Snake Rat Island, when they lay defeated beneath
the Domain of the Light of Contrition, their fighting spirit shattered.
“We are guilty!”
But it is precisely because of our sins that we repent and weep sorrowful
tears. We can then understand more the importance of pursuing justice, no?
“We should be guilty!”
“Who hasn’t done wrong? Who can guarantee that throughout their life, they
never made erred?”
“Survival, survival!”
“Only by continuing to live can we have the chance to admit our mistakes, to
redeem ourselves, to feel remorse, and to set back onto the path of
righteousness.”
The dragonman youngster's words had rallied his comrades and allies, marking
the pivotal turning point of that battle.
“Yes, yes.”
“I am guilty, deeply guilty!”
“But I must live on, I must survive...”
“For survival, I must bear this guilt!”
“Thank you, Commander. You saved me many times, but now I must betray you.”
“Forgive me, forgive me this once.”
“As you said, I do this for survival!”
“I will repent. I swear I will.”
Cang Xu made his final decision within his heart.
He slumped completely, his cross-legged posture resembling a kneeling stance.
Strangely, once the decision was made, his chaotic, agitated state began to
settle.
“Since the decision is made, it's time to act.” Cang Xu told himself.
His gaze grew resolute, his vision sharpening.
Then.
He saw the mark etched into the seabed gravel.
The emblem of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
In that instant, time seemed to freeze for Cang Xu. He froze in place,
motionless, like a stone statue.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' mark, or more accurately, a secret signal.
It was designed by Tripleblade.
He had once been a mercenary leader, and its members often used secret signals
in various situations. For instance, scouts would leave them along
reconnaissance routes as directional markers. Or they'd mark city street
corners to indicate target buildings for missions.
During his time on Two Eyes Island, Xu Ma had left such codes, successfully
aiding other mercenaries in accurately assessing the situation.
Cang Xu had no idea how long he stood there before his hand moved
instinctively, wiping away the code etched into the seabed sand.
The code itself was formed by small, slightly raised grains of sand, distinct
from the surrounding sandy terrain.
With a light sweep, Cang Xu destroyed the grains forming the mark.
Yet the next moment, the grains coalesced once more, recreating the original
signal.
Cang Xu's lips twitched, his expression growing intensely complex and peculiar.
Then the markings shifted again, the sand grains forming a brief message - I'm
nearby.
Without reason, Cang Xu knew this “I” referred to the commander!
His Adam's apple bobbed as overwhelming emotion threatened to breach his
defenses, making him want to shout - even cry out.
"Commander…"
“You've saved me once more.”
Cang Xu sighed deeply within his heart.
Inside the cockpit of the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster watched
the magic projection silently, his expression unreadable.
The substance forming the pebbles was, of course, not actual sand, but
precision eel drillers.
These delicate, miniature alchemy automatons could bore through the walls of
the Ocean Mother Nest, creating countless minute cavities.
Through these intricate networks of tiny cavities, the dual-eared detectors
could relay sonar feedback, revealing the world beyond the Mother Nest.
After testing the conditions of faith, the fishman youngster's plan to teleport
his disguised self out had failed. After deep contemplation, he resolved to
take a risk and conduct a test.
The test's purpose? To determine whether his Deceptive Disguise spell would be
exposed by Zhou Zhang!
Zhou Zhang was a saint level magician and divine spell wielder, as well as one
of the archbishops of the Charming Blue Goddess. The survivors had never faced
an opponent of this caliber. She was highly likely to see through the Deceptive
Disguise spell, being an expert in such matters. Moreover, the Deceptive
Disguise Formation was merely a design by the War Merchant, failing to fully
harness the potential of pearl bubble's alchemy technology.
The probe carried significant risk. If exposed, Zhou Zhang could trace the
deception back to them and come knocking.
Yet the fishman youngster understood this reconnaissance was essential!
For once the Mother Nest broke, the Deep Sea Monster Fish, still cloaked by the
Deceptive Disguise spell, would still face Zhou Zhang. Rather than react
passively then, it was better to gather intelligence beforehand, allowing the
fishman youngster to prepare for escape.
Naturally, the fishman youngster wouldn't risk himself. After brief
consideration, he decided the precision eel drillers were the optimal choice.
Thus, several drillers eventually bored their way out of the Ocean Mother Nest
into the outside world.
The Mother Nest did not shatter from these small holes; in fact, they were
rapidly sealing themselves. The Mother Nest possessed self-repair capabilities.
The drillers were cloaked in the Deceptive Disguise spell, designed by the
fishman youngster to blend as seabed gravel.
They slipped beneath the feet of countless believers, even deliberately
circling several times right under Zhou Zhang's nose.
No issues arose.
The test results showed that the Deceptive Disguise spell, utilizing god level
materials, surpassed Zhou Zhang, a saint.
The fishman youngster then dispatched these drillers to locate Cang Xu's
residence.
Soon after, he communicated with Cang Xu in advance by manipulating the
drillers to form written characters.
This step, of course, carried a greater risk of exposure.
But the fishman youngster had scouted beforehand and found no overly
sophisticated surveillance methods here.
On one hand, Zhou Zhang likely relied on her immense power and legions of
believers, assuming these prisoners, heavily restrained, couldn't cause any
trouble.
On the other hand, the presence of the golden altar, covered by an extremely
vast hybrid formation of magic and divine script, played a role. Deploying any
magic or divine detection methods here could interfere with the grand
formation. Put another way, each time the blood sacrifice was held, the immense
power unleashed by the formation would likely neutralize most reconnaissance
measures.



****** Chapter 456: Jian Gui’s Self Rescue Plan ******
The next day, Jian Gui once again summoned the necromancers.
While engaging in superficial conversation, he secretly inquired about the
progress of fabricating their memories.
Xiao Wang Zi muttered under his breath, “This is way too difficult! I worked
all night and didn't even reach 5%."
Qi Ling echoed, “Given this level of difficulty, it truly lives up to being an
advanced necromancer bloodline inheritance.”
If both magicians struggled, Ku Feng's progress was even lower, a mere 2%.
Yet someone lagged behind him: Cang Xu.
Cang Xu suspected Jian Gui had tampered with the inheritance content, so he
didn't rush his practice but merely pondered it.
Since connecting with the fishman youngster, Cang Xu's mindset had undergone
significant changes.
Jian Gui reassured everyone: “Forging memories is like performing surgery on
your own soul. It requires extreme precision to avoid self-harm, or else it
easily leads to confusion in self-awareness.”
"Even for me, having practiced this inheritance for years, creating a
completely fabricated memory alone takes at least a week. Of course, this
doesn't mean seven days and nights without sleep, but rather with normal rest
periods."
"Then what should we do? My greatest fear is that another blood sacrifice will
begin before we successfully fabricate our memories," Xiao Wang Zi expressed
his deep concern.
Qi Ling analyzed, “While blood sacrifices occur frequently, the special ones
that transmit believers inside aren't like that. They happen at intervals.”
Xiao Wang Zi perked up at this and hurriedly asked how long the interval was.
Qi Ling answered him.
“At most two or three days. That's nowhere near enough!” Xiao Wang Zi clutched
his large skull, looking utterly helpless.
Jian Gui chuckled softly, “It's far too early to despair.”
"Forging memories on our own would be painstakingly slow. But don't worry, I
have specialized tools. This alchemy apparatus not only speeds up memory
fabrication but also creates memory crystals. With memory crystals, we can
directly overwrite our original memories instead of tampering with our souls."
"Among the techniques I previously taught you is the Memory Switching Spell.
Combined with this spell, we can relatively freely toggle between the
‘disguised’ and ‘true self’ states. This prevents prolonged disguise from
turning us into someone else entirely, losing our true selves."
Ku Feng frowned, quietly objecting: “But how can we use the alchemy device in
our current state?”
Qi Ling added: "The reason we can gather freely now is likely because Zhou
Zhang and the others are deliberately letting us be. They want us to discuss
endlessly without results, plunging us all into despair to increase the
likelihood of conversion."
For this challenge, Jian Gui had a solution prepared.
He didn't beat around the bush, stating directly, “In our current predicament,
it's impossible to openly use this alchemy device.”
“But once we reach the Ocean Mother Nest, things will be different.”
"At that point, isolated from the outside world, I can break free from the
restraints binding me, gaining some freedom of movement. I will swiftly remove
the restraints binding you. With that, we can operate the memory crystal making
device."
Cang Xu heard these words and doubt immediately took root in his heart.
He himself lacked the ability for such covert communication, but fortunately,
the next moment, Xiao Wang Zi voiced the concern weighing on his mind: “Doesn't
the Ocean Mother Nest house a saint level sea beast? If we do this, we'll
likely be devoured by the saint level sea beast!"
Jian Gui looked at him: “A low-intelligence saint level sea beast is still
better than facing the saint level Zhou Zhang.”
“In truth, the enemy we should fear most is Charming Blue Goddess!”
“Because the Ocean Mother Nest was remodeled by her.”
"However, this deity fell into slumber long ago. Even if we utter her divine
name, it won't trigger any response."
"This Ocean Mother Nest was personally transformed by her. That saint level sea
beast serves as her guardian beast, aiding her in guarding the Ocean Mother
Nest while assisting in the completion of the blood sacrifice."
"If she is conscious, any slightest change within the Ocean Mother Nest will be
instantly perceived."
"Facing any other deity, we will be doomed. But with the slumbering Charming
Blue Goddess, we still hold a sliver of hope!"
Cang Xu remained silent, yet a realization dawned upon him as he listened.
His thoughts drifted back to Weeping Pine Island, where he had first
encountered Jian Gui and the others.
On Weeping Pine Island, he attended his first gathering of the undead. He
clearly remembered the terms of the deal proposed by Jian Gui.
One task was to gather intelligence on the various aspects of the Charming Blue
Goddess, while the other was to find new ways to contact the War Merchant.
The survivors possessed the capability to accomplish both missions. This left a
profound impression on Cang Xu.
"Jian Gui wants to gather intelligence on the Charming Blue Goddess. This
clearly isn't his own initiative. Behind him lies the orthodox undead faction,
and likely even the will of You Shen. Those orthodox necromancers are almost
all blasphemous priests. These blasphemous priests have probably already set
their sights on the Charming Blue Goddess. They likely intend to strike against
her."
"Charming Blue Goddess has slumbered for years due to severe wounds. To the
blasphemous priests, she is a perfect target."
"As a member of the undead orthodoxy, Jian Gui must have access to some hidden
intelligence. Therefore, he now possesses profound knowledge about the Ocean
Mother Nest and this blood sacrifice."
Jian Gui began to reveal his true plan: "Charming Blue Goddess is now in a
state of deep slumber. The Ocean Mother Nest, personally modified by her, is
guarded by the saint beast. Zhou Zhang and her believers are conducting this
grand blood sacrifice here precisely because of the Mother Nest's unique
properties. The offerings from the blood sacrifice are absorbed and processed
by the Mother Nest with near-perfect efficiency. The vast majority of this
nourishment is channeled directly to the Charming Blue Goddess's true body."
“Most of the harvest is absorbed by her, while a small portion is retained to
empower the saint beast, Zhou Zhang, and other devout believers.”
“Even this minuscule fraction of the harvest represents an unimaginable boost
for most transcendents.”
"If we act alone, forging memories is nearly impossible. You've all experienced
its difficulty firsthand."
"Therefore, to save ourselves this time, we must cooperate fully! Once we
teleport into the Ocean Mother Nest, we'll have a brief window for action."
Ku Feng realized with a start: “You mean when the saint level sea beast hunts
those sacrificial sea beasts?”
“Correct.” Jian Gui nodded slightly.
This intelligence had been deduced through his own reasoning and later
corroborated by information gathered by Qi Ling. Jian Gui could even roughly
estimate the exact duration of this window.
He continued, “Based on my calculations, we're still slightly short on time to
complete a full fabricated memory.”
“Therefore, we must delay the saint level sea beast's advance.”
“Fortunately, by that time, we will have partially restored our combat
strength. We can use our summoned creatures to wage a war of attrition, buying
crucial time for you.”
“At the final moment, even I, as a gold level being, can barely hold my own
against the saint level sea beast.”
"To conserve time as much as possible, we must consult and collaborate to
fabricate a false memory. Each of us completes a segment, and by layering our
contributions, we can dramatically accelerate the overall progress. I will
personally oversee the final consolidation and refinement."
Xiao Wang Zi widened his eyes: "So we'll all share one fabricated memory? Is
that truly feasible?"
“Rest assured,” Jian Gui affirmed. "As an orthodox undead, I've long studied
the methods our masters used to defy the gods. Even a normal deity couldn't
possibly inspect every believer's entire memory. Of course, during a major
festival, multiple believers simultaneously possessing identical memories
remains a significant flaw."
"But Charming Blue Goddess is slumbering. A sleeping deity cannot perceive this
flaw.  As I mentioned before, her slumber is our greatest opportunity."
"Therefore, as long as a single false memory covers all of us, we can pass the
test of faith."
At this point, Jian Gui's tone grew wistful: “Among all deities, the Charming
Blue Goddess excels most in deception and disguise. Now it seems fate is truly
wondrous and ironic. The Charming Blue Goddess, master of deception and
disguise, will be deceived and outwitted by us!"
These words ignited the necromancers' fighting spirit.
Ku Feng chuckled, his voice brimming with anticipation: "Deceiving a deity
skilled in deception and disguise? How thrilling!"
Jian Gui sighed, scanning everyone present: "The situation now should be quite
clear to all. In short, unless we receive reinforcements or some extraordinary,
unforeseen event occurs, this is our only chance to survive. I urge everyone to
seize it with all their might!"
The necromancers obeyed with solemn resolve.
Cang Xu was no exception.
His expression was unwavering, yet his thoughts churned beneath the surface.
Though this gathering yielded no new inheritance content, it proved immensely
valuable nonetheless.
For he had finally grasped why Jian Gui had defied his principles, voluntarily
imparting fragments of the advanced undead inheritance.
Cang Xu had previously worried that Jian Gui might tamper with or manipulate
this inherited knowledge. Now, however, that possibility seemed unlikely.
For he needed the necromancers to collaborate seamlessly in crafting a complete
fabricated memory. If he were to tamper with it, Jian Gui would not only betray
others but also himself.
Yet regarding Jian Gui's other words, Cang Xu remained deeply suspicious.
“When time is critical, Jian Gui would likely sacrifice others without
hesitation!”
“He'll undoubtedly use the first fabricated memory he creates on himself!”
"Can the same fabricated memory truly aid others? Can this be a deliberate lie
spun by Jian Gui? Does he intend to use this deception to make everyone serve
him, ultimately benefiting only himself?"
"Sharing a single fabricated memory among so many carries risks. If I were Jian
Gui, the safest and most secure path to survival would be abandoning and
sacrificing others to preserve only myself!"
After the battle at the Underworld River, Cang Xu understood Jian Gui's true
nature all too well.
This Jian Gui would resort to any means to ensure his own survival.
“But the others remain completely unaware.”
It had to be said, Jian Gui's methods were highly covert. His usual demeanor
was impeccable, greatly benefiting Xiao Wang Zi, Qi Ling, and Ku Feng.
These three, gathered around Jian Gui, still harbored not a shred of suspicion
toward him.
“What a bunch of naive fools! Hard to believe they're all necromancers,” Cang
Xu sighed.
Under these circumstances, he couldn't unite the others to guard against Jian
Gui.
“Had it not been for the battle on the Underworld River, I wouldn't have
understood Jian Gui's true nature so thoroughly.”
“Perhaps there's another reason. That is, Jian Gui and I share many
similarities. We're both cold-hearted, capable of calmly weighing pros and
cons!" Cang Xu couldn't help but recall his recent struggle, the fierce
internal conflict that ultimately led him to decide to sell the deepest secret
to secure his own survival.
“If the commander hadn't appeared in time...”
A wave of lingering fear and bitterness washed over Cang Xu once more.
Yet his subsequent conversation with the fishman youngster would radically
shift his perspective.
Cang Xu realized this peril concealed an immense opportunity!
Thus, after Jian Gui dismissed the others, Cang Xu returned to its shack.
“Lord Jian Gui, I've been thinking. If we all master the operation of the
memory crystal making device, it would greatly benefit our current plan!” Cang
Xu declared.
Jian Gui looked at Cang Xu with surprise and suspicion.
The method Cang Xu was using to communicate with him now was none other than
the secret method they had used before!



****** Chapter 457: Cang Xu vs Jian Gui ******
The gaze hidden beneath Jian Gui's hood flickered faintly.
He felt a twinge of unease and doubt.
This covert method of communication wasn't simple.
It could only be established because Jian Gui shared a secret link with others.
Jian Gui knew Cang Xu could use this covert method, because back on the ghost
ship in the Underworld River, Cang Xu had already been tampered with!
“The question is, has Cang Xu truly discovered this?”
With this doubt, Jian Gui probed, "Xu Jia, it seems your bloodline mutation is
heading in a positive direction. It likely granted you enhanced necromancy
aptitude, enabling you to master this covert communication method."
Cang Xu smiled: "I don't know why, but perhaps it's the initial fruit of my
bloodline mutation. Anyway, after listening to your communications for so long,
I naturally picked it up. It's truly remarkable!"
Jian Gui chuckled: “Had you communicated this way during the gathering just
now; it would have brought others quite the surprise.” (Since you've mastered
this method of communication, why didn't you interact before? Hiding your
abilities like this—your motives aren't pure!)
Cang Xu gave a wry smile: "They've asked every question there is. There's
nothing left for me to inquire about. My Lord, I sought you out privately
because something occurred to me.”
“Oh? What is it?”
“As you said, the Ocean Mother Nest will be our final chance. There, we'll face
a saint level sea beast. At that point, we silver levels won't stand a chance
against it. The Ocean Mother Nest is a closed environment; we can't create
distance to stall the saint level sea beast.” Therefore, at the critical
moment, we must still rely on your power. But you cannot simultaneously fight
and operate the memory crystal making device. At that time, only we can perform
the operation!"
At this point, Cang Xu abruptly fell silent.
Yet his meaning was made abundantly clear - he desired this specific knowledge.
Jian Gui sank into silence, seemingly unsettled by Cang Xu's sudden offensive.
Cang Xu continued, "Lord Jian Gui, what do you think of my proposal? Only by
harnessing the strength of all of us can we truly cooperate, build mutual
trust, and ultimately escape together." (I now suspect you intend to use us as
cannon fodder! Only by allowing us to operate the alchemy apparatus can you
demonstrate sincerity in cooperation. Your refusal would only confirm my
current suspicion.)
After a long silence, Jian Gui laughed heartily: “Xu Jia, just as I sensed when
we first met, you truly are a clever one!”
"Indeed, your suggestion is excellent! I admit my planning was somewhat
lacking. Thank you for pointing out my oversight."
"I shall impart this knowledge to you immediately. This will greatly increase
our chances of success. This time, if we cooperate wholeheartedly, we will
surely weather this storm together!" (You actually dare to threaten me?
Impressive! But I've agreed. We truly need close coordination and mutual trust
to work together effectively; only then do we have a chance of escape. If you
want to live, you must align yourself with me and genuinely cooperate. That's
your only chance!)
Their conversation was truly fascinating.
On the surface, they exchanged pleasantries, revealing their fears and offering
suggestions on how to convert. This was the first layer of deception,
deliberately spoken for Zhou Zhang and the others to hear.
In reality, they communicated covertly through secret means.
But the hidden meaning behind this exchange was their true core message!
Next, Jian Gui taught the method to use the memory crystal making device to
Cang Xu.
"You're the first among them to receive this inheritance knowledge. Once you
see it, you'll find the operation simple and remarkably convenient. But without
the crucial alchemy apparatus, this knowledge is utterly useless."
"The most important thing for us now is to work together seamlessly to forge a
complete memory. Do you understand?" Jian Gui asked.
Having received his reward, Cang Xu appeared exceedingly compliant: “I
understand, Lord. I'll return immediately and devote myself to altering my
faith!”
He declared this publicly.
Jian Gui naturally understood Cang Xu's hidden meaning. He nodded: “Go. Go.”
Cang Xu left his shack, and Jian Gui's gaze darkened like water.
He gritted his teeth inwardly: "Xu Jia, well done. You actually dare to
blackmail me? Hah, you've got some nerve. Do you realize your life hangs on my
whim? No, you don't. If you did, how could you dare treat me this way?"
Jian Gui sneered coldly before refocusing his mind to forge memories.
His escape depended on this task; he dared not be careless or negligent.
Cang Xu returned to his shack, his expression darkening rapidly.
He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, “If that's the case, then
something must have been done to me. I've already been controlled by Jian Gui.”
“It probably isn't just me. Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, Ku Feng, and the others must
be the same!”
Having served as a noble steward for many years, coupled with his innate
disposition, Cang Xu had become quite adept at the art of scheming.
Ever since recognizing the true nature of Jian Gui, he harbored deep suspicions
toward this gold level necromancer.
This time, Jian Gui had proactively imparted advanced soul aspect inheritance
to other necromancers. Even if it was only a portion, and even after Jian Gui
explained his reasons, Cang Xu remained profoundly uneasy.
He feared Jian Gui had tampered with the inheritance content.
Another doubt gnawed at him - did Jian Gui not fear that one or more
necromancers might betray him upon learning his plans?
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng might be trustworthy. But Cang Xu, an outsider who had
joined only recently - had he truly earned Jian Gui's complete trust? Simply
because he participated in the Underworld River battle?
Then there was Qi Ling.
Though Qi Ling herself worshiped other sea gods, and not Charming Blue Goddess,
her heart remained with her fishman clan from her mortal days. Even after
becoming a necromancer, she continued serving the Da Ji Clan.
What if Qi Ling betrayed Jian Gui to Zhou Zhang for her clan's sake?
It was entirely possible.
A man like Jian Gui couldn't fail to consider such a possibility.
Had Jian Gui been someone like Xiao Wang Zi, Cang Xu wouldn't have harbored
such doubts.
But the crux was that he was Jian Gui, a man who, at the brink of life and
death, could sacrifice others as pawns to secure his own survival.
Thus, a conjecture naturally formed in Cang Xu's mind.
“We've likely all been tampered with, and this method ensures Jian Gui's own
safety.”
Recalling the backgrounds of the other necromancers, Cang Xu immediately
realized: If Jian Gui wanted to tamper with them, it would be incredibly
simple. Opportunities abounded.
Qi Ling had been summoned by Jian Gui himself. Qi Ling had also served as Jian
Gui's alchemy assistant for years. For Jian Gui to tamper with them would have
been all too easy.
As for the undead ronin Ku Feng, Jian Gui had originally intended to summon him
personally. But ultimately, it was Doctor Sui Shi who stepped in and forged Ku
Feng. Doctor Sui Shi was one of the Twelve Saints, sharing the same orthodox
undead lineage as Jian Gui. Considering the scenario where Doctor Sui Shi
rushed to support during the battle of the Underworld River, their close
relationship was evident. Given this connection, it's entirely plausible that
Doctor Sui Shi would willingly cooperate with Jian Gui to tamper with Ku Feng.
As for Xiao Wang Zi, this necromancer wasn't personally converted by Jian Gui.
But Xiao Wang Zi's mind was simple; all these years, he never saw through Jian
Gui's true nature. Having interacted for so long, how could Jian Gui not find
an opportunity?
Finally, there's Cang Xu himself. The Underworld River battle exposed his
greatest vulnerability. On the ghost ship, Cang Xu was saved by Jian Gui. Cang
Xu remained unconscious for an extended period. In truth, his current body was
actively provided by Jian Gui. These are all loopholes!
“For Jian Gui, only by tampering with us can he truly trust us.”
“Thus, the extent of this safeguard can be inferred.”
Jian Gui possessed the confidence to proactively impart advanced knowledge in
the inheritance. Clearly, he harbored no fear of these necromancers informing
on him or leaking the inheritance content.
Should any necromancer among them commit treachery, whether informing or
divulging the inheritance, Jian Gui’s covertly planted measures would activate
instantly to suppress it.
"Therefore, such measures should be capable of instantly eliminating any one of
us at a critical moment. "
“Then, does it possess surveillance capabilities?”
“Most likely not,” Cang Xu pondered, his mind racing with speculation.
If it had surveillance, Jian Gui would have detected his earlier communication
with the fishman youngster.
At this life-or-death juncture, Jian Gui would never pass up any opportunity to
exploit external forces. He would definitely seek out Cang Xu for negotiations.
After all, he was practically cornered now, with no choice but to rely on the
methods of the blasphemous priest to fight for a chance to escape.
“In fact, if there's still surveillance capability, then the control mechanisms
deployed by Jian Gui are simply too vast.”
It was like setting up a magic formation: the more functions it had, the
stronger its power, the larger the area it covered, the more potent its aura,
the greater the resources it consumed, and the more conspicuous it became.
“We're all necromancers. If such methods become too extensive, the likelihood
of detection increases significantly.”
"As seen in the advanced inheritance, all necromancer inheritances share a
common origin. While elementary inheritances lack the expansive vistas of
higher ones, their content undoubtedly forms the foundational bedrock."
"If my understanding is correct, Jian Gui's methods should be rooted within our
very souls. The constraints imposed upon us mirror how Xiao Wang Zi commands
his skeletal legions, just as I manipulate those death heads, or how Qi Ling
and the ghost ship command their ghosts."
“Manipulating souls is what necromancers excel at. Especially Jian Gui, who
specializes in the soul aspect.”
“In a way, we could be seen as Jian Gui's undead summons.”
"We're bound by divine and magic spells, yet we can communicate secretly. This
unbroken, undisturbed link is likely the strong bond between master and
summoned creature."
“Therefore, that earlier exchange, Jian Gui's first words were actually a test
directed at me.”
“He wanted to see if I had already sensed the tampering within myself.”
As Cang Xu pondered further, the truth gradually unfolded before his eyes.
It must be said that Cang Xu possessed a meticulous mind; in discerning plots
and schemes, he was undoubtedly the foremost among the survivors.
"If our connection to Jian Gui is indeed like this, then in his eyes, we are
his possessions, and he is our master in a potential sense."
“This explains why he has been lavishly supporting Qi Ling, Ku Feng, and Xiao
Wang Zi all along.”
Cang Xu recalled the first undead gathering on Weeping Pine Island.
Even then, he had noticed: in such undead assemblies, Jian Gui was the pivotal,
central figure. He provided resources others couldn't offer like soul crystals,
memory crystals. And Jian Gui's demands for trade were remarkably modest.
Though holding a monopolistic advantage, his prices remained fair in every
transaction.
It was as if Jian Gui was playing with the others!
Cang Xu had previously believed: as a member of the orthodox undead lineage,
Jian Gui sought to nurture and support other necromancers, embodying the
magnanimity and vision befitting his status.
This perception had been shared by Xiao Wang Zi and the others.
But upon deeper reflection, a contradiction emerged.
Namely, undead resources!
For necromancers, undead resources were finite. Though Jian Gui belonged to the
orthodox lineage of the undead, was his resource pool truly vast enough to
justify such investments?
Necromancers like Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng, even if they were silver level, did
their talents truly warrant such substantial investment?
As Cang Xu recalled this, the echo of Jian Gui's booming laughter filled his
ears, brimming with hearty cheerfulness.
Yet now, he sensed a chill emanating from that very laughter.
"From Jian Gui's perspective, these three necromancers are his summoned
servants, his property, not outsiders. Therefore, investing resources to
cultivate three capable silver level subordinates is entirely worthwhile."
“This is Jian Gui's true face.”
The warmth he displayed was false.
His methods were covert.
He concealed his true intentions exceptionally well.
Even Cang Xu couldn't help but admire: Jian Gui truly had a knack for this!
“In that case, my very life is manipulated by Jian Gui. Life or death rests
solely on his whim.”
Cang Xu's expression was utterly composed.
He would eliminate any threat to his life without hesitation.
But clearly, Jian Gui was a gold level. Even now, with everyone else captured,
Cang Xu couldn't handle him alone.
"To confront Jian Gui requires utmost caution, then more caution. The slightest
slip, and he'll activate his methods, ending me in an instant."
“Yet precisely because he possesses such power, I unexpectedly gained his trust
ahead of schedule.”
"That's why he imparted the advanced inheritance to me and accepted my earlier
negotiation demands. He secretly implanted control measures within me, making
him believe my life and death are entirely within his grasp."
“If I escape this time, he'll likely confront me about it.”
“Phew... Thank goodness the commander is nearby!”
Cang Xu thought of the fishman youngster, exhaling a breath of relief, feeling
profoundly fortunate once more.
This was the power of wisdom!
Due to Cang Xu's limited magician abilities, he couldn't detect the passive
manipulation affecting him nor determine the nature of this control method.
Yet through his ingenuity, he pushed beyond the limits of his magician skills,
compensating for his lack of transcendent powers.
“Wait a moment, perhaps I can seize this opportunity to extract more undead
inheritance from Jian Gui!” The thought stirred Cang Xu's heart.
After further deliberation, Cang Xu concluded there was no better opportunity!
Under normal circumstances, he'd need to prove his bloodline, endure countless
trials, and demonstrate unwavering loyalty before even becoming eligible for
inheritance of the undead orthodoxy.
It was a lengthy process fraught with danger.
The orthodoxy would undoubtedly conduct thorough, covert background checks.
But in this peculiar predicament, Cang Xu could leverage Zhou Zhang and the
pressure of life-or-death stakes to force Jian Gui to reveal more inheritances.
“Esteemed Jian Gui, surely you don't wish my failure to ultimately doom your
escape, right?”
“Killing me is simple, but it will inevitably alert Zhou Zhang.”
“Since you've already imparted some advanced inheritance, surely you won't mind
sharing the intermediate undead knowledge as well?”



****** Chapter 458: Zhou Zhang’s Plan ******
No sooner had Cang Xu obtained the second part of the advanced soul aspect
inheritance than he began scheming for the intermediate soul aspect
inheritance.
This wasn’t due to greed, but rather because such an opportunity was
exceedingly rare!
Missing this chance meant there might never be another such golden opportunity
in the future. Even if he exhausted every effort and resource, he might still
fail to secure it.
The undead inheritance was currently divided into three branches: the soul
aspect, corpse aspect, and bone aspect.
Cang Xu held little interest in the corpse aspect or bone aspect materials.
However, he knew that the intermediate soul aspect inheritance contained the
method for crafting soul crystals and a spell capable of testing one's aptitude
upon becoming undead.
He wanted both of these things!
First was the soul crystal, it was truly vital.
This unique resource, forged only by necromancers, was nearly indispensable for
their cultivation. Especially for necromancers transformed into ghostly forms,
its benefits were paramount.
Though Cang Xu could currently procure them from Jian Gui through existing
connections, the inherent risk was obvious: relying on trade was unreliable.
Being able to craft them himself would be ideal.
The spell for assessing undead aptitude was also vital.
In Cang Xu's plan, this spell would be paired with the Bloodline Purification
Formation. First, use the spell to determine the exact bloodline within the
undead. Then, seek out the corresponding undead bloodline and purify it through
the Bloodline Purification Formation. Following this entire process would
enhance the aptitude of any undead life form.
Of course, Cang Xu could only speculate about the exact effects of this soul-
testing spell.
It might merely assess a soul's potential without directly identifying its
bloodline.
If that were the case, Cang Xu would need to extort more undead information
from Jian Gui..
Jian Gui's group was known as the orthodox undead faction, possessing
astonishing foundations. With a founder like You Shen, they were undoubtedly
the world's foremost authority on this.
Cang Xu had gained immense assistance from the War Merchant's database, so he
naturally coveted the orthodox undead faction's archives.
“But extorting them now wouldn't be appropriate.”
The timing was poor.
Cang Xu had just successfully extorted information from Jian Gui, obtaining the
method for using the memory crystal making device. To return immediately after
leaving and demand more extortion? That would be too much!
Jian Gui would surely interpret it as provocation, perhaps even suspecting Cang
Xu had lost his mind.
Cang Xu had already deduced that Jian Gui had tampered with him, and this
covert control method was exceptionally potent. Perhaps a single thought from
Jian Gui could annihilate Cang Xu outright.
Thus, Cang Xu dared not overstep too far, after all, his life was still
temporarily in someone else's hands.
Of course, based on Cang Xu's understanding of Jian Gui, he knew the
probability of him dying under such control was currently low.
For Jian Gui wasn't the type to kill in a fit of rage.
Moreover, Cang Xu's unexplained death would inevitably draw suspicion and
investigation from figures like Zhou Zhang. This would be highly detrimental to
Jian Gui, especially given his plans for covert maneuvers.
Still, with his very life at stake, Cang Xu dared not gamble recklessly.
“Besides, I have far more important matters to attend to.”
Cang Xu returned to his makeshift shelter.
Soon after, he received another communication from the fishman youngster.
Sitting cross-legged on the sand, he felt grains coalesce between his thighs
into characters: “The device has been made.”
“I shall now describe its form and function.”
Accompanying the description, an alchemy device shaped like a coin gradually
materialized within Cang Xu's vision.
After establishing contact, the fishman youngster cut the communication
abruptly without elaborating.
He immediately ordered Zhong Yong to devote all efforts to crafting a
communication alchemy device.
Using the precision eel driller for communication proved inefficient and
carried exposure risks.
The coin-shaped alchemy communication device was compact, easily slipping
through the narrow holes drilled by the precision eel driller.
The coin device was also imbued with Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, set to render it completely invisible.
Even if an unsuspecting person touched it, their sense of touch would be
deceived. They would believe they had merely touched empty air.
However, as Cang Xu uncovered more truths, he could not only see the coin
communication device but also feel it.
The coin device possessed autonomous movement capabilities, actively floating
up and hovering near Cang Xu's lips.
Cang Xu opened his mouth slightly, allowing the coin device to float inside.
He held the coin device in his mouth and pressed it down with his tongue.
The coin device began to heat up. Within seconds, like a branding iron, it
fused directly beneath his tongue, becoming a badge.
The intense agony it caused was endured by Cang Xu with sheer willpower.
Throughout the process, his expression remained utterly calm, his gaze utterly
still.
Cang Xu focused all his attention, silently reciting the contents of the undead
inheritance in his mind.
These contents were all recorded by the coin.
Soon, the coin was loaded with methods on how to become a blasphemous priest,
spells like Memory Switching Spell, and the “correct operating procedures for
building the memory crystal making device” that Cang Xu had just extorted.
When Cang Xu ceased feeding content into the coin, it lay dormant for thirty
seconds before heating up again. From a badge-like imprint, it solidified into
a physical form once more.
Seizing the moment while Cang Xu sighed, it floated out and landed among the
sand and stones.
The precision eel driller immediately retrieved it, clutching the coin device
as it swiftly burrowed through the shack's cracks, vanishing from Cang Xu's
sight in moments.
Soon after, the coin landed in the hands of the fishman youngster.
Rather than inspecting it himself, the youngster placed the coin directly into
a specific reading device.
Almost instantly, he saw the specific text regarding the inherited knowledge
displayed on the device's screen.
“Memory Switching Spell, Memory Concealment Spell, Subconscious Reminder
Spell...” The fishman youngster glanced at the blasphemous priest's methods.
Clearly, this wasn't just the Memory Switching Spell alone, but a combination
of many spells working together.
However, the fishman youngster was solely a cultivator of battle qi, having not
pursued spellcasting.
Although his bloodline within his Bloodcore possessed considerable magic
aptitude, the youngster had never found the time or energy to dedicate to it.
Before this, he had indeed considered dual cultivation.
“Starting magic training from scratch now would be far too slow,” the fishman
youngster sighed, “Once Cang Xu arrives, he could use these spells to become a
blasphemous priest.”
By coordinating with Cang Xu, the fishman youngster might find a way to escape
this place.
"Huh? Perhaps I could try it on myself right now?” The fishman youngster
discarded his earlier thoughts upon reading the latter part.
“According to these records, even without the abilities of a spellcaster, I
could alter my own memories using the memory crystal.”
At the same moment, Jian Gui murmured a similar exclamation.
“Too bad I have the memory crystal making device but can't use it.”
The memory crystal alchemy device was an incredibly powerful tool, not only
precise but also efficient and convenient. For Jian Gui to manually alter his
own memories was extremely troublesome. Bound by dual restraints, he couldn't
achieve the necessary precision.
“At this rate, there's no way I could complete a full fabricated memory on my
own.”
Jian Gui grew impatient.
He began to berate himself: Why hadn't he practiced memory forgery more
diligently in the past?
He analyzed the root cause: it was primarily because he had acquired a memory
crystal making device. With this device, even non-magicians could easily
operate it to meet standards. The time and materials consumed were at least ten
times less than when he did it himself.
With such a powerful tool, who would bother to painstakingly hone memory
fabrication abilities?
"If I possessed a Soul Weaver, Gray Snake Turtle Bone, Death Herald Bird, or
Falling Star bloodline, I might have trained diligently, after all, there'd be
hope to surpass the limits of the memory crystal making device. But I don't..."
Jian Gui's bloodline restricted his potential in this area.
No amount of diligent practice could ever match the memory crystal making
device. So why bother?
Investing precious time, energy, manpower, and resources elsewhere clearly
yielded far greater returns.
Who could have imagined he'd end up in this desperate predicament?
Jian Gui refused to die here.
Though he had already died once, becoming a necromancer, an undead life was
still a life!
“My progress is minuscule. Others must be faring even worse.”
As time slipped away under death's relentless pressure, Jian Gui's sense of
urgency surged.
He concluded sending a distress signal was impossible. His greatest, and only
path to survival lay in the blasphemous priest's method.
To ensure the progress of memory fabrication, Jian Gui had to strictly monitor
everyone else's advancement.
The next day, Jian Gui gathered everyone once more.
They pretended to discuss prayer content while secretly exchanging information
and reporting their respective progress. Jian Gui continuously imparted his
insights and experience to others.
To ensure his own survival, he held nothing back in sharing his expertise.
The reason he hadn't shared this knowledge earlier was that he understood the
importance of gradual progression.
After gaining some practical experience, learning from others' wisdom would be
more effective for absorption and comprehension, thereby accelerating their
growth.
"It seems you've all studied our Lord's teachings quite deeply. Very good."
Zhou Zhang suddenly materialized outside the shack.
She had used divine magic to disguise herself.
The necromancers were engrossed in their discussion, none noticing her arrival.
Zhou Zhang's sudden appearance startled everyone.
They hurriedly rose to their feet, bowing and greeting her.
Zhou Zhang observed them, a smile on her face. "Do you know? Many have urged me
to sever ties with you. Each of your gatherings stirs the nerves of countless
souls. I have suppressed these concerns because I believe exchange strengthens
faith and deepens devotion. This test has not disappointed me."
At these words, the undead breathed a collective sigh of relief.
They had feared their secret gatherings had been discovered. Now it seemed
their worries had been unfounded.
But in the next moment, Zhou Zhang continued, "Though the next blood sacrifice
transmission is still some time away, I believe it best to inform you now."
At this point, Zhou Zhang flashed a teasing smile: "You must select one undead
companion to participate in the next blood sacrifice transmission. Remember,
only one."
In an instant, every undead present, including Jian Gui, turned deathly pale!



****** Chapter 459: Who will be First? ******
"When people find themselves in dire straits, banding together for warmth is
the usual choice," Zhou Zhang left the shack with a smile.
On the surface, she allowed the captives to meet freely, but secretly, she kept
a close watch.
Zhou Zhang was a saint level expert. Her innate strength already surpassed that
of Ba Qi, Jian Gui, and the others. The pirates and necromancers fighting each
other provided her with an opportunity. She easily took them all down.
Thus, the prisoners split into two factions.
The necromancers led by Jian Gui, and the human pirates led by Ba Qi.
Zhou Zhang arranged it this way not because she had uncovered Jian Gui's plans,
but because this was her original intention.
First, let them debate amongst themselves, spreading despair. Then divide and
sow discord, isolating them completely. Only then could they be more
effectively converted.
As for the outcome?
Zhou Zhang remained unfazed.
Failure was acceptable, success merely a bonus.
If conversion failed, these captives could still serve as nourishment for the
deity, they were basically food.
If conversion succeeded, they would become allies.
Even if the necromancers' conversion succeeded, Zhou Zhang dared not entertain
thoughts of infiltrating the undead orthodoxy's inner circle. With her strength
and standing, she knew far more than the average person and understood the
undead orthodoxy possessed formidable methods. Countless factions worldwide had
attempted infiltration, yet success remained exceedingly rare.
Zhou Zhang harbored a quiet apprehension toward the undead orthodoxy led by You
Shen.
Had Charming Blue Goddess awakened, Zhou Zhang might have had some leverage.
But with the Charming Blue Goddess slumbering for years, Zhou Zhang preferred
not to provoke them.
Despite her earlier bravado, she remained acutely aware of the stakes.
However, if the human pirates were to convert, it might be possible to
infiltrate their ranks.
The Fire Beard Pirates and the undead orthodoxy were both legend level
superpowers. Yet they differed markedly. Compared to the undead orthodoxy's
rigorous standards, the Fire Beard Pirates had a low entry threshold with
minimal background checks. Anyone Fire Beard deemed acceptable, or who was
recommended by his confidants, could generally join.
This recruitment policy had made the Fire Beard Pirates the largest pirate crew
on the Main Plane. The combined membership of the other two legend level pirate
crews didn't even reach one-fifth of Fire Beard's numbers.
“Lord Jian Gui...” Xiao Wang Zi's voice was hoarse in the underwater shack.
Jian Gui looked at him. Though Xiao Wang Zi had become a skeleton, Jian Gui
could still “see” helplessness and a desperate plea for aid in his features.
Of all the undead present, Xiao Wang Zi relied on him the most.
The primary reason was his mental state. When Xiao Wang Zi became a skeleton,
he was very young. Though he was now silver level, this signified only raw
power. He lacked experience, his mind still immature. Moreover, he'd developed
a habit of relying on others, an undeniably massive weakness.
Second was Qi Ling. Summoned by Jian Gui and serving as his alchemy assistant
for years, she'd cultivated obedience. Jian Gui's decision to grant her freedom
and allow her to return to aid the Da Ji Clan was a stroke of genius.
Everything unfolded exactly as Jian Gui had anticipated. As a necromancer, Qi
Ling was unwelcome among the Da Ji Clan, who even ambushed her. Jian Gui
intervened to aid Qi Ling on multiple occasions, earning her profound gratitude
and dissolving much of Qi Ling's feelings towards the Da Ji Clan.
Next came Ku Feng. He had outright rejected Jian Gui's summons from the start;
his true pursuit lay in the blade path.
Perhaps in life, Ku Feng harbored multiple desires and tangled longings. But
after undergoing the baptism of death, he was forged like scrap iron, leaving
only the single-minded obsession with the blade path.
Even Jian Gui's debt of gratitude to Ku Feng paled beneath this obsession.
Obsession was crucial.
Recent research by the undead orthodoxy had revealed that the key factor
influencing the summoning of ghosts, skeletons, zombies, and other undead
entities was this very obsession.
For ordinary beings after death, the stronger the obsession within their soul,
the higher the probability of a successful summoning.
The last one was Cang Xu. He was an outsider who had survived the battle at the
Underworld River, yet their time together remained brief.
Jian Gui gifted him a silver level body, one naturally equipped with hidden
mechanisms. During Cang Xu's unconsciousness, Jian Gui had also tampered with
his spirit. Without these measures, Jian Gui would never have trusted him as
deeply as he did now.
Compared to the other three undead, Jian Gui actually admired Cang Xu the most.
“He's a talent!”
Especially after Cang Xu's earlier blackmail attempt, which only deepened Jian
Gui's admiration.
The reason was simple - Cang Xu's life and death had always been within Jian
Gui's grasp.
Without this layer of control, Jian Gui would undoubtedly harbor nothing but
malice toward Cang Xu, seeking to eliminate him at all costs.
Watching Zhou Zhang's departing figure, Cang Xu sighed inwardly: “Any scheme or
plot pales in the face of absolute power, it will be crushed effortlessly."
This sense of helplessness was all too familiar to Cang Xu.
Throughout his years, he had endured countless similar experiences.
This was a world belonging to the strong.
The foundation of power lay in the bloodline.
Wisdom was merely an embellishment. Without the backing of strength, it could
only appear hollow and feeble.
"Deceptive Disguise spell proved reliable. I'm only iron level yet disguised as
silver level. Though captured by Zhou Zhang, she didn't see through it. Had
she, my ‘treatment’ would likely be far harsher than this."
Cang Xu swiftly scanned his surroundings, noting he was among the calmest
present.
For he still had a way out.
"Zhou Zhang's intentions aren't hard to guess. For her proselytizing, forcing
us to convert is perfectly normal."
“No matter which undead she chooses, she's guaranteed to win.”
“This is a severe test of Jian Gui's leadership. It could very well shatter
this little undead clique!”
Cang Xu finally fixed his gaze on Jian Gui.
The atmosphere inside the shack was heavy and stifling.
Whoever was chosen as the first would face an extremely high probability of
death.
The reason was simple - time was too short!
Whether converting faith or fabricating memories, both required time.
The more time, the better.
Though all were undead beings, they weren't burdened by negative energy
corrosion and retained normal cognitive abilities.
Their obsessions fueled an intense will to survive. Perhaps this was why
obsession became the most critical factor in summoning success.
“Jian Gui is currently the safest.”
“If we were to choose someone, his strength, past favors, and the immense
influence shaped by his experiences would prevent him from being targeted.”
"Moreover, Zhou Zhang would place the gold level individuals last. If the gold
level converts, the Charming Blue Church stands to gain the most."
"Their gold level strength gives Jian Gui and Ba Qi greater leverage to be
courted!"
"But precisely because of this, Jian Gui's influence will be drastically
reduced..."
Cang Xu pondered deeply: “Apart from Jian Gui, the others have roughly equal
chances of being chosen.”
“Because none possess irreplaceable value.”
As this thought formed, Cang Xu suddenly sensed the others' gazes subtly
shifting toward him.
A realization struck him: “No, the most likely candidate to be chosen... is
me!”
The reason was obvious.
Cang Xu was an outsider.
Though they'd fought together in the Underworld River, compared to the time
spent with Xiao Wang Zi, Qi Ling, and Ku Feng, Cang Xu was the least familiar
among them.
Outsider and insider were relative concepts.
Compared to the others, Cang Xu was undoubtedly an outsider.
“Being chosen as the first to be teleported... isn't so bad either!”
After communicating with the fishman youngster, Cang Xu already knew the Deep
Sea Monster Fish was hidden within the Ocean Mother Nest.
“Meeting up with the commander early means I can start crafting the memory
crystal making device sooner.”
"This might be a good opportunity. I've been struggling to find an excuse to
ask Jian Gui for the intermediate inheritance." Cang Xu's mindset was positive,
even tinged with a hint of anticipation.
But at that moment, Jian Gui spoke, “We're all on the same side.”
“Sacrificing any one of us is not what I want to see!”
His gaze slowly swept around the group.
Xiao Wang Zi, Qi Ling, and Ku Feng, all caught in his stare, were deeply moved.
Jian Gui had long bestowed favors upon them, frequently coming to their aid.
His words carried such weight that none of them doubted his sincerity for a
moment.
Jian Gui's final gaze settled on Cang Xu's face: "Compared to the others, Xu
Jia spent the least time with us. But after the battle in the Underworld River,
I've come to accept him. He's one of us, just like the rest."
Cang Xu flinched in surprise, then his face flooded with emotion.
Jian Gui's tone grew grim: “It's all because we were too weak, we fell into
Zhou Zhang's hands!”
Resentment flared across their faces.
Yes, the true villain who had them turn against each other, the one who sowed
discord was Zhou Zhang!
Jian Gui shifted his tone: “We must bury this hatred deep within us and survive
at all costs. Only then might we find the chance to avenge our comrades!”
Silence fell over the group.
The situation forced their hand. No matter how furious they were, would hating
Zhou Zhang change anything?
Reality was brutal. The strong set the rules, and they had no choice but to
play Zhou Zhang's game.
Jian Gui took a deep breath: “Therefore, I have a proposal for this selection.”
All ears perked up immediately.
Jian Gui stated: Whoever lags furthest behind in fabricating their memories
would be the first candidate sent to the teleportation blood sacrifice.
After hearing this selection method, the group exchanged glances. None voiced
objection.
Forging memories was their only escape route, but the workload was immense.
Only through division of labor and collective effort could they succeed.
Whoever lagged behind in forging progress was the least contributor to the
group. Sacrificing them would be justified. For the others, eliminating the
worst performer was far more acceptable than eliminating those who had
contributed more.
“It seems Jian Gui is also an excellent leader,” Cang Xu remarked, gaining new
respect for him.
Though hypocritical and secretly laying traps in others, Jian Gui had
demonstrated remarkable political acumen in this crisis.
Not only had he defused Zhou Zhang's provocation and calmed the group, but he
had also turned external pressure into leverage, accelerating their escape
plan.



****** Chapter 460: Qi Ling in Action ******
Jian Gui exerted every effort to defuse Zhou Zhang's attempts at provocation
and division.
For a moment, the necromancers fell silent.
They all agreed with Jian Gui's proposed nomination rules, reaching a mutual
consensus. A strong sense of urgency welled up within each of them.
Except for Cang Xu.
Qi Ling suddenly broke the silence, posing a crucial question: "Lord Jian Gui,
an important matter just occurred to me. Since we're calculating based on the
progress of fabricated memories, does that include the results we've already
achieved in forging memories?"
This was indeed a vital question, immediately capturing everyone's attention.
Earlier, Jian Gui had taught them the method for fabricating memories, and the
undead had already made progress. Xiao Wang Zi had even complained about its
difficulty.
In the undead's current environment, fabricating memories was indeed arduous,
even Jian Gui required considerable time.
Based on previous progress, Qi Ling ranked first, Xiao Wang Zi second, Ku Feng
third, and Cang Xu fourth. Jian Gui's progress naturally surpassed everyone
else, but he wasn't included in the rankings.
No one ever counted him in.
Qi Ling's question deeply concerned her own interests, interests so vital they
touched on life and death, leaving her no choice but to ask.
Jian Gui paused slightly, then turned his gaze to Cang Xu and Ku Feng.
His reaction remained sharp, instantly realizing that his answer to this
question would affect these two the most.
Cang Xu and Ku Feng lagged the most in progress.
Yet Ku Feng was a fighter, while Cang Xu was a necromancer, their abilities to
forge memories differed fundamentally.
Clearly, fighters were vastly weaker than magicians in this regard.
In truth, ordinary fighters were nearly powerless against memory forgery. Ku
Feng, as a fighter who mastered stillness training, had already tapped into his
own spiritual power, granting him some ability to reshape his soul using the
methods of the blasphemous priest.
But this reshaping ability was undoubtedly weaker than Cang Xu's. This was
beyond doubt!
"If we include the first round's results, Xu Jia is the worst. This answer is
most detrimental to Xu Jia."
"If we don't include it, then Ku Feng will likely be the first to be nominated.
His progress will be clearly surpassed by Xu Jia. After all, he's merely a
fighter!"
For a moment, Jian Gui felt as if he'd been placed over a fire to roast.
Choose Xu Jia, or Ku Feng?
Whoever Jian Gui chose, the other would resent him.
Thus, even a leader like Jian Gui couldn't help but show hesitation.
After pondering, he finally spoke: “It'll count.”
This answer clearly disadvantaged Cang Xu, but Jian Gui had his own
calculations.
If excluded, Ku Feng would undoubtedly be the first to go. What reaction would
he have in the grip of despair?
This was something Jian Gui found difficult to gauge.
True colors showed in life-and-death moments.
It was possible Ku Feng might compromise, betraying the group's blasphemy plan
to Zhou Zhang in exchange for survival.
Jian Gui was confident he could eliminate Ku Feng before any secrets were
revealed, using the hidden trap he'd planted on him.
But such a death, if exposed, would inevitably trigger Zhou Zhang's vigilance
and investigation. This would severely disrupt Jian Gui's escape plan,
potentially causing catastrophic damage.
On the other hand, Jian Gui must also consider the perspectives of Xiao Wang
Zi, Qi Ling, and others. If he refused, it would inevitably lead Xiao Wang Zi
and the others to believe Jian Gui valued the new over the old, to see him as
cold-hearted, standing by while Ku Feng was the first to die.
Jian Gui still wished to be remembered by others as possessing warmth, not as
utterly ruthless.
As Cang Xu recognized, Jian Gui was an exceptional leader, possessing keen
insight into human nature.
Upon hearing Jian Gui's response, Ku Feng remained expressionless. Yet upon
closer observation, one could detect a slight easing in his demeanor.
The situation was most unfavorable to him, but he had always been a steadfast
warrior, unafraid of death.
What truly satisfied Ku Feng was the attitude Jian Gui had revealed. If it
didn't count, it meant Jian Gui had effectively abandoned him.
That would deeply wound Ku Feng's feelings.
All along, Ku Feng had harbored strong positive emotions toward Jian Gui like
admiration, respect, and reverence.
Jian Gui's expression darkened.
He realized: despite giving his all to hold the line, he couldn't reverse the
damage caused by Zhou Zhang's instigation.
Zhou Zhang's overwhelming power had effortlessly disrupted the necromancers
with a single phrase, nearly shattering Jian Gui's entire plan.
This was still while Zhou Zhang was in the dark about the true intentions of
Jian Gui and the others.
Once she found out, the consequences would be unimaginable!
“Based on my understanding of Ku Feng, he wouldn't betray others to save
himself. He'd likely rise to the challenge, unafraid of this trial.”
“Even so, Ku Feng is still the most likely candidate to be nominated first,”
Jian Gui speculated silently.
After all, Cang Xu was a necromancer who had primarily cultivated the soul
aspect.
If Ku Feng possessed bloodline enhancements, his ability to forge memories
might surpass Cang Xu's.
But Jian Gui knew Ku Feng's situation inside out, fully aware of the latter's
true bloodline.
"Compared to Ku Feng, Xu Jia might still have potential through his bloodline.
After all, his bloodline mutation hasn't reached its final outcome yet," Jian
Gui thought to himself.
Though he had his own predictions about the outcome of the first nomination,
Jian Gui kept silent, revealing nothing.
As the superior, he offered a word or two of encouragement to everyone.
Under the shadow of death, the undead were all highly motivated, their
eagerness palpable.
Cang Xu was no exception, at least outwardly, he appeared no different from the
others.
Under these circumstances, he wisely abandoned his plan to request the
intermediate soul aspect inheritance from Jian Gui.
Such an action would inevitably arouse suspicion - while we race against time
to forge memories, you're preoccupied with intermediate soul aspect
inheritance? Do you have such leisurely inclinations that you fear death? Do
you have some other plan to save yourself? Are you plotting something else?
“There's no rush.” Cang Xu returned to his makeshift shelter, already seeing
the right moment lurking in the near future.
Qi Ling, however, did not return to her temporary quarters. Instead, she took
other action.
She visited Xiao Wang Zi alone.
Xiao Wang Zi greeted her coldly: “Hmph. What do you want?”
In his eyes, their captivity stemmed entirely from their attempt to rescue Qi
Ling.
Qi Ling hastily apologized, her tone sincere as she acknowledged her mistake.
She spoke of her devotion to the tribe, comparing it to the bond between Xiao
Wang Zi and his parents.
These words softened Xiao Wang Zi's tone.
His obsession centered on his parents. Every year, he eagerly anticipated the
day he would reunite with them.
"What good is apologizing now! You'd be better off using this time to forge
memories," Xiao Wang Zi said, both angry and resigned.
Qi Ling declared: “I will compensate you and the others for this matter in the
future.”
"My compensation will strive to satisfy you as much as possible. But
unfortunately, by then, Ku Feng will likely be gone." Qi Ling said
meaningfully.
“What do you mean?” Xiao Wang Zi didn't grasp it immediately.
Qi Ling sighed deeply with a gloomy expression: "Don't you understand? The
first one selected will most likely be Ku Feng. Don't forget, he's merely a
fighter."
Xiao Wang Zi froze: "But judging by current results, shouldn't Xu Jia be the
most vulnerable? He's in last place; Ku Feng is stronger than him."
Qi Ling shook her head: "Xu Jia's lagging behind likely stems from his
unfamiliarity with soul modification. After all, he only obtained the
elementary soul aspect inheritance on Weeping Pine Island."
“As he gains more practice, his efficiency will surely surpass Ku Feng's.”
“Sigh, just thinking that Ku Feng became the first sacrifice because I dragged
him down fills my heart with unease and guilt!”
“In a way, he'll die because of me!”
Xiao Wang Zi fell silent for a moment, opening his mouth to comfort Qi Ling:
"Ku Feng practices stillness cultivation. He can tap into his own spiritual
power. Plus, he has the advantage of starting first. He might not lose. Don't
forget, this special blood sacrifice will happen three days later at most."
“Truthfully, if Xu Jia is chosen, I will be sad too.”
With Qi Ling absent, Xiao Wang Zi and Cang Xu spent every waking moment
together, and Xiao Wang Zi held the latter in high regard.
Qi Ling’s tone turned cold: “Then, Xiao Wang Zi, if you had to choose between
Ku Feng and Xu Jia, who would you pick to be the first?”
“This...” Xiao Wang Zi hesitated, unable to speak, then snapped, “What exactly
are you trying to say?”
“I want to help Ku Feng!” Qi Ling declared her purpose.
"Compared to Xu Jia, I'd much rather not see my old friend Ku Feng die. That's
why I sought you out this time, so we can act together, secretly aiding Ku
Feng, helping him transform his soul."
“This...” Xiao Wang Zi lowered his head in thought.
His emotional leanings still favored Ku Feng.
Though he got along well with Cang Xu, their time together had been too brief.
"Do you really want to watch Ku Feng die? I recall several times when Ku Feng
helped you." Qi Ling pressed Xiao Wang Zi for a decision.
His voice dry, Xiao Wang Zi finally spoke with overwhelming gravity: “How can
we help?”
In that instant, confronting fate's cruelty and making his choice, he grew.
Zong Ge and Zi Di felt the chill too, yet their hearts burned fiercely.
“Jia Bing's alchemy lab is right here!”
Snow still drifted through the sky as they left Rabbit Fur Town behind and
arrived at Grafting Town.
“Hardly expected it to be practically in the town center,” Zong Ge remarked,
puzzled.
Most alchemy labs were typically situated in sparsely populated areas. On one
hand, this ensured the lab's security. On the other hand, if an alchemy
experiment went awry, it would minimize casualties among the surrounding
population.
Yet Jia Bing's alchemy chamber was nestled within the town itself, surrounded
by tightly packed houses and bustling streets.
“I'm eager to see the alchemy legacy of a gold level magician,” Zi Di said, her
eyes sparkling.



****** Chapter 461: Jia Bing’s Alchemy Laboratory ******
Zong Ge and Zi Di stood side by side before Jia Bing’s residence.
Plop—!
The thunderous splash drew their attention.
As they turned their gaze, a colossal fountain shot skyward, crowned by a
gigantic lotus blossom at its peak.
The lotus flower spanned an area of four acres. After being lifted into the air
by the fountain, it descended again with the water column.
“Fountain King Lotus.” Information about this gold level magic plant flashed
simultaneously in Zong Ge and Zi Di's minds.
The Fountain King Lotus could move by spouting water.
It currently wasn’t its seeding season. Each summer, the Fountain King Lotus
would shoot up five to six hundred meters high, scattering countless bulbs made
up of miniature lotus leaves.
These small leaves would swirl and dance through the air. Thousands of green
lotuses radiating outward from the town center formed a unique spectacle of
Grafting Town.
The Fountain King Lotus wasn't the only gold level magic plant in the town;
four others exist besides it.
From where Zi Di and Zong Ge stood, they could see most of the Green Umbrella
Tree's trunk, leaves, and treetop, part of the Golden Star Vine cascading down
the northern cliff face, and the roof of the Pepper Tower.
Graft Town originated from the legendary Fan Sheng Za Zhong, who planted
numerous magic plants in his heyday. Five of these plants still thrive today.
They were the Fountain King Lotus, the Green Umbrella Tree, the Withered Claw
Tree, the Pepper Tower, and the Golden Star Vine.
The Fountain King Lotus's spouting water caught Zong Ge and Zi Di's attention,
but soon their gaze shifted back to the door of Jia Bing's shop.
Many passersby glanced at Zi Di yet paid Zong Ge no mind.
To facilitate their mission, Zi Di had cast an additional Deceptive Disguise
spell, transforming herself into Jia Bing's appearance. Zong Ge, meanwhile,
maintained a state of “complete invisibility.”
The Deceptive Disguise spell proved remarkably effective!
Thus, for this operation, Zi Di and Zong Ge, prioritizing caution, had
unanimously chosen this spell after deliberation.
To conceal their identities, they departed from Rabbit Fur Town on foot,
bypassing the teleportation formation, and made their way to Grafting Town.
Only the two of them traveled alone; the rest used the teleportation formation
to go directly to Snow Rabbit City.
Unburdened by others, Zi Di and Zong Ge pushed forward at full speed, covering
the distance in no time.
Zi Di took a few steps forward, positioning herself before the house's main
entrance. She retrieved an alchemy ring and aligned it with the keyhole.
This identity-marking alchemy ring, of course, was spoils taken from Jia Bing's
corpse.
Click.
A soft sound echoed as the door swung open.
Zong Ge entered first, Zi Di following behind, smoothly slipping inside.
A row of coat hooks lined the wall in the entryway. Most hooks were bare, but
three held two trench coats and hats.
Instead of entering immediately, Zi Di retrieved numerous scouting puppets from
her storage device.
Then, she released several rat eye ghosts and snake shadow ghosts.
These puppets and ghosts surrounded Zi Di and Zong Ge, holding their positions
without rushing into action.
Zi Di retrieved a spell scroll, tore it open, and unleashed the concealment
spell within. This spell masked all movement within a certain radius, rendering
it undetectable from outside.
Raising her silver level staff, Zi Di cast Illumination.
A brilliant white light radiated from the staff's tip, illuminating the
surroundings.
Zi Di and Zong Ge could now see the entire interior.
The living room had been converted into a large alchemy laboratory.
Two long, brown wooden tables leaned against the grayish-white walls. The
surfaces were cluttered with numerous beakers, round-bottom flasks, narrow-
necked bottles, long-necked bottles, and tiny glass tubes.
In one corner of the living room stood a round, redwood barrel. Six metal pipes
protruded from its top and sides, extending up to the ceiling, down through the
floor, and connecting to sinks embedded in the tabletops of the long wooden
tables.
Within one of these metal sinks lay a pair of green grass leaves and a small
pile of silvery-yellow metal.
Gurgle... gurgle...
On the long wooden table, a glass flask contained a reagent undergoing a
reaction, emitting a faint acidic odor.
“Is this... a corrosive agent?” Zi Di recognized this low level potion.
"Jia Bing left in a hurry. This much is evident from the unprocessed alchemy
materials in the basin and this flask of corrosive agent is still reacting."
“He likely intended to concoct a high level corrosive acid potion.”
"He was conducting alchemy experiments when he received the Axe Gang leader's
invitation. In his estimation, dealing with us wouldn't take long, just enough
time for a round trip."
According to his plan, he could resume his potion brewing upon returning here.
Little did he know the final outcome would be his death, never to return to his
alchemy laboratory.
Zi Di felt a slight sense of strangeness.
She now possessed considerable intelligence on Jia Bing. In her view, Jia Bing
was a magician skilled in crafting alchemy puppets.
Yet here, the room contained almost exclusively tools for potion brewing.
“It seems he didn't have any alchemy assistants either.” Zi Di scanned the area
several times but found no self-moving alchemy puppets.
Typically, alchemists would have several alchemy assistants.
For instance, Jian Gui had once assigned Qi Ling to serve as his alchemy
assistant for many years.
Alchemy workloads are typically immense, requiring assistants to handle the
grunt work and alleviate pressure, allowing the alchemist's true abilities to
shine.
Zi Di had assumed Jia Bing would have one or two alchemy puppets serving as his
assistants, it was his specialty, after all.
Most alchemists either train apprentices as assistants or purchase specialized
alchemy puppets.
In this regard, the highest level assistants were tower spirits.
War Merchant's alchemy assistant was a tower spirit.
Not every magician possesses their own mage tower, as its construction is
prohibitively expensive.  Even a prosperous city like Snow Bird Harbor boasts
only a single mage tower.
Zi Di analyzed: it was highly improbable that Jia Bing's alchemy assistant was
a tower spirit. This was merely a rented house, not a mage tower.
Spell - Detect Traps.
Zi Di's spell revealed every trap within the house.
Some were mechanical traps, others magic.
Their number was small, their power limited.
The highest level was a gold level trap. When an enemy infiltrated, it would
activate, immediately alerting Jia Bing.
This trap had already been triggered, yet no sound had been heard on the
surface.
Neither Zong Ge nor Zi Di had noticed it beforehand.
“Jia Bing is dead. Even if the warning trap were triggered, it wouldn't
matter.”
“But this further validates my earlier suspicion - Jia Bing's involvement in
this ambush was hasty, almost an impromptu operation.”
The strength of traps lay in their concealment. Once discovered, their threat
level plummeted.
Zi Di began casting spells to disarm the traps.
After several rounds of continuous casting, she successfully neutralized most
of them.
The remaining traps were either insignificant, easier to destroy outright, or
could be bypassed without concern.
However, several traps occupied critical positions, forcing Zi Di to resort to
spell scrolls.
She had brought two high level spell scrolls for disarming traps, originally as
a precaution. Using them here proved perfectly timely.
“Two scrolls still aren't enough. I'll need to stockpile more in the future,”
Zi Di sighed helplessly, gazing at the final trap.
"Fortunately, this magic trap requires energy to function. Only with sufficient
power supply can it unleash its immense power. If we can locate the alchemy
room's energy source and cut it off at the root, we might be able to neutralize
it."
Zi Di wasn't skilled in this type of magic, nor was she an exceptional thief;
disarming traps was a stretch for her. This was especially true given that Jia
Bing's defensive capabilities were weaker than most alchemists'.
Spell - Detect Magic.
The next moment, Zi Di's vision flooded with a multitude of magic lights.
The vast majority of magic artifacts were light sources.
Zi Di looked down and spotted the largest source of light. The magic glow was
so bright that even the wooden floor couldn't block it.
“An acid-powered energy reactor?” Zi Di quickly identified the specific model.
This civilian level alchemy energy reactor supplied the laboratory with stable,
continuous power.
“Huh?” Zi Di frowned in confusion.
She realized this reactor wasn't connected to the final stubborn trap.
“This means the lab has another energy source!”
"I knew it. This alchemy chamber is far too modest for a gold level alchemist."



****** Chapter 462: Spatial Interlayer ******
With this hypothesis in mind, Zi Di immediately cast a spell to detect hidden
chambers.
The result revealed nothing.
“If it's not a hidden chamber, could it be an alternate dimension?”
Shortly after, Zi Di successfully cast a spell to detect alternate dimensions.
The first casting detected nothing.
“My bloodline isn't spatial type, so this spell's detection range is limited.”
“Logically, if there were an alternate space lab, where would I have placed
it?”
Zi Di mentally treated herself as Jia Bing, a gold level magician, and
considered the situation from that perspective.
Her gaze gradually shifted upward, fixating on the second floor.
Jia Bing's residence was a two-story building, yet when Zi Di had cast her
detection spells earlier, she hadn't sensed any magic glow on the upper level.
The second floor lacked even the most basic mechanisms or magic traps.
Zi Di had assumed the second floor was merely a simple bedroom, but now it
seemed riddled with suspicious elements.
She first dispatched reconnaissance alchemy puppets and ghosts to probe the
area.
Finding no triggered traps, Zi Di ascended the wooden staircase to the second
floor.
Of course, Zong Ge always led the way ahead of Zi Di.
Compared to the first floor, the second floor felt considerably smaller. This,
however, made it easier for Zi Di to cast her spell to detect anomalies in
space.
After casting it this time, an unusual spatial fluctuation instantly appeared
above the bed in the bedroom.
Though subtle, the disturbance was unmistakable, even Zong Ge sensed it
instantly.
“This is a spatial interlayer!”
"Who'd have thought Jia Bing's ambitions ran this deep? This interlayer is
clearly man-made. Setting up something like this must have cost a fortune."
Zi Di's eyes sparkled with excitement.
She speculated, “This must be Jia Bing's primary alchemy laboratory.”
"The one on the first floor is too rudimentary, primarily used for processing
herbs and brewing potions. Jia Bing's true expertise lies in crafting alchemy
puppets."
“If he's willing to incur such high costs to establish this spatial interlayer,
the lab inside must be exceptionally well-equipped!”
Zong Ge cut straight to the point, “So how do we get in?”
“Um...” Zi Di froze, a look of difficulty crossing her face.
She realized the spell scrolls she carried were ill-suited for this situation.
“I don't know any spatial magic myself. Even if I had a scroll to breach space,
I couldn't control the force involved.”
"The slightest excess force would destroy everything inside. It could even
trigger the collapse of the spatial interlayer, causing all items within to
vanish along with the shattered dimensions!"
This was precisely why many magicians created such spatial interlayers - they
were nearly impossible to breach. The slightest misstep could cause the space
to shatter, obliterating everything within.
“We lack a powerful thief,” Zi Di sighed.
Zong Ge shook his head slightly: "Even an ordinary thief would struggle to
breach a spatial interlayer. At minimum, one needs a spatial bloodline. Such
thieves are exceedingly rare."
Zi Di analyzed: "This two-story cottage's defenses aren't formidable. The traps
are few and hardly lethal. The ice was likely used to conceal the spatial
interlayer. The layer itself is probably enough to make him confident."
"So, are we leaving empty-handed? Or should we stay a few more days and try to
crack the spatial interlayer?" Zong Ge asked.
He knew little about magic and could only consult the experts.
Truthfully, Zi Di wasn't a specialist either.
Though she was a magician, her expertise lay in commerce. The realm of magic
was vast and boundless, and she only excelled in potion brewing. Even so,
constrained by her former bloodline, her research hadn't been particularly
deep.
Now, when it came to space, it was almost entirely her blind spot.
Zi Di pursed her lips slightly.
This feeling of finding a treasure trove yet being unable to enter it was
utterly miserable.
However, lingering here any longer was absolutely inadvisable.
For the survivors, the true priority remained the redemption plan.
Time was pressing.
Beyond that, they had to account for the mysterious hostile faction to which
the Axe Gang leader and his crew belonged.
Even after sacrificing three gold level experts, they might still send
reinforcements.
The primary reason, however, was Zi Di. She had no confidence whatsoever in
cracking the spatial interlayer, nor could she even estimate how long it would
take.
“Spatial-type spell scrolls are also relatively scarce on the market.”
“Perhaps contacting the Li Jian Clan could allow us to purchase spatial-type
spell scrolls from them.”
The Li Jian Clan's bloodline is that of the Inner World.
It was a rather classic spatial lineage.
Consequently, the Li Jian Clan produces many spatial magicians.
"But even with these spatial spell scrolls, success isn't guaranteed. To be
precise, the success rate remains quite low."
"The truly reliable approach is to have a spatial magician handle it
personally. Only then can they control the force involved and perform precise
operations."
"Wait a moment! Jia Bing isn't a spatial magician either. How did he create
this spatial interlayer? What method does he use each time he enters it?"
This thought stirred something within Zi Di, prompting her to retrieve the
identity ring once more.
She aimed the ring's surface toward the source of the spatial fluctuations.
The spatial ring flashed faintly, responding immediately. A notably intense
spatial disturbance rippled out.
Zong Ge stood alert before Zi Di.
A flicker of joy crossed Zi Di's face before vanishing.
The spatial interlayer had only opened a crack. To fully unlock it, a password
was required.
“A password?” Zi Di had no clue what code Jia Bing had set.
She found a new approach.
Zi Di attempted to summon a snake shadow ghost.
The snake shadow ghost distorted its form, compressing itself flat like a long,
narrow sheet of paper.
Like a paper shadow slipping through a door crack, it directly entered the
spatial interlayer.
The next moment, it smoothly slipped inside.
“Success!” Zi Di rejoiced.
This was the advantage of the new undead faction. Any other living being, even
thinner than the compressed snake shadow ghost, would have been intercepted.
Through the snake shadow ghost's shared vision, Zi Di witnessed the scene
within the spatial interlayer.
“So many puppets!” Zi Di's heart skipped a beat.
The spatial interlayer wasn't large, yet it held numerous alchemy puppets.
All these alchemy puppets were ice gargoyles.
None were iron or bronze level; the lowest rank was Silver.
The silver level ice gargoyles varied in form. They, shoulder to shoulder,
lined the walls of the spatial interlayer, twelve in total. Each possessed
distinct configurations. Some bore broad bat-like wings on their backs, others
carried electric drills on their tails, while some sported more ferocious,
razor-sharp claws. Some others were covered in fish-scale armor.
At the innermost part of the spatial interlayer stood the largest ice gargoyle.
A bitter chill swirled around this ice gargoyle. A faint aura of gold level
power emanated from it.
Indeed, it was a gold level ice gargoyle.
But it was incomplete.
Approximately one-third of its body was not crafted yet.
Dozens of chisels floated around this ice gargoyle. On the ground lay cold-
dispersing vessels resembling wine barrels.
Five such vessels encircled the gold level ice gargoyle.
They continuously emitted frigid cold.
This chill permeated the gold level ice gargoyle's form, stabilizing its state.
Before being fully refined, alchemy puppets often remained unstable.  Many of
their magic runes and formation inscriptions remained incomplete, preventing
them from achieving equilibrium.
This gold level ice gargoyle was no exception.
The ice gargoyle was the most eye-catching presence. Zi Di finally managed to
shift her attention elsewhere.
In the corner of the spatial interlayer, four tombstone-like ice cabinets
stood.
Their fronts bore inscriptions in elven script specifying their model: Ice
Water Restoration Chamber.
At the center of the spatial interlayer sat a hybrid energy reactor.
The outer unit was the massive Icebreaker Fang energy reactor. Inside the
Icebreaker Fang energy reactor sat a smaller unit called the Ice Crusher energy
reactor.
Both furnaces consumed frost-elemental crystals to generate stable energy.
The power produced here primarily fueled the spatial interlayer.
Simultaneously, a hidden conduit channeled energy outward.
“This energy line must be what powers that final trap on the first floor!” Zi
Di thought to herself.



****** Chapter 463: Five Color Palm Badge ******
Directly facing the gold level ice gargoyle stood a massive alchemy platform,
leaning against the spatial wall.
Three round vials were casually placed on the platform, each containing a type
of recovery cryogenic fluid. This was a specialized healing potion for ice
gargoyles, all of silver level quality.
Beside the alchemy platform stood a bookshelf over a meter tall.
The shelves held various books, some slim, some thick.
<< The Complete Guide to Combat Puppet Circuits >>
<< Optimal Circuit Configuration · Volume III >>
<< Practical Battle Formations for Puppets >>
All these books pertained to alchemy puppets.
Beyond these, Zi Di also discovered several drafts and blueprints, likely
authored by Jia Bing.
“What a bountiful haul!” Zi Di exclaimed, unable to conceal her delight after
surveying the entire hidden compartment.
She felt an exquisite sense of fulfillment, as if her wishes had come true.
For some time now, she had sought to bolster her combat strength using alchemy
puppets.
To that end, she had arranged for others to purchase combat puppets in Snow
Bird Harbor. These puppets had been delivered to Blood Kin City via caravan,
reaching Zi Di's hands.
Yet before these alchemy combat puppets saw a single battle, Zi Di had already
obtained the superior ice gargoyle.
“Calm down. Solve the entry and exit problem first before claiming these
spoils.” Zi Di steadied her mind and began manipulating the snake shadow ghost
to probe the portal formation of the spatial interlayer.
Half an hour later, Zi Di had gained considerable insight.
Two options now lay before her: the first was to directly destroy the portal
formation, the second was to dismantle it.
Each approach had its pros and cons.
After pondering, Zi Di discarded the dismantling option in favor of outright
destruction.
Dismantling was cumbersome and time-consuming.
Direct destruction would take far less time and carry minimal risk.
Under Zi Di's command, the snake shadow ghost swiftly destroyed the portal
formation.
Breaching it from within proved vastly easier than attacking from the outside.
Spatial fluctuations surged, expanding into an elliptical portal.
The portal's frame glowed silver white. Standing before it, Zong Ge could
directly observe the spatial interlayer.
The portal remained remarkably stable.
Zi Di cast another round of detection spells at the entrance.
After several spells, she detected no traps within the spatial interlayer.
Yet she remained cautious, this was the primary laboratory of a gold level
alchemist.
So Zi Di commanded her alchemy puppet and specter to sweep the spatial
interlayer thoroughly.
The results confirmed it was safe.
Zong Ge stepped into the spatial interlayer first, followed by Zi Di.
Zi Di first gathered all books, blueprints, and drafts from the shelves. For
magicians, knowledge was always the most precious commodity.
Next, she packed up the twelve silver level gargoyles.
Then, she turned her attention to the sole gold level ice gargoyle.
This ice gargoyle was still in the process of being crafted, making its
disassembly and removal quite laborious.
After half an hour, Zi Di finally managed to stow the gold level ice gargoyle
into her storage belt.
Thanks to Jia Bing's contribution, his gold level storage device.
Once the gold level ice gargoyle was inside, it occupied over half the storage
belt's space.
Zi Di had no choice but to remove five of the silver level ice gargoyles she'd
just stowed away.
The storage belt was now full.
“We need more storage devices!” Zi Di sighed, caught in a happy dilemma.
Spatial items were scarce on the market, primarily because demand from all
parties was extremely high.
Whenever space storage equipment hit the market, it was usually snapped up
instantly.
Moreover, explicit sales bans on spatial gear existed in many regions.
Silver level items were still manageable, but gold level ones almost always
fell under these ban restrictions.
For the time being, Zi Di and Zong Ge found it difficult to acquire suitable
storage items.
Zi Di quickly devised a solution.
After infusing numerous elemental crystals, she successfully activated the five
silver level ice gargoyles.
With the aid of the Deceptive Disguise spell, the ice gargoyles operating
outdoors would be nearly impossible to detect.
Zi Di began dismantling the energy reactors.
First was the larger Icebreaker Fang energy reactor, followed by the smaller
Ice Crusher energy reactor. The former was silver level and the latter was gold
level, both commanding hefty market prices.
Considering the future, the survivors might establish alchemy factories within
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.  One could never have too many of these energy
reactors.
After a full hour and a half, Zi Di finally emptied the entire spatial
interlayer.
Emerging from the elliptical silver-edged spatial gate, Zi Di returned laden
with spoils.
“Too bad this spatial interlayer can't be moved, I can't take it with me,” Zi
Di glanced back at the spatial gate with regret.
Such hidden spaces held immense value, even more precious than a gold level ice
gargoyle.
Regrettably, Zi Di and Zong Ge had no choice but to abandon it.
They couldn't linger here.
On one hand, the redemption plan demanded urgent execution. On the other hand,
they still hadn't uncovered the true nature of the faction behind Axe Gang's
leader, Jia Bing, and his crew.
The enemy had just lost three gold level members, a devastating blow. Would
they seek frenzied revenge, or lay low for now? Zi Di and Zong Ge couldn't
tell.
Five ice gargoyles, laden with bundles and sacks, led the way downstairs.
Following them, Zi Di and Zong Ge descended from the second floor.
Upon reaching the ground floor, they observed the last stubborn trap slowly
dissipating.
After Jia Bing had set this magic trap, he had to constantly supply it with
energy to maintain its formidable power.
Its energy source was the energy reactor within the spatial interlayer.
Now that Zi Di had removed the energy reactor, this most stubborn magic trap
was also fading away.
Zi Di and Zong Ge initially paid it little mind, but as they reached for the
door to leave, the last vestiges of the trap's magic vanished completely,
revealing a peculiar metal door embedded in the ground.
The square metal door was embedded in the muddy ground, resembling a basement
entrance.
“Wait, what is this?” Zong Ge halted first.
Zi Di grew curious: "Did Jia Bing set a magic trap on this door? Was he trying
to conceal this metal door with this unique method?"
Both Zi Di and Zong Ge's gazes were drawn to it.
Soon, they noticed a pattern at the door's center.
It depicted an open palm with five fingers. Each finger bore a distinct color:
red, yellow, blue, green, and white. From the bases of these five-colored
fingers, strands of corresponding hues extended outward. These strands
converged at the palm's center, intertwining to form the shape of a heart.
“What does this pattern mean?”
“It feels... like a badge.”
Zi Di and Zong Ge began studying it.
Unbeknownst to them, a similar metal door existed far away on Flower Skirt
Island. Its portal also bore a palm-shaped emblem cluster.
Gold level magicians, Master Cai Jing and Da Bei, and the silver level Zhong
Bei now stared intently at the five-fingered emblem, their gazes burning.
As they channeled their magic, five colored beams emerged from the fingertips.
The condensed beams weren't straight lines but curved strands, thicker than
hair, resembling slender vines.
The multicolored beams slowly spread through the air before settling onto
several potted plants.
These containers held various magic plants.
They were the fruits of the recent, all-out cultivation and nurturing efforts
by Cai Jing, Da Bei, Zhong Bei, and numerous potion apprentices.
The multicolored beams plunged into these magic plants, continuously drawing
nutrients from them.
The magic plants withered visibly at a rapid pace, while the multicolored beams
grew increasingly bright and thicker in diameter.
Upon reaching a certain limit, the red beam retracted first, disappearing back
into the palm pattern.
On the palm pattern with its fingers spread wide, one finger was fully
illuminated, flashing red light rapidly.
Then, a similar scene unfolded in succession.
The blue-light finger, green-light finger, and white-light finger all ignited.
Only the yellow-light curve remained coiled around the magic plant. As it
visibly swelled toward its limit, poised to retract, the magic plant suddenly
collapsed.
A soft pop echoed.
The magic entity shattered into fragments.
The yellow light curve, however, had not reached its limit. Affected by the
collapse of the magic plant, it disintegrated and vanished instantly.
“So close! So very close!” Zhong Bei cried, clutching his head.
Da Bei also wore a look of regret, “Yes, just a little more, and we could have
passed the final test to inherit the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong!”



****** Chapter 464: Shuang Tu - Hen Fa, You Hid Them in Vain ******
Master Cai Jing stared at the metal door before him. Though disappointment
gnawed at his heart, his expression remained composed, “At least this proves
our strategy was correct.”
Ever since he'd altered his excavation approach and recruited numerous potion
apprentices, progress on cracking the legacy left by Fan Sheng Za Zhong had
accelerated dramatically.
Master Cai Jing exhaled a breath of stale air before calmly analyzing, "Thanks
to the ice-preservation techniques you provided, we kept the grafted magic
plants alive, allowing them to gain temporary recognition from the inheritance
door. But precisely because of this, we ultimately failed at the final step."
Fan Sheng Za Zhong's assessment required the heir to master grafting techniques
and cultivate grafted magic plants that met specific standards.
Master Cai Jing had not truly met this standard. He achieved results through
extensive cultivation: first performing initial grafting on a large number of
magic plants, then selecting the healthiest specimens for forced maturation and
secondary grafting to produce inferior magic plants.
These plants were unstable and could not survive long-term. After a certain
period, they would collapse, wither, or die on their own.
Da Bei proactively employed his ice-preservation alchemy, a relatively advanced
technique within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild. To a certain
extent, this technique stabilized a life form's condition.
After applying the ice-preservation alchemy, the survival period of the grafted
magic plants significantly increased, and their stability markedly improved.
During the inheritance door's inspection, the vast majority withstood the test,
failing only at the very last moment.
Da Bei was still pondering the cause of failure when Master Cai Jing's words
suddenly sparked an epiphany. He realized: "The yellow light represents the
sun, containing restrained heat. Therefore, it counteracted the ice-
preservation alchemy, causing the magic plants to reach their time limit
prematurely and collapse automatically!"
Da Bei frowned as he spoke.
This was troublesome.
The ice-preservation technique stabilized a life form's condition using
freezing principles. This approach directly conflicted with solar rays.
“We'll likely need to explore another direction to solve the final puzzle,”
said Da Bei.
Zhong Bei suddenly suggested, “I think the bloodline stabilizer should work!”
“The reason Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's grafting and cultivation techniques are
unstable and prone to collapse is because the grafted magic plants have
bloodline conflicts.”
“I've already discerned that Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's purpose in grafting is
to leverage bloodline synergies, either to enhance a specific plant or create
intricate collaborations between multiple plants, achieving a positive feedback
loop.”
"Take grafting Life Papyrus onto Earth Rootstocks, for instance. Life Papyrus
doesn't lack fertility, but it still requires sunlight. So, he grafted on
Shimmering Bead Flowers, drastically reducing Life Papyrus's need for sunlight,
even allowing it to survive long-term in shaded environments."
"Our grafted magic plants collapse easily precisely because of bloodline
conflicts. Wouldn't the bloodline stabilizer solve this problem perfectly? "
“Good.” Da Bei nodded, his gaze filled with satisfaction as he looked at his
son.
Master Cai Jing remained serene.
The bloodline stabilizer was primarily a magic potion for those experiencing
bloodline awakening or mutation.
Bloodline mutations were rare, but awakenings were quite common.
Among the lower and middle classes, bloodline awakenings were infrequent, yet
they occurred relatively often among the upper echelons.
In large clans like the Li Jian Clan, bloodline concentration was exceptionally
high. As clan members matured, their bloodline concentration often reached a
threshold that triggered awakening. (Of course, post-awakening bloodline
concentrations varied widely. 100% concentration was considered the optimal
outcome.)
At this stage, using bloodline stabilizer offers them significant advantages.
Master Cai Jing stated, “I do not possess the formula for bloodline
stabilizers. Even if I did, refining such a high level potion would consume far
too much time
Zhong Bei's expression shifted slightly. He noticed Master Cai Jing showed no
hint of surprise, clearly having already considered this option.
Suddenly, Zhong Bei understood why Master Cai Jing had invited him and his son
to collaborate.
The next moment, Zhong Bei proactively suggested, “Crafting high level potions
often requires extensive practice and significant investment of manpower and
resources to achieve a certain success rate.”
“We don't have much time now. There's no need to attempt brewing it ourselves.
We can simply acquire it externally.”
“Every major family requires this potion. While most clans keep some
stockpiled, it's rarely found on the open market.”
“But if we're talking about the largest reserves, our Alchemy Guild holds the
most.”
“With my father and I stepping in, we can contact the guild. Given our
standing, we can secure a batch of bloodline stabilizers directly from the
Alchemy Guild at cost price!”
Master Cai Jing smiled at Zhong Bei's initiative. "My collaborations with your
father have always been pleasant. Young man, you're sharp-witted, quite
impressive. Let's proceed this way."
“Money is a minor concern. The real question is: how many units should we
acquire?”
"Too few, and we risk failing to secure the inheritance. Too many, and we risk
triggering an investigation by the Alchemy Guild."
At this point, Da Bei knew it was his turn to speak.
He declared, “Then I'll put my reputation on the line this time. I'll secure
the maximum number of bloodline stabilizers and delay any related
investigation!”
Master Cai Jing laughed heartily, finally satisfied. He addressed Da Bei: "Then
I'll leave it to you. Remember, the sooner the better!"
Having attained gold level, Master Cai Jing was no ordinary figure.
Through a legendary inheritance he hadn't yet secured, he borrowed the power of
Da Bei and Zhong Bei, using the father-son duo as bridges to leverage the might
of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild. This would aid him in conquering
the inheritance trial.
At the same time, in the wild duel arena.
“Watch out!” The spectating Spring Boxer couldn't help but utter a low cry.
From the waiting room, he stared intently at Lan Zao battling in the arena.
The environment of the wild duel arena had transformed into a fully submerged
underwater setting.
Deep blue seawater churned violently as Lan Zao darted through it like a swift
fish.
His opponents in this battle were two ferocious sharks of iron level and bronze
level.
Yes, two!
One iron level, one bronze level.
Being of the same species, they showed no signs of infighting. They attacked
Lan Zao in tandem, one from the front, one from the rear.
Lan Zao's precarious situation had Spring Boxer and many other spectators on
the edge of their seats.
Of course, those who had bet on the sharks were abnormally excited.
Just as the vicious sharks were about to pounce, Lan Zao suddenly darted away,
deftly evading them. Instead, the two sharks, charging with too much momentum,
couldn't dodge in time and collided with each other.
Lan Zao seized the opportunity to swing his blade fiercely.
He targeted the iron level shark primarily, carving three fresh gashes into its
body.
Blood spurted from the wounds, the searing pain driving the shark into a
frenzied rage, its attacks growing even more savage. The surrounding seawater
churned violently, forming chaotic, fleeting eddies.
“I can do this!” Lan Zao's confidence surged.
He danced with the sharks.
He skillfully harnessed the turbulent currents churned by the shark. He used
the currents to accelerate his evasive maneuvers and even leveraged them to
propel his curved blade strikes.
Spectators couldn't help but cheer. Such an exhilarating battle had many
engrossed, some even gesticulating wildly in the viewing room.
To many, the blood-red water obscured their vision. The sharks coordinated
seamlessly, constantly circling for surprise attacks. Lan Zao seemed to be
walking a tightrope on the edge of a cliff—one misstep could cost him his life.
But in Lan Zao's perception, it was an entirely different story!
He felt steady.
No matter how chaotic the surrounding sea became, it was his ally. Since his
awakening, his field of vision had expanded vastly. Even what lay blind behind
him, the currents stirred by a shark's attack, warned him of impending danger.
At that moment, Lan Zao felt like a child of the water, this place was like his
domain. Every enemy movement was within his grasp.
"The Fluid Perception talent may not be directly offensive, but it's incredibly
useful! It's incredibly practical!" Lan Zao marveled.
Amidst his heartfelt admiration, Lan Zao delivered a fatal blow to the iron
level shark.
As his body crossed paths with the vicious shark, the bronze level curved blade
in his hand plunged into its flesh. It sank almost entirely, leaving only the
hilt protruding from the shark's body.
A bronze level curved blade couldn't easily pierce an iron level shark, but Lan
Zao's previous attacks had already inflicted numerous wounds of varying depths
on the iron level shark.
He aimed precisely at one of the deeper wounds, thrusting the curved blade into
the shark's body and accurately piercing its internal organs.
The vicious shark lashed out frantically in its death throes.
Yet the chaotic currents it stirred only enhanced Lan Zao's mobility.
Half a minute of frenzied struggle drained the shark's last ounce of vitality.
With the iron level shark gone, the remaining bronze level shark stood no
chance against Lan Zao.
It didn't take long for Lan Zao to dispatch the last one.
Lan Zao was thoroughly satisfied with the outcome of the battle.
“Possessing the ability to sense currents makes fighting in the ocean feel like
cheating.”
“Most crucially, I didn't expose my Air Cannon's new alchemy projectile in this
fight. That trump card remains in my hand.”
To be honest, when the battle began, Lan Zao had felt uneasy facing the two
sharks.
But after this fight, it was as if he had undergone a baptism, breaking through
some invisible barrier and gaining immense confidence.
His bloodline had already shattered his former physical limits.
The psychological barriers, however, required him to overcome them one by one.
“100%”
“This is the power of 100% Fish Bladder bloodline. At this concentration, the
Fluid Perception talent proves astonishingly potent.” Bing Xiao watched the
battle with equal parts astonishment and delight.
The human ringleader remained expressionless: "It's still thanks to Hen Fa's
innate combat talent that he could elevate his strength so rapidly. Of course,
his newly acquired iron level leather armor proved invaluable in this fight."
The Bayonet Gang had been quietly looking out for Lan Zao.
Thus, they were well aware of how he'd won a piece of iron leather armor
through a tavern wager.
The human ringleader continued, "Hen Fa has defeated his opponent again this
time, securing considerable funds. The black market on Flower Skirt Island is
about to open. He'll likely acquire more gear there. He's entered a positive
feedback loop, breaking free from his initial period of weakness. If we let him
develop like this..."
The human ringleader trailed off, his words hanging in the air.
Bing Xiao understood the unspoken meaning and nodded slightly. "We must indeed
invest while he's still vulnerable. Once he grows powerful, our efforts will
yield half the results with twice the effort."
Bing Xiao himself valued Lan Zao's talent and held him in high regard.
Not long ago, he received a reply from the Axe Gang. Their background check on
Hen Fa had allayed most of his suspicions.
With Lan Zao's background cleared, Bing Xiao began his recruitment efforts.
“Recruiting Hen Fa now would significantly boost our underwater combat
capabilities.”
"Though the Bayonet Gang once controlled Snow Bird Harbor, we didn’t have many
genuine sailors. Now our numbers are even thinner."
“Per our current plan, we'll be developing operations on Flower Skirt Island
for a while. That means frequent voyages and making our living on the water.”
“Hen Fa's future is assured. If he develops smoothly, he'll undoubtedly become
a silver level ringleader.”
“Another point: Hen Fa has already made a name for himself through wild duels.”
“Recruiting him would boost the Bayonet Gang's reputation, earning the favor of
more people on Flower Skirt Island.”
Bing Xiao instinctively began calculating the benefits of recruiting Lan Zao.
This was all thanks to Shuang Tu's scheming.
With Shuang Tu's covert assistance, Lan Zao grew rapidly, his recruitment value
skyrocketing and making Bing Xiao even more eager.
Finally, Bing Xiao uttered words that satisfied the human ringleader: “Let Xiao
Tan recruit Hen Fa. He holds a favorable impression of Hen Fa, especially after
these last two wild duels.”
Bing Xiao had no intention of recruiting him personally.
The old gang leader was wholly focused on cultivating Spring Boxer.
In his vision, Spring Boxer was destined to become the future leader of the
Bayonet Gang.
Having Spring Boxer recruit Hen Fa would prove far more advantageous for the
future!
Meanwhile, in the observation room, Shuang Tu couldn't help but smile.
Watching Lan Zao retreat, he felt secretly satisfied: “Hen Fa never used his
alchemy projectiles during this fight.”
“Excellent!”
“He's already learning to conceal his true strength.”
“Too bad he doesn't realize that the wild duel has always been under our
control behind the scenes.”
“He seeks to conceal his trump cards, yet how could I possibly be unaware of
his true combat prowess?”
"Therefore, his next opponent will still surpass him slightly. Let him push
beyond his limits under precisely calibrated pressure!"
Shuang Tu truly poured his heart into cultivating Lan Zao.
The wild duel arena on Flower Skirt Island was precisely forged by the forces
backing Shuang Tu. Such a venue, welcoming and sending off guests,
accommodating all manner of people, offered far broader opportunities than
Shuang Tu's clinic could ever provide. How could he possibly give it up?
Thus, Lan Zao had hidden his trump card for nothing, Shuang Tu knew his current
combat strength inside out.
“Lord, urgent intelligence!” Just then, a subordinate rushed in to report.
Shuang Tu glanced at the message and leapt to his feet in shock: "What? Cai
Jing and Da Bei failed at the last moment?"
“They were just one step away from obtaining the inheritance?”
Shuang Tu's expression shifted dramatically.
He hadn't anticipated that Da Bei and Zhong Bei's involvement would lead to
such a massive breakthrough in the entire operation.
“They also intended to purchase bloodline stabilizers from the Alchemy
Guild...” The informant Shuang Tu had planted gave detailed and accurate new
intelligence.
“Things have taken a turn for the worse,” Shuang Tu said grimly.
He couldn't sit still any longer.
His primary mission was to stop Cai Jing and secure this inheritance for his
side.
Yet, despite his desire to intervene, he found himself powerless to do so.
Cai Jing's side had two gold level magicians and one silver level magician,
while Shuang Tu's strongest combatant was himself, a mere silver level.
Charging into battle would be suicide; Shuang Tu stood no chance.
“What should I do?”
“Damn Ba Qi! Where the hell did he go?”
Even now, he hadn't uncovered Ba Qi's whereabouts.
“In that case, we must seek outside help.” Shuang Tu gritted his teeth in
resolve.
“Contact Qian Xing! He's a saint level pirate, a member of the Fire Beard
Pirates!”
“We'll request aid in Ba Qi's name.”
Qian Xing's location was relatively close to Flower Skirt Island.
He was also the only external force Shuang Tu could currently rely on.
His saint level strength placed him above Cai Jing's faction. It was highly
likely that Qian Xing would ultimately inherit the legacy of Fan Sheng Za
Zhong.
But there was no other choice.
For now, Shuang Tu could only pin his hopes on drawing in a powerful third
party, igniting conflict between Qian Xing and Cai Jing's forces to create
chaos.
If opportunity arose amidst the turmoil, he would seize it!



****** Chapter 465: Working with Jian Gui? ******
White Hair Trench.
Believers of the Charming Blue Church cleaned the bloodstains from the gold
level altar.
Not far away, within a makeshift underwater hut constructed from coral and
other materials, Cang Xu knelt in prayer.
A gold coin-shaped communication device slipped gently into his mouth as he
recited his prayers.
Cang Xu fell silent, appearing to pray in silence, but in reality, he pressed
the device against the root of his tongue.
The device gradually heated up, finally searing like a branding iron onto the
base of his tongue, transforming into a round-edged badge
Within the badge lay the message the fishman youngster had entrusted to Cang
Xu.
This was the tongue metal.
Carefully selected from the War Merchant's database by the fishman youngster,
the device itself was highly covert. Enhanced with the Deceptive Disguise spell
and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, it was virtually foolproof.
As Cang Xu scanned the message, his expression shifted slightly.
It caught him somewhat off guard. In this communication, the fishman youngster
inquired whether Cang Xu would engage Jian Gui directly, seeking the most
immediate cooperation.
For a moment, Cang Xu felt a surge of admiration, once again impressed by the
fishman youngster's boldness.
Given their current setup, the Deep Sea Monster Fish lay within the Ocean
Mother Nest. With the element of surprise on their side, the odds of ambushing
Jian Gui were extremely high. Despite knowing they could subdue Jian Gui, the
fishman youngster hadn't resorted to bullying the weaker party. Instead, he had
rationally and calmly considered the possibility of cooperation between the two
sides.
To be honest, Cang Xu hadn't even contemplated this possibility.
For a moment, Cang Xu fell deep into thought.
"Though bound by both divine and magic, Jian Gui still possesses combat
strength through the advantages of the newly born undead faction. He could
potentially free himself within the Ocean Mother Nest. Therefore, if we form an
alliance with them, we wouldn't have to engage in combat within the Ocean
Mother Nest. The risks involved would be significantly reduced."
"The prospects of collaborating with Jian Gui's faction have always been
substantial. First, their undead inheritance is exceptionally potent, drawing
suppression from every major power worldwide. Second, undead resources. Behind
figures like Jian Gui lies the legendary faction led by You Shen, controlling
the world's foremost undead resources. These are precisely what we will need in
the future."
Cang Xu weighed the pros and cons, his mind growing increasingly calm.
From this proposal, Cang Xu clearly discerned the fishman youngster's attitude
toward necromancers.
Unlike the overwhelming majority of the world, who harbored intense hostility
and fear toward necromancers, The fishman youngster genuinely sought
cooperation with the undead, treating them as equals.
Beyond this, Cang Xu felt profoundly moved. Though the youngster hadn't stated
it explicitly in his message, Cang Xu understood: the commander proposed this
alliance precisely because Cang Xu was currently at the mercy of Jian Gui. His
very life hung in the balance, controlled by Jian Gui's whim.
In his message, the fishman youngster explicitly stated:
“Should our attempt to atone before the Empire's high command fail, our
connection with the necromancers might enable us to evade the Empire's pursuit.
This would buy me precious time and a chance to survive.”
This insight brought Cang Xu particular comfort!
In Cang Xu's view, the youngster from the Mystifying Monster Island era, though
an excellent leader, was immature and overly idealistic.
By now, the young commander had matured significantly. As a leader, he
considered a wide range of consequences. His decisions were often made with the
team in mind, rather than solely based on personal beliefs and values.
The fishman youngster's words sparked a new thought in Cang Xu.
“If we collaborate with Jian Gui and others, establish connections, and later
successfully negotiate with the Empire's high command to atone for our sins...
we could then leverage that relationship to lure Jian Gui and his crew into an
ambush, eliminate them, and claim it as a military achievement within the
Empire.”
Cang Xu was already contemplating the possibility of targeting the necromancers
in the future.
Though merely an iron level magician, he was now scheming against legend level
factions. The reason lay in the Bloodcore, which had granted him boundless hope
and confidence.
This world was riddled with severe class barriers. For many, their entire
future was determined at birth.
Power dictated one's social standing and the primary factor determining power
was bloodline.
Now, with the Bloodcore, survivors possessed infinite potential within their
bloodlines.
Given sufficient time, resources, and proper cultivation, why should they be
inferior to others?
Why couldn’t legend level factions be targeted too?
After deep contemplation, Cang Xu arrived at a conclusion: “Collaborating with
Jian Gui and the others is indeed a sound strategy. But it's still too early to
be completely open with Jian Gui."
Cang Xu remained wary of Jian Gui.
If Jian Gui learned of the fishman youngster and the Deep Sea Monster Fish, he
might use that knowledge to blackmail them into submission. At that point, the
measures he'd taken against Cang Xu would become crucial bargaining chips.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu, concealed in the shadows, held the
initiative. Once they negotiated with Jian Gui and revealed their whereabouts,
they would fall into a profoundly passive position.
"Therefore, even if we are to cooperate, we must find the right moment. The
timing is not ripe now. It's too early!"
“Another point: before the final showdown, it would be best to remove the
hidden trap on my body.”
"I must handle this step myself to be fully assured. If I let Jian Gui remove
them, I'd still harbor many doubts."
“But that time is approaching soon.”
Over a day had passed since Jian Gui announced the progress assessment.
During this period, nearly ten large-scale blood sacrifices had been conducted
at the golden altar.
The gold coin device, carrying Cang Xu's instructions, quietly departed.
Soon after, Jian Gui summoned the undead once more.
The undead gathered within Jian Gui's shack.
Yet the atmosphere inside the shack felt different from before.
The crowd no longer stood united as before. Instead, hidden currents surged
beneath the surface, mutual wariness and a fierce competitive spirit permeated
the air.
On the surface, they exchanged insights and experiences about conversion, but
in reality, Jian Gui was secretly transmitting his voice, leading the
discussion as they collectively explored techniques for fabricating memories.
Driven by the pressure to survive, Jian Gui had never been more focused in his
memory forgery efforts. Even the other undead, despite it being their first
attempt, were giving it their absolute all.
This exchange of experience and technique proved beneficial to everyone, even
Jian Gui gained considerable insight.
Yet, as the discussions deepened, Cang Xu's expression darkened.
He discovered his progress was still lagging behind everyone else!
"How is this possible? Ku Feng is actually ahead of me?"



****** Chapter 466: Cang Xu - Let Me Take a Good Look Before Death’s Door!


******
During their first exchange, Ku Feng had surpassed Cang Xu because Cang Xu
harbored doubts about potential hidden dangers within Jian Gui's legacy and
hadn't truly committed to cultivation. Thus, Cang Xu's progress was virtually
nonexistent.
By their second exchange, Cang Xu had made significant strides, drastically
narrowing the gap with Ku Feng.
Now, during their third exchange, Cang Xu was astonished to discover: the gap
between him and Ku Feng had widened once more.
The noble steward instantly realized: Something fishy was going on!
He scanned the others. Xiao Wang Zi's gaze darted away, avoiding Cang Xu's
eyes.
Qi Ling's expression remained calm.
Ku Feng, however, met Cang Xu's gaze without flinching, holding his stare for a
full second.
He alone could never match Cang Xu.
But with Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi's assistance, he had once again gained the
upper hand in progress.
“Though accepting others' help is unfair, at the brink of life and death,
there's no other choice.”
“Truthfully, pitting a fighter like me against a magician to forge memories is
inherently unfair.”
"It's a pity, Xu Jia. You were the last to join us. Though our shared
experiences are rich, and I personally hold you in high regard, the time we've
spent together is ultimately too brief."
Ku Feng felt a quiet regret for Cang Xu.
He harbored no confidence in his own conversion. The crucial assistance from Qi
Ling and Xiao Wang Zi was his last lifeline.
He had every reason to cling to it desperately!
A single exchange of glances was all it took for Cang Xu to grasp: “I'm being
targeted!”
“Someone is secretly aiding Ku Feng.”
Cang Xu deduced further: “It couldn't be Jian Gui. As the leader, based on what
I know of him, he wouldn't stoop to getting personally involved.”
“As for the others... it must be Qi Ling.”
Cang Xu understood Xiao Wang Zi's nature well.
Xiao Wang Zi was rather innocent; he wouldn't resort to such scheming.
Qi Ling, however, was different.
Back at the undead gathering on Weeping Pine Island, Qi Ling's analysis of the
world situation had already impressed Cang Xu.
Later, though constrained by Lady Sea Snake, Qi Ling deliberately revealed her
traitor status, allowing Xiao Wang Zi and others to escape and preserving their
bond. Ultimately, she waited for support from Jian Gui and the others. It could
be said that within this small undead faction, Qi Ling's strategic acumen was
truly exceptional.
“Zhou Zhang issued the rules, and Jian Gui devised countermeasures, forcing us
to select the weakest candidate for memory forgery.”
"Analyzing from Qi Ling's perspective: she could never compete with Jian Gui.
To maximize her chances of survival, she had to ensure she remained second only
to Jian Gui."
“She must defeat everyone, including me.”
“In memory fabrication, Qi Ling holds a significant advantage as a soul aspect
necromancer. Yet this edge isn't absolute, both Xiao Wang Zi and I pose threats
to her.”
"Even Ku Feng, a fighter, masters stillness cultivation to tap into his spirit
power. Thus Qi Ling dares not be the slightest bit careless."
"Xiao Wang Zi cultivates the bone aspect. In memory fabrication, he is clearly
at a disadvantage compared to the soul aspect."
"As for me, I originally specialized in the soul aspect before switching to the
Flying Head Spell. This legacy originates from Doctor Sui Shi, whom Qi Ling
knows nothing about. It's only natural she views me as her greatest rival."
"Therefore, she will seek every means to eliminate me first. That's the most
advantageous option for her!"
Cang Xu's thoughts raced like lightning, swiftly unraveling Qi Ling's
intentions to their core.
Under normal circumstances, the undead ronin Ku Feng would be the first chosen.
The remaining contestants would then compete, increasing Qi Ling's pressure.
Because Cang Xu and Xiao Wang Zi both remained.
But now, Qi Ling used friendship as an excuse, inciting Xiao Wang Zi to join
her in aiding Ku Feng.
Ku Feng's progress surpassed Cang Xu's, making the latter the first to be
selected.
Not only that, but Xiao Wang Zi's own progress was also hindered.
Qi Ling faced the same setback, yet her prior progress had already surpassed
Xiao Wang Zi's. With both facing setbacks, Qi Ling actually solidified her
advantage.
Her progress now ranks just below Jian Gui—second to none, above all others!
By doing this, Qi Ling could not only eliminate Cang Xu as a potential threat
early on but also secure her own position.
Jian Gui appears generous on the surface but is secretly duplicitous, one face
publicly, another behind closed doors. He has secretly deployed numerous means
of control over others.
Qi Ling truly lived up to being summoned by him personally, having served as
his alchemy assistant for quite some time. Their approaches to things were
quite similar, often playing the sympathy card when scheming.
"If I'd been fighting alone, I'd be completely at a disadvantage right now.
Fortunately, the commander is by my side!" Cang Xu remained composed and calm,
still finding time for wistful sighs.
“So, what does Jian Gui think?” Cang Xu instinctively looked toward Jian Gui.
The next moment, he met Jian Gui's gaze, a look that was both complex and
resigned.
In that instant, Cang Xu understood.
Jian Gui surely knew about Qi Ling's underhanded maneuvers below, yet he
couldn't directly intervene.
Because any obstruction would make Ku Feng the first chosen one, essentially
sending him to his death first.
Such an action would completely undermine the persona he'd meticulously
crafted.
Though Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi had intervened to boost Ku Feng's progress,
their actions had minimal negative impact on the overall process.
Had the impact been significant, Jian Gui would have intervened immediately.
“In that case, this is actually an opportunity!” Cang Xu's heart stirred.
After exchanging insights, the group wasted no time, each eager to seize every
second to advance their progress.
The gathering concluded, and Xiao Wang Zi was the first to leave the shack.
Feeling guilty toward Cang Xu, his departure carried a hint of escape.
Ku Feng passed by Cang Xu, gave him a slight nod, and murmured a quiet apology.
His straightforward demeanor earned Cang Xu's quiet approval. After all,
employing some tactics to secure one's survival wasn't unreasonable.
Qi Ling remained silent throughout, as if unaware of everything.
Everyone else departed, yet Cang Xu alone stayed behind in Jian Gui's hut.
Seeing this, Jian Gui gave a bitter smile. "Xu Jia, I hope you understand my
predicament. If I had stepped in to stop them, what would Ku Feng have
thought?"
"Don't be too hasty now. Ku Feng is, after all, a fighter. You still have hope.
Keep striving, and perhaps at the final moment, you could surpass him."
“Ah, this is all my fault!”
"I'm the one who led you all into this desperate situation. If only my strength
had been greater, if only I could have seen through the divine spell and
escaped with you all from Zhou Zhang's grasp..."
Jian Gui poured out his helplessness and regret to Cang Xu, emphasizing that
Zhou Zhang, not himself, was the root of all this.
But Cang Xu sneered inwardly.
Cang Xu knew this performance was meant to prevent him from giving up entirely.
Faced with certain death, many would abandon effort and resign themselves to
fate.
That was not what Jian Gui desired.
After all, if Cang Xu gave his all, significant progress could still be made
during this time.
Jian Gui's act was compelling, but Cang Xu's response was equally compelling.
The noble butler sighed deeply, his voice hollow, tinged with the despair of
facing death and the resignation of acceptance: “It seems I am the first to be
chosen.”
“Truthfully, I have no complaints about this outcome or treatment. After all,
you have all helped me greatly.”
“Had it not been for your intervention, Lord Jian Gui, I would have perished in
the battle of the Underworld River.”
“But now, I am filled with profound regret.”
"Back on Weeping Pine Island, I approached you willingly, seeking the
intermediate soul aspect inheritance. Little did I know it would lead to the
Underworld River battle, where I barely escaped with my life. Yet in the end, I
must still lose this life!"
"Perhaps this is simply my fate. It's destined to end here."
These words caused Jian Gui's gaze to flicker repeatedly.
Cang Xu's gloomy confession sent a chill down his spine, fearing Cang Xu might
act irrationally.
Like voluntarily informing Zhou Zhang, exposing the plot Jian Gui and others
were plotting, in exchange for his own survival.
Of course, Jian Gui had planted safeguards within Cang Xu and wasn't worried
about his secrets being exposed.
But killing Cang Xu rashly would inevitably draw a thorough investigation from
Zhou Zhang and the others.
Jian Gui's escape plan was already fraught with difficulty. Facing a rigorous
investigation on top of that would have unimaginable consequences.
He still needed Cang Xu now!
“Don't give up hope. You might succeed in converting after all,” Jian Gui
offered consolation.
Cang Xu shook his head slightly, his expression utterly hopeless.
Jian Gui pondered for a moment, then took a deep breath and said, "We undead
are beings of negative energy. We possess advantages distinct from ordinary
lifeforms, even if your conversion fails this time, death isn't necessarily
guaranteed."
"If you don't trust me, surely you must trust Doctor Sui Shi. He is one of the
Twelve Saints, a figure of saint level standing."
Cang Xu's expression immediately shifted, incredulity evident as he asked, “Are
you suggesting, Lord Jian Gui, that I might still survive this time?”
As he spoke, a new spark of hope ignited in Cang Xu's eyes.
This was, of course, Jian Gui's deception!
Cang Xu understood this, and Jian Gui knew it too.
Jian Gui continued, "Since Doctor Sui Shi bestowed the Flying Head Spell upon
you, he would never let you slip from his sight. He must have placed some
arrangement upon you."
“I don't know the specifics myself, so unless absolutely necessary, you
shouldn't give up so easily!”
“By the way, didn't you just mention wanting the intermediate soul aspect
inheritance?”
“Once this crisis passes, I shall impart a portion of it to you.”
Jian Gui knew such vague lies wouldn't fool Cang Xu, so he had to offer some
tangible benefit to bolster his persuasion.
Cang Xu froze slightly, “But wasn't the intermediate inheritance conditional?”
Jian Gui smiled. "We're sharing life and death this time, that fulfills part of
the condition. Therefore, imparting a portion to you wouldn't be considered a
violation."
Cang Xu sneered inwardly but outwardly wore an expression of surprise and
delight.
Had Jian Gui not brought it up first, Cang Xu would have requested it in a more
tactful manner.
Now that Jian Gui had spoken, Cang Xu felt not satisfied but instead pressed
further.
He sighed deeply, “Lord Jian Gui, despite whatever methods Doctor Sui Shi has
laid upon me, my fate this time seems grim indeed.”
“Among the intermediate soul aspect inheritances, what I most wish to see is
the section concerning soul crystals.”
“I beg you, could I view it now?”
“Even a single glance would suffice!”
Seeing Cang Xu's sincerity, Jian Gui recalled their first meeting on Weeping
Pine Island.
He uttered the same words of admiration as on Weeping Pine Island: “Cang Xu,
you are a true magician, possessed of an intense thirst for knowledge.”
“I shall grant your request at once.”
“The section concerning soul crystals...”
“I'm sorry, I cannot give you more than this. It is a matter of principle.”
“Thank you, Lord Jian Gui!” Cang Xu made no attempt to conceal his excitement,
immediately bowing in gratitude.
Returning to his quarters, Cang Xu studied the newly acquired soul aspect
inheritance, marveling at the mysteries of fate.
Though he now found himself a captive, his life under grave threat, opportunity
truly lurked within such peril.
This time, he had seized that chance firmly, achieving most of his objectives.
Had he followed the conventional path, the time and effort required would have
been far more immense.



****** Chapter 467: The Inheritance Door Opens ******
Beneath the snow-capped Splice Mountain, Grafting Town gradually faded into the
dusk of the setting sun.
In the heart of Grafting Town, within the residence of a gold level magician
Jia Bing, Zi Di and Zong Ge were making their final attempt.
Zi Di's spell succeeded, scattering beams of magic light that clung to the
square metal door.
The door hummed and vibrated under the searing glow.
Zi Di gritted her teeth, straining every ounce of concentration to sustain the
spell.
Zong Ge took a deep breath and lunged forward. His biceps bulged as he swung
the Gold Flower Hacksaw in his clenched hands, creating a blur of light in the
air.
Clang!
The saw struck the metal door with savage force. The powerful recoil sent it
bouncing slightly upward before Zong Ge slammed it back down.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw clung to the metal, its teeth spinning violently as
they gnawed into the surface.
Sparks flew in a whirlwind, dancing through the air before crashing back down
onto the door.
Smack, smack, smack.
The crisp clatter of sparks against metal mingled with the frenzied grinding of
the saw against the door, assaulting Zi Di and Zong Ge's eardrums.
Time passed, bit by bit..
Not long after, a flash of crimson blood light suddenly flickered across Zong
Ge's body.
The half beastman snorted coldly, forced to take a step back and withdraw the
Gold Flower Hacksaw.
Zi Di could only slowly cease the spell she had been sustaining.
As the spell's radiance and the swirling sparks gradually faded, the exposed
metal door remained completely intact, not even a scratch visible.
Zi Di sighed, "Ah, it still won't work! This is our strongest attack."
For that assault, she had expended a silver level spell scroll to support Zong
Ge.
Zong Ge led the charge, wielding the Gold Flower Hacksaw. This weapon excelled
at slicing through hard materials.
But during the attack, the blood aura erupting from Zong Ge disrupted his
battle qi infusion, nearly injuring him.
Zi Di looked at Zong Ge: "The technique the Axe Gang leader planted on you
before dying must be removed immediately. Have you noticed it's triggering more
frequently?"
Had this technique not activated, Zong Ge could have endured far longer.
Yet it offered little aid in breaching the metal door.
Zong Ge stared at the metal door, his voice calm, “Even without the blood feud
hindering me, we would still fail this time. The metal door's defenses are
beyond comprehension, truly befitting something originating from a legend level
figure.”
The two had now pieced together the information regarding the metal door.
They knew it was left behind by Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong, concealing his
legacy!
This answer came from the documents and notes Zi Di had obtained from Jia Bing.
After Jia Bing unexpectedly discovered the legacy, he rented this building and
converted it into an alchemy laboratory.
He had tried countless methods here to crack the metal door, but none
succeeded.
This was precisely why he had deliberately placed the alchemy lab in the town
center. Because the metal door was right here!
Typically, magicians establish alchemy labs in secluded areas rich in natural
resources.
Simply touching the metal door granted anyone a fragment of information left by
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
The message detailed the test criteria.
Only when grafted magic plants met these standards could the metal door be
opened.
Jia Bing first attempted this legitimate path.
But he failed.
Though Jia Bing was a magician, a gold level one at that, his expertise lay in
alchemy puppets. He was quite inept at cultivating magic plants.
While not entirely unskilled, he clearly couldn't meet the legendary figure's
standards.
Jia Bing didn't give up, constantly trying new methods. His latest plan
involved using acid to corrode the metal door. That's why, when Zi Di first
arrived, she saw the unfinished potion Jia Bing had left behind, specifically
designed for acid corrosion.
“Our last attempt failed. Let's go,” Zong Ge said.
Zi Di nodded without hesitation.
This had been their agreed-upon plan all along.
Securing Jia Bing's inheritance had already been a significant achievement.
Breaching the metal door held no hope.
Zi Di and Zong Ge could only rationally call it quits.
Before departing, however, they activated the formation diagram panel,
expending pearl bubbles to imbue the metal door with a Deceptive Disguise
spell.
From Jia Bing's diary, Zi Di learned that he had never shared information about
the metal door with anyone else.
His specific plan was to act alone first. If he could take it down covertly,
that would be ideal. Only if it proved impossible would he seek assistance from
others.
Thus, Jia Bing's faction remained unaware of the metal door's situation.
Had they known, Zi Di and Zong Ge would never have resorted to the Deceptive
Disguise spell.
Jia Bing's situation bore a striking resemblance to that of Master Cai Jing.
Both had discovered the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong and sought to
secretly excavate it.
Jia Bing was the unluckier of the two.
He was killed before making any progress whatsoever. His entire inheritance was
subsequently seized by others.
By comparison, Master Cai Jing had better fortune.
Though disrupted by Ba Qi and exposing the legacy's secrets, he swiftly
adjusted his strategy. Inviting Da Bei and Zhong Bei to assist accelerated his
progress exponentially!
Now, it was their turn to attempt it.
A row of potted plants was arranged before the metal door.
A scene reminiscent of before unfolded once more.
Curved beams of condensed light shot forth from the centers of five fingers.
The beams pierced the potted plants, relentlessly draining the nutrients from
the grafted magic plants.
These plants withered at a visible pace, some collapsing outright.
Cai Jing, Da Bei, and Zhong Bei held their breath, growing increasingly tense.
For this was the final moment, only the last yellow beam remained.
The beam pierced the magic plant, drawing energy that flowed back along the
beam into the five fingers insignia.
“No!” Zhong Bei cried out suddenly.
The last magic plant showed signs of instability, seeming on the verge of
collapse.
Da Bei immediately pulled a vial of potion from his robe and splashed it
directly onto the magic plant in the pot.
It was the bloodline stabilizer!
With the potion's aid, the plant on the brink of collapse steadied itself once
more.
But the respite was short-lived. Within seconds, signs of collapse reappeared.
Da Bei emptied another vial of bloodline stabilizer, forcing the plant to hold
on.
Within about ten minutes, Da Bei had used over twenty vials of the potion. The
exorbitant cost sent a chill through his heart.
Despite such a heavy price, the magic plant finally stabilized.
The yellow light seemed to be sated, slowly retracting and making the badge
with its five-fingered design shine even more brilliantly.
Multicolored radiance emanated from the badge, covering the surface of the
metal door before rapidly seeping into it.
The glow was not intense and soon faded away.
The next moment, Cai Jing, Da Bei, and his son watched as the metal door slowly
vanished, revealing a small, safe-like interior space within.
“We did it!”
“Is this the legend level inheritance?”
Cai Jing and the others, too preoccupied to celebrate, all turned their
intense, probing gazes toward it.



****** Chapter 468: Weeping Beauty + Sun Crown Flower ******
The metal door of the inheritance chamber finally swung open.
Master Cai Jing, Da Bei, and Zhong Bei finally beheld the scene within the
chamber.
The vast space held only a single potted plant.
Nothing else.
The legacy left behind by the famed Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong was unexpectedly
meager.
“Only this one item?” Magician Zhong Bei voiced his disappointment.
His father, Magician Da Bei, and Master Cai Jing also wore unsatisfied
expressions.
Especially Master Cai Jing.
He had invested immense time and effort here, yet the reward seemed meager.
Compared to him, Magician Da Bei remained more composed: “This potted plant
appears to be a Weeping Beauty, but it doesn't quite match the descriptions in
the records.”
A single blossom stood planted in the pot.
The flower remained in bud form, not yet fully bloomed. The bud was plump and
firm, hanging slightly downward. Its petals shimmered ice blue, dotted with
faint fluorescence.
Judging by the flower alone, it was a Weeping Beauty.
It was a water attribute magic plant.
However, examining its roots revealed significant differences from the typical
Weeping Beauty.
The roots of a Weeping Beauty were deep green and slightly curved downward.
Their sinuous S-shaped curve resembled the graceful form of a slender beauty.
Paired with the drooping bud and two large leaves, it evoked the image of a
flower-like maiden weeping with her face hidden.
Hence the name “Weeping Beauty.”
Yet in this potted specimen within the inheritance door, the Weeping Beauty's
rhizome was now entirely concealed beneath a vast expanse of orange-yellow
petals.
These petals were densely arranged, layered upon each other like a woven orange
skirt. Its hem trailed to the ground, creating a truly magnificent sight.
For a moment, all three magicians' gazes fixated on this extraordinary floral
skirt.
Magician Zhong Bei mused, "I think I understand why Flower Skirt Island bears
its name now. This island's moniker embodies the very essence of Fan Sheng Za
Zhong, doesn't it?"
These words stirred something within Master Cai Jing.
He narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing closely. "The petals resembling an orange-
yellow skirt appear to originate from the Sun Crown Flower."
The Sun Crown Flower was also a magic plant, belonging to both the light and
fire attributes.
Magician Da Bei nodded slightly, acknowledging Master Cai Jing's observation. 
He continued his analysis: “This must be a magic plant specially grafted by
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.”
“It has two main components: the Weeping Beauty and the Sun Crown Flower.”
"The Weeping Beauty is a water attribute plant capable of absorbing and
secreting vast amounts of moisture. This plant is extremely delicate, often
succumbing to root and leaf rot due to excessive moisture secretion."
"The Sun Crown Flower, conversely, thrives on sunlight, acting as a solar
collector among plants. Yet it lacks intelligence; its petals can be scorched
and damaged from storing too much sunlight, eventually withering and dying."
“Both are notoriously difficult magic plants to cultivate.”
“Yet Fan Sheng Za Zhong seems to have combined them perfectly.”
"The Sun Crown Flower's skirt of petals absorbs and stores immense sunlight.
This light and heat dispels the heavy moisture inherent in the Weeping Beauty.
Simultaneously, the Weeping Beauty's moisture nourishes the Sun Crown petals,
cooling them and preventing scorching."
"Fan Sheng Za Zhong excelled at cultivating magic plants through grafting. 
Now, it seems his inheritance holds profound meaning, this magic planter
perfectly aligns with his style."
Magician Da Bei's analysis earned agreement from the other two.
Zhong Bei spoke up: "Both the Weeping Beauty and the Sun Crown Flower are
highly valuable magic plants. Now that they're stably grafted together, large-
scale cultivation becomes feasible. Once mass production begins, the profits
will be enormous!"
Master Cai Jing added: “Druids differ from us magicians. They don't impart
knowledge directly but set trials, emphasizing practice and encouraging self-
discovery.  This magic planter is likely a milestone achievement from Fan Sheng
Za Zhong. But how much knowledge one gains from it depends entirely on personal
insight and ability."
Master Cai Jing analyzed it from his personal approach.
As the three conversed, the magicians' wisdom shone through.
With each comment, they dissected the scene before them piece by piece.
After confirming no danger or ambush lay ahead, the task turned to retrieving
the magic planter.
Magician Da Bei stepped aside, deferring this opportunity to Master Cai Jing.
Throughout this excavation of inheritance, Master Cai Jing had always taken the
lead. On this point, Magician Da Bei understood his place, demonstrating keen
tact.
Master Cai Jing felt a quiet satisfaction at his own maneuver.
However, as he approached the secret door of inheritance, he suddenly picked up
a hidden message.
“So Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's legacy isn't confined to this place alone!” Cai
Jing's eyes flickered, but he maintained his outward calm as he reached out and
retrieved the magic planter.
He held the hidden message to himself for now, instead scrutinizing the magic
planter in his hands.
He immediately noticed the extraordinary nature of this flowerpot.
Approximately three magic spells and five divine spells were imbued within it.
Enchantment techniques had been employed, effectively stabilizing most of the
magic and divine spells within.
This was hardly surprising. Fan Sheng Za Zhong was a great druid, skilled in
both divine and magic spells.
The soil within the pot was Abundant Earth.
This was a renowned product of the Fertile Land Church.
True to its name, Abundant Earth contained immense earthen blessings, capable
of nurturing nearly any crop to bountiful harvest.
Finally, Master Cai Jing began to deeply examine the grafted magic flower.
He couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, “This is nothing short of a work of
art.”
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong had ingeniously grafted two distinct bloodlines
together, achieving not only balance but mutual benefit.
The master had carefully selected two magic plants for grafting. Though
multiple divine and magic spells were used to enhance the flowerpot, the
grafted plant itself possessed almost no extraordinary power!
This meant that even separated from the pot, the grafted magic plant possessed
strong inherent vitality.
In stark contrast, the large-scale grafted magic plants previously cultivated
by Master Cai Jing and others required cryogenic preservation techniques just
to survive for a short time.
The gap between the two approaches was truly enormous!
Moreover, the masterfully concise design by Fan Sheng Za Zhong made the
previous works of Master Cai Jing and others seem like childish scribbles by
comparison.
After examining it for a while, Master Cai Jing handed the magic planter to
Magician Da Bei for inspection.
Witnessing this, Magician Zhong Bei nearly cried out in excitement.
Earlier, he was still slightly worried.
After all, this inheritance excavation was led by Master Cai Jing. Zhong Bei
and his father had only been invited to join midway.
Though the father-son duo contributed significantly, it would have been
perfectly reasonable for Master Cai Jing to withhold the final inheritance gain
from them, offering compensation instead.
But reality was different, Master Cai Jing handed the magic planter directly to
Magician Da Bei for inspection.
The significance of this gesture was extraordinary, leaving Master Zhong Bei
deeply moved.
Magician Da Bei hurriedly expressed his gratitude, took the planter, and held
it close to examine it carefully.
After a moment, he spoke: “This confirms our previous conjecture.”
“Just as you, Master Cai Jing, had suggested.”
"Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong left us only one outcome. It's deeply connected to
the grafting techniques we examined during our assessment. But this single
result clearly surpasses the sum of all our previous grafted creations."
"How much knowledge can we ultimately gain from this result? That's impossible
to say. It depends on each of our insights and abilities."
"Personally, I prefer the legacy left by magicians. Their inheritance consists
of knowledge, far more straightforward than this."
This difference revealed the essence of magicians versus druids.
Mages pursued knowledge, leaving behind legacies that were knowledge itself,
ensuring absolute precision. One was one, two was two, ambiguity was taboo.
Druids, however, often practiced both divine and magic spells. Compared to
magicians, they placed greater emphasis on intuition and perception. They
encouraged people to feel the present moment, to seek the meaning of life
itself. They wanted the inheritor to achieve personal growth through their own
practices. As for how much one could advance? That was nature's choice, life's
evolution, fate's destiny. There was no need to force it.
Zhong Bei gazed at the magic planter in his father's hands, his voice brimming
with excitement: "In truth, even the worst outcome of this insight grants us a
never-ending goldmine. Simply mass-cultivating these grafted magic plants would
yield staggering profits."
Master Cai Jing added: "Therefore, moving forward, we can collaborate. Let's
cultivate these grafted magic plants together!"
Da Bei and Zhong Bei, father and son, both looked stunned.
Cai Jing looked at them and continued, "You know me well. Though honored as a
master, I'm really just an outcast from the mainstream alchemy world, an exiled
wandering magician. But you're different. You have connections back home and
possess considerable strength yourselves. You could easily establish large-
scale cultivation zones right in the heart of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom."
"You also contributed significantly to this legacy. Without the ice-
preservation technology you provided, we never could have achieved success so
swiftly."
Upon hearing this, Magician Zhong Bei nearly danced with excitement. He never
imagined Master Cai Jing would be so generous, this meant complete sharing!
He'd assumed Master Cai Jing would only lend the magic plants for a short time.
Yet here he was offering full access. This was an absolute windfall for the
father-son duo.
Da Bei felt a pang of doubt, but outwardly played it coy: "Master Cai Jing,
please don't misunderstand us. We would never touch what we shouldn't, nor
harbor the slightest covetous thought. Your self-assessment is far too modest.
With your abilities, you could easily leave the Ice Sculpture Kingdom behind
and find suitable cultivation bases on countless islands. Wherever you go,
whatever faction you join, you would be welcomed as an honored guest."



****** Chapter 469: Benefits Attract Enemies and Friends ******
Upon hearing his father's words, Magician Zhong Bei nearly popped his eyes out
in panic.
What was wrong with his father? Was he actually pushing away a never-ending
gold mine?
Cai Jing fixed a deep gaze on Da Bei, pointed at him, then burst into laughter,
“I knew I hadn't misjudged you. Working with you has been truly delightful.”
“But you needn't doubt my motives. My reason for seeking your partnership is
simple.”
“You'll all understand the moment you approach it.”
Master Cai Jing gestured toward the secret door of inheritance behind him.
Magician Da Bei remained motionless, instead signaling his son with a glance.
Such tacit understanding between father and son was, of course, present.
Magician Zhong Bei slowly began walking, approaching the secret door of
inheritance.
He suddenly halted, his expression shifting slightly. Turning back, he urgently
reported to his father.
“I've received a hidden message. It should be accessible after opening the door
and approaching it.”
“Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong wishes us later generations, upon taking the magic
potted plant, to place a brand-new one within the secret door of inheritance.
This will establish a new lineage, allowing it to continue flowing down through
the ages.”
Upon hearing this, Magician Da Bei's eyes flickered slightly, “That is indeed
the druid way of doing things.”
This lineage was like a small cottage in the forest.
It welcomed and assisted all travelers who entered to stay. Simultaneously, it
hoped each guest would contribute what they could to the cottage. For instance,
chopping a pile of firewood before departing. This way, future travelers
arriving on rainy days could immediately light a fire for warmth.
This encouraged mutual support and reciprocal benefit.
“Good news, Father!” Magician Zhong Bei beamed, “This message also tells us
that if we place a brand-new magic potted plant inside, and this plant gains
recognition from the secret door of inheritance, we'll obtain the exact
location of another inheritance site belonging to Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong!”
Upon hearing this, Magician Da Bei raised his eyebrows and looked at Master Cai
Jing again.
Everything clicked into place.
In that moment, he grasped the unspoken intent behind Master Cai Jing's words,
and his guard rapidly dissolved.
Magician Zhong Bei returned, his expression charged with excitement.
He declared to Master Cai Jing, "This holds tremendous potential! We'll
continue using the ice-preservation technique, mass-cultivating magic plants
for grafting. Eventually, we'll produce a specimen that meets the criteria.
Once we insert it, we'll uncover information about the second inheritance
site."
But on this matter, Master Cai Jing held a different perspective: "Our previous
use of the ice-preservation technique relied on sheer volume. It was
essentially passing off inferior work as genuine, muddling through. Based on my
estimation, cultivating grafted magic plants that meet the standards of Fan
Sheng Za Zhong is far more difficult than opening a secret door. Using our
previous method again offers little chance of success."
Magician Zhong Bei paused slightly, then wore a thoughtful expression.
Master Cai Jing's analysis made perfect sense.
Undiminished in his enthusiasm, Magician Zhong Bei continued, “If that's the
case, we'll simply have to commit to long-term research and development. I
believe that with the combined strength of our two parties, as long as we
cooperate wholeheartedly, we will certainly succeed in cultivating qualifying
magic plants in the future.
In Magician Zhong Bei's view, this was an investment well worth making! This
was a legacy left by a legend level figure.
They had already succeeded once. Though they had only harvested a single
grafted magic plant, that single achievement alone was priceless, making them
rich beyond measure.
But upon hearing Magician Zhong Bei's words, Master Cai Jing smiled faintly and
shook his head.
The Medium Magician looked puzzled, unable to grasp Master Cai Jing' meaning.
His father, Magician Da Bei, gently reminded him, “Fool, why should we let
ourselves be led by the nose by a single piece of inheritance information?”
“Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong arranged this with a deep understanding of human
nature, but he is, after all, a druid, perhaps a bit too innocent.”
"This is indeed a clue, but the cost is high. We needn't follow his setup; we
can find other clues ourselves and deduce the locations of other inheritances."
“In this regard, Master Cai Jing, you must have profound insights!”
Magician Zhong Bei couldn't help but fix his burning gaze upon Master Cai Jing.
Master Cai Jing replied calmly, “To put it plainly, it's actually quite
simple.”
"Records show that Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong traveled the entire world. He is a
figure of legend level; wherever he went, storms inevitably followed, leaving
behind profound historical accounts nearly everywhere."
"This greatly facilitates our search for clues. Often, we need only follow the
trail."
Magician Zhong Bei frowned slightly, “Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong did indeed
travel the world. To my knowledge, he even ventured into Dragon Island and all
manner of peculiar elemental realms. But to search for his legacy, the scope of
‘the entire world’ is rather too vast.”
Master Cai Jing continued, “During the early stages of Master Fan Sheng Za
Zhong's travels, the likelihood of him leaving a legacy is quite low.”
"Typically, he would gain insights during his journeys. Once these insights
accumulated to a certain level, he would settle in one place for brief
research. Only after achieving results would he leave behind a legacy."
"Take the legacy we acquired, for instance. After journeying through the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong settled on this deserted island
for a time. He named it Flower Skirt Island. Here, he achieved his breakthrough
and left behind this legacy, arranging it as we find it. That was his modus
operandi."
Magician Zhong Bei perked up instantly, blurting out, “I know!”
“Splice Mountain!”
"Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong once stayed at Splice Mountain. The Grafting Town at
its base now also traces back to him."
Master Cai Jing smiled and nodded, adding, "Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong also
ventured deep into the heart of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, entering Tranquil
Hill. He emerged only after over ten days. The likelihood he left a legacy
there is also very high."
Magician Zhong Bei looked hesitant. "Tranquil Hill... that's just a rumor,
right? True, Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong did receive an invitation from the royal
family. But whether he actually entered Tranquil Hill isn't clearly recorded."
“Searching for the master's legacy within Tranquil Hill would be incredibly
difficult.”
"The royal family won't allow us to go. It's one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's
most sacred forbidden zones!"
“Moreover, we can't be certain that Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong left any legacy
there.”
Belonging to the Alchemy Guild, Magician Zhong Bei held deep reverence for the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Master Cai Jing, however, held a different view: “We've already unlocked one of
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's legacies. Judging by our gains so far, we stand to
benefit immensely.”
"The substantial profits we earn can help us build greater influence. Given
time, we could fully negotiate with the royal family."
“As long as the power is equal and the benefits are sufficient, there's nothing
that can't be negotiated.”
Magician Da Bei nodded, “Indeed, such a possibility exists. As one of the
elders of the Alchemy Guild, I can also leverage the guild's channels to
facilitate negotiations with the royal family.”
“Of course, before that, it would be best if we could confirm that Master Fan
Sheng Za Zhong truly left his legacy in Tranquil Hill.”
Magician Zhong Bei listened with a dazed expression.
Magician Da Bei turned to Master Cai Jing, his tone solemn. "Forgive my
boldness, Master Cai Jing. I now formally invite you to join our guild in my
capacity as an elder of the Alchemy Guild. Is that acceptable?"
Magician Zhong Bei's mouth fell open at these words.
He distinctly remembered: Master Cai Jing had been exiled and expelled from the
Alchemy Guild. His father extending such a direct invitation amounted to
speaking for the guild itself. Could this truly be permissible?
Though Magician Zhong Bei was middle-aged, he remained far more inexperienced,
especially compared to Magician Da Bei and Master Cai Jing.
The latter two were seasoned veterans, each understanding what the others
sought. Sometimes a single sentence could carry multiple layers of meaning.
Magician Zhong Bei struggled to keep pace with their rhythm, let alone grasp
their true intentions.
Master Cai Jing gave a slight nod, his eyes wide as he spoke nonsense, yet his
expression remained earnest and solemn: “Truthfully, I've always held the
Alchemy Guild in the highest regard. To join its ranks would be an immense
honor!”
“It's just that timing-wise, things might be a bit inconvenient for me right
now.”
Magician Da Bei nodded.
Hearing the two seemed to reach an agreement, Zhong Bei grew restless again. He
felt his father had made an empty promise, and Master Cai Jing had taken it at
face value.
In truth, he knew: the Alchemy Guild held a deeply negative view of Cai Jing,
and his father was merely one elder among many within the guild, not someone
powerful enough to represent the entire organization personally.
“Oh no! What if Father fails to persuade the Alchemy Guild after returning and
breaks his promise to Master Cai Jing? What will we do then?”
But Magician Da Bei and Master Cai Jing were both confident the matter would be
resolved.
It all came down to profit!
Master Cai Jing had previously produced counterfeit medicines for personal
gain, undermining the Alchemy Guild's profits. Thus, he was ostracized and
exiled.
Now, with the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong as bait, the Alchemy Guild of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom would surely set aside past grievances and welcome
Master Cai Jing back to collaborate on development.
This was precisely why Master Cai Jing chose to continue collaborating with Da
Bei and the others.
On one hand, he needed territory and talent to cultivate grafted magic plants
on a large scale, securing stable profits. On the other hand, the legacy of
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong likely lay within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom itself.
He needed access to its heartland to continue unearthing that legacy.
It was time to turn enemies into allies!
Da Bei and Cai Jing exchanged glances, confirming their deepened alliance. They
now found each other more agreeable.
Da Bei finally fixed his gaze on the secret door of inheritance: “Though this
place is exposed, we should destroy this door to buy time.”
Cai Jing shook his head slightly: "I've tried numerous methods before.
Destroying the door is unlikely. A more practical approach is to erase the
inheritance information here. This information serves as a rather obvious hint
for those who come after."
The magicians were no druids; they felt no empathy for the arrangements of
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong. To safeguard their own interests, they planned to
destroy this secret door without hesitation or reservation.
But at that very moment, an intensely powerful aura suddenly approached.
The magicians' expressions changed simultaneously.
By the time they realized an attack was incoming, it was already too late.
Boom!
A violent explosion erupted, causing Flower Skirt Island itself to tremble.
The assailant floated mid-air, surveying the smoke-filled chaos below.
When he struck, his saint level aura could no longer be concealed—it blazed
forth unmistakably!



****** Chapter 470: Qian Xing vs Cai Jing ******
Rolling clouds of dust gradually dispersed, revealing a massive, hemispherical
light barrier.
Master Cai Jing, Magician Da Bei, and Magician Zhong Bei gathered together,
gazing upward through the translucent shield.
Though there was only one enemy, all three magicians wore expressions of
profound gravity.
For the attacker's aura was unmistakably that of a saint level cultivator!
A saint level fighter.
Magician Da Bei used an amplifying spell to inquire about the intruder's
identity, emphasizing his own status.
“Elder of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild?” The floating saint level
fighter sneered coldly, his face brimming with contempt.
He was an elf, but his dark skin marked him not as a snow elf, but a night elf.
His hair was pulled into a high ponytail, his frame tall and slender, his
fingers long and slender. Each nail was razor-sharp, gleaming with a blue
radiance.
“If this were the Sheng Ming Empire's Alchemy Guild, I might show some
deference.”
“But the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild? What's that worth? Even the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom itself is nothing special.”
The saint level fighter was supremely arrogant, showing utter contempt for the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
“I know who he is!” Master Cai Jing suddenly exclaimed, “He's Qian Xing, a
member of the Fire Beard Pirates.”
Magician Da Bei and Magician Zhong Bei instantly understood, realizing the
source of Qian Xing's arrogance.
The Fire Beard Pirates was a massive, legend level power. It absolutely towered
over the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild—even the kingdom itself couldn't
compare.
The primary reason for this dominance was simple - Fire Beard himself was a
legend level fighter!
Meanwhile, the three strongest individuals currently in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom were merely at the Saint level.
Of course, the kingdom's history had seen legend level figures, though none
existed in the present era. Even so, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom possessed deep
foundations and undoubtedly had methods to deal with legend level threats.
However, the methods used against the dead could never be compared to those
employed against living legends.
Magician Da Bei invoked his status as an elder of the Alchemy Guild, a pedigree
formidable enough to intimidate most. Yet against the Fire Beard Pirates, it
only invited ridicule.
Shuang Tu Clinic.
Shuang Tu activated an alchemy device, remotely surveying the southern reaches
of Flower Skirt Island.
The faintly visible image showed Qian Xing, tiny as an ant, alongside a
massive, hemispherical magic formation shield.
Shuang Tu's heart was tense.
“According to the latest intelligence, Cai Jing and the others have spent the
longest time ever recorded in the lowest level this time.”
“It's highly likely they've already opened the secret door of inheritance and
obtained what lies within.”
“Sigh. I hope Qian Xing can stir up enough chaos this time for me to seize an
opportunity.”
Qian Xing's arrival was, of course, the result of Shuang Tu's covert
maneuvering.
After leaving Shuang Tu's clinic, Ba Qi vanished completely.
Unable to borrow Ba Qi's strength, Shuang Tu resorted to a desperate measure:
impersonating Ba Qi to seek Qian Xing's aid.
His analysis of Qian Xing proved crucial to the plan's success.
Qian Xing took Ba Qi's plea seriously.
The Fire Beard Pirates was vast and faction ridden. If Qian Xing could use this
to subdue Ba Qi, it would greatly bolster his standing and influence within the
fleet.
Originally, Qian Xing had only intended to visit Flower Skirt Island to search
for clues left by Ba Qi's pirate crew. Unexpectedly, he stumbled upon rumors
concerning the inheritance of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
He was a pirate, after all!
Moreover, this involved the legacy of a legend figure of a level. Perhaps Ba
Qi's disappearance was orchestrated by Cai Jing and his crew.
Thus, Qian Xing acted without hesitation.
“Current developments are unfolding exactly as planned. May the next steps
proceed smoothly as well!”
Shuang Tu closely monitored the standoff's progress.
His primary mission was to seize Fan Sheng Za Zhong's legacy on Flower Skirt
Island.
Unfortunately, his strength was too low, only silver level.
He could only resort to this desperate measure: luring Qian Xing into the fray.
Shuang Tu hoped Qian Xing would defeat Cai Jing and the others, yet also wished
they could hold out as long as possible without suffering a crushing defeat.
Should Cai Jing and the others suffer a crushing defeat, the legacy of Master
Fan Sheng Za Zhong would fall into Qian Xing's hands, making it exponentially
harder for Shuang Tu to claim it.
Thus, this time, Shuang Tu could only gamble on luck, hoping for an opportunity
to arise in the ensuing battle.
Gazing at Qian Xing in the sky, Master Cai Jing was filled with astonishment
and apprehension.
First it was Ba Qi; now it was Qian Xing. He couldn't fathom why he'd drawn the
ire of the Fire Beard Pirates. Keep in mind this was near the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, not the Fire Beard Pirates' usual stomping grounds.
Qian Xing's timing couldn't be more perfect!
It was right after they'd just acquired the inheritance.
This couldn't help but make Master Cai Jing suspect whether there was a mole
within their own ranks. Someone who'd tipped off Qian Xing just in time.
Pondering this line of thought, Master Cai Jing soon realized the likelihood of
a mole among them was quite high. He had recruited a large number of potion
apprentices to accelerate the excavation of the inheritance.
But now, uncovering the mole held little significance!
After all, Qian Xing was already in front of them.
“But we must remain vigilant!” Master Cai Jing immediately instructed Magician
Zhong Bei to enter the underground alchemy laboratory, oversee the potion
apprentices, and lock them all inside their rooms.
Meanwhile, Master Cai Jing joined forces with Magician Da Bei to confront Qian
Xing.
“Lord Qian Xing, you desire the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong... We can
indeed share a portion with you. This is not beyond negotiation.”
“Please understand, we have sacrificed far too much for this legacy.”
“Provided the price is right...”
Master Cai Jing feigned negotiation, seeking to buy time.
Qian Xing snorted coldly: "You wish to negotiate with me? Sure! First, remove
this protective barrier to show your sincerity."
As a seasoned pirate, Qian Xing's aura was overwhelmingly intimidating.
“Absolutely impossible.” Master Cai Jing's face remained impassive as he flatly
refused.
Qian Xing laughed coldly: “Then you're only trying to stall for time!”
With that, he unleashed a saint level battle skill, launching another assault.
The battle skill struck the magic formation's light barrier. The spherical
shield collided with the saint level attack, erupting in a thunderous
explosion.
The potion apprentices screamed within the alchemy lab.
Jars and flasks tumbled from the shelves amid the violent tremors, shattering
into shards of glass.
"Silence! Calm yourselves. We remain safe for now. Anyone who makes a move will
be executed on the spot." Magician Zhong Bei issued a stern warning, his voice
thick with menace.
Spies infiltrating the potion apprentices feigned panic while exchanging subtle
glances.
No one dared to act!
They truly had no choice.
On one hand, this was the meticulously constructed lair of Master Cai Jing.
Numerous defensive measures and magic traps were deployed throughout.
On the other hand, Master Cai Jing's arrangements were impeccable. Though not a
gold level magician, Zhong Bei, as a silver level magician, was more than
capable of firmly suppressing these potion apprentices.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Qian Xing unleashed a barrage of battle skills, battering the light barrier
until it swayed precariously.
Yet it still held firm.
The pride on Qian Xing's face dimmed slightly: “Your formation is quite
interesting.”
Master Cai Jing exhaled a breath of stale air, relaxing slightly.
This was the defensive formation he had meticulously crafted. Not only did it
possess exceptional defensive capabilities, but it also channeled external
attacks along the earth vein, cleverly diverting them away.
When first setting up this formation, Master Cai Jing had been filled with
hesitation. The cost of deploying it was truly exorbitant.
At the time, Master Cai Jing had primarily considered the possibility of Ba Qi
launching a counterattack. To ensure absolute safety, he gritted his teeth and
endured the pain to construct this magic formation.
Now it seemed it was all worth it.
Although Cai Jing was just a gold level magician, he could temporarily resist
Qian Xing through the defensive formation.
Magicians were such transcendents. They could harness external forces,
unleashing power far exceeding their own.
Yet after several rounds of attacks, the formation had drained immense energy.
At least 30% of the elemental crystals Master Cai Jing had embedded within had
been consumed.
Master Cai Jing roughly calculated in his mind: “Each time it withstands an
attack of a saint level, it consumes at least 300 gold coins!”
He was straining his own finances just to barely counter a saint level
powerhouse.
The clash between the two sides generated intense fluctuations, naturally
drawing the attention of others.
“What exactly is happening?” asked Bing Xiao.
The human ringleader replied, "It's Master Cai Jing's side. He's under attack
again. This time, the enemy is even stronger than Ba Qi. He's a saint level
powerhouse, though his identity remains unconfirmed."
Bing Xiao drew in a sharp breath.
Saint level!
This was a pillar of a nation.
The old gang leader's expression grew grave: “So the rumors circulating on
Flower Skirt Island were true after all.”
"Cai Jing and his group were indeed excavating the legacy of Master Fan Sheng
Za Zhong. The previous attack by Ba Qi exposed this secret, thereby attracting
the attention of a saint level entity."
“Recall all our people and prepare for evacuation at any moment!”
This was the temporary stronghold of the Bayonet Gang. Bing Xiao's primary
concern was collateral damage.
If the ongoing clashes between the two sides disrupted this area and plunged it
into chaos, the Bayonet Gang would likely face attacks from those with ulterior
motives.
After all, the Bayonet Gang were outsiders on Flower Skirt Island.  Besides
them, several other silver level factions operated here.
Recently, their efforts to establish roots on the island had already triggered
the vigilance and repeated probing of established powers.
“Understood.” The human ringleader immediately acknowledged the order and
sprang into action.
Spring Boxer wasn't at the gang's base.
He was browsing the black market.
Periodically, Flower Skirt Island hosted a black market trade.
The scale of these transactions was considerable.
Flower Skirt Island was a neutral island near the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. This
location proved highly advantageous, making it a common destination for illicit
dealings.
Thus, goods unavailable in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's legitimate markets were
frequently found in the black market.



****** Chapter 471: Spring Boxer – I am the Future Gang Leader with Dreams!


******
“This silver level leather armor is quite nice.” In the black market, Spring
Boxer was drawn to an item and couldn't help but stop in his tracks.
But when he inquired about the price, his expression turned slightly awkward.
He didn't have enough money on hand, not even half of what the silver level
leather armor cost.
Accompanying him was a burly man with a triangular head and blue skin.
It was Lan Zao.
Seeing Spring Boxer's troubled expression, Lan Zao offered, “How much more do
you need? Perhaps I could lend you some.”
Having survived several wild duels together, the two had built a solid rapport.
Their shared escape had laid the foundation for their friendship.
Of course, ulterior motives played a larger role.
Lan Zao knew his mission was to infiltrate the Bayonet Gang. As one of the
gang's key ringleaders, Spring Boxer was relatively straightforward, an ideal
target to approach.
Spring Boxer, too, sought to cultivate a relationship with Lan Zao. Not long
ago, they had received a reply from the Axe Gang confirming Hen Fa's identity
and background. Bing Xiao had directly assigned the task of recruiting Lan Zao
to Spring Boxer. Lan Zao's recent actions had steadily increased his value as a
recruit.
Spring Boxer himself held considerable admiration for Lan Zao.
Thus, before heading to the black market, he proactively sought out Lan Zao to
invite him along.
Hearing Lan Zao wanted to borrow money from him, Spring Boxer felt somewhat
conflicted.
His invitation to explore the market had been an attempt to find an opportunity
to fund Lan Zao as a gesture of goodwill. Unexpectedly, the situation had
reversed—it was Lan Zao who primarily intended to support him.
“But the fact that he proactively offered to lend me money shows he cares about
me!” Spring Boxer thought to himself.
Spring Boxer had brought a substantial amount of funds this time.
This money was mainly intended to support Lan Zao, not for his own use.
The funds for his personal use weren't enough to purchase this silver level
leather armor.
Unable to voice the real reason, Spring Boxer merely shook his head, “Let's
browse around first. Maybe we'll find something better?”
Noticing Spring Boxer's awkwardness, Lan Zao asked curiously, “You've
participated in several wild duels now. Haven't you earned any money?”
Spring Boxer sighed and spoke plainly, “I already told you before. I joined the
wild duel mainly to earn rare alchemy materials. Our gang desperately needs
them."
Lan Zao's gaze sharpened slightly. He thought to himself: "Desperately needed?
According to Shuang Tu's analysis, these are most likely for the journey to
Tranquil Hill."
Lan Zao asked again, “So, the gang didn't give you a reward? You know how
dangerous the wild duel is!"
Spring Boxer scratched his head, “The old gang leader wanted to reward me, but
I refused. After all, rebuilding the gang requires a lot of funds. If that
money ended up in my hands, I honestly wouldn't know what to do with it.”
Lan Zao looked at Spring Boxer with a peculiar expression. " You truly put the
gang first!"
Spring Boxer let out an “Ah” with a peculiar expression. He opened his mouth to
explain but ultimately held back.
In truth, after Bing Xiao declared Spring Boxer as the next leader, his
perspective on the gang had shifted considerably. As the future leader, he now
prioritized the gang's growth over his personal ambitions.
Spring Boxer himself didn't harbor an overly intense thirst for power; his
motivation stemmed more from carrying on Teng Dong Lang's legacy.
"So, maybe Shuang Tu's analysis is right. This guy is likely to be the next
leader of the Bayonet Gang!" Lan Zao thought to himself.
Shuang Tu's assistance to Lan Zao extended beyond cultivating his combat
prowess; he also subtly honed Lan Zao's intelligence-gathering skills during
daily routines.
Shuang Tu shared extensive intelligence and his own assessments of the Bayonet
Gang with Lan Zao, helping him gain a more accurate grasp of the gang's
operations.
The conjecture that Spring Boxer would become the next leader of the Bayonet
Gang wasn't difficult to deduce.
Shuang Tu knew Spring Boxer was Teng Dong Lang's coffin bearer, the most
explicit connection. Bing Xiao, handling gang affairs these days, had also
consciously promoted and trained Spring Boxer in many areas, a clear
cultivation strategy.
"Keep browsing. We might find cheaper leather armor elsewhere." Spring Boxer
led the way.
Lan Zao followed at a leisurely pace.
Soon, Lan Zao lingered at a stall, showing keen interest in a particular
alchemy item.
It was none other than the alchemy projectile core.
“Who knew there'd be alchemy ammunition that pairs so perfectly with the Air
Cannon!” Spring Boxer strongly urged Lan Zao to purchase them.
The vendor explained, "This isn't just for pairing with the Air Cannon. In
fact, this core can be assembled into any shell casing. On the battlefield, it
allows flexible allocation of ammunition to counter the enemy. What do you
think? Would you like to buy some, sir?"
The vendor pitched to Spring Boxer with practiced ease.
This was actually Shuang Tu's arrangement.
Lan Zao purchasing it here would perfectly explain the origin of the alchemy
warheads in his possession.
Spring Boxer had invited Lan Zao to the black market himself, an opportunity
Lan Zao couldn't have asked for. Now, Spring Boxer was his best witness.
Spring Boxer shook his head, “I don't need these tools.”
He still wanted to recruit Lan Zao. Competing with him for purchases now would
only ruin their friendship.
Spring Boxer asked again, "So, how about it, Hen Fa? Got enough cash? I don't
have enough to buy a silver level leather armor myself, but I can definitely
chip in for you."
Lan Zao shook his head, “Thanks, but I've got enough.”
Spring Boxer felt a pang of regret at missing this chance to extend goodwill to
Lan Zao.
“You really are lucky. I'm looking forward to seeing you use that Air Cannon
battle skill in the duels.” Spring Boxer expressed his envy.
“Let's keep browsing. Maybe we'll find other good stuff.”
The black market was vast; they'd only covered a third of it so far. Spring
Boxer sought another chance to sponsor Lan Zao.
Lan Zao's primary goal for this trip had been achieved. Seeing Spring Boxer's
behavior, a sudden thought struck him: Could it be as Shuang Tu had speculated?
Was Spring Boxer trying to sponsor me to curry favor, building goodwill to
recruit me again later?
He wasn't Cang Xu, nor was he as sharp-witted as Zi Di. It took him this long
to grasp the implication.
His mood grew slightly peculiar.
He desperately wanted to blurt out to Spring Boxer: “Hurry up and recruit me!
I'd join the Bayonet Gang right now and head to Tranquil Hill with you!”
But Lan Zao knew rushing this matter was unwise. He forced himself to suppress
his strange feelings.
Rumble...
Just as the two were about to move forward, the entire underground space
suddenly shook violently.
The black market was located within an underground cavern.
A torrent of debris rained down from above.
Chaos erupted throughout the black market.
The enforcement squad sprang into action, bellowing commands as they scrambled
to restore order.
Fortunately, the tremor came and went swiftly, and the cavern soon settled back
into silence.
“What on earth just happened?” The crowd was understandably unsettled.
A silver level enforcer stepped forward, loudly reassuring everyone that it was
merely a normal crustal tremor.
The black market transactions continued uninterrupted.
Some, however, felt uneasy and ventured outside to the surface.
Lan Zao and Spring Boxer were among them.
Those around them were discussing the situation.
“There's a battle happening!”
“That direction... isn't that where Master Cai Jing's alchemy lab is?”
"Could it be that Ba Qi has returned? We haven't heard anything about the
Heroism Pirates."
"Wait, this aura?"
The crowd was stunned.
Qian Xing's saint level aura spread out with his attack. Even here in the black
market, it could still be sensed.
Spring Boxer and Lan Zao's faces also showed shock.
Saint level!
This was an absolute heavyweight.
Spring Boxer gazed toward the battle's epicenter and sighed deeply, “Seems the
rumors about Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's legacy aren't false after all. Even a
saint level being has been drawn here. Master Cai Jing is truly formidable, to
withstand a saint level fighter!”
Lan Zao replied, "He's a gold level magician, the next highest level below
saint level. Don't forget, the Alchemy Guild's Da Bei has joined his side too."
This news had already spread across Flower Skirt Island and been confirmed.
Lan Zao's eyes flickered as he thought to himself: "My bloodline has been
purified, I'm certain to reach silver level someday. But that's still only
silver level. Gold level, saint level... Only figures like our commander can
reach such levels."
At this thought, Lan Zao's expression grew somewhat complicated. He said to
Spring Boxer, "Clashes between such powerful figures are not something we can
get involved in. Even spectating carries life-threatening risks. We'd be better
off returning to the black market. Finding suitable gear is far more practical
than lingering here in speculation."
Spring Boxer nodded in agreement, finding Lan Zao's reasoning sound.
The legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong was undoubtedly valuable, but they had
no place in it. In this saga, gold level and saint level were the protagonists.
Spring Boxer and his companions didn't even qualify to take the stage.
At their level, they could only look up in awe. This battle would be a rare,
spectacular moment in their lives, something to reminisce about in old age or
brag about to others when bored.
In truth, they merely caught a distant glimpse from afar. The actual battle
scenes would only reach them through hearsay afterward.
The two descended back into the underground cavern.
Soon after, Lan Zao stopped at a stall.
The air was thick with the pungent stench of fish.
The vendor was a fishmonger, specializing in magic beast sea creatures.
He warmly welcomed Lan Zao and Spring Boxer.
After several wild duels, the pair had gained some notoriety within the circle
of transcendents on Flower Skirt Island.
Lan Zao was a dark horse who had emerged unexpectedly, his physique and
appearance both highly distinctive.
Spring Boxer was a silver level.
Such a transcendent was already considered elite in most circles. In the vast
majority of cases. The strongest individuals they encountered in daily life
were of this level.
Compared to silver level beings, gold level powerhouses were far fewer in
number.
Let alone saint level beings.
The emergence of figures like Master Cai Jing, Magician Da Bei, Ba Qi, and Qian
Xing on Flower Skirt Island was purely due to the legacy of Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
Under normal circumstances, a neutral island like Flower Skirt Island wouldn't
even warrant a permanent gold level presence.
Lan Zao showed no interest in the dead fish being sold. His daily supply of
magic beast meat came from Shuang Tu. Not only did Shuang Tu provide ample
food, but they also specially designed nutritionally balanced side dishes for
Lan Zao.
Most crucially, Lan Zao didn't have to pay!
Lan Zao showed no interest in either live or dead fish. Pointing at a net piled
high with dead fish, he asked, “How much for this gear?”
“Lord Hen Fa, this is my livelihood, I have no intention of selling it,”
replied the vendor.
It was an iron level piece of equipment.
Lan Zao, hailing from a fishing village, had spent years making his living at
sea and was a master net-caster himself.
He showed keen interest in the net: "If I'm not mistaken, this is an elastic
black silk fishing net. My offer already exceeds the market price by nearly
double. What do you say?"
The vendor was swayed, but after hesitating, he ultimately shook his head.
Seeing this, Spring Boxer stepped in to help Lan Zao, offering to fund the
purchase and driving the price up once more.
But the vendor had made up his mind—he refused to budge.
His reasoning was understandable. This was his livelihood, the gear he depended
on to survive. Selling it meant he'd struggle to find a suitable replacement
anytime soon.
This would severely impact his fishing efficiency. While selling it could bring
in a profit, failing to find a suitable replacement could delay his fishing
later and actually lead to losses.
Spring Boxer shook his head helplessly.
Lan Zao could only leave with regret.
On the way, he curiously asked Spring Boxer, " If I joined your gang, could we
snatch it from him?"
Spring Boxer immediately looked troubled: “Well...”
After a moment's thought, he decided to be honest: “The Bayonet Gang is indeed
a gang. Robbery and bullying? We've done our share of that.”
“But I don't participate.”
“You might not know this, but I once served in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's
regular army.”
"Even though I'm a gang member now, I have my own principles. I hope you won't
do this either."
“Truth is, once you start down certain paths, it's hard to turn back.”
“You might think I'm hypocritical, a gang member holding onto such principles
seems ridiculous.”
“But I feel better sticking to them.”
Lan Zao quietly studied Spring Boxer.
He could sense the sincerity radiating from Spring Boxer.
Combined with Lan Zao's intelligence, he was certain Spring Boxer wasn't
lying—this was genuinely his nature!
“Military life forged his foundation and character. Even after falling into
gang life, he hasn't lost his integrity.”
In this regard, Lan Zao held great respect for Spring Boxer.
For in Spring Boxer, he saw the reflection of his own commander.
“Our commander is that kind of man too.”
Spring Boxer had been tense, but after speaking honestly, his mood settled.
Lan Zao chuckled, breaking the silence between them, “Lord Spring Boxer, you've
truly made me look at you with new respect.”
Spring Boxer smiled back, his words equally heartfelt, “It means so much that
you understand me.”
He had thoroughly investigated Hen Fa and knew that in the past, Hen Fa had
served as a bodyguard and had no record of any criminal offenses. The so-called
crime was merely an act of forced self-defense, an accidental killing driven by
anger.
Spring Boxer surveyed the numerous vendors in the black market: “Let me put it
this way, if I ever lead the Bayonet Gang, I'll uphold order here, collect
protection fees from them, rather than oppressing them with my gang.”
“I believe you, Lord Spring Boxer,” Lan Zao affirmed.
But at that very moment, the black market shook violently once more.
This tremor was far more intense than before. A massive section of the ceiling
collapsed, crashing down.
Countless fragments rained overhead, dust billowing as the enforcement squad
descended into chaos, utterly unable to maintain control.
Panicked crowds scattered in all directions, rushing toward the exits to escape
to the surface.
Amidst this chaos, a group suddenly defied the flow, running downward and
bursting into the black market.
At their head stood none other than Xiong Ju!
Xiong Ju spotted Spring Boxer immediately and bellowed at him, "Quick!
Someone's selling mithril in the black market. We need it urgently; we must
seize it!"
Lan Zao: ?
Spring Boxer: ??!!
Xiong Ju bellowed again, "What are you standing around for? This is the old
gang leader's serious order, it must be carried out immediately!"
Spring Boxer's expression darkened. Bing Xiao knew him well yet issued this
order. Had something changed?
Gang affairs took precedence over personal convictions.
Without hesitation, he turned and sprinted, shouting, “Follow me! I know where
the mithril stall is!”



****** Chapter 472: Lan Zao – Joining the Bayonet Gang Again ******
Chaos erupted in the black market.
Unlike last time, the tremors not only failed to subside but grew increasingly
violent.
Boulders and pebbles of all sizes rained down relentlessly from above.
Casualties were mounting rapidly.
Some vendors were crushed to death, their merchandise now up for the taking.
Many seized the opportunity to act.
What began as scattered looting spread like sparks igniting oil, a wildfire
consuming human greed.
More and more joined the stampede!
A horrific man-made disaster unfolded.
The enforcement squad, tasked with maintaining order, shouted themselves hoarse
and intervened repeatedly, still clinging to the futile hope of restoring order
to the black market.
The leader of the faction controlling this section of the black market, a
silver level fighter, was forced to step forward. He acted decisively,
instantly slaying two iron level looters.
This restored order around him, but the overall chaos remained beyond
containment.
“Get out of my way!” Xiong Ju charged forward, his aura fierce.
“Step aside if you value your life,” Spring Boxer followed closely at his side.
The two silver levels charged forward, leaving no one standing in their path.
“Lord, look over there!” an enforcement officer alerted his leader.
But the silver level fighter merely glanced in that direction before
immediately shifting his gaze. He then directed the enforcement squad to begin
their redeployment, moving to suppress a nearby chaotic zone.
Across Flower Skirt Island, aside from masters of gold level like Master Cai
Jing, the leaders of all factions were silver level.
Xiong Ju and Spring Boxer teamed up, while the black market had only one silver
level fighter in charge. He wisely chose to turn a blind eye.
The shop dealing in mithril was one of the larger establishments in the black
market. When they saw Xiong Ju, Spring Boxer, and the others charging in, their
faces drained of color.
Yet they didn't simply give up resistance. The shopkeeper bellowed orders to
his staff, directing each to grab a batch of goods and flee separately.
“Leave the stuff behind!” Spring Boxer shouted in panic.
“Don't run! Whoever flees dies!” Xiong Ju's eyes blazed with fury as his roar
thundered.
The shop's response severely disrupted their robbery. Under these
circumstances, it was nearly impossible to identify who had taken the mithril.
Xiong Ju and Spring Boxer were forced to split up, intercepting the fleeing
shop assistants separately.
Once intercepted, the shopkeepers wisely abandoned their cargo, hurling it far
in another direction. This tactic lured the Bayonet Gang members to retrieve
it, buying the shopkeepers precious escape time.
The Bayonet Gang seized multiple shopkeepers and intercepted numerous items,
yet the mithril remained elusive.
Xiong Ju charged into the shop like a starving grizzly bear.
Spring Boxer climbed high to survey the area, shouting orders for his men to
intercept any stragglers he spotted.
Lan Zao watched the entire scene unfold, hesitating over whether to join the
Bayonet Gang's operation.
Truthfully, robbery was something Lan Zao had never engaged in before.
Though born into poverty and having served as a merchant ship's boatswain for
years, he had no history of plundering others.
“To complete the task the commander assigned me, I must infiltrate the Bayonet
Gang and join their ranks.”
“Now seems like the perfect opportunity. But won't joining their operation
arouse suspicion?”
Lan Zao had never robbed before, but to swiftly complete the task the commander
had entrusted him with, he was willing to push beyond his limits.
The problem was, Lan Zao had no experience acting as a spy. This made him
hesitant when it came to making critical decisions at crucial moments.
He didn't know how to choose, lacked confidence in taking action, and was
deeply worried about things going wrong.
Just as he wavered, someone quietly approached him, hiding in a shadowy corner.
Through the alchemy device, they whispered urgently: "Hen Fa, what are you
standing around for? Hurry up and join them for the robbery!"
Lan Zao whipped his head around to see the reminder was none other than the
vendor who’d sold him the alchemy projectile cores earlier.
He recognized the vendor's identity - a member of Shuang Tu's group.
The vendor grew anxious upon seeing him turn: “You fool! Don't look back at
me!”
Lan Zao immediately averted his gaze, gritted his teeth, and prepared to dash
toward the shop.
The vendor whispered urgently: "Don't go straight there. You're on the outer
perimeter now. Several shop assistants from that stall are running toward our
direction. Go intercept them and rob the goods they're carrying. You might just
find something the Bayonet Gang wants!"
With the warning, Lan Zao sprang into action.
The shop assistants who got intercepted were already panicking. Seeing Lan Zao
suddenly appear, they trembled violently, as if struck by lightning.
Lan Zao actually didn't want to get blood on his hands over a robbery. So he
shouted in the name of the Bayonet Gang: “Leave the goods for the Bayonet
Gang!”
The clerks, intimidated by his bluff, genuinely believed Lan Zao was part of
the Bayonet Gang. With no thought of resistance, they dropped the goods and
fled in panic.
They were just ordinary shop clerks, earning meager wages. There was no reason
to risk their lives for the shopkeeper's merchandise.
Lan Zao thus easily seized the items from the three clerks.
Luck was on his side, among the loot was the very mithril the Bayonet Gang
desperately needed!
Xiong Ju ransacked the shop but found nothing. Spring Boxer, however, spotted
Lan Zao seizing the mithril and rushed over immediately.
“Hen Fa!” Spring Boxer shouted, “That mithril in your hands is exactly what
we're after.”
“Here!” Lan Zao didn't hesitate, tossing the pile of mithril straight to Spring
Boxer.
Spring Boxer hurriedly thanked him, his face flushing with embarrassment.
Not long ago, he had just explained his vision for governing the gang to Lan
Zao. Now, in the blink of an eye, he was leading a robbery, making his earlier
words seem like utter nonsense.
Xiong Ju arrived just then, catching Lan Zao tossing the mithril to Spring
Boxer. He burst out laughing, "Hen Fa, well done. Bringing you out of Snow Bird
Harbor was worth it after all."
Xiong Ju recognized Lan Zao too.
Lan Zao shrugged. "We're all friends here. A chance like this to strike it rich
doesn't come often. We can keep working together!"
This was an unusually eloquent moment for Lan Zao.
His single sentence perfectly encapsulated his actions.
Shuang Tu would likely have been pleased to hear it. This was the fruit of his
earlier efforts in secretly cultivating Lan Zao.
“Hen Fa, you...” Spring Boxer started, then trailed off. He desperately wanted
to persuade Lan Zao, but knew his own recent behavior left him no standing to
do so.
Xiong Ju shook his head: “We have urgent business to attend to. We must get
back immediately.”
Lan Zao froze.
His experience in undercover work was woefully lacking.
For a moment, he didn't know how to respond.
Lan Zao desperately wanted to join the Bayonet Gang right then and there.
But in the end, he sighed: "That’s truly unfortunate. I’ll be off to attend to
my business."
Lan Zao was about to part ways to rob other places—that was his most natural
course of action.
But Spring Boxer stopped him: "Don’t go operating alone anymore. Our activities
have long been under the watchful eye of the black market administrator. Only
our formidable strength has kept him hesitant to act."
"They likely suspect you're part of our group. If you go it alone now, they'll
almost certainly come after you."
Spring Boxer didn't want to see Lan Zao continue his robberies. Before this, he
had admired Lan Zao. In a way, he didn't want to see him “fall” like this.
Still, Spring Boxer's reasoning made sense.
The silver level black market administrator had already suppressed two
territories, yet he never took his eyes off the Bayonet Gang members.
Lan Zao froze again.
He couldn't help but glance at Spring Boxer, feeling a surge of surprise and
delight.
He hadn't expected Spring Boxer to speak up at this critical moment. This
provided Lan Zao with a perfectly suitable justification to continue aligning
himself with the Bayonet Gang.
“Spring Boxer is a real good guy!” he thought to himself, nodding, “Alright,
I'll go with you.”
When Spring Boxer persuaded Lan Zao, he didn’t feel very confident. But hearing
him agree brought immediate relief.
Spring Boxer felt he hadn't misjudged the man and was also glad he'd
successfully prevented someone from falling into ruin.
He walked up to Lan Zao and excitedly slapped the latter on the shoulder: “Stay
close to me!”
Lan Zao joined the Bayonet Gang members and turned to leave the black market.
Braving the relentless rain of falling rocks and stepping on precariously
swaying floor tiles, the group quickly reached the exit.
They saw the staircase leading to the surface had already collapsed halfway.
Amidst a pile of rubble lay the body of a transcendent.
Lan Zao recognized the man, it was the vendor from the fish stall earlier.
He had once tried to buy the elastic black silk fishing net, only to be
rejected.
His eyes lit up. He quickly jogged over, bent down, and retrieved a bundle of
black fishing net from the vendor's waist.
“Who'd have thought there'd be a bonus!” Lan Zao laughed heartily, genuinely
pleased.
Spring Boxer glanced at him without saying much.
“Boss, the Bayonet Gang guys all got out,” a subordinate reported.
Truthfully, he didn't need the report. The black market administrator had kept
his attention fixed on Spring Boxer and his crew the entire time.
His face darkened as he stared toward the exit, "Bayonet Gang... Don't think
you can just grab the goods and run. This isn't over!"
He hadn't moved against the Bayonet Gang members earlier only because his
forces were outnumbered.
That didn't mean he'd simply abandon his pursuit of them.
The Bayonet Gang's actions had severely disrupted the order of Flower Skirt
Island and threatened his interests!
His side might be outmatched, but he could easily rally other factions to unite
against the Bayonet Gang.
The Bayonet Gang's establishment of temporary strongholds across Flower Skirt
Island had already raised the vigilance of nearly every silver level faction.
Now, its members were exploiting chaos to loot the black market. Such egregious
behavior constituted a grave provocation to Flower Skirt Island's other powers.
The black market administrator held the moral high ground. Even silver level
factions untouched by the incident would grow deeply wary and anxious, They
feared becoming the next victims.
Thus, the black market administrator had long resolved to unite with other
factions afterward to confront the Bayonet Gang. Only by eliminating every last
one of these damned scoundrels could he vent his fury and hatred!



****** Chapter 473: Cang Xu – I Still Have One Small Final Wish ******
The Bayonet Gang members quickly scrambled to the ground.
Spring Boxer and Lan Zao were astonished to find that the ground outside the
black market showed no signs of severe damage, it seemed the earthquake had
been confined solely within the black market.
“Strange. What exactly happened?”
“Did someone deliberately destroy the black market?”
Xiong Ju shook his head. "No, that's not it. The stronghold over there was
destroyed too. Let's hurry back. The boss and the others need us to return
immediately."
The group sprinted at full speed and soon reached the stronghold.
All the buildings near the stronghold had collapsed, turning the area into a
vast expanse of rubble. The casualties were horrific, with countless people
buried beneath the debris.
The scale of destruction far exceeded that of the black market, and the Bayonet
Gang's temporary base lay buried within it.
Bing Xiao and the human ringleader had remained behind at the base.
Bing Xiao's expression was grim.
The moment he sensed the battle between Qian Xing and Master Cai Jing; he
immediately ordered all personnel to withdraw and fortify the base defensively.
Bing Xiao feared this battle would trigger island-wide turmoil. Amidst the
chaos, opportunists might exploit the situation to raid the Bayonet Gang's
temporary stronghold.
This was their sole remaining base.
As the veteran old gang leader, Bing Xiao understood the Bayonet Gang's
precarious position on Flower Skirt Island.
The existing silver level factions had already carved up the island. The
Bayonet Gang was an outsider, and the arrival of several silver level members
had severely disrupted the established order.
The Bayonet Gang had not truly integrated into Flower Skirt Island. To achieve
genuine integration, the gang would inevitably face a baptism of blood and
fire, needing to displace the existing powers to secure their position.
Therefore, Bing Xiao's order was exceptionally prudent.
He deeply feared that amidst the chaos, rival factions might unite to target
the Bayonet Gang, disguising themselves as rioters to assault their stronghold.
The stronghold itself seemed insignificant, even if overrun, the Bayonet Gang
could easily relocate to another temporary base.
Yet, in Bing Xiao's view, this stronghold was not to be lost lightly.
Three primary reasons justified this stance.
First, the basement housed the Bayonet Gang's funds, vast cultivation
resources, weaponry, and equipment. Most crucially, it contained the ice coffin
holding Teng Dong Lang's corpse.
Second, the Gang members had fled from Snow Bird Harbor. Despite recuperating,
their morale remained low. Should they fail to defend even their sole
stronghold on a place like Flower Skirt Island, it would deal a severe blow to
their morale. For the current Bayonet Gang, this would be adding insult to
injury.
Third, Bing Xiao desired the Bayonet Gang to establish a foothold on Flower
Skirt Island. Failing to hold their only stronghold would project an image of
weakness and vulnerability to other factions. Establishing a foothold later
would demand greater sacrifices and bloodshed.
Bing Xiao's proactive decision to contract defenses demonstrated foresight and
seasoned prudence.
Yet he never anticipated the stronghold itself would face such devastating
impact. The earthquake struck with sudden, earth-shaking ferocity!
Buildings collapsed without exception, and the once level ground became uneven
and scarred.
Within the Bayonet Gang's temporary stronghold, a rudimentary protective
formation had been established, offering some degree of defense. Yet under such
overwhelming force, this defense proved as flimsy as paper, utterly useless.
Most critically, the ice coffin hidden in the basement was also damaged.
A corner of the ice coffin shattered, nearly severing Teng Dong Lang's lower
leg from his knee.
This turn of events pushed Bing Xiao to the edge of a cliff.
His journey to Tranquil Hill hinged on Teng Dong Lang's body remaining intact.
When he had retrieved the corpse from Snow Bird Harbor, he had been immensely
relieved to find it undamaged.
"Teng Dong Lang's body has been damaged. Time is running out for me. The only
path left is to reach Tranquil Hill as quickly as possible!"
Cruel reality had severely disrupted Bing Xiao's plans.
He had no choice but to accelerate everything, pushing forward with the
Tranquil Hill operation at all costs.
Fortunately, during his time on Flower Skirt Island, his primary focus had been
advancing this very plan.
Through wild duels, he had gathered most of the materials.
The only remaining key ingredient was mithril.
Thus, the entire plan was already nearing its final stage.
However, Bing Xiao required a substantial quantity of mithril, a rare metal
that proved difficult to acquire through conventional channels.
Bing Xiao had previously discovered that large quantities of mithril were being
sold on the black market. Unfortunately, the gang's funds were insufficient to
purchase the amount he needed.
Mithril was prohibitively expensive.
Thus, Bing Xiao reluctantly ordered Xiong Ju to raid the black market and seize
sufficient quantities by force.
“May their mission succeed,” Bing Xiao silently prayed, weighed down by
pressure. "Otherwise, everything will be irreversibly lost. All our prior
efforts will be for naught."
Spring Boxer, Xiong Ju, and the others returned with ample mithril, finally
easing Bing Xiao's worries.
“Well done!” Bing Xiao praised.
Xiong Ju pointed at Lan Zao: “We also owe it to Hen Fa. He was the one who
intercepted the shop assistant fleeing with the mithril.”
Bing Xiao smiled and nodded at Lan Zao.
Lan Zao chuckled. "I was just trying to get rich; I happened to snatch the
mithril by accident. Since that's the case, I'll be on my way."
A flicker of concern crossed Spring Boxer's face, but he couldn't stop Lan Zao
from leaving. He could only caution, "Then you'd better be careful lately.
After all, they might mistake you for one of the Bayonet Gang."
Hearing this, Bing Xiao's heart stirred.
A seasoned veteran, he immediately blocked Lan Zao's path: “Hen Fa, don't rush
off. You helped us this time, we can't let you face danger alone. You came to
the island with us, and now you've helped seize the mithril. To others, you're
clearly one of us!”
“If you leave alone now, they might not come after us immediately, but they'll
definitely target you first. Though your strength has grown rapidly, you're
still only iron level and alone. You'd be easy prey for ambushes and traps.”
“Here's what we'll do: stay with us for now. Once this chaos passes and their
suspicions fade, you can act freely again. This is the safest course.”
"You've had it rough. Luckily, you've awakened your bloodline. Don't get
overconfident and doom yourself. Your future is still bright. The view from the
silver level is far prettier than iron!"
Bing Xiao delivered a heartfelt speech.
His real goal was to keep Lan Zao firmly within the Bayonet Gang.
Now was the perfect opportunity!
His words held genuine merit, not mere empty flattery.
By openly raiding the black market, the Bayonet Gang had crossed a major line.
They were bound to face joint accountability from other silver level factions.
The Bayonet Gang had long been a thorn in the side of every power on Flower
Skirt Island.
After all, boasting multiple silver level members, their formidable strength
inspired fear and envy.
Their latest act constituted a severe provocation against Flower Skirt Island's
established order.
The island's silver level factions were known for their cooperative nature.
Faced with such a formidable adversary as the Bayonet Gang, they would
undoubtedly unite to confront them.
Lan Zao had already intended to stay and join the Bayonet Gang. After hearing
Bing Xiao's words, he furrowed his brow, deep in thought. Then, he finally
nodded.
Bing Xiao patted Lan Zao on the shoulder, settling him in. He then ordered
Xiong Ju, the human ringleader, and others to defend the perimeter of their
stronghold.
Only then did he enter the basement, accompanied solely by Spring Boxer.
Upon entering the basement, Spring Boxer gasped and hurried to the damaged ice
coffin.
In Spring Boxer's heart, Teng Dong Lang was like a second father. The latter
had always shown him immense care and spared no effort in nurturing his growth.
The sight of Teng Dong Lang's damaged body filled Spring Boxer's face with
profound sorrow.
“Alright, kid, now's not the time to wallow in sorrow,” Bing Xiao reminded him,
“We need to hurry.”
"Now, do exactly as I say. Watch every step I take carefully and do your
absolute best to commit them to memory. You'll likely need them yourself
someday," Bing Xiao instructed.
Bing Xiao began processing the various alchemy materials stored in the
basement.
Spring Boxer immediately noticed that Bing Xiao was primarily using the rare
materials he had won from the wild duel.
Spring Boxer couldn't help but feel curious. While arranging the materials as
Bing Xiao instructed, he asked him the reason for this action.
Without turning his head, Bing Xiao replied while working: “This way, we can go
to Tranquil Hill.”
"Go to Tranquil Hill? With these?" Spring Boxer was utterly surprised.
He had always assumed they would leave Flower Skirt Island by ship, gradually
approaching Tranquil Hill.
“Old gang leader, are we building a teleportation formation?” Spring Boxer
asked again.
"Of course not! I'm no magician, just a fighter. We're setting up a priest's
ritual."
"A ritual? What kind of ritual could transport us directly to Tranquil Hill?"
“A special ritual, naturally! I can't explain the details clearly, but you'll
understand once you experience it." Bing Xiao stated.
While Spring Boxer and Bing Xiao prepared for the special ritual with intense
anticipation, far away in the depths of the ocean near the Mother Nest, another
group faced their own unique ritual.
The difference was that this group's mood was utterly dreadful.
Zhou Zhang observed the necromancers with keen interest as she delivered her
ultimatum: “The next ritual is the teleportation blood sacrifice. Have you
selected your first candidate?”
The undead, led by Jian Gui, wore expressions so grim they were frightening.
Their gazes instinctively converged on Cang Xu.
Cang Xu's expression was grim. He closed his eyes slightly before slowly
opening them again. He looked at Zhou Zhang, his voice hoarse and strained as
he said, “It will be me.”
“Hehehe, I hope you succeed in converting!” Zhou Zhang chuckled for a moment
before strolling away leisurely.
Dead silence fell over the shack.
“Everyone... please be at ease,” Cang Xu opened his mouth, his face bitter.
"According to our agreement, I'm the one with the slowest progress. I won't go
back on my word. I'll be the first to participate in the blood sacrifice."
Xiao Wang Zi turned his head away, unable to bear the sight.
Qi Ling averted her gaze.
Ku Feng, however, gazed steadily at Cang Xu and declared, “I will be the
second.”
This was certain.
As a fighter, his progress in forging memories could never match that of Xiao
Wang Zi or Qi Ling.
And after Cang Xu, Xiao Wang Zi and Qi Ling would certainly not aid him
further.
The reason was simple.
Xiao Wang Zi was already struggling to keep up, compelled to devote all his
efforts to competing with Qi Ling.
As for Qi Ling, determined to hold onto her position, how could she possibly
spare the energy and time to aid Ku Feng?
Cang Xu nodded.
After everyone had departed, he returned alone to the shack to see Jian Gui.
“I never imagined death would feel like this,” Cang Xu's opening words drew a
deep sigh from Jian Gui.
“What is it like?” Jian Gui inquired.
“Helplessness, despair... yet perhaps because I anticipated it, I remain
strangely calm,” Cang Xu replied, his expression complex.
Jian Gui gazed at him, certain lingering concerns gradually dissipating.
Facing death, Cang Xu might trade the secret of fabricating memories to Zhou
Zhang for a sliver of survival.
Jian Gui had always guarded against this possibility.
“You may not die,” Jian Gui offered reassurance, “there is still hope.”
“Convert my faith?” Cang Xu smiled faintly, “Perhaps.”
“Lord Jian Gui, before I die, I have one small wish.”
“Speak.” Jian Gui sensed what was coming.
Sure enough, Cang Xu's request matched his expectations.
At life's end, Cang Xu wished to peruse the soul aspect inheritance.
“Especially that spell for detecting undead bloodlines...”
"Lord Jian Gui, forgive my audacity. Though my bloodline mutation remains
incomplete, it has indeed reached its final stage. I am truly curious, what
exactly is my undead bloodline?"
“Though I lack your ability to break through the seals of divine spells and
magic spells for fleeting freedom...”
“Even in death, I wish to carry these memories with me.”
“Perhaps this is the lingering regret of my life, my sole regret before dying.”
"Or perhaps I truly can convert successfully. Upon my return, these spells
would be my reward for enduring such peril. Lord Jian Gui, I know this is
presumptuous, but would you grant me these blessings?"
Jian Gui sighed again.
Facing imminent death, Cang Xu's boldness no longer seemed presumptuous, it
felt entirely justified.
Most crucially, his words struck a deep chord within Jian Gui.
For the predicament Cang Xu now faced, Jian Gui would inevitably face it too!
The present Cang Xu was the future Jian Gui.
In truth, even with fabricated memories, Jian Gui lacked the confidence to
escape unscathed. Facing such precarious danger, he willingly set aside some of
his steadfast principles to accept this pitiful old man's “audacity.”
After all, he had already compromised his principles before.
With the first compromise, the second came far easier.
Moreover, Jian Gui also wished to stabilize Cang Xu, ensuring the latter
maintained the secret of the fabricated memories as much as possible. Though he
could kill Cang Xu, it was best not to risk arousing Zhou Zhang's suspicion
over it.
“Very well. I shall impart to you the entirety of the intermediate soul aspect
inheritance.”
“Xu Jia, I am truly sorry.”
Jian Gui bowed his head to Cang Xu with utmost sincerity, performing a
magician's salute.
Moments later, Cang Xu departed Jian Gui's hut with satisfaction.
“All my goals have been accomplished.”
“I never imagined it would happen under these circumstances, heh.”
“Now, I'm truly looking forward to meeting up with the commander.”
Cang Xu gazed distantly toward the golden altar, where vast numbers of sea
beasts had been driven together. An eager anticipation welled up within him,
yearning to reunite with the dragonman youngster once more.



****** Chapter 474: The Fishman Youngster and Cang Xu Converge ******
White Hair Trench.
Deep beneath the ocean.
A colossal magic formation had activated, emitting a faint hum.
Countless magic runes and divine inscriptions intertwined, illuminating the
seabed like a brightly lit city.
The radiance fell upon every face of the Charming Blue believers, highlighting
expressions ranging from devout reverence to fanatical fervor, even bordering
on grotesque.
The necromancers stood out starkly from the crowd.
Their expressions were uniformly grave and somber, tinged with an unmistakable
layer of fear.
Similar sentiments were shared by pirates like Ba Qi, Lady Sea Snake, and Ruan
Tang Ren.
Qing Xin stood beside the pirates yet maintained a certain distance.
Her face was deathly pale.
Though captured alongside the necromancers, upon imprisonment she had been
assigned to the human pirates' section.
Zhou Zhang employed the same strategy with these human pirates as she had with
the necromancers.
Under the leadership of Jian Gui, the necromancers adopted a relatively fair
policy, ultimately selecting Cang Xu as their first offering.
Among the human pirates, however, no such arrangement existed.
Qing Xin had no ties to these men. Unquestionably, she became the first to be
selected.
Her only solace was that Zhou Zhang had designated Cang Xu alone for this
special blood sacrifice, allowing the other captives to observe.
“After Xu Jia, the next captive to participate in the teleportation blood
sacrifice will be me.” This thought weighed heavily on Qing Xin's heart,
filling her with utter despair.
Truthfully, her recent experiences had been truly miserable.
Originally, Zi Di had summoned Qing Xin back to her side with genuine
intentions to aid her and unite their forces.
However, the identity Zi Di revealed to Qing Xin had little connection to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, in fact, relations were rather strained.
Zi Di feared the survivors' secrets might be exposed, making it inconvenient to
disclose her affiliation with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to Qing Xin just
yet.
Until Qing Xin proved trustworthy, she could only delay.
This delay stretched until Qing Xin and Cang Xu joined Jian Gui.
It stretched until the battle at the Underworld River.
It stretched until the clash with Ba Qi Pirates, culminating in her capture by
Zhou Zhang.
Now, Qing Xin sat imprisoned, converting being her only chance of escape.
It should be noted that Qing Xin was not merely a transcendent, but also a
silver level magician. In a place like Flower Skirt Island, she could have
carved out her own domain and led a minor faction.
But here, under Zhou Zhang's watchful eye, she could only struggle on the brink
of life and death, utterly stripped of freedom and hope.
The blood sacrifice was underway.
Countless sea beasts vanished into nothingness upon the golden altar.
Carefully selected believers knelt in a large circle around the golden altar.
Some trembled slightly, praying aloud. Others wore expressions of sheer
tension—after all, this was a matter of life and death. Yet a few remained calm
and composed.
Cang Xu was among them.
He was so distinct that countless eyes were fixed upon him.
“Looks like this utterly wretched necromancer is the first one they've
discarded.”
“He's as good as dead!”
“Don't underestimate him. Perhaps he'll convert successfully.”
“Even if he does convert, I wouldn't want a necromancer as one of our
faithful.”
The Charming Blue believers whispered among themselves.
“Xu Jia...” Xiao Wang Zi murmured, watching Cang Xu's retreating figure with
deep remorse.
Standing beside him was Ku Feng. The necromancer warrior felt no guilt
whatsoever, yet he admired Cang Xu's composure immensely.
Cang Xu's expression remained impassive, his composed demeanor radiating
outward so distinctly it seemed he'd never participated in the blood sacrifice
ritual at all.
He even had the leisure to glance around.
When his gaze fell upon Qing Xin, it lingered momentarily.
Her face was grim, exposing the despair filling the young magician's heart.
Cang Xu desperately wanted to comfort Qing Xin but ultimately refrained.
Offering consolation without cause would expose a flaw, raising suspicions
among Jian Gui, Zhou Zhang, and the others.
Likewise, without revealing a big secret, Qing Xin would never believe his
words of comfort. If Qing Xin didn't believe him, any consolation would be
utterly futile.
Cang Xu would never waste his time on futile endeavors.
Zhou Zhang stood atop the golden altar, surveying the scene below.
Her attention did not linger on Cang Xu.
She had meticulously arranged for the necromancers, yet remained remarkably
composed, harboring no illusions that these people would truly convert.
After all, even if their conversion failed, they would still become sacrifices.
Zhou Zhang's true concern lay buried deep within her heart: “This blood
sacrifice demands far more offerings than the last, yet the frequency of its
transmission has slowed.”
"Could my Lord's injuries have worsened? Does she require greater divine power
to stabilize her condition?"
The true reason was not Zhou Zhang's wild conjecture.
Rather, it lay with the divine artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale, aboard the Deep
Sea Monster Fish, which had been continuously siphoning divine power from the
Ocean Mother Nest.
By now, the shell-like Mermaid Fairy Tale could no longer contain all the Pearl
Bubbles.
Much of it had overflowed from the shell, scattering across the surrounding
tabletops.
Zhou Zhang could never have imagined that the grand thief stealing divine power
lurked right under her nose, concealed within the Ocean Mother Nest. Even with
a saint level Snow Pear Octopus guarding it, the theft went undetected.
When the spatial fluctuations peaked, Cang Xu and the other Charming Blue
believers were teleported away, vanishing from their positions.
“They're here!” The dragonman youngster aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish had
long been on high alert, prepared for this moment.
The moment the Charming Blue believers teleported into the Ocean Mother Nest,
he pinpointed Cang Xu's exact location.
Several Rubber Swallower-type alchemy puppets sprang into action.
These puppets had been lying in ambush nearby for quite some time.
Each was imbued with the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell.
One Rubber Swallower opened its maw, spewing forth a torrent of magic potion.
The potion spread like blood mist, instantly shrouding a vast area, preventing
the believers from detecting any nearby anomalies.
Then, another Rubber Swallower expelled an alchemy puppet. This puppet bore the
exact likeness of Cang Xu.
The real Cang Xu, meanwhile, was swallowed whole by a third Rubber Swallower.
The Charming Blue believers, teleported to the scene, hadn't even registered
their surroundings before being engulfed by the blood mist.
The mist quickly dissipated. The group frantically scanned their surroundings,
utterly unprepared for the fact that the nearby Cang Xu had been replaced.
Their gazes were swiftly drawn to the saint level sea beast, eliciting gasps of
astonishment from many.
The Rubber Swallower that had devoured Cang Xu submerged into the sea, swimming
downstream until it entered the Deep Sea Monster Fish vessel.
Shortly after, Cang Xu emerged from the landing pod and encountered the
dragonman youngster.
“Commander!” Cang Xu bowed deeply to the dragonman youngster, his expression
filled with excitement.
The dragonman youngster laughed heartily at Cang Xu, a flash of crimson light
erupting from his body as he shifted from dragonman form to fishman form.
The youngster introduced himself proactively, "This is my newest form. My
previous dragonman form was simply too disadvantageous for naval combat. Time
is extremely limited. Let's talk as we walk."
Cang Xu knew of the Bloodcore. During previous communications with the
youngster, he had also learned of the latter's fishman form.
Cang Xu followed closely behind the dragonman youngster into the metallic
passageway.
Along the way, they reached the chamber housing the divine artifact, the
Mermaid Fairy Tale.
He witnessed it firsthand: the shell overflowing with Pearl Bubbles, much of it
scattered across the tabletop.
The old magician exclaimed sincerely, "I've never seen such an abundance of
Pearl Bubbles! This single discovery alone makes our journey worthwhile!"
The fishman youngster remained composed: “None of that matters until we're
safely out of here.”
For now, they'd confirmed the Deceptive Disguise spell still worked against
Zhou Zhang.
But it wasn't foolproof.
They'd deceived Zhou Zhang in her normal state.
If she sensed something amiss and used investigative divine magic, she could
still break through the Deceptive Disguise spell.
During their covert communication, the fishman youngster and Cang Xu reached a
consensus.
Take this Ocean Mother Nest, for instance.
It was an exceptional source for replenishing Pearl Bubbles!
In fact, it was the only source the survivors had unexpectedly discovered as of
now.
If the fishman youngster destroyed the nest outright to secure their escape, it
would not only be risky but also a tremendous waste.
Cang Xu believed: the Ocean Mother Nest should be preserved as much as
possible. The survivors' heavy reliance on the Deceptive Disguise spell meant
that the Pearl Bubbles, the god level material, was an absolute necessity!
The survivors still didn't know how long the plan to atone to the Empire's
higher-ups would take, or if it would ultimately succeed.
Therefore, more Pearl Bubbles were always better.
This meant that preserving the Ocean Mother Nest was highly advantageous for
the survivors.
Under these circumstances, the fishman youngster did not rashly destroy the
Ocean Mother Nest. Instead, he patiently waited for Cang Xu, placing his
greatest hope for escape on the latter.
The two made their way forward until they reached a compartment.
The metal hatch slid open to the side, and they entered the chamber.
This was the place where the fishman youngster had long prepared for Cang Xu.
The memory fabrication device lay within, awaiting Cang Xu's operation.
"I have already tested this alchemy apparatus. Using the inheritance content
you passed on, I can fabricate memories with this device. The fabricated
memories we've designed are now complete." Though merely a fighter, the fishman
youngster could efficiently forge memories with this apparatus.
Indeed, this was precisely the purpose of alchemy devices.
Like spell scrolls or enchanted weapons, these devices allowed fighters to
wield methods typically reserved for magicians.
The memory fabrication device, invented by You Shen, proved immensely helpful
in fabricating memories. Even a gold level magician like Jian Gui couldn't stop
thinking about it, once sighing: “If only I could use such a device, why would
I need to collaborate with others to forge memories!”



****** Chapter 475: One Point Star ******
Cang Xu attempted to operate the memory fabrication device.
After inspecting it, he nodded and smiled, “The fabricated memories are
flawless. Commander, you've been a tremendous help this time!”
The fishman youngster shrugged. "This alchemy device is the real hero here,
while the undead inheritance you acquired was the key. With these two elements,
anyone could have succeeded. If Zhong Yong had done it, he'd have been even
more efficient than me."
“Zhong Yong, huh... Too bad I can't meet him just yet.” Cang Xu's expression
softened with a hint of regret.
He'd learned of Zhong Yong's existence long ago through his conversations with
the fishman youngster.
As the ship's alchemist magician, Zhong Yong was a permanent crew member aboard
the Deep Sea Monster Fish. Neither the fishman youngster's return with Cang Xu
nor Cang Xu's boarding had been revealed to Zhong Yong.
After all, Cang Xu was a necromancer. Zhong Yong needed time to mentally
prepare before he could fully accept Cang Xu as a comrade.
Cang Xu quickly mastered the operation of the memory fabrication device.
On one hand, he experimented with the alchemy device multiple times after
leaving Mystifying Monster Island. On the other hand, after becoming a captive,
he had repeatedly studied the contents of the necromancer inheritance.
The memory fabrication device was incredibly simple to operate, so
straightforward even a fool could use it.
Otherwise, the fishman youngster wouldn't have succeeded so easily in
fabricating a memory.
“Next, I must set up the Memory Switching Spell and employ the Subconscious
Reminder Spell!” Cang Xu crossed his legs and began meditating.
These two spells were the true test for him.
Only by combining them could he awaken independently after using the fabricated
memory and reclaim his true identity.
While awaiting the teleportation blood sacrifice, Cang Xu had spent
considerable time secretly studying these two spells, becoming thoroughly
familiar with them.
But familiarity was one thing; actually casting the spells was another.
The greatest difficulty lay in Cang Xu still being bound by dual restrictions,
both magical and divine.
These seals originated from Zhou Zhang and were of the saint level.
Cang Xu naturally couldn't break them, and the fishman youngster was powerless
to help.
Whether it was memory forgery, or the Memory Switching and Subconscious
Reminder spells, they all acted upon the soul. Though they would be disrupted
by the dual seals, the latter couldn't completely prevent them.
Before this, necromancers had always been able to forge memories in secret. Now
that Cang Xu had retreated into the Deep Sea Monster Fish, he could operate
freely.
Seeing Cang Xu giving his all, the fishman youngster tactfully withdrew from
the cabin and closed the hatch.
“Cang Xu, it's all up to you now. Hope everything goes smoothly!”
The fishman youngster silently offered his blessing before immediately
returning to the cockpit to monitor the situation at the Ocean Mother Nest.
The saint level sea beast, Snow Pear Octopus, feasted voraciously on the
teleported sea creatures.
As before, the Charming Blue believers cowered in every corner of the Mother
Nest. Having quickly adapted, they now prayed frantically, consumed by their
own fears.
Flower Skirt Island.
Qian Xing stared at the hemispherical light barrier beneath his feet, his eyes
flickering with growing murderous intent.
He had unleashed multiple battle skills, yet the barrier remained intact.
However, he had discerned the mechanism: “So this formation can dissipate
energy. The earth vein serves as its dissipation channel, that explains the
violent earthquakes occurring elsewhere on Flower Skirt Island.”
Though not a magician, Qian Xing possessed broad knowledge.
Moreover, the seismic activity across Flower Skirt Island was undeniably
intense, making it impossible to ignore.
"Cai Jing, you are truly cruel and ruthless. I wonder how the others on the
island would react if they knew you used them as sacrificial lambs. What would
they think?" Qian Xing sneered, attempting to undermine his opponent's morale
with words.
"A bunch of weaklings. Their feelings are irrelevant. Besides, Flower Skirt
Island was unclaimed territory to begin with. What business is it of theirs if
I use the earth vein? Casualties? Just bad luck. They happened to be standing
on the nodes of the earth vein." Master Cai Jing spoke coldly, unmoved.
“Heh, well said.” Qian Xing sneered, “Now I'd rather pierce your skull and
watch your brain matter ooze out.”
As he spoke, Qian Xing extended his right index finger, pointing it toward the
hemispherical light barrier below.
He drew a deep breath, channeling his battle qi, pouring it in with all his
might. A torrent of battle qi concentrated on the nail of his right index
finger, compressing relentlessly, compressing further.
The aura of a saint level cultivator surged steadily.
Master Cai Jing and Magician Da Bei wore solemn expressions, tension mounting
within them.
Throughout the entire battle, they had never witnessed Qian Xing mobilize such
immense force or adopt such a formidable stance to gather power.
Magician Da Bei hastily cast his spell.
But Qian Xing, having resolved to build his momentum, would not be so easily
disrupted.
He immediately evaded, continuously employing his flight battle skill. With
extraordinary agility, he dodged every magic attack.
Battle skill - One Point Star!
Like a droplet of water, a blue starlight fell from the nail of Qian Xing's
right index finger.
The starlight had been contained within him, but the moment it left his
fingernail, it burst forth with boundless brilliance.
Blindingly bright, it reached its target in an instant, colliding with the
hemispherical light barrier at an unimaginable speed!
Unlike previous attacks, the One Point Star pierced straight through the
barrier, then shot toward Master Cai Jing with lightning speed.
Struck by the starlight, Master Cai Jing's head was pierced clean through from
front to back. His entire form dissolved into a fading shadow, slowly
dissipating.
This was not Master Cai Jing's true form!
A magician's true body was always their weak point, and even a gold level
magician like Cai Jing possessed this characteristic.
Unlike Da Bei, his combat prowess was formidable. Long before his public
appearance, he had concealed his true form, revealing only a deceptive illusion
as bait.
Qian Xing struck the enemy, yet his effort proved futile, prompting a cold
snort.
He hadn't seen through Cai Jing's illusion because of the effect of the
latter's formation.
But it didn't matter. The battle skill “One Point Star” pierced through the
surface, something a hemispherical light shield couldn't block.
Qian Xing continued to unleash this battle skill.
This time, however, he extended the middle finger of his right hand.
The nail on his index finger had grown dull and dark, as if petrified, unable
to sustain the release cost of the One Point Star battle skill repeatedly in
the short term.
“Damn it, I can't let him attack so freely!” Master Cai Jing cursed inwardly,
feeling immense pressure.
He exerted all his strength to control the formation, forcing it to unleash its
maximum defensive power.
Though this action pushed the formation's consumption of elemental crystals to
its absolute limit.
Yet, as long as it could defend against Qian Xing, it would be a success for
Cai Jing.
Using this formation burned resources at an alarming rate. But converting that
expenditure into combat power was infinitely preferable to wasting it!
Simultaneously, Master Cai Jing mentally commanded numerous magic trumpet
flowers to burst from the ground.
Nearly a hundred giant trumpet flowers appeared, encircling Master Cai Jing's
alchemy chamber.
During the battle against Ba Qi, the trumpet flowers performed remarkably well.
This prompted Master Cai Jing to cultivate more trumpet flowers after the
battle, bolstering his defenses.
The trumpet flowers formed a floral formation, continuously spewing streams of
potions.
"Multicolored potions?!" Qian Xing's pupils contracted sharply as he dodged
swiftly.
Shuang Tu had provided intelligence on the multicolored potion while summoning
Qian Xing for aid in the name of Ba Qi.
Thus, Qian Xing knew that contact with this potion would alter the target's
battle qi into another type.
Conflict between different battle qi existed, and Qian Xing had no desire to
find himself in such a predicament.
As a saint level fighter, any transformed battle qi would also be of saint
level. This posed a significant internal threat to him.
Qian Xing dodged nimbly through the air, evading every splash of the
multicolored potions.
When evasion was impossible, he instantly condensed his gold level battle qi
into shields, like umbrellas or walls, to block the splashes in advance.
Yet the gold level battle qi quickly disintegrated upon contact with the
potions, fragmenting into clusters of foreign battle qi.
Though Qian Xing could manipulate these foreign energies, their control proved
limited and difficult to harness effectively.
The trumpet flower formation and multicolored potions indeed caused
considerable disruption for Qian Xing.
Still, this struggle did little to help Cai Jing, Da Bei, and the others
reverse their disadvantage.
Qian Xing repeatedly unleashed his One Point Star battle skill, successively
destroying multiple nodes of the light shield formation.
Master Cai Jing wanted to repair them but dared not.
If he revealed his true form, he would struggle to survive under the One Point
Star battle skill.
Ultimately, after multiple nodes were destroyed, Qian Xing located the
formation's core. With an incredibly precise One Point Star, he breached the
formation's core.
An intense spatial fluctuation occurred.
Master Cai Jing, Magician Da Bei, and Magician Zhong Bei evacuated Flower Skirt
Island at the last moment via the teleportation formation.
Qian Xing's expression darkened.
He had gone to great lengths to breach the formation's light barrier, only to
let these magicians escape.
Magicians possessed a wealth of techniques, and when prepared, they were indeed
highly skilled at preserving their lives.
Master Cai Jing paid a tremendous price to lay multiple magic formations here
and cultivate nearly a hundred magic plants.  It was precisely these
preparations that allowed him to withstand Qian Xing's assault for a short time
and ultimately escape successfully.
Had he constructed an exceptional mage tower here, he could have even relied on
his gold level strength to resist a Saint level opponent for an extended
period.
Qian Xing charged down into the underground chambers, where he discovered the
open secret door of inheritance.
Approaching the door, he received the message left behind by the late Master
Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
“Cai Jing and Da Bei have obtained the inheritance!” Qian Xing's face turned
ashen.
Filled with resentment, he turned his attention back to the teleportation
formation.
He found it had already self-destructed. With his abilities alone, it was
nearly impossible to deduce Cai Jing and the others' teleportation coordinates
from the wreckage.
"Damn it! Those rats actually got away." Seething with resentment, Qian Xing
shot skyward, randomly choosing a direction. Like a meteor piercing the
heavens, he left Flower Skirt Island behind.
He refused to give up, determined to try his luck elsewhere.
The potion apprentices scattered in near-panic.
Terrified, they'd nearly believed their end was near.
But Qian Xing paid them no mind; they'd merely scraped by with their lives.
Some apprentices remained behind, securing the area and swiftly contacting
Shuang Tu.
Shuang Tu had been monitoring the situation all along, receiving firsthand
intelligence almost immediately.
“So, in the end, the legacy of Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong was taken by Cai Jing
and his crew...” Shuang Tu sighed, utterly powerless. Luring Qian Xing here was
already the limit of what he could achieve.
But reality offered him no further opportunities. The chance he'd painstakingly
waited for, to take advantage of the chaos, never materialized.
Shuang Tu could only resign himself to the situation.
Almost simultaneously, another report from his subordinate caught his
attention: “Lan Zao and the Bayonet Gang have joined forces?”
“They've seized a large quantity of mithril. Are they preparing to hold a
teleportation ritual?”
“My primary mission has failed, but this Tranquil Hill operation seems to have
made a breakthrough!”
Realizing this, Shuang Tu immediately resolved to push forward aggressively,
aiding Lan Zao's entry into Tranquil Hill.



****** Chapter 476: Cang Xu – I am a Devout Charming Blue Believer ******
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
In a specially arranged cabin, Cang Xu slowly opened his eyes.
“Where am I?” He looked around, his gaze unfocused.
But soon, waves of memories flooded his mind, making him understand his
situation.
“My name is Duo Yu. I'm a fisherman.”
“From childhood, I have worshiped the Charming Blue Goddess, a devout believer
in my Lord.”
“During a shipwreck, I was captured by an evil necromancer. He turned me into
his test subject, ultimately transforming me into an undead being with his
wicked magic!”
"Though I am no longer truly alive, I still yearn to return home. My wife must
be waiting for me. My son, daughter-in-law, and my newborn grandson..."
“My Lord, I beseech Your mercy. Please rescue me.”
The cabin contained only a single bed and a statue.
The statue depicted a mermaid holding a staff, her fishtail standing amidst the
waves. Her features were exquisite, and her gaze fixed on the horizon,
radiating an aura of untouchable majesty.
It was a statue of Charming Blue Goddess.
Cang Xu knelt on both knees, his face filled with sincerity as he began to
pray.
“My Lord, mighty Charming Blue Goddess!”
“You are the powerful Sea Goddess, possessing infinite wisdom and strength.”
“I beseech You to rescue me, to have mercy on me, to help me break the seal
upon my body, to restore my freedom, and to return me to safety.”
“As Your sheep, I deeply feel Your love and grace. I trust You will guide me
and grant me strength to rise and bravely face all challenges in my destiny.”
“I shall serve You for life. Even though I have become an undead monster, it
does not diminish my faithful devotion to You!”
Cang Xu prayed over and over.
After several repetitions, a surge of divine power descended from the void,
entering his body. It soothed his weary spirit, restoring him to peak
condition!
Cang Xu's heart surged with shock and joy, tears welling in his eyes.
“The goddess has noticed me!” he nearly roared in excitement.
Remembering his confinement, he forced himself to suppress his overwhelming
emotion and bowed his head to continue praying.
“Time is running out. I must reach the alchemy chamber, or that wicked
necromancer will surely grow suspicious.” The fabricated memory urged Cang Xu,
forcing him to reluctantly end his prayers.
He rose, took a few steps, and approached the hatch.
The instant he opened it, his pupils contracted to pinpricks, and he froze.
A tidal wave of genuine memories surged forth, rendering the fabricated
memories suspicious in comparison.
Cang Xu stood frozen for nearly ten seconds before regaining his composure.
The collision of two memories sent sharp pains through his head. A wave of
intense dizziness overwhelmed him, forcing him to bend over and kneel, retching
uncontrollably.
At first, he was utterly skeptical, convinced an evil necromancer or magician
had tampered with his memories to transform him into someone else.
But then, a powerful subconscious voice deep within him began insisting that
the second set of memories was the genuine, unaltered truth.
Finally, when he recalled his capture, his reunion with the fishman youngster
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, and the plan to desecrate the goddess using
fabricated memories, everything clicked into place.
“I'm awake!” Cang Xu trembled, gripping the metal wall as he pulled himself to
his feet.
He shouted, “Commander!”
The fishman youngster remained stationed in the cockpit. The moment Cang Xu
emerged, he noticed.
But the fishman youngster, exercising caution, did not reveal himself
immediately. Instead, he used the intercom to ask Cang Xu several questions.
These questions had been deliberately prepared beforehand to verify the state
of Cang Xu's memory recovery.
Cang Xu answered with remarkable accuracy and speed.
Only then did the fishman youngster truly reveal himself, inquiring with
concern about the matter of the prayer.
Cang Xu declared, “I succeeded.”
"The hardest part was ‘awakening’, restoring my true self. In this phase, both
the Memory Switching Spell and Subconscious Reminder Spell played crucial
roles."
Cang Xu had designed the memory switching to be triggered by the action of
“opening the hatch and stepping out of the chamber.”
Thus, the moment he left the chamber, his true memories began to resurface.
Two streams of memory clashed relentlessly, the real memories striving to
overwhelm the fabricated ones, plunging Cang Xu's mind into chaos. At this
critical juncture, his potent subconscious voice helped Cang Xu identify which
memories were genuine, drastically shortening his recovery time.
This was precisely the power of the Subconscious Reminder Spell!
Cang Xu looked at the fishman youngster, his voice brimming with excitement:
"Our fabricated memories have withstood the test. They hold up perfectly. After
my prayer, I have also received divine blessing. My spirit, once exhausted and
at its lowest ebb from studying and casting two spells, is now fully restored
and at its peak."
The fishman youngster nodded, exhaling a cloud of murky breath.
Cang Xu's prayer had succeeded. The first trial was a resounding success,
revealing several truths.
First, Charming Blue Goddess was indeed gravely wounded and had fallen into a
deep slumber. Thus, the fabricated memory had passed inspection.
Second, though the Deep Sea Monster Fish was imbued with the Deceptive Disguise
spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, it could not hide from the
Charming Blue Goddess. Even in her slumber, she could still bestow divine
blessing upon Cang Xu.
Third, Cang Xu had not gained the goddess's attention.
The reason was simple: despite praying many times, Cang Xu had only recovered
his spirit.
Compared to other believers, their gains were far greater. Some had elevated
their transcendent ranks, while others had gained vast combat experience.
However, Cang Xu and the fishman youngster had anticipated this outcome in
their secret discussions.
“It's likely your undead status caused the deity to treat you differently,” the
fishman youngster sighed.
No deity would ever favor a necromancer.
Cang Xu shook his head, it was an inescapable reality.
Crucially, they currently had no solution for this predicament.
Using the Deceptive Disguise spell might be a solution, but based on the first
trial, this method was highly likely to fail.
Still, it was worth a shot.
After all, the divine artifact overflowed with Pearl Bubbles.
The second prayer trial.
Cang Xu awoke alone in the cabin.
The cabin contained a single bed, an image of the Charming Blue Goddess, and a
mirror.
In the mirror, Cang Xu saw his own reflection - a merman.
To enhance the prayer's effectiveness, the fishman youngster had directly
altered Cang Xu's appearance into that of a merman, aligning it most closely
with the image of the Charming Blue Goddess.
To complement this new form, the fishman youngster also used the alchemy device
to slightly adjust the fabricated memories.
“I am a merman named Duo Yu.”
“From childhood, I have worshiped the Charming Blue Goddess as a devout
believer of my Lord!”
"I was persecuted! The priest of the Sea Abyss Church framed me and imprisoned
me here. Only if I renounce my faith will he spare me."
"But how could I ever do that!"
“I will never renounce my faith, even if that damned priest has placed a deadly
curse upon me that will kill me instantly when the time comes.”
“Damn it! He's sealed my supernatural abilities. I can't escape on my own!”
Cang Xu gritted his teeth silently.
Within the fabricated memories, he had already attempted numerous escape plans,
all ending in failure.
“Smash this statue, and I'll release you. I'll extend your time limit and delay
your sudden death.” The priest of the Sea Abyss Church's words echoed in his
ears.
Cang Xu refused to do so. Gritting his teeth, he knelt before the statue of the
Charming Blue Goddess and began his prayer.
“My Lord, goddess I worship with my entire being.”
“You are the Sea Goddess, ruling over the oceans and all sea creatures.”
“You are the Goddess of Deception and Disguise, capable of deceiving foes and
masquerading as all things.”
"I deeply feel Your power and majesty and shall follow Your path for all my
days. Grant me strength to break free from my bonds, to avert the peril of
sudden death!"
"Protect me, let Your radiance illuminate my life. My God!"
Cang Xu's prayer originated from his fabricated memories.
In reality, it was meticulously crafted through discussions with the fishman
youngster.
Both the first and second rounds of prayer addressed needs like “breaking
bonds” and “averting mortal peril.” The purpose was clear: to harness the
divine blessing of the Charming Blue Goddess to resolve the seal planted by
Zhou Zhang and the undead trap set by Jian Gui.
This time, though Cang Xu again received divine blessing, it bypassed the saint
level seal and the undead threat. Instead, it granted him a divine job from
thin air, elevating him to the rank of monk.
Along with this monk job, Cang Xu acquired the doctrines of the Charming Blue
Church, its cultivation practices, and the protocols for prayer.
After opening the door, Cang Xu regained his memories once more.
When he turned to look at the mirror in the cabin, his merman form vanished
without a trace, restoring his true appearance.
Such was the nature of the Deceptive Disguise spell.
Cang Xu's true memories knew this truth, so upon awakening, the spell held no
power over him.
After conversing with the fishman youngster, he sighed, “The sample size is too
small. We can't determine the extent of the divine blessing between the two
instances.”
Cang Xu replied, "Regardless, the mermaid's disguise isn't very convincing.
Just as we suspected, the Deceptive Disguise spell may fool Zhou Zhang, but it
certainly cannot deceive the Charming Blue Goddess!"
"We've wasted enough time. I see no need to test the Deceptive Disguise spell
again. It's time for me to guide you, Commander, into meditation."
A flicker of hesitation crossed the fishman youngster's face, but he eventually
nodded. Together with Cang Xu, they departed and entered the meditation
chamber.
Divine bestowal, commonly referred to as the divine blessing, was fundamentally
tailored to the recipient.
The primary considerations were twofold: the depth of faith and the innate
aptitude of the believer.
After two prayer trials, they concluded the Deceptive Disguise spell was highly
unlikely to conceal anything from the Charming Blue Goddess.
Therefore, from the perspectives of the fishman youngster and Cang Xu, the most
effective way to enhance divine blessing was to improve innate aptitude!
For anyone else, this method would be nothing short of a fairy tale.
But the fishman youngster, possessing a Bloodcore, was exceptional. Cang Xu,
who could benefit from the Bloodline Purification formation, was also
exceptional.



****** Chapter 477: Fishman Youngster – I am a Necromancer ******
The Bloodline Purification formation resided within the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Lan Zao and Zi Di (her body) had already benefited.
However, the conditions for Cang Xu to purify his bloodline were not yet ripe.
He still lacked two prerequisites.
The first condition was that he had to understand the true nature of his undead
bloodline. Especially after undergoing bloodline mutation.
The second condition was that the fishman youngster had to collect the
corresponding undead bloodline in his Bloodcore. Only when the corresponding
Bloodcore magic was infused into the Bloodline Purification formation could the
purification process commence.
Regarding the first condition, Cang Xu had already fulfilled it through his own
efforts. In the midst of the crisis, he had skillfully intervened to obtain the
intermediate soul aspect inheritance, granting him the spell to detect undead
bloodlines.
However...
He was still unable to cast it.
The reason? He was currently bound by both divine and magic restraints imposed
by Zhou Zhang!
Therefore, to cast the spell detecting undead aptitude, the fishman youngster
must be the one to do it.
As a silver level magician, the fishman Zhong Yong was also capable of doing
it. Yet, neither the fishman youngster nor Cang Xu considered him an option.
On one hand, the survivors had no intention of revealing secrets to Zhong Yong;
on the other, Zhong Yong himself was incapable of casting the spell to detect
undead bloodlines.
The latter was a pure undead spell, requiring negative energy to be cast.
This was an irreplaceable key element.
Therefore, only the fishman youngster could do it!
But the fishman youngster was a fighter, not a magician.
Thus, with Cang Xu's prayer proving ineffective, they immediately adopted an
alternative plan - Cang Xu would protect and guide the fishman youngster
through crucial meditation.
Upon entering the meditation chamber, the fishman youngster sat cross-legged,
assuming the posture for meditation.
“Commander, which meditation method have you chosen?” Cang Xu inquired.
“It's called the Tidal Sound meditation method. Take a look.” The fishman
youngster handed Cang Xu the detailed meditation method.
Cultivating battle skill required battle qi manuals, while refining magic power
demanded meditation methods.
Of course, simple meditation was possible, but its efficiency paled in
comparison to dedicated meditation methods.
The meditation method the fishman youngster presented naturally originated from
the War Merchant's database.
Since emerging from Mystifying Monster Island, the survivors had continually
reaped the benefits of the island's spoils. This remains true even now.
Cang Xu skimmed through the meditation method before nodding to the fishman
youngster, “We can begin.”
He crossed his legs beside the fishman youngster, linking his consciousness to
the youngster through the alchemy apparatus using his own spirit.
The fishman youngster drew a quiet breath, slowly closed his eyes, and
commenced this crucial meditation.
Having absorbed Hai Ping's saint corpse, he possessed the Surging Wave fishman
bloodline. Due to its mere 11% concentration, vital information was lacking,
and the fishman youngster remained unaware it was a god level bloodline.
His Flaming Dragon King bloodline reached 35% concentration, though legend
level, its higher potency made it outperform the Surging Wave fishman bloodline
in cultivation.
Even so, the 11% concentration of Surging Wave fishman bloodline was more than
sufficient to sustain the fishman youngster's early cultivation in magic
spells.
The fishman youngster's meditation proceeded exceptionally smoothly.
In truth, he had already invested considerable effort in mastering the Tidal
Sound meditation method beforehand, practicing it repeatedly.
This meditation was crucial, and out of caution, the youngster deliberately
waited until reuniting with Cang Xu before beginning.
In truth, many magic apprentices had their mentors present to safeguard them
during their first steps. Cang Xu was performing precisely that role now.
Should the fishman youngster falter, Cang Xu could intervene immediately to
rescue him from peril.
Yet, from the moment the fishman youngster slowly opened his eyes until now,
Cang Xu had found no opportunity to act.
Though the Surging Wave bloodline leaned toward a clerical role among the
fishman's three god level bloodlines, it also proved remarkably effective for
cultivating magic and battle qi.
Bolstered by his god level bloodline, the fishman youngster achieved successful
meditation without difficulty, formally opening his personal magic pool.
“Congratulations, Commander. You are now a bronze level magician,” Cang Xu
smiled.
Currently, the fishman youngster's life level stood at silver level, still some
distance from reaching its peak.
His fighter level was likewise silver level, though in dragon-form, with
carefully selected battle skills and equipment, he could wield gold level
combat power.
Having just begun his magic cultivation, the magician level was currently at
the lowest bronze level.
Cang Xu added: "Commander, your fishman bloodline is not simple. In just this
short period of opening your magic pool, you've already converted half a pool
of water-attribute magic power. I advise you to expel this magic power
immediately."
The fishman youngster nodded.
Here in the deep sea, within the Ocean Mother Nest, water elements were
abundantly plentiful.
Yet without exceptional water elemental talent, achieving what the youngster
had done would be utterly impossible.
He channeled his spirit to direct the water magic power within his pool,
swiftly draining it dry.
The pool lay utterly empty, devoid of any magic.
Immediately afterward, the fishman youngster focused his attention on the
Bloodcore at his heart, beginning to channel its magic.
Blood light flickered across the youngster's skin before fading. When it
vanished, the fishman youngster's scales had turned blackish gray, their
patterns warped into two eerie grimaces, one on his back, one on his chest.
This was the bloodline trait of the Ghostface Fish.
The Ghostface Fish resembled a flounder in appearance, with an extremely flat
body. Adult specimens exhibited bilateral asymmetry, with both eyes clustered
on one side and a curved mouth. Like flatfish, Ghostface Fish permanently
rested on their side on the ocean floor.
Even ordinary Ghostface Fish reached the size of a carriage. When attacking,
they launched themselves upward like soaring birds, capable of leaping over
ship railings to dive onto decks.
Crucially, these beasts possess both water and undead attributes. Their scales
were prime undead material.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps collected numerous Ghostface Fish carcasses
among their materials.
As this was a rare undead material, they had deliberately gathered a large
quantity during their time on Two Eyes Island.
Unexpectedly, this undead material ultimately wasn't used on Zi Di or Cang Xu
but instead consumed by the fishman youngster.
Bloodcore - Hybrid Transformation!
The fishman youngster now possessed two bloodlines. One was the Surging Wave
fishman bloodline, the other was the Ghostface Fish bloodline.
This temporarily transformed him into a life form possessing both water and
undead attributes.
However, the Ghostface Fish bloodline wasn't that of an intelligent species,
but pure magic beast bloodline. It couldn't coexist harmoniously with the
Surging Wave fishman bloodline.
Thus, this life form was unstable, constantly draining the Bloodcore's magic to
sustain itself.
Having reached this stage, the dragonman youngster could now absorb negative
energy.
The undead materials on Cang Xu's body were unusable. Instead, he consumed part
of the Deep Sea Monster Fish's undead material reserves, decomposing them to
generate negative energy.
Zi Di had always employed this method to temporarily modify her meditation
environment and enhance her meditation efficiency.
Now, the fishman youngster had to resort to the same approach.
The reason was simple: not a trace of negative energy existed within the Ocean
Mother Nest. He had no choice but to create it artificially.
The fishman youngster began his meditation. He absorbed external negative
energy, transforming it into undead magic power that accumulated within his
personal magic pool.
Only with such undead magic power could he cast necromancy magic!
A new problem arose.
The spell to detect undead bloodlines was recorded in the intermediate soul
aspect inheritance. This spell was beyond the grasp of a novice; its casting
difficulty was extremely high.
“Commander, for the time being, you'll likely have to practice spellcasting
alone.”
“Fortunately, you can practice with other basic water spells. Zhong Yong can
assist you,” Cang Xu said.
“What? You truly wish to continue taking the risk?” The fishman youngster's
expression turned solemn.
This was a topic they'd discussed earlier - whether Cang Xu would teleport back
after their reunion.
The fishman youngster would rather have Cang Xu stay.
It was the safest option.
Cang Xu shook his head slightly, “I bear a double seal and the deadly hidden
trap set by Jian Gui. Staying here, I'm constrained and can't be of much use."
“But if I return, it proves my faith. Having gained the approval of the
Charming Blue Goddess, Zhou Zhang won't trouble me, she might even lift my
seals voluntarily.”
“After that, I can continue communicating with Jian Gui. Perhaps I can pry out
other undead legacies.”
“We need more undead materials, don't we?”
Cang Xu was right.
The fishman youngster required vast quantities of undead materials to generate
negative energy, which he would then absorb and convert into undead magic
power.
Only with sufficient magic power could he practice extensively and ultimately
succeed in casting undead spells.
On the other hand, Cang Xu needed to purify his bloodline, requiring
corresponding bloodline magic energy. This required the Bloodcore to absorb
vast amounts of undead life.
But how could the fishman youngster obtain undead life within the Ocean Mother
Nest?
Zhou Zhang possessed it!
She had captured Jian Gui and others, sweeping up every zombie, bone soldier,
and ghost from the battlefield, even that ghost ship.
The fishman youngster gazed at Cang Xu with concern: “But to teleport back,
you'll face the saint level octopus's trial. It might kill you outright.”
Cang Xu smiled: “I believe the risk here is minimal, small enough for me to
take the chance.”
“Falsifying memories isn't an issue. I succeeded in both previous prayers.”
"Most crucially, I've already received the divine blessing. Based on your
observations, Commander, not a single believer who received divine blessing has
ever been killed by the octopus, correct?"
The fishman youngster sighed, “Even so, once you meet Zhou Zhang, there's no
guarantee she won't cast some divine spell to detect your true faith.”
“We have the Deceptive Disguise spell,” Cang Xu declared, his voice brimming
with confidence. "If this spell can deceive the Charming Blue Goddess, surely
it can fool Zhou Zhang? Didn't we already prove that?"
“There's still a risk. We haven't uncovered all of Zhou Zhang's methods...”
“Lord Commander!” Cang Xu interrupted the fishman youngster with rare urgency,
his expression solemn and earnest, “I already bear the fatal hidden trap set by
Jian Gui and Zhou Zhang's double seal.”
“Let me take this one risk!”
“Only then might my heart find some peace. When I face you next time, it will
be a little easier...”
The fishman youngster paused, startled.
It was the first time he'd seen such an expression on Cang Xu's face.
After a moment, the corners of his mouth lifted into a gentle smile.
He reached out and patted Cang Xu's shoulder lightly, “Then... let's do that.”



****** Chapter 478: Cang Xu Returns ******
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest.
The grand formation hummed as it operated, the golden altar flickering with a
faint glow.
Countless Charming Blue believers surrounded the altar, kneeling in prayer.
They maintained a certain distance from the altar at all times.
“The time is almost upon us, isn't it?”
“Yes. Judging by the previous teleportation blood sacrifice, they should be
returning soon.”
“My son... you must come back alive.”
Xiao Wang Zi whispered to Jian Gui, “What are the chances Xu Jia will return
alive?”
Jian Gui remained silent, merely shaking his head slightly, his gaze solemn.
The believers looked up expectantly, even Zhou Zhang filled with anticipation.
Those Charming Blue believers who returned alive had undoubtedly undergone
rigorous selection, gained enhanced strength, and deepened their faith.
These individuals would surely become the elite, even the pillars, of the
Charming Blue Church!
Spatial fluctuations rippled through the air.
Before the gathered crowd, the believers flashed back to their original
kneeling positions.
As with previous blood sacrifices, some were missing.
“I'm back! I passed the trial!” a returning believer shouted excitedly.
“My son! Where is my son?” another frantically scanned the crowd.
“Quite a few casualties this time,” Zhou Zhang noted impassively, silently
tallying the losses. Her gaze suddenly halted, settling on one figure.
It was none other than Cang Xu!
"Oh? Something interesting has happened.” The gold level fighter Zhang Yu Wan,
standing nearby, also spotted Cang Xu.
More and more eyes turned toward Cang Xu. It was impossible not to notice him;
he was too conspicuous.
He was the sole necromancer.
“Did I see that correctly?”
“That necromancer... he... he... he actually returned?”
“Cang Xu! It really is Cang Xu! He survived!” Xiao Wang Zi was the most
agitated.
He had chosen to aid Ku Feng, indirectly eliminating Cang Xu, and had harbored
guilt ever since. Seeing Cang Xu return now, he was likely the happiest person
present after Qing Xin.
Countless gazes converged on Cang Xu. Some eyes widened in shock, others
furrowed in disbelief, while some fell into deep contemplation.
More murmured in astonishment, discussing how an undead could gain divine
recognition, utterly baffling.
“No, impossible!”
“My son worshiped our Lord most devoutly, from childhood till his death. He
believed in no other god.”
"He didn’t return alive, yet you, an undead, have come back?"
“Something's fishy! You must have cheated!”
The father who'd searched in vain for his son shouted in despair, pointing at
Cang Xu and openly accusing him.
The crowd's expressions varied.
Cang Xu sneered coldly, retorting sharply, “I worship our Lord, the great
Charming Blue Goddess. The Lord is so forgiving and merciful that She has
already granted me divine blessing. Who are you? You dare question my Lord's
will?"
“Yes!” Jian Gui stepped forward, echoing immediately, "We undead are life forms
too, existing only through negative energy. Why can't we convert to our Lord
and become Her believers? Your racial prejudice is one thing, but you gravely
underestimate our Lord's magnanimity! You are guilty!"
Cang Xu's appearance shocked Jian Gui immensely. He had believed Cang Xu was
dead.
But after the shock, Jian Gui rejoiced.
After all, Cang Xu was one of his own, and he had planted a fatal trap within
him.
Cang Xu nodded to Jian Gui. Though the latter was utterly hypocritical, being
the first to stand up for him was precisely what Cang Xu needed now.
In contrast, Qi Ling beside Jian Gui stared at Cang Xu in disbelief, her
expression darkening.
Jian Gui's endorsement immediately drew loud approval from Xiao Wang Zi, Ku
Feng, and others.
On the pirate side, Qing Xin also shouted in support of Cang Xu.
The elderly believer whose son had perished paid no heed. He took several
running steps before collapsing to his knees before the altar. Gazing up at
Zhou Zhang, he wailed, "Archbishop Zhou Zhang, I implore you! Expose the true
form of this wicked undead! He's a fake! He must be a fake! How could he
possibly survive, while my son...?"
All eyes instantly focused on Zhou Zhang.
Her face expressionless, Zhou Zhang suddenly raised a hand. The elderly
believer's cries abruptly ceased.
He struggled to shout, yet no sound emerged.
Then Zhou Zhang beckoned faintly to Cang Xu.
Cang Xu suddenly felt an immense, invisible force grip his entire body, lifting
him off the ground and carrying him into the air before setting him down upon
the golden altar.
“The most crucial test has arrived!” Cang Xu felt a chill run through him,
though outwardly he remained composed as he met Zhou Zhang's gaze.
She cast a divine spell, scanning Cang Xu's entire body, but found nothing.
Zhou Zhang then asked Cang Xu several questions in a gentle tone, to which Cang
Xu answered cautiously.
When asked, “What is your divine blessing?” he replied that he had become a
monk, receiving a series of doctrines, prayer procedures, rituals, and so
forth.
"Oh? You've actually attained a clerical position?" Zhou Zhang's expression
softened further.
“A monk... counts as a clerical position?” Cang Xu was puzzled.
By clerical position, he meant a role within the church.
Zhou Zhang nodded slightly: "A believer isn't considered a member of the
clergy, but a monk can be seen as a preparatory position. Take one more step,
and you could become a missionary for our Lord."
“Continue striving diligently.”
Zhou Zhang then publicly declared that Cang Xu was now a member of the church,
a fellow believer, one who had renounced darkness for the light!
“What did she say?”
“It’s much easier than I imagined!”
Standing upon the altar, Cang Xu gazed at Zhou Zhang to his right front, then
scanned the diverse expressions of the Charming Blue believers below. A slight
sense of relief settled in his heart.
Flower Skirt Island.
"So, this is how we get to Tranquil Hill? It was way too easy." Spring Boxer
voiced a similar astonishment to Cang Xu's.
Bing Xiao nodded then shook his head: “This is merely the ritual's sequence and
arrangement. Memorize it carefully, it'll make recreating it easier later.”
“But that alone won't suffice.”
“The success of this special ritual hinges on the people.”
“More precisely, on me and my comrade in the ice coffin.”
“Both Teng Dong Lang and I are holy warriors of Tranquil Hill!”
Spring Boxer widened his eyes slightly: “Holy warriors?”
Bing Xiao explained: "It's a clerical position, similar to a templar knight.
Only a ritual conducted by a holy warrior will succeed, allowing us to reach
Tranquil Hill safely."
“Now kneel beside me. Repeat my prayer words and join me in praying.”
As Bing Xiao knelt, the sounds of explosions and fierce gunfire erupted
outside.
“It's the other silver factions! They've united, using our recent black market
raid as justification to storm the stronghold!”
“There are too many silver level enemies! We can barely hold them off!” someone
reported.
Spring Boxer's expression hardened. He started to rise, intending to rush to
the defense, but Bing Xiao grabbed his arm.
“There's no time! Our top priority now is reaching Tranquil Hill!”
“But what about the others?”
"This isn't the time to think about them!”
“If they fall in battle, the Bayonet Gang will be left with only us...”
"What we must do now outweighs the Bayonet Gang's importance! Kneel. Pray with
me." Bing Xiao's expression at that moment was terrifying.
Spring Boxer gritted his teeth and knelt, obeying Bing Xiao's command.
The special ritual succeeded swiftly.
Suddenly, snow swirled through the basement. A strange space unfolded like a
scroll before Spring Boxer.
“Carry Teng Dong Lang's ice coffin. Let's go,” Bing Xiao ordered.
Spring Boxer hurriedly protested, “Wait! We need to gather the others. We
should leave together.”
Bing Xiao refused outright: "Absolutely not! A place as crucial as Tranquil
Hill isn't somewhere outsiders can enter!"
But before his words faded, the snowy space like a painting abruptly expanded,
spreading out to engulf the entire base.
Bing Xiao's expression changed drastically.
The snowy expanse engulfed every member of the Bayonet Gang, even including the
few silver level foes who had charged to the forefront.
The next instant, the snowy space violently contracted, vanishing entirely
along with everyone it had enveloped, leaving only an empty stronghold behind.
"It worked! It really worked!" Shuang Tu, the mastermind behind the operation,
was overcome with excitement at the sight.
Though his primary mission had failed, he had successfully aided both the human
ringleader and Lan Zao into Tranquil Hill.
This was an absolute breakthrough!
Of course, he had paid a tremendous price for it.
“What comes next isn't solely my responsibility.”
“I must relay this news immediately. The organization will undoubtedly spare no
effort to assist them both!”



****** Chapter 479: Entering Tranquil Hill ******
The night sea breeze fluttered the naval flag of the Sheng Ming Empire.
A gold level magic ship cut through the waves.
This vessel was clearly not a standard Imperial Navy warship. Its bow was thick
and sturdy, with a bridge positioned squarely at the center of the deck—a
perfect cube, equal in length, width, and height.
The surface of this cube was covered in intricate, layered magic formations.
Embedded within these formations were countless gems: sapphires the size of
fists, diamonds as large as human heads, and topazes as big as carriages.
It was the Treasure Chest.
The captain, Tan Mo, a gold level fighter and Rear Admiral of the Sheng Ming
Empire's Navy, stood within the bridge.
He gripped the wheel with both hands, concentrating intently on navigating the
flagship through the night.
The first mate approached, standing ramrod straight as he reported: “Lord, an
urgent transmission from Channel Three!”
Tan Mo's brow furrowed instantly. Communication from Channel Three carried
immense significance and often brought immense trouble.
“What's going on?” “Channel Three only relayed orders to me not long ago. Why
now?”
Tan Mo tossed the wheel to the first mate, “Steer carefully. These waters
aren't safe, especially at night.”
The first mate hurriedly acknowledged the order, though he inwardly rolled his
eyes.
Normally, Tan Mo rarely came up to the bridge, preferring to stay in his cabin
enjoying the company of beautiful women and indulging in fine wines and
delicacies.
This version of Tan Mo was exceedingly rare.
The first mate knew the reason - it was that person aboard the Treasure Chest
before departure!
Tan Mo entered the communications room and received the new orders from Channel
Three.
“Another important figure wants to board my ship?” Tan Mo felt troubled.
The Treasure Chest had already sailed far from port, but according to Channel
Three’s instructions, Tan Mo only needed to provide his precise coordinates.
Tan Mo's dilemma, of course, wasn't about providing coordinates. It was that
his ship already carried someone he absolutely dared not provoke. Now another
important figure was being sent aboard, giving him a headache.
But there was no choice - it was Channel Three!
"Before proceeding, I must report to that person of importance. Otherwise,
misunderstandings could lead to trouble." Tan Mo steeled himself, entered the
Treasure Chest, and relayed the situation.
The big shot gave him a thorough dressing-down. Tan Mo bowed and scraped his
way out, struggling to maintain his composure.
He hurried back to the deck without delay.
By then, the Treasure Chest had come to a slow halt in the ocean.
Using the active sea chart, Tan Mo pinpointed the ship's current coordinates.
He then ordered his subordinates to calculate the position using alternative
methods, yielding another set of coordinates.
The two sets of coordinates matched perfectly.
Only then did Tan Mo transmit this critical data via Channel Three.
About ten minutes later, violent spatial fluctuations erupted directly above
the Treasure Chest.
From the turbulence, a brilliant blue light coalesced.
The light condensed into a circular doorway.
A gold level clergyman stepped through the doorway, bearing a door-shaped
emblem on his chest, and ascended to hover above the Treasure Chest.
Another figure followed closely behind him.
This latter individual was a towering, imposing figure, carrying a massive
shield as tall as a man. Clad in heavy, full-body holy armor that concealed his
features, he radiated an aura unmistakably of the saint level.
"A gold level clergyman of the Secret Gate Church, and a saint level shield
guardian!" Tan Mo's heart skipped a beat as he hurriedly greeted them.
Though he himself was gold level, he lacked flight battle skill and could only
look up.
The Secret Gate Bishop and the saint level shield guardian slowly descended,
landing on the deck to formally meet Tan Mo.
Tan Mo displayed warmth, the saint level shield guardian remained silent, while
the Secret Gate Bishop adopted an arrogant demeanor.
“Prepare the finest quarters for me. I require rest!” commanded the Secret Gate
Bishop.
“Lord, that may prove difficult,” Tan Mo replied with a troubled expression,
“You are unaware of the circumstances. There is a prominent figure currently
aboard my vessel!”
“Important figure?” The Secret Gate Bishop scoffed in disbelief, “What legend
level VIP could possibly be aboard your little vessel?”
Tan Mo hurriedly explained, “This guest is only gold level, but…”
The Secret Gate Bishop waved him off, cutting him off, “A mere gold level? What
kind of VIP is that?”
"Is that so? Could you repeat that statement?" The voice echoed as someone
stepped onto the deck.
The Secret Gate Bishop froze upon recognizing the speaker, his expression
shifting to sheer terror, “I... I...”
Even the saint level shield guardian behind him hurriedly bowed in reverence.
The “important figure” was indeed only of gold level, but his uniform featured
a black base adorned with crimson patterns.
This revealed his identity - he was a member of the Blood Light Punishment
Institution!
"Lord Tu Ji, why have you come up? Is there something you require? Please state
your command, and I shall fulfill it to the best of my ability." The imposing
captain, Rear Admiral Tan Mo, now groveled like a lowly servant.
Tu Ji of the Blood Light Punishment Institution replied coldly, "You've already
wasted too much of my time retrieving these two. This time, I'm heading to Two
Eyes Island to investigate undead traces. The longer this drags on, the harder
the investigation becomes! Should my mission be delayed, you will bear
responsibility!"
"M-My Lord, this humble servant cannot shoulder such responsibility! I shall
set sail immediately, departing at full speed to save every moment! I guarantee
we shall reach the target waters within seven days!" Tan Mo hastily pledged.
“You had better keep your word.” Tu Ji finished, flicked his sleeve, and
returned to the cabin.
The Secret Gate Bishop remained behind, glaring reproachfully at Tan Mo. The
unspoken accusation hung heavily: How did a lunatic from the Blood Light
Punishment Institution end up aboard your vessel?  Why didn't you warn me
sooner?
But seeing the bitter expression on Tan Mo's face, the Secret Gate Bishop
ultimately only gave a cold snort, “Take us to the cabin. We need to rest.”
"No, not the hold below deck. Your forecastle is quite nice. Are there rooms
there?"
"Yes, of course. Lords, this way please." Tan Mo bowed low, leading the way.
There was no night in Tranquil Hill.
Here, snow blanketed everything, the cold piercing to the bone.
Crimson blood and corpses littered the snow.
Lan Zao panted heavily as Xiong Ju and the others cleaned up the battlefield.
They had been unexpectedly swept into the fray during the fierce battle,
entering Tranquil Hill together.
This turn of events surprised both sides.
But with reinforcements from Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer, the Bayonet Gang
quickly gained the upper hand.
Their adversaries were the leaders of Flower Skirt Island's factions, including
three silver level fighters.
Under Xiong Ju's relentless assault, their formation collapsed.
Spring Boxer seized the opportunity to unleash his battle skill, grabbing one
of them and battering him into critical condition.
Xiong Ju executed his Savage Charge battle skill, immediately following with a
Bear Pounce, killing one silver level fighter.
Lan Zao employed the alchemy projectile cores, coordinating with the human
ringleader to pin down the third silver level opponent.
Thanks to Xiong Ju's relentless slaughter, the Bayonet Gang successfully broke
through the stalemate. They ultimately eliminated the remaining two silver
level foes, securing their victory.
"So, where exactly is this place? How do we get back?" Lan Zao asked.
“This is Tranquil Hill,” Spring Boxer answered, glancing at Bing Xiao.
Bing Xiao's face turned ashen, “None of you can return for now.”
Though victorious and having successfully brought the ice coffin into Tranquil
Hill, Bing Xiao couldn't muster a smile.
The sudden expansion of the divine domain at the last moment was highly
unusual.
Especially since Bing Xiao knew there had always been a mole within the Bayonet
Gang.
“This is likely a conspiracy!”
“Perhaps our escape from Snow Bird Harbor was just the beginning of it.”
“The fact that I obtained Teng Dong Lang's complete body is highly suspicious.”
“The crucial question now is: who is the mole?”
"Is it Xiong Ju? The human ringleader? Including Hen Fa... even though his
background check came clean. But we can't fully trust him yet!"
Lan Zao pressed urgently, his face etched with anxiety: "Why can't we go back?
How can we get back?"
Bing Xiao swept a glance over the surrounding gang members, then fixed his gaze
on Lan Zao: “What? You want to go back and face an ambush?”
Lan Zao: “Uh, that's not what I meant.”
“Alright, follow my lead from here on out,” Bing Xiao said, “Who knows? This
place might grant you a massive boost that'll leave a lasting impression for
the rest of your lives!”
Bing Xiao dared not let the gang members roam freely, so the best course was to
keep them all under his watchful eye.
“Tranquil Hill?” The human ringleader murmured, confusion mingled with faint
excitement. "Did I hear correctly, Lord Gang Leader? Is this the legendary
Tranquil Hill?"
In an instant, the rest of the gang members turned their gaze toward Bing Xiao.



****** Chapter 480: The Dueling God’s Divine Domain ******
The name Tranquil Hill was known to every soul present.
Facing the human ringleader’s inquiry, Bing Xiao remained impassive, nodding
slightly as he acknowledged outright, “Indeed, it is that very Tranquil Hill.”
A collective gasp erupted, faces brimming with excitement and disbelief.
Legends of Tranquil Hill’s heroic duels were household tales throughout the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
“Who would’ve thought I could enter Tranquil Hill?  To forge a connection with
such a legendary land!” murmured the human ringleader, his feigned expression
flawless, truly the work of a seasoned mole.
“This is incredible!” Xiong Ju roared with excitement.
He revered the heroic duel. During his battle with the dragonman youngster, the
demon hybrid ringleader had secretly exerted power from outside the arena,
attempting to assassinate the youngster. Xiong Ju detected it and crushed the
demon's eye with a single squeeze.
Lan Zao's mouth hung slightly open, his face frozen in shock.
He wasn't skilled at concealing his emotions, and he too sought entry into
Tranquil Hill. But this time, entering Tranquil Hill, he hadn't received Shuang
Tu's warning.
He'd simply been swept into the fray during the battle.
When the fighting ended and he finally registered what had happened, he
realized he was already inside!
Before this, he'd shared the same plan as Spring Boxer: to sail all the way to
Tranquil Hill. He never imagined entering this way.
"Damn it. This means I have no clue how to get to Tranquil Hill. Even if I
return to the mercenary group later, I won't be able to report back to the
commander."
Bing Xiao looked at Spring Boxer. Though the latter knew the truth, his
expression remained agitated.
Bing Xiao: “You are Teng Dong Lang's coffin bearer. Therefore, you need only
carry the ice coffin and follow closely behind me.”
He gave Spring Boxer a brief instruction, then addressed the others: “As for
the rest of you, lacking Spring Boxer's status, you must precisely tread in my
footsteps. Not a single step may be missed if you wish to keep pace.”
“Tranquil Hill is safe. Achieving this isn't difficult.”
“Whoever makes a mistake is a hidden enemy. The rest of you must kill them
immediately, leaving no trace behind!"
A chill ran through the group, and they obeyed without delay.
Tranquil Hill lay blanketed in snow, and Bing Xiao's footprints were clearly
visible as he walked.
Following his footsteps in a single file, each person kept close behind, wary
of one another, yet not a single one fell behind.
Spring Boxer faced no such constraints. Carrying the ice coffin, with every
step he took, the scenery around him changed dramatically.
The distant ice peaks, visible only a few steps away, rapidly expanded within
their field of vision.
Another five or six steps later, they had traversed tens of thousands of
meters, arriving at the foot of the ice peaks.
Bing Xiao stepped onto the ice peaks. Following his footprints, the others took
only two or three steps to reach the summit.
The mountaintop was a flat expanse dotted with numerous tombstones.
Behind each monument lay a rectangular burial pit.
A sharp gleam flashed in the human ringleader's eyes as he swiftly counted the
monuments, 38 in total.
His heart surged with excitement: “This signifies at least 38 gold level
powerhouses!”
Bing Xiao's expression grew grave, “Now, you need not follow my footsteps.”
“But you must all stay put. Anyone who dares move freely becomes my mortal
enemy!”
Then, he nodded to Spring Boxer: “Follow me.”
Xiong Ju and the others remained frozen in place, not daring to stir. They
watched silently as Spring Boxer carried Teng Dong Lang's ice coffin to his
tombstone.
The translucent ice monument bore Teng Dong Lang's name and portrait.
The likeness was strikingly lifelike.
“Why is a third of the boss's tombstone missing?” Spring Boxer inquired.
Bing Xiao crouched, wiped the monument, and sighed. "It signifies the extent of
the corpse's disfigurement. If the time limit is exceeded, the tombstone will
vanish completely. By then, even if you bring the ice coffin, there'll be
nowhere to bury it!"
Following Bing Xiao's instructions, Spring Boxer then placed Teng Dong Lang's
ice coffin into the corresponding burial pit.
"Old gang leader, will the Boss truly be resurrected? When will he come back to
life?" Spring Boxer asked, his voice brimming with hope.
The others held their breath; their eyes fixed intently on the scene.
Resurrection was difficult, yet not entirely impossible.
This was a world where gods exist.
Many had successfully revived the dead using divine resurrection techniques.
And according to legend, Tranquil Hill was a mystical place capable of bringing
people back to life.
Bing Xiao sighed. "Resurrection... it's only possible. Even the most intact
corpse isn't guaranteed a 100% chance of revival."
“But burying Teng Dong Lang here will surely yield tremendous rewards.”
Spring Boxer froze. "Resurrection isn't guaranteed? What are the actual odds of
revival?"
Bing Xiao didn't answer. Instead, he beckoned. "Now is not the time for that
discussion. Come to me. Kneel. Pray with me."
Spring Boxer could only turn, confusion lingering, and walk toward Bing Xiao.
Midway, his footsteps abruptly halted. He spotted the Axe Gang leader's
tombstone and exclaimed in surprise, "The bald uncle has a tombstone here too?
So he was also a holy warrior of Tranquil Hill?"
“Strange... there are so many cracks on Uncle's tombstone.”
"What?!" Bing Xiao's pupils contracted sharply. His heart skipped a beat as he
stared at the Axe Gang leader's tombstone. 
He understood the meaning of those cracks. 
“The Axe Gang leader... is dead?”  
“Wait, Jia Bing, Lin... they're all dead?”
Bing Xiao had been focused solely on Teng Dong Lang's tombstone. Now, scanning
the area, he noticed cracks on all three monuments.
These cracks were subtle, visible only upon close inspection.
But Bing Xiao knew that even the slightest crack signified the death of the
holy warrior it represented. Over time, these cracks would multiply until the
entire tombstone shattered.
“What in the world is going on?!”
"These three were exceptionally close during their service. Judging by the
state of the cracks, they likely perished simultaneously!"
"This suggests they probably fell on the same battlefield. Who could have
struck such a blow?"
“These were three genuine gold levels, battle-hardened gold level experts at
that!”
Bing Xiao suppressed his shock, forcing a composed expression, “Now, place your
hands upon the tombstone and recite the prayer with me.”
"Great Dueling God, we praise You, we praise this most sacred land of Tranquil
Hill. Today we come to Your divine domain to bring back Your holy warrior."
“We beseech You: grant the fallen holy warrior true peace and tranquility.”
“Watch over our new warriors. Bestow upon us their steadfast and courageous
spirits, that we may learn from the successes and mistakes of our predecessors,
drawing wisdom from their legacy.”
"In Your name, we pray for greater strength and wisdom to advance, to
understand the trials endured by those who came before us, and to reflect upon
them as our own knowledge. Grant us courage, strength, and wisdom to succeed in
life's journey."
"Guide us toward the path of peace. We praise the exalted and sacred nature of
Tranquil Hill, journeying together toward light and tranquility."
“Endless praise be to You, exalted Dueling God, sacred and wondrous land of
Tranquil Hill!”
As the prayers of Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer spread, a solemn and sacred
atmosphere swiftly enveloped the space. The others watched intently, their
hearts filled with awe and growing curiosity.
"Dueling God? Does the Ice Sculpture Kingdom have such a deity?"
"Tranquil Hill... is actually the divine domain of the Dueling God?
"Was the special ritual on Flower Skirt Island to summon the divine domain?
This is absurd, I've actually stepped into a domain of the gods! "
Lan Zao felt even more troubled: "So the truth behind Tranquil Hill's
resurrection is the Dueling God? Does that mean to revive Miss Zi Di, we must
at least convert her into a holy warrior of the Dueling God?"
“Th-that sounds incredibly difficult...”
The human ringleader, acting as an excellent mole, focused intently on the
names engraved on the tombstone, trying to memorize them.
“Long Meng... The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's top gladiator was also a holy warrior
of the Dueling God?”
“Mei Lin—is that the mermaid magician from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's First
Navy?”
"Bao Li Gen... Who is this? Never heard of them."
The human ringleader recognized many familiar names but also encountered
unfamiliar ones.
He didn't know the meaning behind the cracks in the tombstones, but he made an
effort to memorize every name on them.
“Regardless of anything else, this intelligence alone is invaluable!” the human
ringleader thought, his heart racing.
Thud.
After finishing his prayer, Spring Boxer was about to rise when his eyes
suddenly rolled back, and he collapsed unconscious for no apparent reason.
As the others looked on in astonishment, Bing Xiao picked up Spring Boxer.
"Don't worry, this is normal. Now follow me down the mountain. We have a
temporary shelter at the base."



****** Chapter 481: Experience Inheritor ******
A small stream flowed gently past the brown-and-yellow wooden cabin, its waters
clear enough to see the bottom.
A rainbow of seven colors hung high in the sky.
Tranquil Hill had become a distant snow-capped peak.
The Bayonet Gang members had entered the wooden cabin.
Here, Spring Boxer slowly opened his eyes, gradually regaining consciousness,
“Where am I?”
Bing Xiao stood by his bedside and answered him.
He then asked Spring Boxer, “How do you feel?”
Spring Boxer still looked dazed: “I think I had a dream. In it, I was part of
an army fighting a pack of ice plains wolves.”
“Strangely, the battle qi I used was the ice battle skill of our gang leader.”
Bing Xiao nodded: "That's Teng Dong Lang's battle experience. You became his
coffin bearer, and now you've placed his ice coffin within the Tranquil Hill.
In the days ahead, you'll gradually receive much of his combat wisdom—how he
used battle skill, how he cultivated himself, how he led armies into battle,
and more."
“This is the true meaning behind his choosing you as coffin bearer.”
Spring Boxer's eyes widened in astonishment at this revelation.
Soon, a sorrowful expression spread across his face. He missed Teng Dong Lang
deeply. The latter had shown him immense kindness, and even in death, Spring
Boxer continued to receive Teng Dong Lang's care.
"Live well with Teng Dong Lang's experience. Strive to become stronger. Only
then will you live up to his earnest hopes for you." Bing Xiao encouraged
Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer pressed, “When will the gang leader be revived?”
Bing Xiao hesitated, but ultimately chose honesty: "Regrettably, he may never
be revived again. When you began absorbing Teng Dong Lang's lifetime
experience, it signaled his soul had already begun dissipating within Tranquil
Hill. These precious combat insights stem from his memories, which reside
within the soul itself. A soul stripped of memory forgets who it once was."
Spring Boxer's mouth fell open, “Then I'd rather not have this combat
experience! I want the leader revived!”
Bing Xiao shook his head. "This isn't something we can simply choose to do.
Truthfully, I've never heard of anyone I know being resurrected in Tranquil
Hill. To me, Tranquil Hill's true purpose is preserving our ancestors' combat
wisdom and passing it to the next generation of successors. You are Teng Dong
Lang's chosen coffin bearer, his successor. Therefore, the better you live and
the stronger you become in the future, the more it proves Teng Dong Lang's
choice was correct. Do you understand what I mean?"
Spring Boxer silently shed tears. After a moment, he nodded heavily, accepting
this harsh reality.
Bing Xiao sighed, patted his shoulder, and led him out of the small cabin onto
the green grass in front of it.
There, Bing Xiao gathered the others and informed them that “Spring Boxer had
just acquired Teng Dong Lang's lifetime combat experience.”
This elicited gasps from the group.
“Is such a miraculous thing even possible?”
“Sharing one person's combat experience with another saves so much time.”
"The successor can dedicate all their time to training. Such exceptional combat
knowledge could transform a battlefield novice into a seasoned veteran or even
surpass that level—in an instant."
Everyone was talking about it.
Lan Zao felt a pang of suspicion. He recalled the memory fabrication device
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
As one of the survivors, Lan Zao understood the function of memory crystals.
He thought to himself: “Compared to memory crystals, Tranquil Hill's role is
more like the Grand Arena Medal in the commander's hands.”
Lan Zao naturally drew some connections.
In truth, the essence of all three was tied to the soul.
The survivors had obtained the memory fabrication device from the War Merchant
and speculated that this alchemy apparatus was likely acquired from the undead
faction.
The memory fabrication device originated from necromancers, while Tranquil Hill
= the divine domain of the Dueling God, and the Grand Arena Medal traced their
roots to the Demon God Serene Fury.
Whether necromancers or deities, all possess the ability to unearth secrets
from souls. Extracting combat experience from souls is not uncommon.
After detailing the events surrounding the Spring Boxer, Bing Xiao swept a
meaningful glance across the assembled crowd and declared, "You can achieve
this too."
This statement astonished the assembly.
The human ringleader urgently pressed, “Lord Bing Xiao, what do you mean?”
Bing Xiao elaborated, "Though only 38 tombstones stand in Tranquil Hill,
countless souls have been laid to rest here throughout history. Only when both
their bodies and souls completely dissipate do their tombstones vanish."
“It's hard to fathom how much battle wisdom lies within Tranquil Hill.”
"Unlike elemental crystals, which are utterly depleted after use, this
knowledge persists like the pages of a book, enduring here."
“We, standing within the divine domain, can also draw upon this knowledge and
experience.”
“Yet there is only one prerequisite to achieve this.”
“That is - to convert, to embrace the faith of the Dueling God!”
The Bayonet Gang members fell silent.
“Convert my faith...”
“How could that possibly be done?”
Conversion was exceedingly difficult.
Some present had worshiped a single deity since childhood, their faith deeply
ingrained.
Others, however, held only a casual belief, indifferent to adding another deity
to their pantheon.
The human ringleader appeared outwardly tempted, yet inwardly grasped Bing
Xiao’s true intent in gathering them.
“He seeks to use faith to screen talent and guard against potential traitors.”
“Though I successfully infiltrated Tranquil Hill, my current position is likely
becoming precarious!”
The human ringleader and Shuang Tu belonged to the same organization. However,
due to the urgency of the situation at the time, the human ringleader had
remained within the Bayonet Gang's stronghold. This prevented effective
communication between the two.
As the mastermind behind the scenes, Shuang Tu had united the vast majority of
silver level factions to besiege the Bayonet Gang. At the critical moment, he
spared no expense, deploying a costly artifact that amplified the divine power
of Tranquil Hill upon its summoning. This surge engulfed not only the interior
of the Bayonet Gang's stronghold but also everyone within a significant radius
outside.
Thus, entering Tranquil Hill had been an unexpected turn of events for the
human ringleader.
"This is the enemy's crucial secret stronghold. Getting in was difficult;
getting out will likely be even harder!" The human ringleader had already come
to terms with this.
Bing Xiao smiled as he surveyed the Bayonet Gang members, his tone gentle, “I'm
not forcing you to convert. I'm merely reminding you: we'll be living here for
a while.”
"During this time, even if you don't worship the Dueling God, your presence
within the divine domain of Tranquil Hill will grant you some infusion of
combat experience. When these occur, do not be overly astonished."
"The key point is this: if you worship the Dueling God, the efficiency of this
experience infusion will increase significantly. The deeper your faith, the
more combat wisdom you draw from Tranquil Hill, and the greater your rewards."
“It is even possible that you might become a holy warrior of the Dueling God,
earning the privilege of being buried within Tranquil Hill after death.”
“You know the legend, though the probability is low, warriors buried here may
indeed be resurrected!”
Silence fell over the crowd.
Everyone actively processed and absorbed the meaning of these words.
After speaking, Bing Xiao dismissed the assembly.
Members of the Bayonet Gang eagerly began training around the wooden hut.
After inspecting the perimeter, Bing Xiao returned to the hut.
Inside, facing the ice-capped peaks beyond the window, he knelt in prayer,
recounting the cracks appearing on the tombstones of the Axe Gang leader and
the other two.
“Perhaps the others have already noticed this situation.”
"Whatever happens, we must recover the bodies of the Axe Gang leader and the
others at all costs. But this is no longer a matter I can interfere with."
Ice Sculpture Kingdom, Snow Rabbit City, inside an upscale inn.
Zi Di regarded the three corpses before her with a complex expression: the Axe
Gang leader, Lin, and Jia Bing.
All three bodies were gold level materials.
When Zong Ge brought them back, Zi Di had already performed emergency
processing. During the initial handling, she had already noticed some peculiar
and unusual aspects.
Upon arriving in Snow Rabbit City, Zi Di thoroughly processed the three corpses
and confirmed the presence of abnormalities in each.
"Typically, after death, a soul is guided away by the deity it worships. Even
if not guided, it would plunge into the abyss. In any case, souls swiftly
separate from their bodies."
"But these three were different. Traces of divine magic were present on their
bodies, binding their souls within the corpses. Though their souls are fading,
the process is exceedingly slow."
“Perhaps Teng Dong Lang's situation is similar to theirs.”
Zi Di naturally thought of Teng Dong Lang.
She too had witnessed the battle at Snow Bird Harbor's docks.
Back then, a rocket assault boat had run aground midway. To salvage Teng Dong
Lang's ice coffin from that vessel, Bing Xiao and the others, who had already
reached Feng Lian's pirate ship, turned back. They didn't rest until they
retrieved the coffin.
The ice coffin contained Teng Dong Lang's sealed corpse. Though dead, Teng Dong
Lang still held immense significance for the Bayonet Gang.
Connecting the dots, Zi Di suddenly surmised: Teng Dong Lang's situation was
likely similar to these three!
“So, the reason we were attacked was because the captain killed Teng Dong
Lang?”
“Teng Dong Lang may appear merely as the leader of the Bayonet Gang, but behind
the scenes, he was likely a member of another major organization.”
“And the members of this organization must share a common faith!”
As for what that faith specifically entailed, Zi Di couldn't be certain.
She felt the most likely candidate was the Snowfield War God.
This deity was one of the principal gods of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Though
holding the divine authority of the War God, he focused more intently on
warfare within snowy terrain.



****** Chapter 482: Zong Ge vs Zi Di ******
Stepping out of the inn room, Zi Di relayed her discovery to Zong Ge: the three
gold level corpses, including the Axe Gang leader, could temporarily preserve
their souls.
Beyond that, she also shared her conjecture regarding the Snowfield War God.
Zong Ge's brow furrowed deeply.
For Zi Di's discovery and conjecture implied that the scale of the enemy they
faced far exceeded previous estimates, it was highly likely a colossal force!
Zong Ge's previous battle had been a resounding success, instantly eliminating
three gold level enemies. This was undoubtedly a major blow, a crippling
setback that would surely instill profound fear!
But if the enemy's forces were vast, this intimidation wouldn't be the final
outcome - far from it.
Retaliation was inevitable!
Zong Ge stated, “They don't know how we eliminated the three gold level
members.”
“Therefore, the most likely course of action is gathering intelligence and
conducting full-scale reconnaissance.”
“Once they figure it out, or grow impatient, the retaliation we face will be
terrifying, like thunder crashing down from the heavens.”
The half-beastman sighed, “Such hatred is impossible to resolve.”
“For now, we can only focus on strengthening ourselves, adapting to any
changes.”
Zi Di shook her head slightly. "A faction this large must have numerous
connections. They lurk in the shadows, likely unable to operate openly. Perhaps
we could expose them, then leverage the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
connections, the Li Jian Clan, or even the official channels of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom to deal with them."
Zong Ge paused, startled. Her words struck a chord.
As a merchant, Zi Di naturally prioritized leveraging existing forces. This
time, she had anticipated Zong Ge's thoughts.
Inspired, Zong Ge acknowledged, "You're right. They must be a clandestine
faction. The Bayonet Gang was wiped out without ever revealing their connection
or receiving support from the Axe Gang."
"The Axe Gang is based in Blood Kin City, closest to Snow Bird Harbor. They had
every capability to provide backup. Yet when the Bayonet Gang fell, they didn't
lift a finger."
"If this was because the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord acted too swiftly, then why
didn't the Axe Gang intervene when Bing Xiao and the others escaped Snow Bird
Harbor?"
“The Axe Gang leader sought revenge against us for Teng Dong Lang's death, yet
he's always acted in the shadows, never openly deploying the Axe Gang's
strength.”
“From the ambush in Cold Wind Valley to our counter-ambush in the blizzard last
time, they've always tried to eliminate us secretly.”
“If they could act openly, why go to such lengths?”
“Right! They have their own teleportation formation!”
Back then, the Axe Gang leader and Lin used a hidden teleportation formation to
take a shortcut, joining Jia Bing ahead of schedule to ambush Zi Di, Zong Ge,
and their group midway.
Zong Ge's tone grew urgent as he continued, "They intercepted us early because
they must have secretly constructed that teleportation formation. That violates
the laws of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!"
“Exposing them and leveraging the Kingdom's official channels could turn their
own tactics against them.”
“But we must choose our approach carefully.”
“Their ability to grow in secret suggests powerful patrons shielding them from
above.”
Zi Di felt a chill run down her spine, fully agreeing with Zong Ge's
assessment.
Regardless of other factors, their military status alone formed an incredibly
tight-knit network. The influence of their connections behind the scenes could
not be underestimated.
“For now, let's avoid involving the Li Jian Clan.” Zi Di's primary concern was
that the Li Jian Clan commanded the kingdom's Second Navy, boasting
overwhelming military backing.
It was possible that members of the Li Jian Clan were aligned with figures like
the Axe Gang leader and Teng Dong Lang.
“Perhaps we could seek assistance from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.”
"I believe it's still safe for now. We shouldn't casually reveal our strength
in slaying three gold level opponents...but informing him about our ambush in
Cold Wind Valley might be feasible."
After discussing it for a while, the two headed to the dueling arena.
Snow Rabbit City boasts dozens of dueling arenas of varying sizes.
This particular arena was small and unremarkable, utterly inconspicuous.
The two entered without any spectators present.
This was a private duel.
After a thorough check to confirm no observers were monitoring them, Zi Di and
Zong Ge stood facing each other, ready to begin.
Having proven themselves in combat, the snake shadow ghost and rat eye ghost
fully demonstrated the strengths of the new undead faction in reconnaissance,
they were reliable allies.
Without further ado, the duel commenced.
Zong Ge, hands empty, took a stride forward, charging toward Zi Di.
Zi Di gently waved her Soaring Flame Staff, casting a Flight spell upon herself
to step back.
Zong Ge activated his battle skill: Rapid Advance, outpacing Zi Di to close the
distance.
Unfazed, Zi Di tapped her gold level belt.
A spatial ripple erupted, and three silver level ice gargoyles abruptly
materialized to block Zong Ge.
One bore fearsome claws, another sported broad wings and astonishing speed,
while the last blasted icy beams from its eyes, specializing in ranged attacks.
The clawed ice gargoyle primarily entangled Zong Ge, while the winged ice
gargoyle provided flanking support, sealing gaps in the defense whenever Zong
Ge attempted to break through.
In an instant, the three ice gargoyles encircled Zong Ge at the center. Their
movements were calculated, their coordination seamless, creating a fierce and
chaotic battle.
Though clearly a master of weapons, Zong Ge deliberately fought unarmed.
He channeled his gold battle qi, conjuring clusters of ranged attacks from thin
air. Like a human artillery platform, he relentlessly pounded the ice
gargoyles.
The ice gargoyles possessed exceptional defense; even under continuous assault,
they remained unshaken.
Zong Ge grew increasingly adept as the battle progressed.
Having recently ascended to gold level, he desperately needed such combat
experience to grasp the unique properties of gold level battle qi.
His previous battle against the Axe Gang leader and two others had been fought
at full strength, consuming vast amounts of pearl bubbles, leaving no room for
this kind of practical training.
Zi Di's eyes flashed with intense focus.
Controlling the ice gargoyles proved immensely beneficial for her as well. Many
facts could only be deeply understood through actual combat. Practical
experience was something that couldn't be gained through ordinary cultivation.
Though she was only at the iron level, she was a ghost by nature, possessing
mental prowess. Combined with the Burden Alleviation Spell and Karma Removal
Spell, Zi Di possessed mental strength not inferior to that of a silver level.
This made controlling the silver level ice gargoyles effortless for her.
Three ice gargoyles gradually showed signs of exhaustion. Once their injuries
reached a certain threshold, Zi Di proactively replaced them.
Soon, the three ice gargoyles were replaced and her defenses were watertight
again.
Zi Di obtained a total of twelve ice gargoyles from Jia Bing's laboratory, each
with their own differences and characteristics. Among them was even a gold
level ice gargoyle, though it remained unfinished.
She rotated them constantly, familiarizing herself with each of the twelve ice
gargoyles' differences and characteristics.
Zong Ge displayed astonishing warrior talent. He began condensing his gold
battle qi into various weapons, wielding them with his hands.
As a weapons master, Zong Ge's combat effectiveness was greatly affected by
whether he had weapons.
Now armed, even if only with gold level battle qi, his combat power surged
dramatically. This forced Zi Di to simultaneously control six ice gargoyles
just to barely hold the line.
But this strained her mental energy rapidly, and she gradually struggled to
keep up.
However, Zong Ge's combat strength declined even faster than hers.
Suddenly, a flash of crimson light erupted from Zong Ge's body.
He rolled backward in a hasty evasion, dodging the ice gargoyle's claw strike.
Retreating in disarray, he shifted from offense to defense.
“Blood Blade Enemy has activated again!” Zi Di understood, yet she did not
pause her assault. Instead, she intensified her command over the ice gargoyles,
launching a full-scale offensive.
In their previous battle, Zong Ge had been struck by the Axe Gang leader's
death throes counterattack.
The power of the Blood Vengeance Axe had seeped deep into his bones, proving
nearly impossible to purge. Periodically, it would flare up, striking at his
weak points.
Zi Di attacked with all her might, yet she couldn't detect the very source
where this power had taken root. However, through subsequent investigations and
purchased intelligence, they had uncovered many secrets of the Blood Vengeance
Axe, this unique gold level weapon.
Blood Blade Enemy was an inherent attack ability of the Blood Vengeance Axe.
The energy it emitted could penetrate deep into an enemy's body, draining their
strength to fuel its own growth. Once it reached a certain threshold, this
energy would shift from a dormant state into an aggressive one.
When embedded within an enemy, it would immediately unleash brutal attacks both
inside and out.
If the enemy failed to react in time, they would suffer severe injuries, or
even death.
While engaging in a training battle with Zi Di, Zong Ge remained constantly
vigilant about his physical condition. The moment a Blood Blade activated, he
immediately mobilized his internal battle qi to defend.
The Blood Blade's assault directly disrupted his combat rhythm, forcing him to
shift from offense to defense.
Facing the ice gargoyle's fierce attack, Zong Ge blocked left and right,
ultimately relying solely on a makeshift weapon forged from gold level battle
qi to withstand the blow.
This wasn't their first training battle. Zi Di could clearly sense Zong Ge's
progress.
"Zong Ge's combat talent is truly remarkable! After just a few training
sessions, his improvement is practically visible to the naked eye. Meanwhile,
I've mostly been getting familiar with the ice gargoyles. Sigh..."
Zi Di's thoughts drifted to the commander.
Zong Ge's promotion to gold level, coupled with such combat talent, would
undoubtedly pose a formidable challenge to the youngster's current leadership
position!
Before, Zi Di had hoped the dragonman youngster would appear soon to join them.
Now, she wished he would arrive later, buying her more time to avoid an early
confrontation with Zong Ge.
“Battle qi cultivation cannot be rushed.”
“Even if we buy some time, it'll be difficult for the commander to bridge the
gap between him and Zong Ge.”
“After all, he's only at the silver level, still far from the peak.”
“However, there are other ways to enhance personal combat strength.”
“Like cultivating magic alongside it.”
“The bloodline of the Flame Dragon King is legend level, granting exceptional
aptitude for fire magic.”
Zi Di pondered and worried for the youngster, unaware that the young commander
had already taken such a path.
Yet it differed from Zi Di's expectations—he cultivated magic not in his
dragonman form, but as a fishman.
Spell - Spring Well.
After chanting the incantation, the fishman youngster tapped a finger against
the metal wall. Instantly, a spring welled up, releasing a trickle of clear
water.
Zhong Yong, standing nearby, looked stunned, “Lord, you succeeded on your very
first attempt! You possess extraordinary magic talent!”



****** Chapter 483: Zhong Yong – My Lord, You are a Genius! ******
Fishman Zhong Yong was a silver level magician who had practiced magic for
years, yet he had never encountered a case like that of the fishman youngster.
After the fishman youngster began his magic training under Zhong Yong's
guidance, the innate talent he displayed left the latter deeply astonished.
“What level of bloodline did I absorb from Hai Ping's saint corpse this time?”
the fishman youngster wondered inwardly.
He had not practiced any magic while in his dragonman form, and the
concentration of the Flame Dragon King's bloodline differed from that of the
fishman bloodline he had absorbed this time.
Thus, he had no point of reference.
Yet the fishman youngster was certain: the fishman bloodline he had absorbed
must be of exceptionally high level!
He had felt this distinctly the very first time he attempted to cast a spell.
When memorizing the magic model for Spring Well, it felt remarkably simple.
After one look, he remembered it with no possibility of forgetting.
Before casting it for the first time, the fishman Zhong Yong shared various
insights, experiences, and tricks with him. When it came time to actually cast
the spell, it flowed as naturally as breathing, so effortless that those
insights and tricks felt superfluous!
“Spring Well is merely the lowest level spell to learn.”
“Let us continue our training.”
Facing Zhong Yong's effusive praise, the fishman youngster remained remarkably
composed.
Impressed by the youngster's poise, Zhong Yong silently admired him and
proceeded to teach him other fundamental water attribute spells.
The magic models for these were all remarkably straightforward.
The fishman youngster glanced over them briefly before committing them all to
memory.
Just like Spring Well, his first attempts at casting these spells were all
successful. Not a single failure, not even a hint of one.
“These basic spells hold no challenge for your Lordship.”
“We can try some higher level spells now.” Zhong Yong suggested proactively.
His enthusiasm for teaching the youngster grew ever stronger. This was his
first encounter with someone of such innate talent, and he was deeply curious
to discover the limits of the fishman youngster's abilities.
“Speaking of which,” the fishman youngster inquired, “what exactly defines the
classification of spell levels?”
This seemingly basic question caused Zhong Yong to pause slightly, reaffirming
his realization that the fishman youngster before him was indeed a complete
novice in magic.
Zhong Yong replied, “There are many methods for classifying spells.”
“Generally speaking, spell levels align with the levels of transcendents. From
lowest to highest: bronze level, iron level, silver level, gold level... legend
level.”
“This is the most common classification system, based on the casting
capabilities of beings at corresponding levels. For instance, bronze level
spells are spells most bronze level magicians can cast. The same applies to
gold level spells and so forth."
The fishman youngster inquired again, “But I've heard of tactical-class,
battlefield-class, and strategic-class spells?”
Zhong Yong nodded and explained, “That classification is based on a spell's
actual power.”
“Generally, some lower level spells are classified as tactical-class.”
“Battlefield-class spells are at least gold level.”
“Most renowned strategic-class spells are essentially legend level, with
extremely stringent casting requirements.”
The fishman youngster nodded repeatedly, grasping the distinctions and
connections.
Zhong Yong continued, “These are merely classification methods for spells and
aren't entirely precise.”
“Extremely rare silver level spells can also be rated as battlefield-class.”
"In the most common classification, if a caster possesses exceptional talent,
they can fully unleash silver level spells at the bronze level. This is
commonly known as casting beyond one's level."
“Take you, for instance, my lord. Though you've only just begun your
cultivation and hold the lowest bronze level magician title, your displayed
talent is exceptionally strong. You could easily cast iron level spells beyond
your level.”
"My Lord, forgive my boldness, but what exactly is your bloodline? I'm truly
curious!"
The fishman youngster shook his head, his face filled with regret, “I too yearn
to know the answer to that question. Truthfully, I had hoped to glean some
clues from you.”
Zhong Yong sighed, “My Lord, though I am a fishman, I grew up in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. While I possess knowledge of fishmen, it is almost entirely
derived from books.”
"Your bloodline traits are not pronounced, making it difficult to assess from
outward appearance alone. I cannot discern the truth of your lineage."
The fishman youngster felt no surprise at Zhong Yong's response.
He silently lamented: "If only Zi Di were here. She could use a bloodline-
testing potion to uncover the truth of my fishman bloodline."
At this stage, without Zi Di present, the fishman youngster had no means to
conduct a bloodline test.
Though the tower spirit remained by his side, its current capabilities were
limited to calculations, such as refining potion formulas or perfecting alchemy
diagrams.
Conducting a complete potion blood test from start to finish, however, was
beyond the tower spirit's capacity.
Too many unpredictable variables existed in such a process. Each test result
necessitates continuous hypothesis refinement while simultaneously invalidating
numerous prior assumptions.
Especially in the early stages, the magician had to intuitively select a
testing path from an overwhelming sea of possibilities.
This was a test of spiritual insight.
The tower spirit itself was damaged and required specialized treatment for any
hope of recovery.
After obtaining the soul crystals, Cang Xu attempted to use it to heal the
tower spirit, but it proved ineffective.
This was precisely why Cang Xu has persistently sought the ship spirit
restoration scroll held by Jian Gui.
Unfortunately, Jian Gui intended to submit this scroll as crucial evidence and
showed no willingness to trade it.
Given Zhong Yong's status and skill as an alchemist, he was actually qualified
to conduct the bloodline potion test.
However, his loyalty had yet to be fully verified, and he was far from being
trusted with core secrets.
In truth, assigning Zhong Yong to the Deep Sea Monster Fish was already a
considerable risk.
After all, he was a silver level magician. Despite the meticulously crafted
magic contract, the survivors still needed to observe him over the long term.
No matter what, from the fishman youngster's terrifying learning speed, his
fishman bloodline was definitely high level.
But this was not enough.
The fishman youngster also needed the most precise answers.
With those answers, he could break through based on his bloodline, specifically
select certain marine life, absorb their bloodline essence, and effectively
supplement his own fishman bloodline.
Once the concentration of his fishman bloodline increased, the youngster's
innate talents would grow even more.
“With Zi Di absent, the tower spirit and Zhong Yong are unusable. The only
remaining option is to rely on Cang Xu.”
“Cang Xu will inquire through prayer to obtain the answer from the Charming
Blue Goddess.”
“But Cang Xu's current level of faith and position within the church are
insufficient.”
“To gain the answer for my own fishman bloodline, I must first secure the
answer for his bloodline.”
That was the basic plan.
The fishman youngster began his magic training, leveraging his superior
bloodline and astonishing talent to cast spells beyond his level.
Once he mastered the Undead Bloodline Detection Spell, he could use it on Cang
Xu.
By then, Cang Xu's bloodline mutation would surely have stabilized completely.
After obtaining Cang Xu's bloodline answers, they could lie in wait at the
Ocean Mother Nest.
Whenever Zhou Zhang presided over blood sacrifices outside, the fishman
youngster would strike first whenever the sacrificed undead were transported
into the Mother Nest.
He would hunt down these undead, extract their bloodline essence using the
Bloodcore, then purify Cang Xu's bloodline concentration through the Bloodline
Purification Formation.
As Cang Xu's bloodline concentration increased, his aptitude would rise, and
his ability to forge memories would become more proficient. Thus, in subsequent
prayers, he could garner greater favor and receive more divine blessings.
Through this process, his position within the church would also advance.
As his rank within the church rises, Cang Xu would gain greater involvement in
the grand Charming Blue Ritual, securing better divine blessings, creating a
positive feedback loop.
Upon reaching a certain rank, Cang Xu could preside over rituals himself.
He would master divine spells, enabling survivors to wield the pearl bubbles
more effectively—much like the naga priests wielding divine spells during the
Two Eyes Island battle.
Moreover, Cang Xu might even command the divine artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale.
Reaching this level represents the optimal outcome.
According to the fishman youngster's prior speculation, his recent
teleportation, along with his ship, into the Ocean Mother Nest was caused by
Charming Blue Goddess' divine artifact, Mermaid Fairy Tale.
If Cang Xu could manipulate the Mermaid Fairy Tale, there existed a possibility
of teleporting the Deep Sea Monster Fish out once more.
This way, the fishman youngster and Cang Xu could safely leave the ocean trench
without anyone noticing, keeping Zhou Zhang completely in the dark from start
to finish.
Achieving this step would mean a major victory for the survivors!
With the Ocean Mother Nest preserved and Zhou Zhang harboring no suspicions,
the fishman youngster and Cang Xu could teleport back in whenever she held
another blood sacrifice. Right under her nose, they could effortlessly
replenish the divine artifact's power and mass-produce pearl bubbles.
Achieving this would render both the dual seals binding Cang Xu and the fatal
hidden mechanism of Jian Gui irrelevant.
Divine blessings could easily resolve these complications.
His cultivation progress accelerated rapidly.
The fishman youngster swiftly mastered basic water attribute spells. After a
brief glance, he memorized all iron level spells.
His success rate in casting spells beyond his level was 100%!
Zhong Yong was once again stunned.
Though he had surmised the youngster could cast spells beyond his level, he
hadn't anticipated such effortless mastery.
“Lord, where exactly lies your limit?” Zhong Yong's gaze toward the fishman
youngster now held unmistakable reverence.
Admiring strength was one of the fundamental traits shared by nearly all
sentient beings.
However, when practicing silver level spells, the fishman youngster encountered
trouble.
Though he could use his spirit to accurately map out the magic model, his magic
power was completely insufficient.
Zhong Yong declared, "Lord, it's only your magician level holding you back!
With your talent, you'll reach iron level in no time."
He was even more excited than the fishman youngster.



****** Chapter 484: Cultivating Necromancy Again ******
“Iron level...” The fishman youngster nodded, a sense of urgency welling up
within him.
According to the plan he and Cang Xu had devised, time was a critical factor.
Cultivation couldn't be rushed, yet the dragonman youngster needed to elevate
his magician level as swiftly as possible at this juncture.
Much like a fighter's cultivation, advancing a fighter's level primarily relied
on battle qi techniques. Magicians, however, depended on meditation methods.
“What do you think of this meditation method?” The fishman youngster handed the
Tidal Sound meditation method to Zhong Yong for review.
Zhong Yong had only read a third of it before his face lit up with admiration,
“Lord Hou Lang, this meditation method is truly exceptional. It suits your
fishman bloodline perfectly. It far surpasses my own meditation method!"
“That's quite rare.”
“To be honest, my meditation method was exchanged from the Li Jian Clan - a
high level item beyond the ordinary.”
The fishman youngster laughed heartily: “In that case, I'll gift this
meditation method to you.”
Zhong Yong was stunned: “Lord, this is far too valuable...”
“Consider it a personal token of my gratitude for your teachings.” With that,
the fishman youngster patted Zhong Yong on the shoulder, “Besides, fishmen are
rare in the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. As your senior, it's only right
to mentor the younger generation.”
Zhong Yong felt even more grateful.
The youngster concealed his true identity as Commander Long Fu, presenting
himself only as “Senior Hou Lang.”
Combined with the aura of kinship bestowed by their shared bloodline, Zhong
Yong felt incredibly fortunate. Having just joined this unfamiliar
organization, he'd already encountered a benefactor who favored and sought to
mentor him!
Consequently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps itself grew much more welcoming
in his eyes.
The fishman youngster offered Zhong Yong a few more words of encouragement
before dismissing him to continue his alchemy practice.
Armed with the Tidal Sound meditation method, Zhong Yong left the meditation
chamber brimming with motivation.
The room was once again empty except for the fishman youngster.
Rather than meditating immediately, the youngster activated his Bloodcore to
undergo a hybrid transformation.
In the next instant, his appearance underwent a drastic transformation.
His scales turned dark gray, twisted patterns forming grotesque faces on his
chest and back.
This was the fishman youngster's activation of the Ghostface Fish
transformation.
Only with this layer of bloodline enhancement did he gain the qualification to
absorb negative energy, convert it into undead magic power, and practice
necromancy magic.
This demonstrated that bloodline formed the foundation.
Without the corresponding lineage, many kinds of transcendent cultivation
proved inaccessible even at the most basic level.
Earlier, the fishman youngster had already depleted all water attribute magic
power from his magic pool.
This allowed him to directly absorb negative energy and convert it into undead
magic power.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish's meditation chamber was specifically designed for
War Merchant. Its sophisticated facilities could directly consume corresponding
materials from the storage room, absorb energy, and create an environment
suitable for a magician's meditation.
This consumption method was vastly superior and more efficient than Zi Di
crushing undead materials. A single batch of identical materials could extract
more negative energy.
It was worth mentioning that these undead materials were mostly of the
Ghostface Fish.
Ghostface Fish possess both water and undead attributes.
They could be sold as water attribute materials in the market while also
skirting the line of undead.
Consequently, some regions prohibited the sale of such materials, while others,
like Two Eyes Island, allowed open trade.
Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps began acquiring undead materials, all
obtainable specimens on the market had been Ghostface Fish carcasses.
Previously, the dragonman youngster attempted to transform into a ghost but
failed precisely because these materials couldn't convert him into a ghost-type
undead lifeform.
At best, it could only transform into a physical entity like the Ghostface
Fish.
The fishman youngster refined water attribute magic power using the Tidal Sound
meditation method. Now, to refine undead magic power, he employed the Death Qi
meditation method.
The former technique was selected from the War Merchant's database. The latter
originated from the orthodox soul aspect necromancer inheritance, obtained by
Cang Xu.
“The efficiency of extracting undead magic power pales in comparison to
extracting water magic power.”
“After all, the Ghostface Fish is merely a silver level magic beast, and this
Ghostface Fish bloodline is only a silver level bloodline.”
This was already the best choice available to the fishman youngster, even
though the Deep Sea Monster Fish's storage held undead materials bordering on
gold level.
Absorbing such materials could grant the fishman youngster a gold level undead
bloodline, but it proved less useful than the Ghostface Fish bloodline.
Because the quantity of the gold level undead material paled in comparison to
the Ghostface Fish carcass.
Having absorbed vast quantities of the Ghostface Fish carcass, the fishman
youngster had already pushed his bloodline concentration to its absolute limit.
A 100% silver level Ghostface Fish bloodline versus less than 5% gold level
undead bloodline, the former clearly held the advantage.
The fishman youngster began teaching himself necromancy magic.
Drawing on his prior experience learning water magic, he swiftly mastered the
most fundamental necromancer incantations.
Yet he distinctly sensed this learning process was more arduous than before,
demanding active effort.
His first attempts at casting these basic necromancy magic spells weren't
entirely successful. Nor did he experience that effortless, almost breathing-
like naturalness he'd felt before.
Fortunately, the foundation provided by his fishman bloodline remained,
allowing him to grasp new concepts by analogy to a large extent.
His formidable spirit also made it effortless for him to construct the models
for necromancy magic.
After mastering the foundational necromancy magic, the fishman youngster wasted
no time advancing toward iron level spells.
During this period, the tower spirit handled external surveillance.
Its primary focus was Cang Xu.
Should Cang Xu face mortal danger, the youngster would shatter the Mother Nest
to launch an emergency rescue!
In the youngster's heart, Cang Xu's life held far greater value than the entire
Ocean Mother Nest.
For now, Cang Xu's venture appeared successful.
Though he had temporarily passed Zhou Zhang's inspection, the latter had not
lifted the dual seals binding Cang Xu.
As for Jian Gui, that was even less likely.
Before this teleportation blood sacrifice, the cunning Jian Gui had hinted to
Cang Xu that Doctor Sui Shi still held means over him. This was a message:
Though you are bound to me, the true culprit is not me, but Doctor Sui Shi.
Should Cang Xu later discover a fatal trap planted within him, this excuse
could be immediately offered - Doctor Sui Shi was the culprit.
Cang Xu arrived at Jian Gui's dwelling.
Accompanying him were Xiao Wang Zi, Qi Ling, and Ku Feng.
Just as they had done when sharing experiences about forging memories, they sat
cross-legged in a circle upon entering the room.
“Cang Xu, it's such a relief you made it back alive!” Jian Gui exclaimed
warmly.
The others wore varied expressions.
Xiao Wang Zi was actually the happiest. These past days he had been tormented
by guilt.
Ku Feng's gaze was open and honest. In his view, competition where everyone
fought for survival using every means necessary was perfectly justified!
Qi Ling's expression was gloomy.
She never imagined Cang Xu would return alive.
Her previous schemes and plots against Cang Xu had now become his legitimate
grounds for dealing with her.



****** Chapter 485: Jian Gui – My Situation is Getting Better ******
Cang Xu's return was most detrimental to Qi Ling.
At this very moment, within Jian Gui's quarters, Qi Ling observed Cang Xu with
veiled scrutiny, her emotions in turmoil: “Xu Jia has actually converted his
faith!”
“Is conversion really that easy?”
“What kind of god is Charming Blue Goddess? She accepted an undead as her
believer so readily?”
Qi Ling couldn't help but inwardly scoff: "Charming Blue Goddess has fallen
from grace, she now accepts any believer, how pathetic!"
Cang Xu sighed bitterly: “I too am astonished that this conversion succeeded.”
"Now seeing you all again feels like a dream. Recalling our ordeal in the Ocean
Mother Nest, it was perilous beyond measure. The fear still lingers.
Cang Xu's performance was astonishing, and he steered the conversation toward a
topic that piqued everyone's interest.
How could they not be interested?
The Ocean Mother Nest concerned their very survival.
Thus, the group pressed Cang Xu for details.
Cang Xu began slowly, recounting the meticulously crafted tale he and the
fishman youngster had woven.
He particularly emphasized the scene where the saint level sea beast, Snow Pear
Octopus, tested the faithful, painting it vividly with dramatic flair.
“When the octopus's tentacles closed in on me, I was almost certain my end had
come.”
"In that moment, the sensation of death descending upon me was suffocating, yet
it also seemed to completely transform my faith!”
“To survive, I truly began to worship Charming Blue Goddess.”
“As the octopus's tentacles gradually retreated from me, I was still in a
daze.”
…
The group listened with rapt attention. For a time, only Cang Xu's voice echoed
within the shack.
Cang Xu was confident his account held no flaws.
Not only had he and the fishman youngster meticulously planned and reviewed it,
but crucially, this wasn't a fabrication.
During their time aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster had
witnessed multiple teleportation blood sacrifices. Magic recordings documented
countless such instances.
All were genuine evidence, authentic material extracted from actual events.
Thus, when Jian Gui and others heard it, none doubted its truth.
Finally, Cang Xu sighed deeply, his face bitter. "Perhaps I should thank that
saint level sea beast more. Without its coercion, I wouldn't have faced such
immense pressure of death, unable to transform my faith!"
After Cang Xu finished speaking, the shack fell into silence.
He lowered his head, his gaze resting on the sandy seabed, his mood tense.
He, too, was undergoing a trial now.
During his teleportation back, he had faced Zhou Zhang's test. Now, to
reintegrate into Jian Gui's group, he needed the necromancers to recognize him
anew.
His new identity as a believer of Charming Blue Goddess made the magicians both
envious of his experiences and wary of him.
Qi Ling displayed this wariness most clearly.
Throughout Cang Xu's account, she kept glancing at Jian Gui. Her gaze seemed to
ask: “Can Xu Jia truly be trusted?”
"Xu Jia's faith has shifted; he now worships the enemy's deity. For the sake of
that faith, betraying us is entirely possible."
But Jian Gui seemed oblivious to Qi Ling's glances. Not only did he actively
invite Cang Xu to this necromancer gathering, but after Cang Xu finished
speaking, he declared: "Xu Jia, you performed brilliantly. Frankly, it
surpassed my expectations."
“I owe you my gratitude.”
"Your success proves that even if we fail to forge memories, there remains a
way out. You have given us immense confidence and hope."
"Changing allegiance on the fly is incredibly difficult, especially for us
necromancers. But you did it!"
“What comforts me most is that even after switching sides, you haven't betrayed
us. You're still willing to act alongside us.”
“I didn't gift that undead inheritance in vain!”
Jian Gui spoke with skill, referencing how he had previously “broken his own
rules” to grant Cang Xu the intermediate soul aspect inheritance.
Upon hearing this, Cang Xu immediately expressed gratitude while seizing the
moment to declare his loyalty, emphasizing the nature of faith: “Though I
worship Charming Blue Goddess, it doesn't mean I'll abandon or betray you all.”
“That's entirely different!”
“Besides, the one truly responsible for our captivity and suffering is Zhou
Zhang.”
"I worship the Charming Blue Goddess, but I do not acknowledge Zhou Zhang. My
grudge against her remains unsettled!"
Cang Xu's words somewhat eased the necromancers' worries and reservations.
Qi Ling's gaze was somber, her expression gloomy.
Xiao Wang Zi averted his eyes, unable to meet Cang Xu's stare, still feeling
awkward.
Ku Feng, however, approached Cang Xu directly, inquiring about the specifics of
conversion.
For him, after Cang Xu, if the human pirates weren't an option, he would be
next. By then, the memory forgery would surely remain incomplete.
Thus, conversion was crucial, perhaps his only path to survival.
Cang Xu didn't reject Ku Feng's invitation. Instead, he agreed to speak with
him privately after the gathering to explain everything in detail. What
everyone should focus on next was sharing experiences and adjusting their
collaboration on the memory fabrication.
Cang Xu noticed significant progress in the memory fabrication process.
He wasn't surprised. Calculating the time, he had missed one gathering session
due to participating in the teleportation blood sacrifice.
On the surface, the group discussed prayers and conversion rituals. In reality,
they secretly transmitted messages, plotting to fabricate memories and
blaspheme the goddess.
The difference this time was that Cang Xu became the ostensible speaker. He
shared the divine revelations he had received after his own prayers.
Specifically, how a monk of the Charming Blue Church should pray, interpret its
doctrines, and so forth.
After the gathering concluded, Cang Xu was personally retained by Jian Gui.
The two conversed privately.
Cang Xu expressed gratitude for Jian Gui's earlier breach of protocol in
bestowing upon him the intermediate soul aspect inheritance. The magnanimity
and demeanor Jian Gui displayed in this matter had won Cang Xu's deep respect.
Cang Xu pledged his full cooperation in forging memories for Jian Gui. Finally,
Cang Xu subtly hinted: his interest in other inheritances remained
undiminished!
Jian Gui roared with laughter, his chuckles echoing loudly.
“From our first meeting, I recognized you as an exceptional magician.”
“A voracious thirst for knowledge is one of a magician's finest qualities."
“Doctor Sui Shi chose you to learn the Flying Head Spell, likely recognizing
your exceptional qualities.”
That's utter nonsense!
Doctor Sui Shi taught the Flying Head Spell only to use Cang Xu as an
experimental subject. While ostensibly compensation, imparting the technique
was merely to keep Cang Xu as his test subject.
By invoking Doctor Sui Shi, Jian Gui primarily sought to remind Cang Xu of his
formidable background, a tactic of intimidation.
Then, shifting his tone, Jian Gui adopted a troubled expression, explaining
that while he possessed both intermediate inheritances of the corpse aspect and
bone aspect, such sharing was strictly forbidden by principle.
Upon hearing this, Cang Xu knew instantly that he had a chance!
Having dealt with Jian Gui for so long, he understood all too well the nature
of his so-called “principles”.
Cang Xu hastily pledged his loyalty and expressed his intense desire for the
undead inheritance.
Sure enough, after some evasive talk, Jian Gui hinted: if Cang Xu made a
significant contribution—like rescuing a legitimate member of the undead
faction (meaning himself), granting him the intermediate inheritance would be
entirely within the bounds of principle.
Satisfied with this answer, Cang Xu took his leave.
Watching Cang Xu's retreating figure, Jian Gui narrowed his eyes, equally
satisfied.
“Though Xu Jia has embraced the faith of the Charming Blue Goddess, he remains
no zealous believer. For the time being, he remains trustworthy and poses no
threat.”
"The persona I've cultivated, my leadership, the personal charisma I've
maintained, all are working to exert a positive influence on Xu Jia!"
"The hidden trap is confirmed to still be in place. Should Xu Jia betray me, I
can kill him in an instant."
But doing so would inevitably trigger a massive investigation by Zhou Zhang.
The consequences would be too much for me to bear."
“Keep Xu Jia steady. His desire for the inheritances is perfect, let them be
the carrot dangling before the donkey, compelling him to keep fabricating
memories for me.”
“Speaking of which, his successful conversion greatly benefits my situation.”
"On one hand, he'll continue contributing to the memory fabrication plan. On
the other hand, Zhou Zhang and the others will gain greater confidence in the
undead conversion, which will improve their attitude toward us."
"Don't panic, don't rush. Though I'm now a prisoner, my chances of escape have
actually grown. That's right, if things continue this way, I'll definitely
break free from here. It might even turn out to be a blessing in disguise."
Jian Gui couldn't help but envision the future.



****** Chapter 486: Cang Xu Socializes ******
“Jian Gui is temporarily pacified,” Cang Xu murmured to himself on the way
back.
For Cang Xu, his current situation was complex.
He had to maintain contact with both Zhou Zhang's faction and Jian Gui, playing
both sides while secretly plotting, gaining benefits for his true allegiance
and faction.
Cang Xu excelled in such situations. Despite bearing the marks of both
factions' schemes, his confidence only grew.
“It all stems from the commander. He's the one who made me feel increasingly at
ease.”
Recalling the events on Mystifying Monster Island and the perilous ordeal this
time, Cang Xu found himself teetering on the edge of betrayal.
The young commander's timely arrival had been triggered by the divine artifact
[Mermaid Fairy Tale]'s teleportation effect.
“This is destiny!”
Understanding the chain of events filled Cang Xu with profound reverence for
destiny.
He returned to his dwelling - still the same crude shack.
Ku Feng had already arrived.
Cang Xu welcomed him inside and spoke with him privately for quite some time.
Ku Feng, desperate to survive, and pressed for time, moved with decisive
urgency.
He asked numerous questions, to which Cang Xu responded with well-reasoned
answers, consistent, logically sound, and rich in detail.
Of course, on certain points, Cang Xu deliberately gave vague answers,
revealing the state of tension, fear, and utter helplessness he had felt at the
time.
This greatly enlightened Ku Feng declared: Cang Xu's psychological state formed
the strongest foundation for his successful conversion.
Especially the immense pressure brought by death, in such circumstances, it
became an aid.
After their exchange, Ku Feng felt deeply enriched and grew grateful toward
Cang Xu.
“If I survive this, I must repay him!”
With this resolve, Ku Feng sought to offer timely feedback: "I walk the path of
the corpse aspect. Regarding its inheritance, I'm ashamed to say my knowledge
might not even match yours. But as an undead ronin, I possess extensive
experience in wielding undead battle qi."
"My cultivation experience is the only thing I can repay you with."
"No need," Cang Xu waved his hand and rejected.
He spoke with genuine sincerity: "It's not that I look down on you, I'm
interested in all knowledge. But for you, Ku Feng, my companion, you need to
treasure your time more now. There's no need to waste it here. Save it for
yourself. Who knows? In a critical moment, an extra minute—or even a
second—could mean the difference between life and death."
These words deeply moved Ku Feng.
After all, Ku Feng had previously targeted Cang Xu with the help of Qi Ling and
Xiao Wang Zi.
Before seeking Cang Xu's aid, Ku Feng had braced himself for the worst.
Yet from start to finish, Cang Xu remained gentle, not merely putting on a show
before Jian Gui, but genuinely considering Ku Feng's well-being.
Cang Xu continued, "What happened before doesn't amount to much. If I were in
your place, I'd have done the same. It's just about survival."
“Of course, if we make it out alive, or even regain our freedom, you'll owe me
big time!”
Ku Feng was deeply moved.
He took a deep breath, lowering his voice: “I'll remember this favor. I'll
repay it someday.”
Ku Feng wasn't one for flowery words, but Cang Xu could sense his sincerity and
resolve in that simple reply.
“This debt of yours won't be easily repaid,” Cang Xu chuckled inwardly.
“Come to think of it, taking this risky teleportation back was absolutely the
right call.”
“I've completely turned the tables on Jian Gui's crew!”
Based on Cang Xu's understanding of Ku Feng and his own political acumen, Ku
Feng was now deeply indebted. He would surely be useful to Cang Xu in the
future.
“This means I can ask the commander to intervene and protect Ku Feng as much as
possible.”
To Ku Feng, his situation seemed precarious.
But to Cang Xu, it presented an entirely different scenario.
Life or death could now be arranged entirely through the hands of the young
commander!
“Qi Ling previously schemed against me... but my survival has actually given me
an opportunity to strengthen bonds and break through barriers.”
Cang Xu quickly regained his composure.
This was merely a minor advancement, too insignificant within the grand scheme
of the entire plan.
"I am a necromancer, though I have received divine blessing and passed Zhou
Zhang's trial, the other believers still regard me with apprehension, wariness,
and aloofness."
Cang Xu gazed through the cracks of his makeshift hut toward the golden altar.
Recalling his teleportation back and the inspection by Zhou Zhang, his brow
furrowed slightly.
He had passed Zhou Zhang's verification, a process far easier than he had
anticipated. Yet it was precisely this ease that left him feeling unsettled,
uneasy.
“Does Zhou Zhang truly trust me?”
“If she truly trusts me, why hasn't she proactively lifted my seal?”
“Perhaps I should seek an audience with her myself and request the seal's
removal?”
A thought suddenly struck Cang Xu.
It was a form of probing.
The next moment, he dismissed this dangerous notion of testing the waters.
Too reckless, it was not his style.
Most importantly, there was the plan he'd discussed with the young commander!
Even sealed, he could still advance that plan.
“No need for unnecessary risks.”
“Look at it another way, this seal on me is the best way to gain Zhou Zhang's
trust.”
Cang Xu secretly speculated that perhaps, ever since his teleportation, every
move he made had been under Zhou Zhang's strict surveillance and scrutiny.
“Hmm, I must be even more cautious!”
Cang Xu lingered in the shack for a short while before pushing open the door
and stepping out.
The area where necromancers gathered had always been isolated as a separate
zone by other Charming Blue believers.
Now, Cang Xu voluntarily left this isolated zone and ventured into other areas.
Along the way, he encountered numerous Charming Blue believers. These
intelligent sea creatures all regarded him with looks of suspicion, wariness,
and warning. Many pointed at him from corners, whispering among themselves, a
decidedly unfriendly atmosphere.
Having witnessed Cang Xu's departure, they continued their discussion.
“Who would have thought a necromancer would become one of us?”
“I absolutely won't accept him!”
“This is all the will of the gods. I believe that since he's been granted
divine blessing and teleported back, it proves his true heart.”
“Even so, what does that matter? Does sharing the same faith mean we can't be
enemies? That poor son of mine never came back. Waaah, waaah, waaah! That vile
undead actually returned!"
…
Cang Xu left his lodgings of his own accord, seeking Qing Xin.
He knew Qing Xin's location, among the human pirates.
"Come to think of it, Qing Xin was captured aboard the ghost ship. Yet during
imprisonment, Zhou Zhang had her transferred to the human pirates. Looking at
how she forced us to select participants for the teleportation blood sacrifice,
this Charming Blue Archbishop Zhou Zhang truly has a twisted sense of humor."
Cang Xu felt Zhou Zhang treated their group of captives as casually as a child
playing with ants.
"Relying on her mastery of both divine and magic spells, especially her
deception magic, Zhou Zhang certainly has reason to look down on us. But might
her nature offer some exploitable weakness?"
Lost in thought, Cang Xu unexpectedly encountered Qing Xin halfway through his
journey.
Zhou Zhang did not restrict the necromancers' movements, nor did she concern
herself with the human prisoners. After all, these captives bore dual seals;
Zhou Zhang had no fear they could cause any disturbance.
Qing Xin's face lit up with delight upon seeing Cang Xu, “Magician Xu Jia, I
was just looking for you!” she exclaimed.
Like Ku Feng, her motive for seeking Cang Xu was to learn from his successful
conversion.
In truth, Qing Xin bore even heavier psychological pressure than Ku Feng.
Under the current rules, the second blood sacrifice ritual would almost
certainly target her.
Cang Xu smiled and nodded, “My success this time was sheer luck. I was actually
looking for you too, as I believe my experience might be of some help.”
Qing Xin instantly looked deeply moved, nodding vigorously, her eyes reddening.
This period had been incredibly difficult for her.
Had she known things would turn out this way, she never would have agreed to
leave Two Eyes Island with Zi Di!
To Qing Xin, Cang Xu was her lifeline.
But in truth, she needn't have worried at all.
Among the captives, she was likely the safest. The young commander was hiding
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish. For the sake of his beloved Zi Di, he would
never allow anything to happen to Qing Xin!
As for Cang Xu, he bore not only dual seals but also the deadly trap set by
Jian Gui. Though he had seen the fishman youngster, he was still walking a
tightrope.
The explanation Cang Xu gave Qing Xin was nearly identical to what he told Ku
Feng.
He treated them equally primarily because he knew Zhou Zhang and others were
secretly monitoring him. By acting impartially, he demonstrated he had done
everything possible.
This act of helping his comrades highlighted his loyalty and emphasized the
common ground between the undead and the living. Raising the opinion of Zhou
Zhang and the others would also increase their trust in him.
After parting ways with Qing Xin, Cang Xu returned to his quarters. Outwardly,
he began his prayers, but secretly, he was forging memories.
The reason he didn't proceed with the operation was that Cang Xu still had to
consider Jian Gui's feelings.
Earlier, Cang Xu had assured Jian Gui that he would spare no effort in forging
the memories. But after leaving, he'd been wandering about, negotiating with
others—what was that about?
This would undoubtedly damage his image in Jian Gui's eyes.
"Besides, Xiao Wang Zi won't see me. He was tormented by guilt before; now,
even looking at me makes him uncomfortable."
"Qi Ling... What happened earlier has already severely damaged our
relationship. Even if I reach out, she'll be suspicious."
“Truthfully, her existence serves another purpose.”
“I can fabricate a conflict between us, making it explicit. This will reassure
Jian Gui, making him believe everything is under control.”
“Using the teleportation blood sacrifice, the commander can capture these
undead, even Jian Gui himself.”
“Once my rank advances and I can command the artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] to
teleport away, the power of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance will command Jian
Gui's respect and force the undead orthodoxy to take notice.”
“My future relations with Jian Gui's faction will improve tremendously!”
Cang Xu's vision was far-reaching; he was already strategizing and acting for
future alliances.
The web of relationships surrounding Cang Xu was exceedingly complex.
He had to navigate two distinct roles: Charming Blue believer and necromancer.
He needed to maintain a delicate equilibrium between these identities,
constantly maneuvering between the two factions while advancing his own true
agenda.
Among the survivors, no one was better suited for this arduous task than him.



****** Chapter 487: Only by Becoming a Holy Warrior will You be Free ******
Tranquil Hill.
Snow-capped peaks towered overhead, and the frigid air descended upon this
valley of green grass and crimson flowers, leaving only a refreshing chill.
Around the brownish-yellow wooden house, several makeshift shelters had been
hastily erected.
These shelters were constructed using local materials, trunks and branches
trimmed flat, then roughly assembled.
The Bayonet Gang members resided within these shelters.
The brown wooden house they guarded housed only two individuals: Bing Xiao and
Spring Boxer.
No one questioned this arrangement. Even Lan Zao understood that Bing Xiao was
the Bayonet Gang's former leader, and since Spring Boxer served as Teng Dong
Lang's coffin bearer, he was naturally destined to be the next leader.
Spring Boxer's days were far from easy.
Periodically, waves of overwhelming memories would surge into his mind, sending
him into dizzying unconsciousness.
After lying in bed for a while, he would slowly regain consciousness.
He'd stay lucid for a short time before slipping back into unconsciousness.
Through this endless cycle, he absorbed vast amounts of Teng Dong Lang's
memories.
Spring Boxer was growing at an astonishing rate!
Bing Xiao took on the responsibility of tending to him day and night.
Suspecting possible traitors among the Bayonet Gang members, Bing Xiao trusted
no one else, not even Lan Zao, or rather Hen Fa to them.
The bedridden Spring Boxer stirred once more.
The first thing he saw upon opening his eyes was the old gang leader.
Bing Xiao stood by the window, reading a book in the bright daylight streaming
through.
Tranquil Hill was the divine domain of the Dueling God, where night held no
meaning, 24 hours of unbroken, radiant light.
Seeing Bing Xiao, Spring Boxer felt an overwhelming sense of security and
gratitude surge within him.
His journey to this day owed much to Teng Dong Lang's cultivation, but the old
gang leader Bing Xiao's assistance had been equally immense.
Noticing Spring Boxer had awakened, Bing Xiao immediately approached the
bedside, “Seems your gains this time were substantial.”
Spring Boxer nodded, “This time, I gained Lord Teng Dong Lang's combat
experience. He fought a fierce battle against a ferocious rabbitman warrior
atop a snowy mountain. His comrades fell one by one. The original hundred-
strong squad was nearly wiped out, leaving only him and three allies. Lord Teng
Dong Lang was clinging to life by a thread. It was only through the selfless
sacrifice of his comrades that his life was saved."
Bing Xiao realized: "You mean that battle. That rabbitman warrior was called
Qing Hong Yan. Though his temper was explosively volatile, he was a persecuted,
ill-fated snow rabbitman. You may encounter him in the future."
Spring Boxer paused, his tone tinged with resentment and grievance: “In my
memory, it was Teng Dong Lang who defeated him, leaving the rabbitman
unconscious. But did that rabbitman giant not die? Why didn't Lord Teng Dong
Lang kill him?"
"There must have been explicit military orders at the time. As for the full
story, you'll understand it in time." Bing Xiao declined to elaborate.
Spring Boxer lowered his head, a pensive look crossing his face, “No wonder
when I experienced that memory, I felt Lord Teng Dong Lang's complex emotions
back then, anger, hatred, responsibility, sympathy, and more.”
Spring Boxer had gained access to Teng Dong Lang's memories, effectively
reliving some of the pivotal moments from his remarkable life.
By immersing in these memories, he could not only obtain experience but also
savor the emotions that Teng Dong Lang felt at that time.
Spring Boxer placed a hand over his heart, his expression complex, “Receiving
Lord Teng Dong Lang's experiences feels like he's come back to life, teaching
me through a strange kind of guidance. Lord Bing Xiao, sometimes I have this
illusion, when I wake up, I feel like Lord Teng Dong Lang is right beside my
bed.
Saying this, Spring Boxer's eyes turned red.
Bing Xiao sighed, stepping before Spring Boxer. He grasped the fighter's wrist
and pulled him up, “Don't wallow in sentimentality. You've inherited Teng Dong
Lang's legacy, now you must strive even harder.”
“This period of absorbing his experience is crucial for you.”
"Stop wasting time. Go eat and drink. You must maintain your physical
condition—you didn't eat while unconscious."
Spring Boxer composed himself, got out of bed, and approached the dining table,
devouring his meal in large bites.
The table was perpetually laden with abundant food.
This sustenance wasn't hunted from valley beasts or gathered berries by the
Bayonet Gang, it was a divine blessing granted through Bing Xiao's prayers!
This was the divine domain, a place of wonder.
As a holy warrior of the Dueling God, Bing Xiao's prayers received instant
answers, yielding exquisite delicacies.
While eating and drinking, Spring Boxer's ears twitched slightly, picking up
the sounds of the Bayonet Gang members training outside the wooden hut.
He couldn't help but look thoughtful as he addressed Bing Xiao: “Gang Leader,
what should we do about those guys like Xiong Ju and Hen Fa?”
Upon hearing this, Bing Xiao's eyes lit up. He smiled with satisfaction,
“Indeed. After absorbing Teng Dong Lang's experience, you've truly matured
considerably.”
People would change.
A person's maturity stemmed primarily from experience, not age.
The more experiences one accumulated, the more mature they became.
Spring Boxer had lived Teng Dong Lang's life, which was filled with grueling
battles, brushes with death, and memories of strategizing, weighing every
option, and ultimately commanding armies to victory.
He was maturing.
Crucially, he had gained Teng Dong Lang's memories of being recognized by
Tranquil Hill and becoming a holy warrior, deeply understanding Tranquil Hill's
significance.
At the critical moment on Flower Skirt Island, he even requested Bing Xiao to
bring in Xiong Ju and the others.
Now, however, he began contemplating the most prudent way to handle Xiong Ju
and his group. After all, there was a strong possibility of a mole among them!
Bing Xiao stated, “I've already devised a plan for this matter.”
“Their successful conversion in faith will prove their loyalty.”
"After we depart Tranquil Hill, we'll take the newly initiated holy warriors
with us. As for the rest, they'll have to be temporarily imprisoned."
Spring Boxer frowned slightly, “Though I'm not a clergyman, I know faith alone
can't determine loyalty.”
Bing Xiao nodded slightly, “To be precise, it works like this.”
“Faith can be divided into several levels: casual, ordinary, devout, and
fanatical.”
"Casual believers possess some knowledge and understanding of a faith but lack
deep study or practice. They profess belief verbally yet do not strictly adhere
to its principles in action."
"Ordinary believers are traditional adherents of a religion or faith. They
follow its doctrines and rules without extreme zeal. Their understanding and
practice vary but generally hold a sense of devotion and reverence toward their
religion or belief."
"Devout believers possess a strong sense of identification with their faith and
actively practice it in daily life. They strictly adhere to the doctrines and
regulations of their faith in their daily lives, ensuring they receive the
blessings and protection of their faith."
"Fanatical believers pursue their faith with excessive extremism. Fanatical
believers believe only absolute faith can bring salvation or blessings,
disregarding all rational thought and action. They may resort to extreme
behaviors, often harming themselves or others."
“You've also gained memories of Teng Dong Lang being chosen as a holy warrior,
yet the selection criteria remain unclear.”
"To become a holy warrior of the Dueling God, transcendent level is secondary.
The most crucial criterion is faith level. Only those of the devout level can
become holy warriors."
“So that's how it is.” Spring Boxer realized, but more questions immediately
followed, “But even if all holy warriors are devout level, strictly adhering to
the Dueling God's doctrines and rules, it doesn't necessarily mean a traitor
would defect to us. Faith alone doesn't determine friend or foe.”
Bing Xiao roared with laughter, thoroughly delighted.
He couldn't resist slapping Spring Boxer's shoulder repeatedly, praising,
“Young man, your ability to reason like this is truly remarkable.”
“This is the turning point in your life.”
“The true value lies in the wisdom imparted by Teng Dong Lang, not mere combat
experience.”
After a pause, Bing Xiao continued, “You're right. Even among holy warriors of
the Dueling God, we could be adversaries. Killing one another wouldn't violate
His doctrine.”
"If a traitor lurks among us, they might still attain faith and become a holy
warrior. Even if we bring them out, it won't stop them from opposing us."
"The crucial point is this: once we become holy warriors, our bodies undergo
divine transformation, like hidden mechanisms being activated. Should a traitor
ever strike, their very identity as a holy warrior becomes a scythe of death!"
Spring Boxer nodded repeatedly, understanding fully.
Bing Xiao didn't force anyone to convert, but in practice, he was already
guiding them.
Taking those who become holy warriors with them, even if there's a mole among
them, was nothing to fear. It was because the fate of the mole was no longer in
his own hands.
Of course, there were many possibilities, a shift in allegiance could see the
mole defecting to their side.
As for the others, they could not prove their loyalty, had entered Tranquil
Hill, knew too many secrets, and remained unworthy of becoming holy warriors.
With no leverage over them, imprisonment was the only option.
At this thought, Spring Boxer couldn't help but glance out the window,
observing the training scenes of some gang members. He silently cheered them
on: “Xiong Ju, Hen Fa, everyone... I hope your conversion succeeds. Only by
becoming holy warriors can you regain your freedom.”
Lan Zao stood before the wooden hut's main entrance, facing the stream, and
suddenly opened his mouth to spit.
A small Air Cannon projectile shot from his mouth, striking the stream. It
didn't explode immediately but sank beneath the surface.
Then, with a soft pop, it detonated, sending droplets flying everywhere.
“Interesting.”
“Who would've thought someone in Tranquil Hill had trained in Air Cannon too.”
While practicing this battle skill, Lan Zao had experienced a kind of
resonance, gaining valuable insights.
With these insights, he quickly mastered the force control of the Air Cannon.
Now, he could precisely compress air and control the timing of the explosion.
For instance, whether it detonated upon hitting the water's surface or after
submerging beneath it.
“Too bad I don't worship the Dueling God.”
“If I had converted, the experience I gained wouldn't be so fragmented, like
scattered pieces.”
"Come to think of it, having a little faith isn't such a bad thing. At least,
it benefits me."
Lan Zao mused inwardly.
He was unaware of the arrangements Bing Xiao had made for their group.
Fortunately, his faith had always been rather scattered. He worshipped the Sea
God, the Wind God, and even the Fishnet Goddess. Thus, adding a new deity, the
Dueling God, didn't feel like a contradiction.
However, such superficial devotion could never reach the devout level.
Without becoming a holy warrior, he faced the prospect of imprisonment.



****** Chapter 488: Eliminating the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps ******
The snow elf warrior Gu Dong knelt on both knees, offering a prayer.
“Before the deities we revere, worship, and honor, we present our sincere and
exalted supplication.”
“Dueling God, you are the immortal champion, invincible yet eternally
vigorous.”
"In the divine domain known as Tranquil Hill, the duelists rest in peace. When
the Lord summons them, they shall rise again, taking up arms once more!"
“Dueling God, hear our prayers. Let our hearts' springs gush forth, let our
strength converge into a mighty torrent.”
"Hear our confessions, let myriad voices merge into one vast ocean, joining
hands amidst the surging currents. Under your supreme majestic power, grant us
the exchange of spirit, let our messages traverse the void, reaching distant
lands."
“Praise be to You, the tireless champion who marches onward, the sacred
radiance. May You forever walk beside us, filling us with the warrior spirit to
fight for You, for Your faith shines with glorious light!”
Gu Dong closed his eyes tightly, his devotion profound.
As a holy warrior of the Dueling God, he possessed great authority. This being
a special prayer, his spirit was swiftly drawn into the divine domain of
Tranquil Hill.
Gu Dong's spirit ascended, rising higher and higher until it reached a vast
expanse of heaven and earth.
The sky was white, the ground gray.
Snowflakes as soft as goose feathers drifted silently down.
His spirit descended upon the summit of a snow-capped peak.
The mountaintop appeared as if carved by a blade, forming an exceptionally flat
platform.
Scattered across the platform stood numerous tombstones, arranged in a
staggered pattern.
Were the Bayonet Gang members to witness this scene, they would surely be
astonished. For the positioning of these tombstones mirrored that of Tranquil
Hill exactly.
Gu Dong's spirit remained focused, concentrated within his own tombstone.
Upon his arrival, several tombstones had already begun to glow.
After a brief wait, nearly twenty tombstones emitted a faint light.
Each tombstone represented a gold holy warrior. They had offered prayers, just
as Gu Dong had done. At this very moment, these holy warriors were scattered
across the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Yet, through their similar prayers, they had
temporarily gained the ability to communicate across distances.
This was no ordinary prayer.
Such long-distance communication would consume a vast amount of divine favor
from the holy warriors.
Under normal circumstances, they would never resort to this method to contact
one another.
But this matter was of grave importance. Upon learning of it through Bing
Xiao's prayer, many sprang into action immediately.
From one of the faintly glowing tombstones, a mental wave emanated, carrying a
message tinged with sorrow: “As expected, Jia Bing is already dead. Two other
holy warriors have also perished.”
Gu Dong knew who this mental transmission belonged to.
Her name was Xue Tuan Zi, a snow elf magician.
Xue Tuan Zi was unfamiliar with the Axe Gang leader or Lin. But as an alchemist
magician, she had collaborated with Jia Bing on several occasions.
The glow on another tombstone brightened, sending forth a clear mental wave:
“Since becoming a holy warrior, I've never witnessed so many die
simultaneously.”
Gu Dong recognized this spirit as well.
His name was Zhu Gan, an elf ranger. Though also an elf, he wasn't a native
snow elf of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, but a wood elf.
Gu Dong had met him once. Zhu Gan liked to wear a bamboo-woven conical hat and
drape a cloak over his shoulders. His favorite pastime was fishing.
"Hmph, that's just your narrow-mindedness talking. Didn't several holy warriors
perish during that Duel Festival over a decade ago?" A coarse, rugged spiritual
fluctuation conveyed the words.
This was the holy warrior Mo Gui Ji.
Another holy warrior, He Gai Tou, held a different view: “The two situations
are not the same. Dying in the Duel Festival is a worthy end for a holy
warrior, a warrior of the Duel God.”
“But this time, Jia Bing, Lin, and the Axe Gang leader didn't die in a heroic
duel. The three of them teamed up to ambush the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
only to be slaughtered instead.”
Mo Gui Ji sneered: Hmph, those three were useless!"
Mei Lin countered with a mental wave: "That's not the case. I know Jia Bing,
Lin, and the Axe Gang leader's capabilities well. They all served in the
regular military. That all three perished while working together only proves
the enemy's overwhelming strength. Or that they possessed extraordinary
methods."
Mei Lin belonged to the First Navy of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. She herself
was a mermaid who practiced only magic, a peak gold level magician. Her power
was formidable, capable of effortlessly casting battlefield-class spells.
Those transcendents who worshipped the Dueling God all possessed an intense
pursuit of combat prowess.
Therefore, among this group, the stronger one's personal strength, the more
respect they commanded.
When Mei Lin spoke, all fell silent to listen.
After she finished, a heavy silence settled over the gathering.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps...” Xue Tuanzhi murmured, breaking the
silence.
“Can someone tell us about this mercenary group?” Zhu Gan inquired, unaware of
these details.
In truth, most present were equally uninformed.
“This is all the intelligence I've gathered on the matter,” Mei Lin shared the
relevant information with the group.
Since they communicated telepathically, vast amounts of data were instantly
shared.
Mei Lin's intelligence was remarkably detailed. Her high rank and influence
granted her intelligence-gathering capabilities far surpassing those of lone
operatives. Prior to this, she had specifically contacted Bing Xiao, obtaining
numerous pieces of information from him.
In an instant, many grasped the entire sequence of events.
Mo Gui Ji sneered, "The Axe Gang leader was closely tied to Teng Dong Lang. He
secretly sought revenge, even going so far as to enlist two other gold level
holy warriors as allies. Despite combining the strength of three gold level
warriors, not only did he fail to exact vengeance, but he also lost his own
life, and dragged the other two down with him. How utterly laughable!"
Mei Lin ignored Mo Gui Ji's words, her tone calm and composed: “The Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' ostensible top fighter is their leader, Long Fu. This man,
with a silver level cultivation, publicly slew the gold level Teng Dong Lang in
Snow Bird Harbor. Clearly, this isn't the true upper limit of this group's
strength."
"Detailed on-site investigations show Long Fu engaged in combat with the Axe
Gang leader and two others. The battle wasn't fierce; the battlefield showed
almost no destruction. This suggests the fight was brief, perhaps even very
short. Moreover, Long Fu held overwhelming dominance throughout."
Mei Lin was unaware that it was actually Zong Ge who had slain the Axe Gang
leader and his two companions. The so-called “Commander Long Fu” was merely
Zong Ge in disguise.
Her analysis once again plunged the room into silence.
Those recognized by the Dueling God and elevated to holy warriors possessed
formidable combat prowess and extensive battle experience.
Though no one spoke, no one disagreed with Mei Lin's assessment.
Thus, in their minds, the combat prowess displayed by the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps became terrifyingly formidable!
Gu Dong remarked, “I believe that among all our gold holy warriors, aside from
Lord Long Meng, none could possess such combat strength capable of swiftly
slaying three opponents of the same level.”
There was silence again.
After a moment, Zhu Gan broke the quiet: “I once visited Ice Spear City and
even went fishing with Lin.”
“Sigh... Never imagined the next news I'd receive about him would be his
death.”
“What should we do about this Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps now?”
No sooner had Zhu Gan finished speaking than a furious mental wave erupted:
"Strike back! We must strike back hard and wipe them all out."
“This group masquerades as a mercenary group, but they're actually arms
smugglers.”
"Yet their true nature is far more despicable! They are enemies of the kingdom,
pawns and tentacles sent by hostile nations."
“We must eliminate them immediately. Only then can we strike a decisive blow
against those ambitious hostile forces abroad.”
The speaker was Bao Li Gen.
Xue Tuan Zi asked doubtfully, “How can you be so certain they're mortal enemies
of the kingdom?”
Bao Li Gen snorted coldly. "Is that even worth explaining? Just look at their
actions, it's obvious. How long have these people even been in the kingdom?
They've already killed four of our own. Four gold level warriors! Teng Dong
Lang, the Axe Gang leader, and the rest, they weren't ordinary gold level
fighters. Each possessed combat prowess at the upper echelon of their level."
"Their arrogance knows no bounds. They're just outsiders who came onto our
territory, into our country, yet they brazenly eliminate our people. We must
retaliate a thousandfold. Slaughter them all!"
“Three gold level warriors aren't enough? Then gather more gold level warriors.
I refuse to believe we can't take them down.”
Bao Li Gen roared repeatedly, seething with rage and radiating murderous
intent.
Though little known outside their circle, he was widely recognized among the
holy warriors of the Dueling God.
He still served in the regular army of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
However, he was not an exemplary soldier, frequently violating military
discipline and spending years confined to detention cells.
Nevertheless, this did not diminish his camaraderie with fellow soldiers.
Though he was not close with Teng Dong Lang or the Axe Gang leader, they had
all once been part of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's regular army. This shared
history meant Bao Li Gen always recognized Teng Dong Lang, the Axe Gang leader,
and others.
Gu Dong's background was similar to Bao Li Gen's.
Only two years prior, he had retired from the military.
Gu Dong deeply understood Bao Li Gen's rage, yet he did not endorse his
proposed course of action.
“Such a move is far too reckless.”
But Gu Dong found Bao Li Gen's words utterly unsurprising. In his memory, Bao
Li Gen had always been this way, a fiery, impulsive, and brash military
warrior.



****** Chapter 489: Talking Leads to Arguing ******
Faced with Bao Li Gen's declaration of war, the response from the holy
warriors' spirit within the tombstones was sparse.
Even allies of Gu Dong's standing did not approve of Bao Li Gen's offensive and
quest for vengeance.
It was too reckless.
Gu Dong paused, choosing not to directly refute Bao Li Gen. Instead, he brought
up another matter: "Although Jia Bing, Lin, and the Axe Gang leader have all
fallen in battle, judging by the state of their tombstones, their bodies remain
remarkably well-preserved. We must recover their remains and lay them to rest
in Tranquil Hill. Only then can they find peace, and we can minimize the losses
suffered by the Dueling Church."
Unlike the violent declaration from earlier, these words immediately drew
agreement from many.
“The Axe Gang leader, Lin, and most crucially, Jia Bing, their life experiences
shouldn't be wasted.”
"The more powerful warriors buried in Tranquil Hill, the more combat experience
Tranquil Hill gains. The stronger Tranquil Hill becomes, the better it is for
all of us."
"Since their bodies remain intact, we should retrieve them whenever possible.
This is the honor of a Dueling God's holy warrior, and their true final resting
place."
Xue Tuan Zi piped up timidly, "But current intelligence suggests the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps are exceptionally formidable. Could they possess saint
level combat prowess? “On the surface, Long Fu is silver level, but in reality,
he might be stronger than gold level!”
A ripple of unease swept through the group.
Gu Dong hesitated before analyzing, “I believe that possibility is unlikely.”
“If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were merely arms smugglers or just a
mercenary group, they absolutely wouldn't possess saint level combat power.”
“If they're a vanguard sent by an enemy nation, it's unthinkable to deploy
saint level forces as the initial reconnaissance wave, sacrificing such elite
assets for reconnaissance.”
“I lean toward them possessing extraordinary, unconventional methods to achieve
such an absurdly overwhelming advantage in combat.”
Bao Li Gen snorted coldly: "So what if they have saint level combat power?"
“Our kingdom has saint level fighters too, three of them, in fact.”
“If we expose the enemy's saint level fighter, he's finished. The kingdom will
hunt him down.”
"Even if they're legend level, there's nothing to fear. Hasn't our kingdom had
legend level fighters throughout history?" The royal family must have ways to
deal with legend levels!"
Silence fell over the group once more.
Bao Li Gen was a fierce warrior in the military, unafraid of death.
But the prevailing thought among the others was: If the enemy had a saint level
among them, then confronting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be nothing
short of suicide.
As gold holy warriors of the Dueling God, they did not shy away from challenges
or the face of death. Yet this did not mean they were willing to “throw
themselves into certain death.”
Mei Lin's spirit waves remained steady and calm: “Regardless of their strength,
if they are enemies, we must find ways to confront them, not flee.”
“If saint level foes storm our homeland, slaughtering and pillaging our loved
ones, defending our nation is our only choice!”
"However, given their current, eerily formidable strength, our top priority now
is reconnaissance. I believe securing critical intelligence will significantly
boost our odds of victory."
Mei Lin held a military position, and her personal strength was widely
acknowledged.
Among those discussing, she was arguably the strongest combatant. Moreover,
among Tranquil Hill's 38 gold holy warriors, Mei Lin was likely second only to
Long Meng in combat prowess.
Second to none, above all others.
Thus, no one challenged her perspective, and even the hothead fell silent.
Seeing no objections, Mei Lin pressed further: "Is anyone willing to take on
the intelligence-gathering mission? Any volunteers? If you choose to act, I can
provide additional intelligence, equipment, and compensation."
Spirit waves rippled across the gravestones, then fell silent.
No one stepped forward.
Bao Li Gen, Gu Dong, and the rest certainly had strong motives to target the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but they were all frontline combatants, not
thieves.
He Gai Tou suddenly spoke up: "According to intelligence, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is currently in Snow Rabbit City. And as far as I know, the one
closest to Snow Rabbit City right now should be Xue Tuan Zi."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Xue Tuan Zi interjected, her tone
slightly urgent, "But I still have to do my alchemy! Since the end of last
year, I've been preparing for this year's Warm Snow Cup."
"Besides, this mission clearly isn't suited for me. It should be handled by
someone specialized." Xue Tuan Zi insisted.
He Gai Tou immediately agreed: “Xue Tuan Zi's right. Among us here, Yi Jiu is
the most suitable candidate.”
Named, Yi Jiu felt compelled to speak up: "I'm an assassin, not a thief. My
specialty is killing, not gathering intelligence."
"Of course, if the pay is high enough, I might consider it. But I can't
guarantee success."
He Gai Tou added, “Besides Yi Jiu, Zhu Gan could also handle it, you are a
ranger after all.”
Zhu Gan flatly refused: "I'm not from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. I won't get
involved in such matters. I've never had any interest in this sort of
operation. But I am interested in fishing at Ice Pillar Lake again. Does anyone
care to join me?"
Gu Dong's eye twitched.
Here we are, burdened with grievances and national hatred, and you're inviting
friends to go fishing?
Yet Zhu Gan, being a holy warrior of the Dueling God, had every right to
participate in this discussion.
No one was willing to take on this espionage mission.
Though all were of the gold level, most excelled in direct combat. Thieves were
few and far between.
Gu Dong couldn't help but sigh inwardly: “What a pity Hua Tang isn't here!”
The composition of the present holy warriors was quite complex. Though all were
believers of the Dueling God and shared a fellowship, their bonds weren't
particularly strong.
The largest group of holy warriors had military backgrounds. Examples included
Teng Dong Lang, the Axe Gang leader, Gu Dong, and Mei Lin. A smaller group
hailed from diverse origins: Xue Tuan Zi from the Alchemy Guild, the foreign
ranger Zhu Gan, and Yi Jiu from the Thieves' Guild. Enlisting their aid
demanded additional compensation.
Mei Lin lamented inwardly: without Long Meng, her personal authority was
insufficient to mobilize these forces.
Long Meng commanded the highest prestige.
He was the undisputed top duelist of the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom, having
crossed swords with many present and sparing their lives on multiple occasions.
Thus, they owed him favors. Moreover, Long Meng possessed an open, generous
personality and profound personal charisma, earning the respect and admiration
of many.
Mei Lin sighed inwardly: “If he were here, he could rally them all with a
single call.”
“Though I hold high rank and authority, I cannot directly mobilize the army's
gold level soldiers to confront the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
The military boasts many skilled scouts whose intelligence gathering is highly
specialized.
But Mei Lin couldn't do that.
The reason was akin to the Axe Gang leader seeking vengeance, he'd never openly
mobilized the gang's forces for a direct confrontation with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
They were the holy warriors of the Dueling God, an organization hidden in the
shadows. They couldn't openly reveal that identity.
In a sense, whoever exposed that identity would be the loser.
Mei Lin waited a while, but seeing no one step forward to take the intelligence
mission, she reluctantly conceded: “Intelligence gathering is crucial. We must
wait for the right person to carry it out. We cannot rush this.”
“In the short term, we can weaken the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from another
angle.”
"Long Fu's group is currently touring major cities across the kingdom, opening
shops everywhere and mass-selling their potions. Clearly, they aim to penetrate
our nation's potion market."
“Regardless of their true motives or plans, whatever the enemy seeks to do,
disrupting it is never wrong.”
“This operation requires no prior intelligence gathering—we simply intercept
their supply convoys en route.”
“Success isn't guaranteed every time. Dealing them several heavy blows will
inflict significant losses, forcing them to deploy more forces to protect their
caravans and divert precious resources.”
As soon as she finished, Bao Li Gen cheered loudly.
Gu Dong furrowed his brow slightly, pondered for a moment, and also deemed it a
sound plan.
But Mo Gui Ji sneered coldly, “How amusing. A commander from the Kingdom's Navy
actually taking on the role of a bandit.”
“Of course, I understand.”
"You are soldiers, after all! War has no room for ethics."
"But you shouldn't always talk to yourselves and act so self-righteous. I've
never once considered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps my enemy."
"If they were enemies, I'd rather invite them to a heroic duel, a fair fight
face to face. Even if I lost or died, it would be honorable!"
Mo Gui Ji publicly undermined him, enraging Bao Li Gen into shouting, “You want
a duel? Fine! Come fight me! Let's settle this once and for all!”
He remained unfazed, even taunting him, "You think I'm afraid of you? Come on
then! I'm in Aurora City. I'll be waiting for you!"
Bao Li Gen roared, "Aurora City, huh? Fine, I'm coming. Just wait!"
The two bickered incessantly, giving others waves of headaches.
Zhu Gan remarked, “How amusing. Perhaps I should alter my plans and head to
Aurora City to witness your duel.”
Though a ranger, combat was his second passion, second only to fishing.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have followed the Dueling God and become one of the holy
warriors.
“I'm interested too!”
“Then I'll join as well.”
Suddenly, several gold holy warriors emitted spirit wave fluctuations.
They hadn't participated in the earlier discussion, remaining silent until now.
Gu Dong let out a long sigh.
He was speechless.
Weren't they here to discuss how to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
How did the conversation veer off course like this?
Accustomed to the military atmosphere where orders were followed without
question, Gu Dong felt utterly helpless in the face of these holy warriors each
pursuing their own agendas.



****** Chapter 490: Attacking the Caravan ******
Xue Tuan Zi sighed regretfully, "I'd love to watch too, but I need to prepare
for the Warm Snow Cup Alchemy Tournament. Sigh... If you guys go, please record
the magic footage for me."
“Speaking of which, I wonder if the duel is public or private?”
When two heroic duelists wished to avoid spectators, it would become a private
duel. Only the combatants would enter the arena, which would transform into a
sealed battlefield isolated from the outside world.
In reality, private duels far outnumbered public ones.
Even when invitations were extended, most duelists only invited a select few to
witness the fight.
Mo Gui Ji declared, "I couldn't care less! A real man should fight with honor!
Besides, letting everyone witness me defeat this brute, Bao Li Gen, would be
quite entertaining."
“Defeat me? You're dreaming!” Bao Li Gen roared, “Then let's have a public
duel! I'll crush you!”
Suddenly, someone interjected: "Bao Li Gen, aren't you under confinement right
now? Do you really have the chance to come out and duel?"
Mei Lin: ...
Xue Tuan Zi: ...
Bao Li Gen fell silent for a moment, then suddenly roared with fury.
Mo Gui Ji sneered, “This is hilarious! Turns out you can't even get out of
there!”
Bao Li Gen: "Confinement? What's that? I'll sneak out tonight and be in Aurora
City tomorrow!"
Mo Gui Ji sneered coldly: “Fine, I'll wait for you. If you don't show up,
you're a coward!”
“You're the fucking coward!” Bao Li Gen bellowed.
“My apologies, Bao Li Gen.” Mei Lin had silently resolved to report this
immediately through military channels after this conversation.
Compared to the excitement of a duel, she couldn't tolerate soldiers violating
military discipline.
Gu Dong, meanwhile, observed the figure who’d spoken up to remind Bao Li Gen
about his confinement: "It’s Yun Zhong. He never says much, but when he does,
he hits the bullseye."
Yun Zhong was the most rapidly rising archer in the royal capital lately.
His formidable strength had earned him fame through numerous heroic duels.
Numerous factions sought to recruit him, including the influential Li Jian Clan
of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, but Yun Zhong declined every offer.
Accustomed to solitude, he disliked being bound by obligations.
Recently, he had also ascended to become a holy warrior of the Dueling God.
The scene was quite “lively.”
Bao Li Gen and Mo Gui Ji bickered incessantly, their intense spirit wave
fluctuations severely disrupting others' conversations.
Without Long Meng present, Mei Lin couldn't control the situation.
She tried to intervene, but Bao Li Gen, consumed by rage, ignored her
completely.
Mo Gui Ji, equally furious, paid no heed to Mei Lin's urges either.
Pushed to her limit, Mei Lin temporarily withdrew and immediately used
emergency communications to report Bao Li Gen to the army in her personal
capacity.
“What? Intelligence indicates Bao Li Gen is secretly preparing to escape the
barracks?” The army was startled upon receiving the report.
Though Mei Lin belonged to the navy, her reputation was widespread, extending
even to the army.
The army took no chances, immediately dispatching personnel to break into the
detention cell.
Disturbed, Bao Li Gen was forced to open his eyes, halting his prayers. This
severed his connection to Tranquil Hill's remote communication.
“Aaaah!” He bellowed incessantly, his rage piercing the heavens.
"As expected, Bao Li Gen's condition is abnormal! " The army swiftly verified
Mei Lin's intelligence and immediately mobilized elite forces to suppress Bao
Li Gen.
Chaos erupted throughout the military camp.
Mei Lin resumed her prayer, her spirit returning to the divine domain of
Tranquil Hill to reconnect with the others.
The group remained puzzled, wondering why Bao Li Gen's spirit had abruptly
withdrawn.
Mei Lin stated calmly, “I reported him.”
Everyone: ...
It was highly unusual for the holy warriors to communicate across such
distances. Each prayer drained a massive amount of divine favor. Only when
their spirits were anchored within the tombstones did they cease consuming
divine favor.
This meant Mei Lin's two consecutive prayers had cost twice as much divine
favor as the others combined!
For a moment, everyone was stunned by Mei Lin's ruthlessness.
After an awkward silence, Mi Fang cautiously offered, “If we need to deal with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' caravan, I can assist.”
Xue Tuan Zi's mind flashed through intelligence on Mi Fang.
He was a human alchemist who had come to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom years ago to
study. At the academy, he had romantic entanglements with several noble ladies,
earning him the enmity of many male students.
Consequently, Mi Fang frequently participated in heroic duels.
He himself proved highly skilled in combat, winning more often than he lost,
and was eventually taken in as a son-in-law by the kingdom's Jing Xiang Clan.
The Jing Xiang Clan has long dominated the kingdom's potion market. Is this
move by Mi Fang against the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps driven by a dispute
over interests?
“Then...” Mei Lin was about to agree.
Suddenly, another spirit fluctuation rippled through the air: “Step aside. I'll
handle this.”
Instantly, many hearts sank. Gu Dong felt a faint headache returning as he
muttered to himself, “Qing Hong Yan... Another troublesome fellow.”
Gu Dong voiced his concern: “Qing Hong Yan, if I recall correctly, it was Teng
Dong Lang who defeated and captured you back then, right?”
Qing Hong Yan stated bluntly: “To be precise, that day, Teng Dong Lang spared
my life. He could have killed me outright, but he didn't. He was an excellent
soldier. Even after he retired and formed a gang, in my eyes, he remained a man
worthy of respect."
“Therefore, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is my enemy!”
"To take revenge on my enemies, I'll start by eliminating their caravans. Heh
heh heh, Hahaha, muah hahaha..."
As he spoke, Qing Hong Yan erupted into maniacal laughter, radiating a chilling
aura of murderous intent!
“Has this guy gone mad again?”
"Bao Li Gen and Mo Gui Ji might be a bit violent, but they're still normal
people. This Qing Hong Yan... Dealing with someone like him always keeps you on
edge."
“Qing Hong Yan...” Mei Lin's mind swiftly recalled his information.
Qing Hong Yan was a snow rabbitman captured as a slave, then resold multiple
times until ending up in the hands of the Alchemy Great Master Luan Gai.
During Luan Gai's alchemy experiments, he was transformed into a half-flesh,
half-alchemy being. While his combat power skyrocketed, his sanity suffered
severe damage.
During one alchemy experiment, he completely lost his mind, destroying the
laboratory, severely injuring Luan Gai, and escaping. He caused extensive
destruction to surrounding villages.
The kingdom mobilized its army to search the mountains. Teng Dong Lang was part
of one such squad. They encountered Qing Hong Yan, clashed with him, and
ultimately subdued him.
After his capture, though treated by royal physicians, Qing Hong Yan retained
his profound mental instability.
He could not tolerate stimuli. Often, the slightest emotional fluctuation would
trigger uncontrollable rage, plunging him into a dangerously enraged state
where he indiscriminately slaughtered friend and foe alike.
Thus, for years, he had lived in seclusion on the mountain, moving alone.
“Does anyone else wish to make a move?” Mei Lin asked. No one responded.
Her mind raced: Should she choose Mi Fang or Qing Hong Yan?
The former was backed by the Jing Xiang clan, while the latter was one of the
elders of the snow rabbitman tribe. Qing Hong Yan's lineage was also
extraordinary, descended from the snow rabbitman tribe's high command. His
capture as a slave prompted the snow rabbitman higher-ups to intervene
directly, appealing to the royal court. The Ice Sculpture Royal Court held the
snow rabbitman tribe in high regard, consistently nurturing their relationship.
When Qing Hong Yan rebelled, broke out of the alchemy chamber, and revealed his
whereabouts, the court mobilized troops and ordered his capture alive.
Though Mei Lin was a naval commander, her position naturally required strong
political acumen.
After some consideration, she offered a pretext: “Then I request your
assistance, Qing Hong Yan. Your location is closest to Snow Bird Harbor.”
"I shall relay all pertinent intelligence to you. In short, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' production bases are all in Snow Bird Harbor, and their
caravans all depart from there."
“Intercepting them around Snow Bird Harbor would be the most convenient and
efficient approach.”
"Of course, I'm not rejecting you, Mi Fang. You may also take action
simultaneously. I'll have someone deliver the corresponding rewards to both of
you."
Mi Fang gave a fake smile: "Heh. Since Qing Hong Yan is handling it, I'll stay
out of it."
After assigning this task, Mei Lin initiated a mental communication: "The Axe
Gang leader is dead. His coffin bearer is his son, Fu Zhao. Gu Dong, can you go
retrieve him?"
Gu Dong immediately replied, “Of course! I'm honored to take this assignment!”
Mei Lin felt deeply relieved. After all, these were professionals from the
regular army, their dedication was incomparable.
Zhu Gan sighed and volunteered, “Lin and I were fishing buddies. Now that he's
gone, I'd like to assist his coffin bearer.”
Xue Tuan Zi added, “I can handle Jia Bing's side too.”
Mei Lin considered, "Zhu Gan will take charge of Lin's coffin bearer. But Jia
Bing hasn't designated one yet, it's unfortunate."
Not every gold holy warrior of the Dueling God had a coffin bearer; in a sense,
the coffin bearer was the heir.
Choosing an heir was often exceedingly difficult.
Gu Dong then asked, “Bing Xiao brought many outsiders here to Tranquil Hill
without authorization. How should these people be dealt with?”
"During his ritual, the divine domain unexpectedly expanded its reach. This
anomaly was likely orchestrated by hostile forces to facilitate their
infiltrators entering Tranquil Hill!"
“As we all know, covert factions or individuals have persistently spied on us
and Tranquil Hill.”
He Gai Tou concurred, "Perhaps even the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps this time
was targeting us. We've already lost four gold level holy warriors to them!"
“Why not just kill them outright?” Mo Gui Ji sneered, “What's there to hesitate
about?”
"Bing Xiao is our Lord's silver level holy warrior. Though he lacks the
standing to erect a tombstone, he's worthy of trust. Killing his men outright
wouldn't be wise." Gu Dong stood up for his comrade-in-arms.
Mei Lin echoed the sentiment: "I spoke privately with Bing Xiao. He's already
shared his proposed solution with me. I believe it's prudent."
Mei Lin emitted a wave of spirit fluctuations, relaying Bing Xiao's
arrangements to the group.
“Then let's proceed with that plan for now.”
“Just because they've converted, can we truly trust them?”
“At least they won't threaten Tranquil Hill anymore.”
“I have no objections.”
“Relax, Tranquil Hill is a divine domain.”
“Hmph! If anything goes wrong, you'll all be held responsible!”
Opinions varied, but most accepted Mei Lin's solution.
After that, everyone spoke their minds. Since private conversations weren't
possible, constant mental fluctuations flooded in, filling the air with chaotic
messages.
Mei Lin felt utterly drained.
She'd rather command an army than make arrangements here.
But there was no choice.
Even she had to admit: these gold level holy warriors were formidable fighters
individually, stronger than the elite in the military. They were essentially
the backbone of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's combat strength!
“Our military infiltration here isn't deep enough.”
“The situation was steadily shifting in our favor, but the death of Teng Dong
Lang, Jia Bing, and the other two has suddenly pulled it back.”
“For now, we can only treat them as high level mercenaries.”
“Though if Long Meng were here, he could likely command their obedience.”
Truthfully, Mei Lin deeply envied the stature and authority Long Meng commanded
among them.



****** Chapter 491: Fu Zhao vs Qing Hong Yan ******
Gu Dong, a former soldier, sprang into action the moment he received orders.
The intelligence from Mei Lin deepened his understanding of Blood Kin City, the
Axe Gang, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
As a gold level soldier, his formidable strength drew widespread attention.
But asking him to run all the way to Blood Kin City on foot, like Lin had done,
was simply too far.
Mei Lin stated directly, “Use the secret teleportation formation. Destroy it
after you're done.”
Gu Dong swiftly reached the vicinity of Blood Kin City via the hidden
teleportation formation.
“Blood Kin City...” Gu Dong gazed at the city walls and sighed.
He disliked the city's name, just like other soldiers from other kingdoms.
“It seems even the Axe Gang leader didn't want to come here back then, but he
caused quite a ruckus.”
“Still, bringing in Fu Zhao at the cost of destroying a secret teleportation
formation... that price is truly steep.”
Gu Dong mused inwardly.
Such a people-centered action strengthened his sense of belonging to the
kingdom.
“According to intelligence, Fu Zhao possesses exceptional bloodline potential,
capable of reaching gold level strength.”
“If we could recover his father's remains and inter them in Tranquil Hill,
given time, he might become a new gold level combat force!”
The corpse of the Axe Gang leader was akin to a private gold level inheritance.
From this perspective, sacrificing a teleportation formation for a gold level
combatant was hardly a significant loss.
The Axe Gang was the foremost power in Blood Kin City, even surpassing the
authority of the city government palace.
After probing the situation, Gu Dong sensed the Axe Gang was teetering on the
brink of collapse.
Their leader hadn't been seen for days. Normally, this wouldn't be unusual, but
rumors were spreading throughout the city that the Axe Gang leader was dead!
“This must be a rumor deliberately spread by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
right?”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps isn't targeting the Axe Gang directly. They're
using rumors to expose the gang's inherent weakness.”
“They plan to exploit the open conflict between the Axe Gang and the city
government palace, leveraging the city lord's power to eliminate the Axe Gang!”
Gu Dong deduced the truth.
Indeed, that was the case.
After slaying the Axe Gang leader, Zong Ge and Zi Di had discussed how to
handle the gang.
Undoubtedly, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Axe Gang were mortal
enemies, despite having forged a magic cooperation pact.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps couldn't spare more forces to deal with the Axe
Gang.
Even if they had the strength, Zi Di didn't want to do it.
They had no connections or influence in Blood Kin City. Even if the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps wiped out the Axe Gang, they couldn't absorb most of the Axe
Gang's assets. They'd only be doing the work for the Blood Kin City Lord.
Ultimately, they agreed: they would only spread rumors, prompting Blood Kin
City's authorities to intervene. Meanwhile, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
would seize the opportunity to expand. Should the chance arise in the future,
they might also get involved, devouring some of the Axe Gang's assets to
bolster their own strength.
Gu Dong located the Axe Gang's headquarters with ease.
He wasn't concerned about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ scheme; his focus
was entirely on Fu Zhao.
That was his mission.
However, after asking, he received bad news, Fu Zhao had left, leading the Fire
Axe Cavalry to escort a large merchant caravan. The vast majority of the
caravan's cargo consisted of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' dragon rider
potion.
Gu Dong immediately grew anxious: “This is bad. Qing Hong Yan has already gone
to ambush the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' caravan. What if he encounters Fu
Zhao?”
If it were any other holy warrior, Gu Dong wouldn't be so worried. The main
concern was that Qing Hong Yan possessed a significant hidden danger. He
couldn't handle too much provocation; rage would easily consume his mind,
causing him to completely lose his senses and desire only to slaughter
everything in sight.
Fu Zhao rode his horse, leading the gang members as they slowly escorted the
caravan forward.
One of the Fire Axe Cavalrymen assigned to reconnaissance returned to report:
“All clear.”
Fu Zhao nodded and continued assigning replacements for the patrols.
Seeing his relentless vigilance, a senior subordinate advised, "Young gang
leader, such frequent reconnaissance isn't necessary. We're already close to
Blood Kin City. No one would dare provoke the gang leader."
Fu Zhao's brow furrowed slightly.
He detected a hint of testing in those words.
After all, rumors of the Axe Gang leader's death had already spread throughout
Blood Kin City.
"According to the original plan, Father should have returned that very night.
At the very latest, he should have been back by the next day."
“But now, so many days have passed, and not a single word has come from
Father.”
“Something must have gone wrong. Damn it...”
“What should I do?”
Just as Fu Zhao pondered how to respond to this probe, he suddenly heard the
whoosh of wind.
The next moment, he saw a figure flying toward him from a distance.
The aura of a gold level fighter swept over him without the slightest
concealment.
“Who goes there?!”
“A gold level fighter, and one who masters flight battle skill!”
“Who could it be?”
Fu Zhao's expression darkened instantly. He immediately ordered everyone to
prepare for battle.
As the figure drew nearer, the group could make out the gold level fighter's
features.
He was a snow rabbitman, a rabbit head, and a human body.
His eyes were ice blue, his build robust, with extensive metal structures
replacing flesh and bone.
He resembled an alchemy puppet more than a living being.
“What kind of monster is this?”
“Are there fighters like this near Blood Kin City?”
None of them recognized Qing Hong Yan.
For one thing, Qing Hong Yan was a snow rabbitman, a race not known for its
activity. In recent years, he had secluded himself somewhere in the Splice
Mountain.
On the other hand, the uproar Qing Hong Yan caused back then was confined to
the circles of magicians and the kingdom's military. Although several rural
villages were slaughtered by Qing Hong Yan, the royal family suppressed the
incident to maintain relations with the snow rabbitman tribe, doing everything
possible to minimize Qing Hong Yan's exposure.
Therefore, to Fu Zhao and the others, Qing Hong Yan was an unknown entity.
Qing Hong Yan halted abruptly, blocking the path of Fu Zhao and his companions.
Spotting Fu Zhao, he recognized a striking resemblance to someone from his
intelligence reports. Instantly, everything clicked into place.
“You are Fu Zhao?”
“Hand over the caravan behind you!”
Qing Hong Yan's demand was blunt, his voice thick with murderous intent.
“My Lord, may I ask who you are...” Fu Zhao bowed respectfully before inquiring
sternly, adding, “You recognize me, yet I do not know you. What is your
relationship to my father?”
Fu Zhao reflected: Before Lin's arrival, he too had been unaware his father
maintained such close ties with a gold level figure.
But Qing Hong Yan misinterpreted Fu Zhao’s meaning. He snorted coldly: “Your
father is dead. The owner of the caravan you swear to protect is the one who
killed him, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“You still intend to shield your enemy’s caravan?”
Qing Hong Yan’s blunt truth instantly sparked uproar among the caravan and Axe
Gang members.
Fu Zhao's heart lurched violently, and he hastily denied it.
This was a world of the strong.
The Axe Gang's power, surpassing even the acting city Blood Kin City Lord,
stemmed primarily from their gold level leader.
If the leader died, and the Axe Gang had no second gold level member, the
situation would inevitably collapse.
Thus, Fu Zhao denied it immediately. After all, he was only silver level. With
his father missing and unreturned, he couldn't yet shoulder the Axe Gang's
responsibilities.
Qing Hong Yan's patience had nearly vanished. He didn't bother with lengthy
explanations: “Fu Zhao, get lost! Every member of this caravan dies today!”
These words terrified the caravan members.
They immediately shouted, reminding Fu Zhao of their mutual cooperation and
magic contracts.
Others attempted to placate Qing Hong Yan's murderous intent with money.
“Young gang leader, what should we do?” asked the Axe Gang elder who had
previously sounded him out.
Fu Zhao's face darkened. After rapid deliberation, he slowly shook his head,
“How can we trust the enemy's words?”
“We've already escorted the caravan this far. Blood Kin City isn't far now.”
"If we retreat here, how can we ever hold our heads high in Blood Kin City?
What credibility would we have left to convince anyone we can handle escorting
caravans?"
The elder looked troubled. "But this one is gold level. With the leader absent,
the Fire Axe Cavalry is our strongest force. We can't just start a fight and
lose them all here."
Fu Zhao: “We can retreat. Scatter the caravan and rush back to Blood Kin City.”
“We'll assess the situation and try to pin this guy down!”
“Pin down a flying gold level?” The gang elder's expression darkened further.
Fu Zhao's expression hardened: “This is an order. Execute it!”
The Axe Gang members blocked the path before Qing Hong Yan, while the caravan
members behind them scattered wildly. Some clutched their goods, others
abandoned everything, fleeing at breakneck speed.
Qing Hong Yan froze for a moment, then roared with fury: "You dare play tricks
on me!"
Fu Zhao bellowed in response: “Fire Axe Cavalry, follow me! Move out!”
He spurred his horse forward, leading the charge. The Fire Axe Cavalry, mounted
on fiery red horses, followed closely behind. In an instant, thunderous
hoofbeats surged forth like a raging torrent.
But Qing Hong Yan did not pursue them. Instead, he turned his attention to the
scattered members of the merchant caravan.
His formidable strength left the caravan members utterly outmatched, resulting
in heavy casualties.
“He's not coming after us!” The Axe Gang members breathed a sigh of relief.
Witnessing this, Fu Zhao gritted his teeth, yanked the reins hard, and forced
his horse to change course.
Led by Fu Zhao, the cavalry swept around like a fiery streak across the snowy
landscape, closing in on Qing Hong Yan.
“What is the young gang leader doing?!” The Axe Gang members were stunned.
“This fool...” The gang's elder gritted his teeth in frustration.
The Fire Axe Cavalry represented the gang's ultimate strength. He feared they
might be decimated here.
But Fu Zhao was too young, unaware of the stakes, driven only by reckless
bravado. He had actually charged at a gold level fighter!
“Elder, what should we do?”
“Attack together!” Cowardice was intolerable within the gang. The elder had no
choice but to follow suit and join the assault. If he didn't, he would surely
be branded a traitor and purged after the battle.



****** Chapter 492: Gu Dong vs Qing Hong Yan ******
“Throw your axes!” Fu Zhao roared, drawing a throwing axe from his waist and
hurling it with all his might.
The cavalry behind him followed suit.
A volley of axes ignited mid-air without flame, spinning like torches as they
hurtled toward Qing Hong Yan.
He dodged swiftly, only a few axes striking his raised forearm.
With clanging metallic clashes, the axes fell limply to the ground.
“Damn it, damn it!” Qing Hong Yan seethed with rage.
He clearly hadn't intended to attack Fu Zhao, yet the latter had dared to be so
insolent as to initiate an assault!
Qing Hong Yan respected Teng Dong Lang, but he had no particular regard for the
Axe Gang leader.
Much less for Fu Zhao, who was merely the leader's son.
Stung by the provocation, Qing Hong Yan's eyes reddened, a vein bulging on his
forehead.
“I'm not your enemy! I wanted to spare you, yet you dare challenge me? You dare
insult me?!” Rage surged through Qing Hong Yan's mind like a tidal wave.
Gritting his teeth, he murmured a chant:
“When rage burns within my heart; I shall keep my mind's lake calm as a mirror;
Gather inner composure as solid as ice.”
Through the chant, a cool sensation materialized, like a spring welling up in
his fiery heart, dousing much of his fury.
Qing Hong Yan soared skyward, then descended upon the densest cluster of
merchants, bringing death to these unfortunate souls.
“Follow me!” Fu Zhao bellowed, leading the cavalry squad to charge once more at
Qing Hong Yan.
The elder behind the cavalry watched in horror and screeched in his mind,
“Young gang leader! Are you mad? Provoking a gold level opponent again and
again?”
But there was no choice. The elder had to follow the charge.
The Axe Gang's morale soared as Qing Hong Yan deliberately evaded their charge.
The elder desperately wanted to call out but now was not the moment.
Seeing this reckless horde charging once more, another vein bulged on Qing Hong
Yan's forehead.
He swiftly murmured incantations, forcing himself to endure.
“Let not rage cloud my mind; I shall rise above like ice and snow; Unshaken by
the world's petty words.”
He dodged the encircling Fire Axe Cavalry once more, targeting only the fleeing
merchants and their laden carts.
Watching his brutal slaughter, even the Axe Gang members felt a chill.
“Young gang leader!” roared the elder.
Many others kept glancing at Fu Zhao, their eyes silently urging him to “know
when to quit.”
Fu Zhao sensed the shifting mood. Truth be told, the brutal methods displayed
by Qing Hong Yan had him trembling inside.
“But I cannot retreat!”
"I refuse to believe Father is dead! He has the power of three gold level
experts on his side."
"But accidents happen. He might be gravely wounded or trapped by some ambush.
That's why he hasn't returned yet."
"Father bound himself to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps through a magic
contract. He may have broken free of that bond, but I can't gamble on it!"
“If he's gravely wounded now and I deliberately abandon protecting the caravan,
the magic contract will activate. Father could die from his injuries because of
my retreat!”
Fu Zhao's gaze was unwavering. He had reasons he couldn't back down.
He had to protect the caravan at all costs.
Leading the Fire Axe Cavalry, he charged once more at Qing Hong Yan.
A third vein pulsed across Qing Hong Yan's forehead. His eyes blazed scarlet as
murderous intent surged to his brow.
Gritting his teeth until they ached, every muscle trembling, he chanted:
“Embarking on the journey of the soul; I part the dust of this world's vanity;
From the depths of my soul, I chant a melody... a melody... of serenity and
light... Ah!”
He exploded.
Red-Eye was pushed to the brink, shattering his limits.
He threw his head back and let out a deafening roar. Vast gold battle qi
erupted from him without restraint, unleashing a storm that crushed everything
in its path.
“Damn it!” The Axe Gang members trembled in terror.
After his roar, Qing Hong Yan's face twisted with savage intent as he fixed his
gaze on Fu Zhao and the others.
He extended his palm; its center aimed squarely at the Fire Axe Cavalry.
His hand was unlike any ordinary palm, bearing five fleshy pads positioned at
the bases of each finger.
This was the physiological structure of a snow rabbitman.
But his palms differ from those of ordinary snow rabbitmen, his five pads have
been modified, each replaced by a gemstone: red, blue, green, yellow, and
purple.
Gem Ray!
In the next instant, the gems erupted with blinding brilliance, each firing a
laser beam of distinct color.
The lasers swept through the Axe Gang members with lightning speed.
When Fu Zhao finally registered what had happened, he frantically scanned his
surroundings.
The next instant, his mouth gaped open, eyes wide with terror.
Right beside him, the Fire Axe Cavalrymen were either sliced in half,
incinerated into flames, or frozen solid into ice blocks, many met gruesome
deaths.
This was merely the first wave of attack. The Axe Gang's hard-earned cavalry
squadron had already suffered thirty percent casualties!
"Retreat! This isn't just any ordinary gold level!" Fu Zhao's heart pounded in
terror as he truly grasped the enemy's power. He urgently commanded his cavalry
to turn and flee toward Blood Kin City.
He was finally retreating.
But Qing Hong Yan had already lost his sense of reasoning. Soaring skyward, he
then dove down in a steep plunge.
Fu Zhao's horse was swift, and the Fire Axe Cavalry behind him were no slackers
either, dodging this assault.
But the other gang members trailing behind them suffered terribly.
Qing Hong Yan slaughtered them like chickens and ducks being butchered.
The elder bellowed for help yet could only watch as Fu Zhao and the others grew
ever more distant.
"Damn it, come back and save me!" The elder was crushed by Qing Hong Yan's
battle qi in his despair, his body reduced to a pile of bone fragments and
flesh.
Fu Zhao glanced back hurriedly. Seeing this, a flicker of satisfaction crossed
his mind: “Good. Only with this old man dead can I rest easy.”
The elder's earlier spying and the ambition he'd displayed routinely had made
Fu Zhao feel threatened.
His provocation of Qing Hong Yan had another purpose: to use him as a tool to
eliminate internal threats within his own gang!
He succeeded.
But Qing Hong Yan didn't let him off easily. He abandoned the scattered
merchants and redirected his assault onto Fu Zhao's gang members.
The Axe Gang members, utterly demoralized, were slaughtered in droves as they
fled.
“Damn it, did I screw up?”
Fu Zhao's face turned ashen as Qing Hong Yan finally intercepted him.
“Kill! Kill! Kill!” Qing Hong Yan, driven into a severe frenzy, had completely
forgotten Fu Zhao's identity. Any living thing within his current field of
vision was nothing but an eyesore, something to be eliminated.
The laser fired again, locked onto Fu Zhao.
Fu Zhao had no time to dodge, forced to watch helplessly as the laser
approached.
But in the next instant, a figure abruptly materialized, interposing itself
between Fu Zhao and the laser.
Boom!
After the violent explosion, the smoke and dust cleared, revealing Gu Dong
finally arriving on the battlefield.
“Thank goodness I made it,” Gu Dong gasped, panting heavily, “That was no easy
feat!”
“Qing Hong Yan, calm down! Listen to me... dammit.”
Qing Hong Yan ignored the warning, charging relentlessly.
Gu Dong stepped forward to intercept Qing Hong Yan, shouting to Fu Zhao, “I'm
your father's friend! Get out of here! I'll hold him off!”
“T-Thank you!” Fu Zhao hurriedly thanked him, leading his dwindling cavalry in
a hasty retreat from the battlefield.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Qing Hong Yan and Gu Dong clashed fiercely through their battle skills,
thunderous explosions echoing as shockwaves surged between them.
After several rounds, Gu Dong found himself at a disadvantage.
Following more exchanges of offense and defense, Gu Dong's fighting spirit
faltered. Bruised and battered, he muttered, “Damn it. When Qing Hong Yan goes
berserk, his combat power easily ranks among the top five holy warriors!”
“Fu Zhao is gone. I've no reason to risk my life against a madman.”
Gu Dong was no match for Qing Hong Yan. Even as a holy warrior of the Dueling
God, his combat prowess ranked among the kingdom's top five gold level experts.
But being a gold level meant one thing: if you couldn't win, you could still
escape.
Snow Bird Harbor.
Fei She knocked on the door and saw Tripleblade looking grim and deeply
troubled.
Fei She’s heart skipped a beat. He knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch
was ostensibly run by Men Shi and Chi Lai, but the real puppet master behind
the scenes had always been Tripleblade.
“If nothing serious happened, Tripleblade wouldn’t look like this.”
Having survived together and escaped Mystifying Monster Island, Fei She
understood Tripleblade well enough.
Sure enough, Tripleblade first motioned for Fei She to sit down before handing
him a report.
After reading it, Fei She leapt from his seat in shock: “What? A caravan
suffered a gold level attack? All the goods are lost?”
“And this happened while the Axe Gang's young gang leader personally escorted
the convoy, protected by their Fire Axe Cavalry?”
Fei She fell silent for a moment, his mind racing, “Could it be that
intelligence about the Axe Gang leader's death leaked out?”
“Unlikely,” Tripleblade shook his head, “The Axe Gang suffered heavy losses in
this battle, especially their Fire Axe Cavalry, only a third remain.”
"The silver lining is that most of the magic potions we transported via caravan
were counterfeit. The actual losses are far less than outsiders estimate!"
After Zong Ge slew three gold level warriors, Zi Di and the others uncovered
the identities of Jia Bing and Lin. After ransacking Jia Bing's alchemy lab,
though they still knew nothing of the Dueling God's holy warriors, they pieced
together much information.
Such vital intelligence was, of course, relayed immediately to the mercenary
guild's branch in Snow Bird Harbor.
Thus, Tripleblade and Fei She were well aware of the hardships Zong Ge and Zi
Di faced, as well as the survivors' current predicament.
Even though the Axe Gang had signed a magic contract with them, they could no
longer be trusted.
After deliberation, they decided to establish a decoy operation. Under normal
circumstances, they would pose as the primary merchant caravan, transporting
massive quantities of counterfeit potions.
The genuine potions, however, would be secretly transported through channels
controlled by the Li Jian Clan and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“Though the losses this time were minor, our cover has been blown,” Fei She
said gravely. “If the enemy discovers our potions haven't run out and are still
selling well, they'll realize we have alternative transport routes and target
them more precisely.”
This was his greatest concern.



****** Chapter 493: Magician Level Advancement ******
Tripleblade nodded slightly and analyzed, “Our enemies have made their move!”
“But they didn't target Lord Zong Ge or Miss Zi Di. They might have been
intimidated by Lord Zong Ge's astonishing combat record.”
“Attacking the caravan shows precise targeting, they found our weak spot.”
"Moreover, two gold level fighters appeared in this assault. At least one was
likely dispatched by the enemy, though it's also possible both gold level
fighters were acting in concert. After all, this enemy organization operates in
the shadows, seemingly afraid to openly reveal their true identities."
"Miss Zi Di and Lord Zong Ge's analysis is correct; the enemy is formidable,
having once again deployed gold level combat power!"
Tripleblade's brow furrowed deeply as he felt immense pressure.
This was a clash between two organizations!
The enemy possessed immense strength, concealed in the shadows, making them
impossible to guard against.
In contrast, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was significantly weaker. Their
strongest visible member was the dragonman youngster, merely a silver level
with a record of slaying a gold level opponent. Their true strongest member was
Zong Ge, but he had only recently ascended to gold level.
As for the other survivors, their combat prowess was weak.
Tripleblade, as the leader of the mercenary division, was only at the iron
level. He couldn't personally handle many matters and had to rely on Chi Lai
and Men Shi to handle them.
“Do you think the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord truly doesn't know Teng Dong
Lang's mysterious identity?”
“Perhaps that's his real intention for dragging our group into this!”
Tripleblade speculated, his expression dark.
Fei She sighed, “What good does it do to dwell on that now?”
"Given the current situation, our business plan will likely fail. Though it
hasn't been destroyed yet, it will inevitably suffer heavy blows in the
future."
“These enemies are too powerful!”
“Our current stability stems from them being intimidated by the practical
effectiveness of the Deceptive Disguise spell.”
“Our strongest trump card is the Deceptive Disguise spell, yet the Pearl
Bubbles have been severely depleted, few remain.”
"For this business venture, we invested most of the funds acquired from Two
Eyes Island. Should we fail this time, we stand to lose not just this
investment, but our entire future prospects."
"The remaining funds will barely sustain our faction's operations. Our growth
and expansion will be painfully slow. We will be severely crippled!"
Fei She, with his broad vision and rich experience, already foresaw the bleak
future awaiting the survivors.
The best solution was to eliminate the enemy.
But facing an adversary who casually deployed gold level combatants,
Tripleblade and Fei She felt utterly lacking in confidence.
Tripleblade sighed deeply: “Our group has only Lord Zong Ge as a gold level,
one man cannot hold the fort alone.”
Fei She added: “We can also count the commander. Though he's silver level, his
combat prowess is truly gold level. But with just these two Lords, passive
defense would be a stretch, wouldn't it?"
After this analysis, Tripleblade and Fei She felt immense psychological
pressure.
With unclear intelligence, the holy warriors of the Dueling God had misjudged
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' strength, even imagining deeper connections.
Out of various apprehensions, they had only attempted tentative counterattacks
and retaliations.
Similarly, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could only speculate about their
enemies' strength, their estimates wildly inaccurate, their psychological
pressure immense.
Fei She suddenly declared, "This intelligence must be reported immediately to
Zi Di and Zong Ge. They must heighten their vigilance to guard against a heavy
blow from the enemy."
In this regard, Tripleblade proved more seasoned: “I've already dispatched men
to do so, but Lord Zong Ge's group has just departed Snow Rabbit City. We
cannot contact them for the time being.”
“Why hasn't the commander returned yet?” Fei She lamented.
Tripleblade was merely iron level, while Fei She fared worse, just an ordinary
mortal. They truly lacked any real backing.
This was the world of the strong.
Only the strong could serve as pillars of support, ensuring morale remained
steadfast.
“Let us hope the commander returns swiftly,” Tripleblade's gaze hardened once
more, “Until then, we must do everything in our power to stabilize the
situation and minimize all losses!”
“Yes, that is precisely what we must do,” Fei She echoed, his expression
hardening with resolve.
Unlike the holy warriors of the Dueling God, the survivors shared no common
faith.
But they shared a common interest, they were in the same boat, destined to be
purged by the Sheng Ming Empire if their atonement failed!
Helping each other meant helping themselves.
Coupled with their experience of working together on Mystifying Monster Island,
they had forged a solid bond of comradeship.
“I'll speak with Bu Quan to have her accelerate alchemy production as much as
possible, preventing disruptions to future supply lines,” Fei She declared,
preparing to act, “We must also inform President Zi Di about this business plan
to expedite their efforts.”
Tripleblade added, "If the business plan fails, we'll face an economic winter.
During this period, I'll focus on maximizing revenue and minimizing expenses."
"As a mercenary group, we need to undertake mercenary missions to build market
confidence in us. This way, in the future, mercenary missions can become our
primary source of funding."
“I'll contact Lord Zong Ge to explain my perspective, attempting to reduce or
even suspend the current training exercises and recall Chi Lai and Men Shi.”
Fei She nodded, hurriedly took leave, and raced against the clock to do what he
could.
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest.
Deep Sea Monster Fish, meditation chamber.
The fishman youngster sat cross-legged, eyes tightly shut, deep in meditation.
Massive quantities of water elements poured in from all directions, flooding
into him.
For a water magician, this was an ideal meditation environment.
On one hand, it was the deep sea—where water elemental energy was most
abundant. On the other hand, the Deep Sea Monster Fish's meditation chamber
continuously purified and replenished the water elemental energy, ensuring its
concentration was higher than that of the ship and remained constant despite
the fishman youngster's constant absorption.
The water element was ceaselessly drawn in by the fishman youngster,
transforming into pale blue magic power within his personal magic pool.
The next moment, the fishman youngster's body trembled slightly.
The scattered spirit power that had been drifting during his meditation
suddenly coalesced, forming a spiritual space uniquely his own level!
At the same time, the youngster's magician level advanced from bronze level to
iron level.
“My magician level has risen,” the fishman youngster opened his eyes, his
expression a mix of delight and confusion, “But why... do I have a spiritual
space?”
The fishman youngster was previously a silver level fighter and an iron level
magician.
Just now, his magician level had risen from bronze level to iron level.
This was within his expectations.
His innate life level far surpassed bronze level, and his fishman bloodline was
exceptionally potent, rapid advancement was natural.
Zhong Yong had predicted this beforehand.
“After reaching iron level, the storage capacity of my magic pool has increased
significantly.”
The fishman youngster meditated briefly before abruptly stopping his
meditation. His verification confirmed: “The efficiency of refining magic power
has also skyrocketed.”
“But why has my spirit coalesced into a space?”
Bronze level magicians transitioned from ordinary humans to the extraordinary,
formally possessing their personal magic pool.
Iron level magicians experienced substantial enhancements in personal magic
power and spirit, enabling them to cast iron level spells.
Silver level magicians underwent a qualitative transformation in their spirit
power, forming a stable spiritual space. Casting spells within this space
allowed magic models to form rapidly and precisely. Magicians could even refine
and modify these models or build multiple models simultaneously. At this level,
various spellcasting techniques came into play.
Upon reaching gold level, magicians established stable conduits to the outside
world, enabling constant magic power conversion without meditation. Of course,
efficiency remained higher during meditation.
Unlike fighters, a magician's magic power possessed various hues depending on
their magic affinity, as different elements absorbed distinct external
energies. For instance, the water affinity manifested as a pale blue.
A fighter's battle qi color corresponds to their life level. bronze level
appeared bronze. In fact, the naming of life levels was derived from the
distinct hues of battle qi at each level.
Though the fishman youngster was only iron level, he possessed a spiritual
space typically found in silver level magicians.
This puzzled the youngster. After pondering it himself, he formed a hypothesis.
He shared this observation with Zhong Yong, who looked at him excitedly: “Lord
Hou Lang, it seems your bloodline is more suited to cultivating magic!”
"Only exceptional bloodlines grant cultivators certain special talents. Some
talents are particularly outstanding, enabling them to surpass their inherent
level!"
"Your spirit is such a case. A silver level spirit power is required to
construct a spiritual space, yet yours underwent this qualitative
transformation at the iron level."
“This is truly a great blessing!”
Zhong Yong's response confirmed the fishman youngster's conjecture.
“Just as I suspected.”
“It's like the legendary bloodline of the Flame Dragon King, granting me gold
level defense at the silver level.”
“Applied to the fishman bloodline, this advantage shifts from defense to the
spiritual realm.”
The fishman youngster pondered for a moment, finding Zhong Yong's assessment
spot-on—this fishman bloodline offered far greater benefits in spell
cultivation than in battle qi cultivation!
This only deepened the fishman youngster's curiosity about the true nature of
this mysterious bloodline.
For the young commander, this question held considerable importance.
After all, the concentration of this fishman bloodline was relatively low, and
he intended to increase its potency.
However, the fishman youngster found no answers in the War Merchant's database.
He knew why: the bloodline's low concentration likely made its characteristics
too subtle for identification.
The same reason prevented Cang Xu from assisting him.
With his newly elevated magician level, the fishman youngster resumed his spell
training.
The routine remained unchanged.
First, Zhong Yong instructed him in water attribute spells. Then, in solitude,
he practiced necromancy magic.
“I must hurry!”
“Before the next teleportation blood sacrifice, I must master the Undead
Bloodline Detection Spell!”
As the fishman youngster pushed forward toward his goal, Cang Xu was also
actively advancing his own plan.
He paid a visit to Xiao Wang Zi.



****** Chapter 494: Cang Xu’s Blackmail and Extortion ******
Ever since Cang Xu teleported back, Xiao Wang Zi had been avoiding him. Even
during the undead gatherings, he refused to meet Cang Xu’s gaze.
But this time, Xiao Wang Zi could not avoid him anymore. Cang Xu was outside at
the door.
“Won’t you invite me in for a moment?” Cang Xu smiled.
Xiao Wang Zi froze for a moment, his voice dry as he lowered his head, “Come
in.”
His dwelling, like everyone else's, was a simple shack, easily erected.
"How much longer do you intend to avoid me? Xiao Wang Zi." There were no chairs
inside the shack, so Cang Xu simply sat cross-legged.
Xiao Wang Zi remained silent, head bowed.
Cang Xu spoke then: "I don't blame you, and I understand your choice. When it
comes to feelings and bonds, Ku Feng truly runs deeper for you than I do."
“But what I hate is our current state. I don't want this barrier between us.”
“Xiao Wang Zi, though our time together was brief, I've already decided you are
my friend!”
Xiao Wang Zi's body trembled. He finally lifted his gaze to look at Cang Xu,
still appearing dazed.
Cang Xu continued, “These past days have been truly painful for me.”
“I still remember when we first met... how we fought side by side, how perilous
that battle on the Underworld River was... and how you lent me resources,
helping me get back on my feet... And after I began training in the Flying Head
Spell, our teamwork, do you remember that ambush on the magic beast fish
school?"
Cang Xu's recollections caused Xiao Wang Zi to lower his head once more.
Inside the shack, only Cang Xu spoke.
Yet he seemed to have endless words, pausing not once, his tone gentle as he
recounted their history.
To Xiao Wang Zi, it felt like reliving those past experiences.
“Let's make things right again,” Cang Xu finally said.
Xiao Wang Zi's tiny skeletal frame trembled slightly.
If Cang Xu blamed him, despised him, or hated him, it would have been easier to
bear. But hearing those words made Xiao Wang Zi feel even more miserable and
guilty.
He couldn't help but sob softly.
Though no tears fell.
“You treated me like a good friend,” Xiao Wang Zi said, filled with remorse,
“But I treated you like this.”
“I'm so sorry!”
“I'm sorry. I'm truly, truly sorry.”
“Waaah...”
Cang Xu stood up, sat beside Xiao Wang Zi, and placed a hand on his small
shoulder. His voice was gentle, “I told you; I don't blame you.”
Xiao Wang Zi looked up, his expression dazed. At that moment, he seemed to see
his father's figure reflected in Cang Xu.
Xiao Wang Zi: "Xu Jia, you're so kind! I'll make it up to you. What do you
want? Even... even if it's Generalissimo, I'll give it to you."
Generalissimo was the three-headed zombie sea serpent that had accompanied Xiao
Wang Zi for so long, his most cherished mount.
Cang Xu smiled faintly, “I don't want Generalissimo. I want your heavy
cavalry.”
“Okay!” Xiao Wang Zi answered without hesitation, “I can always recapture and
recreate them anyway.”
The next moment, he frowned with difficulty: "But I've lost them now. Zhou
Zhang has captured all my heavy cavalry. I haven't seen them for many days,
though the soul connection remains."
“Ha! I was just teasing. I don't want your compensation, don't worry about it,”
Cang Xu chuckled, patting Xiao Wang Zi's shoulder.
But Xiao Wang Zi grabbed Cang Xu's sleeve and wouldn't let go. Looking up with
wide eyes, he insisted firmly, "No, I must compensate you. You absolutely must
accept it. Only then will I feel better."
“You yourself are my best compensation...” Cang Xu's gaze grew distant as
laughter welled up inside him.
Of course, he kept these thoughts to himself. After offering Xiao Wang Zi a few
words of comfort, Cang Xu left the shack, now certain: Xiao Wang Zi stood
firmly by his side.
This encounter marked a breakthrough in Cang Xu's relationships with Ku Feng
and Xiao Wang Zi.
With these connections solidified, Cang Xu gained greater leverage over Jian
Gui's small faction.
Should the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps ever need to use Jian Gui's channels to
contact the undead forces led by You Shen, cultivating such influence would
prove invaluable.
“Next up is Qi Ling.”
Cang Xu smiled confidently before arriving at Qi Ling's residence shortly
after.
Qi Ling opened the door with a smile, inquiring about Cang Xu's purpose.
Cang Xu requested to discuss matters inside.
Qi Ling was reluctant, yet she still welcomed Cang Xu into her hut.
As they sat facing each other, she asked again, her face clearly guarded and
distant.
Cang Xu chuckled, “Don't be so tense, Qi Ling. I'm only here to claim
compensation.”
“Compensation? What do you mean?” Qi Ling frowned, then relaxed her expression.
Cang Xu explained, "It's about how you schemed against me, secretly instigating
Xiao Wang Zi to help Ku Feng accelerate the progress of his memory fabrication.
How long has it been? Have you, Magician Qi Ling, forgotten it all already?"
“Perhaps I should blame myself. I should have discussed compensation with you
the very night I teleported back.”
On the surface, they exchanged prayer experiences; in secret, they traded
private information.
Qi Ling smiled outwardly while seething inwardly: “Xu Jia, have you
misunderstood something?”
“Didn't you do it?” Cang Xu pressed.
Qi Ling remained expressionless: “The misunderstanding I speak of is that you
seem to think I, Qi Ling, am easy to bully.”
“That's right, I was targeting you specifically. Who else would have such low
progress in memory fabrication, leaving themselves so exposed?”
“I want to survive, so I'll do whatever it takes to increase my chances.”
"Honestly, if it were Ku Feng or Xiao Wang Zi, I might hesitate. But you? I
don't know you at all. You're a complete stranger! Is it strange that I'd
target you under those circumstances?"
“Of course not,” Cang Xu replied, “I understand you, but that doesn't mean I
can forgive you.”
“It seems you've misunderstood my purpose as well.”
“I came here demanding compensation, not to lecture you about reason or team
camaraderie.”
“As you said, we're strangers to each other.”
“And even if we were to reason, we each have our own justifications. Using
schemes and tricks to survive is perfectly normal.”
Cang Xu paused, staring intently into Qi Ling's eyes before continuing, “I'm
here demanding compensation on account of Jian Gui, Xiao Wang Zi, and Ku Feng.”
“You targeted me, so I must retaliate.”
“But if I retaliate against you, it will ruin the grand scheme of forging false
memories. Therefore, I hope you can see the bigger picture, compensate me, and
quell the flames of my vengeance.”
Qi Ling chuckled softly. On the surface, she praised, “Magician Xu Jia, your
experience as a magician is quite rich. It gives me great inspiration.”
Yet inwardly, she sneered coldly: “You seek vengeance?”
“How?”
“Don't forget, you still bear a double seal.”
“Come to think of it, that's rather peculiar, isn't it?”
"You've clearly converted, yet why do Zhou Zhang and the others still distrust
you? Why haven't they touched the seals on your body?"
"You see, at the end of the day, you're a necromancer. How could normal people
possibly trust you?"
“Even if your conversion succeeded, it would be the same!”
“You should realize by now, we're the ones who belong together.”
Qi Ling was cunning, preemptively using words to block Cang Xu's threatening
rhetoric.
But this reaction was entirely within Cang Xu's expectations.
Cang Xu continued to stare into Qi Ling's eyes, his gaze sinister and icy. He
silently communicated: “I must avenge myself on you. But why should I take
action myself?”
“That would be so boring.”
“I never even considered laying a hand on you. After all, we're both magicians,
we're on the same side.”
“Heh heh heh.”
At this, Cang Xu laughed.
Qi Ling's gaze shifted dramatically, growing fierce and furious. She growled
under her breath, "Xu Jia, what do you intend to do? If you dare lay a finger
on the Da Ji Clan, I will never let you off!"
Qi Ling's weakness was painfully obvious.
Lady Sea Snake could leverage the Da Ji Clan to demand Qi Ling serve her.
Such a weakness was something Cang Xu could certainly exploit!
Qi Ling's growl had already laid bare her fear.
Cang Xu promptly ended the conversation, rising to leave!
Just as he pushed open the hut door, Qi Ling called out to stop him: “Wait!”
Cang Xu returned with a smile, returning to his seat.
Qi Ling's gaze turned icy: "What do you want? Make it clear now, if you demand
too much, negotiation is off! I won't satisfy your greed so easily!"
After another half hour of back-and-forth, Cang Xu and Qi Ling finally reached
an agreement.
Cang Xu acquired a wealth of knowledge from Qi Ling.
Although Cang Xu had already obtained the intermediate soul aspect inheritance
from Jian Gui, knowledge encompassed far more than just magician inheritance.
For instance, Qi Ling's assistance with Jian Gui's alchemy experiments, the
content, data, and critical results.
Her unique expertise in the Soul Send Spell proved immensely valuable to Cang
Xu.
Knowledge formed the bulk of the exchange, but there were also numerous undead
supplies.
Of course, Qi Ling couldn't provide these supplies yet, bound as she was by
dual seals. They had only reached a verbal agreement.
With a satisfied smile, Cang Xu crossed his arms behind his back and departed
Qi Ling's quarters.
Watching his retreating figure, Qi Ling gritted her teeth, cursing silently:
“Xu Jia, this humiliation, I will repay you in full.”
“You despicable, greedy goblin, daring to blackmail me!”
"Too bad our agreement is only verbal. Without a magic contract, what can you
do to me once I regain my freedom?"
Beneath Qi Ling's fury lay a thread of smug satisfaction.
She reasoned: The dual seals bound her, yet indirectly aided her cause.
However, this notion shattered spectacularly the very next day!
At the undead gathering, Qi Ling's rage boiled over as she confronted Cang Xu:
“We reached an agreement! Why did you attack the Da Ji Clan?!”



****** Chapter 495: No Need to Thank Me for Helping Root Out Your Nuisances


******
“We've already reached an agreement, why did you still attack the Da Ji Clan?!”
At the undead gathering, Qi Ling's rage boiled over as she confronted Cang Xu.
At these words, Ku Feng and Xiao Wang Zi both shot Cang Xu astonished glances,
while Jian Gui remained impassive.
Cang Xu immediately grasped the situation upon seeing their expressions.
“It seems that Magician Qi Ling had already informed Jian Gui before making
this accusation.”
“Which means Jian Gui has become her protector.” Cang Xu understood that any
misstep now would invite relentless questioning from the others. All his
previous efforts would be in vain.
However, having already taken action, Cang Xu was prepared for this outcome.
Cang Xu did not rush to refute, instead adopting a cold demeanor: “Magician Qi
Ling, please calm yourself.”
“I bear a double seal, weak and powerless, unable to even defeat a bronze level
fighter. Where would I have obtained the ability to target the entire Da Ji
Clan?”
“Moreover, why would I target them?”
Qi Ling sneered: "Before everyone here, before Lord Jian Gui, do you still
intend to weave lies and deceive us?"
“This very morning, I received a plea for aid from the Da Ji Clan Leader.”
“He informed me it was you who approached Zhou Zhang, advising the Da Ji Clan
to participate in the next teleportation blood sacrifice.”
“Dare you deny this?”
Cang Xu fell silent.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng remained quiet too.
Jian Gui fixed his gaze on Cang Xu: “Magician Xu Jia, explain yourself
thoroughly.”
His tone was cold, his heart seething with anger.
He was fully absorbed in the escape plan involving forged memories and deeply
reluctant to deal with any complications.
In truth, Qi Ling had already sought out Jian Gui earlier to report: Cang Xu
spent his days aimlessly socializing, paying no attention whatsoever to the
memory fabrication task.
Jian Gui endured all this.
In his view, Cang Xu had already undergone the teleportation blood sacrifice
and returned successfully, he no longer possessed the strongest motivation to
fabricate memories.
Cang Xu considered himself safe now; relaxing a little was understandable,
excusable.
But this time, Jian Gui could no longer hold back.
Because Cang Xu's actions had severely angered and disrupted Qi Ling, crossing
her absolute boundaries.
Qi Ling was furious!
In Jian Gui's eyes, Qi Ling was his best and most capable assistant.
Xiao Wang Zi was naive, and Ku Feng was a fool obsessed with the blade path.
Qi Ling possessed cunning intellect, had been personally summoned by Jian Gui,
and had served as his alchemy assistant for years.
She was Jian Gui's staunchest ally, his most outstanding subordinate.
While Jian Gui admired Cang Xu, in terms of closeness, Cang Xu didn't even rank
above Xiao Wang Zi or Ku Feng.
With Qi Ling being bullied by Cang Xu, Jian Gui naturally had to avenge her.
Cang Xu instantly understood Jian Gui's intentions from his tone.
He had long seen through Jian Gui, even bearing the marks of Jian Gui's trap
upon his body. His very life hung on Jian Gui's whim.
Yet Cang Xu showed no fear, nodding slightly. "That's correct. That was indeed
my suggestion to Lord Zhou Zhang. However, at that time, Lord Zhou Zhang merely
said she would consider it. She did not agree."
Qi Ling gritted her teeth, her voice cracking with emotion, “Zhou Zhang... she
has already issued the order!”
“Oh, that's wonderful! I'm truly delighted for you,” Cang Xu laughed heartily,
“The entire Da Ji Clan undergoing this trial, those who survive will
undoubtedly grow immensely powerful, becoming the model tribe among the
Charming Blue believers. This is a tremendous blessing for the Da Ji Clan!”
“You're full of shit!” Qi Ling's eyes blazed with fury as she leapt to her
feet. Had Xiao Wang Zi not startled and grabbed her, she would have lunged at
Cang Xu to tear him apart.
Her rage was justified.
Participating in the teleportation blood sacrifice, while offering the chance
to receive divine blessings, also carried the immense risk of being slain by
the saint beast.
Only those with unwavering faith in their beliefs, those filled with reverence
for the Charming Blue Goddess, and those harboring ambitions for their future
within the Charming Blue Church would risk their lives to choose participation
in the teleportation blood sacrifice.
No tribe would ever send all their members to participate in the teleportation
blood sacrifice.
Because for most people, their level of faith simply wasn't that high. When an
entire tribe underwent the ritual, few survived the ordeal.
After they returned, a tribe of thousands might be reduced to a mere dozen
survivors, effectively ending the lineage. The remnants were more likely to be
absorbed by rival tribes than to rebuild their numbers through gradual growth
over generations.
Population size was crucial for any tribe.
Therefore, Cang Xu's proposal was tantamount to dooming the Da Ji Clan!
Qi Ling was stopped by Xiao Wang Zi and gradually calmed down. She immediately
turned to complain to Jian Gui: “My Lord, I did not lie! It was Xu Jia, he
admitted it himself! He is a traitor!”
“That scoundrel came to my door yesterday, blackmailing me.”
“I clearly agreed to his demands, yet he committed such a treacherous act the
very next day.”
“He is our enemy!”
Jian Gui shot Qi Ling a cold glance.
Qi Ling's rage was understandable, but what angered Jian Gui was that she dared
to use him as a tool for revenge against Cang Xu.
She had trampled upon the pride of Jian Gui as the superior.
However, Jian Gui did not lash out at Qi Ling. Compared to Qi Ling, he was far
more displeased with Cang Xu.
Jian Gui addressed Cang Xu: “Xu Jia, you are an accomplished magician. You
should understand the implications of your actions this time. You had better
explain yourself. After all, Qi Ling is one of our own.”
“If you made an agreement with Qi Ling only to renege the very next day, that
only deepens our concerns.”
“You must understand that integrity is the world's most intangible yet
indispensable treasure!”
Cang Xu paused, then spoke with utmost sincerity: "Lord Jian Gui, I admire and
respect you. Over the past period, I've been honored to follow you, receive
your guidance, and grow immensely under your command. My gratitude toward you
is profound and heartfelt. I often find myself wishing I had met you sooner."
“That's why I've always envied Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, and Ku Feng, they
encountered you earlier. To me, that's undoubtedly a stroke of good fortune.”
These well-chosen words instantly softened Jian Gui's gaze.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng nodded in agreement.
Cang Xu looked at the two of them and continued, “I've learned a great deal
from both Ku Feng and Xiao Wang Zi.”
“But with Magician Qi Ling... perhaps because we've spent so little time
together, I feel a significant gap. Take what she said to me yesterday, for
instance, we're not exactly close.”
“In fact, not only are we not close, but there's some grudge between us.”
“My first participation in the teleportation blood sacrifice was entirely
thanks to her.”
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng remained silent.
Cang Xu spoke the truth.
His previous efforts in building relationships had led to breakthrough progress
in his ties with the two of them. This confrontation hadn't pushed them to his
opposing side.
Thus, up to this point, both maintained a neutral stance.
This was the fruit of Cang Xu's prior efforts.
Jian Gui remained silent. The outcome of the first teleportation blood
sacrifice was, in truth, largely tied to him as well. He had turned a blind eye
to Qi Ling's underhanded maneuvers. To some extent, Cang Xu's selection as the
first victim was also his responsibility.
Cang Xu continued, “Once Qi Ling agreed to my demands, I had no intention of
seeking revenge against her.”
“My target isn't her, it's the Da Ji Clan!”
"Why? They're not your enemies at all! They're all innocent!” Qi Ling
protested, utterly baffled.
“Perhaps they were before. But when we rescued you only to end up in this mess,
the Da Ji Clan became my mortal enemy,” Cang Xu replied coldly.
"We once lived freely. Even navigating the Underworld River was safer than
this. We thrived peacefully in the White Hair Trench. My Flying Head Spell
flourished, my future wide open. We came here solely to save you."
"I have no objection to that. I even admire Lord Jian Gui's character. Put
yourself in my shoes, if I were in your position, held hostage by enemies, I'd
want my comrades to rescue me this way too."
“But reality is far more complex.”
“Think carefully. You, Magician Qi Ling, specialize in the soul aspect of
necromancy. You are a ghost yourself. Why were you trapped and so easily
blackmailed?”
“Wasn't it all for the Da Ji Clan?”
"Rescuing you would be simple. But why did we have to lie low, contact you
cautiously, and wait so painstakingly for the right moment? Wasn't it precisely
because we had to consider the Da Ji Clan while saving you?"
"Without the tribe, you could have escaped easily on your own. Had we rescued
you without reservations, we would have succeeded swiftly. We wouldn't have
ended up in this predicament!"
"The Da Ji Clan dragged you down and dragged us down too. They made all of us
captives. Isn't this tribe my enemy? Isn't it the enemy of us all?"
Cang Xu pressed relentlessly.
Qi Ling stared in disbelief.
Jian Gui cast a look of astonishment.
For the first time, Cang Xu displayed such astonishing eloquence.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng remained silent, but both agreed.
Cang Xu continued, “As far as I know, you've been dragged down by the Da Ji
Clan countless times before.”
“Even Lord Jian Gui has intervened multiple times to save the day for you,
hasn't he?”
“You've burdened them in the past, and now you're burdening us. How long do you
intend to let this damned fishman tribe keep dragging us down?”
Qi Ling fell silent, taking a step back. Her expression turned panicked as she
glanced around.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng remained quiet, yet their looks clearly showed
agreement.
Qi Ling turned to Jian Gui, as if grasping at a last lifeline.
Jian Gui remained expressionless as he spoke soothingly to Qi Ling.
“I summoned you into existence. You are my companion. My aid stems from my own
free will.”
Qi Ling burst into tears, collapsing beside Jian Gui. Clutching the thigh of
his cross-legged form, she clung to it with the fragile vulnerability of a
woman bullied by a tyrant.



****** Chapter 496: Prey and Hunter ******
Jian Gui reached out, gently stroking Qi Ling's head.
The moment held no awkwardness, for both were essentially ghosts capable of
physical contact.
Glancing around, Jian Gui spoke: “Come to think of it, this whole situation is
actually my fault...”
Then, he unexpectedly admitted his error, shouldering the responsibility.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng immediately responded. One tried to exonerate Jian
Gui, while the other claimed he too was at fault.
Cang Xu's influence had already surpassed that of Qi Ling, but compared to Jian
Gui, it was like comparing a minor sorcerer to a grand wizard.
With a single exertion from Jian Gui, all of Cang Xu's previous efforts
shattered instantly.
However, this outcome was entirely within Cang Xu's expectations. In truth, he
never intended to defy Jian Gui.
“Lord Jian Gui, I am profoundly grateful and in awe of you, yet I also feel
deeply that this is not what you deserve.”
“You are such a prodigy, possessing a gold level bloodline and being the direct
heir to the true undead orthodoxy. Your future was so bright, yet now you find
yourself in such peril, all because of the Da Ji Clan!” Cang Xu continued his
plea.
Jian Gui seethed inwardly.
He now fully understood that Cang Xu was a stubborn adversary, driven by a
fierce desire for retribution. Cang Xu's flattery served only his own ends.
Yet, ironically, Jian Gui could not punish Cang Xu now.
Though he had planted a hidden mechanism within Cang Xu, capable of killing him
with a single thought, in this situation, taking Cang Xu's life would be going
too far.
Jian Gui sighed inwardly.
He understood Cang Xu. If he had been betrayed, he would seek revenge too. Qi
Ling's extortion was somewhat understandable.
Honestly, Jian Gui had long been mentally prepared for this. If Cang Xu hadn't
reacted this way, he would have been more concerned about Cang Xu's hidden
agenda.
Thus, when Qi Ling came to him weeping and reporting the incident, Jian Gui
felt a quiet relief deep within.
As for the Da Ji Clan, Jian Gui naturally felt no affection for them.
More than anything, he merely used them as a means to restrain Qi Ling.
In a way, Jian Gui and Lady Sea Snake were no different.
Cang Xu was the same, all of them exploited the Da Ji Clan to deal with Qi
Ling.
The effect was remarkably effective!
After all, Qi Ling possessed such an obvious flaw, one she had even exposed
herself.
Cang Xu seized this weakness. With just a little pressure, he struck Qi Ling
hard enough to hurt, forcing her to act according to his plan.
Cang Xu concluded: "Once I recognized this reality, I decided to send them into
the Ocean Mother Nest. I refuse to let such events repeat. If blame must be
assigned, direct it solely at me!"
Xiao Wang Zi couldn't help but look up at Cang Xu.
Even Ku Feng secretly admired Cang Xu's decisiveness.
“Spat! You clearly failed to extort me, so now you threaten me with the Da Ji
Clan to make me bleed more for you...” Qi Ling blurted out once more.
Cang Xu cut her off with a cold snort, "I demanded compensation because you
targeted me earlier, making me the first to participate in the teleportation
blood sacrifice. I was fortunate, the Lord took pity and spared my life,
teleporting me back. Demanding compensation from you, the perpetrator, instead
of taking action, is already a show of restraint on my part."
“My demand for compensation is sincere!”
"Otherwise, wouldn't it have been far simpler and quicker to threaten you with
the Da Ji Clan during the compensation process? Why escalate things to this
point now?"
“The night I returned from the transmission, I thought long and hard.”
“I made a firm decision: I will eradicate the Da Ji Clan!”
"Even if you hate me, it doesn't matter. I will eliminate this weakness for
you."
“If you dare, if you dare do this, you declare war on me! We'll fight to the
death!” Qi Ling raged, cursing furiously.
Cang Xu remained expressionless.
Xiao Wang Zi tried to intervene, but after opening his mouth, he decided
against it. Truthfully, he disliked both Qi Ling and the Da Ji Clan. Many of
Cang Xu's words struck a chord with him.
Truth be told, Xiao Wang Zi had opposed rescuing Qi Ling from the start.
A child's emotions were just this simple!
Ku Feng furrowed his brow slightly, his gaze fixed on Jian Gui.
Only Jian Gui could resolve the current conflict, and he remained confident
Jian Gui could handle such troubles.
But just as Jian Gui was about to speak, laughter suddenly echoed, followed by
a figure materializing within the shack.
The group was startled.
Yet upon recognizing the face, their surprise faded.
It was Zhou Zhang.
This saint level Charming Blue Archbishop was no stranger to eavesdropping and
spying.
“Interesting. Truly fascinating,” Zhou Zhang murmured with a satisfied smile.
Her gaze swept the room, radiating the predatory confidence of a cat toying
with mice.
Qi Ling snapped to attention, kneeling before Zhou Zhang and pleading for mercy
for the Da Ji Clan.
Zhou Zhang smiled, gazing down at Qi Ling with gentle demeanor as she uttered
words that plunged Qi Ling into despair: "I have given Xu Jia's suggestion
serious consideration. Indeed, the Da Ji Clan maintains close ties with
necromancers. Their composition is complex, and there exists the possibility of
feigned faith, exploiting the Charming Blue Church to counter formidable foes."
"They claim that most of their tribe are Charming Blue believers; verifying
this would do no harm."
Qi Ling hurriedly interjected, “Lady Zhou Zhang, they are all fishmen! Like
you, they are creatures of the sea.”
“So what?” Zhou Zhang's expression grew cold. "Not all fishmen are believers of
my Lord. Is that not so? If my perspective remained confined to race, then all
believers here should be octopusmen."
Zhou Zhang's reply plunged Qi Ling into an icy abyss.
Zhou Zhang continued to toy with Qi Ling: "If you wish the Da Ji Clan to
survive, why not attend the teleportation blood sacrifice in their place? After
all, isn't it because of you that they're under suspicion?"
“Had you not been coveted by Lady Sea Snake, the Da Ji Clan wouldn't have
suffered this calamity, nor fallen into their current predicament, would they?”
Qi Ling was struck by a crushing blow, collapsing onto the ground.
Zhou Zhang continued, leisurely: “You truly should participate in the
teleportation blood sacrifice as soon as possible.”
"Both you and Xu Jia are necromancers, but he has already become a believer of
my Lord, receiving divine blessing. You have not. Who do you think I would
trust more?"
Qi Ling's face paled, and she was speechless.
When her very survival was at stake, Qi Ling dared not take any risks. The
memory fabrication plan had given her new hope, but before that, she had no
certainty about converting.
Protecting the Da Ji Clan was Qi Ling's obsession since becoming a ghost.
But if she couldn't even survive herself, what was the point of any obsession?
Jian Gui and the others remained silent.
As silence hung heavy in the air, Zhou Zhang turned her gaze back to Cang Xu, a
knowing smile once more playing on her lips.
“Xu Jia, you too have been reported.”
“Many of the believers feel you abused your position this time, attempting to
harness the divine authority of our Lord to eliminate your own enemies.”
Cang Xu scrambled to explain.
After patiently listening, Zhou Zhang's expression grew more mocking, “Your
reasoning holds merit.”
"But now, a significant number doubt you. They claim that even if you received
divine blessing, it might have been a temporary change triggered by the immense
pressure of facing death. Once back in safety, your faith has waned."
"This isn't impossible either. After all, faith stems from the heart and can
shift. The crucial point is, it cannot be accurately measured."
“Lord Zhou Zhang, please hear me out...” Cang Xu's tone and expression betrayed
utter panic.
The saint level octopusman raised a tentacle, cutting him off: “Therefore, for
the next ritual, you shall participate alongside the Da Ji Clan.”
Cang Xu's expression instantly “changed dramatically”.
The necromancers and magicians stared blankly, shock evident on their faces.
Qi Ling, stunned, opened her mouth to mock Cang Xu, but the thought of the Da
Ji Clan instantly drained her of any desire to speak.
Jian Gui's heart grew cold, his expression grim.
Zhou Zhang laughed brightly: “Of course, besides Xu Jia, you must select one
more person. Rest assured, there's plenty of time. Take your time choosing."
With that, she successfully observed the darkening expressions of Jian Gui and
the others before fading away with a smile.
Toying with these captives brought her immense amusement, one of the few
pastimes she enjoyed during her duties as the archbishop.
This was a world of the strong, where might ruled all. Playing with the weak
was nothing out of the ordinary.
In a foul mood, Jian Gui warned Cang Xu and Qi Ling not to cause any more
trouble, now was no time for infighting.
Qi Ling naturally obeyed Jian Gui's command.
Jian Gui then quietly instructed Cang Xu: "You should see it now. Even if you
convert successfully, you won't gain Zhou Zhang's trust. If she can let you
participate once or twice, she can keep doing it."
Cang Xu wore a heavy expression, solemnly agreeing.
As the undead gathering dispersed, Xiao Wang Zi cautiously comforted Cang Xu.
Ku Feng remarked, "It seems we must journey together this time. Let's strive
together!"
Cang Xu returned to his shack and finally relaxed, inwardly rejoicing: “My goal
is achieved!”
How to enter the Ocean Mother Nest a second time had always been a problem.
Few believers ever ventured back into the Ocean Mother Nest. On one hand, most
believers didn't want to risk their lives again. On the other hand, even if
there were fanatical believers, Zhou Zhang wouldn't grant them the opportunity.
The reason was simple: spots were limited.
From Archbishop Zhou Zhang's perspective, she needed to seize this opportunity
to recruit believers for the goddess, strengthen the convictions and personal
abilities of its core adherents, and help the Charming Blue Church deepen its
foundations.
Having a fanatical believer go in and out frequently offered poor value for
effort. Unless exceptional circumstances arose, such as a fanatical believer
possessing exceptional aptitude and extraordinary talent.
Cang Xu had maintained contact with the fishman youngster. In their most recent
exchange, he was delighted to learn the youngster could now cast the Undead
Bloodline Detection Spell.
Given this development, Cang Xu had to return promptly.
This challenge did not faze Cang Xu.
After pondering for a moment, he devised this solution.
He succeeded.
Leveraging the conflict between him and Qi Ling, and exploiting the distrust
that Zhou Zhang and others harbored toward necromancers, he deceived Jian Gui
and others, capitalizing on Zhou Zhang's competitive mindset.
Everything unfolded naturally, like water flowing downhill, without the
slightest hint of coercion.
The most skilled hunters often appeared as prey.
This was Cang Xu's precise grasp of human nature and individuality, the result
of his adept execution of cunning schemes.
No other survivor could have achieved this level of accomplishment.
Only Cang Xu.
He understood the art of politics deeply.
Of course, he hadn't been entirely certain of success before acting. But the
presence of the fishman youngster and the Deep Sea Monster Fish gave him added
confidence.
If this attempt failed, there would be another.
If the next scheme fell through, there would be another.
Success on the first try would be ideal, of course!
“Now, we just await the teleportation blood sacrifice.” Unlike Ku Feng and the
others, Cang Xu was filled with anticipation.
After all, this return marked the first step in formally altering his innate
potential.



****** Chapter 497: Cang Xu’s Bloodline ******
White Hair Trench.
Radiance flooded the entire undersea valley, illuminating everyone’s features
with stark clarity.
Jian Gui and the others wore solemn expressions, their gazes fixed upon Cang Xu
and Ku Feng.
Cang Xu and Ku Feng knelt on the ground, surrounded by a sea of believers.
The fishmen of the Da Ji Clan remained silent, yet the glances they cast toward
Cang Xu burned with seething hatred!
If looks could kill, Cang Xu would have been slain a hundred times over by the
Da Ji Clan’s fishmen.
After all, he was the enemy responsible for the annihilation of their entire
clan.
This was a clan-annihilating grudge!
“Once we reach the Mother Nest, even if the saint beast kills me, I'll kill you
first!” Many fishmen of the Da Ji Clan harbored this thought.
Many had even conspired beforehand to join forces and eliminate Cang Xu!
Ku Feng, kneeling beside Cang Xu, gave a bitter smile, “Looks like we'll face a
tough battle first thing when we reach the Ocean Mother Nest.”
Cang Xu reassured him: "Rest easy. Compared to the battle at the Underworld
River, this won't be nearly as perilous. Most fishmen haven't experienced
teleportation before. We'll react faster than they do. If we move in on the
saint beast proactively, we still have a chance."
After saying this, Cang Xu glanced toward Qing Xin.
Standing at a distance, Qing Xin sensed the fishmen's hostility toward Cang Xu.
She had no interest whatsoever in drawing closer to him.
Cang Xu's gaze flickered slightly before shifting away.
Approaching Qing Xin now would only expose their connection, drawing calamity
upon her.
As before, the magic formation hummed with activity, divine scripts and magic
runes intertwining.
Hordes of sea beasts were absorbed by the golden altar, their flesh and blood
vanishing as bones fell to the ground, strengthening the altar's structure.
Spatial ripples surged, transporting all the surrounding believers into the
Ocean Mother Nest.
“We're in!” The fishmen of the Da Ji Clan snapped to attention, scanning their
surroundings.
“Found Xu Jia! Charge together!”
“He's right there, don't run!”
“Trying to escape to the saint beast? That's suicide.”
“You harmed our Da Ji Clan! We'll tear you apart limb by limb!”
The Da Ji Clan's fishmen tore “Cang Xu” to shreds, devouring him piece by
piece, their hatred for him palpable.
Yet they didn't know this was all an illusion.
What represented Cang Xu was merely an alchemy ingredient aboard the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, the corpse of a giant sea creature, but enchanted with the
Deceptive Disguise spell.
The real Cang Xu had been swallowed whole by the Rubber Swallower and carried
into the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Ku Feng and Qing Xin suffered the same fate.
Both silver levels were subjected to double seals, allowing the Rubber
Swallower to devour them whole with effortless ease.
Cang Xu raced against time. Emerging from the Rubber Swallower's belly, he
scrambled through the corridor, rushing into the meditation chamber.
The metal door slid open. The fishman youngster had already completed his
hybrid transformation.
Before Cang Xu stood the fishman youngster, his chest and back twisted with
grotesque patterns forming two distinct ghostly faces.
It was through this Ghostface Fish bloodline that the youngster possessed the
qualification to refine and wield undead magic power.
“Commander!” Cang Xu bowed, his expression tinged with excitement and
anticipation.
The fishman youngster nodded slightly. Once Cang Xu entered the meditation
chamber and the metal door closed behind him, the youngster pointed a finger at
him.
Necromancy - Undead Bloodline Detection Spell!
The spell drained his magic power reserves voraciously, nearly depleting the
iron level magic pool.
The Undead Bloodline Detection Spell was silver level, consuming magic power at
the standard rate for such spells.
The fishman youngster could cast it independently solely due to his bloodline
talent, granting him silver level magic power reserves even at iron level.
Even so, his spellcasting success rate hovered around 30%.
Numerous factors influenced spell release – magic power was only one aspect,
alongside magic model construction and more.
This time, perhaps due to his prolonged preparation, the success rate had
slightly improved. Thus, his first attempt succeeded.
A streak of gray light erupted from the fishman youngster's fingertips.
The light was not dazzling, traveling in a straight line with laser-like speed
as it struck Cang Xu's body.
His body trembled violently as his temperature soared, as if plunged into
boiling water.
Soon, wisps of gray mist began to rise from his skin.
The mist swirled and thickened, eventually coalescing into a massive sphere
that completely enveloped Cang Xu. A potent undead aura radiated outward in all
directions.
The fishman youngster undid the Bloodcore's hybrid transformation and began
waiting patiently.
Within the thick gray mist, Cang Xu was the first to sense a change.
His toes began to itch - or more accurately, his bones itched.
The itching grew worse!
Within mere seconds, the sensation intensified to the point where Cang Xu's
expression changed. Knowing Cang Xu was no ordinary being, as an undead entity,
it was rare for him to experience such intense sensations of life.
Cang Xu couldn't help but fidget his toes. Just as he bent down to scratch
them, excruciating pain erupted.
This agony didn't replace the previous itch; it felt as though his ten itchy
toes had pierced through his flesh and skin, burrowing straight out!
Pain and itching, both at once!
Cang Xu's body shook violently, nearly toppling him over.
At that very moment, the fishman youngster outside the gray mist saw it, a
magic image forming on the mist's surface.
A bone claw gradually materialized, growing larger and larger.
The claw slammed into the ground. The razor-sharp tips of its claws pierced the
earth's surface, then relentlessly extended and spread deeper into the ground.
“It's the Twisted Withered Claw bloodline!” the fishman youngster recognized it
instantly.
Ever since he had received the intermediate soul aspect inheritance from Cang
Xu, he possessed extensive knowledge about undead lifeforms.
The fishman youngster's expression remained impassive, showing no excitement.
Because the Twisted Withered Claw bloodline was merely bronze level.
“Cang Xu must possess stronger bloodlines!”
The fishman youngster was utterly certain.
It was self-evident.
Cang Xu had already reached the iron level. If he possessed only the Twisted
Withered Claw bloodline, he could never transcend bronze to reach iron level.
On the surface of the gray mist, the sprawling white bone claws suddenly
shattered.
The gray mist shifted ceaselessly, beginning its transformation anew.
On Cang Xu's body, the tingling in his toes vanished, and the pain in his feet
subsided. Instead, agony surged through his neck.
This wasn't the dull ache of overworked muscles, but a wrenching pain.
It felt as if someone were violently twisting his head, forcing it to spin
relentlessly.
In this process, his neck, the link between head and torso, twisted like a rope
being violently coiled into a spiral.
Not only twisted, but his head was also being yanked upward, causing his neck
to stretch relentlessly.
Cang Xu felt like a toy fallen into the hands of a giant child. The brutal
giant child was preparing to yank his head clean off his body.
He instinctively clutched his own head and pressed down hard, trying to counter
the pulling force.
This was entirely his illusion!
Yet the excruciating pain was all too real, making Cang Xu gasp sharply.
At the same moment, a magic vision manifested once more upon the surface of the
gray mist.
It was a wailing humanoid ghost. The most striking feature of the ghost was its
head, severed from its body. The neck connecting head and torso was thin and
elongated, resembling a twisted, spiraled rope.
“Hanged Ghost bloodline... This bloodline is excellent; it is gold level.” The
fishman youngster's eyes glowed faintly.
But in the next instant, the magic image shifted again!
The Hanged Ghost, which had swayed like willow branches in the wind, gradually
froze rigid, as if struck by a petrifying spell.
Moreover, the Hanged Ghost was steadily shrinking.
Around it appeared one, two, three... a dozen... dozens... hundreds of corpses.
The fishman youngster scrutinized them, recognizing the remains belonged to
various races.
He saw fishman, beastman, elves, dwarves, gnomes, and even numerous beasts,
dragons, and phoenixes.
All these corpses shared one common feature: their necks had been stretched
thin and elongated.
Their heads were clustered together, joined by interlocking teeth, imperfectly
fused, and assembled into a single structure. All the heads formed the trunk of
a giant tree.
Their necks served as flexible branches, extending outward in all directions.
Their bodies hung like ripe wheat stalks in autumn, heavy and drooping, bending
the slender necks beneath their weight.
The fishman youngster gasped at this magic spectacle.
He couldn't help but utter a low cry: “Corpse-Hanging Tree... a saint level
undead bloodline!”
Cang Xu's body actually contained a saint level undead bloodline.
The fishman youngster felt genuine joy for Cang Xu from the bottom of his
heart!
Ten minutes later.
Cang Xu slumped in a heap, his expression listless and weary, looking utterly
bedraggled.
“I never imagined the subject would suffer so terribly after being subjected to
the Undead Bloodline Detection Spell,” the old magician sighed.
The agony was real, Cang Xu's body and soul had sustained severe wounds.
Yet the sensation of his neck being stretched during this ordeal was merely an
illusion caused by the injuries and the awakening of his bloodline.
When the magic image of the Corpse-Hanging Tree appeared on the surface of the
gray mist, his mind momentarily fractured, even inducing hallucinations.
He felt as though he had become one of the corpses hanging from that tree!
"The Undead Bloodline Detection Spell aims to uncover the hidden secrets within
the target's bloodline. That's why it's so ‘brutal’, inflicting injury on the
subject. Only such force can achieve the desired effect," the fishman youngster
explained.
Lately, he had even abandoned his cultivation of battle qi, focusing solely on
spellcasting.
He constantly pondered the intermediate soul aspect inheritance brought back by
Cang Xu, while continuously practicing the Undead Bloodline Detection Spell in
real combat. These efforts had accumulated profound insights within him.
Though Cang Xu felt immense discomfort, his heart was filled with joy.
“It seems my internal condition is quite complex; three bloodlines are actually
intertwined within me.”
The state of his bloodlines was indeed as he described.
Some individuals possessed no transcendent bloodlines at all.
Others carried a single transcendent bloodline, but it was extremely faint.
Still others bore multiple transcendent bloodlines, varying in number and
forming a relatively stable state, much like Cang Xu's case.
Coincidentally, Cang Xu possessed three undead bloodlines, each corresponding
precisely to the three major schools within undead cultivation.
The Twisted Withered Claw bloodline aligned with the bone aspect.
The Hanged Ghost bloodline aligned with the soul aspect.
The Corpse-Hanging Tree bloodline aligned with the corpse aspect.
All three bloodlines were extremely diluted, collectively amounting to less
than 10%.
The Corpse-Hanging Tree bloodline was the weakest, estimated by the fishman
youngster to be under 1%. Though it possessed the highest quality, its scale
was too small to significantly influence Cang Xu.
The Twisted Withered Claw bloodline had the highest concentration, yet it
remained insufficient to overcome the quality gap. Thus, it remains suppressed
by the Hanged Ghost bloodline. After all, the Twisted Withered Claw bloodline
itself was only bronze level.
The Hanged Ghost bloodline's concentration fell between the other two, and its
level likewise ranked midway. Yet overall, it exerted the greatest influence on
Cang Xu.
Thus, when manifested in Cang Xu's cultivation, his progress in the soul aspect
proved most effective among the three.
The truth of bloodlines was this complex.
It could not be determined solely by a transcendent's cultivation performance.
“I have a feeling the Corpse-Hanging Tree bloodline was brought about by my
bloodline mutation this time,” Cang Xu said, barely clinging to life.
The fishman youngster shook his head: "That theory has no basis whatsoever, nor
is there any point in pursuing it. But without a doubt, the Hanging Corpse Tree
bloodline is the most suitable for refinement. That shall be our next
objective."
"Truthfully, we've been fortunate this time. Had it been another undead
bloodline, collection might prove far more difficult. The Hanging Corpse Tree
stands as a singular anomaly among undead bloodlines."
"Within the bloodline spectrum, its upstream undead sources are scarce, while
its downstream manifestations are as numerous as night stars. We have numerous
targets to choose from, capable of extracting the Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline
from many undead beings."
Cang Xu added, “But this also means that collecting 100% of the Hanging Corpse
Tree bloodline is more difficult than with other undead bloodlines.”
“Correct,” the fishman youngster nodded slightly. "But realistically, achieving
100% purity is exceedingly difficult. This holds especially true for high level
bloodlines."
"Lower level bloodlines can easily reach 100% purity, but what use is that to
you? The value is negligible!"
On this matter, the fishman youngster spoke with authority.
His Flame Dragon King bloodline had long hovered above 30%. His current fishman
bloodline concentration was even lower than that of the Flame Dragon King
bloodline.
The higher the level of the bloodline, the harder it was to increase its
concentration.
Unless the fishman youngster directly slew a Flame Dragon King, his bloodline
concentration would skyrocket.
But if he possessed such combat prowess, would he even need to deliberately
boost his Flame Dragon King bloodline concentration?
Under normal circumstances, they would select targets from the lower tiers of
the bloodline spectrum, accumulating small gains to gradually build high-
concentration, high level bloodlines.



****** Chapter 498: 3% ******
Standing within the Bloodline Purification Formation, Cang Xu felt a wave of
emotion wash over him.
He remembered clearly how he had poured his heart and soul into constructing
this formation, exhausting every possible method only to face insurmountable
obstacles.
After leaving the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and temporarily joining Jian
Gui's crew alone, the other survivors had managed to complete the Bloodline
Purification Formation.
"The Commander never disappoints us. Miss Zi Di is also incredibly dependable!"
Cang Xu thought to himself.
He stood in the center of the formation.
The fishman youngster stood at the periphery, channeling his Bloodcore with
mental focus to generate a crimson energy stream.
This energy flowed into the formation's panels, causing the entire alchemy
formation to erupt with a blood-red radiance. It coalesced into a three-
dimensional magic formation centered around a seven-pointed star.
The formation was compact, occupying only a quarter of the alchemy chamber's
space.
Cang Xu was bathed entirely in the crimson glow. The faint tension on his face
gradually faded as time passed.
Finally, he closed his eyes slightly, quietly sensing the changes within his
bloodline.
He felt nothing.
When the crimson energy depleted and Cang Xu stepped out of the formation, he
offered only one assessment: “This was far more bearable than enduring the
Undead Bloodline Detection Spell.”
The fishman youngster explained, "After this purification, your Hanging Corpse
Tree bloodline concentration is now 3%. At this level of saint level bloodline
concentration, it hasn't reached a stage where you can immediately perceive
it."
“You'll only feel it distinctly during your next meditation.”
Cang Xu's Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline had been less than 1% before; reaching
3% now was a tremendous leap forward.
“You should be able to cultivate to the silver level now,” the fishman
youngster stated.
Even a slight increase in a saint level bloodline could bring powerful changes
to a low level transcendent.
Cang Xu struggled to contain his excitement.
His lack of talent had been a lifelong torment, was now, at last, improving!
As an iron level, he had been blending in with Jian Gui's crew, constantly
relying on the Deceptive Disguise spell to pass as a silver level magician. The
psychological pressure had been immense!
“The problem now is that we've exhausted the undead materials we had available
for absorption,” the fishman youngster explained.
Since leaving Mystifying Monster Island, the survivors had diligently gathered
undead materials in secret.
Only half of their painstakingly collected resources remained.
It wasn't that the fishman youngster was reluctant to use these materials—they
simply couldn't be utilized.
The Hanging Corpse Tree's bloodline reached the saint level. While not
occupying the absolute apex of the bloodline hierarchy, it undoubtedly belonged
to its upper echelons.
The most ideal targets for bloodline absorption were the subordinate lifeforms
one tier below the Hanging Corpse Tree; those connected to its bloodline. These
were primarily gold level entities.
The next tier down, silver level, was still considered ideal.
The lowest tier was iron level transcendents. Absorption from these yielded
very poor results.
Most undead materials collected by the survivors were low level; gold level
materials were exceedingly rare.
“We desperately need suitable undead materials now!”
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu exchanged glances, both falling silent.
Acquiring these undead materials was no easy feat.
The current state of the undead faction was one where everyone wanted to hunt
them down.
Even if undead materials were produced, they were strictly controlled by local
factions. What trickled into the market were often borderline materials.
The world's largest source of undead materials was undoubtedly the Ghost World.
In this alternate plane, undead roamed everywhere.
But Cang Xu, who had ventured into the Ghost World, made it clear to the
fishman youngster: only those at the saint level possessed the qualifications
to explore the Ghost World and withstand its dangers. Beyond that, even the
combination of Jian Gui and his ghost ship struggled through it with great
difficulty and constant peril!
Though Jian Gui had the ghost ship, he dared not covet the Ghost World under
normal circumstances. Only when driven to desperation did they risk teleporting
into the Ghost World to seek refuge.
This alone demonstrated the advantage held by the orthodox undead faction.
The leader of the orthodox undead faction was Founder You Shen, a legendary
figure. His personally trained disciples, known as the Twelve Saints, include
several at the saint level!
With such powerful figures exploring the Ghost World and bringing back vast
undead resources, they could sustain the orthodox necromancers like Jian Gui.
However, other necromancers weren't without their own means of acquiring undead
materials.
For rogue magicians and wandering practitioners, their primary method was self-
creation.
After a lifeform died, its flesh could be fashioned into zombies, its bones
into skeleton warriors, and its spirit transformed into ghosts.
Previously, the surge in undead forces commanded by Jian Gui and others had
been obtained through extensive hunting in the White Hair Trench.
"The Ghost World is beyond our reach for now. Beyond market purchases, most
necromancers rely on their own hands to provide for themselves." Cang Xu shot a
meaningful glance at the fishman youngster.
The fishman youngster let out a sigh of realization. "No wonder the entire
world targets the undead faction. Within their ranks, all living things can be
turned into undead materials. In a sense, the whole world is brimming with
undead resources!"
Cang Xu shook his head slightly. "Transforming into undead requires negative
energy. Higher level undead often demand corresponding necromancy magic." Only
advanced necromancers can cast such spells."
"Actually, other magic schools are no different. Take pyromancy, for instance.
For a long time in history, countless fire magicians hunted fire dragons across
the land, seeking their scales, eyes, and dragon roots to craft superior
spellcasting materials."
The fishman youngster nodded in agreement, “Cang Xu, you're right. The
fundamental reason the undead school faces persecution and suppression lies in
its involvement with the mysteries of the soul!”
The fishman youngster was himself a bona fide necromancer.
The undead inheritance he had access to included some of the intermediate level
content. The resources he commanded and the knowledge he possessed far
surpassed those of most necromancers in the world.
At this point, the fishman youngster suddenly understood the deeper meaning
behind Cang Xu's earlier words.
He stared at Cang Xu, expressionless: “Cang Xu, are you planning to target
these sea beasts and the believers of the Charming Blue Goddess? To kill them
all and turn them into undead materials?”
Cang Xu immediately sensed the fishman youngster's displeasure and hastily
lowered his head, “Lord, you mentioned this yourself. I never suggested it.”
Cang Xu understood his commander well.
After following Jian Gui for some time, he had come to grasp Jian Gui's true
nature.
And having spent even longer alongside the fishman youngster, he naturally
understood the latter's disposition even more deeply.
It was precisely because of this that he chose to follow the fishman youngster,
regarding the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as his true allegiance. It was also
why, when the fishman youngster had rescued him earlier, he felt a deep sense
of guilt and a desire to repay the debt.
The more talented a person was, the harder it was to recruit and make them
truly loyal. Even if they served under someone, winning their hearts remained
difficult.
The fishman youngster's ability to unite Zi Di and Cang Xu stemmed from more
than just the core interest of the Bloodcore.
His many shining qualities in human nature earned the admiration of magicians
and schemers like Cang Xu, who chose to trust the fishman youngster, obey his
commands, and follow him.
In truth, Cang Xu was an exceptionally talented individual!
His limited personal achievements stemmed entirely from the constraints of his
bloodline, which capped his life level ceiling far too low.
This was a world of the strong, without transcendent ranks of sufficiently high
level, one commanded no respect. Even amassing staggering wealth could be
easily seized; the Wisteria Merchant Alliance stood as the prime example.
Within the current Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Tripleblade clearly possessed
the talent to lead a mercenary band and the richest experience. Yet,
constrained by his own limitations, merely an iron level cultivation, he
couldn't step directly into the limelight. He could only arrange personnel and
manage affairs behind the scenes.
In Snow Bird Harbor.
He stared intently at the financial statements in his hands; his brow furrowed
for a long moment before he finally set them aside.
Leaning back in his chair, he let out a deep sigh.
Ever since the last shipment of potions was intercepted by a gold level force,
their distribution channels have suffered greatly, shrinking significantly.
Bu Quan truly lived up to her reputation as an alchemy genius. Even though
potions weren't her strongest suit, she had flawlessly completed the task
Tripleblade assigned her, boosting potion production by another significant
margin.
But the transportation problem remained unsolved.
Using alternative delivery methods was far too costly. The most economical
solution was caravan transport.
Tripleblade wrote to Zong Ge and Zi Di explaining the situation and suggesting
halting training due to the tight timeline. He hadn't received a reply yet.
Nevertheless, Tripleblade had already ordered Men Shi and Chi Lai to remain
stationed at the docks. Even if training continued, it would be conducted at
leased facilities within Snow Bird Harbor.
Simultaneously, Tripleblade contacted the Mercenary Guild, securing numerous
assignments to distribute among his mercenary group.
His seasoned experience allowed him to select suitable missions for the right
individuals.
Consequently, their mission completion rate far exceeded that of typical
mercenary companies.
Yet the rewards from these tasks fell far short of covering the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Company's expenses.
“Sigh, I hope Chi Lai's visit to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord yields
results!” Tripleblade mused to himself as he looked towards the city government
palace.
Inside the Snow Bird Harbor city government palace, the city lord was
personally attending to an important guest at the dinner banquet.
Hearing that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' Chi Lai was seeking an audience,
he smiled lightly, "Let him in."



****** Chapter 499: The Commander Should be Zong Ge ******
Chi Lai entered the dining hall.
Inside, two transcendants sat at opposite ends of the long table.
One was none other than the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, seated at the head.
The other was a male sea elf. His ears resembled scallop-shaped fins, and his
body was covered in scales, possessing the distinctive, ethereal beauty
characteristic of the elven race. However, his gloomy gaze diminished the charm
of his appearance.
After a quick glance around, Chi Lai fixed his eyes on the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord.
He bowed respectfully, using carefully prepared words to seek the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord's assistance.
A sharp gleam flashed in the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes.
He had already known Chi Lai's purpose when his subordinate reported the visit.
In truth, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had long maintained an interest in the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Thus, he had already received intelligence about
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ caravan being ambushed and intercepted by a
gold level powerhouse, resulting in the loss of both men and goods.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is my ally. Without your assistance back then,
I would have lacked a proper justification to wipe out the Bayonet Gang. Nor
would Snow Bird Harbor exist as it does today.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was willing to assist.
On one hand, he was eager to uncover the arms dealer behind the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. On the other, Lan Zao, also known as Hen Fa, had infiltrated
Tranquil Hill.
Thus, maintaining ties with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would greatly
benefit the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
After pondering, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord presented his solution.
Not only that, he personally funded the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with
substantial supplies and expressed concern over their recent heavy losses.
Chi Lai thanked him and departed with a full load.
The restaurant was once again left with only the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and
his guest.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled as he introduced the sea elf across from
him: “The silver fighter who just entered is a member of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. This mercenary group is the most prominent in our nation.
Their leader, Long Fu, though only silver level, publicly slew a gold level
opponent. Now, his name is known throughout the kingdom!"
The sea elf shook his head. "None of that concerns me. My sole focus now is
whether I can create a Sea Feast worthy of my standards for this kingdom's
celebration."
“You know why I'm here, don't you?” the sea elf asked, turning to the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
“Of course,” he replied without hesitation.
He then called someone in from outside.
This was his head chef, responsible for the city lord's meals.
The chef was a human, ordinary-looking with a large belly, a silver level magic
chef.
“You are Mei Lan Du?” The sea elf scrutinized him from head to toe.
The human chef nodded and bowed, “Lord Ci Hai Shen, greetings. I am indeed Mei
Lan Du.”
The sea elf nodded, his gaze lingering on Mei Lan Du's belly. "I am to attend
the kingdom's celebration this time. What do you think? Would you join me to
participate in such a grand event?"
“I need you to serve as one of my deputies, assisting me in completing the Sea
Feast.”
"Upon its completion, I shall impart to you our sea elves' exclusive gold level
recipes!"
Yet Mei Lan Du shook his head, declining the invitation.
This human magic chef looked at the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with utmost
loyalty: "I will follow the city lord my whole life. Serving him meals each day
brings me the greatest joy and gives my life its deepest meaning!"
At first, the sea elf Ci Hai Shen thought Mei Lan Du was playing hard to get,
so he raised his offer several times.
But each time, Mei Lan Du refused outright, his stance unwavering.
Only then did the sea elf Ci Hai Shen grasp his true intentions and reluctantly
withdrew his offer.
After Mei Lan Du withdrew, Ci Hai Shen inquired of the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord: "What would it take to make Mei Lan Du my deputy?"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head: "Mei Lan Du is not my slave. I
deeply respect his personal wishes!"
Unwilling to concede, Ci Hai Shen attempted to raise the offer again, only to
face another refusal from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
He snorted coldly, finally falling silent, his expression deeply displeased.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, however, grew even more cordial, smiling warmly
as he understood the other's foul mood.
He initiated conversation, complimenting Ci Hai Shen as the most formidable
magic chef at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's grand ceremony.
Ci Hai Shen shook his head. Though he possessed the proud nature of his elven
race, he hadn't lost his sense of self-awareness.
He said, "Both the Earth Feast of the giant magic chef Da Dou and the Snow
Feast of your nation's Xue Ying pose a formidable threat to me. Moreover, this
occasion marks the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's once-in-a-century grand celebration,
likely drawing other powerful figures as well."
“When the head chefs are of comparable strength, the role of the deputy chef
becomes crucial to the overall outcome.”
“With so many ports in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, I specifically chose Snow
Bird Harbor to enter your kingdom because of your subordinate, Mei Lan Du.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head with a bitter smile, indicating
that while Mei Lan Du was willing to follow him, he was exceptionally unique.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord refused to force him to do anything against his
will.
At this, the sea elf Ci Hai Shen's expression turned icy, and he said no more.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord seemed oblivious, maintaining his composure.
Even without Ci Hai Shen's response, he could carry on the conversation
himself, keeping the atmosphere lively.
After the banquet ended, Ci Hai Shen, wearing a sour expression, promptly
declined the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's invitation to stay at the city
government palace.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, watching
Ci Hai Shen's departing figure below.
In the shadows behind him, Mei Lan Du's silhouette gradually emerged. The
latter also gazed at Ci Hai Shen's back, sighing regretfully, "What a pity. If
only the Tranquil Hill mission hadn't made such significant progress this time.
I could have followed Ci Hai Shen and infiltrated the grand ceremony."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head slightly, “Tranquil Hill takes
precedence above all else!”
Snow Bird Harbor Dock.
Just as Chi Lai was about to knock, the door opened.
Tripleblade welcomed Chi Lai warmly, ushering him to the seat of honor.
“You're finally back,” Tripleblade remarked.
Though only an iron level fighter, Chi Lai did not underestimate him.
For one thing, Tripleblade was Shi Qi's confidant. Underestimating him would
easily offend Shi Qi,  the second-in-command of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
Moreover, Tripleblade had recently managed the corps' affairs with remarkable
efficiency. His demonstrated competence forced Chi Lai to take him seriously.
This explained why the leadership of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
entrusted command of the branch to Tripleblade, an iron level fighter.
“I hope I haven't disappointed your expectations. This trip yielded significant
results,” Chi Lai detailed the specific assistance offered by the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
Tripleblade's face lit up with delight.
“So, the Mountain Peak Merchant Alliance was secretly controlled by the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord all along. By leveraging their transport convoys, we can
resume delivering magic potions.”
“Ah, this truly solves our most pressing crisis.”
"Ever since our transport convoy was ambushed by a gold level foe, all major
guilds have been watching from the sidelines. Previous negotiations to utilize
their convoys all failed."
"This time, the Mountain Peak Merchant Alliance's assistance means their
caravans will face annihilation if the enemy discovers them. Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord took a tremendous risk helping us this time."
“Moreover, he's funded us with substantial supplies... Hmm, we'll never reveal
the truth about our minimal losses this time.”
Tripleblade visibly relaxed, “Outstanding work, Chi Lai. You've truly excelled
this time.”
His words were laced with praise for Chi Lai.
Chi Lai, a former Imperial Navy officer, remained pragmatic. He shook his head.
"It wasn't my doing, but Commander Long Fu's. I believe the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord assisted us so generously because of the commander's standing. I
merely handled some minor tasks."
Tripleblade nodded. "Your perspective is correct, but your personal
contribution cannot be overlooked. Per our corps' regulations, your earned
merits will be duly recorded."
After Chi Lai departed, Tripleblade pursed his lips.
He held differing views on Chi Lai's praise for Long Fu: “The commander has
been missing for far too long. He's utterly incompetent.”
“Even if his absence was to recover Lan Zao, his dereliction of duty remains
undeniable!”
“The current Long Fu is merely a disguise worn by Lord Zong Ge. Only Lord Zong
Ge can resolve the crisis before us.”
“Even if Lord Zong Ge has no such intention, he is the rightful leader of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the leader of all us survivors!”
“He alone is gold level. If he isn’t our leader, then who could possibly be?”
“Once he demonstrates his transcendent gold level prowess, the outside world
will finally recognize our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as a true gold level
force!”



****** Chapter 500: Is this Depravation or Righteousness? ******
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest.
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the atmosphere between Cang Xu and the fishman
youngster felt heavy.
“Cang Xu, are you planning to target these sea beasts and the believers of
Charming Blue Goddess? Kill them all to make undead materials?” The fishman
youngster looked at Cang Xu expressionlessly.
Cang Xu sensed the youngster's displeasure and quickly lowered his head, “Lord,
you were the one who suggested it. I never brought it up.”
He understood the fishman youngster well. Not initiating the idea meant he knew
the youngster's stance.
The fishman youngster didn't grasp it at first, but after a moment, he realized
Cang Xu's true intent.
Cang Xu knew the consequences of his suggestion, but he had no choice!
Such was the situation.
Cang Xu had been captured, while the dragonman youngster had been teleported
and imprisoned within the Ocean Mother Nest, making escape extremely difficult.
Of course, a forced attempt could breach the Mother Nest, but after careful
consideration, destroying the nest and charging straight out was not only
extremely dangerous but would also cause significant loss of resources. For
this was the only known supplementary channel for Pearl Bubbles!
Neither the fishman youngster nor Cang Xu wished to lose this vital supply
route.
They felt no particular urgency.
This mindset stemmed from their assessment of the situation.
Teng Dong Lang had been eliminated, the Bayonet Gang dismantled, and both the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Li Jian Clan had become allies of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps. The former had effectively turned Snow Bird Harbor into
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' de facto headquarters, while the latter, the
Li Jian Clan, served as the ideal conduit for the corps' integration into the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The fishman youngster trusted Zong Ge and Zi Di, believing both the atonement
and commercial plans were progressing steadily. Thus, even trapped here, he
felt relatively secure.
His decision to rescue Lan Zao stemmed not only from his refusal to abandon any
comrade and his steadfast commitment to promises. It also reflected his
optimistic assessment of the situation.
After all, back then, no gold level enemy had emerged to ambush the survivors.
Nor could he have foreseen a massive faction emerging to challenge the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, one capable of casually deploying gold level combat
power!
Given these considerations and the immense profit at stake, both the fishman
youngster and Cang Xu were patient, determined to peel back the layers slowly
and meticulously.
The hidden trap implanted in Cang Xu by Jian Gui, coupled with Zhou Zhang's
dual seals, was another crucial factor in their calculations. Caught between a
rock and a hard place, the dragonman youngster couldn't act forcefully, mindful
of Cang Xu's life. Thus, outsmarting the situation was the only way forward.
According to the plan, Cang Xu would deceive the goddess to obtain divine
blessings, using them to resolve his own hidden dangers. the optimal outcome.
He could also gain the trust of Zhou Zhang and others, facilitating his and the
fishman youngster's future escape.
The pair sought to avoid direct conflict whenever possible. If feasible, they
could even rescue Jian Gui and others, thereby naturally establishing
connections with the orthodox undead faction.
Becoming allies with the legendary faction led by You Shen would offer immense
aid to the survivors.
Beyond their unparalleled undead knowledge, they possessed vast quantities of
undead materials for trade. Should their atonement succeed, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps could even betray You Shen and his group, turning their
defection into a merit for aligning with the Empire.
To be fair, this plan, conceived by Cang Xu and the fishman youngster, was
quite sound.
Progress so far has been promising.
Cang Xu's bloodline had not only been accurately detected but had also
undergone its first round of purification.
This advancement was a step ahead of their expectations.
Cang Xu's innate potential had been enhanced. The Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline
was saint level, and even at just 3% purity, it was sufficient to elevate Cang
Xu to silver level.
However, to advance further, Cang Xu was severely lacking in the requisite
undead materials.
There were roughly three avenues to obtain such materials.
First, purchasing them on the market.
Second, exploring the Ghost World.
Third, crafting them personally.
Only the third option held any practical possibility for the fishman youngster
and Cang Xu.
Thus, Cang Xu proposed targeting the teleported fishmen!
Knowing this would displease the youngster, he skillfully guided him to grasp
the necessity himself.
The fishman youngster gazed silently at Cang Xu for a moment before sighing
bitterly and shaking his head. "Cang Xu, do not casually create slaughter in
pursuit of personal power. For doing so easily leads to corruption, causing us
to lose our true selves."
"Some things seem within easy reach, yet the simplest paths often conceal
immense, unseen costs. The true path is often fraught with hardship and peril,
longer than any shortcut."
“Precisely because of this, the true path holds the greatest value!”
“Commander, you are absolutely right!” Cang Xu nodded repeatedly, acknowledging
the words with an expression of attentive learning.
Had Jian Gui witnessed this demeanor, he would have been utterly astonished,
unable to resist asking: Where had that defiant, silver-tongued Cang Xu from
the undead gathering gone?
Cang Xu treated Jian Gui as an adversary yet faced the fishman youngster as a
true subordinate confronting his leader!
It stemmed from the personal debt of gratitude owed to the dragonman youngster
who had repeatedly saved him. It stemmed from the immense, unique benefits of
the Bloodcore!
And most crucially - it stemmed from the call of humanity.
No one was immune to the allure of truth, goodness, and beauty. Even a schemer
like Cang Xu yearned for a world filled with light and love.
For the commander who steadfastly upheld his principles, Cang Xu felt a deep,
ingrained respect.
During his years as a noble butler, he witnessed too many wolves in sheep's
clothing. Outwardly noble and virtuous, yet inwardly driven by selfish desires,
utterly ruthless and without scruples.
The youngster rejected Cang Xu's proposal, yet Cang Xu showed no impatience.
He adopted an attitude of "I'll leave everything to you, Commander! I'll follow
your orders."
Thus, silence fell over the scene.
As the leader, the fishman youngster had rejected Cang Xu's suggestion without
hesitation.
But he had to confront reality and solve the immediate problem.
This was what a leader had to do!
How could he possibly meet the demand for undead materials?
What could he do?
Cang Xu lowered his head, maintaining silence, adopting a submissive demeanor
that said, “I have no solution, but I'm certain you, the commander, can resolve
this. I'll follow your lead.”
Just as Cang Xu expected, he soon heard the fishman youngster let out a deep
sigh.
The fishman youngster paced back and forth, racking his brain, yet no solution
came to mind.
Deep down, he had to admit that Cang Xu's proposal was the best, and only way
to solve the problem.
“No, let me think some more...”
Watching the fishman youngster pace before him, his expression torn with
struggle, a pang of guilt stirred in Cang Xu's heart.
Yet he remained steadfast in his suggestion, deliberately offering counsel: “My
lord, there's no need to rush.”
"We have the undead materials. Xiao Wang Zi's turtle heavy cavalry, along with
Jian Gui's gold level ghost ship, have all been captured by Zhou Zhang.
Absorbing these will surely purify the Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline."
“Once I teleport out this time, I'll find a way to petition Zhou Zhang, urging
her to use these as sacrificial offerings!”
The fishman youngster shook his head immediately: “That's like trying to quench
a burning thirst with water from a distant river.”
“We must seize every moment and opportunity.”
“Following this method is too slow. We'd have to wait until the next blood
sacrifice to possibly succeed.”
“And it's unlikely you'll be able to teleport in a third consecutive time.”
“Moreover, persuading Zhou Zhang to accept these undead lives as offerings is
difficult, there are far too many variables involved.”
Cang Xu fell silent, his expression calm.
Of course, he wasn't truly persuading the fishman youngster. He was using this
subtle approach to convey a single message: Listen to me. There's no other way!
The fishman youngster buried his head in deep thought, silent for a long while.
Cang Xu silently calculated the time before suddenly speaking: “Commander, time
is limited. Should I proceed with the prayer first?”
The fishman youngster snapped out of his reverie. After communicating with the
tower spirit and learning the situation in the Mother Nest, he hurriedly
replied: "Yes, proceed with the prayer first. The sea beasts slaughtered by the
Snow Pear Octopus have already exceeded half!"
The fishman youngster watched as Cang Xu entered the compartment.
The metal hatch closed before his eyes.
Leaning against the wall of the metal passageway, the fishman youngster
clenched his fists.
The moment the metal hatch sealed shut, he already regretted it!
“Am I being too rigid in clinging to the righteous path?”
"Cang Xu is my comrade. He still bears the enemy's seal and a fatal hidden
trap. Every ritual puts his life on the line!"
“Yet here I am wasting time, letting my comrade take risks. Isn't that
selfish?”
"Compared to Cang Xu, those fishmen are strangers to me. In fact, they are my
enemies."
“Am I prioritizing my enemies?”
"Have I considered the greater good? Am I even a worthy leader?"
Despite the abundant air in the metal passageway, the fishman youngster felt
suffocation creeping over him.
Thoughts swirled through his mind. The more he reflected, the deeper his guilt
toward Cang Xu grew.
“He trusted me. Even when I rejected his proposal, he didn't argue. He kept
fighting with his life, striving for a sliver of hope.”
“Yet I hesitated, leaving Cang Xu exposed to danger!”
“For Cang Xu's sake, for our comrades, what's wrong with sacrificing a few
fishmen?”
The fishman youngster's face remained deeply troubled.
He agonized inwardly: “If I do this, slaughter others to benefit my own kind,
is that a form of depravation?”
“Is this truly a righteous act?”
“Who can tell me?”
The fishman youngster felt utterly lost.
He closed his eyes and prayed silently: "Justice God, my Lord, I follow Your
path."
“At this very moment, a lost believer, Your lamb prays to You!”
“Grant me the answer, help me choose, let me walk forever in the light You
believe in, far from all sin and corruption.”
The fishman youngster's eyes remained tightly shut, his face contorted with
anguish.
His clenched fists gradually relaxed as his prayer stretched on.
When he opened his eyes, an expression of utter exhaustion washed over him.
The Justice God...
Did not respond.



****** Chapter 501: Respective Breakthroughs ******
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
“My name is Duo Yu. I'm a fisherman.”
"From a young age, I've worshiped the Charming Blue Goddess, I am a monk of my
Lord."
“During a shipwreck, I was captured by an evil necromancer. He turned me into
his test subject, ultimately transforming me into an undead being with his
wicked magic!”
"Though I am no longer truly alive, I still yearn to return home. My wife must
be waiting for me. My son, daughter-in-law, and my newborn grandson..."
“My Lord, I beseech Your mercy. Please rescue me.”
Cang Xu knelt on the ground, sincerely praying.
“My Lord, the mighty Charming Blue Goddess!”
“You are the powerful Sea Goddess, possessing infinite wisdom and strength.”
“I beseech You to rescue me, to have mercy on me, to help me break the seal
upon my body, to restore my freedom, and to return me to safety.”
“As Your lamb, I deeply feel Your love and grace. I trust You will guide me and
grant me strength to rise and bravely face all challenges in my destiny.”
“I shall serve You for life. Even though I have become an undead monster, it
does not diminish my faithful devotion to You!”
Cang Xu prayed over and over.
After several repetitions, a surge of divine energy descended from the void,
entering his body. Most of it remained within him, bringing vast knowledge and
precious information.
“I've ascended to become a missionary.”
“These are all divine spells...”
A vast array of divine spells!
Missionary Mark, Soul Link, Spiritual Sound Sermon, Spiritual Navigation,
Synchronized Conversion, and Opportunistic Deception.
“My Lord... I thank You for Your blessings and aid!” Cang Xu was filled with
profound gratitude. Had he not been an undead being, tears would surely have
welled in his eyes.
Yet, the moment his hand touched the metal hatch, the Memory Switching Spell
activated.
A deluge of suppressed true memories surged into his consciousness. Two
conflicting streams of memory collided, their contradictions leaving Cang Xu
frozen in place, writhing in agony and plunged into profound self-doubt.
At that moment, the Subconscious Reminder Spell also took effect. It allowed
Cang Xu to swiftly discern which stream of memories was his true self.
The look of confusion gradually faded from Cang Xu's face.
Soon, his eyes regained their clarity and composure.
“Success. This blasphemous prayer has succeeded once more.”
The joy vanished as quickly as it had come, and Cang Xu began calmly analyzing
the outcome.
He had deliberately crafted this prayer to closely mirror the first one, with
the fabricated memories nearly identical.
On one hand, the carefully designed prayer invoked specific needs: “breaking
bonds” and “averting mortal peril.” The purpose was clear: to harness the
divine blessing of the Charming Blue Goddess to resolve the seal planted by
Zhou Zhang and the undead trap set by Jian Gui.
On the other hand, Cang Xu intended to compare this outcome with the first
attempt. With most conditions identical, contrasting the two results would more
clearly reveal the impact of his altered aptitude.
This was the mindset of a magician conducting an experiment, in a sense, it was
already bordering on blasphemy.
If the deity were in good standing, such testing would likely prove futile, or
even provoke divine wrath. But the Charming Blue Goddess lay gravely wounded
and slumbering.
Such a deity was the perfect target for sacrilege!
The contrast between the two outcomes was stark.
“I recall that during my first prayer, the divine blessing merely restored my
mental state to wholeness.”
“Only after repeated prayers did the Charming Blue Goddess bestow upon me the
clerical position of monk.”
"This time, however, after my innate aptitude shifted, a single prayer elevated
my rank: from monk to missionary. This is a qualitative leap!"
According to the divine message, monkhood was a preparatory position, while
missionary was the true clerical position.
In other words, Cang Xu had been formally accepted into the Charming Blue
Church. It was like an apprentice magician being officially promoted to a full-
fledged magician!
“The gods select their believers and bestow divine blessings based on
individual merit.”
“My aptitude has improved, making me a more promising investment. Thus, the
gods granted a more generous divine blessing.”
Cang Xu's emotions were complex.
On one hand, he was filled with profound emotion. The Corpse-Hanging Tree
bloodline truly lived up to its saint level status. Merely 3% concentration had
caused the gods to visibly alter their attitude.
Yet he also felt the world's cold cruelty anew.
This was a world that revered bloodlines.
Whether cultivating battle qi, magic, or becoming a clergyman, innate bloodline
talent was paramount.
Without it, even boundless talent drifted like rootless duckweed. Grand
ambitions remained unfulfilled, and noble ideals forever unattainable.
Cang Xu examined his body closely.
Now, his body was saturated with Charming Blue divine power.
Undoubtedly, this was a superior form of energy.
It lingered within Cang Xu. Whenever he cast any divine spell he had mastered,
this divine power would act as fuel, enabling the spell to be executed
smoothly.
Simultaneously, the divine power continuously nourished Cang Xu's body and
soul. Every moment, it slowly transformed his entire being. Over time, Cang Xu
would undergo a profound transformation from within, aligning more deeply with
the path of the Charming Blue believers.
If left unchecked, this transformation would, after a certain period, make Cang
Xu an exceptional vessel for the Charming Blue divine power. Should his faith
meet the required standard, he might even become a saint believer of the
Charming Blue Goddess. After death, souls were guided more smoothly and swiftly
by the Charming Blue Goddess into Her divine domain.
Cang Xu now stood alongside Zhou Zhang, not merely a magician, but also a
clergyman.
Though the power of the Charming Blue divine power resided within Cang Xu's
body, it did not conflict with undead magic power.
On one hand, the divine power existed within Cang Xu's physical form, while
undead magic was concentrated within his personal magic pool. The two remained
distinctly separate.
On the other hand, divine power was a superior energy source with universal
attributes, comprehensively surpassing undead magic. It could encompass,
absorb, and transform it.
In truth, battle qi, magic power, and divine power were all fundamentally
compatible.
Thus, it was possible for a transcendent to be not only a fighter but also a
magician and a clergyman. Of course, such instances were exceedingly rare.
“This time, I've been granted so many divine spells, and I can use them all.
Unlike magic models, I don't need to study or research them at all; I can cast
them directly.”
Cang Xu hadn't attempted any yet.
Among the vast information bestowed by the divine blessing were comprehensive
descriptions of the corresponding divine spells. These descriptions were
exceptionally detailed and specific.
In truth, upon acquiring these divine spells, Cang Xu experienced a powerful
instinctive sensation.
Much like those transcendents with highly concentrated bloodlines who mastered
racial magic without study. Employing these racial magics felt as simple,
natural, and direct as moving one's limbs.
This undoubtedly saved clergymen a tremendous amount of learning time. Compared
to magicians, this was also an advantage for them.
"However, without the process of learning, there is no true self-mastery. From
another perspective, this is also a means by which the deities exert control
over their transcendent believers."
When Cang Xu became a monk, he had already acquired much doctrinal knowledge.
But the teachings of the Charming Blue Church primarily concerned personal
cultivation, prayer, and other ritualistic norms.
This time, upon becoming a missionary, Cang Xu gained a wealth of new
information. Among them were many more doctrines. Yet these teachings
transcended personal cultivation, focusing more on how to preach and guide
others in prayer.
“The most crucial concept among them is - divine favor.”
“Upon becoming a missionary, I automatically received ten units of divine
favor.”
Divine favor differed from divine power.
Divine power was a form of energy, while divine favor was more akin to
information.
Cang Xu attempted to grasp it: divine favor was the fusion of a believer's
authority and currency within the divine domain.
Often, when activating major divine spells, not only divine power but also
divine favor must be expended. Take the Resurrection Spell, for instance, this
divine spell consumed vast amounts of divine favor.
Thus, merely mastering divine spells did not grant clergy the freedom to abuse
them.
This was the deities' means of restraining their believers.
Greater divine favor signified higher authority for clergy, increasing the
likelihood of divine favor and recognition.
Divine favor was immensely precious, influencing all aspects of life and could
not be squandered.
Moreover, avenues for acquiring divine favor were limited. For Cang Xu at
present, he possesses only one path: proselytizing.
The more successful his missionary work, the greater the divine favor he
gained.
“This prayer yielded immense rewards, surpassing all previous prayers
combined.”
“I've become a full-fledged clergyman, mastering these divine spells. The
previous challenges have been effortlessly resolved.”
“However... there's no need to inform the commander just yet.”
“I believe he is capable of transcending his own limits.”
Holding deep anticipation, Cang Xu slowly pulled open the metal hatch.
The next moment, he saw the fishman youngster, weary yet resolute.
As before, they exchanged their secret signal. After confirming Cang Xu’s
status was reliable, the fishman youngster sighed deeply and shared his latest
decision.
The fishman youngster agreed to Cang Xu's earlier proposal, deciding to take
action against those fishmen!
A smile immediately curved Cang Xu's lips.
The fishman youngster's reaction was exactly as he had anticipated.
The old magician, well-versed in human nature, promptly offered comfort:
“Commander, there's no need for such heaviness in your heart. I can assure you;
this is not a fall from grace!"
“Of all the survivors, even if everyone else were to fall, I would never
believe you would.”
"Because you have your limits. You have always adhered to your principles and
maintained unwavering vigilance against any actions that might lead to
corruption."
“You are a true knight. Honest, kind, and steadfast in your convictions.”
“A knight?” The fishman youngster shook his head with a bitter smile. "Perhaps
I'm merely a beast. Remember what we said during our final charge on Mystifying
Monster Island? At best, I suppose I'm a beast knight."
Cang Xu shrugged, a faint smile touching his lips. “Who among us isn't a
beast?”
“If becoming a beast is the only way to survive, then I choose to be one.”
“And I can say with certainty: you are far more than just a beast knight. You
are our commander—the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“You haven't let personal attachments cloud your judgment.”
“The path you chose is the survival strategy best suited for all of us who
survived.”
“In formulating this strategy, you even set aside parts of yourself to some
extent.”
"I know you have your principles, your noble character, yet you were willing to
genuinely consider my proposal. Truly consider what we stand to gain by
slaughtering these people. And what the consequences would be if we did not
act."
“You weighed the greater good and considered every angle.”
“You are the leader of us all. No one can take your place.”
“Only you are worthy to be our commander!”



****** Chapter 502: Death Deception ******
Cang Xu smiled as he looked at the fishman youngster before him, offering
heartfelt praise.
He knew at this very moment, the fishman youngster had undergone a pivotal
transformation!
This metamorphosis was akin to the youth publicly declaring his identity on
Mystifying Monster Island - no longer a paladin, but a beast knight.
It was also akin to the young man publicly proclaiming his justice during the
battle of Snake Rat Island, affirming the righteousness of the path of
redemption.
And now, within the Ocean Mother Nest, the fishman youngster had fully
transformed from a beast knight into a mature mercenary leader.
This transformation was neither abrupt nor without cause. Before this moment,
signs had been present all along—a gradual evolution built upon the
foundational accumulation of quantitative change preceding qualitative
transformation.
“Commander, you always manage to surpass yourself, breaking through your own
limitations,” Cang Xu inwardly marveled.
In a way, Cang Xu placed more faith in the fishman youngster than the youngster
had in himself.
In the Sheng Ming Empire's Count Qiang Kang's classic treatise, <Discourse on
Ruler and Subjects>, there was a timeless maxim: The ruler chooses his
subjects, and the subjects choose their leader!
Cang Xu had fully chosen the fishman youngster as his leader and had begun to
assist him to the utmost of his ability.
This support wasn't mere obedience; it sprang from his heart, seeking every
means to aid the fishman youngster.
Just as now, Cang Xu deliberately withheld information, granting the youngster
a crucial opportunity for growth, and his wish was fulfilled as he witnessed
the fishman youngster's personal breakthrough, seeing a more mature side
emerge.
Having reached this point, Cang Xu held nothing back.
He addressed the fishman youngster: “Commander, we must indeed take action
against these fishmen.  But this time, it is not to kill them, turn them into
undead fodder, and harvest the bloodline of the Corpse-Hanging Tree.”
“There has been a welcome development...”
Cang Xu then revealed everything he had gained from his prayer to the fishman
youngster, holding nothing back.
The fishman youngster was both astonished and delighted.
“I never imagined your prayer would yield such rich rewards!”
“The Opportunistic Deception... This divine spell is likely the very method
Zhou Zhang used against you, enabling her to capture you and the human pirates
like Ba Qi so easily.”
“Combined with the Missionary Mark, Soul Link, Spiritual Sound Sermon,
Spiritual Navigation, and Synchronized Conversion, these divine spells
complement each other in layers, offering immense aid to your missionary work.”
"The more missionary success you achieve, the greater the divine favor you'll
receive. According to divine blessings, once your favor reaches a certain
threshold, you may perform purposeful prayers—consuming favor to obtain
corresponding divine blessing!"
Cang Xu nodded repeatedly. “Following this path, once we accumulate sufficient
favor, we can use prayer to teleport the Deep Sea Monster Fish and quietly
depart this Ocean Mother Nest.”
“In the future, when my clerical position advances further and I obtain the
Resurrection Spell, after expending vast amounts of divine favor and power, I
should be able to truly revive Miss Zi Di!”
The prospect Cang Xu described filled the fishman youngster with yearning.
The gods were omnipotent.
Every deity possessed resurrection techniques, capable of bringing the dead
back to life.
Yet differences existed among them.
Certain deities possessed specialized divine duties, excelling in resurrection
magic and achieving the same effect with lesser cost.
The Charming Blue Goddess's duty lay in deception and disguise, bearing no
relation to resurrection. Yet with sufficient effort, she too could bring
others back to life.
With communication established, Cang Xu urged the fishman youngster to act
swiftly.
Their target remained the numerous fishmen of the Da Ji Clan.
Their original plan had been to kill these fishmen, craft them into undead
materials, and use them to collect the bloodline of the Corpse-Hanging Tree.
The new plan was still to capture these fishmen, then have Cang Xu preach to
them. The more fishmen who worshipped the Charming Blue Goddess, the greater
the divine favor Cang Xu would gain.
The contrast between the two plans was stark. The latter was easier to execute,
more likely to succeed, and offered a higher return.
How much Corpse-Hanging Tree bloodline could they realistically gather by
killing fishmen and crafting undead materials? The outcome was predictably
meager, and the process was cumbersome.
The fishman youngster immediately dispatched the Rubber Swallowers to target
the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan.
Under his prior design, the Da Ji Clan's fishmen had already “mercilessly
slaughtered” Cang Xu, not only tearing him into countless fragments but even
devouring his remains.
This revealed the depth of their hatred for Cang Xu.
After all, Cang Xu was the instigator who proposed to Zhou Zhang that the
entire Da Ji Clan participate in the teleportation blood sacrifice!
Without a doubt, had the fishman youngster not intervened, the Da Ji Clan would
have suffered catastrophic losses in this teleportation blood sacrifice. Even
if any survivors remained, they would number in the single digits, leaving the
entire Da Ji Clan existing in name only.
After all, the faithful chosen for the teleportation blood sacrifice were
almost universally unwavering in their devotion and confidence in their
beliefs.  Thus, countless more believers met their end within the Ocean Mother
Nest.
Among the Da Ji Clan, most of the Charming Blue believers were casual
adherents, making it difficult for them to successfully endure the trials.
The Rubber Swallowers, disguised as seawater, emerged in droves. They
approached the fishmen with ease, swallowing them whole in a single gulp.
The fishmen of the Da Ji Clan quickly noticed their companions mysteriously
vanishing one by one.
They let out startled cries and instinctively huddled together.
Some fishmen, thinking themselves clever, shouted loudly, believing this was a
test from the Charming Blue Goddess, urging their kin to pray fervently and
ignore everything else.
Of course, others suspected this was a scheme by Zhou Zhang or a mysterious
attack by the Snow Pear Octopus.
Even huddled together, the fishmen could hardly withstand the attacks of the
Rubber Swallowers.
While the fishmen suffered, the fishman youngster and Cang Xu prioritized
dealing with two heavyweight captives.
These captives were Ku Feng and Qing Xin.
Ku Feng had been chosen as the second candidate by the necromancers. Qing Xin,
meanwhile, had been collectively selected by the human pirates as the first
sacrifice.
Shortly after the fishman youngster attacked Cang Xu, the Rubber Swallowers,
controlled by the tower spirit, swallowed both Ku Feng and Qing Xin.
The process went smoothly, without the slightest hitch.
On one hand, the Rubber Swallowers were all imbued with the Anti-investigation
and Prophecy spell and Deceptive Disguise spell, disguising themselves as a
mass of seawater. Drifting within the Ocean Mother Nest saturated with
seawater, their disguise was flawless, leaving no trace of their presence.
On the other hand, Ku Feng and Qing Xin possessed no means to resist. Both were
bound by a double seal cast by Zhou Zhang.
Swallowed by the Rubber Swallowers, they were carried deep into the depths
aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The Rubber Swallowers kept them securely within their stomachs.
To the captives' senses, the surrounding seawater tightly enveloped their
bodies, rendering them utterly immobile. Meanwhile, the fishmen had all
mysteriously vanished.
They had struggled, of course, attempting to free themselves.
Ku Feng fared somewhat better, after all, as a silver level fighter with a
zombie body, he possessed considerable strength. Yet he still couldn't match
the Rubber Swallower, who wielded extraordinary power as a silver level.
As a magician, Qing Xin possessed far less physical strength and stamina than
Ku Feng, making escape utterly impossible.
Whether they attributed this mysterious predicament to the Ocean Mother Nest or
Zhou Zhang no longer mattered.
“What should we do with these two?” the fishman youngster asked Cang Xu.
Cang Xu replied, “Commander, proceeding as we previously discussed seems the
most prudent course.”
“And now that I've mastered the Opportunistic Deception, I can fully imbue
these two with its power, making the entire capture operation absolutely
foolproof!”
Moments later, Cang Xu and the fishman youngster arrived at the landing pod.
Here, two Rubber Swallowers stood motionless.
Their bellies were distended, each holding Qing Xin and Ku Feng captive.
Standing before them, Cang Xu began casting the Opportunistic Deception divine
spell.
What was unusual, however, was the Pearl Bubble clutched in his palm.
The Opportunistic Deception released smoothly, and the pearl bubble in Cang
Xu's hand was simultaneously depleted.
Both the Opportunistic Deception and the Pearl Bubble originated from the
Charming Blue Goddess, sharing an inseparable, interconnected lineage.
The divine blessing also contained information on utilizing other resources to
assist in releasing divine spells.
After falling victim to the Opportunistic Deception, Ku Feng suddenly sensed a
massive octopus tentacle piercing through the seawater and coiling around him.
With a slight tug, the tentacle instantly shredded Ku Feng into pulp.
His vision plunged into utter darkness.
Meanwhile, Qing Xin felt the spell sustaining her breathing and countering the
oceanic pressure abruptly vanish. Massive seawater pressed in, instantly
forcing her to cough up blood. Simultaneously, countless waves of seawater
flooded her nose and mouth. Within seconds, Qing Xin suffocated to death.
The sensations of both captives converged within Cang Xu's perception.
As the caster of the divine spell, Cang Xu could perceive the sensory outcomes
of its targets.
This was Cang Xu's first genuine use of divine magic. Through Qing Xin and Ku
Feng, he unearthed two fresh, hot pieces of practical experience. Thus, he
grasped the formidable effect of the Opportunistic Deception Spell.
“So-called ‘opportunistic’ means exploiting the current trend to deceive the
target.”
“And the outcome of my deception is death!”
Before his demise, Ku Feng's greatest imagined adversary was the saint level
Snow Pear Octopus. Thus, after being deceived by the flow, he imagined it was
the octopus's tentacles that killed him.
Qing Xin herself bore a double seal, but as a human, she couldn't naturally
survive long underwater, especially at the ocean depths. Thus, Zhou Zhang had
also imbued her with additional spells. Yet she deeply distrusted Zhou Zhang.
This inner anxiety amplified, manifesting as the cause of her death,
suffocation.
Precisely because it flowed so naturally, everything appeared perfectly
plausible to both targets. Thus, they harbored not a shred of suspicion.
Now both were dead.
Though they still breathe and show signs of life, they have fallen into a deep,
comatose slumber.
This was precisely the outcome Cang Xu had programmed when casting
Opportunistic Deception.
He only needed to set the desired result. Through the unfolding situation, the
deceptive narrative would automatically manifest within the targets' minds.
These deceptive narratives would inevitably lead to the outcome Cang Xu had
predetermined.
Now, both Qing Xin and Ku Feng had been deceived into believing they were
already dead.



****** Chapter 503: Dealing With the Captives ******
“Now, bring them all out.” Cang Xu was satisfied with the results of his first
divine spell.
At the fishman youngster's command, the two Rubber Swallowers regurgitated
their captives from their stomachs.
Ku Feng and Qing Xin kept their eyes tightly shut, their bodies limp and
utterly devoid of resistance.
“This is divine magic...” Cang Xu could already glimpse a fragment of the vast
power of the Charming Blue Goddess.
The fishman youngster did not relax. He gave the order again for the other
alchemy puppets to bring the two captives into the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Simultaneously, he commanded the remaining Rubber Swallowers to continue diving
out of the ship's hold to capture the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan alive.
Ku Feng and Qing Xin, carried by the Rubber Swallowers, passed through the
metal corridor and entered a compartment.
Within the compartment, several longhorn cages had been arranged.
The primary material for these alchemy cages was the spiral horns of narwhals.
Earlier, the fishman youngster had instructed Zhong Yong to hasten their
production. Shortly after entering the Ocean Mother Nest, the fishman youngster
had used these very cages to imprison numerous naga transported in via blood
sacrifices.
Spiral horns protruded densely from every part of the longhorn cages like
spikes.
These slender spikes, like countless needles, pierced into Qing Xin and Ku
Feng's bodies.
Unlike their use against the naga prisoners before, the spiral spikes now felt
far gentler. Though they inflicted minor wounds on the two captives, the
injuries were not severe and certainly not fatal.
The longhorn cage began to function, suppressing Qing Xin and Ku Feng's
transcendent powers.
They had already been subjected to a double seal earlier.
Later, they fell victim to the Opportunistic Deception Spell. (This wasn't just
any divine spell as it consumed the god level material Pearl Bubble!)
Now, the longhorn cage served as the final seal.
With these layers of suppression, Qing Xin and Ku Feng couldn't even think of
escaping, even waking up was already extremely difficult.
The fishman youngster was as steady as a rock.
Handling prisoners demanded utmost caution! After all, the Deep Sea Monster
Fish was their sole stronghold now.
Without any gold level powerhouses, a gold level magic ship was a rare trump
card capable of slightly countering saint level threats.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu had discussed repeatedly how to deal with
Qing Xin and Ku Feng.
Ultimately, they reached a consensus: treat them as prisoners.
This was the safest course.
Their first agreement was clear: they had to intervene to aid these two.
Relying solely on conversion efforts would yield little. Left unattended, both
would likely meet a gruesome end at the hands of the Snow Pear Octopus.
The question remained, how to help?
Without revealing their own existence, they could only rely on the Deceptive
Disguise spell, alchemy puppets, and similar methods.
The fishman youngster had considered helping Ku Feng, altering his memories,
and then sending him back. The advantage of this approach was that Ku Feng
could assist Cang Xu to some extent.
But Cang Xu rejected it.
Cang Xu believed that even if Ku Feng offered help, it would be extremely
limited. Jian Gui's influence over him far surpassed Cang Xu's hold over Ku
Feng.
Moreover, converting two undead beings in succession would draw attention and
suspicion. It would place Cang Xu squarely under the spotlight. Already walking
a tightrope, further exposure would severely hamper his operations.
Thus, Ku Feng's fate was capture and imprisonment.
“This approach carries a potential risk,” Cang Xu had once pointed out, “Jian
Gui planted a lethal backdoor within me. Given his nature, he likely did the
same to Ku Feng.”
“The proof lies in how Jian Gui's faction can secretly communicate, discussing
and sharing techniques for fabricating memories to bypass Zhou Zhang's dual
seals.”
The necromancers achieved this level of coordination precisely because Jian Gui
implanted hidden gateways within each of them. This forged a profound,
clandestine bond between their souls and his, effectively turning these undead
into his summoned entities, akin to the ghost ship itself.
Since Ku Feng can communicate in secret, it's almost certain he has a hidden
passage on his body.
But the one who set up the hidden passage might not only be Jian Gui, but also
Doctor Sui Shi who originally turned Ku Feng into a zombie. The latter might
have secretly revealed the hidden trap to Jian Gui.
Cang Xu, meticulous in thought, stated bluntly, “The Deceptive Disguise spell
might not be able to rule out this kind of soul connection either.”
“For even if the Deceptive Disguise spell employs pearl bubbles, it cannot
forge one's faith.”
"Earlier, you, the commander, attempted to use the Deceptive Disguise spell to
empower an alchemy puppet, hoping to pass it off as a Charming Blue believer
for teleportation. The result? The alchemy puppet was promptly destroyed by the
saint octopus."
Only by forging memories and tampering with the soul could one possibly deceive
the gods.
It was also possible that the Deceptive Disguise spell was ineffective against
the Charming Blue Goddess, though it might work on other deities, this remained
to be verified.
But one truth was clear, in the realm of souls, undead research stood at the
world's forefront, rendering the Deceptive Disguise spell obsolete.
The fishman youngster found Cang Xu's reasoning compelling.
After much contemplation, he still resolved to capture Ku Feng.
"The secret bond between Ku Feng and Jian Gui is a soul-level resonance between
summoned entity and master. The Deceptive Disguise spell still holds the
potential for deception. At present, we cannot rule it out."
“More importantly: even if Jian Gui senses Ku Feng is not dead and remains in
the Ocean Mother Nest without returning, he won't report it. He will only
conceal his suspicions, sensing something amiss within the Ocean Mother Nest.”
“This has minimal impact on the situation.”
“Moreover, from Jian Gui's reaction, we might infer whether the Deceptive
Disguise spell can truly deceive a soul-level connection.”
“Understanding the limits of this technique will guide our future use of it.”
Now was an excellent opportunity to test it.
The fishman youngster decided to seize this chance.
He successfully persuaded Cang Xu.
Next came the plan for Qing Xin.
“Qing Xin is from the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, one of our own.” The fishman
youngster harbored a natural trust toward her.
He thus asked Cang Xu whether Qing Xin was trustworthy.
Cang Xu directly recounted their shared experiences and Qing Xin's conduct
throughout.
“In short, capture her and treat her the same as Ku Feng,” Cang Xu stated his
proposed course of action.
Hearing this, the fishman youngster felt puzzled, for Qing Xin had shown no
signs of being an enemy.
Cang Xu offered a logical explanation: “Precisely because of that, we cannot
trust her lightly. Because Qing Xin hasn't shown any signs of being our ally
either. Before truly joining us, she must prove herself.”
“In a way, we resemble the orthodox undead faction, so we can reference their
methods.”
"The orthodox undead spread their legacy to expand the ranks of necromancers
from the grassroots level. On the other hand, they intensify their screening
process to control new recruits."
"Assessing a recruit's aptitude and talent is key; beyond that, they assign
tasks to test new magicians' loyalty to the undead orthodoxy."
"They definitely conduct background checks, another way to gauge loyalty."
"Getting into Jian Gui's ranks was mostly luck!" Under normal circumstances,
even with another two or three years, I wouldn't have been able to attain the
intermediate undead inheritance."
Regarding Qing Xin, Cang Xu stated plainly: “I don't doubt Qing Xin's identity.
I preliminarily recognize her as a potential ally.”
“But only after proving her loyalty can we gradually reveal our secrets to
her.”
"Don't let emotions cloud your judgment. Just because you feel she's
trustworthy doesn't mean she is. That's wrong!"
“A competent organization must have strict, well-defined protocols for
integrating new members.”
The fishman youngster listened intently, finding his words deeply resonant.
Thus, he ultimately treated Qing Xin as a prisoner.
At this stage, neither the youngster nor Cang Xu could judge Qing Xin's
loyalty, making it impossible to reveal secrets of the Deep Sea Monster Fish's
caliber.
Moreover, even if they could verify her loyalty, the fishman youngster would
struggle to secure Qing Xin's immediate allegiance. Zi Di was not present at
his side.
Without Qing Xin's swift pledge of loyalty, her power remained inaccessible to
him.
The more painful truth was that even if Qing Xin pledged her loyalty and
devoted herself wholeheartedly to the fishman youngster, her power is of little
use in the current situation. With or without her, it made no difference!
Qing Xin and Ku Feng were both locked inside a longhorn cage.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu left the compartment, watching as the metal
hatch slid shut with a final click.
The fishman youngster then stationed two swordsman guards on both sides of the
hatch.
These alchemy automatons were among the spoils seized when they captured the
Deep Sea Monster Fish. They could provide some combat and defensive support to
survivors within the compartments.
Next, it was the turn of the fishmen from the Da Ji Clan.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu returned to the landing pod. The first
fishman was spat out by the Rubber Swallower, crashing onto the metal floor.
The fishman looked up at Cang Xu, believing he had arrived in the underworld
and was seeing his exterminated clan's enemy.
But the pain from hitting the metal floor quickly brought him back to reality,
he wasn't dead. Not only that, but Xu Jia was still alive too!
The fishman roared in fury and lunged at Cang Xu.
The next instant, he was pinned to the ground by the Rubber Swallower.
To the fishman's eyes, it was as if a torrent of seawater crushed him.
Rage and hatred surged within him as he struggled desperately, his bloodshot
eyes fixed on Cang Xu. If looks could kill, Cang Xu would have died seventeen
or eighteen times over.
Cang Xu remained expressionless as he channeled divine magic toward the
fishman.
As divine power drained from him, the spell Soul Link manifested.
A pale blue radiance extended from the depths of Cang Xu's soul, coalescing
midway into a slender chain that shot into the fishman's body.
The fishman's flesh offered no defense as the chain pierced directly into his
soul.



****** Chapter 504: Cang Xu – Watch Me Fleece Charming Blue Goddess ******
Two souls, bound by the links of the chain, formed a mysterious connection.
Yet the moment was fleeting. As the fishman struggled desperately, his furious
roars causing the pale blue chain to sway violently, tiny cracks began to form
on its surface.
Within seconds, the cracks multiplied until they reached their limit.
Snap.
With a soft crackle, the chain shattered, dissolving into a pale blue mist that
swiftly dissipated in midair.
Cang Xu’s body swayed, while the fishman’s eyes rolled back as he collapsed
unconscious.
The divine spell Soul Link had failed!
Cang Xu steadied his emotions and calmly assessed his condition: “The backlash
from a failed divine spell is far weaker than that of a regular spell.”
“If the target resists too fiercely, the soul link will fail. This outcome was
within my expectations.”
Unlike other divine spells, the information granted by the divine blessing
regarding Soul Link and related divine spells was concise and not exhaustive.
Yet Cang Xu possessed extensive undead heritage, whose teachings contained
profound insights into souls.
Knowledge was a magician's wellspring of power.
Though he had pursued dual paths and become a clergyman, Cang Xu's essence
remained unchanged - he was a magician!
As Jian Gui had stated, Cang Xu was an exceptional magician, embodying the
finest qualities of his profession.
Through this knowledge, even without explicit mention in the divine blessing,
Cang Xu deduced other crucial aspects of soul linking.
Thus, he deliberately exposed his true form to provoke the fishman,
facilitating a test to uncover the limits of this divine spell.
His first attempt at soul linking failed; the bond snapped. Yet, in truth, his
experiment succeeded!
“The divine spell Soul Link consumes not only the divine power within my body,
but also my mental strength.”
“Should the link break midway, the souls of both parties endure turmoil,
suffering mental damage.”
"In practical terms, my soul foundation is vastly stronger than the fishman's,
so I could withstand it. My spirit plummeted from its peak, but only slightly.
The fishman, however, suffered severe soul trauma. His spirit collapsed,
triggering his body's self-preservation mechanism, causing him to collapse and
lose consciousness on the spot."
“As a bronze level missionary, the total divine power within me can sustain
nearly 20 uses of the divine spell Soul Link.”
“But my mental strength only allows me to cast the Soul Link 10 times
consecutively.”
"As an iron level necromancer, my soul has been cultivated, granting me greater
mental fortitude than a typical magician of the same level. Thus, the divine
spell Soul Link is unique, it consumes more mental energy than divine power."
A single experiment yielded vast insights for Cang Xu.
After a minute's rest, he proceeded with subsequent trials. The subjects'
levels gradually increased, from bronze to iron, then to silver level.
After several rounds of testing.
The fishman from the Da Ji Clan landed on the metal floor, thrashing wildly and
screaming frantically.
In his perception, the Snow Pear Octopus' tentacles had wrapped around his
entire body, slowly tightening to strangle him.
At the critical moment, Cang Xu arrived and gently stroked the octopus
tentacles.
The next instant, the tentacles miraculously released their grip.
The fishman of the Da Ji Clan stared at Cang Xu, exclaiming in delight, “Lady
Qi Miao!”
Qi Miao was indeed the priestess of the Da Ji Clan, being only iron level. Cang
Xu had assumed her identity through the Deceptive Disguise spell.
Cang Xu addressed the fishman: “I have successfully converted and received a
divine blessing. Next, I shall preach to you. You must cooperate fully. Failure
will mean I cannot save you a second time."
The tribe's fishman nodded urgently.
With their full cooperation secured, Cang Xu cast his first divine spell: the
Missionary Mark.
This spell consumed the least divine energy and had an almost instantaneous
casting time.
A faint glow flickered, and the mark was imprinted upon the fishman's souls.
Next, Cang Xu cast the divine spell Soul Link.
The fishman cooperated fully, creating a remarkably stable bond.
Divine spell - Spiritual Sound Sermon.
The divine power within Cang Xu diminished slightly, while his mental energy
depleted even faster. The teachings of the Charming Blue faith stored in his
memory, along with his profound understanding of them, flowed through the Soul
Link, pouring deep into the fishman's soul.
Within seconds, the fishman grasped the essence of the Charming Blue faith,
achieving an understanding equal to Cang Xu's own.
“Next, I shall guide your prayer,” Cang Xu declared.
The fishman nodded fervently.
Divine spell -Spiritual Navigation.
As Cang Xu performed the divine spell, the image of the Charming Blue Goddess
automatically appeared in the fishman's mind. The fishman's spiritual energy
flowed like water seeking its lowest point, pouring into the divine image,
transforming into faith, and being offered up.
“Keep your prayers going!” Cang Xu reminded him.
Kneeling on the ground, the fishman prayed incessantly, his expression deeply
pious and tense. Yet genuine faith could not be feigned; his devotion remained
merely superficial.
Conversion was difficult. No matter how well one performed outwardly, one could
not deceive one's own heart.
Divine spell - Synchronized Conversion!
Cang Xu unleashed the most crucial divine spell.
The faint blue glow emanating from the soul chain linking the two suddenly
blazed brilliantly.
Divine power surged ceaselessly from Cang Xu, flowing through the chain into
the depths of the fishman's soul, violently reshaping it.
The fishman felt intense agony, but he endured it, persisting in his prayers.
His level of faith began to deepen rapidly, but after mere seconds, it halted.
Cang Xu immediately halted the divine spell, panting heavily.
He also actively severed the soul link between them.
Freed from the burden, the fishman's trembling body steadied. Just as he lifted
his head, he met Cang Xu's stern gaze. Startled, he immediately resumed his
prayer without pause.
Cang Xu sighed inwardly, concluding: "Among all divine spells, the Synchronized
Conversion Spell consumes the most energy. Its effect is also the most
wondrous, it synchronizes the faith of both parties."
“The reason the effect wasn't pronounced is because my own faith in the
Charming Blue Goddess is merely that of a casual believer.”
Since he and the fishman were on equal footing, Cang Xu could only offer
minimal guidance to the latter.
Even so, seeing the small changes revealed the larger truth. Judging by the
depth of the fishman's deepening faith, this divine spell was extraordinary!
“To test the true power of this divine spell, I must first forge memories to
deepen my own faith before casting it on the fishman.”
“However, this kind of divine spell cannot be used frequently.”
“It consumes not only divine power and mental energy, but also my soul's
foundation!”
Cang Xu keenly sensed his soul foundation had weakened slightly. He surmised
the principle behind Synchronized Conversion lay in forging a soul link to
rapidly reshape the target's spirit.
A clergyman's lifelong cultivation involved their body and mind being nourished
and transformed by divine power, gradually molding them into a form fit to bear
that power and fulfill the deity's will.
Synchronized Conversion essentially accelerated this divine power
transformation process, condensing what would normally be a lengthy journey
into the single minute it took to cast the spell. This compression made the
transformation violent, causing the target to endure intense agony.
The template for this soul reshaping was the caster's own soul.
When Cang Xu's soul was heavily referenced, it also suffered damage, causing
its essence to dissipate and transform into a form of nourishment that fed the
fishman's soul.
A sudden thought struck Cang Xu: “Isn't this using my soul as a spell-casting
material to transform and enhance the fishman's soul?”
“How does this cultivation method differ from my use of soul crystals to
appease the ghost body's appetite while nourishing my own soul and enhancing my
foundation?”
“Essentially, they are identical.”
“The only difference is one uses soul crystals, while the other directly
consumes my soul.”
“If I were to use soul crystals instead of my soul, wouldn't the effect be even
better?”
Cang Xu's thoughts diverged, leading him to a crucial question.
Soul crystals were processed materials, craftable only by necromancers who
mastered the technique.
This method was recorded within the intermediate soul aspect inheritance.
Cang Xu paid a heavy price to obtain it by sheer luck from Jian Gui.
Soul crystals were pure soul essence, devoid of any memory impurities. Every
ghost possessed a hunger to consume. Feeding on other souls caused memory
confusion; in severe cases, it transformed them into monsters saturated with
negative energy, their sanity utterly lost.
But consuming soul crystals avoided this pitfall. Without foreign memories,
there was no conflict or alteration of self-awareness.
“No, perhaps that's not it!”
“Soul crystals lack memory, yet memory is the cornerstone of faith.”
“By fabricating memories, I can deepen faith to a certain extent.”
“Through Synchronized Conversion to reshape a target's soul, my own memories of
worshipping the Charming Blue Goddess should be a crucial factor!”
“Though my memories remain intact, it is precisely this memory that can guide
others, deepening their faith in the Charming Blue Goddess.”
A thread of contemplative light flickered in Cang Xu's eyes: “In that case, my
need for soul crystals grows even greater.”
The Synchronized Conversion divine spell was the most crucial tool for
proselytizing; its use would inevitably become frequent.
The more Cang Xu used, the greater the toll on his soul. Fortunately, soul
crystals could replenish his soul. Naturally, the demand for soul crystals grew
ever greater.
“Thankfully, I've already mastered the method of crafting soul crystals...”
After pondering, Cang Xu outlined a systematic process: craft soul crystals,
cast the Deceptive Disguise spell along with a series of divine spells,
successfully proselytize to gain divine favor, then expend that favor to obtain
targeted divine blessings... This entire cycle would create a positive feedback
loop. While the Charming Blue Goddess lay in slumber, he could continuously
fleece the faith system to strengthen himself!
With joy in his heart, Cang Xu shared his conclusions with the fishman
youngster.
The fishman youngster immediately understood: “So the undead spell I need to
practice next is Soul Crystal Creation.”
Cang Xu remained sealed and unable to cast spells, but the divine spells of the
Charming Blue Church were permissible.
The reason was obvious, the sealer, Zhou Zhang, was the archbishop of the
Charming Blue Church.
Therefore, Soul Crystal Creation could only be performed by the fishman
youngster.
“Time is limited. I must convert as many fishmen as possible to gain greater
divine favor.”
“I have a better idea...”
"After successfully converting these captives from the Da Ji Clan, we could
release them. These very people will be my strongest justification for
participating in the next teleportation blood sacrifice!"
Cang Xu's voice trembled with excitement, his eyes gleaming.



****** Chapter 505: Qi Ling - ?! ******
White Hair Trench.
The teleportation blood sacrifice had been underway for some time, drawing ever
more believers to the golden altar.
Qi Ling's face was as still as water, cursing inwardly: “Xu Jia, I swear I'll
make sure you don't die so easily!”
In Qi Ling's world now, the most hated enemy was Cang Xu, there was no contest.
Jian Gui sighed: "Time's almost up for this batch to transmit back. "
Standing beside Qi Ling, he observed her expression.
"Qi Ling's obsession is the Da Ji Clan. Her enmity with Xu Jia is
irreconcilable."
Jian Gui understood: Ghosts could be endlessly conjured through necromancy, but
these manufactured spirits possessed greatly diminished sentience, their
memories from life nearly erased. Only rare cases possessed such intense
fixation that they retained most of their spirit and memories, enabling them to
become necromancers through cultivation.
Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, and Ku Feng were all such cases.
Only such undead beings could be considered sentient lifeforms.
From Jian Gui's perspective, he understood Xu Jia's act of vengeance this time.
Yet, alongside this understanding, Jian Gui also felt disgust and hatred toward
Cang Xu.
This was the natural emotion of a superior witnessing subordinates act
independently, triggering events beyond their control.
Naturally, Jian Gui's loathing for Qi Ling was no less intense than his hatred
for Cang Xu.
Earlier, Cang Xu's words had struck a nerve deep within Jian Gui. Jian Gui had
been captured by Zhou Zhang and driven to the brink of death precisely because
he had attempted to rescue Qi Ling. How could he not hate and despise Qi Ling?
As a superior, Qi Ling was merely a subordinate in his eyes, or even an undead
pet. A subordinate or pet had led their master to the brink of death. Jian
Gui's thoughts were obvious.
He simply didn't show it.
He was deceitful, skilled in the art of disguise.
Combined with his previous care for others, he left no cracks in his facade,
keeping Qi Ling and the others completely deceived.
Only Cang Xu saw through Jian Gui's true nature.
Continuing to deceive Qi Ling also served Jian Gui's interests perfectly. After
all, if things turned sour, he would lose the valuable asset that was Qi Ling.
In the current situation, Jian Gui desperately needed others' help to fabricate
memories together.
Therefore, he found the present predicament quite troublesome.
This internal conflict was extremely sharp and fundamentally irreconcilable.
“Best to stall for time. Wait until the moment is ripe before making a
decision.”
“The most crucial thing now is fabricating memories. That's the key to my
survival!”
Jian Gui had secretly resolved to adopt a strategy of delay and appeasement
toward the conflict between Xu Jia and Qi Ling. He would placate both sides,
preventing the conflict from escalating further. Instead, he would focus all
efforts on easing tensions, uniting everyone's strength, and advancing the
grand plan of forging memories to escape.
Zhou Zhang was also waiting.
She was deeply intrigued by the teleportation process, her heart filled with
anticipation. Having presided over countless blood sacrifices, she found them
increasingly tedious. This was a rare spice to liven things up.
Some questioned Zhou Zhang's selection process this time.
After all, a significant number of Charming Blue believers also wanted to
participate in the teleportation blood sacrifice. But this time, Zhou Zhang had
allowed the Da Ji Clan to take up many of the spots.
Yet, no matter how much questioning arose, what could be done?
At most, grumblings would surface, but no one dared take concrete action to
oppose it.
Zhou Zhang's saint level power alone crushed all dissent.
Moreover, the octopusman Zhang Yu Wan and the Jiu Hua Bi were formidable gold
level experts, second only to Zhou Zhang.
This was the world of the strong.
Led by Zhou Zhang, these three transcendent beings possessed the greatest
combat prowess, cementing their status as unshakable pillars.
Amidst the crowd's anticipation, spatial ripples emerged.
One by one, fishmen of the Da Ji Clan appeared, their numbers steadily growing.
The onlookers' expressions shifted, some murmuring in astonishment.
The return of so many fishmen caught many off guard!
A flicker of light danced in Zhou Zhang's eyes. She instantly understood that
something significant had occurred.
Ultimately, dozens of members of the Da Ji Clan had returned!
Such a situation was truly rare.
"Could it be that the entire Da Ji Clan holds such intense and unwavering faith
in our Lord?!" exclaimed a Charming Blue believer.
Others began flattering Zhou Zhang, praising her discerning eye for recognizing
the Da Ji Clan as such a worthy clan.
Qi Ling felt as if she'd been struck by immense joy!
The overwhelming delight even caused a slight dizziness.
When she spotted a familiar figure, she swiftly reined in her smile, her
expression turning cold.
It was none other than Cang Xu.
Qi Ling let out a shrill laugh and cursed loudly, "Xu Jia, you're responsible
for the deaths of hundreds from my Da Ji Clan. This debt, I will repay you a
hundredfold! But you never expected this, hahaha! Our Da Ji Clan's faith in the
Charming Blue Goddess stands firm through trials."
“You sought to wipe out our entire tribe, but your plan has failed!”
The Da Ji Clan had suffered heavy losses, yet many members remained—it could
hardly be called annihilation. Given time, combined with the fishmen's
formidable reproductive capacity, they would recover.
Cang Xu looked at Qi Ling, his expression calm, even tinged with a hint of
peculiarity.
The next moment, a fishman from the Da Ji Clan suddenly knelt at Cang Xu's
feet, repeatedly kowtowing and shouting: "Lord Xu Jia! My life is saved only
because of you! You are my savior!"
Qi Ling: ?!
Only a handful of fishmen remained prostrate at Cang Xu's feet.
The majority of the Da Ji Clan's fishmen wore complex expressions as they
looked at Cang Xu, saying in unison: "It's true we survived this time because
of you, Xu Jia. But the hatred our clan holds isn't so easily erased."
“Following the ocean's code, I won't seek revenge against you now. But my
descendants will never forget this grudge!”
Qi Ling: ??!!
Clan Leader Qi Ren of the Da Ji Clan stared at Cang Xu with a complicated
expression, saying nothing.
Qi Shu, standing not far away, shouted, "Even if you guided me to conversion
and saved my life, you indirectly caused the deaths of hundreds of our clan
members. Don't think you can sweep this under the rug. I will kill you to
avenge my people. But after killing you, I'll take my own life—to repay the
debt of your blood!"
Qi Ling: ???!!!
Her face twisted in confusion. She couldn't comprehend it, screaming out in
frustration: “Damn it! What the hell is going on here?!”
It wasn't just her curiosity; everyone else felt the same.
The enmity between Xu Jia and the Da Ji Clan was common knowledge. Yet after
this teleportation blood sacrifice, an utterly bizarre scene unfolded before
them.
“It was Xu Jia who guided me to convert to our Lord.”
“He saved many lives, like the clan leader, the great warriors, and even the
high priest.”
“Without him, none of us would have survived.”
“He even personally stopped the saint beast from slaughtering us...”



****** Chapter 506: Zhou Zhang – I Understand ******
The fishmen exchanged words, revealing the events that unfolded within the
Ocean Mother Nest - Cang Xu prayed and once again received divine favor. Using
the divine spells granted by the divine blessing, he guided many fishmen to
successfully convert, passing the saint beast's death trial!
Upon hearing this, Qi Ling froze in place, utterly stunned.
Jian Gui narrowed his eyes, his gaze turning inquisitive.
"How did he manage it? With the dual seals that Zhou Zhang placed upon him, how
could he possibly wield divine magic?"
"Is it because this is the divine blessing of the Charming Blue Goddess, immune
to the dual seals? Or has Xu Jia secretly broken the seal, and deceived me?"
Just as Jian Gui pondered, murmurs of doubt immediately rose from the
surrounding believers.
These voices swelled rapidly, like an unending tidal wave crashing over Cang Xu
at the center of the fishmen.
Cang Xu knew exactly what to do when faced with public suspicion at this
moment.
In the next instant, he turned toward the golden altar and bowed to Zhou Zhang
standing upon it.
Zhou Zhang stood on the altar, surveying the believers who had been teleported
back. Her gaze lingered primarily on Cang Xu, but when she saw him bowing to
her, the slight frown on her brow eased a little.
For Cang Xu was performing the ritual etiquette of the Charming Blue Church.
Cang Xu declared, “By the grace of our Lord, divine blessing has once more been
bestowed upon me, granting me mastery over a series of divine spells capable of
swiftly guiding others to conversion.”
"Though sealed, it is strange that within the Ocean Mother Nest, I can freely
wield these divine spells. Yet the undead spells I once used remain beyond my
reach."
Cang Xu spoke not only to Zhou Zhang but also to Jian Gui.
He continued, “This must be the Lord's will.”
“Under the divine favor's call, I have understood my own transgressions!”
"I was wrong! Before this, driven by personal greed, I used the banner of
testing faith as a pretext, my true intent was to exact vengeance upon my
enemies. Thus, I suggested sending the Da Ji Clan into the Ocean Mother Nest."
"This was wrong. Completely wrong. After receiving divine blessing, I deeply
understood this truth."
"Therefore, to atone for my sins, I took direct action, devoting myself to
converting the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan. I risked communicating with the saint
beast, and only then did I manage to save some of my Lord's believers."
"Alas, time was too short. Had I been given sufficient time, I should have been
able to save most of the fishmen."
"I am guilty! Please punish me, Lord Zhou Zhang."
“Everything is my fault.”
“Originally, all the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan should have become believers of
our Lord.”
By the end of his words, Cang Xu was kneeling on both knees, nearly prostrating
himself, and emitting a wail of anguish.
Were he not an undead being, his acting alone would have produced rivers of
tears of remorse.
The surrounding believers fell into a profound silence.
They could all sense the genuine sorrow and remorse emanating from Cang Xu.
Some devout, even fanatical believers, empathizing deeply, chose to forgive him
on the spot.
Yet the majority remained skeptical.
Qi Ling: ...
She stared intently at Cang Xu, her face showing not a shred of forgiveness.
By all logic, seeing her sworn enemy kneel and utter such agonized remorse
should have filled her with joy.
Yet why did she crave nothing more than to beat him to death? To grind his
bones to dust?
Zhou Zhang suddenly threw back her head and laughed, pointing at Cang Xu
beneath the altar.
“Interesting,” she declared repeatedly. "This is fascinating. You are
fascinating. Far more amusing than I ever imagined."
“Follow me.”
“We will talk privately.”
Though she spoke thus, Zhou Zhang extended a single hand. Her fingers curled,
and a surge of water flowed, sweeping the kneeling Cang Xu directly toward her.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster sat in the cockpit,
watching the scene intently through the magic projection.
Zhou Zhang raised Cang Xu by his clothes and jumped up softly, reaching beyond
the crowd and going toward a secluded area.
The two began to talk.
Cang Xu first informed Zhou Zhang that his clerical position had been elevated,
from monk to missionary.
Unlike faith itself, such clerical ranks could be verified.
After confirming Cang Xu’s promotion to missionary, Zhou Zhang’s expression
softened further.
Cang Xu then detailed a series of divine spells to Zhou Zhang, all except the
Opportunistic Deception Spell.
Zhou Zhang's face flashed with astonishment, and she immediately pressed for
detailed information about the divine spells.
Her reaction caught Cang Xu off guard.
“Your Lordship, is there... something wrong with these divine spells?” Cang Xu
inquired.
Zhou Zhang stared intently at the old necromancer for several seconds, her gaze
making Cang Xu visibly uneasy. Finally, she spoke: “Do you know that even I
have not mastered these divine spells?”
Cang Xu was utterly astonished. “How could that be?”
He had always assumed the divine spells of the missionary series were
commonplace.  But now, even an archbishop like Zhou Zhang admitted she did not
possess them. This proved these divine spells were exceptionally rare.
Zhou Zhang shook her head. "It's not just me. Even other bishops likely haven't
mastered them. Truthfully, before you mentioned it, I'd only heard of isolated
cases, and those weren't even from the Charming Blue Church."
Cang Xu was dumbfounded.
“Hearing about it is nothing compared to witnessing it firsthand.”
Zhou Zhang led Cang Xu back to the gathering place of the believers. There, she
casually selected a believer and commanded Cang Xu: “Come, perform a divine
spell before me.”
Divine spell - Missionary Mark.
Cang Xu first imprinted his mark upon the Charming Blue believer before him.
Zhou Zhang's expression remained calm.
This spell was standard issue for the masses. Future believer advancements
would include credit for the imprint's originator.
Divine spell - Soul Link.
Zhou Zhang watched the soul chain connecting Cang Xu and the Charming Blue
believer, her eyes suddenly flashing with sharp brilliance.
Divine spell - Spiritual Sound Sermon.
After Cang Xu cast the spell, Zhou Zhang raised her hand to signal a pause,
then carefully inquired about the Charming Blue believer's experience.
The Charming Blue believer replied that he had gained extensive knowledge of
Charming Blue doctrine, though he had studied these teachings before. Yet
receiving this information now brought insights and realizations he hadn't
possessed previously.
Zhou Zhang nodded slightly, then signaled Cang Xu to continue.
Divine spell - Spiritual Navigation.
This time, Zhou Zhang's expression was no longer serene.
Her understanding of clerical cultivation ran far deeper than that of Cang Xu
or the fishman youngster.
“The Spiritual Navigation divine spell directly channels the believer's
spiritual energy toward our Lord.”
“Normally, achieving this step solely through the believer's own efforts is no
easy feat. Often, divine statues must provide coordinates to accurately guide
the direction of faith.”
“This is precisely why major denominations establish churches, altars, and
statues across the world—to facilitate this process.”
"Occasionally, statues or churches may even lose connection with the deity
itself. This causes accumulated faith to stagnate, unable to ascend upward."
“But with Spiritual Navigation, believers no longer require statues or altars
as intermediaries. They can offer their entire devotion instantly.”
“Though I wonder what the loss rate might be?”
“No, the true significance of this divine spell lies in its precision.”
"Many evil and demonic deities disguise altars or tamper with statues to
intercept faith mid-transmission. This spell effectively prevents such
interference."
“This spell is incredibly practical!”
Zhou Zhang's mind churned with thoughts, his emotions running high.
Cang Xu continued casting the divine spell.
Divine spell - Synchronized Conversion!
Witnessing this, Zhou Zhang felt a tidal wave of shock surge through her. She
could no longer maintain her composure, her face betraying palpable
astonishment.
“There exists such a divine spell!”
“It's incredible! With this spell, one could practically mass-produce
believers.”
“With such divine power, how could our Lord ever lack believers?”
“This will surely bring our Lord to prominence!”
Amateurs watched for spectacle; experts observed the essence.
The shock Zhou Zhang felt far surpassed that of Cang Xu and the fishman
youngster. The latter two were laymen, utterly unaware of the profound
significance of these divine spells.
Under the spell's influence, the Charming Blue believer trembled with
excitement.
Though pain coursed through him, tears streamed down his face as he choked out,
“Never before have I felt my Lord's true intent and grace so profoundly!”
“Lord Xu Jia, your devotion to our Lord surpasses even mine!”
“Though you are an undead, you command my deepest respect.”
Cang Xu gave him a slight nod, then frowned in puzzlement. “This is odd. Why
isn't the effect of this divine spell as pronounced in the Mother Nest?”
“Is that so?” Zhou Zhang snapped back to attention.
Though faith remained unfathomable, Zhou Zhang could discern from the Charming
Blue believer's expression and words, combined with her vast experience as an
archbishop, that the believer's devotion had surged dramatically in a short
time.
"It is the soul that undergoes transformation... thus, when the divine spell is
performed upon a believer, they will feel an intense, heart-wrenching agony
emanating from within their very being!"
Zhou Zhang performed divine spells, observing both the Charming Blue believer
and Cang Xu from every angle.
As a saint level archbishop of the Charming Blue Church, she had long
understood the profound mysteries of the soul.
After completing his proselytizing divine magic, Cang Xu let his hands fall
naturally at his sides. He looked at Zhou Zhang with reverence, quietly
awaiting her judgment.
Zhou Zhang scrutinized Cang Xu once more, her gaze having undergone a complete
transformation.
Where before it had been filled with interest and a desire to explore, now she
looked at him as if he were a peerless treasure.
Zhou Zhang dismissed the Charming Blue believers who had served as test
subjects, then led Cang Xu to a secluded corner for private conversation: “Xu
Jia, I now fully understand why our Lord bestowed divine blessing upon you and
granted you these unique divine spells.”
Cang Xu immediately inquired.
Zhou Zhang replied, "When you wield these divine spells, have you noticed how
intensely they drain your spirit and soul? This depletion far surpasses the
consumption of divine power."
Cang Xu nodded urgently.
Zhou Zhang continued, “These are divine spells refined by our Lord, or perhaps
by some believer within our church.”
“In essence, they align more closely with necromancy magic, spells that target
the soul itself.”
“In truth, you could potentially cast them using undead magic power, though the
effects would be drastically diminished.”



****** Chapter 507: The Seal is Lifted ******
A flicker of surprise crossed Cang Xu's face.
Zhou Zhang's attitude toward necromancy and necromancers caught him off guard.
She smiled, reading Cang Xu's thoughts: "What's so strange about that? Didn't
the gods suppress the necromancer faction precisely because they delved into
the mysteries of the soul?"
“I worship my Lord. You needn't doubt the steadfastness of my faith.”
“Do you know what true steadfast faith is?”
“It is faith that endures without the slightest wavering, even after learning
the world's true nature!”
“How the gods gather faith involves secrets tied to the soul. For a bishop
level clergyman, there are scarcely any secrets left undiscovered.”
“And the reason I became a bishop is that even after learning these truths, my
faith remained unshaken.”
These words held great weight.
Cang Xu nodded, convinced by Zhou Zhang's reasoning.
Now reflecting, Cang Xu suddenly remarked, “In that case, these new Charming
Blue divine spells might not be suitable for widespread dissemination either.”
“On one hand, the vast majority of lower-level clergy aren't necromancers and
lack the ability to cast such spells.”
"On the other hand, forcing their adoption would be disastrous. Because they
touch upon the mysteries of the soul, they could shake the faith of the clergy
themselves."
Many low-level believers were unaware they were offering themselves as tribute.
But mastering this series of divine spells would make them realize they too
contributed to the deities, rather than everything being solely divine blessing
as they had previously believed.
Thus, everything the deity bestowed upon the faithful ceased to be
unconditional grace and instead resembled a transaction.
'You give me your spiritual energy, and I repay you with divine power and
divine spells.'
This, of course, would deliver a powerful shock to one's faith.
If stabilized, the believer gained steadfast conviction, laying a solid
foundation for ascending to a higher level. But in most cases, faith would
waver and steadily decline. It might well condemn the believer to a lifetime of
being merely a casual believer.
Zhou Zhang regarded Cang Xu with a gaze of recognition: "You grasped this so
quickly, clearly a sharp mind. Tell me, what else can you think of?"
Cang Xu paused, then a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes: "It is my Lord who
chose me. With boundless magnanimity, She has made this necromancer a
missionary to proclaim Her path, Her majesty, and Her mercy."
He suddenly realized: beyond high-level clergymen, necromancers were the most
suited for this missionary divine spell.
On one hand, necromancers possessed profound soul foundations and innate
spellcasting abilities. On the other hand, they long understood the truth
behind spiritual energy, faith, and exploitation.  Thus, the vast majority of
necromancers developed a rebellious consciousness and refused to worship
deities.
"Converting necromancers to faith is far more difficult. But as seen with
Archbishop Zhou Zhang, once their faith takes root, it becomes exceptionally
steadfast, able to withstand repeated trials!"
Seeing Cang Xu's expression of sudden understanding, Zhou Zhang laughed
heartily and slapped his shoulder. "Whether these divine spells were refined by
our Lord or by other believers, the fact that our Lord can present them as
divine blessings signifies a major shift in our church's policy."
“Truthfully, there's nothing inherently wrong with collaborating with the
undead faction.”
"Our Lord was gravely wounded and plunged into slumber. all by the gods of the
Sheng Ming Empire! The deities of other factions stood idly by, offering no aid
whatsoever."
"The great gods suppress the undead faction solely because it poses a grave
threat to their own interests."
"Hmph! Under these circumstances, why shouldn't we recruit necromancers as
believers? We're already in this predicament anyway."
Zhou Zhang muttered under her breath, her discontent palpable.
Cang Xu listened with trepidation.
Though his innate talent had improved somewhat, he remained a low level
transcendent at heart. It was only after accompanying Jian Gui that he glimpsed
the vistas of the mid-to-high level world. Even then, he was merely an iron
level pretender masquerading as silver level.
Zhou Zhang wasn't just a saint level cultivator; she was high-ranking within
the Charming Blue Church. Her casual remarks revealed the world's true
structure, the secrets of its highest echelons!
After muttering for a moment, Zhou Zhang realized she'd spoken too much. She
cut herself off and offered Cang Xu a few words of encouragement.
Cang Xu sensed she wanted to end the conversation and quickly asked, “Lord Zhou
Zhang, may I freely preach here?”
Zhou Zhang smiled. “Of course you may.”
"As a missionary, spreading faith earns you divine favor. With such divine
spells at your command, I trust divine favor will come easily."
“I too was once a missionary. Looking back now, if only I'd possessed such
divine spells back then. it would have been splendid!”
"Successful proselytizing yields 1 unit of divine favor for bronze level, 10
for iron level, and a whopping 100 for silver level. Of course, this figure
represents only an average. The actual amount of divine favor granted depends
heavily on the faith levels before and after conversion."
“But regardless, this offers substantial rewards for a new clergyman.”
At this point, Zhou Zhang suddenly interjected, “I nearly forgot, I can remove
the seal now.”
“Without the seal I placed, you'll be able to unleash the full power of your
missionary divine spells.”
"Do you have soul crystals? Frequent use of the divine spell Synchronized
Conversion will drain your soul. Therefore, it's best to have ample soul
crystals for replenishment."
Cang Xu first beamed with delight, then shook his head with a wry smile. “I
don't have many soul crystals on hand.”
Zhou Zhang pressed, “Can you craft soul crystals?”
Though Cang Xu had already obtained the intermediate soul aspect inheritance
from Jian Gui, he shook his head without hesitation. “My contact with Jian Gui
was specifically for that intermediate soul aspect inheritance. I haven't
secured it yet.”
Zhou Zhang smiled encouragingly. “Then strive to spread our teachings. Convert
those necromancers into our believers. Perhaps then, you might obtain the soul
crystal creation method from Jian Gui. Who knows?”
A sharp gleam flashed in Cang Xu's eyes. “Lord Zhou Zhang, are you
suggesting...”
Zhou Zhang had already turned to leave, tossing back one final remark: “Such an
exceptional divine spell of proselytizing naturally requires more necromancers
to wield it, wouldn't you agree?”
Following this incident, Zhou Zhang's attitude toward Jian Gui and other
necromancers underwent a shift.
Cang Xu watched Zhou Zhang's departing figure and keenly sensed this change.
He hurried back to the area surrounding the golden altar, only to find that the
crowd from earlier had largely dispersed over the intervening time.
The circle of believers surrounding the altar remained kneeling solely for
prayer.
"My return has severely disrupted my former relationships. Zhou Zhang's
relationship with me has developed perfectly, while Jian Gui's requires more
maintenance."
Cang Xu sought to find Jian Gui, but at that moment, an unconscious voice
warned him: returning to his own shack to rest was the wisest strategy.
Suppressing his urge to seek out Jian Gui, Cang Xu returned to his previous
humble dwelling.
Closing the shack door, he appeared to pray while secretly activating his
Memory Switching Spell!
Segments of memory previously concealed now resurfaced.
“So, I had hidden my true memories.”
“I fabricated numerous false memories, implanting them into key moments of my
past life.”
“All to bolster my faith in the Charming Blue Goddess.”
"This approach did indeed elevate my devotion to that of a devout believer. It
was precisely this foundation that allowed my missionary divine spells to
manifest such potent effects before Zhou Zhang!"
These fabricated memories had significantly heightened Cang Xu's recognition
and closeness toward the Charming Blue Goddess.
Now, as the true memories surfaced, they clashed with the fabricated ones.
Cang Xu immediately cast a Memory Concealment Spell, hiding each fabricated
memory one by one.
"This brings my level of faith back to mediocrity. But this is the real me.
Only in this state can I better face Jian Gui!"
Cang Xu now understood the origin of the subconscious promptings in his mind.
Before teleporting back, he had not only fabricated memories but also cast a
Subconscious Reminder Spell, instructing himself to return to his shack after
passing the trial.
He had set the Memory Switching Spell to activate upon reaching the shack's
door.
All these were deliberate preparations and arrangements made before his return,
now taking effect one by one.
Cang Xu silently analyzed the situation.
"To them, Ku Feng and Qing Xin are dead. Only a few dozen fishmen from the Da
Ji Clan survived the teleportation back."
“But in reality, they're all aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.”
"Qing Xin and Ku Feng are under strict surveillance, with multiple layers of
security ensuring their safety. As for the other fishmen, far weaker in power,
their movements are also restricted and they are under strict guard."
"Most crucially, I have already imprinted the Missionary Mark upon these
fishmen captives!"
The spells the fishman youngster was currently studying, besides Soul Crystal
Creation, included Memory Concealment and Memory Switching.
His purpose in practicing these latter two was to manipulate the memories of
the fishman captives. Just as he had done with Cang Xu, he would conceal parts
of their true memories and implant fabricated ones, thereby converting them all
into believers of the Charming Blue Goddess!
Once they became believers, the Missionary Mark would confirm Cang Xu's role in
their conversion.
Through subsequent prayers, Cang Xu would gradually receive corresponding
divine blessings as rewards.
"In a sense, we’re turning every fishman captive into a blasphemous priest."
"But these fishman captives remained utterly ignorant."
Using the memory fabrication device to aid his proselytizing, this was the
ingenious plan Cang Xu conceived while at the Ocean Mother Nest.
During the capture of the fishmen, he repeatedly employed the Opportunistic
Deception Spell to complement his efforts.
Cang Xu had a premonition: "The divine spells of proselytizing I've acquired,
the Opportunistic Deception, the magic formation for the Deceptive Disguise
spell, the memory crystal fabrication device... Combining these elements must
yield synergistic effects. But time is limited, leaving me no chance to delve
deeper."
“Now, it's time to meet Jian Gui.”
Undoubtedly, returning in this state, Cang Xu would need to earn Jian Gui's
trust anew.
It was impossible for Jian Gui not to harbor suspicion toward him.
This was yet another trial.
But Cang Xu was brimming with confidence!



****** Chapter 508: Jian Gui – I am in Control of the Situation ******
“Lord Jian Gui.” When Cang Xu paid his respects to Jian Gui, he noticed both Qi
Ling and Xiao Wang Zi were present in the shack.
This was entirely within Cang Xu's expectations.
In truth, this gathering of the undead had been specifically arranged to await
Cang Xu's arrival.
“You finally came!” Qi Ling sneered coldly at Cang Xu, “You still dare to show
your face?”
Cang Xu could easily imagine how, before his arrival, Qi Ling had been
endlessly slandering him to Jian Gui, painting him as a threat.
Xiao Wang Zi's face also bore a look of wariness.
He turned to Cang Xu, his tone accusatory. “Ku Feng didn't teleport back. Is he
dead?”
“You could save the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan. Why didn't you save him?”
Cang Xu sighed deeply, grief-stricken. “After receiving the divine gift once
more, I was both shocked and overjoyed. Ku Feng was the first I tried to aid,
but I failed.”
“He didn't follow my guidance. His faith was insufficient. He perished at the
hands of the saint beast!”
Xiao Wang Zi fell silent.
A heavy silence settled over the hut, the air thick with suspicion.
Cang Xu turned to Xiao Wang Zi, delivering his prepared words: “Therefore, I
refuse to let such a tragedy happen again.”
“Henceforth, I shall propose to Lord Zhou Zhang that I participate in every
teleportation blood sacrifice.”
"Next, I will accompany you, Xiao Wang Zi. If you fail to convert, I will aid
you within the Mother Nest, guiding you to renounce your faith, just as I
helped those fishmen of the Da Ji Clan."
Xiao Wang Zi's face lit up with joy.
Suddenly, Qi Ling spoke: "Why did you help our fishmen? Did you not once hate
them deeply? You even sent them to the teleportation blood sacrifice!"
“Yet suddenly, you aid them in the Mother Nest, helping your enemies survive.”
“Has faith altered your heart? Are you still one of us?”
Through covert channels, Qi Ling used sharp words to question Cang Xu's
loyalty.
Cang Xu replied calmly, “If I had betrayed us, I would have long since revealed
the escape plan with the fabricated memories to Lord Zhou Zhang.”
“But I did not do that, did I?”
'If you had, you would already be dead,' Jian Gui thought darkly.
Cang Xu looked at Qi Ling with a mocking smile. "Besides, I saved the fishmen
of the Da Ji Clan and pulled you back from despair. Shouldn't you thank me?"
“Bullshit!” Qi Ling erupted in fury. “If not for you, why would my entire tribe
have been forced into the teleportation blood sacrifice? Why would so many have
died?”
“And you expect me to thank you? Do you take me for a fool?”
Cang Xu shook his head and sighed. “After this ordeal, I've vented all my
anger.”
“Qi Ling, I've never considered you an enemy, believe it or not.”
"In any case, moving forward, I'll not only aid Xiao Wang Zi but also help you
convert. Of course, Lord Jian Gui, you remain my primary focus."
“Ever since our first meeting, you've shown me kindness. Being able to offer
you some small assistance in this situation is the least I can do.”
Qi Ling sneered coldly: “You really have been changed by the Charming Blue
Goddess.”
“Now you're a missionary. Let me guess at how much divine favor will you gain
for successful proselytizing?”
“What's the rate for silver level? Gold level must be even more, right?"
Cang Xu nodded. “That's correct. Naturally, I wish to gain as much divine favor
as possible.”
“Divine favor is immensely beneficial to me!”
“I'm willing to help you all, and I also want to see everyone become believers.
Isn't that a wonderful thing?”
“In fact, Lord Zhou Zhang also greatly desires to see everyone convert
successfully. Just moments ago, she hinted at this to me.”
“Her attitude has shifted, it's different now.”
"The reason lies in the divine magic I recently acquired. Let me explain, and
you'll understand."
After Cang Xu's explanation, Jian Gui and the others fell deep in thought.
“It seems the Charming Blue Goddess is gravely wounded, and the situation is
dire. That's why She's willing to make necromancers, or magicians, Her
believers!” Qi Ling remarked.
“Perhaps the Charming Blue Goddess recognized this very point, which is why She
allowed you to pass the trials twice,” Xiao Wang Zi speculated, looking at Cang
Xu.
Cang Xu continued his pitch: “Divine favor is immensely useful to us. We can
request for specific divine blessings in our prayers."
"The situation for the Charming Blue Goddess and the Charming Blue Church is
indeed dire, but precisely because of this, they are natural allies for our
undead faction, wouldn't you agree?"
“To be honest, I don't think it's a bad thing for a necromancer to also be a
believer of the Charming Blue Goddess!”
Xiao Wang Zi fell silent.
Qi Ling remained quiet too.
Jian Gui remained impassive, his expression betraying no inner turmoil.
But Cang Xu knew his words had struck a chord deep within the others.
Judging by the series of proselytizing divine spells, the prospects for
conversion now seemed far greater than before.
Conversion offered tangible benefits! At the very least, successful conversion
meant they could survive.
Qi Ling glared at Cang Xu: “So you're already one of them.”
Cang Xu shrugged, spreading his hands. “I'm both a Charming Blue believer and a
necromancer!”
Qi Ling gritted her teeth in frustration. She hadn't expected Cang Xu to be so
shameless, openly admitting his shift in allegiance.
This rendered her carefully prepared interrogation utterly pointless.
Qi Ling instinctively glanced at Jian Gui.
Jian Gui stared expressionlessly at Cang Xu.
Cang Xu's behavior hadn't surprised Jian Gui.
Even before this, Jian Gui had assessed Cang Xu, concluding he had deepened his
faith in the Charming Blue Goddess. He was both a necromancer and Charming Blue
believer.
His identity as a necromancer, along with shared interests and bonds of
loyalty, still made him a viable partner for cooperation.
His newly embraced faith, however, hadn't yet grown strong enough to make him
willing to expose the secret of the fabricated memories.
This situation was not uncommon.
The specific factors depended on the deity being worshipped. At the very least,
the Charming Blue Goddess wasn't like the Light God, she wasn't the sworn enemy
of the undead and could coexist with them.
Moreover, the current situation provided a foundation for cooperation between
the two sides.
In truth, even believers of the same deity could become enemies. Take the
beastman race's mightiest principal god, the Berserker God, as an example. He
was the god of chaos, madness, and frenzied combat, championing frenzy,
disorder, and melee.
His believers honored him with blood sacrifices, typically a massive brawl
where they slaughtered each other until only one survivor remained.
The surviving believer would then receive the Berserker God's bountiful divine
blessing.
Jian Gui noticed that Zhou Zhang had already removed the seal from Cang Xu.
"But it doesn't matter. The hidden trap I planted within him remains. The
situation is still under my control."
With this understanding, Jian Gui accepted Cang Xu once more and continued
assigning him the task of fabricating memories.
Simultaneously, Jian Gui sternly warned Cang Xu and Qi Ling, making it clear he
did not wish to see conflict between them again.
Qi Ling and Cang Xu hastily agreed.
Snow Bird Harbor, the docks.
The retired warship of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom now served as the flagship of
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
In the flagship's forecastle, the big guy encountered Tripleblade.
He clutched his stomach in distress and pleaded, “Hungry... need food...”
Tripleblade looked troubled.
After communicating with Zi Di and Zong Ge, they'd decided to temporarily
ration the big guy's food to prevent his strength from advancing too rapidly.
Following this measure, the big guy's total food allowance had instantly been
cut in half.
His cries of hunger were perfectly understandable.
Tripleblade explained, “The corps' finances are tight right now, big guy. You
can't keep eating like this, it's costing too much gold.”
“Let me break it down for you...”
Tripleblade spread his fingers wide, standing before the big guy as he detailed
the precise calculations.
The big guy, of course, couldn't understand a word. He stared wide-eyed, his
expression pure innocence and confusion.
After a lengthy explanation, Tripleblade shrugged regretfully. “So, for now,
this is all the food you'll get...”
The big guy was furious, but unless pushed to the brink of life and death,
where immense pressure drove him, he wouldn't resort to violence.
At heart, the big guy was timid.
So, faced with this outcome, he puckered his lips as if to protest, but
ultimately only asked, “Father, Xiao Guai wants Father...”
Tripleblade sighed. "The commander is out on business. He won't be back for a
long time. The big guy, you have to be good. If you're not, when the commander
returns, I'll report it to him."
The big guy shrank back, his eyes brimming with hunger for food.
Just then, his stomach growled again.
“Xiao Guai is hungry...”
“Xiao Guai is hungry enough to eat a whole cow.”
“Xiao Guai wants to eat too. Give me one more bucket, please.”
At the thought of rice, drool began to drip from the big guy's mouth.
Tripleblade revealed the true purpose of his visit: “I can't give you more
food, but I can make you feel less hungry!”
“The reason you get hungry easily and eat so much is because you're constantly
cultivating.”
"Every time you fall asleep, you activate the Mindless Sleeping Posture
Technique. As long as you stop cultivating, you won't feel this hungry
anymore."
The big guy shook his head at the suggestion: “No, help, Father, practice,
hard!”
“Xiao Guai can practice, Father, happy.”
“Xiao Guai not practice, Father, not happy.”
Tripleblade tried to persuade him: “It's just to pause your practice. Once the
mercenary corps has money, you can practice again.”
“The commander isn't back. If you pause your cultivation, I won't tell him this
secret.”
The big guy shook his head repeatedly: “Xiao Guai, honest child. Deceiving
Father, wrong!”
Tripleblade's face darkened as he threatened: “But if you keep cultivating like
this, you might starve to death.”
“Starve... to death?” The big guy froze.
Tripleblade wore a solemn expression: “I don't want to ration your food, and I
certainly don't want to halt your training.”
“But training like this, starving yourself like this... you'll starve to death
easily!”
“If you starve to death, and the commander returns to find you dead... he'll be
heartbroken.”
The big guy froze for a moment, his face clouding with sorrow before he burst
into tears. “No... can't starve, death.”
“Starve to death... can't meet Father anymore...”
“Xiao Guai can't starve to death. Xiao Guai has to see Father!”



****** Chapter 509: Iron Level Big Guy ******
“The big guy is truly loyal to the commander,” Tripleblade mused upon
witnessing this scene.
He seized the moment to persuade him, successfully swaying the big guy's
resolve.
But getting the big guy to voluntarily halt his cultivation was impossible.
For the big guy only circulated the battle qi technique through bodily instinct
while asleep. When asleep, he was unconscious and utterly incapable of halting
the refinement of his battle qi.
But Tripleblade had prepared for this.
Upon the big guy agreeing to pause his cultivation, Tripleblade retrieved a
vial of potion from his robe.
"Your ability to cultivate while sleeping stems from your body's muscle memory.
By repeatedly interrupting this process, we can disrupt that muscle-like
memory."
“Drink this, and I'll help you halt your cultivation.”
The big guy pinched his fingers, carefully took the vial, and tipped his head
back to swallow the potion.
His face had twisted in anticipation of bitterness, but the liquid was
surprisingly sweet and pleasant.
After finishing, he licked his lips, wanting more: “Any... more?”
He was starving, desperate for food, anything at all.
The tiny vial emptied, and his stomach growled again.
Tripleblade’s eye twitched. He sighed inwardly: This big guy needs more
training, especially in safety awareness. He’s way too reckless! Poisoning him
would be too easy. Though Tripleblade and the big guy were very familiar, he
still had to guard against enemies disguising themselves as survivors to gain
the big guy's trust.
Tripleblade waited for quite a while, but the big guy showed no signs of
sleepiness.
Realizing the truth, Tripleblade decisively pulled out a second bottle.
Only after finishing this bottle did the big guy feel a heavy wave of
sleepiness wash over him, and he soon fell into a deep, snoring slumber.
Not long after he fell asleep, an iron sheen began to appear on his skin.
Iron level battle qi!
Indeed, during this period, the big guy had advanced from bronze to iron level.
He mainly ate, drank, and slept. He used to go out to work, but after the
survivors discovered his potential, they decisively protected him, rarely
letting him venture out to the forecastle.
The big guy spent almost all day cooped up in his room. Every time he woke up
from a nap, he felt hungry. After a big meal, he'd get sleepy and nap again.
In this cycle, his strength had broken through.
Among all the survivors, his cultivation was the most leisurely.
“Such bloodline, truly...” Tripleblade sighed inwardly, his face betraying deep
envy.
“I'd already factored in his physical constitution, so each vial contained
double the standard dose. Yet the big guy showed no reaction whatsoever.”
“It took two vials to finally send him into a coma.”
“That's a quadruple dose!”
“This kind of physical constitution...” Tripleblade marveled inwardly.
Even at bronze level, the big guy was already nearly impossible to subdue.
Tripleblade was merely an iron level. At the big guy's current vitality level,
if he went berserk, Tripleblade would be powerless to subdue him.
That's why, during this period, Tripleblade had arranged for Men Shi and Chi
Lai to guard the dock, ensuring at least one remained on the ship—all to
prevent the big guy from losing control.
“But honestly, even a silver level fighter suppressing a berserk big guy
wouldn't be entirely reliable.”
“With his physical prowess, the big guy could already match a silver level
opponent.”
Tripleblade believed: Though the big guy was currently iron level and possessed
no battle skills, his terrifying physical strength alone made him capable of
challenging a silver level opponent.
Tripleblade took a deep breath, approached the big guy, and placed both hands
on his belly.
He channeled his battle qi, and soon, his hands were coated with an iron sheen.
Tripleblade “attacked” the big guy, attempting to rouse him.
But his first “attack” elicited no reaction whatsoever.
“Seems my force is too weak,” Tripleblade thought, gradually increasing the
pressure.
The second time, the third time...
Each time, Tripleblade carefully calibrated the increase in force. He didn't
want to use too much force and injure the big guy.
Yet, in the end, Tripleblade's face was filled with disbelief.
"How is this possible?"
“I've used all my strength, and I still can't shake him? I can't even wake him
up?”
Tripleblade was stunned speechless.
“Even without using battle skills, the big guy was completely defenseless...
This is absurd!”
“What kind of bloodline does he have?”
With no other choice, Tripleblade resorted to using his weapons.
He carried three blades, his primary weapons, but naturally, he wouldn't use
them.
He selected a staff from the ship's armory and returned to the forecastle.
This time, wielding the staff, he finally disrupted the big guy's deep
breathing rhythm, interrupting the natural flow of his body's innate battle qi
circulation.
“Finally succeeded!” Sweat beaded on Tripleblade's forehead.
The key was controlling the force.
But the next moment, the big guy's breathing rhythm adjusted back, resuming his
cultivation of the Mindless Sleeping Posture Technique.
“Then again!” Tripleblade swung the staff relentlessly, striking the big guy's
belly.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The big guy's belly was sunken from eating little. Even so, each strike against
his skin produced a deep, dull thud.
Tripleblade felt as if he were striking a piece of tanned, premium cowhide with
his wooden staff.
As he continued swinging the staff, Tripleblade gradually increased his force.
Yet each time the big guy's practice was interrupted, he swiftly readjusted and
resumed his cultivation.
“His physical instincts are too powerful. Once he memorized the breathing
rhythm, external force proved so difficult to disrupt or alter!”
“This is also a manifestation of his superior bloodline.”
“Then I'll go all out!”
Tripleblade gritted his teeth, suddenly increasing his force, the stick in his
hand striking the big man heavily.
This blow carried unprecedented power.
The big guy opened his eyes in pain. Still half-asleep, he glanced at
Tripleblade before shifting slightly from his prone position to lie on his
side.
Snore... snore... snore...
He began snoring again, sinking back into a deep slumber.
Tripleblade's small frame, clutching the massive staff, seemed feeble and
powerless against the big guy's broad, towering form.
Soon, the big guy's battle qi circulation restarted, and he resumed his
cultivation.
“I used a silver level weapon!” Tripleblade inspected the spot he had struck.
A dark blue-black club mark appeared on the big guy's belly.
But this mark was fading at a visible speed.
“Such recovery ability!” Tripleblade's heart trembled violently once more.
He stared at the sleeping big guy, motionless for a long time.
"Given time, his strength will surpass mine. No, his combat prowess already
exceeds mine now."
“He'll leave me far behind, racing ahead unchallenged—silver level, gold level,
saint level, even...”
“Who would've thought among the survivors, the weak big guy would be the one
destined for greatness?”
"Why him? He's so dull-witted..."
“Bloodline...”
Tripleblade smiled bitterly.
He'd heard countless tales of prodigies with exceptional talent and potent
bloodlines reaching heights in mere moments that most could never achieve in a
lifetime.
Yet Tripleblade now felt a profound shock from witnessing it firsthand in the
big guy.
Because this was happening right before his eyes.
He had personally witnessed the big guy's rise! He had also glimpsed the
towering stature the big guy would one day command.
Suddenly, everything felt hollow. Tripleblade couldn't bring himself to lift
the staff in his hand.
Interrupting the big guy's training now seemed utterly pointless.
His expression was heavy with disappointment, Tripleblade closed the door and
left the forecastle.
The forecastle was guarded by alchemy puppets, providing a measure of security
for the big guy.
Only when his subordinate reminded him did Tripleblade snap back to reality.
“Ah...” He sighed deeply, his thoughts drifting to Zong Ge.
“Even if the big guy becomes a great figure in the future, I can only look up
to him. What good is that?”
“My bloodline is weak, my talent lacking, but I follow Lord Zong Ge!”
“At Lord Zong Ge's age, he's already a gold level. His bloodline is undoubtedly
strong!”
“As long as Lord Zong Ge achieves greatness with me by his side, I'll be
content.”
On Mystifying Monster Island, Tripleblade discovered many shared traits with
the half-beastman Zong Ge. Yet he could find none of these parallels in the
youth who was then merely “Zhen Jin”.
In the developments that followed, Tripleblade pinned his life's dreams upon
Zong Ge.
Through Zong Ge, Tripleblade finally calmed his turbulent emotions.
Tripleblade began to assess the situation before him.
After the recent incident, he no longer wished to interrupt the big guy's
transcendent cultivation.
Though he knew other methods remained available, he had genuinely abandoned
that plan.
For the time being, deep down, Tripleblade didn't wish to see the big guy
again. Tripleblade wasn't a saint. He possessed a certain capacity for
tolerance, but the previous events had dealt him a crushing blow.
He instinctively pushed the big guy from his mind, unwilling to confront him.
“By now, the messenger should have reached Lord Zong Ge.”
“But it will take some time before we receive their reply.”
As Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their party grew increasingly distant, communication
with the Snow Bird Harbor branch became more difficult.
Although the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps employed messengers to deliver
encrypted letters, transmitting them via teleportation formations still
required time.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had teleportation formations installed in its cities
and major towns.
The setup of teleportation formations also had limitations; it was impossible
to teleport directly from Snow Bird Harbor to the Ice Sculpture Royal Capital.
On one hand, this posed technical and cost challenges. On the other, it was
deliberately designed by the royal family for security reasons.
The kingdom required strategic depth, especially when facing threats.
If every town could teleport directly to the capital, the capital would
inevitably become the most vulnerable location.
Therefore, messengers had to teleport from one city to another, repeating the
process multiple times to catch up with Zong Ge, Zi Di, and their group.
This process itself presented complications.
Messengers had to queue.
The teleportation formations in every town were exceedingly busy.
Teleportation slots were strictly limited.
At Snow Bird Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps enjoyed privileged access
due to their close ties with the city lord, allowing them to jump the queue. In
other cities, however, they received no such favor.



****** Chapter 510: Rime City & Igloo City ******
Deep within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom lay Rime City.
Inn 521.
The messenger, looking thoroughly worn from travel, paid his respects to Zi Di
and Zong Ge: "I finally caught up with you. Urgent intelligence!"
The messenger's journey had taken even longer than Tripleblade had estimated.
The intelligence was encoded within a cryptographic letter, and the courier
himself was unaware of its contents.
This encryption method was a standard practice among mercenary groups. It could
be deciphered, but it demanded significant time and manpower.
Of course, this wasn't the only layer of encryption.
Zi Di retrieved a pair of alchemy spectacles and donned them. The text within
the letter was transformed once more.
This was another layer of encryption, one far more reliable.
The reason was that the design blueprint for this compact alchemy device
originated from the War Merchant's database.
Its inclusion in the War Merchant's archives meant it possessed unique merits.
“Could this be news about the commander?” Zi Di felt a surge of hope, but as
the decryption was completed, she saw the true content of the intelligence.
Disappointment washed over her, followed by a sudden tightening of her
expression as she grasped the gravity of the situation.
She scanned the decrypted intelligence a second time before handing it to Zong
Ge beside her.
Zong Ge took it, read through it, and immediately furrowed his brow.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' caravan, despite being under the protection of
the Axe Gang, had been attacked.
Two gold level fighters had appeared, and a fierce battle had ensued.
Clearly, the enemy had struck!
What kind of force was this? It was far too powerful! They had dispatched gold
level fighters once again! Moreover, the one who arrived later might also be
one.
This was definitely not an ordinary gold level force.
Groups like the Bayonet Gang were typical gold level forces, possessing one or
two gold level fighters.
But this group? First they took out Teng Dong Lang, then three more fell in one
go, and they could immediately deploy another gold level, maybe even two!
“Is this an alliance formed between gold level factions?” Zong Ge speculated
inwardly.
Earlier, he'd guessed that this alliance likely had military connections. But
now, Qing Hong Yan's appearance had thrown Zong Ge's suspicions into disarray.
Even rabbitmen had appeared. This organization's membership was far too broad.
The combat power they had revealed alone was deeply unsettling.
How much more strength lay hidden beneath the surface?
“They're tough to deal with!”
“Not only do they vastly outmatch us in strength, but they've also responded
correctly.”
"We traveled from Snow Rabbit City to Rime City, a considerable distance, yet
we faced no attacks. Not even a single probe."
“Until they understand our group's methods, I doubt they'll attack again.”
Zong Ge's analysis earned a slight nod of agreement from Zi Di.
To be fair, Zong Ge's feat of defeating three opponents single-handedly was
indeed formidable. The battlefield bore few traces, their clash erupting with
minimal light or sound.
Zong Ge's swift victory had caused the enemy to severely overestimate their
combat strength.
The foe hesitated yet did not cease their pursuit. Instead, they adopted the
correct tactic - attacking the enemy's weak points!
Zi Di now felt profoundly distressed.
The commercial venture she had designed and spearheaded targeted the entire Ice
Sculpture Kingdom market.
The massive cash haul seized by the survivors on Two Eyes Island formed its
foundational strength. The assessments of the situation by the young commander,
Zi Di, and others, along with considerations for future retreat routes, had led
Zi Di to decisively execute this plan.
Originally, she believed: the alliance with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had
made Snow Bird Harbor the best starting point for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. Collaborating with the Li Jian Clan had paved the way, giving them a
powerful guide.
Unexpectedly, the actual execution would encounter such immense difficulties.
“The enemy is too powerful!”
“Even if Father were still alive, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance at its peak
wouldn't dare provoke such a force.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is still weak. We haven't fully developed yet,
and now we've made mortal enemies with this power.”
“Ah, where are you, commander?”
Zi Di frowned deeply, weighed down by immense pressure.
“Fortunately, we still have one genuine gold level member here.”
Zi Di shot a subtle glance at Zong Ge.
She believed that in this situation, Zong Ge advancing to gold level would
undoubtedly bring more benefits than drawbacks.
“But we can't rely solely on Zong Ge...”
Zong Ge shared Zi Di's assessment. “Even if I reach gold level, I alone could
never take on such a massive hostile force.”
“The most critical point is this: the enemy organization lurks in the shadows,
revealing nothing. That prevents us from launching a preemptive strike.”
So far, the survivors only knew that the Bayonet Gang, the Axe Gang, and the
exposed rabbitman Qing Hong Yan were all members of hostile factions. As for Gu
Dong, it couldn't be ruled out that he was acting alongside Qing Hong Yan;
suspicion remained.
The survivors didn't even know the names of the enemy factions!
Well as a matter of fact, someone within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps did
know.
That person was Lan Zao.
The young man had followed the remnants of the Bayonet Gang into Tranquil Hill,
effectively entering the enemy's stronghold.
He had even seen the tombstones at the summit of Tranquil Hill, recognizing
many of the names inscribed there.
Among those names were enemies who had attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps!
But Lan Zao remained unaware that the two sides were adversaries currently
locked in conflict.
Even if he did know, he had no way to relay this invaluable intelligence back.
Zong Ge first sent the messenger to rest, then discussed the situation with Zi
Di in a grave tone: “The situation is extremely unfavorable for us.”
“We're completely on the defensive.”
“Even if we wanted to attack, we couldn't find a target.”
"Conversely, since the enemy adopted a strategy of attacking our weak points
and succeeded the first time. Even if we suffered few tangible losses, the fact
remains exposed, our defenses in this area are inadequate."
“Next, the enemy will undoubtedly target our weaknesses and strike
relentlessly.”
“Though we've secretly partnered with the Mountain Peak Merchant Alliance, as
long as our potions continue selling across the kingdom, the enemy will soon
discover and intensify their attacks!”
Zi Di paced for a moment, her tone resolute: “We cannot halt our commercial
plan.”
She understood all too well: the stakes were too high this time. Partnerships
had already been forged with the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Li Jian
Clan.
Terminating it now would mean abandoning all prior efforts and investments, all
of it would go down the drain.
The resulting losses would be too great, leaving the survivors severely
weakened.
Crucially, there was also the cost of time!
Regardless of the outcome of the redemption plan, strengthening the survivors
as much as possible was undoubtedly the right course.
But halting this business venture would disrupt their development rhythm,
causing delays that would drag down too many.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' primary funds were invested in this
commercial plan.
This venture was Zi Di's initiative.
Should it fail, even with her unshakable bond to the dragonman youngster, she
felt the loss would be too great.
This wasn't just her personal stake; it was the collective's capital.
Success in redemption would be one thing, but failure...
In short, she couldn't betray her comrades' trust nor bear such immense
responsibility.
After rapid deliberation, Zi Di declared with resolve: “We cannot possibly
overcome such a force alone. We absolutely must bring in external support.”
“The Li Jian Clan is our top choice.”
“We already have an existing partnership with them. Now is the perfect time to
deepen that collaboration!”
Zong Ge pondered: "The Li Jian Clan ranks among the top three great families of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. But even so, their combat strength level can't match
our enemy's."
“None of the kingdom's three saints belong to the Li Jian Clan.”
“They might not agree to deepen our cooperation.”
Zi Di gave a cold laugh, her voice tinged with confidence: “They absolutely
will!”
“Many deals fall through simply because the price isn't high enough.”
Zong Ge fixed Zi Di with a deep gaze, sensing her conviction. Trusting her
business acumen, he swiftly concluded this was highly feasible.
He immediately revised their itinerary: “Next, we head to the Li Jian Clan's
Igloo City!”
“Additionally, we must reinforce the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch's
defenses.”
“The enemy has no shortage of gold level fighters. Personal ambushes are the
most likely tactic. They won't launch a full-scale assault on Snow Bird
Harbor.”
Zong Ge made a series of military assessments.
The hostile organization had always concealed its strength, never making any
major moves.
Even Qing Hong Yan, who attacked the caravans, was a rabbitman.
Rabbitmen were a minority within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Zong Ge estimated that even if they followed this lead, tracing it back to its
source would yield little evidence.
Even if they attacked the rabbitman race, they wouldn't directly confront the
main culprits.
Without locating the enemy's main force, only knowing of their flanking units,
Zong Ge dared not launch a rash attack - this could very well be the enemy's
bait!
Zi Di said, "The area around Bu Quan is also extremely dangerous right now! Our
alchemy workshop where we brew potions is the lifeblood of our business plan.
If it gets destroyed, the consequences would be unimaginable."
Snow Bird Harbor currently served as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
headquarters.
Yet it remains a critical weak point, as the troops stationed there are
practically useless.
Unless a gold level guardian were stationed there.
The most prominent gold level figure in Snow Bird Harbor with ties to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord himself. But
surely they couldn't ask him to guard the workshop?
It wasn't impossible, but the cost would be too high, too much exposure, too
great a risk.
Zi Di continued, “The branch's defenses are extremely weak.”
“To safeguard our business plan, we must prepare contingency measures. Should
the alchemy workshop be destroyed, we must have a backup.”
“This trip to Igloo City to negotiate with the Li Jian Clan might secure them
as subcontractors.”
“Along our route, we can also scout uninhabited areas and covertly establish
alchemy factories.”
Zi Di was resolute.
She understood clearly there was no turning back. The survivors had invested
too heavily in this endeavor; the sunk costs were too great.
They had no choice but to press forward.
Of course, this wasn't mere stubbornness, nor was it blind denial of reality.
It certainly wasn't the reckless gambler who, having lost everything, bet
everything in a desperate, irrational frenzy. Rather, Zi Di saw that the
situation still held potential.
“Deepening our partnership with the Li Jian Clan could alleviate the current
dire situation.”
“But this approach carries hidden risks,” Zi Di sighed inwardly.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the weaker party, while the Li Jian Clan
held the upper hand. Strengthening the alliance risked the weaker side being
overtaken by the stronger.
Future gains would inevitably shrink significantly.
This was precisely why Zi Di had avoided such a partnership before.
After all, such a formidable hostile force hadn't yet emerged back then. Zi Di
had believed the survivors' situation was highly favorable at the time.
“We must impose stricter limitations on the cooperation agreement.”
“Furthermore, since the enemy is likely to attack the alchemy workshop, we must
also ensure Bu Quan's safety.”
“She's a rare talent!”
"I recall Bu Quan was highly regarded by her mentor at the Alchemy Guild. Could
we leverage that connection to enlist her mentor's support?"
Zong Ge nodded. “It's worth a try.”
The enemy's strength was overwhelming; any external aid was worth considering.
Zi Di: "We outsiders know little of her relationship with her mentor. We should
write to Bu Quan, explain the situation, urge her to stay vigilant, and ask her
mentor to intervene if possible."
Zong Ge: "The enemy is too formidable. This time, we can enlist the Li Jian
Clan to make the report through them. If we can mobilize the official forces of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom against the enemy, our situation will improve
significantly."
After finalizing their plan, Zi Di hurried out of the inn and headed for the
alchemist's shop in Rime City.
She intended to arrange personnel and consolidate the commercial hub in Rime
City today, then depart for Igloo City tomorrow.



****** Chapter 511: Taste Testing ******
Three days later, the messenger returned to Snow Bird Harbor.
Walking along the somewhat familiar streets, the messenger clearly sensed
something unusual about the crowd.
Midway, he encountered other members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. After
exchanging information, he learned that Tripleblade and a group of mercenaries
were not at the docks, but at Snow Bird Square.
The messenger had been dispatched by Tripleblade, and Tripleblade was precisely
the person he needed to report to.
Without hesitation, the messenger hurried straight to Snow Bird Square.
The closer he got to the square, the denser the crowd became. Upon reaching the
square, he found the area teeming with people, shoulder-to-shoulder in some
spots.
The messenger initially assumed Snow Bird Harbor was hosting some kind of
festival celebration.
But upon arrival, he saw a massive banner announcing it was actually a tasting
banquet hosted by Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen was a gold level magic chef, renowned throughout the culinary
world. He had been invited to showcase his extraordinary skills at the
capital's national banquet.
This time, he had chosen Snow Bird Harbor as his landing point in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. Hosting the tasting banquet at Snow Bird Square served as
both a warm-up for the national banquet and a test of the kingdom's citizens'
palates.
The messenger encountered Tripleblade.
Tripleblade had been awaiting replies from Zi Di and Zong Ge: “You're finally
back.”
After inquiring about the situation and learning no issues had arisen with Zi
Di and Zong Ge, Tripleblade breathed a sigh of relief.
Taking the secret letter, he told the messenger, "You've traveled far. Go enjoy
some magic cuisine. Try a variety, such tasting opportunities are rare. Earn
some money for our mercenary corps while you're at it."
Tripleblade took the letter to a secluded corner to examine its contents.
The messenger headed toward the square, blending into the crowd until he
reached its center.
He saw that the once-empty square now held three rows of long tables.
Each row was surrounded by a canopy.
The wooden tables were laden with magic dishes. It was a riot of colors, with
each dish releasing an enticing aroma.
The three rows displayed bronze level, iron level, and silver level
transcendent dishes respectively.
Several announcers stood atop makeshift wooden towers, maintaining order while
loudly promoting the event.
Through their announcements, the messenger grasped the tasting event's
fundamental rules.
Rule 1: Mortals were strictly forbidden from participating in the tasting.
The reason was simple.
These transcendent dishes were not meant for mortal consumption. To ordinary
people, they were more terrifying than poison.
Rule 2: Transcendents had to queue for tasting according to their respective
levels. Disturbances were forbidden; violators would be detained by the city
guard.
A large contingent of city guards flanked the event, clearly indicating that
such a significant gathering had been prearranged with Snow Bird Harbor
authorities.
Moreover, even the mage tower of Snow Bird Harbor was operating at full
capacity, focusing most of its attention here and conducting real-time
surveillance. Even if troublemakers went undetected during the event,
subsequent investigations into the magic footage recorded by the mage tower
would inevitably reveal the perpetrators, enabling their apprehension.
Rule 3: If a transcendent met the standards set by Lord Ci Hai Shen during
their tasting, they would earn additional rewards Naturally, basic tastings
would also yield basic rewards.
Rule 4: Transcendent individuals were advised to act within their limits.
Should physical discomfort arise, the Snow Bird Sect had organized a team of
clergy to administer divine healing on the spot. However, the fee for such
assistance must be paid by the recipient afterward.
The messenger listened and observed, finding it quite intriguing. He decisively
followed the flow of people, slowly making his way toward the long tables.
There, organizers had divided the crowd into several lines.
Each line stretched quite long.
The messenger joined one and didn't wait long before entering the long
pavilion.
The tables before him were laden with dishes of iron level.
He picked up a small plate holding three slices of sashimi.
Made from what seemed like tuna, the orange-red slices were cut thick and
covered with a layer of white frost.
Seeing the label on the long table, the messenger realized the dish was called
Spring Buds.
“Why would a simple sashimi dish be named that?”
“Is this the style of the Magic MasterChef?”
“I'll have to give it a proper taste.”
The messenger pinched a fish slice between his fingers, craned his neck, opened
his mouth wide, stuck out his tongue, and slid the fish slice inside with his
hand.
He immediately closed his mouth and began chewing steadily.
Just then, the orderly shouted at him, “Eat while you walk!”
The messenger started pacing forward again.
After just two steps, he shuddered violently, his entire body shaking with
cold.
An intense chill surged from the depths of his being, racing straight to the
crown of his head.
This icy sensation was refreshing, not the kind of bone-chilling cold that
inflicts slight suffering before delivering an unprecedented culinary
experience.
“But I can't taste anything...”
The thought barely formed in the messenger's mind when the food's true flavor
exploded on his tongue.
Fresh!
So incredibly fresh!
A powerful burst of savory goodness assaulted his taste buds, making his eyes
widen in an instant, his mind momentarily blank.
If the initial chill resembled winter snow, then this freshness felt like grass
sprouting beneath the ice, pushing through the snow.
It was precisely the piercing cold that made the subsequent flavor all the more
vivid.
In that instant, the messenger was utterly captivated by Ci Hai Shen's culinary
artistry.
“Truly worthy of the title Magic MasterChef!”
“This is the taste of spring.”
“I feel spring has arrived, everything is sprouting...”
Those tasting the dish around him murmured in awe and praise.
One man devoured three small plates in succession. When he opened his mouth, he
gasped in horror, actual sprouts had grown on his tongue!
Tiny, elongated flesh buds danced across his tongue, reaching out into the
surrounding space, craving more delicacies.
The messenger's heart skipped a beat at this sight.
The transcendent individual with tongue sprouts was immediately pulled from the
queue and sent to the clergy's line for treatment.
Though transcendent cuisine was tempting, it must never be overindulged.
Ci Hai Shen stood in a building on the plaza's periphery, quietly observing the
scene at its center.
His vantage point was high, with expansive floor-to-ceiling windows offering a
sweeping view.
“That's the third person with a growth on their tongue.”
“Did I add too much of the activating agent to the ingredients?”
"No, it must be the result of me using a gold level cooking tool. It seems that
after applying the activating agent, I can use the Preservation Knife."
The misfortune of the man with tongue growths made the messenger cautious.
He ate only one Spring Buds dish, then carefully selected two other dishes.
The three dishes offered him a unique culinary experience, leaving a deep
impression.
He wanted to try other dishes, there were at least ten varieties lined the long
table. But the messenger couldn't indulge.
The magic dishes had infused him with abundant energy, surging and spreading
through his body. He needed to cultivate immediately to digest this foreign
energy, rather than indulge his appetite.
Thus, when Tripleblade returned to the square, he just caught sight of the
messenger withdrawing.
“How much did you earn?” Tripleblade asked.
“30”
The messenger replied, “I ate three dishes and got paid 30 silver coins.”
Tripleblade waved his hand. "Go digest it quickly. You can come back for more.
Remember, the more you eat, the more you earn."
“If you can meet some of the tasting requirements...”
At this point, Tripleblade sighed and changed his mind. “Never mind, I won't
put you through that.”
The messenger departed, and Tripleblade sighed again.
Watching the bustling crowd before him, the weight on his shoulders lifted by
at least half.
Having read the secret letter, Tripleblade knew Zong Ge, Zi Di, and the others
had devised a countermeasure.
With solutions and hope emerging for the current crisis, the pressure on
Tripleblade's side naturally eased.
He had already dispatched messengers to relay key details of the secret letter
to Bu Quan.
“Hopefully, Bu Quan can leverage the Alchemy Guild's strength to aid the
mercenary group.”
“Additionally, all alchemy workshops must bolster their defenses... No, more
accurately, they must prepare contingency measures to resume production swiftly
after any destruction.”
Tripleblade understood that the branch's defenses were far too weak. If the
enemy sent a gold level powerhouse to launch a surprise attack and sabotage,
there would be no way to stop them.
He had considered seeking aid directly from the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, but
the cost would be too great.
For now, they would have to wait for support from the Li Jian Clan and the
Alchemy Guild.
Tripleblade knew his own capabilities were limited, but he was doing everything
in his power to contribute as much as possible.
“Oh, and the big guy.”
Over these past three days, Tripleblade had adjusted his mindset.
Mainly because the big guy was starving daily, his eyes dark and glazed over,
constantly moaning “hungry, hungry, hungry” in a pitiful state.
After examining his condition, Tripleblade had increased his food rations.
He had considered that perhaps he could provide the big guy with as much food
as possible.
Despite the big guy's occasional bouts of madness, if he reached gold level, he
would undoubtedly bring tremendous assistance to the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
What the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed most right now was high-level
combat power!
Typically, a transcendent's strength builds up gradually through accumulation,
not through sudden mutation.  But the big guy's bloodline was simply too
exceptional. His growth was rapid, progressing visibly day by day.
“Maybe we really could push for a breakthrough?”
“In fact, even if he only reached silver level, his monstrous physical prowess
could still hold his own against gold level opponents. Though replicating the
commander's feat, defeating gold level opponents as a silver level, might be
unrealistic for the big guy, he should be capable of holding his own against
them head-on.”
Tripleblade regained his composure. Faced with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
current predicament, he would explore every possible solution.
His attitude toward the big guy had shifted.
Between them, there had always been a bond of comradeship.
Earlier, Tripleblade's outburst stemmed entirely from the big guy's devastating
blow, a shock he couldn't process immediately.
“Should we really go through with this?”
“Can we truly rely on the big guy?”
Compared to the young commander and Zong Ge, the big guy was undeniably
unreliable.
Yet his bloodline demanded respect!



****** Chapter 512: Thunder Black Pepper Sauce ******
Tripleblade still couldn't make up his mind.
"The big guy's potential risks are too great. If we cultivate him and he ends
up going mad... before the enemy destroys us, we’ll be destroyed by our own
people. That would be a complete joke."
"Besides, can our finances sustain it? Currently, though most training has
halted, the business plans are still ongoing."
“The resources I can mobilize, would they be enough to push the big guy's
transcendent level to gold level, or silver level?”
"And how much time would it take? Damn it, we need professionals to calculate
the answer."
From the letter, Tripleblade learned of Zi Di's intentions: she remained
determined to push forward with her business plans, her stance unwavering.
As the branch head, Tripleblade prioritized fallback plans - should the
business scheme fail, he'd have to cover the losses. His concerns differed from
Zi Di's.
“Sigh. Regardless, even if we don't force his transcendent level advancement,
the big guy's food intake must still be gradually increased.”
Tripleblade had no intention of halting the big guy's cultivation.
But as the big guy grew stronger, his efficiency in refining battle qi
increased, naturally consuming more food.
If taking a conservative approach, Tripleblade would provide just enough food
to keep the big guy alive and prevent starvation, and this would weaken his
combat strength to avoid him going berserk and causing destruction.
Tripleblade remained undecided on how to handle the big guy.
"Honestly, it all boils down to my lack of resources! I need to keep raking in
the cash."
“But right now, the money from mercenary quests alone is nowhere near enough.”
"Every day, just buying the raw materials for potion-making costs our corps a
fortune. The rewards from mercenary contracts are like a drop in the bucket
compared to that."
“If the commander and deputy commander could take on tasks, our income in this
area would increase significantly.”
"But the problem is, they both have more important matters to attend to. The
only capable individuals at this branch are Chi Lai and Men Shi, both silver
levels."
"Crucially, one of them must remain stationed on the flagship."
"We still lack high-tier core members. If Qing Xin could have joined us back
then, that would have been ideal."
"Even though they're both silver level, magicians are far more sought-after
than fighters. Magicians are just too practical; they have far more versatile
methods!"
Thinking alone wouldn't solve anything.
Tripleblade pushed aside his worries and focused on the immediate situation.
“What's the current status?” he asked his subordinates.
For this tasting event, Tripleblade had deliberately selected a group of
mercenaries to bring along. His primary goal, of course, wasn't entertainment,
it was to raise funds.
To host this tasting event, Ci Hai Shen not only offered free food and drink
but also paid participants!
Those that met specific criteria received even greater rewards.
Such opportunities were exceedingly rare.
Thus, the moment he heard about it, Tripleblade’s eyes lit up.
“Only made 62 gold coins and over 300 silver coins...”
After actually participating, he found the earnings were far less than he'd
imagined. Some mercenaries had even gotten injured from overdoing it or
overeating and were now receiving divine healing from the Snow Bird Church. The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would have to cover those medical costs!
Tripleblade's gaze fixed on Men Shi.
“How much we earn depends on you now, Men Shi!”
The dwarf Men Shi persisted.
He walked along the long table, carefully selecting magic dishes of silver
level.
After much deliberation and circling the table twice, he finally made his
choice.
He didn't pick a main course, but a serving of Thunder Black Pepper Sauce.
This sauce was meant to accompany the steak main course, but Men Shi had
already eaten his fill. His remaining stomach space was only enough for the
sauce.
There was another crucial reason behind his final choice.
Regarding this sauce, Ci Hai Shen had set a challenge - swallowing a full
spoonful in one go would yield a major reward.
“Thunder Black Pepper Sauce...” Men Shi picked up the ladle, scooped a heaping
spoonful, and placed it in his mouth.
The moment it touched his tongue, the intense aroma of black pepper flooded his
senses, filling his entire mouth.
The next instant, Men Shi's eyes widened in shock.
Following the pepper's fragrance, a genuine electric current exploded in his
mouth, instantly surging through his entire body.
Men Shi's hair stood on end, his muscles twitched uncontrollably, and he was
completely immobilized.
As a silver level individual, even the order maintainers present dared not
reprimand him at his level, allowing him to walk while eating.
It took Men Shi a long while to recover, his face still etched with
astonishment. “This Thunder Black Pepper Sauce packs a punch!”
His reaction had already drawn the attention of many in the crowd.
Seeing him steady himself, staff immediately approached to ask detailed
questions about his experience tasting the sauce.
Men Shi struggled to respond, but the aftereffects of the electric current
lingered, causing his tongue to stumble and his speech to be slurred.
Tripleblade watched, his heart sinking. “Dwarves typically possess higher
elemental resistance than other races. It seems Men Shi's condition is no
longer sufficient to carry him through!”
Men Shi's answers were swiftly relayed to Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen nodded and ordered, “Give this dwarf his due reward. He met the
standard.”
"Revise the upcoming criteria to exclude dwarves from tasting the Thunder Black
Pepper Sauce. If an elf or human taste tester succeeds, their reward will be
increased by 10%."
After all, the majority of participants in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's national
banquet hailed from these two intelligent races.
Ci Hai Shen's orders were swiftly executed, and the sign beside the Thunder
Black Pepper Sauce was promptly revised.
Such high stake tasting bounties fluctuated over time until the organizers
withdrew them.
In other words, as time passed, the opportunities for extraordinary individuals
to earn rewards steadily diminished.
“But the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has reached its limit this time,”
Tripleblade observed regretfully as Men Shi withdrew from the queue.
The dwarf was already stuffed and needed time to digest.
Tripleblade felt reluctant. For someone like him, whose business acumen was
scarce, such tasting opportunities were too rare.
“What if we had the big guy come for the tasting?”
The thought barely formed in Tripleblade's mind before he dismissed it.
The big guy possessed at least saint level potential. He wasn't just the young
commander's prized asset but also the survivors' most valuable treasure.
Such a treasure naturally needed to be kept hidden, guarded closely, never
revealed casually.
Tasting these transcendent dishes was a clear indicator of a transcendent's
strength.
If the big guy came to sample them, revealing his whereabouts, he would
undoubtedly perform exceptionally well, drawing curiosity, speculation, and
even spying.
Once his potential was confirmed, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would face
endless trouble.
Consider Bing Xiao of the Bayonet Gang, he had a gold level giant slave.
By then, even the Ice Sculpture Royal Family would take interest in a giant who
hadn't fully matured, lacked intelligence, and hadn't reached the saint level!
Especially now, when the Ice Sculpture Kingdom lacked any legend level combat
power, its strongest being merely three saint level individuals.
For the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, gaining one more saint level figure held immense
significance.
This was the world of the strong.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's declining international standing over the years
stemmed precisely from its lack of a legend level power and only three saint
level figures.
Adding one more could significantly elevate the entire kingdom's global
standing. Naturally, the potential profits were staggering!
Tripleblade had vast experience and understood one truth deeply: never
underestimate others' greed!
Should the Ice Sculpture Royal Family uncover the big guy's secret, they would
likely intervene directly, resorting to threats, bribes, or even other
underhanded tactics.
At that point, the survivors' predicament would become far more dire than it
was now!
“Hiding the big guy until he matures is the safest course of action,”
Tripleblade sighed.
This was precisely why Tripleblade no longer sent other mercenaries to deliver
meals to the big guy, opting instead for alchemy puppets.
Tripleblade also harbored deep concerns about the big guy losing control.
On one hand, he feared the destruction he might cause; on the other, he worried
the big guy might reveal his presence, alerting the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Snow Bird Harbor wasn't like Snake Rat Island or Two Eyes Island; its docks
were guarded by a mage tower.
That tower could capture magic images, and its power had been demonstrated
during the Bayonet Gang's escape battle.
After that conflict, the Snow Bird Harbor Lord had immediately uncovered Lan
Zao's shady dealings and invited the young commander to collaborate.
Tripleblade also knew the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was backed by an extremely
powerful intelligence network.
Under these circumstances, how could he possibly feel secure exposing the big
guy so carelessly?
“Everyone else is at their limit.”
“Looks like I'll have to step in myself...” Tripleblade sighed.
He was only iron level himself, unable to handle silver level magic dishes, so
his earnings were limited.
But something was better than nothing.
Just as Tripleblade rolled up his sleeves to enter the fray himself, a booming
voice suddenly echoed out, drowning the square's clamor.
“Disgusting. Disgusting.”
“Just by the smell, you can tell it's disgusting!”
“Ci Hai Shen, you haven't improved one bit.”
The roaring voice rolled like thunder, making many ears ring.
Countless eyes followed the sound, and in the next instant, the crowd beheld a
towering figure over three meters tall.
It was a giant.
His skin glowed fiery red, while his flowing hair was golden.
On the giant's back rested an enormous wok, so massive it resembled a turtle
shell strapped to his shoulders.
Flaming patterns danced across both arms, pulsing with brilliant light with
each breath.
The giant openly taunted the chef, his intent dripping with malice. Yet no one
in the square moved to challenge him.
The reason was simple: the giant radiated a gold level aura. He was a gold
level fighter!
“Da Dou!” Ci Hai Shen was forced to reveal himself, his expression dark.
"Your mouth is still as foul as ever. Seems the lesson I taught you before
wasn't enough. Now that the wounds on your arms have healed, you've started
acting out of line again." Ci Hai Shen spoke, immediately exposing the giant's
identity.



****** Chapter 513: Food Eating Competition ******
This giant was none other than the famous magic chef whose fame rivaled Ci Hai
Shen's - Da Dou.
Spotting Ci Hai Shen, Da Dou roared with laughter. “Ci Hai Shen! Last time you
schemed and plotted, nearly destroying my arms!”
“But misfortune turned to fortune, and my strength grew even greater.”
Da Dou touched the flame patterns on his arms. “This time, I'm here to settle
the score!”
Ci Hai Shen's expression darkened further.
It was indeed his deliberate scheme that crippled Da Dou's arms. Unexpectedly,
upon returning home, Da Dou's master had sacrificed his own arms to heal the
injuries, granting him the totem tattoo of the beastman race's Fire God.
After mastering the totem tattoo, Da Dou regrouped and honed his control over
fire to an extraordinary level.
He made a name for himself in the magic chef world, defeating several gold
level magic chefs in culinary competitions.
He had long vowed to exact revenge on Ci Hai Shen.
This time, he must have heard Ci Hai Shen had arrived at Snow Bird Harbor and
followed him here.
“I didn't expect to run into him so soon,” Ci Hai Shen remarked, caught off
guard. Truthfully, he'd anticipated their confrontation at the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's capital during the national ceremony.
Da Dou stood with hands on hips, glaring at his distant adversary. “Ci Hai
Shen, if you want to pick your assistants, just say so! Why all this roundabout
nonsense?”
“Pretending it's a tasting session? Hmph! Playing these scheming games, I
despise your tactics.”
Da Dou pushed through the crowd, striding purposefully toward the long table.
His towering frame easily lifted the canopy draped around the table.
He casually picked up a dish, the “Spring Buds” made from raw fish slices. He
merely sniffed it at nose level before crushing it between his fingers.
Da Dou sneered, “Same old method again!”
“Ci Hai Shen, you're still relying on the power of your Preservation Knife.
Your own strength hasn't improved one bit!”
Ci Hai Shen was struck at his weakest point.
But could he be blamed?
His bloodline concentration was what it was, his personal ceiling had long been
reached. Only by relying on external equipment could he achieve significant
strength gains.
Da Dou was different.
This young giant possessed high bloodline concentration and was still in his
growth phase.
His talent on the culinary path was also exceptional.
Back then, Ci Hai Shen had plotted against Da Dou precisely because he saw Da
Dou's talent and bright future, and jealousy had driven him to act.
“Hmph, my gear is certainly part of my strength,” Ci Hai Shen retorted. "When
you cook, don't you use utensils? What's strapped to your back?"
“My pot is merely silver level.”
“Ridiculous! Are you so poor you can't afford gold level gear that you envy
others who use it? Poverty has warped your soul."
“Bullshit!”
…
The two gold level figures erupted into a fierce argument.
Across the square, countless transcendents watched with wide eyes, then grew
thoroughly engrossed.
Attending this tasting event, they'd not only sampled transcendent cuisine but
unexpectedly feasted on “gossip.”
And what a juicy scandal it was, unraveling the grudges and past conflicts
between two gold level heavyweights.
Two gold level figures publicly trading insults? That was a rare sight indeed.
The verbal sparring continued for a while, but Da Dou gradually found himself
on the defensive. After all, a giant's tongue couldn't match a sea elf's sharp
wit. He finally snapped, "Ci Hai Shen, cut the crap. Let's settle this with a
cooking contest. If you won't accept, you're nothing but a coward!"
Ci Hai Shen snorted coldly, initially refusing to respond while hurling
insults.
Da Dou seized on Ci Hai Shen's apparent evasion, berating him as a coward and a
chicken who dared not accept the challenge, insisting he was inferior.
Buoyed by this, Da Dou's momentum surged, overwhelming Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen's face remained impassive, though inwardly, he took this contest
with Da Dou extremely seriously. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made the special
trip to Snow Bird Harbor to recruit the magic chef Mei Lan Du from the city
lord's entourage.
The proud sea elf gradually grew enraged by Da Dou's taunts.
“That damned giant must be cast back into the abyss to learn respect for his
elders!”
The sea elf now found himself cornered. Da Dou had exposed his true intentions
and intimidated him, severely hindering his plans to recruit assistants.
Moreover, the sea elf placed immense importance on his own mindset. If he
avoided battle now, he feared he would carry psychological weakness when facing
Da Dou again at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's competition.
Having weighed these factors, Ci Hai Shen resolved to accept the challenge.
However, he was still a master strategist. He immediately sneered coldly, "Da
Dou, you rely on being a giant with a booming voice to put on this grand show.
Heh, do you really think I'm unaware of the schemes you're plotting right now?"
"Not only do you have your own hands, but your teacher's hands are also at your
disposal. That's precisely why you don't need a sous chef or an assistant."
“You chose to challenge me during my vulnerable period of recruiting
assistants, clearly taking advantage of my weakness. How cunning.”
“That said, your luck has been truly extraordinary!”
“Inheriting your master's arm not only restored you to your peak but propelled
you even further.”
"What? Is scheming now part of your master's teachings too? You've grown a lot,
youngster."
At the mention of his mentor, Da Dou's face darkened instantly, fury boiling
over, “Don't you dare insult my teacher!”
“Ci Hai Shen, even as a senior, you're consumed by jealousy and envy. You're
nothing like a true elder should be. So, drop that pretentious act.”
“If you fear what my mentor left me, then I won't use the Flame Totem.”
“Do you dare?”
“You and I will face off alone. Are you still afraid?”
Ci Hai Shen roared with laughter. His taunts had succeeded in provoking Da Dou,
forcing him to abandon his greatest strength.
Ci Hai Shen feared Da Dou's Flame Totem above all else.
After all, Da Dou's mentor was a respected Magic MasterChef in the beastman
race. The Flame Totem was his mentor's ultimate technique.
For Ci Hai Shen to face Da Dou wielding the Flame Totem would be like fighting
two opponents at once.
“Since you, Da Dou, are so eager for a lesson, I shall accept your challenge
this time.” Ci Hai Shen finally relented, accepting the duel on the spot.
The announcement sent a roar of excitement rippling through the square.
Many cheered loudly.
The crowd, always eager for spectacle, was thoroughly intrigued by the prospect
of a duel between two gold level magic chefs.
The Snow Bird Arena's owner, present at the time, immediately offered to open
his venue as a platform for the two magic chefs to face off.
Other arena owners only then realized the opportunity, but lacking the
resources to compete with Snow Bird Arena, they could only sigh regretfully.
Upon hearing Ci Hai Shen finally accept the challenge, Da Dou breathed a sigh
of relief and added, “A duel? That's perfect!”
“Let us engage in a heroic duel as chefs.”
“But though this duel isn't a matter of life and death, there must be some
stakes involved."
"Ci Hai Shen, if you lose, you must compensate me with your Preservation
Knife!"
Ci Hai Shen was furious.
The Preservation Knife was a gold level artifact, his most formidable culinary
tool. It was virtually impossible to find on the market, and even with
blueprints, crafting a second one was nearly impossible.
It wasn't that it couldn't be made, but it required an Alchemy Great Master's
personal intervention and the collection of thirteen rare ingredients to form
the “Thirteen Delicacies.” Only with the Thirteen Delicacies as the primary
material could the knife be forged.
All thirteen ingredients were gold level, and most could be purchased on the
high-end market. But a few, like the Purple Cloud Fresh Mushroom, existed only
in the sky, and were extremely rare. That wasn't the most troublesome part. The
most difficult ingredient was the Fresh Carrot Cockscomb Flower. Nowadays, it
is nearly impossible to find anywhere in the world, though it was quite common
over three hundred years ago.
“Da Dou has gotten clever!”
“If I lose this duel and lose the Preservation Knife, I'll stand no chance
against him at the kingdom's national banquet.”
Ci Hai Shen naturally didn't want to agree to such a wager, but having already
accepted the challenge, he couldn't back down. He could only say, “So you covet
my Preservation Knife.”
“I can agree, but you must offer an equal wager in return.”
Ci Hai Shen had assumed Da Dou possessed no formidable culinary tools, yet once
again, the latter shattered his preconceptions.
Da Dou pulled a steak from an inner pocket of his clothing.
This was no magic dish, but an alchemy artifact.
A gold level alchemy artifact!
Ci Hai Shen gasped in surprise, exclaiming, “The Meat Eye?”
The Meat Eye was a rare culinary tool of equal caliber and value to his own
Preservation Knife.
Ci Hai Shen was instantly captivated.
“Then let's do it! I accept this wager!”
Ci Hai Shen's tasting session was interrupted as the two gold level magic chefs
decided to hold a culinary duel at the Snow Bird Arena.
Such an event required reporting to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and advance
communication was essential.
Ci Hai Shen further proposed selecting referees, suggesting the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord serve as chief judge.
After all, culinary contests were unique battles where victory was hard to
judge by appearance alone.
But Da Dou refused.
“How can I be sure there aren't people close to you among the referees?”
"You arrived at Snow Bird Harbor before me, and this is the realm of the
elves."
"I am a giant, an outsider."
"Therefore, this duel must be fair, let everyone serve as the judge. If you can
bribe them all, I'll concede defeat without a word."
A sharp gleam flashed in Ci Hai Shen's eyes: “You want an eating contest?”
"Of course! Isn't that the most fundamental culinary contest?" Da Dou declared.
Ci Hai Shen pondered for a moment before nodding slightly. “I accept.”
Seeing the two great magic chefs reach an agreement, the crowd at Snow Bird
Square erupted in commotion.
“What is an eating contest?” someone asked.
An expert replied, “There are many forms of culinary duels, and the eating
contest is one of them. the most fundamental of them all.”
“The competing chefs prepare transcendent dishes of various levels on the spot,
inviting others to sample them.”
“The more people eat, the more transcendent dishes are consumed. This proves
the chef's popularity, making them the ultimate victor.”
Another voice raised doubts: “Isn't that similar to a tasting event?”
“Of course not.”
"Tasting events feature chefs creating novel dishes with various challenges,
often deliberately difficult for diners. Therefore, chefs pay out of pocket,
using prize money to entice transcendents to sample their creations."
“But in an eating contest, chefs will spare no effort to create flavors that
are easier to consume and more pleasing to diners.”
“That's entirely different!”
“I can't wait! Who would've thought that two gold level magic chefs would face
off, in an eating contest, no less?”
“Yeah, we're in for a real treat this time.”
The crowd buzzed with chatter, everyone buzzing with excitement.



****** Chapter 514: Tan Mo and Tan Qiu ******
The deep night shrouded Snake Rat Island.
The light from the lighthouse guided a warship of the Sheng Ming Empire to dock
smoothly at the pier.
This warship featured a broad bow, with its superstructure positioned squarely
at the center of the deck, a cube-like structure resembling a treasure chest of
equal length, width, and height.
The treasure chest-like superstructure was adorned with intricate, layered
magic formations. Embedded within these arrays were countless gems: sapphires
the size of fists, diamonds as large as human heads, and topazes as big as
carriages.
This was the ship, Treasure Chest.
The lord of Snake Rat Island, Tan Qiu, had long been waiting at the dock with a
retinue of subordinates.
As Captain Tan Mo of the Treasure Chest descended the gangplank with his party,
Tan Qiu hurried forward to greet him.
“Cousin,” Tan Qiu said, "you've arrived! You must be weary from your journey.
The banquet has been prepared for some time."
Tan Qiu, the lord of Snake Rat Island, was an ordinary-looking, stocky middle-
aged human man. Tan Mo, captain of the Treasure Chest, was obese with a thick,
short neck. His small eyes sparkled with a shrewdness that even the night
couldn't conceal.
The two were members of the same clan.
Tan Mo remarked, “Cousin, it's been three years since we last met, hasn't it?”
Tan Qiu laughed heartily.
Tan Mo signaled to his subordinates with a glance: “Go, unload the cargo. These
goods were specifically transported for my cousin Tan Qiu.”
A look of delight spread across Tan Qiu's face as he watched the sailors begin
unloading. He once again invited Tan Mo to join the banquet.
Tan Mo replied, "I'm pressed for time. Keep it simple. No need to meet those
who aren't essential."
Tan Qiu understood immediately, nodding repeatedly as he made new arrangements.
A carriage stood ready. Tan Mo and his men boarded and were swiftly escorted to
the city lord's residence.
The dinner proved lavish indeed, clearly prepared with great care.
Originally, several key figures from Snake Rat Island were to attend, but since
Tan Mo declined to meet them, Tan Qiu simply dismissed them.
The vast banquet hall now felt rather desolate, occupied only by the two
members of their own clan and a handful of servants.
Tan Mo held a stemmed glass, sipped a small amount of red wine, then gazed
through the floor-to-ceiling windows toward the harbor.
His gaze settled on the lighthouse at the harbor.
This lighthouse was no ordinary structure. Its slender tower was crowned by a
3-meter-square cube. Both the tower and the cube gleamed silver white.
Each of the cube's four sides bore an engraved, closed eye. Atop the cube sat a
prismatic crystal, standing as tall as an adult.
This was the light cannon tower.
Tan Mo's expression remained cool, yet his words were laced with flattery.
"Cousin, your financial resources are unexpectedly substantial. You've ruled
Snake Rat Island for only so long, but you've already set up a light cannon
tower."
“I'm certain the clan will be pleased to see your successful operations here.”
Tan Qiu hastily offered a wry smile. "Cousin, spare me the sarcasm. As a naval
officer, you surely understand that light cannon towers cost far less than mage
towers. They're deliberately developed by the Empire as disposable defensive
assets for invading the Wilderness Continent."
“As for mage towers? I dare not even dream of them.”
“Even this light cannon tower, I tightened my belt, scrimped and saved,
hesitated for ages, before finally gritting my teeth and buying it.”
“Sigh, this tower has practically drained the Snake Rat Island Lord's treasury
dry.”
"Life's tough, but what can I do? Pirate activity is growing increasingly
rampant. The seas are turbulent, and all manner of monsters are emerging. Just
months ago, Two Eyes Island, not far from ours, suffered a massive assault by
the fishmen."
“I saw intelligence reports indicating the spotlight turret performed quite
well in that battle.”
"For the safety of my domain, I had no choice but to procure one. And just this
one!"
Facing Tan Qiu's complaints and pleas of poverty, Tan Mo merely snorted. He
gave Tan Qiu a meaningful glance before focusing his attention back on the red
wine glass in his hand.
Leaning back in his chair, he swirled the stemmed glass leisurely. “Tan Qiu, do
you think I'm unaware?”
“You captured Rou Zang's pirate crew and amassed a fortune in war spoils!”
"You took Gu Qiao alive and had him redeemed by the Great Pain Temple. You
pocketed a hefty ransom for that too.”
"And then there's Rou Zang, a gold level pirate, no less. You handed him over
to the Empire and earned massive military merit. Once this achievement is
properly accounted for, it could very well earn you a knighthood.”
"But if I were you, I'd sell Rou Zang to the Great Pain Temple. They're willing
to pay, and with their vast wealth and influence, they can afford the hefty
ransom."
Tan Qiu's expression shifted for a moment before he sighed bitterly. "Ah, to be
honest, I'd love to do just that. "
“But there's no way around it. The Sheng Ming Church originally controlled
Snake Rat Island.”
“After the battle with Rou Zang, the priest was killed in action, causing
shifts within the diocese.”
“Now, the Justice Church has taken over, aggressively pushing out the Sheng
Ming Church and gaining complete dominance.”
“I had to mend fences with the Sheng Ming Church, so I followed their approach
and sent Rou Zang up the chain.”
“But with all this skimming, my share of the battle merits is drastically
reduced. Forget about getting promoted to a noble rank!”
Tan Mo raised his eyebrows slightly, intrigued. “That sounds like a good
thing.”
“The Sheng Ming Church is too powerful. Compared to them, the Justice Church is
just a minor church.”
“This greatly benefits your authority as a lord.”
“It seems your skills are truly formidable, cousin. You managed to secure the
Sheng Ming Church without getting entangled in church rivalries.”
Tan Qiu gave another bitter smile: “Cousin, bringing in the Justice Church was
part of the pre-war agreement.”
"Lord Guang Ke hails from the Justice Church, and we desperately needed his
gold level combat strength.  Therefore, not only did I agree, but the priest
also represented the Sheng Ming Church in giving his consent."
“Having a clear magic contract is the best reason to prevent the Sheng Ming
Church from causing me trouble!”
Tan Mo gazed at Tan Qiu, whose face bore a bitter expression, his eyes growing
distant.
He couldn't help but recall the past.
In his memory, this younger cousin had always been unremarkable. His peers
within the clan had nicknamed him “Loach.”
“Who would've thought this little loach would actually revitalize Snake Rat
Island?”
“On the Sheng Ming Continent, given his status, how could he possibly have
acquired such vast territories?”
“Though somewhat barren, it has its pillars of industry!”
Tide snakes, smelt rats... even the Hunter Guild was drawn here, establishing a
branch."
"Then there's the conflict between the Sheng Ming Church and the Justice
Church... This cousin possesses considerable political skill and favorable
fortune. The Sheng Ming Priest truly did perish in that naval battle."
“Henceforth, these two churches will check each other, only serving to
highlight his authority as a secular lord!”
At this thought, Tan Mo's mood grew complex and subtle.
“My Lord, the cargo has been fully accounted for,” Tan Qiu's subordinate
reported at that moment. “However, a batch of slime gelatin is missing.”
“Hm?” Tan Qiu's brow instantly furrowed.
The cargo unloaded from the Treasure Chest was procured through his family's
channels.
This voyage happened to take Tan Mo's route past Snake Rat Island, so the
family had arranged for the Treasure Chest to serve as a transport vessel.
The ship's interior offered ample space, making it ideal for shipping.
“Slime gelatin may not be expensive, but it's the most fundamental material for
constructing my defenses. We absolutely cannot be without it!” Tan Mo frowned.
He pressed his subordinate, “Did you check thoroughly?”
The subordinate hurriedly replied, “We've counted it three times. The only
possibility is that it's still...”
His voice trailed off involuntarily, growing faint. He quickly glanced up at
Tan Mo across the table.
Tan Qiu sighed inwardly, thinking, “This was bound to happen.”
He knew his cousin's nature all too well. He had already paid the transport
fees this time, yet this unexpected turn of events had still occurred.
Tan Qiu dismissed his subordinate and turned to face Tan Mo, only to see the
latter wearing a smug, smiling expression.
He suppressed his anger and feigned confusion. “Cousin, our men just finished
inventory and found a batch of slime gelatin is missing.”
Tan Mo let out a surprised “Oh? Is that so?”
Tan Qiu frowned, explaining that while slime gelatin was a basic alchemy
ingredient, it was crucial for Snake Rat Island. He hoped Tan Mo would dispatch
subordinates to search and recover the missing gelatin.
Tan Mo deliberately frowned. “That's difficult, cousin. It's not that I don't
want to find it, but it's quite challenging.”
"You don't know, but there's a VIP on my ship. I dare not offend him!"
“It seems the slime gelatin was stored near the VIP's cabin, where noise is
strictly forbidden.”
“Who might this important person be?” Tan Qiu pressed.
Tan Mo chuckled. "Someone from the Blood Light Punishment Institution. He's
heading to Two Eyes Island to investigate matters concerning necromancers. I
was ordered to escort him here. Truth be told, you owe him a debt of gratitude.
Otherwise, how could my ship ever have come to Snake Rat Island?"
"The Blood Light Punishment Institution!" Tan Qiu's heart jolted, his
expression shifting instantly.
Tan Mo invoking the Blood Light Punishment Institution was truly ruthless, Tan
Qiu dared not entertain such thoughts.
He clapped his hands, summoning a servant. He whispered instructions into her
ear.
The servant departed and soon returned, bearing a wooden gift box.
The exquisitely crafted wooden box was presented upon Tan Mo's desk.
Tan Mo feigned surprise: “Cousin, what might this signify?”
Tan Qiu plastered on a smile: "Elder cousin, just a small token. You've been
escorting the Blood Light Punishment Institution's people, a demanding task,
yet you still found time amidst your busy schedule to come here and help me
transport supplies. Your kindness is overwhelming, how could I not show my
gratitude?"
“This is a small token of my humble appreciation. Please accept it.”
Tan Mo gently opened the box, and a radiant glow instantly illuminated his
face.
He saw three rare gold level treasures. The most striking was the mica pearl in
the center, as large as a small bowl.
Tan Mo's heart skipped three beats.
Yet his expression remained impassive. He calmly closed the box and smiled
warmly at Tan Qiu. "Cousin, this is too much! You've really gone out of your
way!"
Though he protested, his hand moved smoothly and naturally, tucking the box
into his storage bracelet.
Tan Qiu hurriedly insisted this was merely a token of his heartfelt gratitude,
which couldn't possibly match his profound thanks.
He further emphasized his dire straits, stressing how crucial the slime gelatin
was to him!
Tan Mo nodded, immediately summoning his subordinates. His demeanor shifted as
he instructed them: “Find the slime gelatin and transport it down without
disturbing the important figures. Do whatever it takes.”
Subordinates soon reported the supplies had been located and were being
transported down at great risk.
Tan Mo's extortion succeeded. His men didn't even need Snake Rat Island's help,
they transported the slime gelatin down themselves. His attitude now stood in
stark contrast to before.
Tan Qiu's heart burned with rage, but he forced himself to suppress it. He
raised his cup to Tan Mo in gratitude: “Cousin, you've truly done me an immense
favor this time.”
Having secured what he wanted, Tan Mo relaxed and genuinely shared a few cups
with Tan Qiu.
As the atmosphere grew more convivial, their conversation naturally turned to
the development of Snake Rat Island.
Tan Qiu sighed, "The greatest resources in our domain are the tide snake and
smelt rats in the underground caverns. To attract the Hunter Guild to establish
a branch here, I offered them substantial concessions."
"Now, the populations of tide snakes and smelt rats have plummeted. According
to our estimates, even if all hunting were halted immediately, it would take
five years for them to naturally repopulate to their former peak levels."
Tan Mo expressed curiosity: "From what I understand, the Hunter Guild isn't
known for such practices. They emphasize sustainable development. How could
this local branch act so unwisely?"
Tan Qiu shook his head: “This isn't their fault.”
“The primary culprit is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
At the mention of them, Tan Mo gritted his teeth in fury. “Those bastards
infiltrated my Snake Rat Island, secretly poaching countless tide snakes and
smelt rats, devastating the ecosystem.”
“We were kept in the dark until recently, when we discovered massive numbers of
tide snakes and smelt rats had been hunted down.”
“Oh?” Tan Mo raised an eyebrow.
He had specifically investigated Snake Rat Island's intelligence to blackmail
Tan Qiu. The naval battle with Rou Zang was the most critical part, making the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps unavoidable in their collection of intelligence.
Thus, Tan Mo knew quite a lot about them.
"These people seem to be arms smugglers? Their strength is quite formidable!"
“They were a huge help to you in that naval battle.”
“Without them, you likely wouldn't have defeated Rou Zang.”
“Uh...” Tan Qiu's indignant expression faltered, replaced by awkwardness.
He continued, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps made far too much profit off
me.”
“When they left, they took numerous sea vessels. These were all spoils from the
naval battle."
"What's most infuriating was how they had aggressively recruited here,
snatching up all the island's talent. That included giants and magicians."
“Even low level magicians, I desperately need them.”
"So now, despite replenished supplies, Snake Rat Island is starved for
manpower. I'm sorely lacking capable subordinates."
Tan Mo remained noncommittal, finally asking, "Have you investigated this
group? Do you know who the arms dealer behind them truly is?"
Tan Qiu shook his head and shrugged, indicating he'd tried but to no avail.
They were hiding too deeply!
Tan Mo felt the same frustration.
After learning of this identity speculation from intelligence sources, he
mobilized his own channels and resources to investigate the background of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
He came up empty-handed.
"It's only natural for arms smugglers to keep a low profile. This is a business
where you risk your life!"
“If I uncovered them immediately, I'd actually doubt the investigation's
credibility.”
“But if we could truly root out the arms dealers, that would be a monumental
achievement!”
Having gained no useful information from Tan Qiu, Tan Mo saw no reason to
linger.
After a lavish dinner, he parted ways with Tan Qiu, boarded the Treasure Chest,
and set sail through the night.



****** Chapter 515: Assault Plan ******
While Tan Mo and Tan Qiu discussed intelligence on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, another group was also strategizing.
Snow Bird Harbor, slums.
“This is all the intel we have on our target for this operation.” The leader
placed a stack of reports before the transcendents.
The transcendents radiated a lean, formidable aura, with most at the iron
level. Several leaders were silver level.
The intelligence circulated rapidly among the group.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps...”
"Their strongest is the leader, Long Fu. Though young, his combat prowess is
exceptional. His most outstanding achievement was the duel at the Snow Bird
Arena. In that battle, he defeated a gold level opponent as a silver level, a
feat unseen in a century!
“Footage of that fight spread nationwide and remains wildly popular to this
day.”
Naturally, the intelligence included footage of that battle.
The transcendents watched in silence. Most had seen it before; only a few had
not.
Those who hadn't watched it were nearly moved to tears afterward.
“Long Fu's victory over Lord Teng Dong Lang was actually quite narrow.”
“But his fighting spirit was incredibly resilient. He was at a disadvantage
from the start, yet never gave up.”
"Ultimately, killing Lord Teng Dong Lang involved a significant element of
luck. But how to put it? The victor is king!"
“Such fighting spirit... If he weren't an enemy, I'd want to be friends with
him.”
The transcendents exchanged a few words.
The leader cleared his throat, his expression grave. "We must admit, Long Fu
possesses undeniable personal charisma. He engaged Lord Teng Dong Lang in a
heroic duel, one-on-one, overcoming strength with finesse. He earned his
victory honorably, leaving nothing to criticize."
“That is precisely why he has become the hottest duelist sensation across the
nation recently.”
"Numerous arenas have invited him to duel, but he has declined every offer.
Currently, he and his operatives are touring the kingdom's major cities,
establishing sales points for potions."
"You may not know this, but the dragon rider potion is the potion the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps is aggressively promoting. This potion has already flooded
the kingdom's potion market, gaining tremendous momentum and widespread
popularity!"
“This alone demonstrates how strategically savvy Long Fu is.”
“He's pursuing far more significant and meaningful endeavors.”
“According to others' analysis, if their business plan continues unchecked,
they'll firmly establish themselves in the kingdom's potion market and carve
out a substantial niche.”
“Forget their future alchemy products, just sustained sales of this dragon
rider potion alone would make them a fortune overnight!”
“This is the greatest significance of our current operation.”
“Destroy the four alchemy workshops in Snow Bird Harbor—they are the production
bases for the dragon rider potion!”
The leader pointed to the next section of the intelligence: “Long Fu is
currently far from Snow Bird Harbor. We don't need to engage him directly.”
“In this operation, our greatest enemy is him!”
Everyone's gaze fell upon two large characters - Shi Qi.
Zong Ge, posing as Shi Qi, served as the deputy commander of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
This time, disguised as Long Fu, he set out alongside Zi Di. Simultaneously, he
deployed alchemy puppets. Using the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, he mimicked Shi Qi's presence, creating the
illusion that the commander had departed while the deputy remained in charge of
the branch.
The Deceptive Disguise spell possessed a high rank, effortlessly fooling the
enemy. Consequently, these forces remained convinced Shi Qi was stationed at
the Snow Bird Harbor branch, making him their primary target.
“Long Fu's combat prowess is extraordinary, and Shi Qi's strength should not be
underestimated either.”
“He demonstrated outstanding performance in both the Snake Rat Island naval
battle and the Two Eyes Island battle.”
“His battle qi now carries a golden glow, proof he stands but a step away from
gold level!”
They pored over intelligence, desperately seeking Zong Ge's weaknesses to
exploit.
As the group analyzed the situation, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.
“Shi Qi has almost no weaknesses!”
“As a fighter, he can withstand heavy damage and has strong recovery abilities.
It'll be hard to take him down in one strike.”
"His unarmed combat skills are already formidable. Armed with weapons, he
becomes even more powerful. During the battle, we must find a way to deprive
him of his weapons!"
The transcendents successively devised three battle plans.
Whichever plan they chose, heavy casualties were inevitable.
There was no way around it. Though they held the advantage of surprise and
initiative from their concealed position, since Long Fu departed, Shi Qi had
remained anchored at the docks, rarely venturing out, not even taking mercenary
contracts.
The docks were routinely guarded by the city guard.
Most crucially, there was a magician tower!
The transcendents preparing to launch a surprise attack in such an environment
had all braced themselves for certain death.
Yet the next moment, the leader suddenly received the latest orders relayed
from above.
He stepped out briefly, returning with a look of delight on his face: “We
needn't worry about how to deal with the Shi Qi, the higher-ups have already
dispatched a gold level assassin.”
Upon hearing this news, the transcendents all cheered.
The toughest nut to crack had been taken care of by others. Now, their targets
were the scattered alchemy workshops.
One large alchemy workshop lay by the seaside in the southeast corner of Snow
Bird Harbor.
Two medium-sized workshops were located at: Mercury Cave and Rose Beach.
One small workshop, situated within the city walls, operated year-round by Bu
Quan.
Intelligence on the four workshops included extensive video footage and aerial-
view sandbox models.
"The large coastal workshop can be stormed directly, it lacks significant
defensive capabilities. In fact, excessive defenses would pose a threat the
city government palace wouldn't tolerate."
“We can deploy heavy firepower, save this one for last, and arrange our retreat
route along the nearby coastline.”
"The Mercury Cave is easy to defend but hard to attack, and this workshop is
guarded by numerous alchemy puppets. Since we've already identified how these
puppets are commanded, we can use alchemy devices to target them and
temporarily disable them."
"The Rose Beach area is similarly open terrain, suitable for a direct assault.
We can also leave a retreat route there and destroy it during withdrawal.
However, the large workshop requires setting up artillery for bombardment. In
short, both locations can be taken by assault or bombardment."
"Finally, the small workshop within the city poses the greatest challenge for a
surprise attack. Its position is already quite close to the city government
palace. Those executing the assault may not have time to retreat, be prepared
to die in battle!"
“This small workshop houses extremely advanced facilities. It's the absolute
priority, our primary target for destruction.”
"Bu Quan is likely inside. Intelligence indicates she's been working long-term
in that small workshop! Therefore, we must also confront a silver level
magician."
"The only silver lining is that Bu Quan is a dedicated alchemist with weak
combat skills. Even so, she remains a magician wielding formidable alchemy
power, we cannot afford complacency!"
Someone inquired: “If Bu Quan demonstrates overwhelming combat prowess and
shows no mercy, may we execute her?”
The leader fell silent, his expression betraying hesitation.
Others began debating.
“Bu Quan is a member of the Alchemy Guild, one of our own. We should spare her
life if possible.”
"No! In my view, since she joined the enemy, she's a traitor, our enemy!
Against enemies, we strike to kill."
"Are you brain-dead? Didn't you read the intel? Bu Quan is highly capable. She
was merely blinded by emotion when she agreed to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps."
"Her joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps actually proves she's a person of
honor and loyalty. She's just too young. Having focused solely on alchemy for
years, she doesn't understand the treacherous ways of the world and fell victim
to Long Fu's beauty trap."
"Bu Quan is valuable, but if we spare her life instead of killing her, even if
we destroy all four alchemy workshops, it won't achieve much, right? Clearly,
Bu Quan is the core alchemist of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps."
The leader pondered and concluded, then spoke: "Capture her alive if possible.
If capture proves impossible, retreat, but spare her life."
“She's a rare talent and a native citizen of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Time
will mature her, helping her discern friends from foes.”
The leader added, "If this operation succeeds, we'll act opportunistically. If
an opportunity arises, do your utmost to destroy the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ new flagship."
"As you've long observed, the magic ship they acquired as their flagship is
actually one of our nation's regular warships. It was merely retired early
during this round of military optimization."
At this point, expressions of fury surged across the faces of the other
transcendents.
“Those fat pigs in the Military Supply Department, so corrupt and greedy,
they'd even sell warships!”
“These traitors sold out national interests for personal gain. They deserve to
be hung!”
“If I survive this battle, I'll hunt down every last one of them and kill them
all!”
“Count me in!”
"Damn right. I couldn't stand these bastards when I was serving. Count me in
too."
As the transcendents discussed, their identities were revealed.
They had all served in the kingdom's regular army. Even after leaving active
duty, they retained their loyalty to the kingdom and formidable combat prowess.
This operation was led by Mei Lin.
She was a commander in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's First Navy, but she could
not deploy regular military forces. Previously, she had led a contingent of
holy warriors to ambush and destroy a Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps caravan. Yet
days passed, and the supply of dragon rider potions in the market showed no
sign of diminishing.
Mei Lin immediately realized the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must be secretly
transporting the potions through other channels.
She couldn't trace it back to the Mountain Peak Merchant Alliance in the short
term.
But unwilling to delay the opportunity, she swiftly assembled a group of elite
veterans and infiltrated Snow Bird Harbor. Their mission: to raid the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps' branch office and their alchemy workshops!
The leader gave final instructions: “The operation is set for the day of the
culinary duel.”
“By then, most transcendents will be gathered at the Snow Bird Arena, and the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Group branch will also send representatives to watch.”
"The defenses at the branch and alchemy workshop will be at their weakest. This
is our prime opportunity to strike."
“If any of us are defeated and captured, remember what to do?”
The transcendents responded in unison: "Understood, Commander! We will
immediately take our own lives. We will never give the enemy any leverage to
attack our nation, nor allow the kingdom to be disgraced!"



****** Chapter 516: Teacher: Where&#x27;s My Little Quan Quan? ******
Bu Quan had been in a state of hesitation for quite some time.
This was within the city walls of Snow Bird Harbor.
A central area near the city government palace.
This small alchemy workshop was also the place Bu Quan had loved most before
joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
On the table, a spherical beaker contained a potion being heated. Pink bubbles
continuously rose from the yellow-green liquid.
Bu Quan's pupils dilated slightly as her mind drifted.
Yet her movements remained utterly precise, each step in the potion's
preparation executed with flawless accuracy.
Even while multitasking, Bu Quan's profound alchemy expertise allowed this
experiment to refine the formula to proceed smoothly and methodically.
“Should I write that letter after all, asking my mentor for help?” Bu Quan felt
deeply embarrassed.
She knew full well that her entire journey thus far owed much to her mentor's
guidance and support.
Her mentor's care and attention far exceeded that given to others, to the point
of arousing jealousy.
Despite her mentor's profound devotion, Bu Quan had insisted on journeying to
Snow Bird Harbor to avenge her nanny. Yet her mentor hadn't stopped her.
Instead, she had mobilized her connections to protect Bu Quan.
All along, Bu Quan had harbored a deep sense of guilt toward her mentor.
After joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, this guilt only deepened. Bu
Quan understood clearly that her mentor had always been cultivating her,
grooming her to be the heir to the magician tower.
Yet Bu Quan had cast aside those expectations for her own sake, driven by
curiosity about a different way of life.
Truthfully, Bu Quan felt the pressure too.
The moment she chose to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, she knew she
could hardly face her mentor. She desperately wanted to explain yet found no
way to do so. She refused to deceive her mentor.
Thus, she never reported her current choices or living situation to her mentor.
Fearing confrontation, she adopted an evasive mindset, hoping to send Magician
Zhong Bei back to the Alchemy Guild as a way to inform her teacher.
After rejecting Magician Zhong Bei, she waited for her mentor's letter of
reproach.
Instead, she received Magician Da Bei and his son, Magician Zhong Bei.
Bu Quan rejected Magician Da Bei once more, resuming her wait for her mentor's
rebuke.
But the letter never came. Instead, she received a request from the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
It was a request for her to write a letter herself, asking her teacher for
assistance!
This matter presented a massive psychological barrier for Bu Quan.
“I already feel terribly guilty toward my teacher.”
“Now, to ask her to intervene... How shameless of me!”
“But... the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' situation is truly dire.”
"Especially Long Fu, the commander, he was ambushed by three gold level
mercenaries. Thankfully, his strength is formidable; he killed all three."
"He truly lives up to the reputation of the man I chose."
Thinking of the dragonman youngster, Bu Quan's eyes lit up, and the corners of
her mouth curved upward involuntarily, revealing the sweet smile of a woman in
love.
Little did she know that the one who achieved this astonishing feat wasn't her
beloved, but Zong Ge.
“The commander cares deeply for me, so he specially wrote to warn me.”
“If I hadn't gone to invite the teacher, I might have fallen into grave
danger.”
“Perhaps...”
As she pondered, Bu Quan's thoughts began to wander.
"Perhaps the enemy attacked. They assaulted fiercely, ruthlessly and
mercilessly, overrunning this place. Even the magician tower was destroyed by
them
“I fought desperately, but four opponents were too much.”
"At the most critical moment, the commander descended from the heavens, a hero
rescuing his damsel in distress! With just three moves, he knocked the enemy to
the ground."
"He held me in his arms, his face filled with tenderness as he whispered, 'I'm
sorry, Bu Quan, I came too late. Where are you hurt?'"
At this thought, two patches of red spread across Bu Quan's cheeks.
She shook her head, her thoughts continuing to wander.
“No, it was because I knew these potions held immense value for the mercenary
corps.”
“I could have retreated, but to protect them, I had to stay and fight the
enemy.”
"I battled them to the bitter end and successfully safeguarded the potions. But
in doing so, I paid a heavy price."
"I was dying, beyond saving. As I lay dying, the commander arrived and swiftly
cut down the remaining foes."
“He held me in his arms, heedless of my blood-soaked body, wailing with grief
and regret, blaming himself for not returning sooner.”
“He cried out my name, refusing to let me slip into unconsciousness and death.”
"My face was deathly pale as I mustered every ounce of strength to reach out
and touch the commander's cheek, feeling the tears streaming down his face."
"I told him, 'Lord Long Fu, I protected these potions. I did what Sister Yao Ma
instructed me to do.'"
"'No, Bu Quan. You're so foolish, you're so truly foolish. In my heart, you
matter more than these potions. A hundred times more, a thousand times more,
ten thousand times more!' Lord Long Fu cried out."
“He glared fiercely at Magician Yao Ma beside him, then clasped my hand
tightly: ‘Promise me, Bu Quan, don't leave me. Hold on, don't fall asleep,
okay?’”
“But I couldn't hold on. I died.”
"From that day on, Lord Long Fu had eyes only for me. No matter how beautiful
or talented those around him were, no matter how desperately Magician Yao Ma
pursued him, he remained unmoved."
"In the end, as Magician Yao Ma lay dying, she sighed with profound regret: 'In
my entire life, I lost to only one woman. That woman was Bu Quan. That woman
was Bu Quan. Though she lost her life, she won Lord Long Fu’s heart. How I wish
I could have taken her place, but now it’s too late...’"
At this thought, Bu Quan’s eyes reddened. She sank into her own reverie,
enveloped by the sorrow and emotion spreading through her heart.
After a long while, her cheeks flushed crimson with heat before the strange
crackling sound of the potion mixing snapped her back to reality.
Her thoughts halted abruptly as she stared blankly at the finished potion in
her hands.
Her alchemy skill was profound, her talent exceptional. Even while deeply
distracted, she had successfully crafted a silver level potion.
Bu Quan's emotions remained unsettled. She felt no joy at the potion's success;
her mind was filled only with the dragonman youngster's image.
“I care little for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but if Commander Long Fu
grieves for me, I too will grieve!”
"Teacher... I have failed you. But this time, I must ask for your help."
“Because I refuse to see Lord Long Fu suffer for me, to remain unmarried for
life, to carry regret forever.”
“True lovers should be united forever. I cannot let the world's greatest
tragedy unfold!”
With this resolve, Bu Quan steeled herself. Gritting her teeth, she summoned
her courage and, filled with love, began writing the letter.
After finishing the plea for help, Bu Quan immediately utilized the Alchemy
Guild's channels to send the letter back by express delivery.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps relied on messengers using teleportation
formations to deliver communications.
Bu Quan didn't need that.
She was a member of the Alchemy Guild, a major organization within the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom that commanded considerable resources and connections.
The Alchemy Guild operated numerous teleportation formations specifically for
transmitting confidential messages. These formations, incapable of transporting
living beings, had obtained royal permission and passed a series of stringent
inspections, enabling direct transmission from Snow Bird Harbor to the Ice
Sculpture capital.
Alchemy Guild Headquarters.
Snow Honey Tower.
The tower master was none other than Bu Quan's teacher, Shuang Lian.
She pushed open the heavy door of the alchemy chamber, emerging with heavy dark
circles under her eyes and a vacant expression.
The large-scale alchemy experiment that had lasted several months had ended in
failure.
Shuang Lian was in a terrible mood.
Her apprentices gathered around her. Some tried to support her, but she shook
off their hands. Others offered damp towels and prepared meals, but she refused
those too.
“Teacher, you haven't eaten, drunk, or slept for months while researching
alchemy. You need to rest.”
“Yes, we've prepared a feast for you, the result of a week's careful
preparation.”
“I've compiled the mage tower's revenue reports and documented all the events
unfolding across the kingdom during your alchemy seclusion. I stand ready to
brief you at any moment.”
Yet none of this held Shuang Lian's interest.
She demanded, “Where is Little Quan Quan?”
Not spotting the face she sought among the crowd, her disappointment deepened.
“Ah... I remember now. Little Quan Quan has already left me.”
“How is she doing?”
“Where are her letters?”
“Let me see them now! I need to read her letters to soothe my wounded heart.”
The other disciples and students looked downcast. One stepped forward: "Junior
Bu Quan's letters have all been collected and stored in the mailroom on the
third floor. Teacher, I'll fetch them for you immediately."
Shuang Lian nodded. “I'll go to the study. Hurry and bring the letters here.”
After Shuang Lian left the floor, the disciples and apprentices murmured
discontentedly.
One pouted, “How long has Bu Quan been gone? Teacher still can't forget her.”
Another sighed resentfully, “I underestimated her. I never thought even after
she left, Teacher would still care most about her!”
"Teacher clearly misses her so much, yet she's been staying alone in Snow Bird
Harbor all this time, only writing back every once in a while. Why is Teacher
so kind to someone like that?"
Others gloated: "Heh, Bu Quan's definitely going to get scolded this time.
Teacher will surely lose her temper later; there's trouble at the Alchemy
Guild. Bu Quan has joined that Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps."
"When the Teacher gets angry, someone's bound to suffer. Ah! Are there any
field assignments at the mage tower? I want to go out."
“Me too, me too!”
"I'd rather stay and see how this plays out. If Bu Quan gets ordered back, that
scene will be priceless!"
Shuang Lian returned to her study.
From a desk drawer, she retrieved a compact cosmetic mirror.
An alchemy artifact - the Facial Cleansing Nourishing Mirror.
She gazed into the mirror. Instantly, her face underwent thorough cleansing,
followed by the application of nourishing cream and meticulous care.
Though still utterly exhausted, her complexion brightened considerably,
restoring her appearance to that of the middle-aged beauty who resembled a snow
spirit.
“Little Quan Quan...” Shuang Lian traced her fingers along the mirror's frame,
her expression filled with longing.
This very mirror had been a small birthday gift from Bu Quan.
“Teacher, these are all the letters from Junior Bu Quan.” The student delivered
the mail to the study.
Shuang Lian nodded slightly. “Place them on the desk. You may leave now.”
The apprentice had barely reached the doorway when Shuang Lian called her back.
"Wait. Are these truly all the letters? Surely not? After such a long time, Bu
Quan has only written these few letters to me?"
The apprentice felt uneasy, hesitating to tell the truth outright. She evaded,
"Teacher, these truly are all of them. The one at the very bottom was delivered
just today."
Shuang Lian's brow furrowed slightly, her heart skipping a beat as a sense of
foreboding rose within her.
“This isn't normal. Could something have happened to my beloved apprentice?”
She dismissed the apprentice, swiftly tore open the letter, and examined it
closely.
The earlier letters contained routine matters.
Bu Quan reported on her daily life, asking questions and discussing alchemy
issues.
But the last few letters revealed a drastic change.
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?"
“Their leader, Long Fu, actually indirectly avenged Little Quan Quan.”
“To slay a gold level opponent as a silver level... this dragonman is no
ordinary being.”
At first, Shuang Lian had held quite a bit of admiration for the dragonman
youngster.
But then...
"What?!" Shuang Lian's eyes widened, nearly screaming.
"Little Quan Quan actually joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps? At the
invitation of Long Fu?"
“Foolish! Utterly foolish!”
“How could Little Quan Quan join a mercenary group? And just a small, silver
level one at that?” And an outsider at that?"
"What invitation from the commander? It's clearly deception and trickery! Yes,
that damned dragonman scoundrel must have used smooth talk and flattery to
deceive my Little Quan Quan."
“My poor Little Quan Quan, so inexperienced in the ways of the world, has
fallen victim to such deception and strayed onto the wrong path in life!”
"Damn it! If that dragonman shows his face before me, I'll tear him limb from
limb right now!
"This is outrageous! What was the Alchemy Guild thinking? Didn't I arrange for
someone to guard Little Quan Quan around the clock?"
"Who was responsible for this? How could they stand by and watch Little Quan
Quan get deceived and board a scammer's ship?"
The middle-aged beauty grew angrier the more she thought about it.
"Let me recall... I remember the person assigned was named something like
‘Bei’. He's also the son of some elder in the guild, supposedly very reliable."
“Is that all it takes to be reliable?”
Shuang Lian crumpled the letter in her hand so fiercely it lost its shape, yet
the supervisor's name eluded her memory.
Just then, the tower spirit of the mage tower spoke: “Tower Master, I hear
you've concluded your alchemy experiments.  Three important visitors seek your
audience. They are Master Cai Jing, Elder Da Bei, and Magician Zhong Bei.”
“Zhong Bei?” Shuang Lian froze, then flashed with fury. "Him! Yes, that one,
Zhong Bei."
“Fine. Very fine. I haven’t even sought trouble with him, and he comes looking
for me!”
“What? He brought his father and another henchman too?”
“Is this a threat?”



****** Chapter 517: Shuang Lian vs Cai Jing, Da Bei, and Zhong Bei ******
The three magicians, Zhong Bei, Da Bei, and Cai Jing, stood before Snow Honey
Tower.
Gazing up at the towering mage tower, Cai Jing and the others wore expressions
of envy.
Owning a mage tower was no easy feat.
The construction costs were exorbitant, placing them beyond the reach of most
magicians. Typically, only regional powers possessed the financial resources to
construct one.
Of course, such regional powers also needed to be wealthy. Places like Snake
Rat Island simply couldn't afford the cost of building a mage tower.
For magicians, controlling even the lowest level mage tower brought immense
benefits. The Snow Honey Tower before them boasted a full five levels.
After escaping from Qian Xing via the teleportation formation on Flower Skirt
Island, Zhong Bei, Da Bei, and Cai Jing immediately headed for the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
After all, the safest place near Flower Skirt Island was the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom.
Upon arriving at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, Magician Da Bei leveraged his
status and authority to swiftly transport the other two through various town
teleportation formations, reaching the royal capital.
Upon entering the Alchemy Guild headquarters, they stated their intentions and
recounted their journey.
The Alchemy Guild took this matter extremely seriously.
For it concerned the inheritance of Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
This was a legend level treasure!
Master Cai Jing had previously clashed with the Alchemy Guild, but in the face
of such immense profit, those conflicts naturally melted away.
However, before formal cooperation could begin, one obstacle remained.
As the Alchemy Guildmaster stated: “Before jointly utilizing Master Fan Sheng
Za Zhong's legacy, we must fully consider the stance of another elder.”
The figure commanding the respect of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Guildmaster
was none other than Bu Quan's mentor - the Snow Honey Tower Master - Shuang
Lian.
The Guildmaster continued to advise the trio: "You may not fully grasp Shuang
Lian's feelings toward Bu Quan. She genuinely nurtured her as the chosen
successor."
“Even allowing Bu Quan to depart for Snow Bird Harbor was a deliberate
opportunity she granted her for growth.”
"Therefore, it would be best if you could secure Shuang Lian's personal
understanding before proceeding with this collaboration. Otherwise, given her
nature, she could very well create significant obstacles for our partnership."
Thus, Cai Jing and the others arrived at the Snow Honey Tower to formally visit
Shuang Lian.
“I hope we can explain things clearly,” said Magician Zhong Bei, visibly
uneasy.
Magician Da Bei reassured his son: “I'm here. Like Shuang Lian, I'm also an
elder of the Alchemy Guild. During our conversation, stay composed and avoid
any friction!"
Master Cai Jing shook his head, his tone bitter. “Bu Quan received cultivation
from the mage tower master, yet she joined a mercenary group outright? What was
she thinking?”
Though Cai Jing was a gold level powerhouse, he genuinely envied Bu Quan, a
silver level prodigy.
In his quest for cultivation resources, Master Cai Jing had once resorted to
manufacturing counterfeit potions, leading the Alchemy Guild to exile this
rule-breaker.
Master Cai Jing had previously been unaware of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
and Bu Quan's story. But since they were visiting Shuang Lian, magicians Zhong
Bei and Da Bei naturally laid everything out.
This included why they sought out Cai Jing to forge counterfeit dragon rider
potions.
Master Cai Jing thus learned the full story, gaining insight into the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, Bu Quan, and other related information.
"We possess one of the inheritances of Fan Sheng Za Zhong. If all else fails,
we'll simply hand it over to Shuang Lian as a bargaining chip!"
As Master Cai Jing spoke, the space suddenly erupted with violent fluctuations.
The three magicians attempted to vanish and retreat, but simultaneously, the
mage towers before them erupted with power, pinning them firmly to the spot.
Caught off guard, the magicians were swept up by the spatial turbulence.
Their vision abruptly shifted.
In the next instant, they had been transported from the Alchemy Guild
headquarters into a vast, frozen wasteland.
A fierce wind howled, whipping up mountains of snow.
Amidst the swirling snow, a colossal humanoid apparition coalesced.
This towering figure, reaching skyward and straddling the earth, bore an
uncanny resemblance to Shuang Lian.
Da Bei was the first to recognize it, immediately shouting, “Elder Shuang Lian!
It's me, Da Bei! Hold your fire! We can talk this out!”
Magician Zhong Bei also cried out anxiously, “Lord Shuang Lian, I can explain!
I can explain everything!”
The snow-formed figure gazed down upon the three ants beneath its feet, its
voice booming across the land: “Explain what? What is there to explain?”
“You lost my student, yet you dare come knocking on my door.”
“Even if you brought others with you, they're no match for me!”
With that, the shadowy figure abruptly shattered, transforming into a
torrential blizzard.
Snowflakes pelted their faces, mingled with howling winds.
The temperature plummeted rapidly, soon freezing them to the bone.
In the three magicians' vision, everything was a white haze. Countless masses
of ice and snow surged in from all directions, overwhelming them.
The three felt like ordinary mortals, trapped in a once-in-a-century
catastrophic blizzard.
So small!
So weak!
A bitter sorrow welled up in their hearts, a thread of despair taking root deep
within.
“No! I refuse to die here!” Zhong Bei shouted, clutching his head.
Cai Jing shot a glare at Da Bei. He had overestimated the latter's reputation.
Never did he expect this visit to Shuang Lian would land them in such peril.
Master Cai Jing swiftly cast spells. First, he erected a magician shield to
stabilize their position. Then, he swung his staff, flinging away the
surrounding snow to clear their vision.
Amidst the chaos, he still found time to plant seeds, waiting for them to take
root and sprout.
Magician Da Bei followed suit, casting spells to counter the raging blizzard.
Compared to them, Magician Zhong Bei was merely silver level, utterly
inadequate against this natural disaster.
In truth, even the two gold level magicians found it difficult.
“This is bad. My gold level spells aren't packing their usual punch.” Master
Cai Jing quickly sensed something amiss.
"This is Magician Shuang Lian's demi-plane. She's fortified it too well.
Fighting here, we enemies suffer severe suppression!" Da Bei hurriedly
explained.
Cai Jing's heart sank. She urgently asked, “Shuang Lian is only gold level. How
could she possess a demi-plane?”
Da Bei replied, "Legend has it that she stumbled upon a young demi-plane during
a stellar exploration. After capturing it, she bound the demi-plane to the Snow
Honey Tower. She invested immense resources and nurtured it tirelessly. Now,
even if it hasn't reached maturity, it's no infant!"
Cai Jing was speechless with envy.
“You still have the nerve to chat!” Shuang Lian's icy voice cut through the
blizzard.
The next instant, the storm erupted into fury.
Countless ice blasts, ice blades, and ice arrows hurled toward the three
magicians.
Spikes of ice erupted from the ground, densely packed like a phalanx of spears.
Cai Jing and his companions scrambled upward, nearly frozen solid by the gale.
They had no choice but to land again, enduring the ice spike assault head-on.
Frost Magic - Ice Blade, Ice Arrow, Ice Ground Spike.
Frost Magic - Cold Wind, Tornado - Snow, Blizzard.
Frost Magic - Freezing, Frostbite, Snowflake Dance.
As Cai Jing fought back, he recognized the diverse formation of frost magic
spells unleashed by Shuang Lian.
“She wields these spells with such natural ease, devoid of any trace of an
amateur's clumsiness.”
“Damn it! Are you sure she's a magician specializing in alchemy, not a frost-
elemental combat magician?”
Before arriving, Cai Jing had gleaned much information about Shuang Lian from
Da Bei. Comparing this to the current situation, he felt the gap between
intelligence and reality was absurdly huge!
Da Bei sensed Cai Jing's glare and hurriedly explained, “Magician Shuang Lian
has at least three super magic formations deployed across the demi-plane!”
“What good does that do now?” Cai Jing sneered. “Hand over your son.”
“In my opinion, Shuang Lian just wants to teach your son a profound lesson!”
"You're a veteran of the Alchemy Guild, and I've only just joined. We're both
gold level members, Shuang Lian wouldn't kill us outright."
Without a moment's hesitation, Da Bei rejected Cai Jing's suggestion outright.
No matter how disappointed he was in Zhong Bei, he was his son, his only son.
How could he possibly hand Zhong Bei over?
Da Bei wanted to fight to the bitter end: "Hold out a little longer! Shuang
Lian sucked us into this demi-plane precisely to prevent the guild from
intervening in our battle."
“Those intense spatial fluctuations just now must have drawn plenty of
attention.”
“If we hold out a little longer, the guild will send reinforcements!”
Faced with Shuang Lian's relentless assault, Da Bei dared not even dream of
victory. His sole aim now was to stall for time until help arrived!
But how could Shuang Lian be unaware of his scheme? In the next instant, a
piercing, icy wind swept into the hearts of Cai Jing and the others.
A wave of sorrow and grief surged from the depths of their souls.
In an instant, this emotion grew overwhelming, like a dam bursting, swiftly
engulfing their hearts.
Their eyes reddened, and tears of profound sadness streamed down their faces.
They were overcome with grief, their minds in turmoil and no longer stable,
causing their spellcasting failure rate to skyrocket.
Zhong Bei fared the worst, already half-kneeling in the snow, utterly unable to
resist.
Tears and snot streaming down his face, he clung to the hem of Magician Da
Bei's robes, wailing in agony until his voice cracked.
“Stop wailing! It sounds like I'm already dead!” Da Bei cursed, his own grief
welling up. Fearing spell failure, he was forced to slow the construction of
his magic model.
This drastically reduced his casting frequency, causing the already precarious
defensive circle to shrink immediately.
The terrifying blizzard, like an avalanche of snow, bore down upon the three.
“Did Shuang Lian also study mental magic?” Cai Jing cried out to Da Bei, “At
this rate, we're doomed!”
“Not a single seed I planted has sprouted. If you have any trump cards left,
play them now.”
Gritting his teeth, Da Bei pulled a scroll from his robe.
He tore it open, unleashing a defensive spell.
A saint level aura!
In the next instant, towering ice walls shot up from all directions, encircling
the trio. Soon, ice walls coalesced beneath their feet and above their heads,
sealing them completely within.



****** Chapter 518: Shuang Lian – I Don’t Approve of Your Marriage! ******
The ice wall towered so high it rivaled the city walls in scale.
Blizzards raged, yet they could not breach the ice barrier.
The space enclosed by the ice wall was vast and open, making Cai Jing and his
companions feel as if they stood at the foot of a city rampart.
Cai Jing gasped heavily, staring at the ice wall in awe. “Could this be a saint
level spell?”
“It once was,” Da Bei replied. “This scroll was excavated from an ancient ruin.
Originally saint level, its power has greatly diminished due to lack of
maintenance.”
“In their quest to study the ancient frost magic documented within, the Alchemy
Guild conducted extensive experiments on it, further weakening its potency.”
“By the time it reached me, only a fraction of its saint level power remained.”
No sooner had he finished speaking than a deafening crack echoed through the
air.
The trio witnessed a massive crack appear in the ice wall.
Cai Jing and the others froze in horror.
“It couldn't even withstand that?” Zhong Bei clutched his head, utterly
discomposed, his emotions already shattered.
“So Elder Shuang Lian hadn't been using her full strength before,” Da Bei's
expression went blank.
Cai Jing's face darkened. "We can't count on reinforcements. We must save
ourselves!"
At this point, Cai Jing suddenly shouted, “Magician Shuang Lian, you are so
powerful, we humbly admit defeat!”
“Magician Zhong Bei has been terrified into paralysis by your might, cowering
before your battle aura.”
“If you wish to discipline him, I fully agree. My coming here was never to
support him.” You may have misunderstood my purpose!"
Upon hearing this, Da Bei's expression instantly changed.
But Cai Jing had no time to care for him.
After all, he had already used Magician Da Bei as a conduit to connect with the
Alchemy Guild, even becoming one of its members himself.
For Master Cai Jing, the urgent priority was to appease the enraged Elder
Shuang Lian.
Clearly aware of what Shuang Lian valued, he continued pleading, “Your student,
Bu Quan, is in grave danger. You may not know this yet, but the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is facing immense trouble.”
“They've been attacked by a mysterious organization. Their leader was ambushed
in Cold Wind Valley, and their caravan was destroyed by a gold level assassin.”
"The highest level of personnel the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps left behind in
Snow Bird Harbor are merely silver level. If I were the enemy, I would
certainly strike at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ weakest point."
“Therefore, Bu Quan is now in grave danger as well.”
These words immediately struck a chord with Shuang Lian.
In truth, before Shuang Lian could finish reading all the letters, Cai Jing and
the others arrived.
Cai Jing's words could be easily verified.
For Shuang Lian, obtaining the latest intelligence on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps was straightforward.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild was a colossal, nationwide
organization, with branches covering Ice Sculpture Island and extending to
numerous surrounding islands. It maintained outposts or shops in nearly every
town. Even in remote, uninhabited areas, covert alchemy laboratories were often
established.
The Alchemy Guild possessed considerable financial resources. Thus, beyond its
extensive network and natural access to vast information, it also had ample
means to purchase intelligence. The Thieves' Guild would never neglect such a
major client!
After Shuang Lian used her privileges to investigate the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ recent activities through the Alchemy Guild, the raging blizzard
disaster finally began to subside somewhat.
Cai Jing had struck a nerve with Shuang Lian.
Suppressing her anger, Shuang Lian refocused her attention and swiftly scanned
the remaining letters from Bu Quan.
Finally, in the last letter, Shuang Lian discovered Bu Quan's plea for help.
“That foolish child not only sold herself but gifted her entire alchemy
workshop to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“It is precisely because of these workshops that the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps possesses the capability to mass-produce dragon rider potions.”
“The potions themselves are merely decent, but they capitalized on a gap in the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom's potion market, creating enormous influence.”
“The Alchemy Guild reacted too slowly. Their structure is bloated, filled with
many incompetent members, and they've only just begun operations in this area.”
“Strange. Logically, the Jing Xiang Clan should be the leading force in the
potion market. Have they not moved either?”
“Is it because the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is collaborating with the Li
Jian Clan that the Jing Xiang Clan hesitates? No. Perhaps the Jing Xiang Clan
has already taken action. Could they be behind the recent ambush that destroyed
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' transport convoy?"
Though devoted to her alchemy experiments, Shuang Lian had risen to become a
tower master through sharp intellect and strategic acumen.
She quickly analyzed the intelligence and assessed the current situation. Her
conclusion mirrored that of Master Cai Jing, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
was in dire straits, and Bu Quan's position was equally perilous.
“Given the circumstances, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has realized the
weakness of their branch.”
"Hmph, they actually used Little Quan Quan to leverage my forces! "
“This Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is too cunning. Long Fu exploiting Little
Quan Quan's power and connections like this, his motives are impure. He's
definitely a very shrewd scumbag!”
“Little Quan Quan, I'm sorry. A scumbag like that doesn't deserve you.”
“Ah, it's all my fault for focusing only on teaching you alchemy knowledge and
neglecting to train you in love.”
“This time, your teacher will learn from past mistakes. Don't blame me, I won't
tolerate a relationship like yours! I refuse to approve of your marriage!”
With this resolve, Shuang Lian's focus on disciplining Zhong Bei and the others
faded.
Dealing with Zhong Bei could wait.
But Bu Quan's situation was urgent and perilous, prioritizing her safety was
the wise choice.
The blizzard's fury gradually subsided.
Sensing the shift outside, Magician Zhong Bei instantly realized that Cai
Jing's words had struck a chord with Shuang Lian.
He hastily shouted, offering to pay any price to appease Elder Shuang Lian's
wrath.
Da Bei had come prepared, swiftly retrieving vast quantities of magician
resources from his storage gear.
Among them, specifically tailored to appeal to her tastes, were many rare,
high-grade alchemy materials.
Though the Da Bei himself lacked combat prowess, his status and seasoned
diplomatic skills allowed him to accumulate quite a few valuable items over
time.
These offerings as compensation tapped into his own reserves.
He endured the pain of parting with them, knowing he had no choice.
After all, Zhong Bei was his own flesh and blood!
By now, the massive ice wall was riddled with cracks, through which gusts of
snow and wind were seeping.
Shuang Lian noticed the resources Magician Da Bei had produced. Only then did
she truly confirm: Magician Da Bei and his party had indeed come to make
amends.
The blizzard weakened again, its power reduced to less than a third of its
previous intensity, yet it still raged on relentlessly.
From the blizzard's transformation, Cai Jing grasped the subtle message Shuang
Lian intended to convey. Gritting his teeth, he retrieved the inheritance
information gained from Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
Da Bei was startled but showed no intention of stopping him.
The offering of the Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's inheritance information finally
satisfied Shuang Lian, temporarily quelling her fury.
The next moment, the three were transported back to the Alchemy Guild
Headquarters, standing once more before the Snow Honey Tower.
“We've been kicked out of the demi-plane!”
“Magician Shuang Lian accepted our compensation...”
Cai Jing and Da Bei quickly exchanged a glance, each seeing in the other's eyes
the relief of having narrowly escaped death and overcome the crisis.
“Waaah...” As for Zhong Bei, he lay sprawled on the ground, still sobbing
uncontrollably.
The teleportation ripples vanished in an instant, and Shuang Lian materialized
atop the mage tower from the demi-plane.
“Little Quan Quan, your situation is dire. I'm bringing you back!” Shuang Lian
resolved, beginning to manipulate the mage tower.
The entire Snow Honey Tower radiated a pale blue glow.
Within mere seconds, the light intensified, blindingly bright.
The tower trembled slightly, the ground quaked faintly, and the Alchemy Guild
Headquarters blared warning sirens.
Surrounding mage towers immediately emitted magic fluctuations. Numerous tower
spirits sent messages, inquiring what the Snow Honey Tower intended to do.
The response from the Snow Honey tower spirit was that everything is being
personally controlled by the tower master.
“What else could it be?” A faint smile touched the corners of Shuang Lian's
lips, her eyes flashing with a cold light.
In the next instant, the Snow Honey Tower lifted off the ground and began to
rise slowly.
The students and disciples living within the tower were caught off guard,
jolted violently, and some fell to the ground. Numerous alchemy reagent bottles
shattered with a series of loud crashes against the floor tiles.
Amidst the apprentices' screams and the surrounding tower spirit's inquiries,
and the stunned gazes of Cai Jing, Da Bei, and the others, the Snow Honey Tower
ascended into the sky.
Then, it suddenly erupted with a powerful radiance, propelling the entire tower
like a giant ignited rocket, soaring skyward!
In the blink of an eye, the Snow Honey Tower vanished, shooting into the clouds
and disappearing from everyone's sight.
All that remained was the Alchemy Guild still blaring its sirens, along with a
massive crater where the Snow Honey Tower had once stood.
“It, it just flew away like that?!” Cai Jing gasped, her mouth slightly agape.
Da Bei swallowed hard, struggling to process it. "Though Shuang Lian relied on
the Alchemy Guild to build this mage tower, her debts were long since paid
off."
"She established the nation's largest Snow Honey production base within the
demi-plane."
"Every year, the Snow Honey sold externally is in such high demand that it
can't meet the demand."
"What's most terrifying is that her primary customer is the kingdom's
military!"
Master Cai Jing swallowed hard as well.
Intense envy and jealousy surged within his heart.
Snow Honey.
He knew it was a peculiar resource, edible by humans, not only satisfying
hunger but also replenishing battle qi. It could also be used in ships,
converted into magic power when placed in magic pools, though its conversion
rate was lower than ice elements.
Snow Honey was so practical it had long become standard issue for the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's army and navy.
Shuang Lian had amassed a fortune through it, becoming rich beyond measure.
Her mage tower was named the Snow Honey Tower for a reason!
The current head of the Alchemy Guild grew anxious, fearing Cai Jing and the
others might fail in their task. He urgently contacted Shuang Lian: "Elder
Shuang Lian, where are you headed? Elder Da Bei doesn't have my backing. I hope
no unnecessary misunderstandings arise between us."
Shuang Lian replied coldly: "I'm going to Snow Bird Harbor to bring back my
student. Keep Pit No.3 open for me."
"Understood, this spot is yours. I hope you have a fruitful journey and return
quickly!" The Alchemy Guildmaster sighed a breath of relief, feeling assured.



****** Chapter 519: Food Eating Competition – Pickled Fish Sushi ******
The Snow Bird Arena was the largest dueling ground in Snow Bird Harbor.
Previously, the dragonman youngster had slain Teng Dong Lang here, making this
arena famous throughout the kingdom.
The arena owner had profited handsomely as a result, and to this day, sales of
the magic footage from that duel remained exceptionally strong.
The spectator stands of Snow Bird Arena were now packed to the rafters.
The showdown between two gold level magic chefs ignited the fervor of Snow Bird
Harbor's citizens, who flocked to witness the spectacle.
The arena floor had been specially modified, divided into two halves, with
boilers and other culinary infrastructure set up.
Both chefs had taken their positions, standing in their respective halves and
gazing at each other across the divide.
Unlike their earlier verbal sparring in Snow Bird Square, they now focused on
inspecting their equipment and utensils.
The giant chef tossed aside the large pot provided by the arena, replacing it
with an iron wok strapped to his back.
Ci Hai Shen retrieved a set of knives of varying sizes from his storage device,
arranging them on the long kitchen counter.
As this was a contest of culinary prowess, neither of these esteemed gold level
magic chefs employed sous chefs or assistants, only themselves.
Following tradition, the most influential figure among the spectators would
declare the duel's commencement.
But the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord City wasted no words, announcing the start
directly.
Da Dou roared with laughter: “Ci Hai Shen, this time you're doomed to lose, ha
ha ha!”
Golden flames erupted from his palms, igniting instantly.
Fueled by gold battle qi, the flames roared fiercely, nearly engulfing the iron
wok.
The iron wok, radiating a silver level aura, slowly turned crimson under the
scorching flames.
Da Dou retrieved one coconut after another from his storage device.
A common ingredient - butter coconut.
He cracked open each coconut, pouring their full contents of coconut oil into
the wok.
The iron level wok possessed spatial efficiency; the vast quantity of coconut
oil poured in merely formed a gradually accumulating layer at the bottom.
The coconut oil sizzled in the scorching iron wok, quickly releasing a rich,
golden aroma that billowed outward.
However, the magic formation conjured by the Snow Bird had already taken
effect, isolating the scents and preventing them from drifting toward Ci Hai
Shen.
Before Ci Hai Shen lay a kitchen counter laden with a vast formation of sea
fish.
Each fish was plump and fleshy, their scales predominantly green, ranging from
deep forest green to pale emerald. The deeper greens often clustered together,
forming distinct patterns.
The staple ingredient - pickled fish.
Ci Hai Shen channeled his spirit, precisely controlling each kitchen knife.
In the next instant, over twenty knives of varying sizes floated into the air.
Swish, swish, swish...
The knives, anchored by the countertop, circled the arranged pickled fish,
slicing relentlessly. Their speed created a blur of blades and light in the
air.
Under this storm of knives, the pickled fish was swiftly cut into uniform
slices.
Each fish slice was remarkably uniform in size and thickness. The remaining
fish head and bones were mentally guided off the work surface.
Fresh batches of pickled fish continuously emerged from storage units onto the
counter, where they were swiftly transformed into mountains of sashimi amidst
the flashing blades.
Discarded bones, heads, tails, and scraps were promptly deposited into the
trash bin beside the counter.
The audience erupted in cheers.
Even as the two gold level magic chefs engaged in the most fundamental culinary
showdown, the spectacle was already breathtaking.
Both demonstrated rock-solid foundational skills.
This only heightened the crowd's anticipation for the upcoming rounds.
Tripleblade and his group sat in the front row of the spectator seats.
The goblin watched the match while inquiring about the odds.
A flurry of betting pools had opened around this magic chef duel.
Tripleblade hoped to get a piece of the action. Though he understood gambling
carried high risks, he desperately needed funds. After much deliberation, he
decided to take the chance!
Meanwhile, in the viewing chamber, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sat alongside
the Sea Bird Bishop.
The magic projection before them offered far greater detail than what most
spectators could see with the naked eye. Magnified, it even revealed the subtle
shifts in the chefs' gazes.
This undoubtedly provided a superior viewing experience.
Besides these two gold level figures, a third silver level presence was
present.
It was Mei Lan Du, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's personal chef.
As a magic chef, Mei Lan Du was deeply intrigued by this duel. Yet his primary
reason for being in the viewing room stemmed from the Snow Bird Harbor Lord's
arrangement.
He required an insider like Mei Lan Du to serve as commentator when
entertaining the Sea Bird Bishop.
After all, a culinary showdown differs significantly from a typical heroic
duel. Often, the true brilliance only becomes apparent after the commentary.
At that moment, Mei Lan Du spoke up: “Clearly, Lord Ci Hai Shen's first dish
selection is the pickled fish sushi.”
“This is an extremely popular, commonplace dish, consumed by households across
coastal regions.”
"The primary ingredient is pickled fish."
"Lord Ci Hai Shen selected this dish precisely because of its familiarity.
Common popularity signifies that it aligns perfectly with the masses' tastes
and has consistently garnered acclaim."
"This is a culinary showdown, a battle of appetites, distinct from Lord Ci Hai
Shen's previous tasting events. Frankly, tasting events often involve dishes
with flavors that are hard to describe. But in this kind of contest, both sides
will prepare a popular dish like pickled fish sushi."
“This approach ensures the vast audience participating in the tasting later
will have no difficulty accepting it.”
“Another reason is that the preparation process for this dish is quite simple,
saving Lord Ci Hai Shen a significant amount of time and effort.”
Swish, swish, swish...
The blade flashed incessantly before Ci Hai Shen.
“I didn't expect him to possess decent knife skills,” the Sea Bird Bishop
remarked, watching the magic projection.
"But that's about it. At best, it's culinary artistry, hardly a lethal
technique," added the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. He cultivated not only magic
but also battle qi, mastering numerous battle skills. His words carried weight
in this matter.
Mei Lan Du remarked, “Lord Ci Hai Shen specializes in magic, but regardless of
their path, any transcendent can become a magic chef.”
“Truthfully, many magic chefs possess exceptional swordsmanship.”
"One such figure is Hei Xia, a bearman from the Wilderness Continent. He
specialized in battle qi with remarkable talent. In his prime, he participated
in the campaign against an evil god, only to lose both eyes permanently. Forced
into retirement, he reappeared in public later in life as an exceptionally
skilled magic chef."
"His greatest strength remained his legendary blade techniques. Even blind, he
could sense the vulnerabilities of any living creature. When cutting meat, he
could follow the muscle fibers precisely, ensuring every slice retained its
original flavor."
Upon hearing this, the Sea Bird Bishop instantly grasped the truth and blurted
out, “So this Hei Xia has mastered spiritual power, harnessing spiritual
energy?”
“Precisely.” Mei Lan Du paid the Sea Bird Bishop a compliment. “Lord Bishop's
wisdom has reached the truth.”
“The knife skills Hei Xia wields make his attacks even more terrifying than in
his prime.”
“It's akin to the eastern battle qi realm of the Sheng Ming Continent, which
has long studied stillness cultivation. The purpose is for fighters to tap into
the power of their own minds and spirits.”
“Of course, if a chef wields a tool like the Meat Eye, they too can instantly
discern the muscle grain of any cut, glimpsing another realm of culinary
artistry.”
Mei Lan Du suddenly brought up the Meat Eye, the very item Da Dou had staked as
his wager this time.
Clearly, his explanation served a purpose, not idle chatter. Mentioning Hei Xia
was to illustrate the Meat Eye's function.
Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen engaged in an eating contest, each staking their wager.
The former offered the Meat Eye; the latter presented the Preservation Knife.
Mei Lan Du's commentary rekindled the Sea Bird Bishop's curiosity. The Sea Bird
Bishop inquired, “Explain the functions of these two kitchen tools in detail
for us.”
“Certainly,” Mei Lan Du replied. "First, the Meat Eye, as I mentioned earlier,
allows the magic chef to instantly master spiritual power. It enables them to
discern the secrets of meat ingredients and cut them in the optimal manner. In
combat, as long as the enemy possesses flesh and blood, it allows the magic
chef to instantly pinpoint their weaknesses and vulnerabilities."
"As for the Preservation Knife, as its name suggests, using this blade to cut
ingredients—whether meat, vegetables, or fruit—preserves their freshness at the
moment of cutting. This is incredibly practical when preparing dishes!
Remember, the fresher the ingredients, the more they reveal their true flavor
and retain their full nutritional value.
The gold level Preservation Knife is essentially a part of Lord Ci Hai Shen's
power.  Should he lose this treasured blade, his strength would inevitably
plummet."
"Likewise, if Da Dou were to lose the Meat Eye, the same would hold true."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly inquired, "The Meat Eye serves as an
excellent combat aid. But what about the Preservation Knife in actual combat?
How effective is it for cutting through flesh?"
Mei Lan Du was taken aback by the question: "I honestly don't know about that.
I've never heard of Lord Ci Hai Shen using the Preservation Knife to attack
someone either."
He paused to think before continuing: "Truthfully, as a magic chef, it's
extremely rare for us to use kitchen tools in combat.
For one thing, kitchen tools were originally designed for cooking, not
fighting. Even the slightest trace of blood on a tool can irreparably ruin a
dish. In truth, many kitchen implements prove unsatisfactory in actual combat."
"On the other hand, the market for kitchenware isn't as robust as that for
conventional weapons or gear. The higher the grade, the rarer the item, and
those who possess them treasure them dearly. Even non-magic chefs typically
maintain them meticulously, aiming to trade or collect them later."
“Gold level kitchenware is already a rarity on the market.”
“That's why, after Lord Da Dou proposed the Meat Eye as a wager, Lord Ci Hai
Shen was tempted and agreed to stake his own Preservation Knife.”
As the conversation reached this point, the duel arena shifted once more.
Streams of people moved in orderly lines, entering the center of the arena.
They approached rows of long tables, picked up the pickled fish sushi, and
placed it in their mouths with eager anticipation.
The tasting had begun.



****** Chapter 520: Food Eating Competition – Fluttering Boat Fried Rice ******
“Wow, this is delicious!”
"MasterChef cooking skills truly make a difference. Even without transcendent
ingredients, achieving such incredible flavor is unbelievable."
“The pickled fish was freshly sliced, so its tangy flavor is intense, yet it
doesn't overpower the fish's natural sweetness!”
“The fish is incredibly tender and melts in your mouth. My entire palate is
filled with pure bliss.”
"After the tangy and spicy notes, the fresh, sweet aroma of the rice floods
your senses. Even though it's just ordinary rice, it's cooked to perfection, so
smooth and silky it adds an extra layer of exquisite texture!"
The crowd savored each bite, their praise flowing endlessly.
“Huh? How did it all disappear?”
“Mine! Save some for me!”
The last few fish sushi pieces sparked a scramble.
Those who had tasted it were left wanting more, glancing toward Ci Hai Shen
only to find him already preparing other dishes.
“It's so popular—why not make more?” In the observation room, the Sea Bird
Bishop took a bite of the pickled fish sushi before setting it aside.
As a VIP in the viewing chamber, he needn't queue; freshly prepared delicacies
were personally delivered to him.
“Though merely an ordinary dish, it is indeed delicious.” Remarked the Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord beside him, also leaving his portion unfinished.
Mei Lan Du explained, “This relates to the specific rules of the eating
contest.”
“Participating magic chefs must prepare dishes meeting minimum standards for
diners across all life levels.”
“Starting from mortal level, only after satisfying the minimum requirements can
they advance to the higher bronze level.”
“Similarly, after producing a certain quantity of bronze level dishes that meet
the requirements, they can then prepare iron level dishes.”
“Lord Ci Hai Shen's strategy is clear: abandoning the pursuit of mortal level
points to swiftly create higher level dishes and secure greater personal
points.”
“Personal points?” inquired the Sea Bird Bishop.
Mei Lan Du explained, “The eating contest is a method of competition among
magic chefs, distinct from actual combat. Therefore, alternative methods are
used to calculate the outcome.”
“Each type of magic chef contest employs different scoring systems.”
"Take the current eating contest as an example: each mortal consuming one
portion equals one point. Each bronze level transcendent consuming one portion
equals ten points. Iron level earns one hundred points, silver level one
thousand points, and gold level ten thousand points!"
The bishop understood: “Points increase tenfold with each level. Naturally,
crafting higher level dishes is more profitable.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord added, “However, from what I know, the higher
the level of the transcendent dish, the harder it is to create. If a creation
fails, the magic chef loses more than just morale. Their transcendent powers
are deeply involved in the cooking process.  Much like casting spells or
alchemy, failure brings backlash."
The bishop glanced at his leftover pickled fish sushi and subconsciously rubbed
his stomach. “I'm already looking forward to gold level delicacies, hahaha.”
Mei Lan Du poured cold water on his enthusiasm: “Tasting a gold level dish in
an eating contest won't be so easy.”
“What do you mean?” the bishop asked.
Mei Lan Du explained: “Gold level dishes are extremely difficult to prepare.
Failure deals a severe blow to both the physical and mental state of the magic
chef.”
“In a culinary contest like this eating challenge, the magic chef only needs to
defeat their opponent.”
“Therefore, once one side gains a significant lead in points, they won't risk
preparing a gold level dish to play it safe.”
"If the contest is evenly matched, neither side will take such risks. They'll
typically compete at the silver and iron levels, producing large quantities of
dishes at those levels."
“Only when the remaining transcendent tasters among the audience can no longer
eat, and the points left to be earned are scarce, do the points for gold level
dishes become most valuable. It is at this moment that magic chefs will prepare
gold level dishes on the spot.”
“Another scenario is when the magic chef's own strength is overwhelmingly
superior, making gold level dishes mere trifles for them.”
With this explanation, the bishop finally understood.
Because the competition was points-based, the primary battleground for eating
contests remained within the iron and silver levels.
For gold level magic chefs like Ci Hai Shen and Da Dou, preparing dishes of
this level offered greater certainty, they faced no risk of failure or
backlash. Moreover, this level contained the largest number of transcendents,
making it the most crucial group to compete for.
The city lord suddenly asked, “Can points be counted for both sides?”
Mei Lan Du nodded. “If someone eats both Lord Ci Hai Shen's dish and Da Dou's
meal, both magic chefs will receive corresponding points.”
"But don't forget, transcendent dishes aren't to be consumed lightly. Consuming
any transcendent dish places a burden on the body. The potent energy and
abundant nutrients within transcendent delicacies require timely digestion."
"Therefore, in eating contests, magic chefs select dishes with three
characteristics. First, they cater to popular tastes. Second, they are easy to
prepare with high success rates. Third, they are substantial and filling—once
you eat mine, you'll struggle to eat my opponent's."
Hearing this, the city lord furrowed his brow slightly, sensing an anomaly:
“That holds true for transcendent dishes, but for mortals, the burden of
ordinary meals is solely on the stomach.”
“Precisely,” nodded Mei Lan Du. “This is a unique advantage of mortals. 
Mortals can consume vast quantities of food, unlike transcendents who typically
feel full after just one or two servings of dishes of the same level.”
"Thus, food duels usually involve two tactics. The first, chosen by Lord Ci Hai
Shen, is rapidly advancing in level. The second involves delaying advancement,
remaining at the mortal level to produce vast quantities of meals. Though
mortals earn only one point each, they can consume multiple portions. Moreover,
mortals are the most numerous!"
“Hmm...” Mei Lan Du paused abruptly, staring at the magic projection. “It seems
Lord Da Dou has adopted the second tactic.”
In the projection, Da Dou also retrieved rice and poured it into a sizzling
oil-filled wok.
Bucket after bucket of rice poured into the iron wok, yet it remained
unremarkable.
The iron wok possessed spatial magic, though it was only one vessel, it could
store vast quantities of ingredients.
After Da Dou poured over a dozen buckets of rice, the audience finally saw the
white grains cover nearly half the wok's base.
Holding the iron handle in one hand and a long ladle in the other, Da Dou
continuously stirred and tossed the rice within.
“So, he's making fried rice,” the crowd realized.
Da Dou then produced eggs with colorful shells, vegetable eggs.
He placed them on the pot's rim, cracked them open, and with deft finger
movements, skillfully separated the yolks, whites, and green yolks into the
pot.
Unlike regular eggs, vegetable eggs contained not only yolk and white, but also
green yolk. This green egg yolk possessed the same nutritional elements as
fresh vegetables.
Hundreds of vegetable eggs were cracked one after another, their liquid pouring
entirely into the large iron wok.
The liquid solidified rapidly, then was broken up by an iron spoon into small
yellow, white, and green chunks or grains.
The rice was stir-fried until golden brown.
With each toss of the large iron wok by the chef, the tri-colored rice flew up
like grains of sand, then cascaded down like a golden waterfall, a truly
spectacular sight.
"Oh! Its fluttering boat fried rice!" Many recognized it at this sight.
Like the pickled fish sushi from Ci Hai Shen, fluttering boat fried rice was a
common dish, a staple on countless family tables.
Both the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Sea Bird Bishop knew this dish.
Mei Lan Du chose to share lesser-known details: “This dish was created by Ou
You Wang.”
“He was a magic chef and also a great adventurer of the human race.”
"Once, after weathering a storm, his sea vessel entered a windless zone. A
vicious pack of magic beast fish targeted them."
"Without sea winds, Ou You Wang's vessel lost two-thirds of its propulsion. The
shipwright had already perished in the earlier tempest."
“Though the crew exhausted every possible means, they could only watch
helplessly as the magic beast fish closed in.”
“Despair gripped nearly all aboard, yet Ou You Wang alone clung to his fighting
spirit, refusing to surrender prematurely.”
“He gathered the ship's last remaining provisions, some oil and leftover rice
from the night before.”
“Using these meager ingredients, Ou You Wang miraculously created the
fluttering boat fried rice.”
“After eating the fried rice, the sailors and crew not only regained their
morale and fighting spirit, but each stroke of their oars now stirred up
waves.”
“Wave after wave propelled the ship forward. With high spirits, it navigated
the windless seas, ultimately shaking off the magic beast fish swarm and
escaping death!”
“After this battle, Ou You Wang's fame reached its peak.”
"In the end, they returned safely to their point of departure. Their
adventurous tale spread far and wide. The method for preparing fluttering boat
fried rice was thus passed down."
"To this day, in many places, people eat a bowl of fluttering boat fried rice
when a ship sets sail. This tradition carries blessings for the vessel and its
crew—wishing them courage and hope, urging them never to give up prematurely,
no matter how difficult the journey."
The bishop listened to this tale, already relishing it before even tasting the
fried rice.
He murmured softly, "Fluttering boat fried rice, not bad. I rather like this
story. I look forward to its flavor."
Soon after, two portions of mortal level fluttering boat fried rice arrived in
the observation room.
The Sea Bird Bishop picked up his spoon, took a bite, and his eyebrows
twitched.
He took another bite before setting the spoon down. “Not bad. To me, it tastes
better than the pickled fish sushi.”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord added, "I agree. Perhaps... the story behind the
fried rice simply appeals to my palate more."
The next moment, the two gold level powerhouses shared a knowing smile.
Mei Lan Du, the commentator, witnessed this exchange and let a faint smile
touch his lips.
This was precisely why he had shared the story.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had chosen him as commentator for reasons far
beyond his reputation as a magic chef!



****** Chapter 521: Prosperous Fire ******
“So fragrant, so fragrant!”
People poured into the area where Da Dou was stationed. The moment they
entered, they were hit by the rich aroma of fried rice.
Their footsteps quickened instinctively as they rushed eagerly toward the long
table.
Da Dou's fried rice was served in large bowls, the grains piled high into
peaks. This stood in stark contrast to Ci Hai Shen's delicately plated pickled
fish sushi, arranged on small, elegant dishes.
Mere mortals scooped up a bowl, took their first bite, and their eyes lit up.
With the second bite, saliva began to flow. By the third bite, their spooning
motions grew frantic.
“Wow wow wow, this is seriously amazing!”
“I've had fluttering boat fried rice plenty of times but never imagined it
could taste this good!”
“With every chew, you fully appreciate the unique texture and delicate flavor
of fluttering boat fried rice. Even after swallowing, the lingering taste in
your mouth is utterly unforgettable.”
Da Dou's stir-frying never paused, pot after pot filling the wok.
Endless streams of fluttering boat fried rice flowed onto his long table.
Mortals lined up orderly, finishing a bowl before patting their full bellies.
Reluctantly satisfied, they returned to the end of the queue for seconds.
Lord Da Dou is still making mortal level fried rice?”
“Lord Ci Hai Shen has already prepared three bronze level dishes.”
“It seems that Lord Da Dou's strategy is to dominate the common dishes? He
intends to earn massive points from the mortals!”
“This is fantastic! As a mortal, I can finally eat until I'm stuffed this
time.”
Cheers erupted throughout the arena.
Compared to the transcendents, mortals were naturally the majority.
Right now, in the hearts of these mortals, Lord Da Dou was far more endearing
than Lord Ci Hai Shen!
Conversely, many transcendents held no interest in mortal dishes. Faced with
Lord Da Dou's tactical choice, they felt as if they'd been abandoned.
They whispered among themselves.
“Lord Da Dou's approach isn't very wise.”
“Yeah, in past eating contests, few have won relying solely on mortal dishes.”
“Or is he trying to secure his base before pushing for a higher level?”
"Tough. One step behind, and you fall further behind. In terms of level, Ci Hai
Shen has already started building an advantage."
"Most bronze level eaters are being severely stuffed by Ci Hai Shen's dishes.
Even if Da Dou changes tactics later, he won't gain many points."
Just then, Da Dou pulled out the bronze level ingredients.
Copper-green lobster, flame radish, jet corn...
One hand flipping the wok, the other handling these bronze level ingredients.
He multitasked with fluid, natural movements, not a hint of hesitation.
He dumped all the ingredients into the iron wok.
This single action drew gasps from many spectators.
It was an unusual sight.
The wok was meant for stir-frying mortal fluttering boat fried rice, yet fresh
ingredients were being added.
What’s going on?
In the observation room, the Sea Bird Bishop asked Mei Lan Du about it.
Mei Lan Du shook his head, admitting he rarely witnessed such a situation. But
it likely wasn't a mistake, Da Dou had done this deliberately. What exactly he
intended to achieve would become clear soon enough.
Sure enough, before long, a bronze level aura began emanating from the iron
wok.
With each toss of the wok, scattered flashes of green light flickered among the
golden grains of rice.
Battle skill - Prosperous Fire.
Da Duo publicly unleashed a rare battle skill. The flames it generated merged
into the original blaze, paradoxically dampening its intensity.
Yet soon, the green sparks within the fried rice multiplied exponentially!
From mere scattered grains, they grew to dozens, then hundreds, nearly a
thousand!
The dense cluster of green specks embedded within the golden cascade of rice
shimmered in perfect harmony, neither element overshadowing the other.
"How is that possible?"
"What kind of battle skill is this!"
"He only added those few bronze level ingredients. How did the bronze level
fried rice he cooked become so much?"
"Could it be that this massive iron wok holds a vast quantity of bronze level
ingredients within its interior?
If that's the case, then Da Dou's actions seem rather pointless..."
The audience gasped in astonishment. Many transcendents could no longer remain
seated, rising to their feet to get a better look.
Such a scene was utterly astonishing, defying all logic.
Even Ci Hai Shen paused his movements, staring at Da Dou with astonishment and
doubt.
Regardless of the surrounding curiosity, Da Dou showed no desire to explain.
Upon noticing Ci Hai Shen's gaze, he burst into laughter and shouted once more:
“Ci Hai Shen, I told you, this time, you're bound to lose!”
In the observation room, the Sea Bird Bishop also exclaimed: "Even as an
outsider, I know this is highly suspicious.  If he could transform ordinary
materials into bronze level materials, that alone would make it unnecessary for
Da Dou to continue as a magic chef.  Directly crafting transcendent materials
would instantly make him the world's richest man!"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord turned to look at Mei Lan Du standing behind
him: “Can you discern any clues?”
Mei Lan Du's eyes were wide, his gaze sharp and intense. He shook his head
slightly. “All I can tell so far is that Lord Da Dou is still making fluttering
boat fried rice.”
"But generally speaking, the recipes for mortal level and bronze level
fluttering boat fried rice are absolutely different. To prepare two fried rice
dishes of different levels, one would typically use two separate pans for
distinct cooking processes. Cooking them together in one pot is a common
mistake made by novices. Yet Lord Da Dou chose precisely this method. He must
have done it intentionally, which also explains the earlier inexplicable
phenomenon."
"I'm sorry, City Lord. I can't decipher or explain the situation clearly."
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord waved it off: “No matter.”
He found this unconventional eating contest even more intriguing.
Tripleblade's focus, however, lay elsewhere. He anxiously asked through the
clamoring crowd: “What are the current odds?”
As long as the duel wasn't over, many betting windows remained open.
Tripleblade quickly got his answer.
As he'd anticipated, Da Dou's earlier baffling display had caused many to place
bets on him.
“So, who should I bet on?” Tripleblade raced through his options.
Ci Hai Shen took a deep breath, immediately steadying his emotions.
“Though I don't know what tricks you're playing, I intend to win this duel!”
The Preservation Knife was crucial to him; losing it would be like losing an
arm.
Ci Hai Shen couldn't afford to lose!
His bronze level dish already met the standard, so he immediately began
preparing his first iron level dish.
“Even if you churn out tons of bronze level fried rice, you're still far behind
me in level!” Ci Hai Shen kept a firm grip on the situation.
What reassured him was that the earlier scene never repeated itself in Da Dou's
iron wok.
Da Dou retrieved large quantities of bronze level ingredients like the copper-
green lobsters from his storage gear and tossed them into the iron wok.
His iron wok held an astonishing capacity; each batch of fluttering boat fried
rice he poured out filled an entire bucket.
Da Dou never emptied the entire wok at once. Instead, he poured out only a
portion each time, immediately adding fresh ingredients.
This cycle repeated many times until Da Dou's bronze level fried rice finally
met the standard.
He could now advance to the iron level competition.
By this point, Ci Hai Shen had already completed over half of the iron
requirements, still holding a clear level advantage.
Da Dou methodically retrieved the iron level ingredients.
Though it was a meager portion, he tossed it into the wok and stirred
relentlessly.
Then, the astonishing scene repeated itself!
Despite the meager quantity of iron level ingredients, as the fried rice cooked
and bubbled, the volume of iron level fried rice within grew exponentially—far
exceeding the original amount added.
“It's happening again!”
“What on earth is going on?”
"What recipe is Da Dou using? Is it a hybrid recipe he specifically modified
from fluttering boat fried rice?"
The crowd gasped in astonishment.
In the observation room, Mei Lan Du narrowed his eyes. “I've discerned
something.”
"Lord Da Dou deliberately mass-cooked those low level dishes. He used them to
establish a relatively intense base flavor, boosting the success rate of higher
level transcendent dishes and shortening their preparation time."
“Did you two notice? He's already narrowed the gap between himself and Lord Ci
Hai Shen.”
Though Mei Lan Du still couldn't fathom how Da Dou's iron level fried rice
production far exceeded the ingredients invested, he understood that Da Dou was
gradually catching up to Ci Hai Shen.
The iron level transcendents were in for a treat.
They all took their seats, sampling the delicacies prepared by the two magic
chefs.
The gold level magic chef's craftsmanship easily satisfied these iron level
participants. For a moment, praise poured in like a flood.
Ci Hai Shen's composure faltered.
“What's going on?”
“This can't be Da Dou bluffing. His personality wouldn't let him pull something
like this.”
Ci Hai Shen felt an ominous foreboding.
“Its all fluttering boat fried rice... His recipe must have been modified.”
“He also used that battle skill earlier. Could the secret lie in that?”
While pondering, Ci Hai Shen retrieved silver level ingredients.
Having met the iron standard, he immediately advanced to silver level!
Though Da Dou had closed the gap significantly, a difference still remained.
“This is bad!” Tripleblade shared Ci Hai Shen's unease.
Having staked heavily on Ci Hai Shen, he now felt his heart race with anxiety.
He longed for Da Dou to falter, but Da Dou wouldn't grant him that wish.
Da Dou roared, “Ci Hai Shen, your Preservation Knife is mine now, ha ha ha!”
As he spoke, he tossed in a massive amount of silver level ingredients.
Within mere seconds of hitting the wok, they transformed into silver level
fluttering boat fried rice.
Piles of fried rice were served onto the long table. This spectacle left
countless onlookers wide-eyed in astonishment.
In terms of silver level dishes, Da Dou had just overtaken Ci Hai Shen!
Silver level transcendents descended one after another. After eating a bowl of
fluttering boat fried rice, they were stuffed.
At this moment, the fried rice demonstrated its true power!
“Ahhh, too much energy! I must immediately refine my battle qi to digest this!”
“I tried to hold back, but I just couldn't resist eating a huge bowl.”
“It's so delicious, I want more... burp.”
Ci Hai Shen visibly quickened his pace, yet still couldn't match Da Dou's
appetite. The latter brought out pot after pot, quickly leaving Ci Hai Shen
behind.
“Am... am I losing?” Cold sweat covered Ci Hai Shen's forehead.
“It's over!” Tripleblade's face also turned pale.
He had bet on Ci Hai Shen, but now the situation looked dire.
Da Dou's points had surged far ahead.
Rumble...
Suddenly, a series of explosions echoed from beyond the arena.
Then, a towering column of smoke billowed skyward.
“That direction...”
“What happened?”
“The docks are under attack!”
“Could it be...” Tripleblade's face paled. Just then, his communicator buzzed.
Tripleblade activated it to hear a mercenary wailing: “We're under attack! The
Deputy Commander... the Deputy Commander has been assassinated!”
Tripleblade's expression twisted in horror. He leapt to his feet and,
accompanied by several mercenaries, charged toward the arena gates.
"Someone attacked my dock?!" In the observation room, the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord received the same report.
His face turned ashen.
But then, intelligence from the mage tower clarified: the attackers targeted
only the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships, and no gold level fighters were
deployed—the highest level combatants were silver level.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord exhaled a breath of stale air, relaxing.
This group of enemies seemed to know their limits - they hadn’t touched his
property, and the highest level fighter was only silver level.
Without any gold level fighters involved, this was merely a minor skirmish. Not
a military incident, but a public security matter.



****** Chapter 522: The Big Guy Runs Away ******
Tripleblade and his men swiftly arrived at the docks and boarded the flagship
billowing thick black smoke.
Even after the attack had passed, the mercenaries aboard the flagship remained
visibly panicked.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, personally trained by Zong Ge and subjected to
rigorous drills, possessed military discipline that slightly surpassed that of
ordinary silver level mercenary corps. But this was a world of the strong. When
the mighty fell, the blow to the morale of the lower ranks was devastating.
In one corner of the deck, a crowd had gathered. Some attempted rescue, while
others desperately called out the name “Shi Qi.”
Tripleblade stepped forward, using his influence as a leader to part the crowd.
There he saw Zong Ge lying motionless.
To outsiders, Zong Ge appeared to have his eyes tightly shut, a wound on his
chest of a shallow depth but one that continued to bleed.
But in Tripleblade's vision, a silver level alchemy puppet lay there. The wound
itself was shallow, yet it bore the telltale marks of being washed by foreign
battle qi.
Judging by the aura within the markings, the battle qi was only silver level.
“But could silver level battle qi truly destroy an alchemy puppet's energy
pathways from the inside out, almost instantly?”
A sharp gleam flashed in Tripleblade's eyes.
He crouched down and touched Zong Ge's wound. His extensive combat experience
told him the enemy who attacked “Zong Ge” was far from a simple “silver level”
opponent.
“Most likely a gold level in disguise. Silver level battle skills couldn't
achieve this level of destruction!” Tripleblade understood the materials used
in this silver level puppet.
As for why it was disguised this way, Tripleblade understood: a silver level
attacking the docks was entirely different from a gold level assault.
The gap in combat power between the two was vast. A gold level was a decisive
regional force capable of stabilizing or destabilizing an entire area's order!
Tripleblade stood up and glanced around, not seeing Chi Lai.
Chi Lai had been assigned to the flagship as part of the defensive force.
Tripleblade urgently inquired where Chi Lai had gone.
The mercenaries replied, “Lord Chi Lai led men in pursuit.”
The attackers targeting the flagship were few in number. Their assault was
utterly unexpected, catching the mercenaries completely off guard. After
leaving several corpses behind, they retreated swiftly. Their primary objective
was to draw attention, providing cover for the assassin.
The assassin struck swiftly, killing “Zong Ge” before vanishing into the
distance.
Chi Lai was furious. He believed “Deputy Commander Zong Ge” had been ambushed
due to carelessness. The assassin had only displayed silver level skill, so Chi
Lai chose to pursue.
Even if he couldn't catch them, he wanted to gather as much intelligence and
clues as possible.
“Too reckless!” Tripleblade cursed inwardly, though he didn't blame Chi Lai.
Chi Lai wasn't among the survivors and didn't know the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' true predicament. At most, he knew that the magic potion convoy had once
been attacked by a gold level fighter.
But even then, another gold level fighter appeared. The fierce clash between
the two gold level fighters had severely disrupted Chi Lai, Men Shi, and their
group's assessment of the situation.
Tripleblade immediately ordered men to catch up with Chi Lai and stop him from
pursuing further.
“Boss, we've completed the preliminary damage assessment. The losses are far
less than we anticipated,” a subordinate reported.
By this time, the lingering flames on the flagship had been extinguished, and
the thick smoke had dissipated.
“Please, please, don't let the losses be too heavy.”
“If the damage is too great, the funds I can mobilize might not cover the
repairs.”
Tripleblade muttered a prayer as he took the report, his eyes instinctively
sweeping the flagship's deck.
He noticed the damage to the flagship was minimal, with the forecastle bearing
the brunt of the destruction.
“Wait... the forecastle!”
Tripleblade jolted upright, his attention instantly shifting from the battle
damage report. Grabbing a nearby mercenary, he demanded urgently: Where had the
giant residing in the forecastle gone?
The mercenaries, still shaken, recounted what followed the assassination
attempt: After “Zong Ge” collapsed, explosions and billowing smoke erupted.
Terrifying screams then echoed from within the forecastle.
Then the giant smashed through the deck, bellowing and savagely attacking
everyone around him.
Numerous mercenaries fell victim to the giant's assault.
After Chi Lai pursued the assassin, the giant turned his attention to another
group of retreating enemies and gave chase.
Tripleblade: !!!
The former mercenary captain swiftly grasped the truth: "During the sudden
attack, the big guy likely witnessed ‘Zong Ge’ falling. His field of vision is
comparable to an outsider's. We chose this approach initially because we feared
his intelligence wouldn't allow him to perform and disguise himself
convincingly, so we simply concealed him entirely."
The big guy saw Zong Ge fall, his fate unknown. This sight, combined with the
chaos of the moment, triggered him. He went berserk, unleashing every ounce of
strength to violently fight off every threat around him. Just like how he acted
on Mystifying Monster Island.
“With Commander Long Fu absent, the other mercenaries saw him attacking his own
men and watched the big guy chase the enemy out. They all breathed a sigh of
relief. Choosing to stand by and do nothing was perfectly normal.”
“Damn it! The big guy can't be hurt!”
Tripleblade was frantic.
The big guy's potential was too great. Once Tripleblade accepted this reality,
in his heart, the big guy became the survivors' treasure.
“Contact Chi Lai immediately. Order him to abandon pursuit and search for our
little giant.” Tripleblade swiftly altered his command.
After a moment's thought, he added, "The enemy attacked our flagship and
knocked out Shi Qi. But I'm certain their assault won't stop there."
"You all know how wildly popular the dragon rider potion is! Many covet our
profits and don't want us to truly grow into a gold level mercenary group!"
“Therefore, they will definitely attack our alchemy workshop.”
“But we've made defensive preparations. We'll make the enemy suffer.”
“Stay calm. I know Lord Shi Qi possesses a remarkable battle skill that allows
him to feign death for healing.”
“Carry Lord Shi Qi back to his cabin.”
Tripleblade worked to steady the troops when suddenly—BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Immediately, a report came in: “Bad news! Our alchemy workshop is under
attack!”
“What's the panic for? Lord Di Bi (Tripleblade) anticipated this long ago.” A
mercenary shouted back.
Earlier, the survivors had withheld most intelligence from Chi Lai, Men Shi,
and ordinary members to maintain stability. Now, Tripleblade deliberately
leaked some information at the opportune moment to achieve the same effect.
With Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster, Zong Ge, and Zi Di all missing,
Tripleblade, drawing on his experience managing mercenary groups, barely
managed to hold the situation together, slightly stabilizing morale.
Of course, this was only possible because the core foundation of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps remained intact.
Had Long Fu, Shi Qi, or others suffered defeat or death, or if silver level
pillars like Chi Lai and Men Shi had fallen, the blow to morale would have been
devastating.
At that point, no amount of Tripleblade's silver-tongued eloquence or spin
could have salvaged the situation.
This was the world of the strong.
Individual strength was the absolute foundation.
Soon, follow-up intelligence arrived.
Three alchemy workshops had come under attack.
The large workshop had fallen, but the magic traps Tripleblade and his men had
secretly laid around it inflicted heavy casualties on the attacking foes.
One of the medium-sized workshops also fell, yet again inflicting considerable
losses on the enemy.
At the remaining medium-sized workshop within the Mercury Cave, the enemy
attempted to use alchemy devices to disrupt the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
command over the alchemy puppets, an effort that failed. Combined with the
protection of numerous magic traps, this workshop managed to hold on by the
skin of its teeth.
"Our command protocols for the alchemy puppets have been enhanced by Bu Quan.
Not only that, but we switch to a different command method every few days to
prevent enemies from exploiting this vulnerability."
"Bu Quan's modifications all stem from the War Merchant's database. Several
factors have ensured the alchemy puppets remain unchecked by the enemy,
stubbornly fulfilling their defensive role."
“Combined with magic traps and the Mercury Cave's naturally fortified terrain,
the enemy hasn't succeeded.”
“Still, that defense remains rigid. Its fall is only a matter of time.”
“The most crucial and valuable small alchemy workshop hasn't been attacked
yet...”
Tripleblade's expression hardened as he swiftly assessed the situation.
He had assumed any enemy assault would come later, not now.
After all, it would take time for the enemy to uncover that the Mountain Peak
Merchant Alliance was secretly transporting goods for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
But Mei Lin wasn't just a holy warrior of the Dueling God, she was also an
exceptional commander. She understood the importance of seizing the initiative.
Within days of Qing Hong Yan's successful ambush on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' convoy, she launched this surprise attack after confirming the dragon
rider potion sales in the market remained unaffected.
She didn't target the Dragon Lion's new supply routes, she went straight for
the heart of the operation, even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' branch was
located within Snow Bird Harbor.
Tripleblade didn't know Mei Lin was behind this, but as he analyzed the
situation now, a chill crept into his heart, making him realize just how
formidable she was.
Mei Lin hadn't let the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lead her by the nose.
Instead, she'd played her cards right and launched a surprise attack directly
at the docks.
After all, Snow Bird Harbor's mage tower stood right on the docks.
“The enemy chose their timing perfectly.”
"Why didn't I see this coming? The clash between two gold level magic chefs had
left Snow Bird Harbor's defenses at their lowest ebb. Even the mage tower at
the docks had focused its attention on the Snow Bird Arena before the attack."
“What should I do next?”
Tripleblade faced two choices.
One was the big guy; he had to be escorted back immediately. The other was the
small alchemy workshop where Bu Quan was located. Deeply aware of the enemy's
tenacity, Tripleblade harbored no illusions, given their modus operandi, how
could they possibly overlook the most crucial and valuable small workshop?
“That place is bound to come under attack!”
The big guy or Bu Quan?



****** Chapter 523: Yi Jiu vs Men Shi and Bu Quan ******
Tripleblade racked his brains, thinking rapidly.
Before long, he led a large contingent of mercenaries into the city, heading
straight for the small alchemy workshop.
"The big guy's gone mad. He's already iron level now, matching my level. I
can't handle him alone."
"Even with other mercenaries, I wouldn't dare kill the big guy outright.
Hesitating to strike for fear of collateral damage only wastes our forces!"
"Instead, the small workshop inside the city will surely draw a massive enemy
assault. When that happens, our reinforcements will be crucial, we'll finally
have a chance to prove our worth."
After weighing these factors, Tripleblade acted decisively.
Within Snow Bird Harbor City.
Yi Jiu concealed himself in the shadows, peering through a window to covertly
observe his final target.
It was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' small alchemy workshop.
“I've already killed Shi Qi,” Yi Jiu muttered, “but there was an unexpected
turn at the Mercury Cave.”
“But that's none of my concern.”
“Destroy this small alchemy workshop, and I'm outta here!”
As a holy warrior of the Dueling God, Yi Jiu had no ties to the kingdom's
military. He was a member of the Thieves' Guild, primarily a hired assassin. As
he put it: “As long as the price is right, taking on other side gigs is no
problem.”
Thus, this time, Mei Lin had hired him to take action with a handsome sum.
Though Mei Lin acted boldly and directly, she harbored reservations, she didn't
want to expose the Dueling God or her own military identity.
Thus, she carefully selected a group of retired military sacrificial warriors.
Then she hired Yi Jiu, rather than deploying the likes of Gu Dong or Bao Li
Gen.
At the gold level, every individual's intelligence was highly prized by major
factions.
If Gu Dong or Bao Li Gen had acted, their identities would likely have been
compromised.
Under these circumstances, hiring Yi Jiu as an assassin was exceptionally
prudent.
As a master assassin, concealing his life force and disguising himself as a low
level transcendent was one of his signature skills. Such camouflage greatly
facilitated his assassination operations.
Even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps or the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
investigated afterward, they would only trace it back to Yi Jiu himself. And
his primary occupation was assassin, being hired for such a job was perfectly
reasonable!
Yi Jiu's mission this time involved not only eliminating core members like Zong
Ge from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps but also destroying the small alchemy
workshop.
Originally, Yi Jiu intended to take out Chi Lai, who was pursuing him, but time
was too tight.
With Chi Lai on guard and clad in silver level gear (thanks to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' relentless acquisition of transcendent equipment, plus their
inventory and loaning system), Yi Jiu abandoned that target.
"Forcing a kill on him isn't impossible. But doing so would make my ‘silver
level’ combat power exceed my designated role."
“Even if I take out Chi Lai, a key member, the reward afterward wouldn't match
the payoff from destroying the alchemy workshop.”
“If I destroy it and still have time, then I can go after targets like Chi Lai
and Men Shi.”
Yi Jiu calculated his gains, prioritizing maximum profit in his actions.
Though he had approached the small alchemy workshop, he did not strike
immediately, instead waiting cautiously.
This was because his primary objective remained safeguarding his own life!
After all, he was operating solo this time, conducting an open assassination in
a major city like Snow Bird Harbor.
Earlier at the docks, the mage tower's attention had been diverted by the Snow
Bird Arena. Moreover, the mage tower never operated at full capacity during
routine periods, that's why he'd acted.
After eliminating “Shi Qi,” he feared that the mage tower would target him, so
he spared Chi Lai and withdrew immediately.
After lying low for a while, Yi Jiu confirmed Snow Bird Harbor's reaction was
not overly intense, easing half his concerns.
“You may proceed,” Yi Jiu relayed to his sacrificial warriors via
communication.
“Charge!”
“Destroy the alchemy workshop!”
The sacrificial warriors sprang into action.
They emerged from every corner, some wielding blades and wearing helmets,
charging head-on; others using ranged weapons to attack from afar.
Their coordination was seamless.
Those leading the frontal assault quickly triggered the magic traps laid around
the workshop.
Flames scorched, thunder struck, and ice froze life after life.
Yet the line of magic defenses was soon breached, a path carved through.
“Too few traps were set.”
“But what choice did we have? Within the city walls, every magic defense
requires approval!” Bu Quan's heart began to race.
The city government palace permitted only limited magic defenses, for such
power could too easily shift from defense to offense.
In fact, many of the magic traps had been secretly laid by Bu Quan.
The previous number alone wouldn't last even ten seconds.
The sacrificial warriors possessed solid military training and had specific
countermeasures against magic traps.
"The enemy is closing in too fast! Miss Bu Quan, retreat immediately!" The
dwarf Men Shi was tasked with holding this position. The sacrificial warriors'
charge revealed the enemy's elite nature, and their death-defying indifference
sent a chill through Men Shi's heart.
Intelligence about the attacks on the docks and other workshops had already
been relayed.
Men Shi had prepared his defenses, but the moment combat began, he knew holding
this position with his men alone would be extremely difficult!
Fortunately, the alchemy workshop contained a teleportation formation for
retreat.
Yet Bu Quan refused to heed the warning. She shook her head, clinging to
optimism: “The workshop won't fall so easily.”
“We must hold our ground. The other workshops have fallen. This is the most
crucial one, it absolutely cannot be lost!”
Men Shi's heart sank. He instantly realized Bu Quan lacked combat experience
and had made a grave misjudgment of the situation. The dwarf hurriedly pleaded
again, "Miss Bu Quan, compared to the alchemy workshop, you are the most
important! You absolutely cannot be lost. If anything happens to you, the
commander will blame me."
Mentioning the dragonman youngster worked like magic. Bu Quan immediately stood
tall and firm, her resolve to stay and fight strengthened.
For the sake of her beloved, she would defend this last remaining potion
production base.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
After clearing a path with their lives, the sacrificial warriors charged
fiercely at the workshop's entrance.
But when swords and axes struck the door, they only triggered a defensive
barrier.
A metallic sheen enveloped the entire workshop, leaving no blind spots. This
thin layer of light simultaneously withstood the slashes and impacts of
numerous weapons, producing a series of clanging metallic sounds.
Inside the workshop, Men Shi frowned deeply, directing his dwarven subordinates
to deploy their limited forces to the most vulnerable defensive points.
Bu Quan smiled: “See? I made plenty of preparations in advance.”
Men Shi sighed and said nothing more.
Battle skill - Stealth.
Battle skill - Silencing.
Battle skill - Wall Walking.
Battle skill - Eavesdropping.
Empowered by four battle skills, Yi Jiu had already crawled onto the workshop's
roof.
From the sounds emanating inside, he swiftly discerned the dwarves' troop
distribution and main force positions.
He lightly stroked the ring on his finger, and a magic glow flashed across its
surface.
In the next instant, the enchantments on the alchemy ring activated, releasing
their effects upon Yi Jiu.
Enchanted Spell - Cat's Agility.
Enchanted Spell - Ox's Endurance.
Enchanted Spell - Frog's Leap.
This was the Three Beasts Power Ring. When Yi Jiu had devised its alchemy, he
had deliberately chosen the cat, ox, and frog.
Cat's Agility granted him enhanced agility; Ox's Endurance allowed him to adapt
to more environments and slightly increased his magic resistance. Frog's Leap
dramatically boosted his jumping ability.
After applying the spells, Yi Jiu touched the ring ornament on his forehead.
This was his primary defensive item, containing the arcane spell Counter Spell.
Should a powerful spell strike him, he just had to channel his spirit to
nullify it.
“The strongest fighter in the workshop is Men Shi. He's only silver level and
specializes solely in defense.”
“The real threats to me are Bu Quan's magic abilities and her alchemy tools!”
Yi Jiu, although holding a significant rank advantage as a gold level fighter,
remained extremely cautious and unwaveringly vigilant.
Battle skill - Wall Penetration!
Battle skill technique - Piercing Force!
Wall Penetration allowed Yi Jiu to effortlessly traverse walls and other
obstacles. Piercing Force was one of the techniques applied to battle skills,
granting piercing attack effects.
To ensure absolute success, Yi Jiu not only employed the gold level Wall
Penetration but also layered on Piercing Force.
This allowed him to instantly pierce through the magic protective aura of the
alchemy workshop, then penetrate the roof, landing directly inside the
workshop.
The moment he succeeded, a shrill alarm blared throughout the workshop.
Bu Quan cried out nervously, “Watch out! An enemy has infiltrated!”
“Where?” Men Shi asked urgently.
The dwarves also looked around frantically, tension mounting.
But no matter what methods Bu Quan tried, she couldn't locate the invisible Yi
Jiu.
A heavy weight settled in Men Shi's heart as he urged again, "Miss Bu Quan, you
really should leave this place immediately. A powerful stealth user must have
breached the defenses and could be anywhere in the workshop now. It's far too
dangerous here!"
Bu Quan still couldn't quite believe it: "Nothing's been damaged, and I haven't
detected any enemies either. Maybe it was just a false alarm?"
Men Shi grew increasingly anxious inside. In this kind of battle situation, Bu
Quan was actually pinning her hopes on a false alarm, how naive!
But no matter how he tried to persuade her, Bu Quan refused to leave.
Instead, she reassured Men Shi: "Maybe it really is a false alarm. Don't worry,
our defenses are solid. Don't underestimate me, I can be a huge help to you
all."
“If it comes down to it, I can always use the teleportation formation to leave.
It's not too late.”
Men Shi froze, about to protest, but Bu Quan had already spoken.
The dwarf's voice grew increasingly muffled as he cautioned, “The enemy is
likely lurking nearby, Miss Bu Quan. Next time, don't recklessly reveal our
trump cards.”
“I... I'll be more careful next time.” Bu Quan covered her mouth, suddenly
realizing that when Men Shi had urged her to leave earlier, he hadn't mentioned
the teleportation formation at all. Yet she had exposed it voluntarily.
“Sigh...” Men Shi let out a deep sigh, thinking to himself, “I hope
reinforcements arrive soon!”



****** Chapter 524: Speak! Do You or Do You Not Like Him? ******
Yi Jiu remained in a nearby corner, observing and listening to every exchange
between Men Shi and Bu Quan.
He had deliberately chosen a spot close to Men Shi and Bu Quan when passing
through the wall.
“So, there's a hidden teleportation formation here after all.”
“Just as the intelligence reports stated, Bu Quan is weak in combat and
specializes solely as an alchemist.”
“Dwarf Men Shi, his attack methods are unimpressive, posing minimal threat.”
"Sigh..."
“If I'd mastered the Penetration Force instead of the Piercing Force, this
wall-crossing wouldn't have been detected.”
Yi Jiu had never intended to assassinate Bu Quan.
When Mei Lin devised this assault plan, she had spared Bu Quan as well. There
was never any intent to harm her life; if possible, she was to be captured
alive.
Bu Quan was never on Yi Jiu's assassination list. The dwarf Men Shi, however,
was.
But Yi Jiu had little interest in striking a fully armed dwarf.
In truth, even if the employer had ordered Yi Jiu to kill Bu Quan, he wouldn't
have done it.
The Thieves' Guild possessed formidable intelligence capabilities. Yi Jiu had
gathered extensive information on Bu Quan and Shuang Lian, fully aware of Bu
Quan's significance to Shuang Lian.
Assassinating Bu Quan and provoking Shuang Lian was a foolish move Yi Jiu would
never make.
Unless... the employer offered an astronomical sum!
But clearly, Mei Lin would never do such a thing.
“In that case...” Yi Jiu murmured, abandoning his original plan. Based on the
latest intelligence, he made an impromptu tactical shift.
He actively shed his stealth and charged directly at Bu Quan.
Battle skill - Wall Walking.
Battle skill - Rapid Movement.
The moment he materialized, he was detected by numerous alchemy orbs floating
in midair.
The orbs swarmed like bees, closing in.
Some fired beams, others detonated on contact.
Yi Jiu offered no counterattack, relying solely on agility and evasion to
navigate the barrage. He even skillfully used beams and walls as obstacles,
causing the orbs to collide and detonate mid-air.
Within mere breaths, Yi Jiu closed the distance, charging toward Bu Quan.
“Bu Quan, retreat!” Dwarf Men Shi roared, charging toward Yi Jiu.
Yi Jiu smiled faintly.
Battle skill - Instant Flash.
The next moment, he vanished from his position, reappearing behind Bu Quan.
Battle skill - Throat Slash!
Yi Jiu's dagger pressed against Bu Quan's throat, drawing back with a light
flick.
“No!” Men Shi roared, utterly unable to intervene in time, only managing to
turn and stare in shock.
But Yi Jiu's dagger sliced through empty air.
Bu Quan's figure dissolved - it had been a lifelike illusion all along.
Yi Jiu remained expressionless. He had recognized the illusion from the start,
deliberately allowing it to happen so Bu Quan would teleport away quickly,
leaving him free to destroy the alchemy workshop.
But the next moment, Bu Quan's laughter echoed: “Hahahaha, you fell for it!”
Bu Quan's true form revealed itself, immediately activating the magic trap.
Yi Jiu was now standing directly on the magic trap.
In an instant, dense metal spikes formed a forest of spears, poised to pierce
Yi Jiu.
Yi Jiu activated his headpiece with his mind, unleashing the arcane spell
Counter Spell to nullify the spear forest.
“She actually revealed her true form?” He looked at Bu Quan in surprise and
charged forward again.
Men Shi froze for a moment, then roared at Bu Quan, “Miss Bu Quan, hide
yourself!”
Bu Quan flashed a proud, confident smile. “Relax. This is my turf.”
Yi Jiu's form abruptly froze. The surrounding space solidified, trapping him
like an insect in amber.
“Tactics achieved!” Bu Quan snapped her fingers triumphantly. “Not too shabby
in actual combat, huh?”
The dwarf was momentarily speechless.
But the next instant, Yi Jiu's deep voice echoed behind Bu Quan: “Is that so?”
Bu Quan shuddered!
The “enemy” she had trapped in her illusion dissolved into scattered light and
vanished.
Bu Quan had used an illusion to “toy” with Yi Jiu, and Yi Jiu immediately
returned the favor in kind.
“No, I still have resistance...” Bu Quan attempted to summon her magic power,
but suddenly, Yi Jiu touched her waist with a finger, instantly sealing her
spirit power.
Battle skill - Spirit Seal!
When a magician cast spells, they relied on spirit power to construct the
spell's model. A magician's personal magic power was normally stored in their
personal magic pool, and spirit power was also required to access it.
With Bu Quan's spirit power sealed, she instantly lost her combat capability.
“Now, you're my prisoner,” Yi Jiu revealed a triumphant smile. “My luck really
is good this time.”
His earlier tactical shift to a direct assault had been intended to intimidate
Bu Quan into fleeing the workshop via the teleportation formation.
After all, he couldn't locate the formation's position.
Moreover, operating within the city this time carried greater risks and tighter
time constraints.
Unexpectedly, Bu Quan didn't teleport away but instead attempted to challenge
him with laughably naive tactics!
Yi Jiu decisively played along with the scheme, actually capturing Bu Quan
alive.
“Release her!” Men Shi rushed over, bellowing.
The dwarves also fell into a state of confusion.
Outside the workshop, enemies still battered the walls, unable to breach the
defenses.
But within, their general had been captured!
Yi Jiu smiled at Men Shi. “Want me to release her? Fine. Destroy every alchemy
facility here!”
Men Shi froze.
Bu Quan snapped awake, shouting, "No! You absolutely cannot destroy these
alchemy facilities! Otherwise, we won't be able to mass-produce potions in the
short term!"
“Hey, if you want to kill us, just do it! Why toy with us like this?!”
“Even if I die, I won't let you destroy these alchemy facilities!”
Yi Jiu froze.
The intelligence reports didn't mention this. Bu Quan actually had this kind of
temperament?
"You're a prisoner. Show some self-awareness! Otherwise, I'll make you regret
it." Yi Jiu stepped forward to the right, circling around to Bu Quan's side,
and swung his dagger fiercely.
The dagger sliced through the air with a cold gleam, cleaving one of the
alchemy installations in two. The silver level apparatus was severed cleanly.
Witnessing this, Men Shi growled, “You're no ordinary silver level! Who are
you?”
“Asking such nonsense, do you expect an answer? Get to work destroying
everything, or I'll slice Bu Quan!" Yi Jiu waved the dagger beside Bu Quan, its
cold gleam flashing once more.
This terrified Men Shi.
With no confidence he could save Bu Quan, he was forced to comply, using his
two-handed war hammer to smash the surrounding alchemy devices.
“Now we're talking.” Yi Jiu chuckled, then turned with a vicious glare fixed on
Bu Quan. “Speak up! Which alchemy device controls the defenses?”
Bu Quan's gaze, however, was even more fierce than his.
“You criminal! If you've got the guts, come at me! Not a single one of these
devices will you destroy!”
"Men Shi, what are you afraid of? Don't give in to his threats! Even if we die,
we shouldn't surrender!"
“My life is insignificant! Protect these alchemy devices!”
Men Shi's face twisted with agitation as he shouted his true feelings: “Miss Bu
Quan, please stop provoking the criminal!”
Yi Jiu's face darkened, his eyes flashing coldly. Bu Quan's defiance deeply
offended him. He swung his dagger, determined to teach her a bloody lesson, to
make her understand her predicament and the proper attitude a captive should
adopt toward their captor!
The dagger flashed coldly once more, slashing toward Bu Quan's face.
If it connected, Bu Quan's face would be slashed open, disfiguring her
instantly.
Yet in the next instant, a spatial fluctuation erupted, sucking Yi Jiu into its
vortex.
Yi Jiu's expression twisted in horror as he realized he'd been transported to a
frozen wasteland!
Men Shi: ?
The dwarf was stunned. In an instant, he regarded Bu Quan with newfound
respect: “Miss Bu Quan, so this was all part of your plan.”
Bu Quan shook her head blankly: “No, it wasn't me.”
The next moment, another spatial fluctuation appeared, sucking Bu Quan away as
well.
At that moment, tens of thousands of meters above Snow Bird Harbor, the Honey
Snow Tower stood abruptly in the sky.
Bu Quan's mentor, Shuang Lian, had arrived here long ago. She had not revealed
herself immediately, instead arranging everything meticulously before treating
this as a trial for Bu Quan.
The outcome of the trial left Shuang Lian both satisfied and dissatisfied.
“Teacher?!” Bu Quan materialized inside the mage tower. Upon seeing Shuang
Lian, she instantly grasped the truth.
She threw herself into Shuang Lian's embrace: “Teacher, you came to help me
personally?”
Shuang Lian had intended to maintain her dignity and deliver a stern lecture to
Bu Quan, but the girl's actions completely disrupted her plans.
In an instant, Shuang Lian felt the entire world grow warm.
She slowly opened her arms, gently embracing Bu Quan. Her stern expression
softened into tenderness: "Silly child, why did you act so foolishly? Your life
is infinitely more precious than any alchemy artifact, do you understand?"
Bu Quan replied, “I thought I could defeat the enemy. I never imagined he'd be
so cunning!”
“I was so close to victory.”
Shuang Lian sighed deeply, shaking her head repeatedly. "You lack real combat
experience. You completely misjudged the gap between you. Now, watch
carefully."
The embrace ended.
Shuang Lian summoned a magic projection, revealing Yi Jiu struggling in a
blinding blizzard.
He was ambushed by Shuang Lian, who waited patiently for prey to stumble into
her trap, capturing him within the demi-plane.
Faced with such a formidable assault, Yi Jiu had no choice but to unleash his
true power. The gold level battle qi was unmistakable. Upon seeing it, Bu
Quan's face instantly drained of color. “He... he's actually a gold level
fighter?”
“It's worse than that,” Shuang Lian added. “His name is Yi Jiu, a highly
successful assassin within the Thieves' Guild!”
“Do you finally grasp how perilous your situation was?”
“To taunt a formidable foe while imprisoned? Utterly reckless!”
Shuang Lian forced a stern expression.
Bu Quan lowered her head, her voice weak. “I was so worried the alchemy
facilities would be destroyed. If that happened, I wouldn't be able to mass-
produce potions.”
Hearing this, Shuang Lian grew even angrier, her brows furrowing deeply.
“You've been used, you foolish child.”
"That Long Fu is a treacherous villain! He deceived you into joining his
mercenary group, treating you as nothing more than a tool for alchemy! And all
he gave you in return was a single gold coin?"
“Tell me honestly, do you like him or not?”



****** Chapter 525: Igloo City ******
The closer one approached the center of Ice Sculpture Island, the colder the
weather became.
The capital of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was situated in the island's most
frigid region.
Yet cold did not equate to barrenness. On the contrary, the concentration of
frost elements resulted in vast deposits of unique resources. This was
precisely why, when settlers first migrated from the Frost Continent to Ice
Sculpture Island, they chose the site of the royal capital as their initial
settlement.
The capital was not only the geographic center of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom but
also its power hub.
Viewed from above, with the capital at its core, various factions, the royal
family, the Alchemy Guild, and major religious sects intertwined, weaving a web
of influence that blankets the entire island and extends its reach to
surrounding seas and islands.
Within this vast web of power, the Li Jian Clan undoubtedly occupied a colossal
mesh.
As one of the kingdom's most influential transcendent families, their authority
was immense. The Second Naval Fleet of the kingdom had practically become the
Li Jian Clan's private military force. Even the royal family found it difficult
to intervene.
The Li Jian Clan's main city, Igloo City, was situated deep within the
kingdom's heartland, only a few thousand miles from the royal capital.
This was a vast ice plain.
Snow fell year-round, with blizzards raging five days out of every week.
The ice plain had no mountains. From afar, the most striking sight was the
architecture of Igloo City.
These soaring structures stood densely packed. Due to the constant snowfall,
flat roofs risked collapse under the weight of accumulated snow, so nearly all
buildings in Igloo City featured domed designs.
Snow elves belong to the elven race, a sentient species whose blood naturally
flows with artistry and magic.
Thus, within Igloo City, circular roofs, arched portals, and a city layout
shaped like petals form the cornerstone of architectural beauty.
Amidst the vast expanse of white ice and snow, pale blue and deep blue ice
bricks served as the city's primary hues. These harmonize with the unique green
and yellow conifers, mosses, and other vegetation of the ice plain, creating a
marvelous tapestry of color.
Pedestrians traversing the city streets and life activities in every corner
flow like a current, seamlessly integrating the beauty of architecture and
color.
Through the floor-to-ceiling windows, Zi Di found her gaze irresistibly drawn
to the exotic beauty unfolding on the streets below.
The originally cold and harsh natural environment was greatly softened by the
graceful lines of the architecture. The vitality emanating from the vegetation
and pedestrians dotted the cityscape of white and blue.
Zi Di understood well: the Li Jian Clan possessed ample financial resources to
create even more greenery. Yet they chose not to, seemingly by deliberate
design. However, precisely because it was sparse, the vitality scattered
throughout appeared all the more precious.
Seated on the wide-backed chair nearby was Zong Ge.
His gaze swept over the study's furnishings, sizing up which items might be
alchemy tools and assessing the room's defensive capabilities. In his mind, he
ran through scenarios: Should conflict erupt, would they choose to leap through
the window or break down the door?
Zong Ge was an exceptionally skilled commander, his very bones pulsing with a
primal combat instinct.
He relished observing battlefields, imagining every scenario to devise tactics.
Yet this study was remarkably sparse, with few furnishings. Judging by its
aura, only two or three transcendent items were present.
This was the study of the clan leader of the Li Jian Clan, yet it seemed far
too ordinary.
A faint doubt lingered in Zong Ge's mind, accompanied by a subtle sense of
pressure.
He yearned to unleash a reconnaissance-type battle skill to see clearly. But
remembering that he and Zi Di had come knocking with a request, such a rash
move was out of the question.
Ever since receiving the letter from Tripleblade, Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their
group had immediately altered their itinerary, traveling from Rime City to
Igloo City.
This was the Li Jian Clan's stronghold.
Whether due to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' renowned reputation or their
established alliance with the Li Jian Clan, Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their
companions received an exceptionally high-level reception.
Moreover, they were granted an audience directly with the current clan leader,
Mian Li Zang.
This undoubtedly set a promising tone.
At the appointed time, Zi Di and Zong Ge were ushered into Mian Li Zang's study
to await his arrival.
“Do you know?”
"There was a time when Igloo City was filled with birdsong and flowers,
resplendent and magnificent. Not only did it cultivate icefield vegetation, but
it also transplanted many greenhouse blooms. Back then, man-made hot springs
were everywhere, their waters tinkling as they flowed. The city's temperature
was always pleasant, and fruits hung on the trees ready to be plucked. When you
popped them into your mouth, they were always at their most delicious."
“Over the century following that era, our clan declined. Our descendants grew
weak and feeble, our family spirit deteriorated, and we even faced the threat
of extinction.”
"After deep reflection, the clan leader of that time voluntarily took
responsibility and stepped down. The new clan leader led the entire clan in
diligent governance, bringing in renowned masters to educate the younger
generation. Resources were concentrated where they were most needed, not on the
city's ornate decorations. Finally, the family creed was revised."
“Now, our creed is - Hide wealth in emptiness, stand firm amidst snow and
wind!”
Zi Di heard the voice and her heart jolted. She turned swiftly to look.
The next moment, she saw a handsome snow elf. A middle-aged man, his face
radiating a kind smile, yet his deep, piercing eyes revealed a profound,
calculating mind.
“Mian Li Zang...”
Information about this man flashed rapidly through Zi Di's mind.
This man possessed an extraordinary blend of softness and strength. Outwardly
gentle and seemingly weak, but anyone who thought him frail and easy to bully
would be gravely mistaken. Once he truly took action, he often struck with
pinpoint accuracy, sometimes even delivering a fatal blow. In truth, he was a
deeply calculating individual with ruthless methods.
Possessing a gold level transcendent rank, he specializes in magic, excelling
particularly in spatial manipulation and summoning.
Such was the nature of the Inner World bloodline - it held significant
advantages in spatial powers.
Under his leadership, the Li Jian Clan has flourished even more than under its
previous head.
He took great pleasure in recruiting external talent. For instance, the time
magician Sand Between Fingers from the Second Naval Fleet was personally
recruited by Mian Li Zang.
He also attempted to recruit Yun Zhong, but the latter showed little interest
in joining any faction and politely declined.
Though rejected, Mian Li Zang remained undeterred, persistently attempting
recruitment. His offers grew increasingly generous, their superiority making
others envious.
Yun Zhong truly had no interest and found his persistence unbearable. But one
wouldn't strike a smiling face. Left with no choice, Yun Zhong could only evade
him. Mian Li Zang visited Yun Zhong repeatedly, only to find him absent each
time, yet his enthusiasm never waned.
Some mocked him, but those with true insight recognized this as an exquisite
political performance orchestrated by Mian Li Zang through Yun Zhong.
In this display, Mian Li Zang profoundly demonstrated his unique approach, a
thirst for and willingness to embrace external talent.
If Yun Zhong agreed, the Li Jian Clan would gain another gold level member,
bolstering their strength.
If he refused, he’d become Mian Li Zang’s tool, cementing the latter’s
reputation as a patron of talent in the public consciousness.
“An exceptional clan leader, an exceptional politician!” Zi Di thought, steeled
her resolve, and bowed in greeting.
Zong Ge, though promoted to gold level, remained outwardly a silver level
member. He rose to greet Mian Li Zang proactively.
The study door remained closed; Mian Li Zang had utilized spatial abilities to
appear silently.
Instead of taking his seat behind the desk, he proactively retrieved vessels
from a side cabinet and inquired gently of Zi Di and Zong Ge, “Tea or wine?”
As a magician, Zi Di immediately replied, “Tea would be best.”
Mian Li Zang proceeded to fetch cups himself, placing them on the tea table
before the guest chairs.
He pulled up a low stool beside the table and began brewing the tea personally.
Mian Li Zang wore a warm smile, showing none of the pride expected of a clan
leader.
Yet Zi Di, seated to his left, felt immense pressure.
From Mian Li Zang's entrance to his every word, everything was calculated.
This business negotiation commenced the moment Mian Li Zang appeared.
As per prior arrangements, Zi Di remained the primary negotiator for the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
As for Zong Ge, he knew this was not his forte. Although he had delivered a
standout performance during the previous negotiations at the Axe Gang's
headquarters. That success stemmed from his insight into the battlefield, his
combat instincts, and the experience of an exceptional commander—qualities that
allowed him to apply his expertise to other areas.
To replicate that performance, Zong Ge needed extensive observation.
During the Axe Gang negotiations, Zong Ge remained silent, thoroughly assessing
the situation before seizing the moment to speak.
Zi Di was the main force; Zong Ge was the surprise tactic.
This was the strategic deployment of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The three sat around the tea table, beginning to sip their brew.
Mian Li Zang introduced the silver level tea, detailing its origin and
properties.
Zi Di took a sip of the hot tea, first remarking how pleasant it felt to drink
something warm in this cold weather. She then followed Mian Li Zang's lead,
sharing her knowledge of other tea varieties and comparing them to the one they
were drinking.
Having grown up immersed in her father's world, Zi Di later became a magician,
studying at the academy to gain deeper knowledge. After taking charge of the
dilapidated Wisteria Merchant Alliance, she gained extensive expertise in tea,
a major commodity category.
Thus, Zi Di's tea-related insights piqued Mian Li Zang's curiosity, prompting
him to ask questions.
Zong Ge observed for a long while, initially growing impatient.
After all, the two had chatted idly for ages, two more cups of tea had been
poured, without touching on the real topic.
But then Zong Ge realized this casual banter was itself a contest.
Both sides sought to demonstrate patience; whoever broached the crucial issue
first would concede an early defeat.
Zong Ge felt uneasy, for he knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the more
anxious party. They had suffered an attack from a mysterious force, this
crucial intelligence was surely known to the Li Jian Clan.
His group's arrival at Igloo City and their proactive visit to the Li Jian Clan
made their motives and objectives all too obvious.
The Li Jian Clan Leader clearly understood this, so he sat calmly and
patiently, showing no sign of urgency.
Zi Di wasn't without anxiety, but she couldn't afford to show it. Doing so
would put her at a disadvantage in the real negotiations to come.
Despite her youth, however, she possessed considerable experience in
negotiations.
Facing an opponent like Mian Li Zang and navigating the current unfavorable
situation, she had long since devised the right countermeasures.



****** Chapter 526: Mian Li Zang - The New Generation Overtakes the Old ******
“Lord Mian Li Zang... Actually, our current collaboration on the dragon rider
potion business is quite similar to the tea business...” Zi Di smoothly shifted
the conversation from tea to the dragon rider potion, transitioning with
remarkable ease.
She then discussed the potion's current status, its future prospects, and the
substantial profits it promised.
Upon hearing this, Zong Ge couldn't help but inwardly praise her ingenuity.
Zi Di's approach was undoubtedly a clever entry point. Though she hadn't yet
mentioned the mysterious forces, Zong Ge could already foresee where this was
headed.
Mian Li Zang sipped his tea, equally aware of the undercurrent.
A smile played on his lips, yet his eyes remained as still as a deep well,
quietly awaiting Zi Di to broach the true subject.
But Zi Di showed no haste. Instead, she proposed revisions to certain details
of their prior agreement regarding the dragon rider potion.
Zi Di's aims were twofold: first, to gauge Mian Li Zang's negotiating prowess
through this discussion; second, to leverage her familiarity with the details
and her thorough preparation to significantly drain his negotiating energy and
patience.
The latter point was particularly crucial, as patience in business negotiations
is a key factor influencing outcomes.
What Zi Di hadn't anticipated was that Mian Li Zang was equally well-versed in
these details! No matter which clause Zi Di brought up, Mian Li Zang could
accurately assess it and voice well-founded objections.
"He knows these details so thoroughly. Back then, I finalized the terms with
Magician Kong Pan. Mian Li Zang's rebuttals are so well-reasoned, this isn't
just memorization. He must have communicated with Kong Pan." Zi Di's heart sank
slightly.
“Perhaps his delay stemmed from contacting Master Kong Pan the moment we
initiated this visit.”
The fact that the Li Jian Clan Leader had prepared so thoroughly for these
negotiations only intensified Zi Di's psychological pressure.
Zi Di focused her mind and engaged Mian Li Zang in a debate over these clauses.
Observing from the sidelines, Zong Ge now noticed the stark contrast in
negotiation styles between the Axe Gang leader and Mian Li Zang.
The Axe Gang leader adopted an aggressive stance. Once he latched onto certain
clauses, he refused to budge, showing not an inch of retreat. Zi Di, however,
skillfully employed clever maneuvers and deliberately introduced various
concepts to successfully confuse the Axe Gang leader, thereby safeguarding her
side's interests.
Mian Li Zang was different.
He always wore a smile, speaking with great politeness, even appearing somewhat
gentle. By comparison, the silver level Zi Di seemed almost aggressive.
Mian Li Zang wouldn't stubbornly cling to a single bottom line, but whenever he
lost some advantage, he'd use it as leverage to gain elsewhere.
In short, dealing with him was like kneading dough.
Though seemingly malleable, whenever Zi Di pressed down hard, the dough would
bulge elsewhere, reclaiming the space it'd lost.
“Mian Li Zang is tougher to handle than the Axe Gang leader!” Zong Ge gained a
deeper understanding.
Yet as time passed, Zi Di gradually gained the upper hand through her
exceptional eloquence and increasingly adept business negotiation skills.
"Old age dulls the mind. Ah...” Mian Li Zang sighed wryly, massaging his
temples. “Magician Yao Ma, what were you saying just now?"
“I forgot already. My apologies.”
“No, I mean, what was your last question?”
Mian Li Zang employed a strategy of retreating to advance, repeatedly thwarting
Zi Di's aggressive maneuvers.
As a gold level powerhouse facing a silver level opponent, such tactics might
seem somewhat underhanded. Yet he executed them without the slightest qualm.
This was his modus operandi—and precisely why he proved so formidable!
Zi Di grew increasingly frustrated. Confronting Mian Li Zang felt like punching
water, she couldn’t find a solid target, making her attacks stiflingly
ineffective.
Yet her expression betrayed nothing.
She understood this was Mian Li Zang wearing down her patience.
Negotiations continued.
Mian Li Zang’s tricks grew more varied.
“Oh dear, it's snowing.” Facing Zi Di's relentless pressure, Mian Li Zang
abruptly changed the subject.
Both turned to the window, where scattered flakes had begun drifting down.
Mian Li Zang looked at the two across from him and said amiably, “You might not
be aware, but the weather in Igloo City is notoriously unpredictable.”
“Based on my decades of experience, don't be fooled by the light snow now, it
will only intensify.”
"This study of mine, you see, lacks any heating facilities. As the clan leader,
every action I take must be mindful of its implications. So, do you need
blankets?"
“The snow's coming down hard. Sitting in the study will get pretty chilly.”
Faced with such concern, Zi Di and Zong Ge found it hard to say anything.
Zong Ge shook his head and declined, while Zi Di smiled, saying that a blanket
over her legs would surely keep her warm.
Mian Li Zang rose, retrieved a blanket from the cabinet, and handed it
personally to Zi Di.
Who knows how a ghost could feel cold.
“Shall I bring you some more tea? I was right about this study having that
flaw.”
“Ah, I'll fetch a blanket too. One must take care of their body in old age.”
“Look, the snow is falling harder.”
True to Mian Li Zang's prediction, the snow outside the window grew heavier.
Simultaneously, the cold wind howled, causing the windowpanes to tremble
slightly.
Zi Di’s negotiation rhythm was disrupted time and again.
“This opponent is tough to deal with,” Zong Ge thought. Mian Li Zang seemed
like one of those enemy commanders skilled in feints and strategic deception.
Whenever their main force launched a full-scale attack, they always came up
empty-handed. That feeling was unbearable.
Zong Ge glanced at Zi Di again, worried she might lose patience.
Yet her composure surpassed even Zong Ge's expectations.
From start to finish, she maintained a steady smile, her speech not once
hastening. Her remarkable patience and poise were evident.
Such poise even earned her Mian Li Zang's quiet admiration. He promptly
extended an invitation: “I wonder, Magician Yao Ma, have you ever considered
changing your living and working environment?”
Zi Di froze.
Mian Li Zang promptly slapped his forehead, chiding himself: “Old age is
catching up to me. My bad, I spoke out of turn.”
He then added meaningfully: “Still, being able to calmly drink seven or eight
cups of tea, that's not something just anyone can manage.”
“Ah, my old habit resurfaces. Whenever I see talent, I can't help but want to
recruit them into the clan.”
“I hope Commander Long Fu will forgive me.”
Zong Ge hastened to express his understanding.
Little did he know this would unlock Mian Li Zang's floodgates of conversation.
Shaking his head with a wry smile, he sighed, “Ah, sometimes I truly envy young
people like you, always so full of drive and vitality.”
"I've held the position of clan leader for the Li Jian Clan for many years now.
To keep it going this long has left me utterly exhausted, barely holding on."
“The Li Jian Clan may appear prosperous but sustaining that prosperity is
incredibly difficult. The effort and sacrifices required far exceed what
outsiders imagine.”
"I've pushed myself to my absolute limit for this cause. Even so, I have
failed."
“I neglected cultivating the next generation, leaving only Yue Qian, a gold
level fighter, as my heir!”
“You both understand the nature of the Inner World bloodline. While it grants
extraordinary cultivation advantages, its notorious flaw is the scarcity of
capable descendants.”
“That's why I've gone to great lengths to attract external talent.”
“But executing this well is no simple task. Talent is rare, and even after
recruiting them into the clan, exceptional management is required to fully
unleash their potential.”
"Thus, I also envy the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Your corps was established
only recently, yet you've managed to recruit so many talented outsiders."
"Commander Long Fu and Auxiliary Commander Shi Qi need no introduction. Silver
level pillars like Chi Lai and Men Shi came to you effortlessly."
“Through this negotiation, I've realized: Your value, Magician Yao Ma, extends
far beyond that of a silver level magician!”
"And then there's Bu Quan... She's an alchemy prodigy with an absolutely
promising future!
After lavishing veiled praise on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Zi Di and
Zong Ge grew distinctly wary.
Mian Li Cang steered the conversation back: "Our clan's creed is ‘Hide wealth
in emptiness, stand firm amidst snow and wind.’ But standing firm in the
blizzard is no simple feat."
“The larger the snow house, the greater the blizzards it must endure and
confront.”
“The higher the peak, the colder the summit.”
“Take your corps, for instance. After Long Fu, as leader, publicly slew Teng
Dong Lang, your fame soared, echoing across the nation.”
“The dragon rider potion proved a commercial stroke of genius, immense profits
poured in daily, with market response reaching fever pitch.”
“Such vigorous growth propelled your corps into the eye of the storm, drawing
attacks from mysterious forces.”
"First, an ambush in Cold Wind Valley. Then, the caravan transporting potions
was destroyed. Frankly, though the subsequent clash between those two gold
level fighters followed, their motives remain highly suspicious."
“Being targeted by forces of gold level, your group's situation is truly
concerning.”
The study instantly grew tense.
The sudden, pointed attack laid bare the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
predicament. Like an enemy who always plays feints, suddenly launching a
preemptive strike, though hardly a fatal blow, it did strike at the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' weak spot.
Even Zong Ge sensed the sharpness in these words!
If Zi Di handled this poorly, she would inevitably be at a disadvantage, and
the subsequent negotiation would be controlled by the other side.
Zi Di and Zong Ge exchanged a swift glance, both registering the gravity in
each other's eyes.
Little did they know that Mian Li Zang, too, was acting out of necessity.
For the first time, he faced an opponent whose patience surpassed his own,
whose negotiation skills outmatched his.
The young appearance of the Magician Yao Ma stirred an uncontrollable
admiration in Mian Li Zang for her talent. Had he known Zi Di's true age, he
would have been stunned.
Moreover, constantly evading the younger generation's advances with excuses was
hardly commendable.
Mian Li Zang valued his dignity, however modest his demands might be.
His frequent lamentations about growing old weren't entirely feigned. Facing
the dragonman and Magician Yao Ma, he genuinely felt the melancholy of being
overtaken by the rising tide of the next generation.
Thus, after being drained of considerable energy and patience by the previous
detailed negotiations, Mian Li Zang could no longer hold back. He chose to
strike first.



****** Chapter 527: We Don&#x27;t Want Protection, We Want Cooperation! ******
In the business negotiations, Mian Li Zang launched his first proactive
offensive.
The moment of truth had arrived for Zi Di!
Well-versed in the art of negotiation, Zi Di knew she could not panic or lose
her composure at this critical juncture.
Instead of offering an immediate explanation, she calmly took a sip of tea.
Then, under Mian Li Zang's intrigued gaze, she slowly set down her teacup.
Then she said, “As Lord Mian Li Zang mentioned, our corps' situation is indeed
as described.”
“To be perfectly honest, prior to this, three more gold level individuals
planned to ambush us.”
“They were the Axe Gang leader, Lin from Ice Spear City, and Jia Bing from
Grafting Town.”
“That battle was the most vicious. Even now, recalling it sends a chill down my
spine.”
Zi Di deliberately avoided detailing the battle, knowing this would heighten
Mian Li Zang's concern.
This was a card held by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
A very powerful card!
Zong Ge watched with eager anticipation.
Yet Mian Li Zang showed neither surprise nor shock. He smiled gently and said,
“Three gold level mercenaries joining forces, just imagining it sends a chill
down one's spine.”
“Your group's combat prowess is astonishing.”
“But I suspect such unconventional tactics are rare—a one-time use, perhaps
even forbidden?”
“Otherwise, why wouldn't Commander Long Fu employ it against Teng Dong Lang?”
“Or maybe the conditions for using it are so strict they're nearly impossible
to meet in battle?”
Zong Ge's heart sank. Mian Li Zang's demeanor showed none of the expected
signs, he had known this information all along.
Yet he had never mentioned it before. He had been waiting, waiting for the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to play this card.
“That old fox...” Zong Ge cursed inwardly.
He instantly understood: Mian Li Zang had deliberately exposed a weakness to
lure Zi Di into revealing this card.
Yet he had been prepared, rendering the card nearly useless, and even using it
to unsettle Zi Di and Zong Ge's composure!
A fleeting, imperceptible gleam flashed in Mian Li Zang's eyes as he continued,
"Oh, right. Perhaps you two aren't aware. Not long ago, your corps' branch in
Snow Bird Harbor suffered an attack by a mysterious force. Your flagship and
alchemy workshop were both targeted, it seems the losses were significant!"
"What?!" Zi Di gasped, instinctively rising to her feet.
Zong Ge's expression darkened instantly.
Whoosh, whoosh~
The howling wind, lashing with blinding snow, pounded against the windows.
After delivering this statement, Mian Li Zang turned his gaze toward the
window, his demeanor calm and composed.
Outside, the blinding snow obscured normal vision, blanketing the roofs of
numerous snow huts in pristine white.
Zi Di hadn't anticipated that Mian Li Zang's preemptive strike wasn't a one-
off, but part of a coordinated offensive-defensive combo.
Hearing of the Snow Bird Harbor branch's assault, both their composure
inevitably wavered.
At this moment, Zi Di and Zong Ge found themselves thoroughly outmaneuvered.
They keenly felt the overwhelming might of the Li Jian Clan. This power was now
being demonstrated to the fullest extent in communications.
After a moment of silence, Zi Di drew a shallow breath, her expression utterly
candid as she fixed her gaze on Mian Li Zang. "We feel deeply wronged. We have
no idea why such formidable enemies would target us so relentlessly. That's
precisely why we came to Igloo City, to seek deep cooperation with your
esteemed family."
Mian Li Zang offered a faint smile. “Miss Yao Ma, are you certain you've come
seeking cooperation, and not seeking our family's protection?”
His tone was light, yet his words were razor-sharp.
If Zi Di handled this poorly, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be
relegated to a subordinate position, while the Li Jian Clan would rise to
dominance.
Should negotiations continue, this power dynamic could even evolve into a
master-servant relationship, stripping the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps of all
initiative.
Zi Di's expression remained serene, her voice steady: “If we were merely a
mercenary group, this visit would indeed be to seek noble patronage.”
“But we are not.”
“Since the clan leader is so well-informed about us, surely you understand our
true identity.”
The amusement in Mian Li Zang's eyes faded, replaced by a broader smile.
This time, he remained silent. Mirroring Zi Di's earlier gesture, he took a sip
of tea, leaned back in his chair, and gazed leisurely out the window.
Outside, the sky was gloomy, with wind and rain lashing fiercely. The igloos
across the street were indistinct.
Just as Mian Li Zang couldn't see through the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
background!
Indeed, what Mian Li Zang truly feared was precisely the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' background.
Rumors had always persisted that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was actually a
group of arms smugglers. Their sudden emergence and extraordinary actions far
exceeded the ordinary. This rumor perfectly explained all the peculiarities.
Including the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' activities in Snow Bird Harbor,
especially their business operations and how they effortlessly used dragon
rider potions to break into the kingdom's market... Mian Li Zang leaned toward
this explanation.
Yet, despite the Li Jian Clan's capabilities, they could not uncover which arms
manufacturer stood behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
It had to be understood that an entity capable of mass-producing arms and
smuggling them on such a scale could never be merely a gold level individual.
At the very least, it would be a saint level!
Saint level individuals, within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, already belonged to
the strongest group.
More crucially, the Li Jian Clan couldn't uncover any background on the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, not even a single trace.
“Perhaps there's no arms dealer behind them at all!” speculated an elder of the
Li Jian Clan.
“But how could that be?!” Mian Li Zang scoffed at this conjecture.
Where did Long Fu's crew even come from?
Both Long Fu's and Shi Qi's identities were fake. They weren't even certified
by the Mercenary Guild!
The Li Jian Clan had exhausted every resource and still couldn't uncover their
true identities.
If they were just ordinary silver level mercenaries, so be it.
But they weren't!
Long Fu alone had slain a gold level opponent at silver level. Such a feat was
unheard of in a century.
Shi Qi, though silver level, radiated a golden aura from his battle qi. In
other words, he had one foot firmly planted in gold level territory.
Was this what an ordinary silver level looked like?
What kind of power could produce such a silver level?
Even the Li Jian Clan, which he himself controlled, couldn't possibly field
someone like this!
Tracking the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' path, from Snake Rat Island, Two Eyes
Island, to Weeping Pine Island, through every naval skirmish, they faced no
insurmountable challenges. Not a single battle inflicted crippling losses or
severe setbacks.
Instead, they grew by leaps and bounds, expanding like a balloon being
inflated.
Such rapid expansion within mere months, could this truly be just a mercenary
group?
Clearly, a powerful force was backing them. They concealed numerous trump
cards, wielding combat methods far beyond their stated capabilities. Thus, they
arrived at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Shortly after landing at Snow Bird Harbor, they made their move, taking down
the harbor's underground kingpin and publicly executing the Bayonet Gang's
leader. The entire Bayonet Gang was wiped out.
This single battle made the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps famous throughout the
kingdom.
What kind of tactic was this?
This tactic felt all too familiar.
In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, where dueling culture ran deep, anyone with
combat prowess and a thirst for fame and fortune would typically choose to make
a name for themselves through heroic duels.
Wasn't that how Yun Zhong gained his fame?
Didn't Mei Lin of the First Fleet prove her worth as a general through a string
of dueling victories?
And that fearsome Long Meng, widely regarded as the top gold level fighter,
didn't he establish his dominance in the dueling arena?
Mian Li Zang believed: "When Long Fu publicly challenged Teng Dong Lang,
everyone assumed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the underdog. But in
reality, the Bayonet Gang was the carefully selected prey!"
Holding this conviction, Mian Li Zang found the duel footage between Long Fu
and Teng Dong Lang increasingly implausible. That final scene where Long Fu
“struggled” to defeat Teng Dong Lang? Too fake!
Later, upon learning that Long Fu had retaliated and killed three gold level
fighters, he became even more certain that Long Fu's victory over Teng Dong
Lang was likely a deeply calculated performance.
It was precisely because of this combat prowess that Mian Li Zang immediately
arranged this meeting when the two visited.
This was the world of the strong.
Mian Li Zang felt he had to show Zong Ge, Zi Di, and their group the utmost
respect!
Zi Di's mention of the arms dealer's background plunged Mian Li Zang into
silence for a moment.
After gazing at the snowy landscape outside the window for a while, the current
Li Jian Clan Leader finally turned to the two and said, "Since you have such
deep connections and formidable skills, why did you choose to visit me and seek
my clan's assistance? Surely you could handle formidable foes without our
clan's involvement?"
Zi Di spread her hands in a wry smile. "Lord Mian Li Zang, you know our purpose
here is business. We're using the dragon rider potions to establish our market
presence and distribution channels first, then we'll move into arms dealing
later."
"Both our commander and deputy were meticulously selected. Our commander excels
at defeating stronger foes with weaker forces, while our deputy is near gold
level. Dispatching combatants of gold level or higher would severely hinder our
operations."
Perfect explanation!
At this point, Zi Di couldn't help but feel relieved, the arms dealer excuse
was truly flawless and practical.
Whoever came up with it had to be a genius.
Zi Di continued, “So, as I mentioned earlier, this visit is to seek
cooperation, not shelter.”
"Collaborating with your clan wasn't part of our original plan. I'd rather
believe this is a serendipitous encounter. If we can leverage your connections
to weather this storm, it would be ideal. I'm confident our future
collaboration will yield even greater prospects and rewards."
“Oh? Care to elaborate?” Mian Li Zang inquired, his tone laced with hidden
meaning.
Zi Di promptly retrieved a document, placed it on the coffee table, and slid it
toward Mian Li Zang.
Mian Li Zang, holding his teacup in one hand, reached over with the other.
Using his spell, mage hand, to turn the pages, his expression gradually
darkened after a few moments of reading.



****** Chapter 528: Shuang Lian – Cough Cough Cough ******
Mian Li Zang set down his teacup, abandoning the minor spell of the mage hand.
Instead, he gripped the documents with both hands and examined them closely.
After flipping through several more pages, he sat up straight, instinctively
straightening his back and no longer leaning against the chair's backrest.
His eyes gleamed with intensity as he scrutinized the documents, seemingly
discovering hidden meanings within them.
After reviewing most of the materials, Mian Li Zang could no longer remain
seated. He lifted his gaze toward Zong Ge and Zi Di, his expression shifting
between surprise and uncertainty.
Zi Di smiled serenely, sitting upright. “This is our sincerity.”
Mian Li Zang nodded slightly, his expression grave. “Our side requires
immediate experimental verification.”
“Go ahead!” Zi Di raised her hand.
Mian Li Zang rose instantly, spatial ripples erupting as he vanished from his
spot.
Zong Ge witnessed this moment, the most confident he'd felt throughout the
entire business negotiation.
He knew the data Zi Di had provided came from War Merchant's alchemy database.
This had been the bargaining chip they'd agreed upon before the operation
began.
War Merchant's database contained an overwhelming formation of alchemy
techniques, intricate as the stars. Zi Di had deliberately selected three of
them.
“It seems our chances of partnering with the Li Jian Clan are quite high this
time,” Zong Ge murmured. “This information has completely swayed the Li Jian
Clan Leader, so much so that he insists on personally witnessing the
experiment's success.”
Zi Di smiled faintly. “Commander, you mustn't underestimate that certain
individual.”
The “certain individual” she referred to was, of course, War Merchant!
Zi Di turned her gaze toward the window.
Outside, the blizzard raged fiercely, mirroring the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' current bleak predicament. Yet Zi Di brimmed with confidence, certain
they could bluff their way through this storm, using profit to leverage the Li
Jian Clan's power and emerge from the tempest!
“This blizzard just won't end!” The gold level Yi Jiu rolled through the snow.
He charged left and right, racing at top speed, yet remained perpetually
shrouded in the blizzard, unable to break free.
“I must be trapped within Magician Shuang Lian's ice-and-snow demi-plane.”
“She couldn't possibly blanket the entire demi-plane with this blizzard
disaster; this is where she produces her honey snow.”
“Therefore, this blizzard disaster is actually following me, constantly
shifting!”
“Damn it, I must break through this blizzard first, then find a weak spot in
the space barrier and attempt a breakthrough back to the Main Plane.”
While Yi Jiu fought for his life, within the mage tower, Shuang Lian was
concerned about her student Bu Quan's romantic troubles.
Ten thousand meters above the ground, the Honey Snow Tower soared through the
sky at breakneck speed.
Inside the tower, everything remained perfectly still, with not a hint of
turbulence.
Yet Bu Quan's mind was in turmoil, all because she'd heard her mentor's inquiry
- “Have you fallen for Long Fu?”
Bu Quan shook her head frantically at once: “No, no, I—I haven't...”
After a stammering denial, she lowered her head, her hands fidgeting nervously
like a young girl caught in a parental discovery of early romance.
Though she could be quite bold around the dragonman youngster at times,
standing before Shuang Lian made her blush fiercely.
Her face turned as crimson as a ripe apple, and her eyes, fixed on the soles of
her feet, grew large and watery.
Seeing this, what could Shuang Lian possibly fail to understand? What could
remain uncertain?
“Ah, you silly child,” Shuang Lian sighed inwardly, a flicker of nostalgia
crossing her eyes. “You really remind me of myself when I was young.”
“Back then, I too was deeply infatuated with someone...”
At that thought, an imposing, towering figure inevitably surfaced in Shuang
Lian's mind.
That figure standing before her, defying every attack, then tearing through the
blizzard, that image remained etched deep within Shuang Lian's heart.
"Wait, wait a moment. Teacher, now is not the time for this." Bu Quan suddenly
realized her predicament.
Shuang Lian's recollections interrupted, she looked helplessly at her beloved
disciple, hearing her say: “Teacher, thank you for rescuing me. You even
brought the mage tower with you.”
“But... but I can't leave.”
“I joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. They need me!”
“You won't leave?” Shuang Lian's expression darkened. “Stay there and die?”
"But Master, you've already captured the strongest enemy. If I return, I should
be safe." Bu Quan argued.
“Hmph. Return only to continue being nothing but a potion-making tool?” Shuang
Lian reached out, pressing a finger to Bu Quan's forehead. “That little thief
Long Fu clearly harbors ill intent. His motives are impure...”
“No.” Hearing the teacher disparage the dragonman youngster once more, Bu Quan
couldn't hold back any longer and retorted, "Commander Long Fu is an upright
gentleman. He worships the Justice God and is a good person, truly trustworthy.
He invited me to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. He never forced me! I
did it willingly."
A bolt of lightning seemed to strike Shuang Lian's heart.
Well, well.
For the sake of an outsider, Little Quan Quan had even learned to interrupt her
teacher!
Shuang Lian suppressed the bitterness welling up inside and said gently, “Silly
child... Listen to your teacher. I've eaten more salt than you've eaten rice in
your life.”
“Though Long Fu doesn't say it outright, they're using his looks to lure you
in!”
“You're pure-hearted and inexperienced, you fell for it instantly.”
"As your teacher, I can't stand by and watch you ruin your future. I won't let
you go down the wrong path. You clearly have better options!"
“Teacher, I deliberated long and hard before choosing the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps,” Bu Quan replied. "But I trust myself, I weighed every consideration
thoroughly! The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is my choice. It's a decision I
made with every ounce of courage I possess. I know I've let you down..."
Her voice trailed off once more.
Shuang Lian sighed deeply. "You've wronged yourself! I read your letter, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps paid you a mere gold coin!"
“That's outrageous! They're taking advantage of you!”
Bu Quan hurriedly explained, "No, I actually prefer their payment method. The
point isn't the gold coin, but the alchemy knowledge they entrusted to me. "
Shuang Lian laughed in exasperation, reaching out to ruffle Bu Quan's hair.
“You silly girl, you're still a bit young, even though you've already shown
your talent in alchemy.”
“The Alchemy Guild holds oceans of knowledge, enough to keep you striving for
most of your life.”
“You haven't seen truly advanced knowledge yet. They give you a few novel
little trinkets, and you...”
Before Shuang Lian could finish, Bu Quan interrupted again.
“Teacher, it's not like that.”
“While I rarely exchange knowledge from the Alchemy Guild, please trust me, I
have discernment.”
"Oh, right. This request for your assistance has Commander Long Fu's approval."
“He's authorized me to offer the alchemy knowledge I previously acquired as
payment to express my gratitude to you.”
“Here it is. Please take a look.”
Shuang Lian snorted dismissively as she took it.
She glanced through it and remarked, "Bu Quan, you must understand the scale
and global standing of our nation's Alchemy Guild. You must know that some of
our nation's alchemy techniques are truly unique, surpassing the major powers
of the Main Plane. In fact, there are certain methods even the Sheng Ming
Empire covets."
“I admit you possess discerning taste, but how much of the Alchemy Guild's
advanced knowledge have you truly encountered?”
“I can assure you, the alchemy materials they gave you... our guild would
already... Hmm?”
As Shuang Lian spoke, her voice grew faint, punctuated by a gasp of
astonishment.
Then, her eyes widened as she flipped through the pages with increasing speed.
"Huh?" She gasped again, her face betraying palpable shock.
“Hmm...” As she delved deeper into the text, Shuang Lian became subconsciously
absorbed, pondering its intricacies.
Bu Quan inwardly groaned. She knew all too well that once Shuang Lian entered
this research trance, it would last for ages. If interrupted early on, by the
middle or later stages, even a battle erupting outside wouldn't snap her out of
her contemplative state.
“Teacher! Teacher! Teacher!” Bu Quan practically yelled right into Shuang
Lian's ear, finally jolting her awake.
Shuang Lian gasped, staring in shock at the documents in her hands before
turning to Bu Quan with equal astonishment.
Bu Quan flashed a triumphant smile. “Teacher, now you must believe in me,
right?”
Shuang Lian cleared her throat, attempting to recover from her momentary lapse.
“I must admit...”
Just then, she heard Bu Quan add, "Oh, right. Commander Long Fu also mentioned
in his letter that if you're interested, you might become an honorary elder of
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. The reward would be alchemy knowledge of the
same level as this document. Would you be interested, Teacher?"
Shuang Lian coughed twice more, this time far more violently than before.
She set down the documents: “This alchemy knowledge... never mind.”
“The thing is, I thought about it. Since you've joined the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, just taking you away like this without a word, that wouldn't
be very gentlemanly.”
“Even though that thief Long Fu... that kid played tricks on you, he did help
you avenge your grievances after all.”
“As your teacher, it's only proper etiquette to thank him in person.”
Bu Quan interrupted for the third time: "Oh, Master, please stop talking. Hurry
back, enemies are attacking the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!"
“Hmph, mere petty thieves... Come! I'll bring you back at once!”
The mage tower abruptly changed course, accelerating to three times its
previous speed as it charged straight toward Snow Bird Harbor.
In Snow Bird Harbor.
The big guy was frantically chasing a group of enemies.
“Why is he still after us?”
“Ugh, what a pain!”
The sacrificial warriors attempted to shoot the big guy, but all their attacks
were rendered ineffective by his thick defenses.
"What do we do now? I was supposed to reinforce the small workshop!"
"This giant's not right, he's lost his mind. Then... let's lure him to Snow
Bird Arena. That's where the biggest crowd gathers."



****** Chapter 529: The Big Guy Runs into the Dueling Arena ******
Snow Bird Dueling Arena.
The eating contest between Ci Hai Shen and Da Dou continued unabated,
undeterred by the sacrificial warriors' assault on the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
Upon learning of the city's unrest, the Sea Bird Bishop sought Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord's counsel on the matter.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord responded with a smile, assuring the Sea Bird
Bishop: everything was under his control.
Since the sacrificial warriors' assault began, real-time intelligence had been
continuously relayed to the City Lord's hands.
This attack was clearly targeted at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After holding out for some time, the alchemy workshop in the Mercury Cave was
also breached. The sacrificial warriors paid a heavy price to destroy this
location: one silver level and nearly ten iron level casualties.
Smaller alchemy workshops within the city also came under attack. However, thus
far, the highest level transcendents encountered was merely silver level; no
gold level had appeared.
Therefore, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord remained unhurried and unflustered.
What he did not know was that Shuang Lian had already made her move.
She had merely utilized the Honey Snow Tower, causing the spatial fluctuations
to be extremely restrained and undetectable.
From the moment Yi Jiu appeared in battle until his capture into the demi-
plane, he had consistently suppressed his power, maintaining only a silver
level aura. Thus, he too remained undetected by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“As long as this duel isn't disrupted, it's a rare spectacle,” Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord thought to himself.
This heroic duel was unprecedented. If publicly disrupted, the Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord's prestige would suffer significant damage.
The next instant, fresh intelligence reached the city lord's hands.
A small squad of sacrificial warriors deliberately approached the Snow Bird
Arena, luring their pursuers - a savage giant.
The giant's identity had been confirmed: a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. Moreover, the giant's condition seemed off.
“Damn these men!” A cold gleam flashed in Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes.
He understood the sacrificial warriors' scheme: diverting the problem by luring
the enraged giant into the arena.
"You fight your own battles, that's one thing. But now you dare provoke me?"
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sneered inwardly.
From the start of this clash, he had chosen to remain a spectator.
On one hand, he was observing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, waiting to see
what trump cards they and the mysterious faction would play.
On the other hand, he was waiting.
Waiting for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to seek his aid!
Acting prematurely offered little advantage. It risked disrupting the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps' tactical plans and inviting their resentment.
But if they made the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps beg for help, the debt owed to
the city lord would grow, ensuring greater future rewards.
A cup of drinkable water held before someone dying of thirst held far greater
value.
As long as a gold level didn't appear, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would
remain unmoved.
Earlier, when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had sought his aid, he had
already ordered the Mountain Peak Merchant Alliance to cooperate, secretly
transporting the dragon rider potion.
Ultimately, the relationship between Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps was one of allies, not that of a guardian to the latter.
Of course, should the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fail to seek aid in time and
suffer heavy losses, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would certainly intervene.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord issued his orders in a low voice, effectively
handling the matter with the big guy. He then turned his gaze back to the magic
projection, continuing to enjoy the duel.
Within the arena, a large group of transcendents lay sprawled on the ground.
Each of them rubbed their distended bellies, smacking their lips with lingering
satisfaction.
“Ah, that was absolutely delicious!”
"I polished off three huge bowls of fluttering boat fried rice. Never imagined
fried rice could be this incredible."
“I'm stuffed, can't take another grain.”
"The tantalizing aroma still beckons me, yet I can't swallow another bite..."
Their expressions were complex, bliss from culinary satisfaction, agony from
overeating, and the helpless longing to keep eating despite being unable to.
More and more people were being carried away.
These individuals had lost the ability to move freely and were directly
transported to the Sea Bird Church's ranks to receive divine healing.
The bishop was delighted to witness this scene. After all, patients had to pay
for divine healing.
This single duel's large-scale treatment alone had earned the Sea Bird Church a
substantial fee.
Standing behind the city lord and bishop, Mei Lan Du continued his commentary
on the unfolding battle: "Everyone's stomach capacity is nearing its limit, yet
the scores of Lords Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen remain neck and neck. This culinary
duel has entered its final stages. I believe the outcome will be decided very
soon."
"Hurry, hurry, a little faster." In many corners of the arena, fighters
intensified their training, refining their battle qi on the spot to help digest
the energy within their bodies.
They practiced the battle qi technique without fear of exposure.
For the vast majority of these techniques, their foundational levels were
already circulating openly. The highest-level cultivator present was merely
silver level.
Moreover, battle qi techniques had to align with one's bloodline.
Thus, even if an enemy learned the techniques, without the corresponding
bloodline, they'd be useless, a futile endeavor.
“Opportunities like this don't come often.”
“Normally, a dish this exquisite would cost at least several gold coins, far
beyond my means!”
“Right now, I'm freeloading to the max. You two magic chefs should be thanking
me.”
With this mindset, fighters who had digested their meals kept rushing back into
the arena to devour more transcendent delicacies.
Many were already on their second or third round.
“I... I can't do take anymore.”
“Just finished one serving and I'm stuffed. Damn it, gotta get back to training
fast.”
The transcendents were overwhelmed primarily by the energy within the
transcendent dishes, not the physical burden on their stomachs.
Each dish's energy content adhered to a specific standard.
Only meeting this standard qualified it as a delicacy. Only when diners
finished their entire portion could the corresponding magic chef earn points.
A large team of staff calculated the points for Ci Hai Shen and Da Dou, with
even the mage tower at the dock assisting in the calculations, checking for
errors and filling in gaps.
“Useless!” Ci Hai Shen cursed inwardly as he observed more and more people
collapsing, unable to eat any more.
In terms of points, he was still slightly behind Da Dou.
But the gap was minuscule, just a tiny bit.
Ci Hai Shen kept a constant watch on the diners within the arena.
In an eating contest, the scale and level of the transcendents served as
crucial reference points. To a large extent, they determined the magic chef's
tactical approach. Take an extreme example: once all bronze level transcendents
could eat no more, the magic chef saw no need to continue preparing bronze
level dishes.
Beyond that, magic chefs also observed each other's strategies. For instance,
if an opponent establishes absolute dominance in silver level dishes, one might
shift focus to iron level, aiming for the points from iron level diners.
But in this duel, Da Dou consistently prepared fluttering boat fried rice,
catering to levels from mortal to silver.
This was highly unusual.
Typically, in eating contests, Ci Hai Shen's approach was the absolute norm. He
attracts diners by crafting diverse delicacies.
Varied dishes and flavors stimulate diners more effectively, igniting their
appetites.
A single dish holds a pitifully small advantage in this regard.
Yet by now, Ci Hai Shen recognized the strength in Da Dou's chosen tactic: "He
uses only one recipe, progressing from low to high tiers with a unique
approach. His efficiency in producing silver level dishes far surpasses mine."
“Despite using fewer silver level ingredients, he manages to create more silver
level fried rice.”
“His silver level iron wok does possess spatial efficiency, but if he were
merely storing silver level ingredients inside for covert use, it wouldn't
align with Da Dou's character or operational habits.”
He wouldn't waste his time on such futile actions."
Despite Ci Hai Shen harboring considerable resentment toward Da Dou, these
emotions never clouded his judgment.
Meanwhile, outside the arena.
“He's catching up fast.”
“Snow Bird Arena is just ahead. Let Snow Bird Harbor City Lord deal with the
headache!”
"Move!"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
The sacrificial warriors hurled alchemy devices, unleashing thick clouds of
smoke.
The big guy bellowed like a raging bull, charging straight into the thick haze.
He soon burst out of the smoke, spotting the “sacrificial warriors” fleeing
ahead.
The big guy pursued them. After several dozen strides, the “sacrificial
warriors” crashed headlong into the arena gates while running, disintegrating
into wisps of smoke and dispersing instantly.
Their true forms lurked hidden in the corners, watching with bitter resentment
as the giant charged toward Snow Bird Arena.
“If we'd known it would be this easy to mislead him, we could've used a better
tactic!”
"Time was too tight. What good would wearing him down do? We couldn't deliver a
devastating blow to the enemy. Don't forget what our objective is."
“Let's go. We need to reinforce the battle inside the city.”
But in the next instant, the city guard appeared, surrounding this group of
sacrificial warriors completely.
Earlier, the city guards had received orders from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord,
to eliminate every last one of these reckless sacrificial warriors!  Leave not
a single survivor.
The sacrificial warriors, of course, wouldn't surrender without a fight.
A fierce battle erupted instantly.
The deafening explosions and shouts couldn't even make the big guy glance back.
He had already descended into madness, staring straight ahead as if convinced
his enemies had retreated behind the gate's inner walls.
Bam!
The big guy slammed into the gate with brutal force, ignoring the guards'
shouts from either side.
The thunderous impact echoed like a clap of thunder, silencing the entire
arena.
Most heads turned. Countless eyes fixed on the gate.
“Did you hear that?”
“What's going on?”
Bam!
Another deafening crash.
“Stop, or we'll be forced to take action!” The guards were visibly tense.
The big guy pounded his chest, bellowing in a frenzied rage.
His shouts were loud enough for everyone inside to hear.
“What the hell is happening?”
“Sounds like an attack?”
“Could it be remnants of the Bayonet Gang?”
"No way. Who'd be stupid enough to attack here at a time like this? There are
at least four gold level fighters inside the arena."
The arena erupted into commotion.
“Sigh...” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord let out a deep, hollow sigh.
The magic projection before him had shifted. No longer did it show the duel in
the magic kitchen; now it displayed the big guy pounding his chest with his
fists.
Both the city lord and the bishop saw it instantly: the big guy was not in his
right mind. He was clearly mad, his reason gone.  Perhaps he'd resorted to some
method to temporarily boost his combat power—like Berserk?
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could strike hard against the sacrificial warriors
but clearly couldn't do the same to the big guy. After all, so many eyes were
watching.
Most crucially, why would he target the big guy? Stepping in to help would
clearly yield far greater rewards!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shifted his thoughts and turned to the bishop: “He
is a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but to restrain him, it would
be most appropriate for someone from your order to intervene.”
The bishop chuckled softly and immediately relayed the order.
A silver level priest stepped forward, receiving the command, and surged
through the crowd, channeling divine magic, and flew directly toward the giant.
The Sea Bird God excelled at flight. This gift extended to its clergy as well.
Among the Sea Bird Church's elementary divine spells lay the very spell of
flight. This granted the church's clergy a significant advantage in combat.
The priest swiftly reached the big guy, warding off the guard poised to attack.
He cast his spell upon the big guy: “Wake up!”
The big guy: “Waaah waaah waaah...”
“No effect?” He cast the spell again.
The big guy: “Aaaah aaaah...”
Realizing the bishop might be watching, the priest's expression turned grave as
he channeled his full power into the spell.
The big guy: “Sob sob sob...”
He kept ramming the gate. Under such a frenzied assault, the metal gate finally
reached its limit. Unable to hold any longer, it crashed down with a thunderous
boom.
Now, the big guy's view was completely unobstructed.
The sea of people inside the arena saw the big guy.
Countless eyes focused on the big guy.
Under normal circumstances, the big guy's timid nature would have made him
unable to bear such scrutiny; he would have hidden behind others long ago.
But now...
The big guy pounded his chest and roared at his numerous enemies: “Aaaah! Cough
cough cough...”
He beat himself until he coughed incessantly, spitting blood.
Such frenzied behavior astonished the crowd.
“An iron level giant?”
“Where did he come from?”
“He actually smashed the arena gates? How reckless!”
“Careful, something's off about him!”
Curiosity and wariness dominated the reactions; fear was nowhere to be found.
Come on.
Without exaggeration, the current arena was undoubtedly the strongest gathering
of power in all of Snow Bird Harbor. To participate in this rare culinary
showdown, most transcendents had converged here.
Counting the two magic chefs, there were at least four gold level experts!
So even upon seeing the big guy, none of them moved.
Even though many could easily suppress the iron level big guy, a mere trifle
for them, they remained unmoved.
Because many were grunting and groaning, bellies bulging—they were simply
stuffed to the limit.
Why bother tangling with a big fool?
If they had the leisure, they'd rather focus on refining their battle qi.
Others noticed the priest beside the big guy. Having witnessed the priest being
flung away earlier, they immediately guessed that the bishop had already
dispatched someone to handle this emergency.
Since these people showed no aggressive behavior, the big guy wasn't severely
provoked and gradually calmed down.
The priest's earlier divine magic had still been effective!



****** Chapter 530: Eating Then Sleeping ******
Snow Bird Arena.
Inside the viewing chamber, the bishop's expression darkened slightly.
The silver level priest hadn't handled things cleanly. Allowing the big guy to
crash through the main gate and expose himself to countless spectators had
brought shame upon the bishop.
“Damn it!” the priest cursed inwardly. The big guy's resistance had surpassed
his expectations.
He drew a deep breath and unleashed his most potent divine spell with all his
might.
The big guy stood frozen in place, showing no sign of dodging, and was struck
directly.
The savage expression on his face had completely vanished, his eyes no longer
bloodshot. Instead, they held a look of profound confusion.
He turned his head, scanning his surroundings as if asking himself, “Huh? How
did I end up here?”
“Where is this place?”
He spun around, his expression growing even more bewildered.
He did not see a single familiar face. Originally, mercenaries like Tripleblade
had been stationed here, but not long ago, Tripleblade had led his men away,
rushing off to provide emergency reinforcements.
The big guy was stunned.
Behind him, the priest's eyes widened, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
“I just cast the divine spell with full power, right?”
“But why isn't he reacting at all after being hit by Sleep?”
“A normal person, no, a normal silver level would collapse instantly and fall
asleep.”
“Who the hell is this giant?”
"I know giants generally have high magic resistance. But no one said their
divine spell resistance was this high too!"
Just as the priest doubted himself, the big guy suddenly froze, his gaze
sharpening.
What was he seeing?
He saw - rice!
Bowl after bowl of fluttering boat fried rice, arranged densely on the long
table.
Though a formation sealed in the aroma, the big guy’s gaze had already gone
completely blank.
“Food, food?”
"Food?!"
"Food!!!" 
The big guy roared with excitement, his face aglow with ecstasy. He swung his
massive legs and strode forward, charging toward the dueling arena.
His arrival immediately caused a stir.
His enormous frame, combined with the fact that he'd crashed through the gate,
had kept him under close watch ever since he entered the crowd's view.
“Get in line!” The security staff swarmed toward the big guy.
“Stop right there!” The silver level priest snapped to attention, scrambling to
follow behind.
The security staff, spotting the priest, assumed he would intervene.
The priest, seeing the staff closing in on the big guy, instinctively slowed
his pace, expecting them to intercept him.
Then, both sides stared each other down, each waiting for the other to make the
first move...
The result? The big guy miraculously burst into the main venue.
“Food! Food! Food!” He charged into the crowd, shoving aside those unable to
dodge.
His target: a long table laden with iron level fluttering boat fried rice,
surrounded by iron level transcendents. Most people had already scattered as
the big guy approached. The few who were pushed aside had neither the
inclination nor the strength to clash with him.
Had he acted this way earlier, it would have drawn widespread resentment,
perhaps even sparked public outrage.  But now, everyone was stuffed,
preoccupied with digesting their food, with no energy left to dwell on the big
guy's antics.
A series of coincidences allowed the big guy to plow through recklessly, yet
smoothly reach the long table.
He grabbed bowl after bowl, tilted his head back, opened his mouth wide, and
dumped the fried rice straight in.
His massive frame made what were large bowls for normal snow elves seem like
teacups to him.
Bowl after bowl poured into his mouth, chewed noisily, and swallowed greedily.
Mmm—!
The big guy grunted with pleasure and astonishment as he ate.
The magic chef's heroic duel had worked in his favor. The fried rice teased his
taste buds, its powerful allure striking deep into his heart. With every
mouthful he swallowed, the deliciousness shot through him like golden
lightning, piercing the gloom of his existence.
The big guy had been suffering!
Lately, he'd been starving, his stomach growling, his strength sapped, his
vision blurring, passing out from hunger only to wake hungrier still.
He wanted to eat more, but no one listened. After he told Tripleblade, the
latter would beat him with a stick.
The big guy missed the dragonman youngster terribly, but Xiao Guai's loving
father wasn't in Snow Bird Harbor.
Every time the big guy dreamed of the dragonman youngster, bitter tears of
sorrow and injustice would fall.
But now...
Right now, at this very moment, he's eating something.
Delicious! It was so delicious!
It's so much better than his usual meals!
The dragonman youngster took care of the big guy, specifically hiring several
magic chefs for him. But most of these magic chefs were just part-timers, like
magician apprentices. Their ranks were low, most were bronze level, a few iron
level, and not a single silver level among them. How could they compare to the
two gold level chefs here?
Crucially, Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen, these two gold level chefs, were cooking
with all their might.
Eat! Eat! Eat!
The big guy's movements got more fluid as he started dumping fried rice into
his mouth one bowl after another.
He ate quicker and quicker, soon moving from one end of the table to the other.
All that remained on the table was a mountain of empty bowls.
Staff behind him busily tallied the points to be awarded to Da Dou.
“This giant can eat that much?”
The big guy swept through the table like a whirlwind. His wildly exaggerated
eating style startled many.
The point tally showed Ci Hai Shen had already fallen slightly behind Da Dou.
But with the big guy's help, Da Dou suddenly gained a significant number of
points, truly pulling ahead of Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen's face turned as dark as charcoal.
Da Dou, however, laughed heartily. He was a giant himself and found this big
guy quite likable.
Especially since the big guy's fervent eating spree showed no signs of
stopping.
After finishing one table, he moved on to the second.
This time, it was the table with bronze level fried rice.
The big guy was only iron level. Eating a bowl of bronze level fluttering boat
fried rice earned him just 10 points. But he couldn't care less about the
rules, or more accurately, he had no clue about any rules.
All he knew was that if it looked delicious, he'd eat it!
Devour every morsel within his sight!
The big guy's heart burned with fervor.
The bliss from the food kept his eyes wide open throughout, his jaws chewing
with increasing force, his energy surging with every bite!
The transcendent energy carried by the food radiated throughout his entire
body.
Like a parched land receiving long-awaited rain, every cell in the big guy's
body was dancing with joy!
He transformed into a whirlwind, swiftly clearing every last grain of fried
rice from the bronze table.
“Just bronze level fried rice, but his appetite alone is astonishing.”
“This giant really can eat.”
“Watching him devour it like that has sparked my own appetite...”
Many gasped in awe, while countless others shot the big guy envious glances. If
only they could eat like that!
Ci Hai Shen's face had turned pale.
“Is Da Dou's luck really this good?”
“How did that damn fool of a giant even get in here?”
“Is he some trump card specifically meant to take me down?”
Ci Hai Shen's suspicions grew with every thought. Just as he was about to speak
up, he saw the big guy collapse with a thud.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord chuckled softly. He had long noticed the big guy
stuffing himself like a pig, a potential hazard, but hadn't rushed to stop him.
Now, by ordering rescue, he both taught this rule-breaker a lesson and secured
future leverage over the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After all, they were allies. Selling favors like this cost him nothing.
Yet the next moment, the big guy began snoring loudly.
He had fallen asleep.
“Don't panic! It's me! I did it!” the silver level priest shouted urgently,
feeling he'd finally salvaged a shred of dignity.
The big guy's sleep proved his divine spell worked, though perhaps... a bit
slow to take effect?
It wasn't just the divine magic that put the big guy to sleep; his own
condition played a role.
Even before his rampage, the big guy had been in poor shape, starving.  Later,
provoked, he descended into a frenzied state of destruction, wreaking havoc
along his path.
The attacks from the sacrificial warriors, including his final collision with
the arena gates, had left his body badly injured and his spirit utterly
exhausted.
After eating his fill and his mind finally relaxing, the big guy simply fell
asleep right there in front of countless people!
Meanwhile.
“We finally made it!” Tripleblade breathed a slight sigh of relief as he gazed
upon the small alchemy workshop within sight.
After making his decision, he had led a group of skilled fighters from Snow
Bird Harbor's docks, racing full speed toward the city to provide urgent
reinforcements.
En route, he received the latest intelligence: the medium-sized alchemy
workshop at the Mercury Cave had ultimately fallen.
Thus, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps now relied solely on this workshop within
the city.
Then came more grim news from Men Shi: Bu Quan was missing!
Tripleblade arrived at the small alchemy workshop just in time to see a group
of sacrificial warriors furiously attacking, attempting to breach the
workshop's gate and storm inside to wreak havoc.
There were two silver level enemies.
Six iron level enemies.
Over twenty bronze level enemies.
Among the reinforcements led by Tripleblade, he himself was only iron level,
with not a single silver level fighter among them. But he brought two squads.
The Quick Knife and Backwater battle squads.
“The workshop hasn't been breached yet. Men Shi is still here.”
“With this combat strength disparity, we can fight!”
Of course, this was assuming no gold level enemies showed up.
Tripleblade had already sensed something amiss about that “Shi Qi.” He secretly
wondered: Could that assassin who appeared and vanished before Bu Quan be the
suspected “gold level” individual?
The situation left Tripleblade no time for further thought. Without a moment's
hesitation, he charged forward.
He charged ahead.
His display startled both sides; no one expected this short man to be so
fierce!
With their commander leading the charge, the mercenaries' morale soared.
“Has Lord Yi Jiu not succeeded yet?” The sacrificial warriors hesitated.
They were unaware Yi Jiu had already encountered an accident. In terms of
intelligence, they were slightly behind Tripleblade.
The small alchemy workshop's defenses were solid. No matter how fiercely the
sacrificial warriors attacked, it showed no signs of collapsing.
Thus, the sacrificial warriors naturally pinned their hopes on Yi Jiu. Little
did they know that he was now in dire straits, desperately fleeing through a
blizzard!



****** Chapter 531: Failure and Resurgence ******
The sacrificial warriors had been relentlessly attacking the small workshop,
and now, with reinforcements arriving from behind, they showed no panic.
Their original battle formation had already accounted for enemy reinforcements
approaching from all directions.
Immediately, a portion of their forces concentrated directly behind, calmly and
methodically facing the charge led by Tripleblade and his men.
“We're here to support you!” a dwarf shouted from within the workshop.
Men Shi remained perplexed.
He couldn't fathom why Yi Jiu had appeared only to vanish, followed by Bu
Quan's disappearance.
Shuang Lian had yet to show herself.
To Men Shi, if this was the enemy's doing, why weren't they attacking? If it
was an ally, why hadn't they continued their support?
Jolted awake by the dwarf's shout, Men Shi steadied his mind.
He rushed to the window, surveying the latest battlefront.
Tripleblade charged at the forefront. Three iron level sacrificial warriors
stood ready, yet Tripleblade's momentum showed no sign of slowing.
“This human shorty is unexpectedly fierce!” Men Shi silently admired, though
unease crept in.
The three iron level sacrificial warriors swung their weapons in unison as
Tripleblade charged.
Tripleblade stomped hard with his front foot, shattering the stone tiles
beneath him.
Shattered fragments flew everywhere, obscuring the sacrificial warriors'
vision. They felt disorientation before their eyes cleared, only to find
Tripleblade vanished.
“Behind you!” someone shouted from behind.
In that instant, Tripleblade had suddenly executed a battle skill, rolling
swiftly across the ground and darting directly beneath the crotch of a tall
sacrificial warrior.
Tripleblade directly breached the first layer of defense, while the sacrificial
warriors were still adjusting their formation in the second layer.
“I'll handle it!” one of the three defenders called out, turning to pursue. The
other two remained focused on repelling the advancing mercenaries.
The iron level warrior who turned to chase Tripleblade swung his heavy club.
The club came crashing down, slicing through the air with a whistling roar.
Tripleblade didn't need to look back; the sound alone told him of the attack
behind him.  But he had to deal with more than just the pursuit from behind, he
also faced two iron level mercenaries launching attacks from the second line.
In an instant, Tripleblade found himself caught in a pincer attack.
Battle skill - Ground Pounce.
Tripleblade unleashed the battle skill, his entire body flattening against the
ground as he executed a swift pounce.
Ground Pounce was a common move, but in his hands, it was executed with
remarkable finesse. Crucially, his exceptionally short stature allowed this
ordinary battle skill to unleash extraordinary power!
The iron level sacrificial warriors flanking him lunged into empty air.
The water pigman leader charged into the enemy ranks second, followed by his
Backwater Battle Squad.
The two iron level defenders on the first line fought desperately but couldn't
prevent themselves from being overwhelmed by the Backwater Squad.
“Damn it, this shorty's tough to handle!”
“He's slippery as hell. Pin him down fast.”
“I'm on it!”
The sacrificial warriors shouted commands as they launched all-out attacks
against Tripleblade.
There was no solution. Tripleblade wielded his Ground Pounce battle skill with
masterful skill. His small frame darted and twisted through the thicket of
enemy legs, severely disrupting the sacrificial warriors' formation.
Crucially, Tripleblade's daggers posed a genuine threat. Leaving him unchecked
was absolutely unthinkable.
“On my command, contract the defense!” Seeing Tripleblade couldn't be swiftly
eliminated, a silver level sacrificial warrior immediately shifted tactics.
Nearly all sacrificial warriors bunched together, solidly blocking the entrance
to the alchemy workshop.
Tripleblade couldn't break through!
The enemy was packed too tightly, displaying exceptional military discipline. 
Not only were their tactical choices and adjustments wise and decisive, but
each individual's execution was flawless!
They showed no fear of sacrifice.
To maintain formation stability, front-line fighters would even willingly throw
themselves into danger, shielding more crucial allies from blades!
Worst of all, while huddled together to withstand Tripleblade's assault, they
simultaneously continued their relentless battering of the alchemy workshop's
gate.
“This won't do. We must apply more pressure!” Tripleblade gritted his teeth,
his face contorted in fury as he charged forward once more.
But this time was different. The enemy formation was tightly packed, and
Tripleblade had already drawn the full attention of all opponents.
Soon, he stumbled backward, repelled by the sacrificial warriors.
Wounds gushed blood from his body.
His expression remained resolute and unflinching. He pulled out a vial of
potion, downed it in one gulp, and charged forward again.
He was now the target. As he reached the enemy front, three weapons swung
directly at him.
Tripleblade fought desperately to block and dodge, trying to slip through the
gaps in the enemy line and roll back in.
But at that moment, an iron level warrior who had been lying in wait seized his
chance, thrusting his short spear viciously.
Tripleblade could no longer evade, struck by the tip of a short spear beneath
his ribs.
He could only retreat, preparing to regroup.
A meteor hammer pursued him.
Tripleblade mustered every ounce of strength, simultaneously unleashing three
battle skills to barely evade the hammer's head.
But then, a long staff followed close behind, striking Tripleblade squarely in
the chest.
It was a silver level enemy who struck!
Tripleblade flew backward, spitting a mouthful of blood mid-air with a gurgle.
He crashed to the ground, rolling several times before slamming into a wall
corner and coming to a halt.
Tripleblade scrambled to his feet, forcing himself into a crouching stance.
His vision blurred, his chest throbbing with excruciating pain, leaving him
unable to fight for the moment.
The attacker showed no mercy, breaking formation to close in.
“Die!” The silver level sacrificial warrior raised his staff high, bringing it
down with brutal force aimed squarely at Tripleblade's forehead.
In that instant, the stench of death assaulted his senses!
Tripleblade tilted his head back, powerless and horrified as the staff
descended toward him, unable to dodge.
“Could it be... I'm going to die here?”
Snore... snore... snore.
The big guy's snores shook the heavens.
He'd finally had a proper meal, and now he was surely dreaming sweet dreams.
This was evident from the silly grin playing at the corners of his mouth.
He dreamed of the dragonman youngster returning, bringing a mountain of
delicious food, allowing the big guy to eat his fill.
“Father, you're finally back.”
“You've come to see Xiao Guai at last!”
Iron level battle qi surged outward from the big guy's body.
“He's cultivating in his sleep!”
“Impressive technique.”
“What kind of battle qi technique is this? How convenient?”
The spectators witnessed this scene and began speculating.
Some guessed it was the Spring Dream battle qi technique. However, while this
technique operated during sleep, it caused the cultivator to constantly
experience erotic dreams, resulting in pronounced genital characteristics that
also served as the refining point for the battle qi. The big guy's crotch area
was perfectly ordinary, not matching this trait.
Others speculated it might be the Cluster Stone Slumber Technique. However,
while this battle qi technique is also cultivated during sleep, it temporarily
transforms the skin into a hard, rough, gray stone-like texture. The big guy
didn't match this characteristic either.
Ultimately, the spectators concluded that the big guy was practicing the
Mindless Sleeping Posture Technique.
“Carry him out. Don't let him continue disrupting the order,” Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord ordered calmly.
Staff members gathered around the big guy, attempting to lift him away
collectively.
“He's heavy!”
“We can't budge him...”
“Should we wake him?”
But the big guy slept so soundly, he couldn't be roused.
The staff members' level was generally low. Seeing the big guy had barged in
yet received some form of indulgence and preferential treatment from the bishop
and city lord, they dared not enforce the rules harshly.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, they briefly conferred and decided to
carefully carry the big guy away.
During the process, people noticed that the big guy's bulging belly was
deflating at a rapid pace.
The big guy had clearly overeaten, causing his stomach to swell to an absurdly
exaggerated state. But soon, his belly flattened, eventually even sinking
inward.
The staff had only moved him a dozen meters when the big guy opened his eyes.
He had woken up hungry.
He sat up, rubbing his sleepy eyes. After glancing around, his movements froze.
His gaze locked on the countless bowls of fried rice lining the long table, his
eyes blazing with renewed intensity. His mouth opened wide, drool streaming
thickly from the corners.
The staff had already cautiously backed away the moment he sat up.
Now unrestrained, the big guy lunged toward the table once more, grabbing bowl
after bowl of fried rice and devouring it voraciously.
What a glorious day!
The big guy was overjoyed, never expecting to get a second helping after his
first meal.
He let out a silly, hearty laugh, his mouth smeared with grease.
The audience hadn't anticipated the big guy “reviving” so quickly. Watching his
delighted eating, many swallowed hard, their own appetites stirred.
Meanwhile, the gaze of certain observant individuals toward the big guy shifted
subtly.



****** Chapter 532: Serious Injury and Specially Made Delicacies ******
Snow Bird Dueling Arena.
Due to a series of unexpected events, the big guy had become the center of
attention.
People watched as he shoveled fried rice into his mouth, his belly swelling
visibly with each bite.
“Did you notice how much faster this giant eats now?”
"His digestion is unbelievable! He only slept for a short while, yet he's
already burned through all that transcendent food."
“He is a giant, after all. He seemed incredibly hungry when he barged in.”
Before long, the big guy was full again and collapsed directly onto the floor,
sleeping right next to the long table.
Staff members gathered around once more, intending to move him away.
“Leave him be. He'll wake soon enough,” Da Dou interjected, his gaze fixed on
the big guy with keen interest.
"I didn't expect this giant to be so interesting." In the observation room,
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said.
"His bloodline is quite special to have such an appetite. Is it the Big Eater
bloodline? It could be the Abyss bloodline too." The bishop guessed.
These words would be very familiar to Tripleblade.
Because before this, Tripleblade had speculated the same thing.
But right now, Tripleblade was teetering on the edge of life and death!
The next moment, Tripleblade, who thought he was about to die in battle, heard
a roar behind him.
He ducked down immediately. The water pigman leader instantly leaped over him,
blocking the incoming club attack for him.
The water pigman leader staggered back several large steps before steadying
himself.
He was only iron level, at a disadvantage in level, but behind him stood a
group of water pigmen, forming a last-stand formation.
Relying on the strength of his formation, the water pigman leader furiously
pumped up his battle qi and engaged the silver level opponent in fierce combat.
Tripleblade seized this crucial moment to breathe, immediately seizing the
opportunity to retreat slightly.
In that instant, the Quick Knife Squad charged in, joining the Backwater Battle
Squad in battle.
Though small in number, both squads had trained relentlessly since their
founding. Zong Ge had invested immense time, resources, and manpower into their
training, and the fruits of this labor were concentrated in these two squads.
This time, neither squad were a disappointment.
They played a pivotal role!
One squad engaged the silver level enemy, while the other forcibly shattered
the enemy formation.
Another silver sacrificial warrior, unable to sit idly by, shouted to his
comrades before launching a pincer attack against the Backwater Squad.
Their tactical intent was clear: concentrate all forces to eliminate one squad
first, then deal with the other.
But at that moment, the alchemy workshop door burst open from within, and a
group of dwarves charged out.
It turned out that Men Shi, after observing for a while and confirming that the
fierce battle outside was neither an illusion nor a decoy, had decisively
chosen to strike.
Men Shi charged into the enemy ranks, engaging a silver level sacrificial
warrior and directly disrupting their tactical plan.
Thus, the silver level forces found themselves mutually counterbalanced.
Yet the Quick Knife Squad remained beyond the reach of the sacrificial
warriors, despite their best efforts to target them.
Led by the dogman Kuai Tui, the Quick Knife Squad swiftly gained the upper
hand, cutting down numerous sacrificial warriors.
Blood spattered, battle qi erupted.
The mercenaries fought fiercely; the sacrificial warriors fought fearlessly.
The clash between the two forces quickly reached a fever pitch, with casualties
mounting relentlessly.
For every three sacrificial warriors who fell, only one mercenary collapsed.
The casualty ratio stood at three to one.
The sacrificial warriors possessed high combat proficiency and decent
equipment, though their average age was notably advanced.
The mercenaries fought with exceptional ferocity, a result of rigorous training
and the morale surge ignited by Tripleblade's relentless combat. Most
crucially, the mercenaries' gear was generally superior to their opponents'.
This was especially true for the two battle squads, where nearly every member
was fully armed.
Given their small numbers, Zong Ge had invested heavily to equip them.
Substandard gear would lead to heavy casualties. Too many casualties would
shatter the squad's formation, rendering all their grueling training futile.
Before this battle, Tripleblade considered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
constant expenditure on acquiring equipment to be unwise. But after this clash,
he deeply understood how superficial his previous understanding had been.
Compared to their enemies, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps held another
significant advantage.
They had numbers!
Mei Lin had already accomplished a great deal by organizing a group of
sacrificial warriors to reach Snow Bird Harbor in such a short time.
Infiltrating this city required considerable effort.
After all, Snow Bird Harbor was under constant surveillance by the mage tower.
If the sacrificial warriors had gathered in one place, their numbers would have
been formidable.  But they attacked in scattered groups, deploying forces
across multiple fronts. While assaulting the alchemy workshop, they suffered
heavy casualties from magic traps and other defensive measures.
This resulted in their numerical disadvantage on the battlefield near the small
alchemy workshop.
Battle skill - Venomous Fang Slash!
Tripleblade drew the curved blade from his waist, seized the moment, and
suddenly plunged into the fray, striking a silver level sacrificial warrior.
The sacrificial warrior was slashed across the lower back, a thin, elongated
wound gouged into his flesh.
Initially, crimson blood flowed from the wound, but within seconds, it turned
green. Simultaneously, a greenish hue spread from the wound, gradually
enveloping the surrounding flesh.
The silver level sacrificial warrior even felt a wave of dizziness.
“Damn it! That blade is poisoned!”
“How despicable!”
The silver level sacrificial warrior attempted to pursue Tripleblade, but the
latter's first move after landing the strike was to retreat.
Constrained by the battle's momentum, the warrior couldn't move freely and
could only watch helplessly as Tripleblade successfully withdrew.
He hastily retrieved a vial of potion and downed its contents in one gulp.
The dizziness immediately subsided, though the wound still tingled and numbed.
This antidote wasn't strong enough!
The silver level sacrificial warrior growled, warning his comrades nearby,
“Watch out for that shorty's poisoned blade!”
Bam!
The next instant, an alchemy bullet whizzed toward him. Had the silver
sacrificial warrior not ducked his head, it would have blown his skull apart.
“Guys, I'm here!” Chi Lai materialized atop a rooftop, bellowed once, then
vanished into cover.
Men Shi and the rest rejoiced.
Chi Lai was silver level, a formidable fighter. His long-barreled musket had
been upgraded to silver level, capable of hitting minute targets at extreme
ranges.
Chi Lai disappeared, then fired bullets from shadowy corners. Each bullet posed
a severe threat to silver level foes or claimed the lives of other transcendent
sacrificial warriors.
This was the world of the strong.
Chi Lai's arrival drastically shifted the combat balance between allies and
enemies at the small workshop.
The sacrificial warriors couldn't help but wear expressions of grim resolve.
They all understood this battle held little hope for survival.
Yet they showed no sign of retreat.
The two silver level sacrificial warriors exchanged a swift glance and nodded
simultaneously.
They abruptly changed course, charging together toward the workshop gates.
Even as the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' attacks struck them, their direction
remained utterly unaltered!
“Quick! We must hold the line!” Men Shi cried urgently.
Though he had left a few dwarves inside the workshop, their numbers were
meager.
Crucially, these dwarves were no match for two silver level sacrificial
warriors!
Men Shi rushed to pursue them.
Joining him in this unified action were the Backwater Squad, Tripleblade, and
others.
Bu Quan's disappearance meant the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps couldn't control
the facilities within the small alchemy workshop.
Men Shi opened the door and went outside to reinforce the others. But he
couldn't reseal the alchemy door completely.
This left an opening for the enemy.
“We can't let this effort go to waste!” Tripleblade arrived first.
Gripping the dagger Sweet Talk in one hand and the poisonous curved blade in
the other, he charged at the two silver level opponents.
Boom!
A thunderous explosion sent Tripleblade flying violently, slamming him into the
workshop wall.
His entire body sank into the wall, temporarily unable to dislodge himself.
Critically wounded!
Agonizing pain made him grimace. His extensive combat experience told him at
least two ribs were broken.
The big guy woke up feeling great.
Just as the magic chef Da Dou had anticipated, he recovered quickly this time.
While he slept, Da Dou had once again piled the long table high with fluttering
boat fried rice.
Without hesitation, the big guy grinned like an idiot and dove in with
everything he had!
He wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but even he realized this was an
exceptional, rare opportunity.
Eat! Eat! Eat!
He ate voraciously.
He stuffed himself senselessly!
His appetite had grown.
This time, he devoured not only the iron and bronze level fried rice but also
several bowls of silver level food.
Consequently, the big guy's sleep cycle stretched considerably longer.
The audience was universally stunned by this spectacle. In an instant, many
gathered around the big guy to discuss.
"Hey hey hey, did you guys see that? He actually ate a silver level
transcendent dish!"
"Eating beyond his level isn't really surprising. Previously, iron level
transcendents have tried silver level fried rice, but this giant's situation is
different."
“Exactly! He devoured all the iron and bronze level fried rice first, then
polished off three huge bowls of silver level fried rice on top of that!”
“How can he have such an enormous appetite?”
“What's his background, anyway?”
The big guy had been under scrutiny for quite some time, and his identity could
no longer be kept secret at this point.
So, more and more people came to know him as a member of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
"Their leader, Long Fu, slew Teng Dong Lang in this very place. Now, his
comrade is making a stunning showing here too!"
The citizens of Snow Bird Harbor held strong affection for the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Upon learning the big guy's identity, they developed considerable fondness for
him as well.
Many had previously perceived the big guy as crude and wild, but now, observing
him eat and sleep, they found him somewhat honest and down-to-earth.
“No, this can't go on any longer.”
“This giant is absolutely the key factor in this eating contest!”
Seeing his points clearly falling behind his opponent, Ci Hai Shen was forced
to adjust his strategy.
He resolved to prepare a dish tailored to the giant's palate, hoping to win the
big guy over to his side.
Crafting meals specifically for particular diners, creating dishes that
perfectly match their tastes, is also one of the hallmarks of a master chef.
“I've decided, I'll make a stir-fried dragon liver dish!”



****** Chapter 533: Falling Asleep While Eating ******
The dragon liver extracted by Ci Hai Shen was entirely jade-green, roughly the
size of a millstone.
Initially, the liver emitted no discernible aura, but as the seal was lifted,
it instantly captured the audience's attention.
A gold level ingredient!
“Could it be that Ci Hai Shen intends to prepare a gold level dish?” The bishop
instinctively rubbed his stomach, anticipating a feast. 
“That shouldn't be the case.” Mei Lan Du frowned slightly, puzzled.  “Given the
current situation, though Ci Hai Shen is behind, his disadvantage isn't yet a
losing position. He still has a chance to turn things around. Preparing a gold
level dish now carries significant risk.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord enlarged the magic projection, focusing on the
dragon liver. Seconds later, his frown smoothed: “This liver is remarkably
intact, but it's not from an ancient dragon. Likely some wind-type dragon
beast.”
Consuming pure-blooded ancient dragons was taboo.
Slaughtering one almost invariably left a mark. Dragons within a certain radius
would sense the bounty mark and pursue the killer relentlessly.
Though individually formidable, dragons, as an intelligent species, required
lengthy maturation periods and reproduced far less efficiently than humans or
elves.
It was precisely this bounty mark that safeguarded the dragon race to some
extent.
Even though the dragon race had been in decline for ages, this bounty mark
still struck fear into countless hearts.
Even if Ci Hai Shen wasn't the actual dragon slayer, his public cooking of
dragon meat would still brand him an enemy of the dragon race.
Put yourself in their shoes, and you'll understand.
Imagine if another race had a chef publicly roasting and eating human hearts,
how would humans react? They would naturally view the chef with hostility and,
if possible, bring him to justice.
Moreover, within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom resided the white dragon clan. They
dwelled at the highest peak of Ice Sculpture Island, and the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family has always strived to maintain an alliance with the white dragons.
Therefore, if Ci Hai Shen publicly cooked a dragon's liver, the trouble
wouldn't just fall on him—it would also drag Snow Bird Harbor City Lord into
the mess.
What Ci Hai Shen presented, of course, wasn't a dragon's liver, nor even a
wyvern's. It was a dragon beast.
Dragon beasts were typically hybrids between beasts and dragons, possessing the
characteristics of beasts alongside dragon abilities like wings or fire breath.
They were usually smaller in size, nowhere near as towering and formidable as
true dragons.
Ci Hai Shen looked extremely solemn as he began preparing the dragon liver.
This ingredient had originally been prepared by Ci Hai Shen for the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's grand banquet, but unexpectedly, it was being used here
ahead of schedule.
Though merely a dragon beast, its gold level status was undeniable,
guaranteeing the liver's value.
Ci Hai Shen had no choice but to bring it out, only ingredients of this caliber
could attract the big guy.
Under Ci Hai Shen's mental control, sharp knives methodically began peeling the
dragon liver.
Next came the tendering.
Then, using the Spring Well, Ci Hai Shen continuously rinsed the dragon liver.
Once cleaned, Ci Hai Shen employed the largest cleaver at his disposal to slice
it.
The liver was swiftly cut into thin, uniform portions.
He retrieved various seasonings and began marinating the liver.
Using his pocket watch, he adjusted the time to accelerate the liver's aging
process.
Then he retrieved the crying face green pepper, angry face red pepper, and
smiling face yellow pepper. All were silver level ingredients.
Seeing this, Mei Lan Du in the observation room felt a slight tremor in his
heart: “These are emotion peppers. Using so many... I understand Lord Ci Hai
Shen's plan now.”
“He doesn't intend to create a gold level dish. Instead, he aims to downgrade
the dragon liver.”
His target must be that giant!"
"Ah? Why downgrade it?" the bishop exclaimed, his face clouding with
disappointment.
Mei Lan Du explained, “High-grade ingredients are unfriendly to lower-tier
transcendents. Thus, most high-level magic chefs possess the ability to
downgrade ingredients.”
“Downgrading high-level ingredients yields low-level dishes with nutrition
surpassing ordinary low-level dishes.”
“Typically, this extravagant practice is employed by great nobles to nurture
their offspring.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed, “That giant truly has a palate for fine
things. I've never enjoyed such treatment myself.”
That was the honest truth.
Though Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had Mei Lan Du by his side, the latter was
merely silver level.
Mei Lan Du couldn't craft gold level transcendent dishes, while Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord himself was gold level. For him to eat downgraded gold level
cuisine meant that the ingredients required would have to be at least saint
level.
This far exceeded the capabilities of both Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Mei
Lan Du.
To create dishes downgraded to silver level, one typically needed a gold level
magic chef.  And to secure the long-term service of a gold level magic chef,
the patron must possess at least saint level strength, or be a major noble with
deep-rooted heritage and vast influence.
Mei Lan Du proved worthy of being Ci Hai Shen's chosen assistant; even in the
vegetable preparation, one could discern Ci Hai Shen's purpose.
"This giant truly has a huge appetite and can eat a lot. But will Ci Hai Shen
succeed?" the bishop inquired curiously.
Mei Lan Du pondered, "In my view, the chances of success are not small.
According to the rules, once both magic chefs begin preparing their gold level
dishes, the scent-separating formation will automatically activate. The aroma
of the food alone will be enough to draw everyone in."
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pressed, “But Ci Hai Shen intends to downgrade and
prepare a silver level dish.”
Mei Lan Du nodded. “He'll execute the downgrade during the final stage, but the
formation will open when he uses the gold level ingredients. Thus, the intense
aroma will surge forth during the cooking process.”
“Only after he completes the downgrade will the formation close again.”
The bishop understood: “So, Ci Hai Shen exploited a loophole in the rules.”
Mei Lan Du shook his head slightly: "Actually, this isn't a loophole, it's a
clever application of the rules.  When he utilized the gold level ingredient,
he had already paid the full price."
“After all, every ingredient in the eating contest comes out of the magic
chef's own pocket.”
As Mei Lan Du explained, Ci Hai Shen poured cold oil into the heated wok and
added shredded ginger to stir-fry.
Next, he tossed in dragon liver, stir-frying until it changed color.
Then he added three colors of emotion peppers and continued stir-frying.
He retrieved a small glass bottle and carefully poured in some sand salt.
A ripple of excitement rippled through the crowd once more.
This seasoning was also of the gold level, known as time sand salt.
“This salt is crafted primarily from time sand,” Mei Lan Du stated. “The value
of this single small bottle could purchase fifty portions of the dragon liver
he's currently stir-frying.”
That's not all.
Ci Hai Shen then retrieved a portion of purple-black flavored oil, pouring some
into the bottom of the wok.
This too was a gold level seasoning.
Neither Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nor the Sea Bird Bishop were magic chefs and
couldn't identify it.
Fortunately, Mei Lan Du was beside them and revealed the truth: "This is hunger
devil oil. It helps diners speed up digestion of the food they consume. Lord Ci
Hai Shen isn't just attracting the giant—he's also aiding digestion. It seems
he has quite high hopes for this giant."
The magic chef, Da Dou, widened his eyes.
After Ci Hai Shen retrieved the gold level dragon liver, his attention had been
drawn.
When Ci Hai Shen then produced the emotion peppers, Da Dou instantly grasped
the latter's plan.
“He's competing for the giant. Should I... change tactics?” Da Dou hesitated.
His approach was quite unique; he only prepared fluttering boat fried rice.
His recipe was a composite one, capable of producing ordinary, bronze, iron,
and silver level fried rice simultaneously.
Of course, if he invested gold level ingredients, he could also cook gold level
fried rice!
When making gold level fried rice, both his success rate and output far
exceeded the norm.
This was precisely the power of Da Dou's tactic!
But now, it wasn't yet time to risk making a gold level dish.
Da Dou still held the upper hand.
Although Ci Hai Shen used gold level ingredients, he intended to downgrade his
dish, so the risk he took was nowhere near that of creating a gold level dish.
Besides the big guy, others still had appetites. Moreover, people were
constantly refining their battle qi, digesting the food.
Da Dou hesitated for a moment before choosing to continue with his plan.
The big guy's nostrils flared.
His stomach caved in again, roused by the intense aroma.
Unlike his earlier dazed gaze, this time he stared straight ahead, following
the scent of food until he spotted Ci Hai Shen's large wok.
The big guy rose and ran toward Ci Hai Shen.
“Well then, I shall take the key to this victory.” Ci Hai Shen watched the big
guy approach his half of the area, a smug smile spreading across his face.
In the final stage, the gold level aura rapidly dissipated, downgrading to
silver level.
Food was served.
The stir-fried dragon liver was placed on a massive platter, then, under Ci Hai
Shen's psychic control, flew directly to the big guy's front.
The big guy reached out to grab it, but the platter suddenly shot away.
The tray didn't fly fast, guiding the big guy step by step toward the long
table by Ci Hai Shen's side before landing on the tabletop.
The big guy had been drooling all the way over. Excitedly, he grabbed the tray
and devoured the dragon liver in two bites.
Then, his attention was drawn to the countless dishes spread across the long
table.
His eyes lit up. So many delicious things here!
Nothing more to say, let’s eat!
Watching the big guy shovel dish after dish into his mouth, Ci Hai Shen wore a
satisfied grin.
He began planning his next move: “Now that the giant's been lured here, we must
prevent him from being drawn back.”
“Therefore, the next dish I prepare must be even more exquisite than before.”
“Giants require deep sleep to digest their food; that's valuable time we must
minimize. That means creating easily digestible dishes.”
“Hmm... Decided! I'll make pine flower shark fin soup. Its exquisite flavor
will leave him craving more!”
Magic spell - Clone.
Ci Hai Shen conjured over a dozen clones, each simultaneously preparing the
soup.
By the time the big guy finished the table's offerings, platters of pine flower
shark fin soup were already flying toward him.
At first, he tried to grab the plates with his hands, but soon, with Ci Hai
Shen's assistance, all he needed to do was open his mouth, tilt his head back,
and wait for the shark fin to be placed inside.
“Delicious! Delicious! So delicious!”
“Snore... snore...”
As he ate, the big guy drifted off to sleep.



****** Chapter 534: Gold Level Dish ******
The big guy's body once again radiated a dark iron-colored battle qi. As he
channeled the battle qi technique, his bulging belly rapidly flattened.
The audience fell completely silent.
The looks they cast at the big guy grew increasingly thick with envy and
admiration.
In a culinary showdown between magic chefs, vying for diners was expected.
But for a gold level magic chef to go to such lengths, using gold level
ingredients and even voluntarily downgrading the dish's level, was
exceptionally rare! Not even Snow Bird Harbor City Lord received such treatment
under normal circumstances.
Yet upon reflection, the audience quickly understood: Ci Hai Shen had
compelling reasons for this.
“That giant's appetite is truly enormous.”
“His digestion speed is too fast.”
"Bloodline... I'm curious, what exactly is his bloodline? He cultivates the
Mindless Sleeping Posture battle qi technique, which doesn't aid a fighter's
digestion. His ability to eat so much and digest so quickly must stem from his
bloodline. The higher the bloodline level, the more efficient the refinement of
battle qi."
Thus, more and more people began to wonder what exactly the big guy's bloodline
was.
The big guy awoke once more.
“Have you noticed how much faster this giant wakes up now?” Many spectators
observed this change.
Of course, it was so.
Though still stuck at the iron level, the big guy had consumed so many dishes
and absorbed such vast amounts of external energy that his strength had surged
dramatically. This change increased the reserve of battle qi within his body
and also accelerated the speed at which he could refine it.
The big guy continued eating.
He didn't need to walk around the long table or even pick up a tray.
Ci Hai Shen directly used his spirit power to send all kinds of dishes into the
big guy's mouth.
This service was far superior to what was offered at Da Dou's place.
The big guy tilted his head back, chewing and swallowing ceaselessly, accepting
everything without refusal.
A subtle, icy glint flickered in Ci Hai Shen's eyes.
“This brute... his intelligence is indeed lacking. His bloodline is at least
gold level.”
“What if... I prepared a gold level dish for him to eat? What would happen
then?”
Ci Hai Shen knew nothing of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps; he had no
connection to them whatsoever. His idea of creating a gold level dish for the
big guy wasn't out of concern for him, but solely for victory.
As long as the big guy consumed the gold level dish, it counted as points, even
if he ate himself to death afterward.
This wasn't exploiting a loophole in the eating contest rules; it was precisely
where a magic chef's true power shone. Couldn't compelling a diner to lose all
reason and devour a dish be seen as a demonstration of strength?
Ci Hai Shen harbored malicious intent. He'd heard of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps but couldn't care less.
In fact, he'd seen the magic footage of that heroic duel.
“So what if a silver level defeated a gold level?”
“I'm gold level too. If I don't want to fight Long Fu, I'll just leave.”
Just as Tripleblade had feared, even with such an impressive victory, the
dragonman youngster remained merely gold level in battle strength. His
deterrent effect simply couldn't match that of a true gold level.
Ci Hai Shen wanted to win desperately. The stakes were the Preservation Knife,
which significantly impacted his strength.
But soon, Ci Hai Shen dismissed the idea of crafting a gold level meal
altogether.
“Creating a gold level dish carries risks.”
No transcendent cuisine was merely a simple stacking of ingredients. Instead,
it required the magic chef to employ various techniques during preparation,
unifying the ingredients into a cohesive whole where they harmonized, thereby
balancing the magic.
"Now is not the time to risk creating a gold level dish. I should prepare a
large quantity of food. The more the giant eats, the more it benefits my points
to overtake the lead."
Ci Hai Shen began designing a menu for the big guy.
Menu design and recipe development were among the core skills of a magic chef.
Designing menus wasn't straightforward. A magic chef had to consider each
dish's function, how they interacted and complemented one another, a task that
truly tested their skill.
“Of course, we can't neglect the others. We still need to prepare some of the
previous dishes to maintain appeal for the general crowd.”
Ci Hai Shen understood the situation clearly: the other diners were the
foundation, while the big guy was his weapon for catching up on points.
He kept churning out dishes.
At this stage, the pressure from the crowd's continued consumption was minimal,
freeing up more of his energy to focus on preparing meals for the big guy.
The big guy didn't disappoint Ci Hai Shen. Ci Hai Shen slowly caught up, the
gap between them steadily narrowing.
Mei Lan Du discerned the pattern and analyzed, "Lord Ci Hai Shen has been
thoughtful. The transcendent dishes he fed the giant could already form a menu.
Each dish contains copious amounts of digestive aids, and he repeatedly uses
time sand salt, which accelerates the flow of time within the giant."
"Keep a close watch and take good care of this young giant. After all, he
belongs to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps." Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
ordered.
Da Dou's expression darkened.
The sole reason he'd been caught by his opponent was because of the big guy.
Yet his gaze toward the big guy remained gentle. As fellow giants, Da Dou felt
an innate kinship and goodwill toward him.
“If all else fails, I'll just have to make some gold level fried rice!” Da Dou
had already made up his mind.
Within Snow Bird Harbor City, a small alchemy workshop.
“Finally... it's over.” The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' members stood on the
blood-soaked battlefield littered with corpses, panting heavily, their
expressions generally dazed.
Every single sacrificial warrior had perished.
Most had fallen at the entrance to the alchemy workshop.
The final charge had been truly terrifying. The fierce determination and battle
will unleashed by the sacrificial warriors had shaken every mercenary to their
core.
The dwarves had fulfilled their duty to the utmost, ultimately forging a line
of defense with their own flesh and blood, buying crucial time for the
reinforcements led by Men Shi and Chi Lai.
At the very end, Tripleblade attacked with almost no defense, channeling every
ounce of his power into the assault.
The two silver level sacrificial warriors fell first.
Expecting the sacrificial warrior's morale to plummet, they were instead met
with an even fiercer onslaught.
Dwarves kept falling to their charges, though the narrow gate proved easier to
defend than to breach.
Finally, seeing defeat inevitable, the last few bronze level sacrificial
warriors bit through the poison sacs embedded in their teeth and took their own
lives.
“These men were sacrificial warriors. They feared death not at all.”
“We were hoping to take a few prisoners alive, but they chose death instead!”
“Damn it! Where did these men even come from?”
Many mercenaries still trembled with lingering fear.
“We've won!”
“That's right, we've secured the last workshop.”
"But what about Bu Quan? And where is our giant?" Tripleblade asked Men Shi and
Chi Lai respectively.
The dwarf shook his head. "Miss Bu Quan vanished suddenly from her spot. She
disappeared in exactly the same way as the assassin who ambushed us earlier.
She still hasn't reappeared."
Chi Lai was more direct: "Though your order was to retrieve the giant, I chose
not to. Rushing to support you was the wisest decision! As things stand, my
choice was correct."
"What?!" Tripleblade's eyes blazed with fury, his hands itching to slap Chi Lai
across the face.
So after all that, Bu Quan's gone, and the big guy's lost too?
“Cough cough cough!” Tripleblade forced himself to stand despite the pain,
coughing up blood as he staggered toward the exit.
“Wait! You need rest and healing.” Men Shi blocked his path.
This battle had made him look at Tripleblade with new respect.
In truth, all the surviving mercenaries had elevated their opinion of
Tripleblade significantly.
Tripleblade had shone brightly in this fight. His fearless, fierce fighting
spirit had given morale a massive boost.
Tripleblade sighed inwardly: "The big guy is one of us. Even if he went mad, he
was still hunting down the enemy. We can't abandon any member lightly!"
These words lit a spark in the mercenaries' eyes, and they eagerly volunteered
to follow Tripleblade in searching for the big guy.
“Hurry up! Sometimes, just a little faster support can rewrite the outcome of a
battle!” Tripleblade was impatient.
He needed to keep the big guy's potential a secret, so he couldn't reveal the
exact reason to Chi Lai, Men Shi, and the others.
Tripleblade understood Chi Lai's choice.
After all, the latter didn't grasp the big guy's true value!
“Hope we're not too late... big guy, hold on...” Tripleblade bolted out, a
group of mercenaries trailing behind.
The big guy couldn't hold on.
He collapsed to the ground once more.
Snore... snore...
He began snoring contentedly.
As the Mindless Sleeping Posture battle qi technique cycled once more, the
delicacies within his belly transformed into nourishment for his rising
strength.
Soon, he awoke again and resumed eating.
In the observation room.
The bishop's eyes flashed. Finally unable to contain himself, he ordered, “Find
out this giant's name, where he comes from, and his specific faith!”
The bloodline the big guy displayed was at least gold level.
This fact had been confirmed in the bishop's mind.
A future gold level!
This stirred the interest of the powerful bishop, who sought to convert the big
guy to the Sea Bird Church.
Yet Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, seated nearby, harbored no such thoughts.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is backed by arms dealers. Did they truly
recruit this giant aboard on Snake Rat Island?”
"Perhaps it's merely a disguise. The giant could well be the arms dealers'
arrangement."
“Much like the golden-hued Shi Qi, or the silver level Long Fu who slays foes
beyond his level.”
The situation in the arena had now become clear.
Only a dozen or so contestants remained capable of consuming more dishes.
Ci Hai Shen and Da Dou's scores were once again neck and neck.
“He holds the key to victory!” The gazes of both gold level magic chefs
simultaneously locked onto the big guy.
"No, and the two gold level observers too. Watch my gold level fried rice!" Da
Dou resolved, using gold level ingredients to risk the refining process!
This move instantly sent shockwaves through the entire venue.
“The decisive battle has begun!” Almost simultaneously, Ci Hai Shen also began
preparing his gold level dish.



****** Chapter 535: Determining Victory and Defeat ******
Snow Bird Duel Arena.
In the spectator room, Mei Lan Du mused, “Who would've thought this culinary
duel would actually come down to preparing a gold level dish in the end?”
Such an outcome was uncommon.
Typically, contests are decided at the iron or silver level.
But Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen possessed comparable skills. The only pivotal
factor, the big guy, was seized by Ci Hai Shen, causing Da Dou to gradually
lose his points advantage.
It wasn't that Da Dou's choice back then was wrong.
Even if he had kept the big guy, Ci Hai Shen would still have risked creating a
gold level dish.
For a magic chef, crafting dishes of the same level is inherently risky.
Creating transcendent cuisine differs from crafting potions or equipment. The
latter two may require lengthy refinement periods, whereas cooking often
demands swift execution.
Within a short time frame, the chef must rapidly achieve magic equilibrium
among all ingredients.
Consumption must also be prompt. Should this magic balance be disrupted, the
transcendent dish risks self-destruction, or even explosion.
For Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen, the success rate for crafting gold level dishes is
far lower than for silver level. As for the even higher saint level, it
completely exceeds their capabilities.
Gold level fluttering boat fried rice!
Da Dou added gold level ingredients, tossing the silver level wok vigorously.
Soon, golden grains of rice appeared.
“So swift!” Mei Lan Du exclaimed excitedly in the observation room. "I finally
saw the recipe Lord Da Dou used. Though this recipe only produces one type of
fried rice dish from start to finish, it allows for fine-tuning. More
importantly, it prioritizes quantity over quality, significantly boosting the
output speed and success rate of high-level fried rice dishes! "
“No wonder Lord Da Dou possesses such unwavering confidence in defeating Lord
Ci Hai Shen!”
Da Dou's pace in crafting gold level dishes far surpassed Ci Hai Shen's.
Moments later. 
Two bowls of gold level fried rice were presented before Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord and the Sea Bird Bishop. 
Both had been eagerly anticipating this moment. After finishing their portions,
their eyes shone brightly as they praised the dish lavishly. 
“Damn it!” Ci Hai Shen couldn't help but feel a surge of tension.
Only two gold level diners were present. 
With both having consumed their bowls of gold level fried rice, Da Dou had
secured a massive advantage.  
For whatever dishes Ci Hai Shen prepared next, the city lord and bishop might
not finish them. 
Gold level Butterfly Petal Magic Salad!
The salad's main ingredient was butterfly petals, blended with night-glow lotus
root, then combined with frosted giant lizard leg meat, and a sauce of magic
cardamom and pearl pear vinegar.
Finally, it was drizzled with refreshing olive oil.
Ci Hai Shen's dish was also submitted.
He nervously gazed toward the observation room.
Moments later, word came down.
Both the city lord and the bishop had eaten a portion of the butterfly petal
magic salad.
Hearing this, Ci Hai Shen finally exhaled a slight sigh of relief.
He glanced at the scoreboard and saw his points were once again neck-and-neck
with Da Dou's.
Ci Hai Shen dared not slack off, burying himself in preparing the second gold
level dish.
Unsurprisingly, Da Dou took the lead again, crafting the second wave of gold
level fried rice.
However, when his fried rice reached the observation room, news arrived: the
city lord had eaten half a bowl, and the bishop had eaten a third before both
could eat no more.
Simultaneously, both declared they would consume no further gold level dishes.
“Hmph, those two!” Da Dou grumbled discontentedly.
Ci Hai Shen breathed a sigh of relief.
Da Dou's advantage was overwhelming, and Ci Hai Shen found it hard to believe
the bishop and city lord had truly reached their limit.
Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen's suspicions were correct.
The bishop and city lord had voluntarily abandoned the feast, primarily out of
political considerations for the kingdom.
For the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony, the royal family had personally
invited Da Dou, Ci Hai Shen, and other magic chefs. As hosts, they couldn't
intervene in the personal grudges between Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen. If things
went wrong and affected the Ice Sculpture Festival, they'd be the ones to
suffer.
“What a waste. Could this end in a draw?!” Da Dou gritted his teeth, glaring at
his rival Ci Hai Shen. He was unwilling to accept this.
But just then, his gaze shifted back to the big guy.
The big guy had awakened.
He stretched lazily, then followed the irresistible aroma to the iron wok in Da
Dou's hands.
Within the pot lay gold level fried rice grains.
“Oh no!” Amidst Ci Hai Shen's darkened gaze, the big guy leapt to his feet and
dashed toward Da Dou, showing not a shred of reluctance to leave Ci Hai Shen's
side.
Da Dou's heart shook: "Inside the gold level fried rice, I added the
supplementary ingredient, dragon might black pepper. Logically, a low level
transcendent shouldn't... He's clearly only iron level. Could it be..."
The thought struck him, and Da Dou hastily shook all the gold level rice grains
onto the plate.
Just as before, the big guy picked up the plate and began shoveling it into his
mouth.
This scene immediately drew gasps from the crowd.
An iron level individual being force-fed gold level fried rice? This could be
deadly.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord urgently ordered care for the big guy.
The bishop also dispatched clerical healers to surround him.
The big guy could only manage half the fried rice before collapsing, falling
asleep instantly.
It was the same silver level priest who had intercepted him earlier.
Approaching the big guy, he cycled through several divine spells for monitoring
and examination.
The results left the priest's face twisted in a peculiar expression.
“He's fine!”
“He's actively digesting the fried rice now. He'll wake up soon.”
This announcement sparked even greater commotion.
The crowd buzzed with discussion, utterly fascinated by the big guy's true
lineage!
“He only ate half the fried rice,” Ci Hai Shen felt a chill run down his spine.
“Once he wakes up, finishing the other half won't be difficult!”
He had already greatly overestimated the big guy, yet the strength the big guy
displayed made him realize that his previous “overestimation” was actually an
underestimation!
“Big guy!” Tripleblade was the first to burst into the duel arena.
Soon after, Chi Lai and the others who had been running alongside him also
arrived at the scene.
Tripleblade was intercepted and hastily declared his identity: “I'm a member of
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
Chi Lai's arrival saved Tripleblade from the predicament.
Not everyone recognized Tripleblade, an iron level mercenary, but Chi Lai, as a
key figure in the Dragon Lion Corps' branch, was well-known to many.
On the way here, Tripleblade had received the latest intel on the big guy,
learning of the uproar he'd caused in the arena.
Though the silver level priest assured him the big guy was in good condition,
Tripleblade remained furious.
He glared at Da Dou, showing no regard for the latter's status as a gold level
powerhouse: "You know full well he's only iron level, yet you still fed him
gold level fried rice. Are you so desperate for victory that you'd risk a
patron's life?"
Da Dou shook his head. “It's not like that...”
He began to explain but quickly stopped speaking of his own accord.
Tripleblade's heart skipped a beat.
In full view of everyone, Tripleblade's earlier rebuke had been merely a test.
Now, the test result was already out.
Da Dou could explain but he chose to keep quiet. Why would he do that?
"Bring the big guy and go back first!" Tripleblade gave orders to the rest of
the mercenaries.
“Chi Lai, after fighting this long, you must be starving, right?” Tripleblade
gave Chi Lai a knowing look, then led him and the others over to stand beside
Ci Hai Shen.
They had been in constant combat, their bodies bearing the marks of battle.
In contrast, the transcendents inside the arena were all stuffed to the gills,
unable to eat another bite. Even if they refined their battle qi to aid
digestion, such behavior had its limits.
The transcendents of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps became the decisive force
in this culinary duel.
Earlier, the big guy had eaten the gold level fried rice, but it was only half
a portion and hadn't counted toward points.
Should they choose Ci Hai Shen or Da Dou?
For Tripleblade, the choice was clearly the former.
On one hand, he held deep apprehension and distaste toward Da Dou. On the other
hand, he had placed substantial wagers on Ci Hai Shen.
The points continuously earned by Tripleblade, Chi Lai, and others eating Ci
Hai Shen's dishes allowed him to pull ahead of Da Dou.
When Men Shi arrived and joined the feast, this lead persisted right up until
the very last moment.
The city lord announced, “The ultimate victor of this duel is Ci Hai Shen!”
The entire crowd erupted in cheers.
The city lord then publicly presented the wager, Preservation Knife and the
Meat Eye, to Ci Hai Shen.
Ci Hai Shen roared with laughter, his heart brimming with triumphant joy. He
taunted Da Dou.
The latter stood arms crossed, expressionless.
After a few sarcastic remarks, Ci Hai Shen’s expression shifted abruptly as he
launched an attack.
Da Dou made no attempt to dodge. After being struck, he dissolved into a
shimmering mist and vanished.
Ci Hai Shen sneered coldly, "You lack even the courage to face defeat! Da Dou,
how dare you ever show your face before me again?"
The audience murmured in discussion.
Tripleblade frowned, a growing sense of unease spreading through him. “Let's
head back first.”
Before he could finish speaking, a wounded mercenary stumbled back, panting.
“Lord Chi Lai, it's bad! The Magic Chef Da Dou suddenly appeared and snatched
our giant!”
"What?!" The group gasped in shock.



****** Chapter 536: Tunnel Staff ******
“Da Dou snatched the big guy?!” Tripleblade paled in shock.
"This can't stand. We must get the big guy back! Even if the opponent is a gold
level." Tripleblade hesitated not a moment.
The big guy was too crucial!
Tripleblade could see the big guy possessed at least saint level potential!
What organization would abandon a saint talent? Not even the mightiest force,
the Sheng Ming Empire, would do such a thing.
Da Dou's actions were essentially poaching the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
future pillar. This was absolutely intolerable!
Tripleblade immediately ordered Chi Lai, Men Shi, and others to assemble elite
forces to intercept Da Dou.
Simultaneously, he mobilized the alchemy puppets aboard the fleet, determined
to thwart Da Dou at all costs.
But the next words from the reporting mercenary plunged Tripleblade into an icy
abyss.
"What?! Da Dou vanished right where he stood?!” Tripleblade demanded, eyes
wide.
The mercenary nodded, his expression filled with terror.
“Damn it!” Tripleblade cursed, spinning on his heel and racing toward the
observation chamber.
Upon entering, he sought aid from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord agreed to intervene, declaring that Da Dou's actions
violated the harbor's order and that as its ruler, he could not stand idly by.
Seated nearby, the Sea Bird Bishop also volunteered his assistance. He
declared: It is precisely the presence of the big guy that has added luster to
this rare culinary showdown. He held a genuine fondness for this simple giant!
Tripleblade understood perfectly: "The big guy's unexpected involvement in this
culinary duel exposed much of his potential. Both Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
and the Sea Bird Bishop showed interest, but Da Dou was the most direct, he
simply snatched the big guy away!
Though Da Dou vanished instantly, that didn't mean he left no trace.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord immediately led Tripleblade and the others back to
the docks, entering the mage tower.
The magician tower maintained constant surveillance, naturally capturing magic
footage of Da Dou's intervention and the big guy's abduction.
Tripleblade and the others witnessed the entire sequence.
The mercenaries escorting the big guy moved slowly. Suddenly, a spatial ripple
appeared, and Da Dou materialized, scattering a handful of pepper.
The pepper landed on the mercenaries, igniting instantly and burning fiercely.
The mercenaries, struggling to save themselves, descended into chaos.
Da Dou struck again, instantly knocking the big guy unconscious. He captured
him and teleported away once more.
Tripleblade and the others were filled with shock and rage.
Da Dou's actions were remarkably efficient. With just two moves, he had
snatched the big guy away.
The magician reported with a troubled expression: Everything happened too
quickly. Only 48.3% of the spatial fluctuations from Da Dou's teleportation
were recorded by the mage tower.
At this level, it was nearly impossible to deduce Dà Dōu's destination through
spatial fluctuations alone.
Tripleblade's heart sank to the depths.
The magician asked him: “If you provided more detailed information about the
big guy, perhaps we could use it to track his location.”
This made Tripleblade hesitant.
The big guy's origins and bloodline were secrets. Exposing them would endanger
all the survivors.
But without providing it, how could he find the big guy?
Tripleblade suspected the magician's words might be a ploy, merely an attempt
to pry more information about the big guy from him.
This made Tripleblade even more flustered.
He understood clearly: under the current circumstances, most believed the big
guy possessed a gold level bloodline. Da Dou harbored doubts. Yet if the big
guy's bloodline secret were exposed, everyone would know he was destined for at
least the saint level. Even if Snow Bird Harbor City Lord found the big guy,
he'd never return him to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
As Tripleblade hesitated, the mage tower suddenly emitted a shrill alarm.
The mage tower detected a massive, high-energy object approaching Snow Bird
Harbor. Moreover, this object was rapidly descending, targeting the harbor's
docks.
Just as the mage tower prepared to engage, it received a communication from
Shuang Lian.
Realizing the situation, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord finally calmed down and
immediately expressed his welcome for Shuang Lian's arrival.
Everyone exited the tower to greet her.
Soon, the Honey Snow Tower revealed itself before their eyes.
Boom…
Honey Snow Tower finally landed on the docks, mere hundreds of meters from the
dock's mage tower.
Honey Snow Tower stood five stories tall. Compared to it, the dock's mage tower
suddenly seemed much smaller, like a little brother.
Bu Quan was the first to emerge from the Honey Snow Tower.
Tripleblade had long been privy to intelligence regarding Bu Quan and knew full
well that Bu Quan's mentor was none other than Shuang Lian.
Seeing Bu Quan return, and hearing that he had persuaded his teacher to aid the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Tripleblade was both astonished and overjoyed.
Unexpectedly powerful reinforcements!
Tripleblade paid a visit to Shuang Lian, earnestly requesting her assistance in
helping the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps recover the big guy.
Without any hesitation, Shuang Lian immediately mobilized the search
capabilities of the Honey Snow Tower and requested the spatial fluctuation
records from the dock's mage tower.
Honey Snow Tower's capabilities were clearly far superior to those of the
dock's mage tower.
What the dock's mage tower could not accomplish, under Shuang Lian's direction,
yielded a clear response: “The spatial fluctuation records are incomplete. It
will take three days to calculate the answer.”
“Da Dou was able to teleport using a Tunnel Staff.”
“This teleportation artifact was mass-produced during the demon war a thousand
years ago.”
"It's a consumable item, usable only three times and non-rechargeable. Thanks
to it, the allied races' forces could deploy troops faster back then, barely
holding off the demons' assaults from all fronts."
“After the war ended, this teleportation device became a banned item,
prohibited from production.”
"The Tunnel Staff not only employs spatial teleportation technology but also
possesses the ability to monitor and harness earth veins. It is precisely by
tapping into these veins that the user's energy expenditure is drastically
reduced, allowing for far more precise destination targeting."
"From this, we can infer that even if Da Dou continues using the staff,
assuming he has no second one, he can only teleport a maximum of three times. I
believe the likelihood of him possessing two Tunnel Staffs is quite low."
“He snatched your people, committing a crime in plain sight. This means he has
directly forfeited his participation in the upcoming national ceremony.”
"He'll likely head far from Ice Sculpture Island and probably won't teleport
deep inland."
"With the Tunnel Staff, the greater the geomantic enhancement, the farther the
teleportation distance. Considering this, Da Dou will likely teleport to larger
islands."
"Later, I'll retrieve the specific usage data for the Tunnel Staff from the
guild. With that data and nautical charts, we can calculate his departure range
and potential escape routes."
Shuang Lian spoke with confident eloquence.
Her words left Tripleblade both thrilled and moved.
Thrilled because, compared to the magician earlier, Shuang Lian was so
professional!
She'd applied her knowledge to pinpoint clues in such a short time!!
He was moved because Shuang Lian had offered her help voluntarily, truly a
godsend.
Tripleblade's gratitude continued to swell.
Next, Shuang Lian mentioned she'd heard the deputy commander, Shi Qi, was
injured and unconscious. She could try to see if she could be of assistance.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Tripleblade dared not suggest Shuang Lian attempt
treatment.
Though he was confident in his Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell, it was better to avoid trouble. After all, the current “Shi Qi”
was merely an alchemy puppet.
Tripleblade protested, "Shi Qi's injuries aren't severe. He possesses unique
healing battle skills. This minor wound is nothing to him."
“Really?” Shuang Lian stared at him in disbelief. "Are you certain? You must
understand, the one who attacked Shi Qi wasn't merely a silver level assassin.
It was a gold level assassin!"
Tripleblade flinched before replying that he had suspected as much. But “Shi
Qi” truly was unharmed.
The mention of a gold level assassin sent shockwaves through Snow Bird Harbor
City's leadership.
Shuang Lian turned to him, her face icy, her voice laced with fury: “This gold
level assassin also attempted to attack my beloved disciple! But now, I have
captured him!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was stunned, then immediately declared in a rage
that he would pursue this matter to the very end!
This stance earned a slight nod from Shuang Lian.
Her mention of the gold level assassin was precisely to leverage the official
authority of Snow Bird Harbor City to deal with the enemy.
If the enemy had only targeted the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Shuang Lian
wouldn't have been so enraged.
But the gold level assassin Yi Jiu had attacked Bu Quan, this had crossed
Shuang Lian's line.
Shuang Lian would retaliate.
But as a magician, her vengeance would be strategic. Her first move was to
mobilize every available resource to aid her revenge.
Moreover, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's own position was reason enough for him
to act.
Shuang Lian then dispatched her students to repair the destroyed alchemy
workshop.
All of this, naturally, was Bu Quan's suggestion.
“Moving forward, I will continue overseeing the alchemy within the city,” Bu
Quan stated her intentions.
Tripleblade exclaimed, “Miss Bu Quan, you've truly been a tremendous help this
time!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood nearby, inwardly stunned.
What astonished him most was Shuang Lian's attitude.
After all, she was a powerful elder of the Alchemy Guild, possessing formidable
strength and the support of the Honey Snow Tower. What price had the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps paid to secure such an existence's assistance?
Even Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sensed that Shuang Lian's assistance had been
somewhat overly enthusiastic.
“I shall remain here for the foreseeable future,” Shuang Lian declared to Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord before parting.
“I will not rest until I uncover the enemy who targeted my apprentice!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hastened to respond, “I too shall dedicate myself
fully to this matter.”
He then volunteered to divert energy channels from beneath Snow Bird Harbor to
support the Honey Snow Tower.
“Thanks,” Shuang Lian replied. “I've already tapped 80% of the energy
channels.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord turned to face his mage tower's tower master.
The tower master spread his hands in a wry smile, having just been about to
sneak off to report.
Honey Snow Tower was too overbearing. Upon landing, it had immediately struck,
severing the underground energy channels. The dock's mage tower simply couldn't
compete!
“Cang Xu, your divine spells are truly formidable when used for proselytizing!”
In a makeshift hut along the White Hair Trench, Xiao Wang Zi gave Cang Xu a
thumbs-up.
At that moment, a slender soul chain linked Cang Xu and Xiao Wang Zi together.



****** Chapter 537: Changing Xiao Wang Zi&#x27;s Faith ******
Divine spell - Soul Link.
The pale blue soul chain forged an unprecedentedly intimate bond between Cang
Xu and Xiao Wang Zi's souls.
Xiao Wang Zi regarded the soul chain with curiosity.
He could sense its fragility—any intense resistance would shatter it.
Cang Xu had already verified this during the Deep Sea Monster Fish incident.
Back then, the transcendent fishman he faced wasn't even a magician, let alone
silver level, and was in poor condition, yet he could still snap the soul chain
cleanly.
Thus, this divine spell proved impractical for combat, suitable only for
situations like the present.
Xiao Wang Zi cooperated fully, offering no resistance whatsoever.
He was a skeleton, his eye sockets hollow, yet Cang Xu could sense certain
emotions from him through the way he gazed up at him and the connection of the
soul chain.
Guilt, closeness, and a faint hint of reverence.
When Cang Xu first teleported back, he did not hold Xiao Wang Zi accountable,
which amplified the latter's guilt manifold.
This allowed Cang Xu to breach Xiao Wang Zi's emotional defenses, achieving a
breakthrough in their relationship.
Later, Cang Xu schemed against Qi Ling as retribution.
He and Qi Ling engaged in a brilliant game of wits centered around Jian Gui. Qi
Ling sought to draw on Jian Gui's power to confront Cang Xu. Cang Xu, however,
exploited the situation to thwart Jian Gui's plans against him, successfully
sending the entire Da Ji Clan to a teleportation blood sacrifice.
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng had long harbored resentment toward Qi Ling. Cang Xu's
scheme against the Da Ji Clan, directly confronting Qi Ling, gave them immense
satisfaction upon witnessing it!
Upon his second return, Cang Xu stunned everyone once more.
He had mastered a divine spell, aiding the Da Ji Clan within the Ocean Mother
Nest. This led many fishmen to convert successfully, securing their survival.
Cang Xu's move was nothing short of brilliant!
First, he successfully divided the Da Ji Clan.
On the other hand, he held the Da Ji Clan as leverage, forcing Qi Ling to tread
carefully.
Finally, Cang Xu's status skyrocketed as a result, earning greater trust from
the Charming Blue Church. Zhou Zhang lifted both seals binding him that very
day.
Even Xiao Wang Zi, though politically naive, sensed an exceptional ability in
Cang Xu's series of actions. His growing admiration felt entirely natural.
“Xiao Wang Zi and I have grown much closer.”
“In time, he will be a valuable ally in my ploy against Qi Ling!”
“Alas, the time has been too brief. My influence over him still pales beside
that of Jian Gui.”
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Cang Xu cast an imperceptible glance at
Jian Gui standing before him.
This time, when he cast the divine spell to guide Xiao Wang Zi's faith, he did
so right in front of Jian Gui.
In truth, it was Jian Gui who had suggested it.
Cang Xu found it hard to refuse, so he agreed on the spot, quite decisively.
Jian Gui was hypocritical, but skilled, able to maintain the charade, deceiving
Xiao Wang Zi, Ku Feng, and Qi Ling.
Jian Gui wielded immense influence over the three of them, the result of years
of control.
It was not something Cang Xu could rival through mere effort in such a short
time.
Divine spell - Spiritual Sound Sermon.
Cang Xu drew upon his memories and poured them into Xiao Wang Zi.
In an instant, the doctrines of the Charming Blue faith, along with Cang Xu's
own interpretations of them, flowed through the soul link, seeping deep into
the skeleton magician's soul.
Xiao Wang Zi gained profound insights, exclaiming, “So this is another layer of
meaning within the Charming Blue faith's doctrines!”
Under the spell's effect, his comprehension of the doctrines reached the same
level as Cang Xu's.
Though several days had passed since Cang Xu's second return via teleportation,
this marked the first time he had guided Xiao Wang Zi in matters of faith.
In truth, Xiao Wang Zi, lacking confidence in himself, had long ago invited
Cang Xu to intervene.
Cang Xu had politely deferred, offering a perfectly reasonable justification.
He had argued: The first guidance of faith was crucial and had to be approached
with utmost care. If the first attempt failed, subsequent attempts, no matter
how many, would yield little effect.
The optimal moment for the first conversion was during the teleportation blood
sacrifice, under the overwhelming pressure of death!
Only then can the effect of the first conversion be maximized.
Cang Xu not only offered his own suggestion but also used himself as an example
to substantiate it: “The first time I was in the Mother Nest, it was only under
the intense pressure of death brought by the saint beast that I broke through
my own limits.”
“I believe the reason Charming Blue Goddess placed Her saint beast within the
Mother Nest was likely to harness the overwhelming pressure of death to
cultivate faith.”
Cang Xu's words convinced not only Xiao Wang Zi but also Jian Gui.
Thus, the conversion before the teleportation blood sacrifice occurred!
Divine spell - Spiritual Navigation.
As the divine spell unfolded, an image of Charming Blue Goddess spontaneously
materialized within Xiao Wang Zi's mind.
The spiritual energy within him flowed naturally into the divine form, as
effortlessly as water seeking its lowest point.
Once the spell concluded, Cang Xu inquired what Xiao Wang Zi had witnessed.
The latter truthfully described the vision of Charming Blue Goddess.
He then inquired, “Is there a problem?”
Cang Xu smiled and explained, “The function of this divine spell is actually
spatial positioning and teleportation.”
"However, most spatial teleportation spells transport either the caster or the
target. This spell, however, acts upon an individual's spiritual energy."
“Over these past days, I've used this spell multiple times and gained deeper
understanding.”
“Discussions with Lord Zhou Zhang have further enriched my insights, especially
through her guidance.”
"Lord Zhou Zhang holds this divine spell in high regard, for it establishes a
direct connection between believers and the deity's essence itself. Unlike
conventional prayer, where believers' spiritual energy gathers upon statues,
altars, churches, and such facilities before being channeled through them to
the deity."
"The Charming Blue Goddess statue you just saw is actually the deity's true
form. It merely manifests as a statue based on your level of closeness,
understanding, and faith toward Her."
“If you were more devoted to the Charming Blue Goddess, understood the doctrine
more deeply, and held steadfast faith, you wouldn't see a statue at all—but
rather deeper symbols like altars or churches.”
Xiao Wang Zi realized: “So that's how it is.”
Though simple-minded, he was still a magician and understood Cang Xu's implied
meaning.
Immediately, Xiao Wang Zi murmured with worry: "I only saw the statue. That
means my faith in the Charming Blue Goddess isn't very deep. This teleportation
blood sacrifice is likely to go awry for me!"
Cang Xu hurriedly reassured him: “During my first Spiritual Navigation, I too
saw only the Charming Blue Goddess statue.”
“But now, when I navigate, I can already perceive this gold level altar we're
using!”
“Keep going, you'll definitely succeed next time.”
Cang Xu's expression turned serious: “The upcoming divine spell is the most
critical!”
He instructed Xiao Wang Zi: "Follow my prayer. You may experience intense pain
during this process, endure it and do not cease praying."
"Even after the divine spell concludes, keep praying. Sustain it for as long as
possible."
Xiao Wang Zi nodded in understanding.
Cang Xu began his invocation.
"Great Charming Blue Goddess, I praise Your mercy. As high as the heavens are
above the earth, so great is the kindness You show to Your faithful believers;
as far as the east is from the west, so far have You removed our transgressions
from us..."
While praying, Cang Xu performed the divine spell - Synchronized Conversion!
Instantly, the pale blue chain binding them both erupted with blinding
radiance.
Cang Xu's divine power, spiritual energy, and very soul essence were being
violently drained.
Simultaneously, Xiao Wang Zi's soul underwent a brutal transformation.
Agonizing pain surged from its deepest recesses, nearly overwhelming his
consciousness.
Fortunately, Xiao Wang Zi had prepared himself mentally beforehand, barely
clinging to his sanity.
He followed Cang Xu's lead, murmuring his prayers.
The effect was immediate!
The reshaping of his soul amplified the efficacy of his prayers beyond anything
he'd ever experienced before.
The degree of enhancement was profound, deeply felt by Xiao Wang Zi.
At that moment, even Jian Gui couldn't conceal the piercing brilliance in his
eyes!
"Synchronized Conversion divine spell? It can actually modify another's soul!"
“So that's how it works.”
“Deities cultivate believers by nourishing their bodies and souls with divine
power, transforming them into vessels more attuned to that power.”
"Synchronized Conversion divine spell operates on this principle, condensing
the divine power transformation process into a short period. The template for
soul reshaping is the caster themselves!"
"This divine spell not only consumes divine power but also devours the caster's
spirit and soul! It treats the caster's soul as a material for spellcasting.
Much like how we utilize soul crystals."
Jian Gui truly lived up to his reputation as an orthodox necromancer. After
observing, he uncovered the truth behind this divine spell.
He was profoundly shaken.
The undead orthodoxy had already been deeply researched by other factions. This
Synchronized Conversion divine spell had even approached the forefront of
orthodoxy from another angle!
While Jian Gui was shaken, he also set aside his previous concerns.
Ever since Cang Xu's second teleportation back, he had been relentlessly
gathering intelligence on Cang Xu.
From the fishmen of the Da Ji Clan, he had obtained much hidden knowledge about
Cang Xu's new divine spells. Upon accessing this intelligence, Jian Gui had
surmised that the divine spells possessed soul-altering effects.
Today's event merely provided him with firsthand confirmation.
“Fortunately, I had already subdued Cang Xu and tampered with his soul
beforehand.”
“Had Cang Xu remained uncontrolled, the backdoor embedded in the soul template
of Xiao Wang Zi, forged from his essence, would have been erased!”
Jian Gui had installed covert control mechanisms within Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi,
Qi Ling, and Cang Xu.
This was the foundation of his confidence thus far, and the deepest reason for
his trust in the other undead!
Just as Jian Gui had predicted, within a dozen seconds, Cang Xu voluntarily
halted the divine spell, Synchronized Conversion.
Cang Xu gasped for breath, his vision darkening.
Without his guidance, Xiao Wang Zi felt the excruciating pain in his soul
suddenly lessen, though lingering agony remained.



****** Chapter 538: Bottleneck ******
Xiao Wang Zi was obedient and well-behaved, firmly remembering Cang Xu's
earlier advice and persevering in his prayers.
But his soul had just undergone a violent transformation, and the act of
praying itself demanded the expenditure of spiritual energy, like forcing an
exhausted runner to keep going.
“My Lord, Charming Blue Goddess, You are a Goddess full of grace and mercy.
Please rescue Your faithful believers. Grant me one chance to believe in You,
rather than perish in the jaws of beasts...”
Xiao Wang Zi strained every ounce of strength to sustain his prayer, quickly
reaching his limit. His voice grew fainter and fainter until he collapsed into
unconsciousness right where he stood.
A brief silence fell over the crude shack.
Seconds later, Jian Gui broke the silence: "Xu Jia, you've worked hard this
time. I can see you paid a price in terms of your soul to convert Xiao Wang
Zi."
Jian Gui immediately pledged that if the chance arose, he would compensate Cang
Xu with hundreds of soul crystals for Xiao Wang Zi.
Even though Xiao Wang Zi lay unconscious and couldn't witness this exchange,
Jian Gui insisted on making a show of it.
Cang Xu couldn't help but admire Jian Gui's skill at deception.
“We are companions. I truly wish to see Xiao Wang Zi survive!” Cang Xu
declared. Simultaneously, through covert means, he conveyed to Jian Gui: he
accepted the gesture of goodwill, but declined the soul crystals. What he
sought instead was Jian Gui's practical experience in certain aspects of
cultivation!
Jian Gui inquired in detail.
Cang Xu stated plainly, "I require practical insights into the Memory Switching
Spell and Memory Concealment Spell. During recent applications, I discovered
these techniques can target specific segments of memory."
Upon hearing this, Jian Gui's heart stirred.
He realized Cang Xu had likely used these spells to alter his own memories.
Cang Xu's devotion to the Charming Blue Goddess contained significant
fabrication!
Jian Gui was secretly delighted by this discovery.
“Sure!” He immediately granted Cang Xu's request, directly imparting his
relevant expertise.
Though Cang Xu had previously obtained related inheritance from Jian Gui, it
wasn't personal experience.
To draw an analogy, inheritance was like a textbook, while personal experience
was like a top student's notes.
Both were immensely valuable to Cang Xu!
Once again, Cang Xu reaped benefits from Jian Gui. Satisfied, he took his
leave.
Inside the shack, only Jian Gui and the sleeping Xiao Wang Zi remained.
Jian Gui approached Xiao Wang Zi, bent down, and lifted him into his arms.
As he touched the latter's body, he discreetly probed his condition through
their soul connection.
“Even though I'm bound by a double seal, this soul connection is deeper and
more hidden, so I can still discreetly uncover some secrets and truths.”
“After one round of divine magic, Xiao Wang Zi's soul has indeed been altered
significantly.”
"Fortunately, I had already tampered with Xu Jia beforehand. Thus, even if he
altered Xiao Wang Zi's soul, he would replicate the hidden gateway. Xiao Wang
Zi's life remains within my grasp!"
Jian Gui felt relieved.
Cang Xu's openness, performing divine spells before him, had once again led him
astray: Cang Xu hadn't discovered the fatal hidden gateway within the soul.
Cang Xu's inquiries about memory-related spells eased Jian Gui's mind somewhat.
“Xu Jia's issue isn't too serious yet. The situation remains under my control.”
“But we must act swiftly.”
“If Xiao Wang Zi doesn't return this time, our memory-alteration plan will lose
a skilled helper!”
Xiao Wang Zi's unconscious state didn't last long before he awoke.
Cang Xu was unsurprised. Over the past few days, he had used this divine spell
on others as well, earning considerable divine favor.
However, the Synchronized Conversion among the divine spells drained his soul,
so he couldn't wield it recklessly.
Though he now possessed some soul crystals in reserve, allowing him to use it
publicly.
Xiao Wang Zi awoke according to plan. Two hours later, he would have to
participate in the teleportation blood sacrifice.
The sea beast herd was driven onto the gold level altar as sacrifices. Only
their skeletons remained; the rest dissolved into bloody water, providing
energy.
Unlike previous times, the sacrifices this time included not only sea beasts
but also numerous undead creatures.
The vast majority were the sea turtle skeletons supplied by Xiao Wang Zi.
This change was precisely what Cang Xu had advised Zhou Zhang.
He was bold enough to claim it was divine revelation, information received
during the divine blessing, the will of Charming Blue Goddess.
With Charming Blue Goddess in slumber, Zhou Zhang, though an Archbishop, had no
means to verify it and could only accept it as truth.
Cang Xu accompanied Xiao Wang Zi.
After the second teleportation back, Cang Xu had already devised a
justification and earned Zhou Zhang's approval.
"Once again, a blood sacrifice was performed. May my Lord swiftly regain
strength and awaken from slumber." As an Archbishop, Zhou Zhang truly devoted
herself entirely to the welfare of Charming Blue Goddess.
Cang Xu's expression remained serene, yet his heart brimmed with anticipation:
"I shall see the commander once more! This time, with so many undead souls, my
potential should rise again."
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Water magic - Water Ball.
Water magic - Spring Well.
Water magic - Water Arrow.
…
In the hands of the fishman youngster, water spells flowed one after another.
Being low-tier spells, their success rate reached a perfect hundred percent.
Bloodcore - Hybrid Transformation – the fishman saint corpse’s bloodline +
Ghostface Fish Bloodline.
Necromancy - Soul Howl.
Necromancy - Ghost Mist.
Necromancy - Karma Removal.
Necromancy - Burden Alleviation.
…
The fishman youngster practiced a series of undead spells.
Compared to water spells, however, undead spells had lower success rates and
slower casting speeds.
“Originally, what I needed to practice most was Soul Crystal Creation.”
“But since Zhou Zhang voluntarily lifted the seal for Cang Xu, he can now
openly use soul crystals. I no longer need to risk casting such spells.”
“Sigh, if only my magician level was silver...”
The fishman youngster's life level was silver, but his magician level was
merely iron.
For him, casting Soul Crystal Creation proved more challenging than Undead
Bloodline Detection.
Relying on his current magician level to rapidly advance from iron level to
silver level was unrealistic.
Both magic cultivation and battle qi cultivation progressed step by step. Even
divine power infusion required gradual nurturing and transformation, only when
a clergyman's body could better accommodate divine energy could they ascend to
transcendent ranks.
The latter also requires an accumulation process.
Cang Xu's Synchronized Conversion divine spell altered souls too drastically to
be used frequently.
The fishman youngster's rapid ascent from bronze level to iron level owed much
to his life level advantage. Of course, his fishman bloodline was also a
crucial factor.
Now, with his magician level only one level below his life level, the boost
effect had significantly diminished.
Consider Zi Di.
Her life level was iron. Advancing from a bronze level magician to an iron
level necromancer took her over a month!
“A magician's cultivation demands immense amounts of time.”
"Just practicing these spells alone leaves me perpetually short on time. Not to
mention, magicians must also engage in research, alchemy, transcribing spell
scrolls, and countless other tasks."
The fishman youngster had been burying himself in spell practice lately, and
his greatest realization was this: there was simply too much to learn and
practice, while his time and energy were woefully insufficient.
The cultivation of magic was profound and vast indeed.
Cultivating both battle qi and magic simultaneously, the fishman youngster
deeply felt the immense difficulty involved!
The time and energy consumed were simply too great.
Trying to juggle both easily led to meager results, failing to excel in either.
“These past few days, I've nearly abandoned battle skills training altogether,
focusing solely on spells.”
"But my mastery of these spells remains extremely shallow. Using them rashly in
combat would only create vulnerabilities, severely disrupting my fighting
rhythm!"
Whenever this thought crossed his mind, the fishman youngster couldn't help but
envision Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's formidable fighting prowess.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's combat style was dazzlingly elegant. By rapidly
switching between and synergizing a vast formation of low-level battle skills
and spells, he achieved a blisteringly fast tempo. In single combat, he could
overwhelm opponents of the same level, leaving them utterly helpless.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's fighting left a profound impression on the fishman
youngster.
These past days, as he drilled relentlessly in magic, he subconsciously tried
to emulate Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
After a brief attempt, he realized that reaching Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
level would require over five years of arduous training!
Such a standard was simply unattainable in the short term.
Without meeting a certain benchmark, his skills would be useless in actual
combat.
“For now, I'd be better off focusing solely on refining my battle qi.”
In reality, the fishman youngster had a clear understanding of himself.
His bloodline was exceptional, and he was willing to endure the hardships of
training, but he was severely lacking in time.
Without time to cultivate, it was difficult to achieve results.
In truth, the fishman youngster didn't want to pursue both paths
simultaneously. It was only due to the circumstances this time that he had no
choice but to study magic as well, to help Cang Xu break through the impasse.
As the time approached, the fishman youngster stopped his practice.
Amidst a ripple of spatial distortion, the Charming Blue believers reappeared
within the Ocean Mother Nest.
The fishman youngster operated the alchemy puppet, striking swiftly.
Soon, he had imprisoned the target and extracted a vast amount of undead life
force.
Having done this before, the fishman youngster now handled these operations
with ease.
Cang Xu returned once more to the Deep Sea Monster Fish. He respectfully
saluted the commander in his heart.
The unconscious Xiao Wang Zi was cast into the longhorn cage, sharing the same
fate as Ku Feng and Qing Xin.
Whether to teleport him back remained uncertain, contingent upon how events
unfolded.
Using his Bloodcore, the fishman youngster absorbed vast quantities of undead
essence, successfully accumulating it to the saint level bloodline
concentration of the Hanging Corpse Tree.
Cang Xu reentered the Bloodline Purification Formation. Upon exiting, his
bloodline concentration had increased by 2%.
He proceeded to a specialized chamber, concealed his true memories, and
performed a blasphemous ritual using fabricated recollections.
Divine blessing arrived once more.
The hatch opened, yet Cang Xu showed little joy.
“I seem to have hit a bottleneck.”
“Though my aptitude has improved, the content of the divine blessing hasn't
undergone a qualitative leap.”
“As Lord Zhou Zhang advised, it's likely due to insufficient faith.”
“Through fabricated memories, my level of devotion can only barely be
considered pious.”
The fishman youngster comforted him: “That's already quite commendable.”
"Charming Blue Goddess is a true deity. Her church operates with strict
regulations, and her doctrines are comprehensive. The regulations governing
divine blessings are far stricter than we previously imagined."
“Those with aptitude receive divine favors first, that's an incentive.”
“But if devotion remains shallow, the blessings won't undergo qualitative
change. This is a wise screening mechanism.”
Cang Xu sighed. “I underestimated the complexity.”
“To accumulate divine favor for performing resurrection magic... the path ahead
is arduous.”
After a moment's deliberation, Cang Xu spoke again: “Commander, perhaps you
could perform a blasphemous ritual.”



****** Chapter 539: The Goddess Has Given a Bit Too Much! ******
The fishman youngster remained calm at Cang Xu's proposal, even nodding
slightly in agreement.
In truth, involving the fishman youngster in the sacrilegious ritual had always
been part of their plan.
The slumber of the Charming Blue Goddess had granted the survivors countless
opportunities and now represented their greatest hope for escape.
Cang Xu had already reaped significant benefits from blasphemous rituals. He
used this to gradually break the deadlock. If they continued, the survivors
could not only successfully leave this place but also acquire a wealth of
valuable resources.
But Cang Xu was ultimately just one person.
At this moment, if someone could cooperate with him... Then undoubtedly, more
hands make light work, and progress would be faster. Even a powerhouse like
Jian Gui required the aid of figures like Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, and Qi Ling to
execute his Memory Fabrication Project.
Yet, for the fishman youngster to participate in the blasphemous ritual, two
major hurdles remained.
First: Performing the ritual demanded mastery of Memory Switching, Memory
Concealment, and Memory Fabrication. These were tasks only a magician could
perform, and only the blasphemer himself could execute them.
Another was the safety hazard.
By now, both issues have been resolved.
The fishman youngster embarked on his magician training, and his magician level
had already advanced to iron level.
He not only mastered water spells but could even wield undead magic.
The fishman youngster was now fully capable of mastering and wielding memory-
related spells as a magician.
With the first problem solved, the second was security.
The greatest risk of becoming a blasphemer lay in memory corruption, leading to
distorted self-perception and subsequent destruction aboard the Deep Sea
Monster Fish.
Or memory confusion causing the blasphemer to lose themselves, unable to
perform even basic life functions like eating.
Should either scenario occur, a companion would need to intervene.
Zhong Yong was unsuitable.
He lacked the clearance to access the survivors' core secrets. Involving him
would expose too much of their inner workings.
Cang Xu, however, was a viable option.
His loyalty was unquestionable. The experiences on Mystifying Monster Island
had earned the trust of the fishman youngster.
Cang Xu's strength had previously been a concern.
He was still too weak. If the fishman youngster went rogue aboard the Deep Sea
Monster Fish, Cang Xu would struggle to contain the situation.
But now, that concern is nearly gone.
Cang Xu's personal strength has surged dramatically!
First, he underwent bloodline refinement, acquiring the Hanging Corpse Tree
bloodline. This comprehensive bloodline enhancement significantly boosted his
combat prowess.
Second, he has mastered divine magic. The synergy between magic and divine
spells made him an even more formidable opponent.
Beyond that, he still had the tower spirit and those alchemy puppets.
He even possessed the Deceptive Disguise spell.
With these assets, Cang Xu was confident he could stabilize the Deep Sea
Monster Fish even if unexpected events arose.
“Then I'll give it a try.” The fishman youngster made his decision.
Cang Xu's face lit up with delight.
Before proposing this suggestion, he'd harbored some apprehension.
After all, their commander worshiped the Justice God. Would performing a
blasphemous ritual conflict with the youngster's sense of righteousness?
The truth was, after his recent psychological transformation, the fishman
youngster had grown more pragmatic, evolving into a superior leader.
Perhaps it was also because Charming Blue Goddess was a deity of the fishmen,
and not of humans?
In any case, the fishman youngster's initiative delighted Cang Xu.
He promptly shared his experience with the youngster and suggested, “Commander,
you could use my fabricated memories. They only require minor adjustments.”
"This approach is more reliable and increases our chances of success. On the
other hand, we can conduct comparative experiments to gather more
intelligence."
The fishman youngster listened attentively, then asked numerous questions.
When it came to practical implementation, there were indeed many issues to
resolve.
Not long after.
The fishman youngster entered the compartment. The metal door closed, blocking
Cang Xu's view.
This time, Cang Xu remained outside the door, ready for any unexpected
developments.
While maintaining vigilance, Cang Xu silently assessed the situation.
“The base success rates for Memory Concealment and Memory Switching are
exceptionally high.”
"When You Shen designed these spells, he did so deliberately. Extending the
incantation time, increasing magic power consumption, all these sacrifices were
made solely to maximize the base success rate.
His approach was remarkably wise and logical."
"Memory is too crucial; if the spell fails and memories become scrambled, the
caster will suffer terribly."
Therefore, even if the fishman youngster was attempting Memory Concealment and
Memory Switching for the first time, Cang Xu felt no concern.
"Charming Blue Goddess has fallen into slumber. I succeeded time and again
before, there's no reason the commander shouldn't."
"What will the commander receive in this divine blessing?"
Cang Xu thought of himself. 
In his first divine blessing, constrained by his own aptitude, he hadn't caught
the Charming Blue Goddess' attention. Thus, he merely regained his magic power
and mental energy.
“The commander's aptitude far surpasses mine.” 
“Though the exact nature of his fishman bloodline remains unknown, his
efficiency in mastering magic suggests it must be of a high level.” 
“And being in his fishman form, he should receive greater favor and a more
substantial divine blessing.”
Cang Xu pondered deeply.
“However, even with the forged memories, his level of faith remains only at the
devout level.”
“This severely limits the extent of his divine blessing.” 
“Combining this with intelligence I gathered from Zhou Zhang and members of the
Charming Blue Church, the commander will likely receive a clerical position and
doctrine.” 
“For clerical positions, the most basic is monk, equivalent to a magician
apprentice.”
“The commander might receive more, perhaps becoming a missionary directly?”
"But acquiring my set of missionary divine spells would be difficult for him.
After all, this memory fabrication didn't involve necromancers. He himself only
prayed using the fishman bloodline, without incorporating the Ghostface Fish
bloodline."
The moment this thought crossed his mind, Cang Xu’s expression shifted
dramatically!
A potent aura of divine power abruptly descended, exploding within the sealed
chamber with unprecedented intensity!
Cang Xu stood on full alert.
Moments later, the metal hatch hissed softly as it slid open.
The fishman youngster emerged with a peculiar yet delighted expression: “Cang
Xu, I know what my fishman bloodline is now.”
Cang Xu's face remained cold: “No rush. Verify the password first.”
This was an essential procedure.
The password was correct, restoring the fishman youngster and Cang Xu to their
former level of trust.
Upon learning the answer from the youngster, Cang Xu couldn't help but lose
himself for a moment.
He murmured, “It's actually the Surging Wave fishman bloodline!”
“That's one of the three god level bloodlines unique to the fishman race.”
True to his magician heritage, Cang Xu possessed this specialized knowledge.
The fishman was a lesser intelligent race, inferior to humans and elves,
possessing only three god level bloodlines.
They were the Azure Shark bloodline, the Algae-Washing bloodline, and the
Surging Wave bloodline.
The Azure Shark bloodline was suited for cultivating battle qi, while those
with the Algae-Washing bloodline achieve astonishing progress when practicing
magic. As for the Surging Wave bloodline, it was perfect for cultivating divine
magic!
“I never imagined the fishman saint corpse buried on Two Eyes Island would
contain this bloodline.”
“This is truly fantastic!”
"It could be said that it is the best choice available at this level. Far more
suitable for us than the Azure Shark or Algae-Washing bloodlines."
Cang Xu sighed in admiration before inquiring, “With such a god level
bloodline, and one most suited for divine cultivation...”
“Commander, your divine blessing this time must have been quite bountiful,
right?”
“Yes.” The fishman youngster nodded, revealing everything without reservation.
“I've advanced.”
“I am now a silver level magician.”
Cang Xu nodded. “Outstanding. That's the highest tier of divine blessing I'm
aware of.”
“I also received a clerical position, similar to yours before,” the fishman
youngster continued. “A cleric.”
Cang Xu nodded again. "The cleric position, that's one level higher than
missionary. Beyond spreading the faith, you can also gain divine favor by
performing divine spells, healing others, and such."
“My Lord, your gains this time are immense!”
The fishman youngster nodded and added, “I also received a series of divine
spells, 28 in total.”
Cang Xu nodded again. "Twenty-eight divine spells? That's incredible. I never
imagined Charming Blue Goddess would favor you so greatly. To receive such a
substantial investment on your very first prayer, isn't that fitting for a god
level bloodline?"
“If next time, my lord, you perform the hybrid transformation of the Ghostface
Fish bloodline, you might even obtain the special missionary divine spells I
received before.”
The fishman youngster finally shook his head. “Cang Xu, the divine spells I've
obtained already include the ones you mentioned.”
Cang Xu froze, about to nod again, but finally couldn't hold back.
“Th-that doesn't make sense!”
“Lord, even if you possess a god level bloodline, its concentration is only
11%, correct?”
The fishman youngster nodded.
Cang Xu continued, “Even if the Charming Blue Goddess favors your god level
bloodline, 11% is still too weak. That concentration isn't even strong enough
to support rapid cultivation of silver level spells.”
“Based on our previous estimates, 11% god level bloodline should only allow you
to reach gold level at most.”
"I also made subtle inquiries about the specifications of divine blessings from
Zhou Zhang and the other gold level church members."
“Theoretically, your divine blessing yield should be lower than theirs.”
“Because you're merely a future gold level, while they are all genuine,
present-day gold level experts!”
“But the content of your divine blessing this time not only surpassed their
best records—it far exceeded them.”
"Based on the intelligence I've gathered and calculated return rates, this
divine blessing should either directly elevate you to a silver level magician
or grant you the cleric position to wield standard divine magic."
“Yet now, you've gained both, and even my unique set of divine spells!”
At this point, Cang Xu stared at the fishman youngster.
The youngster smiled faintly: “Perhaps this is how a god level bloodline truly
differs?”
“I shall perform a second blasphemous ritual and pray to see.”
Cang Xu nodded, eager yet mindful to reassure him first: “Commander, your first
divine blessing yielded such extraordinary gains, it's already beyond what's
expected.”
“A second consecutive blessing likely won't bring such immense rewards.”
The fishman youngster nodded, shot Cang Xu a reassuring glance, then turned and
returned to his cabin.



****** Chapter 540: How Could the Second Time be Even More? ******
The metal hatch closed once more.
Cang Xu remained vigilant.
After all, this was only the second time the fishman youngster had performed
such an act. Should memory confusion or similar issues arise, it wouldn't just
be the Deep Sea Monster Fish that faced danger, more importantly, the youngster
himself would be at risk.
“Though the Deep Sea Monster Fish is a gold level magic ship, compared to the
commander, it's utterly insignificant!”
Cang Xu's greatest concern remained the fishman youngster.
Moments later.
The divine blessing manifested once more.
Cang Xu's eyes widened in astonishment. “What's happening?”
“The divine power fluctuations from this second prayer are even stronger than
before.”
The metal hatch opened. The fishman youngster stepped out, his stride steady
though his expression remained peculiar.
Cang Xu remained vigilant, exchanging the agreed-upon password with the
youngster.
Satisfied the youngster was unharmed, the old necromancer sighed in relief.
“Commander, this time...”
The fishman youngster cleared his throat. “This time... my clergy cultivation
has advanced to silver level!”
Cang Xu was stunned.
As one of the three major transcendent branches, clergymen naturally possessed
their own transcendent levels.
Like fighters and magicians, the lowest tier was bronze level, followed by iron
level, silver level, and so on, ascending all the way to god level.
Cang Xu attempted to analyze: “This is actually understandable.”
“Though a clergyman's transcendent level isn't directly tied to their clerical
position.”
“But generally speaking, in practical terms, higher clerical positions require
higher transcendent levels.”
“For a cleric, pairing with a silver level transcendent level is perfectly
normal.”
Since returning via the second teleportation, Cang Xu had drawn close to Zhou
Zhang and other members of the Charming Blue Church, gathering much
intelligence on their enemies from them.
Within the Charming Blue Church, monks were typically bronze level, while
missionaries and clerics ranged between iron level and silver level. Priests
and bishops, meanwhile, were generally gold level or saint level.
Monk, missionary, cleric, priest, bishop... these were job classifications in
the church, also known as clerical positions.
The relationship between clergymen and these clerical positions was roughly
analogous to that between magicians and titles such as alchemists,
apothecaries, battle mages, and other such professions.
In contrast, fighters could serve as soldiers, knights, mercenaries, thieves,
or assassins based on their battle skills and battle qi.
At this point, Cang Xu shifted his tone: “But, Commander, your second prayer
yielded such remarkable results.”
“You must understand, despite my numerous prayers and attaining the position of
missionary, I remain merely a bronze level clergyman.”
“Yet your single prayer propelled your clergy level straight from bronze to
silver level.”
“This is truly...”
Most others might feel unfairness under such circumstances.
But Cang Xu was not like that.
He felt profound gratitude toward the fishman youngster and was willing to
follow his lead. Learning of the youngster's immense gains filled him with
delight and awe.
“Ahem,” the fishman youngster cleared his throat. “Actually, there's more than
just these gains.”
“Could it be... you've also received more divine spells?” Cang Xu asked
curiously.
“No, it's a divine statue,” the youngster replied without further delay.
Cang Xu then entered the ship's cabin and saw the divine statue the fishman
youngster had mentioned.
It was an image of the Charming Blue Goddess, carved in the form of a mermaid.
Originally, it was quite ordinary.
Just one of the cabin's furnishings, deliberately placed, without a hint of
supernatural elements.
A commonplace object.
But now, this statue radiated a silver level aura!
It had ascended.
Its transformation was even more extraordinary than that of the fishman
youngster.
From an ordinary object, it had ascended into a silver level sacred artifact!
"I-Is this the power of the gods? The ability to transcend the mundane?!" Cang
Xu was stunned.
He had knelt before this statue in prayer more than once.
He understood deeply that the statue was an ordinary item.
Yet now, it has become a silver level sacred artifact.
Sacred artifacts were transcendent items forged by divine power, naturally
possessing corresponding transcendent levels.
Cang Xu's expression immediately turned grave: “Though I've only recently
become a clergyman, I know this much.”
“Crafting sacred artifacts requires transcendent materials.”
“To forge something transcendent from ordinary materials... I've never heard of
such a thing.”
The two exchanged glances, speechless for a moment.
Compared to the gods, they were still too small and weak, unable to comprehend
or fathom many things.
After a moment of silence, the fishman youngster spoke first, his eyes gleaming
faintly: “I know the purpose of the divine statue. It channels faith,
accumulating and storing spirituality.”
“With a silver level sacred artifact statue, continuing my prayers will yield
greater benefits.”
“But the statue isn't just a conduit for divine power or a reservoir for faith,
it's also a monitoring device for the deity.”
Hearing his commander speak thus, Cang Xu felt his own worries and doubts ease
somewhat.
This showed the fishman youngster lacked such profound devotion, retaining a
strong sense of self.
Cang Xu remarked, “Something feels off about this.”
“Commander, the rewards from your second prayer surpassed the first.”
"The first time, your magician level advanced from iron to silver. The second
time, your clergyman cultivation ascended from bronze to silver level."
"The first time, you gained the clerical position and 28 divine spells. The
second time, you obtained a silver level sacred artifact, a divine statue!"
Cang Xu couldn't fathom it.
He couldn't help but speculate: “Could it be that this Surging Wave fishman
bloodline holds significant importance to the Charming Blue Goddess?”
“Even if its concentration is only 11%?”
The fishman youngster pondered, “Perhaps the Charming Blue Goddess is in a dire
state. She urgently needs a crucial element to break the stalemate. A god level
bloodline represents hope for her.”
“Just as She accepted your prayers when you prayed as a necromancer.”
Cang Xu pondered relentlessly, yet no other explanation came to mind in the
short term.
He tried to follow the fishman youngster's line of reasoning: “If that's the
case, and it truly is because of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline, then
Commander, your top priority moving forward must be to increase its bloodline
concentration!”
The fishman youngster nodded.
He had already made this decision long ago.
All along, he had actively sought out bloodlines, steadily accumulating them.
Through his efforts, his previous Flame Dragon King bloodline had already
reached 34%. The reason the Surging Wave bloodline showed no signs of activity
was purely because he had no way to proceed.
Now that he understood it was the Surging Wave bloodline, he could identify
downstream lifeforms from the bloodline spectrum and pinpoint targets.
“Given the current situation, we could have Zhou Zhang and her team select
specific sea beast groups to teleport in for my absorption,” the fishman
youngster suggested.
Cang Xu nodded. “That's a sound approach.”
“Given Zhou Zhang's group's strength and the beast tide from the White Hair
Trench, they'll surely provide you with ample bloodline targets, my lord.”
Outside the Ocean Mother Nest, Zhou Zhang stood silently awaiting on the golden
altar, unaware that she, a mighty saint level being, had been reduced to a mere
tool.
The fishman youngster sighed. “The higher the bloodline concentration, the
greater the favor I receive.”
“However, the Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration must reach around
60% to ascend to the saint level.”
“If reaching a qualitative breakthrough is necessary to earn the gods'
attention and greater regard, then careful selection is required.”
Cang Xu nodded in agreement.
Research on bloodlines revealed that the cultivation ceiling for different life
forms is determined by varying bloodline concentrations.
In practical terms, this meant that among lower races like fishmen, high level
transcendents were rare. Their transcendents were predominantly concentrated in
the mid-to-low levels.
Specifically, regarding bloodline concentration, even with relatively low
transcendent bloodline purity, fishmen could often cultivate to iron or silver
level.
The youngster only had 11% Surging Wave bloodline, but the god level quality
allowed him to cultivate to gold level. However, reaching the saint level
demands a steeply increased bloodline concentration requirement.
Cang Xu stated, “Commander, you need to accumulate both bloodline and divine
favor.”
“Either path will yield greater benefits for you.”
“I cannot compare to you in any way. From this day forward, I will dedicate
myself entirely to supporting you!”
The fishman youngster's potential gains prompted Cang Xu to voluntarily step
back, willingly ceding the primary role.
“We've prayed twice consecutively, yet haven't tested divine favor.”
“Since you now hold the clerical position of cleric and possess numerous divine
spells, why not first aid others in conversion to earn divine favor for use in
prayer?”
“Let's see what benefits we gain by praying with divine favor this time!”
The fishman youngster nodded, and the comparative experiment continued.
Earning divine favor proved surprisingly easy.
They effortlessly retrieved a Charming Blue believer from the Mother Nest.
The octopus saint beast remained utterly unaware under the Deceptive Disguise
spell.
The fishman youngster cast a divine spell for the first time. His strongest
impression was how effortlessly it was released and its remarkably high success
rate.
The set of conversion spells was quite unique, but since the fishman youngster
had already practiced numerous undead spells before, it posed no problem at
all.
After casting the entire set, the dragonman youngster instantly earned 10
divine favor points.
This was because the subject he helped convert was merely a bronze level
fishman.
Cang Xu was more concerned with another matter: “Commander, when you used the
Spiritual Navigation spell, what did you see?”
“As per Zhou Zhang's guidance, this spell directly locates the deity,
channeling the believer's faith straight to the divine entity itself.”
“Therefore, the image you saw was the divine entity's embodiment as perceived
within your heart.”
The fishman youngster grasped Cang Xu's meaning: “I see.”
“So you're saying we can reverse-engineer the caster's own closeness to the
deity, or rather, their level of faith, from this image?”
Cang Xu nodded. “Exactly. You could also call it their level of understanding.”
"I saw the Charming Blue Goddess statue first, then the gold level altar used
for blood sacrifices. This signifies I'm drawing ever closer to the Charming
Blue Goddess."
“What did you see?”
The fishman youngster wore a puzzled expression: “I only saw an ocean.
Strangely, this ocean kept spinning, forming a massive whirlpool.”



****** Chapter 541: The Third Time Silenced Cang Xu ******
“A massive whirlpool?” Cang Xu froze.
He was a magician who had only recently become a clergyman.
He pondered for a moment, attempting to analyze: “Charming Blue Goddess likely
holds the divine authority of a sea god or water god. Even if she doesn't, she
must possess profound insight into the laws of water.”
“Therefore, the great whirlpool you witnessed in the sea, Commander, was likely
a manifestation of some water-elemental law.”
The fishman youngster nodded slightly. “That makes sense.”
Cang Xu added, "Our knowledge in this area remains quite limited. Perhaps,
during your next prayer, you could directly expend divine favor to make a
targeted inquiry."
“Additionally, once we teleport back this time, I can consult Zhou Zhang.”
Outside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the Snow Pear Octopus had already
slaughtered all the sea beasts and the few undead creatures, now pressing
toward the praying Charming Blue believers.
Time was tight. The fishman youngster ceased communicating with Cang Xu,
entering the chamber for the third time and sealing the hatch.
This time, both the prayer text and the altered memories had been personally
fine-tuned by Cang Xu.
Moreover, unlike the previous two blasphemous rituals, this time he employed a
hybrid transformation.
He possessed not only the Surging Wave fishman bloodline but also that of the
Ghostface Fish.
"Great deity, oh Charming Blue Goddess! I gaze upon Your majestic countenance,
feel Your omnipotent power, and revere Your unwavering compassion and mercy."
"Grant me abundant experience in wielding water magic, that I may command the
power of water, make tides obey my will, and strike fear into sea monsters.
Grant me Your magic, that I may dance through the waters as freely as You do."
"Lord, I also seek Your guidance and grace, that I may master necromancy magic
and command the power of the undead and spirits. Grant me Your mercy and grace
to break free from the curse of necromancy, to command the forces of the
underworld, to communicate with spirits, and to learn more spells from You."
"Grant me an increase in my life level, making me stronger. Grant me Your
protection and strength to eliminate sickness and pain, enhance my body, and
infuse me with new vitality. Bless me with Your grace so I may continually
surpass my limits, transcend myself, and become Your glory."
"As Your believer, I beseech You: hear my heart's plea and grant me Your
response and blessing. Grant me Your grace to sail smoothly toward a bright
future."
As the fishman youngster finished his prayer, the divine statue, recently
elevated to silver level, suddenly radiated brilliant light.
A powerful divine force descended from the void, striking the fishman youngster
squarely before permeating his entire being.
Outside the hatch, Cang Xu's eyes widened once more. “This defies logic!”
“The third divine power fluctuation is even stronger than before.”
"It's clear the commander has received more divine blessings this time than the
second! Judging purely by the divine power fluctuations, it must be at least
double."
“Could a mere ten units of divine favor truly amplify the divine blessing to
this extent?”
Moments later, the hatch opened.
The fishman youngster appeared before Cang Xu, his expression both peculiar and
delighted.
Cang Xu's mouth fell open. He recognized this look all too well. The previous
two times had been exactly like this!
This time, without needing his prompting, the fishman youngster proactively
recited the password to him.
The password was, of course, correct.
Cang Xu immediately inquired about the outcome of this blasphemous ritual.
The fishman youngster said nothing, instead simply opening his left palm.
The next moment, a tiny spring welled up from the center of his left palm.
Clear spring water gushed forth from the well.
As a magician, Cang Xu instantly recognized it: “Spring Well.”
This was an elementary spell, capable of condensing water elements from the air
to produce pure, drinkable water.
Spring Well was the most fundamental of all water spells.
Before this teleportation blood sacrifice, the fishman youngster had already
mastered this spell flawlessly, achieving a 90% success rate.
But this time, his execution displayed unprecedented mastery.
He didn't chant. He constructed the magic model for Spring Well within his
mental space, accomplishing it in an instant.
Once formed, the Spring Well's water appeared precisely where he intended,
flowing freely in any direction guided by his mental command.
Cang Xu recognized the breakthrough: “Silent casting, and nearly
instantaneous!”
The clear spring water did not fall to the ground under gravity, but
transformed into a tiny serpent, soaring through the air.
After landing on the palm of the fishman youngster's other hand, the serpent
coiled into a ball and dissolved into a watery mass.
The watery mass hovered above the youngster's palm, suspended just inches away,
maintaining an imperceptibly slight distance.
“Water-element spell - Water Sphere.” Cang Xu's gaze focused on the droplet,
and he watched as it began spinning on its own.
The sphere's rotation accelerated, growing faster and faster until it whirled
with a humming wind.
Yet no matter how rapid its spin, the sphere never shattered, nor did it deform
in the slightest.
“Water-element spell - Water Sphere: Spiral Form!” Cang Xu exclaimed in awe.
Spring Water was merely a bronze level spell, while Water Sphere reached iron
level, its magic model being several times more complex than Water Arrow. Water
Arrow was a bronze level water spell.
Water Sphere: Spiral Form was even harder to cast, being silver level.
The fishman youngster sighed: "Although I practiced water spells previously,
they were all elementary spells."
“My magician level was only iron level before, so I'd never practiced advanced
spells like Water Sphere.”
“Of course, I'd seen its magic model, but only to broaden my horizons.”
“This should be my first time casting it.”
"But it feels effortless! As natural as breathing. My casting success rate must
be approaching 100%."
Such progress was utterly astonishing.
Cang Xu exclaimed excitedly, “Commander, you've achieved another great
success!”
The fishman youngster shook his head slightly. “It's not quite a complete
success yet.”
“At least my life level hasn't increased at all.”
“And regarding undead magic experience, I haven't gained a single point.”
This time, in his blasphemous ritual, the fishman youngster made three requests
in his prayer.
The first was to increase his water magic experience.
The second was to increase his undead magic experience.
The third was to elevate his transcendent life level.
In the end, only his first request was answered; the second and third remained
unfulfilled.
Upon receiving this outcome, Cang Xu actually breathed a sigh of relief.
“This makes perfect sense.”
“The believers of the Charming Blue Goddess are almost entirely intelligent sea
creatures, with many water magicians among them.”
“As these believers worship the Charming Blue Goddess, their spellcasting
experience becomes her supplementary harvest.”
“Not to mention, the Charming Blue Goddess herself must possess profound
expertise in water-elemental formations.”
“Thus, my Lord, you have gained this spellcasting experience.”
At this point, Cang Xu couldn't help but marvel: “Commander, when you cast
these water spells, there's not a trace of artificiality, they flow with
natural simplicity.”
"Silent casting, instant casting, and spell transmutation. these techniques
have become as instinctive to you as breathing."
"Most magicians spend their entire lives striving to reach your level."
The fishman youngster sighed deeply. “Indeed. A single moment of prayer saved
me at least eight years of grueling practice.”
“No wonder necromancers are so obsessed with blasphemy.”
The rewards were immense, far exceeding the fishman youngster's wildest
expectations.
Crucially, avenues for gaining experience were extremely limited.
For ordinary individuals, beyond self-practice, reflection, and insight, the
only other path was instruction from mentors or elders.
Certain rare artifacts could also impart experience. Take the Grand Arena
Medal, for instance.
The fishman youngster had used one before, but compared to the blasphemous
ritual, what did the Grand Arena Medal's gains amount to?
A squirrel nibbling at an elephant's leg?
Cang Xu shook his head slightly. “Commander, you're overestimating those
necromancers' gains.”
“My situation is enough to make those necromancers envious, even jealous.”
“Because the main body of the Charming Blue Goddess lies dormant, perhaps due
to the grim situation, She voluntarily accepted my necromancer identity.”
“Under normal circumstances, even if necromancers perform blasphemous rituals,
they must disguise themselves to prevent their undead status from being
exposed.”
“But you are different, Commander.”
"You possess the Bloodcore! Theoretically, it can transform into any god level
bloodline."
“Imagine if you possessed a dark-type god level bloodline, then used the
Deceptive Disguise spell to blasphemously worship a dark, evil god, what would
happen?”
“Now consider this: if you possessed a beastman god level bloodline, bolstered
by the Deceptive Disguise spell, Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, and
fabricated memories, pretending to convert to those beastman deities' faith,
what then?”
The fishman youngster fell silent.
Cang Xu's words had sent his mind reeling.
The Charming Blue Goddess was merely the beginning, far from the end!
With so many deities in the world, there's ample room to choose whom to
desecrate with these rituals.
The fishman youngster drew in a sharp breath. “Who would have thought? The
memory crystal making device, the Mermaid Fairy Tale, Deceptive Disguise spell,
Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, all combined to make the success rate,
risks, and rewards of a blasphemous ritual so incredibly tempting!”
“Indeed,” sighed Cang Xu.
He looked at the fishman youngster and continued his analysis: “The first
prayer request received a powerful response and divine blessing.”
“The second prayer involved necromancy. The lack of divine blessing likely
stems from the extreme rarity of necromancers who worship the Charming Blue
Goddess, virtually nonexistent.”
“Who knows? I might be the first necromancer to worship the Charming Blue
Goddess.”
“Therefore, Commander, you gained no casting experience in necromancy.”
“As for the third request not advancing your life level, that was to be
expected.”
“After all, advancing from silver to gold consumes far more than progressing
from mortal to silver level!”
Cang Xu inquired in detail about the water-elemental spell experience, then
added, “You still lack experience in numerous water spells.”
“But it's no trouble. As long as you keep earning divine favor and pray
specifically for it, you'll easily make up for these spell experiences.”
“Speaking of which,” the fishman youngster interrupted, “my divine favor hasn't
been depleted.”
Cang Xu froze, blinking in confusion, misinterpreting the fishman youngster's
meaning: “You still have ten units of divine favor? And none of it's been used
up?”
“Not quite,” the fishman youngster cleared his throat. “Not only have I not
used any, but I've gained more.”
Cang Xu fell silent for a moment before asking, “How much more?”
The fishman youngster replied, “I now have 2400 units of divine favor.”
Cang Xu, who had painstakingly preached since the last teleportation blood
sacrifice only to accumulate 1870 units of divine favor, fell silent once more.



****** Chapter 542: Cultivation Promotion is Too Fast, The Body Cannot Keep Up


******
“Commander, something feels off.” After a long silence, Cang Xu finally spoke.
“I've never heard of divine favor being given in excess.”
“And such a large amount!”
“Typically, only when a believer makes significant contributions to the church
or the deity would they receive such substantial divine favor.”
“Yet your prayers haven't involved any such contributions.”
Ever since the fishman youngster performed the blasphemous ritual, Cang Xu had
analyzed the situation repeatedly. But the fact that the Charming Blue Goddess
was actively bestowing divine favor upon the commander was something he simply
couldn't make sense of.
“In fact, the content of the divine blessing during the second prayer was also
rather peculiar.”
"You weren't even in your hybrid bloodline form at the time, lacking the
ability to cast undead spells. Yet the divine spell included that specific set
of missionary divine spells."
“If we attribute all this solely to the god level bloodline, isn't that a bit
self-deceptive?”
The fishman youngster fell silent, deep in thought.
Cang Xu looked at him, his tone grave: “Every gift bestowed by fate carries a
hidden price.”
The fishman youngster nodded slightly, his expression also clouding with doubt.
He murmured thoughtfully, “What you say is precisely what troubles me.”
"I witnessed your entire blasphemous ritual. So, I know how things should
normally unfold."
“Ordinary prayers cannot obtain divine blessings.”
“But here, with figures like Zhou Zhang conducting blood sacrifices and the
arrangements of the Ocean Mother Nest, prayers consistently receive divine
favor.”
“Divine blessings primarily depend on three factors.”
“The first is innate potential, essentially, the gods recognizing a believer's
future value and making an early investment.”
"The second is depth of faith. Within the organization, this means assessing a
member's loyalty."
"The third factor is divine favor. It's known that expending divine favor can
guarantee the content and quality of divine blessings within certain limits. In
essence, this evaluates a believer's past contributions and merits."
The fishman youngster spoke of his own situation: “I prayed three times
consecutively, and each divine blessing I received was greater than the last.
This defies all logic.”
“The scale and quality of the divine blessings far exceeded normal levels.”
“According to the intelligence you gathered, even gold level figures like Zhang
Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi didn't receive as much as I did.”
“If we were to attribute this solely to the god level bloodline, I wouldn't be
very confident.”
“Because my current Surging Wave bloodline is only at 11%.”
"There must be some secret information we're unaware of. "
“Or some other crucial factor we haven't considered?”
Silence fell between them once more.
When it came to divine spells and church, Cang Xu couldn't offer much
assistance either.
After pondering for a while, the fishman youngster still had no clue.
Yet his expression hardened with resolve: "Even if we can't find answers or the
truth right now, and even if the Charming Blue Goddess has some scheme, we
still have to keep praying, right? "
“Only when our clerical position reaches a certain level will we find a way,
perhaps we can use the Mermaid Fairy Tale to teleport out again.”
Cang Xu stared at the fishman youngster, shaking his head slowly.
His expression grew grave: “Commander, don't let the third divine blessing sway
your heart.”
“If this is the enemy's lure, have you already fallen for it, your Lordship?”
“Advancing our clerical position to transmit our message is indeed the optimal
plan we envisioned.”
“But it is not the only way to escape.”
“We could also destroy this Ocean Mother Nest, using the Deep Sea Monster Fish,
the Deceptive Disguise spell, and other means to leave this place.”
“Currently, our tests indicate the Deceptive Disguise spell cannot fool the
Charming Blue Goddess, but it remains effective against figures like Zhou
Zhang.”
The fishman youngster's expression stiffened slightly.
Cang Xu's words prompted him to immediately examine himself.
“I cannot deny I was tempted.”
“But my desire to continue adventuring isn't mere impulsiveness. Don't forget,
I still possess my Bloodcore.”
With that, the fishman youngster activated his Bloodcore, initiating its
manifestation.
A crimson glow enveloped his entire body before slowly fading.
The fishman youngster vanished, replaced by the dragonman youngster.
"Bloodline, at its core, is life information. The soul is also part of life."
“When I transformed from fishman to dragonman, both my body and soul underwent
profound changes.”
“Divine power can reshape believers, making them more aligned with the divine
power of the deity they worship.”
“But by altering my own life form, I can significantly sustain myself and
counteract the slow, gradual transformation of my body and mind wrought by
divine power over time.”
Cang Xu perked up. “Commander, you're absolutely right.”
“I nearly forgot, the Bloodcore can be used this way too!”
The dragonman youngster sensed his own state.
After his partial transformation, the Surging Wave bloodline no longer flowed
through him. The divine power's efficiency in reshaping his body and soul was
noticeably lower than in his fishman form.
The youngster activated the Bloodcore once more, reverting to his fishman form.
The divine power's nourishment of his flesh and soul instantly surged a
hundredfold, progress nearly visible to the naked eye!
The fishman youngster's face hardened with resolve: “Charming Blue Goddess has
slumbered for years. This opportunity must not be missed.”
“We've delayed long enough. For the redemption plan, we need greater strength
to safeguard our safety and interests.”
“As the commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, I have no reason to
retreat.”
“I previously had you lead the charge only because I am not a magician, while
you are.”
“Now, I am better suited than you!”
“Truthfully, I relish this kind of adventure.”
“Lord Commander...” Cang Xu sighed deeply, gazing at the fishman youngster and
sensing the sincerity in his heart.
It was precisely this kind of courageous and selfless leader that Cang Xu was
willing to follow and pledge his loyalty to.
“For the fourth prayer, I intend to ask directly: why the goddess had bestowed
such bountiful blessings.”
“Secondly, I intend to attempt using divine favor to elevate my life level.
Even if it consumes all the divine favor, I shall not hesitate.” The fishman
youngster declared his intentions.
Cang Xu nodded, preparing to draft the prayer for the fishman youngster.
Yet he also offered his own suggestion: “If the life level cannot be elevated
and the divine favor remains untouched; you might instead want to pray for the
deity to directly grant you the corpses of specific fishmen.”
“The gods are omnipotent. If they could transform an ordinary statue into a
silver level one before, why couldn't they grant fishman corpses?”
What Cang Xu truly sought, of course, wasn't the corpses themselves, but the
higher concentration of Surging Wave bloodline.
The fishman youngster swiftly accepted this sound suggestion: “Right, we can
try that.”
Time was limited.
Off the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the Snow Pear Octopus had already examined
nearly half of the believers. Countless Charming Blue believers had been
devoured by it.
This meant this was the fishman youngster's final blasphemous ritual.
For Cang Xu was about to depart, returning beyond the Mother Nest.
Without Cang Xu's presence to hold the line, the fishman youngster dared not
perform the blasphemous ritual alone. This was a safety measure they had long
planned, their agreed-upon limit!
Yet, just as the fishman youngster stepped into the cabin, his legs suddenly
gave way. He nearly collapsed on the spot!
“Lord!” Cang Xu cried out.
Fortunately, the fishman youngster caught himself against the wall.
He turned to face Cang Xu, his expression grim.
The next moment, unable to support himself against the wall, he collapsed and
sat down.
Cang Xu was horrified and rushed forward to check the fishman youngster's
condition.
“His physical condition is excellent!” Da Dou couldn't help but laugh.
Lying before him was the big guy.
He was snoring loudly, fast asleep.
Da Dou withdrew his gold battle qi, gazing at the sprawled giant as he took a
deep breath.
His eyes burned with intensity, fixed on the big guy as if he were a priceless
treasure.
“He devoured my specially seasoned fluttering boat fried rice, then consumed
all those transcendent dishes from Ci Hai Shen...”
“Kid, your bloodline level is exceptionally high. You have a real shot at
reaching the saint level!”
“Hehehe, the arena's packed with contenders, but who knows giants better than
me?”
“They'd only guess you have gold level potential. None of them expected me to
snatch you away.”
At this, Da Dou burst into a triumphant laugh.
Losing that gold level Meat Eye? No big deal.
Skipping the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's ceremony? No big deal either!
This was a future saint level expert!
After bringing him back to the island, the entire clan would see Da Dou in a
whole new light. No one would think what he did was wrong!
“In the future, when this kid becomes a saint, I'll be the greatest hero of the
entire clan. Ahahaha!”
As Da Dou laughed, the big guy slowly opened his eyes.
“You're awake.” Da Dou hurried to the big guy's side. “Look! What do you see?”
He held up a pot of transcendent level fluttering boat fried rice.
The aroma filled the air. Having just woken from hunger, the big guy
instinctively snatched the silver level iron wok, tilted his neck back, opened
his massive mouth wide, and dumped the entire contents inside.
The pot possessed spatial properties, holding far more rice than its outward
appearance suggested.
The big guy ate a third of it and wanted to keep going, but Da Dou snatched the
iron wok away.
The big guy glared at him.
Da Dou soothed him, "Stop eating. You've had way too much in that eating
contest. All that energy is piling up inside you; it hasn't been properly
digested yet."
The big guy turned his head and looked around, realizing he was stranded on a
deserted island.
The barren island held no vegetation, only yellowish-brown earth and rocks.
The big guy jumped to his feet in shock. His elevated view still offered no
sight of familiar ships, people, or belongings.
On the entire island, besides him, there was only Da Dou before his eyes.
“Home... take me home.”
“Xiao Guai wants to go home!” the big guy shouted.
“I'll take you home, to your real home,” Da Dou continued soothingly.
But the big guy suddenly glared back at him. “Bad guy! You're a bad guy!”
He remembered Da Dou suddenly appearing, attacking the mercenaries, and
knocking him unconscious.
Bam!
The big guy swung his fist, landing squarely on Da Dou's chest.
Da Dou laughed heartily, stepping back without retaliating.
He wanted to gauge the big guy's fighting strength.
The big guy lashed out wildly, landing numerous blows on Da Dou, who just
laughed heartily, showing no intention of retaliating.
After a short while, the once-vigorous big guy suddenly felt his legs give way,
collapsing to his knees.
His eyes blazed with fury as he tried to rise and attack again, but in the next
instant, his muscles convulsed violently. He fell face-first to the ground,
utterly defeated.
Da Dou slowly approached him, looking down at the big guy with gentle eyes.
"Your bloodline is too exceptional. After consuming so many dishes, your battle
qi cultivation has surged dramatically. But your body hasn't adapted yet. After
all, nourishing the body with battle qi takes time."
The big guy let out muffled grunts.
His jaw muscles trembled, distorting his roar into an eerie sound.
Da Dou crouched down, patting the broad, powerful back of the big guy, "So,
you'd better stop messing around. You're definitely not going back home. Just
come quietly with me back to Eruption Island!"



****** Chapter 543: Spatial Shuttle ******
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The fishman youngster scrutinized the state within his body.
Silver-hued battle qi gathered and fermented within him.
Equally silver level magic power coalesced within his personal magic pool.
Having activated his Bloodcore, he now existed in a hybrid form blending the
Surging Wave and Ghostface Fish bloodlines. Within his pool, pale blue water
magic coexisted with light gray undead energy.
The two forces shared the same reservoir, their boundaries not entirely
distinct. At the dividing line, they intertwined and clashed, generating minor
conflicts and internal friction.
Typically, dual-element magic pools underwent specialized modifications to
their personal magic pools.
At minimum, distinct magic power elements were segregated into separate
compartments.
Methods for constructing such compartments were archived within formal magician
organizations. War Merchant's database naturally contains these techniques as
well.
However, modifying one's personal magic pool demands extensive practice time
and carries significant risks during the process.
With time so tight, the fishman youngster could only let his personal magic
pools corrode and cancel each other out.
Fortunately, this internal friction remained mild.
Because all this magic power had been transformed through his personal
meditation, bearing his deep, personal imprint.
Without this personal mark, direct contact between water magic power and undead
magic power would cause severe magic conflict. In extreme cases, it could even
cause an explosion!
Battle qi accumulated within every inch of his flesh and blood, while magic
power was stored within his personal magic pool.
As for Charming Blue divine power, it was primarily concentrated within the
youngster's soul.
Under the influence of the Bloodcore, the fishman youngster's soul had fully
taken on the form of a fishman, matching his outward appearance. Enveloped by
Charming Blue divine power, his soul received potent nourishment and
transformation.
A small portion of the divine power also permeated the fishman youngster's
flesh and blood. It manifested within his personal magic pool as well.
The fishman youngster observed: this divine power, intimately intertwined with
his battle qi and magic power, was not static.
It would transform into his battle qi or magic power.
At times, it would devour his magic power or battle qi, adding a tiny bit to
itself.
Divine power was an extremely high-grade form of energy.
It achieved perfect coexistence with battle qi and magic power. Even the
closest contact posed no issue.
Divine power could effortlessly devour and transform the youngster's personal
battle qi and magic power.
There was no internal friction whatsoever between them.
At least, the fishman youngster felt none.
He was about to perform the fourth blasphemous ritual when, upon reaching the
hatch, his body lost control and he nearly collapsed to the deck.
Cang Xu immediately rushed over to support his commander.
The old magician used his spirit power to examine him and deduced the cause.
The fishman youngster, enlightened, examined himself before slowly opening his
eyes to look at Cang Xu. “You're probably right.”
“These recent blasphemous prayers have elevated my magician level and caused my
clergyman cultivation to surge to silver level.”
“Such a drastic increase requires both my body and soul time to adapt.”
"My earlier paralysis was a spontaneous protective mechanism, a coordinated
effort between my body and soul."
At this point, the fishman youngster sighed. “Therefore, for the foreseeable
future, I cannot pursue further advancement in my life level.”
Transcendent cultivation had always been a gradual process.
For the bodies and souls of transcendent beings must slowly acclimate to
transcendent energy, allowing themselves to undergo subtle yet profound
transformation.
Even the sacred sons and sacred daughters, who appeared to have low cultivation
levels in ordinary times, could see their transcendent levels skyrocket
instantly when infused with divine power during critical moments.  Essentially,
as vessels for the gods, they had undergone specific selection and cultivation.
Their bodies and souls were already prepared, lacking only sufficient energy to
nourish them.
The fishman youngster pondered, “It seems I must revise my blasphemous prayer.
Seeking more spell experience would be more appropriate.”
Cang Xu shook his head slowly. “Lord Commander, you cannot do that.”
“Memory is a crucial element in shaping the soul.”
“Thus, when a person dies, though the body perishes, the soul retains its
memories, remembering who it is.”
“It is precisely these memories that anchor the soul to its selfhood,
preserving its wisdom.”
"But once driven by instinct to devour foreign spirits, absorbing vast
fragments of others' memories, it leads to cognitive confusion and distortion.
When quantitative change triggers qualitative transformation, the soul utterly
loses its selfhood, degenerating into a beast-like existence."
“My Lord, the magic experience you gained from the blasphemous ritual is a
special kind of memory, isn't it?”
Cang Xu's words made perfect sense.
The fishman youngster slowly nodded in agreement.
He looked up and sighed deeply. “So, my current situation is like overeating
all at once. I'm so full that I need time to digest it.”
“Is there any other special method that could help speed up this digestion?”
“I recall War Merchant's database containing magic formations that accelerate
the flow of time.”
Cang Xu once again dismissed the fishman youngster's idea.
“Even if a magic formation could accelerate the target's perception of time, it
fundamentally relies on magic power to achieve that effect.”
“Any supernatural force still acts upon your body and soul, Commander.”
"And right now, your body and soul are being rapidly reshaped by silver level
divine and magic power. Adding other magic training would be superfluous, it
might even backfire."
“In this situation, we can look at the dragons as reference.”
“True dragons undergo a long period of growth. During this period, they often
fall into deep, prolonged slumber."
"For instance, fire dragons seek out volcanic craters to hide and hibernate.
Black dragons frequently conceal themselves in the deepest recesses of the
underworld."
“In their slumber, they absorb external fire or dark elements, allowing the
elemental forces to gradually reshape them.”
“If methods like time acceleration existed, the dragons would undoubtedly
employ them extensively.”
"Yet, for millennia, the dragons have scarcely ever used such techniques.
Before reaching adulthood, they simply sleep, refusing to use external forces
to accelerate their growth."
The dragons' actions thus demonstrated that no truly effective method had ever
existed in the world.
Even if one did, its conditions for use would be extremely stringent.
Otherwise, such methods would have long since become widespread across the
world.
The fishman youngster sighed again: “Therefore, bloodline is the greatest
foundation for transcendents.”
“In such cases, the superior the bloodline, the greater the capacity for
assimilation.”
Cang Xu flattered: “My Lord, your words contain profound insight!”
With this delay, the time had nearly come.
Off the Deep Sea Monster Fish, over half the Charming Blue believers had
already been snapped.
Cang Xu didn't even have time for prayer.
In the remaining moments, he could only hastily cast a divine spell on the
Charming Blue believers captured aboard the ship.
Naturally, Cang Xu would also tamper with their memories.
By blurring the lines between truth and falsehood, blending reality with
illusion, Cang Xu was confident he could deceive Zhou Zhang, Jian Gui, and the
others.
Soon, Cang Xu completed all this. Before departing, he looked at the fishman
youngster: “Commander, I intend to take the statue of the Charming Blue Goddess
with me.”
The fishman youngster paused, then nodded: “Okay.”
The statue stored devotion and served as the deity's surveillance device.
Leaving it aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish posed incalculable risks.
“Take it away. This statue will significantly influence Zhou Zhang and the
others to your advantage.”
Though Cang Xu hadn't prayed this time, his bloodline concentration had risen,
further refining his potential.
Combined with this divine statue, it would surely make Zhou Zhang and the
others take notice once more.
As for Xiao Wang Zi, his treatment mirrored that of Ku Feng and Qing Xin,
imprisoned within the longhorn cage, convinced he was already dead.
Igloo City.
The Li Jian Clan gifted Zi Di and her group the largest storefront on the
city's most bustling street.
Zi Di established operations here, deploying reliable agents as tentacles to
control the market in Igloo City.
A group of magicians stood quietly before the shopfront, awaiting Zi Di and her
companions to finish their tasks.
Uniformed and led by five silver level magicians, the fifty-strong contingent
bore the insignia of the Spatial Shuttle Squad.
This was the Li Jian Clan's magician squadron, possessing strategic-class
capabilities.
They possessed the technique for collective spellcasting, wielding spatial
magic to create a spatial shuttle capable of transporting both people and
goods.
Because the spatial shuttle could traverse space, its movement resembled a
teleportation effect.
However, the distance was limited.
The specific distance is directly proportional to the magicians' magic power
reserves.
The higher the energy level required to transport passengers or cargo in the
spatial shuttle, the greater the magic power expenditure for the magicians,
ultimately resulting in a shorter travel distance.
However, when combined with a projection formation, the situation changed
entirely.
Unlike conventional teleportation formations, projection formations were
unidirectional magic formations that could supply immense energy to the spatial
shuttle.
With these energy sources, the spatial shuttle's range skyrocketed by hundreds
or even thousands of times!
This enabled the spatial shuttle to teleport directly from one city to another.
In times of war, mastering this long-range deployment capability could shift
the tide of battle. For instance, executing decapitation tactics becomes
remarkably convenient.
Undoubtedly, the Spatial Shuttle Squadron is the Li Jian Clan's trump card, and
equally so for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!
Zi Di and Zong Ge's visit yielded the best possible outcome.
The Li Jian Clan spared no expense in deploying their trump card to facilitate
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and others' swift movement throughout the kingdom.
Of course, this also leveraged the Li Jian Clan's influence and standing.
Merely possessing long-distance teleportation capabilities wouldn't grant
unrestricted use within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. The Li Jian Clan itself was
a privileged entity, a member of the ruling class, and thus could utilize it
normally.
Naturally, when reaching strongholds controlled by other factions, they would
notify those factions in advance.
“Let's go. Our next stop is Ice Prison City.” Zi Di was about to depart.
“Please wait. There's a confidential letter for you.” Just as they were
leaving, a representative from the Li Jian Clan arrived, presenting a sealed
letter.



****** Chapter 544: Not Saving ******
Zi Di took it and immediately recognized it as a letter from the Snow Bird
Harbor branch.
In the past, letters from the branch would take at least several days to catch
up with Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their group.
But this time, the negotiations led by Zi Di had been a resounding success,
allowing the survivors to deepen their cooperation with the Li Jian Clan.
Consequently, communication between the branch and Zi Di and Zong Ge's group
had been expedited many times over through the Li Jian Clan's channels.
Zi Di's brow furrowed slightly. She immediately moved to a corner of the shop,
used an alchemy device to briefly treat the surrounding environment, and then
began decrypting the message.
Zong Ge stood beside her, scanning the area for threats while keeping watch.
Both were deeply concerned about the letter's contents.
During Zi Di's negotiations with Mian Li Zang, they had learned from the latter
that the branch had come under attack.
Although they had received urgent military intelligence from the Li Jian Clan
after the successful negotiations, confirming the branch's victory, the Li Jian
Clan couldn't accurately assess the specific losses and casualties.
Only a direct letter from the branch could provide Zi Di and Zong Ge with a
proper understanding.
Soon, Zi Di successfully decrypted the message.
As she read, she transmitted her thoughts to Zong Ge: “The details are rather
complicated.”
"Among the enemy forces was a gold level assassin disguised as a silver level
fighter. His first target was our deputy commander, Shi Qi."
Zong Ge froze momentarily before realizing: Zi Di was referring to the alchemy
puppet disguised as him.
Zong Ge feigned concern: “How is Shi Qi faring?”
"Shi Qi was critically wounded by a single strike and lost consciousness
immediately. But don't forget, he possesses that powerful restorative battle
skill. His life is currently preserved, and he's in a deep slumber repairing
his body," Zi Di explained.
Zong Ge instantly grasped the underlying implication.
His heart sank as he thought: "The alchemy puppet disguised as me possessed
considerable defensive capabilities, yet it was taken down in a single strike.
The gold level assassin departed only after confirming ‘my’ death."
“However, this situation is advantageous.”
The alchemy puppet effectively drew fire, alerting the others.
Its fall also paralyzed the enemy to some extent. In their battle plan, “Shi
Qi” commanding the branch office was the most crucial target.
Equally important was Bu Quan.
"Since the enemy assaulted the branch, they won't spare the alchemy workshop.
What about Bu Quan?" Zong Ge inquired.
Zi Di replied, “The gold level assassin, Yi Jiu, attacked the ship. After
succeeding, he moved to assault the small alchemy workshop within the city.”
"He infiltrated the workshop and captured the alchemist Bu Quan. However, at
the critical moment, Shuang Lian intervened, capturing Yi Jiu alive and
bringing him into the demi-plane, also temporarily taking Bu Quan away."
Zong Ge's expression remained unchanged as he continued surveying the
surroundings, his brow slightly furrowed. "So Bu Quan's distress signal
succeeded. But if her teacher took her away..."
Zi Di continued, “Bu Quan returned.”
“Though it was some time after the battle.”
“It seems my prior arrangements worked through Bu Quan.”
Shuang Lian intervened, rescuing only Bu Quan. For a time afterward, she made
no further moves. Yet ultimately, she returned to the docks with Bu Quan in
tow.
This sequence seemed contradictory, but Zi Di swiftly reconstructed the events.
"The alchemy materials from that great person are of extraordinary value. The
Li Jian Clan values them, and so does Magician Shuang Lian," Zong Ge remarked.
He was no magician and knew little of alchemy. This time, he had finally
witnessed its true power.
Zi Di, however, sighed, her expression far from cheerful.
Their original plan had never included deepening cooperation with the Li Jian
Clan or leveraging Shuang Lian's influence.
Even if Zong Ge had underestimated the value of War Merchant's database, Zi Di
and Cang Xu certainly hadn't.
They avoided such moves precisely because they carried immense risk.
This was the world of the strong.
When people saw a child holding gold in a bustling market, not everyone would
trade fairly with the child.
If you could just take it, why bother with business?
Compared to the Li Jian Clan or Magician Shuang Lian, the survivors' strength
was minuscule. Trading with them was tantamount to playing with fire. One
misstep, and they'd be devoured whole, leaving nothing behind.
Such considerations kept the survivors from pursuing these plans.
Yet in practice, they had no choice.
The mysterious force was overwhelmingly powerful and relentlessly aggressive.
Zi Di had considered backing down, but the sunk costs were too high to retreat
now.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would suffer a devastating blow.
Zi Di knew for an organization to survive, it must turn a profit. At the very
least, it must break even.
Abandoning the potion market plan would be an economic disaster, pushing the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to the brink of bankruptcy.
This was unacceptable to her.
As an excellent leader, Zong Ge understood their situation well: "Our current
alliance with both the Li Jian Clan and Shuang Lian is the optimal scenario.
They can check each other's power."
“Exactly,” Zi Di nodded.
According to the intelligence gathered, Shuang Lian herself was a gold level
magician. Possessing the Honey Snow Tower granted her formidable combat
prowess.
Beyond that, she controlled a demi-plane, boasting immense wealth.
Her personal status was also extraordinary—she was an elder of the Alchemy
Guild. Compared to most elders, her position held greater importance and
uniqueness.
With the Alchemy Guild as her backing, Shuang Lian alone possessed the standing
to challenge the Li Jian Clan.
Caught between these two major powers, the survivors had found a narrow space
to survive, allowing them a moment's respite from their formidable enemies.
Zong Ge suggested, "Perhaps we could offer Shuang Lian a stake in our dragon
rider potion business. Leveraging the Alchemy Guild would give us greater
leverage against the Li Jian Clan, wouldn't it?"
Zi Di glanced at Zong Ge, thinking to herself: This is an incredibly foolish
suggestion.
Yet she revealed no hint of disapproval, instead explaining patiently: “We
cannot do that.”
“Both the Alchemy Guild and Shuang Lian possess formidable alchemy prowess.
Bringing either into our fold would pose a grave threat to us.”
"In a three-way partnership, the dragon rider potion formula wouldn't withstand
reverse engineering. Our alchemy capabilities are far inferior to the Alchemy
Guild's."
"The Li Jian Clan isn't exceptional in alchemy—in fact, that was one foundation
of our previous alliance. They need our alchemy skills; we need their shops and
connections."
“Therefore, after introducing the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild,
they'll unite for profit. The end result will be us being eliminated by their
combined forces.”
Zong Ge paused, nodded slightly, and fell silent.
Zi Di continued, “In truth, within the potion market, the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's Alchemy Guild is one of our primary competitors.”
“Once our plan makes them realize the enormous profits in mount potions,
they'll definitely enter the fray and compete with us commercially.”
“It's a bit strange they haven't made a move yet.”
"However, other factions have already reacted. For instance, most counterfeit
dragon rider potions appearing on the market originate from the Jing Xiang
Clan."
"In the potion business, we only partner with the Li Jian Clan. This is because
the Li Jian Clan ranks among the kingdom's top three major powers, possessing
sufficient influence to protect this interest."
“Simultaneously, they lack expertise in potion-making, so they need our
assistance to enter the potion market.”
“As you likely observed during negotiations with Mian Li Zang, the Li Jian Clan
is a faction that maintains a vigorous spirit of enterprise.”
“For them, entering into a commercial potion partnership with us represents an
opportunity and direction for growth and expansion.”
Zong Ge nodded again.
He hadn't fully grasped it before, but after Zi Di's detailed explanation, he
finally understood: there were so many considerations behind her choice to
partner with the Li Jian Clan.
Zi Di continued reading the final lines of the secret letter.
“Oh no.” Her expression darkened. “The big guy is gone!”
"What?!" Zong Ge couldn't help but gasp.
“Ah...” Zi Di stared at the decoded letter, letting out a deep sigh.
The decryption was complete; all the text on the envelope had transformed.
Zi Di handed the letter to Zong Ge: “Read it yourself.”
Zong Ge scanned the entire text at a glance.
He murmured to himself, quietly analyzing.
“Gold level magic chef, Da Dou... he took the big guy away?”
"The big guy, traumatized by the previous assassination attempt by Yi Jiu, went
mad and was led straight into the arena. Then, through a series of misfortunes
and feasts, he displayed extraordinary bloodline potential..."
“Based on his performance in the arena, it's easy to speculate he possesses
gold level bloodline potential.”
“But why did Da Dou act so decisively?”
“By doing so, Da Dou violated the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's laws, openly
abducting someone. He can no longer participate in the kingdom's grand
ceremony.”
“Was it worth such a heavy price?”
“Is this revenge for Tripleblade choosing to eat Ci Hai Shen's food in the
end?”
“Or could it be...”
Zi Di interjected, “Or could it be that Da Dou has already caught on,
recognizing that the big guy's value far exceeds that of a gold level
treasure!”
Zong Ge fell silent.
If that were the case, it would be disastrous.
“If he believes the big guy possesses at least saint level potential, snatching
him away makes perfect sense.”
Zi Di voiced her concern: “When the commander returns and finds Xiao Guai
missing, we won't be able to explain ourselves.”
“But if we rush back immediately...”
Zi Di's business plans were equally crucial.
Having just established deep cooperation with the Li Jian Clan, returning to
Snow Bird Harbor now would undoubtedly severely hinder the progress of the
business plan.
Zong Ge's expression grew grave. “I don't recommend rushing back to rescue the
big guy.”
“If Da Dou seeks revenge out of resentment, his primary target can only be Ci
Hai Shen.”
"Even if he wants to vent his anger on our mercenary group, it will only be
through an attack, not kidnapping the big guy and fleeing using precious
alchemy artifacts."
“Da Dou holds the big guy's future in high regard, which is why he abandoned
the grand ceremony and acted so boldly.”
“Therefore, in the short term, the big guy's personal safety is not at risk.”



****** Chapter 545: Combat Practical Assignment ******
After discussing it, Zong Ge and Zi Di both agreed they weren't suited to rush
back.
The Deep Sea Monster Fish had been taken by the young commander.
Da Dou had already left the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. If Zong Ge and Zi Di wanted
to pursue the big guy, they'd have to board other ships.
These vessels were far too conspicuous, placing their every subsequent move
under constant scrutiny.
The chances of catching up to Da Dou were slim.
Even if they did catch up, confronting a gold level giant would be a
troublesome affair.
Zong Ge and Zi Di had far more important matters to attend to. Not only did
they need to execute their business plan, but they also had to travel to the
royal capital. There, using the communication devices of the Wisteria shop,
they would continue their contact with the Bai Zhen Clan.
Their decision wasn't to abandon the big guy outright, but to pin their hopes
on Shuang Lian.
In the letter, they learned that Tripleblade had already gotten Shuang Lian's
promise to help the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps get back the big guy.
Shuang Lian was a gold level magician, so her methods were far more varied than
Zong Ge. She possessed a mage tower and a demi-plane, making her the most
suitable candidate to rescue the big guy at present.
Even better, the big guy's value was secondary to Shuang Lian. What she truly
coveted was the alchemy knowledge held by the survivors.
“Let's depart. Our destination is Ice Prison City.” Zi Di finally made the
decision. ”With the Spatial Shuttle Squad's assistance, our journey will be
swift."
“The arrangements for shops across all regions will be completed soon.”
“What we must accomplish is paramount for everyone.”
“Fulfilling our respective duties, that is the accountability we must
demonstrate!”
Zi Di and Zong Ge jointly sent a secret letter back to headquarters.
The message was swiftly delivered to Snow Bird Harbor.
Without further delay, Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their group boarded a spatial
shuttle and departed Igloo City.
With events escalating to this point, the survivors found themselves caught
between Shuang Lian and the Li Jian Clan, shouldering immense risks.
Driven to desperation by the mysterious force, they had no choice but to give
their all, sprinting toward the future with everything they had.
The reply soon reached Tripleblade's hands.
After reading its contents, Tripleblade first breathed a sigh of relief,
convinced Zi Di and Zong Ge's choice was correct.
Then, he immediately set off for the Honey Snow Tower.
Upon learning of Tripleblade's arrival, Bu Quan personally greeted him and
escorted him into Shuang Lian's study.
“Come in,” Shuang Lian sighed inwardly as her beloved disciple Bu Quan pushed
open the door.
Tripleblade was merely iron level, unworthy of Shuang Lian's personal
audience.  In truth, even the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was currently only a
silver level group, far from matching an entity like Shuang Lian.
Even the dragonman youngster's feat of slaying Teng Dong Lang had merely earned
Shuang Lian's respect, not true recognition at the same level.
Shuang Lian's personal audience with Tripleblade stemmed entirely from Bu
Quan's influence.
Upon meeting, Tripleblade immediately bowed, expressing his profound honor.
Having once served as a mercenary commander and fought his way up from the
bottom, he knew this reception far exceeded standard protocol.
Shuang Lian's expression remained impassive as she addressed Tripleblade:
“Within a day, the tower spirit will calculate the precise coordinates for Da
Dou's teleportation.”
“Moreover, over the past two days, the mage tower has detected some unusual
activity.”
Shuang Lian informed Tripleblade that vessels had departed the docks, both from
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's faction and the Sea Bird Church. Some groups
hadn't even left via the docks.
Tripleblade's heart sank as he instantly grasped the implications: “During the
eating contest, the big guy demonstrated his potential. Most spectators
believed he possessed gold level talent.”
“But then, Da Dou's direct attempt to snatch him away has sparked even more
suspicion and curiosity among many.”
"Da Dou paid a heavy price for the big guy, abandoning the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's ceremony outright. This action, taken in reverse, suggests he has
even greater expectations for the big guy's bloodline level!"
"And I have already publicly declared on behalf of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps that we will only collaborate with Shuang Lian. Others cannot obtain our
endorsement, which is why these private maneuvers have emerged."
Regardless of which faction secured the big guy, they wouldn't report to the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they'd strive to claim him for themselves!
Tripleblade's heart was filled with worry: “Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
schemes are vast, backed by formidable reconnaissance and intelligence-
gathering capabilities.”
"The Sea Bird Church is no pushover either, they're a genuine, full-fledged
church. Snow Bird Harbor is their largest diocese within the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. Crucially, their clergymen gain flight abilities at low levels. For
maritime reconnaissance, that mobility is incredibly advantageous."
At this thought, Tripleblade suggested to Shuang Lian, “Perhaps, Lord Shuang
Lian, you might consider tracking these individuals.”
“No one can predict the future.”
“Who knows? We might uncover clues about our corps' giant from this group.”
Shuang Lian gave Tripleblade another appraising look, thinking to herself: This
short human fellow, no wonder he was secretly appointed to handle the branch
affairs. His mind works rather quickly.
Bu Quan finally caught up: “Are you saying this group is after the giant
belonging to our mercenary corps?”
Shuang Lian glanced at Bu Quan before replying to Tripleblade: "Rest assured,
I've already taken care of it. Most of those setting sail have been secretly
marked by me."
“If they locate the target first, I'll detect it swiftly too!”
Hearing this, Tripleblade immediately expressed gratitude and offered a small
compliment.
Then he spoke: "Esteemed Magician Shuang Lian, I have one more request. I hope
the potion production can be temporarily increased tenfold from the current
output."
On her way here, Bu Quan had already learned of this strategic adjustment from
Tripleblade.
She promptly offered, “I can leave the tower to oversee a small alchemy
workshop.”
Bu Quan volunteered eagerly, brimming with enthusiasm.
Shuang Lian shot her a stern glance, her voice turning cold. “Bu Quan, have you
completed all the assignments I gave you?”
“You've been away from the mage tower for so long, falling behind on much of
your work.”
“Your top priority now should be to seize every moment for continuous study and
cultivation.”
Bu Quan replied, “Teacher, all assignments are completed. I've already
communicated with the tower spirit and submitted everything.”
“Thank you for your concern, Teacher, but I believe it's actually fine.”
"Even though I left you and came to Snow Bird Harbor, I never stopped studying.
Moreover, I frequently corresponded with you, seeking your guidance on many
alchemy questions."
Shuang Lian's expression grew even colder.
She secretly focused her mind to swiftly review Bu Quan's assignments. She
discovered, just as she had claimed, that they were all correct!
In fact, for many problems, Bu Quan had provided multiple solutions, each
showing unique innovation.
This left Sheng Lian with no grounds to erupt in anger.
“It is precisely because of your talent that you deserve stricter demands.”
Sheng Lian stared at Bu Quan before her, sensing a hint of pride in her beloved
disciple's demeanor.
Her voice turned icy. “Bu Quan, proceed to the top floor of the mage tower. You
still have practical assignments to complete.”
Bu Quan let out a soft groan, casting a disappointed and resentful glance at
her teacher. Seeing no softening in her expression, she resigned herself to
fate, bowed her head, and left the study.
Tripleblade witnessed this exchange and promptly excused himself, not wishing
to interrupt Shuang Lian's teaching.
Soon, Tripleblade emerged from the Honey Snow Tower.
He glanced back at the towering structure, which seemed to stand as a pillar
between heaven and earth, shielding the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from
external pressures.
Tripleblade exhaled a heavy breath.
Deepening cooperation with the Li Jian Clan and Shuang Lian's intervention had
significantly eased his burden.
“But the big guy went missing under my watch at the branch,” Tripleblade's
expression remained stern, his gaze intense. “This is my responsibility!”
“Now, all hope rests on Shuang Lian's operation.”
"Da Dou may be gold level, but he's no magician. With Lady Shuang Lian
involved, it should be fine, right?"
“Yes, the odds of success are high!”
If possible, Tripleblade desperately wanted to join Shuang Lian and the others
on their mission.
But he knew requesting to accompany them would be presumptuous.
Besides, even if he did join, his contribution against a gold level giant would
be negligible.
Not only that, he still had to oversee the daily operations of the Snow Bird
Harbor branch.
Without him, the branch's routine tasks and functions would suffer greatly.
“In the end, I'm just a small fish,” Tripleblade sighed inwardly, overwhelmed
by a sense of powerlessness and tinged with melancholy.
He was merely an iron level fighter, capable of influencing the current
situation only minimally.
He could only align himself with a faction yet still felt like a leaf tossed by
the wind.
Yet despite his personal weakness, he never gave up or lost heart, always
dedicating his strength wholeheartedly to the entire Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
Shuang Lian swiftly reached the top floor of the mage tower.
Here, numerous magic formations converged, alongside crystal spheres and
circular metal platforms covered in intricate magic runes.
This was the control room.
One of the most critical chambers within the Honey Snow Tower.
From here, Shuang Lian could not only manipulate the entire mage tower but also
remotely oversee her demi-plane.
Her demi-plane, meticulously refined by her, operated in excellent condition.
Shuang Lian expended vast resources to construct multiple colossal magic
formations within the demi-plane.
These formations enabled her to harness greater combat power, effortlessly
altering the demi-plane's environment.
Bu Quan, granted temporary authorization, proceeded directly to the main
control room.
Her movements were observed by other apprentices, stirring envy among them.
They whispered among themselves: “Look, Bu Quan just entered the main control
room alone.”
“She must have Teacher's permission. Nothing unusual about that.”
"Teacher favors her far too much, letting her enter such a critical area alone!
We're always under strict supervision by others or puppets, even when cleaning
routine tasks."
The murmurs soon ceased.
For they saw Shuang Lian also entering the control room.
Honey Snow Tower.
Within the control room.
“Come, stand beside me,” Shuang Lian beckoned to Bu Quan.
The teacher and student stood at the center of the circular metal platform.
Shuang Lian waved her hand lightly. Instantly, the various magic runes on the
platform lit up simultaneously, radiating multicolored brilliance.
Shuang Lian explained each rune's function to Bu Quan, along with some control
techniques.
When discussing the demi-plane, magic projections appeared, allowing Bu Quan to
see clearly.
Finally, as Shuang Lian reached the conclusion of her instruction, the magic
projection revealed a battlefield.
A blizzard swirled into a tornado, trapping Yi Jiu within its vortex.
"Your practical assignment today is combat. Manipulate these magic runes and
attempt to kill this enemy!"
Shuang Lian declared, “Only when you slay him will you earn the right to leave
the mage tower.”



****** Chapter 546: Bu Quan vs Yi Jiu ******
The Honey snow demi-plane.
Gale-force winds howled, and blizzards raged.
Yi Jiu's small form, lost in this vast expanse of ice and snow, resembled a
fragile skiff struggling desperately amidst towering waves.
Hailstones the size of millstones, numbering in the thousands, pelted Yi Jiu
under the cover of the blizzard.
Yi Jiu dodged relentlessly.
His extensive combat experience allowed him to maintain his reconnaissance
battle skill. Without lifting his head, he could pinpoint the hailstones'
trajectories.
Bang, bang, bang...
The hailstones missed their mark, exploding upon impact with the ground and
releasing bursts of frigid cold.
Within seconds, the freezing air crystallized the surrounding atmosphere,
forming a massive ice block two meters tall.
Hailstones detonated intermittently beside Yi Jiu, their frigid fury eroding
his skin and leaving multiple frostbite wounds across his body.
Yet Yi Jiu had no time to tend to his injuries.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A barrage of ice spears erupted from the snow, piercing toward Yi Jiu.
He leapt into the air, soaring upward.
A massive figure burst through the blizzard, swinging fists toward Yi Jiu mid-
air.
A gold level snow elemental!
Standing three meters tall, the snow elemental was burly and imposing. The
fist's wind sliced through the air, amplified by the blizzard, making the
threat even more intense.
At the critical moment, Yi Jiu flicked his arm, sending a dagger flying.
The handle of the dagger was connected to his gold level battle qi.
The battle qi converged into a durable long cord.
The dagger plunged into a distant ice block, instantly anchoring itself
Yi Jiu continued his battle skill, his entire body violently yanked forward by
the gold level battle qi cord.
Bam!
The snow elemental swung wildly at empty air, sending muddy snow flying
everywhere.
Unable to slow down, Yi Jiu slammed his face into the ice block.
Ignoring the dizziness, he scrambled to his feet, frantically pushing off the
ice surface with a roll to evade further.
The next instant, the snow giant's ranged attack struck his previous position.
Boom!
The spell shattered the ice into fragments, its residual force slamming into Yi
Jiu's back.
Propelled by the impact, Yi Jiu was driven headfirst into the snow.
The snow giant closed in, but its attacks into the snow missed their mark. Yi
Jiu had vanished for the moment.
The snow giant pounded its chest in rage, then spotted “Yi Jiu” and resumed the
chase.
Yi Jiu's true form lay hidden in a corner of the snowy terrain, urgently
healing his wounds.
He downed three vials of potions in quick succession, then raced against time
to refine his battle qi.
Within just half a minute, various frost spells descended upon him, forcing Yi
Jiu to flee once more.
“So far, three gold level snow elementals have appeared.”
“Even using my strongest camouflage and concealment techniques, I can only
maintain the illusion for about thirty seconds at most.”
“Clearly, Shuang Lian isn't trying to kill me outright. She's deliberately
maintaining this level of combat intensity to drain all my battle qi, isn't
she?”
“My battle qi reserves... still at two-thirds.”
Yi Jiu's mood grew heavy.
Gold level snow elementals were exceptionally troublesome, their magic crystals
capable of shifting throughout their bodies. Unless Yi Jiu could pinpoint this
fatal weakness, no matter how severely he wounded the elemental, its body would
swiftly regenerate within this battlefield environment.
“Huh?” Yi Jiu murmured in mild surprise.
His keen senses detected a sudden pause in the relentless assault.
“Have reinforcements arrived?”
“Are they besieging Shuang Lian, causing disruptions here?”
Just as Yi Jiu speculated, the assault intensified to its previous ferocity.
“Damn it!” The gold level assassin cursed, forced to resume his desperate
retreat.
His illusions shattered.
Honey Snow Tower.
Control room.
Bu Quan had officially taken over as the operator.
Shuang Lian stood beside her, guiding her step by step with patience and care.
It was precisely this switch between them that had caused the offensive to
weaken.
In truth, even as Bu Quan gradually gained proficiency, the blizzard assault
she could unleash still fell far short of Shuang Lian's.
“It's spirit power.”
“My spirit power can't compare to my teacher's. She can simultaneously control
colossal ice storms. Even when I push myself to the limit, my storms don't
reach one-tenth of hers.”
"My teacher can cast multiple ice spells at once, coordinating them to surround
and attack Yi Jiu. But I can only control five spells simultaneously at most,
and they're all elementary."
Operating personally against Yi Jiu, Bu Quan acutely felt the vast gulf between
herself and her revered mentor.
Before long, Bu Quan voluntarily ceased her control.
The tower spirit took over her task, continuing to chase Yi Jiu into a frantic
retreat.
Bu Quan didn't drain her magic power when controlling the tower, but she needed
to use spirit power to manipulate various ice-element spells.
“Have some potions,” Shuang Lian said, pulling out over a dozen vials and
handing them to Bu Quan.
They were all gold level spirit potions!
Bu Quan paused slightly. “Teacher, isn't it a bit excessive for me to use gold
level potions right now?”
Shuang Lian replied, “I've diluted them. After you drink them, their efficacy
will be 30% better than taking silver level spirit potions.”
Bu Quan felt a bit embarrassed. “But gold level potions cost over a hundred
times more than silver level ones.” This feels like such a waste."
“Heh,” Shuang Lian chuckled softly. “This is far better than you giving away
four alchemy workshops to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps outright.”
Bu Quan stuck out her tongue, obediently took the potions, pulled out a vial,
and downed it in one gulp.
Her spirit power rapidly recovered.
Before long, she resumed manipulating the magic formation to attack Yi Jiu.
Many spells were beyond her silver level capabilities, but with the mage tower
and the magic formation laid out by the demi-plane, she didn't need to
construct magic models herself or expend her own magic power.
Bu Quan grew increasingly adept at the controls.
Shuang Lian's occasional guidance allowed Bu Quan to make rapid progress.
Purely practicing spells, her casting experience grew exponentially. Many
things could only be deeply understood through actual combat.
After three rounds of rest, Bu Quan felt she had gained immensely.
“If given another chance to fight Yi Jiu alone, my performance would be at
least ten times better than before!”
“I've learned so much about choosing which spells to use and when to cast
them.”
“These decisions are crucial in combat!”
“Speaking of which, Yi Jiu makes an excellent training partner.”
“Teacher has been so kind to me...”
As Bu Quan silently expressed her gratitude, Shuang Lian nodded in approval
within her mind.
She was thoroughly satisfied with Bu Quan's performance during the combat
training.
“She's a prodigy!”
"Possessing extraordinary talent and brilliance in alchemy. Though slightly
weaker in combat, she still surpasses other apprentices."
“Even after being away from me for a while, she never slacked off in her
training. Her foundation is solid.”
"Excellent. It seems she truly took my parting advice to heart. Such a good
girl!"
"Drink up. This potion contains something special. Not only does it restore
spirit power, but it also raises your spirit power ceiling."
What Shuang Lian secretly invested in Bu Quan far exceeded what the latter
perceived.
Shuang Lian did not reveal the hidden secret within the potion.
On one hand, she didn't want to place too much pressure on Bu Quan. On the
other hand, though she cared deeply for Bu Quan, she had to maintain an
appearance of fairness and impartiality. After all, Bu Quan wasn't her only
student!
The effect of the heightened spirit power and mental capacity gradually
manifested in Bu Quan's subsequent combat training.
She cast multiple spells simultaneously with increasing ease.
“Excellent. Continue training. Little Quan Quan's combat weaknesses will
improve significantly.”
“Most crucially, this training method is extremely safe for her.”
“Training targets of the gold level are also rare and hard to come by.”
Shuang Lian had thought deeply for Bu Quan's sake, her intentions undoubtedly
sincere.
“The real focus now remains the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
A sharp gleam flashed in Shuang Lian's eyes.
She had already discerned that the Li Jian Clan and the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had deepened their cooperation, even deploying the Spatial Shuttle Squad!
Even though the current head of the Li Jian Clan, Mian Li Zang, was known for
his humility and respect for talent, treating a silver level force this way was
excessive.
“Perhaps what swayed the Li Jian Clan was alchemy knowledge of the same caliber
I witnessed!” Shuang Lian speculated silently.
She harbored no affection whatsoever for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Given her temperament, she would likely have disciplined the survivors. Her
earlier covert intervention, rescuing Bu Quan and departing without confronting
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, stemmed primarily from consideration for Bu
Quan's personal feelings.
“Regardless, Long Fu is a master of diplomacy, he even persuaded Mian Li Zang.”
“He successfully leveraged the power of the Li Jian Clan, and before that, he
enlisted my help too!”
Shuang Lian was unaware of the truth: Long Fu, played by Zong Ge, had actually
contributed little to the negotiations. The real negotiator was Zi Di.
Her loathing for the dragonman youngster deepened.
In her eyes, the dragonman youngster was a master manipulator. He'd wielded
that skill against the innocent, pure Little Quan Quan, steering her beloved
disciple down a path of ruin.
“We must proceed with extreme caution against the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
now.”
Shuang Lian felt she needed to be more vigilant.
The presence of the Li Jian Clan was what truly made her wary.
She had freely disciplined Da Bei and Magician Cai Jing. But now, when dealing
with the survivors, she was exercising restraint.
“Perhaps I could extract more alchemy knowledge from them?”
“That giant they snatched away is no ordinary creature, his bloodline level is
at least gold level.”
“What reward will Long Fu offer me for helping them reclaim the giant this
time?”
“Saving a future gold level talent should at least warrant alchemy materials of
equal value to the one they previously gave, right?”
Plop.
Yi Jiu spat out a mouthful of blood, flecked with a dozen tiny ice shards.
His face drained pale, his body numb with cold.
His battle qi depletion had reached 48%, nearing half.
“This can't go on. I must contact them proactively!” Yi Jiu resolved, beginning
his prayer.
Previously, he hadn't had the chance, but now that Bu Quan was in control, the
external pressure on Yi Jiu had lessened considerably.
This finally gave him the time to pray.
He expended a large amount of divine favor, and his spirit was immediately
drawn to the peak of Tranquil Hill.
There, discussions were already underway.
“It's Yi Jiu. His tombstone is glowing.”
“He's back!”
“I knew it! He must be okay, right?”
Yi Jiu's appearance instantly drew the attention of the other duelists.
"Did you escape? Where are you now?" Gu Dong asked immediately.
"Quick, save me! Shuang Lian is about to kill me!" Yi Jiu cried out loudly.
The scene fell silent.



****** Chapter 547: Divine Domain Descent ******
The Dueling Divine Domain.
The peak of Tranquil Hill.
Some gravestones glowed faintly as duelists from across the kingdom connected
across distances through prayer.
Yi Jiu's cry for help stunned the crowd.
After a brief silence, they asked Yi Jiu where he was.
Yi Jiu reported his coordinates: "It's Shuang Lian's demi-plane! She ambushed
me and dragged me into her demi-plane."
“I've been fighting for two days and nights straight, yet I can't find a way
out.”
“Only outside help can break me free from this perilous situation.”
Yi Jiu steadied himself and swiftly explained the situation.
He hadn't originally planned to pray, but Shuang Lian had sent Bu Quan to gain
combat experience, significantly easing Yi Jiu's burden.
This had finally given Yi Jiu the chance to contact others.
"Isn't Shuang Lian an alchemist? How could her combat prowess be this
formidable?" Zhu Gan voiced his confusion.
Xue Tuan Zi replied, "I happened to learn some details. Shuang Lian left the
royal capital a few days ago, clashing with certain magicians from the Alchemy
Guild before her departure."
"She took the mage tower with her when she left.”
“Now, the Honey Snow Tower sits right on the docks of Snow Bird Harbor.”
Upon hearing this, Yi Jiu suddenly understood: “She has the mage tower, no
wonder the spatial fluctuations were so swift and violent. I didn't have time
to react before being dragged into the demi-plane.”
Zhu Gan pressed further: “Yi Jiu is currently within Shuang Lian's demi-plane
and isn't facing the mage tower directly. By all logic, as a gold level
assassin, he should be perfectly suited to counter magicians.”
Yi Jiu felt like crying. “To assassinate the magician, I need to find her true
form!”
“But ever since I was trapped in this demi-plane, I've been under constant
magic assault.”
“The spells are almost all gold level, and gold level snow elementals keep
hunting me down.”
“I can't locate Shuang Lian's true body at all.”
“I strongly suspect her true form remains stationed in the mage tower, remotely
controlling magic formations to attack me nonstop!”
With his extensive combat experience, Yi Jiu had guessed the truth.
He stated bluntly, “I can't break through the spatial barrier to find Shuang
Lian's true form.”
“I can't hold out much longer. I need reinforcements!”
"Mei Lin, where the hell have you been? Get out here now!"
Gu Dong: "I know you're anxious, but please hold your horses. I've already
urgently notified Lady Mei Lin through other channels."
Gu Dong, a military veteran, maintained communication channels with Mei Lin and
had long been aware of Yi Jiu's assault operation.
In fact, he had volunteered to join the battle but was overruled by Mei Lin.
Gu Dong's identity posed too great a risk.
Exposing him would create immense complications.
Yi Jiu roared, "Hurry! Contact her immediately! This is nothing like our
original agreement! I..."
Yi Jiu's mental fluctuations abruptly ceased. The connection snapped.
A chill settled over the summit of Tranquil Hill.
“Is he... dead?”
“Unlikely. Yi Jiu is an agile fighter. His voice sounded quite lively just
now.”
“To be precise, he sounded furious!”
The next moment, Yi Jiu's mental transmission returned: “Did I just hear
someone say I'm dead?”
"Ah! Who dared curse my death? Step forward!"
Just then, Yi Jiu had been attacked again, forcing him to focus his energy on
combat and temporarily abandon the mental communication.
Everyone: “...”
“Alright.” Mei Lin's voice came through. “Yi Jiu, report your current
situation.”
“You finally showed up!” Yi Jiu fumed. "The payment you gave me isn't enough to
risk my life! The situation now is that I'm trapped."
“You must send someone to rescue me, or else I'll expose you all!”
Mei Lin snorted coldly. “Yi Jiu, watch your tone.”
“You're trapped because you fought carelessly and got pulled into a demi-
plane.”
“Clearly, conventional methods won't let you send a message out. The only
rescue force you can rely on now is us.”
That was true. Mei Lin displayed the unyielding resolve of a soldier.
Mei Lin continued, “However, when we made our deal, the intensity of this
battle wasn't supposed to be this high.”
“After this fight, we'll double your original payment as compensation.”
Yi Jiu gritted his teeth, suppressing his rage. “More money won't matter if I'm
dead to spend it!”
"Cut the nonsense, okay? Send help quickly!”
"How can we rescue him? He's trapped in a demi-plane," Zhu Gan said.
Gu Dong replied, "The rescue is indeed difficult, but not impossible. We can
pray, beseeching the divine domain to descend!"
“You mean...” Xue Tuan Zi pondered, “Theoretically, this is entirely feasible!”
Zhu Gan gasped, "I see! Just like when Bing Xiao prayed not long ago, sending
Teng Dong Lang's body back to be buried in Tranquil Hill. They could teleport
into the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain precisely because the divine domain
descended."
At that time, Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer's prayers succeeded, causing a portion
of Tranquil Hill to descend upon Flower Skirt Island.
During this process, Shuang Tu's arrangements took effect, expanding the divine
domain's scope to encompass Lan Zao and the others.
When part of the divine domain retreated, it carried many people back with it.
Mei Lin explained, "The divine domain is the domain of the gods. Theoretically,
an active divine domain can descend anywhere within the Main Plane."
"After the divine domain descends, we can use it to return to Tranquil Hill. Or
conversely, we can utilize the Divine Domain Descent to teleport elsewhere and
provide powerful support!"
"Exactly! That's it!"  Yi Jiu rejoiced, ”This method is truly excellent."
Zhu Gan hesitated, “The Divine Domain Descent isn't that simple.”
"Previously, Bing Xiao succeeded because returning Teng Dong Lang's corpse
inherently benefited the divine domain. Thus, they expended almost no divine
favor."
"But your support mission this time involves combat. It will consume a great
deal of divine favor. Even after praying, the divine domain might not descend
at all."
Prayer differed from divine spells, it was inherently unstable.
Yi Jiu grew impatient: “Is this about divine favor?”
“If I die, you won't get off easy.”
"Mei Lin, before I die, I'll expose you. You, Zhu Gan, and the rest, I’ll
expose every last one of you! And the truth about Tranquil Hill too!"
These words sparked cold snorts and discontent among the crowd.
“Yi Jiu, you’d better understand what you’re saying!”
“Who cares? Even if it’s exposed, what difference would it make?”
“Hmph, Yi Jiu. I thought you were a man of honor. Never imagined you’d be so
cowardly!”
Yi Jiu erupted: “I don't care what you say or how you see me!”
“I'm just saving myself!”
“I shouldn't die. I shouldn't have taken this damn job!”
“Calm down, Yi Jiu,” Mei Lin said coldly. “I'll organize a rescue.”
“Using the Divine Domain Descent method!”
“But before that, please hold on.”
“If you die, we won't have precise coordinates to descend directly into Shuang
Lian's demi-plane!”
Yi Jiu took a deep breath: "Then you'd better hurry. The sooner, the better.
I..."
This time, it wasn't Yi Jiu who lost contact. Mei Lin had directly withdrawn
her spirit form and ended the communication.
White Hair Trench.
Cang Xu returned.
Accompanying him was a large number of Charming Blue believers.
Upon their return, the believers thanked Cang Xu profusely, some even kneeling
before him on the spot.
In their memories, Cang Xu had guided their prayers and deepened their faith—he
was the key figure in their survival and return, their savior!
"Rise, all of you. Preaching is the power bestowed upon me by our Lord, and it
is my honor. "Cang Xu smiled, radiating pride in his role as a Charming Blue
missionary.
Leveraging his believers, Cang Xu delivered a brief speech, effectively
boosting his visibility and expanding his influence among the Charming Blue
believers.
Jian Gui and Qi Ling stood apart from the crowd, observing from a distance.
Qi Ling remarked coldly to Jian Gui, “My Lord, Xiao Wang Zi did not return. He
is dead!”
“I strongly suspect Xu Jia had the power to save him but chose not to offer
genuine aid.”
Qi Ling and Cang Xu were bitter rivals. She seized this opportunity to sow
discord.
Jian Gui wore his disappointment plainly.
Xiao Wang Zi hadn't returned.
This meant losing a capable subordinate, and the progress of memory
modification would be significantly delayed.
Cang Xu glanced at the two figures of Jian Gui and Qi Ling, gave them a nod,
then turned his gaze toward Zhou Zhang.
“Lord Zhou Zhang,” Cang Xu bowed before Zhou Zhang at the altar, “I have
matters I wish to consult with you!”
Zhou Zhang was highly satisfied with Cang Xu.
The fact that so many Charming Blue believers had been preserved was
undoubtedly Cang Xu's achievement.
Without Cang Xu, only one-third of those present would return through a normal
teleportation blood sacrifice.
Xiao Wang Zi did not return, leaving Zhou Zhang somewhat disappointed.
After all, she had hoped other necromancers might emulate Cang Xu's success and
become special missionaries within the Charming Blue Church.
Cang Xu could indeed achieve this, yet he imprisoned Xiao Wang Zi within the
longhorn cage.
For if a second necromancer capable of missionary work emerged, it would
inevitably diminish Cang Xu's own value.
Now, he remained the sole candidate; his worth in Zhou Zhang and others' eyes
was consistently held at a high level.
Cang Xu requested a private consultation with Zhou Zhang, who agreed, leading
him to a secluded corner.
Only the two of them remained.
Cang Xu then retrieved the Charming Blue divine statue from his robes and
informed Zhou Zhang: Originally an ordinary object, it had undergone a
transformation, becoming a silver level sacred artifact.
Zhou Zhang cradled the statue in both hands, examining it with delight for a
long moment before returning it to Cang Xu: “What immense honor it is for you
to possess this divine statue.”
“This is our Lord's reward for you. Continue your preaching, perhaps divine
favor will be yours!”
Cang Xu pressed further: What exactly had happened? The concept of transcending
the mundane far exceeded his comprehension.
As a magician, he understood clearly that the mundane and the transcendent were
fundamentally different realms. Forging transcendent artifacts from ordinary
materials was utterly impossible!
Zhou Zhang smiled, revealing a secret: “It's understandable that you wouldn't
know.”
“Did you think being transported into the Ocean Mother Nest meant you were
confined only within it?”
Cang Xu looked utterly perplexed.
Zhou Zhang asked, “Have you ever heard of ‘Divine Domain Descent’?”



****** Chapter 548: God&#x27;s Chosen ******
“Divine Domain Descent?” Cang Xu's body and mind trembled.
He sensed this secret was no trivial matter and urgently pressed Zhou Zhang for
more.
Cang Xu knew little about the divine domain.
Zhou Zhang explained, “Our Lord's divine domain does not soar high in the
heavens but stands upon the earth—it is a divine domain within the mortal
world.”
“Any divine domain existing in the mortal world can descend upon any location
within the Main Plane.”
“When a divine domain descends, typically only a portion of it covers a segment
of the Main World, transforming that area into an inner world, while the divine
domain itself becomes the outer world.”
"Throughout this process, the divine domain remains a unified whole. Believers
can travel from other parts of the divine domain to the manifested section.
Upon leaving the divine domain, they return directly to the Main World."
Cang Xu's mind stirred: “So, through Divine Domain Descent, a church could
deploy armies to any location instantly?”
Zhou Zhang shook his head: “Theoretically, yes.”
Cang Xu reflected for a moment before adding, “Yet history records few such
instances.”
“Is the cost too great?”
Zhou Zhang nodded slightly. “Divine Domain Descent is a divine spell. It first
requires spatial coordinates, a task often undertaken by deeply devout
believers.”
"The casting of divine spells always incurs immense expenditure. Ordinary
transcendent believers struggle to bear it, and expending a saint level being
to transport a gold level army is profoundly unprofitable.”
“Additionally, the act of Divine Domain Descent itself carries inherent risks."
Zhou Zhang said no more.
Cang Xu understood perfectly.
Divine domains were famously easy to defend and difficult to attack. The god
resided within them, making them exceptionally secure.
Once descended, a divine domain could teleport anywhere across the Main Plane.
Conversely, enemies from the Main Plane could exploit this link to infiltrate
the divine domain!
These factors combined made the Divine Domain Descent exceedingly rare.
Cang Xu gazed toward the direction of the Ocean Mother Nest: “Could it be...
the Ocean Mother Nest was subjected to the Divine Domain Descent?”
Zhou Zhang replied, “This is classified information, but you now possess the
clearance to know.”
Cang Xu opened his mouth to speak but ultimately remained silent.
He hadn't anticipated the Charming Blue Goddess' plan being so grand in scale.
He knew this place had undoubtedly been prepared, but hadn't imagined it
involved the high-risk Divine Domain Descent.
Suddenly, Cang Xu understood why the saint beast Snow Pear Octopus resided
within the Ocean Mother Nest.
Beyond screening believers, the Snow Pear Octopus' true purpose was likely
guardianship.
Guardianship of this section of the Charming Blue Divine Domain.
Saint level beings were high-tier transcendent beings, national-level combat
forces. Even the mighty Ice Sculpture Kingdom possessed only three saint
beings.
Should any enemy attempt to breach the Charming Blue Divine Domain through this
passage, they would inevitably face interception by the saint octopus.
Even if the octopus was outmatched, as a magic beast, its thick hide and tough
flesh would undoubtedly buy time.
Just a moment's delay was enough to cancel the Divine Domain Descent, ensuring
the Charming Blue Divine Domain remained safe.
“Why cast the Divine Domain Descent Spell here?” Cang Xu questioned inwardly.
“The Charming Blue Goddess needs to recuperate and requires sacrifices.”
“The vast resources, energy, and faith offered in blood sacrifices enter the
divine domain when delivered to the Mother Nest.”
“The transportation costs here are minimal!”
“Simultaneously, the divine blessings the Charming Blue Goddess bestows upon
her believers incur no transportation costs either, it's convenient and swift.”
"From this perspective, Charming Blue Goddess' condition is indeed concerning.
To reduce these losses, they risked everything by invoking the Divine Domain
Descent."
Cang Xu quickly thought of the Charming Blue divine statue.
“In that case, the Charming Blue divine statue must have been secretly enhanced
with transcendent materials, forging it into a silver level sacred artifact.”
Cang Xu's conjecture had grounds.
Gods were omnipotent.
But it depended on the specific cost.
Cang Xu didn't doubt that the Charming Blue Goddess possessed transcendent
abilities.
But elevating an ordinary object to the transcendent level would demand immense
sacrifice. Using materials already of transcendent level for forging would
undoubtedly be far less costly.
Given Charming Blue Goddess' weakened state, the choice should be obvious.
Of course, Cang Xu couldn't be certain of this answer.
“If I were Charming Blue Goddess, this is what I would choose.”
Cang Xu breathed a slight sigh of relief.
With that understanding, the fishman youngster receiving a silver level divine
statue became somewhat easier to accept.
Next, Cang Xu carefully measured his tone before consulting Zhou Zhang about
the accumulation of divine favor.
He circled around the topic, asking indirectly, until he finally posed the
question: “Under what circumstances does divine favor increase automatically?”
Zhou Zhang answered without suspicion, smiling as she explained, “Of course
there are situations where divine favor increases automatically.”
“The sacred sons and daughters of each church receive a fixed amount of divine
favor after their daily prayers.”
Cang Xu nodded, continuing to listen.
Zhou Zhang continued, “Beyond the sacred sons and daughters, there are also
god's chosen who receive divine favor.”
"Typically, these are descendants of the divine bloodline, even illegitimate
offspring. Or they are exceptionally talented individuals whom even the gods
themselves wish to recruit."
“The most renowned example is the Handsome Youth Mercenary Corps.”
Cang Xu's expression shifted slightly. He knew of this renowned mercenary
group.
The mercenary group was small, consisting of only five members, all beautiful
youths.
They displayed extraordinary valor during the Demon War, their outstanding
performance lasting from the war's beginning to its end. In the final decisive
battle, the five youths played a crucial role.
"Each of the five either descended from divine bloodlines or possessed
extraordinary talents. All five bore varying degrees of divine favor. After
daily prayers, their divine favor would naturally increase."
Zhou Zhang gave another example: “Have you heard of Qi Ci Lang?”
This time, Cang Xu shook his head, unfamiliar with the name.
Zhou Zhang explained, “He's from the Sheng Ming Empire, a gold level fighter
possessing the Beloved bloodline.”
“Bearers of this bloodline often receive divine favor and affection.”
“With deep connections, Qi Ci Lang has participated in numerous major divine
ceremonies, receiving blessings from various gods on multiple occasions.”
“Among these, the seven strongest blessings were all Immortality Blessings.”
“Seven distinct conditions must be met to break the blessing and inflict fatal
harm upon him.”
"Thus, Qi Ci Lang is nicknamed ‘Seven Lives’ or ‘Beloved Child of Seven Gods.’
Some rank him among the strongest gold level fighters in the Main Plane."
“Though this ranking ultimately failed to become official, Qi Ci Lang is widely
acknowledged as the most formidable gold level fighter in the Main Plane.”
"Qi Ci Lang possesses not just one type of divine favor. Moreover, his divine
favor undoubtedly grows daily through prayer."
Cang Xu sighed softly: “I see.”
He relaxed considerably.
He had previously thought his own commander's situation was unique, but it
turned out he was simply ignorant, similar cases were actually quite common.
Cang Xu genuinely hadn't heard of Qi Ci Lang.
The reason was because he had been a mere iron level, was wanted by
authorities, forced to flee his homeland and escape to other continents.
His level was too low; Qi Ci Lang was as distant to him as the stars. Despite
the other party being a major figure, Cang Xu remained unaware.
Much like how many citizens of the Sheng Ming Empire couldn't clearly identify
the specific titles of the three saints of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
However, as Cang Xu's strength grew and the caliber of people he encountered
rose dramatically, his understanding of figures like Qi Ci Lang, renowned for
their charismatic lifestyles, gradually deepened.
Seeing Cang Xu sigh softly, Zhou Zhang mistook his expression for despondency
and offered consolation: “For every gain, there is a loss!”
“Don't just focus on the increase in divine favor, they all paid a price.”
“I won't elaborate on the others, but you know about the Handsome Youth
Mercenary Corps.”
“Think carefully, what became of those five peerlessly brilliant youths after
the war?”
Zhou Zhang stopped there, leaving the matter unsaid.
Cang Xu’s expression turned solemn.
His thoughts drifted to the sacred sons and daughters.
“Such beings are the most divine power-aligned transcendents within a church.”
"They are often meticulously cultivated by the church, their faith deepened by
every possible means. When the critical moment arrives, the sacred son or
daughter becomes the vessel for the divine descent."
“Many sacred sons and daughters become crippled after the divine descent.”
“In truth, once the deity descends, they usually perish on the battlefield...”
Reflecting on this, Cang Xu gained deeper insight into why their own commander
was so favored.
“It's still because of that god level bloodline, isn't it?”
“But the commander's bloodline concentration isn't high, gold level is the
limit.”
“Perhaps that's it...”
A thought struck Cang Xu, prompting him to ask Zhou Zhang: “Lord, does our
church have any sacred sons or daughters?”
Zhou Zhang gave Cang Xu a deep look: “That's a secret known only to the
church's highest echelons. You're not qualified to know yet.”
Though Cang Xu received no direct answer, his suspicions only deepened.
“The Charming Blue Goddess is weak now, and the Charming Blue Church's
situation isn't good either.”
“Perhaps they no longer have a sacred son or daughter!”
The Charming Blue Church had suffered a severe blow. Even a saint level
powerhouse like Zhou Zhang, a kingdom-level combatant, could only secretly hold
large-scale rituals deep beneath the ocean.
“Picking the best out of the available choices, though the commander's
bloodline was diluted, it still earned favor.”
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
Splash, splash, splash...
The surrounding seawater swirled ceaselessly as the fishman youngster submerged
deeper and deeper.
The next moment, he opened his eyes.
A puzzled expression crossed the fishman youngster's face: “What just
happened?”
“Did I dream of that great whirlpool?”
His memory of that massive great whirlpool was vivid, for it was the divine
manifestation he had glimpsed through the Spiritual Navigation divine spell.
After sending off Cang Xu, the fishman youngster, unable to perform blasphemous
prayers, had diligently trained on his own.
Reaching his limit, he had fallen into a deep sleep.
Yet in his dream, he seemed to find himself within the great ocean vortex.
“Was it just a dream?”
The fishman youngster sensed it was more than that.
He had dreamed before, but the sensation he'd just experienced was distinctly
different from a dream.
“My divine favor...”
“Increased by another 1000?”
After checking, the fishman youngster found no sudden changes in his body or
soul, yet his divine favor had surged significantly.
“I... I didn't pray at all. Why did my divine favor increase?”
The fishman youngster was utterly perplexed.
Then, when he scanned his Bloodcore, he was utterly stunned, jolting upright in
bed.
“What's going on?”
“The concentration of Surging Wave fishman bloodline has risen to 27%!”



****** Chapter 549: The Big Guy Jumps into the Sea to Search for His Father


******
The fishman youngster was utterly stunned.
Even if the divine blessing had been exaggerated before, he was still an
outsider. Having just performed such a blasphemous prayer, his perception
hadn't been as profound as Cang Xu's.
But this time, the fishman youngster was completely shocked.
He had been accumulating bloodlines for a long time and understood all too well
the difficulty of increasing its concentration.
The lower the bloodline quality, the easier it could reach 100% concentration.
But for legendary bloodlines like the Flame Dragon King's, the fishman
youngster had only managed to accumulate a little over thirty percent so far.
The Surging Wave fishman bloodline was god level, even surpassing that of the
Flame Dragon King. Therefore, in the view of the fishman youngster, gathering
this type of fishman bloodline proved far more challenging than obtaining the
Flame Dragon King's bloodline.
He had already prepared for a protracted struggle, yet unexpectedly, upon
waking, his bloodline concentration had surged to 27%!
He had done nothing yet reaped such immense gains.
“This is truly...” the fishman youngster mused, overwhelmed with emotion.
Once again, he deeply understood that saying, Gods were omnipotent!
“There is nothing the gods cannot do.”
“Even something like increasing bloodline concentration is no exception.”
“But what exactly was the cost?”
The fishman youngster had no idea what price the Charming Blue Goddess had
paid.
He had an even greater puzzlement— “I didn't pray at all, so why did I receive
divine blessing?”
The fishman youngster had prayed repeatedly before, but his power had surged
too rapidly, forcing his body to constantly adapt.
Thus, he had been compelled to suspend his blasphemous prayers.
“I didn't pray this time either...”
“No, perhaps I prayed in my dreams.”
The fishman youngster's expression shifted slightly as he carefully recalled
his recent slumber.
The more he recalled, the more distinct the difference felt, this dream had
been unlike any before.
He surmised that praying in his sleep might have triggered the divine blessing.
“Thankfully, it didn't boost my life level or grant me any relevant
experience.”
“Instead, it enhanced my bloodline concentration.”
“This is precisely what I needed most!”
From this outcome, it was simply fantastic!
The fishman youngster needed time to adapt and assimilate the previous
enhancement.
Before this, he had discussed with Cang Xu and discovered that the best, and
almost only way to quickly assimilate such an enhancement was to rely on his
bloodline.
“The Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration has more than doubled
directly. This means the time I need to adapt has been cut at least in half!”
Yet alongside the delight, a shadow of unease crossed the fishman youngster's
face.
“What is the price demanded by the deity?”
“What sacrifice must I make?”
Cang Xu's warning echoed in his ears—gain always comes with loss!
“Perhaps my previous divine blessing exceeded expectations because, with the
Charming Blue Goddess, the concentration of god level bloodlines is actually
raisable.”
"So even though my Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration is low, it
doesn't matter."
“The Charming Blue Goddess is investing in me as if I were a 100% pure Surging
Wave fishman?”
The fishman youngster's thoughts churned, but after pondering for a while, he
came up with nothing.
Playing it safe, he stepped out of the bedroom and approached the memory
crystal making device, using it to erase a segment of his own memory.
This was a fabricated memory.
After conducting the blasphemous ritual, the fishman youngster hadn't actively
erased it. Instead, he'd used the Memory Concealment Spell to hide this memory.
This spared him the trouble of creating another fake memory later, when
performing another blasphemous prayer, and then implanting it.
But after this incident, the fishman youngster felt it was better to be
cautious.
Performing such a dangerous act as a blasphemous prayer should only be
undertaken once he was fully prepared.
The fishman youngster was deeply concerned that this dream prayer might recur.
Ultimately, he erased the fabricated memory.
On some nameless deserted island.
Da Dou was preparing a meal.
Firewood split from gold level torch trees had been ignited, emitting steady,
enduring heat, the ideal material for grilling.
Large chunks of meat lay directly on the torchwood embers, sizzling as juices
dripped onto the dry wood with audible crackles.
An intense aroma wafted through the air.
The big guy's nostrils flared, awakened by the scent of the feast.
Da Dou glanced at him before refocusing on the meat before him—this grilling
had reached its most critical moment.
The gold level magic chef let out a low growl, unleashing a gold level battle
skill. In an instant, it completely enveloped the grilled meat, compressing it.
Battle skill - Food Compression!
The grilled meat, originally as large as a carriage, had been compressed. Its
mass remained unchanged, but its volume had shrunk to one-tenth of its original
level.
Most crucially, the aura of the gold level grilled meat had dropped,
stabilizing at silver level.
Da Dou wiped the sweat from his forehead. This time, downgrading the dish had
required his utmost effort, and he'd even sacrificed expensive ingredients.
The big guy sat up, his upper body stiff, staring blankly at Da Dou, his
expression still a bit hazy.
Da Dou took a few deep breaths, then used his gold level battle skill to
deliver the roast meat to the big guy: “Eat.”
Da Dou urged gently, “Gold level cuisine is still beyond your current
capacity.”
“Consuming silver level magic dishes won't fully unleash the potential of your
bloodline.”
“Therefore, the optimal choice is to eat downgraded silver level dishes crafted
from gold level ingredients!”
“Try it. It's delicious.”
Da Dou attempted to awaken the big guy's warm memories, hoping to capture his
heart through his stomach.
But the big guy's heart had long since belonged to the young commander.
He stared at the grilled meat before him, his body already reacting
involuntarily as saliva trickled down his chin.
Yet, as his consciousness fully returned, anger slowly crept onto his face.
Within seconds, that anger grew intense.
He shoved the grilled meat aside, leaped to his feet, and roared at Da Dou,
“Home! I'm going home.”
"Father...”
“I need to find Father!”
The big guy stood, glaring at Da Dou.
Da Dou smiled.
The big guy suddenly turned and took off running.
He hadn't fallen into a frenzied state; he still retained his wits.
Earlier, when he'd tried to attack Da Dou, his entire body had convulsed, and
he'd fallen to the ground, unable to get up.
This had left a deep impression on the big guy.
So, this time, instead of charging straight in, the big guy fled.
Da Dou smiled, watching the big guy scramble away. After he'd fled a
considerable distance, Da Dou finally began to walk.
Using his battle skill, he effortlessly caught up to the big guy. Holding a
piece of grilled meat, he casually persuaded him, "Hey, stop this nonsense.
That mercenary group treated you like dirt. They didn't respect you at all."
“You're a giant, and so am I.”
“Come back with me to Eruption Island. That's where our home truly is!”
But the big guy wouldn't listen to Da Dou at all. He casually waved his arms,
shoving Da Dou aside.
Right now, the big guy just wanted to run back.
Even though he had no clue which direction was correct.
Da Dou tried persuading him several more times, but the big guy remained
stubbornly unmoved.
Seeing his pleas utterly futile, Da Dou sighed helplessly and called out to the
big guy, “This isn't Ice Sculpture Island anymore.”
“Where do you think you can run to?”
By the time he finished speaking, the big guy had already sprinted onto the
beach.
"See for yourself, we're surrounded by the ocean, not a single boat in sight.
You'd be wise to come back with me..."
Before Da Dou could finish, the big guy plunged straight into the sea.
He began swimming the breaststroke, arms and legs churning.
Cold sweat beaded on Da Dou's forehead.
The distance from Ice Sculpture Island was already considerable. Relying solely
on the big guy's stamina, he'd surely exhaust himself and drown midway.
Of course, if he could find a deserted island to rest on, it might be
manageable.
But Da Dou observed that the big guy's intelligence was questionable, he'd
likely swim single-mindedly.
“The problem is you're swimming in the wrong direction!”
Speechless, Da Dou could only take action.
But just as he moved to intervene, a sudden transformation swept over him.
He darted aside as the Flame Totem on his body erupted in a burst of fire,
enveloping him entirely.
The flames vanished, exploding violently nearby.
Da Dou materialized there.
“Who goes there?!” Da Dou roared, momentarily forgetting about the big guy.
High above, a mage tower slowly materialized.
Honey Snow Tower.
It turned out the tower spirit had finally completed its analysis, obtaining Da
Dou's teleportation coordinates.
Shuang Lian acted swiftly, directly bringing the mage tower along as she flew
urgently, successfully locating both the big guy and Da Dou.
In the top-floor control room, Shuang Lian remained expressionless.
Having failed to ambush Da Dou, she immediately turned her attention to the big
guy.
If she could seal him within the demi-plane, her mission would be considered a
success.
Of course, capturing Da Dou as well would be even better!



****** Chapter 550: Shuang Lian vs Da Dou ******
Exhale, inhale, exhale, gulp, inhale, inhale, gulp gulp...
The big guy swam with all his might, completely unaware that Da Dou had been
attacked.
His mind was set on returning to Snow Bird Harbor, but he hadn't considered
what the correct direction might be.
His swimming skills were clearly poor too. His breathing rhythm was unstable,
and he frequently choked on water.
But to be fair, given the big guy's intelligence, learning to swim at all was
quite impressive.
Who knew how much time and effort the old shipwright had poured into teaching
him?
Spatial fluctuations erupted once more.
This time, right beside the big guy!
Da Dou growled lowly, glaring at him.
Behind the big guy, a flame emblem suddenly ignited, erupting in intense heat.
The seawater couldn't extinguish the scorching flames at all.
The big guy was soon engulfed in flames, his consciousness fading into a haze.
The flames surged upward, like weary birds returning to their nests, and
plunged directly into one of Da Dou's arms.
The tattoo on his arm was complete once more.
It turned out that after capturing the big guy, Da Dou hadn't been idle.
While the big guy slept, he had dismantled part of the Flame Totem on his own
arm and implanted it into the big guy's back.
The big guy remained completely unaware.
Da Dou now activated his hidden maneuver, instantly bringing the big guy back
to his side.
Honey Snow Tower, top-floor control room.
Witnessing this, Bu Quan couldn't help but gasp, her expression clearly showing
disappointment.
She had desperately wanted to see the big guy captured by the spatial trap and
drawn into the demi-plane. She had confidence in her teacher, Shuang Lian.
Yet, unexpectedly, Da Dou had once again managed to defend against it.
Bu Quan couldn't help but glance at her esteemed teacher.
Shuang Lian remained utterly serene, her composure unshaken by two consecutive
failures.
The only fleeting expression was a slight arch of her eyebrow.
"What do we do now? The giant's vanished!" Bu Quan's heart raced with worry,
but fearing she might disturb her teacher, she kept her concerns silent.
Shuang Lian glanced at her beloved disciple, as if hearing her thoughts, and
offered reassurance: “Rest assured, neither of them can escape.”
Bu Quan seized the moment to ask about the big guy's whereabouts.
Shuang Lian explained: “That's a spatial artifact Da Dou carries - a gold level
Packing Bag. This spatial storage device can contain living beings. Da Dou uses
it to store ingredients.”
“This underscores the critical importance of intelligence.”
“However, the flames on his body exceed what our intelligence documented.”
"The Flame Totem originates from a beast deity, making it exceedingly rare. Da
Dou only obtained it thanks to his teacher."
During preparations, Shuang Lian specifically gathered extensive intelligence
on Da Dou through channels like the Alchemy Guild.
In multiple culinary duels, Da Dou demonstrated his mastery by wielding the
Flame Totem, securing victories over numerous rival chefs. Yet he had never
engaged in a true battle.
Or rather, even if he had, it remained unpublicized and unknown.
Da Dou's spatial awareness and masterful use of the Flame Totem caused Shuang
Lian's first two strikes to miss their mark.
“But it doesn't matter!”
“The victor of this battle will still be me, and only me!”
Shuang Lian was utterly confident in this fight.
Spell - Spatial Anchor!
In the next instant, she unleashed the spatial spell she had been brewing
through the mage tower.
A colossal phantom ship's anchor abruptly materialized mid-air before vanishing
instantly.
The spell's model was constructed by the tower spirit, fueled by the tower's
vast magic pool, expanding its radius to eight hundred meters.
Da Dou's expression twisted in shock.
He felt space itself freeze. Under normal circumstances, he perceived space
like water, able to sense other worlds beneath its surface.
But now, the water's surface had become solid ground. He could no longer break
through the surface to dive into the space beyond.
“Damn.”
“The Tunnel Staff is useless now.”
“And seriously, this spell's range is way too big, isn't it?”
Da Dou inwardly gasped.
He'd tried to stop it, but it was already too late.
While the mage tower was brewing the Spatial Anchor, Da Dou dodged Shuang
Lian's two spatial grabs, causing him to miss the prime opportunity to
interrupt the casting.
“But even if I had the chance to shake this mage tower...”
Da Dou himself didn't have much confidence.
If he were facing Shuang Lian alone, perhaps she might avoid his sharpest blows
and be forced to interrupt her spell. But this tower, its defenses were clearly
impregnable. There was no way Da Dou could breach it instantly.
He summoned his Flame Totem, only to discover with disappointment that the
Flame Flicker divine spell he'd used earlier was also unusable.
Looking up at the tower, Da Dou shouted, "Who are you? If you're hired by the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to retrieve the giant, I'll pay double the price!"
As a gold level magic chef, Da Dou certainly wasn't short on food or drink.
Even if he carried little cash, the ingredients he carried were absolutely
priceless!
After all, he had come to Ice Sculpture Island to participate in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's grand ceremony. He had prepared a vast quantity of
ingredients for this event, some of which were exceptionally high-end.
Shuang Lian chuckled softly. “Da Dou, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' bounty
is far beyond what you could ever pay.”
“Release the hostage, and I might spare your life!”
Shuang Lian had no desire to utterly kill Da Dou.
For one thing, she and Da Dou shared no deep personal grudge.  Had he kidnapped
Bu Quan instead of the big guy, it would have been another matter entirely.
For another, she knew his background well—a gold level giant magic chef hailing
from Eruption Island.
Though Eruption Island couldn't match Ice Sculpture Island in size, it housed
legendary beings!
Hearing Shuang Lian's offer, Da Dou's heart stirred. He immediately replied,
“Mighty magician, are you truly resolved to oppose my Eruption Island?”
“If you spare me and let me bring the giant back to Eruption Island, you'll
gain not only my personal allegiance but the friendship of the entire island!”
“I swear on my personal honor, Da Dou, the rewards you receive will be beyond
measure.”
Shuang Lian sighed.
Had this matter not involved Bu Quan's intentions, she might have agreed.
But now...
Shuang Lian's voice turned cold: “I am Shuang Lian, elder of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's Alchemy Guild and also the Honey Snow Tower Lord.”
“I don't believe you can speak for the entire Eruption Island.”
“Even if you could, I wouldn't fear it.”
“I don't believe the Eruption Island Lord would seek revenge with me over a
mere young giant.”
“Would Eruption Island wage war against Ice Sculpture Island over this?”
“It's entirely possible!” Da Dou desperately wanted to blurt this out, but
wisely kept his mouth shut.
The big guy possessed potential worthy of a saint level.
Igniting a war between the two islands was entirely feasible.
But now, Da Dou couldn't voice this so bluntly. If the big guy's true talent
were exposed, the enemy would never let it rest.
Keeping it hidden was far more advantageous.
After pondering, Da Dou carefully chose his words to continue explaining.
He appealed to Shuang Lian, citing his and the big guy's shared giant ethnicity
and his unwillingness to see kin exiled and bullied in a foreign land.
Shuang Lian scoffed. “Hmph. Even pure-blooded dragons wouldn't do such a thing.
When did the giants on Eruption Island ever adopt such a policy?"
“Even if it's your personal stance, I haven't seen you act on it before.”
Da Dou tried to speak further, but Shuang Lian, growing impatient, resumed her
actions.
She manipulated the mage tower with her mind, causing snow to drift down over
the barren island.
The wind grew fiercer.
Soon, howling gales whipped through the air, carrying heavy snowflakes.
“Battlefield-class magic!”
“And she's casting two spells simultaneously.”
Da Dou sucked in a sharp breath, channeling his battle qi as he charged toward
the sea.
He possessed no flight battle skill, but his movement battle skill allowed him
to sprint directly across the water's surface.
Da Dou had no intention of fighting Shuang Lian.
If Shuang Lian were alone, his fighting spirit wouldn't be this low. The crux
was the mage tower!
A full five-story mage tower gave him a headache just looking at it, let alone
engaging in combat.
Since the big guy was already stuffed into the packing bag, Da Dou chose to
flee directly.
So, Shuang Lian launched the pursuit.
Her advantage was huge. Stationed within the mage tower, she had no chance of
losing.
Da Dou endured a brutal beating for a long time, subjected to all manner of
spells that left him battered and bruised, suffering terribly.
He tried to run out of the Spatial Anchor's coverage, but the mage tower
effortlessly followed him, keeping him perpetually near the center of its
spell's range.
Da Dou's condition deteriorated severely.
Spell - Frost Flower Imprisonment.
Shuang Lian seized the moment, striking Da Dou.
Frost flowers instantly bloomed across Da Dou's body.
They shimmered like diamonds, radiant and crystalline, exquisite as works of
art. Each frost flower was as large as an adult's palm, covering the Flame
Totem on Da Dou's body in layers.
Da Dou channeled his battle qi, mounting a full-force defense, yet struggled to
hold it.
The frost flowers quickly piled up thicker and thicker, gradually merging into
a single mass.
Crack, crack.
Da Dou's movements grew increasingly sluggish as the frost flowers on his body
solidified into a thick layer of ice, sealing him in place!



****** Chapter 551: Mei Lin Battles Shuang Lian with Wit ******
“Got it!” Bu Quan nearly leapt for joy upon seeing the large pouch frozen
solid.
She gazed at her mentor with admiration.
From the recent battle, Bu Quan had witnessed the vast gap between herself and
Shuang Lian, yet she had also learned much.
Her lack of combat experience was the sole reason for her inexperience in
battle.
With her intelligence, she could achieve extraordinary results in many areas if
she dedicated herself.
Shuang Lian secretly relished her disciple’s admiring gaze, though outwardly
she remained composed, glancing at Bu Quan. “See? You still have much to
learn.”
Bu Quan nodded repeatedly, voicing her most profound realization: “First, I
need a mage tower!”
“Uh...” Shuang Lian froze in surprise.
Bu Quan burst out laughing: "Master, thank you for the demonstration. I feel
much more confident facing Yi Jiu now."
“But... are we really going to kill him?”
“He's begged for mercy multiple times and offered a hefty price for his life.”
Shuang Lian's expression turned stern as she fixed Bu Quan with a steady gaze.
“Kill. You must kill him!”
Bu Quan's heart jolted, and he looked at his mentor in confusion.
A faint pressure lingered in Shuang Lian's calm gaze: “Remember, he is your
enemy!”
“Yi Jiu once sought to harm you. Had I not intervened in time, you might have
lost your life.”
“Killing such an enemy is the proper course.”
“Your hesitation stems from two things.”
"First, you remain too kind-hearted. Seeing Yi Jiu tortured into a pitiful,
wretched state, watching him beg for mercy, it softened your heart!"
"Such kindness is profoundly foolish. Do you believe me? Give Yi Jiu another
chance to fight, and he'll strike you down faster, with even more ruthless
battle skill."
"Second, you fear the repercussions of eliminating a gold level opponent. Is
that it?"
Bu Quan nodded. 
Shuang Lian understood her so well, striking right at the core of her
thoughts. 
Bu Quan said, “Teacher, yesterday you mentioned the Thieves' Guild inquired
about Yi Jiu's whereabouts.” 
“We've already discovered Yi Jiu is a key member of the Thieves' Guild.” 
“You didn't reveal the truth to the Thieves' Guild.”
“I feared that if word leaked out after killing Yi Jiu, the Thieves' Guild
would turn against us!” 
Shuang Lian smiled faintly: “Your reasoning is sound.”
She gazed at Bu Quan; her heart filled with pity. 
In her youth, Bu Quan had endured brutal beatings and oppression from the
Bayonet Gang, which led to the death of her nanny. Though not related by blood,
the nanny had raised Bu Quan from childhood, their bond as close as mother and
daughter. This loss dealt Bu Quan an immense blow.
Fortunately, Bu Quan later joined the Alchemy Guild, escaping the Bayonet
Gang's continued clutches.
Such life experiences profoundly shaped Bu Quan's character and mindset.
Bu Quan was acutely aware of the Alchemy Guild's formidable power, and when
facing the Thieves' Guild, a rival organization of the same level, she
inevitably felt constrained and hesitant.
“The Thieves' Guild differs greatly from our Alchemy Guild,” Shuang Lian
explained patiently.
“Because Thieves' Guild members don't just gather intelligence or conduct
reconnaissance; they also carry out tasks like assassinations.”
“Therefore, the Thieves' Guild finds it difficult to openly protect its
members.”
“We are the aggrieved party. Yi Jiu's assassination attempt failed, and we
killed him in return, it's only natural.”
“The Thieves' Guild contacted us because they offered a high price to attempt a
ransom if Yi Jiu fell into my hands.”
“But if we killed Yi Jiu, the Thieves' Guild would never openly retaliate
against us.”
“If they would do that, they wouldn't survive this long.”
“Those with needs will find them and pay for their services, but the vast
majority dislike them.”
Shuang Lian stroked Bu Quan's head: “And one crucial point, we are members of
the Alchemy Guild!”
“Even if we kill Yi Jiu in public, the Thieves' Guild won't dare speak up.”
“Remember, we have backing.”
Bu Quan nodded. 
After Shuang Lian's guidance, she resolved: “Then I'll do my best to eliminate
Yi Jiu!”
Shuang Lian nodded: Even with the mage tower and magic formations, taking down
Yi Jiu remains challenging for you right now."
“This is your homework assignment.”
“You may only leave the tower once it's completed.”
“I'll finish it as quickly as possible!” Bu Quan declared fiercely.
Yet no sooner had she spoken than a shrill alarm pierced the control room.
The tower spirit immediately spoke: “The demi-plane has suffered a spatial
breach; spatial defenses have been penetrated.”
“Detecting divine power. Analyzing divine power. Divine power unknown!”
“Decoding divine spell. Emergency decoding in progress...”
"What?!" Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were shocked.
Shuang Lian hastily summoned the demi-plane's magic projection. The teacher and
student then witnessed Yi Jiu praying within the snow cave, as shifting light
and shadow revealed the landscape of another realm.
"This is a divine spell for teleportation! Divine power that can't be analyzed?
I specifically acquired the Divine Power Compendium; it catalogs nearly every
deity's aura in the Main Plane."
Shuang Lian's eyes flashed with fury: "I never imagined Yi Jiu was a believer
of an unknown deity! Using him as a coordinate, the enemy could open a portal
and teleport directly into my demi-plane."
Within mere seconds, Shuang Lian had grasped the situation.
The situation was critical. Shuang Lian immediately acted with full force,
manipulating the mage tower to enter the Honey snow demi-plane.
In a snow cave, Yi Jiu knelt, pouring his entire being into prayer.
The spatial fluctuations from the mage tower's arrival and the overwhelming
aura sent shivers down his spine.
Yet he didn't even lift his head, praying with every ounce of strength, rapidly
depleting the divine favor he'd painstakingly accumulated.
It wasn't just Yi Jiu exerting himself. Within the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain,
the duelists led by Mei Lin were also praying with all their might.
This caused the Tranquil Hill's space surrounding Yi Jiu to rapidly expand.
What had been a constantly shifting blur of light and shadow quickly stabilized
and sharpened.
Spell - Spatial Anchor!
After several seconds of brewing, the towering mage tower suspended overhead
erupted with magic once more, casting the spell successfully.
A massive, translucent Spatial Anchor plummeted vertically, anchoring itself
directly above Yi Jiu's head.
The anchor swiftly dissipated, but the spatial fluctuations triggered by the
divine spell were rapidly suppressed.
The anchor's effect was immediate!
Yet it didn't halt the expansion entirely. The divine domain space triggered by
the spell continued to expand slowly, though at a pace several times slower
than before.
Shuang Lian continued manipulating the mage tower, casting spells.
Blizzards swirled, enveloping Yi Jiu.
Ice arrows and snowballs shot forth, ice elements rapidly coalescing to
surround and attack Yi Jiu from all sides.
With no other choice, Yi Jiu halted his prayers and fought his way back.
"What should we do? Yi Jiu has stopped praying, and the divine domain space is
being gradually pushed back!"
“Shuang Lian paid a heavy price in the demi-plane. The magic formation she
constructed actually managed to block the descent of the divine domain.”
Gu Dong and the others began to panic.
The Divine Domain Descent failed to materialize, intercepted mid-cast by Shuang
Lian's timely intervention.
Trapped within Tranquil Hill Divine Domain, Gu Dong and the others couldn't
channel the spell sufficiently to force their way in.
Unable to join the battle, this group of gold level powerhouses could only
watch helplessly!
Yet Mei Lin, the supreme leader of this operation, showed no signs of panic.
Instead, a hint of anticipation flickered in her eyes.
Her beautiful eyes swept the room, taking in everyone's expressions before
deliberately teasing them, “Rest assured, help will come.”
"Oh? Could Lady Mei Lin have planted someone close to Shuang Lian?"
"No, it's more likely one of Shuang Lian's students was bribed. After all,
Shuang Lian favors Bu Quan the most, showing her considerable favoritism. This
has already stirred discontent among many students."
Gu Dong and the others possessed solid military training. Before battle, they
had memorized all relevant intelligence thoroughly.
But Mei Lin shook her head. “In such a short time, bribery would be difficult
and risky.”
“If the bribery failed, word would leak out, alerting Shuang Lian and causing
us to lose the element of surprise.”
“This time, the one aiding us is Shuang Lian herself!”
Mei Lin smiled confidently.
Gu Dong and the others froze in shock, then exchanged bewildered glances.
Had anyone else made such a claim, they would have voiced heavy skepticism
immediately. But this was Mei Lin speaking.
Mei Lin wasn't just a magician, she was a commander in the First Navy.
Her leadership was exceptional. Under her command, the First Navy had crushed
numerous powerful pirate factions. Her command abilities were universally
recognized by the military.
"But getting Shuang Lian to help us against herself? How could that possibly
work?" Gu Dong and the others couldn't wrap their heads around it.



****** Chapter 552: Falling Into a Trap ******
Honey Snow Tower.
The tower spirit reported: “Phase One testing complete. Divine power analysis
inconclusive. Divine domain unknown...”
Without waiting for the tower spirit's full report, Shuang Lian summoned her
focus and directly accessed all the test results.
The next moment, her expression changed.
The various indicators in the test reports revealed a monumental secret!
“An unknown deity?”
“No, perhaps... They haven't truly descended yet.”
“This divine domain is likely...”
Shuang Lian's heart trembled violently.
Her gaze shifted.
Earlier, when she looked at the divine domain space, she had wanted nothing
more than to extinguish it outright.
But now, her burning gaze seemed intent on piercing through the very fabric of
the divine domain space, seeking to verify the report's findings and uncover
the truth!
“If it truly is what I suspect...”
“This divine domain will be the most crucial opportunity of my entire life!”
Shuang Lian had once stumbled upon a young demi-plane and captured it. It was
the greatest fortune of her life.
She seized it.
Through years of cultivation, she reaped immense rewards.
It was precisely the prudent management of that demi-plane that established her
worth, providing the foundational capital to leverage within the vast platform
of the Alchemy Guild, unlocking even greater resources.
Ultimately, she built the Honey Snow Tower, amassing countless alchemy
achievements and becoming one of the most influential elders in the Alchemy
Guild.
But now, she felt the opportunity presented by encountering a demi-plane might
pale in comparison to the one before her!
“A divine domain... that's not something a demi-plane can rival.”
“What's wrong, Teacher?” Bu Quan asked, puzzled.
She had been watching her mentor closely and was startled to see the tower
spirit's report abruptly halt mid-sentence. Her mentor's eyes now blazed with
an intense, piercing light!
Spell Conversion - Spatial Pendant!
Shuang Lian's contemplation lasted only an instant before she sprang into
action.
She directly transformed the previous Spatial Anchor spell into a Spatial
Pendant Spell.
These two spells served distinct purposes.
The Spatial Anchor fixed a space, restricting all spatial alterations. The
Spatial Pendant, however, probed alternate planes and performed precise spatial
localization.
Honey Snow Tower once again demonstrated its formidable power, effortlessly
transforming the previous Spatial Anchor into a Spatial Pendant.
Spell conversion was a casting technique.
Magicians who mastered this skill could transform spells between two similar
magic models.
Thus, one spell could be converted into another.
This technique found extensive applications in combat, alchemy, and other
fields.
The Spatial Anchor coalesced and materialized once more, then instantly
transformed into a giant water-drop pendant.
Without the Spatial Anchor's restraint, the divine domain space instantly shed
its constraints and rapidly expanded once more.
Bu Quan was startled and wanted to ask her mentor, but wisely kept her mouth
shut.
Shuang Lian was fully focused, manipulating the mage tower.
Spell - Ice Crystal Chain.
Soon, another spell was unleashed.
Frost elements coalesced into five slender chains, extending from the mage
tower straight to the Spatial Pendant.
The pendant was hurled forth in the next instant.
The Spatial Pendant plunged directly into the divine domain space. As it
penetrated, intense spatial ripples surged through the divine domain space.
Yi Jiu stared in shock and disbelief.
Spell - Frost Flower Imprisonment!
This spell had been used just moments ago.
Under its effect, Da Dou was utterly helpless, frozen solid like an ice block,
unable to move.
Frost flowers materialized, first enveloping the space around Yi Jiu, then
rapidly spreading to cover the divine domain space.
These frost flowers were over ten times larger than those on Da Dou!
Giant frost flowers interlocked, radiating frigid cold. Crystal clear and
translucent, they formed a vast net, imprisoning the divine domain space.
No, more accurately, they were “reinforcing” it!
“Shuang Lian... What is she doing?!” Yi Jiu was stunned.
The other gold level experts within the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain shared his
bewilderment.
“Shuang Lian is truly expanding the divine domain space!”
“Not only that, but she’s also reinforcing the spatial passageway, as if
fearing we'll abandon Yi Jiu and retreat directly.”
“She actually did it!”
“Mei Lin, what exactly is happening?”
All eyes turned to the mermaid magician.
Mei Lin, however, only gazed silently at the Spatial Pendant entering the
Tranquil Hill Divine Domain, offering no explanation.
Suddenly, she declared, “It's almost ready. Xue Tuan Zi, activate the magic
formation immediately!”
Xue Tuan Zi responded instantly.
The formation activated, unleashing an incredibly powerful pulling force.
The pulling force acted upon the Spatial Pendant, violently yanking it
downward.
The Spatial Pendant and Honey Snow Tower were bound together by ice crystal
chains. For the moment, they formed a single entity.
Everything happened too quickly.
Before Shuang Lian could react, the mage tower was dragged down.
Yi Jiu roared in panic.
The divine domain space used him as its spatial coordinate. In his field of
vision, the mage tower plummeted from the sky, hurtling straight toward him!
Yi Jiu dodged with every ounce of strength.
He didn't evade completely, getting grazed by the tower's edge.
He flew through the air like a bouncing ball. In an instant, three ribs
snapped—despite having activated his gold level defensive battle skill.
Yi Jiu crashed into the snow, coughing up another mouthful of blood.
He scrambled to his feet only to find the mage tower had vanished!
The divine domain space, violently impacted by the tower, now resembled a
vigorously stirred paint bucket, the gradually crystallizing vision of the
divine domain had coalesced into a multicolored vortex.
A single glance left Yi Jiu dizzy and disoriented.
Even more terrifying, the swirling vortex unleashed a powerful suction force!
Unable to evade, Yi Jiu was seized by the pull and violently dragged into the
spatial vortex.
Within the next second, the vortex rapidly contracted into a single point
before vanishing completely from Honey snow demi-plane.
With both Yi Jiu and the mage tower vanished, the once-bustling battlefield
fell suddenly silent.
Tranquil Hill Divine Domain.
The magic formation used to drag the mage tower shattered with a thunderous
crash.
“Success!” Xue Tuan Zi cheered, paying no further attention to the broken
formation.
This formation had been a disposable, single-use item, having already fulfilled
its tactical purpose.
"Damn it, I fell for it! Within the Honey Snow Tower, Shuang Lian's expression
darkened considerably.
She instantly grasped the scheme.
The enemy had first exploited her spell to pinpoint the Honey Snow Tower's
location.
Then, the magic force unleashed by the formation marked and dragged the entire
unit, both the pendant and the mage tower.
That force alone wouldn't have been enough to subdue the mage tower. The
crucial factor was spatial power.
The opponent had cleverly exploited the instability of the spatial passage to
create a temporary spatial vortex. Using this vortex, they sucked the mage
tower inside.
Originally, the Divine Domain Descent used the spatial power of the Tranquil
Hill Divine Domain to counter the spatial power of the Honey snow demi-plane.
But just now, the duelists suddenly exerted force in the opposite direction,
while the Honey snow demi-plane, striving to restore its original spatial
order, also applied thrust.
The convergence of these two immense forces was something the Honey Snow Tower,
caught off guard, could not withstand!
Thus, the mage tower was ultimately sucked into the enemy's divine domain.
A shrill alarm sounded within Honey Snow Tower.
The tower spirit urgently reported the extent of the damage.
The damage was extensive!
A spatial vortex was not a stable portal; it exerted crushing, grinding forces
on anything it transmitted. Fortunately, the Honey Snow Tower was exceptionally
sturdy, allowing it to pass through the vortex.
Even so, the tower's surface was now horribly twisted, with holes appearing in
some places, exposing the interior to the outside.
"We pulled Honey Snow Tower inside?!"
“Weren't we supposed to attack the Honey snow demi-plane?”
"Mei Lin, this is so like you! What a tactical move!"
"Indeed, Shuang Lian has managed that demiplane for years, fortifying it like
an iron barrel. Attacking from within puts us at a huge disadvantage. But now
it's different. Here, we hold a massive home-field advantage."
The gold duelists all snapped to attention, showering Mei Lin with praise.
Yet Yi Jiu roared in fury: “Mei Lin, are you trying to kill me?!”
Yi Jiu's condition was equally horrific.
His nose had been sliced off, his left leg twisted 90 degrees forward, and his
right forearm contorted into a twisted knot. The gravest injuries lay within,
several of his internal organs had been displaced.
These were the costs Yi Jiu paid for his physical body traversing the spatial
vortex!
In contrast, Shuang Lian, Bu Quan, and the others remained unscathed, protected
by the mage tower.
Mei Lin spoke calmly: "Yi Jiu, you've been rescued, haven't you? I fulfilled my
promise."
Yi Jiu spat blood in rage, his bloodshot eyes locking onto Mei Lin as if he
wanted to devour her: "This is your idea of rescue? Making me pass straight
through the spatial vortex?"
“Shuang Lian had already lifted the suppression. Why not wait until the spatial
passage stabilizes before letting me return?”
Mei Lin shook her head. “I won't stake our chance on the enemy.”
“With every passing second, Shuang Lian grows more likely to sense this is a
trap and alter the spell again.”
"Your injuries are not life-threatening. We simulated this tactic extensively
beforehand and calculated every possible outcome."
"The mage tower entered before you, absorbing the bulk of the spatial
grinding."
"Of course, you may also view these wounds as a warning from our side."
Earlier, Yi Jiu had threatened to expose Mei Lin and the others, even the
entire Tranquil Hill Divine Domain, to provoke their rescue attempt. This had
made the vast majority of duelists deeply resentful, even disgusted, toward Yi
Jiu.
Yi Jiu trembled with rage at these words.
But seeing the cold stares directed at him by the other gold level duelists, he
regained his composure.
"I'll remember this! Next time, Mei Lin, don't even think about hiring me!" Yi
Jiu gritted his teeth and turned to leave.
Gold level battle qi enveloped his internal and external wounds, even
coalescing into a battle qi prosthetic leg to support him.
"Wait." Mei Lin said.
Yi Jiu's heart shook as he turned around and stared at Mei Lin warily: "What
else do you want?"
Mei Lin smiled lightly: "Don't you want revenge? Your true enemy isn't us—it's
Shuang Lian."
Yi Jiu snorted coldly, glancing toward the mage tower looming in the sky
nearby.
The desire for vengeance burned within him, but his injuries held him back.
Mei Lin suddenly tossed a bundle of potions his way.
Yi Jiu caught them, his expression shifting slightly.
He instantly recognized them as gold level potions, excellent healing items.
“Drink these, and you'll regain your fighting strength,” Mei Lin smiled. "This
is my new hire for you. I'm only offering this much because the rest of the
reward is over there."
Mei Lin's gaze shifted toward the mage tower, the implication clear.
Yi Jiu's expression flickered through a range of emotions before he finally
drew a sharp breath and cursed, "I'll kill Shuang Lian!"
“Anyone else interested?”
The gold duelists exchanged glances and burst into laughter.
“We're all interested!”
“Can you handle it, Yi Jiu?”
“Let me make this clear: no one interferes with me. Or I'll take you all down
too!”



****** Chapter 553: The Duelists Besiege the Magician Tower ******
Honey Snow Tower was forcibly dragged into the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain.
Both the tower spirit and Shuang Lian were conducting full-scale reconnaissance
while rushing to repair the mage tower.
Bu Quan shouted nervously, “The enemy is attacking! So many of them, all gold
level!”
Charging at the forefront was a burly, bare-chested man wielding a ram's-horn
hammer.
It was Mo Gui Ji.
Mei Lin had only extended a simple invitation, and he immediately came to join
the battle.
Next came Qing Hong Yan, the half rabbitman, half alchemy machine.
The other gold level fighters instinctively kept their distance from him.
Gu Dong and He Gai Tou formed the second wave.
Mei Lin and Xue Tuan Zi both rose into the air, beginning to channel their
spells.
Yi Jiu, having consumed potions before engaging, lagged behind.
Yet one trailed even further: the wood elf Zhu Gan.
Ban Lan Gen, Qing Hong Yan, Gu Dong, He Gai Tou, Mei Lin, Xue Tuan Zi, Yi Jiu,
and Zhu Gan. Eight gold level duelists united to assault the Honey Snow Tower!
But the tower struck first.
Beams erupted from the mage tower, dazzlingly colorful and encompassing all
elemental forces except the negative energy of the undead.
The beams moved with astonishing speed. Mo Gui Ji and Qing Hong Yan were
struck, each blown back by explosions of flame and lightning.
Gu Dong dodged decisively, while He Gai Tou hurled his round-brimmed straw hat
as a flying shield to block the attack.
Xue Tuan Zi utilized frost magic to endure the impact.
Mei Lin, however, shattered upon contact, revealing she had merely projected an
illusion as a decoy, her true form unknown to all.
Yi Jiu dodged with remarkable ease this time.
Zhu Gan proved even more effortless. Wielding a jade-green spear with a
specially crafted tip, he lightly flicked the beams, sending them flying off
course.
Honey Snow Tower's assault failed to halt the gold level duelists.
Soon, two magicians' spells were cast successfully. One spell turned into
countless snowballs that slammed into the mage tower, exploding constantly. The
other spell reinforced the other gold level duelists, making their attacks more
ferocious.
As the two sides were too close in distance, Honey Snow Tower fell into a
disadvantage.
After all, its attack range was exceptionally wide, far surpassing that of Snow
Bird Harbor's mage tower. The latter's offensive and defensive reach
encompassed the entire Snow Bird Harbor!
After withstanding a wave of attacks, the gold level fighters charged to the
very front of the mage tower.
A barrage of gold level battle skills struck the mage tower.
At the gold level, battle qi could be condensed and projected independently,
offering great flexibility. Even without flight capabilities, the battle skill
itself could maneuver through the air.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The mage tower endured the barrage while launching a full-force counterattack
against the gold duelists.
Though bulky and unwieldy, the tower possessed exceptional defensive
capabilities. The Gold level duelists, however, held the advantage in numbers.
They divided their attacks and moved with agility, evading most strikes.
For a time, both sides fought fiercely, locked in a stalemate.
"I never imagined Honey Snow Tower's defenses would be this formidable! This is
no ordinary mage tower!"
"It's the newest among the kingdom's mage towers, but precisely because of
that, advanced alchemy techniques were employed in its construction. Don't
forget the kingdom's Alchemy Guild contributed its expertise to help Shuang
Lian build it."
“The foundational structure alone surpasses most ancient mage towers.”
“Didn't you all see the intel? The funds Shuang Lian invested in this tower
could have built half a naval fleet!”
The gold level duelists exchanged these remarks between combat bursts.
The engagement had been underway for a while now. They had surrounded the mage
tower, attacking it fiercely from all sides.
Yet, they couldn't break through!
The Honey Snow Tower displayed remarkably strong defenses, though it wasn't
even operating at peak defensive capacity. Remember, it had just traversed a
spatial vortex.
Gu Dong voluntarily withdrew, secretly contacting Mei Lin and reporting, “Lord,
may we unleash our full power?”
"We've followed your orders, holding back our true strength and familiar battle
skills. But at this rate, breaching the mage tower's defenses is impossible!"
Mei Lin stood at the edge of the battlefield, gazing distantly at the mage
tower and shaking her head slightly. “Be patient.”
“Since we've drawn the Honey Snow Tower into the divine domain, the outcome of
this battle is already predetermined.”
“Victory will undoubtedly be ours!”
“Shuang Lian and Bu Quan are doomed.”
“The most critical task now is maintaining secrecy!”
“Though the mage tower cannot traverse space to escape, that doesn't mean
information can't.”
“Once our identities are exposed, and Shuang Lian happens to possess such means
of transmitting information outward, our situation will become quite
troublesome.”
Gu Dong nodded, fully agreeing with Mei Lin's words.
But the others differed from Gu Dong; they lacked military backgrounds.
Bao Li Gen was knocked flying before regaining his footing. He roared at Mei
Lin: “This turtle shell is such a nuisance! I can't use my full strength and
just have to take the beating. What kind of nonsense is this?!”
Xue Tuan Zi frowned deeply and sent a magic message: "Mei Lin, what are we
going to do if this keeps up? I have a crucial alchemy experiment pending, its
success or failure determines my standing in the contest."
Zhu Gan had engaged in the least combat and bore not a single scratch,
remaining as serene as ever.
He even yawned: "Attacking a mage tower is rather dull. Compared to that,
fishing is far more entertaining."
Qing Hong Yan was the only one without complaints.
He grew increasingly frenzied as the battle progressed, his attacks fierce and
relentless. His eyes turned deeper crimson as he chanted incantations under his
breath. The duelists all kept their distance from him.
Yi Jiu drank the potion, receiving significant healing that restored his combat
strength to 80% of its original level.
He was serious about facing Shuang Lian!
But seriousness alone wasn't enough. His prolonged assault yielded no
breakthrough, only landing him in a beating time and again. It was frustrating
and infuriating.
“If I unleash my Piercing Force and activate my gold level battle skill, I
might break straight into the mage tower!”
“But I must find the weakest defensive spot.”
“Scouting alone makes timely detection nearly impossible.”
The key word here was “timely.” The mage tower was simultaneously under assault
and undergoing repairs.
Even vulnerable sections could be patched up in short order.
Yi Jiu turned to glance at Mei Lin, considering leveraging her reconnaissance
skills. But the thought shattered the moment it formed.
“Damn it, what am I thinking?”
“The interior of the mage tower is equally perilous. I have no idea how
formidable its internal defenses are!”
"Besides, why should I take such a risk? Why should I go all out?"
Yi Jiu had been captured by Shuang Lian once before, and his previous
collaboration with Mei Lin had been far from smooth.
He also recalled that even if he took the extraordinary risk and achieved the
best possible outcome, defeating Shuang Lian and destroying the Honey Snow
Tower, how much of the spoils would he actually receive?
Mei Lin now held the reins of power. How much could Yi Jiu truly claim under
her rule?
The other duelists harbored unfavorable views of Yi Jiu. The likelihood of them
banding together to ostracize him was quite high.
At this realization, Yi Jiu unconsciously slowed his offensive pace, beginning
to coast through the fight.
Every move made by both sides on the battlefield fell under Mei Lin's watchful
eye.
She sighed deeply within.
There was no other way. This wasn't the kingdom's navy. Mobilizing these
experts had already required immense effort and resources.
Among them, some had been coasting from the start, biding their time, like Zhu
Gan.
Most, under Mei Lin's orders, held back their true combat strength to avoid
exposure.
Yi Jiu's identity was already out in the open. He was the only one on the field
without that concern.
Yet their past collaboration, the recent rescue, and Yi Jiu's inherent
character and values made it impossible to pin hopes on him launching a
surprise assault to break the stalemate.
The mage tower's formidable defenses had even dampened the fighting spirit of
brutes like Bao Li Gen.
The only one whose battle intent kept rising was Qing Hong Yan. But this guy,
when he went berserk, would even kill his own allies!
“Honey Snow Tower...” Mei Lin's gaze fixed on the mage tower.
Her initial tactical plan had succeeded. Under her leadership, the duelists had
successfully dragged the mage tower into the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain.
It was like a pitfall had been dug, and the prey had fallen in, unable to
escape the peril.
But this prey was too formidable for the hunters to strike.
Still, Mei Lin had anticipated this outcome before the battle began.
Detailed intelligence gathered beforehand had already hinted at this
possibility. And now, actual combat had fully confirmed her suspicions.
For this very scenario, Mei Lin had devised a solution.
“Use your divine favor! Let us unite in prayer!” Mei Lin commanded.
Gu Dong hesitated: “Are we really going to do this?”
Prayers rarely grant believers their heart's desire.
But expending divine favor could secure a targeted divine blessing. Especially
here in the divine domain of Tranquil Hill, where prayers received direct
answers.
The downside? It consumed a significant amount of divine favor!
Gu Dong said, “My divine favor isn't abundant, and accumulating it normally is
quite troublesome.”
Mei Lin replied, “It doesn't matter.”
“Just do your utmost.”
"Whatever divine favor is expended, I will provide corresponding compensation
after this battle. I have already made this clear to all of you."
“Indeed, that is so.” Gu Dong nodded, saying no more.
He wasn't defying orders, nor was he stingy with his divine favor. Rather, he
feared others might react with extreme caution toward the expenditure of divine
favor!
This was merely Gu Dong's reminder to Mei Lin.
Mei Lin knew this well, fully understanding that even generous post-battle
compensation could never fully offset the value of divine favor.
For divine favor could not be bought or sold, but only earned through the
personal actions of the duelists themselves.
As holy warriors of the Dueling God, their sacred duties made earning divine
favor exceedingly difficult. Mei Lin's personal accumulation peaked at 2100.
Most duelists hovered below 1000.
Holy warriors weren't like missionaries or bishops, who held advantages in
divine favor acquisition.
They certainly weren't like the fishman youngster, who could earn thousands of
divine favor simply by sleeping.
Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The fishman youngster awoke once more.
“Divine favor has increased again.”
“This time it surpassed 5000!”
“The concentration of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline... has reached 48%!”



****** Chapter 554: The Old King’s Crowbar ******
After just one night’s sleep, the fishman youngster’s gains already surpassed
what duelists achieved through prolonged effort.
“Another increase... This means it’ll likely keep growing!”
The fishman youngster felt both elated and anxious.
His joy stemmed from the fact that growth had become a trend. Enhancing his
bloodline concentration was his most urgent need. He had originally planned to
use Zhou Zhang's blood sacrifices to achieve this. Unexpectedly, while sleeping
on the ship, his concentration rose naturally! Safe, simple, and convenient.
His worry, however, was that he had dreamt again.
“This time, I dreamt of the great whirlpool once more.”
“And the speed and depth of sinking into the ocean floor were both faster and
deeper than the first time!”
The fishman youngster retrieved the recorded footage.
Ever since that first incident, whenever he rested again, he had commanded the
tower spirit to secretly monitor him.
Both the magic footage and the surveillance results showed: while the fishman
youngster slept, divine magic fluctuations erupted from his body.
Analysis of these divine magic fluctuations indicated at least the presence of
Spiritual Navigation.
With this, the mystery was solved.
“As Cang Xu said, the great whirlpool I saw in the sea must have been my
confrontation with the true form of the Charming Blue Goddess!”
“The divine are unfathomable. I cannot comprehend them, and I may even
misunderstand them. The great whirlpool is the manifestation of that
comprehension.”
“Then, does my growing immersion within the great whirlpool signify a deeper
understanding of the Charming Blue Goddess?”
“Or perhaps... that I'm drawing ever closer to the deity?”
This was the fishman youngster's deepest concern.
Had he been a pure, devout believer of the Charming Blue Goddess, he would have
rejoiced at this moment.
But he wasn't!
He was desecrating the ritual. Only by invoking fabricated memories did his
level of devotion barely pass muster.
The heightened bloodline concentration allowed the fishman youngster to
assimilate his previous clergyman and magician levels more swiftly.
“Half a day. At most half a day, and I can pray again.” The fishman youngster
calculated, his heart both anxious and hopeful.
The cost was unknown, but the benefit was tangible and imminent.
Most crucially, the pressure of his grand plan for atonement weighed heavily.
After deep contemplation, the fishman youngster still leaned toward continuing
his prayers.
Tranquil Hill Divine Domain.
The duelists chanted loudly, praying in unison!
“Supreme and mighty Dueling God, my Lord.”
“You are the protector of duelists, the witness of justice, the embodiment of
fearless valor.”
“Your power is unmatched, Your wisdom unsurpassed.”
“We battle within Your divine domain, yet our foes' defenses surpass shields
and armor.”
"We beseech Your might to shatter their defenses. We beseech Your radiance to
illuminate our path to victory."
“Guided by You, our blades shall be razor-sharp, our shields unbreakable, our
eyes discerning truth from illusion, our ears attuned to every sound!”
The entire divine domain trembled faintly as colossal divine magic coalesced
above the battlefield.
This was the divine domain of Tranquil Hill.
It was the domain of the duelists, and they had once again invoked divine favor
through prayer, prompting an immediate, powerful response!
"Te-te-teacher, what should we do?!" In the control room, Bu Quan panicked, his
face drained of color.
Shuang Lian's expression was grim as ever.
She stared intently at the ever-expanding divine power aura, her tone more
serious than ever before. “Bu Quan.”
“Now, you will witness my true trump card!”
“This is a severe challenge, but equally an unparalleled opportunity.”
“Open your eyes wide and watch carefully!”
With that, Shuang Lian summoned the greatest trump card of her life, an alchemy
artifact from the deepest recesses of the Honey Snow Tower.
The legend level alchemy artifact—The Old King's Crowbar!
The crowbar's primary material was a leg bone. The bone came from the most
notorious womanizer king in the Main Plane's history.
In his youth, caught stealing a kiss, he had his leg broken.
He fashioned this broken bone into a growth-type crowbar artifact.
His famous words echoed through the ages: “Give me a lever long enough and a
fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the sun and moon!”
He ultimately ascended to legend level, and the crowbar became an legend level
artifact.
The true point where Shuang Lian began to rise up was the accidental
acquisition of this crowbar!
The crowbar's effect was immensely powerful, capable of prying open any object
in the world, but it required at least one fulcrum.
In the present context, this fulcrum was Shuang Lian's understanding of this
divine domain.
“Just as I suspected, this divine domain is ownerless!”
“Crowbar, pry it open with all your might!”
Shuang Lian screamed inwardly as the suspended divine power crashed down with
thunderous force.
The mage tower was struck as if by a colossal divine energy waterfall spanning
a hundred miles, violently crashing to the ground.
The divine magic, vast and overwhelming, pinned the mage tower down, inflicting
devastating damage.
The gold level duelists retreated one after another, watching from afar,
stunned by the breathtaking divine assault!
“Is this the power of a god?”
“Honey Snow Tower is finished.”
“If we'd known this would happen, we could have saved half our divine favor.”
Just as the duelists believed the battle was decided, the Old King’s Crowbar
began to work.
The divine power washing over the Honey Snow Tower was successfully levered,
causing it to flow back upstream. This portion of divine power not only
collided head-on with the descending force but also formed a protective
barrier.
The barrier shielded the Honey Snow Tower completely, top to bottom, left to
right, with meticulous care.
The vast majority of divine power remained unshifted, crashing violently
against the barrier.
The two forces collided violently, rapidly depleting each other!
By all logic, the divine power forming the surface barrier of Honey Snow Tower
was vastly smaller than the opposing forces and should have been unable to
sustain such a prolonged battle.
Yet the Old King's Crowbar continued its relentless work. It constantly
leveraged the external divine power, converting it for its own use. Thus, the
divine barrier enveloping Honey Snow Tower maintained its scale.
The divine power shockwaves generated by the gold level duelists, expending
vast amounts of divine favor, were instead harnessed by Shuang Lian to shield
herself.
Even so, the mage tower was paying a heavy price.
A shrill alarm echoed relentlessly throughout the tower's interior.
Shuang Lian's students were thrown into utter chaos.
The tower shook violently. Even the residual shockwaves from clashing divine
energies were overwhelming. Large chunks of brickwork crumbled from both inside
and out, while magic circles of all sizes shattered. The entire structure
rapidly slid toward the abyss of collapse.
In the control room, Magician Shuang Lian gritted her teeth, clinging to her
resolve.
Never before had she pushed the tower's power to such frantic extremes. Sparing
no cost, she operated the tower at an unprecedented maximum output, forcing it
to unleash its full potential!
Could Shuang Lian succeed?
When the divine power struck for the first time, Bu Quan instinctively closed
her eyes in tension.
The tower's violent tremors made her stumble, nearly causing her to fall.
The shrill alarm almost pierced her eardrums.
The initial dozen seconds felt like an eternity, Bu Quan enduring each moment
as if it were a year.
As she gradually adjusted to the tower's violent tremors and the maddening,
piercing alarm, she summoned her courage and slowly opened her eyes.
The first person she saw was her beloved mentor.
Magician Shuang Lian wore an expression of solemnity and intense focus.
Her posture was perfectly straight, her figure commanding, the absolute anchor
of the control room!
From her teacher, Bu Quan felt a powerful sense of security, drawing unexpected
confidence from it.
Gradually, the alarm faded, the tower's tremors rapidly subsided, and it
swiftly stabilized.
Throughout this time, the tower spirit had been overseeing critical emergency
repairs.
Finally, the magnificent divine power that had swirled in the sky was
completely exhausted.
The battered Honey Snow Tower crashed onto the land of the divine domain,
struck by divine power.
Huge holes gaped in the topmost control room, offering a view of the open sky.
The Honey Snow Tower resembled a warrior who had fought a bloody battle,
covered in wounds yet stubbornly holding its head high and refusing to fall.
Without a doubt, the Old King's Crowbar played the most crucial role!
Countering divine power with divine power, using force against force, this
allowed the Honey Snow Tower to weather the storm. Had it relied solely on the
mage tower's own strength, it likely wouldn't have lasted even the initial ten
seconds.
Secondly, there was Shuang Lian's unwavering persistence. She refused to be
intimidated by adversity, fighting back with everything she had until she
narrowly escaped death.
There was also her unwavering investment in the mage tower, she never skimped
on resources. It was precisely this foundation that allowed Honey Snow Tower to
rush repairs and escape the brink of destruction.
Wealth was also a component of a magician's combat power.
Shuang Lian was wealthy and never hesitated to convert her riches into tangible
strength.
The nature of divine power bombardment also played a role.
The divine power steadily weakened over time.
Its peak power lay in the earliest stage.
Failing to destroy the mage tower early made success in the mid-to-late stage
far less likely.
“We made it!” Bu Quan cried out in disbelief, her voice trembling with joy,
though traces of lingering terror still clung to her face.
Facing the divine power's assault head-on for the first time, she had felt a
terror unlike anything she'd ever known.
Shuang Lian's body was actually trembling slightly, but with Bu Quan present,
she maintained a facade of composure.
The gold duelists were utterly stunned!
“They actually held their ground!”
"What did Shuang Lian use? A legend level aura emerged from the mage tower!"
“They harnessed much of the divine power, so the divine strike didn't achieve
its intended effect.”
"Such a blasphemous act against divine power, why doesn't our Lord punish them
severely?"
“Could that conjecture be true?”
"Our Lord never truly appeared, is that it? Lady Mei Lin!"
The duelists swarmed around Mei Lin, demanding answers.
Under the scrutiny of countless gazes, Mei Lin offered no explanation.
Bao Li Gen pressed relentlessly: "Mei Lin! You were certain Shuang Lian would
fall for the trap. The mage tower must have uncovered some secret of the divine
domain. You must know something!"
Mei Lin nodded with a smile. "I did indeed discern some truth. Today's battle
was a test to verify it. But the specific truth, I will not speak it aloud. You
must all grasp it for yourselves."
“The most crucial task now is to decimate the mage tower.”
At this point, Mei Lin's expression darkened. “I fear I may have made a grave
mistake!”
“I should never have lured Shuang Lian, along with the entire tower, into this
trap.”



****** Chapter 555: A Persisting War of Attrition ******
Before the multitude of gold level duelists, Mei Lin openly admitted her
mistake.
Gu Dong declared, “No harm done!  When we unleash our true power, I refuse to
believe the mage tower won't fall!”
Mo Gui Ji countered, “They used a legend level artifact, isn't that even
better? I've never laid hands on such high-grade spoils before.”
Mei Lin shook her head slightly. "If I'm not mistaken, that legendary artifact
is the Old King's Crowbar. We've lost the conditions for a swift victory."
“Victory is ours. that was sealed the moment the mage tower entered the divine
domain.”
“But this will inevitably be a protracted war.”
"Therefore, do not reveal your identities. If she can produce a legendary
artifact, she might possess communication methods capable of breaching the
divine domain."
The ensuing battle proved Mei Lin's point.
The duelists' assault couldn't penetrate the defensive layers of the Honey Snow
Tower.
The Old King's Crowbar remained potent, but this time it leveraged not divine
power, but the duelists' attacks, even the divine domain itself.
“Our most powerful battle skills are being siphoned away, becoming tools for
Shuang Lian to strike back at us!”
“The closer I get to the mage tower, the more I feel the very heavens and earth
rejecting me. This is supposed to be our home turf!”
“The Old King's Crowbar... How did Shuang Lian come to possess such an
artifact?”
The duelists' prolonged siege yielded no breakthrough, leaving them
disheartened and restless.
None felt it worse than Yi Jiu.
He had once been stranded in the Honey snow demi-plane, fighting and fleeing
endlessly, feeling the entire world conspiring against him. Now that damned
feeling had returned!
The space surrounding the mage tower repelled the duelists, instead shielding
the invader tower itself.
“A legend level artifact...” Mei Lin sighed.
Equipment of this caliber was exceedingly rare. Having witnessed its combat
effectiveness firsthand, Mei Lin could easily guess its significance.
A piece of intelligence suddenly flashed through her mind: “In her youth,
Shuang Lian successfully captured a young demi-plane. Was this true?”
“Or did she encounter a more mature demi-plane? Did she use the Old King's
Crowbar to pry open its defenses and seize it?”
"Damn it! How dare she!!” Mo Gui Ji, frustrated by his failure to breach the
defenses, grew increasingly enraged. He shouted accusingly, “This is blasphemy!
Utter, blatant blasphemy! Why does our Lord not severely punish this blasphemer
deserving of death?!"
The divine domain was the gods' home. Not only did Shuang Lian battle within
it, she pried off a portion to serve her own ends.
This was nothing short of slapping the god in the face.
Yet throughout the conflict, the duelists had given it their all, while the
Dueling God remained utterly silent.
This was highly unusual.
When deities suffered such humiliation, they almost always intervened to uphold
their reputation.
Reputation was paramount to deities, the greater their renown, the easier their
propagation. Conversely, allowing a gold level duelist like Shuang Lian to push
them around like this would utterly destroy the Dueling God's reputation. Who
would trust a deity too weak to eliminate the mage tower, demonstrating such
feeble control over the divine domain?
This would be extremely detrimental to the Dueling God's future propagation of
faith!
Yet, the Dueling God remained utterly still.
“It... seems as if He doesn't exist at all.”
Some duelists' eyes flickered, their expressions shifting between shadow and
light, already grasping part of the truth.
“The will to fight has plummeted to rock bottom. Alas...” Mei Lin sighed.
Had she known Shuang Lian possessed the Old King's Crowbar, she would never
have devised such a tactic.
Now, she was stuck between a rock and a hard place, forced to push forward
regardless.
“A war of attrition is our best option moving forward.”
“This will be a protracted battle. I will assign each of you to maintain
constant harassment and surveillance of the mage tower.”
"The Old King's Crowbar can handle mature demi-planes, but it cannot overcome
the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain. Its leverage over the divine domain has
limits."
“Moreover, the legend level artifact is a guaranteed energy hog!”
Mei Lin tried to rally the men.
But the other gold level members weren't fools. Immediately, someone retorted:
“Give us a break.”
"Shuang Lian has her honey snow. Her demi-plane is the kingdom's largest honey
snow production site."
Honey snow, a unique resource that could be consumed or used as a specialized
elemental crystal to feed magic pools, converting into magic power.
Mei Lin's gaze darkened as she reiterated, “That's why I said this will be a
protracted battle!”
The duelists' clash with the mage tower drew the attention of another group.
“What's happening over there?”
“It sounds like a fierce battle is underway!”
“Ridiculous! This is the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain, how could any enemy
possibly invade?”
This group was none other than the remnants of the Bayonet Gang.
The commotion from the divine power surge had drawn their attention.
As the divine power dissipated, the intensity of the battle plummeted, and they
could no longer detect any signs of combat.
"Let's begin, Hen Fa.” Xiong Ju looked at Lan Zao, issuing a challenge. “Let me
see what you've gained lately."
Lan Zao nodded and stepped into the center of the clearing.
Their sparring commenced.
Xiong Ju launched the first attack, aiming to draw Lan Zao into close combat.
But Lan Zao, the moment the sparring began, pulled back explosively, striving
to create distance.
Bang, bang, bang...
As he retreated, he continuously fired bursts from his mouth.
Battle skill - Air Cannon.
Xiong Ju charged forward while taking the hits.
Each air cannon shell packed a solid punch, but the real issue was Lan Zao's
increasingly precise shooting. His air cannons varied in power, mixing feints
with real shots, making it impossible for Xiong Ju to react in time and
significantly increasing his battle qi consumption.
Several shells slammed near Xiong Ju's feet, severely disrupting his advance.
Xiong Ju growled in frustration, momentarily unable to counter Lan Zao.
Watching the sparring match, Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer both shared the same
thought: “He's gotten stronger again...”
Neither was the least bit surprised.
Since Lan Zao converted his faith, he received daily infusions of relevant
experience during training.
This made wielding projectiles in combat second nature to him. Had he relied
solely on his own efforts, it might have taken years to achieve such results.
Prayer, and receiving the divine blessing of the Dueling God in the Tranquil
Hill Divine Domain, was an unparalleled shortcut to cultivation!
“Still, Hen Fa definitely isn't a match for Xiong Ju.”
“Xiong Ju's faith level is probably already at the pious level, right?”
Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer exchanged glances in secret.
Among everyone present, aside from Spring Boxer, the one who had made the most
progress wasn't Lan Zao, but Xiong Ju.
Xiong Ju's devotion to the Dueling God grew ever stronger, yielding
increasingly abundant divine blessings.
“Ha! Gotcha!” Xiong Ju finally closed in on Lan Zao.
Unable to maintain distance any longer, Lan Zao had no choice but to raise his
fist for a direct clash.
Xiong Ju's blow was powerful and heavy. Even in his fishman form, with bulging
muscles, Lan Zao was no match.
In an instant, Lan Zao was sent flying by Xiong Ju's punch, instantly
incapacitated for further combat!
“What a pity,” Spring Boxer sighed inwardly, watching Lan Zao lie defeated on
the ground. “Your level of devotion, like the others, is simply too low.”
“If this continues, I'll have no choice but to leave all of you behind in
Tranquil Hill.”



****** Chapter 556: Unaccounted For ******
"What the hell are you all doing? Are you weak from hunger?" Yi Jiu bellowed at
the other duelists.
He was furious.
He’d assumed the Honey Snow Tower’s fall into the divine domain would make them
easy prey, but then Shuang Lian produced a legend level artifact, forcing even
Mei Lin to admit her mistake.
This left Yi Jiu, consumed by vengeance, with nowhere to vent his frustration.
The more he fought, the more stifled he felt.
Earlier, within the demi-plane, he'd been bullied to the point of vomiting
blood by Shuang Lian and Bu Quan remotely manipulating the magic formation. Now
inside the divine domain, he still couldn't breach the mage tower's defenses
and had taken numerous beatings.
Mo Gui Ji snorted coldly: "Of all of us, you're the only one without
reservations. Go ahead, unleash your full power! Break through into the tower's
core! Then we can finally breach its defenses."
Yi Jiu sneered coldly: “You think I'd be your vanguard, letting you reap the
rewards?”
Yi Jiu himself was injured. Even after consuming healing potions, his combat
strength was only at 80% of his peak.
He could infiltrate the alchemy workshop but lacked confidence in breaching the
mage tower's inner sanctum.
Crucially, even if he succeeded, he'd face grave danger. Did the mage tower's
interior lack defensive forces? That was clearly impossible.
If Yi Jiu proceeded, he alone would bear the greatest risk. The real issue lay
in spoils distribution, he doubted he'd secure his fair share.
Therefore, even though Yi Jiu had exposed his identity, he had never fought at
full strength.
Even Qing Hong Yan, the rabbitman who grew more frenzied the longer the battle
raged, was restraining himself, suppressing his battle lust.
After all, he wasn't alone; his own rabbitman clan stood behind him.
Qing Hong Yan had dealt with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps before.
But this time, against Shuang Lian who was backed by the Alchemy Guild, it was
an entirely different proposition from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
When not in a frenzy, Qing Hong Yan was quite sane.
He didn't want to bring major trouble upon his kin.
Honey Snow Tower.
In the control layer, Bu Quan exclaimed in surprise, “Teacher, these gold level
fighters aren't much to speak of. They can't break through the mage tower's
defenses!”
“We're safe now!”
But Shuang Lian shook her head, a faint worry on her face. “They haven't used
their full strength.”
Shuang Lian's insight was far sharper and more precise than Bu Quan's.
Bu Quan froze. “Why?”
Shuang Lian gave a cold laugh. “They fear their identities being exposed.”
“How many gold level individuals are there?”
“The entire kingdom has only so many, and nearly every single gold level is
documented on record.”
"They secretly worship an evil deity, formed a clandestine organization, and
even attempted to eliminate me, an elder of the Alchemy Guild. They certainly
wouldn't dare expose their true identities."
“I possess the Old King’s Crowbar, capable of prying open a portion of the
divine domain. This terrifies them.”
“They dread the possibility that I might transmit information to the outside
world, exposing them to the kingdom's pursuit!”
Having fought to this extent, Shuang Lian had also discerned the enemy's
intentions.
Her gaze fixed intently on a corner of the magic projection, where Mei Lin
stood.
Mei Lin concealed her features and employed commonplace spells, yet Shuang Lian
sensed an uncanny familiarity in her posture.
“I've definitely seen this magician somewhere before!”
Of course, Shuang Lian had seen her.
Mei Lin enjoyed immense popularity within the kingdom. Not only was she
exceptionally beautiful, but she also wielded immense power and held a position
of great authority. Every public appearance she made drew attention, always
commanding the spotlight.
This was the world of the strong.
Every gold level was a star, and Mei Lin was the star among stars.
Bu Quan asked, “Then, Teacher, can we send a distress signal to the outside
world?”
Shuang Lian sighed. “If I could, I would have done so already. Unfortunately,
it's impossible!”
“Ah!” Bu Quan gasped, stunned and disappointed.
Shuang Lian quickly encouraged her: “It's alright. Once I use the crowbar to
pry open the divine domain sufficiently, I believe we'll be able to transmit a
signal.”
Bu Quan hurriedly asked: “Then Teacher, when will we be able to pry open the
divine domain enough to meet the standards for sending a distress signal?”
Shuang Lian shook her head slightly. “It's difficult to estimate the exact
time...”
Truthfully, she herself didn't have much confidence either.
She had already made attempts, but the results had been dismal.
"This is clearly an ownerless divine domain. Why is it so incredibly difficult
to pry open? At this point, we've already reached the absolute limit!"
Could it be that this divine domain possesses some unique quality?
Mei Lin scrutinized the Honey Snow Tower with intense focus, observing the
divine domain itself.
“The Old King’s Crowbar lacks follow-through; the scale of the divine domain it
leveraged is overall quite limited.”
“Is this deliberate suppression, or the limit of her power?”
"Our Lord is incomplete, yet His divine domain is unique. Because of Tranquil
Hill's existence!"
“It's highly likely that even now, Shuang Lian hasn't succeeded in sending a
distress signal.”
Observing this, Mei Lin's rising anxiety eased slightly.
If this operation ended up exposing the secrets here, Mei Lin would bear
immense responsibility!
"Was my tactic too aggressive? I was too fixated on capturing Shuang Lian and
Bu Quan."
“Truthfully, if we'd stopped after rescuing Yi Jiu, none of this would have
happened!”
Mei Lin continued to reflect on her actions.
As an exceptional commander, self-reflection was an essential quality.
Mei Lin's tactical flaw wasn't due to poor command, who could have anticipated
that Shuang Lian, a mere gold level, would wield a legend level artifact?
Any other legend item might have sufficed, but it had to be the Old King's
Crowbar!
This artifact specifically countered spatial coordinates and planes.
Though the divine domain was unique, it too fell under its influence.
“Mei Lin, since you won't let us use our true strength, we can't breach Shuang
Lian's mage tower anytime soon!” Mo Gui Ji stated bluntly. “If you have any
other ideas, now's the time to share them.”
Mei Lin gave him a quiet glance, her tone flat. “I have no better solution.”
“We invoked divine favor for prayer, yet even that assault failed to breach the
tower. Even if we exert our full strength, our chances remain slim.”
“You may use your full power. My earlier suggestion was merely a strong
recommendation.”
Mo Gui Ji's expression darkened. He muttered a low curse but ultimately
refrained from further action.
He fixed a final, contemptuous gaze upon the tower. "How boring! If I can't
crack this turtle shell, staying here is a waste of time."
“Mei Lin, you're nothing special. You've disappointed me.”
“Let me know when you come up with a solution!”
With that, Mo Gui Ji knelt on one knee and began praying.
Then, visible ripples spread through space.
When the ripples vanished, Mo Gui Ji himself disappeared from the spot.
He had left the divine domain of Tranquil Hill.
His departure quickly triggered a chain reaction.
“We've already won. Shuang Lian can't leave the divine domain, and she must use
that crowbar to maintain the defenses.”
“Yeah, I don't believe she can hold out for half a year.”
“Once her honey snow reserves are depleted, what power will the mage tower
hold?”
“That's enough. Now is not the time for the final showdown.”
The duelists departed one after another.
“They're gone! Look, Master!” Bu Quan chirped excitedly.
Shuang Lian's expression remained composed: "Breaching the mage tower is
meaningless without sufficient numbers. They'll leave one or two behind to
monitor us. Once our magic power reserves can no longer sustain the current
defenses, they'll swiftly regroup, and even bring more enemies, to surround and
kill us."
Bu Quan's face paled.
Shuang Lian thought silently: Before that happens, we must save ourselves. At
the very least, we must find a way to send out a distress signal.
“Too bad Da Dou didn't bring it in.”
“Perhaps he has a solution.”
Main Plane.
A deserted island.
Da Dou, frozen solid, suddenly let out a low growl. Hot flames erupted from his
entire body.
The scorching fire blazed fiercely, rapidly melting the ice encasing him.
Seconds later, he shook his arms, breaking through the increasingly thin ice,
and regained his freedom completely.
Bam!
He thrust his legs, shattering the sea beneath him, leaping upward before
landing on the sand.
Kneeling, he gasped for breath as the flames on his body rose and fell with
each breath.
Finally, the flames receded, coalescing into the Flame Totem on his body.
“What's going on?”
“Why did Shuang Lian suddenly stop!?”
Da Dou scanned the surroundings, confirming Shuang Lian had completely
vanished.
“Did some unexpected change occur?”
“Or does she have some other devious scheme?”
Da Dou was utterly perplexed.
Because the duelists' ambushed Shuang Lian within her demi-plane, it was beyond
Da Dou's perception.
“That was perilous indeed, but I still retained the strength for one final
strike.”
"As long as she continued attacking me, the Flame Totem would sense the danger
and unleash its divine power. That divine power would help me shatter the frost
seal."
“Shuang Lian clearly had me under her control, yet she didn't strike
immediately. Did she sense the divine power stored within the totem??”
“Regardless, I wasn't captured!”
“Nor did I lose the giant.”
“We must leave this place at once!”
Having learned his lesson, Da Dou no longer hesitated to use his Tunnel Staff.
He drew it forth immediately, casting spell after spell until every remaining
use was exhausted.
Even so, he did not linger.
Instead, he activated the Flame Totem, his body transforming into a stream of
fire as he soared across the sea at breakneck speed, continuing his retreat.
One day later.
Snow Bird Harbor, the docks.
“Still no word from Shuang Lian...” Tripleblade paced the ship's cabin, his
face etched with anxiety and worry.
He paused at the porthole, scanning the horizon.
How he wished he could glimpse the mage tower's silhouette approaching across
the sky.
But there was nothing.
Tripleblade had repeated this action countless times.
“Not only is there no word, but we've lost contact with the Honey Snow Tower
altogether!”
“Something must have happened.”
“But how could that be?! That was a mage tower—a five-story mage tower, with a
gold level magician like Shuang Lian!!”
“Could they have encountered a saint level foe?”
"Or perhaps Shuang Lian successfully captured Da Dou, only to discover the big
guy's true potential? So they simply decided not to return?"



****** Chapter 557: Too Busy to Spare Time for Anything Else ******
According to Tripleblade's original assessment: Shuang Lian's chances of
retrieving the big guy this time were quite high.
His greatest concern was the big guy's safety during the struggle.
Unexpectedly, Shuang Lian, who possessed a mage tower, had suddenly lost
contact and vanished without a trace!
Just as Tripleblade paced restlessly, consumed by doubts, Men Shi knocked on
the door and entered with a loud report.
"The alchemists at the workshop can't sit still anymore. They've completely
lost focus on refining potions. What are we going to do?"
Men Shi brought back bad news.
The alchemists overseeing potion brewing at the workshops were almost entirely
from the Honey Snow Tower, Shuang Lian's students.
Following Shuang Lian's orders, they had taken up residence in the four alchemy
workshops, working tirelessly to brew the dragon rider potion.
The news of both the Honey Snow Tower and Shuang Lian vanishing together was
impossible to conceal.
In fact, these alchemists were among the first to learn of it, even before
Tripleblade.
Tripleblade lowered his head, silent.
“How can we get these magicians to continue brewing?”
Tripleblade realized he couldn't manage it.
He lacked the authority to mobilize sufficient funds to hire them.
Even if he wanted to spread false information to deceive these magicians, it
would be difficult.
Because Tripleblade had nothing to offer that could persuade them.
“Forget it...”
Tripleblade sighed deeply within.
The situation was unclear now. If he tried to deceive these people...
Even if the deception succeeded, there would come a time when Shuang Lian,
bearing the Honey Snow Tower, returned to Snow Bird Harbor. Once she learned of
this matter, she would certainly make an issue of it.
Given the current strained relationship between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
and Shuang Lian, they weren't on such friendly terms that she'd overlook a
false order.
If mishandled, this could turn potential allies into sworn enemies.
After much deliberation, Tripleblade concluded this risky maneuver was best
avoided!
"Let them go. They're not part of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps; we can't
control them." Tripleblade said to Men Shi.
Men Shi nodded and immediately left the cabin.
Since the battle at the alchemy workshop, Men Shi's regard for Tripleblade had
grown significantly.
Despite only possessing iron level strength, the valor Tripleblade displayed in
combat had greatly elevated his standing within the mercenary corps.
Consequently, Men Shi was now more willing than before to follow Tripleblade's
orders.
However, Men Shi departed swiftly and returned even faster.
He brought back even worse news.
The magicians left behind by Shuang Lian in the alchemy workshop were now
heading toward Snow Bird Harbor Dock, led by several silver level leaders. They
sought out Tripleblade, demanding answers from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
After all, their teacher had gone missing while searching for members of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Upon hearing this news, Tripleblade immediately dispatched a mercenary
messenger to notify Chi Lai to return as quickly as possible.
Among the alchemists left behind by Shuang Lian, there were three silver level
individuals. This represented a formidable transcendent force. Tripleblade had
to muster all his strength and prepare for battle!
But merely recalling Chi Lai was insufficient.
Chi Lai and Men Shi were only two silver fighters. Facing three silver level
magicians, they would undoubtedly be at a disadvantage.
"I guess ‘Shi Qi’ succeeded in healing his wounds. Now, we need his return."
Currently, the role of Zong Ge was filled by an alchemy puppet, imbued with the
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
Yet, requesting the “Deputy Commander” to return after recovery did little to
ease Tripleblade's pressure; instead, it intensified it.
For an alchemy puppet remained an alchemy puppet, lacking the agility of a
living being.
The more the alchemy puppet was deployed, the greater the risk of exposure.
“If Lord Zong Ge could display his gold level cultivation...”
“At least the situation here at the branch would be much more stable.”
“There's a fundamental difference between gold level and silver level forces!”
“Lord Zong Ge has already reached gold level. He's more suited to be our leader
than the commander.”
“Shuang Lian went missing, but our commander vanished even longer ago!”
“To rescue his confidant, our commander hasn't made a single move to this day.”
“This is utterly dereliction of duty!”
“And he dragged Lord Zong Ge into covering for him, forcing him to pretend to
go to the Ice Sculpture Capital instead.”
As time dragged on, Tripleblade grew increasingly disappointed in the dragonman
youngster, his impression of the latter steadily worsening.
Tripleblade steeled himself to face the alchemists' accusations, yet he did not
neglect to compose a confidential letter detailing the branch's situation and
dispatch it.
Tripleblade's letter was swiftly delivered into Zi Di's hands.
Following the deepened cooperation with the Li Jian Clan, survivors leveraged
the clan's channels to achieve revolutionary progress in their mutual
communications.
Zi Di effortlessly deciphered the coded message. After a quick scan, she handed
it to Zong Ge beside her: “The situation has changed.”
Zong Ge's expression darkened upon reading the letter.
“Shuang Lian is a gold level magician, and this time she's deployed Honey Snow
Tower.”
“That mage tower stands a full five stories tall.”
“According to intelligence we obtained from the Li Jian Clan, before leaving
the royal capital, Honey Snow Tower clashed with three magicians from the
Alchemy Guild.”
“Both Magician Da Bei and Cai Jing are tight-lipped about the details of that
battle, clearly, they suffered losses.”
“Such combat power should be more than sufficient to handle the magic chef, Da
Dou.”
“But now, both Shuang Lian and her Honey Snow Tower have gone off the grid...”
“Could it be... she discovered the big guy's innate talent?”
In this regard, Zong Ge and Tripleblade shared the same concern.
For now, the big guy's bloodline hadn't been precisely tested. But the
survivors knew his power ceiling was at least saint level.
That alone was enough to make Shuang Lian change her stance, capture big guy
privately, and make a clean getaway.
Zi Di didn't pursue the topic further.
She glanced at Zong Ge: “In the secret letter, Tripleblade proposed an idea. He
suggested you directly reveal your gold level cultivation. What are your
thoughts?”
Zong Ge shook his head slightly.
“I'm currently playing the role of the commander. Even if I exposed my gold
level cultivation, it wouldn't provide immediate help in our current
situation.”
“The enemy is so powerful. Shuang Lian and her mage tower are likely under
attack.”
“And I believe that possibility is far greater than Shuang Lian discovering the
big guy's talent.”
"It's simply not enough for just me or the commander to advance to gold level.
It holds no deterrent for our enemies whatsoever."
“It would be better to keep this situation hidden, as a small trump card to
play later.”
“In truth, we aren't lacking deterrence, are we?”
Zong Ge was naturally referring to his feat days prior: single-handedly
defeating three gold level opponents, Jia Bing, the Axe Gang leader, and Lin,
in rapid succession.
This achievement had genuinely shocked the duelists. It had bought Zi Di, Zong
Ge, and their group ample time and breathing room.
Otherwise, they would never have had the chance to negotiate in Igloo City.
And the outcome of those negotiations had secured them even more time and
space.
Zi Di mused, "Tripleblade wrote in his letter: Shuang Lian's students can't be
relied upon. Given that, we might as well shut down the alchemy workshop at
Snow Bird Harbor."
“Under our new cooperation agreement with the Li Jian Clan, we can fully
utilize their production lines to mass-produce dragon rider potions.”
When Zi Di negotiated with Mian Li Zang earlier, she hadn't known Shuang Lian
would arrive.
Therefore, the condition of leveraging the Li Jian Clan's potion production
capabilities was explicitly written into the cooperation contract between the
two parties.
Zi Di had even planned for the mercenary company to secretly establish an
alchemy workshop.
After Shuang Lian's arrival, this collaboration had yet to formally commence.
With the four alchemy workshops ready to restart operations, there was no need
to partner with the Li Jian Clan in this regard.
Proceeding with this collaboration would allow the Li Jian Clan to claim a
share of the profits from dragon rider potions. They wouldn't work for free.
For the survivors, this meant reduced profits.
But given the current circumstances, a smaller share was negligible. Capturing
this niche potion market segment was paramount.
Achieving this would mean Zi Di's business plan was more than halfway to
success.
The survivors wouldn't lose out either.
Leveraging the captured distribution channels and War Merchant’s endless
database, they were certain to achieve even greater commercial success.
And splitting a portion of the profits with the Li Jian Clan was well worth it.
This way, the survivors could use the Li Jian Clan as a buffer. If the duelists
wanted to continue targeting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they'd have to go
after the Li Jian Clan's alchemy workshop.
This would undoubtedly divert the majority of hostile fire away from the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
By doing this, Zi Di indirectly protected the Snow Bird Harbor branch.
A thoughtful expression crossed her face: "Magician Shuang Lian is a powerful
elder within the Alchemy Guild. She is currently missing. Could we leverage the
power of the Alchemy Guild?"
Zi Di had previously sought the help of Shuang Lian through Bu Quan. Now that
both Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were missing, she sought to repeat the tactic to
harness the Alchemy Guild's strength.
Moreover, Zi Di had already handed over crucial intelligence regarding the
mysterious faction to the Li Jian Clan. This information would be relayed
upward through the Li Jian Clan's channels.
Both Zi Di and Zong Ge eagerly anticipated the Ice Sculpture Royal Family's
next move.
For now, the strength displayed by the duelists far surpassed anything the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could muster.
Given this situation, both Zi Di and Zong Ge favored seeking external support
wherever possible. The more external forces they could enlist, the less risk
and pressure they would bear.
“We must press forward.”
"The store setups are already three-quarters complete. With the Spatial Shuttle
Squad's assistance, we've saved immense distance and time."
Zi Di conveyed her assessment to Zong Ge.
The disappearances of Shuang Lian, Bu Quan, and the big guy, she could no
longer concern herself with them.
This had long surpassed her limits.
Zi Di's choice revealed profound helplessness.
It was a choice born of necessity.
Yet Zi Di had no better solution.
Neither did Zong Ge.
The half-beastman showed no hesitation or deliberation, simply nodding in
agreement to Zi Di's subsequent arrangements.



****** Chapter 558: Gold Level Fishman Youngster! ******
One day ago, in the divine domain of Tranquil Hill.
Most of the duelists had already departed.
“Sister Mei Lin, you sought me out?” Xue Tuan Zi approached Mei Lin.
Mei Lin handed her the material: “I heard you've been aggressively acquiring
this type of material lately?”
Xue Tuan Zi took it and saw it was a shell from the Tide-Sound Conch. Each
shell was a gold level material!
A flash of delight crossed Xue Tuan Zi's face, but it quickly faded into a
troubled frown.
She looked at Mei Lin: “Sister Mei Lin, I'm sorry, but I don't have much time
to stay here. I need to give my all for this Warm Snow Cup!”
Mei Lin nodded with a smile. “I understand. Your grandfather has high
expectations for you.”
“Don't worry, I'm not assigning you to guard the Honey Snow Tower. I have
another matter to ask of you.”
“Oh?” Xue Tuan Zi's eyes sparkled with curiosity. “Sister Mei Lin, tell me
about it.”
Mei Lin said, “I wish to pay a personal visit to your grandfather.”
Xue Tuan Zi's grandfather was no ordinary transcendent. He was a Gold level
alchemist who presided over the Snow Cake Tower and served as a powerful elder
within the Alchemy Guild.
More crucially, relations between the Snow Cake Tower Master and the Honey Snow
Tower Master, Shuang Lian, were strained.
Xue Tuan Zi paused slightly before grasping Mei Lin's intent.
They had lured the Honey Snow Tower into the divine domain of Tranquil Hill. As
a pivotal figure in the Alchemy Guild, Shuang Lian's disappearance would
inevitably trigger far-reaching repercussions.
The Alchemy Guild would undoubtedly come searching for her.
If this battle concluded decisively, Shuang Lian's death in combat might be
acceptable. But the reality was that both sides were locked in a stalemate.
Without a definitive outcome, Mei Lin could consider the subsequent
repercussions.
Thinking this through, Xue Tuan Zi nodded. "That's exactly right. Grandfather
and Magician Shuang Lian have deep-seated conflicts. The rivalry between the
two mage towers is significant, their relationship is quite hostile, to say the
least."
“I can introduce you.”
“That shouldn't be a problem.”
Xue Tuan Zi welcomed the prospect of Shuang Lian being dealt with more
effectively.
After all, she had become involved in this conflict herself.
In truth, it was precisely the animosity between the two towers that had
motivated Xue Tuan Zi to contribute her strength to this battle.
“That's wonderful,” Mei Lin smiled.
She felt confident she could count on Xue Tuan Zi's continued support.
Mei Lin had made considerable efforts to expand her faction's influence within
the divine domain of Tranquil Hill. Growing close to Xue Tuan Zi and becoming
her friend was one such achievement.
After arranging the rotation of gold level duelists, Mei Lin departed the
divine domain of Tranquil Hill alongside Xue Tuan Zi.
Half a day later, they arrived at the Ice Sculpture Capital via a teleportation
formation.
The headquarters of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild resided within
the capital.
The third position in the Honey Snow Tower remained vacant.
When Mei Lin arrived, the Alchemy Guild had yet to formally confirm Shuang
Lian's disappearance.
She entered the Snow Cake Tower and was received by its master.
“Try some, Rear Admiral Mei Lin. This is a snow cake I made myself,” Xue Tuan
Zi's grandfather warmly offered Mei Lin.
Though they had never formally interacted before, both had heard of each other.
Gold level individuals were neither numerous nor scarce.
As the master of a mage tower, Xue Tuan Zi's grandfather undoubtedly ranked
among the elite of gold level magicians. Mei Lin, needless to say, was a beauty
of the navy—a star among the gold level individuals.
Mei Lin knew the Snow Cake Tower Master was not only an alchemist but also
moonlighted as a magic chef.
His greatest passion lay in crafting transcendent cuisine. His handmade snow
cakes enjoyed a modest reputation throughout the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Having come with a request, Mei Lin naturally wouldn't refuse such kindness.
She extended her slender fingers, pinched up a snow cake, and examined it
closely.
The snow cake wasn't thin; it was round, plump, and adorable. Frost flowers
adorned both sides, releasing a sweet, fragrant aroma.
Mei Lin placed the snow cake in her mouth and took a gentle bite.
Its texture was delightfully crisp, no effort was needed to crunch it
effortlessly.
As she chewed, the cake dissolved on her tongue, releasing an intoxicating
cheese flavor. Following the rich cheese came an icy chill that made Mei Lin's
mouth water.
The peak of that icy sensation sent a shiver through her very soul.
Mei Lin, with her high status and influence, had tasted countless delicacies.
To be fair, while the snow cake was tasty, it wasn't exceptionally delicious.
Among the delicacies she had tasted, it wouldn't even rank in the top fifty.
At best, it was a tasty dessert.
Yet after finishing one piece, Mei Lin's expression subtly shifted.
She consumed a second, then a third.
The Snow Cake Tower Master chuckled heartily.
After eating five pieces, Mei Lin thanked the tower master: “Your culinary
skills are truly remarkable, tower master. I am deeply impressed.”
“I never imagined there could be snow cakes in this world that directly raise
one's spirit power limit after eating them!”
The Snow Cake Tower Master smiled: "Rear Admiral Mei Lin, you are a dear friend
of my granddaughter. Of course I must serve you my finest creations. I heard
from Xue Tuan Zi that you also disapprove of Shuang Lian?"
Xue Tuan Zi had participated in the introduction, naturally informing her
grandfather of certain matters beforehand.
The Snow Cake Tower Master had long been at a disadvantage in his rivalry with
Shuang Lian.
Mei Lin was undoubtedly a powerful external ally, which was why he spared no
expense, specially crafting the snow cakes at short notice to entertain her.
She said, "Tower Master, you might not know this yet. Shuang Lian has gone
missing, and the Honey Snow Tower has vanished without a trace."
"Oh?!" The Snow Cake Tower Master's expression shifted slightly, his eyes
flashing with sharpness. “Are you certain this is true?”
“Within half a day, the guild will receive the news as well.” Mei Lin
continued, ”I don't care about the reason for her disappearance. What I want is
for the Alchemy Guild to temporarily suspend the search and rescue efforts."
The Snow Cake Tower Master gave Mei Lin a deep look: “That's not so easy to
arrange.”
“Shuang Lian's status is no ordinary matter. She's a powerful elder. Haven't
you seen that even though the Snowflake Tower is gone, Pit No.3 has always been
reserved for her?”
"You must understand, the lower the pit number, the greater the energy supply
it provides to the mage tower. In a way, it represents the Tower Master's
standing within the guild!"
“When such a heavyweight goes missing, the guild will go mad searching for
her."
Mei Lin smiled: “After Pit No.3, Pit No.4 belongs to Snow Cake Tower, doesn't
it?”
“Others might be helpless, but I believe in your influence, Tower Master.”
With that, Mei Lin handed the Snow Cake Tower Master a list. The list contained
only a few items, but each was substantial enough to make the Snow Cake Tower
Master's expression shift slightly upon seeing it.
The final item on the list was none other than a saint level alchemy material!
“Interesting...” Snow Cake Tower Master tucked away the list. “You've got good
luck.”
“Under normal circumstances, this would be nearly impossible.”
“But now it is different. The entire Alchemy Guild's focus is on Master Fan
Sheng Za Zhong's inheritance.”
“The Alchemy Guild will inevitably dispatch personnel for investigation and
rescue, I cannot prevent that.”
“But we can influence things to weaken the search team's strength.”
“I have an excellent idea.”
The Snow Cake Tower Master detailed his plan.
Mei Lin listened and let out a sigh of admiration.
The Snow Cake Tower Master knew that Da Bei, Cai Jing, and others had suffered
losses at the hands of Shuang Lian. And now they were the leaders of the
guild's organized inheritance group.
The Snow Cake Tower Master intended to exploit them by first transferring all
alchemists skilled in investigation and search operations to the inheritance
group.
This way, there would be no experts left to search for Shuang Lian, Bu Quan,
and the others.
“Then, the task falls to you, Tower Master.” Mei Lin “backed out at the last
moment,” avoiding contact with Cai Jing and Da Bei.
That very evening, news of Shuang Lian's disappearance had already been
relayed.
The Snow Cake Tower Master invited Cai Jing and Da Bei to a banquet.
His snow cakes earned rave reviews from both guests. Da Bei even packed several
slices to take home for Zhong Bei.
Neither Cai Jing nor Da Bei harbored any suspicion about the Tower Master's
proposal.
After all, the feud between the two tower masters was common knowledge
throughout the guild.
Both Cai Jing and Da Bei were eager to take on this task. Having suffered
losses at Shuang Lian's hands, they saw this as their chance for revenge.
Upon hearing news of Shuang Lian's disappearance, they had already begun to
stir with anticipation.
The Snow Cake Tower Master's invitation dispelled many of their reservations.
Their actions signaled an alignment with Snow Cake Tower Master. Should Shuang
Lian retaliate in the future, Snow Cake Tower Master would surely offer them
refuge.
White Hair Trench.
Under the sea.
In a crude shack, Cang Xu knelt in prayer.
“Great Charming Blue Goddess, I praise Your greatness and mercy.”
“You are so mighty that when You rage, the seas tremble; when You show mercy,
You grant us boundless care.”
“My Lord, oh Charming Blue Goddess, I look to Your power and trust in Your
salvation.”
“I wish to ask: how much divine favor must I expend to elevate my life level?”
“To become silver, rising above iron and bronze?”
Since this prayer itself consumed several points of divine favor, Cang Xu
received the answer swiftly—8,800!
To attain silver level, he had to expend 8,800 units of divine favor.
Cang Xu paled.
Ever since the fishman youngster's transcendent level ascension, Cang Xu had
harbored this ambition. He never imagined advancing from iron level to silver
level would require so much divine favor!
How long would it take to accumulate that much?
“With my current concentration of Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline, perhaps self-
cultivation could accelerate my ascent to silver level.”
Cang Xu was only pretending to be silver level; his true level remained iron.
Meanwhile, aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster stood with
solemn concentration.
Having carefully prepared his prayer, he began his invocation.
“Great Charming Blue Goddess, my Lord, I...”
Boom!
Divine radiance descended from the void, bathing the fishman youngster in its
glow for a long moment.
Soon after, the fishman youngster opened the hatch, his expression oddly
twisted.
“I barely started praying, I didn't even finish a sentence, yet I already
received divine blessing.”
“I... just advanced to gold level?”
The fishman youngster felt as if he were in a dream.
This prayer had ended almost as soon as it began.
The life level of the fishman youngster officially ascended from silver level
to gold level!
“My divine favor has surged to 8000!”
“I thought this prayer would drain it completely... yet it actually increased
by so much...”



****** Chapter 559: Nurture ******
A single blasphemous prayer propelled the fishman youngster's life rank to gold
level.
He attempted to summon his battle qi and discovered it now radiated a golden
glow.
“This means I've caught up to Zong Ge.”
The fishman youngster had been away from Snow Bird Harbor for some time,
unaware that Zong Ge had advanced to gold level fighter during his absence.
“No, more accurately, I've surpassed him. After all, my life essence is already
gold level.”
“From here on, I won't even need to cultivate actively. Both fighter and
magician levels will gradually undergo qualitative changes, ultimately
advancing to gold level.”
The cultivation of clergymen differed from that of fighters and magicians; the
enhancement of divine power required the blessing of the gods.
“However, if I actively cultivate, the advancement speed for my fighter and
magician cultivation will be much faster!”
Having reached the next tier in life essence provides tremendous support for
the cultivation of battle qi and magic.
“Of course, I have an even faster way to bring all three transcendent paths to
the gold level.”
“That is—prayer!”
By now, the fishman youngster was certain his blasphemous prayers to the
Charming Blue Goddess would yield terrifyingly immense rewards.
“For every gain, there is a loss...” Cang Xu's warning still echoed in the
youngster's ears.
It was a lingering concern he couldn't ignore.
Yet this unease could not halt the fishman youngster's resolve to press
forward.
In truth, he found himself unable to stop.
Even before, he would pray within his dreams.
Even after purging the fabricated memories, this phenomenon persisted.
“My life level has risen to gold level, time to digest it again.”
“I have a strong premonition that Charming Blue Goddess' divine blessings will
continue to descend through my dream prayers.”
“And those blessings will still focus on enhancing my fishman bloodline, not
further raising my level.”
Over the past few days, the fishman youngster's Surging Wave bloodline
concentration had reached 57%.
“Breaking 60% will trigger a qualitative leap, granting me the potential to
reach the saint level!”
The fishman youngster harbored immense anticipation for this breakthrough.
“8,000 divine favor... That's far too much.”
“I must utilize it more effectively!”
Cang Xu teleported away but remained connected to the fishman youngster through
alchemy devices.
Based on intelligence Cang Xu gathered from Zhou Zhang and others, the fishman
youngster was certain the divine favor within him represented a massive asset.
“I don't need all this divine favor myself. I can give some to Cang Xu to use.”
“Though divine favor can't be traded, I can arrange for Cang Xu to pray
alongside me using specific invocations, letting him share in the benefits.”
Cang Xu's investigations revealed numerous successful precedents for such
prayers.
A streak of fire streaked across the ocean.
Hovering above a sea reef, the flame descended and coalesced into a giant.
The giant, clad in a Flame Totem, was none other than Da Dou.
Ever since Shuang Lian caught up to him and inexplicably, incomprehensibly, let
him off the hook.
Da Dou had grown intensely wary and tense.
Fearing Shuang Lian might track him down again, he used the Tunnel Staff until
it was worn out, then fled relentlessly, journeying day and night without rest.
Breathing heavily, his face etched with exhaustion, Da Dou stood on the reef,
scanning the horizon.
After a brief reconnaissance, he quickly determined that this sea reef only
surfaced for a few hours each day, submerged beneath the waves for the majority
of the time.
“The seawater can conceal my tracks to some extent.”
Da Dou felt a flicker of relief and began cultivating his battle qi technique.
He swiftly drew upon his battle qi, replenishing his reserves considerably.
Then, he performed his daily prayers, restoring some of his divine power.
Flying over the sea using his Flame Totem consumed not only his battle qi but
also divine power from the Fire God.
Prayer demanded sincere devotion, while cultivating battle qi left Da Dou
increasingly exhausted.
Yet he did not rest.
Instead, dragging his weary body, he retrieved his silver level iron wok.
He tapped his gold level storage bag, releasing the big guy.
The big guy lay motionless, eyes tightly shut, breathing naturally, still
unconscious.
Da Dou looked at him, a smile spreading across his face. The aching muscles
throughout his body seemed less burdensome.
Da Dou tapped the storage bag again. Flames shot out, landing on the reef and
revealing a sack of rice.
This was gold level rice, each grain as large as a fist. It bore the peculiar
name: How Many Floor Rice. (Note: Name sounds like Kanjiru, which is part of a
meme involving "Itami Kanjiru" which sounds like "How many floors to bring up
this rice?")
Its name was strange, and its effects were peculiar. Simply eating this rice
would cause the eater profound suffering. Pain so intense it brought tears,
unbearable agony!
Its yield was extremely limited, making it a truly unique ingredient.
On ordinary days, Da Dou wouldn't even treat himself to it, but now, for the
sake of the big guy, he brought it out without hesitation.
He scooped a generous ladleful of rice into the iron wok and began stir-frying.
Fortunately, his iron wok possessed the ability to expand its capacity,
otherwise it wouldn't have held such a large quantity of rice.
After stir-frying for a short while, Da Dou sprinkled stretchy cheese over the
mixture.
This cheese emitted an intense, rich aroma. When pulled into strands, it formed
beautiful stretchy patterns, making it a gold level ingredient.
After adding the cheese, Da Dou stopped stir-frying the rice and instead
reduced the heat to simmer it.
Midway through cooking, Da Dou retrieved a dozen vibrantly colored mushrooms.
These mushrooms were called adventure mushrooms.
They grew clustered together, requiring simultaneous harvesting, picking just a
portion would cause the entire cluster to instantly wither.
The peculiarity of these mushrooms lay in their random toxicity and medicinal
properties.
A red mushroom in one cluster might taste like chili pepper, harmless. But a
red mushroom in another cluster could be a bomb, one bite, and it explodes in
your mouth!
A large cluster of adventure mushrooms went into the iron wok.
Soon, the aroma of cooking rice filled the air. When Da Dou finally lifted the
lid, a cloud of white steam erupted, startling the big guy awake.
The aroma was overwhelming.
The big guy instinctively opened his mouth, drool streaming down his chin.
“Hold on a sec, it's not quite done yet,” Da Dou said with a laugh, noticing
the big guy's intense stare at the rice.
Battle skill - Food Compression!
Gold level battle qi enveloped the entire pot of rice, then violently
compressed it.
The intense gold level aura within the pot was forcibly compressed down to
silver level.
“That should do it.”
“This is called brave baked rice. Downgrading it makes it the perfect dish for
you.”
“Eat up, eat up. It's all yours.” Da Dou chuckled, reaching to hand it to the
big guy.
But the big guy's expression changed. A memory surfaced, and he roared, lunging
at Da Dou.
Da Dou sighed, forced to block the attack.
The big guy's transcendent level was lower than his, and his combat skills were
laughable. Da Dou handled him effortlessly, one hand still holding the iron
wok. Without exerting much force, the big guy collapsed from exhaustion.
He was worn out.
Earlier, he'd struggled to swim, expending a lot of energy and swallowing
seawater.
Seeing he still couldn't defeat Da Dou, the big guy turned around again,
plunged back into the water with a splash, and repeated his earlier actions,
jumping into the sea to search for his father once more.
Da Dou sighed, punching out a ball of flame that struck the big guy squarely in
the back, knocking him unconscious.
The flames enveloped the big guy, lifting him out of the sea and tossing him to
Da Dou's feet.
Da Dou looked at the big guy, his eyes tightly shut, stubborn as ever, and
couldn't help but frown.
“What am I supposed to do now?”
As Da Dou pondered solutions, he watched the unconscious giant open his mouth.
Saliva began flowing toward the iron wok in Da Dou's hand.
Da Dou froze, then beamed with delight. “What a powerful bodily instinct!”
“Even unconscious, his body's instincts still drive him to eat ceaselessly,
frantically absorbing nutrients to fuel his growth!”
“Is this the power of a saint level bloodline? It's incredible!”
Da Dou flipped his wrist, pouring out a portion of the brave baked rice.
The big guy's mouth filled with rice, and he immediately began chewing.
After a few bites, his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed the rice whole.
Then, his mouth opened again.
“He's practically starving.”
“Heh, kid, looks like I'm your new babysitter.”
Da Dou chuckled happily and continued feeding him.
After devouring most of the baked rice, the giant's body absorbed the nutrients
and regained strength.
Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. Spotting Da Dou crouched beside him, he
immediately swung a punch.
“Don't hit this pot of rice!” Caught off guard, Da Dou shielded the remaining
baked rice. The giant's fist struck his right eye, turning it purple in an
instant.
Da Dou leapt back, instantly creating distance between himself and the giant.
The big guy rose to his feet and gave chase.
“You little brat...” Da Dou fumed, “You ate my food and now you hit me!”
“I didn't eat it!”
“You're bad! You're the enemy!”
The big guy roared with righteous indignation, unleashing a halo.
Centered on him, the aura amplified his courage and slightly boosted his combat
power.
Da Dou gasped, “Brave Aura?”
Though consuming the brave baked rice did carry a chance to generate a Brave
Aura, Da Dou knew that after his compression, the probability of that happening
was extremely low.
“Unless the consumer has truly exceptional digestive capabilities!”
“This guy, heh heh, your bloodline is top-notch! To digest it to this extent,
you haven't wasted my meal!”
“Oh dear.”
Da Dou chuckled for a moment before the big guy caught up.
He sparred with the big guy, taking blows without retaliating, letting the big
guy fight to his heart's content.
“Work it out, that's the way.”
“The more you expend, the more you'll digest and absorb!”
To boost the big guy's morale, fearing he might see the gap and jump back into
the sea, Da Dou deliberately stopped defending this time.
Soon, his face was a bruised mess.
Seeing hope of defeating a formidable foe, the big guy fought with growing
ferocity.
Even with his battered face, Da Dou beamed with delight.
Snow Bird Harbor Dock.
Ci Hai Shen visited the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch alone.
“Lord Ci Hai Shen, you're looking for me?” Tripleblade asked in surprise.
Ci Hai Shen fixed him with a steady gaze and stated his purpose plainly: “I've
come to nurture you.”
“I reviewed the magic recordings. Your blade work during the alchemy workshop
battle was exceptional.”
“Would you be interested in serving as my assistant? To accompany me to the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's grand ceremony?”



****** Chapter 560: The Situation Develops ******
Due to Da Dou's destruction, Ci Hai Shen's plan to select assistants through
the tasting event had failed.
However, during the battle where Yi Jiu and the other sacrificial warriors
attacked the city's alchemy workshop, Ci Hai Shen unexpectedly discovered
Tripleblade's talent.
At the time, Ci Hai Shen was still engaged in the eating contest. It was only
after reviewing the magic footage of the battle that he learned of this.
“Who is that short human?”
“His sword technique is precise, swift, and accurate. He could barely qualify
as my assistant to help process rare ingredients.”
Faced with Ci Hai Shen's recruitment offer, Tripleblade pondered for a long
time before politely declining.
Ci Hai Shen initially assumed Tripleblade was playing hard to get and raised
his offer.
Tripleblade's declaration of his true intentions left Ci Hai Shen utterly
perplexed!
Having personally come to recruit him, Ci Hai Shen had naturally gathered some
intelligence on Tripleblade.
He knew clearly: Tripleblade held no prominent position within the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, merely an iron level.
Now, faced with an invitation from a gold level, he had actually refused!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn't even have a single true gold level
member. Within the group, Tripleblade would have to participate in dangerous
battles.
But if he became Ci Hai Shen's assistant, he'd only need to chop vegetables and
prepare ingredients to earn far more than his current wages. Not only would it
be safe, but also easy and pleasant.
Yet Tripleblade had turned down such an opportunity!
Rejected, Ci Hai Shen felt his face burn with shame. With a hint of irritation,
he promptly departed Snow Bird Harbor's docks.
Intelligence regarding this incident swiftly reached Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
The city lord pondered thoughtfully, his mind drifting back to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' arms smuggling background, “It appears their backers aren't
confined to high-level operatives, they've also infiltrated mid-level
positions, demonstrating significant control over this mercenary group.”
“Di Bi's true allegiance lies not with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps itself,
but with the mysterious arms dealer behind them.”
“That explains his extraordinary loyalty!”
“I find this arms dealer increasingly intriguing.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord remained unaware that the primary reason for
rejecting Ci Hai Shen's invitation lay in Tripleblade's own personal resolve.
“Had this been before the Mystifying Monster Island incident, I likely would
have accepted Ci Hai Shen's offer.”
“But now, I have resolved to follow Lord Zong Ge!”
“Even if Lord Zong Ge hasn't ascended to gold level yet, he remains more worthy
of my allegiance than Ci Hai Shen.”
Tripleblade's loyalty to Zong Ge stemmed not only from Zong Ge saving his life,
but also because Tripleblade had pinned his life's dreams upon Zong Ge.
"The big guy is still lost."
“Shuang Lian, Bu Quan, even Honey Snow Tower have vanished.”
“But our business plan continues.”
“All thanks to Lord Zong Ge's efforts, and of course, Zi Di's.”
“The Li Jian Clan has taken over potion production; we no longer need to
manufacture them here.”
“And according to their schedule, they should be nearing the royal capital
soon, right?”
Within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' business strategy, Zi Di and Zong Ge's
entry into the royal capital held extraordinary significance.
It signaled the preliminary completion of their shop network and the successful
establishment of sales channels. This laid the foundational platform for their
upcoming grand expansion.
Not only Tripleblade was monitoring Zong Ge and Zi Di's progress; Mei Lin was
watching as well.
Despite their recent victories over Shuang Lian and Honey Snow Tower, Mei Lin
showed no signs of relaxation or complacency.
“The tactic of attacking the enemy's weak points can no longer be sustained,”
Mei Lin assessed the situation.
The Snow Bird Harbor raid she personally orchestrated had destroyed four
alchemy workshops, achieving its objective.
However, Shuang Lian's subsequent reinforcements, bolstered by the Honey Snow
Tower's formidable resources, swiftly rebuilt all four workshops. This rendered
the sacrifices of the sacrificial warriors almost laughable.
It meant Mei Lin had traded the lives of her sacrificial warriors for a mere
portion of the enemy's resources.
Such a costly exchange and outcome were not something Mei Lin was willing to
bear.
“Besides, the Li Jian Clan now handles production of the dragon rider potions.”
Mei Lin had no intention of continuing raids on potion production facilities.
The Li Jian Clan ranked among the kingdom's top three clans. Targeting them
would cause immense repercussions, creating complications too difficult to
manage.
“What price did the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps pay to persuade the Li Jian
Clan to set aside their pride and engage in such deep cooperation?”
Mei Lin was deeply curious.
Unfortunately, even she found it difficult to uncover intelligence on this
matter.
The only participants in that negotiation were Zi Di, Zong Ge, and Mian Li
Zang.
“Even without targeting the Li Jian Clan, we can still thwart the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' plans.”
Mei Lin had already envisioned two approaches.
The first was to continue leveraging the Alchemy Guild.
Earlier, Mei Lin had visited the Snow Cake Tower Master, successfully curbing
the Guild's search efforts for Shuang Lian.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' attempt to monopolize the dragon rider potion
market directly infringes upon the Alchemy Guild's interests.”
"The two sides are natural adversaries. However, the Alchemy Guild suffers from
bloated personnel, a cumbersome structure, and rampant corruption, rendering it
sluggish. At present, its response in the potion market lags behind even the
Jing Xiang Clan."
The Jing Xiang Clan represented the second avenue.
Thus far, this family has shouldered the primary task of blocking the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps' commercial advance.
Though they haven't been completely stopped, they have certainly slowed the
enemy's progress.
“Long Fu, Yao Ma, and their cohorts are nearly entering the royal capital.”
"Their strategy is indeed clever, overlaying operations on top of the Li Jian
Clan's existing shops. This makes it extremely difficult for us to take action
against these establishments."
"Their true weakness lies with Long Fu. Of course, that's also the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' greatest strength."
“To truly crush them, we must uncover how Long Fu single-handedly defeated
three opponents, swiftly eliminating Jia Bing and the others without giving
them a chance to fight back.”
“The other gold level members who know the truth refuse to confront Long Fu. I
won't sacrifice lives for intelligence either.”
“Hua Tang... he's the ideal candidate for reconnaissance.”
“This guy vanished without a trace after setting sail from Snow Bird Harbor.”
“Where the hell did he end up?”
Achoo!
Hua Tang sneezed violently.
He found himself in a dimly lit cave.
“Keep it down!” Other transcendents nearby glared at Hua Tang in unison.
Hua Tang raised his arm and laughed heartily. “Sorry, I think... I've caught a
cold!”
“Don't speak so loudly!” The transcendents opened their mouths, silently
shouting through lip movements.
But it was too late.
A shrill crow suddenly pierced the air.
The transcendents all wore horrified expressions and scattered in a panic.
“It's coming!”
“Run, quick!”
“Eat that guy instead, don't eat me!”
The transcendents fled frantically.
The caves here branched off in countless directions, forming a complex network
of passages.
A colossal figure suddenly darted out, moving so swiftly it left afterimages on
their retinas.
The massive form abruptly halted, snatching a transcendent in its jaws.
Simultaneously, it became visible to ordinary eyes.
It was a gigantic python, its body at least three meters in diameter. Its head
resembled a rooster's, covered in fluffy blue-green feathers.
A massive comb, transitioning from red to yellow, stood erect atop the head,
fiery and vivid.
The python's scales were black, interspersed with yellow markings.
The unfortunate transcendent, seized by the beak, froze instantly. In the blink
of an eye, he was poisoned to death.
A Cockscomb Ration Python.
Saint level!
Hua Tang pressed his back flat against the cave wall, his breath utterly still.



****** Chapter 561: Hua Tang – Long Fu Killed My Friend?! ******
In the damp, dim cave, the Cockscomb Ration Python Snake's plump python body
slithered before Hua Tang's eyes.
The distance between them was extremely close, the snake's scales nearly
brushing Hua Tang's face.
Hua Tang held his breath, motionless.
After several seconds, the Cockscomb Ration Python finally slithered past him.
Its plump tail appeared even more bloated than its body, clearly brimming with
fat.
Hua Tang exhaled a cloud of stale breath.
As a gold level thief, his expertise lay in intelligence gathering and theft,
not combat, certainly not confronting a magic beast like the Cockscomb Ration
Python head-on.
Currently disguised as an unremarkable silver level transcendent, he had been
exploring this cavern for roughly a month.
“Why can't I find the Thief Saint's legacy?”
“Where on earth is it hidden?”
After obtaining crucial intelligence from Teng Dong Lang, Hua Tang had set
sail. Following a long journey, he arrived at a deserted island.
From the caves within this barren island, the piercing crow of roosters
frequently echoed.
This peculiar phenomenon drew numerous adventurers and treasure hunters, Hua
Tang merely one among them.
“The Thief Saint's hoard lies within the Rooster Crow Cave.”
“This is the closest I've come to the Rooster Crow Cave in all my years of
searching.”
“But why can't I find the Thief Saint's legacy?”
“Not only can't I find it, but there's not even a single clue?”
Hua Tang watched the python's tail vanish into the shadows ahead, confirming
the Cockscomb Ration Python had completely departed. Only then did he exhale a
breath of stale air and peel his back off the damp cave wall.
His expression was grim.
Though the Cockscomb Ration Python possessed a saint level power, deceiving
such a beast was no great feat for Hua Tang with his skills.
Not a trace of satisfaction graced his face.
He cared more about the Thief Saint's legacy, yet beyond the Cockscomb Ration
Python, he held no other leads.
“This cave's terrain is complex, but I'm certain I've explored every inch.”
“Could it be that the true clues only reveal themselves when the cavern
floods?” Hua Tang mused inwardly.
For the majority of the day, the cavern remained submerged in seawater. During
the midnight high tide, the entire cavern was even completely submerged.
The only part Hua Tang hadn't explored was likely the cavern when it was
flooded by seawater.
Just as he prepared to shift his search direction, the sound of fierce combat
suddenly erupted from another area.
Hua Tang immediately activated his battle skill to sharpen his hearing.
He heard the agonized screams of transcendents, the whistling of cutting
weapons swung at breakneck speed, and the shrieks of the Cockscomb Ration
Python.
Hua Tang froze in shock: “There's a gold level transcendent here. Their aura is
sharp and overwhelming. Who could it be? Actually holding their own against a
Cockscomb Ration Python?"
Hua Tang instantly concluded that any gold level being here was extraordinary.
“But it's none of my business...” Hua Tang prepared to retreat, creating
distance between himself and the battle.
Yet at that moment, the sounds of combat rapidly drew nearer instead.
Confused, Hua Tang immediately activated his battle skill, leaving an
illusionary double behind.
His true form slipped away, while the illusion retained his previous aura,
serving as bait.
A dozen seconds later, the charging gold level arrived.
Spotting the bait Hua Tang had left behind, his eyes flashed with sharpness.
Without hesitation, he chose a direction and charged into a side passage,
precisely the route Hua Tang’s true form had taken.
Along the way, he encountered numerous transcendents, each one swiftly
dispatched.
“That gold level is chasing me?”
“He's got a killer instinct; he's taken out all the other transcendents!”
“Hmm, wait...”
Hua Tang sensed something, a peculiar expression flickering across his face.
Instead of continuing his escape, he halted and remained rooted to the spot.
Before long, the gold level pursued him from behind.
This gold level bore a wide white feather cloak, a bronze beast-face mask over
his head, and wielded a scythe with a shaft nearly two meters long. The
scythe's blade gleamed like a mirror, flashing a sharp, icy glint.
Hua Tang blurted out, “Feng Lian, it really is you!”
Feng Lian ignored him completely. With a light flick of his scythe, he
unleashed a wind blade.
A gold level wind blade possessed formidable power, but its most terrifying
aspect was its speed, so fast it was nearly impossible for ordinary people to
react.
Hua Tang dodged it effortlessly, simultaneously shedding his disguise.
He wore a white robe adorned with intricate, vibrant floral patterns. His face
was concealed by a silver-white fox mask, revealing only his pink pupils.
“Hold your attack, it's me!” Hua Tang shouted at Feng Lian.
Feng Lian had already withdrawn his blade before Hua Tang made a move.
The golden wind blade sliced through empty air.
Feng Lian's hoarse voice echoed: “Hua Tang, I've finally found you.”
“You came looking for me?” Hua Tang paused in surprise.
Feng Lian stated his purpose bluntly: “I need that Eye of Concealment you
possess. I need it urgently!"
Hua Tang retrieved a small seal from his robe and tossed it to Feng Lian.
“Here.”
Watching Feng Lian catch it, Hua Tang added, “Return it as soon as possible. I
still need it to inspect this cavern.”
Their relationship was clearly unusual. The Eye of Concealment was an artifact
of gold level, yet Hua Tang lent it without hesitation. When Feng Lian asked to
borrow it, he showed no courtesy whatsoever, as if it were his right.
Feng Lian was somewhat surprised. “You've been here nearly a month. Haven't you
finished exploring yet?”
Hua Tang gave a bitter smile. “You have no idea how complex the terrain here
is.”
“The crux is that a saint level sea beast dwells here, severely disrupting my
plans.”
“But I've found a new approach. I intend to explore again during high tide.”
Feng Lian grasped much from his words. Shaking his head, he stated bluntly,
“You should give up.”
“In a month, you've made no progress, still stuck in the initial stage of
searching for clues.”
"The likelihood of this being the Thief Saint's inheritance treasure is slim.
Many transcendents arrived here before you, only to lose their lives without
finding anything."
Hua Tang also shook his head. “No. Even if there's just a sliver of
possibility, I'll strive for it. I won't let any chance slip away easily.”
“Staying here is a waste of your time,” Feng Lian said. “It seems you're
unaware of what happened at Snow Bird Harbor.”
Hua Tang froze. “What happened?”
“Teng Dong Lang died.” Feng Lian's tone remained steady.
Hua Tang's voice shot up, nearly shrill: "What did you say?!"
“He died in a heroic duel, witnessed by tens of thousands.”
“The one who killed him was a dragonman named Long Fu. He's the commander of
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, an outside force.”
“Long Fu...” Hua Tang repeated the dragonman youngster's pseudonym, his
expression blank.
Feng Lian continued, “Most crucially, during this heroic duel, Long Fu only
displayed silver level strength.”
“He defeated a gold level opponent while only displaying silver level strength.
Teng Dong Lang became the stepping stone for his nationwide fame.”
Hua Tang's expression shifted again.
Feng Lian watched him silently, his confidence unwavering.
He knew the depth of the bond between Hua Tang and Teng Dong Lang. He didn't
believe Hua Tang would still have the heart to stay here treasure hunting after
hearing such earth-shattering news.
Sure enough, Hua Tang gritted his teeth, his gaze fixed on Feng Lian. “You just
used a term, ‘Long Fu only displayed silver level strength.’ What does that
mean?”
“Could it be... he's concealing his true cultivation level?”
Feng Lian shrugged. “I believe so.”
“Let me share another shocking revelation.”
“After Teng Dong Lang's death, the remnants of the Bayonet Gang contacted me. I
personally intervened, helping them escape Snow Bird Harbor.”
“After that, Long Fu traveled around the Ice Sculpture Kingdom with a group of
people, opening shops everywhere and aggressively selling a magic potion called
dragon rider.”
“This potion sold like hotcakes. Riding on Long Fu's fame, it practically
monopolized the kingdom's market for mount potions.”
“Most crucially, the Axe Gang leader, Jia Bing, and Lin joined forces to ambush
Long Fu mid-journey.”
"Yet Long Fu single-handedly defeated all three in swift succession. On-site
investigation revealed almost no signs of resistance!"
Hua Tang's expression darkened: “All three were gold level, yet Long Fu ended
them with such ease.”
“Long Fu must have concealed most of his strength!”
“What exactly is the background of this Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
Feng Lian shook his head: "On the surface, they're a mercenary group dabbling
in potion sales. But most believe they're actually arms smugglers. Their
arrival in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is to sell their weapons."
“Their current operation is using potions as a front to establish distribution
channels.”
"Oh, and they've formed a partnership with the Li Jian Clan. They now produce
dragon rider potions for the corps."
Hua Tang gritted his teeth in fury: “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps... and the
Li Jian Clan...”
“I smell conspiracy!”
“I'm heading back. Immediately.”
"Feng Lian, where's your ship? Lend me one!"
Hua Tang's tone contained no politeness.
Feng Lian replied, “Seven nautical miles away.”
“That far?”
Feng Lian sighed, “I can briefly hold my own against the saint level sea beast,
but my fleet is too conspicuous a target to withstand them.”
Hua Tang waved impatiently. “Enough. I'm boarding the ship. We must return at
once.”
“Such a catastrophe has occurred, claiming so many lives!”
"I'll see for myself what kind of man this Long Fu fellow is. What tricks does
he have up his sleeve?"
“Where is he according to the latest intelligence?”
Feng Lian pondered briefly before replying, “Based on their itinerary, they've
likely already reached the Ice Sculpture Capital.”
The Ice Sculpture Capital.
After the spatial fluctuations vanished, the Spatial Shuttle dissolved into
nothingness, depositing a group of people.
First came all members of the Spatial Shuttle Squad who had deployed battle
skills, followed by Zong Ge, Zi Di, and their companions.
“We've finally made it... to the Ice Sculpture Capital,” Zi Di murmured.
Only three companions remained by her side besides Zong Ge.
When they departed Snow Bird Harbor, their numbers were large. Yet as Zi Di
deployed personnel across the kingdom and reorganized her businesses, most
mercenaries stayed behind in various regions.
Arriving here meant her commercial plan was already more than halfway
accomplished!



****** Chapter 562: The Royal Capital Is Under Attack ******
Zi Di surveyed her surroundings, her vision dominated by towering city walls.
The walls weren't built from stone bricks but rather ice bricks. They were
incredibly high, Zi Di estimated at least 300 meters.
The crenellations along the crest undulated like the ridges of a shield,
instantly reminding Zi Di of a gold level shield, the Thin Ice High Wall
Shield.
Back in Snow Bird Harbor, Teng Dong Lang had wielded such a shield to withstand
the fierce assault of the dragonman youngster.
Zi Di's gaze lingered on the walls, the resemblance growing clearer with each
passing moment.
Unlike most castle walls, the Ice Sculpture Capital's walls were tall yet thin,
exuding an ethereal, elven delicacy.
Zong Ge also studied the walls, silently assessing their defensive
capabilities.
“Walls this high naturally offer excellent anti-air capabilities.”
“With a few ballistae positioned here, they'd provide formidable long-range
firepower.”
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and their group were not far from the walls.
The transcendents of the Li Jian Clan had been waiting for some time. Now,
smiling, they approached to greet them: “Lord Long Fu, Lord Yao Ma, the
carriage is ready. This way, please.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps boarded the carriage.
The carriage immediately set off, carrying them toward the location of the
shops.
Seated inside, Zi Di looked around.
The first thing she saw were ice sculptures.
Ice sculptures of all kinds, large and small. Some as big as mammoths, others
as tiny as ant colonies.
"This is the Wild Beast Road. The ice sculptures lining both sides depict
beasts." Inside the carriage, the transcendent from the Li Jian Clan provided a
timely explanation.
“Beyond Wild Beast Road, there's Element Road, where the ice sculptures along
the path take the forms of elemental beings.”
“In the city center lies Portrait Road, subdivided into over a dozen sections.
Each is designed based on the intelligent races of the present world.”
Zi Di nodded slightly, showing no hint of surprise. She had already learned
about these details before arriving at the royal capital.
Still, the sensory experience of seeing them firsthand differed greatly from
what she had read in intelligence reports.
Zong Ge inquired, “Are these ice sculptures mobile? Can they be used for
combat?”
The receptionist from the Li Jian Clan nodded, his tone brimming with pride.
“Indeed. This is a unique alchemy technique exclusive to our nation, considered
exceptional worldwide.”
“Each ice sculpture is an animated alchemy puppet, possessing sentience and
combat capability.”
“Of course, their levels of sentience vary, as do their combat strengths.”
Zong Ge pressed further, "I've heard the Ice Sculpture Capital houses at least
a hundred thousand of these sculptures, including over three thousand silver
level puppets and nearly five hundred gold level ones. Is this count accurate?"
The Li Jian Clan representative nodded, then shook his head slightly. “Based on
the currently displayed sculptures, that figure is correct.”
“But in reality, the numbers are far greater.”
“Beneath our feet, vast numbers of ice puppets likely remain concealed.”
"These underground puppets generally possess superior combat capabilities to
those above ground. As for their specific levels and scale, that falls under
our nation's military secrets."
Zi Di followed up: “Is there truly a vast lake beneath the Ice Sculpture
Capital?”
According to intelligence reports, the snow elf ancestors who first migrated
here discovered the Ten Millennia Ice Lake at the island's center.
The lake was vast, rich in ice element resources.
Overjoyed, the ancestors decided to settle there.
Over time, the lake had been filled in. The snow elves built the Ice Sculpture
Capital atop the lake.
The receptionist nodded in confirmation. “There's no doubt about it. We are
currently above the ancient ice lake.”
“Rest assured, Lords. We are perfectly safe.”
“The ice layer covering the Ten Millennia Ice Lake is nearly a kilometer thick,
growing harder the deeper you go.”
“The Ten Millennia Ice Lake is now fully under our nation's control and is
undergoing sustainable development.”
"We have numerous laboratories and alchemy chambers established within the lake
waters beneath the ice. Some renowned ice sculptors specialize in collecting
water from the lake's depths, freezing it into ice blocks to serve as their
primary material for carving and other artistic creations."
A fragment of intelligence flashed through Zi Di's mind.
The waters of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake held significant secrets. The surface
waters were several years old, while deeper layers contained water decades old.
At a depth of one hundred meters below the surface lay century-old lake water.
extracted, it became century ice.
By extension, there existed one-thousand-year ice and ten-thousand-year ice.
This resource was exceedingly rare. Legend had it that a god level time dragon
once fell, causing spatial anomalies in the lake and transforming its waters.
The power of time condensed within the lake water, merging with the properties
of ice and snow to form this unique resource.
Century ice already possessed a certain degree of sentience. By the thousand
year mark, this sentience grew increasingly potent. Ten-thousand-year ice held
profound sentience, surpassing that of ordinary humans.
Ice sculpture masters employ unique alchemy techniques and carving methods to
shape this frozen time into forms, channeling its spirituality to awaken
it—thus creating each ice sculpture.
These sculptures possess innate sentience, becoming ubiquitous statues
throughout the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's capital.
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's alchemy techniques are built upon the super-
resource site of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.”
"A significant portion of Jia Bing's ice sculpture construction methods
involves ice sculpture craftsmanship. This craftsmanship holds a crucial
position within the entire manufacturing process."
Zi Di gazed at the ice sculptures, her mind recalling Jia Bing's alchemy
records.
They had seized numerous spoils from Jia Bing's alchemy laboratory and even
discovered a secret passage to the legacy of Fan Sheng Za Zhong.
Ever since, Zi Di devoted every spare moment to studying Jia Bing's alchemy
records.
She had long harbored a deep fascination with the ice-carving techniques of the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
But the primary reason was that an unfinished gold level ice gargoyle belonging
to Jia Bing had fallen into Zi Di's hands. Naturally, Zi Di yearned to complete
this feat, to fully craft the gold level ice gargoyle!
“Jia Bing's personal alchemy knowledge and materials don't represent the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's most advanced ice-carving techniques.”
“Nor are they the pinnacle of its essence.”
“But how do I acquire that core expertise?”
“Lords, we've arrived at the shop.” The receptionist's voice interrupted Zi
Di's thoughts.
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others dismounted from the carriage.
Zi Di entered the shop to inspect it thoroughly, reviewed the recent accounts,
and held multiple discussions with key personnel.
After this round of investigations, she gained a comprehensive and profound
understanding of the shop's operations.
“This is the Ice Sculpture Capital's shop.”
“As you've likely noticed, it's the largest establishment we've surveyed.”
“It holds immense importance; it will serve as our flagship store in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom!”
…
After giving detailed instructions to the three mercenaries, Zi Di arranged for
their accommodations.
With this, the preliminary phase of Zi Di's business plan was complete!
“Next, we'll select one or two alchemy weapons to distribute nationwide.”
“But before that, we must study the market and choose carefully.”
Zi Di looked forward to this phase, brimming with confidence in War Merchant’s
database and full of ambition.
That evening, Zong Ge and Zi Di attended a banquet specially hosted by the Li
Jian Clan.
Numerous high-ranking figures were invited to the feast. Attendants accompanied
Zong Ge and Zi Di throughout, introducing them to influential individuals from
various capitals.
Zong Ge remained reserved and taciturn, while Zi Di truly shone. With the Li
Jian Clan paving the way, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' network began to
take shape that very evening!
By late night, Zi Di, exhausted from the day's exertions, had depleted both her
physical and mental energy, leaving her too drained for further activities.
After a good night's rest, Zong Ge gathered intelligence through channels like
the Thieves' Guild the next day, focusing particularly on the national alchemy
market.
Zi Di delved deeply into this intelligence while also paying visits to several
relatively more important figures.
These high-ranking individuals held such elevated status that the Li Jian Clan
had deemed it inappropriate to invite them to last night's welcome banquet.
After all, the evening's focal points were Zong Ge and Zi Di, figures
insufficiently distinguished to warrant personally inviting such dignitaries.
The visits yielded no major breakthroughs, serving primarily to establish
familiarity and underscore the close ties between the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps and the Li Jian Clan.
Thus, another day passed.
The arrival of Zong Ge and Zi Di was met with widespread welcome, greeted with
warmth and curiosity.
Many gathered around Zong Ge, complimenting his feat of defeating the gold
level Teng Dong Lang and asking about his experience during the battle, his
reasoning behind his tactics, and so on.
By the third evening, the intense scrutiny had eased considerably, and the
royal capital had largely accepted the arrival of “Long Fu” and his companions.
Zi Di finally found her opportunity. She quietly cast the Deceptive Disguise
spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
She had already scouted the terrain and spent over ten minutes walking to a
shopfront.
This location was no longer in the bustling downtown area.
The shop remained open late into the night, not passing up a single
transaction.
It was the Wisteria shop.
Zi Di lowered her hood, wearing a mask as she entered the shop.
The clerk greeted her warmly upon her arrival: “Good evening, what might I
assist you with today?”
Zi Di approached him and presented the Wisteria secret order.
The clerk's eyes widened instantly: “Level seven secret order?!”
He bowed deeply, asking Zi Di to wait briefly before scurrying off to fetch the
shop manager.
The manager personally verified the authenticity of the Wisteria secret order
before Zi Di, his demeanor shifting to one of profound respect. He declared his
willingness to obey any command she might issue.
“Take me to the magic messaging unit,” Zi Di instructed.
Soon, she stood before the terminal.
This communication device was standard equipment for the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance. While not every shop possessed one, every outpost was equipped with
it!
The magic messaging unit stood as tall as a person, topped with a circular
platform featuring a central groove. Simply place a stone tablet inscribed with
messages into the groove, activate the tower, and the information would be
transmitted outward.
Its transmission range was limited, but by installing multiple towers, messages
could be relayed over long distances.
This method strikes a balance between performance and cost, offering excellent
value.
Zi Di had previously used a messaging unit on Two Eyes Island to send a
“blackmail letter” to the Bai Zhen Clan.
Yet, to this day, no reply had arrived.
Zi Di had no way of knowing what exactly went wrong.
This time, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had come to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom specifically to attempt another delivery using the local messaging
unit.
However, Zi Di didn't immediately put down the long stone slab. Instead, she
mentally accessed the station's historical records for inspection.
Seconds later, her eyes widened in shock and anger. "What's going on? This
messaging unit never received my previous letter!"
“Where did it go wrong?”
“Two Eyes Island? Or... here?”
Just as Zi Di pondered this, four figures abruptly materialized, encircling
her.
Alchemy chains shot forth, instantly binding Zi Di in a tight, inescapable
knot!
“Gotcha, remnant of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance!” The enemy exclaimed, their
expression brimming with excitement.



****** Chapter 563: The Empire&#x27;s Investigation ******
The gold level warship cut through the night sea, riding the wind and waves.
The cube-shaped forecastle gleamed with gold and splendor, its opulent aura
unmasked even by the darkness.
This was the Empire's warship, the Treasure Chest.
Captain Tan Mo, also one of the Empire's Rear Admirals, stood at the bow,
gazing into the distance.
Within the thick night, an island gradually came into view.
“Two Eyes Island, we've finally arrived!” Tan Mo's heart swelled with joy.
In that moment, intelligence on Two Eyes Island surfaced in his mind.
The island's location was prime, sandwiched between the Magic Power Shipping
Route and the Masked Shipping Route, making it a hub of thriving commerce.
Two Eyes Island was also unique, it was itself a giant living organism, a coral
cage tree. It had grown from two branches of a single cage tree, an outstanding
achievement of artificial intervention. The Blue Green Coral fishman clan had
paid a tremendous effort and cost, while the Hun Tong had ultimately claimed
the fruits of their labor.
The patrol fleet signaled and approached the Treasure Chest.
The fleet's leader, the silver level One Eye, wore a broad smile. "Lord Tan Mo,
you've arrived! Our island lord has been awaiting you for quite some time.
Please follow me into port."
Tan Mo leapt suddenly, transferring directly from the Treasure Chest to the
patrol vessel, startling One Eye.
Tan Mo smiled, patting One Eye's shoulder. “Then let's hurry back to port.”
Though he was the captain, his days aboard the Treasure Chest had been
grueling. He was carrying several important figures: a saint level shield
guardian, a gold level Secret Gate Church believer, and one with even more
formidable connections, a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution!
In their presence, Tan Mo could only bow and scrape, serving them diligently.
The patrol fleet escorted the Treasure Chest smoothly into port.
Two Eyes Island possessed no natural harbor, nor even a sandy beach.
This dock bore the unmistakable marks of human construction, with exposed tree
roots, vines, and coral visible everywhere.
“Lord Tan Mo, welcome to Two Eyes Island.” The island lord, Hun Tong, opened
his arms wide and embraced Tan Mo warmly as he leapt onto the dock first.
Hun Tong was deeply concerned about the arrival of this group.
The reason was the appearance of necromancer traces on Two Eyes Island, and his
own defection during the fishmen offensive, where he had killed many of his own
comrades.
All of this required investigation.
Thus, Hun Tong displayed both intense warmth and palpable tension.
Tan Mo returned the embrace tightly.
His thoughts, however, were elsewhere: "I made a fortune on Snake Rat Island,
but Two Eyes Island is far wealthier. Despite the beast tide and the fishmen's
offensive, Hun Tong struck it rich."
“Tan Qiu's spoils pale in comparison to his haul!”
With Hun Tong facing investigation, there was immense potential for extraction.
As this thought crossed Tan Mo's mind, he squeezed Hun Tong's back harder, as
if trying to pull a pile of gold coins into his own embrace.
Tan Mo's heart burned with fervor.
Feeling this “heat,” Hun Tong's tension eased slightly.
He leaned close to Tan Mo's ear and whispered, "Lord, the banquet is ready for
you. There's also an after-dinner entertainment program, guaranteed to immerse
you in the exotic charm of Two Eyes Island."
Tan Mo's mouth split into a silent grin.
Hun Tong was so considerate!
“Hold on a moment,” Tan Mo said. “The key figure in this investigation is still
aboard my ship.”
“No rush, no rush,” Hun Tong replied, his face plastered with smiles.
As the warship entered the harbor, Tu Ji of the Blood Light Punishment
Institution stepped ashore and approached Tan Mo.
He flatly declined Hun Tong's invitation, his tone stiff and gaze icy: “Eat?
Nothing matters more than the investigation.”
“Even a moment's delay could cost us the precious chance to hunt down the
necromancer!”
“It's precisely because you've been so careless, complacent, and negligent that
Two Eyes Island has become a haven for the necromancers!”
Tu Ji's words left Hun Tong stammering in protest.
Hun Tong instantly grasped Tu Ji's temperament and turned to Tan Mo with
pleading eyes.
Tan Mo, however, averted his gaze, as if his earlier enthusiasm had been an
illusion.
“Let Tu Ji take the lead first. There's nothing wrong with that.”
“The more Hun Tong grasps the gravity of the situation, the more money he'll
cough up, right?”
Tan Mo had his own calculations.
Thus, when Tu Ji disrupted the lavish banquet, Tan Mo felt no regret.
What was a meal worth?
Even the most lavish “entertainment” couldn't compare to the glittering gold
coins.
While inwardly cursing Tu Ji as a madman, Hun Tong had no choice but to lead
them into the city government palace.
Following prior arrangements, he had already prepared the interrogation
chamber.
As the city lord, he had arranged an interrogation chamber within his own
residence.
Though Two Eyes Island lay a considerable distance from the Sheng Ming Empire,
Hun Tong remained firmly under the Empire's control.
Separated by a desk, the two parties took their seats.
Tu Ji occupied the seat of authority, his gaze fixed on the standing Hun Tong
as he demanded, “Island Lord Hun Tong, traces of a necromancer have appeared
twice within your Two Eyes Island.”
“First question: When the first necromancer surfaced, why did you choose to
conduct your own search instead of reporting it to the Empire, to the Blood
Light Punishment Institution?”
Tan Mo occupied the secondary seat, his tone gentle and face smiling. “Lord Hun
Tong, no need to be overly tense. Speak freely.”
“The Empire is just. It spares no villain yet wrongs no innocent!”
Tu Ji frowned slightly but ultimately refrained from contradicting Tan Mo.
He understood Tan Mo's role extended beyond that of a fleet captain, he was
also an imperial military investigator.
Tu Ji had only one objective: to hunt down the necromancer. Tan Mo, however,
was here to investigate and verify the allegations that Hun Tong had killed his
own comrades during the fierce battle.
Hun Tong forced a faint smile at Tan Mo, then turned to Tu Ji with solemn
gravity. “The circumstances are rather complex. I must begin with how I seized
control of the Two Eyes Island.”
Tu Ji's brow furrowed deeper. He was about to snap, “Make it quick!”
But Tan Mo spoke first, his eyes crinkling in a smile. "No rush, Island Lord
Hun Tong. The more detail, the better. It will help us assess and verify the
facts. We might even uncover clues about the necromancer hidden within the
information."
Tan Mo's last remark was clearly directed at Tu Ji.
Tu Ji snorted coldly but refrained from arguing. Instead, he fixed Hun Tong
with an even sharper gaze.
Hun Tong took a deep breath, striving to make his tone steady and authoritative
to bolster credibility. “Though I seized Two Eyes Island, I never fully
eradicated the perpetrators.”
“The perpetrators are the Blue Green Coral fishman clan.”
“I once attempted an underwater assault, suffering heavy losses. Recovering
from those injuries alone consumed months of my time.”
“Since then, I've understood that relying solely on my own strength to
eradicate the fishman clan hiding deep underwater is exceedingly difficult.”
“And just when I was at a complete loss, an imperial spy approached me, seeking
contact.”
“His code name is Shadow. He is an intelligence operative dispatched by the
Imperial Secret Spy Agency, specifically assigned to handle matters concerning
Two Eyes Island.”



****** Chapter 564: Secret Spy - Shadow ******
Two Eyes Island, city government palace, interrogation room.
“Shadow...” Tu Ji gave a slight nod.
He knew Shadow.
Before arriving, he had studied the reports submitted by both Hun Tong and
Shadow.
“Where is Shadow now?” Tu Ji asked.
This time, before Hun Tong could answer, Tan Mo turned with a smile toward Tu
Ji: He's waiting just outside the door, Lord Tu Ji. Should you wish to
interrogate him, he can be summoned at any moment."
Tu Ji frowned again.
Tan Mo's apparent politeness was actually a declaration of sovereignty, telling
him: Shadow is the Empire's secret agent. He cannot be touched without
permission!
But Tu Ji still issued a firm order: “Bring Shadow in.”
The door opened and closed.
The imperial secret agent, Shadow, stood before Tu Ji and Tan Mo.
Tu Ji stared at him for a long moment before coldly interrogating, “Shadow, you
possess only bronze level cultivation. Yet as far as I know, Yan Ding, also an
imperial secret agent, holds the highest gold level.”
“Why isn't he Shadow? Why isn't he the head of this region?”
“Why is it you?”
“If you were brought here to be a scapegoat for Yan Ding, you can say so now.”
"Rest assured, no one can touch you. Because you are now a witness for the
Blood Light Punishment Institution!"
Shadow raised his head, a bitter smile on his face, and shook his head. “Lord
Tu Ji, I fully understand your confusion.”
“But this is indeed the truth.”
"I am the genuine Shadow, not some hastily appointed sacrificial pawn. Though
Yan Ding is gold level, he still operates under my command."
Tan Mo interjected again: “Lord Tu Ji, here is Shadow's dossier.”
“To be honest, I once shared your doubts.”
“But after reviewing his records, I realized why the organization promoted him
to lead an entire region.”
“This is internal intelligence from our Imperial Secret Spy Agency. You may
examine it.”
“Sometimes we must acknowledge that certain individuals possess extraordinary
talent, yet are unlucky enough to lack sufficient bloodline to attain the
requisite transcendent level!”
Tu Ji took the documents, skimmed them quickly, and after a moment of silence,
looked back at the Shadow. “Then tell me about yourself first.”
The young Shadow's expression grew solemn. “My true name is Yan Yi. I am a
member of the Duo Mu Clan.”
"Once, I enlisted voluntarily, aspiring to be a vanguard in the Sheng Ming
Empire's conquest of the Wilderness Continent. But ultimately, I was recruited
into the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, becoming one of its agents."
“Eight years ago, I received orders from the organization to infiltrate the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
"Through careful maneuvering, particularly by emphasizing my relationship with
the island lord, I successfully gained acceptance into the merchant alliance,
becoming a stationed agent at the Wisteria store here. Thus, the initial
infiltration mission was accomplished."
“After the Wisteria Merchant Alliance's reorganization, I remained as the
stationed representative while secretly fulfilling my duty as an imperial
secret agent, proactively eliminating all potential threats to ensure a stable
environment for the Empire's subsequent troop deployments and supply lines.”
"Three years ago, under my command, subordinates infiltrated the Vinegar Jar
Pirates. Through this intelligence channel, I uncovered the Vinegar Jar
Pirates' close ties to the Blue Green Coral fishman clan. The latter had long
been plotting to reclaim Two Eyes Island."
"Lord Hun Tong had been attempting to eradicate this fishman clan, his
objectives aligned perfectly with my mission. There exists significant
potential for cooperation between us."
“Therefore, I proactively revealed my identity as a secret agent and devised a
strategy with Lord Hun Tong.”
“We would pose as traitors, leaking intelligence to the Vinegar Jar Pirates.
This would enable them to repeatedly intercept merchant ships with precision
for plunder, thereby earning their trust.”
"Once that foundation of trust was established, we would lure the pirates into
a trap, thereby drawing the main force of the Blue Green Coral fishman clan
into a direct landing assault. This would create a decisive opportunity for the
island lord to annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop."
At this point, Tu Ji of the Blood Light Punishment Institution interrupted:
“The report stated that you discovered the first necromancer?”
“Why did you not report it to the Empire first, but instead launched your own
search operation?”
Tu Ji posed the same question to Yan Yi as Hun Tong had.
Yan Yi licked his dry lips and explained, "To be precise, it wasn't me who
found the necromancer first, but the fishman Xi Dai Zi. This point is detailed
in the report."
Tu Ji stared expressionlessly at Yan Yi. “Repeat the entire incident in
detail.”
Yan Yi nodded hastily. “Yes.”
“At that time, Two Eyes Island was at the pivotal moment of its ebb and flow
cycle.”
"This is the moment when Two Eyes Island's defenses are at their weakest. The
island's residents must relocate, infrastructure requires rebuilding, and
ecological shifts will trigger beast swarms.
Based on our analysis, the Vinegar Jar Pirates and the Blue Green Coral fishman
clan will likely seize this opportunity to reclaim Two Eyes Island."
"Events have confirmed this prediction."
“The Vinegar Jar Pirates, under the pretext of raiding Two Eyes Island,
blackmailed us into not only providing military layout maps but also serving as
inside collaborators during their operation.”
“To lure both the Vinegar Jar Pirates and the main force of the fishman clan
into attacking the island, we feigned cooperation with them.”
"A preliminary agreement was reached when Xi Dai Zi unexpectedly discovered a
thief. This thief, named Xu Ma, belonged to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. He
accidentally stumbled upon the secret meeting and overheard our covert
collaboration."
"Xi Dai Zi naturally wouldn't let Xu Ma escape. He immediately attacked, which
in turn drew the attention of a necromancer. As the fierce battle raged, the
battlefield shifted."
“The necromancer unleashed undead spells, emerging victorious but thereby
exposing his location.”
“Xi Dai Zi fled, wounded.”
“My men were nearly wiped out, and the substantial deposit, a large sum of
demon gold coins, obtained from Xi Dai Zi vanished along with them.”
"The necromancer's traces immediately drew the utmost attention from our
faction and Lord Hun Tong."
"Imperial law demanded we report this intelligence immediately, but practical
circumstances forbade it."
"Reporting would cause too much commotion, inevitably alerting the fishman
clan. If the Empire dispatched investigators, the fishmen's plans to invade the
island would surely be thwarted."
“Lord Hun Tong and I engaged in a heated debate, ultimately deciding to take
the risk. Our primary consideration was that the necromancer's displayed power
hadn't reached gold level.”
“We launched a large-scale search but initially found no trace of the
necromancer. A necromancer confident enough to land on the island possessed
considerable stealth skills.”
"The first to discover the necromancer was Xi Dai Zi. He lay hidden deep
beneath the Two Eyes Island, possessing the ability to command tree roots and
vines to some extent."
“Xi Dai Zi also disliked seeing the necromancer's influence gradually expand,
so he relayed this information.”
"Ultimately, the island lord personally slew the necromancer. We succeeded!"
Tu Ji remained silent.
Tan Mo glanced at Tu Ji and said to Yan Yi, "You have earned credit for
eliminating the necromancer. However, specific rewards will require precise
calculation after this investigation concludes."
Tu Ji snorted coldly, "Even if you eliminated one necromancer, the system still
malfunctioned. While your merit outweighs the fault, what remains is meager.
Don't expect too much."
He pressed further, “Then why did you deliberately allow the second necromancer
to escape?”
“According to the reported magic footage, during that chaotic battle, both you
and Hun Tong had multiple opportunities to intervene. Yet you ultimately stood
by and watched as the second necromancer fled Two Eyes Island.”
“Regarding this matter, you two will explain yourselves.”
Island Lord Hun Tong glanced at Yan Yi beside him and immediately replied, “I
followed Shadow's advice, deciding to let the second necromancer leave the
island to catch a bigger fish later.”
“In fact, afterward, I even urged him to act immediately and arrest the second
necromancer.”
“Shadow botched the entire operation.”
Tu Ji turned his gaze to Yan Yi.
Yan Yi's face was ashen, cold sweat beading on his forehead. After a moment of
deliberation, he cautiously spoke: “The second necromancer is one of the level
seven elders of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
“These two level seven elders appeared suddenly, but their identity
verification was correct.”
“Though the Wisteria Merchant Alliance's reorganization succeeded, remnants of
the old faction still lurk in the shadows, unwilling to accept defeat and
biding their time.”
“I believe these two level seven elders belong to that faction.”
“As the regional head of Imperial Secret Spy Agency, my greatest concern is
that they might disrupt order around Two Eyes Island.”
"But these elders move with extreme secrecy, making them nearly impossible to
track. On the other hand, I fear stirring the hornet's nest prematurely."
"The two potions they released into the market have been selling exceptionally
well. I used the Flint Merchant Alliance and others as a front to secretly
spread rumors, slandering the potions' reputation, in an attempt to provoke a
counterattack from these two magicians."
“But they showed no reaction whatsoever.”
“After the beast tide struck, the potions' efficacy became widely known, and
sales surged even more. My provocation plan failed.”
“I feared these two elders might vanish entirely, so I hastily devised a new
plan.”
"At that time, the auction on Two Eyes Island was about to commence. I boldly
speculated: The reason these two Wisteria Elders suddenly arrived on the island
and made a fortune selling magic potions was likely to attend the auction."
“So, on their way out of the Wisteria shop, I arranged for Ya Ma to provoke
them.”
“Ya Ma successfully created friction and deliberately failed, presenting them
with the auction invitation I had meticulously prepared.”
"My reasoning was that even if they had no intention of attending, the
invitation itself served as a powerful lure."
"As it turned out, they were indeed there for the auction. Using the
invitation, they entered Room 21 and proceeded to bid aggressively, sweeping up
items left and right. They completely overshadowed the entire gathering of gold
level powerhouses."



****** Chapter 565: Wisteria Remnants ******
“When the fishmen attacked the island, one of the Wisteria Elders intervened,
successfully seizing the Iron Lump. Later, during the battle against Ya Ma, he
was forced to unleash undead spells, thereby revealing his identity as a
necromancer.”
“It was only then that we learned one of the two Wisteria level seven elders
was a silver level necromancer.”
“But to be honest, I wasn't particularly surprised.”
“Because before its reorganization, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance did indeed
have many secret dealings with these necromancers.”
“From another perspective, any remnant forces within the restructured Wisteria
Merchant Alliance must have relied on the necromancer's covert abilities to
hide and evade elimination.”
Tu Ji remained expressionless: “According to the report, during the battle
against the fishmen's island assault, Hun Tong had demanded the execution of
this necromancer, but you intervened to stop it.”
“After the necromancer fled by ship, Hun Tong again proposed pursuing and
killing him, but you dissuaded him once more.”
"Shadow Yan Yi, since you deliberately let the necromancer escape, you must
have had a follow-up plan. What actions did you take afterward?"
Yan Yi fell silent, glancing toward Tan Mo.
Tan Mo spoke: "Shadow, say whatever you have to say. We are both part of the
Empire, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency and Blood Light Punishment Institution
are comrades. Matters too sensitive to speak of can still be shared. You need
not bear responsibility for them."
Yan Yi immediately grasped the subtext: sensitive matters could be discussed,
but forbidden secrets remained off-limits!
Yan Yi replied, “After letting the Wisteria elder escape, I dared not mobilize
the Imperial Navy, fearing it would alert the enemy prematurely.”
“So, I arranged for Lady Sea Snake to pursue the kill.”
“Lady Sea Snake is the captain of the Petal Snake Pirates; a crew affiliated
with the Fire Beard Pirates.”
“Her true identity, however, is as an imperial secret agent—a mole embedded
within the Fire Beard Pirates.”
Tu Ji's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this, revealing a hint of
surprise.
But he quickly accepted the revelation.
The Sheng Ming Empire's large-scale offensive against the Wilderness Continent
had never concealed its annexationist intentions from the outset.
The vanguard forces had already established a foothold on the Wilderness
Continent, but the main army had yet to truly mobilize.
Since the Sheng Ming Continent and the Wilderness Continent did not share a
border, the Sheng Ming Empire needed to establish supply lines across the vast
ocean.
Against this backdrop, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency had extensively deployed
agents. Their missions included gathering intelligence, carrying out
assassinations, infiltrating enemy ranks, and conducting subversive operations
to maintain stability and security across various regions.
Shadow Yan Yi was one such agent operating within this large-scale operation.
Though only of bronze level, he possessed sharp logic, clear organization, and
exceptional skill.
Through this interrogation, Tu Ji had clearly sensed Yan Yi's talent.
"If not for his bloodline holding him back, he would be able to reach a higher
transcendent level and see a brighter future!'
Whether Lady Sea Snake was originally a member of the Imperial Secret Spy
Agency or was recruited halfway, she was still a part of the covert operation.
Tu Ji had also heard of the Fire Beard Pirates' reputation: “The three legend
level pirate crews represent the pinnacle of pirate power, and the Fire Beard
Pirates is one of them.”
“It boasts the largest scale and the lowest recruitment threshold.”
“It's likely there are other secret agents besides Lady Sea Snake.”
Thoughts raced through Tu Ji's mind as he turned to Yan Yi: "According to your
report, Lady Sea Snake's operation failed this time. Elaborate."
Yan Yi hastened to reply: “To be precise, it's not time to admit defeat yet.”
“For the sake of deception, Lady Sea Snake deliberately employed tactics to
rally the Stench Pirates, the Applause Pirates, and the Lightning Pirates.”
Near Weeping Pine Island, she ignited the Weeping Pine Naval Battle."
"Following this engagement, the pirate crews retreated one after another. One
of the Wisteria elders, aided by Jian Gui and others, fled in disarray. The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps seized the Iron Lump and secured the dwarves'
allegiance. Lady Sea Snake continued her pursuit."
“At this point, the necromancers departed these waters, beyond my sphere of
influence.”
“Thus, I could no longer obtain intelligence regarding Lady Sea Snake's
subsequent actions.”
At this, Yan Yi gazed at Tu Ji with utmost sincerity: “My Lord, this is the
truth of the matter.”
"I have not lied, not a single word. I swear by my personal honor, my family's
honor, and my loyalty to the Empire!"
“I know I am guilty.”
“I released the necromancer, setting a tiger free.”
Now I can only hope that the other secret agents taking over my mission will
follow through successfully, ultimately eliminating all necromancers, so my
merits outweigh my faults!
Tu Ji fell silent for a moment.
Yan Yi spoke with apparent sincerity, yet there was a hint of cunning.
He implied subtly: this mission, this matter, is far from over. Even if the
Blood Light Punishment Institution sought accountability, the day of reckoning
had not yet arrived. Everything depended on the result that followed.
After a long pause, Tu Ji broke the silence: “It's late. Rest now.”
“You two stay put. Sleep here.”
“All other relevant personnel are to be temporarily detained. Restrict their
movements for the time being.”
The interrogation was merely the first step. Having reviewed the reports and
heard the responses, Tu Ji still needed to gather evidence personally. He
wouldn't accept one-sided accounts.
The Ice Sculpture Capital.
Wisteria shop.
"Wisteria elder, these are the Chains of Confinement. Surrender peacefully!"
“That's right. At least this way, you'll still have your life.”
Zi Di stood bound by alchemy chains, immobilized.
She struggled to break free, but the four ends were gripped tightly by
ambushing transcendent beings, the chains stretched taut.
Her undead magic power rapidly drained.
"Chains of Confinement? They can even target undead?" Zi Di was astonished yet
not despairing.
The next instant, the three ambushing transcendents were instantly slain.
One was cleaved in two at the waist, another had his head severed, and the
third had his heart pierced clean through by a claw from behind.
“What the hell?!” The lone surviving transcendent was horrified.
But soon, he too met his end, slaughtered without mercy.
In an instant, all four silver level transcendents had been counter-killed.
The alchemy chain became ownerless, instantly slackening.
Zi Di shook her arms, flinging the chains from her body onto the ground.
“The Chains of Confinement... gold level equipment. Not a bad haul.” Zi Di
turned to leave, simultaneously using her mind to command the ice gargoyle to
retrieve the Chains of Confinement.
“The messaging unit here never received the ransom note. I was ambushed again.”
“This Wisteria shop was a trap.”
“Then, is the Wisteria Merchant Alliance on Two Eyes Island also a trap?”
“That ransom note was never sent out... something's wrong with Yan Yi!”
As Zi Di pondered this, her vision suddenly shifted.
In an instant, she was forcibly teleported, vanishing from within the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance.
The next moment, she materialized in a pure white, sealed chamber.
Stunned by the sudden change, Zi Di's face darkened with gravity as she
frantically scanned her surroundings.
A biting cold permeated the air. The walls were constructed entirely of ice
bricks, devoid of any windows.
Just as Zi Di prepared to cast a detection spell, spatial fluctuations erupted
again, revealing the presence of two gold level individuals.
Zi Di tapped her storage pouch, releasing three ice gargoyles that charged
toward the source of the disturbance.
But by then, the teleportation had completed. The gold level fighters
materialized on the battlefield, effortlessly blocking the three ice gargoyles.
Zi Di immediately retreated, creating distance between herself and her enemies.
She was merely an iron level necromancer, comparable at best to a silver level
magician in mental attributes. Fighting two gold level opponents alone offered
no chance of victory.
Therefore, her first choice was to send a distress signal.
She wasn't acting alone; Zong Ge remained outside the shop, prepared for any
unexpected developments.
Distress signal transmission failed!
Three ice gargoyles were destroyed in succession, despite being premium puppets
enhanced with ice magic.
The two gold level assassins lunged forward.
Zi Di had no choice but to unleash her ghost army.
She had been accumulating this force since leaving Mystifying Monster Island.
By now, it was substantial in size. But the core remained the smelt rat souls
and tide snake souls from Snake Rat Island.
The two gold level fighters remained silent. One scattered powdered potions,
the other unleashed a battle skill.
The potion powder scattered upon the ghosts, causing them to dissolve like
snow. The battle skill's light waves grew more intense, scorching every ghost
in their path.
Zi Di's heart sank to the depths.
Her opponents were exceptionally well-prepared, possessing methods specifically
countering the undead.
Zi Di was utterly powerless to fight back.
She reached into the leather pouch at her waist, pulled out two vials of magic
potion, and smashed them open.
The toxic mist released by the potions temporarily forced back the two gold
level foes.
Zi Di finally gained a moment to catch her breath.
These were gold level potions, purchased from the Li Jian Clan.
The poisonous mist posed little threat to undead like herself, yet proved
highly lethal to other lifeforms.
Moreover, the fog began corroding the surrounding floor and ice walls.
Zi Di attempted to send a distress signal once more, only to fail again.
In her free hand not holding the staff, she clutched a handful of pearl
bubbles.
But in this sealed battlefield, even if she used the pearl bubbles, could she
truly prevail and escape?
Zi Di felt uncertain.
The Deceptive Disguise spell only worked on living beings, and using the pearl
bubbles directly would be even less effective, forcing her to rely solely on
the situation unfolding naturally.
Even with these tools, Zi Di doubted she could escape this place.
She didn't even know where she was!
“This time, I fear my fate is sealed.”
“Who would have thought entering the royal capital would lead to my end?”
“The pearl bubbles must be used, but it will likely leave many clues for the
enemy.”
"May my disappearance serve as sufficient warning to Zong Ge! I hope he remains
safe."
“Lord Commander... I might...”
Just then, with a thunderous boom, the floor suddenly shattered, and a torrent
of cold water surged in.
The cold water met the air, instantly forming a layer of frost.
The ice shattered as a spindle-shaped micro-submarine emerged, its hatch
opening.
“Get in! I'll get you out!” The hoarse voice sent a chill through Zi Di's
heart.
"Elder Yuan Ci?"
Seeing the two gold level figures charging in despite the toxic mist, Zi Di
hurriedly climbed into the submarine.
The gold level attackers lunged, striking the sub's hull with a force that left
a deep dent.
But the sub's sturdy construction held. Though three layers of its defensive
magic shield shattered, the final layer remained intact. It dove back into the
breach and escaped successfully.
"Pursue!!" The gold level finally lost his temper, bellowing in fury.



****** Chapter 566: Giving Hun Tong His Poor Evaluation ******
Two Eyes Island.
Night gradually faded as dawn approached.
Tu Ji didn't rest. Instead, he went straight to a shop and found one of the
witnesses.
He used the shop's main hall as an interrogation room, confronting the
representative of the Clam Cloth Branch: “You participated in the fishmen's
assault on the island and survived.”
“Tell me about your actions during that battle.”
The first question was relatively simple, designed to ease the witness' nerves.
Often, tension causes people to forget crucial details. And it was precisely
these details that held the most valuable clues.
The representative of the Clam Cloth Branch was naturally nervous. The man
before him was no ordinary gold level official, he was a member of the Blood
Light Punishment Institution!
The uniform alone was enough to strike fear into nearly every citizen of the
Sheng Ming Empire!
"I observed that during the chaos, numerous merchant ships were the first to
flee the harbor. Their desertion undermined the defenses of Two Eyes Island.
Why commit such treasonous acts?"
This was Tu Ji's second question.
The representative of the Clam Cloth Branch hurriedly protested, “Lord, we're
merchants, not soldiers!”
“When battle looms, our first duty is to protect the merchant alliance's assets
and minimize losses.”
“Fighting is the soldiers' job.”
"At the time, our Clam Cloth Branch ships did participate, but honestly, we
were in a daze. The situation was chaotic. The island lord severely neglected
his duties, failing to organize us. I was swept up in the turmoil and sailed
away in confusion."
“However, afterward, we analyzed the situation and waged a relentless,
sacrificial resistance and battle.”
“Ultimately, through our efforts, we repelled the invading fishmen.”
The Clam Cloth Branch's representative deflected blame while claiming credit
for his own protection.
Tu Ji didn't call him out but posed a third question: “What's your take on
Island Lord Hun Tong?”
The Clam Cloth Branch's representative's eyes widened in indignation as he
growled, " He's scum, a deadbeat! Devoid of any noble honor, a complete
bastard!"
Tu Ji's surprise sparked his interest: “Elaborate.”
The representative immediately declared: “He slaughtered us!”
“During the battle, he used the Golden Flash to kill countless merchants.”
“Three representatives of the Six Great Merchant Alliances died in combat.”
"Even if he claims it was the Devil Gold Coins, who knows? We strongly suspect
he did it deliberately!"
“After the battle, we analyzed the situation. Hun Tong actually had the time
and capability to organize our defense.”
"But he let us act freely, betting we'd panic and scatter in disarray. This
would breach our defenses, making us the ones at fault. He could then use this
as grounds to challenge us and nullify the commercial contracts we'd signed
with him."
“Why nullify the contracts?” Tu Ji asked.
“Because Two Eyes Island is set to become one of the central hubs for the
transport lines,” the representative explained, “Hun Tong concealed this
matter. We only recently learned this crucial information ourselves.”
“Information is often money, you know!”
“Hun Tong deliberately set us up to make mistakes so he could escape blame and
smoothly transition Two Eyes Island, without paying any price!”
“He outmaneuvered us. Too clever!”
"But man proposes, heaven disposes. Ha! He fell into his own trap. The Devil
Gold Coins ruined his scheme."
"He caused us immense losses. As the island lord, he bears undeniable
responsibility. Demanding compensation from him is entirely justified."
“Yet he hasn't paid a single penny. Not a single coin has been compensated to
us.”
“Not only that, he used this as leverage to force us to renegotiate our
previous commercial agreements.”
“If he had no money, we could at least understand.”
"But Lord, do you know? Hun Tong struck it rich, he seized a colossal fortune!"
“That wealth was plundered from us by fishmen and pirates! They raided the
entire island, and he claimed it all as spoils, shoveling it into his own
coffers!”
“Tell me, isn't such an island lord utterly despicable?! He has the money, yet
refuses to compensate. Instead, he uses this as leverage to force us into
further concessions."
“Sigh... We're merely representatives sent by the merchant alliance, small-time
representatives here.”
“We simply lack the authority to act. Even if we backtrack and renegotiate, the
Chamber will hold us personally accountable.”
“Hun Tong is driving us to our deaths!”
The representative of the Clam Cloth Branch seemed to have opened a floodgate,
pouring out his grievances in an unstoppable torrent.
Tu Ji, however, welcomed this development.
He could tell the man was speaking from the heart.
Testimony delivered in such a state carried high credibility.
Tu Ji listened patiently, occasionally asking questions.
After clarifying the details, he pressed on to the next merchant alliance
branch.
By the time he had questioned several individuals, dawn had broken.
As Tu Ji stepped out of the Flint shop, he spotted a group gathered at the
entrance.
“We are members of the Bandage Mercenary Corps! Lord, we come to report the
island lord, Hun Tong!” they declared their purpose.
Tu Ji nodded. “If you hadn't come to me, I would have sought you out.”
"Fantastic."
“Head to the tavern over there and say everything you wish to say.”
The tavern was naturally still closed at dawn.
But the mercenaries forced the door open. The tavern owner, recognizing Tu Ji's
attire, instantly perked up. He quickly shed his reluctant expression, opened
the door, and let the mercenaries inside.
Tu Ji ordered, "A mug of beer for every mercenary. On me."
At the sight of beer, some mercenaries' Adam's apples bobbed, while others'
eyes glistened.
Their recent days have been exceptionally harsh.
Two mercenary leaders stood beside Tu Ji and declared, “Island Lord Hun Tong is
of vile character. Not only did he fail to reward merit, but he framed loyal
subjects.”
“Our Bandage Mercenary Corps has sweated and bled for Two Eyes Island, paying a
heavy price and making immense contributions during the fishmen's invasion.”
“Yet after the war, Lord Hun Tong not only withheld any rewards but imposed
sanctions and oppression upon us.”
“He exploited our commander's death in battle by selling our flagship, the
White Bandage, directly to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Since then, he has suppressed us at every turn, swallowing up our mercenary
corps' meager remaining assets.”
“We received no compensation whatsoever. We gradually lost our livelihoods, and
some of us were reduced to begging for survival.”
The two leaders spoke in turn, detailing the myriad crimes committed by Hun
Tong.
Tu Ji remained expressionless throughout, occasionally interjecting with sharp
questions.
The conversation lasted half an hour before Tu Ji rose to leave.
The mercenaries hurriedly stood to see him off.
“My Lord, we've stayed here all this time hoping you would come to
investigate!”
"Your Lordship, you must severely punish that old bastard Hun Tong! He's
damaged the reputation of the Empire, he's a parasite!"
Amidst the mercenaries' relentless pleas, Tu Ji left the tavern.
The sun rose, and the sea breeze blew.
Vines, coral, and branches covered Two Eyes Island, creating swathes of blue-
green hues.
The sunlight was warm, brimming with vitality.
Tu Ji had not slept all night, yet he remained alert and energetic.
This was nothing to him. He had once gone seven days and nights without rest,
solely to capture an escaped necromancer.
Past successes taught him: hunting necromancers demanded relentless urgency and
unwavering persistence.
“I have gathered the evidence from the merchants and mercenaries. Next up are
the Wealth Church members.”
The church members who'd once fought alongside Hun Tong now voiced fierce
resentment toward him during Tu Ji's inspection.
“Our priests fell in battle, yet Hun Tong, as island lord, offered no
condolences and refused to return our church's property.”
“Though these assets were plundered by pirates and ultimately became Hun Tong's
spoils of war.”
“Hun Tong secretly cleaned up the battlefield, utterly dishonorable.”
“He's cast aside our order's friendship forged in battle and the shared
memories of building Two Eyes Island's prosperity.”
“Lately, he's even been entertaining certain Justice Church members with
ulterior motives!”
“Our order deems him an unworthy lord.”
While Tu Ji was gathering evidence from the Wealth Church, Tan Mo rose from
bed.
After a cursory wash, he summoned Yan Yi alone to the interrogation chamber
within the city government palace.
The moment Yan Yi entered, he warmly flattered Tan Mo and subtly expressed his
curiosity, "Why pick such an early hour for a private interrogation? Lord Tan
Mo, you've traveled far and should have rested well last night."
“After the investigation concludes, I humbly request you grant me another
opportunity to properly host you.”
Tan Mo yawned, his voice thick with resentment. “Of course I'd like to rest.
But who can blame me? Our esteemed Lord Tu Ji was so full of zeal, he didn't
sleep a wink all night, rushing about gathering evidence.”
Yan Yi's expression shifted slightly. He sighed, his words carrying a hidden
meaning. “I've long heard of the Blood Light Punishment Institution's
formidable reputation. This time, I've experienced it firsthand.”
Tan Mo sat with his upper body leaning forward, elbows braced on the tabletop,
staring intently at Yan Yi. “I've reviewed the intelligence. If you haven't
concealed anything further, your chances of surviving this are quite high.”
“Now, it's just you and me here.”
“Yan Yi, representative of the Two Eyes Island under the codename Shadow. I am
conducting this interrogation on behalf of the Empire's high command.”
“Regarding the departed Wisteria elder, how much have you actually uncovered?”
Yan Yi's expression turned solemn. He lifted his head, chest thrust out, his
body straight as a spear. He reported with gravity and efficiency: “Reporting
to you, Lord, the intelligence I submitted concerning the two Wisteria elders
was nearly complete.”
Tan Mo nodded. "Per espionage protocol, what's reported constitutes only part
of the information. The critical details must be conveyed through face-to-face
communication before formal submission. Now, you may report that portion."
Yan Yi fixed his gaze on Tan Mo. “Lord Tan Mo, before proceeding, may this
subordinate verify your identity?”
“Of course.” Tan Mo nodded.



****** Chapter 567: Secret Spy - Lost Return ******
Yan Yi retrieved an alchemy device from his robe, and Tan Mo produced one as
well.
The two devices docked together. After a burst of magic light, Tan Mo and Yan
Yi simultaneously focused their minds to activate the internal buttons.
The button sequence was classified, known only to headquarters and the secret
agent personally, functioning as a dual-layered password.
Both passwords proved flawless, and the magic glow from the devices swiftly
faded.
With a gentle tug, they separated the temporarily fused authentication devices
into two halves, each retrieving their portion and storing it carefully.
Only then did Yan Yi report: “The two Wisteria elders are elusive as ghosts.
There's simply no way to confirm their whereabouts.”
"My assessment is that their primary goal is to attend the auction. The sudden
release of two potions for sale was merely to earn some gold coins and bolster
their auction strength."
“Subsequent events have, to a certain extent, validated this assessment.”
"This subordinate owes his position as representative of the Two Eyes Island
region entirely to His Highness the Seventh Prince's appointment. From the very
beginning, I have kept the Seventh Prince's mission deeply engraved in my
heart, never daring to forget it."
"These two Wisteria elders represent invaluable leads. After deliberating for a
full day and night, I concluded that capturing them now would carry significant
risks with little reward. Therefore, I resolved to focus on surveillance while
prioritizing the infiltration of spies into this remnant faction!"
“Without seeking prior authorization, I directly deployed the secret agent
codenamed ‘Lost Return’.”
Tan Mo frowned. "The secret agent codenamed ‘Lost Return’? Provide a detailed
briefing."
Yan Yi nodded. “Lost Return, female, real name Qing Xin, a silver level wind
magician.”
“She was originally a confidante of the previous president of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance. Selected and sponsored by the merchant alliance, she was
trained and cultivated into a wind magician.”
Before the Wisteria Merchant Alliance's restructuring, someone made a move
against Qing Xin. She seized this opportunity to stage her own death,
attempting to sever ties with the merchant alliance."
"The secret agent uncovered this truth and carried out a covert capture. The
operation succeeded. After intense interrogation and psychological pressure, we
successfully recruited Qing Xin."
"During her infiltration phase, she underwent secret agent training. It's worth
noting Qing Xin excelled in her training."
“After arriving on Two Eyes Island, Qing Xin remained hidden behind the scenes,
handling affairs and overseeing the daily operations of the secret agent
organization.”
"The Wisteria elder appeared, showing signs of attending the auction. I first
dispatched Ya Ma to deliberately create friction and deliver the auction
invitation. Subsequently, I ordered Qing Xin to disguise herself as a slave and
arranged for her to be listed as one of the auction items."
"During the auction, the Wisteria elder indeed recognized Qing Xin and
purchased her. Thus, Qing Xin had successfully infiltrated the enemy's inner
circle."
“But this level of infiltration was far from sufficient.”
"The remnants of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance would undoubtedly subject Qing
Xin to rigorous scrutiny. To lend her a hand, I orchestrated Lady Sea Snake's
small-scale military operation."
“In subsequent actions, Lady Sea Snake organized groups like the Applause
Pirates to stage a naval battle around Weeping Pine Island. At the critical
moment, they held back, allowing the necromancer temporary freedom.”
"I have no knowledge of the actions that followed. That segment of the mission
was taken over by other secret agents. At that point, I also lost contact with
Qing Xin."
Tan Mo nodded, scrutinizing Yan Yi from head to toe.
Despite being only bronze level, Yan Yi held some renown within the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency.
His fame stemmed from his transcendent level.
Among regional representatives overseeing vast territories like Two Eyes
Island, Yan Yi held the lowest level, likely the sole bronze level.
Typically, a representative's transcendent level should reach silver to be
considered adequate.
Iron was already considered low, let alone bronze!
Only silver level could barely ensure personal safety and significantly
mitigate the devastating effects of decapitation tactics.
As for the gold level, such transcendents were rarely assigned as regional
representatives.
Their prominence made them too conspicuous, drawing sustained attention from
factions of all sizes with every move.
This starkly contradicts the covert nature of secret agents and severely
hinders espionage operations.
This was Tan Mo's first encounter with Yan Yi. Even this brief review had
allowed Tan Mo to recognize Yan Yi's exceptional competence.
Yan Yi's various arrangements and preparations had proven remarkably
successful.
“You are an exceptionally capable secret agent. It's a pleasure to meet you,”
Tan Mo said with a smile.
Yan Yi hastened to express that he had been eagerly awaiting Tan Mo's arrival.
After meticulously preparing numerous items, he sent them all to Tan Mo once
the investigation concluded.
“That kid Yan Yi—he knows how to play the game!” Tan Mo silently praised
inwardly.
Tan Mo's reputation far surpassed even Yan Yi's.
He was notorious within both the Secret Spy Agency and the Navy.
Yan Yi had long learned that Tan Mo was the investigator assigned to this case.
The latter was notorious for his greedy nature, mastering all manner of
extortion tactics.
Yan Yi genuinely welcomed Tan Mo's arrival.
This was no pretense, it was sincere.
Compared to other investigators, Tan Mo was remarkably easy to deal with—all it
took was presenting him with a bribe that satisfied him.
One reassuring aspect was that while Tan Mo demanded bribes, he also valued
integrity, once paid, he genuinely delivered results. The amount paid
determined the extent of his service. It was a straightforward transaction,
fair to all.
"Fantastic."
“This investigation concludes here.”
“One final note: the mission assigned by the Seventh Prince must be buried deep
within your gut.”
“Neither the higher-ups in the Secret Agency nor the Blood Light Punishment
Institution involved this time need to know.”
“Do you understand?” Tan Mo emphasized at the end.
“Of course!” Yan Yi bowed deeply. “Even if it costs me my life, this secret
mission will never be revealed.”
Just as Yan Yi was about to leave the interrogation room, Tan Mo called him
back: “Wait. Does Lady Sea Snake know Qing Xin's true identity?”
Yan Yi answered immediately: “She is unaware. Qing Xin also does not know Lady
Sea Snake's true identity.”
“However, I cannot guarantee that Lady Sea Snake's personal speculations might
not uncover fragments of the truth.”
Tan Mo nodded. “Alright, I understand.”
With a wave of his hand, Yan Yi turned and walked slowly out of the room.
White Hair Trench.
Ocean Mother Nest, Charming Blue Divine Domain.
Another teleportation blood sacrifice.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the Rubber Swallower disgorged an unconscious
human woman.
She wore brown leather attire, her figure curvaceous and alluring. Even with
eyes tightly shut, lost in unconsciousness, she radiated feminine charm.
It was Lady Sea Snake.
“Who would've thought this female pirate would end up our captive,” Cang Xu
remarked with deep emotion.
During the battle at Weeping Pine Island, Cang Xu had witnessed Lady Sea
Snake's formidable combat prowess. Amidst Wei Ying's surprise assault, Cang Xu
and the others, including Jian Gui, fled in disarray.
Afterward, Jian Gui (Cang Xu) and his group engaged in a relentless pursuit
battle with Wei Ying and Lady Sea Snake, which eventually dragged them into the
demi-plane of the Ghost World.
Only with the support of Doctor Sui Shi, one of the Twelve Saints, did Jian Gui
and his companions manage to escape the relentless chase.
After recuperating, the group returned to the main plane, heading to the White
Hair Trench to rescue Qi Ling.
During the fierce battle, they were ambushed by Zhou Zhang. Like Jian Gui, Lady
Sea Snake and others fell captive to the Charming Blue believers.
What should be done with Lady Sea Snake?
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu discussed it. Their conclusion: there was no
urgency in killing this female magician.
As far as the fishman youngster and Cang Xu knew, Lady Sea Snake wasn't just a
pirate captain, she was also a member of the Fire Beard Pirates.  Such
connections held immense value.  Even without that, a silver level female
magician like Lady Sea Snake was a formidable magic combat force in her own
right!
Thus, another occupant found residence within the longhorn cage.
Just like Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, and Qing Xin before her, Lady Sea Snake was
deceived into believing she was already dead.
The sharp horns within the alchemy longhorn cage slightly pierced her skin,
preventing her magic power from accumulating.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu were still unaware that among the four silver
level captives they held, two were members of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency.
At this moment, their focus lay elsewhere.
“Gold level... This is truly a miracle!” Cang Xu circled the fishman youngster,
feeling his life force, and praised him effusively.
After recognizing the extraordinary divine blessing within the fishman
youngster, Cang Xu had already harbored expectations that the youngster might
ascend to gold level.
Yet reality still surpassed his imagination.
He hadn't anticipated his own commander ascending to gold level so swiftly!
This was truly splendid news!
The old magician, loyal to the young commander, felt genuine joy for the
fishman youngster.
“Zong Ge's battle qi now carries a golden glow.”
“But you, Commander, have now formally ascended to gold level.”
“He has no chance whatsoever to lay claim to the position of leader.” Cang Xu's
spirit soared.
The fishman youngster shook his head slightly. “Enough of that. Come inside
quickly. Let us pray together.”
“I am ready.”
Gazing at his captain's retreating figure, Cang Xu felt a momentary daze.
The fishman youngster, a devout believer in the Justice God, performed the
blasphemous prayer with far greater fervor than Cang Xu, the necromancer.
Such seasoned demeanor made it hard to believe the fishman youngster had only
recently been introduced to the practice of blasphemous rituals
Naturally, Cang Xu kept these thoughts to himself.
He obediently followed the fishman youngster into the prayer chamber.
The original statue of the Charming Blue Goddess had been replaced by an
ordinary divine statue.
Cang Xu hastily retrieved the Charming Blue Goddess statue he carried with him,
a silver level sacred artifact.
He replaced the statue, knelt upon the floor, and murmured prayers.
The fishman youngster knelt beside him, waiting a moment before beginning his
own prayer.
“My Lord, exalted Charming Blue Goddess, You are the embodiment of boundless
power. Hear my devout supplication.”
“In this boundless ocean, You are the tempest and the guardian of the seas.”
“You are the source of water, and the supreme master of deception.”
“You drive every soul seeking power and wisdom with illusion and deceit.”
“Today, we humbly beseech You.”
"Grant Your faithful servant, a pitiful, lowly necromancer, a higher magician
level. Let him bathe in Your great bounty, instructed by Your magnificent magic
power."
"Your loyal believer will expend divine favor to help the necromancer obtain a
leap on transcendent level."
“Oh great Charming Blue Goddess, may You accept this sincere prayer. May You
favor Your necromancer believer, guiding him onto the path of a higher
magician, so that in the future, he may more fully proclaim Your radiance."
“Now I have spoken, praying with all sincerity.”
“Merciful deity, please grant my request.”
Boom!
The moment the fishman youngster's words faded, a pillar of divine light
descended from the void, enveloping... the fishman youngster.
Bathed in the divine radiance, the transcendent level of his clergyman
cultivation surged from silver level to gold level in an instant.
Hundreds of divine spells surged violently into his mind, accompanied by a
wealth of experience in casting them!
The overwhelming flood of knowledge made the fishman youngster's head throb
painfully, his expression contorting.
Beside him, Cang Xu's gaze went blank.
“This was a prayer meant for me. Why did the divine blessing land on the
commander instead?”



****** Chapter 568: Archbishop! ******
A thick beam of light enveloped the fishman youngster entirely, its glare
relentless and unyielding.
The beam's diameter spanned two meters, gradually shrinking as time passed.
When it reached 0.1 meters, the beam gently shifted onto Cang Xu.
Cang Xu immediately bowed his head, his prayers growing louder.
Then, his body trembled slightly—he had ascended to silver level!
The beam expended its last ounce of power and vanished completely.
Calm returned to the prayer chamber.
“Silver level...” Cang Xu remained kneeling for a long time, his heart surging
with emotion.
Had he not already undergone cranial modification, becoming an undead being,
tears would surely well up in his eyes now.
This marked a new frontier in his life, a vista beyond the limits of his
bloodline.
His bloodline and innate talent had been inferior even to Zi Di's. Even after
becoming an undead, he had expected to reach only the iron level at best.
Breaking through the iron level to reach the silver level, this was something
Cang Xu had never dared to imagine.
“Now, I've done it.”
“I've become silver level.”
“And what's more, even greater things lie ahead!”
As these thoughts filled him, Cang Xu instinctively turned to the fishman
youngster beside him, his gaze burning with fervor.
It was precisely by following the fishman youngster's path that he had reached
this day.
What moved Cang Xu even more was the fishman youngster's willingness to expend
his own divine favor to actively aid him!
The fishman youngster was not a necromancer, yet he chose to lavishly cultivate
a necromancer. Such behavior wouldn't even be seen in the legitimate heir of
the undead orthodoxy, Jian Gui.
“Commander, this must have cost you a great deal of divine favor, right?” Cang
Xu stood up, noticing the fishman youngster's body trembling, and helped him to
his feet.
The fishman youngster was already very familiar with his own state—this was a
massive advancement, and both his body and soul still needed time to “digest”
it. Like after overeating, requiring time to rest.
The fishman youngster shook his head slightly, gave himself a quick check, then
replied to Cang Xu with a hint of peculiarity in his voice: “Strange. My divine
favor hasn't decreased. It's actually risen again. Now, it's surpassed 10,000
in number."
Cang Xu's body stiffened momentarily. He drew a light breath and quickly
composed himself.
He was very familiar with this situation.
He inquired curiously about the fishman youngster's other gains.
The fishman youngster explained, “Through this prayer, my clergyman cultivation
has advanced to gold level, granting me mastery over hundreds of divine spells.
Moreover, each spell comes with corresponding usage experience.”
Cang Xu drew another breath. “So then, Commander, you've become an exceptional
and powerful clergyman?”
The fishman youngster had already attained the gold life level, and now his
clergyman cultivation had risen as well.
The key gain was over a hundred divine spells.
Casting divine spells was inherently far easier than casting magic spells. In a
sense, divine spells could be considered a type of racial magic. Using them
felt like moving one's limbs, almost like an innate instinct.
Of course, there were differences in experience and skill when using limbs. For
instance, some could use their limbs to crawl, others to walk, while some could
sprint with ease.
At this level, the fishman youngster would merely be a competent clergyman with
diverse abilities.
But this divine blessing brought not only divine spells but also vast
experience.
This meant the fishman youngster possessed rich, deeply ingrained familiarity
with these divine spells before even using them for the first time. His first
use of hands and feet skipped the crawling and walking stages entirely,
reaching the level of running.
Cang Xu assessed the fishman youngster as an outstanding and powerful
clergyman.
This evaluation was spot on.
The fishman youngster nodded in agreement with Cang Xu's assessment, then
exclaimed excitedly, "Do you know? Among these divine spells is Resurrection!"
“With Resurrection, I can bring Zi Di back to life!”
The fishman youngster couldn't help but feel genuine joy.
He had always wanted to help his beloved, but had never found a way.
Now, possessing the power of resurrection and considerable experience in using
resurrection magic, he was utterly confident he could revive Zi Di.
“Resurrection magic... this is truly wonderful!” Cang Xu exclaimed.
He had once harbored a similar plan, to master it himself and revive Zi Di.
Reality, however, had shown him the difficulty of obtaining divine favor and
the strict standards for casting divine spells, making him realize his plan was
far from achievable.
Then, he personally witnessed the absurd treatment bestowed upon the fishman
youngster, watching him overtake him in the blink of an eye, leaving the
pioneer far behind.
Now, the fishman youngster had actually mastered Resurrection!
Cang Xu inquired further: “What are the underlying requirements for casting
Resurrection?”
"A divine spell with such extraordinary effects isn't something one can cast
lightly. On one hand, it requires the expenditure of divine favor. On the other
hand, there are clerical requirements."
The fishman youngster reined in his excitement slightly: “Resurrection consumes
divine favor, and the amount required is also tied to one's clerical position.”
"For a monk, it demands 10,000 divine favor points through a directed prayer.
If answered, Resurrection is granted."
“After this prayer, my clerical position has also risen.”
"As an Archbishop now, I don't need a directed prayer because I inherently
possess the authority to cast Resurrection once per month. To cast it multiple
times, additional divine favor must be expended. The exact amount varies based
on the target's cultivation and quantity, some require more, some less."
"Zi Di's life rank is merely iron level, and she's the only one individual. The
divine favor cost is only 200. I can easily afford that!"
At this point, the fishman youngster turned to Cang Xu: “Do you want to be
fully resurrected?”
Cang Xu paused slightly, then quickly refused: “My body isn't mine anymore.
Only my head is original. Resurrection like that would be meaningless.”
“My transcendent path lies in the undead. The Hanging Corpse Tree is a saint
level bloodline, how could I abandon that?”
“At least not for now!”
The fishman youngster nodded. “For now, we also need a necromancer to maintain
contact with the orthodox undead faction.”
“Yes.” Cang Xu nodded. “If I change my mind in the future, revival can always
happen then.”
“Oh, I didn't catch that earlier.”
“Commander, you mentioned your clerical position has risen to a level of
bishop, correct?”
The fishman youngster shook his head. “Archbishop.”
Cang Xu drew in a sharp breath again, staring intently at the fishman
youngster.
The fishman youngster looked puzzled. “What's wrong?”
Cang Xu gave a bitter smile. “Commander, you haven't interacted with believers
like Zhou Zhang, so you might not grasp the concept of an Archbishop.”
“You know Zhou Zhang is merely an Archbishop of the Charming Blue Goddess.”
“Your current standing within the Charming Blue Church is now equal to Zhou
Zhang's.”
“But Zhou Zhang is a saint level!”
Hearing Cang Xu's explanation, the fishman youngster finally grasped a vague
concept.
The latter nodded, his understanding slightly clearer: “So an Archbishop holds
immense power and prestige!”
“Exactly,” Cang Xu affirmed. “If we liken the church to a kingdom, the Pope is
the king, bishops are like city lords, and Archbishops are feudal lords, great
nobles!”
“Bishops are typically held by gold level clergymen, while Archbishops often
possess immense power, often reaching the saint level.”
“Whereas you, Commander, are only of gold level, and you've just recently
ascended.”
The fishman youngster nodded again.
Cang Xu's expression grew complex. “Though Zhou Zhang didn't elaborate, I could
sense her pride in her position as Archbishop.”
“She joined the Charming Blue Church at a young age.”
“Step by step, she rose to her current position. Even with the Charming Blue
Goddess in such poor condition and the church's bleak prospects, she never
considered leaving.”
“In truth, an Archbishop is firmly among the high-ranking members in any
church.”
“More crucially, Commander, your promotion to Archbishop came after only a few
prayers.”
“Compared to that, the sacrifices and efforts Zhou Zhang made are enough to
bring tears to one's eyes.”
At that moment, Cang Xu couldn't help but feel sympathy for Zhou Zhang, finding
her situation somewhat pitiable.
"Enough, enough, don't talk about me. Tell me about yourself, what else did you
gain?" The fishman youngster wasn't interested in archbishop affairs; he was
more concerned about Cang Xu.
Cang Xu held nothing back, replying with excitement: “As you saw, my magician
level has risen to silver level.”
“Hmm, anything else?” The fishman youngster nodded, anticipation in his voice.
Cang Xu: ...
The fishman youngster: ???
They stared at each other for a moment, then the fishman youngster snapped out
of it: “That's it?”
Cang Xu drew a light breath.
The fishman youngster asked: “So your bloodline concentration didn't increase
either?”
Cang Xu shook his head: “No.”
The fishman youngster frowned slightly: “That's a shame. If we have to gather
it ourselves, it'll be quite troublesome.”
Cang Xu sighed: “Commander, your situation is unique. In my view, even for a
deity to enhance bloodline concentration, the cost would be steep.”
"Compared to your Surging Wave fishman bloodline, enhancing my Hanging Corpse
Tree bloodline might demand an even higher price."
The fishman youngster looked surprised: “What do you mean?”
Cang Xu voiced his deduction: “Though deities are omnipotent, each possesses
distinct specialties.”
“A deity's strengths are intrinsically linked to their divine nature, divine
authority, inherent species, and the primary race of their believers.”
"Take the Sea Bird Church of Snow Bird Harbor, their deity was originally a Sea
Bird, hence mastery of flight. Consequently, believers of the Sea Bird Church
can commonly master flight spells even at lower transcendent levels.
"When it comes to the Charming Blue Goddess, being born from a mermaid, Her
believers are primarily marine lifeforms. This conversely demonstrates that
these domains are precisely where She excels. When the Charming Blue Goddess
channels divine power, imparts experience, or enhances bloodline purity to
marine life, the efficiency is undoubtedly higher than with other races."
"Especially regarding undead, most deities are inept with them, treating them
with detachment or even disgust."
"So, in my case, for the Charming Blue Goddess, enhancing the bloodline purity
of the Hanging Corpse Tree would likely be far more difficult than enhancing
that of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline."



****** Chapter 569: Tan Mo Solicits Bribes ******
Cang Xu's reasoning was quite logical.
The fishman youngster listened, nodding slightly in agreement. “Your
speculation is most likely correct.”
“But in specific circumstances, there are far too many influencing factors.”
"After all, your bloodline concentration is quite low, and the Hanging Corpse
Tree bloodline is only at the saint level. My Surging Wave fishman bloodline is
nearly 60% pure, and it's a god level bloodline.  Between saint level and god
level lies the entire legend level."
“Next, let's try praying once more.”
Cang Xu frowned and waved his hands urgently: “We can't.”
He refused outright.
“This carries risks, Commander.”
“Your body and soul both require rest and adaptation.”
"The divine blessing gained through prayer may not align with our wishes.
Should it further burden your body or soul, it could cause harm."
“Given the intensity of past divine blessings, such damage would be immense for
you.”
“We cannot take that risk.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head. “But I feel... even if it is a divine
blessing, it will likely enhance the concentration of my bloodline, rather than
anything else.”
“There have been precedents for this before.”
"During my previous periods of recuperation and assimilation, I would pray
involuntarily even in my sleep. Each time I received a divine blessing, my
bloodline concentration increased."
“This time, I feel it will also...”
“Lord Commander!” Cang Xu, in a rare attempt, interrupted the fishman
youngster.
The old necromancer's expression turned grave and serious: “Lord Commander, you
must change your mindset.”
“The main body of the Charming Blue Goddess lies dormant. You cannot guarantee
that the divine blessing will align with your desires.”
“To take such a risk, should your conjecture prove wrong, you will suffer
severe injury.”
“And that is not the most dreadful consequence.”
Cang Xu drew a deep breath: “Consider the sacred sons and sacred daughters
within the church. Like you, they are all favored by the deity.”
"Their divine favor grows of its own accord."
"Yet they serve as the church's trump cards, vessels for the deity's descent in
moments of crisis. Often, after fierce battles, these sacred sons and daughters
are left crippled."
“Consider the Handsome Youth Mercenary Corps from the demon war, every member
met a tragic end.”
"The richness of divine favor and blessing comes at a price. Being overly
favored by the gods is both a blessing and a curse!"
“Judging by the current situation, the Charming Blue Goddess has invested so
heavily in cultivating you, even going so far as to increase the concentration
of your Surging Wave bloodline, is likely to groom you into a sacred son.”
“This prayer, its very words were crafted for me.”
"Yet in its execution, you, my lord, received the overwhelming majority of the
divine blessings. The Charming Blue Goddess actively elevated your clergyman
level, not as a magician level or warrior. These are all proofs!"
“By my estimation, the current Charming Blue Church likely has no sacred sons
and daughters.”
“You have already become an Archbishop, but this position should not be your
final destination!”
The fishman youngster's expression grew solemn.
He looked intently at Cang Xu and nodded. “You are absolutely correct!”
“Without realizing it, my mindset has shifted.”
"Cang Xu, thank you for your reminder this time. I hadn't realized I'd grown so
complacent."
Cang Xu: "Lord Commander, recall the incident on Mystifying Monster Island. Our
escape from that perilous place was only possible because we remained
meticulous and vigilant, seizing every opportunity while preparing for the
worst-case scenario at every turn."
“Such reckless ventures are simply not worth the risk.”
The fishman youngster nodded repeatedly, deeply moved by Cang Xu's words.
“One more thing,” Cang Xu added. “One more thing you must guard against, Lord
Commander.”
“It concerns Miss Zi Di's resurrection.”
The fishman youngster's gaze sharpened.
Cang Xu continued, “Miss Zi Di is the lady of your heart. If the resurrection
proceeds without interference, that would be the best outcome.”
“But we must also consider the alternative scenario.”
“Should Miss Zi Di be subjected to some hidden trap by the Charming Blue
Goddess during her revival, it would be disastrous.”
Cang Xu possessed considerable “experience” in this matter, having once borne
not only Zhou Zhang's dual seals but also the deadly trap of Jian Gui.
The fishman youngster drew in a sharp breath and nodded solemnly.
Being held hostage would be disastrous.
Without looking far, Lady Sea Snake he'd just captured was the most obvious
example.
Lady Sea Snake held the Da Ji Clan hostage, thereby seizing Qi Ling's Achilles'
heel and forcing her into submission.
The fishman youngster didn't want himself, let alone the other survivors, to
fall under the control of the Charming Blue Goddess!
He sighed, “Cang Xu, thank you for the warning. You're right—relying solely on
our current situation to revive Zi Di isn't safe.”
“After all, this Resurrection divine spell, along with my understanding and
experience of it, were all granted by the Charming Blue Goddess.”
“Moving forward, we can seek opportunities to pray to other deities, learning
their resurrection methods and wisdom.”
“By synthesizing this knowledge, we might avoid the pitfalls and reduce the
risks.”
Cang Xu nodded repeatedly, praising the fishman youngster's prudent
approach—truly worthy of a commander.
The fishman youngster, in turn, commended Cang Xu. This reminder from Cang Xu
was exceptionally timely. No wonder he had sought to recruit him back on
Mystifying Monster Island.
Almost simultaneously, on Two Eyes Island, Tan Mo was lavishing praise upon Yan
Yi.
The first phase of interrogations concluded, granting temporary freedom not
only to Yan Yi but even to Island Lord Hun Tong.
The two were secretly core members of their faction, so they could not be kept
in the interrogation room for too long. Such detention would severely disrupt
Two Eyes Island's daily operations.
Upon release, Yan Yi warmly invited Tan Mo to a feast.
After a hearty meal, Yan Yi presented Tan Mo with a substantial sum of money,
carefully prepared by himself.
Satisfied and in high spirits, Tan Mo naturally showered Yan Yi with praise.
After all, saying nice things wouldn't cost a penny!
More importantly, Tan Mo needed to demonstrate his improved attitude. He had to
become more enthusiastic, so others would know that the gifts he sent were
effective!
Look, the results were immediate!
Rest assured.
Seeing Tan Mo's attitude shift, Yan Yi's face was plastered with smiles, his
eyes subtly flashing with shrewdness.
He thought to himself: “Tan Mo, oh Tan Mo, this money won't be so easy to
collect.”
Tan Mo, meanwhile, harbored even greater expectations: “If I gained so much
from Yan Yi, a mere bronze level figure—”
“Then wouldn't I reap even more from Hun Tong, the gold level Two Eyes Island
Lord?”
The height of his expectations matched the depth of his disappointment.
After their private meeting concluded, Tan Mo left the city government palace
with a grim expression.
He carried tens of thousands of gold coins, yet his mood was foul.
The reason was simple: these tens of thousands of Devil Gold Coins were sacred
artifacts and crucial evidence.
He absolutely could not lay a finger on them or embezzle them!
Hun Tong had certainly offered Tan Mo other gifts, but this sum was pitifully
small.
“Not even two-thirds of what Yan Yi gave me!”
“Does Hun Tong look down on me? He thinks he can dismiss me so easily?”
“Take me for a beggar?”
"Hehe."
Tan Mo burned with humiliated fury.
At the same time, he seethed with resentment.
Hun Tong had ruled Two Eyes Island for years, amassing a fortune beyond
measure.
Recently, he'd even raked in a massive war windfall!
So wealthy, yet so stingy! Had he forgotten he was still under imperial
investigation?
Even for Tan Mo, finding such a prime target and opportunity for extortion was
rare.
Burning with this intense resentment, Tan Mo secretly sought out Tu Ji and
hinted around, “Lord Hun Tong is utterly incompetent. He's never properly
handled disputes with the major merchant alliances, and the conflicts keep
escalating.”
"He even dared to attack the Bandage Mercenary Corps! They've contributed on
the battlefield, shedding blood for the cause. They're his comrades-in-arms!
How could he bring himself to do that?"
“And his relationship with the Wealth Church has deteriorated drastically
too...”
Tu Ji looked at Tan Mo and cut him off bluntly: “Lord Tan Mo, my assessment of
Hun Tong is the exact opposite of yours!”
“He's been actively managing the disputes with the major merchant alliances,
fiercely protecting the island's interests.”
“He likely has no money.”
“I've reviewed his intelligence reports over twenty times. If he had funds, his
personality wouldn't allow such actions.”
"It's clear he didn't secure any spoils of war. The notion of him profiting
massively from the conflict is a fog he deliberately released. And that,
precisely, is one aspect I admire about him."
In this regard, Hun Tong had always strived to maintain a facade. For a short
time, it worked well. But over the long haul, it wouldn't hold up.
After all, no matter how stingy he was, surely he hadn't neglected to refurbish
the light cannon towers on Two Eyes Island or his magic flying ship, the Golden
Flash?
On this point, Tu Ji was certainly not the only one to see through it; the
major merchant alliances were also gradually coming to realize that Tan Mo was
merely feigning ignorance.
Tu Ji sighed. “Hun Tong was simply unlucky. His scheming and maneuvering were
actually quite skillful.”
“Though he repelled the fishman clan, it was a pyrrhic victory that severely
depleted his forces.”
“Therefore, he decisively absorbed the Bandage Mercenary Corps and others. This
allowed him to replenish his strength, restore part of his power, and
simultaneously eliminate potential troublemakers before they could stir up
trouble.”
“Those mercenary groups have always been ungrateful dogs that can't be tamed.”
“Finally, seizing the opportunity presented by the death of the Wealth Priest,
he actively introduced the Justice Church.”
"His aim was to balance the Wealth Church by bringing in other churches, ending
their previous dominance. By fragmenting religious authority, the greatest
beneficiary would be himself, the Two Eyes Island Lord."
“In summary, Hun Tong is an exceptional noble, truly an empire-building elite
who rose from nothing to establish the foundation of Two Eyes Island!”
During evidence collection, Tu Ji heard countless negative assessments of Hun
Tong. Yet he remained unshaken, guided by his own clear and rational judgment.
He met Tan Mo's gaze with calm eyes, and the latter backed away awkwardly.



****** Chapter 570: Hun Tong Raises Resources ******
“That bastard Tu Ji...” Tan Mo had hit a brick wall with Tu Ji, and recalling
it afterward made him grind his teeth in frustration.
If Tu Ji had come from any other background, Tan Mo might have had room to
maneuver. But Tu Ji hailed from the Blood Light Punishment Institution, that
was far too formidable. Tan Mo felt completely hamstrung.
As for the claim that “Hun Tong hadn't looted any spoils and made a killing
from the war,” Tan Mo had his suspicions.
He preferred to believe the theory that Hun Tong had struck it rich.
“Even if he's strapped for cash, a leaky ship still has three tough nails. I
refuse to believe I can't squeeze more out of him!”
“If I let this chance slip away, I'll regret it for the rest of my life.”
“How should I go about extorting him?”
Tan Mo began racking his brains.
If Tu Ji cooperated, he could easily manipulate Hun Tong.
But without Tu Ji's cooperation, it would be difficult.
Though Tan Mo was in the Imperial Secret Spy Agency and secretly bore the
expectations of the Seventh Prince, the current situation involved
investigators from the Blood Light Punishment Institution. With both sides
conducting a joint investigation, neither the Blood Light Punishment
Institution nor the Imperial Secret Spy Agency would believe his one-sided
account.
If he resorted to outright slander or fabricated evidence, it would be pure
recklessness, Tan Mo courting disaster and jeopardizing his career as a Navy
Rear Admiral.
“What should I do?” Tan Mo pondered incessantly, while Hun Tong also felt the
pressure mounting.
Hun Tong sought out Yan Yi and confided, “Tan Mo won't give up like this,
Shadow.”
Advanced in years and seasoned by experience, Hun Tong understood well that the
bribe he had offered Tan Mo would never satisfy him.
Hun Tong had long shed his youthful impetuosity. Otherwise, he wouldn't have
allied with Shadow years ago, enduring sacrifices, like losing merchant ships,
to gradually lure the fishman clan into attacking the island.
Hun Tong sought out Yan Yi this time specifically for assistance.
Yan Yi spread his hands helplessly. "Lord Hun Tong, I'm truly sorry, but I can
do nothing more. I've practically emptied my coffers in bribes to Tan Mo,
begging him to show mercy this once."
Yan Yi's refusal was delivered with tactful restraint.
This left Hun Tong seething with frustration.
He suppressed his rage, fixing Yan Yi with a piercing stare: “I know exactly
how much you've given Tan Mo!”
“In a way, you raised his expectations, which is why Tan Mo is even more
dissatisfied with my gift to him.”
“You should understand this logic.”
Yan Yi shook his head and sighed bitterly: “Lord, I am truly afraid.”
“I am not like you!”
“You are the lofty gold level, the de facto ruler of Two Eyes Island, your
position unshakable.”
“And me?”
“I'm merely a bronze level. Being the representative of this sea area already
feels like walking on thin ice.”
"This time, Tan Mo, as a secret agent, can't easily act against you. But if he
harbors ill will toward me and reports it to higher-ups, I'm finished!"
“Tell me, in this situation, what choice do I have but to give it my all?”
“If I hold back and fail to satisfy Tan Mo, leading to my dismissal or even
imprisonment, I'll regret it for the rest of my life!”
Yan Yi's almost tearful plea softened Hun Tong's expression considerably.
He continued, “On the contrary, if I satisfy Tan Mo this time and earn his
favorable evaluation—”
“Who knows? My current standing might solidify considerably. Perhaps I could
even advance to the next level in the future.”
At this point, a hint of longing flickered across Yan Yi's face.
Hun Tong inwardly sneered, thinking: You're just a bronze level, and you want
to climb higher? What are you dreaming about? Don't you have any self-
awareness?
Hun Tong had calmed down. He thought: I shouldn't push Yan Yi too hard. After
all, Yan Yi and Tan Mo are members of the same organization.
But he was desperately short of money.
There was simply no other way.
Hun Tong fixed Yan Yi with a fierce glare, his voice low and menacing. “My
predicament stems directly from heeding your advice and letting that
necromancer escape.”
“You guaranteed me you could eliminate him.”
“And what happened?”
“Tan Mo needs a pretext to strike against me, my failure to stop the
necromancer is perfect!”
“Shouldn't you be held accountable for your flawed command?”
Yan Yi hurriedly protested, “Lord Hun Tong, you mustn't speak recklessly.”
“I was no longer responsible for the necromancer's subsequent actions.”
“How could I have known the new representative would act this way?”
"Besides, war is unpredictable. Anything can happen on the battlefield. A minor
mishap can even sway the final outcome."
“On this point, your Lord should understand it best, and feel it most keenly.”
“The primary reason for your investigation wasn't just the necromancer, but the
Devil Gold Coins.”
Hun Tong snorted coldly, cutting him off: “The issue now is that Tan Mo won't
let me off the hook.”
“We are one. If he won't spare me, how could he spare you?”
"He intends to make things difficult for me. He'll certainly tamper with the
final investigation report. If he can give me a low evaluation, do you think
you can escape unscathed?"
Yan Yi bowed his head in dejection. Raising his hands in surrender, he
relented: "Lord Hun Tong, what assistance do you require from me? I shall do my
utmost."
Hun Tong shook his head. “It's not about me. We must weather this storm
together.”
“The real problem now isn't Tu Ji.”
"We both share Tu Ji's information. That man is upright. The true issue lies
with Tan Mo."
“Hmph. That greedy bastard will never be satisfied with the payment I offered.”
"He won't let this rest. He'll twist the investigation results to his
advantage!"
Yan Yi glared: “Then what can we do?”
“Feudal Lord, he's an investigator. He has a magic ship, and it's guarded by a
saint level shield guardian!”
“Since we ran into him, we'll just have to accept our misfortune. Better to pay
the price and avoid disaster.”
Hun Tong also glared: “What do you think I want to do?”
“Take out Tan Mo?”
“Impossible!”
“Tan Mo himself is a gold level. He made it to Navy Rear Admiral—you think he
can't fight?”
"Even if we handle Tan Mo, even without the saint level shield guardian,
there's still the Tu Ji. He's from the Blood Light Punishment Institution!"
“This is a joint investigation. We have no choice but to bow our heads.”
“Brother Yan Yi, you've got some nerve!”
Yan Yi was startled and waved his hands frantically. “Feudal Lord, you can't
say that! I never had any dangerous thoughts!”
“I'm a member of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, the regional representative!
My loyalty to the Empire is absolute!”
“Enough.” Hun Tong waved him off wearily. “Money. I need money now.”
“I plan to raise another sum to give to Tan Mo.”
“Consider this round a loan from me.”
Yan Yi wore a pained expression. “Feudal Lord, to weather this crisis, I've
already used every last coin I own for bribes.”
“Where would I possibly find more money for you?”
Hun Tong's expression darkened instantly. “Stop spouting such nonsense.”
“We're fighting this together, you owe me at least this much!”
With that, Hun Tong held out his right hand, fingers splayed wide.
Yan Yi's eyes widened. He couldn't sit still any longer and sprang to his feet.
“My Lord! Even if you killed me now, I couldn't produce that much!”
“It's simply impossible.”
Hun Tong sneered, convinced Yan Yi must be hiding something.
Yan Yi retorted fiercely without hesitation.
After a tense standoff, Yan Yi finally bowed to pressure, reluctantly agreeing
to “lend” Hun Tong 1,600 gold coins.
This fell far short of Hun Tong's initial demand.
Yet Yan Yi volunteered to mediate, offering to facilitate friendly negotiations
between Hun Tong and Tan Mo.
Considering Yan Yi's status as a secret agent, Hun Tong didn't want to push too
hard.
Judging by Yan Yi's demeanor, Hun Tong also sensed he couldn't squeeze any more
money out of him. Reluctantly, he nodded in agreement.
“1,600 gold coins alone won't solve the problem.”
“We'll have to think of other ways.”
Still, Yan Yi's attitude satisfied Hun Tong.
At times, Hun Tong felt fortunate that the secret agent assigned to oversee the
Two Eyes Island region was only bronze level in cultivation. This allowed him
to maintain absolute initiative throughout their negotiations!
Had Yan Yi been gold level, no, even silver level, Hun Tong would never have
wielded such effortless leverage and coercion.
Solutions always outnumbered difficulties.
Hun Tong devised a new plan.
He sought out another helper.
After some general conversation, Hun Tong revealed his true intent: borrowing
money!
“Bishop Nei Dou,” Hun Tong said, “if you wish to establish a Justice Church
parish on Two Eyes Island, now is actually the best opportunity.”
“The Treasure Chest at the dock, and this joint investigation, you should be
well aware of both.”
“I myself have no issues, but to navigate this investigation, I'll need some
assistance from the Justice Church...”
“As the Justice Church's bishop personally establishing a new diocese, I find
it hard to believe you lack startup funds.”
Hun Tong then bluntly demanded 50,000 gold coins. Such an exorbitant sum
instantly stirred resentment among the eavesdropping pilgrims.
Nei Dou, an unremarkable middle-aged man, pondered briefly before shaking his
head slightly. “Fifty thousand gold coins, we simply cannot produce that
amount.”
“It's far too much.”
“We're establishing a new parish; we couldn't possibly carry that much gold
with us.”
“But we do understand your current predicament.”
"We are willing to assist you in overcoming this crisis. However, we can only
lend a maximum of 20,000 gold coins."
“Furthermore, we demand priority missionary rights, the right to build churches
anywhere, and a reserved parish territory.”
Priority missionary rights were clearly intended to counter the Wealth Church.
The right to build churches anywhere was an even more potent offensive weapon.
The right to a reserved parish was the heaviest demand, within this area, only
the Justice Church may be professed.
Hun Tong made exorbitant demands of Nei Dou, and Nei Dou returned the favor.
But that's how negotiations work, as the saying goes, ask for the moon and
settle for the stars.
Do not be afraid of high demands; but fear a lack of sincerity in negotiations.



****** Chapter 571: Tan Mo Makes Things Difficult ******
Both Hun Tong and Nei Dou approached the negotiations with genuine sincerity.
A fierce verbal battle ensued, with both sides trading arguments and shifting
tactics. After over an hour of back-and-forth, an agreement was finally
reached.
The final outcome was as follows:
The Justice Church would provide 12,000 gold coins in sponsorship in exchange
for the Hun Tong's future support for missionary activities.
No priority preaching rights were granted, and church construction sites were
restricted to designated areas on Two Eyes Island.
Yet the preservation of the diocese was secured.
In short, this was a victory for the Justice Church!
After all, Hun Tong had revealed his vulnerability, he desperately needed to
weather this investigation. This external pressure had placed him in a severely
passive position.
Of course, the Justice Church paid a price too.
The 12,000 gold coins they contributed were sponsorship fees, not loans. This
meant—it was a gift. Hun Tong would never repay it.
After the negotiations concluded.
Guang Ke privately inquired of Nei Dou: “Lord, the total funds we brought for
developing the new parish amount to only 20,000 gold coins.”
“Now that half has been given away, how much remains for missionary work?”
“Don't forget, constructing the church is also a massive expense.”
Nei Dou smiled: “Rest assured, this investment will absolutely be worth every
penny.”
“With Hun Tong's inclination and support, we're certain to carve out a piece of
the Wealth Parish.”
“As for funds, they are indeed insufficient.”
“But it doesn't matter. I've already devised a solution.”
“Oh? What is it?” Guang Ke inquired.
Nei Dou looked at him: “This is thanks to you. Before this, we secured the
island lord's consent on Snake Rat Island and established a parish there.”
“Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island are quite close. Our two dioceses can be
considered one entity.”
“In the future, we can raise some religious taxes from Snake Rat Island to fund
the construction of the Two Eyes Island diocese.”
“Of course, funds will still be scarce. We'll endure a rather arduous
pioneering period.”
“But no matter how difficult it gets, what does it matter for the cause of our
Lord?”
Guang Ke's expression grew solemn: “Indeed. As long as it expands our Lord's
cause, I shall always serve with utmost loyalty and wisdom. What hardship is
worth mentioning?”
Nei Dou chuckled heartily, patting Guang Ke's shoulder: “Actually, there are
other solutions.”
“Didn't you personally convert a mercenary commander?”
“His name was Long Fu, correct?”
“From what I understand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the most prominent
force in the fishmen offensive.”
“These men have deep connections and considerable wealth. They profited from
the fishmen offensive and even purchased the magic ship White Bandage when they
left the island.”
“See if you can get in touch with them?”
“Have them contribute some funds?”
Guang Ke instantly recalled the dragonman youngster's appearance. He smiled
faintly: "It wasn't just the fishmen offensive. Back on Snake Rat Island, we
defeated Rou Zang's pirate crew together. Their performance was already
exceptionally outstanding."
“In fact, without their participation in that naval battle, we would have
lost!”
“Long Fu is an extraordinary young man. He joined the faith voluntarily,
possesses great insight, and has his own understanding of the doctrine.”
“I believe that with proper guidance, he will become a devout believer and a
capable member of our Lord's cause!”
“If they're still active nearby, I can try to contact them.”
The dragonman youngster had left a deep impression on Guang Ke.
A very favorable one.
Besides, it hadn't been long since they parted ways.
But what Guang Ke hadn't anticipated was that despite the brief separation, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had undergone tremendous growth and transformation
during that time.
The dragonman youngster in his mind had already transformed into the fishman
youngster.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
The roar of churning seawater filled his ears.
The fishman youngster sank deeper and deeper into the ocean.
“The place…”
“I dreamt of this place again.”
He surveyed his surroundings, now quite familiar with this dreamscape.
Sea water, whirlpools.
“So I must have prayed in my sleep once more?”
Though the fishman youngster was aware of his actual situation, his thoughts
moved sluggishly, far slower than usual.
“Wait, what's that?”
The fishman youngster sank to a new depth on the ocean floor, discovering a
massive shadow lurking within the great whirlpool.
The shadow loomed like a mountain, and he was drifting steadily toward it.
The next moment, the fishman youngster snapped open his eyes and struggled to
his feet, jolted awake from his dream.
Gasp, gasp...
He gasped for breath as his racing heart gradually calmed.
“The Surging Wave fishman bloodline... its concentration has surpassed 67%.”
The fishman youngster had anticipated this moment.
This was an extraordinary achievement!
According to the characteristics of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline, once
the concentration reached 60%, one could cultivate to the saint level!
Originally, the fishman youngster's level cap was at the gold level, but now
his future possibilities had expanded once more.
Though his expectations had been fulfilled, the fishman youngster felt little
joy in his heart.
He couldn't help but recall that enormous, mysterious shadow lurking in the
depths of the great whirlpool.
“What exactly is that?”
“According to the magic images recorded, whenever I pray in my sleep, divine
spells like Spiritual Navigation are cast upon me.”
“Could it be that the immense, mysterious shadow is the true form of the
Charming Blue Goddess?”
“I am steadily drawing closer to Her!”
At this thought, all joy vanished from the fishman youngster's heart. Instead,
a creeping chill took its place.
Tan Mo’s gaze toward Yan Yi also grew icy.
He pondered for a long time, unable to devise a good solution. Tu Ji felt like
a boulder blocking his path, severely limiting his options.
It wasn’t impossible to bypass Tu Ji, but Tan Mo wasn’t satisfied with the
expected results of using such methods to extort bribes.
Just as Hun Tong perceived him, his nature was greedy, he would never be
content with such meager gains.
Thus, he privately sought out Yan Yi.
“Tell me everything you know about Hun Tong.”
“You've been in charge here for years and are one of his kin. You must
understand him well.”
“How much leverage do you hold over him?”
Tan Mo dropped all pretense, stating his demands directly with an overbearing
tone and expression.
After all, he was a gold level, while Yan Yi was merely a bronze level.
There was no need for politeness!
Excessive courtesy, for a gold level being, was tantamount to lowering one's
status and inviting humiliation.
Yan Yi looked troubled. “Lord Tan Mo, as you just mentioned, Lord Hun Tong and
I are kinsmen of the same clan.”
“What use would evidence against him be to me?”
“Even if I gathered it, I couldn't possibly sell it as merchandise.”
“If I betrayed my own kin, how would those around me, my subordinates and my
superiors, ever look at me again?”
“Such betrayal is something I absolutely will not do!”
Yan Yi's refusal was blunt and resolute.
“Heh heh heh.” Tan Mo let out a cold laugh, glancing out the window to gaze at
the sea for a moment before turning back. “Yan Yi, you have strong principles.
I admire that.”
"You're also quite resourceful. The secret agent Qing Xin, codenamed ‘Lost
Return,’ was originally slated to succeed you. Yet you managed to place her
within the necromancer’s inner circle. The entire process was flawless, not a
single issue to be found."
“But Yan Yi, though this operation adhered perfectly to protocol, do you truly
believe those above will accept it without question simply because it followed
the rules?”
Yan Yi’s expression shifted.
Tan Mo's voice continued to echo in Yan Yi's ears, icy cold: “You're merely a
bronze level agent, yet you've wielded immense power all this time.”
“The taste of power is so sweet, you've become utterly addicted, haven't you?”
“Perhaps it has even blinded you, making you mistakenly believe you're
powerful?”
“Can you truly recognize your own situation? Can you see reality clearly?”
“Let me give you a small example.”
Tan Mo's eyes flickered with murderous intent. “I could kill you now. It
wouldn't take a second!”
Yan Yi clenched his teeth, fists tight, his face drained of color.
Within a minute, cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
Seeing his stubborn resolve, a flicker of surprise crossed Tan Mo's eyes.
However, the warning had been delivered. There was no need to push further. A
pause would yield better results.
"Think it over carefully. I'm a reasonable man." Tan Mo eased his grip.
Yan Yi left, his face etched with anguish.
Two or three hours later, he sought out Tan Mo of his own accord, his face
grim. “I've reviewed past cases. There are indeed some areas where we could
make adjustments.”
“But I don't want to hand them over directly to you.”
“Lord Tan Mo, you know I'm only a lowly bronze level agent.”
“If I give you the intelligence outright, my career would be ruined.”
“Because I not only exploited the intelligence in my hands for personal gain
but also framed my own kin.”
This was the world of the strong.
The foundation of strength lay in the bloodline.
Bloodline naturally forged powerful bonds between kin and a deep sense of
belonging among relatives.
Thus, betraying one's own clan was utterly despicable, a vile act despised by
all.
It was perfectly natural for Yan Yi to harbor such concerns.
“You wish to employ some clever method to make me ‘discover’ this intelligence
myself?” Tan Mo chuckled lightly.
He made no effort to conceal his mockery.
In his view, this was utterly pointless, like taking off one's pants to fart.
Such concealment was fundamentally useless. Those in high positions judged by
actions and outcomes. Yan Yi's concealment was at best a transparent veil,
likely deceiving only himself and fooling no one else.
“Fine. Let me ‘discover’ that intelligence myself.” Tan Mo nodded, deciding to
play along to secure Yan Yi's cooperation.
Tan Mo had no intention of aiding Yan Yi.
Yan Yi was merely a bronze level cultivator, and the two shared no bond. Yan Yi
held no value worth his aid.
Besides, if he showed sympathy and spared Yan Yi, how could Tan Mo later extort
Hun Tong?
Yan Yi's face darkened as he desperately pleaded his case: “I need to serve as
an intermediary to facilitate future negotiations between you and Lord Hun
Tong.”
Tan Mo agreed to this arrangement, inwardly sneering: No matter how much you
involve yourself or how innocent you pretend to be, it won't make a difference.



****** Chapter 572: Yan Yi Talks Things Over ******
As the intermediary, Yan Yi sought out Hun Tong, concealing the fact that he
had contributed intelligence. He merely stated: “I was forced by Tan Mo to act
as a go-between. That damned Tan Mo, utterly despicable! Just because I'm only
bronze level, he dares bully me like this!”
Hun Tong felt a surge of joy inside. He patted Yan Yi's shoulder and tried to
show empathy: "You and I are on the same side. Back then, I teamed up with you
because we're from the same clan."
"That bastard Tan Mo cares about nothing but money. And he's got powerful
connections in the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. He's been extorting bribes for
years, and no one can bring him down!"
Yan Yi stated bluntly, “Tan Mo's attitude this time is exceptionally brutal and
unyielding. He demands at least 30,000 gold coins before he'll let it go.”
Hun Tong's rage boiled over: “He really dares to ask for that much!”
He'd painstakingly raised funds, yet still fell short of the 30,000 gold coins.
But the gap wasn't insurmountable. To reach 30,000 gold, he'd have to dip into
his own savings to make up the difference.
Yan Yi pleaded, “My Lord, circumstances are beyond our control. A step back
opens up a world of possibilities.”
Hun Tong fought to suppress his rage. Under Yan Yi's imploring gaze, he finally
chose compromise. “30,000 gold, truly, not a penny less?”
"Truthfully, I can produce 30,000 gold. But I fear this might only fuel Tan
Mo's greed further."
“Bargaining is essential, he must understand my absolute limit!”
Yan Yi hastened to respond: “My Lord, your stance is truly most wise.”
“Rest assured, as the intermediary, I will exhaust every effort to negotiate
with Tan Mo. I'll push and pull until he comprehends that 30,000 gold is the
absolute bottom line.”
Hun Tong nodded. "Shadow, I have complete confidence in your work. If anyone
else were the intermediary, I'd worry their words might provoke Tan Mo and
worsen the situation. But you would never make such a mistake, correct?"
Yan Yi's body trembled slightly, understanding this was Tan Mo's warning. He
hastily assured, "Of course not! Rest assured, Lord."
Yan Yi left Hun Tong and approached Tan Mo for negotiations.
Returning with the outcome, Yan Yi reported to Hun Tong.
Hun Tong roared in fury: "What? Tan Mo has his eye on my alchemy components?
Beyond the 30,000 gold coins, he also wants the Golden Eye thrown in as a
bonus?"
Yan Yi replied, “Tan Mo suggested that since Lord lacks the means to repair the
Golden Flash, why not part with the Golden Eye instead?”
“He also remarked that the name alone would suit his Treasure Chest perfectly.”
Hun Tong laughed in anger.
“The Golden Eye reconnaissance component aboard the Golden Flash is an alchemy
artifact of gold level! It's practically a sacred relic of the Wealth Church!”
“Because it is augmented with Appraisal!”
"It can appraise the value of everything within its scouting range. It's a
uniquely effective reconnaissance tool with exceptional results."
"Its market value is conservatively estimated at 4,000 gold. And in Tan Mo's
words, it's merely a ‘bonus’?"
At this point, Hun Tong fixed his gaze on Yan Yi, his expression darkening as
he made no effort to conceal his anger.
Yan Yi took a step back, cold sweat pouring down his brow. “Lord, I have
already negotiated the price to the absolute limit.”
“Tan Mo's greed is truly staggering.”
"Upon my return, I explicitly warned Tan Mo that this asking price would be
nearly impossible to meet. I told him not to harbor any expectations."
“Perhaps, Lord, if you were to confront him directly and state your firm
stance, it might make him truly recognize the reality of the situation.”
Hun Tong did not nod at Yan Yi's suggestion.
He needed an intermediary to mediate this matter.
He was reluctant to confront Tan Mo directly, partly out of distaste and pride,
partly because he held the weaker hand in such negotiations. To maneuver
effectively, he needed room to maneuver. Yan Yi was that room, his forward-
deployed defense line.
He was well-suited for this role.
On one hand, Yan Yi held significant power and influence as the head of the
secret spies in the Two Eyes Island region. On the other hand, Yan Yi was also
easy to manipulate. A bronze level individual was truly insignificant in the
presence of a gold level one.
After pondering for a moment, Hun Tong stated, “I won't agree regarding the
Golden Eye, but I can offer a bit more in gold coins.”
“30,000 gold coins is out of the question, but 3,200 gold coins is feasible.”
"Remember, this is my absolute bottom line. Go negotiate again!"
Hun Tong dismissed Yan Yi.
Yan Yi then sought out Tan Mo. After some discussion and negotiation, he
returned to Hun Tong with results.
After several rounds like this, the negotiations showed no signs of ending,
instead, they deteriorated significantly.
Tan Mo's demands grew ever more exorbitant, while Hun Tong, constrained by
circumstances, could only concede step by step.
But Hun Tong wasn't an emotionless puppet. Anger and fury swelled within him.
“That scoundrel Tan Mo!”
“I, Hun Tong, a feudal lord, am actually being threatened like this by him!”
"He utterly despises me, thinking I'm old and easy to bully!"
“I'm starting to envy the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. If customs here allowed it,
I'd challenge him to a heroic duel!”
Yan Yi desperately tried to reason with Hun Tong.
“Take one step back and your choices will expand, my lord.”
“The future belongs to you. This setback will merely serve as a footnote in
your life, highlighting your admirable flexibility and resilience.”
"We weathered the fishman invasion. We survived the crisis caused by the Devil
Gold Coins. We endured such hardships. There's no need to let it all come
crashing down now."
Beyond pleading, Yan Yi offered Hun Tong strategic advice.
“My Lord,” he suggested, “you could leverage external forces.”
“Those merchant alliances possess considerable capital.”
Hun Tong refused.
Yan Yi pressed on: "Since you wish to bring in the Justice Church, these groups
could also be utilized. Borrow a substantial sum from them! They must have
funds, especially for developing new districts."
But Hun Tong had already exhausted that avenue.
At a loss, Yan Yi suggested again: “My Lord, perhaps you could sell off some
furniture, wine collections, or antiques from the city government palace?”
Hun Tong shook his head, dismissing the idea outright as utterly ridiculous.
Such a move would utterly destroy his reputation as a noble.
He had truly reached his limit. Refusing to back down any further, he asked Yan
Yi if he could provide some support.
Yan Yi stated he was completely penniless, the gold coins he had given earlier
being his entire fortune.
Hun Tong angrily rebuked him, saying such deceitful nonsense was unnecessary in
his presence.
Yan Yi reiterated that he truly had nothing left.
Hun Tong retorted, “As the head of the Secret Spy Agency here, can't you access
the organization's operational funds?”
Yan Yi was alarmed: At this critical juncture, tapping into the organization's
funds would be handing over weaknesses to others. Tan Mo would be delighted to
learn of this.
Hun Tong's face remained cold: “I'm already in this state. Do you still have
such reservations?”
“Besides, we are on the same boat. This is us weathering the storm together.”
“After this, I will compensate you tenfold!”
With no other choice, Yan Yi reluctantly agreed to try allocating some funds.
After being pressed once more, Yan Yi sought out Tan Mo and declared, “I have a
solid plan to secure at least 50,000 gold pieces for you, sir!”
Tan Mo paused, then grew intensely curious.
Like Hun Tong, he too had reached his limit in this grueling negotiation, his
patience nearly exhausted.
He’d expected concessions, but jumping from the agreed-upon 20,000 gold coins
to 50,000? There was definitely something fishy going on!
Yan Yi looked at Tan Mo’s astonished expression, spread his hands, and said,
"The one offering this 50,000 gold isn’t Hun Tong. Lord Tan Mo, allow me to
introduce you."
Tan Mo's expression steadied as he fixed a deep gaze on Yan Yi, “Lead the way.”
The submarine plowed through the icy-blue lake water, cutting a path through
the frigid depths laced with shards of ice.
The vessel was remarkably compact; its interior cramped even with just two
occupants.
Clearly, though this small submarine was a magic ship, it was a specialized
craft, nothing like the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
It was only suitable for certain specific scenarios.
Like the escape they were undertaking now.
Hidden within the submarine were Zi Di and Elder Yuan Ci.
This elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had pale skin, a bushy beard, and
a large frame, though he was very thin.
This differed significantly from Zi Di's recollection of Elder Yuan Ci.
In her memory, he had been tall and robust, boasting a booming voice he used to
drown out rivals during negotiations.
Most crucially, he had been an ordinary human. Yet now, he radiated the aura of
a silver level magician.
While investigating the Wisteria shop in the Ice Sculpture Capital, Zi Di fell
into an ambush. Just as defeat and death seemed imminent, Elder Yuan Ci
suddenly piloted a submarine, breaking through the floor's ice layer to rescue
Zi Di in the nick of time.
The enemies lying in ambush for Zi Di naturally wouldn't let it go, pursuing
them relentlessly.
Meanwhile, the submarine, under Elder Yuan Ci's control, sped along at
breakneck speed, desperately fleeing until it finally shook off the pursuers.
During this time, Zi Di and Yuan Ci exchanged a few words, establishing a basic
level of mutual trust.
“Once we pass this shattered ice layer, we'll reach my alchemy laboratory,”
Yuan Ci stated.
“I never imagined the underground of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom would look like
this,” Zi Di marveled.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was a magnificent capital city built upon the Ten
Millennia Ice Lake. Beneath the city lay not soil, but thick, massive ice.
Yet it was more than just a solid ice layer.
As Yuan Ci explained: The Ten Millennia Ice Lake comprised four distinct ice
layers.
The uppermost layer was decade ice. Yet, fortified over countless millennia by
the kingdom and reinforced by numerous magic formations, it had become
exceptionally resilient and thick.
Beneath lay the century ice layer, from which century ice could be mined.
Deeper still was the millennia ice layer.
And the final layer was the ten-thousand-year ice.
This ten-thousand-year ice encased the god level remains of the Ten-Thousand-
Year Dragon. Even after countless millennia since its demise, its immense power
continues to permeate the entire Ten Millennia Ice Lake and the Ice Sculpture
Capital.
Near each ice layer lay the shattered ice layers, where fragments of frozen ice
intertwine with the lake water, undergoing constant transformation
Beneath the ice lay flowing lake water and a unique cold freshwater ecosystem.
Almost all life that thrived here was magic beasts, with many species found
exclusively in the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
Beyond this lay the alchemy chamber.



****** Chapter 573: Ice Lake National Policy ******
The ancestors of the snow elves who first migrated here settled near the Ten
Millennia Ice Lake.
The Ten Millennia Ice Lake stood as the largest and highest level resource
point on the entire Ice Sculpture Island—without a doubt!
The exceptionally dense and uniquely concentrated ice element, combined with
the temporal laws emanating from the Millennium Dragon's remains, had together
forged this peerless natural wonder.
Clergymen worshiped here, constructing temples and spreading their doctrines.
Fighters hunted and populated here, for the flesh and blood of ice beasts serve
as potent tonics for snow elf fighters.
Magicians established alchemy labs and mage towers, absorbing the abundant
natural elements to convert them into magic power. They studied the unique
ecology here, gaining knowledge. They harnessed the rich resources to build
their homes.
Even before the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was founded, numerous magicians had
already made their mark here.
Around the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, countless battles raged, countless schemes
unfolded. Countless souls shed blood and tears, even sacrificing their lives.
Ultimately, the barbarians retreated, and the snow elves became the masters of
this land.
A kingdom was founded.
From its inception, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's royal family balanced all
factions, announcing a policy for the joint development of the Ten Millennia
Ice Lake.
This became national policy.
The influence of this policy had been pivotal in shaping the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom into what it was today. To put it dramatically, without this policy,
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom of today would not exist.
The policy stipulated that the Ten Millennia Ice Lake did not belong solely to
the royal family, nor would it ever be monopolized by any powerful clan in the
future.
The Ten Millennia Ice Lake belonged to everyone.
Each year, permits were issued, allowing magicians, fighters, and clergymen to
establish themselves within the lake.
Naturally, magicians were the most numerous.
Conservative estimates suggested over three hundred new alchemy laboratories
were established on the lake each year.
Over the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's history, these laboratories had accumulated
into an immense number. The royal family could not even keep an accurate count,
partly due to the lake's teeming magic beasts making comprehensive oversight
difficult, and partly because numerous facilities predated the kingdom's
founding.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's unique ice-carving techniques were the fruits of
research conducted within these laboratories.
Nearly every year, these alchemy chambers and mage towers yield groundbreaking
new alchemy techniques, either refined from existing knowledge or born from
entirely novel innovations.
These achievements continuously propelled the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's
advancements in alchemy.
Consequently, within the frost domain of alchemy today, the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom stands unparalleled, surpassing even the vast Sheng Ming Empire.
"Our merchant alliance established its flagship store in the capital long ago.
At our peak, we maintained branches across the major cities of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom."
“After the former president was assassinated by imperial conspirators, factions
like the kingdom's Alchemy Guild seized the opportunity to attack, seizing the
market share we had painstakingly built here.”
Caught between these internal and external pressures, we could no longer
sustain operations. Only the flagship store in the capital clung to life."
"This alchemy chamber is a remnant of the merchant alliance's former
achievements. Truthfully, securing a permit to establish an ice lake alchemy
chamber here wasn't difficult."
Elder Yuan Ci explained as he piloted the submarine, slowly docking alongside a
colossal ice formation.
The ice mass was at least the combined volume of three blue whales.
As they drew near, a corner of the ice underwent mechanical deformation,
revealing an access passage.
Elder Yuan Ci maneuvered the submarine into the passage, entering a short
underwater metal tunnel that led to the landing pod.
The exit sealed shut as the chamber drained, filling with breathable air.
The submarine's hatch then opened, and both Elder Yuan Ci and Zi Di stepped
out.
They entered another metal passageway. Elder Yuan Ci led the way, explaining,
“This is the ice-skating laboratory constructed by the merchant alliance.”
“Its exterior is camouflaged to resemble a giant ice block, but it's actually a
gold level magic ship.”
“Unlike conventional magic ships, it lacks an internal power source. Instead,
it harnesses the abundant ice elements in its surroundings through elemental
density flow technology to generate propulsion.”
“This makes its disguise remarkably natural. Even drifting within an ice lake,
it remains undetectable to those without specific intent.”
“Imperial spies never discovered this location.”
"The place you were trapped in earlier was the Empire's secret alchemy chamber.
These chambers are fixed installations, anchored atop the millennium ice
layer."
Zi Di nodded slightly. “So we're currently positioned between the millennium
and century ice layers.”
Clang!
No sooner had she spoken than two metal barriers slammed down, sealing her in
from both ends. The metal walls on both sides closed in, forming a prison cell.
Zi Di was momentarily startled but quickly relaxed.
This reaction from Elder Yuan Ci was one she had anticipated.
Zi Di wasn't particularly nervous.
If he had wanted her dead, he wouldn't have risked saving her in the first
place.
Since he had rescued her and brought her here, his sincerity was evident.
Of course, it could also be a third party with ulterior motives.
But it didn't matter.
Bringing her here had been a significant effort; there must be a purpose.
Zi Di was safe for now, far better than hanging between life and death as
before.
Elder Yuan Ci said, "I'm sorry, but I cannot truly trust you yet. Even though
you were the one attacked."
Zi Di nodded, her tone calm. “I understand.”
Elder Yuan Ci narrowed his eyes. "For now, I lean toward believing your
intentions are genuine. Prove yourself going forward. A friendly warning: our
next conversation will be crucial, it will determine whether you live or die."
Zi Di shrugged. "Truthfully, I need to verify your identity too. Let's use that
method. It yields the most immediate results."
Though unspoken, Elder Yuan Ci raised an eyebrow, scrutinizing Zi Di once more.
“You can refine a level zero Wisteria secret order too?”
Zi Di nodded. “Of course.”
Moments later, Elder Yuan Ci retrieved alchemy materials and slipped them
through the metal bars into Zi Di's hands.
Before his eyes, Zi Di refined the Wisteria secret order.
The organizational structure of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was divided into
ten levels: Level ten president, level nine vice president, level eight senior
elder, level seven elder... level three representatives...
On the surface, there was no such thing as level zero.
Yet in reality, the level zero Wisteria secret order existed. To forge this
order, the creator had to first sign a special Wisteria Pact and had never
violated it.
Elder Yuan Ci witnessed Zi Di forge a level zero Wisteria secret order before
his eyes, his expression softening considerably.
“Only a trusted confidant of the President could sign the Wisteria Pact,” Elder
Yuan Ci marveled. “Yet I've never seen you before, nor heard your name.”
Zi Di shrugged slightly. “Well, I am a necromancer, after all.”
Elder Yuan Ci nodded lightly, accepting Zi Di's explanation.
“Now it's my turn,” Elder Yuan Ci declared. He proceeded to personally forge a
level zero Wisteria secret order in Zi Di's presence.
As the two secret orders touched, they both emitted a purple magic glow.
Initially two separate glows, they swiftly merged into one. This fusion,
involving both divine spells and alchemy techniques, served as compelling proof
that both Wisteria secret orders were genuine.
Witnessing this, Elder Yuan Ci exhaled in relief, his face lighting up with
joy.
He laughed heartily, waved his hand, and the metal bars rose again, restoring
Zi Di's freedom. “Hahaha! Looks like I bet right this time, I didn't rescue the
wrong person!”
“I knew it, I'd never seen those bastards so frantic, making such a huge fuss.”
Zi Di looked at Elder Yuan Ci, her gaze softening considerably as her earlier
wariness diminished.
Stepping before the elder, she introduced herself: “I am Gui Teng. I've
maintained direct contact with the former President but handled no daily
affairs.”
“My cultivation relies on undead resources supplied through the merchant
alliance's channels, a power secretly cultivated by the former President.”
“My journey to the sea was to search for the missing Miss Zi Di.”
“Little Zi Di...” Elder Yuan Ci nodded, sighing. “I know. She has become the
new President and vanished at sea several months ago.”
“I too attempted to dispatch personnel. After over a month of investigation
yielding no results, I decisively called it off.”
“I suspect this was a deliberate trap set by our enemies to lure out the
remnants of our Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
“Consider this: Magician Gui Teng, you came to the sea upon receiving this
news, only to be ambushed by imperial spies and nearly killed.”
Zi Di fell silent. Thoughts churned in her mind as she pondered rapidly before
finally speaking: “In truth, my investigations confirm that Miss Zi Di has
indeed vanished.”
"Vanished alongside her were Zhen Jin, the next head of the Bai Zhen Clan, and
Fei She, a level eight elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
Elder Yuan Ci shook his head. “Though the Bai Zhen Clan was once a great noble
house in the Empire's south, it has now fallen into decline.”
“The current clan head, known as ‘Iron Knee’ and ‘The Unbowed,’ possesses only
gold level cultivation. He represents the last vestiges of the Bai Zhen Clan's
glory and dignity.”
“The next generation's clan head, Zhen Jin, though promoted to the Emperor's
templar knight, cannot conceal his profound shortcomings, inadequate ability
and a timid disposition.”
“The future of such a family is bleak. Little Zi Di's alliance with them is
nothing but a desperate, misguided attempt to save a sinking ship.”
"Zhen Jin cannot serve as her protector. In fact, this maritime disaster was
likely orchestrated by a major imperial faction targeting the Bai Zhen Clan.
And Little Zi Di may have been caught in the crossfire."
At this point, Elder Yuan Ci sighed deeply: “Little Zi Di has fallen into a
trap.”
"She voluntarily took over the position of the old President, becoming the new
head of the merchant alliance. This was actually the result of the enemy
deliberately letting her take the lead."
“They intended to use Zi Di as a trail to track down our remaining forces, and
ultimately find what they covet most—the Wisteria Cache!”
Zi Di's heart trembled.
She had long suspected she'd fallen into a trap, so this revelation held little
surprise.
Yet hearing the name “Wisteria Cache” again sent shockwaves through her heart.
The first time she'd ever heard of the Wisteria Cache was from Qing Xin. Later,
she sought confirmation from Fei She, who admitted he'd only heard rumors and
knew no details.



****** Chapter 574: The Wisteria Cache is Here? ******
Elder Yuan Ci was also aware of the Wisteria Cache, which didn't surprise Zi
Di.
But considering her ambush and the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's arrangements at
the Wisteria shop, she formed another theory!
Why would the Imperial Secret Spy Agency expend such effort to establish a
presence within the Wisteria shop in the capital? The teleportation formation
they set up was exceptionally sophisticated, capable of both transmission and
aura suppression, undoubtedly costing a fortune.
And the alchemy laboratory within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake was guarded year-
round by a gold level fighter.
Gold level!
This was no ordinary individual.
Within any faction on the Main Plane, such a level signified an extraordinary
pillar of strength.
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency had invested such immense effort in this setup
here, they must have sensed something, formed some conjecture. The actions of
such a massive organization, even when based on conjecture, followed logic and
had grounds for it.
Though Zi Di wasn't an outstanding commander like Zong Ge, as an exceptional
merchant, she excelled at discerning her opponents' intentions.
From the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's actions and deployments, she deduced
numerous implications.
Immediately, Zi Di turned to Yuan Ci: “I understand!”
“Elder Yuan Ci, you are the person appointed by the old President specifically
to oversee the Wisteria Cache, correct?”
“The Wisteria Cache... Could it be within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake?”
Elder Yuan Ci paused, then shook his head with a smile. “What on earth are you
thinking?”
Zi Di's gaze remained steady as she continued her analysis: “The Imperial
Secret Spy Agency wouldn't deploy such heavy forces here for random placement
or ambushes.”
"The late President's selection of the Wisteria Cache's location faced many
constraints. It must be both hidden and secure, satisfying both requirements is
extremely difficult."
“If placed on some deserted island or remote wilderness, we'd have to build the
chamber from scratch.”
"A low-grade chamber couldn't conceal the transcendent aura of the treasure.
Since it's the Wistoria Cache, it must contain vast quantities of extraordinary
artifacts and precious resources."
"A high-grade chamber would require immense manpower and resources to
construct. But this makes the construction process less covert, inevitably
leaving traces behind."
"The ideal location would be a pre-existing, high-level secret chamber. One
that's already been excavated, its contents taken by discoverers, and
subsequently abandoned."
"Such a chamber could be repurposed with minor modifications and repairs. But
while this approach is discreet, it isn't secure. The previous discoverers
represent the greatest vulnerability. Even if those individuals are dead, they
may have left behind records. Even without records, the manpower and resources
expended during the renovation would still be a telltale sign."
Ever since learning of the “Wisteria Cache,” Zi Di had spent her free time
pondering its location.
These were conclusions she had reached through her own independent reasoning.
Zi Di continued, “Now that I've seen the Ten Millennia Ice Lake and the ice-
skating alchemy chamber, I believe the Wisteria Cache is most likely here!”
“Because this place is both secure and concealed!”
"This is beneath the Ice Sculpture Royal Capital. Even secret agents wouldn't
dare excavate here openly. Any saint level entering the kingdom must be
registered. If infiltration is discovered, it would cause a severe diplomatic
disaster."
"This ice layer alone has four layers, teeming with magic beasts, offering
limited visibility. Most crucially, alchemy chambers are as numerous as stars.
Whether we build our own or find abandoned structures left by predecessors,
it's incredibly easy."
“I trust the alchemy chambers our merchant alliance has established here aren't
limited to just the one we're in, right?”
Though Zi Di phrased it as a question, her expression betrayed absolute
certainty.
Elder Yuan Ci stared at her blankly for a moment before nodding with a bitter
smile. “Since you've already deduced this much, I won't pretend anymore.”
“Indeed, I am the elder appointed by the President to oversee the Wisteria
Cache!”
Zi Di's pupils contracted slightly.
“No wonder you've been hiding here all this time...”
“Precisely because the Wistoria Cache is here!” Zi Di sighed deeply before
pressing, "The Imperial Secret Spy Agency is the Sheng Ming Empire's
intelligence agency. I refuse to believe the entire Empire is searching for the
Wistoria Cache. It must be some high-ranking figure or faction leveraging the
agency to pursue their own agenda!"
“Who is this person or faction? Are they the true masterminds behind the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance's downfall?”
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency was a vast organization serving the Sheng Ming
Empire.
The Sheng Ming Empire's current strategy is to invade the beastman continent. A
minor target like the Wistoria Cache would never be the primary objective for
the entire secret spy organization to mobilize its full strength toward.
Yuan Ci sighed deeply once more and nodded. “On this point, your guess is
correct.”
“Who?” Zi Di's gaze sharpened to a piercing intensity as she pressed
immediately.
“The Seventh Prince.” Yuan Ci replied.
Zi Di's body and mind shook violently.
The Seventh Prince...
The son of Emperor Sheng Ming, the Son of God?
Immediately, immense doubt surged within Zi Di: "Why? Why would the Seventh
Prince, such a lofty figure, come searching for a mere Wisteria Cache?"
Two Eyes Island.
A hidden location, within a secret chamber.
Guided by Yan Yi, Tan Mo secretly arrived here, where he encountered someone
already waiting in the chamber.
“The bishop of the Wealth Church?” After this person introduced themselves, Tan
Mo raised his eyebrows in sudden realization.
He glanced at Yan Yi and instantly understood why Yan Yi had claimed he could
offer Tan Mo a full 50,000 gold in return.
The reason was simple: this man belonged to the Wealth Church!
The Wealth Church... the name alone hinted at its immense financial resources.
As for why the Wealth Church sought him out, Tan Mo had long been aware of Two
Eyes Island's situation—it was all about the parish struggle.
Two Eyes Island had originally been the Wealth Church's territory. After the
fishmen attacked, Two Eyes Island managed a narrow victory, but the true winner
was only one: the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
In that battle, the Wealth Church's top leader had been killed.
Leaderless and in the midst of chaos, this presented Hun Tong with an
opportunity.
Hun Tong's disguise was flawless, convincing everyone he'd plundered the ocean
floor's spoils, amassing staggering wealth until he was rolling in riches.
Seizing his moment of dominance, Hun Tong wielded political maneuvering to
intimidate opponents, prying open cracks and shifting the balance. He brought
in the Justice Church.
Once the Justice Church's dominance was solidified, Two Eyes Island would
become a battleground between the two factions. Hun Tong, the so-called secular
island lord, would then hold the upper hand, standing on the sidelines to
effortlessly balance the religious powers and emerge as the ultimate winner.
This undoubtedly constituted a grave infringement upon the Wealth Church's
interests.
Thus, this time, the Wealth Church secretly dispatched a bishop to take charge
of the situation, leaving Hun Tong completely unaware.
“To bring a gold level Wealth Bishop to Two Eyes Island, your capabilities are
truly impressive, Shadow,” Tan Mo probed.
Yan Yi hastily waved his hands, offering a few modest words.
The Wealth Bishop stated, “Major Tan Mo, with your profound wisdom, you must
surely understand our position.”
Tan Mo frowned. “I grasp your motives, but I haven't seen any sincerity yet.”
The Wealth Bishop laughed heartily. “Our Wealth Church may lack manpower, may
lack land, but we absolutely never lack money!”
“Fifty thousand gold. If you agree to cooperate, we can deliver thirty thousand
into your hands right now.”
Tan Mo's heart skipped a beat, but his frown deepened.
Such sincerity must conceal a grand scheme!
Thus, Tan Mo did not agree immediately. Instead, he asked, “Tell me your plan.”
The Wealth Bishop and Yan Yi exchanged a glance before the former spoke: “We
want to replace the island's ruler.”
Tan Mo's brow knotted into a tight knot. He hadn't expected them to play such a
high-stakes game.
In his own scheme, he'd merely intended to force Hun Tong into submission and
extract a sum of money.
But the Wealth Bishop aimed to remove Hun Tong entirely!
This involved the replacement of a local ruler!
In an instant, Tan Mo realized he'd been swept into a vortex.
A vortex of political struggle.
He'd become a pawn being manipulated!
His first impulse was to flee this chamber, to extricate himself from the
vortex.
Yet hesitation gripped him.
After all, the promise of 50,000 gold pieces was no small sum.
Upon reflection, he began to see this as an opportunity!
“If they truly intend to eliminate Hun Tong, assassination won't suffice.”
“That's not standard practice in imperial political struggles!”
"Especially now, when the Empire is pouring all its resources into conquering
the beastman continent. If internal strife became this extreme, the Wealth
Church would face the wrath of Emperor Sheng Ming!"
Tan Mo quickly deduced: the intensity of this political struggle wouldn't be
too great; it would remain within the bounds of established rules.
Further evidence for this deduction was himself.
If the Wealth Church intended to eliminate Hun Tong through assassination, they
wouldn't have revealed this plan to an outsider like him.
After a moment of silence, Tan Mo looked at the Wealth Church Bishop: "You want
to replace Hun Tong? Who do you intend to install in his place?"
This was a crucial question.
Because this concerned a fundamental founding principle of the Sheng Ming
Empire, the hereditary system of nobility.
If the Wealth Church were to support an outsider, Tan Mo would turn and leave
immediately.
But if the Wealth Church sought a candidate from within the Duo Mu Clan, then
there might be room for discussion.
Two Eyes Island was the domain of the Duo Mu Clan; the new ruler had to be a
Duo Mu Clan noble.
This was the law of the Sheng Ming Empire, the rule of the nobility!
Facing this question, the Wealth Bishop merely smiled without speaking.
Beside him, Yan Yi stepped forward slightly and bowed slightly to Tan Mo: “Lord
Tan Mo, do you think I am suitable?”
Even Tan Mo, greedy as he was, was utterly stunned at the sight of Yan Yi and
the Wealth Bishop's calm expression.
“Are you serious?” he snapped, glaring at the Wealth Bishop, who gave a slight
nod.
Tan Mo turned to Yan Yi and declared bluntly, “You're merely a bronze
member—and you dare covet the position of ruler?”
"You're even more greedy than I am!"
Tan Mo scrutinized Yan Yi as if seeing him for the first time, his eyes darting
up and down in disbelief.
Yan Yi chuckled. “Precisely because I'm only bronze level that the Wealth
Church finds me suitable, wouldn't you agree?”



****** Chapter 575: The Imperial Higher-ups’ Games ******
Yan Yi spoke with sincere earnestness: “I hesitated at first too.”
“But upon careful consideration, isn't it thrilling and deeply rewarding to
serve as a bronze level ruler with real authority?”
“Besides, I've weighed this decision thoroughly.”
Yan Yi laid out his reasoning: “First, I am of the Duo Mu Clan. I possess the
inherent legal right to inherit this domain."
"Second, I lead the secret agents in this region. I command considerable covert
forces. My identity as a secret agent allows me to maintain mystery, few
outsiders know my true appearance or level."
"Finally, I have backing. I have powerful support! The Seventh Prince stands
behind me."
“Shut your mouth!” Tan Mo's face darkened as he roared at Yan Yi.
The mission concerning the Seventh Prince was highly classified. The Seventh
Prince had issued strict orders: the search for the Wisteria Cache must be kept
under the highest level of secrecy!
Yet now, Yan Yi had violated that principle, openly declaring the Seventh
Prince as his backer!
How dare he?
“Your audacity knows no bounds. You're courting death, do you understand?” Tan
Mo narrowed his eyes, his murderous intent unmasked.
The Wealth Bishop, however, smiled soothingly. "Lord Tan Mo, please do not
overreact. We only know the Seventh Prince is your supreme leader. We know
nothing else."
Yan Yi chimed in, “Lord Tan Mo, I'm a veteran spy too, overseeing this region
for years. How could I make such a low level mistake?”
“I merely skirted the edge a little.”
Tan Mo sneered, taking a step back. “You're playing with fire, Yan Yi. Heh,
believe me or not, a single word from me reported up the chain, no
embellishment, just the plain truth, and you're finished. Completely finished!"
Yan Yi shrugged. “It doesn't matter. I'm just a lowly bronze level, a nobody so
insignificant they couldn't be any smaller.”
“In the eyes of gold level powerhouses like yourself, I'm as tiny as an ant.”
“To a figure like the Seventh Prince, I'm not even dust.”
“So if I die, I die.”
“But you, Lord Tan Mo? This time, you'll likely be implicated by me. Not only
will you gain nothing, but you'll never be employed by the Seventh Prince
again, right?”
Yan Yi's threat caused Tan Mo's expression to darken abruptly.
Yan Yi was absolutely right!
For the Seventh Prince, countless gold level beings actively sought to attach
themselves to him.
Gold level beings formed the backbone of the transcendents. Men of this caliber
were never in short supply under the Seventh Prince's command.
In truth, Tan Mo had bribed higher-ups to secure this assignment. It was all to
serve the Seventh Prince, to make a name for himself.
If this mission went awry, the impact on his standing with the Seventh Prince
was all too clear!
“That bastard Yan Yi must have dug up a lot of dirt on me.”
“He set me up!”
“And here I am, threatened by a mere bronze level...”
Tan Mo found it unbelievable, yet he was genuinely intimidated!
Yan Yi produced a letter and handed it to Tan Mo: “I am of the Duo Mu Clan. I
possess the right to inherit this place.”
“I have gained the recognition and support of the Wealth Bishop.”
"Not only that, but here is a joint letter from several major merchant
alliances. Lord, please take a look."
Tan Mo unfolded the letter and scanned its contents swiftly, his gaze darkening
further.
Numerous merchant alliances, large and small, operated on Two Eyes Island. The
dominant ones were the five major merchant alliances: Clam Cloth, Flint, and
others.
This joint letter bore many signatures. The five major merchant alliances were
listed first, followed by a long string of other small and medium-sized
merchant alliances.
It was no surprise that Yan Yi had secured their support.
After the fishman offensive, Hun Tong practically alienated himself from these
merchant alliances. Driven by the Devil Gold Coins, he had slaughtered numerous
merchants without offering any compensation afterward. He had also attempted to
renegotiate many crucial contracts previously signed with the merchant
alliances. Such actions severely violated commercial ethics, prioritizing his
own interests above all else.
These practices had sparked intense resentment among the merchants.
“But these shrewd, cunning merchants, how dare they jointly sign their names,
leaving such obvious evidence?” Tan Mo wasn't doubting the authenticity of the
joint letter.
After all, that could be easily verified.
He was merely curious: “Shadow, how did you persuade these merchants to sign
and produce this joint letter?”
Yan Yi replied, “Lord Tan Mo, you overestimate me.”
“How could I possibly persuade these people to put their names on it?”
“They signed it voluntarily, or more accurately, the higher-ups behind them
demanded it.”
Seeing Tan Mo's lingering doubt, Yan Yi continued his explanation: “Lord Tan
Mo, I assume you know that Two Eyes Island has been selected by the Empire to
become a hub for future maritime transport routes, correct?”
Tan Mo nodded. “Correct.”
Yan Yi stated, “Per the Emperor's decree, Two Eyes Island will become a
military-controlled zone in the future. All merchant alliances must be expelled
and cannot remain.”
“But the Five Great Merchant Alliances wish to stay here.”
Tan Mo's eyes flashed with understanding. “I see!”
In the Main Plane, the Sheng Ming Empire was the most powerful force. Within
the Empire, the Emperor held supreme authority.
Yet the Empire operated under a feudal system. Beyond the Emperor and the
imperial family, other living gods and major noble houses held sway.
A vassal's vassal was not my vassal.
Each grand noble's domain functioned as an autonomous mini kingdom.
Compounded by the dioceses of the living gods, power became fragmented,
intertwined, and mutually checked, preventing true unification.
In the Emperor's vision, Two Eyes Island was to become a militarily controlled
zone, a transportation hub, serving as a pivotal point along one of the
Empire's vital maritime supply routes.
This was the Emperor's vision.
Yet the imperial elite behind the Five Great Merchant Alliances, the patriarchs
of those great noble houses, and the living gods themselves harbored their own
ambitions.
They too sought to establish maritime transport nodes, leveraging these hubs to
continuously shuttle supplies and maximize their share of the war's spoils.
Logistics proved a critical endeavor.
On one hand, transporting military forces from the homeland maximized the gains
of war. On the other hand, returning spoils of war allowed for more efficient
assimilation, fueling further growth in strength that could then bolster
frontline forces—creating a virtuous cycle.
However, spatial teleportation came at an exorbitant cost. Alchemy technology
had not yet advanced to the point of enabling the mass transport of armies and
supplies.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's alchemy was undoubtedly world-class. Yet even
within their own territories, teleportation formations were never the preferred
method for large-scale transportation. Their primary means of transport
remained the primitive caravan system.
The Emperor's vision for Two Eyes Island was rooted in the interests of the
Empire and the imperial family. Meanwhile, the great entities behind the Five
Great Merchant Alliances pursued their own distinct agendas. A subtle
distinction existed between the two.
The higher-ups' power struggles trickled down, ultimately crystallizing into
the political conflicts of Two Eyes Island.
As Yan Yi stated, he never coerced or persuaded the merchant alliances to sign
the joint letter, it was an entirely voluntary act by the Five Great Merchant
Alliances.
Upon grasping this truth, Tan Mo realized: “Should the struggle succeed and Hun
Tong be ousted, they could genuinely preserve the fruits of their victory!”
For this falls within the bounds of legitimate political competition among
nobility.
Should the Five Great Merchant Alliances prevail and elevate Yan Yi to power,
it would fully comply with the established rules of the game.
Even the Emperor would find it difficult to intervene forcefully.
This concerns the internal affairs of the Duo Mu Clan. If the Emperor wished to
intervene, the optimal approach would be to undertake a similar
maneuver—installing a Duo Mu Clan's member as a proxy to pursue and contend for
power within the clan's internal hierarchy.
Naturally, the Emperor's might and prestige could also compel compliance
through force.
Should he resort to such tactics, the Five Great Merchant Alliances and the
deities backing them would recognize the situation and voluntarily step aside.
But Tan Mo remained convinced the Emperor would not act thus.
As the Empire's supreme leader, the Emperor would naturally prioritize
upholding imperial order rather than violating it.
Moreover, the overall interests of the Two Eyes Island were insignificant to
the Emperor. Forcing the issue would be like picking up sesame seeds while
losing watermelons, no, more accurately, like picking up pebbles while losing a
castle.
Ultimately, the Emperor would tacitly acknowledge the victory of the Five Great
Merchant Alliances and the Wealth Church.
After grasping the situation, Tan Mo was utterly numb!
He inwardly lamented: “Heaven have mercy, I only wanted to embezzle and extort
a little pocket money!”
“I never intended to get entangled in this political struggle.”
“Especially since I was aiming to align myself with the Seventh Prince, hoping
to gain favor right under his nose.”
The Seventh Prince was a member of the imperial family, Emperor Sheng Ming's
own son. Tan Mo had been seeking to cozy up to the royal faction.
If he accepted the invitation from the Wealth Bishop and the Five Great
Merchant Alliance, what would that make him? How would the Seventh Prince view
him?
Yan Yi had been carefully reading the room.
Seeing Tan Mo's shifting expression, he chuckled. “Lord Tan Mo, you may be
overthinking this.”
“Truthfully... there's no need for such grim considerations.”
“Because even if you were involved in this matter, it wouldn't amount to
anything in the eyes of the Seventh Prince.”
“What significance could the Two Eyes Island hold in his eyes?”
Tan Mo froze, jolted awake by Yan Yi's words.
Yes, what the Seventh Prince truly valued was the Wisteria Cache, never Two
Eyes Island.
Besides, under this current plan, he could easily pose as someone “used as a
pawn by others.”
After all, his reputation for greed was already widely known.
Fifty thousand gold coins.
Fifty thousand gold coins!
At this thought, Tan Mo's expression gradually steadied.
He looked at Yan Yi: “If you're not afraid of being forced into the limelight,
I'm happy to help.”
"I'm not like you. I'm timid. Dragging me into such a whirlpool? I'm scared."
“You'll have to pay more!”
“Fifty thousand gold... isn't enough.”
Tan Mo shook his head firmly, his eyes gleaming with unabashed greed.
Yan Yi and the Wealth Bishop exchanged a glance, both breaking into smiles.
The hardest part of the negotiation—the first step—was already done.
What followed was merely bargaining over benefits.



****** Chapter 576: Zong Ge vs Hua Tang – Battle Preparations ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
“Something's wrong!”
“The Wisteria shop is in serious trouble.”
Zong Ge's expression was grim.
He was well aware of Zi Di's secret mission to the Wisteria shop within the
capital.
Not only that, but he was also tasked with providing backup.
Yet when Zi Di fell into an ambush and combat erupted, not a single sound
reached him.
It wasn't until spatial fluctuations erupted that the disturbance could no
longer be concealed, alerting Zong Ge outside the shop.
His expression changed instantly, and he was about to rush in to help.
Fortunately, in the next moment, he forced himself to suppress that impulse.
Since the spatial teleportation had already occurred and no further sounds of
combat followed, it meant Zi Di had been teleported out!
"We must rescue her immediately!!" Zong Ge turned and left immediately.
He had no idea where the spatial teleportation had taken her. But he knew that
the more urgent the situation, the more crucial it was to remain calm.
Truthfully, he and Zi Di had considered the possibility of an ambush before
their operation.
Both had deemed it highly unlikely.
After all, this was the Ice Sculpture Capital!
Part of their confidence stemmed from intelligence.
Through direct and indirect channels like the Thieves' Guild and the Li Jian
Clan, they'd purchased substantial intelligence, finding no suspicious activity
related to the Wisteria shop.
Secondly, there was Zi Di's rapidly growing combat prowess.
During their journey to the capital, Zi Di's power had surged dramatically. Not
only had she ascended to iron level necromancer, creating rat eye ghosts and
snake shadow ghosts, but she had also seized Jia Bing's alchemy puppets. Apart
from the unfinished gold level ice gargoyle, each of the twelve silver level
ice gargoyles was a masterpiece. Working in tandem, they displayed remarkable
synergy.
To prepare for any contingencies, after consulting with Zong Ge, Zi Di decided
to imbue three of the silver level alchemy puppets with the Deceptive Disguise
spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, rendering them “invisible.”
It was with these three “invisible” ice gargoyles that Zi Di entered the
Wisteria shop.
It could be said that by taking these precautions, Zi Di and Zong Ge had
already anticipated the worst-case scenario.
These three “invisible” ice gargoyles indeed proved invaluable, instantly
eliminating the first enemies to appear, freeing Zi Di from danger, and even
seizing several gold level chains.
But the subsequent spatial teleportation was utterly unexpected.
Through the alchemy communication device, Zong Ge quickly confirmed Zi Di had
fallen out of range.
“This is bad!”
“Zi Di's combat strength exceeded the enemy's expectations, forcing them to
resort to spatial teleportation.”
“This was a reckless move. The spatial fluctuations can't be concealed; it will
inevitably trigger an investigation from the royal capital.”
“Zi Di is also a necromancer. That alone might create an unexpected advantage.”
“Stay calm, don't panic!”
Zong Ge swiftly returned to their temporary lodgings.
He inspected and organized his equipment, preparing for the upcoming battle at
a moment's notice.
First, he opened his luggage and retrieved a mass of metallic liquid.
The liquid shimmered with a golden hue, radiating a gold level aura.
This precious item had been procured by Zong Ge and Zi Di from the Li Jian
Clan's vault, part of their deep cooperation agreement.
Striking Shifter!
That was the name of this metallic liquid.
It was an alchemy weapon.
Zong Ge plunged both hands into the liquid, simultaneously infusing it with
gold level battle qi.
Thanks to his Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell, the golden aura of his battle qi appeared as silver to outsiders.
Even when Zong Ge projected his battle qi outside his body, achieving the
breakthrough where silver level energy couldn't be separated, no one could
detect this flaw.
For battle qi itself is an extension of the fighter's body, still benefiting
from the blessings of the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell.
Before obtaining this molten metal, Zong Ge avoided letting his battle qi leave
his body whenever possible.
Doing so would undoubtedly greatly diminish his combat effectiveness.
After acquiring this molten metal, Zong Ge's disadvantage in this regard
vanished.
Under the infusion of battle qi and Zong Ge's mental manipulation, the molten
metal reacted instantly, rapidly reshaping itself.
In less than a second, it transformed into two short blades, each gripped by
Zong Ge's left and right hands respectively.
Zong Ge maintained the battle qi infusion while mentally manipulating the
blades, transforming them into daggers, one-handed swords, short staffs,
boomerangs, and more.
Then, bringing his hands together, the molten metal coalesced into a single
mass, reshaping into a long-handled broadsword, then a staff, and even a
musket.
This was the Striking Shifter.
Under the user's mental control, it could transform into over twenty different
weapons.
Not conventional weapons, but alchemy artifacts.
It complemented Zong Ge exceptionally well, allowing him to fully leverage his
prowess as a weapons master.
Thus, when Zong Ge acquired the Striking Shifter, it immediately became his
primary weapon.
Zong Ge began donning armor.
Compared to his weapons, the armor fell short by a level, being only silver
level.
This wasn't because the Li Jian Clan lacked gold level armor, nor because the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lacked funds, it was simply unsellable.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom enforced a crucial national policy: the Armor
Prohibition!
Gold level armor had a strictly limited annual production quota, with every
transaction on the market requiring official documentation.
The Li Jian Clan also had no desire to sell to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The corps had complex backgrounds and mysterious, powerful patrons. Should they
sell to them, any heinous acts committed by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
would inevitably bring misfortune upon the Li Jian Clan.
Zong Ge first donned a silver level inner armor, then began putting on the
outer armor.
Additionally, there was a chainmail.
All three pieces were silver level. The inner armor covered only the torso,
while the outer armor included shoulder guards, arm guards, knee guards, leg
guards, and more.
The chainmail extended over his entire body and limbs, including a hood.
Without any gold level armor, he had to stack multiple silver level pieces.
It was a necessary compromise.
Because there were compatibility issues between the three silver level pieces.
Even when functioning perfectly, the combined defense of three silver level
pieces still fell short of a single gold level piece.
As he donned the silver outer armor, a flicker of hesitation crossed Zong Ge's
face.
He was debating whether, under these circumstances, to request aid from the Li
Jian Clan.
Doing so would make it difficult to explain why Zi Di had secretly visited the
Wisteria shop late at night.
Even if he concealed that fact and only requested aid, it would create a strong
connection between the Wisteria Merchant Alliance and the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. This would bring unforeseeable risks.
The Wisteria Merchant Alliance itself was trouble, and Cang Xu exposing his
necromancer identity on Two Eyes Island was an even greater hidden danger!
If he concealed his identity, it would be difficult to leverage the cooperative
relationship to borrow strength and influence from the Li Jian Clan.
Simply reporting it to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom authorities would also be
unlikely to succeed.
Zong Ge knew the reason: he lacked crucial evidence! Even if he reported it, it
wouldn't garner serious attention.
“Intense spatial fluctuations occurred within the Wisteria shop.”
"Mysterious, unexplained spatial fluctuations, such phenomena are taboo not
only in the Sheng Ming Capital but in any major noble family's city! It cannot
be tolerated."
“This alone should warrant an official investigation, right?”
"This secret faction attacked the caravan, sabotaged the Snow Bird Harbor
alchemy workshop, targeted Shuang Lian, and finally struck against us in the
capital. One crucial question remains: how exactly was Zi Di exposed?"
Zong Ge was unaware that it was the secret agents, not duelists, who had
assaulted Zi Di.
His intelligence was severely lacking in this regard, leading to a misjudgment.
After pondering, Zong Ge decided to hold his position for now, waiting for an
opportunity to strike.
There was little else he could do.
He had no idea where Zi Di had been teleported to.
The safest course was to wait for the official investigation. Perhaps it would
spark a battle, and then Zong Ge could seize his chance.
Zong Ge's hand drifted to his right breastplate.
Beneath the triple layers of armor lay the inner lining.
Within its pockets, several pearl bubbles were concealed.
Besides this spot, others were hidden beneath his soles and near the wrists of
his armguards.
Zong Ge channeled his spirit, transforming the fluid metal Striking Shifter
back into its liquid state.
The liquid flowed over Zong Ge's entire body, seeping into the armor and
lining, gently enveloping every pearl bubbles.
This way, even if subjected to violent impacts during fierce combat, the pearl
bubbles would remain intact.
When the time came to use them, Zong Ge needed only mentally command the
metallic liquid to deform, crushing the pearl bubbles. Convenient and discreet.
With this completed, the next crucial phase of battle preparations commenced.
Zong Ge entered the side chamber.
The chamber was cramped and dimly lit.
Kneeling with head bowed, Zong Ge remained silent, his heart filled with
prayer.
“Great War God.”
“You are my Lord, You are my Father!”
"I heed Your teachings, follow the Way of War, and pursue the glory of victory.
Now, the enemy is mysterious and unpredictable, their strength formidable."
“The battle approaches, and I am stirred, excited, and eager.”
"In this hour of preparation, I humbly beseech You: Grant me extraordinary
strength, let this power flow through my blood, my soul, and my weapon. Let me
battle in Your name, make me ever-vigilant, keenly perceptive, unbreakable, and
unstoppable!"
"Great War God, mighty Military God, for You I shall raise the banner of
victory high, I shall…"
Almost every survivor held their own distinct faith.
Zong Ge worshipped one of the living gods of the Sheng Ming Empire—the War God.
Before every crucial battle, or whenever Zong Ge was about to enter a major
battlefield, he would offer such a prayer.
As he prayed earnestly, Hua Tang stood by the window, gazing across the street
toward the inn where Zong Ge resided.
“Are Long Fu, Yao Ma, and their group there?” Hua Tang inquired softly.
A small, brooch shaped alchemy communication device was pinned to his collar.
Mei Lin's voice came through the device: “Yes, I can confirm it.”
“This inn is owned by the Li Jian Clan.”
“After deepening their cooperation with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, the Li
Jian Clan holds the latter in high regard.”
“This inn ceased normal operations two days ago.”
“After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps members checked in, they appeared
unremarkable on the surface but had secretly reinforced defenses extensively.”
“Hua Tang, are you truly ready to act now?”
“You've just returned, passing through numerous teleportation formations along
the way. Resting overnight and adjusting your condition before moving would be
more prudent.”
Hua Tang shook his head slightly. An unmistakable glint of hatred flashed in
his eyes as he gritted his teeth, “But I can't wait any longer.”
“Teng Dong Lang's murderer is right before my eyes. I can't wait any longer!”
Mei Lin fell silent for a moment. “Then go. May the winds of battle be
favorable to you.”
“Long Fu, I'm coming!” Hua Tang gritted his teeth, gently pushed open the
window, and leaped out.
To outsiders, all that could be seen was the third-floor window opening,
followed by a few pink petals drifting down.



****** Chapter 577: Zong Ge vs Hua Tang – Divine Blessings Bestowed ******
Hua Tang drifted like a feather, floating above the inn.
Few other gold level fighters mastered flight battle skills. Yet Hua Tang
possessed three distinct flight battle skills.
These three battle skills covered three distinct application scenarios. The one
he employed now was most suited for covert infiltration.
Hua Tang landed lightly on the inn's roof, the entire process utterly silent.
Magic formations constantly protected the inn's perimeter, and the roof was no
exception.
Yet when the magic light swept over Hua Tang's feet, it naturally bypassed him
without triggering a single alarm.
In his stealth state, Hua Tang stood openly on the roof, surveying his
surroundings.
From his vantage point, he easily observed the patrol teams changing shifts and
numerous hidden sentries crouched in corners.
With a dismissive snort, Hua Tang activated his battle skill, vanishing from
his spot in an instant, leaving only a few petals drifting behind.
The next moment, he was inside the inn.
The communication device pinned to his collar had been deliberately
deactivated.
The interconnected state of these alchemy devices could be detected by certain
magic formations, creating a vulnerability.
With his extensive infiltration experience, Hua Tang naturally avoided such
minor missteps.
Though Mei Lin's spies couldn't probe the inn's interior, the relevant
structural blueprints had already been delivered to Hua Tang.
With just a glance, he etched the layout deeply into his memory.
Recalling the blueprint as he moved, his exploration was swift.
He easily evaded any patrols he encountered along the way.
“This level of personnel and security? To me, it's practically nonexistent.”
“Found it!”
Hua Tang's eyes lit up as his reconnaissance battle skill revealed Zong Ge's
blurred silhouette.
“A silver level aura, and the form of a dragonman, it must be Long Fu!” Hua
Tang drew a sharp breath, his eyes blazing with intensity.
Little did he know, he had been deceived by a combination of the Deceptive
Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
Hua Tang first located the room's main door. Just as he prepared to use his
battle skill to push it open, the dozen or so micro-candy pellets in his mouth
suddenly began to vibrate.
The vibrations were incredibly subtle, yet Hua Tang immediately sensed the
anomaly.
“The shock candy has activated!”
“This means that if I continue to push through the door, I will trigger grave
danger.”
“Finally, things are getting interesting.”
Hua Tang gave a cold chuckle as he attempted to decipher the trap.
Yet he found himself utterly unable to locate the crucial defensive warning
mechanism.
This setback only fueled his fighting spirit further.
“My current strength and experience should be sufficient to discern any
defensive devices within the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“Who would've thought I'd encounter something unprecedented while with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
"But that fits their identity, they are arms smugglers, after all. Without any
real capability, how could they stir up trouble within the kingdom's market?"
“They clearly aim to break into the market and aggressively sell alchemy arms
within the kingdom!”
Hua Tang cautiously tried a second time, only to fail again.
He decisively abandoned the attempt and chose a wall instead.
The opposite side also had defenses, but they were far simpler and easier to
bypass than the door.
It took Hua Tang only a moment to slip through the wall.
“This is the Li Jian Clan's inn. They can't make sweeping changes or
renovations here.”
“So even with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' powerful surveillance systems,
they couldn't establish a complete defense network. There's always a loophole
to exploit.”
Hua Tang took a deep breath and quickly scanned his surroundings.
The room's layout matched the blueprint exactly, with only a few simple pieces
of furniture added.
Glancing toward the side room, Hua Tang wore his silver fox mask, his pupils
constantly glowing pink. In his vision, he could make out the blurred
silhouette of a dragonman kneeling in prayer.
Hua Tang didn't rush to search for Long Fu. Instead, he first ransacked the
main hall, bedrooms, and bathhouse.
“Where are Long Fu's weapons and equipment?”
“Strange...”
Hua Tang had intended to steal Zong Ge's weapons and gear before the battle.
After searching thoroughly, he found nothing.
“Where did Long Fu hide these things?”
"According to intelligence, they possess gold level storage equipment. During
the naval battle at Snake Rat Island, they once stored gold level cannons."
All relevant intelligence had been obtained by Hua Tang.
This was all thanks to Mei Lin's support behind the scenes.
Every action left a trace.
Since escaping Mysterious Monster Island, the survivors' movements had been
meticulously tracked by those with ulterior motives. These traces had been
compiled into intelligence reports for analysis and interpretation.
“Could that gold level storage equipment actually be portable?” Hua Tang
couldn't help but speculate.
Typically, gold level storage equipment was massive and heavy, resembling safes
anchored in hidden locations within rooms or ships.
Portable gold level storage gear, capable of being carried, generally had
limited capacity.
This was dictated by the current limits of alchemy technology.
“I've been infiltrating this room for so long, yet Long Fu still hasn't
detected me.”
“I can afford to be more conspicuous now.”
Hua Tang concluded it would be wiser to first steal Long Fu's equipment.
Thus, he employed another battle skill, one that keenly sensed transcendent
auras, enabling him to pinpoint the locations of transcendent items.
Even when these items were concealed, he could detect faint traces.
However, the formidable detection power of this battle skill also meant it
couldn't conceal its own aura.
Most of Hua Tang's equipment was designed to suppress, mask, and disguise his
own aura. Even so, it could barely cover up this particular battle skill.
Battle skill - High-Energy Scent Detection!
The moment Hua Tang activated it, his nostrils immediately caught an intensely
potent transcendent aura.
Not only was it potent, but multiple strands intertwined, delivering a powerful
olfactory assault.
The stimulation nearly made Hua Tang sneeze violently!
He swiftly channeled his battle qi to shock his nasal passages, halting the
sneeze.
Then, with a look of resentment, he turned toward the side chamber.
He had identified the source.
The source of the powerful aura emanating from the side chamber was incredibly
potent.
“Did Long Fu actually equip all his gear onto himself?”
Hua Tang approached the side chamber.
Gradually, he heard the sound of Zong Ge's prayer drifting out from within—
Great War God, mighty Military God, for You I shall raise the banner of victory
high, I shall...
Hua Tang was suddenly filled with doubt: "According to intelligence, wasn't
Long Fu a believer of the Justice Church? Yet this prayer invokes the War God."
“True, the War God's power far surpasses that of the Justice God. It wouldn't
be surprising if Long Fu had converted.”
“Or perhaps he worships both deities simultaneously.”
"But regardless, both of these deities belong to the Sheng Ming Empire. These
mercenaries likely hail from the Empire!"
As Hua Tang pondered this, a sudden surge of divine power rippled through the
air.
A beam of divine light followed, illuminating Zong Ge's form.
“Divine blessing?!” Hua Tang gasped in shock.
Blessed by the deity, Zong Ge was now enveloped in a faint halo of divine
power.
Divine blessing - Reveal Enemy Presence!
He abruptly turned, glaring toward Hua Tang's true form and bellowed, “Who goes
there?!”
Empowered by the divine blessing [Reveal Enemy Presence], Zong Ge instantly
detected Hua Tang.
He halted his prayer, spun around, and lunged forward, fists flying toward Hua
Tang.
Hua Tang had no choice but to dodge urgently.
Agile and swift, and having prepared himself, he evaded successfully.
But Zong Ge's follow-up attacks came relentlessly, one after another.
Hua Tang continued to focus on evasion, but Zong Ge's relentless pressure
forced him to resort to battle skill to counter.
Bang, bang, bang...
Zong Ge's sweeping strikes created deafening clashes, their shockwaves tearing
apart the room piece by piece.
Numerous patrolmen from the Li Jian Clan rushed over to intervene.
“Don't interfere!” Zong Ge bellowed in advance, cutting off their support.
The battle scene was peculiar.
Amidst billowing dust, Zong Ge fought relentlessly, swinging his fists alone.
Amidst such overwhelming pressure, Hua Tang still maintained his invisibility.
This scene was transmitted to Mei Lin’s eyes, prompting the Navy Rear Admiral
to marvel: when it came to the art of stealth and concealment, Yi Jiu simply
couldn’t compare to Hua Tang.
Soon, Zong Ge reduced the second floor of the inn to rubble.
Fortunately, the inn only had two stories, preventing the collapse of higher
floors.



****** Chapter 578: Zong Ge vs Hua Tang – Flower Willow ******
Battle skill - Charge.
Battle skill - Fast Fight.
Battle skill - Heavy Punch.
…
Zong Ge unleashed his battle skills in rapid succession. Though each battle
skill was simple and unadorned, in his hands they meshed seamlessly into a
suffocating barrage of overwhelming force.
Hua Tang was forced on the defensive, dodging relentlessly as he desperately
sought an opening to strike back.
Suddenly, the Striking Shifter attached to Zong Ge's body activated, instantly
forming a long spear.
Battle skill - Lance Blossom!
Grasping the spear's tail, Zong Ge channeled his battle qi into the shaft,
causing the razor-sharp tip to vibrate at a high frequency and thrust forward,
creating a shower of golden blossoms.
Hua Tang hadn't anticipated this shift and was caught off guard.
He desperately activated a defensive battle skill to intercept.
The golden blossoms collided with the pink light wall.
The wall held for several seconds before shattering with a thunderous crash.
Hua Tang was wounded, tasting metallic sweetness in his mouth. He nearly spat
out a mouthful of blood, but forced it back down.
A cold gleam flashed in Zong Ge's eyes as he pressed his advantage.
Hua Tang snorted coldly, his entire aura surging violently in that instant.
Gold level artifact - Spatial Disconnector!
Battle skill - Piercing Flower Finger!
He joined his index and middle fingers together, rapidly tapping the air before
his chest.
With each tap, a crimson flower materialized out of thin air.
The flowers bloomed, revealing their centers.
Each time, Hua Tang's sword finger pierced precisely through the heart of the
flower. The petals were thin, but the center was a weak point in space.
Hua Tang's sword finger attack pierced directly through the space, vanishing
without a trace.
Zong Ge had already heightened his vigilance the moment he saw Hua Tang unleash
his offensive battle skill. Upon witnessing this scene, he immediately surged
his gold battle qi, shielding his body inside and out.
The next instant, Hua Tang's attack manifested repeatedly, striking both within
and without Zong Ge's body.
Zong Ge grunted in pain, severely weakened, barely able to hold his spear.
He resolved to transform his metal spear into a massive five-bladed boomerang
with a flick of his mind.
Battle skill - Auto-Target Seek.
He didn't aim and hurled the boomerang with all his might.
He took a step back, kneeling halfway on the floor.
Empowered by battle qi, the boomerang traced an arc, striking precisely toward
Hua Tang.
“Don't linger in battle, the city guard are rushing this way!” Mei Lin's voice
suddenly crackled through the communication device pinned to his collar.
Hua Tang's pupils contracted sharply. Mid-air, he ignored the incoming
boomerang attacks and took a deep breath.
Battle skill - Flower Willow!
The next instant, five boomerang blades struck his abdomen, slicing through his
gold level battle qi barrier and tearing open a long gash.
Blood spattered everywhere.
He himself coughed up a large mouthful of blood.
The blood transformed into a swirling mass of light, enveloping Zong Ge.
Though Zong Ge was entirely enveloped in battle qi, the light imprinted itself
onto his protective barrier before swiftly seeping through.
Startled, Zong Ge immediately expelled his battle qi, determined to sacrifice
that portion of gold level battle qi.
But most of the light had already touched his skin, etching a pattern of
intertwined willow branches and blossoming buds.
“Long Fu, you've fallen victim to my battle skill. Your days are numbered.”
With a sinister grin, Hua Tang vanished into thin air before his feet even
touched the ground.
Zong Ge remained on high alert, his vision still clearly fixed on Hua Tang.
Hua Tang insisted on retreating, moving with astonishing speed until he
vanished from Zong Ge's sight.
This clash erupted abruptly and ended just as suddenly.
Only now did the patrol personnel arranged by the Li Jian Clan begin to cry out
in shock.
“What... what did I just see?”
"It was Hua Tang, right? It was definitely Hua Tang!"
“How could Hua Tang ambush Lord Long Fu? This is bizarre! Why?”
"Lord Long Fu is only silver level, yet he defeated another gold level
opponent. Hua Tang isn't just any gold level fighter!"
…
Zong Ge swiftly retrieved his five-bladed boomerang and rushed to where Hua
Tang had spilled his blood.
He helplessly discovered that Hua Tang's blood, scattered across the ground,
had transformed into petals.
Hoping for the best, he carefully gathered and collected these petals.
The city guard captain immediately leaped to the second floor.
The upper floor of the inn had been nearly leveled.
Being only a silver level, the captain dared not adopt a superior tone toward
Zong Ge, who was of equal rank. His voice carried genuine respect as he asked,
"Lord Long Fu, what exactly happened? Was that gold level who just departed Hua
Tang? Why did he attack you?"
A barrage of questions.
Zong Ge sighed. Though reluctant, with Zi Di absent, he had no choice but to
field the city guard captain's endless questions.
At the same time.
Beneath the royal capital, deep within the frozen lake.
Inside the ice-skating alchemy chamber, Yuan Ci also questioned Zi Di:
“Magician Gui Teng, after searching for so long, have you found Miss Zi Di?”
Though Zi Di had been rescued because of Yuan Ci, and the two had recently
verified the level zero Wisteria secret order, Zi Di still did not place
complete trust in Yuan Ci.
Gui Teng (Zi Di) shook her head and replied bitterly: "Precisely because
there's no clue, I decided to find the others and mobilize more manpower for
the search. The ocean is too vast. Even with more people, I have little
confidence. Elder Yuan Ci, you mentioned sending people to search earlier. Any
leads?"
Yuan Ci shook his head. "None. Not only did I find nothing, but after the
incident, the Bai Zhen Clan also expended great effort, issuing a bounty notice
and mobilizing part of the Imperial Navy's forces. Judging by their demeanor,
they likely haven't made any progress either."
Zi Di was aware of the bounty notice, issued by the Bai Zhen Clan through the
Sheng Ming Empire's Bounty Hunter Guild.
Even here in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, rumors had spread widely.
Unfortunately, the Bounty Hunter Guild was an organization of the Sheng Ming
Empire, and such entities rarely existed in other nations. Even if they did,
they operated through highly secretive offices or outposts.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was no exception.
It maintained its own Bounty Hunter Guild, Hunter Guild, and Mercenary Guild. 
At most, it permitted certain commercial organizations to establish limited
personnel and material networks within the kingdom. For instance, a major
merchant alliance from the Sheng Ming Empire was stationed in Snow Bird Harbor.
Thus, Zi Di couldn't directly contact the Bai Zhen Clan through the Bounty
Hunter Guild channel.
Even if she could, it would be highly unreliable.
Zi Di's initial choice had been the messaging unit of the Wisteria shop.
“The messaging unit is no longer usable.”
"Both Snake Rat Island and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's capital are under enemy
control. The Wisteria shops on other islands are also extremely dangerous."
“We must find a new means of communication.”
"Still, the Bai Zhen Clan truly lives up to its reputation as a great noble
house of the Empire's south. Though it has fallen now, its connections remain.
It could even mobilize a portion of the Imperial Navy!"
With this thought, Zi Di looked at Yuan Ci, her face clouded with worry: “The
Imperial Navy is formidable. Did their investigation yield anything?”
Yuan Ci gave a cold laugh: “Of course not.”
“The Sheng Ming Empire's naval might is indeed formidable, but the oceans of
the Main Plane are vast beyond measure.”
“The naval forces the Bai Zhen Clan can influence are but a tiny fraction.”
"Most crucially, the Imperial Navy itself faces its own struggles. Since the
Pirate King's Throne emerged, piracy has grown increasingly rampant across the
Main Plane."
“The Imperial Navy scrambles to contain threats left and right, barely
maintaining control and temporarily securing the stability of the Empire's vast
coastline.”
“But how long can one guard against thieves?”
“Pirates launch proactive attacks, while the navy remains on the defensive,
utterly passive.”
“Not to mention, the three strongest pirate crews each possess legend level
combat power. Such tough nuts to crack demand extreme caution even from the
Imperial Navy. One misstep, and not only might they fail to break them, but
they'd end up losing teeth in the process.”
As Yuan Ci spoke these words, his eyebrows arched with a hint of schadenfreude.
As a former elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, he harbored nothing but
hatred toward the Sheng Ming Empire.
"Forget about this." Elder Yuan Ci looked towards Zi Di: "You're interested in
the Wisteria Cache too, right? Shall we collaborate to unlock it?"
Zi Di paused, then inquired, “Wasn't the Wisteria Cache left by the late
President specifically for Miss Zi Di? Can we unlock it too?”
Elder Yuan Ci shook his head repeatedly. “No, no, no, you misunderstand.”
“The late President established the Wisteria Cache to preserve our vital
energy, ensuring the Wisteria Merchant Alliance could swiftly rise again when
opportunity arose.”
"The Wisteria Merchant Alliance isn't just the late President's life's work,
it's the collective legacy of us founding elders."
Elder Yuan Ci continued, “The Wisteria Cache is indeed within the ice lake, but
not here.”
“To truly unlock it, five level zero Wisteria secret orders are required.”
“Of course, if it is Miss Zi Di's level zero secret order, hers alone can
substitute for three others.”
A flicker of emotion stirred within Zi Di, as gratitude and fond memories of
her father welled up in her heart.
Outwardly, however, she remained composed, her voice barely betraying her inner
turmoil as she inquired, “Counting you and me, we only have two level zero
secret orders. Have you contacted others as well?”
“Indeed, I have,” Yuan Ci nodded. “But we still fall short of the five
required.”
“If you're interested, we should sign a contract first. When the time is right,
we can open the cache together.”
Zi Di remained silent, deep in thought.
After a moment, she finally spoke, “I need to return first. I must consider
this matter carefully.”
Yuan Ci's expression shifted slightly, but he quickly regained his composure,
nodding with a smile. “Alright, I'll see you off immediately!”
The departure method was teleportation.
The convenience surpassed Zi Di's expectations.
Yuan Ci explained, “Every alchemy chamber beneath the ice lake uses
teleportation to connect to the surface.”
“Of course, the teleportation formations and spatial fluctuations are all
meticulously recorded by the authorities.”
“Any unfamiliar spatial fluctuations would trigger an immediate investigation.”
Zi Di's first thought was the teleportation incident at the Wisteria shop.
“So that teleportation at the Wisteria shop won't trigger a kingdom
investigation?” she asked.
Yuan Ci nodded. “Not unless there were unfamiliar spatial fluctuations.”
“I don't recommend reporting it to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom immediately.”
“They're from the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. Losing one base is hardly a
significant loss for them.”
“And you are a necromancer, despite your clever disguise.”
“Moreover, if the Wisteria Cache is implicated, it would create a major problem
for us!”



****** Chapter 579: Zong Ge and Zi Di Converge ******
“Oh, right.” Before departing, Yuan Ci offered a final reminder. “I nearly
forgot to mention one small matter.”
“You know that the divine dragon's remains within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake
have created an exceedingly precious temporal resource within it.”
“Within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, there exists a phenomenon where the flow of
time is inconsistent.”
“Particularly during our journey through the shattered ice layers, time
accelerated significantly.”
“So, when you, Magician Gui Teng, return to the capital and find time has
passed much faster than you anticipated, don't be surprised.”
After hearing these instructions, Zi Di stepped onto the teleportation
formation.
The next moment, the formation activated, spatial ripples rapidly forming and
then vanishing.
Zi Di vanished from her original spot.
Gazing at the empty teleportation formation, Elder Yuan Ci sighed softly,
murmuring, “At last, a level zero secret order has arrived.”
Zi Di's vision shifted dramatically, a wave of dizziness washing over her
before fading away.
Essentially a spectral being, she differed from ordinary lifeforms, yet
teleportation involved drastic shifts in spatial perception, still requiring
adaptation and adjustment.
Zi Di found herself in a compact alchemy laboratory.
The crude, outdated alchemy apparatus and the dilapidated window frames and
door jambs all revealed the decay of this alchemy chamber.
The spatial ripples from the teleportation gradually subsided, leaving dust
swirling in the air.
The laboratory was empty, which brought Zi Di a slight sense of relief.
The room wasn't large. She spread her mental energy, easily mapping the
structure, and swiftly reached the laboratory door.
Pushing it open, the light immediately became blinding.
Stepping formally outside, she found herself on a street saturated with ice and
snow.
Looking up, she saw several ice sculptures lining the road, a castle in the
distance, and towering ice walls beyond.
“So I'm back in the capital after all,” Zi Di murmured inwardly.
She began walking and soon merged into the flow of people.
At this early hour, the streets weren't crowded, just small groups here and
there, almost all dressed as magicians.
Most of these magicians were snow elves, though occasionally humans, dwarves,
or goblins could be seen.
Zi Di deliberately slowed her pace to observe them. After a moment, a
thoughtful expression appeared on her face: "This street is almost entirely
lined with alchemy laboratories. These magicians must be the staff here."
Alchemy labs like the one she had just left seemed to be quite numerous.
Zi Di never stopped walking, passing through several streets as the number of
alchemy labs gradually decreased.
When she finally merged onto a main thoroughfare, the crowd grew dense, filled
with the clamor of voices as people bought and sold, haggling over prices.
“There's a market here, mainly selling alchemy materials.” Zi Di quickly
identified the market's name and pinpointed her location on the mental map
she'd stored.
Of course, she had already committed the map of the Ice Sculpture Capital to
memory.
Having narrowly survived an ambush, Zi Di didn't rush to reunite with Zong Ge.
Instead, she entered the bustling market.
Only after observing the market, surveying prices, and chatting with numerous
vendors while haggling did her mind truly settle.
“Yuan Ci really let me go.”
"Being able to craft a level zero Wisteria secret order likely means they're an
ally. But it still can't be completely confirmed, especially after I was
ambushed."
Having learned from her mistake, Zi Di grew more vigilant than before.
She feared this might be a scheme within a scheme, that Yuan Ci had
orchestrated the rescue to gain her trust.
If Zi Di rushed to meet Zong Ge now, they could follow her or plant tracking
devices on her, which would play right into their hands.
“I can't rush to meet him.”
“First, retrieve the three abandoned ice gargoyles!”
After a moment's thought, Zi Di decisively changed course.
Moments later, she approached the vicinity of the Wisteria shop once more.
She did not reveal herself immediately, halting three streets away.
This distance was sufficient for her to remotely control the three ice
gargoyles.
As she had anticipated, the enemies lurking within the Wisteria shop remained
oblivious to these three ice gargoyles.
Earlier, when Zi Di had been ambushed inside the shop, it was these three ice
gargoyles that had instantly killed the enemies, unexpectedly yielding several
gold level Chains of Confinement.
The key to this outcome lay in the ice gargoyles being imbued with a layer of
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
The synergy between these two spells yielded extraordinary results.
Even after Zi Di teleported away and lost contact with the three ice gargoyles,
they remained frozen in place without alerting the enemy.
Even when the enemy swept the battlefield and searched the shops multiple
times, bumping their heads against the ice gargoyles, they failed to detect
them.
To be precise, they were deceived.
Despite deploying numerous alchemy reconnaissance tools and spells, they
remained unable to penetrate the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell combination.
“This spell combo is truly reliable and effective. Along the way, I can't even
count how many crises it helped us avoid!”
Zi Di marveled after successfully retrieving the three ice gargoyles to her
side via mental remote control.
"It's a pity I lost several ice gargoyles during the battle beneath the ice
lake while buying time. I can no longer assemble the full twelve gargoyle
formation."
With a hint of regret, Zi Di inspected the three recovered ice gargoyles,
finding them intact.
She proceeded to assign them.
One ice gargoyle remained by her side for protection, while the second was
dispatched back to the Wisteria shop.
Finally, she programmed the last one to seek out Zong Ge.
“Yuan Ci told me the ambushers were imperial spies.”
“That's one side of the story. While likely true, I still need to verify it
myself.”
Zi Di moved away from the Wisteria shop yet maintained constant contact with
all three ice gargoyles.
Soon after, the third ice gargoyle broke free from her control and continued
forward according to its pre-programmed instructions.
Zi Di had programmed its route along rooftops. Though lacking sentience, the
ice gargoyle bore numerous advanced magic circuits installed by Jia Bing,
enabling it to execute relatively complex temporary commands.
The enchanted Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell functioned flawlessly, guiding the ice gargoyle safely to Zong Ge's
vicinity.
Zong Ge immediately spotted the ice gargoyle.
A crucial trait of Deceptive Disguise spell was its inability to deceive those
with insider knowledge.
Thus, even surrounded by people, the ice gargoyle approached Zong Ge
unhindered.
A silver level transcendent from the Li Jian Clan was apologizing to Zong Ge.
The ice gargoyle slammed him straight to the ground.
The silver level felt nothing, rising immediately to return to his spot—only to
smash his face into the ice gargoyle's frigid, frost-covered armor.
The silver level was knocked back, his head jerking upward.
Zong Ge couldn't bear to watch. He pulled him aside, anchoring him in place to
keep him from crowding the ice gargoyle.
The silver level remained oblivious, repeatedly assuring Zong Ge that he would
strengthen defenses and thoroughly investigate the reasons behind Hua Tang's
actions.
Zong Ge had intended to apply pressure in order to leverage more support from
the Li Jian Clan, but the arrival of the ice gargoyle made him decisively end
the conversation.
He descended to the inn's ground floor, entered his new room, closed the door,
crushed another pearl bubble, and only then initiated communication with the
ice gargoyle.
Zi Di perked up instantly, activating her alchemy communication device. Soon,
Zong Ge's voice transmitted through it.
Zong Ge was direct and to the point, opening with the code phrase.
Zi Di successfully matched the code and relayed the events unfolding around
her.
Zong Ge's brow furrowed. “Imperial spies ambushed you?”
“They deliberately employed the Chains of Confinement. And during your battle
beneath the ice lake, your ghosts were similarly suppressed.”
“This proves they've been waiting for you all along.”
Zi Di nodded, voicing her conjecture: “The flying messaging unit here contained
no trace of the ransom note. This means we never actually sent it out.”
“The station on Two Eyes Island was tampered with. The shopkeeper there, Yan
Yi, is likely compromised.”
“I was ambushed only after checking the communication logs.”
"This proves they couldn't confirm my identity beforehand. It wasn't until I
arrived here that they confirmed it, which is why they moved against me."
“I believe they might have mistaken me for Cang Xu.”
During the Two Eyes Island battle, Zi Di and Cang Xu had disguised themselves
as unfamiliar Wisteria elders, participating in the auction and making quite a
splash. Later, due to the Devil Gold Coins, Cang Xu exposed his necromancer
identity while fighting Ya Ma.
Following this, under the deliberate leniency of Yan Yi, codenamed Shadow, Cang
Xu boarded the Iron Lump and successfully departed Two Eyes Island,
participating in the subsequent Weeping Pine sea battle.
Zi Di's conjecture was reasonable and plausible. After pondering, Zong Ge
acknowledged its validity.
“You did the right thing.”
"For now, avoid meeting up with me. This prevents the enemy from discovering
your connection to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps."
“Your priority is confirming whether those who ambushed you were imperial
spies.”
“This is of utmost importance.”
Zong Ge sighed again. “I was actually hoping the royal capital would
investigate the Wisteria shop, since spatial fluctuations were detected
inside.”
“But now that you mention it, and considering no one from the capital has come
to investigate, those spatial fluctuations must be on record.”
“Frankly, I never imagined a nation's capital would maintain such lax
restrictions on spatial teleportation!”
“It poses far too many security risks.”
Zi Di, however, understood: “It's a historical legacy, I suppose.”
“When the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was founded, this became national policy.
Overthrowing it would be exceedingly difficult.”
"Most crucially, too many people benefit from this policy. The kingdom's
alchemy itself has flourished unrivaled, constantly innovating through
countless laboratories."
“Furthermore, since spatial teleportation has never caused catastrophic
failures, even those within the kingdom who recognize the risks are either
isolated or beneficiaries themselves. Overthrowing this policy is exceedingly
difficult.”



****** Chapter 580: Dangerous Situation ******
Zong Ge added, “Unless some powerful individual acts on their own accord.”
"Unfortunately, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's strongest are three saints.
Centuries ago, the Snow Elf King was legend level. Though his strength was
sufficient, his political acumen fell short. Even his own subjects privately
deemed him weak-willed. He never accomplished this task."
Zi Di continued: “This incident has once again exposed a major weakness in our
organization.”
“We are sorely lacking in intelligence operatives.”
“Alchemy puppets and undead creatures do offer advantages in reconnaissance,
especially when enhanced with the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell.”
“But genuine intelligence requires living agents to gather, analyze, and
orchestrate.”
"We need someone to oversee intelligence operations. Up until now, we've
primarily relied on purchasing intelligence."
“This situation desperately needs improvement!”
Zong Ge immediately voiced his strong agreement.
Even now, they still knew very little about the duelists, only that they were a
powerful, mysterious force.
This incident at the Wisteria shop was a costly lesson learned from
insufficient intelligence. Had they detected even the slightest hint of trouble
beforehand, had it raised Zi Di and Zong Ge's suspicions, the situation would
never have become so perilous!
Zong Ge sighed, “None among us survivors possess the talent to lead
intelligence operations.”
"If we hire outsiders, loyalty is the most critical factor. We cannot guarantee
that."
“Indeed,” Zi Di sighed. “If we hired an outsider to handle our intelligence
gathering and espionage, they could easily use the information we collect to
reverse-engineer many of our secrets.”
“This position is critical, too important!”
"We must ensure this person's loyalty. Relying solely on magic or divine spells
is ultimately unreliable."
After Zi Di finished explaining her situation, it was Zong Ge's turn to detail
his circumstances.
“The attackers were formidable!” Zong Ge sighed.
"To be honest, I got lucky. At the time, I was actively preparing to rescue
you. Had I not been prepped for battle, wearing armor and such, allowing the
enemy to secretly steal my gear beforehand, this fight would've been brutal."
"With my strength alone, I never would've detected Hua Tang. But by chance, I
received a divine blessing. My Lord granted me a divine spell at the last
moment, allowing me to see through the hidden enemy."
"I wore three pieces of silver armor, yet the enemy still bypassed my defenses.
He used alchemy tools combined with battle skill to directly tear open space
and strike at my internal organs."
"However, I've become highly proficient in defending my vital organs. In that
sense, I should perhaps even thank Blood Vengeance for its persistence."
Zong Ge had previously launched surprise attacks against the Axe Gang leader,
Lin, and Jia Bing, slaying all three in a resounding victory. Yet at the final
moment, he was struck by the Axe Gang leader's counterattack, falling victim to
the enchantment upon the Blood Vengeance Axe—Blood Vengeance.
Blood Vengeance activated periodically, striking any part of Zong Ge's body.
Through battling this curse, Zong Ge had honed his internal defenses to a high
level of proficiency.
This solid foundation rendered Hua Tang's peculiar techniques ineffective.
“Our clash was actually quite brief.”
"I sensed he hadn't fully unleashed his true strength. Most likely, he withdrew
voluntarily, concerned about the city guards and such.
“I had no way to keep him.”
“Moreover, before leaving, he left me a ‘gift’.”
Zong Ge's tone grew heavy as he spoke these words.
He didn't know the name of the battle skill Hua Tang had used, Flower Willow,
but after examining it post-battle, he had already discovered its troublesome
nature.
The black shadow formed from the flower bud and willow branch seemed branded
onto his skin. It drained his vitality and battle qi every moment.
“It's merely battle qi, yet it feels alive.”
“It's taking root and sprouting within me, using my body as soil.”
“I have a premonition, when that bud blooms, it will be the day I die.”
“Therefore, before that happens, I must find a way to break free!”
Zong Ge was no stranger to peculiar abilities, yet he had never witnessed such
a battle skill.
But as an exceptional commander, he possessed the composure to remain
unflappable even as a mountain crumbled before him. When it came to matters of
his own life and death, he discussed them as if they concerned some unrelated
outsider.
Zi Di frowned deeply upon hearing this: “The Blood Vengeance afflicted upon you
remains unresolved. Now another such battle skill has been added...”
“The tower spirit resides within the Deep Sea Monster Fish. We cannot access
the database for the time being.”
“The most reliable approach is to find the enemy who attacked you and extract
solutions from him.”
Zi Di then posed a crucial question: “Zong Ge, can you confirm it was Hua
Tang?”
“According to our intelligence, Hua Tang has never demonstrated such
techniques.”
Zong Ge fell silent for a moment, then spoke with deliberate gravity after deep
contemplation: "I cannot confirm with certainty."
“In terms of strength, he does fit Hua Tang's profile.”
“After all, this gold level thief is quite legendary, having been active in the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom for so many years.”
Zi Di instantly understood what Zong Ge meant. She sighed, “Yes, you are
already gold level and wield a gold level weapon.”
“Compared to that, the enemy who attacked you seems more powerful than the ‘Hua
Tang’ we encountered in Snow Bird Harbor.”
“The one who attacked you is more likely Hua Tang!”
"But if that guess is true, then our previous speculation in Snow Bird Harbor
was wrong. Who, then, was that gold level thief Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
killed?"
Back in Snow Bird Harbor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had faced an
assassination attempt by a gold level thief.
Fortunately, at that time, the roles of Lao Zhong and Hong Teng were played by
alchemy puppets.
Moreover, these puppets were imbued with the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell. Consequently, the gold level thief remained
convinced his assassination had succeeded.
The gold level equipment he stole bore tracking devices discreetly installed by
the survivors. Yet, under the cover of Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, the thief remained utterly unaware.
Through precise tracking, the survivors pinpointed his location and alerted
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
This led to the subsequent battle where Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, leading
magic squadrons and coordinating with the Sea Bird Bishop, ultimately utilized
the mage tower to surround and eliminate the gold level thief.
Zong Ge attempted to analyze: “We did indeed judge this thief to be Hua Tang
earlier.”
“But upon careful reflection, back in the mage tower at Snow Bird Harbor, we
only detected that he possessed a Silver Fox Mask.”
“That is indeed a signature trait of Hua Tang, but beyond that, the other
characteristics did not match the intelligence we had on him.”
Zi Di nodded. “At the time, Commander speculated this was Hua Tang's deliberate
strategy.”
“His goal was to use these inconsistent traits to distance himself from any
connection to Teng Dong Lang.”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was aware of the secret alliance between Hua
Tang and Teng Dong Lang.
This knowledge came courtesy of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Back then, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had proactively provided the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps with two magic recordings. His aim was to draw them into
action, granting him a legitimate reason to strike against the Bayonet Gang.
One of those recordings depicted Teng Dong Lang and Hua Tang engaging in a
friendly, private sparring session.
Zi Di sighed. "I always believed Hua Tang perished in Snow Bird Harbor. Now a
new Hua Tang has emerged, and his physical features perfectly match the
intelligence."
“With the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's national ceremony imminent, his timing to
attack you aligns with his characteristic flamboyance.”
“Yet the techniques he used against you were never documented in our
intelligence.”
Zong Ge interjected: "Techniques alone aren't conclusive. Many keep secret
weapons hidden, only unleashing them when absolutely necessary."
“Given that Hua Tang has operated freely in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for so
long without capture, it's entirely plausible he possesses one or two lethal
techniques.”
Zi Di could tell Zong Ge leaned toward believing the attacker was the real Hua
Tang. Or rather, compared to the one who died in Snow Bird Harbor, this one
felt more like Hua Tang.
Recalling now, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had also mentioned something in the
mage tower back then.
The gist was that even the city lord himself couldn't, or dared not to, confirm
that the one who attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was Hua Tang.
Because many before had claimed to have slain Hua Tang, using it to make a name
for themselves. Only for Hua Tang to reappear afterward, continuing his crimes
and slapping many in the face. Leaving some powerful figures utterly
humiliated.
“Perhaps the thief we killed belongs to this category too.”
“He acted under the guise of Hua Tang.”
This thought sparked a sudden insight in Zi Di. She voiced a new conjecture to
Zong Ge: “It's possible that the gold level thief who ambushed us in Snow Bird
Harbor originated from that mysterious faction.”
"So it wasn't just the commander who slew Teng Dong Lang. Earlier, we enlisted
the aid of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to ambush and eliminate members of their
faction."
Zong Ge listened to Zi Di's analysis through the communication device and
nodded slightly. “That's certainly a possibility.”
The two continued discussing for a while, but made little progress.
“We're too short on crucial intelligence. Speculating like this is pointless.”
Zong Ge cut in.
His voice grew solemn. "Right now, we need to address the issues at hand. The
most troublesome situation is yours. Frankly, I'd prefer it if the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency had been framed. I wish the ones who ambushed you were
actually our ‘old friends’."
Zi Di sighed deeply, “I wish that were true too, but reality isn't shaped by
our fantasies.”
“Judging by the current situation, even if it wasn't the Imperial Secret Spy
Agency, it was likely another enemy.”
"After all, before heading to the Wisteria shop, I had reapplied the Deceptive
Disguise spell. My current identity is completely severed from the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps."
Zi Di understood Zong Ge's concern, she shared it.
The survivors' predicament was dire.
They faced annihilation by a mysterious force of immense power; a struggle the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were barely holding their ground against.
The cost had already been heavy—not only had the alchemy workshop been
destroyed, but even Bu Quan, whom they'd recruited, along with her teacher and
the Honey Snow Tower, had vanished.
This forced Zi Di to take a risk, offering up some of the War Merchant's
alchemy creations in exchange for greater support from the Li Jian Clan.
Under these circumstances, if they provoked the Imperial Secret Spy Agency as
well...
There was no doubt that under the pressure of two colossal organizations, the
survivors would be crushed into dust.
“Is this the pressure Father once faced?”
“No. My situation now seems even more dire than what he endured back then.”
“How did it come to this?”
Zi Di sighed, her spirits sinking.
Once more, she found herself thinking of the dragonman youngster: "Commander,
where are you now? If it were you, how would you confront this predicament?"



****** Chapter 581: Divine Domain Descent Spell ******
The roar of the tide thundered in his ears.
The fishman youngster slowly opened his eyes, finding himself once again within
the great whirlpool.
The colossal vortex swirled around him yet exerted no pull whatsoever.
He descended steadily.
The deeper he went, the dimmer the light grew.
A colossal shadow, like a mountain, loomed in the depths of the ocean floor,
waiting for him.
"Once again, I prayed in my sleep..."
"This is a vision guided by the divine spell, Spiritual Navigation..."
The fishman youngster's consciousness was unclear, his thought processes slowed
to a fraction of their normal speed.
The shadowed mountain silhouette was swallowing him whole.
A sense of dread and terror deepened within the fishman youngster's heart.
“No, I refuse to sink any further...”
“This means I'm drawing closer to the Charming Blue Goddess.”
“Wake up! Wake up now!”
He roared inwardly.
The roar began feeble and sluggish, but as he kept shouting, it rapidly
intensified, soon becoming deafening.
Amidst his own roar, the fishman youngster in reality suddenly snapped his eyes
open.
He jolted awake.
Huff, huff, huff...
He gasped for breath, a trace of terror still lingering on his face.
His breathing gradually steadied, his pupils slowly returning to their normal
size, and his vision cleared.
Before him lay the simple furnishings of the captain's cabin.
The fishman youngster had lived here for many days. This familiar scene brought
him a faint sense of security, quickly easing the lingering fear in his heart.
No drowsiness.
The fishman youngster entered the bathroom.
Warm water cascaded over him from head to toe, while he examined his own body
and sorted through his thoughts.
“The concentration of my Surging Wave fishman bloodline has risen to 79%.”
“Just as I anticipated, when both my body and soul are in a state of digestion,
the divine blessing transforms into an enhancement of the god level fishman
bloodline's concentration.”
Even so, the fishman youngster wouldn't risk praying again.
He'd taken Cang Xu's warnings to heart, committing them to memory.
"According to the bloodline chart, the legend level requirement for the Surging
Wave fishman bloodline is 90% concentration. The god level concentration
benchmark is 97%."
There was no way around it, the fishmen were a lower level race.
In contrast, most upper level races could reach legend level at a 80%
concentration standard, while the threshold for saint tier level was even
lower.
This disparity manifested externally: upper level races produced saint and
legend individuals far more frequently than lower level races.
The fishman youngster's mind stirred, and the warm water cascading over his
head shifted course. It transformed into countless threads, enveloping his
entire body and solidifying into a full-body armor.
It closely resembled the effect of the Flowing Wave Armor he encountered during
his duel at Snow Bird Harbor.
But fundamentally, he was wielding the racial magic, Water Current
Manipulation.
Having surpassed the standard concentration required for the saint level, the
Surging Wave bloodline granted the youngster this entirely new racial magic.
It allowed the fishman youngster to freely manipulate any liquid around him.
The range of control was vast and would continue to expand as the youngster's
level increased.
Notably, this control extended beyond merely altering flow direction or speed.
Temperature, for instance.
Just now, with a mere thought, the warm water enveloping the fishman youngster
rapidly cooled to room temperature.
The fishman youngster took a deep breath.
He didn't breathe through his mouth or nose, but through gills.
The heightened bloodline concentration also brought physical changes.
Gill lines now spread not only across his cheeks, but also across his chest and
back, each featuring a pair of massive gill arches.
The water's temperature continued dropping, quickly shifting from room
temperature to icy cold, even carrying a hint of chill.
Yet the fishman youngster felt increasingly comfortable, his mood naturally
lightening into ease and joy.
It was like an exhausted traveler, after a long journey, returning home covered
in dust and dirt, finally lying down on his own bed in his own bedroom.
Safe, at ease.
“In water, I feel as though I've come home.”
A resolute gleam flashed in the fishman youngster's eyes.
Suddenly summoning his focus once more, the water enveloping his body shattered
violently the next instant, dispersing into countless tiny droplets.
The droplets continued to evaporate, transforming into wisps of air currents.
Within the bathroom environment, the air currents continuously liquefied,
becoming visible mist.
The earlier relaxation and pleasure vanished.
The fishman youngster's eyes were filled with cool composure: “The higher the
bloodline concentration, the more complete this fishman life form I transform
into becomes. The sensations it brings me are unlike those of the human race."
“Take this affinity for water currents, for instance.”
“If I linger too long in this affinity, my nature will gradually shift toward
that of a Surging Wave fishman.”
“This is something I must remain vigilant against!”
The fishman youngster stepped out of the bathroom. He didn't need to dry
himself; a mere thought caused the water droplets clinging to his body to flow
away effortlessly.
His Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration was nearing legend level
standards, yet this time, the fishman youngster felt little anticipation or
excitement.
Clearly, continuing this way would likely push his bloodline concentration
straight to 100%!
Even if it didn't, it didn't matter.
For now, it was sufficient.
“What needs consideration now is the direction of my next active prayer.”
“Should I go big and pray directly, letting me leap to the saint level?”
The fishman youngster had already become a gold level clergyman, but gold level
and saint level were entirely different matters.
He was filled with hesitation over this choice.
Cang Xu advised him to focus on advancing his fighter and magician levels. Both
of these levels were still at the silver level.
Unlike the clergyman cultivation, the battle qi and magic power gained from
fighter and magician levels were the fishman youngster's own innate strength.
Should the unexpected occur, should the Charming Blue Goddess awaken and
attempt to seize control of his body, these two sources of power would be his
most crucial bargaining chips!
The fishman youngster found Cang Xu's reasoning compelling.
The aggressive path was to push forward relentlessly, striving for the saint
level.
The prudent path was to elevate his fighter and magician levels.
“There is another option: advancing my clerical position.”
“I currently hold the position of Charming Blue Archbishop, mastering over a
hundred divine spells and wielding them with proficiency.”
“Among these spells is the Resurrection Spell.”
“But I lack the Divine Domain Descent Spell!”
“And what we need most urgently right now is precisely Divine Domain Descent.”
The fishman youngster hadn't forgotten his predicament—he and his ship were
trapped within the Ocean Mother Nest.
Intelligence gathered through Cang Xu revealed that the Ocean Mother Nest was
actually part of the Charming Blue Divine Domain.
This situation had been deliberately created by the Charming Blue Goddess
herself, who had cast Divine Domain Descent.
Therefore, to slip away unnoticed, he would need to use Divine Domain Descent
to teleport himself and his ship out.
“Best to master the Divine Domain Descent first, ensuring I can leave at any
moment, that's the safest bet!”
“Time's been ticking since I left the mercenary corps.”
“Wonder how much progress Zi Di and Zong Ge have made?”
“With their skills and the Deceptive Disguise spell, they should be fine.”
The fishman youngster lacked concrete, accurate intelligence and misjudged Zong
Ge and the others' situation.
He remained optimistic. Even after mastering the Divine Domain Descent, he
didn't plan to return immediately.
“If I can become a saint, I'll have more leverage in future atonement
negotiations with the Empire. The interests I can protect will be far greater!”
The Ice Sculpture Capital.
A luxurious mansion.
In a dimly lit chamber, a magic recording played on loop.
The subject of the footage was a magician clad in robes, hood drawn to conceal
their features.
“He” was bound in place by several gold level Chains of Confinement, unable to
move, gradually being suppressed.
But at that very moment, the silver level magician wielding the Chains of
Confinement was instantly killed on the spot.
The magician protagonist immediately broke free, even picking up the Chains of
Confinement as his spoils of war.
The magic footage abruptly froze, capturing the moment the magician protagonist
bent down to retrieve the Chains of Confinement.
Had Zi Di been present, she would have recognized the magician protagonist
instantly, it was none other than herself.
Seated within the chamber was none other than the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's
supreme commander in the Ice Sculpture Capital, codenamed [Usurper].
[Usurper] had replayed this footage over a dozen times. His brow remained
furrowed, growing ever deeper with each viewing.
“What method could instantly eliminate my agent?”
“Afterwards, my men combed every inch of the shop, literally digging up the
floorboards, yet found not a single clue.”
“Compared to that, the methods used after the target was teleported are crystal
clear.”
Having planted traps within the Wisteria shop, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency
naturally recorded the magic footage.
Yet they remained deceived.
This time, it was again the work of the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell.
The Deceptive Disguise spell alone couldn't fool lifeless alchemy recording
devices. But when combined with the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, it
also countered these investigative and recording methods.
“So far, every available investigative method has been employed, yet no flaws
have been uncovered.”
“If we can figure out this technique, we might just crack the method Wisteria
remnants used to conceal themselves.”
"It's a shame, it's not that I lack more powerful means. But using them would
cause too much commotion, inevitably drawing an official investigation from the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom."
The leader, [Usurper], hadn't truly grasped the full potential of combining the
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell. This left
him with many regrets.
He sighed, relinquishing his efforts, and began observing the second segment of
the magic footage.
This footage depicted the harrowing struggle Zi Di faced after being teleported
away. Shortly thereafter, Yuan Ci piloted a submarine to break through the ice
and rescue her, the very sequence of events captured here.
“The remnant Wisteria elder, Yuan Ci, has reappeared!”
“That water rat truly knows how to hide.”
[Usurper's] gaze darkened as he recalled a particularly unpleasant experience
from his past.
“Just wait a little longer. How much longer can you hide?”
“The Warm Snow Cup is about to begin. Then I'll be able to truly unleash my
power, deploy ample manpower, and conduct a massive search of the lake bottom.”
“I don't believe you can stay hidden!”



****** Chapter 582: Ice Sculpture King ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
Within an alchemy laboratory.
The coffin-like healing pod opened its lid, immediately releasing a thick cloud
of mist.
From the pale green mist, Hua Tang slowly sat up, then rose and stepped out of
the chamber.
“Cough, cough.” He coughed twice, a faint metallic taste of blood immediately
filling his mouth.
“Your injuries require two more treatments before full recovery,” Mei Lin's
voice came from the alchemy broadcast device in the corner.
Hua Tang frowned. “Long Fu is clearly only silver level, yet his attack power
is entirely at the gold level.”
“This contradicts the intelligence.”
Hua Tang had reviewed the duel footage between the dragonman youngster and Teng
Dong Lang.
Mei Lin dismissed this with indifference. "He also killed the Axe Gang leader,
Jia Bing, and Lin. Personally, I suspect his fight with Teng Dong Lang was a
carefully staged spectacle, performed under the spotlight."
“You genuinely believe he's only silver level?”
Hua Tang nodded slightly. “Perhaps you're right.”
“He possesses remarkably sophisticated disguise techniques. His true strength
extends far beyond this.”
“Who knows? He might publicly announce his ‘promotion’ to gold level soon
enough.”
At this point, Hua Tang sighed deeply. “I acted recklessly this time.”
“I should have heeded your advice, rested, adjusted my condition, and then
launch a surprise attack.”
“Now it's too late. The mistake is done, and the commotion I've stirred will
inevitably trigger a major investigation by the Kingdom's authorities.”
Mei Lin tried to console him: “Hua Tang, you really shouldn't blame yourself so
much.”
“Truthfully, you didn't have many opportunities.”
"Even if you rested, could you have fully unleashed your combat power? In that
surprise attack just now, you simply didn't have enough time."
“And I cannot mobilize military forces to help you breach the Li Jian Clan's
defenses or pinpoint Long Fu's exact movements.”
“So, waiting longer won't grant you a suitable moment to strike either.”
"You know as well as I do that the National Ceremony is imminent. The capital's
defenses will only tighten, and your status severely limits your options."
“That's precisely why I agreed to your attack.”
Hua Tang raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Wasn't it because I was seething with rage at
the time, and you knew you couldn't force me to obey?"
Mei Lin chuckled softly. “Of course, I admit that played a part too.”
She continued, “I'm quite satisfied with the outcome of this mission.”
“You uncovered crucial intelligence.”
“For instance, Long Fu secretly worships the Empire's War God, not the Justice
God he ostensibly serves.”
“This faith deepens his suspicion. I now strongly doubt the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is backed by arms dealers, it might be the Empire itself.”
Hua Tang's expression hardened. “You mean they could be secret agents of the
Sheng Ming Empire?”
Mei Lin replied, “My suspicions began when I saw they landed at Snow Bird
Harbor.”
“Within the kingdom, the political faction led by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is
explicitly pro-Empire.”
“Now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are collaborating with the Li Jian Clan,
their partnership is unusually close.”
Hua Tang pondered for a moment, then nodded slightly in agreement. “Indeed,
their involvement in this matter is highly suspicious.”
“Once my injuries heal, I will continue my pursuit!”
Mei Lin countered, “Hua Tang, among all duelists, you are unique.”
“Cease your reconnaissance efforts.”
“Judging by the severity of your wounds this time, Long Fu possesses the
capability to eliminate you.”
“With the National Ceremony approaching, the capital's defenses and
surveillance will reach peak levels. It's not the time for you to continue
operating so openly.”
“Your gains from this operation are already substantial.”
“Long Fu has been struck by your Flower Willow battle skill. That's not
something easily dispelled.”
Hua Tang immediately protested, unwilling to accept this: “You want me to stop
now?”
“Then what was the point of me rushing back through all this hardship?”
“While the Flower Willow battle skill is unique and hard to counter, killing
Long Fu outright is the most reliable solution, isn't it?”
Mei Lin sighed deeply. “We can't solve problems too directly.”
“Based on current intelligence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is likely the
Imperial Secret Spy Agency's representative force abroad!”
“If we eliminate Long Fu and wipe out the mercenary corps outright, we'll
likely draw fierce retaliation from the Empire's spies.”
“And with the Empire's vast resources, dispatching another mercenary corps like
this would be effortless for them.”
Hua Tang fell silent.
Their assumptions were wildly off the mark.
But it wasn't surprising.
For up until now, the strength and methods the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had
displayed to the outside world had clearly surpassed those of ordinary arms
smugglers.
In Mei Lin's view, which clandestine faction possessed such capabilities?
Within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, aside from the duelists, only the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency possessed such capabilities.
Zi Di could never have imagined that during her moments of tension, her
adversary, Mei Lin, whom she perceived as the mastermind behind the mysterious
forces—was equally anxious, even hesitant to act for fear of unintended
consequences.
Mei Lin stated, “To counter the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, we must employ
subtle tactics.”
“We can leverage the Alchemy Guild or use Mi Fang to influence the Jing Xiang
Clan, launching a full-scale blockade against the dragon rider potion trade.”
“I also plan to deploy a large number of silver level fighters to challenge
Long Fu.”
Most gold level duelists were unwilling to risk challenging Long Fu. Mei Lin
couldn't command them effectively either.
Besides, Mei Lin didn't want to take excessive risks, these gold level fighters
were precious assets.
Her side had already suffered heavy losses.
Hua Tang's injuries served as a stark reminder to Mei Lin. Even a formidable
fighter like him was now gravely wounded. What would happen if more gold level
fighters arrived?
Gold level fighters were unusable, but silver level fighters were viable. Even
if they suffered casualties, it wouldn't be a major issue. Such losses were
bearable.
After pondering, Hua Tang approved Mei Lin's follow-up plan: “This plan is
sound. The National Ceremony is imminent.”
“The National Ceremony Grand Duel will draw all aspiring warriors.”
“Long Fu has been the most prominent figure in the kingdom lately.”
"Facing a silver level challenge, he won't back down. If he refuses the duel,
his reputation will plummet, losing his current favorable position."
“The reason Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' potions sell so well is largely
because buyers recognize Long Fu's strength.”
“Should he avoid the fight, potion sales will inevitably plummet.”
“But if he accepts the duel, he'll have even less time to find a solution for
the battle skill, Flower Willow.”
“Exhausting him with constant battles, weakening him step by step until the
Flower Willow blooms, that will be his end!”
Mei Lin smiled. “There's no need to wait that long.”
“Once he's weakened sufficiently, other gold level fighters can step in and
publicly challenge him.”
“Perhaps we won't even need our own people to intervene.”
“A national duel of this scale, has any ever failed to attract outsiders of
gold level?”
The Ice Sculpture Castle served as the residence of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's
royal family and the political heart of the entire realm.
It stood atop the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, at the very heart of the Ice
Sculpture Capital.
White ice bricks formed towering walls and soaring turrets, embodying the
architectural aesthetic of the snow elves.
A study.
The Snow Elf King slowly placed the intelligence report before him on the desk.
As ruler of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, he possessed the striking beauty of a
pure-blooded snow elf alongside the sternness befitting a ruler.
His snow-white eyebrows were slender yet straight as swords.
Beneath them, his eyes radiated a cold, piercing light.
This cold light fell upon the figure standing across the desk, an elderly snow
elf clad in white robes, his temples frosted with silver.
“Teacher,” the Snow Elf King inquired, “should we continue to retain the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance?”
After the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was divided among the major factions of
the Sheng Ming Empire, most of their holdings within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
were likewise seized by local powers.
Only one Wisteria shop remained, the one in the royal capital.
The royal family had withdrawn.
They had detected the movements of imperial spies.
Facing the king's inquiry, the snow elf elder replied slowly, “Enemies in the
open are always easier to deal with than those lurking in the shadows, Your
Majesty.”
This snow elf elder was none other than the Royal Family Grand Magician.
Like the king, they were both transcendents of the saint level.
"The imperial spies struck within the shop. Who were they targeting? Do you
have any idea, Teacher?" the king pressed.
The elder shook his head slightly. “With the National Ceremony approaching,
it's no surprise rats have infiltrated.”
The king grew impatient, his voice rising slightly. “Teacher, you know what I
mean.”
The royal grand magician sighed softly. “Your Majesty, you wish to ask: since
they are enemies of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, might they be useful to us?
Is that correct?”
“But I believe, with the National Ceremony approaching, it is unnecessary to
abandon the main objective for minor details.”
The king shook his head. “I want to achieve success in both the minor details
and the main objective!”
“Intelligence indicates that combat didn't occur solely within the Wisteria
shop. Subsequently, the secret agents initiated a teleportation, continuing
their clash within the alchemy laboratory at the ice lake.”
“The target that could provoke such a major operation from the Imperial Secret
Spy Agency is no ordinary matter.”
“Follow-up investigations revealed the alchemy lab was breached by a micro-
submarine, followed by a chase sequence.”
“The Imperial Secret Spy Agency failed to intercept the micro-submarine. They
likely withdrew voluntarily, concerned about causing too much commotion.”
"To survive an ambush, evade the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, and still receive
backup, I find this faction highly intriguing."
The Royal Grand Magician nodded. “A force capable of clashing with the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency is indeed formidable.”
“Your Majesty, you suspect they might be an enemy nation opposing the Sheng
Ming Empire, correct?”
“But forming alliances and shifting partnerships is no simple matter.”
“Your thirteenth brother is about to return.”
The Snow Elf King's expression darkened slightly. “With the National Ceremony
approaching, he ought to make an appearance.”
He turned back to the subject at hand, “I hope I can contact this power as soon
as possible.”
“I have a premonition; this faction is far from ordinary.”



****** Chapter 583: Framing Hun Tong ******
“It's difficult,” the royal grand magician stated bluntly. “Your Majesty, you
must be aware of the chaos within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.”
“Even before our nation's founding, numerous alchemy laboratories, sacred
temples within the lake, and even mage towers were constructed within its
depths.”
“Due to the altered flow of time within the ice lake, the concentration of ice
elements and the rampant presence of magic beasts make it exceedingly difficult
for us to fully survey the lake's interior.”
“In truth, detecting this much information this time is already considered
quite fortunate.”
The king sighed deeply. "The Ice Lake National Policy has brought us too many
hidden dangers. As the ruler of a nation, I cannot even grasp the situation
within my own capital. How utterly ridiculous! For so many years, this threat
has remained unresolved, only growing more formidable with time."
“Teacher, what are we to do?”
The Royal Grand Magician's expression remained impassive: "Your Majesty, the
Ice Lake National Policy is the very foundation of our nation. Without it, we
would not possess the unrivaled alchemy prowess that sets us apart from the
world."
“This is a strategy for national strength, a sound strategy indeed.”
"Every system has its merits and drawbacks. As rulers, we must weigh all the
pros and cons."
“For now, this National Ceremony is paramount—it will determine our nation's
future course.”
"Your grandfather considered resolving this threat during his reign. But after
deep deliberation, he feared it might undermine our very foundations and
abandoned the idea."
The Snow Elf King's grandfather was the previous Snow Elf King, a legendary
figure of legend power.
“Ah!” Mentioning his grandfather, the Snow Elf King sighed deeply, his
expression desolate, “Then let it remain as it is for now.”
“Teacher, upon your return, do your utmost to engage with this faction.”
The Royal Grand Magician nodded. “This old servant will spare no effort!”
Watching the grand magician's retreating figure, the Snow Elf King's gaze grew
profoundly somber.
The reconnaissance had yielded results. The royal grand magician's response was
as expected, yet it also left the Snow Elf King with a chill.
Altering the Ice Lake National Policy would face immense resistance!
It touched upon the interests of far too many, including the royal grand
magician himself.
Though the grand magician was the Snow Elf King's teacher, he was also the head
of the Han Yu Clan. The Han Yu Clan was the second-greatest noble house,
surpassed only by the Ice Sculpture Royal Family.
According to incomplete records, they possessed as many as 280 alchemy
laboratories within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
In the past, even the legend level magician who had been the previous Snow Elf
King had failed to accomplish this task. Much less the current Snow Elf King,
who possessed only saint level strength.
Changing the Ice Lake National Policy was utterly impossible!
Two Eyes Island.
"You think he can topple me? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Hun Tong
bellowed before Tan Mo.
Hun Tong possessed the composure of a lord who remained unflappable even as
mountains crumbled before him, yet now he displayed a rare loss of poise.
Understandably so.
For the current situation was exceptionally dire. Hun Tong was under imperial
investigation when Tan Mo suddenly ordered his arrest, accusing him of treason
and collaboration with the enemy.
This charge was monumental!
"Why would I collaborate with the enemy? How could I, Hun Tong, ever betray my
country?" Hun Tong shouted.
Tan Mo sneered coldly, “For your own gain, of course.”
"Two Eyes Island's strategic location makes it a prime candidate for an
imperial maritime transport hub. Yet you, Hun Tong, had previously signed
contracts with numerous merchant alliances."
“Once it's converted into a military transport hub, you'll be in massive breach
of contract and liable for enormous gold coin compensation.”
“But unwilling to pay a single coin, you seized the opportunity during your
clash with the fishmen. You feigned possession by the Devil Gold Coins and
slaughtered the merchants.”
"That wasn't enough. After the war, you harassed the merchants, accusing them
of desertion for breaching our defenses during the offensive and forcing them
to renegotiate their commercial contracts."
Hun Tong retorted, “This is a dispute between me and that merchant alliance.
How does that equate to treason?”
Tan Mo laughed heartily, “Because you have connections with certain fishmen and
secretly formed an alliance with them!”
“What?” Hun Tong's eyes widened. “This is pure slander!”
“I have a witness!” Tan Mo swept his arm dramatically across the interrogation
room, shouting with righteous fervor, “Bring him in!”
The next moment, two expressionless naval soldiers escorted a silver level
fishman into the chamber.
This was a silver-scaled fishman.
Slender in build, he bore fins along the outer edges of his forearms, the backs
of his calves, his entire fish head, and his back. These fins glowed dark
silver, their edges razor-sharp like blades.
He was the blade fin fishman, Dao Hen!
During the great battle at Two Eyes Island, he was invited by the Blue Green
Coral Clan to join the fight, where he performed remarkably well.
Even when Ku Feng fought him in peak condition, he still suffered defeat.
Undoubtedly a formidable fighter among the fishmen, he ultimately fell on Two
Eyes Island and was taken prisoner.
Hun Tong certainly knew about Dao Hen. In fact, he had nearly executed him
publicly after the battle to boost morale. But upon reflection, he spared him,
keeping him as evidence to withstand the Empire's investigation, while also
using him to claim border defense merits for his application to become a ruling
lord.
Just as Hun Tong was about to speak, Dao Hen cut him off, pointing a finger at
him, “It's you! You traitor! You despicable, shameless scoundrel!”
“You pretended to cooperate with us, but it was all for your own gain! You even
tried to double-cross us...”
This tirade was clearly rehearsed, logically coherent and delivered at
breakneck speed, leaving Hun Tong no chance to interrupt.
Only when he finished did Hun Tong glare at him with bloodshot eyes, fixing his
gaze on Dao Hen: “I truly regret not beheading you publicly back then!”
He then turned his furious stare to Tan Mo: “You didn't think that stealing my
prisoner from my dungeon and persuading him to falsely testify for me would
allow you to frame an actual ruling lord, did you?”
Tan Mo smiled. "Still playing dumb? Give it up. Besides the witness, I've
gathered plenty of evidence."
“Open your eyes wide and take a good look!”
Tan Mo tossed a pile of documents at Hun Tong.
Hun Tong scooped them up and scanned them furiously. " Brilliant trick! These
documents were originally letters I exchanged with Shadow to contact the
Vinegar Jar Pirates. You altered them slightly, and now they're evidence to
frame me!"
“How bold! Don't you fear the Empire's investigation?”
Just as Hun Tong was questioning, the interrogation room door burst open. Yan
Yi barged in.
Tan Mo and Tu Ji immediately frowned deeply.
Yan Yi looked panicked, quickly scanning the interrogation room before forcing
himself to calm down. He squeezed out a smile and said to Tan Mo, “Lord Tan Mo,
you really shouldn't be doing this.”
“I am utterly loyal to the Empire. I hold you, and every member of this
Imperial Investigation Team, in the highest regard and faith.”
“You cannot act recklessly. This evidence must not be tampered with...”
“Insolent!” Tan Mo snapped, his voice laced with thin anger, cutting off Yan
Yi. “Shadow, watch your tongue!”
“I want you to be clear about what you just said.”
Hun Tong's eyes lit up. He thought: “Right! If these fabricated testimonies
hold up under investigation, Yan Yi will be implicated as a party involved, he
won't be able to shake it off!”
Hun Tong also spoke up: "Yan Yi, be mindful of your position. If Tan Mo takes
me down, do you think you'll escape unscathed?"
Tan Mo addressed Yan Yi by his Imperial Secret Spy Agency codename, aiming to
leverage the organization's authority to intimidate him.
Hun Tong, however, addressed him directly by name, reminding him they were both
members of the Duo Mu Clan, blood kin.
Caught between them, Yan Yi soon broke into a sweat, panic etched deeper on his
face.
His gaze darted between Hun Tong and Tan Mo. He opened his mouth to speak, but
time and again, no words came out.
“Coward!” Hun Tong muttered under his breath at the sight.
Tan Mo offered a mix of reassurance and warning: “Shadow, look closely. None of
this evidence implicates you.”
“So don't stir up trouble where there is none.”
“What do you think you can accomplish, mere bronze level?”
“You weren't involved before, but meddle now, and you will be!”
“Hmph! A bronze level? Weak and feeble? Who cares? Get lost.”
Yan Yi's body trembled. Beyond the panic on his face, a flicker of struggle and
hope flickered.
Hun Tong observed the situation and felt something amiss, so he quickly voiced
out and defended Yan Yi.
Tan Mo observed Yan Yi, engaging Hun Tong in a verbal duel. For a moment,
neither gained the upper hand.
Fishman Dao Hen, watching from the sidelines, felt a surge of satisfaction.
Hun Tong was undoubtedly his sworn enemy. It was Hun Tong who had seized Two
Eyes Island, forcing the Blue Green Coral Clan to later offer Dao Hen a hefty
sum to join their fight.
Beyond Hun Tong, figures like Tan Mo and Tu Ji from the Sheng Ming Empire were
certainly no better.
The Sheng Ming Empire boasted vast influence and formidable strength, firmly
establishing itself as the dominant power of the main plane. For centuries, its
external actions had been relentless. Along its coastlines, countless fishman
clans had been exterminated or driven into exile. Numerous fishman warriors
were targeted and suppressed; many vanished mysteriously or met inexplicable
deaths.
The enmity between the two sides had long been deeply entrenched.
As a member of the fishman clan, Dao Hen's stance toward the Sheng Ming Empire
was inherently hostile.
“Never imagined I'd witness such a spectacle before my death.”
“Dogs fighting among themselves, heh heh heh.”
"They even made me slander and frame Hun Tong. The Sheng Ming Empire is nothing
special after all, rotten and corrupt from within. Good. Absolutely perfect!"
Weak and powerless, Dao Hen was tightly guarded by naval forces on both sides,
yet his heart swelled with satisfaction.
The only flaw was that this was a human race's internal strife. If he could
have been the one to strike down his enemy with his own hands, the thrill of
vengeance would undoubtedly have been far more satisfying.
But witnessing this scene was enough to satisfy Dao Hen.
Therefore, even though he knew he had been used by Tan Mo, he accepted it
willingly and welcomed the outcome.
Hun Tong glared at Tan Mo with savage intensity, his hatred and fury plain for
all to see.
He had gone to great lengths to satisfy Tan Mo's greed. He never expected Tan
Mo to suddenly turn on him with such ferocity, especially since they had been
bargaining just moments before.
At most, tensions had been simmering between them.
Truthfully, Tan Mo’s sudden attack had caught Hun Tong off guard, leaving him
on the defensive ever since.
“Lord Tu Ji, you alone are a trustworthy investigator.” Hun Tong turned to Tu
Ji, seeking his support. “You personally conducted fieldwork and inquiries.
Could you possibly believe that I, Hun Tong, would betray my country?”



****** Chapter 584: Yan Yi&#x27;s Performance ******
Hun Tong looked at Tu Ji, his eyes filled with expectation. He hoped Tu Ji
would uphold justice, not necessarily speak on his behalf, but simply maintain
impartiality.
After all, this was a joint investigation; Tan Mo's judgment wasn't the only
answer.
Yet Tu Ji's expressionless face made Hun Tong sense trouble.
Tu Ji looked at Hun Tong, his tone utterly calm: “As a member of the Blood
Light Punishment Institution, I am solely responsible for matters concerning
necromancers.”
“Lord Hun Tong, whether you colluded with the fishmen and committed the crime
of treason is none of my concern.”
“Lord Tu Ji!” Hun Tong gasped, his heart sinking.
Seeing Tu Ji stand idly by, Tan Mo turned his gaze to Yan Yi, a quiet respect
for this bronze level figure rising within him.
After Yan Yi and the Wealth Bishop joined forces to persuade Tan Mo, Tan Mo had
stated that without neutralizing Tu Ji, framing Hun Tong would be nearly
impossible.
Yan Yi countered: Though Tu Ji was impartial and refused bribes from both him
and Tan Mo, he still had a weakness.
That weakness lay in his identity and mission.
As a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, his foremost duty was
hunting down necromancers.
Now, a second necromancer had escaped the chaos of Two Eyes Island and vanished
without a trace.
Tu Ji failed to find the second necromancer on Two Eyes Island, meaning his
mission remains unfulfilled. He had to continue the pursuit.
To continue the pursuit, he needed reliable, accurate intelligence.
And coincidentally, Yan Yi held precisely such crucial intelligence.
“If I present this intelligence as leverage, Tu Ji will surely be tempted,” Yan
Yi told Tan Mo. “At that moment, with Lord Tan Mo present, please subtly imply
that you could assist Tu Ji in the hunt through covert agents.”
Tan Mo agreed with Yan Yi's assessment of Tu Ji, but he was more concerned with
the intelligence itself.
“The second necromancer possesses a Wisteria secret order. He's undoubtedly a
remnant of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance and likely holds clues to the
Wisteria Cache.”
“If we sell out his intelligence, how will we explain it to the Seventh
Prince?”
Yan Yi immediately assured him, “This intelligence has absolutely nothing to do
with the second necromancer.”
“Lord, you've seen the battle footage from Two Eyes Island. The Wisteria elder
fought alongside Hong Zhu against Ya Ma and Yue Ban, revealing undead
techniques."
“During the final chaos, Hong Zhu evacuated Two Eyes Island and vanished
without a trace.”
“My intelligence reveals Hong Zhu's current whereabouts!”
“As a treasure hunter, she is currently on the Magnet Archipelago.”
“I estimate that after Lord Tu Ji obtains this intelligence, he will board your
vessel for a portion of the journey before parting ways with you.”
“Such an arrangement would also facilitate your subsequent investigative
mission, would it not?”
Tan Mo's face lit up with delight. He patted Yan Yi's shoulder warmly and
praised sincerely, "Your plan is both logical and ingenious. Were you not
merely bronze level, I'd consider recruiting you to my side."
Subsequent events unfolded precisely as Yan Yi had foreseen.
Yan Yi and Tan Mo coordinated their efforts to persuade Tu Ji.
On one hand, Yan Yi presented him with an offer he couldn't refuse. On the
other, this constituted legitimate competition among imperial nobles, entirely
within the established rules of the game.
Had Yan Yi not succeeded in his bid, Tu Ji would have been compelled to report
the matter.
Yan Yi didn't demand Tu Ji's active cooperation either, merely asking him to
stand aside and observe the power transition.
This undoubtedly eased Tu Ji's resistance considerably.
Hun Tong realized Tu Ji could no longer be his ally, a chill running through
him. Suddenly it clicked: “Of course! Tan Mo suddenly framed me and severed
ties, he must have laid extensive groundwork beforehand.”
"Tu Ji has been won over by them. Damn it!"
“You damned imperial parasite, you greedy devil! Do you know the crime of
framing a ruling lord?” Hun Tong growled, threatening Tan Mo.
“You will pay for this! I refuse to believe the Empire will take only your word
for it!” Hun Tong shouted.
Tan Mo sneered coldly: “You colluded with bandits, nurturing enemies for
personal gain. Such a ruling lord is a threat to the Empire.”
“What crime have I committed?”
“I've purged a menace for the Empire, securing future maritime supply routes. I
deserve credit, not blame!”
The two argued fiercely, soon red-faced and neck strained.
Yan Yi watched for a moment, then, seeing the moment was ripe, hurriedly
stepped between them.
His voice trembled, high-pitched, as if he'd mustered all his courage for this:
“My Lords, please stop arguing!”
“Quarrelling won't resolve your differences.”
Yan Yi turned to Tan Mo: “Lord Tan Mo, might you grant me a private word with
Lord Hun Tong?”
A silence fell over the room.
Yan Yi pressed on, pleading, “Lord Tan Mo, let me work my influence. You might
just get what you desire!”
Hun Tong snorted coldly behind him, but offered no rebuttal.
Tan Mo pondered for a moment before saying, "Very well. You two may discuss
matters in the adjacent room. But you have only five minutes."
Yan Yi and Hun Tong then entered the adjoining private chamber.
Only the two of them remained in the room.
Yan Yi pleaded earnestly with Hun Tong: “My Lord, at this point, surely you
must see Tan Mo's true colors clearly?”
“Bite your tongue and the storm will pass; step back and the sky opens wide.”
Hun Tong paced along the wall in the cramped room, growling repeatedly: "This
is outrageous! Absolutely outrageous! On my own turf, he dares to humiliate me
like this!"
“His appetite is too big, his audacity too great.”
“I couldn't produce gold coins meeting his standards, so he outright framed
me?”
“I have my limits too! If pushed far enough, I'll strike down this wretched
trash!”
Hun Tong's eyes blazed with murderous intent.
Yet Yan Yi sneered inwardly, unconcerned.
In his view: Hun Tong had truly grown old; his eyes dimmed by age. He still
failed to grasp his true predicament, mistakenly believing Tan Mo was
orchestrating everything.
The truth was Hun Tong had been dragged into a higher-level, larger-scale
political struggle.
Yan Yi certainly didn't believe Hun Tong would resort to violence when
cornered. If he intended to fight, why hadn't he done so earlier?
Yan Yi understood Hun Tong's current state and emotions perfectly, utterly
enraged and humiliated after being provoked, consumed by extreme hatred toward
Tan Mo, and so on.
After waiting two minutes and seeing no sign of Hun Tong calming down, Yan Yi
deliberately remarked, "Lord Hun Tong, you cannot lay a hand on the Empire's
investigators. If you do this, regardless of the truth, you will certainly not
fare well. Do you wish to betray your country like Fei Hong?"
Fei Hong, a saint level powerhouse, had openly rebelled against the Sheng Ming
Empire after protesting its tax increases. Within a day, he was captured and
publicly beheaded.
The Sheng Ming Empire possessed overwhelming might; even a saint level traitor
could be swiftly suppressed and executed.
At the word “treason,” Hun Tong shook his head vehemently. “How could I
possibly betray my country?”
"What nonsense are you talking about? You know the truth better than anyone, I
was framed!"
“Colluding with enemies? Betraying my nation? I never did any of that.”
"At most, you and your men contacted the Vinegar Jar Pirates. What does that
have to do with me?"
At this point, Hun Tong paused, realizing his previous remark had been too far.
Yan Yi was now his sole ally; he didn't want to push this last remaining ally
away with careless words, yet apologizing was something he simply couldn't
bring himself to do.
After all, he was a mighty gold level, while Yan Yi was merely a lowly bronze
level.
In the end, Hun Tong didn't apologize. Instead, he sighed deeply, his face
darkening as his voice grew desolate: “I truly never imagined Tan Mo would
strike so ruthlessly!”
“Nor did I expect to be bullied to this extent by outsiders on my own turf!”
Yan Yi sighed in sympathy: “Lord Hun Tong, from what I know of you, you're not
the type to be stingy with money.”
“Remember when you personally subsidized merchants out of your own pocket to
organize that clearance sale?”
"After the fishmen's island assault ended, you never made any major investments
again. To this day, the Golden Flash and the light cannon tower remain
incompletely repaired."
“You've publicly claimed to have salvaged countless treasures from the ocean
depths, but in truth, that's not the case, is it?”
Hun Tong fell silent, then let out a bitter laugh. “Since you've already
guessed, I might as well be frank.”
“It's true. I haven't obtained any treasures at all.”
“When I thought I'd reap a rich harvest, all I ended up with was a few copper
coins.”
"Can you imagine? A few copper coins!"
By this point, Hun Tong's voice had grown sharp and intense, as if venting
pent-up frustration.
He had indeed been bottling it up for far too long.
Such matters couldn't be spoken of openly. He had to put on a brave face,
projecting an image of “financial strength” to maintain stability.
Only when merchants knew he had the means to compensate them would they
continue negotiations. Had they known he was powerless, they would have long
since pursued other avenues for compensation.
Yan Yi stepped forward, clasping Hun Tong's hand. “Lord, you have endured so
much these past days.”
“Only now do I truly grasp your predicament, the weight of pressure and
hardship you bear.”
“You've been through so much!”
Hun Tong instinctively tried to pull his hand back, but Yan Yi held it tightly.
He cleared his throat. “I know... you blame me deep down...”
Yan Yi cut him off. "Lord, I am deeply ashamed. You're right, I did think you
should have some awareness, pay a price, and send the Imperial investigation
team away."
"With your wealth, why covet the operational funds of my organization? You
know, if this were discovered, I'd bear responsibility too."
“Now I see you were driven to desperation, with no other choice.”
"I only just learned Tan Mo intended to do this to you! That's why I rushed
here immediately."
"To be honest, on my way here, I still harbored resentment, resenting you for
not letting go, forcing Tan Mo to make such a bold move. It could easily end up
dragging me into trouble too."
"If that happened, I'd be utterly wronged. After all, I emptied my entire
fortune to present gifts to Lord Tan Mo."



****** Chapter 585: Deputy Two Eyes Island Lord! ******
Under normal circumstances, Hun Tong would have been displeased to be
interrupted by Yan Yi like this.
But now, Hun Tong wanted nothing more than to pull Yan Yi closer, to have him
speak up.
Hun Tong patted Yan Yi's shoulder. "You truly are one of our own. You're more
reliable than outsiders. I'm deeply relieved you can speak your mind to me. I
truly never anticipated Tan Mo would be so audacious. Framing me carries
significant risks for him too."
Yan Yi replied, “At this point, Lord, we must focus on navigating the immediate
crisis.”
“Since you cannot provide sufficient gold coins, perhaps... perhaps we should
abandon the Golden Flash?”
Hun Tong's expression darkened instantly as he flatly refused: "Impossible! The
Golden Flash cost me immense effort and sacrifice to acquire. How could I
abandon it so easily?"
“Don't let Tan Mo's tactics intimidate you, he's only trying to scare me.”
Yan Yi hurriedly urged, "My Lord, Tan Mo has already moved against you! He
intends to take you away. Do you still intend to resist?"
Hun Tong shook his head. "Of course I won't fight back. Resisting would only
play right into Tan Mo's hands. It would only solidify the charge of treason
against me."
“I will endure captivity for a time!”
“Suffer the hardship until the Empire conducts another investigation.”
"Tan Mo made a colossal mistake, he framed me for treason! Such a grave crime
requires multiple investigations under Imperial protocol to verify."
“I refuse to believe Tan Mo can single-handedly cover everything up and bribe
every single investigator from here on out!”
Yan Yi asked, “Lord, why must you do this?”
“Playing the prisoner, even if Tan Mo doesn't eliminate you, he'll certainly
make your life miserable and subject you to torture.”
Hun Tong sneered coldly, "What's a little suffering? I am innocent! Whatever
torment Tan Mo inflicts, I will repay him tenfold someday!"
Without Yan Yi's persuasion, Hun Tong still wavered. But this very argument
only strengthened his resolve.
Yan Yi continued, "Lord, perhaps we should consider another approach. Since you
refuse to sell the Golden Flash, why not negotiate a contract with Tan Mo?
Agree to allocate a portion of Two Eyes Island's profits for the next few
years, paying Tan Mo a fixed sum annually at set times."
“This way, you're essentially using future income to resolve your current
crisis.”
“Not only would you avoid captivity and torture, but you'd remain ruler of the
island throughout, wouldn't you?”
Hun Tong glared. “You want me to compromise?”
“The future profits of Two Eyes Island, are they so easily relinquished?”
"What about its future development? I'm short on funds now, will I be even more
strapped later?"
“Besides, did I toil to build this empire just to generate profits for Tan Mo?”
Yan Yi knew Hun Tong's temperament well; such persuasion only fueled his rage.
Hun Tong snapped, "Besides, I'm not alone. I have my family too! Tan Mo has
connections, do you think I don't? Does the Duo Mu Clan not have any?"
Yan Yi agreed, "You're right. We have our clan. Our clan won't abandon us. As
one of the clansmen, Lord, I'll do everything in my power. Just give me your
orders. Shall I send word to the clan now?"
Hun Tong raised a hand to stop him. “Wait. Don't be so hasty.”
He had reservations.
If he could have sought help from his clan, he would have done so long ago. Why
endure this torment?
The truth was, Hun Tong's relationship with the Duo Mu Clan was far from
harmonious.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have led his own forces out onto the vast ocean, carving
out his own territory from the fishman clan.
If he could rely on the clan for help at any time, he wouldn't have strived to
be self-sufficient, nor would he have leaned toward collaborating with Yan Yi
during his conflicts with the fishman clan.
In truth, ever since he established himself on Two Eyes Island, the Duo Mu Clan
had actively expressed their intent to send reinforcements to Hun Tong on
multiple occasions.
Yet each time, Hun Tong refused.
The reason was simple.
Such familial aid and reinforcements came at a price.
Every time Hun Tong accepted, every benefit gained, his territory would gain
more members of the Duo Mu Clan. These clan members obeyed his commands, but
more often, they answered to the factions behind their clan.
Over time, it would become unclear whether the territory of Two Eyes Island
belonged to Hun Tong personally or to the Duo Mu Clan.
This time was no different.
Why didn't Hun Tong seek help from his clan? He hadn't salvaged any loot, and
he was desperately short of funds.
Once he revealed the truth to the clan, the reinforcements dispatched by the
clan would be too overwhelming, and Hun Tong would have to pay the
corresponding price, losing many of his privileges.
But if he could endure this difficult period, Hun Tong's future and prospects
would be bright. After all, his former major threat—the Blue Green Coral
fishman clan, had suffered heavy losses and had completely migrated away.
Yan Yi's direct declaration to deliver the message to the clan struck like a
needle into the most sensitive part of Hun Tong's heart.
A question arose naturally: “During my forced exile from the island, Two Eyes
Island is in grave danger!”
“None of my subordinates are capable of leading independently. Two Eyes Island
is practically leaderless.”
“Once news of my escort spreads, the clan will certainly intervene!”
“Then my holdings, the foundation I built with blood, sweat, and tears, will
fall into others' hands.”
“What am I to do?”
The urgency hit him. Even if he didn't fear Tan Mo's accusation, the fate of
his territory terrified him. What if the imperial investigation cleared him,
only for him to return to Two Eyes Island and find his home stolen?
“I must find someone to hold the island lord's position in my stead.”
“First, this person must be capable, able to stand alone and stabilize this
place.”
“Second, this person must be ‘one of us,’ trustworthy enough for me to rely
on.”
"Finally, this person must have a weakness, something I can hold over them. In
short, someone I can control. Remember, lofty positions breed ambition in
people's hearts."
After pondering, Hun Tong's gaze involuntarily settled on Yan Yi.
Wasn't this man before him the ideal proxy?
First, Yan Yi's talent was undeniably sufficient. He was the regional head of
the Imperial Secret Spy Agency organization for the entire Two Eyes Island.
Even if his personal strength fell short, he commanded a network of Imperial
Secret Spy Agency operatives at his disposal.
Second, Yan Yi was a member of Hun Tong's clan, having collaborated with him
all along. Though he'd been somewhat deceitful, it was ultimately driven by
pursuit of his own interests. It was merely that events had spiraled beyond his
control.
Finally, this fellow was weak! He was merely a bronze level. Even if he
harbored treacherous thoughts in the future, as a gold level, could Hun Tong
not handle him?
Reaching this conclusion, Hun Tong made his decision.
He clasped Yan Yi's hand firmly: “Yan Yi, my clansman, I entrust you with a
crucial mission.”
“My Lord, please instruct me!” Yan Yi replied.
Hun Tong: “I am entrusting you with the position of Island Lord.”
"Ah?!" Yan Yi was stunned.
Before he could speak, Hun Tong waved him off. “Time is critical. That bastard
Tan Mo has given us only five minutes. It's almost up.”
“I'll make this brief. Before I depart, you will temporarily assume the duties
of Island Lord.”
"Do not refuse. You've worked with me long enough to know my men lack
competence. Moreover, the fishmen's assault has depleted our forces."
“You are the best choice!”
"While acting as island lord, stabilize the situation. If the merchants cause
trouble, blame it all on me. I'm already under arrest anyway. Let them scramble
to bail me out, then I can compensate them for their losses."
"Be wary of clan members reaching out. Two Eyes Island is my domain! These
clansmen arriving will be troublesome to handle."
Hun Tong finished speaking, patting Yan Yi's shoulder. “When I return, I'll
hand over the Deputy Island Lord position to you!”
“The Imperial Secret Spy Agency isn't a place for the faint-hearted.”
“Two Eyes Island is your home. When you have children, I can even petition the
Empire for a knighthood for you, carving out a portion of territory as your
knightly fiefdom!”
"My Lord!!" Yan Yi trembled slightly with excitement, utterly moved by the
bright future Hun Tong had laid out.
Yan Yi was so eager he could have pounded his chest in assurance: “I will
devote every ounce of my strength to guarding this place fiercely!”
“Even if it means death, even if I'm assassinated, I will die at my post!”
Hun Tong immediately frowned: "No, you cannot die so easily. You are the Deputy
Island Lord. This is what we'll do: I'll also entrust the Golden Flash to you."
“I'll grant you the authority to command the Golden Flash.”
"In peacetime, you'll remain hidden aboard the Golden Flash, stationed in the
skies above Two Eyes Island. You'll strictly oversee all personnel entering and
exiting the vessel. This will significantly safeguard your life!"
Yan Yi was overjoyed, lavishing praise on Hun Tong's brilliant arrangement.
Half an hour later.
Two Eyes Island's dock.
Yan Yi bid farewell to Tan Mo.
Tan Mo gazed intently at Yan Yi. “Congratulations. With events unfolding this
way, you stand to gain the most.”
Yan Yi offered a wry smile. “Lord Tan Mo, this is a mutually beneficial
partnership.”
“I'm merely a tool, a puppet propped up by the merchant alliance and great
nobles behind me.”
Tan Mo snorted coldly. “Recognizing that fact shows you have some self-
awareness.”
He still harbored resentment. After all, this time, he had been used as a pawn.
The next moment, Yan Yi produced a piece of intelligence and handed it to Tan
Mo. “My Lord, I humbly request you speak favorably of me in your investigation
report.”
“This intelligence concerns the whereabouts of the underwater spoils from the
great battle of Two Eyes Island.”
“Lord, if you proceed to Ice Sculpture Island to secure these spoils, you will
be the greatest victor.”
"Oh? You've been thoughtful." Tan Mo's cold expression melted away.
Yan Yi bowed deeply: “Then I wish you smooth sailing on this journey, Lord.”



****** Chapter 586: The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps Took Away the Spoils of
War? ******
Tan Mo nodded and turned to board his Treasure Chest.
The Treasure Chesthad long been prepared for departure and immediately set sail
at a leisurely pace.
Within the ship's hold, in a prison cell, the imprisoned Hun Tong felt the
vessel's movement. He opened his eyes, revealing hatred and resolve, then
closed them again.
The Treasure Chest gradually left the dock, its speed steadily increasing.
Tan Mo looked at Yan Yi who was still watching him from the shore, his
expression complex.
“This guy... he's actually quite something.”
At first, Tan Mo hadn't seen through Yan Yi's true nature, even using him as an
intermediary to facilitate his extortion of Hun Tong.
Little did he expect that Yan Yi would deceive both sides, stoking the flames,
fueling Tan Mo's greed, and intensifying Hun Tong's humiliation and rage.
Step by step, Tan Mo was led down this path. By the time he sensed something
was amiss, the momentum of the negotiations had already solidified. The
conflict between him and Hun Tong had reached a boiling point, impossible to
resolve in the short term.
Moreover, Yan Yi immediately seized the opportunity, luring Tan Mo with a
lucrative offer. Ultimately, swayed by this financial onslaught, Tan Mo joined
Yan Yi and the major merchant alliance's scheme to “replace the island lord.”
Having framed Hun Tong, Tan Mo now looked back on the events with a chill
running down his spine.
Yan Yi had skillfully maneuvered between the investigation team, the Two Eyes
Island Lord Hun Tong, and the major merchant alliances, exploiting every
faction to near perfection. He even used the Seventh Prince as a figurehead to
establish trust for the merchant alliance's cooperation.
And he was merely a bronze level!
Such maneuvering was like a newborn infant dancing gracefully amidst a sea of
giant crocodiles.
The crucial part? This infant actually pulled it off.
The audacity and vision Yan Yi displayed left Tan Mo, a gold level secret agent
and naval commander, in awe.
Especially that final moment, when Tan Mo publicly arrested Hun Tong, Yan Yi
stepped in. His performance left Tan Mo secretly stunned!
Yan Yi ultimately deceived Hun Tong, becoming the acting island lord and
gaining control of the Golden Flash. With the endorsement of the previous
ruling lord, the backing of major merchant alliances and the Wealth Church,
plus his own network of secret agents... these three factions strongly
supported him, securing his seat as ruler of Two Eyes Island.
"The only trouble is the Justice Church. They've dispatched a bishop to Two
Eyes Island, along with a rather notorious Guang Ke. Now that Hun Tong is
captured, their investment has gone down the drain, making them aggrieved
parties. They're likely to cause trouble. This poses a challenge for Yan Yi."
But Tan Mo believed Yan Yi would overcome it.
Before arriving at Two Eyes Island, he would never have imagined a bronze level
cultivator could resist such formidable enemies.
But now, Tan Mo had profound confidence in Yan Yi.
Tan Mo silently asked himself, if the roles were reversed, could he, in Yan
Yi's place, have achieved what he had?
He considered his own courage and vision to be in no way inferior to Yan Yi's.
“The only thing missing is acting!”
Undoubtedly, this was a crucial skill that allowed Yan Yi to navigate smoothly
among major factions and powerful figures.
Though he was only a bronze level transcendent, under his manipulation, it no
longer seemed a disadvantage but had transformed into an advantage.
At bronze level... everyone naturally underestimated him.
The bronze level Yan Yi was looked down upon, yet at the same time, he was seen
as harmless.
Major merchant alliances, the Wealth Church, even Hun Tong, all of them
underestimated Yan Yi. Even he, Tan Mo, hadn't he looked down on Yan Yi?
"Magicians have a popular adage: ‘Wisdom is power.’ Seeing Yan Yi, I understand
that saying more deeply."
"If I ever face such an enemy in the future, I'll kill him outright. No
nonsense. Never play games with such people. He seems to have eyes in the back
of his head!"
“Thankfully, Yan Yi's bloodline peak is only bronze level.”
Thinking this, Tan Mo exhaled a breath of stale air, feeling a surge of relief.
Tan Mo cast one final glance at the docks of Two Eyes Island.
As the distance grew, Yan Yi shrank into a blurry mass within his vision.
He turned and walked toward his captain's cabin.
Stepping onto the deck, his gaze lowered, as if seeing through the planks to
the dungeon where Hun Tong was imprisoned.
Tan Mo neither abused nor tortured Hun Tong.
After all, Hun Tong remained uncondemned and retained his status as an imperial
noble, a courtesy he deserved.
Simultaneously, this was Tan Mo’s method of lulling Hun Tong into complacency.
“Such treatment will make Hun Tong feel at ease, but he is already as good as
dead!”
According to the plan, once Tu Ji wore off, agents dispatched by the major
merchant alliances would step in to deliver a dignified and just end to Hun
Tong.
Meanwhile, in another detention cell, a fishman remained imprisoned.
It was Dao Hen.
After being swayed by Yan Yi and recanting his testimony, he had become a
crucial witness for Hun Tong's conviction. Consequently, he too was to depart
aboard the ship.
“He's as good as dead too.”
Dao Hen knew secrets; his fate was equally sealed.
“A silver level fishman is one thing, but Hun Tong is gold level, with his own
fiefdom. To end up like this... what a waste.”
“He had business acumen, adapting to circumstances and revitalizing Two Eyes
Island.”
“But alas, he failed to recognize true talent, blinded by age!”
Hun Tong had always lamented the lack of capable subordinates. Yet viewed
another way, wasn't this precisely proof of his own shortcomings, an inability
to discern potential and nurture promising candidates?
“His greatest mistake was misreading the situation.”
"He thought Two Eyes Island was a faraway outpost, but the entire Main Plane is
the Empire's chessboard! Who could possibly escape?"
Hun Tong misjudged the situation. Even now, he still believed this was merely a
straightforward frame-up. He was innocent. The real culprit was Tan Mo, greedy
and audacious beyond measure.
Little did he know, the tide of the times had already swept him underwater.
All that awaited him was drowning!
Thinking of Hun Tong, Tan Mo silently warned himself: “The Empire's advance
into the Wilderness Continent has already unleashed the colossal waves of this
era.”
“On the Beastman Continent, the ever-rising castles and the battles, great and
small, are merely the surface of these waves.”
“Beneath the surface, however, rages a turbulent undercurrent.”
“These currents aren't confined to the Beastman Continent. They're spreading
across the Sheng Ming Continent, permeating the entire Main Plane.”
“No one is spared.”
“Even gold levels, the ruling lords of the Empire, with just a single lapse in
vigilance, and they'll be swallowed by the currents.”
“Hun Tong is a sacrifice of this era, right before our eyes.”
“His example is far from unique.”
“In this era's relentless tide, even gold level individuals can be shattered to
pieces with the slightest misstep.”
Tan Mo's expedition to Two Eyes Island had netted him a massive windfall.
Yan Yi and the merchant alliance representative invited Tan Mo to intervene.
After some bargaining, the latter secured 80,000 gold coins on the spot.
Combined with previous bribes from Yan Yi and Hun Tong, Tan Mo's total earnings
this time exceeded 100,000 gold coins!
“I wasn't mistaken. This operation truly was a lucrative deal.”
“It was well worth spending 30,000 gold coins on gifts to secure such an
assignment from higher-ups.”
Tan Mo demanded bribes, but he also funneled benefits upward.
The 30,000 gold coins represented his largest expense for this operation, with
minimal expenditures elsewhere.
Supplies consumed by the Treasure Chest during its voyage could be reimbursed
through the Imperial Navy.
Nearly all aboard the Treasure Chest were members of Tan Mo's clan, and their
salaries were still paid by the Navy.
Tan Mo had also prepared a bribe for Tu Ji.
But Tu Ji never accepted it; he couldn't stand Tan Mo.
Tan Mo wisely withdrew, sparing himself further embarrassment.
Two other key figures were aboard Tan Mo's vessel: a member of the Secret Gate
Church and a saint level shield guardian specializing in defense.
Both held critical roles yet remained deeply secluded, rarely appearing in
public.
During stops at both Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island, they never left
their respective quarters.
Tan Mo had made a fortune, yet his mood wasn't as joyful as he'd anticipated.
With mixed feelings, he returned to the captain's cabin.
Alone, with no one else present.
He unfolded the documents and carefully examined the intelligence sent by Yan
Yi.
Moments later, he withdrew his gaze, lost in thought.
"The second necromancer once used alchemy puppets to seize the Iron Lump. Yes,
I've seen the magic footage of that battle, that scene is there."
"After the Battle of Weeping Pine Island, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
captured the Iron Lump. That is an indisputable fact."
“According to intelligence, upon arriving at Snow Bird Harbor in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suddenly became flush with
cash, frequently selling high-value art pieces like antiques and calligraphy.”
At this thought, Tan Mo's eyes flashed with sharp brilliance.
“Interesting... Yan Yi's theory holds merit.”
“So, it seems likely that the necromancer deployed alchemy puppets during the
naval battle to secretly salvage the island's entire treasure hoard.”
“Then the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps swept them all away.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps... Tan Qiu mentioned them briefly back on
Snake Rat Island.”
“If they really got their hands on that loot, imagine how many gold coins that
would be!”
“That's the entire island's accumulated wealth!”
"Especially since Two Eyes Island is a thriving commercial hub, many pirates
come here to fence their loot!
Just speculating on the value of this haul made Tan Mo's breathing grow heavy.
“If this treasure really falls into the hands of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, what am I supposed to do?”
"Their background is complicated, likely arms smugglers operating under false
identities. Perfect! This gives me the ideal cover to investigate them."
"No wonder Yan Yi said I might be the biggest winner of the Two Eyes Island
naval battle. Haha! If fate smiles upon me and I truly get my hands on that
loot, it would be utterly fantastic!"
Tan Mo's innate greed swiftly eroded the fleeting sense of awe and caution
stirred by the staggering bounty. In its place surged an overwhelming impulse!
His current role and mission had already granted him follow-up intelligence
regarding the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' arrival at Ice Sculpture Island.
“Hmph! So what if Long Fu can defeat gold level opponents with silver level
cultivation?”
“He's still just a silver level!”
“Tu Ji will disembark midway. Without that constraint, my movements will be far
more free.”
“Even if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has some hidden cards, I have a saint
level shield guardian by my side.”
"Even that bronze level Yan Yi managed to thrive. I'll ride their coattails and
borrow their might, it's entirely possible!"
Tan Mo muttered to himself, his greedy nature fueling wild fantasies. He
couldn't contain himself, he had to thoroughly test this Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps!
“Transmit my orders: increase speed.”
“I demand maximum speed to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!”
As Tan Mo issued the command, he thought to himself: "We must hurry. If the
spoils are truly in their hands, I must get there quickly."
“Before these scoundrels squander every last coin.”
“That money belongs to me!”



****** Chapter 587: Snake Shadow and Rat Eye Builds Another Achievement ******
The Ice Sculpture Capital.
Wisteria shop.
A spy posing as a store clerk was inspecting the goods.
A massive wooden crate was pried open with an iron bar, revealing it filled to
the brim with stones.
The inspecting secret agent immediately covered his nose and exclaimed,
“Volcanic itch stones again!”
These stones varied in size, ranging from grayish white to black in color.
Inner and outer layers alike were riddled with countless minute, densely packed
cavities.
Submerging the stones in water caused it to boil instantly, reaching a rolling
boil within seconds.
Left exposed to air for extended periods, the stones emitted an overpowering,
persistent stench.
Unprotected skin touching the stone's surface would cause unbearable itching,
scratching until bleeding offered no relief.
"Count them carefully. This is a strict order from above. Don't say I didn't
warn you, if you mess up and the higher-ups find out, you're dead meat!" warned
the cargo-handling spy.
“Of course, of course!” The inspection clerk nodded frantically, his face
etched with seriousness and caution.
While meticulously counting, he chatted casually, “Did you hear?”
"Just a few days ago, this place was attacked. Three silver level group leaders
were killed!"
“Though the enemy was dealt with, who knows if any accomplices remain?”
“If enemy allies come seeking revenge, we'd be finished!”
The delivery agent's expression darkened instantly: “Keep your voice down! Is
this something we should be discussing?”
“Can't you just focus on the inspection?”
“Shut your mouth. I don't want to get punished for listening to your nonsense.”
After being scolded, the inspector pouted but ultimately said nothing more.
This caused Zi Di, observing from a distance, to frown slightly in
disappointment.
The silver level ice gargoyle she controlled stood silently beside the
deliveryman. Even at such close range, neither of the two living people could
see the ice gargoyle.
The combined effects of Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell made the ice gargoyle's comings and goings in the Wisteria shop
as effortless as drinking water for an ordinary person.
“Ever since their ambush failed, the enemy has replaced nearly all the shop
staff.”
“The old hands vanished through teleportation.”
“The new recruits are highly skilled too. This inspector is the most accessible
source of intel I've found.”
After infiltrating the vicinity of the Wisteria shop, Zi Di's primary task was
directing the ice gargoyle to conduct surveillance.
But her gains were meager.
The undercover agents were highly skilled and discreet, maintaining silence
that made it difficult for Zi Di to uncover any secrets.
The shop manager and others only handled the surface-level business operations.
With the shop's dismal sales, the tasks assigned to the manager and other
higher-ups were equally unremarkable.
Any truly confidential matters were relayed directly through communication
devices.
Interactions among shop staff were minimal. Even work-related exchanges
strictly adhered to confidentiality protocols.
"The only clear thing is that the enemies behind the Wisteria shop have been
secretly transporting volcanic itch stones. This is already the sixteenth crate
I've seen."
As a magician who had dabbled in alchemy, Zi Di possessed basic knowledge
despite her limited skill level.
As far as she knew—volcanic itch stone was a common ingredient for bomb-making.
This made Zi Di vaguely sense: the enemies lying in wait for her were quietly
brewing something, and it was likely to be big!
After the inspection was complete and the signature obtained, the deliveryman
left.
The inspector struggled to carry the wooden crate toward the depths of the
warehouse.
Zi Di immediately commanded her ice gargoyle to follow close behind.
A metal door swung open. The inspector stepped inside, and as his second foot
crossed the threshold, the door slammed shut.
But the ice gargoyle had already squeezed through.
Though the inspector stumbled and nearly fell during the squeeze, he remained
completely unaware.
Zi Di also directed the ice gargoyle to steady the wooden crate in his hands,
preventing the entire load of itch stones from spilling onto the floor.
Of course, even if that had happened, Zi Di’s ice gargoyle would never have
been detected.
The inspector would simply have blamed it on his own carelessness.
Struggling under the weight of the crate, the inspector descended to the first
basement level, where he encountered yet another metal door. The difference was
that, alongside the metal door, there was also an inspection device.
Basement 1, Basement 2, Basement 3...
The barriers set up by the Imperial Secret Spy Agency along the way grew
increasingly numerous, and the inspection procedures became ever more
stringent.
Metal doors were merely standard equipment. There were five or six different
types of manual password responses, and elemental suppressors of various types
appeared one after another. What Zi Di found most troublesome was the mental
wave counter device.
This alchemy device severely interfered with Zi Di's control over the ice
gargoyle.
Magicians controlled alchemy puppets by channeling their own spirit power. Zi
Di's manipulation of the ice gargoyle was no exception.
Spirit power manifested as mental fluctuations.
This principle also applied to the long-distance communication between the
duelists.
The mental wave counter device emits mental fluctuations at various frequencies
to counteract external mental waves, preventing enemies from remotely
controlling alchemy puppets to infiltrate this area.
Each mental wave counter device continuously alters its countering frequency
bands over time.
Therefore, even if the frequency of Zi Di's mental fluctuations was unknown to
the enemy, it was still suppressed by this defensive measure.
Each time the ice gargoyle advanced further, Zi Di's control over it weakened
incrementally.
By the time the ice gargoyle reached the fourth underground level, Zi Di's
connection to it had faded to a faint, indistinct trace.
Meanwhile, the inspector accompanying Zi Di arrived at the warehouse carrying
wooden crates.
The warehouse door stood wide open.
Two secret agents addressed the inspector: “You're just in time. Help us carry
these stones down.”
“Yes, sir!” The inspector nodded immediately.
This turn of events delighted Zi Di.
Previously, when she followed them here, the inspector would always abandon the
wooden crates and head straight back.
Without his lead, the ice gargoyle couldn't pass through the metal door. Zi Di
didn't want to rashly blast an opening either.
The inspector and the other two carried the wooden crates as they continued
onward.
Zi Di immediately commanded the ice gargoyle. Its chest suddenly burst open,
releasing several snake shadow ghosts and rat eye ghosts.
The mental wave counter device could disrupt conventional alchemy puppet
control, but it couldn't fully counter a necromancer's summoned ghosts.
Though these ghosts also operated under a magic power's mental control, their
bond with the necromancer was far deeper—a soul-level connection had already
formed.
Much like how Jian Gui in the White Hair Trench secretly communicated with Cang
Xu, Xiao Wang Zi, and others through their soul ties. Zhou Zhang was mere
inches away yet remained completely unaware.
The snake shadow ghosts and rat eye ghosts continued their pursuit.
Moments later, they followed the three secret agents to the fifth underground
level, where they saw the teleportation formation at the far end.
One by one, wooden crates were carried to the center of the formation.
Guarding the formation was none other than a gold level fighter.
“That's one of the two gold level fighters who attacked us before!” Zi Di
recognized him immediately.
The rat eye ghosts climbed onto the gold level fighter's shoulders,
scrutinizing his face closely.
The snake shadow ghosts coiled around the gold level fighter's thigh, clinging
tightly to memorize his aura and probe deeper secrets within him.
Enhanced by the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy
spell, the gold level fighter sensed nothing amiss.
He sternly urged his subordinates to work faster.
Once all the wooden crates were moved, he teleported away amidst a cloud of
volcanic itch stones.
“They've entered an alchemy laboratory.”
“It should be somewhere within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.”
Moments later, a sharp gleam flashed in Zi Di's eyes: “Indeed. This is where
they ambushed me before.”
Moments later, Zi Di's snake shadow ghosts and rat eye ghosts observed two gold
level figures conversing.
“The Thirteenth Prince will return soon.”
“Besides him, there's also Lord Qi Ci Lang.”
“You mean the one called the Beloved Child of Seven Gods?”
“Precisely!”
“Excellent. He truly is the most suitable candidate for this Ice Sculpture
Kingdom Tournament.”
"Long Meng is the top duelist in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. But Lord Qi Ci Lang
possesses the blessing of immortality. Who among the gold level on Ice
Sculpture Island could defeat him?"
"Once this mission is complete, I can retire. To be honest... I've truly had
enough of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's bitter cold. Lately, I've been dreaming
of the red bean banana trees back home night after night..."
…
The status of these two gold levels was worlds apart from those shop clerks.
Though their casual conversation didn't touch on Imperial Secret Spy Agency's
secrets, Zi Di overheard enough sensitive terms to raise alarm bells.
For instance, their reference to the “Thirteenth Prince,” and the mention of
“red bean banana trees”, a fruit unique to the Empire's southern regions.
“So, they really are imperial secret agents?”
Half an hour later, Zi Di confirmed this suspicion.
She told herself to stay calm, but her heart sank nonetheless.
All along, the survivors had pursued their goal of atoning to the Sheng Ming
Empire. The hostile relationship with the Imperial Secret Spy Agency
undoubtedly clashed violently with this objective.
In a way, the weight of antagonizing the Sheng Ming Empire's Secret Spy Agency
felt even heavier and more oppressive than opposing the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
“Why is the Imperial Secret Spy Agency targeting us?”
“The Mystifying Monster Island incident is unlikely. The most probable
target... is the Wisteria Cache!”
"Sister Qing Xin told me about it, that's how I learned of the Wisteria Cache.
The Wisteria shop in Ice Sculpture Capital has already been infiltrated by the
secret agents. The letter from Two Eyes Island never made it out. That means
Two Eyes Island is likely compromised too. The most suspicious figure is the
shopkeeper, Yan Yi."
"My identity was exposed while I was on Two Eyes Island, drawing the secret
agent's attention. At the time, I attended the auction using the identity of a
Wisteria elder. Then, during the naval battle, Cang Xu exposed his necromancer
abilities."
"My ambush at the Wisteria shop was likely a follow-up from Two Eyes Island.
They've been waiting for me."
Zi Di's thoughts scattered as she comprehensively analyzed her situation.
According to her reasoning, nothing had happened on Mystifying Monster Island,
and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' identity remained undiscovered for now.
Otherwise, the secret agents could have easily struck them at sea.



****** Chapter 588: The Business Plan is a Great Success! ******
"The Imperial Secret Spy Agency is targeting the necromancer of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance."
"The mysterious force, however, is targeting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps."
"Therefore, these two forces are distinct."
After pondering this, Zi Di's trust in Yuan Ci grew significantly.
“Next, we must investigate two individuals in detail.”
“One is the ‘Thirteenth Prince,’ likely the hostage prince.”
“The other is ‘Qi Ci Lang,’ currently known to be an exceptionally powerful
gold level individual possessing the ability of immortality.”
Zi Di did not recall the rat eye ghosts or snake shadow ghosts, leaving them
temporarily within the alchemy laboratory.
The ice gargoyle also couldn't be recalled immediately.
It had to wait for the metal door to open again to withdraw from the Wisteria
shop with minimal risk and cost.
Once Zi Di withdrew her primary focus, her mental connections with the ice
gargoyle, the rat eye ghosts, and snake shadow ghosts immediately grew faint
and blurred.
The link with the ice gargoyle was the weakest, while the connections with the
snake shadow ghosts and rat eye ghosts remained somewhat stronger.
This was despite the latter being farther from Zi Di and separated by the
transcendent environment of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
“Though the undead school is increasingly targeted and countered, it still
retains certain advantages as a new magic faction.”
Zi Di contacted Zong Ge immediately.
The intelligence she had gathered was too crucial, fundamentally impacting the
survivors' development strategies and upcoming operational plans.
Once the alchemy communication device connected, Zi Di and Zong Ge swiftly
exchanged their secret code.
“There's bad news,” Zi Di said gravely, relaying all the intelligence she'd
gathered to Zong Ge.
After a moment of silence, Zong Ge analyzed: The Imperial Secret Spy Agency was
likely targeting the remnants of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance. This view
coincided perfectly with Zi Di's.
“One is a mysterious force producing gold level individuals one after another,
the other is the Sheng Ming Empire's secret spy organization...”
Zong Ge sighed. Even someone as tough as him felt the weight of the pressure.
"I have some good news at least." He said to Zi Di.
"Not long ago, the Li Jian Clan came with our profit assessment for this period
of time."
“Sales of the dragon rider potion have been excellent. We've made over 200,000
gold coins in total profit!”
Zi Di paused slightly upon hearing this, then exhaled a quiet breath.
Her eyes stung, reddening.
It had not been easy!
This business venture had nearly collapsed midway. Fortunately, Zi Di had
weathered the immense pressure and persevered.
She hadn't charged ahead recklessly, but instead considered reality, made
decisive compromises, and sacrificed some profits to secure the Li Jian Clan's
deep cooperation.
With this powerful ally, the business plan she spearheaded finally gained
traction.
Now, it has yielded substantial interim results.
Zi Di took a deep breath, steadying her breathing, determined not to let Zong
Ge on the other end of the communication device detect her fluctuating
emotions.
She was thrilled.
She couldn't help it.
The recent barrage of bad news had been overwhelming!
Zi Di had been ambushed and attacked at the Wisteria shop. Had Yuan Ci not
rescued her, her fate would have been grim. Even if she hadn't died, she would
have been captured.
Afterward, Zi Di conducted covert investigations and formally confirmed that
the enemy who ambushed her was indeed the Sheng Ming Empire's Secret Spy
Agency.
This revelation brought immense psychological pressure!
The survivors' numbers and strength were simply too insignificant to compare
with the empire's Secret Spy Agency.
Not only that, but beyond the Secret Spy Agency, they faced another mysterious
and powerful enemy faction. This faction possessed an extraordinary number of
gold level individuals!
Were it not for the support of the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
Investigation and Prophecy spell, and the cautious habits honed by the
survivors on Mystifying Monster Island, they would have been crushed into dust
by these two organizations long ago.
“This is indeed rare, good news,” Zi Di said calmly. “What are the specific
details of the gains and losses?”
“I'll teleport them to you immediately,” Zong Ge replied.
Through the magic alchemy device, Zong Ge swiftly transmitted a magic image to
Zi Di.
This magic image recorded the Li Jian Clan's commercial envoy visiting “Long
Fu” (Zong Ge), delivering detailed written materials and giving a brief in-
person report.
At that time, not only Zong Ge was present, but also an alchemy puppet
impersonating Magician Yao Ma.
Whenever Zi Di acted alone, Zong Ge would deploy the alchemy puppet disguised
as her.
Neither the Li Jian Clan nor anyone else detected the slightest irregularity.
The Deceptive Disguise spell proved remarkably reliable. However, this
significantly accelerated the consumption of pearl bubbles.
When Zi Di departed Snow Bird Harbor, she carried over sixty pearl bubbles.
During the journey, Zong Ge ambushed the Axe Gang leader and others, consuming
a considerable amount.
Upon reaching Igloo City, consumption skyrocketed and never decreased.
Arriving at the Ice Sculpture Capital, Zi Di faced another ambush and had a
strong need for reconnaissance, causing the pearl bubble consumption to surge
dramatically.
The pearl bubbles were depleted as they were used, and neither Zong Ge nor Zi
Di had any means or channels to replenish it.
This was now their most critical strategic resource!
Zi Di desperately wanted to conserve it, but there was simply no way! The
situation forced her to increase the pearl bubble usage in many areas.
She reviewed the magic projections and mentally accessed the textual records
within the alchemy apparatus.
She studied them twice, gaining a deep understanding of the detailed income and
expenditure this time.
dragon rider potions were selling like hotcakes nationwide across the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. This was a blue ocean market, demand remained largely
unsatisfied, with vast untapped potential.
“Our primary competitor right now is the Jing Xiang Clan.”
“The Alchemy Guild hasn't reacted at all. This is beyond my expectations.”
Originally, Zi Di had assumed the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild would
be their primary rival. Yet even now, this colossal entity remains silent.
“It's precisely this situation that made the first round of profits far greater
than I anticipated.”
While the Jing Xiang Clan also held significant market share, it paled in
comparison to the Alchemy Guild.
“The benefits of our deep cooperation with the Li Jian Clan are evident here.”
“Relying solely on Snow Bird Harbor's four alchemy workshops, even working day
and night, couldn't meet the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom's potion demand.”
“The Li Jian Clan operates alchemy studios, workshops, and factories
nationwide. Their mage towers also participate in potion production.”
“This allowed them to suppress the Jing Xiang Clan and securely reap the first
wave of dividends brought by the commander's nationwide fame.”
As for expenditures...
The largest portion went toward acquiring the various shops under the Li Jian
Clan's name during the initial phase.
Next came transportation costs.
The final category was reconstruction expenses. This primarily involved
rebuilding the four alchemy workshops in Snow Bird Harbor that had been
destroyed. However, thanks to Tripleblade's timely coordination and
arrangements, these losses were far less severe than they appeared on the
surface.
“Tripleblade played no small part.”
“Though he's only an iron level fighter and a staunch supporter of Zong Ge, his
extensive experience as a mercenary captain allowed him to manage the sub-
unit's operations.”
“During our absence, Tripleblade temporarily led the group and handled
everything quite well.”
“If not for that major blunder, he would have earned significant credit.”
The major blunder Zi Di had in mind was, of course, Tripleblade losing the big
guy.
At a critical moment, Tripleblade ordered Chi Lai to retrieve the big guy,
never anticipating Chi Lai would act on his own initiative. This resulted in
the big guy being taken away by Da Dou.
Of course, looking back at the entire sequence, Zi Di also realized: even if
Chi Lai had retrieved the big guy in time, given the will and decisiveness Da
Dou had demonstrated, he would still have forcibly taken the big guy away. The
silver level Chi Lai couldn't have stopped Da Dou.
In fact, Tripleblade's order and Chi Lai's last-minute decision actually
reduced the risk for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Had Chi Lai clashed with
Tripleblade, he likely would have been killed in battle.
But none of this could obscure the error in Tripleblade's decision-making!
A mistake was a mistake.
On this point, Zong Ge also acknowledged flaws in Tripleblade's command.
Zong Ge enforced clear rewards and punishments, refusing to shield Tripleblade
in spite of their personal connection.
"For this major dragon rider potion sales campaign, we invested over 600,000
gold. A significant portion of this capital was allocated to acquiring shops
across various regions."
“We've now generated roughly 200,000 gold in profit, but the Li Jian Clan must
receive approximately 80,000 gold from that revenue.”
“I plan to hand over 120,000 gold coins directly to the Li Jian Clan to expand
production of the dragon rider potion,” Zi Di told Zong Ge.
Zong Ge didn't hesitate: “You make the call on this matter.”
Ever since the survivors emerged from Mystifying Monster Island, Zi Di had
continuously demonstrated her business acumen.
Even Zong Ge, with his high expectations, found himself impressed.
Had this venture failed, Zong Ge might have hesitated, yet he would still
regard Zi Di as the most business-savvy survivor.
Reality proved otherwise, Zi Di's plan achieved resounding success.
This was merely the first round of profits, already reaching 200,000 gold
coins.
The foresight, tactics, and decisiveness Zi Di displayed throughout the process
earned Zong Ge's quiet admiration.
Having commanded troops, Zong Ge understood all too well the immense importance
of provisions to an army!
Therefore, he immediately gave Zi Di's proposal his full support.
“Long Fu, come out now!”
“If you could slay Teng Dong Lang, why won't you face me in combat?”
“I'm merely a silver level, what are you afraid of?”
“Come forth and accept my challenge!”
…
Zi Di frowned, hearing the commotion from Zong Ge's end through the alchemy
device.
“What's going on?” Zi Di asked immediately.
Zong Ge's tone remained calm: “This is already the third challenger.”
“My location has been leaked. The first two who issued public challenges were
taken care of by the Li Jian Clan.”
“But I suspect this situation will only escalate.”
“Though all three challengers are silver level, I don't think it's that simple.
This is likely a follow-up offensive by the enemy, aiming to exhaust me and
prevent me from recuperating."
Zong Ge possessed a keen battlefield instinct.
He instantly discerned the enemy's intent behind these challenges.



****** Chapter 589: Wait for People to Come ******
Zong Ge asked Zi Di, “Now that things have come to this, what do you think we
should do next?”
The current situation was that the Imperial Secret Spy Agency had taken control
of the Wisteria shop. The shop's flying messaging unit was definitely unusable
now.
Not only that, but it would be best to avoid using the Wisteria flying
messaging units around the periphery of Ice Sculpture Island as well.
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency was vast in scale and likely had arrangements in
place elsewhere as well.
Zi Di said, "The Bai Zhen Clan posted a hefty bounty through the Imperial
Bounty Hunter Guild. I've considered that we might pose as bounty hunters and
contact the Bai Zhen Clan through the guild."
“Unfortunately, there are no branches of the Bounty Hunter Guild within the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.”
Zong Ge nodded slightly. “There used to be one, but over forty years ago, a
rebellion led the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to completely ban all Imperial Bounty
Hunter Guild branches.”
Zi Di was well aware of this fact. When they first arrived on Ice Sculpture
Island, they had purchased a large amount of intelligence.
That rebellion over forty years ago was a major focus in the intelligence
reports. It was also a crucial piece of information for outsiders to understand
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Zi Di continued, “Therefore, to leave Ice Sculpture Island, we must sail a
considerable distance to find a Bounty Hunter Guild branch on another island.”
“Alternatively, we could seek aid from the Imperial Navy.”
“The Bai Zhen Clan once mobilized their connections to have the Imperial Navy
search for Zhen Jin and me.”
“But relying on the Imperial Navy isn't safe.”
“The Bai Zhen Clan's current situation is precarious. If news of our contact
with the navy reaches their political enemies first, it could bring immense
trouble upon us.”
At this point, Zi Di paused, her gaze sharpening as she stared at the alchemy
communication device before her. She ventured cautiously, “Ultimately, what we
lack most is influence.”
“If we could find a pivotal figure capable of communicating with the Empire's
high command, we could bypass the Bai Zhen Clan entirely.”
“But none of us possess connections reaching that level.”
Such influence was no ordinary matter.
It required someone with influence within the Sheng Ming Empire, someone
possessing sufficient power and resources to protect the survivors' group.
Before the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was reorganized, Zi Di's father had
barely managed to find such a person.
But after her father's death, though Zi Di took over, the merchant alliance she
inherited lay in utter ruin, reduced to less than one percent of its former
size.
Zi Di's words were a probe into Zong Ge.
From previous clues, Zong Ge's bloodline seemed extraordinary, and his
background appeared exceptional.
A merchant's daughter, raised in such circles, could judge a person's social
standing and commercial value.
Zi Di concluded: Though a half beastman, among the survivors, Zong Ge was most
likely to have access to the Empire's upper echelons.
Hearing Zi Di's words, Zong Ge fell into a prolonged silence.
Seeing no response from the other end of the communication device for an
extended period, Zi Di continued, “Beyond these two avenues, there is a third
option, one I personally believe best suits our current circumstances.”
“We can await the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom must have issued invitations in advance. During the
ceremony, the Empire will undoubtedly dispatch high-ranking officials.”
“It's highly likely naval commanders will be among them.”
“We can attempt to make contact with them.”
Although Zi Di had nearly been ambushed by the Imperial Secret Spy Agency,
firstly, the spies hadn't yet connected the necromancer with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps. Second, the Empire itself was rife with factions and complex
internal politics.
Zi Di: “Though the business plan succeeded, it only completes the first phase.”
“What follows remains crucial, it hinges on people.”
"This is an excellent opportunity. Elsewhere, we wouldn't draw attention."
"But here, dueling culture is rampant. Commander previously slew Teng Dong
Lang, making us unrivaled in prestige. Our alliance with the Li Jian Clan and
ties to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord bolster our standing in negotiations with
the Empire's high command."
“We can stir even greater waves in the market, demonstrate our strength, and
build leverage for future talks with the Empire's leaders.”
Previously, the survivors primarily sought to contact the Bai Zhen Clan. But
with events unfolding this way, Zi Di adapted her strategy to the situation.
Since reaching out externally proved troublesome and costly, it would be wiser
to wait for the Empire's high command to approach them.
Zong Ge pondered for a moment: “This approach is sound.”
“The Empire and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom have always placed great importance
on maintaining their connection.”
"The Emperor even entrusted the young Thirteenth Prince to the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family for upbringing. For a powerful nation to voluntarily offer a
hostage prince to a weaker one is an exceedingly rare occurrence."
"It was only a few years ago that the Thirteenth Prince formally returned to
the Empire for the first time to pay his respects to his father, the Emperor."
"This National Ceremony marks the Thirteenth Prince's return, and he must be
accompanied by high-ranking officials from the Empire."
“Reflecting now, the Emperor's entrusting of the hostage to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom was likely preparation for the current campaign on the Wilderness
Continent.”
After Zong Ge's reflection, he formally reached an agreement with Zi Di.
They chose to remain in the Ice Sculpture Capital, awaiting the national
ceremony and the arrival of the Empire's high-ranking officials.
The core plan was set; now came the details.
Zong Ge: “Given that, I've decided to resume the mercenaries' military
training.”
“Especially naval training, it's crucial.”
“The vast ocean separates the Sheng Ming Continent from the Wilderness
Continent. Naval warfare will undoubtedly be a major theme in future
conflicts.”
Zi Di frowned: "Funding is no longer an issue. But is this safe?"
At Snow Bird Harbor's docks, the mercenaries had protection from the mage tower
and others. But leaving port for training might give the enemy an opening.
Zong Ge stood firm on his suggestion: “We need a fallback, Miss Zi Di.”
“We must plan for future retreats.”
“Especially for us, facing two hostile factions, it's extremely dangerous.”
"The Deep Sea Monster Fish was taken by the commander and hasn't returned yet.
If we ever need to escape Ice Sculpture Island, our main reliance will be our
sea vessels and subordinates."
“Of course, this is only one escape route.”
“We could follow Da Dou's approach and build some secret teleportation
devices.”
Zi Di opened her mouth to speak, but Zong Ge cut her off: “I understand your
point.”
“True, their military training will inevitably take them far from the dock.”
“Should the enemy strike, this entire group could be wiped out.”
“But we must proceed regardless.”
“Because this is the right thing to do!”
“We cannot halt our path of self-strengthening merely because danger looms!”
A bone-chilling cold seeped from Zong Ge's voice.
“Moreover, based on my understanding of the enemy, it's unlikely they'll target
the branch directly.”



****** Chapter 590: The Higher-Ups&#x27; Callousness ******
Zong Ge judged that the mercenaries at Snow Bird Harbor Branch were unlikely to
face enemy attacks, leaving Zi Di puzzled.
She pressed him directly for the reasoning and logic behind this assessment.
Zong Ge replied, “Our primary enemy right now is that mysterious force lurking
in the shadows of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“We've clashed with them several times already.”
“It's like two armies facing off. After multiple engagements, you can discern
the opposing commander's temperament, thought patterns, and behavioral habits.”
Zi Di nodded slightly. “So?”
Zong Ge continued, “Based on the impression I've formed of this enemy group,
their commander is exceptionally strong.”
“The assault plans he/she devises are both steady and incisive.”
“The steadiness lies in the fact that after I counter-killed three gold level
operatives, we went a long stretch without any attacks.”
“The sharpness manifests in how their strikes consistently target our
vulnerabilities.”
"For instance, when I intimidated the enemy, they didn't falter, they
immediately shifted their assault positions. They annihilated our supply
convoy. Remember that?"
Zi Di: “Of course I remember.”
Zong Ge: “This was their tactic, striking our vulnerabilities to force us into
disarray, or at the very least, to reveal more of our cards.”
"Our countermeasure was to secretly transport goods through the minor merchant
alliance of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. For a time, supplies continued
uninterrupted, and the enemy couldn't discern the outcome. Under these
circumstances, they immediately attacked Snow Bird Harbor's alchemy workshop."
Zong Ge's gaze sharpened as he continued his analysis: “In my view, the enemy's
attack plan was exceptionally well-crafted.”
"In terms of troop strength, the enemy must have conducted precise
calculations. They deployed only transcendents, several silver levels. There
was only one gold level."
“This force was neither too few nor too many; it successfully destroyed our
four alchemy workshops.”
“Achieving this alone was no small feat. On the battlefield, deploying
precisely calibrated forces is no ordinary task, it's exceptionally difficult
to execute.”
"The unexpected support from Shuang Lian caught the enemy off guard. However,
they quickly made up for it shortly afterward. Now Shuang Lian, Bu Quan, and
even the Honey Snow Tower have vanished. Such losses are truly devastating!"
Zi Di nodded in strong agreement yet also felt profound relief: “Had we not
deepened our collaboration with the Li Jian Clan in time, relying on their
strength for alchemy, distribution, and sales, our business plan would have
certainly failed by now!”
Zong Ge continued: “The enemy is well aware of the Li Jian Clan's partnership
with us. Given their vast hidden influence, couldn't they have destroyed the Li
Jian Clan's alchemy workshops?”
“Of course not.”
“Yet to this day, not a single workshop of the Li Jian Clan has been attacked.”
“That's because these alchemy workshops are no longer our weak point.”
“The Li Jian Clan's business is vast. Destroying countless alchemy workshops,
or even entire factories, would barely scratch their surface.”
As the analysis unfolded, a sharp gleam flashed in Zi Di's eyes.
She grasped the logic behind Zong Ge's earlier assessment: “So you mean even if
the branch is destroyed, even if our entire force is wiped out, it won't
cripple us!”
“Exactly.” Zong Ge replied without hesitation. “The big guy has already been
seized. The greatest loss would be the magic ship itself.”
Zi Di drew a sharp breath. "You seem to have forgotten that there are other
surviving comrades at the branch. There's Chi Lai, Men Shi, and other silver
level fighters. Plus the two squads you painstakingly trained..."
Zong Ge cut her off: “Even if all of them were wiped out, our core strength
would still remain intact, wouldn't it?”
“Chi Lai and Men Shi have exhausted their potential. Though they're skilled
silver level fighters, they're not irreplaceable.”
“As for the two teams I trained, they've never been fully developed, still in
their infancy.”
"As for the likes of Mu Ban and Bai Ya, they're not even transcendents. After
leaving Mystifying Monster Island, their usefulness has dwindled to near-
negligibility."
“Their greatest value now might be as bait.”
Zi Di snapped coldly, “Do you realize what you're saying?”
Zong Ge met her glare without flinching or remorse. “Of course I do.”
“This is precisely what I've been trying to say!”
“Our Commander is far too merciful and lenient.”
“Expanding our ranks, recruiting new members, operating under the corps'
banner, I support all of that.”
“But if we cherish them too much, these men cease to be our strength, they
become our burden!”
“Do you think we recruit them, lead them, only to shield them from every storm
in the end?”
“This isn't a game of house.”
“We seek an opportunity to atone to the Empire. We fight for our
very…survival!”
Zong Ge continued, “Given our current situation, we need these men to rapidly
improve their military skills.”
“They could become our escape route off this island.”
“Of course, their primary role is as bait.”
"We can leverage the Li Jian Clan, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and others to
set up ambushes. If the enemy takes the bait, they'll be thoroughly impressed."
“Though it's naval training, the Li Jian Clan's spatial technology can easily
conceal ambush forces.”
"Personally, I believe this bait ambush plan has low odds of success. But
there's no harm in trying."
Zi Di fell into a long silence.
She knew Zong Ge's words made sense.
Among the survivors, within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Zi Di was a
transcendent, a superior figure.
It made no sense for a superior like her to risk her life protecting inferiors.
It would only let the inferiors reap the rewards without effort.
“From Zong Ge's perspective, this reasoning is perfectly logical.”
“But in my view, it's not that simple.”
This was because Zi Di knew of the Bloodcore!
“The Bloodcore can alter a person's innate potential.”
“If potential can be changed, then the value of the other survivors becomes
unmeasurable.”
"The most crucial factor is loyalty. They are in the same boat as us,
possessing innate loyalty and the bond of comradeship forged through shared
life-and-death experiences."
"I've already tested most of their bloodlines, and the Bloodline Purification
Formation is complete. The hardest part is behind us, Lan Zao has already
benefited..."
Sacrificing these survivors at this stage would be a tremendous waste.
Zi Di was a merchant.
Merchants thrived on weighing pros and cons, calculating gains and losses.
In this regard, Zi Di and Zong Ge were actually quite similar.
Therefore, Zi Di understood Zong Ge.
But she couldn't reveal any information about the Bloodcore to him just yet.
“Zong Ge is already a gold level, while the commander isn't.”
“What would he do if he learned about the Bloodcore?"
Zi Di couldn't guarantee Zong Ge's subsequent reaction. She couldn't handle the
potential disastrous consequences.
After a moment of deep thought, Zi Di finally spoke: “We'll do as you say, but
I must summon Fei She.”
Zong Ge immediately agreed: "Of course. He's a veteran of the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance and can refine the level zero secret order. This will aid us in
unearthing the Wisteria Cache."
“What about Tripleblade?” Zi Di inquired.
Zong Ge hesitated not a moment: “He must remain there, of course.”



****** Chapter 591: Follow with Your Life ******
The secret correspondence from Zi Di and Zong Ge swiftly reached Tripleblade
and Fei She.
Since deepening cooperation with the Li Jian Clan, communication efficiency
within the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had skyrocketed.
Inside the cabin, Tripleblade incinerated the decrypted letter.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
A knock sounded at the door.
Tripleblade knew exactly who it was: “Come in.”
The next moment, Fei She pushed the door open and entered.
Fei She's brow furrowed, his face heavy with concern. “Are we really... really
leaving port to restart military training?”
“It's too dangerous. We could be wiped out entirely.”
The flickering light from the burning paper illuminated Tripleblade's face as
he turned to look at Fei She. “Didn't Miss Zi Di mention this in her secret
letter?”
“This is both military training and a tactical operation to lure the enemy into
an ambush.”
Zong Ge and Zi Di had each sent back secret letters, delivered through the Li
Jian Clan's channels to Tripleblade and Fei She.
In the letters, they outlined the branch's upcoming plans.
Fei She sighed. “The Lord Pres, President told me that we must serve as bait,
and coordinate with the Li Jian Clan's ambush forces.”
“This is far too dangerous!”
"The enemy's strength is too gre, great, gold level fighters appear endlessly.
Even our alchemy workshop in Snow Bird Harbor was destroyed by them."
"Those sacrificial warriors are terrifying. They'd sacrifice their lives just
to destroy the alchemy workshop."
“Magicians Bu Quan, Shuang Lian, and the Honey Snow Tower remain missing,
unlikely to be alive...”
“Enough, Fei She," Tripleblade cut him off, “this is Lord Zong Ge's order. We
only need to carry it out.”
Fei She shook his head, utterly baffled. “We'll die!”
“We barely escaped Mystifying Monster Island after enduring such peril. Why
would we willingly risk our lives now?”
Tripleblade snorted coldly. "This decoy operation doesn't concern you, Fei She.
Miss Zi Di has already made arrangements for your departure."
Fei She fell silent. He stared at Tripleblade, noting the latter's unwavering
resolve, and could only say, “As instructed by the President, my mission is to
pose as an inspector and observe the actual conditions of shops across the
region. Therefore, I won't be traveling alone, I require a group to serve as my
subordinates.”
“Oh?” Tripleblade was taken aback. This detail hadn't appeared in the secret
letter Zong Ge had given him.
Fei She produced his own secret letter and its translated version, handing them
to Tripleblade. “These are the President's instructions. You may verify them.”
Tripleblade was inclined to believe him—after all, the letters were easy to
authenticate. Still, he took the documents and scanned them quickly.
Tripleblade instantly grasped Zi Di's meaning.
He snapped his head up, fixing Fei She with a stare. “You intend to take others
with you?”
The “others” here referred to the other survivors.
Fei She shrugged. "I can't leave the mercenary corps alone; it'd be too
conspicuous. So, I need a legitimate mission to carry out."
“Inspecting the specific operations and ledgers of local shops is both
excellent and perfectly natural.”
“But I can't handle this alone, I'll need helpers, of course.”
Tripleblade fully grasped the meaning.
Zong Ge's letter was concise, but Tripleblade possessed extensive experience
leading a mercenary group.
When he noticed discrepancies between Zong Ge and Zi Di's letters, he realized
a rift had emerged between them.
“They failed to reach an agreement, hence the separate correspondence.”
“Previously, there was always just one letter.”
“Zi Di wants to rescue the other survivors, after all, this diversionary tactic
is extremely dangerous.”
“And since Lord Zong Ge didn't specifically mention this in his letter, his
intentions are quite clear!”
At this thought, Tripleblade shook his head. “You cannot take the other
survivors with you.”
“Because they each have their assigned roles. If they're pulled out and
gathered together, it will arouse great suspicion.”
"In fact, the same applies to you. Your role aboard the ship is as a cook.
Being assigned to this inspection team is already an exceptional arrangement."
"Externally, it could be portrayed as: you bribed higher-ups and schemed your
way in. But it's impossible for everyone else to have schemed their way in too.
That would make the higher-ups of our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps look utterly
incompetent, it defies common sense."
“Under normal circumstances, the inspection team must include transcendents.
Having an iron level leader is most appropriate.”
"Silver level combat power is extremely valuable to the branch. Therefore,
neither Men Shi nor Chi Lai can leave."
“Bronze level is too low; Iron level is the most suitable.”
“Tripleblade!” Fei She glared, "What the hell are you trying to do? They're my,
our comrades!"
Bam!
Tripleblade slammed his fist on the table, leaping to his feet. “You're the one
who's blind!”
“Don't you see the situation?”
“If we redeploy personnel as you, no, as Zi Di suggests, it'll be a massive
vulnerability!”
“The enemy will grow suspicious!”
"Then, not only will our bait ambush plan fail, but your inspection team will
be in grave danger too. The enemy will take a keen interest in you."
Fei She fell silent.
Tripleblade took several deep breaths before slowly sitting down. “I can't let
these minor issues jeopardize the greater mission.”
“I'll personally select the specific personnel for the operation. You only need
to participate.”
“Lord Zong Ge's arrangement is most appropriate. Miss Zi Di isn't a soldier
after all. I understand, but I won't carry it out.”
Fei She stared at Tripleblade: “At the very least, our comrades, our
companions, deserve to know, right?”
Without hesitation, Tripleblade shook his head: "No need to inform them. Once
they know, their words and actions will become telltale signs, giving us away
to the enemy."
“Even though we've been holed up at Snow Bird Harbor's docks, the enemy's eyes
are surely upon us.”
“Fei She, deep down you know this is the safest, most prudent course, don't
you?”
“Don't let irrelevant emotions cloud your judgment!”
Fei She gritted his teeth, making one final effort: “So... we just disregard
the, their lives?”
Tripleblade snorted coldly: "Isn't that the nature of military operations? How
can one be so hesitant? Even in your business dealings, is every transaction
guaranteed profit? Though I know little of commerce, I understand that greater
risks often yield greater rewards!"
"Besides, I will remain stationed here, steadfastly executing Lord Zong Ge's
orders. If they sacrifice themselves, I fear I will too."
Tripleblade lowered his gaze to the secret letter on the table, now reduced to
ashes. "Lord Zong Ge faces two deadly dangers, yet he has decided to accept
external challenges. He aims to continue showcasing his prowess at the Ice
Sculpture National Ceremony, raising the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' banner
high!"
"With our commander leading thus, how could his subordinates shirk danger?!"
Fei She was deeply moved.
In that moment, he sensed Tripleblade's unshakable loyalty to Zong Ge.
“This guy is truly risking his life to follow Zong Ge...” Fei She marveled
inwardly.
He was merely a mortal; he couldn't sway Tripleblade. With no other option, he
could only withdraw.
Before closing the door, Tripleblade deliberately added, “Fei She, consider
carefully the predicament your President faces.”
“I believe she's been too deeply influenced by our commander, becoming overly
idealistic.”
“Everything must be grounded in reality.”
“We must not be overly optimistic, nor underestimate our enemies!”
"One misstep, and we risk losing everything. What does it matter if we
sacrifice our lives? The crucial point is Lord Zong Ge, and your President..."
“The laughable part is, our commander is nowhere to be found even now. He might
have met with misfortune, or he might still be alive, but at least he won't be
implicated.”
"Fei She, don't be so naive. If you want to save others, you must save yourself
first."
“Do you want this incident to create a flaw that ultimately leads to your
President's death?”
“Oh, she's already dead.”
“What I mean is, do you want her undead status exposed, purged completely by
the enemy, leaving no chance for resurrection?”
Fei She's body trembled violently. With vacant eyes, he slowly closed the
hatch.
Tripleblade's final warning struck deep into Fei She's heart.
He walked with head bowed, lost in thought: “Tripleblade is right.”
“If I carry out the President's orders like this, it will be a weakness.”
“It could easily be detected by the enemy, and it could endanger the
President.”
This was the last thing Fei She wanted to see happen.
He was a founding member of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, having built it
from nothing alongside Zi Di's father, climbing from humble beginnings to
prominence.
Through the arduous expansion of their enterprise, he and Zi Di's father had
developed a deep bond and seamless partnership.
He had practically watched Zi Di grow up.
Fei She himself had no descendants.
After Zi Di's father passed away, a profound sense of responsibility naturally
arose within Fei She. He sought to take his place, safeguarding Zi Di's safety.
Zi Di, disregarding the peril, became the new president of the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance. Fei She was strongly opposed, but he was but a mortal,
unable to sway the will of the magician Zi Di.
He could only accompany her, doing his utmost to assist Zi Di in steering the
restructured Wisteria Merchant Alliance.
He could only stand by her side as they journeyed across the Wilderness
Continent, to Mystifying Monster Island, Snake Rat Island, Two Eyes Island, Ice
Sculpture Island...
When he discovered Zi Di had fallen for the dragonman youngster, his feelings
were complex. He had tried to dissuade the dragonman youngster, but in the end,
he could only offer silent blessings.
When Zi Di died, Fei She was utterly heartbroken, wishing he could have taken
her place. When Zi Di became a necromancer, Fei She felt no aversion, standing
steadfastly behind her. Resurrection was not only Zi Di's wish, but his as
well.
And when he witnessed the astonishing business acumen Zi Di displayed, he felt
immense pride. At such moments, memories often flooded back, immersing him in
the passionate days when he and Zi Di's father had stood shoulder to shoulder,
expanding their commercial empire.
Dark corridors always had an end.
As Fei She traversed the corridor, climbed the stairs, and stepped onto the
bright deck, he emerged from his reverie.
The deck bustled with activity.
Dogmen sparred against the water pigmen.
Among the spectators, Xu Ma secretly whispered with others, seemingly placing
clandestine wagers.
Bai Ya watched with rapt attention, projecting himself onto the combatants,
absorbing their battle experience.
Just then, Mu Ban dragged his weary body aboard from the gangplank, he’d just
completed a trivial mercenary job: repairing furniture.
He spotted Fei She at the staircase entrance, gave a slight nod, and offered a
subtle greeting. After all, on the surface, their relationship wasn’t
particularly close. But bonds among survivors were always incredibly tight.
Fei She returned the nod.
Warm sunlight bathed him, yet his gaze grew cold. He thought to himself: “Even
if these people are companions... they're not worth putting Miss Zi Di in
danger.”



****** Chapter 592: Icebound Pirates ******
Blue skies and white clouds.
Sea Birds perched on the ship's ropes as the Mermaid gently rocked with the
waves.
As captain of the Mermaid and commander of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's First
Navy, Mei Lin was handling official duties.
She studied a piece of intelligence in her hands, a thoughtful expression on
her face.
This intelligence concerned the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Yesterday, Long Fu accepted a silver level challenge. He chose a private duel
format and directly slew the silver level challenger.”
“An interesting approach...”
There were many forms of duels.
Some allowed spectators, while others were strictly private.
“Those who challenge Long Fu seek fame and glory, but by choosing a private
duel, even if victorious, the challenger gains far less renown.”
“By killing the challenger outright, Long Fu sought to demonstrate ruthless
ferocity and intimidate others.”
“Of course, this also serves to protect his intelligence, concealing further
tactics from public view.”
Beyond this intelligence, Mei Lin also kept tabs on Yao Ma (Zi Di).
“Has she still not registered for this Warm Snow Cup?”
The Snow Bird Harbor branch has resumed operations, departing the port to
conduct military training at sea.
“Interesting.”
"Oh, and another squad has set out from Snow Bird Harbor. They will inspect and
audit all the Dragon Lion shops along the route. They will ultimately enter the
royal capital to report to the commander, Long Fu, and Magician Yao Ma."
Upon reading this, Mei Lin was suddenly seized by the urge to dispatch troops
to ambush them.
But the next moment, she shook her head slightly, dismissing the notion of
military action.
“Even if we killed every last one of them, we couldn't destroy the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.”
Their highest-tier magic ship is merely silver level. A single gold level
cannon and a feathered serpent sail are their most advanced alchemy components.
“Given the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' current earning capacity, they could
easily afford all of these.”
“Is that precisely why they're continuing their military training?”
“No. Perhaps they also intend to lure me into action!”
“The Li Jian Clan has deep ties with them, and the former possesses formidable
spatial technology. They could easily set an ambush even in the vast ocean.”
Mei Lin's primary focus was drawn to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps detachment
led by Tripleblade, paying little heed to Fei She and his group.
Intelligence indicated this iron level squad's objective was clear: to audit
and verify the operational status of local merchants.
Mei Lin couldn't be bothered to intervene. She even hoped they might uncover
some shady dealings, potentially driving a wedge between the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan.
After some deliberation, she concluded that the Li Jian Clan had likely set an
ambush. Such a significant risk further diminished her desire to launch an
attack and wipe out the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch.
Zong Ge's analysis was correct; Mei Lin's personality shaped her approach to
warfare. She preferred targeted strikes, precise calculations, and meticulously
deploying every ounce of strength, rather than spreading her forces thin in an
all-out effort to eradicate the enemy's support network.
With a soft sigh, Mei Lin decided against moving against the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' branch.
She set aside the relevant intelligence and retrieved another report to
examine.
This one had nothing to do with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Instead, it concerned pirates.
“With the National Ceremony approaching, the seas have indeed begun to stir.”
The intelligence in Mei Lin's hands pertained to the Spray Pirates.
Their captain was a gold level alchemist, exceptionally skilled in battlefield
healing.
According to the report, the Spray Pirates had been invited by a coalition of
other pirate crews. Nearly all these crews were gold level forces.
Mei Lin put down the report in her hand and inspected the rest of the other
documents.
Eventually, she fixed her gaze on one report.
“The Icebound Pirates!”
“Pirate Captain Da Han, a saint level sorcerer and the fourth-in-command of the
Fire Beard Pirates.”
“The reason so many pirate crews have flocked here is because Da Han is leading
the Icebound Pirates straight toward our nation.”
“Of course, this is merely the stated reason. Behind the scenes, there may be a
mastermind pulling the strings.”
The Fire Beard Pirates were one of the three strongest pirate crews in the Main
Plane, with Fire Beard himself a legend level powerhouse. He commanded several
saint level individuals, Da Han being one of them.
Da Han alone was reason enough for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to take extreme
caution.
After all, the nation's strongest experts numbered only three saint level
individuals.
Not to mention Da Han's crew brimmed with talent, their fleet boasted numerous
magic ships, and though their flagship was merely gold level, the pirate crew
raised a saint level Ice Crystal Jellyfish.
“This Ice Crystal Jellyfish possesses aerial flight capabilities and formidable
regenerative powers—a truly troublesome foe.”
"In contrast, our navy has just completed its rearmament. While equipped with
new warships, they haven't undergone proper combat integration. Even the Li
Jian Clan's previous combat tests against pirate fleets yielded poor results."
Mei Lin sighed inwardly, the weight of pressure bearing heavily on her heart.
The Icebound Pirates alone compelled the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to take notice.
Preliminary estimates suggested over twenty gold level transcendents among the
other pirate fleets. Like sharks sensing blood, they swarmed in.
All because of the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony.
During this period, envoys from various factions, merchant alliance ships, and
countless important figures would be invited to attend.
If they couldn't seize merchant convoys, pirates could capture these VIPs as
hostages to extort their factions.
Pirates frequently engaged in this hostage-taking extortion.
It offered greater advantages than standard cargo plundering.
Much of the seized merchandise was useless to pirates, forcing them to sell it
at a discount, a waste of time and manpower. Extortion, however, allowed them
to demand direct payment, equipment, arms, or even ship repair services.
As a commander in the Kingdom's First Navy, Mei Lin bore heavy patrol duties
during the national ceremony.
Her primary focus had to be on this task, not the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
In truth, this applied not only to her but to the other duelists as well.
For instance, Xue Tuan Zi was participating in this year's Warm Snow Cup, while
Mo Gui Ji, Yun Zhong, and others were competing in the Kingdom Grand Duel.
Others like Zhu Gan had no interest in dueling, much less following Mei Lin's
orders to risk confronting Zong Ge and his crew.
“For now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must be set aside.”
“But they absolutely cannot be allowed to continue operating!”
Mei Lin's resolve to crush the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was unwavering,
especially after reviewing intelligence estimating their profits from
trafficking dragon rider potions.
The sheer scale of their gains sent a chill down Mei Lin's spine.
“Money can solve many problems.”
“After the National Ceremony, we must eliminate them swiftly. The longer we
delay, the harder it will become.”



****** Chapter 593: Tranquil Hill Divine Domain ******
Tranquil Hill Divine Domain.
Honey Snow Tower, control room.
Shuang Lian sat cross-legged mid-air, eyes tightly closed. Countless magic
runes drifted around her body, weaving chains of arcane symbols.
Nearly a hundred magic rune chains connected one end to Shuang Lian's mind,
while the other ends sank into the surrounding walls, linking to the tower
spirit residing in the middle layer.
Waves of magic fluctuations continuously radiated outward from Shuang Lian's
body, forming ceaseless ripples of energy.
Suddenly, Shuang Lian snapped her eyes open, her gaze blazing with dazzling
brilliance.
In an instant, the fiery intensity in her eyes vanished.
The intense magic fluctuations died down as well.
Shuang Lian drifted slowly downward until her feet touched the ground.
The magic runes vanished into thin air, severing the link between Shuang Lian
and the tower spirit.
Her hair fell wildly about her shoulders. The moment her feet touched the
ground, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion washed over her entire body.
She longed to collapse onto a bed and sleep soundly right then and there!
Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to endure, reflecting on the results of
this extreme calculation.
“The tower spirit has reached its absolute limit.”
“It was insufficient to calculate the flaw in this divine domain, unable to
locate the spatial weak point.”
"But it did once again validate my conjecture, this divine domain truly is
ownerless. The reason the Old King's Crowbar proved ineffective lies in that
hill on the horizon!"
Honey Snow Tower was built from nothing by Shuang Lian herself.
The tower spirit within was also conjured by Shuang Lian herself through magic,
existing as a kind of personal avatar. For this, she paid a heavy price, her
mental capacity was permanently and drastically reduced, never to be restored.
Yet this sacrifice brought immense benefits.
For instance, the tower spirit could flawlessly control and govern every aspect
of the Honey Snow Tower, far more profoundly and thoroughly than Shuang Lian
herself could ever achieve.
Moreover, the tower spirit's computational abilities surpassed Shuang Lian's
own. When Shuang Lian and the tower spirit were tightly linked, forming a
unified mind, their combined computational power surged severalfold, far
exceeding Shuang Lian's limits before the tower spirit's creation.
This was an extreme calculation.
Such calculations could not be sustained for long. While Shuang Lian herself
still had reserves, the tower spirit could not endure.
Before the tower spirit was burnt out, Shuang Lian proactively halted the
extreme computation.
“We must investigate that hill.”
Forcing herself to rise despite her exhaustion, Shuang Lian opened the control
level doors and descended the stairs.
Soon, she gathered the students within the mage tower to hear their reports.
“Teacher, while you were performing the extreme calculations, we transported
3.5 tons of honey snow from the demi-plane.”
“As per your instructions, we maintained the public magic pool at full
capacity, keeping the magic power reserve line consistently above 80%.”
"Tower Master, during this period, the enemy launched three waves of attacks.
Though different gold level forces engaged us, none managed to fully breach our
defenses. Repair work has been ongoing, and the tower structure remains near
intact."
“Teacher, the lightning defense formation you ordered us to construct is now
operational.”
“Teacher, we've continuously transmitted messages outward, yet we've received
no response—not a single one.”
…
After hearing all the reports, Shuang Lian declared, “Cease all external
communications.”
The students exchanged bewildered glances.
Ever since the fall of the Honey Snow Tower, they had been sending distress
signals outward. Of course, these signals were encrypted, only the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild possessed the means to decode them.
Shuang Lian feared that revealing the location of the ownerless divine domain
would attract more rivals. Outwardly, she stated, “Through this calculation,
I've identified a vulnerability in this place.”
With a flick of her finger, a magic projection materialized, revealing a hazy
image of Tranquil Hill.
“This is the core location.”
“By controlling this place, no, by exploring it and gathering sufficient
intelligence, we can break free.”
“Now, I need to assemble an exploration team. Those interested step forward. I
will reward you handsomely.”
Shuang Lian spoke truthfully.
This was primarily because she possessed an artifact of legend level—the Old
King's Crowbar.
The more information gathered, the greater the crowbar's power would become,
enabling her to pry open a crack in the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain and escape
successfully.
Of course, Shuang Lian's ambitions reached far beyond mere escape.
She sought to pry open a larger share, to lay claim to, and ultimately control,
this wondrous land!
Her students fell silent.
None showed eagerness at the call for volunteers. When Shuang Lian's gaze swept
over them, their eyes darted away.
Her expression darkened.
Bu Quan, watching from the crowd, couldn't bear it. Remembering Shuang Lian's
kindness to her, she was about to step forward when Shuang Lian shot her a
fierce glare.
Bu Quan flinched, her foot retreating the instant it lifted.
Only then did Shuang Lian soften her expression. “Since none of you wish to
volunteer, then so be it. I won't force you.”
Indeed, these magicians and apprentices were mostly scholarly or research-
oriented types, with few skilled in combat. Even those possessing some combat
ability, after witnessing the earlier fierce clash, dared not risk themselves
by leaving the mage tower to explore this space.
Shuang Lian had anticipated this outcome. She proceeded with her arrangements:
“Then we shall draw snow elements here.”
Despite their fall into the Tranquil Hill Divine Domain, the connection between
the Honey Snow Tower and the demi-plane remained intact.
A coordinate anchor from the demi-plane was anchored upon the Honey Snow Tower.
The Old King's Crowbar had pried open a crack, preserving the link between the
mage tower and the demi-plane, preventing it from being severed by the divine
domain.
Within Shuang Lian's demi-plane, vast swathes of honey snow coexisted with
numerous magic creatures. The most formidable among them were two gold level
snow elementals.
When Yi Jiu had fallen into the demi-plane, these two snow elementals had
pursued and hunted him, posing significant threats.
These two snow elementals were Shuang Lian's own magic pets.
Shuang Lian was wealthy, in fact, she was extremely wealthy!
Such wealth translated directly into corresponding power for a magician.
“Using these two magic pets as the main force for the exploration team,
supplemented by some alchemy puppets for reconnaissance, is feasible,” Shuang
Lian mused inwardly.
Outside the tower.
The duelists had changed shifts.
Gu Dong replaced Bao Li Gen, once again standing outside the mage tower.
Gazing at the tower, he sighed inwardly: “The Ice Sculpture National Ceremony
has drawn all the duelists' attention away. We'll have to leave the Honey Snow
Tower unattended for now.”
“Hope nothing unexpected happens during this time.”
Gu Dong crushed the snow beneath his foot with a stomp, launching himself
toward the mage tower like a cannonball.
At the foot of Tranquil Hill.
A valley cabin.
Spring Boxer and Bing Xiao were engaged in a confidential discussion.
“That mage tower that was breached hasn't been destroyed yet?” Spring Boxer
expressed surprise.
Shuang Lian could see Tranquil Hill on the horizon. From Spring Boxer's vantage
point, the tower silhouette of the Honey Snow Tower, now miniature, could also
be seen.
Mei Lin had also relayed relevant intelligence to Bing Xiao.
Thus, both Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer were aware of the situation.
Bing Xiao shook his head slightly. “The mage tower is not our concern. For us,
the most crucial task is to uncover the traitor lurking among us!”
Spring Boxer frowned. “Does our Lord intend to stand idly by?”
Bing Xiao's expression grew solemn as he rebuked Spring Boxer. “How could we
presume to fathom the thoughts of the deity?”
"In my view, this is a challenge our Lord has deliberately bestowed upon us, a
trial. Not only does it test our mettle, but it also helps us grow stronger."
Spring Boxer hastily acknowledged the lesson and returned to the matter of the
traitor.
Bing Xiao sighed: "All this time, we've speculated and investigated everyone,
yet we still can't be certain. Everyone is a suspect, yet no one is truly
suspect."
Spring Boxer pondered, “If that's the case, perhaps we should shift our
approach.”
“Lord Bing Xiao, your previous approach was actually quite sound.”
“My previous approach?” Bing Xiao froze in surprise. “You mean relying on
faith?”
He shook his head immediately. “Faith alone can't identify the traitor.”
"But it can create constraints. Once the traitor betrays us, they'll face
punishment. From that perspective, all we need to do is deepen their faith as
much as possible."
“You're absolutely right!” Bing Xiao pondered for a moment, his gaze toward
Spring Boxer now tinged with a hint of relief. In that fleeting moment, he saw
Teng Dong Lang in Spring Boxer.
Spring Boxer had been Teng Dong Lang's coffin bearer. With Bing Xiao's aid, he
had successfully laid Teng Dong Lang's remains to rest in Tranquil Hill.
Thus, in the days that followed, he gradually absorbed Teng Dong Lang's
memories and experiences from before his death.
Now, Spring Boxer has fully assimilated them.
The innocence and youthfulness that once graced his face had faded, leaving
almost no trace behind.
Teng Dong Lang's legacy profoundly shaped him, forging a more exceptional and
formidable Spring Boxer in remarkably short time.
Spring Boxer's behavioral habits, operational style, and even thought processes
had advanced significantly.
He continued, “As long as everyone remains deeply devoted to our Lord, even if
a traitor betrays us, our losses won't be excessive.”
“Until we can identify the traitor, this is our only strategy.”
Bing Xiao agreed, then analyzed, “Xiong Ju's devotion has reached the level of
a fanatic.”
“The focus is on the others.”
“Let us ‘assist’ them a little. What do you think?”
In the past, Spring Boxer wouldn't have understood, but now he grasped Bing
Xiao's implied meaning instantly.
Spring Boxer nodded. “Let me speak with them individually.”
Not long after.
Lan Zao was summoned and entered the wooden hut alone, meeting Spring Boxer.
“He really has changed,” Lan Zao thought inwardly.
Were it not for Spring Boxer retaining his former appearance, Lan Zao would
have almost mistaken him for someone else.
After exchanging pleasantries, Spring Boxer got straight to the point: “When we
first arrived, to maintain stability, we didn't reveal the truth...”
After hearing Spring Boxer's words, cold sweat beaded on Lan Zao's forehead.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he confirmed, “If my faith doesn't reach the
devout level, I'll... die?”
Spring Boxer nodded, his expression grave.
He stated he absolutely did not want to see this happen, but he was powerless
to prevent it.
“Pray fervently.”
“Devote yourself wholeheartedly to our Lord, that is your only sliver of hope.”
“This applies not just to you, but to everyone else as well.”
“You've already experienced the blessings of faith in our Lord, haven't you?”
"This is our Lord's divine domain. Only true believers may enter freely;
outsiders cannot come and go as they please. Do you understand?"
Lan Zao was intimidated, his face grim. He nodded slightly, his voice hoarse:
“I understand.”
Just like the Charming Blue Archbishop Zhou Zhang had done, to spread doctrine
and faith, the Spring Boxer also employed death threats to coerce the other
members of the Bayonet Gang into actively converting, deepening their devotion
to the Dueling God.



****** Chapter 594: Magnet Archipelago ******
A fleet of three sea vessels gradually approached the Magnet Archipelago.
On the flagship, the captain respectfully knocked on the captain's cabin door
and announced to the occupant inside, “Lord Da Dou, we have reached our
destination.”
“Oh? Already?” came Da Dou's voice from within the captain's cabin.
Moments later, the cabin door swung open.
Da Dou bent low to emerge.
He strode onto the deck and walked to the ship's edge, causing the vessel to
tilt immediately.
The captain hurriedly called out, “Lord Da Dou, please hold your step! My ship
is only iron level, constructed entirely from driftwood. It's extremely light,
and any significant shift in weight distribution could easily capsize it!”
Da Dou halted instantly. “My apologies.”
A giant, he straightened up, his head nearly level with the ship's tallest main
mast.
He raised his palm to shade his brow like a sun hat and scanned the horizon.
Sure enough, a cluster of dark shapes emerged above the sea.
Employing his reconnaissance battle skill, his vision sharpened, revealing the
distinctive landscape of the Magnet Archipelago.
“Magnet Archipelago, indeed. Ben Liu, your fleet's speed is truly impressive!”
Da Dou exclaimed in admiration.
After narrowly escaping Shuang Lian's grasp, he had pushed forward
relentlessly, exhausting the remaining uses of his Tunnel Staff.
He had also traversed the vast sea using divine magic, his path marked by
constant flashes of firelight.
Da Dou possessed no aerial battle skill, making divine magic nearly his only
option for long-distance travel across the ocean.
However, divine magic consumed divine power. To replenish it, Da Dou needed to
pray or perform rituals.
In the vast expanse of the sea, conducting a ritual to the Fire God totem
proved extremely troublesome and difficult to accomplish. The energy and time
expended were better spent directly on prayer.
Da Dou was fortunate.
While swimming across the sea during one of his journeys, he encountered this
small fleet.
The fleet consisted of only three ships, all iron level magic ships. The
captain was named Ben Liu, a seahorseman. His crew were also seahorsemen.
They were neither pirates nor mercenaries, but transport ships.
Their primary task was transporting people.
Da Dou revealed his identity and background from Eruption Island to Ben Liu,
earning his trust and securing passage aboard his vessel.
Though Ben Liu's ships were only iron level, their sails, oars, and other
alchemy components formed a cohesive system designed to complement each other.
Their sole purpose was to maximize speed.
During heavy seas, Ben Liu would personally lead his crew into the ocean,
pulling the ship forward.
The seahorsemen's unique racial ability allowed them to run on waves and
accelerate against currents, making the fleet faster when moving against the
tide.
Da Dou had expected another three days to reach the Magnet Archipelago, but
they arrived sooner than anticipated.
Ben Liu beamed, "Lord Da Dou, I welcome you aboard my vessel again next time.
If possible, please spread the word about my Seahorse Transport Service."
Da Dou reiterated his proposal: “If you could deliver me directly to Eruption
Island, I can leverage my connections to help you establish operations there.”
Eruption Island was home to a large population of giants who were rather
xenophobic, with few other races living there.
Da Dou's suggestion stirred something in Ben Liu, but he quickly regained his
composure and shook his head. “Lord Da Dou, making a living around Eruption
Island would be too difficult.”
“My target customer base would become giants.”
"As you know, my ship isn't large or spacious. Your current stay aboard was
only possible after we urgently cleared space and converted the captain's cabin
on deck."
“My fleet simply isn't suited for business around Eruption Island. Thank you
for your kind offer.”
Da Dou scratched his head. After Ben Liu's analysis, he realized he'd misjudged
the price and quickly revised his offer, proposing a generous reward.
But Ben Liu still shook his head. “Lord, transporting people around the Magnet
Archipelago is Seahorse Transport Service's primary business.”
“This is the busiest time of the year.”
“Honestly, the price you're offering wouldn't even cover what I earn in just a
few weeks.”
“And!”
“This period is particularly crucial for the Seahorse Transport Service, a
truly rare opportunity.”
"In maritime shipping, we've long been overshadowed by the Drip Fleet. We
simply can't match them in either personnel or vessels."
"But the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony has drawn immense attention. Leaders
and envoys from major and minor factions have been invited, drawing a large
number of pirates as well."
“The maritime situation has become highly complex and dangerous. Considering
the risks involved, the Drip Fleet has temporarily withdrawn from these
waters.”
“This is precisely our moment to seize the initiative and capture market share
for our Seahorse Transport Service.”
"I'm also considering using this chance to sign long-term transport agreements
with nearby islands. Such opportunities are rare indeed."
Da Dou inquired curiously, "Aren't you afraid of pirates? Didn't you also
receive intelligence that Da Han, the fourth-in-command of the Fire Beard
Pirates, is heading to Ice Sculpture Island this time?"
A resolute expression crossed Ben Liu's face. “To make money, you have to take
risks.”
“There's no other way.”
“My fleet may be small, but don't forget, we're all seahorsemen.”
“If danger strikes, we can always jump ship and swim to safety.”
“True enough...” Da Dou nodded. Once he fully understood Ben Liu's resolve, he
stopped pressuring him.
Da Dou wasn't inherently unreasonable.
His earlier aggressive demeanor in Snow Bird Harbor had been directed solely at
his enemy, Ci Hai Shen. Later, seizing the big guy had stemmed from tribal
necessity, the stakes were too high to pass up, forcing him into the role of
pirate, which didn't align with his nature or preferences.
Soon after, the Seahorse Transport Service's ships officially arrived at the
Magnet Archipelago.
Da Dou and the other passengers disembarked, and the fleet remained anchored
for over an hour.
Ben Liu's crew not only transported passengers but also cargo.
After unloading, they picked up new passengers from the Magnet Archipelago
before departing in a flurry of activity.
Magnet Archipelago was a desolate landscape, covered in pitch-black rock with
almost no vegetation. The terrain was rugged and steep, with bizarre peaks and
hills, and the air felt noticeably hotter than at sea.
Yet Magnet Archipelago was far from lifeless.
They teemed with people.
Humans, dwarves, elves, almost every race could be seen here.
Most came seeking treasure, while a few saw business opportunities, setting up
shops, pharmacies, and even temporary docks.
Da Dou made no effort to conceal his gold level aura, drawing considerable
attention.
After inquiring about potential ships bound for the Magnet Archipelago, he
learned the next departure wouldn't be for three days, and it wasn't heading
back toward Eruption Island.
“Guess I'll have to wait.”
“First, find a secluded spot to cook.”
“The little one must be hungry!”



****** Chapter 595: Bathing in the Big Guy’s Blood ******
Da Dou held the iron wok, deftly shaking his wrist.
The silver level iron wok was filled to the brim with beef.
As he continuously tossed the ingredients, an intense golden aroma quickly
spread throughout the kitchen.
Sweat dripping down his face, Da Dou pulled a bundle of gold level green onions
from a packing bag.
His gold battle qi coalesced into several small blade-like forms, chopping the
scallions into fine mince.
He tossed the garnish directly into the iron wok, then cranked up the heat.
After several minutes of vigorous stir-frying, the dish was finally complete.
He retrieved a silver level serving plate and loaded it with the stir-fried
beef.
“Lunch is finally ready.”
Da Dou approached a stone slab with a flat top and placed the stir-fried beef
upon it.
After setting it down, the stone table now held four plates.
Three were dishes, and one was soup.
He had spared no expense, using copious amounts of gold level ingredients and
laboring over the stove for over an hour to produce this much.
Then...
Battle skill - Food Compression!
The gold level aura of the three dishes and soup was instantly suppressed and
condensed, ultimately downgraded to silver level.
“This is the perfect transcendent meal for the little guy.”
Da Dou's extravagant act had only one purpose: to ensure the giant ate better
and digested faster.
The giant magic chef wiped sweat from his brow and checked his own condition.
His battle qi was nearly depleted, and his spirit felt somewhat sluggish, but
his divine power remained abundant. This was all thanks to his relentless
prayers aboard the swift sea vessel, day and night.
“Feed him first, then refine the battle qi.” Having made his decision, Da Dou
released the giant from the packing bag.
The big guy lay with eyes tightly shut, still in a deep slumber.
Though Da Dou's packing bag could contain living beings, he feared the giant
might cause trouble inside. That's why he'd always kept him in a state of
unconsciousness.
Several minutes later, Da Dou successfully roused the giant.
Before the giant could fully focus his blurry eyes and react, Da Dou spoke
first: Hey, listen up, kid. You must be starving. Let's eat first, then we'll
talk properly. Okay? Don't make a move..."
Hearing Da Dou's voice, the big guy abruptly recalled his situation, his gaze
instantly sharpening.
He growled lowly, immediately standing up and swinging a punch at Da Dou.
Da Dou scrambled back several steps, quickly creating distance. His words came
fast, still trying to reason with the big guy.
But the big guy wouldn't listen.
Da Dou had no choice but to fight.
Compared to the big guy, Da Dou's strength was overwhelming, a crushing level
advantage.
Compounded by the big guy's complete lack of technique, relying solely on brute
force and reckless charges, he was easily read by Da Dou, who swiftly exploited
his weaknesses.
Seconds later, with a thud, the big guy collapsed to the ground, knocked
unconscious once more by Da Dou.
Da Dou crouched beside him, pried open his jaws, and began shoveling the
painstakingly prepared magic dishes into the big guy's mouth, one after
another.
Though unconscious, the giant's primal instincts kicked in, causing him to chew
involuntarily.
Once he chewed, the food slid down his throat. His body, more eager than his
own consciousness, craved the nutrients from the outside world.
“Eat up, little guy.”
A big smile spread across Da Dou's face as he watched the giant unconsciously
activate his battle qi technique in his sleep, accelerating digestion. Half of
him felt relieved, the other half was puzzled.
“Why is this kid so utterly determined?”
“What kind of offer did the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps give to make him so
utterly devoted?”
Da Dou hadn't intended to repeatedly force his will upon the big guy. His
original plan was merely to recruit the big guy; he hadn't wanted to treat him
so harshly.
According to Da Dou's original plan: first, he would seize the big guy. Then,
by demonstrating his formidable strength, he could intimidate him.
Next, the magic delicacies he would repeatedly prepare would make the big guy
keenly feel the stark difference in treatment.
Finally, through persuasion, Da Dou believed the generous rewards of joining
Eruption Island would be enough to sway the big guy, compelling him to make a
new life choice.
Truth be told, this carrot-and-stick approach, though straightforward, held a
high probability of success.
But the big guy's situation proved far more unique than Da Dou had imagined.
After putting his plan into action, the big guy displayed an intense hatred and
unwavering resolve. This rendered all communication between Da Dou and the big
guy utterly futile.
The big guy's approach to Da Dou was either fight or flee.
Though Da Dou repeatedly fed him, sparing no expense to craft gold level magic
dishes only to deliberately downgrade them, the big guy remained unconscious
each time he consumed these meals. He couldn't possibly appreciate Da Dou's
kindness.
This made Da Dou feel as though the big guy was merely freeloading off him.
Yet Da Dou cherished it: “Even if it is freeloading, I'm still happy.”
“You little rascal, someday you'll understand my heartfelt intentions.”
“Joining Eruption Island is infinitely better than joining that worthless
mercenary group of yours.”
“We are a legend level force here on Eruption Island.”
“Once you grow stronger, you'll become one of our pillars.”
“We're all giants. Out here on the vast ocean, we should live together.”
After finishing his meal, the big guy resumed his battle qi cultivation.
Da Dou cleared the plates and bowls, then carefully wiped the giant's mouth.
Only after finishing these tasks did he plop down on the ground, pulling out
some dry rations from his pack to munch on.
As he ate, his gaze drifted toward the distant hills.
Perched atop one hill stood a silver level transcendent.
She was a human woman of ordinary appearance, holding a crystal ball in her
hands.
The sphere was filled with an unknown transparent liquid. At its center floated
a delicate, diamond-shaped pointer.
The crystal ball itself was iron level, while the pointer was silver level.
Combined, this alchemy artifact was known as the treasure hunting pointer.
It was through this treasure hunting pointer that the human woman had detected
the hidden “treasure” here, prompting her swift relocation to the vicinity.
Eventually, she climbed the hill and witnessed the entire process of Da Dou
cooking the dish and feeding the giant.
“A gold level magic chef preparing a magic dish, no wonder the treasure hunting
pointer detected it.”
“Isn't that little giant he knocked out and fed a member of the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps?”
“I couldn't have seen wrong, could I?”
The woman was named Hong Zhu. During her time on Two Eyes Island, she had
frequent interactions with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
When Two Eyes Island shifted, it triggered a tidal wave of sea beasts. At that
time, Hong Zhu had boarded the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship, fighting
alongside them to resist the beast tide.
Therefore, Hong Zhu recognized the big guy's appearance. After all, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps had only one giant, the big guy, making him quite
conspicuous.
Noticing Da Dou's gaze fixed on her, Hong Zhu quickly ducked her head to avoid
his stare.
Her heart pounded as she sprinted down the hill, fleeing from Da Dou.
Only when she was sure he wasn't pursuing her did she breathe a sigh of relief
and steady her breath.
“He spotted me just now, but he didn't attack.”
“He isn't here to capture me.”
Ever since leaving Two Eyes Island, Hong Zhu had been deeply worried she'd be
hunted down by the island's pursuers.
This all stemmed from the fishmen's assault.
At the time, Hong Zhu had intended to leave Two Eyes Island alongside Cang Xu
(Wisteria elder), partly as a gesture of goodwill. As a treasure hunter, Hong
Zhu particularly favored wealthy buyers like Cang Xu.
But when Cang Xu proactively unleashed undead magic, Hong Zhu knew she was in
deep trouble.
She had fought alongside Cang Xu, only to discover he was a necromancer. With
everyone watching, no amount of explanation could clear her name.
Compounding her predicament, she had already looted numerous treasures from the
island's graveyard. Fearing prolonged exposure, escape became her sole
priority.
As a mere silver level, navigating the open seas alone was nearly impossible.
Fortunately, Hong Zhu had secured a homeward dolphin at the auction. Mounting
the homeward dolphin, she finally managed to slip away.
Though the homeward dolphins couldn't travel long distances, they could carry
Hong Zhu from one deserted island to another.
And so, Hong Zhu left Two Eyes Island.
After several twists and turns, she reached Orange Soda Island, where she
rested and recuperated. Then, she resupplied in Chatter Sea Market.
Her passion and curiosity for treasure hunting reignited, ultimately leading
her to the Magnet Archipelago.
Hong Zhu had been searching for treasure in the Magnet Archipelago for some
time now, with almost nothing to show for it.
But she refused to give up.
After leaving Da Dou behind, Hong Zhu relied on her treasure hunting pointer to
enter a subterranean cave.
Moments later, she emerged, looking utterly disheveled.
Trailing behind her were three earth elementals.
Though all were merely iron level, the silver level Hong Zhu had no desire to
engage in battle and instead fled relentlessly.
Earth elementals possessed formidable defenses, and their magic crystals could
freely shift within their bodies, making them extremely difficult to deal with.
Hong Zhu had once spent nearly half a day grinding down an earth elemental of
the same level, only to gain a single earth elemental essence as her reward.
What a horrid loss!
From then on, Hong Zhu's approach to dealing with earth elementals was simple:
run.
Once she'd put enough distance between them and they could no longer sense her,
she quietly slipped back into the underground cavern.
Their speed was abysmal, allowing Hong Zhu to easily outpace them.
Earth elementals possessed ranged stone-throwing attacks to compensate for
their sluggishness.
Yet these three did not hurl stones. Instead, they followed their leader's
orders, prioritizing the defense of their sentry post.
Deep underground.
The earth elemental leader was praying.
They stood within a vast magic formation. Before him lay heaps of earth
elemental essence and earth elemental crystals.
The formation activated, consuming the essence and crystals to manifest a
phantom statue.
The colossal figure radiated an aura as majestic and weighty as mountains and
earth itself—none other than one of the Four Elemental Main Gods: the Earth
Elemental God!
“My Lord, my Heavenly Father, the Great God of Earth!”
“You are the ruler of the Earth Elemental Plane, the supreme being of the
land.”
"You tower like mountains, stretch as wide as vast plains. You are the
wellspring of life, the guardian of the land."
“With each breath You exhale, the earth stirs with vitality, blossoming in
vibrant splendor, thriving and flourishing.”
“With a gentle touch of Your hand, You effortlessly shape the land, raising
mountains and carving deep valleys.”
“Here, Your believers offer sacrifices, beseeching Your mercy to break through
life's limitations and ascend to greater heights.”
The ethereal statue of the Earth Elemental God did not even glance at the Earth
Elemental Chieftain before swiftly vanishing without a trace.
Along with it, all the offerings at the center of the magic circle disappeared
entirely.
Yet the Earth Elemental Chieftain felt no disappointment, only wild elation.
For in that very instant, he had received a divine revelation.
“Divine revelation!”
“That unconscious giant being fed is my opportunity to break through my life's
bottleneck.”
“Capture him, kill him, bathe in his blood. and I shall transcend the limits of
the gold level!”



****** Chapter 596: Divine Emissary ******
White Hair Trench.
Cang Xu surveyed the horde of undead before him.
Skeleton archers, skeleton warriors, various fish-like ghosts, a few zombies,
the largest form was a gold level ghost ship.
Whatever they were, they were all sealed by Zhou Zhang's divine magic,
motionless as statues.
Necromancy - Undead Bloodline Detection!
Cang Xu cast spells continuously, his gaze sharp.
He patiently cross-referenced the bloodline chart, identifying targets among
these undead entities related to the Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline.
“Though they're all lower-tier branches of the Hanging Corpse Tree, most are
far removed from its core bloodline. Still, small gains accumulate, they can
still bolster me.”
“The Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline truly lives up to its saint level potential.
Even a 1% increase, no, even 0.1%, brings noticeable change to me.”
Though Cang Xu showed no outward transformation, his essence had undergone a
dramatic leap forward.
Not only had his magician cultivation reached silver level, but his bloodline
now soared to saint level, though its concentration remained insufficient.
Yet this alone filled Cang Xu with satisfaction and delight, his life had
entered a new realm.
He meticulously selected undead creatures suitable for enhancing his bloodline,
stacking them at the right exit of this undersea valley.
This seabed valley lay not far from the gathering place of the Charming Blue
believers, making it ideal for concealing troops.
Zhou Zhang had stationed numerous transcendents here as guards, who also served
as jailers overseeing these undead creatures.
Watching Cang Xu continuously cast undead spells to identify undead beings, the
guards wore complex expressions.
There was apprehension, disgust, and rejection toward the undead, yet also
warmth toward their own kind, and reverence for Cang Xu, this unique
missionary.
Cang Xu's decision to detain Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng as prisoners proved
remarkably wise.
With no other undead converting to his faith, he stood alone among the Charming
Blue believers.
The series of unique divine spells he wielded proved exceptionally effective
for proselytizing. Most crucially, even Archbishop Zhou Zhang lacked these
divine spells!
Cang Xu possessed exceptional political acumen. After emerging from the Ocean
Mother Nest, he not only meditated but actively spread his teachings far and
wide.
His missionary work yielded tangible results, earning him widespread public
acclaim.
His repeated survival through teleportation blood sacrifices conclusively
proved his “unwavering” and “unquestionable” faith. Thus, Cang Xu's reputation
and standing continued to rise, showing no signs of peaking.
The conversion of necromancers to the Charming Blue faith also caused some to
waver in their beliefs.
At this critical juncture, Zhou Zhang demonstrated her skill and capability,
proving herself worthy of her position as at the level of Archbishop.
She selected eloquent clergy to continuously deliver speeches and public
explanations, guiding mainstream opinion.
"Whatever our Lord does is right. Since our Lord has granted necromancers a new
identity, what more is there to say?"
“The goddess must have profound intentions, beyond the comprehension of us mere
mortals.”
“Consider this: even necromancers now worship our Lord, proof of Her
greatness!”
This vigorous propaganda proved highly effective. Thus, Zhou Zhang gradually
quelled dissent against Cang Xu.
Of course, a few stubborn believers remained, but they were few and far
between.
They weren't executed outright either but instead dispatched on hunting
missions. Then, various accidents occurred, and they never returned.
The Charming Blue believers were numerous, gathered here, with prayer being
their primary activity.
Therefore, some had to be assigned to hunt for food.
The beast tide erupting from the White Hair Trench brought benefits beyond
abundant sacrificial offerings. For the believers, it meant hordes of magic
beasts everywhere, ready to be hunted for food.
But these rampaging beasts also preyed upon the believers themselves. Thus, the
deaths of these hunters were hardly surprising.
Zhou Zhang's methods were ruthless and decisive, swiftly silencing all dissent.
Cang Xu blended in seamlessly, fostering harmony among the faithful and
creating an excellent atmosphere.
No wonder they said this was a world of the strong.
If words fail to persuade, then force will. If problems could not be solved,
then eliminate those who created them.
Zhou Zhang's actions made Cang Xu the greatest beneficiary.
Necromancy - Undead Bloodline Detection!
Necromancy - Undead Bloodline Detection!
…
Cang Xu cast the spell repeatedly, targeting the final object—the ghost ship.
A ghost ship of gold level, surpassing his own silver level cultivation.
But it didn't matter. After casting Undead Bloodline Detection over a dozen
times, the accumulated data finally revealed the ghost ship's bloodline.
“It's unrelated to the Hanging Corpse Tree's bloodline,” Cang Xu lamented.
Such a gold level entity, if it met the criteria, sent to be absorbed by the
Bloodcore, would undoubtedly bring a significant boost to Cang Xu's Hanging
Corpse Tree bloodline.
The ghost ship remained utterly motionless, its spirit consciousness feeble.
Even as Cang Xu cast spells upon it, it remained utterly oblivious to having
narrowly escaped the brink of life and death.
“Keep a close watch on these undead beings. They are all sacrifices for what
comes next!” Cang Xu instructed the guards before departing the valley.
The guards hurriedly agreed, their expressions solemn.
Cang Xu had long secured Zhou Zhang's acquiescence. Claiming divine mandate, he
had successfully persuaded Zhou Zhang to use undead lives as the primary
sacrifices for the upcoming blood rites.
Returning to the believers' encampment, Cang Xu hadn't even reached his crude
hut when a messenger arrived, Jian Gui sought an audience.
Jian Gui had been fabricating memories, preparing to perform a blasphemous
prayer upon teleporting to the Mother Nest and slip through undetected.
He was indeed resourceful. Leveraging the regenerative advantage of necromancy,
he plotted secretly under Zhou Zhang's nose, steadily advancing his self-rescue
plan without Zhou Zhang ever suspecting a thing.
However, consecutive blood sacrifices during teleportations had captured both
Xiao Wang Zi and Ku Feng, leaving them in a state of “deceived death.”
This drastically reduced Jian Gui's memory fabrication efficiency, but his
earlier accumulation was sufficient. If his calculations held, he would barely
manage to obtain a complete fabricated memory before his own turn arrived.
“This means Qi Ling has no choice but to take a risk.”
Cang Xu surmised that Jian Gui's reason for seeking him out was likely tied to
Qi Ling.
Upon meeting, it proved to be precisely that matter!
Jian Gui requested Cang Xu's assistance in guiding Qi Ling's faith.
The conflict between Qi Ling and Cang Xu ran deep. Even under the crushing
pressure of impending death, Qi Ling found it difficult to speak up and
actively beg Cang Xu for mercy.
At this critical juncture, Jian Gui proactively stepped in as mediator.
He needed conflict between his subordinates to solidify his authority.
Yet simultaneously, he required his subordinates to “conflict without damage”,
preventing their rivalry from escalating to a point that threatened his
personal interests.
Thus, Jian Gui sought out Cang Xu for negotiation.
Cang Xu hastily declared: Jian Gui had done him a favor; such formality was
unnecessary. Though he clashed with Qi Ling, since Jian Gui had spoken, it was
no longer an issue.
His words carried genuine sincerity. He seemed to have completely forgotten the
secret, that Jian Gui had tampered with him, setting a deadly trap!
Jian Gui was thoroughly satisfied with Cang Xu's attitude.
Cang Xu had embraced the faith of the Charming Blue Goddess, a necromancer and
a believer, effectively straddling two sides. He'd been thriving during this
period.
But Jian Gui remained convinced this was merely a facade. As long as he held
the fatal switch, no matter how Cang Xu maneuvered, he could never escape his
grasp. After all, Cang Xu's very life hung on his whim, what else could Jian
Gui fear?
As Cang Xu guided Qi Ling in her faith, the fishman youngster composed himself
and entered the prayer chamber.
This period of rest had allowed him to fully assimilate the divine blessings
from his previous prayers.
The concentration of the Surging Wave fishman bloodline has risen from 79% to
86%. It's only a few steps away from the legend level cap.
The increase in bloodline concentration brought the fishman youngster
comprehensive benefits.
Not only did it help him digest the divine blessings faster, but it also
allowed him to absorb more divine content at once.
“As for divine favor, I already have over 20,000 points.”
Truth be told, ever since the fishman youngster gained divine favor, it had
only grown, never diminishing.
The duelists on Ice Sculpture Island used their divine favor sparingly,
counting every drop. But the fishman youngster possessed so much divine favor
he couldn't spend it all.
His precise, targeted prayers required no expenditure of divine favor to obtain
what he desired.
For the fishman youngster, the divine favor of the Charming Blue Goddess
gradually became a mere number.
“Charming Blue Goddess, my Lord, I pay homage to You.”
“You are the master of deception, making the sea Your home. You hide truth
within endless mist, moving effortlessly through illusions and enchantments, as
fluid and mysterious as the tides.”
“You are the embodiment of lies and deceit, bewildering all beings in the
world.”
“Your believer prays here, beseeching You to grant me extraordinary enhancement
in battle qi and magic power. Let the silver level become a thing of the past,
enabling me to embrace the arrival of the gold level.”
“Charming Blue Goddess, my Lord, may Your wisdom forever guide me, making me a
part of Your grand endeavor.”
"Thank You for Your constant protection and care, oh Charming Blue Goddess. Let
me break free from my cocoon and transform into a butterfly under Your
power..."
Boom!
Before the fishman youngster could finish his prayer, a colossal divine power
manifested above his head.
The Charming Blue divine power coalesced into a pillar of light, its volume now
one-fifth larger than before.
The pillar washed over the fishman youngster from head to toe.
Gritting his teeth, the youngster was forced to halt his prayer momentarily,
channeling all his focus to receive the divine blessing.
He had planned his blasphemous prayer in advance, mapping out three distinct
paths. After careful deliberation, he opted for stability, prioritizing the
advancement of both his fighter and magician levels to gold level.
His current life level was gold level, limiting the scale of divine power
within him.
Possessing gold level fighter and magician levels would provide an effective
counterbalance to the divine power. Additionally, he could utilize his
Bloodcore to transform into his dragonman form, further resisting the subtle
alterations the divine power wrought upon his body, mind, and soul.
The fishman youngster had once considered prioritizing his clerical position.
But recently, his dreams had become more frequent. Each time, he glimpsed a
shadow as vast as a mountain at the bottom of the great whirlpool, drawing ever
closer.
After consulting with Cang Xu, he altered his plan, opting for stability first.
The pillar of divine light lasted longer than before, extending by roughly
three minutes.
After the light completely dissipated, the fishman youngster kneeled on the
ground, utterly drained. He struggled to his feet.
“This time, I hadn't even finished my prayer before receiving the divine
blessing.”
“Charming Blue Goddess... is so eager?”
Surprise overshadowed joy on the fishman youngster's face.
This divine blessing hadn't granted him a qualitative leap in battle qi or
magic power—instead, it bestowed a clerical position.
“I clearly prayed for a battle qi upgrade yet received a clerical position
instead!”
“Divine emissary!”
“Did I skip straight past the level of sacred son?”



****** Chapter 597: Divine Spell – Believer Detection ******
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu had once discussed and estimated the
likelihood of a clerical position promotion.
Their conclusion was: most likely sacred son, a small chance of Cardinal, and a
minuscule possibility of Pope.
During his last prayer, the fishman youngster had already ascended to
Archbishop, equivalent to Zhou Zhang.
To draw an analogy: an Archbishop was akin to a local noble or a powerful
feudal lord. A Cardinal was an imperial high official, overseeing the daily
operations of the church and able to command Archbishops across the lands to a
certain extent.
The Pope was analogous to a king.
Yet, the outcome was...
"Divine emissary, acting in the name of the god, walking the world and
exercising divine authority. How does this feel like a position even more
powerful than the Pope?"
The fishman youngster muttered to himself.
“Regardless, I've finally obtained the divine spell, Divine Domain Descent!”
The fishman youngster's primary goal in advancing his clerical position was to
acquire higher-level divine spells, enabling him to teleport away from the
Ocean Mother Nest.
This time, instead of granting him promotion to gold level fighter, the divine
blessing elevated his clerical position and bestowed numerous divine spells.
Foremost among them was the divine spell [Imbue Divine Might].
This passive divine spell had already been bestowed upon him during the prayer,
imbued by a pillar of divine light.
With this divine spell, he could now wield a measure of divine might.
Divine spell - Divine Authority Execution.
This too was a passive divine spell.
Upon successful imbuement, the fishman youngster automatically received certain
information.
He learned all the authorities of the Charming Blue Goddess. The primary
authority was deception, the secondary was fishman, while the third and fourth
were water and fishing, respectively.
The deception authority was already familiar to the fishman youngster.
The fishman authority was a classic racial divine authority. Simply caring for
the fishman, ensuring the growth and prosperity of their race, and ideally
becoming their primary deity of worship, would bring benefits to the Charming
Blue Goddess.
The water divine authority primarily concerned the transformations of water
elements. This was a specialized branch within the Water God's duties.
Generally, aquatic lifeforms ascending to divinity almost invariably possessed
this specialized authority.
The fishing authority, as the name implied, pertains to the harvest of fish.
This was a subcategory of the harvest authority.
After receiving this divine spell, the fishman youngster would gain benefits
whenever he engaged in deception, protected fishmen, facilitated changes in
water elements, or fished.
But exactly how much? The youngster had no idea. Unlike last time, this divine
blessing didn't grant him experience, leaving him on the novice stage, still
quite clueless.
Divine spell - Divine Perception.
Still a passive divine spell, it granted the fishman youngster a special
perceptual ability.
With its blessing, he could sense divine presences within a certain range. This
perception became exceptionally potent when detecting divinity related to
divine authorities.
Only through personal experimentation would the fishman youngster gain deeper
understanding.
Divine spell - Divine Domain Descent.
This was an active divine spell.
Its effect invoked a portion of the Charming Blue Divine Domain to descend near
the believer.
“The space within the Ocean Mother Nest is a fragment of the Charming Blue
Divine Domain.”
This truth had been uncovered by Cang Xu through inquiries with Zhou Zhang, and
the fishman youngster now knew it too.
“But how do I use this spell to get out?”
Further experimentation was needed.
Divine spell - Divine Artifact Mastery!
An active divine spell.
Its effect was powerful yet unadorned: mastery over divine artifacts.
Divine artifacts were not for just anyone to wield.
Forged using the power of deities, their effects were peerless, yet this very
power made them difficult for others to control.
Only the deity itself could truly unleash the full potential of a divine
artifact.
The Jade Gold Coffin wielded by the survivors and the Mermaid Fairy Tale were
both divine artifacts.
Even a legend level alchemist of the War Merchant's caliber, straining every
ounce of strength and ingenuity, could only unlock a fraction of the Mermaid
Fairy Tale's true power.
The fishman youngster was eager to unleash this divine spell, hoping to touch
upon the Mermaid Fairy Tale and see what he could gain.
Divine spell - Divine Script Mastery.
Magic runes were tools that harnessed magic power. By analogy, divine scripts
were akin to runes that utilized the corresponding divine power.
Each deity was unique, and their divine power was equally singular, thus the
divine script derived from them were all different.
Of course, similar divine script did exist.  But no matter how alike they
appeared, their essence remained fundamentally different.
This was a passive divine spell.
Upon its activation, the fishman youngster instantly mastered the Charming Blue
divine script with extraordinary proficiency.
“Now, I can effortlessly decipher the Charming Blue divine script within the
great magic formation surrounding the Ocean Mother Nest.”
Beyond these, there were divine spells like [Divine Blessing], [Divine
Revelation], [Divine Oracle], [Divine Descent], and more.
The total exceeded twenty.
This wasn't the largest number of Charming Blue divine spells the fishman
youngster had ever received, but he was certain it was the highest quality set
he'd ever obtained!
After studying them for a moment, the fishman youngster focused his attention
on two specific divine spells.
The first divine spell - Divine Power Channel.
It allowed the caster to forge temporary conduits between certain faith
coordinates.
These faith coordinates could be believers, saint beasts, or even divine
statues, altars, sanctuaries, temples, and the like.
The second divine spell - Believer Perception.
Believers of Charming Blue Goddess could be sensed by the caster.
“First use the divine spell [Believer Perception], then employ [Divine Power
Channel] to forge a temporary conduit. Finally, utilize spells like [Divine
Blessing], [Divine Revelation], or [Divine Oracle] to bestow blessings upon the
faithful.”
During his analysis, the fishman youngster realized he could seemingly
impersonate Charming Blue Goddess to grant divine blessings to other believers
of Charming Blue Goddess.
Theoretically, it was entirely feasible.
The fishman youngster began experimenting with divine spells.
As a divine emissary, his clerical position surpassed even that of the Pope in
certain respects.
Thus, he possessed the authority to freely wield all Charming Blue divine
spells he had mastered.
The youngster resolved to proceed from simplest to most complex, testing every
divine spell in turn.
The easiest was Believer Perception.
After casting the divine spell, the divine power within the fishman youngster
began to deplete.
His spiritual energy underwent an instantaneous transformation, radiating
outward from his body like lightning. Its speed was astonishingly fast, like
light itself. In the next moment, it had spread to a distance beyond the
youngster's estimation.
Expanding, ceaselessly expanding.
The fishman youngster's perception seemed boundless, its scope terrifyingly
vast.
"Maintaining the divine spell consumes less divine power. Though my mental
energy undergoes a qualitative change under the technique, I can feel it
draining rapidly. Overall, I can sustain this for about twenty minutes."
This was a unique dimension of perception.
Immersed in this perception, the fishman youngster felt as though he stood
within a vast, dark void.
The size of this space expanded ceaselessly with his mental energy, spreading
outward in all directions.
Within this dark expanse, every Charming Blue believer radiated a faint glow.
Some emitted a negligible flicker, others a white light akin to candles, while
a few shone as brightly as alchemy lamps.
The area closest to the fishman youngster was empty. Beyond that, however, lay
a vast expanse dotted with countless points of light, densely packed.
“I am now within the Ocean Mother Nest. Beyond the nest lies the army of
Charming Blue believers. These points of light represent them.”
Among all this radiance, one light stood out most prominently, bright as a
bulb.
That was Zhou Zhang.
The Charming Blue Archbishop!
The fishman youngster's focus sharpened on this point, his perception suddenly
becoming tenfold clearer.
He could even sense that Zhou Zhang was handling affairs, listening to
subordinates' reports. He could perceive the voices of those reporting,
including mention of Cang Xu. They said that after returning to the gathering
place, Cang Xu had rushed to Jian Gui's quarters, where he performed divine
magic to guide Qi Ling's faith.
Using divine magic for the first time, the fishman youngster felt uncertain and
dared not act rashly, fearing Zhou Zhang might detect his persistent
observation.
He cautiously withdrew his attention. The next moment, he felt as though he had
returned to that previous dark space.
He selected other points of light and continued his observation.
After a short while, the fishman youngster gained considerable insight.
“After focusing my attention, I can perceive the believers' actions at that
moment and ‘hear’ their conversations.”
"Building on that, by concentrating further, I can sense the believers'
psychological states. Not necessarily their inner thoughts, but mostly their
moods and feelings."
"Concentrating even deeper allows me to perceive the deeper information within
the believers. This information isn't actively revealed, yet I can still sense
it. Primarily the believer's name, identity, attributes, transcendent level,
their current vital signs, transcendent status, faith level, and so on."
“How marvelous.”
“Is this the perspective of a deity?”
He concentrated his attention once more, but nothing changed.
After observing more samples, the fishman youngster discovered three patterns.
"First, concentrating on extracting information intensifies the consumption of
divine power and mental energy. "
"Second, when probing information about fishman believers, one can perceive
their bloodline details. But examining octopusmen, sea elves, and others
reveals no such data. Could this be tied to the Fishman God authority?"
"Third, the radiance emitted by believers results from multiple factors, not
solely faith intensity. Some fanatical believers with weak transcendent
strength emit only a faint white glow. Yet a saint level Archbishop like Zhou
Zhang, whose faith level is merely pious, shines as brightly as a light bulb."
After gaining proficiency, the fishman youngster felt confident and observed
Zhou Zhang again.
Zhou Zhang remained completely unaware.
The fishman youngster made an intriguing discovery—the mighty Archbishop's
faith level was merely pious!
But he quickly understood.
“Above piousness lies fanaticism.”
"Fanatics possess unwavering faith, driven to reckless devotion. If the god
commands death, they would commit suicide instantly, without hesitation."
“This is a complete loss of reason.”
“And should anyone slight the deity, fanatics often transform into violent
mobs, seeking vengeance and retribution at all costs.”
“They're essentially potential criminals!”
“How could a fanatic possibly serve as Archbishop, handling daily affairs,
representing the Charming Blue Church in dealings with other forces?”
“A fanatic as Archbishop would be a catastrophe for the Charming Blue Church.”
Thus, pious level faith was precisely the right balance.
Of course, above fanaticism was sainthood.
Believers at this level possess both fervent devotion and sound reason, the
most valuable treasures among the faithful.
“However, if Zhou Zhang were sainthood level, coupled with her saint level
power, she would never settle for a mere Archbishop position.”
After becoming a divine emissary, the position of Archbishop seemed nothing
more than “mere” to the fishman youngster.



****** Chapter 598: Xiao Guai, Father has Come to See You! ******
Merely by sensing this divine spell through the believers, the fishman
youngster gained profound insights into both the believers and the deity upon
his first use.
He focused his attention and observed Cang Xu again, discovering that he was
guiding faith for Qi Ling.
“Qi Ling holds no faith in the Charming Blue Goddess. Within the range of my
divine art's perception, there is not a single speck of light.”
“Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't be able to observe her.”
“Only now, with Cang Xu in close contact, can I detect her presence.”
“Looking at it this way, establishing a bond of faith with a deity makes one
perceptible!”
“Wait, could I use this opportunity, with Cang Xu as the bridge, to influence
Qi Ling?”
Theoretically, it was feasible.
The divine spells Cang Xu wielded could guide Qi Ling to channel her spiritual
energy, delivering it to the Charming Blue Goddess.
Thus, the fishman youngster's divine emissary status allowed him to communicate
with Qi Ling.
“Qi Ling isn't a believer, but Cang Xu serves as the crucial bridge, enabling
me to exert direct influence.”
At that moment, the fishman youngster suddenly realized just how vital Cang
Xu's role was at this juncture!
“Cang Xu's unique divine spells can selectively alter the faith of certain
sentient beings.”
“Used effectively, this holds immense potential for expanding the entire
Charming Blue Church!”
“No wonder Zhou Zhang holds Cang Xu in such high regard, clearing the way for
him. Even Cang Xu's demand to sacrifice vast numbers of undead creatures was
swiftly approved by Zhou Zhang.”
In that instant, the fishman youngster truly grasped Cang Xu's unique value.
After some thought, he ultimately refrained from seizing the opportunity to
influence Qi Ling.
On one hand, he feared that displaying divine miracles might alarm Jian Gui,
prompting him to react violently.
The current situation was ideal, its continued development would greatly
benefit both the fishman youngster and Cang Xu.
On the other hand, he didn't want Qi Ling to believe she had changed her faith,
gained Charming Blue Goddess' approval, and could survive the blood sacrifice.
Qi Ling's fate had already been decided by the fishman youngster and Cang
Xu—she wouldn't be killed by them, but would become a captive, deceived into
thinking she was dead, sharing the same fate as Qing Xin, Ku Feng, Xiao Wang
Zi, and Lady Sea Snake.
With that, the Deep Sea Monster Fish now held four silver level captives.
The fishman youngster continued observing Cang Xu, focusing his attention on
the third layer.
He had also extracted the deeper information embedded within Cang Xu.
“No trace of the Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline, even though I already know the
answer.”
“Cang Xu has been imbued with the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, yet the information remains unaltered and
undisguised.”
“Perhaps because I am already privy to the truth?”
“Or could it be that this spell combination cannot deceive the Believer
Perception divine spell?”
“If so, is it that Charming Blue Goddess is unique, or do other deities possess
such abilities?”
The fishman youngster pondered for a moment, concluding that the combination of
the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell should
be capable of resisting the Believer Perception.
Otherwise, their tracks would have been discovered long ago.
Since nearly all survivors were believers, they could be perceived by the
deities they worshipped. If deities could extract deep information from their
believers, they should be able to uncover the survivors' secrets, exposing the
two divine artifacts on Mystifying Monster Island.
Yet, to this day, the survivors lived well, free from joint manhunts by major
and minor deities or religious sects. Inverse reasoning suggests the artifacts
remain undiscovered. The combination of the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell effectively masked their presence, countering
the Believer Perception divine spell.
The fishman youngster surmised: Charming Blue Goddess must be unique. After
all, the core of this spell combination was the Deceptive Disguise spell, and
its source originated from Charming Blue Goddess' divine artifact.
“Thankfully, Charming Blue Goddess remains dormant, trapped in slumber.”
“Otherwise, the day I arrived at the Ocean Mother Nest would have been my
last!”
"For us survivors, the Charming Blue Goddess poses an immense threat. Before
Her, the Deceptive Disguise spell proves utterly useless."
This revelation held no surprise for the fishman youngster. Before this, he and
Cang Xu had already suspected as much and confirmed it once.
The fishman youngster refocused his attention, observing the other Charming
Blue believers.
He paid particular attention to the stronger ones among them.
For instance, the two known as Jiu Hua Bi and Zhang Yu Wan.
After continuously gathering intelligence, the fishman youngster concluded
these two were the strongest Charming Blue believers aside from Zhou Zhang.
“Truly worthy of being Zhou Zhang's right-hand men.”
“Both are fighters possessing formidable aquatic prowess. Their battle skills
and battle qi complement each other perfectly, making them exceptionally
skilled in aquatic combat.”
“Their Charming Blue faith is at the pious level.”
“But I still can't detect their bloodline. It's likely because they aren't
fishmen, but octopusmen.”
The fishman youngster kept trying, guessing and speculating throughout the
process.
“Next time I pray, I should ask for relevant usage experience.”
After scanning the believers around him, the fishman youngster began attempting
to “see” into the distance.
“Just how far can this perception reach?” the fishman youngster questioned
inwardly.
As he observed figures like Zhou Zhang and Cang Xu, his sensory range kept
expanding without pause, not for a single second.
It spread and spread, seemingly boundless.
But the fishman youngster knew full well there was a limit. At least his own
mental energy was one constraint.
Once his mental energy depleted. no, even reaching a certain low point, it
would leave him dizzy and drowsy, drifting into sleep. Pushing further would
trigger his body's self-preservation instinct, plunging the fishman youngster
into a deep slumber.
The fishman youngster “gazed” toward the farthest reaches.
Beyond the Ocean Mother Nest, near-total darkness prevailed, with only rare
specks of light appearing.
“Charming Blue Goddess has slumbered for ages, and the Charming Blue Church
faces relentless suppression. The situation is dire...”
Through the unique perception granted by divine magic, the fishman youngster
gained clearer insight into the current state of the Charming Blue Church.
This had nothing to do with his immediate surroundings.
In fact, the oceanic environment was remarkably conducive to spreading the
Charming Blue Goddess' faith.
The sea teemed with intelligent beings, such as sea elves, nagas, sea giants,
lobstermen, and more. The most numerous and largest in scale were the fishmen.
Perhaps this explained why Charming Blue Goddess held the Fishman God
authority.
Possessing such an authority made it remarkably convenient to recruit
believers, spread the faith, and expand the divine domain's influence.
The state of the Charming Blue Church was dire. Beyond the White Hair Trench,
it was practically a wasteland.
Only occasionally could scattered points of light be found.
Oh?
The fishman youngster had no sense of actual distance. Just as he was about to
retreat, he suddenly spotted a unique believer's light point.
This light point shone brightly in the vast darkness, radiating a glow akin to
an alchemy light bulb. To be precise, its luminosity fell short of Zhou Zhang
but surpassed gold level believers like Zhang Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi.
The moment the fishman youngster saw it, he sensed this believer's light was
different.
“Why does this believer feel so familiar and comforting?”
This sensation was unlike any Charming Blue believer he'd encountered before.
It felt like... one of his own.
Immediately, the fishman youngster focused his attention on it.
The next moment, shock rippled through his heart: “Xiao Guai? How could it be
Xiao Guai?”
He had discovered the big guy!
Magnet Archipelago.
After failing to challenge Da Dou, the big guy had been knocked unconscious and
fed a filling meal.
Da Dou hadn't immediately stowed the big guy into his storage bag. The reason
was that the packing bag was special, excelling at preserving ingredients and
maintaining freshness.
Once the big guy entered, his entire being was treated as an ingredient.
Anything he consumed would be preserved, severely hindering his digestion.
The environment inside the storage bag also drastically reduced the big guy's
efficiency in cultivating his battle qi.
Da Dou sat beside the giant, eating dry rations and drinking water to replenish
his stamina and battle qi while also praying. He remained vigilant and
protective.
After all, they were in the wilderness.
In his deep sleep, the big guy was plagued by nightmares.
On a colossal sea vessel, he was no longer a giant's form but had shrunk to the
size of a normal infant.
The ship was immense, its deck as vast as a city.
The surroundings were gloomy, shrouded in mist that formed an endless fog.
The big guy could hear waves crashing against the hull. He ran across the vast
deck, wailing, stumbling and falling as he fled.
As he ran, the solid deck beneath his feet suddenly softened, gradually
transforming into a curved arc.
The arc became a curve, then dissolved into the sea.
The giant thumped into the sea and began swimming.
Calling out “Father” as he swam, he drifted aimlessly, searching for his home
and the dragonman youngster.
The divine spell [Believer Perception] allowed the fishman youngster to discern
the big guy's mental state, revealing this nightmare-like scene within his
perception.
“So, when a dreaming believer is perceived by divine magic, the deity can also
see the scenes within their dream.”
“Xiao Guai... he misses me.”
For a moment, the fishman youngster felt both touched and guilty.
Before leaving, he hadn't properly bid farewell to the big guy. The situation
had been urgent back then, chasing after Lan Zao.
“He's been gone for so long. It's only natural Xiao Guai sees me as his sole
support and seeks me out.”
“Thankfully, the others know Xiao Guai is my son. They must have been looking
after him all this time.”
“Ah, I wonder how Lan Zao is faring now?”
There was nothing he could do. The dragonman youngster had truly given his all
back then, killed once by Feng Lian's slash, then suddenly teleported straight
into the Ocean Mother Nest.
Only now had he finally obtained the divine spell [Divine Domain Descent],
securing a way out.
Before, leaving meant directly breaking through the Mother Nest, far too
dangerous! Later, he learned this place was still part of Charming Blue
Goddess' divine domain. He was relieved he hadn't forced his way through.
But to leave using the divine spell [Divine Domain Descent], the fishman
youngster still needed time to experiment and explore this unfamiliar high
level divine spell.
“The big guy never worshipped the Charming Blue Goddess. Why can I sense his
presence with the Believer Perception divine spell?”
“Let's put that question aside for now.”
Divine spell - Divine Power Channel!
Gazing at the nightmare before him, the fishman youngster felt a surge of
inspiration and activated another divine spell.
In the next instant, the divine power within him accelerated its consumption,
weaving a wondrous energy conduit.
The conduit connected the big guy and the fishman youngster.
Thus, the fishman youngster descended into the big guy's dream.
In the dim nightmare world, a patch of mist suddenly shifted to a deep blue.
Then, a gale swept through, coalescing the mist into a colossal humanoid form,
the likeness of the dragonman youngster.
To accommodate the big guy, the fishman youngster deliberately transformed his
appearance into the familiar image from the big guy's memories.
“Father?”
Xiao Guai stared in shock at the enormous dragonman youngster standing directly
before him.
“Father, Xiao Guai was looking for you!”
“Father, you're so big!”
As he came to his senses, the big guy cried out in joyful surprise, tears
streaming down his face.
He danced excitedly yet did not drown.
As his state of mind shifted, the undulating lines of seawater enveloping him
straightened, transforming back into the deck's form.
Xiao Guai stepped onto the deck, spread his arms wide, and ran toward the mist
surrounding the dragonman youngster.
He grew larger with each stride, his form swiftly reverting to that of a giant.
The dragonman youngster smiled, extending his right index finger and slowly
reaching toward the giant.
The mist-shrouded youngster's physique was mountainous, and his single finger
was larger than the giant himself.
As the finger touched the big guy, the youngster spoke softly, “Xiao Guai,
Father's come to see you.”
“Father... Father!” The giant clutched the youngster's finger, wailing with
overwhelming sorrow.
“Father, Xiao Guai... missed you!”
“Father, let's go.”
“Take Xiao Guai with you!”
Seeing the giant's emotional state, the fishman youngster sighed deeply, his
heart filled with tenderness.
Suddenly, he understood the truth.
“Xiao Guai isn't a Charming Blue believer. He never was, and he isn't now.”
“His true devotion... is to me.”
“He is my... fanatical believer!”



****** Chapter 599: The Furious Youngster – Da Dou Kidnapped My Son! ******
Believers could be categorized into roughly five levels based on their faith.
Casual believers, ordinary believers, pious believers, fanatical believers, and
sainthood.
What defined a fanatical believer?
Fanatical believers pursued their object of worship with extreme zeal, reaching
the height of fervor. They believed that only by worshipping their deity could
they attain salvation or blessing.
They disregarded all rational thought, dedicating themselves wholly. Even if
their deity commanded them to sacrifice themselves, they would obey without
hesitation.
Moreover, they could not tolerate any criticism of their deity.
Typically, they would respond with persuasion, curses, or outright aggression.
For particularly egregious offenses, they would transform into violent mobs,
launching brutal attacks on their perceived enemies.
When the dragonman youngster first discovered the big guy was his fanatic, he
felt puzzled and bewildered.
But as he pondered deeper, he gradually understood.
By the standards of fanatics, if the big guy wasn't his fanatic, then what else
could he be?
After the old shipwright's death, the big guy became utterly convinced: this
dragonman youngster was the kindest person in the world to him, and his only
family!
Whenever the youngster faced danger, the big guy would instantly plunge into a
frenzied rage, throwing himself recklessly into protecting him, fighting to the
death for him!
“Why did he become my fanatic?”
Reflecting on the big guy's life story, the fishman youngster gradually gained
some insight.
The big guy had been abandoned as an infant, but luckily, he found care under
the old shipwright.
As he grew, he proved to be mentally impaired, occasionally losing his mind.
Naturally, those around him treated him with contempt, disgust, and exclusion.
The old shipwright was the sole light in the big guy's life. He raised him
through thick and thin, tirelessly caring for him, fighting for his right to
exist, and even teaching him to swim.
The dragonman youngster understood the full extent of the giant's intellectual
limitations. He admired the old shipwright's achievement in teaching him to
swim, finding it almost unimaginable.
It was precisely because of the old shipwright that the giant, living in such a
harsh environment, retained a core of kindness.
The old shipwright's relentless efforts to protect the confined, unique living
space aboard the sea vessel, combined with the big guy's own mortality—unable
to match those of the extraordinary... These factors collectively shaped the
big guy into a timid and fearful character. Yet simultaneously, the violent
elements in his bloodline lay dormant. When provoked, the big guy would erupt
into fury, fighting with all his might to kill enemies or defend what mattered
most to him.
This trait was vividly displayed on Mystifying Monster Island. To protect his
father, the big guy pushed the ship forward himself, charging into the beast
tide and willingly sacrificing himself.
He was closest to the old shipwright, while his relationships with others
remained distant. This near-total isolation meant the big guy's personal world
was incredibly narrow. The old shipwright was his entire world, the sole
meaning of his existence.
But on Mystifying Monster Island, the old shipwright died.
Before his final breath, he entrusted the big guy to the young knight.
The old shipwright knew his significance to the big guy. He feared the big guy
might lose hope and desperately wanted someone to care for him.
This act proved profoundly successful!
The young knight became his new father, taking the old shipwright's place. The
old shipwright had judged correctly. The youngster possessed the spirit of a
knight, honest, forgiving, kind, and held compassion for the big guy. He never
abandoned him because of his dullness or moments of madness.
He never even felt disgust.
Not once!
Not even for a single second!
The young knight always kept the big guy by his side, protecting and caring for
him. Perhaps his care wasn't always perfect or thorough.
But the youngster's intentions were genuine and his efforts sincere.
He had clashed with Bing Xiao to secure the giant-type intelligence potion for
the big guy. He spared no effort to help the big guy master the Mindless
Sleeping Posture Technique.
Though intellectually impaired, the big guy could feel the youngster's
affection!
Precisely because of this, the big guy accepted the youngster from the bottom
of his heart. He clung fiercely to the old shipwright's words: the youngster
was his father, the sole meaning of his existence, the sky sheltering him, the
sea embracing him, the earth bearing him.
The youngster was his sky, his earth, his sea, his entire world!
To him, the wider world was alien, even hostile, only his father was worthy of
trust.
Given this mindset, it was only natural that the big guy became a fanatical
believer.
With the youngster's arrival, the big guy's nightmares transformed into sweet
dreams.
Massive mists coalesced into the form of the dragonman youngster, towering like
mountains and peaks. The youngster's finger alone was thicker than the big
guy's entire arm.
The big guy had already plopped down onto the deck, wrapping both arms around
the dragonman youngster's finger and pressing his face tightly against it,
weeping uncontrollably.
He sobbed uncontrollably, snot running freely.
It was as if he were a child lost outside, terrified for so long, desperately
waiting for his parents to find him.
Now, the long-awaited father he'd called out for so many times had finally
appeared. The poor child found immense comfort.
“Father, save me, save me.”
“Xiao Guai, danger!”
“Bad guy.”
“Bad guy!”
“Xiao Guai wants to go home.”
“But… can't go back!”
Amidst the big guy's wails, the fishman youngster's expression gradually
shifted.
This was his first attempt at advanced divine magic. As a novice, he hadn't
grasped how to gauge distance or direction between himself and his believer.
Thus, at first, he'd assumed the big guy was still in Snow Bird Harbor.
But now, he slowly began to detect something amiss.
The dragonman youngster had been away from the group for some time and was
unaware of the events that had unfolded.
He had assumed that after his departure, the business plan had progressed
smoothly, everything running orderly, even peaceful.
But now, from the big guy's broken, sobbing words, he sensed something was
terribly wrong.
“Enemies threatening Xiao Guai?”
“What's going on?”
“Isn't Xiao Guai with everyone?”
“Perhaps he's referring to the nightmare encounter?”
The fishman youngster felt perplexed and grew tense.
He had to confirm.
The next moment, his focus shifted to the third layer.
Based on his previous experience with divine spells, he summarized the
following:
With the first layer of attention, he could perceive light points. Each light
point represented a believer.
The second layer allowed him to observe believers' mental activities or
emotions.
The third layer enabled him to dig deeper for information.
The fishman youngster did this solely to gather more intelligence, aiding his
ability to make the right judgment.
Soon, he sensed the various deep-seated information contained within the big
guy.
“The big guy's strength has reached silver level? How did he progress so fast?”
“He's still cultivating the Mindless Sleeping Posture battle qi technique. Good
lad.”
“His battle qi is exceptionally abundant now.”
“Not a single injury on his body.”
"This recovery ability... surpasses even my dragonman form. Truly worthy of the
giant bloodline."
“How come he's got a huge amount of food in his stomach?”
The fishman youngster felt both delighted and relieved by the big guy's
progress, yet more questions arose.
The information he received indicated that the big guy had eaten to his fill,
and the food was exceptionally high level.
The silver level magic meals he consumed were downgraded from gold level, the
most suitable sustenance for the big guy's cultivation!
From this perspective, the big guy lived even better than he did!
“I haven't obtained the big guy's bloodline, lifespan, or other details.”
“Wait, it seems I can delve deeper into the information?”
After deeply sensing the information, the fishman youngster discovered he still
had reserves. Unlike when he'd sensed other Charming Blue believers before,
where he'd hit a ceiling, now, with the big guy, he felt he could uncover more.
“Let's try!”
The fishman youngster attempted to focus his attention even more intensely.
Success!
The fourth layer of concentration allowed him to access the big guy's memories.
His memories unfolded like magic images, scene after scene.
Only they played in reverse, always from the big guy's first-person
perspective.
Thus, the fishman youngster first witnessed the big guy opening his eyes.
Through blurred vision, he saw Da Dou. Hearing Da Dou speak, the big guy
unleashed a furious strike. Then, the big guy and Da Dou engaged in a fierce
battle. Before long, he was knocked unconscious by Da Dou.
The memory continued to rewind.
The fishman youngster witnessed Da Dou leading the big guy to flee to an
unnamed deserted island.
The big guy leaped into the sea to swim, Da Dou pursued him, and then the Honey
Snow Tower suddenly appeared.
“Speed it up,” the fishman youngster thought, and sure enough, the rewind of
memories accelerated.
He saw the big guy discover that “Zong Ge” (the alchemy puppet) had been
ambushed and killed. Enraged, the big guy plunged into a berserk state, chasing
the enemy all the way out.
Then came the big guy's bewildered arrival at Snow Bird Harbor's duel arena,
where he participated in the eating contest between Da Dou and Ci Hai Shen,
playing a crucial role in the proceedings.
The memory rewound once more.
The big guy conversed with Tripleblade. His training had yielded results,
leaving him increasingly ravenous.
The big guy's memories came in fragmented segments.
Many truths remained hidden, even though the big guy was the direct point of
view.
This was because during the battle between Da Dou and Shuang Lian, Da Dou had
sealed the big guy inside a packing bag early on. The big guy was also
frequently knocked unconscious. In a state of unconsciousness, he couldn't
perceive the outside world, hence the fragmented memories.
Similarly, when Tripleblade struck the big guy three times, aiming to disrupt
his physical memory of cultivating battle qi, the big guy held no awareness of
this either. Thus, the fishman youngster witnessed none of it.
Even so, the youngster gleaned much from these fragments!
“The Zong Ge he saw was killed by an enemy ambush. He was actually
impersonating me, so the one impersonating him was merely an alchemy puppet."
“The reason Xiao Guai was abducted by Da Dou was likely because Da Dou
recognized his innate talent.”
The fishman youngster now knew Da Dou's name.
Memories of the eating contest were filled with spectators' discussions about
Ci Hai Shen and Da Dou.
"Da Dou, you dared to kidnap my son!!" At that moment, the fishman youngster
was extremely angry.



****** Chapter 600: Looking for Charming Blue Believers ******
“Xiao Guai is waiting for me, waiting for me to save him.”
“I absolutely must rescue Xiao Guai!”
At that moment, the fishman youngster made up his mind.
He wished he could fly to Xiao Guai's side immediately, but that was clearly
unrealistic.
“How do I use the Divine Domain Descent?”
He'd have to experiment.
But the environment the fishman youngster now inhabited was rather peculiar.
“The Ocean Mother Nest is already part of the Charming Blue Divine Domain. What
effect would using it here have?”
Employing the Divine Domain Descent within the divine domain itself seemed
redundant.
What troubled the fishman youngster even more was the fear that triggering a
massive reaction might awaken the slumbering Charming Blue Goddess, that would
be disastrous!
“If the deity were roused, all the efforts I and the other survivors have made
would be utterly wasted.”
The closer one drew to the deity, the more profoundly one felt the god's
power—vast, boundless, and unimaginable.
The fishman youngster had only briefly tested the divine spell Believer
Perception, yet it had revealed countless secrets. Through a god's eyes, one
was as transparent as glass.
“Against other gods, we could rely on the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell. But against the Charming Blue Goddess? That
would be extremely difficult.”
The fishman youngster suppressed his rage and continued analyzing the clues
within the big guy's memories.
“That mage tower, I know it. It must be the Honey Snow Tower!”
Even before Bu Quan joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, no, even before she
was invited—the dragonman youngster had gathered extensive intelligence on
them.
Among them, Bu Quan's mentor, Shuang Lian, was a focal point.
Honey Snow Tower was also extensively covered.
Armed with this knowledge, the fishman youngster easily deduced the truth: “It
must be that Shuang Lian received Bu Quan's plea for help, piloted the mage
tower to assist us, and intended to help us reclaim the big guy.”
“Unfortunately, she failed.”
“Strange. With a mage tower deployed, how could Da Dou escape?”
“Seems he may be a magic chef, but his combat skills are formidable, at the
very least, he possesses exceptional escape abilities!”
On this point, the fishman youngster's analysis was mistaken.
Da Dou's escape was pure luck.
At the time, Shuang Lian was under attack by the duelists and momentarily
forgot about Da Dou, allowing him to regain his freedom.
The big guy remained unaware.
He had been sealed inside the packing bag earlier, missing both Da Dou's
freezing by Shuang Lian and the disappearance of the Honey Snow Tower's
teleportation.
“Most likely, Shuang Lian is still pursuing Da Dou.”
“The others know the big guy's potential. They'd never abandon a future
powerhouse destined for at least the saint level.”
“Even if I can't escape immediately, I can relay this crucial intelligence to
others, indirectly alerting Shuang Lian!”
The fishman youngster's eyes lit up at this thought.
As a gold level magician who had deployed the mage tower, Shuang Lian possessed
abundant resources. There was a chance she could rescue the big guy.
Of course, the fishman youngster didn't pin all his hopes on Shuang Lian.
From what he knew: Shuang Lian had already failed once.
Therefore, his greater hope was that Shuang Lian would remain tied to Da Dou's
trail, while he positioned himself as a surprise force. He aimed to arrive at
the scene at a crucial moment in the future and intervene personally!
“I can now use the divine spells [Believer Perception] and [Divine Power
Channel]. With these two, I can definitely send out a message.”
“If Bu Quan or Shuang Lian held faith in the Charming Blue Goddess, it would be
much easier.”
“Unfortunately, though Bu Quan is deeply grateful to me, her gratitude falls
far short of true devotion.”
The fishman youngster's reasoning was clear, his approach to problem-solving
was decisive, he possessed the instincts of a natural leader. Faced with
challenges, he never considered going it alone. Instead, he sought to leverage
the strength of the team to increase their chances of success.
“First, we need to pinpoint Xiao Guai's current location. Then, by combining
that with the position of the White Hair Trench, we can determine the
direction.”
“This will give us the approximate direction of Ice Sculpture Island, allowing
us to search in that area.”
“We'll comb through the entire island, find believers of the Charming Blue
Goddess, deliver the divine decree, and use them to contact our other
companions.”
The fishman youngster once again delved into the big guy's memories, locating
the most recent segment.
The big guy battled Da Dou. Though his focus was entirely on Da Dou at the
time, the surrounding scenery remained etched in his memory.
“Almost entirely yellowish-brown rocky hills and mounds, not a speck of
vegetation. Not a single island, but a cluster of smaller islands, an
archipelago landscape.”
The fishman youngster's heart swelled with joy.
Because this terrain was rather unique, the more distinctive it was, the more
likely clues could be found.
He himself was unfamiliar with the Magnet Archipelago, but let's not forget he
was aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish. And on this ship, there was also the
tower spirit.
The tower spirit held War Merchant's database.
Though incomplete, the database still contained a vast formation of
information. Nautical charts formed part of this collection.
“All thanks to War Merchant!” the fishman youngster exclaimed upon discovering
the answer within the database. “So, this is Magnet Archipelago.”
The intelligence gathered far exceeded the fishman youngster's expectations.
“Who knew it was such a renowned archipelago?”
After reviewing the data, the fishman youngster distilled the three most
critical pieces of intelligence concerning the islands.
First, the Magnet Archipelago was rich in earth elements, hosting vast numbers
of earth elementals and a small quantity of magnetite elementals. The
archipelago constantly radiated powerful magnetic force, severely affecting
most metals.
Second, the cruise shipGolden sank within the Magnet Archipelago. This occurred
roughly three thousand years ago and involved the Fifth Pirate King. The Pirate
King feigned defeat before his archrival, luring the cruise ship Golden to the
Magnet Archipelago. He exploited the magnetic force to weaken the enemy's
combat strength, then launched a fierce assault, ultimately sinking the vessel.
However, the Pirate King did not have time to salvage the ship before the
archrival's reinforcements arrived. Upon returning later, the sunken cruise
shipGolden had vanished without a trace.
People speculate that this colossal vessel, nearly made entirely of gold, was
drawn deep into the ocean floor of the Magnet Archipelago by magnetic forces.
Thus, countless descendants have journeyed here, attempting to uncover the
golden ship.
Yet, to this day, no one has reported discovering this immense treasure.
The third piece of intelligence: The Legendary Death Match. Two thousand years
ago, two legend level individuals clashed upon the Magnet Archipelago.
One hailed from the Barbarian clan—the fallen druid Liao Ye. The other was a
beastman, the high priest of that era, Hao Sang. Their powers were evenly
matched, and both ultimately perished in battle here. Legend had it that each
left behind a legacy of their power here. Before dying, they vowed to use these
legacies to forge exceptional successors who would duel to determine the true
victor.
Yet to this day, neither legacy has been found.
"Thus, the Magnet Archipelago became a haunt for treasure hunters, attracting
visitors year-round. During certain seasons, the influx of people is
overwhelming."
“Damn.”
“Da Dou likely came here to exploit the Magnet Archipelago's established
transport routes to move himself and Xiao Guai.”
The fishman youngster felt a surge of urgency.
Within the Believer Perception's view, though only black and white existed, the
relative positions of the believer corresponded to reality.
Using War Merchant's data, the fishman youngster pinpointed the relative
positions of the White Hair Trench and the Magnet Archipelago, easily deducing
the approximate direction of Ice Sculpture Island.
He then extended his perception along that path.
The results were dismal.
Desolate darkness stretched everywhere, revealing no trace of any Charming Blue
believer.
Until he detected a faint glimmer of faith.
Focusing his attention there, he was disappointed to find that this devout
level believer was a fishman shaman hired by an undersea merchant fleet.
After gathering and comparing the shaman's information, the fishman youngster
quickly realized the shaman's location had already passed far beyond Ice
Sculpture Island.
“This is bad.”
“There's not a single Charming Blue believer on Ice Sculpture Island?”
“Surrounded by sea on all sides, not a single one?”
“Seems the Charming Blue Church is truly in dire straits. The believers around
me must be among its main forces.”
Though the fishman youngster had anticipated this grim conclusion, the actual
confirmation still brought a wave of disappointment.
However, shortly after, he did discover a Charming Blue believer near the
Magnet Archipelago.
On the Treasure Chest.
Tan Mo knocked on the hatch and reported to Tu Ji, “Lord, we're only ten
nautical miles from the Magnet Archipelago.”
Tu Ji glanced at Tan Mo, his expression unreadable. "I can land anytime. Are
you certain Hong Zhu is still there?"
Tan Mo hastily replied, “Absolutely. Our spies on the island confirm Hong Zhu
hasn't departed.”
Tu Ji nodded, saying nothing more.
Tan Mo sensibly closed the hatch again.
He plotted silently: “Once Tu Ji lands on Magnet Archipelago, my moment will
come.”
“With the Ice Sculpture Kingdom holding its National Ceremony, pirates will
gather in droves. I can frame them to eliminate both Dao Hen and Hun Tong!”
Within the prison cell.
Dao Hen closed his eyes, praying silently.
“Fishman God, whichever one you may be, I implore you to hear my plea.”
“If you can save me and show me a way to escape, I, Dao Hen, will devote my
entire life to you!”
Dao Hen was a silver level fishman, a renowned swordsman within his kind.
After being invited to participate in the Battle of Two Eyes Island, he was
defeated and captured. He has been held captive by Hun Tong ever since, serving
as evidence to counter the Empire's investigation.
After Hun Tong arrived here, orchestrated by Yan Yi, Dao Hen was turned and
became the key witness framing Hun Tong.
The frame-up succeeded. Dao Hen witnessed the entire process and felt a deep
sense of satisfaction.
Yet he also understood his own death was inevitable.
Unlike him, Hun Tong still failed to grasp the gravity of the situation,
stubbornly trying to prove his innocence to the Empire.
Dao Hen certainly did not want to die.
Yet he was guarded so tightly that he had no strength to escape alone.
Trapped in this desperate situation, he could only turn to the gods in prayer.
Even though he knew there was a high chance of receiving no answer. But as a
warrior, he possessed an unyielding will, so he prayed with all his might.
Don't overlook a crucial factor: one of the authorities of Charming Blue
Goddess was a racial authority, the Fishman God.
Perhaps the pressure of impending death made him more devout.
Perhaps it was fate's subtle arrangement.
In any case, the fishman youngster discovered Dao Hen.



****** Chapter 601: Saving Dao Hen ******
The fishman youngster felt baffled, “Why is Dao Hen here?”
He clearly remembered that as his former enemy on Two Eyes Island, Dao Hen had
been taken prisoner, why was he here?
The fishman youngster pondered over it while focusing his attention.
The first level of concentration allowed him to find Dao Hen.
The second level of concentration allowed him to learn that Dao Hen was scared
of death and was chanting a litany deep within his heart.
The third level of concentration allowed him to learn of Dao Hen’s strength,
current condition, and other facets of information. 
The fourth level of concentration didn’t add anything else.
But the fishman youngster had surmised why, and he decisively used the divine
spell – Divine Power Channel!
After the profound passage constructed from divine power was created, he and
Dao Hen formed an instantaneous, space crossing channel between them.
Dao Hen sensed this anomaly and couldn’t help but shudder emotionally.
“God, I sense God’s gaze!”
“Heavens, a God really answered me!!”
Dao Hen normally had average faith, or to be more accurate, he was a believer
who believed in a large swath of mainstream fishmen gods.
“Which grand existence answered me though?” At that moment, Dao Hen sensed the
fishman youngster’s form, causing many doubts to arise from the bottom of his
heart.
It was a whirlpool in an ocean, and in the depths of the ocean there was an
immense shadow as high as a mountain that leaked out the boundless aura of the
gods.
Normally speaking, due to the divine power communication channel, Dao Hen could
see the fishman youngster’s appearance.
The fishman youngster naturally wouldn’t expose what he looked like, he instead
did the same thing when he linked up with the big guy and decided to change his
form. 
As for why he picked this form, it was because it came from the nightmare that
had haunted him.
“We have such an existence as a fishman god?” Dao Hen was bewildered with
reverence when he obtained this answer in his heart.
It was the information the fishman youngster had transmitted to him.
“A Fish God, so it’s actually a Fish God!!” Dao Hen’s misgivings vanished in an
instant, “Indeed, there is a God named Mist among the Fish Gods.”
Dao Hen guessed that the fishman Gods who were gazing at him was the three most
mainstream ones.
They were the Ocean Guardian Cube Shell, the Star Crown Ink Concubine, and the
Deep Sea Wisdom from Poetry.
Before becoming a god, Ocean Guardian Cube Shell was a fishman with a giant
bloodline. Thus, their body was massive, and their scales gleamed. Cube Shell
had three authorities as an Ocean God, a Defender God, and a Fishman God. They
could raise tsunamis and gigantic waves, while also being responsible for
protecting all kinds of lifeforms in the ocean from harm.
Fishmen shaman in Cube Shell’s church were experts at defensive type divine
spells.
Star Crown Ink Concubine was a cuttlefish magic beast who became a god. They
had three water attribute authorities as a fishman and magic beast god, a
stealth god, and a water god. Their fishmen shamans were experts at controlling
ocean magic beasts, spraying out ink shields, and changing water quality, ala
capable of purifying and polluting water.
Wisdom from Poetry was a mermaid who before becoming a god was a wandering
poet. She had gray scales and penetrating eyes that could see the secrets of
the ocean and passed them on to other living beings. She was also a deep sea
sage that often imparted the wisdom to survive in the depths to other lifeforms
and also rescued some deep sea explorers.
Wisdom from Poetry learned all kinds of knowledge from the ocean, including how
deep sea organisms behaved, how coral reefs grew, among other rules. She also
used deep sea energy to heal wounded ocean creatures and guided lost people to
her deep sea mystifying temple.
“I didn’t expect the Fish God Mist to answer me.”
Dao Hen used all of his strength to recall what he knew of Mist.
“The Fish God Mist’s origins are mysterious, some say they were a giant magic
beast fish who became a god, others say they were a deep sea piranha who
happened to devour some part of a god’s body and obtained divinity by a fluke.”
In Dao Hen’s memory, the Fish God Mist mainly instructed magic beast fish who
had gained intelligence. Of course, fishmen also had people who believed in
Mist, they, for the most part, were mysterious, ruthless, and hid in secret
places.
“The God Mist really likes experts, and the fishmen who believe in them are
generally powerful and unconventional.”
Dao Hen found a reason for why a god was watching him.
“From now on, I, Dao Hen, will serve you with all I have, my God, my grand Fish
God Mist…”
Dao Hen began to pray again.
Before he prayed, he actually didn’t have any hope, he was just trying anything
in his desperate state.
Now that a god was watching him, he realized that he had a chance of escaping!
Under that ecstasy, he immediately changed his litany and turned towards Mist
alone.
For this prayer, because it was not geared towards every fishman god, and only
towards Mist, the fishman youngster immediately felt different.
In the divine spell’s dimensional perception, Dao Hen’s belief radiance began
to grow brighter, and at the same time, the divine power channel also grew more
stable.
As for why it wasn’t Charming Blue Goddess, but instead the Fish God Mist…
The fishman youngster understood why the moment he became a divine emissary. 
Charming Blue Goddess had four authorities, deception, fishmen, water, and
fishing.
These four authorities corresponded to her many god names.
The deception authority corresponded to the Goddess Charming Blue.
The racial fishman authority corresponded to the God Mist.
The water authority corresponded with the most divine names, like the Calm Lake
God, the Wave God, and the Splash God.
The fishing authority corresponded to the Fishing Net Goddess.
Some gods only had one divine name, so why did Charming Blue Goddess have
multiple? The more divine names one set up, the more was expended in transit.
It was also detrimental towards believer unity, as believers under different
divine names would fight and dispute in needless internal friction.
The fishman youngster knew what the reason was.
“Charming Blue Goddess had been attacked from all sides and sank into a deep
sleep, her condition is quite bad and needed to maintain belief to heal and
regain her strength. Belief is very important to her; therefore, Zhou Zhang
took risks with blood sacrifice.”
“The same reason caused her to scatter the clergy and set up many gods. If it
were a unified church, it would easily become a target of attack. If they were
exterminated, the damage would be too disastrous. But believers under these
many divine names don’t know each other, granting the greatest chance of
preserving this secret. In the future, if one church is discovered, the others
will continue to survive.”
In a nutshell, Charming Blue Goddess would rather expend some profits in
transit and scatter her operations to reduce risks.
“Huh? I seem to remember that one of the gods Lan Zao believes in is the
Fishing Net Goddess.”
“He was born into and grew up in a fisherman village, thus, he believes in the
Fishing Net Goddess.”
“Perhaps I can use this to find him?”
The fishman youngster suddenly thought of something.
He was also unaware that Lan Zao had already returned to Ice Sculpture Island.
The fishman youngster had just probed around and didn’t find Lan Zao’s faith.
It was because Lan Zao was in the divine domain Tranquil Hill, which concealed
him.
After applying Divine Power Channel, the fishman youngster once again
concentrated, and as expected there were four levels.
“My guess wasn’t wrong.”
“A simple divine spell’s [Believer Perception] concentration limit is the third
level. But with the divine spell [Divine Power Channel], the limit of
concentration is no longer limited to the third level.”
The fourth level of concentration allowed the fishman youngster to gain all of
a believer’s memories.
The fishman youngster quickly read through Dao Hen’s memories.
Dao Hen’s memories were simple to understand, and apart from his imprisonment
and suffering from ruthless torture and interrogation, the key thing was how he
was instigated by Yan Yi’s people and was used by Tan Mo to frame Hun Tong.
When the fishman youngster comprehended the whole story, his complexion became
somewhat heavy.
“Tan Mo, a navy rear admiral, simultaneously also an imperial secret spy
investigator.”
“Tu Ji who comes from the Blood Light Punishment Institution!”
The two gold levels made the fishman youngster vigilant and at the same time,
caused him to secretly let out a breath.
“Fortunately, they came because of Two Eyes Island, and not Mystifying Monster
Island.”
“Mystifying Monster Island’s secret has not been exposed yet.”
In the battle of Two Eyes Island, Cang Xu had exposed himself as a necromancer,
which led to a series of events.
Therefore, the Blood Light Punishment Institution only dispatched on gold level
Tu Ji. While Tan Mo was responsible for investigating why Hun Tong had turned
against his allies.
“If the empire found out what happened on Mystifying Monster Island…”
The fishman youngster didn’t dare to think about such dark things.
Regardless of whether it was War Merchant’s immensely valuable inheritance or
the fact that he had secretly murdered the legend level Flame Dragon King, both
would lead to sky eclipsing tsunami of suppression against them.
The fishman youngster put his feelings into order and reflected on what he
should do about the current situation.
Dao Hen had to be protected.
This was not difficult for the fishman youngster.
But how specifically he should go about doing it needed meticulous
consideration.
After thinking about it, the fishman youngster decided.
With an extremely verbose voice, he transmitted into Dao Hen’s heart, “Dao Hen,
you went to war for the fishmen, you shouldn’t die by some plot. You still have
a long journey in the ocean.”
“Under my protection, you cannot be seen. Seize this opportunity to leave this
cage, like a clever small fish. Don’t splash unnecessary blood about…”
The fishman youngster then changed his tone of voice to tell Dao Hen a rough
guideline of how to move next.
After he was done speaking, he used many divine spells.
The first was Deceptive Disguise.
Then he used the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.
The fishman youngster was both a cleric and a magician, allowing him to easily
use both spells. The magic’s brilliance instantly followed along the divine
power passage and onto Dao Hen’s body.
The best thing was the magic fluctuation was on the fishman youngster’s side,
while Dao Hen’s side was quiet.
Dao Hen disappeared, disguised as a ball of transparent air.
Divine spells were used in succession.
The shackled Dao Hen’s chains were unlocked and the magic formation stopped
working, but another Deceptive Disguise spell made those occurrences
undetectable.
Restoration type divine spells quickly healed Dao Hen to peak condition.
“My God!”
“My grand Fish God Mist, you are my master, you granted me a second life.”
“Your benevolence will be etched into my memory, I, Dao Hen, will only believe
in you for the rest of my life!!”
After being aided, the freed Dan Hen shouted in his mind.
He had been rescued as he despaired, and the incomparable gratefulness caused
his belief to rapidly rise from an ordinary believer to a pious one!



****** Chapter 602: The Big Guy is Stolen ******
Seeing Dao Hen’s conviction advance by leaps and bounds with his own eyes
boarded the fishman youngster’s horizons greatly.
“Belief is related to the heart of a person.”
“Improving conviction is both simple and easy, and difficult and complex. It is
a foundational undertaking of the gods.”
When the fishman youngster saw Dao Hen change like that, he suddenly thought of
someone.
Another who had a similar experience as Dao Hen.
Chi Lai.
After the fishman youngster purchased Chi Lai on Two Eyes Island, Chi Lai had
revealed his life’s story to him because they both were Justice God believers.
Because Chi Lai was chivalrous, he was imprisoned by a noble he offended, and
while in prison, he received the Justice God’s gaze and even a divine
revelation.
“Chi Lai at the time should be the same as Dao Hen when his conviction greatly
increased.”
“My role right now is almost identical to the one the Justice God played at the
time.”
“I understand a bit more on how to evangelize belief.”
Saving Dao Hen caused his faith to advance by leaps and bounds.
This is the power of salvation.”
“Anyways, he stopped at the pious level, and it seems the value of fanatics are
very high.”
Dao Hen had become a pious believer of the Fish God Mist, which immediately
triggered some follow up changes, causing somewhat of a reaction in the fishman
youngster.
After all, the fishman youngster was Charming Blue Goddess’ divine emissary and
was maintaining the divine power channel with Dao Hen.
“Exerting divine spells on Dao Hen is greatly depleting divine power and divine
grace.”
“The divine power channel is also growing more stable.”
“Even interaction with the believer has become clearer, and my perception
around Dao Hen has expanded a lot.”
There were improvements in all aspects.
“Hold on, it will be worthwhile to keep Dao Hen on this ship.”
“He is now a pious believer and also has Deceptive Disguise. It is feasible for
him to hide at the enemy’s side long term.”
“If this is arranged, I can scout out a lot of information on Tu Ji and Tan
Mo.”
The fishman youngster didn’t yet know the Treasure Chest also had the Secret
Gate Church’s bishop and a saint level shield guardian on board too.
Dao Hen also was unaware of them too.
The Secret Gate Church’s two people had not disembarked from the ship since Two
Eyes Island.
“Forget about it.”
“They aren’t headed towards Ice Sculpture Island, and the direction of their
investigation is also wrong.”
Despite the fishman youngster dreading and being wary of Tan Mo, he still felt
that the big guy’s safety was more important.
Thus, the fishman youngster decided to emulate a god’s connotation and gave an
oracle to Dao Hen that he was to leave the Treasure Chest and go onto the
nearby Magnet Archipelago.
“My God, your will shall be my path. Even if it leads to death, I shall die on
this journey!” Dao Hen thought with prayer, then immediately began to act.
He had received many of the fishman youngster’s divine spells and had not only
recovered his freedom but had been restored to peak condition and was now
lively again.
Dao Hen tried to open the cabin door but wasn’t able to.
When the fishman youngster saw this, he used a divine spell through the divine
power channel to open the cabin door.
The cabin door quietly swung open.
Dao Hen took this opportunity to flash out and escape his cell.
He excitedly glanced behind him, seeing that there was a locked up “Dao Hen” in
there still.
Naturally, this was the fishman youngster using Charming Blue Goddess’ divine
spell to create a façade.
If Dao Hen was saved in a more straightforward manner, it would bewilder Tan Mo
and the others, cause them to wantonly search all over the place and would
likely lead to more trouble on the horizon.
The fishman youngster would never act so rashly and thoughtlessly; he not only
camouflaged the real Dao Hen, but he also made a fake Dao Hen too.
Dao Hen couldn’t find any flaws with his phony double.
“God really is omnipotent!” Dao Hen thought in admiration, and his pious level
of belief became solid.
But at this time, God’s gaze suddenly vanished.
Dao Hen suddenly felt like something vanished from his mind, and it was
difficult to conceal his sense of loss.
The Treasure Chest was a magic ship and used spatial alchemy technology to
incase the ship’s internal space.
It would not be easy for Dao Hen to sneak out of this ship by himself.
As it goes without saying, the fishman youngster wanted to use more divine
spells to guide him on the right path, however, something unexpected suddenly
happened, forcing the fishman youngster to undo the divine power channel and
return to the big guy.
Magnet Archipelago, present.
Dao Dou was wildly chasing while snarling, “Leave him alone, you damned thing!”
The big guy was being carried by a gold level earth elemental who was running
like crazy.
This earth elemental was the leader of a nearby tribe who had been given
directions by their god during prayer; thus, they came over to steal the big
guy.
The earth elemental leader was very crafty and utilized its advantages to
covertly approach the big guy from underground. It moved slowly through the
mountain rock and successfully restrained their aura.
Then they suddenly dashed in, shocking Da Dou.
But it was too late.
The earth elemental had run away with the big guy in tow, and although it
wasn’t fast, this was the Magnet Archipelago.
With the help of this place, the earth elemental used earth type match to slow
Da Dou’s movement severely.
At the same time, he also had many underlings by the wayside obstructing Da
Dou.
There were at least 20 silver level earth elementals and also some
comparatively special magnetic earth elementals too.
This variant of earth elemental had a slimmer build than normal earth
elementals and were a darker brown, with some even black in coloration.
Perhaps due to them being concentrated together, despite their small numbers,
the magnetic earth elementals were the biggest obstacle to Da Dou.
They knew a very special racial magic. Each adult magnetic earth elemental knew
four racial magics, they were Magnetic Imbuement, Polarity Change, Polarity
Repel, and Polarity Attraction.
Racial magic – Magnetic Imbuement.
This magic’s effect could be stacked, and after Da Dou was affected by several
Magnetic Imbuements, his entire body became intensely magnetic temporarily.
Racial magic – Polarity Change.
Under this magic, Da Dou’s magnetism could be easily switched between North and
South as they wished.
Dao Dou wanted to pursue the earth elemental leader but was fully occupied with
the magnetic earth elementals. When Da Daou wanted to eliminate the magnetic
earth elementals, his magnetism would instantly shift, repelling him back
forcefully.
“These wretched earth elementals, even with their strength in numbers, the key
is that they are drawing power from the Magnet Archipelago!” Da Dou bit his
teeth, unexpectedly feeling powerless as a gold level.
The entire Magnet Archipelago could be regarded as a giant magnetic rock.
“Why did that earth elemental steal him?”
“Humph, this won’t work out for you guys!”
A moment later, Da Dou used a flame totem and a divine spell.
His entire body ignited with flames, then with a bang, they vanished.
A split second afterwards, he appeared two hundred meters behind the earth
elemental leader.
Both the earth elemental leader and Da Dou changed color.
The former was shocked that Da Dou had a spatial blinking ability, while the
latter was stunned to see that there was a divine domain around the earth
elemental leader!



****** Chapter 603: Wall Penetration Spell, Earth Walking Spell ******
“A divine spell.” Both Da Dou and the fishman youngster recognized it at the
same time.
The divine domain spell was an environment altering divine spell, every god
could use divine domain spells, but each had different effects.
This was because the actual effect was determined by each god’s divine power,
authority, divine right, and other factors.
“Because of this divine domain spell, my connection to Xiao Guai is impaired.”
“If I use divine spells on Xiao Guai, the effects will also be weakened.”
But the fishman youngster did not panic.
Even if divine spells were weakened, it wasn’t by much and he still could save
the big guy.
The divine domain spell sounded lofty, but it also depended on who was using
it.
The enemy was a gold level earth elemental and not a saint.
Furthermore, fighters and magicians had methods similar to divine domain
spells.
After reaching the gold level, a fighter’s battle qi could condense and leave
their body and battle skills that molded a battlefield were constantly making
new advances.
For example, take Teng Dong Lang when he used [Base] during his duel with the
dragonman youngster.
This type of battle skill could temporarily create a battlefield environment
that allowed the user’s battle qi to be transferred inside its range with
almost no waste. After the battle skill dissipated, the remaining usable battle
qi in Base could be recycled and reused.
After Teng Dong Lang used it, he immediately built an immense advantage that
nearly pushed the dragonman youngster out of the fight.
Previously, the dragonman youngster had used the scroll – Lava Hell.
This magic was a battlefield type spell, it had immense might and proved
useful, allowing the dragonman youngster to turn the tables.
“This…should be the Earth Elemental God’s divine domain.” The fishman youngster
gradually identified it.
There were many elemental gods, mostly centralized in the four elemental
planes.
The four elements were earth, water, fire, and wind. Each plane had many
elemental gods and one main elemental god.
For example, the earth elemental plane’s main earth elemental god held
supremacy over the entire plane. They and their many subordinate earth
elemental gods formed a small earth elemental god pantheon.
“The Earth Elemental God’s domain places particular emphasis on stability,
firmness, slowness, and heaviness to restrain fast movement, teleportation, and
other such things.
“Da Dou should have teleported right behind his enemy, but he ended up 200
meters behind them instead.”
The fishman youngster maintained his divine power channel with the big guy,
watching Da Dou in pursuit.
The young man gradually calmed down.
“The divine power channel is well maintained; I can help Xiao Guai escape when
the time is right.”
“Now is not yet the time.”
First, although the earth elemental had kidnapped the big guy, they hadn’t
attacked the latter yet and was only fleeing, so the fishman youngster wasn’t
in a rush to act.
Second, Da Dou was still here, and there were eyes all casting their gaze here.
The fishman youngster acting now would expose many secrets, after all one who
could receive divine blessing and divine descent always attracted attention.
The fishman youngster wanted to maintain secrecy as much as possible.
Third, the fishman youngster also felt curious. The big guy had no animosity
with the earth elemental, why did they suddenly abduct him?
“What did Da Dou do? Did he cause the earth elemental to seek vengeance?” The
fishman youngster guessed to himself.
Although the earth elemental’s sudden ambush was successful at snatching the
big guy, Da Dou was pursuing close behind with staunch fighting determination.
Racial magic – Wall Penetration.
The earth elemental suddenly deformed and turned into earthy mud that wrapped
around the big guy’s body.
A moment later, they crashed into a small tan colored hill. With the racial
magic’s help, they seemed to be swimming through water and vanished from Da
Dou’s sight.
But this action caused the fishman youngster’s mind to stir, “To penetrate
through a wall, no ordinary gold level earth elemental can do that!”
Da Dou threw himself at the small hill.
“Don’t think of escaping!!” He furiously roared as he slapped it with his
palms.
The two palms ferociously beat the small hill, instantly going two meters into
it.
Gold battle qi condensed into a hand that opened his Packing Bag and took out a
clump of seeds, then sprinkled it onto the small hill.
Next, Da Dou used a battle skill.
For a moment flames raged and quickly spread to cover the surface of the entire
hill.
The fishman youngster had seen the big guy’s memories and immediately
recognized it, “It seems Da Dou used this battle skill during the eating
contest.”
The orange flames gradually fused the hill together, but strangely, they didn’t
burn the seeds, on the contrary, they stimulated the seeds and caused them to
grow wildly.
Consequently, something strange appeared.
In the raging flames, the seeds quickly took root and sprouted into wild
growth. A few seconds later, a rug of green meadow, along with many trees
sprouted from the earth.
Within a few more seconds, vines twisted like dragons and spread at shocking
speeds. Tree roots dug deeply underground and swelled like inflating balloons.
The trees rapidly rose; the grass shook and quickly reached an even waist high
height.
The more the flames burned, the smaller they got, like they were nourishment
being absorbed by the plants.
The rock was covered with innumerable ticks and gigantic tree roots, shattered
by twisting vines, and after a brief dozen seconds, the small hill was close to
disintegrating!
The gold level earth elemental was exposed again.
Because they were wrapped around the big guy, it caused their volume to double
and made them slower.
“Nowhere to run!” Da Dou howled, using his flickering flames again.
But the gold level earth elemental maintained the divine domain spell, making
Da Dou unable to teleport within 200 meters of it.
Racial magic – Earth Walking.
The gold level earth elemental carried the big guy as it sank deep into the
earth, drilling away to escape.
Da Dou’s eyes were red with anxiety, fuming with rage, he chased the earth
elemental down and used battle skills to blow and smash his way through.
Bang, bang, bang…
He smashed the ground, causing rocks to fly and dust to waft.
However, the earth elemental successfully broke away from his line of sight.
Da Dou was helpless in the face of this crisis.
His destruction of that small hill had cost him most of his battle qi and
spirit, it would be difficult to replicate it.
The Magnet Archipelago’s hill was not ordinary and was very hard.
In fact, even if Da Dou could do that again, it would be useless unless he was
capable of turning the entire island into dust!
“Don’t tell me this is how I lose my clan’s saint and the future of Eruption
Island?” Da Dou was just about to sink into despair when a figure rapidly
approached.
The figure summoned their courage and yelled at Da Dou, “My Lord, I can track
that earth elemental.”
Da Dou immediately stopped what he was doing and looked behind him, spying a
human woman on the mountain top opposite to him. 
That’s right, it was Hong Zhu.
“Can you help me find my enemy?” Da Dou’s flames glistened as he went to Hong
Zhu immediately.
He looked down at Hong Zhu, looking nervous and his tone urgent. Because of the
gold level giant’s furious and scared mood, his pressure was more pervasive and
nearly suffocated Hong Zhu.



****** Chapter 604: Sacrificing the Big Guy ******
Hong Zhu was a treasure hunter. She went on treasure hunts, sold her findings
for equipment, then went back to treasure hunting, this was how she acquired
resources.
Hong Zhu had seen Da Dou feeding the big guy, and although she was frightened
by Da Dou’s gaze, she knew he was not black-hearted.
Da Dou caused a big ruckus chasing down the gold level earth elemental, and
Hong Zhu had been one of the first close by who were watching it unfold. 
When she saw the earth elemental flee with the big guy, with Da Dou unable to
keep up, Hong Zhu knew her chance had come.
“If I can use this opportunity to obtain this gold level magic chef’s
friendship…”
“The Magnet Archipelago has many earth elemental tribes living here. The gold
level earth elemental should be one of these tribes’ elders. They are natives
here, and if we could unearth some clues from them, then that would be for the
best.”
Hong Zhu had come to the Magnet Archipelago to search for hidden treasures.
The cruise ship Golden from three millennium past and the two legend level
inheritances from two thousand years ago were the biggest lost treasures of
Magnet Archipelago.
Despite being a silver level, Hong Zhu with a weaker cultivation level than Da
Dou, she was a treasure hunter and was an expert at finding trails.
“I can try; I come bearing good intentions.” Hong Zhu swallowed her saliva,
answering despite the massive pressure Da Dou exerted on her.
Da Dou nodded slightly.
At once, Da Dou looked downwards as Hong Zhu picked up earth elemental and
magnetic earth elemental fragments.
She took out a few alchemy devices and used special tracking battle skills,
quickly obtaining a result.
“I’ve investigated it, follow me. I should be able to find where the earth
elemental tribe is.” Hong Zhu knew this was urgent and moved right after
getting a result.
Da Dou was a spectator to her methods and trusted her a bit more.
Compounded with his incomparable worry about the big guy and knew there was no
time to lose, he followed Hong Zhu away from the chaotic battlefield,
Halfway on the journey, Da Dou was dissatisfied with Hong Zhu’s slowness, so he
picked her up and strode across the Magnet Archipelago, rushing towards a
hillock.
The big guy was still sleeping through all of this, not reacting at all to the
outside world.
The fishman youngster was paying close attention to him but didn’t wake him up.
The gold level earth elemental tribe chief had traveled in a straight line
through the earth to return to their old nest.
“Is the sacrifice arrangement ready for use?” The earth elemental tribe chief
asked.
He quickly got an answer that satisfied him.
“Block the cave mouth, start the ritual and have all fighters on guard. I need
to carry out the sacrifice.” The earth elemental tribe chief commanded.
He came to a specially constructed cave.
The fishman youngster noticed that this cave was very spacious and had a divine
statue standing in the middle of it. The statue was tall, sturdy, and sincere,
it was of the Main Earth Elemental God.
Around the divine statue, there was a divine script formation laid out. 
The magic formation covered almost the entire ground and was roughly 80 square
meters.
The fishman youngster sized up the divine script formation curiously.
This was the first time he had seen such a pure divine script formation. Zhou
Zhang had used a magic formation combined with divine script when conducting
sacrifices. 
The fishman youngster was unexpectedly able to understand and read it somewhat
within a few glances.
“Is this the result of the passive divine spell, Divine Script Mastery?”
Although the Main Earth Elemental God’s divine script had many differences with
Charming Blue Goddess’ divine script, the fishman youngster had a complete
understanding of the fundamentals of Charming Blue Goddess’ language.
The gold level earth elemental tribe chief carefully put down the big guy
beneath the divine statue.
The big guy snored lightly, and his originally swollen belly was gradually
subsiding due to constant digestion.
The earth elemental tribe chief stood back a few steps, then put their hands
together and hung their head in prayer.
Accompanying his litany was the transfer of divine power, causing the divine
script formation to start glowing yellow.
The fishman youngster observed for a moment, making out more clues, “That
damned earth elemental!”
“That is actually a blood sacrifice divine script formation.”
“He wants to treat Xiao Guai as an offering to the Main Earth Elemental God.”
“But…why?”
He braved Da Dou’s pursuit, and snatched away Xiao Guai, don’t tell me they
know about Xiao Guai’s outstanding bloodline?”
The fishman youngster acted at once with Charming Blue divine spells.
When the earth elemental stepped into this cave, they rescinded the divine
domain spell, allowing the fishman youngster’s connection with the big guy to
become inseparably close once again.
Deceptive Disguise and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell!
The classic spell combination was first cast on the Earth Elemental God’s
statue, to prevent them from actually paying attention to this.
Divine spell – Opportunistic Deception!
The divine spell’s power flowed through the divine power channel and bubbled
from the big guy to cover the earth elemental tribe chief’s body.
Halfway through their prayer, the earth elemental tribe chief sensed the Main
Earth Elemental God’s gaze. 
“God, I have wrested control of this offering…” They were instantly excited,
and their tone raised by an octave as they prayed more passionately and
piously.
They were completely unaware they were being deceived.
In their field of view, the statue was issuing an earthen yellow halo. The halo
enveloped the big guy, causing the latter’s body and soul to begin to collapse
and break down like moist sandy soil.
The more the big guy disintegrated, the more the earth elemental tribe chief
felt a wondrous power was pouring into them and beginning to attack the limits
of their life level. 
Bang, bang, bang!
At that moment, the cave shuddered intensely and sounds of fierce fighting
could be heard.
An earth elemental charged into the cave to report about the enemy.
As it turned out, Hong Zhu had successfully led the way, and now Da Dou was
storming into the cave.
The earth elemental tribe chief was both frightened and furious, but they
didn’t get up to fight, rather they intensified the defensives and continued
with their prayer.
Their divine power expenditure accelerated, hastening the blood sacrifice. To
them, the big guy was turning to sand at a faster rate. In actuality, the
divine script formation around them had already been secretly destroyed by the
fishman youngster and the divine power flowing into the broken divine script
formation was rapidly dispersing uselessly.
“Charming Blue divine spells used rationally can produce such unexpectedly
remarkable battle results!”
The fishman youngster’s initial usage had achieved a perfect result, inevitably
causing his mind to shake.
“This is the power of deception?”
“Like the Imperial East’s martial philosophy [four ounces can move a thousand
cattle], using this power at the opportune time can block other gods and toy
with a gold level believer in the palm of my hand.”
The fishman youngster hadn’t traveled to this battlefield and only used a few
divine spells to control the situation.
At this moment, the fishman youngster understand how strong he was.
A gold level divine emissary! 
He knew several hundred divine spells, and if the high level ones were used
sensibly, they could place him above normal gold levels.
“However, the iconic Charming Blue divine spells still need to be used
quietly.”
The Charming Blue Church is in terrible circumstances, and Charming Blue
Goddess is in a gravely wounded hibernation. If I use these divine spells
publicly, the trouble that follows will be massive.



****** Chapter 605: Da Dou’s Bitter Struggle ******
Although earth elementals normally had racial magics that could penetrate walls
and flee through the earth, their lairs had many tunnels and passages dug into
them.
Because drilling through walls and fleeing through the earth cost physical
strength and using racial magic depleted their magic crystal’s power.
As elemental beings, they should be thinking of every possible way to
accumulate power into their magic crystal. Not only could it be used to cope
with critical situations, more crucially, the magic crystal’s power could help
them break through their life level.
Da Dou didn’t have a good experience digging his way into the cave. 
He was a giant with a massive body and couldn’t freely move in these tunnels.
As a matter of fact, earth elemental tunnels were better than dwarven passages,
which were narrower and caused giants to shrink back at the sight of them.
If it were possible Da Dou wouldn’t have dug his own tunnel. But he had no
choice, and to him, it seemed the big guy was in imminent peril, and he had to
race against time to save him.
If he were too slow, he might only find the big guy’s corpse.
Gold battle qi condensed into a giant hand, wildly tearing earth into the air
as Da Dou expanded his underground passage.
At the same time, Da Dou also expended divine power to use the flame divine
spell to bake the earth elementals attacking him.
Battle qi and divine power were being fiercely depleted, but Da Dou’s battle
intent was staunch and unwavering.
Ding.
His fist smashed an earth elemental ambushing him from behind, then quickly
took something out of his Packing Bag. 
This was a rare gold level storage device; the Packing Bag also had an
additional effect: it could keep things fresh.
Under normal circumstances, magic chef dishes had a short expiration date.
Usually, it was to be eaten the day it was made, and occasionally it would last
two or three days.
The longer time went on, the more the magic power of these magic dishes would
dissipate, leading to their tumbling quality. This was the best scenario, more
often, the magic power would be jumbled, and it would poison people who ate it.
But the Packing Bag could extend the expiration date of food to an extent.
Da Dou took out a dish from his Packing Bag.
It was a Candied Potato!
This was a gold level magic dish.
Da Dou tilted his neck, opened his mouth, and shoved down the entire Candied
Potato.
After chewing it a bit, he swallowed it with a gulp. 
His depleted battle qi was instantly replenished at a very swift recovery rate.
Battle qi was easy to replenish, while divine power was difficult to do so.
Prayer was the main way but now was not the time for that.
After eating the Candied Potato, Da Dou took out some magic rainbow candy.
He didn’t peel back the wrapping due to time, deciding to throw them into his
mouth wrapped instead.
He used his hard teeth to firmly crunch them into fragments, then swallowed
again.
Blarg~
Da Dou’s complexion suddenly twisted.
So sweet!
The magic rainbow candy was quickly digested in his belly.
All kinds of magical radiances immediately rose from his body. Within a few
seconds, Da Dou was empowered by kinds of amplification magic that affected his
speed, endurance, defense, perception, and more by a small amount.
Da Dou took a deep breath, then continued to dig deeper.
The tribe chief had commanded that the earth elementals resist with their
lives.
They formed a defensive line and used their racial magics together to reinforce
the land.
Numerous silver levels disturbed Da Dou. He had to use more gold level battle
qi to excavate the soil and enlarge the tunnel enough for Da Dou to walk
through.
Racial magic – Earth Thorn.
Earth thorns suddenly appeared from nowhere. With plenty underneath his feet,
along the narrow tunnel walls, and shooting down from the ceiling.
Da Dou had no choice but to use a gold level defensive battle skill to shield
his body.
Most of the thorns were stopped, but a few penetrated Da Dou’s battle skill and
cut into him.
This was the earth elemental’s homeland, it was their nest, and where they
reproduced. It was only natural they operated and arranged it with utmost care.
The deeper the tunnel went, the stronger the defenses were and the more
powerful the deployments.
There were many earth elementals living in the Magnet Archipelago, and they
often had conflicts, arguments, and even fought against each other.
After all, the Magnet Archipelago was surrounded by the boundless ocean and the
soil was finite, so earth elementals had to compete for resources to survive
and grow.
Hong Zhu was behind Da Dou but maintained a long distance.
After finding Da Dou the right place, she also snuck into the tunnel.
“An angry giant really is scary.”
“He’s wounded!”
“It seems the stolen small giant is really important to him.”
Hong Zhu guessed at the relationship between Da Dou and the big guy while
picking up the earth and magnetic earth elemental essences and magic crystals
along the way.
“I’m rich!”
“Helping the giant find the enemy’s old nest was the right decision.”
“He surprisingly didn’t collect any of the silver level magic crystals, he
really is heroic.”
Da Dou was focused on the big guy’s safety, and he didn’t dare to spend the
brief time it would take to grab the magic crystals.
Hong Zhu smirked as Da Dou madly charged head, these gains were quite
beneficial.
“Why hasn’t the gold level tribe chief appeared yet?”
“Now that the earth elemental tribe has their attention on the fire giant, I
can go to their treasury and take away their valuables.”
Because earth elementals could penetrate through walls and the ground, they
could often collect many treasures and resources from the hearts of mountains
and the depths of the earth.
Hong Zhu took out an alchemy device and began to investigate which direction
the treasury might be.
Da Dou’s attack speed grew slower, and Hong Zhu didn’t want to get mixed up in
this. She was only concerned about taking this opportunity to fish for benefits
and snuck away in another direction.
After a short time, he came to a wide and empty underground plaza.
“This must be an important location to the earth elementals. Even if it is
noisy outside, it must still have guards here.”
Hong Zhu grew more excited.
The guards were two iron level earth elementals, while Hong Zhu was a silver
level, capable of breaking through them.
But Hong Zhu didn’t think about breaking in with force.
Although these two earth elemental guards were a level lower than Hong Zhu,
they would be very difficult to deal with if they actually fought.
The reason was that earth elementals had a comparatively special life
structure, they had nearly no fatal weak points. Their only fatal weak point
was their magic crystal. However, their magic crystal could move anywhere in
their body, and as long as the magic crystal held energy, it could be expended
and absorb the earth elements around it and quickly mend the elemental’s body.
Hong Zhu took out three alchemy items and used then in succession, then with a
pained look, she resolutely drank half of a gold level potion.
Hong Zhu quickly went invisible, and her aura dwindled to an absolute minimum.
Right in front of the earth elemental guards, she carefully entered this closed
area step by step.
It wasn’t the treasury she was looking to find, but…a graveyard.
But Hong Zhu became more excited.
Because the cemetery was where dead earth elementals were buried, where they
left behind their magic crystals!
Hong Zhu began to stealthily dig up the graves.
Most of the magic crystals that were excavated were full of elemental energy,
but a few were badly damaged and had little or no energy in them.
But even these broken magic crystals still made for good magic power crystal
materials.
After digging up 16 magic crystals, Hong Zhu triggered the alarm in her
inattentiveness.
The two earth elemental guards became furious and instantly spurred themselves
into sweeping the entire cemetery.
Hong Zhu was forced to show herself and fight the earth elemental guards.
During the battle, she searched for a chance to break out of the cemetery and
escaped.
After the two earth elemental guards pursued her for a distance, they returned
to their post.
A group of earth elementals were informed of this, and they chased down the
fleeing Hong Zhu while bellowing repeatedly.
Because a few silver level earth elementals entered the battle, Hong Zhu’s
circumstances took an abrupt turn.
She wanted to escape to the surface, but she noticed that the tunnel was
blocked with silver level earth elementals.
“Go find the fire giant!” Hong Zhu thought harshly, changing her direction to
go deeper into the tunnels.
Da Dou had broken through three defensive lines, destroying a number of silver
level earth elementals.
Racial magic – Rolling Stone!
More than a dozen earth elementals used this racial magic together.
Extraordinary power burst forth, converging and combining with each other to
condense into a gigantic rolling sphere of stone.
The rolling stone rumbled the earth as it tumbled towards Da Dou.
The tunnel walls were reinforced, and Da Dou, unable to evade it in time, was
forced to clench his teeth and endure it head on with his chest.
The gold battle qi hand quickly crushed the rolling stone.
Da Dou raised his arms and ferociously slapped the rolling stone with his
palms, causing it to stop spinning.
But the sheer size and faint divine script glittering on the rolling stone’s
surface meant the rolling stone’s might was not diminished as it hit Da Dou in
the chest.
Three or four of Da Dou’s ribs immediately snapped, causing him to cough out
blood.
He withstood the sharp pain, growling as he used an offensive battle skill, and
with a string of three explosions, turned the rolling stone to bits.
The earth elementals rushed back in retreat, establishing a new emergency
defensive line.
Hidden from view in the dust for a moment, Da Dou knelt to the ground and
gasped for breath.
He took out another thing from his Packing Bag.
The challenging assault had depleted his stamina, battle qi, and more gravely.
His body was greatly wounded and blood flowed incessantly. His fractured ribs
caused him constant pain that made Da Dou’s eyes twitch.
He took out a magic dish from his Packing Bag.
This simple task caused his arm to tremble.
The earth elementals were always known for their defense. And to defeat the
silver level earth elementals, he had to use a lot of battle qi to thoroughly
destroy their bodies. If some parts of them remained, he couldn’t be sure if
their magic crystals were hidden in it and allow the earth elemental to avoid
death.
This tunnel was extremely rich with earth elements and within two or three
seconds, an earth elemental could regenerate to as they were before.
Da Dou was really tired and greatly depleted.
He devoured a magic dish and made every second count as he recovered.
His wounds quickly stopped bleeding and began to heal. His fractured ribs were
put back together, his battle qi reserves soared from rock bottom, his mind was
like a clear spring flowing into a desert, and he became bursting with life
once again.
Using battle skills consumed mental power too. The more complex a battle skill
was, the more mental power it took.



****** Chapter 606: Da Dou vs the Earth Elemental Chief ******
Against Da Dou’s all-out attack, the earth elementals were paying with heavy
casualties.
Taking advantage of when Da Dou was busy eating food and resting, the remaining
earth elementals mustered together to build a final defensive line, still ready
to defend it to the death!
The tribe chief was the only gold level in the tribe and had undoubtable
prestige.
Although earth elementals were intelligent lifeforms, they didn’t have minds as
flexible as humans and would rarely betray or rout.
Adding on the fact that Da Dou was attacking their home meant that these earth
elementals were very angry.
Therefore, although the earth elementals had taken massive casualties, as long
as the tribe chief remained undefeated, they still maintained morale.
“These stubborn rock heads, I will shatter each of you to pieces!” Da Dou
clenched his teeth, straightened his chest, and began to attack again.
A few minutes later.
With a boom, Da Dou smashed a hole into the sacrificial cave.
He was covered in blood and cut and bruised all over, yet his battle intent had
soared to its highest yet.
The earth elemental tribe elder was startled; they immediately stood up and
turned around to look at Da Dou nervously.
The fishman youngster also coldly snorted when he noticed Da Dou.
“This Da Dou is really attached to Xiao Guai!”
“Instead of participating in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s ceremony, he would
rather break its laws to steal away Xiao Gui, that indicates that he likely saw
Xiao Guai’s potential.”
“A gold level potential would not cause Da Dou to be so excited. Therefore, he
believes the big guy has at least a saint level aptitude!”
This matter made the fishman youngster aware of how attractive a saint level
bloodline was.
It wasn’t just Da Dou; the gold level earth elemental tribe chief had stolen
the big guy away because of this too.
But their goal was different from Da Dou’s.
They wanted to use the big guy as an offering to the Main Earth Elemental God
in exchange for the Main Earth Elemental God’s divine favor, allowing them to
break through the bottleneck in their life level.
“Bloodlines cannot be altered; this is common sense. But the gods can defy
common sense and truly smash conventions.”
“Gods are omnipotent!”
As he thought that, the fishman youngster had a complex expression.
Although he was not a god, he was a divine emissary and after he learned many
high level divine spells, the fishman youngster had a taste of how gods styled
themselves as. 
Just the divine spell Believer Perception had expanded his horizons greatly.
Although the fishman youngster had only been in contact with this church and
divine spells for a short time, his clergy rank had risen step by step, and his
understanding of the phrase “Gods are Omnipotent” had advanced by leaps and
bounds. He now had a deeper comprehension of it than most clergy.
“But even if it is a god, improving bloodlines must come at a considerable
cost.”
“If that weren’t so, they would have made batches of believers with high level
bloodlines and cultivated them into experts with all they had.”
Considering the unfolding situation, the fishman youngster easily surmised this
truth.
If gods didn’t pay a high price, then the world structure would be completely
different. If this price was even a bit lower, then the saying “bloodlines
cannot be altered” would not be a consensus of society.
The fishman youngster had seldom heard of times when gods acted personally to
change a believer’s bloodline aptitude.
The fishman youngster came to realize that he was in a very rare situation!
“What is so different about this earth elemental that the Main Earth Elemental
God grants them their favor?”
“I heard their litany; the Main Earth Elemental God seemed to have promised
that they would break through the elemental’s life level bottleneck.”
“It seems the Main Earth Elemental God is capable of improving earth elemental
bloodlines.”
“In terms of strength, the Main Earth Elemental God is the ruler of the Earth
Element Plane and is the main god of a pantheon, they must be stronger than
Charming Blue Goddess.”
“Charming Blue Goddess could change fishman bloodlines, so there is nothing
strange about the Main Earth Elemental God being able to change earth elemental
bloodlines.”
“Perhaps this is related to racial makeup of their clergy…”
“Charming Blue Goddess has fishman clergy, therefore she is capable of
improving fishman bloodlines. The Main Earth Elemental God must have earth
elemental clergy; therefore, they can change the bloodlines of earth elemental
believers.”
The fishman youngster’s quick and smart mind quickly made a pile of
conjectures. 
“Truly a group of wastrels!” The gold level earth elemental tribe chief
actually cursed.
They were now at the most crucial part of the sacrifice, and it could not be
interrupted, or else all of their previous efforts would be wasted,
unfortunately, this was when Da Dou had charged in.
During this impossible situation, the fishman youngster began to declare false
oracles.
He told the earth elemental tribe chief that if they immediately repulsed the
enemy and killed Da Dou, it would put the earth elemental tribe’s majestic
presence and honor on display. As for the blood sacrifice, it could be
suspended for now. After they won the battle, the earth elemental tribe chief
could go back to it.
“My God, I will not betray the leniency and benevolence you have bestowed!”
After the earth elemental tribe chief obtained this promise, they instantly
became ecstatic and grateful.
Without the psychological burden, they immediately charged out and confronted
Da Dou.
This battle was different from before.
Previously, the earth elemental tribe chief was persistently fleeing, doing
their best to protect their offering, the big guy. They had no thoughts of
fighting Da Dou at all. At the time, the blood sacrifice was the main event.
Now, eradicating Da Dou has become their primary objective.
The fishman youngster’s false oracle was crucial, and while the earth elemental
tribe chief was running away, they had been accumulating a lot of anger. Anger
that their home had been invaded and hatred that their people had suffered
disastrous casualties. Both spurred the earth elemental tribe chief into an
energetically ruthless maneuver.
Bang, bang, bang…
Both sides fought fiercely, and for a moment, their blows caused rock to fly
and earthquakes to tremor.
Da Dou’s eyes were already red from killing, warmed up with ample battle intent
that burned like raging flames.
The earth elemental had been praying and sacrificing to maintain their peak
state.
The giant and tall earth elemental fought like adult magic beasts battling with
tooth and nail. They collided head on, and neither shrank back from the other’s
heavy and powerful strikes.
Fists, bumping shoulders, headbutts, and other such attacks were thrown at each
other, earnestly hitting flesh.
The cave was narrow, and this unusual battlefield caused them both to
independently choose hand to hand combat.
Dao Dou was quickly battered badly.
While the earth elemental’s body was constantly shaking, with big chunks of it
falling off.
But the earth elemental had the favorable location and quickly utilized the
extremely abundant natural earth elements around to quickly regenerate their
shattered body.
Da Dou knew that these exchanges were wholly against him, so he quickly used
battle skills to constantly break through the earth elemental’s defenses and
strike at their body.
But the earth elemental tribe chief had plenty of battle experience, and while
they fought, they were also using their mental power to control the movement of
their magic crystal in their body, perfectly evading Da Dou’s search.
Da Dou struck the earth elemental tribe chief’s body a dozen times yet didn’t
even see a hint of their magic crystal.
After many fruitless efforts, Da Dou recognized reality and was forced to sigh
to himself, give up on getting lucky, and start to use flame divine spells.



****** Chapter 607: Earth Breath ******
With a cry, Da Dou’s entire body suddenly ignited.
In a flash, he became a flame wreathed giant.
Because the earth elemental tribe chief was fighting him in hand to hand
combat, they were immediately roasted by the flames, and the affected areas
were baked like pottery.
At the same time, the Fire God spells also injured their spirit, causing them
to growl again and again and fall back in a flurry.
Da Dou’s morale rose, the flame divine spells got instant results, allowing him
to hold the advantage.
He seized this opportunity to chase down the kill.
Da Dou was impatient. Because unlike battle qi, he had limited methods to
recover his divine power.
Although Da Dou wore a fire totem, this was from his teacher. He himself was
not a high level believer.
If he had a high position, then that would be another thing.
The fishman youngster watched from the sidelines, calmly observing the two gold
levels fighting each other to the death.
“With just a false oracle transmission, I was able to manufacture this good
show, that was too easy.” The fishman youngster sighed incessantly.
At first, he wanted to fight the earth elemental chief by himself. But in the
end, Da Dou had charged in, saving the fishman youngster a good deal of effort.
“Let’s add more fuel to the fire.” The fishman youngster thought.
He immediately used a divine spell.
A moment later, Da Dou saw the big guy lying under the Earth Elemental God’s
statue, his body enveloped with a layer of yellow light.
The yellow light was turning the big guy into decomposing sand.
Da Dou anxiously glared at that, then with a roar, he abandoned his opponent
and attacked the Earth Elemental God’s statue.
When the earth elemental tribe chief saw his opponent turn around and expose an
opening, they ruthlessly lashed out at it.
Da Dou’s back was heavily struck by the earth elemental tribe chief, causing
him to instantly cough up blood. However, he took advantage of this impact to
accelerate towards the big guy.
It was the earth elemental tribe chief’s turn to be anxious.
He had been deceived by the fishman youngster’s divine spell earlier, and to
them it seemed that the big guy was already dead. Most of his body had melted,
with only the lower half of his body remaining.
But they couldn’t allow Da Dou to take the body away.
Despite the Main Earth Elemental God saying they had suspended the blood
sacrifice to be continued later, if the sacrificial offering was dead, could
the sacrifice still proceed? Wouldn’t God be angry and drop divine punishment
upon them as a consequence? Perhaps God would be disappointed that the earth
elemental tribe chief could not guard the offering, and simply deny this
sacrifice?
The earth elemental chief didn’t dare to gamble on this.
After all, even if the Main Earth Elemental God didn’t keep their word, there
was nothing the tribe chief could do. More crucially, based on the rules of
sacrifice, if the big guy was snatched away, the Main Earth Elemental God
wouldn’t be reneging on their promise if they backed out after that.
In a moment of desperation, the earth elemental tribe chief used their
strongest offensive skill without the slightest hesitation.
Their chest deformed, revealing their inner heart, and exposing the magic
crystal inside.
The earthy, yellow magic crystal suddenly shot out bright light, and faintly
within that light was a large amount of natural magic runes. They drifted one
after the other, appearing and disappearing, appearing to be a number of magic
runes.
These runes mixed together in a flash and condensed into an energy ball that
wrapped around the magic crystal.
A moment later, this energy ball suddenly erupted with resplendent light and
formed a gigantic beam of light that shot through the air.
Racial magic: Earth Breath - Impact Pillar!
At the same time, the earth elemental tribe chief was also using a divine
spell.
They made a stone barrier around the “big guy’s lower half” that covered the
remaining blood sacrifice offering like a burial mound.
Divine spell – Yellow Stone Shield!
The area the earth elemental tribe chief was covering up was of course a fake,
in truth, they were covering nothing.
In truth, the big guy had been moved by the fishman youngster earlier. The
latter had utilized divine spells to quietly move his son into the corner and
also used many divine spells to protect him immensely.
But the earth elemental tribe chief and Da Dou perceived things differently.
Da Dou saw that the big guy was still very much intact but had been covered up
by Yellow Stone Shield.
He immediately used an offensive battle skill, smashing only a layer of the
shield.
While the earth elemental tribe chief’s strongest attack was about to hit his
back.
Da Dou’s back felt numb, and the fear in his heart caused his hair to stand.
He quickly evaded!
Earth Breath – Impact Pillar was almost about to hit him, as the light beam
magic was also taking effect. Da Dou’s movements became heavy and slow, like he
was burdened by an object weighing hundreds of kilograms.
If it were another, perhaps they would have been hit already, but Da Dou had a
brilliant plan to escape this.
A moment later, he used the flame divine spell to turn into a flame that faded
away.
A near instant later, he appeared in the corner of the cave, smoothly
extricating himself from colliding with the light beam.
“Still failed!” The earth elemental tribe chief sighed to themselves.
Earth Breath was a racial magic, on the surface it appeared to resemble light,
but that was not so.
Although it was very powerful, it was hard to hit an enemy with.
Earth Breath – Impact Pillar didn’t hit Da Dou, on the contrary, it struck the
Yellow Stone Shield.
The earth elemental used the Impact Pillar battle skill with all of the
strength, and it was their strongest offensive method, however, Yellow Stone
Shield had firm defenses and Impact Pillar did nothing to it.
This also reflected the earth elemental’s fighting characteristics – their
defense was far stronger than their offense!
However, the truth Da Dou saw in his eyes had been distorted by the fishman
youngster.
Deceived by the Charming Blue divine spell, Da Dou saw the big guy’s shield
break.
Da Dou glowered as he glared at that crack.
He hesitated for an instant, then let out a growl. He proceeded to shockingly
jump in front of Impact Pillar to hold back the fatal attack that had not yet
hit the sleeping big guy.
He used a defensive battle skill, but the sudden activation meant he was unable
to maximize its defensive effects. 
The earth elemental tribe chief was about to deactivate their battle skill
regretfully, when suddenly, they saw their opponent do something stupid,
causing them to immediately become ecstatic, causing them to both increase the
flow of their magic power and also change their tactics.
Racial magic: Earth Breath - Pestle Grind.
The earth elemental tribe chief increased their energy output and altered their
attack type from impact to grinding.
For a moment, earth type magic power bubbled from the magic crystal
unrestrained, divulging itself as much as it liked!
The light beam’s diameter increased sharply by a third as Earth Breath
constantly scoured Da Dou’s front.
Da Dou lowered his head and raised his arms to form a temporary shield to
resist this attack with all he had.
He squeezed all of his gold level battle qi and condensed it around his body.
But under the grinding Earth Breath, it was quickly pulverized and dissipated.
Under the battle qi was the divine spell Fire Protection.
But divine power was quickly being exhausted and the flames dissipated too.
Thus, Da Dou’s flesh was the final line of defense.
The fire giant inevitably hesitated, and he looked down at the opening in the
Yellow Stone Shield, where he could see the shut eyed and sleeping big guy. He
endured the pain and dispelled his plans of retreat; he would defend the big
guy to the death and would never retreat!
The light beam lasted a full 30 seconds before it finally dissipated.
Da Dou remained standing, his feet already buried in the ground, leaving deep
scars in the earth from the 2 meters he had been pushed.



****** Chapter 608: No Idea What to Do ******
Most of the flesh on Da Dou’s arms had been grinded away, exposing his badly
damaged bones. 
Poof.
He could no longer persevere and had to kneel.
His arms powerlessly drooped to the sides, blood and sweat mixing as they
dripped down.
His face was a miserable pale white, he was gasping for air, and his originally
bright and shining eyes were now downcast.
He had suffered serious damage!
When the fishman youngster saw this, his face gradually changed.
Da Dou looked exhausted and was kneeling on the ground, nevertheless, he
immediately launched a counterattack.
Battle skill – Big Saucepan Lid!
Gold level battle qi whizzed and formed a saucepan lid that covered the earth
elemental tribe chief.
The earth elemental tribe chief was still catching their breath, and couldn’t
evade it, being subdued for the time being.
Da Dou couldn’t attend to his bleeding mouth and nose, shouting at the earth
elemental tribe chief from behind, “Come over here, help me get him out.”
Naturally, he was not yelling at the earth elemental tribe chief, but Hong Zhu.
Hong Zhu had been following him, using his assault to get filthy rich. Da Dou
was fighting against time to rescue the big guy and had observed her actions,
not saying anything or stopping her.
When Hong Zhu heard Da Dou calling out to them, her heart suddenly jumped.
As a silver level, participating in a fight of this level was undoubtedly
fraught with danger.
But a moment later, she clenched her teeth and ran over, avoiding the corner
where the earth elemental tribe chief was and came to Da Dou.
As a treasure hunter, Hong Zhu had a strong spirit of adventure. Her main
consideration at this moment was that since she had shown kindness to Da Dou
previously, and gotten massive benefits as a result, she might as well take it
a step further and work with him again.
Hong Zhu felt that if she did that, she would earn more profits!
What she saw was almost identical to what Da Dou saw, the big guy was still in
good condition and lying on the floor. Even though the fighting was fierce, he
was still sound asleep.
Hong Zhu clenched her teeth and said to Da Dou, “My Lord, I can’t carry him
away.”
Da Dou replied, “I have a storage device on my waist called the Packing Bag.
“Put him in and leave immediately!”
Hong Zhu was overjoyed, even if Da Dou died in battle, she would obtain the
Packing Bag. This was a gold level storage device!
At once, Hong Zhu took the Packing Bag after receiving access from Da Dou. 
Da Dou forced himself to break open the Yellow Stone Shield that had been
ravaged by Earth Breath. 
Hong Zhu touched the big guy.
Then after putting “the big guy” into the Packing Bag, she ran away.
Of course, the truth was that she put a bunch of air into the Packing Bag,
which was exceptionally hilarious to watch.
But the fishman youngster did not smile, instead he was in a somewhat complex
mood.
Although Da Dou had kidnapped the big guy, the fishman youngster had seen him
dash in bravely with no concern for his safety and fight bravely till he was
soaked in blood; those acts had diminished his ire greatly.
Da Dou risked his life to vie with Earth Breath and protect the big guy.
“It seems he wholeheartedly wants to train Xiao Guai…”
Da Dou could have evaded the attack, but he decided to intercept Earth Breath
at his own accord.
Because of Yellow Stone Earth Shield still being around the big guy, Da Dou
couldn’t abscond with him.
Da Dou withstood Earth Breath for no less than 30 seconds, and even though his
injuries grew heavier, he did not retreat and persevered until the end of the
attack.
Not long after Hong Zhu left, the Big Saucepan Lid was overturned.
The earth elemental tribe chief saw that Hong Zhu had taken away the big guy’s
lower half.
Without hesitation, he immediately wanted to pursue her.
Da Dou jumped over to intercept him.
The earth elemental tribe chief exploded in anger, and as they fought, the
chief tried their best to break past Da Dou.
Da Dou was heavily injured, and his military strength had tumbled severely,
thus, he was unable to last long.
Then the moment the earth elemental was about to break out, Da Dou’s heart
surged as he grabbed the earth elemental’s body and used a gold level battle
skill.
The battle qi formed chains that firmly bound Da Dou and the earth elemental
tribe chief together.
The earth elemental tribe chief tried to break the battle qi chains but
couldn’t for the time being.
He wildly attacked Da Dou, wanting to pursue their enemy, causing the battle qi
chains to lose their effectiveness.
Da Dou didn’t have the strength to strike back and could only use his back to
bear these heavy strikes.
Every attack caused Da Dou to cough out blood.
Very quickly, his backbones broke. The back injury was horrendous, yet he still
wouldn’t let go no matter what.
Then before Da Dou was beaten to death, the fishman youngster softly sighed.
At that moment, he had a change of plans.
He acted.
Through Believer Perception and Divine Power Channel, he called out, “Xiao
Guai.”
“Father!” The big guy immediately responded as he dreamed.
“Xiao Guai, I need to use your body, don’t be nervous. I need you to trust me
completely.”
The fishman youngster prepared to use a divine spell for the first time ever,
he was somewhat tense.
In contrast, the big guy nodded repeatedly, there was no hint of hesitation in
him.
“Now, call my name.” The young man said.
The big guy shouted, “Father!”
The fishman youngster was startled, then smiled, “Excellent.”
Divine spell – Divine Descent spell!
Vast divine power suddenly poured in from within the fishman youngster,
traveling through the divine power channel and quickly into the big guy’s
heart.
In the corner, the big guy’s eyes suddenly opened. But he didn’t look normal,
rather his eyes were rolled back white. 
A moment later, Charming Blue Goddess’ divine light bubbled out, inking the
whites of the eyes blue.
The big guy quickly stood up.
But he wasn’t the one in control, rather he had been replaced by the fishman
youngster.
“This feels a bit new.” The fishman youngster seemed to have become the big
guy, but not quite, there was still a layer of separation between them.
He could sense both his body and the big guy’s body simultaneously.
It was like he was divided into two people.
Without carefully savoring this experience, the fishman youngster sallied out.
He first controlled the big guy to run into the cave.
An earth elemental suddenly appeared in front of Hong Zhu. 
“How many more are there?!” Hong Zhu was taken aback.
The earth elementals had formed a tight defensive line and forced Hong Zhu
back.
She returned to the sacrifice rite cave, and upon seeing the earth elemental
tribe chief ruthlessly beating Da Dou, knew the situation was far from good.
When Da Dou saw Hong Zhu return, he was extremely surprised, and his mind
slackened.
The earth elemental tribe chief seized this opportunity to hit Da Dou to the
ground.
Da Dou was dying from his wounds and was unable to stop them.
The earth elemental tribe chief didn’t know why Hong Zhu had returned, but they
laughed upon ridding themselves of their hindrance, then attacked with ecstasy.
Hong Zhu turned pale, to her, she seemed to be in a pincer attack.
“I lost my gamble!”
“If I had known earlier, I wouldn’t have taken away that small giant.”
“I’m going to die!”
Hong Zhu did her best to use her battle qi, but strong earth type magic
shackled her. She was like an insect who fell into amber, unable to budge at
all.
In this moment of despair, Hong Zhu, Da Dou, as well as the earth elemental
tribe chief saw the Packing Bag suddenly spray out a beam of light.
The light beam struck the cave ceiling, then broke away.
Then subsequently, a small giant fell to the ground.
It was the big guy!
The big guy had his head high and chest out, his entire both was immersed in
earthen yellow divine light, his presence was immense, and his apathetic
expression leaked an indescribable dignity.
The big guy attacked the earth elemental tribe chief.
With one strike, he threw the latter into the air and crushed half their body.
Da Dou’s and Hong Zhu’s eyes widened, rigidly staring at the big guy who
descended like a heavenly soldier, feeling both incredulous and happy that they
had escaped danger.
The earth elemental tribe chief was even more bewildered and frightened.
Unlike the other two, they didn’t see the big guy!
In their cognition, they felt an inexplicably heavy strike send them flying. 
“What’s going on?!” The earth elemental tribe chief was still dazed when the
fishman youngster’s follow up attack hit.
The battle progress was obvious at a glance.
A crushing victory!
The big guy was winning from start to finish, and his superiority could not be
surmounted.
With the fishman youngster’s help, all kinds of gold level divine spells were
enough to be a fatal menace.
The earth elemental tribe chief was not in a good condition to start; Da Dou
had reduced his battle strength by a lot.
Most crucially was that Charming Blue divine spells were deceiving them. They
were unable to see the culprit despite the big guy obviously being right in
front of their eyes!
Finally, the earth elemental tribe chief’s courage was scared away. Faced with
an unseeable enemy, they decided to abandon their plan of sacrificing to the
gods and used a racial magic spell in an attempt to flee.
They were deceived however, they believed that they had activated the spell,
but in actuality, they hadn’t mobilized their magic power at all.
The big guy hurried after them, reached into their body, and yanked out their
magic crystal.
Without the magic crystal, the earth elemental tribe chief’s aura suddenly
sank.
They subconsciously looked behind them, towards the big guy, despite not being
able to see any trace of the enemy.
The fishman youngster used a divine spell to easily exterminate the earth
elemental tribe chief.
The dust settled.
The big guy walked over to Da Dou and looked down at him.
Da Dou raised his head, barely able to look at the big guy, his stunned
expression gradually waned, forced aside by a complex, forced smile.
“I…”
“I’m dying.”
“Although I stole you, it was out of good intentions.”
“I concede I had selfish motives, but it was beneficial to both you and
Eruption Island. Only there will you have the space and sufficient resources to
grow.”
“I didn’t expect that you were a pious believer…”
The big guy slowly raised his hand, and just as Da Dou thought he was about to
die, cast a healing divine spell on him.
Da Dou suddenly stared blankly.
The divine spell’s healing was pretty good, and it immediately stopped his
bleeding, but he still only had a breath of life.
Then a divine spell contract appeared in his mind.
“A slave contract?!” Da Dou was astonished.
The big guy slowly opened his mouth, “Live, or die?”
Da Dou was lying on his stomach, and no longer raised his head, instead he
helplessly buried his face into the ground, laughing bitterly from there.
Soon after that laugh, the fishman youngster’s mind moved, sensing that Da Dou
had accepted this divine spell slave contract.
Afterwards, he revoked the Divine Descent spell and before undoing the divine
power channel, warned the big guy repeatedly.
To the side, Hong Zhu watched with amazement as the big guy’s grandeur suddenly
vanished and his dignified expression also collapsed into foolishness.
The big guy’s eyes returned to normal, and he shook his head, however, the
strong vertigo put him off balance and he fell onto his butt.
Thus, the big guy and Da Dou foolishly looked at each other not knowing what to
do.



****** Chapter 609: Finding a Place for Xiao Guai ******
In the messy cave, the big guy and Da Dou looked at each other.
After a while, the big guy’s mind returned, and he remembered when Da Dou
humiliated him in battle.
He suddenly flinched back and wanted to flee. Then at that moment, he recalled
what the dragonman youngster had said to him repeatedly in his dream.
“Xiao Guai, don’t be scared.”
“Father has already taught that bad red skin giant a lesson.”
“He will listen to you now. You can eat his good food, and if there is a
villain that wants to harm you, he will protect you.”
“Wait on that island for now, your father will come pick you up.”
Thinking of that, the big guy barely calmed down.
Meanwhile, Da Dou’s state of mind was endlessly churning, “That was the Divine
Descent spell, if I’m not mistaken.”
Da Dou realized the big guy had changed.
Hong Zhu suddenly said, “Lords, we must leave without delay. Although this
earth elemental tribe has been defeated, this fierce battle will cause other
tribes to investigate.”
Those words were reasonable, and Da Dou propped his body from the ground with
an arm and slowly got up.
After being healed by the fishman youngster, his injuries had stabilized, and
his serious wounds became minor injuries.
He stood up and coughed twice, but unlike before, no blood came out.
His internal injuries such as his broken bones had been healed.
It could be said that without the fishman youngster’s divine healing spell, Da
Dou would have died. 
Of course, he had one final way of survival, that was praying to the gods as he
neared death.
But Da Dou didn’t have faith in that, he was very clear on how ordinary his
conviction was.
“Magnet Archipelago is too small, and earth elemental tribes constantly erupt
into war to take territory from each other.”
“We must leave without delay.”
“Ma-, master.” Da Dou said to the big guy.
Hong Zhu’s eyes shrank, and her mind shook, “That really was a slave contract!”
Despite seeing the whole thing with her own eyes, she was sighing incessantly
over it.
The grand gold level giant had been reduced to a slave; this end was utterly
beyond Hong Zhu’s expectations.
However, upon careful recollection, she felt that this was both rational and
natural.
The big guy under the Divine Descent spell was extremely formidable.
Inconceivably powerful!
The earth elemental tribe chief couldn’t even retaliate and had been thrashed
the entire time. Hong Zhu also realized that the big guy under Divine Descent
seemed to be able to interfere with the enemy’s senses and the earth elemental
tribe chief’s attacks never hit anything.
This was the world of the strong.
Since the big guy under Divine Descent was so powerful, then Da Dou
surrendering to him was reasonable.
Da Dou extended his right hand to the big guy.
The big guy stared at it foolishly, not daring to take it.
But at that moment, his ears rang with the fishman youngster’s encouragement.
“Father is looking at me.” When the big guy thought that he immediately swelled
with courage.
A moment later, he extended his hand.
The two giants grasped each other’s hand.
Da Dou used his strength to pull the big guy up from the ground.
“Human woman, please lead the way.” Da Dou ordered Hong Zhu.
Hong Zhu hurriedly nodded.
Thus, Hong Zhu walked in front, followed by Da Dou and the big guy.
As Da Dou looked at the big guy behind him, he had mixed feelings.
He finally had a peaceful interaction with the big guy, but he didn’t expect it
would be in this state, he had been reduced to the big guy’s slave!
White Hair Trench.
The fishman youngster’s mind returned to his body, and he examined himself.
“My internal divine power is nearly exhausted, and divine favor has been
severely depleted by 2,000.”
But the battle results were unsurpassed!
The fishman youngster had used many divine spells, playing as the hidden hand
that cleverly exploited the conflict between enemies. In the end, he
annihilated the gold level earth elemental tribe chief and also subdued a gold
level giant magic chef.
“As a divine emissary, when I use these divine spells, I deplete my reserves of
divine power and divine favor.”
“Fortunately, the enemies had greatly exhausted the other, otherwise if I was
just relying on my own power, saving the big guy would be an easy matter, but
obtaining such a battle result would be nearly impossible.”
“Anyways, the large amount of expended divine power and divine favor might be
related to Xiao Guai’s beliefs. He is not a Charming Blue believer; he is my
fanatical believer.”
The big guy’s body was not affected by divine power and hadn’t been
imperceptibly influenced by it over a long period of time.
Naturally, this would lead to a greater loss of divine power.
“If it were on my own body, I would have definitely saved a lot of divine power
and divine favor.”
This battle had given the fishman youngster immense gains.
First, he tried out a high level divine spell, gaining valuable combat
experience.
Second, he saved the big guy’s life.
Third, he tested out his own combat strength. A gold level divine emissary
could fight and direct operations remotely from great distances. Relying on
high level divine spells, (most importantly Deceptive Disguise), the fishman
youngster could easily defeat gold level elites. But this also exposed his own
deficiencies, such as his massive expenditure rate, making him incapable of a
prolonged fight. To carry out such a battle, he needed believers to be in place
beforehand.
Fourth, he obtained a gold level giant slave!
Saving Da Dou’s life was a thought out decision, not an impulsive one. 
He had thought through three things.
The first was that Da Dou’s battle performance, where he truly protected the
big guy with all his might had moved the fishman youngster.
Second, Da Dou’s background gave the fishman youngster misgivings. He came from
Eruption Island, a legend level power. It would be for the best if they weren’t
enemies.
Third, the fishman youngster had given sufficient consideration to the current
situation.
Before this, he had believed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in a good
situation. But from the big guy’s memory, the fishman youngster found out he
was being too optimistic.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ branch had been attacked, a gold level
assassin attacked “Zong Ge”. This was sufficient to make out that Zi Di and
Zong Ge were in a nasty situation.
After the fishman youngster saved the big guy, he no longer wanted him to
return to Snow Bird Harbor, it was not safe there and was instead overwhelmed
with crisis.
The fishman youngster understood that despite the big guy’s life level
advancing by leaps and bounds and his bodily essence being quite visible, the
big guy was unable to protect himself, and if he encountered ambush, poison, or
other such things, he would be easily disposed of.
The big guy had at least a saint level potential, and during the eating
contest, he had exposed some of his aptitude. This caused Da Dou to steal him,
surely others took note of that.
Under these circumstances, the fishman youngster sending the big guy back to
Snow Bird Harbor might lead to another kidnapping him!
“This time, when I tried Believer Perception, I unexpectedly gained information
from the big guy. Next time I might not be so lucky.”
After thinking it over, the fishman youngster felt that continuing to have Da
Dou look after the big guy as they stayed temporarily on Magnet Archipelago was
for the best.
For one, the big guy would free himself from the hidden parties that coveted
his aptitude. Secondly, he could be safe for the time being from enemy attacks.
Thirdly, Magnet Archipelago was a better place for the big guy to grow.
The big guy had been starving at the branch location.
Here, the gold level magic chef Da Dou could give the most suitable food to the
big guy. This was not something the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was able to do.
To be more precise, after Da Dou compressed the food, he demoted it from gold
level to silver level when feeding it to the big guy. Not even Snow Bird
Harbor’s City Lord had such lavish treatment!
“The slave contract can ensure Da Dou is obedient.”
“Even if Da Dou frees himself from the contract, he won’t harm Xiao Guai.”
“Moreover, Xiao Guai’s unconditional trust and obedience to me allows me to use
Believer Perception to interact with him at any time. If something unexpected
appears, I can take care of it.”
After comprehensive consideration, the fishman youngster felt that this was the
optimal solution at the moment.
“If this happens, Dao Hen doesn’t need to rush over.”
He originally wanted them to come over here to prepare for a rescue after
saving them.
The fishman youngster had extradited Dao Hen mainly for the big guy’s sake.
But he didn’t expect that the fierce battle between the earth elemental tribe
chief and Da Dou had given the fishman youngster a golden opportunity.
Ultimately, the fishman youngster became the beneficiary, taking advantage of
Da Dou’s near death injuries to get him to sign a slave contract.
The big guy’s crisis had been removed.
Dao Hen was just a silver level, and it didn’t matter if he came here or not.
“Instead, he might as well stay on that imperial warship, that seems more
appropriate.”
The fishman youngster attached great importance to Tan Mo and the others
aboard. 
The Blood Light Punishment Institution and imperial investigation team were
both things he had to pay attention to.
He was also worried that Cang Xu would be exposed.
On Two Eyes Island, the exposed necromancer Cang Xu had a strong connection
with the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, this was quite detrimental to the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance.
Dao Hen could remain on Tan Mo’s ship, and with the aid of Deceptive Disguise
and other spells, he could steal firsthand information and ascertain which
direction the imperial investigation team and Blood Light Punishment
Institution were moving to in real time.
This wouldn’t harm, either the dragonman youngster or the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, only benefit them.
Thus, the fishman youngster returned his concentration to Dao Hen.
He found to his surprise that Dao Hen hadn’t left the Treasure Chest yet.
The Treasure Chest used original and sophisticated spatial alchemy technology.
Space layered on top of each other, and there were countless similar looking
ship cabins and passages, it was just like a labyrinth. 
Dao Hen not being able to get out was normal.
The fishman youngster resisted the urge to give Dao Hen directions. He waited
until Dao Hen couldn’t endure it any longer as worry filled his heart. Then
after several prayers were given, he used a divine spell to give him the right
directions.
With these directions, Dao Hen was able to get through 19 levels of space and
finally arrived at the Treasure Chest’s deck.
Upon seeing the sky above and the wide ocean, he was emotionally moved.
Just as he was about to jump off, he received the fishman youngster’s oracle.
Unexpectedly, he was to return to the ship interior to carry out a spying
mission. 
Dao Hen’s expression shook, and he hurriedly complied, turning back towards the
ship hold.
The fishman youngster had asked him to leave previously, and Dao Hen had
failed.
The fishman youngster hadn’t revoked his prior order, rather he had helped Dao
Hen smoothly leave the Treasure Chest. After giving him a glimpse of the sky
and sea, he had Dao Hen go back.
This was not an unpredictable change in command, and it gave Dao Hen a feeling:
the prior order was God testing him. At the same time, God’s true intent was
incapable of being comprehended!
After Da Dou and the others left, as expected, other earth elemental tribes
visited the battlefield.
Finally, they came to the sacrificial rite cave.
“This was the main battlefield!”
“Two, no three gold levels fought to the death here. In the end, our old enemy
died in battle here.”
“Indeed, a loss of face, that grand earth elemental actually let outsiders raid
their old nest.”
A few earth elemental tribe chieftains came together, and in the tense
ambience, all of them wanted to partition the territory before them.
But a moment later, the Main Earth Elemental God’s divine statue suddenly
erupted with light.
Soon after, incomprehensible divine power flooded over everyone present,
causing all of the earth elementals present to immediately bow down in worship.
After half a minute, the divine statue’s light faded away.
The earth elementals stood up one after the other, all looking excited.
“The Main God issued an oracle!”
“Find that giant and eliminate him!!”
“No, capture him alive, he is the best sacrificial offering to our grand Main
God.”



****** Chapter 610: Alchemy Bomb ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
Dueling arena.
Zong Ge and a challenger were fighting; the battle was at its climax.
Although he was facing a silver level magician, Zong Ge was losing.
The female magician was flying in the air, maintaining three types of different
flying spells to keep distance while constantly taking out alchemy bombs and
explosive potions, and tossing them at him.
Boom, boom, boom…
The explosions were continuous.
Zong Ge was expressionless as he dodged the explosions in all directions.
Suddenly, he jumped on the wall, and like an artillery shell, charged at the
magician in the air.
The magician sneered and took out a bundle of bombs, throwing it while
simultaneously using an alchemy device to quickly withdraw.
Boom!
With a loud sound, a shockwave and dust filled the sky.
The magician gazed from afar, completely on guard.
“What is that sound?” The magician vaguely heard a sound in the wind.
A moment later, a dart came from behind her.
She hurriedly turned around and her eyes contracted violently, “No time to
dodge!”
Battle skill – Auto-Target Seek.
Battle skill – Undetectable.
With those two battle skills, the dart flew towards the magician.
As it turns out, Zong Ge had used himself as bait to attract the magician’s
attention, then used that opportunity to throw his dart in an arc.
His battle skills were simple and used adeptly, and with the quick empowerment
of these battle skills and the explosion screening it, the dart had turned into
a boomerang.
The magician’s mental power was finite, and most of it had been spent
controlling her flight spells and throwing bombs, so she only had one layer of
magical defense.
That wouldn’t do!
In that critical moment, the magician used a defensive item and without the
slightest hesitation, suddenly took out a scroll from her cuff and tore it to
defend herself.
“Long Fu’s weapon can automatically change shape; it is a very powerful gold
level weapon.”
“But I just need to survive past the earliest stage, then I can use this gold
level scroll to save myself!”
As that thought flashed through her mind, the boomerang cut her into two.
“How is that possible?!” The magician died on the spot.
The boomerang had gold level battle qi in it and it penetrated through her
body, almost instantly extinguishing all of her vitality then and there.
Zong Ge left the dust cloud.
He was covered in dirt.
Using himself as bait for that explosion was rather dangerous.
Zong Ge slowly headed towards the magician, well aware of her lapse in
judgement, “With Deceptive Disguise, others see me as a mere silver level, and
my battle qi as silver level too. Therefore, she erroneously judged the
boomerang’s firepower.”
Of course, this was also because Zong Ge had been suppressing his weapon’s
strength since the battle began, only displaying silver level power.
Zong Ge’s gold level weapon was called the Striking Shifter; it had come from
the Li Jian Clan’s arsenal. 
It could morph into all kinds of weapons, and it really suited a weapon great
master like Zong Ge.
Since he and Hua Tang had fought, this weapon had been completely exposed. Zong
Ge never thought about using Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-Investigation and
Prophecy spell on this weapon.
For one, the Li Jian Clan knew about it. Secondly, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had earned a lot of money from magic medicine, and as Commander Long Fu,
even if he was just a silver level cultivator, he should have a gold level
weapon!
This was reasonable.
After all, a gang member like Xiong Ju had the Gold Flower Hacksaw as a silver
level.
Zong Ge approached the magician’s corpse, sighing to himself.
This battle was not easy for him; it was quite troublesome.
“The commander is still silver level and cannot reach the gold level yet, thus,
I cannot use gold level battle qi attacks.”
“This time, my adversary might have come from that group of powerful enemies.
She used explosives that cost around 500 gold coins, and her tactics greatly
restrained ‘Long Fu’.”
“However, the gains from this battle weren’t small.”
Zong Ge looked at the gold level scroll in the magician’s hand.
He walked over to that side of the corpse and leaned down to pick it up.
But a moment later, his expression suddenly changed.
Boom!!
The magician’s body exploded in an instant.
Zong Ge used gold level battle qi to protect himself, but he was still hit.
He coughed twice and fell to the floor, his coughs containing purple blood.
“This is a poison bomb, the explosion wasn’t powerful, but it is very
insidious!” Zong Ge’s brows locked tightly with a grave expression.
The magician’s body had been turned to slag, and the gold level scroll in her
hand had gone with her too.
Zong Ge was more certain of his conjecture now.
Why would a normal challenger deliberately put an alchemy bomb in their body?
One knew that this kind of human alchemy and bodily refinement would greatly
interfere with daily magician cultivation.
After drinking some healing medicine, Zong Ge was able to suppress the poison.
“I need to find Zi Di and have her examine me.” Zong Ge was not good at
detoxification and prioritized asking Zi Di for help.
After cleaning up the battlefield, Zong Ge left.
As he pushed open the dueling arena gate, he saw a large number of onlookers.
“He’s coming, he’s coming!”
“It really is Long Fu.”
“I told you, even if the fighting gets loud, it won’t change the result.”
The crowd cheered and many people waved at Zong Ge.
Zong Ge wore a wooden face as he left, but behind him were constant cheers.
“Lord Long Fu, are you going to participate in the Grand Duel at the National
Ceremony?”
“We look forward to it!”
“I have been buying your mount magic medicine.”
After Zong Ge decided to accept challenges, he had gone through several
battles, and in every battle, he had savagely killed the challenger.
But this conduct did not hinder his increasing supporter base.
In the wake of dueling more often, his popularity in the royal capital had
risen meteorically.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a strong taste for duels.
On a two story house across the street, Mi Fang watched Zong Ge turn a street
corner through a chink in the window, then looked away. 
He was a human but had outstanding looks that were very delicate and handsome.
This kind of appearance was close to the aesthetics of elves; therefore, Mi
Fang had always been widely welcomed in by female elves.
Seeing Zong Ge’s reception, Mi Fang couldn’t help but think of when he became
famous in the arena.
Unlike Zong Ge, Mi Fang’s admirers were mostly women. At the time, the female
elf community had enthusiastically embraced him.
“Excellent, the tactic worked, Long Fu is poisoned!” Mi Fang was stirred when
he looked at the detection device.
With Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s ceremony imminent, Mei Lin’s energy was tied up in
naval defense and she was forced to reduce her attacks against the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
But that wasn’t to say she was leaving them alone completely.
One of the missions Mei Lin had arranged for was to dispatch different silver
levels to openly challenge “Long Fu” so they could wear him down.
This time, it was a magician sent by Mi Fang.
The bomb tactics was also arranged by Mi Fang.
The result had satisfied him.
“I’ve weakened Long Fu yet again, if this continues, it will be possible to
eradicate him.”
“It is a pity that he requests privacy and secrecy for every duel. After
killing his enemy, he will take away their corpse and clean up the battlefield.
This makes it hard for us to obtain detailed information.”
“Never mind that, we can take our time, there will eventually be a day when our
goal is accomplished.”
Mi Fang knew he had to be patient.
Of course he wouldn’t challenge Long Fu right now.
To him it seemed that Long Fu was still very threatening. The best cautionary
tale of that was the death of the Ax Gang Leader and the other three gold
levels.
Only when Mi Fang knew what trump cards Long Fu hid and was certain he could
withstand them would he enter the playing field.
Compared to the other duelists, Mi Fang was more motivated to deal with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Because he had joined the Jing Xiang Clan, who was currently competing with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps fiercely over their current mount magic medicine
market share.
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan had deepened their
connection, they instantly held the advantage and firmly suppressed the Jing
Xiang Clan.
“Long Fu is the signboard of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and many people
purchase the dragon rider potion because of him.”
“By eliminating him, the Jing Xiang Clan will have hope of turning the tables.”
“The national capital’s formation repair work is almost done. Soon, the Alchemy
Guild’s hands will be free. They won’t stand and watch this development in the
mount potion marketplace.”
Mi Fang knew more high level information; he had determined that the mount
potion market had grown by leaps and bounds and had changed dramatically.
There was just one reason, the Alchemy Guild was acting.
This colossus was the overlord in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy market!
“When the Alchemist Guild exerts itself, it will be like an alchemy bomb being
thrown into the water, it is sure to set off a gigantic wave in the market.”
“When that moment comes, the alliance of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
the Li Jian Clan will find it difficult to respond to the Alchemy Guild,
perhaps this will give the Jing Xiang Clan more opportunities.”



****** Chapter 611: Zi Di Detoxifies ******
Zi Di raised her hand, her gaze focused on the test tube in it.
Zong Ge was standing by her.
Some of his blood had been drawn out and put into the test tube.
Zi Di used simple detection magic, then she pursed her brows.
Without battle qi suppression, Zong Ge’s blood began to darken and smell bad.
Zi Di tried to use mainstream detoxification methods. A portion of Zong Ge’s
blood boiled, and the test tube’s temperature quickly rose, almost evaporating
entirely from the test tube. Another part of the blood condensed into a solid,
and another part of it corroded the glass test tube and fell out of it.
The mainstream detoxification methods did not work.
But it was not a complete failure.
The boiling blood evaporated into a starry black cloud. The frozen blood clot’s
surface also had many angled star patterns across its surface. After corroding,
the remaining glass fragments also seemed to slightly show a starry pattern
under the sunlight.
“This is a very distinctive trait; it is a good clue.” Zi Di exclaimed.
She looked at Zong Ge, “Sorry to disappoint you.”
“This place lacks alchemy facilities, and I fear I am not strong enough.”
“To completely detoxify you, I need a lot of time and energy, and I cannot
guarantee success in the end.”
“Perhaps this starry pattern clue can be investigated for some valuable
information.”
“But at present, you have to suppress this toxin for the time being.”
Zong Ge faintly nodded, he had been prepared for this result and wasn’t that
disappointed.
At least on the face of it, he was very tranquil.
“I can suppress this toxin temporarily.” Replied Zong Ge.
Zi Di sighed, looking worried.
Zong Ge’s condition was getting worse. Previously, he had suffered the Axe Gang
Leader’s Blood Vengeance before they died, something he was unable to get rid
of. After that, he was hit by Hua Tang’s battle skills. Now, he was affected by
a peculiar poison.
It could be said that Zong Ge’s fighting strength was greatly impeded due to
his declining condition. 
Zi Di and Zong Ge had been trying to solve these problems.
But in practice, they didn’t make much progress.
Blood Vengeance was shot from the Blood Vengeance Axe, yet despite them
capturing that weapon, they were unable to find a solution to it.
Until now, they did not even know what activated Blood Vengeance.
There was also Hua Tang’s unusual battle skill [Flower Willow]. After Zong Ge
was hit by [Flower Willow], it seemed to have taken root and was constantly
growing and strengthening from absorbing Zong Ge’s battle qi and vitality.
These undoubtedly ate at Zong Ge’s battle qi and life span.
Currently, Zong Ge and Zi Di were merely testing some aura suppression methods
and preventing the use of battle skills to weaken the demands of [Flower
Willow].
Now this strange poison had been mixed in. Zong Ge had to use his battle qi to
suppress the poison while also needing to take medicine. This greatly increased
his battle qi expenditure.
Zi Di said worriedly, “Perhaps we should decrease your dueling frequency.”
Zong Ge immediately shook his head, “Wrong. That will show I am weak and might
lead to the enemy striking even harder.”
“I am still sure of the outcome of battles against silver levels.”
“This poisoning was my mistake, I was careless.”
“But next time, it won’t happen.”
Seeing Zi Di’s concern not being alleviated, Zong Ge added, “My current state
isn’t all that bad.”
“The Blood Vengeance Axe’s power keeps me focused at all times and has greatly
trained my body’s internal defenses.”
“After being hit by Hua Tang’s battle skill (Zong Ge’s assumption of who it
was-), my suppression battle skills have been tempered a lot. My training
results far surpasses previous records.” 
“If my body can adapt to this strange poison, wouldn’t that be a great way to
grow?”
Zong Ge’s positive mentality treated these challenges as an opportunity to
improve himself.
He then said, “There will always be challenges, and so long as we continue to
forge ahead, it will be the right decision.”
“It is necessary and worth it to brave the risks to do the right thing.”
“Who can avoid risks?”
Zi Din couldn’t help but inwardly admire Zong Ge’s declaration.
She admired Zong Ge’s courage and responsibility.
Of all of the survivors, perhaps only Zong Ge was capable of playing the role
of the dragonman youngster well.
As long as these two didn’t collapse, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ morale
would be ensured and supported.
Zong Ge really couldn’t avoid battle.
Because he was currently acting as Long Fu.
As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ commander, Long Fu was a new influential
figure on Ice Sculpture Island, and a big reason Zi Di’s business plan worked
out so well was due to Long Fu’s renown. 
Zi Di wavered, “Perhaps we can ask the Li Jian Clan for help, and let them help
detoxify you?”
Zong Ge instantly shook his head, “We are only in a collation of mutual
benefits. Because of benefits we can work together, and because of benefits
that union can collapse.”
If they could get help from the Li Jian Clan, Zong Ge would have gone to them
to deal with Blood Vengeance and Flower Willow already.
To detoxify, his blood needed to be drawn.
It was positive that Zong Ge’s physical condition would be analyzed. By doing
that, a lot of information on him would be divulged, increasing the risk of
exposure.
The survivors had heaven shaking gains from Mystifying Monster Island.
Including two divine artifacts!
If the Li Jian Clan knew about them, what would they do?
The survivors were being searched for by the Bai Zhen Clan, the Bounty Hunter
Guild had also issued a warrant for them, and even parts of the imperial navy
were involved in the search.
Nowadays, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was losing to a strong mysterious
power that existed in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s government. The Sheng Ming
Secret Spy Agency also had their eyes on them because of Two Eyes Island.
If they were exposed, the survivors would be welcoming a calamity that would
drown them!
The risks were too great.
It was the same if they asked the Li Jian Clan, other churches, and other
magicians.
There was another sore spot.
It was the Pearl Bubbles.
Zi Di and Zong Ge didn’t have many Pearl Bubbles left, but they needed to use
them in more and more places. If they asked other powers to heal Zong Ge, they
had to use Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-prophecy and Investigation spell on
him. The latter was fine, but crucially, the former used Pearl Bubbles.
The more and more powerful investigations there were, the more Pearl Bubbles
would be depleted.
Zi Di’s and Zong Ge’s difficulties lay in a single place: they didn’t know when
the dragonman youngster would return. This forced them to use the Pearl Bubbles
cautiously and conservatively!
“Lord Commander, when will you finally return?” Zi Di had shouted from the
bottom of her heart on more than one occasion.
Zong Ge was more realistic, “Unless it is as a last resort, there is no need to
ask others for help.”
“This was my carelessness.”
“From now on, I will be more cautious of silver level challengers.”
“In fact, I am more worried about gold levels.”
“The enemy definitely has other gold levels; they don’t need to use such power
right now. But I am afraid that other gold levels who have been enticed and
exploited can make things difficult for us.”
The Ice Sculpture National Ceremony is not just a grand occasion for domestic
experts; the National Ceremony’s Grand Duel often attracts foreign experts into
joining it too. Regardless of whether it is glory or the prizes, both are
always alluring.
“Long Fu’s” reputation in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, as well as the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ magic medicine business attracted gold level experts. It was
likely that a gold level expert would be moved to first duel the silver level
Long Fu to treat him as a footstool to bring about their fame in the early
stages.
Zong Ge continued, “For instance, it is possible that Qi Ci Lang is coming to
participate in the National Ceremony Grand Duel.”
Zi Di had found out about Qi Ci Lang from the imperial secret spy’s inquiries.
After that event, she emphasized buying information on the Thirteenth Prince
and Qi Ci Lang.
On the market, there still wasn’t information that Qi Ci Lang would join the
duel.
Thus, Zi Di and Zong Ge found out more about the Thirteenth Prince. They knew
the latter’s prestige among the people was very high and that many citizens
loved and respected this hostage prince. So much so that when the king’s throne
was vacant, some voices within the kingdom hoped that the Thirteenth Prince
would succeed to the throne.
This obviously didn’t happen.
The Thirteenth Prince was Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming’s son, and both bloodline
and legal principle disqualified him from succeeding the throne.
However, it could be made out that the Thirteenth Prince was very popular!
The Thirteenth Prince would never join the National Ceremony Duel.
First was his identity and second was his strength.
The Thirteenth Prince was an ordinary person and didn’t have any transcendent
bloodline.
But Qi Ci Lang might.
The information Zi Di and Zong Ge gathered showed how powerful this gold level
was.
To be more precise, he was incredibly powerful!
Qi Ci Lang’s strength was very visible, and more formidable was that he was
blessed by many gods. The most widely publicized was that seven different gods
blessed him with immortality.
Just one of these made a transcendent a sufficient threat.
Qi Ci Lang had seven.
Because of this, he was publicly nicknamed the Beloved Child of Seven Gods!
In short, after Zong Ge looked at the intelligence, he instantly judged that he
was not Qi Ci Lang’s match. The gap between them was too great.
Despite both of them being gold level.
It could be said that the higher level a cultivator got, the bigger the gap
could be between cultivators of the same level.
Zong Ge was serene, “If Qi Ci Lang appears and joins the National Ceremony
Grand Duel, then that will further prove the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s
power.”
“At the same time, we also need to inspect and verify our flaws – our
information gathering is weak, and at many crucial points, we have to rely on
well known information. But since the latter can be purchased on the market,
its value isn’t that high.”
Zi Di nodded, “According to the information, this Beloved Child of Seven Gods
does not have the attitude of an expert, he has a brash temperament and is
quite unscrupulous. He rarely shows mercy to the weak and might come challenge
us.”
“I hope this doesn’t happen.”
“Because in the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony Grand Duel, if you refuse to
fight, you can no longer participate.”
“That’s right.” Zong Ge nodded, “At least let me hold on for a while longer.”



****** Chapter 612: Five Level Zero Secret Orders ******
Zi Di’s tone was heavy, “But when that moment comes, we can only refuse.”
“After all, Commander Long Fu is only a silver level fighter.”
“Consequently, even if we decline, it won’t lose too much prestige.” 
Prestige would undoubtedly take a hit, as the Ice Sculpture citizens greatly
looked down on those who feared battle.
But if a silver level was facing a gold level, it was pardonable.
If it was a gold level avoiding battle, then their reputation would take a
mortal blow. In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, it would most certainly be a death
sentence socially, and ordinary people would strongly disdain them.
Zi Di and Zong Ge spent some time in the kingdom and knew quite a lot about the
customs here.
If “Long Fu” conceded or suffered a defeat, then their magic medicine business
would be negatively impacted immensely.
Zong Ge was noncommittal, “The Thirteenth Prince is not a suitable candidate,
but perhaps Qi Ci Lang is worth contacting.”
Zi Di and Zong Ge had discussed this before. Since the Wisteria Store’s
communication channel could not be used, right now, they are now waiting in the
capital for the National Ceremony, then would use it to look for appropriate
imperial higher ups to contact.
From what could be gleaned from the information, Qi Ci Lang didn’t have a good
temperament, but his network was formidable.
His seven blessings of immortality was the best proof.
Being on friendly terms with Qi Ci Lang meant they could get along with at
least seven churches in the Sheng Ming Empire.
While Zi Di and Zong Ge were discussing, things were happening in the
subterranean depths of the Ice Sculpture Capital, in the Ten Millennia Ice
Lake.
The magic ship Ice Skate was disguised as a massive iceberg as it calmly
drifted through the current.
Elder Yuan Ci was in the captain’s room, looking at magic images.
These images had the figures of many alchemists in it and also the magic ships
they drove or the alchemy puppets they controlled.
Without exception, these magicians were all evacuating. 
But Elder Yuan Ci’s expression was very unsightly.
Because while these alchemists were evacuating, Elder Yuan Ci had received some
information.
The information had been conveyed by secret means, and it was both an
invitation and also some kind of diplomatic note. Elder Yuan Ci was very
familiar with and greatly loathed the sender.
He was inclined to interpret this information as true.
“There is trouble this time.”
“I thought I still had more time.”
“Now it seems I have to open the Wisteria Cache as soon as possible.”
To open the Wisteria Cache, one needed 5 level zero Wisteria Secret Orders.
Elder Yuan Ci counted them; he had one, the sender had one, and the newly
emerged Gui Teng (Zi Di) had one. They had three in total.
The sender had already contacted another who possessed a secret order, and he
needed to rescue the one who held the fifth, as they were currently in prison.
“Shi Liu…you old codger, I didn’t expect that I would come save you.”
“However, with my strength alone, rescuing him will be somewhat difficult.”
“It is a good time to contact Gui Teng and invite him to make a move. That will
also be an opportunity to clarify his true allegiances.”
After Zi Di and Zong Ge parted ways, she received Elder Yuan Ci’s message.
After she determined who the imperial secret spy was, her trust of Elder Yuan
Ci had increased greatly.
Elder Yuan Ci directly expounded on his purpose in contacting her, stunning Zi
Di.
“Are you saying the Alchemist Guild’s Elder Jiu Jin is one of our merchant
alliance’s elders?”
Zi Di didn’t think the Wisteria Merchant Alliance had such powerful contacts in
Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy guild.
One knew that to become an Alchemist Guild elder, one had to be extraordinary.
Even honorary elders could not be looked down upon.
Elder Yuan Ci said, “When our merchant alliance was at its peak, we had stores
in all of Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s major cities and business dealings with the
royal family.”
“At the time, we recruited Jiu Jin when operating in Ice Sculpture Island. We
subsidized his promotion to being an Alchemy Guild elder, and in turn, he
repaid us by helping the merchant alliance get their footing here and open
things up.”
“After the merchant alliance was reorganized, because Jiu Jin was more inclined
toward the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, he was not liquidated and still remains as a
guild elder. He even took advantage of the situation to rise up and annex many
of the merchant alliance’s assets.”
Zi Di’s expression slightly sank, “So you’re saying he’s a traitor.”
Elder Yuan Ci replied, “That depends on how you look at it. At least that’s
what I believe. But there is also a subset of people who believed Jiu Jin did
nothing wrong. He just had a working relationship of mutual benefits, and he
had repaid the Wisteria Merchant Alliance. As for annexing the merchant
alliance assets… if he didn’t do it, someone else would have. As the saying
goes, keep the good things within the family, isn’t it better if one of our own
took it?”
Zi Di heard the unspoken implication, “So he still has supporters in the
current merchant alliance? Who are they?”
Elder Yuan Ci replied, “It is Cong Mang.”
“Who is Cong Mang?”
“Cong Mang is the Vegetable Pirates commander, he is a druid, but dual
cultivates battle qi and is proficient in the staff.”
“When the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was offering maritime trade routes, they
came into contact with these pirates. He was one the president personally
selected, and we subsided and helped him expand his force to facilitate his
entry into the Fire Beard Pirates. Several important maritime trade routes were
protected by him.”
Zi Di was flabbergasted, “I didn’t expect that the merchant alliance had such
arrangements on the sea.”
Elder Yuan Ci laughed, “Many business channels are built secretly and aren’t
recorded. On the surface, our merchant alliance accounts are all clean.”
“With regards to this, the president and others, me included, were very
careful.”
“Regrettably, when the imperial higher-ups wanted to act against us, they
didn’t look at this proof of innocence.”
Zi Di understood it more or less.
Jiu Jin and Cong Mang were important partners the merchant alliance cultivated
while expanding abroad. Therefore, they had a close relationship with the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance, though they would never have the emotional base for
it someone like Fei She had. When the merchant alliance was reorganized, or to
be more precise, when it deteriorated, they had less loyalty.
Elder Yuan Ci then said, “To open the Wisteria Cache, we need 5 level zero
orders. You and I have two, Jiu Jin and Cong Mang have two, and for the last
one, we need to join forces and get Shi Liu out of prison, he also has a level
zero order.”
“Who is Shi Liu?” Zi Di found that she had a near ignorance of her own merchant
alliance’s personnel.
Elder Yuan Ci did not conceal anything, because he needed Zi Di’s full
cooperation. Right now, he needed to display his sincerity, “Shi Liu is an
earth elemental; to be more precise, he is a magnetic earth elemental. As for
why he has a level zero order, I am unsure, the old president had personally
given him one.”
“Why was he imprisoned and where is he held?” Zi Di questioned.
Elder Yuan Ci sighed, “He came from the Magnet Archipelago, that group of
islands as you might have heard is involved with two hidden treasures. People
have searched for them for countless millennia but never found them. Of course
that isn’t what we’re focused on. But it is said that Shi Liu once came across
a part of one of these treasures and that he knows crucial clues to them.”
Zi Di pondered, “If this happens, we will have five level zero orders. But how
will we work together?”
“Truth be told, what I really want to do most right now is search for Miss Zi
Di.”
“If this matter wastes too much time and effort, involves my energy, is too
risky, and not enough is given to me, I won’t do it.”
Zi Di retreated to advance to pry for more information.
Elder Yuan Ci replied, “Time is quite scarce.”
“This is also the information Jiu Jin told me about.”
“The Kingdom has been preparing for many years here, starting since the current
king ascended the throne, and only when it finished this year did information
begin to leak.”
“The royal family has constructed a super magic formation on the Ten Millennia
Ice Lake. If this magic formation is activated, it will increase the royal
family’s supervision and defense of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake immensely.”
“Therefore, Jiu Jin is especially worried that if this chance is missed, then
stealthily excavating the Wisteria Cache will be extremely difficult or even
impossible in the future.”
Zi Di knew the whole story.
Her brows tightly creased, “How does Jiu Jin know about my existence?”
Elder Yuan Ci replied, “He doesn’t. Only that I stipulated that the Wisteria
Cache’s distribution is related to the number of secret orders we invited in.”
“We two have the biggest advantage and are also the strongest. Naturally, we
hold a big share. Next is Cong Mang, you Gui Ten, and Shi Liu. It will depend
on how much you contribute to this excavation.”
“Don’t worry, we will discuss the next steps beforehand and will sign an
inviolable contract.”
“Of course, the prerequisite is that we are able to get 5 level zero order
holders.”
“So that’s how it is.” After Zi Di responded with that, she sank into
contemplation.
Elder Yuan Ci didn’t urge for an answer and calmly waited.
Zi Di thought about it, she naturally didn’t need to rescue Shi Liu. From Elder
Yun Ci she had learned that as Zi Di, the old president’s sole daughter, she
could make three level zero orders.
In her plan, she, Fei She, and Yuan Ci already had 5 of them already. They
didn’t need Jiu Jin, Cong Mang, and that Shi Liu.
Therefore, she had ordered Fei She to rush over from Snow Bird Harbor.
But the plan couldn’t keep up with change.
“Elder Yuan Ci cannot be completely trusted.”
“It would be for the best to contact Jiu Jin and make a judgement in person. At
the same time, I can also try to inspect the other people too.”
“I cannot tell them who I really am. Perhaps that can be utilized to hold an
advantage.”
“Jiu Jin is an Alchemist Guild elder, and to open the cache, we might need his
official protection.”
“Cong Mang is powerful and is a member of the Fire Beard Pirates. If he is cast
away, it might infuriate him, provoking more trouble.
“Shi Liu…rescuing him will be risky.”
After a time of pondering, Zi Di informed Elder Yuan Ci through the
communication device, “I can do it, I am inclined to work with you.”
“But before that, I need to personally discuss things with Elder Jiu Jin and
Captain Cong Mang.”
“Elder Yuan Ci replied, “I understand, I will help you contact that old bastard
Jiu Jin.”
“But Cong Mang is still on his way here. You may have to wait until after we
work together to rescue Shi Liu to see him.”
Zik Di frowned, “He is a member of the Fire Beard Pirates, won’t a hasty
infiltration into Ice Sculpture Island be challenging?”
Elder Yuan Ci nodded, “The Ice Sculpture National Ceremony is upon us, the
capital’s defenses are tight and won’t be easy to get past.”
“But this time, the Fire Beard Pirates’ fourth in command Da Han has also
rushed over too, he is a saint level existence who also has a saint level magic
pet. Therefore, Cong Mang following in his stead will be very safe and the
kingdom’s navy won’t be able to deal with him.”
“After he gets onto the island, Jiu Jin, that local bully, will be responsible
for providing him support. Therefore, there will be a high chance we’ll meet
without a hitch.”



****** Chapter 613: Elder Jiu Jin ******
When it came to the Wisteria Cache, Yuan Ci and Jiu Jin were very meticulous.
After receiving Zi Di’s response, Yuan Ci immediately used a secret channel to
convey Jiu Jin the latest news.
When Yuan Ci told Jiu Jin he had found another bearer of a wisteria level zero
order, the latter felt pleasantly surprised. 
Jiu Jin wanted to inquire about Zi Di.
Yuan Ci didn’t hide anything and told him how he had saved Zi Di.
When he heard Zi Di was a necromancer, Elder Jiu Jin couldn’t help but be
apprehensive, “Are you certain you can rule out this being a ploy of then
imperial secret spies?”
Elder Yuan Ci coldly snorted, “He personally refined a level zero order in
front of me.”
Elder Jiu Jin shook his head, “The level zero secret orders are maintained by a
formidable contract related to a Demon God. But since it is a contract, it is
possible they can be broken. You also know the imperial secret spies have never
given up their search for the Wisteria Cache.”
“They are also a necromancer…”
“Alas, at the time, I was nearly taken away by the Sheng Ming Empire. I relied
on the Alchemist Guild’s power and proved that I didn’t have a deep
relationship with the merchant alliance, so I was able to avoid disaster.”
“If this is a trap from the Sheng Ming Empire secret spies, a meeting alone
with that necromancer is the best incriminating evidence. Without reasonable
grounds for the Alchemist Guild to protect me, this concrete evidence put me in
big trouble!”
Elder Yuan Ci coldly snorted again, “Jiu Jin, you are still the same,
excessively worrying over everything.”
“You don’t think I considered this possibility?”
“But so what?”
“You should understand the current circumstances more that me. You were the one
who gave me the information.”
“The royal family will completely take charge of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
Perhaps the lake bottom won’t be supervised, but I explicitly told you that the
Wisteria Cache is on the same layer as the Ice Skate!”
“By then, even if we collect a full set of 5 Wisteria secret orders, we won’t
be able to open the Wisteria Cache, won’t that be regrettable?” 
Elder Jiu Jin sank into silence.
Elder Yuan Ci looked at the communication device before him, but it seemed like
he could see into Elder Jiu Jin’s heart, and the corner of his mouth twitched,
“Magician Gui Teng could or could not be a spy.”
“For now, we can thank him for appearing. After all, with him, we finally
collected 5 Wisteria secret orders, right?”
“His appearance really is a fortuitous opportunity, so what?!”
“The area where the Wisteria Cache is, is where our Wister Merchant Alliance’s
secret cam pit, it is our home ground. And around it is the Ten Millennia Ice
Lake.”
“How many people can the imperial secret spies dispatch into it?”
“Based on the risks and profits, I have decided to gamble on it!” 
Jiu Jin clenched his teeth and couldn’t refrain from silently cursing, “You
have become a fugitive, Yuan Ci, detested by all. Hiding all these years in the
Ten Millennia Ice Lake and the capital. I am different, I have a normal life, I
am still a highly important Alchemist Guild elder…”
Jiu Jin hesitated for a good while, but in the end, the allure of the Wisteria
Cache was too much, so he grinded his teeth and said, “Fine, if I win this
gamble, I won’t need to struggle so hard anymore.”
“I will personally meet with Gui Teng, I will personally examine him!”
Yuan Ci cackled, “What a coincidence, Gui Teng also wants to personally speak
with you.”
An in person meeting had risks, but it was absolutely necessary.
With regards to it, both Zi Di and Jiu Jin understood why. Yuan Ci had an even
greater understanding of it: this was a crucial step to gain tentative trust in
each other; it could not be omitted.
Thus, very quickly, from the abandoned alchemy laboratory, Yuan Ci personally
arranged a meeting between Zi Di and Jiu Jin.
Jiu Jin was an old snow elf with a goatee and circle framed glasses.
His face was wrinkled and had a cold complexion, revealing his diligence and
that the main theme of his life was enduring and struggling.
Before Zi Di came, she had purchased some information on Jiu Jin and learned
that although Jiu Jin’s bloodline was gold level, it was not outstanding. If it
wasn’t for the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s backing, he couldn’t have become an
Alchemist Guild elder.
His alchemy attainment wasn’t that deep, and he only researched alchemy runes.
That field required the least amount of alchemy attainment.
While Zi Di sized him up, Jiu Jin looked surprised, “I have taken a risk in
meeting you, Magician Gui Teng. Will you not take off your hood? Will you have
at least that bit of sincerity?”
Zi Di chuckled, “Sorry, I just didn’t want to do more than was required. You
also know that as a necromancer, I won’t expose my true features lightly for my
own safety.”
Despite saying that, Zi Di still took off her hood, exposing her “real
appearance”.
Her exterior features was that of an ordinary, middle aged human male.
Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-prophecy and Investigation spell gave her no
flaws in her appearance.
Jiu Jin narrowed his eyes, quietly using an alchemy device. Then after a
moment, he frustratedly gave up his efforts.
His investigation results all showed Zi Di’s displayed human appearance.
This was obviously impossible.
Elder Jiu Jin was well aware of that.
He shrugged his shoulders, “At least your disguise abilities have been shown
off.”
“Perhaps you can directly infiltrate the prison and effortlessly carry away Shi
Liu.”
Zi Di shook her head, “Although I am a necromancer, I am still a magician. I
cannot recklessly run in and put myself into danger.”
“This prison break needs to be schemed well.”
Next, the two people talked with each other, leaving behind their initial
impression.
Elder Jiu Jin naturally maintained his strong doubts about Zi Di, but he didn’t
reveal it to her face.
Zi Di indirectly verified Yuan Ci’s words from Jiu Jin, but she didn’t believe
them fully.
She still tried an indirect approach with the alchemy elder to learn some
information.
But Jiu Jin kept his mouth guarded in many areas, and he explicitly stated, “I
am an Alchemist Guild elder, I signed a contract and cannot divulge high level
secrets at will.”
“If in the future, an enemy exploits the kingdom’s secrets I accidentally
leaked, the latter half of my life is finished! The gains I worked half my life
for will vanish into nothing.”
Zi Di could only focus on inquiring about the Wisteria Cache.
Concerning this, Jiu Jin actually gave as much as he could, after all, it
concerned their success or failure in it.
“Don’t have such wishful thinking.”
“The super magic formation is extremely powerful. It uses all sorts of alchemy
rooms, magician towers, temples, and other locations around the ice lake as its
formation bases, it is nearly perfectly integrated with the frozen lake and is
not disturbed by the laws of time.”
“This gigantic engineering project was started the year His Majesty the King
took the throne. Our Alchemist Guild was the primary builder, and every year,
we dispatched large quantities of magicians to work on it. I have done so many
times.”
“But now that those formation points are connected with each other, people can
make out clues.”
“Since someone has seen through it, the royal family has officially disclosed
this grand project. However, at this time, it is only limited to higherups like
me.”
“His Majesty the King truly is a man of grand planning; I feel ashamed of my
scorn of you.”
“This truly is an unprecedented undertaking. The most crucial thing is that the
royal family actually endured silently until now, only revealing it when it
could no longer be hidden.”
When that was said, Elder Jiu Jin shook his head and sighed, full of admiration
for the current Ice Sculpture King.
Then a moment later, Elder Yuan Ci relentlessly pulled the rug out, “Ok, stop
acting. Even if you show off your patriotism, if you are arrested now, it will
be impossible for the kingdom to make allowances for meeting a necromancer in
secret.”
Jiu Jin’s expression suddenly stiffened.
Zi Di was expressionless. She shifted the topic to dilute the awkward mood,
asking, “About rescuing Shi Liu, Elder Jiu Jin, what can you contribute?”
Elder Jiu Jin promptly waved his hand, “How can I get involved with this? When
an investigation comes, I won’t be able to keep my position as an Alchemist
Guild elder!”
Zi Di coldly snorted, “You are an Alchemist Guild elder, a high position, it
will be far easier for you to act than us. Rescuing Shi Liu will benefit us
all. Without that level zero secret order, all of our efforts will be wasted.”
Elder Jiu Jin shook his head, his attitude firm, but his tone more moderate, “I
am really powerless to do anything. Shi Liu is locked up in Ice Prison, it is
the capital’s most important prison, and it has tight defenses. Ice Prison’s
large formation can draw power from the Ten Millennia Ice Lake and possesses
both the power of ice and time.
“I am only an Alchemy Guild elder; how can I influence Ice Prison’s guards?”
“But don’t worry, since I have chosen not to get involved, you two will get
more contribution, and when the time comes to divide up the cache, you will
take a larger share, isn’t that enough?”
“I won’t say anything else on the matter!”
“Of course, if you think that acting now is too uncertain, I can suggest that
there is no harm in waiting for Cong Mang to arrive.”
Zi Di looked at Yuan Ci, “Do you have a plan for this jail break?”
Yuan Ci smiled, “I have one, perhaps we won’t need to wait for Cong Mang to
converge with us.”
“Are you sure?” Elder Jiu Jin’s brows pursed, of course he was hoping the
success rate of this operation would be higher.
Yuan Ci nodded to him, “I am certain.”
Not long after, the three left in different directions from this secret room.
As soon as Jiu Jin returned to the Alchemy Guild, he was summoned by the guild
president.
When he saw the president, he noticed there was another in the room.
Jiu Jin smiled, and he bowed and saluted first, “Lord President, Great Master
Hua Ni.”
Hua Ni was a female snow elf, and a great master in potions. She faintly
glanced at Jiu Jin, but didn’t speak, making visible her haughtiness.
The president smiled, “Elder Jiu Jin, the construction and testing of the magic
formation during this period truly was tough for you.”
Jiu Jin promptly stated that although he was tired, it was his duty, and he
wanted to contribute to the nation’s strength.
The president continued, “The guild is currently focused on holding the Warm
Snow Cup Alchemy Grand Contest. But the repairs and construction of the ice
lake formation is finally complete, thus at long last, there is strength
available to attend to some other areas.”
“Elder Jiu Jin, do you know what the hottest potion in the kingdom is right
now?”
Jiu Jin heard the hearsay and his eyes flashed as he immediately replied, “The
dragon rider potion.”
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy guild naturally had been watching the fiery
sales of the dragon rider potion. But they were constrained by insufficient
manpower and other notions, thus, they didn’t act.
The Alchemy Guild president went on, “I won’t beat about the bush with you,
Elder Jiu Jin. The mount potion market is massive, and we cannot allow a
foreign mercenary corps into it.”
“Therefore, I appoint you as the leader of a group and the representative of
our guild that will occupy the mount potion market share.”
“We have always been a hegemon in the kingdom’s magic potion marketplace. This
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has gotten a bit out of hand, go teach them a deep
lesson.”



****** Chapter 614: Recruiting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps ******
In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the Alchemy Guild has always been a hegemon in
the alchemy marketplace, holding a large market share in sectors like potions,
alchemy equipment, alchemy goods, alchemy munitions, and other products.
Zi Di used her outstanding business acumen to dig out an as yet uncontested
sector in the potion market and with the help of Long Fu’s nationwide momentum
to sell a lot of dragon rider potions. The potion business was very prosperous,
and its influence extended through the entire kingdom, and it caused a
commotion within the industry and its profits even provoked envy.
The Alchemy Guild hadn’t intervened, but not because they didn’t notice the
survivors’ activity.
They were in charge of the final constructions of the ice lake formation, and
it involved most of the guild’s manpower and resources, but not to the point
where they didn’t have any labor to spare.
The real reason was that there was a lot of them.
The more people there were, the more opinions they had. The larger group, the
more chaotic they were, and it would be hard to coordinate the interests of all
parties involved.
If an organization was likened to a ship, it was always easier to turn a small
ship.
The dragon rider potion’s lively sales made it known to all alchemists that it
contained enormous benefits.
But who would act?
The Alchemy Guild had many capable people, and so long as one of them acted,
they could challenge and trouble the survivors.
But these able people could not freely act as they wished. 
Because the Alchemy Guild had both public and many more unspoken rules.
These rules bloated the organization, but at the same time, their existence
guaranteed the organization’s internal friction would be lower.
According to these rules, the first choice was Hua Ni.
Hua Ni had many contributions in the potion sphere and was a great master and
also head of the potion division in the Alchemy Guild. She was also responsible
for dealing with the kingdom’s potion market.
If she didn’t act, then others would find it hard to justify their actions,
even the president was like that.
In fact, this generation’s Alchemy Guild president was quite weak.
Jiu Jin was pleasantly surprised to be suddenly entrusted with this task.
He was happy because the mount potion market had immense benefits. If he could
execute this mission, his gains would be many, and it was astonishing that it
wasn’t the Great Master Hua Ni who decided to take on this task.
But in an instant, Jiu Jin understood, and on the spot, he stated to Hua Ni
that he wouldn’t dare exceed things, and everything would be under Great Master
Hua Ni’s purview.
This attitude pleased Hua Ni, and she replied, “Elder Jiu Jin, you don’t need
to be mentally burdened by this. This is my request. I want to join the Warm
Snow Cup Grand Contest.”
Jiu Jin was surprised, “Great master, you also want to join the Warm Snow Cup?”
Hua Ni already had success and recognition, and to Jiu Jin it seemed she didn’t
need to take this risk.
The guild president explained, “This Warm Snow Cup is unusual, during the
National Ceremony, other powers might send people in to strut about. Therefore,
the guild has dispatched a powerful person to keep watch.”
Jiu Jin revealed a sudden clarity, “So that’s how it is.”
At the same time, he also realized that the other Alchemy Guild bigwigs who
convinced Hua Ni to give up the mount potion contest must have had a hard time
doing so and had to give up many benefits during it.
“Because of my low alchemy strength, I was chosen to tidy up the domestic
market.”
Jiu Jin promptly expressed that since he was being entrusted with this task, he
would live up to that trust!
The president coughed, “You must be attentive, your opponent this time is the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. These people have a special background; they might
be foreign arms merchants. Their branch in Snow Bird Harbor has been attacked,
and because of Bu Quan, Shuang Lian was involved and has been unaccounted for
since that day.”
“Therefore, you have another task too, that is to look for the whereabouts of
Elder Shuang Lian from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Jiu Jin was just about to accept the order when Hua Ni interjected, “This
mission is secondary, your main energy should be focused on rectifying the
market.”
Jiu Jin suddenly hesitated.
He was sandwiched between the Alchemy Guild president and Great Master Hua Ni.
Hua Ni looked at the president, “Shuang Lian’s life ice sculpture hasn’t
shattered yet, that proves she is still alive.”
“Previously, when we dispatched outstanding investigators, they found traces of
spatial fluctuations. It is very clear she and her magician tower suffered a
spatial banishment spell.”
“With the Honey Snow Tower protecting her, it is unnecessary to worry about
her.”
“It is better to just wait patiently, and when she sends a distress call, we
can deploy a space teleportation formation and usher her return directly. Doing
this saves both time and effort!”
The Alchemy Guild president’s face sank.
Great Master Hua Ni and Magician Shuang Lian had conflicting views and were
opposing factions within the guild.
Hua Ni sounded pompous, it was clear she wanted to push aside Shuang Lian so
she would continue to wander about and wouldn’t have enough time to participate
in the Warm Snow Cup.
If Hua Ni had success in the Warm Snow Cup, she could undoubtedly get more
honor and benefits. By the time the National Ceremony finished, even if
Magician Shuang Lian returned, because of her contributions, Great Master Hua
Ni would be above them.
This was Hua Ni’s plan, and it was not what the Alchemy Guild president wanted
to see.
On the one hand, as a weak head, he needed to keep the internal factions in
balance. 
On the other hand, he was worried that during this National Ceremony, all sorts
of powers would dispatch experts to suppress the Ice Sculpture Kingdom during
the Warm Snow Cup. If that happened, the royal family and every great noble
would look into it, and as president, he would definitely be in trouble!
Therefore, from his point of view, he naturally hoped Magician Shuang Lian
would return on time.
But at this time, Hua Ni gazed into his eyes, “Lord President, did you know?
Magician Shuang Lian already knows the Ice Breaker spell.”
“With such magic, how is she afraid of getting caught in a spatial trap?”
The Alchemy Guild president and Jiu Jin both flashed with alarm.
The president was somewhat incredulous, “Wasn’t the Ice Breaker spell’s
research stuck in a bottleneck? The designed magic model was massive, it didn’t
seem possible for one magician to cast by themselves, it required too much
spirit power, and its magic power expenditure hadn’t been optimized either.”
Jiu Jin also threw Hua Ni a look of deep concern.
Although the Alchemy Guild mainly focused on alchemy, and was not a magic
guild, magic and alchemy were intrinsically connected with each other.
Jiu Jin knew about the Ice Breaker spell.
This spell’s research began several hundred years ago. It began with some
Alchemy Guild elder using a Great Pyrolysis spell during some alchemy
experiment. Although the experiment failed, he still gained inspiration and
direction from it.
Based that direction, he took the Great Pyrolysis spell as the foundation of
his research, with his goal being to research an ice type Great Pyrolysis
spell.
The Great Pyrolysis spell was always a high end spell and was powerful to such
a terrifying degree that it could even disintegrate divine artifacts!
The Ice Breaker spell was roughly an ice type Great Pyrolysis spell.
A magician who could wield this magic would see their fighting strength soar
enormously. Not just that, the results of this magic design was certain to
cause a sensation throughout the nation’s realms of magic, and even the entire
Main Plain. It would also cause all powers and countless experts to raise their
eyebrows at this astonishing achievement.
Hua Ni looked at the two and smiled, “What are you thinking about? Shuang Ni’s
advantage lies with her resources; it would be impossible to cast the Ice
Breaker spell by herself.”
“She indeed improved upon the initial research, but she geared it towards her
magician tower.”
“Now, her magician tower has loaded in the Ice Breaker spell’s magic model and
has no problem using it.”
Hua Ni was worthy of being Shuang Lian’s long time rival, she had a greater
understanding of the situation than Jiu Jin, and even the president.
“So that’s how it is.” Jiu Jin coughed.
This kind of improvement was quite ordinary.
A single magician still couldn’t use Ice Breaker, but a magician tower had a
greater magic power reservoir and also a tower spirit to assist, making it
easier.
How many magicians could have their own tower?
Therefore, even if Shuang Lian had improved it somewhat, it was only minutely,
and it was not enough to shock others with its development.
The president’s finger tapped the table, his expression somewhat indeterminate.
Shuang Lian’s magician tower was equipped with the Ice Breaker spell, this was
something that both made him apprehensive and annoyed.
“I was actually completely ignorant to such significant information!”
“Magician Shuang Lian has hidden herself so deeply. I vainly wanted to help her
wholeheartedly to balance out the factions.”
“The truth is that you were already the most forefront of the factions. It’s no
wonder that when you went missing, the other factions were all similarly
indifferent.”
When he thought that, the president’s mind had changed.
He looked at Jiu Jin, “Magician Shuang Lian is worthy of being my guild’s
elder, her astonishing strength worries me too much.”
“Elder Jiu Jin, your objective this time is to wrest away market share in the
mount potion sector.”
Jiu Jin promptly expressed his understanding and that he would make an all-out
effort.
Hua Ni had another command.
She asked, “What do you plan to do?”
Jiu Jin replied at once, “Be at ease, Great Master Hua Ni, our force is
substantial and is the kingdom’s sole hegemon.”
“Now that I have the Lord President’s and your appointment, I can immediately
mobilize personnel and change some alchemy factory merchandise lines, then dump
the goods nationwide.”
“How many alchemy facilities does the Li Jian Clan have? How many master
alchemists? How can they compare to us?”
Jiu Jin was of the opinion that their side had a massive advantage in this war
and had no chance of losing.
But Hua Ni’s face sank, “Idiot, why do you only consider using power to
suppress people?”
“First try to recruit them.”
“I’ve researched the dragon rider potion. Its design is very ingenious and also
very original.”
“Recruit the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, they might not just have a single
magic potion recipe.”
Jiu Jin exposed confusion and admiration, “I understand, Great Master Hua Ni.”
“My horizons are too small.”
“Your plan is better! By recruiting them, not only will the mount potion market
be ours, but their talents will also be ours too!”
“But at what price should we open this recruitment?”
Hua Ni coldly snorted, “Regarding such minor details, do you need me to tell
you? You are responsible for this, not me.”
“Understood, understood.” Jiu Jin nodded his head and bowed, while in
actuality, he was grumbling to himself.
Hadn’t he considered recruiting them?
Of course he did.
But recruitment came at a price, a difficult task.  
It was easy to make mistakes.
But using overwhelming power to suppress people was never the wrong choice to
win. 
There is nothing that could be done.
Hua Ni’s opinion had been explicitly stated, and the president had no
objections, so Elder Jiu Jin could only obey it.



****** Chapter 615: Threatening and Forcing ******
The defenses were tight inside the inn.
“Lord, Lord President.” A travel-worn Fei She saluted Zi Di, he looked excited,
“It is indeed good to see you safe and sound.”
Since Zi Di summoned him, Tripleblade had mustered a group of people for Fei
She to hide in. On the face of it, they were here to examine accounts, but in
reality, they were there to transport the key figure Fei She.
Of course, they would also be doing the account auditing.
Zi Di smiled upon seeing Fei She again, a cordial feeling flowing through her,
“Sorry, Elder Fei She, for forcing you to brave the journey to the Ice
Sculpture Capital.”
Fei She immediately shook his head, “If the enemy wanted to attack, staying in
Snow Bird Harbor would not be safe at all.”
“Furthermore, when me and the old president built things from scratch, I have
experienced far more dangerous situations than these many times over.,”
“Lord President, you gave the right command.”
“It’s a pity that I am the only survivor to come. I have failed to live up to
your trust.”
Before departing, Fei She had written a secret letter to Tripleblade to tell
him to stop him from further rescue operations.
Zi Di had known about this earlier and nodded, “Tripleblade will remain over
there, what else can be said? If the big guy was at Snow Bird Harbor, then it
would be another matter.”
Zi Di was just about to tell Fei She about Yuan Ci, Jiu Jin, and Wisteria
Cache.
After all, Fei She also possessed a level zero Wisteria Secret Order, this
business might need his participation in the future.
Then at that moment, a visitor came calling.
“An Alchemy Guild envoy?” Zi Di raised an eyebrow, soon after her surprise
vanished completely.
“It’s about that time.” Zi Di whispered.
Fei She immediately felt nervous, “Lord President, they come with ill intent.”
As an elder of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, Fei She knew quietly clearly
that if Zi Di wanted to establish herself in the ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
alchemy market, her biggest enemy was Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild!
The latter was massive and was entirely worthy of the title hegemon. They held
market share in almost every alchemy market sector in the kingdom.
Although Zi Di had opened a new market with mount potions, the Alchemy Guild
would not stand by idly and look on helplessly as the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps raked in profits.
Therefore, regardless of whether it was Zi Di, Fei She, the other survivors, or
even the Li Jian Clan, they had all come to the same consensus. Sooner or
later, they had to bump against the Alchemy Guild.
There would be a contest, or even several contests between them.
It was only a matter of time.
Zi Di let out a breath, then ordered an attendant to prepare. She wanted to be
on good terms with the Alchemy Guild envoy.
Fei She promptly said, “Lord President, let me join you.”
Zi Di nodded, consenting to this request.
A short while later at the parlor, Zi Di gave Magician Jiu Jin a weird look.
She didn’t think that she would be able to see the other in such a short time
span.
Jiu Jin didn’t see Zi Di’s and Fei She’s true features; the survivors had
Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-prophecy and Investigation spell on them.
Right now, Fei She looked quite different from when he was meeting secretly
with Zi Di.
“Magician Yao Ma, I am Elder Jiu Jin of the kingdom’s Alchemy Guild. I am very
happy to see you and believe that you are happy to see me. Because this time, I
brought you an opportunity that can change your life!”
Jiu Jin wore a smile and spoke pretentiously, rather than speaking cordially,
he instead released his aura and tried to suppress Zi Di.
Zi Di dealt with it, “What is this wonderful opportunity?”
Jiu Jin directly stated his purpose in coming, the Alchemy Guild’s higher-ups
admired the dragon rider potion recipe and wanted to recruit the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Zi Di showed astonishment and feigned puzzlement, “Aren’t the Alchemy Guild and
mercenary corps in different lanes of business?”
Jiu Jin replied, “Our Alchemy Guild has plenty of money, and hires many
mercenary corps all year round. Among them, there are three five star mercenary
corps.”
Five star mercenary corps had at least a gold level cultivator.
Zi Di continued to ask, “May I know what we will get if we accept the guild’s
offer?”
Jiu Jin’s smile grew, and he offered an opening price.
Zi Di suddenly laughed, “This price…Elder Jiu Jin, don’t make jokes.”
Jiu Jin pretended not to understand, “How can that be? This reward is clearly
marked. Do you think a grand Alchemy Guild elder would swindle you?”
Zi Di’s complexion turned cold, “Don’t speak in circles, state it directly
Elder Jiu Jin. Your Alchemy Guild wants to recruit my corps not for some
mercenary missions, rather you are seeking the dragon rider potion, is that
so?”
Jiu Jin coldly snorted, “Since you’ve uncovered that, then let’s have a
straightforward discussion.”
“As outsiders, don’t you think you’re overextending?”
“The mount potions have too many benefits, a minor mercenary corps like
yourselves cannot swallow it. If you have a backer behind you, bring them to
come speak with us personally.”
Jiu Jin believed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ backer was an
international arms smuggler.
Deliberately having Zi Di bring forth her big boss was actually a type of
coercion.
As everyone knew the chances of an arms smuggler leader appearing in the flesh,
it was too risky.
Zi Di then asked, “Isn’t the Alchemy Guild being too overbearing?”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is an open marketplace; every year your
distinguished country has vast exports and imports.”
“If the alchemy marketplace here is your Alchemy Guild’s exclusive property,
then please show your country’s legislation and we’ll comply with it
earnestly.”
“Humph!” Jiu Jin banged his teacup into the table and continued to pressure,
“Magician Yao Ma, do you think I have come here with a request?”
“Us recruiting you is showing you benevolence.”
“When our guild acts, do you think you can sustain yourself? Your current
business is quite prosperous, but it was only established under the
prerequisite that our guild remains inactive.”
“Come look at this.”
Jiu Jin took out some information and placed it on the table.
Zi Di took it and looked at it, her pupils suddenly contracting.
This potion recipe was the dragon rider recipe, personally reverse engineered
by Hua Ni.
“Now do you understand?” Jiu Jin arrogantly replied, “We are completely able to
strike hard at the dragon rider Potion, but we haven’t done that yet.”
“Savor it carefully, and you can taste our sincerity and goodwill.”
“As a senior master alchemist, I still want to give you youngsters some words
of advice. I want you to treasure this opportunity, as such an opportunity is
very rare to see in your life.”
Jiu Jin’s attitude was quite high, putting himself as a senior.
Fei She stood behind Zi Di, playing the role of an attendant.
He didn’t recognize Jiu Jin and wasn’t aware that this Alchemy Guild elder was
once a member of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance and also possessed a level zero
Wisteria Secret Order.
Right now, Fei She wished he could slap Jiu Jin across the face a couple of
times.
“This old fool says the words sincerity and benevolence, but the price he
offered is low, and he also used a deciphered recipe to threaten us.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild has been a monopoly for too long,
this overbearing style is something that people despise.”
“The problem is that Jiu Jin is right. The Alchemy Guild is too powerful, and
although the Li Jian Clan is a top clan within the kingdom, they cannot compete
with the Alchemy Guild in terms of alchemy.”
“When the Alchemy Guild acts and makes large amounts of potions before dumping
onto the market, our potion business will be heavily damaged and take a
devastating dive.”
Fei She was a Wisteria Merchant Alliance elder and had been involved in
commerce for many years, he knew there were two reasons Zi Di had succeeded.
The first was using Commander Long Fu’s reputation to mold a public reputation
during the initial stages.
The second was Zi Di capturing an opportunity. After she threw herself into the
mount potion market, she made an all out effort, and with the help of the Li
Jian Clan’s channels, quickly seized it. Before others could react, she had
gained a foothold and seized a crucial position.
But on the market, price was the main, and even the deciding factor.
When the Alchemy Guild disregarded costs to dump product, the cheap price would
win over the customers compared to their feelings for the dragonman youngster.
The survivors’ early control and “territory” would also be quickly lost.
What about being recruited into the Alchemy Guild?
That was also out of the question.
According to Jiu Jin’s conditions, he undoubtedly wanted the survivors to hand
over the business foundation they laid without resistance.
Not only that, but after the survivors joined the Alchemy Guild, they also had
to work for high level members like Elder Jiu Jin like cattle.
That simply was intolerable bullying!
Zi Di appeared embarrassed, “This matter is too important, and I am not the
master. I need time to ask for instructions.”
Jiu Jin coldly snorted and shook his head, “Youngster, my time is very
valuable, you can’t squander it like that.”
“Today I will get an answer.”
“You can communicate immediately; I will wait here for it.”
“Remember, you only have ten minutes.”
Zi Di grew unsightly, and after throwing out some polite words, left the parlor
with Fei She, leaving Jiu Jin inside.
Fei She felt doubtful, “This Elder Jiu Jin has a terrible attitude. He doesn’t
want us to join the guild. Lord President, what should we do?”
Nevertheless, Zi Di smiled, her expression and tone just now were all just a
pretense. 
“If it were another, I might not be able to do anything about it. But of all
people, why is it him?”
“Huh?” Fei She was curious, “Lord, you already have something?”
“I’ll tell you the specifics after this matter. Meeting me is also his
misfortunate.  Wait a moment, then it will be my turn to threaten him.” Zi Di
chuckled.
Fei She felt even more curious, thinking, “What does the Lord President have
against him? It seems this information is not simple.”
Fei She didn’t know the leverage he was so curious about was actually Zi Di
herself.



****** Chapter 616: Jiu Jin, You are a Close Contact! ******
In the parlor, Jiu Jin was contently drinking tea.
He didn’t sincerely want to recruit the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
This was in accordance with his interests.
Although he promised Great Master Hua Ni that he would go recruit the
survivors, from start to finish, he planned to botch this assignment. 
Because this matter was very troublesome.
Firstly, he needed to rack his brains during the negotiation with the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps. Secondly, his negotiation might be criticized by the
Alchemy Guild’s higher-ups.
Therefore, rather than spending his stamina and bearing the risks doing this,
he was better off using strong pressure to move them along the path of refusing
to be recruited.
When Zi Di refused, then he could justify organizing manpower to conduct large
scale potion production, then dump the goods onto the marketplace.
At that time, he would have adequate time and opportunity to embezzle and fish
out benefits.
“It seems this is my fortune.”
“One is the royal family’s move, forcing that guy Yuan Ci to no longer sit
still and cooperate; there is a chance of obtaining the Wisteria Cache.”
“The second is that a lucrative job fell onto me. The alchemists who are
stronger than me are obligated to comply with the royal family’s orders to
oversee the Warm Snow Cup.”
“Hehe, I didn’t expect that sometimes, being a bit weaker has its benefits.”
Jiu Jin happily drank his tea as he thought that.
But a moment later, there were two thuds. 
Two silver level alchemy puppets suddenly charged in and pincered Jiu Jin.
Yao Ma (Zi Di) soon appeared holding an alchemy crossbow pointed at Jiu Jin.
Jiu Jin was stunned for a second, then he swapped to laughing, “Magician Yao
Ma, what do you think you’re doing to me?”
“Don’t be impulsive, you wouldn’t want to kill me over some argument?”
“Even if you kill me, you can’t escape. This is the Ice Sculpture Capital!”
Jiu Jin tried to steady the impulsive Yao Ma as he thought with a growl, “What
is going on?”
He couldn’t understand why this was happening. After Magician Yao Ma asked for
instructions, he received an order to kill him!
“Even if your backer wants to kill me out of anger, you are also a sacrificial
pawn, calm down youngster!” Jiu Jin continued to persuade.
Zi Di quietly chuckled, Elder Jiu Jin, you are in close contact with a
necromancer. Me killing you will rid the people of a scourge, and not only
won’t I be arrested, but I will also be rewarded by the royal family.”
“Slander!”
“I am unable to make sense of your drivel!!”
“Magician Yao Ma, if you want to haggle, there is no need to use such methods.”
“Contacting a necromancer is no joke. Even if you want to slander and frame me,
don’t use such grounds.”
“You might not understand, but every mention of necromancers is investigated by
the royal family.”
“When you’re investigated, your secret of framing me will be exposed, you are
better off thinking of another excuse.” 
Although Jiu Jin’s heart was beating wildly, he calmed himself and continued to
talk persuasively.
Zi Di chuckled and took out an alchemy device.
She put on an act as she displayed the device to Jiu Jin, “Take a look, this is
the best evidence.”
“Elder Jiu Jin, don’t think about disavowing it.”
Jiu Jin rigidly glared at the mysterious device in Zi Di’s hand, still
reluctant to admit his guilt, “Magician Yao Ma, your method is too clumsy.”
“You don’t think that taking out some presentable alchemy device at random is
considered definitive proof?”
“As an Alchemy Guild elder, I have never heard of such an alchemy device.”
Zi Di sneered, “Now you can hear and also see it with your own eyes.”
“I shall present it to you.”
“This is one of our flagship alchemy products, it is called the Necromancy Aura
Detector.”
“This instrument detects a lot of necromancer aura on you!”
“This level of aura indicates that you have had a long and close conversation
with a necromancer. Furthermore, it hasn’t been a day since that happened.”
Jiu Jin seemed to have been struck by lightning.
He shouted, “Slander, this is pure slander.”
“I want to leave, and you want to block me, you are attacking me.”
“I am an Alchemy Guild Elder, if I die here, to say nothing of everyone in your
mercenary corps, even your master backing this plan will be eradicated.”
Zi Di was not worried, and she gestured, “Elder Jiu Jin, please then, do not
hesitate to leave.”
“But following this, I will take this evidence and submit a report to the Ice
Sculpture Government.”
Jiu Jin berated and cursed Zi Di loudly, saying she was slandering him. But
regardless of how he cursed her, he didn’t leave the parlor.
“What is that thing? How can there be a device like the Necromancy Aura
Detector?”
Jiu Jin’s heart went ice cold, and his mind rapidly pondered how he should deal
with this gigantic crisis.
He didn’t doubt Zi Di was deceiving him.
Not just because Zi Di’s conjecture was wholly in accordance with the facts. It
was also because it was quite strange for Zi Di to denounce him for being a
necromancer or being closely connected to necromancer activity.
No normal person would ever use such grounds to bargain with.
This was not a bargaining strategy.
Zi Di stared at Jiu Jin and smiled, “To be frank, I never thought I would have
such good luck.”
“This alchemy device sample on me was originally planned to be used during the
Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest.”
“As a result, it vibrated in my pocket.”
“Originally, I was uncertain, but when I left, I measured it twice. Each time
the outcome was the same.”
“Elder Jiu Jin, I didn’t expect that you, a grand Alchemy Guild higher-up,
would actually be a secret close friend of necromancers.”
Jiu Jin resolutely denied it and shook his head, “I am not, I haven’t, don’t
talk drivel!”
“Do you think taking out a broken thing at random can intimidate me?”
“Hehehe.” Zi Di laughed, “It seems you still aren’t willing to face reality?”
“Let me tell you something, it is about this alchemy device’s design
principle.”
Some types of this alchemy device really did exist.
The inventor was War Merchant.
At the time, the survivors on Two Eyes Island had run across a necromancer. Zi
Di had once spent some time carefully researching the Necromancer Aura Detector
in War Merchant’s database.
Therefore, she understood much of its design principles.
After saying some of it, Elder Jiu Jin’s look changed again, becoming pale as
paper.
Although Elder Jiu Jin’s alchemy mastery was not that high, that depended on
who he was being compared to. Compared to other elders, he couldn’t compete and
was at the bottom. But compared to Zi Di, he far surpassed her.
He had researched alchemy runes for many years and seen enough with his own
eyes.
Therefore, by just listening to Zi Di’s opening statement, he once again
confirmed that the other party had such an alchemy device!
“What sin have I committed to have the misfortune of running into such a
thing?!” Jiu Jin angrily trembled all over, his head filling with cold sweat.
Not long ago, he was still sighing over his luck, and now he was only thinking
he was the unluckiest guy under the sun.
“Magician Gui Teng and also Yuan Ci, if anything happens to me, I’ll sell you
both out!”
Jiu Jin was totally oblivious that the person who was testifying and his
necromancer contact were the exact same person before him. 
Zi Di completely held the advantage and calmly said, “It doesn’t matter,
Senior.”
“Come, let’s sit down and have a nice chat.”
Zi Di sat down first, wearing a smile.
Seeing that smile, Jiu Jin felt a chill run down his spine, and he really
wanted to kill that silver level magician.
“Don’t be impulsive, being impulsive makes it easy to make serious mistakes.”
Zi Di mischievously winked at Jiu Jin, “If something happens to me, elder, your
secret will be spread across the entire capital.”
Jiu Jin felt extremely depressed, but after sitting down, he calmed down a bit.
He glared at Zi Di, biting his teeth, “Magician Yao Ma, if you believe you can
rely on this to blackmail me, then you are gravely mistaken.”
“Am I the type only interested in saving my own neck!?”
“If you are too excessive, at worse, we will break up. Even if I die, you will
be dragged down too.”
Jiu Jin’s face was hardened and his eyes red and bloodshot, he looked like a
pressed gambler.
Zi Di wasn’t the slightest nervous.
She even disdainfully sneered at him on the sly.
If this was her first meeting with Magician Jiu Jin, perhaps his attitude could
fool her.
But Zi Di and Jiu Jin had met and conversed before, and during that, she
grasped Jiu Jin’s character.
He excessively treasured his own plumage and was exceptionally reluctant to
part with his property and power.
Elder Jiu Jin’s base nature was known by Zi Di already.
Next, Zi Di didn’t force it, rather she used her words to placate Elder Jiu Jin
as much as possible and let him drink tea.
Jiu Jin drank the tea with an ashen face and a vengeful expression, once again
leaking his numbness while trapped in desperate straits.
Zi Di’s smile grew stronger.
Comparing the expression of both, one could determine who was definitely
winning this discussion.
The following negotiation was rather effortless for Zi Di.
After spending less than half an hour, talks came to an end.
The parlor door opened and with a deathly pale complexion, Elder Jiu Jin
staggered out.
Each of his steps was as stiff as a zombie’s, and he miserably left the hotel.
At the window, Zi Di and Fei She calmly watched Magician Jiu Jin leave.
Fei She was very delighted, “Amazing, we hold this leverage, and we also forced
him to sign a confession, there is also the magic images as proof. From now on,
I’m not worried that Magician Ju Jin won’t submit to us!”
Fei She looked at Zi Di with admiration and gratification.
He greatly approved of Zi Di’s method for handling this. She didn’t rush to
squeeze the benefits out of Jiu Jin, rather she kindly consoled Jiu Jin. It was
suitable to slowly cut the meat to obtain long term profits.
“Anyway, what exactly is going on?” Fei She was exceedingly curious.
“Actually, Elder Jiu Jin is a member of the Wisteria Merchant Alliance, he also
has a level zero Wisteria Secret Order.”
“What?”



****** Chapter 617: All Spat Out ******
Soon after, Zi Di told Fei She of the situation in detail.
Fei She replied, “So, so that’s how it is.”
He felt delighted to witness a comeuppance, “A traitor like Jiu Jin is more
infuriating, our merchant alliance subsidized him and helped him become an
Alchemy Guild Elder. But in the end, he was the first to stab us and swipe most
of our property.”
Zi Di smiled, but her eyes were leaking with cold intentions, “It is
understandable. After all, he and the Wisteria Merchant Alliance don’t have an
emotional base, only collaboration and exploitation.”
Fei She sighed, “The merchant alliance’s arrangement on Ice Sculpture Island
was too impetuous, the recruited associates were actually allocated level zero
authority.”
“This was not the old president’s style. He was forced to do that, for the
situation at the time was getting more urgent and he had to hasten
arrangements.”
“I didn’t expect he would place the Wisteria Cache in the Ten Millennia Ice
Lake.”
“It was a wonderful plan, unfortunately, this generation’s Ice Sculpture King
employed a long term stratagem that began since he took the throne. Due to the
magic formation on the lake bottom, we are forced to open the Wisteria Cache as
soon as possible.”
“There is also Yuan Ci, I didn’t expect that old fellow to not be dead and
always managing to stay hidden.”
“Humph, he surprisingly wanted to secretly open the cache…”
Fei She loathed Yuan Ci’s display of disloyalty.
Lord President, what should I do next?”
“With me and you, we have four level zero secret orders. There is also Jiu Jin
who was forced to sign a contract with us and can be considered partially on
our side.”
“If that happens, we already have 5 level zero secret orders, that is enough to
open the Wisteria Cache.”
Zi Di nodded, “It will depend on how the situation develops.”
“After all, Yuan Ci is the only one who knows where the Wisteria Cache is.”
“This time our luck is pretty good that Jiu Jin decided to drop in to visit.
After today’s negotiation, we have established many advantages, and the
Wisteria Cache has great prospects for the future.”
Fei She looked worried again, “Although Elder Jiu Jin has been secretly
suppressed by us, he is not the only elder in the Alchemy Guild.”
“It can even be said that he doesn’t have much clout in the guild.”
“Lord President, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy technology is a standout
on the Main Plane, this country’s alchemy guild is very strong and cannot be
treated lightly.”
Zi Di glanced at Fei She, knowing the unspoken implication from experience,
“You are worried about the betting agreement?”
“That’s right.” Fei She nodded, sincerely admonishing, “Lord President, why did
you want to take the risk, Jiu Jin has already been captured by us, we can
force him to sign a more dependable and secure contract.”
Zi Di laughed softly, explaining, “I actually considered doing that, but after
careful thought, I still think having the outer appearance of a betting
agreement is more appropriate.”
“For one, this is the result of our negotiation with Jiu Jin, and not the final
outcome. Jiu Jin still needs to petition for it at the Alchemy Guild.”
“Second, we need to treasure the gains of this victory. If the agreement was
more inclined towards us and it brings about Jiu Jin being fired from the
Alchemy Guild, it will be more devastating for us.”
“Finally, only through the form of a betting agreement can we get more and
better benefits from the Alchemy Guild. The profits are usually relative to
risk, right?”
That sentence greatly reduced Fei She’s worry, but it wasn’t completely gone,
“Even if it is a betting agreement, the Alchemy Guild might not agree to it.”
“No, I am rather certain they will accept it.” Zi Di nevertheless smiled
confidently, “Don’t forget, this isn’t the Sheng Ming Empire, it is the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.”
Fei She was startled, then soon saw the light, “I understand, it is the dueling
ambience here!”
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s territory was surrounded by islands, and their
ancestors came from the Frost Continent. That history and the geography here
formed a unique country culture.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s citizens felt strongly about, watched, and
participated in duels.
The alchemists here fundamentally also harbored those trends. These deep
cultural genes existed in their hearts and couldn’t be altered.
A bet was actually another form of dueling.
The Alchemy Guild’s magicians were arrogant and self-important, if they
refused, they would subconsciously feel shame.
They were almost certain to agree to it!
“The Alchemy Guild wanting to recruit us divulges that they have scorn for us.”
“They would never think we have War Merchant’s legacy on us. Our chances of
winning this bet is over 90%.”
“This is a very good opportunity for us to deal with an incomparably strong
competitor like the Alchemy Guild.”
When Zi Di said that her eyes became sharp, “There will inevitably be a day
when I will make these people return all of the things they’ve taken from us!”
“Lord President…” For a moment, Fei She saw the old president’s shadow in Zi
Di.
Dueling Divine Domain. 
Tranquil Hill.
Bing Xiao, the human ringleader, Lan Zao, and the other Bayonet Gang members
were watching a battle.
The battle was between a bearman and a humanoid modified by alchemy.
The bearman was strong and sturdy, and his face had a cross shaped scar, it was
Xiong Ju.
The humanoid modified by alchemy was Spring Boxer.
The two were silver level fighters, and their battle had reached their fiercest
moment.
Xiong Ju was using a silver level broadsword and attacked violently, his battle
skill usage was very skilled, and his wrestling technique was even more
ruthless and efficient.
Spring Boxer wasn’t using his customary hands, rather he was wielding a silver
level whip.
Battle skill – Quick Lash.
Battle skill – Augment Whip.
Battle skill – Curved Whip Sweep.
…
Spring Boxer repeatedly used whip type battle skills to form shadows of whips
that filled the entire sky in a prestigious offensive.
“He’s just like Gang Leader Teng Dong Lang.” The human ringleader sighed.
Spring Boxer absorbed many of Teng Dong Lang’s memories, and he gained a deep
mastery of these battle skills from nothing.
Although he was mainly recuperating in Tranquil Hill, his battle strength had
improved a lot.
This was the charm of Tranquil Hill’s inheritance.
“It’s no wonder Bing Xiao and Spring Boxer wanted to bury duelists on Tranquil
Hill by any means necessary.” The human ringleader’s eyes flashed.
He was a spy and had the important duty of scouting out information on Tranquil
Hill.
Nowadays, after living on Tranquil Hill for many days, he had gathered much
first-hand information on the place.
But he couldn’t leave.
Therefore, this information could not be delivered.
Lan Zao and he were the same, likewise spies, but Lan Zao was working hard
moreso for the dragoman youngster.
He was spying on Tranquil Hill to help the dragonman youngster find a way to
resurrect Zi Di and Cang Xu.
Reality changed far faster than plans did.
Lan Zao was unaware the dragonman youngster already knew the Resurrection
spell.
He was closely watching the battle unfold, “Spring Boxer is very strong, if it
was before, Xiong Ju wouldn’t be his match.
“But now, Xiong Ju has also lived on Tranquil Hill for many days, his strength
has also improved quickly!”
Xiong Ju was a fanatic of the Dueling God!
He rigorously kept to dueling rules and abided by dueling philosophies. At the
time, during his duel with the dragonman youngster, he was unwilling to abide
with the demon hybrid ringleader’s interference.
As Spring Boxer recuperated, Xiong Ju’s strength was also changing every day.
He trained here and constantly received divine enlightenment that gave him all
kinds of battle experience from his forebearers.
Previously, Lan Zao could fight Xiong Ju for a bit as their sparring partner.
But as time passed, the gap between Lan Zao and Xiong Ju gradually increased
and Lan Zao could no longer be his sparring partner.
“Becoming a Dueling God fanatic comes with substantial gains.”
“But it’s a pity, no matter what I do, I cannot completely believe in the
Dueling God.”
Lan Zao felt very regretful.
Faith was not something a person could deepen through wishing it to be so.
On the one hand, using gains as a lure had their limits. Using gains as a lure
to increase conviction had many big systemic problems.
On the other hand, Lan Zao was a foreigner and was unlike Xiong Ju who was
wholly indigenous and had been immersed in a dueling ambience since childhood.
Lan Zao had come here to conspire and scheme. Naturally, he was wary of the
Bayonet Gang remnants and this divine domain.
Thus, the estrangements in his heart caused him to be unable to effectively
improve his belief in the Dueling God.
In short, it is very hard for people to truly deceive themselves!
Suddenly, Xiong Ju growled and used a battle skill to close the distance
between him and Spring Boxer.
Xiong Ju waved the broadsword and constantly attacked.
Spring Boxer retreated again and again, until finally, he was forced to abandon
the whip and use the fists he was most familiar with to fight Xiong Ju in close
quarters.
Although he had received Teng Dong Lang’s memories and battle experience, he
hadn’t adapted to them much.
Spring Boxer had gotten a lot, but his fighting strength hadn’t improved
significantly. 
Looking at Xiong Ju, it was utterly different.
Because his belief was deep, was constantly training, and had received divine
enlightenment, inheriting battle experience from his precursors.
These inheritances all had a clear objective, they were based on Xiong Ju’s own
battle style, methods, and skills, among other things.
Like Lan Zao practicing Air Cannon, who had obtained some experience from
others about this battle skill from others. 
Spring Boxer had started from scratch while Xiong Ju was reinforcing himself.
Therefore, in close quarters combat, Spring Boxer immediately became visibly
fatigued and fell into a disadvantage.
“Ok.” Bing Xiao promptly shouted at them to stop, “Xiao Tan’s condition isn’t
good, and still needs to recuperate. This is just practice and sparring,
continuing to fight is going too far.”
In the past, Spring Boxer would have been delighted to keep battling, even
losing didn’t matter to him.
But now, after absorbing Teng Dong Lang’s memories, Spring Boxer could
deliberate his position. In the future, he would become the Bayonet Gang
Leader, and if he was defeated by Xiong Ju, his prestige would be greatly
damaged, thereby destabilizing the cohesion of the entire Bayonet Gang.
Therefore, Spring Boxer stopped without delay.
“Not going to fight?” Xiong Ju wished to continue battling.
Then at that moment, several loud sounds could be heard on the hill.
The Bayonet Gang remnants followed the noise and saw shadows flying and
fiercely fighting above Tranquil Hill.
“What’s going on?”
“It seems there is an enemy attack?!”



****** Chapter 618: Gu Dong vs Shuang Lian ******
Dueling Divine Domain.
Tranquil Hill.
Halfway up the hill.
A fierce battle was unfolding.
“Damn it!” Gu Dong dodged left and right, looking exceptionally sorry.
“How did Shuang Lian smuggle in two gold level snow elementals into Tranquil
Hill?” Gu Dong was unable to answer this question.
If it weren’t for the snow elementals moving more as they climbed up, Gu Dong
would not have noticed them.
“If it weren’t for the imminent National Ceremony and the strength here being
reduced, it wouldn’t be so dangerous right now!”
Gu Dong bitterly struggled and was on the downwind.
Fortunately, he had already asked for help and was now looking for when Mei Lin
came in to reinforce him.
“Before that, I must persevere and hold the final defensive line.”
Gu Dong understood that on the peak of Tranquil Hill, there were a number of
duelist tombstones in the cemetery. The names on them were extremely important
information.
Regardless of what Shuang Lian was fighting for, as long as she saw these
tombstones, the secrets of these duelists would be exposed.
Honey Snow Tower.
Shuang Lian and the tower spirit were merged together as they controlled the
gold level snow elementals with all their strength and a large quantity of
alchemy puppets in battle.
“I hold the advantage in this battle!” Shuang Lian stirred herself with
exuberant morale.
The two snow elementals were gold level; they had been arduously subdued by her
to suppress the demi-plane’s main force. They were now mobilized here.
Apart from them, there were also numerous alchemy puppets. A considerable
portion of them had been produced by her and her students day and night for
this. Some were for combat, but many more were for investigation and
surveillance.
After touching down on Tranquil Hill, a huge volume of data was acquired by
these alchemy puppets and then transmitted back to Honey Snow Tower.
Shung Lian held the initiative, and she constantly directed these alchemy
puppets to break through the defenses from all directions.
While Gu Dong was just one person.
Luckily, after fighters reached the gold level, their attack range and methods
underwent a qualitative change. Adding on the fact that the higher up on the
hill he was, the smaller the area he needed to protect, this allowed Gu Dong to
barely hold back the tide.
But battle qi was rapidly being depleted, and Gu Doing could only last for a
short time.
“As expected, Teacher’s expectations weren’t wrong, that hill is very important
to this space.” Bu Quan was in a control room, looking over the data with
bright eyes.
“With this data, the Old King’s Crowbar is bound to pry open much more space!”
Racial magic - Hail Explosion.
A snow elemental under Shuang Lian’s control condensed hail within its body and
constantly sprayed it out.
Several hundred hailstones shot out, each one able to explode. With booms and
cold air, they shattered into ice shards that had terrifying cutting
capabilities.
Gu Dong originally wanted to evade them, but a moment later, he saw the other
snow elemental charging up the hill in spite of its injuries.
Gu Dong was forced to dispel his intention of evasion. He stretched out his
palms and out flowed large amounts of gold battle qi.
The battle qi condensed into a battle skill, forming a wall.
The wall blocked the hail explosions and also barely stopped the charging snow
elemental.
Although the snow elemental was hit by Hail Explosion, because it was a snow
elemental, it had a high resistance to ice magic, therefore, it wasn’t damaged
that much.
The two snow elementals joined forces and madly attacked Gu Dong’s battle qi
wall.
Every thump created more cracks in the battle qi wall. Gu Dong repeatedly fell
back, wildly pressing his battle qi to mend the wall while rousing his spirit,
wanting to use a battle skill to alter this detrimental situation.
But at that moment, an alchemy puppet suddenly burst with a pink halo.
The halo of light passed through the battle qi wall, and when it shined on Gu
Dong’s head, it caused his willpower to slacken, and he was unable to focus his
mind.
“Not good!” Gu Dong felt things were going south, and he resisted it with all
he had. But he was trapped in a cycle of focusing his mind and then losing it.
For a moment, he couldn’t use other battle skills.
“This is the Divine Halo Scattering Device; it is said that the magic model it
uses comes from a modified version of the God of Love’s divine spell.” Bu Quan
looked at the magic image in the control room.
“Who?” Shuang Lian exclaimed, revealing her surprise.
A moment later, the flying puppet suppressing Gu Dong was struck by an
artillery shell.
The flying puppet was blown away by the explosion, and the halo strayed off
course, allowing Gu Doing to catch his breath. 
Gu Dong successfully used a battle skill to smoothly retreat while
simultaneously trapping the snow elementals in place temporarily.
“Huff hoo! Reinforcements came so soon?” He panted heavily, looking at where
the reinforcements were with anticipation.
“So, it turns out to be them.”
“The one coming to help was not Mei Lin and the others, but rather Bing Xiao
and the others.
As Gu Dong and the snow elementals fought, the Bayonet Gang remnants took note
of them. Although Bing Xiao was just silver level, as a duelist, he knew how
important Tranquil Hill was, therefore, he didn’t hesitate and immediately
gathered everyone to rush over to help.
“Hen Fa, well done!” Spring Boxer loudly praised.
Lan Zao was still currently just an iron level, but his limits had reached the
silver level.
Bing Xiao, Spring Boxer, Xiong Ju, and the human ringleader were all silver
level, but didn’t have long ranged battle skills. This immediately gave Lan Zao
a golden opportunity to distinguish himself.
Lan Zao grabbed hold of it, and although he hadn’t damaged the silver level
flying puppet, after running crucial interference, it affected the war
situation.
“Roar!” Xiong Ju held his broadsword and took the lead, charging into the
alchemy puppets.
These alchemy puppets only went up to the silver level, and they were detection
and surveillance types. They were not Xiong Ju’s match.
Xiong Ju displayed the bearing of a fierce general as he charged into the
puppets from the left, killing and scattering them.
Soon after, the Bayonet Gang remnants also charged into the enemy.
Shuang Lian was not good at puppet combat, and at first, she didn’t command
them to retreat, rather she let them pile up as she met the Bayonet Gang
remnants with force.
But very quickly, she noticed that her puppets had been severely reduced, while
the Bayonet Gang remnants were fierce dragons and tigers.
These gang members had experienced the gang’s collapse, fled from Snow Bird
Harbor, survived Flower Skirt Island, and other cruel culls; those that
remained were the elite.
These elite in the divine domain had also gone through active training and
received continuous divine blessings, causing their strength to swell by both
small and large amounts.
Shuang Lian realized her mistake and promptly pulled the puppets out.
The puppets had been reduced by more than half their numbers.
Shuang Lian clenched her teeth and changed her strategy, scattering the
puppets.
The Bayonet Gang remnants weren’t able to meddle in a gold level battle, and
under Bing Xiao’s command, they targeted the puppets and spread out to chase
them down.
“Stabilize the front!” Gu Dong obtaining timely help immensely improved his
battle qi depletion.
This was because he no longer needed to divert his attention to deal with the
alchemy puppets.
With the Bayonet Gang remnants sharing the burden, he only needed to deal with
the snow elementals.
Although the snow elementals were gold level, and that there were two of them,
they didn’t hold the advantage against Gu Dong in combat.
In this aspect, Shuang Lian was in a somewhat awkward situation.
She used her spirit to control the snow elementals in battle and could fully
display the snow elemental’s true power. This was because she was a magician
and was no expert in close combat, she more so used the snow elementals to bomb
indiscriminately with their racial spells. The benefits of this was she was
able to coordinate both snow elementals in concert.
And if she abandoned direct control and gave the snow elementals freedom to act
on their own, these snow elementals would fight alone. They would obstruct each
other, and if that happened, although their individual combat strength would be
better, their combined power would be worse.
Gu Dong had plenty of combat experience, and as a duelist, he naturally was no
ordinary gold level fighter.
If Shuang Lian wasn’t directly controlling them, he would have cleverly
exploited the two snow elementals hindering each other and conversely be
winning.
Shuang Lian didn’t divert her attention, and maintained control over the snow
elementals, yet was unable to break through.
Meanwhile, her alchemy puppets were gradually decimated by the Bayonet Gang
remnants. The puppet with the Divine Halo Scattering Device didn’t escape and
was dismembered.
“Defeated…damn it.” Shuang Lian was gloomy.
“Those people had a crucial impact on the war situation.” Shuang Lian stared at
the Bayonet Gang remnants in the magic images, her eyes containing her hatred.
She didn’t think so many would descend from Tranquil Hill.
Bu Quan saw Lan Zao in the magic images but didn’t recognize him.
For one, Bu Quan was not familiar with the other survivors. Secondly, after Lan
Zao left, because his bloodline had been purified, his own form had gone
through great changes.
Even now, although Deceptive Disguise had been exhausted, the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell was still maintained, though it wasn’t far
from dissipating. 
But because his appearance had radically changed, Deceptive Disguise didn’t
have to do anything.
“Ordinary attack methods will be suppressed when approaching the hill. I fear
the only effective attack will be Ice Breaker.” Shuang Lian wavered.
Ice Breaker’s magic model had been improved by her so her magician tower could
use it.
But it was barely able to.
Even if the magician tower was using it, just a single usage depleted 78% of
its magic power reservoir, and even the tower spirit would momentarily crash,
then sink into hibernation and forced recovery.
Ice Breaker was the Honey Snow Tower’s strongest attack, and also what Shuang
Lian was relying on to escape this trap.
“Just using Ice Breaker might not work. I need to pair it up with the Old
King’s Crowbar to be able to attack that hill.”
“But if I do that, the consequences will be hard to predict.”
Shuang Lian was unable to decide for the moment.
Firstly, she was unable to assess the actual combat results. She should only
calculate that it could harm the hill but was unable to measure to what degree.
Secondly, when she used this method, it was bound to trigger the enemy’s guard
and even restraint. In the future, if the enemy targeted her, and she was
unable to, then how could she free herself from this divine domain space?
It could be said that Ice Breaker was the source of both Shuang Lian’s
confidence and sense of security.
Swish.
Space fluctuated, and Mei Lin’s figure appeared on Tranquil Hill.
“Finally, someone came!” Gu Dong sensed Mei Lin’s familiar aura and immediately
cheered.
This scene was also detected by Shuang Lian, spurring her into a decision.
“If this battle cannot be won, then this might be my only chance.  After this,
the enemy will stringently guard that hill!”
It was time to use Ice Breaker!
A moment later, Honey Snow Tower shook as massive amounts of magic power surged
and collected into a magic model.
Boom!!!
A snow white beam of light suddenly shot out towards Tranquil Hill.
Halfway there, the beam of light grew smaller and thinner, suppressed by the
divine domain.
King’s Crowbar!
Shuang Lian immediately used this legend level artifact. For a split second,
Honey Snow Tower’s connection to the demi-plane vanished, and Ice Breaker’s
light beam quickly restored to its original state.
Tranquil Hill’s power was shifted by the crowbar and was unable to achieve
perfect suppression.
“Not good!” Mei Lin promptly tore a scroll, but the defensive magic only lasted
a second before it broke.
Gu Dong was tangled up with the snow elementals.
The light beam ruthlessly bombarded Tranquil Hill, and light white as snow
rapidly permeated everything.
The Bayonet Gang remnants fled from the disaster unfolding on the hill in
disarray.
The snowy light spread too quickly, and unable to outrun it, Lan Zao was
submerged by it.
“I’m…going to die.” In a split second, Lan Zao froze into an ice cube, and his
thoughts slowed.
“Don’t worry, you’re not dying.”
The fishman youngster’s voice suddenly transmitted in his mind.



****** Chapter 619: Young Man – Lan Zao is Also in the Divine Domain? ******
White Hair Trench.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The fishman youngster was in the process of using the divine spells [Believer
Perception] and [Divine Power Channel].
He was currently connecting with Lan Zao!
The fishman youngster finding Lan Zao was no accident, it was his intention.
Ever since he obtained high level divine spells and began to try them out, the
experience of saving the big guy had given him a far greater understanding and
mastery of these divine spells
After the fishman youngster meticulously found a place for the big guy, he had
the energy and time to search for Charming Blue believers that might exist near
Ice Sculpture Island.
The fishman youngster understood that where believers were placed in [Believer
Perception] corresponded to where they were in reality.
Through War Merchant’s navigational data, with the position of the Magnet
Archipelago and White Hair Trench, he could easily determine where Ice
Sculpture Island was.
Although last time he surveyed it, he didn’t find any Charming Blue believers
on or near Ice Sculpture Island.
But this did not hinder his search.
The reason was simple, believers were intelligent lifeforms and could move
around.
Therefore, the fishman youngster planned to use the divine spell to search
around every so often during his cultivation in hopes of finding a Charming
Blue believer who happened to move near Ice Sculpture Island.
“Found one!” The moment the fishman youngster discovered Lan Zao, he was
delighted.
Then he got a inordinate feeling from Lan Zao.
It was a bit like the big guy, but it was also different.
This unordinary feeling was something the fishman youngster greatly valued and
he immediately focused his attention on it.
“It’s actually Lan Zao!!” The fishman youngster instantly recognized him,
despite the latter’s appearance, physique, and other physical features being
different due to his bloodline purification.
The divine spell [Believer Perception] was a faith connection and a soul link,
while appearance and so forth were superficial things.
The moment he found Lan Zao, the fishman youngster was very excited.
To save Lan Zao, he had sailed out alone with the Deep Sea Monster Fish. He
didn’t expect the series of events that followed that caused him to be trapped
in the Ocean Mother Nest.
Rescuing Lan Zao had been shelved since.
Then, just now, the fishman youngster “accidentally” found Lan Zao.
Then he also found out why the feeling Lan Zao gave him was relatively special
and similar to the one the big guy gave off.
“Lan Zao believes in the Fishnet Goddess, in other words, he believes in
Charming Blue Goddess.”
“At the same time, he is actually also my believer too?”
Lan Zao was a pan-believer who believed in many gods.
“He believes in the Fishnet Goddess because he was born into and grew up in a
coastal fishing village. In this kind of environment, having plenty of
religions is not strange.”
“Why does he bear faith in me? Perhaps because I forgave him on Mystifying
Monster Island and also saved him many times from calamities?”
“Therefore, he followed me not just to repay his debt of gratitude, but also
due to an element of faith?”
The fishman youngster noticed that Lan Zao’s faith in the Fishnet Goddess was
merely as a pan-believer, yet Lan Zao’s faith in him reached the pious level.
“Hold on, Lan Zao’s location…it indicates he’s returned to Ice Sculpture
Island? Where is he right now?” The fishman youngster focused his attention and
discovered that Lan Zao was engaged in battle, and also found the surroundings
were quite extraordinary and intriguing.
The fishman didn’t know Lan Zao was on “Tranquil Hill”.
At that moment, Honey Snow Tower fired Ice Breaker.
The gigantic beam of light bombed Tranquil Hill with peerless power.
Heaven and earth shook as the snow light spread.
Lan Zao couldn’t evade it and was being drowned by it.
“I’m…going to die.” In a split second, Lan Zao froze into an ice cube, and his
thoughts slowed.
“Don’t worry, you’re not dying.” The fishman youngster’s voice suddenly rang in
his mind.
Lan Zao was startled, thinking he was hallucinating and hearing voices before
death’s door.
But a moment later, tempestuous power sprung from his body and helped withstand
the external threat while simultaneously applying Deceptive Disguise, causing
Lan Zao’s external appearance to not change whatsoever.
Divine power protected Lan Zao and saved his life.
Lan Zao was wonderfully surprised, and he could only shout in his mind, “Lord
Commander!!!”
But in reality, he was frozen and couldn’t produce a sound.
However, the excitement and joy of his soul could still be sensed clearly by
the fishman youngster.
In White Hair Trench, the fishman youngster smiled, “Lan Zao, you made it hard
for me to find you. I haven’t returned yet, while you actually made your way
back to Ice Sculpture Island first.”
Lan Zao was puzzled, “Lord Commander, I am currently in the Dueling Divine
Domain.”
The fishman youngster: “?”
Lan Zao wanted to keep explaining, but the fishman youngster laughed before
that, “No need to explain, I’ll take a look personally.”
At once, he focused his attention and began to thumb through Lan Zao’s
memories.
Thus, the fishman youngster saw the conversation between Spring Boxer and Lan
Zao, Spring Boxer called him “Hen Fa”, and he told “Hen Fa” that he had to
believe in the Dueling God, otherwise his life would be in danger.
Then, the fishman youngster saw Lan Zao on Tranquil Hill, training his battle
skills diligently in the Dueling Divine Domain, and absorbing the battle
experience of dead experts. In addition, he also saw Xiong Ju and the others
sparring with each other.
Then, the fishman youngster saw something important. Lan Zao and the others
were bundled up and carried into the Dueling Divine Domain, and on the top of
Tranquil Hill, they saw tombstones!
The fishman youngster saw Lan Zao play the role of “Hen Fa”, receive spy
training on Flower Skirt Island, and participated in a wild duel.
Finally, the fishman youngster saw Lan Zao participate in the Snow Bird Harbor
battle, when he “saved” Bing Xiao and withdrew on Feng Lian’s pirate ship.
The fishman youngster: …
He didn’t expect Lan Zao to have had such a marvelous and suspenseful
experience during this time.
“So, this place is the Dueling Divine Domain.”
“This is a living divine domain and is on Ice Sculpture Island. Therefore,
[Believer Perception] detected Lan Zao’s location on Ice Sculpture Island.”
“Lan Zao had entered the divine domain at an earlier time, but my previous
searches didn’t find him. This might be due to the divine domain being
destabilized by a mysterious enemy attack, causing a spatial crack and allowing
me to finally find Lan Zao!”
“Dueling God…I have never heard of such a god.”
“Who is the one fighting in the Dueling Divine Domain and has that magician
tower?”
The fishman youngster didn’t notice that the person who was attacking was the
outsider he expected to save the big guy – Shuang Lian.
Even though he had found a minute magician tower in the distance pictured in
Lan Zao’s memory.
Shuang Lian could see Tranquil Hill from the top of her magician tower.
On Tranquil Hill, Lan Zao could also see Honey Snow Tower, but he didn’t know
what it was because it was too far away.
In spite of Lan Zao knowing information about Bu Quan.
This was also why before Lan Zao went to battle, he did it without the
slightest hesitation and used Air Cannonball to knock the alchemy puppet askew
to get Gu Dong out of his predicament.
Since Lan Zao didn’t know intelligence on the enemy, neither did the fishman
youngster know it was Shuang Lian.
None of that would hinder his following actions.
“Lan Zao is now in a divine domain, rashly helping him will have immense hidden
dangers.”
“I must make up for this without delay!”



****** Chapter 620: Dueling God’s Favor ******
As a divine emissary, he could look through a believer’s memories. It really
made things easy!
Not needing Lan Zao to waste time verbally explaining things, the fishman
youngster learned about everything in a matter of seconds.
He instantly made a judgement: Lan Zao was in danger!
The danger was not just the powerful enemy attack, but also his “teammates”.
“How to save Lan Zao?”
The fishman youngster first thought of getting Lan Zao to leave directly. 
It meant using the Divine Domain Descent spell.
This was a feasible theory. Because Lan Zao not only a pan-believer in Charming
Blue Goddess (Fishnet Goddess) but was also a pious believer in the fishman
youngster.
The fishman youngster could use divine spells like Divine Power Channel, have
him pray, then direct divine favor onto him, thereby allowing him to use Divine
Domain Descent on them.
Through this portal divine spell, Lan Zao could return to the Charming Blue
Divine Domain.
Lan Zao had experienced this method once before – when he left Flower Skirt
Island, it was through Divine Domain Descent, and it instantly brought him to
the Dueling Divine Domain.
“But now, it is not the opportune time to use Divine Domain Descent.” The
fishman youngster understood.
On the one hand, using this divine spell on Lan Zao would expend a large amount
of the fishman youngster’s divine power and divine favor.
The former was not a problem.
After the big guy incident, the fishman youngster’s divine power had already
been replenished.
But too much divine favor would be consumed, currently it had only recovered to
6,000 as of now. The fishman youngster was uncertain if it was enough for a
Divine Domain Descent.
On the other hand, there was many hidden dangers in choosing this.
One was that Lan Zao entering Charming Blue Divine Domain did not mean he could
return to the fishman youngster’s side. It was possible he would return to the
main part of Charming Blue Divine Domain.
It was where Charming Blue Goddess’ main body should be hibernating.
If Lan Zao was hastily teleported there, would it awaken Charming Blue Goddess?
“If Charming Blue Goddess wakes up, they will surely notice us. I fear that
will be worse than becoming imperial fugitives!” 
The other hidden danger was the Dueling God.
If Divine Domain Descent activated on Lan Zao while he was in the Dueling
Divine Domain, placing te Charming Blue Divine Domain in the Dueling Divine
Domain, how would the Dueling God respond?
Fly into a rage? Then drop divine punishment?
That was possible, what was more likely was that Charming Blue Goddess would
wake up!
“It would be great if I had experience in using Divine Domain Descent.”
The fishman youngster wasn’t confident.
Because he had never tried using it.
Based on his plan, next prayer he would ask for these experiences. That would
be the safest way.
“It would be better if I didn’t rush to use Divine Domain Descent.”
“Furthermore, if I save Lan Zao now, it will rather undercut the perilous
journey he has taken.”
The fishman youngster had a good understanding of what happened to him after
looking through his memories.
“I have never heard of a Dueling God. I have looked up information on a dozen
churches in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and I have never seen such a god or
clergy.”
“This has been developed secretly.”
“By means of Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s blessed dueling atmosphere, the Dueling
God Church has grown well.”
“At the peak of Tranquil Hill there are tombstones with the names of many
people. Mei Lin, Teng Dong Lang…these are all gold levels!”
“Wait a moment, if Teng Dong Lang is a duelist, and Spring Boxer is his coffin
bearer, then the people who attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps at Snow
Bird Harbor was the Dueling Church and the other duelists?”
The fishman youngster didn’t know that Zong Ge had assassinated the gold levels
Ax Gang Leader, Jia Bing, and Lin enroute to the capital.
If he knew this information, he would be more inclined towards this hypothesis.
The fishman youngster’s intuition told him that Lan Zao would gain more if he
remained here.
“Deceptive Disguise is very reliable and can effectively help Lan Zao.”
The fishman youngster wouldn’t have Lan Zao blindly take risks; he wanted
certainty. 
“Besides, with me, it won’t just be a simple Deceptive Disguise spell.”
“I can even help Lan Zao gain the Dueling God’s favor!”
The fishman youngster had practiced blasphemous sacrifice a lot.
After thinking about it, the fishman youngster began to act.
First was the classic spell combination – Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, followed by Divine Power Channel, empowering
Lan Zao.
Then it was the divine spell [Believer Conversion].
With this gateway divine spell, Lan Zao’s belief in other gods would be
converted into belief in the Dueling God.
Of course, this was merely a disguise.
The power of his conviction would still go to those other gods.
In short, this series of divine spells were conveyed to him one after the
other.
Lan Zao quickly became a “pious level” Dueling God believer.
Spring Boxer did say that and even used the threat of death on Lan Zao.
Therefore, the fishman youngster understood that being at least a pious level
believer met standards.
“Lord Commander, what is this?” Lan Zao was quite amazed.
He knew about Deceptive Disguise, after all he had been boosted by it before.
But he didn’t know the other divine spells that came afterwards, and it dazzled
his eyes.
“Now is not the time to explain, what is coming next is important.” The fishman
youngster replied, “Do what I say!”
“Understood, Lord Commander.” Lan Zao’s loyalty to the young man was clearly
visible, he had not a shred of hesitation.
Thus, a moment later, Lan Zao prayed in his mind.
“Grand God, supreme Dueling God.”
“You are an endless target of reverence; You are the heavenly law I pursue
throughout my life.”
“Now, I am trapped in ice, unable to free myself.”
“This endless cold shackles me, bringing me despair and misery.”
“Only Your divine finger can save me from this crisis.”
“Ah, Dueling God, please listen to my prayer.”
“Your glory and mercy brings me incomparable marvel.”
“I wish for Your almighty favor to descend upon me, to save us pious
believers.”
“We forever venerate Your supreme authority and offer our humble spirits and
devotion in prayer.”
“In Your care and benevolence, we seek salvation. Only through You, our eternal
and only Lord God.”
After a few seconds, a growing beam of light fell from the sky and covered the
frozen Lan Zao.
Ice Breaker was still causing havoc with its snow light, but the beam of divine
power simply penetrated the snow light and instantly dispelled the ice around
Lan Zao.
Soon after, that light spread and turned into a vast curtain of light that
spread to other people.
This included Bing Xiao, Xiong Ju, and the others, they had met the same end as
Lan Zao, but at this very moment, they had been saved!
“This is my God’s divine blessing!” Gu Dong took in this scene as he fled on
the precipice of the snow light.
Not just him, but also Mei Lin flying in the air. The navy rear admiral stared
in Lan Zao’s direction, “The light spread from that fishman’s body, and formed
a divine power light curtain. Who is he?”
In the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster coughed and relinquished
his worries.
“Excellent, my luck’s pretty good.”
“After that prayer, Lan Zao has obtained the Dueling God’s divine blessing.”
The fishman youngster’s conjecture wasn’t wrong. If Lan Zao was in the outside
world, the possibility would be unlikely. But he was in a divine domain, and
like the fishman youngster praying, he could receive an immediate response from
a god.
Not just that, the fishman youngster had also covertly given Lan Zao many
divine spells. These divine spells played an extremely important function
during blasphemous prayers!
If that prayer didn’t call forth the Dueling God’s divine blessing, the fishman
youngster planned to take a risk and use Charming Blue divine power for
deception.
It also had to be disguised as Lan Zao’s own strength.
Otherwise, disguising it as the Dueling God’s own divine power would be an
enormous provocation that would bring the Dueling God’s ire to its peak!
“If that happens, then there would be two gold level witnesses.”
“The Bayonet Gang remnants will find out after this that they were saved
because of Lan Zao. Lan Zao’s pious level belief will help him establish
himself and his dangerous situation will be greatly alleviated.”
Honey Snow Tower.
“That is…divine blessing!” Shuang Lian looked as gloomy as water.
Because the divine power light curtain not only aided the Bayonet Gang but also
mended Tranquil Hill.
Tranquil Hill had been split apart massively by Ice Breaker, but as of this
moment, the light curtain was quickly mending that mountainous crack.
At the same time, the divine power light curtain was also suppressing Ice
Breaker’s beam, reducing it once again.
“Stop Ice Breaker!” Shuang Lain decisively yelled when she saw this.
The cast only lasted 8 seconds, yet over 75% of Honey Snow Tower’s magic power
reservoir had been expended.
The tower spirit in charge of maintaining the magic model had already crashed
and did not respond.
Seeing Honey Snow Tower’s declining aura, Mei Lin and Gu Dong immediately
grabbed ahold of this opportunity, quickly leaving Tranquil Hill and charging
in.
Shuang Lian was crystal clear about the consequences of discharging Ice
Breaker.
She remained calm in the face of death, and she replaced the tower spirit to
control the magician tower in combat.
Bu Quan was energetically collating the data and studying it.
The King’s Crowbar once again changed directions, no longer affecting the
Dueling Divine Domain, but rather the magician tower.
Mei Lin’s and Gu Dong’s many attacks were shifted away, then were
counterattacked.
This made the two gold levels quite frustrated.
The legend level artifact gave Shuang Lian a nearly invincible position.
Magic scroll – Spatial Anchor.
Mei Lin couldn’t use Spatial Anchor, but she had a spell scroll.
Spatial Anchor was not used on Honey Snow Tower, but rather the spatial crack.
Ice Breaker’s power was very formidable, and although Tranquil Hill was mended
by the Dueling God’s light, halfway between it and Honey Snow Tower, there was
still a massive spatial crack.
Mei Lin couldn’t repair this point in space and found that she was unable to
attack Honey Snow Tower at the moment, so she changed her target. First she
would use Spatial Anchor to solidify space to prevent other outsiders from
getting into the divine domain.
At the same time, it was also to prevent Shuang Lian from transmitting a
distress call through the spatial crack.
“Humph!” Shuang Lian didn’t stop it.
On the one hand, she didn’t have surplus military strength. On the other hand,
she had more hope in the future.
“Although Ice Breaker was exposed and didn’t achieve anything, I still gathered
a tremendous amount of data.”
“With this data and with the help of the Old King’s Crowbar, I am sure to shift
even more of the divine domain’s space!”
“The future is mine!”



****** Chapter 621: Lan Zao Obtains Armor ******
Dueling Divine Domain.
The battle that occurred from Shuang Lian’s sneak attack had come to an end.
Shung Lian’s troops had lost on the battlefield, and the duelists had defended
Tranquil Hill successfully.
The most important person in this battle was none other than Gu Dong.
When he detected the gold level snow elementals raiding Tranquil Hill while on
duty, he immediately reacted to stop them. Furthermore, during the battle,
despite the many difficulties, he did not cower and really planned to defend
the place to the death!
The Bayonet Gang remnants played a crucial role, and among them, the iron level
Lan Zao was especially impressive.
After cleaning up the battlefield, Mei Lin received the information, and even
she had to admit that Lan Zao’s Air Cannon had a very subtle effect, and he
indirectly saved Gu Dong.
Gu Dong then was being impaired by an alchemy puppet, and was in quite the
passive situation, but thanks to Lan Zao’s assistance, he was able to recover
for a breath.
Long experiences on the battlefield gave Mei Lin a clear understanding that on
the battlefield, being able to “recover for a breath” was quite pivotal.
“I didn’t expect the Bayonet Gang remnants to actually have such an effect.”
Mei Lin would never have thought of this happening.
She allowed Bing Xiao and the others to stay on Tranquil Hill to rest and
recuperate, mainly to prevent undiscovered traitors from revealing information,
and didn’t expect such a gain during this battle.
“From another point of view, Shuang Lian is not a battle-oriented magician. She
didn’t grab hold of crucial battle opportunities and her troop’s formation, and
composition had serious problems.”
“Let’s not speak more on it, if there was just one more Divine Halo Scattering
Device, the war situation might be far different. Shuang Lian might have been
able to assault the summit of Tranquil Hill.”
“Even so, Shuang Lian cannot be looked down upon, to think she had such a
spell!!”
Mei Lin ran her eyes across the battlefield, and saw the gigantic rift valley
of ice, her expression heavy and gloomy.
This new ice rift valley was created by Ice Breaker.
Mei Lin did not know it was the Ice Breaker spell, nor did she know it came
from the Great Pyrolysis spell, but she saw how powerful this class of spell
was.
“Under normal circumstances, this magic cannot damage the divine domain.”
“However, the Dueling Divine Domain has no master, and Shuang Lian
unfortunately has the legend level artifact, the Old King’s Crowbar too.
After shifting the divine domain, Ice Breaker still retained its considerable
might.
“There is a spatial crack in the Dueling Divine Domain, and although the divine
domain is automatically repairing itself, it’s at a slow rate. Honey Snow Tower
might not be able to get out, but it’ll be easier to send a distress call.”
“The top priority is mending this spatial crack, thus ensuring the Dueling
Divine Domain is kept hidden!”
Mei Lin was unable to fix this problem herself.
“It seems I have to ask the royal family to use the Iceberg Crystal Ball.”
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was a legend level maritime power, and despite the
current king not being a legend level, the royal family had a legend level
foundation.
The Iceberg Crystal Ball was one of those things.
Like the Old King’s Crowbar, it was also a legend level artifact!
“Apart from that, in order to prevent Shuang Lian from attacking again, we need
to garrison a second gold level here.”
According to the information, Mei Lin knew that Shuang Lian’s demi-plane only
had two gold level snow elementals. In this battle, Shuang Lian suffered
disastrous damage, and on paper, she wouldn’t be able to launch an offensive of
similar strength again.
But it is better to be safe than sorry, and magicians really had a lot of
skills.
Especially since Shuang Lian also had a magician tower!
The magician tower could attack and defend, it was also a formidable base of
manufacturing, and perhaps Shuang Lian could make gold level puppets in her
magician tower?
Men Lin fully anticipated this happening.
Therefore, she chose to increase her gold level transcendent power.
“The National Ceremony is near at hand, and getting gold level military
strength isn’t easy.” Mei Lin sighed to herself.
Although there were many gold level duelists, they were rather strapped in
actual usage.
Mei Lin was busy with the navy, and she needed to protect and patrol. Da Han
and other pirates were flocking over, putting Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s strong
frontier defenses under pressure.
Gu Dong was worthy of his army background, he was reliable, and Mei Lin felt
relieved that she appointed him. This battle also saw how reliable Gu Dong was.
Most crucially, he was already retired. Without a doubt, following this, he
would be the main person on duty, and even be a permanent resident here.
Bao Li Gen was an Ice Sculpture Army soldier, and not only would he be
participating in the National Ceremony Grand Duel, but he also held an
important seat in the army exercise.
The first seat, Long Meng, was not from a military background and Mei Lin did
not have jurisdiction over him.
Zhu Gan was a foreign elf.
Mo Gui Ji was mainly focused on the National Ceremony grand duel; he really
wanted to win it!
Xue Tuan Zi wanted to participate in the Warm Snow Cup; she had been preparing
for it for a long time.
Qing Hong Yan was a rabbitman and had a worrying condition. If he went mad, the
duelists had to deal with him.
Yun Zhong was the newest member of the duelists. He had an undisciplined
temperament and valued freedom. Despite the Li Jian Clan offering him a high
price, he didn’t join them. Mei Lin also tried to invite him at a high price,
but he rarely showed interest in acting.
Next was He Gai Tou, and putting it nicely, he was shrewd, while putting it
bluntly, he was treacherous.
Finally, there was Yi Jiu.
He was an assassin from the Thieves Guild, and since joining, and because of
last time, he had a grudge against Mei Lin. If Mei Lin wanted to use him again,
she would have to pay at least triple this time!
Due to this, Mei Lin barely had any duelists she could use.
“Damn you, Long Fu!”
“Teng Dong Lang, Jia Bing, Lin, and also the Ax Gang Leader were all slain by
your hand.”
“Those four had a military background, and were as reliable and stable as Gu
Dong, but they were lost one after the other.”
“If they hadn’t died in battle, today’s situation would not be so passive!”
The duelists had complicated origins, and the largest faction among them was
the military faction, headed by Mei Lin. But Long Fu (Zong Ge) inflicted
unprecedented losses on the military faction, and it caused Mei Lin a heartache
ever since.
In the end, gold levels were the core of transcendent forces, and only that
core could stabilize things.
Mei Lin didn’t know Zong Ge was impersonating the dragonman youngster, and to
her, it seemed Long Fu had slain no less than four duelists, all from the
military faction!
Mei Lin’s hatred towards the dragonman youngster was the kind that would not be
resolved until one party was dead.
Not long after, the battlefield cleanup finished, and it was confirmed there
were no alchemy puppets on Tranquil Hill.
Mei Lin summoned the Bayonet Gang remnants, evaluated them, and bestowed
rewards upon their merits.
“In this battle you have contributed greatly. Whatever you need, say it and I
will meet it as much as possible.” Mei Lin smiled.
She looked at Bing Xiao, “You are their leader, speak first.”
Bing Xiao exposed a rarely seen expression, apprehension and expectation,
“Based on this merit, can I leave behind my inheritance on Tranquil Hill’s
summit?”
Mei Lin shook her head, “I don’t have the qualifications to give you such an
arrangement. You are all believers of the Dueling God. I believe you all
received God’s divine blessing during this battle already, isn’t that so?”
The Bayonet Gang remnants, including the human ringleader, had received divine
favor.
Of course, everyone received a different amount of divine favor.
Lan Zao said, “The greatest divine blessing bestowed is the one that protected
our lives!”
Those words caused everyone to look at him.
“Hen Fa speak true.” Xiong Ju loudly approved, “That we are still alive is the
greatest gain! Ah ha ha.”
Spring Boxer clapped Hen Fa’s shoulder, “Thanks to you, Hen Fa.”
Lan Zao promptly responded, “I only fought with all of my strength, and when
death approached, I prayed in desperation. This is all the Dueling God’s
benevolence!”
Those words caused everyone to nod repeatedly.
Lan Zao seized the opportunity to inquire, “Lord Mei Lin, I also want to become
our Lord’s holy warrior. After enduring this battle, I have become a pious
believer!”
Mei Lin shook her head, “I will say whether or not you become a holy warrior is
not for me to decide.”
“But I can give you all a good suggestion, that is to participate in many
duels.”
“Our Lord is the Dueling God, what acts do you think He will favor?”
The human ringleader’s eyes shined, feigning excitement while in actuality he
was declaring what he had ruminated on for a long time, “The National Ceremony
Grand Duel! The kingdom wants to hold the most majestic duel during this
celebration.”
Mei Lin shook her head, “In the short term, you won’t be able to leave.”
“The following arrangement needs you all to be garrisoned here at the foot of
Tranquil Hill for a long time.”
“I will supply your daily needs and cultivation resources to your
satisfaction.”
The human ringleader’s heart sank, unavoidably feeling disappointed.
He had gathered enough information but was unable to get out of here.
Bing Xiao understood Mei Lin’s purpose in this, he nodded, then raised an
additional request, “Can you provide me with a gold level giant attendant?”
Bing Xiao wanted to cultivate another gold level giant slave, and he had the
means to do so.”
But the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had the slavery ban, therefore, Bing Xiao said
“attendant”.
“Based on your contribution this time…I can.” Mei Lin consented.
Of course, she knew that attendant meant slave.
Gold level giant slaves were actually very pricey, but Mei Lin considered
future battles and found that as of now, Tranquil Hill really needed more
defenses.
Next Mei Lin asked Spring Boxer.
She knew Spring Boxer was Teng Dong Lang’s coffin bearer and successor,
therefore, his status in her eyes was rather high.
Thirdly, Mei Lin asked Lan Zao.
At the fishman youngster’s behest, Lan Zao stated, “I hope I can get gold level
full body armor.”
Mei Lin hesitated, but despite the kingdom’s armor prohibition, she still
agreed to this request.
After dealing with things appropriately, Mei Lin immediately departed Tranquil
Hill. She had already been missing for some time, and the navy still needed her
to show her face.
The fishman youngster who had been watching the entire time also withdrew his
focus.
“If this happens, Lan Zao will be temporarily safe there.”
“Not only that, but he will also have gold level full body armor. With that
armor, his defense will surpass both mine and Zong Ge’s.”
Lan Zao was only an iron level right now, and his bloodline limit was the
silver level. Even if he was a silver level, having gold level armor would be
rather luxurious.
Due to the armor prohibition, Xiong Ju only had the Gold Flower Hacksaw, and no
armor, let alone full body armor.
Lan Zao being able to get it was extremely lucky. For example, if it wasn’t Mei
Lin who came, and another, it might not have happened.
“Mei Lin.”
“If I remember correctly, isn’t she the rear admiral of the first fleet?
Although she is a mermaid and not a snow elf, she is one of the representatives
of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s military.”
The fishman youngster sank into pondering and recollection.
After the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps came to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, they
had purchased a lot of information.
This information included all sorts of aspects of the kingdom. One of the main
focuses of it was on military affairs. Mei Lin was a famous figure, so of
course, the survivors learned about her.
“I didn’t expect this military figure to secretly be one of the Dueling God’s
holy warriors.”
“In what areas can I exploit this secret?”
“Were they the ones who raided the mercenary corps branch in Snow Bird Harbor?”



****** Chapter 622: The Young Man’s Advancement ******
White Hair Trench.
Before the gold altar.
The Charming Blue Archbishop, octopus-man Zhou Zhang was leading numerous
believers in a new round of teleportation blood sacrifice.
She prayed loudly:
“Grand Charming Blue Goddess, our God, our mother.”
“In this deep sea valley’s sacred ceremony, we have gathered before Your altar
and offer You blood and souls in praise.”
“Charming Blue Goddess, You are the God of a Thousand Faces, the Monarch of
Deception.”
“Your power rushes forth like the torrential ocean, Your wisdom cares for
disturbed hearts.”
“Please accept our blood and awaken the sacred instincts fast asleep in our
hearts. Let our eyes be filled with blurred radiance and win the blessing of
destiny with deceit and intelligence.”
“We bend our knees in propriety, forever venerating and praising You, forever
serving Your will.”
…
Zhou Zhang’s prayer finished, and the teleportation blood sacrifice officially
began.
The believers were fanatical and hopeful.
There were a large number of observers nearby, Jian Gui was among them.
He had a grave expression, and his attention was focused on Qi Ling, and
sometimes would deviate to Cang Xu.
This time, the teleportation blood sacrifice had an obvious difference.
It was the offering, apart from the large quantity of ocean beasts, there was
also many undead lifeforms mixed into it.
These undead lifeforms had been tested by Cang Xu’s undead bloodline detection
magic and selected very carefully; they all had his Hanging Corpse Tree
bloodline.
The great formation activated, and the light of divine script and magic runes
interweaved together.
Space fluctuated, and the believers and offerings were teleported away.
“Coming in!” Cang Xu was fully focused and was the first to react after
teleportation.
The fishman youngster, who had been waiting for a long time, had already begun
to move.
Under the effect of Deceptive Disguise and other divine spells, they were more
efficient and stable than last time.
The saint beast Snow Pear Octopus was once again duped by them.
The undead lifeforms were offerings and were unable to move, so naturally, the
fishman youngster effortlessly absorbed them with the Bloodcore.
Qi Ling was taken captive and imprisoned in the long-horn cage.
Apart from that, there was also the silver level pirate called Ruan Tang Ren.
“I found Lan Zao. You won’t guess where he is now!” The fishman youngster
informed Cang Xu of how he helped Lan Zao not so long ago.
Several days ago, Cang Xu knew that the fishman youngster had been promoted to
be a divine emissary and came to the big guy’s aid.
Hearing about Lan Zao now, he was still amazed.
“Dueling God?”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom doesn’t have that kind of god.”
“That indicates that the Dueling God is not an Ice Sculpture Kingdom god, and
their church is not allowed to preach yet.”
“However, according to the gods and church development rules, they are certain
to move from behind the scenes to center stage. But currently, they are
comparatively puny and are in the clandestine development stage.”
The fishman youngster replied, “They are not puny, Tranquil Hill’s gravestones
had many names I have seen in information reports.”
“They were all gold level.”
“Thus, I surmised that the other names I didn’t recognize were also gold level
too.”
“Those that had their names on Tranquil Hill’s tombstones were probably the
Dueling God’s holy warriors. As of now, I can confirm Teng Dong Lang, Gu Dong,
and Mei Lin. There are all gold level, with no exceptions.”
Cang Xu nodded, and his brows slightly creased, “This really isn’t in
accordance with common sense.”
“Normal church development goes from small to large, from weak to strong.”
“But the Dueling Church doesn’t have basic personnel, it just gold levels, and
a lot of them.”
“However, this should lead to a special environment being created.”
“Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s general mood is something you should have the deepest
perception of Lord Commander. Duels are prevalent there, and the entire nation
participates in duels, watches duels with great enthusiasm, many people want to
comply with dueling rules, rely on duels to solve daily issues, important
conflicts and other contradictions.”
From this, one can see there is a robust foundation for Dueling believers among
them.”
“The Dueling Church just hasn’t moved into the open yet and obtained permission
to preach. When they get and begin to evangelize, I believe they will swell
massively within a short time period at all levels of society. It is completely
possible they will grow instantly into a large church.”
The fishman youngster approved of Cang Xu’ analysis.
He continued, “I thought about it later.”
“The reason why the Dueling God has been secretly developed is because the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom does not have a war god.”
“If a war god existed, they would have gained dueling clergy already, instead
of using dueling belief to create a new god.”
The fishman youngster had a better understanding of churches than Cang Xu did.
He knew how many gods were born from abundant and substantial foundations of
faith.
Cang Xu replied, “Lan Zao got your help, and can now gain a foothold among the
Bayonet Gang remnants, along with their trust.”
“I didn’t expect his circumstances to end up like this.”
“Lord Commander, your promotion to divine emissary was really wonderful. Your
decisions and actions were very rational.”
The fishman Dao Hen was still on Tan Mo’s Treasure Chest, giving the survivors
first hand intelligence on the enemy.
Lan Zao found a place on Tranquil Hill and would continue to spy on the divine
domain, along with Mei Lin and the other holy warriors.
Finally, there was the big guy.
Because the Snow Bird Harbor branch was attacked, it wasn’t suitable for him to
return to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, so he might as well stay on Magnet
Archipelago and cultivate.
The fishman youngster manipulated the gold level giant magic chef into becoming
the big guy’s slave. He believed the former was capable of helping the big guy
grow.
The two walked into the hold while talking.
Under the fishman youngster’s gaze, Cang Xu entered the Bloodline Purification
Formation again.
The fishman youngster urged the Bloodcore’s magical energy and activated the
formation.
A short time later, an emotional Cang Xu left the formation, “My Hanged Corpse
Tree bloodline concentration has reached 7%!”
The fishman youngster with a 90% Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration
slightly frowned.
From Cang Xu’s body, he could see how hard it was to purify his bloodline.
Cang Xu worked himself half to death and used the Undead Bloodline Detection
spell countless times to pick out these undead lifeforms.
With the help of Zhou Zhang’s platform, he had sought out personal gain.
After all this trouble, his saint level bloodline concentration only reached
7%.
The fishman youngster looked at Cang Xu and contemplated, “Purifying the Hanged
Corpse Tree bloodline is far harder than normal bloodlines.”
“This time, you leveraged Zhou Zhang’s power, along with consuming Jian Gui’s,
Qi Ling’s, and Xiao Wang Zi’s accumulations.”
“In the Main Plane, it is very difficult for us to find a lot of undead
lifeforms.”
Cang Xu sighed, “I have considered this already.”
“The place with the most undead lifeforms is naturally the Ghost World. But we
aren’t strong enough to explore it yet.”
Cang Xu had gone to the Ghost World before, and there were precarious gold
levels everywhere, with each step dangerous. Only a saint level had the
qualifications to explore it.
“So, saving and contacting the orthodox undead is an important trading
channel.”
As the head of the undead orthodoxy, You Shen had the most necromancy resources
on the Main Plane. The twelve saints were almost all saint level, who were
exploring the Ghost World all year round and raking in resources from it.
“If we can trade, we can pick more suitable undead lifeforms. The closer they
are to the Hanging Corpse Tree on the bloodline archive, the better.”
“From this point of consideration, I believe it is still better to let Jian Gui
go free.”
Magician Qi Ling was already their prisoner.
Jian Gui spent energy maintaining their small group, and now he was alone, a
leader without a team.
Based on the fishman youngster’s and Cang Xu’s current power and arrangements,
they had a large chance of taking Jian Gui captive!
Capturing a gold level magician alive, a necromancer at that, was very
difficult. But currently, the fishman youngster had become a gold level cleric
and was a divine emissary who knew several hundred divine spells, with only a
small portion of high end divine spells he was inexperienced in and hadn’t
mastered yet.
They could take him captive, but Cang Xu suggested that they didn’t.
Instead of taking Jian Gui captive, they were better off letting him go. If
that happened, Cang Xu could continue to draw support from Jian Gui and contact
other undead orthodoxy. In accordance with his current identity as a Wisteria
Merchant Alliance elder, it was entirely possible for him to reestablish this
trading channel.
Of course, the two also thought about taking Jian Gui captive first, tampering
with him, then letting him go.
But after careful consideration, it was more reliable for them to just let him
free.
Although the two had confidence in Deceptive Disguise, they had to consider You
Shen, the legendary magician whose name shook the entire world and the
primogenitor of the undead faction. So, it was still better and more reliable
to let him go with no funny business involved.
Deceptive Disguise had been developed by War Merchant, it was an improved
version of Charming Blue’ divine spell and drew from Charming Blue’s divine
artifact, the Mermaid Fairy Tale.
War Merchant was a legend level magician, but his influence and
accomplishments, among other aspects, could not compare to You Shen’s.
The fishman youngster replied that if nothing unexpected happened, they would
go with Cang Xu’s suggestion. When the time came, if Jian Gui couldn’t do it
alone, then the fishman youngster would surreptitiously help him without the
former finding out.
Taking Jian Gui captive meant that at most, the survivors had another captive.
It would also deeply offend the undead orthodoxy.
But letting him go would on the contrary borrow his authority to communicate
with the undead orthodoxy and the benefits that followed were obviously
greater.
“Next, we have a new round of blasphemous prayer testing.”
The fishman youngster entered a specialized prayer cabin.
He loudly prayed, speaking forthright about his request this time. He asked for
usage experience on high-end divine spells, especially Divine Domain Descent.
The fishman youngster wanted to quietly escape Ocean Mother Nest and perhaps he
could rely on this.
Boom!
Like last time, before the fishman youngster finished his meticulously prepared
prayer, a beam of divine prayer fell onto him.
After the beam of light dissipated, the fishman youngster slowly got up from
his kneeling position.
“Gold level fighter…”
“Furthermore, my Surging Wave fishman bloodline concentration has reached the
standard of the god level.”
“Divine favor is once again abundant and has returned to 20,000.”
But the fishman youngster didn’t stand up happily.
Because what he wanted most was not what he got.
Upon leaving the ship hold and going through the identification procedures with
Cang Xu, the fishman youngster told Cang Xu about what just happened, and when
the latter learned of it, he too became somewhat gloomy.
“That was the exact situation during your last prayer, Lord Commander.”
“Although your prayer had explicit requests and also used divine favor to
direct it, the divine blessing given was not what we wanted.”
“Why is it like this? The situation is different from before!”
“Lord Commander, can you say whether Charming Blue Goddess has woken up
already?”



****** Chapter 623: There Are No Differences in Death ******
“Lord Commander, do you think Charming Blue Goddess has woken up already?”
Cang Xu’s sudden question caused the fishman youngster’s heart to inevitably
shake.
He thought about it, then lightly smiled, “How is that possible, our conduct
and deeds profane the gods! If Charming Blue Goddess was already awake, they
would absolutely fly into a rage and inflict the harshest punishment upon us.
“It isn’t like how it is now, constantly receiving divine blessings.”
Cang Xu sighed, still looking worried, “Lord Commander, my conjecture is not
baseless, it is founded on two facts.:
“The first one is me.”
“I am a necromancer, but I became a Charming Blue believer and obtained special
divine spells via divine blessing that can let me guide others towards the same
beliefs. This divine spell involves the secrets of the soul and not even Zhou
Zhang was bestowed with them.”
“This special divine spell was clearly created. How can Charming Blue Goddess
create divine spells while they are sleeping?”
“Second, are your last two prayers Lord Commander.”
“We expended divine favor and during prayer, according to common sense, should
have pinpointed the divine blessings.”
“But your Lordship’s two divine blessings were not the ones your litany
requested.”
“It seems like Charming Blue Goddess doesn’t want to learn how to leave this
place, they want you to stay here.”
Those words chilled the fishman youngster’s heart.
He went silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head with a heavy look,
“You’re right, both of those are facts.”
“But I am more inclined to believe that due to the Charming Blue Church’s
desperate situation, there cannot be construction without destruction, and they
created these special divine spells.”
“If Charming Blue Goddess was awake, they would definitely notice us. Our
methods can handle other gods, but it cannot deal with them. Under these
circumstances, they can do far more than we can and won’t ignore us taking
advantage of them.”
“I think that this should be the Godhead handing these affairs, and that
Charming Blue Goddess’ main body is sleeping.”
The fishman youngster was a divine emissary and had obtained a lot of pertinent
experiences. Adding on War Merchant’s database, and he had a good deal of
understanding about the secrets of the gods.
He knew about Godheads.
What were Godheads?
Simple, they were equivalent to an enhanced type of tower spirit.
Shuang Lian’s tower spirit in Honey Snow Tower was created from a severed
portion of Shuang Lian’s soul. Tower spirits possessed intelligence and could
handle many affairs, they were loyal and devoted to executing all of its
master’s commands.
Gods could be fast asleep, but Godheads could still carry out tasks without
sleeping or resting. These tasks were personally set up by the gods.
“I am only meeting some criterion Charming Blue Goddess set before they sank
into slumber.”
“I used the divine spell [Believer Perception] many times and understand
thoroughly how hard pressed the Charming Blue Church is at the moment. They
really need a powerful figure.”
“But not everyone can become such a key figure.”
“People like the saint level Zhou Zhang, who has reached her limits. Although
she is an Archbishop, she cannot improve the Charming Blue Church’s truly
difficult situation.”
“Aptitude and bloodlines are the most crucial thing. Since I have the Surging
Wave fishman bloodline as my foundation, that represents that I have a chance
of being that person.”
“Therefore, Charming Blue Goddess has energetically invested in me.”
“On the one hand, cases like mine are extremely rare. On the other hand, their
situation doesn’t allow them to be patient and do careful selection.”
After pausing, the fishman youngster continued, “Indeed, my last two blessings
are inconsistent to what I was praying for and can no longer be directed with
divine favor.”
“But I don’t believe this is Charming Blue Goddess waking up.”
“If they have awakened, they would instantly see through our disguises, and
would they continue to invest in me then?”
“Compared with this kind of possibility, I am more prone to believe that
Charming Blue Goddess’ main body is still sleeping and formulated a specific
arrangement before that happened. Through the Godhead, she made sure to
cultivate and assist top notch talents.”
“Their original plan should be to cultivate a qualified divine emissary.
Because their main body is sleeping, they really need help in this aspect.”
The fishman youngster’s words were reasonable, and Cang Xu nodded to himself,
following it up with detailed questions, “What does Charming Blue Goddess want
to do with the divine emissary they so vigorously cultivated? What is their
plan or objective?”
The fishman youngster muttered to himself, “Developing the church and expanding
belief should be the most important goal.”
“Belief is very important for the gods. Although the gods’ power does not come
from faith, faith can be regarded as the most adaptable cultivation resource.”
“As far as a god like Charming Blue Goddess is concerned, the more that believe
in them, the more it will help them heal when slumbering. Faith is equivalent
to their last hope.”
Cang Xu raised another possibility, “I see that Charming Blue Goddess seems to
be cultivating your Lordship in a very urgent manner. Are they cultivating top
tier combat strength to deal with a powerful enemy soon to arrive?”
“My Lord, although your strength is currently limited to the gold level, the
effect of Divine Descent can instantly raise the recipient’s transcendent
level. This has been recorded in every large church.”
“As far as the gods are concerned, they are only lacking a qualified temporally
vessel, nothing more.”
“I am referring to the historically famous Youngster Mercenary Corps, all of
their members met miserable ends.”
The fishman youngster nodded, and his tone became somewhat heavy, “As far as
[Divine Descent] is concerned, I have used it and can confirm it is just as you
described.”
“If I use [Divine Descent] on myself, then it will be more powerful than when
it was used on the big guy, it will be smoother, and there will be minimal
hindrances and waste. After all, my current life shape is a Surging Wave
fishman form, and my bloodline concentration has reached god level.”
When he said that, the fishman youngster sighed and began to pace about with
his hands behind his back.
He reflected while strolling.
After a few circles around, he stopped and looked up at the metal ceiling,
“Perhaps I should leave this place.”
“Through divine blessings, I was able to obtain enormous improvements, but this
is looking more and more like a sickeningly sweet trap.”
“Furthermore, the mercenary corps needs me. I am their commander.”
Cang Xu was silent.
Several days ago, the fishman youngster had learned about the mercenary corps’
branch’s experiences and predicaments from the big guy’s memories, and since
then, he had relayed them to Cang Xu.
Therefore, Cang Xu too knew about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ situation to
an extent.
Hearing the fishman youngster’s words, he couldn’t help but admire him with
gratitude inwardly.
The fishman youngster having such decisiveness really wasn’t easy!
One knew that having such means to improve oneself really was an exceptional
stroke of luck.
If the fishman youngster relied on himself to become a gold level lifeform, it
would have required a long time of arduous work.
Nowadays, his life level was not just limited to the gold level, both his
fighter and cleric level had been promoted to the gold level too.
The young man also knew hundreds of divine spells and had experience in using
most of them.
These gains would have taken at least ten years if he was working on his own!
More importantly was the fishman youngster’s bloodline. He now had a god level
bloodline – that was not something that could be changed with time and effort!!
Cang Xu was also involved in blasphemous prayers.
He consequently benefited and had become a true silver level magician and was
no longer pretending to be one anymore.
Cang Xu’s earnings could never compare to the fishman youngster’s, but he felt
the urge to continue.
And now, the fishman youngster wanted to leave without hesitation.
While the benefits he was expecting were still tremendous!
To resolutely part with these enormous benefits and believe leaving was the
correct decision, the fishman youngster’s humanity flashed at this moment and
his leadership charisma emanated.
Cang Xu admired the fishman youngster while simultaneously not wanting him to
leave.
Human nature was complex.
Upon seeing how the fishman youngster behaved, the old necromancer felt
gratified to once again confirm how reliable he was and deserving of being
followed.
But Cang Xu didn’t want the fishman youngster to sacrifice such massive
benefits as a result!
He was loyal to the dragonman youngster, and more times than not, thought over
the fishman youngster. Cang Xu was looking forward to the fishman youngster
getting stronger, putting the others below that. Cang Xu found nothing wrong
with sacrificing the other members for the sake of the young commander’s gains.
Of course, it would be better to ensure the other members survived as much as
possible while meeting the young commander’s needs.
After all, the survivors were in the same situation, people in the same boat.
With the Bloodcore guaranteeing bloodline talent, the survivors treasured trust
and loyalty to each other.
Thus, Cang Xu advised, “Lord Commander, you don’t need to be in a hurry to
leave.”
“According to the information I have gained, the attacking enemy is very small,
and even if they beheaded ‘Zong Ge’, there was no visible gold level auras. At
least the big guy didn’t sense any, and that indicates the enemy has been
curbed.”
“After all, when a gold level power is dispatched and carries out an
assassination, then it will be a noisy affair. Snow Bird Harbor’s City Lord
will have stated it so; to say nothing of our prior collaboration together, he
is our friend.”
“On the one hand, Shuang Lian is an Alchemy Guild elder. Her power cannot be
underestimated. When the Alchemy Guild saved Bu Quan, the Bayonet Gang was
forced to pull back, making clear the Alchemy Guild’s power. Bu Quan has joined
us, and Shuang Lian is still her teacher. The latter used her magician tower in
an attempt to get back the big guy, this proves that Shuang Lian has at least a
cooperative relationship with us, and values us considerably. I surmise that
president Zi Di might have used War Merchant’s data to exchange for benefits.”
The aforementioned factors also means the mercenary corps hasn’t sunken to a
crisis that is a matter of life and death. Therefore, Lord Commander, you don’t
need to worry too much.”
“To you, staying here will bring more benefits. To be more precise, massive
benefits.”
“How could a chance to advance your strength by leaps and bounds exist in the
outside world?”
It would be very difficult to recreate if missed.
It would be too great of a pity.
“This is the world of the strong, and the stronger one is, the better.”
“Lord Commander, suppose you become a saint level here, then return to the
mercenary corps, wouldn’t that help the others tremendously?”
“Of course, even if you become a saint level, you cannot deal with a Sheng Ming
Empire arrest warrant. But at least it can become an important negotiation
bargaining chip.”
“Saint level, that at least will make the empire no longer look down on us. It
will be crucial in future redemption talks!”
“If you don’t become a saint level, I fear these divine artifacts will be sold
cheaply.”
“Alas…” Cang Xu deeply sighed, “I was worried about Charming Blue Goddess
waking up, but that was just sensing some oddities.”
“We are too weak and are not Charming Blue Goddess’ match. If they truly
awaken, not only will me and you Lord Commander meet with a catastrophic
disaster, but our other companions will also be tracked down and won’t be able
to hide.”
“However, I am now thinking that it is precisely because the strength between
our enemies and us is so vast that we don’t need to think about Charming Blue
Goddess awakening too much.”
This kind of strategy seemed like lying flat and giving up, but upon careful
thought, it was nevertheless the most suitable policy.
After all, doing this had enormous gains.
Of course, the risks were massive.
But after thinking it through, if their redemption did not work and they were
hunted down by the empire, they would die. If Charming Blue Goddess noticed
them, they would be executed as punishment and also die.
What was the difference between them?



****** Chapter 624: Transforming Captives ******
The fishman youngster was visibly moved.
Cang Xu was worthy of being a think tank; his words were very reasonable.
Seeing the fishman youngster’s expression, Cang Xu continued, “How much help
will you provide to our comrades if you return as a gold level?”
“If it was Snake Rat or Two Eyes Island, it would be a lot. However, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps is on Ice Sculpture Island now, and gold levels can only
do so much.”
“Ice Sculpture Island only has three saint levels, and if your Lordship reaches
it, then it would be different.”
“Lord Commander, Zong Ge has been a peak silver level for a long time. It is
very possible he has become a gold level.”
“If you become a saint level, upon your return, Zong Ge will completely
acknowledge the gap between you and your Lordship. By doing this, we might be
able to put an end to a hidden danger within us and your leadership will be
absolute!”
The fishman youngster nodded repeatedly but still had misgivings.
Cang Xu chuckled, he understood what the young man had misgivings about.
Thus, Cang Xu considerately replied, “Naturally, we also cannot stubbornly stay
here and ignore our comrades’ perils.”
“So, we need to gather information, and only with more detailed information can
we issue a more accurate judgement!”
“Currently, although Lan Zao is on Ice Sculpture Island, he is in an unusual
situation, and cannot act as our source of information, he is unable to contact
Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others.”
“Therefore, I propose we think of a method so the big guy can make discreet
inquiries on the latest news on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
The fishman youngster spoke at that moment, “I have already done as you
proposed. I planned on letting Hong Zhu leave Magnet Archipelago, she is our
contact with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Currently, she recognizes that
the big guy is a member of our mercenary corps.”
“Thus, let her go to Ice Sculpture Island to collect information and form an
understanding with us.”
But Cang Xu shook his head, “Lord Commander, that arrangement is not
appropriate.”
“Don’t forget, during the battle of Two Eyes Island, I was affected by the
Devil Gold Coins and exposed myself as a necromancer. During that battle, Hong
Zhu fought alongside me.”
“Therefore, she is suspicious. Although she immediately fled from me after I
was exposed, it cannot wash away the suspicions on her.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom has the same disposition towards necromancers as
other powers, and if Hong Zhu is noticed, it might cause needless twists and
turns.”
Cang Xu’s warning caused the fishman youngster to slap his forehead, “Oh you’re
right.”
“Hong Zhu is still in relative danger.”
“Her relationship with us means Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-investigation
and Prophecy spell cannot be used on her.”
Cang Xu continued to propose, “Hong Zhu and us are destined to be together.
Previously, she chose to attach herself to Da Dou, reflecting her strong
qualities. At the very least, she is an expert in tracking and detection, these
capabilities can effectively complement Da Dou and will help the big guy grow
better.”
“Therefore, it would be better if she continued to stay by the big guy’s side.”
“On the Magnet Archipelago, Hong Zhu is still quite safe.”
“If we want to obtain information, Da Dou can step up and hire some personnel
to go into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“The big guy is a member of our Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and our operations
are very normal! So, wanting to make inquiries for intelligence about us
doesn’t need to be secret and can be done by outsiders.”
“The more people there are, the greater the quantity and quality of the
information gathered.”
The fishman youngster sighed, “Doing that really is more dependable.”
Cang Xu then said, “Actually, there is another way.”
Cang Xu’s life experience was far richer than the young man’s, and he had more
ways of thinking than the latter.
To him, it seemed that these many problems had many solutions.
Cang Xu said, “Lord Commander, don’t you think keeping those captives locked up
is somewhat wasteful?”
Thanks to the Ocean Mother Nest being a hunting trap, the fishman youngster had
gained quite the harvest.
As of now, he held Lady Sea Snake, Ruan Tang Ren, Xiao Wang Zi, Ku Feng, and Qi
Ling captive. They were all silver level and locked up in longhorn cages in a
death like state.
The fishman youngster wasn’t stupid, so when he heard Cang Xu’s idea, he
immediately replied, “Are you saying we should transform these captives?”
Cang Xu nodded heavily, “Lord Commander, you now have amazing skills. Each time
you do a blasphemous prayer, you fool Charming Blue Goddess. Earlier, you used
all kinds of divine spells to help the big guy and Lan Zao avert danger and
also profaned the Dueling God!”
“Since you can deceive the gods, don’t tell me you can’t deceive these
captives?”
“We have the memory crystal creation device, and all kinds of memory
modification methods. Since we can trick them into thinking they are dead, why
can’t we deceive them into our service?”
The fishman youngster’s heart beat incessantly at that.
He hadn’t thought of this before, as he was mainly focused on the big guy, Lan
Zao, and himself.
There was another reason, even if he did transform these people, he didn’t have
anywhere to use them.
Cang Xu saw things quicker than the fishman youngster.
Nowadays, with Divine Power Channel, Divine Descent, and Divine Domain Descent,
along with other comprehensive methods, these subordinates had ample places to
show off their skills!
The fishman youngster agreed, “Then next we should plan carefully and give
every captive forged memories.”
“Using the Memory Concealment spell, we can hide their original memories beyond
their notice.”
“It would be for the best if we have them believe in Charming Blue Goddess. If
that is done, I’ll be able to thumb through their memories and deepen my
control over them.”
“Even if the transformation is successful, these people have to be used
carefully. After all, hidden dangers exist, and if they recover their memories,
that in of itself can reveal many of our secrets.”
Cang Xu added on, “As far as modifying the necromancers’ memories is concerned,
you need to pay close attention as their humanity is their anchor.”
“Necromancers need to vie with negative energy corrosion, and every powerful
necromancer has a powerful human anchor.”
“For example, Xiao Wang Zi’s human anchor is his parents. Qi Ling’s human
anchor is her fishman clan and Ku Feng’s is his pursuit of the blade.”
“These human anchors need to be retained and should be emphasized further.
Otherwise, these necromancers will lack that human anchor, and as the days go
on, it is very possible that they will be thoroughly eroded by negative energy
and be reduced to base undead lifeforms, relying only on instinct and won’t be
an intelligent necromancer.”
The fishman youngster took Cang Xu’s reminder to heart. 
“You at my side really puts me at ease.” The fishman youngster praised.
Cang Xu smiled, “My Lord, it is my honor that I can follow you.”
Cang Xu felt he was extremely lucky to meet the fishman youngster. On
Mystifying Monster Island, it was because of the young man that he had been
saved many times, and it was again because of the young man that he had a
greater future.
If Cang Xu was anywhere else, he would never have gotten such things.
What made Cang Xu the best was that the young commander never denigrated or
feared him because of who he was. The young man really treated him as one of
his people.
This respect was a luxury Cang Xu couldn’t get anywhere else!
The fishman youngster was also glad that he could receive Cang Xu’s help.
Since Mystifying Monster Island, Cang Xu has done countless, irreplaceable
functions for him. 
Now, although the fishman youngster was far stronger than Cang Xu, Cang Xu’s
wisdom still gave the young man constant support and assistance.
Alone, a person had limited capabilities, awareness, attention, and feelings,
among other things, and their considerations were not comprehensive and deep.
The fishman youngster had gotten a deep impression of this from this
conversation.
Cang Xu had given him poignant advice.
Next, the two deliberated on how to forge memories for the captives. 
The discussion only had preliminary results when Cang Xu was forced to leave.
The teleportation blood sacrifice only lasted a short time.
Cang Xu departed Ocean Mother Nest and returned to the numerous believers,
again gaining the Charming Blue believers’ admiration and praise. 
To them, it seemed that every blood sacrifice teleportation was life
threatening.
Of the believers that were teleported in, only some of them returned. Many
people didn’t have firm convictions and would be eaten by the saint beast Snow
Pear Octopus.
Therefore, the vast majority of the believers who managed to return didn’t do
it again.
Cang Xu was the exception.
Since participating in his first one, he had joined every subsequent one after!
This kind of undaunted behavior could not be done by ordinary people, and it
caused Cang Xu’s prestige to rise like the tide with the Charming Blue
Believers, and it accumulated each time to a considerable amount.
The fishman youngster in the Deep Sea Monster Fish was actively consuming the
contents of the divine blessing while perceiving other believers.
He was mainly searching for a second Charming Blue believer on Ice Sculpture
Island.
He maintained close attention to a few believers, which were the big guy, Dao
Hen, and Lan Zao.
The big guy and Lan Zao were safe and were getting increasingly better
treatment.
Dao Hen had been set up to stay on the Treasure Chest, and not long after, he
gave the fishman youngster important information – Tu Ji left the ship!
As a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, Tu Ji was responsible
for chasing down and hanging necromancers. He was the fishman youngster’s most
important spying target.
But the Treasure Chest suddenly stopped in the boundless ocean, and Tu Ji
jumped in, and vanished.
Dao Hen had received orders to stay on the Treasure Chest, focused on
monitoring and gathering information on Tan Mo and Tu Ji.
Dao Hen didn’t anticipate Tu Ji just jumping overboard.
Tu Ji also did it late at night, and it wasn’t easy for anyone to notice him.
Dao Hen hesitated at the time and didn’t choose to follow. To him, it seemed
that staying on the Treasure Chest was God’s decree.
“The Fish God Mist did not ask me to leave.” Dao Hen thought and didn’t pursue.
By the time the fishman youngster looked through his memories, it was too late.
“Compared to Tan Mo, following Tu Ji is more profitable.” The fishman youngster
regretted it.
But it was clearly too late for Dao Hen to chase after him.
Might as well keep Dao Hen on the Treasure Chest.
“Tu Ji jumped into the ocean; this is absolutely not a suicide attempt.”
“Could there be a necromancer hiding on the seafloor?”
“More probable is that he needs to come ashore on some nearby island. But which
island?”
The fishman youngster didn’t know Tu Ji was coming for Hong Zhu.
Since Tu Ji had learned about Hong Zhu from Yan Yi, he didn’t tell Tan Mo about
it.
Dao Hen was also unaware of such a secret.
The fishman youngster felt things were anything but reassuring and immediately
consulted War Merchant’s ocean map.
Very quickly, he got an answer.
“It is Feng Awakening Island.”
This was an isle, close to a barren island. It had spare trees and scant
vegetation.



****** Chapter 625: Tu Ji Comes to the Island ******
According to common sense, few isles like Feng Awakening Island were even
recorded.
The reason why it was is that it was special, because historically, a famous
anti-demon hero [Qing Feng Xing], had regained consciousness here.
Despite her heavy injuries, she gathered the remnants of her army here and
turned around the naval battle, successfully routing her pursuers.
From this, the Main Plane’s allied armies officially began their
counteroffensive against the demon army.
Feng Awakening Island coast.
It was desolate and uninhabited and could be seen over in a glance.
A figure slowly walked out of the seawater and stepped foot onto Feng Awakening
Island.
He looked ordinary and his clothes were too, but he displayed a lofty, yet
threatening dauntlessness, it was Tu Ji.
“Feng Awakening Island, when young Qing Feng Xing lost consciousness due to her
injuries, she was awakened and cared for by a passing druid here. This island
was consequently given its name from that.”
Tu Ji looked around, his gaze quickly fixing on something.
A moment later, light and shadow fluctuated, and a silhouette awkwardly became
visible.
“Lord Tu Ji, my code name is ‘Awaken’, I was ordered to welcome you.” It was an
imperial secret spy.
Tu Ji replied, “I didn’t expect an imperial secret spy to be here. You spent
quite the effort to build a teleportation formation too. I want to use that
teleportation formation to go to Magnet Archipelago.”
“Yes, I have been briefed by my superiors on this. Please follow me!” The
imperial secret spy led the way.
Tu Ji followed after the imperial secret spy “Awaken” to the magic formation.
Very quickly, he saw the real Feng Awakening Island – a castle that stood in
the middle of the isle.
The castle covered a massive area and stood tall, nearly dominating 80% of the
isle. The castle was lined with ballista, cannons, and had numerous magic runes
engraved into its walls, displaying its formidable fighting strength.
Upon entering the castle, Tu Ji was astonished to find that the castle had a
considerable garrison.
“This is your secret spy headquarters?” Tu Ji curiously inquired.
Secret spy “Awaken” chuckled, “Lord Tu Ji, you aren’t part of our organization,
please forgive me that I cannot tell you about such secrets.”
Tu Ji coldly snorted and didn’t demand an answer.
He followed Awaken down a path, until finally arriving at a two floor high
platform with a teleportation formation on it.
This teleportation formation was built as a towering spatial gate. Inside the
gate frame, there was a constantly spinning starry river vortex that
disseminated a strong spatial fluctuation.
“This is a large-scale teleportation gate; it can teleport both a large amount
of lifeforms and goods.”
“So that’s how it is, they use this teleportation gate to resupply.”
Generally speaking, the Secret Spy Agency cannot have too many people
garrisoned. After all, doing intelligence wet work and doing military affairs
were two very different things. The secret spies were not an army.
Having so many people garrisoned somewhere was very rare for the Secret Spy
Agency.
Because every day, people needed to eat, drink, defecate, and urinate, all of
which needed a large amount of supplies. Transporting supplies was sufficiently
troublesome and was very difficult to mask, and if an enemy was motivated to
check into it, it wouldn’t be hard for them.
But seeing this teleportation gate, Tu Ji had an understanding.
“Feng Awakening Island is desolate and uninhabited, it is of no interest to
anyone, it is a good place to build a secret base.”
“Feng Awakening Island is also near Magnet Archipelago, which sees vigorous
streams of people every year and its ports are a picture of an endless river.
Perhaps the Secret Spy Agency first transports supplies to Magnet Archipelago,
then through a hidden teleportation gate to deliver them to Feng Awakening
Island.”
“I will be traveling by this supply route.”
Tu Ji obviously thought this and didn’t vocalize it.
After waiting for a moment, Awaken had him step into the teleportation gate.
As he walked towards the teleportation gate, Tu Ji could feel it drawing him
in.
He simply used a defensive battle skill to protect himself, then let himself be
pulled into the gate.
In a split second, he landed on the ground, and he entered an underground plaza
on Magnet Archipelago.
Naturally there was an imperial secret spy waiting for him to show the way.
Because Tu Ji was not an imperial secret spy, he used his authority as a member
of the Blood Light Punishment Institution to requisition manpower and
resources. Therefore, the imperial secret spy wanted to immediately lead Tu Ji
out of this covert base.
But Tu Ji wasn’t in a hurry, instead he asked for information on Hong Zhu.
The imperial secret spy took out some materials and gave it to Tu Ji, “My Lord,
this is all of the information we have on Hong Zhu. You can take your time
reading it on your own.”
But Tu Ji shook his head and opened it on the spot.
After looking through it, his complexion sank, “This is the information you’re
giving me? The newest information the grand Imperial Secret Spy Agency has on
Hong Zhu is ten days old?!”
Tu Ji was dissatisfied.
The imperial secret spy bitterly spread his hands, “My Lord, our mission isn’t
to investigate a silver level treasure hunter.”
“You’re skimping on me! Several days ago, I issued a command that you all
should investigate Hong Zhu with all you had!” Tu Ji coldly snorted with
inquiry.
The imperial secret spy shirked responsibility, “Lord Tu Ji, it wasn’t that we
didn’t try, but Magnet Archipelago’s terrain is complicated. Because of the
magnetic field variations, every isle can change position due to that. Not only
that but don’t be fooled by the archipelago’s bare surface bereft of life. As a
matter of fact, there are many earth elementals living underground and even
magnetic earth elementals.”
“There are no lack of gold levels among the earth elementals, and they are the
masters of this place. If it were not for all these earth elemental tribes
fighting each other, outsiders like us would never be able to regularly move
throughout the area.”
“Hong Zhu is a solitary treasure hunter, and it is difficult for us to follow
her tracks. She is an expert at tracking, surveying, and conversely, her anti-
detection ability is quite good.”
Tu Ji’s eyes transmitted cold daggers as he tightly stared at the imperial
secret spy, “These problems were to be handled by you people, not me.”
“I simply issued an order, and you were responsible for gathering information
on Hong Zhu.”
“I came here to chase down a necromancer, and right now, Hong Zhu is the only
trail.”
“To cover my tracks as much as possible, I didn’t land on Magnet Archipelago
directly, instead I went to Feng Awakening Island to secretly teleport here.”
“4 hours.” Tu Ji raised four fingers, issuing an ultimatum, “I will give you
that much time, and at the end of it, if I don’t get any valuable clues, I will
see your head roll and condemn you as a close friend of the necromancer who was
protecting them!”
The imperial secret spy instantly changed color and wailed, “My Lord, that is
slander.”
“You cannot do this!”
“We are both imperial citizens; I have worked hard for the empire.”
Tu Ji sneered, “Don’t shout, I learned this method from your colleagues.”
“Don’t think I’m joking with you.”
“Now, you only have 3 hours and 59 minutes.”
The imperial secret spy firmly grinded his teeth and turned heel. Within a
step, it turned into a jog.
He was cursing wildly in his heart: Tu Ji, you madman! Then he began to deploy
as much manpower as he could to frantically search for Hong Zhu’s whereabouts.
The one cursed as a madman was actually rather calm.
As a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, he really hunted and
killed necromancers regardless of the perils. But on the other hand, their
reputation for being insane had also been intentionally spread by them.
The scene before him was Tu Ji using his reputation for being crazy to mobilize
the full force the imperial secret spies here.
He wasn’t disappointed, and 1.5 hours later, the imperial secret spy came back
to find Tu Ji with a sweat soaked head and reported, “Several days ago, someone
saw Hong Zhu go to this isle. This information was tentatively confirmed and
verified.”
Tu Ji was expressionless, “Tentatively confirmed? Then you will follow me
there.”
“If I don’t find Hong Zhu, I’ll have to come back and behead you according to
the law.”
The imperial secret spy’s body and mind quaked.
But Tu Ji was forcing him, so he had no choice but to brace himself and leave
with Tu Ji.
Meanwhile.
After sending off Tu Ji, Tan Mo relaxed.
Upon obtaining the latest report, he couldn’t help but smile, “It is confirmed,
Tu Ji has made landfall on Magnet Archipelago.”
“Obviously he could have directly landed, but going through the trouble is
actually the professional way of doing things.”
“The secret spy in charge of the Magnet Archipelago will have a hard time. But
that isn’t our problem.”
Tan Mo sat in the captain’s room and looked out of the window, where the ocean
and sky intersected, his mood cheerful.
Freeing himself from Tu Ji made him carefree.
Although he had a Secret Gate Church cleric still on board and his saint level
bodyguard, they were carrying out a more secret mission and to Tan Mo, they
were far better to deal with than Tu Ji.
“The entire Blood Light Punishment Institution is full of lunatics. To
eliminate the undead, they will do and sacrifice anything.”
“They would rather wrongly kill ten thousand than let one escape. They won’t
just do that to others; they will also go through the pains to kill themselves
too.”
“The most terrible thing is that the Blood Light Punishment Institution’s
background is too strong!”
The backers of the Blood Light Punishment Institution members was tougher than
the templar knights.
Because the latter’s only backer was just Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming, while
the Blood Light Punishment Institution had almost all of the empire’s gods
backing them in an alliance of benefits.
Other powers had similar organizations to the Blood Light Punishment
Institution.
These powers united into the widest divine alliance. It was the gods expressing
their ultimate wrath against the necromancers who were encroaching on their
core benefits.
“Tu Ji is gone, next is finding a pirate gang to put on a performance.”
“Of course, first I need talk to talk the Secret Gate Church’s people and
communicate this in advance.”
With this goal in mind, Tan Mo entered the Treasure Chest’s deepest spatial
floor and knocked on a cabin door.
After getting permission, he pushed open the door and entered, seeing the two
from the Secret Gate Church.
Tan Mo got right to the point, stating he had a military operation coming up.
He gave the reasons why, after all, the Treasure Chest was an imperial warship
and didn’t have the right without cause or reason to enter the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, that would provoke quite the trouble. Doing it by force might lead to
deportation.
Therefore, before that, Tan Mo would go find pirates to “set up”, he would
“lose”, then he would drag his wounded body into an Ice Sculpture Kingdom port
and request emergency relief.
By doing this, he could alleviate himself of suspicion and use the dignity of
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. They would have no good grounds to refuse him, and
he would be able to smoothly enter a kingdom port.
When they reached port, the Secret Gate Church’s two people would naturally
sneak out. Then Tan Mo’s escort mission would be complete.
The two Secret Gate Church people glanced at each other, then nodded,
indicating that they greenlit it and allowed Tan Mo to do as he saw fit.



****** Chapter 626: Movement of the Pirates ******
Tan Mo used information to start choosing a suitable pirate.
First was Da Han.
He was a saint level warlock and a member of the Fire Beard Pirates; he founded
the Icebound Pirates and was currently the Fire Beard Pirates’ fourth mate.
This position could change hands.
Tan Mo read the information, “At present, Da Han is leading his Icebound
Pirates towards Ice Sculpture Island.”
“Accompanying him are many pirates that joined together to get a piece of the
action.”
“It is worthy of a saint level ambience.”
One could say that gold level transcendents were the cornerstone of power and
gold level experts could quell a city. For example, Snow Bird Harbor’s City
Lord and the former lord of Two Eyes Island, Hun Tong.
Then saint levels were the upper echelons of transcendents. They were usually
nation level powers. When there were significant operations, they caused wide
ranging influence and surged like a gathering storm.
Like Da Han right now, obviously he was acting on his own, but the scene of it
caused other pirate groups to flock to him, lifting a particularly vast wave
that would batter into the orderly Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s strength was rich and powerful. Especially during
the National Ceremony, where the kingdom was more ready to display its strength
and would dispatch its navy more often.
Based on past National Ceremonies, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s orderliness
would consolidate to unprecedented levels, and safety would substantially
increase. The once lively pirates on Ice Sculpture Island would voluntarily
retreat ninety li. 
But this year’s National Ceremony had Da Han as an unforeseen event.
Da Han’s decision to attack negatively impacted the safety of Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s periphery waters immensely.
If one was simply looking at the numbers, the Icebound Pirates only had one
saint level, Da Han, while the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had three saint levels.
The contrast in strength was stark.
But in reality, the situation was complicated, and such a simple contrast was
unworkable.
Like Zong Ge said, this was the charm of military affairs! Military affairs
were never as simple as comparing military power, if that was done, then there
was no need for war, and both sides would just fight to the death. Wouldn’t it
be simple to judge who would win or lose based on who had more troops?
This was obviously out of the question.
Although the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had more saint levels, they were tied up in
other things.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s three saint levels were the king, the royal
magician, and the White Dragon King.
Each had a high position and their respective affairs. To say nothing of death,
if one went missing or left for some time, it was enough to cause massive waves
and even cause their organizations to break down to a degree.
Therefore, when Da Han was coming to invade, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s reply
was no simple matter.
The kingdom had many things to be concerned about.
On the face of it, it seemed that they could dispatch a saint level to openly
intercept Da Han.
In actuality, it was very difficult to decide who to dispatch.
The king?
He was the kingdom’s ruler, how could he recklessly move like that? No matter
what, he would never be the first to enter the battlefield.
The White Dragon King? She controlled the white dragon community and was only
an ally of the Ice Sculpture royal family.
The royal magician seemed to be the most appropriate. But he had countless
daily affairs and needed to preside over the Warm Snow Cup as the anchor for
this grand occasion. He also had important interests that demanded his
attention, especially the Ice Lake Grand Formation, which was giving the royal
magician unprecedented concerns.
Excluding the problem of who to send, there was also the consideration of
security.
Was this the strategy of another enemy? They might be using Da Han as bait to
lure in an Ice Sculpture Kingdom saint level, then perhaps ambush them when
they had them alone?
This was possible.
Because the Fire Beard Pirates was a legend level force, don’t even mention
their leader Fire Beard, they also had other saint levels in their ranks.
For example, it naturally is safer to stay behind in headquarters than to rush
into the frontlines alone.
Even if one wanted to go out, they had to at least wait for information to
clarify things.
How to get clear information?
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s intelligence apparatus was already working overtime
and actively scouting out Da Han’s military situation.
Apart from that, there was the navy.
Once the navy and the Icebound pirates exchanged fire, there would be detailed
and reliable information gleaned from the battle.
But if that happened, without a saint level overseeing the fleet, even if there
are numerous gold levels and the newest warships, it would be very difficult to
withstand Da Han directly.
If a confrontation occurred, there was bound to be losses.
But that in itself was normal procedures.
Through expending some of the navy, they could obtain sufficient time and
information for the saint levels to move more correctly.
The standing navy were all elites, but the saint levels were far more important
to the kingdom than they were. In the face of saint levels, these elites were
mere cannon fodder.
All kinds of factors brought about the current situation.
Da Han was a saint level who led the Icebound Pirates, and he was making things
difficult for the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
One of the reasons he faintly held the advantage was that he grasped the
initiative.
The pirates roamed beyond the coasts and could fight and retreat as they
pleased.
Of course, Da Han would do his utmost to prevent himself from being
outnumbered. Therefore, if two of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s saint levels were
dispatched together, he would immediately retreat.
Of course, someone like Da Han also took risks.
If it was in normal times, he wouldn’t be doing this. But right now, times are
quite special – the Pirate Throne has appeared. Whichever pirates sat on that
seat, became the Pirate King, the Pirate God!
One might as well ask, which pirate wouldn’t be excited by this?
“It’s very obvious Da Han is ambitious. He wants to plunder the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom and steal a hefty sum to raise his rank on the Pirate Ship Sacred
Monument.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom will never sit back and watch this; they are merely
waiting for enough information to move.”
“Da Han doing this while the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is holding the National
Ceremony simply is urinating on the kingdom’s head. If the kingdom is unable to
maintain stability over its territorial waters and protect the people joining
the National Ceremony, then the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s international prestige
will undoubtedly take a dive and hit rock bottom.”
“The previous Ice Sculpture King was a legend level and could rely on personal
strength to steady popular sentiment. But the current Ice Sculpture King is
only a saint level, and compared to his grandfather, he has to maintain
international prestige more!”
“This contest will no doubt be a saint level affair.”
“I’ll be a distant spectator to this liveliness. I cannot join in.”
Tan Mo turned over intelligence on Da Han, looking at the second page.
“Qian Xing…”
This pirate was also a saint level that was part of the Fire Beard Pirates.
But unlike the former, he was a loner and had no pirate group.
“He once appeared on Flower Skirt Island and fought against Cai Jing and
Magician Da Bei. Ultimately, although he defeated his opponents, he was unable
to obtain Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance. He also let Cai Jing,
Da Bei, and others escape!”
“And based on the latest intelligence, Cai Jing has already joined the Ice
Sculpture kingdom’s Alchemy Guild and became and elder who is currently in
charge of unearthing the Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s other inheritances.”
“As for Qian Xing, he has been missing for a long time.”
Even if he was still around, Tan Mo had no way of finding and staging a show
with him.
Qian Xing was less suitable than Da Han for this “performance”.
Because he was a solitary fighter, and unlike Da Han who looked after his
underlings, Qian Xing had no people and was also very strong.
He would be more troublesome than Dan Han.
The third pirate intelligence report describes the pirate merchant Money Pot.
He was a water pigman, a gold level, and the commander of the Dread Firepower
Pirates.
He was a famous arms merchant and one of the characteristics of his pirate
group was their extreme amount of cannons.
Tan Mo evaluated it and felt that although Money Pot was only a gold level
whose fighting strength nearly matched his own, he was not a compatible
candidate for his performance.
On the one hand, the Dread Firepower Pirates had many gold levels. On the other
hand, their pirate group’s long range firepower was too ferocious.
The fourth report had Feng Lian’s name written on it.
The latest information showed that Feng Lian had sailed his flagship, the
Divine Wind, close to Snow Bird Harbor and came to the rescue of the Bayonet
Gang remnants. Soon after, along their retreat path, their ships fought the
kingdom’s second naval fleet.
Feng Lian’s recent activity was at some ocean beast’s lair. It could be
determined that the ocean beast there was a saint level Cockscomb Ration
Python.
Tan Mo looked through it and quickly vetoed choosing Feng Lian.
“I cannot treat Feng Lian as a normal gold level.”
Long ago, Feng Lian fled from a saint level while he was a gold level. In the
newest intelligence, Feng Lian openly stood off against a saint level Cockscomb
Ration Python, showing how bold and powerful he is.
“Although there isn’t information on his bloodline concentration, from his
equipment and actual combat performance, one can see that Feng Lian’s bloodline
concentration should be very high.”
“This kind of combat strength exceeds normal parameters and should be due to
his high bloodline concentration enhancing it.”
“He might be a saint level seed!”
If Tan Mo wanted to utilize Feng Lian for his performance, it would be risky.
Secondly, if Feng Lian becomes a saint level in the future, then wouldn’t he be
offending a saint level? A saint level pirate at that!
The price was too high.
Tan Mo didn’t want to bear that.
There was another reason, it was the astonishing speed of Feng Lian’s Divine
Wind Pirates. Their ships were all magic ships made on Gear Island, and their
quality was ensured immensely.
“If we pick a fight with them, the Treasure Chest will be unable to escape,
what will be done then?”
Being unable to escape was very embarrassing.
Tan Mo continued to browse the information reports.
He saw the Rope Pirates.
“This is a newly formed pirate group.”
“The commander is Archer Chuan Yun, and the auxiliary commander is Magician Huo
Sheng, both of them were once famous bounty hunters.”
“Now they have renounced their old lives and turned to piracy.”
“Only two gold levels…not strong enough for me to ‘lose’ to.”
Tan Mo set them aside.
Next Tan Mo looked at the report on the Heroism Pirates.
This pirate group could work, their commander Ba Qi is very strong, and I am
not their match.”
“Unfortunately, since resupplying on Flower Skirt Island, they haven’t appeared
again.”
The information reports were finished.
Tan Mo’s brows were also wrinkled.
Don’t be fooled by the number of pirates, he unexpectedly didn’t find a
suitable candidate.



****** Chapter 627: The Two Saints ******
Thinking about it carefully, it was quite normal.
Because these factors were very difficult to control.
They couldn’t be too strong like Da Han or too weak like the Rope Pirates. Only
by combining strength and weakness could Tan Mo remain safe while also
appearing genuine enough!
After pondering for a long time, Tan Mo finally fixed his eyes on one report.
“Cong Mang, the Vegetable Pirates’ commander.”
“He is a druid that dual cultivates battle qi, he is proficient with the rod,
has an irascible disposition, and once had a close relationship with the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance.”
Tan Mo carefully researched Cong Mang’s military achievements, and after
contrasting them with himself, he found that Cong Mang’s, he found that his
personal combat strength nearly matched his own.
This meant that there was a lot of space for the performance.
Deliberately suffering defeat was also comparatively safe.
“The Vegetable Pirates’ ship is also ordinary and isn’t fast.”
“Although Cong Mang attached himself to Da Han and sails with the Icebound
Pirates, there are still opportunities to exploit.”
Tan Mo saw the latest battle report on the Vegetable Pirates.
They had done several operations, looting many merchant ships, while Da Han’s
Icebound Pirates, on the contrary, had very few gains. Yet obviously, they were
sailing together.
Tan Mo was capable of analyzing information.
He quickly made a judgement: on the one hand, Da Han’s Icebound Pirates might
look down on such trivial rubbish. On the other hand, this might indicate that
the Vegetable Pirates actively separated themselves from the main fleet, then
returned after they got done looting.
Furthermore, according to pirate rules, after Cong Mang returned to the main
fleet, he would tithe a part of his plunder.
Therefore, Da Han didn’t need to act and could reap what he hadn’t sown.
“I could first lure Cong Mang away from his post and then have him confront
me.”
“Even if we fight to a draw, I can still retreat and have sensible
justifications as an outsider – I am worried that Da Han will provide
assistance.”
“Hm, it’ll be him.”
As Tan Mo was reminiscing about Cong Mang, the latter was in the middle of
combat.
“Charge, faster.”
“Hoodlum battle squad, follow me in!” Cong Mang roared, his voice like a giant
drum.
He was a middle aged man who wore a dark green hemp garment, his legs wore
leggings, and he had cloth shoes on his feet. He didn’t have hair and was bald,
and although he was a druid, he dressed closer to a martial monk.
He took the lead, first to step onto the ship planks and advance bravely forth!
He held a long rod in his hand, slamming it into an enemy ahead of him and
giving them a violent death.
Then he threw the corpse he pounded into two other enemies.
Cong Mang jumped down, and like a mountain tiger, he killed his way through the
crowded deck.
Cong Mang crouched, and swung his rod around, sweeping the enemies away,
felling them in a wide expanse with repeated wails of anguish.
He was the vanguard and the first to get a foothold.
Soon after, large quantities of shaved pirates followed onto the deck and
charged in.
They were also bald, held long rods, and wore light green martial clothes.
This was the Vegetable Pirates’ Hoodlum battle squad!
The battle squad was over a hundred people large, and the huge offensive their
flying rods created couldn’t be stopped no matter where they went.
From high in the air, the green clothed Vegetable Pirates’ battle squad was
rapidly expanding in all directions as the enemy was destroyed like the autumn
gale sweeping away fallen leaves.
Very quickly, there was only green on the entire deck.
But the battle still continued.
The first deck was only part of a ship, and there were still enemies gathered
on the second deck, stubbornly refusing to admit defeat.
But Cong Mang wasn’t concerned with that.
He had abundant battle experience and knew that charging in now would greatly
reduce slaughter efficiency. After all, the terrain below deck favored the
defender.
Conversely, it would be better to dispatch ordinary pirates to watch over every
ship’s ladder and easily suppress this part of the battlefield.
“Little ones, follow me!” Cong Mang roared, leading the Hoodlum battle squad
towards another ship.
They quickly undertook another boarding action.
The other pirates were responsible for taking over the enemy positions they
captured.
Cong Mang followed a set pattern and swiftly mopped up most of the merchant
ships.
These merchant ships could barely resist, and the strongest person among them
was only silver level. During the first battle, Cong Mang had charged into the
flagship and killed them.
The battle quickly ended.
The pirates reported the results to Cong Mang.
The plunder was all ordinary goods, there was a lot of them, and it would be
quite difficult to dispose of them.
But Cong Mang was satisfied.
“Da Han didn’t bother with this, because he is rich and powerful.”
“We are different, we cannot let any opportunity to strengthen go!”
“This is a good opportunity that is hard to come by little ones.”
“We are now attached to Da Han, and even if we encounter a saint level enemy,
we have a chance of withstanding them.”
“This is why we give them a portion of our gains!”
“Our things aren’t easy to seize.”
Cong Man’s voice was loud, and that loud voice inspired morale.
He knew that recently, his sailors had grievances in their hearts. After all,
they were the ones who went through the great trouble of looting yet had to
transfer some over to Da Han’s Icebound Pirates.
Suddenly, a gentle laughter came from above Cong Mang, as if mocking him.
“Who?!” Cong Mang became furious, instantly gazing at where it was coming from.
A moment later, he saw someone squatting on the summit of the merchant ship’s
tallest mast.
He was a dark elf, with dark skin and handsome features.
He had a tall build, a high ponytail, and ten slender fingers. Each of his
fingernails was very sharp and glinted with blue radiance.
At that moment, he was looking down at Cong Mang indifferently, the corner of
his mouth sneering.
Cong Mang’s look changed dramatically, and he forced his scowl into a smile,
“Lord, Lord Qian Xing?!”
“Why…why did you come here?”
Qian Xing sneered, “Why? Am I not welcomed?”
“Your arrival honors our entire pirate group!” Cong Mang gave an exaggerated
laugh.
Although Qian Xing was a loner, his cultivation had reached the saint level and
Cong Mang was not his equal.
A second later, Qian Xing lightly fell onto the deck, “I have come to take your
ship.”
“To return to the Icebound Pirates, I want to look for Da Han.”
Cong Mang showed a difficult expression, “But I haven’t cleaned up the
battlefield yet.”
“Eh?” Qian Xing blankly stared at Cong Mang.
Cong Mang suddenly seeped with cold sweat.
But a moment later, Qian Xing clapped his shoulder, “I don’t want to make
things difficult for you. Have your flagship set sail, the others can stay
behind to clean up the battlefield.”
Cong Mang was overjoyed and repeatedly gave thanks. Then he personally led Qian
Xing onto his flagship.
Not long after, he took control of the steering and guided Qian Xing back to
the main fleet.
In his mind, Cong Mang was guessing why Qian Xing suddenly appeared and why he
wanted to meet Da Han.
“Both Qian Xing and Da Han are saint levels, yet they are actually getting
together. Could it be that Fire Beard has plans for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom?”
I wanted to land secretly on Ice Sculpture Island and excavate the Wisteria
Cache. If this happens during a war, won’t the destruction be advantageous for
me?”
But the truth was not what Cong Mang thought.
Qian Xing’s goal was simple; it was finding Ba Qi!
At the time, he was attracted to Flower Skirt Island by Shuang Tu, the main
reason was that Shuang Tu was masquerading under Ba Qi’s name and had asked him
for help.
But on Flower Skirt Island, Qian Xing noticed Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s
inheritance and fought Cai Jing and Da Bei for it.
Although the other two were gold levels, thanks to their sufficient
preparations, they were able to teleport out when they lost.
Before leaving, they managed to take away Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s
inheritance.
Qian Xing was naturally unreconciled, and after the event, he flew alone and
looked around the surrounding sea area.
Regretfully, he was a loner and lacked manpower. He also lacked information,
and it was like fishing a needle from the sea, and so he failed.
Cai Jing joined the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild and became one of
their elders. When this information was learned by Qian Xing, he had given up
his search for Cai Jing.
At this time, he was pacing back and forth through the ocean looking for Ba Qi.
He had yet to succeed in that.
Qian Xing actually found out that Ba Qi had been taken prisoner in some naval
battle.
But because Zhou Zhang had used a divine spell, and disguised things well, he
didn’t make any gratifying discoveries.
After a few hours, Cong Mang’s flagship and the Icebound Pirates converged.
“Hahaha, Cong Mang, why did you return with just one ship?”
“Did you meet with a powerful enemy that you could only flee from?”
“Just ask us for help, the price won’t be low though, can you afford it?”
The Icebound Pirates’ experts jeered and made fun of the returning Cong Mang.
Cong Mang was solemn as he appeared on deck and shouted to Qian Xing that they
had arrived.
In a split second, the jeers and insults vanished.
The arrogant and obstinate pirates snapped to silence, and they became serious
and solemn.
By the time Qian Xing calmly emerged from the captain’s room, and appeared
before the masses, the Icebound Pirates’ eyes widened, then they promptly gave
their greetings.
Being a saint level was enough to gain such seriousness.
The Icebound Pirates’ auxiliary commander personally greeted, “Lord Qian Xing,
our commander is in the middle of prayer, please have some tea first.”
Qian Xing was expressionless, “My time is limited. Where is the prayer room?”
The auxiliary commander looked distressed.
But a moment later, Qian Xing smiled, “Found it.”
He disappeared from where he stood instantly.
The auxiliary commander’s face changed radically, and he turned around and
scampered into the ship’s lower decks.
At that moment, in the prayer room, Qian Xing’s figure appeared behind Da Han.
The prayer room was not spacious, and its facilities were very antiquated,
including the consecrated divine statue that felt ancient and worn by change.
This wasn’t due to Da Han, rather it was because he believed in the God of Time
and Dusk – Inching Time.
Despite Qian Xing’s impatience, when he saw Da Han in the middle of prayer, he
stayed his words and chose to remain silent.
“Grand Dusk God, I recite Your divine name and pray under Your divine statue.”
“You are the guardian of time, Your power crosses eternity, Your wisdom sees
all things clearly.”
“You guide the steps of the cosmos, and Your finger ignites the dance of Your
believers’ lives.”
“You reveal the mysterious meaning of time to the perplexed and foolish. Time
is so valuable and can’t be replaced, it is a gift to our existence and reminds
us of how weak and short our lives are.”
“Dusk and Time God Inching Time, please continue to show me the way as I
continue to sail the River of Time. Help me transcend procrastination and
waste, help me embrace each moment of life.”
“Under your guidance, I learn to treasure every feeling and pleasure.”
“I hope your radiance illuminates my spirit eternally…”
Da Han’s prayer finished, and he slowly turned around to look at Qian Xing.
He was a middle aged human male, with ordinary features and there was a hint of
anxiety on the tip of his brows.
He wore a white gown and had a strong body that looked sturdy like a door.
His hands were very coarse and had many calluses.
At this moment, he was stroking his fingers and looked at Qian Xing with rapt
attention, his eyes seeping with tranquility, “My life still has 89 years, 305
days, 23 minutes, and 51 seconds.”
“Time is so precious and isn’t allowed to be squandered.”
“Qian Xing, tell me your purpose in coming immediately.”
“Please don’t say any superfluous words, thank you.”



****** Chapter 628: Time Prophecy ******
Qian Xing was expressionless, and he spoke forthright, “I need your Dusk
Church’s Prophecy spell.”
“Help me find the whereabouts of someone.”
“He is one of our members named Ba Qi, you should know of him.”
Da Han slowly nodded, “The Heroism Pirates’ commander.”
He looked deeply at Qian Xing, “It seems you too know how useful underlings are
sometimes.”
Da Han’s sentence exposed Qian Xing’s disposition.
Qian Xing was a loner and didn’t have underlings. Before, he didn’t think that
was a bad thing, but now, his opinion had changed.
The reason for his change was the Pirate Throne.
So long as one carried out pirate behavior, they could obtain the Pirate
Throne’s favor and possibly step into godhood.
Such an enormous enticement caused Qian Xing’s heart to beat.
However, on the sacred monument ranking located in the Pirate Holy City, Qian
Xing had fallen to tenth.
He analyzed the reason.
It was very simple; he had no subordinates.
Although he was a saint level and could plunder the vast majority of maritime
caravans alone, his efficiency was too low.
With underlings helping, not only would his looting efficiency greatly improve,
but the entire pirate group’s plunder would be attributed to his merit in
looting activity. As the pirate commander, he would have leadership
contribution and natural gain merits. This was uniquely advantageous to the
Pirate Throne competition.
Why did Qian Xing want to rescue Ba Qi?
The reason was he wanted to subdue Ba Qi and make the Heroism Pirates into his
subordinates.
If that happened, then he could make up for his shortcomings in this
competition.
That brief remark revealing his thoughts did not emotionally affect Qian Xing,
and he serenely replied, “It’s just as you said, I want to subdue Ba Qi.”
Da Han replied, “Based on Ba Qi’s disposition, he is indeed an excellent
candidate, and he is also at death’s door.”
Ba Qi had a forthright character and took their promises seriously.
He was a giant with the Bad Weather bloodline and cultivated the Air Pressure
battle qi technique.
He was the only person to successfully break out of the Abyssal Tower in the
last 500 years. That alone was legendary enough.
After getting free, he faithfully fulfilled his promise to his teacher to
actively spread the Air Pressure battle qi technique.
Lan Zao cultivated the Air Pressure battle qi technique, and the reason he was
able to change his cultivation so quickly was because of the former.
To Qian Xing, since Ba Qi asked him for help, then in light of Ba Qi’s
temperament, so long as Qian Xing decided to ask, Ba Qi had a high chance of
becoming his.
Another thing was that even if Ba Qi died in the future, it wouldn’t matter. At
least his manpower would truly fall into his hands without any trouble.
This was why Qing Xing was actively trying to rescue Ba Qi.
Qian Xing had been looking, but not a hair of Ba Qi had been found.
He was unresigned and happened to find Da Han’s Icebound Pirates coming over
here, so he thought of Da Han’s Dusk Church and their famous Time Prophecy
divine spell.
Therefore, he rushed over to ask for help.
Da Hen calmly gazed at Qian Xing, “In that case, what will you offer in
recompense?”
Da Han and Qian Xing were both saint levels, and ordinarily their relationship
was ambivalent, so it was impossible for them to help each other for free.
Qian Xing had thought long on his offer, and he raised his right index finger,
its long and sharp fingernail was exceptionally noticeable, “My bargaining chip
is that I will fight at full strength for one battle.”
Da Han’s eyes slightly hung as he thought deeply.
He was interested.
Qian Xing’s reputation was enough for Da Han to believe his sincerity.
Furthermore, both magic and divine contracts could raise the degree of trust.
Da Han saw through Qian Xing’s plan, and Qian Xing similarly saw Da Han’s
current situation.
Da Han was heading for the vicinity of Ice Sculpture Island, and surely he must
be planning to conduct a massive pirate looting there.
Under these circumstances, Da Han would unavoidably bump into the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s three saint levels.
At this time, another saint level like Qian Xing’s full support would be an
extremely important trump card.
Without pondering on it for long, Da Han answered, “I will do one prophecy for
you, and you will support me fully in battle once.”
Qian Xing sneered, “How is that possible?”
“You have to achieve an accurate prophecy that allows me to actually find Ba
Qi, then I will help you in battle!”
Da Han realized his haggling was quite improper and he candidly nodded, “Fine.”
He really valued time and signed a contract with Qian Xing on the spot.
Then, he ordered his subordinates to guard the prayer room, and with Qian Xing
as witness, began his prophecy.
Da Han faced Inching Time’s divine statue and kneeled on the ground.
A basin was laid out in front of Dan Han. There was also a large wooden spoon
in the basin.
Regardless of whether it was the basin or the wooden spoon, both emitted an
aura of divine power. It was obvious they were the Dusk Church’s sacred tools!
Divine spell – Retracing Time.
Da Han used a divine spell on the basin before him.
The divine spell’s light was not strong and was quickly saturated by the water
in the basin, causing the water in the basin to emit a tranquil white light.
Da Han slowly reached out a hand, grabbed the spoon, and softly ladled out a
spoonful of water.
Then he slowly raised the wooden spoon 50 centimeters above the basin’s water
surface.
At that height, Da Han began to tilt the wooden spoon, causing a dribble of
water to drop back into the basin.
The basin’s water surface turned from tranquil to rippling.
Light and shadow also fluctuated, forming an image.
In the image, Lady Sea Snake excitedly kissed Ruan Tang Ren in the mouth and
happily shouted.
Next to her was a gold level magic beast sea serpent they had just captured.
Ba Qi and Lady Sea Snake exchanged some words, then parted ways.
When all of the water in the spoon returned to the basin, the divine light
image dissipated into nothingness.
Da Han didn’t turn around, rather he remained gazing at the basin, “Ba Qi
seemed to have lent Lady Sea Snake help in catching a gold level sea snake,
then after succeeding, he left.”
There was no need for him to explain, as Qian Xing had already seen the light
and shadow in the basin.
He deeply pursed his brows, “How can this be? Since he left, why hasn’t there
been any news on him?”
Qian Xing looked at Da Han and didn’t say anything else.
According to their deal, Da Han had to prophesize Ba Qi’s precise position.
Thus, Da Han used another divine spell.
Divine spell – Time Rehearsal.
Da Han scooped out another spoonful of water, raised it high, and slowly poured
it.
The divine light appeared in the basin, and once again light and shadow
interweaved into a picture.
And in that light and shadow, Ba Qi was kneeling on the ground subserviently. A
gray gowned magician extended their withered palm over Ba Qi’s head.
The gray gowned magician actually used necromancy!
This made Da Han’s and Qian Xing’s pupils contract simultaneously.
Ordinary necromancers wouldn’t stupefy them, but the one who appeared was of
great importance.
He was called Teacher Si Ling, one of You Shen’s twelve saints, and a saint
level necromancer!
“Teacher Si Ling…why is it him?”
“What is he doing to Ba Qi?”
“The divine light image shows that Ba Qi isn’t being shackled and can freely
move. Yet he is allowing Teacher Si Ling to use necromancy on him.”
“He betrayed the Fire Beard Pirates and now relies on the undead orthodoxy?”
Qian Xing and Da Han looked at each other, both sensing the other’s doubts and
suspicions.
Da Han exposed his fear, “You Shen’s twelve saints are almost all saint levels
nowadays. Of the twelve saints, Teacher Si Ling is ranked second. But on the
wanted list all major powers have, he is ranked behind only You Shen.”
Qian Xing guessed, “Because Ba Qi was relying on the undead force, that is the
reason why he vanished without a trace?”
“Thinking about it carefully, it does make sense.”
“Ba Qi’s injury was incurable, and at death’s door, it is possible he turned
into an undead to survive.”
Da Han suddenly said, “Wrong.”
Qian Xing looked at him, and Da Han explained, “The two prophecies have
contradictions.”
“The divine power inside me told me.”
Qian Xing was more puzzled.
Da Han stared at the basin, his eyes emitting daggers, “Interesting, someone is
misleading me, interfering and misleading my divination method!”
“It seems Ba Qi really is missing.”
“Interesting, let me check what the truth is!”
Da Han became interested.
At this moment, he exposed his pirate adventure spirit and banditry anger.
The more difficult and challenging something was, the more it raised his
fighting spirit!
Divine spell – Time Intertwined.
Under this divine spell’s effect, the basin’s light and shadow fluctuated
ceaselessly, showing Ba Qi’s past, present, and future.
Qian Xing stood as a spectator, his look gradually changing.
He also made out that these time images were off. At first, he didn’t feel it
was logical. But as more prophecies were made, more gaps appeared in the light
and shadow, and even some logical inconsistencies were discovered!
“What is the truth of it? Let me take a good look!” Dan Han urged all of his
divine power, resolutely imbuing it into the basin.
His eyes burst with shooting light, reflecting the light in the basin. 
A scene from the past gradually reconstructed into the truth, falling before
his eyes.
For a few seconds.
Then the light in both the basin and his eyes went out.
The once lit up prayer room immediately became dark and gloomy.
Da Han’s eyes were shut as of this moment.
Two trickles of blood flowed from his eyes and arced down his cheeks.
It was evident that Da Han had paid the price for this divination!
Da Han didn’t open his eyes, his voice became husky, and his aura also had
clearly weakened a lot, “Qian Xing, my divination of Ba Qi in exchange for your
full support in a single battle is a wholly fair deal.”
Qian Xing faintly asked, “Where is Ba Qi? Who is covering up the truth?”
“An octopusman, it should be a Charming Blue Church bishop. She captured Ba Qi
alive along with some others, including several necromancers.”
“You weren’t looking in the wrong place; they are in the White Hair Trench.”
“They seemed to have stopped there!”
Qian Xing was astonished, The Charming Blue Church? Charming Blue Goddess? She
was seriously injured and sank into hibernation; the church’s power has
withered utterly. Is there really a bishop moving around in the world?
“So, it turned out Ba Qi has fallen into their hands…Charming Blue Goddess’
main authority is deception, and her disciples are experts at that. No wonder I
could never find him!”
Da Han slowly stood up, “How fun.”
“This matter has become amusing.”
“Qian Xing, I can help you again, I can help you deal with this Charming Blue
bishop.”
Qian Xing blurted out, “You want to hit a person when they are down, you want
to plunder a bishop of a church on the edge of annihilation?”
Da Han calmly nodded, “Maybe we can find the Charming Blue Church’s remnant
capital.”
“Even if this church is in a terrible situation, don’t underestimate the
capital of a divine power!”
“I will help you save Ba Qi, then afterwards the profit will be split eight for
me and two for you.”
Qian Xing coldly snorted, “Six, four.”
“Seven, three.”
“Deal.”



****** Chapter 629: Earth Elemental Army ******
Magnet Archipelago.
Tu Ji hid his figure and looked at a distant cave on a mountain top.
Next to him was the imperial secret spy that presided over the Magnet
Archipelago.
“Lord Tu Ji, Hong Zhu must be inside that cave.” The imperial secret spy’s
expression and tone were both very certain.
This time, he had considered his small life and really did everything he could,
regardless of the costs, to scout out this information. He even dipped into his
own pocket to subsidize his subordinates and stimulate them into action to a
powerful degree.
This explosion of effort indeed had results.
In the end, the imperial secret spy’s cultivated staff and hired personnel had
exceptional abilities.
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency quickly found Hong Zhu’s whereabouts.
Tu Ji narrowed his eyes, watching the cave.
To be cautious, he didn’t use an investigation type battle skill. Because he
had plenty of experience in the hunt and knew many defensive methods expressly
targeted these investigation battle skills and could give out a speedy warning.
Tu Ji also didn’t storm in directly, because he had gotten new information.
From the information, he learned that Hong Zhu was not alone and had two others
traveling with her. Their temporary base of operations was that cave.
“Da Dou, a gold level magic chef, hailing from Eruption Island.”
“Sleeping Man, a giant from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Sleeping Man is
only his nickname, we don’t know his real name.”
Tu Ji remembered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Because not long ago, he finished his investigation of Two Eyes Island. The
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had an impressive showing during the Battle of Two
Eyes Island.
“Da Dou had a food eating contest with Ci Hai Shen in Snow Bird Harbor, one he
lost.”
“It seemed he took a fancy to Sleeping Man, and after the food eating contest,
he immediately kidnapped Sleeping Man.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild’s Shuang Lian once controlled Honey
Snow Tower in pursuit of Sleeping Man. She not only failed, but she also went
missing.”
Tu Ji was not afraid of the big guy at all; he was mainly worried about Da Dou.
According to common sense, although Da Dou was a gold level, he was only a
magic chef, and his fighting strength was inferior to fighters like Tu Ji.
But Da Dou’s latest battle achievements caused Tu Ji to not discount his
fighting strength.
From the information, it seemed that Da Dou caused Shuang Lian’s disappearance.
What did he actually accomplish?
A gold level magician using a magician tower to fight was gone!
It was a little outrageous.
“Da Dou came from Eruption Island, so we should overestimate him more.”
“Furthermore, I have to capture Hong Zhu alive, interrogate her strictly, and
obtain the information and clues for the next step.”
Capturing alive and killing were two different things.
Capturing was far more difficult.
Cang Xu and Zi Di at the time used Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, leading to barely a clue being left behind.
Hong Zhu was the only clue Tu Ji had in his hands.
He didn’t know that Hong Zhu actually knew nothing. She just had bad luck and
only wanted to gain a closer relationship with the Wisteria Merchant Alliance
by helping their people in battle, so in the future, she could have a
convenient way to sell and purchase things.
Even if Tu Ji captured Hong Zhu alive, it would all be in vain and he was
destined to gain nothing.
But he was unaware of that.
In fact, he had no other choice. For wasn’t Hong Zhu the only clue he had?
Tu Ji quietly took out an eyeball from his pocket.
The imperial secret spy quickly recognized it, and couldn’t help but stare, “A
gold level Spying Truth Eye?”
“That is an expendable item, and when used, it will only last 5 minutes.”
“Is it worth using it here?”
Generally speaking, the Spying Truth Eye was used to survey fortifications and
was a strategic device armies used to assault fortified positions.
The cave before them was obviously just a temporary dwelling, and even if it
had defenses, it wouldn’t be much.
But Tu Ji used it without the slightest hesitation.
What did this say?
The Blood Light Punishment Institution’s supplies were too grand and
unreasonable.
Tu Ji activated the Spying Truth Eye.
The Truth Eye floated into the air, roughly 2 meters above the ground, then
pointed at the cave, constantly spying on it.
The entire process did not have the slightest amount of aura, sound, or scent
leaking out. If it wasn’t observed by the naked eye, it could not be detected.
Tu Ji and the Truth Eye shared a field of view, and quickly, they detected that
inside the cave, there was a lot of flame divine scripts arranged inside the
cave.
Then, he saw the big guy and Da Dou.
“No sign of Hong Zhu.” Tu Ji’s face sank, and he glared at the imperial secret
spy.
But the imperial secret spy wasn’t panicked, instead he pointed his finger at
the foot of the mountain, “Lord Tu Ji, isn’t Hong Zhu over there?”
The Spying Truth Eye had a systemic problem, its narrow field of view. After Tu
Ji used it, he was affected by it.
Tu Ji turned his line of sight, following the secret spy’s finger, and sure
enough, he saw Hong Zhu.
She was running, carrying a large bag of materials and was halfway up the
mountain.
“That’s right, it’s her!” Tu Ji’s eyes flashed sharply.
The imperial secret spy hurriedly asked, “Then, my Lord, can I leave now?”
He didn’t want to get involved with a gold level battle.
As for the information, he naturally had subordinates to collect it.
At that moment, Tu Ji’s body actually quivered slightly, and shortly after, he
had a weird expression.
“That’s not urgent.” He said.
“No, it’s very urgent.” The imperial secret spy almost blurted out.
“I remember you said before there were warring clans of earth elementals on
Magnet Archipelago?” Tu Ji suddenly asked another question.
Although the imperial secret spy was confused, he still nodded, “Yes.”
Then, he proudly stated, “We actually had a crucial impact on the situation
here.”
“In order to prevent the unification of the Magnet Archipelago, whenever a
strong figure appears in an earth elemental tribe, we will plot against them,
causing their death or crippling.”
“In addition to that, we also fan the flames everywhere and can manufacture
conflicts that cause deep blood feuds between the clans.”
“It could be said that the flames of war are incessant on Magnet Archipelago,
and we are the main reason for that.”
As for why they are doing this instead of just unifying Magnet Archipelago?
On the one hand, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency was an intelligence agency, and
were not a military organization. Their strength and authority did not allow
it.
On the other hand, by doing that, it could cause serious diplomatic conflicts.
This was not Sheng Ming Empire water, instead it was near the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s vicinity.
As for the Imperial Secret Spies secretly controlling and helping an earth
elemental clan unify the island?
That was also out of the question.
Using too much force would leave behind obvious traces and wouldn’t be
conducive to remaining concealed.
The imperial secret spies here also had an important assignment, that was
transporting supplies to Feng Awakening Island.
IF Magnet Archipelago was unified, there wouldn’t be such a prosperous sight at
the port.
Every day, there are large number of outsiders coming in, going on adventures
and treasure hunts.
In an environment with many eyes mixed in, transporting army provisions,
armaments, and other military supplies was easy to carry out.
These reasons combined, this was the best plan Secret Spy Agency had.
They paid the smallest price to maintain the status quo and constantly
performed their duties.
Seeing the secret spy’s faint pride, Tu Ji slowly said, “If that is so, where
did that earth elemental army I just detected come from?”
The imperial secret spy blankly stared, feeling he misheard something, “What?”
Tu Ji continued, “More than a dozen gold levels, several thousand earth
elementals, eight hundred magnetic earth elementals.”
“I even saw two earth elemental battle squads with a hundred members each.”
“It is right underneath our feet.”
The imperial secret spy replied, “What? My Lord, are…are you playing a joke?”
“They have already set up a divine script formation; it just isn’t activated
yet.” Tu JI’s brows creased, telling the imperial secret spy the new situation
he just scouted out.
The imperial secret spy laughed and waved his hand, confidently stating, “That
is impossible!”
Tu Ji was expressionless, doubtfully gazing at the imperial secret spy.
“Is this the quality of an imperial secret spy?”
Inside the cave.
The big guy opened his mouth and said to Da Dou, “Hungry, want to eat.”
“That meal.”
“Golden.”
“More people, fragrant meal!”
Despite the big guy’s inarticulate speech, Da Dou still heard him clearly.
Da Dou confirmed, “Master, you want to eat the Fluttering Boat Fried Rice? It
was the food you ate in the Snow Bird Dueling Arena right?”
The big guy nodded repeatedly, and the corner of his mouth even drooled with
disappointment.
“Good, I shall make it for you at once.” Da Dou smiled.
He took out an iron wok and poured out a large amount of cooked rice into it.
He took coconut oil, broke an egg, and mixed both into the iron wok.
The egg quickly solidified, and an iron ladle mashed it, creating small lumps
or kernels of yellow, white, and green.
The rice was rapidly sautéed golden. 
Da Dou shook the iron wok. Each time, the mixed three colored rice rose, then
fell like a beautiful golden sand shower.
The strong aroma quickly overflowed into the cave.
The big guy breathed heavily, staring at the fried rice, his eyes looking at
nothing else.
When Da Dou saw the big guy’s infatuated look, the corner of his mouth smiled
strongly, “It seems you hope to eat my fried rice. Ah ha ha, I figured you had
good taste!”
“This special recipe was invented and innovated by my teacher.”
“Teacher…”
Thinking of his teacher, Da Dou’s mood became worse.
He stared out into space, a memory flashing through his mind.
On his death bed, his teacher said to Da Dou, “Show me again, make that food.”
In front of his teacher, Da Dou successfully made the Fluttering Boat Fried
Rice.
His teacher was very grateful, “Da Dou, you are worthy of being my chosen
successor.  Ha ha ha, I didn’t expect that you would succeed in just a half
month of practice.”
“In my old age, I founded a new path for magic chefs, but I am powerless to
walk down it.”
“Teacher!” Da Dou kneeled at the bedside, pledging, “I will follow this path
and bring it to great heights!”
His teacher smiled, “You know who inspired me? Go to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
there perhaps you can find more opportunities.”
“It is about time for the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to hold its National Ceremony,
and you could have received the Ice Sculpture Royal Family’s invitation letter,
isn’t that right?”
Da Dou thought of that and couldn’t help but sigh to himself.
Nowadays, he could not return to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
To some level, he failed to live up to his teacher’s expectations.
However, Da Dou did not feel a bit of regret.
He looked at the foolish big guy, thinking, “This is a saint level seed!”



****** Chapter 630: Encircling the Big Guy ******
“If I had to choose again, I'd still make the decision to kidnap him.”
“If I could bring him back to Eruption Island, then everything I sacrificed
would be worth it!”
“Too bad he caught the gods' attention. To be chosen by the divine, how immense
must that favor be?!”
Da Dou still vividly recalled the scenes from the earth elemental tribe's
stronghold, where the big guy had unleashed his formidable power.
Playing dumb to catch the wise?
Da Dou had once entertained that theory.
But he soon dismissed the notion.
He had confirmed the big guy wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, dull and
simple-minded. Yet his background was undeniably complex!
“This little guy has been lurking in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Ever
since I snatched him away, he's been desperate to return.”
“Perhaps the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps isn't so simple either!”
Da Dou's thoughts raced. Because of Xiao Guai, he now regarded the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps with greater respect.
"What's that smell? So fragrant!" Hong Zhu, carrying a large bundle, entered
the cave.
She reported to Da Dou the results of her outing: “Lord Da Dou, I've gathered
the dwarf grass and sweet potatoes you requested.”
As she spoke, she opened the bundle.
While stir-frying rice, Da Dou glanced over and nodded approvingly. “Excellent.
Most are silver level, with a few even reaching gold level.”
“Didn’t those earth elementals cause you trouble?”
Da Dou was somewhat surprised, not expecting Hong Zhu to exceed his assigned
task.
Hong Zhu replied, “Maybe I just got lucky this time. I didn't encounter any
decent earth elementals along the way.”
Da Dou continued, " Don't go out anymore."
“Intelligence indicates members of the Blood Light Punishment Institution have
arrived nearby.”
“What?” Hong Zhu startled, then nodded quickly in agreement.
She had once fought side by side with Cang Xu on Two Eyes Island. This was a
huge suspicion that had become a thorn in Hong Zhu's side. Back then, she had
fled Two Eyes Island precisely because she feared she couldn't explain herself
clearly.
Hong Zhu still retained her freedom.
Unlike Da Dou, she hadn't become the big guy's slave.
Yet after that battle, she hadn't severed ties with the big guy or Da Dou, she
chose to remain attached to him.
“Compared to Da Dou, Lord Sleeping Man is the real powerhouse.”
“I'm a treasure hunter. Isn't he the greatest treasure I've ever encountered?”
The big guy in his Divine Descent state had left an indelible impression on
Hong Zhu, sparking countless wonderful fantasies within her.
“My bloodline is what it is, my lifetime rank cap is silver level.”
“Lord Sleeping Man has earned the favor of the gods. If I can rely on him, as
he keeps advancing, my life will improve alongside his!”
This was the world of the strong.
Facing the powerful, the weak develop a dependency, a natural survival
strategy.
Da Dou finished stir-frying the rice and cast the battle skill [Food
Compression], downgrading the gold level fluttering boat fried rice to silver
level.
“Eat up. This is what suits you best.” Da Dou scooped the entire pot of fried
rice into a giant bowl.
The big guy lifted the enormous bowl and buried his head in it, devouring the
meal with relish.
Seeing this, Hong Zhu swallowed hard, filled with envy.
She knew her place: “This isn't something I'm worthy of enjoying.”
“A gold level magic dish compressed down to silver level, what extravagance.”
Hong Zhu had only heard of such things before, never witnessed them.
Lately, however, she'd seen it happen many times with her own eyes.
Da Dou did not disappoint the fishman youngster's expectations, diligently
feeding the big guy lavishly at every meal.
He put away the iron wok and began carefully inspecting the ingredients Hong
Zhu had brought.
“Not bad. These are all very fresh.”
“For the next meal, I can prepare a uniquely flavored dinner for Master.”
The words barely left his mouth when his expression changed drastically.
“Enemy attack!” he bellowed.
In an instant, he whipped his head around, spun on his heel, and dragged the
big guy away.
“Food!” The big guy hadn't finished eating before Da Dou hauled him off.
He hadn't managed to grab the giant bowl. Seeing some fried rice left at the
bottom, he instinctively reached out to scoop it up.
He grabbed nothing but air.
The big guy stretched his arms out, watching the fried rice fall to the ground
with profound reluctance.
Almost the very next second.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shook the earth.
Dozens of massive conical spikes erupted from the ground, cave walls, and
ceiling, violently piercing the open space. In an instant, they nearly blocked
off an entire section of the cave.
Had Da Dou been a second later, she would have faced this terrifying assault.
Hong Zhu was utterly horrified.
When Da Dou turned to flee, she followed without hesitation.
Now standing beside him, she trembled with lingering fear. One second later,
and she too would have been crushed to dust by those spikes.
“Who in the world is attacking us?!” Hong Zhu was utterly bewildered.
The next moment, the aura of earth elementals surged forth in succession.
One, two, three... over a dozen gold level auras surrounded the cave.
Immediately after, silver level and bronze level earth elementals ceased
hiding, surging from the ground to encircle the small mountain where Da Dou
stood, leaving no escape.
Hong Zhu's face turned deathly pale.
“I was just picking some wild greens and sweet potatoes,” she murmured in
disbelief. “Surely this isn't necessary?”
Da Dou's face turned ashen. “Could it be that the earth elemental tribe we
defeated was special?”
The earth elemental army offered no answers, instead roaring as they charged
from all directions.
Leading the assault were over a dozen gold level earth elementals.
“We're done for!” Hong Zhu plunged into utter despair at that moment.
“There's still a chance!” Da Dou growled, slamming his fist against his chest.
In the next instant, his fire-patterned tattoos surged, erupting into a blazing
inferno.
The flames spread rapidly.
Divine script shimmered within the fire, coalescing into a brilliant, spherical
crimson light barrier.
Da Dou gritted his teeth: “I never imagined the divine script formation I
painstakingly set up here for safety would actually activate!”
Though lacking combat experience, Da Dou possessed one strength: he excelled at
learning from failure.
After being defeated by Shuang Lian and nearly captured, he decisively changed
his approach. He now used the Tunnel Staff whenever necessary, no longer
hesitating as before.
Last time, while tending to the unconscious the big guy, he failed to detect
the underground Earth Elemental Chieftain's ambush. The big guy was snatched
away, forcing him to pay a devastating price afterward and nearly costing him
his own life.
Thus, upon returning to the cave, he learned from his mistake. He expended
considerable effort, arranging numerous fire divine scripts across this small
hill.
It was precisely this tactic that allowed Da Dou to detect the enemy's surprise
attack, thereby saving the big guy's life.
Now, Da Dou had activated all the divine scripts he had laid out, forming a
spherical wall of fire.
The gold level earth elemental bodies charged toward the wall of fire but
halted in their tracks.
They sensed a powerful threat emanating from this layer of flames.
These earth elementals were either clan chieftains or the foremost warriors
within their tribes. As gold level beings, they naturally held significant
status.
It was only through receiving the oracle of the Main Earth Elemental God that
they had endured their differences, formed a coalition, and mobilized nearly
all their forces to hunt down the big guy.
The hearts of gold level earth elementals were never tightly knit. They
hesitated before the fire curtain.
Whoever broke through the fire curtain first would pay a heavy price.
This would undoubtedly forfeit the credit for slaying the big guy.
Without question, whoever personally killed the big guy would be the greatest
hero of this operation, most likely to earn the favor of the Main Earth
Elemental God!
The earth elementals wavered, while Da Dou raced against time.
He knew his fire barrier could withstand at most one or two opponents of the
same level. Moreover, it required constant infusion of divine power to sustain.
With over a dozen gold level foes now present, successful defense was utterly
impossible.
"We must leave this place! Everyone, get into my bag!" he shouted to Hong Zhu
and the big guy.
Hong Zhu's eyes lit up. Recognizing this as the best strategy, she hurried
toward Da Dou.
But Da Dou first grabbed the big guy by the neck and opened the packing bag at
his waist.
The big guy crouched on the ground, hands clutching his head, trembling
violently.
Terrified by the earth elemental army, he made no move to resist Da Dou.
But Da Dou failed.
He couldn't put the big guy in.
“Space is locked; I can't even open the bag!” Da Dou's face darkened.
Hong Zhu saw it and blurted out, "This must be some kind of spatial anchor
spell effect. What do we do now?"
She was utterly tense, pinning her last hope on the two men before her.
Da Dou took a deep breath, half-kneeling on the ground. He quickly murmured a
prayer before casting the Flame Flicker divine spell.
This spell allowed him to traverse space, crossing a certain distance.
With the aid of the Flame Totem on his body, though it was difficult, Da Dou
succeeded.
He clutched Hong Zhu in one hand while gripping the big guy's throat with the
other, expending several times his divine power to transform all three into
flames.
“One, two, three, strike!” The gold level earth elementals coordinated their
attack, shattering the wall of fire in an instant.
But all they saw was an empty clearing.
Outside the cave, the earth elemental army descended into chaos.
An earth elemental shouted, “They're here!”
The gold level earth elementals spun around and charged out of the cave.
On another mountain peak.
The imperial spy's mouth hung open in disbelief as he watched Da Dou lead the
two others, weaving through the earth elemental army.
“Now, do you still think I was joking?” Tu Ji crossed his arms, observing
coldly.
The imperial spy slowly shook his head, as if suddenly awakening, finally
closing his gaping mouth.
Clasping his forehead, he cried out, "How is this possible? These earth
elemental tribes have actually united to form a coalition force?"
“Why are they hunting down Hong Zhu and the others?”
This was precisely the question Tu Ji wanted to ask.
But now was clearly not the time for questions.
With the successive involvement of gold level earth elementals, Hong Zhu and
her companions were already in grave peril.
“Hong Zhu... she can't be killed like this,” Tu Ji lamented inwardly.
She was his only lead at present.



****** Chapter 631: God&#x27;s Gaze ******
"And the little giant from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps might hold clues
too. Why did Hong Zhu team up with him? Back on Two Eyes Island, Hong Zhu had
collaborated with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps."
"Lord Tu Ji, we must leave immediately. If we don't leave now, the earth
elementals will spot us, and that won't end well!" the Imperial Spy Chief urged
frantically.
Tu Ji, however, sighed deeply and shook his head slowly. "You go create chaos
on the other side and escape while you can. I'm going to rescue them!"
"What?!" The spy's jaw dropped in shock once more
He knew Tu Ji from the Blood Light Punishment Institution was no ordinary gold
level, but no matter how powerful he was, he was still just one man. There was
no way he could stand against this entire earth elemental army!
Tu Ji clearly had the chance to escape, to slip away unnoticed by the earth
elementals, yet he chose not to.
"What a lunatic! I'm not risking my life like this!" The imperial spy screamed
inwardly, while outwardly hastily obeying orders. He bowed low and swiftly
darted off toward the southeast.
Tu Ji's gaze remained fixed on Da Dou, Hong Zhu, and the others.
"Never imagined this operation would demand such a desperate gamble. Sigh!"
Tu Ji pulled out three vials of potion and downed them one after another.
Each vial contained a gold level potion.
The frenzied effects struck instantly after swallowing, forcing Tu Ji to half-
kneel on the ground as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
He instinctively covered his mouth with his hand, coughing violently several
times before slowly rising to his feet.
His height had increased by at least a meter compared to before taking the
potions. His entire physique swelled, muscles bulging with veins snaking across
his skin. Bloodshot eyes blazed with terrifying intensity.
His Blood Light Punishment Institution combat uniform stretched to accommodate
his new form, remaining perfectly fitted.
This classic potion combination instantly doubled Tu Ji's combat prowess.
But that wasn't enough.
Battle skill - Lifespan Blood Sacrifice!
He clapped his palms together, grunted, and unleashed a torrent of battle qi,
radiating a bizarre, blood-red halo.
The swirling light enveloped his entire body.
Ten years of his lifespan were sacrificed in this moment, granting him another
explosive surge in combat power.
It doubled once more from the previous level.
This brought his combat strength to four times his base state!
Empowered to this extent, Tu Ji stomped his foot, launching himself like a
cannonball.
Boom!
In the next instant, he slammed into the earth elemental army.
Caught off guard, the surrounding earth elementals were engulfed by Tu Ji's
follow-up assault, meeting their end instantly.
“They have reinforcements!”
“Divide our forces and take out their support!”
“Wait, this guy's uniform looks kind of...”
"Who cares about that? This is the will of the great Main God! Anyone who dares
to intercept us is an enemy of the god! Enemy of the god!"
The earth elementals' morale soared to its peak. Fueled by their faith, they
feared death not at all.
Though some shouted to eliminate Tu Ji, the reinforcement, not a single one of
the dozen or so gold level earth elementals moved. Their focus remained firmly
fixed on the big guy.
Taking out reinforcements versus killing the big guy, the difference in merit
is stark.
Da Dou fled with all his might.
His Flame Flicker divine spell proved especially potent amidst the army.
No matter how the earth elementals closed in, they couldn't catch him.
But carrying the big guy and Hong Zhu drained his divine power rapidly.
The three of them noticed Tu Ji's intervention.
"It's... it's someone from the Blood Light Punishment Institution! He... he's
here to capture me!" Hong Zhu stammered in terror.
“Isn't that great?” Da Dou's eyes lit up. “Clearly, he's here to save your
life.”
Da Dou strained to move closer to Tu Ji.
Gold level earth elementals closed in, surrounding and intercepting him.
The longer their divine script formation operated, the more effectively it
solidified the space. Da Dou's Flame Flicker divine spell not only grew shorter
in range, but also left behind crimson lines in the air, marking his
teleportation points.
This made it even easier for the earth elementals to block his path.
For a moment, Da Dou's attempt to draw closer to Tu Ji seemed like he was
walking straight into a trap.
Seeing this, Tu Ji's eye twitched.
He unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks, sending the surrounding earth
elementals flying.
Struck by his blows, they fell to the ground, wailing in agony. Soon, cracks
spread across their bodies, revealing crimson blood-light seeping through the
fissures.
Instantly, the earth elemental bodies shattered, collapsing into piles of earth
and blood-soaked corpses.
“It's the Flesh Curse!” A knowledgeable earth elemental elder shouted.
"He really is a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution!!" Some gold
level earth elementals felt a chill run down their spines, growing even more
reluctant to confront Tu Ji.
This curse was originally designed to target undead bodies, but it proved
remarkably effective against elementals too!
Empowered by the Flesh Curse, even Tu Ji's bare-handed strikes could transform
earth elementals into flesh-and-blood forms under its influence.
The elemental bodies' combat advantage vanished completely!
Yet the earth elementals fought with reckless abandon, their sheer numbers
overwhelming. After slaughtering hundreds for over two minutes, Tu Ji remained
surrounded.
“Hmph!” Tu Ji snorted furiously, drawing a deep breath.
Battle skill - Blood Feast of the Spirits!
His battle qi transformed once more into a crimson glow. The blood light
coalesced into arrows, shooting forth by the hundreds in an instant.
Earth elementals struck by the blood arrows let out agonized howls, descending
into madness. Some lashed out wildly, others rolled about clutching their
heads, while some simply collapsed.
“This is a battle skill specifically targeting souls.”
“Their souls are being annihilated!”
“We must eliminate this terrifying creature! He can't be allowed to attack
unchecked any longer!”
The attackers surrounding Tu Ji were, at most, silver level.
Few survived this battle skill.
This battle skill specifically targeted undead lifeforms. Whether zombies,
skeletons, or ghosts, they still possessed souls. Now unleashed upon the earth
elementals, its effect remained devastating.
Four or five hundred blood arrows swept through, completely clearing the
enemies surrounding Tu Ji.
The earth elemental army, though vast with thousands of troops, could not
endure such attrition.
If this battle skill were used a few more times, the earth elemental forces
would suffer nearly half their numbers.
Even with high morale, the earth elemental army could not withstand such
casualties.
30%40%
Under normal circumstances, most armies collapse in spirit and lose all will to
fight when losses approach 30%. Earth elementals were dull and stubborn; their
armies typically maintained higher morale, reaching up to 40%. But even that
was insufficient. After all, they were sentient beings.
The greater their intelligence, the more they pondered, and the deeper their
fear of death.
“We can't leave this guy unchecked any longer!” The Blood Feast of the Spirits
had forged this consensus among all the earth elementals.
But how?
Not a single one of the dozen or so gold level earth elementals turned to fight
Tu Ji.
They all sensed the terror emanating from his aura.
Seeing that still no gold level earth elemental came for him, unable to divert
the pressure on Da Dou, Tu Ji couldn't help but laugh bitterly.
“I'll see just how long you can hold out!” Tu Ji prepared to unleash the Blood
Feast of the Spirits battle skill once more.
But in the next instant, divine light descended.
The earth elementals were all imbued with defensive divine spells, greatly
enhancing their resistance.
Simultaneously, half of the gold level earth elementals turned on their heels
and charged toward Tu Ji.
Tu Ji, Da Dou, and the others paled visibly.
“Such colossal divine power!”
“Could it be that a deity is watching over this place?”
Indeed.
Just as the fishman youngster had once focused on the big guy, the Main Earth
Elemental God had long since cast a gaze upon them.
Under His command, the gold level earth elementals split into two groups,
abandoning their previous foolish tactical choice. One group continued to
surround and attack the big guy, while the other engaged Tu Ji in battle.
A look of shock and disbelief washed over Tu Ji's face!
The significance of a god's attention was immense.
At that moment, Tu Ji felt an overwhelming urge to retreat.
“An earth elemental god is watching this battle!” Da Dou instantly turned to
the big guy.
In that instant, he was utterly certain: the earth elementals' massive
mobilization had only one target, the big guy!
Hong Zhu's eyes widened as she grasped the same truth: "Lord Sleeping Man has
been divinely possessed before. Could it be... two deities are now vying for
control over him?"
At this thought, Hong Zhu couldn't help but feel a surge of anticipation.
She had witnessed the big guy's divine descent before.
“At such a critical juncture, only another Divine Descent upon Lord Sleeping
Man can free us from this predicament!”
Meanwhile, the fishman youngster, the focus of Hong Zhu and Da Dou's intense
hopes, was currently studying the memory crystal in his hands.
Since the last teleportation blood sacrifice, after thorough communication with
Cang Xu, he had used the time digesting the divine blessing to actively forge
memories.
The fishman youngster was already a magician and had performed blasphemous
prayers multiple times, making him quite adept at crafting false memories for
personal use. This expertise now yielded significant results when crafting
memories for others.
Despite smooth progress, the fishman youngster furrowed his brow.
“What's going on?”
“Why am I so unsettled? As if something terrible is happening, or about to
happen?”
“Am I worrying too much about Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others?”
At the same time.
In the White Hair Trench, not far from the Ocean Mother Nest.
Da Han and Qian Xing stealthily approached, their presence concealed.
“A large number of sea beasts have been hunted. The trails converge in this
area.”
"We've found the right location. Look at that, and this... There are numerous
signs of intelligent activity. It won't be long before we locate the Charming
Blue Church's main base."
"Hehehe, even if it's not their main base, it's at least a crucial stronghold.
I'm looking forward to the treasures inside!"
Da Han and Qian Xing tracked their way forward, exchanging whispers while
channeling their battle qi.
Suddenly, a blinding white light erupted from Da Han's body, while Qian Xing's
pendant emitted a sharp, piercing ring.
Both halted instantly.
Da Han thrust both palms forward, striking toward the figure he perceived as
“Qian Xing.” Qian Xing, however, struck at a nearby boulder, seemingly
oblivious to Da Han's attack.



****** Chapter 632: Father Save Me ******
The next moment, the water surged violently, and the light and shadow
dissipated.
The scene before Da Han and Qian Xing's eyes changed dramatically. The true
form was revealed.
Battle skill and divine spell collided, creating a torrential current.
Da Han and Qian Xing each stumbled back half a step, while Zhou Zhang retreated
a full step.
“Heh heh heh, indeed the divine magic of the Charming Blue Goddess!” Da Han
sneered coldly.
They had obtained crucial intelligence before the battle and came prepared.
However, the divine magic imbued upon them and the equipment they wore were
only sufficient for the two of them.
To prevent the Charming Blue Church's deceptive divine magic from inflicting
heavy casualties among his forces, Da Han hadn't even brought a single ship!
Zhou Zhang's face was as still as water.
Her Opportunistic Deception had been countered. Against opponents of the same
level, it clearly no longer held the same potency.  Especially this time, as
she had simultaneously deceived two saint levels.
Zhou Zhang stared at Qian Xing and Da Han, declaring: "Human saints, the deep
sea is not your territory. We don't welcome you here!"
“Leave this place, or you shall pay a price beyond your imagination.”
Zhou Zhang knew their intentions were hostile. Since they had prepared targeted
defenses, they were likely here specifically for her. Still, she made one final
attempt.
Da Han's expression remained calm, his tone detached: “This is the Charming
Blue Church. I have come precisely for you.”
“I have a proposal to save us both time, hand over all your possessions
immediately, and I'll turn tail and leave.”
Qian Xing added from the side, “Oh and Ba Qi. He's a member of our Fire Beard
Pirates. Hand him over too.”
“Heh heh heh.” Zhou Zhang laughed in anger, about to speak.
Da Han raised his hand. “Enough talk. I understand.”
“Let's save time. Cut the nonsense.”
“Fight!”
Zhou Zhang's face darkened as she slowly retreated, water ripples swirling
around her before fading away.
Da Han and Qian Xing exchanged a glance, then charged forward regardless of
Zhou Zhang's location.
They split left and right, a tactical maneuver!
Zhou Zhang's heart sank.
Alone, she could only intercept one of them.
Their tactic clearly aimed to exploit numerical superiority.
Zhou Zhang gritted her teeth, hesitated briefly, then chose to intercept Da
Han.
After all, Da Han was a sorcerer, a spellcasting combat class. In terms of
slaughter efficiency alone, he surpassed a fighter like Qian Xing.
As for Qian Xing...
“We're going in!” The remaining gold level individuals, led by Zhang Yu Wan and
Jiu Hua Bi, charged forward with gritted teeth.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Zhou Zhang clashed with Da Han. divine spells and magic spells collided,
instantly igniting a series of violent explosions.
The blast sent surrounding currents surging wildly, terrifying sonic waves
echoing through the ocean trench.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yu Wan, Jiu Hua Bi, and the others launched a formidable
assault on Qian Xing.
“I'll play along for now,” Qian Xing remarked with a mocking smile. His form
darted like lightning, moving with blinding speed as he weaved freely among the
gold level foes.
As the two sides fought, the ripples of the battlefield soon spread and
implicated the White Hair Trench.
Thunderous explosions could not be concealed, and from time to time, underwater
mountains and seabed shook.
“What's happening?” Cang Xu, mid-ceremony guiding a fishman to faith, halted
abruptly, his face etched with shock and disbelief.
The surrounding Charming Blue believers were already in utter chaos.
Every single one was stunned and terrified.
Though they outnumbered their foes, the attackers were saint level!
Before such powerhouses, they were nothing but lambs awaiting slaughter.
No reconnaissance was needed, the aura of a saint level being was so
conspicuous that nearly every transcendent could sense it.
“Where is Lord Zhou Zhang?”
“That distinct aura of the saint level, it's clearly Lord Zhou Zhang!”
“And Jiu Hua Bi, Zhang Yu Wan, and the rest! All the gold level experts have
gone into battle!”
Cries erupted from the crowd, venting their panic.
A heavy weight pressed down on Cang Xu's heart, especially as he realized one
of the battle groups was drawing ever closer.
“Why would two saint level attackers suddenly appear?”
“Could this be why Charming Blue Goddess deliberately cultivated the
Commander?”
“No, it makes no sense to provoke two saint level enemies simultaneously.”
Cang Xu gritted his teeth, silencing the relentless questions in his mind, and
immediately began secretly contacting the fishman youngster.
The fishman youngster did not respond.
Cang Xu could only wait anxiously.
Their communication tool wasn't real-time messaging; it was more like writing
letters or leaving messages.
“Hurry up and see this! Respond to me, Commander!”
“The Ocean Mother Nest is no longer safe.”
Yet the fishman youngster hadn't received Cang Xu's message. He was currently
concentrating intensely, channeling divine magic.
Divine spell - Believer Perception!
The fishman youngster's heart-pounding dread grew ever more intense, even
interfering with his current tasks.
Confused and alarmed, he could only begin checking everywhere.
First, he inspected the Deep Sea Monster Fish and questioned the tower spirit,
finding nothing unusual aboard the ship or within the Ocean Mother Nest.
He then observed the surroundings outside the Ocean Mother Nest. As the battle
had not yet begun, everything appeared normal.
The fishman youngster then attempted to use Believer Perception to check on the
others.
Lan Zao was thriving in the Dueling Divine Domain, having earned trust.
Dao Hen was carrying out surveillance duties aboard Tan Mo's Treasure Chest,
undetected.
But the big guy...
“Oh no! What's happening to Xiao Guai?”
The fishman youngster realized Xiao Guai was in grave peril. Carried by Da Dou,
they were desperately weaving through the earth elemental army, yet every
attempt to break through failed.
Da Dou's vitality was fading, his body drenched in blood.
Hong Zhu had also sustained significant injuries.
Only the big guy remained well-protected by Da Dou, flailing his limbs and
wailing loudly. The perilous situation had pushed him to the brink of madness.
The fishman youngster was stunned by the danger.
He never imagined that the big guy would be surrounded and attacked by the
earth elemental army.
What grudge did they have? What enmity was there?
Even if he destroyed an entire earth elemental tribe, this seemed excessive.
Without hesitation, the fishman youngster cast the divine spell [Divine Power
Channel]. The moment the channel opened, the big guy sensed it.
“Fa... Father!”
“Bad guys! So many bad guys!”
The big guy screamed for help in his mind.
“Xiao Guai, don't be afraid.”
“Father sees you. You'll be safe.”
The fishman youngster comforted the big guy while focusing his attention,
sifting through his memories.
The big guy's memories didn't provide the answer—why they were being subjected
to such treatment by the earth elementals.
But the fishman youngster discovered something: the recent divine intervention
by the Main Earth Elemental God.
His heart jolted violently: "The Main Earth Elemental God?
"Why would He pay attention to this place? Why intervene personally?"
"And these earth elementals, they're all shouting about a divine war. Is this a
divine war?"
This was an utterly devastating piece of news.
Another piece of devastating news was Tu Ji.
The fishman youngster discovered that this member of the Blood Light Punishment
Institution had also appeared and joined the battle.
“This guy should have landed on Feng Awakening Island. Why did he show up so
quickly in the Magnet Archipelago?”
“He must be after Hong Zhu!”
The fishman youngster had been warned by Cang Xu earlier. Through the big guy's
network, he'd already issued orders for the Crimson Orb to go into hiding.
But Tu Ji's arrival at the Magnet Archipelago was too covert, too swift, Hong
Zhu hadn't had time to conceal herself.
“What should I do now?”
The fishman youngster hesitated, feeling utterly stumped.
He could now employ various divine spells, even Divine Descent, to aid the big
guy in breaking through the siege.
But doing so would inevitably reveal the most critical information.
Even if Tu Ji from the Blood Light Punishment Institution was deceived and
failed to recognize the divine power's origin, once he learned of this, he
would surely take the big guy seriously and investigate further in the future.
If he or the Blood Light Punishment Institution discovered it was Charming Blue
Goddess, it would spell disaster.
Charming Blue Goddess had been gravely wounded and now lay dormant precisely
because the Empire's deities held sway.
“I cannot recklessly use the Charming Blue Goddess's magic. For it cannot see
the light of day!”
The fishman youngster had harbored these fears before.
Now, this flaw is laid bare.
Though Charming Blue divine spells proved effective, the fishman youngster
dared not wield them freely, fearing discovery.
Truthfully, had only Tu Ji been present, he might have acted.
After all, Tu Ji was merely a gold level being.
But the Main Earth Elemental God clearly watched over this place, a deity of a
major pantheon.  Such a presence left the fishman youngster with no confidence
to take risks.
Undoubtedly, the Main Earth Elemental God's power far surpassed that of the
Charming Blue Goddess.
“Why is He watching this place?”
“Could it be that I angered Him by deceiving Him and destroying His altar,
prompting this retaliation?”
“Or perhaps the Earth Elemental Chieftain I killed was His bloodline
descendant?”
“Is he waiting for me to make my move, then follow the trail?”
On the battlefield, Tu Ji charged relentlessly forward.
But he couldn't break through.
His situation now was different from before.
He was under siege by nearly ten gold level opponents!
Several gold level magnetic earth elementals continuously cast magnetizing
racial magic, severely restricting Tu Ji's movements.
What Tu Ji truly feared, however, was the stone-tipped mace wielded by one of
the earth elementals.
It was a petrifying weapon!
Capable of transforming the flesh of struck enemies into stone.
Time and again, this gold level weapon had intercepted Tu Ji, thwarting his
attempts to reach Hong Zhu.
This time was no different.
Just as Tu Ji was about to break through the encirclement, the stone mace swept
across.
If he dodged, he would lose his chance to strike and fall back into the trap.
“Screw it!”
A fierce glint flashed in Tu Ji's eyes as he swung his left arm to block.
The next instant, his left arm was shattered clean off by the mace. Not only
that, but its surface rapidly changed, transforming into stone.
But Tu Ji had anticipated this, erupting his battle qi directly at the edge of
his shoulder.
Bam!
Blood spurted everywhere.
Tu Ji used his battle qi to sever his own arm!
Battle skill - Blood Light Shockwave.
The next instant, the severed arm, not yet fully petrified, erupted in a
violent explosion.
Blood spattered everywhere, striking the gold level earth elementals. Every one
of them screamed in agony, tumbling to the ground.
At the cost of his left arm, Tu Ji finally broke through, carving a bloody path
through the earth elemental army to reach Da Dou and the others.
“Follow me!” Tu Ji bellowed fiercely.



****** Chapter 633: Five Pointed Star Annihilation Ray ******
Facing the one-armed blood-soaked figure before her, Hong Zhu felt anything but
joy.
She and Tu Ji had fought on the same battlefield, witnessing everything
clearly.
Tu Ji could have escaped alone, yet to protect her as a lead, he had sacrificed
himself to such an extreme degree!
“No wonder they say the Blood Light Punishment Institution is full of madmen!”
Hong Zhu felt this truth acutely at that moment.
What troubled her more was that her relationship with the necromancer had been
shallow and simple. If Tu Ji discovered the truth, would he fly into a rage,
driven by fury and hatred, and kill Hong Zhu to vent his anger?
Hong Zhu was clearly surrounded by enemies, her life hanging by a thread.
Yet her fear of Tu Ji was even greater.
At this moment, she desperately wanted to shout: “Lord from the Blood Light
Punishment Institution, I am innocent! Do not place excessive expectations upon
me!”
Compared to Hong Zhu's complex emotions, Da Dou's response was far simpler.
Tu Ji bellowed, “Follow me!”
Da Dou immediately replied, “Understood.”
His answer was crisp and decisive.
He swept his arm, scattering seeds.
Then he used his battle skill again, causing the seeds to grow rapidly.
In an instant, countless green vines swelled like giant serpents, spreading
swiftly and engulfing a corner of the battlefield.
The earth elementals that had been closing in were all repelled by these vines.
With this advantage, Da Dou calmly followed Tu Ji's footsteps, carrying both
Hong Zhu and the big guy.
Tu Ji's eyes lit up upon witnessing Da Dou's technique.
Da Dou was capable of such feats too.
He couldn't overuse this move; it drained his battle qi too heavily.
But its combat effectiveness was undeniably formidable.
Da Dou employed it both to repel the earth elementals and to demonstrate to the
frenzied, ferocious Tu Ji that he wasn't someone to be trifled with!
The two thus joined forces, cooperating to break through the encirclement.
Even the re-gathering gold level earth elementals struggled to withstand them.
Several factors contributed to this:
First, Da Dou and Tu Ji worked in perfect harmony, fully committed to each
other. The earth elementals, however, were preoccupied with vying for the first
kill, their minds scattered and their actions constrained by mutual rivalry.
Second, their partnership freed up both Da Dou and Tu Ji to unleash their full
combat potential.
Previously, they had to juggle defense and rescue, leaving little energy for
offense. Da Dou especially focused on escape, only occasionally
counterattacking.
Now, with a simple division of offense and defense, they could truly harness
their offensive capabilities.
One was a giant from Eruption Island, possessing exceptional physical prowess.
The other is a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, mastering
formidable divine spells and battle skills.  Both surpass ordinary gold level
combatants in strength.
Moreover, the most troublesome earth elemental has been temporarily neutralized
by Tu Ji's battle skill.
Without that pesky petrification weapon, Da Dou and Tu Ji faced fewer
constraints, moving with greater freedom.
Their coordinated slaughter carved a bloody path through the enemy lines.
They were on the verge of breaking through the earth elemental army and
reaching the edge of the divine script formation.
At that moment, divine light surged skyward once more, vast and majestic,
enveloping the entire battlefield.
The next instant, the earth convulsed. Towering walls rose from the ground,
forming a thirty-meter-high barrier within seconds.
The surface of the walls rippled with intense divine light.
“A saint level earth-element divine spell!” Da Dou's pupils contracted sharply.
Hong Zhu's face was etched with despair.
They were just one step away from truly escaping.
Yet, in the end, they were still trapped within the walls.
Tu Ji refused to accept defeat, his eyes blazing with fury. He roared,
unleashing a crimson battle skill that slammed heavily against the towering
wall before him.
The divine light rippled across the wall's surface, leaving it unscathed.
The wall stood like a mountain, sealing off the battlefield, immovable.
Da Dou attempted to charge upward by running along the wall's surface. Yet the
higher he ran, the greater the gravitational pull became.
Before he could ascend ten meters, the force became overwhelming, dragging him
back down.
The fishman youngster observing this grasped the crucial insight.
“It's a divine script formation deployed by the earth elemental army before the
battle began!”
“The Main Earth Elemental God has channeled divine magic through this
formation, achieving power on par with the saint level.”
The divine script formation itself was of gold level, but when the Main Earth
Elemental God channeled divine magic through it, its power effortlessly
transcended its limit, reaching the saint level.
“Deities stand at the pinnacle of transcendence, yet divine support carries
inherent limitations.”
“Take Divine Descent, for instance, its primary constraint lies in the vessel.
The superior the vessel, the more fully the god's power manifests.”
“When I use the big guy for channeling, I can only achieve gold level combat
strength at best. The primary limitation is that the big guy isn't a fishman,
making him incompatible with fishman god authority. The fact that the big guy
believes in me instead of the Charming Blue Goddess is also a major flaw."
“The Main Earth Elemental God hasn't actually descended upon any earth
elemental believer. Instead, He used the divine script formation as a bridge to
cast divine magic.”
"As a vessel, the quality of the divine script formation surpasses even a gold
level earth elemental entity.  Thus, the Main Earth Elemental God can unleash
saint level power.
“In this rescue mission, my true adversary isn't Tu Ji, it's the Earth
Elemental God.”
The thought weighed on the fishman youngster's chest like a boulder,
constricting his breath.
This was the Main Earth Elemental God! Such a supreme being naturally imposed
immense psychological pressure.
An instinctive warning gripped the fishman youngster—any attempt to use the
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell before the
Main Earth Elemental God would fail spectacularly!
He understood clearly: intervening now would unleash immense trouble later.
More likely, even giving his all might not save the big guy!
“No. I must save Xiao Guai.”
"But how exactly can I save him?!" The fishman youngster strained every fiber
of his being to think.
Meanwhile, at the White Hair Trench.
After a violent explosion, Da Han and Zhou Zhang both recoiled violently,
creating distance between them.
Their clash had been intense from the very start.
Da Han showed no urgency, but Zhou Zhang needed to defeat him first to rush
back and confront Qian Xing.
Thus, she fought with full force from the start.
Da Han responded calmly. As a sorcerer, he could only cast innate racial
spells. Yet these spells were amplified by his bloodline, making them fierce,
swift, and extremely low-cost to cast.
Zhou Zhang countered with a divine spell, a reckless move that left both
lightly wounded.
Divine spell - Time Rewind.
Da Han cast the spell on himself, restoring his body to its previous state and
erasing the minor injuries entirely.
Divine spell - Self-Deception!
Zhou Zhang also used a divine spell, deceiving herself into believing she was
unharmed. The deception reached its peak, and her injuries vanished in an
instant.
"It seems I won't be able to take down Da Han anytime soon. This will be a
protracted battle!" Realizing this, Zhou Zhang's sense of urgency grew even
more intense.
Da Han, however, wore a smile, his demeanor composed. He deliberately flew
back, intentionally creating distance.
With two of them, the tactic of splitting forces was clearly advantageous now.
Da Han only needed to hold Zhou Zhang off while allowing Qian Xing to break
through elsewhere.
Zhou Zhang had no choice but to follow, charging forward once more to attack Da
Han.
Another battle group.
Qian Xing stood proudly, surveying the battlefield. “Can you continue?”
Nearby, several gold level fishmen lay fallen. Their life force was gone, each
mortally wounded, their transcendent aura slowly fading.
Unlike Da Han, Qian Xing held clear dominance against the swarm of gold level
interceptors, moving with effortless ease.
He toyed with them like a cat with mice, while the gold level believers of
Charming Blue wore expressions of tension, panic, and deep, unresolved fury.
“What's there to fear? It's just death!”
“Hold him back! Even if we die, it matters not.” Even if we only delay him for
a second, making such a contribution to our Lord is worth it!"
Zhang Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi shouted in unison, rallying their comrades.
Their bodies were covered in wounds, limbs mangled and broken, weapons
shattered. Though gravely injured, their morale remained unshaken, as if locked
at its peak.
Qian Xing sneered coldly: “Impressive fighting spirit.”
“But to think you could delay me? You underestimate me terribly.”
“Did you believe my earlier attacks were merely for fun?”
With that, Qian Xing's form flickered, splitting into over a dozen illusory
figures, each indistinguishable from the real one.
The gold level Charming Blue believers scrambled to intercept.
Qian Xing's true form soared dozens of meters upward, rapidly gathering power.
By the time Zhang Yu Wan and the others realized, it was already too late!
Battle skill - Five Pointed Star Annihilation Ray!
Qian Xing extended his right arm, fingers splayed wide. The blue light at his
fingertips was blindingly intense.
Saint level battle qi condensed and compressed in his palm, forming a sphere.
The sphere spun rapidly, humming with energy.
In the next instant, the battle qi sphere erupted violently, firing a beam of
light.
The outer edge of the beam was defined by the light emanating from the tips of
his five fingers, forming five sharp points.
When first fired, the beam was only as thick as his palm.
But as it shot outward, its diameter grew larger. It expanded from his palm to
the circumference of his forearm, then to his thigh, growing as thick as a
basin, then as massive as a millstone.
Finally, upon striking the gathering place of the Charming Blue Church, its
diameter reached two meters.
“No, impossible!”
The gathering place was already cloaked in deception magic. How could Qian Xing
possibly perceive it from such a great distance?"
Zhang Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi paled in shock.
Seeing their expressions, Qian Xing understood their thoughts.
As the beam in his hand faded and dissipated, he calmly withdrew his hand,
looking down at the numerous Gold level cultivators and declared arrogantly,
“Battle requires the use of your brain.”
“You underestimate me. I'm no brute.”
Zhang Yu Wan and Jiu Hua Bi instantly understood. The former exclaimed in shock
and anger, "I see! You appeared to be toying with us, but you were actually
applying external pressure."
“You created the illusion of multiple breakout attempts to test our level of
tension.”
After repeated tests, you grasped the direction we were most tense about. That
was precisely the route you intended to attack!"
Wisdom was a remarkable power.
Qian Xing's reconnaissance capabilities were insufficient for long-range
detection, but through strategic tactics, he exploited the enemy's
vulnerabilities and deduced the correct direction of attack!
The Five Pointed Star Annihilation Ray unleashed unparalleled, razor-sharp
power. It plowed a straight furrow across the ground, cleaving magic and divine
script formations in two.
Then, rising upward, it severed a third of the golden altar.
Finally, it slammed into the Ocean Mother Nest.
The Ocean Mother Nest was shattered clean through!



****** Chapter 634: Leaving Charming Blue’s Divine Domain ******
The Star Annihilation Ray plunged deep into the Mother Nest’s core. Its
residual force was immense, causing waves to surge and the Deep Sea Monster
Fish to rock violently.
The fishman youngster, trapped within the prayer chamber, was severely
disrupted. His focus scattered, forcing him to disengage.
“What's happening?!” He snapped his eyes open, only then realizing the
cataclysmic shift.
After summoning the tower spirit, he immediately grasped the external
situation.
"Two saint level foes have found their way here. Zhou Zhang is being held back
by one of them!"
“Her deception divine spell proves ineffective against peers of equal
standing.”
Cang Xu's eyes widened as he stared intently at the ravine before him.
The ravine had been carved by the Five Pointed Star Annihilation Ray just
moments ago, mere half a step away from him.
Fortunately, though this battle skill possessed immense power, it was highly
focused and concentrated, achieving formidable penetrating capability. Thus,
despite his proximity, Cang Xu remained unharmed.
His body was unscathed, but his mind reeled from the violent shockwave.
"That's a saint level battle skill! If I'd been grazed, I'd have been vaporized
on the spot!”
Just moments ago, Cang Xu had witnessed several unlucky souls getting caught in
the beam's edge, instantly vaporized.
Had Cang Xu not been an undead being, he would have been drenched in cold sweat
by now.
Even so, the lingering terror caused his soul to tremble and flicker
uncontrollably.
“No!” Cang Xu whipped his head around, staring at the Ocean Mother Nest pierced
by the beam. His earlier fear was instantly overshadowed by intense worry.
“The Lord Commander is in there.”
“Lord Commander, you absolutely must not come to harm!”
From the day they arrived on Mystifying Monster Island until this very moment,
Cang Xu's loyalty to the young commander had undergone a qualitative
transformation through countless events, becoming profoundly resilient and
deep-rooted.
Though renowned for his composure, Cang Xu now lost his bearings, instinctively
dashing toward the Ocean Mother Nest.
But in the next instant, a thunderous roar erupted from within the nest!
Boom!
A colossal sea beast smashed through the mountain wall and burst forth.
It was an octopus, its entire body snow-white, emanating a fierce, surging aura
of the saint level.
It was none other than the saint beast, Snow Pear Octopus.
A circular wound gaped in its body, blood gushing freely.
The Five Pointed Star Annihilation Ray had struck it directly, rousing it from
its slumber.
This saint level magic beast had been specifically stationed here by the
Charming Blue Goddess to serve as a guardian. Now that the Ocean Mother Nest
had been destroyed and it had been ambushed, its fury boiled over. It was
determined to break out and strangle the culprit on the spot!
Qian Xing's aura was completely unmasked, and the Snow Pear Octopus immediately
detected him. Stirring up tens of thousands of tons of seawater, it charged
forward, causing the earth to shake and mountains to tremble wherever it
passed.
Seeing a saint level sea beast hurtling toward him, Qian Xing naturally didn't
want to clash head-on and quickly dodged.
But in the next instant, he was enveloped by divine magic. His senses were
deceived: long distances shrank, short ones stretched; straight lines became
curves, curves turned into straight lines.
Outwardly, the nearby valley walls seemed distant, while distant mountain
ranges appeared close at hand.
He swam through the water, convinced he was moving in a straight line, yet in
reality, he was navigating a series of intricate curves.
He was like a headless fly, crashing into things left and right.
Divine spell - Chaotic Deception: Distance.
Divine spell - Chaotic Deception: Direction.
“Damn it!” Qian Xing realized he'd been hit, but it was already too late.
The Snow Pear Octopus' tentacles lashed out like giant flesh whips, slamming
him like a soccer ball into the mountain wall. He was driven five or six meters
deep!
A saint beast entrusted with important duties by the Charming Blue Goddess
naturally possessed power far surpassing ordinary saint beasts.
Cang Xu was swept far back by the massive wave created by the Snow Pear
Octopus' advance, tumbling and rolling several times on the ground before
finally coming to a halt.
He was covered in dust and dirt, looking utterly disheveled.
The churning water stirred up silt from the seabed, obscuring visibility. The
vast majority of the believers screamed in terror, swimming wildly in all
directions.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Cang Xu charged directly into the Ocean Mother
Nest.
Several clever believers made the same choice as Cang Xu.
But they couldn't see the Deep Sea Monster Fish, which was cloaked by the
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell. Upon
entering the nest, Cang Xu immediately spotted the Deep Sea Monster Fish..
Seeing the vessel intact, he breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, the fishman youngster also snapped into action.
Witnessing the nest breached and the saint beast charging in to smash an even
larger hole through its walls, he immediately dispatched the alchemy puppet to
retrieve Cang Xu.
Cang Xu's own entry saved the fishman youngster considerable effort.
The alchemy puppet, naturally imbued with the Deceptive Disguise spell and
Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, smoothly retrieved Cang Xu in plain
sight.
Upon rushing back to the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Cang Xu found no trace of the
fishman youngster.
The tower spirit relayed the fishman youngster's message to Cang Xu.
Only then did Cang Xu realize that drastic changes weren't confined to this
location, the big guy was also under siege by an earth elemental army, facing
imminent peril!
The fishman youngster's monitoring had been interrupted. Now, Cang Xu must
resume surveillance, ready to intervene at any moment and rescue the big guy
with all his might.
“Of all times!” Cang Xu sighed deeply.
The fishman youngster had also entrusted him with a crucial task: to pilot the
Deep Sea Monster Fish and depart this place swiftly.
"Sigh, I wanted to stay here for a bit longer."
"To think such an unexpected situation would occur..."
"We've been exposed. It's no longer safe here. The Charming Blue Church lacks
the strength to hold this place, and the Mother Nest has been destroyed. We
truly cannot linger here!"
“Then let's go.”
Cang Xu entered the cockpit, took command, and steered the ship away.
Other matters, like Jian Gui, Ba Qi, and so on, were cast aside.
“Xiao Guai, you absolutely must not come to harm!”
"Be alive... you must still be alive!
The fishman youngster's heart burned with anxiety. He cast the divine spell
[Believer Perception], then activated [Divine Power Channel] to reconnect with
the big guy.
Meanwhile, on the Magnet Archipelago battlefield, the situation for Da Dou and
his group had grown even more perilous.
Suppressed by the earthen divine light, their movements slowed to a crawl. They
could only rely on defensive battle skill to withstand the siege of the earth
elementals.
The fishman youngster had a grim expression: "Even if I use Divine Descent, the
big guy will have gold level combat strength at most."
"Earlier, he was able to kill the gold level Earth Elemental Chieftain because
of the Deceptive Disguise spell."
“But now, with Tu Ji and the Main Earth Elemental God watching, how effective
would that spell be?”
“Using it would be like confessing our weakness.”
With Charming Blue Goddess gravely wounded and in deep slumber, the fishman
youngster had gained profound insight into the Charming Blue Church's situation
through the divine spell [Believer Perception].
He knew that rashly using the Charming Blue divine spell under these
circumstances wouldn't make the enemy fear and retreat but would instead
provoke them into even stronger offensive desires.
“But even so, I must save Xiao Guai's life!”
“No matter how troublesome the aftermath, we must get through this immediate
crisis first.”
Despite this resolve, the fishman youngster still faced an unsolvable problem.
His hands tightened slightly as he gripped the Charming Blue divine artifact,
Mermaid Fairy Tale.
Earlier, within the earth elemental lair, the statue of the Main Earth
Elemental God had served as the most obvious target for casting spells. But
now, with the Main Earth Elemental God's gaze fixed upon him, the fishman
youngster didn't know where to cast his Deceptive Disguise spell, even if he
wanted to use it.
Just as the fishman youngster stood bewildered and at a loss, a Charming Blue
divine revelation suddenly descended, landing upon him.
The revelation offered him an unconventional choice, causing the fishman
youngster's eyes to light up.
After a moment's hesitation, the fishman youngster sprang into action!
Divine spell - Divine Artifact Mastery.
This was an active divine art; its effects only manifested upon casting.
Its effect was powerful yet unadorned: the mastery of divine artifacts!
And at that moment, the fishman youngster held in his hands the very artifact:
[Mermaid Fairy Tale].
Divine spell - Deceptive Scheming.
Divine spell - Distortion Filter.
The overlapping use of these two divine spells not only swiftly covered the
battlefield but also began to corrode the divine script formation beneath the
ground.
Chk, chk, chk…
A series of faint, light sounds continuously emanated from the divine artifact
[Mermaid Fairy Tale].
With each soft crack, a pearl-like bubble within the shell-shaped artifact
shattered, vanishing into nothingness.
A powerful force of deception erupted in silence.
In that instant, the fishman youngster realized: “That's it. For a god to focus
their gaze, they need a focal point of faith.”
“These focal points can be believers or divine statues.”
“And right now, the Main Earth Elemental God relies on that vast divine script
formation laid out beneath the ground!”
“By using my deception divine spell to corrode the formation now, I might
indirectly deceive the Main Earth Elemental God.”
As for the likelihood of this success, the fishman youngster had no idea.
After all, his cultivation was far too low, merely gold level.
The Main Earth Elemental God, however, was the sovereign of an entire pantheon.
Even among all the gods, he was undeniably first-rate.
Even if Charming Blue Goddess recovered to Her peak state, She would still be
merely a minor god, incomparable to the Main Earth Elemental God.
The rapid depletion of pearl bubbles within the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy
Tale] clearly demonstrated how difficult it was to deceive a Main God!
“But even if there's only a sliver of hope, I'll do everything to save Xiao
Guai...”
The fishman youngster was lost in thought when suddenly, his body and mind
shook violently, and darkness engulfed his vision.
When he opened his eyes again, he had broken free from his previous state,
severing his connection with the big guy once more.
“What's going on?”
“What happened this time?”
The fishman youngster hurriedly scanned his surroundings.
Cang Xu was piloting the Deep Sea Monster Fish, having just departed the Ocean
Mother Nest and entered the White Hair Trench.
Under the combined effects of the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-
investigation and Prophecy spell, the Deep Sea Monster Fish sailed through the
gaping hole in plain sight, yet no one noticed.
Contrary to the fishman youngster's fears, it faced no fierce assault.
Yet in the next instant, a bolt of lightning struck his mind as the fishman
youngster grasped the reason.
“It's the Charming Blue Divine Domain!”
“By leaving the divine domain, I severed the connection.”
“Within the divine domain, the Charming Blue divine spells receive unimaginable
amplification.” Once I leave the divine domain, casting divine spells on my own
yields nowhere near the same effect."
The fishman youngster tried it immediately, his heart sinking: “On my own, I
can barely sense Xiao Guai, I can't even establish the Divine Power Channel!”
“I must return. I have to stay within the Charming Blue Divine Domain to save
Xiao Guai!”



****** Chapter 635: Tu Ji Dies ******
“No, Lord Commander, this is far too dangerous!” Cang Xu blurted out his
objection without hesitation upon hearing the fishman youngster still wanted to
linger.
But the youngster's resolve was far more unwavering than his own.
“Cang Xu, you know me.”
“I will never abandon Xiao Guai!”
"He calls me Father. He's still waiting for me there."
"What father could ever abandon his child so easily?"
Cang Xu knew the fishman youngster well. He didn't doubt the boy's unwavering
resolve at this moment.
But he couldn't back down now!
So, he pleaded earnestly: “Commander, staying here means facing certain death.”
"Two saint level foes are launching a surprise attack. Zhou Zhang alone can
hardly hold them off. Even with the Snow Pear Octopus, the tide won't turn."
“The reason is simple: this is the heartland of the Charming Blue Church.
Defending here will inevitably cost them the initiative.”
"Even if those two saint attackers don't breach our lines, merely maintaining
constant activity on the periphery would cause Zhou Zhang immense trouble,
firmly tying down her attention."
"Furthermore, with the Ocean Mother Nest now destroyed, the arrangements of
Charming Blue Goddess no longer hold. Remaining here would likely subject you
to a saint level investigation."
“Even if those two hostile saints cannot breach this location, they can still
launch remote attacks.”
“That single strike already speaks volumes about how dire the situation is!”
“The Ocean Mother Nest has become the most perilous place of all!”
The fishman youngster shook his head: “Xiao Guai...”
Cang Xu cut in: “My Lord, sometimes we must make necessary choices and
sacrifices.”
"You are our commander. If you were to die trying to rescue Xiao Guai, what
would become of the rest of us?"
Cang Xu had struck at the heart of the fishman youngster's hesitation.
The youngster was indeed deeply troubled by this prospect.
Yet after a moment's thought, he shook his head. Fixing Cang Xu with a piercing
gaze, he said, "Cang Xu, I recall you have a son too. If you were standing in
my place today, and your son faced the same predicament as Xiao Guai, what
would you do?"
Cang Xu: “...”
The fishman youngster's words left him speechless.
The fishman youngster smiled and patted his shoulder, his eyes brimming with
satisfaction, but his tone turned resolute: “Now I command you, Cang Xu!”
“Continue piloting the Deep Sea Monster Fish. Escape first, and stand ready to
pick me up.”
“Once I handle Xiao Guai's situation, I'll leave this place.”
Cang Xu's face darkened as he refused outright: "My Lord, if you don't leave,
how can I possibly escape? Let me go with you..."
"No. If I fall, someone must clean up the mess. You are the only one."
At this, the fishman youngster sighed deeply: “I know this isn't a rational
decision.”
“But I can't do it!”
“I'd rather risk myself than abandon Xiao Guai without even trying!”
"You've already done so much for him. Without you, he wouldn't have escaped
Mystifying Monster Island.” Cang Xu lamented, vowing, “I absolutely will not
sail the ship away again."
“Though the Deep Sea Monster Fish is only gold level, it can still withstand
some of the saint level attacks.”
“It can increase your chances of survival, Commander.”
“I'd rather kill myself now than sail the Deep Sea Monster Fish away.”
The fishman youngster opened his mouth to speak, but Cang Xu cut him off: “Lord
Commander!”
“Just as you're determined to save Xiao Guai now, my resolve is the same as
yours.”
“I obey the orders you gave me. I'm leaving now.”
"Time is critical. Every second counts for Xiao Guai. Lord, you mustn't delay
any longer!"
Their exchange wasn't spoken words, but mental waves.
The principle resembled the duelists' long-distance communication. Except
duelists required the Dueling God, relied on Tranquil Hill, and drained their
own divine favor and power to achieve it.
The fishman youngster and Cang Xu stood face-to-face now, needing none of that.
Mental communication was incredibly swift. Though their exchange felt lengthy,
in reality, only an instant passed.
Cang Xu swiftly disembarked alone, while the fishman youngster commanded the
tower spirit to steer the Deep Sea Monster Fish further into the depths. He
himself immediately entered the prayer chamber, his heart burning with anxiety
and tension as he initiated another long-distance connection.
Divine spell - Perceive Believer.
Divine spell - Divine Power Channel.
Divine spell - Divine Artifact Mastery.
Divine spell - Deceptive Scheming.
Divine spell - Distortion Filter.
Using all five divine spells simultaneously placed an immense strain on his
mind, causing both his divine power and mental energy to deplete at an alarming
rate.
The fishman youngster had no idea how long he could hold on. he was simply
fighting with every ounce of strength he possessed!
Da Dou and the others were in dire peril!
The big guy, unaware of the fishman youngster's gaze, wept silently within.
The Main Earth Elemental God's divine spell formed a colossal earthen cone mid-
air, crashing down toward the big guy!
Yet in Tu Ji's perception, Hong Zhu had become the target of the massive
earthen cone's assault.
"No! That's my only lead!!" Tu Ji roared madly.
He had paid such a heavy price to capture Hong Zhu, only to fail in the end?
He couldn't accept it!
He was a member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution. His faith was
unwavering. From the day he joined, he had pursued necromancers with his whole
heart, risking his life without a moment's slack or hesitation.
Just now, he had detected hesitation in the Main Earth Elemental God's gaze.
But that hesitation stemmed solely from this calculation: Would a timely
retreat better serve my pursuit of the necromancer?
After weighing it, he concluded it would not.
Thus, he remained in the fray, sacrificing his arm and detonating himself to
join forces with Da Dou.
Now, facing the Main Earth Elemental God's direct assault, his emotions surged.
Death held no fear for him. He leapt upward without hesitation.
Soaring into the air, his body stretched wide like a cross, he stood tall and
proud, positioning himself directly above “Hong Zhu” (the big guy).
Boom!
The next instant, the earth spike struck the ground, but missed Tu Ji, landing
beside him instead.
The earth shook violently, a massive shockwave sending the ground rolling like
a tidal wave. Da Dou, the big guy, and others nearby were all violently hurled
backward.
The Main Earth Elemental God unleashed divine power once more, conjuring a
barrage of earth spikes that surged toward the big guy.
Tu Ji plunged forward, blocking the path before “Hong Zhu” (the big guy).
The sharp spikes halted abruptly, the closest spike's tip mere inches from Tu
Ji's nose.
The entire crowd gasped in shock.
Drenched in sweat, blood smeared across his face, Tu Ji's expression grew even
more frenzied. “Hahahaha!”
“I am from the Blood Light Punishment Institution! This operation is to hunt
down necromancers!”
"To eradicate necromancers, nearly all deities have signed a covenant.
Cooperation is a fundamental clause. Even for an earth elemental deity, if you
kill me, it counts as breaking the covenant!"
Tu Ji shouted, explaining while rallying himself.
After finishing his speech, he glared fiercely at the gold level earth
elementals surrounding him.
These elementals had closed in once more.
Their expressions were complex.
This madman, Tu Ji, had risked everything to block the line of fire for a
single clue.
And yet, he succeeded!
The Main Earth Elemental God had truly ceased attacking.
Heaven forbid, this world was utterly insane!
But the next moment.
Pop.
The earth spike closest to Tu Ji suddenly shot forward.
Tu Ji opened his mouth in laughter, but before he could react, the spike was
already thrust into his mouth.
Sharp spikes protruded from the back of his skull.
As he died, Tu Ji's battle qi erupted violently, but it was useless.
A flash of golden battle qi shone briefly before being effortlessly suppressed
by the Main Earth Elemental God's overwhelming divine power!
Tu Ji was dead!
Silence fell over the battlefield as everyone stared in stunned silence once
more.
The Main Earth Elemental God's power slowly dissipated. The earth elementals
snapped out of their trance, erupting in deafening cheers.
To them: this madman Tu Ji had been effortlessly crushed by their own deity.
To Da Dou and the others: Tu Ji was utterly insane, daring to openly defy a
god! Even with a covenant, what did breaking it once matter to a god?
Therefore, Tu Ji died!
Like a mere ant, he had no chance to resist.
Yet to the Main Earth Elemental God, it was not Tu Ji he had slain, but the big
guy!
With a sense of satisfaction, the Main Earth Elemental God gradually withdrew
his divine power.
Inside the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster was exhausted to the
point of collapse.
He knelt on the floor, hands braced against the deck, the only way to keep
himself from collapsing.
To sustain the five divine spells, the fishman youngster had pushed beyond his
limits, draining himself completely.
His entire body ached, darkness swirled before his eyes, and his temples
throbbed painfully!
The divine artifact, The Mermaid Fairy Tale, lay discarded nearby. Only five or
six pearl bubbles remained inside the shell!
To deceive an entity like the Main Earth Elemental God, even the Mermaid Fairy
Tale had been squeezed dry. Nearly all the pearl bubbles collected earlier had
been consumed!
“I, I did it!”
“I succeeded...” An unparalleled sense of accomplishment washed over the
fishman youngster, filling his body and mind with a soaring, exhilarating
sensation.
“But I must hold on, Xiao Guai is still surrounded by the earth elemental
army!”
The fishman youngster refocused his attention, casting a concerned glance.
After Tu Ji's death, the earth elemental army's morale soared, continuing their
relentless pursuit of Da Dou and the others.
“What should I do?”
“Maintaining the Believer Perception and the Divine Power Channel is already
pushing my limits. I can't cast a third divine spell!”
A chill gripped the fishman youngster's heart.
The big guy was trapped in mortal danger, with no outside help!
Meanwhile, after leaving the Deep Sea Monster Fish, Cang Xu fled for his life.
“Jian Gui?!” Along the way, he unexpectedly discovered Jian Gui.
Sealed by Zhou Zhang, Jian Gui appeared as an ordinary person.
But a sea beast, sacrificed as an offering, had broken free from its bonds and
entered a frenzied state, about to crush Jian Gui.
A thought struck Cang Xu, and he immediately cast an undead spell to save Jian
Gui.
“Come with me, Lord Jian Gui.” Cang Xu grabbed Jian Gui's arm, ready to flee
further.
Jian Gui seemed slightly surprised, halting him with a smile: “A bit
unexpected, yet not entirely surprising.”
“In any case, I'm pleased.”
Cang Xu sighed. “We can talk about that later, Lord Jian Gui.”
“We need to get out of here fast.”
“No need,” Jian Gui replied calmly. "I'm rather intrigued by the Ocean Mother
Nest now. If you dare, escort me there."
Cang Xu: “?!”
He stared intently at Jian Gui, suddenly feeling a violent tremor throughout
his body and mind.



****** Chapter 636: Teacher Si Ling ******
Cang Xu's encounter with Jian Gui was accidental, he hadn't sought him out
intentionally.
Thus, the location where they met was no longer Jian Gui's captivity quarters.
The reason for his rescue lay in the immense value of Jian Gui's background,
which offered Cang Xu vast room for speculation.
True to Cang Xu's expectations, Jian Gui behaved like an ordinary person,
displaying no combat prowess whatsoever.
This was because Zhou Zhang had personally sealed him, rendering his powers
unusable.
Yet after being saved, Jian Gui's subsequent actions deeply puzzled Cang Xu.
Weakened to the level of an ordinary man, why wouldn't he attempt to escape?
Instead, he sought to enter the Ocean Mother Nest, wasn't that courting death?
Judging by his past actions, he was certainly not one to take reckless risks!
“Then what's going on here?” Cang Xu silently questioned himself.
He had once been a noble steward. He had held that position for many years.
Interacting with all social strata, he had witnessed the scheming of the upper
classes and recognized the cunning of the lower classes.
This experience gradually ingrained in him the habit of thinking in terms of
conspiracy.
Why would Jian Gui head toward the Ocean Mother Nest at this perilous moment?
He feared death, yet now he was actively courting it.
He must have his own plan and purpose!
The likelihood of death, as he saw it, was far lower than what an outsider like
me perceived!
Could it be that the two saint levels who came to ambush them were lured here
by him?
No, that's unlikely.
These two saints were human, not necromancers, they carried not a trace of
undead aura.
Cang Xu had just been piloting the Deep Sea Monster Fish and, through the tower
spirit, had uncovered Qian Xing and Da Han’s identities.
Thanks to the War Merchant, though his database was incomplete, it was more
than sufficient for the survivors!
It was incredibly useful!
His database cataloged transcendents across the entire world.
Naturally, only those who were renowned or possessed unique qualities made the
cut.
Qian Xing and Da Han were among them.
Both were saint level, that alone qualified them for inclusion in the War
Merchant's intelligence network.
Cang Xu couldn't see the specifics of the two squads, but the Deep Sea Monster
Fish's reconnaissance capabilities far surpassed his own.
“They are Qian Xing and Da Han, both from the Fire Beard Pirates!”
“The probability of them collaborating with the necromancer is very low.”
“Could it be that, just like in the battle on the Underworld River, the
necromancer faction has quietly received reinforcements?”
“Did Jian Gui make contact?”
This was Cang Xu's natural conjecture.
He knew it was entirely possible.
The bonds between souls were profoundly mysterious. Zhou Zhang had sealed Jian
Gui, yet failed to sever this connection. Certainly, the bond had weakened.
But it could not be fully cut.
Thus, even under Zhou Zhang's watchful eye, Jian Gui and other necromancers
could pull off underhanded maneuvers, engaging in large-scale memory forgery
operations.
By extension, it was entirely plausible that Jian Gui had utilized this soul-
to-soul link to locate powerful reinforcements.
“Perhaps the undead orthodoxy has even developed specialized methods...”
Another testament to the power of soul connections was the divine spell
[Believer Perception].
Cang Xu understood: Though his commander benefited from the divine domain's
amplification, even without it, the young commander could still sense figures
like the big guy and Lan Zao.
Such vast perceptual range utterly transcended conventional spells!
As a magician, Cang Xu had his own interpretation: "The range of the divine
spell [Believer Perception] isn't exaggerated because the deity itself
possesses an exaggerated perception range. The commander isn't a deity; he's
only at the gold level, yet he still possesses such an extraordinary perception
range."
“The connection between souls cannot be described by conventional distance.”
“Or rather, the distance between souls differs from conventional concepts—it is
a mystical concept.”
“Why is the range of Believer Perception so exaggerated?”
“Because faith and divine power have transformed the believers. Their soul
essences continually converge and align, making the distance between souls grow
exceedingly close."
By the time Cang Xu reached this conclusion, only an instant had passed in the
outside world.
He immediately addressed Jian Gui: “How can we possibly enter the Ocean Mother
Nest now?”
"Lord Jian Gui, curiosity is indeed one of a magician's finest qualities. You
have praised me for it before, but we must also assess the situation."
"The risks of proceeding now are too great. You have not yet broken free from
the seal! If Lord Zhou Zhang is defeated and the enemy's saint level attacks,
they will undoubtedly slaughter us in the Mother Nest without mercy. If Lord
Zhou Zhang succeeds and returns to find you in the Mother Nest, she will never
forgive you."
“After all, you are not me. You are not yet a Charming Blue believer.”
Jian Gui laughed heartily and waved his hand. “Then go.”
Cang Xu hesitated, then slowly shook his head, his expression grave. “I
cannot.”
“You saved me. Having encountered this, I cannot stand by and watch you die.”
With that, Cang Xu forcibly intervened, using only the spell, mage hand, to
hoist Jian Gui into the air.
Jian Gui's eyes widened in fury as he shouted, “Stop! Stop! Stop!”
“Xu Jia, this is my personal choice.”
“Leave me be.”
Cang Xu shook his head. "Don't forget, I'm also a Charming Blue believer. I
won't stand by and watch an outsider enter the Ocean Mother Nest."
“Believer?”
Jian Gui sneered. "Give me a break. You saw us forging memories and never
reported it. Your faith is nothing outstanding!"
Cang Xu sighed and spoke honestly, "Even if you're right, I can't let you go to
your death. You're a legitimate heir of the undead orthodoxy, closely tied to
the Twelve Saints. In the future, I'm counting on you to guide me and help me
connect with the orthodox factions."
"Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi are already dead. If you perish here too, when the
undead orthodoxy investigates afterward, I'll be the sole survivor. How could I
possibly explain that? If your faction misunderstands me, there'd be no way to
clear my name."
“So, to be safe, I'll take you with me.”
Jian Gui was speechless.
Under normal circumstances, he would have been furious, enraged, even filled
with hatred.
But his relationship with Cang Xu was anything but normal.
Yet one crucial point must not be forgotten.
Jian Gui controlled Cang Xu. He had already tampered with Cang Xu earlier,
leaving the latter's life and death entirely at Jian Gui's whim.
In truth, Cang Xu had already successfully neutralized these arrangements
through the fishman youngster's divine spells.
Not only that, the youngster had further employed divine spells to imbue Cang
Xu with specialized deception effects.
For a time, the youngster lacked confidence in resolving the hidden mechanisms
within Cang Xu, unsure of his ability.
But after becoming a divine emissary and acquiring numerous advanced divine
spells, he practiced several times, his confidence soaring.
Ultimately, he successfully eliminated the hidden threat within Cang Xu.
Jian Gui remained unaware of this development. In his perception, the hidden
mechanism within Cang Xu still existed.
This belief granted him a significant psychological advantage.
He persistently believed Cang Xu was merely his pawn, under his control.
Moreover, Cang Xu's actions did not stem from malice. He gave Jian Gui the
impression—Cang Xu genuinely and sincerely wanted to save my life!
Whether it was repaying a debt, returning a favor, or seeking future benefits
by aligning with the undead orthodoxy, all these motives seemed perfectly
reasonable. Jian Gui understood and even accepted them.
In fact, Jian Gui found Cang Xu's straightforwardness refreshing, perceiving
him as someone who acted with integrity.
Anger, rage, affection, and a sense of control, these emotions tangled
together, coalescing into a helpless, powerless feeling that was both laughable
and exasperating.
Just as Jian Gui wrestled with how to persuade Cang Xu, a figure materialized
beside them.
Jian Gui was utterly astonished.
He hadn't expected him to appear so effortlessly!
Cang Xu also stared at the mysterious arrival, his expression shaken.
This transcendent resembled an elderly man, radiating only bronze level energy,
vibrant and alive, without a trace of undead aura.
Yet Cang Xu recognized him instantly: “You... You're... Teacher Si Ling?”
Teacher Si Ling smiled at Cang Xu.
His features were ordinary, human in appearance, with a gentle demeanor, like
an old scholar secluded in a mage tower.
He nodded slightly, studying Cang Xu with interest. “You recognize me?”
'Of course!'
“Your wanted posters are plastered all over the Main Plane, practically
everywhere,” Cang Xu thought, stifling his inner rant.



****** Chapter 637: It Really Mutated into a Saint Level Bloodline?! ******
In fact, Cang Xu possessed considerable knowledge of the undead orthodoxy
factions.
Ever since becoming a necromancer, he had kept a close watch on them.
Previously, however, his own level and the need for disguise had limited his
access to high-level intelligence.
But after the incident on Mystifying Monster Island, he gained access to War
Merchant's database, which drastically expanded his knowledge of the upper
echelons. War Merchant's database contained detailed descriptions of the
orthodox undead faction, the undead Founder You Shen, and his Twelve Saints.
Then, Cang Xu encountered Jian Gui and even journeyed with him into the
Underworld River. Though the process was perilous, it indeed deepened Cang Xu's
understanding of the undead orthodoxy. He gained not only high-level knowledge
but also a tangible grasp of the current realities of a necromancer's
existence.
Therefore, Cang Xu understood all too well the formidable power of the smiling
Teacher Si Ling before him, who appeared like a gentle scholar.
Within the entire orthodox undead faction, his importance and value were second
only to the founder. This was reflected in the wanted list, where his bounty
was second only to You Shen's!
"After becoming a necromancer, I began paying close attention to undead
orthodoxy. Your appearance has long been etched in my memory. For you are a
senior figure, a sage who walks ahead yet still mentors those who follow. My
admiration for you knows no bounds! Simply because you have continuously
pioneered new necromancy magic, constantly expanding the boundaries of
necromancy!"
“We pursue new knowledge, while you create it!” Cang Xu spoke with genuine
sincerity, offering Teacher Si Ling a solemn salute.
Jian Gui couldn't help but glance at Cang Xu, seemingly surprised by his
eloquence.
Based on Jian Gui's understanding of Teacher Si Ling, Cang Xu's words had
struck precisely at the core of the other's pride.
Sure enough, Teacher Si Ling laughed heartily, his face lighting up with
genuine delight. “The pursuit of knowledge, that is the hallmark of an
exceptional magician. I can see you are a talented magician, destined for even
greater heights!”
Then, Teacher Si Ling studied Cang Xu with keen interest. “If I'm not mistaken,
you possess a saint level undead bloodline, correct?”
Jian Gui froze.
Cang Xu was stunned too.
After a moment of silence, Jian Gui couldn't help but exclaim: “What?”
This gold level orthodox necromancer now wore a look of utter shock.
Cang Xu also revealed astonishment.
But it was half genuine, half feigned.
The genuine part was that his bloodline had been detected without him sensing
any magic fluctuations.
The feigned part was his performance—as if his painstaking disguise had been
exposed with a single remark.
In truth, this was precisely the moment he’d been waiting for to reveal his
“saint aptitude” to Jian Gui. On one hand, it demonstrated his value,
compelling Jian Gui to take notice and extend goodwill. If circumstances
allowed, he could even use Jian Gui as a conduit to join the orthodox undead
faction directly.
This had always been Cang Xu's plan.
He'd even discussed it with the fishman youngster.
After all, he'd already put it into practice. Enhancing his Hanging Corpse Tree
bloodline proved exceedingly difficult. The main obstacle was the lack of
sufficient, suitable undead life for the Bloodcore to absorb.
Only the Ghost World, or rather, only the orthodox undead factions on the Main
Plane, possessed such stable channels, allowing Cang Xu to indirectly obtain
these cultivation resources.
Plans could not outpace change.
Cang Xu hadn't anticipated the revelation of his bloodline secret occurring so
swiftly!
He continued his performance.
Cang Xu gave a wry smile and turned to explain to Jian Gui: "Please forgive me,
Lord Jian Gui. I deliberately kept this from you."
Jian Gui: “...”
'Your apology, delivered with such righteous conviction, actually sounds quite
sincere!'
Cang Xu continued, "After my bloodline mutation, I gradually sensed subtle
changes. But I forced myself to endure, trying not to show it outwardly."
“At the time, I was curious, hopeful, and terrified, my fear of loss was
overwhelming.”
“That's why I previously schemed to obtain the Undead Bloodline Detection from
you.”
"After using that spell, I discovered that through mutation, I had acquired a
saint level Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline. I was so thrilled I nearly wanted to
announce it to the entire world, but after calming down, many new worries
arose."
"After all, those who share hardship may not share prosperity. Moreover, this
isn't about sharing prosperity. So, out of caution, I kept this secret to
myself."
“Later, I reflected, perhaps my Lord, Charming Blue Goddess, recognized my
innate talent and acknowledged my devotion to Her, then bestowed those unique
Charming Blue divine spells upon me!”
These words were truly heartfelt. Cang Xu expressed his concern and admitted
his mistake with complete sincerity.
Not only that, but he was also reasonable and well-grounded in his arguments.
He further bolstered his persuasiveness by invoking Charming Blue Goddess and
the fact that he had become Her believer.
“You... you... you...” Jian Gui opened his mouth several times to speak but
couldn't finish a single sentence.
He was utterly shocked!
The Hanging Corpse Tree possessed a saint level bloodline.
Saint level!
While saint level was merely one step above gold level, within the transcendent
hierarchy, they represented entirely different standings.
Gold level was considered mid-tier, while saint level was already high tier.
Jian Gui himself was only gold level.
Moreover, he knew full well that his bloodline's limit was precisely there.
Meaning he'd be stuck at gold level for life.
But what about Xu Jia (Cang Xu)?
His bloodline mutation had actually granted him a saint level undead bloodline!
Could someone truly ascend to a higher bloodline through mutation?
This was incredibly rare!
Incredibly rare!
“His aptitude was clearly mediocre before, yet after one round of bloodline
mutation, he possesses a saint level undead bloodline?”
“Why him? Why not me?”
The bitterness was palpable.
Envy and jealousy filled Jian Gui's heart.
Once, he had looked down on Cang Xu, dismissing him as insignificant. So what
if he became a Charming Blue believer? He'd never reach gold level in his
lifetime!
But now, it was Jian Gui looking up to Cang Xu.
A saint level Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline... If the blood concentration was
strong enough, Cang Xu could very well become a saint in the future.
Saint level!
Wasn't that the transcendent level of the Twelve Saints?
Of course, the Twelve Saints held a unique status within the orthodox undead
hierarchy. Not every saint level necromancer could be called one of the Twelve
Saints.
But in truth, not all twelve were even saint level themselves. And Jian Gui had
never once laid eyes on a saint level necromancer outside the orthodox
factions.
Witnessing a nobody suddenly turn the tables and secure a future brighter and
grander than his own. Jian Gui's pride shattered.
Yet he quickly adjusted.
“Hahahaha,” he laughed.
“Xu Jia, you underestimate me terribly. I can only rejoice for you!”
"But you're right. As a rogue necromancer, the slightest misstep could get you
hunted down. Your caution is absolutely necessary."
"Oh, right. You may no longer be a rogue necromancer. With this bloodline, our
orthodox faction will offer you ample opportunity to join us."
At this point, Jian Gui cast an imperceptible glance toward Teacher Si Ling.
In that instant, he understood: Teacher Si Ling had been hidden and elusive,
yet suddenly revealed himself. It must be that Teacher Si Ling was curious
about Cang Xu. After secretly casting spells, he sensed Cang Xu's potential,
prompting his enthusiastic appearance.
Teacher Si Ling was indeed famously fond of mentoring juniors, but there was a
prerequisite—the junior had to at least be worthy of mentorship!
While Jian Gui observed Teacher Si Ling, the latter was observing Jian Gui.
Seeing Jian Gui's respectful congratulations, Teacher Si Ling sensed his broad
perspective and magnanimity, which deepened his favorable impression.
His scrutiny of Jian Gui, however, served primarily to understand Cang Xu from
this angle.
From Jian Gui's initial shock, swift comprehension, and subsequent
congratulations to Cang Xu, Teacher Si Ling's estimation of Cang Xu also rose.
On one hand, Jian Gui's magnanimous demeanor not only demonstrated his own
broad perspective but also indicated that Cang Xu had cultivated a good rapport
with Jian Gui, capable of gaining the support of other necromancers.
On the other hand, this was Teacher Si Ling's first meeting with Cang Xu.
To rapidly deepen his understanding, gleaning information through Jian Gui
became a convenient, efficient, and crucial avenue.
After all, Jian Gui was already one of their own within the undead orthodoxy
lineage.
Witnessing Jian Gui's trust in Cang Xu, Teacher Si Ling inevitably found his
own trust in Cang Xu growing.
Despite this being their first meeting, Cang Xu's recent explanation made
Teacher Si Ling far more inclined to believe it was genuine.
Through this brief encounter, Teacher Si Ling had already sketched out Cang
Xu's profile in his mind—the latter was likely an exceptional wild necromancer,
possessing a magician's heart. His passion for pursuing knowledge earned
Teacher Si Ling's admiration and respect for such a young talent.
More crucially, he hadn't been corrupted by negative energy. Interacting with
one of their own like Jian Gui was a pleasant experience. Upon discovering the
saint level bloodline, he received the heartfelt blessings from Jian Gui.
That's fantastic!
Though rare, the mutation of a bloodline into a saint level lineage was indeed
possible.
Cang Xu's explanation was sound and logically consistent; Teacher Si Ling
detected no flaws.
Teacher Si Ling's smile grew even warmer: “Come, let us visit the Mother Nest
and tour the Charming Blue Divine Domain.”
Only then did Cang Xu appear to “suddenly realize,” exclaiming in surprise,
“So... it was your idea, Teacher Si Ling, for Lord Jian Gui to go to the Mother
Nest!”
Jian Gui rolled his eyes: "You just figured that out? As if I'd ever willingly
seek death."
He was delighted.
Genuinely pleased.
Amid his envy and admiration, he suddenly realized: "Huh? I've placed a trap on
Xu Jia's body. Yet he still chose to save me, proof our bond is strong."
“The better his potential, the stronger he'll be when he reaches the saint
level. Then I'll have a saint level ally!”
“Thinking about it this way, it's absolutely brilliant!”
“Everything is under my control.”



****** Chapter 638: Even Among Saints, They Are Not The Same Level ******
Among all the survivors, Cang Xu was arguably the most adept at concealing his
true abilities. 
His rich life experience had taught him well: feigning ignorance and playing
dumb were highly practical survival skills.
By pretending not to have seen through Jian Gui and avoiding displays of
intelligence, he avoided arousing his suspicion. This allowed Jian Gui to cling
to his old impression of Cang Xu and maintain its mistaken sense of
intellectual superiority.
To a certain extent, this also significantly mitigated Jian Gui's jealousy over
Cang Xu's transformation into a saint level bloodline.
Cang Xu's most important goal was achieved. By pretending to be stupid, he
forced Jian Gui to reveal his secret and made Teacher Si Ling reveal himself.
Teacher Si Ling's appearance caught not only Jian Gui off guard but also
exceeded Cang Xu's own expectations.
Yet in terms of outcome, this was a monumental victory!
Though seemingly weak, Cang Xu had, through his unique diplomatic skills,
defused Jian Gui's jealousy in a remarkably short time and secured an excellent
first impression with Teacher Si Ling.
Among the survivors, none could have performed better than Cang Xu.
Such diplomatic achievements, though seemingly minor, concealed immense
potential benefits!
Merchants like Zi Di and Fei She undoubtedly grasped this profoundly.
Yet they still fell short of Cang Xu's exceptional skill. This wasn't merely
due to his rich life experience, but also his dark, calculating mind, his
ability to penetrate hearts, and his masterful acting.
Zi Di possessed natural talent in this regard, yet compared to Cang Xu, she was
still too green.
“Both of you come with me,” Teacher Si Ling instructed. “I'll broaden your
horizons.”
He was a necromancer who took great care of his juniors, evident from his title
“Teacher.”
While Jian Gui was a true-blooded member of the undead orthodoxy, Cang Xu was
not. Yet Teacher Si Ling recognized the latter's potential and had been
favorably impressed at first glance, wishing to cultivate him.
Thus, he resolved to bring both Jian Gui and Cang Xu into the divine domain.
“T-Thank you, Teacher Si Ling!” Cang Xu exclaimed, his excitement palpable.
Without hesitation, he followed closely behind.
Even if Teacher Si Ling hadn't invited him, he would have followed anyway.
He couldn't shake his unease about the fishman youngster.
After all, Teacher Si Ling was renowned far and wide. His reputation far
surpassed that of the fishman youngster.
The fishman youngster might be well-known within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, but
Teacher Si Ling's fame encompassed the entire Main Plane!
A person's reputation was like a tree's shadow, great renown was proof of
power.
Cang Xu trusted the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell, yet he still feared Teacher Si Ling might see through them.
He knew much about Teacher Si Ling and understood that he possessed a special
divine artifact—the Truth Slate!
“Teacher Si Ling wields the divine artifact, the Truth Slate. He is the most
likely saint level being we've encountered so far to see through the Deceptive
Disguise spell!”
"If something goes wrong later, I'll have to step in. As a member of the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance, I'll vouch for the commander and reveal that the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is actually the merchant alliance's pawn."
Jian Gui was well aware of Cang Xu's background with the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance.
In fact, back on Weeping Pine Island, Cang Xu had approached Xiao Wang Zi and
others precisely under this guise.
Therefore, the contingency plan Cang Xu devised contained no logical flaws.
However, when Teacher Si Ling effortlessly led Jian Gui and Cang Xu through the
breach in the Ocean Mother Nest, formally entering the Charming Blue Divine
Domain, Teacher Si Ling showed no expression of surprise.
His gaze swept the surroundings, glancing over the Deep Sea Monster Fish
without lingering.
Cang Xu scrutinized the area, finding nothing amiss.
“It seems he hasn't detected the Deep Sea Monster Fish!” Cang Xu breathed a
sigh of relief.
The excuse he'd devised still had numerous flaws.
The most glaring one was the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
This gold level magic ship was crafted by War Merchant. It had made an
appearance during the Battle of Two Eyes Island, where the fishmen had mistaken
it for a Charming Blue saint beast.
Survivors speculated wildly about its true nature.
But one thing was certain: many outside knew of the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
If Teacher Si Ling knew anything—especially the strong connection between the
Deep Sea Monster Fish and War Merchant, it would spell trouble!
Back on Weeping Pine Island, Jian Gui presented three demands for exchange.
The first was the undead inheritance of the corpse aspect and bone aspect. The
second was any hidden intelligence concerning Charming Blue Goddess. The third
was a valid means of contacting the legendary magician, War Merchant.
Jian Gui, a legitimate member of the undead orthodoxy, demanded information on
Charming Blue Goddess and War Merchant. With only gold level qualifications, he
was far from qualified.
Especially since his trading partners were merely figures like Xiao Wang Zi and
Ku Feng.
Therefore, it was highly probable he was merely tasked with gathering
intelligence, expanding the scope of his search as much as possible, without
harboring much hope.
Who else could command him?
Cang Xu easily deduced: the undead orthodoxy was searching for War Merchant and
Charming Blue Goddess!
Under these circumstances, if Teacher Si Ling discovered the Deep Sea Monster
Fish and happened to know it belonged to War Merchant, then Cang Xu and the
fishman youngster would inevitably face rigorous investigation. The
consequences were unimaginable!
Fortunately, such a dire scenario did not materialize.
Teacher Si Ling lifted his head, gazing intently at the Charming Blue Divine
Domain before sighing deeply. “Charming Blue Divine Domain... After so many
years, I find myself here once more.”
His expression held a complex mix of emotions.
Cang Xu: ?!
In an instant, he keenly sensed the hidden meaning behind Teacher Si Ling's
intricate expression.
“What's going on?”
“It seems... Teacher Si Ling doesn't harbor strong hostility toward the
Charming Blue Church?”
“Didn't he join the battle after hearing Jian Gui's plea for help?”
Earlier, Cang Xu had speculated that Teacher Si Ling's appearance was likely
reinforcements Jian Gui had accidentally summoned through their soul bond.
But now, it seemed things weren't quite as he'd assumed.
Cang Xu's gaze involuntarily shifted to Jian Gui.
Jian Gui wore only a hint of puzzlement, more akin to the relief of a
conjecture confirmed.
The next moment, he spoke: “Teacher Si Ling, could it be... the Charming Blue
Church truly is our ally?”
Teacher Si Ling glanced at him, smiled faintly, and nodded slowly.
Cang Xu: “?!”
Jian Gui grew agitated: “Zhou Zhang is a Charming Blue Archbishop. Could she
not have known about this connection?”
“No,” Teacher Si Ling replied. “This time, her blood sacrifice was also meant
to await my arrival.”
Jian Gui's eyes widened: “Then why did she capture me? To sacrifice me? To kill
me!?”
Teacher Si Ling replied meaningfully: “You are already dead.”
Jian Gui: “No, I mean, she wanted to completely exterminate me!”
Teacher Si Ling smiled: “Did she?”
Jian Gui: “Uh...”
Just as he was about to speak, a surge of saint aura abruptly closed in.
It was Qian Xing!
The Snow Pear Octopus was tough as nails, a formidable opponent. But Qian
Xing's mobility far surpassed its own, effortlessly shaking off the Snow Pear
Octopus for the moment.
“No need to waste time tangling with a saint beast. I'm not stupid.”
“Let me see what treasures lie here!”
Qian Xing, a member of the Fire Beard Pirates, was a pirate through and
through.
Plunder was in a pirate's blood, and Qian Xing was no exception.
With Da Han now occupied by Zhou Zhang, Qian Xing shook off the Snow Pear
Octopus and charged toward the settlement of the Charming Blue believers.
He saw the divine script and magic formation he'd shattered, the gold level
altar he'd slashed down to a third of its size, and the breached Ocean Mother
Nest.
His excitement soared, his expectations skyrocketing, then he crashed headlong
into the Charming Blue Divine Domain.
Like Teacher Si Ling, he too failed to spot the Deep Sea Monster Fish. Instead,
he saw the trio of undead.
He swept past Jian Gui and Cang Xu, his gaze instantly locking onto the
seemingly “ordinary” Teacher Si Ling.
So familiar!
“You... are Teacher Si Ling?” Qian Xing recognized him instantly, his pupils
contracting violently.
Without Da Han's prophecy, his identification wouldn't have been so swift. But
before they acted, Da Han had foreseen the future, witnessing Teacher Si Ling
modifying Ba Qi.
Thus, Qian Xing recognized him instantly.
Then, in a flash, he changed direction and fled outward!
As a fighter skilled in close combat, his first instinct when facing a magician
of the same level would be to engage in melee.
But Qian Xing didn't do that. Instead, he chose to run away immediately.
For one reason alone—his opponent was Teacher Si Ling!
Cang Xu stared in stunned silence.
Teacher Si Ling smiled faintly, his attitude serene.
Noticing Cang Xu's expression, Jian Gui lifted his chin slightly, a hint of
pride in his voice. “The gap between saints is unthinkable.”
“The higher the transcendent level, the greater the disparity between those of
the same level.”
Cang Xu's mouth opened slightly as he looked at Teacher Si Ling, his eyes
brimming with curiosity, admiration, and awe.
Teacher Si Ling, with hands clasped behind his back, sensed Cang Xu's gaze. His
smile grew even more serene.
Without exchanging a single blow, Qian Xing fled.
He shot out from the Mother Nest, closing in on Da Han, and whispered
telepathically: “Teacher Si Ling! I saw Teacher Si Ling!”
Da Han, locked in combat with Zhou Zhang, paled visibly and snapped back, "Are
you certain? You must know the Charming Blue Church excels at deception."
Necromancy magic - Soul Capture!
In the next instant, Teacher Si Ling unleashed a saint level undead spell.
Though he remained hidden within the divine domain, both Da Han and Qian Xing
fell victim simultaneously.
Instantly, they felt their souls seized, their bodies stiffening.
Though they recovered moments later, their expressions darkened.
“It's Soul Capture!”
“Teacher Si Ling has established his domain here, and we didn't notice a
thing.”
“Let's go! It really is him!”
As Jian Gui had said, there was a difference between saint level individuals.
The greatest disparity lay in their domains.
Saint level transcendents could command domain power, but the scope, quality,
and other aspects of their domains varied vastly.
Qian Xing's domain, for instance, was confined to a mere ten meters around his
body.  Da Han's extended slightly further, reaching over a hundred meters.
Yet now, Teacher Si Ling stood over a thousand meters away from them.
More terrifyingly, though his domain was spread out, it revealed not a single
trace of abnormality. Only when Teacher Si Ling made his move did Qian Xing and
Da Han sense it.
Such profound and subtle mastery over domain power was rare among the saint
level individuals.
Who else could it be but Teacher Si Ling?
Even if it weren't him, but someone else impersonating him, this level of
mastery alone was enough to make Da Han and Qian Xing feel an intense urge to
retreat.
So, in the next instant, these two saint level pirates didn't hesitate. They
turned around simultaneously and fled.
Of course, it wasn't that they lacked the strength to fight. It was simply that
it wasn't worth fighting.
They were pirates. They came here to get rich, not to risk their lives!



****** Chapter 639: Truth Slate ******
Cang Xu was genuinely stunned.
He made no attempt to conceal his true feelings at that moment.
All along, he had been at the bottom tier of transcendents, utterly unfamiliar
with the upper echelons like the saint level. After all, he had once been
merely an iron level individual.
And today, he had finally witnessed the true might of a saint level powerhouse!
"It's like when the commander, back at silver level, took down a gold level
Teng Dong Lang. Ordinary silver level fighters weren't even close to being his
match back then."
"Teacher Si Ling must be something like that."
Many factors influenced combat.
Transcendent level was only one aspect; another crucial factor was bloodline.
Just like the dragonman youngster back then, his greatest asset was actually
the legend level bloodline of the Flame Dragon King.
The Flame Dragon King bloodline granted him not only extraordinary defenses
like dragon scales, but also substantial base strength, agility, vision, and
more.
Beyond that, it bestowed the most direct combat abilities— like the racial
magics dragon prestige, dragon breath, and the like.
Beyond transcendent levels and bloodlines, numerous other factors influence
combat. Take initiative, for instance. This distinction was particularly
pronounced for assassins and rogues. For them, an initiative to make the first
move could often change the battle results.
Sensing Cang Xu's gaze of shock and admiration, Teacher Si Ling's smile became
increasingly natural.
He taught without holding back information: "When a transcendent reaches the
saint level, no matter which kind, they will have a domain."
“Magicians wield magic domains, fighters wield fighting domains, while
clergymen are unique—their divine domain approximates the effects of the divine
domain spell, yet carries personal characteristics.”
“Regardless of type, these are collectively termed saint domains.”
“The quality and size of a saint domain profoundly impact every saint level
transcendent.”
“The saint domain also forms the foundation for their future advancement to
legend level!”
Hearing this, Jian Gui couldn't help but feel a surge of envy and admiration
toward Cang Xu once more.
He had never received such guidance, for the undead orthodoxy knew full well
the limits of his bloodline.
“These words were meant for Xu Jia.”
“Because his bloodline mutated, it mutated into the Hanging Corpse Tree
bloodline.”
"The ultimate concentration of this bloodline remains uncertain. But at least
for now, he genuinely holds hope of ascending to the saint level!"
That's right.
To infiltrate the undead orthodoxy, the fishman youngster had bestowed numerous
deception spells upon Cang Xu. The classic spell combination of Deceptive
Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell was merely the
foundation.
From Teacher Si Ling's investigative perspective, Cang Xu possessed a saint
level bloodline yet remained in a state of mutation.
This was normal.
Typically, the lower the bloodline level, the shorter the mutation period. The
higher the level, the longer the mutation period.
Moreover, even bloodlines of the same level exhibited varying mutation
durations.
In fact, even identical bloodlines underwent differing mutation durations due
to varying environmental factors. Consider this analogy: 2+1=3, and 1+1+1 was
also 3. The former's process was shorter, the latter longer, yet the outcome
remained identical.
Bloodline dynamics were profoundly mysterious and intricate. Detecting
bloodlines was inherently challenging and often inaccurate; bloodline mutation
was even more elusive.
From this perspective, one could truly appreciate how invaluable the Bloodcore
truly was.
Back then, War Merchant placed the Bloodcore at the top, while relegating the
two artifacts—the Deceptive Disguise spell and Mermaid Fairy Tale, to the lower
levels of the mage tower. This was no accident!
Artifacts possessed unparalleled, unique power, yet they still had limitations
in their application. Even the legend level War Merchant could only harness a
fraction of the Mermaid Fairy Tale's true power. The Bloodcore was different.
It could be wielded effortlessly, fundamentally reshaping one's foundation and
unlocking boundless potential for its host!
Jian Gui was correct.
Teacher Si Ling's deliberate guidance at this moment was indeed granted for
Cang Xu's sake.
Saint and gold were two distinct concepts, existing on different levels.
Cang Xu possessed the potential to ascend to the saint level, a qualification
sufficient for Teacher Si Ling to offer guidance.
Should he confirm Cang Xu's capability to reach the saint level, the treatment
he would receive would be even more exalted. It was entirely possible that You
Shen himself would come to instruct him!
The Twelve Saints he had taken under his wing were all chosen for their assured
potential to ascend to the saint level in the future.
You Shen's standards for accepting disciples were exceptionally stringent.
Of course, this was precisely the situation Cang Xu and the fishman youngster
sought to avoid.
Because they were deceiving these people.
If You Shen were to see through them right before his eyes, it would be
disastrous.
Facing a saint level opponent already put the survivors at risk. Facing a
legend level opponent, the likelihood of being exposed inevitably skyrocketed.
This was not difficult to understand.
The Deceptive Disguise spell itself was merely a creation by the War Merchant,
inspired by the artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale]. A legend level being like War
Merchant still fell short of You Shen. Therefore, the likelihood of You Shen
seeing through it was quite high.
Truthfully, there's no need to observe him.
Just look at the present.
In battles against peers, Zhou Zhang's deception divine spell now had minimal
effect. Both Da Han and Qian Xing could swiftly discern the deception within a
short span.
Cang Xu mused inwardly: “Charming Blue Goddess' strength isn't particularly
high. If her deception divine spell were truly effective, she wouldn't have
been gravely wounded and fallen into slumber...”
“Her Deceptive Disguise divine spell won't be reliable in the future.”
"They might work against weaker foes, like at the gold level, where they show
clear effectiveness. But at the saint level, their practical utility in combat
diminishes. Once targeted, their impact becomes even more negligible."
“Of course, when the Lord Commander is wielding the Charming Blue divine
artifact, that's an entirely different matter.”
At the mention of divine artifacts, Cang Xu witnessed Teacher Si Ling slowly
draw one from his robes!
It was a stone tablet.
Approximately one centimeter thick and the size of an A4 sheet, it formed a
rectangular prism of deep blue-black stone.
Not a single word graced its surface. Far from rough, the stone felt remarkably
fine and smooth.
Divine artifact - the Truth Slate!
This artifact was renowned throughout the Main Plane, no, the entire world.
It was a fragment of the core divine artifact, the Book of Truth, forged by the
God of Truth. Legend held it recorded every law and principle governing the
existence, operation, and demise of all things in the world.
With the fall of the God of Truth, the Book of Truth was shattered, its
fragments scattered across the world. Each page became a Truth Slate.
Now, Teacher Si Ling held one such fragment in hand.
Teacher Si Ling channeled his magic power into the tablet, slowly activating
the artifact.
The tablet began to emit a faint, grayish-white glow.
Undead magic power!
A faint aura of negative energy seeped out, though it was extremely tenuous.
Simultaneously, the pale gray glow slowly expanded, radiating outward from the
tablet's center point in all directions. The surrounding space became tinged
with a layer of grayish-white.
Cang Xu couldn't help but feel uneasy.
He realized the pale gray glow was drawing ever closer to the Deep Sea Monster
Fish!
Within mere seconds, the glow's expansion halted.
Ultimately, it coalesced into a luminous sphere centered on the stone slab,
spanning fifty meters in diameter.
The slab began to tremble slightly, initiating a process of self-carving.
As countless tiny stone fragments scattered and vanished mid-air, intricate
characters etched themselves onto its surface.
Extremely complex runes.
Cang Xu glanced at them and was immediately struck by intense dizziness. He
quickly shut off his vision, but the impression etched into his memory still
sent shockwaves through him!
Fortunately, Cang Xu possessed the Memory Concealment spell.
He swiftly cast it, compressing and sealing away the memory from just a second
prior.
Not seeing Cang Xu faint, Jian Gui, whose heart brimmed with envy, felt a pang
of disappointment.
He offered guidance: "That is the truth divine script, transcendent characters
created by the God of Truth to record all things in the world. Many believe
this script is the divine question among divine scripts, beyond our
comprehension."
Jian Gui didn't glance at the stone tablet once. As a member of the undead
orthodoxy, he naturally knew more secrets.
Truth divine script!
Cang Xu's heart trembled with shock.
Teacher Si Ling, however, stared intently at the stone tablet, his gaze fixed
on the ever-increasing number of truth divine script runes.
He spoke slowly, “Xu Jia, what do you think the divine domain is?”
Cang Xu had severed his vision, his field of sight plunged into darkness.
Hearing Teacher Si Ling's sudden question, his heart jolted.
He keenly sensed this was a small test from Teacher Si Ling, gauging his
insight or inspiration.
Cang Xu's mind raced: "Could it be that the divine domain is the ultimate form
of a domain?"
“Hehehe, good insight, not bad!” Teacher Si Ling smiled with satisfaction.
“Whether it be battle qi, magic power, or divine power, at their core, they are
all forms of energy.”
"The foundation of any domain must be built upon an energy cornerstone. Beyond
that lies the rules."
“These rules are the very logic governing the existence, operation, and
dissolution of all things.”
“For instance, the foundational energy composing the Charming Blue Divine
Domain we currently inhabit is Charming Blue divine power. Its primary logic
revolves around deception and disguise, while secondary logic encompasses the
fishman race, water elements, and fishing...”
“Silence!” Teacher Si Ling was abruptly cut off before finishing.
Cang Xu instantly recognized the voice as Zhou Zhang's.
He hastily reconnected and activated his vision, seeing Zhou Zhang swim through
the breach in the Mother Nest, her face twisted with fury.
The Snow Pear Octopus had also returned, but instead of entering the nest, he
guarded the opening from outside.
“Teacher Si Ling! I never imagined the one I'd be waiting for would be you!”
Zhou Zhang roared, her fury palpable. “Put away your tablet! How dare you so
casually pry into my Lord's divine domain!”
Though Zhou Zhang's personal combat prowess paled beside Teacher Si Ling's, her
unwavering devotion left her utterly unyielding.
This display stood in stark contrast to the earlier reactions of Da Han and
Qian Xing.
Cang Xu deeply understood this fury.
For Teacher Si Ling's act of using the divine artifact tablet to pry into the
secrets of the divine domain was a grave sacrilege.
This was one hundred percent certain, beyond any doubt!
Despite Zhou Zhang's furious rebuke, Teacher Si Ling remained unperturbed,
leisurely stowing away the tablet. "Archbishop Zhou Zhang, you must understand
this is part of the agreement between our alliance and yours. Your church must
provide us with knowledge of the divine domain."
“Moreover, this isn't my first time entering this part of the Charming Blue
Divine Domain.”
“Back then, I used the tablet to analyze and document the divine domain.”
“Even the avatar of Charming Blue Goddess was present.”
“Who do you think constructed the magic inscriptions of the formation outside?”



****** Chapter 640: Seeing the Hill ******
For a moment, Zhou Zhang fell silent.
Teacher Si Ling's appearance had startled her.
She knew her mission: the blood sacrifice was only one part, the other being to
await the arrival of a necromancer. What she didn't know was that the one she
was meant to wait for was Teacher Si Ling himself.
Zhou Zhang was a devout believer, not a fanatic. She felt profound revulsion
and disgust toward Teacher Si Ling, yet her reason remained unshaken by her
faith.
Cang Xu, however, experienced a moment of realization.
Indeed, the magic formation surrounding the Ocean Mother Nest contained not
only the Charming Blue divine script but also magic runes.
In fact, the very foundation of this colossal formation was not the Charming
Blue divine script at all, but the power of the magic.
This was highly unusual.
Consider the massive mobilization of the earth elemental army when they
surrounded and hunted down the giant. The divine script formation they deployed
was composed purely of earth elemental divine script, without a single magic
rune involved.
Looking at the silent Zhou Zhang, Teacher Si Ling replied in a slightly proud
tone: "I participated in the construction of this formation. But the ones who
actually executed it, aside from the avatar of Charming Blue Goddess, were my
teacher and myself."
Teacher Si Ling's teacher was none other than You Shen, the founding patriarch
of the necromancers!
Teacher Si Ling: “This colossal formation isn't merely for coordinating with
the Ocean Mother Nest for the blood sacrifice. It possesses another crucial
function.”
“And that is precisely the subject of our collaboration.”
“This is why I have come.”
Zhou Zhang was aware of this point.
She struggled to speak: "I will cooperate with you going forward. But Qian Xing
and Da Han have escaped. This means..."
Teacher Si Ling interrupted: “Rest assured, Fire Beard is not nearby. Da Han
came to Ice Sculpture Island for his own reasons.”
“Even if they attack again, as long as Fire Beard isn't present, there's
nothing to fear.”
"Next, we must join forces to restore the magic formation and repair the Ocean
Mother Nest. The primary force for repairing the Mother Nest isn't you or me,
but the octopus saint beast. This was foreseen long ago by the Charming Blue
Goddess."
Zhou Zhang's face lit up with a hint of joy. She had been despairing over the
Ocean Mother Nest's ruin, never expecting it could be repaired!
Gods were omnipotent.
Charming Blue Goddess had long foreseen such an occurrence and made
corresponding arrangements.
The saint beast Snow Pear Octopus wasn't merely to assist in the blood
sacrifice for the Mother Nest, it also served as the ultimate safeguard for its
restoration!
Cang Xu, standing nearby, looked pensive.
Listening to the conversation between Zhou Zhang and Teacher Si Ling, he had
discovered much.
“The undead orthodoxy and the Charming Blue Church may be allies, but their
relationship is far from harmonious.”
This was evident.
Necromancers blasphemed against the gods, gravely infringing upon the most
sacred benefit of the deities—souls. They were enemies of the gods. If allowed
to proliferate, they posed an extreme threat to all gods.
By any reasonable logic, no deity would ally with them. Charming Blue Goddess
was an exception. Targeted and gravely wounded, forced into slumber, her
situation was precarious. She had no choice but to seek any external aid
available!
The necromancers, too, were targeted, their own position equally dire. Having a
deity as an ally would undoubtedly be advantageous. Even if that deity lay
dormant, gravely wounded.
On the other hand, necromancers were magicians at heart, driven by an
insatiable thirst for knowledge. Especially knowledge concerning deities, any
insight that could aid them in confronting the gods. Thus, their need in this
regard was immense and urgent.
“This alliance between the two factions is fundamentally about huddling
together for warmth.”
"Though united, they're held together by immense external force and pressure.
Thus, each remains wary of the other, constantly scheming against one another."
Reflecting on this, Cang Xu recalled Zhou Zhang's earlier actions, his
expression growing subtly complex.
By all logic, the necromancers falling into an Archbishop's hands should be
utterly doomed. Yet Zhou Zhang merely captured these individuals without
immediately executing them.
This action alone was already highly suspicious.
Later, Zhou Zhang used blood sacrifices to coerce the necromancers into
conversion through threats of life and death.
Xiao Wang Zi and others successively became sacrificial offerings. Now Cang Xu
understood Zhou Zhang's true target—Jian Gui.
Jian Gui was different.
He was gold level, a member of the undead orthodoxy.
The Charming Blue Church and undead orthodoxy were allies, bound by
cooperation. Zhou Zhang likely never intended to truly kill Jian Gui.
For doing so would likely have shattered their alliance.
Thus, Zhou Zhang resorted to intimidation.
Why would she do this?
Cang Xu guessed it easily: Zhou Zhang wanted to convert Jian Gui, allowing the
Charming Blue Church to infiltrate their allies. This was a form of erosion
towards the undead forces.
“I was an accident.”
"When I returned from the Mother Nest and mastered special divine spells, Zhou
Zhang must have been overjoyed. Even if she didn't understand why I could
return, she immediately recognized my value."
“Her shift in attitude toward me, and all her subsequent support, were all
efforts to win me over.”
“She must have been overjoyed, for in me she saw the fruits of faith
infiltration and even greater possibilities.”
“Jian Gui surely once wondered—why I passed the blood sacrifice.”
"I have now resolved that question. I revealed my true potential."
"Was Teacher Si Ling's guidance merely about recognizing my potential?"
"No."
"He told me about the divine domain and showed an attitude of nonchalance
towards the Charming Blue Divine Domain. He even used the Truth Slate to peek
into the secrets of the divine domain openly. This is blasphemy. He's trying to
destroy my Charming Blue faith."
“He was correcting me, teaching me in a manner so gentle it was nearly
imperceptible. He made me recognize the frailty of my object of faith, so I
could become a purer necromancer!”
Ordinary people couldn't see through it, remaining in a state of blissful
ignorance. But Cang Xu, seasoned by years of experience, immediately sensed the
trickery and the hidden power struggle between the two factions.
“Who cares!”
"My Charming Blue faith was fake all along. If Teacher Si Ling knew this truth,
he'd be relieved. In a way, we're far more blasphemous than he ever was."
“If he knew what the commander had done, he'd admire him even more, right?”
This thought left Cang Xu feeling strangely unsettled.
“The Lord Commander is devoted to the Justice God.”
"Wonder how he's doing now? Did he save the big guy?"
The fishman youngster had no energy left to pay attention to the outside world.
He poured all his focus into the big guy, using the divine artifact and divine
magic with every ounce of strength.
He succeeded!
The Main Earth Elemental God thought He had killed the big guy, but in reality,
He had killed Tu Ji.
The Main Earth Elemental God, satisfied, finally withdrew.
He had no interest whatsoever in the remaining figures like Da Dou and Hong
Zhu.
But the earth elemental army did not stop.
Da Dou and the others had slaughtered so many of them—how could they possibly
stop?
“What should I do?”
“Maintaining the Believer Perception and the Divine Power Channel is already
pushing my limits. I can't cast a third divine spell!”
The fishman youngster watched as the big guy and his companions were surrounded
on all sides, trapped by mortal enemies, his heart turning to ice.
With no other choice, he could only attempt to pray to the Charming Blue
Goddess.
But just as he was about to do so, a squad of transcendents suddenly burst in.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
They used gold level alchemy artifacts to trigger a series of explosions.
"Follow me!!" The Imperial Spy Chief charged ahead, leading his subordinates to
the rescue.
These secret agents were all elite operatives.
If they weren't, they wouldn't have been able to execute the plan, disrupting
the order of the Magnet Archipelago and plunging all the earth elemental tribes
into conflict and constant strife.
They successfully destroyed the divine script formation set up by the earth
elemental army.
“Why are these people rescuing Xiao Guai?”
The fishman youngster was utterly perplexed.
Under his expectant gaze, the spies successfully linked up with Da Dou and the
others.
Caught completely off guard, the earth elemental army was thrown into chaos by
the potions hurled by the spies before they could pursue.
True to their reputation, the Imperial spies wielded top-tier equipment and
weaponry.
But saving lives came at a cost.
By the time the secret agents emerged, they had lost at least half their
members.
Fortunately, Da Dou and the other two were still alive.
“With these witnesses, my innocence is proven!”
"Tu Ji's death had nothing to do with me!"
“I did everything I could to assist. I am innocent.” The spy chief silently
rallied his resolve.
Tu Ji was dead.
A member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution had fallen in battle within
his jurisdiction.
Crucially, he had been killed by the Main Earth Elemental God!
This was utterly bizarre.
Who would believe it if he spoke?
The mighty Main Earth Elemental God personally intervening against a mere gold
level?
“Xiao Guai was successfully rescued!”
Witnessing this, the fishman youngster relaxed instantly.
That release of tension was all he needed, he collapsed, unconscious on the
spot.
As he drifted in and out of consciousness, his weary eyelids fluttered open.
“Where... am I?”
The roar of churning seawater filled his ears.
Surveying his surroundings, he realized he was sinking once more.
The deep sea extended around him.
“Here again...” The fishman youngster recognized this scene all too well.
Countless times, as he drifted into slumber, the Spiritual Navigation within
him would activate, drawing him into prayer to Charming Blue Goddess.
Gazing downward, he spotted an immense, shadowy form.
The deeper he sank, the closer he drew to it.
“Is this the true form of Charming Blue Goddess?” the fishman youngster
wondered inwardly.
"Wake up! Wake up!!" he screamed in his mind.
But this time, he was utterly exhausted. Though he served as a divine emissary,
he remained only a gold level.
He had nearly drained himself dry, utterly devoid of energy.
So no matter how fiercely he screamed, he remained unconscious.
Closer and closer, he drew nearer to the colossal shadow in the ocean depths.
The shadow gradually revealed its true form.
The fishman youngster's eyes widened slightly. He realized this shadow wasn't a
living creature at all, it was truly a hill.
“Why does this hill look familiar?”
“Where have I seen it before?”
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck the fishman youngster's mind.
He remembered.
He had seen it in the Dueling Divine Domain, through the memories of Lan Zao.
It was a wondrous place, a marvelous place.
A legendary place, a romantic place!
It was—Tranquil Hill.



****** Chapter 641: Flying Fish ******
“Why Tranquil Hill?”
“How could it possibly be Tranquil Hill?”
When the fishman youngster saw the truth behind the massive shadow, his heart
filled with shock and doubt.
He had contacted Lan Zao and learned of Tranquil Hill.
Tranquil Hill wasn't confined to the legends of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, it
was a real place, existing within the Dueling Divine Domain.
Tranquil Hill possessed extraordinary properties. Those buried within it might
be resurrected by its power. This fact was explicitly recorded in the relevant
legends.
Even if resurrection failed, consider the handling of Teng Dong Lang's corpse.
As the coffin bearer, Spring Boxer reaped the greatest benefit. He fully
absorbed Teng Dong Lang's memories from before death, causing his own
cultivation to skyrocket!
The Spring Boxer of old was raw and brimming with youthful vigor. Yet through
this period of absorption, he underwent profound transformation, maturing
rapidly and developing the makings of the next leader of the Bayonet Gang.
Lan Zao witnessed all this firsthand, the Dueling Divine Domain, the Tranquil
Hill, Teng Dong Lang, and Spring Boxer's metamorphosis.
The fishman youngster, who could access Lan Zao's memories, was well-versed in
these matters.
Precisely because he understood, the fishman youngster now felt even greater
astonishment and doubt.
He couldn't fathom how Tranquil Hill, residing far away in the Dueling Divine
Domain on Ice Sculpture Island, could be connected to Charming Blue Goddess.
“In my slumber, I constantly prayed passively. The image I saw must have been
the Charming Blue Goddess.”
“But now I see Tranquil Hill.”
“Could it be... that Charming Blue Goddess is Tranquil Hill?”
“No. Perhaps her true form is concealed within Tranquil Hill?”
A deity residing not in her own realm, but within the Dueling God's domain?
This was truly beyond comprehension.
The fishman youngster continued his bold conjecture.
“Could it be... that Charming Blue Goddess is the Dueling God?”
“Or more accurately, is the Dueling God merely one of Charming Blue Goddess'
identities?”
"After all, Charming Blue Goddess possesses many personas. Take the Net
Goddess, born from her role as fishing authority; the Fishman God Mist,
extending from her fishman authority; or the Calm Lake God, the Wave God, and
the Splash God, all derived from her water authority..."
The fishman youngster sank deeper, drawing closer to Tranquil Hill.
In his downward gaze, Tranquil Hill grew larger and larger, its details
becoming increasingly distinct.
The pressure in the fishman youngster's heart mounted with each passing moment!
“I wonder what will happen when I land on Tranquil Hill?”
An intuition deep within him whispered that something significant would occur
then!
The fishman youngster tried to rouse himself but still failed.
He could only passively observe Tranquil Hill, watching it draw nearer. He
discerned its central peak, it wasn’t steep, and its summit blanketed in snow.
To the south lay a valley with rivers and green grass. To the west stretched a
cliff, sheer as if hewn by blades, shrouded in thick mist...
Lan Zao scaled the western cliff face of Tranquil Hill.
During the surprise assault on Tranquil Hill, Lan Zao had distinguished
himself, particularly through his successful prayers that saved countless
lives.
Thus, he earned the trust of everyone, including Mei Lin, who granted him
freedom of movement.
Lan Zao stood at the cliff's edge, looking down.
The precipice soared high, shrouded in thick mist, its depths invisible.
“A fall from this height would be certain death!” Lan Zao knew it at a glance.
Yet this time, he intended to leap.
He slowly closed his eyes, carefully recalling.
Soon, he immersed himself in another perspective.
In the dueling arena, a fishman darted through the air. Though only silver
level, she executed maneuvers of short-range flight.
Her fishman bloodline wasn't Lan Zao's Fish Bladder bloodline, but the Flying
Fish bloodline.
Yet the battle skill she wielded was one Lan Zao himself mastered—Air Cannon!
This fishman was locked in a brutal duel with her opponent. In her hands, the
Air Cannon battle skill was nothing short of masterful.
When Lan Zao first accessed this memory, he was utterly astonished.
He discovered with amazement that Air Cannon could be imbued with various
attack effects without using alchemy projectiles—simply by combining it with
other battle skills.
Beyond that, this female fishman fighter could split an Air Cannon into three
separate projectiles or fuse multiple Air Cannons mid-air into a single blast.
Most remarkably, she could harness the explosions of Air Cannon to generate
propulsive force for flight.
This scene felt profoundly familiar to Lan Zao.
His thoughts immediately turned to the dragonman youngster.
By combining Bursting Explosion battle qi with the Surge battle skill, the
dragonman youngster similarly generated force from successive micro-explosions
to propel himself through forced displacement.
Lan Zao was now practicing this very technique.
He drew in a deep breath, causing his chest to swell high, his entire upper
body expanding by at least a full size.
Maximum Air State!
The Fish Bladder bloodline had endowed Lan Zao with a new organ—a fish bladder.
When he inhaled fully, the fish bladder inflated, granting him considerable
buoyancy.
Simultaneously, the abundance of oxygen within his body significantly enhanced
his physical prowess.
He leapt lightly from the cliff's edge.
Racial magic - Levitation.
He immediately activated the bloodline's innate racial magic, his entire body
becoming remarkably light. Spreading his arms like a flying fish unfurling its
fins, he began gliding through the air.
He had practiced this racial magic numerous times while on Flower Skirt Island.
Once, during practice, he had even been captured by Ba Qi.
With Levitation as his safety net, Lan Zao wouldn't die from a cliff jump.
He didn't take risks without certainty and wouldn't venture into danger
lightly. After all, having escaped from Mystifying Monster Island, he cherished
his life deeply. Of course, when cornered with no other choice, he possessed
the courage to fight to the death, blazing with life's final brilliant
radiance.
Battle skill - Air Cannon.
He began employing this battle skill, attempting to alter his trajectory mid-
air.
After merely fifteen minutes of practice, his progress was strikingly evident.
“This is incredible!”
"Before, my use of Levitation was far too slow, rendering it practically
useless in combat. I never dared employ it during sparring sessions with
others. Because using it would leave me wide open."
“But now, with the Air Cannon complementing it, I can execute rapid mid-air
turns. It's a complete transformation, a qualitative leap!”
"Still, compared to that female fishman, I'm not of Flying Fish bloodline, just
Fish Bladder bloodline. My innate flight speed is far weaker. Even if I master
every technique, I'll never match her flight capabilities."
Lan Zao knew his limits well.
As he practiced relentlessly, the memories he accessed grew increasingly vivid.
Countless insights emerged, fueling constant progress in his training.
Had he relied solely on solitary training, such terrifying progress would have
been nearly impossible.
“I'm not learning, I'm reviewing.”
“Ever since the commander saved me and allowed me to disguise myself, the gifts
I receive from the Dueling Divine Domain are no longer mere fragments of
memory, but entire stretches of recollection.”
"The Dueling Divine Domain truly is an exceptional sanctuary for honing combat
prowess! Too bad the commander isn't here."
“Speaking of which, the Lord Commander actually managed to contact me and
remotely grant me the Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and
Prophecy spell, allowing me to deceive even the Dueling God within the divine
domain.”
"Such methods are truly overwhelming! Beyond the limits of my wildest
imagination!"
“How exactly did the Lord Commander accomplish this?”
"Could it be that he's mastered the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] even
further? Has he constructed some new magic formation, or unearthed fresh power
from War Merchant's legacy?"
The fishman youngster knew Lan Zao's situation well, but Lan Zao remained
unaware of the fishman youngster's circumstances. He didn't even know the
fishman youngster had suffered an accident while searching for him and hadn't
returned to Ice Sculpture Island yet.
“I wonder how everyone is doing now?”
"The Lord Commander must be participating in the duels. This time of year is
precisely when the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Grand Duel takes place."
Lan Zao himself knew about the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Grand Duel. While
training in Tranquil Hill, he learned more about it from Bing Xiao and the
human ringleader.
The youngster himself did not participate in the duel.
Zong Ge fought in his place.
Emerging victorious once more, Zong Ge personally pushed open the arena gates,
striding out with head held high.
As a private duel, spectators were barred from the arena, so his numerous
supporters gathered at the entrance.
When they saw Zong Ge emerge alone, the other combatant nowhere in sight, they
erupted in a unified cheer, their joy surpassing even Zong Ge's own.
“Lord Long Fu has won again!”
“I told you so! His opponent looked fierce, but he was no match for Long Fu.”
"Long Fu! Long Fu!"
“Keep winning! I bet on you every single time.”
"Among the silver level fighters, Lord Long Fu is undoubtedly in the top tier. 
No, to be precise, he stands alone in his class."
With Zong Ge's continuous victories, the dragonman youngster's fame within the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom's capital continued to soar.
Zong Ge returned to his lodgings.
Zi Di finished her calculations and handed him a report.
The report detailed the latest results of the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony
Grand Duel.
It revealed that the tournament was being held nationwide, with dueling arenas
in towns and cities across the realm nearly at full capacity.
The Ice Sculpture citizens' enthusiasm had been fully ignited.
Topics concerning duels and duelists were the most talked-about subjects among
the populace.
Compared to the native duelists of Ice Sculpture, he paid more attention to
outsiders.
It was clear that increasing numbers of foreigners had landed on Ice Sculpture
Island, with the number of foreign duelists surging dramatically. Some had won
and gained fame, while others had fallen in battle, paying with their lives.
"Huh? The Little Flying Fish died in battle?”
Zong Ge's gaze sharpened slightly as he scanned a segment of the intelligence
report.
He monitored every opponent capable of posing a threat to him.
Among them was the Little Flying Fish.
Little Flying Fish was merely a title. She was a female fishman with the Flying
Fish bloodline. Though only silver level, she possessed the ability to fly
during combat.
Zong Ge had seen footage of her, noting her exceptional flight prowess, agile
turns and prolonged hovering. She would have been a troublesome foe to handle.
Little Flying Fish had withdrawn from the tournament gravely wounded; he hadn't
expected her injuries to prove fatal.
She had died days ago, though the news had only now been officially confirmed.
Zong Ge swiftly shifted his focus to subsequent intelligence.
With Little Flying Fish dead, she no longer warranted his attention.
The National Ceremony Grand Duel had drawn a surge of foreign duelists, and
their numbers continued to skyrocket!
Among the silver level duelists, numerous elite fighters had emerged.
Fortunately, Zong Ge had yet to detect any combatants matching the strength of
the dragonman youngster.



****** Chapter 642: Registration ******
At the end of the intelligence report, Zong Ge saw information regarding
prisoner duelists.
Under the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's system, during every National Ceremony Grand
Duel, any prisoner in any cell had the right to apply for participation. If
they performed well in combat, they could even earn sentence reductions.
Of course, prisoners first had to apply and obtain permission from prison
authorities before engaging in duels.
Driven by the desire for early release, these uniquely motivated duelists
fought with relentless determination, often displaying fierce combat resolve.
Historically, such events frequently produced remarkable results, giving rise
to numerous renowned duelists.
The intelligence estimated that over a hundred candidates from high-security
prisons across the Ice Sculpture Kingdom would participate.
Zong Ge focused on the duelists from the Ice Prison and found three names
listed, one of which was Shi Liu.
“Looks like what Yuan Ci told you might actually happen,” Zong Ge remarked to
Zi Di upon seeing this.
Zi Di gave a slight nod.
Shi Liu was a crucial figure. He possessed the ability to craft the level zero
secret order.
For the Wisteria Cache, both Yuan Ci and Jiu Jin sought to rescue him.
However, Shi Liu was imprisoned within the Ice Prison. This latter facility was
one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's few super-maximum security prisons of a high
level.
Breaking him out of prison would be an extremely difficult task.
Elder Jiu Jin understood the difficulty involved, so he backed out immediately,
unwilling even to assist in gathering intelligence. He feared that if the
rescue failed and the kingdom investigated, he would be implicated.
But he didn't consider that if Zi Di and Yuan Ci were captured, they might
reveal the location of the Wisteria Cache to save their own lives. In that
case, could he really escape?
This revealed Elder Jiu Jin's fundamental human weakness. It was precisely by
exploiting this vulnerability that Elder Jiu Jin later visited the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, only to be successfully manipulated by Zi Di.
While Zi Di was at a loss regarding Shi Liu's rescue, Yuan Ci remained
confident.
Two days prior, Yuan Ci approached Zi Di and shared his plan: wait for Shi Liu
to leave the Ice Prison for a duel, then stage a fake death during the fight to
facilitate his rescue.
This strategy completely bypassed the Ice Prison itself, after all, breaking
out of this super-max facility would be prohibitively difficult.
After careful consideration, Zi Di concluded the plan held some merit.
Zong Ge also kept a close eye on developments, as he would likely need to
coordinate during the operation.
“The key issue now is that Ice Prison, being a super-max facility, won't just
send Shi Liu as its sole contender. Whether Shi Liu gets selected ultimately
rests on the warden's decision,” Zong Ge analyzed.
Following standard protocol, each prison typically sends only one or two
fighters.
Zi Di said, "Right now, Yuan Ci is actively maneuvering, shaping public
opinion, contacting gambling houses, and attempting to bribe Ice Prison's
management. Shi Liu's chances of being selected are high. According to Yuan Ci,
at least 70%."
"For Yuan Ci, rescuing Shi Liu is imperative. So I have no doubt he'll spare no
effort in this regard."
Zong Ge nodded.
He knew a great deal about this matter.
He also understood that Zi Di's mindset was entirely different from Yuan Ci's.
Zi Di's single level zero secret order held the weight of three. Combined with
Fei She's and the recently subjugated Elder Jiu Jin, their five Wisteria secret
orders were now assembled.
Therefore, the success or failure of Shi Liu's rescue held little consequence
for Zi Di.
In fact, failure might even benefit her. It would give her more bargaining
chips.
If Yuan Ci couldn't gather all five level zero secret orders, Zi Di could use
that leverage in negotiations.
Zong Ge had no doubt that with Zi Di's exceptional negotiating skills, she
would secure even greater advantages!
“How have you been lately?” Zi Di inquired.
She often asked such questions.
Zong Ge nodded. “Not bad.”
“I've become thoroughly familiar with Blood Vengeance and Hua Tang's battle
skill.”
“My muscles have developed the reflex, even during deep slumber, I can jolt
awake the instant Blood Vengeance activates and prepare my defenses.”
Zi Di's expression shifted slightly, catching the implication. “You're insane?”
“You dare sleep without any protective measures?”
Zong Ge smiled. “Rest assured, I had confidence before attempting this.”
“I'm not reckless!”
"This kind of training is precisely like that. You must place your body in
peril to unlock its hidden potential."
“This is the essence of fighter training, it differs from your magician
cultivation.”
Zi Di's expression darkened as she shook her head repeatedly. “I must warn
you—don't take such risks.”
“You are extremely important right now.”
"Not just as an individual, you're the only gold level member of our Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps. And now you're also acting as the commander. If Long Fu
falls, the reputation we've painstakingly built, along with the potion retail
business that reputation sustains, will suffer a severe blow."
Zong Ge laughed heartily: “Don't forget, Miss Zi Di.”
“I've been afflicted by Blood Vengeance for quite some time now.”
"At first, its sudden outbreaks would injure me. But gradually, the severity of
my injuries lessened, and the frequency decreased."
"Eventually, I stopped getting injured altogether. After a period of time, I
only occasionally suffered injuries again."
“To this day, I've gone a very long time without being injured again.”
"My guard against the Blood Vengeance is now deeply ingrained in the deepest
recesses of my mind. My body has memorized it, branded into my very nerves."
“Therefore, I have confidence in undertaking this experiment.”
Zi Di sighed: “So you've treated the Blood Vengeance as one of your training
exercises.”
“No wonder you've been so indifferent to resolving it.”
“I'm starting to wonder if you're deliberately delaying it.”
Zong Ge shook his head slightly: “It's true, I did have that deliberate
training intent.”
“But the Blood Vengeance... I genuinely have no way to resolve it.”
“The same goes for that mysterious battle skill used by Hua Tang.”
“But how should I put this?”
"As a magician, you don't understand a fighter's training mindset. This state
I've reached is truly rare and hard to achieve."
"Confronting the Blood Vengeance has honed my ability to activate both internal
and external defenses in an instant. The results of this training are truly
exceptional."
"Meanwhile, countering Hua Tang's battle skill allows me to lock down my battle
qi and vital blood. The few battle skills I've been practicing lately have seen
rapid progress!"
“Finally, the poison within me is cultivating my resistance to toxins.”
“You needn't worry too much...”
“Enough.” Zi Di waved her hand, cutting Zong Ge off.
Through their time together, Zi Di had come to deeply understand Zong Ge's
nature. He was absolutely not the type to take advice lightly!
“You must handle this matter yourself,” Zi Di sighed. “Today, I still have
business to attend to at the Alchemy Guild.”
Zong Ge parted ways with Zi Di: “Then I shall continue my cultivation.”
He was a fighter, stubborn by nature. Negative states like Blood Vengeance were
not torments to him, but trials and hardships, opportunities to break through
his limits.
Since Hua Tang's attack, Zong Ge had lived a remarkably “peaceful” and
fulfilling existence.
Though he frequently accepted challenges to duel, it was an undisputed fact
that Long Fu was silver level. Thus, Zong Ge faced opponents of his own level.
Being gold level himself, with formidable combat prowess, fighting opponents
one level below him gave Zong Ge a significant advantage.
After about ten minutes, Zi Di stepped forward and formally entered the gates
of the Alchemy Guild.
In truth, this wasn't her first time here.
This time, she navigated the place with ease. Upon entering the main hall, she
turned right. She walked down a corridor and entered a small hall.
The hall was crowded.
Over a dozen staff members were handling the same task—processing registrations
for the Warm Snow Cup competition.
Zi Di first retrieved the materials to review this year's Warm Snow Cup.
As the top domestic alchemy tournament of Ice Sculpture Kingdom at the highest
level, the Warm Snow Cup's format had remained unchanged for many years.
The first stage consisted of alchemy examinations.
Contestants drew questions publicly and answered them on the spot to
demonstrate their alchemy prowess. The examination covered diverse topics,
beginning with a written test, followed by an oral interview, and culminating
in a live alchemy demonstration.
This initial phase primarily served to reduce the number of participants,
filtering out all but the most exceptional competitors.
The second stage comprised an alchemy exhibition.
Each contestant was assigned a display hall to showcase their alchemy
achievements. At this stage, alchemy authorities from the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, representatives from all social strata, and invited international
guests would evaluate and score the exhibits.
The contestant with the highest average score would be crowned the champion.
Zi Di carefully reviewed the competition rules once more. Satisfied there were
no issues, she filled in the name “Yao Ma” on the registration form.
Soon, her entry form reached Hua Ni's hands.
“Summon Elder Jiu Jin,” Hua Ni commanded.
Soon, Jiu Jin arrived at Hua Ni's mage tower.
In the study, Hua Ni handed him Zi Di's entry form: “Since the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps has proposed this wager, they must have some confidence in
their chances.”
“What do you intend to do?”
Elder Jiu Jin bowed his hands in respect and reported, “Magician Yao Ma is
utterly ignorant of her place. This time, we shall show her the true depth of
our Ice Sculpture Kingdom's alchemy heritage!”
Hua Ni immediately frowned, expressing her displeasure. “That won't do.”
“I want no accidents.”
“Arrange it so she's eliminated in the first round.”
Elder Jiu Jin's face twisted with bitterness as he looked up at Hua Ni. “Elder
Hua Ni, this isn't wise.”
“If Magician Yao Ma has the confidence to compete, the first round shouldn't
trouble her.”
"News of the wager contract has already begun circulating in small circles. I
strongly suspect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps initiated this leak."
“It won't be long before everyone in the industry knows about it.”
“Under these circumstances, if we act too blatantly, it would be a blow to our
reputation.”
Hua Ni chuckled softly. “Elder Jiu Jin, with your seasoned wisdom and caution,
having such concerns proves I chose the right person.”
"But I trust you, Elder, to handle this matter. You can eliminate her while
preserving our dignity, without drawing undue attention."
“This...” Elder Jiu Jin nearly wept.
He dared not attempt such a thing.
His weakness was firmly in Zi Di's grasp.
"Rest assured, Elder Jiu Jin. This year's Warm Snow Cup coincides with the
national ceremony, making it vastly different from previous editions. Many will
register, myself included. Eliminating an obscure silver level magician won't
draw attention." With that final reassurance, Hua Ni dismissed Jiu Jin.
Elder Jiu Jin emerged from the mage tower with a troubled expression, his mind
already made up: "I'll arrange the tournament schedule, nothing is too
difficult! This way, Elder Hua Ni will have a satisfactory explanation."
“As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, I'll tip them off in advance so they
can prepare!”



****** Chapter 643: Mending ******
The White Hair Trench.
Charming Blue divine power formed a pale-blue light barrier, temporarily
patching the gaping hole in the Ocean Mother Nest.
As time passed, new walls slowly grew where the divine light barrier met the
Mother Nest's cavernous walls.
Zhou Zhang stood outside the Mother Nest, maintaining a half-kneeling posture
of prayer.
Watching this scene unfold, a deep sorrow settled in her heart—the divine power
expended to mend the walls was immense, a significant drain for the Charming
Blue Goddess.
“Next, I must perform faster and more frequent blood sacrifices for my Lord!”
Zhou Zhang silently resolved.
Not far away, Cang Xu also observed.
“God is omnipotent!” the old magician murmured in awe.
The Ocean Mother Nest was a uniquely formed natural structure, yet under
Charming Blue Goddess' power, even when shattered, it could be restored.
Meanwhile...
Cang Xu turned slightly, directing his gaze toward Teacher Si Ling nearby.
Teacher Si Ling was repairing the sacrificial formation.
Earlier, Qian Xing's battle skill attack had not only pierced through the magic
formation and severed the golden altar but had also penetrated the Ocean Mother
Nest.
What astonished Cang Xu was that Teacher Si Ling’s repairs extended beyond the
magic runes to encompass parts inscribed with the Charming Blue divine script.
“He possesses profound mastery of the Charming Blue divine script!”
Cang Xu had initially assumed this section would require Zhou Zhang’s
intervention.
“Xu Jia, come to me.” Teacher Si Ling, having completed a phase of the repairs,
beckoned Cang Xu over.
Cang Xu approached as instructed.
Teacher Si Ling smiled. “Now, you can lend a hand.”
“Use the divine blessing you obtained, those unique divine spells, and cast
them where I direct. This will form new divine scripts.”
Cang Xu was utterly astonished.
Jian Gui watched with an envious gaze. He understood this was yet another
instance of Teacher Si Ling offering impromptu guidance, a clear sign of his
genuine regard for Xu Jia.
After all, Xu Jia was only silver level, technically unqualified to repair such
an formation.
Yet Teacher Si Ling preferred to expend extra effort, taking a minor detour, to
mentor Xu Jia (Cang Xu).
Beyond Teacher Si Ling's personal inclination to mentor juniors, this also
revealed his appreciation for Cang Xu.
Cang Xu proceeded as directed by Teacher Si Ling, casting divine spells at
specific points within the formation.
Divine spell - Soul Link.
Divine spell - Spiritual Navigation.
Divine spell - Synchronized Conversion.
Each distinct divine spell, upon landing within the formation, condensed
varying amounts of divine script.
Teacher Si Ling carefully selected these divine scripts, arranging them in
specific positions.
Cang Xu had once studied this grand formation surrounding the altar. The more
he observed, the more astonished he became, prompting him to blurt out,
“Teacher Si Ling, are you modifying this formation?”
Teacher Si Ling smiled and nodded. “Correct. You've noticed.”
“It seems you've paid close attention to this formation in your daily work.”
“That's commendable. A thirst for knowledge is an excellent quality for a
magician.”
“My involvement in constructing this formation was several years ago.”
“People will always grow.”
“Now, I am fully capable of refining this formation to perform even better.
Efficiency could be increased by at least 7.8%.”
Cang Xu inquired again, "Teacher Si Ling, I have one more small question. Why
do you seem so familiar with these unique divine spells of mine?"
Teacher Si Ling smiled faintly.
Cang Xu's question was precisely what he wished to hear.
Without delay, Teacher Si Ling replied, "Well then, what do you think? Xu Jia."
Cang Xu had long harbored suspicions. His expression now flickered with
hesitation. “Could it be that these unique divine spells are actually yours...”
“Yes.” Teacher Si Ling nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. “These unique
divine spells were originally invented and created by me.”
“This is one aspect of our collaboration between the undead orthodoxy and the
Charming Blue Church.”
"To pioneer these divine spells is actually extremely difficult. Charming Blue
Goddess has slumbered for years, sustaining the sect solely through the Godhead
to answer believers' prayers. Creating divine spells was impossible."
“My success owes little to personal skill, it is largely due to the artifact
the Truth Slate.”
His suspicions were confirmed. Cang Xu still felt a jolt of awe. “Truly worthy
of your stature, Teacher Si Ling. Not only did you pioneer necromancy, but you
even created divine spells based on the Charming Blue divine script!"
Teacher Si Ling waved his hand, his smile growing more serene. “Is this not
precisely what we magicians ought to do?”
“We study the heavens and earth, we study the gods, we pioneer spell after
spell, expanding the boundaries of our capabilities.”
“This is the very essence of what defines us as magicians.”
His meaning was clear.
Cang Xu's eyes flickered as he instantly understood: Teacher Si Ling was once
again using this opportunity to teach him, to demonstrate through words and
deeds that magicians should not worship deities.
Everything was worth studying. Every substance could be better harnessed. Every
force could be leveraged.
All it took was a fulcrum.
“I've found the pivotal lever to pry open the divine domain!” Within the Honey
Snow Tower, Shuang Lian's eyes blazed with brilliance, her face radiant with
excitement.
Though the strike force she dispatched to raid Tranquil Hill had been utterly
annihilated, her tactical objective had been achieved.
Through on-site reconnaissance, she had obtained vast amounts of data on
Tranquil Hill.
She had spent considerable time analyzing these data, gradually accumulating
insights until today, when a qualitative breakthrough finally occurred!
Bu Quan, who had been assisting Shuang Lian all along, looked at the data with
confusion and immediately asked, “Teacher, these data are too strange. They
seem to indicate that this hill possesses consciousness.”
Shuang Lian smiled faintly, a hint of satisfaction in her expression. “You can
discern this much, that's quite good.”
“You lack so much knowledge, though it's not your fault. Knowledge related to
deities requires an extremely high cost.”
Shuang Lian pointed at the data: “These figures indicate a computational core
within this hill, similar to a tower spirit.”
“Of course, its actual computing power far surpasses that of a tower spirit, by
an immense margin.”
“Its true name is—Godhead.”
Bu Quan: “God... Godhead?”
While master and disciple discussed Tranquil Hill, outside the mage tower,
duelists were discussing them too.
Xue Tuan Zi gazed at the rapidly shrinking fissure in the earth, marveling, “No
wonder it's derived from the spell, Great Pyrolysis, Ice Breaker is truly
formidable!”
“Even now, though Tranquil Hill Mountain has been restored, the divine domain's
land still bears immense fissures.”
While others might struggle to gather intel on Ice Breaker, for Xue Tuan Zi it
was effortless.
Not only was she an Alchemy Guild member, but her grandfather, the Snow Cake
Tower Master, was a powerful elder within the guild.
“I wish I could have witnessed the Ice Breaker in action. It's a shame I wasn't
there,” Xue Tuan Zi lamented.
“If our Lord were truly whole, these fissures wouldn't still linger,” remarked
He Gai Tou from the other side.
Having endured so much alongside the Dueling God, these duelists had formed
numerous plausible theories about him.
Xue Tuan Zi fell silent.
Such matters weren't convenient to discuss in depth.
Just then, a gold level duelist soared in.
It was Gu Dong.
He had come to take over from He Gai Tou.
Ever since the last raid on Tranquil Hill, the Dueling Divine Domain had
maintained only two gold level members.
“You finally made it,” He Gai Tou murmured with a hint of reproach upon seeing
Gu Dong.
Gu Dong apologized, “Something came up unexpectedly and delayed me.”
He Gai Tou sighed, “I told you, I have a meeting with the Ice Prison's higher-
ups today.”
Xue Tuan Zi asked curiously, "Why are you contacting them? Did you place a
hefty wager on this Grand Duel?"
He Gai Tou shook his head slightly. "Long Fu is still on his winning streak,
showing no signs of slowing down. This won't do!"
“I've spotted someone in the Ice Prison.”
“I believe he can pose a genuine threat to Long Fu.”
“I agree with Lord Mei Lin's arrangements. This time, let me expedite the
process a bit.”



****** Chapter 644: Ice Prison ******
He Gai Tou descended the ice ladder, gradually plunging deeper underground.
The surrounding walls were constructed from massive ice bricks. Along the way,
alchemy torches burned with white ice flames, emitting wispy cold air.
This was Ice Prison.
The path He Gai Tou walked led only to the warden's chamber.
He knew this environment intimately. Yet this familiarity brought him no
warmth.
Even with the Ice Heart Headband, a chill stirred within him.
He Gai Tou knew that though he had left the Ice Prison years ago, it had left a
profound psychological trauma upon him. That trauma had never truly faded.
He had once been a prisoner within these very walls.
“Ah ha ha! Old friend, it's been a while!” The warden stood at the doorway;
arms raised in an enthusiastic welcome.
Unusually, the warden of the Ice Prison was not a snow elf, but a human.
He was a gold level magician.
The Ice Prison was the top-level penitentiary in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Having a human serve as its warden was exceptionally rare within the kingdom's
political landscape.
"Lord Prison Warden." He Gai Tou bowed slightly towards the warden.
The warden feigned displeasure: “Still so formal. Just call me by name.”
With that, he ushered He Gai Tou inside, his face alight with a warm smile.
He Gai Tou understood well. The warden's warmth and smile did not reflect his
true disposition.
Perhaps this was the difference between humans and elves.
For He Gai Tou, he actually preferred dealing with the snow elves. Their
businesslike manner and cool demeanor felt more genuine than the smiles of
humans.
For humans, smiles were often masks concealing worldly desires.
Just like this time.
The Ice Prison Warden greeted He Gai Tou with precisely such desires.
The warden's chamber was not spacious.
He Gai Tou knew it hadn't always been this way.
After taking office, the current Ice Prison Warden had vigorously cut expenses,
leading by example. The warden's chamber had consequently been reduced in size,
its former space-expanding magic formation dismantled.
He Gai Tou understood, however, that this was merely a political performance by
the Ice Prison Warden. In truth, he secretly pocketed more than any of his
predecessors.
The largest sum the Ice Prison Warden truly embezzled came from He Gai Tou
himself.
Though the warden's office was small, the desk was enormous, almost bed-sized,
dominating the largest space within.
Separated by this massive desk, the two men took their seats.
The seating arrangement here was meticulously planned.
The Ice Prison Warden's seat was noticeably higher. While humans were generally
shorter than elves, once He Gai Tou sat down, the difference in seat height
made him appear a full head shorter than the warden across from him.
This naturally gave the Ice Prison Warden a condescending angle of gaze.
The warden gazed at He Gai Tou with a smile, his tone tinged with nostalgia.
“It's been over twenty years since you left this place.”
“Do you recall that time? I was merely a deputy warden back then.”
“It was thanks to you that we secured the championship in that National
Ceremony Grand Duel.” That achievement paved the way for my victory in the
subsequent election, ultimately elevating me to warden of this prison."
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a policy: during the National Ceremony Grand
Duel, prisons across the kingdom would nominate prisoners to compete.
Prisoners could receive sentence reductions based on their performance.
He Gai Tou was a beneficiary of this policy. After winning the championship,
the kingdom granted him a full pardon.
Of course, this was also because his original crime wasn't that severe.
Despite the warden's polite tone and grateful demeanor, He Gai Tou knew this
was a deliberate hint.
The warden's words carried at least two layers of meaning.
It wasn't merely an expression of kindness but also held hidden expectations.
So, He Gai Tou responded.
“Back then, it was all thanks to you, Warden, that I was pardoned and regained
my freedom.”
"I have never forgotten this kindness. All these years, I have been seeking
ways to repay it. Regrettably, your stature far surpasses mine, so I can only
offer modest tokens of gratitude."
Each year, He Gai Tou delivered at least 3,000 gold coins to the Ice Prison
Warden.
“This visit to discuss business with you, Lord, concerns a particularly
lucrative venture.”
The warden's expression immediately sharpened with interest.
He leaned back in his chair, eyes narrowing as he studied He Gai Tou. “Oh? Tell
me more.”
He Gai Tou: “I know there's currently a prisoner in the Ice Prison named Bing
Yang.”
"This man was once a gold level, but he fell victim to the potion [Beautiful
Future]. He's now dropped to the silver level."
“I want him to participate in this year's National Ceremony Grand Duel. Have
him challenge someone.”
The warden immediately frowned.
“Hold on.”
“You know that despite being the nation's top prison, the Ice Prison only gets
one recommendation slot.”
“Bing Yang is a sickly weakling. He can't fight.” “Even if he could, he's only
at the silver level now.”
“I know he was once gold level. He might stand out among silver level
fighters.”
“But it doesn't matter!”
“In every National Ceremony Grand Duel, the gold level fighters always dominate
the finals.”
"Silver level fighters are relegated to the sidelines. No matter how
spectacular their fights, they never make it to the later rounds."
“I'll be honest with you; I'm counting on this year's National Ceremony Grand
Duel for my achievements.”
"Our current candidate is Shi Liu. He's a magnetic earth elemental who has
consistently dominated our internal sparring sessions. I hold great promise for
him."
“While his strength may not surpass Long Fu, he absolutely possesses the
capability to secure a top five finish.”
He Gai Tou smiled. “Warden, please hear me out.”
“You still don't know who I want Bing Yang to challenge.”
The Ice Prison Warden: “Who?”
“Long Fu,” He Gai Tou replied.
“Him?” The Ice Prison Warden's eyebrows were raised.
Of course he'd heard of Long Fu.
More than once.
The dragonman youngster's fame spread far and wide. His feat of defeating and
slaying a gold level opponent while only silver level was a rarity unseen in a
century.
And since arriving in the capital, Long Fu impersonated by Zong Ge had accepted
numerous duel challenges, winning every single one without a single loss.
While these victories weren't as spectacular as Teng Dong Lang's legendary
battle, they solidified his reputation, earning him considerable attention,
support, and admiration.
The Ice Prison Warden knew even more than that.
He also learned that the mount potions sold by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
were incredibly popular. Everyone who used them raved about them!
He had even used them on his own mounts and was deeply impressed by the dragon
rider potion.
Of course, that gold level dragon rider potion had been a gift from someone
else.
When He Gai Tou mentioned Long Fu, a flash of understanding lit up the Ice
Prison Warden's eyes.
He remarked, “Long Fu possesses formidable combat prowess, standing alone at
the pinnacle of silver level fighters. The outside world widely considers him
the ceiling of silver level strength. At least in this National Ceremony Grand
Duel, no strong contender to challenge Long Fu has emerged yet.”
"If I recall correctly, his current winning streak has reached 17 matches,
hasn't it?
At this rate, his streak will only continue to grow. Reaching a hundred
victories wouldn't surprise anyone."
"This is mainly because no gold level duelist has challenged him yet. In fact,
such a challenge might never occur. Unless Long Fu himself takes the initiative
to challenge a gold level duelist."
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom has a deeply ingrained dueling culture, where
courage and fairness are highly revered by its citizens.”
"Therefore, it's virtually unheard of for a gold level fighter to challenge
someone below their level. It would be utterly disgraceful. Within the silver
level, Long Fu faces almost no threat. From this perspective, his silver level
status is a massive advantage."
“Unless he initiates the challenge, a gold level must accept before a fight can
occur between them.”
Of course, other factors, like immense profit, personal vendettas, or national
grievances, might prompt a gold level to challenge Long Fu. This was not a
normal situation.
Such a gold level would naturally be looked down upon by others and not
welcomed.
"If other gold level fighters genuinely issue him a duel challenge, Long Fu can
outright refuse. He wouldn't be implicated, and the public wouldn't be overly
disappointed. After all, a silver level rejecting a gold level's challenge is
perfectly normal."
"In this scenario, Bing Yang becomes exceptionally valuable. Should Bing Yang
challenge Long Fu, the situation would be entirely different."
“Bing Yang was once gold level, but has now fallen to silver level, this is an
indisputable fact.”
“Precisely because he was once gold level, Bing Yang's combat prowess among
silver level fighters should be in a league of its own.”
“He could absolutely pose a threat to Long Fu!”
"If Bing Yang issues a duel invitation, Long Fu will almost certainly accept.
Simply because Bing Yang is now silver level. Once such a duel is arranged, it
will immediately draw intense attention. Given Long Fu's reputation, spectators
following this duel will span the entire nation!"
Having analyzed this far, the Ice Prison Warden looked at He Gai Tou: “Over the
years, your gambling house's business has grown increasingly larger.”
"So, you intend to use this to make a major move. You plan to orchestrate and
manipulate a nationwide gambling scheme?"
Though phrased as a question, the warden's tone and demeanor radiated
certainty.
He believed he had seen through He Gai Tou's scheme.
“Correct.” He Gai Tou made no attempt to conceal it, nodding immediately in
direct acknowledgment.
This was indeed one of He Gai Tou's objectives.
Much like the duelist Mi Fang, who targeted Zong Ge to undermine the Jing Xiang
Clan's potion business and eliminate a commercial rival. He Gai Tou's motives
were equally complex.
On one hand, as the Ice Prison Warden had discerned, he sought to orchestrate a
gambling scheme for personal gain. On the other hand, as a duelist, eliminating
a major enemy was inherently advantageous to him.
The duelists sought to reclaim the bodies of the Axe Gang leader, Jia Bing, and
Lin.
According to their speculation, these gold level corpses wouldn't be easily
abandoned by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps; they should still be in their
possession.



****** Chapter 645: Bing Yang ******
Reclaiming corpses, strengthening Tranquil Hill, and contributing to the cause
of the Dueling God they worshipped, this was the shared conviction among
duelists.
There was another benefit that He Gai Tou valued greatly.
It was that through this matter, he could curry favor with Mei Lin.
He Gai Tou desired closeness with Mei Lin.
This wasn't born of romantic affection, but rather his inherent shrewdness and
skill in maneuvering.
He Gai Tou understood that among duelists, those with military backgrounds
formed the largest faction, and he sought to integrate into it.
But he wasn't from the military. On the contrary, he was a prisoner.
At least he had been.
Thus, he naturally lacked the trust of Mei Lin and others.
He Gai Tou's bloodline potential had been fully tapped. He could only reach
gold level; advancement beyond that was impossible.
Unable to strengthen himself, he channeled his energy into cultivating
connections.
Though gambling wasn't banned in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, his line of work
still fell within the gray economy. Once operations grew too large, they risked
crackdowns. They might even be targeted and absorbed by major nobles.
What He Gai Tou truly coveted was Mei Lin's military connections.
He sought to climb higher, finding a powerful protector.
This was why He Gai Tou annually delivered gold coins to the prison warden
before him.
Leaning back in his leather chair at a slight angle, the warden opened a drawer
and retrieved a metal box.
He placed the box on the desk.
The lid sprang open automatically, revealing neatly arranged cigars inside.
Each cigar was only as thick as an adult's finger, slightly slimmer than
standard market cigars, a product unique to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
“Care for one?”
“I don't smoke,” He Gai Tou declined.
No lighter was needed. The warden placed the cigar directly in his mouth. After
a few puffs, it ignited itself.
These specially crafted cigars were magic dishes in themselves.
Cigar production represented a unique branch within the culinary arts of magic.
The Ice Prison Warden drew in a breath, exhaling a puff of frost before
continuing their earlier discussion: “If we form this partnership, and Long Fu
accepts Bing Yang's challenge, who would you bet on?”
He Gai Tou answered without hesitation: “Long Fu, of course.”
“Even if Bing Yang was once a gold level, his combat strength still falls short
compared to Long Fu.”
The Ice Prison Warden nodded slightly, acknowledging He Gai Tou's point.
He Gai Tou continued, “In fact, this collaboration doesn't conflict with your
plan to earn merit, Lord Warden.”
“Bing Yang has consumed excessive amounts of the [Beautiful Future] magic
potion. He's already nearing death.”
“Even if he's willing to downgrade his level to survive, the potion's effects
remain overwhelmingly potent.”
“Once you approve his nomination, I'll aggressively promote him, shape public
opinion, and rapidly inflate his odds.”
At this point, He Gai Tou adjusted his posture. “There's significant potential
here.”
"When Bing Yang falls in battle, per national policy, you, the warden, can
nominate Shi Liu as his replacement. As a gold level powerhouse, he could still
vie for the ultimate crown."
The Ice Prison Warden did not respond, instead taking a deep puff of his cigar.
He parted his lips slightly, the mist from his mouth flowing into his nostrils
and then into his lungs, circulating so swiftly it brought him a refreshingly
clear sense of relief.
Only after a dozen seconds did he exhale the smoke.
“If I get involved this time, how much could I earn?”
"Hard to estimate precisely. But I'd say at least this much."
He Gai Tou held up his fingers, forming the number eight.
A sharp gleam flashed in the Ice Prison Warden's eyes. "Only eighty thousand
gold coins? Hmph. This is a nationwide gamble. That's far too little for me."
He Gai Tou shook his head with a bitter smile. “This is already substantial.”
"Lord Warden, you may be overestimating me. Though I own a gambling house, it's
not large. How many years have I truly been involved in this business?"
“My Lord, you know the truth.”
"Had you partnered with me years ago, the gambling house would certainly not be
its current size. If we'd done this deal back then, our profits would've at
least doubled!"
He Gai Tou shook his head. “But now, this current betting pool is already my
limit.”
“Though it's nationwide, constrained by my gambling house, the scale of bets we
receive won't be huge.”
The warden snorted coldly, narrowing his eyes. For a moment, he focused only on
smoking, saying nothing.
He puffed on his cigarette while deep in thought.
In truth, he participated in the gambling events He Gai Tou organized every
year.
Of course, he placed his bets.
Over the years, he's won more than he's lost. That was how He Gai Tou managed
to funnel him 3,000 gold pieces annually on average.
As the house, He Gai Tou naturally had some leeway to manipulate the outcomes
of the games.
To placate investigations from the royal family and others, he had staged
numerous losing rounds. Moreover, since the Ice Prison Warden funded his own
bets, any winnings were purely a testament to his skill. This had nothing to do
with bribery.
He Gai Tou had long sought to curry favor with the Ice Prison Warden, but over
the past two decades, his repeated overtures had been consistently rejected.
The warden understood clearly: participating in He Gai Tou's gambling
operations and serving as his patron were entirely different matters.
The warden possessed self-awareness: “I am a human occupying a high position.”
“The role of Ice Prison Warden is a lucrative post.”
“Countless snow elves eye my seat.”
"Truthfully, accepting He Gai Tou's annual gold coins is already pushing the
limit. Do you really think the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's higher-ups can't see
through this?"
“Hahaha, as if!”
“It's just that all these actions stay within the game's rules.”
In short, the Ice Prison Warden would never engage in deep cooperation with He
Gai Tou.
He smoked half his cigar before declaring, “Eighty thousand is too low. I want
at least one hundred twenty thousand.”
“With a gold level powerhouse clearly residing in the Ice Prison, recommending
a mere silver level candidate is untenable. It could even trigger an
investigation.”
“Moreover, what if Bing Yang wins? My investment would go down the drain, and
I'd bear all the risk personally."
He Gai Tou snorted coldly inside.
He could tell the Ice Prison Warden was tempted, but he was making excuses to
drive up the price.
What investigation? With the network he'd built in the Kingdom, that was
practically impossible.
Besides, it was entirely possible to explain himself.
In the Ice Prison's history, they had indeed fielded prisoners of the silver
level before. Back then, the gold level prisoners were relatively weak and
lacked competitiveness in the Grand Duel. They settled for the next best
option, enlisting skilled silver level fighters, and achieved quite respectable
results.
He Gai Tou knew the warden was trying to drive up the price. He immediately put
on a smile and engaged in a round of bargaining with him.
Ultimately, He Gai Tou held firm at 100,000 gold coins, refusing to budge an
inch.
“Very well then,” the warden exhaled smoke from his cigar. “For your sake,
100,000 gold it is.”
He knew when to stop.
After all, they were both gold levels. He Gai Tou even gave him gold coins
yearly, so they had formed a relationship.
“I can recommend Bing Yang, but you'll have to persuade him personally.”
“I must warn you; he might not agree to fight.”
“He consumed massive quantities of the potion [Beautiful Future]. To survive,
he'd even accept demotion to a lower level.”
“His imprisonment here stems from his own decision, after securing connections,
he deliberately committed a crime and turned himself in. His primary purpose in
entering the prison was to utilize its magic formation to suppress the potion's
effects and extend his lifespan."
“And now you want him to walk out and participate in a duel?”
“Heh, it won't be that easy.”
On this point, He Gai Tou was brimming with confidence.
"Rest assured, Lord, I've made thorough preparations. Time is limited. Let's
proceed now. You'll witness firsthand how I persuade him."
“Very well. Follow me.” The Ice Prison Warden rose to his feet.
He led He Gai Tou deep into the third underground level, stopping before a cell
door.
A guard respectfully opened the cell door.
The Ice Prison Warden, He Gai Tou, and the others entered one after another.
The cell was compact yet lavishly furnished.
Bing Yang was dining.
Though the table was small, it was laden with exquisite magic delicacies,
exquisitely presented and fragrant.
This felt less like imprisonment and more like a vacation.
After all, Bing Yang had once been a gold level, retaining his former
connections and substantial wealth.
A significant portion of his assets came from compensation paid by the Alchemy
Guild.
He was a victim of the potion known as the [Beautiful Future]. The incident had
caused a massive uproar at the time, stirring nationwide controversy.
Upon seeing the warden and He Gai Tou, Bing Yang dared not act presumptuously.
He promptly rose to his feet and bowed in respect.
After all, he was no longer a gold level individual.
"Lord Warden. Oh, and Lord He Gai Tou. I've been hearing a lot about you lately
from fellow inmates and guards alike."
He Gai Tou was quite renowned, the most formidable fighter to emerge from the
Ice Prison in recent years. Whenever the Grand Duel commenced, he became the
talk of the entire prison, the subject of endless discussion.
He Gai Tou appraised the figure before him.
Bing Yang was a snow elf, handsome, slender, and undeniably frail. His face was
deeply wrinkled, his eyes dim. Even standing felt like an effort, his movements
tremulous, like an old man with little time left.
When he spoke, his teeth were visible.
He Gai Tou noticed immediately that many of Bing Yang's teeth were missing.
Though his mouth appeared full, most were alchemy crafted false teeth.
The Ice Prison Warden nodded slightly. “It is he, He Gai Tou, who is looking
for you.”
Bing Yang turned to He Gai Tou, curiosity evident in his expression.
Instead of stating his purpose directly, He Gai Tou turned to the small dining
table. "The food is excellent, but the wine leaves something to be desired. As
it happens, I brought some of my own. Have a taste."
With that, he drew a small metal flask from his robe.
He uncorked it and poured its entire contents into an empty glass stemmed cup.
The quantity was meager to begin with, leaving only a thin layer coating the
bottom of the glass once emptied.
It was red wine, radiating a gold level aura.
He Gai Tou handed the glass to Bing Yang. “Drink up. It suits you perfectly.”



****** Chapter 646: Beautiful Future ******
Bing Yang glanced at the wine glass, then at He Gai Tou, before reaching out to
take the glass.
He wasn't overly concerned that He Gai Tou might harm him. After all, they had
no grudge against each other, and Bing Yang hadn't entered the Ice Prison to
evade enemies.
He was here to prolong his life.
“The likelihood of He Gai Tou poisoning me is extremely low, since the Ice
Prison warden is right here.”
After pondering, Bing Yang felt a sense of understanding.
He examined the wine in the glass, which held only a thin layer.
Bing Yang: "My current miserable state is entirely due to the magic potion
[Beautiful Future]. To resolve this dilemma, a mere gold level potion is
utterly insufficient. I've attempted it countless times. At the very least, a
saint level potion is required."
“Potions won't do, and this magical dish is even less likely to work.”
At this point, Bing Yang couldn't help but sigh deeply.
To survive and solve the problems plaguing him, he had tried countless things.
His final hope lay in a saint level potion.
But obtaining such a potion was exceedingly difficult. Even when Bing Yang was
at the gold level, he had failed.
To concoct a saint level potion, one must be a saint level alchemist, and that
alchemist must possess profound alchemy expertise.
Already rare, a saint level magician must also possess profound alchemy
expertise, a challenge compounded by impossibility.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild held formidable power yet lacked a
single saint level alchemist.
Among the kingdom's three saint level figures, the Royal Grand Magician
existed, but he was not skilled in alchemy.
In truth, once one reached the saint level, market offerings became far
scarcer. Unlike gold level items, which could still be somewhat widely supplied
as high-end goods, saint level items circulating in the market were extremely
rare, though at least still visible.
Legend level items, however, were nearly extinct.
When dealing with legend level transactions, due to their extreme rarity and
high value, they often reverted to the primitive method of barter—exchanging
goods for goods.
He Gai Tou remained silent, urging Bing Yang only with his gaze. For he knew:
no amount of words could compare to the effect of Bing Yang taking a sip.
Bing Yang studied the red wine in his glass, then cautiously, hesitantly, took
a sip.
Instantly, his brow furrowed deeply.
The taste was too sharp; it was like drinking blood!
The rich, bloody scent filled his entire mouth, even seeping into his
bloodstream.
But in the next instant, Bing Yang's frown smoothed out, his eyes sparkling.
As if the earlier taste had been an illusion, the mouthful of blood suddenly
transformed into the aroma of wine. The rich wine fragrance enveloped him like
a bath, drenching him from head to toe.
Every inch of his skin, every pore, relaxed and reveled in the sensation.
“What fine wine!” he exclaimed.
Then, the praise on his face turned to shock.
He instinctively raised his right hand, pressing his palm against his chest.
Head bowed, he stared at his own torso in disbelief: "How is this possible?"
“The effects of the [Beautiful Future] potion are actually dissipating!?”
The next instant, he jerked his head up as if electrocuted, staring intently at
He Gai Tou and shouting excitedly, “Quick! Quick! Tell me, what kind of wine is
this?”
He Gai Tou replied, "Sorrow-dispelling red wine. It's a fine wine from the
Sheng Ming Empire. Though only of gold level, its ingredients are exceptionally
premium, one being divine blood."
“Divine blood?” Everyone present was shaken.
"Indeed. And it cannot be just any divine blood; it must be the blood of the
Wine God. Only with this divine blood can the sorrow-dispelling red wine be
crafted."
“It is precisely because of this that it possesses a unique efficacy: the
dissolution of transcendent powers.”
“Both permanent spells and divine spells lose their effects under the influence
of sorrow-dispelling red wine.”
“The potion you consumed, [Beautiful Future], would be no exception.”
Bing Yang stared blankly at the wine glass once more: “Divine blood... sorrow-
dispelling red wine...”
Then, he sighed and asked, “So, Lord He Gai Tou, what do you want me to do?”
He Gai Tou stated bluntly, “Kill someone.”
“Who?”
“Long Fu.”
“Him?” Bing Yang frowned again.
Though confined within the Ice Prison, his senses remained unobstructed. On the
contrary, he knew much, his intelligence network exceptionally sharp.
"Long Fu slew Teng Dong Lang, a silver level slaying a gold level. His combat
prowess is extraordinary. Unless I regain my gold level status, I wouldn't dare
challenge him." Bing Yang stated.
He hadn't refused outright; his words were merely bargaining points.
He Gai Tou shook his head. “If a gold level challenger approached him, he'd
likely refuse.”
“It's precisely because you've fallen to silver level yet retain some gold
level strength that I sought you out.”
Bing Yang's eyes flickered as hesitation took hold.
He Gai Tou smiled, understanding his thoughts. “The sorrow-dispelling red wine
is extremely precious. Though only of gold level, its ingredients are
exceptionally high-grade.”
“To be honest, this wine originates from the Intoxication Church.”
Truthfully, this wasn't something He Gai Tou could obtain on his own.
He acquired it through Mei Lin's connections.
The entire haul amounted to just this single sip of wine, an incredibly
precious drop!
"The Intoxication Church? The Wine God of the Sheng Ming Empire? I hear
Drunkard Harbor has become this deity's parish?"
“That's right. For this National Ceremony Grand Duel, the Intoxication Church
is making a major push to spread their faith. They're heavily sponsoring the
event, providing two thousand tons of wine free to the capital's residents.
They're also involved in the national banquet. This sorrow-dispelling red wine
is the wine served there, extremely rare. I only managed to get some samples by
pure luck. You want to buy it? It's practically impossible!"
Bing Yang's expression faltered, his illusions shattered.
He Gai Tou chuckled softly and added, “Of course, you're welcome to try your
luck later.”
Bing Yang nodded. “I will.”
Deep down, he already believed He Gai Tou's words.
This left him with no choice but to rely on He Gai Tou as his sole channel.
Even after the National Ceremony Grand Duel, approaching the Intoxication
Church would prove extremely difficult. After all, the primary ingredient was
the blood of the Wine God. That fact alone ensured the quantity of this sorrow-
dispelling red wine would be exceedingly scarce.
It wasn't about excessive consumption of divine blood. It was obvious the Wine
God's blood must be diluted many times over before being used in the wine's
production.
The crucial issue was faith.
The Intoxication Church wasn't like the Alchemy Guild or a regular merchant
alliance; it was a church.
They worshiped the Wine God, how could any believer drink the blood of their
object of worship?
Such an act would be grave sacrilege!
This wine was destined to be a scarce commodity. Selling too much of it would
undermine faith in the Wine God.
“Under these circumstances, I realize there's little left to negotiate,” Bing
Yang quickly grasped the true situation in his heart.
He responded decisively, agreeing directly to He Gai Tou's terms.
He Gai Tou clapped his hands with a laugh: “Excellent!”
Then, turning to the Ice Prison Warden, he said: “I kindly request the warden
to clear a space so I may personally assess Bing Yang's actual combat prowess.”
“After this personal evaluation, I shall also prepare equipment suited to him.”
With a hundred thousand gold coins at stake, the Ice Prison Warden naturally
cooperated fully.
Within the Ice Prison lay a small duel arena, where daily disputes between
prisoners and guards were settled.
This alone revealed how prevalent dueling was in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Soon, the group arrived at the arena.
Bing Yang, rubbing his hands together eagerly, strode to the center of the
field.
He Gai Tou stood solemnly, ready for battle.
The Ice Prison Warden sat by the wall, observing.
The two commenced their battle.
In an instant, battle qi collided, figures flew through the air. Exchanges came
thick and fast, the clashes thunderous.
The combat prowess Bing Yang displayed was indeed formidable, far surpassing
silver level.
Moreover, his tactics were fully matured, battle qi technique and battle skills
perfectly coordinated. His combat experience was profound, his battle skills
and martial arts deeply ingrained, as if carved into his very bones.
Yet flaws remained, notably issues with his combat rhythm.
His attacks often lacked fluidity, abruptly halting mid-strike.
All three observers understood the reason.
Bing Yang had fallen from gold level to silver level, and many gold level
battle skills became unusable at the silver level.
The crucial factor lies in the nature of battle qi.
Gold level battle qi could be condensed from nothingness, which was why many
gold level battle skills were developed.
The most classic example were flight battle skills.
The principle behind the vast majority of flight battle skills relied on gold
level battle skill to propel the fighter themselves through displacement.
Silver level battle qi lacks the properties of gold level, rendering certain
battle skills ineffective.
Once He Gai Tou began applying pressure, the previous stalemate shattered, and
Bing Yang found himself at a disadvantage.
The earlier back-and-forth exchanges had been possible mainly because He Gai
Tou had deliberately held back, prioritizing defense to thoroughly assess Bing
Yang's actual combat prowess in real combat.
After personally observing for a while, He Gai Tou had a clear understanding.
“Bing Yang possesses strength, but after his demotion, he hasn't focused on
combat power.”
“He maintained a certain level of training, but he hasn't adjusted his battle
skill or tactics.”
“However, all of this can be changed.”
"For the battle skill he's familiar with, we can try to find a silver level
substitute. If none are available, equipment can compensate."
After several more exchanges, He Gai Tou gradually intensified his assault,
completely overwhelming Bing Yang who was now thoroughly flustered.
“Any more moves? Use them all,” He Gai Tou urged. “Only then can I provide the
most suitable equipment to offer maximum assistance.”
Bing Yang hesitated briefly before growling, “Then please be extremely
cautious, Lord He Gai Tou. This move might very well injure you.”
This statement instantly piqued the interest of both He Gai Tou and the Ice
Prison Warden.
The next instant, Bing Yang took a small step back, then slammed his chest,
activating the alchemy brooch there while unleashing his battle skill—Frost
Aura!
Though originally a gold level battle skill, Bing Yang could barely manage it
with the alchemy brooch's aid.
Instantly, a halo radiated outward from him at breakneck speed.
"This is...!" The Ice Prison Warden's pupils contracted sharply.
“Oh no! Dodge!” He Gai Tou also sensed danger, showing no intention to block as
he blasted backward.



****** Chapter 647: Accepting the Challenge ******
Bing Yang didn't pursue, instead remaining where he stood.
After creating some distance, He Gai Tou halted, a look of astonishment on his
face as he stared at the three-meter radius circle of light. “Your Frost Aura
actually intertwined with the effects of the [Beautiful Future] potion?”
“That's right. It was an accidental discovery,” Bing Yang replied.
Both He Gai Tou and the Ice Prison Warden fell silent. Their eyes flickered as
they stared at the aura, their expressions as if avoiding venomous snakes!
“This time, Long Fu is in serious trouble!”
“It's entirely possible he could lose to Bing Yang.”
He Gai Tou felt a surge of excitement, while the Ice Prison Warden's face
clouded with worry.
He Gai Tou voluntarily halted the battle, deeply wary of this mutated Frost
Aura.
“Alright, I have a rough idea now. I know what kind of gear suits you.”
“What about your own gear?”
Bing Yang answered honestly: “Most of it's been sold off.”
Tormented by the effects of the magic potion, he sensed his days were numbered.
After all attempts to prolong his life failed, he deliberately committed a
crime. Using his connections, he arranged to be imprisoned within the Ice
Prison.
Though the prison's environment temporarily suppressed the potion's effects, he
had already sunk into despair and resignation.
To savor the last beautiful moments of his life, he not only sold off his gold
level gear but also gradually liquidated some assets. With the money, he
purchased luxury items, like magic delicacies, to indulge in.
He Gai Tou nodded, learned about Bing Yang's battle skills, and then took his
leave.
The Ice Prison warden escorted him all the way out. Before parting, a deep look
of worry crossed his face: “I'm truly worried.”
“The Frost Aura itself isn't terrifying. What's terrifying is that it mutated
due to the [Beautiful Future] potion, gaining the power of time itself.”
“If Long Fu loses, won't our bets go down the drain?”
He Gai Tou thought: “Wouldn't it be best if Bing Yang could eliminate Long Fu
outright?”
He desperately wished for that outcome.
But for now, he couldn't be candid with the warden.
So, he reassured him: "No, in my view, Long Fu still holds the greater
strength. Even with Bing Yang's trump card, Long Fu has the better odds of
winning."
The Ice Prison Warden dismissed this, shaking his head. "I don't believe it!
I've seen the magic recordings myself. I know exactly how Long Fu defeated Teng
Dong Lang."
He Gai Tou pondered briefly before offering a counterargument, “Then you must
not have witnessed how Long Fu repelled Hua Tang.”
The Ice Prison Warden froze. "I've heard rumors about that. But whether a
notorious thief like Hua Tang is real or fake, who can say for sure?"
He Gai Tou produced a magic crystal ball, small, no bigger than a baby's fist.
“This contains the footage of Hua Tang and Long Fu clashing.”
“Someone captured it by accident.”
“My Lord, after viewing this, you'll understand my confidence in Long Fu.”
This footage, of course, had been secretly recorded by agents deployed by Mei
Lin.
It captured the battle from every angle.
Mei Lin was an exceptional commander who understood the critical importance of
military intelligence. Thus, during Hua Tang's operation, she had deliberately
begun gathering firsthand intelligence.
The one He Gai Tou presented was merely one of several copies.
The Ice Prison Warden immediately reviewed the magic footage, his expression
quickly shifting.
Though the battle was brief, Hua Tang's combat prowess was unmistakably of gold
level. Yet “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) performed exceptionally well, nearly matching
him blow for blow.
“How is Long Fu so powerful?” the Ice Prison Warden wondered aloud.
He Gai Tou smiled faintly, deliberately lowering his voice as he voiced his
conjecture: “You know the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has some deep
connections, right?”
“Long Fu's strength isn't that straightforward either.”
“I'm inclined to believe he deliberately feigned weakness, only ‘barely
managing’ to defeat Teng Dong Lang.”
“I even doubt whether he's truly silver level.”
“After all, our nation's dueling rules only prohibit outside assistance. If a
duelist disguises their level so others can't tell, that's actually a skill in
itself, not a violation at all.”
The Ice Prison Warden suddenly understood: “So that's how it is!”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is suspected of arms smuggling. To secure a
market, they naturally need a reputation.”
“If a gold level fighter pretends to be silver level and duels, creating the
stunning feat of a silver defeating a gold level, they'll become famous
nationwide in no time!”
“What a brilliant plan... No wonder Teng Dong Lang's defeat in the final blow
seemed so abrupt.”
Seeing the warden's reaction, He Gai Tou added, “Rest assured. As the bookmaker
controlling the betting pool, do you think I'd want to make a loss?”
The Ice Prison Warden was finally completely convinced.
He Gai Tou also possessed exceptional initiative. Once Bing Yang's
participation was confirmed, he immediately ordered the news to be spread while
simultaneously leveraging channels like Mei Lin to procure equipment and battle
skills for Bing Yang.
With duelists secretly aiding him, the relevant information quickly spread.
"Have you heard? Bing Yang has issued a duel challenge to Long Fu!”
"Who is Bing Yang? Sounds somewhat familiar."
“Lord Long Fu's combat prowess is top tier among silver level fighters. Can
Bing Yang stop his winning streak?”
“Bing Yang isn't like other silver level fighters. He was once a gold level
fighter who fell in level after overusing the magic potion [Beautiful Future].”
“So that's it!”
"He's also a victim of [Beautiful Future]? How is he still alive after all
these years?"
“He was once a gold level, after all. And I heard he deliberately committed a
crime, entered the Ice Prison, and discovered a way to counteract the potion's
effects!”
"Bing Yang is not ordinary! He was once gold level, and now he can resist the
[Beautiful Future] potion. He's even challenging Long Fu now, he must be
confident. How much combat power does he have left?"
“Could it be that Bing Yang has recovered and returned to gold level?”
“No, multiple sources confirm he's still silver level.”
"But this isn't ordinary silver level. His combat power must be astonishing. I
wonder who'd come out on top in a fight between him and Long Fu?"
"I'm dying to see it too! Their clash could easily be the strongest silver
level showdown of this National Ceremony Grand Duel."
“Now it all hinges on Long Fu's response, will they accept or decline?”
"They absolutely have to accept! A challenge of the gold level would be one
thing—after all, Long Fu is only silver level. We can understand a refusal in
this case. But how can he possibly decline a duel with another silver level?"
"There's no need to speculate on that. I firmly believe Long Fu won't refuse.
He dared challenge even the gold level Teng Dong Lang and took him down in
public, why would he fear a mere Bing Yang?"
"This battle is definitely happening! Finally, the National Ceremony Grand Duel
is starting to feel worthwhile."
“Too bad they're both in the capital. We won't get to see it live.”
"So what? The magic broadcast of this fight will be a huge hit."
"Hmm?   Didn't you know Long Fu has been holding duels privately lately,
without spectators?"
“Ah, I suppose that's true...”
"Then let's make our voices heard! We demand this duel be public, we want to
watch. If they won't show us, we won't buy their dragon rider potions!"
“Hahaha, if the duel goes public, I'll buy ten sets of potions right away to
support the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Public sentiment quickly surged like massive waves, swiftly engulfing Zong Ge
and Zi Di.
Zong Ge keenly sensed the hostility: "Enemies are spreading and amplifying this
public sentiment. Just as we discussed before, they aim to constantly harass
me, hinder my recovery, assess my condition, and then strike when the
opportunity arises."
Zi Di paced back and forth, her expression troubled. “Based on the intelligence
we've gathered so far, Bing Yang was already an elite when he was still at the
gold level!”
“Had he not been dragged down by the potion [Beautiful Future], his future
would have been bright. He wouldn't have ended up voluntarily locking himself
up.”
“Now that he's been chosen by our enemies, they'll definitely arm him
properly.”
“This doesn't bode well...”
“Yet in our current predicament, we cannot refuse.”
Zong Ge's rejection of a gold level duel was understandable, but outright
rejecting a silver level one would inevitably damage his reputation, making the
Ice Sculpture citizens perceive him as weak and cowardly.
This deeply contradicted the values and ethos of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The best-case scenario would be sales of the dragon rider potion halving, and
that was optimistic.
A sharp gleam flashed in Zong Ge's eyes, showing no sign of retreat: “Since
we've leveraged our reputation, we'll naturally be bound by it.”
“Forget our business plans, Bing Yang must be eliminated.”
"Yuan Ci orchestrated this behind the scenes; originally, Shi Liu was to
represent Ice Prison in battle. Now, Bing Yang has usurped that spot. Once I
eliminate him and free that spot, Shi Liu can take his place."
Zi Di sighed and could only nod in agreement.
He Gai Tou remained unaware that his selection of Bing Yang for battle
disrupted not only the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' commercial ambitions but
also the secret plan to unlock the Wisteria Cache.
Bing Yang must die!
This was the resolve of Zong Ge and Zi Di.
After reaching their decision, Zong Ge prepared for battle.
Zi Di, meanwhile, contacted the Li Jian Clan.
She presented two potion recipes to the Li Jian Clan's alchemist: “One is the
potion [Spirit Stimulation], the other is the potion [Smooth Stride]. Both are
used to accelerate magic beast mounts.”
“The former accelerates mental processing, while the latter boosts physical
movement speed.”
“Once these are brewed and released to the market, they're bound to spark a
second wave of sales frenzy.”
Zi Di was confident.
The alchemist lacked her business acumen and couldn't grasp the vast commercial
potential, but he could study the two potion formulas.
Soon, the Li Jian Clan member marveled: “Brilliant! The acceleration principle
of the [Smooth Stride] potion doesn't just boost the mount's base speed, it
also mimics a spell like [Grease Feet], drastically reducing resistance.”
When it reached the hands of the Li Jian Clan steward, who also possessed some
business acumen, he saw even more: "The [Spirit Stimulation] potion is
exceptional! Its alchemy cost is remarkably low. It accelerates mounts'
thinking, making them more agile and preventing them from being overwhelmed by
sudden high speeds. In our kingdom, mind-enhancing potions primarily focus on
calming thoughts and resisting external distractions. When it comes to
accelerating thought, none can compete."
“This potion is bound to be a huge hit!”



****** Chapter 648: Grand Tournament Reward ******
Zi Di had carefully considered her choice of potions— Smooth Stride and Spirit
Stimulation.
In her original plan, her next alchemy product was to be the Song of Ice and
Fire. This was not a potion and thus fell outside the cooperative agreement
between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan.
Zi Di intended to establish her own alchemy laboratory, workshop, or factory,
essentially relying on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' own strength for
independent production.
The advantage of this approach was that the profits earned would not need to be
shared with other factions but would be exclusively enjoyed by the survivors.
Simultaneously, it would grant genuine production capacity.
This production capability, combined with the already established sales
channels, would form the cornerstone of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
alchemy business.
The immense fame of the dragonman youngster directly spared the survivors the
effort of advertising.
The collaboration on dragon rider potions ensured the survivors continued to
enjoy the protection of the Li Jian Clan.
Zi Di's business plan unfolded step by step, tightly paced and logically
arranged. Each phase yielded tangible results. Upon overall completion, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would sell their alchemy goods nationwide across
Ice Sculpture.
The plan was sound, but reality always brought complications.
The challenge from Bing Yang made Zi Di and Zong Ge realize this was another
enemy move.
The survivors' own business plans, coupled with the stakes involving the
Wisteria Cache, left Zong Ge and Zi Di no choice but to confront the threat
head-on.
"Zong Ge is stubborn, he won't retreat. He's our mainstay now, the sole pillar
holding this situation together. We absolutely cannot let him fall!"
“I should do something too.”
Before the discussion began, Zi Di had already anticipated Zong Ge's choice.
Spirit Stimulation and Smooth Stride were her ways of supporting him.
Originally, Zi Di had intended to collaborate with the Li Jian Clan on only a
single potion. The profits from the dragon rider potion were sufficient to
sustain their alliance.
Only after the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had grown strong enough to withstand
risks would Zi Di consider re-entering the potion market with [Smooth Stride]
and [Spirit Stimulation].
By partnering with the Li Jian Clan this way, the formulas for these two
potions would inevitably be leaked.
“There was no choice. Circumstances forced this course.”
“Fortunately, War Merchant's database holds many such potion recipes.”
"The next priority is establishing production facilities. Setting up alchemy
labs within the royal capital is relatively straightforward."
Over recent days, Zi Di observed numerous alchemy laboratories, many of which
lay abandoned.
Several streets in the capital were once lined end-to-end with alchemy labs.
Not only on the surface, but beneath the ice lake, the number of alchemy labs
was even greater!
“I can apply for some of these labs and secretly convert them into alchemy
workshops for production.”
“Better yet, select a location and build a large-scale alchemy factory with
assembly lines.”
“Just like what I once saw on Mystifying Monster Island.”
However, constructing an alchemy factory proved far more challenging than
establishing workshops.
Site selection required careful consideration, and factory construction permits
needed to be applied for.
“Funding for construction isn't a concern, profits from dragon rider potions
are more than sufficient.”
“Regarding factory permits, we could explore avenues through the Li Jian Clan
or Elder Jiu Jin.”
“The most critical issue is security!”
Currently, Zi Di remained unaware of the duelists' true identities. Neither she
nor Zong Ge could uncover the depths of this mysterious faction.
Once the factory was built, it would inevitably become the prime target for
attack.
Zi Di and the duelists had clashed over several rounds, and she deeply sensed
the enemy's formidable strength. This power extended beyond combat prowess to
encompass the intellect and strategic cunning exemplified by Mei Lin.
“The most thorough solution to the security issue is a mage tower!”
“Ah... a mage tower feels so far beyond my reach.”
The funds required to construct a mage tower were astronomical. Profits from
dragon rider potions alone were utterly insufficient.
Qualification to build a mage tower within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was
exceedingly rare. It was not something outsiders like the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps could obtain.
These two obstacles alone loomed as high as mountains before Zi Di, making even
the mere thought of overcoming them feel overwhelming.
“Magician Yao Ma, according to our cooperation agreement, what does your side
require this time?” The Li Jian Clan steward's expression was solemn.
The first collaboration, merely the dragon rider potion, yielded such enormous
profits that the entire Li Jian Clan was thrilled.
Now, Zi Di was presenting two potion formulas, thoroughly proving the
survivors' prowess in the field of potion-making. This action earned the Li
Jian Clan a more proactive stance toward cooperation.
Zi Di stated directly, “Now, we've encountered a bit of trouble.”
“You've likely heard about the duel challenge from Bing Yang?”
The Li Jian Clan steward nodded, expressing confidence in Long Fu and doubting
Bing Yang's victory.
Zi Di continued, "While we share that view, we must ensure absolute certainty.
After all, should the commander suffer defeat, it would deal a devastating blow
to our potion sales."
The Li Jian Clan steward nodded repeatedly: “You're absolutely right!”
Bound by mutual interests, they understood perfectly the consequences of Long
Fu's defeat. The steward appeared even more concerned than Zi Di: “If there's
anything we can do to help, just say the word.”
Zi Di shook her head: “We've gathered extensive intelligence on Bing Yang, but
he's rarely fought publicly in recent years and has been secluded within his
ice prison.”
“Honestly, I'm unsure how to prepare for this battle.”
“Understood, I understand,” the steward replied. “I'll depart immediately to
relay this news back. We'll mobilize the clan's resources for an urgent
investigation, then make targeted preparations!”
“Yes, hurry back. I await your report,” Zi Di instructed.
The Li Jian Clan steward hurriedly bowed and turned to leave.
Zi Di sighed inwardly. This was the benefit of having interests intertwined.
“Of course, our intelligence capabilities remain severely lacking.”
Zi Di once again felt the weakness of their position. The intelligence they
purchased externally lacked depth.
For now, they could only rely on the Li Jian Clan, barely managing to address
the issue.
It would be better to establish their own intelligence agency.
External entities like the Li Jian Clan and the Thieves' Guild had conflicting
interests with the survivors. Many intelligence-gathering actions themselves
leaked secrets.
For instance, when Zi Di previously investigated the Wisteria shop, she had to
act alone.
Though she achieved results, she relied on the ice gargoyle, snake shadow
ghost, and rat eye ghost. The former depended entirely on the Deceptive
Disguise spell, while the latter leveraged the undead faction's advantages of
being new.
But the Deceptive Disguise spell consumed the god level material pearl bubble,
the cost was far too high!
The undead faction's advantage steadily diminished over time, drawing ever
closer to its complete exhaustion.
“We need a stable, reliable intelligence gathering organization that truly
belongs to us...”
When Zi Di returned to the inn, Elder Jiu Jin had been waiting for quite some
time.
He looked at Zi Di, head held high, speaking with an air of superiority:
"Magician Yao Ma, my time is precious. Do you have any idea how much business
I've neglected waiting for you?"
Zi Di immediately smiled apologetically and offered monetary compensation for
Elder Jiu Jin's losses.
“My time,” Elder Jiu Jin declared, though his expression softened, “cannot be
measured by mere gold coins!”
The brief public display concluded, and Zi Di led Elder Jiu Jin into his study
for a private conversation.
The moment the study door closed, Elder Jiu Jin lowered his previously haughty
head. He dared not sit, instead standing as he reported the latest developments
to Zi Di.
Zi Di frowned. “Hua Ni intends to target us?”
Elder Jiu Jin hastily protested that this was not his wish, but he had no
choice, he could not defy Master Hua Ni's instructions.
“You must trust me!”
“Though I am an elder, I cannot compare to the likes of Hua Ni or Shuang Lian.”
“All I can do now is leak the exam questions to your side in advance.”
Elder Jiu Jin wore a deeply troubled expression.
With Zi Di holding his weakness, he could only obey her orders in secret,
submitting without resistance.
Zi Di smiled, indicating understanding, and offered Elder Jiu Jin several words
of comfort.
Then she asked what the exam questions were this time.
Elder Jiu Jin answered truthfully.
The hidden alchemy apparatus had already recorded this entire scene.
“Excellent. This gives me yet another leverage point over him.” This was
precisely what Zi Di sought.
The previous leverage had proven rather ineffective.
Should it be exposed, Elder Jiu Jin would inevitably face a full-scale
investigation due to the involvement of necromancers. Imprisonment,
interrogation, and removal from office would follow and his personal value
would be utterly destroyed.
Zi Di, intent on squeezing every last drop of value from Elder Jiu Jin, would
never allow him to become a prisoner.
The exam questions were indeed challenging.
After reviewing them, Zi Di's expression grew grave.
Elder Jiu Jin, reading her mood, subtly offered his assistance, hinting he
could secretly help Zi Di pass. However, the condition was that both parties
sign a contract, never to mention the necromancer's scandal again.
Elder Jiu Jin refused to be controlled and had his own agenda. He went with the
flow, using Hua Ni to create resistance and amplify Zi Di's need to advance in
the Warm Snow Cup Tournament, thereby planning to achieve his own goals.
Zi Di shot Elder Jiu Jin a glance, her mockery unmasked. “Elder Jiu Jin, you
seem to underestimate me.”
“Though I'm only a silver level with limited alchemy talent, passing the first
trial poses no difficulty.”
Elder Jiu Jin's face twisted with awkwardness.
Zi Di shifted her tone: “Of course, your suggestion is sound.”
“Should I require assistance later, rest assured, you'll be my first
consideration!”
Elder Jiu Jin offered a stiff smile.
After reviewing all the intelligence Elder Jiu Jin had provided, Zi Di
continued: “So this year's Warm Snow Cup has drastically increased in
difficulty, yet the rewards far exceed previous editions.”
"In the past, only the first-place winner earned the right to build a mage
tower. But this year, the top three all qualify for that privilege."
“Moreover, the champion will receive substantial sponsorship from the Ice
Sculpture Royal Family and the Alchemy Guild to aid in constructing their mage
tower!”



****** Chapter 649: Time Ice Cube ******
Speaking of which, Bu Quan's mentor, Shuang Lian, once claimed the championship
title at the Warm Snow Cup tournament.
The prize for the championship was a construction fund sponsorship specifically
for the mage tower.
This substantial sum proved immensely helpful to Shuang Lian, accounting for
nearly 40% of the total construction costs for the Honey Snow Tower.
Of course, the construction of the Honey Snow Tower had been a lengthy
endeavor.
Even now, it remains a work in progress. This was because mage towers were
constantly being remodeled and refined.
The initial championship sponsorship enabled Shuang Lian to lay the foundation
and framework of the tower. Combined with the steady flow of funds from her
demi-plane enterprises, this sustained the ongoing construction of the Honey
Snow Tower.
Zi Di was well aware of this fact.
She also understood that the champion sponsorship was specifically tied to the
tower's construction. Without the mage tower, the funding would cease.
Moreover, the relevant contract stipulated: While the mage tower built by the
champion belonged to the alchemist, it also fell under the jurisdiction of the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Zi Di interpreted this initiative thus: “This massive investment not only
secures exceptional talent like the alchemist magician but also fully motivates
the champion, adding a mage tower to the kingdom.”
“The beneficiaries of this policy are not only the champion but also the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.”
If she wished to effectively counter enemy threats, a mage tower was indeed the
optimal choice.
With substantial sponsorship, Zi Di could fully construct the mage tower. The
specifications for the Honey Snow Tower far exceeded ordinary standards. For
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, building a regular mage tower would have been
entirely sufficient!
But when Elder Jiu Jin heard Zi Di inquire about the rewards for the top three,
he shook his head immediately: “This year's Warm Snow Cup Tournament is indeed
quite special.”
“Because it's being held during the National Ceremony period.”
"This time, the third-place prize is equivalent to the championship reward of
previous years. The rewards for first and second place far exceed third place."
"The first-place prize isn't just funding; it includes vast resources for tower
construction. Our Alchemy Guild has calculated that this reward alone could
fund 80% of a standard mage tower."
“The second-place prize covers 60%.”
“But competition this year is exceptionally fierce. If your corps intends to
rely solely on the Necromancer Aura Detector, don't even dream of securing a
top-three spot.”
After delivering this warning, Elder Jiu Jin emphasized: “Don't even entertain
the thought!”
Zi Di's expression remained composed as she pressed for details: “Tell me, just
how intense is the competition?”
Elder Jiu Jin continued, "Take the first category alone, many elders from our
guild have entered this competition. Elder Hua Ni is one such participant."
"Beyond that, there are rising talents like Xue Tuan Zi. And established
alchemy powerhouses, such as the current ruler of Blood Kin City. For this
tournament, most of them have spent over half a year preparing!"
“You can imagine how extraordinary their final alchemy creations will be.”
Zi Di nodded slightly. “I'm well aware of this situation. Who said I didn't
know?”
Elder Jiu Jin hesitated briefly before continuing, “Let me share one of the
latest alchemy breakthroughs.”
“Have you heard of time ice?”
Zi Di: “Of course I do. It's a specialty of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake. The
power of a god level dragon's corpse has eroded and transformed the ice layers
within the lake.”
“These ice layers contain the mysterious power of time. Through specific
methods, the ice is mined and crafted into small ice cubes. Each cube holds a
fragment of time's immense power, truly wondrous.”
“Right after they were first mined, time ice cubes became the hottest alchemy
material in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, even sparking a global craze.”
Elder Jiu Jin took up the thread: “Sadly, this craze came quickly and faded
just as fast.”
"The main reason was the extremely limited ways to utilize time ice cubes. The
material itself is excellent, but finding suitable methods to harness this
resource proved exceedingly difficult."
“Countless alchemists pursued research relentlessly, only to fail.”
“Until this year, when a collaborative project here achieved a breakthrough!”
"This alchemy endeavor is titled: Exploring the Consumption of Time Ice Cubes.
It has now been successfully developed."
"By infusing time ice cubes into our sorrow-dispelling red wine, we achieve a
controlled release of their temporal energy. Those who drink this wine
experience accelerated time in a specific aspect of their bodies."
“After thousands of trials, the results are nothing short of perfect!”
Zi Di heard of the sorrow-dispelling red wine for the first time and
immediately latched onto the key phrase, prompting, “What do you mean by ‘time
in a certain aspect’?”
Elder Jiu Jin knew his explanation wasn't clear enough, so he simply gave an
example: “While people savor time ice cubes and sorrow-dispelling red wine,
they also complement them with other magic delicacies.”
"For instance, consuming certain magic beast meat allows the absorbed magic
power to align with the fighter's own battle qi. After consuming the Ice Cube
Red Wine, the time required for cultivating battle qi is dramatically
accelerated, achieving the effect of massively saving the time needed to refine
battle qi."
Zi Di realized something: "This means that eating magic cuisine together with
the Ice Cube Red Wine can greatly shorten cultivation time. Can't transcendents
then advance to higher levels within months or years then?"
Elder Jiu Jin nodded, recognizing that Zi Di had grasped the alchemy
achievement's purpose.
Zi Di's expression remained composed, yet her heart filled with uncontrollable
yearning.
This alchemy breakthrough held immense potential, not just for her, but for all
survivors.
“With the Bloodline Purification Formation, we can refine our bloodlines.”
“What we truly lack is time.”
“Fighter and magician cultivation requires accumulated time; it's a step-by-
step process.”
"But with the Ice Cube Red Wine, the growth cycle can be drastically shortened.
What normally takes years can be reduced to months."
“Others aside, the Lord Commander needs it most.”
“His bloodline is immensely potent, yet far from reaching its peak. Using the
Ice Cube Red Wine will enable him to rapidly break through to gold level,
counteracting the negative effects of Zong Ge's own gold level advancement!”
Elder Jiu Jin inquired, “Magician Yao Ma, do you believe this alchemy
achievement has the potential to compete for a top-three spot?”
Zi Di immediately grasped the elder's implication and couldn't help but express
astonishment: “The Ice Cube Red Wine has such immense versatility. Could it
truly not even compete for the top three?”
Elder Jiu Jin nodded solemnly: "If this achievement were solely the work of our
Alchemy Guild, it could potentially secure a top three spot. But unfortunately,
it is not."
"It is a collaborative project. Besides our Alchemy Guild, the other partner is
the Intoxication Church."
“The sorrow-dispelling red wine is primarily crafted by the Intoxication
Church, with the most crucial ingredient being the divine blood of the Wine
God.”
Zi Di was stunned: “Divine blood?”
Elder Jiu Jin continued: “It is precisely because the Intoxication Church can
provide the Wine God Blood that our nation permitted them to enter Ice
Sculpture Island for missionary work.”
“Now, Drunkard Harbor serves as their parish.”
Zi Di's eyes widened in realization. "The Intoxication Church has been
proselytizing for years. I know a bit about Drunkard Harbor. So, this alchemy
project has been in development for quite some time, at least twenty years?"
Elder Jiu Jin nodded. “Correct.”
He fixed his gaze on Zi Di and continued, “This year's Warm Snow Cup
competition was destined to be extraordinary from the very start!”
“A collaborative project like this has no chance of placing in the top three.”
“Our nation stands tall in the world of alchemy. We won't allow a collaborative
project to secure a top three finish in this competition.”
“If your corps were to enter the Necromancer Aura Detector into this
competition, the outcome would likely be unfavorable.”
"Based on my current understanding, a top three finish is absolutely
impossible, and even the top five is unlikely. Perhaps there's a chance to
break into the top ten."
Zi Di paused before asking, “Then what alchemy projects have a realistic shot
at the top three?”
Elder Jiu Jin shook his head, a wry smile on his face. "Some I know of, but
they're bound by confidentiality agreements. Others I've never even heard
rumors about; they're private projects of the guild elders."
“In any case, to push the Ice Block Red Wine project into the top three, our
guild will spare no effort.”
Zi Di couldn't help but sigh.
The snow elves were, after all, elves by nature, proud to the core.
On the other hand, this also touched upon national interests.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was secretly exerting every effort to uphold its
prestige in the field of alchemy.
At this level, reputation was paramount, closely tied to profits.
Take the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' potion profits, for instance, weren't
they largely driven by the fame of the dragonman youngster?
Zi Di had been reaping the benefits of that very reputation all along.
"Elder Jiu Jin, I'd like some time ice cubes and sorrow-dispelling red wine.
Can you arrange this?" Zi Di asked.
Jiu Jin gave a bitter smile. “Impossible.”
“Even our Guildmaster only obtained half a bottle as a sample.”
“And that half bottle was quickly divided among the Guildmaster and other
powerful elders.”
Jiu Jin wasn't considered a powerful elder, nowhere near the stature of Hua Ni,
Shuang Lian, or the Snow Cake Tower Master.
“The elder collaborating with the Intoxication Church is Ban Tu.”
"You may have heard of him, he created the potion [Beautiful Future]. That
potion cost him everything: his fortune and his future. For a time, he drowned
his sorrows in drinking. That’s how he converted to the Intoxication Church."
“His connections with the cult’s leadership gave him the opportunity to
collaborate, ultimately succeeding in creating the Ice Cube Red Wine alchemy
project.”
"The Ban Tu of today is not the man he once was. That devastating blow left him
reclusive and eccentric, averse to socializing, prone to paranoia and anger. He
drifts on the fringes of the Alchemy Guild's mainstream, maintaining poor
relations with everyone."
"Ban Tu might be a potential breakthrough, but even the Guildmaster likely has
no leverage. What chance do I have?"
Zi Di sighed and gave up.
“It seems we'll have to wait until after the tournament for the official
release of this alchemy product.”
“With the blood of the Wine God as its primary ingredient, sales of this
concoction are unlikely to be high.”
At this thought, Zi Di's brows furrowed slightly, a quiet worry settling over
her.



****** Chapter 650: Intoxication Fleet ******
Dark clouds blanketed the sky.
The sea wind grew increasingly fierce.
The bishop of the Intoxication Church stood personally at the bow, casting
divine spells to scan the surrounding waters.
After a long moment, he exhaled a breath of stale air, thinking to himself, “A
storm is approaching.”
“Detection shows no signs of human interference. This is a natural weather
phenomenon.”
He then commanded his subordinates, “Act swiftly! Reef the sails, engage the
thrusters, increase speed, and depart the storm's reach immediately.”
The fleet he commanded comprised 26 vessels: 10 standard ships, 8 bronze level
magic ships, 4 iron level magic ships, 3 silver level ships, and 1 gold level
ship.
This was a sizable fleet indeed.
Upon receiving the order, the fleet's speed gradually increased.
The sea wind howled, blocking the fleet's path ahead.
Even the standard vessels were equipped with alchemy components that could
temporarily boost their speed. Yet they couldn't match the inherent power of
the magic ships and soon fell behind.
“Lord Bishop, our fleet is splitting up,” a subordinate reported.
The Intoxication Bishop pondered, “Then separate immediately. Leave one silver
level magic ship, two iron level, and four bronze level to escort the ordinary
ships. The rest will follow my flagship!”
The subordinate showed a hint of confusion but acknowledged the order: “Yes,
Lord!”
The Intoxication Bishop's brow remained furrowed, showing no sign of
relaxation.
The subordinate, of low level, remained unaware of what lay aboard their
flagship.
"There are 600 bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine, a staggering fortune. We
won't be able to produce this wine again for at least five years."
The Intoxication Church had poured every last resource into this endeavor, even
draining their future potential.
These 600 bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine were not merely wine, nor just
wealth, they were a unique resource.
“If we use them wisely, we can leverage the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's national
ceremony as a golden opportunity. Employing this wine could unlock even greater
benefits from the kingdom.”
The Intoxication Church was an imported faith, maintaining an independent
diocese within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. This diocese thrived as the kingdom's
renowned coastal port city.
Yet the Intoxication Church harbored grand ambitions, not merely to proselytize
along the coast, but to spread their faith deep into the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's heartland.
This wine shipment was their most crucial tool, their fiercest weapon!
As the fleet's top leader, the Intoxication Bishop bore the secret mission of
transporting the sorrow-dispelling red wine.
The pressure weighed heavily upon him.
“I'm merely gold level.”
“Yet around Ice Sculpture Island, saint level pirates are beginning to
approach.”
“Da Han...”
The Intoxication Bishop harbored deep apprehension toward the fourth-in-command
of the Fire Beard Pirates. He knew the closer they drew to Ice Sculpture
Island, the greater the peril.
Therefore, he didn't let the storm slow him down. Instead, he decisively split
his fleet, intending to race against time and shorten the voyage as much as
possible.
“Once we reach Drunkard Harbor, we'll be safe.”
“Even if Da Han leads his pirates to attack the port, we can still safely and
securely transport this shipment of sorrow-dispelling red wine!”
As the Intoxication Bishop pondered this, an urgent military report arrived:
"Report! Pirate ships spotted ahead!"
"What?!" Intoxication Bishop's eyes widened instantly.
Just what he feared most.
He immediately regained his composure and urgently inquired, "Which pirate
faction is it? Scout them out immediately."
Within seconds, a subordinate returned with the latest intelligence:
“Reconnaissance confirms it's the Divine Wind Pirates!”
“Them?” The Intoxication Bishop frowned deeply.
Though not as formidable as Da Han, the Divine Wind Pirates were still a force
to be reckoned with. Their leader, Feng Lian, though only a gold level,
possessed extraordinary combat prowess.
The Intoxication Bishop had no desire for battle and immediately ordered the
fleet to turn, attempting to escape.
From his flagship, Feng Lian heard his pirate subordinates report: The target
fleet had dramatically increased speed, likely utilizing some potent alchemy
acceleration component.
Feng Lian remained unhurried, smiling faintly: “Just follow them.”
The Intoxication Church's fleet raced forward, their speed soaring, yet they
could not shake off the Divine Wind Pirates.
Recalling the wolf pack tactic of exhausting the enemy, the Intoxication
Bishop's face darkened. “The Divine Wind Pirates' ships are incredibly fast.
Even if we push our engines to their absolute limit, we won't outrun them.
Instead, we'll suffer severe magic power depletion, a loss far outweighing any
gain.”
Though potent, the alchemy components proved poorly matched to the Intoxication
Church's magic ships.
In contrast, the Divine Wind Pirates' ships hailed from Gear Island. Not only
were each magic ship fully integrated, but they could trigger chain reactions
between ships.
“Damn it!” The Intoxication Bishop could only send out distress signals, hoping
for naval reinforcements from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Meanwhile, he ordered
the ships to form battle lines, preparing to meet the enemy.
“We're nearing Ice Sculpture Island at this distance. I pray the Kingdom's Navy
arrives in time!”
“We absolutely cannot lose those 600 bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine.
Even if I die in battle, I'll protect this vital resource.”
“Damn it!”
“Why has Feng Lian targeted me? Could it be that word has leaked out?”
Seeing the Intoxication Church's fleet suddenly slow down, with their gold
level flagship bringing up the rear and silver level vessels providing support,
steadily securing the windward position, Feng Lian narrowed his eyes slightly.
“Oh, attempting a T-formation tactic?”
With his extensive naval combat experience, Feng Lian recognized it instantly.
“Boss, we intercepted enemy communications. Per the plan, we didn't intercept!”
a pirate subordinate reported.
Feng Lian chuckled: “Then we wait a little longer.”
“The Intoxication Church and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom share a profound
alliance.”
"They've sent a distress signal, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom must respond
actively. And nearby lies part of the Second Naval Fleet's formation."
It turned out Feng Lian knew nothing about the sorrow-dispelling red wine
incident. His targeting of the Intoxication Church's fleet was merely a
diversionary tactic.
His true objective was the Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet.
This naval force was practically the private army of the Li Jian Clan.
Last time, Feng Lian suffered a major defeat at the hands of the Li Jian Clan,
a loss he had never forgotten, vowing relentless revenge.
For this, he had traveled thousands of miles to find Hua Tang, borrowing the
alchemy apparatus specifically designed to target the Li Jian Clan Leader.
“Hurry over. I can hardly wait.” A flame of vengeance burned fiercely within
Feng Lian's heart, growing ever brighter.
The Intoxication Bishop was perplexed: “What's going on?”
They had slowed their pace, preparing for battle, only for Feng Lian's fleet to
halt its pursuit and remain on the periphery.
“What exactly are they trying to do?” The bishop couldn't fathom Feng Lian's
true intentions, "How much longer before they can rendezvous with us?”
The “they” the bishop referred to were part of the original fleet. They had
temporarily departed because he needed to hurry, evading the storm.
Now, with battle imminent and the enemy stronger than them, the bishop
naturally wanted to gather all available forces.
Amid the tense anticipation of the Intoxication Church's fleet, their ships
finally converged at a single point.
“They let us regroup this easily?”
“What the hell is Feng Lian's crew playing at?”
The Intoxication Bishop had sent communications, but Feng Lian refused to
respond, showing no willingness to talk.
"Why hasn't the Ice Sculpture Kingdom replied yet? Did they intercept our
distress signals? Damn it!"
Crack.
Lightning split the gloomy sky.
Waves surged violently as torrential rain poured down.
The Intoxication Bishop had awaited his fleet and now awaited the storm.
The tempest spread, engulfing the battlefield.
“Hmph!” Feng Lian's expression darkened. "The Ice Sculpture Kingdom hasn't
dispatched any reinforcements? Did the Li Jian Clan uncover my plan?"
Clearly, this diversionary tactic had failed.
In truth, since his return, Feng Lian had been actively seeking opportunities
to strike.
But with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom celebrating its National Ceremony, the
Second Naval Fleet adopted a defensive posture, launching few proactive
offensives.
The immense pressure from Da Han had forced the entire kingdom's navy into a
defensive posture.
Moreover, the Li Jian Clan's focus lay not in naval affairs, but in the
domestic potion market.
After waiting a moment longer, Feng Lian lost his patience entirely: “Since the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom offers no support, don't blame me for devouring this
juicy morsel!”
Feng Lian waved his hand, his tone icy: “Begin.”
At the command, the pirates erupted into a howling cheer like ghostly wails.
The Divine Wind Pirates, like a pack of bloodthirsty wolves, had long been
itching for battle. Now that Wolf King Feng Lian had finally ordered the
attack, pirate morale soared like a rainbow. They rushed headlong toward the
Intoxication Church's fleet.
First came the cannon fire.
Alchemy cannons spewed fire ceaselessly. Shells flew through the air, colliding
mid-flight. Some exploded into towering columns of water upon hitting the sea,
others tore holes in ships or blew unlucky souls into splattered blood and
gore.
“We outnumber them in cannons!”
“We hold the advantage in this gunfight!”
“Damn it!”
“Feng Lian's here!”
The Intoxication Church's ships clearly outnumbered the Divine Wind Pirates in
artillery, after all, this convoy carried vital supplies, so they were heavily
armed.
The Divine Wind Pirates' naval tactics had always been renowned for their
flexibility.
Against opponents with weaker artillery, they maintained distance for long-
range combat. Against those with superior firepower, they would charge in for
close combat.
Their greatest advantage was speed!
It was precisely this exceptional speed that enabled their agile tactics.
Seeing the Intoxication Church's formidable firepower, the pirates needed no
orders from Feng Lian, they immediately opted for boarding and ramming tactics.
As the pirates' foremost leader, Feng Lian personally led the charge, skimming
the sea surface at high speed as he bore down on the enemy flagship.
The Intoxication Church's flagship housed not only the bishop, a gold level
fighter, but also two other gold level combatants.
Empowered by divine spells, these two fighters had also gained temporary flight
capabilities.
“Don't let Feng Lian board!”
“Attack together and take him down.”
The two gold level fighters swiftly reached consensus and simultaneously leapt
from the ship.
The three combatants engaged in aerial combat, skimming the sea surface.
After several exchanges, Feng Lian swung his scythe, unleashing the battle
skill [Wind Blade: Continuous Slash].
The two gold level fighters of the Intoxication Church fended off the attacks,
forced into retreat.
Feng Lian's attack speed surged again, each swing of the scythe faster than the
last, blurring into a phantom.
He carved open their defenses.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Dragon Moon!
A dragon's roar reverberated, shaking their very souls.
Then, a massive moon blade shot forth, slicing one gold level warrior clean in
half.
The other gold level warrior, terrified and utterly defeated, turned to flee.
Feng Lian caught up effortlessly, his blade erupting in sparks with a single
swing.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The gold level's defensive gear shattered one after another.
With another strike, Feng Lian severed the gold level's head.
Using the sea's currents to evade divine spells and cannon fire, he charged
onto the flagship of the Intoxication Church.
"How can he be this strong?!" The Intoxication Bishop turned ashen, pleading
for mercy through divine telepathy.
Feng Lian remained utterly cold, offering no response. The scythe in his hand
radiated a chilling intent to kill.
Several hours later.
Feng Lian's pirate crew slaughtered every crew member, sank all ordinary ships,
and sailed away triumphantly with nearly ten magic ships salvaged from the
naval battle.



****** Chapter 651: Drifting Barrels ******
A band of pirates fled in disarray.
The Second Fleet of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom pursued them at a measured pace.
"Lord Kong Pan, these pirates have been utterly crippled and pose no further
threat. Our immediate priority must be to reinforce the Intoxication Church's
fleet." [Sand Between Fingers] San Sha Man Tuo addressed the Second Fleet
Captain.
Kong Pan first inquired whether the battle had been recorded.
Upon receiving the aide's confirmation that at least three magic recordings had
been captured, Kong Pan nodded indifferently and told San Sha Man Tuo, “You're
correct. We'll spare these defeated remnants and proceed to the rescue.”
“Hail the order!”
“Maximum speed. Proceed to the coordinates in the distress signal.”
The Second Naval Fleet swiftly altered course.
However, by the time they reached the battlefield of the Intoxication Church
fleet, not only had the battle long ended, but even the storm had ceased.
“Level Three Alert. Conduct reconnaissance of the surrounding area and gather
intelligence,” Kong Pan ordered.
The Second Naval Fleet was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's regular military force,
possessing mature and comprehensive detection capabilities.
Soon, reconnaissance reports reached high-ranking officers like Kong Pan and
San Sha Man Tuo.
“The Intoxication Church suffered heavy casualties.”
“Confirmed: Divine Wind Pirates!”
“Feng Lian personally led the assault, securing victory in one decisive
strike.”
“The Intoxication Church fleet has been utterly annihilated.”
“Twenty-nine drifting barrels recovered.”
“At least ten sunken vessels detected.”
…
Upon reading this intelligence, San Sha Man Tuo's brow furrowed slightly, a
surge of frustration rising within her.
Kong Pan sighed softly: “Who would have thought the Intoxication Church's fleet
was so feeble? They didn't even hold out until we arrived.”
San Sha Man Tuo glanced at Kong Pan and murmured, “We should have abandoned
those pirates immediately and come to support them directly.”
Kong Pan shook his head. “Those pirates invaded our defense zone. They had to
be eliminated immediately to demonstrate our resolve in defending these waters,
thereby deterring other pirates from harboring unnecessary ambitions here.”
San Sha Man Tuo continued softly, “But Lord...”
“The situation is complicated now.”
"The Intoxication Church and the Kingdom share a treaty alliance. Under
military law, our rescue mission was top priority, it should have taken
precedence."
“But we engaged the pirates first, delaying the rescue.”
“The Intoxication Church suffered heavy losses this time. They won't let this
go. When they make a fuss, the Kingdom will launch an investigation. Should
they uncover the details and timing of our actions today, we could face a court
martial..."
Kong Pan sighed. “Given the circumstances, we have no choice but to alter the
fleet's incident logs.”
“Eh...” San Sha Man Tuo was stunned.
The Second Naval Fleet was entirely controlled by the Li Jian Clan. It
functioned less as the Kingdom's fleet and more as the Li Jian Clan's private
army.
For Kong Pan to undertake this record tampering would be remarkably convenient.
Kong Pan continued, “Now it all hinges on the exact whereabouts of the
Intoxication Church fleet's bishop.”
Her tone held a hint of significance.
But soon, the follow-up investigation results reached both of them.
“It has been confirmed that the Intoxication Bishop perished in battle, killed
by Feng Lian.”
"Additionally... dozens of bottles of precious red wine were discovered in a
drifting barrel. After database comparison, they've been preliminarily
identified as sorrow-dispelling red wine."
This was the first time San Sha Man Tuo had ever heard the term “sorrow-
dispelling red wine.”
Kong Pan, however, was different. As an insider of the Li Jian Clan, she was
privy to many cutting-edge developments.
“Take a portion of this wine and send it to me,” Kong Pan ordered.
Soon, she saw the sorrow-dispelling red wine.
“It really is them...” Kong Pan frowned deeply.
San Sha Man Tuo quickly realized the significance of these wines. After
inquiring, she received Kong Pan's response.
The look of worry on San Sha Man Tuo's face grew heavier: “This is bad. With
the Intoxication Church suffering such heavy losses this time, the kingdom's
investigation will surely be intense.”
"Over the years, the royal family has harbored resentment toward the clan's
control of the Second Fleet. This could very well become the royal family's
justification for taking action!"
Just then, another subordinate knocked on the door to report: “Captain, we
discovered a secret message from the Intoxication Bishop on the inner wall of
the drifting barrel containing the sorrow-dispelling red wine!”
The message from the Intoxication Bishop described the sorrow-dispelling red
wine, advising whoever retrieved the drifting barrel to deliver its contents to
the Intoxication Cathedral in Drunkard Harbor, promising a generous reward.
Kong Pan remarked, "It seems this bishop of the Intoxication Church wasn't
entirely useless. At least he minimized the losses."
San Sha Man Tuo: “How much sorrow-dispelling red wine exists in total?”
“What we recovered certainly isn't all of it.”
“Numerous drifting barrels must have already left these waters.”
"Lord Kong Pan, this wine is the Intoxication Church's most vital resource,
their absolute necessity. We should search the surrounding area as quickly as
possible. The more wine we gather, the easier it will be to navigate the
challenges ahead in our investigation."
Kong Pan pondered for a moment, then shook her head slightly. “No, we haven't
found anything.”
“To be precise, we did discover some battlefield remnants, but not a single
drifting barrel containing sorrow-dispelling red wine.”
San Sha Man Tuo froze, not quite understanding.
Kong Pan sighed and continued, “The sorrow-dispelling red wine is incredibly
valuable, perfect for sparking conflict among pirate factions.”
“I know pirates' nature all too well.”
“They're greedy by nature. For sorrow-dispelling red wine, they'll attack each
other.”
“Even Da Han, being a saint level power, can't control every pirate faction.”
“Let these pirates tear each other apart. It'll lighten our defensive burden.”
“Send the order: turn back!”
Magnet Archipelago.
The big guy, Da Dou, and Hong Zhu were having a meal.
"Father.”
“Xiao Guai misses you.”
The big guy stuffed his face while secretly contacting the fishman youngster
through faith.
The fishman youngster had regained consciousness.
Using the divine spells [Believer Perception] and [Divine Power Channel], he
reestablished contact with the big guy.
The big guy and his companions had been surrounded by an earth elemental army,
only to be saved by Tu Ji's self-sacrifice. At the last moment, the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency chief overseeing Magnet Archipelago intervened, rescuing the
trio from enemy lines.
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency treated the big guy and his companions to lavish
hospitality.
The fishman youngster comforted the big guy: “Da Dou has arranged the ship and
bought the tickets. You'll board this afternoon, Xiao Guai.”
“You'll be heading to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“But I'll be able to meet up with you partway.”
Magnet Archipelago was no longer safe for the big guy.
Even now, the fishman youngster couldn't fathom why they'd been ambushed by an
army of earth elementals—or why the Main Earth Elemental God had intervened.
But understanding those mysteries paled beside his concern for the big guy's
safety.
So, the top priority was getting the big guy off the island.
The fishman youngster couldn't pilot the Deep Sea Monster Fish to retrieve him
directly. He could only order Da Dou to purchase tickets and leave the island
first, then intercept him partway.



****** Chapter 652: Saving Hun Tong ******
After offering a few more words of comfort to the big guy, the fishman
youngster severed the connection.
His attention returned to the Ocean Mother Nest.
Teacher Si Ling was still constructing the grand ritual sacrifice formation.
Damaged by Qian Xing's assault, Teacher Si Ling had begun repairs immediately
after the battle.
His repairs were completed by the second day. Yet he did not rest. Instead, he
proceeded to add magic runes, constructing new formation frameworks.
Each day, thousands of magic inscriptions and vast new structures were designed
by Teacher Si Ling, becoming integral parts of the sacrificial formation.
The intricate web of magic runes and lines no longer confined itself to a flat
plane. It extended into the air above the formation and deep into the earth
below.
Teacher Si Ling effortlessly neutralized the intense water element interference
of the coastal environment, his mastery in designing and constructing
formations proving astonishingly profound.
Such actions by Teacher Si Ling had put Zhou Zhang on high alert.
To prevent leaks about the secret alliance between the Charming Blue Church and
the undead orthodoxy, Zhou Zhang had already relocated the vast majority of
Charming Blue believers. The latter had resettled, maintaining a safe distance
from the gold level altar.
Cang Xu had discerned that the Charming Blue Church and the undead orthodoxy
had united out of external pressure, a relationship marked by both cooperation
and mutual wariness.
These days, he remained close to Teacher Si Ling, eagerly absorbing knowledge.
While constructing the formation, Teacher Si Ling generously imparted his
teachings to Cang Xu and Jian Gui.
True to his reputation, Teacher Si Ling genuinely enjoyed teaching and proved
exceptionally skilled at it.
Cang Xu felt both blessed and burdened.
The blessing lay in receiving guidance from a saint level teacher. Moreover,
this Teacher Si Ling was no ordinary saint level being, evident from his
previous battle where he effortlessly sent Qian Xing and Da Han fleeing.
“To receive such favor...”
Cang Xu felt honored yet remained vigilant: “The only reason I've gained his
favor is the saint level bloodline of the Hanging Corpse Tree within me.”
“More precisely, I've demonstrated the process of bloodline mutation, with its
concentration slowly increasing over time.”
“It's precisely this potential that makes Teacher Si Ling place greater faith
in me. During our training, he favors and looks out for me more.”
“All of this is thanks to the Lord Commander...”
What troubled Cang Xu more was the constant surveillance. Teacher Si Ling kept
a close watch on him, requiring his constant presence. He assisted with menial
tasks, helping with simple work in the construction of magic formations.
Even when Cang Xu occasionally left Teacher Si Ling's side to be alone, he
remained uneasy. He used alchemy devices to communicate with the fishman
youngster.
“The undead faction's strength lies largely in the mystical bonds between
souls.”
Wary of this, Cang Xu played it safe and refrained from attempting
communication with the fishman youngster.
“The tower spirit records everything.”
"The Lord Commander can observe all changes in the outside world. He
understands what's happening without needing to communicate with me."
Just as Cang Xu had surmised, the fishman youngster was stunned by Teacher Si
Ling's sudden appearance upon awakening.
He summoned a magic projection via the tower spirit and, upon viewing it,
instantly grasped the entire sequence of events.
The astonishment lingered on his face for a long while.
He never imagined it would draw such a formidable figure as Teacher Si Ling!
Nor did he anticipate the true nature of the relationship between the Charming
Blue Church and undead orthodoxy.
What surprised the fishman youngster even more was that the special divine
spell Cang Xu had previously acquired originated from Teacher Si Ling's design.
Upon further reflection, the fishman youngster found this reasonable.
After all, Teacher Si Ling was no ordinary being; he also possessed a page of
the artifact, the [Truth Slate].
Zhou Zhang paid far closer attention to Teacher Si Ling than the fishman
youngster did.
She proactively inquired multiple times about the purpose behind Teacher Si
Ling's construction of the magic formation.
Teacher Si Ling's addition of the formation surprised Zhou Zhang, yet it
remained within the bounds of their pact, leaving her powerless to intervene.
What troubled Zhou Zhang deeply was the fragility of their alliance. What if
Teacher Si Ling openly manipulated events to harm the divine domain or the
Ocean Mother Nest, and she remained oblivious?
This was often the weakness of clergymen.
Among the three transcendent systems, magicians placed the highest value on
knowledge accumulation. Fighters developed their physical bodies, while
clergymen pursued their own deities, seeking higher energies to infuse their
forms.
Whenever Teacher Si Ling constructed a formation, Zhou Zhang almost always came
to observe.
Though she couldn't comprehend it, she maintained this posture of close
supervision to exert pressure on Teacher Si Ling, urging them not to play
tricks.
Zhou Zhang was watching Teacher Si Ling, while the fishman youngster was
watching Zhou Zhang and Teacher Si Ling.
"Once the task at hand is completed, I'll leave this place."
"This place isn't safe to stay in any longer!"
The fishman youngster had already made up his mind.
Earlier, from the big guy, he'd deduced that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
might be in dire straits. Even then, he'd considered withdrawing.
Later, Cang Xu persuaded him to stay. The fishman youngster pondered deeply and
concluded that Cang Xu's perspective was sound. If he could rely on Charming
Blue Goddess to ascend to the saint level, it would resolve many problems.
Thus, he chose to take the risk and stay.
However, the situation changed too rapidly.
The big guy faced encirclement by the earth elemental army. Tu Ji sacrificed
himself to help, but the fishman youngster's assistance was even more crucial,
and extremely strained. In the end, the big guy narrowly escaped with his life.
Reflecting afterward, the fishman youngster realized: his rescue of the big guy
had been sloppy! Numerous traces were left behind, loose ends that posed a
massive threat.
Even more terrifying was that, just as he was about to act, he unexpectedly
received a divine revelation from Charming Blue Goddess.
It was precisely by following the guidance of this revelation that he used the
artifact, deceiving the Main Earth Elemental God. The price paid was also
extremely heavy, the pearl bubbles within the artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale]
were nearly depleted!
Whenever he thought of that divine revelation, the fishman youngster couldn't
help but feel a chill in his heart.
“Such timely and targeted divine revelation proves one undeniable truth.”
“That everything I've done has been under the goddess' watchful eye.”
Based on the fishman youngster's previous deductions, it wasn't Charming Blue
Goddess herself who answered his prayers, but the Charming Blue Godhead.
In his understanding, the Godhead was akin to a tower spirit elevated many
times over.
“My every action must have been recorded by the Godhead.”
“Just as I witnessed Teacher Si Ling's emergence through the tower spirit's
magic projection.”
“In the future, should Charming Blue Goddess' main body awaken, how would She
view me? Would She act against me?”
The fishman youngster analyzed that this was highly probable.
For he was not a true Surging Wave fishman; he had been transformed through the
Bloodcore.
His prayers weren't born of genuine faith either, but rather a facade
maintained through various means. With such blatant sacrilege, could he
possibly expect Charming Blue Goddess to look upon him kindly?
“Regardless of Charming Blue Goddess' attitude, being within Her divine domain
means placing my life in the hands of another's whim.”
Witnessing the Main Earth Elemental God's intervention had shifted the fishman
youngster's perspective once more.
Another factor strengthened his resolve to depart:
Qian Xing and Da Han.
The safe retreat of these two saint level figures signaled that this Ocean
Mother Nest had been fully exposed.
Should Da Han or Qian Xing return in the future, the fishman youngster would
once again find himself in grave peril.
These two saint level pirates wouldn't even need to lift a finger. Merely
presenting evidence of Teacher Si Ling's presence would draw the attention of
powerful factions like the Blood Light Punishment Institution.
In short, this Ocean Mother Nest was no longer the hidden sanctuary it once was
The fishman youngster scanned his surroundings for a moment before refocusing
his attention.
Divine spell - Perceive Believer.
Divine spell - Divine Power Channel.
The next instant, he connected with Dao Hen.
The moment the Divine Power Channel formed, Dao Hen sensed the gaze of the
deity, his heart surging with emotion.
“Great Fish God Mist, my Lord, the current situation is as follows.” He
immediately reported to the fishman youngster.
Truthfully, he didn't need to say anything. The fishman youngster simply
scanned his memories and instantly grasped the previous events.
Dao Hen was concealed aboard the Treasure Chest, Tan Mo's ship.
This gold level naval vessel was now closing in on the pirate crew led by Cong
Mang.
A clash between the two sides was imminent.
On the surface, it appeared Tan Mo had stumbled upon Cong Mang's crew by
accident. In reality, however, this entire encounter was part of Tan Mo's plan.
Dao Hen had uncovered this intelligence. The classic combination of the
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell forcibly
transformed a fishman swordsman into an exceptional intelligence operative.
Thus, the fishman youngster also learned of Tan Mo's battle plan, understanding
that the latter intended to eliminate Hun Tong.
"To the human race, to the Empire, Hun Tong is a hero. He expanded territories
and made significant contributions."
"His imprisonment stems largely from a frame-up. I know the truth about the
Devil Gold Coins."
The fishman youngster initially held a poor opinion of Hun Tong, but after
fighting alongside him, his perception gradually shifted.
Compared to Hun Tong, the fishman youngster held a far worse impression of Tan
Mo.
Tan Mo was the primary focus of Dao Hen's surveillance, rarely leaving his
side. Thus, through Tan Mo's daily actions and conversations, the fishman
youngster discerned his greedy nature. Simultaneously, Tan Mo's repeated
attempts to gather intelligence on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps revealed his
sinister intentions.
“Tan Mo plans to use pirates, feign innocence, and eliminate Hun Tong.”
“Hun Tong can be saved.”
"He shouldn't die at the hands of a villain. Sparing his life might help me
deal with Tan Mo's extortion in the future."
The fishman youngster had already devised a plan.
He did not intend to rescue Hun Tong directly.
He sought to ride the momentum, avoiding any slip-ups, allowing Tan Mo to
mistakenly believe his treacherous scheme had succeeded. One crucial point
remained: he needed Hun Tong to fully recognize Tan Mo's true colors!
“Tan Mo is an investigator within the Empire's spy agency. I must treat him
with utmost caution.”
“Never imagined I'd be the one to save Hun Tong one day.”
The fishman youngster watched intently, waiting for the battle to begin. Just
then, a new face approached the trio led by the big guy.
“Greetings, all three.”
“I'm an auxiliary agent from the Blood Light Punishment Institution. Due to
Lord Tu Ji's unexpected demise, I've come to take over and investigate.”
The big guy kept his head down, stuffing his face.
Da Dou paused mid-sip, while Hong Zhu's pupils narrowed slightly. She
immediately stopped eating and turned to face the newcomer.
Despite her efforts to conceal it, a flicker of tension escaped her.



****** Chapter 653: Captured ******
“I will now ask some questions. I ask all three of you to cooperate fully.” The
visitor, who identified himself as an assistant from the Blood Light Punishment
Institution, spoke with a smile.
Moments later, the smile vanished from his face.
He had gained no valuable intelligence.
The big guy was clueless and had been looked after by the fishman youngster, so
he didn't utter a word.
Da Dou, the big guy's slave, had his own suspicions about the earth elemental
army's ambush, but there was no way he'd speak up.
Hong Zhu, attached to both the big guy and Da Dou, naturally followed their
lead.
“Gentlemen, your complete ignorance makes my job rather difficult.”
“How am I supposed to report this to the Blood Light Punishment Institution?”
Da Dou remained expressionless: “We've told the truth. Are you suggesting we
fabricate intelligence and distort facts?”
“In my view, reporting the facts as they are is the most responsible course of
action.”
The visitor sighed and continued, "What I mean is, I request the three of you
remain on Magnet Archipelago for now. Until the follow-up investigators arrive,
it will allow me to fulfill my obligations."
How could that be possible?
Da Dou didn't hesitate, shaking his head flatly in refusal.
The visitor's expression grew solemn. “Then at the very least, this lady cannot
leave. She must stay.”
“We have reliable intelligence that this lady once fought alongside a
necromancer on Two Eyes Island.”
“Are you two also accomplices of the necromancers, having traveled with her?”
“To be frank, the reason Lord Tu Ji came to the Magnet Archipelago was to
capture Hong Zhu and uncover information about the necromancers.”
“As a representative of the Blood Light Punishment Institution, I must inform
you: Hong Zhu is a major suspect who absolutely must remain here!”
The visitor's tone grew unyielding.
Da Dou's expression wavered.
Hong Zhu had indeed been helpful, especially when the big guy was snatched by
the Earth Elemental Chieftain.
But Hong Zhu had also made a fortune.
Da Dou owed her nothing. On the contrary, it was Hong Zhu who had attached
herself to Da Dou, to the big guy.
To risk offending the Blood Light Punishment Institution for someone as
insignificant as her?
That was precisely Da Dou's hesitation.
Seeing his hesitation, Hong Zhu's pleading eyes filled with growing despair.
She knew all too well that once she became a prisoner of the Blood Light
Punishment Institution, even if she truly had no connection to the necromancer,
she would be finished.
One of the Blood Light Punishment Institution's principles was to err on the
side of caution, better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free!
Just as Da Dou remained silent and Hong Zhu's despair deepened, the big guy
abruptly stopped eating and drinking, lifting his head.
“No.”
“Don't take her away.”
“She is mine.”
The big guy extended his greasy fingers, pointing at Hong Zhu.
In that instant, Hong Zhu's eyes flashed with the glimmer of hope born from the
depths of despair.
Da Dou looked puzzled and hesitated.
He wondered silently: did the big guy's words reflect his own stance, or the
will of the deity he served?
After a moment's silence, Da Dou said, “Hong Zhu must come with us. We cannot
hand her over to you. Though I know little of her past with that necromancer,
she did fight alongside us."
"You can investigate yourselves or ask us questions in the future."
Da Dou chose to protect Hong Zhu.
He could not discern the big guy's true situation. Was it the deity's decree?
Moreover, having signed a slave contract, Da Dou simply couldn't defy the big
guy's orders. Therefore, it was better to state his position clearly and stand
firmly with the big guy.
The visitor's brows immediately furrowed deeply, his gaze darkening. “In that
case, don't blame me.”
“Oh? What do you want?” Da Dou instantly grew wary.
The next moment, Hong Zhu's face paled dramatically. She let out a deep,
involuntary sigh before collapsing completely.
Da Dou sensed something was terribly wrong and immediately channeled his battle
qi.
But the moment he activated it, the battle qi he'd just begun to accelerate
abruptly dissipated, and instead, a sigh escaped his lips uncontrollably.
“What's going on? I've been poisoned! When did this happen?!" Da Dou's
expression changed dramatically as he slumped into his seat, his face frozen in
disbelief.
Ever since escaping the battlefield, he had never let his guard down against
the imperial spy who had rescued them. Whether it was potions or magic
delicacies, he had meticulously inspected everything, always on guard.
“But I clearly...”
A sudden realization struck Da Dou, his gaze locking onto a dish on the main
table.
The visitor laughed heartily, clapping his hands with satisfaction. "Truly
worthy of a gold level magic chef, you've immediately identified the culprit.
Indeed, it is this very dish."
“On the surface, it appears to be merely a silver level dessert. Yet in
reality, it bears a far more renowned name—Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea.”
“Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea?!” Da Dou's heart jolted.
He was immobilized, yet his mind raced. Relevant intelligence flashed through
his thoughts.
Long ago during the Age of Exploration, the renowned goblin explorer Ge Zi Bu
led his fleet to the very edge of the Main Plane.
At that moment, a sea god intervened, halting their progress.
Disguised as a stranded magic chef, the sea god was rescued by Ge Zi Bu and
offered to prepare a delicious magic dish as repayment.
That magic dish was Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea.
Ge Zi Bu adored fine cuisine, a weakness exploited by the deity.
Even as a legend level being, after consuming this delicacy, his fighting
spirit vanished. He let out sigh after sigh, losing all desire to continue
forward and ordered a return voyage.
Ultimately, he never reached the world's edge. Nearly a decade of exploration
ended in failure at the very last moment.
“So this is the famed Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea?” “No, it doesn't taste
anything like it,” Da Dou shook his head in denial.
The visitor nodded. "The genuine Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea is a legend level
delicacy. What you consumed was certainly not that."
“However, this recipe does indeed originate from the Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea,
though it has been modified by a magic chef.”
Da Dou's face darkened.
His primary focus had been entirely on the potions they had consumed. Frankly,
regarding these magic dishes, he’d trusted his own expertise. After inspecting
them and confirming they were flawless, he hadn’t given them another thought.
“Still, the Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea recipe must be incredibly intricate.”
"Back then, the sea god himself cooked it, using ingredients from Ge Zi Bu's
ship. He even stir-fried it right before his eyes. Even Ge Zi Bu, a legend
level figure, couldn't detect any tricks."
“There's a reason I couldn't see through it either.”
“What do we do now?”
Da Dou could barely move a finger, leaving all hope pinned on the big guy.
Hong Zhu also shot the big guy a pleading look.
Nom nom.
The big guy buried his head in his meal.
Though he'd consumed a fair amount of the modified Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea,
he hadn't channeled battle qi. Without that crucial element, the Deep Sigh of
the Blue Sea's effects hadn't been triggered. Thus, he still possessed full
mobility.
Hong Zhu and Da Dou: ...
The Blood Light Punishment Institution's support staff watched the big guy with
smiles, waiting patiently for him to launch his attack.
Nom nom.
The big guy remained focused on eating, continuously shoveling food from the
table into his throat.
After waiting a moment, seeing only the big guy stuffing his face, the smiles
on the Blood Light Punishment Institution's support staff gradually faded.
Hong Zhu and Da Dou stared intently at the big guy.
He kept eating, completely oblivious to the tension.
The room grew uncomfortably awkward.
Hong Zhu couldn't hold back any longer, “Lord!” she shouted. “This man is our
enemy!”
The big guy froze, “Huh?”
A huge ham hock stuffed his mouth full.
The big guy looked at the Blood Light Punishment Institution's attendant, who
smiled back at him.
The big guy hesitated.
Da Dou sighed, “He wants to stop us from leaving the Magnet Archipelago.”
The big guy frowned immediately. He desperately wanted to reunite with the
dragonman youngster, anyone trying to keep him from leaving the islands was a
villain!
Thus, the big guy swung at the enemy.
Thus, the big guy suddenly lost all strength mid-swing, let out a sigh, his
legs buckled, and he collapsed to the ground.
The visitor from the Blood Light Punishment Institution explained with a smile:
“This is an improved Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea. Any intense activity triggers
it.”
“Guards, take all three of them away.”
Da Dou sighed helplessly.
This time, it was a genuine sigh.
After the big guy and the other two were taken away, the head of the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency responsible for the Magnet Archipelago finally entered: “Lord
Su Xing, how should we handle these three?”
The so-called “auxiliary member of the Blood Light Punishment Institution” was,
in truth, the head of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency.
His level was high; originally stationed on Feng Awakening Island, he had
immediately been granted the highest authority upon arriving at the Magnet
Archipelago.
Su Xing said, “I never expected that Tu Ji actually died in battle.”
"The people of the Blood Light Punishment Institution are madmen. For a mere
clue, they dared to defy the gods. Sigh..."
Su Xing sighed deeply as well.
This was a significant complication for him, forcing him to temporarily set
aside affairs on Feng Awakening Island and rush to the Magnet Archipelago to
personally oversee matters.
He pondered for a moment: "Treat them well. Keep a close watch on Hong Zhu. She
is the answer we're giving to the Blood Light Punishment Institution."
“That big guy was specifically requested by headquarters, take good care of
him.”
“As for Da Dou... keep him under close watch. After I report this, await
further orders from above.”
They were unaware of the slave contract between Da Dou and the big guy.
Su Xing handled Da Dou with particular caution, for Da Dou hailed from Eruption
Island. a powerhouse of legend level that demanded his utmost attention.
After issuing his orders, Su Xing added, “My purpose in rushing here isn't
merely to capture these three. More importantly, I need to investigate the
cause of this joint uprising by the earth elementals.”
“Have the specific rumors begun circulating?”
The Magnet Archipelago Chief nodded immediately. “They were officially released
early this morning and have already sparked widespread discussion.”
"Naturally, the combined forces of the earth elemental tribes mobilizing on
such a large scale created immense commotion. Compounded by the divine
intervention at the time, nearly every transcendent on the island could sense
that terrifying aura."
"Thus, after the rumors were released, they were swiftly accepted by the masses
and received a very positive response. Some have already begun calling for
treasure hunters to unite their efforts."
Su Xing nodded. “The various earth elemental tribes have been forcibly brought
together by the Main God this time, creating a certain tendency toward
cooperation.”
“Feng Awakening Island is quite close to the Magnet Archipelago, but the Main
Earth Elemental God has already turned its attention to these seas.”
“Moving forward, we proceed according to plan.”
“Let our people fan the flames, uniting the transcendents to launch a
preemptive strike and annihilate the earth elemental tribes here!”
As long as there were no believers, and the statues and altars were destroyed,
no matter how powerful the deity, it would be difficult for them to project
their power.
“With a group of earth elemental prisoners, I believe we can uncover the
secrets behind the previous joint military operation.”



****** Chapter 654: Hun Tong Will Also be Used by Me ******
The fishman youngster remained unaware of the sudden turn of events involving
the big guy. His attention was currently focused solely on one thing.
Paying attention to Dao Hen meant neglecting other areas.
Through Dao Hen, the fishman youngster closely monitored Tan Mo's movements.
Tan Mo had already engaged in combat with Cong Mang.
The two fought back and forth on the sea surface, locked in a stalemate.
“Take this! Ha ha ha!”
Cong Mang's pirate ship rammed into theTreasure Chest, its deck planks
connecting. Instantly, a large number of elite pirates surged across the planks
and stormed onto the Treasure Chest's deck.
Numbering over a hundred, these elite fighters were all bald, wielding long
clubs, and clad in light green monk robes.
This was Cong Mang's ace unit—the Hoodlum battle squad.
Leading the charge, the Hoodlum battle squad swept through the Imperial Navy
ranks with whirling clubs, forcing them into retreat.
“Fall back inside the ship and hold your ground! Wait for Lord Tan Mo to
eliminate the enemy, and reinforcements will arrive!” The first mate bellowed
deliberately, directing the naval forces to retreat.
The Treasure Chest's interior was layered, offering considerable depth.
“Charge in! Slaughter them all! Ahahahaha!” The pirates, now dominant, were
brimming with morale.
The Hoodlum battle squad charged at the forefront, cutting through the defenses
with ease.
“The Imperial Navy isn't all that, huh?”
“Slaughter them all! Loot everything!”
“Let's see who can kill the most imperial sailors!”
“Careful! This ship seems to have spatial alchemy devices. It's absurdly huge
inside!”
The pirates were unaware this was a deliberate concession by Tan Mo's forces.
They charged in, swiftly securing the first three levels. Upon reaching the
fourth spatial level, they smashed through the door and stormed into the prison
cell holding Hun Tong.
Hun Tong lay motionless, eyes tightly shut, deep within unconsciousness.
Seeing his luxurious attire, the pirates assumed he was a high-ranking naval
officer. Without a word, they hacked and chopped at him with swords and axes.
Soon, they had hacked him into a bloody pulp.
The surveillance system in the ship's hold recorded the entire scene.
After the pirates stormed out, shouting and brawling, Dao Hen, shrouded in
Deceptive Disguise spell and Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell, addressed
Hun Tong: “Do you believe me now?”
The real Hun Tong was still alive.
It turned out that under the order of the fishman youngster, Dao Hen had
secretly come here to warn Hun Tong: Tan Mo planned to use the pirates to kill
him.
Dao Hen never revealed his true form. To Hun Tong, he appeared as a mysterious
figure shrouded in black mist. Hun Tong couldn't even discern his specific
race.
After Dao Hen used divine magic to save Hun Tong, the fishman youngster
resorted to his old trick again, employing the Charming Blue divine spell to
forge a lifelike “Hun Tong.”
The fake Hun Tong, empowered by a series of divine spells, easily deceived both
Tan Mo's faction and the exploited pirates.
Hun Tong stared at his own corpse, then scanned the surveillance runes lining
the cabin walls. He remained silent, his face expressionless.
As a ruling lord and noble of the Empire, his loyalty to the Sheng Ming Empire
was unwavering. He had never imagined Tan Mo would seek his death.
Yet now, the evidence is undeniable. He could not help but believe it.
Seeing Hun Tong's silence, Dao Hen, guided by the fishman youngster, did not
force the issue. Instead, he said, “Come, let's step outside and take a proper
look.”
Hun Tong followed Da Han through the pirates' lines, stepping over the bodies
of pirates and naval soldiers alike, exiting the hold onto the Treasure Chest's
deck.
Standing on the deck, they witnessed the entire confrontation between Tan Mo
and Cong Mang, culminating in Cong Mang's apparent “defeat.”
However, Cong Mang and his crew never got the chance to capitalize on their
victory.
Once the first mate and his men truly exerted themselves, they “struggled” to
repel the pirates, driving them all off the Treasure Chest.
After being “defeated,” Tan Mo, spitting blood, fled back into the Treasure
Chest.
Cong Mang wanted to pursue, but was repeatedly hit by the Treasure Chest's
cannons, forced to watch helplessly as the ship “escaped.”
Tan Mo ordered his naval forces to secure the battlefield and conduct post-
battle cleanup.
Soon after, he arrived at the dungeon where Hun Tong was imprisoned. Staring at
Hun Tong's decapitated corpse, he nodded with satisfaction: “Old man, you've
been left behind by the times.”
In his eyes, the matter had been concluded perfectly.
"No, it's still some distance from being resolved." The fishman youngster
thought this while observing Dao Hen.
This corpse of Hun Tong was fake, so it had to be disposed of.
Dao Hen and Hun Tong lay within the ship's hold.
Shrouded by divine magic, even at this close distance, Tan Mo remained utterly
unaware.
Hun Tong's face turned ashen.
He had seen it with his own eyes and heard Tan Mo's words with his own ears.
Ironclad evidence revealed a brutal truth—that treacherous bastard Tan Mo
actually intended to kill him!
"How dare he treat a powerful ruling lord, an imperial noble, this way! What
audacity!!" Raging fury blazed in Hun Tong's eyes.
Dao Hen watched Hun Tong's grim expression with keen interest.
His mood was delightfully light.
Seeing this formidable enemy of the fishman clan, the very man who had
imprisoned him, now cornered and betrayed by his own people brought Dao Hen
genuine delight and satisfaction.
“My Lord, serving you is the most righteous and honorable act of my life.”
In that instant, Dao Hen's devotion deepened once more.
He waited patiently for a moment before addressing Hun Tong: “Now, you should
fully understand your situation, shouldn't you?”
Hun Tong looked at Dao Hen, his face betraying undisguised suspicion and
apprehension. "Who exactly are you? What are your intentions in saving me?"
Following the fishman youngster's instructions, Dao Hen did not reveal his
identity.
Seeing Hun Tong ask this question now, a sense of superiority and control over
the situation surged within him.
Dao Hen said: "You'll know in the future regarding our identity."
“As for saving you, it was naturally to enter into a contract with you.”
With that, he handed over a scroll inscribed with divine script.
Hun Tong didn't recognize the Charming Blue divine script. Even if he did, the
scroll was imbued with the fishman youngster's divine magic, making it
impossible to discern the true form of the script.
Hun Tong's eye twitched. “You want me to work for you? At least let me know who
you are!”
He was cautious, yet deep down, he hadn't given up hope.
In Hun Tong's view: he had merely been betrayed by Tan Mo's treachery. He
remained the ruling lord of Two Eyes Island; his foundation still stood. Once
he returned to the Empire, he himself would be the best witness to convict Tan
Mo.
“The Empire is just.”
“By then, with the Empire's power, I'll eliminate Tan Mo and return
triumphantly to Two Eyes Island!”
“But for now, I must play along with these people...”
Hun Tong felt a deep sense of apprehension toward the divine magic displayed by
the fishman youngster.
He and Dao Hen strolled about the Treasure Chestwith such brazen ease that no
one could detect their presence, sending a chill through his heart.
Dao Hen snorted coldly: “Cut the nonsense!”
“What you need to know, you'll find out when the time comes.”
"Just sign it already. You're nothing but a sacrificial pawn. Did you really
think we came here just to rescue you?"
Hun Tong fell silent for a moment.
The situation was crystal clear.
The moment Dao Hen removed the divine spell binding him, he would be exposed
right under Tan Mo's nose. Then, death would be his only fate.
A wise man knew when to yield.
Hun Tong had simply failed to recognize the truth before, misunderstanding his
true predicament.
Now, Tan Mo had perfectly helped him see it all clearly.
So, in the next moment, Hun Tong obediently took the divine scroll, signed it
without even glancing at it.
He couldn't read it anyway.
Besides, he had no choice!
In his younger days, he might have fought to the death, resisting fiercely. But
now, he was old.
He had been old for a long time.
He had toiled for most of his life to build a foundation like Two Eyes Island.
He still wanted to return there.
"Hun Tong is a man of exceptional business acumen. Such men are often the most
adept at compromise and cooperation, they've grown accustomed to it," the
fishman youngster thought to himself.
Seeing the contract successfully signed, he knew his assessment of Hun Tong's
character was correct.
Dao Hen was right about one thing; this was indeed a strategic but not crucial
move.
Yet the fishman youngster's reason for saving Hun Tong wasn’t quite what either
Dao Hen or Hun Tong had imagined.
“Hun Tong expanded the Empire’s borders, repelled attacks from the fishman
clans, and protected the territories, he did not betray his noble duty.”
Such a loyal man, yet because his bribes were insufficient, he fell prey to the
nation's parasites! This is unjust to him."
“In the future, let him testify against Tan Mo, and let Tan Mo receive severe
punishment, that is justice!”
“Moreover...”
Moreover, as a secret agent, Tan Mo still sought to trouble the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, planning to extort them.
'The enemy of my enemy is my friend.'
In this situation, Hun Tong was the sharp blade the fishman youngster had
prepared for Tan Mo!
After all, Tan Mo wasn't just an imperial spy, he's also a naval commander. The
dragonman youngster can't confront him directly.
Not a single survivor wished to antagonize the Sheng Ming Empire, not even Cang
Xu. Everyone was still preoccupied with atoning for their sins.
Tan Mo stepped out of the cabin.
He immediately issued orders.
First, have the Navy properly bury Hun Tong's body.
Second, instruct the Navy to perform only minimal repairs on theTreasure Chest.
Third, dispatch subordinates to relay a request to Ice Sculpture Island for
port repairs.
What Tan Mo didn't know was that Dao Hen, along with Hun Tong who had a hate-
filled gaze, stood not far behind him. Through the cabin door, they watched him
silently.
The fishman youngster withdrew his divine spell, pulling his focus back from
Dao Hen.
"Xiao Guai is about to leave the Magnet Archipelago. Keep an eye on him during
the voyage."
“Hun Tong is temporarily under my command. Since Tan Mo intends to head to Ice
Sculpture Island, let Hun Tong and Dao Hen accompany him.”
“Next, we'll wait for an opportunity to leave this place.”
The fishman youngster shifted his focus to the interior and exterior of the
Ocean Mother Nest.
Teacher Si Ling wasn't setting up additional magic formations but was
conducting inspections.
Through the Deep Sea Monster Fish's logs, the fishman youngster realized this
was already his third inspection.
Soon, the third inspection concluded, and Teacher Si Ling nodded slightly with
satisfaction.
“Now, I'm about to begin. Watch closely,” he instructed Cang Xu and Jian Gui,
yet this only drew Zhou Zhang's even more intense scrutiny.
This level of attention was practically indistinguishable from outright
surveillance.
The next moment, Teacher Si Ling activated the magic formation.
Brilliant light erupted outward. This time, there was not a trace of divine
power, it was pure, unadulterated magic power.
Within seconds, the magic aura swelled to staggering, overwhelming proportions.
Zhou Zhang was initially wary, but gradually, her expression grew peculiar.
She realized that while the activated magic formation projected an intimidating
display of light and aura, it yielded no tangible effect whatsoever.
“What exactly is this Teacher Si Ling trying to do?” Zhou Zhang wondered
inwardly.
Not only was she puzzled, but so were Cang Xu, Jian Gui, and the others.
They too sensed no practical outcome materializing.
Yet aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster's expression
underwent a dramatic shift.
The instant the magic formation activated, he sensed it!
“Something... something significant is being birthed.”
“This aura...”
“It's connected to the gods!”



****** Chapter 655: Divinity ******
The fishman youngster was a divine emissary, and in recent times, his
understanding of deities, sects, and faith had advanced by leaps and bounds.
Thus, when the magic formation hosted by Teacher Si Ling activated, the aura it
generated was instantly sensed by the fishman youngster.
As time passed, this aura grew increasingly potent.
Staring at the magic projection, the fishman youngster's Adam's apple bobbed as
a deep-seated yearning welled up within him.
Moments later, this craving grew more intense.
“Teacher Si Ling is manipulating this formation to condense something.”
“It's profoundly connected to the deities, far from mundane.”
“But something feels off...”
Through the Deep Sea Monster Fish's reconnaissance, the fishman youngster's
vision was wide. He observed not only the changes in Teacher Si Ling and the
magic formation but also the expressions and attitudes of others.
What puzzled the fishman youngster was that these people showed no strong
reactions.
They were utterly indifferent!
Cang Xu was curious and puzzled, Zhou Zhang wary and suspicious, while Teacher
Si Ling wore a grave expression, as if controlling this formation imposed
considerable mental strain.
“They seem unable to sense it?”
“But why is my perception so intense?”
In an instant, a flash of insight struck the fishman youngster's mind.
He swiftly examined himself and made a new discovery.
“It's the passive divine spell [Perceive Divinity]!”
This was one of the gifts bestowed by the Charming Blue Goddess during his
previous prayers.
This passive spell had remained active ever since the divine blessing was
received. The fishman youngster had experimented with many divine spells, yet
he'd never quite grasped how to use this one.
But now, he realized his intense sensations stemmed from this passive spell.
The answer was becoming clear.
“So...”
"Teacher Si Ling is using the magic formation to condense divinity?"
“The reason I felt it so intensely is because I possess the passive divine
skill [Perceive Divinity].”
“They lack this perception ability, so they don't understand what exactly is
being condensed within the formation.”
Yet as time passed, the radiance within the formation gradually shrank. Before
Teacher Si Ling and his companions, a luminous sphere as vast as a mountain
took shape.
The aura emanating from the sphere grew more surging and colossal.
At this point, the expressions of Teacher Si Ling, Zhou Zhang, and others
shifted first. Soon after, Cang Xu, Jian Gui, and the rest followed suit.
Zhou Zhang and the rest felt an extreme oppression, as if a deadly blade were
pressed against their throats, sending shivers down their spines and chilling
their hearts.
Meanwhile, Teacher Si Ling, Cang Xu, and other undead beings sensed boundless
vastness, profound stillness, and brutal cruelty.
“Teacher Si Ling, what... exactly is it?” Cang Xu could no longer contain his
curiosity and attempted to ask.
Teacher Si Ling did not evade the question, stating plainly, “This is
divinity.”
“Death... divinity?!” Cang Xu and the others stared wide-eyed.
The very name itself revealed its profound connection to the deity.
However, concerning such advanced knowledge, even Archbishop Zhou Zhang was not
entirely clear.
“Do you know what divinity is?” Teacher Si Ling asked Cang Xu.
Cang Xu quickly shook his head.
Teacher Si Ling's expression grew solemn as he explained, “Divinity is a
fragment of a deity's power.”
“It embodies the concepts of the world, the rules of nature, and simultaneously
contains aspects like personality, beliefs, and behavioral tendencies.”
"For example, the fallen storm god Raging Storm possesses the storm divinity.
This divinity records the natural laws governing wind within the world, while
also embodying the storm god's impatience, violence, and fear-based
proselytizing."
"If we were to acquire a fragment of storm divinity, we could gain knowledge of
wind from it. Such as how wind forms, how it moves, how it dissipates, and its
myriad effects on other things."
“Simultaneously, we become influenced, our temperaments grow volatile and quick
to anger, favoring violent solutions to problems.”
Jian Gui's voice was dry: “So... are we currently condensing the Charming Blue
divinity?”
“What do you think?” Teacher Si Ling turned to ask Cang Xu, his gaze carrying a
hint of expectation.
Cang Xu pondered for a moment before shaking his head. “What I sense from this
divinity is deathly stillness, murderous intent, and a silent, boundless
emptiness...”
“It likely isn't Charming Blue’s divinity.”
Teacher Si Ling heard this answer, a hint of admiration for Cang Xu flashing in
his eyes. He then inquired, “So, what do you think this divinity is?”
Cang Xu had already formed an answer in his mind while responding to the
previous question. He immediately replied, “I believe it must be the death
divinity.”
“Correct. You've guessed it right,” Teacher Si Ling nodded.
His gaze swept across the distant horizon, as if taking in the entire trench.
His voice carried a weight of experience as he continued, "The White Hair
Trench is immense, reaching depths of 15,000 meters and stretching
approximately 3,100 kilometers in length. Its widest point spans 70 kilometers,
while the narrowest section still measures over 30 kilometers."
"This place teems with life, sustaining a complex and tightly woven ecosystem.
Feeding, hunting, reproduction, death, these cycles perpetually unfold."
“Yet each beast tide overwhelms the existing ecosystem, triggering massive
hunts by countless civilized races.”
“Throughout countless ages, death has been one of this place's defining
themes.”
“If left unchecked, a natural death divinity would eventually emerge here.”
“And now, I have merely accelerated that step.”
Jian Gui was profoundly shaken, stammering uncharacteristically: “D-death
divinity... is something we can create?”
Teacher Si Ling corrected him: “We are not creating it. It already exists,
merely dispersed and not yet condensed into a congealed entity.”
"This super-magic formation of divine script and magic has gathered the
scattered concepts of death throughout the White Hair Trench. Now it has
accelerated the process of condensation."
Teacher Si Ling looked at Cang Xu, his words laden with meaning: “To us
magicians, everything follows logic; all things operate according to laws.”
“The greatness of deities must be underpinned by the logic and laws that
support that greatness.”
"Divinity itself is one of the secrets behind their greatness."
Zhou Zhang snorted coldly, her expression displeased.
Cang Xu immediately understood: Teacher Si Ling was teaching him once more,
attempting to win him over from the Charming Blue Church's faction.
Cang Xu's bloodline mutation was still progressing; he might well possess the
potential for the saint level in the future. This alone was sufficient reason
for Teacher Si Ling to act thus.
Cang Xu pondered: “What distinguishes naturally produced death divinity from
ordinary divinity?”
Teacher Si Ling replied: “The overall differences are minor, yet some exist.”
"For instance, natural death divinity lacks pronounced individuality. Whereas
the death divinity of deities often bears the distinct characteristics of the
deity itself."
"Take the Ghost World's Death God, Yazi—He possesses a fierce, vengeful nature.
Thus, His believers often sacrifice their enemies' corpses and blood to Him
after successful vengeance. Such acts frequently earn the favor of the Death
God, Yazi, greatly increasing the probability of divine blessings."
“I'll share another secret: Yazi maintains quite good relations with our undead
orthodoxy.”
“I've gathered some of the death divinity, which will serve as crucial
bargaining chips in our dealings with him.”
Death divinity.
Dealings with the Death God...
Teacher Si Ling's words sent shockwaves through Cang Xu and even Jian Gui.
The undead orthodoxy was undoubtedly a legendary superpower!
“It is precisely because the undead orthodoxy hold such status that the
Charming Blue Church agreed to equal cooperation.”
“I see.” Cang Xu pieced together more hidden truths in his mind. "Back then,
the undead orthodoxy and the Charming Blue Church joined forces to establish a
super-scale magic formation here. The Charming Blue Church sought to perform a
blood sacrifice, while the undead orthodoxy used that sacrifice to more readily
condense death divinity!"
Through the magic projection, the fishman youngster also learned more from
Teacher Si Ling.
“So, it was death divinity.”
The fishman youngster still felt perplexed, his hand pressed over his heart.
“Why do I crave this divinity so intensely?”
At that moment, Jian Gui inquired, “Teacher Si Ling, how much death divinity
can we harvest this time?”
Teacher Si Ling shook his head slightly. “This is the concept of death
accumulated over countless ages in the White Hair Trench. I cannot say
precisely how much.”
Cang Xu added, "Death divinity is crucial to the Death God. As necromancers, we
should draw closer to divinity. Can we absorb it?"
Zhou Zhang snorted coldly. "Pure delusion! Even those at the saint level are
scarcely different from mortals in the eyes of the great gods."
“Deities stand above legends, yet not all deities deign to acknowledge
legendary beings.”
“Only You Shen is an exception!”
You Shen, the undying one who founded the undead faction. Even among legends,
he stood in his own class.
Teacher Si Ling offered no rebuttal: “Indeed, that is true.”
"Divinity is extremely dangerous to us."
"Even the slightest proximity can cost a weak individual their life."
"Even someone like me cannot lay claim to divinity. To rashly devour it is
suicide!"
“However,” Teacher Si Ling shifted his tone, “it's not that no transcendents
can bear divinity.”
“Provided their bloodline reaches god level and possesses sufficient
concentration, they can bear a measure of it.”
Cang Xu's heart stirred. His first thought was of his own commander!
“Divinity...” The fishman youngster's eyes gleamed.
“Divinity is here!” Da Han's body trembled violently.
His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the wine in his hand.
Qian Xing, beside him, frowned immediately, retorting, “How could there be
divinity? If there were, we'd be dead already.”
“Neither of us possess god level bloodlines.”
Da Han shook his head; his gaze fixed on the wine in the glass. “I'm certain
it's present.”
"Only, the divinity contained here is utterly fragmented and incredibly faint.
But it is indeed divinity..."
Da Han turned to the first mate. “You mentioned earlier, what kind of wine is
this?”
“Sorrow-dispelling red wine!” the first mate replied hastily. "Pirates salvaged
a drifting barrel and opened it. A note inside the barrel revealed its name."
“All this wine was brewed by the Intoxication Church.”
“The Intoxication Church's fleet was recently annihilated by the Divine Wind
Pirates.”
"Now, the church's branch in Drunkard Harbor has posted hefty bounties to
recover their losses. Especially this sorrow-dispelling red wine."
“It's said the primary ingredient in this wine is the blood of the Wine God.”
Da Han nodded sharply: “That explains it.”
“The blood of the Wine God naturally contains the divinity of the deity.”
Qian Xing studied the red wine in his glass once more: "Even diluted ten
thousand times over, divinity remains divinity. This batch of wine is
priceless!"
“Divinity...” Da Han sighed deeply, then abruptly asked, “Where are the Divine
Wind Pirates now?”
The first mate opened his mouth to answer, but Da Han cut him off with a
command: “Contact Feng Lian. Tell him I'm very interested in the sorrow-
dispelling red wine in his possession!”



****** Chapter 656: A Violent Close Quarters Battle ******
Pirates were greedy; plundering was in their blood.
As the fourth-in-command of the Fire Beard Pirates, Da Han was a formidable
saint level powerhouse. His so-called invitation to Feng Lian wasn't about
negotiating a deal.
His meaning was clear—hand over this shipment of red wine willingly, if you
know what's good for you. Because I, Da Han, want it. Refuse to hand it over,
then prepare to pay with your life!
None of the pirates surrounding Da Han thought he was being unreasonable.
This was the pirate way.
The strong reigned supreme. The rules of the game were brutal, simple, and
stark.
Qian Xing watched Da Han issue his commands, a deep envy stirring within him.
This shipment of sorrow-dispelling red wine was worth a fortune. If Da Han
succeeded in this raid, the haul would surpass plundering an entire city.
After all, raiding cities didn't guarantee divinity.
If Da Han succeeded, his ranking on the sacred monument would surely rise!
"This is the advantage of having subordinates. You don't need to lift a finger
yourself. Just issue a few commands, and a successful raid could be achieved."
“Not to mention the advantages in intelligence gathering and other matters.”
Qian Xing had once viewed his subordinates as burdens, but now he found them
exceedingly convenient.
The key factor was the Pirate Throne!
Though Qian Xing possessed a saint level cultivation, his innate talent had
reached its peak, leaving no room for further advancement. Lacking a god level
bloodline, he had no conventional means to absorb divinity. Attaining godhood
was utterly beyond his reach.
But the throne was no ordinary artifact, it was a shortcut!
Throughout history, those who ascended this throne were almost never of god
level bloodline.
Yet every Pirate King possessed divine authority and power, their personal
strength exploding exponentially!
It was precisely this phenomenon that ignited the madness of pirates across the
entire Main Plane.
If the winner required the god level bloodline and also possessed sufficient
concentration, there would be scarcely anyone on the Main Plane who qualified.
Under normal circumstances, a confirmed saint level seed was already
exceedingly rare, enough to spark all-out war between powers like the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom and Eruption Island!
“But Da Han's true objective lies in the Ten Millenia Ice Lake.” Qian Xing
understood this point all too well.
Da Han cultivated an ice-attribute battle qi technique and followed the Dusk
Church. The Ten Millenia Ice Lake represented a resource perfectly suited to
him.
Upon reaching the saint level, transcendents' cultivation delved into the realm
of laws. The more laws one mastered, the stronger their saint domain became.
And the saint domain was the factor that most profoundly influenced the
personal strength of transcendent saints. This explained why Qian Xing had
retreated immediately upon witnessing Teacher Si Ling wield his saint domain,
showing absolute resolve.
The disparity between their saint domains was simply too vast.
Recalling Teacher Si Ling, a shadow of gloom inevitably crossed Qian Xing's
expression.
“How do you plan to handle the White Hair Trench?” Qian Xing inquired
telepathically through his battle qi.
After all, it had been several days since the two had returned from the White
Hair Trench.
Da Han replied telepathically, “Both Teacher Si Ling and Zhou Zhang are saint
level. There's no need to provoke them. You should know what my purpose is in
this journey.”
Qian Xing nodded slightly but persisted, “Aren't you worried these two might
interfere with your plans?”
Da Han chuckled. “If they choose to meddle in Ice Sculpture Island, that
becomes the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's problem.”
“Truthfully, the more chaotic the situation, the better it is for me.”
Qian Xing held grudges well. Though he couldn't defeat Teacher Si Ling, that
didn't mean he couldn't cause trouble for him.
He suggested, “What if we leak this information to the Blood Light Punishment
Institution? What do you think?”
“With one of the Twelve Saints involved, the Blood Light Punishment Institution
will certainly make a huge fuss.”
“No, let's not.” Da Han refused decisively.
“Doing this would have too great an impact.”
"Bringing in that bunch of madmen from the Blood Light Punishment Institution,
they won't reason with us. Most likely, they'll use the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
as a base, which would severely disrupt my future plans to reach the island.
“Furthermore, if Teacher Si Ling dies at the hands of the Blood Light
Punishment Institution because of our report, we'll be in serious trouble.”
“Teacher Si Ling is one of the Twelve Saints. That old codger You Shen isn't
just powerful, he's also fiercely protective of his own. He'll definitely seek
revenge against us later."
"By then, even the boss might only be able to protect us for a short while.
Once we're isolated, there's a high chance You Shen will eliminate us."
Da Han didn't think Qian Xing's suggestion was a good one.
Qian Xing fell silent for a moment: "Then what do you plan to do next? How much
longer must I stay here?"
Ba Qi wasn't rescued by Qian Xing, but that wasn't Da Han's fault. In fact, it
was Qian Xing who called for retreat back then.
The specific agreement they ultimately reached was this: Da Han would help Qian
Xing find Ba Qi, while Qian Xing had to fight for Da Han with all his might
once.
Da Han had fulfilled his part of the bargain. Qian Xing did indeed spot Ba Qi
during the assault on the Ocean Mother Nest. It was simply beyond his power to
execute the rescue.
Regardless, Qian Xing must honor his pledge to assist in battle. He must remain
at Da Han's side.
Sensing Qian Xing's growing impatience, Da Han hastily offered reassurance:
“I'll act the moment the opportunity arises.”
A sharp gleam flashed in Qian Xing's eyes. He knew Da Han undoubtedly had a
plan, but it wasn't something he'd share just yet.
Though both members of the Fire Beard Pirates and both at the saint level,
their bond was tenuous. This collaboration was merely a fortuitous convergence.
Until the moment arrived, Da Han would lead his pirates to prowl the waters
near Ice Sculpture Island, circling like a pack of bloodthirsty sharks.
During this period, the sorrow-dispelling red wine became the temporary prey of
Da Han and his pirate faction.
Kong Pan's strategy had succeeded.
This high-ranking member of the Li Jian Clan had truly seen through the
pirates' nature.
She deliberately let things unfold, and the situation developed exactly as she
had envisioned.
Even Da Han was tempted to join the fray, let alone the other pirates.
A storm of slaughter was rapidly brewing around the sorrow-dispelling red wine.
Meanwhile, in the Ice Sculpture Capital, another storm of slaughter had reached
its peak—
Bing Yang challenged Long Fu!
One was a former gold level, the other a silver level capable of slaying gold
level opponents.
This was the hottest topic not just in the capital, but across the entire
nation.
“Who truly reigns supreme among the silver level?”
The citizens of Ice Sculpture debated this question with relish, never tiring
of the discussion.
Many supported Long Fu, the dragonman youngster was undeniably the brightest
star, unmatched in prominence. Yet some favored Bing Yang.
“Long Fu is a dragonman outsider. Bing Yang is a snow elf, one of us!”
"Long Fu is strong, but his power has limits. His killing of Teng Dong Lang was
highly attributed to luck. Bing Yang, though now silver level, was once gold
level. That alone gives him a significant edge!"
Reliable sources say: Though Bing Yang consumed many [Beautiful Future]
potions, he's fully recovered these past years. Otherwise, he wouldn't have
entered this grand duel."
"Bing Yang endured hardships and never abandoned hope. He withstood despair and
has now been reborn! His return to the duel arena is a redemption of his life
through relentless perseverance."
Praise for Bing Yang's character and the promotion of his inspirational story
spread from unknown sources.
In short, it was hard for the citizens of Ice Sculpture not to warm to Bing
Yang.
Consequently, public support for him grew steadily.
Behind the scenes, the betting syndicate under He Gai Tou was orchestrating
this sentiment.
Betting markets for this event had already opened.
The largest market was operated by He Gai Tou.
Odds across all markets collectively indicated that the public generally
favored Long Fu.
However, as time passed, the number of people favoring and supporting Bing Yang
grew steadily. This shift was particularly evident in the odds.
The public voiced a strong demand—they wanted this duel to be open to
spectators.
Previously, although Zong Ge had accepted challenges, they had always been
private duels. This practice had long drawn criticism, as many eager spectators
were denied the chance to witness the action, leaving them frustrated.
"This duel between the two is likely to be the strongest clash among silver
level fighters in this year's National Ceremony Grand Duel. Keeping it private
any longer seems unreasonable, doesn't it?"
“It depends on the participants' wishes.”
"Bing Yang has publicly declared his willingness to engage in an open duel,
it's just that we fear Long Fu might not dare."
"If Long Fu insists on a private duel, Bing Yang will accept that too, but then
none of us will be able to watch. Is Long Fu so afraid of being seen?!" Many
were already dissatisfied with this.
The public's enthusiasm for spectating was high; they craved high-quality,
high-level duels.
The dragonman youngster gained fame by defeating a gold level opponent as a
silver level fighter. His popularity stems from fulfilling the nation's immense
demand for this form of spiritual entertainment.
“Perhaps he possesses unique fighting methods, but revealing them early might
not benefit his future duels?” Some defended Zong Ge.
"If you want excuses, you can find a thousand. But don't you want to watch?"
“Of course I do! I can't wait to see it!”
The fierce demands for the duel to be made public quickly erupted into a
nationwide sensation.
Consequently, sales of dragon rider potions miraculously surged by about thirty
percent.
This development left the forces led by the Jing Xiang Clan in a foul mood. The
market share they had fought so hard to secure plummeted by nearly half due to
this single duel.
Many supporters, armed with bottles of potions, gathered in droves around the
encampments of Zong Ge, Zi Di, and others. They chanted incessantly, voicing
their allegiance and their burning desire to witness the battle.
Watching the shouting crowd from the window, Zong Ge snorted coldly. "I smell a
conspiracy. Bing Yang is our enemy. This is an attack meticulously planned
specifically for me."
Zong Ge's battlefield intuition remained as sharp as ever.
Zi Di's expression grew grave. “If this is a carefully orchestrated enemy plot,
it won't be easy to deal with.”
"According to intelligence from the Li Jian Clan, the mastermind behind this
public sentiment is a gambling den owner. He's a gold level fighter named He
Gai Tou. Perhaps he is one of our enemies."
Zong Ge remained expressionless. "There's no evidence to prove that. We can't
be certain. It's perfectly normal for a gambling den owner to act this way when
huge profits are at stake."
“We must guard against this being an enemy trick.”
“If He Gai Tou isn't involved, our overreaction will only earn us another
enemy.”
Zi Di sighed, her face clouded with worry. “Are you confident about this
battle?”
Zong Ge remained composed. “Don't forget, my true transcendent rank is gold
level.”
Zi Di still felt uneasy. She knew Zong Ge wasn't in good condition, bearing
numerous injuries. How much of his true strength he could unleash was
uncertain.
Zong Ge reassured her. “Rest assured. With what the Li Jian Clan has prepared
for me now, my confidence is much greater."
“For that, I owe you my thanks.”
Earlier, to aid Zong Ge, Zi Di had spared no expense in releasing two new
potions.
To secure their cooperation, the Li Jian Clan had conducted exhaustive
investigations. Not only did they bring back more detailed intelligence, but
they also equipped Zong Ge with specialized gear highly effective against the
Bing Yang.
Zi Di shook her head slightly. “We're on the same side. With the commander
absent, you're our sole pillar. Of course we'll support you fully.”
“It's a pity our influence remains weak, forcing us to seek aid elsewhere.”
Zong Ge snorted lightly. “Though he isn't a gold level, he can indeed shoulder
some of my burden.”
“But he still hasn't returned.”
Zi Di's expression grew solemn as she declared with unwavering certainty, “The
commander would never abandon us. He will return.”
“Though he's only silver level, I've found a way for him to rapidly level up.”
“Sorrow-dispelling red wine?” Zong Ge shook his head slightly. “Obtaining that
wine is far too difficult.”
Zi Di sighed softly: "There will always be a way. Right now, what we need to
consider most is whether your battle with Bing Yang should be made public."
Zong Ge answered without hesitation: “It must be public.”
Zi Di sighed again: “I believe it should be so.”
Both were elites, both possessed talent.
Zong Ge analyzed from a military perspective: While past private duels largely
preserved his secrecy, they also revealed a certain vulnerability. He needed a
public duel, a resounding victory, to demonstrate his might and instill deep
caution in his enemies.
Zi Di strategized from a commercial standpoint: Accepting the duel while
keeping it private would inevitably spark intense public discontent. Even
victory would attract negative backlash. Projected onto the potion business, it
could severely dent sales of the dragon rider potions. Consider that they were
about to launch two new potions...
Zi Di had secretly calculated: the choice between public or private would mean
over 200,000 gold in profit difference!
Moreover, this matter also concerned the Wisteria Cache.
The two reached an agreement and immediately announced the news to the public.
“This is incredible!”
“Wow, Long Fu agreed to make the duel public.”
“Wonderful! This will be the most spectacular duel before the gold level
clash!”
“Lord Long Fu truly is magnanimous; he hasn't disappointed us.”
Instantly, the crowd outside their residence erupted in thunderous cheers.
At the same time.
Deep within the White Hair Trench aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish.
The fishman youngster reluctantly withdrew his gaze, “As Teacher Si Ling said,
a god level bloodline is qualified to bear divinity.”
“Even if I possess that qualification, I can't snatch divinity from Teacher Si
Ling's grasp.”
"The matter with Dao Hen has been settled. Judging by the timing, the big guy
should be boarding soon, right?"
“I wonder how things are going with Zi Di and Zong Ge.”
“Time to get moving...”
The fishman youngster had already discovered a way for himself and the Deep Sea
Monster Fish to teleport away instantly.
That method involved using the divine artifact!
The core ability of the divine spell was to vastly amplify all Charming Blue
divine spells.
By using the divine artifact as a foundation and then casting Divine Domain
Descent, he could transport both himself and the ship away.
The fishman youngster's plan was this: First, have the big guy and the others
board the ship. Then, midway, have the big guy secretly enter the sea.
Once in the water, the big guy would cast Divine Domain Descent.
This would create a passageway between the father and son.
The fishman youngster would then escape with the Deep Sea Monster Fish and Cang
Xu, successfully reuniting with the big guy.
Yes, this was the reunion plan the fishman youngster had reassured the big guy
about.
What the fishman youngster didn't know was that a crisis had already struck the
big guy's side.
Da Dou, the big guy, and Hong Zhu had all been captured by imperial spies!
Just as the fishman youngster prepared to contact the big guy again, god's will
descended once more, delivering a second revelation—
Steal the death divinity from Teacher Si Ling's grasp!



****** Chapter 657: Rope Pirates ******
The fishman youngster's heart skipped a beat.
This wasn't the first time he'd received a divine revelation from Charming Blue
Goddess.
The first time had been when he rescued the big guy, trying to save them from
the encirclement of the earth elemental army. At the critical moment, it was
precisely by following the Charming Blue Goddess' divine revelation that the
fishman youngster successfully deceived the Main Earth Elemental God.
Truthfully, that first divine revelation still sent shivers down his spine.
The second time he received the revelation, he accepted it rather quickly,
feeling calmer than he had anticipated.
“Come to think of it, it was Charming Blue Goddess’ and You Shen's
collaboration that built this super-level magic formation.”
“Charming Blue Goddess must have known You Shen's plan, to collect and condense
the death divinity here.”
“So, it's only natural that She coveted this divinity too.”
Their relationship had never been close; their collaboration stemmed from the
harsh external pressures they both faced.
"As Teacher Si Ling mentioned earlier, divinity is a crucial commodity for
deities. The undead orthodoxy intends to trade this death divinity with the
Death God."
"Death divinity..."
The fishman youngster's Adam's apple involuntarily bobbed.
The craving within his heart grew ever more intense with each passing moment.
“I've deceived even the Main Earth Elemental God once, what's deceiving Teacher
Si Ling?”
"I've arranged everything else. Dao Hen, Hun Tong, Xiao Guai, Da Dou... all
fronts are secure."
“Let's steal the divinity first, then leave this place.”
A powerful intuition surged within the fishman youngster. It told him the death
divinity held immense benefit for him!
What he didn't know was that while he focused on Dao Hen's side and worked to
boost Hun Tong's morale, trouble had erupted with the big guy.
The big guy, Da Dou, and Hong Zhu had been rounded up.
Their bodies limp and weak, they were tightly bound by three or five types of
alchemy restraints and secretly loaded onto a sea vessel.
The imperial spy codenamed Su Xing watched the ship preparing to set sail, his
brow furrowed as he cautioned, “Be extremely cautious this time.”
The escort in charge of the big guy and his group was none other than the
person-in-charge who had accompanied Tu Ji on their search for them in the
Magnet Archipelago.
He nodded firmly. “This time, I won't make the same mistake.”
Su Xing patted his shoulder. “Tu Ji died in the Magnet Archipelago. Even with
the Main Earth Elemental God's intervention, you're still in deep trouble.”
"I specifically assigned you this mission. Earning merit is secondary. My
greater hope is that you can quickly establish contact with the Empire's
investigators."
The Magnet Archipelago's person-in-charge nodded. “Fortunately, this time the
investigator is Tan Mo.”
"He's greedy to the core, though skilled at demanding bribes, he's also
reliable. Once paid, he gets things done!"
Su Xing nodded, “If you satisfy him, at least the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's
investigation report will be favorable to you.”
“Ah, but this time, the Magnet Archipelago's overall situation requires my
personal oversight. I can't break free just yet.”
The Magnet Archipelago's person-in-charge quickly responded with understanding:
"Rest assured, Lord Su Xing. You've given me such a generous bounty this time.
When I meet Tan Mo, I'll present these treasures to him. His regard for you
will surely multiply!"
"Very well, very well. I trust your judgment. Otherwise, I wouldn't have
appointed you to handle affairs here in the first place."
“You were defeated by your own misfortune.”
“You had the misfortune of encountering a member of the Blood Light Punishment
Institution, and the even greater misfortune that he perished in battle.”
Su Xing offered a few words of consolation.
The Magnet Archipelago's person-in-charge snorted coldly: “Those from the Blood
Light Punishment Institution are all madmen. Facing such reckless fools who
disregard life itself, I can only accept my own misfortune!”
Su Xing patted his shoulder: "Enough said. It's time for you to set sail!"
“Yes, Lord.”
This time, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency fleet consisted of only three ships.
On the surface, they were merely iron level vessels, but in reality, they were
silver level ships equipped with gold level alchemy components.
Su Xing watched the small fleet depart into the distance. After a long moment,
he turned and headed back.
These three captives, the big guy and the others, were crucial and needed to be
delivered. For the Magnet Archipelago region was about to become very
turbulent.
Imperial spies would stir the pot from the shadows, helping adventurers form
groups to wage war against the earth elemental tribes of the Magnet
Archipelago.
When the entire archipelago erupted in turmoil, guarding these three vital
prisoners would become exponentially more difficult.
Though a fortress had been built on Feng Awakening Island, its proximity to the
Magnet Archipelago meant it remained vulnerable should the Main Earth Elemental
God turn its attention there again.
Besides the three, the ship was also loaded with large quantities of earth
elemental magic crystals, earth elemental essences, magnetite, and other goods.
Shortly after the three imperial spy ships departed the Magnet Archipelago, a
pirate crew set their sights on them.
A pirate flag fluttered in the wind.
The flag featured a pure white background, crisscrossed by numerous black lines
woven into the pattern of crossed swords.
This was the Rope Pirates, a relatively newly formed crew.
The pirates had two leaders: Magician Huo Sheng and Archer Chuan Yun.
They had once been renowned bounty hunters, but with the emergence of the
Pirate King's throne and the escalating piracy, they too had turned to a life
of piracy.
“The Greed God Bone is reacting!” Archer Chuan Yun stared excitedly at the bone
in his hand.
Through his magic crystal ball, Magician Huo Sheng observed the three imperial
spy ships: “All three are magic ships. They look ordinary enough, yet they hide
treasures within.”
A greedy gleam flashed in Archer Chuan Yun's eyes: The Magnet Archipelago is in
turmoil. Adventurers are mobilizing to eradicate the earth elemental tribes
there.
“Yet these men are leaving the islands at this critical moment. Something fishy
is definitely afoot.”
“They're only three iron level ships. What are we waiting for?”
It turned out that these two, armed with the Greed God Bone that could pinpoint
the most valuable items within range, had been constantly on the move.
And they'd made numerous successful hauls.
They'd unexpectedly overheard rumors of upheaval on the Magnet Archipelago,
strongly suspecting a great treasure was about to surface, which is why they'd
come to the vicinity.
The pair had previously landed on the Magnet Archipelago. Back then, they'd
used the Greed God Bone but found nothing.
The rumors deliberately spread by the Empire's secret agents had ignited new
hope within them. They reasoned that their previous failure to detect anything
was likely due to the treasure being sealed or concealed, blocking the bone's
sensing. Now, things were different.
They commanded their pirate crew not to rush ashore but to observe and wait.
After all, they were pirates. A rash landing carried a significant risk of
provoking a joint assault from adventurers.
During this period of observation and waiting, they spotted three imperial spy
ships.
Archer Chuan Yun was itching to act, but Magician Huo Sheng remained cautious:
“Let me cast a spell first to probe their strength.”
After the probe, Magician Huo Sheng suppressed his excitement: “The defenses on
these three magic ships are nothing special. Let's go all out and seize them!!"
The Rope Pirates charged aboard with fierce momentum.
On the imperial spy ship, their leader frowned slightly: “We've barely left the
island, and pirates have already spotted us?”
“Is my luck really this bad lately?”
"Hmph, the Rope Pirates? If you want to die, then come on."
Magician Huo Sheng couldn't see through the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's
disguise. When he cast his scouting spell, he triggered the Imperial Secret Spy
Agency's alarm system, exposing himself first.
As secret agents, their specialty was intelligence gathering.
Therefore, when the Rope Pirates moved, they immediately confirmed their
opponents' identities.
The three imperial spy ships accelerated their course.
“Stay slightly away from Magnet Archipelago. Engage near Feng Awakening
Island.” The leader began laying out the tactics.
On one hand, they wanted to avoid fighting within Magnet Archipelago to prevent
unnecessary attention.
On the other hand, they couldn't stray too far. If the battle turned
unfavorable, they could still call upon the strength of nearby allies.
Thus, the vicinity of Feng Awakening Island was the optimal battlefield choice.
“They're running!”
“Hahahaha! Run! See where you can run to!”
The pirates grew increasingly excited, rubbing their hands together as morale
soared.
Moments later, they caught up to the three imperial spy ships.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The battle erupted, and they were stunned by the imperial spies' explosive
firepower.
Though outnumbered, the pirates were immediately suppressed.
This only fueled their savagery.
Archer Chuan Yun bellowed orders to charge forward for a boarding action.
He and Magician Huo Sheng launched a coordinated assault, one firing arrows,
the other casting spells, attacking the imperial spies' ships from afar.
The imperial spies fought while retreating, maintaining their distance at all
times.
After a brief charge, the pirates failed to board their ships. Worse, they were
caught in concentrated fire during the assault, losing two more vessels.
Hordes of pirates leaped overboard in panic, throwing the scene into utter
chaos.
Their morale plummeted.
“Bosses, these enemies are no joke. Let's get out of here!”
“Damn it, never expected them to be such tough nuts to crack.”
Numerous pirates had already volunteered to retreat.
Magician Huo Sheng and Archer Chuan Yun both wore grim expressions. Neither
possessed leadership skills to rally their men, and their pirates were of low
caliber. They could handle favorable battles, but when things turned sour,
retreat was their first instinct.
“Then... retreat.” Magician Huo Sheng sighed and gave the order decisively.
Archer Chuan Yun's face turned ashen, but he offered no objection.
But just then, two gold level fighters suddenly launched a surprise attack from
beneath the sea, scaling their ship and charging toward the two leaders.
This sudden turn of events sent both men into a panic, and they scrambled to
retreat.
Soon, the naval battle concluded.
The entire pirate crew was annihilated, suffering heavy casualties.
Survivors were captured by imperial spies and enslaved to continue fortress
construction on Feng Awakening Island.
Archer Chuan Yun perished in battle, while Magician Huo Sheng was taken alive.
As a spellcaster, he would be a high-quality slave!
Despite the victory, the fleet commander remained deeply troubled: “The pirates
are growing increasingly brazen.”
“Lately, fueled by the sorrow-dispelling red wine, these sea hyenas have been
roaming with wild abandon.”
“To be safe, we should still employ artificial ocean current boosters.”



****** Chapter 658: First Test ******
Artificial ocean current boosters were large-scale alchemy devices capable of
artificially generating temporary currents between two points.
Ships navigating these currents sailed as if on a fast lane.
Though activating such devices consumed significant resources, they saved
immense amounts of time.
After much deliberation, the spy chief resolutely chose this method to
circumvent greater risks.
His concerns were not unfounded.
The Divine Wind Pirates had been blocked.
The Thorn Pirates' captain stood astride the foremast, hands on hips,
bellowing, “Feng Lian, show yourself!”
Feng Lian stepped forward.
Tall and lean, he wore a bronze mask, wielded a scythe with a blade nearly two
meters long, and was cloaked in white feathers.
Jing Wen puffed out his chest, pointing a thumbed finger at himself. “Feng
Lian, your luck has turned!”
“Our leader, Da Han, has taken a liking to you and invites you to join us.”
"You wiped out the Intoxication Church's fleet; you must've seized plenty of
sorrow-dispelling red wine. Our boss, Da Han, takes a keen interest in that
wine. You know what to do."
Silence fell. No one spoke.
The atmosphere grew awkward.
Jing Wen felt belittled, his eye twitching. “Hey, Feng Lian, are you deaf?”
Feng Lian finally spoke, his voice hoarse: “Just now, what did you say your
name was?”
Jing Wen flared with anger: “I'm Jing Wen! Just like you, I'm a gold level!”
Feng Lian pressed further: “You claim to represent Da Han. Are you part of the
Fire Beard Pirates?”
Jing Wen's expression darkened, his voice dropping: "Not yet. But I'm following
Da Han's orders closely. Joining the Fire Beard Pirates is only a matter of
time..."
Feng Lian snorted coldly: “If you're not, how dare you brag in front of me?”
“Do you realize you've already put yourself in a deadly situation?”
The words had barely left his mouth when Jing Wen saw Feng Lian and his scythe
blur into a haze.
The next instant, everything returned to normal.
Jing Wen thought he'd seen things and dismissed it.
He pointed at Feng Lian, cursing, “You brat! We're both gold level, what are
you showing off for... Huh?”
The next moment, pain surged through Jing Wen.
He instinctively looked down at his chest, where excruciating agony radiated.
Pop.
Blood gushed violently, staining Jing Wen's vision crimson.
Staring fixedly at his chest, he saw a massive gash slashed diagonally across
his torso.
The wound ran long, from left to right.
Then, Jing Wen watched his body slowly slide sideways and sink downward. His
head and neck section crashed directly onto the deck.
Pfft... pfft...
His lower half remained standing, blood gushing relentlessly from the severed
abdomen.
Blood spurted like a fountain.
Jing Wen had been cleaved clean in two!
When did this happen?
“When?”
“I... I actually...”
Jing Wen's face contorted with terror, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks before
plunging into endless darkness.
“Boss!”
“Captain!”
“Oh no! The captain's been cut in two!”
The pirates behind Jing Wen erupted in a chorus of gasps and cries.
Some seethed with rage, ready to strike back. Others retreated in sheer terror,
their flight evident.
The pirates, moments ago brimming with fury, now descended into chaos.
In stark contrast, the Divine Wind Pirates' morale soared. They roared in
unison, drew their weapons, and charged forward at the first mate's command.
The two ships were already close together, allowing many transcendent pirates
to leap directly across, slashing at anyone in sight.
Feng Lian stood motionless, clutching his long-handled sickle.
He remained as still as a mountain peak, letting his subordinates surge past
him like a raging tide. The contrast between movement and stillness was stark.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Formless.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Instant.
Feng Lian unleashed both battle skills simultaneously.
But that wasn't the crucial point.
His gaze lingered on his wrist.
Once bare, it now bore an alchemy bracelet.
“This aura-concealing artifact is surprisingly effective,” Feng Lian silently
praised.
It was spoils seized from the enemy after he had annihilated the fleet of the
Intoxication Church's fleet.
Soon, the battle before Feng Lian concluded.
Jing Wen's pirate crew's morale had collapsed completely, offering no organized
resistance.
In an instant, some died, others surrendered.
Of course, some chose death over submission.
Like the first mate and second mate.
Forced to their knees, the first deck was already soaked in their blood.
The first mate glared at Feng Lian with hatred. "Feng Lian, do you know what
you're doing? "
“We served Da Han! You slaughtered so many of us, offending Da Han himself.
You're doomed!”
The second mate added, "Hahahaha. We die first; you die later. But your end
will be far more miserable than ours."
Among pirates, there were indeed many such stubborn, fearless brutes.
Feng Lian looked at them and spoke calmly: I've never heard of this Jing Wen
fellow. But seeing the two of you, he does seem somewhat worthy."
“Compared to those spineless cowards who surrendered, I admire you more.”
“Take my next words back to Da Han.”
"Tell him that Feng Lian here does indeed possess a batch of sorrow-dispelling
red wine. If he wants it, he'd better come negotiate with me personally."
“Just because he drops a line and sends a few men, he expects me to hand over
the wine?”
“Does he think he's Fire Beard?”
Feng Lian stood firm, his resolve unshaken, showing no fear toward the saint
level Da Han.
Soon after, he sailed away triumphantly with his spoils, leaving behind only a
single ship and a handful of survivors, the first mate, second mate, and
scattered stragglers.
"He really let us off." The second mate watched the Divine Wind Pirates depart,
dazed.
He hadn't expected to survive.
Ironically, those who surrendered earlier had all been killed. Only the die-
hard resistors remained.
“Hah—!” The first mate spat out a mouthful of blood-tinged phlegm. "That coward
Feng Lian, killing our captain with a sneak attack! "
“Wait for death. Once we report this to Lord Da Han... Ugh.”
The next instant, a wind blade sliced through the air.
The first mate was cleaved in two, from head to toe.
He was dead.
The second mate jolted in terror and immediately ordered the ship to set sail.
The sea fell silent once more.
Both combatants had vanished, leaving only shattered hull fragments, sunken
corpses, and an ocean stained crimson.
Blood swirled within the cup.
Zi Di scrutinized its composition, her focus razor-sharp.
This was the Ice Sculpture Capital, the Alchemy Guild's dedicated examination
hall.
Zi Di wasn't the only alchemist taking this round of tests. Dozens of other
alchemists surrounded her, each engaged in their own alchemy work.
Twelve examiners patrolled the hall, maintaining order throughout the testing
grounds.
The subject of this assessment was one of the classic alchemy trials—Extreme
Synthesis.
The Alchemy Guild distributed identical quantities and weights of alchemy
materials to every examinee. The requirement seemed simple but was actually
quite difficult: using alchemy synthesis methods, create as many different
types of items as possible within the allotted time.
A key point was that it had to be synthesis alchemy, not decomposition or
degradation methods.
Zi Di observed for a moment, confirming the blood water in the cup met the
standards. She then poured a 4-gram piece of pure white crystal into the cup.
The crystal touched the blood, immediately triggering a minor explosion.
The blast was so small it produced only a faint crackling sound.
As the explosion occurred, a thick red mist rose.
Zi Di quickly stepped back to avoid it.
When the red mist dissipated, both the blood and the white crystal in the glass
beaker had vanished completely. In their place lay a thin layer of finely
ground brown sugar.
“The blood sugar is refined!” A look of joy spread across Zi Di's face.
This was the final step in her alchemy plan, the most complex and challenging
part. Yet she succeeded in her very first attempt.
“This assessment is going exceptionally well!” Zi Di assessed her progress.
She then cataloged all the items she had refined.
“Sunlight petals and moon shadow grass stems synthesized into a
thermoregulating stone, capable of adjusting temperature.”
“Moon shadow grass stems ground into juice, combined with purple jade, yielded
purple crystal powder for inducing sleep.”
“Hallucinogenic mushrooms and purple crystal powder synthesized into a
hallucinogenic floral scent.”
“Blending firebee tails and flame demon scales produced blazing powder.”
“Distilling shadow blossom and night dew yields a single drop of shadow
essence.”...
…
Including the freshly concocted blood sugar, Zi Di had produced a total of 37
alchemy creations.
On the surface, the exam seemed to test only alchemy technique. But in reality,
it encompassed many aspects.
Take alchemy recipes, for instance. Without knowing or accurately recalling all
37 recipes, producing this many creations would have been impossible.
Beyond that lay the hands-on alchemy execution.
How to decompose diverse materials, make precise adjustments, control
reactions, handle deviations, these intricate details demanded profound skill.
Next came the design of alchemy trial procedures. With limited assessment time,
maximizing output required meticulous time management and step sequencing. For
instance, the most frequently used sunlight petals could be processed in bulk
during the initial stage. Processing methods included drying, grinding, and
puffing, each yielding specific quantities with clear requirements.
Only by mastering these could one save time from every tiny crack. These minute
time savings, when accumulated, became significant.
After her calculations, Zi Di ceased alchemy.
Glancing at the hall clock, she knew the hour was nearly upon them. The
remaining time was insufficient for any meaningful refinement.
Moreover, her materials were running low.
Soon, the clock chimed: ding-dong-ding. Present alchemists sighed in regret or
jerked their hands away as if electrocuted.
The frosted glass panels around each alchemy table descended, revealing the
others’ creations.
Zi Di was slightly taken aback.
“Even the least accomplished among them produced over ten varieties. The Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy techniques truly are world-class.”
“Had I not received the assignment in advance and prepared beforehand, I doubt
I could have managed even ten.”



****** Chapter 659: Ban Tu Discusses ******
At that moment, an examiner's voice commanded the alchemists to exit the hall
in an orderly fashion.
As they filed out in a line, Zi Di overheard others conversing in the elven
tongue.
“The first assessment task was unexpectedly difficult?”
“Indeed, far harder than previous years.”
"Sigh, I made a mistake. I used far too many raw materials trying to refine
toad dung. Honestly, I could have used far fewer materials to refine the other
three substances instead."
Zi Di listened patiently, saying nothing.
Combining this with what she had glimpsed earlier, she was certain her
performance likely placed her among the top three in the hall.
As she stepped out of the Alchemy Guild, someone approached her.
It was the steward of the Li Jian Clan.
“Congratulations, congratulations, Magician Yao Ma! Your alchemy results this
time are quite impressive. With such an achievement, you're certain to pass the
first round,” the steward offered his congratulations.
The Li Jian Clan truly lived up to its reputation as one of the kingdom's top
powers. Having placed spies within the Alchemy Guild, they could effortlessly
gather intelligence on Zi Di's assessment.
Zi Di's expression remained composed. "The difficulty of the assessment
exceeded my expectations. This is only the first round. The real challenges lie
ahead."
Her results were achieved through cheating.
Though her performance was outstanding, it brought her even greater
psychological pressure.
"My alchemy talent isn't exceptional, and my techniques remain unrefined. I
once thought my skills were sufficient, but stepping onto this level of
competition immediately revealed a vast gap."
“Sigh, my innate talent was simply too poor.”
Zi Di's original aptitude was limited. It wasn't that she lacked the will to
strive, but her innate gifts restricted her, many things were beyond her reach
no matter how hard she tried.
This world was so cruel and hopeless. Some people yearned to improve themselves
but were denied the chance. Because for most, the very right to strive was
stripped away at birth.
Without a good bloodline, what's the point of striving?
But now, Zi Di had hope.
“After bloodline purification, my body's bloodline reached gold level.”
“If I can deepen my utilization of the Bloodcore in the future, I might even
replace my bloodline.”
"All this is thanks to you, but where are you now? Why haven't you returned
yet?"
At this thought, Zi Di couldn't help but feel a pang of longing.
She quickly gathered her thoughts and turned to the Li Jian Clan's steward:
"Did your invitation succeed? I hope you're bringing me good news."
The noble steward smiled and nodded: "We haven't disappointed you. Lord Ban Tu
has been summoned. But he's only granted you three minutes for conversation."
Zi Di nodded. “Then let's go see him at once.”
Ever since learning of the alchemy breakthroughs, such as the sorrow-dispelling
red wine and time ice cube from Elder Jiu Jin, Zi Di had been deeply intrigued.
These alchemy creations could drastically reduce leveling time, making them
ideal for the dragonman youngster.
In Zi Di's heart, her beloved commander was still only of silver level.
Magician Ban Tu was the mastermind behind this alchemy project. Zi Di had once
extended an invitation but Ban Tu hadn't even glanced at it.
Primarily because news of this alchemy breakthrough had leaked, causing Ban
Tu's status and reputation to skyrocket. He was now meeting with countless
high-ranking figures daily, how could he possibly spare time for a mere silver
level magician from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
With no other option, Zi Di turned to the Li Jian Clan to arrange a meeting
with Ban Tu.
True to their reputation as one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's most powerful
factions, the Li Jian Clan successfully secured Ban Tu's presence.
Not long after.
Inside an upscale restaurant, Zi Di met Ban Tu.
Magician Ban Tu appeared decrepit; his face etched with deep wrinkles. His hair
resembled a tuft of gray, dry straw—dull and brittle, seemingly untouched by a
comb.
He merely glanced at Zi Di as she sat down, then ignored her entirely.
Ban Tu fixed his gaze on the blue liquid in his wine glass: “For the sake of
this blue wine, get to the point.”
Zi Di stated plainly, “I wish to purchase the sorrow-dispelling red wine, along
with the complementary method for using the time ice cube.”
Ban Tu lifted his eyes to Zi Di and shook his head slowly. "You? That seems
rather unlikely."
Zi Di smiled. “Then please, Lord Ban Tu, take a good look at the bargaining
chips I can offer.”
With that, she retrieved a set of documents, placed them on the table, and
pushed them toward Ban Tu.
Ban Tu picked up the two thin sheets of paper and scanned them.
Almost instantly, the disdain vanished from his face. His eyes lit up with
intense interest.
He examined the papers several times before asking, “You truly possess the
recipes for these wines?”
Zi Di smiled: “Lord Ban Tu, even if you don't trust me, surely you trust the Li
Jian Clan?”
Ban Tu instinctively glanced at the Li Jian Clan steward standing in the corner
and gave a slight nod.
His reaction was exactly as Zi Di had anticipated.
These wine recipes naturally came from War Merchant's database.
Ban Tu himself was a wine enthusiast, possessing an innate passion for fine
liquors. He was also a believer of the Intoxication Church, though his exact
position within the cult remained unclear, it was undoubtedly high.
Presenting these recipes to the Intoxication Church would undoubtedly be a
significant contribution.
After all, the church worshipped none other than the Wine God.
Zi Di was confident that presenting these recipes would secure her the sorrow-
dispelling red wine.
Yet the next moment, she heard Ban Tu sigh.
He shook his head slowly, his gaze lingering on the recipes with a mix of
longing and regret. “We cannot give you even a single bottle of sorrow-
dispelling red wine right now.”
“Why?” Zi Di froze for a moment before asking.
Ban Tu's face showed hesitation.
But soon, he sighed again: "Never mind. The news has already leaked out; soon
the whole capital will know. I'll just tell you directly."
“The sorrow-dispelling red wine isn't something ordinary alchemists like us can
create, because its main ingredient is the blood of the wine god!”
"Our church poured every effort into crafting 600 bottles for the royal
banquet. Unexpectedly, the fleet was raided by pirates!"
“What?!” Zi Di gasped.
These past days, she'd been fully immersed in exam preparations, oblivious to
external events.
This news had actually been deliberately suppressed for some time by the Li
Jian Clan and other factions. After all, it concerned the cooperation between
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and the Intoxication Church.
Therefore, this intelligence had been officially classified by the Ice
Sculpture authorities as “unverified.”
Only now, with the Intoxication Church in Drunkard Harbor desperately seeking
aid and reinforcements everywhere, had it become impossible to conceal, forcing
them to acknowledge it.
Zi Di listened intently as Ban Tu revealed more detailed intelligence.
“Feng Lian?” Zi Di was surprised, not expecting the thief who stole this batch
of wine to be someone they knew.
“In that case...” she lowered her voice, “we're also interested in purchasing
the research records and specific alchemy formula for this alchemy
achievement.”
Ban Tu looked surprised. “You want to brew it yourselves?”
He shook his head. “Do you have the blood of the wine god?”
Zi Di asked, “Couldn't we modify the formula and replace that god level
ingredient?”
Ban Tu chuckled. “It's the most essential component. I shan't elaborate on the
specifics.”
The elf's pride showed through in that moment.
Zi Di immediately replied, "I understand. All knowledge holds value. I can
offer just one of the wine recipes contained within this document. I humbly
request Lord Ban Tu enlighten me."
A sharp gleam flashed in Ban Tu's eyes: “Two recipes!”
Zi Di shook her head. Though she held many recipes, she refused to concede so
readily. This was merely the opening phase of negotiations; yielding too
readily would only fuel the opponent's greed.
Thus, Zi Di argued her case, employing every rhetorical tactic to persist.
Ban Tu, not one skilled in bargaining, soon waved his hand. “Enough. One recipe
it is.”
“I'll tell you this much, it involves divinity.”
“Divinity?” Zi Di pressed for clarification.
After explaining, Ban Tu continued: “It's precisely because the blood of the
wine god contains divinity that the sorrow-dispelling red wine achieves such
astonishing effects.”
“You surely know that buried at the deepest point of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake
lies the corpse of a god level dragon.”
“The reason the ice water within the lake possesses temporal power is due to
the constant diffusion and erosion of the time divinity emanating from that
dragon corpse.”
“Only the power of the wine god's divinity can neutralize the reflected power
of the time divinity within the time ice cube.”
"This was the primary reason my earlier attempt to brew the [Beautiful Future]
potion failed. I simply couldn't afford god level ingredients!"
Zi Di's eyes widened in astonishment.
Her previous understanding had been far too limited, as divinity was the secret
of the gods themselves.
According to Ban Tu, he hadn't known about it either until he personally
participated in the Ice Cube Red Wine alchemy project, which afforded him the
opportunity to learn about it.
Upon gaining this knowledge, Zi Di immediately realized she had offered too low
a price.
This knowledge wasn't even recorded in the War Merchant's database, perhaps it
had been lost? After all, the records preserved by the tower spirit were
incomplete.
Only to Ban Tu, in the eyes of this wine connoisseur, did the wine formula hold
immense value and irresistible allure.
Having pinpointed this weakness in Ban Tu, Zi Di seized the opportunity
immediately. During subsequent negotiations, she made it clear she intended to
purchase the alchemy technique for creating the Ice Cube Red Wine. Even without
the sorrow-dispelling red wine, she would buy it.
“You can't afford it,” Ban Tu shook his head.
Zi Di merely smiled, producing another document. “Lord Ban Tu, perhaps you
should review this.”
Within seconds, Ban Tu's eyes widened in shock.
He struggled, hesitated, his expression torn. “This project's success isn't
solely my achievement; it involves members of the Intoxication Church.”
“Moreover, this formula holds immense importance to the Intoxication Church...”
Zi Di countered, "Compared to the blood of the wine god, is the formula truly
that vital? Why guard it so fiercely?"
“Lord Ban Tu, doesn't your prestige and standing within the Intoxication Church
hold enough sway to seal this deal?”
“Is this wine recipe truly non-negotiable? Are you genuinely unwilling to sell
it?”
Ban Tu's brow furrowed deeply. “Come to think of it, no one in the church has
ever explicitly prohibited it.”
His eyes remained fixed on the thin sheets of paper, motionless, his Adam's
apple occasionally rolling as if he were already savoring the exquisite wine
described in the documents.
Zi Di took in this scene, her confidence growing.
She pressed on, continuing her persuasion.
Ban Tu's expression shifted, his hesitation deepening, yet he still couldn't
make up his mind.



****** Chapter 660: Stealing Divinity! ******
Zi Di seemed to see through Ban Tu, saying, “Perhaps this is a loophole.”
“This formula for the sorrow-dispelling red wine, along with the specific
method for using time ice cubes, are major secrets of the church.”
“But Lord Ban Tu, you currently have no knowledge of this fact.”
"Even if you sell it, should the sect pursue you later, you can easily shift
the blame onto this point, no one told me this discovery couldn't be sold! "
“In other words, future transactions would likely prove difficult.”
“For tomorrow, the Intoxication Church might patch this oversight and declare
it non-negotiable.”
“Thus, your opportunity is now, and only now.”
“It may well be a once-in-a-lifetime chance.”
Ban Tu, whose mood had been shifting like the weather, finally hardened at
these words that struck his core. Slamming his palm on the table, he made his
decision: “I'll sell it!”
Zi Di smiled, countering unexpectedly: "Are you truly certain? This is actually
a very risky endeavor."
Ban Tu paused, then shook his head. “Enough talk. My mind is made up!”
“I might regret it someday.”
“But if I don't make this deal, I'll regret it right now.”
“Hand over the complete recipe immediately!”
Zi Di: “No rush. Let's formalize the contract first.”
Though Zi Di was given only three minutes to negotiate, the final deal took
well over half an hour to seal.
With the complete recipe in hand, Ban Tu hurried away.
Zi Di was about to leave when the steward of the Li Jian Clan followed to see
her off.
The steward said, "Magician Yao Ma, congratulations. Your gains this time are
truly immense!"
Having observed from the sidelines, the steward knew full well that Zi Di had
made a huge profit on this deal.
Zi Di smiled faintly.
How many who had their weaknesses exposed during her negotiations had ended
well?
The most recent example was Elder Jiu Jin.
Even now, he was still risking everything to secretly leak exam questions to Zi
Di.
The steward continued, “Actually, Magician Yao Ma, today brings you double good
fortune.”
"We've just received internal news from the Alchemy Guild, the results of
today's assessment have been finalized. Your performance was head and shoulders
above the rest. You passed the first stage with a commanding lead."
“I never imagined your alchemy talent, Magician Yao Ma, to be so exceptional.”
"This truly surpasses my expectations. If I were in charge, how could I dare
assign such an outstanding alchemist to travel afar?"
Zi Di's expression remained calm.
She knew full well these compliments didn't match reality.
She had cheated.
Having known the questions in advance, she'd secretly prepared for a long time,
practicing relentlessly. She had even had the designed alchemy steps verified
by Elder Jiu Jin.
Zi Di said, "To be honest, the difficulty of the Warm Snow Cup Competition has
surprised me. I've only passed the first question so far. Many more challenges
await me. It's too early to offer congratulations now."
The steward then remarked meaningfully, “Truthfully, Magician Yao Ma, you
needn't have gone to such lengths.”
“Participating in the Warm Snow Cup isn't crucial.”
“Truthfully, your objectives are already within reach, aren't they?”
The steward slowed his pace: “Because our two parties continue to deepen our
collaboration...”
Zi Di's expression shifted slightly, her demeanor transforming from calm to
serious. She chose her words carefully: “Your family wishes to deepen our
collaboration?”
“Precisely!” The steward promptly produced a thick dossier.
Unlike Zi Di's documents, this file was substantial, densely packed with
intricate cooperation clauses.
Zi Di swiftly located the pivotal section.
A 30-70 split.
The Li Jian Clan voluntarily relinquished profit, pledging to take only 30% of
future earnings from deepened collaborations, directly ceding the remaining 70%
to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
What immense sincerity!
Beyond that, Zi Di saw the Li Jian Clan was willing to provide numerous alchemy
techniques.
These represented the cutting edge of Ice Sculpture Kingdom's technology, items
previously deemed non-negotiable in past transactions. Yet now, the Li Jian
Clan was proactively offering them all.
“Sole partnership?” Zi Di raised an eyebrow slightly.
This was the most critical stipulation in the Li Jian Clan's demands.
The Li Jian Clan demanded that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps must collaborate
with them, and only them in all future business ventures!
Zi Di carefully tucked away the documents, her face breaking into a bitter
smile. "This is far too significant a matter for me to decide. I must report
back immediately."
She gave an excuse first.
The steward nodded. “As expected.”
Then, he smiled and bowed to Zi Di. “We shall await your good news.”
Zi Di nodded to him and walked away alone.
Walking through the bustling street, Zi Di spotted a magic projection at the
corner.
It was an advertisement for the two potions she had produced: [Smooth Stride]
and [Spirit Stimulation].
The ad was cleverly designed.
A dozen people were racing sleds. It was a speed competition, with no potions
allowed.
One competitor fell behind, then fed his reindeer sled driver consecutive doses
of [Smooth Stride] and [Spirit Stimulation]. The reindeer's speed surged,
propelling him into first place before crossing the finish line as the victor.
“[Smooth Stride] and [Spirit Stimulation], potions crafted exclusively for
mounts.”
“Such potent effects, such silky acceleration!”
“Keep you accelerating, step by step ahead, far ahead, far ahead!”
The slogan “far ahead” echoed through the streets, its reverberating effect
seeming to burrow into people's minds.
Zi Di sighed inwardly. She knew the Li Jian Clan's tactics all too well.
The first time the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps collaborated with the Li Jian
Clan, they introduced the dragon rider potion. In a market where most players
were still clueless, they carved out a vast blue ocean.
The profits from this niche mount potion market astonished and thrilled
everyone.
The second time, for Zong Ge, Zi Di introduced [Smooth Stride] and [Spirit
Stimulation]. Any discerning eye could see the value of these potions. Armed
with the success of their first venture, the Li Jian Clan executed production
and sales with greater maturity and on a much larger scale this time.
Leveraging Long Fu (Zong Ge)'s public duel with Bing Yang, sales of the new
potions ignited like oil on a raging fire, far surpassing those of the dragon
rider potion.
Zi Di understood perfectly: "On the one hand, we were the first to launch these
on the market with no competitors. On the other hand, most people use mounts
primarily for speed. [Dragon Rider] boosts mount strength, while [Spirit
Stimulation] and [Smooth Stride] increase movement speed. That's the real
selling point."
“Two major successes are enough to make the Li Jian Clan take us extremely
seriously.”
"And my performance on the first question of this alchemy competition was
nothing short of astonishing. Combined with Commander Long Fu's popularity from
the duel, if this trend continues, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could
completely break away from the Li Jian Clan and go solo."
Precisely because of this, the Li Jian Clan felt a sense of crisis.
They couldn't let go of the profits from their current partnership, yet they
coveted even greater profits from future collaborations!
“The drawbacks of deep cooperation have become apparent.”
“What was once a helping hand is gradually turning into a hindrance.”
Zi Di sighed inwardly.
Delaying was merely a reluctant choice.
The reason the Li Jian Clan hadn't acted was simply because they were
intimidated by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' constant display of strength.
Of course, there was another crucial factor.
That was Zong Ge's decisive use of the pearl bubbles earlier, achieving the
undeniable feat of defeating three gold level opponents in one fell swoop. The
Li Jian Clan had long been aware of this.
“How much longer can we possibly delay this time?”
“Ultimately, it boils down to our own lack of strength.”
Zi Di missed the dragonman youngster intensely.
“If the Lord Commander were here, he could use the Red Wine Ice Cube
combination to rapidly advance to gold level.”
“That would greatly alleviate the current situation.”
The situation continued to evolve.
The pressure from the duelists had lessened considerably as Zi Di and Zong Ge
smoothly entered the royal capital, and as Mei Lin and the others were drawn
into the national ceremony, pirate affairs, and Shuang Lian.
Bing Yang was the offensive they had brewed up.
Yet the external force Zi Di had brought in, the Li Jian Clan, was gradually
opening its mouth, bristling with sharp teeth, lured by the promise of rich
profits.
Meanwhile, the young commander Zi Di held dear in her heart was busy stealing.
He was stealing divinity.
Divine spell - Divine Artifact Mastery.
Divine spell - Deceptive Scheming.
Divine spell - Opportunistic Deception.
Divine spell - Distortion Filter.
Divine spell - Divine Power Channel.
Guided by divine revelation, the fishman youngster maintained five divine
spells.
Practice makes perfect. Armed with the experience of deceiving the Main Earth
Elemental God last time, his actions this time were far more composed. The
pressure he felt was also significantly less than before.
“Perhaps it's because the purpose is different.”
"Last time, Xiao Guai had to be saved at all costs. This time, it's merely the
death divinity."
Though the divinity stirred intense craving and temptation within him,
companionship remained paramount in the fishman youngster's heart.
Compared to his previous deception, the divine spells he employed this time
differed slightly.
First, the divine spell [Believer Perception] was absent. With Teacher Si Ling
within sight, there was no need to sense his presence through this art.
Divine spells like [Deceptive Scheming] and [Distortion Filter] remained
active. Both divine spells proved exceptionally potent. Notably, this iteration
of [Distortion Filter] targeted not Teacher Si Ling, but the artifact [Truth
Slate] he carried!
This time, adding in [Opportunistic Deception] made the effect even greater.
As for [Divine Power Channel], it was present both before and after, but its
purpose had shifted.
Previously, when saving Xiao Guai, the Divine Power Channel served to deepen
their connection, facilitating the release of divine spells upon the big guy or
those near him. This time, however, the Divine Power Channel was for
transporting death divinity!
“It's coming,” the fishman youngster murmured silently.
He kept a close watch on the outside world.
Within the magic formation personally controlled by Teacher Si Ling, the light
sphere shrank steadily until it stabilized at the size of an infant's fist.
The fist-sized orb blazed with an intensity blinding to ordinary eyes.
Yet within mere breaths, the light vanished entirely.
The fist-sized orb dissolved without trace, replaced by a single drop of
liquid.
The liquid took the shape of a teardrop pendant, uniformly dark gray in color,
emanating a gloomy aura devoid of any divinity.
It was the death divinity!
“Another drop,” Cang Xu sighed.
Jian Gui rejoiced: “This is already the second portion.”
At the same moment, aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, a similar drop of death
divinity appeared within the artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale], held in the fishman
youngster's hands.
Likewise, this was the second portion of death divinity the fishman youngster
had stolen.
Teacher Si Ling could condense two drops at once, but the fishman youngster had
secretly stolen one. After all, the other half of this magic formation was
inscribed and constructed with Charming Blue divine script.
Combined with various divine spells, it was only natural that Teacher Si Ling
had been deceived.
Teacher Si Ling carefully retrieved the Truth Slate, temporarily sealing the
death divinity within it.
After completing these tasks, he paused, breathing heavily, to recuperate.
Meditation.
Consuming potions.
Casting spells to buff himself.
Only after completing these steps did Teacher Si Ling straighten up and resume
controlling the massive formation.
Condensing divinity was extremely taxing, placing a heavy burden upon him.
Stealing divinity was far simpler.
It was like one person laboriously drawing water from a well, while another
effortlessly scooped water from the bucket using a ladle.
The formation hummed once more, then erupted in brilliant radiance.
The light contracted, coalescing into a massive orb.
The orb slowly compressed again and again.
This step took the longest.
The fishman youngster had experience with this now.
After all, he'd witnessed it twice before.
When the orb shrank to the size of an infant's fist, its brilliance reached its
peak. Then, the death divinity crystallized.
“Just how much death divinity can be condensed in the White Hair Trench?”
The fishman youngster felt a surge of impatience.
The time required to steal the death divinity exceeded his expectations.
He had initially thought this would be a one-time thing, but it turned out to
be a process that needed repeating multiple times.
“At this very moment, Xiao Guai must be waiting impatiently on the ship,
right?”
"Sigh..."
“I hope he's not too anxious. Just be patient.”



****** Chapter 661: Zong Ge vs Bing Yang – Publicly or Privately ******
Munch munch munch.
Inside the cabin, the big guy buried his head in his food, occasionally opening
his wide mouth to stuff a whole ham hock in at once.
He ate with relish, his mouth glistening with grease.
“Some dessert, perhaps?” The Imperial Spy Chief smiled, presenting a tray of
small cakes.
Beside the big guy sat Da Dou and Hong Zhu.
The sight of the cakes darkened both their expressions.
Da Dou snorted coldly, while Hong Zhu remarked, “Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea
again? As the esteemed Imperial Secret Spy Agency, don't you have any new
tricks up your sleeves?”
The leader smiled faintly. “We prioritize practicality.”
“Especially with you three, we have no intention of using force.”
“Such desserts are just right, wouldn't you agree?”
Da Dou and Hong Zhu could only resign themselves.
Earlier, they had not only witnessed but were invited to view the magic footage
of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's battle against the Rope Pirates.
Thus, the trio knew these three ships appeared ordinary yet were lavishly
equipped, with two gold level agents escorting them.
Even if their restraints were released, escape might prove impossible. Let
alone now, when even walking was a struggle.
The leader narrowed his eyes. “Hurry up, all three of you. Don't keep me
waiting too long.”
He began to urge them on.
“Right now, if escape is possible, only he stands a chance,” Da Dou thought to
himself, casting an almost imperceptible glance at the big guy.
Hong Zhu shared his thoughts.
To conceal the big guy as their trump card, they had deliberately withheld much
of what happened in the earth elemental tribe's underground lair.
Thus, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency remained unaware that the big guy had once
undergone divine descent.
Had they known, his confinement would never have been the laxest among the
three.
Yet the big guy's reaction was pure delight, his eyes lit up as he excitedly
opened his huge hands, grabbed a handful of the small cakes, and shoved them
straight into his mouth.
“Good.”
“Delicious!”
His cheeks puffed out as he mumbled his praise.
Admittedly, these little cakes were magic delicacies. Though their effects were
negative, the taste was genuinely good.
Da Dou and Hong Zhu sighed inwardly, then resignedly picked up the cakes and
ate them one after another.
The Imperial Spy Chief watched it all with a smile.
He was extremely cautious, personally overseeing this process every day. Though
he had destroyed the Rope Pirates, the incident had only sharpened his
vigilance, fearing he might make another mistake.
Even though Tu Ji's death wasn't his fault.
Da Dou and Hong Zhu finished their entire cakes, prolonging and solidifying the
negative effects on their bodies.
Meanwhile, the big guy had already polished off all the leftovers.
He collapsed onto his back and fell asleep, his belly swelling like a small
hill.
His body instinctively activated the battle qi technique, but the next moment,
the Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea effect kicked in. The big guy let out a deep sigh
and collapsed completely limp.
This didn't affect his sleep, however. Instead, it made him sleep even more
soundly and deeply.
“This big oaf has a pretty good attitude,” the Imperial Spy Chief marveled at
the scene.
Da Dou and Hong Zhu were both speechless.
The big guy's days aboard the Hog's Kiss had been far worse than this. He could
endure that, not to mention the treacherous Mystifying Monster Island. Now,
though under escort, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency treated him to fine meals
daily.
The big guy felt no panic.
He had long been assured by his father that they would meet halfway.
The big guy placed the deepest trust in the dragonman youngster, a trust that
had deepened into something akin to faith.
Thus, feeling quite content, he cheerfully awaited his father’s arrival.
While Xiao Guai’s father was still stealing divinity, the day of Zong Ge and
Bing Yang’s duel arrived first.
A large arena within the Ice Sculpture Capital.
Over 5,000 spectator seats were packed.
The crowd buzzed with chatter, some arguing over whether Bing Yang or Long Fu
was stronger, others discussing how much they'd wagered on this match.
Among the audience, gamblers formed a substantial contingent.
He Gai Tou, concealing his identity under a hood, sat among the ordinary
spectators.
He listened intently for a moment, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.
The sheer number of gamblers confirmed his efforts had paid off.
To build his betting pool, he had actively promoted the duel's prestige,
touting it as the strongest silver level clash of the tournament.
Simultaneously, he stoked ethnic sentiments. The fact that “Long Fu is a
dragonman and Bing Yang is a snow elf” allowed him to exploit the situation to
the fullest.
“The greatest regret is that although Long Fu publicly announced the duel, he
didn't make it entirely public.”
“This duel prohibits the recording of magic footage. It won't be advertised
externally, and the magic footage of this battle will never be sold to the
public in the future.”
“Damn it, turning down money like that!”
Every time He Gai Tou thought about this, his mood soured.
Running the betting ring, he knew many gamblers had placed hefty wagers on both
duelists. Would these gamblers be too poor to afford the ticket money?
Yet, Long Fu had only opened it up to this extent. The duel venue he'd chosen
wasn't even one of those super-duel arenas. The number of spectator seats was
relatively small even among large arenas.
The strict limit on in-person attendance significantly dampened gamblers'
enthusiasm, stifling the growth of He Gai Tou's betting pool this time.
This dealt a severe blow to his profits.
Every time he thought about it, resentment flared within him.
As for Magician Yao Ma, Zi Di had taken her seat in the VIP section early.
Her seat was extremely close to the duel arena, offering an excellent view.
Zi Di scanned the packed crowd and sighed inwardly: "After all that picking and
choosing, we ended up with this arena. Controlling the spectator numbers will
also drastically reduce the consumption of pearl bubbles this time."
The reason they only opened a portion of the arena wasn't by choice, but sheer
necessity.
Their pearl bubbles was nearly depleted!
Fewer spectators meant less deception required, preserving more pearl bubbles.
The ban on capturing magic images stemmed from the same necessity.
“Therefore, the stakes are even higher for Zong Ge in this battle.”
“Not only must he win decisively, but he must win swiftly!”
“The longer it drags on, the more pearl bubbles are consumed.”
As agreed between the two, after this public duel, Zong Ge, in his Long Fu
impersonation, would temporarily announce a suspension of duels.
Publicly, they would claim: silver level opponents offered no challenge, and
they had lost interest in continuing duels.
In reality, they were desperately short on pearl bubbles and needed to conserve
it.
Zong Ge would avoid public appearances as much as possible afterward, reserving
the remaining pearl bubbles for Zi Di's use.
Participation in the Warm Snow Cup was non-negotiable.
As long as Zi Di achieved strong results in the Warm Snow Cup and demonstrated
her alchemy prowess, she would gain widespread recognition within the alchemy
industry.
She would eventually become independent, running her own alchemy business, and
thus be less likely to face exclusion or suppression from other alchemists.
She also had to break free from the Li Jian Clan to allow the survivors to
truly develop and grow.
Of course, future collaboration with the Li Jian Clan could not be ruled out.
After all, both sides had a foundation for cooperation, having achieved mutual
benefit at least twice, and the collaboration had been pleasant.
However, the contract currently proposed by the Li Jian Clan absolutely cannot
be signed. Such an arrangement would effectively make the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps a dependent of the Li Jian Clan, subject to their strict oversight.
This would create excessive dependence on the Li Jian Clan, making the
survivors unstable and without a secure future.
Should the Li Jian Clan face trouble, the survivors would be dragged into it.
If no trouble arose, they would be held hostage by the Li Jian Clan.
The scarcity of pearl bubbles ironically delivered a precise strike against one
of their enemies, He Gai Tou—an outcome neither Zi Di nor Zong Ge had
anticipated, a fortunate mistake.
Besides He Gai Tou, the duelist Mi Fang had also arrived.
Ever since he successfully poisoned Zong Ge last time, his focus on the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps had intensified.
With the recent launch of the new mount potions [Smooth Stride] and [Spirit
Stimulation], which were selling like hotcakes, Mi Fang's desire to eliminate
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps grew even stronger and more urgent.
Yi Jiu did not come. Last time, he suffered significant losses in his battle
against Shuang Lian, losing much of his equipment. After all, he had physically
traversed the spatial vortex. Currently, he remained at the Thieves' Guild,
relentlessly accepting quests to earn money.
He personally held no interest in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, even looking
down on most of its members.
After all, he had personally led a surprise attack on their Snow Bird Harbor
branch, effortlessly subduing their “Zong Ge” (an alchemy puppet). Though he
later learned the deputy commander had survived such severe injuries, which
surprised him somewhat. But overall, it was nothing special.
After subduing Bu Quan, Yi Jiu suffered a setback at the hands of Shuang Lian.
Apart from Long Fu, the others didn't warrant his serious attention.
Bao Li Gen hadn't shown up either. He mainly looked down on the ex-criminal He
Gai Tou, believing Bing Yang's chances of victory were slim. After all, Long Fu
had once taken on three opponents single-handedly, effortlessly eliminating Jia
Bing, Lin, and the Axe Gang leader from Blood Kin City.
Qing Hong Yan certainly wouldn't come. Ever since his alchemy transformation,
he'd grown eccentric, preferring solitude and loathing public appearances.
Hua Tang did show up though.
Disguised as an ordinary person, he bought a ticket and entered to watch the
battle. Most duelists remained unaware.
He secretly recorded magic footage to hand over to Mei Lin for analysis.
Mei Lin wanted to attend, but she couldn't.
As a naval commander responsible for coastal defenses, her duties demanded her
full attention.
Though the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had banned magic imaging, such
regulations were no match for Hua Tang.
The arrangements of the arena couldn't contain someone like Hua Tang.
Similarly, the Li Jian Clan, though figures like Kong Pan weren't present in
person, were secretly monitoring events.
After all, Long Fu's win or loss would significantly impact the sales of their
mount potions.
For the Li Jian Clan, covert filming wasn't even necessary. They had already
secured connections. After the battle, the arena would discreetly provide them
with magic footage captured from an exceptionally advantageous angle.
The Li Jian Clan were local powerhouses. At this level of influence, rules were
merely tools they designed to regulate others. These regulations were their
instruments, not their shackles.
Whether the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps made things public or not was utterly
irrelevant to them.



****** Chapter 662: Zong Ge vs Bing Yang – Contest of Equipment and Tactics


******
Another figure lurked unseen within the crowd.
It was Elder Yuan Ci!
He too watched today's battle with keen interest.
“I hope Long Fu proves formidable enough to eliminate Bing Yang outright.”
"Otherwise, how could Shi Liu ever rise to prominence?"
The Ice Prison Warden's decision to field Bing Yang in this grand duel had
genuinely caught Yuan Ci off guard. He had secretly bribed numerous
individuals, yet things had ultimately gone awry.
From his perspective, Bing Yang had once been gold level. Though now demoted to
silver level, his combat prowess undoubtedly surpassed that of most silver
level fighters.
A figure like Long Fu truly represented the greatest hope for eliminating Bing
Yang.
Yet Elder Yuan Ci had simultaneously placed a wager on Bing Yang's victory.
If Bing Yang won, he'd rake in a fortune. If Bing Yang fell in battle, he'd
lose his bet, yet feel even more delighted.
Yuan Ci displayed his true colors as a merchant: regardless of Bing Yang's
outcome, he stood to gain.
“Just a silver level duel, yet it's this heated?”
“The betting frenzy around this match has amplified the crowd's enthusiasm.”
“Notice how few gold level spectators are present? Seems Long Fu isn't quite
enough to draw gold level attendees."
“True. He defeated Teng Dong Lang, but that magic projection showed a very
close victory. The final outcome had a lot to do with luck.”
Such murmurs circulated among the crowd.
Most could only see the surface.
In reality, numerous gold level figures watched from the shadows. Many others
were deeply invested, their attention intense.
The masses wouldn't dream that this duel held immense significance, touching
upon the vital interests of various factions, as well as deep-seated grudges
and vendettas.
Suddenly, the crowd erupted into cheers.
Both combatants entered the arena simultaneously.
Stepping onto the right side was “Long Fu” (Zong Ge).
A massive dragon head, crimson vertical pupils, sharp fangs and teeth, its
entire body covered in red dragon scales, dense and intricate. His hands and
feet were noticeably larger, each ending in sharp, clawed dragon talons. His
crimson tail, also covered in dense scales, radiated a sense of solidity and
resilience.
Entering from the left was Bing Yang. A snow elf, his complexion appeared much
healthier than during his imprisonment in the ice cell. Tall and slender, his
features bore the natural, refined beauty characteristic of the elven race. Yet
he bore the severe ravages of the potion [Beautiful Future], now aged and
bearing a deeply troubled expression.
“Seeing Bing Yang again, I never imagined he'd aged so much.”
“That [Beautiful Future] potion was truly disastrous. It caused quite a stir
back then.”
“What's infuriating is that old fool Ban Tu still holds a position as an elder
in the Alchemy Guild. The higher-ups are blind!”
Among the audience were many victims from that time, their resentment palpable.
Little did they know that Ban Tu would soon make a remarkable comeback. The
alchemy project “Ice Cube Red Wine” had fundamentally altered Ban Tu's life.
The two gradually approached each other, halting simultaneously when they
reached a hundred paces apart.
Compared to Long Fu, Bing Yang looked even more aged. But the audience paid
little attention to age; their focus was entirely on the two men's equipment.
Zong Ge was clad in three layers of armor, carrying a pair of gold level short
spears on his back, a Gold Flower Hacksaw, and a Small Thunder God Flying
Hammer at his waist. Metal gauntlets covered both his hands. Those in the know
recognized these gauntlets as the Striking Shifter.
Zong Ge also carried a Battle Qi Boosting Syringe. Pearl bubbles were concealed
within his armor lining, with an additional layer of the Striking Shifter
wrapped around the foam. To puncture the pearl bubbles, he could simply use the
Striking Shifter, convenient and swift. The pearl bubbles served as a trump
card, to be used only when absolutely necessary.
After all, their supply of pearl bubbles was already pitifully scarce, barely
enough to get by.
As for the dragonman youngster's Golden Silk Chainmail, Grand Arena medal, and
ski goggles, he had taken them with him, leaving none behind. After all, the
youngster had intended to pursue Lan Zao, necessitating his weapons. Crucially,
he hadn't anticipated the subsequent chain of unforeseen events that would
prolong his stay.
Thus, the pair of gold level short spears strapped to Zong Ge's back weren't
the dragonman youngster's either, they belonged to Zong Ge himself. He had
carried it with him since his time on Mystifying Monster Island.
Looking at Bing Yang.
He wore an Ice Heart Headband, a one-handed sword at his waist, and a pair of
anti-magic bracelets on each wrist.
His black leather armor, leather pants, and leather boots formed what appeared
to be a complete defensive set, all designed in nearly identical styles.
The audience scrutinized both combatants' gear, then began whispering and
murmuring among themselves.
Both “Long Fu” and Bing Yang possessed numerous gold level items. For a silver
level player to have such depth of resources was nothing short of extravagant.
“Judging by the equipment, Bing Yang has the upper hand.”
“No wonder he was once gold level. His financial resources still far surpass
those of a silver level.”
“Long Fu is ultimately a silver level, not a gold level.”
After careful observation and comparison, the audience generally agreed that
Bing Yang's gear was superior.
What they didn't know was that Bing Yang had sold off most of his own
equipment. These gold level pieces were instead procured through the efforts of
He Gai Tou and Mei Lin, among others, behind the scenes.
They had been meticulously selected, each piece tailored for specific purposes.
The Ice Heart Headband countered Long Fu's Dragon Prestige skill.
Bing Yang's main weapon was a gold level one-handed sword, superior to his
previous one-handed sword. Its piercing capability was formidable, specifically
designed to counter dragon scales.
The anti-magic bracelets were intended to neutralize any magic scrolls Long Fu
might pull out.
Most crucially, his black leather armor, leather pants, and leather boots.
Confirmed through external channels, this was indeed a full set of gold level
defensive armor. Crucially, this armor set was officially registered with the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The kingdom enforced an armor ban law, strictly limiting the existence, sale,
and use of gold level armor.
This prohibition remains in effect during duels.
Regardless of origin, any transcendent participating in a duel must abide by
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's laws.
If not officially registered, outsiders could not use armor of gold level or
higher within the dueling arena.
Zi Di's gaze fixed on Bing Yang's leather armor.
This defensive set was the most crucial element. In terms of pure defense, Bing
Yang completely outclassed Zong Ge.
“Though Zong Ge is of gold level and surpasses Bing Yang in fighter level, he
carries significant hidden dangers.”
Blood Vengeance, Flower Willow, and a deadly poison—Zong Ge harbored three such
threats, causing Zi Di considerable worry. Yet, they had no means to resolve
them.
"This is merely the equipment Bing Yang has displayed. He must have other items
concealed on his body. Much like Zong Ge's Qi Boosting Syringe."
Yuan Ci also assessed the situation in silence: “Judging by both sides'
equipment, things look rather grim.”
“The Gold Flower Hacksaw used by Long Fu is spoils of war he captured. Will he
be accustomed to using it?”
“Even if he could, the Gold Flower Hacksaw is designed for heavy weapon
clashes. Bing Yang wields a one-handed sword, he's an agile fighter who clearly
avoids direct confrontations with Long Fu.”
“That makes the Gold Flower Hacksaw cumbersome and a liability.”
Hope surged within He Gai Tou's heart.
He knew Bing Yang inside out. To understand him thoroughly, he'd even fought
him personally.
“Bing Yang excels at attrition tactics.”
“Therefore, the key to this battle lies in speed!”
As long as he maintained a speed advantage, Bing Yang could keep his distance
from Zong Ge, allowing his attrition tactics to succeed.
For this reason, He Gai Tou had specially brought Bing Yang a pair of spider
silk stockings.
Though designed for women, they would suffice.
Bing Yang not only secretly wore the spider silk stockings but also adorned all
ten toes with rings.
Beyond boosting speed and agility, these rings served to fortify bodily balance
and movement coordination.
His speed-enhancing gear was maxed out.
After all, using such equipment demanded focus. Too many unfamiliar items
during intense combat could create openings, making it counterproductive.
But this alone wasn't enough.
He Gai Tou also arranged for Bing Yang to have an alchemy pistol.
It was a ladies' model, pink, named Chirp.
Whatever it fired produced no gunshot sound, only a chirping bird call. This
was an assassination weapon, having claimed the lives of many important
figures.
It held considerable renown within assassin circles.
He Gai Tou had borrowed it through channels connected to Yi Jiu.
The alchemy bullets loaded into the ladies' pistol [Chirp] were mostly frost
rounds, hits drastically slowed victims. Others were mind-disruption rounds,
causing cognitive chaos. Some were lethal poison rounds, the toxins supplied by
Mi Fang.
“Once the battle commences, accelerate immediately and create distance.”
“Use pistols and other means to continuously fire, reducing Long Fu's speed.”
“Achieving this step will allow us to calmly execute an attrition tactic.”
"Your Frost Aura will be the trump card. I'm quite looking forward to seeing
Long Fu face the aura."
These were the words He Gai Tou spoke to Bing Yang.
His tactical plan deeply resonated with Bing Yang.
When Bing Yang unleashed the Frost Aura, it carried the potion effect of
[Beautiful Future]. Once Long Fu was enveloped by it, it would be equivalent to
ingesting the [Beautiful Future] potion. and the effect would take immediate
effect!
This was terrifying.
He Gai Tou's anticipation grew even more.
He anticipated “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) perishing under this tactic.
Though duelists analyzed that “Long Fu” was likely gold level, falling victim
to [Beautiful Future] and dying remained entirely possible.
It all hinged on Bing Yang, whether his luck had carried him through the early
stages, or if he'd paid the price of downgrading to survive this long.
In truth, [Beautiful Future] had claimed the lives of numerous transcendents,
including the fall of three gold level fighters!
He Gai Tou had bet on Long Fu's victory.
Yet he preferred the outcome of Long Fu's defeat.
He could use this to earn merit and actively align himself with Mei Lin and
others. The hidden benefits behind this far outweighed the mere tens of
thousands lost in wagers!
After the arena officials verified the participants, the duel commenced.
Following their prearranged tactics, Bing Yang swiftly retreated, widening the
distance between himself and Zong Ge.
Zong Ge, meanwhile, drew a folding crossbow.
This alchemy weapon automatically loaded bolts into its grooves.



****** Chapter 663: Zong Ge vs Bing Yang – Pouring Rain of Blood ******
Zong Ge pursued while firing arrows.
Witnessing this, He Gai Tou couldn't help but chuckle softly.
He thought to himself: “Long Fu has one weakness that isn't really a
weakness—compared to his close-range combat prowess, his long-range
capabilities are weaker.”
“In standard duels, he relies on his alchemy crossbow to compensate for this
deficiency.”
"Against Teng Dong Lang, he wielded a dragon's reverse scale—Sword Return
Dragon Scale. That equipment proved invaluable!"
“But that badge isn't his own. Unless he's borrowed it, his ranged combat
remains flawed.”
This was the conclusion reached by He Gai Tou and Bing Yang through their joint
analysis.
Their research focused on the magic footage of duels broadcast by Long Fu,
including the battle against Hua Tang.
After all, Long Fu publicly declared his level to be merely silver. At this
level, fighters were far weaker in long-ranged attacks than melee.
Although Zong Ge had transformed the Striking Shifter into a ranged weapon
during his battle with Hua Tang and combined it with ranged battle skills, it
didn't yield significant results against Hua Tang.
Faced with the agile and swift Hua Tang, Zong Ge appeared clumsy and
cumbersome.
While pursuing, Zong Ge drew a folding crossbow.
Holding it with both hands, he unleashed a barrage of arrows.
Bing Yang dodged with all his might, his movements agile and graceful.
“Impressive evasion skills. Is that your only weapon? You dare challenge me
with this?” Zong Ge taunted.
Bing Yang snorted coldly, executing a graceful somersault to evade most of the
arrows. Regaining his footing, he flicked his single-handed sword lightly,
deflecting the subsequent crossbow bolts and revealing his solid swordsmanship.
Battle skill - Rapid Advance.
Battle skill - Charge.
Zong Ge's battle skills were all military or commonplace battle skills, simple,
practical, yet ordinary in effect.
However, the simultaneous use of two battle skills now dramatically increased
his speed, rapidly closing the gap between them.
Zong Ge closed in.
Bing Yang remained fully alert, showing no panic.
He activated the ring on his toe, his speed instantly surging as he
effortlessly pulled away again.
Zong Ge's gaze darkened slightly. He deliberately slowed his pace, focusing on
positioning.
Though slower, his battle experience was vast. Using the walls surrounding the
arena and relying on ranged firepower, he forced the faster Bing Yang into a
corner.
Bing Yang's speed vastly outstripped Zong Ge's, yet the relatively confined
combat environment held him back.
He took a step back, nimbly leaping onto the vertical wall. With a powerful
push from his legs, he shot upward like an arrow released from its string, his
entire body propelling him forward.
His speed surged once more, eliciting gasps from the spectators.
Such speed was rare, momentarily making people doubt whether Bing Yang had
truly recovered to his gold level form.
Battle skill - Violent Shot.
Battle skill - Rapid Shot.
Battle skill - Firepower Release!
Zong Ge's eyes flashed with intensity, without hesitation, he unleashed every
crossbow bolt on his body.
In an instant, his ranged firepower reached its peak.
Bing Yang dodged frantically in midair, evading most of the bolts. Yet their
sheer volume meant he still took numerous hits.
The bolts' lethality was significantly reduced by his leather armor set.
Zong Ge tossed aside both folding crossbows and closed in again using the
battle skill [Rapid Advance] and [Charge].
As Bing Yang saw Zong Ge charging, he prepared to activate all acceleration
devices when Zong Ge suddenly drew twin pistols from his back.
Battle skill - Power Throw.
Battle skill - Single Reflection.
Zong Ge's biceps twitched as battle qi erupted, propelling the gold level
pistols to trace two golden phantoms through the air.
Bing Yang accelerated, retreating diagonally backward.
The pistols struck the spot he had just vacated, refracting like beams of light
to pursue him once more.
As Bing Yang dodged again, Zong Ge hurled the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer.
Three weapons converged from two directions, front and rear, closing in on Bing
Yang.
Bing Yang took a deep breath, unleashing his battle skill for the first time
while simultaneously flinging his dagger.
The dagger struck the Small Thunder God Flying Hammer. In an instant, both
turned to stone and crashed to the ground.
Empowered by his battle skill, Bing Yang moved with heightened agility,
successfully evading the reflected dual pistols.
During his evasion, Zong Ge finally closed the distance between them to about
30 meters.
Seeing Bing Yang about to retreat again, Zong Ge reached behind his back. In
the next instant, he drew the Gold Flower Hacksaw.
Infused with battle qi, the saw spun wildly, emitting a violent whirring hum.
Zong Ge's movements grew more violent.
Instead of wielding the Gold Flower Hacksaw, he hurled it like a giant dart
with savage force.
Battle skill - Auto-Target Seek.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw spun vertically as it sliced toward Bing Yang.
Startled, Bing Yang jerked his wrist. A spell scroll fell from his sleeve. He
flicked it away with a swift motion, sending it flying.
In the next instant, the scroll activated, forming an ice wall.
The ice wall rose instantly.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw traced a parabolic arc through the air, plummeting down
to strike the ice wall.
Crack, crack.
The saw relentlessly cut through, swiftly slicing the ice wall apart, erupting
in a shower of golden sparks.
The golden sparks danced through the air, forming blossoms of golden flowers
drifting toward Bing Yang.
Bing Yang paid them no mind, sweeping his single-handed sword to summon a cold
wind that swept the golden flowers away.
His own attention remained fixed on the Gold Flower Hacksaw and Zong Ge
himself.
The Gold Flower Hacksaw had lost all momentum, stuck fast in the ice wall.
Zong Ge still held some distance from Bing Yang.
Just as Bing Yang prepared to retreat, an unexpected turn occurred!
The drifting golden flowers pierced through the sword wind, accelerating
wildly. Before Bing Yang could react, they shot into every part of his body.
The golden flowers rapidly dissolved, transforming into streams of liquid
metal.
Then, within a split second, the liquid metal fused together, forming chains
that bound Bing Yang's limbs. The restraints tightened with increasing force.
“This... is the Striking Shifter?!” Bing Yang was utterly shocked.
“What's going on? The Striking Shifter is still on his hands, clearly.” He Gai
Tou was equally bewildered.
His guess was correct; the Striking Shifter was indeed on Zong Ge's fists.
But disguised as golden flowers, it was also present.
The answer was simple - two Striking Shifters!
Gold level equipment itself could be mass-produced.
The duelists secretly funded He Gai Tou, equipping Bing Yang to the fullest.
Through the two new potions, Zi Di deepened cooperation with the Li Jian Clan,
securing more detailed intelligence and additional gear.
The second Shifting Striker was one such piece of equipment.
Battle skill - Iron Shackles.
Zong Ge's battle skill, infused into the Striking Shifter, activated with
perfect timing.
Bing Yang instinctively strained to break free, the chains clanging as if about
to snap.
But the Striking Shifter disguised as golden flowers were too few, their
transformed metal chains too thin.
With a soft snap, Bing Yang severed the chains, regaining his freedom of
movement.
But Zong Ge seized this opening, closing in to strike.
In that instant, He Gai Tou frowned: “Bing Yang hasn't fought in too long.
Despite countless assault drills, his combat reflexes lag a beat, his tactical
execution remains incomplete!”
Had it been He Gai Tou, wounded as he was, he would have retreated to create
distance.
But Bing Yang chose differently.
He swung his one-handed sword, parrying Zong Ge's twin iron fists.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Striking Shifter transformed into gauntlets, clashing relentlessly with the
one-handed sword. Each collision produced a shrill, crisp ring, sparks flying.
The metal on Zong Ge's right fist suddenly warped into a shield.
His left hand clawed forward, transforming his fist into a short spear.
He parried the one-handed sword's horizontal slash with his shield while
thrusting the short spear forward in rapid succession.
Battle skill - Spear Barrage.
The short spear thrust dozens of times in an instant, its speed so rapid it
left streaks of black shadows on the retina.
Bing Yang had no time to use a battle skill, forced to rely solely on his
defensive leather armor to withstand the assault.
Fortunately, it held firm.
The defensive armor proved formidable, absorbing the spear thrusts and leaving
only scattered white marks on its surface.
Bing Yang swung his one-handed sword, unleashing his battle skill.
The blade of the one-handed sword instantly softened, curving into a sharp
angle as it lunged toward Zong Ge's right ear.
The shield in Zong Ge's right hand warped again, transforming into a long whip.
With a flick, the whip coiled around the slender sword, deflecting the attack.
The short spear in his left hand also shifted form, becoming a straight-bladed
cutlass.
Zong Ge flipped his left wrist, aiming directly at Bing Yang's right hand
holding the one-handed sword.
Bing Yang refused to let go, unable to execute a defensive battle skill in
time, and had to brace with his defensive armor.
The blade struck Bing Yang's arm guard.
The defensive leather armor held firm, absorbing the blow.
But in the next instant, the straight-bladed cutlass transformed into a
shackle, locking Bing Yang's wrist. Simultaneously, Zong Ge delivered a kick
with his right foot.
A stream of liquid metal erupted, coalescing into a spherical hammer.
Bing Yang's eyes widened in fury. He tried to defend, but it was too late.
He could only brace against the impact with his defensive leather armor.
Bam!
A dull thud echoed as Bing Yang's back arched. Though he'd blocked it, the
sheer force of that blunt impact was difficult to absorb.
Thus, Zong Ge wielded two Striking Shifters simultaneously, unleashing
relentless assaults.
The blades danced in his hands, shifting patterns endlessly.
One moment it was a slender sword thrust, the next a broad sword chop, then a
sweeping staff strike, followed by a shield block...
The attacks were rapid, the frequency relentless. More astonishingly, each
strike was executed with remarkable skill, not a single one was half-hearted.
Zong Ge the Weapon Master's true depth was laid bare at that moment!
If it were merely weapon mastery, that would be one thing. But crucially, Zong
Ge also seamlessly integrated corresponding battle skills.
Whip techniques, blade techniques, spear techniques... Though all were the most
widely circulated styles, their frequent deployment created a dazzling
formation.
Bing Yang retreated step by step.
He struggled to parry, feeling as if a metallic storm had erupted before his
eyes! Blades, spears, axes, halberds, hooks, forks, whips, all relentlessly
descended upon him.
His reactions were perpetually too slow. Unable to defend in time, he could
only rely on his defensive armor to absorb the blows.
Once or twice was manageable. Five or six times was still bearable. But after a
dozen, twenty strikes, the armor began to weaken.
The marks left by the weapons covered the surface of his leather armor, arm
guards, and leather pants.
"You fool, retreat now! Fall back!!" He Gai Tou roared at the top of his lungs.
But his voice was drowned out by the shouts of the other spectators.
Those betting on Long Fu cheered wildly, while those backing Bing Yang roared
in frustration.
“Go on, don't back down!”
“Take him down, don't retreat!”
“Fight back! Fight back, you coward!”
Watching Bing Yang take a beating since the close combat began, these gamblers
were truly frantic, absolutely beside themselves.
Battle skill - Chain Stab.
Battle skill - Armor-Piercing Thrust!
Zong Ge's dagger in his right hand stabbed repeatedly, piercing the leather
armor and dragging out streaks of bright red blood.
Blood!
His defense was broken!
Zong Ge's relentless assault finally paid off.
The searing pain jolted Bing Yang back to his senses.
“I stand no chance in close combat.”
“If this continues, I'll lose.”
“No! I must force distance and wear him down!”
But escape was no easy feat now.
Zong Ge would never let him pull away easily.
His attacks were relentless, and now that the defense was breached, Bing Yang
would pay a heavy price if he tried to flee recklessly.
“Use the Frost Aura now!” He Gai Tou nearly shouted into Bing Yang's ear.
As if hearing his warning, Bing Yang recalled his ultimate trump card: “Only
that move will do!”
“I must activate the Frost Aura! Force Long Fu to retreat!”
"Exactly! Frost Aura is imbued with the potion [Beautiful Future]. Even He Gai
Tou and the Ice Prison Warden wouldn't dare touch it. How could a silver level
Long Fu withstand it?"
Battle skill - Frost Aura!
Bing Yang's body trembled as he channeled all his power into unleashing the
aura.
A warning bell rang sharply in Zong Ge's heart. He sensed an intense threat
emanating from the Frost Aura.
A savage expression surged across his face.
No retreat. Not even a flicker of hesitation.
Rapid attacks, continuously attacking.
Fury, relentless fury!
“You're insane! My Frost Aura retains the potency of [Beautiful Future]!”
“You're essentially consuming the magic potion [Beautiful Future] over and
over. You're finished.”
“Stop fighting! Stop fighting!”
“Cease this at once! Cease it, you madman!” 
Bing Yang roared.
But Zong Ge, bathed in the Frost Aura, remained as unyielding as iron, showing
no sign of retreat.
"I demand a decisive victory! I demand a swift victory!"
"So, Bing Yang... I need you to die!"
Zong Ge roared this in his heart.
The Striking Shifter in his hands transformed into two short blades, whirling
into dazzling streaks of light.
Thud, thud, thud...
Slicing through leather armor, each strike pierced flesh.
Bing Yang strained to summon his battle qi, only to discover with horror that
it had completely drained!
How could this be?
The reason was actually quite simple.
Bing Yang had once been of gold level, but now he was merely silver level. The
quality and scale of silver level battle qi and scale were vastly inferior to
gold level.
Though he had often been unable to use battle skill in time, he had used
equipment far too frequently.
Especially since this equipment was exceptionally good, he possessed more gold
level gear than Zong Ge.
How could a silver level fighter not deplete his battle qi when using gold
level equipment beyond his level?
The reason Bing Yang only realized this now was entirely because Zong Ge had
controlled the pace. The pressure Zong Ge exerted was overwhelming; Bing Yang
was forced to defend with all his might, his focus entirely on blocking
attacks, leaving him no room to spare.
In contrast, Zong Ge, though outwardly silver level, was actually gold level!
His battle qi was abundant!
Bing Yang's battle qi drained completely, marking the beginning of his end.
Without its support, his defenses plummeted to rock bottom.
Zong Ge transformed his hands into gauntlets, their fingertips razor-sharp as
they pierced straight through Bing Yang's chest.
In the next instant, Zong Ge channeled his battle qi directly into Bing Yang's
body, using his flesh as a weapon.
The infusion reached its peak.
Bam!
Bing Yang's entire body exploded violently, flesh and bone fragments scattering
in all directions, transforming into a shower of blood.
Zong Ge was covered in blood, a pool forming rapidly beneath his feet.
He slowly lowered his arms, his posture standing tall and unyielding like a
mountain. He lifted his head slightly, his gaze sweeping slowly across the
spectator stands.
Those caught in his stare instinctively fell silent.
Savage!
Fierce!
At that moment, Zong Ge utterly intimidated everyone present.



****** Chapter 664: Zong Ge- I am Very Good ******
After the deathly silence, deafening cheers erupted within the arena.
“Long Fu! Long Fu!”
“So brutal, so savage, I absolutely love it!”
“Long Fu is undoubtedly the top silver duelist!”
“Damn you, Bing Yang! You sickly bastard! I misjudged you!”
“You're the shame of the snow elves! Shame! Why didn't you die sooner, Bing
Yang? You scammed your own people's money! You deserve to die! Damn it! You
really should've died sooner!”
Some spectators cheered wildly, others cursed loudly.
With a high proportion of gamblers in the crowd, emotions fluctuated wildly.
Yuan Ci gave a thumbs-up, sitting back in his seat and laughing heartily:
“Excellent! Absolutely brilliant!”
Though disguised as an ordinary spectator, his joy was genuine.
Watching Long Fu stand motionless in the arena, Yuan Ci marveled inwardly:
“Never imagined Long Fu was this powerful. Now it seems, even if a silver level
defeating a gold level is extremely difficult, it's still incredibly
impressive.”
“Bing Yang was once gold level, yet he was completely overwhelmed by Long Fu
throughout the fight, unable to mount any counterattack.”
Yuan Ci's perspective mirrored the crowd's.
To them, the duel unfolded like this.
In the opening phase, Bing Yang retreated without even testing the waters,
seeking distance. Long Fu pursued, unleashing a hail of crossbow bolts.
Mid-battle, “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) hurled melee weapons relentlessly, even
flinging away the Gold Flower Hacksaw, successfully immobilizing Bing Yang. Now
it’s clear Long Fu's tactics were meticulously planned in advance. His subtle
tricks were incredibly clever, successfully dragging the fight into close
quarters.
In the later phase, “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) rapidly switched weapon forms,
launching frenzied attacks. For the first two or three rounds, Bing Yang still
managed counterattacks. But as the fight progressed, he grew increasingly
desperate, scrambling to block left and right while taking relentless beatings
from Zong Ge.
In the final moments, Bing Yang unleashed his Frost Aura, his last defiant act.
Yet Zong Ge stood his ground, neither dodging nor flinching, as if unaffected,
and finished Bing Yang off.
The final slaughter, though bloody and brutal, truly pushed this duel to its
climax!
Yuan Ci, a silver level magician rather than a fighter, couldn't discern more
intricate details. His perception mirrored that of the vast majority.
They had expected an evenly matched contest, where at least Bing Yang and Long
Fu could pose mutual threats. Instead, it turned into a complete rout.
This explained the bitter resentment among those who had bet against him.
Bing Yang had utterly disappointed his backers!
Zong Ge, however, had achieved his pre-battle objective. Not only did he secure
a swift victory, but it was a resounding triumph!
“With Bing Yang gone, Shi Liu should step up now.”
“Youth is truly wonderful, so full of vitality!”
“I'm starting to like this young man.” For a moment, Yuan Ci's regard for “Long
Fu” (Zong Ge) soared.
Mi Fang, however, felt the opposite. He wished “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) would die
right now. This duel's outcome was absolutely not what he wanted.
“Has the poison in Long Fu been neutralized?”
“Can't tell. Not a bit.”
“Mainly, that trash Bing Yang is utterly useless. He hasn't applied any
pressure at all, he just become a punching bag.”
Yes, useless.
That was Mi Fang's overall assessment of Bing Yang as a gold level duelist.
To elaborate, there were many aspects.
For instance, Bing Yang's execution of the agreed-upon tactics was severely
subpar.
When the real clash began, Bing Yang couldn't withstand the immense pressure
Long Fu applied. He was caught off guard countless times during exchanges, his
weak core exposed for all to see.
Only at the very end did he finally snap out of it and deploy his trump card.
Contrast that with Long Fu: he struck decisively when the moment called for it,
without hesitation or dithering. Take one example: when Long Fu fired arrows
from his crossbow, he emptied his quiver entirely. This bold move created an
opening, laying solid groundwork for the ensuing close combat. He didn't
hesitate, nor did he worry that his ranged capabilities would diminish after
exhausting his arrows.
“Still, this battle wasn't entirely without gains.”
“At least Long Fu absorbed the Frost Aura, gaining the effects of the
[Beautiful Future] potion.”
Mi Fang watched Zong Ge intently as he stood proudly in the center of the
arena.
Dueling arena staff approached him cautiously, exchanged a few words, then led
him off the field.
Zong Ge walked into the duelist entrance with an unruffled expression, as if
nothing had happened.
He Gai Tou watched Zong Ge leave the arena, his brow deeply furrowed.
“I've been targeted!”
“I've been severely targeted!”
After reviewing the duel, he realized: it was obvious his chosen tactics had
been specifically countered.
Bing Yang had chosen an attrition tactic, while Zong Ge employed an aggressive
assault strategy, hitting hard and fast, leaving Bing Yang no breathing room.
Even their equipment had been countered.
Zong Ge wielded two Striking Shifters, one disguised as golden flowers. A minor
trick, yet it proved effective.
“They must have studied Bing Yang's past combat habits and style to prepare
countermeasures.”
“Damn it, Bing Yang was too weak.”
He Gai Tou had considered altering Bing Yang's tactics.
But in such a short timeframe, it was utterly impossible.
Habits were incredibly difficult to change.
Even if change were possible, the cost would be too great. Most crucially, Bing
Yang's foundation was weak. All this time, he'd hidden away in his ice prison
merely to prolong his life and indulge himself. With little regular training,
his foundation had rotted and decayed. While not entirely hollow, the contrast
with Long Fu was stark.
For the short term, dragging him onto the dueling grounds and employing an
attrition tactic was essential.
He Gai Tou had no other choice. He could only focus on rehabilitative training
for Bing Yang, with no time for anything else.
“Ah, it was the Frost Aura imbued with the [Beautiful Future] potion that gave
me so many surprises.”
He Gai Tou devised the attrition tactic partly because Bing Yang excelled at
it, and it was the only viable strategy in the short term. The other reason was
his Frost Aura.
Attrition battles often become protracted wars. Over time, the cumulative
effects of potions undergo a qualitative shift, paving the way for Bing Yang's
victory.
He Gai Tou's expectations had been inflated far too high, inevitably leading to
severe disappointment. The outcome was truly unbearable to witness, utterly
disheartening! Although Bing Yang successfully cast the Frost Aura, its actual
duration proved surprisingly brief.
Zong Ge's decision to strike swiftly without flinching, swiftly dispatching
Bing Yang, proved a shrewd choice.
This meant his time spent under the Frost Aura was minimal.
For a moment, He Gai Tou could only console himself: “It's fine.”
“Though I failed, didn't Mi Fang face the same fate before me?”
“I'm not the first to fall.”
"He didn't kill Long Fu directly, but Long Fu still got hit. He must be
severely weakened. The effects of the [Beautiful Future] potion aren't so
easily dispelled!"
He Gai Tou had gained something from this attempt.
Though Bing Yang had fallen in battle, through this action, he had demonstrated
his proactive stance to Mei Lin, significantly narrowing the distance between
them.
Zong Ge had already vanished into the passage leading to the duel chamber.
Other staff began organizing the audience for an orderly exit.
The crowd dispersed much earlier than usual, primarily because the arena owner,
sensing the audience's heightened emotions, feared potential altercations and
chose to evacuate them early.
Hua Tang also followed the crowd, gradually leaving the arena.
His disguise skills were formidable, and at this moment, his face was dark and
sullen. He muttered under his breath, seemingly cursing Bing Yang and Long Fu,
clearly someone who had lost a bet.
In truth, he had successfully captured the magic footage, completing his
primary mission and ready to report back to Mei Lin.
Yet a layer of dark clouds seemed to gather within his heart.
Unlike others' focus, what played in Hua Tang's mind was the scene of Zong Ge
wielding two Striking Shifters, unleashing relentless assaults.
“Who knew Long Fu possessed such formidable weaponry skills?”
This battle had laid bare the mastery of a true weapons specialist, fully
showcased through the Striking Shifter's performance.
Though the battle skills he displayed were commonplace, they integrated
flawlessly with his weapons.
Each time Zong Ge transformed his weapon, he selected the most perfectly suited
tool for the task.
Against Teng Dong Lang, he showcased his fist and foot techniques.
In this battle, his command over weapons was breathtaking.
Even if he weren't a [Weapon Master], he was undoubtedly close to that level.
Though Hua Tang had clashed with “Long Fu” (Zong Ge) before, that encounter was
too brief for Hua Tang to truly grasp what a [Weapon Master] was.
“Long Fu is exceptionally powerful.”
“He didn't unleash his full strength in that fight.”
“At the very least, he didn't display his martial arts skills or his divine
spells.”
Zi Di's face lit up with delight as she followed Zong Ge into the duelist's
passageway.
"Lord Commander, are you alright? Your injuries require treatment." Zi Di's
thoughts stood in stark contrast to her expression.
The potion's effect was to accelerate time.
Its original advertising slogan proclaimed: “A brighter future, now within
reach.”
Initially after ingestion, the potion indeed delivered results. It accelerated
time for transcendents, hastening cultivation progress and shortening growth
cycles.
However, the divine power within the time ice cubes became uncontrollable
during the mid-to-late stages of potion consumption.
Time could accelerate in all aspects for the user.
For instance, accelerated lifespan equated to shortened life.
Take the circulation of battle qi. When executing battle skill, accelerated
circulation in any segment could easily cause battle skill failure and trigger
backlash.
Consider eating. Accelerated eating motions, rapid chewing and swallowing,
outpaced the stomach's capacity. This led to massive food accumulation and
indigestion.
Crucially, transcendents have poor perception of their own accelerated time,
they barely notice it. Among the unlucky souls back then, some ate too fast.
Their time perception failed to sound the alarm in time, causing their stomachs
to rupture from overeating.
Zong Ge glanced at Zi Di and laughed heartily: “Don't worry, I'm fine. This
injury barely affects me at all.”
The staff member leading the way ahead spoke with reverence: "Lord Long Fu, you
truly live up to your reputation. Your performance in this battle was simply
outstanding. It was a spectacular fight."
“Hahaha!” Zong Ge laughed heartily, head thrown back.
But Zi Di's heart sank to the depths.



****** Chapter 665: Code Name [Emancipation] ******
Starlight spilled across the sea as three ships slowly docked at the pier.
Crews disembarked in orderly lines, beginning to load and unload cargo.
Hidden within massive wooden crates lay the three captives: the big guy, Da
Dou, and Hong Zhu.
All three lay limp, utterly powerless to resist.
“We're here?” Hong Zhu frowned, desperately scheming an escape.
“Where exactly is this?” Da Dou grew tense.
“Snore... snore...” big guy slept soundly, his belly puffed high.
The Imperial Spy Chief oversaw the handover, while two concealed gold level
fighters escorted the prisoners.
When the wooden crate opened, Da Dou and the others found themselves in a
dungeon.
Each was thrown into separate cells; the sleeping big guy was carried inside.
In a secret chamber, the Imperial Spy Chief frowned. “Where is [Emancipator]?”
“Lord [Emancipator] is entertaining important guests and cannot leave at this
moment,” the receptionist replied.
“Important person...” The Imperial Spy Chief's brow relaxed. “Has Tan Mo
arrived?”
The attendant hesitated before nodding.
The Imperial Spy Chief drew a breath, sat down, and began waiting patiently.
Directly above his head loomed the city government palace.
Tan Mo was ushered into the city lord's study.
He strode unapologetically to the cabinet, selected a bottle of red wine, and
poured himself a glass first.
Taking a deep, satisfying swig, he narrowed his eyes and smiled slyly like a
weasel. “Your red wine here is quite good,” he remarked to the other person in
the room.
“Any sorrow-dispelling red wine left?”
"I heard the 600 bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine from the Intoxication
Church were all snatched up. Now the Intoxication Church, pirates, and coastal
factions are all scrambling for these treasures."
The other man shook his head, seated himself at the head of the table, and
gestured toward the guest seat opposite the desk.
But Tan Mo deliberately refused to sit, instead leaning against the window.
“Should I address you by your Imperial Secret Spy Agency codename,
[Emancipator], or is it better to just call you Snow Bird Harbor City Lord?”
The Imperial Spy codenamed [Emancipator] was none other than Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord!
Leveraging the pretext fabricated by “fake defeating Cong Mang,” Tan Mo had
smoothly entered Snow Bird Harbor with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's deliberate
cooperation.
As the investigator dispatched by Imperial Secret Spy Agency, Tan Mo's targets
extended beyond the dim-eyed inhabitants of Two Eyes Island. His scrutiny also
fell upon figures like [Emancipator] (Snow Bird Harbor City Lord) and [Usurper]
on Ice Sculpture Island.
Naturally, having achieved a resounding victory on Two Eyes Island, Tan Mo's
appetite had grown considerably. In his eyes, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a
vast gold mine waiting to be mined!
From their private meeting onwards, Tan Mo began applying pressure.
Entering the study, he took the liberty of pouring his own wine and leaning
against the window, all strong hints designed to exert psychological pressure
on the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Extorting bribes was something Tan Mo had done countless times; he was highly
skilled and cunning in his methods.
Sensing the hostility, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fell silent for a moment
before retrieving a small wooden box from a drawer.
The box was compact yet adorned with gold inlays, its design embodying the
intricate, fairy-like artistry characteristic of the region.
He slid the box slowly across the desk toward the empty guest seat.
Tan Mo remained expressionless, holding his wine glass in one hand as he
strolled slowly to the table. With the fingers of his other hand, he gently
flicked the edge of the box.
The lid lifted, revealing the treasures within.
Dozens of gems lay scattered inside, varying in size.
Their hues were diverse, but the aura emanating from them was at least gold
level. At least ten were saint level gems.
The multicolored brilliance of the gems reflected off Tan Mo's plump face.
Only then did a faint smile appear.
It was his first smile since meeting the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“Honorable Investigator, you've traveled far and endured much hardship. Please
accept this token of welcome,” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said.
Hearing it was merely a greeting gift; Tan Mo chuckled softly before slowly
sitting down.
A battle of words, a test, a clash, a tug-of-war, unfolded immediately.
Much of their conversation revolved around idle pleasantries, yet beneath lay
the true bargaining. Magic lights illuminated pretense; red wine rippled with
greed.
Amidst this, Tan Mo asked about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps directly: “I
hear this group passed through Snow Bird Harbor to reach Ice Sculpture Island?
They've also worked with you, City Lord?”
The city lord looked surprised, his guard rising slightly. “Why would Lord Tan
Mo take an interest in a mere mercenary corps?”
Tan Mo's lips curled into a grin, revealing stark white teeth. “These fellows
aren't ordinary.”
“I've heard their name mentioned repeatedly on Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes
Island.”
“Their leader, Long Fu, even slew a gold level opponent while only silver level
himself. He's now a household name in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“I hear you used them to successfully eliminate the local Bayonet Gang in Snow
Bird Harbor.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed: “It was merely mutual exploitation.”
“I shall detail this matter thoroughly during tomorrow's formal investigation.”
"I used them as a legitimate pretext to swiftly eliminate the Bayonet Gang.
They, in turn, exploited me and the conflict with the Bayonet Gang to gain
nationwide fame."
Tan Mo inquired, “How formidable is their leader, Long Fu?”
He intended to extort the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and Long Fu's strength
was a key factor in his calculations.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord frowned slightly: "I happen to possess the latest
magic footage of Long Fu in combat. It shows his duel with Bing Yang, where he
held absolute dominance. His opponent, once a gold level fighter, couldn't land
a single blow."
“Do not underestimate this group!”
“Long Fu once single-handedly eliminated three gold level fighters at once: the
Axe Gang leader, Jia Bing, and Lin.”
“Truthfully, my reason for collaborating with them was to lure out the arms
dealer behind them.”
Tan Mo smiled: "With the Empire's full-scale invasion of the Wilderness
Continent, the beastmen's equipment generally lags behind ours. Yet numerous
arms dealers smuggle in and sell cutting-edge weaponry to those beastmen at
exorbitant prices."
“Eradicating such arms dealers would indeed be a major achievement.”
“It seems Lord Tan Mo is quite interested in this merit as well?” The Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord smiled, “We could collaborate.”
Tan Mo shook his head slightly, casually deflecting, “Traces of necromancers
have appeared on Two Eyes Island. I suspect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps may
be involved in this matter.”
This casual deflection was merely to conceal his true purpose.
Compared to merit, he was far more interested in the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' money!
From Yan Yi on Two Eyes Island, he'd obtained intelligence suggesting the
island's entire wealth likely ended up in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
hands.
This detail, however, remained unknown to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Tan Mo had no intention of revealing his true motives to Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flickered slightly. "Speaking of Two Eyes
Island's Lord Hun Tong, he was quite a talent in business matters. What a pity
he fell to pirates."
Tan Mo took a sip of red wine, his expression turning heavy with sorrow, “It
was my fault.”
“I was ambushed by pirates and wounded by Cong Mang.”
"During that time, the pirates brutally murdered Hun Tong!"
“I have already submitted my report, apologizing to the Empire for my failure.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flickered again, his words offering Tan Mo
solace, the real culprit was the pirates, not him.
"That damned dog! I'd cut off his head right now if I could!!" Beside him, Hun
Tong clenched his fists in rage, grinding his teeth.
Beside him stood Dao Hen.
Both had cast the deception divine spell, following Tan Mo all the way and
witnessing everything.
After about ten minutes, Tan Mo left the study, escorted by Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord.
The steward led him to his lodgings.
"Tan Mo... he really is a tough nut to crack. His appetite is far too big..."
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed inwardly.
He pushed aside his distracting thoughts and turned to his duties.
"Oh? Sleeping Man, Da Dou, and Hong Zhu have all been brought in?" Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord's expression brightened slightly.
After a moment's consideration, he made his decision: "Da Dou hails from
Eruption Island. Though his master is dead, he was a founding elder of the
island. Eruption Island is a legend level power; he must not be harmed."
"Hong Zhu once fought alongside the necromancer. This time, when Tu Ji died on
the Magnet Archipelago, she emerged unscathed. We must keep her alive to handle
future investigations and interrogations from the Blood Light Punishment
Institution."
“As for the Sleeping Man...”
Observing the big guy's exemplary conduct during captivity, Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord let out a peculiar chuckle.
"What a clumsy oaf... yet he might possess saint level potential. Just keep
feeding him well!"
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's speculation was quite natural.
Primarily, the big guy had already shown astonishing feats in the eating
contest, and Da Dou's act of taking away the big guy had exposed many secrets.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: “If he truly has saint level potential, my
contribution will be immense!”
“Did Tan Mo just inquire about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps because he's
interested in this big oaf too?”
“This matter must be kept from him.”
Dao Hen and Hun Tong split their forces: one followed Tan Mo until he fell
asleep, while the other shadowed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord until he concluded
his affairs. They then followed him through a secret passage into the dungeon.
There, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord met with the Imperial Spy Chief and conversed
at length.
After the surveillance concluded, Dao Hen knelt on the ground, silently praying
to the Fish God Mist to report his recent findings.
There was no response.
The fishman youngster was still absorbing divinity, utterly unable to spare any
attention.
Dao Hen had no choice but to decide, following previous orders, to continue
monitoring Tan Mo and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord alongside Hun Tong.
The night grew ever deeper.
Zong Ge and Zi Di had returned to the inn.
Zong Ge was now bedridden.
Zi Di stood by his side, casting spells with all her might, but the effect was
negligible.
Zong Ge's eyes remained tightly shut, his brow furrowed. His condition was
dire!
Exposed to the Frost Aura, he had been affected by the potion effect of
[Beautiful Future], causing his physical and mental processes to occasionally
surge at accelerated speeds.
Zong Ge bore three latent threats: Blood Vengeance, Flower Willow, and a deadly
poison, all now amplified within the accelerated timeframe.
During their return journey, these latent threats had erupted multiple times.
He had fought them off with great difficulty and was now severely wounded!



****** Chapter 666: A Painful Night ******
The problem Zong Ge now faced extended beyond the latent dangers he carried.
Zi Di was deeply troubled. She discovered that the effects of the Deceptive
Disguise on Zong Ge were also being accelerated by the potency of the
[Beautiful Future] potion, rapidly depleting.
"Pearl bubbles are god level materials. God level materials possess fragmented
divinity. That's precisely why the Deceptive Disguise spell is so potent."
“This potency stems from its supremacy over laws and concepts.”
“But the effects of the [Beautiful Future] potion are equally derived from an
incredibly faint time divinity.”
“The two can influence each other.”
Up until now, survivors had used the Deceptive Disguise spell to deceive others
and disguise themselves with unparalleled success.
Now, under Zi Di's witness, the Deceptive Disguise spell finally faced a severe
challenge.
"Fortunately, Zong Ge maintained his disguise well until the very end. He
didn't collapse before returning to his quarters."
Thinking of this, Zi Di couldn't help but feel admiration for the tough man
before her.
Before returning, the turmoil had already begun erupting within Zong Ge's body,
but he had stubbornly endured it.
Such endurance was extraordinary.
One must understand he was risking his life. Only now, lying in bed, could he
fully focus on controlling his body and battle qi for defense, thereby reducing
the mortal danger.
Alongside her relief and admiration, Zi Di felt intense anger.
She was furious with herself.
Why hadn't she done everything in her power earlier to help Zong Ge resolve the
hidden threats within him? Why had she allowed things to reach this dire state?
In truth, Zi Di was being overly hard on herself.
Before this, she and Zong Ge had not been idle.
But the Blood Vengeance and other effects were truly difficult to resolve.
Zong Ge's eyes were tightly shut; he couldn't even speak. He had to focus all
his energy, every single moment, every second, on monitoring his body.
The Blood Vengeance could erupt anywhere in his body at any time. It had
already erupted on the way back from the arena. Fortunately, it hadn't struck a
vital spot like his heart.
The Willow Flower battle skill was still draining Zong Ge's battle qi, forcing
him to intensify the battle skill's suppression of his life force. Maintaining
the battle qi itself had become an immense challenge due to the lingering power
of the time divinity.
Moreover, the strange poison Mi Fang had inflicted was now taking effect, its
toxins spreading anew throughout Zong Ge's body.
Though Zong Ge achieved a swift and decisive victory, he had collapsed.
Now, all hope rested solely on Zi Di.
“Stay calm.”
“It hasn't reached the worst-case scenario yet.”
“There's still hope!”
“Theoretically, Zong Ge can overcome this crisis on his own.”
The lingering power of the time divinity continuously affected the Blood
Vengeance, Flower Willow, the strange poison, his battle skills, physical body,
and deception spell.
Since it was producing effects, it naturally meant this temporal power was
constantly being depleted.
As long as Zong Ge persevered, the day would come when this residual time
divinity diminished to nothing.
“But how long will it take for this residual time divinity to be exhausted?”
“And now, of all times, Zong Ge must step forward publicly.”
Zi Di stared at the wall, her gaze seemingly piercing through it to the deep
night beyond.
"Zong Ge endured the Frost Aura head-on during the battle. Since the enemies
targeted Bing Yang, they must have coveted the [Beautiful Future] effect
carried by the aura."
“They will certainly verify Zong Ge's true condition as soon as possible.”
"During the duel, Bing Yang's loud shouts also shattered the Frost Aura's
concealment. So by tomorrow, this news will spread far and wide."
“As time passes, the outside world's concern for Zong Ge's true condition will
only grow.”
Zi Di felt heavy-hearted.
She decided that besides waiting for Zong Ge to handle this dilemma himself,
she must lend a hand and help him!
Zong Ge must recover swiftly.
His collapse severely weakened their position. Never mind others, if Hua Tang
launched another ambush, neither Zi Di nor Zong Ge would have the strength to
resist!
“Fortunately, I recently acquired the alchemy technique for the Ice Cube Red
Wine from Ban Tu.”
“Like the [Beautiful Future] potion, time ice cubes harness the power reflected
from the time divinity.”
“In fact, one of the primary ingredients in the [Beautiful Future] potion is
time ice cubes.”
Since the sorrow-dispelling red wine could perfectly utilize time ice cubes, it
should naturally also help Zong Ge neutralize the potion's effects on his body.
"I acquired this alchemy technique for the Lord Commander's sake. Unexpectedly,
it was used on Zong Ge first."
Now, only one dilemma remained before Zi Di.
How could she obtain the sorrow-dispelling red wine?
"Elder Jiu Jin? The Alchemy Guild?" Zi Di shook her head slightly.
She had learned about the sorrow-dispelling red wine and the time ice cubes
from Elder Jiu Jin. At the same time, she had also learned of the wine's
rarity.
"The Intoxication Church? They're the ones who produce the sorrow-dispelling
red wine."
"Not good. Their fleet was raided by Feng Lian. Right now, the entire cult is
frantically recruiting, raising bounties, desperately trying to recover every
drop of that wine."
“Wait, maybe the Li Jian Clan?” A thought flashed through Zi Di's mind.
From gathered intelligence, she knew: The Kingdom's Second Fleet had been the
first to arrive at the battlefield in response to the distress call. They were
also the ones who confirmed the demise of the Intoxication Church's fleet.
“They were the first on the scene. Could they have salvaged some of the sorrow-
dispelling red wine?”
“The Second Fleet is practically the Li Jian Clan's private army.”
“So by that logic, the Li Jian Clan might have some of the sorrow-dispelling
red wine?”
Zi Di's conjecture was correct, matching the facts.
Of course, she couldn't be completely certain yet.
“We need to contact someone from the Li Jian Clan as soon as possible.”
Just as she was thinking this, a report came in: the Li Jian Clan's steward had
arrived.
Zi Di glanced at Zong Ge, then double-checked the room's defenses. Satisfied,
she gritted her teeth and left.
In a small reception hall, she met the Li Jian Clan steward.
The steward smiled. “I wonder if Magician Yao Ma has considered our family's
previous cooperation proposal?”
Zi Di remained expressionless. “I've already submitted it for review. Regarding
this matter, we can only await notification.”
The steward nodded. Mentioning Zong Ge, he voiced concern on behalf of the Li
Jian Clan: "Bing Yang's Frost Aura actually carries the potion effect of
[Beautiful Future]! This is utterly vicious!"
"We witnessed Lord Long Fu being completely enveloped by the Frost Aura during
the duel. Is he all right?"
“The power of time is no trivial matter.”
Zi Di smiled. "He's fine. So far, no issues have surfaced. I believe this was
Bing Yang's desperate lie. Even if it's true, it's rather alarmist."
The steward said earnestly, "If Lord Long Fu feels unwell, please inform us
immediately. Our clan can find a solution."
"Our interests align. In this grand duel, your mercenary corps’ commander
stands as a beacon. Should he fall, sales of our two newly launched potions
would suffer a devastating blow."
Zi Di nodded. "I'm well aware of that. But how exactly do you propose to
resolve it?"
The steward smiled. “To be perfectly honest, our clan possesses a batch of
sorrow-dispelling red wine.”
“And didn't you, Magician Yao Ma, recently secure the alchemy formula for this
wine through your deal with Ban Tu?”
It was too timely. Zi Di had been scheming to acquire the sorrow-dispelling red
wine, never expecting the Li Jian Clan to offer it up voluntarily.
For a split second, Zi Di opened her mouth to agree.
But the next moment, she shook her head. “I have no need for the sorrow-
dispelling red wine at present. The commander is in excellent condition.”
“Are you seeking cooperation with us in this matter?”
“Now that you possess the sorrow-dispelling red wine, do you also desire this
alchemy technique?”
Zi Di suppressed the urgency surging within her.
Her negotiation skills were formidable, and she understood clearly that this
was not the time for haste.
If she revealed her true emotions, the Li Jian Clan would inevitably open their
greedy maw to devour the survivors' interests.
Both sides explored this topic, attempting to negotiate.
Even when the Li Jian Clan's steward took his leave, no agreement had been
reached.
After seeing the steward off, Zi Di exhaled a heavy breath.
“We've temporarily stabilized the situation.”
“But this predicament will only worsen with time.”
“Zong Ge's condition will eventually become impossible to conceal.”
The dire circumstances left Zi Di unable to sleep.
She assisted Zong Ge's treatment until dawn, monitoring his condition.
Hours later, the first light touched the horizon.
Zong Ge remained with eyes tightly shut, his physical condition far from
promising.
Zi Di's brow furrowed deeply, her expression worn and weary. She found Zong
Ge's condition had deteriorated further. His wounds were multiplying, even with
Zi Di's assistance from outside.
That night, Zi Di stayed awake. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord managed a brief nap
but slept poorly.
Tan Mo weighed heavily on his mind, especially after learning of Hun Tong's
death at the hands of pirates.
"What truly lies behind Hun Tong's demise? Was it genuinely a pirate ambush,
with Tan Mo fighting valiantly but ultimately defeated?" The Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord sensed a thick layer of conspiracy in the air.
“Today marks the start of the investigation. May everything proceed smoothly.”
After a hurried wash, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord began his breakfast.
During breakfast, however, he received some good news.
"Oh? That big oaf nicknamed Sleeping Man, his bloodline is at least saint
level?"
“Yes.” His subordinate confirmed.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a cup of milk in one hand while deep in
thought.
“A saint level seed placed within a mercenary group, was that intentional or
accidental?”
“Heh, how could it be accidental?”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flashed with sharp insight as he silently
marveled: “Impressive. The arms dealer backing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
has astonishing ambitions. He actually wants to become the fourth pillar of the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom!”
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom already had three saint level figures. If the big oaf
ascended to that tier in the future, wouldn't he become part of the kingdom's
high command?
By then, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would also become a pivotal force
within the kingdom.
At that point, no matter how vast the arms trade grew, it would be shielded by
saint level power.



****** Chapter 667: Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s Statement ******
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was an imperial spy by nature, and his mindset was
inherently prone to overthinking and overanalyzing everything.
In his imagination, the arms dealer backing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
harbored immense ambition. This arms dealer had a voracious appetite, seeking
to make massive investments in Ice Sculpture Island.
“To advance into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, this arms dealer has gone to
extraordinary lengths.”
“Initially, he deliberately dispatched a special silver level mercenary like
Long Fu to challenge Teng Dong Lang, using the duel to make a name for
himself.”
“From this alone, it's clear the arms dealer conducted thorough preliminary
research into the Ice Sculpture King's populace.”
“Later, leveraging my connections, he directed the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
to form an alliance with the Li Jian Clan.”
"The arms dealer proved quite astute, spotting the hidden market for mount
potions within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. They secured the Li Jian Clan's
cooperation through massive profit-sharing agreements."
“Long Fu and Yao Ma's journey to the capital signaled the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps' formal entry into the kingdom's upper echelons. They established tacit
agreements with native factions, securing an initial foothold.”
"Following this, the arms dealer's next scheme was to expand and strengthen the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' capabilities. After all, this mercenary group
served as his overt proxy and protective umbrella."
"As the arms trade expanded, profits surged dramatically. By then, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps needed formidable strength to stabilize the business,
intimidate rivals, and safeguard the arms dealer's interests."
“Thus, from the very beginning, the arms dealer secretly planted a pawn.”
“This was the entity known as ‘Sleeping Man’, a seemingly dim-witted giant.”
"This giant had long been a member of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, its sole
giant. Who could have imagined he harbored potential to reach the saint level?"
"As time passes and the moment ripens, the giant will ascend step by step to
the saint level. The kingdom will have long since accepted him in their hearts,
making the emergence of a fourth saint level figure far less jarring."
"Who exactly is this arms dealer? Their tactics are truly masterful!"
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but speculate about the mysterious
arms dealer, secretly harboring admiration.
"The reason the big oaf is so dim-witted is likely the arms dealer's doing as
well. Only a dim-witted saint level being poses less threat, making it easier
for the populace to accept."
“People naturally feel sympathy for fools.”
“On the other hand, this might very well be the price the arms dealer paid to
control this giant!”
"A mentally sound transcendent, upon ascending to saint level, would inevitably
demand much. But a fool is different."
A sharp gleam flashed in the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes: “So it seems
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was meticulously handpicked and painstakingly
assembled by the arms dealers as their proxy.”
"Long Fu, those peculiar silver levels, perhaps even hidden gold levels, were
handpicked."
"The organization previously recruited their boatswain (Lan Zao), who shows
extraordinary loyalty to the entire mercenary group. This indicates that even
these low level transcendents have undergone cultivation."
"Finally, the big oaf. This hidden saint level is the true game-changer. Once
the saint level emerges, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will leap to become a
top-level power across the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom!"
As Snow Bird Harbor City Lord pondered, the figure of the arms dealer behind
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gradually came into sharp focus.
His interest in this arms dealer, which didn't actually exist, grew ever
stronger.
“To wield a saint level pawn suggests this arms dealer is at least saint level
themselves.”
“Legend level or even backed by deities or churches... it's entirely possible.”
“After all, international arms dealing is beyond the reach of anyone too weak.”
Uncovering such an entity would be a monumental achievement for the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
At the same time, he held no fear of confronting this arms dealer. For he was a
secret agent, not a combat operative.
All along, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had been steadily deepening his
connections with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, striving to earn their trust
to the greatest extent possible. This would enhance his future prospects of
uncovering the shadowy arms dealer behind the scenes.
This explained why, when duelists attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps'
merchant convoys and the alchemy workshops in Snow Bird Harbor, the city lord
repeatedly intervened. He even deployed merchant ships under his covert control
to assist the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps with their cargo.
“Additionally, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' boatswain has become ‘Hen Fa’.”
"If he can return and pledge renewed loyalty, then ‘Hen Fa’ can rejoin the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to conduct espionage."
“But... the secret agent at Tranquil Hill hasn't relayed any intelligence for
quite some time.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord harbored some hope, though not much.
In truth, over a dozen espionage operations targeting Tranquil Hill under his
command had all ended in failure.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was fully prepared for this outcome.
"Treat that big oaf well but keep him under house arrest. Investigate his
bloodline origins immediately and uncover how the arms dealer controls him!"
the city lord planned inwardly.
Generally speaking, methods for controlling sentient beings were often tied to
bloodlines.
For instance, human enchantment spells and goblin enchantment spells were
developed based on specific races.
As far as Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew, the method Bing Xiao possessed to
control his gold level giant slave was also rooted in giant bloodlines.
“If we're lucky, we might even remove the control from the big oaf and take
direct command of him!”
“Achieving that would be absolutely brilliant.”
“A saint level subordinate...”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but feel his heart race at the thought
of such a possibility.
Even if it meant antagonizing the arms dealer, he would likely detain the big
guy and make him serve his own purposes.
A saint was truly different, holding extraordinary significance, a whole
different level from gold.
"As for Da Dou, he must be placed under house arrest. We must verify if he
carries any monitoring devices. If not, eliminating him becomes a viable
option."
“After all, should the big oaf become my pawn in the future, Da Dou would be
the one in the know.”
"As for Hong Zhu... Hmph. A mere treasure hunter... Interrogate her directly.
Use torture if necessary. If she knows the reason behind the earth elemental
tribe's uprising on Magnet Archipelago, that would be ideal."
He dined while his thoughts raced.
Soon, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord finished his last sip of milk, wiped his
mouth, and rose from his seat.
The investigation phase was about to begin.
“In any case, I must make Tan Mo leave as soon as possible.”
“His continued presence here poses a serious obstacle to my plans for the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Instead of leaving the city government palace, Snow Bird Harbor's ruler took a
secret passageway down into the underground.
One cell in the dungeon beneath the residence had been hastily converted into
an interrogation room.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord entered to find Tan Mo already waiting.
Only the two of them occupied the room.
Tan Mo smiled at Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, maintaining a cordial demeanor.
After adjusting the alchemy apparatus, he preemptively reassured the Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord, there was no need for tension, he could speak freely.
However, caution was still advised, as this recorded magic image would
ultimately be submitted for higher review.
“Seems my ‘welcome gift’ did the trick,” the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord thought
to himself.
The interrogation commenced.
Facing the alchemy recording device, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord began his
introduction with a composed expression: "My codename is [Emancipator]. I am a
subordinate recruited by Lord [Usurper]. My primary mission is to cooperate
with and assist Lord [Usurper], cultivating high-level connections within the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom to serve the Empire's future objectives..."
"Several years ago, through the efforts of Lord Usurper and others, I was
appointed as Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. The specific orders I received from
Lord Usurper were to actively develop Snow Bird Harbor, ensuring complete
control over it. If necessary, I was authorized to overthrow the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's rule within a single day, transforming it into an imperial naval
landing site."
"Upon taking office, I vigorously restructured the city, purging loyalists to
the kingdom and gradually replacing them with our own people. Simultaneously, I
began eliminating other factions within Snow Bird Harbor."
"Snow Bird Harbor was dominated by three main factions. These were the city
government palace, the Sea Bird Church, and the Bayonet Gang."
"Thanks to Lord Usurper, the Sea Bird Church became our close and loyal ally.
Thus, only the Bayonet Gang remained as our target."
“Eradicating this local gang was no easy task.”
"The Bayonet Gang boasted a large membership and extensive grassroots support
among Snow Bird Harbor's populace. Their leader, a former military officer,
possessed unyielding resolve and formidable individual strength. I had to
account for their military background and connections."
“Thus, without justifiable cause, mobilizing the city guards against the
Bayonet Gang was impossible.”
“While actively awaiting the right moment, I'd attempted to infiltrate spies
into the Bayonet Gang.”
"The spies codenamed [Snowflake] and [Flute] were the fruits of these efforts.
They infiltrated the Bayonet Gang's upper echelons, becoming two of the six
ringleaders: the human ringleader and demon hybrid ringleader."
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, as outsiders, clashed with Bing Xiao.
Consequently, Long Fu, the silver level commander of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, publicly challenged Teng Dong Lang, the leader of the Bayonet Gang, to a
duel."
"This sudden incident quickly spread throughout the port. I immediately
realized this could be an opportunity."
“Based on my assessment, as a gold level fighter, Teng Dong Lang could not
refuse a silver level challenger. As the prominent leader of the Bayonet Gang,
he would never avoid battle and risk being branded a coward.”
“Events unfolded exactly as I predicted. Teng Dong Lang accepted the challenge
but simultaneously dispatched six ringleaders, ostensibly to test Long Fu's
combat prowess, but in reality to ambush him.”
"If there was no opportunity, I would create one. My first move was to order
the demon hybrid ringleader to intervene outside the duel arena, commanding him
to use his Evil Eye to aid Xiong Ju in defeating Long Fu. This way, I could
expose the truth after the battle, ruining Xiong Ju and the Bayonet Gang's
reputation, stripping them of their public support!"
“The operation wasn't entirely successful.”
“Though [Flute] used the Evil Eye, Xiong Ju refused to accept it. He held
strong principles about duels and despised such underhanded tactics, so he
crushed the Evil Eye on the spot.”



****** Chapter 668: [Gold Hand]’s Death ******
In the underground dungeon, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued giving his
statement to Tan Mo.
"Although Xiong Ju crushed the Evil Eye, [Flute] had indeed intervened in the
duel between Xiong Ju and Long Fu. I immediately notified the Snow Bird Arena's
owner, and together we dispatched an investigation team to [Flute]'s location."
"However, Teng Dong Lang was exceptionally sharp. He arrived at [Flute]'s
location ahead of time and cleared away the evidence. Simultaneously, he
persuaded Snow Bird Arena's owner, causing my attempt to verify the facts to
fail."
"I did not give up. After the duel, I proactively sought out Long Fu to
communicate with him. I informed him about the matter concerning the Evil Eye,
intending to incite Long Fu to expose it."
“Even without concrete evidence, if he publicly voiced suspicion, I would have
grounds for a formal investigation.”
"To persuade Long Fu and stir his distaste for the Bayonet Gang, I specifically
prepared numerous documented crimes committed by the gang. But though Long Fu
worships the Justice God, his faith clearly lacks devotion. He chose not to
publicly question them, fearing it would enrage the Bayonet Gang and make them
enemies. He opted to endure in silence."
"Though this attempt also failed, I remained undeterred. For I knew that even
if I couldn't sway Long Fu, the Bayonet Gang would make their own moves."
“Sure enough, as I anticipated, the Bayonet Gang resorted to underhanded
tactics. They manipulated the investigation team to probe the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps, pressured port officials to demand and impose additional
docking fees, and so on.”
"I promptly dispatched a team of alchemists to step forward and assist them in
repairing their ships. Most crucially, I proactively lent the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps several pieces of gold level equipment."
"This deepened the rift between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Bayonet
Gang, while earning me greater trust and goodwill from the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps."
"But the real focus of my plan wasn't any of that."
"What came next was the critical move!"
“I deployed [Gold Hand] to impersonate Hua Tang, secretly infiltrating the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' ship. His mission was twofold: to steal the
treasure equipment I had previously provided, and to assassinate the magician
members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
"Gold Hand executed this operation flawlessly. He assassinated the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps' only two openly acknowledged magicians and recovered the
equipment I had lent them."
"This created a deep, irreparable enmity between the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps and the Bayonet Gang, greatly increasing the likelihood of them seeking
vengeance with full force. Simultaneously, the loss of these treasures gave me
greater leverage to dominate our future dealings with the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps."
"Enraged by his men's deaths, Long Fu abandoned his previous stance and
actively sought my assistance. I feigned cooperation, leading him into the
port's mage tower. After investigation, I deliberately revealed certain
‘evidence’. This, of course, had been deliberately leaked by [Gold Hand]. Thus,
I successfully misled Long Fu into believing that Hua Tang was responsible and
closely linked to the Bayonet Gang."
Tan Mo nodded. "Now, please elaborate, City Lord. I'll be direct: [Gold Hand]'s
sacrifice is precisely the focus of my investigation."
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression grew even more solemn: "The earlier
shifts in the situation unfolded exactly as I had planned. But Long Fu's
subsequent actions greatly exceeded my expectations."
“He actually ordered his ships to voluntarily leave the harbor, appearing to
prepare for evacuation.”
"Naturally, I was unwilling to let such a valuable pawn leave the stage. Upon
rushing over, however, Long Fu was already prepared. He proposed a
collaboration, and what shocked me even more was that he knew the precise
location of [Gold Hand]!"
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed at this point: "In that moment, I suddenly
realized the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wasn't as straightforward as it
appeared on the surface. Rumors suggested arms dealers backed them. From that
point on, I became more inclined to believe those rumors."
"The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps knowing the location of Gold Hand was a
significant problem. Because if they captured Gold Hand or uncovered more
clues, they might deduce the truth, that the Gold Hand wasn't Hua Tang, and the
Bayonet Gang was framed."
"So, when Long Fu proactively suggested I take action against the Gold Hand, I
chose to agree. As the city lord, I could not tolerate such a gold level
criminal.   My agreement was the most natural response."
"At the same time, I also hoped that with my deep involvement, the situation
would never slip beyond my control."
"So next, I deployed three magic squads and brought in the Sea Bird Bishop to
launch a feigned encirclement against [Gold Hand]."
Because too many people were involved, I didn't notify [Gold Hand] beforehand
to avoid arousing suspicion or revealing any flaws.
“Once the battle commenced, since I was in command, everything unfolded
precisely as I intended.”
"Gold Hand, caught off guard by the assault, recognized the magic squads and
immediately understood the situation. When I entered the fray, he secretly used
battle qi transmission to communicate with me."
“I explained the entire plan to him. After discussing it, we decided he would
use his alchemy puppet to escape.”
“Gold Hand activated the alchemy puppet. I feigned deception, allowing him to
retreat to the battlefield's edge.”
“But just as he was about to escape, the port's mage tower unleashed an
offensive spell.”
"Gold Hand absolutely had a chance to flee. If he'd dodged that spell, he could
have vanished without a trace. But what I never anticipated was that at the
most critical moment, he attempted a battle skill and failed!"
He was struck by the spell and disintegrated on the spot.
“Huff...” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord exhaled a heavy breath, his expression
grave. “I made a mistake.”
“I bear grave responsibility for [Gold Hand]'s death!”
“I should have devised a more reliable plan. I should have communicated clearly
with [Gold Hand] beforehand before initiating the operation.”
“I was too reckless.”
"Perhaps it was because since taking office, I've been relentlessly ambitious,
achieving constant successes, which made me arrogant. Or maybe it was because
all my energy was focused on the Bayonet Gang at the time, and I didn't pay
enough attention."
"I thought everything would go smoothly... Never did I expect [Gold Hand] to
falter at the critical moment, perishing under the mage tower's assault!"
“So that's how it was.” Tan Mo sighed as well, offering a few words of
consolation to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
After several minutes spent composing himself, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
resumed his account.
Meanwhile, upon the sea.
The allied forces of three pirate crews had encircled the Divine Wind Pirates.
The three pirate captains stood at the bows of their flagship vessels,
bellowing threats and promises at Feng Lian. They demanded he surrender every
drop of the sorrow-dispelling red wine.
Feng Lian snorted coldly. “How naive you are!”
“You think mere words will secure the treasure?”
“Come at me. Let me see if you have what it takes to make Feng Lian bow his
head.”



****** Chapter 669: Feng Lian vs Da Han ******
Upon hearing Feng Lian's refusal, the three pirate captains flew into a rage.
“Hmph! Ungrateful fool!”
“Blind to the situation, you idiot!”
“Then we'll show you our might!”
Though furious, the captains maintained restraint. Instead of ordering a full
assault, they decided to fight personally.
Two took to the skies, while the third manned a broadside cannon.
“Too slow!” Feng Lian sneered coldly as he watched the two gold level magicians
ascend.
In the next instant, he shot forward like a bolt of lightning, closing in on
one of the magicians.
The gold level magician paled slightly, utterly unprepared for Feng Lian's
astonishing speed.  He hastily activated the defensive spell within his magic
pendant.
A protective shield abruptly materialized, enveloping his entire body.
Feng Lian passed him in a flash. For an instant, the sky seemed to dim,
illuminated only by the faint blade light trailing behind Feng Lian, radiating
a pale gray glow.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Darkening Azure.
The gold level magician's eyes widened as he froze mid-air.
The next instant, he was cleaved in two at the waist. His defensive artifacts
sparked and crackled, all triggered simultaneously only to be shattered by Feng
Lian's blade!
The remaining two gold levels paled in terror.
The gold level magician who had ascended with them turned pale, immediately
pulling out several spell scrolls. She cast them in rapid succession,
frantically layering defensive spells upon herself.
Feng Lian didn't spare her a glance. Instead, his gaze slowly settled on the
gold level fighter below.
The pirate captain, witnessing his comrade's brutal death, turned ashen faced.
He was now frantically manipulating the cannon.
This was a gold level cannon.
Battle skill - Heavy Cannon·Iron Fist!
The pirate captain poured all his battle qi into the cannon. Empowered by the
flagship's gold level components, he completed the charge in just a second or
two.
Boom!
Empowered by gold level battle qi, the cannonball coalesced into a black fist,
smashing viciously toward Feng Lian.
Feng Lian's expression remained unchanged. He didn't dodge, instead unleashing
his battle skill directly.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Gigantic Slash.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Swift Slash.
The scythe in his hand swung forward, slicing out a wind blade.
The blade moved swiftly, rapidly expanding as it struck the iron fist.
“Useless! This is my specialty... What?” The gold level fighter's smugness
vanished instantly, replaced by horror.
He watched in shock as the iron fist was cleaved in two by the wind blade.
Its momentum carried on, striking the pirate ship that had fired the
projectile.
The pirate ship was merely silver level, sliced open as smoothly as butter
meeting a hot knife.
Fortunately, the gold level fighter immediately retreated, dodging the blow.
But his face was grim, cold sweat beading on his forehead: “This can't be! My
heavy cannon uses gold level shells, reinforced by my own battle qi. How could
Feng Lian's wind blade sever it cleanly?"
Meanwhile, the gold level pirate captain, frantically channeling spells,
screamed: “Something's off about that Feng Lian!”
“His battle skills are far too powerful, it's unreasonable!”
Feng Lian sneered coldly: “The words of the weak... Still, it shows progress.”
“Because you've finally accepted your place.”
Before he could finish, the gold level magician growled low, casting spells and
launching an assault.
Surrounded by azure winds, Feng Lian moved with blinding speed and agility,
effortlessly evading the attacking spells.
The battle continued.
Facing two opponents alone, Feng Lian held a decisive advantage. His wind
blades were razor-sharp, their destructive force defying logic.
The defenses of the gold level magician were shattered by eighty percent in no
time.
The gold level fighter, lacking aerial battle skill, could only maneuver across
the decks of the ships, relying on cannons or his own gold level battle qi to
attack Feng Lian from afar.
This posed far less threat than close combat.
Enraged, the gold level fighter roared, commanding his subordinates to launch a
full-scale assault.
The gold level magician also sensed trouble and immediately followed suit. The
pirates who had lost their own captain were equally determined to seek revenge
and joined the assault.
Three pirate coalitions vs. the Divine Wind Pirates.
The Divine Wind Pirates' first mate sneered coldly. They had long been prepared
for battle. As the full-scale conflict erupted, the Divine Wind pirate ships
collectively retreated, swiftly creating distance.
Facing overwhelming numbers, the Divine Wind Pirates avoided direct
confrontation. Instead, they leveraged their ships' superior speed to wage
guerrilla warfare.
The pirate coalition's coordination was abysmal. After being repeatedly drawn
out by the Divine Wind Pirates, their formation shattered completely, rendering
their assault unsustainable.
The Divine Wind Pirates seized the initiative. Soon after, Feng Lian exploited
a gap in their defense and slew the gold level fighter.
The sole remaining gold level magician, utterly demoralized, abandoned the
subordinates and fled.
Magicians had the advantage of long-range flight with minimal energy
expenditure.
Feng Lian did not pursue her. Instead, he remarked, “You seem to have forgotten
I'm a magician too.”
Wind spell - Wind Blade: Reaper.
Wind spell - Wind Blade: Invisibility.
The invisible wind blades now possessed lock-on capabilities. No matter how
frantically the gold level magician shifted her position, she couldn't evade
them.
The gold level magician screamed wildly, “Don't... don't kill me, Feng Lian!”
“Spare me! Pardon my life! Or you'll regret it!”
As she shouted, she cast offensive spells, attempting to intercept the
invisible wind blades.
Her desperate gamble succeeded, intercepting three blades.
But the remaining blades still struck her one after another.
In her dying moments, she glared fiercely at Feng Lian: “Even if I die, you
won't live well!”
With that, she crushed a rune stone in her hand.
The floating stone shattered, releasing a strange light.
Feng Lian sensed the strange light approaching and attempted to dodge, but
failed.
Struck by the light, his mask concealed his expression, yet his voice betrayed
astonishment: “This is... a time divine spell?”
The gold level magician wielded a divine script talisman. The talisman, given
by Da Han, sealed a saint level time divine spell!
Feng Lian, struck by the divine spell, quickly realized his time had slowed
considerably.
His movement speed, attack speed, even his thinking speed, every aspect
plummeted. This caused his combat effectiveness to crash.
Feng Lian thought for a moment, then began dealing with the pirates.
The leaders of all three pirate crews fell by Feng Lian's hand. Even under the
time spell's effects, he swiftly slaughtered the pirates, leaving them
scattered and defeated.
The pirates' morale collapsed, and they fled in panic.
The Divine Wind Pirates pursued relentlessly, inflicting heavy casualties.
In the end, only three ships managed to escape the battlefield.
As the Divine Wind Pirates cleaned up the battlefield, Feng Lian landed on the
flagship's deck.
He attempted to dispel the divine magic binding him, but failed.
“Da Han's handiwork this time is substantial. He must have sent quite a few
divine script talismans.”
"His target is me. This strategy is undoubtedly correct."
“It seems he will arrive soon.”
Hearing Feng Lian's analysis, the first mate grew frantic: “Captain! Quickly
activate the alchemy components! Bind yourself to every ship in the Divine Wind
Pirates! Share the burden of this divine magic!”
Feng Lian nodded slightly: “Exactly. That was my intention.”
The ships of the Divine Wind Pirates all originated from Gear Island. Their
similar models allowed for coordination far surpassing ordinary pirate groups.
After activating several different alchemy components, Feng Lian's battle qi
and magic power became interconnected with the entire fleet.
The ships thus shared the burden of the saint level divine magic upon him.
With this step accomplished, Feng Lian's combat strength was finally restored
to more than half. He swiftly ordered the entire pirate crew to retreat from
the battlefield at maximum speed, paying no heed to the fact that only one-
third of the loot had been gathered.
The Divine Wind Pirates' loyalty to Feng Lian was unwavering; not a single
voice raised in protest against the retreat order.
However, the divine magic also affected the Divine Wind's ships. While their
speed remained impressive, the journey stretched out considerably.
Soon enough, the fleet led by Da Han caught up.
Da Han soared high into the sky, heading straight for Feng Lian.
His murderous intent radiated unchecked: “Feng Lian, you've killed so many of
my men. You think you can escape?”
“Today, you will die by my hand.”
“To save time, why not just kill yourself? How about it?”
“I'll spare your subordinates. I swear it on my name, Da Han, fourth-in-command
of the Fire Beard Pirates.”
Feng Lian sneered coldly, “Da Han, even if you're a saint level cultivator, you
won't make me surrender without a fight, let alone commit suicide.”
“Come! Let me witness the might of a saint level cultivator!”
Da Han snorted coldly, wasting no more words.
With a sweeping gesture of his massive hand, his battle qi surged forth,
causing the heavens and earth to shift.
The surrounding temperature plummeted, frigid air surged, frost blossoms
crystallized wildly, freezing the sea surface around them.
Feng Lian bore the brunt of this “attention.” His white cloak froze rigid, and
a layer of frosty white coated his bronze mask.
“Saint domain expansion...” Feng Lian keenly sensed the transformation in the
surrounding world—temporarily imbued with other laws!
Without a doubt, these temporary laws originated from Da Han.
To save time, Da Han had directly deployed his most potent means—his saint
domain!
The domain's original radius, centered on him, was only a dozen meters in
actual size. But upon active expansion, it spread like diluted liquid, its
scope rapidly increasing.
Now, Da Han directly enveloped the entire battlefield with his expanded saint
domain.
Within this domain, the power of his battle skills received immense
amplification, while Feng Lian's abilities suffered severe suppression.
This increase and decrease instantly created a colossal disparity.
Feng Lian's gaze hardened with unprecedented severity.
He drew a deep breath and immediately closed his eyes.
Magic power and battle qi surged forth, blending into one under the influence
of his bloodline talent.
The next instant, he snapped his eyes open and exhaled sharply, aiming at the
long-handled scythe in his grasp.
In that split second, a shadowy human form materialized from his body. This
phantom dragged a spectral scythe, making a light slash directly ahead.
A small, emerald-green wind swirled forth, no larger than 30 centimeters,
delicate and intricate.
The emerald wind lunged toward Da Han, trailing a long, pale-green vapor in
midair.
Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom!
This time, it was Da Han’s turn to show astonishment, hastily unleashing his
battle skill.
In an instant, ice crystallized, forming towering walls that stretched between
heaven and earth.
The emerald wind penetrated directly through the ice walls, passing through one
after another. It traversed seven layers before slowly dissipating.
Da Han's expression turned grave. His gaze locked intently on Feng Lian in the
distance, a trickle of blood slowly flowing from his nostrils.



****** Chapter 670: Breeze Bloodline ******
“So that's it, you possess the Breeze bloodline.”
As he spoke, the blood in Da Han's nose receded, the traces vanishing
completely in moments.
Feng Lian noticed this subtle detail and instantly understood: Da Han was under
the effect of some constant time divine spell, enabling rapid healing.
He cultivated both magic and battle qi, while Da Han was a dual practitioner of
sorcery and divine power. Both men had mastered dual disciplines.
Feng Lian felt a chill in his heart: Da Han... truly worthy of being the
fourth-in-command of the Fire Beard Pirates. He had exposed Feng Lian's true
nature in just the first round of combat.
The Breeze bloodline had a racial magic known as Wind Combination. Any wind-
element energy source could be fused into a single entity.
Under normal circumstances, the energies of fighters, magicians, and clerics,
battle qi, magic power, and divine power, could not merge. Transcendents could
only wield one.
Simultaneously using battle skill, spells, and divine spells wasn't difficult.
What's rare was the true fusion of battle qi, magic power, and divine power.
Feng Lian achieved this through his bloodline.
It was precisely because of this that his offensive and defensive capabilities,
among all aspects, were vastly superior.
"Your bloodline allows energy fusion, but it doesn't grant you an overwhelming
combat advantage. The reason your battle skill and spells are so powerful is
because of the sacred artifact in your hands—the Sea Wind's Howl," Da Han
continued.
Feng Lian's eyes flickered, betraying his inner turmoil.
True, he remained a believer of the Sea Wind God, though his faith fell short
of the level required for a clergy position.
Nevertheless, through his contributions to the church, he had secured a saint
level sacred artifact: the long-handled scythe in his grasp, the Sea Wind's
Howl. It could be wielded in close combat or used as a staff, but most
crucially, the scythe was imbued with divine magic.
Thus, Feng Lian's strength was forged by the convergence of three elements.
His bloodline allowed the fusion of battle qi and magic power. Amplified by the
sacred artifact, his might was multiplied several times over.
It must be said that the Sea Wind Church suited Feng Lian exceptionally well.
His choice of faith proved remarkably wise, significantly boosting his combat
prowess.
However, precisely because he had chosen his faith based on self-interest
rather than sincere devotion, his belief in the Sea Wind God remained shallow.
Consequently, his faith level never truly deepened. Ironically, many of his
subordinates became priests of the Sea Wind Church instead.
Having priests within a pirate crew was an exceptionally rare occurrence.
Typically, only formal naval forces maintained such personnel.
“Let me see what secrets you hold,” Da Han declared, initiating the time divine
spell.
One of his pupils remained unchanged, while the other began to shift,
reflecting a series of magic images within its depths.
Divine spell—Time Rewind.
The necklace and ring on Feng Lian's body flashed repeatedly, yet they couldn't
withstand the opponent's scrutiny. He certainly wouldn't sit idly by. Wielding
his scythe, he charged forward.
“Lord Captain!” Every move Feng Lian made filled the Divine Wind Pirates' crew
with worry and tension.
Among the pirates surrounding Da Han, some admired Feng Lian's courage, while
others sneered at his recklessness.
By conventional logic, Da Han, a sorcerer by primary vocation, should be weak
in close combat.
Feng Lian, specializing in battle qi, excelled in melee.
Yet he avoided direct combat, pulling back to mid-to-long range and refusing to
close in on Da Han.
His weakness in close combat only applied against peers of equal level. Feng
Lian was one level below Da Han, so his melee advantage couldn't be fully
exploited.
Moreover, Da Han also cultivated divine magic. Clergymen possessed remarkably
versatile abilities, as the gods themselves were omnipotent. Naturally, most
clergymen filled the healer role within teams of transcendents.
This was because, compared to magicians and fighters, their healing
capabilities were far more pronounced.
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Great Slash.
Spell - Wind Blade: Phantom.
Battle skill - Wind Binding Armor.
Spell - Tornado.
…
A cascade of transcendent powers unfolded in succession through Feng Lian's
hands.
Whirling wind blades and raging tornadoes coalesced into a colossal offensive
surge.
But when this onslaught reached ten meters of Da Han, its power diminished
drastically. It was like a ferocious warrior suddenly having his backbone
ripped out, or a roaring hero having his vocal cords severed in an instant.
Saint domain!
Centered on Da Han, a layer of white frost blanketed the area within a radius
of over ten meters.
It was precisely this frost that severely curtailed Feng Lian's attacks.
This was a true saint domain!
Earlier, Da Han had proactively expanded it, effectively diluting the domain's
power and granting Feng Lian an opening. Now, restored to its normal form, the
saint domain immediately shifted the battle's momentum upon activation.
All of Feng Lian's assaults entering the saint domain suffered a catastrophic
drop in potency. Not even 20% remained, only barely 10% of the original force.
"Oh? I see." Da Han's reconnaissance efforts yielded fresh intelligence.
“So you're a remnant of the Tai He Clan.”
“No wonder you've been lurking in the shadows...”
Transcendent clans primarily descended from the Breeze bloodline were few and
far between. The most renowned, and once the most powerful, was the Tai He
Clan.
This human clan had originally possessed immense influence, with branches
spread across multiple continents and profound foundations.
Regrettably, during the demonic invasion of the Main Plane, the Tai He Clan,
for a confluence of reasons, ultimately surrendered to the demons, becoming
guides for the demonic hordes assaulting the Main Plane.
After the demons were repelled, the Tai He Clan faced reckoning. Not only were
their ancestral holdings confiscated, but the entire clan faced a united
manhunt by the major powers of the Main Plane.
“Slanderous fabrication!” Feng Lian retorted coldly.
·
Battle skill - Wind Blade: Heart of Freedom!
He resorted to his old trick, expelling a small swirl of breeze.
It was the very move that had just pierced the saint domain.
Without a doubt, this was one of his trump cards.
The breeze invaded Da Han's vicinity, penetrating about a meter into the saint
domain before dissipating harmlessly.
Like an eraser, it wiped away a meter-long stretch of frost, revealing the
underlying surface.
Da Han snorted coldly. Without even chanting, he swept his hand, causing a
surge of frost to rise from the saint domain. The frost blazed like light, a
streak of brilliant rainbow hurtling toward Feng Lian.
Feng Lian attempted to dodge, but at the critical moment, his time slowed.
The frost grazed Feng Lian's shoulder, instantly crystallizing into a thick
layer. With a series of cracks, a solid block of ice formed.
Feng Lian swiftly switched hands to grip his scythe, the affected shoulder
already numb.
He retreated again, widening the distance. His entire body resembled a soaring
bird, circling around Da Han while unleashing a relentless barrage of wind
blades.
The diverse formation of wind blades formed a razor-sharp offensive, leaving
the watching pirates watching with dry throats.
The gold level pirates imagined themselves in Da Han's position, it would be
difficult to withstand Feng Lian's assault.
But Da Han was saint level.
He stood immovable, relying on his saint domain's defensive effect that also
amplified his racial magic's offensive might.
Da Han took the initiative, closing the distance.
Feng Lian dared not engage head-on, choosing instead to retreat, desperately
maintaining his distance.
He excelled at acceleration, but Da Han wielded the time divine spell,
accelerating his own time while slowing Feng Lian's.
With the doubled effect, Da Han steadily closed in while Feng Lian retreated,
countering as he fell back.
Feng Lian's attacks proved ineffective.
Earlier, Da Han had been careless. Now fully focused, he fought methodically.
His mastery of the saint level granted him complete control over the
battlefield.
“Quick, aid the Lord Captain!”
“Lord Captain, catch!”
The Divine Wind Pirates' first mate and others, sensing the dire situation,
swiftly activated the alchemy components.
Nearly every pirate ship participated.
A section of the deck flipped open, revealing a massive fan.
The fan whirred, spinning rapidly and generating a spiraling green wind.
Strands of green wind, serpentine in form, shot toward the battlefield, growing
thinner and thinner as they flew.
By the time they reached Feng Lian, they were as thin as belts.
The green winds bound Feng Lian and his pirate ship together.
In an instant, Feng Lian's aura surged, and his attacks multiplied nearly
tenfold!
“Interesting. The Breeze bloodline has advanced this far.” Da Han remained
unmoved, still able to comment with leisure.
Even a tenfold increase in attack couldn't breach Da Han's saint domain!
The gap between saint level and gold level was that vast.
Yet Feng Lian's state differed from the ordinary. Using the winds, he channeled
every magic pool from the pirate ships into himself, accumulating so much power
it overflowed!
While he freely squandered it to form an offensive against Da Han's advance, he
simultaneously drew magic through the wind currents, surging it into his mask.
The next moment, the bronze mask erupted with an aura, revealing itself as
saint level equipment.
Only, this artifact was no longer a sacred artifact, but a magic item.
"Huh? Part of a magic construct?” Da Han caught a glimpse of the truth.
Feng Lian's entire body began to swell.
From his normal height, he transformed into a figure over three meters tall.
The bronze mask, the long-handled scythe, and everything else grew in
proportion.
In this state, even a simple Wind Blade from Feng Lian rivaled the power of
Wind Blade: Gigantic Slash.
With the mask fully activated, Feng Lian's combat power surged again, leaving
Da Han visibly impressed. "In this state, Feng Lian is far beyond the reach of
my gold level subordinates. He's practically a quasi-saint!"
“But unfortunately, he still can't break through my saint domain.”
Under Feng Lian's relentless assault, Da Han's saint domain had shrunk from its
original radius of over ten meters to roughly eight meters.
Yet this represented Feng Lian's absolute limit.
Witnessing this, Feng Lian exhaled a breath of stale air. Without further
hesitation, he swung his spear and cast a spell upon his own pirate crew.
Spell—Wind Booster.
A powerful wind surged forth, propelling the pirate ships forward.
The Divine Wind Pirates began their retreat.
Da Han snorted coldly and immediately launched an attack at Feng Lian.
Relying on his two saint level artifacts, Feng Lian struggled to resist.
Watching the Divine Wind Pirates flee into the distance, Da Han ruthlessly
suppressed Feng Lian before turning to assault the latter's pirate ship.
Feng Lian swiftly followed. Dragged by the wind, his speed was astonishing, and
he soon entangled Da Han once more.
Time and again, Da Han failed to gain the upper hand.
A murderous glint flashed in Da Han's eyes. He threw everything he had at Feng
Lian, quickly overwhelming him.
But the wind current intervened again, pulling Feng Lian away.
Da Han pursued relentlessly, chasing for several minutes before finally
catching Feng Lian again.
Yet while he could handle Feng Lian, he couldn't handle the pirate ship. Soon,
the pirate ship pulled away, dragging Feng Lian off once more.
At that moment, Qian Xing transmitted his voice: “Shall I intervene?”
He still owed Da Han a promise of full-fledged assistance.



****** Chapter 671: Zong Ge is Saved ******
Qian Xing had previously sought help from Da Han to rescue Ba Qi.
Da Han fulfilled their agreement and helped him locate Ba Qi. Then, both were
startled away by Teacher Si Ling.
Though Qian Xing hadn't achieved his goal, Da Han had fulfilled his part of the
bargain. So after returning, Qian Xing remained aboard Da Han's fleet without
leaving.
He also stayed out of the public eye, becoming Da Han's hidden ace in the hole
under the latter's arrangements.
Seeing Da Han's “ineffectiveness” in pursuing Feng Lian, Qian Xing volunteered.
Da Han rejected him telepathically: “It's unnecessary.”
Qian Xing's pledge to “fight with full force” was hard-earned, he wouldn't
squander it on Feng Lian. Deploying a saint level combatant to take Feng Lian's
life was simply not worth it.
Da Han decided against personally engaging in battle. Enveloped within the
saint domain, he flew back to his flagship.
With a sweeping gesture, he ordered the entire fleet to pursue the Divine Wind
Pirates.
Qian Xing immediately fell deep in thought.
He could see that Da Han hadn't deployed his full strength against Feng Lian.
"Though Feng Lian is only gold level, his combat prowess shouldn't be
underestimated. He also possesses two saint level pieces of equipment...”
“Is Da Han deliberately conserving his strength for the advance into the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom?”
Indeed.
Qian Xing understood clearly: Da Han's sorcerer bloodline was frost-based, and
he had also cultivated time divine spells. Da Han's situation differed from
Feng Lian's. His faith in the Dusk God was heartfelt, and his adherence to the
Dusk Church's doctrines ran deep in his bones.
Da Han's power stemmed from two sources: the might of frost and the grandeur of
time. Thus, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Ten Millennia Ice Lake was an ideal
environment for him.
Qian Xing considered the situation from Da Han's perspective. If he were in Da
Han's shoes, he too would undoubtedly head for the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
There, the opportunity to improve his saint level was undeniable!
Beyond preserving combat strength, Qian Xing contemplated another possibility.
“Could it be... that Da Han foresaw something during his recent
reconnaissance?”
Da Han's time divine spell not only allowed him to revisit the past but also to
peer into the future. When Qian Xing had once requested Da Han's divination,
the latter had been deceived while revisiting the past. Yet, when predicting
the future, he had seen Teacher Si Ling.
In Qian Xing's view, Da Han's foresight surpassed his own ability to revisit
the past.
"Da Han uncovered many secrets about Feng Lian by revisiting the past. How
could he not have predicted the future?"
“If I were in his place, I would have done exactly that.”
“If this possibility holds true, it means that Feng Lian possesses a means
capable of threatening a saint level existence!”
The more Qian Xing pondered it, the more plausible this possibility seemed, and
not by a small margin.
This also explained Feng Lian's unusually assertive stance toward Da Han.
Under normal circumstances, a gold level would go out of their way to avoid a
saint level opponent.
Coupled with what Da Han had revealed during their battle—that Feng Lian was a
remnant of the Tai He Clan.
Qian Xing mused inwardly: "The Tai He Clan's legacy likely contains methods to
counter saint level threats. Much like the Ice Sculpture Kingdom must harbor
trump cards against legend level foes."
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had once been a legend level power. Though it now
possessed only three saint level cultivators, as an independent maritime nation
with world-leading alchemy technology, it undoubtedly possessed legend level
capabilities.
This was a widely accepted fact.
Though Qian Xing cultivated only battle qi as a pure fighter, he was no
reckless fool. His mind remained exceptionally sharp, possessing ample combat
wisdom.
As Qian Xing pondered, Feng Lian landed on the deck of his flagship.
With Da Han no longer personally engaged in battle, Feng Lian also withdrew the
wind currents, severing his connection to his pirate crew.
Consequently, Feng Lian decisively ceased using the bronze mask. After all,
relying solely on his personal magic pool and internal battle qi reserves to
wield a saint level artifact was simply too taxing.
The first mate urgently asked, “Captain, the Icebound Pirates are hot on our
trail. What should we do?”
Feng Lian remained composed. “Da Han possesses the time divine spell. I can
sense he's employing different divine spells to track me.”
“Perhaps he's discovered something.”
“That's why he's voluntarily stepped back, using his subordinates to wear us
down.”
“Heh heh heh.” At this point, Feng Lian laughed to himself. “Then let them
chase.”
The first mate's face darkened with worry.
On the surface, the Divine Wind Pirates held the advantage in speed. But did
the Icebound Pirates lack the means to counter such a swift opponent?
Certainly not.
And they possessed more than one method.
As the fourth-in-command of the Fire Beard Pirates, a saint level powerhouse,
the Icebound Pirates have dominated the seas for so long. How could they
possibly fail to handle a high-speed target while maintaining such a massive
fleet?
Not to mention, just Da Han's time divine spell alone poses a tremendous threat
to the Divine Wind Pirates!
The first mate said, “We're already under the effect of the time divine spell
ourselves. We can't shake off the Icebound Pirates.” Who knows what tactics
they'll deploy next against us?"
“Even if this stalemate persists, this attrition pattern is extremely
disadvantageous for us.”
The first mate's words held undeniable logic.
The Divine Wind Pirates were currently sailing at maximum speed.
This was abnormal.
Ships typically traveled at normal cruising speed. Maximum speed consumed
enormous amounts of magic power.
Over time, even the Divine Wind Pirates couldn't sustain such intensity.
Beneath his bronze mask, Feng Lian's brow furrowed slightly.
Under these circumstances, he could voluntarily abandon the sorrow-dispelling
red wine and hand it over to Da Han. The latter would have gained something and
found an excuse to leave, likely choosing to back down.
But that didn't serve Feng Lian's interests.
After a moment's thought, Feng Lian gave a cold laugh. “Change course. Head for
Ice Sculpture Island.”
“All of this is for revenge against the Li Jian Clan.”
"Last time we attacked the Intoxication Church's fleet, we failed to draw them
out. This time, leading Da Han's Icebound Pirates, I'll deliberately assault
their defenses. I'll see how these bastards respond!"
“Cough cough cough.”
Feng Lian coughed several times, spitting out mouthfuls of blood.
The blood splattered onto the deck, instantly crystallizing into frost.
The first mate obeyed without question.
Though Feng Lian had been defeated in battle against Da Han, his prestige
remained utterly undiminished.
He had remained resolute, bearing the external pressure brought by the Icebound
Pirates while skillfully executing a diversionary tactic, killing with a
borrowed knife!
The Li Jian Clan’s Kong Pan had deliberately abandoned the sorrow-dispelling
red wine, luring the pirates into fighting amongst themselves.
Though Feng Lian had fallen for the trap for days, he had long since discerned
the scheme.
This time, he would use himself as bait to exact vengeance upon the Li Jian
Clan once more.
Because of Feng Lian's move, the storm of naval combat rapidly closed in upon
the coastline of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Meanwhile, within the Ice Sculpture capital, turbulent undercurrents surged as
the national ceremony drew near.
Zi Di gazed at the pearl bubbles in her hand and sighed inwardly: “Only five
left.”
These were the final reserves.
Not just hers alone, but the pearl bubbles for Zong Ge and everyone else!
Only five remained.
And now, she had no choice but to take one more for herself.
Deceptive Disguise spell!
Zi Di had long constructed a portable magic formation capable of casting this
spell.
When she stepped out of the formation, her appearance had drastically
changed—she was now Long Fu.
Zong Ge, who had been impersonating Long Fu, had collapsed and remained
unconscious. Zi Di had no choice but to step forward herself, assuming the role
of her own commander to face the outside world.
In the reception room, Zi Di received the steward from the Li Jian Clan.
The steward saw “Long Fu” and wore a perfectly measured look of delight: “Lord
Long Fu's prowess is astonishing. To be struck by the Frost Aura yet remain
unscathed, as if you'd consumed the [Beautiful Future] potion without getting
affected—truly remarkable.”
"To be honest, the clan leader was quite concerned about this very point. For
this mission, he not only sent me with specialized alchemy testing tools but
also three bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine."
Long Fu (Zi Di) felt a stir within and smiled faintly. “The effects of the
[Beautiful Future] potion are indeed troublesome. However, after the battle, I
offered prayers and was fortunate enough to receive the favor of my lord, the
Justice God. His grace completely dispelled the potion's effects from my body.”
“Of course, I appreciate your clan's concern.”
“Why not let me test it now? That way, Lord Mian Li Zang can be completely at
ease.”
Seeing “Long Fu” volunteer for the test, the Li Jian Clan steward visibly
relaxed.
One of his missions on this diplomatic journey was to facilitate this very
test.
When “Long Fu” mentioned the Justice God and prayer earlier, the steward had
hesitated to broach the subject. After all, it touched upon matters of faith.
To raise it would be to question the Justice God. For the Justice God's
believers, this would be an immense insult.
However, now that “Long Fu” (Zi Di) had volunteered, it was the best possible
outcome.
Without delay, the steward retrieved the alchemy testing device and handed it
to Zi Di.
Zi Di first inspected it, confirmed it was in order, and then used it.
The results of the alchemy test, of course, showed no issues whatsoever. First,
Zi Di certainly possessed none of the potion's effects. Second, even if she
did, the Deceptive Disguise spell far surpassed the capabilities of the testing
device.
The steward breathed a sigh of relief at this outcome, offering a few words of
flattery toward “Long Fu” and praising the divine might of the Justice God.
He then inquired about the earlier proposal for cooperation.
Zi Di's heart sank slightly as she informed him, “I have already reported this
matter upward, but I cannot say when a specific response will arrive.”
The steward urged her a few times before rising to take his leave.
Zi Di called him back, proposing a trade for sorrow-dispelling red wine. Her
justification was straightforward, she had recently acquired the alchemy
technique for the Ice Cube Red Wine, and while time ice cubes was readily
available, sorrow-dispelling red wine was rare. Thus, she wouldn't pass up any
opportunity to obtain it.
The steward smiled, pausing to negotiate with Zi Di.
Zi Di showed no trace of emotion on her face, patiently haggling over the
price. Ultimately, to avoid suspicion, she purchased only two bottles.
“Alright, Zong Ge is saved now!” Zi Di suppressed her inner excitement. As they
parted, she indicated to the steward that if the price was right, she would be
very interested in acquiring all the sorrow-dispelling red wine the Li Jian
Clan currently possessed.



****** Chapter 672: Urgent Military Intelligence ******
Igloo City.
In the city government palace.
Mian Li Zang studied the intelligence in his hand: “Still no clear response
from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps...”
Under the magic light, his expression darkened.
Members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, including Long Fu (Zong Ge) and Yao
Ma (Zi Di), were temporarily lodged in accommodations provided by the Li Jian
Clan.
“So far, the royal capital has detected no activity matching the reports from
Magician Yao Ma.”
“They've mastered some form of communication, one so covert even our clan can't
detect it?”
“Also... Magician Yao Ma purchased two bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine.”
"Heh, such resourcefulness is truly remarkable. Entrusted by her arms dealer to
open markets in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, she clearly possesses considerable
skill."
“Unfortunately... we've already detected that Long Fu is bedridden.”
Despite Zong Ge and Zi Di's extreme caution and repeated checks, they remained
under the secret surveillance of the Li Jian Clan. Neither Zong Ge nor Zi Di
had noticed.
Clearly, the Li Jian Clan wielded formidable surveillance capabilities.
Thus, when Zong Ge returned to his quarters bedridden after his victorious
duel, the Li Jian Clan learned of his condition.
The steward they had dispatched knew the truth—that “Long Fu” was actually the
Magician Yao Ma in disguise.
“From this, it's clear the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps possesses exceptional
disguise techniques.”
“Had we not detected two ‘Long Fus’, Magician Yao Ma's disguise would never
have been exposed.”
Mian Li Zang murmured to himself, though he found it unsurprising.
In his view, as an arms dealer's agent, smuggling weapons demanded formidable
camouflage skills.
“The two bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine you purchased, may they offer
you a taste unlike any other... Heh heh heh.”
A glint of anticipation flickered in Mian Li Zang's eyes.
“Urgent military intelligence, Clan Leader!”
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded outside the study door.
Mian Li Zang's expression shifted slightly as he immediately commanded,
“Enter.”
Intelligence delivered by specialized agents was invariably critical and
urgent.
“What?”
“Feng Lian engaged Da Han in combat and fled in defeat.”
“The Icebound Pirates are pursuing the Divine Wind Pirates and have approached
our coastal defense zone?”
Mian Li Zang's expression instantly hardened.
“Feng Lian did this deliberately!”
“He deliberately lured his formidable enemy toward our clan to escape Da Han's
pursuit.”
“His earlier raid on the Intoxication Church's fleet may have been intended to
draw out the Second Naval Fleet.”
Analyzing the intelligence, Mian Li Zang immediately sensed Feng Lian's deep
animosity toward the Li Jian Clan.
Beyond the intelligence, there was also Kong Pan's request for instructions.
The enemy threat was grave, and Kong Pan, weighed down by concerns, needed to
reach consensus with the clan leader.
Mian Li Zang grew restless. Rising abruptly, he paced the study with furrowed
brows.
His mind raced, thoughts flashing relentlessly through his mind.
"The bulk of our clan's strength lies within the Second Naval Fleet. It
absolutely must not be compromised; it is our clan's greatest foundation!"
“Feng Lian and his Divine Wind Pirates alone are troublesome enough, let alone
with Da Han and the Icebound Pirates backing him.”
“Military logic dictates we should avoid his sharp edge.”
“But that's impossible now.”
“Feng Lian is attacking the Second Naval Fleet's defense zone; retreating isn't
an option.”
"The military tribunal's accountability is secondary. The greatest loss lies in
the political realm. Should we retreat without a fight, our clan's reputation
will plummet to rock bottom. After that, the royal family will have a
legitimate reason to intervene in our affairs and dismantle our power."
Just moments ago, Mian Li Zang had been smugly plotting his scheme against the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Now, he had to rack his brains to devise a course of action that would align
with the Li Jian Clan's interests.
“A direct retreat is out of the question.”
“But engaging in direct combat offers no chance of victory either...”
With the military situation urgent, Mian Li Zang raced against time. Once he
reached a conclusion, he immediately dispatched a message.
He ordered Kong Pan and the others to contact the First Naval Fleet of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom without delay and join forces with them to initiate
hostilities!
“We absolutely must bring in the First Fleet.”
“This way, all sides will suffer losses, greatly mitigating the negative impact
of our navy's weakened strength.”
“Once the battle reaches a certain stage, we can plan our retreat.”
By then, withdrawal would be justified.
After all, Feng Lian's forces were formidable opponents. Da Han was a saint
level sorcerer, and his Icebound Pirates even possessed an Ice Crystal
Jellyfish.
The Ice Crystal Jellyfish was a saint level magic beast. Counting them up, that
made two saint level enemies!
This was the world of the strong.
In terms of sheer numbers, the Second Naval Fleet naturally had the advantage.
But the mere thought of facing two saint level opponents sapped the clan
leader's will to fight.
He didn't know that the Icebound Pirates also harbored Qian Xing, a third saint
level fighter.
Military intelligence traveled through the fastest communication channels. Kong
Pan swiftly received the order from Mian Li Zang.
She fully endorsed it and acted immediately.
Shortly thereafter, at the First Naval Fleet.
“Rear Admiral Mei Lin, the Vice Admiral summons you for urgent military
matters!” a naval officer announced.
Receiving the notice, Mei Lin felt puzzled: “Strange. If it's urgent military
intelligence, why didn't the Vice Admiral just use the communication device to
notify me?”
“Sending someone to report like this wastes time.”
With lingering doubts, Mei Lin arrived at the flagship of the First Naval
Fleet.
Entering the conference chamber, the First Fleet's primary commander was
already present, along with another Rear Admiral level official.
The main commander was a snow elf of royal lineage, holding the rank of Vice
Admiral.
Below him stood three Rear Admirals. Mei Lin was one of them.
Seconds after Mei Lin took her seat, the third Rear Admiral arrived.
The Vice Admiral pointed at the alchemy sea chart and addressed the three Rear
Admirals: “Feng Lian is being pursued by Da Han and has charged headlong into
this sea sector.”
“The Second Naval Fleet was tasked with defense. Now, Kong Pan has delivered an
urgent distress signal.”
“Share your assessments.”
“Da Han?!” Mei Lin instantly grasped the gravity of the situation and
immediately stated, "Our forces are not far from the Second Fleet's defense
zone. If we deploy now, leveraging the speed of our new warships, we can
definitely reach them in time."
“We can preemptively set up the battlefield, arrange our formations, and
maximize our advantage of terrain.”
The Vice Admiral remained noncommittal, turning his gaze to the other two Rear
Admirals.
One of them cleared his throat. “The enemy force is overwhelming. Even if we
give our all, we absolutely cannot match two saint level opponents.”
“Quite right,” the other Rear Admiral chimed in. “Even if we form the strongest
possible battle formation, it won't withstand Da Han's assault.”
Mei Lin's frown deepened. "Gentlemen, it's true the enemy is stronger than us.
But as soldiers of the Kingdom, how can we shrink from battle? At worst, we
sacrifice our lives for our country!"
This statement immediately drew a rebuttal from the other Rear Admiral: “Mei
Lin, you are mistaken. We should preserve our useful bodies to serve the
kingdom.”
“Precisely,” the other Rear Admiral added. “This battle cannot be won by our
navy alone. Our chance of victory lies with our nation's three saint level
combatants.”
“Our navy's role is to buy time, gather intelligence, and wear down the saint
level forces like Da Han as much as possible.”
“And that task can be accomplished by the Second Naval Fleet.”
“Indeed.”
“There's no need to sacrifice all of us.”
"Once the Second Naval Fleet has depleted the enemy's strength, our saint level
forces will surely prevail. At that point, our First Naval Fleet will still
need to shoulder the defense of the Kingdom's maritime zones."
“And when that time comes, surely we can't expect the three saints to
personally patrol the waters around Ice Sculpture Island?”
Mei Lin fell silent, but a sudden realization dawned within her.
Her earlier thoughts had focused solely on military strategy, yet there were
political factors to consider as well.
“The Li Jian Clan maintains ironclad control over the Second Naval Fleet, which
has practically become their private military force.”
"Not long ago, when the Intoxication Church's fleet was plundered, the Li Jian
Clan reported that even the accompanying recording devices were destroyed. Such
brazen audacity lays bare the Li Jian Clan's complete control over the Second
Naval Fleet!"
What did the Vice Admiral mean by this?
Mei Lin immediately recalled that when she received the notification earlier,
it hadn't come through the alchemy communication device, but via a naval
soldier.
Though it was an urgent military matter, they'd deliberately chosen this time-
consuming method of delivery.
Not only that, but the Vice Admiral had also summoned his subordinates for a
meeting.
If the military situation were so straightforward, why would discussion be
necessary?
Viewed this way, the Vice Admiral's intentions became crystal clear!
Mei Lin promptly nodded in agreement, acknowledging the validity of the other
two Rear Admirals' arguments.
Seeing the three Rear Admirals reach consensus, the Vice Admiral's heart
swelled with satisfaction. Seizing the momentum, he decided to provisionally
agree to the rescue mission, but insisted on time to reorganize and deploy
forces. He demanded the Second Fleet remain stationed at the battlefield,
awaiting the full reinforcements of the First Fleet. To safeguard the homeland,
he urged the Second Fleet to uphold military discipline and honor the
nobility's legacy!
After the meeting, Mei Lin returned to her flagship, letting out a soft sigh
that betrayed a hint of melancholy.
She wasn't a snow elf, but a mermaid. Though a star within the Naval First
Fleet, she remained an outsider in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom dominated by snow
elves.
Truth be told, she felt more at ease among the duelists than within the navy.
The main reason was the duelists' diverse backgrounds, like rabbitman, wood
elves, humans, and more.
Thinking of the duelists, Mei Lin naturally turned her thoughts to Long Fu.
“Bing Yang suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Long Fu. This battle
clearly shows he is in peak condition and possesses even greater combat
strength.”
“We must continue to weaken him.”
“Next, we can spread the rumor that he was struck by the Frost Aura, fell
victim to the effects of the [Beautiful Future] potion, worsened his injuries,
and cannot be healed.”
"On one hand, this urges Long Fu to keep accepting challenges and prove
himself. On the other hand, it lures other silver level experts to clash with
him."
At this thought, Mei Lin sighed softly to herself.
“Long Fu is likely gold level, but his silver level disguise serves as his best
cover.”
“Truly, very few silver level fighters pose a real threat to him.”
Mei Lin resolved to continue her previous strategy against the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Her primary focus now could not be on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Da Han
and his Icebound Pirates were closing in.



****** Chapter 673: Divinity Inspiration, Trial of the Gods ******
The White Hair Trench.
Beyond the walls of the Ocean Mother Nest.
The hum of the colossal magic and divine script composite formation gradually
faded.
The blinding radiance had long since vanished.
Teacher Si Ling knelt half-bent on the ground, feeling extreme exhaustion.
Even as a powerhouse within the saint level, one of the Twelve Saints, and
aided by such a super-formation, extracting death divinity remained an arduous
task.
“Thankfully, it's finally over.”
“We've gathered four portions of death divinity in total...”
“Sigh, I never imagined condensing and extracting divinity would be so taxing.”
Teacher Si Ling's magic power and mental energy were severely depleted,
blurring his vision.
What he didn't know was that he had actually condensed and extracted eight
portions of divinity, half of which had been secretly stolen by the fishman
youngster.
Throughout this process, Cang Xu and Jian Gui were present, witnessing
everything.
Zhou Zhang was no exception.
She had watched anxiously from start to finish.
Under everyone's gaze, Teacher Si Ling slowly rose to his feet, his fingers
trembling slightly as he drew the artifact [Truth Slate] from his robe.
Half of the Truth Slate was now corroded with deathly black.  This anomaly was
strikingly obvious.
Noticing Cang Xu's puzzled gaze, Teacher Si Ling smiled faintly and offered an
explanation: “Divinity is difficult to bear. This time, I relied primarily on
the [Truth Slate] to contain it.”
“However, though the [Truth Slate] is a divine artifact, it embodies knowledge,
logic, and order, qualities incompatible with the death divinity.”
“Therefore, after containing four portions of death divinity, the tablet's
power was suppressed by 50%.”
Cang Xu inquired curiously, “Does this mean we transcendents cannot bear
divinity?”
“I've heard of some instances.”
“We are necromancers, isn't the death divinity most suited to us?”
Teacher Si Ling nodded. “You are correct.”
“Transcendents can indeed bear divinity.”
“However, this varies from person to person.”
“Generally speaking, the higher the transcendent level and the nobler the
bloodline, the greater the potential to bear, contain, or even absorb
divinity.”
Jian Gui interjected, “Teacher Si Ling, you are a saint level powerhouse. Could
you not bear the death divinity?”
Teacher Si Ling shook his head. “Of course not.”
“Given my strength and bloodline, I could bear up to three portions of
divinity.”
“But first, divinity serves other vital purposes.”
"Second, should I bear divinity, I'd immediately and passively absorb it. I'd
constantly fall into profound contemplation, unable to extricate myself,
jeopardizing my own safety. This is called the divinity inspiration."
“Third, I must guard against the trial of the gods.”
Cang Xu understood the divinity inspiration well. His understanding largely
stemmed from the fishman youngster's rapid advancement as a clergyman.
Cang Xu knew: Divinity inspiration occurs when crystallized divinity exerts a
powerful influence on compatible transcendents, actively sharing its power.
Once a transcendent comprehends it and possesses the capacity to contain it,
prolonged exposure allows them to absorb the divinity, ascending into a divine
lifeform.
A significant portion of deities had come into being this way.
But Cang Xu remained ignorant about the trial of the gods.
Fortunately, Teacher Si Ling volunteered an explanation: “Deities wield the
divine spell [Perceive Divinity], enabling them to conduct searches across vast
expanses.”
“Our undead orthodoxy maintains a deep cooperative relationship with the Death
God, bound by a contract.”
“The moment I take in death divinity, the Death God will immediately sense it,
triggering the Death God's Trial.”
"If I pass the trial, I will develop faith in the Death God. The highest
achievement on this path of advancement is becoming a subordinate deity of the
Death God."
“If I fail the trial, I will still gain some benefits, but the death divinity
within me will be taken by the Death God.”
“Deities always strive to possess divinity that aligns with their nature.”
"Divine trials are one method of acquiring such divinity. Naturally, many
deities also employ this method as a crucial means of spreading their faith."
“They actively disseminate their divinity outward, typically diluting it to
cast a wide net.”
“Upon encountering a gifted seed, even this diluted, fragmented divinity allows
the deity to sense its absorption, thereby triggering the divine trial.”
Jian Gui, who had listened intently throughout, gained profound insight.
“So that's how it is,” Cang Xu murmured. “Even deities have their needs and
desires.”
Simultaneously, he understood: this matter touched upon the secrets of the gods
and had immense value. Even his own commander didn't know. This showed that,
despite the commander being so favored, the gifts bestowed upon him by the
Charming Blue Goddess were still withheld.
“Teacher Si Ling revealing these secrets to me directly is still meant to
undermine my faith in Charming Blue Goddess, isn't it?”
“Given Teacher Si Ling's attitude, no wonder necromancers are enemies of all
gods.”
As Cang Xu pondered this, Teacher Si Ling had already recovered considerably by
downing potions in rapid succession.
He stared intently at the super-level magic formation before him, then turned
his head to cast a profound gaze at the Ocean Mother Nest.
“Let's go.”
“It's time to leave this place.” He declared to Cang Xu and Jian Gui.
Cang Xu froze in surprise, Teacher Si Ling's departure felt utterly abrupt. He
hadn't anticipated this at all.
Teacher Si Ling stated, “My mission here is complete.”
“You two will accompany me.”
Jian Gui's face lit up with excitement.
Though he belonged to the undead orthodoxy, such an opportunity to follow the
Twelve Saints was rare indeed.
Jian Gui glanced at Cang Xu, understanding clearly: “I'm riding his coattails.”
“His bloodline mutation continues to progress. He possesses the potential to
reach the saint level.”
“No faction would ever willingly abandon a saint level seed.”
“Teacher Si Ling naturally intends to keep him close, personally observing and
witnessing the outcome of his bloodline mutation.”
Even if Cang Xu ultimately only reached gold level potential, Teacher Si Ling
would still gain a gold level necromancer.
Thoughts raced through Cang Xu's mind. The next moment, he wore an expression
of profound honor, declaring his willingness to actively follow Teacher Si Ling
and expressing gratitude for this opportunity to learn.
Cang Xu knew Jian Gui wouldn't let him go. After all, there was the possibility
of reaching the saint level!
Truthfully, Cang Xu also desired to follow Teacher Si Ling.
Don't forget, his original goal was to get close to Jian Gui, using him as a
bridge to connect with the undead orthodoxy.
Now, serving Teacher Si Ling would prove far more efficient than courting Jian
Gui. Teacher Si Ling was one of the Twelve Saints, a veritable decision-maker
within the undead orthodoxy!
Yet Cang Xu hadn't anticipated Teacher Si Ling departing so abruptly.
“No time to bid farewell to the Lord Commander.”
“But he'll learn of what transpired here.”
“As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps... sigh.”
Cang Xu naturally harbored concerns, yet he was powerless. Now under Teacher Si
Ling's watch, even contacting the fishman youngster carried significant risk.
Teacher Si Ling far surpassed Zhou Zhang in strength.
Aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster watched helplessly as
Teacher Si Ling led Cang Xu and Jian Gui out of sight.
He had hoped to bring Cang Xu back with him, but reality was unforgiving.
“From now on, I must keep a close watch on Cang Xu.”
“Though he's temporarily gained Teacher Si Ling's favor, the risks of exposure
and the consequences have multiplied many times over.”
“Fortunately, he possesses the Charming Blue faith. I can use divine spells to
monitor his situation while also casting spells to aid him remotely.”
The fishman youngster examined the divine artifact in his hand: [Mermaid Fairy
Tale].
Similar to Teacher Si Ling's True Slate, his Charming Blue divine artifact had
also been corroded by death divinity, consuming one-quarter of its power due to
bearing the divinity.
Divine artifact - Artifact Mastery.
The fishman youngster expended divine power to deepen his grasp over [Mermaid
Fairy Tale].
In an instant, he realized that his Charming Blue divine artifact, burdened by
death divinity, could not unleash a quarter of its true power.
“Teacher Si Ling's artifact [Truth Slate] is half-corroded, while [Mermaid
Fairy Tale] is only a quarter.”
“This alone reveals which is stronger.”
“But considering the [Truth Slate] is merely a fragment of the [Book of Truth],
the [Mermaid Fairy Tale] likely ranks low among all divine artifacts.”
Supporting the fishman youngster's conjecture was another theory.
Namely, the power of a divine artifact often correlates directly with the
strength of the deity who forged it.
“A total of four portions of death divinity...”
Without a doubt, this was an immense gain.
The fishman youngster was certain: the value of these four portions of death
divinity far exceeded War Merchant's inheritance from Mystifying Monster
Island!
“But how to utilize them?”
Having heard the words of Teacher Si Ling earlier, the fishman youngster
understood what divinity inspiration and the divine trials were.
“Though I'm only a gold level, I possess a god level bloodline—my divine blood
concentration now approaches 100%!”
“How much death divinity can I withstand?”
"Logically, the divinity suited for me should lean toward water elements or
fishman-related powers. Death divinity doesn't suit me; it's like trying to
contain it with the [Truth Slate] or [Mermaid Fairy Tale]."
“So, to be safe, I must ascend to the saint level first!”
“Before leaving, I'll pray to Charming Blue Goddess one last time and attempt
to break through to the saint level.”
The fishman youngster made this decision swiftly.
But this had been his original plan all along.
He planned to leave the Ocean Mother Nest and meet up with the big guy partway.
It was only because stealing the death divinity had delayed him a bit.
“Let's see where Xiao Guai is first.”
“After delaying for a few days, he must be worried, right?”
The fishman youngster decided to reassure the big guy first, then make his
final prayer.
Moments later, the fishman youngster's eyes widened in shock.
He contacted the big guy and discovered, to his astonishment, that he had been
captured and taken to Snow Bird Harbor.
He also learned that Dao Hen had arrived at Snow Bird Harbor.
This much, the fishman youngster already knew. After all, Dao Hen had long
since uncovered Tan Mo's schemes and even seized the opportunity to rescue Hun
Tong.
What shocked the fishman youngster wasn't this revelation, but something
else—Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was the ultimate mastermind behind it all? The
first gold level assassin who attacked them? He had sent that person.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was actually one of the Empire's secret agents?



****** Chapter 674: Disappearance ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
Zi Di stared intently at the glass beaker in her hand.
“60ml of sorrow-dispelling red wine, paired with 15g of time ice cubes.”
“Requirement 1: The energy level of the time ice cubes must be between 400-560
magic power.”
"Requirement 2: The time ice cube must undergo pre-cooling, reducing its
temperature to at least -20°C."
"Requirement 3: Monitor temperature after placing the time ice cube into the
sorrow-dispelling red wine. If the temperature rises by 10℃ or more within 30
seconds, promptly add golden coconut oil. If it does not reach this level, do
not add."
Following this, two alchemy paths diverged, corresponding to the temperature
rising to the standard and failing to reach it.
Zi Di meticulously recalled every step while carefully inspecting the sorrow-
dispelling red wine, time ice cubes, and other components.
After confirming all alchemy materials met specifications, Zi Di commenced the
formal preparation.
After placing the time ice cubes into the beaker containing the wine, the
temperature failed to rise to the required level.
She immediately switched to the second route.
“Lucky.”
The second route proved significantly less challenging than the first.
“Temperature detection is merely an observational dimension. The true standard
lies in a specific critical data point.”
“Yet the content Ban Tu traded to me didn't include this core element.”
“It's likely tied to the divine power of the Intoxication God...”
Zi Di could only speculate silently.
It wasn't Ban Tu's fault for holding back during the transaction.
In fact, alchemy technology trades were generally conducted this way.
Ban Tu had already detailed every alchemy step, and the contract they signed
largely guaranteed he hadn't deceived her.
Zi Di followed the instructions step by step and could achieve the
corresponding alchemy results.
It was like buying a potion formula.
Zi Di wouldn't tell the buyer the reasons behind her design steps, the
conceptual process, or the sources of inspiration for developing this potion.
That knowledge transcended mere alchemy, it resided on a higher plane.
Of course, such knowledge wasn't inherently unsellable. magic academies,
alchemy schools, and similar institutions thrived on precisely this trade.
Students paid tuition for the opportunity to learn such knowledge.
As for Zi Di, she hadn't yet grasped the underlying principles of this
purchased alchemy technique, let alone reverse-engineered its design philosophy
or conceptual framework.
Her original plan was to thoroughly master it, perhaps even attempt
improvements (primarily relying on War Merchant's database and the tower
spirit, as Zi Di's alchemy expertise alone was utterly insufficient), before
applying it to the dragonman youngster.
But now, the situation was urgent. There was definitely no time for Zi Di to
properly study and understand this technology.
After considering her options, Zi Di decided to use it on Zong Ge first.
“Long Fu” needed to make an appearance, especially after enduring Bing Yang's
Frost Aura.
Zi Di alone was absolutely insufficient to handle the disguise and
impersonation. She herself had crucial matters (the Wisteria Cache) to attend
to.
Three hours later, Zi Di gazed weakly at the beaker, her eyes reflecting a
flicker of delight.
Her first attempt at alchemy had failed midway.
This was her second attempt.
The ice cube heated significantly this time, exceeding 10℃. Following the
protocol, Zi Di had no choice but to proceed with the first route.
Though the difficulty had increased considerably, she managed to complete the
alchemy.
The finished product, the sorrow-dispelling red wine, revealed a vivid crimson
hue, like blood. When the liquid swayed, it emitted a faint orange-yellow glow.
The time ice cube had transformed dramatically, no longer a solid block but a
phantom-like presence.
It floated within the wine.
When the wine was perfectly still, the hidden ice remained invisible.
Only after swirling the wine could the pure white ice barely be discerned by
the naked eye. These ice cubes resembled magic images, drifting up and down
within the wine.
Zi Di glanced at the clock: “I only have 18 minutes.”
The Ice Cube Red Wine in this state couldn't last long.
Zi Di gave it her all, inspecting the finished product as quickly as possible.
She found no issues.
Only 2 minutes remained.
Zi Di immediately began stirring.
During the stirring process, Zi Di did not draw upon her own spirit power.
This was quite unusual.
Typically, the brewing of potions required heavy involvement of the alchemist's
spirit power.
Zi Di merely used an ordinary glass rod for stirring.
The stirring pace was not fast.
As the sorrow-dispelling red wine gradually formed a vortex, the magic phantom-
like time ice cubes were also pulled into strands of white filaments, swirling
continuously within the liquid.
“The aura has unified!”
Zi Di's eyes lit up.
Originally, the transcendent aura of the Ice Cube Red Wine was intermingled.
But as the stirring reached a certain point, the multiple transcendent auras
miraculously fused together.
“This is the moment.” Holding the beaker, Zi Di approached the bed.
She pried open Zong Ge's mouth and inserted a small glass funnel inside. Then,
towering above him, she slowly poured the Ice Cube Red Wine into the funnel.
After being stirred, the wine became remarkably viscous.
Like honey, it dripped slowly, falling into the funnel and then flowing into
Zong Ge's mouth.
The Ice Cube Red Wine emitted a faint, cold glow, occasionally revealing the
outline of ice cubes.
The wine's aroma was intensely rich, filling the air. Even as an undead being,
Zi Di sensed the wine's beauty, a deep-seated desire to drink it welling up
within her.
An entire glass of wine was poured directly into Zong Ge's mouth.
He didn't need to swallow. The wine dissolved instantly upon touching his
mouth, permeating his skin, muscles, blood, and bones.
About a minute later, Zong Ge slowly opened his eyes.
“It worked!” Zi Di exclaimed joyfully.
Zong Ge's blurred vision gradually sharpened. Recognizing Zi Di, he rasped out
a thank you.
Zi Di exhaled a cloud of stale breath, relaxing. “That was perilous.”
“Fortunately, I struck a deal with Ban Tu earlier, acquiring the alchemy
formula for Ice Cube Red Wine.”
"Afterward, I purchased two bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine from the Li
Jian Clan. That's what gave me the means to counteract the effects of the
‘Beautiful Future’ potion."
Zong Ge struggled to sit up. “The potion's effects overwhelmed me. I nearly
couldn't maintain my defenses.”
"On its own, it wouldn't have been a threat. The problem is it acted like a
fuse, igniting all the latent issues building up inside me."
Zong Ge raised his upper body, attempting to circulate his battle qi. A flicker
of joy crossed his face.
“A blessing in disguise.”
“This time, I was pushed to my absolute limit, trapped in mortal peril,
struggling on the brink of life and death.”
"My body underwent tremendous training. My battle qi now circulates at least
twice as fast. The protective mechanisms for my internal organs have now
stabilized, becoming one of my instincts."
“Hahahaha...”
Seeing Zong Ge laugh, Zi Di rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Glad you're
awake. Get up quickly, it's time to make your public appearance.”
Zong Ge nodded, about to rise, when suddenly he too rolled his eyes.
But this time, his eyes rolled upward and stayed there.
Thud.
Zong Ge fell backward, the back of his head striking the bed frame with a soft
thump.
Zi Di: ?!
She froze for a moment, then lunged forward like lightning. Her palm pressed
against Zong Ge's chest as she probed with her spirit power.
Then, as if electrocuted, she jerked her hand back.
Zong Ge's body was enveloped in the Intoxication divine power that nearly
injured her.
Zi Di's face paled dramatically as she gasped, "What's happening? His soul is
gone!"



****** Chapter 675: Whistleblowing ******
On the bed, Zong Ge's eyes were wide open, pure white from rolling back.
His entire body was unresponsive, as if dead.
Yet his body still held the breath of life; he was still breathing, and a layer
of divine power shielded his entire form.
Zi Di stared in shock, frozen for several seconds before snapping back to
reality.
“What's going on?”
“What in the world is going on?! Why is Zong Ge like this?”
“Did I make a mistake in the formula?”
"No, impossible. I was fully focused throughout the entire process, and the
alchemy apparatus recorded every step."
“Yes, I have magic footage to review.”
This was standard practice for alchemists.
Because even the slightest factor during alchemy could cause the final result
to fail. Therefore, alchemists employed various methods to document their
experiments, making it easier to analyze later.
Zi Di grew tense and hurriedly reviewed the magic footage.
Soon, she reached a conclusion: “I made no mistakes. I followed every step
precisely.”
“Could it be that Ban Tu acted maliciously, trading me defective alchemy
techniques?”
"Ban Tu possesses the ability to counter magic contracts, enabling him to carry
out a covert attack. Or perhaps he himself was unaware of this flaw. After all,
he was merely one of the researchers, with a larger partner—the Intoxication
Church."
“The most crucial thing is Zong Ge's strange state.”
“His entire body is enveloped in divine power, and his soul has vanished
without a trace...”
If Zong Ge had vomited blood after drinking the potion, or if time had
accelerated again, or if he'd fallen into an intoxicated stupor, Zi Di could
understand.
But this situation Zong Ge was in, she truly didn't know. It was beyond her
knowledge.
“What should we do?” After much deliberation, Zi Di felt utterly at a loss.
The divine power barrier seemed to be protecting Zong Ge, sustaining his life.
Thus, while his soul vanished, the divine power suppressed all latent threats
within his body, rendering them completely dormant.
Snow Bird Harbor.
In the city government palace.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord hosted a banquet, lavishly entertaining Tan Mo.
"Lord Tan Mo, your journey has truly been arduous. Not only did you endure a
long trek, confronting rampant pirates, but you also devoted your utmost energy
to the investigation. Exemplary agents like you are the very foundation of our
Empire's strength." Snow Bird Harbor City Lord raised his wine cup, his words
brimming with praise.
Tan Mo laughed heartily, raised his cup, and tilted his head back to drain it
in one gulp. Then, staring at the empty vessel, he remarked pointedly, “The
wine is excellent, but it's not what I truly crave.”
Truthfully, Tan Mo held little interest in banquets or fine cuisine. What truly
intrigued him was how much wealth he could extract from Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
But extortion couldn't be overt, what if it left a trace?
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord chuckled heartily and clapped his hands.
The next moment, the dining room doors swung open. Two attendants entered
respectfully, carrying two bottles of red wine.
“Lord Tan Mo, I have prepared what you desire.”
“Behold, this is the sorrow-dispelling red wine!”
Each attendant carried a bottle to Tan Mo's side.
Tan Mo reached out, taking one. He peered through the glass, nodding. “This is
the most talked-about wine these days.”
“Only you, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, could procure two bottles so swiftly.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord narrowed his eyes and chuckled, “Ever since the
incident, the Intoxication Church has been desperately seeking aid from major
factions across the kingdom, to no avail.”
"They had no choice but to offer hefty rewards."
"So, treasure hunters, mercenaries, and explorers swarmed in, eagerly setting
sail to search for the scattered bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine."
“Beyond that, pirates dispatched secret teams to land on the island to
liquidate their stock.”
“The Intoxication Church's high-profile maneuvers sparked intense interest
among buyers, driving prices ever higher.”
“This resulted in vast quantities of the wine flooding underground markets
throughout the region instead of falling into the Intoxication Church's hands.”
Tan Mo nodded in understanding. “After all, with Da Han approaching and pirates
rampant, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's navy can only retreat into defensive
positions.”
“Under these circumstances, venturing out to sea to search for sorrow-
dispelling red wine is nothing short of risking one's life for fortune.”
“Given the mortal danger involved, it's only natural to sell to the highest
bidder.”
As Tan Mo spoke, he had already appraised the second bottle of sorrow-
dispelling red wine.
Satisfied, he stored both bottles directly into his spatial storage equipment.
“These two bottles are of fine quality. They shall become part of my
collection.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was slightly surprised. “Lord Tan Mo, you won't
sample them?”
Tan Mo shook his head. “Of course not.”
“The sorrow-dispelling red wine contains fragments of the Wine God's divinity.
What if drinking it triggers the Wine God's trial?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sneered inwardly: He knew Tan Mo's bloodline limit
was capped at gold level. With such potential, even downing both bottles at
once wouldn't trigger the Wine God's trial. Did he think divine trials were so
cheap?
Only when a certain trait (usually bloodline), caught a god's attention would a
trial be triggered.
Essentially, it was a god's method of proselytizing.
Ordinary proselytizing relied on church members spreading the word, while
divine trials involved the gods themselves (the divinity) intervening.
Thus, after a divine trial, the trialist's faith often shifted.
“To be perfectly honest, I'm rather concerned,” Tan Mo continued. “If a divine
trial were to be triggered here, and my soul were drawn into the Intoxication
Divine Domain, wouldn't I be at your mercy?”
"At that point, City Lord, you could simply claim the divine trial failed,
resulting in my immediate demise. Would my family dare question a deity over
someone like me?"
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression darkened instantly. “Lord Tan Mo, have
I failed you in some way to cause such profound misunderstanding?”
Tan Mo propped his elbows on the table; fingers interlocked into a fist pressed
against his nose and mouth. "I merely fear suffering the same fate as Gold
Hand, falling victim to your treachery. After all, this is your territory."
Gold Hand, also a gold level secret agent, had perished in Snow Bird Harbor.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression darkened further, his gaze turning icy.
"Lord Tan Mo, you are slandering me. As an investigator, is it appropriate to
spout such reckless, unfounded accusations?"
“I already explained the entire matter concerning Gold Hand to you yesterday!”
Tan Mo chuckled: “If it weren't for Gold Hand's preemptive report to the
organization via a whistleblowing letter, I would have believed you, really.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord frowned deeply: “A whistleblowing letter?”
Tan Mo replied: “In that letter, Gold Hand accused you of embezzling
organization funds, exploiting your dual identities as a secret agent and city
lord to falsify military intelligence, deceiving subordinates and superiors
alike, and amassing wealth through corruption.”
“One purpose of my investigation here is to expose you, Emancipator.”



****** Chapter 676: The Truth of Tan Mo’s Investigation ******
The atmosphere in the restaurant grew tense.
Tan Mo and Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sat at opposite ends of the long table,
facing each other across the space.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head slowly, his eyes fixed intently on
Tan Mo. "Perhaps there were indeed some differences in perspective and actions
between the Gold Hand and me. What I never anticipated was that he would prove
such a petty villain, secretly slandering me behind my back."
"Embezzlement and corruption? Hah! Everything I've done has been for the
Empire!"
After professing his loyalty, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's lips curved
slightly, revealing a trace of composure. “Lord Tan Mo, surely you wouldn't
base your judgment on the accusatory letter from the Golden Hand alone and
conclude I murdered him?”
Tan Mo also smiled faintly: “You mean to say this is merely conjecture, lacking
evidence and witnesses?”
“In fact, I have them.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression turned solemn: "Oh? I'd like to hear
the details."
Tan Mo stated directly: “That witness is Mei Lan Du!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's pupils contracted imperceptibly, his face becoming
expressionless.
Mei Lan Du was a key figure under the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, a human magic
chef of silver level.
His background mirrored the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's: both had been
secretly recruited by [Usurper] to join the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's covert
intelligence network.
Mei Lan Du had always followed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Not long ago, Ci Hai Shen arrived at Snow Bird Harbor and invited Mei Lan Du to
serve as his deputy, assisting in preparing the Sea Feast.
Ci Hai Shen promised that upon completion, he would impart a gold level recipe
to Mei Lan Du. This offer was exceptionally generous, yet Mei Lan Du's refusal
at the time was resolute.
Tan Mo sipped his red wine leisurely: "Though Mei Lan Du is only silver level,
he possesses unique talents."
"His specialty is crafting an enhanced version of the Deep Sigh of the Blue
Sea."
"After consuming this magic dish, anyone who merely taps into their battle qi,
or even engages in vigorous movement, will trigger its effect, causing their
battle qi to dissipate instantly, leaving them paralyzed and incapacitated."
“Of course, the legendary Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea is a legend level magic
delicacy. Mei Lan Du can only refine a silver level modified version. But with
other cooking tools and gold level ingredients, he could create a gold level
modified version.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fell silent for a moment before saying, “So you
believe I used this magic dish to secretly assassinate Golden Hand?”
Tan Mo nodded slightly, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Precisely!”
“I investigated the circumstances at the hidden location before Gold Hand's
death. It appears he was recuperating and consuming delicacies before the
ambush.”
“And those were magic dishes of exceptionally high level.”
"Magic dishes differ from potions. Their shelf life is far shorter. They often
spoil within days, or even hours."
“Who prepared the magic dishes Gold Hand consumed?”
“Clearly, it was Mei Lan Du!”
"Though Gold Hand secretly reported you, he didn't believe his cover was blown.
Or rather, in his mind, even if you knew about the report, it wouldn't make you
want to kill him!"
"Moreover, unlike magic potions, magic dishes are difficult to identify. To be
precise, dishes like [Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea] are extremely hard to
distinguish!"
“And its modified versions share this same advantage.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord remained silent.
His expressionless face concealed immense pressure!
For Tan Mo's words held absolute truth.
The culinary masterpiece [Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea] was originally created and
personally cooked by Ge Zi Bu.
Ge Zi Bu, a legend level explorer, was a connoisseur of fine cuisine with an
exceptional ability to discern magic dishes.
Yet he detected no deception. After consuming [Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea], his
fighting spirit vanished. He ordered the fleet to turn back, causing nearly a
decade of exploration to collapse at the final hurdle.
Mei Lan Du refined the recipe according to his own understanding. The dish he
created recently succeeded in ensnaring the trio of Da Dou, Hong Zhu, and the
big guy.
At the time, even Da Dou, a formidable gold level magic chef, fell victim
before belatedly realizing what had happened.
Mei Lan Du's innovations extended beyond magic cuisine into potions as well.
His modified version of Sighing Water proved remarkably effective too.
Long ago, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had allocated it as supplies for Lady Sea
Snake, enabling her to successfully subdue the Clapping Pirates.
Seeing the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fall silent, Tan Mo continued, “Teng Dong
Lang actually died by your hand, didn't he?”
“Don't be so quick to deny it.”
“Heh, I've watched the magic footage of Long Fu and Teng Dong Lang's battle at
least fifty times!”
“Why did Long Fu's final throw of the short spear prove fatal to Teng Dong
Lang?”
"The common belief is that Teng Dong Lang was weakened after prolonged combat,
allowing Long Fu to seize the decisive moment. But in reality, he consumed the
modified [Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea], and when its duration ended, the effect
triggered, didn't it?"
“The more I watch that final strike, the more suspicious it seems.”
“It bears a striking resemblance to Teng Dong Lang's death. On the surface,
Golden Hand's demise appeared to be a battle skill mishap, failing to dodge the
mage tower's beam.”
“But in truth, it was you who deliberately triggered the effect of the magic
dish, causing his battle qi to spiral out of control in an instant!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn't help but chuckle softly, interrupting,
“Enough, enough, esteemed Investigator. Your analysis is thorough and
convincing, quite the performance.”
“I'm almost about to clap for your entertaining story.”
“Unfortunately, after listening this long, I haven't heard a shred of concrete
evidence or a single witness.”
“All of this remains mere conjecture.”
Tan Mo chuckled again. “Don't worry, I was just about to get to the evidence.”
“I've discovered that after Long Fu slew Teng Dong Lang, you secretly mobilized
personnel and actively stirred up public opinion. You extolled Long Fu's
unyielding fighting spirit, proclaiming his ‘excellence in never giving up,
which allowed him to seize victory in a desperate battle.’”
"You had absolutely no need to do this. Unless your goal was to use this to
conceal Teng Dong Lang’s true cause of death!"
“And the best evidence, of course, would be the bodies of Teng Dong Lang and
Gold Hand.”
“In this regard, Lord City, your execution was remarkably clean and efficient.”
“Teng Dong Lang’s body remained in your possession for some time, ensuring no
incriminating evidence was left behind.”
"Even more ingeniously, you orchestrated Tranquil Hill's reconnaissance
mission, providing a plausible reason for the Bayonet Gang remnants to ‘seize’
Teng Dong Lang's body. This way, you had a perfectly acceptable explanation to
the organization."
"As for Gold Hand's body, you undoubtedly planned this long ago. Thus, Gold
Hand perished under the mage tower's assault, disintegrating instantly without
leaving a single trace."
“These two pieces of crucial evidence are gone.”
“But I still have a way.”
"For instance, I could continue investigating matters related to Mei Lan Du or
the Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea. I believe there must be other leads in these
areas."
“In fact, within my authority, I could directly detain Mei Lan Du for personal
interrogation.”
“The question is, will his loyalty to you, City Lord, withstand the test?”
After speaking, Tan Mo paused and resumed sipping his wine.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stared intently at Tan Mo, his brow furrowed. Then,
a realization dawned on him, and his expression softened considerably.
He understood.
If Tan Mo truly intended to investigate him or target him, wouldn't it be
simpler to just arrest Mei Lan Du outright? Why bring up the plan deliberately
at the dinner table?
Wasn't that practically inviting the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to sabotage it?
Tan Mo wouldn't be that foolish.
Therefore, his motive for voicing this plan clearly went beyond mere
investigative duties.
What else could it be?
A word flashed through Snow Bird Harbor's Lord's mind: extortion!
Yes, Tan Mo was extorting him.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord weighed his words carefully before replying slowly,
“Mei Lan Du is loyal to me, and even more loyal to the Empire.”
“There's no need to imprison and interrogate him. It simply isn't worth it.”
Tan Mo set down his wine cup. "Oh? Why do you say that, City Lord?"
"Upon further reflection, perhaps you are innocent. You were merely deceived by
Mei Lan Du. In truth, the modified [Deep Sigh of the Blue Sea] is the crucial
element. Therefore, it's highly likely Mei Lan Du acted alone, and you knew
nothing of his actions."
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head immediately: “I can guarantee his
innocence.”
Tan Mo sneered coldly: “What guarantee do you offer?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held up five fingers: “A fifty-thousand gold coin
bond. How about that?”
Tan Mo threw his head back and laughed heartily several times before lowering
his gaze, his eyes burning as he fixed them on the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
He said nothing, only his face twisted with profound contempt!
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord instantly grasped Tan Mo's unspoken message: You
think 50,000 gold coins will buy me off? Do you take me for a beggar?
“This greedy pig!” cursed the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord inwardly, yet he had
no choice but to raise his bid.
Fifty thousand gold coins became one hundred fifty thousand gold coins.
Tan Mo shook his head.
Then came the time ice cube, earth elemental essence, and various other
materials.
Tan Mo shook his head again.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's offers grew ever higher, so steep they made
his heart bleed.
Yet Tan Mo remained unyielding.
This filled the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with fury and resentment, yet also
profound helplessness. What could he do? Tan Mo held his weakness in his hands.
“I underestimated this fellow!”
"Though greedy to the extreme, he truly possesses skill. In just a few days, he
uncovered the truth."
“No wonder the Empire assigned him as the investigator for this case!”
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord found himself in a highly passive position. He
longed to strangle the fat man before him on the spot.
But he couldn't.
Tan Mo was an investigator from the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord could plot Golden Hand's death, but he absolutely couldn't lay
a finger on Tan Mo. Was the Imperial Secret Spy Agency so easy to fool?
Only when Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had raised the price to its absolute
limit, his face contorted with frustration, did Tan Mo finally speak, calmly
stating his demand: “I want the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”



****** Chapter 677: Plotting and Scheming Against Each Other ******
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord wore a look of
astonishment.
His first thought was: “Could it be that Sleeping Man's saint domain aptitude
has been exposed?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's greatest gain from hosting Tan Mo this time was a
full appreciation of the latter's investigative capabilities.
Naturally, as an investigator, Tan Mo himself possessed considerable authority,
able to leverage the power of the Secret Spy Agency for his inquiries. This
undoubtedly amplified his own capabilities.
As for why Tan Mo could investigate the secret agents here in Snow Bird Harbor,
that involved the factional divisions within the Secret Spy Agency.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, codenamed [Emancipator], was not a native-born
citizen but an aristocrat from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, defected by
[Usurper].
He, along with [Usurper] and Mei Lan Du, belonged to the outsider faction.
Tan Mo did not.
He was a native-born citizen of the Sheng Ming Empire, having undergone
extensive covert training, representing the native faction.
Lan Zao and his pseudonym Hen Fa were also outsiders. Though trained, their
time spent there was shorter, definitely outsiders.
Gold Hand, framed by the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, was a secret agent of the
native faction.
The Empire's Secret Spy Agency deliberately placed Gold Hand alongside
outsiders like the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, a move with deep significance.
But Gold Hand died, shortly after submitting his denunciation letter against
the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
This triggered the Imperial Secret Spy Agency's follow-up action: “dispatching
an investigator.”
Tan Mo himself possessed exceptional investigative talent. He could see through
disguises and find the correct investigative direction amidst tangled surface
clues.
Within Snow Bird Harbor, he mobilized the secret spy forces of the native
faction.
This dual approach allowed him to uncover numerous secrets in a short time.
Secret agents from the native faction weren't confined to Snow Bird Harbor;
there were even more on Feng Awakening Island.
The secret agent codenamed [Su Xing] belonged to the native faction. The castle
he built on Feng Awakening Island functioned like a hidden wedge, silently
watching over Ice Sculpture Island from afar.
“Can Tan Mo uncover the truth about the Sleeping Man?” The Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord had pondered this question long ago.
The answer was unequivocally yes.
The arrests of Da Dou, the big guy, and others weren't carried out by Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord himself, they involved Su Xing and his network. The capture
occurred on Magnet Archipelago.
As native faction members, Su Xing and Tan Mo were true allies.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a higher position than [Su Xing]. Yet he still
relied on [Su Xing] and others to bring the big guy back.
Where did Su Xing's loyalty lie?
Forget loyalty, in terms of closeness alone, Su Xing would undoubtedly be far
closer to Tan Mo!
Thus, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had long anticipated this outcome.
He pinned his hopes on delaying tactics, covering up this critical secret,
swiftly handling the investigation, and dispatching Tan Mo before he could
catch on.
Now, upon suddenly hearing Tan Mo mention the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord instantly felt exposed.
Yet he gave nothing away, showing not a trace of anxiety.
The city lord stared intently at his wine glass. Within mere seconds, his mind
churned violently, processing countless thoughts.
Finally, he lifted his gaze to Tan Mo seated across from him.
His tone remained calm: “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is of critical
importance. I've invested substantial resources and effort into them, all to
uncover the arms dealer behind them.”
“This is my most crucial source of merit. You want to share...”
At this point, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head slightly.
Yet he didn't display outright refusal. Instead, he weighed the stakes
pragmatically: “If you decide to meddle, then our previous agreement is null.
We'll need to renegotiate.”
Tan Mo fell silent.
In truth, he hadn't uncovered anything about the big guy yet. The speculation
about the big guy's lineage had already surfaced on [Su Xing]'s side, but Tan
Mo hadn't been able to access it yet.
The reason was simple, and somewhat ironic.
Tan Mo's reputation for greed and extortion has spread far and wide, becoming
deeply ingrained in people's minds!
Even within the native factions, Su Xing needed to establish solid relations
with Tan Mo first, ensuring he could survive this investigation, before
proceeding to deeper connections.
Only then would Tan Mo have a chance to uncover the big guy's secrets.
Tan Mo's investigation had never focused on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
In his view, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was merely a representative of
arms dealers who had lucked out by reaping the windfall from the battle of Two
Eyes Island.
From the very beginning, Tan Mo's sole objective had been to seize this fortune
from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Of course, had he uncovered the big guy's secret, his intentions would have
been entirely different.
Between a saint level seed and the riches of Two Eyes Island, any fool would
know which to choose!
Tan Mo paused to deliberate, deliberately slowing his speech. His previously
leisurely demeanor shifted to one of earnest solemnity. He was striving to
convey sincerity, signaling that what followed came from his heart: “There is a
piece of information, City Lord, that you may not be aware of.”
Tan Mo voiced Yan Yi's conjecture—that the wealth of Two Eyes Island had
ultimately fallen into the hands of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
“Is that so?” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed in surprise. “It seems Yan
Yi has kept quite a few things from me.”
By rank, Yan Yi was naturally far below Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
But he wasn't directly subordinated. In this regard, his constraints were far
less than those of [Su Xing]. Though Su Xing belonged to the native faction,
his authority was ultimately subordinate to Usurper and thus constrained by
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Another crucial point was that Yan Yi was an agent of the Empire.
Two Eyes Island was originally imperial territory, conquered by Hun Tong during
his expansion. Therefore, Yan Yi was a local operative within the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency.
From this perspective, it was unsurprising that Yan Yi concealed information
from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Tan Mo chuckled. "Upon arriving here, I dispatched investigators. It has now
been verified that after the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps landed and entered the
harbor, they indeed trafficked large quantities of antique calligraphy and
paintings."
This was indeed the truth.
After arriving at Snow Bird Harbor, the survivors resold many items to
replenish their funds. Especially with antiques and paintings, offloading them
often requires time.
Later, when the survivors ventured into the potion trade, part of their startup
capital came from this source.
“Therefore, I'm quite interested in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,” Tan Mo
concluded.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fell silent once more.
His probing had yielded favorable results.
He felt a surge of quiet excitement: "Tan Mo doesn't know the secret of the
Sleeping Man's saint bloodline!"
This undoubtedly left him with immense room for maneuver.
“I must seize this opportunity.”
Outwardly, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord remained composed: “I see.”
“You seek to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps for the sake of the Two
Eyes Island's wealth.”
“I wish to draw closer to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to lure out the
figures behind them.”
“Perhaps our objectives are not in conflict.”
Tan Mo couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
He felt his intentions had been made abundantly clear.
He was targeting the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!
Having successfully extorted the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and forced him into
a corner, he now held the upper hand.
He intended to make the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord act. As the local lord,
dealing with and controlling the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be child's
play for him!
Tan Mo himself would not lift a finger.
Yet, though the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord seemed to grasp Tan Mo's intent, he
had a different plan.
“Do you have a better idea?” Tan Mo inquired.
The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, “You want money, I want people. Our
goals aren't conflicting.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord certainly wouldn't directly target the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps!
On one hand, he genuinely wanted to continue fishing for the arms dealer behind
them. On the other hand, he had no desire for a major confrontation. Because
the bigger the operation, the more it would inevitably expose. If Tan Mo
uncovered the big guy's secret, the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would suffer the
greatest loss!
Seeing the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord emphasize this point twice, Tan Mo
understood the latter seemed to have a new proposal.
Tan Mo expressed his willingness to hear the details.
But Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shifted his focus: "Do you know? Da Han, leading
a large pirate force, has already advanced to our nation's coastal defenses."
Tan Mo immediately replied, “Of course. That's the most critical intelligence
currently.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord continued, "The pirates are attacking the defenses
belonging to the Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet. Based on my speculation, Feng
Lian, harboring resentment over his conflict with the Li Jian Clan,
deliberately lured Da Han into this."
“Furthermore, I believe the Second Naval Fleet will likely be breached in this
battle.”
Tan Mo immediately voiced his skepticism: “The pirates only have one saint
level expert—Da Han. Though he commands a saint beast, we all know beasts have
limited combat tactics and low intelligence. At best, they're only considered
half a saint level.”
“Meanwhile, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom possesses three saint level experts. They
needn't deploy all three, just two would secure battlefield dominance.”
Compared to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Tan Mo favored the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom's side.
But Snow Bird Harbor City Lord chuckled: “Lord Tan Mo, you're unaware of the
inner workings.”
“The political atmosphere here in the kingdom is rather delicate.”
"The Royal Grand Magician and the king hold divergent views. As you know, the
current king is only at the saint level, while the Royal Grand Magician is also
at the saint level. Moreover, the grand magician commands the Han Yu Clan,
which stands as the foremost noble house in our nation."
Tan Mo frowned slightly. He understood—intense political maneuvering existed
within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
The king wanted the Royal Grand Magician to take action, ideally defeating Da
Han only to return wounded and in need of recuperation.
This would allow the king to exert his influence, implement his political
agenda, and break the current stalemate.
Conversely, the Royal Grand Magician harbored similar ambitions.
The king represented not just himself, but the interests of the royal family
and the kingdom. The royal grand magician, meanwhile, sought to defend his
political ideals and the rights of his bloodline kin, the Han Yu Clan.
“And what of the White Dragon King?” Tan Mo inquired.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom's third saint level figure was the supreme leader of
the White Dragon Clan—a saint level White Dragon King.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stated, “The current White Dragon King has always
lived in seclusion, disdaining mundane affairs. She typically resides in a
mountain cave in deep slumber, rarely making public appearances. She holds no
interest in such matters.”
“According to the royal alliance treaty, the kingdom does indeed possess the
opportunity to summon the White Dragon King to intervene. But absolutely not at
this moment.”
The peril in the waters surrounding Ice Sculpture Island and the attacks on the
navy do not warrant deploying a saint level trump card like the White Dragon
King.
After all, they were merely allies, essentially guests.
How could a host stand idly by, letting their guests take the first move?
Tan Mo's eyes flashed with sharpness: “So, you believe none of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom's three saint level beings will intervene?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord voiced his conjecture: “They will certainly act, but
the likelihood of it happening at sea is very low.”
“In naval combat, the pirates not only have the freedom to advance and retreat
at will, but they also make their living on the sea, it's the battlefield
environment they're most adapted to.”
“We speculate that Da Han, craving the resources of the Ten Millennia Ice Lake,
will definitely land on the island!”
"In that case, why not simply set the battlefield in the royal capital? The
three saint levels would hold an overwhelming home-field advantage. After
defeating Da Han, his escape would become exceedingly difficult. Perhaps this
battle could even secure Da Han's demise, greatly enhancing our renown and
bolstering national prestige. "
"Of course, there are drawbacks. Should saint level combat erupt, the capital
as a battlefield would suffer catastrophic losses.
Tan Mo nodded. “Your analysis is sound.”
He fully agreed with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's assessment.
The reason was simple and straightforward—this was a world of the strong!
No matter how many soldiers perished or how much wealth was lost, it would not
shake the foundations of their power.
Because the true foundation lay in the powerhouses themselves.
For the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, that meant its three saint level figures: the
king, the grand magician, and the White Dragon King.
Conversely, if any of them were injured, their respective factions would
immediately falter, retreating on all fronts and contracting step by step.
The greater the severity of their injuries, the heavier the losses for their
factions!
This explained why none of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's three saint level
figures had responded after Da Han's provocation.
As the very foundation of their factions, they must be extremely cautious,
indeed, they have no choice but to be.
At this point, Tan Mo had already vaguely guessed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's
intentions.
He stated directly, “You intend to disguise yourself as pirates and attack the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
Speaking with a clever man was refreshingly straightforward.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord realized once more: Though Tan Mo was greedy beyond
measure, he possessed genuine talent!
That was precisely the plan.
Having deduced that the kingdom's three saint level figures would be extremely
cautious and highly unlikely to appear at sea, the defeat of the Second Naval
Fleet was all but certain.
At that point, the maritime defenses would inevitably collapse!
The coastal regions of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom would likely face pirate
raids.
At this stage, directly posing as pirates and launching a direct assault on
Snow Bird Harbor offered numerous advantages!
The first benefit: Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not loyal to the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom; he was a member of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. Under the
guise of pirates, he could eliminate numerous mid-to-lower-ranking officials
and seize the opportunity to infiltrate a large number of secret agents.
The second advantage: a swift pirate-led assault on the island would
drastically diminish Snow Bird Harbor's value in the eyes of figures like Da
Han. What riches could remain in a harbor already plundered once? And Snow Bird
Harbor was merely one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's eight major trading ports.
The third advantage: posing as pirates to attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would satisfy Tan Mo while allowing Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's plan to
proceed. When Snow Bird Harbor City Lord then offered aid and “repelled” the
“pirates,” the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, robbed of their wealth, would be
profoundly grateful to the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord!
Upon receiving Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's affirmative response, Tan Mo
clapped his hands and laughed heartily. “This plan is indeed excellent.”
"Then let's sign the contract. You want money; I want people," declared the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
A look of hesitation flashed across Tan Mo's face.
Seeing this, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord firmly stated that this condition was
non-negotiable!
If Tan Mo refused to sign, he could never trust him.
Only after the contract was signed would he release a portion of the funds to
Tan Mo. Once the investigation storm subsided, he would hand over the
remainder, at which point the contract would automatically be nullified.
Tan Mo fell deep in thought.
This was undoubtedly risky.
Should Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fall from grace in the future, this contract
could surface as incriminating evidence.
Yet Tan Mo understood: Refusing this condition meant forfeiting Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord's bribe.
And it was a substantial sum!
“And then there's the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' share...”
“It's not just the wealth from Two Eyes Island. I hear their magic potions are
selling like hotcakes, bringing in a fortune.”
Greed gradually overpowered reason.
Finally, Tan Mo nodded slowly. "Where is the magic contract? I need to examine
it thoroughly."



****** Chapter 678: Ice Ocean Battle ******
At sea.
The Divine Wind Pirates' fleet plowed through the waves.
A pirate jogged to the captain's cabin and knocked on the door: “Captain!
Warships from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom are ahead, along with numerous
icebergs!”
The cabin door opened the next moment.
A gust of wind swept past, and Feng Lian materialized at the bow of the
flagship.
His condition was far from optimal.
Earlier, during his clash with Da Han, he had suffered a divine spell attack.
Though he'd fled while desperately healing himself, he hadn't managed to dispel
the spell's effects.
A pale blue wind aura now perpetually swirled around him.
This wind aura bound him to the pirate ship, sharing the burden of Da Han's
divine magic.
“Icebergs?” Feng Lian's pupils contracted slightly.
He had indeed spotted icebergs, and in vast numbers.
Snow-white hills drifted swiftly across the sea, stretching endlessly like a
gathering of furious peaks, radiating a chilling, murderous intent.
Amidst these icebergs, the ships of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Second Naval
Fleet flickered in and out of view, their numbers too vast to count at a
glance.
Soon, the flagship's detection systems yielded results—the count of warships
between the icebergs.
This allowed Feng Lian to confirm that the force before him was indeed the main
body of the Second Naval Fleet!
“Hmph, you finally deigned to show yourselves,” Feng Lian sneered coldly.
He bore a grudge against the Li Jian Clan. His earlier attack on the
Intoxication Church's fleet had been a deliberate attempt to lure out a portion
of the Second Naval Fleet.
Feng Lian knew full well: the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet served
as the Li Jian Clan's private military force. Destroying them would inflict
devastating losses upon the Li Jian Clan, an ideal choice for vengeance.
Yet despite Feng Lian's formidable strength, fate dealt him a cruel hand. He
never imagined this assault would involve the sorrow-dispelling red wine. Then,
Kong Pan's stratagem turned Feng Lian into the target of all hostility.
It had to be said, Kong Pan's scheme was brilliant. Without the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom lifting a finger, other pirates had been lured into repeatedly
targeting Feng Lian.
Ultimately, Feng Lian was forced into a confrontation with Da Han, and now
found himself relentlessly pursued by Da Han's Icebound Pirates.
Feng Lian's predicament was dire. His attempt at revenge backfired, instead
falling into Kong Pan's trap and plunging both himself and his crew into peril.
His hatred for the Li Jian Clan naturally deepened.
Thus, upon spotting the Second Fleet, even while still being hunted by Da Han,
a surge of vengeful satisfaction welled up within him.
“Open fire!” Feng Lian commanded.
The Second Fleet's bombardment arrived even faster than the Divine Wind
Pirates'.
Shells crisscrossed the sky, landing among the icebergs and around the pirate
ships.
“Feng Lian, you damned bastard!” Kong Pan gritted her teeth, watching the
Divine Wind Pirates draw ever closer while their pursuers—the Icebound
Pirates—appeared on the horizon.
The Divine Wind Pirates charged straight into the drifting icebergs, braving
the hail of bullets.
Their intent was clear: they were determined to break through the defenses and
escape this battlefield.
Feng Lian moved again, wielding his scythe to slash out massive wind blades.
Though weakened by the time divine spell, he remained beyond the reach of
ordinary transcendents.
Within mere minutes, two gold level enemies fell to Feng Lian's blades.
The Second Naval Fleet's high command comprised three gold level figures: Kong
Pan, Yue Qian, and San Sha Man Tuo. Yet they were not the only ones. A handful
of other gold level individuals remained as captains, commanding their
respective warships.
Unable to stand idly by, Yue Qian requested permission from Kong Pan to engage.
“Feng Lian engaged Da Han head-on and still escaped unscathed...” Kong Pan was
aware of this new intelligence.
Compared to his previous narrow escapes from a saint level enemy, Feng Lian's
combat prowess had truly surged.
The battle unfolding before them was the starkest proof!
A flicker of conflict crossed Kong Pan's face, but he ultimately ordered,
“Create an opening. Let Feng Lian's group depart.”
"Damn it!" Yue Qian clenched his fist and slammed it hard against the ship's
wall.
But he was also well-versed in military strategy, fully aware that the Li Jian
Clan was currently at a massive disadvantage on the battlefield. If the Divine
Wind Pirates could withdraw, it might reduce the number of enemies they faced.
The military order was swiftly relayed.
The Li Jian Clan held full command over the Second Naval Fleet. This main force
of the kingdom possessed high military discipline and acted in strict
obedience.
Warships and drifting icebergs swiftly parted to either side.
The Divine Wind Pirates immediately felt the pressure ease.
“Oh?” Feng Lian sensed it, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes.
He chuckled softly, his successful revenge lifting his spirits.
“But this isn't over yet. At most, we've only collected interest.” Feng Lian
surveyed the surroundings and decisively ordered an accelerated retreat.
He acted with ruthless efficiency.
After breaking free from the iceberg cluster, he swiftly led the Divine Wind
Pirates away from the battlefield.
Feng Lian had considered lingering near the combat zone, but out of caution for
Da Han, he prudently abandoned that option.
“How long until the First Fleet arrives?” Kong Pan demanded.
“Based on our last communication, they'll need at least thirty minutes to join
the fight,” the aide replied immediately.
Kong Pan's brow furrowed as she clenched her teeth.
She sensed the First Fleet was deliberately stalling!
Facing two enemies with two saint level combat power, 30 minutes was
practically impossible.
“They're sacrificing us, using my Second Fleet as cannon fodder!” Kong Pan
seethed with rage, yet felt utterly helpless.
“At least the Divine Wind Pirates have withdrawn, removing one formidable foe.”
“Clan Leader has already teleported here to reinforce us. If Feng Lian tries to
seize this chance to attack the port or coastline, he'll face dire
consequences.”
“As for the Icebound Pirates... we hold the intelligence advantage. Our new
warships and naval tactics remain classified.”
Kong Pan steadied her resolve and issued a series of commands, directing the
fleet to prepare for a frontal assault against the Icebound Pirates' charge.
The gold level pirate ship, Icebound, serving as the Icebound Pirates'
flagship, did not lead the charge.
The saint level fighter Qian Xing remained concealed within the Icebound,
keeping his presence undisclosed.
Through magic projections, Qian Xing surveyed the entire battlefield.
He witnessed the earlier scene: the Divine Wind Pirates had plunged headlong
into the cluster of icebergs, only to be deliberately allowed to escape by the
Second Naval Fleet.
“As captain, Kong Pan knows her limits,” Qian Xing remarked.
He scrutinized the icebergs and the new warships, silently shaking his head.
"Deploying so many floating icebergs must serve some peculiar purpose. I wonder
what the true capabilities of these new warships are."
“Only actual combat will reveal that.”
“If the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's saint level beings have arrived, would they
hide among the icebergs?”
Qian Xing's greatest concern remained the three saint level beings of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
Unlike the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Qian Xing, as an outsider, was unaware
of the kingdom's intricate political dynamics.
In his view, the saint level beings of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom were highly
likely to join this battle.
“On the surface, the Icebound Pirates only possess two saint level combatants:
Da Han and the Ice Crystal Jellyfish.”
"In truth, Ice Crystal Jellyfish is merely a saint level magic beast, not an
intelligent species. Its methods are fixed and limited. When truly facing
opponents of equal level, it can only be considered half a saint level being."
The Icebound Pirates had 1.5 saint level combat power, while the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom possessed 3.
"We needn't deploy all forces, sending two saint level individuals will suffice
to suppress them and secure battlefield dominance."
“This is precisely why I remain concealed.” Qian Xing understood his role well.
At that moment, Da Han gazed through the window at the distant sea mountains.
Within his right eye, scenes flashed continuously—he was employing the time
divine spell to calculate future battle outcomes. The longer he calculated, the
more he discerned, and the fewer hidden advantages the Second Naval Fleet
possessed.
“Captain, should we bypass these naval forces?”
“The icebergs drift slowly. Most of our ships can outpace them,” the first mate
advised.
“Unnecessary.” Da Han ordered the attack to commence.
His expression remained impassive as he treated his subordinates as pieces in
his calculations.
As the pirate ships charged into the iceberg fields, the efficiency of his
divine calculations surged dramatically, yielding significant results in no
time.
“Quite interesting,” Da Han murmured with a faint smile upon glimpsing a
fragment of the future.
The vanguard pirate ships charged headlong, while those behind unleashed
frenzied cannon fire.
Yet countless cannonballs were deflected by the icebergs. The Second Fleet's
warships anchored around the floating icebergs, launching their counterattack.
Each iceberg functioned as a colossal hub, forming magic links with the
surrounding warships to generate pure white defensive light shields.
These shields offered excellent defense against cannonballs and spells, yet
pirate ships charging directly through them could pierce them effortlessly.



****** Chapter 679: Sword of Time – Intertwined Sword Slash ******
Boom.
The pirate ship and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's warship collided violently.
Then spells and grappling hooks flew across, entangling enemy and friendly
vessels alike.
Boards were immediately thrown across.
“Charge!”
“Follow me!”
“Slaughter these damned pirates!”
Pirates bellowed defiantly, while the snow elves roared in response.
The cries of battle intertwined as assault teams stormed opposing decks,
casualties mounting instantly.
Blades clashed, flesh and blood spattered.
Battle qi and magic intertwined, and few fallen humans or snow elves rose
again.
The iceberg emitted a soft white light, like a gauze shroud draping over the
snow elves.
This radiance provided healing, stamina restoration, and defensive effects.
The Li Jian Clan commanded the Second Naval Fleet, with its lower-to-mid-level
naval officers all members of the clan. United as one, they never abandoned
comrades, often forming defensive formations of varying sizes to execute hit-
and-run tactics.
In contrast, the pirates charged like raging waves, crashing violently against
the flesh-and-blood barriers erected by the naval forces.
Compared to the Kingdom's Second Naval Fleet, the pirates' equipment and
military discipline were inferior.
Thus, after a brief boarding engagement, pirate casualties far exceeded those
of the navy.
The first mate hurried to Da Han's side and reported, "Commander! We've
detected alchemy components of gold level within every iceberg."
"Currently, the drifting icebergs have demonstrated the ability to defend
against cannon fire, protect vessels, and deploy soldiers. We suspect it may
possess certain offensive capabilities."
"The Second Naval Fleet is the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's regular army, its elite
force. Now aided by the drifting icebergs and employing an uncommon naval
tactic, they hold multiple advantages. Our vanguard is no match for them."
Da Han paused, still maintaining the time divine spell to project future
visions.
After a long moment, he spoke slowly: “Have the Vegetable Pirates, Dread
Firepower Pirates, and Ying Tou Pi charge forward.”
“Assemble the Ice Spike Squad, Ice Blast Squad, and Frost Archer Squad. Keep
them on standby.”
“Order the magicians to prepare the spell, Light Snow. I want the entire
battlefield covered.”
…
Da Han commanded with unwavering composure, issuing a series of orders.
The Vegetable Pirates, Dread Firepower Pirates, and others were all gold level
pirate crews.  Though smaller in scale than Da Han's Icebound Pirates, they
couldn't handle the Ice Sculpture Kingdom alone. Yet they still sought to
plunder it, so they temporarily aligned with Da Han.
These pirates formed the second wave of assault, and after their charge, the Li
Jian Clan's maritime defenses visibly faltered. The once orderly defenses
became jagged and disjointed under the pirates' onslaught.
Several icebergs collapsed in succession. Their alchemy components shattered
within, causing the icebergs to slowly sink into the sea.
Without the icebergs for support, naval warships retreated in succession,
regrouping around the icebergs further back.
Cong Mang wielded his long staff, crushing the skull of a silver level naval
officer with a single blow.
He charged left and right across the warship's deck, reveling in the slaughter.
Behind him followed the signature squad of the Vegetable Pirates—the Hoodlum
battle squad. Under Cong Mang's leadership, they inflicted staggering
casualties.
The Dread Firepower Pirates fought differently.
Composed mainly of water pigmen, this pirate crew specialized in training elite
naval combat units with formidable ship-boring capabilities.
Time and again, the hulls of naval ships were pierced by the water pigmen, but
the holes quickly sealed shut with ice.
When their ship-boring attacks failed, the water pigmen didn't lose heart. They
fully exploited another advantage—firepower!
A barrage of cannons, ballistae, and other weapons opened fire, weaving a
dense, massive net of fire.
Under this torrent of fire, the snow elves moving on the deck quickly became
corpses.
Ying Tou Pi roared with laughter: “Ram them!”
Though his flagship was only silver level, its ram was a gold level alchemy
component.
Following his flagship were over a dozen magic ships, each equipped with
superior armor.
Ying Tou Pi's pirate crew relished nothing more than steering their ships to
crash into anything in sight.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Ying Tou Pi's pirates sent the warships tumbling sideways, some capsizing
instantly.
“These warships are too tough!”
“It's those floating icebergs causing trouble, what a pain.”
Ying Tou Pi gritted his teeth and cursed.
Every time his ship rammed into one, a layer of ice armor rapidly crystallized
over the naval vessel's hull. The ice armor was controllable, capable of
thickening to considerable depth in moments.
Ying Tou Pi's pirate ship had to shatter the ice layer first before damaging
the warship itself. Much of the impact's destructive force was absorbed by the
surface ice.
Some pirates slaughtered relentlessly, others were locked in stalemates, but
overall they held the Second Naval Fleet at bay.
“The tactic of pairing new warships with floating icebergs gives us an
advantage here.”
“But our mid-to-lower-ranking officers aren't a match for pirate captains,
we've suffered heavy casualties.”
San Sha Man Tuo assessed the situation with tense concentration.
Pirates tempered themselves through years of combat. Those blessed with talent
and luck rose through brutal elimination to become group leaders, ringleaders,
and ultimately captains.
Such fierce competition naturally elevated only the elite of the elite to high
positions.
In contrast, the navy's training intensity for mid-to-lower-ranking officers
fell far short.
"The Li Jian Clan, to maintain control over the Second Fleet, practices
nepotism, filling many key positions with their own kin. Combat prowess isn't
the sole criterion; it's not even the primary one."
“Among pirates, however, might makes right...”
San Sha Man Tuo's thoughts diverged. Having joined the Li Jian Clan as an
outsider, she had gained deep insight into its inner workings. Instantly
analyzing the battle situation, she traced inward to uncover the true root
cause.
Gripping her staff slightly tighter, San Sha Man Tuo realized: the time for her
to act was approaching.
Sure enough, shortly after, Kong Pan issued the order for San Sha Man Tuo and
her team to engage.
San Sha Man Tuo drew a deep breath, dispelled her spells, and deliberately
revealed her aura.
As a magician, she had to protect herself. Especially in this chaotic
battlefield, where the next moment was utterly unpredictable.
San Sha Man Tuo cast a debuff spell, instantly affecting numerous pirates. The
nearby navy seized the opportunity to pounce and slay them.
Yue Qian quickly appeared in various spots across the battlefield.
He was a rising star of the Li Jian Clan, destined to become its future pillar.
His Inner World bloodline ran thick within him, enabling him to cast racial
magic that flashed him into short-range teleportation flashes.
This granted him exceptional support and evasion skills. The pirates cursed and
raged, utterly unable to catch up to Yue Qian.
As a gold level, Yue Qian possessed formidable strength. He swiftly dispatched
three silver level pirates and lightly wounded a gold level pirate.
With support from Yue Qian and San Sha Man Tuo, the naval forces barely
stabilized their position.
But the respite was short-lived. At Da Han's command, the pirates' third wave
of assault immediately surged forward.
“The defense line is about to collapse,” Kong Pan assessed the situation,
sighing inwardly.
She drew a plate-shaped magic artifact, preparing to cast a spell herself to
create a spatial barrier.
But in the next instant, an icy beam shot thousands of meters across the
battlefield, piercing through it like a razor-sharp spear, heading straight for
Kong Pan.
The alchemy artifact on her body flared with light, buying her crucial time.
Kong Pan dodged swiftly, evading the icy beam.
She immediately spat a mouthful of blood, forced to break her spell and suffer
its backlash.
At the same moment, Da Han nonchalantly withdrew his index finger.
Just now, he had personally intervened!
Kong Pan was drenched in cold sweat, her face drained of color.
“How could this be?”
“I was just about to strike, yet Da Han reacted with such blinding speed!”
“No...”
"Da Han worships the Dusk God and wields the time divine spell. He must have
used the time divine spell to foresee the next moment's events."
“Da Han... he's moved out...” Kong Pan stared at the magic projection, her
expression grim.
After striking, Da Han didn't stop. He slowly ascended into the air, diving
toward Kong Pan's position.
Kong Pan had no time to hesitate. She immediately activated her alchemy
components to teleport to another ship.
She had long since left her flagship, precisely to prevent Da Han from
executing a decapitation strike.
This was the world of the strong.
The pirate faction, possessing saint level combat power, held a clear
advantage.
Da Han soared high into the sky, surveying the entire battlefield below. From
his vantage point, the ships resembled wooden toy cars.
Pirates and navy forces clashed fiercely, while those not yet engaged in battle
collectively looked up, watching Da Han's every move with intense focus.
To the naked eye, Da Han had shrunk into an indistinct black speck high in the
sky.
No one dared approach Da Han, but Kong Pan resolutely ordered the bombardment.
Yet the gold level shells, upon striking Da Han's saint domain, fell silent one
after another.
Da Han prayed with sincere devotion:
“My Lord, your faithful servant Da Han pays homage to you!”
“You are the Dusk, the God of Time, the inevitable end all things must face.”
“You govern the passage of time, and all phenomena fade with You.”
“Please unleash Your divine might, letting our enemies taste the world's
mercilessness.”
Unlike prayers in peacetime, those on the battlefield were often brief.
As Da Han finished his prayer, infinite rays of light streamed down from the
sky, forming translucent blades known as the Sword of Time.
The blades rained down like a torrential downpour.
Snow elves struck by the blades spat blood and retreated, their attempts to
wield battle qi and spells nearly futile.
Where the blades struck the magic ships, explosions erupted. magic power
circuits were damaged, and alchemy devices failed one after another.
Time divine spell - Sword Slash: Intertwined Time!
The time within each struck target's body became severely disjointed. Some
parts accelerated, others slowed.
This severely disrupted the channeling of magic and battle qi, magic-powered
ships were no exception. In truth, these vessels were more rigid than even the
transcendents themselves, forced to endure damage to their magic circuits
without the ability for fine-tuning adjustments.
“Such a divine spell!” Kong Pan gritted her teeth as Swords of Time rained down
from the sky.
She wasn't without trump cards, but her powerful tactics, new warships and
floating icebergs, had all been nullified by the Swords of Time.
“Da Han foresaw the future, so he struck early, specifically casting this
divine spell to suppress us!” Kong Pan sighed deeply, head thrown back.
Her fighting spirit plummeted to its lowest.
“Withdraw... withdraw the forces!” she ordered decisively.
Having fought this far, the Li Jian Clan could now account for their actions.
If Snow Bird Harbor City Lord understood the kingdom's delicate political
landscape, how could Kong Pan of the Li Jian Clan be unaware?
When Da Han struck without any interference from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
Kong Pan knew: she would not receive reinforcements from the kingdom's saints.
“We must preserve the clan's fighting strength!”
“Order all ships to enter the icebergs!”
With this command, the warships still capable of maneuvering crashed into the
icebergs near them.
As they collided, a miraculous scene unfolded. The icebergs seemed like layers
of light and shadow, merely rippling before swallowing the warships whole.
The icebergs' aura grew steadily stronger, each absorption of a warship adding
a small surge to their power.
The Sword of Time's effect on the icebergs was greatly diminished.
"The drifting icebergs were constructed using vast quantities of time ice cubes
as building materials. Its resistance to temporal magic and spells is truly
remarkable."
Most warships, crew and all, vanished into the iceberg.
The drifting iceberg accelerated sharply, carrying the Second Fleet's main
force as it made a decisive escape!
Da Han, however, made no further move.
He descended leisurely onto the flagship, the Icebound.
“Go chase them.”
“Go plunder them.”
“We are pirates!” he roared with laughter.
The pirates erupted in thunderous cheers.
Some pursued the drifting icebergs, smashing them apart and mercilessly
slaughtering the naval forces. Others broke rank entirely, striking out alone
toward the coastal towns of the Ice Sculpture Island.



****** Chapter 680: Withdrawing from the Capital ******
Dusk descended like a curtain, shrouding the sea that had been the battlefield.
The former clamor had utterly dissipated, leaving only a tangled mass of
corpses, ice floes, and shattered planks.
Crimson blood, illuminated by the setting sun, tinged the seawater with a
magnificent purple hue.
Huge schools of sharks roamed the waters, devouring the corpses of both navy
and pirates.
For them, this was a rare feast, one that only occurred when the pirates
prevailed.
Had the navy won, they would have salvaged the bodies. But victorious pirates
pressed their advantage, seldom retrieving comrades lost to the sea.
The First Fleet arrived late.
The gruesome scenes unfolded before the eyes of the naval officers and
soldiers.
The Vice Admiral focused more on the drifting ice in the sea.
These were almost entirely remnants of shattered icebergs.
Soon, the observations yielded results—the casualties of the Second Fleet were
not as severe as the Vice Admiral had anticipated.
“It seems the Li Jian Clan lost no more than a quarter of their forces; their
main strength remains intact.”
“Hmph. The drifting icebergs did them a great favor.”
“Strange. Did Dao Hen not intervene?”
Subsequent reconnaissance reports began arriving.
Only then did the Vice Admiral learn: “Dao Hen did intervene, but not
consistently...”
“The Li Jian Clan is utterly useless. They barely drew out any of Da Han's
combat capabilities. The valuable combat intelligence gathered is minimal!”
The Vice Admiral's voice dripped with contempt and fury. Meanwhile, on another
warship, Mei Lin leaned against the rail, her eyes flickering with reluctance.
The First Naval Fleet could have arrived in time, yet they deliberately delayed
themselves.
Mei Lin disliked this course of action, but reason told her—it was the wisest
choice.
Politically speaking: The royal family had long harbored resentment and
apprehension toward the Li Jian Clan's control of the Second Naval Fleet. By
delaying the First Fleet's support, they could weaken the Li Jian Clan while
testing Da Han—a multi-purpose strategy.
Militarily speaking: With no saint level individuals from the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom intervening throughout the battle, defeat was inevitable!
Mei Lin speculated privately: "Our nation's three saint level beings, the king
and the Royal Grand Magician, represent the interests of the royal family and
the Han Yu Clan respectively. They are both highly wary of the Li Jian Clan.
They likely each harbor intentions to weaken the latter, hence none have
entered the fray."
"Without opponents of equal standing, the Second Naval Fleet cannot prevail. Da
Han alone was unmanageable, let alone with a saint level Ice Crystal
Jellyfish."
That alone counted as two saint level combatants.
In a direct matchup, saint level beasts were relatively weak and easy to
counter. The combination of Da Han and the Ice Crystal Jellyfish could be
considered 1.5 saint level battle strength.
But when fighting below their level, against the Second Naval Fleet, the Da Han
and Ice Crystal Jellyfish combo absolutely equaled two saint level forces. In
fact, due to the beast's high-end offense and defense, coupled with its thick
health pool, it became even more troublesome.
“This was a naval battle destined for defeat. It's highly likely the Vice
Admiral knew of the higher-ups' plans and avoided it in advance.”
Later, Mei Lin also received battlefield investigation results.
Throughout the entire battle, Da Han had only intervened twice. On one
occasion, he unleashed a saint level divine spell, decisively sealing the
victory and fully demonstrating the might of the saint level.
As a higher realm within the transcendent levels, the saint level condensed
immense power within a single individual, achieving a qualitative leap.
Their every move can effortlessly overturn an entire battlefield, stirring up
regional upheavals.
This was a world of the strong. Without combat power of the same level, the
Second Naval Fleet could only become targets for slaughter.
From this perspective, their escape and preservation of their main force
demonstrated considerable skill.
What caught Mei Lin's attention more than the saint level divine spell was Da
Han's earlier intervention.
Da Han hadn't merely executed a single move.
He had targeted Kong Pan.
Kong Pan wasn't instantly killed, but her spellcasting attempt was directly
disrupted.
Mei Lin's gaze grew solemn: “Da Han wields the time divine spell, capable of
foretelling the future.”
“Thus, he foresaw the impending scenario and struck preemptively, suppressing
Kong Pan with pinpoint precision.”
"Moreover, his subsequent deployment of the divine spell, Intertwined Sword
Slash, skillfully evaded the iceberg's ability to absorb ice elements. This was
likely no coincidence, but rather the optimal attack method he had predicted."
“Such an enemy is truly terrifying...”
Simply being at the saint level was headache-inducing enough, exerting pressure
like mountains that made breathing difficult. Now Mei Lin realized Da Han could
also predict the future with his divine spell.
This made him at least ten times more troublesome!
Many tactics hadn't even been deployed before Da Han anticipated them.
Timely countermeasures against Da Han not only allow for more composed defense
but even enable counterattacks.
Mei Lin knew that Kong Pan was formidable. Having commanded the Second Naval
Fleet for years, she possessed adept and versatile naval tactics. Combined with
her own spatial magic, she could dominate the seas as long as she didn't
encounter a saint level opponent.
Yet in this battle, she hadn't even deployed proper naval tactics, likely
because Da Han had preemptively neutralized them.
Reviewing the battle report, Mei Lin realized: The Li Jian Clan had been
utterly powerless to retaliate throughout this offensive. Initially, their
maritime defenses were breached by the pirate vanguard's assault, then crushed
by the second wave, and finally annihilated by Da Han's third strike.
“If it were me, the First Fleet, facing Da Han, we wouldn't stand a chance
either,” Mei Lin reflected, her mood heavy.
She sensed the vast disparity between enemy and ally through the battle
reports.
The Vice Admiral summoned her for a meeting to discuss next steps.
With the Second Naval Fleet's retreat, the entire maritime defense line in this
sector had been completely breached.
Through intelligence from various sources, the Vice Admiral had learned: the
pirates had begun showing signs of dispersal even during the final stages of
the naval battle. By the time the Second Naval Fleet was completely routed, the
pirate coalition had already fallen apart.
“In the coming period, any coastal town on Ice Sculpture Island could face
pirate raids and plunder.”
“The Second Naval Fleet is beyond hope. From now on, we must rely solely on
ourselves.”
"Fortunately, these pirates lack discipline. A single naval victory has
scattered them. This presents us with a golden opportunity to concentrate our
forces and seek an opening to annihilate them!"
The Vice Admiral paused, then slammed his fist onto the nautical chart spread
across the table, rallying the troops.
Mei Lin inquired, “Where is Da Han positioned?”
The key to the operation's success lay in evading Da Han.
The Vice Admiral fell silent. A Rear Admiral speculated, “Da Han is a
formidable saint. If he strikes, his target won't be insignificant.”
“I believe any of our nation's eight major trading ports could be his target.”
“I propose we bypass these eight ports entirely and focus on eliminating pirate
fleets elsewhere first.”
This suggestion was swiftly approved.
By the time Mei Lin left the flagship and returned to her command ship, the sun
had set, and night had fallen over the sea.
The First Fleet cleared the battlefield before withdrawing.
Mei Lin gazed at the receding battlefield and sighed softly.
No matter how brilliant a commander, facing an overwhelmingly powerful
individual, even the most exquisite tactics prove useless.
Against a saint level powerhouse like Da Han, the military tactics were like a
joke.
A wave of helplessness washed over Mei Lin's heart.
At the same moment, Zi Di's heart was also filled with a crushing sense of
powerlessness.
She was heading toward the teleportation formation with Zong Ge.
Zong Ge remained unconscious, or rather, his soul had vanished, though his body
still lived.
“I must leave the capital immediately!”
Zi Di was fleeing with Zong Ge.
Beyond his unconscious state, the most critical reason was the dwindling supply
of pearl bubbles.
For this departure alone, Zi Di had used two more pearl bubbles, altering both
her and Zong Ge's appearances.
This left her with only two pearl bubbles remaining.
She had to retreat.
Once the pearl bubbles were exhausted, her secret of being a necromancer would
be exposed.
Then, all the forces of the royal capital would converge to hunt her down.
This retreat meant abandoning the duel and suspending her business plans. But
Zi Di truly had no other choice—she could only retreat!
Of course, she had considered seeking help from the Li Jian Clan, but she
quickly dismissed the idea.
The Li Jian Clan had already hinted at ill will. Asking for help now would
signal weakness. It could swiftly turn this ally into an enemy!
Turning allies into foes? Zi Di would never make such a losing bet. Thus, she
resolved to depart temporarily, vanishing mysteriously through the Deceptive
Disguise spell, leaving the Li Jian Clan ample room for speculation. If she
could instill fear in them, that would be ideal.
Fei She and others departed alongside Zi Di, though they split into separate
groups.
Initially, Zi Di's retreat proceeded smoothly.
However, when she queued up with the wooden crate (containing Zong Ge) to enter
the teleportation formation, it failed to activate.
“What's going on?” Others waiting to teleport questioned.
The official overseeing the formation stepped forward: “We've detected
prohibited items. This transmission is suspended. We must inspect everyone.”
The crowd gasped, murmuring complaints, yet had no choice but to comply.
Zi Di sensed trouble brewing. She forced herself to stay calm, confident in her
deception skills.
However, when she was led into the room alone, she encountered a familiar
face—the steward of the Li Jian Clan.
"Magician Yao Ma, leaving the city so late at night—is there some urgent
matter? Perhaps our Li Jian Clan could be of assistance." The steward smiled.
Zi Di's heart trembled violently.
She had clearly cast a fresh layer of Deceptive Disguise spell, yet it hadn't
fooled the Li Jian Clan!
In an instant, she understood: the teleportation formation's shutdown was
entirely the work of the Li Jian Clan.
The Li Jian Clan had come specifically for her and Zong Ge.
The steward, smiling, took a sip of tea. Seeing Zi Di's stunned expression, he
continued, “Your corps and our clan have worked closely together. To depart
without notice is rather impolite, don't you think?”
“Not only did you flee alone, but you took your leader with you.”
"So, what about the upcoming National Ceremony Grand Duel? What about the Warm
Snow Cup tournament? What about our mount potion sales?"
Zi Di snorted coldly, cutting him off to ask the most crucial question: “How
did you uncover our disguise?”
The steward flashed a smug smile. “Speaking of which, we've been quite curious
ourselves.”
"Your corps' disguise technique is truly ingenious, distinct from most
transformation abilities. The uninitiated would find it nearly impossible to
detect, yet once someone knows you've altered your appearance, you appear no
different from your original form to those in the know."
"What exactly is this method? May we hear the details?"
Zi Di instantly understood, narrowing her eyes as a cold glint flashed through
the slits: “You've been monitoring us?”
The steward nodded, admitting it plainly: “Fortunately we did. Otherwise, with
your corps' disguise techniques, wouldn't we have been completely fooled by
you?”
Zi Di sneered coldly: "Even if we were discovered, what could you do? Don't
forget, we've signed a magic contract."
This was a safeguard.
Neither party could kill the other.
The steward replied: “Magician Yao Ma, do not worry. My clan is honorable. We
would never harm you.”
“But leaving without notice like this is utterly unacceptable.”
“Return to your duties.”
“Oh, and don't fret too much over Lord Long Fu.”
“His current state isn't necessarily a bad thing.”
Zi Di's expression darkened, her murderous intent unmasked. "So that's it! You
tampered with the sorrow-dispelling red wine, plunging Lord Long Fu into this
unconscious state."
The butler's smile only widened. “Don't even think about attacking me, Magician
Yao Ma. Remember, we have a cooperation contract.”
Zi Di's personal strength was limited, especially against the prepared Li Jian
Clan.
Escaping alone would be difficult enough, let alone with the burden of Zong Ge
in tow.
The steward did not actually harm Zi Di, but forced her to turn back.
With no other choice, Zi Di was escorted back to her previous lodgings.
There, she saw Fei She and the others, also brought back under guard.
Zi Di's expression remained calm, but Fei She became visibly agitated upon
seeing her.
He knew the pearl bubbles were running low.
Once they were completely depleted, the young lady's undead identity would be
utterly exposed. At that point, even if the Li Jian Clan tried to protect Zi
Di, it would be impossible.
Zi Di would be torn apart by the swarm of transcendents!
As for Zong Ge and Fei She, though their positions would also be exposed, their
identities weren't as sensitive, allowing them to survive for a while longer.
Of course, this too would be temporary.
Once their true forms were revealed, their identities would soon be uncovered.
And with that, the secrets of Mystifying Monster Island would be laid bare!
At that point, everything would be lost.
A dead end.
Zi Di, Zong Ge, Fei She, and the others had reached a dead end.



****** Chapter 681: Hua Tang Attacks Again ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
In a room, Zong Ge was lying on a bed, his eyes already shut.
Zi Di stood in front of him, extending her hand to open his eyelids and saw two
dilated white eyes.
Since Zong Ge had fallen into a coma, his eyes had turned back over to white.
Zi Di sighed.
She wanted Zong Ge to withdraw from the capital, but the Li Jian Clan saw
through it and had him return.
“The situation is quite troublesome!”
“The Pearl Bubbles are almost gone; how long can they last?”
“Half a month? A week, or just a few days?”
This was not good.
Because Deceptive Disguise was depleted based on how detailed and attentive the
investigation was.
It was very clear that the moment the Pearl Bubbles were depleted, it would be
the beginning of Zi Di’s exposure and death.
“Calm down, keep calm.” Zi Di forced herself to maintain her rationality and
subside her mind.
The commander had left earlier, and the auxiliary commander had collapsed.
The lady merchant could only rely on herself now.
“Fei She and the others are weaker, they need me too…”
“Then can I kill my way out?”
Zi Di assessed her combat strength.
“I am an iron level necromancer, not that strong on my own.”
“My undead methods are mostly composed of rat eye and snake shadow ghosts; they
can be used for detection but are a huge letdown in battle.”  
“My true combat strength is still the silver level gargoyles.”
“Alas…if only I could complete that damaged gold level gargoyle.”
The gargoyle was an alchemy puppet Zi Di and Zong Ge acquired after they
beheaded Jia Bing.
Several gargoyles were given Deceptive Disguise and turned “invisible”, and
they had saved Zi Di from danger.
Could it be done this time?
Zi Di shook her head.
She lacked faith in facing the Li Jian Clan.
Before, the gargoyle had a good showing at the Wisteria Store mainly because it
had the advantage of surprise, catching the enemy unprepared. But despite that,
Zi Di was still teleported to the research lab underneath the ice lake.
If it weren’t for Elder Yuan Ci saving her, Zi Di would have been in grave
danger.
Now, the Li Jian Clan had acted, placing Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others under
house arrest.
How much could the ice gargoyles do when the enemy was paying attention?
“Zong Ge, if you don’t wake up, then it’s too late.” Zi Di tried to heal Zong
Ge with a scroll.
It didn’t do anything.
Zi Di had already tried doing this before.
Things were still the same.
The healing magic easily permeated Zong Ge’s body, but nothing happened.
“Zong Ge has a layer of mysterious divine power around him.”
“This divine power protects him, including suppressing all of the hidden
dangers he was affected by.”
“Ther divine power defensive layer does not block healing magic, but so long as
Zong Ge is harmed, it will stimulate the layer of divine power protection and
strike back.”
Zi Di sighed to herself.
Compared to before, she now knew much more.
“This is a trick of the Li Jian Clan.”
“The root cause was those bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine.”
“But Zong Ge doesn’t seem to be in a terrible situation…”
Zi Di guessed the reason was the magic contract.
She and the Li Jian Clan had signed a collaboration contract, and they could
stab the other in the back, otherwise it would trigger the contract’s
backlash.”
The contract was signed by the Li Jian Clan Leader Mian Li Zang.
Although Zi Di was a low level magician, she could still discern the power of
the contract and how hard it was to violate.
“Unless Mian Li Zang has an unusual method that can unilaterally rescind the
contract.”
“But even if that is done, so long as the agreement is unilaterally terminated
and loses effectiveness, I can respond too.”
“Zong Ge’s current condition seems to benefit him. The Li Jian Clan’s steward
held that opinion.”
“Therefore, this does not violate the collaboration contract, it just has
massive immediate side effects.”
Zi Di sank into a hurried pondering. 
The Li Jian Clan putting them under house arrest was a fatal move in her case.
After failing to rouse Zong Ge again, Zi Di had to look for other ways to
escape confinement.
“Can I contact Elder Yuan Ci, could he find some way out?” Previously, Zi Di
pretended to be Magician Gui Teng and contacted the Wisteria Merchant Alliance
Elder Yuan Ci.
But soon after, Zi Di shook her head.
This method was not reliable.
Leaving aside that Elder Yuan Ci did not fully trust Zi Di, him coming to her
rescue would expose many of Zi Di’s secrets. Not just the identity of Magician
Gui Teng, but also the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ connection with Zi Di’s
identity.
“Can Elder Yuan Ci vie with the Li Jian Clan?”
“He is just a silver level.”
“He could avoid the Imperial Secret Spy Agency’s manhunt, mainly because he
relied on the Ice Sculpture Capital and hid in the Millennium Frozen Lake for
years on end.”
Zi Di looked around, “No, the biggest obstruction is the Li Jian Clan’s
surveillance!”
“This time, I used a new Deceptive Disguise spell to evacuate, yet I was still
intercepted.”
“If I contact Elder Yuan Ci, will the Li Jian Clan notice?”
The answer was no.
Up till now, Zi Di never sensed any monitoring indicators.
She had to admit that the Li Jian Clan possessed formidable surveillance
abilities!
“The Li Jian Clan’s alchemy technology is not outstanding, otherwise, they
wouldn’t have energetically collaborated with us in the area of refining magic
medicine.”
“Perhaps, their surveillance method is used through the Inner World bloodline?”
The Inner World bloodline was a well-known spatial bloodline, and it was the
foundation of the Li Jian Clan.
Contacting Yuan Ci would be considerably stupid without eliminating or blocking
this surveillance skill.
Zi Di had no idea where to start on resolving the targeted surveillance.
She had no confidence in this field.
But time waited for no one!
After a moment of silence, Zi Di thought of something, “Perhaps I should get
help from Jiu Jin?”
The Alchemy Guild Elder Jiu Jin was once sponsored by the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance. During prior negotiations, Jiu Jin was blackmailed by Zi Di and was
forced to give in, he even divulged exam questions to Zi Di voluntarily.
Zi Di’s preparations allowed her to pass the first part of this year’s Warm
Snow Cup.
But because of that outstanding performance, it triggered the Li Jian Clan’s
vigilance, and the latter forced Zi Di to make concessions and sign an
exclusive collaboration clause.
Zi Di could contact Elder Jiu Jin openly.
Even if the monitoring problem wasn’t solved, there was no harm in doing so.
“In fact, it is the time to exploit Jiu Jin into doing something for me.”
“The Li Jian Clan knows Zong Ge’s current state and also knows that Elder Jiu
Jin is under my thumb.”
“They will be somewhat wary of this.”
“Moreover, in light of Elder Jiu Jin’s authority and status in the Alchemy
Guild, how much of the guild’s power can he leverage for me?”
“When he learns of my current situation, will he really help me sincerely?”
Zi Di’s brows tightened, the more she analyzed, the more she despaired.
The execution noose was already around her neck, causing the boulder in her
heart to grow ever heavier.
Despite thinking from different angles, Zi Di had no other ideas.
Finally, there was just one path.
“Surrendering…to the Li Jian Clan?”
“We have a collaborative relationship with the Li Jian Clan and are bound with
deep benefits.”
“The reason the Li Jian Clan put us under house arrest, excluding the magic
contract, is because of benefits, that is why they act and move this way.”
“So long as I renounce our interests completely, I should be able to exchange
the Li Jian Clan to…”
Boom!
Suddenly, an explosion interrupted Zi Di’s train of thought.
Zi Di’s head looked up lightning fast, and she quickly ran to the second floor
balcony.
A moment later, her pupils contracted fiercely when she saw a familiar enemy.
He had a slender figure, wore a silver mask on his face, and wore a white robe
that had all kinds of exquisite and gaudy flowers on it. He was jumping around
and attacking as flower petals sprinkled everywhere, exuding a beautiful aura
of cold killing intent.
It was Hua Tang!
“He’s come to attack us again, and at this point in time, was information
leaked?” Zi Di’s heart sank to rock bottom, thinking of a possibility.
For a long time, she and Zong Ge were barely able to keep the situation afloat
and did their best to present an appearance of strength.
They had no choice but to do so.
The mysterious power was gigantic and gold level enemies seemed to breed like
flies.
Only by showing strength could the enemy be restrained by fear, making them
apprehensive and unwilling to act lightly.
But now, Hua Tang attacking once again seemed to forebode that this powerful
and mysterious enemy had learned of their delicate situation.
“The Li Jian Clan monitored us and saw through my evacuation.”
“Could it be that there was a traitor planted here that quickly leaked
information?”
“Hold on, perhaps this is a golden opportunity to escape the Li Jian Clan’s
control?”
Zi Di’s mind moved, smelling an opportunity in the enormous dangers.
“Magician Yao Ma, please be at ease. Even if it is Hua Tang, it is impossible
to break out!” The noble steward pushed open the door and strode in.
He was the person in charge here and was personally keeping watch over Zi Di
and Zong Ge.
The Li Jian Clan’s steward also walked onto the balcony, stood by Zi Di, and
shouted, “Hua Tang, do you think you can break in here a second time?”
“You really don’t care about the Li Jian Clan’s prestige? Then this time, you
shall pay for your contempt in blood.”
Just as he spoke, a magic formation activated.
A half spherical light shield instantly appeared, covering Hua Hang and
preventing him from escaping.
A moment later, a white ice wall condensed between Zi Di and Hua Tang.
Snow ball, Ice Arrow, and other ice type spells interweaved into a network of
firepower that covered Hua Tang.
Hua Tang chuckled, and gold battle qi surged from his body into a defensive
battle skill, then he charged on ahead.
He endured the densely packed magic attacks and made it to the ice wall.
He used a gold level battle skill in passing that shook the ice wall and caused
cracks to quickly spread through its entire surface.
The noble steward’s expression changed, “Do you really think I’m the only one
in the clan?!”
As he said that, parcels of land in the garden were inverted into a number of
tunnels.
From the tunnels came out experts.
This was the Li Jian Clan’s elite battle squad – Space Armor Guards!
With the same equipment, Inner World bloodline, and matching battle skills, the
Space Armor Guards had an unusual and outstanding defense.
Hua Tang used a gold level attack against these guards, only causing the
surface of guards’ equipment to stir with a spatial vortex formation.
After the vortex banished the attack, it quickly subsided.
The Space Armor Guards was composed almost entirely of silver levels, and the
twenty silver levels surrounded Hua Tang.
Hua Tang dashed left and right, keenly moving as gracefully as a butterfly.
The Space Armor Guards relied on their peculiar defenses and peerless
coordination to maintain the encirclement.
Seeing this, the noble steward showed a complacent smile, saying to Zi Di, “You
see Magician Yao Ma, even if Hua Tang attacks, so long as my clan is prepared
enough, nothing will happen.”
Zi Di’s heart went ice cold.
The Space Armor Guard battle squad was quite strong. Just now, Zi Di thought
she could rely on her personal strength to break out.
But now, she knew that even if she had ice gargoyles with Deceptive Disguise
that were “invisible”, the ice gargoyles would be ineffective against the Space
Armor Guards.
“Relying just on myself, I won’t be able to break out. The Li Jian Clan
assigning this elite battle squad here seems to mean they value us greatly.”
Seeing Zi D silent, the noble steward looked at Hua Tang and yelled, “Hua Tang,
last time I let you get away. But this time, you won’t do anything.”
“Run along now, the moment you attacked, the alarm was triggered. Many city
guards are already rushing over!”
But Hua Tang didn’t withdraw, and he suddenly laughed, “So that’s how it is.”
He attacked again; this time his offensive had distinctly changed.
After a gold level battle skill was used, it formed a continuous attack.
The Space Armor Guards’ spatial armor vortex absorbed the first offensive,
barely absorbed the second, but the third was difficult to deal with, and few
were able to withstand it.
Pop, plop, pop…
The Space Armor Guards coughed up blood in succession, and the front was
suddenly thrown into chaos. 
Hua Tan g did not press the attack, instead he flew towards the ice wall and
ruthlessly struck it.
Kaboom…
The cracks in the ice wall spread further, then with a bang, it collapsed
completely. 
But the noble steward did not panic, he maintained his poise because in the
twinkle of an eye, a second ice wall formed to stop Hua Tang.
“It’s Hua Tang!”
“Is it really Hua Tang?”
“Catch him, this will be a great merit.”
The city guard had just hurried over to the scene.
The noble steward’s words were not bluster; the city guard had been alerted.
Hua Tang’s last attack caused the Li Jian Clan to lose face. So they learned
from their mistakes and adjusted and made contingencies.
Unlike the silver level Space Armor Guards, the city guard commander was a gold
level.
“Hua Tang! I’m afraid I won’t be able to catch this big fish by myself!” The
gold level commander was self-aware, and after he arrived on the scene, he
arranged to have a defensive line laid out.
At the same time, he also made an urgent call to a colleague.
This was the Ice Sculpture Capital, there were eight commanders, and more than
eight gold levels in the city guard!
The city guard’s appearance allowed the noble steward to secretly relax.
He still felt psychological pressure.
After all, it was Hua Tang!
Seeing the casualties below, the noble steward sighed, “The Space Armor Guards
are only silver levels, and in the end, are unable to stop Hua Tang for long.”
“But I don’t need to withstand it completely, I only needed to stall long
enough for the city guard to save the situation.”
“Hua Tang is Hua Tang after all, no ordinary gold level.”
Boom.
Another loud sound.
It was actually Hua Tang throwing an alchemy bomb.
The bomb set off flames and clouds of dust as Hua Tang suddenly retreated.
“Be careful, he is escaping!”
“Capture him, don’t let him get away!”
The Li Jian Clan members and the city guard shouted together.
The noble steward immediately took control of the light shield and instantly
increased its strength to the maximum in an attempt to slow down Hua Tang a
little.
But a moment later, the defensive magic formation collapsed. The light shield
violently shuddered, and after distorting, it rapidly dissipated.
Hua Tang vanished, only leaving a few petals behind.
“Damn it!”
“What just happened?”
“The magic formation’s underground core was actually attacked?”
“How did Hua Tang accomplish that? Don’t tell me he had an accomplice?”
Just as he thought of that, the noble steward’s expression radically changed,
“Not good!”
Those were his last words.
A moment later, Hua Tang suddenly appeared behind him, dagger in hand.
Plop.
The noble steward turned as stiff as a puppet as he looked down at the dagger
tip appearing from his stomach.
Gold battle qi rushed into his body and tore it apart recklessly.
The noble steward’s eyes glared tenaciously as his vitality was extinguished!
This scene shocked everyone, including Zi Di who was next to the old steward.
Danger!
As a magician, a fighter actually got up close to her.
Furthermore, Zi Di was only an iron level while Hua Tang was a gold level!
In that moment of life and death, Zi Di’s mind went blank, and she
subconsciously wanted to use necromancy.
But Hua Tang’s dagger was already stabbing towards her face. 
It was too late!
In a split second, Zi Di felt she had fallen into an icy cave, and her body and
mind flooded with deathly stillness and despair.
Time seemed to slow at this moment.
Zi Di blankly stared at the dagger filled with gold battle qi that was about to
stab into her eye.
Ding.
A hand suddenly appeared, precisely grabbing the dagger.
The dagger suddenly stopped, the tip only a centimeter from Zi Di’s eye.
But Zi Di’s attention wasn’t on the dagger.
She unwaveringly stared at the large hand that appeared.
The hand was covered in dragon scales, and it was tough and powerful. As it
held the dagger, it seemed to spark with friction.
How familiar!
“Could it be, could it be…”
Zi Di quickly shifted her eyes, and from the hand, her eyes streaked across an
arm covered with the same red dragon scales.
Then she saw that person of her dreams.
The one she yearned for day and night.
The dragonman youngster!!



****** Chapter 682: I Have Returned! ******
In that split second.
Zi Di felt the entire world disassociate and quickly leave her.
She couldn’t hear the cries and groans, nor see the bloody battlefield.
She couldn’t even feel herself.
Her eyes only had one person in it.
“Long Fu? It’s him!” When the city guards saw the dragoman youngster, they
cried out in surprise, and many looked excited, as if they saw some celebrity
in the flesh.
“Hold on, why are these two Long Fus?!” The Li Jian Clan members in the know
were shocked.
They were aware that in the room, there was an unconscious “Long Fu” on the
bed.
But Zi Di had zero doubts. At first sight, she knew this really was the
dragonman youngster.
She also didn’t know why she could confirm it as so.
It came from the bottom of her heart!
Zi Di’s vision blurred, as she recalled past memories.
The many times they helped each other on Mystifying Monster Island.
“I am your knight.”
In Mystifying Monster Island’s underground magician tower, the young man
shouted “I am a beast! But who isn’t?”
…
They made a promise for the future.
“We will have children.”
“Correct. In the spring, we will lead our children on a spring hike. We will
lean against the castle window and look at the rainstorm outside. In the
autumn, we will bring the children hunting. In the winter, we will sit around
the furnace and tell them fairy tales.”
…
When Zi Di became a ghost, the dragonman youngster led the survivors to
freedom.
Zi Di’s heart belonged to him, regardless of whether he was a dragonman or in
another form.
“Our components are too complex; there are too many races and too many
differing beliefs.”
“He is the only one who everyone can believe in.”
“Even you wouldn’t dare to believe this group contains a half beastman, a half
giant, a goblin and even necromancers!”
“Even if Zong Ge becomes a gold level, he can never achieve this.”
It is extraordinary!”
…
On Snake Rat Island, when the survivors were trapped in self-blame, the
dragonman youngster shouted: our purpose is to survive, this is righteousness!
Two Eyes Island, Ice Sculpture Island.
When the dragonman youngster wanted to save Lan Zao, Zi didn’t stop him,
because she knew that was the dragonman youngster she recognized.
…
After leaving Snow Bird Harbor, Zi Di traveled through hardships and perils,
until finally, she reached the capital.
When the situation wasn’t improving, she racked her brains, used all of her
strength, and pitted enemies against each other, until allies also became
enemies.
But she never gave up and never disappointed the dragonman youngster.
She believed in the young man but did not wholly depend on him.
In her journey to reach today, she went through innumerable scorn, set ups,
misunderstandings, and underestimations. She even broke relations with her
father for a time!
Like on Mystifying Monster Island, she was never a wastrel parasite on the
young man.
The two of them helped each other!
“I must do my best to accomplish our common goal!” This was her conviction on
Mystifying Monster Island, and it was this same motivation that drove her to
hold fast to her business plan and depart Snow Bird Harbor for the capital.
Until the Li Jian Clan placed her and Zong Ge under house arrest, until the
Pearl Bubbles in her hand were gone, until Hua Tang’s dagger aimed itself at
her…
She worked hard and struggled to the best of her ability.
But she couldn’t hold on.
Her abilities were finite, her cultivation level was limited, and her talent
was confined to business.
She even died!
She couldn’t hold on any longer.
She couldn’t support herself.
But at this crucial moment, he returned!
Just like before.
“I knew it, I always knew it.”
“My Lord, you have returned!”
Zi Di raised her head and looked sideways. She saw the unswerving determination
that lined the dragonman youngster’s cheek, and a strong sense of security
sprung up from deep within her heart.
“Now, you have returned to my side.”
“You are my knight.”
“The Beast Knight.”
Zi Di’s mouth twitched up, rippling with happiness.
The dragonman youngster also looked down at Zi Di with encouragement and
comfort, and their eyes crossed,
Zi Di’s performance was better than he imagined, and after he appeared, Zi Di
completely calmed down.
Trust, absolute trust.
The dragonman youngster sensed Zi Di’s strong confidence in him.
It was not baseless.
It came from Mystifying Monster Island, when the two stood by each other
through untold dangers and difficulties, accumulating as they stepped over
suspicions, misunderstandings, and past mistakes.
Zi Di’s performance saved the dragonman youngster a lot of trouble, so he
raised his head to look at Hua Tang, the warmth in his dragon eyes vanishing,
leaving only callous battle intent.
The dragonman youngster said, “Hua Tang, you’ve fallen into a trap.”
Hua Tang was unable to free his dagger from the dragonman youngster’s grip,
forcing him to use a battle skill. 
Hua Tang and the dragonman youngster were within arm’s reach, and all battle
skills arrived in the blink of an eye.
Zi Di involuntarily cried out in alarm.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster used a gold level battle skill to
perfectly stop Hua Tang’s attack.
Zi Di’s cry came to a spontaneous stop, and she foolishly looked at the
dragonman youngster.
“Lord Commander…you’re already gold level?!”
Originally, Zi Di exhausted herself coming up with a plan that used the Ice
Cube Red Wine to raise the dragonman youngster’s transcendent level. This
resulted in her falling into the Li Jian Clan’s trap, Zong Ge fell unconscious
as a result, and Zi Di felt deep despair in her heart.
Disappointed that this method had hidden dangers and might not work on the
dragonman youngster.
But she didn’t expect that when she saw the dragonman youngster again, he would
be a gold level!
“What did he experience during this time?” Zi Di thought.
“Long Fu? I’m not seeing things; he’s a gold level?” When the bystanders saw
this, they couldn’t help but rub their eyes.
Hua Tang abandoned his dagger and retreated, then after pulling some distance,
he narrowed his eyes and cautiously sized up the dragonman youngster.
Long Fu once again spoke, as if he was explaining, “This is all thanks to you.
Bing Yang’s Frost Aura’s power of time allowed me to break through the final
layer and elevated me to the gold level.”
The young man stated as he moved towards Hua Tang.
Whoosh.
A moment later, he suddenly charged in a flash. His red dragon scales looked
like a moving ball of fire to everyone’s eyes.
Ding!
Hua Tang caught the dragonman youngster’s attack trajectory.
A moment later, a dragon claw and a dagger collided head on, unexpectedly
echoing like metal crashing together.
The dragonman youngster stopped in place, while Hua Tang was thrown back, this
clash was enough to adequately display the enormous disparity between the two.
The dragonman youngster’s legs bent, suddenly stamping into the ground.
Battle skill – Surge.
Like a human artillery shell, he shot into Hua Tang.
Hua Tang put everything he had into a battle skill but could barely withstand
it.
The dragonman youngster displayed his formidable wrestling abilities, and each
fist and foot was incomparably heavy. Within a few rounds, the residences
around were broken and in disorder.
Hua Tang was mainly relying on evasion now.
His attacks on the dragonman youngster yielded minimal results.
After reaching the gold level, the dragon scales’ defense seemed to increase
sharply by several fold.
Plop.
Hua Tang’s abdomen was punched by the dragonman youngster, causing him to stoop
and cough out a bit of blood.
The blood turned into flower petals in the air.
Away!
He did his utmost to fly away, and despite his injuries, he still moved freely
and easily as the white hem of his flower gown danced in the wind.
In the blink of an eye, Hua Tang pulled distance from the dragonman youngster.
There had been a light shield before, but in the wake of the magic formation’s
destruction, the light shield had vanished.
Without the light shield dome blocking Hua Tang, he easily retreated.
When the Li Jian Clan’s people saw this, they were very anxious. Someone among
them shouted, “Commander Long Fu, chase after him!”
But the dragonman youngster didn’t pursue, rather he returned to Zi Di.
He brightly said, “What happens next is not my business.”
With that sentence of confirmation, the city guard commander shouted, “Chase
him down!”
A group of people swarmed away in pursuit.
The battle ended.
The residence had been changed beyond recognition, and the vast majority of it
had been violently demolished by the dragonman youngster.
Only a part of the balcony remained, and a wall that connected to the balcony
was gone without a trace. A massive hole exposed the bedroom.
On the bed, Zong Ge, pretending to be Long Fu, was still lying on it
motionless.
The dragonman youngster jumped up into the wrecked balcony, then walked to Zi
Di.
He smiled, and opened up a hug, as if saying again – I have returned.
If Zi Di wasn’t dead, she would have been crying hot tears.
A moment later, she couldn’t help but throw herself into the dragonman
youngster’s embrace.
What did it matter of Yao Ma’s status, what did it matter that she was exposing
her private affection for the commander…those were tossed into the back of Zi
Di’s mind.
The dragonman youngster hugged the girl, caressed Zi Di’s back, and didn’t say
anything.
On the battlefield, the battle devastated the Li Jian Clansmen, some just stood
there, some were lying down, some were soaked in blood, some had broken bones
and snapped tendons, and some were even lying motionless.
Everyone was looking at the dragonman youngster and Zi Di, a number of them
with complex expressions.
Many people knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been placed under house
arrest by the Li Jian Clan.
A minority that knew the inside story was filled with suspicions.
“How can there be two Long Fus?”
“Neither have any flaws, but it seems the Long Fu that just appeared should be
the real one.”
“What is going on? Could it be that it is just as Long Fu said, all of this was
a scheme, and he was never injured?”
“If this was Long Fu’s scheme, then did my clan also fall into it too?”
“Commander Long Fu.” In accordance with their authority, a replacement noble
steward from the Li Jian Clan came to the two people.
The dragonman youngster stopped hugging, looked at the person, and coldly
snorted with annoyance.
“Li Jian Clan, well done…I only wanted to lure out enemies like Hua Tang, and I
didn’t expect to see your clan’s true colors.”
The Li Jian clansman promptly waved their hand and stated: this surely must be
a misunderstanding; the Li Jian Clan has always been a firm ally of the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps!
“Enough.” The dragonman youngster gestured, stopping the Li Jian clansman from
spouting more rubbish.
On the balcony, he took a look around.
The Space Armor Guards, the Li Jian Clan’s elite battle squad, had lost more
than half their numbers to Hua Tang.
The dragonman youngster indifferently glanced at the noble steward, confirming
he was deader than dead.
Soon after, he entered the bedroom and came to Zong Ge’s side.
Zi Di followed in behind.
The dragonman youngsters said to her, “Bring our people, we are leaving the
city and shall search for another residence.”
“Ok.” Zi Di cutely answered.
The past pressure had vanished into near nothingness. The Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ true leader had returned, so she only needed to heed his orders.
Seeing the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanting to leave, the replacement Li
Jian Clan steward secretly cursed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ departure would lead to heavy blame he had to
shoulder!
He summoned his courage and smiled, “Lord Long Fu, there is no need to leave
this late at night, we are still very safe here...”
Whack.
The dragonman youngster tossed his arm and lightly punched the Li Jian
clansman.
The latter was tossed like a sandbag, hitting a wall, then fell to the ground.
He covered his chest and stared at the dragonman youngster, the acute pain
causing him to incessantly take in cold air.
The Space Armor Guards below sensed this, and they seemed to shift.
The dragonman youngster chuckled, and although the voice was soft, it was heard
clearly in everyone’s ears, “Li Jian Clan, humph!”
“We must settle the accounts between us, one by one.”
“I will personally find Mian Li Zang for a chat.”
“If you aren’t qualified, then don’t speak. Isn’t it better to preserve your
life?”
The Li Jian Clansmen were as quiet as cold cicadas.
Their leader, the noble steward, had been killed in the battle.
The Space Armor Guards were even more broken and disorderly. Many of them had
been slain by Hua Tang, while Hua Tang had been directly repelled by Long Fu.
The most crucial thing was that Long Fu displayed gold level strength in this
battle!
“Did he really rely on the Frost Aura to break through?”
“Or does he have something to hide?”
All kinds of suspicions and guesses rose and subsided in everyone’s hearts, but
no one spoke.
It was just as the dragonman youngster said – none of them were qualified.
As a gold level, the dragonman youngster was qualified enough to speak with
Mian Li Zang on equal footing.
This was the world of the strong!



****** Chapter 683: Introducing Two Familiar Friends ******
The dragonman youngster took Zi Di, Zong Ge, Fei She, and the others away
without a second thought.
The Li Jian Clan’s people didn’t dare to stop them.
The capital didn’t have a night curfew.
The survivors were just passing through the city gate.
The gate guards were amazed to see a Long Fu standing before them and a “Long
Fu” lying down.
Everyone stayed here for a while.
Because the city guard commander communicated that they hadn’t caught Hua Tang
and he escaped. As witnesses, he requested the dragonman youngster’s help
earnestly and hoped Long Fu would take a bit of time to work on a report.
They were worried the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wouldn’t be returning.
Long Fu stated on the spot, “Don’t worry, we are just finding a temporary
dwelling outside the city. My corps’ Magician Yao Ma is participating in this
year’s Warm Cup Grand Contest. As a newly promoted gold level, I want to
participate in this year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel.”
When the dragonman youngster said this, it stirred the surrounding soldiers.
This was bombshell news!
After tonight, this information will be spread throughout the capital.
Long Fu’s reputation in the kingdom was extraordinary.
The dragonman youngster brought Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others officially past
the city walls and traveled northwest.
After they gradually got far from the capital, they came to a snowy field.
The snowy field was empty and uninhabited, and this late into the night, it
emitted a silent white light.
The dragonman youngster took the lead and came to a small hill.
To everyone’s amazement, he triggered some measure that caused the small hill
to dissipate transcendent aura. Next, the dragonman youngster took a few steps
forward and walked directly into the hill.
Everyone followed him inside in a line.
“Where is this?” Zi Di and the others were surprised.
Unlike what they envisioned, the interior of the hill was not a cave or a
tunnel, rather it was a wide open space that looked like a mountain had been
hollowed out.
The gigantic space inside had many tents.
“These are temporary shelters; you can freely pick which you want and stay here
for the time being.”
“Tomorrow, we will return to the capital,” said the dragonman youngster.
Everyone picked a tent and found basic living goods inside them.
When Fei She saw this, his eyes leaked a complex look. All these signs
indicated the dragonman youngster had come prepared.
“Follow me.” The dragonman youngster said to Zi Di alone.
After appearing, Zi Di had closely followed by his side, tenderly looking at
him.”
“Ok.” Zi Di light nodded, acting quite cute.
The dragonman youngster left the tent community and came to a wide and empty
area, then penetrated space and vanished again.
Zi Di followed the dragonman youngster into the second layer of space and
noticed it was still vast here.
“The Deep Sea Monster Fish?” Zi Di exhaled.
In this internal layer of space, Zi Di noticed a most familiar magic ship.
“Come in, I have many things I want to tell you about.” Said the dragonman
youngster.
“Me too.” Zi Di’s eyes were still glued to the dragonman youngster.
The two entered the ship through the landing cabin, where two others were
waiting.
“Hua Tang?!” Zi Di’s pupils contracted as she gasped. 
“Also…uh…” Zi Di saw the fishman Dao Hen but couldn’t place his name for a
moment.
But Zi Di knew the latter, after all she had participated in the battle of Two
Eyes Island and reviewed magic images of it afterwards many times. Then, Dao
Hen displayed extraordinary silver level strength that left a deep impression
on Zi Di.
Zi Di’s gaze quickly streaked past Dao Han, and once again focused on Hua Tang.
From the traces of battle on Hua Tang’s body, she was certain that the Hua Tang
before her was the one who ran amok in the capital.
“So, you are a fake?” Zi Di was exceptionally intelligent and quickly realized
the truth.
She suddenly turned around and looked at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “That’s right, it wasn’t the real Hua Tang who
attacked the Li Jian Clan’s encampment.”
“I wanted to use it as a pretext to attack the Li Jian Clan’s encampment,
giving me justifiable reasons to get you out, and get into contact with our
auxiliary commander, I would reveal my gold level strength so I could easily
join the National Ceremony Grand Duel!
“Sorry.” The dragonman youngster held Zi Di’s shoulder, “The Li Jian Clan’s
encampment was not safe, and if I contacted you in advance, it was possible an
enemy would detect it.”
Zi Di replied, “So, the Li Jian steward’s death…”
The dragonman youngster nodded, “That was a small lesson I gave the Li Jian
Clan. They actually dared to place my people under house arrest; thus, they had
to pay the price.”
“My people…” Zi Di took note of the dragonman youngster’s wording, her heart
not having a hint of sadness in its abundant happiness.
“As for these two, they are our familiar friends.” As the dragonman youngster
said that he raised his head and pointed to “Hua Tang”.
“Hua Tang” took the opportunity to take off his mask and reveal his real
features.
“You, you are actually…Lord Hun Tong?!” Zi Di could have never expected that
the one disguised as “Hua Tang” was actually a gold level and also Two Eyes
Island’s Lord.
What was actually going on?
Hun Tong was a grand imperial noble and had his own territory. He had run Two
Eyes Island well. Why wasn’t he being a perfectly normal ruling lord and
instead secretly rushed to Ice Sculpture Island at the dragonman youngster’s
orders?
When Hun Tong saw Zi Di’s expression change, he thought it was strange, “Have
we met?”
Hun Tong wasn’t in the know, and to him, Magician Yao Ma was a stranger. The
magician role Zi Di had played from before had already been assassinated by the
imperial secret spy [Gold Hand].
“Alright, you two can rest for the time being.” The dragonman youngster waved
his hand.
Hun Tong and Dao Hen silently withdrew at the same time.
Zi Di was amazed.
Dao Hen was a fishman and an enemy of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Even more, Hun Tong was an imperial noble, an actual ruling lord, so why was he
acting more like a subordinate and not an ally?
“What happened to his Lordship while he was away?” Zi Di’s curiosity shot up.
The truth was actually very simple.
After the dragonman youngster finished stealing divinity, he contacted Dao Hen
again with [Believer Perception].
Through Dao Hen’s, the big guy’s, and other memories, the fishman youngster
immediately understood the whole story and knew the Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord’s true identity.
With these secrets exposed, the fishman youngster was more worried about Zi
Di’s and Zong Ge’s situation.
Unfortunately, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom capital had no Charming Blue
believers.
Since there was none, one had to be dispatched.
Therefore, the fishman youngster transmitted a divine oracle to tell Dao Hen
and Hun Tong to proceed towards the capital with all speed.
He gave them Deceptive Disguise so they could use the teleportation formation
in the cities.
With the help of the teleportation formations, Dao Hen and Hun Tong arrived at
the capital.
As the fishman youngster’s pawns, their first job was to scout out Zi Di’s and
Zong Ge’s current situation.
It was very easy to inquire about a lot of information on Zong Ge and Zi Di.
Zong Ge was playing the role of Long Fu, a famous celebrity!
With the help of the fishman youngster using the [Mermaid Fairy Tale] for
deception spells, Dao Hen and Hun Tong infiltrated the Li Jian Clan encampment,
inquiring about many secrets and witnessed Zong Ge and Zi Di’s failed
evacuation, along with the subsequent house arrest the Li Jian Clan placed them
under.
They knew, which meant the fishman also knew.
After a bit of reflection, the fishman youngster decided to set a trap.
He first empowered his people with various deception divine spells, mainly to
deceive the magic contract between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li
Jian Clan.
Before, the fishman youngster used the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] to
deceive the Main Earth Elemental God. He also used the divine artifact to dupe
the [Truth Slate] right under Teacher Si Ling’s nose and smoothly stole a lot
of divinity. Now, the fishman was just cheating a magic contract, which
naturally was a cinch.
Then the fishman youngster had Hun Tong pretend to be Hua Tang and attack the
Li Jian Clan.
The Li Jian steward was slain and the Space Armor Guards suffered heavy losses.
The dragoman youngster then appeared to publicly claim this was a stratagem he
deliberately put into place. Then in the following fight, he worked with Hun
Tong to make it appear as powerful as possible!
Finally, he relied on these advantages to get Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others
out without a hitch. Several goals were accomplished while simultaneously also
maintaining their relationship with the Li Jian Clan as much as possible,
fighting but not breaking up.
Before leaving, the dragonman youngster said he wanted to have a proper chat
with Mian Li Zang, this was no empty promise, it was a part of his plan – he
wanted to use this moment as a pretext to raise difficulties and take more
benefits in the following collaboration agreement between the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan!
The city guard was also deceived too.
It was just as Cang Xu lamented in Ocean Mother Nest, the dragonman youngster
was becoming a more outstanding leader!
The dragonman youngster’s operation was founded on sufficient strategizing. 
He was the biggest winner who deceived the entire capital.
Hua Tang was framed, and even if he wanted to assert the truth in the future,
the masses wouldn’t believe him. In fact, in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, weren’t
there a few people who pretended to be Hua Tang while committing crimes?
“The ship also has the fishman Magician Zhong Yong on board, he isn’t
important, and there is no need to meet him.” The dragonman youngster brought
Zi Di to the most important storage cabin.
The divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] was located here, along with the
[Green Jade Gold Coffin] and some other priceless treasures.
“So, so many Pearl Bubbles?” Zi Di couldn’t help but shout.
Her eyes shined!
Reality gave her a most pleasant surprise when she saw the [Mermaid Fairy
Tale], most of its large shell was filled with Pearl Bubbles!
After a twinkle of an eye, Zi Di’s gaze shifted back to the dragonman
youngster, looking excited, “My Lord, this is amazing! This is truly amazing!
You actually found a way to collect so many Pearl Bubbles.”
“Oh, that isn’t a lot.” The dragoman youngster smiled, not minding much.
Many times, the large shell couldn’t contain the full amount.
“Come here.” The dragonman youngster said, walking to the divine artifact
[Mermaid Fairy Tale].
“I will first give you a detailed full body examination.” The dragonman
youngster stretched out his hand towards Zi Di.



****** Chapter 684: Dueling Godhead ******
The dragonman youngster picked up the divine artifact and put it on Zi Di’s
shoulder.
“I will first give you an examination.”
A moment later, the dragonman youngster used a divine spell.
Divine spell – Divine Artifact Mastery!
For a split second, the dragonman youngster took control of Charming Blue’s
divine artifact and his strength soared innumerably.
“This is…a divine spell?” Zi Di’s eyes barely shifted from the dragonman
youngster, she was astonished once again.
In her memory, her beloved was a battle qi expert, how could he use a divine
spell?
Furthermore, he seemed quite proficient at it.
Immediately afterwards, a second, then a third divine spell was cast…
After several detection divine spells, the dragonman youngster ensured that
there was no concealed enemy methods on Zi Di.
“My Lord, how are you so proficient at using divine spells?” Zi Di was stunned.
The dragonman youngster’s performance had broken the limits of Zi Di’s
imagination.
“No, that isn’t the most crucial thing!” Zi Di shifted her gaze, tightly
staring at the divine artifact in his dragon claw.
She was shocked!
“My Lord, you actually found a way of using the divine artifact?”
“I want to say everything is a chance coincidence, but actually, this is
Charming Blue Goddess’ arrangement.” The dragonman youngster sighed.
“Charming Blue Goddess?” Zi Di’s eyes widened, “Hold on, what’s going on with
the divine artifact?”
She noticed that the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] had changed color,
with one quarter of it looking like it had been contaminated with a deathly
black ink color.
“Oh, that is caused by the death divinity the divine artifact is storing.” The
dragonman youngster replied.
“Death…Divinity?!” Zi Di grew more flabbergasted.
It wasn’t long before she felt she couldn’t make any sense of what she was
hearing.
Divinity? How was it connected with his Lordship?
“Have we really only been apart for this long?” Zi Di had mixed feelings
The dragonman youngster continued, “It is with the help of the divine artifact
[Mermaid Fairy Tale] that I was able to teleport both me and the ship from the
seafloor depths to here.”
“Of course, the prerequisite is that I have a Charming Blue believer as a
coordinate so I can use Divine Domain Decent.”
“It is very safe here, no need to worry about the Li Jian Clan monitoring
methods.”
“I guessed they used some spatial skill that we aren’t able to detect.”
“But this space is special, it is a part of the Charming Blue Divine Domain!”
“I just examined your body and found nothing amiss.”
“I know you have a lot of questions, so let’s talk first.”
A very long conversation ensued.
“This period has truly been arduous for you.” The dragonman youngster sighed.
He knew Zi Di and Zong Ge had overcome all kinds of untold dangers and
difficulties. To deal with that mysterious and powerful enemy, Zong Ge made an
all-out effort to show strength, leading to the enemy being restrained by fear
and Zi Di doing her utmost to use benefits to rope in the Li Jian Clan, and
with the help of their ally, she cleverly advanced her business plan and
obtained a lot of gratifying achievements.
The capital’s Wisteria Store was a gigantic trap, but luckily Zi Di received
Elder Yuan Ci’s unexpected help.
Hearing Zi Di’s account of this period, the dragonman youngster felt
incomparably tense and worried, despite the fact that Zi Di was talking before
him in good condition.
The dragonman youngster sighed again, “I didn’t think you would encounter such
danger, it greatly exceeds my highest estimations.”
“Zong Ge…”
Zong Ge really had a bad time.
He was affected by Blood Vengeance, then Hua Tang’s battle skill (Willow
Flower), then during a duel there was that strange poison, then after that was
Bing Yang’s Frost Aura, and finally, the sorrow-dispelling red wine by the Li
Jian Clan.
This led to Zong Ge falling into a coma and no one knew where his soul went.
“Zong Ge played the role of ‘Long Fu’ and slowly fell down till now.”
“Looking at this, he bore so much on my behalf.”
Zi Di sighed too, “He is a fighter, a man of steel!”
“Without him, we couldn’t have lasted until now.”
Zi Di had a negative impression of Zong Ge. But through working together for a
long time, Zi Di’s recognition of Zong Ge deepened a lot. 
Despite having many conflicts and disagreements with each other, that didn’t
affect Zi Di’s admiration of Zong Ge and acknowledgement of the latter’s
talents!
Conversely, Zong Ge’s feelings towards Zi Di were similar.
The dragonman youngster said, “Since this is the sorrow-dispelling red wine’s
fault, and you have a collaboration contract, then I think he probably accepted
a divinity trial.”
The dragonman youngster had gotten the secret knowledge of divinity trials from
Teacher Si Ling.
Teacher Si Ling taught Cang Xu many things and helped him cast away his
Charming Blue belief. Through magic images, the dragonman youngster studied
this knowledge afterwards and also knew Cang Xu was taken away by Teacher Si
Ling.
The young man wanted to go with Cang Xu, but Cang Xu was not free and was being
looked after by Teacher Si Ling, so after thinking about it, the young man gave
up on getting him back.
Teacher Si Ling was extraordinary. Not only was he one of the Twelve Saints,
but he also controlled the divine artifact [Truth Slate] and could restrain
Charming Blue divine spells to some degree.
Furthermore, Cang Xu’s original plan was to get in touch with the undead
orthodoxy. This was a very good chance for Cang Xu and all of the survivors.
After careful deliberations, the young man approved of Cang Xu acting on his
own again.
Cang Xu had left already, so he had no other reasons to keep staying in the
Ocean Mother Nest.
The Ocean Mother Nest’s blood sacrifices would continue, but in the wake of the
seafloor beast tide ending, it wouldn’t be held much more.
The young man made arrangements with Dao Hen, and through the coordinates this
believer provided, he used Divine Descent to arrive near the capital.
On this desolate snow field, he made some temporary arrangements.
Afterwards, he went to Zi Di and Zong Ge, and after secretly observing them for
a time, he showed himself officially.
After explaining what divinity trials were to Zi Di, Zi Di sighed out turbid
air, “Are you saying that this isn’t a bad thing for Zong Ge, but rather a good
thing?”
“Zong Ge’s beliefs might deviate, but it is absolutely better than suffering
Blood Vengeance and the other things he’s sustained.” The dragonman youngster
analyzed, “we cannot meddle in this matter, we can only believe in Zong Ge.”
“Sorry, I should have returned earlier.” The dragoman youngster’s eyes were
full of tenderness.
Zi Di shook her head, affectionately gazing at the dragonman youngster, “No, my
Lord, you made the right choice, the wise choice.”
“You don’t need to have any regrets, because you were in far more danger than
I!”
“From a business point of view, the Ocean Mother Nest and blasphemous prayers
were really profitable. Despite the immense risks, there were handsome profits
in it!”
“I really didn’t think, I don’t think anyone in the world would think that your
Lordship’s experience would be so bizarre, uninhibited, and legendary.”
The young man had been heavily injured by Feng Lian, and he even suspected he
had died, then returned.
Soon after being teleported into Ocean Mother Nest, he gradually discovered
that it was part of the Charming Blue Divine Domain.
The Ocean Mother Nest, the saint beast Snow Pear Octopus, the saint level Zhou
Zhang, the teleportation blood sacrifice, unexpectedly rescuing Cang Xu,
repeated blasphemous prayers that netted massive benefits, ingeniously taking
Xiao Wang Zi, Qing Xin, Lady Sea Snake, Qi Ling, Ku Feng captive, gaining
firsthand knowledge of how saint levels fight, deceiving the Main Earth
Elemental God, saving Lan Zao, the big guy, Dao Hen, Hun Tong one after the
other, deceiving one of the undead orthodoxy saints, the prominent figure
Teacher Si Ling, stealing the death divinity, then finally, teleporting back to
effortlessly save Zi Di, Zong Ge, and the others…
Inside the ship hold, after the lovers had an understanding of what the other
went though, they began to confide in each other.
This time of separation and many experiences had changed them both a lot,
especially the dragonman youngster.
But their hearts hadn’t changed, on the contrary, they were more intimate.
“Although we escaped from Mystifying Monster Island, why are we now in even
more danger?” Zi Di bitterly laughed, “In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, we
encountered a formidable and mysterious power checking us. Although your
Lordship benefited from Charming Blue Goddess; the consequences of blasphemous
prayer are endless.”
The survivors were like a pitiful bunch on a small boat, the more they tried to
survive, the more violent the ocean storm grew.
Zi Di revealed a strong worry, and she asked the most crucial question, “My
Lord, what do you think Charming Blue Goddess’ condition is?”
The dragonman youngster was silent for a moment, then sighed, “I couldn’t
confirm anything.”
“But I believe they are in a deep sleep.”
“Everything they bestowed to me, as well as how to use the divine artifact, was
done by the Godhead, who automatically executed this result.
“Godhead…” Zi Di’s eyes flashed sharply, “So, your Lordship appeared with gold
level strength to participate in the National Ceremony Grand Duel to ultimately
compete for the Dueling Godhead hidden in Tranquil Hill?”
“That’s right, exactly as you said.” The dragonman youngster nodded, “I believe
that this is an exceptionally good opportunity, gods are omnipotent, and
although I only know the slightest amount of divine power from experience, it
is enough to sense how boundless this grand power is.”
“If I possess the Dueling Godhead, then I will be elevated beyond imagination.
Even if our future redemption plan fails, at least we will have the chance to
stall for time.”
As he said that, the dragonman youngster’s eyes stared out into space, as if he
was returning to the first time he did a blasphemous prayer.



****** Chapter 685: Dueling Sacrifices ******
Several days ago.
After the fishman youngster rested, he immediately used [Believer Perception]
to gain first-hand information.
He knew Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s secret identity and his hidden conspiracy,
this caused the fishman youngster’s desire to become a saint level to grow even
more.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a gold level, and the fishman youngster saw that
he was very strong in battle. Not only that, but he was also Snow Bird Harbor’s
local boss with a high position.
To become his enemy, one not only had to consider his combat strength, but also
his military might.
“Not just the forces behind him, he has contacts in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
that can leverage many more resources. More crucially, he is also an important
member of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency and can borrow that organization’s
capabilities.”
“Only by becoming a saint level can I truly gain a qualitative change and be
able to influence the entire situation sufficiently”
Holding this opinion, the fishman youngster began a blasphemous prayer.
He was very practiced in the process of blasphemous prayers.
In the prayer cabin, he knelt to the ground, tightened his fists, and hung his
head.
“Oh, grand Charming Blue Goddess!”
“Your believer kneels in worship to You with a humble heart.”
“May You bequeath an ear to my pious prayer.”
“You are a grand existence, Your divine power is vast and boundless, vaster and
more glorious than the star studded heavens. Your wisdom transcends time and
space, You are omnipotent, Your power destroys all enemies, and none can
compete with You.”
“You mercifully protect and vehemently bless Your flock.”
“I ask for your continued guidance and let me advance on the inexhaustible road
ahead. Please sprinkle Your blessings on me, let me gain even more transcendent
strength, let me be wreathed by the saint level.”
“I remember Your teachings, and under Your protection I have overcome all
difficulties and challenges. I have glorified Your name with my actions and
spread Your divine radiance.”
“Charming Blue Goddess, You are my eternal conviction, I will forever praise
You. I hope Your divine power fills my spirit for eternity!”
The wording of this prayer had been meticulously designed, and it had only one
request, that was to use a divine blessing to promote to the saint level!
But truth be told, the fishman youngster was uncertain about it.
The theory was possible.
But this time, he also knew that he was asking for too much, far more than the
prior times.
Would Charming Blue Goddess consent?
Perhaps it was in accordance with the fishman youngster’s conjecture, and the
Charming Blue Godhead would automatically carry out this request?
The fishman youngster was mainly relying on his god level fishman bloodline
aptitude.
Very quickly, the fishman youngster noticed that this prayer was different from
the others.
Previous prayers he almost instantly got a response, and the divine blessings
were unable to hold themselves back. But this time, he waited for two full
minutes.
Those two minutes seemed very long to the fishman youngster.
Then, he got a divine oracle.
The divine oracle was also different from prior ones.
The fishman youngster sank into a land of fantasy in a split second.
It was as if he was falling into the deep sea, sinking. Underneath on the
seafloor depths, there was a gigantic shadow.
This was a familiar scene to the young man.
In the past, he had dreamed of this scene many times.
Then in that dream-like state, as he fell closer to the shadow, he discovered
that it was Tranquil Hill!
The surrounding seawater suddenly vanished, and he helplessly fell through the
air.
Very quickly, like a bird with broken wings, he was thrown down onto Tranquil
Hill’s peak.
But he didn’t fall to his death, rather he was thrown further into the depths
of the hill.
There hid a mysterious space.
The space was not wide, and apart from the fishman youngster, there was only
one thing.
It floated in the gloomy air, emitting the color of the rainbow. It looked like
a transparent crystal. Its shape was not fixed and constantly shifted, but no
matter how it changed, it always looked like a geometric polyhedron.
“It is the Dueling Godhead.” Charming Blue Goddess’ oracle told the young man.
The young man’s heart suddenly quaked.
“Approach it.” Said the divine oracle.
The fishman youngster complied with the words and slowly stepped towards it.
The first few steps were easy. But very quickly, his expression changed and he
noticed it was becoming more difficult.
The endless pressure around him forced him back. Stranger was that he obviously
took many steps forward, but his distance from the Dueling Godhead remained the
same.
“There is a way to approach the Godhead – obtain the Dueling Divinity’s favor,”
said the divine oracle.
Immediately afterwards, the fishman youngster’s field of view changed abruptly.
He looked around and found himself in a dueling arena.
Two duelists were fighting, the arena was filled with spectators
enthusiastically shouting, and the several thousand people present were soaked
with a fanatical ambience.
None of them noticed the fishman youngster, as if he were completely
transparent.
The fishman youngster’s field of view changed again.
It was another dueling arena, far larger than the last. The experts dueling
here were both gold levels.
The fishman youngster’s field of view changed successively.
He experienced many different dueling arenas, some big and some small. The
large arenas could hold tens of thousands of spectators while some small ones
could only fit ten. 
He witnessed many duels, mainly between two people, but there were also some
against beasts and others composed of many people.
There were many duels, each with a clear focus to them.
Whenever these important scenes appeared, the vision would slow down and focus
on the prominent entity in that duel.
The fishman youngster quickly concluded that all of the prominent figures that
were emphasized were like Xiong Ju, people who complied with dueling rules
voluntarily.
In other words, they were Dueling believers!
“No, to be more accurate, aren’t those fanatical spectators also believers
too?”
“When it comes to dueling, the vast majority of them can barely be considered
pan-believers.”
“This is an enormous foundation of belief!”
The fishman youngster sensed a type of shock, especially because he had used
{Believer Perception] many times to sense Charming Blue believers.
There were few Charming Blue believers, and compared to the Dueling believers,
they were like withered autumn leaves.
The fishman youngster’s field of view suddenly tilted upwards and he ascended
to look down at the vast Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s territory from on high.
Within the gigantic landmass, there were dueling arenas big and small densely
packed together, with all sorts of duels happening once or even several times a
day in them.
Duels were not just entertainment, but rather an important part of life to the
Ice Sculpture citizens. They relied on it to solve many daily disputes and
conflicts.
This exceptionally good dueling ambience molded many dueling stars, and Long Fu
was one of those famous celebrities.
This fertile dueling soil nourished countless Dueling believers. The power of
this belief had been accumulating in this land for hundreds and even thousands
of years! 
They were concentrated on the Tranquil Hill divine domain, and in the depths of
Tranquil Hill a new Godhead came into being.
The Dueling Godhead!
“Isn’t what is referred to as a duel actually a sacrifice to the gods?”
“Zhou Zhang caught ocean beasts and blood sacrificed their flesh and lifeforce.
These duels are inherently sacrifices too.”
“They are sacrifices to the Dueling God.”
“Quantitative changes led to qualitative changes, ultimately molding a
Godhead!”
The divine oracle gave the fishman youngster a sudden realization.
“There is another thing.”
“The Godhead hasn’t been completely…formed yet, it is almost there.”
The divine oracle continued to tell him things.
This year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel was pivotal!
The Grand Duel was a great national sacrifice and would make an enormous amount
of belief that would fill in the last piece of the Dueling Godhead and truly
complete it.
A complete Godhead could be bestowed to a transcendent lifeform.
Not all transcendent lifeforms were qualified to bear the Godhead. But when a
transcendent individual was able to bear a Godhead, then they could use a
portion of the Godhead’s power, thereby obtaining a portion of the gods’ divine
power!
“Go and take part in the National Ceremony Grand Duel.”
“Go become the ultimate victor, the final winner.”
“By doing this, you can obtain a large amount of the Dueling Divinity’s favor,
thereby being able to approach the Godhead.”
“If you can touch the Godhead, it is possible you can take custody of the
Godhead.”
“Someday in the future, if you can constantly reinforce your control over it
and ultimately absorb the Godhead, then as a transcendent, you will become
historical, becoming an unprecedented…Dueling God!”
The divine oracle’s voice rumbled in the fishman youngster’s heart.
The young man was stunned.
The divine oracle then said, “Take note that before this, you cannot be
promoted to the saint level.”
“The saint level is the first step on the road to godhood.”
“Any saint level whose foundation isn’t Dueling in nature will evoke the
Dueling Divinity’s rejection and revulsion.”
“This will immensely raise the difficulty of approaching the Godhead.”
“The Surging Wave fishman bloodline being promoted to the saint level will be a
water attribute saint domain. If you have it before going in, it is equal to
erecting a mountain between you and the Dueling Godhead.”
The divine oracle ended there, and for a long time, the fishman youngster
couldn’t calm down from his profound shock.
This divine oracle contained infomration that would leave anyone dumbfounded.
The fishman youngster learned a startling gargantuan secret from it!
“The Dueling Godhead!”
“I want to approach it; I want to obtain it.”
“With it, I can possess a portion of a god’s divine power! Compared to the help
a saint level promotion would bring, this is absolutely much more!”



****** Chapter 686: “Pirates” Attacks the Harbor ******
The fishman youngster’s meticulously prepared blasphemous prayer failed, as
ultimately he didn’t achieve his goal – promotion to the saint level.
But at the same time, he succeeded.
Because he learned of an extremely significant secret, and an even greater
conspiracy.
The Dueling Godhead!
The Godhead was more important than the saint level.
How many saint levels were there, how many Godheads were there? It was obvious
the latter was rarer.
Cultivating a saint level only took decades or a century, but it took the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s entire power and thousands of years of secret accumulation
to form a Godhead.
The Dueling Godhead involved a portion of divine power, and that power could
completely trounce a saint level.
“Why does Charming Blue Goddess know about this secret?” The fishman youngster
pondered.
“Was this Charming Blue Goddess’ plot?”
“Did they make all kinds of plans earlier?”
“But why haven’t they acted? Was I molded for this?”
The fishman youngster thought back now, when Charming Blue Goddess was
vigorously cultivating him. Each divine blessing was quite generous…it seemed
fishman youngster slowly realized the implication that “Charming Blue Goddess
was intentionally helping him”.
The National Ceremony Grand Duel was the moment the Dueling Godhead would be
completed.
Charming Blue Goddess seemed to want to meddle in it and get a slice of the
pie.
“Based on this, I am Charming Blue Goddess’ most competent pawn in their plan.”
“In the future, if my blasphemy is revealed, how much will it backfire on me?”
“If Charming Blue Goddess’ objective is the Dueling Godhead, and I come into
conflict with them, what should I do?”
As for this, the fishman youngster schemed to have Cang Xu investigate it.
Since blaspheming Charming Blue Goddess produced such enormous profits, then
they could completely blaspheme other gods.
They were too weak to vie with a raging Charming Blue Goddess who discovered
the truth, but they could borrow the power of other gods to try to check and
balance Charming Blue Goddess.
Of course, these are things to think about and do later.
From this, the fishman youngster had a new goal. Naturally, his main plan for
redemption was still constant.
The Sheng Ming Empire was the most powerful force in the world; no other
organization was a match for it.
To say nothing of a saint level, even with the Dueling Godhead, the fishman
youngster was not a true god.
In fact, even if he was a true god, what could he do?
How many foreign gods have the imperial gods eliminated?
Wasn’t Charming Blue Goddess wounded into deep slumber by them?
“Having the Dueling Godhead will immensely benefit the entire redemption plan.”
“If nothing else, it will bring a fundamental change to the bargaining table!”
If the survivors were too weak, they wouldn’t be able to speak as equals and
taking out divine artifacts as a bribe would court death! They might even be
directly annexed by the imperial higher-ups!
Only with sufficient strength could they defend themselves and have the
qualifications to negotiate with imperial leadership.
After this prayer was finished, the fishman youngster rapidly adjusted his
plan. He had Dao Hen and Hun Tong leave Snow Bird Harbor and teleport to the
Ice Sculpture Capital.
The fishman youngster used Divine Domain Descent to teleport over. Then after
learning of Zi Di’s and Zong Ge’s situation, he acted.
He commanded Hun Tong, with the help of Deceptive Disguise, to play the role of
Hua Tang and stage a show.
Through these moves, the fishman youngster successfully altered the situation,
and created a façade that led to the Li Jian Clan’s wrong estimation.
Most importantly, the fishman youngster took over Zong Ge’s responsibilities as
Commander Long Fu and would participate in the National Ceremony Grand Duel.
Bing Yang’s special Frost Aura, from a certain point of view, greatly lessened
the problems for the fishman youngster.
The fishman youngster claimed that because of the aura’s time power, he was
able to break into the gold level!
“Next, I should show off my power in a duel.”
The dragonman youngster was completely confident in himself!
The many blasphemous prayers had reaped him many things. Then during the last
prayer, although he wasn’t promoted to the saint level, Charming Blue Goddess
still gave him a divine blessing.
After obtaining this divine blessing, the dragonman youngster became a gold
level magician and was given a lot of cultivation knowledge and a huge volume
of spells to use.
Of course, water attribute spells were the most numerous.
So far, the young man had three types of cultivation. Battle qi, magic, and
divine spells were al;l promoted to the gold level!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
At dawn, Tan Mo rang at his study door.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed and opened the alchemy door.
The door opened and Tan Mo walked in.
“You got the news?” Tan Mo spoke bluntly, “The latest information from Ice
Sculpture Capital, Long Fu has become a gold level.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nodded, “According to his public claim, it was
because of Bing Yang’s Frost Aura that contained [Beautiful Future]. Its effect
was a blessing in disguise and allowed him to be promoted earlier.”
“However, I am more inclined to believe that he was always a gold level, he was
just concealing it.”
“This was a suitable excuse to openly reveal it and expand his influence. After
all, gold level duelists are an entirely different thing from silver level
ones.”
When Tan Mo knew Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew this information, he nodded,
“The Li Jian Clan’s second navy fleet has already been routed, and pirates
might attack Snow Bird Harbor at any time. To prevent Long Fu’s influence from
getting bigger, we should move! The earlier, the better.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s finger tapped his desk, he muttered to himself for
a moment, then nodded, “We must act as soon as possible.”
“But this is immensely risky.”
“For example, we were never able to figure out how Long Fu killed three gold
levels in a three on one battle.”
“If they built a private teleportation device in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
when we disguise ourselves as pirates to attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
branch, it is very likely that we will ‘enjoy’ this method.”
Tan Mo sank into silence.
But quickly, his hesitation was driven off by greed.
“Conservative estimates place Two Eyes Island’s property at 100,000 gold!” Tan
Mo spoke his thoughts, “This amount of money is enough for me to gamble on.”
“Furthermore, during the process of this, I can hide behind the scenes.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Snow Bird Harbor branch only has a few silver
levels in it, no experts in sight.”
As he thought that, Tan Mo had no hesitations.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord weighed up his words and observed his facial
expression, then before Tan Mo could continue, he said, “If we act, then I
believe that today is the best opportunity to do so.”
“The earlier the better!”
“First, we have to remove the magician tower.”
“I will secretly take control in advance, then when the time comes, I need your
people to storm into the tower and slaughter everyone inside.”
After saying that, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord handed Tan Mo a list.
Tan Mo took a look at it and combined it with his own information. He laughed,
“Many of these people are your loyal followers.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s face was cold, “But they are more loyal to the
kingdom.”
“Perhaps, some of them are more loyal to me.”
“But I need them to be sacrificed so our operation doesn’t have any flaws.”
“After they are sacrificed, I will make arrangements to replace them with
secret spies.”
“The magician tower is the highest priority, but apart from it, there are other
strategic locations that I need you to do your best work on Tan Mo.”
Tan Mo shrugged, “You help me, I help you. Hey, I like this coordination.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s eyes seemed to penetrate the wall and looked into
the ocean, “Thus, after the Thirteenth Prince returns, all of Snow Bird Harbor
can be his to use.”
Night.
Snow Bird Harbor.
Inside the magician tower.
“I don’t know why, but I inexplicably feel a bit ill at ease.”
“What? Is it about your son’s college exams?”
“That’s not it…”
“By the way, have you considered my proposal from a few days ago? Do you want
to ask for a holiday and go watch the National Ceremony Grand Duel at the
capital? You have to know that duels of this scale are quite rare.”
“Alas, I wanted to go. But the kingdom’s recent naval battle loss means our
vacation won’t be approved, right?”
A few magicians were chatting as they monitored Snow Bird Harbor.
Pop, pop, pop…
With a few soft sounds, the magicians were suddenly stabbed by assassins at the
same time, and not a single death rasp was let out.
Ding.
An explosion suddenly occurred on the top floor of the magician tower, but it
was a small one.
The assassins hurried to the top floor, but the assassin leader was already
leaving with injuries, their hand holding a snow elf head.
It was the magician tower master.
The assassins let out a breath.
Very quickly, Snow Bird City Lord received a report of mission completion. It
went very smoothly, apart from when the magician tower master, who managed to
retaliate in a minor way before being assassinated. 
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord passed this news to Tan Mo.
Tan Mo ordered, “Move!”
Thus, a group of imperial navy disguised as pirates came from the water, dark
corners of the port, and other places to gradually encircle the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps branch’s ships.



****** Chapter 687: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Caught Off Guard ******
With the help of the dense night, along with their allocated alchemy equipment,
the navies easily got near the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
They were structured into small teams, dispersed apart from each other, but
they were silent and moved nimbly. Furthermore, they paid attention to their
allies, constantly adjusting their position as they advanced together. All of
this revealed the fine military attainments of the imperial navies.
The alchemy equipment they wore also had excellent camouflage capabilities. The
navies almost blended perfectly into the night, and ordinary eyes could not
detect them.
On the port, no alerts appeared.
The magician tower had been eliminated.
The alarms in Snow Bird Harbor’s port were disabled by the navies.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had their own defenses. But the defensive
measures around them were silently demolished by the tiny frisbee devices the
navies deployed.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ greatest defense was their ships.
Each ship could be seen as a mobile fort.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had many ships berthed at the port. The
flagship was silver level and was a retired warship from the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s army. It had a slender model but actually had the greatest volume.
Next was the iron level Love Triangle. That ship was once the Applaud Pirates’
flagship, then it was seized by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
There was also the bronze level White Bandage and Iron Lump, they were once
property of two mercenary corps on Two Eyes Island. After the battle of Two
Eyes Island, the survivors bought them from the Island Lord Hun Tong, and
although they were the lowest level ships, they still had alchemy installations
that allowed the White Bandage to heal people and gave the Iron Lumpexcellent
defense.
In addition to those ships, there were some ordinary vessels, and in fierce
naval battles, they were cannon fodder and auxiliary ships, they were not worth
mentioning. 
Tan Mo’s side had exhaustive information on these ships.
The imperial secret spies worked in intelligence and added on is the fact that
the survivors’ ships had been repaired by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s
factories.
It was clear this information was very detailed and reliable.
In fact, Snow Bird Harbor Lord not only collected information, he also left a
few tricks while repairing these ships.
If it was a naval battle, and the battlefield was concentrated and intense, the
navy would be greatly hindered from mounting a raid. But under current
circumstances, it was the perfect scenario to launch a raid.
“This is the perfect setting for a raid!” The navy leader thought.
Tan Mo had withdrawn to a room outside of the port and was watching this unfold
through a magic image.
“Begin now.” His eyes filled with greed and his heart were unable to hold
itself back. 
Tan Mo assessed that Long Fu and Yao Ma must have taken some of the money away
with them, but most of it should still be on the ships. Especially the antiques
and paintings, as liquidating them would be a long term matter.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ magic potion business is getting more
prosperous.”
“A while back, the Alchemy Guild was attacked, but now production is back on
schedule.”
“Although the Li Jian Clan is the main magic medicine producer, it is obvious
that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has not given up in this area.”
Since there is largescale medicine refinement every day, then there will surely
be abundant capital that is used to buy materials, transportation costs, and
other expenditures.”
“In short, first we shall capture these people. If there isn’t enough money,
then we shall extort Long Fu!”
“We are acting as pirate currently…”
Tan Mo couldn’t help but smile as the merits of this came to mind.
He was very optimistic about this battle because he knew so much intelligence
and believed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch was nothing to worry
about.
In his view, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships had already become a number
of giant treasure chests.
These treasure chests were constantly enticing him – open me, open me.
“How much money is here?”
“Hehehe, the money will all be mine.”
Wee woo!
Suddenly, an alarm resonated through the port.
It interrupted Tan Mo’s thoughts and he stood up bewildered: why was an alarm
sounding?
He subconsciously looked at the magician tower, but it wasn’t coming from it.
Tan Mo looked back at the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships, but it wasn’t
them either!
Then where was the alarm coming from?
Tripleblade suddenly sat up from his bed. Tonight, he was not in charge of
keeping watch. But at this moment, his rest was interrupted by the alarm, and
for a split second, Tripleblade was also stunned. Because he was not familiar
with this alarm sound.
Where was this alarm coming from?
“What is happening outside?” Tripleblade was very baffled, unaware of the
danger they were all in.
“Damn it!” The quickest to react were the concealed navies.
The navy leader cursed to himself, and he decisively ordered, “All-out
assault!”
The navies summoned their battle qi and emerged from their camouflage to attack
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships.
“Kill!”
“Get rid of them, steal the money, steal the ships!!”
“Raise the pirate flag!”
As they attacked, they didn’t forget or neglect their disguise.
There were some guards patrolling on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ ships,
but none of them noticed the navy. After the alarm was raised, they saw the
enemy, causing them to shout, “Enemy raid, enemy raid”. But it was too late.
The navy’s surprise attack immediately suppressed them.
For a moment, the navies besieged the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from the port
and sea, surrounding them in all directions.
Clang, clang, clang!
This time, it was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ actual alarm.
“Enemy attack, enemies.”
“Pirates, a lot of pirates!!”
“Isn’t this Snow Bird Harbor?”
The mercenaries hurriedly shouted.
Most of them were resting.
Despite their muddled state, their bodies reacted by themselves – mechanically
freeing themselves from hammocks, quickly putting on armor, picking up their
weapons, forming formations, and orderly and quickly rushing to the
battlefield.
At this crucial moment, they displayed their excellent military discipline.
This was the result of arduous military training.
But the problem right now was their enemy was the navy, the empire’s standing
navy.
If they were facing a pirate raid, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ military
discipline and skills would usually be better. But when faced with the navy,
they did not hold an advantage, and at most were slightly worse than them.
After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in its early stages and had only
existed for a short time.
Especially now, when one side was prepared and in ambush, while the other was
just waking up. The battle situation was quite obvious.
Therefore, when Tripleblade arrived on deck, he saw that many ships had already
fallen into enemy hands.
All of the ordinary ships had fallen under their control. The people on deck
were all dead, but there weren’t many. Most of the people were resting inside
the hold, but the enemy had already taken control of the stairs, and because
the entrances were very narrow, they trapped the people inside.
Things were very passive for them.
When Tripleblade saw this, he instantly became anxious, and his eyes nearly
spewing flames.
“How are there pirates here?!”
“That’s right, the Li Jian Clan was routed earlier, and coastal defenses have
fallen into enemy hands! So, is that why pirates are attacking here?”
Since the Li Jian Clan’s loss, the coastal ports were jittery and on edge.
With this psychological expectation and lacking crucial context, Tripleblade
was unaware of this battle’s true colors.
Tripleblade quickly restrained his thoughts and began to take command.
He was once a mercenary corps commander and had plenty of experience with enemy
raids.
Tripleblade quickly gave orders, deploying his forces while sending a message
for help.
“The magician tower was also attacked?” Tripleblade looked at the magician
tower and noticed it wasn’t shining, it was utterly dark.
Tripleblade’s heart shook, “They dare to attack Snow Bird Harbor, it must be at
least a gold level pirate group! Looking at the situation, it seems a gold
level pirate has stormed the magician tower.”
“Damn it, they actually succeeded! How did they sneak in?”
Tripleblade could only brace himself and meet the enemy head on.
The mercenary corps needed time to assemble, therefore, Tripleblade deployed
almost all of the alchemy puppets.
These puppets joined the front line, and yielded ok results, but were only able
to alleviate the situation only a tiny bit.
Tripleblade decisively decided to abandon some ships and did everything he
could to convene all of the experts over to defend the flagship.
Not all of the experts were on the flagship, as that kind of distribution
method was obviously unreasonable.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ deployment plan put most silver levels as a
captain of a ship, while the stronger among them were in charge of a magic
ship.
It was worth mentioning that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps once had seven
silver levels, now it had increased to eleven.
There were even more iron and bronze levels.
Before the dragonman youngster left, he recruited many snow elves, mainly
comprising of magic chefs and magician apprentices.
After the dragonman youngster left, due to the prosperous magic medicine
business and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ reputation, the branch continued
to recruit more transcendents.
Some transcendents were recruited by them personally, others were introduced
through an intermediary agency, and others decided to apply for the corps
themselves. 
But now, within 10 minutes of the fighting, two of their silver levels had been
slain.
These silver levels were quite ordinary.
Chi Lai was naturally not an ordinary silver level.
He oversaw the Love Triangle, and after being awoken by the fighting, he ran
onto the deck and immediately used divine spells.
Justice divine spell – Justice Army Vanguard!
Justice divine spell – Mark Evil!
Justice Army Vanguard was a large-scale augmentation divine spell that could
increase the attacks of friendly forces two fold.
Mark Evil could designate targets as ‘wicked enemies’ or ‘righteous allies’.
After putting on these marks, those marked as enemies would take more damage.
When healing magic fell onto marked allies, it would be boosted, while leaving
enemies unaffected. 
With these two divine spells unleashed, instant results appeared. The slowly
routing front finally had a crucial moment to take a breath and begin to
stabilize their footing.
When the navy leader saw this, he personally acted instantly and led five
silver levels over to kill Chi Lai.
When Chi Lai saw enemies coming over, his heart jumped and he retreated towards
the flagship.



****** Chapter 688: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Unfamiliar Assistance ******
Chi Lai was a crucial figure, or in other words, he was a target worth paying
attention to.
Because he was a soldier, and regardless of his fighting capability or
determination, both were impressive and worth trusting.
Before Tan Mo’s navy moved in, they knew they had to prevent Chi Lai from
getting to the gold level cannon, otherwise with both of them combined, they
would produce firepower that couldn’t be underestimated!
Even Tan Mo didn’t want to feel a gold level artillery shell with his body.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord more so didn’t want the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
opening fire on his port, otherwise how would he deal with the aftermath?
Therefore, Chi Lai was the center of attention. 
After Chi Lai used two divine spells, he realized he seemed to have poked the
beehive, attracting over five pirates of the same life level.
With minimal thought, he began to retreat!
It wasn’t that he didn’t have battle intent, rather he saw there were too many
enemy experts, and he had to make space to prevent his predicament from getting
worse, then help his comrades.
Chi Lai only managed to retreat halfway before he was stopped on the White
Bandage.
The five “pirates” then beleaguered him from all sides.
Chi Lai instantly sank into a disadvantageous position.
Luckily he had the advantage of equipment.
On the one hand, the White Bandage’s alchemy bandages rampaged like pythons,
perturbing the “pirates” occasionally or healing Chi Lai.
On the other hand, Chi Lai was wearing stronger equipment than the pirates.
Tan Mo’s navy obviously couldn’t use their normal equipment. Currently they are
using equipment secretly given to them by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The latter was especially worried that his scheme would be seen through,
therefore, the pirate equipment he provided was real – they really had been
used by pirates and had been captured by the imperial secret spies over a
number of years as spoils of war.
The equipment that the pirates used naturally couldn’t compare to the Sheng
Ming Empire’s official military gear, nor could it match Chi Lai’s equipment
which had been supplemented by abundant funds.
Chi La used his equipment barely to fight on, and he was quickly wounded in
many areas.
“We have to save Chi Lai!!” Tripleblade saw this from the flagship, and his
teeth worriedly clenched.
“I’ll go!” In the wake of that voice, a robust silver level asked to risk his
life.
Tripleblade didn’t need to turn around, he could tell by the voice that it was
Men Shi.
Men Shi, one hand on his war hammer, the other on a hawser, ran across the deck
with his short legs, and after a running start, he jumped off the ship.
Men Shi dangled from the long hawser, and after swimming through the air, he
found himself above another ship.
Then midair, he let go and precisely grabbed another hawser and swung again.
Very quickly, he was above the White Bandage.
As Men Shi descended on the battlefield, Tan Mo’s navy experts began to shoot.
“Protect Lord Men Shi!”
“Ring swords, toss!!”
At that crucial moment, the Quick Knife squad led by Kuai Tui threw their
transcendent weapons.
The ring swords ahead of Men Shi, blocking most of the arrows.
With such strong help, Men Shi only needed to take a few arrows and
effortlessly relied on his own defenses to stop them.
Bang.
He landed on the deck, shook his head, and with hands on his war hammer, joined
Chi Lai in battle.
With Men Shi’s help, Chi Lai’s situation instantly shifted greatly, and he was
no longer surrounded by perils.
Seeing this, Tripleblade let out a breath.
Whether it was Men Shi’s rope swinging or the Quick Knife battle squad’s
defensive usage of the ring swords, both were the results of their recent tough
military training.
“But just accomplishing these is still not enough.”
“The pirates are too strong!”
“There are too many silver levels, and a gold level might have shut down the
magician tower…”
As Tripleblade was thinking, he suddenly heard a loud roar.
The roar was full of shock and spite, attracting many,
Everyone saw a silver level comrade being attacked, their heart broken by a
sharp blade.
Tripleblade instantly flew into a rage.
“Traitor!!” Many mercenaries were startled by this, and they attacked the one
who backstabbed their fellow silver level.
After taking out the silver level, the traitor sneered a few times, then
retreated while sneering some more and quickly joined another corner of the
battlefield.
Tripleblade quickly recognized that he was the latest transcendent recruit, he
hadn’t expected at this key moment, he would stab them in the back.
“This is no simple betrayal!”
“Based on the pirates’ skills, he should be a pirate, dispatched to infiltrate
our mercenary corps.”
“Damn it.”
After taking this blow, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ morale distinctly
declined.
Tripleblade couldn’t sit still, and he immediately decided to take a risk.
The battlefield situation was far from good for the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps.
“If I don’t take a risk, there won’t be an opportunity!”
“Lord Zong Ge is absent, Cang Xu, Lan Zao, and others are away.”
“Most ridiculous is that the great commander has been gone for so long!!”
The goblin found it hard to temper his fury, but this strong sense of
responsibility also deepened his battle resolve.
His personal strength was only iron level, and even if he went into battle, he
wouldn’t be able to do anything. Thus, Tripleblade decided to turn around and
go down a hidden slide in the captain’s room and quickly went into the hold.
He sprinted to the cannon cabin.
This hold was dedicated to storing the gold level cannon.
Despite Tripleblade knowing the gold level cannon was not suitable for this
battle, this was his only idea he could think of that could influence the
battlefield. 
“Fortunately, through military training, I have worked this cannon several
times.”
Not just Tripleblade, Men Shi and some other transcendents had gone through the
same training.
Although Chi Lai was the most suitable user, he couldn’t be relied on alone. In
intense naval battles, accidents were liable to happen.
Therefore, Tripleblade had trained for this pivotal moment and was able to
replace Chi Lai as gunner.
He didn’t gain much from this training, and truth be told, it was minimal. But
Tripleblade really was practiced in the usage of the gold level cannon.
However, when he pushed the cabin door open and ran to the cannon, his heart
chilled.
The cannon was destroyed!
“There are other hidden traitors!! Right here on the flagship.” Tripleblade
filled with rage, fuming out angrily.
Boom.
A moment later, a massive explosion occurred on the side of the flagship.
The flagship ferociously shook, then thick smoke rolled upwards. 
Tan Mo’s naval troops had been prepared for this, and instantly used the hole
to charge in.
Tripleblade clenched his teeth and pulled out his dagger, leading the
mercenaries in the hold to courageously block the way.
Two silver level navies worked together to form the vanguard charge.
Tripleblade was barely able to deal with one, dealing with two was impossible!
Very quickly, he was heavily wounded, and he fell to the ground, unable to
crawl back up.
The silver level navies were coldly finishing off the wounded.
Just as Tripleblade was about to die, a blade of light burned brightly in the
ship hold.
Ding!
After that crisp clang of metal, a transcendent stood in front of Tripleblade.
It was this stranger who had intercepted the mortal blow meant for Tripleblade.
The silver level navy was repelled, his arm shaking and his face becoming
serious. 
“Who…are you?” The navy narrowed their eyes, this unfamiliar transcendent was
not in his information.
Tripleblade was likewise puzzled, he was very certain this was the first time
he had seen this stranger.
A moment later, the stranger straightened their weak chest, their tone stiff
and flat, “I am Long Fu’s subordinate, Lang Xiao.”
“Long Fu?!” Tripleblade’s heart shook.
Clang!
The strange transcendent suddenly issued a roar, and the long blade in his hand
dazzled with sword light as he threw himself at the silver level navy.
“Come help me!” The silver level navy cried for help after a few rounds.
The other silver level freed himself to help out, but the two people combined
were still unable to defeat “Lang Xiao”.
“Lang Xiao” had excellent equipment, and his battle skills were also
impressive. The biggest advantage was that he was dauntless and unafraid of
death. Many times, he would rather risk injury to create an advantage in the
fight.
But this reckless conduct quickly covered him in blood.
But he was actually fighting fiercer, remaining callous and occasionally
letting out a howl, quite in accordance with his name “Lang Xiao”.  (Note: Lang
Xiao means wolf's howl.)
“Hey, do you not want to live?” After gasping for a moment, Tripleblade rushed
over to help, blocking an attack for Lang Xiao.
But Lang Xiao didn’t not appreciate the kindness, “Get out of here shorty.
Don’t hinder my fight!”
Tripleblade coldly snorted, “Don’t fight like that. You’ll die sooner if you
fight like that.”
“Lang Xiao” coldly snorted, “Death means nothing, I must do everything to
accomplish the mission Commander Long Fu gave to me!”
Tripleblade’s heart quaked, “Long Fu…where is the commander?”
“Don’t know.” After Lang Xiao said that he charged back in to fight the two
silver level navies.
Tripleblade clenched his teeth, and after observing for a time, he saw the
fight was escalating. As an iron level, it would be difficult for him to get
involved, and perhaps he would be exploited and become a burden on Lang Xiao,
so he decided to withdraw.
“What method did Long Fu use to subdue this kind of die-hard silver level?”
With this doubt in mind, Tripleblade came to the deck, then to his pleasant
surprise, discovered Lang Xiao was not the only assistance present.
There were three other silver level transcendents currently fighting the
pirates.
Unlike the blade wielding fighter Lang Xiao, these three silver levels were
magicians.
They all had excellent equipment, and each had a different style. But all of
them displayed formidable fighting strength.
“These reinforcements are no ordinary silver levels, they are more like Chi Lai
and Men Shi, real elites!”
“Since they’re here, where is Commander Long Fu?”
“Hold on, what am I expecting?”
“Even if Long Fu was here, he is not Lord Zong Ge, he is only a silver level.”
“He is a peak silver level power, but these pirates might have a gold level.
Furthermore, their gold level has taken control of the magician tower!”
A gold level enemy was a boulder that was crushing Tripleblade’s heart.
“Where did this retinue come from?” Tan Mo’s brows tightly creased.
He promptly contacted Snow Bird City Lord.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was following the battlefield closely, and after
receiving this communication, he calmly replied, “I don’t know who these people
are either.”
“I can hypothesize that when the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was attacked and
had its members kidnapped, their backer secretly dispatched reinforcements.”
Tan Mo’s brows wrinkled deeper, “Even you don’t know? This group’s concealment
methods cannot be looked down upon.”
“If they can hide silver levels, can they hide a gold level?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn’t help but raise his lip, he was worried
about the same thing.
If the other side was hiding a gold level, then things would get difficult.
A gold level joining the battlefield would intensify things to a fundamentally
different level.



****** Chapter 689: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Impossible to Stop Halfway ******
Bunches of water arrows shot, hail fell like rain, while simultaneously, all
kinds of summons wreaked havoc across the ship decks.
The three magicians poured down their firepower in torrents.
The navy’s offensive was gravely hindered, and due to the magical bombardment,
many people were wounded and forced to retreat, while others even lost their
lives.
By contrast, despite bathing in the magic, the mercenaries were unharmed.
Divine spell [Mark Evil]!
As it turns out, Chi Lai had used his divine spell on the new silver level
reinforcements, so the three magicians didn’t harm the mercenaries.
The three silver level magicians were able to fully display their skills. 
It had to be said that the divine spell [Mark Evil] was really off the charts
practical.
“Damn Chi Lai, I wish I killed him sooner!”
“We also have priests, what are we afraid of?”
“Shut up, you idiot!”
The navies were quite sullen.
They obviously had priests on their ships, but they couldn’t be used. Normal
pirates almost never had priests, and if they appeared, it would provoke
immense suspicions.
The navies sacrificed more and more.
When Tan Mo saw this, he once again sent Snow Bird Harbor City Lord an urgent
communication, asking for the latter’s help.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stated his hands were tied.
“Sly snow elf!” Tan Mo cursed to himself.
He had information he could blackmail Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with, yet he
only had himself to blame for the magic contract he signed with Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
There was actually nothing he could do.
If a magic contract wasn’t signed, Tan Mo would learn Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord had secretly killed [Gold Hand], while Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
suspected Tan Mo had killed Hun Tong to silence the latter.
Both had done dirty deeds, and without an extremely strict contract between
them, it would be impossible for them either to trust or work with each other.
Only by signing a contract of collaboration could their following plan feasibly
reach this point.
“Worthy of being an arms merchant backer, those silver level magicians’
equipment is quite excellent!” Tan Mo huffed with rage.
The three silver level magicians’ equipment obviously surpassed the navies’
To make their disguise true to life, the navies gave up their regular armaments
and were unable to use the battle skills, formations, and other military skills
they were most familiar with.
These accursed mercenaries, damn it, damn it all!” 
“No matter, send over the priests now, we cannot stare blankly and watch our
comrades die!”
“Patience, in this situation, his Lordship will certainly act.”
The navy officers and soldiers fighting hard were also being struck quite
sullenly.
They were soaked in blood from battle, and many were gravely wounded. Obviously
they had better skills they could use, but they couldn’t.
Military orders must be obeyed!
The imperial regular navy had very strong military discipline.
Therefore, they obeyed military orders and deeply understood the grave
consequences of violating military orders.
Thus, they got more furious, and most of that rage was stored in their
thoughts.
Their rage was no match for the silver level magicians’ firepower.
The three silver levels used water, summoning, and ice as their main offensive
methods. Their fighting styles were very similar, and all of them emitted a
whiff of insanity, and were undaunted by danger.
Even when silver level navy fighters got near, they would use attacks as their
defense. Even when the navy concentrated their long range firepower on them,
they would seldom evade on the deck, and instead swim through the air
constantly and bombard them back with all kinds of spells.
This kind of movement fought on the edge of life and death, fully exposing
their utterly fearless fighting courage that greatly encouraged the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps members.
Seeing these fragile magicians all dashing in bravely, what qualifications did
nobodies like them have to cower at the back?
The power of role models on the battlefield was considerably immense.
“I didn’t think our corps had such a formidable force in hiding.” Men Shi and
Chi Lai fought back to back against the five silver levels, fighting ever
braver.
“We can win; we must win!” Bai Ya was heroically fighting when he was suddenly
dragged away. 
A moment later, a navy machete chopped down where Bai Ya was, splitting empty
air.
Bai Ya’s belated reaction was to coldly sweat in fright, and he suddenly turned
around to see his life saving benefactor – Xu Ma. 
The one who pulled him back, Xu Ma, replied, “Boy, you need to be observant in
battle.”
Bai Ya’s eyes suddenly widened, “Be careful!”
A moment later, he swung his sleeve, a long grass flinging from his sleeve.
The long grass fell onto the navy person, then suddenly became slender. The
grass tip turned into a snake head and the grass roots turned into a snake
tail.
The snake’s head bit down!
The navy person was caught off guard, and after being bitten, they couldn’t
help but scream.
The snake’s body seized the opportunity to twist around the navy person’s
sternum, crushing it.
The snake grass!
Bai Ya had purchased this peculiar plant on Two Eyes Island.
Under Bai Ya’s utmost care and special training, he was able to use it against
enemies.
Xu Ma had saved Bai Ya, and in the blink of an eye, Bai Ya had saved him.
Xu Ma couldn’t help but laugh and clap Bai Ya’s shoulder.
The young man he had intentionally or otherwise trained, had grown into a
reliable partner that aided him.
Mu Ban hid in the corner of a room, his hands tenaciously holding a crossbow.
As an ordinary person, he couldn’t defend himself that much, and thus, he was
very nervous.
But of all things, he heard a series of footsteps.
“Quickly, the battlefield situation is amiss, we need to bomb the magic power
reservoir immediately.”
“I didn’t expect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to be so tenacious!”
“Damned military training is perpetual, endless, and painful, but it is very
effective.” 
A group of mercenaries quickly charged ahead.
They were ordered by Snow Bird City Lord to infiltrate the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Although Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stated his hands were tied to Tan Mo, he
had secretly transmitted an order to mobilize these undiscovered traitors.
“Mu Ban, you can do it, you can do it! You could take on Mystifying Monster
Island; this time you can do it too!” Mu Ban made an effort to encourage
himself out of his nervousness.
A moment later, he took in a deep breath, and without sticking out his head, he
fired the crossbow.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The alchemy crossbow shot.
A dozen alchemy arrows of different attributes fired within a few seconds.
Screams arose continuously.
Then, the ship hold quickly grew silent.
After a good while, Mu Ban raised his trembling head and saw a corpse.
“I killed an enemy…oh!”
His eyes widened, astonished to see the corpse of “one of his own”.
“I, I killed the wrong person?!” Mu Ban’s eyes instantly widened as he suffered
an enormous psychological attack.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ morale was constantly rising.
This was actually difficult. Pirates and mercenaries rarely had strong military
accomplishments, and most of them were only good at fighting winning battles. 
Tan Mo took a deep breath, the battle reaching this level had indeed stemmed
from his expectations and it was impossible to stop halfway.
The navy officers’ and soldiers’ losses grew greater, and the growing amount
was harder for them to bear.
Too many of the lower ranks dying in battle would destabilize his authority.
Even if he could explain it away to his higherups with pirates, too many losses
was out of the question.
Because he was doing illegal work.
The more naval personnel lost during this illegal work, the more doubts and
hesitation they would have in future illegal work. 
This would enormously increase Tan Mo’s commanding costs.
“Don’t tell me I have to personally act?” Tan Mo’s heart chilled. 
His battle determination was not strong.
Like in the deep sea when Da Han and Qian Xing encountered Zhou Zhang and
Teacher Si Ling, they decided to retreat as their battle determination was very
feeble.
This was because their objective was merely to save Ba Qi and to get rich. When
they noticed they would have to fight to the death, they naturally wanted
nothing to do with it.
The gap between mental expectations and reality was too vast!
Now, Tan Mo’s side was in that kind of situation.
They originally wanted to get rich and didn’t think of fighting like their
lives were on the line.
“These accursed mercenaries, why won’t you obediently let me rob you?”
“Resist? I want to see what you’ll use to resist me!!”
Tan Mo was entangled in his tempestuous fury, and he disguised himself and
snuck into the battlefield.
He suddenly ambushed a Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps silver level, killing them
on the spot.
The gold level aura suddenly leaking caused the navy’s morale and battle intent
to surge.
By contrast, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ soaring morale was suddenly
slammed and began to decline again.
After all, this was the world of the strong.
“A gold level pirate! He really exists.” Tripleblade’s heart couldn’t help but
jump.
The thing he was most worried about had come to pass, but what could he do? He
could only place his hopes in the “unreliable” Commander Long Fu.
Tan Mo disguised himself, and after killing a Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
silver level, decided to not charge at the flagship, but instead fly to the
front lines all over the place.
He was also worried about Zong Ge’s one vs three method.
As a gold level power, even if he didn’t overtly use his equipment and battle
skills, he possessed overwhelming dominance. 
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ silver levels on the front lines retreated in
defeat or were slain.
It was rare for silver levels to withstand gold levels.
If it were common, then the dragonman youngster’s slaying of Teng Dong Lang
would not set the entire nation aflame.
It was because it was so rare that the dragonman youngster’s reputation
exploded and his name widely circulated.
“Want me to move?” Seeing Tan Mo devastate the battlefield, Hun Tong couldn’t
help but say that to the dragonman youngster.
At that moment, on top of a three story building, the dragonman youngster and
Hun Tong were camouflaged by a divine spell, no one could perceive them.
As for Dao Hen, he remained in the Ice Sculpture Capital.
After learning how to use the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] and the
divine spell [Divine Domain Descent], the dragonman youngster knew how crucial
believers were and that each qualified believer could be regarded as a portal.
The dragonman youngster teleported the vast distance between Ocean Mother Nest
and the Ice Sculpture Capital through Divine Descent Domain and built a
channel.
This time, he had returned to Snow Bird Harbor through the same method.
The believer who provided the coordinates was not Dao Hen, but rather the big
guy.
Although the big guy did not believe in Charming Blue Goddess, it didn’t
matter. So long as he provided the crucial coordinate, then divine spell
[Divine Domain Descent] could be implemented successfully.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could never have expected that the saint seed he
believed his exclusive property he did everything he could to hide would
instead invite a gigantic calamity into his domain.
Of course, before teleportation, the dragonman youngster used many Charming
Blue divine spells to camouflage the big guy and deceive everything around him.



****** Chapter 690: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – The Young Man’s Changes ******
The dragonman youngster teleported over, prepared for the worst battle
possible, but the result was smooth winds and currents, with no twists and
turns.
No one noticed their teleportation.
The dragonman youngster was also familiar with the place the big guy was locked
up in.
He had once gone deep into the city government palace’s underground dungeon.
After getting out, he and Hun Tong immediately came to the port to observe the
battlefield.
He didn’t act directly, instead he chose to do something else.
That bizarre and sudden alarm was caused by him.
But because he used a deception divine spell, no one present noticed where this
alarm was coming from.
From this, it could be seen that when facing first class opponents like the
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo, Charming Blue divine spells still
possessed an extremely powerful practical nature. As for the Li Jian Clan
noticing Zi Di’s shenanigans, it was not them seeing through Deceptive
Disguise, rather it was them relying on their monitoring ability, where they
noticed the flaws between the two “Long Fus”.
In military affairs, the dragonman youngster naturally couldn’t compare to Zong
Ge, but through many large scale battles, he had practical experience.
The dragonman youngster watched on the sidelines, gratified to find that his
mercenaries’ military qualities had obviously improved since his departure.
Of course, the regular navy had higher military accomplishments, and this led
to the dragonman youngster’s advance warning not doing much. 
But on the other hand, he did gain something,
Through divine spells and constant magical observation, he saw many hidden
traitors and spies laid bare.
He also deployed an alchemy item to record these scenes, so that after this
battle finished, he could settle accounts.
“Our ships were repaired in Snow Bird Harbor’s docks. Since Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord is an imperial secret spy, he must have secretly infiltrated them and
then instigated them.”
“Our new recruits are all suspicious, and those we recruited before might be
incited into rebellion.”
“Weren’t two of the Bayonet Gang’s ringleaders not Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s
arrangements? The Imperial Secret Spy Agency is the largest intelligence
organization on the Main Plane.”
The dragonman youngster understood that this was an exceptionally good
opportunity that wouldn’t be easy to come across.
He decided to exploit this rare opportunity to see who would stand out.
“No matter how it is, I will handle them!” The dragonman youngster had already
determined his answer.
Of course, the dragonman youngster always gave the other survivors the greatest
level of trust.
But he couldn’t rule out the chance some of the survivors had been bought off
or deserted.
The dragonman youngster was constantly changing.
On Mystifying Monster Island, he used the Bloodcore to turn into different
lifeforms. After leaving Mystifying Monster Island, he turned into a dragonman
and then into a fishman.
His changes were not just limited to his appearance.
All kinds of experiences constantly molded his wisdom, evolved his worldview,
values, life outlook, touched his spirit, and enlarged his horizons.
In the depths of the seafloor, he and Cang Xu helped each other, constantly
investigated things, and he absorbed Cang Xu’s benefits.
He duped Charming Blue Goddess and then utilized Charming Blue divine spells to
deceive the Main Earth Elemental God and Teacher Si Ling to save the big guy
and to steal death divinity. All kinds of personal experience gave him ample
appreciation and comprehension for the power of deception!
Afterwards, he discovered Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a secret spy and found
that Tan Mo and Snow Bird Harbor City Lord were scheming against the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps and that stirred the fishman youngster’s thoughts even
more – I deceived others, while others simultaneously deceived me! I have to
always be careful because the world outside of Mystifying Monster Island is the
same, filled with the cruel competition of survival.
In fact, the competition outside of that island was even more complicated and
was a mix of countless conspiracies and plots. Superficial friends were in fact
enemies (Snow Bird Harbor City Lord), or the relationship between enemy and
friend was ever shifting (Hun Tong).
“Powerful beings can be schemed against too. Like the Main Earth Elemental God
and Teacher Si Ling.”
“Besides, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is not a weak person, he has formidable
strength!”
The dragonman youngster was quite prudent.
Carrying all kinds of stirred emotions, he left for the capital and after
observing for a time, he decided to act. It yielded excellent results, and he
deceived the Li Jian Clan. Although the results haven’t appeared yet, his main
goal had already been achieved.
This reinforcement of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch was the same.
The present.
The dragonman youngster observing at the edge of the battlefield was not just
the warrior from Mystifying Monster Island, the inspirational speaker from
Snake Rat Island, or the valiant military leader that charged ahead on Two Eyes
Island, rather he was a tactical master who gradually learned how to plan
before acting.
The dragonman youngster had returned!
Not only had he returned with all new powers but also elevated wisdom.
He also returned to Snow Bird Harbor with Ku Feng, Qi Ling, Xiao Wang Zi, and
Lady Sea Snake.
That’s right, Lang Xiao was Ku Feng.
Tripleblade did not recognize them because these people had many deception
spells on them.
As for Lang Xiao’s dauntless bravery and fearless fighting style, the reason
was that he was undead, and many mortal injuries were minor injuries to the
undead.
Ku Feng, Xiao Wang Zi, Lady Sea Snake, and Qi Ling were teleported into Ocean
Monster Nest’s blood sacrifice then taken captive by the fishman youngster.
During the fishman youngster’s blasphemous prayer, his understanding of memory
modification increased by a lot.
After Cang Xu’s cautious and rigorous investigation, the fishman youngster
began to modify the memories of his prisoners.
The survivors had a memory crystal making device, one of the important
inheritances from War Merchant.
The fishman youngster also knew many deceptive divine spells, and it went
without saying, both brought the best out of each other in a perfect match!
The Memory Concealment spell suppressed their original memories and hid them
away.
The Memory Switch spell was an ingenious method in the fishman youngster’s
hands that blocked these memories.
Although the new memories were inadequate and not detailed enough, it was
enough to make these captives willing to die for the dragonman youngster!
Then adding on a lot of equipment, they immediately possessed great combat
strength.
What?
The source of their equipment?
Silver level equipment was widely circulated in the market, and the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s armor prohibition only restricted equipment of the gold
level and higher.
Money could be used to purchase it.
And nowadays the survivors…
Had money!
Zi Di’s arduously executed business plan had reaped extreme gains. Her immense
contribution not only gave the survivors an abundant cash flow but also made
their entire financial situation very healthy.
However, the equipment Ku Feng and the others was not things the dragonman
youngster hastily purchased from the market after his return.
Rather, after the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had landed on the island, they
had always been buying equipment.
Once prior, because of a lack of funds, Tripleblade, the secret decision maker
of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch, wanted to stop this purchasing plan.
Now, the benefits had shown themselves.



****** Chapter 691: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Performative Tears of Blood


******
“Although Qi Ling and Xiao Wang Zi aren’t using necromancy, and are instead
using magical items and scrolls, they still have formidable firepower.”
“Ku Feng’s influence isn’t that big either. He has a camouflage ability and no
one on Two Eyes Island noticed his true identity. His camouflage is from a
battle skill and has nothing to do with the undead.”
The dragonman youngster evaluated the captives’ performance on the battlefield
via magic images.
To be honest, using undead transcendents was very risky. If it was exposed, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ reputation would become repulsive. As the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps’ commander, the dragonman youngster’s reputation too would
naturally suffer greatly and be called into question universally.
Therefore, all of the captives had muti-layered deception divine spells on
them.
During the casting of them, the dragonman youngster also intentionally
transformed into his fishman form while using the divine artifact [Mermaid
Fairy Tale].
“Fake memories make these captives 100% loyal to me.”
“However, this also affects their performance.”
The dragonman youngster’s careful observation obtained some conclusions.
It was the first time these captives had seen real combat, and it was worth it
to watch and study them.
Memory modification would counteract many individual sentiments and affect
their performance.
Because things like talent and ability usually come from experience, study, and
other accumulations. So long as memory modification was used, it would destroy
these experiences to a degree.
“At the present stage, modified memories will render a brilliant person
mediocre.”
“This is also my first time doing this work, perhaps in the future in the wake
of more experience and increased skill, I can have a qualitative improvement in
this?”
“Currently, the fabricating and modifying of memories is still quite crude. I
can’t even let these captives be awake for too long, to prevent them from
pondering too much and noticing the contradictions and flaws in their fake
memories.”
“Making memories more logical, less flawed, and more finely crafted is the main
direction to head towards in the future.”
The dragonman youngster watched as he thought deeply.
“But making memory modification better requires an enormous cost.”
“Perhaps Cang Xu can have a breakthrough on his end? The undead orthodoxy have
been immersed in it over time, and they might have more mature alchemy
techniques for it. If they do and we are able to get ahold of it, it will save
us immense amounts of research costs.”
“If the undead orthodoxy don’t have it, or Cang Xu is unable to get ahold of
it, what should I do?”
The dragonman youngster thought about it in passing, “Is there a simpler and
less costly way of improving technology?”
His mind was suddenly struck with lightning as he thought of an answer, “Hold
on, isn’t this how gods foster believers?”
Compared to the dragonman youngster directly fabricating memories, the
believers gods fostered was a wide net, its imperceptible influence ultimately
cultivated talents that wholeheartedly dedicated themselves to them. Not only
would they be exceedingly loyal, but they also had ample experiences in
religious organizations and possessed talents that surpassed others. 
For a split second, the dragonman youngster had a new layer of understanding of
gods and churches.
“Go die!” Tan Mo dashed left and right, then suddenly jumped in front of Xiao
Wang Zi.
His hand brandished a blade, and he used a battle skill that cut Xiao Wang Zi’s
neck into two.
Xiao Wang Zi’s head flew off, and together with his body, both fell into the
sea in a “violent death”.
Not long after, Ku Feng was also beheaded by Tan Mo.
The dragonman youngster hadn’t acted yet.
Although they seemed to have died in battle, they actually weren’t.
The reason why their deaths looked “real” was due to deception divine spells
and also because Ku Feng and Xiao Wang Zi really thought they had died! It was
like when they had been taken prisoner, the fishman youngster had intentionally
deceived them in the same way.
“A pity Ba Qi hadn’t fallen into my hands…” The dragonman youngster’s tranquil
expression had a hint of regret.
He was a powerful gold level pirate whose reputation had been sowed far.
While Teacher Si Ling was resting between stealing death divinity, he convinced
Ba Qi to turn into an undead lifeform.
Ba Qi’s biggest hidden danger was that he was seriously ill and at death’s
door.
Because of this, he was chosen by Qian Xing – even if the subdued Ba Qi died
not too long in the future, then Qian Xing could just smoothly take over Ba
Qi’s pirate group.
Ba Qi also knew he was dying, and his bottom line was also flexible. He didn’t
consider Teacher Si Ling’s advice for too long before agreeing.
Ba Qi’s life goal was to disseminate the Air Pressure battle qi technique, and
to an extent, turning into an undead was beneficial to achieving this life
goal.
After Teacher Si Ling transformed Ba Qi, he set him free.
Zhou Zhang didn’t make things difficult for Ba Qi, mainly for the sake of
Teacher Si Ling’s face.
This development was quite in accordance with Da Han’s future divination via
time divine spell.
“Want me to act?” When Hun Tong saw Tan Mo beheading two silver levels, he
couldn’t help but ask to be sent into battle.
The dragonman youngster’s unorganized vision slightly converged.
He saw doubt in Hun Tong’s glance.
It was very clear that Hun Tong didn’t understand why Long Fu was standing by
and watching his subordinates die in battle!
At the same time, the dragonman youngster also knew from experience the anger
Hun Tong held in his heart.
Hun Tong deeply detested Tan Mo!
On the ship, he had witnessed Tan Mo frame him.
Wasn’t the situation before him a good opportunity for vengeance?
The dragonman youngster shook his head, “I have already made arrangements for
this battlefield. You will go to the magician tower and be the true crux of
that battlefield!”
Hun Tong’s heart shivered, he immediately realized that the dragonman youngster
wasn’t just targeting the pretend pirate Tan Mo.
“But is doing this a good idea?”
“At least on the face of it, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ ally.”
“Is it necessary to deal with two gold levels simultaneously, who are important
imperial secret spies at that?”
Hun Tong hated Tan Mo, but he was ambivalent about Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
After all, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord didn’t scheme against his life, he only
wanted to put his hands on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Furthermore, Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord hadn’t acted directly, instead he let Tan Mo do it and
allowed the latter to play the role of a pirate and run around in circles.
Under these circumstances, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could still be utilized.
As an imperial noble, Hun Tong also understood compromise.
To him, it seemed the dragonman youngster was acting somewhat recklessly.
But he didn’t give any advice.
Although the dragonman youngster controlled him, he was still loyal to the
Sheng Ming Empire. With regards to his current situation, Hun Tong was more
inclined that it was fate playing tricks on him,
What he wanted to do most, apart from taking revenge, was to find a channel to
make the truth known to the empire’s higher-ups and return to his Two Eyes
Island.
That was the place where his lifelong foundation he had exhaustingly worked for
lay!
But the dragonman youngster didn’t do as he wished, instead he was dispatched
to the magician tower.
“Tan Mo has already left the magician tower, and Snow Harbor City Lord won’t
appear in the flesh, the magician tower’s temporary shutdown means it is in its
more vulnerable state.”
“Destroy this tower to the best of your ability.”
“If your operation fails, don’t return.”
The dragonman youngster turned his dragon eyes towards Hun Tong, his tone
callous.
Hun Tong’s heart jumped, and he promptly bowed his head, “Understood!”
He was under his control and had no choice but to obey.
Reyling on deception divine spells and the magician tower’s current state under
“pirate” control, Hun Tong easily snuck into the tower.
“What’s going on?”
“Someone is dead!”
“Enemy attack, an enemy! Find him now!!”
It wasn’t until Hun Tong had killed his way to the main floor did someone
notice something peculiar.
It was as the dragonman youngster anticipated, the magician tower was at its
most empty, and the navies that controlled it didn’t foresee enemies.
They were unable to see through the deception divine spells and could only
passively defend themselves.
But silver level defense wanting to withstand a gold level assassin’s all out
attack was extremely challenging.
After a moment, there was not a single witness left inside the magician tower
besides Hun Tong.
“Hurry up! Go, go go!!” Hun Tong was in a race against time and moved like the
wind.
After massacring everyone, he began to plant alchemy bombs everywhere,
Because he knew that if problems appeared in the magician tower, Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord wouldn’t sit still. The performance would not continue and he
would intervene personally!
The magician tower was a core defense; it was extremely important!
“What is the situation? Is there really an enemy taking advantage of this
crisis?!” Like Hun Tong expected, the moment Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
detected abnormalities with the magician tower, his look violently changed.
It had to be at least a gold level enemy to so quickly slaughter silver level
navies!
This realization seemed to burn Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s buttocks with hot
tongs, and he leapt up and rushed out of the city palace.
He had been spectator in Tan Mo’s attack on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
He couldn’t appear and needed to give Tan Mo enough time to carry out his
looting.
But now, he had no choice but to appear.
“The magician tower is too important; it cannot be lost!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord did not act alone, he instantly mobilized the city
guard, primarily the three magic battle squads.
The magic battle squads were still assembling, and unable to wait, Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord rushed to the magician tower by himself.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord jumped across the roofs of buildings while
simultaneously shouting, issuing warnings as their city lord.
His main purpose was to warn Tan Mo and the others that the situation had
changed, stop performing, retreat without delay!
Tan Mo was caught utterly flatfooted, he hadn’t received the magician tower
battle report and couldn’t help but glare furiously and thought, “This
[Emancipator], what is going on with him? I am about to win, yet at the last
moment, he actually showed up to ruin everything?!”
More ironic was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ reaction.
“Snow Bird Harbor City Lord has come to assist us! He has finally appeared.”
“Persevere, we shall be victorious.”
“If these wretched pirates want to leave, then they shall pay the price in
blood!” 
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was quite peeved to see that because of him, the
morale of the enemy he wanted to deal with, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
had soared.
Tan Mo also bit his teeth.
He was irritated that Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s appearance had caused the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ morale to bounce back and many of its members had
become dauntless and unafraid of death.
Tan Mo couldn’t help but be suspicious, “[Emancipator]. Are you really an
ally?”
He really wanted to keep fighting.
But at that moment, he received the battle report from the magician tower.
Tan Mo wanted to bellow in anger, but rationality told him he had to retreat!
If he didn’t, he would have to fight Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Reaching this kind of development would be too hilarious!
Tan Mo was utterly sullen but had to withdraw.
He waved his arm and shouted to retreat, and the navies obeyed. They bit their
teeth and after methodically arranging themselves, they retreated.
“This is actually a defeat!”
“But I won’t let you off Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!!” Tan Mo roared in his
thoughts.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord burned with anxiety.
He rushed to the magician tower with all speed.
But the moment he was about to storm the magician tower…
Boom!!!
The magician tower exploded.
The fierce detonation burst apart the magician tower and blew up the entirety
of the top floor.
The formidable air wave nearly blew away Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. The latter
did his best to remain standing as he activated his defensive battle skill.
By the time the explosion finished, what Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw when
looked up wanted him to cough out blood in anger.
The magician tower…ceased to be.
Only the bottom floor remained, with another half floor on top of it.
The magician tower had been returned to ruins.
The disastrous loss caused Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s eyes to go dark.
“I…he…I…” He wanted to curse loudly but just stammered.
Hun Tong had left long ago and was hiding in some hidden corner.
Seeing Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s warped and pained expression, Hun Tong
couldn’t help but sympathize with him. He and Dao Hen had personally
investigated Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s and Tan Mo’s conspiracy. 
These two wanted to play a trick, but in the end, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps had beaten them at their own game, resulting in the magician tower
getting blown up.
This loss was too heavy.
Were it not for the magician tower being “controlled” by pirates and shutting
down the main defenses, how would Hun Tong be able to get inside? To say
nothing of the magician tower getting blown up.
The magician tower was Snow Bird Harbor’s strongest defense and the core of it
too. Because of a trick, it was so easily destroyed.
“I didn’t expect these alchemy bombs to be so powerful!”
“But why didn’t Long Fu wait until Snow Bird Harbor City Lord entered the
magician tower to detonate the bombs?”
“He doesn’t want to deal with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord?”
Hun Tong’s mind sprouted many more suspicions.
He was unable to make sense of what the dragonman youngster was doing.
For a few seconds, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stood in place, rigidly gazing at
the ruins of the magician tower, pain and animosity all across his motionless
figure, like he was a statue.
After a few seconds, he became convinced of something and suddenly turned
around to look at Tan Mo and the others.
“You, it was you!”
“You band of despicable pirates actually dared to destroy my magician tower!!!”
“Die, you will all die!!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s former grace was gone as he flagrantly charged the
navies.
Tan Mo took a deep breath, then promptly ordered, “Retreat now, I will hold him
back.”
Boom, boom, boom.
The two began to fight, trading extremely fierce and vile blows.
Hun Tong’s mind stirred, “Could it be that the reason why Long Fu didn’t kill
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord in that explosion was that he wanted him to fight
Tan Mo?”
“Hold on, I fear killing Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with that explosion is
impossible. The reason why the magician tower was so frail was because its
interior was damaged and it had no defensive mechanisms.”
“Long Fu this guy, don’t be fooled by his thick eyebrows and big eyes, he
really is a bit…treacherous.”
At that moment, Hun Tong sympathized more with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord,
The latter obviously knew this wasn’t done by Tan Mo. But he had to continue
the performance, and as far as the scene of the crime was concerned, these
“pirates” must be the perpetrators.
Therefore, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had to act, he had to fight with his full
strength, and he had to carry out fierce vengeance mixed with animosity. 
This was the heavy responsibility of guarding his territory that he, as city
lord, had to carry out.



****** Chapter 692: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – There Really Are Pirates ******
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord held a short rod in both hands and used all kinds of
spells and battle skills one after the other to suppress Tan Mo to take the
upper hand.
His battle style was very gorgeous, and light and shadow changed in a spectrum
of color.
A rod descended and pounded Tan Mo in the belly.
Tan Mo was smacked downwards, his body bending like a lobster as he coughed out
spit.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smashed him with a thunderbolt, causing Tan Mo’s
hair to stand up amidst black smoke.
“Hey, hey, hey, you’ve done enough! Why are your attacks so ruthless?” Tan Mo
secretly transmitted.
Within a few short minutes, he had been badly battered.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s face was filled with hostility and anger, roaring
“Pirate, I shall slay you here!”, while also transmitting, “Perform well, don’t
expose any flaws. At this stage, this is all I can do!!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had to admit from the bottom of his heart that
violently beating Tan Mo like this really was partially due to him venting his
anger.
Were it not for Tan Mo, why would he use so much gold for bribes? Were it not
for Tan Mo, he wouldn’t have planned to have Tan Mo pretend to be a pirate and
attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Were it not for Tan Mo, his magician
tower would have been running normally and would never have exploded!
The magician tower was gone!
This was too big a loss, and in accordance with kingdom law, as the top person
in charge, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had to compensate for it. Because Snow
Bird Harbor was not his territory, and the magician tower was not constructed
and funded solely by himself.
The magician tower was built with public funds.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord didn’t just need to pay out a few hundred thousand
gold coins, but at least a million!
His losses weren’t limited to the magician tower.
The pirate attack and the magician tower exploding, these were grave
dereliction of duty that was bound to be an immense blotch on Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord’s record.
The future would be more annoying.
After the magician tower exploded, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord felt distressed
about the future. Since the core defense that was the magician tower had been
blown up, Snow Bird Harbor’s defenses had fallen to an all-time low, and it
would surely attract actual pirates over that would plunder it.
In other words, after this battle, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s days would be
very difficult.
The losses in front of him were disastrous, but the future would be even worse!
Before this operation, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had total control over Snow
Bird Harbor and his beautiful achievement of cleaning up the Bayonet Gang gave
him bright prospects.
But now, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s political prospects had taken a dramatic
turn and been enveloped in haze.
“Hehehe..” In a distant corner, Hun Tong couldn’t help but laugh when he saw
Tan Mo’s battered appearance.
“You wretched schemers!”
“He’s gone too much into his performance.”
“They are obvious allies, yet they have to beat each other up. What an original
way of getting vengeance, it’s quite novel.”
Hun Tong joyfully thought.
Especially because he knew the inside story and understood that Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord was currently swallowing his blood and tears, painfully
putting on this show.
Tan Mo was getting worse.
He obviously had strength, but he couldn’t display it. He had to use widely
known battle skills to disguise and mask it. 
While he was unable to display his power, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was using
his full strength to prove himself.
Through this back and forth, Tan Mo would naturally take a beating!
Hun Tong happily narrowed his eyes, watching this with ever more gusto.
He glanced at where the dragonman youngster was standing, suddenly thinking,
“This arrangement of Long Fu’s, could it be that he is actually a very vengeful
person?”
Hun Tong secretly analyzed it.
He had very complex emotions about the dragonman youngster and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
In the past, he had a good opinion of the dragonman youngster and the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps. Because during the battle of Two Eyes Island, Long Fu and
the others had an impressive performance and were a cornerstone on the
battlefield. Hun Tong appreciated them greatly and sincerely wanted to recruit
them at a high price but didn’t succeed.
Afterwards, when Hun Tong was framed by Tan Mo, Dao Hen had saved him,
something the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had nothing to do with.
However, when Hun Tong and Dao Hen were spying on Tan Mo’s and Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord’s conspiracy together, he knew that the massive wealth he kept in his
mind constantly had ultimately fallen into the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
hands.
Although he still didn’t know the truth, he believed the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps seized it from the necromancer.
“But they were the ultimate benefactors.”
“They took my money.”
“Those were mine; they should have returned it to me. But they didn’t do that,
instead they traveled to Ice Sculpture Island and disposed of them here!”
Could Hun Tong understand the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
Of course he could.
If he were the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he would have made the same choice,
after all who would give such great wealth?
But while he could understand, Hun Tong couldn’t forgive them.
“Oh, how I awaited those riches!”
“Without it, my Two Eyes Island was left in ruins and oh how I suffered!”
“Tan Mo demanded bribes, and if I had that money, would I have been framed by
him?”
Thinking this, Hun Tong automatically felt strongly aggrieved, secretly bitter,
and resentful. 
When Dao Hen got a divine oracle and after Hun Tong was forced to sign a
contract upon meeting the dragonman youngster, his attitude changed again.
“What is the connection between the god behind Dao Hen and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps?”
“A cooperative relationship? Or is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps a pawn of
that unknown god too?”
“It has always been said that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was an agent of
an arms merchant, but I have seen no evidence of that. Perhaps that was a
disguise?”
Hun Tong began to realize that this matter was far from simple.
He also didn’t know which god Dao Hen believed in. But he was an intelligent
person and through the limited clues, he could guess and analyze.
The trail was actually very clear.
It could be determined that Dao Hen likely believed in an ocean or a fishman
god.
This unavoidably caused Hun Tong to make further connections.
“Hold on, is the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps involved with the Blue Green Coral
Fishman Clan?”
When the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan attacked Two Eyes Island, a naga
priestess and others from the Fishman Holy City had provided their strength.
Initially, Hun Tong rejected this connection.
After all, during the battle of Two Eyes Island, the fierce fighting and
disastrous blood price paid by both sides meant it was unlikely to be a
performance.
“But what if it was a trick of self-injury to gain the enemy’s confidence?”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan are
actually on the same side. But using this trick of self-injury and establishing
each other’s identities. These groups could split apart and use the residents
of Two Eyes Island and even me as witnesses.”
“If it is like this, then the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is my foe! Tan Mo
framing me and Dao Hen saving me was also within my enemy’s calculations!”
“Am I currently serving my foe right now?”
Hun Tong looked tranquil, while his heart was in chaos.
Bitterness, powerlessness, fear, suspicion, inquisitiveness, hostility…all
these feelings were considerably complex, but outwardly, he showed an obedient
bearing.
One under a roof was forced to lower their head.
Hun Tong chose to compromise, and he performed proactively and obeyed all
orders completely. While secretly, he planned to reduce the other’s vigilance,
investigate the truth, distinguish the enemy and him, and look for an
opportunity to escape as much as possible.
Hun Tong’s attitude to this unknown god was reverence, wariness, and faint
hostility.
His loyalty was still to the Sheng Ming Empire.
Ding.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s rod hit Tan Mo on top of the head, causing the
latter’s head to shudder, and his body flashed back in retreat.
Tan Mo had a splitting headache, and he snarled, “[Emancipator], enough!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord immediately transmitted, “We have already signed a
contract, what are you afraid of? Keep the show up, that is the correct path.”
Tan Mo glared back, “You fool! Our true enemy is the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps! What are you thinking, not attacking the true enemy and instead making
things difficult for allies?”
When Snow Bird Harbor City Lord heard that, he suddenly grew more furious, “As
of now, do you really think I can attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as
city lord with you ‘pirates’?
“Let me sober you up a bit.”
“Since this matter has reached this stage, even if your teeth are broken, you
will have to take it! Our performance must go on!”
Tan Mo naturally didn’t want to do that, and he transmitted, “Be a bit gentler,
hit a bit lighter, you’re attacking me too heavily!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord responded, “You believe I don’t want to stay my
hand?! There are innumerable alchemy devices in the process of recording our
fight. If I stay my hand even a bit, it will be an immense flaw.”
He thought, “Although this continued performance frustrates me, beating up Tan
Mo still feels great! This opportunity must be treasured; it rarely appears!”
Tan Mo’s words to Snow Bird Harbor Lord instead made the latter’s attacks even
more ferocious, causing him to promptly persuade from another angle, “The one
who destroyed the magician tower must be the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps,
otherwise who else could it be?”
“They have silver level assistance not on record, they must be hiding a gold
level. Only a gold level would be able to clear out the magician tower in such
a short time.”
“If you expend yourself with me now, how will you deal with the gold level?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord transmitted a sneer back, “How will I deal with
them?”
“Don’t I have you?”
“You are Tan Mo, a gold level imperial navy admiral. You have come to Snow Bird
Harbor to rest and reorganize, and even if you are wounded right now, you can
still appear!”
“No, you have to go into battle to confront these murderous ‘pirates’.”
“If you don’t do that, how can you justify yourself?”
When Tan Mo heard that, he suddenly went sluggish.
He wildly shouted in his mind, “What kind of mess is this?! Not only is the
looting operation a failure, but I also have to return to my actual identity
and attack my subordinates?”
When Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw Ton Mo exposing a weak point, he seized the
opportunity to get a cheap shot with his rod that badly bruised him.
Tan Mo covered his head and retreated again and again.
He was dizzy and his eyes were dim, and he felt like he needed to cough up
blood. 
This was utter nonsense!
He regretted this.
He really regretted this.
He felt immense remorse.
If he had known this matter would develop into this, he wouldn’t have pretended
to be a pirate even if his life was threatened.
Who thought of this stratagem?
Stupid!
So stupid!
“Not I, it was you! You stupidly pressed for it.” Tan Mo scowled as he
transmitted insults, “Without your suggestion, would I ever play pirate?!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was even angrier, thinking to himself, “If you
weren’t such a greedy scumbag, repeated bribe solicitor, and so unwilling to
let go of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, would I have been forced to think of
that idea of you playing pirate?”
Anger was reciprocated with anger, but when Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was
covered in wounds, he still decided to hold back.
He remined, “Now is not the time to look into who to blame.”
“We have a problem!” 
“Get your people out of here now, my magic battle squads are coming!”
“Isn’t it because of you I can’t leave?!” Tan Mo wanted to bawl out but
resisted in doing so.
He also knew the severity of this.
The magic battle squads going into battle meant the battle would truly slip
from their control.
Tan Mo’s subordinates would suffer even more casualties!
This was because every city’s magic battle squad was organized and maintained
through national funds. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s control over them was not
deep enough.
Under these circumstances, the magic battle squads were completely in the dark
and really believed pirates were invading Snow Bird Harbor.
Tan Mo transmitted, “[Emancipator]. Work with me now, let me wound you
seriously so I can escape immediately!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord coldly snorted, why would he give Tan Mo a chance
for personal vengeance?
He definitively declined, “If I suffer a ‘heavy injury’, how will we work
together to face the enemy? Do you not have the alchemy puppet I gave you?”
“Use it to intercept me.”
Seeing Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was unwilling to cooperate, Tan Mo felt
regret, but without other options, he was forced to use the alchemy puppet.
After the gold level alchemy puppet was activated, it “stopped” Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
Without stopping to rest, Tan Mo hurried over to reinforce his subordinates.
He saw his subordinates being surrounded and blocked by the magic battle squads
and the city guard!
The elves were inherently good at magic, and to pretend to be pirates, the
navies didn’t wear their regular equipment and had very low magic resistance.
Tan Mo hurried to the scene, his eyes cracking with fury. The navies’ immense
battle losses caused his heart to bleed!
“These losses, these losses are too high.”
“Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps! I won’t let you off, I will return today’s losses
a thousand fold!”
Tan Mo was an insatiable person, and it was rare for him to suffer losses.
Today, Tan Mo had eaten a massive loss, and he already bore a deep grudge for
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
But now was definitely not the time to retaliate.
Tan Mo could only push down his spite and lead his subordinates out.
With him as the vanguard, the city guard and magic battle squads were forced to
evade and yield space.
The ‘pirates’ at long last had the pressure on them turn down, and they
followed Tan Mo, doing their best to evacuate the battlefield.
On the face of it, they had no ships and were forced to retreat through the
port and withdraw into the interior of Ice Sculpture Island.
Hun Tong returned to the dragonman youngster’s side.
“My Lord, I can intercept Tan Mo.”
“Can they keep performing if they don’t want to?”
“Hehehe, after putting in such effort for this grand performance, is it fine
for it to end so abruptly?”
“It’s such a pity, I’ll help them out.”
The dragonman youngster glanced at Hun Tong, and smiled as he jested, “Hun
Tong, I didn’t expect you’d be somewhat treacherous.”
Hun Tong: ???
He thought to himself: don’t tell me it wasn’t Long Fu who facilitated this
situation?
The dragonman youngster continued, “There is no need to appear. I have a more
suitable candidate.”
As he said that, he cast his gaze towards the port.
A moment later, all kinds of deception divine spells were undone.
A well trained pirate group suddenly appeared!
Their pirate flag was somewhat peculiar, it was an impressive wickerwork
vegetable basket, and in the basket there was a skull.



****** Chapter 693: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Another Explosion ******
“It’s the Vegetable Pirates!”
“Cong Mang, and his Hoodlum battle squad under his command!!”
When Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Tan Mo, and the others saw the pirates
appearing, their hearts jolted greatly.
Why were there really pirates?!
Obviously before their operation, they had specifically used the magician tower
and the patrol fleet to search the surrounding sea waters and found no traces
of enemies, it was very safe.
“What method did they use? They actually had such a powerful camouflage
ability?”
“This is completely inconsistent with the intelligence.”
“Wait a minute, at this time, Cong Mang is serving subordinate to Da Han as his
vanguard official. The Vegetable Pirates appearing here, don’t tell me…Da Han
is right behind him?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo had a formidable information advantage,
and in a split second their minds churned, with each thought scaring them.
If Da Han really was targeting Snow Bird Harbor, then they couldn’t sojourn
here!
The saint level and the gold level were two completely different concepts.
“If the magician tower was still here coordinating with all of the basic
defensive magic formations found throughout Snow Bird Harbor, then we could
last for some time…”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked at the magician tower ruins again, the corner
of his mouth twitching.
Tan Mo led his troops out of the magic battle squad encirclement while his
imagination ran wild, “Could it be the one who destroyed the magician tower was
not from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
He was a bit dazed.
Hun Tong was camouflaged and acted very efficiently when he bombed the magician
tower, he left no evidence behind that pointed towards the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Tan Mo even suspected Snow Bird Harbor City Lord!
The two of them really didn’t trust each other, and if it weren’t for their
magic contract, they would never have been able to work together.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord also thought, “What a coincidence, everything is too
much of a coincidence!”
Right as their performance reached a crucial moment, and after the magician
tower’s defenses had been shut down, pirate experts were mounting a raid? Did
they take advantage of that to blow up the magician tower?
Were the Vegetable Pirates just lucky?
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not naïve.
He was the leader of one of Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s eight harbors, he had mixed
in with the kingdom’s political circles for many years and was also a member of
the Imperial Secret Spy Agency.
Therefore, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo simultaneously felt the strong
stench of a plot.
The only thing they differed on was the suspected target.
The Vegetable Pirates’ appearance was undoubtedly a heavy blow.
Tan Mo became more cautious.
While Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was entangled with the alchemy puppet, he was
giving orders to the city guard and the magic battle squads to move their focus
to dealing with the Vegetable Pirates, indirectly letting Tan Mo and the others
get away.
The pressure on Tan Mo and his navies consequently dropped and they were more
easily able to escape the encirclement.
Cong Mang’s pirates rushed out of the pirate group, and several hundred people
united in action as a grand black expanse charged into the city palace.
“Scramble quickly, that place must have the most money.”
“Nice trick, Commander. You destroyed Snow Bird Harbor’s magician tower!”
“Hahaha, our competitors have expended themselves ahead of us, we emerged at
the right time.”
The Vegetable Pirates were very excited and had exuberant morale.
As they ran past Tan Mo and his people, some pirates bombastically thanked
them.
The navies were green with anger!
To them this was undoubtedly a huge embarrassment.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw the Vegetable Pirates were shockingly going to
attack his city palace, what kind of outrage was this?
He promptly abandoned trading blows with the alchemy puppet and rushed back to
the city palace.
“Little ones, you must rob well for me!” When Cong Mang saw this, he lifted his
gold level long rod and stopped walking, turning back to welcome Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord.
The fight between the two immediately turned intense.
“Fuck off!” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was incredibly anxious, displaying his
full strength and using all kinds of battle skills and spells in turn.
Cong Mang mainly defended himself and was pushed into a disadvantageous
position. But on the contrary, he wasn’t worried and held the initiative.
As long as he stalled Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the pirates could steal an
exceedingly considerable amount of wealth.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could abandon the alchemy puppet, but he was unable
to free himself from Cong Mang. He resisted his anger, calmed himself, and
sneered at Cong Mang, “Do you believe I don’t have arrangements in the city
palace?”
Cong Mang burst into laughter, “Of course we know, but we know that it holds
the most amount of money in Snow Bird Harbor!”
“Sacrificing some people for wealth is very normal.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord gnashed his teeth, “You damn pirates!!”
Since he couldn’t break away, he decided to attack madly with rage.
Far off, Hun Tong was amazed as he watched Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was in an
abyss of suffering with Cong Mang.
He didn’t think that actual pirates would appear!
“All kinds of signs indicate that this is obviously Long Fu’s plan.”
“In that case, what is the relationship with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
and the Vegetable Pirates?”
“Or perhaps the Vegetable Pirates are a pawn of that god too?”
Hun Tong slyly observed the dragonman youngster, increasingly feeling the
latter was a profound mystery.
The reality was that after the dragonman youngster and Zi Di talked, he learned
of the Vegetable Pirates’ connection with the Wisteria Merchant Alliance and
that Elder Jiu Jin had invited Cong Mang over to the Ice Sculpture Capital to
secretly open the Wisteria Cache.
Therefore, he used Elder Jiu Jin’s appearance to contact the Vegetable Pirates.
The then publicly used a divine spell to win their trust and arrange for the
Vegetable Pirates to attack Snow Bird Harbor.
“Pirates are always an adventurous lot.”
“Cong Mang is a pirate leader, and the fact that he went to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, a principal enemy of his, upon invitation, to conspire for the
Wisteria Cache proves his extremely adventurous spirit.”
The dragonman youngster judged Cong Mang’s personality, allowing him to think
of this plan.
After implementing it, sure enough it worked.
Looking at it currently, it seemed to have a great result.
The dragonman youngster imperceivably glanced at Hun Tong.
He clearly understood Hun Tong’s mood and thinking.
Despite having methods that could plant false memories into Hun Tong that could
turn him into a fanatic for him like Xiao Wang Zi and the others, the young man
believed that doing this was instead ineffective.
Hun Tong’s status, interpersonal relationships, and abilities were valuable.
Hun Tong’s current situation made the dragonman youngster resolve to attempt to
deepen his subjugation of him.
“Charge!”
“This is mine, this is also mine.”
“Wa ha ha, so many gold coins, lots of gold coins.”
The pirates were extremely excited.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s look gradually shifted.
He noticed that the city palace’s defenses were minuscule, and that the person
he assigned to stand watch over it, Mei Lan Du, vanished without a trace. None
of the city palace’s traps had triggered either.
“Damn it!” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord wanted to charge in, but Cong Mang
tenaciously stopped him.
The big guy, Da Dou, as well as Hong Zhu had already left the city palace and
were watching from some calm corner.
Hong Zhu’s face was blushed red with excitement as she hugged a large amount of
treasure.
The big guy held even more valuables.
Da Dou’s storage pouch had been packed full, and he was also holding a
prisoner. It was Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s palace supervisor Mei Lan Du.
“It’s almost time.” Da Dou took out an alchemy device.
He pressed down on the device’s button.
Boom.
A moment later, the city palace exploded!
Hun Tong, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Tan Mo, as well as Cong Mang: ??!!
Only the dragonman youngster’s gaze was serene: the Vegetable Pirates deserved
to die!
The dragonman youngster would not stand by and watch as pirates plundered the
populace of Snow Bird Harbor after looting the city palace.
Besides, without his crew, Cong Mang’s strength would decrease, and then,
wouldn’t it be easier to control him?



****** Chapter 694: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – A New View of Life ******
Cong Mang’s eyes went red.
The city palace’s explosion had buried most of his crew in the grave.
“The city palace had a bomb inside it!?”
Cong Mang’s people didn’t think they’d be killed while looting.
The Vegetable Pirates’ suffered serious battle casualties, not only was 70% of
them gone, that number included some ringleaders and elites.
Even Cong Mang’s assistant, the pirate group’s first mate, was among the slain.
The only thing that brought Cong Mang joy was that the pirates outside the city
palace were all experts, including the Hoodlum battle squad. They had the same
duty as Cong Mang, holding back Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the city guard, and
other forces from entering.
It instead let them survive this calamity.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s lifeless dazed face reflected in the burning
flames.
“There is a conspiracy afoot here, there must be one afoot!” After reacting, he
roared in his thoughts.
He was certain he hadn’t deployed an alchemy bomb inside the city palace, that
was not his style!
The pirates wouldn’t blow themselves up either.
Tan Mo? He was a greedy character, and he was attacking the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps for money. But he signed a contract, why did he want to blow up
his ally’s base?
Adding on the coincidence with the magician tower, this caused Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord to conclude that there must be a third party acting in the dark.
“A gold level appeared inside the magician tower, they are likely from that
third party.”
“Cong Mang’s Vegetable Pirates don’t have a powerful camouflage ability, then
suddenly they do. That might also be from that third party!”
“I have to ferret them out…”
Boom.
A moment later, Cong Mang’s battle skill violently swung at him.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s train of thought was interrupted, and he was
forced to use a defensive battle skill.
Both sides collided head on, and Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was flung into the
air and coughed out a lot of blood.
“Despicable snow elf, you’re going to hell!”
“I’ll kill you and bury you with my people!!”
The horrific losses made Cong Mang extremely angry, and he madly and
ferociously retaliated.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord coldly snorted, and after regaining his footing, he
counterattacked.
His short rod jabbed towards Cong Mang, but Cong Mang changed his fighting
style and didn’t dodge it, instead he held his long rod tightly and swept it
away with all his strength.
Battle skill – Sweep! Divine spell – Bear Strength.
Battle skill – Straight Stab. Spell – Haste.
Cong Mang battled Snow Bird Harbor City Lord!
After that outrageous clash, Cong Mang stood in place as his face quickly
flushed red, then his laryngeal prominence rolled and he gargled blood.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was thrown into the air again, and because of the
force of the impact, his slender elven body was violently bent backwards. He
landed on his back, and upon landing, he immediately bounced back, nimbly
somersaulted through the air, and landed on the ground in a kneel, his eyes
fixed on Cong Mang.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s left arm slightly trembled, and just as he wanted
to catch his breath, he saw Cong Mang’s body crackling with gold battle qi, his
tense muscles looking like a bear.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord promptly used all kinds of spells to increase his
defense and other attributes.
A moment later, Cong Mang widely attacked like a torrential gale that shrouded
the former.
Unlike before, this time Cong Mang firmly held the upper hand and was beating
down Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The dragonman youngster watched from a distant place, his dragon eyes
reflecting the particulars of the fight between Cong Mang and Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord.
“Snow Bird Harbor City Lord dual cultivates battle qi and magic, and within a
short time span, he is able to use al kinds of small scale battle skills and
spells to constantly accumulate an advantage in battle, until quantity leads to
a qualitative change, making him victorious.”
“Cong Mang is a dual cultivator of battle qi and divine spells, his long rod is
his main weapon, and his offensive is very wide ranging. He mainly uses divine
spells to enhance his defense and achieve balance between attack and defense,
at the same time because divine spells are comprehensive in all aspects, it can
enhance his status overall, giving him a bear’s strength, a leopard’s speed,
and a bird’s eyesight.”
Both had their distinct fighting style.
Cong Mang’s role was to use his personal combat strength to charge through the
battlefield. The information the dragonman youngster collected had been proven
when the Vegetable Pirates fought, Cong Mang normally took the lead and relied
on his individual fighting strength to break through the enemy ranks, smash the
battlefield equilibrium, then the Hoodlum battle squad would follow in soon
after to stabilize the breach he tore open.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was more meticulous, actually he was more of an
expert in one on one combat.
But the main reason he was conceding ground was that Cong Man was recklessly
attacking in anger, eager to seek vengeance and willing to sustain injuries if
he could inflict heavier wounds to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
While Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was unwilling to risk doing that.
It wasn’t that he lacked bravery, rather he discovered that there was a third
party around, so naturally he wanted to conserve his strength as much as
possible.
If he went all out now, perhaps he’d give that other power a petty advantage!
Cong Mang was going all out while Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was apprehensive
and constrained.
Very quickly, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord understood Tan Mo’s pain – he was
repeatedly beaten up by Cong Mang’s attacks.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s right eye was jabbed by a rod, swelling greatly
and turning a black-purple color.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord howled at Cong Mang, “You idiotic pirate, wake up,
do you really think I’d blow up my own home?”
Cang Mang howled back, “Why not?”
He didn’t stop attacking for even a second!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stared blankly for an instant, then was forced to
retreat from this difficult situation and jumped away.
Seeing this, Da Dou couldn’t help but laugh.
As a gold level giant magic chef, he should have been an honored guest, but
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord secretly arrested him and forced him to eat improved
versions of the Deep Sigh of the Blue Ocean all day long. If it was another
kind of magic medicine, it would have been fine. But these improved versions
were a type of magic dish, which was a slap in Da Dou’s face.
Upon seeing Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s sorry figure running from a fight, Da
Dou naturally took pleasure in it.
But at the same time, he still didn’t forget to be vigilant.
Snow Bird Harbor was sinking into commotion and chaos.
The pirate attack was too big, but fortunately the battlefield was limited and
hadn’t expanded yet, so civilian casualties were minimal.
To the side, Hong Zhu was excitedly inventorying her valuables.
Da Dou looked at the big guy again.
The big guy was silent, his eyes leaking azure divine light. It was clear he
was under Divine Descent.
It was precisely with this state that the big guy freed the three of them,
stole an enormous amount of valuables from the city palace, and left behind
facades that disguised countless valuables that baited the feverish pirates
into a trap.
The dragonman youngster controlled both his body and the big guy, maintaining
Divine Descent.
In the beginning, this would have been impossible for him.
But that was how things were, practice makes perfect. 
The dragonman youngster naturally became proficient after many usages.
Of course, the divine blessings provided plenty of casting experiences that let
him skip over a long process of inefficient individual accumulation cycles and
was instantly able to divide his attention and mind to this level.
As a matter of fact, not only was the dragonman youngster controlling two
bodies at once, but he was also evaluating things in his mind too.
“People are jaggedly different.”
Cong Mang’s temperament was impetuous; he liked to take risks and often gave no
thought to if he lived or died. Therefore, the bomb and suicide explosion
attack was very normal to him. He projected this onto others and maintained
that Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would have done that. That caused a
misunderstanding.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord? Planting a bomb in his residence is not his style.
There was a high probability he wouldn’t have done such a thing.
He liked to plan then move, ensuring his chances of winning before acting. His
style was to remain still, then kill in a single strike.
The dragonman youngster personally experienced this with the Bayonet Gang’s
destruction, thus he had a considerable understanding of Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord.
Combined with the information he gained, his understanding of Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord had deepened.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s plot to dismantle the Bayonet Gang had begun a
long time ago. He feigned compliance while planting spies.
He placed spies that became two of the Bayonet Gang’s six ringleaders. One
third of the Bayonet Gang’s leadership was his people!
But he still didn’t act, rather he waited for an opportune moment, all the way
until the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps appeared, who he saw as his shield. That
is the reason why he made nothing of hardships and used great interests to spur
the survivors into standing up.
Then, as city lord, he intervened as a third party, acting in the early stages
to paralysis the Bayonet Gang as much as possible.
Afterwards, he utilized Mei Lan Du’s abilities to secretly tamper with Teng
Dong Lang’s food and drink.
In an overall survey of the situation, he did his utmost to prevent direct
confrontation and maximize his rate of success. All kinds of measures over a
long period of time accumulated into an enormous advantage, until finally he
moved openly.
When he moved, it was like a thunderstrike to an acupuncture point, instant
results!
He was not a general, but a schemer, the way a politician behaved.
Would such a politician and schemer plant a bomb in his own home?
Few would do so.
Because a person with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s temperament couldn’t sleep
under threat. He was immersed in the world of plots and was paranoid enough.
Putting a bomb in his own home would cause him to think daily: would the bomb
accidentally explode; would an enemy find and exploit it?
A schemer like him wished to put himself in the safest environment, and barring
unusual circumstances, wouldn’t give himself more stress!
“Furthermore, the reason why Snow Bird Harbor City Lord serves his post is
because he is burdened with an Imperial Secret Spy mission.”
“Snow Bird Harbor is a coastal city and one of Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s eight
large trading harbors.”
“The Imperial Secret Spy Agency controlling the city lord might mean they want
to gain a deeper control over Snow Bird Harbor.”
“Therefore, the one assigned to be the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s is no mere
figurehead, he is likely to be a member of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency.”
“Under these circumstances, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would never plant a bomb
in his palace.”
The dragonman youngster pondered constantly, his mind freely inundating with
all kinds of thoughts.
This was the first time he fought a battle as the hidden hand.
He profited considerably from this alteration of his customary style, along
with the new and unique practical experience it brought.
From Cong Mang, he saw a shadow of his past.
From the misunderstanding between Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Cong Mang, and
the conflict it brought, he had more of an appreciation of the immense
influence personality had in conspiracies.
“Is this how a chess player feels when they lay things out?”
“It is truly unique, this feeling of control and achievement can’t help but
make people soak in it, furthermore…it lingers in the memory.”
One could say that his exploitation of Charming Blue Goddess’ power in Ocean
Mother Nest, receiving of divine oracles, and constant successful deceptions
were a kind of guidance and teaching.
So that now, he was able to independently control an entire war situation by
himself, he had studied so he could apply himself here.
Learning and applying, through practical application are studies validated and
understood. All kinds of triggers let the dragonman youngster feel that a new
door opened in his life, through which he had a completely new view of life!



****** Chapter 695: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Hou Lang Appears ******
“This time, things have really gotten out of hand!” When the city palace
exploded, even Tan Mo was dumbfounded for a good while.
“What’s going on with [Emancipator]?! He was convinced he had immense control
over Snow Bird Harbor…”
“Is that it?”
Tan Mo was excessively greedy, but not foolish. On the contrary, he had
outstanding investigatory abilities, or else not long after coming to Snow Bird
Harbor, he wouldn’t have so quickly snooped out Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s
shenanigans and forced the latter to submit.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw through this plot, and so did he.
The dragonman youngster’s first time was still too rough. If Cang Xu were here,
it would be completely different.
Tan Mo’s reaction was different from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
After breaking out of the siege he had time and space to revert to his original
navy identity, but he didn’t rush out to battle.
“Let me stall for a bit.”
Tan Mo even poured himself a cup of red wine and slowly savored it.
Snow Bird Harbor had suffered heavy damage, with the magician tower and city
palace being bombed in succession.
The situation was extremely critical.
“But this isn’t my city, right? I only came to make money!” Tan Mo cried in his
thoughts. He drank his wine while he wiped the bloodstains off his face.
“This is not my responsibility, it is not my city, it is not my affair.”
“When I was attacked by pirates on the sea, I fell unconscious due to injuries,
therefore, I had no choice but to come to Snow Bird Harbor to recuperate.”
“I have nothing to do with any of this, I am a victim, my injuries are very
heavy, I have been secretly recovering. When the pirates attacked, I was in a
deep sleep and didn’t know what was happening.”
“But the pirates were too noisy, and I was awoken by my subordinates’ reports.”
“Despite my heavy injuries, I am part of the navy, and I cannot turn a blind
eye to the atrocities and sins before my eyes.”
“Therefore, I risked my life and dragged out my wounded body. Yes, this is
important! In future reports this must be emphasized. I went to battle in the
later stages of it.”
“My injuries were too heavy, and I hadn’t recovered well enough yet. Therefore,
don’t blame my “halfhearted effort”, I had a terrible loss and cutting my
losses at the right time is the right way of things.”
“Oh, I made the mistake of accidentally saying the truth.”
“In short, I will still go into battle.”
“Due to my injuries, I am barely able to fight.”
“What style is this? This is the noble style of the Sheng Ming Empire; I cannot
bear to see sin run amuck and need to carry out naval justice. This is the Tan
Tu Clan’s family customs, and I am one with the empire’s honor!”
“Alright, this is the report that will be sent, it’ll be enough to get at least
an oral commendation?”
“As for the naval losses, am I able to cover it up?”
His avaricious personality let Tan Mo decide to stop his losses at the right
time!
Therefore, when he regained his true identity and went into the battle, this is
what he did:
Tan Mo went on stage with excessive grandeur and shouted to Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord, “City Lord, I have come to help you!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord coughed out, “You finally came!”
The city lord had complex feelings.
Despite Tan Mo forcing his submission, despite sinking into this plight because
of Tan Mo, and despite him just beating Tan Mo up earlier (truth be told, he
found it invigorating), right now, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord still looked
forward to Tan Mo fighting.
Ding.
A moment later, Tan Mo was swept and tossed away into the distance by Cong
Mang’s rod.
Tan Mo struggled to get up, he was kneeling, and his face was deathly white,
but his expression was still firm, and his battle intent clearly remained.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: ?!
He realized things were anything but reassuring.
Tan Mo charged again and was once more flung away.
Tan Mo rose and fell time and again, fighting despite continual setbacks.
Tan Mo’s yells began to grow hoarse as he was soaked in blood, yet Tan Mo still
fought on bravely.
His contribution to the battlefield was horrendous, and his most prominent
thing was his “performance”.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord completely understood what Tan Mo’s plan was.
The help he originally placed his hope in actually turned up like this!!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord for a moment, simply wanted to spit blood. He
bellowed in his transmission to Tan Mo, “What are you doing? What are you
thinking?!!”
Tan Mo faintly responded on the sly, “City Lord, don’t be so hasty.”
“Don’t forget, when I requested to enter the harbor, my application clearly
stated: I was seriously wounded in a naval battle and will be recovering in the
harbor.”
“I…I…you…” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was furious, and he wanted to curse, but
due to his anger, he was stammering.
Tan Mo was not worried about what Snow Bird Harbor City Lord thought of him.
The two of them had signed a contract, and he had information against Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord, he could certainly destroy him!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord inhaled constantly, shouting from the bottom of his
heart. “I need to calm down! Keep calm!”
He knew he couldn’t beat Cong Mang.
This pirate leader was impressively strong and was well known on the seas for
charging in first, he was not weak.
Adding on that hidden third party, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord found that his
best way forward was to win over Tan Mo’s true cooperation.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could only deal with Cong Mang while transmitting to
Tan Mo.
Tan Mo sent a warning, “Be careful!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord saw a shadow flashing before him.
A moment later, Cong Mang’s long rod fell from the sky and smashed into his
head.
The battle qi protecting Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s body loudly crumbled
apart.
He howled in pain and was smacked through the air like a ball.
After falling to the ground, he wanted to stand up, only to meet Cong Mang’s
next attack, forcing him to roll across the ground in sorry manner.
Tan Mo shouted and stepped forth to lend a hand.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord seized the opportunity to stand back up.
His head was broken.
Blood leaked from the top of his head, dripping past his forehead.
His eyes went dark for a spell.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord promptly took out a potion and drank it.
Tan Mo at that moment transmitted, “[Emancipator]! During battle, don’t be
distracted. Fight well, this is your city, and this battle is depending on
you.”
Pop.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord couldn’t stand it anymore, and he angrily coughed
out blood, including the medicine he just consumed.
“Ahh!” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord furiously shouted, his hair disheveled and
body covered in injuries.
He was extremely angry and irate.
Not bothering to drink the rest of the medicine, he threw himself at Cong Mang.
In this bout, his style suddenly changed to one similar to Cong Mang, he no
longer dodged and weaved and was now fighting to the death with all his
strength.
Seeing this crucial point, Tan Mo withdrew.
The two feverishly and wildly risked it all, each standing their ground and
rarely evading as they attacked each other with all their strength.
“Amazing, truly amazing.” Tan Mo couldn’t help but draw a cold breath at this.
The incomparably fierce contest violently grinded at the two’s battle qi,
magic, and divine power.
Pow.
With a sound, both the long rod and the short rod could no longer bear their
burdens, and after countless intense collisions, they crumbled apart.
The head of Cong Mang’s rod broke, while Snow Bird Harbor City Lord tossed away
his useless short rod, continuing to fight with the remaining one.
“Strong enough, this is strong enough, hahaha.” Cong Mang grew increasingly
intoxicated as he progressively displayed the bearing of a battle maniac.
“Die, go and die!” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord constantly harped on, his
dreadful gaze was full of animosity, like he wanted to eat him.
But the two’s combat strength began to rapidly wane.
They were tired.
Stamina, battle intent, and transcendent energy had been depleted too severely
and fell to rock bottom.
Seeing this, Tan Mo’s eyes shined, and he began to get restless.
“The crucial moment is almost here.” The dragonman youngster mumbled to
himself.
Standing next to him, Hun Tong suddenly quivered, thinking, “Long Fu finally
wants to tidy up the battlefield. But there was still one big worry, the saint
level Tan Mo’s Treasure Chest was hiding. Up until now, they haven’t appeared,
I wonder if they are still alive?”
Dao Hen and Hun Tong had been on the Treasure Chest for a long time and were
quite familiar with the happenings on the ship.
But later on, Hun Tong and Dao Hen were deployed to the capital, and they
weren’t able to keep investigating the Treasure Chest.
The dragonman youngster shook his head, extended his fingers, and clenched
them, feeling his power.
In Hun Tong’s field of view, the dragonman youngster’s body suddenly lit up.
The luminosity was immense, and the sting of it forced him to narrow his eyes.
When the radiance dissipated, Long Fu’s form changed dramatically.
His towering body only became 1.6 meters, and he looked heavy and obese.
Layers of red dragon scales had changed into dark blue fish scales. The fish
scales had a natural black ripple to them, forming the look of waves.
The once taut muscle lines became soft, and one could see increased fat
superseding muscle.
The mighty dragon head turned into a fish head, the eyes became gigantic and
split on both sides of the skull, and the pupils were as pure black as the
abyss.
Hun Tong’s heart shook in the wake of that, and he unavoidably thought, “Could
this be Long Fu’s true identity?!”
In a split second, he thought of Dao Hen, the Blue Green Coral Fishman Clan,
and of the many other indicators and clues.
The fishman youngster took a light breath, lowered his webbed fishman palms,
and began to cast.
Spell – Bear’s Strength. Substantial Strength Enhancement.
Spell – Cat’s Agility. Substantial Dexterity Enhancement.
Spell – Leopard’s Speed. Substantial Movement Enhancement.
…
Divine spell – Strengthen Body. Comprehensive medium ranged constitution
increase, including strength, endurance, recovery power, physical power, and
other attributes.
Divine spell – Halo of Intellect. Increases intelligence and insight, making
casters smarter and resourceful.
Divine spell – Lifeform Blessing. Substantially increases self-healing.
…
Ten divine and magic spells in a row enhancing the fishman youngster caused his
personal transcendent aura to rise little by little.
Hun Tong was dumbfounded by everything he saw with his eyes!
Shock was across his entire face.
“How can he be enhanced by so many magic and divine spells?”
Enhancement divine and magic spells were doubtlessly good things, but a
transcendent couldn’t enhance themselves infinitely.
It was like stacking iron sheets on top of a brick. The more iron sheets were
added, the heavier the burden on the brick. There would come a day when the
iron sheets would crush the brick.
No matter what kind of enhancement was used, it would temporarily boost a
transcendent with external power.
A transcendent naturally needed to bear the burden of it.
Overburdening oneself would endanger a transcendent’s life.



****** Chapter 696: Snow Bird Harbor Battle – Shock! ******
In real life, even during fights to the death, transcendents would cautiously
pick some limited methods of enhancing themselves. Because even a small burden
could affect their displayable combat strength.
This impact was immense, and there were countless cases that told numerous
transcendents that they had to treat enhancement methods prudently and not to
covet them, as the gains don’t make up for the losses.
However now, the fishman youngster had smashed Hun Tong’s understanding.
Of course, Hun Tong didn’t think the fishman youngster was being foolish. If
the fishman youngster was that stupid, he wouldn’t have been able to control
the battlefield to this extent.
Therefore, there was only one answer.
It was that the fishman youngster had an insane tolerance and could bear so
many enhancement methods.
And what kind of existence could do this?
Hun Tong was well aware, “A saint level bloodline!”
“Despite Long Fu only being a gold level now, his bloodline quality is
obviously very high, it is at least saint level and has remarkable
concentration.”
“It is because of that he is able to have such a formidable burden capacity and
can simultaneously use so many magic and divine enhancement spells.”
In a split second, the fishman youngster became different in Hun Tong’s eyes.
“So long as he continues to grow, he will become a saint level in the future!”
Hun Tong gasped in surprise.
Magic spell – Ring of Fire Barrier. A ring of fire instantly formed and
revolved around the fishman youngster. So long as it was triggered, it could
explode with immense tempestuous power in all directions, accompanied by
scorching flames.
Magic spell – Whirlpool Shield. A water barrier covered the fishman youngster’s
entire body, giving him omnidirectional protection.
Magic spell – Wind Wings. Light green wind elemental wings appeared half a
meter behind the fishman youngster’s shoulder blades. When flapped they
produced a speed as fast as a gale for him.
…
Divine spell – Saintly Healing Light. The fishman youngster’s scales began to
glisten with white starry specks, and if he was injured, they would gather
together and heal the wound vigorously.
Divine spell – Shadow Shelter. Underneath the fishman youngster’s feet, a
shadow possessing defensive properties appeared. During a crucial moment, it
could instantly cover his body and take a mortal blow for the young man.
Divine spell – Elemental Attractiveness. After the fishman youngster was
enhanced by this, external natural elements would be greatly attracted to him,
increasing his elemental absorption rate several-fold.
…
Hun Tong’s chin looked like a suspended anvil, his mouth wide open.
He saw the fishman youngster was armed to the teeth! His entire body was
wreathed with all types of magic, divine spells, white starlight, a flaming
ring, a blue water barrier, green wind wings, and more. They reflected each
other in a neat and tidy manner.
Hun Tong was utterly stunned!
“This…”
“There is no way Long Fu just has a saint level bloodline.”
“He might actually be more…a legend level!”
“He is a legend level seed!”
“The saint level is not his limit; he is bound to be part of the legend level
world.”
The fishman youngster’s transcendent aura increased sharply again, like it was
a majestic peak slowly rising.
He was pleased to see Hun Tong’s changing expression as the latter took in the
whole scene.
The reason why he changed in front of Hun Tong was to firmly awe the latter and
change the impression in Hun Tong’s heart.
“Although I can still add more enhancements, there is no need to.”
“This is more than enough.”
The fishman youngster’s Surging Wave fishman form had already far surpassed the
dragonman bloodline, it was a 100% god level bloodline.
In other words, his end point was the god level.
As for the dragonman bloodline, it was inherently the Flame Dragon King
Bloodline. However, because the bloodline concentration was too low, there were
many human characteristics remaining. If his bloodline concentration became
high enough, then the young man wouldn’t be a dragonman but a gigantic dragon
form.
The fishman youngster’s Surging Wave fishman form was strong enough to bear the
weight of divinity, carrying these magic and divine spells was absolutely not a
problem.
The fishman youngster’s mind stirred, and he slowly flew into the air.
Of the magics and divine spells on his body, at least three were helping him do
this.
In the air, he undid several deception divine spells.
When that happened, his aura could finally be felt.
“Who is that?!” The embattled Tan Mo, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and Cong Mang
seemed to be shocked similarly, their expression radically changed and they
stopped fighting.
The fierce all out brawl came to a grunting stop.
It was simply because the fishman youngster’s transcendent aura was simply too
powerful!
Despite only being a gold level, his transcendent aura was a boundless tempest.
Compared to him, Cong Mang’s and the other’s auras were like fireflies to a
light bulb.
“A gold level, but very strong. No, extraordinarily strong!” Cong Mang, the
pirate leader with an irascible temper, was presently looking grave.
“The third party finally acted? So many enhancement methods, that, isn’t that
too outrageous?” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s mouth and tongue were dry as he
looked up at the dazzling figure in the air, it looked similar to Feng Lian.
“Damn it, there really was a hidden hand. Oh dear! If the secret saint level
passenger were still here, how good it’d be!” Tan Mo was on the tenterhooks.
The fishman youngster hadn’t moved, yet his majestic transcendent aura had
already intimidated the three gold levels. 
Soon after, the fishman youngster slowly extended his palm, the center of which
was aimed at Tan Mo.
“Hey, hey, hey, why do you want to deal with me first?!” Tan Mo felt the target
on him, and he rushed away in retreat with astonishing speed.
At that crucial moment, he didn’t dare to keep up his performance.
Bloop.
With a light echo, a slender dark blue stream of water that appeared
deceptively slow, rapidly streaked through the sky towards the springing Tan
Mo.
Tan Mo was wildly shifting his position as he fled, assuming a random
sidestepping running style.
But the stream of water followed his zig zagging, and even winded around all
kinds of obstacles, then smoothly hit Tan Mo in the back.
Tan Mo shouted, activating all of his equipment and using his strongest
defensive battle skill.
Ding!
An explosion that filled the entire sky with mist. Blood splattered, and Tan Mo
looked like a dead dog as he was tossed a distance, then was smashed into the
ground.
There was a massive cut in his back, almost cutting through his entire body.
His backbone was completely gone, and watery blood was wildly bubbling out.
The defensive alchemy items used were totally ruptured and destroyed.
As Tan Mo sensed the signs of death, he subconsciously bit down on a modified
tooth.
The tooth shattered, and life saving healing medicine quickly too effect,
suspending him in life.
One blow, just one blow was enough to bring Tan Mo to the edge of death!
The fishman youngster’s offensive magic was obviously the ordinary water type
magic [Water Stream]. But due to his incredibly enhanced state and god level
fishman bloodline, it led to this average and ordinary Water Stream spell
reaching a horrifying level of power!
When Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Cong Mang saw this devastation, their
battle intent vanished.
The two glanced at each other, no longer thinking of carving the hated other
into pieces.
They could see the other’s notion, that was to flee!
Thus, a moment later, Cong Mang and Snow Bird Harbor City Lord suddenly
launched out in opposite directions, evacuating with great speed.
The fishman youngster laughed.
He gazed at Snow Bird Harbor City Lord in the distance.
Divine spell – Deterrence spell!
This type of divine spell was similar to Dragon Prestige; it utilizes a
superior lifeform and transcendent aura to deter. A good effect could cause an
enemy to freeze and be taken advantage of. A bad result could at least affect
an enemy, deforming their movement and diminishing their battle intent.
The incorporeal Deterrence spell instantly covered Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
A moment later, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord felt his entire soul being crushed,
like a giant mountain was suddenly crushing him.
He was unable to adjust his movement and could only watch helplessly as he ran
into a wall.
He was a gold level, and it took running through three walls before he fell to
the ground.
An instant defeat!
The fishman youngster’s second attack was more outstanding than his first.
“Is it because of bloodline enhancement?” The fishman youngster instantly
understood why.
His Surging Wave fishman bloodline was the race’s strongest bloodline in the
divine spell system, and it immensely enhanced divine spells.
This kind of amplification far surpassed the magic and divine spells enhancing
him.
From this point, one could make out how important bloodlines were to
transcendents!
Finally, there was Cong Mang.
This time, the fishman youngster decided to do the job himself.
He thought it, and space around him shook, forming a rippling circular wave.
Like he was merging with water, he squeezed into the spatial ripple and
vanished from the air.
A moment later, he abruptly appeared in front of Cong Mang.
“Fuck off!” Cong Mang shrieked, and using all of his strength, he used his most
powerful battle skill and formidable divine spell.
Battle skill – Great Evil Rod!
Divine spell – Divine Wrath!
Gold battle qi covered the broken long rod, swelling its volume several-fold,
and he ferociously swung it down.
The Ring of Fire was first to resist it and was triggered.
A fierce air wave, mixed with scorching flames quickly swept all around.
Cong Mang was pushed back a step, most of the gold battle qi dissipating around
his rod, but it still remained strong, breaking through this defense and
continuing its attack trajectory.
Then it was the divine spell [Electric Chainmail].
Lightning shot out and curled upwards, bursting across the long rod’s battle
qi, dissipating it completely, the long rod beginning to crack and burn.
Finally, the spell [Whirlpool Shield].
The water shield was thumped by the charred black rod, its surface forming a
fierce whirlpool that wanted to disperse the collision’s power.
A moment later, the water shield collapsed into countless droplets that sprayed
in all directions.
The long rod’s attack had broken through the limits of its defenses, but
[Whirlpool Shield] displayed its deserving characteristic – it perfectly
dissipated the long rod’s firepower and the fishman youngster wasn’t battered
by it.
Ding.
The blackened long rod ruptured apart with a brittle crunch.
Cong Mang was covered head to toe in sprouts of burning fire (Ring of Fire),
his muscles twitched with flickering lightning (Electric Chainmail), and his
chest was covered in scarlet cuts (created when Whirlpool Shield burst apart).
All of his power was placed into that attack, and naturally he wasn’t balancing
his defense.
Cong Mang’s transcendent aura fell to rock bottom.
On the contrary, the fishman youngster hadn’t even moved from where he stood.
Because Whirlpool Shield was dispelled, his true colors were exposed.
He gazed indifferently, “Pretty good, pretty good, you destroyed three levels
of my transcendent defenses.”
His body still had a profusion of dazzling and brilliant colors; there were
still at least 20 layers of transcendent defenses left.
Cong Mang glowered at the fishman youngster and was just about to bawl out
something.
When suddenly, a hand formed from condensed water reached out and grabbed Cong
Mang by the nape, lifting him up.
Cong Mang’s legs gradually left the ground, and he had a hard time breathing.
With a red face and his shattered rod abandoned, he tried to push the giant
water hand off of him.
He wanted to resist and throw off the bind that was gradually choking him, but
the strike he just made took almost all of his remaining battle qi.
Although he still had some divine power left, he was unable to mobilize it –
the fishman youngster effortlessly restrained him.
“I didn’t expect that I would die here! Cong Mang’s vision went black for a
moment.
The fishman youngster faintly laughed, then the space behind him rippled again.
The ripple expanded, and the fishman youngster turned around and entered,
vanishing.
Soon after, the big water hand holding Cong Mang also entered the spatial
ripple.
The two disappeared together.
Thus, the battle of Snow Bird Harbor ended.



****** Chapter 697: Island Arrivals ******
Ice Sculpture Island.
One of the eight trading harbors – Munitions Harbor.
The pirate boss Hong Pa was sitting on a large chair, his mouth biting a
watermelon.
He was sitting on his flagship’s deck, gazing at Munitions Harbor in the
distance.
Munitions Harbor was already on guard, the magician tower was emitting a vast
light, and a giant magic formation was activated which raised a magical light
wall.
The light wall was as multicolored as an aurora, and it extended from the earth
to the heavens, intercepting all enemy attacks.
The Dread Firepower Pirates led by Hong Pa were being blocked by this light
wall.
“First round of bombardment, prepare the Baby Bird Mushroom Cloud shells.” The
Dread Firepower Pirates’ first mate was located on the bow house, his hand
holding an alchemy device, and directing the bombardment on behalf of the
commander.
The Firepower Pirates’ ships were already in a single file line, with every
cannon of all sizes and lengths densely packed and concentrated together.
Bang, bang, bang…
A moment later, artillery shells fired, and smoke sprung up everywhere.
Not all cannons were firing, only the longest ones.
After roughly 50 shells were discharged, steel wings popped out from the
shells’ sides. The steel wings vibrated in the air, producing a warbling-like
noise.
The artillery shells flew high into the air, then began to follow a full
parabola as they slowly descended.
They all hid the multicolored light wall.
Boom, boom, boom…
Each artillery shell explosion issued an ear-splitting sound.
In the huge air waves, a white mushroom cloud quickly rose.
After the smoke dissipated, the multicolored light wall thinned by one third,
yet it still remained massive.
“Munitions Harbor’s magician tower combined with seven different defensive
magic formations to create the large-scale magic [Great Aurora Wall], its
defense really is astonishing!” The first mate sighed ruefully.
After sighing, he calmed down, and continued to order, “Second round of
bombardment, fire the Python Shot.”
This time, two long cannons fired simultaneously.
Approximately three hundred Python Shots exploded into the air, transforming
into gigantic lightning pythons that charged into the [Great Aurora Wall].
These pythons looked like giant sea monsters that were constantly churning and
stirring inside the great wall.
The [Great Aurora Wall] exploded with intense radiance, encircling and subduing
the lighting pythons in it.
After a bout, the lighting pythons dissipated into nothingness.
The pirate first mate’s eyes flashed sharply, “[The Great Aurora Wall] has been
weakened by two thirds.”
“Then let’s put in our energy into the third round.”
He suddenly raised his voice, ordering through an alchemy device, “Third round
of bombardment, Space Breaker Shot, fire!”
This time, the short cannons were fired too.
Countless ball shaped artillery shells were loaded into the cannons, then fired
into the air.
After they smashed into the [Great Aurora Wall], they instantly collapsed.
There was no gunpowder explosions, rather innumerable ball shaped spatial
cracks began to quickly form.
The clumps of spatial cracks connected with each other and joined together.
Quantity turned into a qualitative change, creating an immense spatial crevice.
The spatial cracks covered the [Great Aurora Wall], its light had reached its
darkest and its transcendent aura was at its weakest.
But at that moment, magic power drained from the magician tower at a frightful
rate, imbuing it into the [Great Aurora Wall].
The [Great Aurora Wall]’s depressed state was cleansed away, and it once again
became vast, thick, and dazzlingly radiant.
The first mate was flabbergasted, “This, this…”
Clack, clack.
The pirate commander Hong Pa finally finished his watermelon, and he stood up
clapping his hands.
The multicolored aurora illuminated his pig face.
His face was shrouded with displeasure and bewilderment, “Didn’t you say that
after [Great Aurora Wall] is formed, it cannot be replenished afterwards?”
The fear from the alchemy device carrying the fist mate’s voice was palatable,
“Lord, Lord Commander, this should be the casting technique [Spell Refresh]. I
didn’t expect the Ice Sculpture Kingdom snow elves to be capable of applying a
personal casting technique to an entire defensive magic formation.”
Hong Pa sighed, “I don’t care about any casting technique, the reason why we
chose to stir up Munitions Harbor was because you said to first mate.”
The first mate promptly replied, “Right, according to my analysis, our group’s
robust firepower, we were absolutely able to effortlessly deplete and dispel
the [Great Aurora Wall]. Then, we could loot this trading harbor specialized in
mainly arms to make ourselves stronger.”
“This was utterly unexpected, this was a lapse in information, not I!”
Hong Pa sneered, “When we came here, we made an agreement. You proposed we
attack this place, yet currently, the outermost shell hasn’t even cracked.
First mate, you should go.”
“No, no, Lord Commander, spare my life, please, please give me another
chance!!” The first mate rigidly clenched the alchemy communication device,
loudly begging for forgiveness.
But a moment later, the captain’s room door suddenly pushed open, and a few
burly water pigmen pirate fiends walked out.
The first mate’s face was covered in fear, and without a trace of resistance,
he slumped to the floor.
The water pigmen pirates grabbed the first mate’s legs and ragged him out of
the captain’s room and to the rear of a cannon.
The first mate’s tears were overflowing as he frantically begged for
forgiveness.
But the pirates remained unmoved, they opened the cannon and stuffed the first
mate into it.
Boom!
Not long after, the first mate was shot out like a special artillery shell.
The first mate screamed as he streaked across the sky, then smashed his head
into the Great Aurora Wall.
He was material, and the physically hard Great Aurora Wall stopped him.
A moment later, the aurora bubbled and completely melted the first mate.
Hong Pa glanced at the [Aurora Great Wall]. Then sighed, “Little ones,
retreat.”
The Dread Firepower Pirates were following the Icebound Pirates and had
participated in naval battles.
After the Li Jian Clan’s second naval fleet retreated in defeat, the pirate
alliance dispersed into parts, Cong Mang’s Vegetable Pirates was one part, the
Dread Firepower Pirates were another. There were other pirate groups like that
too.
Pirates were not a regular army, and even the saint level Da Han found it
difficult to constrain them.
As a matter of fact, he wouldn’t do that.
Because he understood the greedy nature of pirates. If he made a hardline
demand, of course, he could restrict them, after all when faced with a saint
level, who wouldn’t be afraid of dying?
But if that happened, then Da Ha’s reputation with the pirates would stink to
high heaven. In future operations, it would be difficult for other pirates to
willingly attach themselves to him.
Hong Pa decided to attack Munitions Harbor at his first mate’s strong
suggestion.
They were unable to pierce the outermost defenses.
Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s eight great trading harbors were always important
defensive regions. It would be a superb challenge for the Dread Firepower
Pirates to storm it, and even after paying a disastrous price, they might not
even succeed. 
Therefore, Hong Pa chose to retreat.
Retreating put the pirates in a bad mood, and failing to gain a golden
opportunity to pillage made them more frustrated.
Luckily, Hong Pa had dealt with the first mate ahead of time, and that would
quell much of the public outrage to a degree.
“It seems we aren’t strong enough to force our way into the eight great harbor
cities.”
“The most convenient thing to do is to follow behind the Icebound Pirates and
draw support from Da Han’s strength.”
“Regretfully, the Icebound Pirates refuse any follower requests and have
sternly ordered us to depart, saying anyone who followed them was their enemy.”
When Hong Pa thought that he couldn’t help but sigh as his heart filled with
regret.
…
Da Han walked through the wilderness.
His movement speed was very normal, but after being enhanced with a time divine
spell, his journey went by several-fold faster.
He was alone, he abandoned all of his Icebound Pirate subordinates, and none
followed him.
Choosing solitude masked his whereabouts greatly.
He wore transcendent artifacts that provided him powerful invisibility, but
they couldn’t compare to deception divine spells.
“These gold level camouflage devices cannot help me infiltrate the Ice
Sculpture Capital.”
“To enter the Ice Sculpture Capital, I have to penetrate the ice lake and wait
for an opportunity.”
“The National Ceremony Grand Duel is that opportunity!”
Da Han’s sight was profound as he walked alone.
…
The radiance of a teleportation spell violently dissipated in three short
seconds.
After space stabilized, three people appeared from nowhere.
It was headed by Teacher Si Ling, who was followed by Cang Xu and Jian Gui.
“Where are we?” Cang Xu looked at a valley, despite not being a mortal being,
he could still feel the frigid air.
That an undead lifeform could feel the cold proved how low the air temperature
was.
Teacher Si Ling led the two out of this hidden cave.
Cang Xu and Jian Gui saw a snowfield.
Large snowflakes swirled through the air, the cold wind screamed, and heaven
and earth mixed with each other.
Teacher Si Ling said, “This is the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s hinterland.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom?” Cang Xu was amazed.
Jian Gui was puzzled, “My Lord, why have we come here?”
“As a matter of fact, this is precisely my true destination for this trip.
Follow me, there shall be a grand opera staged here.”
…
Plop.
The fishman youngster mentally controlled the large water hand to throw the
captured Cong Mang onto the ground.
It was a forest outside the city.
Great numbers of pine trees stood in the blanketing cold, and there wasn’t much
life around.
Cong Mang violently coughed, he had nearly been choked to death.
Having narrowly avoided death, he breathed as his life depended on it, still
out of it and unable to reflect on why this mysterious and powerful enemy
decided to let him go.
A moment later, a Wisteria Secret Order was thrown into the snowy turf.
When Cong Mang saw the Wisteria Secret Order, it took a full dozen seconds for
him to react. His eyes widened and he glowered at the fishman youngster, “You,
you belong to the Wisteria Merchant Alliance? Why did you attack me?!”
Ding.
The fishman youngster calmly waved his water hand.
Cong Mang was flung into a pine tree, then fell to the ground.
He coughed again; blood was coming out.
Because of this severe strike, branches and snow fell, covering Cong Mang and
serving as a backdrop to how miserable he was.
The fishman youngster slowly approached.
After this, Cong Mang completely sobered up and recognized reality, “Hold on,
wait a minute, we can talk about this!”
“I have always been working with your Wisteria Merchant Alliance; this you
should know.”
The fishman youngster looked down, dully stating, “I understand that you
received the merchant alliance’s help, but in the end, you didn’t contribute
your strength, that proves your loyalty. You betrayed the merchant alliance.”
“No, when I accepted the subsidy, I was not subordinate to the Wisteria
Merchant Alliance…ah.” Cong Mang shrieked.
Before he could finish speaking, the fishman youngster kicked him in the belly.
Cong Mang spat out blood and turned deathly white; the sharp pain caused him to
look like a cooked lobster as he rigidly curled up into a ball.
After gasping for breath for a good while, Cong Mang recovered. 
His eyes were dark, and his mind was abuzz. At this moment, then fishman
youngster’s voice seemed to come from the distant heavens, “Those who betray
the merchant alliance shall suffer punishment.”
“Your pirate group received the merchant alliance’s aid and grew from it.”
“Now, I used an explosion to collect some of that investment back.”
“As for you, you are also part of our merchant alliance’s investment…”
Cong Mang used a bloodstained hand to grab hold of the fishman youngster’s
leather boot, and after drawing in several cold breaths, he croaked out, “I…I
was wrong.”
“My Lord, give me another chance.”
“Let me correct my error, I will change!”
The fishman youngster’s tone eased somewhat, “Decent awareness.”
Cong Mang clutched at his last hope, hurriedly insisting, “I can create more
value alive than dead, your Lordship!”
The fishman youngster grunted, “As a matter of fact, the higher-ups did say to
give you one final chance.”
“The higher-ups?” Cong Mang anxiously gazed up.
He came to a horrifying realization, the fishman expert was actually not the
supreme leader. There were still people above him!
A moment later, the fishman youngster opened his webbed fish hand and clutched
Cong Mang’s shaven head, lifting him up.
“Activating the Wisteria Secret Order can indeed allow you to demonstrate your
value.” The fishman youngster said.
Cong Mang swiftly stated, “I will do my utmost, your Lordship!”
“Good attitude.” The fishman youngster slowly nodded, “In that case, welcome to
Ice Sculpture Island.”



****** Chapter 698: Capturing the Divine Bone ******
Snow Bird Harbor.
Inside a private house, there was a vast space.
This was where the fishman youngster used Divine Domain Descent.
Even if the magician tower hadn’t been blown up, it wouldn’t be able to detect
the divine domain inside here.
Therefore, this place was very secure.
Of course, that wasn’t to say no magician tower was able to threaten the divine
domain, as it would depend on its quality, level, and so on.
Hun Tong, Da Dou, the big guy, Hong Zhu, and Cong Mang got together.
The fishman youngster’s body glistened with blue light.
The blue light was striking at first, then soon waned, allowing the fishman
youngster to transform back into a dragonman form.
Although the young man used the Bloodcore to change his form, he simultaneously
used deception divine spells.
This was intentional.
In everyone’s eyes, it would unavoidably form a false conjecture: the fishman
form was the young man’s true identity, while the dragonman appearance was a
disguise.
This conjecture coming about was quite natural, especially because everyone
present had been empowered with deception divine spells before.
It went without saying for Hun Tong, as deception divine spells had aided his
spying on Tan Mo’s Treasure Chest and after making landfall on Snow Bird
Harbor.
Cong Mang and his pirate gang had snuck into Snow Bird Harbor under the
protection of deception divine spells.
Da Dou and Hong Zhu had seen the big guy unleash divine spells and were very
familiar with the aura of that divine power. At the same time, during the Snow
Bird Harbor Battle, they wantonly plundered the city palace while under the
protection of deception divine spells.
The dragonman youngster didn’t explain anything and allowed them to hypothesize
on their own.
The dragonman youngster slowly sat down.
As he moved, the divine domain space instantly condensed a high and expansive
chair from divine power.
The chair slowly rose from the ground, gradually forming a throne.
The dragonman youngster sat with his limbs spread wide across the throne,
looking down apathetically as he examined everyone.
“Was that Long Fu’s true identity?” Hun Tong had mixed emotions as he gazed up
at the cold and detached dragonman youngster.
Hong Zhu had a similar impression as him.
Hong Zhu had worked with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on Two Eyes Island.
During the beast tide invasion, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps established
close ties and friendships with many silver level experts.
At this very moment, the dragonman youngster’s strange posture and expression
shattered Hong Zhu’s old memories.
She knelt down and used a reverent and appreciative tone to shout, “Lord Long
Fu, you are Hong Zhu’s lifesaving benefactor. I request to join the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and ask that you accept my vow of loyalty and devotion! From
now on, your orders shall be my objectives!”
Hong Zhu knelt down and did so candidly!
Everyone present was unsurprised.
This was the world of the strong.
Powerful transcendents naturally had enormous charisma in attracting
subordinates.
The stronger one was, the more charisma they had.
Because in history, countless examples taught the world and formed a universal
consensus – experts were the true foundation of any power or organization. Only
by following the strong could one achieve twice the result with half the
effort, save the gains of victory, and have enough to brave dangers.
With the fishman form, the young man displayed the beauty of an expert and had
deeply shaken everyone present.
Da Dou, Hun Tong, and Cong Mang had all seen how effortlessly the fishman
youngster had swept away three gold levels and cleaned up the entire
battlefield.
If the three gold levels were that shaken, then the silver level Hong Zhu would
be even more so.
It wasn’t just awe; the young man had also saved their lives.
After all, the fishman youngster’s divine spell aura was identical to the big
guy’s Divine Descent divine spell.
Combined with the big guy’s deferential bearing right now, as well as the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ authority, Hong Zhu already realized that within
the unknown god’s subordinates, the fishman youngster was of higher status than
the big guy!
There was also prior friendships, and Hong Zhu had plundered an immense profit
from the entire city palace this time too…
These things combined made Hong Zhu willing to submit to the dragonman
youngster cheerfully.
The dragonman youngster looked down at Hong Zhu, faintly laughing, “On Two Eyes
Island, I could tell that you were an excellent treasure hunter, Hong Zhu.
Because you had a pair of bright eyes that could find what the most valuable
treasures were.”
The dragonman youngster ended with that, then swept his gaze over the others
with deep intent.
But Da Dou and the others all had different expressions, none declared their
position like Hong Zhu.
As for the big guy, he was no longer under Divine Descent and his bright eyes
were fixed on the dragonman youngster, the corner of his mouth open in a silent
and foolish laugh.
Seeing his father again made him extremely happy.
But due to the dragonman youngster’s repeated warnings, he stood aside not
moving or speaking.
“Xiao Guai is obedient.”
“Xiao Guai will listen to father!” The big guy constantly cycled that thought
in his mind.
The dragonman youngster turned back around, looking at Hong Zhu again, “Let me
see what you gained from the city palace.”
Before Cong Mang’s Vegetable Pirates stormed the city palace, Da Dou and the
other two had ransacked it.
Hong Zhu suddenly stood up excitedly, “Lord Long Fu, this time…we had an
extremely generous harvest, an incredible haul!”
She stuttered somewhat in excitement.
Hong Zhu took out what she had taken and piled it up on the ground.
Da Dou also emptied his Packing Bag’s contents onto the ground.
The big guy was still looking foolish.
The dragonman youngster glanced at him, then used a divine spell to transmit
his voice into his mind.
The big guy yelped, then began to take out his stuff too.
Gold coins were the most of it and was heaped into a small hill.
These were gold coins of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and were obviously money
circulated inside its markets.
“Most of them were from the tax money storehouse.” Hong Zhu aptly presented.
The dragonman youngster indifferently nodded, of course he knew as his
attention had been divided the entire time, participating through Divine
Descent on the big guy.
But he didn’t show it.
He had already revealed a few secrets and wanted the rest to remain hidden.
The dragonman youngster wanted others to think that the big guy was receiving
Divine Descent from a god and not from a gold level like him.
The level of deterrence between the two was like the difference between heaven
and earth.
Because it was inside the divine domain, the dragonman youngster didn’t need to
do inventory, with merely a glance, he could see the amount of gold coins was
precisely 276,587 coins.
It was obvious this was a massive sum of money.
The small hill of gold coins firmly clutched Cong Mang’s eyes, as a pirate, he
was most fond of these little cute things.
But very quickly, his eyes were drawn to a pile of ice cubes to the side of the
gold coin hill.
These ice cubes were of different sizes, with the largest being the size of a
teapot and the smallest the size of a child’s fist.
But their shape was consistent, all of them looked like a heart.
“Ice Hearts, these are actually Ice Hearts!!” Cong Mang exclaimed in his mind.
It was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s special local resource.
Ice Hearts had broad uses. People could swallow it raw; it could be used as a
main ingredient for magic medicine (Ice Head Flower medicine was the most well-
known type) and could also be made into all kinds of alchemy items (the Ice
Headband was a classic product).
“Wasn’t it said the Ice Heart output was very low? How could Snow Bird Harbor
have so many?” Cong Mang’s doubt was shared by Da Dou and Hong Zhu.
When Da Dou and Hong Zhu noticed them, they were quite amazed, almost believing
they were seeing things.
The main reason was that there were so many Ice Hearts.
With regards to this, the dragonman youngster knew the truth, and as if seeing
everyone’s doubts, he stated, “The kingdom’s Ice Heart output has actually
always been very high.”
“But the Ice Sculpture Kingdom deliberately falsifies information and puts on a
façade that the Ice Heart has a low output.”
“Secretly, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom controls the Ice Hearts more stringently
than the armor prohibition.”
“These Ice Hearts are not completely transparent; at most some are translucent
and are not of the highest quality. The highest quality Ice Heart is in the
Royal Family’s hands and is never circulated.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord personally told him this secret.
Everyone understood this.
The Ice Sculpture Royal Family amassing wealth while keeping a low profile was
something they could comprehend.
To be more precise, the Ice Hearts were a type of elemental heart.
Elemental hearts were a rare material that were better than elemental crystals.
Apart from the Four Great Elemental Planes, elemental hearts always had an
extremely low output.
Ice Hearts, to be more accurate, should be called Ice Elemental Hearts.
The lowest quality of these Ice Elemental Hearts was the silver level, with a
few being gold level.
They were very valuable.
More crucially, was that there was demand but no supply. Under normal
circumstances, even if one had a lot of money, it was very difficult to
purchase so many on the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s marketplace.
To the side of the Ice Hearts was a large stack of antiques. There were oil
paintings, statues, and famous weapons from across Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
history, which only had ornamental value.
Cong Mang was uninterested in these things.
The Vegetable Pirate Commander’s scholarly knowledge was next to zero.
Compared to the others, Hong Zhu had a higher insight, even higher than the
dragonman youngster’s. To her, these antiques were extremely valuable, no less
than a small mountain of gold coins!
Hong Zhu sighed, “Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had a very deep noble demeanor, he
had so many art pieces put up inside his city palace.”
“But we were able to quickly gather all of these things in a short time, it was
all thanks to this bone!”
Hong Zhu raised her hand a bit.
Her palm opened, and inside it sat a bone.
The bone was deathly pale, and looked irregular, making it rather difficult to
glean which part of the body it belonged to.
The bone did not have any transcendent aura, and it looked like an ordinary and
common thing.
Coing Mang fixed his eyes on the bone, then suddenly thought of something,
shuddering out, “Could that be the Fourth Pirate King’s Greed God Bone?”
The dragonman youngster grasped at nothing, teleporting the Greed Gone Bone to
him.
After he grabbed it, he used a Charming Blue divine spell to examine it. A
moment later, the Greed God Bone emitted an extremely faint gold level aura.
The dragonman youngster was puzzled.
At the time, when part of his mind descended on the big guy, he saw how
solemnly cared for this divine bone was and knew this “ordinary” bone was
anything but ordinary.
At the time, Hong Zhu reacted faster than him and quickly identified the divine
bone’s history.
The Greed God Bone’s function was that it could detect and point towards any
valuables within a range.
It was a supreme implement to a treasure hunter.
As a treasure hunter, Hong Zhu of course yearned for it day and night.
This was the reason why she could so quickly identify it.
Because she saw an ordinary bone being so seriously kept, that was the first
answer she associated with it.
Neither Hong Zhu nor the dragonman youngster knew why Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord had such a rare thing in his treasury.



****** Chapter 699: Youngster – See My Resurrection Spell ******
“The Greed God Bone…” The dragonman youngster could feel the divinity the bone
contained.
The Greed divinity!
The dragonman youngster was not unfamiliar with this divinity.
This was thanks to Teacher Si Ling’s teachings to Cang Xu, which allowed the
dragonman youngster to learn about this hidden knowledge too.
In Ocean Mother Nest, he also stole four Death Divinities under Teacher Si
Ling’s nose.
“But this bone doesn’t contain the greed divinity, not even a tenth of it.” The
dragonman youngster analyzed it deeper, gradually finding how much divinity the
bone contained.
“Perhaps, one divinity was plenty.”
“Is the divinity inside the Greed God Bone the normal state of divinity?”
“As for Ocean Mother Nest’s death divinity, was it from countless years of
accumulations in White Hair Trench?”
It was very evident that the dragonman youngster needed to gain access to more
divinities so he could more accurately judge them.
“The Fourth Generation Pirate King and I should be in similar circumstances. In
those days, he was a gold level but had a god level bloodline (concentration
unknown).”
“He risked everything to take the Pirate Throne. Perhaps his god level
bloodline concentration was high enough or perhaps the Pirate Throne spurred
him on. Anyways, when he fell, his bones were smashed into countless pieces,
all bearing his greed divinity.”
“With a sufficient god level bloodline concentration, one is completely able to
grow the lifeform’s corresponding divinity.”
“The Fourth Generation Pirate King was plotted against and slain. He was only a
gold level, and wasn’t able to grow, yet he possessed the greed divinity and
can be said to be a special case.”
“The Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s time dragon corpse is considered to be normal. It
possesses enough god level bloodline, and after growing to adulthood, it had
the time divinity.”
“If I kill myself now, my corpse won’t have divinity. However, I can bear
divinity, and if the death divinity in the [Mermaid Fairy Tale] was moved into
me, and then I died, then perhaps it can create a corpse that possesses the
death divinity.”
The dragonman youngster gathered his diverged thoughts and once again stared at
the Greed God Bone in his hand.
This bone was half a divine artifact in Hong Zhu’s and the other’s eyes, while
to the dragonman youngster, it was just a god level material.
The reason it had miraculous properties was completely due to the greed
divinity.
“If I extracted the greed divinity, and loaded it into my body, would I have
the ability to sense treasure?”
“The Greed God Bone’s treasure finding has a systemic problem, it will point
towards all valuable things and not the most valuable item within its range.
Even more, it does not choose a target based on the user’s wishes.”
“If I controlled the greed divinity, could I be an even more insightful
treasure hunter?”
The dragonman youngster just thought about it and didn’t act on it.
The theory suggested that since he had a complete Surging Wave fishman
bloodline, he was qualified to assume godhood and become a divine lifeform.
But he didn’t take the risk.
Because he knew divinity had a massive influence on a person. In his current
situation, bearing the greed divinity, despite it only being a tenth of one,
might turn a person into someone like Tan Mo. Or even someone more despicable
than him.
His humanity and personality would seriously deviate, his worldview, values,
and life outlook, among other traits would radically change to an extreme
degree in a radical upheaval.
This risk was not one the dragonman youngster wanted to brave.
But regardless of what was said, the dragonman youngster having a complete god
level bloodline gave him enough qualifications to use god level materials.
This was the embodiment of the immense progress he had made since returning
from his journey.
The dragonman youngster put away the divine bone and took a look at the other
gains.
Besides gold coins, antiques, and the divine bone, there were some other
valuable materials.
The most eye-catching was a snow white dragon talon.
The dragon talon still emitted cold air, it was a gold level white dragon
talon.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a hunting ban, and the royal family had a firm
alliance with the White Dragon Clan, so white dragon parts were only circulated
on the black market.  
No one expected that Snow Bird Harbor City Lord would have that in his
collection.
The dragonman youngster knew that it was taken from the city palace’s secret
storehouse.
Good things that weren’t fit to be seen in the light were placed in it.
The white dragon talon had extensive applications, it could serve as a gold
level weapon, the main material in an alchemy item, and if used for magic
medicine, the white dragon talon could produce ten times its value.
But in the dragonman youngster’s hands, there was only one use – food for the
Bloodcore to increase his white dragon bloodline concentration.
Apart from the white dragon talon, there were also ocean magic beast parts,
mithril, essence gold, obscure gold, and other rare magic materials. Although
these materials could be purchased on the market, they were always expensive.
As for the magnets, obsidian, and other common materials, although the city
palace had quit the inventory of them, Da Dou and the others didn’t take them.
There simply wasn’t room!
Their carrying capacity was limited.
Therefore, silver and copper coins weren’t taken either. The three only took
gold coins.
The dragonman youngster conservatively estimated that this massive haul of
goods was worth around 800,000 gold coins. Naturally this didn’t include the
Greed God Bone!
That kind of sum was comparable to what was earned from Two Eyes Island.
Snow Bird Harbor was worthy of being one of the eight great trading harbors;
just the things from the city palace was worth this much. It also had to be
considered that Da Dou and the others didn’t take everything, and the expansive
city district also held astonishing wealth in it too.
The dragonman youngster didn’t want to loot the commoners. The reason why he
dealt with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was mainly because the latter wanted to
scheme against the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Compared to these assets, the dragonman youngster valued the captives more.
Da Dou and the others were locked up in the prison, and besides them, there
were some other prisoners too.
Furthermore, when Da Dou and the others went plundering, they had taken the
city palace personnel prisoner, such as Mei Lan Du and the Magnet Archipelago
secret spy leader.
“These captives can be deceived, modified, and turned into combat forces like
Ku Feng and Xiao Wang Zi.”
“The secret spy’s memories are very valuable, and I need to come up with a
reliable method of extracting that information.”
At this time, there was a knock on the door.
The dragonman youngster waved a hand, and all of the things on the ground
vanished as the door opened.
From the doorway stepped in a short goblin, it was Tripleblade.
On the face of it, Tripleblade had walked into an ordinary building, white in
reality, he had stepped into a divine domain.
His face flashed with astonishment; he didn’t expect the room to be a separate
space.
“Three gold levels!”
“Da Dou is really here.”
“Hun Tong…I didn’t expect that the Two Eyes Island Lord would actually become
one of us.”
“There is also the pirate boss Cong Mang, to so quickly acknowledge allegiance.
Ha, don’t be fooled by his tough fighting, his moral character is flexible.”
Tripleblade also noticed Hong Zhu and the big guy.
He remembered Hong Zhu. However, that silver level expert wasn’t qualified
anymore for Tripleblade to attach much value to.
As for the big guy, Tripleblade let out a breath, like a heavy burden was
lifted.
The big guy was lost under his supervision, and Tripleblade was responsible for
it. He felt rather guilty of neglecting his duty.
Now, the dragonman youngster had not just found and brought back the big guy,
but he also disciplined and reduced the kidnapper Da Dou to a slave.
This was beyond Tripleblade’s wildest imaginations!
Carrying this appreciation and other complex emotions, Tripleblade stoops and
bowed to the enthroned dragonman youngster, reporting, “Lord Long Fu, the tasks
you gave have been handled.”
“Most of the traitors and spies that popped up during this battle have been
executed, with a few taken prisoner, they are being brought over.”
“In addition, in accordance with your directives, I have brought the corpses of
our dead comrades over…”
When that was said, Tripleblade’s tone couldn’t help but be somewhat heavy.
In this battle, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps suffered great losses.
“Bring in the bodies of these heroic fighters, lay them out neatly, I will
resurrect them!” The dragonman youngster made an astonishing declaration.
Not long after, corpses were lined up in several rows, each of them had mortal
wounds, some were comparatively intact, and others were badly damaged.
The dragonman youngster stood up, slightly bowed his head, and began to loudly
pray.
“Grand God Mist, You are the God of the Ocean, and a fishman God.”
“Your divine power envelops the vast waters and the abyss, Your radiance
illuminates all things, Your mercy and Your power are equally infinite.”
“You are the guardian of the fish; You are likewise the divine forgiver of
fishermen. You never forget to grant us grace, power, and fish and allow us to
live in Your generous favoritism.”
“When my fighters bravely offered up their lives on the battlefield, we
painfully experienced the shadow of death. Under Your divine power, they will
live once again and return to our side.”
“God Mist, we are grateful for your grace and blessings under Your holy light.”
“Please acquiesce to our heartfelt esteem and praise, Your divine name will
forever be put in splendor!”
After the prayer finished, the dragonman youngster used a major divine spell.
Divine spell – Resurrection!
Vast divine light fell from the sky and covered the corpses.
The divine power in the young man seemed to drain like a waterfall in sudden
consumption. Reviving just a few people nearly drained his divine power.
But the dragonman youngster had foreseen this and calmly used necromancy.
He was capable of using necromancy. On the Deep Sea Monster Fish, he had
personally used it to test Cang Xu’s bloodline quality.
After using several necromancy spells, he woke up the other corpses, turning
them into skeletons, zombies, and ghosts.
However, they were layered in several deception divine spells.
Of course, these necromancy spells had the probability of failing. Therefore,
there were one or two corpses that didn’t move.
It didn’t matter, the dragonman youngster was prepared.
He activated a few alchemy puppets and then covered them in deception divine
spells too.
In short, to outsiders, it seemed everyone was resurrected!
“A miracle, a resurrection miracle!” Hong Zhu excitedly cried.
Despite knowing that the Resurrection divine spell could raise people from the
dead, hearing about it and seeing it with her own eyes were two very different
things.
She was shaken to no small degree.



****** Chapter 700: Young Man – I Come to Evangelize ******
Da Dou was flabbergasted.
As a member of a legend level power, and also as an outstanding gold level
magic chef, he had traveled many places and had a very wide horizon.
“Resurrection has always been individual, this kind of communal resurrection is
rarely seen, it simply captures the hearts and souls of people!”
“This God Mist, they should be a different race’s god, how magnanimous this god
is!”
It was indeed rare.
To use Resurrection, one needed to be at least a bishop. Wanting a bishop to
use Resurrection was hard, the starting price was at least 10,000 gold and
there were other limiting factors too.
For example, resurrecting a person depended on if their corpse was intact and
if their soul still remained.
In addition, it was also needed to examine the resurrection target’s
allegiance, beliefs, and relationships.
Even if a resurrection target met all of the criteria, when some bishops used
Resurrection, they needed the God’s (Godhead’s) approval, it was not purely
decided by the bishop’s own determination. 
All of these factors made just singular resurrections a rarity.
Let alone a communal Resurrection spell.
This kind of large scale Resurrection spell would only be used during world
wars.
For example, during the demon invasion of the Main Plane several millennia ago,
roughly 9 communal resurrections took place. That was the combined total of
both sides.
Cong Mang was in a daze.
He watched as these corpses came back to life, and apart from his shock, he
felt for the first time that perhaps relying on Long Fu was not such a bad
thing.
It was always known that pirates lacked clergy.
Groups like the Divine Wind Pirates being outfitted with Sea Wind Church clergy
was a rare example.
The vast majority, or it could be said, almost every pirate group wasn’t
outfitted with extensive amounts of clergy.
Pirates were thus unable to enjoy divine spell healing during battle, and could
only use magic medicine, alchemy items, or other methods to make up for this
deficiency. (The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ White Bandage was a healing ship
model)
But these treatment methods usually weren’t as effective as divine spells.
On the battlefield, every moment counted, and on the line between life and
death, being two to three seconds slower to heal might cause these remedies to
fail.
How could Cong Mang not want divine spell healing?
How could Cong Mang not want divine spell resurrection?
He really wanted them!
As a valiant pirate that always charged in and broke through enemy lines,
having divine spell healing and resurrection simply solved his greatest
worries.
Of the three gold level experts, Hun Tong was fairly tranquil.
He was constantly thinking over the name “Mist”, it seemed this god’s name had
imbedded itself deeply into his thoughts.
Although Hun Tong had come into contact with the dragonman youngster and Dao
Hen the earliest, the dragonman youngster did not make an introduction and Dao
Hen specifically avoided Hun Tong when doing his daily prayers. This was the
first time he had officially heard the god’s name “Mist”.
“God Mist…are they the grand master that is controlling everything behind the
scenes?”
“They shouldn’t be a human god and are probably a different race’s god. A more
brazen guess would be that they are a fishman god?”
Hun Tong glanced at the dragonman youngster, “to be able to unleash
Resurrection, Long Fu must be at least a bishop.”
“No, he is not merely a bishop!”
“Why did the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps come to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
during the National Ceremony? This point in time is too subtle! This communal
Resurrection spell entirely proves Long Fu’s status in the god’s heart! The God
Mist surely must have a big conspiracy, and Long Fu is their most powerful
chess piece in the immediate political situation.”
The three gold levels’ minds were madly shaking, to say nothing of Hong Zhu and
Tripleblade.
Hong Zhu went limp and numb; she knelt down again and shouted blessings of how
powerful Long Fu was and how divinely powerful the God Mist was.
Her excitement led to incoherent speech.
Everyone present could understand her.
As a silver level expert whose bloodline had come to its end, to join such a
powerful power and hug the thigh of such an immense figure as Long Fu was a
rare opportunity for her.
Hong Zhu was no greenhorn youngster; she had worked hard for many years and
encountered innumerable dangers and struggled many times on the line between
life and death. Compared to these dangers, she suffered much more
discrimination, suspicion, and scorn. This time, she was arrested and thrown
into prison by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and while suffering torture, she
sank into the abyss of despair, believing more and more that she would lose her
life.
The big guy was her only hope.
She clung obstinately to this hope and didn’t let the pressure strike her down,
keeping the big guy’s secrets hidden.
That hope came to fruition.
Under Divine Descent, the big guy easily rescued her and Da Dou.
After that, she personally participated in deploying the alchemy bomb and
witnessed Snow Bird Harbor’s city palace being blown up, realizing a small
vengeance.
She also witnessed how the fishman youngster crushed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
and Tan Mo.
A single strike!
With just one strike, two aloof and remote gold levels that had caused her pain
and despair were defeated.
The defeat was utterly thorough, like they were two dead dogs.
If it weren’t for the fishman youngster deciding to not kill them, how could
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo still be alive?
She had experienced Long Fu’s power when he saved her from despair and gave her
revenge.
Now, Hong Zhu saw a communal Resurrection spell.
How could she not realize how important this stroke of luck was to her life!?
The communal resurrection had completely illuminated her eyes, setting aflame
beautiful expectations of the future.
Her heart was constantly lingering on the divine name “Mist”. She looked up at
the dragonman youngster and secretly pledged that from now on, she would firmly
hug his thigh!
“Those comrades were really resurrected?” Tripleblade’s red eyes began to
sparkle, and he nearly wanted to weep on the spot.
Tripleblade was once a mercenary commander.
While the dragonman youngster was away, he displayed utter loyalty to his duty,
racked his brains, and exhausted his capabilities to keep the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps branch afloat. Although he was only an iron level, he made
immense contributions.
He had feelings for the mercenary corps. If you were to ask who among the
survivors desired to raise the mercenary corps’ rank and accomplish more in the
corps, which would it be? It would be none other than Tripleblade.
When Tan Mo pretended to be a pirate and raided the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
branch, Tripleblade exhausted his capabilities to command the battle, and fight
with all his strength.
But many people were sacrificed.
Ku Feng’s and Xiao Wang Zi’s unexpected assistance gave Tripleblade hope in the
dragonman youngster’s return.
But ultimately, the one who arrived was the fishman youngster Hou Lang.
At the time, Tripleblade didn’t know who Hou Lang was. After the battle, he
learned everything.
“That unfathomably powerful gold level fishman was the commander?!”
The dragonman youngster returning with such strength turned Tripleblade silent
for a long while.
Soon after, Tripleblade learned of many more secrets, like how Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord and Tan Mo were the leaders of this pirate raid.
Tripleblade realized that the dragonman youngster’s return had resolved the
crisis that threatened to destroy the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch!
Finally, Tripleblade also learned about what the dragonman youngster roughly
went through after departing.
The one who complained and grumbled about the dragonman youngster neglecting
his duty was forced to concede he was wrong to blame the dragonman youngster!
Now, Tripleblade had witnessed a communal resurrection.
Within that split second, his body and mind were battered with excitement, both
of his knees went soft, and he nearly knelt on the ground.
The reliable comrades had been resurrected.
The dead battle companions had returned!
Those placed as spies and revealed to be traitors during the battle had caused
Tripleblade grief.
What else could prove loyalty?
Perhaps death could?
To Tripleblade it seemed that those comrades who died could absolutely be
trusted!
Now they were alive again.
This kind of dream scenario, for the first half of Tripleblade’s life, was only
possible in a fantasy?
But now, it had indeed happened before his eyes.
And the one who accomplished all of this was their leader, their young
commander!
For the first time ever, Tripleblade thought that the dragonman youngster was
more suitable to be the survivors’ leader than Zong Ge.
But a moment later, a thought came from the bottom of his heart, “Even so, I
still wish to follow Lord Zong Ge more!”
The goblin was loyal to Zong Ge, and that loyalty was firm and hard to sway.
Inside the divine domain space, it slowly got noisy with voices.
“Is this the world of the dead?”
“Wait a moment, I’m still alive? I feel I’m alive!”
“Didn’t I die fighting? What is happening right now?”
The resurrected mercenaries gradually reacted, then a memory assaulted their
mind.
Inside the dark blue ocean, an enormous shoal of fish formed into the look of a
god, and every resurrected person had to raise their heads up at it so they
could catch sight of the god’s towering cloud like chest.
Soon after, the god’s figure scattered, and the countless ocean fish moved to
raise a turbulent tide that drowned the resurrected people.
At the same time, a vast voice rumbled in their hearts – I am the God Mist,
recite my name and you can be reborn!
Thus, they said it.
“God Mist, God Mist!”
“Let me be reborn, I will believe in you!”
“Please, return me to life, I don’t want to die.”
It was as if this voice came from their innermost being, but as a matter of
fact, this memory had been forged by the dragonman youngster. 
He simply implanted them during the resurrection process.
“I’m alive, I’m really alive!”
“So that spectacle in the deep sea wasn’t a hallucination.”
“What, did you go into that deep sea illusion too?”
The mercenaries communicated with each other, then after mutual validation,
their expression became more emotional.
“It was the Lord Commander’s Resurrection spell.”
“You guys really are lucky beyond belief!”
Tripleblade shouted, attracting many eyes.
Realizing they had been resurrected, they began to look around them.
They naturally trusted Tripleblade, and when some of the older members saw the
dragonman youngster, they paid their respects.
The dragonman youngster waved his hand, “The one who truly saved you is the
great God Mist.”
“They gave you a second life.”
“Come, join me in prayer, you will convert to that grand god together, my god,
Mist!”
The dragonman youngster solemnly stood in front of everyone and put his dragon
claws together on his chest in prayer
Everyone imitated at once.
The dragonman youngster began to evangelize for the first time in his life.



****** Chapter 701: The Basis of Belief is Acknowledgement ******
“Grand God Mist, ruler of the ocean and the fish.”
“Your divine power enveloped myriad fish and turns the vast seas.”
“Your mercy and power exceed imagination.”
“We are incomparably grateful for Your grace, because You brought us back from
the misery of death. In our darkest moment, You gave us hope and strength.”
“Our fighters were resurrected because of Your power, now, they bravely stand
before Your glory.”
“They will remain forever dedicating their loyalty and faith to You for their
entire lives.”
…
“Grand God Mist, allow us to sense Your almightiness, and never be disconnected
from Your favor and mercy.”
“We worship You and ask that You acknowledge our believers who fought for You.”
“Please admit them under Your banner, continue to show Your energy and strength
to them. Let the resurrected continue to cross obstacles within Your grace and
transcend our enemies.”
…
“In our prayers, we call out to You and hope You can hear our soft prayers.”
“We deem You the pillar that will never waver, because You seek to comfort us
in our prayers, You are our sole hope we appeal to when plights grow wild.”
…
“Ocean God Mist, Fish God, we hope You will continue to protect us, give us the
power and vision to get through storms, and point our way through the darkness.
Thank You for your grace and blessings, we pray for Your blessings and that You
will eternally navigate our journey forward.”
“We hope Your radiant light bathes the entire world and allows Your power and
love to fill it!”
…
This was quite the verbose communal prayer.
The dragonman youngster was worthy of being a leader.
He first said a sentence, then everyone repeated after him. The ambience became
solemn, respectful, and dignified, then in the wake of the dragonman
youngster’s voice, his posture and expression became majestic and fanatical.
In this world, there were few nonbelievers, the vast majority of people had
their own faith.
Many of them were not monotheistic, rather they believed in many gods.
Therefore, general believers made up most of the population.
These people’s old faiths quickly swayed, even collapsing from the foundation.
A large-scale conversion was happening.
As a divine emissary in a divine domain, the fishman youngster’s perception
abilities were at their apex, and could keenly and clearly sense everyone’s
Charming Blue faith was sprouting, growing quickly, and constantly
strengthening.
To him, this was both familiar and unfamiliar.
It was familiar due to the large amount of clerical experience he had obtained
through divine blessings. Thus, although this was the first time the dragonman
youngster officially evangelized, he had done so in an organized and well-
trodden manner.
It was unfamiliar because this was the first time he had done it in real life,
personally experiencing it was a layer different than experiencing it through
divine gifts.
This would undoubtedly deepen the dragonman youngster’s understanding of it.
The dragonman youngster observed everyone’s hearts like a god was gazing at
them.
They were experiencing the same thing Dao Hen once did when he was gazed upon.
It was as if they were insects looking up at a high mountain, realizing how
grand the heavens and earth were, and how insignificant they themselves were.
This increased the reverence in everyone’s hearts, and they knelt to the
ground, bent their waists, and hung their heads lower.
“Are we feeling God’s gaze upon us?”
“God is looking at us!”
“Heavens, it’s so great, so boundless…”
Of everyone present, the one preaching, the dragonman youngster, was actually
the most tranquil.
His train of thought was even a bit unorganized as he mentally made other
connections.
“Charming Blue Goddess’ main body is sleeping; I am actually drawing from the
Godhead’s power.”
“Charming Blue Godhead, Dueling Godhead…”
“If I gain the Dueling Godhead in the future, will I also be able to pretend to
be a god and conduct ministries?”
The dragonman youngster led everyone in prayer as he slowly turned around to
look at the three gold levels.
His expression was flat, but the three gold level experts could sense that it
seemed heaven and earth was suppressing them.
Divine spell – Deterrence!
This divine spell imitated divine prestige, strongly awing a target.
The fishman youngster once used this divine spell to easily intimidate Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord. It was actually more appropriate to use it while
preaching.
The first Deterrence spell was actually to help his preach.
From a certain point of view, almost all divine spells were bestowed by the
gods for the purpose of evangelizing. Even healing divine spells, which could
assert a god’s mighty power and benevolence, attracting believers to their
religion.
Thump.
Under Deterrence, Cong Mang’s knees knocked against the ground in a kneel.
He had been beaten by the fishman youngster the hardest, was also a pirate,
amenable to circumstances, and had a gangster temperament, so he bowed his head
and began to recite the litanies.
Hun Tong glanced at Cong Mang, the depths of his eyes hiding bitterness. A gold
level like him had kneeled too quickly, and now the pressure was concentrating
on the other two.
“Oh dear!” Hun Tong sighed to himself, his mood heavy.
He had been subdued by the dragonman youngster already, and despite having his
own faith that he deeply identified with joy, he also knew he couldn’t pull
away from the powerful.
Therefore, he had no choice but to try to convert and followed the dragonman
youngster in whispered recitation of the litanies.
This left just Da Dou.
After a few seconds, Da Dou was sweating profusely, and his expression was
distorting as he struggled.
Although the young man was not in his fishman form and didn’t have the Surging
Wave fishman bloodline’s formidable empowerment, it didn’t matter, this was the
Charming Blue divine domain.
In the Charming Blue Divine Domain, Charming Blue divine spells would increase
massively in power, far exceeding what the Surging Wave fishman bloodline could
increase them by in the outside world!
The few seconds the young man was looking at him seemed like endless centuries
to Da Dou.
After incessant suffering, he finally kneeled and hung his head, but his back
still remained straight.
He tightly closed his lips and never opened his mouth to follow along with the
dragonman youngster’s prayers.
On his body, the flame totems’ lines appeared, and faint fiery sparks spilled
out.
Of the three gold levels, Da Dou had the most unflinching will.
His faith was very firm and singular, he had the haughtiness of the giants and
did not want to believe in the god of a different race. He wasn’t willing to
even try to pray along with the others.
In this extraordinary world, reciting another god’s prayers was not as
superficial or simple as playing along with circumstances, it had genuine
effects.
Da Dou did not want to “contaminate” his faith.
The dragonman youngster didn’t continue to force him into doing so.
After seeing Da Dou kneel, he shifted his gaze.
Faith could not be forced.
Being stubbornly tough would have the opposite effect. With this bit of
knowledge and large amounts of clergy experience, the dragonman youngster knew
this clearly.
Evangelizing to people like Da Dou should be done slowly.
The dragonman youngster was not in the least bit worried.
Because he did not believe in Mist, let alone Charming Blue Goddess!
He wouldn’t force everyone to believe in the God Mist. He had multiple goals in
this evangelization.
As time passed, everyone’s convictions would change less and trend towards
being fixed.
The dragonman youngster felt astonished, “Most people converted, but there are
only four pious believers, and not a single fanatical believer?”
This outcome was quite unexpected.
In his original expectations, this group of people should be extremely grateful
after they were brought back from the dead. Most of them should be at least
pious level, while there should be at least two or three fanatical believers.
“Why was this conversion result so small?” The dragonman youngster asked
himself.
Although he had received much experience from divine blessings, not much of it
was on the Resurrection spell.
After all, Resurrection had always been seldomly used.
These limited experiences pertaining to Resurrection were all about singular
resurrections of important figures of the Charming Blue Church. 
After they were resurrected, their faith was substantially elevated.
It was precisely these experiences that gave the dragonman youngster great
hopes for this preaching.
But reality did not answer his expectations.
“Faith…”
“It is not something that can be gained through immense benefits or compelled
through fear or awe.”
“True faith comes from one acknowledging with their innermost being.”
“Therefore, believers nurtured from childhood have the strongest and most
stable faith.”
The dragonman youngster thought of Xiong Ju at this time.
At the time, when he and Xiong Ju were publicly dueling, Xiong Ju would rather
crush the Evil Eye than use it to gain an advantage in the duel.
This was Xiong Ju’s firm belief.
Xiong Ju’s deference to duels came from his innermost acknowledgement of it at
the most fundamental level.
This conviction was firm and truly significant.
“Truly reliable faith cannot be spoken in general terms.”
“True faith does not need one to tell themselves to believe in it, but rather
that they themselves believe in it.”
“Although these people have converted, they don’t acknowledge the God Mist. In
fact, what do they know currently? From the prayers, they can only guess at the
God Mist’s abilities or that he is the god of another race?”
“A lack of understanding will naturally lower acknowledgement. Even if the God
Mist saved them.”
“In the end, people are unable to deceive their heart. A momentarily strong
feeling can only nudge and catalyze, it is not the main source of faith.”
Practice and mental experiences were integrated together at this moment, giving
the dragonman youngster penetrating insight into evangelization!
He subconsciously looked at the big guy.
The big guy was also kneeling, but his head was held high, and his chest was
out as he impatiently gazed at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster laughed, “Xiao Guai is my fanatical believer.”
The young man once again realized how precious the big guy was.
He hadn’t met a fanatical believer of Charming Blue Goddess yet, while on the
contrary, he had one of his own.
Adding on the big guy’s inherently exceptional bloodline, the dragonman
youngster was more determined to focus on the latter’s cultivation.
The rate of faith change in everyone had already become imperceivable. 
It could be said the outcome was visible. 
This preaching ended up being a bit disappointing.
“Calculating it, my first public preaching was a devastating loss.” The
dragonman youngster sighed.
His divine power investment was massive.
Almost all of his divine power had been spent to revive a few silver levels.



****** Chapter 702: Youngster – I’ll Make the Arrangements ******
The divine spell [Resurrection] severely depleted him! Despite the resurrection
targets only being silver level.
Part way, the dragonman youngster swapped to magic power to use necromancy,
raising the vast majority of the corpses into undead lifeforms.
The expenditure of magic and spiritual power was also an important cost.
Finally, the dragoman youngster activated a few alchemy puppets and imbued them
with deception divine spells.
Planting false memories into the resurrected also required expenditure.
There were other multi-deceptive divine spells, tricking not just Hun Tong,
Tripleblade, and others, but also those that were turned into the undead into
believing that all of the dead had been truly resurrected.
The dragonman youngster had invested a large sum, yet the result was only a few
pious level believers, the rest were ordinary level ones.
If this was put into business terms, it would be him investing a million gold
coins for only a few thousand in revenue, it could even be said he lost his
ancestral home.
“Preaching is so hard.”
“I am indeed a divine emissary, I have peak mastery over divine spells and the
help of the divine domain, yet this is how it turned out. How do other
missionaries fare?”
“The vast majority of clergymen preaching will spread their doctrine or perhaps
utilize low level divine spells (at most healing spells), to display their
god’s power to gain a populace’s goodwill and trust, a slow process.”
“Swaying the feelings of people is easy, and changing their opinions isn’t
challenging. What is most crucial is that these people need to genuinely
approve of a god and live according to their teachings. That is how believers
of sufficient quality are fostered.”
The biggest thing the dragonman youngster felt was that evangelization was no
overnight affair, rather it was an eternal and imperceptible long term
undertaking.
“The ordinary and low level clergymen preaching methods are the cheapest.”
“The biggest cost incurred is time.”
“And since they are weak, their time is of little value. As for the gods
themselves, they are not constrained by life span and have plenty of time to
spare.”
“This is the best way to preach.”
The dragonman youngster had many regrets.
“When a lifeform’s evolution hits the god level, their life span is infinite,
and at the peak of transcendent strength, the only true threats are existences
of the same level.”
“Like Charming Blue Goddess, the reason why she was injured and sank into
slumber was due to other gods of the same level besieging her?”
“Therefore, even if one is a god level, gods still need to constantly improve
themselves. Only with power and the ability to defend oneself can one continue
to survive.”
“And to get power, one needs to pursue faith!”
The dragonman youngster was currently still unable to determine whether the
gods’ foundation was faith, but he already knew - faith absolutely could give
gods more power, and the power of faith was a strong guarantee!
Even if faith was not the foundation of divine power, so long as one god
pursued faith vigorously, the other gods had to imitate them and follow close
behind or strive to surpass them.
If you don’t compete, while others do, then you will be the one who comes to
grief.
By now, the dragonman youngster had a certain understanding of the gods’ living
environment.
He had to understand it and gain an even greater comprehension of it.
The dragonman youngster was clear: don’t be fooled by the fact that he was
drawing support from the mighty Charming Blue divine power to obtain immense
benefits. Charming Blue Goddess was absolutely an immense future danger. After
all, what he was really doing was blasphemous prayers, and as a blasphemous
priest, he stole Charming Blue Goddess’ power and ruthlessly exploited it.
No, he didn’t just exploit it just once, it could be predicted that he would
exploit it many more times in the future!
The more he exploited it, the more he understood it, and the more the dragonman
youngster was afraid of the consequences Charming Blue Goddess would inflict on
him.
He told himself: he had to be wary!
This wary mentality led to him, despite knowing the Resurrection spell, to not
make it a priority to resurrect Zi Di – just in case Charming Blue Goddess
tampered with it, he couldn’t tell if it was the case.
Therefore, his resurrecting of everyone had many objectives, one of which was
as an experiment.
He wanted to resurrect others first, then put them under constant observation,
watching if their temperament, faith, and other things were tangibly and
intangibly affected for the worse, and if that was the case, then to what
degree.
The long sermon finally concluded.
“Stand.” The dragonman youngster proclaimed.
Everyone stood up, and looked towards the dragonman youngster, reverence and
fanaticism across their faces as they fervently awaited the dragonman
youngster’s next order.
Cong Mang and Hun Tong were the same too.
Hong Zhu went without saying, she was one of the new pious level believers.
Only Da Dou was different, wobbling as he stood up and pain still clearly
remaining on his face. He persevered for a long time, and it wasn’t easy as his
mind and willpower experienced a harsh ordeal.
The dragonman youngster already made arrangements for everyone.
He first arranged for the big guy, Da Dou, Hong Zhu, and some resurrected
mercenaries to leave Snow Bird Harbor and join up with the Vegetable Pirates.
The big guy’s mouth gaped, gasping, he wanted to object. He was unable to make
sense of why he had to be separated from his father after just reuniting with
him, he didn’t want to do that!
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster glared at him slightly, his strict
eyes cowed the big guy into shrinking his head, not daring to disobey. 
He zipped his mouth, and his eyes quickly reddened, feeling very aggrieved.
Hong Hu also looked lost, and regretful. She made up her mind, she wanted to
tenaciously hug the dragonman youngster’s thigh, but at this moment, she was to
be dispatched into the ocean again,
Da Dou on the contrary was indifferent, and even somewhat happy. He was very
afraid of the dragonman youngster and didn’t want to stay by his side. The
dragonman youngster put him under too much pressure, especially during his
sermon, that experience was etched into his memory. Keeping far away from the
dragonman youngster could allow Da Dou to breathe.
Tripleblade also felt lost.
He still wanted to bring back these resurrected mercenaries, rouse morale, and
reconstruct the mercenary corps.
His heart really was set on the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
But he quickly had a thought, and realized the dragonman youngster was right,
“Bringing these people back alive is too garish.”
“Although we have Deceptive Disguise that can let them pretend to be other
people, why would we expend valuable Pearl Bubbles like that?”
“These people are not strong enough to use Pearl Bubbles on.”
“Letting them go out to sea on their own is the right choice.”
Of everyone, Cong Mang was the most unwilling.
“The Vegetable Pirates is the foundation I painstakingly worked to build!”
Just now, the dragonman youngster took it over with a light word.
How could Cong Mang be willing to let that happen?
But what could he do?
The circumstances were stronger than the person’s will.
Cong Mang could only secretly console himself, “My foundation was originally
subsidized and established by the Wisteria Merchant Alliance. Returning it to
them is fine.”
He had second thoughts, “No, what is the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s
relationship with Long Fu?”
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance is destroyed already, when confronted with a
foreign god, how could they possibly cooperate equally?”
“It is very likely the Wisteria Merchant Alliance has already been annexed!”
“The Long Fu before me is the leader.”
Cong Mang’s repeated visualizations quickly dissipated his stirred up emotions.
If someone in dire straits also saw someone meet the same fate, they would be
in a much better mood. This was the approximate mentality – I’m not the only
one that has bad luck, look, there are others who have the same terrible luck
as me!
Like Cong Mang surmised, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was in equally terrible
straits, so he didn’t have much beef with them.
He called out at once, “Lord Long Fu, I am truly honored that you can look
after my people.”
He continued to express that he was willing to proactively conform and help Da
Dou and the rest assume control over the Vegetable Pirates.
To this, the dragonman youngster merely nodded, expressing his approval.
Cong Mang’s reaction was something he expected.
The dragonman youngster analyzed Cong Mang’s temperament and considered how he
would react.
As a pirate, he had a constant admiration for strength. Therefore, the pirate
commander being the strongest within a pirate group was true with almost no
exceptions.
In fact, this world belonged to the strong. 
Every social class and all aspects of society had universal admiration for
strength.
Cong Mang’s expression of this was also very obvious.
Just look at how he attached himself to Da Han willingly, led his entire pirate
group as a daring vanguard, and obediently gave the Icebound Pirates a portion
of his spoils of war.
Now that Cong Mang was actively helping the dragonman youngster’s annexation,
he once again embodied his mentality of attaching himself to the strong.
On the one hand, he was already a captive, one under the yoke, and had no
choice but to cooperate. On the other hand, the dragonman youngster had a
foreign god backing him, an existence far surpassing saint level Da Han!
The dragonman youngster deliberately invoked the “God Mist” as deterrence and
intimidation due to the considerable benefits it brought. Cong Mang’s active
cooperation was one of those benefits.
The dragonman youngster continued to arrange things.
He had Cong Mang follow him to the Ice Sculpture Capital. While Hun Tong was
left behind in Snow Bird Harbor to secretly defend and look after the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps branch here.
Cong Mang wanted to go to the capital. An important reason was the Wisteria
Cache.
Now that he belonged to the survivors’ group, it would be very beneficial to Zi
Di acquiring the cache.
Another important reason was that the dragonman youngster wanted him by his
side so he could observe him at close range and understand him. The deeper the
dragonman youngster’s understanding of his nature and thinking was, the greater
his control over him would naturally be.
While Hun Tong was stationed in Snow Bird Harbor…
On the one hand, the dragonman youngster was relatively comfortable with Hun
Tong. His hatred of Tan Mo, to some extent, was in a way loyalty to the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
On the other hand, the dragonman youngster needed to give Hun Tong time alone.
This was because Hun Tong had experienced both the Snow Bird Harbor Battle as
well as the dragonman youngster’s public evangelization, his mind was certain
to have been immensely battered.
He was unprecedentedly loyal to the Sheng Ming Empire, this was due to his
noble education from childhood, and it was how he habitually thought. 
And now, he couldn’t help but ponder and compare.
On the one side was the empire, he had let a group alone far from the
continent, painstakingly developed his territory, racked his brains to operate
it, and then was blackmailed and framed by Tan Mo
On the other side was the enigmatic foreign power, one that had a god that
magnanimously used a Communal Resurrection spell, and their higher-up Long Fu
who was at least a bishop.
Which was better, returning to the Sheng Ming Empire or joining the dragonman
youngster?



****** Chapter 703: Young Man – Leadership Ability Up ↑ ******
If Hun Tong was next to the dragonman youngster, focusing his eyes and
attention on the latter, he would feel omniscient pressure, he wouldn’t be able
to think or be in an analytical mindset.
But if he was free to roam Snow Bird Harbor, during leisure time, he naturally
would think more. The more he thought, the more he would hesitate and choose.
His hesitations and choices would constantly sway his loyalty, especially when
he saw Tan Mo moving about right before his eyes.
Hun Tong was just a gold level and had reached the limits of his bloodline, his
potential was exhausted!
He wanted to return to the empire and explain himself; he wanted to deal with
Tan Mo and Tan Mo’s connections.
He didn’t have a good relationship between him and the clan behind him - the
Duo Mu Clan.
But by genuinely relying on the dragonman youngster, he could have access to a
bishop level higher-up and could even enjoy the super-benefit that was the
Resurrection spell!
What would he choose?
The dragonman youngster looked forward to Hun Tong’s choice.
The dragonman youngster’s final arrangement was for Tripleblade.
He brought Tripleblade over for a private conversation, clearly informing him,
“There are reasons why I left Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo injured but
not dead.”
“First, they are both important members of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. One
is an irreplaceable arrangement in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and the other is
an investigator. Killing them is bound to provoke needless attention and
attract the spy agency’s powerful investigations and responses.”
“We don’t need to unnecessarily antagonize people, at least not ahead of time.
Resisting all kinds of investigative magics and divine spells will intensify
the depletion of Pearl Bubbles.”
“Second, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord has someone above him. His code name is
[Emancipator] and his superior is code named [Usurper]. We must find out who
[Usurper] is and uncover what the intention of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency
is within the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord wanted to unmask the arm merchant behind the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, and so too did the dragonman youngster want to
investigate who [Usurper] was.
The dragonman youngster continued to tell Tripleblade, “Therefore, you will go
back and look for Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.”
“Make clear that I have learned of the bitter battle in Snow Bird Harbor and
that I express my sympathies to him.”
Tripleblade couldn’t help but raise his brows, taking a new measure of his
commander.
Tripleblade seemed to feel that the young commander had returned changed beyond
recognition. In the past, the dragonman youngster would have never said that,
let alone saying it without batting an eyelid.
The dragonman youngster added on, “If expressing sympathies is not enough, you
will tell Snow Bird Harbor City Lord this: back then, the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps received his help, and we jointly worked together to root out the Bayonet
Gang, we have always remembered this camaraderie.”
“And this time, we wish to lend a hand to help the city lord out of his own
crisis.”
“Our greatest sincerity is our capital.”
“Thanks to our magic medicine business, my corps currently has plenty of money
and can give the city lord a large loan in order to rebuild Snow Bird Harbor’s
defenses, and especially the core defense, the magician tower!”
“I know that in this battle, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s greatest breach of
responsibility is losing the magician tower. He is sure to be held accountable
strongly by the kingdom’s high class.”
“If he shoulders the task of rebuilding the magician tower of his own accord,
then this blame will be alleviated a lot. This will have immense benefits for
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s political future.”
Tripleblade summed it up internally: we blew up the magician tower and robbed
the city palace. Now, we are going back to help Snow Bird Harbor City Lord with
a loan to him to help him rebuild the magician tower.
The goblin couldn’t help but be secretly speechless, he took another look and
marveled at the young commander before him, shocked that he had changed so much
after just one trip away from them. 
“That said, I support this change.” Tripleblade was looking forward to how Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord would react when he came knocking.
Seeing Tripleblade departing, the dragonman youngster’s gaze became deeply
serene.
He knew what Tripleblade’s bloodline was and also had the Bloodline
Purification formation, but he didn’t immediately purify Tripleblade’s
bloodline.
If it were before, perhaps he would have done that.
After all, he was one of the survivors, a most trusted person.
But now, he had more notions and misgivings, so he decided to wait for a more
mature opportunity.
The young man’s plans were immediately carried out, and he was soon alone in
the divine domain.
But his plans weren’t finished yet.
He continued to use divine spells to secretly connect to the resurrected
mercenaries, mainly the silver level ones.
He secretly gave these mercenaries a mission, empowered them with divine
spells, changed their identities, and ordered them to lie low in various parts
of Snow Bird Harbor.
After these mercenaries received the order, they trembled with excitement and
accepted it without hesitation.
“Thus, the mercenary corps is divided into three parts.”
“The first is the main force in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom Capital, it will have
me, Zi Di, Zong Ge, Dao Hen, Cong Mang, and the others.”
“The second part will have Da Dou, Xiao Guai, Hong Zhu, and the important
resurrected mercenaries, and the tentatively controlled Vegetable Pirates
remnants.”
“The third part is the Snow Bird Harbor branch. It will still have Tripleblade
as the core, with Men Shi and Chi Lai as its backbone. They will shoulder some
magic medicine production assignments, but will mainly be focused on deepening
their connection with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, and if possible, openly
contacting Tan Mo. If they can build a relationship with the Imperial Secret
Spy Agency, then that would be for the best.”
“If there was a fourth part, then it would be Cang Xu, but I don’t know where
he followed Teacher Si Ling to.”
The dragonman youngster was unaware that Cang Xu and Jian Gui had been brought
to Ice Sculpture Island by Teacher Si Ling.
“Furthermore, there is also Lan Zao. He is currently trapped in the Tranquil
Hill Divine Domain.”
Previously, the dragonman youngster wanted to rescue Lan Zao, but now that he
had a new goal of seizing the Dueling Godhead, he found Lan Zao’s position to
be quite ingenious. He was a saboteur that had taken root in the Dueling God
Divine Domain and perhaps in the future, he could be empowered!
The Ice Sculpture National Ceremony, the Warm Snow Cup, the Wisteria Cache, the
pirate invasion, the Dueling Divine Domain, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency…the
situation was still considerably complex.
As the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ paramount leader, the dragonman youngster
had to shoulder and rise to his duty, steer their ship well, charge through the
wind and waves, evade hidden reefs, and eventually make his way into the
expansive seas.
These were things he, as their leader, needed to do!
He could never shirk them and had to exhaust his capabilities to carry these
responsibilities.
The returned dragonman youngster was far more mature and outstanding than his
past self.
The divine blessings had given experience in not only transcendent powers, but
also mixed in experiences in administration, communication, and other fields.
The dragonman youngster’s vision had become farther.
He was no longer limited to a single battle.
In the Snow Bird Harbor battle, he used stratagems, borrowed power to attack,
and even though he finished the job himself, the performance was composed of
many real battles.
He successfully attained his multiple objectives.
First, he retaliated against Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo, damaging
their strength and cutting down their greed.
Second, he intimidated Cong Mang and took him captive, then incorporated the
Vegetable Pirates into his forces as bedcover for the Wisteria Cache.
Third, he left Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo alive for future
relations, goodwill, false deference, and other bridges that could be built.
He didn’t hesitate to vigorously spend to conduct a public communal
resurrection and evangelization, which had its own gains.
The first was that although his communal conversion didn’t have many results,
it had achieved its main goal, which was to awe and entice everyone. The
biggest thing was that he reinforced his own authority and united everyone
together.
The second thing was that he had Charming Blue believers put into each of the
three forces, making it convenient for him to teleport to each and maximize his
control.
The third thing is that he started to experiment with divine spells, and the
resurrected mercenaries became his observation targets.
Why did he choose Mist?
This had been pondered over by the dragonman youngster and came after careful
deliberations.
Firstly, he could not take in faith personally, and it was easy to expose
himself.
Secondly, he could not use Charming Blue Goddess’ name. That name would make
known that the dragonman youngster was an expert at deception divine spells,
which would involuntarily produce doubts, impact trust, and increase the
dragonman youngster’s leadership expenditures.
Finally, the God Mist was one of Charming Blue Goddess’ visages and was not
something the dragonman youngster came up with. Preaching with that name could
still mold Charming Blue believers. These believers were valuable spatial
coordinates. Divine Domain Descent made many matters easier for the dragonman
youngster to deal with, and he had room to maneuver henceforth!
The dragonman youngster’s arrangements in the Snow Bird Harbor battle could not
be looked at in isolation. One should treat the Snow Bird Harbor battle and the
public sermon afterwards as an integrated whole.
Stratagems became an important skill of the dragonman youngster, for his
leadership abilities had immensely improved.
Like Tripleblade realized, he had changed beyond recognition!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was nearly covered completely in bandages.
His injuries weren’t heavy, but he decided to appear severely wounded.
He was hard pressed and under pressure.
This was the truest portrayal of his current state.
“How did I become like this?”
“Why did the Vegetable Pirates suddenly appear? They controlled high level
stealth techniques!” 
“Most pivotally, who was that fishman expert who appeared at the end?” 
“Why did the grand Imperial Secret Spy Agency’s information base not have a
trace of him?”
“According to common sense, such an expert cannot be nameless, there will
inevitably be some clues. But in reality, he seemed to appear from nowhere!”
“He defeated me and Tan Mo but didn’t kill us. On the contrary, he captured
Cong Mang alive, then swaggered off. From this, I can see that he seemed to
have come for Cong Mang in particular.”
“In that case, was the mysterious fishman part of the group who blew up the
magician tower and the city palace?”
All kinds of misgivings entrenched themselves in Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s
mind and continued to press down on him.
His current concern was not these suspicions, but how to deal with Snow Bird
Harbor’s perilous situation.



****** Chapter 704: Snow Bird Harbor City Lord – I Can Make Deals With Long Fu!


******
Yes, that’s right, a perilous situation.
After losing the core defense that was the magician tower, Snow Bird Harbor’s
weakness had been laid bare.
Snow Bird Harbor had been visited by the Vegetable Pirates. The city had
suffered cataclysmic damage, and the city palace had been blown up. But on the
other hand, other parts of Snow Bird Harbor still had its great wealth and
hadn’t been plundered.
“I must rebuild the magician tower as soon as possible!!” Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord shouted in his mind.
Building a magician tower could be a long term project, or not. It all depended
on whether money was in place.
Building a magician tower in two or three days probably wouldn’t work. But a
week was completely doable. Because this was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the top
country in alchemy technology on the Main Plane.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord estimated that if he assembled half the alchemy
guild’s strength, he could rebuild the magician tower within a week.
Even though the new magician tower would be simpler and cruder than the old
one, it was better than nothing.
Having a magician tower or not was the difference.
“The problem is money!” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord grasped the crux of the
matter. 
The city palace was blown up, and the money inside was gone.
This included last month’s tax payments and his own personal wealth.
“To be more accurate, I only lost the gold coins, the silver and copper coins
are still there.”
However, the silver and copper coins were left melted or turned to metal
fragments in the ruins because of the explosion.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had already ordered them to be recovered.
But he understood that even if all of it was recovered, this sum of money was
like throwing a cup of water on a bonfire, it had little to no effect. The most
valuable part of the treasury had been scurried away.
“It is almost certain it was that third party.”
“They schemed against me and schemed even more against Cong Mang’s Vegetable
Pirates!”
They stole all of the gold coins and everything in my secret storehouse.”
The city palace explosion had destroyed almost all of Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord’s accumulated wealth, and right now, he was wrapped up in bandages,
pretending to be seriously injured when he reported to the higher-ups.
“Lord Clan Leader, I have no choice but to contact you, this is the situation…”
Snow Bird City Lord decided to use a long ranged instantaneous communication
device to contact his clan leader.
When the Xue Beng Clan Leader received the communication, he was grave, because
he knew that this kind of long ranged instantaneous communication device
consumed massive amounts of magic power every second.
Whenever this device was used, it indicated that the situation was serious and
critical.
“Why is Snow Bird Harbor being attacked by pirates?” The Xue Beng Clan Leader
hastily asked, “Do you need clan support?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord coughed, then threw up blood, “To be more accurate,
the pirates have already retreated.”
“At the time, the battlefield was very complicated, I did everything I could,
but I was unable to…cough.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord coughed out blood again, turning as pale as paper.
Seeing him so miserable, the Xue Beng Clan Leader suddenly felt his bad
feelings being aggravated.
Then, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said, “Now, although we have luckily survived,
the crisis has not waned. Snow Bird Harbor’s magician tower has been utterly
blown up, and my city palace has met the same terrible calamity. I urgently
need clan assistance to rebuild the magician tower!”
“What?!” When he heard the magician tower had been completely destroyed, the
Xue Beng Clan Elder’s eyes went black, and his expression seemed to collapse.
Rebuilding the magician tower would necessitate massive amounts of funds.
Snow Bird Harbor’s current situation demanded a rapid construction of a
magician tower, which would mean it would cost tenfold the amount.
The Xue Beng Clan Leader’s anger was scathing as he began to demand an
explanation from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord. Why weren’t you careful? How did
it come to this? If this battle had sustained such massive losses, then you as
city lord cannot avoid responsibility! If this matter is not handled well, then
your political prospects as city lord will inevitably go dark!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord bowed his head and received the scolding,
occasionally coughing up blood and in short, playing up his miserable
condition.
The Xue Beng Clan Leader scolded him for a spell before getting tired. He saw
how miserable Snow Bird Harbor City Lord looked and deeply sighed, “Contacting
me and the clan was the right decision.”
“Remember, regardless of your official position, you are Xue Yue, and from your
birth name you are a member of the Xue Beng Clan, this is your symbol that
cannot be wiped away!”
“At the moment, both His Majesty and the Lord Grand Magician are conserving
their strength and waiting for a golden opportunity, the capital is in a
delicate state.”
“If you report this directly to your superiors, the royal family is unlikely to
act while the Alchemy Guild is focused on presiding over the Warm Snow Cup.”
“Due to the National Ceremony, so long as your Snow Bird Harbor hasn’t
encountered Da Han’s Icebound Pirates, don’t expect any reinforcements.”
“We need to take our time making a decision in this matter.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord Xue Yue looked anxious, “Indeed! Right now, the most
important thing is to rebuild the magician tower, this cannot wait, Lord Clan
Leader.”
“Humph!” The Xue Beng Clan Leader looked annoyed, “Ordinarily, you don’t
contact the clan, and in this matter, now you know who to depend on?”
“The clan is not your bank vault; you must understand this.”
“As a clan elder, I must consider everything, and not just one side.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord frowned, “However, of the entire clan, I am the only
one who has authority in this region. Clan Leader, if I am held to account for
my poor defense of the border, and am forced from the city lord position, then
the clan will be negatively impacted to an immense degree.”
The Xue Beng Clan Leader sighed, his tone reserved, “Of course I won’t stand by
and watch, but you can also take out some presentable things that will satisfy
the other clansmen, do you understand?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s gaze went gloomy, he was silent for a time, then
nodded, “Then please make your statement, Lord Clan Leader.”
What followed was a negotiation between the two.
Clan affection became a façade, a thin cloth covering up the icy contest over
benefits that should not be known to outsiders.
After a short time, the negotiation finished.
Both sides hadn’t come to an agreement.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord Xue Yue cursed, his expression gloomy, but this
outcome was not beyond his expectations.
He came from the Xue Beng Clan, but he was not on friendly terms with his clan.
“That old bastard!” The long ranged alchemy communication device’s metal
surface reflected Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s ordinary looking face.
As a snow elf, how could he have ordinary features?
Although Snow Bird Harbor City Lord came from the Xue Beng Clan, he was of
mixed blood, a half human, half elf mixed blood.
From his birth, he suffered ostracism and suppression.
The more he was suppressed, the more he worked.
But a half0blood wanting to grow in a prideful elven nation was really
difficult. 
It wasn’t until he became an imperial secret spy that he had a path to make
true progress!
As for becoming Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, that was due to the empire secretly
boosting his achievements. But on the surface, it was believed he was a
benefactor of dumb luck when he obtained it after a political stalemate between
the kingdom’s upper class.
At least this is what the Xue Beng Clan, including the clan leader, believed.
Following him obtaining the position of Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, the Xue
Beng Clan tried to take advantage of him…to an unsightly degree for a time.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord deliberately utilized the Xue Beng Clan’s resources
and contacts, but the latter was too greedy. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was
loyal to the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, and he had to ensure his independence,
or at least present an independent outward appearance. Therefore, many benefits
and crucial posts could not be assigned to his Xue Beng clansmen.
At the time, both sides were having an unpleasant row.
The Xue Beng Clan in its entirety was greatly disappointed in Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord, bawling out that he didn’t return the clan’s kindness, with some
clansmen even manipulating things behind the scene, conspiring against Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord in an effort to take away his position of city lord.
How could they succeed?
The Imperial Secret Spy Agency had painstakingly handpicked and raised up Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord, so naturally they sought to protect him.
Therefore, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s external political crisis crumbled, and
after he took office, it had vanished, preferring not to make mistakes than
try, so gradually he sat steadily in his position.
Of course he didn’t opt out of the rat race, instead he was constantly trying
to secretly save power and bitterly wait for an opportunity.
He was waiting for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to come.
Then, he mopped up the entire Bayonet Gang in a day, cleaning it out in a roll
of thunder.
He pushed himself into the limelight, and the entire kingdom’s high class were
shocked for a time, recognizing that he – Xue Yue, a Xue Beng Clan half elf,
the incumbent Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was not just lucky, he was capable!
But now…
Pirates attacked Snow Bird Harbor and Cong Mang’s Vegetable Pirates easily
landed. At the start of the battle, Snow Bird Harbor’s defensive core, the
magician tower, was blown up, and even his city palace was blown to bits.
He was a disgrace.
Too much of a disgrace!
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had gravely neglected his duty!
This was the greatest crisis since he had taken office.
He would surely be held accountable.
The reason why it wasn’t happening now was simply due to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom being faced with lots of ordeals already, the entire upper layer didn’t
have the inclination to sort out a city lord like himself.
When the National Ceremony was finished and things recovered, he feared he’d be
stripped of his title as Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“Unless I receive Lord [Usurper’s] help again.”
“But my relationship with Lord [Usurper]’s cannot be exposed, he cannot help me
out fully.”
“I have to get myself out of this trouble!”
“I have to rely on myself to get through this crisis.”
“At least, I have to give it my all!”
The enormous pressure did not break Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, instead it
stimulated his fighting spirit more.
When he left the communications room, he kept his spirits up, as if he had
obtained the ideal outcome from the negotiation with the Xue Beng Clan Leader.
“We just didn’t come to an agreement.”
“How could such a matter possibly be concluded in one discussion?”
“Crucially, I have already obtained the Xue Beng Clan’s tentative support.”
“My major dereliction of duty this time means the Xue Beng Clan has to take
care of things in advance, use their contacts and resources, and issue a good
deal of preparations for them to save my position in a timely fashion
hereafter.”
“It seems that my clan still has a bit of use in it.”
“Hehehe.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was already thinking of measures and began to
implement them.
Exploiting the Xue Beng Clan was merely his first step.
“Next, I will invite my friends.” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord tore off his
bandages.
His injuries were never serious.
As he tore off his bandages, he strode into a corridor.
The bandages he threw to the floor were naturally cleaned up by servants.
His insolent movement and heavy aura at this moment did not have a trace of
elven grace, he looked like a raging bull.
Because he knew that this time was like countless times before, he had to do
his utmost to make a stand and fight against his fate!
“I can borrow money.”
“A massive loan!”
“The Sea Bird Church is my ally and has fought alongside me.”
“The Clam Cloth and Secret Medicine Merchant Alliances, amongst others, have
branches in Snow Bird Harbor. Due to a lack of security, they might rush to
raise funds for the magician tower, it is our joint demand!
“Tan Mo…that damnable guy.” Thinking of Tan Mo, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
hatefully itched his teeth, “But we can still cooperate, I can transfer a
portion of Snow Bird Harbor earnings in the future to obtain funds from Tan Mo.
Even if he opens with a high price…”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had completely calmed down already.
He was mentally prepared to be fleeced. He would rather agree to Tan Mo’s high
price than compromise with the Xue Beng Clan, even if the latter’s opening
price was lower than Tan Mo’s. 
The reason was of course not due to his antagonistic mood.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a qualified statesman, and he thought deeply,
“Tan Mo is merely an outsider, and a human, he came to the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom on an investigation mission.”
“The fact is the Xue Beng Clan is a native power, and if I make an agreement
with them, it will open up a hole that they will constantly seep through and
become a large tail that obstructs me in the future.”
Even if he had to cede massive profits, it depended on who he was ceding them
to.
Despite the pain of losing them making him breathless, Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord deeply understood he had to concede!
This was the art of political compromise!!
If he didn’t concede assets while he was still city lord and there were assets
to concede, he wouldn’t have a chance to do so in the future.
“City Lord, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has come to pay a visit.” Just as
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord came to his study, a subordinate reported to him.
Tripleblade and Chi Laicame to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s suburban manor.
“Why did they come?” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord knew of “Di Bi” (Tripleblade).
After all, Snow Bird Harbor was his territory, and he also had the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency’s intelligence. Therefore, he knew how the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ Snow Bird Harbor branch was organized. On the face of it, Men
Shi and Chi Lai, two silver levels, were the elite heads, but that wasn’t true.
The real head leader was the iron level Di Bi (Tripleblade)!
This was a rare situation.
In this world of the strong, the strongest was generally the leader.
But Snow Bird Harbor City Lord understood the situation. He had given himself a
rational explanation: since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were an agent of an
arms merchant, then the people truly controlling them were their backers. Long
Fu was like that, Di Bi too. Chi Lai and Men Shi did not swear loyalty to Di
Bi, but rather to the arms merchant.
“Chi Lai and Men Shi merely joined in midway and are not considered to be their
core.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps hides people, core members of the arms
merchant. They should have been cultivated for a long time and are estimated to
be very loyal. Long Fu and Shi Qi are certain to be like that, Hen Fa too. Now
Di Bi should be one of those people too. That “Sleeping Man’ was an even more
concealed trump card!”
Despite Snow Bird Harbor City Lord being far from the truth, with his limited
information, he was nevertheless able to guess who made up the survivors in the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Thinking of the big guy, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s gaze became dusky.
He felt intense cardiac pain.
The big guy was a future saint level, but he was killed in the explosion, with
not even his skeleton being left behind!
A saint level, he was a future saint level.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord felt that all of the assets he had lost did not
compare to losing the big guy.
After a moment, the study door bell rang.
“Please come in.” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord faintly adjusted his sitting
posture.
Tripleblade and Chi Lai pushed the door open, entered, and simultaneously
showed propriety.
“Please, have a seat.” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled.
He understood the internal situation in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch,
and naturally didn’t look down on Tripleblade, and was curious at their purpose
in coming.
Tripleblade was very candid, and after exchanging a few pleasantries, he
immediately stated his purpose. The gist was that thanks to Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord’s assistance, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps branch was saved. Lord
Commander Long Fu had learned about the situation here and has dispatched them
to discuss a new collaboration with you, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
“What kind of collaboration?” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord exposed obvious
interest.
Tripleblade continued his entreaties.
The moment he heard the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to provide 200,000
gold coins for a deal; Snow Bird Harbor City Lord felt his spirits rise.
This sum of money had emerged at a great time, too timely actually!
He really needed money.
He had no clue that this money came from his city palace treasury. Of course,
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would not be so stupid as to pay with stolen
coins, those were given to the group at the capital and the 200,000 gold coins
came from the magic medicine profits.
“Then what does your side demand in exchange?” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
serenely asked.
“We need some materials.” Tripleblade handed over a list.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord read it, his brows gently creasing.
The vast majority of the materials enumerated on the list could not be
purchased extensively on the market. Many of them were contraband.
For example, Ice Hearts and a large quantity of dragon corpses.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord shook his head, expressing it would be too difficult
to procure.
Tripleblade thought: Who is he kidding? In the supplies the big guy stole,
there’s a white dragon talon, from a pure white dragon, furthermore, there’s
large quantities of Ice Hearts!
These indicated that Snow Bird Harbor City Lord had the means to get these
things, perhaps the price was comparatively large, or it was very risky.
But in Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s current situation, regardless of the price
or risks, they were secondary.
Tripleblade was prepared for this and didn’t relent on his conditions one bit.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord just wanted to raise the price, and upon seeing
Tripleblade’s firm attitude, agreed to the terms.
“Truth be told, the Li Jian Clan’s contacts and resource channels are better
than mine. Why didn’t your corps conduct this business with them?” Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord inquired.
As for why the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted the prohibited materials, he
didn’t ask.
To him it seemed that as arms merchant agents, what was wrong with gathering
some alchemy materials? It was perfectly normal. The difficult part lay with
the fact these materials were prohibited in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Tripleblade bitterly laughed, “Our collaboration with the Li Jian Clan went too
deep, it wasn’t good.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s eyes rapidly flashed with vague glints.
He suddenly thought of some past information.
The Li Jian Clan saw the immense benefits in the mount potion business and
wanted to completely bind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to them, becoming the
latter’s sole business partner.
“Now it seems the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps doesn’t want to keep working with
the Li Jian Clan.”
“That’s right. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ true loyalty is to an arms
merchant. As an alchemy munitions merchant, they naturally don’t want to depend
heavily on some power, as they will suffer under a yoke in the future, rather
they want to benefit from both sides and the freer they are, the easier it is
for them to earn money.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord instantly made out the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
requirements.
Tripleblade continued, “Speaking of which, it was thanks to you City Lord that
we started to collaborate with the Li Jian Clan, you were the one who built the
bridge behind the scenes.”
“Can you get in touch with the Jing Xiang Clan, your Lordship?”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord quickly thought of the magic medicine market
standoff.
The mount potion market was prosperous, but there were only two big players.
One player was the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan, the other
player was the Jing Xiang Clan. The traditional hegemon, the Alchemy Guild,
hadn’t done that much in the market, astounding many outside onlookers. 
“The Jing Xiang Clan is the greatest magic medicine refiner of the kingdom’s
nobility, but unfortunately, I am unable to help you two in mediation.”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a mixed blood, his status was limited, and he
had suffered veiled discrimination.
At the time, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was able to reach a collaboration
with the Li Jian Clan mainly because of how strong the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps was.
But now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ true intent was to reach a
reconciliation with the Jing Xiang Clan and even work together with them, this
greatly exceeded Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s capabilities. Because if they
wanted to do this, they not only had to put an end to past conflict between the
two parties but also deal with the Li Jian Clan’s reprisal.
Tripleblade was unsurprised. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord could investigate them,
naturally they could do the same.
The selling price at the Thieves Guild for information that Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord came from the Xue Beng Clan and was a mixed blood was very cheap.
Thus, a moment later, Tripleblade stated his primary purpose in coming, “In
that case. We are here to ask Snow Bird Harbor City Lord to spread additional
rumors.”

“What kind of rumors?”
Tripleblade’s tone and bearing were very tranquil, “It concerns the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan. The Li Jian Clan made a grave misstep and
wanted to seize the largest share of the magic medicine earnings and bullied
Long Fu’s party. Long Fu was unwilling to be humiliated, and he got quite
furious, even threatening to work with the Jing Xiang Clan!”
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord stared blankly.
Soon after, his mind seemed to flash with lightning, and he nearly blurted out,
“Clever.”
This was extremely clever!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had made up their mind already and wanted to
cut ties with the Li Jian Clan. The partner they wanted now was the Jing Xiang
Clan, their former business enemy.
Disseminating this rumor would immediately uncover the conflict between the
two. The crucial thing was that the Li Jian Clan was in a bad state currently.
The kingdom’s high class were universally dissatisfied with the Li Jian Clan’s
performance in the naval battle.
It could be said that the Li Jian Clan’s situation was much worse than Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord’s.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to rescind their collaboration with
the Li Jian Clan, then this was undoubtedly the best opportunity.
When the rumors were let out, the entire kingdom would know.
This was tantamount to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps giving a way out of this
embarrassing situation and calmly extending an olive branch to all parties.
The mount potion market was too fiery, and so long as working together brought
wealth, who wouldn’t want to do that?
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord also wanted to do that, but unfortunately, he was
not strong enough and could not touch such enormous profits, he could only
drool with envy.
After a half hour, Tripleblade and Chi Lai said goodbye. 
The two sides reached a consensus and signed an agreement on the spot.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was quite satisfied.
“I can feel that Long Fu really wanted to help me. He didn’t exploit my
circumstances, everything was based on market value, and he gave me capital
when I most needed it.”
This was Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s time of most urgent need, and it could be
said he had been provided charcoal during a blizzard.
“Of course, there are still risks to this collaboration.”
“After all, the things they want are contraband.”
But to save his city lord position, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was very
determined to assume these risks.
“In comparison, disseminating rumors is far riskier, I might offend the Li Jian
Clan.”
“But it doesn’t matter, I can utilize the Imperial Secret Spy Agency for this.”
“It has nothing to do with me, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord!”
“This guy, Long Fu. He’s pretty good, he handles matters in the open and
stylishly, and he is loyal to his friends.”
“Unfortunately, once I get across this ordeal, I still need to deal with you
and the arms dealers behind you.”
“In the future, if possible, I will help you out and reciprocate in kind.”



****** Chapter 705: Dragon Bloodline Rises Dramatically ******
Ice Sculpture Kingdom, a plain mountain range on the outskirts.
Inside a cave, within a divine domain, the dragonman youngster was currently
using the Bloodcore.
A familiar scene played out as the Bloodcore’s light enveloped a white dragon
talon.
Very quickly, the gold level white dragon talon turned to ash, and the
Bloodcore’s blood light returned, increasing the dragonman youngster’s White
Dragon bloodline by a bit.
The dragonman youngster experiencing this sighed to himself.
The Bloodcore only absorbed a gold level target, not increasing the bloodline
by much. Most of the dragonman youngster’s bloodline had come from Mystifying
Monster Island – the legend level Flame Dragon King bloodline.
He always wanted to collect dragon bloodlines and strengthen this aspect.
During his experience away from the corps, he had obtained a massive investment
from Charming Blue Goddess, his Surging Wave fishman bloodline had emerged as a
new force to be reckoned with, surpassing his dragon race bloodline and moved
up as the top bloodline.
“Without divine blessings, I would have to collect bloodlines myself, it’s
quite exhausting.”
“Perhaps I can do some blasphemous prayers to the Dragon God to receive his
divine gifts?”
The dragonman youngster tossed his head, suppressing this notion.
At present, he didn’t want to do that.
It was too risky.
The hidden danger of Charming Blue Goddess hadn’t been dealt with yet; it was
bound to be exposed in the future. Furthermore, the current circumstances made
it untenable for blasphemous prayers.
“If I can obtain the Dueling Godhead, I will be classified as a high-end power,
and perhaps I will have a higher assurance of blasphemous prayers.”
“Currently, the group has plenty of money and collecting dragon bloodlines is
easier than ever.”
“Don’t rashly take risks. Although the earnings are immense for the risk, if I
do it more, I will eventually die for it.”
The dragonman youngster criticized himself, finding his ego was somewhat
inflated. 
There was nothing that could be done, the treatment in the Ocean Mother Nest
was excellent and Charming Blue Goddess personally looked after him. Now that
it was his turn to work hard, there was an obvious gap in propriety.
The dragonman youngster promptly adjusted his mindset.
The dragon bloodlines still needed to be collected vigorously.
Because publicly, he was Long Fu who relied on the massive augments his dragon
bloodline provided.
Since he was vying for Dueling Godhead, he had to battle foes and the safest
way to do so was to use his dragonman identity.
Of course he could use his fishman form, then cover himself in a few Charming
Blue divine spells, but doing that was very dangerous. If he came across
something similar to the Truth Slate, there was a chance he’d be exposed.
Especially during the later stages of the National Ceremony, each duel was
public. Don’t speak of the many spectators, there was Ice Sculpture Kingdom
leadership watching these, along with many powerful figures not native to the
Ice Sculpture Island.
If a slip up appeared, the dragonman youngster would ruin the enterprise for
the sake of one basket.
Conversely, if he used the dragon bloodlines and just the Bloodcore’s
abilities, the dragonman youngster would be extremely difficult to see through.
Because his life form manifestation was just as it appeared, there was no need
to disguise his appearance or form.
Right now, the dragonman youngster collected dragon bloodlines in mainly two
ways.
The first was through Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s channels, where he could get
hold of some pure dragon race contraband.
The second was from buying many wyverns on the market. Wyverns had scant dragon
bloodlines in them, but so long as the quantity piled up, it was a considerable
amount.
The first channel didn’t provide a lot and was risky, but the main risk was
assumed by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
The second channel had low quality but basically no risks.
The second channel was the main avenue.
The main thing was that there were many wyverns on the market at a cheap price.
This was mainly because the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had a considerable white
dragon community living in it. Dragons had a lascivious nature, and the white
dragon community made many wyverns all year long. Wyverns usually had a high
reproduction rate, to the extent that the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had to organize
large hunting events at regular intervals to clean out the wyverns to prevent
them from running rampant.
The dragonman youngster wasn’t just absorbing a white dragon talon.
Since he left till now, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had been actively
buying wyvern materials.
This purchasing had been so vigorous to the extent that when Tripleblade was
nervous about finances, he wanted to cancel these purchases to alleviate the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ financial pressure.
When the dragonman youngster returned, the wyvern materials had become a small
mountain.
Totally absorbed!
This was the benefit of having personnel and capital.
If he were by himself, doing this would be rather troublesome, take a great
deal of time and effort, and would be done very inefficiently.
Nowadays, the number of dragon bloodlines in the Bloodcore has increased
dramatically!
The Dragon Saliva bloodline, 18.3% - dragons with this bloodline often had
stronger dragon breaths. The distinctive feature was that it was easy to drool
while sleeping.
Dragon Talon Inheritance bloodline, 9.6% - dragon talons would become sharper
and tougher. This bloodline’s heredity probability was very high, so long as
one of the dragon race parents had it, their descendants would almost certainly
have indicators of it.
Frost Hair bloodline, 21.5% - a wyvern’s fur seemed to be covered in a layer of
white frost, it is not only capable of keeping it warm, but also able to absorb
and store external ice elements and during times of crisis, cause death or
injury.
Dragon Wing Dynasty bloodline, 2.7% - a dragon or wyvern with this bloodline
will possess expansive dragon wings and have strong flying capabilities.
Ice Triangle bloodline, 33.7% - wyverns with this bloodline have formidable
horns on their head, usually three of them. The dragon horns are incomparably
hard and are mighty when used to ram something. At 70% bloodline concentration,
natural runes will appear on the horns that possess constant ice magic (the
specific spell depends on the dragon).
Cold Moon Tracker bloodline, 41.6% - one can easily hunt in the most biting
cold environments, their silent footprints vanish in the snow and can fatally
ambush enemies.
Second Ice Heart bloodline, 68.8% - this bloodline is the most commonly seen
bloodline in wyverns. When bloodline concentration reaches 50%, it can form a
second heart. This heart is similar to an Ice Heart and completely follows the
composition of an ice crystal. It is entirely transparent, and when blood flows
through it, it can clearly be seen from the outside.
Dragon Pack Heart bloodline, 24.9% - wyvern beast kings usually have this
bloodline and have natural leadership with other wyverns.
The Cold Flesh bloodline, the Cold Wind bloodline, the Glacier Tusk bloodline,
the Winter Tail bloodline, the Cold Wing bloodline…
The dragonman youngster’s foundation rose dramatically.
Due to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s ecosystem, the wyverns thriving here that
were collected had two big traits: one dragon race trait and one ice trait.
“A bit inconvenient, my outside appearance is that of the Flame Dragon King,
orange yellow dragon eyes, red dragon scales, so many bloodlines cannot be
brazenly used.”
“However, they are still very useful.”
For example, the Dragon Saliva bloodline was a common bloodline. The dragonman
youngster could secretly use it to increase the power of his dragon breath.
Another was the Second Ice Heart bloodline, when the dragonman youngster
secretly used it, nothing could be discerned from the surface as a second heart
formed inside his body and increased his ice resistance massively. If the
concentration was higher, then he would gain a racial magic.
The Cold Flesh bloodline could be used in the same way.
But the Ice Triangle and the Dragon Wing Dynasty bloodlines were unusable.
These two bloodlines would severely change the dragonman youngster’s form,
provoking all kinds of suspicions.
The lower the concentration, then more precious the bloodline.
This was obvious with the Dragon Wing Dynasty bloodline. It was only 2.7%.
The ability to fly is an immense advantage. The bloodline has to reach 10% to
gain a flying racial magic.
Historically on the Main Plane, the most glorious period of the dragon race’s
hegemon era was known as the Dragon Wing Dynasty. At the time, it was purported
that the wing shadows of dragon flocks could cover the continents and oceans.
As for now, the dragon race was rare, and the dragonman youngster could only
glimpse at the divine might the dragon race had in ancient times from these
bloodlines.
The dragonman youngster tested all of the dragon bloodlines once through,
gaining usage experience and also producing all kinds of new notions.
“Unfortunately, Charming Blue Goddess has few believers with dragon
bloodlines.”
“Otherwise, I’d be able to get all kinds of useful experience from divine
blessings.”
“Perhaps I ought to have ‘faith’ in a dragon god?”
The dragonman youngster began to watch magic images.
The information in these images were records of past duelists fighting,
training ground recordings, and other duelist related materials. 
None were of silver levels, all were gold.
Upon returning, since the dragonman youngster wanted to go for the Dueling
Godhead, the dragonman youngster naturally had to know himself and his enemies.
After watching for a while, the dragonman youngster had a deeper understanding
of the National Ceremony Grand Duel.
“No saint level has participated in these duels.”
“Gold levels are the protagonists of the later duels, while silver levels are a
level below them.”
“The experts participating in the duels are mostly Ice Sculpture Kingdom
natives, but there is a minority of outsiders coming on account of its
reputation.”
The dragonman youngster saw many gold level duelists, each of them had their
own skills that were quite striking, and some would be very troublesome for him
to deal with.
“The dragonman form is unlike the fishman form, and in public, if I don’t risk
using a deception divine spell to mask myself, I can only use battle qi to
fight,.”
Long Fu externally claimed to be a fighter that revealed a few racial magics.
Bing Yang’s Frost Aura had solved a big problem for the dragonman youngster, it
was an acceptable explanation for the masses as to how a silver level suddenly
became a gold level.
But this rational explanation would not help the dragonman youngster convince
others when he told them: “I am not just a gold level; I am also an experienced
caster and clergyman.”
Under the dragonman form, the young man’s combat strength was constrained, and
couldn’t be fully displayed.
Using this form to duel, he would face a small number of gold levels that would
be challenging.
“There is also that Long Meng, he is really strong!”
The dragonman youngster saw some of Long Meng’s duels, it shook his heart.
Each time Long Meng dueled, he held an enormous advantage and could efficiently
resolve any battle without fooling around.
“He is absolutely not using his full strength!”
“With just a fraction of his power, he is able to dominate massively. His
combat strength advantage is considerable, his combat tactics are implemented
flawlessly, his mood is steady and stable, and he has no weaknesses or
vulnerabilities.”
“It’s no wonder he is the most popular person in the National Ceremony Grand
Duel!”
The dragonman youngster was unable to estimate Long Meng’s limits.
This feeling was like when he used the fishman form to deal with Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord and Tan Mo.
“If I use my fishman form, can I fight against Long Meng?” The dragonman
youngster’s countenance was heavy.
He couldn’t calculate it.
Everything needed to wait until he personally traded blows to have a result.
Because key information was too scarce.
“Therefore, with regards to the entire mercenary corps, information is an
immense weakness that needs to be complemented.”
The dragonman youngster thought of Zi Di’s situation when she met with danger
inside the Wisteria store, she had been scared into a cold sweat. Recalling it
now, she still had lingering fears about it.
Information gathering was lacking, and the survivors needed to develop an
information organization, this was a consensus Zi Di and Zong Ge had come to
earlier.
Now, the dragonman youngster endorsed it greatly.
“Information is very important.”
“Putting the rest aside, let me size up what’s in front of me. If I had
formidable information gathering, I could scout out the strengths and
weaknesses of gold level opponents, thereby focusing my guard.”
“Some gold level duelists, especially outsiders, often have some original
skills that can win from a position of weakness and make a comeback from
adversity.”
These skills were also a threat to the dragonman youngster.
When Zi Di was returning from the capital, the dragonman youngster was
practicing battle skills.
After being promoted to a gold level fighter, the dragonman youngster always
lacked time to practice.
The identity of Long Fu mainly still had to use battle skills. His prior suite
of battle skills was reasonable, but they were silver level, and at the gold
level, they needed to be supplemented.
The brunt of the burden was long ranged battle skills.
Gold level battle qi could condense outside the body, thus at this stage, a
gold level fighter’s attack range rapidly expanded, and battle skills had all
sorts of effects.
The dragonman youngster chose the Dragon Talon Strike battle skill as his main
long ranged battle skill.
Then the important thing – a flying battle skill.
To the masses, flying battle skills were rare, but to the dragonman youngster,
he was spoiled for choice.
Thank you again War Merchant!
The tower spirit’s database had many flying battle skills in it.
The dragonman youngster practiced his new battle skill a bit, then stopped
after dipping into it.
“My progress is too immense; I can’t keep practicing.”  The dragonman youngster
sighed, worried at how fast he was improving.
Zi Di walked over, “The rumors we spread have gotten results already. This
time, the Jing Xiang Clan has decided to send us an invitation letter.”
The dragonman youngster glanced at her, “The opportunity is ripe, transmit this
message, the Jing Xiang Clan is bullying us around, and I Long Fu am
unsatisfied, I want to challenge Mi Fang.”
The rumors merely gave the public an explanation. The dragonman youngster never
thought about abandoning the Li Jian Clan to rely on the Jing Xiang Clan.
Cooperating with the Jing Xiang Clan still meant they were giving benefits to
another party.
Why couldn’t he work on his own? Why couldn’t he alone enjoy the profits of the
mount potions?
The dragonman youngster possessed peak gold level combat strength, had immense
prestige, and could draw power from Charming Blue Goddess’ divine might.
The Li Jian Clan, an Ice Sculpture Kingdom top noble power, only had a gold
level clan leader.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps nowadays were qualified to take over the mount
potion benefits!
Now the problem was other people didn’t believe the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
was qualified to hog all of the earnings.
Hehe.
The power revealed and painful beating that followed would wake them up and
allow them to recognize who was strong and who was weak!
Negotiate with the Li Jian and the Jing Xiang Clans?
That would have to wait until after he defeated them.



****** Chapter 706: Mi Fang – What? Long Fu Challenged Me! ******
Through pure and lively magic glass, Mi Fang admired the snowscape outside his
window.
This was the Ice Sculpture Capital.
Even though the wind and the snow was heavy, they did not fall here, for many
alchemy formations reduced them to specks of pure white snowflakes.
These snowflake specks were minute, and outwardly emitted feeble gleaming
radiance, and in the capital’s waning lights, they appeared tranquil, noble,
and graceful.
Every time he looked at this kind of snowscape, Mi Fang would not want to
leave.
He stopped in front of his wide window, hand on a hot drink, looking satisfied
and content.
This house was located in the central zone of the capital, not only was the
land extremely expensive here, but one had to have influence to purchase it.
And Mi Fang had struggled for over 20 years through his own power to be
qualified to stand here and appreciate the snowscape.
At first, he had been a human who came from abroad to pursue his studies in the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Mi Fang came from humble beginnings and understood how to climb his way up.
His luck was pretty good. Heaven had given him a gold level bloodline aptitude
and a beautiful complexion. Even though he was amongst elves, he was very
delicate, pretty, and handsome.
There were many kinds of beauty, and every race had different esthetics. Dwarfs
held ruggedness in esteem, devils like malevolence and frightening looks, and
elves like delicate and gorgeous looks.
Mi Fang’s features were very close to elven esthetics, and this caused numerous
elven women to welcome him in.
When he was still a student, he sharply sensed that this was an advantage of
his he could greatly exploit.
He maintained close relationships with many female elves, causing many people
to be resentful. Many suitors began to challenge him in succession, publicly
initiating duels.
At first, Mi Fang regretted it, thinking he went too far and drew in big
troubles.
After hesitating for a good while, he summoned his courage and accepted a duel.
After winning the duel, he realized he was being treated differently and
suddenly realized there was a better shortcut than flaunting his male beauty.
“It was duels!” Mi Fang exclaimed in admiration.
The dueling culture seemed to have originated from the legend of the heroic
duel, and it was quite popular in the Frost Continent and in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. Duels weren’t just a widespread recreation amongst the masses, it
permeated all aspects of life, and every social class was involved in them.
Countless citizens used them to resolve disputes and decide how to allocate
benefits.
Duels were so important, and from the beginning the Ice Sculpture Royal Family
promoted them widely and often added fuel to the fire.
Mi Fang had a deep impression of them. He remembered that after losing, many
challengers were not enraged over perceived humiliation, on the contrary they
were pleased and acknowledged their allegiance to him, with a few even becoming
his followers!
The dueling culture was the foundational gene of the kingdom.
So long as you won the duel, everything was easy to deal with.
Everyone would determine that you were stronger, admire you, serve you, and
would back down willingly.
Even if you were an outsider and not an Ice Sculpture citizen, even if you
weren’t a snow elf and were a human.
After learning how beneficial duels were, Mi Fang changed his style and
engrossed immense energy into researching Ice Sculpture duels.
Each duel was both a challenge and an enormous opportunity!
Mi Fang wasn’t attending to one thing and losing sight of another, rather he
was doing a two-pronged approach.
On the one hand he got close to snow elf women, and through all kinds of
intimate relationships, he acquired plenty of cultivation resources,
information, and more. While on the other hand, he was actively preparing to
win the next duel.
Through the subsidies of his lovers, he overcame his lack of resources and
enormously increased his dueling win rate. These dueling victories brought
renown that projected his charm across the winds and waves. Because the many
suitors he provoked from his pursuit of love became his dueling opponents.
Mi Fang firmly controlled both aspects of this, acting in concert with both to
form a positive cycle that allowed his personal strength to rise little by
little.
In the wake of his rising renown, he gradually caught the eye of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s high class.
When he became a gold level, his life reached its greatest turning point.
A gold level expert was the backbone of a region, and sufficient for the high
class people to toss him an olive branch.
Finally, Mi Fang took a clan’s olive branch and became a member of the Jing
Xiang Clan.
This was the outcome of his careful selection.
Although the Jing Xiang Clan was not as strong as the Han Yu Clan or the Li
Jian Clan, they had a very strong foundation in magic medicine, and even though
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had high level alchemy, the Jing Xiang Clan was
enormously competitive.
And Mi Fang was an outstanding pharmacist.
Of course, this was not the reason why he didn’t join the Han Yu or Li Jian
Clan. Although these top clans were disposed to recruit him, they weren’t
willing to let Mi Fang become a member of the clan and were more inclined to
hire him to some important position. For example, the Li Jian Clan’s San Sha
Man Tuo who held a position in the navy.
“If I wasn’t just a gold level, but a saint level, then my status would be
entirely different.”
“A pity, I won’t ever have that chance in my life.” Mi Fang knew his bloodline
potential had been completely exhausted and understood the gold level was the
peak of his life.
The Jing Xiang Clan had many core gold levels, of high and low status.
For the next ten years, Mi Fang strived to climb the ranks of his clan.
He had become a son-in-law of the Jing Xiang Clan and greatly reduced his
playboy lover flings. But he didn’t give up dueling, instead participating in
them every so often to maintain his reputation.
He had participated in many duels, and in the wake of his accumulated
experience, he gained many insights, seldom losing and often winning.
“In the end, duels have their limits. Or to be more precise, I have my limits.”
Mi Fang’s bloodline potential was exhausted, and after padding out his
equipment to the pinnacle, his combat strength had hit a ceiling too.
There were far fewer gold level duelists than silver level ones.
Mi Fang also meticulously filtered his opponents, greatly reducing the
available pool.
Duels were giving him less, so to make progress, Mi Fang had to turn his
attention elsewhere.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ appearance allowed him to find a new golden
opportunity.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps coming out with a dedicated mount potion opened
up an unexplored market. When Mi Fang learned of this news, he felt like he was
seeing a new world of great abundance.
He sallied out in full strength, maneuvered from top to bottom, and spent a
large amount of capital and connections to become the Jing Xiang Clan’s
provisional person in charge for this market.
Since then, the dragon rider potion was an instant hit and had fiery sales,
exceeding industry expectations and attracting the eyes of countless people. 
The Jing Xiang Clan reacted, wanting to get involved, but it was Mi Fang who
seized that critical opportunity.
From the lowest rungs, Mi Fang had climbed to this height, so naturally he had
talent.
He made an all-out effort and actively followed up, reversed engineered parts
of the dragon rider potion with all speed and used it as a base to modify,
obtaining the Jing Xiang Clan’s mount potion product from it.
Such magic medicine needed a large amount of testing before it hit the market.
But Mi Fang knew the importance of seizing market share, and chose to take a
risk, standing his ground against the opinion of the masses and threw this
mount potion into the market at once.
His gambling paid off.
The Jing Xiang Clan’s mount potion was comparable to the dragon rider potion.
It was barely any different and didn’t have any undue side effects. 
Thus, the Jing Xiang Clan business venture paid off, and Mi Fang stabilized his
position, truly becoming the person in charge of this project.
This success motivated Mi Fang, causing him to become more proactive.
“The magic medicine business is the core benefit of the Jing Xiang Clan. I have
become a son-in-law and have been a member of the clan for almost ten years
before I was able to get into this field and become the person in charge of
it!”
“The mount potion business has vast prospects, and now I have gained a foothold
in it. I only need to take constant initiative to grab onto greater power,
position, and benefits.”
“I can climb higher!”
Mi Fang knew his many shortcomings.
For example, he was a human, and in the end, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was led
by snow elves. Even though he joined the Jing Xiang Clan, and even though he
was in a loving relationship with his wife and children, he would never truly
rise the ranks of the Jing Xiang Clan’s highest echelons. 
He had already reached the limits of his bloodline, and attained the ceiling of
his individual strength, and the Jing Xiang Clan limited his influence
according to his capabilities, one he had reached.
Wanting to break through this limit was very difficult. Thinking of taking a
small step beyond it was as difficult as ascending the heavens.
In the end, personnel of large high level organizations generally possessed
enough political acumen to know that power was above all else.
The Jing Xiang Clan were nobles, and any noble family, including those of the
Sheng Ming Empire, had the administrative consensus that the core should be
strong while the branches were weak. Mi Fang was not a snow elf, and couldn’t
even be considered a branch, the main members who controlled territory would
never let an outsider like him in.
However, in reality, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gave Mi Fang a rarely seen
golden opportunity.
Mi Fang did all he could to grab hold of this opportunity and break through his
past limits!
Following the constant success of the Jing Xiang Clan mount potions, Mi Fang’s
position and influence in the clan slowly rose.
This progress is beautiful.”
This kind of feeling intoxicated Mi Fang, and also spurred him on to climb
higher, he wanted to tenaciously cling onto this unique chance and would never
relinquish his grip on it!
Therefore, although he was a duelist, Mi Fang had complex emotions about the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
On the one hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was the duelists’ enemy, and
to this day, the bodies of Jia Bing, Lin, and the Axe Gang Leader were still in
their hands.
On the other hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gave Mi Fang an immense
opportunity. Such an opportunity might only appear once in his life!
“I want to defeat these mercenaries and use them as a stepping stone for a
higher position!”
Mi Fang’s greater motivation to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was
complicated.
He already analyzed, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is the strongest in two
areas.”
“First is the medicine they are selling. The three mount potions are of
excellent quality; a professional can determine from a bit of reverse
engineering and recipe analysis that they are refined and ingeniously
designed.”
“Second is Long Fu’s enormous prestige. Long Fu killed Teng Dong Lang as a
silver level. This wonderful start exceeds the hard work of many duelists’
lifetime achievements.”
Compared to Long Fu, Mi Fang’s battle record paled in comparison.
Mi Fang would have never though he’d be able to be in the limelight as a silver
level.
Although his battle talent was excellent, he was not to the level of the
dragonman youngster or Zong Ge.
“My bloodline potential falls well short of Long Fu’s.”
“His dragonman bloodline is clearly oriented towards battle and has a strong
advantage. While my human bloodline is a production type bloodline.”
Therefore, in each duel, Mi Fang did not have it easy; to take steps forward,
he had to secretly pay many things.
Every dueling opponent was prudently chosen, many tactics were planned, and he
would arm himself with everything he had and deploy many magic medicines
beforehand.
Each duel was an extremely risky opportunity, so he had to grasp certainty as
much as possible.
He almost always fought at full strength, to the extent that he took too much
medicine, causing a good deal of residual effects. Nowadays, those residual
effects still tormented him.
This was just a small part of what he had to pay to reach the current position
he climbed to.
Even though he prepared for battle with all he had, he could still lose.
He never had a winning streak like the dragonman youngster.
However, the consequences for losing were lighter than he envisioned. The Ice
Sculpture citizens did not belittle or despise the losers that much, on the
contrary, many times, many of them awaited the loser returning in a swirl of
dust to bravely challenge experts.
“This is my dueling spirit!”
“Victory or defeat is just the result of a single duel, and in terms of the
endless duels in one’s life, persevering with challenges was the best
response.”
When Mi Fang grasped this concept, he was selected.
He became one of the duelists.
With regards to this important status, he did his best to keep it confidential,
and not even his wife and children were aware of it.
Through his lovers, Mi Fang achieved a crucial start to accumulate assets
through constant duels. The dueling spirit was how he made progress as an
individual, and he was in complete agreement with it.
He had never been preached to, inspired, or received a divine oracle, yet he
was a duelist with a dueling spirit.
It was precisely this intrinsic spirit that spurred him on and showed the way
to constant improvement and advancement.
What he wanted to do now was to step on the heads of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to keep advancing!
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps has formidable alchemy technology, and in the
short time, I can only trail behind them.”
“But their other advantage enables me to make a move.”
Mi Fang, one who relied on duels to get rich, naturally knew that if Long Fu
lost, his prestige would be reduced and that would be an immense attack against
their mount potion business.
The Jing Xiang Clan could take advantage of that to rise and supersede the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to take hold of more of the national market.
Mi Fang moved actively in accordance with this notion.
Zong Ge was poisoned because of him. Until Zong Ge went through the Wine God
Trial, this problem could not be resolved.
However, Mi Fang was intimidated by Zong Ge’s toughness and never dared to
personally take the field.
Mi Fang believed the enemy was still formidable and needed to be weakened
further, patiently waiting for a good chance.
He Gai Tou followed up, helping Bing Yang make things difficult for Long Fu.
As a duelist too, Mi Fang decided to come to his aid. Regretfully, despite Bing
Yang’s reputation, he wasn’t strong enough. In their duel, Bing Yang wasn’t
able to weaken Long Fu, instead it fomented the latter’s power.
Before Mi Fang could find a better method, he heard some new information.
Because of Bing Yang’s signature [Beautiful Future], the medicinal effect of
the Frost Aura caused Long Fu to be promoted to the gold level!
Hearing this news, Mi Fang’s first reaction was to sneer. He believed that Long
Fu was only pretending to be a silver level, he should actually be a gold
level. Many people agreed on this viewpoint. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and Tan
Mo believed it was like that too.
Soon after, Mi Fang’s second reaction was that his eyes lit up, he could see a
new opportunity from within this!
He suddenly noticed that after Long Fu became a gold level, there were now many
more chances to deal with him!
Previously, Long Fu was only a silver level and finding other silver levels to
not just publicly challenge him, but also defeat him, was too difficult!
Bing Yang was once a gold level, and when he fought “Long Fu”, he was
suppressed the entire time and met a tragic end.
Now that Long Fu publicly declared himself a gold level, and had also directly
beaten back “Hua Tang”, he had displayed his power.
This allowed Mi Fang to see many opportunities – other gold levels could
challenge Long Fu directly. This wouldn’t incur gossip and spite, as the masses
disdained the strong bullying the weak.
But Mi Fang would never do the job himself.
Even now, Zong Ge’s horrific achievement of killing three gold levels alone
still severely deterred the duelists.
Mi Fang wanted to agitate ignorant gold levels to continuously impair Long Fu.
But before he could start scheming, new information followed, one that
overwhelmed him somewhat.
Overnight, it seemed the entire nation learned of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps having a falling out with the Li Jian Clan.
“Wonderful!” Mi Fang felt this was good news.
Putting himself into their shoes: Long Fu was a gold level who pretended to be
a silver level. His name was being circulated nationwide right now, and the
mount potion sales were flourishing and making a fortune every day. Now that
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had a tentative foothold, would they need to
keep on enduring?
The Li Jian Clan was not necessary for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
However, their benefits were not allocated in accordance with their
contributions, who would put up with that?
At least Mi Fang believed that if he were Long Fu, he wouldn’t ever resign
himself to that!
Additionally, Mi Fang analyzed that now was the best opportunity for the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps to have a falling out with the Li Jian Clan.
Because the Li Jian’s Second Navy had been routed on the front lines and their
influence had cratered. The kingdom’s top brass was extremely dissatisfied with
the Li Jian Clan!
“The Li Jian Clan has sunken to their lowest point, if they aren’t cut off now,
when will they be?”
“These rumors should have been spread by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Soon after, Mi Fang inquired about a new rumor.
In the rumor, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to discuss collaboration
with the Jing Xiang Clan!
“Wonderful.”
“It doesn’t matter who we work or don’t work with? The Jing Xiang Clan is
better at magic medicine than the Li Jian Clan. It is only natural that it is
more profitable to collaborate with us.”
Mi Fang did not think this was abrupt.
In fact, he always followed this with interest. According to the internal
information he collected, the Alchemy Guild was close to acting and forced the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to sign a betting agreement.
Although the specific substance of the agreement couldn’t be determined, Mi
Fang guessed this was the Alchemy Guild finally acting!
For a long time now, the strongest entity in the domain, the Alchemy Guild,
hadn’t reacted much.
It was abnormal.
As he worked and managed, Mi Fang never forgot about the Alchemy Guild.
To him it seemed that because of unjustly distributed benefits, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps abandoned the Li Jian Clan and chose the Jing Xiang Clan to
stand off against the Alchemy Guild!
“I didn’t expect this, instead of creating an opportunity, I waited for one to
come by.”
As for Mi Fang, a duelist, collaborating with the enemy?
There were no problems whatsoever!
“I can work with them while also dealing with them secretly!”
Wasn’t feigning cooperation while targeting them surreptitiously not the easier
way to render meritorious service?
“Wonderful, too wonderful for words.”
Therefore, after learning of this information, Mi Fang immediately dispatched a
subordinate to send the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps an invitation letter. He
invited Long Fu to a face-to-face meeting and stated he looked forward to them
working together. 
And now, he was waiting for his subordinate to return.
Thump, thump, thump.
Not long after, the study door bell rang.
“Come in.” Mi Fang knew the subordinate with the invitation letter had
returned, and he couldn’t help but smile at that.
However, the subordinate brought back a challenge letter.
Mi Fang opened it and read it, his expression changing, “Long Fu…wants to
publicly challenge me?”
The subordinate also provided other information, “Lord Mi Fang, there are new
rumors spreading through the capital. The propagators have already been
confirmed to be the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“The rumors state: our clan has kicked around and looked down upon Long Fu
during business negotiations as an outsider, forcing Long Fu to publicly
challenge you Lord Mi Fang. He wants to use this duel’s outcome to advance this
negotiation.”
Mi Fang: ?!
He soon reacted, subconsciously squeezing the challenge letter between his
fingers, twisting the paper.
“This is Long Fu garnering support to force me into this duel.”
“Crucially…”
“I have no way to decline; I can only take up his challenge!”
“Damn it.”
In the public eye, Long Fu was just a newly promoted gold level with low combat
strength. While Mi Fang was a long renowned and veteran gold level.
Therefore, this dueling invitation was the weak fighting the strong.
If an expert like Mi Fang declined, his prestige was bound to take a dive.
Pivotally, this duel was composed of complex elements, it concerned the
lucrative mount potion benefits!
Pressure on Mi Fang not only came from the public, but also from the Jing Xiang
Clan. After all, he was a foreigner, and the reason why he could sit stable in
his current position was due to his outstanding achievements, which none could
find fault with.
“If I shirk battle, I definitely suffer reprimand!”
“Malicious. Long Fu’s move this time is too malicious.”
“He is bullying me!”
Perhaps Long Fu wanted to negotiate, but only after he won the duel. If that
happened, then the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would hold an enormous advantage
in the negotiations.
“Long Fu is treacherous, while simultaneously being extremely overbearing!”
Mi Fang’s brows tightened, and anger turned his complexion white.
He was furious and resentful, but at the same time, he was even more nervous.
Panic emerged from deep within his heart and quickly spread.
Because Mi Fang was very self-aware.
“If I rely on just myself, I will lose.”
“Them spreading such rumors means its impossible they are looking to lose this
duel. They are very certain they will win!”
The pressure on Mi Fang was massive.
He thought of Zong Ge’s terrifying combat achievement.
He knew the Axe Gang Leader and the other two were no ordinary gold levels, all
of them were duelists!
“With this method, just losing is the best outcome, I might lose my life!”
“More than one duelist has been slain by Long Fu’s hands.”
The study inside was as warm as spring, yet Mi Fang was overflowing with cold
sweat.
This was the greatest crisis he had ever faced.
“I must arm myself fully!”
“I must draw support from the Jing Xiang Clan and ask the other duelists for
help!”
“Damn it, we obviously have a lot of people, yet in this duel, I am the only
one going into battle.”
“Damn it, why is there such a lousy rule!”
Mi Fang couldn’t sit still, he immediately got up, pushed the door open, and
ran out at top speed.



****** Chapter 707: Mi Fang, Watch Your Strength, Don’t Kill Long Fu ******
Challenging Mi Fang was an overt plot, and the dragonman youngster was never
worried about Mi Fang rejecting it.
Thus, after sending the challenge letter, he had mercenaries update the rumors.
Before Mi Fang could leave his study, these rumors spread throughout the
capital.
The dragonman youngster was such a hot topic and his promotion to the gold
level was very sudden, but it had basis in fact and a tinge of a legendary tale
to it.
The news of him challenging Mi Fang rapidly disseminated.
“Did you hear? Long Fu actually challenged Mi Fang publicly!”
“I thought he would recover for a time after becoming a gold level. I didn’t
expect he would be so dauntless and immediately make a move. I really look
forward to it!”
“Most crucially, he decided not to challenge a silver level, nor an ordinary
gold level, but Mi Fang. He is a veteran duelist and has outstanding strength.”
“This will be a good show.”
“What are Long Fu’s odds of winning?”
“Hic, very small. Although Mi Fang is not a snow elf, but a human, he is a
veteran of a hundred duels, has been acknowledged by the high class, and is a
member of the Jing Xiang Clan. Long Fu has just become a gold level, and it
will be very difficult for him to deal with a veteran expert.”
“Saying that, if his probability of winning is small, why does he want to
challenge Mi Fang?”
“Oh dear, you don’t know. This is about the collaboration between the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps and the Li Jian Clan. You should know about the mount
potions…”
The dragonman youngster didn’t do purposeful wide scale fabrications, rather
they took advantage of the situation to make rumors.
These rumors were very close to reality, and very rational. They were primarily
focused on the dragonman youngster’s individual figure – for the sake of his
corps’ earnings, he had no choice but to bravely step forward as the weak
challenging the strong and project bravery and responsibility! 
This action couldn’t help but win the favor of the masses and elevate his
reputation.
Especially the lower class, who loved to hear this kind of gallantry.
In a moment, Long Fu’s renown increased once again.
The gold level duel between him and Mi Fang quickly spread out of the capital
and across the country.
Mi Fang quickly found out about these rumors, but he couldn’t bother with them,
he needed to ask for help.
As a human and son-in-law of the Jing Xiang Clan, outside of his clan and
himself, the biggest backer Mi Fang had was the hidden duelist faction. 
Therefore, he first contacted Mei Lin.
Mei Lin’s prestige among the duelists was very high, and one could say it was
second only to Long Meng. Outwardly, she was the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s First
Navy’s Rear Admiral.
Upon receiving Mi Fang’s plea, Mei Lin’s eyes contracted, “Long Fu launched an
open challenge against you?”
“Yes.” Mi Fang was anxious, “I am certain to not be Long Fu’s match, and I am
more worried that he’ll see through my duelist identity!”
Mei Lin pondered, “The probability is low.”
“Most crucially, I can’t find grounds to refuse this challenge. The masses view
me as strong and him as weak. If I cower and refuse, I won’t have the integrity
to raise my head.” Said Mi Fang.
He felt miserable. Obviously he was the weak one, but the entire nation
believed he was stronger, that he was superior. 
Mei Lin didn’t hesitate and replied, “We are duelists, and the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps is our joint enemy. Regardless of whether Long Fu sees through
you, that isn’t important at the moment. The important thing is we will spare
no expense to arm you and maximize your combat strength.”
“This is an opportunity.”
“Before, Long Fu appeared to only be a silver level, and we didn’t know where
to start.”
“Now that he’s ‘promoted’ to the gold level, our members can justly and
honorably challenge him!”
“Mi Fang, you need to understand this: the outcome of this battle doesn’t
matter. The important thing is that you keep yourself alive while
simultaneously gauging Long Fu’s true skills. Especially since he won against
three duelists alone, we need to know how he achieved that.”
“If you can get him to expose that trump card, our chances of prevailing over
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps will increase by 20%.
When Mi Fang heard this, he couldn’t help but turn pale, thinking to himself,
“If Long Fu used that trump card against me during the duel, would I survive?”
Regardless of what was said, Mei Lin’s full support was positive news.
Mi Fang took a deep breath, “I will fight with all I have, don’t hold any
fantasies or extravagant hopes. As long as I can survive, it will be my
greatest victory!”
Me Lin faintly wrinkled her brows.
She heard the unspoken implication in Mi Fang’s words.
When Mi Fang was stating his concerns, he said he was worried that Long Fu
might unmask him as a duelist but didn’t provide enough evidence – this
vagueness warned Mei Lin that if she didn’t save Mi Fang, he might “defect” and
tell Long Fu the secret that he was a duelist.
Mi Fang’s final statement that ensuring his survival came first showed his
pragmatic attitude, but on the other hand, it also illustrated his battle
intent was quite weak. From this, Mi Fang tactfully refused Mei Lin’s request –
he was unlikely to risk his life to expose the skill Long Fu used to win the 3
vs 1 battle!
“Mi Fang is not from the military, and he is mainly attacking the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps for his own interests.” Mei Lin was very clear about this.
“But in the end, he is still a duelist member, and he proactively drew close to
us, therefore, we have to help him fully!”
“Unfortunately, I am up to my ears at work right now.”
“I can only subsidize Mi Fang in other respects.”
Mei Lin was very busy with military matters.
Everything could be blamed on the Li Jian Clan. To preserve their strength, the
Li Jian Clan did not openly clash with Da Han’s pirate alliance, instead they
retreated without delay.
This caused many pirates to appear around Ice Sculpture Island and turned its
coastline very treacherous.
Mei Lin was in the First Navy Fleet, and due to the situation, she had no
choice but to undertake this maritime defense duty, working to deal with
pirates large and small almost 24 hours a day.
Mi Fang’s business was more urgent and important, and after the communication
finished, Mei Lin set aside her military affairs for a rare moment and
mobilized her contacts and resources to make arrangements for Mi Fang.
“To outsiders, it seems that me and Mi Fang are unacquainted, therefore, this
support needs to walk a winding road before being delivered to his hands.”
“I hope it can make it to him on time.”
Mei Lin went back to handling military affairs.
One of her trusted aides, the gold level Bei Jia, volunteered to fight. They
had then sent a report that went roughly: Bei Jia caught up to the Vegetable
Pirates and confirmed that their group had suffered grave damage and requested
that they sally out and try to eliminate this pirate group.
Mei Lin’s heart rapidly soared at the related information: “Cong Mang’s pirates
attacked on Snow Bird Harbor, consequently blowing up their magician tower,
then Snow Bird Harbor City Lord brazenly exploded the city palace, making an
unexpected comeback and causing them disastrous losses. Adding onto that
mysterious fishman expert suddenly attacking, the Vegetable Pirates were forced
to retreat…”
She rapidly evaluated the risks of this military operation, “Most of the
Vegetable Pirates died in that explosion, but the Hoodlum battle squad is
intact and there are other elites still on the island.”
“Cong Mang is unaccounted for, and the Vegetable Pirates lack a gold level
expert overseeing them, Bei Jia has an immense advantage…we can attack!”
Mei Lin approved of Bei Jia’s program of action.
Mi Fang tried to find Gu Dong.
When he learned of Long Fu’s challenge, Gu Dong turned grave, “Mi Fang, you are
not Long Fu’s match, you must be very careful.”
Gu Dong was from the army and had a straightforward way of speaking.
Gu Dong continued, “Take a look at my equipment, I will lend it all to you. In
addition, you can come to the Dueling Divine Domain. I will do my best to play
the role of Long Fu and use his fighting style to practice with you.”
Like Mei Lin, Gu Dong’s attitude was firm, and without hesitation, he fully
supported Mi Fang.
Mi Fang was not reserved and asked to borrow Gu Dong’s shield on the spot.
He tried to find Bao Li Gen.
Bao Li Gen was busy and stated he’d get back to him later.
Mi Fang looked for Yi Jiu, the latter threw up his hands and said he was
healing, impoverished, and lacked financial resources. If Mi Fang hired him at
a large sum as an assassin, then he would act. 
Mi Fang’s eyes lit up, “Are you willing to assassinate Long Fu?”
“Are you joking?” Yi Jiu’s tone jumped, “That is too risky. I meant I could
help you assassinate other members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
distract Long Fu.”
Mi Fang’s face turned dark.
How could he possibly do that?
This duel was too hot and was bound to be covered nationwide. At this critical
juncture, wanting to assassinate other members of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps would put Mi Fang into the greatest suspicion. Regardless of the
evidence, his and the Jing Xiang Clan’s reputation would be sorely tested.
If Yi Jiu could assassinate Long Fu, then it would be easy to deal with, but
simply assassinating anyone else would be more of a hindrance than a help to Mi
Fang and stir up endless troubles.
Mi Fang severed his connection to Yi Jiu, then contacted He Gai Tou.
He Gai Tou had helped Bing Yang find trouble with Zong Ge and could secretly
help Mi Fang too.
With this factor, after He Gai Tou learned of the news, he didn’t make any
excuses and was willing to help.
He Gai Tou also said, “Old Brother Mi Fang, finding me was the right thing to
do, I can get other duelists to help you.”
This sentence induced Mi Fang’s interest.
Mi Fang questioned him, closely.
He Gai Tou was somewhat proud of himself, “You know, I have many gambling
houses. For this duel, I can manipulate the gambling joints nationwide. Before
the duel, we can hype up your win chance and do our best to raise the masses’
hopes in you, then we can secretly bet a massive sum on Long Fu winning!”
Mi Fang: …
He Gai Tou continued to persuade eloquently, “No need to be so mentally
burdened, Elder Brother Mi Fang.”
“You are certain to lose. But your loss needs to have value, isn’t that so?”
“Even if you lose, you can profit from the gambling and obtain a hefty sum.
This is very sensible.”
Mi Fang: …
“Let me think it over carefully.” Mi Fang disconnected with He Gai Tou.
He was just about to contact Xue Tuan Zi when Bao Li Gen called.
Bao Li Gen’s voice was loud, and his temperament was fiery, speaking even more
straightforward than Gu Dong, “What do you need help with, tell me. Don’t be
afraid to kill him! One word, kill! If you can’t kill him, at worst you’ll die,
what’s there to be afraid of?”
When Mi Fang heard Bai Li Gen’s loud voice bombarding his ears, he powerlessly
ridiculed in his mind, “I am the one afraid to ‘die’, ugh…”
Apart from Bao Li Gen, Xue Tuan Zi also contacted him first.
Xue Tuan Zi, “I heard about your problem, Lord Mi Fang, I’m here to cheer you
on.”
“I want to participate in the Warm Snow Cup Competition, so I can’t personally
come to your aid.”
Mi Fang and Xue Tuan Zi’s relationship wasn’t deep, but at this moment, he was
very blunt and directly asked, “I have plenty of equipment. My greatest
deficiency is in life-saving items, if you have any, Xue Tuan Zi, lend them to
me.”
Mi Fang contacted almost all of the duelists to gain as much support as he
could.
He returned to the Jing Xiang Clan, and someone immediately notified him that
the clan leader had summoned him and to contact him now.
After activating the emergency communication device, the Jing Xiang Clan Leader
appeared as a three-dimensional magic image and floated in front of Mi Fang.
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader smiled and appeared calm, proceeding to say, “Oh Mi
Fang, you are a talent worthy of my investment. I wanted to congratulate you
ahead of time for distinguishing yourself once again.
Mi Fang: …
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader continued, “You submitted a list for me to look at,
I am very satisfied. Even though you are facing a newly promoted gold level,
you still maintain your cautious approach and are never negligent, asking the
clan’s utmost support.”
“Anyways, your caution is somewhat excessive.”
“It is inevitable that others inside the clan will be displeased.”
Therefore, I can’t grant some of the things on the list, I hope you can
understand.”
Mi Fang’s expression changed, and he promptly spoke out to tactfully fight for
himself.
After talking in circles, the Jing Xiang Clan Leader’s patience vanished, and
he waved his hand, “You applied for three pieces of gold level armor, that is
really excessive.”
“Recently, you’ve been doing wonderfully, and you’ve obtained power and a clan
position that matches your achievements.”
“But you shouldn’t treat this as a chance to probe at the clan’s bottom line
for what you can get from us!”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader directly slapped down Mi Fang.
Mi Fang looked agonized.
The Jing Xiang Elder spoke in a conclusive manner, “This battle concerns the
mount potions, and it concerns my clan’s core benefits. You need to win
decisively, the more beautiful your victory, the more advantageous we’ll be in
the following discussion!”
“But keep this in mind, remember to greatly restrain your power.”
“You must not kill Long Fu, if you kill him, our relationship with the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps will be reduced too enmity, and I fear there will be no
chance of working with them.”
Mi Fang went agape, speechless from those words.
The Jing Xiang Leader had made a grave misjudgment of the situation!
First, Mi Fang had an irresolvable enmity with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Second, what Mi Fang was most worried about was Long Fu killing him.



****** Chapter 708: Long Fu vs Mi Fang – Long Fu Has Saint Level Potential?!


******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
The dueling arena was packed full, with even the corridors filled with standing
spectators.
The capital’s residents’ enthusiasm for watching duels was naturally the
highest in the nation.
Both sides entered the arena, immediately causing the audience to cheer.
The skies resonated with cheers as the fully armed Mi Fang, clad like a heavy
armored knight, cautiously stared at the dragonman youngster, who had stopped
walking.
Long Fu was carrying the Gold Flower Hacksaw, a metal glove (the Striking
Shifter), his red dragon scales were left exposed, and the amount of
transcendent equipment was not even a third of Mi Fang’s.
The two struck a pose, giving rise to heated debate.
“Is that Mi Fang? The layers of transcendent light around him are really
blinding.”
“That’s a bit excessive, Mi Fang has at least three kinds of gold level armor,
he obviously has the advantage in that aspect.”
“Lord Mi Fang…I have never seen Lord Mi Fang so heavily armed.”
The people were universally shocked by Mi Fang’s excessive equipment,
especially the female audience. These people were the faithful and long-time
fans who watched Mi Fang’s duels.
“Let the duel officially begin!” The dueling arena master personally presided
over this duel.
Gold level duels were rare, so normally, the dueling arena master appeared
personally for them.
The crowd’s passionate debating rapidly quieted, and everyone concentrated
their attention, awaiting what kind of marvelous duel would play out between
the two gold levels.
However, surprising the audience, the perceived strong one, Mi Fang, did not
attack first, instead he suddenly retreated back.
He flew backwards while pouring all kinds of potions into his mouth. 
Mi Fang’s armored faceplate could open up, not hindering his consumption of
medicine.
Glug, glug…
His laryngeal prominence constantly rolled as he drank at least ten different
potions down in a short span.
Rays of colorful light gradually shined inside and out of his body as all kinds
of effects strengthened him.
“Look! That is one of Lord Mi Fang’s trump cards, being able to take many kinds
of potions in a short span. The reason why he can do this is thanks to the
special medicine he developed, the [Dregs Evaporation Compound].”
“Indeed, normally Lord Mi Fang uses this in the later parts of a duel, but in
this one, he actually used it at the very beginning?”
“Nothing can be done about it, are the mount potion’s benefits that massive? Mi
Fang must be under immense pressure from the Jin Xiang Clan; therefore, he is
making an all-out effort from the start!”
“I hope Long Fu can withstand it, Mi Fang at full power is quite formidable.”
The audience were outsiders, and they were making guesses in real time, a bit
worried for the dragonman youngster.
When the dragonman youngster saw Mi Fang retreating, he didn’t chase after him,
instead he took out magic scrolls.
As Mi Fang was drinking potions, he tore open the magic scrolls.
As Long Fu, an expert battle qi cultivator, he only had some racial magics.
Therefore, the dragonman youngster couldn’t use magic publicly and had to use
magic scrolls as a substitute.
Like Mi Fang, the dragonman youngster’s body was quickly empowered by many
enchantment spells.
Both sides actually made the same choice.
The difference was that Mi Fang was using potions while the dragonman youngster
was using magic scrolls.
The differences between both quickly appeared.
When Mi Fang drank his 12th potion, he belched with satisfaction, then began to
imbue his battle qi into all of his defensive items.
At this time, the dragonman youngster was still tearing scrolls.
The many enchantments empowered the dragonman youngster’s body. The myriad
effects and multicolored radiance enveloped him to the point where his face was
blurry.
Mi Fang was stunned.
The entire dueling arena rumbled.
“Long Fu is actually able to augment himself with so much magic?”
“Heavens, his bloodline definitely isn’t ordinary.”
“Far from unordinary? This amount of magical enhancements proves he absolutely
has a saint level disposition.”
“I didn’t expect he’d unexpectedly be a saint level seed!?”
“It’s no wonder after Bing Yang’s Frost Aura, he could quickly become a gold
level. So, the gold level isn’t his limit, it is just a part of his cultivation
journey.”
For a moment, countless scorching eyes were cast at the dragonman youngster.
In the audience, the disguised Cong Mang sneered in his mind, “Gasping at the
tip of the iceberg?”
He had personally witnessed the fishman youngster’s empowered state and knew
the fishman youngster’s aptitude exceeded the saint level, in the future he
might become a legend level!
Although Cong Mang wasn’t like Hun Tong, who had seen the fishman use divine
and magic spells to enhance himself with his own eyes, the fishman youngster
had beaten him up with his own hands, giving him a deeper perception of his
state than Hun Tong.
When the whole audience exploded in shock, the dragonman youngster sensed he
was done.
He looked serene and his mood was very stable.
He decided to expose his aptitude in front of everyone to prepare for all kinds
of operations in the future.
When Mi Fang saw the towering dragonman youngster in the distance, he didn’t
attack as he felt his limbs go stiff.
He had participated in many duels, but never one like this. They hadn’t even
crossed blows, yet he felt complete pressure on him.
Mi Fang’s brain was a constant churn, “A saint level bloodline? Long Fu must
have that kind of aptitude?”
“His arms merchant backer is willing to send out a saint level seed?”
Under normal circumstances, if an organization found a saint level seed, they
would protect them by every possible means and cultivate them secretly with all
they had.
Someone like the dragonman youngster running all over the place was really
rare.
“Perhaps, Long Fu is unaware of his talent, and just discovered it recently?
After all, bloodline testing is always unreliable.”
“The scariest situation is if they know.”
If it was the latter situation, then the arms merchant behind the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps must have made ample preparations before sending Long Fu out.
Mi Fang quickly thought of Zong Ge’s frightful 3 v 1 accomplishment.
To this day, the duelists had no idea how Zong Ge had accomplished this.
Mi Fang’s forehead began to sweat, “Perhaps we underestimated Long Fu,
underestimated the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps!”
“Since he is a saint level seed, then he must have ample trump cards that can
save his life.”
“As for how he did that 3 v 1, perhaps that’s just a part of his trump cards.”
“Outside of attacks, he might also have defensive and recovery trump cards, and
these trump cards are often greater than the offensive trump cards.”
“Right, there is also teleportation.”
“Saint level teleportation scrolls can achieve blinking.”
“Unlike other capitals, the Ice Sculpture Capital does not prohibit spatial
teleportation.”
“Therefore, this guy Long Fu is secure in the knowledge that he has backing!”
Mi Fang was an astute man, and that shrewd head of his allowed him to climb
from the bottom to his current position, he could think of many things.
And the more he thought, the greater the pressure on his mind.
Seeing Mi Fang entrenching in place and showing no signs of attacking, the
dragonman youngster’s eyes quickly and sharply flashed.
“Psychological tactics are coming into effect.”
“As expected, deceptive methods can not only be used in war, but also in
individual duels.”
“Hehehe, I have already seized an opportunity to win this battle!”
Realizing this, the dragonman youngster grew more confident.
Battle skill – Surge.
He activated his battle qi, and explosions under his soles thrusted him forth.
He became a red artillery shell that shot at the distant Mi Fang.
“Come!” Mi Fang’s heart tightened, waiting at the ready.
Ding!
Ting, ting, ting…
The two crashed into each other, and soon after, they used their respective
weapons in an intense clash.
The dragonman youngster manipulated the Striking Shifter, constantly turning it
into all sorts of weapons that matched the different battle skills he used in a
constant barrage of attacks.
Mi Fang held two shields, one large and one small, forming a solid defensive
line that blocked the dragonman youngster’s assault.
The spectator universally had a weird expression on them.
“I didn’t expect the aggressor to be Long Fu and not Mi Fang.”
“Long Fu is very strong, how many weapon types can he use?”
“Lord Mi Fang’s battle intelligence gathering is remarkable, he didn’t
underestimate Long Fu and prepared many defensive items, how useful!”
The capital’s residents had abundant spectating experience.
As the dragonman youngster and Mi Fang fought, most people could see that Long
Fu was gradually losing the initiative. 
Don’t be fooled by Mi Fang’s defensive posture, by using his shields, armor,
and all kinds of alchemy items, he maintained his defense and grew increasingly
calm.
Under these circumstances, when he began to officially counterattack, he might
overturn the battle and start winning.
“Mi Fang’s attacks are steady, not bad.” Knowing the implications were
profound, the Jing Xiang Clan Leader was personally watching.
At first, he thought that Mi Fang coming fully armed was making a big fuss over
a minor issue, but afterwards, he watched with growing satisfaction.
He felt he figured out Mi Fang’s strategy, “This is a defensive and
counterattack tactic.”
“First, he will let Long Fu go on the offensive to deplete his battle q and see
through his offensive skills.”
“Then, when he finds a suitable opportunity, when he counterattacks, he will
control the situation and keep Long Fu pressured until it ends in his loss!”
He wrongly judged Mi Fang.
From beginning to end, Mi Fang hadn’t thought about counterattacking, the many
tactics he thought of only had one goal, to keep himself alive!
Only now…
“Did I misperceive it?”
“After fighting against Long Fu, and feeling the offensive pressure of Striking
Shifter, it isn’t as big as I envisioned.”
Mi Fang’s ambition grew a bit.
His sense were not wrong.
Before, Zong Ge had used two weapons with the Striking Shifters, and after
creating an opportunity in battle, attacked with all his strength and displayed
the graceful bearing of a Great Weapons Master.
The dragoman youngster was not a weapon master.
Were it not for the divine blessings giving him many experiences and memories
in weapon usage, he wouldn’t be able to pretend to be one.
Even so, he was no Great Weapons Master, and despite using his full strength,
he was unable to match Zong Ge in that.
Mi Fang had been present and witnessed Zong Ge behead Bing Yang. For the
purpose of this duel, he had watched every battle recording of Long Fu at least
a hundred times!
“Perhaps I should counterattack?” Mi Fang licked his dry lips.



****** Chapter 709: Long Fu vs Mi Fang – Ruthless Explosion! ******
“Mi Fang is too conservative!” In the crowd, Hua Tang’s brows tightened.
Of course, he was excellently disguised and mixed in the audience, barely
catching any eyes.
He had been watching and knew of Mi Fang’s defensive tactics, causing the
latter to miss many battle opportunities.
“This guy, Mi Fang, he is too scared of Long Fu’s trump cards.”
“This caused him to choose such defensive tactics and during real combat, his
battle will is also naturally constrained massively.”
“This kind of mentality is an immense influence; he is unable to conform with
the threat his strength provides!”
“Hurry up and see the truth already.”
As if hearing Hua Tang’s shout, Mi Fang licked his dry lips, and the notion of
counterattacking began to gush from the bottom of his heart.
At this moment, Mi Fang was wearing full armor, including heavy armor, inner
armor, and soft armor.
His face was completely hidden by a cavalry type metal visor, and no one could
see his expressions.
But the moment his heart began to get restless, the dragoman youngster’s mind
suddenly flashed, “Oh? He wants to counterattack?”
Mi Fang had prepared fully and during their confrontation, the dragoman
youngster didn’t display the oppressive power of a Great Weapons Master, so Mi
Fang being inclined to fight was entirely natural.
The dragonman youngster suddenly halted his offensive and fell back a step.
This abrupt act immediately attracted everyone’s attention.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster’s next action surprised them.
He tossed away the Shifting Striker, the Gold Flower Hacksaw, as well as the
alchemy crossbows at his waist!
The dragonman youngster straightened his chest and growled, “Mi Fang!”
“What are you doing?”
“Right now, you are not the opponent I was looking forward to.”
“Where is your courage? Your performance is too ugly and could never compare to
your past battle charm.”
“Don’t be afraid.”
“Look, I have thrown away my weapons, I will only fight with my fist and feet
now.”
“If you keep this performance up, then you only deserve my fists!”
Mi Fang was stupefied, “Long Fu…just did what?!”
Just as he had the urge to counterattack, it had been dispelled in a split
second.
After all, the dragonman youngster had acted so bizarrely, so outrageously. Who
would decide to discard advantages during a crucial duel?
This included Hua Tang, who for a moment was puzzled as his brows creased.
“No, this must be a plot of his!” Mi Fang once again grew nervous, and caution
blinded him, “He is treacherous, sinister, he must have other schemes.”
“Is he thinking of luring me into attack, causing a weak point to appear in my
defense?”
“Yes, that should be it!”
“I must keep up my defense, my powerful defense. He won’t be able to attack. If
he uses that offensive trump card, perhaps the price paid will be very high.”
“I can’t fall into his trap!”
“Keep defending, I must not give the enemy an opportunity.”
Next, just as the dragonman youngster claimed, he abandoned his weapons and
used his fist and feet to attack.
Without weapons, his offensive was weaker using just punches and kicks.
But this weakness on the contrary made Mi Fang more vigilant, and he was almost
convinced that the dragonman youngster was luring him into his ruse.
All of Mi Fang’s energy was invested into defense, he barely moved and his
entire body was as sturdy as an army fort.
In this confrontation, the spectators’ attitude clearly changed.
“Long Fu really is bright and open.”
“He actually decided to discard his weapons and only use his weaker fists and
feet. It seems quite stupid, but I like him more for it.”
“Yes, although he is weaker than Mi Fang, he longs to fight to his heart’s
content.”
“That’s right! Although he is an outsider, he possesses a powerful dueling
spirit. He doesn’t want an ugly duel and isn’t worried about layered interests,
on the contrary, Mi Fang…oh dear!
“Mi Fang changed his fighting style, and from the beginning, strongly defended
himself and never had a decent counterattack. He is too dedicated to the mount
potion benefits, isn’t that so?”
“Perhaps the Jing Xiang Clan put him under too much pressure?”
“Then again, the mount potion benefits really are immense!”
The audience gave their opinions one after the other.
They weren’t in the know, and were unaware of the truth, only able to guess and
analyze at the surface level clues.
When Hua Tang heard these discussions, his heart gradually went chilly. Quite
the discouraging opinion floated into his mind, “Could it be that everything
was deliberately caused by Long Fu?”
“He deliberately weakened himself to build even greater renown?”
Hua Tang was a wholly indigenous Ice Sculpture citizen, and he understood that
Long Fu’s bearing was extremely heroic and that won the hearts of the people!
“No, that can’t be determined just yet.”
“Long Fu might be luring in his opponent, and Mi Fang choosing defense is the
most dependable option.”
Hua Tang couldn’t be certain; therefore, he was unable to give any warnings.
As for the dragonman youngster, he was already prepared to strike.
Battle skill – Dragon Talon Strike.
He opened his dragon talon, and constantly brandished it, with each wave, he
could shoot out four golden talon prints.
The talon prints shot out into Mi Fang’s shield, splashing into countless
golden light specks. The strong impact often caused Mi Fang’s shield to
compress.
Battle skill – Dragon Wings.
The dragonman youngster’s gold battle qi condensed on his back, forming a pair
of long dragon wings.
He flapped his wings, easily flying into the air.
He danced in the air, circling around Mi Fang, constantly bombarding him with
his new long ranged battle skill.
These battle skills had just been learned by him.
The fighter experiences he obtained from Charming Blue Goddess was lacking in
things for the dragonman form. Adding on that he only practiced a bit
beforehand, only gaining a superficial knowledge of these skills.
Therefore, when these battle skills were used, it was clear he was unfamiliar
with them.
However, as time passed, he rapidly became proficient in these new battle
skills and made them passable in practice. 
When all of the spectators saw this, they were rather dumbfounded.
“I was really looking forward to this duel, last night I couldn’t sleep from
excitement. But I didn’t expect this fight to turn out to be so tedious. Long
Fu is actually treating this as training!”
“The main reason is Mi Fang, alas, I had good prospects for him, but seeing his
performance now, it really disappoints people. Long Fu is practicing battle
skills, yet he hasn’t counterattacked, is he still a veteran duelist? Is he
still Long Fu’s senior?”
“But then again, isn’t Long Fu mastering his battle skills a bit too fast?”
“No, it’s really fast! If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I could never have
envisioned that someone in this world could master a new battle skill in such
little practice, and it’s not even just one!”
“Long Fu has extremely immense fighting talents! He was empowered by many
enhancement spells too; he definitely has a saint level bloodline. His rapid
learning speed must be his bloodline’s contribution.”
“As his practice continues, the stronger he will become.”
“Oh dear, will Mi Fang passively watch as his opponent gets stronger? That’s
very unwise.”
The audience lamented for Mi Fang, frustrated that he failed to meet their
expectations, while simultaneously having greater prospects for Long Fu.
This was precisely one of the goals the dragonman youngster wanted to achieve.
The reason why he deliberately hadn’t practiced his new battle skills was that
he wanted to build his image as a genius in front of the masses.
This public persona was very useful, especially since he was a “newly promoted”
gold level, and without having the public persona of a genius, how could he so
quickly improve, how could he have the power to be the ultimate winner?
Mi Fang naturally sensed the audience’s attitude changing.
He was furious.
The dragonman youngster’s actions clearly showed he was trampling Mi Fang
underfoot, to make him worthless, and then to serve as the backdrop to Long
Fu’s heroism and talent!
“This is an overt plot.”
“He is forcing my hand, forcing me to attack at my own accord!”
“In order to do this, he deliberately put on a show, bringing out ‘newly
learned’ battle skills, but because he is a genius, he appears to have rapid
and astonishing progress.”
Mi Fang needed to cough out blood.
He felt that Long Fu’s acting was too good, it was duping the masses and also
pressuring him!
“No, all of this is his stratagem.”
“I cannot let my mentality unbalance me and fall into his ruse!”
“Since I have already lost my face, then I am even more determined to carry out
my tactic till the end.”
“He cultivates the Bursting Explosion battle qi technique, that battle qi is
famous for not lasting long.”
“He is attacking at full strength, and I am defending with all my strength.
Abandoning his weapons actually isn’t rational. By using boxing, he depletes
his battle qi more!”
“His depletion rate is greater than mine, therefore I am actually holding an
advantage in this. As time goes on, the greater this advantage will be.”
“By the time both he and I reach a qualitative change in depletion, I will
attack, that is the most sensible choice.”
“Even though he possesses some formidable attack skill that can win a 3 v 1, it
absolutely needs a lot of battle qi.”
“When his battle qi is depleted to a certain degree, then this offensive skill
will be difficult to use.”
“When that moment comes, I will counterattack and be the ultimate winner!”
“So long as I am the final victor, the face I lost in this duel will return in
full. The masses will completely realize that I was right, I was the most sober
person!”
The dragonman youngster’s constant humiliation did not infuriate Mi Fang into
losing his rationality, on the contrary, it was constantly increasing and
solidifying his fighting spirit.
Mi Fang was no ordinary gold level, although he had drawn support from many
external resources in his personal struggle, it was by his own active choices.
He was shrewd, his insight was original, and even though he was confronted with
an expert like Long Fu, he could already make out the road to victory!
However, his way of thinking had been within the dragonman youngster’s
calculations.
“It’s nearly time.” The dragonman youngster thought.
He suddenly stopped in the air, the dragon wings on his back freely keeping him
hovering.
“Mi Fang, since you’ve decided to turtle up, then taste this battle skill
properly!” The dragonman youngster said that as he raised his arms.
He straightened his arms and opened his claws as they were held above his
head. 
Surging gold battle qi bubbled out and quickly condensed into a gigantic ball.
The ball of battle qi was at first a small ball, but after a few breaths, it
expanded to the size of a washbowl. Soon after, as it drew from the dragonman
youngster’s battle qi, it quickly grew into a battle qi ball one meter in
diameter.
“That is the Battle Qi Ball.” Everyone quickly recognized the dragonman
youngster’s battle skill.
The battle skill – Battle Qi Ball was a classic move. Based on its foundation,
fighters developed many kinds of battle skills that were spread widely. Thus,
even ordinary people know about it.
“Long Fu has Bursting Explosion battle qi, therefore the battle qi ball he
condensed should be [Battle Qi Ball – Bursting Explosion]. This will be a
ferocious explosion.”
The essence of [Battle Qi Ball] rests with being able to hold a large amount of
many kinds of energy types. Long Fu doesn’t have a way to harmonize a variety
of energy sources, he singularly cultivates battle qi, and if he dual
cultivated magic or divine spells, he could imbue it with his magic power or
divine power, at least doubling its might!”
“This type of battle skill doesn’t suit him; it should be a newly practiced
skill of his. Looking at the speed of his battle qi condensing, he is a novice
at it.”
“Is Mi Fang going to turtle again? He must disturb Long Fu and stop the battle
qi ball from being condensed as much as possible.”
Mi Fang decisively acted.
If he let Long Fu keep accumulating battle qi, then the battle qi ball would
get stronger, far exceeding Long Fu’s conventional firepower.
Mi Fang used no less than three alchemy items to sufficiently interfere.
The dragonman youngster dodged left and right, and when he couldn’t dodge the
final attack, he would rather use his body to endure it, saving the battle qi
ball and continuing to condense it.
Mi Fang didn’t stop, continuing to use long ranged attacks and increasing his
interference efforts.
The dragonman youngster shouted, then in spite of everything, stuck his talon,
followed by his claw, into the battle qi ball, then dove down.
Everyone: ?!!
Mi Fang: !!!
Because the battle qi ball had formidable explosive power, after fighters used
it, they would throw it from a distance. 
It was like a bomb.
Who would fight with a bomb strapped to them? It was like a suicide bombing.
“Long Fu…is actually this dauntless?”
“The battle qi ball has already reached a diameter of 2 meters, and adding on
Bursting Explosion battle qi, that bomb will cripple, if not kill Long Fu!”
“He must be relying on something.”
“Damn it, I can’t dodge!” Mi Fang was extremely anxious, he made a supreme
effort to evade, but time and space would not allow it.
Boom!!!
Within the fierce explosion, the dragonman youngster advanced with his head
high.
One of Mi Fang’s shields was blown away, while the other burst open wide.
As smoke and dust gradually dispelled, the audience subconsciously stood up.
Soon after, the whole audience saw this-
The dragonman youngster was soaked in blood and his exploded dragon scales
fluttered in the air, exposing black skin and flesh.
His left arm, the one he pulled the battle qi ball with, was almost turned to
charcoal, and his claws were blown off.
While his right hand was held high, his claws grabbed the nape of Mi Fang,
tenaciously pinching the latter.
Mi Fang’s face was a dark reddish purple; he wanted to struggle yet had no
strength to strike back.
Due to his intense will to live, Mi Fang resisted his vertigo and struggled to
cry out, “I, I concede…”
Just as the dragonman youngster was about to choke him to death, he suddenly
relinquished his dragon claw.
As Mi Fang fell, he fell unconscious.
The dragonman youngster raised his right arm, firmly making a fist, faced the
assembled audience, and roared.
After a silence, the entire audience’s cheers shook the heavens.



****** Chapter 710: Long Meng’s Invitation ******
A divine spell’s radiance lingered on the dragonman youngster’s body, waning
from bright to dark, then fading away.
The Glacier God bishop coughed, exposing a weak expression.
The priest behind him had been staring at the dragonman youngster the moment he
saw him until it finished, and despite how long the treatment was, the
excitement and veneration in his face was not reduced by even a hairsbreadth.
The priest was quite young, and from his appearance one could see he was
similarly looking to the bishop.
“Lord Bishop, many thanks.” The dragonman youngster moved his dragon claw as he
expressed his thanks.
This treatment had fully healed the injuries he had incurred during the battle.
Of the three transcendent systems, divine spells were the best at healing.
Magic could not imitate it, nor could battle skills supersede it, rather it was
divine power, a universally applicable energy source, that gave healing divine
spells a very broad range of applications.
The Glacier Bishop was solemn and respectful, expressing that he really wanted
to treat the dragonman youngster. If he required his aid in the future, he
would be willing to do it again.
Soon after, when the dragonman youngster wanted to pay for the treatment, the
Glacier Bishop gave him a discount of 20% as a friendship price.
As they left, the young priest behind him finally couldn’t restraint himself,
and he said to the dragonman youngster, “Lord Long Fu, I personally watched
your decisive battle with Mi Fang. Your attack was truly bold and
unconstrained!”
The young priest gave the dragonman youngster a thumbs up, remarkably like a
fanboy.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “So, you were a supporter of mine.”
“Come here I’ll give you a small gift.”
The dragonman youngster waved his hand, and an attendant sprang to action,
taking out an ice sculpture.
“Your distinguished country’s alchemy technology is the best in the present
age. It is especially good at ice sculptures, and I too follow the local
customs, so I hired an ice sculpture great master to carve some gifts.”
“After every major duel, regardless of the result, I will make some ice
sculptures and use them to repay my supporters.”
“Please accept it.”
The Glacier bishop slightly frowned, he had a wide field of view and
immediately noticed that this ice sculpture was made out of high grade
materials and that its workmanship was extremely exquisite. It was made from
many kinds of gold level materials, and from the engravings, one could see the
alchemy techniques in it, it was certain to be some great master’s style.
“This is too precious…” The Glacier bishop was just about to refuse when the
young priest seemed to move like lightning to take it.
“Are you really giving it to me?”
“This is wonderful, so wonderful!”
“Oh, it truly is excellent!!”
The young priest was utterly delighted as he excitedly held the ice sculpture
of Long Fu, his eyes shining with overwhelming joy.
The posture of the Long Fu ice sculpture was of him throwing the gigantic
battle qi ball as he swooped downwards. The ice sculpture was true to life,
perfectly depicting the dragonman youngster’s bravery, ferocity, determination,
and grace.
When the Glacier bishop saw how red with excitement the young priest was, he
let out an exasperated sigh and expressed his sincere and cordial gratitude to
the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster accompanied the two people to the inn’s doorway.
This hotel had an astonishing backer, it was the Han Yu Clan’s property, and it
represented the Han Yu Clan’s face to a degree, and when the dragonman
youngster chose it, it became their temporary residence in the capital.
The grand noble Han Yu Clan was only second to the Ice Sculpture Royal Family
in the kingdom and was far stronger than the Li Jian Clan.
The two clergymen the dragonman youngster sent off belonged to the Glacier
Church.
The Glacier God was one of the main gods of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and the
Glacier Church was the largest and strongest religious institution in the
entire nation. Although they hadn’t set up their religious headquarters here,
to serve as the Ice Sculpture Capital’s Bishop, an organization naturally had
to be extraordinary.
“My identity as Long Fu, my promotion to the gold level, and my victory over Mi
Fang is sufficient enough to face the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s high class
squarely.” The dragonman youngster thought.
He was himself a cleric and simultaneously a gold level magician, completely
capable of healing himself.
But he didn’t do that, instead he specifically asked the Glacier bishop to come
over.
Of course, this was no random decision. 
The young priest was the Glacier bishop’s son and was usually a favorite of the
latter. During the duel between the dragonman youngster and Mi Fang, he shouted
enthusiastically from the sidelines.
“With the Glacier bishop’s healing, my injuries can be confirmed, and I will
also get a witness to my saint level aptitude.”
“But my fighter strength can still be improved.”
The dragonman youngster knew that he was able to defeat Mi Fang mainly due to
psychological warfare. If Mi Fang really fought, with just his fighter skills,
it would be a narrow win for him.
“As Long Fu, I cannot use magic or divine spells.”
“Equipment can’t also constitute and advantage.”
“Only bloodlines can be focused on.”
“A saint level bloodline can spurt a massive growth rate, and it is feasible
for ‘Long Fu’, a newly promoted gold level, to rise to his peak combat power
rapidly.”
“The question here is my saint level aptitude is from the Bloodcore’s compound
transformation, and the growth rate isn’t ideal with Bursting Explosion battle
qi.”
In the Snow Bird Harbor battlefield, the young man used his Suring Wave fishman
form, its 100% god level bloodline amplified his divine spells immensely, and
that left a deep impression on the young man.
But during his duel with Mi Fang, although his Flame Dragon King bloodline was
legend level, its concentration was not high enough and its power amplification
could not compare to the Surging Wave fishman bloodline’s terrifying
amplification of divine spells.
To display a saint level disposition, the dragoman youngster surreptitiously
used the Bloodcore to turn into other dragon species. These altered traits were
internal, invisible to the outside, and concealed from the entire audience.
If it was just the Flame Dragon King bloodline, with the dragonman youngster’s
current bloodline concentration, it would not be enough to bear so many
enhancement spells.
Now the problem was the other transformations were interchangeable dragon
bloodlines or ice type dragon bloodlines, while the bulk of his form was the
Flame Dragon King bloodline, and the Bursting Explosion amplification rate was
not high in other respects (such as ice resistance), and he had to make up for
this deficiency.
“Therefore, I have to raise the Flame Dragon King bloodline vigorously.” The
dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
With regards to this, after he returned, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
efforts doubled. Under the pretense of alchemy and medicine refinement, the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps went on a crazy buying spree.
Regretfully, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s natural environment had few times of
wyverns reproducing that had bloodlines close to the Flame Dragon King.
As far as this was concerned, the dragonman youngster was without a solution,
and could only throw a wide net.
However, with the Bloodcore’s compound transformations, his aptitude was enough
for the time being.
“Hm?”
The dragoman youngster’s eyes flashed a different color.
His face did not reveal anything as he serenely turned around and returned to
his room.
After reaching his bedroom, he secretly crushed a Pearl Bubble and used a
divine spell to replenish his disguise.
Since officially returning to the capital and repelling “Hua Tang”, all parties
were investigating and divining him.
Before, the dragonman youngster was not strong enough, but after he returned,
he mastered divine spells and magic, becoming a triple system gold level
transcendent, thus he could observe deception divine spells being depleted.
At the hotel doorway, he felt the deception divine spell on him suddenly
depleting rapidly.
As he returned to his room, that depletion hadn’t stopped.
“This is a Han Yu Clan hotel, and it has tight defenses.”
“It seems this is not an observation method, but a divination method. Some
expert or power is directly divining about me.”
Since the dragonman youngster’s duel with Mi Fang, these kinds of divinations
and investigations clearly increased and strengthened.
The dragonman youngster had no way of confirming who was doing these
investigations and divinations.
There were too many people and powers that had motive to do so.
The Alchemy Guild, the Li Jian Clan, the Jing Xiang Clan, Tranquil Hill’s
duelists…
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ entrance into the capital also created a
whirlpool of tussles with the powers here.
The dragonman youngster sensed the deception divine spell being expended, yet
his body and mind were very tranquil.
He now had many Pearl Bubbles on hand and wasn’t worried about this kind of
expenditure. In fact, on the contrary, it was advantageous to him because any
divination was oriented towards the façade the dragonman youngster deliberately
set up.
The dragonman youngster’s thoughts were now on the Glacier bishop and his son
who just departed.
“His young son is a Glacier Church priest, yet he is unexpectedly enthusiastic
about duels.”
“I can sense that this young chap thinks highly of me. This is a gain from my
duel with Mi Fang.”
“As expected, my meticulous choice of a heroic battle style has been favored by
the Ice Sculpture citizens.”
“Although the bulk of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is composed of snow elves, the
popular customs are quite plucky.”
From the young priest’s passion, the dragonman youngster could surmise and get
a deeper feel of how duels permeated popular sentiment.
“If even a cleric who believes in the Glacier God is like this, to say nothing
about others.”
“That priest is relatively young and perhaps has no appreciation of the gravity
of things, but his father, as a bishop level figure, was there the entire time
and saw how his son acted. If the ramifications were huge, he would have given
the priest a stern lecture.”
From this observation, the dragonman youngster could make out what every large
church’s attitude to duels was.
“If in the future the Dueling God appeared, what would happen?” The dragonman
youngster was no outside passer-by, the divine blessings had given him abundant
clerical experience.
If there really was a Dueling God, then every large church would have an
entirely different attitude towards duels!
The gods had to fight over faith for their own benefits.
“Now the question is, does the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s high class now about the
Dueling God, the duelists on Tranquil Hill, and other such secrets or not?”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes were indistinct.
He learned of the Dueling Godhead in Tranquil Hill because of Charming Blue’
divine oracle.
But the divine oracle did not tell him what other people or powers were
conspiring for the Dueling Godhead.
Did they exist or not?
Did the Ice Sculpture high class know? If they didn’t, the situation would be
relatively simple. The real fear was that the high class was well aware and,
most importantly, involved in it.
The dragonman youngster consulted a lot of information and discovered that
duels were always supported and popularized by the Ice Sculpture Government,
they wholly treated it as a national policy that was energetically carried out.
In this aspect, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom never changed the slightest.
This inevitably caused the dragonman youngster to break out in misgivings.
“Even if the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s high class is unaware, those duelists in
Tranquil Hill at minimum are a big hindrance.”
“If only I could get in contact with Lan Zao…”
Regretfully, when the Dueling Divine Domain spatial crack was closed up, the
dragonman youngster found reaching Lan Zao was very difficult.
“There will eventually be a chance later.”
The dragonman youngster was following Lan Zao, the big guy, and Snow Bird
Harbor closely as he waited for public sentiment to develop.
The main thing he was waiting for was the Li Jian and Jing Xiang Clans’
reaction.
Although he had decided to take all of the profits from the mount potions
alone, he didn’t want to immediately brave forth in spite of the obstacles.
Direct force would cause immense resistance, and it was far better to feign
cooperation and paralyze the other powers, perhaps provoking the outside powers
into depleting each other and alleviating the resistance on him.
One day later, the dragonman youngster hadn’t gotten any envoys from the Li
Jian or Jing Xiang Clan, instead he received an unexpected invitation.
“Oh? Long Meng sent a person over to invite me over for a meeting?”
Long Meng!
The first among the duelists and publicly known as the strongest gold level in
the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
He naturally was the most popular candidate for being the champion of this
year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel.
The dragonman youngster knew that Long Meng’s distinguished name was engraved
on some tombstone located on the top of Tranquil Hill.
He also understood that Long Men was quite strong, and even if he was in his
fishman form, he wasn’t sure if he’d win, it would take a genuine battle to
ascertain that.
To say nothing of his current identity as Long Fu right now.
“Why is Long Meng inviting me over? What is his aim?”



****** Chapter 711: Let Me Teach You, Long Fu ******
The envoy with Long Meng’s invitation was a dragonman too.
The dragonman envoy led Long Fu into a carriage, then after going through a few
streets, came to Long Meng’s residence.
After entering and going up two floors, the dragonman emissary arrived at a
door, “Lord Long Meng is training inside.”
After saying that, the dragonman envoy lightly pushed it open a chink.
The training room door was never locked and always open.
The dragonman youngster stopped, and in the wake of the door being opened a
crack, he sensed a vague spatial fluctuation.
The dragonman youngster was a gold level magician and possessed a lot of
casting experience. Before entering the room, he knew this training room must
be using some alchemy technology to add internal space to this room. 
He pushed the door open and strode inside, and sure enough, he found the space
inside was abnormally wide, it was no less than two to three hundred square
meters big.
The walls, roof, and floor were white, and blended into one another.
There was no training equipment, only Long Meng inside the pure white space.
The dragonman youngster glanced over, seeing it was indeed Long Meng. He had
seen him in many magic images and was quite familiar with what Long Meng looked
like.
Matching the young man’s memories: Long Meng was covered in unblemished white
dragon scales. He had two dragon eyes as blue as the sea, giving people a
feeling of peace and depth.
At this moment, he was wearing a set of wide blue-gray training clothes, the
upper cuffs and lower trouser legs were very spacious.
Long Meng only had two pieces of transcendent equipment on him.
There was a white headband on his forehead, the white headband had a dark blue
gem inlaid in the middle of it.
The second was on the tip of his dragon tail, it was a golden ring.
The dragonman youngster knew a lot of information on Long Meng, among them was
information on these two pieces of equipment.
The sapphire headband was called the Blue God Headband. It could be treated as
an improved version of the Ice Heart Headband, providing not just formidable
mental defenses, but also could be enchanted and allow the user to cast a
mental barrier.
The gold ring on his tail was the Gravity Ring. After putting on this
equipment, the dragon tail would become heavier. During training, it would
increase results. When used for combat, it could increase the strength of
attacks. As for Long Meng, it was not just worn for training, and according to
the reports, barely anyone has seen him take off that gold ring.
Long Meng naturally sensed Long Fu, but he didn’t stop training.
His movements were slow and heavy, his attacks following a prescribed pattern
to the letter. Because of his internal strength, each time he moved, the hems
of his clothes would flutter, and his attacks would create light echoes.
He didn’t wear shoes, and the area where his gigantic soles stepped on seemed
to be a uniform circle, and from beginning to end, he didn’t step a meter out
of its radius.
Long Fu watched for a spell, then appeared impatient, “Hey, Long Meng, did you
call me over to watch you perform?”
Long Meng stopped moving, and smiled at the dragonman youngster, “Did you watch
clearly?”
The dragonman youngster coldly snorted, lifting his head, “Why did you ask me
to come? State the matter you want to discuss.”
Long Meng shook his head, “You truly possess the fire dragon bloodline’s
temperament.”
“Come.” Long Meng waved, “Let us do a small spar first.”
The dragonman youngster grinned, “That’s a good suggestion!”
He gladly stepped forth, ready to fight Long Meng unrestrained.
The dragonman youngster wanted the Dueling Godhead and to be first in this
year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel. The powerful Long Meng was his greatest
enemy.
The dragonman youngster was worried he didn’t have enough information on hand
and had been unable to probe intel on Long Meng.
Even if Long Meng hadn’t said so, he had accepted Long Meng’s invitation with
the strong intention to spar with Long Meng.
Long Meng’s proposal was what the dragonman youngster wanted to hear. 
As for whether Long Meng would harm him, the dragonman youngster wasn’t
worried.
He was a triple system gold level, and when he came over, he decided to bring
the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale]. The strongest combat personnel in the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom was a saint level, while Long Meng was a gold level, so
the dragonman youngster wasn’t worried about being in danger.
Long Fu and Long Meng began to spar unarmed, swapping between offense and
defense frequently.
Long Meng’s martial skill was consummate, and the dragonman youngster quickly
began to lose.
Battle skill – Surge.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Battle skill – Dragon Talon Strike.
The dragonman youngster used three battle skills, increasing his speed sharply,
striking like an artillery shell with his powerful exploding fist. After
sending Long Meng flying, he used Dragon Talon Strike to attack from range,
tying down Long Meng as the latter warded it off.
The dragonman youngster immediately gained the upper hand with the help of
battle skills.
Weirdly, Long Meng didn’t use any battle skills and was just relying on battle
qi enhancing his basic unarmed skills to fight.
Although the dragonman youngster held the upper hand, he was unable to shift
that dominance into a victory. On the contrary, the more he attacked, the more
apprehensive he got, “This Long Meng might be a [Great Martial Arts Master]!
His unarmed techniques are very strong, and he was actually able to withstand
my consecutive battle skills attacks without losing his footing in the
slightest.”
Long Meng hadn’t used battle skills at all, yet the dragonman youngster felt
how intractable he was.
After a few more rounds, the dragonman youngster stopped, “Hey, what’s the
meaning of this?”
He directly asked Long Meng, “You aren’t using battle skills, are you looking
down on me?”
Long Meng shook his head, both he and his aura was serene, “Just the opposite.”
“Long Fu, do you dare to just use basic martial arts to fight me?”
“As long as you last 30 rounds, I’ll consider it your win.”
“If you win, I will give you a battle skill. Believe me, this battle skill
suits you well.”
The dragonman youngster narrowed his eyes, sizing up Long Meng, then bellowed,
“Your punching and kicking are far better than mine, but I can absolutely last
30 rounds! Hehe, I’ll take any battle skills you got!” 
After saying that, he roared and stepped forward to attack Long Meng.
After this, the dragonman youngster didn’t use a single battle skill, only
using his internal battle qi to accelerate his movement and increase the power
of his punches and kicks.
He lasted 29 rounds, but in the 30th round, he was knocked to the ground by
Long Meng.
Long Meng breathed flatly, and smiled, “Well that’s unfortunate, try again?”
The dragonman youngster coldly snorted, “I’ll try again!”
The second time, at the 30th round, Long Meng used a floor sweeping kick to
trip the dragonman youngster to the ground.
He smiled, “Again?”
The dragonman youngster resolutely hammered the floor, resentfully replying,
“Again!”
The third time, at the 30th round, the dragonman youngster was shoulder thrown
to the ground by Long Meng.
But just as he was about to suffer defeat, he lashed out his dragon tail, the
momentum spinning him around into an ugly posture, in a supreme effort to turn
his body around, narrowly freeing himself from Long Meng’s grasp.
The dragonman youngster landed on the ground with both feet with a thud, taking
a few strides backwards to stabilize his footing.
“You’ve won, congratulations.” Long Meng grinned at him.
But the dragonman youngster snarled, spitting out caustic resentment, “You dare
toy with me?”
“I could sense that you deliberately slackened your strength.”
“If you didn’t throw the round, I would have lost again!”
“This doesn’t count, again!!”
The dragonman youngster growled, he was just about to charge when Long Meng
waved his hand, “Stop for a bit.”
Long Meng gently chuckled, he sized up the dragonman youngster, not concealing
his admiration, “You really are a genius!”
The dragonman youngster was stunned.
Long Meng continued, “I saw the recording of your duel with Mi Fang. You are a
newly promoted gold level and the few gold level battle skills you used were
horrendous to watch.”
“However, in a short time span during the fight, you swiftly learned how to use
these battle skills.”
“You not only have natural gifts in practicing battle skills, but you also have
a fundamental aptitude for martial arts ordinary people find hard to strive
for.”
“You have already mastered many essentials of basic fighting and had immense
progress. Think back carefully, isn’t that right?”
The dragonman youngster thought, “Of course that’s true! Otherwise, why would I
be so willing to fight you?”
He realized the benefits of doing this already.
Although the dragonman youngster had obtained many fighter experiences from
Charming Blue Goddess, these fighters were fishmen, seafloor lifeforms, there
was barely anything for the dragonman form.
These experiences were also focused on how to use battle skills and didn’t
touch on combat techniques.
But like Zong Ge once said, the dragonman youngster indeed possessed
extraordinary fighting talent. In the past, the dragonman youngster
effortlessly learned how to use Penetration Force, and after fighting Long
Meng, he quickly improved his basic martial arts techniques easily.
Long Meng was unaware of the truth, but this didn’t hinder his growing
admiration of Long Fu.
Long Meng watched as the dragonman youngster sank into contemplation, as he
continued, “Unarmed techniques are the basis of combat.”
“In many battles, it isn’t necessary to use battle skills, you can just use
unarmed techniques.”
“Believe me, if I was the one fighting Mi Fang, I could break through Mi Fang’s
shields with just unarmed techniques.”
“Although battle skills are powerful, each time they are used, they need to be
charged by gathering battle qi. Your [Battle Qi Ball] takes a very long time to
charge up. This is actually an enormous weakness.”
“When true experts fight, it is unlikely you’ll have such time to spare.”
“Usually when you have such a long time to charge, it proves you completely
hold the upper hand. In your fight with Mi Fang, it was mainly because Mi Fang
made an immense mistake in his tactics.”
Long Meng had hit the nail on the head when he analyzed the duel.
The dragonman youngster was silent for a bit, then gave Long Meng a weird look,
“I admit your words are reasonable, but exactly what are you trying to do by
saying all of this?”
Long Meng smiled, “Our dragonman bodies are vastly superior when compared to
the other intelligent races.”
“And basic unarmed fighting can magnify this superiority.”
“You are very gifted, Long Fu.”
“Your bloodline is at least saint level, and you possess a natural talent for
battle.”
“You are a genius, a true genius!”
“However, you lacked a suitable teacher and training. As a dragonman, I can’t
bear to see such a situation persist.”
“Let me teach you, Long Fu.”
The dragonman youngster was flabbergasted when the truth was revealed.
He stared at Long Meng; he never expected that this was why the latter had
invited him here. 
The dragonman youngster still couldn’t believe it, “Long Meng, what are you
really up to?”
“You want to teach me and improve my strength?”
“What are you trying to do?”
“Lest you forget, I am participating in this year’s National Ceremony Grand
Duel too. We are rivals, are you giving me benefits beforehand, so I’ll
withdraw from the grand duel?”
“There is no need to be so wordy, that’s impossible!”
Long Meng raised his head, then burst into laughter, “What am I trying to do?”
“Get you to withdraw? I’d never consider that.”
“In fact, I look forward to your improved strength, as my opponent.”
“As it is now, the National Ceremony Grand Duel looks very boring. If you grow
fast enough and become my match, then even if you defeat me, I will feel
excited and won’t feel any regret!” 
Long Meng pointed a finger at the dragonman youngster, his eyes shining, and
said with a faint arrogance, “Can you understand me?”
“You should be able to understand.”
The dragonman youngster’s mouth fell open, showing his sharp teeth, his orange
dragon eyes seemed to ignite with flames, “I do!”
“Your arrogance makes me really want to beat you up with just basic
techniques.” 
“You got guts, you shall have everything I can teach you! In this National
Ceremony Grand Duel, I want to defeat you before an audience of millions and
let you taste the bitter fruit of your arrogance.”
“I believe that you won’t forget it for the rest of your life!”



****** Chapter 712: The Big Guy’s Real Combat Training ******
The moon and stars dotted the night.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di walked out of the Ice Sculpture Capital, came
to a snow mound in the outskirts, and once again entered the divine domain
spatial interior.
This was their true encampment.
During the day, they would temporarily rest in the Han Yu Clan hotel but did
their best not to stay in it overnight.
At night, they would hurry here.
The Charming Blue Divine Domain was the place they felt most relaxed and was
the best place to withstand outside threats.
Under the current circumstances, the main threat was not Hua Tang or the
assassin Yi Jiu, the possibility of them making a fuss was low. The dragonman
youngster was relatively afraid of the Li Jian Clan’s surveillance methods.
Based on what he and Zi Di surmised, this surveillance method should be rooted
in the Li Jian Clan’s spatial bloodline superiority.
Therefore, the divine domain was necessary.
So long as there was the slightest fluctuation in the divine domain, the
dragonman youngster could instantly sense it.
After returning to the divine domain to rest, the dragonman youngster once
again scrutinized the Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl.
This [Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl] was the size of a fist, completely white, and
felt ice-cold, it was a type of alchemy item.
When he bid farewell to Long Meng, the latter had gifted it to him.
Long Meng told him, “Sire Long Fu, your acceptance of my teachings went beyond
my expectations, it was wonderful.” 
“I will teach you wholeheartedly.”
This battle skill [Dragon Pearl] is the most classical battle skill for us
dragonmen, it suits you well so I want to give you this as a present.”
“It is even more perfect when paired up with this, the [Ultra-energy Dragon
Pearl].”
As he mentioned it, he gave him a magic image record of the Dragon Pearl battle
skill as well as the [Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl].
With regards to [Dragon Pearl]. The dragonman youngster knew about it – War
Merchant had it in his database.
This battle skill was used by condensing battle qi into pearls that circled
through the air around the user.  When it came time to do battle, the fighter
could spiritually control them and smash them into an enemy.
Long Meng’s words were correct, [Dragon Pearl] was a very classic battle skill.
From its foundation, many subcategories and branches were derived from it.
Some people liked to condense one giant dragon pearl, using it for offense and
defense. Others were more proficient in multiple condensed dragon pearls that
would hover around them like flying swallows, expending them as long ranged
attacks, or flying back to the fighter to replenish their battle qi.
“Long Meng recommended the [Dragon Pearl] battle skill to me; he must have seen
my usage of the battle skill [Battle Qi Ball] during the duel.”
“To a dragonman, [Battle Qi Ball] cannot compare to [Dragon Pearl].”
“The Dragon Pearl battle skill was specifically developed for dragonmen,
becoming Battle Qi Ball when enlarged and becoming other battle skills when
shrunk.”
Because gold level battle qi could leave a fighter’s body, the battle skill
[Dragon Pearl] was a gold level battle skill.
In fact, when the dragonman youngster was picking a long ranged attack method,
he considered this skill. But time was too short and he decided to pick the
battle skill Dragon Talon Strike to see its effects.
Because there were so many derivations of the [Dragon Pearl] battle skill,
practicing it was not as simple as [Dragon Talon Strike], so the dragonman
youngster decided to pick it up later.
As for [Battle Qi Ball], it on the contrary was a priority and one of the main
things he trained on.
“Speaking in terms of myself, [Battle Qi Ball] is more suitable for me than
[Dragon Pearl].”
The reason was simple, the dragonman form was just one life shape, he had many
bloodlines in the Bloodcore and had many life shapes.
Therefore, to him, [Battle Qi Ball] was a more usable and suitable battle
skill. If he energetically practiced [Dragon Pearl], then it would only
strengthen the dragonman form. But mastering [Battle Qi Ball] would benefit
both the dragonman form and the fishman form.
“However, if the alchemy item [Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl] is added in, the
battle skill will be immensely improved and make it much more tempting.”
The [Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl] could store dragonman battle qi in it, and
after a dragonman used the battle skill [Dragon Pearl]. Battle qi would
instantly bubble out of it and expand into a large pearl, fully forming a
dragon pearl.
There were other benefits.
For example, the item [Ultra-energy Dragon Pearl] could act as a core for a
dragonman to command many more battle qi dragon pearls, and regardless of their
smarts, their control range would substantially increase.
“This alchemy technology improves the quality of [Dragon Pearl]!” The dragonman
youngster lamented.
This pair up was not in War Merchant’s database. Nor was it in War Merchant’s
records.
Based on what Long Meng said, this technology only started getting popular in
the last few years.
This kind of pair up caused the dragonman youngster to make a mental connection
to Lan Zao’s Air Cannon and alchemy projectile cores.
“It seems it has formed a kind of fad…some alchemy items being developed for
battle skills that can increase their power.”
“If battle skills are like that, then it doesn’t make sense if magic and divine
spells can’t be amplified similarly.”
The dragonman youngster had an unorganized train of thought, and he pondered
over Long Meng again.
“Why is Long Meng doing this?” This was the question he had been pondering on
the way here.
“Is Long Meng coveting my reputation? After all, giving me advice can indeed
raise his own renown.” A new possibility came to the dragonman youngster at
this moment.
But he quickly rejected this notion.
Although the dragonman youngster was currently the hottest celebrity around,
his reputation could not compare to Long Meng.
If news got out that Long Meng was teaching him, then the dragonman youngster
would be the one that benefited the most from his connection with Long Meng.
The dragonman youngster’s mind suddenly stirred, sensing something.
“An opportunity.” He immediately summoned Cong Mang.
After the Vegetable Pirates boss saw the dragonman youngster, he instantly
kneeled and expressed his readiness to serve.
After coming to the Ice Sculpture Capital, he was less inclined to be
presumptuous.
If he was exposed, the Ice Sculpture Capital guards would definitely come for
him, and if he wasn’t beheaded, he’d be locked up.
“Follow me, our pirate group needs assistance.” The dragonman youngster glinted
with blue light, and after a few breaths, he turned into a fishman.
He grabbed Cong Mang’s shoulder and walked ahead.
Space violently undulated, then calmed down in an instant.
Cong Mang and the fishman youngster had traveled through space, and within a
second, arrived on Cong Mang’s flagship.
The night wind whistled, and the moonlight was clear.
A naval battle was already underway here.
Cong Mang’s pirates were running away in a sorry manner, with the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s First Navy Fleet at their heels.
Of course this was not the main force, just a small detachment.
The head of this detachment was Bei Jia, a gold level snow elf fighter.
Since the Li Jian Clan’s Second Fleet had been routed by Da Han’s pirate
alliance, the First Navy Fleet had strained itself to clean out the calamitous
flood of pirates across Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s ocean defenses. 
As Bei Ji a was commanding his fleet, he had the “good fortune” of noticing the
Vegetable Pirates.
At least, he believed it was his good fortune.
According to the intelligence reports, The Vegetable Pirates had suffered
disastrous losses when they were plundering Snow Bird Harbor, and Cong Mang was
heavily wounded and carried away by a mysterious fishman expert. Therefore, Bei
Jia immediately reported this positive battle report.
Mei Lin approved of his military operation, and so Bei Jia led his fleet day
and night at double speed to relentlessly chase down the Vegetable Pirates,
vowing that he would scoop up the whole lot of them.
After the Vegetable Pirates noticed they were being pursued, they instantly
chose to accelerate their departure.
But Bei Jia’s naval fleet used methods, such as condensing seawater or
tampering with the ocean currents to slow down the pirate ships.
The Vegetable Pirates had suffered immense losses to their crew, but not much
to their ships, and after appropriation of personnel, there weren’t many people
on each ship.
After sinking into this crisis, Hong Zhu immediately started praying.
The big guy was a fanatical believer in the dragonman youngster, and after the
young man’s large scale preaching, Hong Zhu had become a pious believer in the
God Mist.
Added on to the fact that the dragonman youngster always paid attention to
them, not long after Hong Zhu started praying, he realized what kind of
situation they were in.
He gave the order, making the pirates sail at top speed, disregarding the
energy consumption. If necessary for time, they could abandon some ordinary
pirate ships to stall for time.
As Bei Jia approached the Vegetable Pirates at dusk, he had used all kinds of
methods to slow down the pirates, while the pirates tried various methods to
stall for time.
The two sides’ fierce battle of wits lasted until 2 am.
“These wretched snow elves, they actually don’t want to let us go!” Cong Mang
was familiar with the latest situation and gnashed his teeth in rage.
He impatiently gazed at the fishman youngster next to him, his desire to be
sent into battle evident in his words. 
The fishman youngster smiled, “It is time to counterattack.”
“You can charge.”
When Cong Mang heard he could act, he ecstatically raised his arm and shouted,
“Little ones, follow my charge!”
Not long after retreating from Snow Bird Harbor, the Vegetable Pirates and Cong
Mang were overtaken by the fishman youngster and easily taken over by the
latter.
Therefore, the pirates were mentally prepared for Cong Mang and the fishman
youngster.
The pirates admired the strong, so when the Vegetable Pirates’ old captain
defected, the pirates followed without objection.
“What?” Seeing Cong Mang appear, Be Jia was flabbergasted, “Cong Mang is here?
He was hiding in the pirate group?”
Cong Mang showing himself greatly increased pirate morale.
He and the Hoodlum battle squad began to do boarding actions on navy ships.
The fishman youngster didn’t show himself, instead he was in the ship hold,
putting his hand on the big guy.
“Father!” The big guy knelt to the ground, shouting that word in his thoughts,
his expression was filled with joy.
Although he was living on a pirate ship, his days were quite comfortable.
Da Dou became his personal chef, giving him meals that filled his mouth with
grease, his happiness swelling like his belly.  
As for fresh ingredients, the dragonman youngster delivered them constantly
through Divine Domain Descent.
The fishman youngster examined him, confirming that with the big guy’s
extraordinary bloodline and lightning fast progress, he was closing in on the
silver level.
“Relax a little, I have come to give you something.” As the fishman said that
he began to use divine spells.
After three divine spells, in addition to a massive expenditure of divine
favor, the big guy’s aura underwent a qualitative change, going from iron level
to the silver level!
Upon seeing this, Hong Zhu was very excited and envious, Da Dou too also
revealed a look of amazement.
As a [divine emissary], the fishman youngster naturally could promote a
believer’s transcendent level. There were two principal restrictions to this,
one was the receiver had to possess room to improve, and the second was faith
in Charming Blue Goddess or the fishman youngster.
“Get out there, get out and cause havoc on the navy ships.” The fishman
youngster lightly clapped the big guy’s shoulder, encouraging him.
“Father, Xiao Guai, afraid!” The big guy shouted in his heart, then lay on the
floor, hugging the fishman youngster’s thigh and shivering.
Hong Zhu: …
Da Dou: …
The fishman youngster gave an exasperated sigh.
He had dedicated himself to cultivating the big guy, and this was a good chance
to get live combat training, but the big guy was naturally timid and that
hadn’t changed.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Let me help you.”
“Come, look into my eyes.”
An intense blue light flowed from the fishman youngster’s eyes and into the big
guy’s eyes, rapidly permeating through his entire body.
A moment later, the big guy stood up, and boldly slapped his chest, like he was
a gorilla!



****** Chapter 713: Training a Ravenous Wolf ******
In the night sea, the Vegetable Pirates and the First Navy Fleet detachment
were fighting fiercely.
Cong Mang took the lead, holding a gold level long rod in a truculent manner.
Bei Jia stepped forward bravely, draped in heavy armor to intercept Cong Mang.
The two gold levels were playing tough, not retreating from this desperate
struggle.
At that moment, the big guy, eyes emitting blue light, roared as he jumped onto
the deck. 
He was already under the fishman youngster’s Divine Descent. His consciousness
curled up as he calmly watched his father help him.
“Xiao Guai, experience this carefully, I am here to teach you how to fight.”
The fishman youngster secretly transmitted to the big guy.
The big guy was very scared and weakly agreed.
A moment later, the fishman youngster took control of the big guy and
transferred iron level battle qi to his legs and feet.
With this battle qi boost, the big guy’s jumping ability rose dramatically!
The big guy jumped a few hundred meters and landed precisely on a kingdom
warship.
The kingdom’s navy was in the middle of a firefight, when suddenly an alarm
rang loudly. They raised their eyes to see a shadow covering the full moon in
the sky.
The huge shadow suddenly descended in a massive gust of wind.
Ding!
The big guy was like a boulder toss from a catapult that smashed into the
warship’s afterdeck.
The afterdeck immediately caved in, causing the big guy’s lower half to get
stuck, in addition, because of the big guy’s weight, the entire ship slightly
tilted.
The navies had gone through fine drills, and after a momentary confusion, they
gathered together to encircle the big guy.
The big guy roared repeatedly, brandishing both arms and stepping out. From the
aft to the front, he left a complete mess wherever he went.
The navies that dared to openly obstruct the big guy had their bones smashed
and muscles torn as they were tossed aside.
The deck was constantly being ruptured, and smashed blocks were being flung
everywhere. 
None could stop the big guy’s charge, the warship’s mast was snapped by him,
and the ship house was penetrated when he collided with it.
The big guy curled up consciousness shivered as he witnessed the dreadful scene
before him. His corporeal body was under the fishman youngster’s control and
became a deadly weapon on the battlefield.
In less than a minute, he had killed his way from the aft to the bow, tore the
first deck in half, and left behind a huge gorge in the ship.
The navies suffered disastrous casualties and corpses littered the deck.
Clang.
The catastrophic destruction caused the hull to violently shake, and it finally
toppled over completely.
“Amazing!”
“He obviously just got promoted to the silver level, yet he is stronger than
most gold levels.”
“When he stabilizes his silver level, his constitution will be substantially
increased as a result, at the time, it will surpass my dragonman form.”
Although the big guy’s body was weaker than the dragonman youngster’s body
right now, the fishman youngster could already sense the future clearly.
The warship the big guy devastated lost all fighting strength.
The fishman youngster was not addicted to killing, and immediately had the big
guy jump onto another navy warship.
Under his control, the big guy wreaked havoc all over the place, throwing the
navy into complete confusion and utter suffering.
Cong Mang and Bei Jia were at a stalemate.
The Vegetable Pirates were outnumbered by the navy and were at a slight
disadvantage.
But the big guy’s lively performance allowed the pirates to quickly suppress
the navy.
“Where did that small giant come from?” The navies had incessant headaches but
couldn’t discern anything about the big guy.
The big guy, Hong Zhu, and Da Dou were imbued with deception divine spells, and
when observed by outsiders, the big guy was a strange small giant.
“We have to get rid of that troublesome guy!” The navies quickly came to a
consensus.
Taking advantage of the big guy being on a damaged warship, they used the
cannons on the surrounding warships to rapidly open fire on the big guy.
Alchemy cannons – Snow Ice Light Cannons!
A large amount of honey snow filled these cannons, then an alchemy formation
rapidly compressed the honey snow into a pure white beam of light that was
discharged.
Perfectly straight and thick white beams of light accurately shot towards the
big guy.
Under the fishman youngster’s control, the big guy moved extremely sharply,
dodging left and right while simultaneously moving his hands and feet about.
When these light beams hit the deck, they instantly turned into icicles. 
The few that hit the big guy caused his body to shake.
The fishman youngster had no choice but to deplete a large amount of iron
battle qi to withstand the light cannons.
Iron level battle qi was severely depleted, but that was precisely what the
fishman youngster wanted. Very quickly, he extracted newly advanced battle qi
from every place in the big guy’s body.
Because the big guy had been promoted to the silver level, his new battle qi
was not iron level, but rather the qualitatively different silver level.
After the big guy gradually possessed silver level battle qi, his combat
strength rose again by a lot.
This time, the navies had even fewer ways of dealing with him.
As the big guy’s destruction grew more serious, Bei Jia anxiously fumed.
He knew that if he disregarded the big guy, this naval battle would be lost. He
willingly endured several thumps from Cong Mang, coughing out blood as he
attacked towards the big guy.
“Father, bad guy, very scary!” The big guy’s soul shouted in a flurry.
The fishman youngster’s eyes nevertheless lit up, “Xiao Guai, this is the most
valuable part of this real combat. Don’t be afraid, in the future you will be
even scarier than him.”
He maneuvered the big guy into a counterattack and didn’t retreat, instead
deciding to attack Bei Jia.
Bei Jia wore heavy armor and was a gold level, he was not someone the newly
promoted silver level big guy could smash away. 
Bei Jia attacked, immediately suppressing the big guy and alleviating the
battlefield situation. 
Cong Mang wanted to rush over to interfere, but the fishman youngster
immediately transmitted that he was to withdraw.
The fishman youngster didn’t empower the big guy either, instead he only used
the big guy’s fighting skills to contend with Bei Jia.
After fighting for a few rounds, Bei Jia beat and badly battered the big guy.
The big guy’s constitution was very strong; he could quickly recover and was
tough.
Under the expert Bei Jia’s suppression, the fishman youngster controlled the
big guy more and more skillfully, the constant experience and practice from
this solidifying the big guy’s combat martial arts.
The big guy’s outstanding constitution, paired up with the dragonman
youngster’s extraordinarily exceptional fighting and learning talent allowed
the big guy’s performance on the battlefield to improve at a rate visible to
the naked eye.
Bei Jia was also experiencing how horrifying his enemy’s progression rate was
and was secretly apprehensive.
He took a deep breath and eliminated all thoughts that this was a fluke. Now
attaching actual importance to the big guy, he didn’t hesitate to spend battle
qi and use powerful battle skills.
The fishman youngster chose to scurry away from these sharp attacks.
If he couldn’t dodge, then he’d use a defensive battle skill.
Bei Jia displayed his greatest firepower, and the big guy repeatedly retreated
in defeat coughing out a lot of blood, with several of his ribs being broken
too.
Seeing the crucial moment about to arrive, the fishman youngster called out to
Cong Mang, the latter would stop Bei Jia as he healed the big guy with a divine
spell.
After a few seconds under the divine light, the big guy fully recovered and his
combat strength rose back to what it was at the beginning of the battle.
“They actually have a cleric?!” When Bei Jia saw this, his eyeballs nearly
swelled from their sockets. Then after his shock, he felt a strong chill
spreading from the bottom of his heart.
Such a powerful healing divine spell meant the pirate ships had at least one
silver level cleric. 
If it was a one on one, Bei Jia wouldn’t be afraid of a clergyman. But this was
reality, and the gold level Cong Mang was reaping devastation while the strange
small silver level giant was very tough and was improving extremely rapidly.
“This fight cannot continue, withdraw!” Bei Jia decisively ordered the retreat.
But how could he retreat?
The fishman youngster personally acted.
A second later, the sea billowed up and rolled a myriad of ocean spray.
The seawater formed a whirlpool that sucked in the warships, making progress
difficult.
Divine spells by nature were powerful, and with the terrifying amplification of
a god level bloodline, he instantly altered the battlefield environment. An
ordinary divine spell in the fishman youngster’s hands became an awe-inspiring
battlefield level power!
The navy’s retreat failed, and their battle intent slumped. Bei Jia decided to
stay behind, wanting to cover the navy’s retreat.
The thought was laudable.
It really was touching.
After a half hour, the curtain closed on this battle.
The Vegetable Pirates seized total victory, encircling and subduing the vast
majority of the warships, with only two escaping, as the fishman youngster had
ordered they be allowed to leave.
Bei Jia had been captured alive and was carried over to the fishman youngster
by the big guy.
Seeing the gold level fishman youngster and Da Dou, Bei Jia looked startled,
then turned dark.
The fishman youngster tried interrogation, but Bei Jia was a model soldier,
tough and fearless of death.
The fishman youngster didn’t want to humiliate him, Bei Jia’s decision to stay
behind was something he admired. 
“Put him into custody, don’t dock his food and water, and be properly
hospitable to him. He is a very good sparring partner.” Ordered the fishman
youngster.
Bei Jia wore heavy armor and specialized in defense. He had a gold level sea
horse mount and was a heavy cavalier.
The fishman youngster planned on keeping him as the big guy’s training partner.
He undid Divine Descent, and the big guy once again took control of his own
body.
“Hurts, hurts, hurts!” The big guy cried out, the wounds all over his body
conveyed a strong sense of presence.
“These wounds were intentionally left behind by your father.” The fishman
youngster smiled, placating his son.
“You need to feel this pain, adapt to this pain, and allow your body to
remember it all so you can grow faster.”
The big guy was weeping in pain, “But Father, I, I can’t stand it.”
“Make an extra effort!” The fishman youngster bit his teeth, hardened his
heart, and lightly slapped the big guy’s shoulder, sincerely and earnestly
educating, “These are small injuries, far from what can kill you in battle.”
The big guy thought to himself, “I don’t want to fight like this one bit.”
But seeing his father’s hopeful gaze, he closed his mouth and stopped crying
out in pain.
The fishman youngster sighed to himself.
The future could not be guessed, and compared to the huge powers, the survivors
were still too weak. Every member had to grow, and substantially!
The big guy was trained like this because the big guy’s bloodline was very
high, and it had a lot of space to unearth.
“This time I strive for the Dueling Godhead, and danger lurks on every side. If
in the future something happens to me…I hope Xiao Guai will be able to survive
better.”
To the side, Da Dou had witnessed everything.
He kept his eye on the big guy and endorsed the fishman youngster’s way of
handling him.
This was the world of the strong.
The giant’s world was the same.
Everyone wanted to become strong! Da Dou had accepted this idea from childhood.
Da Dou didn’t think the big guy was miserable, on the contrary he envied the
big guy’s treatment. He knew what the big guy’s circumstances were, and the
fishman youngster’s training method was simply tailor-made for him, it really
fit him!
Before leaving, the fishman youngster put into place some arrangements.
“Transmit this letter to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, say our Vegetable Pirates
took Bei Jia captive.
“Let them raise a ransom.”
“Are the Brambles Pirates nearby?” He pointed a finger at an ocean map and
asked.
“Yes.” The Vegetable Pirates’ newly promoted first mate promptly replied,
“Their pirate commander was killed by Feng Lian, and the just elevated gold
level is very prudent. Not long ago, they invited us to combine our forces and
plunder White Mist Harbor.”
White Mist Harbor was a small sized harbor.
The fishman youngster smiled and clenched his hands together, “Converge with
them, and seize that opportunity to annex them.”
“We are a little short on people, right?”
This was the statement of a pirate!
Those words caused everyone’s eyes to light up.
Everyone looked at the fishman youngster, all thinking: was the fishman expert
before them originally a veteran ocean bandit?
Cong Mang licked his lips even more, he stood up with excitement and asked him
to be assigned to this, loudly shouting he wanted to go with the ships. 
The fishman youngster calmly listened for a while, then suddenly slapped Cong
Mang into the air.
Plop.
Cong Mang coughed up blood and spat out a tooth. After being thrown to the
floor, he lay on the floor for a while
Or perhaps one could say, he didn’t dare to crawl back up.
The fishman youngster’s eyes glinted callously as he leisurely asked, “Do you
listen to me, or do I listen to you?”
Cong Mang promptly kneeled, his forehead on the floor, “Of course I’ll listen
to you, boss!”
His agitated heart had been quelled instantly by the fishman youngster’s
heartless slap.
The young man’s power made Cong Mang even more obedient.
The pirates were the ravenous wolves of the ocean, and one could not be lenient
on recently tamed wolves.
Baring your teeth?
Even if it was baring another’s teeth, that kind of attitude would offend the
owner.
I didn’t let you bare your teeth!
You will listen to me.
After returning from the Ocean Mother Nest, the fishman youngster had an
increasingly subtle grasp of human nature. While training the big guy, he was
simultaneously training the ravenous wolf Cong Mang.
The pirates kept quiet out of fear, thoroughly recognizing who really was in
charge.
As for Cong Mang?
It had to be said that this was the best way to deal with him!
Through Divine Domain Descent, the fishman youngster took Cong Mang from the
ocean and returned to the Ice Sculpture Capital.
Things weren’t finished just yet.
He secretly notified Tripleblade in Snow Bird Harbor that he was to contact
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord and asked him to help in a small favor – to spread a
piece of news.
The news was that Long Meng really admired Long Fu. He personally taught the
latter and also gifted them a battle skill and an alchemy item.



****** Chapter 714: Two Clans Join Hands ******
In a vast snowfield, there stood only one city.
The city had been meticulously laid out, was made mainly from light and dark
blue ice bricks, had round roofs, round arched doors, and other similar
architecture that filled the city with elven grace and artistic flair.
These gentle and beautiful buildings alleviated the ice-cold and harsh
environment, the vitality of the vegetation and people adorning the white-blue
city.
This was Igloo City, the Li Jian Clan’s main city.
As a great noble clan of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the Li Jian Clan perfectly
controlled this city, like how they controlled the Kingdom’s Second Navy Fleet.
Mian Li Zang was the Li Jian Clan’s current elder, and he was currently in his
study, handling onerous affairs.
The window to the outside showed a tranquil scene, sunlight sprinkled on the
city and there was no wind or now.
However, the Li Jian Clansmen knew that an invisible blizzard had engulfed the
Li Jian Clan already.
This powerful clan seemed as frail as a tiny boat in this blizzard.
And Mian Li Zang was the only one steering this boat, the one facing this
immense challenge!
During the battle with Da Han, the Second Navy Fleet retreated in defeat, and
although the main force was intact, the Li Jian Clan was in a terrible
situation, almost the entire kingdom hated them, pushed them aside, and even
were hostile towards them.
While this was happening, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ conflict with the Li
Jian Clan was made public, adding insult to injury.
“Lord Clan Leader, this is the information you were asking for.” An attendant
opened the study door and came in with a magic crystal ball.
Mian Li Zang nodded, indicating that the attendant put the crystal ball on the
desk.
The attendant respectfully withdrew from the study, and after the door was
closed, Mian Li Zang stroked the crystal ball.
A moment later, a magic image appeared in the crystal ball.
A large group of people were surrounding a store.
The store sold only three magic potions, Dragon Rider, Spirit Stimulation, and
Smooth Stride.
“Line up, please everyone line up, one customer at a time!” A salesclerk did
their best to maintain order but didn’t have much impact.
The customers swarmed like bees into the store, snapping up the magic
medicines.
“I bought it, I bought it!!”
“Don’t take mine, are you courting death?!”
“I want to buy 60 sets, no matter what kind, just take my money.”
“Here is the money, I want to buy 120 sets!”
The customers frantically clawed at the mount potion stock. The reason was
because of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ new marketing strategy: so long as
someone bought 60 or more sets of magic medicine, they could receive an ice
sculpture of Long Fu.
The customers who managed to buy them clutched or held high their ice sculpture
of Long Fu in great delight, squeezing out of the store with uplifted spirits.
The magic image was magnified, giving a close up of an ice sculpture of Long
Fu.
Mian Li Zang looked at it closely, and even he had to concede that the ice
sculptures had extremely remarkable workmanship. The ice sculptures were not
just made of carefully selected materials, but it was also sturdy and engraved
superbly, vividly depicting the dragonman youngster dragging his battle qi ball
as he dove from the sky. 
The magic image continued to play.
Blood Kin City, Snow Bird Harbor, Munitions Harbor, Snow Rabbit City, Rime
City, Ice Sculpture Capital…
The stores in every town and city were virtually the same, the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ mount potion sales were booming!
“After Long Fu defeated Mi Fang, his renown increased sharply.”
“Based on the latest information, Long Fu even got Long Meng’s eye, the latter
really admires Long Fu and personally advised and trained him. This news
further fostered Long Fu’s renown, like pouring oil onto a fire!”
“It is very clear this information was deliberately disseminated. It would have
taken a lot of energy to spread this news in so short a time.”
“Was this done by the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps themselves, or were they
working with another power?”
Mian Li Zang deeply sighed.
When it came to dealing with their relationship with the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps, Mian Li Zang had personally shown interest in it.
Previously, he decided to propose and demand that the Li Jian Clan be the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ sole partner when he saw the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps quickly establishing themselves, and the impact and value of the Li Jian
Clan was rapidly being reduced. He prepared for the rainy day and decided to
respond in advance.
Regretfully, the dragonman youngster secretly returned, used Hun Tong to act as
Hua Tang, and ruthlessly smacked the Li Jian Clan back in a smooth comeback. 
After this series of operations, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ conflict with
the Li Jian Clan was made known to the masses.
If it was during normal times, then Mian Li Zang could calmly act. But after
the Second Navy Fleet was defeated, it was now a hundred times more difficult
for Mian Li Zang to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Mian Li Zang finished looking through the images in the crystal ball, then
bowed his head in contemplation, his brows locking up as he pondered how he
should cope with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ tutting offensive.
Some clansmen proposed that they simply stop mount potion production at all of
their clan’s workshops and factories.
Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to obviously separate themselves,
the Li Jian Clan should stop producing magic medicine, despite every part of
the country having a massive demand for it.
Mian Li Zang didn’t think much before rejecting that suggestion, on the
contrary he ordered to increase production, including all night overtime and
increasing staff, striving to achieve production 24 hours a day.
As a remarkable politician and manager, Mian Li Zang knew that “cooperation
benefited both, and division harmed both”. Currently, both sides were still
cooperating, and if it continued, everyone would benefit.
If magic medicine production was stopped, the Li Jian Clan’s benefits would
suffer. The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be more pressed to extricate
themselves from the Li Jian Clan and accelerate their ties with the Jing Xiang
Clan and other powers.
Therefore, stopping production seemed like a punishment, and would put a
spotlight on the fact that the Li Jian Clan was essentially venting their
negative feelings.
If that was done, then this entire incident would be even less conducive to the
Li Jian Clan’s growth.
As an experienced clan leader, Mian Li Zang would never do that.
“To deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, I can adopt other measures.”
Mian Li Zang’s brows smoothed out a little; he had thought of some already.
He transmitted an order to a sentry.
After a moment, he came to another room.
Inside the room was a gigantic alchemy module, it nearly took up all of the
space in it.
It was an emergency communication device.
The Li Jian Clan was one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s great nobles and had
plenty of political resources that could obtain this device, said device could
contact almost all of the high class powers. 
This time, Mian Li Zang was not contacting just anyone but the Jing Xiang Clan
itself.
The alchemy device turned on, and not long after, the Jing Xiang Clan Leader’s
magic image condensed and appeared.
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader looked gloomy.
For the last several days, he had been in a bad mood.
His favored Mi Fang had been defeated by Long Fu in a humiliating fashion.
This caused the Jing Xiang Clan’s business negotiation with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to be enveloped by a dark shadow.
The sad news was not limited to just this.
Very quickly, the Jing Xiang Clan heard that Long Meng took Long Fu under his
wing.
This put the Jing Xiang Clan Leader on the spot, and he decided to suspend the
clan’s talks with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. If talks were carried out
under these circumstances, they were bound to get the worst of it!
Anyways, the Li Jian Clan Leader Mian Li Zang decided to contact him, and when
he saw the former, the Jin Xiang Clan Leader’s expression allayed a lot.
When someone with bad luck came across another with even worse luck, then
naturally their mood would improve.
“Li Jian Clan Leader, why have you contacted me?” The Jing Xiang Clan Leader
appeared somewhat haughty.
Mian Li Zang smiled, “Because of a mercenary corps, or to be more accurate, an
outsider. He has given us both a lot of trouble, right?”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader coldly snorted, “Long Fu has indeed given my clan
some trouble, but he will produce far more benefits. Mian Li Zang, do you
really think I’d stand with you against the Dragon lion Mercenary Corps?”
Mian Li Zang shrugged his shoulders, “Why can you not?”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader was just about to sneer, but a moment later, Mian Li
Zang stated his intentions, “In that duel, Long Fu displayed a saint level
aptitude. He could break away from my clan today, and even if he works with
your Jin Xiang Clan, what about in the future?”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader’s pupils contracted, and he became even more gloomy,
sinking into silence momentarily.
Mian Li Zang’s words had struck at the deepest concerns in his heart.
Saint level…
There were only three experts of such level in the entire Ice Sculpture
Kingdom. The reason why Da Han was such a significant threat was because he was
a saint level pirate!
During Long Fu’s duel with Mi Fang, he took on many enhancement spells,
revealing his strong bloodline talent, and showing the shining qualifications
of a saint level!
In other words, given enough time, he might become a saint level.
If the Jing Xiang Clan had an inseparably close cooperation with the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, then when Long Fu became a saint level one day, how would
they conduct themselves?
Long Fu could use his saint level to suppress and force more benefits out of
the Jing Xiang Clan, how could the latter resist?
It didn’t seem possible.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps could even annex the Jing Xiang Clan; stopping
that would be hard.
When that happened, their cooperation with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
would not be happiness, but a disaster!
“All right, Mian Li Zang. You don’t really think using some nebulous future
calamity can persuade me to stop my collaboration with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps so yours can continue?” The Jing Xiang Clan Leader sneered.
He continued, “If you are afraid, why aren’t you breaking away from the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, why are you increasing magic medicine production?”
Mian Li Zang’s smile dwindled somewhat, and he cordially replied, “Because that
is just one possibility.”
“Growing to the saint level is no easy thing.”
“Please don’t misunderstand me.”
“I don’t want to throttle Long Fu’s plans ahead of time. Since he has been
deployed by his arms merchant backer, he must have powerful protection
methods.”
“Leaving the rest aside, a saint level teleportation scroll is instantaneous.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom does not forbid spatial teleportation, and we don’t
need to try anything meaningless.”
“To tell the truth, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is our friend, and if we
work with them, we can earn a lot of money.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Elder narrowed his eyes, “Do you want our clans to work
together?”
Mian Li Znag nodded, “Everyone will get wealthy together, isn’t that good?”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader coldly snorted, “Even if I agree…the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps might not, then what?
Mian Li Zang smiled, “Then let Long Fu taste our Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s power.
We don’t need our clans on the forefront; I heard that the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps made a betting agreement with the Alchemy Guild.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader’s eyes suddenly shined, exposing a smile for the
first time, “Hmm, that’s a decent measure.”



****** Chapter 715: Second Exam Question ******
Despite the Li Jian Clan’s challenging situation, Mian Li Zang still could
depend on his outstanding abilities and secretly reached an agreement with the
Jing Xiang Clan Leader.
Very quickly, the Li Jian and Jing Xiang Clans dispatched clan members to the
Ice Sculpture Capital to pay a visit to Hua Ni.
Hua Ni was a genuinely powerful elder of the Alchemy Guild and controlled the
guild’s magic medicine sphere.
The Li Jian Clan and Jing Xiang Clansmen conveyed to Hua Ni that they wanted
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Magician Yao Ma (Zi Di) eliminated.
And they brought with them heavy gifts and also made clear their sincerity to
Hua Ni.
“Long Fu has saint level qualifications, compelling the Li Jian and Jing Xiang
Clans to secretly reach some mutual understanding and have sought to negotiate
with me. Hehehe.” Hua Ni naturally accepted the two heavy gifts on the spot,
and replied she’d do her best to eliminate Yao Ma.
Zi Di had put out the mount potions and broken new ground in an uncontested
part of the magic medicine market. At the beginning of this, Hua Ni knew how
immense this business would be, but regretfully, she was up to her ears in work
and had heavy responsibilities.
By the time she had free time and energy, Zi Di had come out with a second and
a third potion, which had even more repercussions in the market.
Then, Elder Jiu Jin acted as envoy and was exploited by Zi Di, forcing the
Alchemy Guild representative to sign a betting agreement with Zi Di.
So long as they won the bet, the Alchemy Guild would surpass these early birds,
steal the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ early gains and jump ahead, possessing
the greatest mount potion domestic market share.
Therefore, eliminating Yao Ma (Zi Di) was what Hua Ni wanted to do.
The first exam question was made substantially more difficult by Hua Ni’s
directive.
The Li Jian and Jing Xiang Clansmen looking for her had strengthened Hua Ni’s
feelings.
After thinking about it, she called over Elder Jiu Jin and told him to alter
the second exam question.
After Elder Jiu Jin listened to her, he was stunned, “You want it to be the
construction of an autonomous combat puppet? You also want that puppet to fight
an ice sculpture guardian of the capital, and only by winning can they advance
to the next round?”
He stared at Elder Hua Ni, “This is too hard! You’ll eliminate 99% of the
competitors, and even if 1% is left, the winners would have just been extremely
lucky.”
Although Elder Jiu Jin had the worst alchemy attainment of the elders, he was
still knowledgeable.
Hua Ni’s exam question most crucially specified “autonomous combat”.
This implied that no matter what the size of the puppet was, it would
absolutely be an enormous engineering undertaking and an immense challenge.
Then it had to defeat an ice sculpture guardian, that skyrocketed the
difficulty!
Hua Ni smiled, “I know how difficult it is.”
“Therefore, this alchemy question is a collaborative project, the competitors
can make up to groups of three.”
“So, it’s collaborative alchemy, in that case, the alchemy workload will be
drastically reduced, and it is acceptable.” Elder Jiu Jin sighed.
He was still worried, “In that case, what is the standard for the examination-
use ice sculpture guardian?”
Hua Ni replied, “Silver level.”
Elder Jiu Jin’s brows tightened, and after lowering his head in reflection, he
still shook his head, “Even so, this exam question is too difficult. I am
worried the pass rate will be less than 30%.”
“If we conduct such an exam, then the spectacle will be quite unsightly.”
“Outsiders will say that our Ice Sculpture Kingdom are sore losers who
deliberately raised the difficulty to open a back door to our own.”
Hua Ni contemplated for a moment, “Then let’s ease the restrictions a bit and
allow the competing magicians to use an external material.”
When Elder Jiu Jin heard that, his brows relaxed a bit but still shook his
head.
However, Hua Ni raised a hand and overrode him, “Stop talking, this is how
we’re doing it.”
Jiu Jin forced a smile, “Elder Hua Ni, if you’re going to alter the exam by so
much, shouldn’t you at least inform the Lord President? If he has differing
ideas, we will be hard pressed to accomplish this.”
Hua Ni replied, “I will do that.”
Elder Jiu Jin said his goodbyes, then looked for Zi Di, deeply worried and sick
at heart.
When Zi Di heard this information, she bitterly exclaimed, “I didn’t expect
Great Master Hua Ni to be so determined to deal with me!”
Jiu Jin anxiously looked at her, “Your Lord Commander Long Fu revealed saint
level qualifications, that should be the main factor that prompted Elder Hua
Ni’s decision.”
“Furthermore, I also asked around, the Li Jian and Jing Xiang Clans’ envoys
paid Elder Hua Ni a visit.”
With Elder Jiu Jin on her side, Zi Di easily acquired inside information.
Zi Di suddenly turned apprehensive, “Have those two clans unexpectedly joined
hands secretly?”
Of course, the Jing Xiang Clan and the Li Jian Clan should be rivals, but now
they were working together behind the scenes. 
At least, they reached some mutual understanding.
Elder Jiu Jin was being blackmailed by Zi Di, so he had no choice but to give
advice, “Magician Yao Ma, it will be very difficult to pass the second
examination.”
“Working just by yourself, you have no chance.”
“The examination will allow up to three people in a group, actually just
pairing up is untenable.”
“Therefore, you need to find at least two competitors and ensure they are not
clan or guild spies.”
Zi Di looked grave, this kind of alchemy exam question really targeted
outsiders like them.
Zi Di sank into vexation.
In so short a time, how could she find people worthy of trust?
Ten Millennia Ice Lake.
Millennium ice layer.
An alchemy laboratory was set up above the ice layer.
Through the alchemy laboratory window, Cang Xu’s eyes were bright, he could
admire the ice lake’s distinctive ecology as much as he liked.
Suddenly, a ray of light flashed in the pale lake water.
The golden light flowed just like a blue dragon, seeming to flow and meander in
the seemingly boundless white fog.
The golden light emitted an intense and vast aura that made Cang Xu incessantly
apprehensive.
Teacher Si Ling appeared behind him at this moment, extending a hand on Cang
Xu’s shoulder, placating him, “Don’t worry, the Millenium Dragon Formation has
just been built, it currently isn’t a threat to us yet.”
Teacher Si Ling had teleported Cang Xu and Jian Gui from White Hair Trench and
secretly infiltrated the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
They had moved stealthily the whole journey and teleported many times to arrive
under the Ice Sculpture Capital.
The Ice Sculpture Capital’s Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s ice layer had many alchemy
laboratories, shrines, and even magician towers built here.
It was because the Ice Sculpture Capital did not block teleportation that Cang
Xu was able to effortlessly get into the ice lake.
After getting some information about the situation from Teacher Si Ling, Cang
Xu learned that Teacher Si Ling had been impersonating someone for a long time
and was able to successfully petition the capital for the construction of his
own alchemy laboratory in the ice lake.
But this was the first time Cang Xu had heard of the [Millennium Dragon
Formation], and he asked for more details at once.
Teacher Si Ling was willing to instruct Cang Xu and with a sigh, he explained,
“The Millennium Dragon Formation is an ultra-formation, secretly built a long
time ago at the orders of the royal family.”
“By the time of this generation’s king, they finally built the initial
formation. What you just saw was the formation being activated.”
“The royal family primarily built this formation to control the Ten Millennia
Ice Lake.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s national policy on the ice lake is that it should
be the core of the nation’s alchemy policy. This national policy had a large
effect on the kingdom possessing such a top quality alchemy level.” 
“But as time passed, the systemic problems of this national policy gradually
accumulated and grew more severe.”
“Take us for example, it was very easy to get here. It goes without saying, in
the buildings across the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, there exists many dark powers
that greatly threaten the Ice Sculpture Royal Family’s control.”
“On the other hand, speaking in terms of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s domestic
political structure, the royal family urgently needs to gain total control over
the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, this super-resource point, to hold dominance and
coerce the Han Yu Clan and other great noble powers.”
Teacher Si Ling had a very clear understanding of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and
explained it in a very frank manner.
Cang Xu asked, “What kind of powers does the Millennium Dragon Formation have?”
Teacher Si Ling exposed a rarely seen serious look, “This is a god level super-
formation! Because the main material it uses is the Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s
water, and it possesses immense power over the aspect of time.”
“According to my current investigation, it contains a magic rune combination
that forms at least 80 different types of time magic.”
“The Ice Sculpture Royal Family has finally achieved this after generations of
hard work.”
“With it, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family can confidently contend with gods.”
“But right now, the Millennium Dragon Formation has just been built, and is
still in its testing phase, it hasn’t been completely activated yet.”
“We are still safe as of now.”
“After this National Ceremony, we will no longer be able to come back to this
alchemy laboratory.”
Cang Xu pondered, offhandedly said, “How will the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
domestic great nobles respond to the royal family wanting control over the Ten
Millennia Ice Lake?”
“Hehehe.” Teacher Si Ling clapped Cang Xu’s shoulder, “That is an interesting
topic.”
The Alchemy Guild President was exhausted in both body and mind, and after
quietly leaving the Millennium Dragon Formation control hub, he teleported back
to the Alchemy Guild.
The super-formation testing workload was growing larger, and he sensed it was
getting more difficult to manage.
The Alchemy Guild President did not have outstanding individual talent; his
most outstanding characteristic was his loyalty!
As a result, the royal family appointed him many times and made him an
important member of the testing team.
Just as he sat down, the study doorbell rang.
The guild president sighed, “Please come in.”
Elder Hua Ni walked in, and got right to the point, “It’s about the Warm Snow
Cup’s second exam, I think I should change it somewhat.”
After saying that, Hua Ni handed over a plan document.
The president quickly skimmed it, his brows creasing, he looked at Hua Ni,
“There has never been such a large change before. Is it worth making such a big
fuss over the insignificant Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
Hua Ni simply said, “Think about Long Fu, he has saint level qualifications.”
The president took a deep breath, and put down the plan document, “I approve.”
He continued, “Not long ago, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps petitioned the
guild for a large amount of alchemy laboratories, I have done my best to delay
that.”
Hua Ni laughed, “They are in the process of cutting ties with the Li Jian Clan.
They are likely applying for capital alchemy laboratories to produce magic
medicine.”
These people are ambitious, we must pinch their attempts in the Warm Snow Cup,
and by winning this bet, we can control them in the future.”
The president nodded, “You are right.”



****** Chapter 716: Incorporating the Bramble Pirates ******
The Warm Snow Cup’s second exam details were formally announced two days later.
Even though Zi Di was mentally prepared, when she genuinely saw it, her mood
was inevitably weighed down.
“Refine an autonomous combat puppet. After activating it, it has to defeat an
ice sculpture guardian to advance to the next round?”
“An alchemy puppet manufacturing cycle is at least one month. Even if it is a
small sized puppet toy, making it functional will take at least a week.”
To build it on the spot meant she only had 12 hours, that was overwhelmingly
difficult.
Perhaps a gold level master alchemist could do it, but most of the participants
in this year’s Warm Snow Cup were silver levels like Yao Ma.
Relying only on herself, this was nigh impossible to do.
Luckily it was made known that there was an addendum – it would allow teams of
at most three, and at minimum two.
How could there be teams of two?
A team of three could barely accomplish this immense workload!
“That isn’t even the hardest part!” Zi Di’s brows tightened.
The alchemy puppet created had to defeat an ice sculpture guardian.
“A silver level ice sculpture guardian…this requirement means the alchemy
puppet refined needs to be at least silver level too.”
This was the most basic criterion.
If you can’t achieve the silver level, don’t bother comparing it to an iron
level.
Because the ice sculpture guardian’s true fighting strength surpassed most
silver level puppets!
The ice sculpture guardian possessed extraordinary intelligence, this was
dependent on its main material, the Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s ice.
Because of the time dragon corpse, these ice chunks were irradiated with
divinity and possessed ample spirituality.
A simple carving could form a living spirit and image. A constructed framework
could allow an ice sculpture to freely move. The results were simply
unbelievably good.
Otherwise, how could the Ten Millennia Ice Lake be a super-resource point?
It was the foundation from which the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom developed.
“Therefore, just refining a complete silver level alchemy puppet is not enough,
it also needs to possess formidable fighting strength that can defeat an ice
sculpture guardian.”
Zi Di felt that breathing was hard.
She couldn’t think of a way to handle this.
Her alchemy talent wasn’t high.
Just relying on herself, she would have failed the first exam. By exploiting
Jiu Jin to cheat to get the exam questions ahead of time, followed by wild
preparations and a large amount of secret practice, she was able to pass.
Although she came in first place, it was all in vain.
Not to say Zi Di was utterly lacking in alchemy talent.
She had some attainment in magic medicine, but in the high standards of the
Warm Snow Cup, it was insufficient to look at.
At present, faced with the second exam question, Zi Di had no idea where to
start.
“But I have to pass…”
Zi Di’s eyes were filled with resolve.
The dragonman youngster wholeheartedly wanted to cut ties with the Li Jian Clan
and had no intention of working with the Jing Xiang Clan. The rumors of him
collaborating with the Jing Xiang Clan were just a façade used as a pretense to
stall for time.
During this period, the dragonman youngster wanted the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps to truly stand up. With his current strength, why couldn’t he take all of
the mount potion profits? Why would he share with anyone else?
Selling channels were not a problem, and thanks to Zi Di borrowing a chicken to
lay an egg, the Li Jian Clan was exploited to make that possible.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps really lacked places to manufacture magic
medicine.
To respond to the entire kingdom’s magic medicine demand, they needed enough
production capacity. More importantly, it had to be secure!
Like before, when Mei Lin sacrificed people to breach the Snow Bird Harbor
workshops.
This wouldn’t do!
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to take everything for themselves, and
they faced the Li Jian Clan, the Jing Xiang Clan, and also the Alchemy Guild.
The survivors had to take preventative measures ahead of time.
And the best way to prevent things was to build a magician tower.
A magician tower had outstanding defenses and was often treated as a defensive
hub.
So long as it was built, even one floor, it was easily guarded and hard to
attack.
After using spatial alchemy technology, each room in a magician tower could be
a vast space and building an alchemy factory in one was no problem.
“As long as one gets to the top three in the Warm Snow Cup, they will be
subsidized in the construction of a magician tower.”
The funds were actually secondary.
The survivors had prosperous mount potion sales and weren’t worried about
capital.
Zi Di valued the qualifications!
The Ice Sculpture kingdom required heavy vetting to get a piece of gold level
armor, let alone a magician tower.
Wanting to covertly build a magician tower was nearly impossible.
This was a large-scale engineering project.
By getting top three, the foreign Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be
qualified to build and possess a magician tower, that was very significant!
Despite the extreme difficulty, Zi Di was still very motivated.
The Commander has invested so much, I have to redouble my efforts!”
The ghost girl always firmly believed: the harder she worked, the happier she’d
be.
And she was intoxicated solely by the joint struggle with her beloved.
During the dragonman youngster’s duel with Mi Fang, he sustained heavy
injuries, with his fingers all being blown off his hand when he threw the
battle qi ball. Zi Di was incomparably distressed by that.
Obviously the dragonman youngster could have won at a lesser cost, but he
didn’t. For the sake of the bigger picture, he strived to disguise his own
combat strength while simultaneously fighting for more renown, thus, he
intentionally threw the battle qi ball and bore the great suffering it
inflicted.
Zi Di recalled fondly the price the dragonman youngster paid, and she needed to
do her best in her objective!
This kind of energetic zeal was far greater than it was during her partnership
with Zong Ge.
In the beginning Zi Di had many conflicts with Zong Ge and was very wary of
him, but since then, step by step, she comprehended Zong Ge’s nature and had a
lot of admiration for him. As they fought alongside each other, it increased
the camaraderie between them.
Being together with the dragonman youngster was completely different. Zi Di
enjoyed every moment, wanting to do her best from the bottom of her heart, so
much so that she was undaunted by the dangers like a moth that flew into the
flames that ignited her enthusiasm.
“The Warm Snow Cup actually only has two phases.”
“The first stage is the Alchemy Guild using some test questions to wash out
some and filter out the true elites.”
“The second stage is displaying one’s alchemy achievements. It is the main
feature!”
“As long as I am able to get through the first stage, I’ll be able to display
my great skills in the second stage!”
Zi Di had great faith in her second stage performance.
To be more accurate, it wasn’t in herself, but in War Merchant.
War Merchant was a legend level and a great grandmaster alchemist. Others would
be using all they had to display the most recent years’ alchemy achievements
while Zi Di only needed to choose something from War Merchant’s database to do
the same.
“Therefore, I have to get across the first stage!”
Zi Di secretly sucked in air, then gazed at Elder Jiu Jin, her eyes emitting
cold light.
She calmly said, “Elder Jiu Jin, I don’t want to make things difficult for you.
But why did you nevertheless make things difficult for me? I joined the Warm
Snow Cup merely for the sake of our mercenary corps. Why is getting through the
first round so difficult? Is it worth it to target me so heavily?”
Jiu Jin promptly explained, “This is not me making things difficult for you,
Magician Yao Ma! It is Elder Hua Ni! She is very cautious and in fact very
stingy. Adding on the Li Jian and Jing Xiang Clan’s urging…your corps is really
powerful and that they are afraid of the consequences.”
“I don’t care!” Zi Di waved her hand, displaying a crafty and unruly side, “If
I can’t get through this, then your sin will be revealed.”
“Therefore, you had best think of a good way to deal with this, otherwise, you
won’t be an Alchemy Guild elder any longer.”
Unable to think of anything, Zi Di forced that task onto Elder Jiu Jin.
She held definitive proof that Elder Jiu Jin had close ties to a necromancer.
If this evidence was published, Elder Jiu Jin would no longer keep his position
and might have to accept investigation. An Ice Sculpture Kingdom internal
investigation was easy to deal with, Elder Ju Jin could mobilize his contacts
and use bribes to perhaps get through it, the real fear is that the Blood Light
Punishment Institution would get involved. Everyone knew that almost every
power on the Main Plane worked together to round up necromancers, and the Sheng
Ming Empire mainly relied on the Blood Light Punishment Institution.
Jiu Jin suddenly became worried; he was afraid of exactly that. Unable to
secure that evidence, he was yoked and forced to put forth plans and ideas for
Zi Di’s sake.
“It will be impossible for you to do this alone Magician Yao Ma.
“To pass the second exam, we need to focus on other people.”
Although Zi Di had exceptional grades in the first exam, as one of the people
involved, Jiu Jin knew what Zi Di’s alchemy abilities were.
He was of the opinion that Zi Di alone was out of the question, so instead find
two experts to carry Zi Di along. Even if Zi Di was deadweight, they could
still drag her across the finish line.
Zi Di also had that opinion, it’s just that there was immense hidden dangers in
this.
She continued to gaze at Elder Jiu Jin, “I don’t trust outsiders that much, and
I am very worried that Hu Ni, the Li Jian Clan, or the Xing Jiang Clan have
planted spies. When the time comes, the spies will tamper with things, and
it’ll be worse than me facing the second exam alone.”
Elder Jiu Jin also considered that, and said at once, “Therefore, we must start
in advance and contact some former years’ alchemists and not those in the
current year. We can secretly contact them and use a large sum of money to
purchase their services and use magic contracts to restrict them!:”
The Warm Snow Cup’s second round was not just available to those who passed the
first round.
So long as a competitor had a relatively exceptional showing in past Warm Snow
Cups, the Alchemy Guild gave them the right to skip sections in future Warm
Snow Cup Grand Alchemy Contests.
Because inherently, the Warm Snow Cup’s first stage was mainly to be a filter.
The alchemists that made it through the filter in past years naturally didn’t
need to be filtered again.
Of course, there were many bylaws, and based on their achievements, some
magicians could skip the first exam, others could skip the second exam, and
there were some that could be immediately qualified to participate in the
second stage alchemy achievement exhibition. Former champions could immediately
display their alchemy results and could also show them in the best spots in the
exhibition hall.
This kind of competition skipping had a time limit. The longer time went on,
the more these qualifications weakened. If too much time passed, the alchemists
had to participate in the first exam once again.
However, there were special cases. For example, some alchemy masters won
success and recognition outside of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and when they
came back to compete, the Alchemy Guild gave special approval to automatically
advance them into the alchemy showcase.
In short, the Alchemy Guild had considerable margin in this respect.
With regards to the fact that “former master alchemists that could skip exams”,
Zi Di knew about it.
She questioned closely at once, “Elder Jiu Jin, who do you recommend?”
Elder Jiu Jin came prepared, and he took out a list, “This is a list of those
who can participate in the follow-up grand contest, this information came from
my guild’s database, copied word for word, it is definitely complete!”
“Of course, if a foreign great master alchemist suddenly appears to compete,
that is something we can’t anticipate.”
Zi Di took the information, but didn’t let Elder Jiu Jin off easily, rather she
kept questioning, “I asked for who you recommended?”
At first Elder Jiu Jin didn’t want to shoulder that responsibility, declining
tactfully and unwilling to issue his opinion.
Zi Di coldly snorted, reiterating, “If you don’t say anything, and if I can’t
pass, you’re done for.”
Jiu Jin wiped cold sweat off his forehead, and with no other choice, was forced
to give a few names, evaluating them as outstanding.
Zi Di found the people in the information.
The information was detailed and accurate, not just limited to names, but also
included a summary and most importantly, their performance in past
competitions; all of this was recorded correctly.
After Elder Jiu Jin left, the dragonman youngster’s figure appeared in the
corner of the room.
He knew that Jiu Jin was under Zi Di’s thumb and had exclaimed in admiration at
Zi Di’s skill. When he was observing this play out, he felt that Elder Ju Jin
was still on their side, and his words were relatively honest and trustworthy.
Seeing Zi Di’s worried face, the dragonman youngster said understandingly, “You
are worried there are problems with those recommended?”
Zi Di nodded, “If we could think of this, there is no reason this hasn’t
occurred to our adversaries. The people Jiu Jin recommended have high
assessments, won’t they be paying attention to these people?” 
“They are the local bully, maybe they’ve already contacted these people.”
“If we can’t elucidate the truth, and devote our energies to this, we’ll be
stepping into a trap.”
If they used lots of money to buy them, then the others would use even more to
buy them away.
Magic contracts were not omnipotent, and like the conflict between the
strongest spear and shield, there would inevitably be a way to resolve them.
The dragonman youngster deeply had the same feeling.
Before, when he returned, he used Charming Blue divine spells to resolve the
magic contract Zi Di and Zong Ge signed with the Li Jian Clan.
In White Hair Trench, the stronger Magician Si Ling painstakingly condensed and
gathered death divinity, all for the fishman youngster’s benefit. Even though
Teacher Si Ling had the divine artifact [Truth Slate], what use was it? Even
with unintentional planning, it would still achieve the desired result.
The dragonman youngster thought about it, “Do you remember what I told you
about Xiao Wang Zi?”
“If everything else fails, we can use a large sum to buy off a former year’s
alchemy master, secretly control them, then have Xiao Wang Zi pretend to be
them in the competition.”
The necromancer Xiao Wang Zi surely had the fundamentals of alchemy.
The teleportation magic item, the Eulogy Tombstone, had been created by him
independently.
Zi Di shook her head and sighed, “That can only be used as an alternative
plan.”
Xiao Wang Zi’s true alchemy skills were left open to questions.
He was a necromancer, and if he was spotted during the grand contest, then it
would be disastrous.
There was another hidden danger, Xiao Wang Zi’s memory had been modified.
Tense battles were easy to deal with, as Xiao Wang Zi didn’t have to think
foolishly, and was only able to focus his attention on dealing with the
powerful enemy before him.
In alchemy, this was different.
Alchemy needed rapid thought, the constant detection and resolution of
problems. Under these conditions, one’s thinking would be very active and
needed to extract knowledge from their memories, increasing their success from
their experiences.
This was not secure, and Xiao Wang Zi was likely to notice his forged memories
were false, easily causing chaotic cognition and let him see the truth.
The dragonman youngster sighed.
He also knew this suggestion wasn’t that good.
He also wanted to intervene personally.
Regretfully, although he was a gold level magician, the divine blessings were
focused on casting experience, and a pitiful few were on alchemy.
He was unable to help Zi Di.
Zi Di saw her beloved’s exasperation and depression, and she extended a hand to
stroke the young man’s chest, tenderly consoling, “My Lord, you still have more
important business.”
“The Warm Snow Cup is mine to handle.”
“If I fail, that is still acceptable.”
“But if I can pass, it will be even better.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, he really did have more important business to
attend to.
After saying goodbye to Zi Di, he called Cong Mang over.
After transforming into a fishman form, he pulled open a heavy curtain in space
through Divine Domain Descent, and with a step, teleported thousands of
kilometers out to sea.
On the ocean surface, the Vegetable Pirates and the Bramble Pirates were
already confronting each other.
The two flagships slowly came side by side of each other.
The fishman youngster did not appear, instead Cong Mang took the lead, jumping
onto the other side’s flagship.
He looked at their leader, suddenly looking disdainful, “Are you the Bramble
Pirates’ current captain?”
“Hehe, an insignificant silver level, for what reason?”
“What qualifications do you have to speak of collaboration with me?”
The Bramble Pirates’ original commander was called Jing Wen, Feng Lian had cut
him down in one slice. The new commander was just a silver level human with a
short and wizened stature, long curly hair, a gloomy face, and very baggy eyes.
Something happened to his skin, as it was a weird dark green.
He raised his head to look up at the taller Cong Mang and laughed grimly, “I am
called Ci Ji. Regarding my qualifications for working together with you, it
would be better for us to just fight it out.”
Cong Mang stared for a bit; he didn’t expect Ci Ji to be so direct.
He seemed to look at him with new eyes and nodded, “Good, we’ll fight first.”
Ci Ji was prepared, and after taking a few steps, he jumped into the sea.
Both feet stepped on the water, but he didn’t sink, walking as if on level
ground.
Cong Mang took out a new gold level long rod (to replace the one that had been
destroyed in the battle with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord) and also landed on the
ocean surface to battle with Ci Ji.
Ci Ji’s weapons were two daggers.
Cong Mang waved his long rod, dashing with a rush of wind, his offensive very
impressive. 
Ci Ji moved nimbly and was very good at ocean combat. He occasionally ran and
shot, occasionally throwing himself into the ocean then ambushed Cong Mang from
the bottom of the latter’s feet.
Cong Mang was a blunt and charging type of fighter, that was the kind of
battlefield that suited him most. For a moment, he was flustered somewhat. 
The fishman youngster secretly observed, amazed to notice that although Ci Ji
was a genuine silver level, he displayed a gold level constitution.
Not only that, but his speed was greater than Cong Mang’s.
However, when Cong Mang used divine spells to amplify himself, he became faster
than Ci Ji, causing the latter to sink into a disadvantageous position.
Don’t be fooled by Cong Mang being a valiant charger and breaker of lines, he
was actually a druid that majored in divine spells, battle qi was his second
cultivation.
Cong Man’s battle aura grew more flourishing.
When he followed the young commander to the Ice Sculpture Capital, he naturally
didn’t dare to be neglectful and was very cautious. When he returned to the
seas and fought a fierce battle, this was precisely his familiar and favorite
setting, this made him exhilarated. 
“Come again, come again!”
“Can you go faster? Don’t hide, do you dare to take my rod head on?”
“If this is your limit, then for this operation, you’ll listen to me!”
Cong Mang continued to shout, tentatively approving of Ci Ji’s strength.
As a silver level, being able to fight a level above him and commended by Cong
Mang like this was very rare.
But the fishman youngster nevertheless saw that Ci Ji had energy left.
He used Divine Descent, controlling the latter and having him step forth.
“Cong Mang, withdraw now.” The big guy’s eyes emitted blue light, his voice
wasn’t loud, but everyone could hear it.
Cong Mang didn’t dare to disobey, and he promptly put away his rod and withdrew
from the fight, returning to the ship in a servile manner.
The Bramble Pirates were stunned.
Cong Mang was publicly known as the Vegetable Pirates’ commander. Yet he
unexpectedly heeded the orders of a silver level small giant, what was going
on?
Ci Ji looked bewildered, thinking of the information where “during the Snow
Harbor Battle, Coing Mang was taken away by a fishman expert”.
As for the Vegetable Pirates, they had been incorporated in already and were
well accustomed to this.
The big guy gazed at Ci Ji, the blue light in his eyes growing a bit more
vigorous.
Ci Ji felt something powerful staring at him, like it was stripping him naked
and tossing him into the water. He immediately snorted in cold displeasure,
“Who are you?”
Da Dou appeared next, “Impudent! You’re making a big fuss, small pirate. My
master’s name is taboo; do you really think you can easily learn it?”
Da Dou naturally had been blessed by deception divine spells and looked
radically different. But his gold level aura hadn’t been tampered with.
Seeing a gold level giant, who also professed to be a servant, the Bramble
Pirates were alarmed.
In a split second, they looked at the big guy with new eyes and formed a common
understanding – the big guy had extraordinary origins and might be the core
member of a large force.
The big guy under the fishman youngster’s control spoke deeply, “Do you have a
totem on your body?”
Ci Ji’s expression changed, “Since you can see it, then there is no need to
conceal it.
“It is indeed a totem, it is Commander Jing Wen’s Magic Spirit Totem, it is
because of it that I have gold level battle power!”
The totem was one of the Shaman Church’s characteristics, and in the current
age of the Main Plane, it was popular with the beastmen. But it was not limited
to the beastmen, it widely existed amongst the other intelligence races.
For example, the dragonman youngster saw the Flame Totem on Da Dou’s body.
The Bayonet Gang remnants escaped Snow Bird Harbor through rocket assault
boats, which had many totems in them.
The big guy’s head and chest were held out high, he stepped into the air, and
looked down at Ci Ji, “What is the Magic Spirit Totem? I can see you haven’t
completely displayed this totem’s power.”
“I will allow you to do that!”
“Next, so long as you can block my fist once, the Vegetable Pirates and your
Bramble Pirates will work together, I swear by the Pirate Throne that all loot
acquired will be divided evenly.”
But Ci Ji turned very gloomy, “If I can’t withstand it, what will happen?”
The big guy looked up, using his nostrils to glance at Ci Ji underneath him,
“You will serve me, and I will still allow you to command your people.”
Ci Ji became furious, raising his head to shout, “Pirates are free!”
The big guy rubbed his fists and wiped his palms, “In that case, I will grant
you a greater freedom – death.”
Ci Ji gritted his teeth tightly.
He now felt immense regret, why did he want to work with the Vegetable Pirates?
It really was wretched, the difference between the information and reality was
too large!
Circumstances forced him, what could he do?
Ci Ji glared gloomily at the big guy, then at Cong Mang and Da Dou, then
finally back to the big guy.
“He coldly snorted, “I accept!”
“I’ll let you see the Magic Spirit Totem’s full might!”
After saying that, he bit the tip of his tongue, and sprayed blood onto his
palm. 
He wiped his palm across his chest and arms.
The blood was rapidly absorbed, and his dark green skin suddenly became
“alive”, changing into waving dark green vines.
In the blink of an eye, Ci Ji was wrapped by layers of vines, several hundred
vines twisted with each other, wrapping him up into a giant spheroid.
A gold level aura was raised to its peak, nearly suppressing Ci Ji’s
transcendent aura almost completely.
“Come!” The vine ball transmitted Ci Ji’s muffled voice.
The big guy lightly laughed, slowly stepping down from the air.
He came to the vine spheroid, slowly extended his palm, and placed it on the
spheroid.
Battle skill – Giant Wave Palm.
Enhancement – Penetration Force!
The palm’s force was like an immense wave, bearing enormous gravity and thrust,
evenly spreading across the vines. With the enhancement of Penetration Force,
the attack penetrated into the middle of the vine sphere, into Ci Ji.
Regardless of how substantial his defenses were, Ci Ji was just a silver level.
The big guy’s battle qi was fully silver level now, his constitution was
supported by silver battle qi, and with Da Dou’s meticulously cooked food, he
had explosive growth in all attributes.
The big guy surpassed the human Ci Ji in all attributes. He was able to bypass
the totem’s defense and hit right into the heart.
Plop.
Ci Ji seemed to feel a giant wave slap into him, and after he coughed out
blood, he sank into unconsciousness.
When he lost consciousness, the Magic Spirit Totem was no longer being
controlled, and it quickly vanished back into his body, turning his skin a dark
green once again.
A one hit victory!
The Bramble Pirates were a deathly gray, while the Vegetable Pirates broke out
into a deafening cheer.



****** Chapter 717: Long Meng Teaches “Force” ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
In a training room, two dragonmen were currently fighting in close quarters.
One was white scaled and blue eyed, the other was red scaled and orange eyed,
the former was mainly defending, while the latter was mainly attacking.
It was Long Meng and the dragonman youngster.
“A chance!” The dragonman youngster slid.
Long Meng lightly jumped and evaded.
The dragonman youngster exerted his tail, powerfully bracing himself, this
caused the force of his slide to suddenly change!
Long Men ‘s expression was unchanging as he swung his palm like a blade,
instantly chopping in a fierce clap of wind.
The two fought in the air, and because they weren’t using battle skills, they
weren’t putting any effort into those, and this became a tussle of strength.
Both sides were gold level, and although Long Meng wasn’t as strong as Long Fu,
his technique was better.
Long Meng withstood the dragonman youngster’s punches and kicks, exerting his
waist, twisting his body, and turned the dragonman youngster off balance,
throwing him through the air. 
The dragonman youngster flew some distance, and just as he hit the ground, he
saw Long Meng charging over!
Long Meng turned from defense to attack, a string of continuous unarmed attacks
created a gale that assaulted the senses, his spacious clothes’ hems also
clapped with booming echoes of wind.
The dragonman youngster’s footing was unsteady, as parrying the blows became
increasingly strenuous.
He spared no efforts to fight, utilizing every part of his body and did his
utmost to defend himself. However, the wild dragon claws cutting and the dragon
teeth biting did not help him flip this losing battle.
Ding.
A dull echo.
Long Meng struck the dragonman youngster’s chest dead center, throwing him into
the air.
The dragonman youngster landed on his back, straining to straighten himself and
bounce back up.
Battle skill – Dragon Pearl.
He extended his right hand, and opened his dragon claw, from which gold battle
qi bubbled out. The battle qi rapidly condensed into a reddish-gold dragon
pearl.
The dragon pearl boiled, rapidly increasing the local air temperature.
But a moment later, the dragonman youngster coldly snorted, and threw his claw,
revoking the Dragon Pearl battle skill, “Hump, it was agreed upon that there
was to be no battle skills or external battle qi, I lose!”
Long Meng nodded, then looked down at his training clothes.
The clothes had just one tear in them; when the dragonman youngster was
struggling, he cut it open with his dragon claw.
“How many training sessions has it been?” When Long Meng saw the cut in his
clothes, he gasped in surprise mentally. 
Since he began advising the dragonman youngster, the latter’s unarmed combat
skills have soared, making rapid progress daily.
Once Long Fu’s basic combat skills were horrendous, he had a powerful body but
was unable to truly exhibit it.
The current Long Fu could not only display his powerful constitution but could
also move unpredictably and agilely.
If he hadn’t experienced it personally, Long Meng would never believe there was
such a gifted dragonman in this world.
He coughed, then Long Meng stared at the dragonman youngster, “It seems you
have practiced the Dragon Pearl battle skill proficiently.”
“However, what I like more is your act of cancelling the battle skill.”
“Let’s sit down and chat.”
Long Meng reached out to indicate that, then sat in a kneeling posture. His
buttocks didn’t touch his legs and feet, while his upper body was straight as a
log.
The dragonman youngster sat on his buttocks, his legs bending into a cross-
legged position. His dragon claws rested on his knees as the young man
carefreely said, “Long Meng, you’re praising me a bit too much, hehehe.”
Long Meng looked tranquil, his tone was slow and steady, “Indulging on one’s
desires is easy, but restraining oneself is usually at least ten times
harder.” 
“The essence of martial combat does not lie with attacking, but in not
attacking.”
“The martial goal is not in killing or injuring but lies in stopping conflict.”
The dragonman youngster’s mind moved, but on the surface he just asked, “What
does that mean?”
Long Meng faintly smiled, “This is the philosophy of the eastern martial arts,
it really is somewhat shrouded in fog. Let me explain this in another way.”
“Did you know our dragonman bloodlines come from the dragon race?”
The dragonman youngster replied, “Of course.”
Long Meng continued, “The earliest dragonmen were produced from dragons and
humans mating.”
“Dragonmen then mated with each other or other races, progressively developing
to form their own fixed ethnic group in current times. As dragonmen, we both
enjoy the dragon race’s superior bodies, while also having the corresponding
systemic problem – the draconic nature disturbs us.”
“Draconic nature?” The dragonman youngster frowned.
Long Meng kept going, “Dragonmen are universally arrogant, they look down upon
other lifeforms, and the stronger they are, the more egotistical they are. This
is not rare, but in the general situation, this is the draconic nature.”
“Naturally, the specific dragonman bloodlines are different, and so too are
there differences between draconic natures.”
“For example, my bloodline originated from a white dragon, thus I am inclined
towards callousness and indifference.”
“As for you, it is obvious you have red dragon bloodline traits and are
disposed towards irascibleness and impulsiveness. Red dragonmen are normally
bold and fearless, but from another point of view, they blindly rush
indiscriminately into action.”
“On the battlefield, because of this temperament flaw, red dragonmen suffer
grave losses.”
“You can regard draconic nature as a widespread temperament flaw.”
“You have saint level potential and wide prospects. Your red dragonman
bloodline’s quality and concentration are both exceptional, and your draconic
nature is very serious. But you haven’t succumbed to draconic nature, and your
temperament is not partial towards irascible impulsiveness.”
“There is something like that?” The dragonman youngster’s mind moved greatly.
Bloodline really influenced nature and to a deep degree.
The dragonman youngster had an especially deep experience, because he could use
the Bloodcore to transform into different life shapes. He remembered quite
clearly that when he turned into the Surging Wave fishman form, he had a strong
natural affinity for water, like he was wrapped up in it.
The dragonman youngster secretly analyzed, “According to his principle, my
draconic nature should be getting heavier. Because I don’t have a stable
dragonman bloodline, my current dragonman form is the combined appearance of
the Flame Dragon King bloodline and my human bloodline.”
“Under normal circumstances, this kind of life shape is not stable, worse off
than those artificial magic beasts on Mystifying Monster Island. It is only
because of the Bloodcore’s support can I force this fusion without backfire or
collapse.”
“As for why my human nature has suppressed my draconic nature, it is because I
am not only using the Flame Dragon King Bloodline, but also the other dragon
bloodlines I’ve absorbed. Most of them were white dragon bloodlines.”
“White dragon and flame dragon bloodlines counteract each other; therefore, my
human nature maintains control.”
This was how the dragonman youngster always acted when facing Long Meng.
The main reason was that he was worried that his constitution wouldn’t perform
good, and Long Meng would doubt he had a saint level bloodline
Long Meng had a serious expression, earnestly replying, “With regards to
fighters like us, our bodies are natural weapons, and if we indulge our
desires, don’t restrain our temperament and allow them to be expressed, then
our weapons will drive us, and we won’t be the master of our weapons.”
“Always be aware of draconic nature, be vigilant of it, suppress it, master it,
and ultimately, maintain a clear mind, that is the proper path to elevate our
martial skills to a new state.”
“It is precisely because of that that my martial path has been elevated, and I
mastered my ‘force’.”
Hearing Long Meng mention “force”, the dragonman youngster’s eyes shined, his
interest thick, “I know about ‘force’! But I can’t grasp it, it’s too hard! I
don’t have the faintest outline of the fundamentals.”
Long Meng laughed, “What is referred to as force is actually grasping subtlety,
uniting body and mind.”
“We must know our body well and master it. The more you know of yourself, the
faster you can function. You have to know when your fist descends, it can smash
the porcelain and also the bricks underneath it. You must know what result you
want to attain, and how much strength should be used to achieve it.”
“In terms of mentality, we must control our mind and keep it crystal clear.
However, the draconic nature is usually too strong and maintaining this is very
difficult. Only by mastering this, cleansing the self, and understanding one’s
heart can one control their thoughts.”
“We dragonman have strong bodies, and usually exceptional bloodlines, that
represents our growing draconic nature.”
“And this strong draconic nature is what makes controlling our thoughts so
hard.”
“Therefore, usually, those outstanding fighters that master power don’t have
the best bloodlines. They are normally beautiful inside and out, have abundant
experience, experienced the world to the utmost, and washed themselves
beautifully clean. Or perhaps they were cut off from the rest of the world from
a young age, was instructed by a very competent teacher, diligently cultivated,
and their mind was like a newborn baby for their entire life.”
“To grasp power, both body and mind needs to be mastered, you can’t do one
without the other.”
Long Meng’s words luckily cleared up some of the dragonman youngster’s
questions.
The dragonman youngster had obtained a lot of fighter experience from divine
blessings. These experiences mostly dealt with battle qi cultivation and battle
skill usage, but few of them touched on force.
Because these were Charming Blue Goddess’ blessings, and Charming Blue’s
followers were concentrated on oceanic lifeforms, therefore, the dragonman
youngster had two kinds of experience with force, Running Water Force and
Purification Force.
Running Water Force could give a fighter a defense that circled around them
like moving water, it could withstand Cutting Force and Piercing Force,
dispersing them upon contact.
Purification Force could affect battle qi, breathing, blood, and consumed food,
filtering and purifying them all. When used on food, it could purify it,
covertly increasing its ease of digestion, and could even allow a fighter to
eat magic beast meat a level above them. If one was poisoned, they could use
Purification Force to transform the poison. If they had an enemy’s battle qi,
magic, or divine power in them wreaking havoc, Purification Force could target
them and enormously help the fighter.
However, the dragonman youngster didn’t grasp these two forces.
Even if he turned into his fishman form, he was unable to. The experience in
this was incomparable to the help the battle skill and battle qi experience
provided.
According to Long Meng’s theory, this was because the dragonman youngster’s
body and mind were not in the right place.
“However, I learned Penetration Force with the Grand Arena Medal, it was
success in one stroke.”
“My body and spirit then met the standard for it, then why were they both
incompatible with the other two forces?”
The harbored misgivings hounded the dragonman youngster, “Must I master both
aspects before I am able to cultivate force?”
“I cannot achieve the standard you speak of Long Meng.”
“Are there no shortcuts?”
Long Meng waved his hand, “Don’t be anxious.”
“My meaning is that by completely mastering one’s body and mind, you’ll have a
greater chance of grasping force, this is the highest criterion.”
“The reason I brought up force is because I see your human nature is
suppressing your draconic nature. Furthermore, this is not the first time
you’ve shown that. Your mind has already reached a passing grade, and
cultivating force is possible for you.”
The dragonman youngster slightly shivered.
He shamelessly put on a pretense for Long Meng. Long Meng was not Cang Xu. He
had a shrewd and ruthless insight, but he sincerely followed the martial path,
had a high perspective, comprehended new things by inference, and could
similarly make out a bit of his own nature.
The dragonman youngster looked overjoyed, he stood up and said, “So there
really is a shortcut! Then teach me now.”
“What really is force?”
“I really want to learn it.”
Long Meng chuckled, “I can’t guarantee you can learn it.”
“Force is far rarer than battle skills, it is not universal by nature. One can
master one type of force, but it won’t necessarily apply to another person.
Especially when it comes to learning force, it has almost no value when it
comes to instruction. This is because everyone’s body and mind is different.”
The dragonman youngster suddenly thought, “So that’s how it is. The divine
blessings’ experiences on force instead hindered my grasp of Running Water
Power and Purification Power?”
Long Meng slowly stood up, “Come, let me test you for a bit on what force suits
you.”
Long Meng approached the young man and suddenly revealed his chest, “Use your
fist to hit my chest.”
The dragonman youngster used his normal strength to directly hit Long Meng.”
“Again.” Long Meng was motionless as a mountain, “Use the same strength, don’t
change the way you threw it either.”
The dragonman youngster punched again, looking flabbergasted.
Long Meng smiled, “What do you feel?”
The dragonman youngster spoke forthrightly, “The first punch felt like hitting
a steel plate. The second time felt like dough.”
Long Meng nodded, “Correct, the first was hard force, the latter is soft
force.”
“The most important thing is which of these two forces do you feel more
distinctly?”
The dragonman youngster thought to himself, he had nearly the same affinity for
both, but after some more consideration, he replied, “The first, hard force.”
The dragonman youngster questioned again, “Hard force, soft force, what are
those? Why have I never heard of them?”
Long Meng didn’t hold anything back, “These two are the most basic forces. The
forces we hear of daily are derived from these two basic forces.”
“For example, Penetration Force is a soft force variation, Cutting Force is a
hard force application, Piercing Force relies mainly on hard force, with soft
force complementing it.”
This was the first time the dragonman youngster had heard this theory.
War Merchant’s database included all kinds of battle qi techniques, battle
skills, meditation methods, spells, and more, but never anything on force. War
Merchant gathered this information for magic beasts, while force was the
exclusive technique of intelligence races.
The dragonman youngster learned of two forces from the divine blessings’
fighter experience, but only felt their usage. 
The dragonman youngster let slip as he was pondering, “Since all forces are
variations and derivations of hard and soft force, then if I master these two
forces, and combine them in different ways, can I master all forces?”
Long Meng shook his head, his gaze serene, “It isn’t like that.”
“The real order is just the opposite of what you just thought.”
“Only by mastering many kinds of forces can you combine your experiences, grasp
the subtleties, and purify that into these two foundational forces.”
After a pause, Long Meng continued, “Normally, the forces a fighter can
comprehend, then master are those that the fighter uses most often, are the
best at, or has the greatest insight into.”
“For example, take a fighter whose best battle skill is Penetration Bone
Finger. When he attacks with this battle skill, he controls each portion of
strength in his body, and his mind is incomparably clear for an instant, it is
possible that he grasps insight in that instant, thereby grasping Penetration
Force.”
“Another example, a fighter who is exceedingly proficient at war hammers. They
have perfect command of the war hammer, as if it was part of their body, a
vivid part of their nature. Then it is possible that during daily training, he
can have a flash of inspiration that can allow him to grasp Smashing Force,
Gravity Force, or even Collision Force.”
“Many have said that it is more likely to happen during battle than during
training.”
“Usually, the more intense a battle is, the closer the fighters engage, the
more body and mind are united, thoughts will clear, leaving no impurities in
them. Under this state of body and mind, grasping force is far more likely than
normal.”
This is how the vast majority of fighters learn how to use force.
“Their body and mind attain a certain standard that allows them to grasp one,
or perhaps two, or even three forces. They have only put one foot into the
realm of force, and by no means have attained the next level of it, let alone
mastered it all.”
The dragonman youngster interrupted with a question, “What is the mastery of
force? Is it mastering hard and soft force?”
Long Meng nodded.
The dragonman youngster’s eyes contracted. In this, he was not Long Meng’s
equal!
Long Meng took back the subject, “According to this test, you have a deep
understanding of hard force, then your next objective is to learn a force
derived from hard force, or a force that relies mainly on hard force.”
“Select a type you are most familiar with, the basic combat style you are most
fond of, no matter if it is in attack, defense, or whether it is unarmed or
with a weapon, no matter if it is based on basic combat skills or battle
skills, so long as you feel it most agrees with your intentions and are most
carefree with it.”
“Then constantly practice it, repeat it.”
“During this process, I will transmit into you the two fundamental forces -
hard force and soft force.”
“This will enormously spur your grasp of force, and you will learn that
corresponding force. But what it is specifically, I don’t know, it varies from
person to person.”
“Of course, the greatest possibility is that this training fails.”
The dragonman youngster stared, “You can…pass on force?!”
This was a first for him.
“You can, so long as you grasp Resonance Force.” Long Meng nodded, his
expression always tranquil.
“Resonance Force…” This was the first time he had heard of such a type of
power.
He noticed that Long Meng’s combat skill mastery was far deeper than his.
His teachings on force had greatly broadened the young man’s horizons, and he
gained quite a lot from them.
“Long Meng’s close quarters battle superiority is too great, if I fought him as
I am now, I must do my best to avoid close combat, adopting long ranged warfare
is the optimum choice.”
“I can feel that he is sincerely teaching me.”
“Why?”
“I am obviously his enemy, and if he wants to subdue me without a fight, isn’t
that rather naïve?”
“Long Meng is not a naïve person!”
After interacting with Long Meng several times, the dragonman youngster had
increased his understanding of him.
Since he returned from the Ocean Mother Nest, he had a profound level of
insight into human nature. Before during the Snow Bird Harbor battle, he could
effortlessly plan against Cong Mang. Then during the duel, he accurately gauged
Mi Fang’s mentality.
The dragonman youngster could not determine the reason for this change. He
judged that it was possible that it was because he was Charming Blue Goddess’
divine emissary and used many deception spells. For wasn’t cheating and
concealing a power that targeted the mind?



****** Chapter 718: Cang Xu Converges ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
In the Ten Millenia Ice Lake.
Through a gigantic floor length window, Cang Xu observed the ice lake outside
of the alchemy laboratory.
It was a quiet world. The ice layer was a natural barrier, cutting off the
clamor and ruckus from the capital on the surface. During the day, the sunlight
shined through the ice layer, filling the entire lake water with blueness. The
light reflected on the cracks and bubbled air, creating a glittering sight,
like a submarine aurora borealis.
During the night, without the sunlight suppressing them, organic glimmer
prevailed. All kinds of moss, aquatic plants, as well as winter fish and other
animals emitted organic light, converging into a mild green that contaminated
the entire ice lake from bottom to top.
This was a similar world full of vitality. Amid each layer of ice, lake water
slowly circulated. Surrounded by this unique ecological system, those organisms
that survived and reproduced here not only had to resist the extreme cold but
also had to be miraculous too.
Cang Xu knew that this was the aftermath of Time divinity radiation.
Just the organisms here could be studied by magicians for countless years, and
the water and the ice layers were of even greater research value than that.
Cang Xu infiltrated this place with Jian Gui, constantly receiving outside
information, he already knew of the Ice Cube Red Wine business, and heard about
all sorts of novel things occurring in the capital, naturally this included the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Jian Gui quietly waved Cang Xu over, his tone faint, “Stop your observations,
Lord Teacher Si Ling has summoned us.”
Cang Xu followed Jian Gui into the center of the alchemy laboratory, and paid
his respects to Teacher Si Ling.
Teacher Si Ling looked mentally exhausted.
After entering the alchemy laboratory, he used the laboratory’s alchemy module
to continue observing the environment outside.
He mainly focused on the newly built royal family engineering project – the
Millenium Dragon Super-formation.
It was quite an achievement.
“This super-formation’s construction cost frightens the heavens, and it has a
strong connection with the Time God Dragon’s corpse.”
“The formation hasn’t been activated yet, and is currently in the process of
testing, at most only 5% of it will be active.”
“When it officially activates, the formation can conduct powerful detection
scans of every layer of the Ten Millenia Ice Lake. This undoubtedly will assist
the Ice Sculpture Royal Family enormously in their control over this super-
resource point.”

“This is an unprecedented achievement that took the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
several millennia!” 
“After the formation is completely active, it seems it can mold an ice
sculpture of the Time God Dragon that possesses unrivalled divine might.”
How much divine might it had was undeterminable to Teacher Si Ling.
The formation had other functions, but Teacher Si Ling couldn’t explore them
for the time being.
“The Millenium Dragon Formation has a few formation pillars still below. My
alchemy laboratory was only built on the century ice layer.”
The Ten Millenia Ice Lake was divided into a few layers.
The surface was the ten year ice lake, and it had been reinforced over the
countless years through numerous magic formations to become tenacious and
sturdy.
Above the ten year ice layer was the Ice Sculpture Capital. Below the ice layer
was the flowing lake water. First there was frozen lake water from several
years ago, then below was from a dozen years ago, below that was from tens of
years ago. A hundred meters below the ten year ice layer was the hundred year
lake water. The deeper the lake water was, the older it was.
Beneath the century old lake water was the second ice layer – the century ice
layer.
The vast majority of alchemy laboratories were set up on this ice layer.
Under the ice layer was the centuries year lake water
The lake water reached a millennium and the ten millennium ice layer.
Beyond the millennium ice layer, the lake water would grow older, several
millennia would accumulate, attaining an age of ten millennium.
Here, one would arrive at the bottom of the ice lake – a gigantic ice layer
covering silt.
This was the core essence – the ten millennium ice layer – according to legend,
a Time God Dragon fell down here, and it was precisely because of this divine
dragon falling here that the Ten Millenia Ice Lake was a super-resource point.
“I have to examine this Millenium Dragon Formation to the best of my ability!”
“By the time this super-formation officially activates, it will be too late. I
won’t be able to so effortlessly investigate it again.”
Teacher Si Ling had heard rumors and gossip about this super-formation, but
this truly significant secret had been stringently guarded by the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family.
Without a doubt, this super-formation would become Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s most
important trump card!
“My current investigation has already reached its limit.”
“If I want to investigate more, I have to penetrate deeper into the millennium
ice layer.”
“To completely understand the formation, I fear I have to get to the lake
bottom’s millennium ice layer!”
Requirements to build an alchemy laboratory on the millennium ice layer was far
stricter than on the century ice layer. The century ice layer had almost no
magician towers on it, but the millennium ice layer had many built on it.
In the ten millennium ice layer, you could count the number of magician towers
there with your hands, but each one was towering. There were also religious
temples, the largest of which was the Glacier God temple. These temples were
not the main temple, but each one had formidable combat strength and were
created through a concerted effort of every large church in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, a powerful measure to suppress the ice lake’s bottom.
Teacher Si Ling had naturally snuck into the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and deep
into the ice lake because of a heavy duty.
As a long term plan, he already decided to explore the ins and outs of the
formation, thus, he summoned Jian Gui and Cang Xu.
But Teacher Si Ling didn’t openly say he wanted to leave this place and go
deeper into the ice lake, instead he said, “For the past few days, I’ve done my
best to activate the alchemy laboratory and observe the Ice Sculpture Royal
Family’s Millenium Dragon Formation and noticed something very special about
the super-formation’s base, it actually seems to be the ice sculpture guardians
scattered across the capital.”
“Normally, magic formation bases are fixed, but the base of the Millenium
Dragon Formation is mobile.”
“However, the ice sculpture guardians the royal family have accumulated over
the millennium are mainly made from the ice lake’s ice chunks, and barely
anything else. Based on their origins, they are indeed an integrated whole with
the ice lake, and it is feasible to use them as a formation base.”
“I also don’t know which magician had such an exquisite design that figured out
this marvelous magic formation.
“It seems only such a design has the ability to allow the full strength of this
formation to temporarily mold the millennia ice into a Millenium Dragon Ice
Sculpture Puppet.”
“When that happens, testing the capital’s ice sculpture guardians will also
increase our understanding of the Millenium Dragon Formation. You two will take
my place in this matter.”
Jian Gui and Cang Xu glanced at each other, both of them immediately expressed
that they would aid Lord Teacher Si Ling; it was their honor.
Jian Gui inquired on how he should do it, what kind of ice sculpture guardian
to target and steal, and what channel he should use to return to the alchemy
after the theft.
Teacher Si Ling replied, “You don’t need to return, wait in the capital.”
By the time he penetrated deep into the millennium ice layer, there was a risk
of being discovered. If he was discovered, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family might
follow the vine to get the melon and find their way to this alchemy laboratory.
Therefore, if the two remained here, they wouldn’t be safe.
Teacher Si Ling t hen said, “Our Undead Orthodoxy doesn’t just have one alchemy
laboratory in the capital.”
“Use these two addresses to find the other laboratories.”
“There is no need to take risks, go grab an ice sculpture guardian. The current
Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest is underway currently, and it just so happened that
the exam question wants master alchemists to team up and work together to
refine an alchemy puppet that can defeat a silver level ice sculpture
guardian.”
“During this operation, you will swap identities to that of former year Warm
Snow Cup competitors. According to the Warm Snow Cup rules, you can join this
competition and participate in the second exam.”
“Thus, you will be able to openly study an ice sculpture guardian.”
Jian Gui carefully listened and committed Teacher Si Ling’s words to memory.
Cang Xu was secretly overjoyed, “Based on this plan, wouldn’t I be able to get
in contact with Zi Di?”
These days, although he had been residing in this alchemy laboratory,
information was not inaccessible, he could get it through the Undead
Orthodoxy’s means and heard a lot of news in real time. It naturally included
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Magician Yao Ma (Zi Di) participating in this
year’s Warm Snow Cup and that she performed excellently in the first exam.
After Teacher Si Ling briefed them on their mission, he gave Cang Xu and Jian
Gui disguise magic and also time to tidy up their stuff and adjust their state.
After some time, the two used a teleportation arrangement to leave.
After Teacher Si Ling sent the two off, he modified much of the alchemy
laboratory’s data, then adjusted the alchemy laboratory to an inoperative
state, then he snuck away and infiltrated into the ice lake.
 As a result, just as Teacher Si Ling snuck close to the millennium ice layer,
he triggered an alarm.
The Millenium Dragon Super-formation immediately erupted with golden flowing
light.
Teacher Si Ling hastily went into hiding. More scared than hurt, he
successfully concealed himself, his heart nipped with chill, aware of the
activation level of the Millenium Dragon Formation.
The deeper he got, the greater the detection and defensive capabilities of the
Millenium Dragon Formation.
Gold light surged, and wherever it went, ice shattered into flakes, mixing into
the kilotons of ice lake water.
This kind of large activity spread out from the millennium ice layer, and in a
hidden alchemy laboratory, Yuan Ci too observed it.
“More of the royal family’s super-formation is activating.”
“I can’t stay here any longer!”
“I must open the Wisteria Cache as soon as possible.”
Yuan Ci clenched his teeth, feeling immense pressure.
Of everyone, only Yuan Ci knew where the Wisteria Cache was hidden in the Ten
Millenia Ice Lake. But knowing where it was wasn’t enough, five level zero
wisteria secret orders were needed too.
Yuan Ci calculated, “I have one, Jiu Jin has one, Gui Teng has one, Shi Liu has
one, and Cong Mang has one, that’s all five.”
“After Bing Yang lost, Shi Liu smoothly became Ice Prison’s recommended
duelist.”
“Why hasn’t Cong Mang made landfall yet?”
Yuan Ci had received the latest information, which showed that Cong Mang led
his pirate group against the First Navy detachment, defeating it, and he had
also captured the detachment’s commander Bei Jia alive, he then arrogantly sent
the First Navy Fleet a ransom message.
Yuan Ci fumed with rage. He was unable to understand why Cong Mang was
sojourning on the ocean, when obviously, the Wisteria Cache was more important.
At that point in time, when the royal family’s super-formation completely
activated, the entire ice lake would be tightly monitored and wanting to
acquire the Wisteria Cache then would be almost impossible!
Yuan Ci didn’t know Cong Mang was already in the Ice Sculpture Capital.
Zi Di had the equivalent of three level zero orders, Fei She had one, Jiu Jin
had one, and Cong Mang had one, there were already six on hand. 
But Zi Di at the moment wasn’t thinking about the Wisteria Cache.
On the one hand, she didn’t know about the super-formation, and on the other,
she had more important business to rush to.
According to Elder Jiu Jin’s recommendation list, Zi Di set out to contact many
master alchemists personally.
But of these master alchemists, some refused to meet, some said no to her face,
and some asked for a high price.
One of them during conversation with Zi Di, exposed a flaw, and under close
questioning, told a secret – the Li Jian Clan’s people had gone searching for
him and offered a high price if he refused to work with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
The situation Zi Di was worried about appeared.
The Li Jian Clan, the Jing Xiang Clan, and even the Alchemy Guild were all
exerting themselves to “encircle and subdue” the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Despite having two tentative promises to work with Zi Di, she was very worried
and hesitated, unable to sign a magic contract.
What if these people who promised were actually bought off by the three powers?
Then wouldn’t she be showing the wolf into the house?
The more people Zi Di saw, the more dispirited she became, and she began to
doubt if her operation was worthwhile or not.
“If I can’t use a special method to truly break my predicament, it is
unjustified to talk with more alchemists.”
As this notion got stronger, the bell of a door Zi Di rang swung up.
“You finally came, do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you?” Cang Xu let
out a breath and secretly transmitted.
“You are?!” Zi Di was astonished.
Cang Xu had been disguised by Teacher Si Ling, and his appearance had changed a
lot, Zi Di didn’t recognize him at all.
After confirming his identity, Zi Di was pleasantly surprised, she never
thought that under these circumstances, she would converge with Cang Xu.
Cang Xu sighed, “I didn’t think that after Teacher Si Ling’s many
teleportations, our final destination was to be the Ice Sculpture Capital.”
“I heard you were targeted and encountered a predicament.”
“I originally planned on looking for you, but I was worried it would trigger
suspicion; therefore, I chose to wait for you to pay me a visit.”
“It just so happens that Teacher Si Ling has given me a mission, let’s work
together on this.”
Unexpectedly, Zi Di wanted to say yet, but hesitated, “If I’m remembering, your
alchemy attainment is worse than mine?”
Zi Di was looking for expert help to team up with.
Cang Xu smiled, “Miss Zi Di, don’t look down on me. For this exam question, I
can contribute far more than most of the competition.”
Zi Di suddenly understood somewhat, “Are you thinking of drawing help from the
undead alchemy methods?”
Cang Xu replied, “For now, don’t speak of that. I want to meet the Lord
Commander first, I have to speak with him, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is
in a terrible situation.”
“It isn’t that bad?” When the dragonman youngster was brought up, Zi Di
couldn’t help but be proud, “After the Lord Commander returned, our situation
has been overturned, sky and earth has been twisted on its head!”
“Now we are actively cutting ties with the Li Jian Clan, the Lord Commander is
strong enough to protect the mount potion benefits.”
Cang Xu shook his head, deeply sighing, “In short, let me see the Lord
Commander before further discussion.”



****** Chapter 719: Admonishment About Peril ******
Cang Xu entered into the Divine Domain Descent spell summoning space and
converged with the dragonman youngster.
“Cang Xu, I didn’t expect to meet back together so quickly, and in the Ice
Sculpture Capital!” The dragonman youngster was both startled and delighted, he
broke out into a chortle and patted Cang Xu’s shoulders, sincerely glad to see
him again.
“Lord Commander.” Cang Xu bowed deferentially to the dragonman youngster, as if
he was a steward attending to his feudal lord.
His tone was steady, “I also didn’t foresee that this was how we would meet
again. Teacher Si Ling must have come here with an immense conspiracy.”
At the time, when Cang Xu followed Teacher Si Ling, he planned on proactively
approaching the Undead Orthodoxy and actively developed a relationship with
them, it was undoubtedly beneficial to the survivors.
Zi Di interjected, “Cang Xu has a mission, he wants to participate in the Warm
Snow Cup’s exam, he said he can help through necromancy methods to pass the
second exam together.”
The dragonman youngster was inevitably worried, “Is that too much of a risk, if
an undead aura is exposed…”
Cang Xu waved his hand, “Let’s not speak of this first, whether or not we can
get through the second exam, is not the most important thing at the moment. I
came to urgently meet you Commander because I am very worried about my corps’
situation.”
The dragonman youngster stared at him, not quite understanding what Cang Xu was
saying.
Because since he returned, he wasn’t just sailing smoothly, he was making
headway time and again.
He first deceived the Li Jian Clan, making a comeback for Zi Di and Zong Ge.
Then in Snow Bird Harbor, he played with both sides to achieve complete control
over the situation. Then he subdued Cong Mang, made arrangements for the big
guy and the others, having them lying low and gathering pirates as external
assistance. As for the Snow Bird Harbor branch, he also put into place proper
plans, actively supporting military training and placing Hun Tong there as
insurance.
He even defeated Mi Fang recently, and unexpectedly obtained Long Meng’s
teachings, it could be said he was making fine progress through his methodical
arrangements. But when he heard Cang Xu’s worries, it seemed there was some
significant concealed danger?
The dragonman youngster knew Cang Xu’s abilities and carefully inquired about
it at once.
Cang Xu shook his head and sighed, “Lord Commander, you shouldn’t have exposed
your saint level qualifications.”
“Think about what the big guy experienced.”
“During the eating contest, the big guy showed signs of it, and Da Dou
immediately kidnapped him. Tripleblade and the others tried to search and
rescue him, then as Shuang Lian was nosing about, all powers were acting
against the big guy. The big guy then was only iron level, and was greatly
coveted by all”
“And now, your Lordship has exposed your saint level qualifications, that is
the greatest source of risk!”
The dragonman youngster couldn’t speak for a moment.
Cang Xu sighed, sincerely admonishing him, “Lord Commander, you seem to
underestimate the influence of saint levels too much, even if one is a saint
level seed!”
“Perhaps it is because nowadays you have plenty of god level bloodlines and
possess a god level aptitude. To you, you just exposed a bit of your talent,
and since it isn’t the legend level, you should be safe and sound.”
“But reality isn’t like that.”
“A saint level is enormously impactful! In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom there are
only three saint levels. Da Han, that saint level pirate, was able to throw the
Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s seaboard into complete confusion.”
“This is the world of the strong!”
“Even if you aren’t one now, with your aptitude, after growing, you are bound
to be a key figure that affects the big picture. I would like to ask how the
other saint levels might act?”
“The reason why the current situation is tranquil is mainly because we still
have the pretense of arms merchants. But this skin that could intimidate other
powers will only be effective temporarily.”
“The reason why they haven’t acted is because the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is
facing Da Han. They don’t have the energy to attend to us for the time being.”
The dragonman youngster blushed with shame.
He bowed his head and told the truth. He had revealed a legend level aptitude.
Cang stared blankly.
The young man then informed him of the details, it was in the Snow Bird Harbor
battle, his main goal was to awe and subdue Hun Tong.
Cang Xu was dumbfounded.
After a moment, he gave a long sigh, “Lord Commander, the risks here are too
immense.”
“Since this has already happened, we have to strictly control the risks. We
have to do our best to tie Hun Tong to our side, and monitor him at all times,
where is he right now?”
The dragonman youngster replied, “Snow Bird Harbor.”
Cang Xu: …
The dragonman youngster then told him why he arranged things like this.
Cang Xu was dumbfounded again.
After a moment, he still encouraged and consoled the dragonman youngster, “Lord
Commander, you can now analyze and exploit human nature, that is enormous
progress.”
“You were just missing the big picture for the details this time.”
Zi Di couldn’t help but retort, “Isn’t Long Meng a saint level seed? Why isn’t
he being targeted?”
Zi Di had never felt that the dragonman youngster exposing his saint level
aptitude was the wrong decision. Seeing her beloved being criticized stirred
her to subconsciously defend him out of love.
Cang Xu answered, “According to my analysis, Long Meng has a powerful backer.
He has never admitted to possessing saint level qualifications, that is just
the popular conjecture. He never publicly did what the commander did with his
‘vast amount of enhancement spells’, that was obviously overstepping the proper
boundaries.”
“Generally speaking, saint level seeds are strictly defended by all forces.
When a saint level is cultivated, they will undoubtedly break the equilibrium
of a region.” 
“However, it is also because of this that during the duel, Mi Fang judged
wrong, he fought very conservatively, allowing the Commander to effortlessly
win.”
Cang Xu looked at a magic image showing the duel.
After saying that, the old magician looked solemnly at Zi Di.
“Miss Zi Di, you shouldn’t be blind to the hidden dangers here. You came from
an exceptional background and have a vast scope of view.”
“Don’t let love blind you.”
“In your subconsciousness, did you not hope to see your sweetheart display his
splendor and ammas more accomplishments?”
“However, pushing himself into the limelight has instead harmed him.”
Zi Di’s heart shook greatly.
Cang Xu continued, “Now that the Lord Commander has publicly exposed a saint
level disposition, targeting and ganging up will surely follow at his heels.” 
“Before, we could depend on our fabricated arms dealer patron to cleverly
intimidate many outsider forces. But now that the Lord Commander already
represents a future saint level, what will all these powers think?”
“The Lord Commander’s name is famous nationwide, my corps’ magic medicine
business is also flourishing, the corps is making triumphant progress and
earning a fortune every day.”
“This ambitious and pushing stance clearly wants to mettle in the three saint
level structure here, turning it into a contest between four.”
“Are you saying the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s three saint levels are going to
watch and allow us to grow?”
“We should thank Da Han. The reason the three saint levels haven’t immediately
acted and spied on my corps is because of the external pressure Da Han is
producing.”
“But after this clash, when they are free to make a move, what will we
experience?” 
Cang Xu added, “This time, what’s the reason why Mian Li Zang could easily
convince the Jing Xiang Clan to work together, along with being able to borrow
the Alchemy Guild’s Hua Ni’s power to eliminate us from the Warm Snow Cup? It
is precisely the immense pressure saint level potentials brings.”
“The three parties were once competitors, but they united as a result of this.
However, this is only a small part of the response that awaits us in the
future.”
Zi Di took a deep breath, her heart pervading with a chill.
She sank into self-blame, why hadn’t she been able to see this mistake, she
never even considered it.
She reflected on herself, and found that love had muddled her brain, the
dragonman youngster’s return allowed her to wallow in a feeling of happiness.
At the same time, she had become negligent from little victories, she wanted to
forge further ahead and constantly gain more. Her attention was on the Warm
Snow Cup, where she wanted to do better, or even the best.
Her actions were like her business, constant expansion.
Successes one after another without a hitch caused her to forget to pay
attention to what was under her, and gradually overlook risks.
Now that Cang Xu had brought up this point to her, when she thought back, cold
sweat appeared all over.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t bear to see Zi Di flagellate herself, so he
defended, “Don’t blame her, this was what I advocated for.”
“Cang Xu, after you and I parted ways, you were unaware of what happened to me.
During that time, something major occurred.”
At once, the dragonman youngster spoke of his experience, recounting Charming
Blue’s divine oracle of the Dueling Godhead in detail to Cang Xu.
Cang Xu was startled, “The Dueling Godhead?!” 



****** Chapter 720: Cang Xu’s Strategy ******
Cang Xu looked solemn, and in a rare instance, he put his hands behind his back
and strolled about.
After circling about three times, he recovered from hearing this astonishing
news.
He looked at the dragonman youngster, whose eyes wide open and staring back at
him.
Cang Xu bowed his head, and after reflecting for a long time, he turned to face
the dragonman youngster, “So that’s how it is, I see.”
“Lord Commander, I know you are very cautious, you shouldn’t be agitated to
advance so prematurely.”
“I understand your scheme; you want to use all of your strength to seize the
Dueling Godhead!”
“Hic.” The dragonman youngster scratched his chin in embarrassment.
Cang Xu then said, “Indeed, wanting to seize the Dueling Godhead means you have
to gain the Godhead’s favor. And becoming a dueling champion is undoubtedly
crucial to this. Even if you aren’t the ultimate winner, the greater your
Lordship’s renown in the National Ceremony Grand Duel is, the greater your
hopes in this endeavor.”
“This renown to some degree represents your faith and how much the dueling
believers support you. There are a great deal of benefits in this.”
“This time, when you displayed a saint level aptitude, you were able to obtain
more of the populace’s approval. You were not only able to relieve any doubts
of your winning streak but also were able to more easily win esteem and
respect.”
“The Dueling Godhead…I didn’t expect, I really didn’t expect that there would
actually be such a significant treasure!”
Cang Xu suppressed his excitement and calmed down, “Lord Commander, regardless
of whether what Charming Blue Goddess’ scheme is, since you have already
decided to go all out in this and willing to brave the dangers, then this old
man will naturally follow you and do his best to assist you.”
It was the dragonman youngster’s turn to sigh, he chuckled bitterly, not hiding
anything from Cang Xu, “I wasn’t thinking of fighting for it with everything I
have.”
“I only wanted to try.”
“But when I heard your analysis, Cang Xu, I came to a realization. Since the
moment I exposed my saint level qualifications, I have already stepped on a
path of no return, and I must walk this road at all costs.”
“Regardless of what is said, I am really happy to have your support.”
Cang Xu narrowed his eyes as he looked at the dragonman youngster, it contained
plenty of frustration from the older generation and also sincere feelings for
the dragonman youngster.
Memories flashed across his face, “In White Hair Trench, you saved me Lord
Commander.”
“What more is there left to say?”
“Mystifying Monster Island was where we were fated to meet. If the beginning
mirrors the end, then even if we are destroyed like Mystifying Monster Island,
I will still follow you to the end.”
The tranquil tone contained Cang Xu’s resolve of one who had gone through
myriad changes.
Zi Di looked at Cang Xu, then at the dragonman youngster, her heart
incomparably happy.
She could sense Cang Xu’s sincerity. On the one hand, she was happy her
sweetheart could get Cang Xu’s vow of loyalty and devotion. On the other hand,
she also felt a closeness with Cang Xu when he truly became one of them.
The dragonman youngster hesitated, then said, “Thanks to your guidance, I now
understand we are faced with immense risks.”
“I also want to seize the Dueling Godhead, but I am unclear as to who the enemy
is.”
“I suspect the Ice Sculpture Family, they revere dueling activities, and
vigorously promote it throughout the country, that is very suspicious. They
might know the facts and might even be actively accumulating faith and
fermenting the Dueling Godhead.”
Cang Xu smiled, and nodded without hesitation, “They know the truth, and are
also a leading party in this.”
“If we want to seize the Dueling Godhead, we are bound to have to step across
the gigantic obstacle that is the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“But it is likely they aren’t the most powerful of our enemies.”
“The Sheng Ming Empire is also our enemy.”
“Da Han is also very likely to become a stumbling block.”
“Teacher Si Ling has come here, and his true objective is not yet known. But
why can’t it be the Dueling Godhead?”
“Since Charming Blue Goddess could give you a divine oracle Lord Commander,
when the moment comes, as saint levels, could Zhou Zhang and that Snow Pear
Octopus in the Ocean Mother Nest show up?”
“Calculating this in, as of now, our enemies are the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
three saint levels, the Sheng Ming Empire used Tan Mo’s warship to sneak in one
saint level, the Undead Orthodoxy has a saint level, there is a pirate saint
level, and there is Charming Blue Goddess’ saint levels too. If we include the
saint level magic beast, there are already nine saint levels in play.”
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di: !!?
For a moment both were somewhat numb.
Don’t be fooled by the dragonman youngster’s immense progress, and his three
gold level transcendent levels, when confronting a saint level, he was a baby.
What’s more, there wasn’t just one saint level, but nine!
Cang Xu seemed to pile it on, “The saint levels aren’t even the highest levels,
the Millenium Dragon Formation is already built, and according to Teacher Si
Ling’s investigation, this formation can create a Millenium Dragon Ice
Sculpture with god level strength!”
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di couldn’t speak, they were caught up in
silence together.
Zi Di especially didn’t dare to believe it somewhat, seeming to struggle as she
asked, “I am a little curious, Cang Xu. Why are you sure the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family knows about the Dueling Godhead and are also a leading figure in
it?”
Cang Xu looked at her, “It is very clear, the duelists on Tranquil Hill Divine
Domain are filled with large qualities of the royal family’s power!”
The dragonman youngster knew about Tranquil Hill through Lan Zao, and after
exchanging information, Cang Xu also knew about this too.
Zi Di contemplated, “The duelists have Mei Lin, Bao Li Gen, and Gu Dong, who
are Ice Sculpture Kingdom soldiers. But that doesn’t represent…”
Cang Xu interrupted her analysis, “It isn’t just those three. Teng Dong Lang
the Axe Gang Leader, Jia Bing, and Lin all had a military background. They were
discharged from service, but in reality, they were still the royal family’s
people.”
“Oh, why do you say that?” Zi Di was puzzled.
Cang Xu lowered his voice, “One can see it based on the fact that they acted
together, targeted our businesses, and raided our Snow Bird Harbor branch.”
Zi Di frowned, “Perhaps this is an alliance of camaraderie, and not necessarily
the royal family’s will.”
Cang Xu shook his head, “This is an almost definitive fact.”
Zi Di’s doubts deepened, “What is the evidence?”
Cang Xu shook his head again, “I don’t have any evidence. I just obtained the
key information from the Lord Commander. I know just as much as you do.”
“Although this is a mere conjecture, I am almost certain this is the truth!”
Zi Di was confused, and so too was the dragonman youngster.
Seeing the two young people’s expressions, Cang Xu knew he had to guide them
properly. He expediently asked, “Do you know about the armor prohibition?”
The armor prohibition was one of Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s ten prohibitions.
The prohibition stipulated that the Ice Sculpture Kingdom made no more than 27
pieces of gold level armor. When using gold level armor in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, one had to inform the government in advance, even during the National
Ceremony Grand Duel, this prohibition had to be abided by.
This prohibition was carried out to an extreme degree.
Cang Xu inquired, “Miss Zi Di, what do you believe is the reason the Ice
Sculpture kingdom put into place this prohibition?”
Zi Di reacted instantly, “Armor is more threatening than bows and other
weapons, this is how the Ice Sculpture Kingdom safeguards public security and
maintains its rule.”
Cang Xu shook his head, rejecting it, “The biggest assurance to maintaining
public security and rule is the king with saint level strength. So long as this
strength exists, then how can they be afraid of gold level armor? Thus, even if
there is an armor prohibition, it should restrict saint level armor, why does
it restrict gold level armor? That is absolutely not a normal national policy.”
Cang Xu had served as a noble steward for many years, due to his lowly
bloodline, he had attained the limits of his individual strength. His many
years and energy was used to study all kinds of historical records and delve
into all sorts of information.
He not only accumulated astonishing erudition, but as he read extensively, he
put their lessons into practice as he worked as a steward and cultivated wisdom
that clearly understood how society operated.
Although Zi Di ran a merchant alliance, she was too young. As she matured, most
of her energy was put into attending college and cultivation. After her father
died, she was determined to contend with experts and large powers, messing with
danger again and again to avenge him. Thus, in this aspect of accomplishment,
she was far from Cang Xu.
The dragonman youngster also thought back, he also gained first-hand knowledge
of how saint levels fought, confirming that even if one was draped in gold
level armor, it was very difficult to vie with a saint level. From Da Han’s
powerful suppression of the Second Navy Fleet, one could also see the extreme
dominance a saint level had in the face of gold levels.
Cang Xu replied, “This national policy of armor prohibition, this limiting of
gold level armor production in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, it is quite harmful
to it.”
“Ensuring public security and maintaining rule, that is just an explanation to
the masses.”
Zi Di felt baffled, and she asked, “Since that is so, why did the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom implement it?”
Cang Xu didn’t answer, instead he looked at the dragonman youngster
encouragingly, “I’ll give you two a small hint, the armor prohibition policy
was issued and put into practice 40 years ago. What do you two think happened
at that point in time?”
The dragonman youngster racked his brains and found nothing.
But Zi Di was struck by the light, and she blurted out, “Was it that great
rebellion?”
“That’s right.” Cang Xu nodded, “40 years ago, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom just
replaced its king. An internal rebellion was triggered, a large one indeed, and
although the king successfully suppressed it, the internal damages were quite
severe.”
“After cleaning out the rebels and securing his throne, the king issued the
armor prohibition.”
“Looking on the face of it, it was to prevent another internal rebellion and
stabilize public security, but that’s not actually what it was for.”
The dragonman youngster suddenly perceived it, “Oh, I’ve seen this information
before.”
When the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps arrived at Snow Bird Harbor, they bought a
lot of information to increase the survivors’ understanding of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
The great rebellion 40 years ago was included in it and was found to be
unremarkable. So, the dragonman youngster never cared about it.
Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster, smiled, and relieved her beloved’s
anxieties, “If I didn’t travel to Blood Kin City, I wouldn’t have thought of
the rebellion 40 years ago either.”
She explained, “After me and Zong Ge left Snow Bird Harbor with our group, our
first stop was Blood Kin City.”
“There, we and the Axe Gang Leader negotiated. Afterwards, when we left the
city, there was a teleportation problem, then Zong Ge, by means of the Pearl
Bubbles, won a 3 v 1, killing the Axe Gang Leader and the others, therefore it
left a deep impression on me.”



****** Chapter 721: Teaching Politics ******
“After Zong Ge was struck by the Blood Vengeance Axe, to resolve that issue, I
dedicated myself to gathering a lot of information for a time to understand the
history of the Blood Vengeance Axe.”
Zi Di continued to narrate, “Before the great rebellion, Blood Kin City was
called Snow Fall City.”
“Snow Fall City’s lord was a member of the royal family, and when the rebellion
became enough to sweep in, he feared death upon defeat and disgracefully
surrendered to the rebel army.”
“When the Ice Sculpture King put down the revolt, he recaptured Snow Fall City.
Originally, he wanted to punish Snow Fall City Lord, but the king’s mother
pleaded for leniency, after all, he was of the royal bloodline.”
“The king still allowed Snow Fall City Lord to keep his position; however, he
renamed the city to Blood Kin City.”
After Snow Fall City Lord learned of the new name, he couldn’t withstand his
guilt and committed suicide that same night.”
“From that day onwards, the Blood Vengeance Axe was lost to outsiders,
wandering between many owners before finally ending up in the hands of a snow
elf expert, he relied on this axe to open up territory in this city and
establish the Axe Gang.”
Cang Xu quietly listened, waiting until Zi Di’s speech was finished, before
suddenly saying, “Miss Zi Di, before arriving in Blood Kin City, you were
ambushed halfway by a mysterious gold level, likely to be the Axe Gang Leader.”
Zi Di nodded, “Although we haven’t ascertained the truth of this to this day,
after Zong Ge killed the Axe Gang Leader, our investigation and analysis felt
that the probability was very high.”
“As for why the Axe Gang Leader attacked us, its probably due to his personal
friendship with Teng Dong Lang.”
“The reason why he recruited Jia Bing and Lin was for absolute safety.
According to the information we gathered, this conformed with how the Axe Gang
Leader customarily used his soldiers.”
“Luckily we had the Pearl Bubbles, otherwise…” When she said that, Zi Di
revealed a trace of lingering fear.
Cang Xu said in passing, “Teng Dong Lang was a gang boss, Lin was Ice Spear
City’s largest gang leader, and the Axe Gang Leader goes without saying. You
don’t think that these three having the same role is too coincidental?”
Zi Di replied, “What else? Transcendents from the military don’t have any
capacity for production, isn’t relying on their strength to earn a normal
living?”
Cang Xu shook his head, “If that was the case, then becoming mercenaries would
be more rational, why did they all become gangsters? The cultural differences
between gangs and the army are vast.”
“I believe that their discharge from military service was a camouflage, an
arrangement of the royal family.” 
“It is simple to verify, check and add up the amount of people in it. I think
there should be many such cases of this. They should have started 40 years ago
and become more inundated as time passed.” 
The dragonman youngster pondered, “IF that is true, isn’t it a bit strange?”
“These large quantities of discharged soldiers, why didn’t they become city
guards and instead became systemically problematic criminal gangs?”
Zi Di thought of something, “By doing this, they can cut down on military
spending.”
“Gangs have income. At the same time, veteran organized powers can muscle into
the space the original gangs occupied, and it can also be considered to be a
covert type of increased law and order.”
Cang Xu added, “This is not the Ice Sculpture Royal Family’s true goal. I
personally believe the royal family is secretly expanding their armed forces,
relying on the pretense of gang syndicates to clandestinely maintain troops.
When their time of need comes, the king will issue a call to action, and large
numbers of gangs are bound to proactively answer with generous enlistments.”
“The reason why the Ice Sculpture Royal Family did this should be to vie with
the powerful Sheng Ming Empire.”
The dragonman youngster was startled, “Wait a moment, did you say vie with the
Sheng Ming Empire?”
Zi Di had a weird expression, “The Ice Sculpture Kingdom and the Sheng Ming
Empire have a good relationship. Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming didn’t even
hesitate to send his Thirteenth Prince to serve as a hostage prince in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. Where did this vying with the Sheng Ming Empire come from?”
Cang Xu had the look of one who saw beyond the facade of the world, one more
emphasizing, “That’s right, the royal family is doing this to vie with the
Sheng Ming Empire.”
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di looked at each other in dismay.
The two felt that Cang Xu was speaking more and more out of place.
Cang Xu then said, “The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is mainly composed of snow elves,
what do you two feel about this country’s popular customs?”
The dragonman youngster said, “Snow elves are inherently arrogant, and duels
are popular domestically, the popular customs are quite plucky.”
Cang Xu nodded, “With such popular customs, how will they submit to the Sheng
Ming Empire? For a long time now, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has always
maintained sovereignty.”
“When Ice Sculpture Kingdom was first established, the snow elves were a
unified whole, they defeated the other races led by the barbarian race and
completely dominated Ice Sculpture Island.”
“After the country’s founding, they cleaned out the borders and often sent
troops on expeditions.”
“Afterwards throughout history, they repeatedly defeated powerful invaders and
counterattacked them back until they destroyed their enemy’s base before
stopping.”  
“This country’s military ethics is abundant.”
“The attitude this country has means it will absolutely never surrender easily.
Despite the Sheng Ming Empire’s power, it can’t yet reduce the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom to a vassal state.”
“Our emperor clearly understands this, therefore, he sent the Thirteenth Prince
to serve as hostage and by means of his role as a great power, formed an
inseparably close relationship between both countries.”
Zi Di interjected, “The masses all say that the Heavenly Emperor deliberately
treated the Thirteenth Prince as a hostage, but in reality, it was to prepare
for and provide cover for the Wilderness Continent invasion.”
Cang Xu nodded again, “Seeing through the chaotic situation before us, we can
research it from a higher angle and look down at the structures from a higher
vantage point.”
He deeply sighed, using some a somewhat raging intonation to say, “Heavenly
Emperor Sheng Ming is a man of grand ambitions, the unification of the Sheng
Ming Continent did not stop his journey, and he has mobilized the entire
empire’s strength to attack the Wilderness Continent, that is the theme of our
era.”
“To attack the Wilderness Continent, the imperial army has to cross the ocean
and has to establish stable supply routes.”
“Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming began his arrangements long ago. Sending the
Thirteenth Prince as a hostage to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was one of them.
The second is the imperial pantheon targeting ocean gods, suppressing and
ganging up on them, Charming Blue Goddess was a casualty of this.”
“However, when the imperial army was establishing bridgeheads on the Wilderness
Continent, the Pirate Throne rose at this subtle juncture and the pirates of
the Main Plane immediately became incomparably rampant. What do you think of
this?”
“Yes, on the Main Plane, the Sheng Ming Empire is entirely worthy of being the
greatest force, it is the sole continental power. The rest of the powers
absolutely don’t want to see the empire’s attack succeed and annex another
continent.”
“Therefore, on the face of it, the empire is the conqueror and the beastmen
resist, it is a contest between two continents, the Sheng Ming Empire vs the
Beastmen Clan Alliance. In reality, it is the Sheng Ming Empire confronting the
pressure of the entire world. Beside the beastmen clans, the other powers
haven’t openly gone to war, that’s all.”
“If the Heavenly Emperor wants to conquer, first of all, he has to ensure his
ocean transportation lines are secure. Relying on teleportation is not
economical, the empire would go bankrupt halfway through the process.”
“If Divine Domain Descent was serviceable, then why haven’t numerous gods put
it into common usage since the ancient days? After endless development, the
Divine Domain Descent spell should have grown into a conventional method of
transportation. But in fact, this isn’t the case. For the same reason, this
proves this applies to other transportation methods.”
“Therefore, the good old way of sea transportation is the only solution.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, expressing his approval while secretly
speculating, “Divine Domain Descent really is risky. Charming Blue Goddess was
forced into this dangerous situation. Under the circumstances, she deployed the
saint beast in Ocean Mother Nest to protect it. Apparently, since Charming Blue
Goddess is asleep, my repeated invocations of Divine Domain Descent was
authorized by the Godhead. That’s how I was able to exploit it!” 
Cang Xu continued, “In order to create maritime transportation lines, the Sheng
Ming Empire began to exert itself and issue a good deal of policies. Our
journey through Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island are embodiments of those
policies. Snake Rat Island’s Lord Tan Qiu and Two Eyes Island’s Hun Tong both
received the empire’s nobleman incentive policies. They conquered an
unremarkable island, paving the way for the empire’s war machine through blood
and flesh, developing a vast number of maritime station points. These station
points linked together can support a few main maritime transportation routes.”
“Of course, based on what we know right now, Snake Rate Island can only provide
sideline support, while Two Eyes Island’s position was pretty good, it seems it
was careening towards becoming one of the hubs of a transportation line.
“If Two Eyes Island is like that, what about Ice Sculpture Island?”
The dragonman youngster’s and Zi Di’s heart shook in tandem.
The two looked at each other, equally seeing the other’s sudden realization.
They began to understand the reason and essence of the confrontation between
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and the Sheng Ming Empire.
Cang Xu explained, “Ice Sculpture Island is different from the vast majority of
islands, it has a considerably vast surface area, and a very long history. The
Ice Sculpture Kingdom is entrenched in the ocean, and nowadays has three great
saint level combat powers, and once had a legend level too, its foundation is
quite deep. Their attitude and factions will undoubtedly have an enormous
influence on the maritime transportation lines.”
“Standing on the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s point of view, their citizens
naturally crave for freedom and long to maintain their autonomy.”
“Standing on the Sheng Ming Empire’s point of view, annexing the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom is the best and most secure outcome. But the empire doesn’t have a good
way of taking direct action. On the one hand, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has a
strong military, top quality alchemy technology, and a plucky character. On the
other hand, the snow elves have two big external connections. One is to the
Frost Continent, where the snow elves originated from. The other is to the Life
Continent, that place is made of elven kingdoms large and small.”
“If the Sheng Ming Empire recklessly attacks, it might lead to these two
continents drastically reacting, so the empire has to tread cautiously.”
“Therefore, we saw a good deal of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency like Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord moving around in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. From just the
secret spies like Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, code name [Emancipator], and also
[Usurper], one can understand they want to overthrow the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s current regime! Their rapacious designs are abundantly clear.”
The young man nodded repeatedly. He was already secretly trying to track down
who else belonged to the Imperial Secret Spy Agency. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord
had already been exposed, and [Usurper] was certain to be greater than he. The
dragonman youngster initially suspected the Li Jian Clan. This clan controlled
the Second Navy Fleet, and during the naval battle with Da Han’s pirate
alliance, they put their own safety before principal, it really was suspicious.



****** Chapter 722: The Group’s Strategist ******
Cang Xu led the discussion between the three, changing the direction of it,
“Now let us look back at the Ice Sculpture Kingdom rebellion 40 years ago.
“First, this rebellion started at a subtle opportune moment, when the current
king took over.”
“On the face of it, it was indeed a power struggle between members of the royal
family.”
“However, the current king has saint level strength, while his competition was
only gold level, yet they never shrank back. For what reason did a gold level
think they were confident in taking on a saint level?”
“I personally believe that this rebellion should have received imperial
assistance, that the Imperial Secret Spy Agency played a major role in it.”
“Snow Fall City Lord was a member of the royal family, and regardless of
whether he had terrible luck of being coerced into it, he was still a member of
the rebellion. In short, he ultimately surrendered to the rebel army.”
“After the king put down the revolt, he changed its name to Blood Kin City.
Despite approving his mother’s plea for leniency and sparing Snow Fall City
Lord’s life, in reality, he died soon after. The outside world claims that
after he learned of the city’s new name, he could endure his guilt and
committed suicide. But is that really true?”
“It is possible that the king’s mother’s plea for leniency was just abnormal
political grandstanding. Wasn’t the king sure to settle accounts, so he sent an
assassin?”
“It can also be seen that the current king didn’t let off any royal family
members who joined the rebellion.”
 “The winner writes the history books.”
Zi Di’s eyes shined, and she said straightforwardly, “Makes sense. The Blood
Vengeance Axe was once Snow Fall City Lord’s weapon. Afterwards, it fell into
the hands of a snow elf expert. And he relied on this axe to grab territory and
establish the Axe Gang! If the Axe Gang Leader was a power aided by the royal
family, then the logic to this is very strong.”
Zi Di continued, “During the rebellion, there might have been secret clashes
between saint levels. Legend level involvement is low, after all, the
responsibility is too large. Ice Sculpture’s strength was greatly injured, and
it allowed the current Ice Sculpture King to thoroughly recognize reality.”
The dragonman youngster said, “It seems this way, although the king assumed the
throne, he sensed an imperial conspiracy, but the enemy was strong while he was
weak, so he had no choice but to restrain his emotions. Because of the
rebellion, he no longer trusted other members of the royal family and began to
actively plant veterans all over the country disguised as criminal syndicates
to reinforce his control over the nation.”
Cang Xu added, “The rebellion 40 years ago was a fierce contest between the
Sheng Ming Empire and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“The result shown to the outside was disastrous losses, with seven or eight of
the ten members of the royal family dead.”
“It goes without saying, I fear these secret confrontations are more
treacherous and ruthless, all sacrifices are silent and nameless.”
“Although the king won this contest in the end, relying on his native advantage
to defeat these outsiders, the empire wasn’t fully beaten.”
“At least the Imperial Secret Spy Agency hasn’t been completely eliminated just
yet, [Usurper] is still active and developed many subordinates afterwards. We
know one of them is Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.”
“The royal family was weakened, so the armor prohibition and troop restrictions
were issued at that time.”
“The armor prohibition restricts Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s armament reserves, and
the army restrictions prevent kingdom troop stockpiles. This is a harmful
national policy.”
“I consulted the data and saw there were many proposals at the time. The
Thirteenth Prince was very active, and nobles large and small to protect their
benefits also must have relied on the Sheng Ming Empire secretly and proposed
these national policies, displaying their power during this process.”
The dragonman youngster sighed, “The armor prohibition is publicly to protect
public security and safeguard the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s rule. The army
restrictions could also be interpreted as the benevolent king, unable to bear
war, desired the entire country’s recovery, while simultaneously needing to
placate the panic-stricken and restless noble powers as a newly throned king,
so this policy was put into place. The historical truth is more often than not
the opposite of what the official explanation and popular understanding is.”
Zi Di suddenly said, “Although the Thirteenth Prince is a hostage, he has great
prestige. When the throne was vacant, many Ice Sculpture citizens loved and
respected him enough to endorse his ascension to the throne.”
“This was not a small number of people, at the time, there was a voice
throughout the kingdom that hoped the Thirteenth Prince succeeded the throne.” 
“Unfortunately, the Thirteenth Prince is Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming’s son, and
based on his bloodline and legal principle, he is unqualified to succeed the
throne.”
“Thinking about it now, this should be a contest the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
defeated the Sheng Ming Empire in.”
“Although there wasn’t a flash of knives and swords, the level of danger in it
causes the body to tremble.”
With Cang Xu’s guidance, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di saw new details in
old information. Their understanding was elevated to new heights.
Zi Di suddenly asked, “The Dueling Godhead accumulation, is that a grand chess
piece the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is using to withstand the Sheng Ming Empire?” 
Cang Xu muttered, “I am more inclined to believe that this is the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family strengthening themselves. After all, the popularization of duels
and the gathering of this Godhead has been going on for a long time.”
“This is the world of the strong.”
“Every organization’s scale, each regime’s prosperity and decline, is founded
on individual transcendents.”
“The problem lies with bloodlines and if a transcendent individual can continue
to advance in rank.”
“Regardless of how, self-improvement is never wrong, but the issue that arises
is normally potential is finite, bloodlines reach their limits, and the road of
self-improvement is severed.”
Cang Xu lamented, “The vastness of the Dueling God project is astonishing. When
I learned of the Millenium Dragon Formation, I was utterly amazed, and upon
learning of the Dueling Godhead, I have a whole new level of respect for the
Ice Sculpture Royal Family. Successive generations of kings were really
extraordinary, it’s no wonder they were able to govern the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom into becoming a top ranking power in the Main Plane.”
“Based on the country’s territory surface area, resource quality, and other
metrics, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is a mere island nation, its lands cannot
compare to the Sheng Ming Empire or many other large kingdoms. The Ice
Sculpture Kingdom only has one super-resource point, the Ten Millennia Ice
Lake.”
“But its king and citizens are really outstanding, it is they who made the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom glorious, they who built this nation into being rich and
powerful.”
The dragonman youngster sank into silence. His prior suspicions were correct.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom actively promoted duels for a reason, this was no
short term project, but one that lasted for at least a thousand years!
Through Cang Xu’s guidance and analysis, the dragonman youngster and Zi Di had
a better understanding of the situation.
The two knew not to be fooled by how numerous and disorderly it looked from the
outside, it was essentially the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and the Sheng Ming
Empire confronting and contesting with each other.
They also realized that despite the lack of evidence, Cang Xu was convinced
that the Ice Sculpture Royal Family knew about the Dueling Godhead.
Furthermore, within the ranks of the duelists, there was a lot of Ice Sculpture
Kingdom forces.
This was wisdom!
Even without direct evidence, one could deduce from other facts and excavate
the truth from history’s dense fog, seeing through all kinds of disputes and
chaos to find the underlying structure of the current political situation.
The dragonman youngster pondered, “Since the Ice Sculpture Royal Family is
leading the Godhead project, then did the Sheng Ming Empire detect it? Who is
[Usurper]? If we can track him down, we can learn the answer.”
Cang Xu analyzed, “From the current information, imperial detection is
unlikely.”
“Lan Zao’s situation proves that the Imperial Secret Spy Agency’s missions into
Tranquil Hill have failed repeatedly and have only made some progress for the
first time ever. But Lan Zao and the others are trapped in the Dueling Divine
Domain, and I fear it is very difficult to bring back information.”
“From the duelists’ activities we can see the Imperial Secret Spy Agency don’t
know who they are. Otherwise, these people are all obstructions to their
capture of the Dueling Godhead, how could they not act against them? Or at
minimum, weakening the duelists will impair the royal family’s power.”
“Judging by the duelists’ backgrounds, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family still
possesses the native advantage, leading the Imperial Secret Spy Agency by a
wide margin.” 
“However, we cannot underestimate the empire.”
“Firstly, we know there is a saint level shield guardian, as well as a gold
level clergyman of mysterious faith that secretly boarded Tan Mo’s warship,
their current whereabouts is unknown, they probably got into the island
already.”
“Secondly, there have been rumors the Thirteenth Prince is returning with Qi Ci
Lang accompanying him. Furthermore, it is rumored heavily that the latter wants
to participate in this year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel.
“These should be measures the Sheng Ming Empire has taken to intervene. We also
need to calculate in the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, I have a feeling that
[Usurper], their leader, has quite the remarkable identity.” 
“When Snow Bird Harbor’s magician tower was blown up, and pirates were liable
to strike at any moment, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord didn’t actually contact
[Usurper] whilst under this immense pressure, that instead proves indirectly
that [Usurper] plays a critical central role. If we can truly ascertain this
person’s identity, we will have a very clear understanding of the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency’s power here.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the Sheng Ming Empire…” The dragonman youngster
forced a smile, feeling the enormous pressure.
He was a mere gold level, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps compared to these
two juggernauts was like a small boat in a storm. If they were somewhat
inattentive, they would be rushed to dregs and torn asunder.
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but ask, “Was it a bit selfish of me to
expose my saint level qualifications and fully throw myself into contesting the
Dueling Godhead before I elucidated the intelligence about our enemies?”
“The current situation is this: in the worst case, don’t speak of losing the
contest, you might also implicate your comrades too.”
“Our original plan was redemption. We wanted to exchange the divine artifacts
and other gains with the imperial higherups for our lives and freedom.”
“We wanted to seek survival, but now we want to brave deadly risks to seize a
Godhead, isn’t that putting the cart before the horse?”
Previously, the dragonman youngster was too unaware of the situation, and now
that he had gotten Cang Xu’s advice, he finally had a comprehensive and clear
understanding at long last.
The enemies were great powers, and the dragonman youngster felt he was tiny in
comparison, causing him to sink into rare hesitation.
Cang Xu weighed up his words and observed his expressions, immediately
realizing what the dragonman youngster’s mentality was.
He smiled, after exposing the truth of the current political situation, he
began to encourage the dragonman youngster, “Lord Commander, you are proactive,
fighting at all costs for the Dueling Godhead was absolutely the right
decision.”
“Don’t lose heart, because there is a chance we might succeed.”
“Even if we fail and die, what does that matter?”
“I am delighted to follow you, and I believe Miss Zi Di also has enough courage
to take this risk with you together.”



****** Chapter 723: Seizing the Godhead for Righteousness ******
From the ghost girl’s blindness to the risks exposing saint level talent
brought, Cang Xu completely recognized the girl’s nature – grand ambitions and
initiative!
She longed for progress too much, thirsted for success too much. She was never
satisfied and was incomparably greedy for success and never felt like she had
enough.
As expected, his words evoked Zi Di’s innermost endorsement.
“That’s right, Lord Commander, even if you fail, and ultimately die, I am
willing to follow you.” The girl looked into the young man’s eyes with fiery
radiance.
She continued to declare more heartfelt words, “I am becoming more dissatisfied
with the original redemption plan.”
“We painstakingly survived Mystifying Monster Island, experienced untold
dangers and difficulties, and ultimately still suffered Priest Jia Sha’s plot
against us, and we had to strive to survive it all.”
“We had goodwill; it was Jia Sha and the Flame Dragon King who didn’t want us
alive!”
“What’s wrong with wanting to keep on living?” 
“Like what the Lord Commander said during the Snake Rat Island naval battle, we
are righteous, and continued survival is the greatest justice.” 
“We deserve all of these gains, including the divine artifacts. Why do we have
to give to others?”
“Don’t tell me you aren’t lamenting this, Commander? At the very least I
utterly despise parting with them!”
“My father died, the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was annexed by the Seventh
Prince’s leadership, the Sheng Ming Empire cannot avoid blame. These nobles, to
some extent, are stained by my father’s blood. Us capitulating to them is only
because we are weak at the moment.”
Unswerving determination spread across Zi Di’s face, “If the redemption plan is
executed, we will only reach a temporary compromise and obtain time and
opportunities to grow. With the Bloodcore, what are we afraid of? In this brief
time, we have already built the Bloodline Purification formation, and my
corporeal body has already attained a gold level bloodline. Commander, you
already have a god level bloodline, and the big guy’s bloodline is at least
legend level.”
“What are we afraid of?!”
“So long as we have enough time and resources to grow, we can take back much
more, we should receive the profits that belong to us!”
“If we control the Dueling Godhead, your Lordship will become at minimum a
demigod.”
“A demigod!”
“We will have Tranquil Hill, the Dueling Divine Domain, and with your
Lordship’s divine spells, even if we die, you can resurrect us!”
“This enormous benefit is sufficient to struggle with all of our strength this
time, even if we have to gamble everything!”
“All of life is a gamble, and many high level gambling tables require
exceptional golden opportunities to even participate in. Before us is that kind
of opportunity! If we miss it, I will regret it for my entire life!!” 
At that moment, Zi Di’s gaze was luminous, exposing her aspirations to her
beloved.
The dragonman youngster stared into his shining and dazzling eyes, his memory
seeming to return to Mystifying Monster Island.
Yes, this was Zi Di, this was the girl he knew.
She never changed, and to create the shipwreck of the Hog’s Kiss, one needed to
have courage and a gambling nature in spades. To have dealings with War
Merchant, and scheme against her fiancé Zhen Jin, this girl never lacked
ambition.
At this moment, the ghost girl seemed to be aflame, and her threatening gaze
caused the dragonman youngster to subconsciously advert his eyes.
The young man had to concede that Zi Di’s speech reached the bottom of his
heart.
Was he really willing to hand over the divine artifacts for a chance to obtain
the empire’s redemption?
Before, his feelings were not clear.
But now, he controlled the [Mermaid Fairy Tale], using this divine artifact
again and again with beautiful results! He even deceived both the Main Earth
Elemental God and Teacher Si Ling!
The divine artifact was extremely effective.
He could infer that the divine artifact, the [Green Jade Gold Coffin] could
also be of use.
To say nothing of the Bloodcore, it was the core of the core, its value far
exceeding the divine artifacts!
Could they give away these useful divine artifacts?
“Perhaps the reason why I want to fight for the Dueling Godhead with all I
have, the reason I have such a strong longing for it, is that I hope I can keep
more of my gains?” 
“However, why do I feel something is a bit off?” The dragonman youngster had a
strange feeling.
The young man thought, “During the Snake Rat Island naval battle, I really did
give a speech. But it seems like Zi Di misinterpreted my idea, and is
excessively bold and confident that justice is on our side?”
Zi Di’s initiative spirit was too exuberant, and it caused the dragonman
youngster to feel their side had become a wicked gang.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ core consisted of three people. Zi Di was a
vengeful ghost girl, Cang Xu was a necromancer proficient in head changing
spells, and when the young man looked at himself again, his current dragonman
form was mainly reliant on the famously vicious and irritable red dragon
bloodline. His strongest form, the fishman form, was a cleric backed by the
deception goddess Charming Blue.
From the Sheng Ming Empire’s point of view, Charming Blue Goddess was the god
of a different race, and one the Sheng Ming Empire’s gods had ganged up on and
pursued, definitely making her an evil goddess in their eyes.
What went wrong, this portrayal is a little fishy.
Cang Xu was constantly watching the dragonman youngster and taking his measure,
saying timely, “Lord Commander, there is now time to hesitate.”
“Although we escaped Mystifying Monster Island, our situation has never
changed.”
“We bear immense pressure to survive, and as we staggered along our journey, we
were often forced into the path of despair, yet we still did everything we
could to struggle onwards.”
“Many times, we are forced into tight spots and can only do so much.”
“Lord Commander, I can especially understand you. I would like to ask this, in
the Ocean Mother Nest, did you really want to do blasphemous prayers?”
“Were we not aware of the hidden dangers in doing that? We had no other choice,
so we did it.”
The dragonman youngster was immediately engrossed firmly by Cang Xu’s words.
Cang Xu was extremely right.
He felt that Cang Xu was also speaking to his heart.
Cang Xu continued to release the dragonman youngster’s psychological pressure,
“Take yourself, Lord Commander, did you not purposely lie? No, to save Xiao
Guai, your risked your life to deceive the Main Earth Elemental God. For the
sake of us survivors, you risked offending Charming Blue Goddess, compelled to
do so because there was no other alternatives.”
“What did we do wrong?”
“Nothing!”
“What is wrong in wanting to keep living?”
The dragonman youngster stared at Cang Xu, deeply exclaiming, “Cang Xu, you
really understand me.”
“Hm, hm.” Zi Di nodded again and again, “Continued survival is the greatest
justice.”
“We are righteous!” The girl once again stressed.
The dragonman youngster frowned.
Cang Xu promptly added, “Why are we always forced into having no choice, why do
we take risks out of desperation? It is because we are too weak.”
“We want to carry out justice, and behave righteously, how can the weak do
that?” 
“We have to get stronger, only when we are powerful will we have the ability to
calmly implement justice and fulfill our morality.”
“The Dueling Godhead this time is a unique golden opportunity to strengthen
ourselves; we must firmly grab hold of it!”
The dragonman youngster heavily nodded, pushing aside his other thoughts as he
looked firm and determined, “Cang Xu, you are correct.” 
“Sorry.” He looked back at Zi Di, “Because of the pressure, I hesitated.”
Zi Di gazed at her sweetheart, and tenderly replied, “I understand you, Lord
Commander. You are worried about taking risks that will burden the others, so
you have misgivings.”
“But actually, you don’t need to bear this burden on your own, on Mystifying
Monster Island, you were the reason we are still alive.”
“We are an integral whole; our benefits are unanimous. However the
ramifications of this are huge, and we have to keep this secret from the others
for the time being, that’s all.”
“Don’t worry, they will understand and support us!”
The dragonman youngster took a deep breath, “Currently, I have exposed my
‘saint level potential’ since in the future the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is bound
to sort me out, then I might as well be decisive!
The young man clenched his dragon claw, “Once you’ve started, there is no
turning back. We can’t attend to both extremes without neglecting one, so the
best choice for me is to use all of my strength to seize the Dueling Godhead.”
Cang Xu smiled, “Exactly so.”
The young man looked worried, However, there really are a lot of people
blocking us, and from truly formidable powers. Our hope of success this time is
remote.”
Cang Xu slowly shook his head, and began to bolster the dragonman youngster’s
confidence, “Based on what I saw, our chances of success might instead be
great.”
“The foremost reason is that to obtain the Dueling Godhead’s favor and seize
it, one has to rely on a gold level!”
“The saint level already has a foot in laws, and their strength will become a
major hindrance.”
“Of the gold levels, you Lord Commander are very competitive!”
The dragonman youngster agreed with this point, “Looking at it currently, the
only threat to me is Long Meng. Perhaps I can add Qi Ci Lang too?”
Cang Xu continued, “Our greatest advantage is that the enemy is in the open
while we are in the dark.”
“Because due to an unexpected turn of events, we learned of many trump cards
these powers have from many channels.”
From Lan Zao, the survivors learned of the Imperial Secret Spy Agency, the
duelists, and Tranquil Hill.
From the dragonman youngster, they learned of Charming Blue Goddess’
arrangements and about the Charming Blue Church located there.
From Cang Xu, the survivors learned of Teacher Si Ling’s operation, learning of
the Millenium Dragon Super-formation in passing.
Cang Xu determined, “The Sheng Ming Empire is not powerful enough to have a
simultaneous confrontation with the Wilderness Continent, the Frost Continent,
and the Life Continent.
“While the Ice Sculpture Kingdom also doesn’t want an acrimonious falling out
with the Sheng Ming Empire. This can be seen from the current Ice Sculpture
King’s choice, who endured silently and operated in the dark.”
“Both sides have their respective misgivings. Therefore, even if the Sheng Ming
Empire dispatched a saint level, I believe such a fight would never happen
publicly!”
“This signifies that the scale of this dispute will be limited, both sides will
restrain themselves.”
“In those two powers’ eyes, we still represent a mysterious international arms
merchant. Adding on the deep conflicts wrought by the great rebellion, both
sides will be focused on the other.”
“Even if a part of them is mindful, they will be more distracted by Da Han.”
“Da Han has become a subtle third party.”
“Teacher Si Ling, and perhaps Zhou Zhang is a fourth or fifth party.”
“Due to the many sides in this situation, we can exploit the racks between
these confrontations to get closer to the Dueling Godhead.”
Zi Di asked, “Then what do we do?”
After analyzing to this step, Zi Di saw and approved of Cang Xu’s observation
of the big picture and his stratagem for it.
Cang Xu coughed; after talking for a while, he finally reached his goal,
allowing the dragonman youngster and Zi Di to recognize the true situation
while still maintaining their initiative and energetic attitude.
Cang Xu replied, “First, we need to save someone.”
“Save someone?” The dragonman youngster and Zi Di looked at each other in
dismay.
Zi Di suddenly asked,” Is it Shi Liu?”
But Cang Xu shook his head.



****** Chapter 724: Excavating Inheritance and Poaching People ******
At the foot of the brilliantly capped Splice Mountain, there was a small town –
Graft Town.
Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong left behind five magic plants here; they were
the Fountain King Lotus in the city center, the Gold Star Vine on the north
side at Splice Mountain, the Pepper Tower on the south side, the Withered Claw
Tree on the west side, and the Green Umbrella Tree on the East Side.
After Magician Cai Jing, Da Bei, Zhong Bei, and the others arrived at Graft
Town, they were mainly focused on inspecting these five magic plants.
Their alchemy laboratory was set up in the south side Pepper Tower.
Pepper Tower had already been remodeled into a sunroom.
The roof’s glass was a silver level alchemy module, known as the sunlight
collector.
After sunlight was gathered, it could focus the light on the magic plants in
the room.
Green vines extended from the Pepper Tower’s walls, at each tip of the vines
grew a pepper as large as a banana.
The long peppers were bright red, and on their surface, there was a person’s
face.
These faces had closed eyes, as if in a deep slumber. Some even had open mouths
and snored.
Cai Jing carefully observed a pepper, using a magic line brush from time to
time to fill in the gaps in the magic circuits on the peppers’ surface or carve
a new magic rune.
With the sound of footsteps, Magician Da Bei walked into the top floor.
“A bit gentler, do you want these peppers to explode with your noise?” Cai Jing
transmitted to Zhong Bei, rebuking, “If a chain detonation of this many peppers
happens, this town will be blown to kingdom come!”
Magician Da Bei grumbled, “Can you stop fiddling with your peppers all day
long?”
“We’ve been in Graft Town for a long time already, yet we still haven’t found
any trace of Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance!”
“Can you focus a bit?”
Cai Jing looked up and glanced at Da Bei, then glanced back down and continued
to maintain the micro-formations on the peppers, saying, “In that case, what’s
your plan?”
“We have already rummaged through Graft Town and turned it upside down, not
just once, but five times!”
“But we have gained nothing.”
“These five magic plants might be the clues Fan Sheng Za Zhong left behind for
his inheritance, that was the conclusion our investigation arrived at.”
“Now, I am in the process of trying to find clues from the Pepper Tower.”
Magician Da Bei shook his head, “I’m only seeing you utilizing the Pepper Tower
to grow your magic plants! Don’t blame me for reminding you, if this continues,
we will have nothing to present to the Alchemy Guild.”
In the wake of each passing day of zero progress, the pressure on Magician Da
Bei multiplied.
At the time, he went looking for Master Cai Jing’s help to counterfeit potions
to attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ magic medicine business. This
resulted in an unexpected turn of events that led to them joining up with Cai
Jing on Flower Skirt Island and excavating Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s
inheritance.
Despite Qian Xing’s attack, they got through that daunting experience without a
mishap with a teleportation formation and escaped.
Since then, the two of them reached an agreement. Through Magician Da Bei’s
recommendation, Cai Jing successfully joined the Alchemy Guild.
·
The Alchemy Guild greatly valued Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance
and gave the mission of excavating his series of inheritances to Cai Jing, Da
Bei, and Zhong Bei.
According to the clues, they surmise there were two suspicious places, one of
which they picked. Graft Town. The outcome up until now was that they never
found the inheritance.
Cai Jing sighed, “Then there is nothing we can do. We’ve already done our
absolute best.”
“We suspected two places, one is here, and the other is Tranquil Hill. Do you
know where Tranquil Hill is?”
“This small town is actually our only option.”
He was under less pressure than Da Bei.
Although the two were gold levels, Cai Jing was stronger than Da Bei.
Regardless of individual fighting strength or alchemy mastery, it was the same
for both.
He was also the main person in charge of exploring Great Master Fan Sheng Za
Zhong’s inheritances. Da Bei was more like the person the Alchemy Guild
dispatched to supervise him.
“Don’t be too impetuous, I feel you’re hotter tempered than the explosive
peppers I am configuring.” Cai Jing shook his head, “Take it easy, partner. I
was secluded on Flower Skirt Island for several years. How long has it been
since we arrived at Graft Town?” 
Cai Jing was strong and capable; he was not worried about the Alchemy Guild
replacing him for the time being.
In the entire Alchemy Guild, no one comprehended Great Master Fan Sheng Za
Zhong’s inheritances more than he, that was his greatest confidence.
To excavate the inheritance on Flower Skirt Island, he had spent several years
on it. He had a lot of patience when it came to looking for the clues in Graft
Town.
While Da Bei’s situation was far worse off than his.
Although Da Bei was an Alchemy Guild Elder, he wasn’t Shuang Lian, Hua Ni, or
other elders with real power.
There were a great many people that could replace him, come to Graft Town, and
supervise Magician Cai Jing.
Da Bei didn’t want to let this go, he understood thoroughly that if this
mission was completed on his watch, his contribution would be massive. This was
a significant chance for someone like him who had no talent.
The Alchemy Guild had urged him repeatedly, so Da Bei was more anxious than Cai
Jing.
He was clear about the fact that the guild headquarters’ people also took a
fact to this excavation mission and started to use their contacts in
succession. They couldn’t touch Cai Jing, but they could dig out Dai Bei and
take his place in the hole.
Da Bei bitterly tried to persuade, “I can understand we can’t find any clues.
But the crucial thing is that general headquarters doesn’t understand that.”
“Lord Cai Jing, you have already joined the Alchemy Guild and are no longer a
loner. You are enjoying Alchemy Guild funds and facilities, you must
reciprocate those somewhat.”
Seeing Cai Jing’s head lowered and silent, Da Bei looked around a bit, then
simply stated honestly, “General headquarters already has many veiled
criticisms, we need to give them something that will shut some people up. No
matter how…minorly forged the progress is…”
“So long as it stuffs those people’s mouths, we can be at ease for a time.”
Cai Jing sneered to himself, he already saw through Da Bei’s situation and also
knew what his motives were right now.
Cai Jing was just about to say something when suddenly, hurried footsteps could
be heard.
Thump, thump, thump.
Magician Zhong Bei pushed open the door, and ran into the top floor.
Cai Jing looked gloomy and almost wanted to explode.
Da Bei’s heart jolted, he reprimanded his own beloved son on behalf of Cai
Jing, roaring, “Idiot, you’re doing it again! Don’t you know this place needs
silence? If these explosive peppers are roused, it will cause a chain explosion
that will destroy the entire town!”
“So, sorry!” Magician Zhong Bei waved his hand, looking pleasantly surprised,
“There is an important matter that just happened. A stranger paid a visit and
said he has a clue to Great Master Za Zhong’s inheritance!”
“Oh?” Da Bei and Cai Jing were astonished.
The two glanced at each other and promptly left the top floor.
Going down the stairs, they came to the third floor parlor. On the way, they
inquired Zhong Bei of the mysterious visitor, but Zhong Bei didn’t know much
about them.
Not long after, the three saw the mysterious visitor in the parlor.
It was the dragonman youngster.
No, to Cai Jing and the two others, the young man looked like an unfamiliar
gold level snow elf magician.
“May I ask what your distinguished name is? You hold a clue to Great Master Fan
Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance? How did you know that was our objective this
trip?” Cai Jing directly inquired.
The snow elf youngster looked serene, he icily and arrogantly sized up Cai Jing
and Zhong Bei, not endearing at all. 
The young man calmly stated, “You turned over Graft Town five times, and have
come up empty handed. I have a clue you want.”
“I have come to collaborate with you.”
“Collaboration?” Cai Jing pursed his brows, he didn’t have a good first
impression of the snow elf youngster.
A smile floated onto Da Bei’s face, and his attitude was much more cordial than
Cai Jing, he probed, “Sire, might you be a member of the Alchemy Guild?”
The snow elf youngster waved his hand, “That is not important, first let me see
whether you have the qualifications to work with me.”
“If you aren’t qualified, then it is a waste of time discussing it with you.”
Cai Jing’s brows wrinkled tighter, coldly taking measure of the snow elf
youngster, “How will you calculate qualifications, do you want to test us?”
The young man was expressionless, “This is indeed a test. I will test you all
at once, and don’t you want to test me too? Come to the dueling arena.”
It had to be said that this proposal conformed with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
culture.
Duels permeated each facet of Ice Sculpture citizens’ daily lives. Before
negotiations began, to confirm qualifications a duel was held, a common
occurrence.
Cai Jing and Da Bei glanced at each other, then they both looked at the snow
elf youngster and nodded simultaneously.
Cai Jing said, “Then let’s go to a dueling arena!”
Although Graft Town was small, it had five dueling arenas.
They picked the largest one with complete facilities, then set up a private
duel with no spectators.
The snow elf youngster and Cai Jing faced each other.
Da Bei was far weaker in combat than Cai Jing, so the latter was the only
choice for this.
Da Bei was presiding, and after counting down, he roared, “Let the duel begin.”
There was only one person in the large spectator gallery, Magician Zhong Bei. 
Da Bei ran back to stand behind Magician Zhong Bei.
The snow elf youngster and Magician Cai Jing didn’t rush to battle.
The snow elf youngster was calm and unruffled, “Magician Cai Jing, I heard you
are good at deploying magic plants. You best take out your special skills,
otherwise I will defeat you easily, you don’t want to regret it.”
Cai Jing sneered angrily at the young man’s arrogance. He narrowed his eyes,
and knowing the gravity of the situation, he bit his teeth and said, “Then you
shall get what you wish!” 
Summoning spell – Ascending Dragon Grass.
With a short magic staff in his hand, he raised his arm, activating a magic
formation, and directly unleashing the spell in the staff.
The summoning formation instantly formed in the air.
A moment later, space violently fluctuated, and a thicket of grass several
meters tall was summoned into the dueling arena.
The Ascending Dragon Grass shook its slender grass stalks like it was dancing
gracefully.
The grass tips were very pointy, glistened with metal luster, and were as sharp
as spear tips.
Spatial magic – Space Holes.
Magician Cai Jing’s magic ring on his hand flashed, activating the spell loaded
in it.
A second later, the dueling arena’s space undulated fiercely several times as a
large amount of pitch-black holes appeared.
These holes weren’t that big and were concentrated around the Ascending Dragon
Grass and the snow elf youngster.
The Ascending Dragon Grass’ tips entered these space holes, and a moment later,
crossed through space and extended out of the space holes near the young man.
Ten grass tips stabbed at the snow elf youngster together.
The young man wielded his long magic staff.
He pressed the bottom of the staff on the ground, triggering its installed
defensive magic.
A moment later, a water ball formed around his body.
The grass tips thrusted into the thick water ball, and for a moment, it was
hard for them to pierce through.
Under the snow elf youngster’s spiritual control, the water ball’s surface
surged with streams of water. The flow accelerated, forming a whirlpool that
firmly sucked all of the grass tips into it.
The snow elf youngster began to chant, and after a few brief words of magic, a
chill began to spread.
The strong chill followed along the water ball, covered the Ascending Dragon
Grass’ tips, then penetrated the space holes, and began to erode the Ascending
Dragon Grass’ main body.
The gold level Ascending Dragon Grass was turned to ice in mere seconds,
becoming motionless.
Da Bei and Magician Zhong Bei were both shaken.
The snow elf youngster’s defense and counterattack was quite sharp. In less
than ten seconds, he suppressed the Ascending Dragon Grass instead.
“He only used two spells, one water type, and one ice type. But he used no less
than four spell techniques. They were quick casting, simple chanting, spell
stacking, and barrier casting.”
“The crucial thing is what made those spells so strong, his magic equipment or
his bloodline?” 
The father and son had some scope of insight, in just one round, they
immediately understood that the snow elf youngster was a formidable caster.
Summoning spell – Frost Leaf Flower.
A large white flower covered Cai Jing’s body.
Summoning spell – Absolute Zero Birch.
Two towering birch trees stood at either side of Magician Cai Jing. These birch
trees had very high ice resistance.
Spell – Giant Type Life Transformation. 
A second later, the life transformation spell caused the Absolute Zero Birch
Trees to pull out their roots to form giant feet and twist their branches
together to form fists. The tree trunks looked like a person’s face as the
trees finally turned into two giants.
The giants pounced from the snow elf youngster’s left and right
The young man had been maintaining his water ball barrier, and the water ball
rolled, sliding him backwards.
It left behind a trail of ice, slowing down the pursuing giants’ steps.
The young man chanted, condensing countless icicles in the air.
Several hundred icicles shot down, striking the giant trees with clacking
echoes.
The birch giants were gradually worn down and fell mid pursuit.
The young man began his counteroffensive.
Cai Jing moved while doing mobile casting and attacking.
Ice type magic that was shooting towards him or covered a certain range was
mostly absorbed by the Frost Leaf Flower, greatly reducing their might. He was
safe and sound.
Cai Jing’s summoned magic plants couldn’t cope with the snow elf youngster.
In the audience, Da Bei and Zhong Bei were unable to take their eyes away from
this.
“Lord Cai Jing’s fighting style is very distinct. He cultivated his own
summons, the magic plants have different functions, using them for attack,
defense, and healing. Almost all of his spells are used to aid these magic
plants and more easily display their power.”
“This mysterious snow elf magician is fairly traditional. He mainly uses
various kinds of ice magic, and occasionally some water magic. He is definitely
a special duty battle magician, casually grasping all kinds of casting
techniques and his various spells are done as naturally and smoothly as
breathing. Watching him fight simply is enjoyable!”
The young man and Cia Jing attacked each other for a short time, then when Cai
Jing gradually couldn’t endure the strong pressure, he revealed a trump card.
He summoned a gigantic Morning Glory magic plant.
The Morning Glory sprayed the magic medicine loaded in it.
This magic medicine was called Muddled Color, and it had a strange, yet potent
effect of mixing energy.
The medicine sprayed onto the ice magic, immediately causing ice walls and ice
arrows to collapse into balls of chaotic ice elements. When it sprayed onto the
young man’s water ball, it nearly caused the water ball to crumble.
The snow elf youngster remained calm under danger, and laughed, “That’s more
like it.”
The fiercer and more pressuring the fight was, the more efficient his magician
experience would be.
Magic spell – Rapid Freeze Ray.
Magic spell – Flying Magic Mirror.
Ten magic mirrors with smooth and shiny surfaces spun like frisbees as they
fluttered in all directions. Five or six Rapid Freeze Rays shot out, reflecting
across the magic mirrors and diffracting into three rays. With one refraction,
tiny Rapid Freeze Rays covered the entire dueling arena!
The light rays were far more numerous and complicated than the magic medicine.
The Morning Glory’s spraying was clearly weakened by the light rays, and under
the swift barrage, was frozen into an ice cube.
Zhong Bei and Da Bei shifted their expression, both feeling things were far
from good.
As both sides attacked each other, Cai Jing was obviously not a match. This was
not a good omen.
Cai Jing did everything he could to counterattack, releasing all kinds of magic
plans in turn, including the explosive peppers he was just cultivating.
These peppers were hurled and exploded with remarkable power, blowing up the
snow elf youngster’s temporarily condensed giant ice wolf.
The young man immersed himself in the thrill of battle, becoming more
proficient as the battle went on. As he used spells one after the other, all
kinds of casting techniques were quickly polished to perfection in actual
combat.
One had to at least be at gold level to put the young man under pressure.
To tell the truth, Cai Jing was not weak, he was an elite gold level. He was a
great master counterfeiter, and before he joined the Alchemy Guild, he was a
loner who had the skills to keep himself safe.
But as the fight continued, the young man was growing stronger. Cai Jing wanted
to make a comeback, but from beginning to end, he was pushed into a downwind
position. The more he tried, the more powerless he felt.
Large amounts of magic plants were frozen into ice blocks, and as Cai Jing
strived to rescue them, many more magic plants were frozen.
The young man’s Bloodcore didn’t have any snow elf bloodlines in it; his form
was just from deception divine spells. What was really amplifying him was the
ice dragon bloodlines he had absorbed.
Through real combat testing, the bloodline boost turned out to be very good.
At least fighting someone like Cai Jing was no problem.
This allowed the young man to test how strong he was as a magician.
“That’s enough, let’s end it.” As soon as he saw Cai Jing had nothing left to
reveal, the snow elf youngster waved a hand and did something big. 
This was not magic, but a divine spell.
The divine spell’s vast power immediately swept across the entire dueling
arena, blowing Cai Jing into the air, and nearly launching him outside.
The young man took the initiative to dominate, and Cai Jing landed onto the
ground, looking quite unsightly.  
Da Bei and Zhong Bei were dumbfounded.
When the young man used a divine spell at the end, its power and indescribable
aura made it clear the young man’s mastery of divine spells was not inferior to
his own magic.
As it turns out, during this long fight, the snow elf youngster only used half
his strength.
Even Cai Jing couldn’t help but ponder, “If he used divine spells, how long
would I last?”
By the time the snow elf youngster floated over to Cai Jing, the alchemist no
longer was indignant about the young man’s arrogant look. 
Cai Jing bowed his head in a magician’s etiquette, submitting cheerfully, “I
lost, sire, your battle strength is extraordinary!”
The young man was happy.
In the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, as long as one was strong enough, they could
convince others through a duel, this was quite convenient!
He said to Cai Jing, “You’re pretty strong too, you are qualified to work with
me. I can give you the pertinent clues, that’s right, Great Master Fan Sheng Za
Zhong’s inheritance really is in Graft Town.”
The snow elf youngster put on airs.
“In that case, what do we need to pay for it?” Can Jing inquired, finding it
difficult to cover up his nervousness.
The young man’s mouth curled into a thin smile: “I want you to take part in
this year’s Warm Snow Cup and help the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ Magician
Yao Ma pass the second exam.”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?” Cai Jing was startled.
He knew of this mercenary corps.
Originally, Da Bei had found him to deal with this mercenary corps.
Cai Jin had neither malice nor a good opinion of the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps. He knew the Alchemy Guild’s Magician Shuang Lian seemed to collaborate
with this mercenary corps. And Shuang Lian had once given him a hard time,
forcing him to take out Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance piece to
keep the peace.
But this conflict was mainly between Cai Jing and Shuang Lian. In fact, the
conflict wasn’t that deep, and it didn’t hinder Cai Jing one bit from agreeing
to this request.
“And you?” The snow elf youngster looked at Da Bei and Zhong Bei.
The father and son glanced at each other, forcing a smile one after the other.
Originally, because Zhong Bei’s supervision was lacking, Bu Quan had joined the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, leading to a string of events. Now, the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps was coming into their lives once again.
The mysterious and formidable snow elf magician requested that they work with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
Cai Jing had already agreed, so Da Bei and Zhong Bei had no choice but to pick
collaboration too.
Both sides signed and agreed to an auspiciously light collaboration contract,
the snow elf youngster then used a divine spell to create another layer of
insurance.
“Now then follow me.” The youngster secretly led the three to Jia Bing’s
residence.
“So, it was actually in Jia Bing’s alchemy room!” Da Bei and the others
obviously knew what this place was.
At the time, after Zong Ge won his 3 v 1, he and Zi Di accelerated their trip
to clandestinely come to Graft Town to plunder Jia Bing’s alchemy laboratory.
Before departing, the two noticed Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s secret
inheritance door. They tried their best, but the door wouldn’t open. As there
wasn’t an opportunity at the time, they gave the door the classic combination
of Deceptive Disguise and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell before
leaving.
They left just in time, as not long after, the duelists dispatched personnel
over. Because Jia Bing guarded the secret of the inheritance, never disclosing
it to anyone, the duelist didn’t find it.
Cai Jing and the others had searched Graft Town a full five times, and so long
as those spells still existed, based on their own strength, they would never
find it.
As the three wore expressions of utter incomprehension, the snow elf youngster
lightly wiped the secret door with his hand, undoing the magic and allowing it
to appear.
The three were utterly excited, Cai Jing even more so, nearly throwing himself
at it.
He reached out to caress the secret door, his voice trembling, “That’s right,
this is another one of Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritances!”
Don’t be fooled by how calm and leisurely he was with his peppers, as a matter
of fact, he valued this series of inheritances more than Da Bei.
Because his strength and alchemy research both revolved around magic plants.
Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritances were extremely helpful to him.
While Da Bei had limited strength and talent, this inheritance strengthened him
only minimally. What Da Bei truly valued was the Alchemy Guild’s calculated
contribution and merits after this mission was accomplished.
“First conceal this information, wait until we open the secret door, then we
can tell the higherups,” said Da Bei.
After discovering the secret door, he was no longer anxious. On the contrary,
he was extremely vigilant, afraid that on the eve of success, the Alchemy
Guild’s higherups would transfer him away.
Cai Jing straightened his body, his eyes still fixed on the secret door,
sighing, “I want to open this secret door, but it isn’t easy, and it will take
a long time.”
It had taken a lot of effort to open the first secret door. Touching this
secret door didn’t even provide the barest threads of information on how to
open it. It would require meticulous study to create a grafted magic plant the
secret door would approve of, and that would take a lot of energy and time,
along with constant attempts.
Cai Jing looked at the snow elf youngster, “First I will help the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps pass the second exam. That matter is more urgent.”
Da Bei looked grave.
Helping the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would not be simple. How was Da Bei not
unaware that the Alchemy Guild and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were in a
bet, and that the truly powerful Elder Hua Ni was in the process of suppressing
and attempting to eliminate Yao Ma (Zi Di)?
Nowadays, if the three people wanted to help Yao Ma, then their status and
renown in the Alchemy Guild would be immensely impacted.
But the dragonman youngster shook his head, “If I could say I could help you
solve this secret door in half a day, what would you think?”
Cai Jing, Da Bei, and Zhong Bei were simultaneously dumbfounded.
Zhong Bei was incredulous, subconsciously retorting, “How is that possible?”
Cai Jing was bewildered.
Da Bei was the most meticulous researcher, while at the same time lacking the
talent, unable to know from experience how hard it was to open the secret door,
therefore, he was the first to react, “Sire, what do you want to do?”
The snow elf youngster thought out what Cang Xu said, repeating those words,
“In fact. I can do much more for you.”
“For example, a higher position in the Alchemy Guild. Don’t you want the same
power and position as Hua Ni?”
Da Bei’s heart beat wildly, Zhong Bei’s mouth fell open.
Cai Jing locked his brows tight, his mind rising with alertness. He gazed at
the snow elf youngster, “I know the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps is backed by an
arms merchant, you were dispatched by their backer!”



****** Chapter 725: The Enemy Crumbles from Within ******
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild’s Warm Snow Cup’s second exam site
was set up in a dueling arena.
“I didn’t expect to have so many people participating in the second exam.” The
dragonman youngster slightly swept his eyes around, apart from the spectators
who bought tickets, there were a thousand alchemists competing.
That was a lot!
One must know that to advance to the Warm Snow Cup’s second round, iron level
and bronze levels vanished, one at minimum had to be a silver level. There were
also no lack of gold levels, who were currently sitting on the sidelines,
almost all of them surrounded by crowds.
This was the world of the strong, alchemists and magicians were no exception.
The vast majority of alchemy proposals requested transcendent levels. If the
transcendent level was too low, sometimes even test observation was
impossible. 
“This includes the contestants that got through the first round, there are
still so many left. That there are so many left is a testament to this being a
top quality alchemy kingdom on the Main Plane.”
Sitting next to the dragonman youngster was Cang Xu, who was secretly
transmitting this to him.
“In terms of territory size, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is a tiny pellet
compared to most kingdoms on the continents. But its alchemy strength is
extraordinary, and adding on its culture of ferocity, it has always maintained
a large scale army, worthy of the reputation of a great militaristic
powerhouse.”
“This country’s shortcoming is poor resources. They only have one super-
resource point, and many of their resource points are concentrated in ice and
water elements, a severe overemphasis in these areas. They also rely on
flourishing export trades to sell large amounts of excellent quality alchemy
products, allowing the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to obtain an astonishing amount of
foreign money. By utilizing foreign trade to support and repay their domestic
activities, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has maintained their high development
costs and military spending.”
He was seldom together with the dragonman youngster, and he wouldn’t let by any
chance to proactively teach the latter as much as possible to raise his
cognition level and develop his international perspective.
The young man earnestly listened, actively absorbing it and itching to write it
all down.
He was constantly growing and wouldn’t let off any opportunity to learn.
Through Cang Xu’s recent admonishment, the dragonman youngster noticed many of
his inadequacies.
Previously, he planned against Snow Bird Harbor City Lord, Tan Mo, Cong Mang,
and the others. He had captured the gold level pirate alive, then gave a large
scale sermon to Da Dou, Cong Mang, Hun Tong, and the others, filling him with a
sense of achievement.
However, after communicating with Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster could see
clearly that these accomplishments was mere ignorance and fearlessness, he was
blindly charging ahead, while the hidden dangers were enormous, it just didn’t
collapse on him on the spot.
Cang Xu’s admonishment allowed him to deeply familiarize himself with what was
called scholarly knowledge and wisdom.
Emulating the virtuous, the young man also longed to use a talent like Cang Xu,
therefore he made up his mind, conscientiously studied, and actively got closer
to Cang Xu.
Despite obtaining lots of experience from divine blessings, those experiences
were focused on cultivation.
His lifetime wisdom was barely increased.
Under the Alchemy Guild’s management, the second exam calmly began.
According to the arena’s arrangement, every ten groups of alchemists would get
onto the wide dueling arena and publicly do alchemy.
The dragonman youngster watched, noticing that each group had three people.
There were no pairs. The second exam had a massive alchemy workload, and each
group was filled to the maximum limit.
The first round finished, with only three groups left. Just the first step –
refining a complete alchemy puppet, eliminated 70% of the contestants.
And of the three groups left, although they had a complete alchemy puppet,
after they fought the ice sculpture guardian, each of them was defeated. The
most outstanding of them only lasted three rounds.
The dragonman youngster’s brows creased, making out clues.
The refined alchemy puppets had decent battle prowess and was not too different
from the ice sculpture guardian. The real disparity was intelligence. 
Those hastily refined puppets looked like dementia patients. The ice sculpture
guardian was quite quick witted, as if it were a normal person, and this
disparity in intelligence led to a distinct contrast in performance.
The best of the next five rounds was the third round, where four groups refined
a battle puppet. Among them, one group’s puppet lasted ten rounds, then
suddenly, it began to fume with smoke and stopped moving, allowing the ice
sculpture guardian to effortlessly take the win.
From this, it could be seen that this year’s Warm Snow Cup exam was extremely
difficult.
The dragoman youngster, in the audience seating, was observing and listening in
all directions, hearing the surrounding people discuss and ridicule how
difficult this year’s Warm Snow Cup was.
The young man sighed, “To some degree, these people were burdened by us.”
He looked towards the judging panel seating, noticing that Hua Ni was sitting
in the middle, looking very gloomy.
She was the most obvious enemy in the Alchemy Guild!
The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but recall what Cang Xu had said
beforehand.
Cang Xu, “Before this, we need to save someone first.”
Zi Di: “Shi Liu?”
Cang Xu shook his head, and said the answer, “It is Jiu Jin.”
The Alchemy Guild’s Elder Jiu Jin had become the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
saboteur after Zi Di gained leverage over him.
Cang Xu’s answer was surprising.
The dragonman youngster thought of Zong Ge, Shuang Lian, and Bu Quan.
To the youngster it seemed that Jiu Jin was a valued elder, he had no safety
issues, why did they need to rescue him?
But Cang Xu stated why, “At present, we know the Li Jian Clan has extraordinary
monitoring capabilities. When Zong Ge was playing the role of the commander,
they saw two Long Fus, and from that point of view, they unraveled Deceptive
Disguise and the Anti-investigation and Prophecy spell.”
“At the time, Miss Zi Di grabbed hold of Jiu Jin’s weak point and blackmailed
him, and the Li Jian knew about that. However, they didn’t have feasible
evidence in hand like we do.”
“Even so, the Li Jian Clan can deal with Jiu Jin with this information
already.”
Zi Di frowned, still puzzled.
She calculated this situation but felt it was no big deal. Jiu Jin’s undead
aura had already dissipated, and the real evidence was in her hands. Even if
the Li Jian Clan raised difficult questions, it wouldn’t endanger Elder Ju
Jin’s life or affect the Wisteria Cache.
Of course, Jiu Jin would be suspected, pushed aside, suppressed, and at most,
sacked from office. Zi Di planned that if this situation occurred, she could
take advantage of it to recruit Elder Jiu Jin.
But Cang Xu shook his head, declaring, “We must save Jiu Jin! Or to be more
accurate, we must save his current position within the Alchemy Guild.”
“Only in the Alchemy Guild, only in the capital, can Jiu Jin have much more of
an impact. As an insider elder, Jiu Jin really helped us a lot. Correct?”
Zi Di nodded, without Jiu Jin leaking the exam questions to her, she would be
unable to get through the first exam.
Cang Xu then said, “The Li Jian Clan might denounce him. If that happens, Elder
Jiu Jin’s position and power will be in serious danger. Currently, we really
need external support. We are outsiders and must take root as soon as possible
and assimilate with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. We are climbing a mountain, and
Jiu Jin is one of our few leverage points. If he loses his position, then we
will suffer immense losses.”
“Jiu Jin is actually an outstandingly helpful partner.”
“First, he once worked with the Wisteria Merchant Alliance and experienced
receiving its financial aid. Second, we have significant blackmail on him, and
if we toss it out, he is bound to lose his standing and at best he’ll be
imprisoned for life, and at worst he’ll be executed for being the accomplice of
an undead. Finally, he has already yielded to us. Even if he is unwilling, he
already leaked questions to us and accepted that he’ll only be falling deeper
and deeper.”
After pausing for a moment, Cang Xu gazed at the two, “Passing the Warm Snow
Cup’s second question is that the main event. We want to pass the first round
of exams to enter the next stage of the Warn Snow Cup: displaying our alchemy
products.” 
“In that stage, we will finally utilize War Merchant’s legacy and have a good
chance of taking first place. As a reward for being first, we can receive
financial aid in the construction of a magician tower. If we build a magician
tower, we will have taken root in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. Apart from
sufficient combat strength, a magician tower is also a production base that
will safeguard our alchemy business.”
“If the Alchemy Guild doesn’t resolve and eliminate us right now, I can’t say
for sure Hua Ni will give up. The greatest possibility is that she will
continue to organize more elimination questions, and if we compete according to
the rules, then we will be too passive!”
Cang Xu’s views drew the young man’s and lady’s fervent nods. 
Cang Xu took a deep breath, “We need to establish ourselves, to take root in
the Ice Sculpture Kingdom!”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom and the Sheng Ming Empire are secretly setting
themselves against each other, and possess natural contractions, along with
intense, surreptitious contests. Although the empire is strong, it is
apprehensive about the implications. Even though the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is
weaker, it has a legendary foundation and is the local ruler.”
“Thes two colossuses pitting themselves against each other is bound to create
upheaval, it is precisely this opportunity and place we can grasp and exploit.”
“Snake Rat Island, Two Eyes Island, those places were too small, and already
under the Sheng Ming Empire’s control. Even if they weren’t islands, they don’t
have enough space for us to use.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom people are tough as nails and have a strong dueling
ambience. We enjoy the convenience of duels, and your name, Lord Commander, is
propagated nationwide, you have gained the populace’s widespread support, and
if this was anywhere else, those things would be extremely difficult to
accomplish in so short a time span.”
“The resources here are also relatively rich. Despite it being considered a
small pellet-sized country, to us, it is big enough.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom also has an adequate alchemy environment. Our
alchemy products here will be enormously competitive, we’ll be able to sell
then for profits that we can reinvest into ourselves, improving our strength
and using the surplus to expand production, forming a positive cycle.”
As he said that, Cang Xu looked towards Zi Di, throwing a look of admiration,
“Thanks to Miss Zi Di, our business plan succeeded immensely, we have abundant
capital, and most crucially, we can establish ourselves and accelerate our
expansion.”
In the field of business, Cang Xu really admired Zi Di’s methods. If it were
him, he definitely couldn’t have achieved what she did. This was far more than
outstanding, Zi Di developed the unexplored market of mount potions, and
stirred up the magic medicine market in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom with a
massive surge of waves. The huge profits caused a colossus like the Alchemy
Guild to become threatening, and personally participated in a bet with her, it
was clear Zi Di was an absolute genius at this.
“In view of Miss Zi Di’s hatred for the empire’s Seventh Prince and a good deal
of nobles, we need to look for appropriate imperial higherups. But building up
a network usually takes a lot of time.”
“The redemption plan still needs to continue.”
“In this time period, we need to energetically grow, strive to absorb every
resource and opportunity near us, and do our utmost to expand and grow. If we
can become an influential power in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, this will
definitely raise our bargaining weight.”
“If the redemption plan is successful, our extraordinary quality, comprehensive
battle strength, and influence can be fully displayed on stage through the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom. Our value were be determined, and our bargaining chips in
negotiations will grow, we’ll need to hand over fewer spoils of war and keep
more of them.”
“If the redemption plan fails, we will help the Ice Sculpture Kingdom! Using
them as a temporary protective umbrella that can hold back external wind and
frost for the time being, delaying for crucial time. Of course, being forced
into such a terrible situation is something I don’t want to end up in.”
Cang Xu fully integrated the present circumstances together, declaring the
survivors’ grand strategy henceforth.
When Zi Di heard this, her eyes shined, approving at once, “Sure, we should do
that.”
She looked at the Commander, “If the redemption plan succeeds, we can contact
the Imperial Secret Spy Agency and deal with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
together.”
“If the redemption plan fails, we can give the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
information and expose the Imperial Secret Spy Agency to display our sincerity
for cooperation to them.”
The main focus was on being a flexible faction.
The dragonman youngster didn’t retort. Cang Xu’s strategy continued their
redemption plan, combined it with the latest situation, considered success or
failure, advancing or retreating in accordance to it, and was very reliable.
Cang Xu then said, “To take root in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, we cannot act
like how we are right now. Hogging the magic medicine benefits is not
desirable, forming alliances of benefits will produce many more hidden
profits.”
“Of course, it is imperative we cut ties with the Li Jian Clan!”
“They were utterly defeated by Da Han on the sea; their deliberate conservation
of their strength was a political blunder and caused the entire clan to stink
to high heaven and be in quite the vile political environment within the
kingdom currently. If we continue to work with them, they will encumber and
hinder our plan of taking root.”
“Accounts haven’t been settled with the Li Jian Clan yet because of the
National Ceremony Grand Duel, the imminent forming of the Dueling Godhead, and
the external threat of Da Han and the empire, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom is
unable to pull any resources to deal with them, that’s all.”
Cang Xu raised a finger, “First we resolve the Alchemy Guild problem, then we
cut ties with the Li Jian Clan.”
“By getting involved with the Alchemy Guild, we must help our agents, crumbling
the enemy from within.”
“With regards to Elder Jiu Jin, we have to save him. We cannot allow him to
collapse and must do everything we can to stabilize his current position.”
“The current danger is that the Li Jian Clan is likely to leak his real
relationship with us. The reason why Hua Ni hasn’t acted yet might be to lull
us into a false sense of security. The list of names we obtained was stolen by
Jiu Jin copying the database.”
“This is perhaps the enemy’s trap.”
“Therefore, accepting anyone on the list is a hazard. For the next exam,
excluding me, the third person will be quite crucial.”
“Here, I shall recommend someone…”
“Cai Jing!”



****** Chapter 726: Advancing Before Hua Ni’s Eyes ******
The Ice Sculpture Capital, the Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest site.
“Success!”
“We knocked down the ice sculpture guardian!”
“Oh, finally someone passed.”
“The cheers in the arena interrupted the dragonman youngster’s memories. He
stared out and saw the ice sculpture guardian being defeated.
The consecutive losses caused the arena to be quite depressed. 
The first alchemist group to pass caused the other competing magicians to relax
and grow more confident.
The dragonman youngster carefully observed, recognizing who the winner was.
“It is the current Blood Kin City Lord.”
This city lord came to the capital half a year earlier for this competition,
leaving an assistant back in Blood Kin City to administer it. While all of his
energy and time was spent on preparing for the Warm Snow Cup.
This conduct and bearing was not becoming of a city lord. But as a master
alchemist, he was clearly outstanding, strong enough and very ambitious.
What Blood Kin City Lord was attempting was obvious at a glance – he wanted to
fight for top three in the Warm Snow Cup and obtain the reward that would let
him construct his own magician tower!
“Worthy of being a gold level alchemist and magician.”
“The rune circuits he created were excellent, and he considered all of the
circumstances that might happen during the battle.”
“The other two silver levels are indeed fortunate to smoothly follow Blood Kin
City Lord in his success.”
“His magic circuit design fundamentals are exceedingly outstanding, if I were
doing it, I would take up at least five times as much of the puppet’s internal
space. So many effects, from just twenty sets of magic circuits. How did he
accomplish this?”
The alchemists were discussing spiritedly.
Magic circuit designing was a basic skill to these alchemists.
As a veteran alchemist, Blood Kin City Lord was not just strong, he was
exceptional.
It was with the outstanding magic circuits he designed that allowed his puppet
to have enough space to load military equipment and thereby defeat the ice
sculpture guardian and advance. 
It could be said that Blood Kin City Lord used his formidable power to pass the
second round fair and square.
Not long after, another group succeeded.
“It is Xue Tuan Zi.” 
The survivors had been paying attention to her.
The dragonman youngster cared because Xue Tuan Zi was a member of the duelists.
Cang Xu valued her background much more, Xue Tuan Zi was herself outstanding
enough, while her grandfather was even more so, he was the master of Snow Cake
Tower and a genuinely powerful elder in the Alchemy Guild, one that possessed
his own magician tower.
Magician towers greatly amplified magicians’ power. A magician who had a tower
was absolutely a person of high standing. No matter if it was wealth or
fighting strength, neither could be looked down upon.
Xue Tuan Zi and Blood Kin City Lord were both gold level alchemy masters, but
their line of thoughts were utterly different.
She designed the alchemy puppet very peculiarly, it looked like a child yeti,
chubby, shoddily made, mainly focused on defense, far more than its offense.
After the battle with the ice sculpture guardian started, the alchemy puppet
took a beating the entire time.
However, as it was being beaten up, it was constantly absorbing those external
attacks and turned them into internal energy. After enough internal energy was
saved, a violent explosion occurred.
The ice sculpture guardian was blown up, leaving behind the small yeti.
According to the Alchemy Guild’s rules, it was quickly judged that Xue Tuan
Zi’s group would advance.
“You can do this?” Everyone was amazed.
Xue Tuan Zi’s method was undoubtedly quite a revelation to everyone. Many
people benefited from it, and new ways of thinking were formed, but it was too
late.
Making changes for the second exam was very hard, and many things needed to be
prepared for it.
The dragonman youngster secretly analyzed, “Xue Tuan Zi is a duelist, and her
background is very good. She is seeking and provoking duels and constantly
going to arenas. Therefore, her battle abilities are also outstanding.”
“Her tactics and alchemy designs combined and expressed stability that could
let her advance.”
In the twelfth round, it was Zi Di’s group to go onto stage.
Cang Xu and Zi Di kept together, but these two were not the protagonists in the
audience’s eyes. Most of them were casting their sight on the third person.
The gold level alchemist – Cai Jing!
“An Alchemy Guild elder is actually competing.”
“How is he qualified?”
“Haven’t you researched the rules? So long as one is an Alchemy Guild Elder,
they can participate in the Warm Snow Cup’s alchemy achievement exhibition. He
can take part in any round or exam question.”
Essentially, the Warm Snow Cup’s first exam was to weed out the inferior
people, and filter for the true alchemy elites. If an elder level figure cannot
pass, then the Alchemy Guild must be incompetent.
“Great Master Cai Jing obviously could participate in the achievement
exhibition, but as it happens, he decided to participate in this exam
question…”
“Damn it, to be wealthy enough to hug such a thigh.”
“Humph, we don’t know how much he was paid.”
“Speaking of which, even though Cai Jing became an Alchemy Guild elder, he has
a very dark past. Many years ago, to make money, he counterfeited many products
and disturbed the entire nation’s alchemy marketplace.”
Some familiar with the alchemist looked at Hua Ni.
Hua Ni narrowed her eyes, rigidly glaring at Cai Jing.
She had been scheming to eliminate Yao Ma (Zi Di), but in the end, Cai Jing
took part in the competition to safeguard Yao Ma!
Cai Jing had just joined the guild, and not long after being appointed elder,
he immediately made a play against Elder Hua Ni!
His guts were too fat.
At first, Hua Ni still believed that Cai Jing was unaware of the inside story
and severity. Therefore, she personally contacted Cai Jing, yet Cai Jing
refused without the slightest hesitation.
At once, Hua Ni fumed with unbearable anger!
Due to the rules, Hua Ni couldn’t raise difficult questions. She and Cia Jing
were elders both, and even if she wanted to suppress and push aside the latter,
she couldn’t do that at the moment.
In short, Hua Ni was enraged but could do nothing for the time being.
She could only tenaciously remember this slight by Cai Jing.
Of course, this also included Cang Xu.
After signing up, the groups were determined. The Alchemy Guild, Li Jian Clan,
and Jing Xiang Clan all secretly contacted Cang Xu, wanting him to desert. In
the end, all were cleverly put off by Cang Xu and he ultimately rejected them
all.
He was undoubtedly playing with these three factions!
The exam began.
Zi Di and Cang Xu hastily moved. Very quickly, the weak alchemy foundation they
showed caused many master alchemists to frown. This standard of supporting work
was not presentable.
But Cai Jing was a true clutch!
He was a gold level, and although his reputation as a counterfeiting great
master was bad, it conversely proved his skills. As a magician, he was able to
meet Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s standards, open the secret door, and
acquire the grafted magic plant inside, a task impossible for many gold level
alchemists.
One must know that Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong was a druid, and his
inheritance was set aside for druids.
Why did the Alchemy Guild have to appoint Cai Jing as the one who would
continue to excavate Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance? Could it be
because he was familiar with them? Of course not! His “unrivaled” alchemy
strength in the domain of magic plants was somewhat exaggerated. But in the
massive Alchemy Guild, it was really hard to find anyone who was comparable
with him.
Those that were Cai Jing’s match or stronger were usually heavy weights and had
more important business to attend to.
In short, Cai Jing served as the main force, displaying a critical role that
allowed the alchemy here to go off without a hitch.
Zi Di’s group’s finished product looked like an ice gargoyle. It was the shape
Zi Di was most familiar with, and also had mass popularity, conforming with the
norms of society.
During the fight, the ice gargoyle performed well. Not only was it agile, but
it also attacked first and even had rich expressions.
When it was wounded during the fight, the ice gargoyle actually resembled a
living person, its frost calls of pain dumbfounding many spectators.
That was overthinking things a bit.
Cai Jing was an expert at micro-magic formations. His main method of
cultivating magic plants was engraving all kinds of micro-formations on the
outside and inside of magic plants, so these magic plants could hear his
commands, and be used for other purposes like amplifying the magic plants’
power, or complementing the magic plants’ shortcomings, and so on. 
During his duel with the dragonman youngster, the latter confirmed his
strength. Like the explosive peppers, after he carved micro-formations into
them, he could derive a person’s face into them.
The principle was through magic formations; he could bestow an object with
spirituality.
The ice gargoyle was thus a living presentation.
And the ice sculpture guardians all had the same design – human soldier, blade
in the right hand, shield in the left. They were balanced in all aspects and
didn’t have any obvious shortcomings or strong points. The biggest failing was
that they couldn’t fly.
The ice gargoyle could flutter and hover through the air, and not long after
the battle began, it held the upper hand.
This kind of advantage was maintained, lasting until it turned it into a
victory.
Thus, Zi Di’s group smoothly advanced.
“We passed!” When the dragonman youngster saw this, he laid down his worries
and let out a breath. 
When Zi Di returned, he merely nodded, then turned around and left the venue.
According to the plan, next he had to hand a matter immediately.
“You passed the second exam; you really have skills to go so far as to be able
to persuade Cai Jing.” Elder Ju Jin secretly relaxed, since the survivors had
leverage on him, he had no choice but to go along with their plans.
Jiu Jin looked towards Cai Jing, hiding a look of pity, “Elder Cai Jing’s
prospects are dark. He personally took part in the exam and helped Yao Ma.
What’s the difference between that and slapping Elder Hua Ni right in the
face?”
“In the future, he is bound to be targeted by Hua Ni!”
Just as Jiu Jin was sighing ruefully, someone appointed by Hua Ni suddenly
contacted him.
It went more or less like this: Hua Ni was considering Elder Jiu Jin’s
contribution in the organization of the Warm Snow Cup. He was being “rewarded”
by being promoted to the manager of the Alchemy Guild branch in Grey Stone
City.
When Elder Jiu Jin heard this, he stared blankly, doubting his own ears.
Grey Stone City was very poor; they didn’t even have bird poop. Even if he was
the Alchemy Guild branch leader there, it couldn’t compare to being a
comfortably off elder in the capital. This was no reward; it was a penal
sentence!
Finding it hard to believe, Jiu Jin ran through the crowd to the judging panel
and asked Hua Ni about this.
Hua Ni coldly looked at him, her heart full of resenting what Cai Jing just
did, and didn’t bother playing around. She directly said, “Jiu Jin, I haven’t
investigated into your business with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps because of
our past friendship.”
Jiu Jin felt like he fell into an icy hole in that split second.
“Hahaha, if Elder Jiu Jin doesn’t want to transfer, then it would be better if
he excavated Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritances with me.” Cai Jing
came up from behind, instead of returning to whence he came from, he instead
walked over to the judging panel.
Cai Jing looked at Hua Ni and around him, then suddenly, he revealed a flower
pot. Inside the flower pot was a gold level grafted magic plant.
His move immediately attracted everyone’s gaze.
Cai Jing publicly declared that this grafted magic plant was what lay behind
the secret door of Great Master Fan Sheng Za Shong’s inheritance.
And as expected, those words caused everyone to cry out in surprise.
Some insiders suddenly realized where Cai Jing got the confidence to compete
with Hua Ni – his meritorious service!
This immense merit was sufficient to turn a newly promoted elder like him into
one that truly stood firm in the guild.
Cai Jing gazed at Jiu Jin, and continued, “I also have to thank you, Elder Jiu
Jin, it was from you that I had a revelation. Therefore, this here is your
merit too.”
Jiu Jin was astonished, he had no relations with Cai Jing, so why was he lying
and defending for his sake?
But then Cai Jing secretly transmitted to Jiu Jin, quickly making things clear
– this was all the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ plan!
For a moment, Jiu Jin was both alarmed and delighted.
Like Cang Xu expected, Hua Ni learned that Jiu Jin was being blackmailed by the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from the Li Jian Clan and was unreliable. She
didn’t dismiss and replace Jiu Jin, but rather purposely let Jiu Jin take
information, using that list of names as a trap, to scheme against the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps.
On the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ side, under Cang Xu’s advisement, they saw
through this trap but also didn’t contact Jiu Jin ahead of time to inform him
that the survivors had already recruited Cai Jing so he could plan accordingly,
this conversely, lulled Hua Ni and other enemies into a false confidence.
Hua Ni sat there on the judging panel, looking very ashen, everyone could see
her ghastly mood!
Cai Jing helping Zi Di pass slapped her face.
Due to this humiliation, she tried to vent her anger on Elder Jiu Jin.
Instead of her anger being vented, Cai Jing skillfully turned things around.
Cai Jing was willing to give a part of his contribution to Jiu Jin. What
grounds did Hua Ni have to send Jiu Jin away and demote him unofficially?
“What’s going on? How did Graft Town’s inheritance excavation undergo such
immense progress all at once?’
Hua Ni had been paying close attention to this guild mission every day.
Because recently, there were many people begging to her, many guild members
desiring to force their way in, and on the extreme end, some who wanted to
directly suppress Magician Da Bei’s position for the sake of this lucrative
job.
Da Bei’s external reports had always been that they had made zero progress.
This was zero progress?!
Hua Ni didn’t suspect Cai Jing was lying.
Because it was too easy to verify. Only an idiot would do that.
The other elders on the judging panel looked at each other.
The situation had repeatedly developed beyond their expectations.
Hua Ni was struck without warning and lost a good deal of face. Cai Jing’s side
obviously came prepared.
Simultaneously, some in the audience looked at Magician Da Bei in the arena,
their eyes carrying blame, resentment, while others were rejoicing in another’s
misfortune.



****** Chapter 727: New Alchemy Guild Faction! ******
Da Bei had been appointed by the guild as Cai Jing’s supervisor.
When such massive progress was made, Magician Da Bei should have reported it.
But now, when Cai Jing publicly declared it, everyone knew.
Without a doubt, Magician Da Bei gravely neglected his duty, he must have
joined Cai Jing and gotten bribed by the latter.
In short, he would be held accountable for this matter!
Magician Da Bei naturally sensed many gazing at him with ill intent, his heart
filled with agony, but on the surface, he was calm and collected.
He walked out of the audience seating to the judging panel, and shouted, “As
one of the participants in this, I personally experienced the entire excavation
process, I can prove Elder Jiu Jin’s contribution was great and gave us a
crucial enlightenment.”
When Magician Da Bei made this statement, he made clear he completely stood on
Cai Jing’s side.
Contrary to belief, those words caused much of the countless malcontent gazes
to dwindle.
Many people narrowed their eyes, staring at Cai Jing, Jiu Jin, and Da Bei
standing near the judging panel, looking cautious.
Without a doubt, these three had at least reached a mutual alliance. From now
on, these fellows would advance and retreat together in the Alchemy Guild for a
long time.
Jiu Jin gave a look of thanks to Da Bei, he deliberated for a time, then
publicly expressed that he was very honored that he could help Cai Jing. More
importantly, he had a differing opinion on Hua Ni’s reassignment of him, and he
wanted to report it to the Alchemy Guild President.
Cai Jing stated at once that he happened to have the time, so it would be
better if they went together.
Undoubtably, bringing this accomplishment along would give Jiu Jin a platform
to pressure the president.
Everyone’s expression changed again.
The ambience in the arena also became stifling.
Some politically savvy alchemists realized at the same time: a brand new
faction was being born before their eyes!
Neither of the gold level magicians Jiu Jin or Da Bei had outstanding talent.
Honestly speaking, many master alchemists on the same level looked down upon
them, believing they were toadying too much for personal gain. But in the end,
they were guild elders who had operated for many years, their accumulated
contacts couldn’t be despised.
If the two united, they would be a threat, and they couldn’t compete openly
against truly powerful elders like Hua Ni.
This was the world of the strong, and these two weren’t strong. Their alchemy
didn’t make much contribution either and many of their contacts were transient.
The key was Cai Jing.
The core of this faction was undoubtedly Magician Cai Jing.
Cai Jing was outstanding in battle and alchemy mastery; thus the masses had to
concede.
His greatest regret was that he was an outsider. He just joined the Alchemy
Guild and wanted to gain the others’ trust and genuine acceptance, that needed
time and opportunity.
But in the wake of these three allying, Cai Jing could borrow Jiu Jin’s and Da
Bei’s networks, and his regret was already resolved to a degree!
Most of all, he acquired another of Great Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s
inheritance. The latter was a grand legend level, and this was the second time
Magician Cai Jing had opened his secret door. Apart from what this contribution
represented, Cai Jing’s inheritance excavation strength had won greater popular
approval.
Cai Jing had fully established himself!
With him and the other two combined, others were forced to face them squarely.
Many people were secretly praising Cai Jing’s brilliant skill in roping in
Elder Jiu Jin.
By contrast, Elder Hua Ni had actively pushed away Jiu Jin, a truly faulty
move.
Many people, even the gold level magicians, were not in the know. Hua Ni
thought about fighting for Jiu Jin; however, she knew that Jiu Jin would always
be under the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ thumb due to blackmail. So long as
this evidence existed, she could never hope Jiu Jin would truly convert to her
side. She would be unable to really trust Jiu Jin.
Hua Ni had no choice but to do this.
“This time, I’ve lost all face. You’ll all pay for this!” Hua Ni vowed in her
thoughts, knowing she had no choice as she fumed with rage, “Everyone, leave.
Right now is the Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest, now is not the setting to flaunt
your contributions.”
“Regardless of what you think of your position Jiu Jin, or your contribution
this time Cai Jing, it will be given to the Lord President to decide.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it.”
After saying that, Hua Ni’s expression inevitably withered with depression.
When everyone heard what she said, they all believed she had publicly admitted
defeat.
“Then we’ll take our leave.” Cai Jing smiled, gave a magician’s courtesy, and
calmly left with the posture of a winner.
Elder Jiu Jin and Da Bei followed close behind him.
His flaunting of his contribution and opposition to Hua Ni was all part of his
collaboration agreement with the snow elf youngster.
He had accomplished everything that was agreed upon. Naturally, he left the
dueling arena without a second thought. 
“Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps…”
Before leaving, he swept his eyes across the audience seating but didn’t see
Long Fu. 
After leaving the dueling arena, Cai Jing was still deep in thought.
“After this incident, I have become completely antithetical to Hua Ni.”
“What is the arms merchant behind the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps planning?”
“Helping us will help them disrupt the Alchemy Guild’s willpower for
hostilities.”
“It doesn’t matter, this is quite beneficial to me, isn’t that so?”
The reason why Cai Jing joined the Alchemy Guild was merely because it made
inheritance excavation more convenient, he didn’t have many aspirations to
curry favor. Although his bloodline had reached its limits, his individual
strength still had plenty of room to grow.
The reason rested with that his main combat strength was from various magic
plants.
Perhaps in the future he would change and become like Jiu Jin and Da Bei, but
for now, he wasn’t thinking about doing so.
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ backer’s method was brilliant.” Cai Jing’s
eyes flashed, mulling over that shocking day. 
Up until now, he was still unable to understand how the grafted plant the snow
elf returned with, one obviously from his own hands, had lasted for so long. He
had an outrageous answer that met the inheritance secret door’s criterion.
One must know that on Flower Skirt Island, he had spent a long time on
countless attempts before he was able to obtain a finished product, He also had
to use a large amount of magic medicine to maintain temporary stability, and
through a dangerous path, he was barely able to meet the standard that would
open the secret door.
By contrast, the grafted plant the snow elf youngster made was stable beyond
imagination, it simply looked like an original lifeform.
Cai Jing spared no effort and was barely able to pass, while the snow elf
youngster obviously had energy left over.
The contrast between the two was too distinct!
That undoubtedly stimulated Cai Jing’s curiosity. He longed to learn about the
alchemy technology the snow elf youngster used.
If he could, he would be far more certain he could continue to excavate Great
Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance.
Not just that, he also could use this alchemy technology in his magic plant
cultivation and improve his strength by a wide margin!
There was nothing that could be done, the young man had enticed him too much!
As for Da Bei and Zhong Bei, apart from the allure of benefits, they chose to
stand by Cai Jing because they were painfully forced into doing so.
Da Bei neglecting his duty like this was something he couldn’t explain to the
president, he would certainly be blamed, and if it was severe enough, he’d be
fired from his position as elder.
Even if he still retained his position of elder, what was the point if he would
have been kicked to the boonies like Jiu Jin and disparaged from the capital?
On the one side there were massive benefits, on the other there was censure and
punishment. Da Bei clenched his teeth and simply decided to rely on Cai Jing’s
new mountain top.
“What are you all staring at, continue the competition!” Hua Ni frostily
shouted, her expression ice cold.
She cursed secretly, “Just wait Cai Jing, do you really think you can succeed?”
“You know nothing of the kingdom’s high level politics.”
You think the president will concede? He’ll stand by and watch as you establish
your faction?”
“You are too naïve! Hehe.”
Before Cai Jing returned to the Alchemy Guild headquarters, the event in the
dueling arena had already been collected and summarized into a report that was
delivered to the Alchemy Guild President.
The president felt his head aching.
As the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s Alchemy Guild President, he was a high ranking
figure and a core member of the entire kingdom’s authority.
As a high ranking figure, he needed to be impartial and maintain the balance
between all sides, he had to reward merit and punish negligence.
But if he only accomplished impartiality, he would never become the king’s
confidant, be assigned as intermediary, and be in charge of the construction of
the Millenium Dragon Formation.
The president knew in his mind: what high ranking people really needed to do
was to protect themselves and the benefits of a particular crowd! The mount
potion profits were quite considerable, and the Alchemy Guild had to value it.
Therefore, they had to take control of it. 
He wasn’t the only one approving of and supporting Hua Ni’s actions, the Ice
Sculpture King was too.
“But I didn’t expect Cai Jing would emerge as a new force to be reckoned with,
and form a brief alliance with Jiu Jin and Da Bei.”
“Fortunately, Shuang Lian is still trapped in Tranquil Hill. If she used the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as a bridge to unite with Cai Jing, then that would
be terrible.” 
Shuang Lian with her magician tower was aptly named a genuinely powerful cohort
leader. Compared to her, Cai Jing’s foundation was superficial.
The Alchemy Guild President was at first, unaware of Shuang Lian’s situation.
But due to the royal family learning he was utilizing the guild’s valuable
strength to look for clues so he could search and rescue Shuang Lian, the king
personally summoned him.
“Jiu Jin and Da Bei are traitors that cannot be indulged.”
“Cai Jing’s contribution needs to be rewarded, but I absolutely cannot give up
on holding Jiu Jin and Da Bei accountable because of it.”
“But doing that will enormously damage my country and my authority as
president.”
The president carefully pondered and quickly thought of a plan to resolve this.
It was not necessary to hold them accountable at the moment.
First he would reward Cai Jing, then give him some fake clues to Great Master
Fan Sheng Za Zhong’s inheritance, keeping him far from the capital, and at
best, getting him away from Ice Sculpture Island!
“Let Cai Jing take Jiu Jin and Dai Bei with him, what the eye doesn’t see, the
heart doesn’t grieve over.”
“Without them, who does the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps have in the Alchemy
Guild?”
Just as he felt proud of himself, an urgent report came in and was delivered to
the president’s hands.
“What?!” The Alchemy President jumped from his seat and onto his feet.
“Long Fu, Long Fu has done what?!”
In a split second, this high level figure’s calm had completely vanished, and
his stratagem had turned into a corny joke.
Dueling Divine Domain.
The dragonman youngster had already arrived, and at this moment, he was
standing on the summit of Tranquil Hill, looking in all directions and seeing
the vast earth wherever his eyes went.
Honey Snow Tower’s outline was especially towering and conspicuous in the flat
ground
Standing next to him, Gu Dong had an iron expression.



****** Chapter 728: Please Call me Duelist Long Fu! ******
Let’s turn time back a little, when Zi Di’s group passed and Cai Jing was
walking towards the judging panel.
The dragonman youngster had already stood up and left the dueling arena.
He recalled his conversation with Cang Xu.
Cang Xu’s gaze was indistinct, “The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps lacks people in
the Alchemy Guild, since there aren’t any, let’s build one.”
“However, selecting Cai Jing as the core of this faction is not enough.”
“Jiu Jin and Da Bei aren’t much help; they aren’t truly core members of the
high class.”
“If I were the Alchemy Guild President, I would have many ways of dealing with
those with merits.”
“Therefore, we need this new faction to truly take root.”
Zi Di asked, “How should that be done?”
Cang Xu looked at the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster’s mind stirred somewhat, “Speak, what do you need me to
do?”
A smile crept into Cang Xu’s face, “Become a duelist, Lord Commander.” 
The young man and lady were equally shocked.
Zi Di cried out in surprise, “How can that be done?”
Cang Xu’s smile grew, and he asked, “Are you not capable of it? Lord Commander,
you can deceive even the Main Earth Elemental God to save Xiao Guai. Is it a
question if you can deceive a nonexistent Dueling God?”
He had another thing to say but didn’t – the dragonman youngster had done
repeated blasphemous prayers and obtained many divine blessings from Charming
Blue’s Godhead. There was no reason he would falter against an incomplete
Dueling Godhead. 
The dragonman youngster sank into contemplation.
From his level of skill, becoming a duelist was no problem at all.
In addition, his memory forgery was proficient too. He was also quite
experienced in blasphemous prayers and sacrifices.
“Look at Long Meng and the others, there are a few factors to become a
duelist.”
“First is strength.”
“Second is being involved in duels.”
“Third is identifying oneself with duels from the bottom of one’s heart.”
“Strength is not a major factor, because as long as one is a transcendent, one
can become a duelist. It’s just that low level transcendents aren’t qualified
to set up a tombstone on Tranquil Hill’s summit.”
“In fact, the faith of ordinary people is a required thing for gods. According
to the principle we can surmise that ordinary people can also become duelists.
It’s just that in the Ice Sculpture dueling arenas, it is mostly transcendents
contesting each other, while ordinary people are seldom seen in the arena.”
“The second factor is dueling activity. Each duelist has done many duels; this
is a universal characteristic.”
“However, as a matter of fact, the second and third factors are essentially the
same – it is faith!”
“Duels are themselves a sacrifice to the Dueling God. And acknowledgement of
duels is faith unto itself.”
“Therefore, through forged memories and deception spell, you can disguise your
faith.”
“With this foundation, you are likely to obtain the god’s summon and gain the
choice to enter the Dueling Divine Domain!”
This speculation was something the dragonman youngster had considered before
now.
In fact, since returning to Ice Sculpture Island, he had pondered this very
matter.
Through this theory, he could immediately become a duelist!
But he hadn’t done so.
Because it was too dangerous!
Now faced with Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster let out his past concern, “If I
become a duelist, it is likely I can enter and exit the Dueling Divine Domain,
land on the top of Tranquil Hill and see those tombstones.”
“If that happens, the other duelists might become violent and proceed to gang
up and attack me!”
“I am very worried that this move will provoke them too much. Therefore,
previously I chose to pretend not to notice Mi Fang’s true identity and
deliberately let him live.”
Cang Xu shook his head, “Lord Commander, I disagree with you in this respect.”
“Under the current situation, if you become a duelist, the other duelists won’t
beleaguer you.”
Zi Di was puzzled, “If I were a duelist, I would definitely be worried about my
identity and also Tranquil Hill being exposed by the newly arrived Commander. I
would positively attack first!”
Cang Xu shook his head, asking a crucial question, “Miss Zi Di, do you feel
that the duelists would expose Tranquil Hill of their own accord?”
Zi Di’s mind shook, realizing she had sunk into a misconception.
The duelists would never divulge the secret of the Dueling Divine Domain or
Tranquil Hill!
The main reason was faith.
Faith was a unifying ideology.
Since faith had reached a set standard, would duelists, who acknowledged it
from the heart, leak the pertinent secrets?
But then again, it was precisely because when one’s acknowledgement made it
impossible to leak secrets that those who reached it were chosen to be
duelists!
Cang Xu’s tone was pensive, “The current gold level duelists are a mixed bunch.
The biggest faction is from a military background. What about the others?”
“Mi Fang is a human, a son-in-law of the Jing Xiang Clan. He Gai Tou was once a
prisoner of Ice Prison and is currently running gambling houses. Yun Zhong is
easygoing and has refused Mian Li Zang’s offers many times. Zhu Gan likes to
fish all over the world; Qing Hong Yan is a rabbitman…
“If the royal family limited the duelists to those with a military background,
we could understand why. But Mi Fang and the other outsiders?”
“Have they ever leaked these secrets?”
“The answer is no.”
“The power of faith is formidable, and from it, one’s thinking is altered and
restricted. I believe they have never thought about exposing Tranquil Hill and
the Dueling Divine Domain. They are like members of a happy family, unlikely to
think of backstabbing their own parents.”
“This point is also proven by the Imperial Secret Spy Agency’s response.”
“The Imperial Secret Spy Agency has repeatedly tried to spy on Tranquil Hill
and has failed repeatedly. This was why Lan Zao made comparatively large
progress this time.”
“The Imperial Secret Spy Agency’s information gathering abilities are
absolutely the best on the Main Plane. Yet even they are helpless in this
aspect; this proves that the duelists all guard this secret.”
“This is their common and tacit understanding! It is the greatest place where
they identify with each other.” 
“If the Lord Commander’s disguise works, and he enters Tranquil Hill and
becomes a duelist, the others will believe our commander won’t leak secrets,
and that kind of trust hinges on how tightly they guard those same secrets.”
When Zi Di heard this, her eyes lit up, “So, it isn’t a big provocation?”
Cang Xu grunted, and nodded, “Definitely not as big as the Lord Commander
exposing his saint level qualifications.”
The dragonman youngster facepalmed.
Zi Di blinked, and defended him, “The facts are already set in stone, it’s too
late to say anything about it. Since the Lord Commander has already exposed his
saint level qualifications, sooner or later, he will be targeted. We might as
well become duelists to give the others a shock! Let it be payback for these
treacherous people who always deal with us in the dark!”
Cang Xu continued, “Of course, simply relying on faith is not completely
secure. Because faith can change, and people in this secular world belong to
all kinds of factions.”
“Therefore, it is very possible that those picked to become duelists and enter
into Dueling Divine Domain should be bound by some divine spell contract.”
“Thus, when the Lord Commander becomes a duelist and goes into the Dueling
Divine Domain, the newcomer should be enticed and placated.”
“In more detail.” The dragonman youngster pressed.
Cang Xu explained, “Tranquil Hill’s duelists are actually in a similar
situation to the Alchemy Guild.”
“Although they are a collective, their internal structure is a mess, and apart
from the military faction, there is no other mature faction.”
“The ones actually dealing with us are the military background duelists. We
killed Teng Dong Lang, the Axe Gang Leader, Jia Bing, and Lin. The loss of four
gold levels produced a very deep enmity that is hard to thoroughly mediate, but
it can be alleviated. We have the corpses of three of the gold levels.”
“As for the others…”
“Can we turn Mi Fang into a friend? I have come to see Mi Fang as weak. It is
completely possible to pressure him, then use benefits to move him.”
“Zhu Gan and Yun Zhong have not attacked us, and are naturally undisciplined
and free, we can peacefully coexist with them.”
“He Gai Tou helped Bing Yang play a dirty trick on us, and I reckon he is close
to the military faction. But that doesn’t matter, his gambling houses are huge
businesses, and that is his actual weak spot!”
“The most crucial person is Long Meng.”
“Long Meng decided to show benevolence, and he called over the Lord Commander
to give him practical assistance. Does he really just admire you Lord
Commander? Or is there a feeling from deep within his heart that stems from his
high longing for duels and the arrogance of his draconic nature that drives him
to mold a powerful enemy that will increase his thrill in battle?”
“There is another possibility, is Long Meng trying to rope in the Lord
Commander? Is he investing in the future where the Lord Commander could become
a duelist?”
The dragonman youngster’s eyes shined, Cang Xu’s words were like lightning that
split open the dense fog in his brain.
Cang Xu then said, “Long Meng is a dragonman, his racial identity already
proves much.”
“I surmise that apart from the royal family being involved with the duelists,
the White Dragon King might be involved too. Long Meng might be their
arrangement.”
Cang Xu sighed, “The Ice Sculpture Kingdom has three saint levels, the King,
the Royal Grand Magician, and the White Dragon King.”
“What is the relationship and contest of benefits between these three? Is the
contract of alliance between the royal family and the White Dragon Clan robust?
Is the Dueling Godhead precious enough to create cracks in their alliance?”
“In short, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s political atmosphere is very subtle.
This can be seen when Da Han attacked. During the naval battle, none of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s three saint levels appeared.”
“Even now, the pirates are still devastating the kingdom’s coastal waters.”
Cang Xu’s political acumen was simply unparalleled!
His analysis of human nature was even more profound.
Due to his proposal, the dragonman youngster forged the relevant memories and
designed the corresponding prayer.
After Zi Di advanced, the young man needed to act.
“Dueling God, my Lord, my Paramount.”
“The intertwined snowy peaks and glaciers, the inexhaustible wind and frost,
hide Your divine domain from view. Oh, Dueling God, Your honor travels through
time with resplendent radiance.”
“It is You who lets heroic swords clash together, You who bestows tenacious
shields.”
“Under Your protection, warriors notice the fountainhead of strength in the
light of dawn, and the windstorm of war turns into a breezing fight.”
“In Your almightiness, You forged the order of duels, each sandpit turns into
an arena where the brave refine with fire and allow former enemies to turn
hostility into friendship under Your awe-inspiring gaze.”
“Under Your holy gaze, I recount Your sacred creed like a poem in every duel.
Hereto I pray that You let this pious one immerse himself in Your glorious
favor. Please let me into Your everlasting Dueling Kingdom, let me become one
of Your holy warriors that will eternally protect Your honor and power.”
The dragonman youngster kowtowed, silently praying.
After silently praying two or three times, there was spatial fluctuation.
A Divine Domain Descent spell!
This time, it wasn’t Charming Blue’s divine power driving it but Dueling divine
power.
The descent spell enveloped the dragonman youngster, producing both a familiar
and unfamiliar feeling.
As he slowly opened his eyes, he saw the floor tiles had become hilly rocks.
He gradually stood up straight and straightened his chest. The sound of the
wind surrounded his ears, but the cold air couldn’t conceal his fiery red
dragon scales.
He looked around and saw he was already at Tranquil Hill’s summit.
Two gold level auras were wildly dashing towards the dragonman youngster.
Today, it was Gu Dong’s and Yi Jiu’s turn to be on duty.
Shuang Lian’s deployment of alchemy puppets as well as gold level elementals
had stormed in and nearly taken Tranquil Hill.
Since then, Mei Lin made it so there was no longer just one gold level duelist
posted, but two. 
Gu Dong and Yi Jiu were several hundred meters away from the dragonman
youngster when they stopped moving.
Both of their eyes were equally opened wide.
They had reacted to a newcomer coming in, and with pleasant surprise, they ran
over, but as they got closer, they sensed the dragonman youngster’s
transcendent aura.
“This transcendent aura, it seems a bit familiar!” The two felt things were far
from good.
Eventually, when they saw the rightful owner, the two’s hearts immediately sank
to rock bottom.
“Crap! It’s Long Fu?!”
“That’s absurd, how can it be him? It really is him!!”
Gu Dong stood in place flabbergasted; he was a soldier and had an honest
temperament. Then as he saw the duelists coming in to mix with Long Fu, he
couldn’t wrap his head around it.
What’s going on, it seemed like…an enemy suddenly turned into one of them?
Yi Jiu narrowed his eyes; he was a thief. He had a very flexible bottom line
and could accept Long Fu becoming a duelist.
But he did attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, killing their only
“magicians” at the time.
Long Fu was the comrade of his victims.
“He didn’t know about us duelists, and now he has been chosen and has appeared
on the top of Tranquil Hill…those tombstones are the best evidence!” Yi Jiu’s
heart beat wildly.
The dragonman youngster was unable to take his eyes off the tombstones,
constantly taking measure of the names written on them.
Then a good while later, he slowly turned around to look at Gu Dong and Yi Jiu.
“You two, it looks like you can give me an explanation?” He appeared to
understand somewhat, vigilantly looking towards Gu Dong and Yi Jiu,
simultaneously revealing feelings of indignity, suspicion, and other intense
moods.
“We’re finished, he noticed!” Gu Dong and Yi Jiu were equally dark.
Gu Dong had terrible eloquence and didn’t speak.
Yi Jiu had a dry mouth and tongue, saying after a good while, “This place is my
God’s divine domain. The Dueling Divine Domain. Tranquil Hill is my Lord’s holy
land, I believe you have heard of the legend of Tranquil Hill Sire Long Fu.”
“You know me?” The dragonman youngster asked.
Yi Jiu squeezed out a smile, using a touch of praise, “Of course, you are
currently a household name nationwide, a dueling star.”
“You being selected by my Lord to become a duelist is also reasonable.”
As he said that, Yi Jiu signaled Gu Dong with his eyes.
Gu Dong was in a daze, fundamentally incapable of comprehending Yi Jiu’s
intent.
Yi Jiu couldn’t help but give him a disdainful look, he was then forced to say,
“Lord Long Fu, don’t be tense, this holy land is safe.”
He decided to steady the dragonman youngster first, he didn’t want to fight the
dragonman youngster.
More importantly, he had to immediately transmit the news out.
He shouldn’t be the explainer or host.
How to explain it all to Long Fu was troublesome, Yi Jiu was overwhelming
thinking about it, so he decided to leave it to another.
The duelists could draw support from their shared faith for urgent
communications; they just needed to expend divine favor to do so.
Very quickly, the explosive news that the dragonman youngster became a duelist
and was already on the summit of Tranquil Hill was passed into each duelist’s
mind. Through the duelists, this was rapidly reported to the high level powers
behind them.
The dragonman youngster sized up the horizon with rapt attention, and after a
good while, he suddenly left.
“Huh?! Lord Long Fu, where are you going?” Yi Ju promptly inquired.
Gu Dong was standing silently in the path of where the dragonman youngster was
headed.
The dragonman youngster narrowed his eyes and began to emit a dangerous aura,
his finger pointing at a lofty tower, “That magician tower looks just like
Honey Snow Tower? So as it turns out, Shuang Lian and my corps’ Bu Quan have
fallen into this place?!”
Yi Jiu’s eye twitched.
Concerning this event, he had participated in the entire thing.
“Calm down, Lord Long Fu, please calm down a little, don’t be impulsive.” Said
Yi Jiu.
The dragonman youngster stared at Gu Dong, coldly shouting, “You want to
intercept me? Are you sure you want to do that?”
Gu Dong was already coldly sweating all over.
The pressure on him was too much.
Despite Long Fu showing off his battle strength in duels, it hadn’t been
excessive. But the duelists had reached a consensus that Long Fu was very
dangerous. He had a mysterious method that effortlessly slew Jia Bing and two
others. When the scene was investigated, the three gold levels didn’t show a
trace of resistance!
Thanks, Zong Ge.
His blustering tactics always had a massive deterrence effect.
When the dragonman youngster confronted Yi Jiu and Gu Dong, he was able to
dominate both without even attacking.
“Oh dear, I’d better explain.” After space undulated, a voice was heard.
The dragonman youngster turned around to see Long Meng.
“Sire Long Meng.” The dragonman youngster stared at him, his dangerous aura
dwindling, “I also saw your name on the tombstones.”
Long Meng nodded, smiling at the young man, “As you saw, I am just like you – a
Dueling God holy warrior!”
“Dueling God? What is all this about?” The dragonman youngster played the role
of a greenhorn.
Long Meng took measure of the dragonman youngster, his eyes revealing his
admiration, “Although I was mentally prepared for this, believing that you
could become a duelist, Long Fu, you were chosen far sooner than I expected.”
He then sighed, “I know you have many doubts, so I happened to find another
friend to explain things. Allow me to save you from misunderstandings caused by
gossip, first let’s go to Honey Snow Tower together.”
When Long Meng said that, the young man was genuinely flabbergasted somewhat.
At once, the four left together and hurried to Honey Snow Tower.
After a certain distance, Gu Dong and Yi Jiu halted. After all, these two had
once besieged Honey Snow Tower, and to not trigger misunderstandings, they were
considerate.
And so, Long Meng and Long Fu slowly approached Honey Snow Tower.
An alarm quickly rang through Honey Snow Tower.
“Enemies, according to scans, it’s two gold level dragonmen fighters!” The
tower spirit reported.
Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were resting, and after getting the warning, they
immediately got up and entered into the main control room at the top of Honey
Snow Tower.
A moment later, master and disciple cried out in alarm simultaneously, “Oh,
it’s him!”
“Long Meng (Long Fu)?!”
Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were pleasantly surprised.
Then, master and disciple subconsciously looked at each other.
The atmosphere was a little awkward and bizarre.



****** Chapter 729: Shuang Lian and Bu Quan vs Long Meng and Long Fu ******
The center of the Ice Sculpture Capital, there was a lofty pure white castle
centered on a tower.
It was the Royal Stronghold, the center of Ice Sculpture Kingdom politics.
Information about the dragonman youngster becoming a duelist and appeared on
the top of Tranquil Hill was immediately passed to the Ice Sculpture King.
Any unforeseen events about the Dueling Divine Domain was urgent information.
The Ice Sculpture King immediately shelved his current business and quickly
read the report.
“A new duelist was born; it’s Long Fu.” The Ice Sculpture King’s eyes shrank
slightly, then he soon sank into contemplation.
According to common sense, critical information related to the Dueling God
shouldn’t have been leaked.
However, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family took charge of this operation, and
successive generations of kinds vigorously developed it and never suppressed
dueling activities. The royal family had massive control over the Dueling
Divine Domain.
Or in other words, over the years, members of the royal family were duelists.
It’s just that their names weren’t qualified to be listed on the tombstones,
just like the Bayonet Gang’s Bing Xiao.
In fact, as successive kings energetically popularize duels, their faith
inherently inclined towards the Dueling God. Even if it wasn’t their main
religion, their dedication to the Dueling Godhead’s calculated value was
absolutely enormous.
In this aspect, the Imperial Secret Spy Agency were far from the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family.
“It really was possible for Long Fu to become a duelist. He has gained too much
fame and profit from duels. Those that benefit that much from them usually love
duels completely, and this kind of love can produce strong dueling faith.”
“Having this kind of faith is a good thing.”
The Ice Sculpture King’s foresight exceeded that of normal people.
To him it seems that Long Fu was a capable subordinate of an international arms
merchant. Now, this capable subordinate had faith in the Dueling God,
tantamount to his thinking being altered and being restricted.
This kind of restriction was undoubtedly advantageous to the entire Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
One must know that Long Fu had saint level qualifications!
“Eradicate Long Fu?” For a split second, the king’s mind really emitted that
notion, but he quickly threw it to the back of his head.
Why would he want to do that?
If he was worried about foreigners, he wouldn’t have allowed people like Mi
Fang, Zhu Gan, and Yun Zhong to become duelists.
And compared to those people, Long Fu could produce more benefits.
“Long Fu’s aptitude is amazing; he is worth recruiting.”
“Perhaps there is much room to collaborate in some areas with the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps’ arms merchant backer.”
The Ice Sculpture King was very interested in the survivors’ backer.
Just like Cang Xu analyzed, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and the Sheng Ming Empire
were embroiled in a fierce game. As the ruler of his nation, the Ice Sculpture
King was willing to work with any power or individual that could help him deal
with the Sheng Ming Empire.
And he also understood that just relying on the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was not
enough to resist the massive Sheng Ming Empire.
As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ killing of Teng Dong Lang and the other
three gold level duelists, the Ice Sculpture King’s reaction was not as hard
lined as Mei Lin, Bao Li Gen, Gu Dong, and the others.
He was a high ranking person, a statesman. In his eyes, these duelists were all
his pawns, and not his comrades.
He could more calmly reflect, and even callously analyze the pros and cons
based on pure profit and loss comparison.
“However, who is their arms merchant backer?”
“I have already deployed many people to inquire about this, yet in spite of
everything, none have made any progress.”
“Divination spells have also been used a lot, yet nothing was gained!”
The more investigations failed to find the “mysterious arms merchant”, the
higher the Ice Sculpture King’s evaluation of them was.
He never doubted the arms merchant actually existed.
Because Long Fu was present.
He was an efficient subordinate with saint level qualifications, the one the
“mysterious arms merchant” had dispatched to break into a new market. This
illustrated that this “mysterious arms merchant” had courage and was certain to
be very formidable.
“Since the arms merchant can send a future saint level, they must have provided
him with considerable amounts of skills and trump cards.”
The Ice Sculpture King had a similar judgment as Mi Fang.
From this judgement, one could see Zong Ge’s 3 v 1 against the duelists as very
reasonable.
This was also why the Ice Sculpture King felt like he shouldn’t attack Long Fu.
If he attacked, he’d have to face Long Fu’s many trump cards. A saint level
teleportation scroll could spoil everything and would also offend the
“mysterious arms merchant” and spoil a future collaboration before it could be
realized.
After all, the Ice Sculpture Capital didn’t block teleportation.
Apart from that, the domestic political ambience was layered. The Sheng Ming
Empire and Da Han were external pressures that made the Ice Sculpture King very
cautious and unwilling to attack so recklessly.
Past battle records already proved that Long Fu was someone no normal gold
level could deal with. Deploying a saint level to handle Long Fu was also not
guaranteed to work, and crucially, even if they did succeed, the profits would
be slimmer.
The Ice Sculpture King didn’t have the motivation to attack Long Fu, at least
not right now.
“In that case, let’s focus on placating him.”
“The current trouble now is his decent relationship with Shuang Lian, he will
definitely stand up for her.”
The Ice Sculpture King frowned slightly.
Shuang Lian was a truly powerful Alchemy Guild elder, and she controlled Honey
Snow Tower. Remember, this was a magician tower in the capital!
This was no simple building, but a formidable military fort.
The Ice Sculpture King naturally knew about Shuang Lian and also valued her
considerably.
Shuang Lian’s magician tower was built with royal family funds. Because Shuang
Lian was a former champion of the Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest.
Shuang Lian’s demiplane mainly produced honey snow; she was a primary supplier
of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s military!
To sum it up, Shuang Lian was one of his people.
However, the Dueling Divine Domain secret was too high level, and Shuang Lian
was unaware of it.
The Ice Sculpture King also didn’t want her to know.
But as it happens, Shuang Lian did know! She was not a duelist, was not
restricted by faith, and wasn’t bound by a divine spell contract.
The Ice Sculpture King’s plan to deal with her was to temporarily imprison her
in the Dueling Divine Domain and not allow her any connection with the outside
world to protect the secrets of the Dueling Divine Domain to the greatest
degree.
On the one hand, this was a temporary measure. After the Dueling Godhead was
complete, handling Shuang Lian would be easy and simple. On the other hand, the
Ice Sculpture King also wanted to seize the opportunity to suppress Shuang Lian
and grind his subordinate’s haughtiness and make future assignments easier.
But that was no longer possible.
The Ice Sculpture King quickly recognized that if he wanted to placate Long Fu,
he had to inform Shuang Lian of some secrets and placate her too.
“It just so happened the Dueling Divine Domain’s defenses are still somewhat
low, let’s have Honey Snow Tower make up for that a bit.”
After pondering, the king gave orders, including a notification to the Alchemy
Guild President. 
The king didn’t know that in the wake of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corp’s
intervention, a new Alchemy Guild faction had been born, the king wouldn’t have
paid attention to such a trivial matter.
His announcement was given to the guild president, immediately causing the
latter’s plan to target Cai Jing to collapse.
The order was also transmitted to Gu Dong, disappointing him, but also letting
him relax, realizing how he should treat Long Fu and was no longer at a loss of
what to do.
Inside Honey Snow Tower.
Long Meng and Long Fu, as well as Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were sitting opposite
each other, drinking tea.
The four of them were the only ones in the room.
Bu Quan couldn’t help but keep staring at the dragonman youngster, pleasantly
surprised to the utmost. Her sweetheart appearing like this to save her made
her overjoyed.
Shuang Lian stared at Long Meng, “I didn’t expect that there was such a secret
you have never told me about.”
Her tone hid bitterness.
The dragonman youngster was immediately drawn by this, his eyes flickering
between Shuang Lian and Long Meng.
These two had history!
Long Meng sighed, “You aren’t a duelist, and if I were to say anything, your
freedom would be restricted, jailed somewhere and cut off from the outside
world, much like how you are now.”
Shuang Lian coldly snorted, “But now I know, and as it turns out, this place is
actually the arrangement of successive generations of kings, the scale is
mindboggling!”
“Why did you decide to inform me about this now?”
Long Meng turned to look at the dragonman youngster, “Because of him.”
He briefly stated the reasons and details.
Bu Quan’s eyes flashed, holding her teacup with an excited expression, “Lord
Commander, you once again saved me! I really don’t know how to thank you.”
The dragonman youngster fixed his eyes on Bu Quan, his tone sincere and also
slightly ashamed, “Since you disappeared, I have always been trying to find
you.”
“Despite many people saying you were already dead, I never believed that.”
“My heart told me that you must be alive. You are the one I recruited, and I
cannot let any of my people die so easily!”
“Rationally speaking, I never believed that you would lose your life while you
were inside Honey Snow Tower and under your teacher’s protection. You just went
missing.”
“Alas!” The dragonman youngster sighed, “Truth be told, I didn’t think I’d
happen to find you here.”
“When I saw a magician tower resembling Honey Snow Tower, I rushed over here!”
“Lord Commander…” Bu Quan was moved to gleaming tears.
Long Meng was shifting his eyes between Long Fu and Bu Quan.
These two had history!
“Cough, cough, cough!” Shuang Lian firmly coughed, her expression becoming
strict.
Her beloved disciple’s liberal attitude really made her furious and frustrated.
What she loathed even more was that this dragoman was actually stirring up the
emotions of her disciple right in front of her, simply not paying any heed to
her, Shuang Lian.
At once, Shuang Lian gloomily said to the dragonman youngster, “Commander Long
Fu, I still want to thank you. If you hadn’t recruited Bu Quan into your
mercenary corps, she wouldn’t have come across such danger. If she hadn’t
gotten into danger, I wouldn’t have come to save her. By logical deduction, the
reason we are stuck in the Dueling Divine Domain is because of you.”
The dragonman youngster promptly stood up and bowed to Shuang Lian, thanking
her for her assistance while also taking out a large sum of money to compensate
her and Bu Quan.
“Do I care about your money?” Shuang Lian looked exceedingly disdainful.
She had money, a lot of money.
The dragonman youngster knew how she’d react, as Cang Xu had already deduced it
for him.
The dragonman youngster pretended to be stunned, then clenched his teeth and
sorrowfully resolved that he could try to use some alchemy blueprints as an
apology.
This suggestion immediately caught Shuang Lian’s interest.
At the time, the reason why she helped the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, apart
from Bu Quan persuading her, was that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ alchemy
knowledge truly moved her.
If Long Fu really took out alchemy knowledge of the appropriate level, then
Shuang Lian couldn’t bear to refuse this suggestion.
Bu Quan grinded her teeth, filling with worry, “Lord Commander, if it is too
difficult for you, then forget it. Knowledge is precious…”
“Shut up, you!” When Shuang Lian saw her disciple siding with an outsider, she
immediately became irate and bellowed out coldly. 
Bu Quan was cowed by her teacher’s reprimand, utterly afraid.
Long Meng chuckled, coming over to help smooth things over, “Being young is
good, Shuang Lian, there is no need to make things difficult for two
young’uns.”
Shuang Lian glared at Long Meng, her eyes as sharp as blades, “Long Meng, there
is something I need to ask you. You said you were a duelist and are freed to go
in and out of the divine domain.”
“You already knew I was trapped here.”
“Why did you come only now? What were you doing before then?”
A deadly question, a soul wrenching question!
Long Meng was immediately struck dumb, bewildered by it.
This was the first time Long Fu saw Long Meng like this, and he felt his
horizons broadening.
In the dragonman youngster’s memory, Long Meng was powerful, and in each duel,
he performed directly and efficiently with extraordinary might. Long Meng was
also calm, wise, and farsighted. He tutored the dragonman youngster in combat
techniques, used Resonance Force to immensely help the dragonman youngster, and
allowed the latter to quickly grasp many kinds of forces.
Long Meng being stifled and at a loss for words honestly caused the dragonman
youngster to…secretly cheer.
“Long Meng and Shuang Lian must have a story with each other. Perhaps Long Meng
is indebted to Shuang Lian.”
“This is great, I didn’t expect them to have such a layered relationship.”
With Long Meng attracting the fire, the pressure on the dragonman youngster
lessened greatly.
After this conversation, he seized the opportunity to provide a plan for a
collaboration between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Shuang Lian.
“My corps needs to stabilize its footing in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and is
currently eager to part ways with the Li Jian Clan…” The dragonman youngster
explained his situation.
He proposed that he could sell honey snow as well as other alchemy products on
behalf of Shuang Lian.
Long Meng told Shuang Lian that in the short term, she still had to stay in the
Dueling Divine Domain and couldn’t return to the Ice Sculpture Capital just
yet.
The dragonman youngster used this as a pretext to tell Shuang Lian that while
Shuang Lian was missing, many things happened in the Alchemy Guild. Hua Ni,
Snow Cake Tower, and others were all targeting her with rampant and repulsive
attitudes, Shuang Lian’s influence was in the process of being dwindled.
If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Shuang Lian reached cooperation at this
time, selling honey snow and other acts on behalf of her would be simple, yet
significant, it was sufficient enough to transmit the important information
outwards that Shuang Lian was still alive.
This would enormously retrieve Shuang Lian’s violently dropping influence,
furthermore, her adversaries within the guild wouldn’t be as rampant, no longer
wanting a foot after winning an inch.
Shuang Lian turned it over in her mind, and under the wide open gaze of Bu
Quan, finally agreed to this collaboration.
After taking their leave, Long Meng felt he was pardoned.
Bu Quan was reluctant to part, constantly gazing at the dragonman youngster’s
back as it faded from view.
“Still looking?” Shuang Lian coldly snorted.
She was obviously also watching just like Bu Quan, staring at Long Meng’s back.
Bu Quan asked, “Teacher, it seems you are somewhat biased against the Lord
Commander?”
Shuang Lian exploded, “What bias? There is no bias!”
“I have come to tell you that draconic nature is lascivious, these dragonmen
are not good people, and are naturally disposed to licentiousness. Bu Quan, you
are not experienced in the world, especially in romance, you were easily lured
by a few words.”
“It is very detrimental to you.”
“Alas, back in the day…”
Shuang Lian didn’t speak as she recalled something.
“What happened to you. Teacher, then?” Bu Quan pricked up her ears, straining
to hear what it was, but Shuang Lian didn’t speak, and she could bear to coax
it out of the latter.
Shuang Lian broke from her thoughts and returned to reality, seeing her favored
disciple looking up at her with wide and curious eyes.
Shuang Lian raised her index finger and flicked Bu Quan in the head,
resentfully turning around, “Go back!”
“Time for combat training.”
“I’ll give you three alchemy assignments to write up on.”



****** Chapter 730: Mi Fang – Long Fu, You Are a Devil! ******
Ice Sculpture Capital.
“Clan Leader, you summoned me?” Mi Fang had the whiff of wine on him as he
staggered into the study.
“Look at yourself!” The Jing Xiang Clan Leader had specifically hurried to the
capital from his territory for this, and he showed no quarter in his
reprimands, “Mi Fang this isn’t how you should appear. It was just one loss,
yet you’ve been drowning your sorrows all day and been extremely depressed!”
“Yes, you were stripped from your position.”
“But you brought this upon yourself, not I. It was done according to clan
rules.”
“Your duel with Long Fu really disappointed people!”
Mi Fang was silent and sullen.
His defeat to Long Fu cast him from heaven into hell.
The authority he gained from the mount potion business was expropriated jointly
by the primed factions within the Jing Xiang Clan.
Mi Fang didn’t just lose the power he gained beyond his limits, but also the
power base he once had before all this too.
The implication of this beating was very clear!
The Jing Xiang Clan Elder sighed; he stood up from his chair, walked around the
desk, and faced Mi Fang.
Mi Fang took a nervous step back.
The clan leader nevertheless extended a hand and helped him sit down on the
guest seat.
The clan leader’s voice became gentler, “Your loss to Long Fu was too ugly.”
“It wasn’t just your reputation that slumped, the entire clan has also suffered
immensely too.”
“You will climb back up from where you fell. Mi Fang! The clan still believes
in you, I also want to give you a chance to strive again.”
“I specifically came over from our territory just for you!”
“Go challenge Long Fu, fight him again in the arena! Grab your mettle and win.
You need to shatter your nightmare with your own hands and stand up like a man
again.”
Mi Fang’s mind and body shook, and he stared open eyed at the Jing Xiang Clan
Leader.
The latter looked earnest and serious.
But Mi Fang’s heart was ice-cold. He knew Long Fu’s strength, how he easily won
a 3 v 1. Challenging him again was courting disaster.
Regretfully, very few apart from him knew this truth. 
The outside world universally believed that Mi Fang’s tactics were too
conservative, too mindful of the gains and losses, and he fundamentally didn’t
display the fighting strength he should have.
Gods above!
“If I really displayed my power, I fear I’d already be dead!” Mi Fang knew the
severity, but the outside world didn’t.
Lots of his supporters, many of which were women, spurned him.
His friends couldn’t understand him; his family were unable to console him
either.
“Lord Clan Leader, I am not Long Fu’s match!” Mi Fang shook his head.
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader raised his head, turning from a leaning posture to
an upright one as he walked around the desk and towards the master seat.
During this process, with his back to Mi Fang, lightly stated, “That is the
reason why I brought you this.”
As he sat down again, there was already a small potion bottle laid out on the
desk.
Under the lighting, the potion glistened with a scarlet light and looked very
strange.
Mi Fang was an outstanding pharmacist, and when he saw this potion, his
expression changed, “A devil transformation potion?”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader nodded, “This is a saint level potion, it can
transform you into a devil for a short time and increase your battle strength
enough for you to defeat Long Fu.”
Mi Fang’s brows wrinkled, “But the residual effects of this transformation
potion are very strong.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader shrugged his shoulders, “This is the biggest help I
can give you. Mi Fang, you are a pharmacist, you can bear this kind of
sequelae, and it is unlikely to drop you from the gold level.”
“You must defeat Long Fu!”
“It was he who threw you into the abyss.”
“The clan also needs you to defeat Long Fu, it would revitalize our prestige.”
“Your current circumstances were bestowed upon you by Long Fu.”
Mi Fang hesitated, “No, Long Fu really isn’t my mortal enemy, and there is no
need to use such desperate measures to deal with him.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader sneered, “Come up with a bit of courage, Mi Fang!”
“You think I don’t know?”
“Through the other duelists, you plotted against Long Fu and tried to poison
him.”
“Long Fu isn’t your mortal enemy, what? It was precisely because of him that
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ mount potion business is so prosperous, and
from beginning to end, has dominated the largest market share.”
“You must know that the Alchemy Guild has already acted. If we don’t shoot down
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps in time, my clan’s future mount potion business
might take a dive and be supplanted.”
The study sank into a deathly silence; the atmosphere was quite heavy.
After a good while, Mi Fang took a deep breath, “I need to think it over.”
“Think well!” The Jing Xiang Clan Leader stood up and left the study. The devil
transformation potion was left quietly sitting on the desk before Mi Fang’s
eyes.
Mi Fang didn’t know how he left the study.
His thinking was very chaotic, he didn’t know when the potion came into his
hand.
When he came to his bedroom, he was astonished to find his wife was already
waiting for him.
After a touching scene, his wife hugged him and tenderly advised, “Challenge
Long Fu again, go duel him and win this crucial battle; the potion’s residual
effects are unimportant, your contribution to the clan for this will ensure you
are handsomely paid.”
Mi Fang suddenly felt ice-cold, and he looked at his lovely wife. His wife’s
eyes were tender and soft as water, concealing her calculations.
But Mi Fang didn’t rebuke her.
His marriage to her was due to a cost benefit analysis. When he shamefully
lost, his wife had to bear immense pressure from the clan.
Mi Fang slowly closed his eyes, his voice somewhat hoarse, “I am tired, let me
sleep first.”
He fell into a deep sleep, waking up at noon the next day.
Fate’s tribulations continued.
He received three massive pieces of news.
The first was that Yao Ma’s group had smoothly advanced and passed the Warm
Snow Cup’s second exam. Furthermore, Cai Jing and the others built a new
faction, becoming the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ partner in the Alchemy
Guild. The Alchemy Guild approved of Cai Jing’s contribution and had no choice
but to stand by and watch as this faction was established.
The second was that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps began to sell a large
amount of honey snow. Crucially, this honey snow originated from Shuang Lian’s
demiplane. According to the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ external explanation,
the missing Shuang Lian had actually been doing confidential study and research
and was unable to appear right now.
The third came from the duelists. He, Long Fu, had become a duelist!!
This all happened yesterday.
Mi Fang had a better grasp of this information than the Jing Xiang Clan Leader,
and after consulting the other duelists, he quickly reconstructed the facts and
truly understood the situation.
Mi Fang’s body and mind were in incomparable agony.
His foe had taken a massive step forward, while he was consigned to the
infernal abyss.
In his pain, he also began to feel regret.
“Perhaps, from the start, he was wrong to attack the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps!”
“Now that this matter has reached this point, there is no use in saying
anything.”
Mi Fang’s mind was inundated with hatred.
“The reason why I am in these circumstances is all due to Long Fu!”
He was already forced to the end of his rope.
He was a Jing Xiang Clan son-in-law, already bound to this clan. Even if he
wanted to cut ties and jump ship, which noble would accommodate him?
Could he leave the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and grow in another nation?
Just thinking about it caused Mi Fang to despair.
This was the place he had arduously worked for many years; he had given his
youth to this ice-cold land. Could he renounce these things and start afresh?
As a gold level, it wasn’t like he didn’t have other chances to grow.
But in truth, duels weren’t popular in other places. Duels, joining his wife’s
clan, these shortcuts allowed Mi Fang to save a lot of time and energy. He was
already accustomed to surviving and growing in this kind of environment.
Mi Fang tried to contact Mei Lin again.
Mei Lin was exhausted. During this period, she had been attacking all over the
place, taking on the incomparably difficult challenge of keeping the seaboard
safe.
But the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s seaboard was very long, and it was difficult
for the First Navy Fleet alone to ensure it was totally secure.
Most dreadful was Da Han hadn’t attacked yet. He was like a sword hanging over
everyone’s head, no one knew when it would suddenly fall and behead them.
The psychological pressure from military affairs physically and emotionally
exhausted Mei Lin.
At this moment, she was still accepting startling news – Long Fu unexpectedly
became a duelist and also climbed to the top of Tranquil Hill! After that, Long
Meng took Long Fu to Honey Snow Tower and both sides reached a cooperation
agreement.
That instantly washed away all of Mei Lin’s prior efforts.
And what made Mei Lin even more depressed was the command she received from the
Ice Sculpture Royal Family yesterday.
She comprehended the royal family’s opinion; she was to stop attacking the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and instead use mainly appeasement strategies.
Due to this, Mi Fang couldn’t get any more outside support from the duelists.
After the connection with Mei Lin ended, for a split second, Mi Fang had a
terrible feeling that the world had abandoned him.
“Look at the letter.” Suddenly, a voice could be heard.
“Who?” Mi Fang’s hair rose, his body and mind wildly jolting.
Gold level battle qi bubbled out, covering his body in a split second.
But he couldn’t find the source of the sound, he only found a letter on the
desktop.
“When did this sealed letter appear? It obviously wasn’t there a moment ago…” A
strong chill rapidly pervaded Mi Fang’s heart.
He looked at the letter with rapt attention for a good while, then extended his
hand and slowly opened it.
The letter’s contents caused his eyes to suddenly contract.
Ten minutes later.
He arrived at a restaurant.
In a private room, the dragonman youngster was feasting on magic beast meat, it
was half cooked and still reeked considerably of blood.
The dragonman youngster’s sharp teeth were constantly chewing, mashing the
flesh between them into bits.
Mi Fang entered the private room and saw this exact scene.
It was only him and the dragonman youngster in the private room.
But Mi Fang knew it wasn’t just the dragonman youngster here, there had to be
an expert hiding elsewhere.
Mi Fang was impolite, coldly sitting across from the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was busy eating the meat and didn’t bother raising his
head to look at Mi Fang as he said, “My time is limited, I will speak to you
directly.”
“Mi Fang, come over to my side.”
Mi Fang didn’t anticipate this, he almost believed he misheard it.
A moment later, he angrily cackled, “Hehehehe, it’s all thanks to you I am in
an awful situation.”
“You actually said you want me to join you? Hahaha!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Who do you believe you are?!”
“You are my foe!”
“It’s all because of you that I fell into this state!”
Mi Fang grew angrier as he spoke, and just as he sat down, he stood back up and
roared loudly as he constantly waved his arms.
He was so flustered and exasperated that he even threw the chair behind him.
The chair smashed into pieces against the wall.
When the dragonman youngster saw this, his tone was cold, “You will die.”
Mi Fang was flushed red, huffing and puffing, his eyes contracting as he
grinded his teeth, “Are you threatening me?”
“Hehehe, do you think I will be scared?”
“I am not worried about informing you that next, I will challenge you. I
already have a way of winning; I will ruthlessly defeat you and take back
everything that belongs to me from you. Everything!”
The dragonman youngster was unruffled by the chaos, “A way of winning? Are you
talking about that devil transformation potion?”
“A saint level potion…” When the dragonman youngster said that, he lightly
chuckled, “Hehehe.”
Mi Fang’s eye twitched, and his complexion became as gloomy as water.
His greatest trump card was easily uncovered by the dragonman youngster, but Mi
Fang wasn’t surprised.
Because he thought of that mysterious voice as well as the strange appearance
of that invitation letter. It was precisely according to that invitation letter
that he secretly met with the dragonman youngster.
Since the other side could accomplish this, then making inquiries about the
saint level potion was very possible.
Hatred and battle intent quickly waned from Mi Fang’s mind, replaced with
endless cold thoughts and despair.
“It seems you’ve calmed down, excellent.” The dragonman youngster seemed to
squeeze out a smile, it was fleeting.
He drank red wine while saying to Mi Fang, “So long as you calmly reflect, you
will think that I am right. You have already lost so much. Continuing to oppose
me will lose you even more, including your life.”
“Don’t be so stupid, Mi Fang.”
“Do you really believe the Jing Xiang Clan’s promise? That as long as you take
the saint level potion to deal with me, that they’ll handsomely reward you?”
“What are you encountering now? Your painstaking and hard fought authority was
stripped away overnight.” Your power, wealth, and status are at their behest.
In the end, you attached yourself to the Jing Xiang Clan, and whatever power
they gave you, they can take back at any time.”
“It is not I who is humiliating you, but them!”
“Do you not understand? Here, even though you became a member of their clan,
you are still a human, an outsider.”
“You are not a snow elf.”
“Think about it carefully, does the Jing Xiang Clan really treat you as one of
them?”
Mi Fang didn’t know what to say, so he was silent, like he was dead.
The dragonman youngster finished drinking his wine, then belched in
satisfaction.
Then he casually pushed his meal tray towards Mi Fang on the opposite side of
the dining table.
On the meal tray, there was still a small piece of mangled magic beast flesh.
“You’re hungry, eat a bit.” Said the dragonman youngster.
“No, I ate breakfast. Furthermore, I don’t have a habit of eating other
people’s leftovers.” Mi Fang’s silence was effortlessly smashed, he felt
humiliated and resolutely declined.
“Hehehe.” The dragonman youngster sneered out a laugh.
He looked up, leaned back on his chair, then extended a dragon claw, pointing
it at himself, and then to Mi Fang.
“You and I are the same.”
“We are both outsiders.”
“We are both duelists.”
“We both have taken countless risks, and experienced numerous tribulations, so
many in fact, we have lost count.”
The dragonman youngster shook his head, then lifted both hands and clenched
then into fists before Mi Fang.
“We rely on our two hands to work and struggle. And those people, those out of
touch people were born into everything we exhausted ourselves working for!”
“Why?”
“More hateful is that our efforts might be denied by those people and be
completely lost in a night. In their eyes, we are a joke!”
“This is precisely why I am willing to take risks, why I wanted to leave home
to make my way in this world.”
“I want to use hard work to establish my own force!”
“Look at you now, Mi Fang, you have nothing left to lose. Join me, work with
me, and you can gain so much more, much more than you can possibly imagine.”
“Don’t tell me you don’t want to truly belong to your own force?”
“I can help you.”
“Don’t tell me you don’t want to take control of the Jing Xiang Clan and show
those people your true colors?” 
“I can still help you.”
“The prerequisite is that you join me.”
The dragonman youngster intentionally stopped there.
Then he clearly saw Mi Fang’s Adam’s apple roll and heard him swallowing his
saliva.
His orange dragon eyes clearly reflected Mi Fang’s captivated expression; each
subtle change in his expression was taken in by the dragonman youngster.
“You’re hungry.”
The dragonman youngster chuckled, “I can see now that you are very hungry.”
“Eat a bit, have my food, take a bite.”
The dragonman youngster’s voice eased, like it was hypnotic.
Mi Fang’s train of thought seemed to be chaotic and also blank.
He also didn’t know why, as if demons and gods were at work, he was seeing
himself stepping towards the dining table, slowly stretching out his hand, and
touching the meat on the meal tray.
Without tableware, Mi Fang picked up the magic beast flesh and put it into his
mouth.
This magic beast flesh did not suit him, and the reeking blood made him
nauseous.
But he still took a big bite and devoured it.
During this process, his bewilderment and despair slowly shed away, his gloom
began to turn into viciousness.
His cheek puffed up, and watery blood spilled from the corner of his mouth,
went down his chin, and down his neck, dyeing his exquisite, noble elven
apparel red.
The dragonman youngster burst into boom laughter, and he got up to leave.
As he brushed past Mi Fang, he lightly left a sentence, “Leave the potion
bottle behind, I’ll inform you of what to do next.”
Mi Fang understood.
Just by eating the meat, he had made clear his attitude, he would leave behind
the potion and display his sincere submission.
Mi Fang also didn’t know why he was moving so briskly, there was no hesitation.
He immediately took out the potion and clacked it onto the table. 
The dragonman youngster was already at the door.
Mi Fang hastily asked, “You’re leaving at once? Are you a devil?! I left behind
the potion, what are you going to give me?”
During the entire talk, the dragonman youngster never openly promised to give
him anything.
“What can I give you? Hehehe.” The dragonman youngster opened the door, “I
accept your dueling challenge, and promise that during this duel, I will only
beat you up, I won’t kill you.”
A second later, the door closed.



****** Chapter 731: Young Man – Political Ability Up ↑ ******
The negotiation outcome with Mi Fang was far more fruitful than the dragonman
youngster’s prior moves.
As he left the restaurant, the dragonman youngster recalled what Cang Xu had
said.
Cang Xu analyzed Mi Fang, “Of all the duelists, Mi Fang is best suited as the
first place to breach.”
“On the one hand, he is in a terrible situation and is implicated in our
benefits. On the other hand, more importantly, his temperament is obviously
feeble.”
When the dragonman youngster heard that, his mind couldn’t help but think of
how heavily armored Mi Fang was during their duel.
The dragonman youngster didn’t fully understand, “Since Mi Fang is certain he
cannot defeat me, and even fears he’ll lose his life, he came fully armed and
adopted an extremely conservative tactic, that was sensible.”
But Cang Xu shook his head, “To see someone clearly, you must examine their
actions. Look at how they act, not just during a short time period, or
superficially, rather look at how he lives. Especially what key choices they
make during important impasses, that will more elucidate you of their nature.”
“We don’t know how Mi Fang lived before coming to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom,
but after he came here, what did he do?”
“Through his masculine charm, he exploited the resources of female snow elves
and invested them into himself.”
“Through duels he earned money and reputation, he then utilized his reputation
to expand his romantic charm, thereby increasing the amount of resources he
milked from his female companions.”
“Finally, he chose the Jing Xiang Clan, that clan suited his growth the most.”
“Summing all this up, we can find that Mi Fang likes to take shortcuts. During
duels, he is always extremely prepared, greatly emphasizing whether he wins or
loses. When he tries, the gains and losses are weighing heavily in his mind.”
“He has a keen sense for opportunity; therefore, he was able to beat the other
Jing Xiang Clan snow elves to become the person in charge of the mount
potions.”
“Thus, he rode the wind, and it was also because of that he fell into the abyss
after losing the duel. According to the intelligence, his authority in the Jing
Xiang Clan has nearly vanished, this is precisely the optimal time to negotiate
with him.”
When the dragonman youngster heard this analysis, he felt he had gained
immensely from this, and he promptly asked Cang Xu for guidance and how he
should specifically conduct the negotiation.
Cang Xu taught him, when handling people of weak, rich, and ambitious nature,
he should do his utmost to display an intensely intimidating stance to gain
dominance, then he could use benefits to entice and sway his mark. By
accomplishing these two steps, he could achieve his negotiation goal on a basic
level. If he could add a third step, it would be to increase a feeling of
acknowledgement, that would be better.
Afterwards, Hun Tong scouted out new information, allowing the survivors to
learn of a “saint level devil transformation potion”, it was crucial
information.
Due to it, the negotiation with Mi Fang became a more pressing matter.
“This negotiation was a total victory.”
“The ‘saint level potion’ has been neutralized in advance. Although it can’t
bring about a crisis, it is still a gigantic inconvenience.”
The dragonman youngster felt quite happy.
He had left the room before Mi Fang, ignoring the saint level potion left on
the dining table, both to deter Mi Fang and to impress upon him a feeling of
unfathomable depths, that everything was under his control.
Hun Tong was hiding in the room and would bring the potion to the dragonman
youngster.
Since Cang Xu converged and pointed out the dragonman youngster’s many
strategic mistakes, the dragonman youngster immediately corrected course and
brought Hun Tong back from the Snow Bird Harbor branch to join at his side
again.
The mysterious voice Mi Fang had heard, along with the sudden appearance of the
invitation letter, was from the deception divine spell empowered Hun Tong.
After returning to the temporary capital base, the dragonman youngster was
still pondering this operation.
“To solve a problem, it might be necessary to kill it!”
“Killing Mi Fang, or inciting him into rebellion, the latter is obviously more
useful to me.”
“At this time, what do we currently need to do? Integrate with the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, take root here.”
“Therefore, we must have a good relationship with all powers here.”
“Eradicating Mi Fang, even if I show strength, will establish enmity with the
Jing Xiang Clan. Meanwhile, it will cause the other noble to be vigilant and
loathe us.”
“Simultaneously, Mi Fang is also a duelist. He is not from the military, and if
I kill him, it will estrange me from the other duelists, and they’ll be
stringently on guard against me.”
“I have so many worthy subjects to study from Cang Xu.”
The dragonman youngster sighed to himself.
In the past, to deal with problems, he usually used violence and strength.
His experience in Ocean Mother Nest allowed the fishman youngster to comprehend
the usages of deception. In the Snow Bird Harbor battle, he put that into
practice.
His negotiation with Mi Fang was him following Cang Xu’s guidance, an attempt
to handle a problem in a new way.
“This method is neither fighting nor deception, but upon carefully sampling it,
it has ingredients from both.”
“We used the pretense of arms merchants to bluster and deceive many people. Mi
Fang is no exception. Our breakthrough into the Alchemy Guild was a decisive
victory. By contrast, Mi Fang was forced into a corner, it is obvious the enemy
is strong, and he is weak.”
“Thus, this was the best time to negotiate.”
“The goal of this negotiation was to force the enemy into surrender and
compliance. Therefore, it was not just blind force, I also had to look for
common ground. Therefore, I stated we were the ‘same’. Looking at the results,
it was very remarkable.”
“The reason why I could accomplish this, apart from my prior victory over Mi
Fang, was thanks to Zong Ge’s 3 v 1 deterring him. More importantly, by relying
on Cang Xu’s methods, I was able to resolve the difficult problem that was the
Alchemy Guild.”
Cang Xu helped Cai Jing and the two others form a faction, aided the dragonman
youngster in becoming a duelist, and also helped him contact Shuang Lian. In
this string of operations, they accurately struck the core problem and affected
the decision making of the highest echelons of the kingdom.
From this high place, they effortlessly suppressed the Alchemy Guild President
and powerful elders like Hua Ni.
After this news got out, his surging renown flabbergasted hostile powers.
“How did Cang Xu achieve this?” The dragonman youngster pondered this question
many times.
He asked himself for the answer, “He saw through the situation, beyond the
façade and into the Ice Sculpture King’s plight and requirements, then with the
help of the situation, applied leverage to make new advances on these forces to
benefit us.”
“Cang Xu truly is amazing!”
The dragonman youngster felt admiration as well as vigilance.
“Racial contradictions lie between Mi Fang and the Jing Xiang Clan. Although Mi
Fang joined the Jing Xiang Clan, and became a son-in-law, superficially
integrating with them, as a matter of fact, he was unable to.”
“Why?”
“The Jing Xiang Clan’s snow elves don’t want to give Mi Fang an influential
position, and they can’t satisfy him.”
“Essentially, this racial contradiction prevents either side from trusting the
other completely!”
“If Mi Fang was a snow elf, his situation would be completely different.”
“This is a racial conflict. Every intelligent life form, because of different
bloodlines and life shapes, will bring about different worldviews, value
systems, and outlooks.”
“These differences are usually massive and cannot be jointly understood.”
“Because I have the Bloodcore, and can transform myself, I can personally
experience how immense these differences are.”
When the young man was a fishman, he felt incomparably close to water. If he
was in his dragonman form, he absolutely wouldn’t feel that way.
The young man thought of what Long Meng had told him.
Be vigilant of your draconic nature, by mastering it, it is possible to go a
step further in the martial realm.
“If one was unaware of racial instincts and the need to master them, it would
be difficult for people to cooperate with each other on a deep level.”
“Mi Fang’s relationship with the Jing Xiang Clan can be regarded as such a
situation. But ultimately, their cooperation is fractured!”
“An overall survey of all powerful organizations in the world shows that
without exception, all of their main members are of the same race. The Sheng
Ming Empire is mainly made of humans, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom of snow elves.”
“In that case, what about my Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?”
Mi Fang’s loss, and living example caused the dragonman youngster to be more
alert, more interested in the racial contradictions in his own mercenary corps.
Cang Xu evaluated the dragonman youngster and said he was an outstanding
leader. It wasn’t flattery, it was practical and realistic.
The dragonman youngster was constantly changing, constantly improving.
He was continuously learning.
This time, with Cang Xu, he experienced and learned much from his negotiation
with Mi Fang.
The dragonman youngster had experienced and been enlightened by politics, and
so his political acumen soared!
After Mi Fang secretly negotiated with the dragonman youngster, he returned to
the clan base. 
That very afternoon, he publicly declared that he wanted to challenge Long Fu
again, to wipe away his humiliation!
This news rapidly spread, attracting widespread interest and discussion.
“Indeed, in that duel, Mi Fang didn’t show off his strength. If I were me, I’d
be unwilling to resign myself to that.”
“Older brother is older brother, he defeated himself, and although he lost, he
didn’t truly admit defeat. In this battle, he has come to a great
realization!” 
“Did the Jing Xiang Clan force him to fight again? Mi Fang’s loss caused the
Jing Xiang Clang to suffer castigation!” 
“I’m afraid Long Fu won’t agree. As a dragonman, it is normal for one to look
down upon their defeated opponent.”
The masses were unaware of the truth.
Mi Fang’s self-pitying female supporters, the projecting populace, and those
analyzing the current political situation were more or less right.
The dragonman youngster received Mi Fang’s challenge letter, and that evening,
he declared that he accepted this challenge.
The masses cheered.
“Long Fu accepted, he didn’t refuse!”
“The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps doesn’t actually need to work with the Jing
Xiang Clan. Now they have people in the Alchemy Guild.”
“I’ve always heard that Long Fu is a warrior, that he has a heroic and
magnanimous nature. You can see that from each of his fights. Believe me, I can
judge people accurately. Even if I am mistaken, there is no reason the others
aren’t mistaken too. The masses’ eyes are bright as snow!”
Thus, the dragonman youngster once again gained the good graces of the
populace.
The next day, the duel began.
The public duel containing the most magnificent Long Fu under the limelight, as
well as the narrative of revenge for a past transgression, caused the dueling
arena to be a full house inside.



****** Chapter 732: Probing Long Meng ******
The entire duel was marvelous, and the cheers didn’t stop as they filled the
entire arena.
In the last duel, Mi Fang was defensive, now he was going on the offensive,
using dazzling attacks.
Long Fu was also mainly on the offensive, defense was auxiliary. 
Through Long Meng’s tutelage, he learned Gravity Force, and for defense he
possessed Tempering Force and Tenacity Force.
In this battle, he was constantly using these forces.
With the help of Mi Fang’s pressure, he quickly grasped these three forces in
real combat.
He didn’t use battle skills, instead focusing on using basic combat techniques
to deal with Mi Fang’s various battle skills.
This caused the audience to exclaim in astonishment.
“Did you notice? Long Fu isn’t using his full strength.”
“His battle style has greatly changed; he’s not using any battle skills.”
“But his fist-work and footwork have been improved immensely, heavens, how has
it improved so much?!”
Finally, the dragonman youngster used a battle skill.
Battle skill – Dragon Pearl, Exploding Flame 
Exploding Flame battle qi filled the dragon pearls, imbuing each one with the
property of explosiveness.
The dragonman youngster used three exploding dragon pearls against Mi Fang,
causing the latter to cough up blood and fall to the ground, losing his battle
strength.
He accepted it wholeheartedly.
In the previous battle, his repeated battle skills were all unable to produce
the desired result. The dragon scales and armor was one reason, while the two
great forces amplifying defense was a second.
The dragonman youngster’s basic combat skills overwhelmed him. Finally, Mi Fang
had a high battle qi depletion rate, while the dragonman youngster’s basic
combat skills used battle qi frugally.
Seeing Mi Fang was running out of battle qi, the dragonman youngster used
[Dragon Pearl] to win in one final move.
“This was a marvelous duel!”
“That’s right, both sides fought gracefully and without regret.”
“Older Brother Mi Fang fought with all he had, squeezing out every last bit of
battle qi. Defeat doesn’t matter; he is still our older brother!”
Losing was not important in this case.
So long as there was a duel that was decided, there would be a winner and a
loser.
What was important was that the defeat was not unsightly. In the last duel, Mi
Fang’s defeat was too ugly, too shameful, and he hadn’t displayed one bit of
battle will and courage.
But in this fight, it was much better, much more daring and risky, that caused
the masses’ evaluation of Mi Fang to universally go back up.
And the crucial thing that changed his style was one simple sentence from the
dragonman youngster, he promised that he “wouldn’t kill him”.
This to Mi Fang was priceless.
He could attack with all of his strength yet felt he was no match for the
dragonman youngster, this solidified his submission to the dragonman youngster
more.
“In just a few days, how did Long Fu improve his combat skills so much?”
“Was this from Long Meng’s advice? Nonsense!”
“Only through the Dueling Divine Domain’s experience inheritance can this be
possible. But according to the reports, Long Fu hasn’t spent much time in the
Dueling Divine Domain.”
“Therefore, he is just pretending in everything, he is inherently powerful, and
is only constrained by circumstance, he is only showing off a part of it, that
is the reasonable take!”
The dragonman youngster’s fighting gifts were too insane, to the extent that Mi
Fang made the wrong conclusion. This wrong collusion was also in accordance
with popular sentiment.
However, in reality…
“He really made a lot of progress, if I hadn’t personally witnessed it, I could
never have imagined it to be so.” Long Meng sighed to himself, admiring the
dragonman youngster even more.
To the extent that he was more motivated to teach after this duel.
The dragonman youngster sensed that Long Meng was getting closer to him.
“Why?” The dragonman youngster pondered the cause of this change.
He thought of his saint level qualifications, of his immense progress, that he
was a dragonman just like him, and also of Shuang Lian and of the concealed
story Long Meng had with her.
“You can master many more forces. Your combat talent is rare, one of a kind
unlike what I’ve seen before.”
“Your progress can almost be counted as miraculous.”
After Long Meng’s instruction ended, he reminded the dragonman youngster, “You
have become a duelist, but haven’t been in the divine domain for very long.”
“Every duelist that enters the divine domain is imbued with a divine spell
contract.”
“After the divine spell agreement is placed, we can leave the Dueling Divine
Domain.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, already sensing the divine spell contract on
him.
It was not a big problem for him.
He could use deception divine spells to deceive the Main Earth Elemental God
and the divine artifact [Truth Slate], so naturally he could deceive an
incomplete Dueling Godhead’s divine spell contract, allowing it to mistakenly
believe that he was always complying within the scope of the contract.
Of course, he didn’t need to expended divine power or Pearl Bubbles right now
to deceive the Dueling God contract.
He was still willing to abide by it.
Long Meng continued, “In fact, new duelists also get a benefit in kind that you
haven’t received yet.”
“By staying in the divine domain, you will automatically be instilled with some
fighting experience.”
“These experiences come from the divine domain’s accumulation, originating from
the participants of countless duels in years past. To some extent, they had
faith in duels, therefore after death, their experience was left behind here.”
“You can inherit a portion of this experience.”
“Obtaining this experience can allow you to effortlessly and quickly learn many
new battle skills, far more efficiently than you can learn on your own…”
“Hic, perhaps with you, that isn’t the case.” Long Meng looked at the dragonman
youngster, quickly changing his remark.
The main thing was that the dragonman youngster’s learning rate was too fast,
too outstanding!
The dragonman youngster appeared delighted, “So, it turns out there is another
great thing.”
Long Meng smiled, and nodded, “Just this once. Afterwards, if you want to have
that kind of experience again, you’ll have to exchange divine favor for it.”
“Your situation is different from the other duelists.”
“I suggest that you continue to train diligently for a time. Your potential for
forces is immense, and currently you grasp three of them, that is far from your
limit.”
“Perhaps, when you can’t advance anymore or no longer see clear progress, you
can receive the Dueling God’s blessing, that would increase the cost-
performance ratio.”
The dragonman youngster nodded repeatedly, looking like a good student behaving
modestly.
This caused Long Meng to have a better opinion of him.
Actually, the dragonman youngster was thinking, “Can’t advance? With the
Bloodcore, there won’t be a day where I can’t advance forward.”
“The Dueling God is far more stingy than Charming Blue Goddess. Divine favor
doesn’t automatically go up, instead I have to make contributions.”
“But it doesn’t matter.”
“So long as I conduct blasphemous prayers, I believe I can obtain much more.
After all, the Dueling God doesn’t exist, and the Godhead is incomplete.”
The dragonman youngster was completely able to give the other duelists a small
shock, through blasphemous sacrifices.
But after careful deliberations, he let it be.
Actually, doing this would provoke the other duelists too much.
If the image of the dragonman youngster being favored by the Dueling Godhead
was formed, in the eyes of others, he’d become the most powerful competitor in
the Dueling Godhead contest!
At that time, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family and the White Dragon King’s
faction would want to sort out the dragonman youngster.
Long Meng would also turn from friend to foe!
Becoming a duelist was already dancing on the edge of a perilous precipice.
Doing more would be jumping and falling off the cliff.
“So long as I can seize it, the entire Dueling Godhead will be mine, there is
no need to do blasphemous sacrifices for a bit of divine favor.” The dragonman
youngster thought.
Outwardly, he told Long Meng he wanted to return the Axe Gang Leader’s and the
other gold levels’ bodies.
Long Meng was extremely grateful, “You have come to realize this, that’s great.
Helping return duelists who died in battle to Tranquil Hill is the consensus of
all of us.”
Long Fu then asked, “I am considering this, but should I demand some spoils of
war?”
Long Meng chuckled, “You can do as you see fit.”
The young man’s eyes vaguely flashed with sharp light.
He recalled Cang Xu’s guidance, “If Long Meng didn’t agree to this demand for
spoils of war, then it would prove he has a close relationship with the
military faction.”
“If Long Meng agreed, then it is indirect evidence of the competitive
relationship between the high class.”
“If Long Meng is indifferent, then he is an intermediary between them.”
Returning the three dead gold levels was the plan the dragonman youngster, Cang
Xu, and Zi Di had discussed and agreed to. Now the dragonman youngster said it
specifically for Long Meng to hear, cleverly probing the latter.
At the same time, he asking Long Meng for his guidance also could deepen his
relationship with Long Meng, further weakening the domineering feeling of the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
As expected, after the three gold level bodies were buried on Tranquil Hill,
the royal family immediately responded, expressing they were pleased.
The dragonman youngster decided to return them without asking for any spoils of
war, greatly allaying the relationship and tension between them and the
duelists.



****** Chapter 733: Hua Ni – They Came Prepared ******
Soldier City.
Bao Li Gen was training, pumping iron dumbbells and huffing loudly.
“Damn you, damn you Long Fu!”
“You think that by returning their bodies you can settle the grievances between
us?”
“Wishful thinking!”
“Even if the authorities make allowances for you, I will never forgive you, I
will never let go of any enemy that massacred my comrades!!”
As a soldier, one with a fiery temper that flagrantly violated military
discipline every day, he was unable to stand this outcome.
He expended divine favor to contact Mei Lin.
Me Lin was equally dissatisfied.
Bao Li Gen roared, “Are we letting the enemy get away with everything and even
letting them leap and frisk about before our very eyes?! I will kill him; I
will tear him to pieces!!”
Mei Lin sighed, she too was as resentful and restless as him. From the latest
intelligence reports, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had made a string of
moves. Using the starting point of the dragonman youngster becoming a duelist,
they applied leverage to surrounding relationships and were in the process of
vigorously roping in other duelists.
If their growth continued like this, it would be very detrimental to Mei Lin
and the others.
Mei Lin replied, “Long Fu has displayed saint level qualifications, he did so
deliberately at his own volition.”
“If I am not mistaken, next they will display their strength amply. This kind
of strength, is not battle strength, its is more concentrated on alchemy
capabilities.”
“The Alchemy Guild and the royal family will begin to work more with them
because of their alchemy products.”
“When that moment comes, vengeance for our comrades will be even more
hopeless.”
“But now, we still have a chance.”
“So long as Long Fu continues to participate in this year’s grand duel, we have
a chance.”
“I am currently up to my ears in work, and as a matter of fact, even if I could
personally duel Long Fu, I am unlikely to be his match.”
“This guy has hidden himself very deeply and has only exposed a portion of his
combat strength.”
“Therefore, we can only rely on you.”
“What is the progress of your magic construct armament?”
Bao Li Gen gritted his teeth tightly, “Too slow, way too slow! The armaments
department is still assembling it; they haven’t even adorned it yet!”
Mei Lin shook her head, “It should be fast. The National Ceremony Grand Duel is
already beginning, you are the military’s representative, they won’t leave you
out to dry.”
“You have been training for this for two years, and your day to compete is fast
approaching.”
After breaking the connection, Mei Lin sank into contemplation.
According to currently available information, Bai Li Gen was far from Long Fu
in battle strength.
On the face of it, Bao Li Gen was stronger than Long Fu. But secretly, both
were hiding many skills.
Like Mi Fang, Mei Lin firmly believed that Long Fu advancing leaps and bounds
by Long Meng’s tutelage was just a façade. The truth was that Long Fu was
simply unveiling his original strength step by step. Long Meng helping Long Fu
with this show proved that they had reached a cooperation and a tacit
understanding.
“Although Long Fu has that mysterious 3 v 1 method, with the magic construct
armament, Bao Li Gen will have peak gold level strength!”
As a member of the duelists, and also a high ranking admiral, Mei Lin knew a
lot of high level information.
What was referred to as magic construct armament was an entire set of matching
and closely connected equipment. It could immensely enhance the user, not just
unilaterally, rather it covered attack, defense, recovery, movement, and all
other aspects.
Feng Lian had a bronze mask; it was a part of his magic construct armament that
reached the saint level. It could transform his body to increase in size and
elevate his offenses enormously.
But because it was saint level, its energy depletion rate was terrifying.
Even Feng Lian was unable to independently support it. Therefore, when it was
active, Feng Lian would frequently use wind chains to link himself to his magic
ship and borrow its magic power reservoir.
On the kingdom’s army side, Bao Li Gen was outfitted with a complete set of
magic construct armament.
It was gold level, yet its expenditure rate was gigantic.
Thus, it had its own energy core, Bai Li Gen would find it very difficult to
satisfy the overall energy expenditure rate himself when it was activated. 
This was one of the features of magic construct armament, all magic construct
armament had their own independent energy supply. This kind of exogenous energy
far exceeded the energy reserves of a regular gold level transcendent.
It was also because of this that the magic construct armament could amplify all
aspects so powerfully.
Mei Lin was a magician, she understood thoroughly how strong magic construct
armament was.
“From another point of view, magic construct gear can turn an individual
soldier into a magic ship, one wearing a magician tower.”
“For the National Ceremony Grand Duel and to sell its munitions, the army has
poured all of its forces into this project. Three years ago, the army selected
its best, and Bao Li Gen came out on top.”
“He painstakingly trained for almost two years, and him with the magic
construct gear will be worth putting hope into!”
“The better he does in duels, the better the finished product does in the Warm
Snow Cup, the greater the volume of the kingdom’s munitions trade.”
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s alchemy product experts was a significant mainstay
industry, and through its flourishing alchemy industries, had turned them into
an international arms dealer.
Bao Li Gen’s battle strength concerned the army’s reputation and fight for
benefits. Mei Lin believed that this time, the kingdom’s army would be going
all out.
Alchemy Guild.
This year’s Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest was beginning its second segment – the
alchemy product exhibition.
Each one person exhibition hall was next to each other, and people surged like
the tide, it was a lively spectacle.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ exhibition hall was presided over by Yao Ma
(Zi Di).
Zi Di showcased three products.
The first was the undead aura sensor she used to threaten Elder Jiu Jin.
A hired apprentice alchemist was in the process of using an undead material to
publicly display the operation of this alchemy instrument. 
The second was something Zi Di had planned to sell in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
market, the Fire and Ice Song.
It was not magic medicine, but a loudspeaker.
After it was activated, the horn would broadcast a singing voice. Within the
range of the singing voice, ice elements would turn from their normal rigid
state into a drifting and free flame like state.
From the outside, it looked like white flames were quickly melting the ignited
ice.
The third was the Ice Crystal Protection Talisman.
The main material was ice crystals, refined into defensive equipment. It was
only the size of a palm, and after being aroused, it could release a hexagon
shaped defensive barrier. The barrier was not large; it was smaller than a one
hand circular shield.
The wonderful thing rested with the fact that many Ice Crystal Protection
Talismans could be activated at the same time, joining together the same
translucent hexagon barriers.
“It’s with that instrument that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps gained
blackmail over that rubbish Jiu Jin!” Hua Ni’s face was steady, pondering and
polishing the information she had on hand.
She now hated the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps bitterly, and really wanted
revenge, thus, she paid close attention to information on them.
Since Cai Jing and the others formed a new faction, the Guild President not
only didn’t suppress them, but he helped them instead. Thus, Hua Ni’s influence
and prestige in the Alchemy Guild took a huge blow.
Since then, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps started to sell large amounts of
honey snow on behalf of Shuang Lian, driving another knife heavily into Hua Ni.
Perspicacious people could see that Hua Ni was routed by the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps in a disastrous manner.
Hua Ni was slapped publicly by the masses, but she could do nothing about it.
Therefore, she wildly researched into the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, thought
she found an area to attack, then set up doing so. Of course, her movements
were restricted to a degree, as she couldn’t make things difficult for the
royal family.
“This is outstandingly clever..” Looking at the undead detector in the magic
image, Hua Ni’s expression changed.
Then, she cursed again, “Jiu Jin, you wastrel.”
Information that Jiu Jin was being blackmailed by the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps was given to Hua Ni by the Li Jian Clan.
Hua Ni didn’t have much of a reaction to this.
Who cared if Jiu Jin was polluted by a necromancer’s aura? Couldn’t anyone
trade with a necromancer? Actually, the strange thing was that this business
couldn’t be brought up in public.
Magicians had flexible convictions, and all of these people were inclined
towards research, so this group had a more forgiving opinion of necromancers.
Their benefits were not much in agreement with the gods’ benefits.
“This Ice Crystal Protection Talisman is also pretty good, but its design
concept is ingenious. Its defensive performance and energy consumption rate is
just average however.”
“The most valuable one is the second item – the Fire and Ice Song!”
At a glance, Hua Ni could see from the point of view of a professional the
immense worth of the second alchemy product.
It could turn rigid ice elements into a more gaseous form, the practical
applications of this was immense.
For example, it could be used to exploit iceberg and glacier resources,
automatically turning ice cubes into depleted flames.
Another example, on the battlefield, many spells and magic items that used
rigid ice elements could easily be disturbed by the Fire and Ice Song and even
be destroyed by it.
Hua Ni most valued the paired usage of the Fire and Ice Song with honey snow.
“With the help of the Fire and Ice Song, more of honey snow can be converted
into an energy source. The level of this conversion rate improvement, even with
a cursory assessment, can be calculated as very considerable!”
When Hua Ni’s analysis reached this point, her brows deeply creased. She
noticed that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was not just limited to mount
potions, they had their own original advantages to compete.
“Who is their arms merchant backer? Such strength!”
Even enemies like Hua Ni had to admit the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ three
products were very enticing.
“They came prepared.”
“The Fire and Ice Song especially suits our kingdom, and the Ice Crystal
Talisman will be versatile equipment for the army.”
Hua Ni suddenly realized why Long Fu revealed his “saint level qualifications”.
“The strength of this collaboration, the scare of this business, I fear it
really does need a saint level overseeing it.”
The truth was after Zi Di and Cang Xu investigated, they decided to withhold
two of the original five products.
They didn’t want to provoke the Alchemy Guild too much.
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps needed an exceptional display; to
show it was worth it to work with them, but not too exceptional.
Like the dragonman youngster becoming a duelist and deciding not to acquire the
God’s favor.



****** Chapter 734: Jing Xiang Clan Begs for Collaboration ******
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ influence was on a meteoric rise.
The dragonman youngster became a duelist and was appeased by the royal family.
Working with Shuang Lian, as well as helping Cai Jing and the others allowed
them to get through the Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest unimpeded.
During the second stage of the competition, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
revealed three alchemy products, once again raising their status in the minds
of others.
Zi Di took advantage of this to negotiate with the Alchemy Guild, reaching an
agreement to produce these alchemy goods, including mount potions.
What power in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had the largest alchemy production
lines?
There was only one answer, the Alchemy Guild.
The Jing Xiang Clan’s magic medicine production lines were far inferior to the
Alchemy Guild’s, let alone other types of alchemy products.
As for the Li Jian Clan, don’t bother bringing them up.
The negotiations quickly made progress.
On the one hand, Zi Di’s applications for many alchemy laboratories was in the
process of being audited and approved.
In the survivors’ plans, these alchemy laboratories could be turned into small
scale production workshops.
As of now, production capacity is very scarce.
They wanted to do everything to increase production capacity.
To obtain more alchemy laboratories, Cai Jing and the others, in accordance
with the survivors’ wishes, applied for the maximum number of alchemy
laboratories they could.
The Ice Sculpture Capital has many alchemy laboratories.
Zi Di once inspected several famous alchemy blocks, finding many of them were
abandoned.
After all, leasing these alchemy laboratories cost money.
In fact, the amount of laboratories inside the capital was far less than the
amount underground. Within the Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s three layers, there
were countless laboratories, along with hidden magician towers, temples, and
other facilities.
This was the foundation the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was built on before it was
founded.
Zi Di’s plan was clear, “The alchemy laboratories serving as workshops is only
a stopgap measure.”
“After all, these laboratories not only require rent, but are time limited, and
we need to provide standards-compliant alchemy results.”
Otherwise, these laboratories wouldn’t have been abandoned.
Many alchemists had had problems during testing, and were unable to get
results, thus, they were disqualified from renting these places.
But to the survivors, this requirement was that demanding.
Because with War Merchant’s gigantic database, they could take out items that
could meet the requirements and continue to lease them in accordance with the
rules.
“We also need to buy large scale installations, organize production lines, hire
many apprentice alchemists, or settle the matter in one go and refine alchemy
puppet workers on a broad scale.”
“In short, we need a large alchemy factory, one that works without rest, and
outputs enough to supply the Ice Sculpture Kingdom as well as other powers.”
Relying on the dragonman youngster’s military force, Cang Xu’s exquisite
schemes, and Zi Di’s business plans, they completely swept away past
impediments and once again entered a wide expanse of land they could rapidly
grow across.
She began to purchase large scale production units, while simultaneously
beginning to survey the entire nation, considering where to build her factory
in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Very quickly, she took a fancy for the Li Jian Clan’s production lines.
She started negotiations with the Li Jian Clan’s person in charge, “Our
collaboration won’t continue. Your recently expanded production lines are about
to be abandoned, why not sell it to me instead?”
This was quite unruly, and the Li Jian Clan member in charge turned angrily
pale, almost losing their noble demeanor to swear at her.
But Zi Di knew the current Li Jian Clan Leader’s temperament, directly stating,
“If you can’t make the decision, then pass it on to your clan leader.”
Since the dragonman youngster had said so, the Li Jian Clan Leader, Mian Li
Zang, had been waiting for Long Fu to talk to him.
As a result, they kept waiting, but Long Fu never came.
Finally, they waited until Zi Di came over with the intense request to purchase
the Li Jian Clan’s alchemy production lines.
Mian Li Zang was fairly angry, but he was a mature politician, controlled his
mood, and decided to contact the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster rebuffed him, telling him: right now, my heart is on
doing well in duels. Also, due to constant training with Long Meng, I don’t
have time to talk with you, Mian Li Zang. Considering the Li Jian Clan’s
current circumstances, I hope both sides will cut ties properly and finalize
all the procedures. If there is an opportunity to work together again in the
future, maybe we’ll collaborate once more.
Mian Li Zang felt humiliated.
The dragonman youngster told him this in those words: I don’t want to see your
Li Jian Clan anymore, your Li Jian Clan has sunk into such deep trouble that I
don’t want it near me, I don’t want it to implicate me.
“I’d rather die than sell these production lines to you!” The resentful Mian Li
Zang immediately turned down Zi Di’s purchase proposal.
Zi Di was not disappointed at his refusal. It goes without saying that the
probability of this going through was tiny, she placed no hopes into it.
Furthermore, the Jing Xiang Clan was quickly calling in, actively requesting
that the Dragonman Lion Mercenary Corps work with them, this was a change from
their attitude of “even if we lose the duel, we’ll procrastinate in high
spirits”.
The Jing Xiang Clan’s changing attitude was due to two main reasons.
The first reason was that during Mi Fang’s second duel with Long Fu, he was
defeated again. However, Mi Fang’s battle style was able to salvage his
prestige greatly.
The second reason is that rumors of the Alchemy Guild collaborating with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were already circulating.
The Jing Xiang Clan was powerless to stop the business alliance between the
Alchemy Guild and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. 
Since they were no match, they might as well throw in the towel.
Don’t say anything about strength of character or snow elf pride.
This is the survival wisdom of nobles!
Thus, the Jing Xiang Clan’s representative’s attitude was very humble. Zi Di
appeared as arrogant as possible, then explicitly instructed, “Bring Mi Fang
over so we can converse.”
The Jing Xiang Clan was naturally unwilling to. The clan’s snow elves had
suppressed Mi Fang with great difficulty, and this kind of son-in-law needed to
be beaten down so he’ll be more useful in the future.
Zi Di moved with the dragonman youngster’s reputation, “During the second duel,
our Lord Commander has acknowledged Mi Fang.”
“Mi Fang is the only one that can meet his eyes in all of the Jing Xiang Clan.”
“If you want to replace him as the negotiator, then the replacement needs to
first challenge Lord Long Fu and use the duel to display their tolerance.”
The Jing Xiang Clan: …
After Zi Di’s words were sent back, the entire clan sank into a weird silence.
Soon after, they shirked responsibility, none of them wanted to duel.
The Jing Xiang Clan’s bloodline, by nature, was not good at fighting, but at
making medicine.
The reason why they valued recruiting Mi Fang was because of his fighting
strength and the tremendous influence Mi Fang had when he won duels.
That evening, the Jing Xiang Clan Leader summoned Mi Fang again, “In your last
duel, since you didn’t use the potion, return it to me.”
Mi Fang shook his head, smiling as he declined, “Lord Clan Elder, that potion
is best left in my hands. It is my confidence as the clan’s representative with
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from now on.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader frowned, “That is my clan’s property, not yours.”
Mi Fang’s smile grew, “I am also a member of the Jing Xiang Clan. Since it is
my clan’s property, I have the right to use it. This potion should be in the
hands of the one that bring out the most value in it.”
“If there is a clan member that wants to use this potion to challenge Long Fu,
then I will hand it over to you.”
The Jing Xiang Clan Leader sank into silence.
In the stifling atmosphere, he watched Mi Fang intently.
Mi Fang fearlessly looked back at him, face to face, his smile growing
stronger.
The pleasure of retaliation intoxicated him.
Through this matter, he could clearly see the Jing Xiang Clan’s base nature –
cowardice!
“If there is nothing else, please excuse me.” Mi Fang strategically asked to
leave.
Before he left the study, the Jing Xiang Clan Eldler finally said, “You should
know this pertinent news. From now on, you are responsible for the clan’s talks
with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps concerning the mount potion business.”
Mi Fang exposed a victorious grin, he let go of the door knob, and turned to
look back at the clan leader, the latter was expressionless.
He bowed, lightly replying, “Yes.”
His rightful position had been returned, but Mi Fang wasn’t the slightest bit
happy.
He understood thoroughly who it was that returned it all to him!
Therefore, when he represented the Jing Xiang Clan and negotiated with the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, he expressed a deferential attitude from deep
within his heart.
Zi Di was responsible for receiving him.
“Sorry, this time, I am quite busy, and don’t have time to discuss everything
with you.” 
“This is my first draft of the business agreement, have a look.”
Mi Fang shook his head, “No need to, I accept.”
This attitude caused Zi Di to stare at him, but soon after she gently laughed.
The young lady sized up Mi Fang again, “You can still look at it, amend some
parts, and then return to the Jing Xiang Clan.”
Mi Fang shook his head again, “The reason why I agree to it, apart from
acknowledge allegiance to your Lord Commander, is that I know full well that at
this moment, the Jing Xiang Clan has absolutely no qualifications to negotiate
with your corps!”
Zi Di exposed a satisfied smile, clapped her hands, and exclaimed, “Excellent,
Mi Fang, I have a bit more respect for you now.”
“Since I don’t have time, you can represent the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and
go speak with He Gai Tou.”
“Here are the details, take a good look, appreciate the intent inside.”
“Perform well!”
As Zi Di brushed past him, she clapped Mi Fang’s shoulder while he respectfully
lowered his head.
“Why were you the one to come?!” He Gai Tou’s brows creased greatly.
Beforehand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps contacted him, wanting to work
together with him. The delegate that came was not Long Fu, or even Yao Ma, but
Mi Fang.
This was out of place!
But very quickly, He Gai Tou reacted, and he glared at Mi Fang, “You submitted
to Long Fu?”
Mi Fang smiled, “The Lord Commander allowed me to completely realize what I
should do. The Jing Xiang Clan is not my family.”
He Gai Tou clenched his teeth, feeling he had been caught unprepared.
At the same time, he was deeply aware that the Jing Xiang Clan was no longer
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ match, and in order to save their mount potion
interests, they had bent the knee.
“These nobles!” He Gai Tou grinded his teeth, but he wasn’t surprised.



****** Chapter 735: Opening the Wisteria Cache ******
Mi Fang’s and He Gai Tou’s negotiation finished that same day.
Long Fu would challenge Shi Liu, then secretly supply capital to allow He Gai
Tou to play the market and gain much more money.
Mi Fang would transport the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ capital, and with his
own name, wager that Long Fu would defeat Shi Liu within three rounds.
This awed He Gai Tou immensely.
“Long Fu is indeed hiding his strength; he is actually confident that he can
beat Shi Liu within three rounds!”
“Long Fu is also very vindictive. Last time, the Ice Prison’s representative
Bing Yang made things difficult for him, and now it is his turn to target the
Ice Prison.”
“He’s warning me.”
“What an overbearing guy…”
Hei Gai Tou understood that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had deliberately
sent Mi Fang to negotiation as another layer of deterrence.
He Gai Tou was not like Mi Fang; he was a lone figure with no patron.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have used the pretense of gambling to send the Ice
Prison Warden bribes every year.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have helped Bing Yang, thereby showing consideration to
Mei Lin and the others.
He Gai Tou’s largest backer, or foundation, as the duelists.
“But in the end, that fucking Long Fu became a duelist!” When He Gai Tou heard
that news for the first time, he exploded into obscene language.
He Gai You was the second breach in Cang Xu’s plan.
If one were to say Mi Fang was weak natured, then He Gai Tou was weak in
influence.
It was precisely why he was a good target.
Long Fu’s challenge to Shi Liu did not attract as much attention as before.
Despite Hei Gai Tou, and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps secretly applying
force to disseminate information and gossip to raise it in the public eye.
This was because the National Ceremony Grand Duel was in its late stage, and
the dragonman youngster and Shi Liu were not the only pair of gold levels
dueling each other.
There was another important reason, after a period of elimination and
filtering, there were many outstanding duelists that distinguished themselves.
There were many new faces among them.
The National Ceremony Grand Duel was not held every year; it was a golden event
that attracted many outsiders to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom. At the same time,
there were many domestic cultivators that were vigorously training and
preparing for many years for this.
The dragonman youngster had a massive reputation, but his style and fighting
methods were not gaudy, and many spectators felt he was no longer fresh.
The dragonman youngster also sensed this too.
“The greater my reputation, the more helpful it will be for my seizing of the
Dueling Godhead.”
“I have to continue to raise my renown, but if I repeat myself, my renown will
have reached its limit.”
The dragonman youngster was already hugely popular nationwide, everyone who
should know of him did, and those who shouldn’t know of him had at least heard
of him.
Next, he should allow his reputation to settle.
Make haters into fans, and make fans into mega fans, make more people
acknowledge the dragonman youngster’s power…from the point of view of faith,
this was deepening the level of belief!
It was precisely because of this goal that the dragonman youngster challenged
Shi Liu.
The Ice Prison’s side hesitated, but Shi Liu was unable to hold himself back.
With the help of deception divine spells, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps used
Elder Jiu Jin’s name to quietly negotiate with Shi Liu and acquire the other’s
trust, ultimately reaching an agreement.
The duel began.
But for the first time, the dueling arena was empty. 
Today, there were three gold level duels happening, the dragonman youngster’s
and Shi Liu’s was just one of them.
But the dueling gambling pots were innumerable. It wasn’t just the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps and He Gai Tou priming public opinion, other gambling houses
and powers were proficient at such lines of work.
The fight began.
The dragonman youngster charged into Shi Liu.
Shi Liu felt things were anything but reassuring and immediately pulled back.
Battle skill – Dragon Pearl, Exploding Flame!
As the dragonman youngster charged, three dragon pearls appeared and floated
around his body.
Ding.
With a dull echo, the dragonman youngster and Shi Liu fought in close quarters.
Then, explosions!
Dragons exploded in succession, lifting a surge of smoke.
This was the first round.
In the second round, Shi Liu shouted, magic power bubbling from his magic
crystal as he used his earth type battle skill.
A gigantic wall broke through the smoke, standing tall across the dueling
arena.
The dragonman youngster didn’t retreat.
Battle skill – Demolition Fist.
Battle skill technique – Vibration Force!
Demolition Fist exploded like a bomb, and it by itself could blow up a large
hole in the earth wall. But with the Vibration Force empowering it, the
explosion formed a vibrating ripple.
The powerful, radiating wave quickly covered the entire earth wall.
The earth wall’s surface quickly dried, then turned crispy, flakes of it
swirled in the air as cracks expanded, until finally, it turned into earthen
fragments of various sizes.
The second round finished.
The dragonman youngster punched through the earth wall defense, and then
charged at Shi Liu again, brandishing his fist.
He was too close, and Shi Liu was unable to shift away. The latter growled and
charged at him to attack.
Formidable attacks struck the dragonman youngster, but the dragon scales,
defensive battle skills, and Tempering Force combined to form a perfect
defense.
By contrast, after Shi Liu was struck by the heavy fist, he suddenly went slack
and motionless.
The dragonman youngster took advantage of this to plunge his dragon claw into
his body, pull out his magic crystal, and crush it in front of everyone.
Without a magic crystal, Shi Liu’s earth elemental body loudly collapsed,
turning into countless fragments, steeping the ground everywhere with strong
earth elements.
In three rounds, Long Fu had won!
Everyone present was stupefied.
No one anticipated this duel finishing so quickly. 
Beforehand, countless experts considered Shi Liu’s and Long Fu’s formidable
defenses, all of the surmising that this would be a prolonged war of attrition.
Yet the result was this, within a brief dozen seconds, not only was victory or
defeat determined, but also life or death!
“What just happened?”
“It’s over?!”
“Is Shi Liu dead? How can this be? I just sat down.”
The audience fiercely discussed, beginning to rack their brains in analysis.
“Was this a fake match?”
“Idiot! Who would die in a fake match?!”
“Long Fu is not that kind of person! Don’t slander my older brother!! You’re
courting death!”
“Don’t tell me Shi Liu was such a weak duelist?”
“No, no that isn’t it. To be selected by the Ice Prison and also be a gold
level, how can he be trash?”
“Right, I’ve seen Shi Liu duel several times, and has shown great battle
strength.”
Everyone analyzed, and after enthusiastic discussion, they arrived at a verdict
– Long Fu had become stronger!
“He has learned Vibration Force, heavens, how is he improving so much?”
“In this duel, he displayed a few forces, but they were focused on defense. Now
that he knows Vibration Force, he was able to restrain an elemental’s body.”
“Shi Liu had the bad luck to come across my older brother Long Fu!”
“Were Long Meng’s teachings this good? Long Fu’s progression is simply
outrageous.”
“I am starting to be interested in his next duels. We really don’t know what
kind of improvements he’ll have in the next duel!!”
Victory
He Gai Tou won, he played the market and earned a hefty sum. Who would have
thought before the battle that Long Fu would “kill” Shi Liu within three
rounds.
Shi Liu also won. Through multiple deception divine spells, he successfully
played dead and indirectly broke out of prison.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps also won. First, they established a beneficial
alliance with He Gai Tou, greatly pulling their relationship together. Second,
the dragonman youngster’s killing of Shi Liu displayed his aggression and also
gave the audience a nice surprise, causing widespread and enthusiastic
discussion that improved his reputation. Third, Shi Liu realigned his
allegiance. And the Wisteria Cache was within view.
In a nutshell, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps won in three ways.
“We have waited long enough; it is time to open the Wisteria Cache!” The
dragonman youngster, Zi Di, and Cang Xu moved together. 
Zi Di was in the open, using the form of Gui Teng to take along Jiu Jin, Cong
Mang, and Shi Liu.
The dragonman youngster and Cang Xu were supporting in secret.
“The day is finally here.” When Elder Yuan Ci saw the four people, he deeply
sighed.
“Lead the way now, if we procrastinate anymore, more parts of the formation
will be activated and it’ll become strong, we won’t have another chance after
this.” Elder Jiu Jin urged.
As an Alchemy Guild elder, although not part of its core, he had heard about
the Millenium Dragon Formation.
Elder Yuan Ci nodded, he had been hiding in the Ten Millennia Ice Lake for
years, and these last few days, he could sense the ice lake changing
dramatically.
Yuan Ci did not deceive Zi Di, the Wisteria Cache really was hidden on the
second ice layer.
The five level zero Wisteria Secret orders were collected together (Zi Di was
using Fei She’s, as her order was worth three), and successfully opened the
cache’s door.
The hidden chamber was not big; it had a circular wall that had high cabinets
built into it.
Each cabinet drawer had a suitcase in it, containing alchemy goods and even
more space. 
These were silver level suitcases, and each suitcase was stuffed with gold
coins, gems, valuable alchemy materials, and more.
There were too many priceless things, an inventory was required.
In the middle of the secret chamber, there was a tabletop one-and-a-half human
tall, on which there were five items laid out.
A golden magic storage pouch, a white bone ring, an ice crystal crown, a
scarlet cloak, and a small wooden box.
Everyone’s attention was quickly concentrated on these five treasures.
The suitcases were all filled with conventional resources, winning out in sheer
quantity. The tabletop in the center was an alchemy module, acting as a seal
and a concealment device to protect the five treasures on it.
When Elder Yuan Ci saw the five treasures, his eyes quickly flashed.
He pretended to laugh unconcerned, “Excellent, there are five of us, and as it
happens there are five treasures, one per person.” 
“This time, me and Jiu Jin contributed the most, so we will pick first.”
Yuan Ci was a silver level magician, but Cong Mang and Shi Liu were both gold
levels.
To guard against the others’ objections, and to strengthen his influence, he
pulled in Jiu Jin.
Jiu Jin was a gold level magician, and an Alchemy Guild elder, an authentic
local bully of the Ice Sculpture Capital.
But unexpectedly, Elder Jiu Jin shook his head, “This kind of allocation is not
appropriate, I don’t approve.”
Elder Yuan Ci’s face changed.
Shi Liu and Cong Mang echoed it, “We disagree too.”
Elder Yuan Ci’s expression sank like water, his fears had come to pass, and he
couldn’t help but sneer out to probe, “How would you distribute these?”
The result of this probing was that Shi Liu, Jiu Jin, and Cong Mang all looked
at Gui Teng ( Zi Di), looking like they were waiting for orders.
Elder Yuan Ci began to drip cold sweat.
He swallowed his saliva, subconsciously taking a few steps back.
Zi Di lightly chuckled, “Don’t be nervous, Elder Yuan Ci, you are useful to
us.” 
“It seems you have some understanding of these treasures; can you explain them
to us?”



****** Chapter 736: Yuan Ci Tells of the Treasures ******
Yuan Ci bitterly sighed, deeply recognizing Gui Teng’s shrewdness.
He now felt very regretful, how could he be so blind to bring in Gui Teng and
conspire for the Wisteria Cache with them?
Even worse, Gui Teng had roped in, no, more like subdued Jiu Jin, Cong Mang,
and Shi Liu.
“How did he accomplish this?”
“This is impossible!”
“He has a backer, he must have a backer!”
Yuan Ci was angry and bitter, but due to the pressing circumstances, he was
forced to reply, “I only know about three of them.”
He pointed his finger towards the golden magic storage bag, “That is the Time
Gold Purse, over time, gold will condense inside the bag.”
“It is an alchemy creation from the goblin era.”
“To my understanding, most of the gold coins come from that purse.”
“I was also involved in the arrangement of the Wisteria Cache.”
“All of the gold coins condensed in the purse are marked with the symbol of the
goblin empire. Therefore, if we want to use them and not expose this treasure,
we will have to recast them.”
Shi Liu was expressionless, while Cong Mang’s eyes lit up.
Elder Jiu Jin knew the ropes, and looked astonished, “What is the principle of
this alchemy treasure? Don’t tell me it turns time into metal? Does it touch on
the endless transformations of alchemy materials? Isn’t that one of three
ultimate pursuits of alchemy?!”
What was referred to as the three ultimate pursuits of alchemy was the golden
touch, the elixir of eternal life, and the universal dissolving compound.
Alchemy was founded and was initially developed to turn based matter into gold,
for massive economic benefit. Nowadays, this field of research had many
results. Turning base matter into gold was achieved, and even be said to
influence other fields. Druids and magicians had their respective divine and
arcane spells that could turn matter into gold.
But the ultimate pursuit of the golden touch was never attained, or in other
words, it served a greater purpose in symbolism.
Technology was always failing and succeeding, always going a step forward.
Small objectives were attained, and large objectives rose to the occasion.
At first, when master alchemists were able to turn things into gold, it took
materials and energy far in excess of how much gold was produced. 
They began to delve into how to decrease expenditures, costs, and increase
earnings.
Then, master alchemists, during the process, learned how to turn materials into
new materials, which automatically caused them to ponder, what other materials
could be turned into gold?
Finally, gold was no longer the universal pursuit of alchemists, they began to
study other substances meticulously, and how to turn things into those
materials. At this step, the meaning of the golden touch had deepened to mean
“endless transformation of matter”, that was an immense proposition.
The golden touch, as alchemy developed, constantly deepened in meaning, and was
always one of alchemy’s three ultimate pursuits.
And the time coin purse Zi Di just gained was an immense achievement from the
research into the golden touch.
This magic purse could turn time into gold, then refine them into gold coins.
The refined gold coins were not exceptional. The true core secret had to do
with “time”, turning an immaterial concept into tangible gold!
Zi Di was also rather shaken, thinking to herself: So long as this alchemy
technology is researched, and appeared in this year’s Warm Snow Cup, they would
dominate everyone and take first place!
“I fear reverse engineering the technology of this purse is not something the
average person can do.” Zi Di shook her head and sighed.
Jiu Jin also nodded and lamented, “Yep. However, this achievement can
absolutely save a lot of research and development, and trialing costs. This is
a readily available pointer.”
“If we wanted to develop this research project, the royal family and the guild
would energetically support it, and research funds would come promptly. But
this is a product of the goblin empire, we would need to hire a goblin empire
historian, a senior goblin language scholar, and a goblin spell researcher.”
But Zi Di suddenly thought of War Merchant.
Unfortunately, the legend level goblin magician War Merchant was dead.
Zi Di’s thinking couldn’t help but diverge, “If this treasure was given to War
Merchant, they would be considerably interested in it.”
“At least, I haven’t found any data in the tower spirit’s database on War
Merchant researching into this field.”
“To him, this would be a new task.”
With that in mind, Zi Di looked closely at the Wisteria Merchant Alliance’s
former collaboration with War Merchant again.
Previously, she believed that when the Wisteria Merchant Alliance was in a
dependent state, they decided to work with War Merchant. But now, just the
sight of this Time Gold Purse changed her perception.
“The Wisteria Merchant Alliance was once massive, possessed astonishing wealth,
and got ahold of a huge volume of materials or rare treasures, all of this was
within the scope of their capabilities.”
“My Father sought War Merchant, and War Merchant likewise could use the
Wisteria Merchant Alliance to find things he needed.”
Zi Di pondered, then looked at Yuan Ci, “Continue.”
Yuan Ci stated, “I recognize the second item, the crown. The Ice Crystal Crown
is saint level equipment, one of the components of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
armament [Ice Sculpture Monarch].”
Most didn’t react to that sentence, but Elder Jiu Jin was once again shocked,
crying out, “You’re not mistaken?”
“[Ice Sculpture Monarch] is a saint level magic construct armament. When a
saint level transcendent equips it, their battle strength soars and they will
be able to fight a legend level to a degree. It is one of my country’s
legendary foundations.”
“How did your…our Wisteria Merchant Alliance obtain it?”
Yuan Ci shook his head, “This I do not know.”
Yuan Ci then pointed at the small wooden box, “That is the Gem Wish Box. It is
said that when a gem meteor fell from the sky, a Grandmaster Alchemist used it
to create a foundation altar. During the Wishing God’s grand religious
festival, said stone evoked divine blessing and was shaped by the Wishing God.”
“It is also a saint level item, and it can exchange and synthesizes gems.”
Yuan Ci’s words were brief, but this time, the other four were staring at this
mediocre looking wooden box.
With no exception, Jiu Jin, Zi Di, the coarse fellow Cong Mang, and Shi Liu
deeply realize the worth of this small wooden box.
With gem exchanging, one could turn the gems one had into rarer gems.
One must know, that although both were gems, the price of a sapphire and a ruby
was different on the market. For example, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was a
source of white gems, so rubies were more expensive than sapphires here. In the
Main Plane, stardust gems were the rarest and most expensive and frequently
weren’t available to purchase.
If this small wooden box’s output was big, and didn’t consume much energy, then
it was unto itself a top notch gem business.
The greatest value of the Gem Wish Box was not that, but gem synthesis.
It could use inferior gems, and through quantity, produce high level gems.
Since it was a saint level item, in other words, it could use gold level gems
to produce saint level gems.
“This is a steady way of obtaining saint level alchemy materials! Heavens, the
value of this.” Elder Jiu Jin lamented.
Yuan Ci painfully closed his eyes.
He coveted the Gem Wish Box.
“What about the other two treasures, do you three recognize them?” Zi Di asked
Cong Mang, Jiu Jin, and Shi Liu.
The three shook their heads.
Zi Di replied, “Then let’s take them away first, and depart this place.
“Be careful.” Elder Yuan Ci promptly reminded, “This tabletop has a concealment
and aura restraining effect. If we take them out without any appropriate
measures, then these treasures will leak their transcendent aura.”
“I fear saint level transcendent aura will be detected by the large formation
outside.”
Those words caused Elder Jiu Jin to look worried, “Elder Yuan Ci is correct!”
Zi Di smiled, “Don’t worry, I will act.”
After the door was opened, the dragonman youngster and Cang Xu followed in. The
dragonman youngster was already in the secret room, while Cang Xu was left
outside as support.
The two had deception divine spells on them, and Cong Mang and the other four
didn’t perceive them at all.
Zi Di put the five level zero secret orders in the corresponding notches in the
circular tabletop, activating it.
The locks inside issued a metallic click simultaneously, then the five
treasures popped out slightly.
The moment the aura was about to leak, Zi Di lightly waved her hand, and the
dragonman youngster used a deception divine spell.
The divine spell could mask aura, truly demonstrating that specialization had
outstanding effects!
The minds of Yuan Ci, Jiu Jin, and the rest shook.
They didn’t sense anything when Zi Di used some transcendent method. On the
face of it, Gui Teng simply waved their hand and the five treasures’
transcendent aura was totally concealed.
No one could tell!
Incomprehensible!
For a moment, Yuan Ci and others were more fearful of Gui Teng (Zi Di).
The five people worked together to take all of the suitcases out of the secret
chamber.
The dragonman youngster personally used divine spells to test everywhere, and
after confirming the secret room was empty, he told Zi Di.
After Zi Di received the confirmation, she had Yuan Ci close the secret room
again.
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s formation is getting stronger, Yuan Ci, it is
getting more dangerous to stay in the Ten Millennia Ice Lake, come with us.” Zi
Di issued her plan.
Yuan Ci had no other choice and just nodded.
Before leaving, the dragonman youngster gazed into the depth of the ice lake.
The Wisteria Cache’s treasure room was established in the century ice layer,
and below it was the millennium ice layer and the ten millennium ice layer.
When the dragonman youngster entered the lake and used many detection methods.
After personally practicing them, he noticed that these detection methods
performed uniformly terrible.
“The Time divinity suppresses all other powers.”
“Only the Ice Sculpture Royal Family’s super-formation is strong enough to push
back against the divinity’s power and be able to investigate the Ten Millennia
Ice Lake on a wide scale.”
“It’s a true pity.”
“If I could use the Bloodcore to absorb the Time God Dragon’s corpse in the ten
millennium layer, that would be amazing!”
But the dragonman youngster only thought about it.
Doing this was too difficult.
There were saint level aquatic magic beasts in the millennium ice layer.
In the ten millennium ice layer, there were many more saint level aquatic
beasts, even groups of them together.
Not only that, but the closer one got to the dragon corpse, the stronger the
time divinity was, the more it eroded and transformed the environment. Without
special methods to break in, a short hundred meters might take someone ten
years to walk across.



****** Chapter 737: Long Fu vs Zhu Gan ******
“Furthermore, we can’t deal with the Millenium Dragon Formation.” The dragonman
youngster sighed to himself.
The survivors’ alchemy strength could never compete with the formation.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ greatest alchemist was not Zi Di or Cang Xu,
but the fishman magician Zhong Yong.
Although Bu Quan joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, she was nominally a
member.
But after the dragonman youngster contacted Shuang Lian, he understood that
Shuang Lian valued Bu Quan a lot and would never allow Bu Quan to truly join
the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps. Especially because the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ backer was an “arms merchant”, and as outsiders, at most when their
connection with the Ice Sculpture Royal Family deepened, they would only be
“collaborators” or “allies”.
Shuang Lian was a powerful Alchemy Guild elder and belonged to the Ice
Sculpture Royal Family’s faction.
With regards to Bu Quan’s personal growth, her brightest prospects lay with
following Shuang Lian, and waiting to inherit Honey Snow Tower, the demiplane,
and so on. Shuang Lian treated and cultivated Bu Quan as her sole successor.
Of course, this was what the masses saw as “bright prospects”.
If Bu Quan truly joined the survivors’ ranks, and got the dragonman youngster’s
complete trust, she could benefit from a Bloodcore. Even if she didn’t get a
Bloodcore, she could benefit from the Bloodline Purification Formation.
Through improving one’s bloodline, her future would naturally be greater,
vaster, and brighter than being “Shuang Lian’s heir”.
This matter could not be advanced through force and depended on destiny.
From where Bu Quan stood, she was extremely willing and preferred the Dragon
Lion Mercenary Corps, even willing to give up her own interests in
consideration to the dragonman youngster.
But based on the current political situation, the survivors were unable to
facilitate bringing in Bu Quan. 
Because they needed to maintain their relationship with Shuang Lian, and to
keep the Bloodline Purification Formation as secret as possible. As of now,
even though the dragonman youngster returned, the Bloodline Purification
Formation had only been used on Zi Di, Cang Xu, and Lan Zao, it hadn’t been
spread to Zong Ge, Tripleblade, or the others.
The dragonman youngster, Cang Xu, and Zi Di were well aware that spreading
bloodline purification outside of their core three was extremely risky. The
opportunity was still not yet ripe, so after careful deliberations, they chose
to take the most reliable plan.
Afterwards.
The dragonman youngster and the other two were researching the two remaining
treasures.
Cang Xu held the bone ring, saying, “This is a gold level carved bone ring. The
holder can have fair dealings with the Undead Orthodoxy.” 
Cang Xu looked at Zi Di at that moment, “Based on this, the Wisteria Merchant
Alliance is deeply involved with the undead force.”
The dragonman youngster was unconcerned, “With it, we can purchase a large
quantity of undead materials. This will be very beneficial to your bloodline
Cang Xu.”
“What about the cloak?”
The three studied it for a long time, Zi Di also used some alchemy methods,
causing the cloak to leak a trace of devil aura.
Apart from that, the cloak looked ordinary, lacking any trace of transcendent
aura.
But since it was one of the five treasures, it was certain to be extraordinary
and at least on the same level as the Time Gold Purse.
Cang Xu guessed, “The alchemy technique is seamless, the cloak’s line style is
totally different to those of the Main Plane, and it also has a trace of devil
aura, perhaps it originates from Hell.”
That sentence caused the dragonman youngster to associate it with the new
potion he had.
Mi Fang left behind the saint level devil transformation potion.
After Shuang Lian personally tested it, she confirmed this magic potion had no
hidden dangers. When taken, it could temporarily transform the drinker into a
saint level devil, with enormous repercussions, bloodline contamination.
But this repercussion wasn’t worth mentioning in front of the Bloodcore.
Bloodline pollution was even a good thing.
The Bloodcore could absorb it and give the dragonman youngster some saint level
devil bloodline.
Of course, the devil bloodline from it was far less than could be gained from
absorbing a saint level devil’s lifeblood. Anyways, a saint level devil’s
bloodline served as the main material of this potion, and after taking it, one
could reconstruct a portion of the saint level devil’s battle strength,
something the dragonman youngster couldn’t achieve by simply absorbing the
devil bloodline within the potion.
In short, this potion could serve as one of the dragonman youngster’s trump
cards.
After the three studied the five treasures, Zi Di presented a set of silver
metal cylinders.
Some were small, others large. Their walls were as thick as a man’s thumb, and
both ends of it were wide open, and one could see right through them to the
other side. 
There were about 16 cylinders, the transcendent auras in them were mixed, and
disorderly, but the highest was gold level.
“This is the magnetic cylinder fishing rod we purchased from the Alchemy
Guild.” Zi Di introduced their usage. 
The dragonman youngster opened his hand and imbued the cylinders with gold
battle qi.
The cylinders floated into the air, then through magnetic links, rapidly merged
together to become a metal fishing rod.
The fishing rod was three meters long, slender at the top, and thick at the
bottom.
The gold battle qi in the cylinder fishing rod quickly changed into a crackle
of electricity.
The electricity condensed and wrapped together forming a bundle of line,
extending out beyond the top of the fishing rod, it was an electric fishing
line.
“If you can’t hook the fish, you can electrocute it. This is positively handy.”
The dragonman youngster threw the electric fishing line, noticing he had
perfect command of it, wherever he aimed, it went.
The fishing rod was not for the dragonman youngster’s use, it was to be a gift.
A gift for Zhu Gan.
Zhu Gan was one of the duelists, but not part of the army faction. But he and
Lin had a good close relationship as fishing friends.
With such a person, the dragonman youngster adopted a different negotiation
method than the ones used with Mi Fang and He Gai Tou.
Not long after, Hun Tong took the magnetic fishing rod, and through
teleportation, paid a visit to Zhu Gan’s home.
Hun Tong naturally had deception spells on him and was disguised as an
unfamiliar person.
When Zhu Gan saw the strange gold level, Hun Tong, he instantly had a new
perception of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ strength. 
Hun Tong produced both the dragonman youngster’s invitation to fight and gifted
the magnetic cylinder fishing rod, hoping Zhu Gan could agree to a duel.
According to common sense, so long as Long Fu publicly declared a challenge,
Zhu Gan would agree. On the one hand, Zu Gan and Lin had a close friendship. On
the other hand, if Zhu Gan avoided battle, the masses would shame him, think of
him as a coward, Zhu Gan’s renown would slump, and he would be widely
disdained.
Of course, this was founded upon the idea that both sides were of similar
strength.
If it were Long Meng who publicly challenged Zhu Gan, and Zhu Gan refused, the
populace would feel that was reasonable. 
When Zhu Gan learned the dragonman youngster invited him to battle, he became
furious. But when seeing the gift, his expression suddenly grew mixed.
After hearing Hun Tong’s entreaty, Zhu Gan sighed, thoroughly confirming that
this was Long Fu wanting to ease their relationship, therefore, kindness and
might were applied.
Zhu Gan thought about it, then agreed.
Zhu Gan was a wood elf, not a snow elf. Although he was an outsider, as an elf,
it was easier for him to gain mass popularity in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom than
it was for the dragonman youngster or Mi Fang.
Zhu Gan traveled all over the Ice Sculpture Kingdom and had a pleasant life.
When he ran out of money, he dueled to obtain travel funds. His greatest
pleasure was looking for fishing spots across the country and going wild
angling.
Zhu Gan wasn’t that interested in the National Ceremony Grand Duel, but since
Long Fu had invited him to fight, then there was no harm in agreeing.
He was quite familiar with the dragonman youngster. He bought and perused each
of the dragonman youngster’s battle recordings.
“I didn’t expect Commander Long Fu to want to duel again so quickly!”
“This time, he decided to send an invitation, choosing Zhu Gan as his target.”
“Although Zhu Gan doesn’t duel much, he is strong enough to be in
consideration. He is a wood elf, has a very graceful fighting style, and has
the demeanor of our elven kind.”
“I am very curious, how much has Long Fu grown this time?”
The dragonman youngster’s fight with Zhu Gan attracted the attention of many,
triggering a nationwide conversation. The level of heated discussion was
greater than the Mi Fang rematch.
It was because during his rematch with Mi Fang, the dragonman youngster
revealed new things, causing many to become interested again.
In addition, it was because Zhu Gan was a famous duelist, whose racial identity
ensured a stable popularity. He hadn’t fought many times, causing the
spectators to be exuberantly interested in him.
The dragonman youngster chose him as his opponent not only to have a
communication with the Dueling God’s holy warrior, but to simultaneously use
his prestige to increase the amount of new traffic he had.
The dragonman youngster’s duel with Zhu Gan was quite marvelous.
Both sides held the upper hand for a time, both fought in their own ways. 
The dragonman youngster charged around, exploded dragon pearls, laughed in the
thrill of battle, and practiced a heroic and straightforward persona. This
persona was quite appealing, fit in with the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s plucky
personality, and was something the people naturally had many good opinions of.
Zhu Gan held a fishing rod as his main weapon and mainly fought at mid-range.
He was actually similar to the whip wielding Teng Dong Lang in this aspect.
But his movement was more outstanding, able to advance or retreat accordingly,
he moved like a blur and possessed the distinctly elven sense of beauty. 
His battle skills were very sharp, creating thin cracks in the ground several
meters deep. However, the dragonman youngster’s defense greatly weakened these
battle skills’ attack results.
In this battle, the dragonman youngster was mainly relying on Tenacity Force to
protect himself impressively.
In the final phase, the dragonman youngster used Binding Force and won by a
surprise move.
This brought back the disinterested spectators, and when many saw the dragonman
youngster had learned another “force”, they discussed it enthusiastically.
“I didn’t expect Long Fu to use a new force!”
“Yes, Binding Force is amazing against an opponent like Zhu Gan.”
Binding Force could empower battle skills, binding enemies they hit and
limiting their mobility. 
“Long Fu is learning more and more forces. He has proven himself worthy of Long
Meng’s admiration, a man Long Meng couldn’t help but teach.”
“Currently, his defense has Tempering Force, Tenacity Force, and for attacks,
he has Binding Force, Gravity Force, and Vibration Force. Look at how many
forces he has.”
“In my opinion, I can feel the force even when he’s walking!”
Long Fu’s battle strength has grown too fast, it’s no wonder even Zhu Gan was
defeated.”
“Alas, Zhu Gan rarely fights, he is the duelist I like the most. In this
battle, despite losing, I still like him.”
“If Long Fu’s growth continues like this, what will he be able to achieve? He
defeated Mi Fang and Zhu Gan, who will he challenge next?”



****** Chapter 738: Redirection Force ******
“Who do you plan to challenge next?” In a banquet after the duel, Zhu Gan asked
the dragonman youngster this question too.
The dragonman youngster smiled, “Everyone is a duelist, I must prioritize
showing consideration ‘to our people’, I must first test them all once
through.”
He didn’t conceal it, “I plan to challenge Yun Zhong.”
“For this reason, I have prepared some arrows as gifts.”
Yun Zhong’s main weapon was a bow, and the dragonman youngster adapted to his
taste and prepared gold level alchemy arrows for him.
His negotiation strategy with Yun Zhong was more or less the same as with Zhu
Gan.
Because the two were unorganized individuals who esteemed freedom.
Zhu Gan nodded, the dragonman youngster’s answer didn’t go against his
expectations, and he also confirmed again that Long Fu wanted to integrate
himself into the Dueling God’s holy warriors.
For most organizations, if a newcomer wanted to integrate themselves, they’d
have to host banquets, find a mediator to build a bridge, and take a long time
to make clear their true feelings and prove themselves. But this was the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom, where duels were popular, especially among people like Zhu
Gan, who were chosen by the Dueling Godhead to become the Dueling God’s holy
warriors and acknowledged duels from the depths of their hearts.
Therefore, duels were the best stepping stone to fortune.
Even if they believed in something else, since a duel was agreed on, then
nothing else had to be said, let’s fight first!
Zhu Gan had to admit that the dragonman youngster’s negotiation method was just
right.
Hosting banquets for hospitality, giving presents, and more were not the most
effective methods, and might even have a negative connotation. 
Fight first, to confirm who was strong and who was weak, then the weaker side
would yield of their own accord.
It could be said now that Zhu Gan’s arrogance was far less than it was before
the duel.
Since I lost to you, obeying you is only right and proper.
He lifted his wine cup, looked at the dragonman youngster, and thanked him for
the gold level magnetic cylinder fishing rod.
The dragonman youngster candidly laughed, and after clicking cups with Zhu Gan,
drank his dry.
Then he said, “From start to finish, you never fought using the magnetic
cylinder fishing rod, that surprised me somewhat.”
Zhu Gan chuckled, “I am an elf, and I would never do something as shameless as
attacking you with the very gift you gave me!”
That kind of pride made the dragonman youngster very happy.
The banquet ended, the guest and host enjoyed themselves fully, and the
conflict between them was put to a complete end.
In the end, Zhu Gan didn’t have a deep friendship with Lin, they only shared a
common interest and fished together a few times.
If the dragonman youngster hadn’t become a duelist, then naturally, it was
obvious at a glance who was close and who was distant.
But now, the dragonman youngster was not just a duelist, he was actively
interacting and doing his best to assimilate with everyone, instantly causing
Zhu Gan to carefully reflect over the situation.
Long Fu’s mysterious backer, he being looked after by Long Meng, his dealings
with Mi Fang and Hei Gai Tou. Then on the other side, was the deceased Lin.
Lin’s military background was worth being worried about, but the royal family
demanded that Mei Lin and the others stop what they were doing…
What would Zhu Gan choose?
Was this a difficult choice?
Of course, Zhu Gan knew what to choose, but he was in an embarrassing spot,
after all, he had some friendship with Lin.
This time, the dragonman youngster had given him a ladder to calmly step down
on.
First was the gift, then the dueling invitation.
The present expressed sincerity, the duel showed the truth.  
Henceforth, Zhu Gan could declare to the outside: I was defeated by Long Fu,
and recall his sincerity, so I accept his gift. I also did my best for my
fishing friend Lin.
No one would gossip about it. 
After the dragonman youngster publicly defeated Zhu Gan, public opinion of him
distinctly changed.
It had to do with “who would the dragonman youngster challenge next”, and it
became a heated topic of debate.
This indicated that after the dragonman youngster’s rematch with Mi Fang, as
well as his duel with Zhu Gan, his quick and violent progress was established
to the masses, and his cycle of soaring battle strength was robustly impressed
into their memory.
Without a doubt, this massively benefited the dragonman youngster’s growing
renown.
“If you want to tackle Yun Zhong, you best cultivate Redirection Force next.”
Long Meng intentionally stated this during his tutoring.
“Redirection Force…” The dragonman youngster appeared vexed, “I’ve tried to do
so before? I am not talented in that kind of force.”
Long Meng’s eyelids throbbed, “Your comprehension is the best I’ve ever seen in
my life. Don’t say such words out loud, or you’re liable to get smacked.”
After pausing, Long Meng shook his head, “But your words aren’t completely
meritless. You are inclined towards hard force and lack some understanding of
soft force.”
Long Meng summed up the dragonman youngster’s learning achievements, “You now
know Tempering Force and Gravity Force, they are 100% hard force. Tenacity
Force and Vibration Force are majority hard force, tiny part soft force. You
haven’t completely grasped Binding Force, which is mostly hard force, and
minority soft force.”
“Redirection Force is almost entirely soft force; it is indeed more difficult
to grasp than the other forces.”
“However, according to my calculations, if you focus your training on it for
the next several days, it is possible for you to grasp it.” 
The dragonman youngster frowned, “Isn’t that too slow?”
“I was hoping to learn Piercing Force and Cutting Force during this time, after
all those are two of the three great classical attack forces.”
“Hahaha.” Long Meng heartily laughed, pointing a finger at the dragonman
youngster, “I know you like offensive over defense. Believe me, Redirection
Force will be more helpful to you than Piercing or Cutting Force.”
“Especially against an archer like Yun Zhong, even simple battle qi surges can
deflect arrows.”
Long Meng continued, “Piercing and Cutting Force are indeed majority Hard
Force, tiny part soft force, but they won’t help you that much in your next
duel.”
“I know your nature; I am certain you don’t want to lose.”
The dragonman youngster exposed a touched expression, and slowly nodded, ‘Then
I’ll listen to you.”
Long Meng grew happier when he saw the dragonman youngster heeding his advice.
Since he met Shuang Lian with the dragonman youngster, the latter had grown
more pleasing to the eye.
As he tutored the dragonman youngster’s force cultivation, he noticed that the
dragonman youngster was more gifted in hard force than soft force and grew to
like the thick browed young man even more.
He felt: the dragonman youngster was an expert at hard force, which proved that
this guy was just, honorable, direct, and bad at doing those twisted and tricky
things.
Of course, he knew the dragonman youngster was a red dragonman, and now this
impression had deepened greatly.
Little did he know that everything the dragonman youngster showed Long Meng was
a deliberate exhibition. 
The dragonman youngster’s earliest mastered force was Penetration Force. This
force was majority soft force, tiny part hard force, sufficient to prove that
the dragonman youngster was equally outstanding in comprehending soft force
too.
“But I have to pretend a little.”
“If I had unsurpassed talent in both soft and hard force, that would be too
much.”
“Even if Long Meng was personally teaching me, perhaps he would have suspicions
about whether I learned forces at an earlier time and was merely putting on a
show in front of him.”
The dragonman youngster didn’t want to provoke Long Meng too much.
The dragonman youngster stared at Long Meng, his expression solemn, “My plan is
to do my best to challenge every duelist once.”
“Long Meng, you are my final challenge!”
Long Meng laughed again, “I wholeheartedly look forward to that day.”
“To make that day more wonderful, it seems I have to invest more effort into
making you stronger.”
Long Meng’s reaction was within Cang Xu’s speculation, and when the dragonman
youngster challenged him, it caused Long Meng to be motivated in teaching him.
And Long Meng’s training were not the only thing making the dragonman youngster
stronger.
There was also the Bloodcore.
After this special training finished, the dragonman youngster returned to his
encampment.
A large amount of wyvern materials and dragon parts were put together and laid
out before the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster absorbed bloodlines again.
His types of dragon bloodlines massively expanded, and the concentration of the
bloodlines he had soared.
Since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps opened the door with the Alchemy Guild,
they could directly trade and buy alchemy materials from the Alchemy Guild and
the royal family.
The Alchemy Guild was massive, the alchemy center of the entire kingdom, and
have exceedingly rich stores. Come to think of it, the royal family’s stores
were of superior quality. 
Through this link, Zi Di bought a large amount of wyvern, sub-dragon, and even
some dragon body parts.
Unlike last time, the dragonman youngster was mainly gathering red dragon
bloodlines this time.
Quite a lot of them survived in the Alchemy Guild’s and royal family’s
storerooms.
Although red dragons didn’t reproduce in Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the kingdom was
a formidable trade country and had many steady trade relationships.
The kingdom relied mainly on alchemy, therefore, as they exported, they also
imported bulk quantities of alchemy materials.
Through discreet inquiries, Zi Di found some wyvern materials close to red
dragons, many that came from Eruption Island. There were a lot of dragon bones,
claws, scales, and so on sourced from the Frost Continent.
Nowadays, the Frost Continent was ruled by the barbarian race, and the
barbarian race were the greatest murderers of the dragons, and back during the
barbarian and dragon war, the barbarians took the dragon’s headquarters, Dragon
Island, thus, the dragons were scattered to the skies. When it came to who had
the most dragon corpses, it naturally was the barbarians.
Dragon meat, blood, and so on had expiration dates, but dragon bones, claws,
and other parts like that did not have that concern. Therefore, the dragon
materials the Ice Sculpture Kingdom bought from the barbarian race included
many dragon bones, claws, and scales.
Wyvern and sub-dragon materials were decent enough, and real dragon materials
were expensive.
Zi Di purchased a large amount, yet the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps didn’t have
any money shortages.
This was all through the Wisteria Cache’s gold coins!
Currently, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was in the painful phase of cutting
ties with the Li Jian Clan, while their magic medicine refinement with the
Alchemy Guild and the Jing Xiang Clan had just begun, they hadn’t even gotten
their first profits yet. 
The survivors were not just in the process of purchasing large amounts of
dragon materials, but they were also spending money on buying alchemy
components, assembling magic medicine production lines, and preparing a
suitable location to build an alchemy factory.
Grab with both hands firmly.
The endless stream of cash stunned those who paid attention to the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps.
Zi Di was investing much more money directly into the dragonman youngster.
Seizing the Dueling Godhead was consequential, thus, the mount potion
manufacturing and other such matters were secondary.
As an outstanding merchant, Zi Di still pondered developing new cash flows. She
prepared to take out some alchemy blueprints from War Merchant’s database.
The scope of this needed to be precisely controlled, otherwise, it would form a
flaw that would provoke suspicion.
After all, arms merchants sold munitions as products, not their manufacturing
method.



****** Chapter 739: Long Fu vs Yun Zhong ******
The dragonman youngster’s duel with Yun Zhong began with a chase.
As an archer, Yun Zhong’s foremost tactic was controlling distance between his
opponent.
He could use the battle skill [Swift Move] as the base, then add on [Wind Walk
Step] to hasten himself.
Even if the dragonman youngster used [Surge], it was hard to overtake him.
However, although the dueling arena was expansive, it was still finite. When
Yun Zhong was cornered by the dragonman youngster, he used the battle skill
[Cloud Walk] to soar into the sky.
The dragonman youngster also had a flying battle skill [Dragon Wings] and
immediately pursued upwards.
Yun Zhong fought and shot while retreating.
The two gold levels proceeded to fight in the air like this.
All of the spectators looked up, their eyes shining with excitement.
Flying battle skills were not common, and even if one was a gold level fighter,
they normally fought on the ground most of the time. Seeing airborne combat
like this was a true treat.
In the beginning, the dragonman youngster seemed unaccustomed to air warfare,
but he was amazing at adapting, and his lighting speed improvement could be
seen with the naked eye.
Yun Zhong flew in the air skillfully, in coordination with his battle skills.
He was simply as nimble as a swallow, but regretfully, the dueling arena’s air
space was also limited.
As the dragonman youngster adapted, Yun Zhong’s was forced into narrow space.
At this time, Yun Zhong took out a magic scroll, and tore it open, creating a
large cloud that shrouded the skies above the dueling arena.
Battle skill – Misty Cloud Walk!
Yun Zhong used an original battle skill to step on the white clouds and curled
thick fog around his body, increasing his speed and concealing himself, fading
from the dragonman youngster’s field of view.
The dragonman youngster used three types of detection battle skill, none were
able to find a trace of Yun Zhong, leading to a grave expression.
Battle skill – Dragon Pearl, Explosive Flame.
He condensed a few dragon pearls, then bombarded where Yun Zhong was last seen,
as well as the space nearby.
Boom, boom, boom.
The flames exploded, clearing out some clouds, but a second later, the thick
fog instantly filled it back in.
Yun Zhong was nowhere to be seen.
Battle skill – Piercing Cloud Arrow!
Arrows shot out from the clouds, not only were they continuous, but they also
shot from every direction.
For a moment, arrow rains interweaved with each other.
The audience cheered.
With this, Lord Yun Zhong will bring down Long Fu!”
“To see [Piercing Cloud Arrow] again. This is indeed Older Brother Yun Zhong’s
specialty.”
“Such a concentrated arrow rain, Yun Zhong is beginning to go all out.”
Yun Zhong has many supporters. He was the most popular duelist in the nation
under the dragonman youngster.
Therefore, this fight between the dragonman youngster and Yun Zhong was aptly
named a celebrity brawl, the seats were full to bursting, and it went without
saying that it was a full house. Despite spatial alchemy technology being used
to temporarily increase the amount of seating, it was still very difficult to
get a ticket to this.
The dragonman youngster did his hardest to evade in the air.
“The arrows’ velocity has at least doubled.”
“Though I can’t see through this battle skill’s principle for the time being,
based on practical results, the entire cloud has become a shooting platform.”
“But the real trouble is I still can’t detect where Yun Zhong is!”
Yun Zhong was hiding in the cloud, and if he couldn’t find the former, the
dragonman youngster couldn’t counterattack.
The Piercing Cloud Arrows ceaselessly attacked. The dragonman youngster’s
[Dragon Wings] were only a battle skill, and he didn’t possess actual dragon
wings, so against an opponent like Yun Zhong, he was not agile, and despite
doing his utmost to fly and weave, he still got hit with arrows.
However, the arrows that hit him did not do any meaningful damage.
The dragonman youngster’s defensive battle skills, along with Redirection Force
produced an outstanding defense!
The vast majority of the arrows that hit him entered his redirection zone and
were cast astray.
The dragonman youngster pursued Yun Zhong for a while, and endured many arrows,
but they barely tickled him.
Long Meng’s insight was very sharp, and the concentrated training he gave the
dragonman youngster allowed the dragonman youngster to obtain Redirection
Force, it really restrained Yun Zhong massively.
Yun Zhong attacked for a long time, spending lots of battle qi, but to no
effect. It gave him a headache.
He was forced to change tactics, releasing the battle skill [Cloud Dispersing
Arrow].
After the arrow hit the dragonman youngster, although it was deflected, it
rapidly exploded into a battle qi cloud.
The battle qi cloud twisted around the dragonman youngster’s body, and despite
the latter flying at top speed, he couldn’t get away from it. Not only that,
but the battle qi cloud was constantly seeping into and corroding the dragonman
youngster’s defensive battle skill.
Battle skill – Cloud Mutter.
Yun Zhong opened his mouth and began to mumble.
His voice vibrated the immense cloud he was hiding in, then it resonated with
the twisting battle qi cloud around the dragonman youngster.
When the dragonman youngster heard this series of faint mutters, his mind
couldn’t help but fluctuate with fear, confusion, and other negative feelings.
As the negative feelings rapidly grew, the dragonman youngster saw things were
going south and decisively decided to land on the ground.
This kind of mental and willpower attack was once the survivors’ weakness.
Especially on Snake Rat Island, where the survivors suffer a big loss.
One learns from their mistakes.
After the survivors came to the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, they actively made up
for this failing.
As their leader, the dragonman youngster went even farther.
He had many methods that could counter this kind of attack, but now he only
chose the most surface level one - he activated a magic accessory to rapidly
increase his spiritual power that washed away the negative feeling from his
mental being. 
Yun Zhong looked down to see the dragonman youngster struggling free from these
negative emotions and decided to unleash his full might!
In a moment, Youn Zhong strengthened Piercing Cloud Arrows, Cloud Dispersing
Arrows, and Cloud Mutter to their limits, at the same time, he also used the
battle skills [Heaven Descending Guillotine Arrow], [Shuttle Arrow], and [Sky
High Arrow Dance].
Snow white arrows nearly interweaved into lines, and their terrifying firepower
shocked and frightened the audience.
“Is this Yun Zhong’s true strength?”
“This is my first time seeing it too, to think he has such formidable
firepower.”
“Yun Zhong’s battle strength far exceeds intelligence records. This kind of
power…he can annihilate a city’s magic battle squad by himself.”
Everyone gasped in surprise and admiration.
Yun Zhong’s supporters cheered continuously; the spectacle was in full swing.
By contrast, the dragonman youngster was suppressed and holed upon the ground,
motionless and passively defending.
This caused many of his supporters to look worried and on edge.
Some were holding their breath; others were cheering with extra effort.
Judging by the situation, the dragonman youngster was clearly at a
disadvantage.
In a private spectator room.
A magic image instantaneously showed the dragonman youngster’s distressed
appearance.
But Zi Di didn’t take it seriously, her mind was on the contract she was giving
to Xue Tuan Zi.
Xue Tuan Zi glanced at the dragonman youngster in the magic image, faintly
smiled, then took the contract and carefully looked it over.
The truth was always grasped by only a few.
As duelists, Xue Tuan Zi and Yun Zhong understood that the dragonman youngster
was “hiding his immense battle strength”. His 3 v 1 win remained a shadow in
their hearts.
Therefore, none of them actually believed the dragonman youngster was stuck in
a predicament, it was just a performance of his.
Xue Tuan Zi carefully read the contract twice, then signed her name onto it.
The magic contract was established, and to celebrate, Zi Di opened some
prepared red wine.
The survivors’ and the duelists’ negotiations were just being done via the
dragonman youngster. After all, although the latter challenging them one after
the other was a virtuous way of communicating with them, it was too slow for
their liking.
Zi Di was acting from another facet, and her chief target was Xue Tuan Zi.
Xue Tuan Zi was a duelist, and also an alchemist. She was the Alchemy Guild’s
current representative individual of the youth, and her grandfather, the master
of Snow Cake Tower, was backing her. The latter controlled a magician tower and
was a powerful Alchemy Guild elder.
Zi Di was able to invite Xue Tuan Zi over by using some of War Merchant’s
alchemy achievements.
Mainly through Zhong Yong’s abilities and also consulting Cang Xu, the three
combined their talents to break apart these alchemy achievements and create
some alchemy hypotheticals or semifinished products.
She then used these hypotheses and semifinished products to find Xue Tuan Zi,
invite her to work together and jointly establish an alchemy project.
Xue Tuan Zi originally wanted to refuse; she was currently busy with the Warm
Snow Cup Grand Contest.
The alchemy achievements she put on display didn’t yield good results,
incongruous with her expectations, for this year’s Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest
was too competitive! She was preparing to exhibit her trump card, and her mind
was fixed on this, nothing else interested her.
Not interested?
Zi Di simply smiled and said, “Magician Xue Tuan Zi, you only need to glance at
it, that won’t waste too much of your time and energy.”
Xue Tuan Zi glanced at it, and then glanced again, then again, then once more.
Another glance, then another, then it turned into a stare, a stare with shining
eyes.
For a long time, she was unable to move her eyes away from it.
Until Zi Di coughed several times, interrupting her state.
Xue Tuan Zi was embarrassed.



****** Chapter 740: Xue Tuan Zi? Controlled ******
Xue Tuan Zi was more than just interested; she was extremely interested!
These alchemy problems were so fascinating and had wide prospects. These
semifinished products faced difficult alchemy problems, causing a strong urge
to leap from deep within her heart – she wanted to overcome them, to solve
these challenges. Otherwise, as an alchemist prodigy, Xue Tuan Zi would feel
uneasy.
Very uneasy.
Zi Di wanted this result.
Although she and Cang Xu had some alchemy mastery, the two were far from Xue
Tuan Zi’s match.
But they knew human nature well and were fully aware of the feelings and views
of alchemists.
And thus, Xue Tuan Zi capitulated.
“Think it over.” Zi Di almost snatched the information from Xue Tuan Zi’s
hands.
“Hey, hey?!” Xue Tuan Zi almost got up to grab at it.
She knew the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was deliberately giving her the cold
shoulder to make negotiations easier for them.
But for the next several days, she really felt unwell, to the point where she
didn’t want to eat or drink.
Finally, today, Zi Di invited her over to watch Long Fu duel Yun Zhong. Xue
Tuan Zi knew what Zi Di was planning, and without thinking, gladly accepted
this invitation to watch the duel.
Zi Di smiled, “Magician Xue Tuan Zi, you are a clever person. You must know the
reason why my corps is working with you is to mainly build a good
relationship.”
“Of course, Magician Xue Tuan Zi, your alchemy attainment and background were
important reference factors in our collaboration this time.”
“When can you submit applications for these alchemy problems? When will the
research funds arrive?”
Without the slightest hesitation, Xue Tuan Zi said, “I’ll submit an application
when I return, tonight it’ll be approved. Tomorrow, the first sum of research
funds will arrive.”
Zi Di nodded, feeling very satisfied.
According to the contract, she could have the final say on how these funds were
used.
Zi Di already made plans, she would only use a small part of these funds, the
vast majority would be embezzled and be used to buy dragon materials for her
beloved. Secondly, they’d be used to purchase large scale facilities and
establish production lines.
She already fancied the intact red dragon skeleton in the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s treasury; it had a high price on it.
But it didn’t matter, she had plenty of capital and also had a research grant
now too.
As for these projects…
Zi Di believed that this rich girl, Xue Tuan Zi, would provide the money. On
the one hand, Xue Tuan Zi had strong willingness and initiative. On the other
hand, without funds to research, she would get dragged into trouble and her
reputation would be seriously harmed.
As for the survivors’ relationship with Xue Tuan Zi?
It wouldn’t affect the big picture.
After the contract was signed, they were on the same ship together.
There was no benefit to having a falling out, only by holding one’s nose and
working together could they have a bright future.
Xue Tuan Zi?
Controlled!
“It’s almost time.” After being flooded by a few arrow rains, the dragonman
youngster thought this.
The dragonman youngster fully unleashed Redirection Force, and under the
immense pressure, his mastery over it advanced greatly.
Such a large scale attack must have depleted much of Yun Zhong’s battle qi.
More crucially was the hearts of the people.
A moment later, the dragonman youngster raised his head and roared, using
[Dragon Roar].
The racial spell – Dragon Roar!
In a split second, the roar exploded like thunder, shaking the sky.
The erupting sound engulfed everything like a hurricane.
The roar continued.
In the past, the dragonman youngster could only roar once. But after
accumulated a large amount of dragon bloodlines, things are different now.
A second dragon roar.
The roar was filled with power and wildness, and the sound used the previous
one as a foundation, continuing to build up and shake the entire dueling arena,
and wherever it traveled to, the clouds retreated in defeat like they were
being devastated by a squall, clearing out a wide expanse.
A third dragon roar!
Another roar propagated, and like the world’s most ancient war drum, it
imperceptibly pounded into every creature’s heart.
It was filled with majesty, mightiness, and arrogance of a monarch.
It seemed to tell everyone – a dragon’s honor must not be provoked!
After the three dragon roars, the clouds completely cleared away. Yun Zhong’s
real body was revealed and was falling from the air.
The dragonman youngster’s prepared great maneuver caught him off guard, and his
mind and willpower were violently shaken.
But as his ears whistled as he fell, he quickly struggled back to awareness.
Yun Zhong’s mind and willpower were impressive, in fact, to be chosen as a holy
warrior, a duelist, one had to have more than an ordinary person.
However, the moment Yun Zhong was regaining his will, he saw a red figure
suddenly attack, it filled his vision.
Long Fu!!
Bang, bang, bang…
Battle skill [Machine Gun Fist] + Binding Force.
Battle skill [Demolition Fist] + Binding Force.
Battle skill [Dragon Pearl, Exploding Flame] + Binding Force!
This time, Yun Zhong was submerged by the dragonman youngster’s attacks.
After a dozen seconds, the flying fists and battle qi explosions inflicted a
disastrous cost on Yun Zhong before he was able to break away.
But the outcome was decided already.
He was struck by too many fists and had too much Binding Force on him that was
slowing him down, so the dragonman youngster could easily catch up.
Yun Zhong was unable to pull distance and naturally had no way of using his
dominance in long ranged archery.
After struggling for a bit, Yun Zhong thoroughly recognized his situation, and
he calmly raised his hand and gave up, admitting defeat. 
The entire audience was silent for a few seconds, then erupted with heaven
shaking cheers.
The dragonman youngster’s supporters excitedly laughed.
When the dragonman youngster was being firmly “suppressed”, they were all
holding their breath with anxiety, but then the dragonman youngster unleashed a
heaven startling counterattack, followed it up with a close combat beat down,
ultimately making a comeback in a single stroke.
Experiencing this as a spectator was like riding on a roller coaster. It
captivated the audience, first plunging them into the lowest depths, then
against the odds, the comeback quickened everyone’s pulse and satisfied
everyone to their heart’s content.
The dragonman youngster looked around him, nodding to himself. He had
meticulously designed this play to fully move the audience, and since he
revealed his improving combat strength, it was not abrupt, it did not provoke
suspicions, and it could give the audience an impression deep enough, that
during discussions after the battle, haters would turn indifferent, and the
indifferent would turn into big fans.
In short, he was maximizing the elevation of his renown.
Yun Zhong panted, and gazed at the dragonman youngster opposite to him, his
expression somewhat complex.
In this battle, the dragonman youngster didn’t use his 3 v 1 trump card to deal
with him, it made him speechless.
“You really are strong.” Yun Zhong walked over to express his acknowledgement
of the dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster smiled, and he took out three alchemy arrows from his
storage device, “This time, won’t you accept this gift?”
Gold level alchemy munitions – Cloud Evasion Arrows.
Yun Zhong nodded, and under the public eye, reached out and took the dragonman
youngster’s gift.
Cloud Evasion Arrows could swap the position of the user, and if Yun Zhong had
them and used them during the fight, it was possible to change his position
with one of these arrows, allowing him to fight for more space and time against
the dragonman youngster.
After this battle, Yun Zhong’s desire for equipment like the Cloud Evasion
Arrow had reached its peak.
And since the dragonman youngster was gifting them to him, it hit him right in
his heart.
When many spectators saw this, they applauded one after the other.
Before, their supporters quarreled with each other, but when the dragonman
youngster and Yun Zhong had a fine interaction, these people laid down the flag
and stilled the drums.
“Commander Long Fu was tutored by Long Meng and already possesses the latter’s
demeanor.”
“Humph, through this battle, he completely recognizes Older Brother Yun Zhong’s
strength, thus, he can be on friendly terms with him.”
“I am extremely happy; I like both of these duelists!”
After giving the present, the dragonman youngster also invited Yun Zhong to
dinner.
The priority was personal sentiment and sophistication.
Yun Zhong acknowledged Long Fu’s strength, accepted his gift, and felt very
intimate with Long Fu. During the dinner party, he directly asked: how much did
these Cloud Evasion Arrows cost? He wanted to buy them on a long term basis. He
then asked if the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would be stepping into the
munitions business on a large scale?
Zi Di responded with a high price, then told Yun Zhong the reason: The Cloud
Evasion Arrow involves spatial technology and is gold level equipment. To build
a production line for it, one needed to purchase at least five gold level
alchemy components and hire at least 16 silver level master alchemists. In
addition, the Cloud Evasion Arrow market was too small, and currently, advance
payments are required to produce them.
When Yun Zhong heard this, he scheduled the production of ten arrows in
advance.
He didn’t lack money, though he wasn’t extremely wealthy.
But Cloud Evasion Arrows were rare on the market, and during truly fierce
battles, a position swapping arrow could perhaps save his life.
He knew how serious this was and didn’t skimp on this respect.
In the final part of the dinner party, Yun Zhong asked, “Who do you plan to
choose next?”
With his own words, Yun Zhong had already acknowledged the dragonman
youngster’s battle strength. Even if he hadn’t used that mysterious 3 v 1 trump
card, his conventional battle strength was above most of the duelists.
However, Yun Zhong’s approval only represented himself. The others hadn’t
experienced it personally, and without getting a real beating, they would
inevitably have unrealistic and extravagant hopes.
Human nature was like this. Just because you couldn’t, doesn’t mean I can’t.
Besides, the chosen duelists all loved battle. So long as the dragonman
youngster promised not to use his mysterious trump card, dueling the dragonman
youngster was something they loved doing.
“Mo Gui Ji.” The dragonman youngster replied, “Finally, I will challenge Long
Meng. I have already decided this with him in advance.”
When Yun Zhong heard the answer, he couldn’t help but smile, “I look forward to
your battle with Long Meng!”
Why did Long Meng have the foremost reputation in duels?
It was because he beat everyone else, and they personally experienced their
enormous disparity in battle strength against him.
Now, the dragonman youngster was copying Long Meng, reproducing the same road
he walked. 
This was something the other duelists were well aware of.
After experiencing combat against the dragonman youngster, Yun Zhong believed:
the dragonman youngster was strong enough to defeat any other duelist, save for
Long Meng.
“According to conventional battle strength, Long Fu is inferior to Long Meng by
a long shot. However, if he uses some trump cards, there will be suspense!”
Dueling in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom really was quite a convenient and fast
method.
In the wake of the dragonman youngster’s constant dueling victories, his
reputation among the duelists climbed up step by step. In the eyes of the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s populace, his figure was also getting ever more formidable.
This kind of acknowledgement from the heart was very beneficial towards the
dragonman youngster’s goal of seizing the Dueling Godhead.
“How far will Long Fu go?”
“Although he is a newly promoted gold level, he is growing too fast!”
“He used Dragon Roar three times, that proves his bloodline concentration is
outstanding.”
“Mo Gui Ji is also a veteran duelist; can he stop the dragonman youngster’s
trek forward?”



****** Chapter 741: Bao Li Gen vs Mo Gui Ji ******
The dragonman youngster’s renown was in the middle of a qualitative change.
Before, when the dragonman youngster challenged Shi Liu, and duelists Zhu Gan
and Yun Zhong, most people were anxious about him. Now, much more people
generally favored Long Fu and disfavored the veteran duelists. 
However, something small unexpectedly happened.
When the dragonman youngster privately contacted Mo Gui Ji to schedule a duel,
Mo Gui Ji, a training madman, unexpectedly declined.
“I look forward to dueling Commander Long Fu!”
“But before that, I have a more important duel to fight.”
“Bao Li Gen!”
“I’ve hated this guy for a long time.”
“Let me fight him first in the arena.”
The duelists were not all harmonious with each other. Among them, Bao Li Gen
and Mo Gui Ji seemed to find each other objectionable from the start. The two
had a vile relationship and were always fiercely competing against each other.
In Bao Li Gen’s eyes, the dragonman youngster was his biggest enemy, because he
had killed many of his fellow soldiers.
But in Mo Gui Ji’s eyes, the dragonman youngster was just a relatively special
outsider, that’s all. In his world, he still loathed Bao Li Gen more.
He had to use his fists to sort out this annoying chap!
Mo Gui Ji’s refusal forced the dragonman youngster to change his target, “Qing
Hong Yan or Yi Jiu, who is the better choice?”
After consulting Cang Xu, the dragonman youngster decided to choose Yi Jiu.
Yi Jiu had attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, so tackling him after the
dragonman youngster had already sorted out most of the duelists would not
provoke them. Otherwise, if he prioritized choosing Yi Jiu, it was liable to
impress on the other duelists that “Long Fu is taking revenge”, causing them to
be vigilant and take precautions.
As for putting Qing Hong Yan last, it was for a similar reason too. Qing Hong
Yan had raided the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ caravan, and was in a more
complex situation than Yi Jiu, he was a half rabbitman, half alchemy creation
whose mind was unstable and would easily go insane. If he went mad during a
duel, and the dragonman youngster was unable to calm him down, he would be
forced into sorrowfully murdering him.
The dragonman youngster didn’t want to do this. Even though to him, an enemy
like that dying was good. But as he matured with every passing day, he realized
when and how an enemy died would be investigated.
Vengeance too needed a carefully chosen methodology, and an outstanding leader
would properly think through how to obtain the most benefits from revenge.
“Actually, him going mad is a good thing for me.”
“This will give me the justification of ‘unable to stay my hand’ and allow me
to openly kill Qing Hong Yan!”
“Qing Hong Yan is very estranged from the other duelists. If he goes mad and I
kill him, the other duelists won’t have much to say.”
“The only worry is that Qing Hong Yan and Splice Mountain’s rabbitman clan’s
high class have a very close relationship. At the time, when the great master
alchemist captured and altered his body with alchemy, the rabbitman clan’s
leadership did everything they could to seek the royal family’s assistance. If
I kill Qing Hong Yan, then any thoughts of having a relationship with the
rabbitman clan will vanish.”
“But that is nothing to worry about.”
Splice Mountain’s rabbitman clan was small and wasn’t eye-catching in the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.
“First Yi Jiu, then Qing Hong Yan. Then if Mo Gui Ji has time, I will challenge
him.”
“Gu Dong, Mei Lin, Bao Li Gen, and the others should not be touched for the
time being.”
These people had a military background, and the dragonman youngster didn’t want
new problems arising unexpectedly. After all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’
relationship with the royal family had just eased recently.
The royal family wanted to deal with the “saint potential” dragonman youngster
later, and the dragonman youngster too was mainly focusing his energy on
seizing the Dueling Godhead.
The dragonman youngster was just about to invite Yi Jiu to battle when Yi Jiu,
on the contrary, personally paid a visit.
“Lord Long Fu!” Yi Jiu took the initiative to visit with a gift.
Yi Jiu directly placed the main responsibility of the time he attacked the
Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps on Mei Lin.
The dragonman youngster thought about it, then he accepted Yi Jiu’s gift and
smiled, “Leave the past in the past.”
“I have come here to do business.”
“And doing business needs lots of friends.”
“Truth be told, I really like duels, and I am very fond of the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s plucky character. But aren’t my repeated challenges all for the
purpose of selling more medicine?”
“That is a justification.” Yi Jiu nodded, “Aren’t gold coins always the most
dependable thing?”
“I happen to have a big transaction happening, and I want to invite your corps
to collaborate on it!” 
“What kind of transaction?” The dragonman youngster asked.
Yi Jiu first took out a few alchemy devices, and after fiddling with and
activating them, he explained that these devices were used to prevent
eavesdropping and detection.
This was just the first step, next he took out a magic scroll and tore it,
releasing a protective cover that shielded them.
“This transaction is very big, and to insure motive, I had to personally speak
with you Lord Long Fu.” Yi Jiu explained.
This piqued the dragonman youngster’s curiosity, and under close questioning,
Yi Jiu disclosed his purpose in coming.
As it turns out, he wanted to attack Chao Xin.
“Chao Xin?” When the dragonman youngster heard the name, he felt it sounded
familiar, then the answer quickly came to mind as his gaze deepened.
“Are you talking about the Green Ocean Kingdom’s envoy Chao Xin?”
Yi Jiu nodded, “Chao Xin wears a necklace called the Ocean Tears, it is the
product of a withered ocean eye, priceless.”
“It’s my target.”
“I know your corps has formidable methods that can create perfect disguises.”
“If we can work together, we can steal the precious [Ocean Tears]!”
The dragonman youngster: …
He had the urge to kick Yi Jiu out.
The dragonman youngster appeared to carefully deliberate it, and after a
moment, he tactfully declined, “Chao Xin is from the Green Ocean Kingdom, and
is herself a gold level sea elf magician. If her equipment is stolen, it will
provoke massive trouble.”
“My corps are mending our relationship with the royal family, so let’s just
pretend I heard nothing about this collaboration.”
Yi Jiu promptly reached out, “Don’t…”
He offered a higher price, but the dragonman youngster refused without the
slightest hesitation.
Seeing the dragonman youngster wasn’t worried, Yi Jiu was forced to sigh with
exasperation and withdrew with a bow.
“Don’t leave just yet.” The dragonman youngster asked him to stay, “Since
you’ve come, we should fight in the arena first. It just so happened I want to
invite you to fight.”
Yi Jiu’ look changed, and he shook his head, “Sire Long Fu, you know I have an
important target, I need to prepare an action plan, I don’t have any free time
to duel. You can still fight another, and in my opinion, Qing Hong Yan is a
good choice.”
Yi Jiu immediately rejected the dragonman youngster in a firm manner.
But before leaving, he was still unreconciled, “If I agree to fight you, will
you work with me?”
The dragonman youngster shook his head.
Yi Jiu deeply sighed, regretfully and moodily leaving.
The disguise method Yi Jiu pointed out should be Deceptive Disguise + the Anti
Investigation and Prophecy spell. This secret was something the Li Jian Clan
knew about. After all, at the time, it was them who noticed two “Long Fus” and
saw through Zong Ge’s dangerous condition and then used a teleportation
formation to intercept Zi Di’s group as they wanted to leave the capital.
The dragonman youngster naturally could not use these spells on an outsider
like Yi Jiu.
He was busy keeping it a secret.
Deception divine spells were the same.
After Yi Jiu left, the dragonman youngster wanted to make a move on Qing Hong
Yan.
After considering that a private invitation might be declined, the dragonman
youngster planned to publicly challenge Qing Hong Yan to force him to accept
it.
But as he was about to do that, news came through that Mo Gui Ji and Bao Li Gen
were about to start fighting.
The dragonman youngster pondered it, then decided to postpone his duel and
instead go to the arena to personally see these two fight in real time.  
Mo Gui Ji and Bao Li Gen agreed to duel in Soldier City.
This city was very populated, had many large barracks, and was the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s main source of troops
Long Fu was a public celebrity nowadays, and to not disturb the audience, he
and Zi Di quietly bought tickets to a spectator room.
Mo Gui Ji and Bao Li Gen were evenly matched in the early, middle, and late
stages, just as the masses predicted.
Before this duel, these two had fought each other twenty times.
Mo Gui Ji had a devil bloodline, and one of his trump cards was an infernal
devil form transformation, giving him a tall stature and bulging muscles.
Bao Li Gen was also a dauntless type of fighter; his battle skills were plain
but were very violent. His bloodline was the Muscle Meat Tree, and to restore
his stamina, all he needed to do was take root in the ground and absorb earth
elements. And the dueling arena’s surface was normally soil and not ice, a
place that suited the foundation of his fighting.
The two violent figures earnestly attacked each other. From the fighting styles
shown in this astonishing spectacle, both were the same type as the dragonman
youngster, there was only a few discrepancies.
As the two grappled in their exhausted state, Mo Gui Ji was impassionedly
content, roaring to Bao Li Gen, “Come, concentrate all the energy we have left
into one final fist!”
But Bao Li Gen exposed a shameful look, whispering, “Sorry, this time I am
burdened with a mission.”
A moment later, he finally started using his strongest trump card.
In a split second, his equipment greatly changed, exchanged for an entire set
of magic construct armament.
The construct armament was exquisitely gorgeous and thin. At the center, there
was a gigantic oval sapphire. Energy moved within the sapphire, quickly
transferring energy to the other parts of the construct armament.
Boom!
A light beam sprayed from Bao Li Gen’s whole body, shooting into the heavens.
The rolling air wave caused Mo Gui Ji’s charge to falter again and again.
The astonishing magic aura was a perfectly integrated whole, causing everyone’s
mouths to fall open in shock.



****** Chapter 742: Magic Construct Armament [Cold Pudding] ******
Mo Gui Ji clenched his teeth, doing his utmost to use a racial magic.
He opened his mouth and sprayed – Infernal Flames!
The raging flames charge into Bao Li Gen, stimulating the magic construct
armament’s passive defenses.
The magical light shield was thin, but firm, steadily holding back the Infernal
Flames. Inside the armament, Bao Li Gen didn’t even feel a touch of it.
“So strong, I am strong!” Bao Li Gen clenched his fists with astonishment, then
looked toward the flame shooting Mo Gui Ji.
He lightly extended his index finger.
A moment later, a white light came from the tip of his finger.
The white light that jetted out formed a slender ray that pierced directly into
Mo Gui Ji’s body.
The Infernal Flames came to a spontaneous end; Mo Gui Ji’s eyes turned white,
and he slowly tilted over and fell backwards onto the ground.
“What is that magic construct armament?!”
“I have never seen it before; it should be a new kind of armament from the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom.”
“It was assembled in a split second, that’s incredibly fast.”
“Look, the energy system is unlike the mainstream types!”
“Most crucially, its aura concealment is very good, and before it activated, I
couldn’t detect it at all.”
“Parameters, I need its specific parameters!”
In a split second, many transcendents were startled.
Many people left spatial layers and emerged from private spectator rooms.
A number of gold level auras quickly filled the entire dueling arena.
The audience was in an uproar, as they suddenly realized how many gold level
transcendents were in the audience.
The Green Ocean Kingdom’s magician Chao Xin’s necklace, Ocean Star, swung from
her voluptuous chest.
The Forge Kingdom’s master craftsman dwarf Tie Diao Zha and the kingdom’s head
warrior Tie Wan were standing next to each other.
The green skin troll Huang Ya Gou was carrying a spiked wooden club three
meters long. He had come from the Wilderness Continent’s Zhu Ya Clan.
The Deciduous College’s wood elf magician Yie Sui Feng was using detection
magic.
The Frost Continent’s Lei Yun Clan’s barbarian fighter Lei Kuang had needle-
like blue hair, and from time to time, electricity flashed between the tips of
his hair.
There was a wandering merman bard from Tide Song Village, Hong Shan Hai Ge, who
was holding a shell shaped mirror in one hand and a powder puff in his other
that he was using on his face.
Hailing from the Gold Grass Alliance was the grassland elf archer wind walker,
Cao Yu. They were holding a one handed sword and looking indifferent.
…
Oh boy, the magic construct armament’s reveal unmasked the countless experts
watching.
“As it turns out, there are a ton of state visitors on the island already.” The
dragonman youngster sighed.
Those dispatched as envoys were all gold levels with no exceptions.
It wasn’t that these powers didn’t have saint levels, rather saint levels could
not be easily mobilized, and unless the Ice Sculpture Kingdom invited them, it
would go against the rules.
Saint levels were too powerful and could cause massive damage, thus, one
recklessly coming would cause the Ice Sculpture Kingdom to treat them as an
enemy harboring malicious intent.
The dueling arena’s master declared the duel finished, and Bao Li Gen was its
victor.
“Hmph, relying on the military’s magic construct armament, what’s so terrific
about that!” Many of Mo Gui Ji’s supporters were dissatisfied but had to accept
the outcome.
After all, duels never prohibited the usage of equipment.
Soon after, a military representative entered the arena, stood next to Bao Li
Gen, and loudly presented, “Everyone, I am very honored to introduce my
country’s star product, the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding]. It uses my
country’s newest developed energy core, the [Whirlpool Energy Sapphire] and
abandoning mainstream 221 point energy flow structures, and instead uses my
country’s independently developed 741 point flow structure…
The miliary representative’s string of presentations created absolute silence
in the arena, everyone was straining to hear what he was saying.
Finally, the military representative said, “This magic construct armament is
only available at the gold level, and if anyone is interested, this afternoon,
it will be exhibited and available to try out at the capital’s Warm Snow Cup
Grand Contest, alongside other products of my country.”
Zi Di’s mind flashed, “The transcendent rank is gold level, this magic
construct armament [Cold Pudding] seems to be the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s main
high end weapon it is promoting on the international market.”
After saying that, Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster, her face exposing
obvious concern.
“Bao Li Gen might challenge you, Lord Commander.” Zi Di spoke with certainty. 
It was not just the dragonman youngster, Zi Di had grown the same too and
learned many things from Cang Xu.
Nowadays, her analysis of human nature was also more refined, and when she saw
Bao Li Gen controlling the magic construct armament, she immediately detected
what would be changing. 
Before, Bao Li Gen was not considered a threat, but now, with this military
treasure, he naturally held rising killing intent. 
Bao Li Gen was almost guaranteed to challenge the dragonman youngster!
An individual like Bao Li Gen exhibited his resentment of the dragonman
youngster in his words. He was impulsive, and even if the royal family issued
orders, it was difficult to contain his every movement.
After all, this guy was a habitual violator of military orders.
The dragonman youngster nodded, looking calm and collected, “If that happens,
Bao Li Gen will indeed become a bother.”
If he was in his fishman form, the young man was still confident he could crush
Bao Li Gen.
The dragonman youngster had divine power, magic power, and battle qi, triple
gold level cultivation. As for equipment, his were better than Bao Li Gen’s
still. Because he had the divine artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale], and as a divine
emissary, he could use the divine artifact’s might to its fullest and fool Bao
Li Gen with a mere thought.
But the problem was the fishman form could not be misused, and the divine
artifact [Mermaid Fairy Tale] could never be exposed to light.
To participate in the National Ceremony Grand Duel, the young man had to use
his dragonman form. It had to do with faith, after all, the masses acknowledged
this identity and form.
And if the young man used the fishman form to duel, he would have to start his
accumulation of renown anew again. It was too late for this, and he wouldn’t be
able to contest for the Dueling Godhead.
When using the dragonman form to fight, the young man could only use battle qi,
battle skills, some racial magics, and at best, some equipment and items too.
How could he deal with Bao Li Gen’s magic construct armament like this?
Zi Di wasn’t sure, and the dragonman youngster didn’t know either.
Because he didn’t know how many abilities [Cold Pudding] had.
Zi Di said, “We lack crucial information, but luckily, [Cold Pudding] will be
put on display. Furthermore, we can try it out, that will help our judgement of
it enormously.”
The dragonman youngster nodded, knowing immediately what was most important,
“No need to say anything else, we will return as soon as possible.”
Although he could use the Divine Domain Descent spell to return them both to
the capital, the dragonman youngster still chose to use Soldier City’s
teleportation formation.
After all, they had teleported to it from the capital.
After returning to the Warm Snow Cup Grand Contest’s exhibition hall, Zi Di and
the dragonman youngster found it already packed with people.
Especially the military exhibition hall.
“Information on it has indeed spread quickly.” Zi Di sighed.
The dragonman youngster broke through the crowd, and after negotiating with a
related staff member, returned to Zi Di and shook his head, “Too many people,
and there is only one magic construction armament to try out. It will take a
month before it will be our turn. Perhaps, we can try to find some guild
insiders?”
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps already had connections in the Alchemy Guild.
They helped Cai Jing’s faction, and had a close relationship with Elder Shuang
Lian, therefore they had a sizeable influence on the Alchemy Guild.
However, their attempt to cut in line using these connections failed.
The military firmly refused, leaving no leeway to talk. 
This was easy to understand.
On the one hand, although the military backed duelists stopped attacking the
survivors, their relationship hadn’t improved at all. 
On the other hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was backed by an “arms
merchant” and was in the same business. This clashed with the military’s sales
plan as both were explicitly competing in the same industry.
Finally, the military naturally would arrange the best customers at the very
front, so they could experience the weapon first to facilitate more purchases.



****** Chapter 743: Fitting Trial and Retrofitting ******
Though the dragonman youngster was unable to try it out himself, through guild
insiders, he was able to obtain detailed information on the magic construct
armament.
The magic construct armament [Cold Pudding]’s performance parameters were very
formidable.
It used many new technologies, and was equipped with no less than 11
enchantments, 6 of which could be modified within a limited range, giving it
flexibility to mix things up. It was absolutely pioneering work for current age
construct armaments.
The military developed it, spending seven to eight years on it. Its purpose was
to be a shocking laurel for this year’s Warm Snow Cup!
The magic construct armament had seven main parts.
The energy core was called the [Whirlpool Energy Sapphire] and it could turn
elemental crystal rocks into energy.
There were two pieces of defensive equipment. The first was the spherical light
cover that appeared during the duel with 360° coverage, the [Frost Rune
Sphere]. The second was the [Ice Shield Generator], it could instantly create
an ice shield on its arm for parrying melee attacks.
There were two parts for offensive, the [Ice Spear Condenser Mechanism] and the
[Ice Breath Mouth].
The first, the [Ice Spear Condenser Mechanism] was used to coalesce ice
elements to form a war spear of controllable length. Although this war spear
was gold level, it had a time limit and was classified as an expendable close
combat weapon. Of course, this short spear could also be used as a throwing
weapon.
The latter, the [Ice Breath Mouth], imitated a white dragon’s breath attack by
using ice elements to form an ice breath. As the name implies, the ice breath
could discharge absolute zero frost breaths in a conical shape, causing
frostbite on a massive scale within the target range. Sustained breaths could
freeze and enemy.
The movement module was [Ice Obstructer Boots]. The Ice Obstructer Boots had
impetus and ice obstruction runes. When it is activated, it could release the
power of ice, not only improving the user’s speed, but also leaving cold ice
hindrances that could slow down pursuing soldiers or trap them.
Finally, there was the supply construct, the [Pudding Cooling Case]. It could
use honey snow to make pudding. The pudding served as army provisions, giving
them basic nutrition and heat. The brush stroke that dotted the eyes was that
the [Pudding Cooling Case] was connected to the energy core, thus, honey snow
in the case could be converted to refill the [Whirlpool Energy Sapphire’s]
energy reserve.
This also meant that the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] had two ways
of recharging. One was conventional elemental crystal rocks and the other was
honey snow.
Although having an extra recharge method seemed average and normal, it was
actually the design’s biggest highlight, its great advantage.
The reason was that compared to the heavy and low energy density elemental
crystal rocks, honey snow was far more energy dense and lighter.
This signified that an individual soldier could carry greater energy reserves,
which would be very beneficial for long term dispatchments and decrease
replenishing requirements greatly.
The main energy source of [Cold Pudding] was honey snow, while elemental
crystal rocks were its reserve source.
When Zi Di saw this detailed information, she immediately realized the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom’s military was in the middle of a great game.
They were exporting [Cold Pudding] and also promoting honey snow.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom was always a large producer of honey snow. It didn’t
just come from Shuang Lian’s demiplane, every year, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
produced staggering quantities of honey snow.
The crucial thing was that honey snow was not a naturally produced energy
source, but a processed one.
Currently, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has alchemy technology that could
transform many kinds of natural energy sources into honey snow.
Zi Di currently knew that the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had many energy processing
alchemy factories scattered across the kingdom that could utilize solar energy,
wind power, electricity, as well as elemental crystal rocks to refine honey
snow.
This meant that honey snow couldn’t be depleted.
Honey snow was absolutely a clean energy source. When elemental crystal rocks
are used, they will leave behind a crystal rock. When honey snow is expended,
it leaves nothing behind.
Honey snow could also be eaten, and barely any excrement was formed from it.
That was also great assistance to troops marching stealthily.
The dragonman youngster’s voice sank, “The magic construct armament’s greatest
advantage is that it can be commissioned.”
“Because its equipment is in unison, it is very easy to coordinate small groups
of them.”
“If gold level fighters use this magic construct armament, they can assault and
thrust deep into enemy forces on the battlefield, accomplishing major tactical
goals. Such as decapitation strikes.”
Zi Di added on, “Therefore, the main customer of the magic construct armor
[Cold Pudding] is not ordinary gold level powers. Like the Bramble Pirates who
have one gold level, it isn’t worth it purchasing this magic construct
armament.”
Powers with multiple gold levels could purchase a few [Cold Puddings], and
instantly from small gold level tactical squads. This kind of magic construct
armaments could turn ordinary gold level combat strength into peak gold level
combat strength. With some training and tactical squads, they would be a
significant threat.
Take the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for example. The leaders it had posted in areas
were normally gold levels. Snow Bird Harbor had four gold levels as its high
class authority. Of course there were many ordinary gold levels.
Two to three gold levels outfitted with [Cold Pudding] in a small tactical
squad would be an immense challenge for the harbor to deal with.
One must know that as one of the Ice Sculpture’s eight great trading harbors,
Snow Bird Harbor was absolutely an economic center with significant defenses.
If this tactical squad was thrown into another town, they would slaughter
everyone.
The state delegates of every great power were elite gold levels. They were
thinking the same things as Zi Di and the dragon youngster.
Some were interested; others were not but had to set up purchasing plans
anyways.
Because if you didn’t buy them, others would. The other powers would grow more
threatening, and swell immensely with arms, and maybe, they’ll use it to deal
with you.
The arms competition was like this. You don’t want to compete, but they do. So,
for your own safety, you have to keep pace.
Ultimately, it develops into a massive competition between everyone.
The pinnacle of this competition was that every power was exhausted, the public
financial burden was enormous, the people’s livelihood was reduced to
destitution, and every social class’s complaints filled the roads as they were
subjected to immense pressure. Finally, an extremely fatigued mind, coupled
with “holding a sharp blade with a rising intent to kill”, led to a minor
incident sparking war.
The overall trend of war was already fomenting in every corner of the Main
Plane.
This was the theme of this era! The earliest instigator and producer was the
Sheng Ming Empire. By Heavenly Emperor Sheng Ming’s decree, the entire country
would brazenly invade the Wilderness Continent.
It was like a boulder suddenly being thrown into a tranquil lake. It would
instantly stir up billows and produce waves that would continue to radiate all
around.
This year, the ice Sculpture Kingdom’s latest models of warship were officially
put into service, and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom Military began to sell rare
gold level magic construct armaments.
The arms race had been distinctly escalated, and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was
not a rare instance; the other powers were doing similar moves.
On the surface, it was just the Sheng Ming Continent vs the Wilderness
Continent. This was only the center of the vortex in the lake. The waves
created by this showdown was already radiating to every part of the lake,
sweeping in every other power sooner or later.
The Warm Snow Cup exhibition hall.
The troll Huang Ya Gou threw his wolf tooth club to the ground and animatedly
put on the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding].
[Cold Pudding] automatically adjusted its size, fitting Huang Ya Gou snuggly.
Under the eyes of many, Huang Ya Gou began to use his spirit to control the
equipment, activating a few magic modules.
He first tried the defense and offense functions, then asked, “What’s going on,
why can’t I use the light ray attack from the duel?”
The alchemist to the side explained, “The magic construct armament used by Lord
Bao Li Gen in the duel had some modifications to it added, it is a retrofitted
edition. And the one you’re trying out is the basic edition.”
“[Cold Pudding] was the magic construct armament my country’s military spent
almost ten years meticulously developing. The base edition can have extra
retrofitting done to it, increasing its functions and be more tailored to a
specific battlefield environment.”
“Everyone can take a look at this chart concerning modifications.”
The modification form was distributed.
After every power’s representative looked at them, they found that the form had
many things listed in great detail, along with the prices of the modifications
clearly marked.
The kingdom’s military’s desire to earn a massive profit was obvious.
Huang Ya Gou ran his eyes through it, his eyes slightly pausing. He saw that
among the modifications; there was a small alchemy component called [Attack
Form Changer Device]. This component being added to [Ice Breath] could turn the
ice breath into a slender ray. Because it was compressed, the attack became
very penetrating.
“Who wants to fight me? Huang Ya Gou put down the modification form and was
eager to give the armament a run.
The alchemists to the side promptly stopped him.
They smiled, firmly refusing, “Lord Huang Ya Gou, this is an exhibition hall,
not a place for battle.”
This made Huang Ya Gou very dissatisfied, “Is this a test run or a fitting
trial?”
An alchemist smiled deeper, “Lord, if you want to use it properly, you can
purchase a set. To experts like yourselves, the price is not a problem.”
“In fact, the warehouse has a limited amount of merchandise.”
“After all, it costs a lot to make a set of [Cold Pudding].”
“We suggest that if you intend to, that you place your order as soon as
possible. If you are too late, then the merchandise will be sold out, and
you’ll have no choice but to make a down payment and preorder.”
The state visitors grumbled at what was said.
“The price is too expensive!”
“We are guests here, not idiots to be fleeced.”
“If we can’t trial run it in combat, then what’s the point? Don’t tell me [Cold
Pudding] has a suboptimal performance in battle, therefore, you don’t dare to
do so?”
Some candidly make negative remarks.
The alchemists remained unmoved, and the leader among them looked around and
shouted, “[Cold Pudding’s] battle performance will be continued to be exhibited
in duels. When the time comes, if everyone intends to buy it, it would be
better to observe real combat.”
Regardless of what was said, the alchemists did not relent.
The so called trial run was more of a prank, designed to scratch the hearts of
every power’s representative.



****** Chapter 744: Shuang Lian – I will Send You Away From Bu Quan! ******
The kingdom’s military pharmacists and alchemists surrounded Bao Li Gen, giving
him a thorough physical examination.
Using a magic construct armament placed an immense burden on the user.
Bao Li Gen’s body needed to be constantly watched and monitored.
“Next duel, I want to challenge Long Fu!” Bao Li Gen fiercely shouted.
The event manager shook his head, “The time is not yet ripe.”
“We haven’t gathered enough data yet; we are uncertain of the construct
armament’s stability in actual combat.” 
“You went against the battle plan!”
“Currently, we are unable to determine whether your injuries are from your
battle with Mo Gui Ji or were caused by equipping the magic construct
armament.”
Bao Li Gen coldly snorted and turned his head around without responding.
He was a holy warrior chosen by the Dueling Godhead, and when facing other
duelists, he fundamentally wanted to test his strength in battle and not rely
on external power.
Bao Li Gen regarded Mo Gui Ji as his old enemy.
The best way he could respect an old enemy was to fight them with all he had
while using equal external forces.
This kind of battle, regardless of the result, could satisfy him.
Regretfully, he was not just a duelist, but also a soldier of the kingdom. At
the final moment, his supervisor roared into his ear that he had to use the
magic armament construct.
After all, if he fought Mo Gui Ji to the bitter end, he would be seriously
injured, and unable to heal those injuries completely in a short time span,
which would influence his battle strength. Then, that would affect his plans
for vengeance against the dragonman youngster, along with the military’s grand
reveal of [Cold Pudding].
The supervisor also knew Bao Li Gen was a habitual violator of military
discipline, so they endured their headache and eased their voice as much as
possible, “Next, we have already contacted your next dueling opponent.”
“You will listen to this order!”
“You will use the magic construct armament from the beginning; thus, we will be
able to gather enough data.”
“You want to deal with Long Fu?”
“He is indeed strong, but so long as the data is good, we are entirely capable
of setting him as our third target of attack.”
“But before that, you need to cooperate with us properly.”
Bao Li Gen was gloomy as he firmly nodded.
…
The Ice Sculpture Capital.
Long Meng’s training room.
The dragonman youngster asked Long Meng for guidance, speaking forthrightly,
“Long Meng, you know my relationship with Bao Li Gen. After this duel, it is
likely he’ll challenge me.”
“What should I use to deal with him?”
Long Meng smiled, “Easy, his great strength comes from the magic construct
armament [Cold Pudding], then in that case, why don’t you buy a set of your
own?”
The dragonman youngster was silent.
Of course this was a way of handling this. When he, Zi Di, and Cang Xu were
discussing, Zi Di had brought this suggestion up.
But this procedure had obvious systemic problems.
First, would the military sell it to the dragonman youngster?
Zi Di put her in their shoes, “If it were me, I would consider Bao Li Gen’s
mood and not sell it to his opponent.”
Cang Xu raised a second systemic problem “If we were really able to buy it and
used [Cold Pudding] to deal with [Cold Pudding] successfully, even if he wins,
it will nevertheless be an invisible harm to Long Fu’s prestige.”
“Think about Bao Li Gen’s showdown with Mo Gui Ji. Why did he wait until the
last moment to use the magic construct armament?”
“If the Lord Commander is equipped with [Cold Pudding] during the duel, in the
masses’ hearts, this seems to be cowardice behavior.”
The dragonman youngster felt awkward, “If I was in my fishman form, Bao Li Gen
would be no problem at all. But in my dragonman form, I can only use battle
qi…”
Zi Di frowned, “If we are going to upgrade your equipment, we would have to buy
saint level equipment that can vie with the magic construct armament [Cold
Pudding]. But if that happens, saint level equipment will deplete too much of
your battle qi and you’ll be unable to last long in combat, it might instead
become an enormous weak point.”
When Feng Lian used his saint level bronze mask, he was connected to his ship’s
magic power reservoir.
Bao Li Gen had the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding], which had its own
energy core.
Additionally, the dragonman form’s Bursting Explosion battle qi was also not
good at recovery or battle qi reserves.
The dragonman youngster contemplated, “Then I’ll have to use many magic scrolls
and alchemy crossbows to deplete it.”
This tactical decision was also weak against a suit of equipment like [Cold
Pudding].
But there was no other choice.
“Lord Commander, perhaps you can ask Long Meng for guidance?” Cang Xu suddenly
suggested.
After pausing, he continued, “This is an opportunity.”
“Not just Long Meng, we can also use this to sound out the powers that have
good will with us, as well as our alliances of benefits.”
“Take a look at what they would do.”
The dragonman youngster first contacted Mi Fang and had the latter ask for help
from the Jing Xiang Clan.
As it so happens, he still had the saint level devil transformation potion,
which came from the Jing Xiang Clan. But this potion couldn’t be used publicly
– it would allow the Jing Xiang Clan to become completely aware of the true
relationship between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Mi Fang.
Perhaps the Jing Xiang Clan could supply a second saint level potion?
But the Jing Xiang Clan only provided gold level medicine for a price. They
asked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps to increase the profits they gained from
the mount potion business.
This was an archetypical shakedown!
The dragonman youngster contacted Shuang Lian and Bu Quan.
When Bu Quan heard this, she became very nervous and implored her teacher
personally to help out.
Shuang Lian suddenly realized this was a good opportunity.
Thus, she invited the dragonman youngster to her study for a private chat, “I
can subsidize several formidable gold level alchemy items, but the price is
that you allow Bu Quan to withdraw from your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
Shuang Lian’s gaze became serenely deep as her tone became ice-cold, “I can
even gift you a saint level scroll, it can ensure you defeat Bao Li Gen. But
the condition is that you have to completely leave Bu Quan’s life!”
Shuang Lian was worthy of being a powerful Alchemy Guild elder, she was rich,
extraordinarily rich.
The dragonman youngster contemplated for a moment, then answered, “Lord Shuang
Lian, I think there might be a misunderstanding between us.”
“Bu Quan is a friend of mine, she can help me, and I can help her in turn.”
“This is like our collaboration together, one everyone benefits from, isn’t
that right?”
“If our friendship can be replaced by money and things, can it still be
considered friendship?”
“Please revoke your test.”
Shuang Lian sneered to herself, “Friendship?”
Her mouth pressured, “Aren’t you worried you’ll lose to Bao Li Gen? You will
disappoint countless people.”
The dragonman youngster shrugged his shoulders, “A true fighter never fears
losing, they are only worried about cowardice. Defeat will indeed make queasy,
and it will affect the mount potion’s sales volume.”
“But I believe the negative impact won’t be much.”
“After all, everyone knows the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] is
formidable. Me losing to it is reasonable, right?”
Shuang Lian coldly retorted, “I will give you time to consider, think it over
well.”
He was sent out after this.
After the dragonman youngster gained nothing from two places, a Li Jian Clan
envoy decided to pay a visit.
The envoy expressed Mian Li Zang’s inclination to collaborate, and that the Li
Jian Clan was willing to provide a saint level foundation to help the dragonman
youngster defeat Bao Li Gen. What Mian Li Zang wanted was the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps to keep working with the Li Jian Clan in the mount potion
business.
The dragonman youngster was not present at the time, and Cang Xu’s desire was
staunch. So, on behalf of the dragonman youngster, Zi Di communicated that they
would refuse this proposal of collaboration.
Then they received equipment from Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s people: the
Automatic Blood Bottle, Blue God Headband, the Sword Dragon Reverse Scale, and
the Flowing Wave Armor.
They definitely didn’t send a request to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord for
anything.
But it had to be said that since the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord partnered up, the money they provided indirectly helped the
latter rebuild the magician tower.
The relationship between the survivors and Snow Bird Harbor City Lord quickly
escalated and underwent a qualitative change.
This equipment had once been of great aid to the dragonman youngster, without
them, he wouldn’t have been able to defeat Teng Dong Lang.
After that duel, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps wanted to buy this equipment
from Snow Bird Harbor Lord, even increasing their offer many times, but Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord had no intention of selling them stubbornly keeping it in
their hands.
This time, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was loaning them at his own volition.
The dragonman youngster thought to himself, isn’t this just perfect?
Thus, he ordered Tripleblade to pay Snow Bird Harbor City Lord another visit to
offer to buy this equipment.
The dragonman youngster’s opening offer was still the same, he wasn’t fiending
for a discount.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord nevertheless decided to push the price down to a
normal range, simultaneously expressing his good will while also raising a
request.
As it turns out, he valued the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ relationship with
the Alchemy Guild and hoped that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps would apply
some pressure and ask alchemists to help rush the construction of the magician
tower. 
Although Snow Bird Harbor’s magician tower was being built, it wasn’t at a fast
rate. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was very anxious and running around in
circles, wishing more excellent alchemists would join this engineering
project. 
After the dragonman youngster, Cang Xu, and Zi Di investigated, the former
expressed he wanted to help Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Zi Di didn’t have any ideas.
But Cang Xu shook his head, “On the face of it, helping Snow Bird Harbor City
Lord brings more benefits than harm, and can enhance the relationship between
us once again.”
“But in fact, the harm might be greater than the benefits.”
“First, our true relationship with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is not as
harmonious as it seems. Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s true faction is the
Imperial Secret Spy Agency, and he has always wanted to catch our arms merchant
backer. Therefore, even if we help him energetically, we won’t be able to gain
his genuine appreciation.”
“Second, we need to consider the royal family’s and other nobles’ perception.
If Snow Bird Harbor City Lord is exposed as a secret spy in the future, how
will others see our vigorous subsidizing of his magician tower construction?
The future is undecided, and what we need more is to space out our relationship
with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.”
“In short, it is still far too early for us to take sides.”
“We are outsiders, we are arms merchants, this neutral identity is very
useful.”



****** Chapter 745: The [Form] Above [Force] ******
The dragonman youngster took Cang Xu’s opinion seriously, and Zi Di next to him
nodded.
After the three investigated, they finally bought Snow Bird Harbor City Lord’s
equipment at a high price, stating that they knew he was short on money and
would use this method to indirectly help him build his magician tower. At the
same time, they secretly expressed they were willing to apply leverage in the
Alchemy Guild. But they also asked for him not to have excessive expectations,
after all, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were outsiders and just integrated
themselves into the Alchemy Guild.
The Jing Xiang Clan, the Li Jian Clan, Shuang Lian (Bu Quan), and Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord all issued their respective responses.
Overall, none of the help was substantial.
Finally, it was Long Meng’s turn, who the dragonman youngster personally asked
for advice.
Long Meng first suggested he buy a set of the magic construct armament [Cold
Pudding]. Then when he saw the dragonman youngster’s expression, he laughed, “I
know how you think, you want to use your fists and your own strength to defeat
Bao Li Gen?”
“Too naïve, too stupid!”
“A magician’s wealth is strength; a fighter’s equipment is also part of their
strength.”
“However, I understand your feelings and identify with you.”
“Haha, because that is a fighter’s romance.”
“Since that is the case, then I will teach you [Form].”
“Do you know of [Form]?”
The dragonman youngster stared blankly, “I have briefly heard of it, it seems
to be a martial study philosophy from the eastern part of the empire.”
“[Form] seems to be greater than [Force]. People who can use [Form] are rare.”
“At the least, I’ve seen fighters that can use [Force], but I have never seen
one that can use [Form].”
Long Meng replied, “It is not just in the Eastern Sheng Ming Empire, [Form]
appeared even earlier in the Wilderness Continent’s Pandaman Dynasty.”
“Our battle qi, through some special training movements, can be produced in
certain parts of our bodies.”
“Battle qi techniques are different, training moves are different, and the
parts that produce battle qi are also different.”
“And battle skills are just one mature way of using battle qi. When using
battle skills, battle qi will be circulated within our bodies based on a fixed
locus.  If one’s battle qi attains the gold level, the battle qi can be
circulated outside of the body, no longer limited to inside of it.”
“What is referred to as [Force] sounds mythical, but it is essentially us using
our minds and willpower to affect our battle qi and battle skills, causing some
changes to occur.”
“For example, during your battle with Shi Liu, you used Vibration Force with
Demolition Fist to increase the explosion’s spreading power to no longer be
limited to a spheroid range, this kind of attack is very effective on elemental
lifeforms.”
“And [Form] refers to a fusion of some battle skills and some [Forces].”
…
As Long Meng continued to explain, the dragonman youngster’s eyes grew
brighter.
This was truly an unexpected gain!
He actually never thought he would gain something so substantial.
But Long Meng never disappointed him, instead he gave him an enormously
pleasant surprise!
[Form]!
This technique within a technique was capable of producing a qualitative change
that could help the dragonman youngster surmount a Bao Li Gen equipped with
[Cold Pudding].
Long Meng didn’t hide anything, and after he gave his explanation, he began to
teach the dragonman youngster [Form].
“I know three types of [Form]. They are the internal form [Frog Croak], the
external form [War General]. And the external form [White Dragon].”
The dragonman youngster was startled.
Long Meng’s foundation still surpassed his imagination.
Long Meng did not just know one [Form], but three of them.
The dragonman youngster asked, “What is internal and external form?”
Long Meng gave him an explanation, “[Form] is battle qi, a fusion of battle
skills and [Force], in practice establishing a battle qi cycle.”
“What is referred to as internal form is the battle qi cycle within a fighter.
And external form is having a part, or even all of one’s battle qi circulating
outside of a fighter’s body.”
“The advantage of internal form is that even iron and bronze levels can use
them. While external form needs to at least be a gold level, because only at
the gold level can battle qi condense and form outside the body.”
The dragonman youngster nodded.
Long Meng continued, “The internal form [Frog Croak] regulates the body, it has
an enormous impact on nourishment and healing. It affects our internal organs
and can increase their performance. It affects our brains and can increase our
ability to remember and make our minds more vigorous. It lets our body recover
faster, and to us, two to three hours of sleep is as restful as an ordinary
person sleeping eight hours.”
Long Meng’s internal form helped him cultivate, while the two external forms
were used for combat.
“The external form [White Dragon] is too complicated for you. You won’t be able
to cultivate it within a short time.”
“But the other form [War General] can be done through concerted efforts based
on your talents. However, you might not necessarily be able to do it.”
The dragonman youngster was astonished.
Long Meng knew about his fighting talents and didn’t expect that he’d still
issue that kind of assessment. The dragonman youngster couldn’t help but be a
bit competitive.
“Then I’ll do as you ask, please teach me the form [War General] first!”
…
As expected, Bao Li Gen’s next duel received the most nationwide attention. 
In a moment, with the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding], Bao Li Gen had
jumped up and pushed down Long Fu to become the greatest center of attention.
Very quickly, in the biggest Ice Sculpture Capital dueling arena, under the
eyes of several thousand and with a hundred thousand watching the broadcast,
Bao Li Gen turned his second duel into a crushing trouncing.
His opponent was a gold level like him, and also a snow elf magician of no
small repute.
But against [Cold Pudding], the snow elf magician was unanimously suppressed,
and despite using their full strength, they were still utterly defeated.
[Cold Pudding’s] performance was exceptional, its constant throwing of ice
spears and sharp long, close combat long spear forced the snow elf magician to
avoid them. 
The magic construct armament could also fly, allowing Bao Li Gen to chase after
the flying magician.
All kinds of magical counterattacks had no effect on the ice shield and
spherical light cover.
Bao Li Gen frequently used concentrated attacks, and the magician was unable to
form an effective offensive tempo. Because with the external energy core, Bao
Li Gen looked more like a magician than his opponent, while also being able to
bombard them with battle skills indiscriminately.
After all, the magic construct armament’s energy fueled his defense, decreasing
the burden on his battle qi and making it possible for him to put it all into
attacks.
The constantly conscientious military supervisor laughed, and after the battle
ended, they excitedly clapped Bao Li Gen’s shoulder.
Bao Li Gen’s face was cold, this kind of duel did not thrill him at all, “Next,
can I challenge Long Fu?”
“Of course, of course!” The military supervisor nodded repeatedly, then added,
“As long as the data analysis outcome is good, we’ll arrange it.”
Seeing Bao Li Gen coldly looking towards him, he promptly supplemented with,
“Don’t worry, based on what I observed, the result is unlikely to be wrong!
…
After this duel, the Warm Snow Cup exhibition hall instantly welcomed a series
of purchasers.
The first to pay the price was Chao Xin.
She was an ocean elf magician from the Green Ocean Kingdom, and a wealthy
woman.
“I will also buy one.” The second purchaser was Tie Diao Zha; he was a dwarf
master craftsman and also had lots of assets.
Like how Zi Di analyzed, the magic construct armament usually attracted large
powers. They had many gold levels, were rich and overbearing, and could equip
small teams with these weapons.
The barbarian fighter from the Lei Yun Clan, Lei Kuang, returned to his
encampment depressed.
According to common sense, [Cold Pudding] was well suited to the Frost
Continent’s environment. Compared to the other powers, Lei Kuang was the most
suitable buyer.
However, his Lei Yun Clan wasn’t in good circumstances.
During Lei Kuang’s diplomatic mission, he almost died in an ambush on the way
here. Apart from seeing the Ice Sculpture National Ceremony, he also wanted to
ask the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for help, and to bring back military
reinforcements.
“Alas, even the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s seaboard is chaotic and full of rampant
pirates.”
“The magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] is amazing, and while other powers
buy it, we cannot, we’ll become weaker!”
“What should I do?”
Lei Kuang and his group lost most of their supplies in the ambush. But even
with them, he didn’t have enough money to purchase a set of [Cold Pudding].
Even a heroic man can be baffled by a lack of cents.
This brave and expert barbarian fighter sat down and sighed in despair. 
Until an attendant reminded him, “My Lord, why don’t you ask Lord Xun Liang? He
was a barbarian great fighter, and someone as formidable as him can definitely
help us cross over this crisis.”
Lei Kuang’s eyes lit up, he slapped his head, animatedly standing up and
walking off.
He left his house and came to the prayer room on the left.
As he reached the prayer room door, his footsteps couldn’t help but slow down.



****** Chapter 746: Mammoth Form ******
Standing in front of the prayer room door, Lei Kuang heard a voice praying
inside. 
It was the great fighter Xun Liang praying.
“Grand Barbarian God, you are the ancestor of the Barbarian Race, you are the
source of our strength, you are the crown of glory.”
“You are the God that protects the barbarian race, you are the Emperor of
Winter Ice, you are the liberator of adversity, you are the totem of fighters!”
“You sit atop the frozen ice. Under Your icy gaze, all life reveres and all
frost submits. You shield Your children with the might of ice and frost.
Blessed by Your peerless power, the barbarians grow strong and unyielding like
the wolves.”
“You brandish the Adversity Hatchet and through inexhaustible wisdom You weave
fate, through Your tenacious hands You tear apart danger, Your finger
illuminates the barbarians’ way through boundless suffering, towering and
unwavering.”
“Your benevolence is like a resplendent star, and within Your beneficence, our
souls can be purified to become as innocent and pure as a child.”
“Barbarian God, my Heavenly Father, my Supreme Imperial Master, I piously pray
to You, calling out for Your absolution and guidance!”
“I was once lost in the swamps of ignorance, my heart was once wrapped in the
vines of darkness, You witnessed me like that and know the stains and sins I
have deep within my heart.”
“Your grandness overcomes my sins; Your benevolence far surpasses my
misguidance.”
“I ask You to lay out a great path for my redemption, let me step onto this
journey to wash clean my sins and welcome a pure tomorrow.”
“Allow me to firmly and faithfully stay on the road of redemption and honor
Your name until my soul can be purified and resonate with your divinity!”
Lei Kuang patiently waited until Xun Liang’s long prayer finished, then he
lightly rang the doorbell.
Movement was heard inside the room, and the door quickly opened, showing Xun
Liang.
He was an old man, the years had shriveled his muscles, but his disposition as
a fighter still remained tall and straight.
His upper body was exposed, a gray leather skirt was wrapped around his waist,
his feet were bare, and he was covered in scars.
The scars were of varying sizes, scattered across his body without rhyme or
reason.
When Lei Kuang saw these scars, his eyes instantly filled with admiration and
veneration, this was a fighter’s glory!
There were iron-like branches stuck in Xu Liang’s back. There were a dozen of
them, and they cut Xun Liang as he moved, causing minor seeps of blood.
“Great Fighter Xun Liang, please forgive my disturbance. You saved my life, but
before I am able to express my appreciation to you, I am forced to ask you for
help again.” Lei Kuang bowed his head, looking ashamed.
Xun Liang shook his head, his voice deep, but gentle, “I am no longer a
barbarian great fighter, I am only a sinner.”
“Furthermore, I am not your life saving benefactor.”
“Just when I stepped foot onto the road of redemption and plunged these twelve
branches of sin into my back, I heard you shouting.”
“This is the Grand Barbarian God guiding and granting me the road of
redemption.”
“And now, just as I finished my prayer, you once again came to me. This is
God’s plan and also the next road of redemption I must walk!”
“Therefore, it is I who should thank you.”
“Please tell me, what is going on?”
Lei Kuang’s Adam’s apple rolled, and he almost blurted out, “Does the Barbarian
God exist?’
But he swallowed those words into his stomach, and with denser shame, spoke of
his current predicament.
“I see.” Xun Liang rubbed his stomach, and bowed to bless God’s name, “My road
of redemption is here.”
“I will act and participate in a duel to challenge a user of the magic
construct armament [Cold Pudding].”
“Ah?” Lei Kuang was flabbergasted.
Xun Liang replied, “Your misgivings lie with being unable to definitively
determine the performance of [Cold Pudding]. Your predicament rests with how to
look for reinforcements from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”
“When I display the barbarian race’s strength, I believe the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom will value your request more.”
“Duels are popular in this country, and it is time I unveil my race’s power.”
…
The military supervisor found Bao Li Gen, “Good news, bad news, which do you
want first?”
Bao Li Gen replied, “Good news?”
The military supervisor then said, “The statistical data from the last duel
looks pretty good.”
Bao Li Gen was overjoyed, “You’re saying I can challenge Long Fu!”
The military supervisor shook their head, “Still out of the question, something
unexpected occurred.”
“Someone wants to challenge you.”
Bao Li Gen’s expression collapsed, and anger rose, “Who?!”
The military supervisor replied, “A former barbarian great fighter – Xun
Liang.”
Bao Li Gen’s expression stiffened, finding it hard to believe, “A great
fighter? A saint level expert wants to challenge me?”
The military supervisor shook his head, “Xun Liang is a former great fighter,
nowadays he is a burdened sinner, his cultivation level also dropped and is
only a gold level.”
“However, you absolutely cannot be careless.”
“Since the other party is still publicly challenging you after you exposed the
magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] and showed off its superior
performance, he naturally must be confident in himself.”
“This is a state visitor. Therefore, we must take up the challenge!”
“You want to deal with Long Fu, but that has to be pushed back.”
“Humph!” Bao Li Gen had no choice but to clench his teeth and nod.
…
In the Ice Sculpture Capital’s greatest dueling arena, the dragonman youngster
was watching in the audience.
This time the barbarian burdened sinner - Xun Liang openly challenged the [Cold
Pudding] user – Bao Li Gen!
As soon as both appeared, it stirred up heated debate between everyone.
Bao Li Gen was fully armed, while the burdened sinner Xun Liang was empty
handed and without equipment. A clear contrast between the two.
The audience’s eyes were attracted by the iron-like sinner branches on Xun
Liang’s back.
“He really is a burdened sinner!”
“He forcibly inserted branches into his own body; the barbarian race really is
crazy.”
“Woo...it looks painful.”
“It is far more than just physical pain. The sinner branches’ negative effects
cover one’s entire body and can increase their burden enormously. At the same
time, it can also constrain a person’s mind. Don’t be fooled by Xun Liang’s
blank face, every motion he makes causes acute pain in his body and mind, and
that pain bores into his mind and chills his bones!”
“He carries a dozen sinner branches, what sin that requires such inhuman
torment?”
“The spectators discussed enthusiastically and curiously.
But information on Xun Liang was limited, and the only thing everyone found out
upon investigation was that he was once a barbarian great fighter. He was once
saint level but has fallen to the gold level nowadays.
Bao Li Gen was grave and was the first to attack.
Xun Liang mainly relied on evasion.
Bao Li Gen used battle skills and two of [Cold Pudding’s] offensive components,
increasing the density of his attacks.
Xun Liang’s bare feet stepped on the soil; his movements were simple and plain,
utterly devoid of flashiness.
He avoided the vast majority of attacks, giving the impression that it was
being done effortlessly.
“Dodging intuition!” The answer sprung up in Bao Li Gen’s mind.
The barbarian fighters that lived on the Frost Continent endured the ice’s
harsh trials. Some veterans and talented barbarian fighters could rely on
practice to temper their minds and will, thereby gaining the ability to dodge
intuitively.
Barbarians with dodging intuition did not fear besiegement, they had no need to
think in the moment, they only needed to listen to their intuition to evade
complex and concentrated attacks.
Now, Xun Liang was showing that very thing.
“Dodging, dodging, dodging, how long can you keep dodging this?”  Bao Li Gen
was at first very on guard, but when he noticed that Xu Liang was just evading,
and was never going on the offensive, he felt humiliated. And due to that
resentfulness, his attacks became more unrestrained. 
He relied on the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] for defense, while
depleting his battle qi to constantly use battle skills, many of which covered
a large area in constant, quick succession that gradually submerged Xun Liang.
Bang, bang, bang…
A gigantic cloud of dust gradually spread, enveloping the battlefield.
An astonishing aura suddenly came about within the dust cloud, blowing the dust
around it away and clearing out a part of the battlefield.
In the cleared smoke, Xun Liang stood tall.
His entire body was wreathed with gold battle qi.
The battle qi appeared somewhat linear, some woven into the form of a mammoth,
others condensed into chunks that looked like armor that were fastened to the
mammoth’s body. There were also battle qi spirals that twisted and grew into
large mammoth teeth.
Xun Liang’s body hung in the air about one meter from the ground as he stood in
the battle qi mammoth.
Form – Mammoth!
Everyone was in an uproar.
“What is that thing?”
“This is the first time I’ve seen such a special battle skill.”
“Form, that is a form! It is the fighter technique above [Force].”
The dragonman youngster subconsciously sat up straight.
These days, he was rushing to learn the form [War General] from Long Meng.
It was very difficult, and he hadn’t grasped it yet.
His outstanding fighting talents finally hit a rigorous challenge. 
“I didn’t expect that this barbarian Xun Liang can actually use [form]!” The
dragonman youngster focused his attention, this was an excellent chance to
learn.
“What the heck is this?” Bao Li Gen coldly snorted and continued to attack.
But all sorts of battle skills were almost all stopped by the mammoth form.
The dragonman youngster’s mind stirred, and he immediately analyzed, “Mammoth
Form has the Ice Armor defensive battle skill!”
The battle qi mammoth lowered its head and stuck up its spiral tusks.
A moment later, it suddenly ran so fast that it formed afterimages to the naked
eye!
Bao Li Gen considered, then activated the defensive modules, first forming the
spherical cover, then condensed an arm ice shield.
As a result, the instant the mammoth tusks crashed into the sphere cover, they
suddenly changed greatly, becoming sharp as blades.
After being mildly obstructed, the mammoth tusks easily pierced the light
sphere protective cover, then knocked into the ice shield.
Bao Li Gen was an experienced fighter, and when his heart suddenly jumped, he
promptly kneeled to the ground, raising the shield above his head and inclining
it at an angle.
This movement saved him.
The bladed mammoth tusks’ Collision Force was offset for the most part, but as
the thick and solid tusks chafed against the shield, they revealed how sharp
they were.
Bao Li Gen got away in time and immediately discarded the ice shield.
A brief second of friction had nearly cut the ice shield in half.
The dragonman youngster was impressed by what he saw, “The mammoth tusks’
deformation is obviously a battle skill. But the tusks grown aren’t sharp, but
they can still cut, they are empowered by [Cutting Force]!”



****** Chapter 747: Qi Ci Lang vs Da Han ******
After using Mammoth Form, Xun Liang made a comeback in a single move.
“Damn it!!” Bao Li Gen struck back with all his strength, but it was to no
avail.
Xu Liang’s blade tusk mammoth was an integrated whole of attack and defense,
and was even harder to deal with than Bao Li Gen equipped with [Cold Pudding].
“This kind of battle strength is rather excessive?”
“He is actually able to suppress Bao Li Gen?!”
“Incredible! [Form] is so devastating, my eyes have been opened today.”
Amongst everyone’s unceasing gasps of surprise, a heavy curtain fell on this
duel.
Bao Li Gen suffered a crushing defeat, his battle qi had been depleted to near
empty, while 70% of [Cold Pudding’s] energy reserves were spent.
Bao Li Gen was seriously injured and sank into unconsciousness.
By contrast, after revoking Mammoth Form, Xun Liang was uninjured
Although he found it hard to evade many wide ranging battle skills and was
nicked during the duel, while he was making his comeback, he had recovered.
An upset.
 A neglected branch had exploded onto the stage on top of Bao Li Gen’s back.
The magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] had unexpectedly lost.
Xun Liang became the greatest dark horse, and for the moment, his name shook
the entire nation. He used Bao Li Gen as a footstool, and also simultaneously
trampled the military’s key high grade magic construct armament [Cold Pudding]
under his feet.
His victory ushered in immense prestige, allowing his publicity to surpass the
dragonman youngster and become the most passionately discussed figure in the
kingdom.
The outcome of this duel had a multifaceted impact.
The dragonman youngster’s problem suddenly disappeared.
The military supervisor was in a dark mood and troubled. The military’s heavily
pushed magic construct armament [Cold Pudding] had suffered its first setback.
It would still sell fine on the market, but its current price was no longer
tenable, it had to be discounted.
Zi Di took advantage of this to release a new alchemy product, seizing upon her
opponent’s weakness to go for the Warm Snow Cup’s championship position.
When the Ice Sculpture King saw this battle report, he sighed incessantly, “The
Lei Yun Clan has always been on friendly terms with my country, what is Xun
Liang’s relationship with them? Investigate it for me.”
The Royal Grand Family Magician invited Lei Kuang and Xun Liang to a banquet
that evening. Lei Kuang gladly attended while Xun Liang tactfully declined.
The ocean.
Qi Ci Lang drained a cup of fine liquor down.
The Thirteenth Prince gazed at some information, his expression gloomy, “
[Emancipator] has come up short somewhat, he actually allowed pirates to raid
the harbor and blow up the magician tower. I will return for this; Snow Bird
Harbor is my foundation.”
“If there is a mishap, my only foundation will also be lost.”
Qi Ci Lang’s brows creased, his mouth wafting with alcoholic fumes, “What is
the situation with the National Ceremony Grand Duel?”
The Thirteenth Prince’s hand passed over the intelligence report, “The military
came up with the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding], but the user was
defeated by a barbarian fighter.”
“However, you’re still in a bad situation.”
“Long Meng is publicly known as the number one gold level duelist, while Long
Fu’s renown grows with each passing day. Now the barbarian fighter has emerged
as a new force to be reckoned with, you should have listened to me earlier,
instead of dilly dallying on the sea, you should have hurried to join the duels
instead.”
Qi Ci Lang coldly snorted, giving a disdainful look of annoyance, “Even if I
rushed over to join, my reputation is far below Long Meng. I am the type of
person in that I either don’t do something, or I do it big!”
Qi Ci Lang gazed at the information in his hands, then suddenly his eyes
paused, “Da Han is near Munitions Harbor?
The Thirteenth Prince nodded, “The Icebound Pirates have always been moving
near Munitions Harbor’s coastline. To prevent him from attacking this major
city, both the navy and army have deployed many people to garrison it.”
When he said that, the Thirteenth Prince then replied, “What do you want to
do?”
The corner of Qi Ci Lang’s mouth twitched, then pulled into an insolent and
unbridled smile, “Before, Feng Lian calmly withdrew his Divine Wind Pirates
after his battle with Da Han. I also want to have a try at how a saint level
opponent feels, hahaha.”
The Thirteenth Prince’s expression changed, “Don’t take too many risks.”
“Hahaha, why are we on the sea if not for adventure?” Qi Ci Lang continued to
laugh. 
The Thirteenth Prince was only an ordinary person, and couldn’t control Qi Ci
Lang, and for the moment, his face was as red as the bottom of a heated pan.
The Icebound Pirates.
On the flagship, Qian Xing was in the middle of playing chess with Da Han.
The two were playing Magic Battle Chess, Big and Small Fish. A water jar
created a three-dimensional chessboard where the chess players controlled one
or perhaps many chess pieces to eat and consume, thereby triggering the
transformation of these chess pieces. Constantly accumulating the advantage and
then finally turning that into a victory.
The chess piece transformation rules were in accordance with reality and
contained the secrets of the bloodline archive.
Qian Xing controlled a deep sea dragon crocodile, certain in his absolute
superiority, while Da Han was controlling an electric eel that was being
pursued and feeling in disarray.
Even though there were bloodline resources constantly being produced on the
chessboard, the electric eel never had a chance to eat them and change their
bloodline.
As soon as the overall trend was determined, Qian Xing fixed his attention on
the “Da Han” sitting opponent to him.
Qian Xing already guessed, “This isn’t your main body is it, Da Han?”
Da Han raised his eyes and smiled, “Why did you surmise that?”
Qian Xing replied, “Although your aura has no flaws, and when you play chess,
you show the same intelligence as your main body, and even when we are
conversing, you don’t divulge the inside story either, however after so many
games of Magic Battle Chess, Big and Small Fish, you never used the Time God’s
divine predictions, your disposition towards that is inconsistent.”
Da Han’s nature was tyrannical and had a strong desire for control. Although
Qian Xing was a loner, his mind was meticulous and was a wise character.
Da Han was silent for a moment, then nodded, “You made a good observation,
that’s right, my main body has already infiltrated into the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom’s interior.”
“While the me here is essentially a clone created from using the divine spell
[Past Me].
Qian Xing laughed, “Therefore, after winning that naval battle, you commanded
the Icebound Pirates to move across the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s coastline. Your
most recent posture to attack Munitions Harbor is just to attract attention, so
your main body has an opportunity to infiltrate the Ice Sculpture Capital.”
Da Han nodded, “Correct, please keep this a secret.”
“Of course.” Qian Xing said that as he controlled his chess piece to devour Da
Han’s electric eel, completely confirming his victory.
At that moment, the first mate knocked on the door and handed over urgent
military intelligence.
“Qi Ci Lang actually decided to write me a war challenge…how interesting.” Da
Han’s clone looked at the information, showing a smile of indescribable
meaning, then he gave the order, “Welcome him.”
A short time later.
Qi Ci Lang flew here and now soared up.
Da Han slowly rose in the sky and came into contact with this reckless gold
level.
“Da Han, let me see your fineness!”
“Since you’ve decided to court death, then I will help you say hello to them.”
The two were not on the same wavelength and directly came to blows.
Da Han hovered motionlessly; by merely releasing his saint domain, he weakened
Qi Ci Lang’s offensive by 80% and stabilized his invincible position.
Qi Ci Lang’s flying skill was extraordinary, and as he flew all over the place
like a sparrow hawk, coordinated all kinds of offensive battle skills with it
that were filled with an invasive nature.
Unlike Feng Lian, he was extremely daring, and when faced with a saint level,
he chose to fight in close combat!
After ten rounds, Da Han reached out his hand and set forth an icicle.
The saint level icicle was aimed at Qi Ci Lang’s heart.
Qi Ci Lang unexpectedly didn’t avoid it; he would rather die to let the charged
up offensive battle skill in his hand smear across Da Han’s face.
Da Han slightly recoiled, looking a bit disheveled, while Qi Ci Lang’s heart
was impaled, and he died violently.
The spectating pirates were astonished when suddenly, Qi Ci Lang’s corpse
emitted a divine beam of light.
In the divine power beam, Qi Ci Lang slowly floated into the air, stood
vertically, then suddenly opened his eyes.
“Hahaha, come again!” Qi Ci Lang was resurrected on the spot and was restored
to his peak at the beginning of the battle. He then attacked Da Han again.
After another ten rounds, Da Han used a divine spell to cut Qi Ci Lang in
twain.
Qi Ci Lang died again.
This time, Da Han didn’t stop moving, he then used a racial magic to freeze the
two halves of Qi Ci Lang’s corpse.
But a moment later, divine light rose and linked the two parts together. The
two halves also vanished in the divine light, and a moment later, an intact Qi
Ci Lang appeared in the divine light.
He resurrected again!
Da Han’s expression changed, and he began to fight with all of his strength.
This time, Qi Ci Lang died even faster, lasting only seven rounds.
When the divine light beam appeared again, Da Han decided to attack it.
Saint level racial magic and divine spells were used in succession, neither
were able to shake the divine power beam in the slightest.
After Qi Ci Lang was resurrected, he became even more arrogant, “No use, I am
blessed by seven gods! Although you are a saint level, the gap between you and
the gods is larger than the one between heaven and earth! Hahahaha.”
“Troublesome.” Qian Xing secretly watched this, his brows knitting.
Faced with an unkillable enemy, and one that resurrected back to peak
condition, even a saint level would feel peeved.
“Most crucially is that this isn’t Da Han’s main body, but his divine spell
clone.”
“To keep the clone together, it needs to deplete its energy source, and if too
much is expended, perhaps it will reach its limit and crumble.”
Qian Xing’s worry was precisely Da Han’s clone’s worry.
After killing Qi Ci Lang for the fourth time, Da Han’s clone couldn’t kill him
again.
He used an ice chunk to freeze the resurrected Qi Ci Lang to restrict the
latter’s movement.
“Away!” Da Han’s clone returned to the flagship, then decisively ordered the
retreat, quickly taking his subordinates away from the battlefield.
Qian Xing’s eyelids bounced a little; the outcome of this was not what he
expected, and it also made him dumbfounded.
Qi Ci Lang was undoubtedly a very special gold level, and he unexpectedly
relied on attrition to force Da Han’s clone into retreat.
Of course, there was a crucial reason why. Da Han’s clone was worried that if
he used too much energy, a flaw in his aura would be created, allowing others
to make out he was a clone, influencing the overall situation for his main
body. Therefore, to guard against the unexpected, he chose an armistice.
But regardless of how, the result was that Qi Ci Lang used four lives to force
Da Han to retreat!
As soon as this information was disseminated, it shook the entire Ice Sculpture
Kingdom!!
Although he didn’t defeat the saint level, a gold level able to challenge the
level above to this degree was already exceedingly rare.
Qi Ci Lang had established his authority with this battle and shook the whole
nation!



****** Chapter 748: Qi Ci Lang vs Bao Li Gen ******
Public sentiment was boiling over!
Qi Ci Lang’s military achievement of forcing Da Han into retreat was too
astonishing, to the extent that before he arrived on Ice Sculpture Island, he
already became among the most famous figures in the National Ceremony Grand
Duel.
The most discussed person was no longer Bao Li Gen or Xun Liang, but rather Qi
Ci Lang.
As for the dragonman youngster, for the moment, he was forgotten in some corner
by the masses.
The thing the people were mainly investigating was “just how powerful was Qi Ci
Lang?”
In the wake of this thorough investigation, the masses began to compare Qi Ci
Lang to Long Meng and Feng Lian.
Currently, these are the three apex gold levels.  
“Although Feng Lian and Da Han have fought, the former decided to flee. While
when Qi Ci Lang and Da Han fought, it was Da Han, the saint level, who
retreated, that means Qi Ci Lang is definitely stronger than Feng Lian!”
“In that case, who is stronger between Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng?”
The final topic was focused on Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng.
At this time, one could see how solid Long Meng’s prestige was.
Even if Long Meng hadn’t fought a saint level, he still had devoted supporters.
This group of people’s impression of Long Meng’s power was nearly unshakeable. 
“I support Long Meng!”
“Long Meng belongs to my country, he has experienced countless duels, and all
of them were done skillfully and easily, I’ve never seen him struggle in
battle.”
“I believe that not even Qi Ci Lang can defeat Long Meng.”
Then, the impassioned sides somehow came to a consensus, “In short, this year’s
National Ceremony Grand Duel Champion will not be Long Meng, but Qi Ci Lang!”
The Ice Sculpture King’s attention was also focused on Qi Ci Lang.
Bao Li Gen’s loss as well as Qi Ci Lang’s astonishing record formed a double
blow against the royal family’s plans.
After pondering thoroughly, the Ice Sculpture King gave the military an order.
He wanted to protect Long Meng and do his utmost to probe Qi Ci Lang’s trump
cards. Due to Bao Li Gen’s flawed nature and [Cold Pudding] not being strong
enough to compete for the championship meant he might as well change the plan,
and have Bao Li Gen lay the groundwork for Long Meng!
…
After Bao Li Gen was defeated, he was healed by divine spells.
The military supervisor found him, “Although the divine spells have healed you,
your weakness will persist for seven days. During that time, you better
recuperate well.”
Bao Li Gen nodded, “Wait until I fully recover, I will challenge Long Fu!”
“After I defeat Long Fu, I will come for that barbarian fighter again.”
To Bao Li Gen, the dragonman youngster was his most hated enemy.
But the military supervisor shook his head, “No, I have come here to personally
inform you that the king, His Majesty, personally ordered that you are to
challenge Qi Ci Lang!” 
Bao Li Gen was startled, “What?!”
…
“Qi Ci Lang is so strong!” The dragonman youngster sighed.
He had never fought a saint level himself. His strongest form was the fishman
form with triple gold level cultivation empowered by a god level bloodline. The
young man had never fought a tough battle with that form.
Zi Di replied, “Lord Commander, if you use the [Mermaid Fairy Tale], even if Qi
Ci Lang can constantly resurrect, what’s the use?”
“In my opinion, Da Han was only worried about being snagged up or about Qi Ci
Lang’s background, he simply didn’t want to have a true fight.”
The young lady naturally supported her sweetheart.
Cang Xu agreed, “I feel Da Han has another goal. Since winning the naval
battle, he has disbanded his pirate alliance and commanded his Icebound Pirates
to refrain from truly assaulting any coastal city.”
The dragonman youngster’s voice sank, “I am using my dragonman form in the
National Ceremony Grand Duel. Did you buy the red dragon skeleton yet?”
Zi Di nodded, “Soon. The deal is already done; we are waiting for the royal
family to deliver it.”
To facilitate this transaction, Zi Di had personally negotiated three times,
and paid a high price.
But for those who had opened the Wisteria Cache, this price was completely
within their means.
“I hope this complete red dragon skeleton can grow my bloodline considerably!”
The dragonman youngster expressed his expectations.
…
The Thirteenth Prince’s and Qi Ci Lang’s arrival on the island triggered a
national sensation.
The Thirteenth Prince’s prestige amongst the Ice Sculpture citizens was very
high.
Qi Ci Lang’s first duel was situated in the capital’s largest dueling arena.
As the duel began, spectators packed the corridors, a vast crowd indeed. The
dueling arena paid a hefty fee to hire the Alchemy Guild to use folding space
technology to increase seating by several hundred temporarily, but it was
impossible for them to meet the upper crust’s demand for seating.
Qi Ci Lang’s opponent was an old snow elf magician. He wasn’t a fan of dueling,
but he had been secretly ordered to probe Qi Ci Lang’s foundation for the sake
of Bao Li Gen.
Qi Ci Lang displayed incomparably formidable strength!
After the fight began, he successfully closed in on the magician within three
rounds.
On the fifth round, Qi Ci Lang cleaved a shield to pieces, then tore off the
magician’s shoulder.
The magician was heavily wounded, however, his tenacious fighting spirit
allowed him to last another two rounds at the risk of his life, before
fainting.
“Stop!!” The dueling arena staff promptly activated a magic formation to stop
Qi Ci Lang from delivering the mortal blow.
“Humph, really spoiling things.” Qi Ci Lang was displeased, his expression
ruthless.
This led to many veiled criticisms in the audience, believing that Qi Ci Lang
didn’t have the demeanor of an expert. His wanting to murder the loser made him
far different than Long Meng.
However, when many more saw how powerful Qi Ci Lang was, they supported him
even more.
After all, this was the world of the strong.
…
The dragonman youngster successfully invited Qing Hong Yan to fight.
Qing Hong Yan once attacked the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ caravan, and he
maintained that the dragonman youngster murdered his close friend Teng Dong
Lang. The dragonman youngster firmly believed he was his enemy too.
Neither stayed their hand.
Thus, Qing Hong Yan almost died in the dueling arena.
He sank into a frenzy and lost his reason. The dragonman youngster ultimately
still pulled his attack and didn’t take away his life.
If he was the young man of days past, he would have preferred vengeance. But
now, he has put more consideration towards the big picture and profits.
His ruthless beating of Qing Hong Yan was certain to give the latter an
extremely profound impression. Sparing Qing Hong Yan’s life could deepen the
other duelists’ good opinion of Long Fu – if Long Fu could tolerate and wish to
coexist with even Qing Hong Yan, then he and us can harmoniously coexist too.
That night after defeating Qing Hong Yan, the dragonman youngster used the
Bloodcore to absorb the red dragon skeleton.
The skeleton was preserved in fairly good condition.
Several hundred years ago, during a time of prosperity for the Ice Sculpture
Kingdom, when they had legend level battle strength and brilliant military
accomplishments, during some ceremony, they received a gift from a friend.
This was this red dragon skeleton.
The red dragon skeleton was meticulously made, with similar specimens being
hunted to create it and adequately display the military achievement of it.
It was also because it was categorized as a gift that the Ice Sculpture Kingdom
did not disassemble it and treat it as alchemy materials.
However, when the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was in a weak state as a nation, this
important gift was hidden in the depths of the state treasury, not easily
exposed.
Because the kingdom needed to give sufficient consideration to the dragon
race’s opinions.
One could understand if they swapped places.
If the kingdom put the red dragon skeleton on display, it would be like a
goblin turning a human fighter into a military trophy and then putting it on
display. How would human powers feel about that?
When the Ice Sculpture Kingdom had legend level battle strength, they were
confident they could take it. But the current king was only a saint level, and
the nation wasn’t as rich and powerful. That combined with Zi Di’s high
starting price, rather than having the dragon skeleton gather mold in the
treasury, they might as well sell it.  
After absorbing the red dragon skeleton, the dragonman youngster’s Flame Dragon
King bloodline concentration massively increased, and his limit was finally
increased to the saint level, at long last, he was worthy of having “saint
level qualifications”.
After getting this big boost in concentration, the dragonman youngster gained a
new racial magic.
The old racial magics massively grew in practical effectiveness.
With this massive improvement, the dragonman youngster instantly became
confident that even without [Cold Pudding]. He could still defeat Bao Li Gen.
But in then end, he would keep waiting, for Bao Li Gen never publicly
challenged him.
The dragonman youngster, Cang Xu, and Zi Di discussed this. They felt that this
should be the military’s or royal family’s plan.
Thus, the dragonman youngster danced to his own beat and invited Yi Jiu to
battle.
Yi Jiu disguised himself as Hua Tang and failed to steal the necklace. After
giving up on that, he fully focused on preparing for the duel.
But his ample preparations couldn’t compare to the massively boosted dragonman
youngster.
He eventually lost.
The dragonman youngster also felt tired.
Yi Jiu was really good at running around, and he was faster than him. This
resulted in the dragonman youngster chasing him around for a large portion of
the duel.
After the battle with Yi Jiu ended, the dragonman youngster had swept away all
of the duelists outside of the military faction.
Except for Long Meng.
The military faction only had Mei Lin, Gu Dong, and Bao Li Gen.
Mei Lin couldn’t be challenged. She was occupied with military affairs and
wasn’t participating in the National Ceremony Grand Due this year.
That left Bao Li Gen and Gu Dong.
The dragonman youngster chose Bao Li Gen first.
This time, he decided to contact him privately.
The response he got back was that Bao Li Gen was occupied with a heavy
responsibility, and although he really wanted to come to blows with Long Fu, he
had to do his best to obstruct Qi Ci Lang. 
Thus, the survivors immediately determined that this was a game between the Ice
Sculpture Kingdom and the Sheng Ming Empire. The chess pieces for this game
were Bao Li Gen and Qi Ci Lang.
The former was obviously not Qi Ci Lang’s match, but one had to still consider
Long Meng.
Cang Xu calculated offhandedly that the king’s plan was to use Bao Li Gen to
lay the groundwork for Long Meng!
Cang Xu ran through the duels Qi Ci Lang did so far in the capital, surmising
perhaps these duelists were arranged by the royal family to pave the way for
Bao Li Gen.
Therefore, when Bao Li Gen dueled Qi Ci Lang, the dragonman youngster was
personally watching it live.
Not just him, Long Meng had also shown up in a rare appearance.
The kingdom’s military did their utmost to alter Bao Li Gen’s [Cold Pudding],
giving him several methods that targeted Qi Ci Lang.
In the beginning and middle of the fight, Bao Li Gen held a few advantages.
But from then onwards, Qi Ci Lang grabbed hold of a weak point, turned the
situation around, and hereafter dominated the initiative and upper hand.
Finally, Bao Li Gen lost, his injuries were quite terrifying, especially the
cut around his waist, he was almost split into two.
As for the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding]. It was forcibly torn apart
by Qi Ci Lang during the battle!



****** Chapter 749: The Top Four ******
After the battle, the dragonman youngster asked how certain Long Meng was of
beating Qi Ci Lang.
Long Meng shook his head, “I didn’t gain much crucial information, I am unable
to precisely determine that.”
This was similar to how the dragonman youngster was judging how he’d fight
against Long Meng. Both sides had many trump cards still unrevealed, so it was
difficult to deduce anything.
Qi Ci Lang’s conventional battle strength was already enough to deal with Bao
Li Gen equipped with [Cold Pudding]. Unless the dragonman youngster personally
acted, no one could force him to resurrect.
But the dragonman youngster wouldn’t do that.
He took his own prestige into consideration.
The masses never believed that the dragonman youngster was Qi Ci Lang’s match.
After all, the battle strength the dragonman youngster displayed, although
constantly soaring, was still steps below the peak.
Days passed, and despite the troubled coasts, the Ice Sculpture citizens still
sank the entire country into a carousal.
They were rejoicing.
Every day was dueling day, and they immersed themselves in them and discussed
them enthusiastically.
The duels every day were marvelous, brilliant, and varied. Gold level duels
used to only happen every few months, now there were several every day.
Silver level duels no longer attracted the populace’s interest, in the late
stage of the National Ceremony Grand Duel, gold levels were the protagonists. 
The dragonman youngster ultimately chose Gu Dong as his next opponent.
A direct battle in the arena made the dragonman youngster comfortable. The duel
with Yi Jiu was more like a chase around the arena. 
Gu Dong’s movement speed was slower than the dragonman youngster, after all he
was from the army, and paid particular attention to coordination and wasn’t a
one man army. 
At the beginning, the dragonman youngster restrained himself and probed with
attacks, observing Gu Dong’s methods. During this phase, both sides gave and
took.
In the middle phase, the dragonman youngster went on a total offensive,
drowning his opponent in a flood of attacks.
In the late stage, Gu Dong simply was a skiff in a furious storm.
Finally, he fell into the abyss of irreversible loss.
The entire audience cheered for the dragonman youngster’s victory. In terms of
popularity, Gu Dong was not worth mentioning compared to the dragonman
youngster.
“Next will be Bao Li Gen.” The dragonman youngster’s plan to integrate with the
duelists was proceeding at a steady pace.
He was no longer the most popular duelist.
Qi Ci Lang snatched his limelight.
In the dueling arena, Qi Ci Lang dealt yet another heavy blow to his opponent,
firmly suppressing and beating them up.
Qi Ci Lang deliberately didn’t use methods that could achieve victory, instead
he toyed and terrorized his opponent.
“Hehehe…” His opponent’s painful struggle caused him to cheerfully giggle.
Like the intelligence reports said, Qi Ci Lang didn’t have the demeanor of an
expert.
This also caused many spectators to feel uncomfortable, and those who
originally supported Qi Ci Lang began to criticize him as a bully of the weak,
that in the end he was an outsider that didn’t understand their country’s
dueling spirit.
Qi Ci Lang continued his ways.
Besides him, Xun Liang was also continuing his ways.
After the former barbarian great fighter defeated Bao Li Gen, he was challenged
by other duelists.
He didn’t refuse them and accepted each one after the other.
During duels, he would pray to the Barbarian God and offer up the battle.
The Ice Sculpture citizens didn’t feel good watching him do this, after all,
anything involving faith was no trivial matter.
The Barbarian God was incompatible with the Ice Sculpture citizens’ mainstream
faiths, and Xun Liang’s constant victories, from another point of view, was
constantly reminding the snow elves of their humiliating history, when their
ancestors were driven away from the Frost Continent by the barbarians, forced
to migrate and wander before finally settling down here on Ice Sculpture
Island.
Xun Liang’s battle strength was immense, and after Bao Li Gen, he never used
[Mammoth Form] in battle again, but despite that, he still won every battle
with absolute dominance.
The dragonman youngster watched many of his fight recordings, and he felt he
was watching Long Meng’s duels.
Both were skilled, calm, and unperturbed. This indicated that even against gold
levels, they weren’t being forced to fight with their full strength.
As the National Ceremony Grand Duel gradually entered the late stage, many
duelists were eliminated.
Although many people were healed and could still fight, because they had too
many defeats and too few victories, they knew what would happen and decided to
withdraw from the stage.
Those unsure or harboring excessive hopes would be constantly taught a bitter
lesson in the battles that followed and would be forced to stop dueling.
The day the dragonman youngster dueled Bao Li Gen, Long Meng entered the stage
and carried out his first grand duel of this year’s National Ceremony. 
People crowded together for this magnificent and unprecedented event.
The Ice Sculpture citizens supported him above all other duelists.
Many of the dragonman youngster’s supporters abandoned his duel with Bao Li Gen
to instead admire Long Meng’s dashing figure in battle.
Long Meng’s longstanding prestige in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom finally showed
its might.
“Long Fu, do you know how long I’ve waited for this battle?!” Bao Li Gen
roared.
He was very excited, finally his wish would be fulfilled in this battle.
Previously, too many matters had caused this formidable military general to
feel exhausted in body and mind.
But now, his exhaustion was cleaned away, replaced by the pressing urge for
vengeance.
Bao Li Gen’s battle intent was quite exuberant.
The dragonman youngster was expressionless as he fought.
Both sides went all out for a while and were equally matched.
The audience was amazed continuously.
The dragonman youngster was constantly growing, and after he absorbed many
dragon corpses, his bloodline concentration underwent a qualitative change,
boosting all of his attributes.
To the extent that he didn’t use his newly finished [Warrior Form] to fight
against Bao Li Gen equipped with [Cold Pudding], the latter didn’t know his
place.
Bao Li Gen was grave, and he secretly clenched his teeth, “Damn it, he was
actually hiding so much power!”
“But I have an external energy core, I can wear him down.”
Bao Li Gen decisively changed tactics, wanting to use attrition to defeat the
dragonman youngster.
The dragonman youngster was still mainly using basic martial arts or dragon
martial skills, seldomly using battle skills, that inevitably caused him to
concede ground.
No one could tell the dragonman youngster was deliberately restraining his
battle strength.
Opponents were difficult to find.
The dragonman youngster drew from Bao Li Gen’s external pressure to constantly
polish his martial skills.
Long Meng was not considered a great teacher, but he held nothing back in his
instruction. The dragonman youngster’s gifts really were astonishing, and he
studied Long Meng’s martial skills and insights. With the help of this duel,
his previous diligent cultivation and training was tested in real combat one by
one. Through direct experience that he made his own, he could solidify his
foundation even more.
As Bao Li Gen fought the dragonman youngster, he felt like the latter was an
ocean reef, no matter how wild and ferocious his offensive was, the reef
remained as high, mighty, and motionless as it ever was. It did not fall, and
furthermore, through the sea wave’s slaps, it became steadier and more
tenacious.
Bao Li Gen’s attacks became more agitated.
“I am definitely using [Cold Pudding] at its full power; I am obviously using
all of my skills. Why can’t I defeat Long Fu?!”
“Damn it, god damn it!!”
Bao Li Gen was an experienced duelist, and after he realized his defeat was
ordained, he firmly clenched his teeth and threw himself at the dragonman
youngster.
As he got closer, he flagrantly detonated the energy module, using it to
produce a terrifying explosion.
The explosion’s bright fire battered the protective barrier, scaring countless
spectators into fleeing the venue.
After the explosion waned, more than a meter of the entire arena floor
vanished, leaving it in complete disorder.
Only Bao Li Gen’s head and half a palm remained after the suicide bombing,
falling onto the edge of the arena.
While the dragonman youngster still stood as tall as before.
When Bao Li Gen charged at him, he felt something amiss.
At that crucial moment, the dragonman youngster activated his new racial magic
[Divine Dragon Armor]. His many defensive items also displayed their function
at that pivotal moment too.
“You got anxious.” The dragonman youngster coughed, then picked up Bao Li Gen’s
head, “It’s true that the energy core explosion was very formidable, but
without direction, it was unable to kill or injure me.”
Bao Li Gen was at the point of death, he weakly shouted, but because he had no
vocal cords, no sound came out.
According to the unspoken rules, because of Bao Li Gen’s killing intent, the
dragonman youngster was allowed to crush his head with his claw.
But the dragonman youngster didn’t just do that, on the contrary, he tore a
healing scroll to give Bao Li Gen a chance to live.
Finally, he returned Bao Li Gen’s head to the military supervisor.
In light of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s strength, healing Bao Li Gen to how he
was before was no problem. But due to how severe his injuries were, he
definitely had to withdraw and could no longer participate in the National
Ceremony Grand Duel.
This action caused the dragonman youngster’s popularity to soar once again.
And his defeat of Bao Li Gen also renewed the masses’ perception of him.
After this day ended, the populace talked with each other.
“I haven’t seen Lord Long Meng fight for such a long time. Seeing him today,
he’s just as powerful as he always was.”
“Long Fu actually won too!”
“I saw through a magic image, Long Fu’s victory was very beautiful. As it turns
out, his battle strength has already grown by so much.”
“He didn’t kill Bao Li Gen, he accepted Long Meng’s tutelage, and he has the
grace of an expert!”
“Yes, I hated him before, after all he is an outsider. But now it seems that of
the many outsiders, Long Fu is the one I dislike the least.”
The National Ceremony Grand Duel entered its final phase.
Only four truly active duelists remained.
They had the grandest prestige in separate ways. The unshakeable Long Meng, the
one who forced Da Han into retreat Qi Ci Lang, the dark horse Barbarian God
believer Xun Liang, and the one who pushed himself hardest into the limelight,
the lightning speed grower, the red scaled dragonman Long Fu.
Whether ordinary or cultivator, all accepted that one of these four was the
most likely to become the champion!
Of course, the populace were using all kinds of public gambling pots to wager
on the possibility and hopes of which of these four would win the championship.
Long Meng and Qi Ci Lang were close to each other, the dragon and tiger vying
against each other. Xun Liang followed close behind; he could not be looked
down upon. Finally Long Fu was last, due to his die-hard supporters.
The populace was not in the know, and to them, it seemed Long Fu was a newly
promoted gold level that was able to fight to this degree because he was mainly
relying on his saint level aptitude bloodline and Long Meng’s masterful
instruction. Long Fu being in the top four already exceeded expectations, not
an easy feat in itself.



****** Chapter 750: The Chink in the Two Countries’ Game ******
“This year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel is truly wonderful, the most
wonderful one for the last several hundred years.”
“Who would have thought the military’s magic construct [Cold Pudding] would
also be eliminated. In former years, even if Bao Li Gen wasn’t the champion,
he’d absolutely be a lock in for runner up.”
“What an intense competition, there are so many experts dueling!”
“Regretfully, the top four doesn’t have a single snow elf. There are three
outsiders, and the only citizen left is Long Meng.”
“Long Meng must win the championship! If an outsider wins the National Ceremony
Grand Duel, we will really lose face.”
“Now the problem is that Qi Ci Lang is really strong, extraordinarily strong.
None of us have ever seen his resurrection with our own eyes. If someone could
force out his trump cards and get more intel on him, Lord Long Meng’s chances
of winning would be higher.”
“Long Fu can! Have Long Fu challenge Qi Ci Lang first to lay the groundwork for
Lord Long Meng.”
“Yes, it is time for Long Fu to repay Lord Long Meng’s kindness for teaching
him!”
Public opinion gradually came to the common viewpoint that “Long Fu should lay
the groundwork for Long Meng”.
It wasn’t just the populace expecting this, the Ice Sculpture Royal Family also
gave veiled hints about this to the survivors through the Alchemy Guild.
Now that Bao Li Gen couldn’t be counted on, from the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s
point of view, Long Meng was their only hope, and they had to do everything to
safeguard him.
The National Ceremony Grand Duel was very important, and it contained profound
political implications that radiated outwards to severely affect the military
and economy.
To say nothing of the Dueling Godhead in Tranquil Hill!
However, the dragonman youngster wouldn’t do that.
Because his main objective was the Dueling Godhead. If he was defeated, his
renown would tumble, he would be set as a weak person in the memory of
everyone, and that would negatively affect him enormously.
Of the top four, the dragonman youngster was the “weakest”, he had to be very
careful and prudent, no carelessness was allowed.
After all, getting to this point wasn’t easy.
Fortunately, Cang Xu had predicted this situation, therefore, he acted ahead of
time and secretly contacted Lei Kuang, and then Xun Liang.
The dragonman youngster needed Xun Liang to challenge him, instead of him
challenging Xun Liang.
If the latter happened, it would gravely batter his image. It would cause the
masses, royal family, and others to think that the dragonman youngster was
kicking a benefactor in the teeth, unwilling to help Long Meng and confront the
powerful Qi Ci Lang, instead he chose the relatively weaker Xun Liang.
The difficulty of this operation lay with persuading Xun Liang to challenge the
dragonman youngster.
Giving Lei Kuang presents merely built a bridge of communication.
Lei Kuang also explicitly stated: he couldn’t control Xun Liang’s opinion. The
survivors had to negotiate everything with Xun Liang himself.
In the end, Xun Liang easily agreed.
The smoothness of this matter exceeded the expectations of Cang Xu and the
others.
Xun Liang also wished to inform him of his intent, “This is the road of
redemption my God bestowed onto me. My encounter with Lei Kuang, coming to Ice
Sculpture Island, and participating in these duels are all part of my master’s
plan. Your request is part of it too.”
“This is the Lord intending to have me fight Long Fu.”
“Therefore, I should thank you all.”
After learning of his answer, the survivors looked at each other silently for a
moment.
After resolving things with the most crucial person, the following operation
went without a hitch,
On the one hand, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps secretly agreed to the royal
family’s request and used the opportunity to buy many rare dragon materials
from the state treasury at a low price.
On the other hand, the dragonman youngster asked Long Meng to teach him how to
battle Qi Ci Lang.
Long Meng thanked the dragonman youngster for his choice and told him he didn’t
need to do that..
The dragonman youngster proceeded to deceive him: this is my gratitude that I
am indebted to you for your teachings, please accept it Long Meng.
Long Meng also sensed the formidable pressure from Qi Ci Lang, and after
muttering to himself for a moment, he nodded, “If it were me, I like it more
when a powerful enemy gives me a ‘pleasant surprise’.”
“Oh, how to cope with the heavy responsibility I shoulder.”
The dragonman youngster smiled and consoled, “Gathering information is also a
part of battle and strength.”
Long Meng finally nodded.
Deceiving Long Meng made the young man feel guilty.
But there was nothing else he could do.
“Long Meng, you’re right.”
“Your heavy responsibility is beyond your control. Isn’t it the same for me
too?”
“I don’t want to deceive you; I want to become a friend you can be honest with.
Unfortunately, I am a leader, and I too shoulder the expectations, futures, and
lives of others.”
“I need the Dueling Godhead!”
The young man didn’t forget about his sentiment towards Long Meng’s teachings,
but he could choose himself how to repay it, instead of sacrificing his and the
other survivors’ hopes of survival.
He wasn’t done after achieving this step.
Under Cang Xu’s suggestion, the dragonman youngster contacted Snow Bird Harbor
City Lord urgently to explain his current actions, he wanted to pave the road
for Long Meng and challenge Qi Ci Lang in advance. If possible, he hoped Snow
Bird Harbor City Lord could offer some powerful equipment.
This startled Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was somewhat anxious and promptly contacted the
Thirteenth Prince.
He was the imperial secret spy [Emancipator]. He had taken office as Snow Bird
Harbor City Lord to give the Thirteenth Prince a foundation in which the latter
could spread out from.
The Thirteenth Prince knew about this plan, and when he was sailing, had cursed
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord for his incompetence when he read the latter lost
the magician tower.
When the Thirteenth Prince learned Long Fu wanted to challenge Qi Ci Lang, he
also couldn’t sit still.
“Although Qi Ci Lang is strong, Long Meng has never revealed his depths. The
Ice Sculpture Kingdom relied on the latter, and arrangements began in the
earlier dueling tournaments. The outcome of Qi Ci Lang vs Long Meng is hard to
ascertain.”
The Thirteenth Prince also saw the magic image and knew that when Qi Ci Lang
and “Da Han” fought, the latter wasn’t using his full strength and instead
decided to retreat.
According to the Thirteenth Prince’s personal hypothesis: Da Han might be
worried about Qi Ci Lang’s and the Thirteenth Prince’s background. Da Han was
strong enough to offend the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, but he didn’t want to oppose
the Sheng Ming Empire.
“Even if Qi Ci Lang has an advantage, I will help him with everything I have to
increase his probability of victory.”
“This is what I should do!”
Coming to this realization, the Thirteenth Prince immediately acted and
mobilized his forces to begin to thwart the dragonman youngster’s plan.
Following his advisors’’ suggestions, the Thirteenth Prince similarly contacted
Lei Kuang and sent heavy gifts.
Seeing another group sending gifts, Lei Kuang was pleasantly surprised, not
expecting these gains.
After the Thirteenth Prince’s envoy saw Xun Liang, he explained his purpose in
coming.
Xun Liang nodded, and agreed on the spot, surprising the envoy.
Xun Liang also gave his thanks. 
Lei Kuang finally couldn’t help but suggest, “Lord Xun Liang, you agreed too
easily. That was a good chance to give demands. Even though you cannot step off
of the road of redemption or use equipment, medicine, scrolls, and so on will
be very useful to you during the duel.”
Xun Liang looked indifferent and silently gazed back at Lei Kuang.
Lei Kuang quickly retreated in defeat from Xun Liang’s pressuring stare.
Xun Liang entered the prayer room, and from inside, his voice disseminated his
prayer once again, “Grand Barbarian God, my Father, my Lord. I piously pray to
you and thank you for granting a second revelation. I have realized that the
road of redemption before me is the one I must follow…”
“Barbarian God…alas.” Lei Kuang stopped walking, then soon after he shook his
head, sighed, and quickly and quietly departed.
The Thirteenth Prince’s operation didn’t just contact Xun Liang.
In the wake of Xun Liang challenging the dragonman youngster, the Imperial
Secret Spy Agency utilized their influence to begin to incite public sentiment.
Public opinion began to rapidly shift.
“Long Fu should accept this battle invitation, otherwise he is scared of Xun
Liang!”
“I really hope to see Long Fu and Xun Liang fight; I support Long Fu.”
Big picture? Humph, what big picture! He’s only an outsider.
Wanting to rely on an outsider to probe Qi Ci Lang? Even if the ultimate
champion was domestic, what meaning did this victory have?
The crucial point depended on Long Meng’s structure! If he relied on aid and
didn’t battle by himself, even if he became champion in the future, I believe
it would be a questionable achievement.
Public opinion could be controlled.
Public sentiment was often rooted in emotion, constrained by perception and
information, and usually wasn’t partial to calm and impartial judgement.
Public sentiment continued to simmer.
Very quickly, it even affected the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ medicine
business.
A gigantic magic medicine order was given to Zi Di.
This was a veiled method of the Thirteenth Prince to lure the Dragon Lion
Mercenary Corps into agreeing to duel Xun Liang and not Qi Ci Lang.
If the dragonman youngster could challenge Long Meng, then the rewards would be
more astonishing!
The first to feel the force of the empire’s counterattack was the Ice Sculpture
Royal Family.
The Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps took the empire purchase order to the royal
family’s representative and recounted their difficulties.
“I didn’t expect the water to be so deep here!” Zi Di sighed, calmly stating
that they were considering retreating, not wanting to get involved with such
high level games.
“We only wanted to do some business.”
“Although I personally have some great ambitions, I know myself, this is not
something I can participate in.”
“Agreeing to challenge Qi Ci Lang proves I am indeed shortsighted and shows I
have no understanding of the times.”
“This alchemy blueprint is to make amends this time.”
Since no magic contract was signed, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had room to
maneuver.
The blueprint was of an alchemy component that formed a perfect adaptation with
the magic construct armament [Cold Pudding].
After the king found out about this, he sank into contemplation.
“Humph, Thirteenth Prince!”
The Ice Sculpture King was as gloomy as water, in his heart, the Thirteenth
Prince was his greatest enemy. The Sheng Ming Empire had pressured him for many
years, making it difficult for him to breathe.
His recruitment of outside help caused the empire to issue a powerful response.
The king turned it over in his mind, feeling that he shouldn’t expand the scope
of this fight.
Dragging this on was meaningless!
Ultimately, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom couldn’t compete with the Sheng Ming
Empire. The latter was too big, and the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was mainly just
one island, aptly labelled as a small nation.
“If Long Fu agrees to withdraw, it sends a signal we are exercising restraint.”
The Ice Sculpture King judged: according to the tacit understanding of noble
political games, the Thirteenth Prince will restrain himself accordingly.
“As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, we’ll handle them like this for the
time being.”
The king thought of the alchemy blueprint, and his eyes flashed.
“In so short a time, they were able to provide an adaptation alchemy component
to [Cold Pudding], that fully proves the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps’ arms
merchant backer’s strength!”
“It also laterally proves that the arms merchant has many more good things in
their hands,.”
The Ice Sculpture King was always interested in the Dragon Lion Mercenary
Corps’ arms merchant backer.
Because international arms dealers had factions they naturally oriented
themselves around, they were natural allies of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
When the Sheng Ming Empire’s invasion of the Wilderness Continent, they had a
massive equipment superiority. International arms dealers selling high end
munitions to the beastmen would undoubtedly hinder the Sheng Ming Empire.
Therefore, the Sheng Ming Empire exerted themselves to target these
international arms merchants.
From some point of view, the Ice Sculpture Kingdom was also an international
arms dealer!
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s exported alchemy products were not limited to
civilian goods but also included munitions. Compared to civilian goods,
munitions were where the profits were.
Therefore, in the Ice Sculpture King’s mind, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps
was considered to be in the same industry.
“Let them do business properly.” 
“Extending them more goodwill will make it easier to contact their backer in
the future.”
The dragonman youngster decided to shrink back this time, deepening the
impression that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps was “puny, harmless, and could
collaborate” to the high class.
After careful deliberations, the Ice Sculpture King finally agreed that the
dragonman youngster should back down.
After communicating with the royal family, the dragonman youngster sprinted to
meet Long Meng without stopping to rest.
Long Meng was aware of the turbulent undercurrents.
He was the most important chess piece on the board, and trapped within this
maelstrom, he had a deep perception of it all.
The dragonman youngster bowed deeply and presented a bundle of top quality
magic scrolls. He stated to Long Meng that although he desired to challenge Qi
Ci Lang, due to circumstances, as a leader, he was actually powerless and had
his hands tied.
Long Meng understood him entirely, and to allow the dragonman youngster to ease
his mind, he accepted the dragonman youngster’s gift.
“These magic scrolls are indeed useful to me, I accept them.”
Long Meng and the dragonman youngster had already become close friends.
When Long Meng accepted the gift, he did so without the slightest modesty. From
this point of view, it illustrates that Qi CI Lang really was putting Long Meng
under quite a lot of pressure.
Finally, Zi Di stepped up again and politely refused the empire’s purchase
order, and explicitly informed them that they wouldn’t be challenging Qi Ci
Lang.
Zi Di “made known her true feelings”: she was unwilling to interfere with high
end games, she just wanted to fulfill her duties, which was selling munitions
well.
After the Thirteenth Prince found out, he coldly snorted, thinking to himself
that he would tidy up this international arms merchant later in the future, but
for now, there was no harm in letting them go. There was no need to force a
neutral power into the clutches of the enemy.
In accordance with Cang Xu’s calculated strategy, the survivors cleverly played
off the conflicts in the two countries’ game, giving them a narrow space for
them to dance between the two superpowers.
The dragonman youngster and Zi Di once again experienced what an outstanding
politician Cang Xu was!
As the dragonman youngster stood in the dueling arena, facing the tranquil
faced Xun Liang, he knew full well that reaching where he was standing at this
very moment wasn’t easy.
Without War Merchant’s database displaying its worth, Zi Di’s outstanding
negotiation skills, and Cang Xu’s strategies, he would have been forced to lay
the groundwork for Long Meng.



****** Chapter 751: Semifinals ******
The Ice Sculpture Capital, a dueling arena.
The dragonman youngster and Xun Liang stood opposite to each other, calmly
waiting for the duel to begin.
Nevertheless, the audience was discussing others outside the arena as they
watched the two duelists.
“Do you know if the duel between Long Meng and Qi Ci Lang has begun yet?”
“A true pity, there was simply not enough time to buy tickets, so I have to
settle for the next best thing, seeing Long Fu against Xun Liang.”
“However, this duel is also certain to be wonderful.”
At this very moment, the dragonman youngster and Xun Liang were on the verge of
battle. Simultaneously, Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng were also set to duel this
very day.
It was the joint decision of the Thirteenth Prince and the Ice Sculpture King,
both sides were confident in their contestant, and also worried that if things
continued to drag on, unexpected happenings might emerge.
To prevent the other side from exploiting the dragonman youngster or Xun Liang
to interfere with their own contestant, and thereby establishing an advantage,
both sides mutually selected the same day to avoid external interference.
Everyone generally believed that although it was the semifinals right now, the
true championship fight was between Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng.
Far less attention was paid to the dragonman youngster and Xun Liang in
comparison to Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng.
Even so, the dueling arena was a full house right now.
The dueling master personally shouted: Let the duel begin!
The dragonman youngster instantly dashed to attack Xun Liang.
Xun Liang stood in place, calmly awaiting the attack.
Bang, bang, bang…
Punches and kicks launched form both in close quarters combat.
First was pure physical strength, then they began to utilize internal battle qi
to empower themselves.
“Impressive!” The dragonman youngster thought in admiration. Xun Liang felt
like a barbarian version of Long Meng, his basic combat skills were very
practiced and skilled, attaining a degree of mastery.
“But I’m not weak either!!” The dragonman youngster’s eyes flashed as he pumped
himself up.
Since he accepted Long Meng’s tutelage, his basic combat skills had advanced by
leaps and bounds with remarkable progress.
Bam!
A moment later, the dragonman youngster’s fist was parried, creating an opening
that allowed Xun Liang’s palm to strike his chest.
The dragonman youngster was tossed back, landing on the ground, but he was able
to twist his waist to stand right back up.
…
Meanwhile, in another dueling arena.
Qi Ci Lang cackled as he grabbed at Long Meng.
Long Meng was expressionless as he faintly sidestepped and avoided it. Then, he
seized the opportunity to retaliate, a claw striking Qi Ci Lang away.
Qi Ci Lang’s hand covered his chest, and after taking a few steps back,
suddenly raised his head, looking very malevolent.
A moment later, using a wild battle skill, he charged at Long Meng like the
raging tide.
…
The dragonman youngster coughed out muddy air; there was no anger, only the
increasing thrill of battle and eagerness to try.
“Come again!” He roared loudly, attacking with both claws as he strode forth to
charge at Xun Liang and attack with basic combat techniques.
Such an opponent was too rare!
How many people could match Long Meng’s mastery of basic combat techniques?
It had to be said that Xun Liang was truly worthy of being a former barbarian
great fighter!
The dragonman youngster had immense stamina and carried a large amount of magic
potions, so he wasn’t worried about depleting his stamina and battle qi.
To deal with Xun Liang he was fully equipped, even wearing the Grand Arena
Medal. Despite the sacred tool being only silver level, and its initial
amplification effects being minimal to the gold level dragonman youngster, but
as time went on, under the stares of tens of thousands, its effects will
constantly strengthen. Therefore, even if its transcendent level didn’t match,
it was still a very practical item.
This was also the source of the dragonman youngster’s confidence in a war of
attrition.
…
Battle skill – Ice Splinter Flying Palm.
Battle skill – Steel Finger.
Long Meng waved his palm, and gold level battle qi condensed into flying ice
splinters that emitted an intense chill.
Qi Ci Lang’s ten fingers opened up, each finger loaded with battle qi. The
battle qi compressed, forming a steel like sheen.
His fingers grabbed or jabbed, breaking almost all of the ice splinters one
after the other.
Battle skill – Fatal Throw.
Qi Ci Lang threw a knife at Long Meng. The throwing knife was extremely fast,
cutting through the air in a streak of light.
Long Meng evaded it on time. After the throwing knife brushed by him, it
circled around in the air a few times, then turned around and fired itself at
Long Meng’s back.
Long Meng seemed to have grown eyes on his back, and again he sidestepped to
avoid it.
Qi Ci Lang’s charging had already finished, and using his palms as a blade, he
continuously slashed the air, forming a blade type battle qi confluence
firepower network that filled the sky and covered Long Meng.
…
Compared to the firepower and all-out brawl between Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng,
the battle between the dragonman youngster and Xun Liang seemed much more
monotonous.
From the start until now, both had been fighting with basic combat techniques,
with the occasional battle skill suddenly appearing, those weren’t the focus.
Regardless of whether it was the dragonman youngster or Xun Liang, both wanted
to prove they were superior to the other at basic combat techniques.
Bang, bang, bang.
The dragonman youngster’s fists hit Xun Liang three times, causing the latter
to retreat three steps.
Xun Liang’s look changed slightly, he could sense the dragonman youngster’s
terrifying growth in actual combat. The Grand Arena Medal was beginning to
exert itself, driving up the dragonman youngster’s constitution and increasing
his overall attributes.
It then allowed the dragonman youngster to gradually go from a disadvantage, to
equal footing, and now was starting to pressure Xun Liang somewhat.
After ten rounds, Xun Liang was completely giving way.
The dragonman youngster’s battle strength was actually growing so much that Xun
Liang exposed his amazement.
Battle skill – Tooth Blade.
Force – Blood Wound!
Xun Liang too a deep breath, then suddenly shook his arms, both hands now
holding two long blades of condensed battle qi.
After being empowered by Blood Wound Force, the long blades were immediately
covered in a layer of bramble shaped blood light.
After using the battle skill, Xun Liang didn’t attack first, instead he stood
in place and calmly waited for the dragonman youngster’s response.
The dragonman youngster’s mind shook, clearing understanding that Xun Liang
admitted that in basic combat techniques, he had lost, so next he wanted to
fight with battle skills.
“Blood Wound Force…I heard that any wounds it creates won’t stop bleeding…” The
dragonman youngster’s claws tightened into fists, somewhat afraid of it, but
his battle intent was ignited even more, it was blazing.
The dragonman youngster and Xun Liang began to contest with battle skills.
Qi Ci Lang and Long Meng had been fighting like wildfires.
The audience watched on with endless excitement, cheering again and again.
Both were chasing or running away, their figures flying all over, other times
retreating or advancing. All kinds of battle skills were used in turn, rapidly
swapping between offense and defense, leading to no one being able to peel
their eyes away from this.
Battle skill – Void Step.
Qi Ci Lang suddenly stepped into the void, vanishing.
Saint level weapon – Hydra Venom Needle Fingerguard.
Qi Ci Lang’s ten fingers opened up, and of them, nine of them were covered by
sharp fingerguards that were almost overflowing with liquid poison.
Putt, putt, putt…
Qi Ci Lang’s fingertips jabbed at Long Meng.
Long Meng’s body was covered with heavy armor and dragon scales he was
intensely proud of, yet they were unable to block the saint level weapon.
Despite Long Meng jumping away at the right time, and Qi Ci Lang’s fingertip
poking only a centimeter into his flesh, the attack still poisoned Long Meng.
The toxin was very fierce, and he instantly turned green.
Qi Ci Lang burst into laughter, quite proud of himself.



****** Chapter 752: An Unpredictable Outcome ******
A gale assaulted the senses!
The dragonman youngster maintained the battle skill [Dragon Wings], and flew at
an incline, dodging the massive three meter long bladed teeth.
Battle qi condensed into [Dragon Pearl], firing out as he evaded.
Bang, bang, bang.
The series of explosions did not move Xun Liang, all of it was blocked by the
long slabs of ice floating around him.
Whoosh!
Xun Liang waved his long blades ever faster, forming afterimages in the air.
Faced with the powerful storm of blades, the dragonman youngster was forced to
rise higher into the air.
Xun Liang deeply breathed and also flew into the air.
Battle skill – Feather Flight!
Gold level battle qi adorned his body, forming a felt textured cloak.
A chase unfolded in the arena’s sky.
The dragonman youngster attacked while retreating, choosing to avoid the
enemy’s vanguard and used [Dragon Pearl] to delay and obstruct Xun Liang at
range.
Xun Liang attacked more loftily and unrestrained. All sorts of battle skills
flew from his fingers, and more often than not, before one battle skill was
finished, another one was being used.
An unbroken battle qi circulation gradually formed within and outside his body.
As he flew high in the air, the battle qi felt cloak lengthened, covering a
number of ice armor pieces and also the two three meter long blades in his
hands.
By doing this, the battle qi circulation gradually outlined the shape of
mammoth tusks.
Xun Liang’s battle intent skyrocketed, simply pushing it forward lightly,
allowing the embryonic form to completely be refined.
A moment later, Mammoth Form was recreated!
When the giant mammoth took shape, his speed soared, and he overtook the
dragonman youngster.
Boom!
Both sides ferociously clashed in the air.
Many spectators subconsciously stood up, and countless numbers of Long Fu’s
supporters were on edge as smoke and dust scattered about.
The dragonman youngster raised both arms to block the two mammoth tusks.
“You aren’t the only one with a form.”
The dragonman youngster slowly raised his head, his eyes aflame with battle
intent.
A battle qi circulation surrounded his body too, forming the tall and sturdy
shape of a warrior.
It was War General Form!
…
Long Meng was using the same thing, using a foot to trample Qi Ci Lang.
Qi Ci Lang’s complexion was ashen as he started at the War General Form, “So,
[Form] can also expel poison.”
Long Meng indifferently replied, “Although War General Form is an external
form, part of it is rooted internally. Through battle qi circulation, invading
toxins can be guided out of the body.”
“Impressive!” Qi CI Lang cackled, “Using [Form] is quite difficult. I didn’t
expect your usage of [Form] to develop to this level.”
“Hehehe, you are very strong, wait until I resurrect, I’ll balance the books
then!”
Long Meng stomped down, crushing Qi Ci Lang’s chest, killing him then and
there.
But a moment later, a vast beam of divine power forced Long Meng back, and Qi
Ci Lang had resurrected back to peak condition.
“Come again!” He arrogantly laughed, once again charging at Long Meng.
…
War General Form vs Mammoth Form!
The dragonman youngster gradually sank into a disadvantageous position.
“I’ve barely learned War General Form; I am not as skilled as Xun Liang!”
“But if I don’t use War General Form, I won’t be able to keep up with Xun
Liang’s attack tempo.”
Like Long Meng said, [Form] was a fusion of battle qi, battle skills, and
forces.
Mammoth Form’s two tusks were Xun Liang’s three meter long blades, a battle
skill, the mammoth’s long hair was the battle skill [Feather Flight]. The
mammoth’s ice armor was his Long Plate Ice Armor defensive battle skill.
These battle skills were all maintained and also could be freely discharged.
When discharged, the mammoth tusks could grow sharper or suddenly extend in
length. These active discharge type battle skills were released based on the
[Form].
This also meant that many battle skills couldn’t be used because they
conflicted with the [Form].
This was the drawback of [Form], but it paled in contrast to the advantages
provided.
The dragonman youngster’s maintained War General Form unleashed many battle
skills in almost a blink. This was because War General Form inherently
contained many of them.
The dragonman youngster could also switch forces to have different effects on
offense and defense of War General Form.
The problem was that Xun Liang knew many forces too.
When he was fighting with all he had, he easily suppressed the dragonman
youngster.
The dragonman youngster clearly sensed, “My constitution is stronger than his,
but my grasp of Form is inferior to his!”
“Xun Liang…you are worthy of being a former great barbarian fighter, as
expected, you are amazing.”
The dragonman youngster fully appreciated Xun Liang’s power, and he had no
choice but to retreat time and again, gradually growing weary from warding him
off, his situation growing increasingly dangerous.
He could only clench his teeth, tear magic scrolls, and use the power of his
equipment to give him an opportunity to breathe.
The audience in the arena sank into silence. All of them could see Xun Liang’s
advantage was massive, and that he was suppressing the dragonman youngster more
and more.
…
The divine power light beam slowly dissipated.
The fully restored Qi Ci Lang clapped, “Amazing, absolutely amazing. In so
short a time, you’ve killed me three times, you’ve proven yourself Long Meng.”
“But how long can you sustain the intensity of your attacks?”
Long Meng’s breathing was faintly unsettled, but he looked resolute, “Enough to
kill you seven more times.”
Qi Ci Lang’s expression changed precipitously, instantly becoming gloomy.
…
Magic scroll – Ring of Fire Ward.
Magic scroll – Flame Battle Clothes.
Magic Scroll – Slow.
Magic scroll – Thunder Strike…
The Gold Silk Chainmail, the Flowing Wave Armor, Reverse Sword Dragon Scale,
Grand Arena Medal, Bu Quan’s goggles, Shifting Striker, Dragon Pearl Bullets,
Dragon Strength Ring…
Dragon Breath medicine, Ferocious Beast medicine, Unyielding Blood medicine,
Dense Fog medicine, Iron Sheet medicine, Agrypnotic medicine, high level
Bloodlust medicine…
The dragonman youngster used all kinds of magic scrolls, equipment, and
medicine, flabbergasting those watching.
The mouths of many watching twitched and tongues clicked.
“Those scrolls and medicine are worth over a thousand gold?”
“Long Fu really wants to win; he doesn’t hesitate to pay such a price.”
“Hahaha, he’s even using his items so forthrightly!”
Xun Liang had been entrenched for a long time, constantly taking a beating.
Money was also part of strength, and so long as one was willing to spend it,
even a fighter could erupt with battle strength that exceeded their own.
This point was precisely what the dragonman youngster was illustrating.
…
“Number eight!” Long Meng’s fist pierced Qi CI Lang’s stomach, killing the
latter again.
A hole split open Qi Ci Lang’s stomach, and clear as day, his deathly pale face
fell to the ground.
But a moment later, a divine power light beam once again formed.
After the light beam faded, Qi Ci Lang looked at the panting and battle qi
exhausted Long Meng, exposing a victorious grin, “Did you believe that because
I am called Qi Ci Lang, that I can only resurrect seven times?”
Long Meng spat out, knowing he was going to lose.
His form really was devastating, but it depleted his battle qi immensely, and
without battle qi to sustain it, he couldn’t use it. His basic martial arts
were also great, but his stamina was exhausted too, and with his wounded body,
he couldn’t move precisely.
By contrast, every time Qi Ci Lang was resurrected, he was in peak condition!
“What to do?” Long Meng also sank into bewilderment.
…
Xun Liang’s [Mammoth Form] was getting smaller, his battle qi and stamina were
reaching their limits.
“It seems that the winner of this duel is Long Fu.”
“Hard to imagine that Xun Liang’s complete battle strength is so much stronger!
His hands are empty, only relying on battle qi, battle skills, forces, and form
to fight, yet it was enough to make Long Fu so battered and exhausted.”
Just as the audience believed the duel was about to end, suddenly [Mammoth
Form] was dispersed, and then Xun Liang rushed forth in an unprecedented way.
Battle skill – Blade Plow Glacier!
Like a smear of light that streaked across the horizon, the ice meteor ran
through heaven and earth.
The dragonman youngster only felt a blur, then Xun Liang was right in front of
him.
“Block!” The dragonman youngster couldn’t avoid it, his heart erupted with an
alarm that he had to block with all his strength.
Ring of Fire Ward was activated, but the sharp blade qi cleaved it apart.
His dragon scale-covered arms were pierced by the long blade.
The Flowing Wave Armor turned to liquid water, splashing all over, the Gold
Silk Chainmail lasted a second, then was penetrated.
Xun Liang’s full strength was in this strike.
At the same time, he was also risking his life with this strike!
Under alarm and fury, the dragonman youngster’s full defenses were stimulated,
simultaneously, his War General Form also burst out to take life away.
The frantic offensive bombarded Xun Liang’s body, lacerating his flesh, ripping
out blood and bone.
Three seconds later.
The dragonman youngster’s terrifying counterattack came to a spontaneous end.
He and Xun Liang stood opposite to each other; his chest and heart were pierced
by the long blade.
Countless spectators covered their mouths, so shocked not a sound came from
them.
Long Fu received a mortal wound!
By contrast, Xun Liang appeared emaciated, the dragonman youngster bombarded
the front of his body to nothing, his expression was a white skull, and his
sternum was the only bone left. The barbarian’s internal organs were exposed to
the air, still fiercely squirming.
Blood filled the ground, yet Xun Liang was still standing.
Tragedy!
The extreme tragic outcome of this all out clash stunned every viewer. 
Until ten seconds later, when everyone present suddenly burst into startled
shouts.
Zi Di was extremely worried, but she didn’t violate the rules by rushing into
the dueling arena.
Lei Kuang and the other barbarians sat in the friends and relatives seating for
Xun Liang; all of them stood up and looked on with incomparable respect. 
The atmosphere rippled with solemnness and regret.
The dragonman youngster was both astonished and puzzled by Xun Liang.
How did this duel get to this point?
Xun Liang’s skull face slightly moved as his mouth opened, gasping out his
thanks, “This is my path.”
“My redemption.”
“My Lord, my Father, Grand Paramount Barbarian God…”
A moment later, he plopped to his knees and fell in front of the dragonman
youngster.
His life aura was completely gone.
The long battle qi blade in the dragonman youngster’s chest vanished already.
The frightening wound that ran through him was rapidly closing up and healing.
The dragonman youngster was unconcerned about the mortal wound to his heart.
He used the Bloodcore to instantly make a new heart as a substitute.
As for his original heart, he only needed divine spell healing after leaving
the arena.
He deeply gazed at the fallen Xun Liang; this barbarian left an exceedingly
profound impression on him.
Soon after, he looked around, his eyes sweeping across countless spectators,
then raised his arm, “I am victorious!”
In the wake of his movement, everyone surged with wild laughs, enthusiastically
celebrating the victor.



****** Chapter 753: Fighting Over the Godhead ******
“Long Fu is victorious! How many could predict this outcome at the beginning of
the duel?”
“So scary, that barbarian Xu Liang was too dauntless and fierce!”
“What? I just heard some news; Lord Long Meng is about to be defeated! Qi Ci
Lang is at the cusp of victory.”
“Impossible?”
“That must be fake news!!”
The cheering crowd gradually grew clamorous.
“What is happening?” The dragonman youngster lowered his arm, when he saw the
audience reacting strangely, he realized something significant happened.
“Could it be that Long Meng…”
Rumble!
Just as the dragonman youngster exited the arena, the earth began to shake.
A few seconds later, the shaking grew more severe, reaching the level of an
earthquake!
“What is going on?”
“The earth is shaking; the capital is shaking!”
“Run away!!”
The crowd sank into chaos as they madly charged through the arena’s gate. Then,
in the gateway, people were quickly trampled in the congested crowd.
…
In another dueling arena.
Qi Ci Lang looked down on the fallen Long Meng, “You almost killed me again,
even without any battle qi, you were able to do that, not an easy task at all!”
“Hehehe, to reward your efforts, I will give you the gift of death, time to
send you off.”
Qi Ci Lang swung his palm down like a knife, ruthlessly chopping towards Long
Meng’s skull.
“Don’t!” The audience anxiously cried out.
Many people couldn’t bear to watch and closed their eyes.
The moment Long Meng was about to be beheaded, the earth suddenly shook, the
ground ruptured with gigantic cracks, and the entire dueling arena began to
collapse. Large amounts of ice sculpture guardians fell from the sky.
Qi Ci Lang was startled, and after taking a step back, he reacted. He was just
about to get on with killing Long Meng, when he noticed that Long Meng had
mysteriously vanished!
The Thirteenth Prince soon transmitted through an alchemy communication device,
“Qi Ci Lang don’t go after Long Meng. The pivotal moment has arrived, and the
reality is perhaps the worst one the empire had divined. The reason why you
accompanied me here is as a layer of insurance. Now, you need to carry out your
mission!”
…
The earth burst open.
The scraping sound of ice splitting and the cold air chilled the blood of those
who heard it.
Countless ice-cold auras gushed out from the crevices, rapidly decreasing the
temperature of the Ice Sculpture Capital.
Then, all kinds of aquatic ice magic beasts drilled their way out of the ground
and began to destroy all the facilities nearby on a massive scale, devastating
the entire Ice Sculpture Capital.
The capital’s residents fled in a frenzy, and the entire capital sank into
utter chaos. From time to time, tall buildings were split open and slowly
collapsed into the cracks, causing expansive casualties.
The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s defensive measure were activated, and the capital’s
street sculptures began to move. Large swaths of ice sculpture guardians fought
everywhere, culling the aquatic magic beasts.
In this upheaval, the dragonman youngster, with Zi Di and Cang Xu in tow,
quickly rushed into their temporary encampment in the capital.
“These aquatic magic beasts should be from the Ten Millennia Ice Lake.”
“That’s right, what happened to the Ice Sculpture Capital’s formation?”
“Let’s regroup with the rest of the mercenary corps first!” 
…
The Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s bottom.
Under the third layer of the millennium ice layer.
Teacher Si Ling carefully hid his trail, cautiously observing the vast light
formation around him.
It was a ginormous three-dimensional magic formation that encompassed the
entire Ten Millennia Ice Lake, it was the Millennium Dragon Ultra-formation.
A moment later, the Millennium Dragon Formation suddenly activated, rapidly
affecting its surroundings.
“Prior activations were at most at 38% power, why is it suddenly activating at
over 80% power?”
“Did something unforeseen happen? Something forced the royal family to activate
it at full power?”
Teacher Si Ling secretly guessed what.
He was extremely good at formations and could effortlessly mend Ocean Mother
Nest’s large blood sacrifice formation. He naturally understood that after an
ultra-formation such as this was built, parts of it were activated in constant
trials to inspect whether the formation was built correctly.
All the way until the entire formation was activated.
Suddenly activating over 80% of it was very risky.
If some part of the formation was built incorrectly, internal friction was
easily caused, and if by chance that internal conflict was big enough, it would
explode, then trigger a chain collapse that formed an avalanche even a legend
level expert would be powerless to stop.
It could be said that the royal family’s sudden activation of the formation was
a massive risk!
The Ice Sculpture Capital’s intense earthquake, ice floor shattering, and
spilling out of aquatic magic beasts was the consequences of activating the
formation.
In some unknown place, a problem appeared, and in short, the magic formation’s
power leaked and battered the surface.
…
“Long Meng, wake up!”
Long Meng slowly opened his eyes at the tough urging voice.
He looked at the man before him, then promptly kneeled to the ground,
deferentially saluting, “Your Majesty.”
The one who teleported and saved Long Meng’s life was the Ice Sculpture King.
The Ice Sculpture King nodded, “The Godhead is already complete, I need you to
pray, then enter the Dueling Divine Domain to provide spatial coordinates.”
Long Meng nodded, changed his kneeling posture, and then lowered his head in
prayer. 
Not long after, his internal divine power was expended, and he vanished,
arriving on the top of Tranquil Hill.
The Ice Sculpture King’s eyes shined, calling out, “The moment is here!”
He controlled the Millennium Dragon Formation, rigidly locking onto the
obtained spatial coordinates, then began to bombard with the formation’s full
power.
The magic formation buzzed, the Ice Sculpture Capital shook even stronger, and
even a corner of the king’s castle collapsed.
Many commonfolk were injured or died, but the Ice Sculpture King was
unshakeable, he didn’t care at all. He desired the Dueling Godhead, and so long
as he could obtain it, every sacrifice was worth it!
The Millennium Dragon Formation’s power was vast and mighty, and after forcibly
blowing up the Dueling Divine Domain’s spatial barriers, it created a bridge
between it and the world.
The Ice Sculpture King didn’t hesitate and quickly ran through the spatial
gate.
A moment later, he appeared on the outermost edge of the Dueling Divine Domain.
He was no duelist but an apostate, he couldn’t teleport to or near Tranquil
Hill.
However, this was within the Ice Sculpture King’s expectations.
He elucidated his orientation and immediately flew with all his strength
towards Tranquil Hill!
…
“Found it!”
“I found the spatial door; I have taken the specific spatial coordinate.”
The Dueling Divine Domain has finally been found!!”
In an alchemy laboratory under the ice lake, imperial secret spies almost
danced with excitement.
They had been on this secret mission for thirty long years. It was difficult to
hide it for so long, and at long last, they saw the fist light dawn that this
mission could be completed.
The Thirteenth Prince sneered, “Ice Sculpture King, you finally couldn’t help
yourself and did it.”
“Thank you for forcing open the spatial door, otherwise, how could we follow
the vine to the melon and lock onto the Dueling Divine Domain’s exact
location.”
“Next, if you may.” The Thirteenth Prince looked at two people.
The two people from the Secret Gate Church were calmly standing at the
Thirteenth Prince’s side.
The gold level bishop nodded and began to loudly pray.
“Grand Secret Gate God, God of Space, linker of myriad travelers.”
“The key to every domain is in Your hands, endless roads are unfolded by Your
directions.”
“Every door in this world can be opened and closed by Your formless key.”
“You are the traveler’s guidebook; You are the compassionate ship of
explorers.”
“Now, this believer beseeches You to use Your power to guide us into a tiger’s
cave, to traverse an unknown secluded path.”
“Please reveal a wonderful secret, construct a gate that will lead us through
the walls and arrive at our enemy’s stronghold.”
“For justice, for victory, we must stun our enemies, elate believers, and
inspire courage!”
God’s gaze was closely watching.
The bishop excitedly shuddered from head to toe.
God permitted it!
The bishop’s divine favor was violently expended to zero.
A mysterious door appeared from nothing, and it slowly opened, beholding the
Divine Dueling Domain behind it.
“This is a masterless divine domain; thus, its defenses are weak, what an
extremely rare golden opportunity!” The Thirteenth Prince sighed incessantly.
The saint level guardian walked in first, entering the Dueling Divine Domain
through the secret gate.
Qi Ci Lang followed close behind.
After that it was the imperial secret spies, they lined up and entered, there
were thirteen gold levels among them!
…
“Something fishy is happening in the divine domain, there are strong and
persisting spatial fluctuations!”
“What is actually going on?”
Honey Snow Tower was in chaos; Shuang Lian and Bu Quan were on the top floor,
doing their best to ascertain the origin.
“Someone forcibly blew up the spatial walls; the divine domain and the Main
Plane are connected.” Shuang Lian murmured.
Bu Quan shouted in shock, “You’re saying we can use the King’s Crowbar to open
more spatial holes. We can leave this place, teacher.”
Shuang Lian absent-mindedly grunted, she was about to reply when she suddenly
got a message.
“Magician Shuang Lian, as the Ice Sculpture King, I conscript you and your
magician tower. Please depart for Tranquil Hill and work to protect it!”
At that moment, the Ice Sculpture King was standing on the top of Tranquil
Hill.
“The preparations of past kings weren’t wasted.” The Ice Sculpture King sighed
with many emotions, “Finally, my time has come to profit from them.”
“Long Meng, Mei Lin, Gu Dong, and Bao Li Gen, you are in charge of Tranquil
Hill’s defense.”
Mei Lin and the three other duelists kneeled, giving their blessing, “My Lord,
Grand Dueling God, we respectfully welcome you to your divine throne!”
The Ice Sculpture King used an alchemy device, and a moment later, appeared
inside of Tranquil Hill’s interior.
It was an immense and dark space.
The space only had one light source in the middle, it emitted the rich and
diverse radiance of the dazzling rainbow, it was the Dueling Godhead.
Unlike the vision from the dragonman youngster’s divine oracle, the Dueling
Godhead was complete now!
The Ice Sculpture King took a deep breath, then excitedly charged at the
Godhead.
But halfway there, his face sank like water, his progress was becoming
difficult.
The radiance released by the Dueling Godhead shined upon the Ice Sculpture
King, turning him into a ball of rainbow light that vaguely looked humanoid.
The radiance’s intangible and immense pressure suppressed him, thwarting his
approach.
The Dueling Godhead loathed him and rejected him!
“Why? How can this be?!” The Ice Sculpture King was stupefied.



****** Chapter 754: The One Who Retreated 50 Steps Laughs at the One Who
Retreated 100 Steps ******
“Damn it, Honey Snow Tower was actually hidden here!!” When the imperial secret
spies advanced close to Tranquil Hill, the first thing they saw was Shuang
Lian’s magician tower.
“Follow me, charge!” The saint level shield guardian heavily ordered, taking
the lead as the vanguard.
Qi Ci Lang burst into laughter and followed close behind.
The imperial secret spies braced themselves, forming battle squads and charging
in an orderly manner.
The magician tower whistled, and magic erupted across the sky, instantly
dealing immense casualties to the imperial forces.
But it could do nothing to the saint level shield guardian.
As soon as the shield guardian drew near, Shuang Lian promptly had the magician
tower take flight.
“You lot keep going, I will put an end to it!” The shield guardian chose to pin
down Honey Snow Tower.
He had to do so.
A magician tower was too much of a threat, and if it was ignored, it would
endanger the others.
While Shuang Lian had her hands full, Qi Ci Lang led the others in a grandiose
charge towards Tranquil Hill.
They clashed with the duelists headed by Long Meng!
Qi Ci Lang insolently cackled, “Long Meng, as expected you were here. You are a
coward; you actually ran away! Hahaha.”
Long Meng and Qi Ci Lang crossed blades, the former retreating again and again
in defeat.
Due to the Ice Sculpture King’s haste, he hadn’t completely healed him, Long
Meng’s battle qi also hadn’t recovered fully either. 
By contrast, Qi Ci Lang had been restored to peak condition, as he had
committed suicide in the prior operation.
Long Meng was not Qi Ci Lang’s opponent, and although Mei Lin, Gu Dong, and Bao
Li Gen were very strong, the imperial secret spies had far more gold levels.
There were only four pairs of hands, while the perimeter was massive and
completely devoid of fortifications.
At that desperate juncture, reinforcements came.
“I’ve come to help you!”
“As have I.”
“I’m here too!!”
“These scoundrels are actually vainly attempting to storm the holy land
Tranquil Hill!”
He Gai Tou, Xue Tuan Zi, Qing Hong Yan, Yi Jiu, Mi Fang, Mo Gui Ji, Zhu Gan,
Yun Zhong, and the dragonman youngster teleported into the battle.
Each was a Dueling God holy warrior, and a gold level expert.
These reinforcements instantly changed the situation.
“Long Meng!” The dragonman youngster roared, forcing Qi Ci Lang back.
He finally reached Long Meng’s side.
Long Meng and he glanced at each other, then attacked Qi Ci Lang together!
Qi Ci Lang and the two dragonmen fought, the former quickly giving way and
being battered by martial arts.
Long Meng and the dragonman youngster worked together for the first time to
face an enemy, and unexpectedly, their mutual understanding was astonishing. On
the one hand, it was because the dragonman youngster’s martial arts
fundamentals had been tutored by Long Meng, and the two were familiar with each
other. On the other hand, both the dragonman youngster and Long Meng were
gifted fighters, and they quickly figured out the techniques and intricacies
between them both.
Qi Ci Lang was unable to defeat the two dragonmen and was quickly killed twice.
“Abominable!” Qi Ci Lang was no longer as arrogant, sensing now a hint of
dread.
At that moment, the Thirteenth Prince’s voice transmitted via a communication
device in his ear, “The spatial layer has been decoded, don’t resist, the
Secret Gate bishop is teleporting you in!”
Qi Ci Lang sneered at the two dragonmen, “Have fun with each other, I won’t be
keeping you company anymore.”
After saying that, space fluctuated, and he disappeared.
The dragonman youngster and Long Meng looked at each other, both looking
bewildered.
…
Da Han was engrossed in diving deeper.
He had been hiding near the capital, as his camouflage abilities were lacking.
He had no confidence that he could sneak into the capital undetected.
Now, after an earthquake shook the capital, aquatic magic beasts and ice
sculpture guardians were fighting everywhere. Da Han was ecstatic, instantly
grabbing hold of this golden opportunity once in a blue moon to easily enter
the capital.
He unrelentingly squeezed through a breach in the earth.
He dove deeper, going down from the surface ice layer to the century ice layer,
and then the millennium ice layer.
Still, he was dissatisfied, Da Han was going all the way to the ten millennium
ice layer.
“Millennium Divine Dragon corpse, I’m coming!”
It was the Ten Millennia Ice Lake’s most quintessential feature.
“Go no farther!!” An old voice transmitted into Da Han’s ears.
Soon after, the Royal Family Grand Magician’s figure slowly appeared in front
of Da Han.
“Da Han, go back now and I will pretend to not have seen you.” The Royal Family
Grand Magician clutched a long magic staff with a rigid presence.
Da Han laughed, looking disdainful and taunting, “I am a pirate, and when a
mountain of treasure is right under my nose, you try to convince me to
retreat?!”
Without any hesitation, Da Han charged onwards.
The two saint levels fought in the abyss of the ice lake.
Teacher Si Ling was hiding nearby, calmly watching this and constantly
analyzing to himself, “The Ice Sculpture King entered the Dueling Divine
Domain, the Royal Family Grand Magician is fighting Da Han, then the only saint
level is the White Dragon King. Oh, perhaps there is Qian Xing too.”
Teacher Si Ling’s constant scans found nothing.
His patience waned quickly.
Not long after, he decided to stop waiting.
He stuck towards the spatial door.
“No one is stopping me?” Teacher Si Ling deliberately stopped before stepping
into the spatial gate.
The moment he entered the Dueling Divine Domain, the Royal Family Grand
Magician suddenly detected it, flying into a rage, “Who?!”
“Running away?!” Da Han obstructed the Royal Family Grand Magician.
There was only one path in front of Da Han, defeat the Royal Family Grand
Magician, then leave with the spoils of war, the Millenium Divine Dragon
Corpse. He couldn’t let the latter take control of the Millenium Dragon Ultra-
formation!
…
“This is the interior of Tranquil Hill?” Qi Ci Lang teleported in.
“The Dueling Godhead!!!” He cried out in surprise, the first thing he saw was
the rainbow crystalline Godhead in the very middle.
The god level aura oppressed him, stirring endless greed and longing in him.
“Incredible! The Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s millennia long project actually had
such swift progress; they have already gathered together a complete Dueling
Godhead!”
Qi CI Lang was in awe, then he stepped forward and charged towards the Godhead.
As he rushed out of the darkness and slowly approached the Godhead, his body
was illuminated much more by the rainbow divine light.
The divine light constantly accumulated and covered his body. It resisted him,
but at the same time, a portion of it assimilated into him.
“Who?!” The trapped halfway Ice Sculpture King suddenly turned, rigidly locking
onto Qi Ci Lang in a split second.
At that moment, Qi Ci Lang’s body was also covered with dense divine light. The
divine light formed a spherical halo that dazzled the eyes and perfectly hid Qi
Ci Lang’s physique and appearance.
Qi Ci Lang’s footsteps slowly stopped as he detected the Ice Sculpture King at
the same time.
“You are…oh! Ice Sculpture King.” Qi Ci Lang yelled.
It wasn’t hard to surmise.
Qi Ci Lang learned the Ice Sculpture King had gone to Tranquil Hill. But when
they were charging the hilltop, he didn’t see the king, so who else could the
one person in Tranquil Hill be?
The Ice Sculpture King narrowed his eyes, a deep loathing arising in his heart,
“That tone…you are Qi Ci Lang?!”
“Hahaha, it’s me.” Qi Ci Lang arrogantly cackled, then he easily surpassed the
Ice Sculpture King’s record and got closer to the Dueling Godhead.
When the Ice Sculpture King saw this, his body and mind shook as he suffered an
unprecedented blow, “Hold on!”
“How can this be? How can you surpass me?”
“You are just a gold level!”
The Ice Sculpture King couldn’t help but rage.
When Qi Ci Lang saw his enemy freaking out, he cheerfully and honestly giggled,
“You want to acquire the Godhead, yet aren’t aware of this?”
“Saint levels comprehend laws, and have the foundation of divinity, of course
the Dueling Godhead rejected you.”
“By contrast a gold level, one who hasn’t stepped into the saint level, is like
a blank white paper. There is no fundamental repulsion, so naturally it is
easier to gain the Godhead’s favor.”
When the Ice Sculpture King heard that, his eyes couldn’t help but widen.
Qi Ci Lang became more arrogant, and as he watched the Ice Sculpture King being
humiliated, he wantonly scurried over and said sarcastically, “Heavens, you’re
already a saint level, yet you’re thinking of obtaining the Dueling Godhead? Go
back to your castle to cry and wail, you have no chance!”
The Ice Sculpture King angrily gnashed his teeth, doing his best to step
forward.
Impossible!
He couldn’t move even a millimeter forward, the incorporeal pressure ahead was
grander and vaster than the mountains or the sea.
“Don’t tell me this is how I lose?”
“Looking on helplessly as the empire takes away the Godhead?”
“Damn it, fuck! Why didn’t my ancestors leave behind such crucial information?
Why?!”
The Ice Sculpture King’s rage filled his chest, and his anger needed to be
vented.
But a moment later, things took a turn for the better.
Qi Ci Lang was also obstructed, and unable to get closer.
“Hahaha, you’ve reached your limit too.” The Ice Sculpture King jeered.
Now it was Qi Ci Lang’s turn to be silent, he began to twist his body,
struggling at all costs to advance.
But his circumstances were the same as the Ice Sculpture King, and for a moment
the scene was very awkward.
“This can’t be, I definitely received the command, if the Godhead was really
complete, I would be allowed to take the Dueling Godhead.”
“If I wasn’t qualified, the empire wouldn’t have implemented such a plan.”
Qi Ci Lang was bewildered, but didn’t forget to bite back at the Ice Sculpture
King, “What qualifications do you have to ridicule me? I am only 50 steps from
the Godhead, while you are over 100.”
The Ice Sculpture King coldly snorted, and after a moment of silence, he
clenched his teeth in firm resolution.
A moment later, he twisted his alchemy device and vanished, returning to the
top of Tranquil Hill.
The duelists were in the process of wantonly slaughtering the imperial secret
spies.
In the distant skies, the saint level shield guardian was entangled with Honey
Snow Tower. 
The Ice Sculpture King was in a terrible mood as he swept his eyes around,
landing on Long Meng.
Long Meng promptly saluted, “Your Majesty!”
The Ice Sculpture King gazed at Long Meng with complex emotions, then deeply
sighed, “Follow me.”
He put his hand on Long Meng’s shoulder, twisted his alchemy device, and
teleported back into Tranquil Hill’s interior.
He returned to the startling line, next to him, Long Meng curiously looked all
over the place.
“That is the Dueling Godhead, your mission is to go to it and seize it.” The
Ice Sculpture King concisely explained.
Long Meng was startled, and he promptly expressed that this was a treasure he
could not touch.
The Ice Sculpture King shook his head and deeply sighed, “I really wanted to
acquire it, but regrettably, I am not qualified.”
“Rather than let the Godhead fall into the empire’s hands, I hope you can get
it.”
“Of all the duelists here, you are the most qualified. If you can’t, then no
one can.”
Long Meng approached the Dueling Godhead in accordance with the Ice Sculpture
King’s directives.
The king followed behind him.
Halfway there, the king came to a sudden stop, his placement identical to
before.
As Long Meng got further, he turned around and asked, “Your Majesty?”
The king conscientiously waved his hand, “Go, take the Godhead.”
Qi Ci Lang’s expression changed, tenaciously staring at Long Meng’s light
filled form, smiling, “You are Long Meng?”
Then, he stared blankly as Long Meng walked further than him; he was only 30
steps away from the Dueling Godhead.
When the Ice Sculpture King saw Long Meng stopping, he utterly despaired,
hoarsely asking, “If you can’t do it, then who can?”
Qi Ci Lang coughed, relinquishing his worries, and laughed heartily, “Long
Meng, I defeated you. Your king also meddled in a sacred duel; this caused you
to severely violate dueling rules. Hahaha, therefore, you cannot obtain the
Godhead’s favor.”
Qi Ci Lang’s killer words stung Long Meng.
Long Meng retorted back sharply, “Who do you think you are? You are 50 steps
away, what qualifications do you have to laugh at me?”
Qi Ci Lang grinded his teeth, anger twisted his face. But a rainbow ball of
light covered his body, and no one could see his expression changing.
Then at that moment, a fourth competitor appeared.



****** Chapter 755: The Dueling Godhead is Mine! ******
Four mysterious competitors slowly walked forward, all of them shrouded by
rainbow light, none could discern their appearance or figure.
“Who goes there?!”
“Who are you?!” The king and the others shouted in chorus.
But Teacher Si Ling was silent.
He gazed at the Dueling Godhead for a long time, then slowly walked forward
until he was forced to stop.
The pressure ahead was like a mountain.
He was about 80 steps away from the Dueling Godhead, closer to it than the
king.
“That distance…” The Ice Sculpture King’s pupils nevertheless contracted,
tightly grabbing hold of this clue, “You are also a saint level?!”
Teacher Si Ling still remained silent.
The Ice Sculpture King didn’t care about that as he continued to speculate,
“You are closer to it than I, that indicates that you are weaker than me…hehe,
who are you? Do you know you’ve become the Ice Sculpture King’s mortal enemy?”
What he didn’t know was that Teacher Si Ling was both stronger and had a far
greater comprehension of laws than him.
The reason why Teacher Si Ling got closer than the Ice Sculpture King was
because the death divinity was more adaptable to the Dueling Godhead than Ice
Law!
Qi Ci Lang also jeered Teacher Si Ling, “Give up, a saint level like yourself
has no hope.”
Teacher Si Ling still didn’t reply, instead he silently took out the divine
artifact [Truth Slate].
The [Truth Slate] was holding four Death Divinities.
Teacher Si Ling went all out, and activated a portion of the divine artifact’s
power, and released one masterless death divinity.
“Masterless” was crucial!
Like a drop of ink, the divinity condensed and hovered in the air.
The Dueling Godhead stirred!
The death divinity attracted it, and it floated towards Teacher Si Ling.
The death divinity simultaneously used formless power to pull it in.
After both rushed towards each other, the death divinity touched the Dueling
Godhead and was absorbed by the latter.
This scene stupefied the other three.
“What, what is going on?!” Qi Ci Lang screamed, “Using divinity to obtain the
Godhead’s favor?!”
“Damn it, they’ve come prepared!!” The Ice Sculpture King’s pupils shrank to
the size of a needle, and in a split second, he felt incomparable nervousness.
However, in the wake of Teacher Si Ling releasing the other three Death
Divinities, although the Dueling Godhead was closer to him, it was still 40
steps away.
“Huh?” Teacher Si Ling sank into contemplation, “How can this be?”
“According to Teacher’s arrangements, the death divinity I extracted from White
Hair Trench was enough to take possession of the Godhead.”
“Why is it still 40 steps away?”
For a moment, Teacher Si Ling also choked.
Seeing he hadn’t taken out more death divinity, the other three relaxed.
“So, as it turns out, contributing divinity helps in obtaining the Godhead’s
favor.” The Ice Sculpture King’s mouth whispered, his heart once again feeling
resentment towards his ancestors, why hadn’t they preserved such important
knowledge? Or was it that even legend levels were not enough to access the
greatest secrets of Godhead?
Qi Ci Lang taunted, “Ah haha, truly tragic.”
“As a saint level, obtaining divinity isn’t easy.”
“A true pity, four portions of divinity isn’t enough to obtain the Dueling
Godhead. Your investment has come to naught, hahaha.”
Just as he laughed, Qi Ci Lang’s body suddenly surged with a divine aura.
This was not the Dueling Godhead’s aura, but that of other gods.
As Qi Ci Lang gazed with amazement, a drop of dark green divinity separated
itself from his body.
“Divinity? How can my body have divinity in it?!” Qi Ci Lang stroked his chest
with extreme puzzlement.
The divinity and the Godhead were attracted to each other.
Thus, the Dueling Godhead traveled 10 steps towards Qi Ci Lang.
Shortly after, another divinity spilled out, once again bringing the Dueling
Godhead another 10 steps to Qi Ci Lang.
When the third divinity separated from him, Qi Ci Lang suddenly realized, “It
is my seven Immortality Blessings!”
Qi Ci Lang’s body had the Beloved bloodline. This kind of bloodline, this
bloodline naturally agreed with and could bear the weight of many divine
powers, thus, he often obtained the gods’ favor and doting.
Qi Ci Lang had taken part in many gods’ large religious festivals and obtained
the divine blessings of different gods many times. Among the strongest of them
was the seven Immortality Blessings. One had to meet seven different
requirements to break these blessings, and only then could he be slain.
Because of this, he had the nicknames Seven Lives and Beloved Child of Seven
Gods.
Although Long Meng had killed Qi Ci Lang more than seven times, he didn’t meet
the requirements to break the blessings, so his murders were wasted efforts. He
had to resolve the seven divine blessings first before he could reap Qi Ci
Lang’s life.
“So, as it turns out, my Immortality Blessings were woven with divinity.” Qi Ci
Lang realized at that moment what the empire’s exquisite plan was.
He was overjoyed at this unexpected news, “Good, the Dueling Godhead is mine!”
He was only 50 steps away from the Dueling Godhead initially. He had seven
divinities on him, enough for him to reach the Dueling Godhead.
But Teacher Si Ling had just used 4 Death Divinities, pulling the Dueling
Godhead away from its original spot, and farther from Qi Ci Lang.
There were roughly 60 steps between them.
This was because Teacher Si Ling, the Dueling Godhead, and Qi Ci Lang were not
in a straight line to each other. Although Teacher Si Ling and Qi Ci Lang were
opposite to each other, the straight line between them and the Godhead formed
an oblique angle.
Even so, based on Qi Ci Lang’s assessment, with his Immortality Blessings
converted into 7 divinities, he could bring the Godhead 70 steps towards him.
70 steps was greater than 60, therefore, he would definitely pull the Godhead
towards him.
“I win, the greatest winner here is me, only me!!” Qi Ci Lang laughed up a
storm, utterly pleased with himself.
Teacher Si Ling was silent.
The Ice Sculpture King loudly roared, “No—!
Long Meng rigidly clenched his teeth, extremely unreconciled.
At that moment, a fifth rainbow ball of light stepped in.
“Who?!”
“Who are you?”
“Hahaha, you’ve too slow.”
As soon as he saw the Dueling Godhead approaching Qi Ci Lang, the dragonman
youngster took out the [Mermaid Fairy Tale] and threw out a death divinity.
The Godhead was attracted to it, pulling away from Qi Ci Lang.
Qi Ci Lang: …
The others: ?!!
Long Meng stared, “That mysterious person has divinity too?”
The king grabbed his crown, threw it to the ground, and ruthlessly stomped,
utterly devoid of noble demeanor, “Why does it seem like every competitor came
prepared with divinity?!”
Qi Ci Lang clenched his teeth, the Dueling God was further from him, but he
still had hope.
Because the dragonman youngster and he weren’t in a straight line, they were
relatively opposite to a certain degree.
Qi Ci Lang had seven divinities.
He threw out another divinity.
The dragonman youngster kept pace.
Qi Ci Lang was startled, and he furiously roared, throwing out his last one.
The dragonman youngster had tossed out three Death Divinities.
Qi Ci Lang seemed to fall into an icy hole.
It was finished, he did his utmost to reach out, but the Godhead was still a
step away.
The dragonman youngster threw out his final divinity.
Thus, the Dueling Godhead almost brushed past Qi Ci Lang.
“No—!” Qi Ci Lang screeched to the heavens, his voice filled with sorrow, ire,
loathing, and powerlessness.
The Godhead grew 10 steps closer to the dragoman youngster; it was only two
steps away.
The young man’s divinity was exhausted.
Long Meng keenly sensed this, and he blurted out, “Their divinity is used up!”
Qi Ci Lang’s sorrowful screech came to a sudden stop, then he coughed
intensely.
“Hahaha, you failed too!” The Ice Sculpture King loudly derided, extremely
irritated.
Teacher Si Ling ferociously glared at the dragonman youngster, “How can this
be? He also took out death divinity, and all four of them are just like mine?!”
As everyone gazed at him closely, the dragonman youngster’s mouth twisted into
a silent smile.
He thought, “I am Long Fu, I have participated in many duels, my name has
spread across the entire nation.”
He continued to step forward.
“I am also the Dueling God’s holy warrior.”
The young man continued forward.
“I am in the top four in this year’s National Ceremony Grand Duel. I ultimately
defeated Xun Liang!”
The young man reached out his hand.
As the four stared on in shock, his finger softly and slowly touched the
Dueling Godhead.
A moment later, the Godhead’s sun-like radiance suddenly flashed with rainbow
divine splendor, burning back all the darkness and flooding all of Tranquil
Hill’s interior with its light.
“No, no, no!!!” Qi Ci Lang once again screeched in sorrow.
“That belongs to my Ice Sculpture Kingdom, it belongs to my country!!” The Ice
Sculpture King also miserably bawled.
And in the endless divine splendor, the dragonman youngster looked at the
Dueling Godhead slowly floating into his body.
He laughed, “The Dueling Godhead is mine.”
End of Book 2